Stronger
"Here's what we learned so far." Tsukauchi said. He was standing in front of a panel of the UA staff, excluding Aizawa and Thirteen. "The man with the hands, Tomura Shigaraki: his Quirk allows him to disintegrate things slowly with a touch. From what many of the students and faculty observed, it only works when all five fingers make contact. According to the Quirk Registry, there are no Quirks with that description. Same with Kurogiri, the teleportation user. For the sake of simplification, we dubbed their Quirks Decay and Warp Gate respectively."
"It's really too bad that shadow man was a villain." Midnight chimed in, "Teleportation Quirks like that are rare enough. He would've been extremely useful."
"That's right!" Present Mic agreed, "But since he's one of the baddies, they'll be extremely hard to track!"
"Did you find else anything about these individuals?" Cementoss asked.
Tsukauchi shook his head. "It seems that they're using aliases. No names popped up in any of the police databases and no hospital records surfaced either. Given the lack of information that we have on file for those two, it can be said that they are members of the Underworld."
"So you're telling us that we know nothing about those ne'er-do-wells, but they managed to glean enough info to pull this off?" Snipe asked.
"I'm afraid so."
"Well, looks like we oughta learn as quick as we can. I managed to riddle that two-bit varmint full of lead, but pretty soon their leader'll be back."
"Leader, huh." Toshinori said. The entire lounge turned to him.
"You have anything to add, All Might?" Nezu asked.
"Looking at it with a brief glimpse, this attack would look like any standard villain attack, but focus even a little on some details and it becomes more and more irregular. Given that the villains were there specifically to kill me, it seemed that it would be foolhardy. But they planned meticulously and put themselves in the best situation to execute. Shigaraki spat out some absurd ideology and although he had no qualms with fighting Aizawa and the students, he had Nomu fight me." Toshinori coughed a bit before wiping away some blood, "If he was smart, he wouldn't have disclosed the creature's Quirks, but he blabbed immediately and boasted as much as he wanted. I mean, he could've been doing that to provoke me, but..."
"That still doesn't make sense." Nezu said, "Any sensible villain would keep that vital information close to their chest, but he didn't. The element of surprise is an important tool on the battlefield. Why would he waste it?"
Toshinori continued. "On top of that, when that monster lost due to his carelessness, he began throwing a tantrum! He looked more akin to a child than a villainous mastermind. He even had to be coaxed by his underling." He crossed his arms. "Spitting out some scripted speech, bragging about the creature as if it was a toy, generally acting like the whole thing was a game along with simple mindedly believing that everything would go his way. All of these characteristics point to Shigaraki being a manchild."
"So he's just some kid with too much power?!" Blood King said, "That's it?!"
"Maybe he didn't receive Quirk counseling?" Midnight said.
"I can believe that." Aluminium said, "And with a Quirk like that, the result would be catastrophic."
"That still doesn't explain Nomu." Ectoplasm said. "What's his story?"
"His story's simultaneously simple and complicated." Tsukauchi replied, "According to DNA testing, he's just some small-time thug. His name was Chinai Sagi, age thirty-two, from Saitama prefecture. His Quirk's name was Nail Bullet, and it allowed him to use his fingernails as projecties."
"That doesn't sound anything like the abilities he was using." Silhouette surmised.
"Why is he mentioned in the past tense?" Aluminium asked, "He's still alive, right?"
Tsukauchi glanced at Nezu and Toshinori, who both nodded.
"According to the database, he's listed as deceased."
"Mom, I'm heading to the hospital!" Izuku called as she slowly put on her red sneakers. She could hear her mother's footsteps approaching from the kitchen.
"Oh, sweetie!" Inko said as she watched her daughter struggle to tie her shoes, "Let me do that for you."
A light blush appeared on Izuku's face and she giggled. She kneeled so she was next to her mother. "C'mon mom; I'm a big girl now!"
"You'll never be too big for your mother," Inko replied , "And have you forgotten that you lost an arm, young lady?"
'Not this again,' Izuku thought nervously. When she returned from UA the day before she was immediately bombarded by questions from her uncle and mother: how she was doing (shaken up, but fine), did the arm hurt (not really), what type of prosthetic she would need (she wouldn't need any). Her mother shed tears, which always made her feel immensely guilty. However, she then explained that she would regrow her arm and her mother calmed considerably. For a second she feared that her guardians would pull her out of the hero course, but the two of them didn't even entertain the thought.
"We know being a hero's a dangerous profession," her uncle explained as he washed the dishes of their dinner that night. "We can't expect you not to get injured in that line of duty." He huffed, "Although, I'm still very angry that your school couldn't protect you from that."
She thought about nodding, but that felt wrong. It wasn't like the teachers or faculty were to blame. Mr Aizawa and Thirteen were badly injured, stalling for time and All Might himself was barely standing at the end.
"They tried their best." she defended staunchly.
"Well trying just isn't enough; they're the best hero school in the country for god's sake!" he argued, "I mean, how did they let them in? Doesn't UA have some huge barrier outside of it?"
"They do, but the villains planned for this attack. They had this huge monster that could go toe-to-toe with All Might for a bit." Izuku continued, "If it weren't for them, then things could've gone a lot worse."
"I guess that's true. They really should learn from this fiasco." her uncle replied, "Else things won't go well for them. The media'll tear them apart if there's a repeat offense. Heck, they're likely doing that right now."
And that was the end of that conversation. Mikumo immediately went to sleep for his night shift and hadn't said anything of the sort when he returned that morning.
"Mom, I'll be fine." Izuku reiterated to her mother as she finished tying the laces, "I promise."
"Mmhm." Inko said before giving her daughter a kiss on the cheek, "Now off you go."
Izuku smiled as she exited her apartment.
Izuku entered the waiting room of Mustaufu General Hospital and found her entire class waiting there as well. They looked at her with a mixture of relief and surprise.
"Izu!" Uraraka exclaimed, bounding towards her, "You're alright! You had us worried-" She tried to latch onto the greenette's hands. She grabbed one but Uraraka's left hand only grabbed air. She took a look at her friend's other arm and immediately screamed.
"Uraraka, we are at a hospital! We should be quiet!" Iida said, approaching the two girls. His eyes bulged when he saw Izuku's right arm, almost everything below the elbow being gone. The only thing that showed she was healing was a new chunk of her forearm. The scars stretched across the healed part, looking like a cracked desert on her skin.
"Midoriya, your arm…." the rosy-cheeked girl said with a shocked expression. More of her classmates surrounded the freckled teen now and each of them was just as dumbfounded as her friends.
"Please, calm down." Izuku said, frantically waving her arms around, "It's not as bad as you think."
"What the hell do you mean?!" Kaminari replied, "You have only one freaking arm!"
"How did that happen?!" Ashido asked, "Was that why you were in pain at the USJ?!"
"Seriously, why'd you jump in there?!" Kirishima questioned, "All Might had that handled!"
Izuku bit her tongue to keep her from refuting what the red-haired boy said. More of her classmates asked questions, many of which were similar to ones she already answered.
"Let me speak!" she yelled, silencing her classmates. She sighed. "Kirishima, you're right. I shouldn't have jumped in there. It was a mistake." She felt a bit bad about lying to his face, but All Might's secret had to be protected. "But it's fine. I talked to Recovery Girl and she said my arm should be growing back within a week or so."
"Wait, so you can heal your arm?" Sero said, "That's….convenient?"
"Don't say that!" Jiro reprimanded, "She still lost an arm!"
"Sorry!" Sero said quickly, "That was a bit insensitive of me."
"Nah, it's fine." Izuku waved off, "We're just lucky it happened to me instead of anyone else."
DING
The elevator opened and out came a woman. She had bright green hair and was wearing a blouse and flapper pants with suspenders. The lower part of her face was covered by a silver mask for some reason. The woman noticed all the students in the waiting area and closed in on them. Even though her mouth was covered, by the way her eyes crinkled Izuku could tell the woman was smiling.
"Ah, you must be Aizawa's students." she said, "He's on the third floor but the room can only have three visitors at a time. I'll let the others know you all are here." She pulled out a cell phone and began dialing a number. A couple of seconds later, the person answered.
"Hey, Nemuri? Yeah, the kids are here." she said into the phone. Izuku's eyes widened. 'She's on a first name basis with Ms Kayama.' she thought, 'Is this lady a hero herself? If so, who?' "Come down already so we can send some of them up!" She put her cell phone away and turned to the students. "The others should be down in a moment."
"Thank you, miss….?" Iida remarked.
"Fukukado. Nice to meetcha." she said. Izuku scratched her chin in thought.
A minute or two later the elevator rang again. Present Mic and Midnight walked out along with an unrecognizable man with dark hair. They were all in civilian clothing. Mic was wearing a jacket and cargo pants; Midnight had a long sleeved sweater dress and the third person had a checkered shirt and jeans. Mic's blond hair was not spiked upward like usual, instead tied in a messy bun. Midnight seemed to be wearing her hair in a ponytail along with some flats and the third person was wearing rancher boots. Given the last person's choice of footwear coupled with the dark hair fashioned in dreads, Izuku assumed that the mystery man was Snipe.
"What's up, little listeners?!" Present Mic shouted in greeting. He was immediately shushed by a nearby nurse.
"How cute! You guys are worried about your teacher." Midnight said, a hand over her lips, "You're even using your off day to visit him!"
"Pull in your horns, Kayama." Snipe said, "Any kid would worry after what happened."
"Yeah, yeah." Midnight said, waving the Aiming Hero off, "Anyway, who wants to meet him first?"
Iida immediately sprang into action. "Everybody! Line up alphabetically!"
Nobody moved.
"Why aren't you moving?"
"First or last name, dumbass?!" Bakugo asked.
"Last name, obviously!" Iida replied.
"How is that obvious?" Ashido said.
"It's implied!" he responded. The class slowly arranged themselves accordingly.
"Alright. First three, go." Midnight ordered.
Aoyama, Ashido, and Asui walked towards the elevator and the door closed.
"Midoriya."
She turned to her right, where Todoroki stood, arms crossed.
"Why did you jump after the villains? What was your reasoning behind it?" he asked, "Did you think All Might couldn't handle it?"
Izuku's breath hitched, but she forced herself to remain calm. 'Can't give away anything!' She scratched the back of her head in faux cluelessness. "You got me! I have absolutely no clue! All Might definitely had those villains, so if the teacher's hadn't shown up I would've just gotten in the way."
"Don't be so reckless, Midoriya." Sato said, "I swear just 'cuz you can heal good doesn't mean you should put yourself into dangerous situations."
Izuku chuckled nervously. "Sorry about that, Sato. I'll be more careful next time."
Todoroki was about to say something else but Bakugo beat him to it.
"Of course Deku's stupid ass would think All Might would need help! He's the Number One! Why would he need help from anyone?"
Izuku glared at the ash blond but before she could say or do anything, Uraraka walked up to Bakugo.
"What the hell's your problem?!" the brunette said.
"None of your business, Round Face! Now back off before I make you!" he barked, his hands already crackling with explosives.
"Alright, listeners! Separate now!" Mic said, his tone still jovial though thinly disguised.
"Simmer down." Snipe added, "This is a hospital."
The two teens stared at each other for a second longer before separating. Izuku sighed and glanced at Todoroki. The dual-haired boy was looking at Yaoyorozu, who was saying something to him.
'Hopefully, that's the last of his questions.' Izuku thought. Unknown to her, Bakugo watched from afar.
'She's definitely hiding something.' he thought, 'But there's no point in asking her now. She'll just clam up.' His eyes narrowed. 'Something's definitely off.'
Just then, the first trio came back down.
"Mr Aizawa wanted to speak to Midoriya last, ribbit." Asui said, "Alone too."
Izuku inwardly cursed. It looked like she was getting yet another lecture.
"Agreed." Iida said, looking tense for some odd reason.
'There was no point for having them be in order then.' he thought as he, Uraraka, and Ojiro went next.
Every few minutes three students would return and another three would take their place. The trio that returned would always be a bit somber, but they wouldn't say anything about their teacher's condition. Izuku wondered how bad Mr Aizawa's injuries were.
Finally, it was her turn. She entered the elevator alone and pressed the button for the third floor. The elevator hummed to life, slowly rising off the ground.
DING…..DING….DING
The door opened and Izuku walked down the hall to the room. She peeked into the room labeled "Aizawa, Shota"and saw the black-haired patient lying on the bed. So much of his head was covered in bandages that the teen wondered if her teacher could even see in front of him. His chest was bandaged as well and his right arm was in a cast.
"Hello, Mr Aizawa." Izuku greeted with a bow. She then took a seat at his bedside. "How are you feeling?"
"Like absolute garbage." her teacher replied, "Do you know why, Midoriya?"
"Because of the injuries, sir?"
A muffled chuckle echoed from the bed-ridden hero. "That's one of the reasons, but I'm a Pro. It comes with the job." He sat up in the bed, using his one good arm to push himself up. "I heard what happened."
Izuku gulped. "I'm sorry, sir. I wasn't think-"
"Tell me why you jumped in. The truth." Aizawa interrupted.
Izuku took in a deep breath. "All Might wasn't moving. He was standing like a statue, sir." She clenched the hem of her skirt. "I've been watching his fights for years now. He's always moving. He could've blitzed them and took them out, but he didn't. He just stood there. Then I heard the villains whispering something. I don't know what it was but I knew it couldn't have been good. Then the two villains charged him, so I went after them and tackled the man with hands."
Aizawa sat there silently for a couple of minutes. "I see." he said after a while, "If that's the case, then I commend you for doing what you did. Your actions, no matter how reckless it may have seemed, saved the Symbol of Peace."
'But?' Izuku thought. She'd been hearing a similar speech from All Might and Recovery Girl, so she waited for the actual lecture.
"But you have to think things through. Jumping in may have saved him but you can't allow yourself to get this injured. You have to think about your own safety as well…."
"But Mr Aizawa, aren't heroes supposed to save people when they can?" Izuku interjected, "I know I wasn't completely sure that All Might needed saving, but if I didn't do what I did he'd either be dead or severely injured!"
"You're right and I applaud you for that, but you can't just use your body as a shield." he argued, "Imagine if Shigaraki didn't grab your arm, but somewhere more vital. Your abdomen, your neck, your skull? If that villain used his Quirk on any of those areas you'd be the one that's dead or severely injured." He gestured towards her with his one good arm, "In fact, that's almost exactly what happened."
"I'll heal!"she shot back.
"You're clearly not invincible, Midoriya. Nobody is. Not even the monster that All Might fought." Aizawa sighed, "As a hero you should strive to save as many people as you can. You can't do that if you're too injured to do so." He raised a hand in an empathetic gesture. "Now I know that you're not yet a hero. That's why you're at UA after all. You guys shouldn't have been put in a situation like that so early."
"But we were, sir."
"Indeed you were. And I'm aware that the school is remedying that. You all did so well; that's not in question." Aizawa said, "Nonetheless, you have to be more careful."
Izuku nodded, not quite able to hide the exasperation on her face.
"Is that all, sir?"
Aizawa nodded. "I doubt you'll be able to take part in Hero Training for the next week, so you'll just have to observe. Visit Recovery Girl after classes. Wouldn't want you to be too tired to function in the morning."
"What about All Might?" Izuku asked.
"He'll find you when he thinks it's most opportune." Aizawa laid back down and Izuku rose from the chair. She turned towards the exit.
"See you at school, Midoriya." he said as she walked out the door.
"Everyone! To your seats! Homeroom is beginning soon!" Iida said, "Let's be respectful to the substitute teacher!"
"You're the only one standing, dude." Sero replied, "We're already sitting, man."
Iida bristled and rushed to his seat. Just as he sat down, the door opened and in came Aizawa!
"Mr Aizawa?!" the class exclaimed at once.
"Morning everyone." he replied, his eyes peeking out of his bandages.
"How are you back already?!" Kirishima asked.
Their homeroom teacher didn't respond, instead hobbling over to the podium.
"What a pro!" every 1-A student thought.
"Are you sure you're well enough to teach, Mr Aizawa?!" Iida asked.
"Please. My wellbeing isn't a factor. I can walk; I can speak; therefore, I can teach. Besides, your fight is far from over." he replied.
"Our fight?" Bakugo asked.
"What do you mean?" Uraraka said.
"Wait, is it…." Izuku wondered aloud.
"Two weeks from now, you will be participating in the Sports Festival." the mummified teacher answered.
The class gasped. "A normal activity?!"
Aizawa groaned. 'I'll chalk that up to their experience with the villains.' he thought to himself. "That's not entirely right. Most schools have regular sports events, but this is UA. We don't do anything halfway. As such,the UA Sports Festival is no ordinary school activity."
"Don't you think it's a bit soon to have this event after the incident at the USJ?" Ojiro asked.
"Wouldn't it be wise to postpone it?" Shoji said.
"I'm afraid not. It's vital that UA demonstrates its disaster management protocols, show that they are well despite what happened." he sighed, "At least that's the reasoning behind the decision. The truth is an event this large simply cannot be cancelled or postponed. Don't worry though. This Sports Festival will have five times the amount of policing and heroic supervision. Villains aside, we wouldn't want to ruin your greatest opportunity."
"Opportunity?" Ashido questioned.
"Indeed." Aizawa affirmed, "The UA Sports Festival is one of the most popular events in all of Japan. After the rise of Quirks, the Olympics have mostly taken a backseat on the world stage. The Sports Festival, as far this nation is concerned, has taken its place."
"All of Japan's heroes will be there. They'll be scouting for potential sidekicks, right?" Yaoyorozu said.
"We'd be working with some of them after we graduate. That's if we impress 'em." Kaminari responded.
"Some sidekicks never go solo, though." Jiro added. She glanced at Kaminari, "You'll end up like that if you don't shape up, Kaminari. Don't be an idiot."
"Tch!" he said in reply.
"Getting picked up by a top-ranking hero will do wonders for your popularity and experience. It's not the end-all be-all for your hero career given that you have three years to participate, but you shouldn't waste this opportunity. I guarantee your peers will be coming for your throats, so you should be polite and do the same."
"Yes, sir!" the class responded.
The bell rang, signifying the end of fourth period science.
"Alright everyone! Read Chapter 2 over the weekend and I'll see you on Monday!" Aluminium said before exiting the room. The class stood up to head to lunch.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm freaking pumped right now!" Kirishima exclaimed, "We'll get to show the world what we can do!"
"We perform well and all the Pro Heroes'll have to take notice!" Sero added.
"Everyone's super excited…." Izuku said tentatively.
"Of course!" Iida replied, "This is an excellent opportunity to add ourselves to the ranks of Pro Heroes!"
"Izu, Iida." Uraraka said, her voice low. The duo looked at their brown-haired friend. Her face was fixed with a determined glare. "Let's do our best!"
"What the-? Didn't expect that to come from you, Uraraka." Ashido said.
"I'm gonna crush this! Right, everybody?!" the brunette said, her arm pumped into the air.
"Aye, Aye!" the now uneasy students replied with an equivalent gesture.
"Talk about out of character…." Kirishima said quietly.
"What's got you so excited?" Izuku asked her friend as they walked through the hall, "I've never seen you so motivated, Uraraka."
"It's like Mr Aizawa said." Uraraka replied, "If we want to catch the attention of the heroes, we'll have to really perform well."
"We're all motivated, Midoirya!" Iida said, taking on a tense posture.
"You got a weird way of showing it, Iida!" Uraraka said with a giggle before turning to the greenette, "But seriously Izu, how are you not?"
Izuku waved her lone arm around frantically, "Trust me, I am! I'm ready to show everyone what I've got! It just seems a bit weird after what we went through."
"You're not wrong." Iida responded, "But as Mr Aizawa reasoned, this event will be perfect in pushing past the fiasco."
"I guess you're right." Izuku said, "By the way, Uraraka, I was wondering why you wanted to become a hero?"
"I can ask you guys the same thing." Urarka said, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"Well, I'm assuming Iida wants to follow in his family's footsteps, correct?" the greenette replied, to which Iida nodded. "And for me, I want to be a hero because I've always wanted to be like the heroes I watched growing up. I feel like they inspire people to do good things and they keep people safe." She chuckled, "I know that seems a bit basic but it's the truth."
"Oh." Uraraka said, tapping her index fingers together,
"I mean, it's okay if you don't wanna tell us your reason…."
"No, you guys shared so I will too." the eternally blushing girl said before taking a deep breath, "The reason I became a hero is because they pay good."
"Huh?" Izuku said, blinking rapidly in confusion," You're doing this for the money?"
"To be honest, yes." Uraraka said scratching the back of her head nervously, "I know that seems a bit immoral, especially compared to you guys' inspirations…."
"Nonsense!" Iida said, swishing his arms this way and that, "There is nothing dastardly with moving up in the world."
"Right!" Izuku agreed, "Just didn't expect it is all…."
"The truth is my family's not really well off." Uraraka continued, "My parents own a construction company but it's been tanking for a while."
"Construction? So if you had permission to use your Quirk, you'd be able to help them cut costs right?"
Uraraka nodded, "That's the idea, but my parents were having none of it. They knew I like heroes, that I wanted to be one, so they told me to follow my dreams instead." She then looked at the duo with determination. "That's why when I go Pro, I'll help my parents live easier lives."
"Bravo, Uraraka!" Iida said, his eyes shining with unshed tears.
"Yeah, Uraraka! Your goal's super noble!" Izuku said in encouragement, "What's better than helping your own parents?"
"Thanks guys."the brunette said with a smile.
"Young Midoriya!" a booming voice said just as they reached the cafeteria. The trio of high school students turned to the source and found All Might peeking from a corner. "Once you pick up a tray," he revealed a small baggie with what could be assumed was a boxed lunch, "Would you like to join me for lunch?"
"Pffft!" Uraraka let out a barely contained laugh, "He's acting like a schoolgirl!"
"Yessir!" Izuku said before entering the line. A pair of heterochromatic eyes watched that display with curiosity.
When All Might and Izuku reached the teacher's lounge, they found it to be empty. The Number One hero immediately deflated into his thin form, which made the suit he was wearing look comically too large for him. He then took a seat on the sofa, placing his lunchbox on the table. Izuku sat on the lone chair in front of it and did the same with her tray.
"Alright." All Might said, "I should begin by introducing myself. My name is Toshinori Yagi and I have been the Number One hero for a little over twenty-years now."
"Nice to meet you, Al-I mean, Mr Yagi." Izuku said, "Were you always like this, sir?" Her eyes trailed up and down.
"No." Toshinori said, "You see, about six years ago I got in a fight with a powerful villain that left me like this."
"Six years ago?" Izuku asked, "Was that against Toxic Chainsaw?"
"Toxic Chainsaw?" Toshinori looked at the freckled teen in confusion, "No, it wasn't against him. The villain I faced was much more formidable, enough to severely wound my GI tract." He pointed at the wounded area. "There's a very gruesome scar right over here to show for it."
"Not to be rude or anything, sir, but if that villain was so dangerous, then how come I've never heard of him? I've been following your career ever since I was a kid."
"That's because I asked the media not to cover it." Toshinori said, "Imagine what people would think if they saw a villain go toe-to-toe with the Symbol of Peace? There would be public panic!"
"What happened to the villain then?" Izuku asked, "Is he in jail?"
"No. He's not in jail." the blond answered, a grim expression on his skeletal face, "He just managed to get away, but given his injuries I doubt he survived." 'Or at least that's what I thought.'
"So, you've been trucking on since then? Is that why you've been showing up less and less over the years?" the greenette questioned.
Toshinori nodded. "The amount of time I can do hero work has been decreasing each day. Just three months ago, I was down to three hours of hero work and as of the day before yesterday, I'm just a bit over an hour."
Izuku looked at him with a very mournful expression. The Number One hero noticed and smiled.
"Don't apologize. On the contrary, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you." he said, "Even if I wasn't injured in the recent attack, it would have only delayed the inevitable." He sighed, "My time as the Symbol of Peace is ending soon. Others will pick up where I left off, whether that be other Pros or the future generation! Of this, I am certain!"
Izuku nodded silently.
"I know this has been a lot and you've been taking it like a champ. Did you have any other questions?"
"Not that I can think of, Mr Yagi." she replied.
"Alright. If you do, don't hesitate to stop by." he said with a smile, "Recovery Girl will be open to visit after classes. The Sports Festival is also happening soon. I trust you know how important it is. You have to show the heroes and the world what you can do! Give it your all!"
"Yessir!" the bell rang signifying the end of lunch. Izuku picked up her tray and with a bow left the room, leaving the emaciated hero alone with his thoughts.
'I'm sorry for not giving you the full truth, Young Midoriya, but I'm afraid it's no longer just my secret to tell.' he lamented.
Izuku slowly put her things away. Since she couldn't participate in heroics class, she sat with All Might in the observation room the entire time. She managed to jot some more things about her classmates' Quirks (including a little more about Todoroki's "ice" Quirk) in her notebook.
'Looks like he can heat his own ice, melting it. I have a suspicion on how that works, but it's just a guess. If it's true though...' she thought, feeling a bit miffed. She shook her head, 'I'd pry but I feel like after what happened with All Might, it would be a bit hypocritical of me to do so.' She slung her bag onto her shoulders and stood up. 'Everybody else's Quirks seem pretty straightforward but there's definitely more to learn.'
"Hey, Izu! Let's head to the station together!" Uraraka said, Iida right next to her.
"Sorry. Have to go to the nurse's office before I leave." she replied.
"We'll go with you!" her friend said jubilantly.
"Oh? Alright then."
The brunette bounded towards the exit and opened it, only to find a veritable crowd of students parked right out their door.
"Whoaa…." Uraraka said as she stepped back, a shocked look on her face.
"What're they here for?" Izuku asked aloud.
"What do you think, Deku?" Bakugo said, glaring at her as he moved past the trio, "We're the kids who survived against actual villains. They're sizing us up, scoping the competition. Trying to get a sneak peek before the festival." He turned towards the crowd of students, "Outta my way, extras!"
The reaction to that was immediate. Outspoken members of the crowd began vocalizing their displeasure. At the same time Iida reprimanded his classmate, arm swinging up and down. "Bakugo, you shouldn't refer to our unacquainted peers as extras!"
"Not gonna lie, we were doing exactly that. Seriously though, are all hero students like this?" one voice said over the myriad of other students. Izuku noticed a familiar head of purple hair loom over the back of the visiting students, inching closer to the front of the crowd. "Is the hero course filled with such cocky assholes? Kind discouraging, to tell you the truth."
The tall teen who spoke finally stood in front of the other students, hand on the back of his head and eyes unusually baggy.
'It's the guy from the media incident.' Izuku thought to herself.
"The fuck you say, Purple Raccoon?!" Bakugo retorted. The purple-haired young man ignored the comment.
"Quite a lot of us didn't make it to the hero course. With thousands of participants and only forty spots, it just wasn't in the cards." he continued unperturbed, "But depending on how well we do, they might consider having us join the hero course. I heard a spot was available."
"That's true." Izuku said quietly. He glanced at her, his eyes widening in recognition, but he didn't say anything. Instead he looked back at Bakugo.
"If it's possible for us to get in the hero course, it's also possible for you to get out. I know a guy who had that happen." the baggy-eyed teen said, "I bet you guys do too."
"Is there a point to this whole spiel?!" Bakugo asked angrily.
"The point is we less fortunate students are raring to go, ready to put you guys in your place." he replied, "On behalf of all the general course students, consider this a declaration of war." With that proclamation, he slowly slinked away.
'That guy's gutsy. And he knows my Quirk while his Quirk and skills are still a mystery to me. I better watch out for him!' she thought. Just then, another loud voice yelled out, "Hey, 1-A!" A silver-haired boy with discolored and unnaturally long eyelashes flailed, making his presence known. "I'm from next door, class 1-B! I heard what happened and wanted to check in on you guys, but instead all I'm seeing is this shithead!" He pointed at Bakugo who scowled. "You better not embarrass the hero course at this thing!" He then noisily stomped away and the rest of the crowd trickled away.
"You really outdid yourself Bakugo." Izuku said with a frown, her two friends staring at the blond with a mixture of resignation and dismay.
"Seriously dude, what did you do that for?' Kirishima added, "Thanks to you, we got a whole crowd hating on us now."
"As if I give a shit!" the perpetually grouchy boy said, "I'm heading to the top anyway, so let them come." He walked out of the classroom.
"Damn, that's pretty manly." Kirishima said, a single tear jutting out of his right eye.
"He's not incorrect." Tokoyami said. Sato nodded in agreement.
"Don't let him fool you!" Kaminari argued, "He just made us some enemies is all he did!"
'He does have a point.' Izuku thought as she and her friends headed to the nurse's office, 'We all should be aiming for the top, have to give it our all. Not only to gain recognition, not only to keep our spots, but because it would be insulting to the rest of them if we didn't. Still he could've been less Bakugo about it.'
Once they reached the nurse's office, Izuku politely knocked on the door. Recovery Girl's distant voice replied with, "Come in!"
She opened the door and found the elderly heroine at her desk. "Please have a seat, dear. This shouldn't take but a couple of minutes."
Izuku did as she was told, setting her bag down on the floor beside her. The nurse began rolling up the hanging sleeve, revealing the injured arm. It was slightly longer than yesterday and the cracked texture seemed to continue to appear over the healing part.
"Hmm." Recovery Girl mused, trailing a finger over the scarred patches, "Do tell me if you're feeling any discomfort, dear."
Izuku nodded in reply.
'Interesting.' the heroine thought, 'Though it is faster than I hypothesized, it seems that her healing isn't completely perfect given the scarring. The skin is super rough at these parts, possibly the lingering effects of that villain's Quirk.' She placed both her hands on the sides of the teen's head, pulled her close, and placed a kiss on the forehead. A green glow appeared over her head before moving towards the arm. As they watched, the glowing sinews sprouted from the end of stub and began forming bones and muscles. Izuku hissed with pain as it happened, her other hand clutching her elbow. The glowing intensified greatly, shrouding her healing arm in green light. The pain did as well and the teen had to bite back a shout. Her friends clutched her shoulder to support her and Recovery Girl stared at the glowing arm with mounting interest. Slowly the luminosity subsided, revealing a fully healed forearm and hand.
"Izuku, look!" Uraraka exclaimed, "Your arm's back!"
"That is astonishing!" Iida said as well.
Izuku wiggled her fingers, rolled her wrist, and bent her elbow to test movement, staring at her rehealed arm in wonder. Recovery Girl mirrored the manner as she stared at the now scarred right arm of Izuku Midoriya.
'That worked much better than I thought it would.' she thought. As soon as that thought crossed her mind, Izuku's eyes drooped and she collapsed backward, falling asleep instantly in the chair. 'Ah, there it is.'
"Help me get her onto the bed." she ordered the two students who immediately began carrying their friend to the nearest one. After the girl was situated in the bed
"Is Izuku going to be okay, ma'am?" Uraraka asked, her face a mask of worry.
"Don't worry, dearie. That's just what happens with my Quirk." the elderly heroine explained, "She'll just need a little nap and she'll be all better."
"Is it alright if we stay, Recovery Girl?" Iida questioned. The nurse smiled.
"You're free to do if you please, but you'll miss your trains at this point. I'll watch over her, so you needn't worry. I'll have one of the teachers escort her home after she wakes up."
The two friends looked at each other before nodding.
"Alright, ma'am."
"Tell Midoriya our regards."
After the two students left, the heroine sat next to the bed watching the teen sleep.
'She reminds me of that person.' she thought with a wistful smile, 'That really brings me back.'
Name: Toshinori Yagi (A.K.A. All Might)
Height/Weight: 7'2", 164 lbs/224 lbs
Quirk: ?
It allows him to move at high speeds and attack with tremendous power. It also allows him to change form from his skinnier "true" form to his powerful "hero" form.
Stats:
Power: S
Speed: S
Technique: A
Intelligence: A
Cooperativeness: S
Name: Katsuki Bakugo
Height/Weight: 5'7", 142 lbs
Quirk: Explosion
He emits nitroglycerin like sweat that he can ignite to create explosions. The more sweaty he is the more powerful the explosion, so barring exhaustion he's more dangerous in drawn out battles.
Stats:
Power: A
Speed: B
Technique: B
Intelligence; B
Cooperativeness: E
Name: Ochaco Uraraka
Height/Weight: 5'1", 107 lbs
Quirk: Zero Gravity
She can cancel the gravitational pull on any object or person that she touches with her hands. Her current limit is about three tons and when she overexerts herself it can trigger some harsh nausea, which causes her to throw up.
Stats:
Power: D
Speed: E
Technique: B
Intelligence: C
Cooperativeness: A