Chapter Text
It had been pretty quiet in Yokohama after the Guild incident. Suspiciously quiet, Atsushi thinks, watching Dazai up and leave work without Kunikida so much as sparing a glance. Something was going on here, something suspicious. A brief glance towards Junichirou showed Atsushi he wasn't alone in his suspicion.
The president had spent more time outside the agency than in; sometimes, he'd even take a few of his subordinates. Dazai and Ranpo left the most frequently, Kunikida in a close second. Yosano was clearly in the know but remained in the office.
Then, on an unremarkable, slow-paced day, the young quartet of the agency finally received their answer.
"We're going to the Port Mafia's headquarters," Fukuzawa had stated idly, as if commenting that it was slightly cloudy outside. "There's an urgent matter that requires our joint cooperation,"
And that was that. The agency left to meet the mafia while the clerks stayed behind, Naomi even waving at them from the windows.
When they arrived, the Black Lizards were there to escort them to the meeting room. Atsushi couldn't help but feel nervous from the number of eyes that turned to look at them.
"Ah, Armed Detective Agency, welcome," Mori greeted with a simpering purr. Yosano bristled.
"Mori," Was Fukuzawa's returned greeting.
"Let's get into it, shall we?" It was clear this was a command, not a question, so the agency complied, taking up the empty seat reserved for them. Dazai subtly nudged Kenji and Kyouka to sit as far away from Mori as possible. Atsushi got the sentiment.
Mori, sparing no time, instantly jumped into the details, his smiley persona replaced by neutral professionalism.
"Just a few weeks ago, the Mafia received reports of a suspicious figure trailing the borders. He has since been identified as the villain, All For One. Now, we have no need for silly terms like heroes and villains, but if an outsider is skulking around our borders, the problem needs to be dealt with swiftly. You're all aware of how delicate Yokohama's balance is. To combat this, we've decided to meet the problem at its source. Dazai has spoken to Ango, and the government had agreed to help forge official documents to assist in our endeavour."
The agency members already in the know didn't look surprised. Atsushi wondered what kind of documents were involved.
Luckily, Mori seemed to read his mind. "Researching into All For One's background, we found he is the mastermind behind the group, the League of Villains. The League predominantly attack Class 1-A of UA High, a hero school in Japan. From here we've decided to infiltrate both UA and the League to gain more information. We are searching for information on his motives and from then, stop him from whatever he is trying to do. Dazai, if you'd take it from here?"
Dazai seamlessly continued the briefing, looking more serious than Atsushi had seen him in a while. "Speaking with Ango, he reached out to UA and managed to set up an exchange programme. We were told to send four students. Discussions have been made about who we think would be best to send to UA, and we've agreed that Atsushi, Tanizaki, Kenji and Kyouka would be the best fits,"
"Why us?" Junichirou questioned, looking on the verge of having a heart attack.
"First of all, you four are the youngest of the agency. The students in Class 1-A are fifteen to sixteen. Ango was told when he reached out that he could send someone a little younger or older if it was more achievable, but we're trying to stick as close to the range as possible. Second, we're going along with the outside's view that Yokohama is war-stricken, and overrun with villains. Kyouka, Atsushi and you are all believable for this role."
"And Kenji?"
"For safety reasons. Kyouka's less likely to jump and attack a classmate if Atsushi and Kenji are with her."
Soothed by the answers, Junichirou quieted down. Atsushi spoke after he was done questioning. "Are Junichirou and I going to lie about our age then?"
"Correct," This time it was Mori who answered. "You both are going undercover as sixteen for this mission. It's believable enough, you both are quite young in the face. As for the other two, they'll be truthful about their age. Now, it's time to learn a bit more about who you'll be - The detective agency will still be a thing, except it's a small, family-owned business. And it doesn't deal with abilities either, or even cases too tough for the police. Just you average, run-of-the-mill detective agency. Fukuzawa will be your adoptive philanthropist of a father. Fukuzawa, Ranpo and Dazai will be the only detectives in the family. Naomi will remain a clerk and student. Yosano will be a doctor and Kunikida will be a teacher. You four will be students. You all came from unfortunate backgrounds before Fukuzawa adopted you. On the legal documents provided by Ango, your family name is Fukuzawa. I expect you to get used to this, I don't want any slip-ups, understand?"
The four nodded.
"Wonderful! Akutagawa here will infiltrate the League. You will gather information from your respective sources, and report once a week to Tachihara and Gin. Any questions?"
Silence ensued.
"No? Good. I expect you to practice your roles, you don't have long before you leave,"
Atsushi's mind was racing as the agency traipsed out of the meeting room. He'd be going to a hero school? With his lack of control over his ability? Mori hadn't said it because it had been obvious - don't let the outsiders know about abilities. Were any of them good enough to pass them off as quirks?
Junichirou seemed to share his sentiments, stewing nervously at his side. He could barely go an hour without seeing Naomi, how was he supposed to last an entire mission? Though that could possibly be an incentive to find information as quickly as possible.
Kenji was so honest, how would he fare lying for so long? And he bordered on gullible sometimes. Kenji was strong, smart and independent, but they were going to be on foreign land playing foreign roles. How would he hold up?
And Kyouka, she was so jumpy. Jumpy enough that her first automatic fear response was to stab. If she didn't have a knife with her, she usually went for the knees to give her some time to run. Sure, she'd have some of the agency with her, but would she truly be okay?
With a shudder, Atsushi realised he'd have to get used to calling the agency members by their given names, and Fukuzawa dad. That was not something he'd want to imagine.
...
Goddamnit, Mori.