Chapter 26
Origin
Opening 1: Breakthrough (MHA version)
(Balloons rise and confetti falls as the place of the J-HOL event shows itself, and so does the "My Hero Academia Line of Good and Evil" title)
Simple but pure (The scene shows the audience and commentators)
Those eyes always reflected (The scene shows Team Japan)
The essential things, the things of tomorrow (The scene shows the teams of Greece, France, Russia, Kenya, China, and Mexico. The members of each team are dark silhouettes, but however, one of the silhouettes revealed a woman with long black hair who is Madam Widow.)
What real strength is (The next scene shows the other teams of South Korea, Haiti, Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia, and Australia. The members from these teams are also dark silhouettes.)
Oh oh
I thought of you (The scene shows Team Italy; with most of the members are dark silhouettes except for one man in a white suit, pants, and hat with bald-shaved hair)
And my puny self-seemed funny (The scene shows a mysterious, sinister organization with the single person sitting at a desk with two eyes shining in red color.)
I'll throw away everything and show you a miracle (The scene shows Teams USA and UK, with their members as silhouettes. The only revealed silhouettes are Team USA's Gabriel Martin, Sadie Foster, and Ben Glory, and Willaim Powers, Cordelia Forst, Hloridi Odinson, and Solana Bell from Team UK.)
Forward, run more with all your strength (The strongest members of each team run against each other.)
It's fate when you're sure it's the right way (Japan's Support members cheers on Team Japan)
With your leading voice and soul go up against (Eli, Junko, Usagi, and Ochaco fight some tough opponents; each is playing different sports, like Usagi in the high jump and Eli in rock climbing against other players.)
Nothing will happen if you keep staring at the reference book (Kai, Izuku, Bakugo, Yuki, and Todoroki fight some tough opponents.)
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
(The Support Teams cheer on their significant teams, and many audiences watch from the sidelines. The final scene shows Kai and Izuku, and then Team Japan lifting their fists.)
UA High School, Japan's most prestigious high school, selected some of my classmates and other students from all three hero courses to represent Team Japan in the J-HOL Games, a bi-annual sports event based on the original Olympic Games. This is the story of my journey.
After the crazy incident of a sudden villain attack at the Syntagma Square, Team Japan returned to the hotel to recuperate and have dinner. Though Aizawa was still upset about how some members jumped into the action to stop the villains without supervision, yet fortunately, they were let go.
"Cheer up, Mr. Eraser Head. At least none of the students got hurt," Speed Girl stated.
Eraser Head didn't look pleasing. "I don't care. They still did it without proper supervision," he fumed.
"Well, um, here, Mr. Eraser Head, have some more water," Ms. Heal suggested as she poured more water into his glass and tried to cheer up Eraser Head's mood.
Some of the students couldn't help but notice his moody yet menacing aura. The students were eating at a separate table from the teacher. The hotel reserved tables and chairs for Team Japan for accommodation at their indoor restaurant.
"Geez, Teach Eraser Head is still mad about what happened today," Eli whispered to the others.
"He's kind of always moody, anyway," Kaminari stated.
"Hey, let's not talk too much about it," Mineta warned.
Suddenly, Aizawa's eye moved to look at the three boys, which caused them to look away quickly and focused back on eating.
"You know, speaking of Aizawa-sensai, have you guys notice what that lady hero said to him?" Usagi asked her classmates.
"Oh, do you mean Madam Widow, ribbit?" Asui asked.
"Now that you mention it, Usagi," Midoriya chimed. "She and Mr. Aizawa seem to know each other."
"Well, when she mentions that…." Jiro reminded them as they looked back in thought.
- Flashback –
"Yes. I was going to say that your students are off the hook. Due to the upcoming J-HOL Games, the local security has been tight, but this incident was unexpected. However, your students and some others, who are also part of the games, are safe and haven't caused any damage at all in the Syntagma Square so that they can be let go," Madama Widow explained.
Hearing that made the UA students looked relieved.
"Thank you, Tatianna," Aizawa said reluctantly.
"No problem. I will see you around, my love," Tatianna said, leaving away.
- Flashback Ends –
"Yeah, exactly! I wonder if she said that because maybe Mr. Eraser Head and Madam Widow were lovers!" Usagi theorized.
"What?" Arisa and Uraraka gasped a bit.
"I am not quite sure about that," Kendo said. "I don't know much about Mr. Aizawa or his past as a pro hero, but he seems to be… well, you know."
"I understand what you mean, Kendo-san," Momo noted.
"However, it could be possible." The girls looked at Midoriya and some of the guys overhearing him. "Aizawa-sensei referred Madam Widow by her first name. I don't think they were lovers, but perhaps they were more or less a co-worker, and probably that naming was just a nickname."
The girls didn't look agreeable with Midoriya, which made him felt confused.
"Ew, is there something, um, wrong?" He nervously asked.
"Deku-kun, I don't think that's how it works," Uraraka stated.
"You still have a lot to learn about what girls think and what their words mean," Usagi added.
"Indeed," Felicia nodded.
"Yeah, Midoriya!" Mineta chimed in and shoved his elbow to his side. "You have a lot to learn about girls."
"Yeah, Midoriya. A LOT," Kaminari joined in, elbowing on his opposite side.
"Hey now!" Iida shouted as he stood up. "Don't tease Midoriya about his lack of knowledge in women! He is a fine man, and you should all not be talking about rumors at a table while eating! That's bad manner!"
Everyone stopped and stared at Iida when he shouted, which surprised other hotel guests and waiters nearby.
"Just sit down, Iida!" Eraser Head ordered as his eyes glowed in red.
Iida quickly sat back down, feeling a bit embarrassed. Just then, one of the waiters came to their table, looking a bit concerned. This waiter seemed very familiar with his sunglasses and white hair.
"Is there something of a matter here?" Stan Lee asked.
"Um, no worry. We are sorry," Speed Girl assured, making the waiter left.
"For your information, Midoriya is right," Aizawa said. "Tatia…, I mean, Madam Widow is someone I used to work with a long time ago. Nothing more, nothing less. Got it?"
"Yes, sir," everyone said.
"Also, before I forget, tomorrow we will be going on a field trip." The announcement surprised the students. "Yamamoto will give us a tour or 'grand tour,' according to his word, around Athens. After you finish eating, I suggest you get to bed early tonight because we will be leaving early once after breakfast is over."
Everyone agreed to that as their dinner was almost over. Once they finished, everyone headed back to their hotel rooms. Ms. Heal and Speed Girl helped Junko to get back to their room while Midnight and Aizawa stayed behind for a drink.
In one of the girls' rooms, Usagi was deep in thought. Tsu noticed Usagi as she was thinking.
"What's the matter, Usagi? What are you thinking about?" Tsu asked.
"I still can't help but think about Mr. Eraser Head and Madam Widow. I still think there is something else about them," Usagi admitted.
"I don't think it really should be something we should overthink into, Usagi," Arisa pointed out. "It is not polite."
"Arisa is right, Usagi," Ochacko stated. "I think it is best just to leave it alone."
"But I am so curious!" Usagi expressed as the other three girls sweat-dropped in reaction.
Momo, Jiro, Kendo, and Felicia were getting ready for bed in the other girls' room. Felicia just got out of the shower.
"That felt nice," Felicia commented as steam came out of the bathroom's door when it was opened, and she wiped the towel over her neck.
The other three girls already took a shower, and they were in their bed outfits, ready to go to sleep.
"I wonder what we will see in the tour tomorrow," Jiro thought aloud.
"Well, now we will get to see around Athens tomorrow. We didn't get a chance to see much with all the stuff that happened today," Kendo stated.
"That's true. It was quite troublesome today when Usagi-san just hopped away, and Arisa chased after her," Momo said. "At least everyone is alright."
"I agree," Felicia nodded. "But I did get to meet my old friends at London Hero Academy."
"They seem to be very nice people," Jiro commented.
"Thank you, Jiro," Felicia nodded before she turned a bit worried. "They are. I just can't believe we will go up against them. I wonder how Arisa feels about facing against her friends in the Games."
"Don't worry, Felica," Kendo assured. "Think of it as a sports festival where you had to face some of your classmates. It will be like that."
Felicia smiled. "Thank you, Kendo, for cheering me up."
In one of the boys' rooms, Iida made sure everyone brushes their teeth and get ready for bed.
"Remember, everyone! We must wake up at least 15 minutes before 7 am. Earlier the better, like about a half hour I would suggest! We have a busy schedule tomorrow!" Iida exclaimed.
The other boys didn't like how bossy Iida is, but they knew he was doing it for good attention, even if it can be a bit of a drag.
Eli sighed. "Relax, dude. You are not like the captain or anything."
"Gah! I am saying this for all your sake!" Iida stated.
"Don't worry. I will surely wake up early," Yuki Drago noted.
"See! At least Yuki Drago here agrees with me!" Iida emphasized.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Eli said. "I am bushed."
"Why are you so lax?!" Iida mumbled.
"Yeah, I am beat, too. After all the stuff that happened today, I am going to sleep now. Night, night," Mineta yawned as he hugged his hug pillow that showed Midnight.
"I still can't believe you bring that to here," Eli commented. "Image Teach Midnight seeing you with that."
"This helps me to sleep comfortably," Mineta said.
"Well, anyway. I will turn off the light," Iida said as he switched the light off.
The boys began to sleep. Then, they heard an obnoxiously loud snore from one of them. Iida, Mineta, and Eli opened their eyes when they heard and realized that it was coming from Yuki Drago. His snore sounded like a beast sleeping peacefully in a cave, protecting treasures like the dragon from the Lord of the Ring. The boys had a feeling that they won't sleep too well for the night or the rest of their time here in Athens.
In the fourth room, belonging to other male students' groups which included Midoriya and Kai, Monoma boasted about how he went to get help while the others were fighting the villain.
"And that is how it all happens. While you Class 1-A and 1-L were fighting that villain, I did the right thing to go and find the authority," Monoma egotistically stated.
"Oh really? And for someone so proud of yourself to become a hero, you seem to act cowardly," Kai said things back at him.
Monoma gasped in response. "Well, I!"
"Come on, you, guys. Let's don't fight about it," Midoriya intervened. "Besides, I think what Monoma did was the right thing. Fortunately, none of us got hurt, and the villain was stopped."
"Yeah," Todoroki said. "We were fortunate to get away this time. But, we are in a different country, and we don't know how the laws here work and affect us if we use our Quirks in public."
"Well, at least someone gets it," Monoma shrugged. "Anyway, I have enough time chattering with you all. I will take my beauty sleep now. Just don't snore."
Monoma jumped into his bed and immediately went to sleep.
Kai sighed as he felt tired and got into his bed soon after. Todoroki went into his bed, too. Midoriya looked over his roommates and grinned. While he didn't like Monoma's personality much, he did appreciate that he went his way to call the authority. If he didn't, the situation might worsen if the Pro Hero didn't come in time.
Speaking of which, he wondered if Solana and other people were safe. He did notice others who fought that shadow blob villain, but he never got their name. He also wanted to know who that boy with short black hair was, who appeared out of nowhere to stop the blob and saved Kai and Arisa. Then, he remembered that the boy shouted his name as "Ben Glory," and he claimed that he is a future successor of All Might.
Midoriya pondered on the thought so much that he didn't notice that he was mumbling, which made the other boys wake up and couldn't go to sleep.
"Hey, Midoriya." Midoriya jumped to Kai's voice. "Could you keep it down? We're trying to sleep."
"Oh! Um, sorry about that, Kai and everyone! I will go to bed now!" Midoriya apologized as he turned off the lamplight next to his bed and then went to sleep.
Lastly, Aizawa/Eraser Head and Midnight were hanging out at the hotel's bar, staying a bit late to have a drink and conversation.
"You know, Aizawa. Having a drink when we are somewhere in another country for J-HOL has become a tradition," Midnight commented.
"Yeah, I guess so," Aizawa replied. "This is like, what? Our fifth time?"
"Sixth time," Midnight corrected him. "Anyway, why did you say that?"
"Said what?" Aizawa asked.
"You know. About your relationship Tatianna," Midnight pointed out. "You and I know that you two had a much deeper connection than simply as a past co-worker. So why did you lie?"
Aizawa stared at her, then closed his eyes and looked down at his drink. "I didn't mean to lie to them. I only said what I said because I thought the other part was unnecessary. So it's not like they have to know."
Midnight shrugged but grinned. "Alright. Though, I did notice that your eyes glinted when you saw Tatianna today. Did you feel happy to see her again? Huh, huh?"
"I was just… surprised, that's all," Aizawa stated.
"Right…" Midnight said, teasingly looking at Eraser Head. "Well, OK. Maybe you will see her more. Most likely tomorrow at the party."
"Probably," Aizawa said. "But if you are suggesting that there will be some kind of romance, if that's what you are thinking, then no. The past was the past, and she and I moved past that."
"There's always a chance an old romance can rekindle, you know," Midnight pointed out. "You'll just never know."
"Hmph, whatever," Aizawa said nonchalantly.
-My Hero Academia-
Kai woke up the earliest. He slightly opened his eyes and looked at the clock. It was a little bit before 5 pm. He must've woken up due to a bit of jet lag. He decided to get up early and took a little walk to the hotel's rooftop to get some fresh air. His sister explained that the rooftop was opened for public access.
He changed his pajama to his other clothes and Team Japan's jacket. He decided to take the room key with him, so he won't get lockout from the room and not disturb his roommates as he exited the room. He got onto the elevator and pressed the R button for the rooftop.
The rooftop is accessible by elevator and stairs, but since Kai and his classmates stayed at the mid-floor area of the hotel, it was better to take the elevator instead of the stairs.
Kai arrived at the rooftop, the last destination. The door opened, and a gentle cool morning breeze welcomed him. The sun wasn't up yet as he walked around the rooftop, but then strangely, he heard singing.
'Hmm? Someone's singing?' Kai thought.
Kai went to check who was singing. He soon found out when he stopped and saw a young girl singing in the direction where the sun would rise. She was singing something in an unknown language that Kai has never heard of, yet it sounded a bit familiar for some odd reasons.
A glimpse of the sunlight beamed over the horizon as the sun finally began to rise. The young girl turned around and was surprised a bit to see Kai. Kai noticed that the young girl stood at the same height as him. She had long caramel blond hair with a red beret over her head, blue eyes, light skin, and an almost mature-looking body for her age. He guessed that the girl is probably either 14 or 15 years old. She wore a blue and red jacket with the flag of France on the right side of the chest area and a checkered-pattern skirt.
"Oh, sorry," Kai quickly apologized. "I thought nobody else would be here and um…."
The girl quickly changed her mood and smiled. "Do not worry," she said. "How long were you listening?
"Huh? Oh! Well, I just got here like maybe a few minutes ago and heard you singing. So I thought what it was about, and here I am," Kai explained.
"I see," the girl nodded. "My name is Aurora Blanchet."
"I am Kai Uno," Kai introduced. "I see that you are from Team France."
"Yes, I am," she said as she rubbed the side of her jacket's collar. "And I see that you are from Team Japan."
"That's right. Aurora, I was wondering. About that song you were singing," Kai noted.
"Qui, yes, the song I was singing is an old song taught by my late grandmother," Aurora answered.
"Is it French? Though, it didn't quite sound like French, to be honest," Kai admitted.
Aurora nodded. "You are right. You have sharp ears, Kai. But, for you see, the song is in an old language from a country called…."
Suddenly, they heard something beeping. Aurora's watch caused it.
"I'm sorry, Kai," she said, looking apologetically. "It's time for me to get going."
"Oh, well, that's OK," Kai accepted.
Aurora smiled. "Thank you for understanding, and also thank you for listening to me singing. We will talk more later."
Aurora hurried away as Kai watched her go. She waved at him goodbye before she stepped into the elevator. Kai turned back to see the sun has already risen just above the horizon. He checked his time and realized that it was almost time for everyone to wake up.
"I better get back, too," Kai decided as he left and went down on the elevator, too.
Once he returned to the room, his roommates were starting to wake up.
Midoriya yawned and noticed Kai. "Oh, good morning, Kai. Were you out already?"
"I woke up earlier than everyone else. I had a jet lag, so I decided to get some fresh air at the hotel's rooftop," Kai explained.
"I see," Midoriya said, yawning a bit.
The boys and everyone else woke up and got ready for breakfast. The members greeted each other in the hallway as they walked to the elevator.
"Good morning, Deku," Ochacho greeted happily.
"Oh, good morning, Uraraka," Midoriya replied.
"Good morning, Ken," Arisa said as she walked closer to him. "How was your sleep?
"Morning," Ken replied. "It was fine. Though, I woke up earlier than expected due to jet lag."
"Ah, I see. Yeah, I did too, but I slept well enough, so I feel much better," Arisa said.
"Good morning, y'all," Yuki Drago greeted.
"Good morning, Yuki. You seem to have slept well, too," Felicia noticed.
"Yes. Though, I wish I can say the same thing to my roommates," Yuki said.
"What do you mean?" Felicia asked, looking a bit concerned and curious.
She quickly noticed that Yuki's roommates, Tenya Iida, Eli, and Mineta, looked tired and had black color under their eyes.
"Blimey! What happened to you all?" Felica asked.
"Holy Carrot! Why are you guys look so tired?" Usagi asked, too.
"Iida-kun, are you alright?" Uraraka worriedly said.
"Yes, I am fine… mostly," Iida answered as he pulled up his glasses.
"We didn't get enough sleep last night because of certain dragon guy was snoring all night!" Mineta moaned tiredly.
"Yup. Like what Grape Juice said," Eli agreed.
"I do not quite understand what they mean," Yuki said calmly, which his roommates reacted as they accusingly looked at him. The other members looked at them, and Yuki's unknowing with a sweat-drop.
"I see…" Felicia said, hardly a bit disbelieved.
They conversed as they entered the elevators. The first elevator was Midoriya, Uraraka, Tsuyu, Kai, Arisa, Felicia, Yuki, Iida, Todoroki, Momo, Jiro, Mineta, and Usagi. The rest waited for their elevator to come as the first one headed down. The first group arrived at the lobby and walked to the diner hall until one noticed a group of people walking by to the exit.
"Hey, look, guys! It's another team in the J-HOL!" Usagi pointed, catching the rest's attention.
They noticed the group walking by. They were all wearing blue jackets uniforms with the national flag of France. Just like their jackets, each jacket had a number and their name on the backside. Each member of Team France looked different. Some were taller than others. One of them, a girl with caramel blond hair noticed Kai and others and waved at them before she followed after the rest of her group.
"Hey, that girl waved at you," Usagi noticed as everyone turned their eyes at the young man himself.
"How do you know that girl, and what is your relationship with her?" Mineta demanded as he held tight on Kai's collar close to his face.
"Hey, let him go, Mineta!" Jiro scolded as she plugged her earphone jack into Mineta's ear and released the sound, causing him to let go of Kai and be paralyzed on the floor.
"Oh, her? Well, I met her early this morning when I took a fresh air at this hotel's rooftop," Kai admitted. "I heard her singing, so I went to see who it was, and I met her then. Her name is Aurora Branchlet."
"Aurora Branchlet, you say?" Felicia repeated. "I see. And by the look of it, she is a member of Team France."
"That's cool that you made a friend with someone from another team, Kai," Arisa commented.
"I guess she is a friend, but I just know her since this morning," Kai nonchalantly said as they headed to the diner hall for breakfast.
Today's breakfast was buffet-style, where they serve eggs, cheese, sausages, orange juice, milk, fruits, and other foods. First, the members lined up with each getting their plate. Then, after picking their choices of food available, some of the UA students went to see where they can sit.
"Hey, look! It's Bakugo, Kirishima, and Kaminari," Ochacho noticed.
"You are right, Ochaco. I wonder if they woke up earlier than us," Tsu curiously said.
Usagi went over to the three boys' table to talk with them. "Hey, guys! Good morning."
"Gaah!" Kaminari gasped as he threw his bowl of cereal.
"Holy Carrot! You startled me!" Usagi gasped.
"You startled me!" Kaminari complained.
"Yo, what's up guys," Eli greeted as he noticed a darkened color under their eyes. "Let me guess? Bad sleep last night?"
"Not that," Kirishima replied. "Aizawa-sensei forced us to wake up super early and made us jog around the hotel, saying that it's a punishment training for us."
"Yikes. That's rough," Usagi noted as Eli agreed.
"Damn you!" They turned to Bakugo, who had the bowl of cereal over his head with milk spilling from it.
Kaminari remembered as he got up from his seat and ran off.
"Come back here, you electric bastard!" Bakugo roared.
"I am so sorry!" Kaminari apologetically cried.
"Hey, you two! Come back!" Kirishima yelled as he goes after them.
"Enough!" Eraser Head stopped them with his clothes. "Sit back down, or do you want me to make you two run another lap, seeing how excited you both are?"
"Yes, sir," Kaminari and Bakugo obeyed as they sat down. Other UA members saw with a sweat-drop, feeling bad for Kaminari and Bakugo. Finally, they all got their plate and sat at the table so that they won't get scolded by Eraser Head.
After almost half an hour, everyone was finishing their breakfast. Eraser Head got up from his seat to say some announcements. "Everyone, Yama... ah, I mean, Mr. Umi will be here with the tour bus soon. I suggest you all get ready. He will be here in about an hour. Meet us at the lobby when you are ready, or we will leave anyone behind."
"Yes, sir!" Team Japan responded.
"Zzzz…" Junko snored in response.
"It seems like Mr. Aizawa is still moody since yesterday," Ms. Heal whispered to Speed Girl.
"Ah, don't worry about him. He is always like that," Speed Girl said before she turned to the students. "Like what Eraser Head said, please meet us, the faculty at the lobby, in an hour from now."
"Well, I can't wait for this tour! I'm gonna go and check if my cell phone was fully charged last night!" Usagi said as she hopped away to the hotel room.
"Hey! Don't hop so fast in the hotel, Usagi-san!" Iida strictly exclaimed.
"Let's go, too, Ochaco," Tsu said.
"OK," she nodded as she followed with her friend and joined Usagi on their way.
"Hmph, typical. At least I am prepared ahead of time, so I don't need to do anything but just wait because I, from Class 1-B, are always prepared ahead of Class 1-A and 1-L," Monoma egotistically said.
"Monoma, please don't start this," Kendo grumbled.
"You are not the only one who prepares ahead of time, Monoma," Yuki Drago spoke up. "For I don't need to go back to my room. I can wait at the lobby with you for others."
"Well, it looks like someone beat you to it, huh," Kendo teased as Monoma looked a bit annoyed in hearing that.
"What about you, Arisa? Do you need to do something?" Felicia asked.
"I guess I will bring my purse. Not quite sure if I need to use it, but it will help carry my stuff," Arisa explained.
"Good idea. I will stay here as I am fine," Felicia said.
Everyone went to do their separate things. Then, some went back to the room to get things prepared for the tour while others waited in the lobby. The ones who remained in the hall were Kai Uno, Neito Monoma, Kendo Itzuka, Yuki Drago, Felicia Marvel, Izuku Midoriya, Minoru Mineta, and Eijiro Kirishima.
"Um, Felicia." Felicia turned to Izuku, who seemed to want to talk with her.
"What is it, Midoriya?" Felicia asked.
"I've been wondering. You see, Kai, Monoma, Todoroki, and I met someone from Team UK. A girl named Solana Bell. Do you know her?" Midoriya asked.
"What?! You met a girl, too? Was she pretty hot?" Mineta demanded.
"Calm down, Mineta," Kirishima stopped the boy.
"Ah, I see. I do know her. She's from another hero class at the school where I come from," Felica admitted. "Like UA High, London Hero Academy has multiple hero classes. I believe she's from Class 1-B."
"1-B? Her classroom number is the same as Monoma and mine," Kendo noticed.
"Hmm, her classroom number is the same as ours," Monoma pondered.
"So, you've met her yesterday?" Felicia asked Midoriya.
He nodded. "Yes, we did. We met Solana Bell at the Parthenon and then invited us to lunch."
"That's interesting." Midoriya and others looked curiously at Felicia for saying that.
"What do you mean?" Midoriya furtherly asked.
"Well, you see, Solana Bell is one of the top students in London Hero Academy. I think she's number 1 if I am correct." Midoriya, Mineta, Kirishima, Monoma, and Kendo gasped. "However, from what I heard, she's a bit… infamous. She talks badly about her classmates and others at school who she claims lack spirits."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Mineta asked.
"Spirit, huh? I think it means that her classmates lack motivation, but they are part of the hero class, right? So, I wonder why she badmouths about them," Kirishima said.
"Is she a friend of yours, Felicia?" Yuki questioned.
"Well, I do know her, but I barely talk with her. Nobody seems to approach her easily at my school," Felicia explained. "Though, I am a bit surprised to hear that you, Kai, Monoma, and Todoroki met her."
"Correction. Solana is the one who approached us," Monoma said. "But this confirms it."
"Confirm what?" Kendo asked, sweat dropping.
"That she is our enemy," Monoma declared. "Can't you all see? She's a top student from London, a member of Team UK. I think she approached us yesterday to learn about us, to gather information, and share it with the rest of her team."
"Monoma, that can't be true! Can it?" Kendo looked unsure of herself.
"That… That can't be right. Bell-san seems nice when we met her," Midoriya said, looking concerned now.
"If she approached you three yesterday, then it means that she knew who you all are, correct?" Yuki asked.
"That's right," Kai nodded.
"Then, Monoma's theory could be correct. It is advantageous for members from one team to get to know others in the other team to gather information. If anything, we should be careful who from what team approaches us. However, we can also do the same thing to them as well," Yuki Drago stated.
"Well, at least someone understands me," Monoma complimented.
"But is that true? Did she just approach us to gather information? She didn't look like the person who would do that, or would she? Yet, she looked happy and enjoyed our company yesterday…." Midoriya mumbled as everyone heard what he was saying.
"Midoriya, we hear you mumbling," Kai noted, making him stop.
"We're back!" Usagi, Uraraka, and other girls returned. Soon, everyone else did, and just at the right time, the tour bus waited for them outside.
"Good morning, Team Japan!" Yamamoto greeted. "I am so excited and honored to give you guys a little tour around Athens here. Of course, I will also show you the place where the J-HOL games will take place, but you all probably can guess where it is exactly."
"Nice to see you again, Yamamoto," Aizawa said.
Yamamoto nodded. "Yes, it is good to see you again, Shota, and on time, too. Let's get on the bus, shall we?"
Everyone got on the bus. Each seat can occupy two people. Midoriya sat near the window next to Kai while the latter sat near the aisle. Behind them was Arisa and Felicia, Uraraka and Ochaco, etcetera until back to Aizawa/Eraser Head in the front row and right across from Midoriya and Kai.
"I'll repeat it, but welcome to Athens, Team Japan! I hope you had a well restful night for your first time here. We have a lot to see today, and there are few things I want to talk about the J-HOL. You will all learn a little fun history lesson today!" Yamamoto said excitedly as the bus started. "So may I ask if any of you guys know about the J-HOL?"
"Yes, sir!" Iida raised his hand, which Yamamoto nonchalantly picked him. "J-HOL stands for Junior Hero Olympic League, an international organization that gathers the best of the best hero high schools to compete in multiple sporting events, basing on the original Olympics Games."
"That's correct! You are very analytical, Tenya, but do you know exactly why J-HOL came to exist?" Yamamoto asked, which nobody answer back as they all thought the question.
"Well, good thing I am here! You see, the original Olympic Games originated here in Greece during ancient times. However, after the ancient Roman Empire took over this country, the quality and standard of the Olympics declined. Then, it was revived in the late 19th century by a man named Baron Pierre de Coubertin of France, and he made the Olympics into the world's major sporting competition. However, that all changes when the dawn of Quirk started. As more and more Quirk users became common among the world's population, the IOC, aka International Olympic Committee, was in a pickle on whether if allowing Quirk users to attend the Olympics due if Quirks should be legal and fair to use in sports."
Everyone followed Yamamoto and listened to his tales while they explored many famous landmarks and sightings around Athens.
"However, one man stood up and decided to create a separate Olympic event that's only for Quirk users and to show the world the uniqueness of all Quirk users, dreaming and training to be the new generations of heroes. And that man is this person!" Yamamoto presented Team Japan with a bronze statue of a skinny man with a fine mustache and beret.
"Who is this old guy?" Eli asked.
"Well, Eli, this man here is Baron Pedro De Coubertin of France, the founder of the J-HOL Committee and the great-grandson of Baron Pierre de Coubertin," Yamamoto answered.
"Wow! The founder of the J-Hol is related to the man who revived the Olympic Games," Tsu impressed.
"That's amazing," Ochaco awed.
"So this is the guy who founded the J-HOL," Kaminari said. "And he is the great-grandson of the man who founded the modern Olympic."
"Mr. Umi, was Baron Pedro like a Quirk user?" Usagi asked.
"Well, he is not." The answer surprised Team Japan. "For you see, Baron Pedro was born Quirkless, but he had many friends who were born with Quirks. During his times, many people didn't like Quirk users, or outright hate them, as you may have learned in your hero history class or somewhere. Not many communities or societies in the past, and even the present, accepted Quirk users as any other equal human beings. As a result, there were chaos and inequality between Quirk and Quirkless. However, Baron Pedro created the J-HOL to bridge the unity between the Quirk users and Quirkless. Like the original Olympic, J-HOL is created to not only show off young Quirk users and their talents or powers but to create harmony among people. Whether you are born with Quirk or not, we are all people."
Hearing that made Team Japan impressed about the J-HOL's founder, especially Midoriya or more so for him. He was born Quirkless, like Baron Pedro but always dreamed of being a hero, like his idol All Might. Until he met All Might and gifted his Quirk, One For All, to him, Midoriya's dream became a possible reality, and he works hard every day to master this power and become the next Symbol of Peace for everyone, for all Quirkless people and people with Quirks alike.
Kai thought what Baron Pedro did and the legacy he left behind, was pretty incredible. He hoped that this game, or rather the culture of J-HOL, could continue in what they do. Unfortunately, though, Kai still didn't know if he wants to be on the path of Pro Hero due to his… circumstances and internal conflict. Moreover, he suspected that all of his classmates suspected about him when he showed off his Quirk during the UA Sports Festival not too long ago.
"Anyway, let's go to our final destination," Yamamoto decided. "The stadium for the J-HOL Games!"
Hello, everyone! How are you all doing?
I originally wanted to upload this chapter yesterday to coincide with the opening ceremony day for the Tokyo Olympics 2020, but I was too busy, so it took awhile to write this chapter.
This chapter is more focuses on the interaction among the members of Team Japan, which we don't see often in the canon anime/manga, like the interaction between Class 1-A and 1-B (and before you say it, I know about the Joint Training Session arc). I hope I did well to convey it in this chapter because there will be more like this.
Next time, Team Japan will see the stadium for J-HOL Games and more new OCs from other teams! See you then and have a safe day.
Go beyond! Plus Ultra!