Fanfic #86 Mineta by XenoWrites(MHA)

This fanfic follows an SI as Mineta in the world of my hero academia. I wasn't really expecting a lot from this fanfic, but it had a fun way of presenting the si and the si is actually an interesting person with an interesting journey on the way. Just check out the first chapter at least.

Synopsis: "When will this end? When you've flipped the Meta Liberation Army on its head?" Chitose asked. "All of Japan? The world?" "I'm not trying to do that," Mineta said, shaking his head. "I'm just trying to live my life. If one man can threaten a group just by existing, then it's a bad group. What I do with my life isn't any concern of theirs, so long as I don't harm them." "A lot of groups would disagree with that," Chitose pointed out. "When their followers leave because of you, they think you're harmful. You're stealing their people." "Individuals have free will," Mineta replied. "They're not slaves. They're not property. Those groups don't own their followers. That's how this whole mess got started."

Rated: M

words: 44k

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29591265/chapters/72732840

Here's the first chapter:

Chitose Kizuki first met the boy was when he was six years old.

Her editor told her rumors about a pre-teen in Yokohama starting a business and founding a charity for homeless kids. As a young, rising reporter, it was a good chance to do a nice puff-piece about it; something to spice up the boring news cycle of crime and politics.

Chitose delayed. She could interview the kid later; her current leads were far more interesting. There was something fascinating about the mysteries of human behavior, no matter whether they were humble or homicidal. She certainly didn't mind the paycheck, but to her, the story itself was the reward. A new investigation is like an unopened treasure chest, taunting her with the allure of the gold and jewels that lay within.

In contrast, there was little surprise in a pre-teen starting a business. Usually, their parents talked them into it, or their Quirk was a little niche. Their personalities were still developing, their egos fragile, and their decisions boring. Why should she bother with a brat, when she could pursue a serial killer?

A week later, she entered the bullpen and found a print-out slapped on her desk. Minoru Mineta, age 6, with a criminal charge for Illegal Quirk Use. She took her editor's hint, and got on the first train out of Chiyoda.

The train ride down allowed her to look up some basic information on her cellphone. Young Mineta had a Quirk that allowed him to grow small balls from his head, which were apparently the perfect size for throwing. He was selling them as dodgeballs to local schools.

The kid was six years old; it wasn't like he'd invented the next cellphone or anything like that. Chitose expected that his business probably wasn't anything special, and it probably wouldn't stand out from any other.

Honestly, she wasn't there to interview the kid's business; she was there to interview him. Most six-year-olds were too busy playing Heroes and Villains in their local park, flashing their quirks around willy-nilly, rather than knuckling down and creating a functioning business. No, the business didn't interest her at all. In another couple years, it would quietly fail when the kid's lack of maturity made some grievous mistake, or sink into obscurity when the kid's parents stopped holding his hand and stopped managing most of the business for him.

But… a child arrested for Illegal Quirk Use, and just that? Nothing else on the rap sheet like assault, vandalism, or even littering? There was something more to this story. A bored cop enjoying the power he had over others? A corrupt official sending a message to the child's family?

Her mind churned as the train rattled into Yokohama Station. The walk to the listed address stoked her curiosity further, as the surrounding buildings faded into the industrial zone, rather than a family home. Experienced eyes noted the security cameras placed obviously enough to serve as a deterrent from vandals.

When the door opened, a young man of perhaps twenty-five greeted Chitose, and welcomed her inside. The warehouse hadn't looked too shabby from the outside, but it wasn't brand-new, and the inside was much the same way, with rays of light stretching down from the upper walls, and a worn concrete floor. The only interesting feature were the square blue tarps located around the room, enclosed by low wooden barriers, like sandboxes in a playground. Inside each one were dozens of small purple balls. Dodgeballs, to be specific.

The employee showed Chitose to an internal office located in the corner, and then left her there, telling her that "the boss" was inside, waiting.

By this point, Chitose's curiosity was almost overwhelming. She nearly opened the door right away, but a quick bite to the inside of her cheek kept that urge in check, and she knocked politely and waited for a response.

"Come in," said a high-pitched voice.

Minoru Mineta sat behind a nice wooden desk, in a chair that looked to have a very high back, but was actually regular sized. He was just that tiny, at six years of age. His hands were folded on top of the desk and he was wearing a nice suit and tie, like he was a normal businessman meeting a journalist... despite the fact that Chitose could see the stack of cushions he was sitting on, peeking out from the side of the chair.

It was adorable, and her heart squished a little… but it was also yet another oddity. She'd expected an immature kid, and here sat a miniature salaryman. The suit even looked tailored, not just an off-the-rack kid's jacket and pants.

"Ah, you must be from Shueisha," Mineta said, nodding to her and smiling. "I'd stand for you, to be polite, but if I'm honest it'll take me another minute to get back into this chair afterwards, so if you don't mind, I'll refrain for now."

Chitose couldn't help but chuckle at the kid's honesty about his height.

"Yes, I'm Chitose Kizuki," she said, smiling as she bowed in polite greeting.

Mineta nodded, and negligently waved a hand at the chair opposing his.

"Please, sit, sit!" he said.

"I must admit to being surprised, Mineta-san," Chitose started softly, giving him an easy, warm smile, as she set her voice recorder on the desk and pitched him a low-ball. "When they told me that a young man had founded his own business and was making waves, I wasn't expecting someone quite this young. What inspired you to create your business, if I might ask?"

"No need to be so formal. As for your question... well, one day I was sitting around at home, and I was bored," Mineta answered, shrugging with a comfortable ease. "You see, my Quirk is quite unusual. You see my hair?"

"Of course, it's quite distinctive," she replied.

"Yes, yes. Those balls on my head are solid objects, you see. I can 'pluck' them, like grapes, and they stick to whatever they touch."

"Interesting," Chitose lied. "You could become an amazing Hero with a Quirk like that. Imagine being able to glue someone in place so easily!"

"Oh, yes," Mineta said, with the tiniest hint of unease, which was interesting. He'd made a self-depreciative joke about his height in the same way that an adult might have, but a single remark about being a Hero, and he became uneasy. That was unusual. Didn't most kids want to be Pro Heroes? Self-confidence issues, perhaps?

"Luckily, the balls don't remain stuck forever," Mineta resumed, ignoring his little pause. "After several hours, they lose all of their stickiness, and just turn into regular plush balls. Like anyone, I experimented with my Quirk right after I got it, and afterwards, I had a big pile of... well, dodgeballs."

"So you didn't decide to make a business out of a love for the game of dodgeball, or anything like that," Chitose summarized. "You realized that your Quirk made it very easy to make them in the first place."

"Exactly," Mineta said, nodding a little. "To be honest, the idea for a business didn't even cross my mind at first. The dodgeballs at my kindergarten were old, and had some rips and tears, so I asked the teachers if I might supply some out of my own 'pocket', so to speak. After we started using them, one of the teachers asked my parents where they bought the new dodgeballs, and my father simply pointed at me. They were very disappointed, because they wanted to buy some more for the local elementary schools to use. They believed that my dodgeballs were superior. That's what really put the idea in my head, if I'm honest. I owe quite a lot to my teacher, Mrs. Tanaka."

"Ah, do you mean 'owe' as in a financial obligation, or...?" Chitose asked, before wincing in her head. Damn it, this was a six-year old, he wasn't going to understand that. She'd let her eagerness for a good story get ahead of her, yet again, and now she was dipping back into old habit at the wrong time. This wasn't a corporate salaryman, no matter how he was dressed, and she didn't need to keep biting at his heels.

"Oh, absolutely not," Mineta informed her, shaking his head slightly, as Chitose tried to keep her surprise hidden. "While Mrs. Tanaka was the inspiration for this idea, and I am very grateful to her, that doesn't mean I owe her any money, or anything like that. We didn't have a contract, and she offered that advice freely, without asking for any repayment."

Interesting. A six-year-old who understood the concept of owing a debt to someone for their idea, and understood the implications of that. That was intriguing on its own, but combine that with the kid's behavior and mannerisms, and Chitose could almost mistake him as an adult... save for the height.

She could work with that. She could sell that.

"That's fascinating, Mineta," Chitose praised, making sure not to use the formal '-san', as he had requested; even her generation didn't like using them, but formality looked good to the old fogeys at the editor's desk. "Still, that's just the idea for making the company. What was your motivation to go forward with that idea, to actually do it?"

"Money, of course," Mineta answered, with a wry smirk. "I like money, and I'd like to have more of it."

Chitose couldn't help but laugh a little at that. A polite chuckle was the most she let out, but Mineta nodded in response, still with that wry smirk. Did he pick up that she was more amused? How intelligent was this kid?

"I don't often get that answer, I must admit," Chitose said. "It's somewhat refreshing."

"Honesty is one of the best things in life," Mineta replied, leaning back in his comically oversized chair. "Or at least, so my parents tell me."

"They seem wise," Chitose complimented. "Why don't you tell me a little more about them?"

"There's not too much to tell," Mineta said with a shrug. "I come from a fairly middle-class family, with a loving mother and father. They were surprised by my desire to go into business, I'll admit, but they've been fully supportive. In fact, the first deliveries were made by my father."

"I've noticed that you've got at least one employee here. How much has your business grown, since you started?"

"We started about a year ago, and it was fairly slow at first," Mineta recounted, looking upwards in thought. "Since our production costs were essentially just my food for the day, the main problem was getting sales. We found that it went much easier if I physically visited. Most of the schools were amused enough by my... precociousness, I believe, that they humored me. After my foot was in the door, everything usually went much easier, particularly once they noticed the price."

"Yes, I'd imagine that you can sell these at quite a profit, and still undercut your competitors," Chitose replied.

"If I wanted, I could sell them for a single yen each," Mineta said freely. "Of course, that would lower my profit margin, and drive my competitors out of business all the faster. I'm not interested in either of those things."

"How generous of you," Chitose said, changing the subject before they got bogged down in boring details, "Now, if it's alright with you, I'd like to ask about the charity you've set up. I understand it is primarily focused on the homeless population, and on homeless children in particular?"

"That's correct," Mineta said, his smile fading. "There are many things that children shouldn't have to face, and homelessness is among the worst. The government does its best, of course, but someone always slips through the cracks."

"A noble motive," Chitose replied. "Were you inspired by any personal experience in particular?"

Mineta didn't respond immediately. His expression was a curious mixture of serious contemplation that looked out of place on such a young face, and the same hesitation that she had seen earlier. Why would he react in such a way to this question? Were the memories awkward? Was he trying to conceal some bad experiences of his own?

"I wouldn't say that," Mineta said, finally, "I read about a case of a missing child, abandoned on the street. I wished that I could have met him, and helped him."

Interesting. His words sounded true, but the hesitation made Chitose doubt this was the full story. There was something being concealed here, something that Mineta didn't want her to know. What was it? What was the secret? She needed to know the full, juicy details.

"How kind," Chitose remarked, clamping down on her burning curiosity. The kid was six years old. He didn't need a journalist tearing into him, searching through all his dirty little secrets and revealing them in a tell-all, show-all extravaganza… no matter how tempting it felt.

Still, he was vulnerable right now. He'd finally shown a little weakness with the question about the charity. Chitose couldn't resist one last little nibble, just to keep her foot in the door. The boy was so interesting, after all. It wouldn't hurt to go further. Even if this was just a puff-piece, this portion didn't have to go in the article.

"Now, I'm afraid I have to ask about something that might be a little awkward," Chitose said, deliberately leaning back in her chair as she looked at Mineta's expression. "I've heard a rumor that you've actually been arrested for Illegal Quirk Use."

Mineta said nothing, but surprisingly, rather than hardening his expression, a wry smile tugged at his lips, and he tilted his head.

"It's such a rare thing these days," Chitose continued, smiling gently back, trying to look reassuring, "With many police officers being lenient on young children, especially on its own. Normally, the crime is tacked on with another charge. I must admit some… curiosity… as to what happened."

"I wasn't just arrested," Mineta said, the wry smile widening, as he met her gaze. "I was convicted for it. I entered a guilty plea."

"Fascinating," Chitose murmured, the word slipping out before she could catch herself. No time to retract, that'd look worse. Press forward, she reminded herself. Always press forward. "Why did you do a thing like that?"

"Honesty is one of the best things in life," Mineta repeated, looking her dead in the eye. "I disagree with that law, and I did not intend to violate it, but I'll be damned if I'm going to lie about breaking it."

What did that mean? Chitose leaned forward instinctively, questions dripping from the back of her throat, that familiar ache starting in her chest -

No. No, not now. Not here.

It was getting worse, her curiosity. Her control was slipping. She needed to get out of here.

Her career had to be spotless, and interrogating a child would be an irremovable blemish. For all that he looked like an adorable mixing of a salaryman and a child playing dress-up, Mineta had been sharp, and he could easily cause her issues back in Chiyoda by weaponizing that.

"Thank you for your time, Mineta," Chitose said, smiling warmly, as she smothered her runaway feelings. "I'm sure that we'll all be watching your career with great interest. Shueisha may be interested in a follow-up piece in a few months, maybe a year, if that's acceptable to you? It's always interesting to see how young entrepreneurs develop and grow. Here's my card."

"Of course," Mineta said. "And thank you, Ms. Kizuki."

Chitose smiled as she rose from her seat and moved to leave. Before she could step out of the office, however, a thought struck her, and she turned back around.

"I'm so sorry, I forgot to ask," she apologized. "You mentioned that your charity for the homeless was inspired by the story of a missing child. Is that where the name of the charity came from?"

"Yes," Mineta said, as a look of… almost sadness came across him. "The Tenko Shimura Foundation. I just wish I could've helped the poor bastard."

That wasn't just sadness. That was regret. Why was Mineta feeling personal regret for someone he hadn't even met?

Chitose's eyes widened, and she pursed her lips, her chest now burning with the need to ask, to know, to learn –

"Thank you, Ms. Kizuki," Mineta said, cutting her off before she could start. The look of regret was gone, and a look of disapproval was in its place. She recoiled slightly, and her expression tightened and closed off.

She nodded, not trusting her mouth to cooperate, and quietly left the office.