The Tick vs... MY HERO ACADEMIA! Issue 45

Katsuki Bakugo knew he was just about the best thing to ever happen to his shitty town and school. Because of course he was! Sure, Midoriya was a bit wound up, but he went from being a shitty Deku to someone he could totally claim as a rival and not feel embarrassed about it!

But no... the enthusiastic way that Shitty Hair and Raccoon Eyes tied him up. That was something for him to think about. It made him look back on all his interactions with the Bakusquad.

Sure, it was just the three of them right now, and Midoriya's squad of losers may have been bigger, but they were the loser squad for a reason! And not just because Midoriya was their oh so fearless leader.

So what if they won the Aphid Hunt? That meant nothing and it was nothing. Besides, a snipe hunt was for losers that weren't absolutely perfect! He didn't need nor ask for any leg up!

... he was getting distracted. Focusing on something that wasn't important. It's why he sent a PM to both Raccoon Eyes and Shitty Hair. They needed to talk. Sure, they had a few days before summer camp, but if he was going to be living around them for a couple weeks, they had to... clear the air.

It's why he was waiting for them in front of the currently closed gates of UA, impatiently tapping his foot as sparks left his hands.

"What the hell is taking them so long!?" He shouted aimlessly. He hated it when people weren't prompt. He even took into account their train ride from Chiba! Ugh! How could they accept wallowing in mediocrity?

"Sorry, Bakubro!" Finally, there was Shitty Hair, combing his hair as he approached, Raccoon Eyes not far behind him.

"Yeah, Bakugo... when I got your PM last night... I wasn't sure what to think."

"I'm with Mina, here... it's not like you to just wanna hang out."

Katsuki rolled his eyes. Of course they thought this was a social call and not something important as all hell that required this to be dealt with before summer camp.

"Kirishima... Ashido." He wanted them to know this was important. That this was something that he was taking seriously. No nicknames, but he did allow himself a smirk as their surprised looks as he used their real names. "There's something I've been noticing about the Bakusquad. Something about you two."

Shitty Hair was blushing, almost as bright red as his dyed hair. It was harder to tell with Raccoon Eyes, given her skin coloring, but you learned things about your friends when you hang out with them as much as he has.

"Wait, wait! Bakubro, i-it's not what you think at all!" Shitty Hair put his hands up, a rather timid defensive gesture he hadn't seen from the hard body boy before.

"No... no Eijiro, we can't hide it from him any more." She sighed, and looked at the Ash Blonde. "It's true... it's all true. We can't help it, though!"

"Of course you can't help it!" Katsuki rolled his eyes. Sure, Shitty Hair and Raccoon Eyes weren't the sharpest knife in the block, but they made up with their endearing personalities and fact that they weren't a pair of toadies.

God, he hated it when people just followed him because they were scared of him instead of acknowledging he was great.

"... you... you know?" Shitty Hair replied, surprised and eager.

"Of course I know! Why wouldn't I know? You think I'm blind!? You think I can't see what you and Ashido are up too?!" He gave a dismissive grunt. Geeze, sometimes people were so dense. Though this would explain why he had to bootstrap them both into passing their classes. "The two of you can be so stupid! Why would you think I'd have a problem with it?"

There was a brief moment of clarity from the two other members of the Bakusquad and before he knew it, he had Shitty Hair and Raccoon Eyes both hugging him.

"Baku... Katsuki, you have no idea how relieving this is!" Raccoon Eyes was whispering in his ear. Shitty Hair was just quietly sobbing into his chest.

Something was wrong. He misread the situation. He wasn't too proud he couldn't admit when he made a mistake, this egregiously!

Especially as the two kissed him both on opposite cheeks.

"I think... I think I've made a terrible mistake..."


Izuku Midoriya woke with a start, his head was hurting, his back was hurting and oh... he wasn't wearing his costume! Someone had stripped him down to his shorts! And he was on the floor... covered with a thin blanket and a thread bare pillow.

That someone's hand soon fell and smacked him in the face.

Mei Hatsume, bless her heart she was one of the best things to ever happen to him, was sprawled out in bed, snoring almost as bad as the Tick. But that would explain a few things...

"Right... I managed to wind up in her prefecture last night and needed to hide out after knocking out that Monstro creep." He remembered what happened, he stumbled on top of her and then she kissed him and then... he has a hole in his memory...

"Did I really black out after she kissed me?" He said aloud, to no one in particular, shaking his head and looking around. Mei's room was just what he expected. Half room, half lab, half workshop.

She had a drafter's desk set up and he took a little peak, seeing the designs she had.

There was, of course, Jack Rabbit designs and support gear, including a collapsible staff but this was all theory and conjecture. Shuffling through the papers and he came across a diagram listed as Project: Vigilante.

There was the Aphid costume on there, as well as Pony's Tree Leaper costume, but improved from the home made aspect that they both shared. He was surprised to see scribblings for Dive Bomber, but they were mostly with question marks as it was entirely theory as nothing was known about the Mysterious Vigilante new to Mustafu.

"Black Diamond? Ignite?" Izuku was surprised by the last two, as the details of how they were supposed to work... he looked over to Mei, still sleeping and sprawled out on bed. "Why would you make vigilante costumes for Kirishima and Todoroki...?" It was enough to make him wonder.

Still, he had to hit the bricks before Mei's parents realized that she had her boyfriend over all night and that was an awkward conversation that he didn't want to have. But he didn't want to just leave her alone, so he was just going to give her a little peck on the cheek.

He shuld have realized that he was asking for trouble when the pinkette tinkerer latched on to him like he was a cuddly teddy bear and dragged him down with her.

"Ack! C'mon , Mei! Leggo!" He wasn't shouting, he didn't want to wake her parents and draw attention that he was in Mei's room.

"No..." Oh, she was awake now, too. "I'm not gonna see you at all this summer, Izuku... can't I just keep my boyfriend here for a moment and enjoy his muscley cuddliness?"

"What about your parents?"

"What about them? You've met them already and they like you and they know we're dating and they already know you're here." That was bold of her! A little too bold for his liking, to be honest.

"But do they know that you stripped me down to my shorts and we're in bed together?"

"Damnit, Izuku... stop worrying all the time! Lemme just hug you for a bit longer, then I'll let you go." She nipped at his ear, causing him to yelp! "And if you're lucky, maybe I'll let you put your costume on first!"


"You wanna do what?" Chairface has spent enough time around Tomura Shigaraki the last few days to understand what he was thinking, time and time again. But even he couldn't follow this process.

"Much as I hate to agree with Chippendale... I fail to see how this could work." The Breadmaster was out of his kitchen, for once, dealing with League Business. Sure, the bar was never more popular and making quite a bit of money and a lot of the League liked him because they never ate so well before, but really... who were these two big hot shot American villains to question the Leader of the League of Villains?

"You heard me." Tomura reiterated, pointing to a still of the little shit heel, Katsuki Bakugo. It was a clip of him from the Sports Festival, where he called out Midnight's trampy costume. "Katsuki Bakugo is more of a villain then a hero. And I think he'd be perfect for the League of Villains."

"Perfect how? Because he's a little shit? Is that what you're talking about? If we base one's predilection towards villainy solely on being a rude little shit of a teenager, you may as well go to any primary school and recruit from the 9th graders!" Chairface replied. "I think you need to think this over. Besides, how the hell do you plan on fetching him for this recruitment pitch?"

"Oh? Finally I know something that you don't!" Tomura replied, grinning. "I happen to know just where UA is sending their hero course students for a summer training camp. We'll have the League attack and kidnap the little bastard and I'll show him how much better it is to be a villain."

"And then when his teachers and their friends show up to rescue him?" Breadmaster asked. "I didn't have this headquarters renovated just for the Top Ten heroes of all Japan come over and wreck everything!"

"The baker is right. If you escalate this situation, what then?" Both of the American Super Criminals had a point, much as Tomura was loathe to admit. Honestly, it was Sensei that put the idea of capturing the explosive bastard and tempt him to the side of devils, but that would only have All Might show up at their door step.

"So what are you suggesting instead?" Tomura asked. If they were so smart, let's hear their idea if they had any!

"I like the whole attacking the kids. Rough them up, maybe kill a teacher. Let them know that no matter where they are, they are not free from us." Breadmaster replied.

"If you still want to have a meeting with the little bastard, once they cut the camp short after our attack, I'll be sure to make this meeting happen. But no one knows we're working together, so they won't escalate to here." Chairface added.

Well... if that was the case... perhaps he could have his cake and eat it too. Sensei was going to be so impressed! He protected the League and will get a new member!


"Why the hell did you set him off, Spinner!?" Dabi was running. He didn't want to be one to run, but as a Son of Stain, he wasn't supposed to kill or harm heroes that were worthy to Stain's ideals.

"I didn't do anything, Dabi!" The Lizard man was loping on all fours on the wall, racing against the pro the managed to tick off!

"All right you SCRUBS! It's time for Wash to CLEAN up your act!" They were currently being chased by, all evidence, was a sentient anthropomorphic washing machine. Wash, by all metrics, was a stand up guy and they just ran into him while Spinner was trying to give a broody, anti-heroic speech about how Society needed... he didn't actually pay attention to the Stain fanboy.

Honestly, Dabi was only using Stain as a means to an end. The death of Endeavor... then Stain happened to get caught by a trio of heroes back in Hosu City and a wedge formed between the two disciples when Dabi wouldn't let Spinner harm Shoto Todoroki.

He didn't bother to explain his reasons, he didn't feel the need too.

"Didn't do anything? You were on the corner of the building and you said, and I quote! 'I am SPINNER! The one who will SPIN the MIGHTY CANDYFLOSS OF STAIN from the sugar of this fallen Society!' Then when Wash spotted us, you cried out Knife and attacked him!"

"... ... ..." Spinner gave a flat look, not that he didn't have anything but flat looks being a lizard, but continued to race against the bubbly blasts of water that Wash was sending their way. "How are we going to be the true Sons of Stain if we don't test if Heroes are Worthy? Obviously if they can fight us off, their worthy, right?"

It was a good point, and Spinner wouldn't go for killing Endeavor until he was good and ready and really, they needed to break out Stain sooner rather then later, as they headed up the wall, finally losing their pro hero tail.

"You want to prove yourself worthy and ready for the big leagues, Spinner?" Dabi said, as they made their way to their local safe house. "You know anything about the Wild, Wild Pussycats? Attacking them at their mountain base... even if we just escape, it'll prove we can free Stain from Tartarus."

Spinner looked at him, eyes wide. "Yes, yes! Once we free Stain, we can gather more followers! We'll be a veritable army!"

Dabi would need an army if he want to achieve his goals. All a means to an end.