The night was brisk, and the wind grazed Shoto's face like a sharp knife. The steamy moonlight gleamed off his red scar like a shining star on the solid ground. The roof of the U.A. student dormitory was glazed with a thin sheet of water after the thunderstorm of the previous night. Shoto wrapped his hands around his legs and continued to stare at the black sky dotted with white freckles. Footsteps began to form behind him, a creeping sense running up Todoroki's back. He did not hesitate. He placed his right hand down, and the small amount of water on the ground began to freeze, a gigantic piece of ice shooting up from the ground, barely missing the figure standing behind him. Shoto turned around, revealing the mysterious figure.
"That was a bad idea, Izuku. Sneaking up on me like that." Shoto turned back around. Izuku stood behind him, wide eyed and stunned that his death was half an inch away.
"So, are you going to stand there all night?" Izuku snapped out of his dazed reality and looked at Todoroki.
"Oh um, coming." He walked up to Shoto, who was sitting closer to the edge than Izuku thought, and plopped down right next to him. They sat there in silence for a few moments, their eyes glued to the infinite abyss that everyone would have to admit they thought about at some point. Izuku then scratched his head awkwardly, and spoke quietly.
"So, what are you doing up here all by yourself all night, Todoroki?" Todoroki continued his mindful gaze without giving Izuku a glance, his mouth beginning to move slightly.
"It's quiet. Peaceful. The world is full of petty distractions and petty people. Up here, it is nothing but me and the sky." He looked down. "And a cockroach I guess." He looked back up right at Izuku.
"Midoriya, why are you up here? You are never awake at this time." Izuku blushed.
"I couldn't sleep and decided to get some water, but I tripped in the hallway because of that stupid table that Momo put practically in the middle of the hallway, then saw you as I was on the floor, so decided to see if you were...okay, I guess." He finished, his face holding a resemblance to that of a child trying to contain a lie. Shoto turned back towards the sky. It was just so hard to take his eyes off of it.
"I am okay, seeing as I am not dead." Shoto stated.
"Right, yea." Izuku stuttered. When he first met Todoroki, he knew how powerful he was. Now, he seemed so...innocent. So naive and...kind of sarcastic. Izuku was having a hard time trying to understand him. Out of the awkward silence, a small buzz of a phone went off. Shoto glared at Izuku.
"Don't look at me, I left mine in my room." Izuku said defensively. Shoto grabbed his phone from a pocket of a jacket laying next to him, and clicked the power button. A white light shone on his face, his eyes reflecting his default background and his hair softly falling in his face.
"It's from my dad," Todoroki said blatantly, "he says he has a mission in northern Japan and wants me to join him."
Izuku couldn't tell that well, but he swore he heard a bit of disdain in Todoroki's voice at the mention of his father.
"Oh," was all Izuku managed to say, "are you going to go?" He asked with true questionable intentions. Todoroki looked at Midoriya for a moment, then returned to his phone.
"I don't think I have a choice. I am his sidekick after all."
By the end of Todoroki's short sentence, he had already grabbed his light jacket and stood up.
"Wait, your going...right now? It's like, 3 am." Izuku urged. Todoroki ignored this statement.
"Tell the others I'm out on a mission with my wfather if they happen to ask tomorrow. The village I must go to is not that far, so I should be back in about a week or two. Goodbye Midoriya."
And with those last words, Todoroki climbed off the roof of the student dorm at U.A., leaving Midoriya up there by himself. Once Todoroki had disappeared into the woods that surrounded the dorms, Izuku sighed and stood up.
Be safe then, I guess. Izuku thought before heading to bed for the rest of the night. Todoroki was now off on his mission, and he would (hopefully) be back in 1-2 weeks.
"Have your eyes open at all times Shoto," was all Endeavor had said to Todoroki since they arrived at the village that now seemed completely deserted. The town border, usually guarded with two quirkless soldiers, because it was, well, a mostly quirkless village, was gone, a black scorch mark in their place. The only people with quirks in this once small booming town was the mayor and the local farmer. Now neither could be found. No one was there. The isolated creepiness even gave a slight chill down Endeavor's spine. Their footsteps each made a solo noise, echoing off the houses and small shops. Endeavor looked over at his son, realizing that he was only holding his power in on his right side.
"You know son, you would be much more powerful with your left side." Endeavor sneered.
"I'm not your son. And I'll do what I want with my left side." Shoto declared, his eyes darting straight forward, avoiding any more contact with his father. Endeavor grunted softly, and both kept walking down the stone pathway, some places lightly dusted with black particles of burnt rubble. After walking for what felt like a very awkward eternity, the cracked path had eventually led them to what they assumed was the remains of some sort of barn that also acted as a windmill. The white paint was chipped on the sides, it's original glow now out of sight. The open windows let stale air in as dust particles speckled the atmosphere, and small shards of glass were spread out on the ground like broken ornaments. The windmill was completely destroyed, but Shoto could tell that it was of old age, and it didn't take much to knock it down when someone tried. The rubble of the windmill sat comfortably close to the edge of a riverbank, the water still and reflecting the hazy moonlight. Half of the windmill was still standing, though. The closer they had gotten to the windmill, the more frequent the scorch marks were.
"Follow my lead, Shoto," Endeavor called out quietly. Shoto ignored his father's statement and went on ahead, small ice particles forming in his right hand. Shoto pushed what remained of an old wooden door out of the way and looked inside. In a way, it was beautiful. How the moonlight flooded in like soft silk, and the wood accenting the dark corners of the forest that enclosed the windmill area. Dust glided in like a bird and drifted towards a bale of hay or a wooden plank that hung from the ceiling. Shoto looked over on the wall of the windmill still standing and managed to spot a few stick figures plastered in bright colors. One looked like a small girl while the other looked like a boy. There may have been a dog there too. Shoto then realized.
Children.
There were kids here.
Shoto suddenly got angry. Whoever did this would pay dearly by the hands of Shoto Todoroki. Shoto entered with caution. His footsteps felt softer than before, the dirty hay silencing his careful movement. When he finally got halfway into the barn, he looked back. His father was nowhere to be seen. That wasn't like him to just disappear without a single sound. Shoto was ready now. Sparks flew up from his left hand, and ice shards exfoliating from his right. He heard a soft noise from behind him. He spun around and unleashed a wave of flames that engulfed his vision.
"You have so much to learn about your left side," someone whispered in Todoroki's ear. Todoroki jerked the other way, trying to find the voice. His eyes widened at the sight of the figure. And then they closed. And everything went black.
It had been one week since Todoroki left on his mission and abandoned Izuku on the roof. Although Todoroki did not speak much during the school day, Class 1-A could surely agree that it was more quiet without him. Their nightly get togethers at the dorm lounge was mostly quiet except for Denki's cheesy jokes and the occasional sarcastic and crude remarks from Bakugo. Midoriya guessed that everyone sort of missed Shoto, in a way. Although he knew that it would probably only be a few more days before Todoroki returned, Izuku couldn't help but worry slightly. The next day, the whole class mingled in their homeroom, even after the bell rang. Everyone wondered where Aizawa could be, and Iida pointed out that they were probably having some sort of hero meeting since the number two hero had been gone longer than expected. Everyone shrugged, as it could be a possibility, but they all continued to talk about daily life and things they would do when break came. Suddenly, Aizawa stepped in the class, and everyone was in their seats as soon as he had reached his desk. Aizawa cleared his throat.
"Due to the lack of the presence of the number two hero, Endeavor, the principal has asked me to fill in this spot until he returns. This means," he sighed, "that you will have a temporary break until I am no longer needed to fulfill this position. I still expect you to continue to practice your quirks, this isn't a complete and total break, pl-" before he could finish, the entirety of the class yelled and screamed in joyous delight of this unexpected miracle. Everyone grabbed their books and heavy bags, their voices bright with hope. The whole class walked back to the dorms together, each talking about what they should do with this spared time. When night fell, and the class was resting in the lounge, Izuku felt a buzz from him phone. He clicked the power button and immediately saw that it was from All Might. He quickly opened up the text to read it.
There is something you must know, Young Midoriya.
Was all it said, Izuku's heart beginning to pick up pace.
What is it All Might?
He asked, trying not to sound desperate.
Todoroki's mission, something is wrong.
With this text, Midoriya's heart began to race.
What happened
Was all he texted.
They were supposed to check up with us via telecommunications, but it's been four days since they were supposed to check in. Something isn't right.
Izuku felt like he couldn't breathe. His friend could be in danger.
We have to go find them.
Izuku texted
No, it is too dangerous for students. If there really is a serious threat out like, say the League of Villains, then I will go, along with a few pro heroes.
All Might texted. All Might was downright stupid if he thought Midoriya would listen to his warning. He put down his phone without answering and stood up, drawing attention to everyone in the room.
"Ochako, Bakugo, Iida, Kirishima. Can you come with me for a second?" Izuku stayed, his voice surprisingly calm for the situation. The people he called out stood up hesitantly and followed Izuku into the never used kitchen. He stopped in his tracks and turned around. Before he knew it, his words came blubbering out of him faster than his mind could process.
"AbisenbdjcdTodorokishwbebdixbxmissingienwbdjxndndno one knowsjsnwnsisndxidjnsdn" Midoriya blabbered.
"Whoa, dude chill," Kirishima said, holding out his hand and placing it on Izuku's shoulder.
"So, Todoroki is in trouble?" Ochako asked. Izuku nodded his head slightly.
"Damn half and half. This is just like him, going missing without telling anybody," Bakugo hissed.
"Midoriya, are you suggesting we go out to help him? We should leave the pros to that," Iida suggested.
"Listen guys, Todoroki could be in real trouble, and if he is, the pros wont get there in time. It's my job as his friend to be there for him, and if I let him just...die...well, some friend I'll be..." Izuku finished, his eyes tearing up. Kirishima looked at him with an astonished face. Ochako's eyes were glazed, and Iida's face was serious. Bakugo grunted and broke the silence.
"Guess now I have to go rescue that crap hero and prove to him I'm that much better."
Izuku looked up, and saw Kirishima look over at Bakugo and smile.
"I guess I'm in too. We had to rescue Bakugo once so I'll just have to be there to do it again since he's always getting in trouble," Kirishima laughed, Bakugo giving him a deathly glare.
"I'm in too!" Ochako practically yelled, looking determined, yet a bit uneasy. Iida sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them to look at Izuku.
"For the justice of the hero society, I shall take part of this as well!" He called out like a hero in a comic book. Izuku smiled, so grateful that he had friends who would come along on this journey with him.
"Ok, everyone meet outside the dorm in 2 hours. And pack your stuff. We're going on a trip," Midoriya issued. Everyone nodded and headed to their rooms to pack. The hours passed faster than usual, Midoriya thought. Ten minutes before the designated meeting time, he was already out by the doors. One by one, Ochako, Iida, Bakugo, and Kirishima emerged, either a packback or a small luggage container by their side.
"Is everyone ready?" Izuku asked. He heard a yes from four different people. Perfect. They were all here.
"Remember everyone, this is for Todoroki."
Everyone nodded, and they walked together into the woods, heading towards the same village Shoto and his father had disappeared in. They were powered solely on blind faith and their own will. They would find their friend, and they would bring him back.
To be continued...