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Season Four, Episode XXXVI
Days Gone By
. . .
Kaiji Adachi
. . .
"After a brief skirmish with this mysterious new criminal The Overmind, up and coming hero Pariah managed to save the civilians involved, as well as capture a member of the League of villains using her incredible teleportation quirk."
"T-Two hundred and... Fifty, you sure you don't want to take a break?"
"No." I answered sharply, as I continued benching the heavy weights. Tsuno stood over me, in case of emergency. As if he could even lift the amount I was pumping.
"Shikemono Ryoko who, since capture, has pleaded guilty to all crimes committed during her times with the League, including the murder of her father, and attack on UA's Training Camp."
The news report had been playing over and over in my head all day. I had trouble focusing, I felt so frustrated, angry. Not only at the reminder that my friends were still out their fighting, while I enjoyed this peaceful island life, but that Ryoko... The one I'd failed to bring in, had been brought down and taken into custody without me.
What was I supposed to do now?
"Alright, executive order," Tsuno grabbed the bar to stop me from moving it. Bringing me back to reality, "I think 300 reps is enough for one day."
I didn't argue, sighing and racking the weight back onto the stand before I sat up. "Fine, you're the captain..." I stood up quickly, in no mood to talk. If I couldn't bury my thoughts here, I'd go somewhere else.
"Adachi," He stopped me with one beefy hand on my shoulder, "You've been acting weird all day, is something the matter?" He asked worriedly, "You know you can talk to your friends right?"
Right, friends... "Look, I just... I got some news today that wasn't great, I can't talk about it." I explained, "I'm gonna clean up and head home early."
To which he nodded, "Of course, take all the time you need."
"Body improvement club is here if you need us!" Added Sugata, who was currently power squatting across the room. "Right boys!?
"That's right!" Sounded the entire gym, always so spirited and enthusiastic.
Making me release a light laugh, "Right, thanks guys..."
It was the last day of September, I'd been living on this island for just over a month. The time had flown by, but it felt like nothing was changing. Not here anyways, not me. While reports were on the news daily about young heroes fighting a new wave of bold criminals or evil organizations, I was just... Here. Sure, I'd stayed in shape, but as far as training my Quirk went... I felt like I was falling behind.
It was so hard to get away from prying eyes, this island was such a small place. And so many people were already suspicious of me after the storm. And with each passing day, the dispersal of the League of Villains seemed further and further away. And to top it all off, Amari had been worse than ever. Since the storm, she'd been extra suspicious of everything that I did around here, it was a miracle I got any time to myself at all.
"Hey Adachi!" I stopped near the front gates, as a familiar voice called out to me. I turned to see Minori approaching, "Glad I caught you, come on we need your help in the classroom."
I blinked, "With what?"
She placed her hands on her hips, "Geez you really weren't paying attention today, just come on!" She grabbed me by the hand, and started dragging me along.
I allowed it, following her back into the building against my better judgement. "I'm kinda busy today, what's this about?"
The door was pushed open, and inside I saw almost our entire class present. "I found him!" Minori called out, pulling me inside. "Any other ideas while I was gone?"
"None that sound very fun." Shrugged Gawara, a rather solitary guy I'd not spoken with much. "My vote is still for maid cafe."
"And every girl says NO!" Barked one of the ladies, crossing her arms.
"Can someone please explain what's going on?" I asked, looking between them all.
"Hmph," Amari was the first to speak as she stood at the front of the class. "During the month of October we'll be given extra time during school to work on our event for the upcoming Cultural Festival." She explained, "We are trying to get an early start by deciding what we're going to do."
I titled my head, "And... I needed to be here for this?" I wasn't very interested in a festival, I'd pretty much go along with whatever they decided.
"Well it wasn't my idea," Amari answered, her eyes drifting over the class, "However, some figured that your... Unique perspective might bring some interesting new ideas to the table."
My unique perspective huh? They meant because I'm from the city. "Right... And what ideas have been pitched so far?"
"Bakery, trivia game, maid cafe, and dating booth." Minori explained with a smile, "I'm personally a fan of the dating booth, so long as we screen out all the weirdos..."
I crossed my arms, listening as they began to chatter among themselves again. Leaning against the door frame in thought, just thinking about how stupid this was. I had no interest in this, I couldn't care less what kind of event we put on. Though, having extra free time during school might give me a chance to-
Work... On my quirk...
"Ahem," I cleared my throat loudly, trying to get everyone's attention. "So uh... I'm basically fine with anything you guys pick but... If you want my suggestion, how about a Quirk Expo?"
I saw a lot of confused expression, but I definitely had their attention. "Care to... Elaborate?" Amari asked.
"Alright so," I may have been able to screw around a lot at UA, but I knew public schools were different. "You know how you can't use your Quirks at school to help with sports or anything like that? Why don't we spend the month training our Quirks, and put on a kind of... Talent show?" If I could get them to agree to this, nobody would question my training!
"Training our Quirks?" Gawara questioned, "How does that work?"
"Quirks are a part of your body," I explained, "And just like any other muscle, you can strengthen it by using it over and over, pushing your limits."
Amari was giving me a nasty side eye, "You seem to know quite a lot about the subject..."
"Well, its not like I learned how to turn into a giant crocodile monster on accident." I shrugged in response, deflecting as best I could.
"Mmm, indeed..." She was still looking at me suspiciously, before turning her gaze on the class. "And how does everyone else feel about this idea?"
"I like it."
"Sounds like it could be fun."
"We'll need permission from the principal though."
Yes yes yes, everyone was agreeing! Perfect, "Well glad I could help." I shrugged, hiding my elation.
Amari however, didn't seem at all interested in letting me off that easily. "Yes, you've helped so much, in fact... I think since this was your idea, and you seem to have some experience with Quirk training already," Oh no. "You can be the one to teach our class!"
Alright, so I might have walked right into this one. "O-Oh uh, you think so huh?"
"TOTALLY!" Minori beamed, "You'd be perfect to teach us!"
"Perfect is a strong word," Another boy shrugged, "But I don't know anyone else on Nabu Island that could since... Well, since Garro left."
"Then it's settled." Amari nodded, wearing a smug grin, "Starting tomorrow, we'll gather when school gets out and begin Quirk training, I know the perfect place in fact." Oh how I wanted to punch her, "Is there anything you'll need to better teach them?"
I shifted nervously, "Uh... I guess a list of your Quirks, in detail, would help." I shrugged, "Where can we train? We're probably going to need a lot of space."
"Oh I think we have a perfect place for that." Amari nodded, "For now, everyone please fill out a paper with your Quirks and how they work," Her eyes flashing with amusement, "You're going to have some extra homework tonight it seems, Adachi."
"I don't suppose anywhere here has a Quirk to relieve headaches do they?"
This was going to be a long month...
After the meeting was adjourned and I had a stack of papers to read through, my favorite person approached me. "Well that went quite well I think." Greeting me with a smug grin.
To which I rolled my eyes, "You just can't help but be a pest can you?"
"What?" She released an exaggerated gasp, "I would never do something to make your life harder!"
I sighed and shook my head, "Whatever, you said you knew a good place for us to train?"
"Indeed I do, just follow me and we'll make our way to the northern beach." She nodded, walking along, expecting me to follow as she made her way out of the school.
Making our way through town, where there was still some construction under way. The time since the storm had been harder on some than others, but at the same time people were helping one another daily. The community on this island surprised me with how tight-knit it was. I can't even imagine going to a neighbor at our old apartment complex and asking them for help...
The sun was starting to set as we reached our destination. After walking along an old and barely used trail, we broke through the treeline to the empty northern beach. There was no sign of anyone around here, weird.
"So what's the deal?" I asked curiously, "Why doesn't anyone use this beach?"
"Mainly because of its distance from the town," She explained, "But also because of the reefs surrounding the shore, you can't go very far into the waters without stumbling through wildlife, so its generally off limits to swim here."
Well, that makes sense I guess. "Alright, I guess it'll be a good place to work with, plenty of room to practice and nobody around to bother us." I began walking along the area, inspecting it. But really I was just killing time as I thought about how the hell I was supposed to do this. I didn't even want to do this.
"Should I tell the class you'll need more time?" Amari asked suddenly, arms crossed as she watched me pace around. "Maybe one day is too little time for... Whatever it is you're planning, wouldn't want to overwork our new teacher after all."
Alright that's it. "Okay seriously, what the hell is your problem lately?" I demanded bluntly, turning to face her.
She scoffed, shaking her head, "Problem? I don't have a problem, you just seemed like the best person for th-"
"Bullshit!" I snapped at her, "Ever since that storm, you've been even more annoying than usual so what's the deal?" I questioned, "Is it because I didn't say I hated you? Because I don't consider you a rival?"
Yes, I was close, the way she flinched back at my accusations. "Tch, a-as if I'd be so petty..."
"But you are that petty," I scoffed, "Since day one, when I wouldn't join your perfect little power structure you've had it out for me." Maybe this wouldn't have come out, if I wasn't already so frustrated. "Both you and Red, it's like I can't get a moments peace when I'm at school with you psychos!"
"Alright, fine!" Amari barked back at me, "You want to know my problem? Before, it was the way you rebelled against the system I'd set up, one meant to help wayward teens like you get through highschool and make something of themselves." What a load of crap, her system was only about stroking her own ego and controlling others. "But after that night... And even before, when you encountered Red," She shook her head, "There is too much about you I don't know, and I think you're hiding something!" She shouted, slashing a hand through the air. "You fight like a trained professional, your physical prowess is likely higher than anyone on the entire island, your test scores have nearly topped my own, you have extensive knowledge of Quirks, and-" She hesitated briefly, as if she hadn't meant to reach this final point. But rather than backing down, Amari continued. "And you were acknowledged, by our one and only Hero, just before he retired..."
The way her body tensed up, the spite in her eyes only growing and her voice shaking. I think I understood her frustrations, maybe the root of the problem. I'd seen it all around the Island since he left, returning to the mainland to be with his family and get the medical help he needed. Garro meant a lot to these people. And he'd saved her life, just before he retired.
I took a deep breath, and sighed as I let my anger subside. I turned towards the shore, watching the sunset as a cool ocean breeze washed over me. "You took Garro's retirement hard, didn't you?" I didn't bother waiting for a response, "He was your hero, and the last thing he did was..." Acknowledge someone else.
It took her a minute to find a response, "He wasn't just my Hero... He was Nabu Island's Hero." She reminded, "And you? You're just... Some outsider, you... You weren't even with him in the end, you didn't see him fight..." Amari shook her head, "We don't have a hero anymore, I know I'm not the only one who's worried about it, people are scared now... About what might happen if another villain shows up." Right, the whole of Japan felt like that now that All Might was gone. "This Festival is a good chance for everyone to relax, blow off some steam and have some fun, so you'd better not screw this up."
"If you're so worried I might screw it up," I crossed my arms, "Why even put me in charge in the first place?"
Amari narrowed her eyes sharply, "Because... If you do fail, the blame will mostly fall on you... But, maybe you can show me what Garro saw in you." She ended with a shrug, "Either way, clocks ticking, so you should get to work."
As she started to walk away, leaving me to think about this whole thing, I couldn't help but watch her go. Maybe she wasn't as shallow as I originally thought, sure she was a sociopath but... She definitely did care about Nabu Island. And she was right about one thing, Nabu Island was in the middle of some dark times. Thankfully, they had a strong community. They just needed a hero...
I don't think I can be their hero, but... I can at least put an actual effort into this Festival.
I smiled faintly, eyes drifting from her to the papers I was holding. "Thanks, Amari..."
. . .
Kirai Amari
. . .
"Why are we even going to this stupid class? I can use our Quirk just fine."
"That is true," I said out loud, as I made way for the northern beach. Today was to the be first day of Adachi's class. "But I want to see how he handles leadership, and organizing this entire show he plans to put on will require more hands."
"You don't want to just let him crash and burn?"
"Though that is preferable," I smirked faintly, "This is my class, and a poor performance might reflect badly on us as well." And I want to know, I want him to show me what Garro saw in him.
"Hmm, fair enough."
Still, this whole idea of his was unexpected. A Quirk Expo? How childish, that most of our class wanted to run around and put on some kind of show with their abilities. We weren't children, Quirks are for necessary use only. And shouldn't be treated like show pieces or toys. I had a feeling it wouldn't be long before this entire class got out of hand, hopefully this plan of his would fall through before someone got hurt.
I was still surprised however, as I stepped through the treeline following an unkempt trail, to see the rest of the class already standing around. Everyone had come dressed in gym attire, loose fitting clothes for ease of movement. Adachi was standing on a rock, overlooking the crowd and holding a few papers. Likely the list of Quirks he'd been given the day prior. He spotted my approach, and waved me over to join them.
"Alright, now that Amari is here I think we can start," Adachi announced as I joined the crowd, though I was positioned near the front. Adachi looked nervous- wait, no... He just had dark rings under his eyes, maybe he didn't get much sleep? "To start, we need to go over the basics, I read through all of your Quirks in detail last night and I'm honestly surprised you guys don't talk about them more." What? "You've all got some very unique abilities."
"Question!" Minori raised her hand suddenly, "So like, how come you know all this stuff about Quirks and Quirk training?"
Ah yes, very good question Minori! "You do seem like a natural at this type of talk." I added with a nod.
Adachi shifted nervously, "Well... That is... It's just because-" He stopped himself, before taking a deep breath and sighing. "Because I wanted to be a hero once, but because of the our financial situation, I couldn't get into a good school." I blinked in surprise, taken off guard by his straight forward response. "I studied Hero training and Quirk reinforcement a lot, thinking if I got good enough... But, then our house got blown up and here I am." He shrugged.
I saw many of my classmates staring up at him with sparkling eyes, amazed by his story. Give me a break, it probably wasn't even true. "Well, hero life isn't for everyone, I suppose... But anyways, back on topic, you were saying about Quirks?"
"Right..." He brushed off my comment, before focusing on someone from the crowd. "Gawara, step forward." The young man tilted his head in confusion, before nodding and stepping up to the front. "Your Quirk, you called it Recorder, you can repeat noises perfectly for a short amount of time after hearing them."
Earning a few looks from those around him, "Whoa dude," His short friend spoke up, "You never told me about that."
To which he shrugged, "It's a pretty useless power, and I've got no reason to use it so... Didn't feel like mentioning it."
Adachi smirked lightly, "Useless? Far from it, I think." Crossing his arms over his chest, "Sure, right now you can only repeat basic sounds, but if you really worked at it I wouldn't be surprised if you learned to mimic animal sounds or even peoples voices!"
The curly haired boy was taken back, "Y-You really think so?"
"I do," Adachi nodded, before looking past him. "I want you all to be honest with me, and raise your hand if you ever dreamed of being a hero."
I went wide eyed, seeing almost every single person in the class raise their hand. "W-Well, of course," I chuckled lightly, "Everyone fantasizes about that when they're kids... But it isn't very realistic." What was happening? He looked exhausted why did have so much energy!? "I mean, how would Gawara's Quirk be useful as a hero?"
"Are you kidding?" Adachi quirked an eyebrow, "I could already see the headlines, Pro Hero 'Mock' tricks villains into revealing their location by copying the voice of a comrade!" Spreading his hands through the air, while Gawara's face lit up. "Yeah, being able to fight or having a powerful Quirk is great for being a Hero, but it isn't all there is to it... A Quirk is what you make of it, you should never take them at face value."
"Yo that sounds awesome!" Gawara beamed, pumping his fists. "You've gotta show me! How can I learn to do that with my voice!?"
Earning a nervous laugh from Adachi, "I can't really teach you, you just have to practice, over and over, use your Quirk as much as you can handle until you make it happen." He held up the stack of papers he'd brought with him, holding out one to Gawara.
"Uh... What is that?" I questioned, quirking an eyebrow. Noting that it was multiple papers stapled together.
"I realized while reading through the Quirks you all gave me yesterday, that there was no way I could train everyone personally over the course of this month." Adachi stated, as Gawara took the papers. "So, I wrote out some rough drafts for training regiments before I went to bed last night... They might not be perfect, but it'll definitely get you all moving in the right direction."
"He put THIS much thought into it!?"
"Dammit... We underestimated him, again..."
"Since we're going to put on a sort of... Talent show," Adachi continued, starting to hand out more and more of the papers. "I thought of unique ways you could all show off your Quirks, and hopefully don't worry about upstaging one another." Everyone starting reading through them, not at all questioning his decisions. "I think Gawara could put on a pretty funny voice act if he picked a few choice voices to mimic, like All Might or Endeavor, mix that with Itsoku's Molding quirk to make some life-like mannequins too." Looking to my two friends from the class, "And Minori, your laser light finger nails combined with Kimito's sparkling dust would make a great light show."
I remained silent, smiling and watching as he handed out the papers. Giving tips and ideas to everyone, like he'd done this all before, like he had no trouble planning this out.
Like... They didn't even need me here. Like, he didn't need-
Wait, "What?" I blinked in surprise, looking down at my hands. "Why... Why do I care if-"
I shook my head, returning to watching as Adachi continued.
"Amari? Are you okay?"
"Don't worry about it."
