When I was uploading the document for this, I noticed that the last time a chapter had a file size as big as this was Chapter 32. I must have been feeling inspired or something. To date, the chapter with the biggest file size is Chapter 11, with the word doc being 50KB. Fun fact.
Also, thank you to those of you who replied regarding Mr and Mrs Urarakas names (or lack thereof in this case). I'll either have to come up with something or just call them Mr/Mrs Uraraka or use euphemisms.
Review time:
The Keeper of Worlds, Corruption of Saints, avidreaded, 61394, rjkeith, Batmarcus, The 0bservanc3, TheJSmooth: The omake was extremely well-received, to the point of people asking if it is/if it can be canon. Originally I wasn't really thinking about that, but I don't think it would really get in the way of anything if it was at least semi-canon so...sure, why not. Mitsuki's maiden name being Takeyama is canon.
Hestia is Bestia: Due to plot-related stuff happening with the characters involved, I cannot give you a straight answer to the question of whether there will be an All MightxInko ship in this story. That's like, mega spoiler territory. Glad you're enjoying the story though!
rjkeith: I do have some potential plans for a pairing for Bakugo, though obviously I can't say anything about that. As far as weapon usage goes, that'd be a bit tough to work into Fight Club simply because of the increased risk, but at least a couple of the students will definitely use them. Momo and Denki are two that come to mind right away (he really liked that baton that Momo gave him).
Thy Squirrel: One of the things about relationships in a lot of media, be it anime, cartoons, whatever, is how much they play the will they or won't they game for the sole purpose of sparking conversation and igniting the fanbase. Thus, I have made a conscious effort not do to that here. It's funny that you'd ask about Hisashi. This chapter might have something for you there.
The 0bservanc3: Katsuki is referring to how a bunch of club members got injured/tired/whatevered so badly that they wouldn't be in any shape to participate in the club activities. This version of Katsuki is definitely better with social situations than canon, thanks in no small part to Izuku's influence. "One thing led to another" and "long story short" are indeed tropes that can backfire easily depending on how they're used. I'm not sure if I'd say that Torchbearer! Inko is closer to her son than canon Inko or not, simply due to canon Inko not getting as much screentime or development as mine. If they seem closer, it might be because I tried to write their mother/son relationship as more...real? Relatable? Idk.
Ochako is definitely a daddy's girl, yeah. As far as her accent goes...I just kinda forgot. I'm also not entirely sure how I'd write that accent, so I might just forego it entirely. I'm fairly certain that I've never mentioned the name Uravity in Torchbearer. Kondo was just a random character I made up on the spot and will probably not be significant.
I'm not sure if Nishiya would sweat. I think that only parts of his body are actually wood, so I'd guess the parts that aren't would probably sweat. Yeah, my reasoning for how the Quirks could be so different was pretty much just "Eh, Quirk mutation." I took some license with him retracting his mask, but if we assume that he eats like anyone else (which I did) then he'd have to have a way to do that. Plus, he does the same type of motion as something like a gundam or super sentai warrior, and that's awesome (if you need a reference of that, look at a clip of Viewtiful Joe at the start of a boss fight). What Katsuki means is that if rabid fangirls find out that Kamui like doing it in the woods, then the woods will become inundated with horny fangirls.
HyperNinja203: You know, I didn't even realize that the title could apply to the whole chapter. Good catch there. It makes me look a lot smarter than I actually am XD
Consipated Genius, Sentinel07, Tonlor, Johnny Spectre, ILiekFishes, 13RoniN13, inFamousSlyMonkey, Eramis8, ScepticalOne, Dr-J33butOffline, Guest, omegazero2718, scorpioneldar, TheJSmooth, Ooobserver and everyone else: Thank you and I hope that you continue to enjoy!
Now, let's pick up where we left off! Or at least, a couple of hours after that.
Chapter Forty-Six: Newbie
It had only been a couple of hours since Izuku Midoriya's talk with All Might concerning the U.A. guest pass, but he and his mother were already en route to the Hero Academy's campus. All Might had texted him saying that the guest pass was ready and that the second day of the Sports Festival seemed to be progressing more quickly than the first.
The timetable was actually pretty efficient when they didn't constantly have to call intermissions in order to patch up the ring. Who'd have thought? In retrospect, Izuku supposed that was why they started relatively early in the day as well: to allow for unforeseen complications.
The result was that the inheritor of One For All and his mother got off their last train nearly two hours prior to when yesterday's festivities had ended.
"I had expected it to look different." Inko mused as they approached the front gates, "It does, but not as much as I had thought. My, this brings back memories."
She then started to point out little things that she remembered or that had changed over the years. The school's walkway was, as ever, impressive and the novelty of his mother being familiar with U.A. was still very fresh for Izuku.
He still couldn't help being nervous about his mother meeting All Might, which was silly, since the boy had known the Number One Hero on a personal level for over a year by then and, consequently, had gotten rather comfortable around him. He didn't stutter on every other word around the man anymore and even rolled his eyes occasionally at his over-the-top antics.
Even so, he had never stopped idolizing the Symbol of Peace. If anything, knowing the real All Might, flaws and all, had served to humanize the man and make Izuku respect him even more. He wasn't some invincible ubermensch who ate evil and shat justice as though it was second-nature to him; he was a flesh-and-blood man who knew pain, felt fear and had regrets just like everyone else. In spite of the obstacles that had stood in his way, that still stood in his way, he refused to bend or break.
In the truest sense of the word, he was a Hero. He was the Hero as far as Izuku was concerned.
Inko had known that her son had been training with All Might and she knew that he was a teacher at U.A. How could she not have known? It had been one of the most heavily-publicized career moves in recent history. While Izuku knew that his fears were most likely baseless, as they generally were in situations such as this, he couldn't stop himself from worrying that two of the most important adult figures in his life would end up not liking each other.
What if his mother thought All Might was a bit too goofy to be a respectable teacher? What if All Might thought that his mother was a bit overbearing? What if they got into an argument?
Izuku was jolted out of his reverie by the feeling of a hand ruffling his hair.
"You're doing it again, Izuku." Inko gave her son a knowing smile, "Just relax. Everything will be fine. It's not like I'm not nervous about meeting him too, you know? How could I not be? He's been your Hero for practically your whole life. Do you know how many parents would absolutely kill to have them be their child's mentor of all things? If there's a person that I need to thank besides Recovery Girl, it's undoubtedly All Might."
"Ah-ha! The Midoriyas are HERE!"
How a seven-foot two mass of muscle was consistently able to appear out of nowhere, with absolutely no one seeing him coming, was a mystery that Izuku doubted he would ever completely solve.
"GAH! All Might-sensei!"
"Ha ha! Startled you, did I? My apologies, my boy!" he then turned to face Inko and held out a badge with a neck strap, "Your guest pass, Midoriya-san. May I say that it is a pleasure to meet you in the flesh; my protégé mentioned you to me quite often during the breaks in our training."
Inko, in spite of her earlier assurances, was clearly a bit star-struck as she took the badge and put it around her neck.
"The p-pleasure is all mine, All Might! You've been a mainstay in our household ever since Izuku was old enough to understand what a Hero was!"
"You flatter me. Please, allow me to escort the two of you to Recovery Girl's office! The day's festivities are over, but it may still take her a moment or two to return to her regular post. Last-minute treatments and all that, you know. When that woman finds the time to rest is beyond me!"
"You're one to talk." Inko chuckled.
"Ha ha! You have a point there! I can see where your son gets his wit!"
"Really, I'm only partly to blame."
"Is that so?"
The conversation continued in this fashion for the next several minutes as the trio meandered through the mostly-empty campus. Once Inko had mentioned that she had been to U.A. before but had never attended, All Might had adjusted their route to include some of the more scenic views of the area. After a brief lull in the conversation, All Might rubbed the back of his neck in an uncharacteristically nervous fashion.
"Forgive the imposition of my next question, Midoriya-san, and feel free to not answer if I am overstepping my boundaries too greatly, but what of Izuku's father? He mentioned that the man has the ability to breathe fire, which is where the elemental nature of his Quirk comes from, but he was rather tight-lipped about him otherwise."
Inko was silent for a moment and Izuku feared that what he had dreaded earlier was about to come to pass, but she surprised him by answering in her normal tone.
"Honestly, it's probably because he doesn't have that much to say. My husband, Hisashi, has been working overseas since Izuku was about three years old. He supports us financially and I still get the occasional letter from him, but Izuku hasn't seen him for over twelve years."
All Might looked as surprised as Izuku felt that he had actually gotten an answer, which Inko clearly noticed.
"I'm telling you this because it's clear to me that you have Izuku's best interests at heart. I don't believe for a single moment that you would ever do anything to hurt him or that you would go around spreading stories. He trusts you, All Might, and I do too."
"You humble me."
"You've earned it, as far as I'm concerned. Izuku has grown into such a strong young man and I know that it's at least in part thanks to you."
"If I may ask, would you be willing to tell me a bit more about Hisashi-san?"
They had reached Recovery Girl's office, but she was not back yet.
"Sure, we have some time to kill. Izuku knows most of this already, but I first met Hisashi when I was about twenty-one, not that I knew it at the time. I was still in university and it was a long weekend or something like that. Either way, I found the time to go to a large shopping center and just walk around for a while with a couple of friends. I must have forgotten my bag at some point because an ordinary-looking salaryman type flagged me down and gave it back to me. I thanked him and didn't think anything else of it."
"It wasn't until a few months later that I saw him again. I've never been the type to put too much thought into what I do during my leisure time. Always seemed counterproductive to spend energy planning on what you'll do to recharge your batteries, you know? That's how I ended up back at that same shopping center. I was walking by the fountain in the central plaza when I saw a familiar-looking man in a suit sitting on a bench and doing some people-watching. I don't know what made me walk over to him, but I did. I thanked him again for helping me before and we introduced ourselves and started chatting. It turned out that his name was Hisashi and he enjoyed just "losing himself in the crowd" from time to time. He said it helped him think."
Inko giggled to herself.
"He was always a bit of an odd duck. It made him interesting and probably helped me to remember him. He had this sense of mystery about him, like there was always something more going on beneath the surface. I was never interested in so-called "ordinary" men. Honestly, most of them were too boring for me. It became a sort of informal routine for Hisashi and I to look for each other when one of us was at the shopping center. We'd talk, people watch, window shop, sometimes have lunch, that sort of thing. A year after we'd first met, he asked me out. I laughed at him and asked him what took him so long. He gave me this really serious look and said "I wanted to be sure." It turned out that he'd been hurt multiple times before and that made him wary of getting too close with someone, but since I had never shown any interest in his money or otherwise taking advantage of him, he felt like he could trust me."
"Makes him sound kind of old." Izuku commented, "World-weary."
"I thought that too. He was only a few years older than me, but he would get this look in his eyes sometimes. He'd seem so tired, like an old soul in a young body. Sometimes he would just seem so…disconnected. He would get so lost in his own head that he would start talking to himself, forget what he was doing or walk into a pole."
I wonder why that sounds familiar? Do you know anyone like that, Izuku?
Shut up, Other Izuku.
Hey, at least you come by it honestly.
"He was charming in his own way and seemed to be in a good mood when I was around him. He would be more alert, more present. His work must have been demanding, even soul-crushing, for him to be in such clear need of some sort of distraction from it all."
"'Must have been,' Midoriya-san?" All Might inquired.
"He never really talked about his work." Inko shrugged, "I know, I know; that's a red flag that he might have been involved in something illegal, but I wasn't dating his job: I was dating him. When I brought this up to him, he even went so far as to get me a copy of his public record so I could see that he wasn't a wanted man or anything. I didn't ask him to do that, he just went ahead and did it because he believed in taking the most direct solution to any given problem. Need to prove that you aren't some Villain? Public record. Want to spend more time with your girlfriend? Get an apartment together. Want to prove to your girlfriend in no uncertain terms that you love her and are committed to her? 'Hey, Inko, let's get married.'"
Inko trailed off for a moment or two, smiling at her happy memories. Izuku had known most of the facts so far, but when Inko had told him this story some years earlier, she hadn't been quite so frank with the details. It gave Izuku a new look at the man that Hisashi was besides just "Daddy loves both of us and he's working very hard to support us."
"No fuss, no big plan, no surprise public proposal or anything like that. He went out early that morning, bought the ring, went to work and proposed to me when he got home. Didn't even say hello, just 'Hey, Inko, let's get married.' It was pretty much the exact opposite of how a proposal is 'supposed' to be done and it made me the happiest woman in the world. At least, I thought it had until Izuku was born. Then I was the happiest woman in the world."
"I was twenty-six when I became a mother. It's one of those days that I just know I'll never forget, down to the smallest detail. From the first moment that Hisashi saw Izuku, he was transformed. Something changed in him that day and he was happier and more full of life than I had ever seen him before. For the next three years or so, everything was wonderful. Hisashi would still occasionally have to step out on business, but that was just the nature of his work. Sometimes he'd be gone a day, sometimes a week, but he was always happy to be home."
"Then, just before Izuku turned three, he got a letter in the mail. I recognized it as being from one of his insider contacts that he never spoke with over the phone. He was clearly agitated by whatever was in the letter and stepped out shortly after. When he came back, he said that he'd been promoted. Not that he'd been 'offered a promotion,' that he'd 'been promoted.' The sour taste that left in his mouth was evident even as he tried to frame it in a positive light. As usual, I could tell there was something more going on. He was scared. Something had happened and Hisashi was scared and concerned for the well-being of his family. He left the very next day and started his work overseas. He's been doing that ever since."
Inko concluded her story by adding one final thing.
"The money he wires to my account every month has allowed me to be there full-time for our son and not worry about living expenses. I've never once felt that he's abandoned me or Izuku and I know that he'll be back someday."
That…resonated with Izuku. It made him feel warm inside to know that his mother had so much faith in the man that he could barely remember. She had told him similar things before, but for some reason, seeing her look All Might dead in the eye and say those words made Izuku realize for the first time that she really, truly believed them.
"When that time comes, I would very much like to meet him." All Might said.
"I know he'd be very grateful for everything you've done for our son." Inko bowed, "So, from both of us, thank you, All Might. Please continue to look after Izuku and help him to become everything that I know he can be."
The Symbol of Peace stood a little straighter and returned her bow, his expression serious.
"I swear it."
Recovery Girl arrived a few minutes later and All Might bid them goodbye, claiming that he had things to do, though Izuku knew it was also because he had become more conservative with his time limit since the USJ incident.
The follow-up appointment went well. Izuku received another dose of healing that made most of his burns fade into nothing, though he was told that his arms would still be sore for at least a day or two and that he was to avoid strenuous activity until the pain was completely gone and yes, that included his usual workout routine.
"If you're that antsy, then go for a jog or do some squats!" the elderly nurse barked at him.
The only appropriate response to anything that a medical professional said to you in that tone of voice was "yes sir/ma'am" and Inko, after thanking Recovery Girl profusely for all the help she had given to her son, promised that she would ensure that he followed her orders to the letter.
T – o – r – c – h – b – e – a – r – e – r
Katsuki Bakugo was surprised. There was nothing intrinsically complicated about the reason for his surprise. In fact, it was almost blindingly simple: there was someone standing in front of him that he had not expected to see.
No, it wouldn't be accurate to say that he "didn't expect to see" this person. It was more along the lines of "he was so vaguely aware of this person's existence in the first place that for them to show up in this place, at this time, wouldn't have even entered the realm of possibility for him."
Yet, there he was. Tired eyes and indigo hair that looked like he had been playing around with an electrical socket.
Katsuki had shown up a bit early for Fight Club that day. He had nothing else to do, really, so he figured "why the hell not?" When he had entered the underground location, he had offhandedly barked something into the supposedly-empty room about how "club president's in the house; bow before me."
His initial surprise was due to someone else actually being there and bowing to him in greeting. Namely, Ojiro. Then came the secondary surprise of actually seeing Aizawa there. His homeroom teacher/club supervisor had explained that this was as good an excuse as any to avoid being stuck in an announcing booth with Yamada for two days in a row, but that his secondary reason was because he was in the process of vetting a potential new addition.
It was only at this point that Katsuki had registered the existence of the third person who had been occupying the room before he had showed up, which brought him to his current state of surprise.
"Who the fuck is this?"
"Hitoshi Shinso." the new kid answered him, "I made it to the third event yesterday, but your Class President took me out."
"Right, first round. Kid from General Studies. That explains why I don't know you. It doesn't explain what the hell you're doing here, in what is supposed to be a secret location." Katsuki punctuated his sentence by shooting Aizawa an accusatory glare.
"Need I remind you that I am the faculty supervisor of this club and am therefore within my rights to extend invitations to possible new recruits? If you consider the situation rationally for a moment, then it's pretty obvious that's why he's here."
As usual, Aizawa's logic was sound, damn him.
It wasn't as though Katsuki was opposed to the idea of getting a new recruit or two, but he hadn't been planning on doing that quite so soon. Plus, as Club President, he wanted to be consulted about things like this. It was his club, damn it!
"Okay, so you wanna join Fight Club, do ya?" Katsuki leaned forward both to crank up the intimidation factor and to get a better look at Shinso. He wasn't scrawny per-se, but Katsuki could tell that he had slacked off on his training after failing to get in to the Hero Course.
"Not originally, since I didn't even know it existed until today, but Aizawa-sensei thought that it would be a good way to test my non-Quirk abilities, so he brought me here." he shrugged, "If I get in, then it'll be good training. If I don't, then I guess it becomes a non-issue."
"If you get in to what, exactly? I get the feeling you're not talking about my club."
"Shinso has been recommended to fill the vacant spot in Class 1-A by Kaminari." Aizawa explained, "As Class President, his opinion on the issue actually carries some weight, though as your homeroom teacher, I still get the final say and I'm not about to take on another kid if they don't prove to me that they've got what it takes."
Katsuki was starting to get the picture.
"So, he makes it into Fight Club, he makes it into 1-A?"
"His grades are up to snuff and his Quirk is plenty powerful, so the only real things left to check are his physical conditioning and practical abilities. He proved that he's able to make good use of his Quirk in a combat situation, but I'm not convinced about his ability to win without it. As the Club President, I'll leave the exact method of testing up to you, provided that you don't go overboard."
"Sure, I can think of something." Katsuki agreed, "There's still one thing I don't understand though." he spun to face Ojiro and jabbed a finger at him, "How the hell do you fit into all this?!"
"Ah, I don't, really." Ojiro made a placating gesture with his hands, "I honestly just showed up early and they were already here doing some drills. Pure coincidence, I promise. Although," here he got a thoughtful expression on his face, "I'd be willing to test him if you wanted."
"Nah, you're overkill." Katsuki waved him off, "There's no sense in letting every newbie fight the top-ranked guy. They should have to earn that. Same goes for all of the high-tier fighters, really. If we're gonna rank this guy properly, then he needs to run the gauntlet and for that we need one member of each tier present."
"Did I hear 'fresh blood?'" an enthusiastic voice heralded the arrival of Kirishima, shark-like teeth bared in a grin, "Mid-tier newbie-crusher reporting for duty!"
"Hey, that's the guy that went toe-to-toe with a literal man of steel and knocked him out. You're telling me he's mid-tier?" Shinso suddenly looked much more concerned about the situation.
"You better believe it." Kirishima laughed, "High-tier is full of freaks-of-nature!"
"Oi!" Katsuki barked.
"Chill, Bakubro. I'm just psyching out the new guy."
"Un noveau gars? Tres bien!"
Great. The wannabe Frenchma-
Wait, that actually worked perfectly.
"Good timing, Sparkles! Fight Club is, er, in need of your services."
"Indeed?" Aoyama struck an unnecessary pose, "I am at your service, mon chef!"
"Like you heard, we have an applicant for the club. We need to put him through the ranking gauntlet and until you showed up, we were short a low-tier fighter to go at it with him."
"Ah, so you are in need of a leader for the welcoming committee? I shall gladly fill this spot!"
"Sound good, Ojiro?" Katsuki looked to the one who was in charge of the rankings.
"We have Aoyama-san representing low-tier, Kirishima-san for mid-tier and yourself for high-tier?" he thought about it for a moment, "Ordinarily, I'd want to differentiate the mid and high-tier fights a bit more, since both you and Kirishima have an overall aggressive, in-your-face style, but we don't exactly have anyone else to pick from at the moment, so-"
"Hey guys, wassup?"
"You know, if you're short on fighters, I'm always available!"
Sero and Tokoyami had arrived at the same time and Dark Shadow was making yet another play at convincing Katsuki to make him a fighter.
Hang on…Sero?
"Ojiro, what about Sero?"
"What 'what about Sero?'" Sero asked suspiciously, "What'd I do?"
"Sero-san, huh?" Ojiro smirked slightly at that, "Yes, that will work very well. Sero-san, you have been selected to represent mid-tier in a ranking gauntlet."
"Oh, for real? When?"
"Basically right now. Shinso-san here is our applicant."
Shinso waved with uncertainty, not knowing exactly how to react to his opponent being switched out seemingly at random.
"Oh, hey, I know you! You're the guy from the tournament yesterday! Dude, your Quirk is something else."
"Thank you?"
"Since everyone we need is here, except for Yamada," Aizawa yawned, "let's get this thing going."
And just like that, Shinso was squaring off against Aoyama. The applicant had adopted an orthodox fighting stance while the self-proclaimed chevalier (who was wearing a goddamn blouse of all things), stood confidently with his hands on his hips and his ever-present sharp smile in place.
"Do your best, mon amie." Aoyama said encouragingly, "It is only bad fortune that you ended up facing me, but I am sure Ojiro-san will judge you fairly."
Seriously, where did this guy get his confidence from? He had improved over the past couple of weeks, sure, but nowhere near enough to warrant this level of cockiness. At least when Katsuki was cocky, it was because he'd earned it, damn it!
"I'll warn you right now, newbie," Katsuki said before the fight started, "this guy is easily in the bottom three of the club. If you can't put up a good showing against him, then you can kiss your chances goodbye."
"And with that, let the match begin!" Ojiro swiped his hand downwards and Aoyama began walking leisurely towards Shinso.
"Le President has a sharp tongue, but the meaning behind his message rings true." Aoyama then performed a bizarre sort of pirouette and his leg shot out, Shinso barely managing to sway back in time to avoid it, "If you let your guard down, even against a low-tier opponent such as me, then your defeat is certain!"
Katsuki had to admit that, by Aoyama's standards, this wasn't a bad performance. He had evidently decided to make up for his close-range weakness by utilizing his proportionately-longer legs to keep his opponents at a distance. His moves were still needlessly flashy and inefficient, but at least the core of his strategy was sound. Plus, legs were naturally stronger than arms, so they could still deal a good amount of damage even when used by a physically weaker fighter.
Shinso, meanwhile, was doing a good job of avoiding his opponent's kicks, but had yet to try and close the distance between them. Katsuki knew that look, though: he was watching closely, biding his time for when the opportune moment presented itself.
Soon enough, it did.
"HAH!" Shinso ducked underneath a particularly high kick and surged forwards, sweeping Aoyama's good leg and tackling him to the ground.
"Sacre bl-oof!"
Shinso planted a knee in his opponent's torso and seized him by his collar, right fist cocked back to strike at his head before pausing.
"Should, uh, should I keep going?" he looked to Ojiro and Aizawa on the sidelines, uncertain.
"Ordinarily, I'd suggest hitting him at least once in a situation like this, to drive the point home." Ojiro supplied, "However, if Aoyama-san is agreeable, I am willing to call the match here."
"Ahh…" Aoyama sighed dramatically, "Bravo, Shinso-san. I submit to you."
"The winner by surrender is Shinso-san!" Ojiro declared as Shinso helped Aoyama to his feet.
"Let's keep it moving. Next is Sero." Aizawa ordered.
"Alrighty then." the lean fighter stretched his limbs casually as he strode into the designated ring.
Katsuki noted that the two boys were roughly identical in height, which was unusual for someone as tall as Sero, who stood at roughly five-ten. His reach was still greater than Shinso's, but not by the same margin that he usually enjoyed.
"I'd say you're both warmed up by now. Begin!"
Sero sidled forwards, right arm held at the ready but his left swaying like a pendulum by his waist.
"Let's see…I think it was something like 'snap,' right? Or was it more 'oof?' 'Bam?'"
Shinso, apparently seeing an opening, made a sharp step inward, aiming for Sero's unguarded midsection.
*CRACK*
"AGH!"
Sero had raised his left elbow and then his forearm had blurred with a sudden, whip-like motion, resulting in his lightly-clenched fist snapping into the surprised Shinso's face, snapping his head backwards with the impact. Sero followed up by shifting forwards, grabbing his opponent by the shoulder and jerking him forwards, driving a knee into his solar plexus and causing him to collapse, wheezing.
"'Snap.' It was definitely 'snap.'" Sero decided as Shinso worked to regain his breath and force himself to stand, "Makes for a pretty good opener, if I do say so myself. Most people don't expect something like that."
"Son of a bitch just used a flicker." Katsuki muttered with a slightly raised eyebrow. It wasn't a complicated technique by any means, but most people didn't think to use it outside of a boxing ring. With Sero's long reach and strong elbows, it was a move practically tailor-made for him. Either he had done his research, or Ojiro had been busy.
"Kinda rough on the hands, gotta admit." Sero shook his hand as though it stung, "Still, gets the job done."
"Who are you calling 'done?'" Shinso growled and stood back up, planting himself in front of Sero.
"Give it a minute and we'll find out." the Tape user retorted, raising his fists again and circling his opponent, waiting for him to step into range.
Katsuki understood his strategy fairly well. If you had greater reach than your opponent, then it meant that they would always have to enter your range in order to attack. There was no reason to expend excess energy going after them when you could just force them to come to you instead. It was a fundamentally defensive strategy, so it wasn't one that Katsuki would typically use, but it could be really annoying to deal with.
Shinso clearly understood the gist of the situation, since his response was to lower himself, tighten his guard and charge straight into Sero's torso, more or less ignoring the reflexive punch that struck him in the process.
"Hey, get off!" Sero attempted to knee Shinso again, but couldn't break through his guard and his punches had no windup room, consequently reducing their power. Shinso made a few body shots, but his form was imperfect and they seemed to annoy Sero more than anything. Eventually, he shoved Shinso and took a step back.
It had become clear what Shinso was looking for in that moment when his right went screaming towards Sero's jaw in a massive uppercut…that whiffed just before the bell rang.
"Alright, that's the match!" Ojiro announced, "A good showing by both fighters. Shinso's counter-strategy was a sound one, though he lacked the necessary technique to pull it off effectively."
"Alright," Katsuki rhythmically struck his palm with a fist as he sauntered into the ring like he owned it, "time for your ceremonial ass-kicking. Word of advice? Grit those teeth."
"Yeah, definitely don't let him get you like I did." Sero clapped Shinso on the shoulder as he exited the ring, "Nice punch at the end, though. If I'd taken that, I'd be on the floor for sure."
Katsuki could tell that his opponent was starting to feel fatigued. That was part of the brutality of the gauntlet: the challenger would get tired out while each of his consecutive opponents started fresh. You would know for sure that anyone who got sorted into high-tier right off the bat deserved it.
"Alright, let's start the final match. Begin!" Ojiro declared.
Katsuki, as was his nature, didn't waste any time. He shot forward, seized one of Shinso's wrists as he tightened his guard, wrenched it out of the way and floored him with a savage hook while he was off-balance.
"I did warn you!" Sero called from the sidelines.
"He's not wrong." Katsuki corroborated, "You were warned. Move those feet, newbie! You don't have the grit to just sit there and take this kind of shit! Who do you think you are, Kirishima?"
"I feel like I should take offense to that." Kirishima opined.
"What, the brick's taking offense to being called a brick? Go break a window."
"Hey, if I'm a brick, I'm a wall brick, not a window brick!"
Shinso lunged for Katsuki's legs, attempting to take advantage of his apparent distraction. He was rewarded by Katsuki hopping over his arms and landing squarely on his back, yanking his leg into a very, very uncomfortable position for anyone who wasn't a contortionist.
"Nice try, but that type of thing only works when you're not completely outclassed."
"Actually, in a situation where your opponent is distracted, such a move would work most of the time." Tokoyami corrected, "Bakugo-san just happens to have fast reflexes, an uncommon level of combat awareness and it's entirely possible hat he was setting you up."
"Birdman, shut your seed hole! I'm trying to haze this fucker! Speaking of which," Katsuki turned his attention to Shinso, who was grunting with pain, "you haven't tapped out yet. Any particular reason for that?"
"Ngh! I'm waiting for the bell!"
"Oh you are, are you?" Katsuki increased the strain on Shinso's leg, causing him to groan, "There's about, I don't know, a minute left on that thing and while I can't cause you any permanent injuries here, I can make that into a very, very long sixty seconds for you if you don't surrender. Like, right now."
"Or I could call the match to avoid any unnecessary suffering." Ojiro pointed out.
"That's only if I take it too far, right?"
"Do I get a say in this?" Shinso grunted.
"Not unless what you have to say is 'I surrender.'"
"It's up to the referee's discretion, which in this case is me." Ojiro corrected.
"Well go ahead and exercise that discretion, why don't you?"
"I will."
"Go ahead."
"I'm going to."
"Do it."
"I am."
*DING DING DING*
"I hereby declare this match to be over! Let him go, Bakugo-san."
Katsuki complied, causing Shinso to sigh with relief and roll over onto his back.
"Well, congratulations, newbie." Katsuki shook his head in mock-disbelief, "You survived that. You're the first one who has, you know."
"He's the first one you've done it to, Bakubro."
"That doesn't make my statement any less true, fuckhead! I'm trying to be all ominous and menacing here!"
"For who?!" Kirishima was obviously trying not to laugh, "Tokoyami's not scared of jack, Sero's, like, perpetually chill about everything, Aoyama only has one facial expression, I know you too well for it to work on me, Ojiro knows what you're doing, Aizawa-sensei doesn't care and Shinso was already scared beforehand, right?" he looked to Shinso for confirmation.
"Petrified." the messy-haired boy stared at the ceiling and responded with the most deadpan expression that Katsuki had ever seen outside of Aizawa and a voice that was dripping with so much sarcasm he was almost surprised not to see it dribbling out of his mouth.
"There! See?"
Kirishima, as per the norm when he on a roll, failed to notice either of these things.
"The results. Get to them." Aizawa stated flatly. Ojiro complied.
"Well, he won his first match handily, ran down the clock on the second and also ran down the clock on the third, though that was primarily because his opponent was deliberately toying with him." the tailed martial artist ticked the matches off on his fingers as he went, "It is worth noting that he was on the verge of a comeback in the second match, though it fell flat in the end and he was almost entirely on the defensive up until that point." he nodded, "I believe that Shinso-san has the ability to improve and would be qualified for a spot in low-tier. He has the mental ability and the drive to succeed, but his actual skill level and physical abilities don't quite match up with these."
"So you're willing to accept him?" Aizawa sought clarification.
"I am." Ojiro nodded and smiled at Shinso, "Provided that our Club President agrees, of course."
"Tch. Whatever." Katsuki responded flippantly, hiding the fact that he actually agreed with most of Ojiro's assessment. The indigo-haired kid could very easily become a significant force, especially when paired with his Quirk. He was smart and driven, he just needed the physical capabilities to match, "Let him in."
"Well, I guess that settles that." Aizawa looked at Shinso, who had sat up at this point, "Everyone say hello to the newest member of Class 1-A and Fight Club. You'll start attending our classes immediately, which is to say Friday. You're playing catch-up here, so I expect you to do everything in your power to make up for the month you spent in General Studies. If you show me that you can't hack it, I won't hesitate to kick you out."
Shinso stood a bit shakily and bowed to his new homeroom teacher.
"I understand, Sensei. Thank you for this opportunity."
T – o – r – c – h – b – e – a – r – e – r
Tooru Hagakure was enjoying herself thoroughly. She had originally just meant to go for a walk around town. Do some people-watching, stretch her legs, grab a bite to eat, do some shopping, maybe text some of the girls. That sort of thing. Not a bad day, but not a great one either.
Then she had seen a familiar two-toned head of hair exiting the premises of a certain hospital that she had just so happened to be passing by and had felt fate tugging at her proverbial sleeve.
Tooru had honestly been a bit apprehensive at first. Todo had told her that he wasn't upset with her yesterday, but the way he had shooed her away and ignored her when they were released for the day had told her that he was still upset, even if not directly with her. She had hesitated for a moment, bordering on the decision of simply turning around, pretending she hadn't seen anything and going on with her day as originally planned.
While she was thinking on it, she had noticed the look on Todo's face. He seemed like he was walking around in a daze, like he had just been hit over the head with an emotional shovel. Something had happened and it had affected him strongly. As someone who was something of a social butterfly, not to mention that she actually cared about the person in question, Tooru's curiosity was immediately piqued.
That had only left one real course of action and Tooru had taken it without further hesitation. This had led to her and Todo going on a date which, in her opinion, was going rather well so far.
They had started with lunch. Per her companion's suggestion of soba, she had taken them to a noodle shop and he had surprised her by ordering zaru soba in spite of the fact that it wasn't particularly hot outside. He had explained that he just liked cold soba better and even ate the stuff in winter.
After lunch, Tooru had made good on her offer to show him the sights, since he had said he didn't usually make it out to this part of town. This turned into a combination of sightseeing and window-shopping. For the most part, he kept pace with her, but Tooru occasionally found herself dragging him by the hand when she saw something particularly interesting.
When she alternated between hands, she noticed that there was a noticeable difference between the two: his left hand was warm and his right was a bit chilly. All else being equal, Tooru decided she preferred the left and stuck to that one once she had realized the difference.
Todo, for the most part, had been a silent companion. Tooru wasn't particularly bothered by this, since that was just how he was, but their awkward parting from yesterday had made her paranoid. Plus, he had subtly avoided the question when she had asked him what he had been doing at the hospital. He wasn't under any obligation to tell her, of course, but whatever had happened there had really impacted him and she couldn't tell whether it was for the better or not.
That, more than any of the other points, had Tooru worried. Todo didn't need anything else messing him up, particularly after how hectic the previous day had been. So it was that after a couple of hours, when they had decided to sit down and grab something to drink (her treat this time), she found herself trying to work up the courage to broach he topic again.
"Okay," Todo had eventually said after a few solid minutes of silence, "what's wrong?"
"What?" Tooru was caught off-guard, having been lost in thought.
"You're way too quiet. During this whole thing, you've barely stopped talking for more than a minute or two at a time. It's been almost five."
Not for the first time, Tooru was taken aback by how easily he was able to see what was written across her invisible face. To anyone else, it would probably have seemed like he had just been humoring her all afternoon and not really paying attention. Maybe he had been doing that for part of it, but every time Tooru looked at him while she was talking or showing him something, he had either been looking at her or what she had pointed out.
Yes, he was also able to tell what she was pointing at. She was a highly-expressive girl, sure, but a few mistakes or misinterpretations would have been not only acceptable, but expected.
Not with him. Not with her.
Maybe that wasn't a fair assessment. He wasn't a hugely social guy in the first place and consequently didn't hang out with many people in his spare time. He might just be a naturally observant person with anyone. Who was to say that she was special?
Well, there was one way to possibly test that theory.
"I've been thinking about something. Wondering, I guess."
He said nothing, but his mismatched eyes were focused on her. One blue and piercing, the other gray and steady.
"What happened at the hospital this morning?" she blurted out.
"Huh?" he blinked, brow furrowed, lips slightly parted. Shoto Todoroki was well and truly nonplussed and if Tooru hadn't been so intent on their conversation, she would have found it absolutely hysterical. Or adorable.
She would later decide, in retrospect, that it had been hystorable.
"When I saw you, before I said hello, you looked like your whole world had just been rocked. Like something really, really big had happened to you and you were having problems processing it. Yesterday…you weren't yourself. I'm worried that something happened and made things worse, even though you don't seem mad anymore."
He appraised her carefully, eyes locked on to hers in the way that only he and her family seemed to be able to do. The silence probably only lasted for a few dozen seconds, a minute at the most, but it felt like far, far longer.
Would he get angry again? Would he just stand up and leave? Would he coldly dismiss her question? Would he avoid it again? Would he say that she had imagined it?
As it turned out, he would do none of those things. After fixing her in place with his unblinking gaze, Todo closed his eyes, took a deep, slow breath, let it out and moved his nearly-empty drink to the side, kneading his fingers together and resting his hands on the table in front of him.
"Okay."
"Wh…What?" Tooru realized that she hadn't been breathing.
"Okay." he repeated, looking at her again, "I've thought about it and I've decided that I trust you. You haven't given me any reason not to and, though I freely admit that you can get on my nerves sometimes, you've shown that you want to be there for me, even when I don't want you to be. For whatever reason, you really, really seem to want to know me. Plus, I crossed the line yesterday. I know I apologized for it, but I shouldn't have gotten as angry with you as I did. Even after that, you still came to the infirmary to see me instead of watching the other matches. Not only did you come, you stayed. You didn't have to do that."
"So, fine." he continued after taking a moment to work out his next words, "If you want to know what happened, I'll tell you. You've earned that much, provided it stays between us unless I say otherwise."
"I swear!" Tooru's words came out more forcefully than she had intended in her rush to agree before he could chance his mind, "Todo, I won't tell anyone! Not a soul!"
"Okay." his lips tightened as he steeled himself, "I saw my mother for the first time in ten years."
Well, if that didn't justify every single bit of emotional upheaval that he might have been feeling and then some, Tooru didn't rightfully know what would.
"Oh my god…" was all she could get out for several seconds, "Todo, I- that's- after what happened- I mean, what? What happened? Why haven't you seen-"
"Don't do that." he said in a flat tone that brooked no argument, "I know you know. I know you were there yesterday when I was talking with Midoriya. I know you heard what I told him and…I know what happened after that, too."
Tooru wasn't used to being rendered speechless so many times in quick succession.
"I'm sorry." were the first words she said when she regained her tongue, "Todo, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have been there. I shouldn't have been listening. I-"
"It's fine."
It was seriously not fair how easily he kept shutting her up.
"You were concerned. I gave you plenty of reason to be. You…were trying to look out for me. It's not something that I'm used to outside of a couple people, so…"
She wanted to hug him. She just really, really wanted to hug him.
"So, yeah. I went to see my mom. That's the hospital that she's been in all this time. I've known exactly where it is for most of the past decade. My sister visits her and my brother sends her letters and stuff, but I've never done either. Not until today." he gave her a curious, searching look, "I expected her to be angry with me, you know? She'd be well within her rights to feel that way. I'm most of the reason she's even in there."
He shook his head in disbelief.
"But she wasn't. She's not. Hell, the first thing she did was apologize to me. To me. I told her that didn't make sense and that I should be the one apologizing, but she wouldn't hear it. Completely waved it off. Then she asked me to fill her in on what she'd missed and I just…talked." he raised his entwined fingers briefly in the visual equivalent of "so, yeah" before letting his hands thump back to the table.
"I'm going to see her again at some point. Don't know when. Don't know what I'll say. Don't know if she'll feel then the way she should have felt today."
Tooru's cheeks were wet by that point. She wasn't sobbing, but it was a close thing.
"Todo?" she stood up.
"Yeah?" he did likewise.
"I know you're not really the type for this sort of thing, so…sorry in advance."
She walked around the table, wrapped her arms around his torso and squeezed. She felt him stiffen and was pretty sure that she had overstepped her bounds, but she just really needed to get this out of her system. A few more seconds, then she'd let go and he could be mad at her.
"You're right."
There, he confirmed it. Tooru loosened her grip and had a half-formed apology on her lips before she found that she couldn't break away. There was something holding her in place. Two somethings, actually. One was warm and the other was a bit chilly.
"…But it's not so bad, really."
That was the straw that broke the camel's back for Tooru as she redoubled her grip and sobbed into his chest. It wasn't because she was sad or hurt or anything like that.
It was because she knew he wouldn't.
And right then, she felt like someone needed to.
So, some big things happened here, not the least of which is something that a lot of you have been suspecting ever since Mineta left U.A. Also, emotionally-vulnerable Shoto. I don't think I've seen anyone handle him in quite the same way as me, especially here, so I'm interested to hear what you all think about that. Plus, we got some backstory on Hisashi, albeit from Inko's point of view. Still a shitload more than canon's given us, so there's that.
I will say that I do have plans for Hisashi and they will be different from canon even if a certain popular fan-theory turns out to be true.
Now, for something that I said I'd be posting soon. It is now soon. The following is my working list of Hero Names for 1-A. Underlined names are those that I feel strongly about, but welcome suggestions for. Italicized names are those that I'm on the fence about and would welcome feedback/suggestions on. Unformatted names are those that I could easily live with, but nonetheless welcome suggestions on.
The common theme here is that suggestions are still welcome.
Aoyama - Chevalier Scintillant (translates to "twinkling knight" and reflects that I'm trying to make him more French than in canon)
Ashido - Alien Queen, Pinky (I'm honestly not at all sure what she should be. I'd be fine with Pinky or Alien Queen, but for some reason the "right" answer isn't revealing itself to me)
Asui - Froppy (Nothing particularly wrong with canon here IMO)
Iida - Callidum (This, in my opinion, is a rare stroke of genius from a guy who sucks at naming things. Long story short, Ingenium is a real Latin word. Callidum has a similar meaning, but it's got slightly lesser implications. Sort of like calling someone "clever" vs calling them "a genius")
Uraraka - Infinity Girl (She has had this name built-up for her in-universe and people are already recognizing her by it)
Ojiro -Tailman (Again, nothing particularly wrong with canon, though if anyone has a neato idea I'm open to it)
Kaminari - Showstopper, Frontman (Both of these reference his in-universe experiences and I can see either one working for him. Let me know preferences/suggestions)
Kirishima - Red Riot (He can't NOT be Red Riot. Crimson Riot will always be his inspiration and that's where the name comes from. Full stop)
Koda -Anima (Another guy that I just can't think of anything for and let's face it, not as prominent of a character even in my story where I try and give people more attention)
Sato - Sugarman (I honestly couldn't think of any alternatives that didn't sound suggestive. Sugar Daddy, anyone?)
Shoji - TENDAR, Tentacole (One of these is his canon name, which is fine. The other is a play on RADAR. For those who don't know, RADAR is an acronym for RAdio Detection And Ranging, while Shoji's would be TENtacle Detection And Ranging in reference to his sensory abilities. Plus it's the kind of name that sounds cool when you scream it in a 70's hair metal voice and for some reason that matters with him)
Jiro - Jackie Cardia (I'm proud of this one in a way that I can only describe as how Dads must feel when they make Dad Jokes and then laugh their asses off. It's based on tachycardia, which refers to an abnormally rapid heart rate, then turned into a name based on the fact that her Quirk is Earphone Jack. The Pulse-Pounding Heroine is guaranteed to raise the Villain's blood pressure!)
Sero - Cellophane (It's a solid canon name that I can't think of any alternatives for other than jokey stuff like Scott Tape)
Tokoyami - Nevermore (When this was first suggested, a lot of people supported it and I just think it's a badass name for him)
Todoroki - Shoto (This is the unusual case of having TONS of potential names to pick from, but all of them are too "awesomecool" for Shoto to ever actually pick them in-character. If anyone has some suggestions that you think he might actually go for, let me know)
Hagakure - Invisible Girl, Mira Mira, She-Through (One of these is her canon name, one of these is a fan's suggestion and one of them is a pun. Feedback and consensus are needed)
Bakugo - Lord Explosion, Baku Don (One of them is a more politically-correct version of Lord Explosion Murder and the other is a stealth pun. Bakudan means bomb, so calling himself the Baku Don essentially means he's calling himself "The don of explosions" or something like that)
Midoriya - Deku (Similarly to Red Riot, Midoriya can't NOT be Deku. It's just who he is)
Shinso - Simon, Zombieman, Mockingjay (One is a fan suggestion relating to Simon Says, one references how those he hits with his Quirk exibit zombie-like tendencies and one is thinking ahead to how he uses is voice modulator)
Yaoyorozu - Creati (It's a good canon name and I can't think of anything better)
Feedback on these is appreciated, since it's a pretty important part of the character's identities. Obviously names can be changed later, but I'd like to avoid that except in plot or character-related incidences.
Next time, we haven't checked in with the Villains in a while. I wonder what they're up to? Plus, a certain Class President has some explaining to do. We might get to the meet-the-family dinner, but I'm taking the events more or less in chronological order, so it might not be until chapter after next.
And as always, thank you for reading!
