Chapter 48 (Vigilantes)

Investigation Time (捜査開始) is the forty-eighth chapter of Hideyuki Furuhashi and Betten Court's Vigilante - My Hero Academia: Illegals.

Summary
Koichi goes to the Hotta Brothers Shop to deliver to Eraser Head a new USB with records of his latest patrols, but the brothers tell him that he is with the police at that moment. Jiro asks if it would be better for him to give it to Midnight, but he says that he does not want to bother her, also it's Kazuho who has a better relationship with her, although at that time she is training for Captain Celebrity’s farewell party.

Meanwhile, in the police station, Naomasa Tsukauchi tells Shota that, thanks to the information of the list of clients obtained in Hong Kong plus the recordings of the vigilantes, he has been able to establish a chain of relationships that point to the Onomura Pharma Corp., a pharmaceutical company that could be, or be related to, the Villain Factory.

At that moment Fat Gum and Monika Kaniyashiki enter the room, and Naomasa says to Aizawa that they are there to help him in the investigation. Officer Kaniyashiki has been on the trail of the drug network for a while, meanwhile the hero Fat Gum is perfect to battle remodeled villains. Shota will team up with them, backing up Monika as battle-ready investigator, whereas Fat Gum will only act in case they have to fight against a villain. Their mission will be make direct contact with people connected to the company.

Throughout the day, Shota and Monika carry out the investigation, with some minor problem. While patrolling the streets as The Crawler, Koichi recognizes Monika and is surprised to see her with Aizawa. Koichi greets them, although they ignore him.

Upon returning to his penthouse, Koichi wants to tell Kazuho about the meeting with Shota, but she is too busy with the show performance, and she does not pay much attention to Koichi. Due to this, he decides to go to the Hotta brothers store to have a conversation with someone, although for the brothers his presence is not pleasant, especially now that Eraser Head was not there to bother them. When they mentioned Shota, Koichi tells them that he saw him walking with Monika, an "Idol" he knows (Koichi ignores that Monika is actually a policewoman)

When Shota arrives to the store, the brothers, moved by jealousy, rub in his face that he is dating an Idol. Shota does not know what they are talking about.

Chapter Notes

 * Naomasa has found a possible lead to the location of the Villain Factory
 * Eraser Head goes undercover with Fat Gum and Monika to find the individuals who can lead them to the Villain Factory