What's up, everyone! Welcome back to another chapter of Acnologia: A New Beginning!
(A/N: So apparently I submitted the wrong chapter. Sorry if you were one of those people who saw it. Here's the real chapter. Enjoy!)
I know this took literally over a month to get out. Sorry about that. I was so busy with work that I found it hard to get back to typing fanfics. But now that I've pushed myself to do it after seeing your kind reviews, I've decided to go onwards and update this and other fanfictions.
Anyway, the poll I conducted will be at the end of this chapter. Just keep in mind that the result doesn't change anything.
DISCLAIMER: NEVER OWNED ANY ANIME. WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THIS? IDK. Lol
Now to the story!
CHAPTER THREE: Mirko vs Acnologia
The day had finally come for Izuku to start his path into becoming a hero. It has already been two days since he and All Might began the former's training at a seaside beach. Of course, Acnologia was close-by out of curiosity. He wanted to see how this training would play out.
He…wasn't impressed.
The former dragon king sighed. Seated at the edge of a skyscraper, he was miles away from the seaside beach. Obviously, he shouldn't be able to see and listen in on their conversation. But considering he's the former king of the dragons, his hearing and eyesight were surpassed the limits of mankind by a longshot.
So right at the moment, the time was 6 am. The sun was barely peeking out of the horizon as Izuku was trying to pull a discarded fridge while All Might sat on top of it.
The No. 1 Pro hero was mildly taunting the boy as he pulled as hard as he could, only to fail. Acnologia, of course, wasn't amused. But he at least noticed All Might's intention. It was the type of tough love he planned to give Izuku if he had gotten the chance to train him, except he would've been much worse.
'Perhaps, the hero's training isn't bad.' He thought with a light shrug.
It was from that moment that he learned the reason behind the training. The quirk, One For All, needed a strong body before it can be handed over to Izuku. This was made clear by All Might, who explained that if Izuku took it at that moment the kid's body would explode.
Acnologia could only frown in disappointment. This side-effect by what is supposedly one of the strongest quirks only emphasized his criticism against quirks.
"Quirks really are annoying." He muttered to himself and sipped from a soda with him. "And here I thought One For All wouldn't be broken. Well…at least he's getting the training he needs."
Just then, his mood changed when he listened in on All Might's words.
The pro hero got down from the fridge and said. "The young crops of heroes these days are obsessed with flashiness. But the hero game ought to be a labor of love! Call it "plain" all you like, but I won't let the fundamentals get fuzzy!"
With that, All Might pressed his hand down on the fridge, crushing the thing to such an extent that Izuku could see the beautiful sea and the sun. Izuku must've been astonishingly speechless at the encouraging words by the No. 1 pro hero. Acnologia wouldn't blame. Though All Might's show of strength was nothing compared to him, he did like the pro hero's speech.
"Either he's an actual genuine hero or…" Acnologia paused and sipped on his soda again. "He's a really good actor. Nonetheless, I'm a bit impressed."
"Mark this day, boy! As your first step towards being a hero!" All Might stated boldly.
Now, Izuku had ten months to train just enough to wield One For All. Acnologia couldn't help but grin at what awaited his little brother. He did find All Might's "Aim To Pass! American Dream Plan!" to be a ridiculous title for a training regimen. But he put it aside just to see what the training would be.
And so the training truly began. Days began to pass as All Might put Izuku through all sorts of training. Of course, Acnologia was always there to observe from afar.
Whether it was early in the morning or late at night, Acnologia and Izuku were awake and doing their own respective thing. The training was still a hurdle that the latter took with great determination. He also had to do it while handling his school studies, which wasn't easy either. Meanwhile, Acnologia managed himself well.
In his past life, Acnologia adapted to countless hardships. The life of a dragon slayer was never easy when there's a war with countless dragons. It also didn't help him that he purposefully put himself into more hardships so he can become the strongest dragon slayer in existence.
However, Acnologia's peaceful days weren't without some excitement. For a while, he took notice of an unfamiliar presence that kept observing him from afar.
He knew it was a young woman. Her hiding skills, however, weren't very discrete. Anyone with heightened sense would notice her immediately, especially with those bunny ears that were prodding from her green hoodie.
At first, the former dragon king ignored her. She never tried to interact with him in any way. Acnologia simply suspected that she was a hero called in by the HPSC, which was a bit troubling. The last thing he wanted was for that government agency to figure out All Might's quirk. He had checked the internet some days ago and confirmed that "One For All" isn't listed as his quirk.
Nonetheless, he continued to keep his distance from her. If he needed to observe Izuku, he'd just use his space magic and get to the locations. That way this mysterious hero won't be able to follow him there. This aspect of his power was already known to the public when he saved Izuku and Katsuki, so he wasn't worried.
However, these motion events don't repeat themselves for long. Eventually, there's always something that changes.
Back to the present, it was a fine Saturday as Acnologia was alone in the living room while staring blankly at the television. He wanted to get rid of the HPSC and the 'bunny spy' before they noticed All Might and Izuku. But he knew his place.
Acnologia's power was more than enough to destroy an entire organization, regardless of who they are. However, the repercussion would just end up being dumped on his adopted mother and brother. There was the father, but he never really heard from him so he didn't care about his life.
'Maybe if I ignore it, maybe it'll go away.' He thought.
That idea was thrown aside when he heard someone knock on the door. Immediately, he felt a familiar presence and groaned in mild annoyance.
"So the bunny has decided to show herself." He muttered and rose from the couch.
He went to the door and opened it. That was when he finally met face to face with the spy that has been following him in the past week.
"Hey, you must be Acno Midoriya. The name's –"
BANG
"Acno-nii, who was that?" asked Izuku from his room.
"No one important," Acnologia shouted back.
The 'spy' aka Mirko fumed and gritted her teeth. 'Did he just say the Mirko was no one important?!'
She had the very mindset to barge right into the apartment. However, she calmed herself, knowing that she was already in disguise, thus it was best to keep her identity a secret from peering eyes. She was just in a green hoodie, black pants, and sunglasses.
"Let's try this again." She muttered and knocked on the door.
Again, Acnologia opened the door, which made her smirk a bit.
"Alright, I'll get to the point. Let's have a good fight. Just you and me. I –"
BANG
Acnologia shut the door again, but it didn't stop there. Mirko easily listened in, and heard what happened inside.
"Acno-nii, who was that?" Izuku asked.
"Just a crazy person, Izuku. Just focus on your studies." Acnologia replied.
'Oh, he did not just call me crazy!' Mirko thought.
She was reaching her breaking point, as evident by a vein about to pop on her face. As such, she forced the door and yelled. "Now, you listen here you little shit! I will not –"
Before she could finish, a small object was slammed into her face. Mirko yelped while the apartment door was slammed shut again.
"What the hell hit me?" She questioned while rubbing her forehead.
Her eyes looked around the floor before she found what it was. Suddenly, her blood level rose as she gritted her teeth with rage. Lying on the ground was a carrot, which had been the object that hit her.
Back inside, Acnologia was standing in the living room with his back facing the apartment door. He sensed trouble, and immediately side-stepped just in time. Mirko used her right foot to kick the door right off its hinges and across the living room.
"Dammit, kid! Are you trying to get me pissed off?!" Mirko cried as she kicked the door. "Don't think so lowly of Mirko !"
"Our door!" Acnologia shouted. Angrily, he faced Mirko as she stepped inside. "You better explain yourself!"
"Like hell I do!" Mirko yelled brought her head down to his level. "Did no one teach you how to be polite?!"
"Polite?! Bitch, you knocked down my door!"
"Don't call Mirko a bitch!"
Each moment they argued with each other, their foreheads drew closer as their glares made eye contact.
"Who the hell is Mirko ?!" Acnologia yelled.
"Mirko is me!" She answered.
"That explains a lot!"
"What the hell does that mean?!"
"You know what I mean! Only a kid would refer to themselves in the third person!"
"You little shit!" Mirko fumed. "You wanna go?! I can go right now!"
"Bring it!"
Now their foreheads met, with their 'lightning' shooting from their eyes at each other. A battle might as well underway, however, the intrusion of a certain mother put that on hold.
"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"
A mother's fury must never be underestimated. This is something Mirko and Acnologia found out once Inko stepped into the living room and saw her door pierced into a wall.
Soon, both Mirko and Acnologia were kneeling in front of her, Inko, with their heads down as she was seated on a three-seater couch with an offended glare down at both of them. Both individuals had also been smacked on the head, which explains the swollen bumps.
"W-We're sorry." Both Mirko and Acnologia apologized.
Inko sighed, allowing the tension to leave her body. She rubbed her nostrils and put them down before scolding them.
"But why?" She muttered under her breath. "I get that my son has some serious temper issues, but you…Aren't you a Pro Hero?"
"A top pro hero, to be exact." Mirko emphasized. Then her situation settled hard on her, causing her to feel embarrassed.
Inko got to know about her identity once her hood was down. But while it did surprise her, Inko had become a bold woman thanks to taking care of Acnologia. So she was quick to lecture both of them immediately.
"But you want a fight with my son, who's a middle-schooler." Inko responded before shaking her head in mild disappointment. "It's a good thing Izuku went ahead to calm the neighbors. We wouldn't want this to become a scandal."
"Y-Yeah…" Mirko looked away embarrassingly. "I'll be sure to pay for the door…Just…send the bill to my agency."
"Thank you."
"Wait a minute!" Acnologia shouted and pointed at her. "You're gonna give her a pass?! She intruded our home, mother!"
"She did do that." Inko said, thoughtfully looking away. But her face changed to a creepy, angry face. "But this wouldn't have escalated to this point if you hadn't slammed the door at her face."
Acnologia sacredly looked away and grumbled. "Well, she shouldn't have come in either way."
"What was that?"
"No-Nothing!" Acnologia straightened himself in front of her.
Inko faced Mirko and grew a bit worried. "So why are you really here? I hope there isn't any problem."
Inko didn't seem to buy into the idea that Mirko intended to fight Acnologia. Perhaps, she assumed it was a stupid pretense for something else. Either way, it works for Mirko since she can lie her way through.
"Oh, no problem." Mirko smiled. She was amused by Acnologia's reaction. "I just came to check up on the kid, just in case."
Then an idea popped in her head, and she couldn't help but grin cunningly. "Well, he seems alright since he's just a kid. Now that I think about it, I shouldn't have gotten so worked up by a kid like him. After all, he's just a kid who probably doesn't know his right from wrong. By the way, you're such a good mother since you have to deal with a kid like him. It almost makes me wish I had a mother like you."
Inko blushed seriously and cupped her cheeks. Meanwhile, Acnologia's veins were all over his face as he gritted his teeth. Mirko didn't need to turn to see it. Her plan to hurt his pride was working.
"Well, I should get going." Mirko said and stood up. Both of them no longer had those swollen bumps on their head. "I got some work to do, you know. Sorry for breaking the door down."
"Well…" She paused. "As long as you pay for the damage, I don't mind too much."
"Alright. Bye."
She then walked out of the apartment before jumping off without another word. Izuku arrived at that moment, but she was gone before he could call out to her. He hoped to speak with the No. 8 Pro Hero, but that opportunity was gone…for now.
"She left so soon." He said, somewhat disappointed. He looked back inside the apartment and met his mother.
She nodded. "Yeah. I didn't even get to ask her about her agency's number."
"Don't worry, the information is online."
"Oh, that's good. I was worried about…"
As she kept talking to her son, she and the latter were unaware that Acnologia was gone.
A few minutes passed as Mirko created more distance between her and the apartment building. She felt a bit bad for lying to Inko as she leaped from one building to another. But that wasn't on the top of her mind. Mirko was excited for what awaited her.
'Hehe. His pride was probably hurt. He won't let this down. He should be here right about…now.'
Just as she thought that last word, she spun to face upwards and met face to face with Acnologia. The kid swung a punch for a face while she swung her foot. In an instant, their respective attacks made contact, just as both of them were engulfed in blue flames. When they were shot apart from each other, they were now in a forest.
Mirko did a backflip and landed on her feet while Acnologia skidded back before he came to a stop. With a wide grin, the pro hero tore off her disguise, thus revealing her hero costume.
"So you finally accepted my request. Good." Mirko smirked as she bent her knees slightly. "I've been looking for a good fight."
Acnologia stood upright and huffed. "You better be worth it. I don't like people who bait me like that."
"Oh, you won't have to worry about that." She replied as she got into her fighting stance. "You see, I'm pretty much one of the strongest in the top ten."
"Is that so?" Acnologia smirked a bit. "Then maybe it'll be worth the fight."
"I know right." She said and did a hoity laugh. "So I take it you're in."
"I'm in. Just don't disappoint me."
"I can say the same thing to you. I've been itching for a fight. So…" She readied her feet. "Let's get to it!"
With that, she leaped forward, with her right foot ahead of her. Acnologia saw her attack coming and felt unamused. As such, he bent backward and avoided her attack as she went right past him.
But that was just a ploy. Mirko planted her feet on the ground and swung her feet against Acnologia's face. But the ex-dragon king wasn't taken off guard. He took the brunt of her attack by raising his arm to shield himself.
"Is that truly all you can do?" He asked plainly.
Suddenly, Mirko slammed her free foot at his face. Acnologia was taken aback and sent flying several feet back, especially as he slammed through a few trees before doing a backflip to land on a tree branch.
"Looks like the bunny has a few tricks up her sleeve." He remarked.
"You have no idea!"
"Huh?"
Acnologia looked up but barely had a chance to react. Mirko came down at him with both feet, thus demolishing the tree, as well as shattering the ground. The shockwave from her attack also uprooted nearby trees, rocks and earth, and sent her flying. When the dust settled, Mirko was standing in a large crater. There was no sign of Acnologia, however.
"I could've sworn –"
Mirko stopped herself when her bunny ears twitched as they caught an incoming attack. So she responded by doing a quick jump out of the way. If she hadn't moved, she would've been hit by a blast of blue flames.
The impact scorched the earth at that spot and shot debris into the air. Mirko was almost knocked by the shockwave if not for her perfect landing.
Before she could do anything, however, her instincts kicked in again. She bent her knees and went backward just in time to avoid a narrow and sudden punch from Acnologia, who seemingly came out of nowhere.
"Lunar Arc!" She cried out.
She swung her right foot, intending to send him flying. However, Acnologia pulled his body away and closed in on her again with another punch ready. Mirko had to respond by following her failed attack with a backflip, but that didn't stop Acnologia, who closed in on her again, resulting in feet-to-hand combat.
Mirko was astonished by his fighting abilities. Acnologia was able to push her back while using martial arts. But even though she caught several of his punches with her feet and dodged his kicks with ease, it was clear to her that he was holding back.
That part kind of annoyed her. She wanted Acnologia to fight her seriously, thus she decided to step up her attack. She mildly stomped on a right hook attack and used that arm as a launching pad to jump and grab a lock of his blue hair in-between her other feet' toes. From there, she did a cartwheel, taking Acnologia with her, and slammed him to the ground powerfully.
"Lunar Grand Stamp!" She bellowed.
Her attack's impact caused a huge spider-web crack that spread over a hundred meters. However, it wasn't enough to even stun the dragon slayer.
Acnologia turned his normal blue hair into actual flames. Mirko, whose toes were locked on it, yelped and released her grip on him. The hair returned to normal before he used his arms to launch himself back on his feet. Then, with a strong punch into the ground, he caused a blaze of flames to course through the numerous cracks caused by the pro hero.
Mirko responded by cleverly maneuvering her way through and away from the flames. They did not harm him whatsoever, but they did leave her open for an attack.
Acnologia showed this when he jumped through one of the flames in front of her with his right foot forward. He intended to hit her, but the pro hero's instincts kicked in and caused her to move her head out of the way. But then Acnologia grabbed her face and slammed it to the ground as he went by.
The back of the pro hero's head collected some dirt. Besides that, however, she was completely unfazed, even with the shape of her head printed on the earth.
She used her hand to launch herself back to her feet. After getting rid of the dirt, she jumped up just as Acnologia dived towards her. Then she came right down on him and slammed both feet down on his feet, causing a powerful shockwave to course through that side of the landscape.
Chucks of the earth were spread about with a large crater at the source of the destruction. Mirko stood finely and chuckled a bit to herself as she looked down, waiting for the dust cloud to clear up.
"What do you think? I…Huh?"
When the dust cleared, Acnologia wasn't underneath her feet. There wasn't even a sign that he had been in the way of her attack.
Suddenly, her instincts warned her, but this time gravely. She barely managed to look at her back and shoot her right leg to hit him. But it was futile. Acnologia moved out of the way, grabbed her ankle, and lifted her off her other foot. Then he began slamming her body against the shattered ground repeatedly.
Whether it was the front or the back, Acnologia made each hit count as he would turn and do it continuously. The repeated impacts caused their fair share of damage on the earth.
If this was any other enemy, they would've been done for. However, Mirko was known to endure some of the harshest pains on her body, thus she easily ignored the pains and kicked Acnologia in the air with her free foot.
The ex-dragon king underestimated her, thus he was shot like a bullet when her attack made an impact. Mirko landed on all four before running straight at him with just her feet again. Soon, she caught up to him in nearly a blink of an eye and slammed both feet at his chest.
This time, Acnologia was sent flying through several tall and thick trees, knocking them down in the process. Barely of them fazed him, and even when he felt them it wasn't enough to stun him. As such, he easily did a backflip and shot off from the trunk of a tree. From there, he jumped from one tree branch to another until he was on the branch of one of the tallest trees.
Just then, he was alerted by an incoming attack. He responded by jumping a few feet back on the branch, just in time to see Mirko land on the same branch as him.
"Not bad, kid. But I haven't even warmed up yet." Mirko bragged with a confident smirk.
Acnologia simply huffed before spreading a small grin on his face. Mirko took that as a challenge, hence she charged at him and engaged in foot-to-hand combat.
However, this match was different from the last time they did this. Both combatants were now jumping from one tree branch to another, deflecting and knocking each other with each impact they made.
Each attack would result in a shockwave that would explode a part of a tree. Whether it was some branches, the trunk, or even an entire tree, the both of them kept fighting relentlessly. It was almost like they were playing a game of "the floor is lava" due to the clever ways they would jump and swing from tree to tree whenever they came close to touching the earth.
Somehow, Acnologia broke this match when he leaped upwards and ended up above the forest. He got a good view of the entire landscape, which had once been beautiful before he and Mirko got into this battle. Of course, he didn't care. He was just glad that he could cut loose a bit.
Mirko continued the fight when she shot up from below him, intending to attack again. Acnologia responded by looking down and opening his mouth. With a loud road, he unleashed a stream of blue flames from his mouth.
Judging from Mirko's position, there was no way she could evade the attack. However, the pro hero wasn't at the top ten for nothing. She kicked her right foot and used the shockwave from it to shoot her out of the flame's way. She did it again with her left foot before following it with a spin kick at Acnologia.
Acnologia easily blocked her attack with his left arm. He waited and caught her other foot when she tried kicking his face. Now Mirko was at his mercy, especially when gravity was involved as it kept pulling them down.
Mirko had intended for this to happen. With the way her legs were positioned, she could easily wrap her legs around his head. Best of all, if Acnologia's teenage hormones existed, he would be too overtaken to do anything.
So she went ahead and purposely pulled him to her crotch. Acnologia's teenage hormones actually did respond, as his cheeks reddened and he found himself confused when he made contact with it. As such, Mirko was the one to slam him into the ground with great effort.
The result was a huge crater with roots of nearby trees peeking out. Mirko and Acnologia were standing at the center, with a few meters of space between them.
"Wh-What the hell was that about?!" Acnologia yelled, his face still reddened.
"Just a special attack." Mirko teased with a wink. "As expected, you're still growing, am I right?"
The ex-dragon king scowled before taking a deep breath. He relaxed his face and returned to a somewhat stoic expression.
"Is that what you people at the HPSC do?" He questioned.
Mirko didn't expect him to mention that, but she took it in well.
"Come on, kid. I may have been watching you, but I'm not doing this because I was told to." She said. "It isn't every day I get to have this much fun. Besides, don't you feel the same way?"
Acnologia thought it over, reflecting on their battle. He has gotten into a lot of fights in the past, with a lot of them not even known by Izuku or Inko.
"I do," Acnologia replied. "But if this is an attempt to recruitment me, you can forget it."
"Recruit you?" She asked and laughed. "I hate to break it to ya, but I don't think you're fit to be a hero."
"Good." He said and wrapped his arms across his chest. "I guess you do have the brains to match to your strength.
"Well now that we've gotten that out of the way…" She paused and got into her fighting stance. "How about you stop holding back? I want to see you at your best."
Acnologia's stoic face was replaced with an intrigued smirk. "Are all pro heroes like this?"
"Only the best like Mirko ." She quipped.
"Hmph!" Acnologia was amused. Mirko was definitely not like the other heroes he has seen so far.
With that, he mentally gauged how much power he should use. He didn't care about her wellbeing, but at the same time, he didn't want to end up killing her.
Fortunately, he arrived at a certain level of power he should use. As such, when he brought his right leg forward and clutched his right fist upward, his entire body was engulfed in blue flames.
Mirko was nearly flabbergasted by the gush of power shooting out from him. This only caused her to chuckle as her excited grin grew.
'Now that's what I'm talking about.' She thought excitedly.
Just then, her instincts kicked in, and she jumped out of the way. If she hadn't moved, she would've been engulfed by Acnologia's flames, which shot out from the ground below her with immense force and speed.
"Wow, I didn't know you could do that!" Mirko said, sounding impressed. "And here I thought you were kind of like Endeavor."
"Whoever this Endeavor is, I'm beyond her."
Once he said that he raised his palm towards Mirko, who landed on a knocked down tree, and unleashed three fireballs from his palm. These fireballs grew rapidly in size, to the point whereby they were ten times Mirko's size by the time they reached her.
Of course, there was no way she intended to get burnt alive. But she never intended to run away either. Sometimes, her stubbornness gets the better of her, like now.
With that, she leaped at the three attacks and bellowed. "LUNAR SLICER!"
Her kick made an arc in the air, which also pulled in a powerful air that cut right through the fireballs. But then she was attacked in the air by Acnologia, who kicked her in the chest.
This attack was stronger than any attack up until now. Acnologia expected her to be weakened by this attack, however, she still managed to perfectly dodge a quick punch from him.
Her feat wasn't an easy one, however. Acnologia's fist scraped her cheek when she had dodged it. But this didn't bother her, even as she felt a pint of blood escape her body. If anything, it fired her up more.
The pro hero proceeded with a powerful kick for his abdomen. She hoped for a good hit, but Acnologia caught it in his hand and commenced a roundhouse kick at her face. This time, she was sent flying away for miles.
Mirko's body had to endure spinning uncontrollably in the air, even as it broke through several thick trees and eventually tumbled on the ground. Throughout this experience, she sustained countless wounds.
In the end, however, she landed perfectly on her feet, even maintaining herself as it dragged across the dirt. Her hero costume now had several huge cuts and gashes, with her silver-white hair covered in dirt, twigs, and leaves.
She was in that state where she shouldn't keep fighting. But the excited grin on her face begged to differ.
"HAHAHAHA!" She laughed and panted heavily. "Keep this up, kid. Who knows, I might want you all for myself!"
At this point, the hero's veins were driven with a rush of adrenaline. This battle was unlike any battle she had experienced before. All she wanted to do was to keep pushing herself and see how much she can break through her limits. In other words, she was having fun.
With that, she made a powerful leap that was so impactful that it sent a shockwave that wrecked anything in its surroundings.
Both combatants met each other as they rushed at one another in the air. Acnologia pulled back his right flaming fist while Mirko did a few front flips before pushing both feet forward.
"Arcane Dragon Meteor Fist!"
"Lunar cosmic thrust!"
Then it happened. Both attacks met each other and created a dome-shaped shockwave that expanded and destroyed nearly anything in its path for miles away. No tree, boulder, ground, or even insect were left unscathed. The aftermath was like a bomb had denoted in the area.
As the dust began to clear, the largest crater existed in the source of the destruction. There was seemingly no sign of Acnologia and Mirko until both of them rushed through the clouds of dust in the air and began hitting each other again.
Neither of them refused to back down, especially Mirko. Even when Acnologia punched her in the stomach and caused her to spit out blood, the pro hero refused to yield to the pain coursing through her body.
Acnologia's punch spread through her body and shot right out of her back. It cut right through the air and created a trench while the pro hero landed on her feet and kicked Acnologia three times.
"Lunar Barrage!" She bellowed.
Each kick managed to push him back, but it wasn't enough to hurt the dragon slayer. At last, Mirko did a roundhouse kick and slammed it against his chest.
"LUNAR BREAKER!" She cried out.
Just like what she experienced, Acnologia went through it too. The shockwave from her attack coursed through his body and shot out from behind, creating a trench behind him.
However, the battle wasn't going to end that easily. They kept hitting each other with powerful kicks (Mirko ) and powerful punches (Acnologia). At the same time, the same shockwave would cause more destructions behind them.
This couldn't last for long, however. At last, Acnologia planted his fist deep at her stomach with Mirko doing the same at his neck. Surprisingly, neither of them showed any emotion of pain, even as they were stuck in those poses.
"Congrats, kid." Mirko said, her toothy grin covered in her blood. "You've managed to surpass my expectations." She said.
"I can say the same for you, woman." Acnologia replied, giving her a simple impressed smile. "For a hero, you're a crazy one."
"Why would you think that?" She asked rhetorically. "If you want to charm me, you need a better compliment than that."
Acnologia chuckled. "And what's your idea of a compliment? No human would continue a losing match like this, especially not when they're like you."
"That's not how we're like."
"What?"
"Heroes." She answered. "I'm talking about the true pro heroes. That life isn't as rosy and peachy like the media makes it out to be, kid. If it were, I'll be a little bored. But then again even I want everyone to live in a world where they won't have to worry about some crazy bad guy ruining their day."
"Well, if the pay and fame are worth it, that's good for you."
Suddenly, Mirko's grin dropped, and seemed a bit dumbfounded.
"What the hell does that mean?" She asked.
"You know what I mean, bunny girl." Acnologia answered, mocking her with his amused face. "In the end, this hero stuff is just a job to you. Isn't that why you're having this match? You wish to impress that woman at the HPSC."
Now any trace of her thrill was entirely gone. It was then replaced with a snarl, which came ahead of another surprise from her. Acnologia began to feel some pressure from Mirko's foot at his neck. Then, before he knew it, he was skidding back once she successfully pushed him.
"Woah…Impressive." Acnologia laughed a bit. As he faced her again, he added. "I was just about to –"
Mirko interrupted him when she closed the gap between them. Acnologia had to cleverly dodge her attacks while taking mental note of something. They were coming off as stronger and faster than before. Each missed blow even cut through the air and ground, causing tremors and loud booms. She was basically breaking the sound barrier several times over.
Eventually, Acnologia put enough distance between them when he jumped and did a backflip. In response, Mirko stomped the ground he used to stand on and caused the entire section of the forest to suffer.
About ten miles away, the earth broke apart from the massive shockwave. Even Acnologia was affected, as he stumbled a couple of times, surprised by the power coming from Mirko.
At this point, the ex-dragon king sensed an immense, dangerous aura coming off from her. It wasn't deadly, but it did have the potential to cause anyone but him to choke.
There was little time to analyze that. Acnologia moved aside just in time to avoid a superfast jump kick from Mirko. But then she did a quick twirl in the air before she could pass him and slammed her right foot against his face.
Her hit was successful and pushed the ex-dragon king a few meters back. Her foot was still in place when he ignited flames on his face to get her off him. But it didn't seem to work. Mirko's foot was being torched, and yet she was adding more strength into that foot, straining the dragon slayer.
Acnologia scolded a bit at her stubbornness. Any more of this and she'll lose her foot. He didn't really care, but he didn't like the idea of being the fault of a 'careless woman'. So, at last, he decided to cut loose a bit more.
The flames on her foot were now creeping on the rest of her leg. This time, Mirko winced as she tried to push back against the pain. Somehow, this only angered her more as she snarled at his face and unleashed a powerful, fearsome yell.
Acnologia's eyes widened before he was kicked for miles away. He had to blink a couple of times before he reminded himself that it wasn't a dream. This woman had actually done what he deemed was impossible.
Eventually, he did a backflip and landed on both feet. His legs dragged through the ruptured earth before he came to a stop. Mirko, however, wasn't done as she landed right in front of him, panting heavily with 'flaming' eyes. She seemed to be past her limit, but still pushing on.
"You!" She yelled. "Don't you ever question my resolve!" She panted a couple of times again before planting a fist on her chest. "I don't do this stuff for something as stupid as fame and fortune! I do this because I am Mirko !"
Acnologia just raised an eyebrow. What did she mean by that last part?
"Also…" She pointed at him. "Not all heroes are in that category, kid! Some of us do this because it's the right thing to do! But you wouldn't know that since you only act based on your own interest!"
With that last bellow, she leaped straight at Acnologia while ignoring her burnt right leg. The distance between them closed up fast, but it was the former dragon king who reacted swiftly.
All he did was cock a toothy grin before disappearing out of Mirko's line of sight. The pro hero was taken aback but had no time to react. Hence, when she sensed Acnologia's presence, she had a few seconds to turn and see him right next to her. But it was too late to do anything.
"Let's finish this some other time." He said.
From there, he did a quick jab at the back of her neck. Soon, Mirko dropped to the ground and became silent as her body brushed through the ruptured earth.
Acnologia sighed. "You really shouldn't push yourself too much like that, you know. You're only causing bodily harm to yourself."
"Heh…"
The dragon slayer's eyes widened for what was the second time now. Mirko should've been knocked out. But Acnologia was left a bit flabbergasted when she staggeringly began to push herself back to her feet.
"Call it what you want…But this…is Plus Ultra!"
At that bellow, she unleashed a loud yell while fighting against her staggering arms and feet as she tried pushing herself up.
"Someday, you'll understand…W-When…the strength you have now…won't be enough to protect your loved ones…or protect your own beliefs! When that happens, I'll…I'LL…!"
At last, she pushed herself back to her feet and cried out. "I'LL TELL YOU THAT I FUCKING TOLD YOU SO!"
With that, she lost all senses of her body and collapsed to the ground. Acnologia frowned as he stared down at her. She was covered in a mix of her blood, sweat, and dirt. But that weren't the only things that caught much of his attention. It was the two words she had said.
"Plus…ultra." He muttered. "That pro hero with the bird wings did mention that."
He went over to her unconscious body and straightened his arm at her. Suddenly, Mirko's body was encased in a cyan and white light. When it died down, the pro hero was clean and healed.
"What's with you pro heroes and those two words?" He wondered.
Ten months went by remarkably fast. Acnologia was once again at his usual spot at the same top of a skyscraper, watching his little brother as he was on the verge of completing the last task of his training while his older brother watched with pride for him. But he wasn't able to bask at the moment alone.
A certain pro hero had taken a friendly liking to him in these past months. The next thing he knew, she was his sole company at this very spot. At first, Acnologia wasn't happy about it. But his pride wouldn't allow him to change his location since it was, to him, a sign of weakness. So he slowly adjusted to her intrusion without actually admitting it.
"It's really been ten months huh." Mirko sighed as she gazed at the dawn skies.
"Sure seems to be that way." Acnologia replied stoically.
He opened a can of soda and began drinking from it. Mirko observed him before putting up a pouty face.
"You know, kids your age would be excited to have a hero like myself hanging out with them." She said.
"Well, you're always free to leave." He replied.
Mirko giggled and smirked a bit. "And miss out on your growth? No way. Besides, I'm still waiting to see if you've figured out what Plus Ultra means."
He groaned. "Why does this feel like homework, except it's by a persistent bunny?"
"Because it is? Also, how about you call me by my actual name?"
Acnologia glanced at her and raised an eyebrow. She understood what that response meant, and sighed in mild disappointment.
"I already told you about it. It's –"
He turned away from her abruptly and stared at the skies. Mirko took a bit of an offense to it and fling her finger at his head.
"Hey! Pay attention to your seniors!"
'Like she's one to talk.' He thought, glaring at her as he recalled his past life as a four-hundred-year-old dragon.
Since her attempt to get his full attention failed, she gave up and reached to a couple of grocery bags behind it. Inside it was a bunch of sandwiches, along with two particular sodas that Acnologia seemed fond of.
This wasn't the first time she brought stuff like this for both of them. It was something she began to a few months ago. As such, she placed them between them, with Acnologia then naturally grabbing a couple of them.
"Thanks…" He muttered.
Mirko only snickered. The both of them then did a little prayer before peeling off the wrappings and then eating.
"So, have you decided on what you're gonna do after middle school?" Mirko asked after munching on hers. "You're gonna graduate soon."
"True." He mumbled while chewing his sandwich.
Mirko was unfazed by it, mainly because she was used to his poor manners. Besides, she had something else to say.
"You should think fast, kid. Time's running out." She added before sipping on her soda.
"What I do with my life is none of your business." Acnologia mildly scolded her.
"True. But I'm sure your mother won't be so merciful."
Acnologia's mind reflected on an angry Inko and shuddered. Amongst all the people he has faced in battles, Inko was the one woman who actually made him feel weak.
Mirko snickered, which brought him back to the present. Paying her no real mind, he silently ate any sandwich he could grab and drank from his soda can. The pro hero didn't seem to mind it, but it became clear that as time went on, she was becoming restless.
"How could you do this every single month?! It's so boring!" She groaned and stretched her.
Again, she received no response from the dragon slayer. All she could do was growl lowly before reaching for the grocery bags to grab another sandwich. She would not find any, however, as her hands would only feel the deflated materials instead.
Mirko was a bit taken aback before looking at the empty grocery bags on the ground. Those sandwiches were about fifty each, and yet Acnologia had eaten nearly all of it while she ate only five.
"Seriously, kid, you need to get your stomach checked." She said, pointing at his abdomen.
Acnologia just glanced at her stoically and turned his attention back at Izuku. There was just something good about watching his younger brother working so hard for his goal. The once skinny kid was already packing abs and serious pecks on his arms. He was transformed, which amazed Acnologia a lot.
'He's really going forward with this.' Acnologia thought. He never doubted him, but it was remarkable to see how far Izuku would go to become a hero. He could only smile at this. 'He's really come this far…He kind of reminds me of myself when I lost everything, minus the deep hatred and search for revenge.'
"What are you smiling about?" She asked.
"Hmm?" Acnologia faced her as his smile dropped. "Oh, you're still here."
"Hey! You wanna pick off from our last fight?!" She yelled.
Acnologia glanced back at his brother, who was now pulling a piece of tall and heavy machinery with a lot of strain and brute force. The sight of this reminded him of Izuku's reason to become a hero.
'Because I want to help people too, just like All Might.' Kid Izuku had said.
"Mirko…" He called.
The pro hero was surprised. This was the first time he called her by hero name. Usually, he dodged that by talking to her like he already called her. This was especially as she was picking up the sandwich wrappings.
She was about to deliver a remark when he spoke up again.
"Why did you become a hero?"
Mirko went silent for a moment. She disposed of the wrappings in the grocery bags and tied them up with each other.
"I can't say my reasons are aligned with people like All Might and Endeavor." She said, admitting to something specific. "I just love beating up bad guys."
"Wow." He replied sarcastically.
"I'll let you have that one." She said. "But yeah, that's the reason. But if I were to be specific, well, it's because I just want to protect people from those kinds of people. You know, the ones who would want to trample on people who are unable to protect themselves. That kind of thing always pissed me off."
"Hmm, I think I get it." He nodded subtly. "Then why did you say I only act in my own interest?"
"Huh? When did I –" She stopped when she recalled. "Oh right, that time when we fought. I actually forgot about that until you brought it up."
She went back to the edge of the skyscraper and plopped on it. A few tiny cracks appeared under her bum but she didn't seem fazed by the impact.
"Well was I wrong?" She asked rhetorically. "Maybe I should've been specific. Everyone has their own interests, right? I'm sure even heroes like All Might are like that too. But…why I would say that about you is because you're kind of…secluded."
"There's nothing wrong with that." He told her plainly.
"Sure, in a way it isn't." Mirko shrugged her shoulders. "But it can be dangerous, like misunderstanding someone's motive…or refusing to intervene in a criminal activity until a family member got involved."
Acnologia's eyes widened a bit as he stared at her. Mirko flashed a smug at him.
"What? Did you think our match was just about brute strength alone?" She teased.
He frowned and looked away, down to the streets. "So you figured it out."
"You bet I did. It was kind of obvious, with your speed and strength, and everything else, you could've intervened earlier to save that blonde kid."
Acnologia growled lowly. "Those heroes should've gotten a handle of it sooner. I don't need to get involved in those kinds of things."
"No, I think you should."
"Isn't that their job?" He asked rhetorically. That didn't stop her from answering it with a question.
"Do you have to be a hero to save a life?" She asked. When she got no reply, she added. "A lot of people look up to heroes like they're god-like beings, like we cannot do any wrong. That's why when a hero gets hurt or loses a battle, it's made into a big deal, especially if that hero is really good at his job. But I think that's a ton of bullshit."
She continued. "Heroes are humans too. We can be hurt, we can face defeat, and sometimes we can feel down too. But the only thing we must remember is to remember why we're doing this. Not for us alone, but for the people who can't protect themselves."
She then scoffed and bent backward, placing her hands on the pavement. "I won't lie. When I saw that clip, I was pissed off at those heroes. All they did was stand there, waiting for some hero with a compatible quirk to save the day. It's people like that who I hate the most. There's nothing good in relying on someone else's strength when you can do something about it."
"I see…" He muttered, absorbing her words well.
"Now do you get why I called you out back then?" She said and straightened up. "Those heroes were interested in protecting themselves and those people. That's where I think one's interest can become dangerous. If all you're concerned about is yourself and your family, you'll eventually reach a point in your life where you might disappoint your loved ones because of the dangerous choices you might make."
"Hmm…"
Acnologia pondered on this as he tried to make sense of it. Mirko was right about him; he really didn't care about anyone but himself and his family. But for that to end up disappointing his family is something he couldn't comprehend.
'All I want for those two is for their happiness. How would that lead to them being disappointed in me?' He thought.
Mirko studied his contemplated face and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Let's just hope you won't get to a point where you'll find that out, okay?"
She never received a response from him, even when she pulled her hand from him. All she did afterward was to release a small sigh and dust her butt as she stood up. From there, she began walking away, intending to head back to her place.
Suddenly, both of them heard a loud cry. It couldn't be heard by the normal ears, though. It sounded like a loud bellow as if someone was releasing all the tension in his body with that one cry alone.
Acnologia recognized it immediately and zoomed his eyesight on Izuku again. It was there at that moment that he was awestruck and proud.
The kid was standing at the top of a pile trashes and debris that he gathered at one secluded spot. At the very top was a truck, which was the exact spot he stood on with his fists clenched and his chest upwards.
Of course, such a humongous task had a big toll on him. As such, he lost the feeling in his legs and fell off. Luckily, All Might (in his muscular form) caught him.
"All Might, I…I did it…I did it!" He panted while in his arms.
"And you did an astonishing job of it." All Might replied proudly. "That's especially true for a teenager. Here, have a look-see at this."
The sweaty Izuku looked at the pro hero's phone and saw a picture of himself ten months ago.
"This was you back then. Now, look at you." He said, gesturing to his teen's muscles. "You really did well, my boy."
Acnologia chuckled and smiled widely with pride for his brother.
"Good job, brother. Good job." He muttered.
Of course, this didn't go unheard. Acnologia was swelled up with pride and joy that he forgot Mirko's presence. The pro hero didn't mind it. In fact, she smiled a bit and wrapped her arms under her chest before walking away silently.
'So he can show that kind of face huh, kid. You're really full of surprises.' She thought and leaped away.
Even before the crack of dawn, the president of the Hero Public Safety Commission was always up and ready to engage the day. A woman like her was always ready for anything, regardless of what her daily activity may be. This was her line of work, and no one could come close to the thing
"What do we do now?" asked a familiar voice.
Mr. Sato stood behind her in her office. His boss and superior were still seated behind her desk as she closely watched footage of All Might and Izuku on the seaside beach. The former was handing the latter a piece of his hair.
"Obviously, this type of secret violates –"
"I am quite aware, Mr. Sato." The president cut him off. "I didn't call you here to recite the rules for me. I've been at this line of work before you were born."
"Oh…um, sorry." He blushed in embarrassment.
The president sighed and pushed her seat backward. Then she stood up and headed to the glass wall behind her, overlooking the city.
"What we can do now is to keep quiet about it." She said with her arms behind her back. "All Might made the right call to forge his quirk on the official documents. Can you imagine what would happen if some villains find out the truth?"
"The kid and his family would be in danger."
"I doubt that. His older brother won't let that happen." The president replied. "Of course, that's not to say that it won't be troubling. But it won't stop there…No, it'll only get worse from there."
"Then what should I do?"
The president became silent. She contemplated her next course of action and looked over her shoulder at him.
"First, destroy all the evidence we've gathered from this in the past six months. For now, we'll go along with All Might's little facade."
"And then what?"
"Call the girl in once you've left. After all, we'll need someone to observe Midoriya Izuku."
"Yes, ma'am." He bowed humbly. He then pulled out a hammer from her desk and destroyed the laptop. "I will finish the rest."
"Please do." She replied.
He headed to the door and even reached his hand to the handle. It should've ended there, but then the president called his name as she sat down.
"Make no mistake, Mr. Sato…" She said with a threatening tone. With her elbows on the desk, she glared at him. "There will be consequences."
Mr. Sato gulped a bit and nodded before leaving the office. The president wasn't someone to underestimate. From experience, he knew that she never backed down on her words, even by a little.
He said nothing back except with a subtle nod before leaving the office. Moments later, a teenage girl in a plain white shirt and blue skirt steps inside. She had yellow eyes, and blonde hair with ball-shaped curls by the sides, and long bangs.
"Thank you for coming in, Miss. Himiko Toga. I have an important assignment for you."
The mystery's smirk grew devilishly.
Yes, you didn't read it long. That's indeed Himiko Toga.
How? Well, think of it as the butterfly effect. I plan to explore how Acnologia's presence led to that at some point in the fanfic.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed the battle between Mirko and Acnologia. This chapter turned out to be this long, which I didn't intend for that to happen. But I'm proud of it, especially with that nice scene between the two of them. I actually had it rewritten because of reasons that I'll reveal once I publish that as a deleted scene.
So from the previous chapter, I received a bunch of questions. I would advise sticking till the end so you can get some answers you may've not expected even if you hadn't asked these questions at all.
Question (By esdeath756): Can he (Acnologia) be with the dragon hero ryuuko. Wouldn't Acnologia want to be with another dragon?
Answer: No, he wouldn't. We never got to know if he got over his hatred for dragons. This is why he shot down the opportunity to meet her. He's just not interested.
-)(
Question (By Terrrry): Why haven't other humans done it (learned about magic).
Answer: This will be explained later on. I could say it now, but I think the conversation for that revelation would be more appealing to read than just getting a 'boring' explanation here.
-()
Question (by adisIt): Does Acnologia have motion sickness like other dragon slayers in FT?
Answer: Yes, yes he does. This will play a big part in the coming arcs.
-)(
Question (by Guest): How about a combination of Attack on Titan and Akame ga kill? Wouldn't you find the titans vs the teigus interesting?
Answer: That does sound like fun. But I have to decline. I'm still struggling with updating update fanfics that I haven't updated for over a year now.
-()
Question (austintristan16): Will there be characters from Fairy Tail who will come like your other stories?
Answer: No. I think I've already answered this question before. Anyway, I decided to make this story with just one FT character (Acnologia). The best we'll get from that FT verse would be flashbacks. Nothing more, nothing less. Sorry.
-()
Question (by Resistance Nightcore): Will Acnologia ever reveal his past to anyone?
Answer: I'm not sure about that yet. Acnologia has no reason to reveal that since he's basically dead in the Earthland. I imagine that the only way he'll bring it up is when it's absolutely necessary, and even then it has to be with someone he trusts.
-)(
Question (By Random Guest): Why would he (Izuku) even go to Acno for magic now? Would he keep both Acno and All Might's secrets? Would they all be in on it? Would he betray the trust of one? Would Izuku be unable to stop himself and try to teach someone else magic later on?
Answer: Haha…That's a lot of questions. I like that! I should state it here that when Izuku learns magic, it's due to the event of the entrance exam. It'll actually be Acnologia who pressures him into learning magic (in a brotherly way).
Answer (extended): Yes, Izuku will keep both of their secrets. But it won't be easy. He'll just feel kind of guilty that he has to keep it hidden by his two teachers (All Might and Acnologia), while unaware that the latter know about One For All.
Answer (Extended again): Also, yes, he might feel obligated to teach someone (likely a classmate) magic. However, whether he succeeds is unknown since that would attract Acnologia's attention.
Now to an issue that has been brought.
I noticed that some of you are still objecting to any romantic interests in Acnologia. Clearly, my address on the matter wasn't enough. So here's something I didn't add because I didn't think it was important.
I plan on building up to the romance very gradually. Sure, he may get some affections from certain females, but it'll mostly be one-sided until a point where it's convincible that he would actually respond to their feelings (which won't happen in a long time).
This decision is based on his personality. I don't want Acnologia to seem out of character, so I'll do my best to show you that it's possible for Acnologia to fall in love since we already know he had a family before his life went to hell.
I hope this helped to assure some of you who objected.
With that out of the way, here's the result of the poll.
What's your stance on Acnologia's pairing?
He needs an actual adult. Let it be the pro hero Mirko – (12.38%)
No, it should be with a certain Dragon Hero (Ryuku) – (9.29%)
He should have Ashido and Hagakure in the pairing – (4.12%)
He should have Tsuyu and Hagakure – (3.9%)
No, he should remain alone – (2.6%)
He should have Jiro and Hagakure – (1.3%)
So obviously Mirko wins. However, this was an opinion poll. I will set up another one which I hope EVERYONE with an account can participate in.
Here's how it'll be.
"Who should be the third girl?" (Yes, I have decided on a third)
Ashido
Momo
Jiro
Himiko
Tsuyu
No, it should just be two (Hagakure and Mirko )
I still think he should be left alone
Please participate in the poll this time around. It may be another opinion poll, but, depending on your reasoning, I might consider it having a reflection on the story.
So before I end this here, I want to point out that I have TWO deleted scenes. One is from Hawks versus Acnologia, and another is from that emotional moment between Mirko and Acnologia.
Please let me know which one you'll like to see. If I'm late to update the next chapter again, I plan on publishing the deleted scene to keep you guys interested.
Anyway, I'll just end this here. Please let me know your thoughts on the chapter in the reviews. Also, be sure to favorite and follow this fanfic so you can know when I've updated it.
Thanks for reading. I'll see you guys in the next chapter. Btw, cast your votes at the top of my profile(computer version). You do not need a mobile to do this. Just change it from the mobile version to the computer version (this should be located at the bottom of the screen).
Bye