Hello Everybody.

I am the writer for this little piece of fanfiction on this site.

I'm not one to ask for much since I mostly do this as a way for me to simply create and experiment to see what it is I can come up with.

As of right now, I have a site that will publish my work several chapters early if you wish to read ahead from what I post here.

Other creative projects will be posted there as I expand my current toolset and work on things I wish to share with the world.

The site is currently free as of the posting of this chapter. There is no financial necessity to see what it is I create for my characters version of his world.

Thank you all again!

Dinner at the Midoriya household that night was a very warm and familial one. At the dinner table was a main course of red snapper and all sorts of side dishes. The ravenous Mina thanked Inko and chowed down like it was the first meal in a year for her. Izuku had been almost as hungry and started off much like Mina until they were both told to slow down by the patient mother. Minding their table manners was something that she would enforce whenever Mina came over for dinner.

The conversation eventually landed on the long absence since last Mina came over to visit. It had been almost a year since she last visited and Inko was absolutely thrilled to have her over like she did before. Mina updated the Midoriya matriarch with things like how her parents were, her time in UA so far, and so on and so forth.

"I'm so glad to know you've been well, Mina. You often come up in my mind these past few months; so glad you're just the same. Although, you have grown quite a bit since last you were here."

To Izuku's embarrassment, the mother complimented Mina's rather well developed figure that she had grown into up until now. His immediate response was to stutter and get his mom to stop with her light teasing, while Mina felt her cheeks go a little warm at the compliments Inko was so generously handing out.

"Ah, th-thank you; Inko-san…"

It warmed her heart to see her son's girlfriend be so familiar with her; even after all this time, Mina still felt just as close to her as she did before. Mina felt it was necessary to forward her own response to the mother's compliments. She took a moment to think of something nice to say as Izuku and his mom were in some light banter.

"Inko-san, I have to say the same for you too. You're still just as youthful as you were before!"

By this point it was more of a statement rather than being just some kind words. It got some people's attention when they noticed how well Inko treated herself to have maintained her figure and skin. They even complimented how her husband must be enjoying the nights because of her. Now it seems that they were ever so slightly off the mark. Picking up yoga and working out in her free time was just something she didn't do out of vanity; she was keen on making sure Haru always had something to look forward to whenever they had time to…

"Why, thank you dear! It means so much to hear such kindness from you once again."

Mina gave her cheeky little smile as everybody enjoyed the meal in the presence of good company.

After Dinner

A very satisfied Mina was mingling on her phone while laying on the bed as Izuku wrapped up the last of his schoolwork. It only took about fifteen or so minutes until he finished up and got himself and Mina situated under the covers. He clicked the light off while Mina reached for the cable charger right above the headboard. They agreed on letting Izuku lie flat on his back with Mina gently snuggling into the side of his chest.

Since they still had some lingering pain, it took a hot second to get comfortable for both of them. Now it was just them; and it had felt like forever since they last had any sort of meaningful time alone with one another. The silence was comforting and being in the dark made it easier for them to just enjoy the other's warmth with fewer distractions.

"We should visit the nurse tomorrow. We have to train and it'll be hard enough without these bruises."

"Mmm."

Most times when they were left to their devices; they just said whatever came to mind for them. They had enough of a history to allow the hesitation that other couples would have about being forward with one another to be nonexistent between them. This conversation just happened to sound like a married couple talking about their errands the next day.

"Also If you can; I need to give you some of my uniforms when I get home. Could you remind me later?"

"Yeah, I'll do that."

Sleep was slowly starting to take a hold on both of them when Izuku remembered to ask Mina about what had happened earlier. It made him slightly nervous, but it was something he wanted to talk about.

"Mimi?"

"Mm?"

Mina was just about gone when Izuku continued the discussion one last time.

"About earlier. Can we talk about it?"

Rather than awkwardness or any sort of negative reaction, he felt what sounded like sleepy giggling against his chest.

"You worry too much Ikki. I'm not… not mad… I…"

The soft and even breaths of sleep were all he could hear as Mina drifted off into dreamland. It was pointless to stay awake any longer, so with his eyes now closed he followed her into a deep and welcome slumber.

The Next Day

The alarm blaring from both Mina's and Izuku's phones was a duet of absolute irritation that got the teens up and out of bed in a matter of moments. Mina tried to snuggle closer, but it only made it harder to sleep as the injuries from yesterday felt like death. They took a moment to collect themselves.

"Morning."

"Morning."

Both were exasperated with the thought of having to go through all of this again. Since there was some time before school, an extra five minutes to test the range of movement before it started to hurt was what they did. The results were rather disappointing, as it were. Even when not moving; a dull ache was still there at every impact zone. A good way to start the day.

Izuku bit the bullet and suffered the worst of it so that he could then help Mina up from the mattress. She appreciated the help greatly as she followed him to the kitchen for breakfast. Izuku's mom was always up and ready to make breakfast and would fill the apartment with the scent of all sorts of breakfast like goodness. To their surprise, it wasn't Izuku's mom that had been standing in the kitchen that morning.

"Hey guys! I'm almost done here, so just get ready and breakfast will be waiting for you two."

Not an unwelcome surprise, but they were certain that they saw Haru leave the gym in a slight hurry to get wherever he went yesterday afternoon. Seeing him in the kitchen of Izuku's home wasn't exactly a predictable event for either of them. He really was a mysterious person.

"Haru-san! What… Why… What…"

"Where's Inko-san? I could have sworn that…"

The sentence was left hanging as Haru visibly stiffened at the stove for a few moments before he started moving again.

"Uh, yeah… She's, uh… She's sleeping in, still…"

You could hear the gears turn in their heads as the teenagers let the lines of logic connect to what it was that would cause the woman who was a workhorse of a housewife to sleep in on a school day. Haru was mysteriously here for no reason. He was making breakfast for the kids instead of Inko. He was acting rather weird at the mention of the woman that morning…

"Oh… Oh!... Oh…"

Mina was the one that was vocal about her surprise while Izuku didn't know what to do with the information in his head. Both hands went to Mina's mouth as she felt a mixture of surprise and joy at seeing the single mother had found somebody to be with in somebody she felt was a good fit for her.

A trait of Mina's personality had her enamored about romance in general. She would act all nosy in others business if she felt that there was the potential for love between certain people. For the most part it was a harmless little obsession that Izuku had been able to manage whenever it seemed as though she was taking it too far. No such luck this time as he was as stiff as a granite statue.

"Oh my goodness! When did this happen?! You have to tell me!"

He shushed the now energetic girl as he didn't want to wake up Inko while she slept in from last night.

"Later. For now, uniforms and teeth. Mina, your bag is next to the door if you need anything else."

As a good girlfriend, she dutifully dragged around Izuku while getting ready for school. He snapped out of it in the restroom where he and Mina were brushing their teeth; only to then spit out the toothpaste and look to Mina for some introspection on the news.

"Mina; they're seeing each other!"

Not much of a reaction from her as she just looked at Izuku blankly for a moment while still scrubbing her molars. She too spat and rinsed before offering her ten cents on the matter.

"Yeah, and?"

All that he could do was stutter and try to find something to say while having a brain that was tripping over itself trying to make sense of things. Mina was touching up her makeup when she sighed and turned to respond to Izuku with honesty.

"Izuku!"

That got him to stop fumbling and remain silent for Mina to cut to the chase.

"Your mom is a woman, too! Is it really weird that she would feel lonely without your dad here?"

"But that's just it! I still have a dad! I mean- I think… But still!"

Mina pouted and just poked at his chest while leaning in to punctuate how shallow he was being over the situation.

"No buts! Haru-san always happened to be around and she got close to him; there's nothing complicated about it. Plus; isn't Haru-san pretty much your dad at this point? He's always been there for you, so what's the problem?"

That was where Izuku felt a bit conflicted. His want of a father was mostly wishful thinking and wasn't something he expected from his father figure. Thinking back on it now there were a few signs that should have made it obvious to Izuku. The subtle closeness they would have when they were cooking, how his mom would act while speaking on the phone with Haru, the times he found Haru at his house after coming home from school and it was like him and Inko were trying to hide something. He felt pretty stupid for thinking nothing of it.

"... Still. It's just… Complicated. I don't know; Haru-san has practically raised me and stayed within the family for years, but on the other hand my real dad has been working hard to provide for me and my mom for years… It doesn't feel quite right, you know?"

Clarifying what it was that bothered him helped Mina temper her annoyance and ease off of Izuku. She gave the boy a hug around his neck and stood on her tippy toes to press herself against Izuku. He graciously returned the affectionate embrace and buried his face into her neck; the scent of lavender helping to calm him down.

"I'm so sorry, Ikki. I really want to just make all of this go away, but it's not our decision to make for them."

They separated slightly with Izuku resting his hands on her waist and Mina's being on his shoulders. The broadened shoulders made her appreciate his figure even more, though now wasn't quite the appropriate time for feeling him up. Reaching for his face, she gently rested her palm against Izuku's face and stroked the cheekbone with her thumb while staring into his irises. Izuku couldn't imagine a day where he didn't feel hypnotized by Mina's beautiful eyes and their unique obsidian color ordained with two gold irises.

"They'll figure it out. For now, I think the least you can do for them is at least let them know you aren't angry with them. Okay?"

In response to her advice; Izuku took a hold of the hand lovingly stroking his face and kissed the palm of it. They just stood there for a bit and enjoyed each other's company for a bit.

"Okay. I can do that."

Now all that they needed to do was get ready for school. Izuku apologized for not saying anything earlier to Haru, to which he waved it off like it was no big deal. They were both driven to school by Haru in his van and bid him farewell at the gate as he got set up for another busy afternoon.

Seven Minutes Later

"No way! When?!"

"Don't know; but he swore to tell me later. He was worried that he was gonna… wake her up…"

Kyoka and Momo felt rather scandalous in hearing about the relationship that Haru and Inko had kept hidden from everybody. Thankfully, Izuku was seated at his desk and was a good enough distance to avoid all the gossip about his own mother. He really didn't need to know what was going on between the girls.

"Hey, Hey! Whatcha talkin about?"

Bubbly and eccentric was Toru's usual state of being wherever she went. Most thought this was just her way of being noticed; but it honestly was just that she felt energetic and happy most of the time. Nobody thought anything bad about her and even considered her to be a welcome addition to the class. With Aizawa being such a buzzkill, Toru almost balanced out the room's atmosphere.

"Oh, nothing much; just some gossip about somebody we know-"

"Oooo, who is it? I wanna know! I wanna know!"

They all looked at each other and guessed it couldn't have hurt to tell the girl since it was likely she didn't know who they were referencing.

"Well, this morning I was at Izuku's when I saw this guy we know named Nakamura. You see-"

"You mean Haru-san? Nakamura Haru?"

Oh dear. Turns out the girl did indeed know who it was they were referencing. Mina cursed herself out in her head for using a name rather than being ambiguous with who exactly it was. In her defense; it really was a small world for this class to have so many people know who this man was.

"I-uh… I don't know who-"

"No way! He always seemed like the lone wolf type. Crazy how somebody managed to snag him. Who is it? What's she like?"

There was no way Toru was going to pass up on exciting news like this. Mina relented to tell Toru about how it was their friend's mom and refused to tell her past the fact that it was somebody from their class. Momo was half listening to the half interrogation for Mina as her eyes drifted to Izuku who was getting his desk ready for the first period.

Thumbing through his notebook, he could feel somebody's eyes on him while he was prepping his schoolwork. He scanned around and spotted Momo peeking at him from the corner of her eye. The memory of last night's discussion was still fresh in their mind. There was no need to feel too awkward since it wasn't really as much of a revelation as it was a confirmation. Izuku took the time to wave hello, which Momo gladly returned. A knowing look between them was enough for now.

Back to the discussion; Mina was doing what she could to satisfy the invisible yet volatile gossip addict. She kept trying to get more dirt on the adult while Kyoka couldn't help but chuckle on the inside at Mina's misfortune. Usually it was Mina who was the nosy type that poked and prodded people in revealing their relationship statuses. Nice to see the shoe on the other foot as Mina did her best to give Izuku and his mom some form of anonymity in risk of starting something she wouldn't be able to stop later.

Just then, the bell rang for the first period and got Toru to back down and return to her seat. Mina thanked her lucky stars that it was finally over. Kyoka had been on the opposite end of that spectrum and was disappointed that her fun ended so quickly. She even had fun just checking out Toru's assets out of the corner of her eye while the girl kept bouncing around. That girl may have been invisible, but by the looks of it she was likely to be a knockout had she been visible.

Even Mina took the chance to catch a glimpse of Toru's ass as she swayed her hips while walking back to her desk. A very unfortunate coincidence for such a pretty girl to be invisible and be unable to share that beauty with the world. Aizawa began the day in his usual curt and apathetic manner and began the day for the class.

After School

Many students frequented the food truck just parked outside the gates since it was just nice to have something cheap and tasty to snack on while they got home from school. That particular day was a day for skewers with all sorts of different combinations. Spice and fat sizzled and saturated the air with a mouthwatering aroma. Haru had been done with the initial wave of kids going home and was preparing the next batch of ingredients when a bubbly girl's voice chimed in from behind.

"Helllloooo!"

He didn't respond immediately and instead tried to act as though he didn't hear her. He even turned to face her and acted as though she wasn't there.

"... Hello?"

"Oh, Toru! I didn't see you there."

Everybody except Haru couldn't say for certain what kind of expression was on the girl's face. He always had a read on the girl and knew her cheeks were pouting at the bad joke.

"Boo! That was totally you just messing with me."

Haru just chuckled and kept preparing ingredients while she sat at the bar area of his van.

"So what's up, kiddo? How's school so far; you like it?"

"Oh, yeah! It's super plus ultra! Everybody is so nice and the teachers are all awesome. Seriously, it's not like anything you've seen before!"

A simple hum to let the girl he heard her share her admiration of this hero academy. Skewers were all being assembled at dexterous speeds while he kept the conversation rolling.

"Good, good. Anything happened today worth mentioning?"

Toru's head was fishing through the memories of that morning and found something she thought would be interesting to share. In fact; it was something she wanted to use to get back at Haru for his earlier jab at her. Others couldn't see and Haru was facing away, so nobody knew about the cheshire smile on the transparent girl's face.

"Y'know, I heard something interesting about someone earlier. It seemed rather interesting, actually."

"Oh? Do tell then. I'm on the edge of my seat here."

He was completely unaware. That was good for Toru.

"A little birdie told me that you favor married women. Married with kids, in fact!"

The sudden pause that Toru caused in his prep work; it was truly a priceless experience. Devilish and impish would be accurate to illustrate how Toru felt tormenting this joker of hers.

"... Uh, well… There's that…"

Huh boy. Knowing how overbearing and invasive Toru can be when she wants something; he was certain that Mina must have cracked under pressure when Toru overheard her gossiping with the others. Inside the little circle of friends, the rumors of him seeing Izuku's mother meant little for his concern. If the school were to get wind of that sort of thing; it would certainly make it awkward at least for him to keep selling his goods.

He wasn't certain if Toru was even able to keep the secret as the girl was an eccentric and sociable girl at heart. Things could slip and she was no exception. That was all considering if she were willing to do so. By the sounds of it, she had something in store for him. Turning to look at the girl looking rather victorious, the look of apprehension caused by her hands was something to remember. She couldn't keep up the charade and eventually cracked with barely contained laughter. Haru was quick enough on the upswing to tell what just happened.

"You little stinker…"

"Ha! Got you there didn't I?"

She would have never done something so cruel and invasive as expose his relationship with a student's mother to the entire school. Getting the jump on Haru was just the thing that made her day. His face staring at her with accusation and narrow eyes just made it even better.

Fifteen Minutes Later

Haru sent Toru on her way with a skewer with chicken and peppers while handing her a water bottle to wash it down.

"Awww."

"You know the deal."

Another pout on her face as she took the water and thanked Haru reluctantly for the meal. This whole financial thing with the sugary drinks was kinda a bummer for her. Better than having to pay and still get water, at least.

There was a reason as to why he dismissed Toru earlier than he would have allowed. From out the front doors of the building came a student he wanted to speak to about something important. It wasn't anybody he was too familiar with, though they had his interest enough for him to try and get their side of the story.

"Excuse me, Aoyama?"

The blonde with eyes glittering with feelings of elegance spotted Haru after turning to the source of the sound. Haru gave a cheerful smile and waved the boy to come closer to his food truck. It was an odd enough encounter for the boy as he had yet to purchase anything from the vendor and was certain that they never interacted up until just now. He approached cautiously and stood about a meter from the van to see what it was Haru wanted.

"Uh... Yes, kind sir?"

"You're Aoyama Yuga. From class 1-A?

Most people would find themselves slightly disturbed to be called out by name by a complete stranger. Aoyama was anything but the commonwealth. He struck a pose and exuded as much elegance he could muster.

"Indeed I am. How is it that I can assist you today?"

Though these two hadn't really interacted up until this point, Haru could still remember small things about a boy as flamboyant as Yuga.

"You may not know this, but I'm somewhat close to Midoriya from your class."

A spark of recognition amongst the many others already in Aoyama's eyes.

"Ah, yes! Tis' what a gentleman does for his fellow hero in training."

"Well, I just wanted to let you know I appreciated what you did for him during the entrance exams. He told me about it recently and I just want to pay my thanks personally."

Many heroes often get thanked by those they save or people who were close to the people they saved. The first time it ever happens is often the one that sticks the most in people's memories. It flattered Aoyama to have such a thing happen and he was a bit bashful in accepting it. Though eventually the blonde boy accepted it after Haru insisted once more. It was a stark contrast from earlier as Yuga was a bit put off for being called over from out of the blue; they both were talking very easily as now the conversation moved to the subject of Aoyama's heritage.

Much to Yuga's surprise, being engaged in conversation by somebody who wasn't trying to brush him off felt refreshing. A bit of French was even shared between them when Haru flexed his chops with the complex language. Yuga was by no means fluent, but the effort was appreciated either way. Recent events also became a subject for discussion.

What had happened at the Disaster Simulation Arena became a point of intrigue for Haru as he asked Aoyama what had happened while he was there. At first the boy acted coy at the question before a new reaction from Haru made Aoyama suddenly feel a bit uneasy. The words were French and he could only pick up about just over half of them; but it was the context that let him know that Haru had asked where he was during the invasion.

There had been no French used for a little while and suddenly returning for Haru to ask that question made the hairs on the back of Yuga's neck climb up. Even his face was stoic as he asked the question. All of these things started to make the boy extremely nervous. Being under Haru's stare made him feel naked as the question posed still hung in the air.

The tension broke with Haru just smiling kindly once more and apologizing for being so intrusive. Yuga wanted to leave immediately and avoid talking to him at all costs. Just as he was leaving, Haru called out to the boy as he exited the van and stood in front of him. His six foot two over Aoyama made the man feel like a colossus. Rather than any sort of unpleasant question or inquiry; He gave the boy one last thing while kneeling down to his level.

"Anytime you want to talk to somebody about anything; let me know. My stall is usually here most days and whatever you share with me stays in between us. Sounds fair?"

Despite that one odd moment in the conversation and Aoyama's anxiety; it really did make the boy feel better that somebody has taken the time to approach and take interest in who he was as a person. Some hesitation still lingered, but the boy agreed and took up Haru on his offer.

Near the end of his stay and after packing up his things was when he pulled out his phone and lit a cigarette while making his call.

"Nora Mobile!"

"It's me. I need some information on a a son attending UA. Name Aoyama."

"Of course, sir. Anything else?"

"Just send me what you find; no matter how small."

He hung up and hopped into his van to drive off for the night. Things definitely were looking rather ominous for those unaware of what was to come. By no means was Haru unaware, and he had every intention of luring these little creatures out of their hiding places.

Later That Evening

It was just Izuku and Inko sitting across from one another while they both had dinner with one another. Not even the tv with the volume up could ease the atmosphere between them. Earlier that day; Haru had told Inko that Izuku figured them out and it was now her turn to face the music. The aches and pains in his body did little to distract him from the inevitable conversation that was about to happen.

When one person was certain that they were the one to break the silence; the little one percent of courage to tilt them into addressing the other failed to show. This coupled with the fact that both mother and child were introverts was keeping the room void of any talking besides the ones on tv. Nothing was moving and it was something both were just avoiding like the plague.

This went on for about fifteen minutes before the Mother took the plunge and threw caution in the wind. Inko was like a leaf in the wind with how unsteady she felt speaking to Izuku.

"S-so… How was… How was school?"

Izuku simultaneously thanked and cursed his luck that the tension broke. A small conversation starter to get the wheels rolling.

"Good!... It was fine… Yeah."

Only eight words were actually exchanged before it got awkward again. This was getting nowhere and it was pushing the mother into the realms of frustration. Her being so touchy about the subject of her relationship with Haru felt a bit selfish since it was her decision that was affecting her only son. Once more; she swallowed her pride and stood her ground. She put her bowl and chopsticks down before speaking directly at Izuku.

"Izuku; I know what happened this morning. I'm sorry you had to find out this way and I can't apologize enough for hiding something like this from you for so long. I hope you can forgive me for this."

Now it was Izuku who felt the need to speak up. Her decision to not say anything wasn't why he was being delicate with the situation. He thought that it was his fault that his mom felt like she had to keep it a secret. Including the fact that he didn't realize this beforehand didn't help him feel any better since he had ample opportunity to figure it out and come up with his own way of saying something.

"M-mom… It's not you who should be apologizing. You were lonely and it just happened with Haru-san! I can't… I can't get mad at you for that. It's just that… That…"

As a parent; one of the hardest things anybody in Inko's position could do was to wait and listen. For a few agonizing moments she awaited judgment from her son with how he felt about her relationship with his long time mentor. Finally, Izuku found the words that best conveyed what he wanted his mom to know.

"... It's just that I feel guilty."

That wasn't what she had expected to hear from her son. Anger maybe, a little disappointment or scorn perhaps? Inko kept listening intently to Izuku as he elaborated.

"Dad's been working somewhere else in the world to provide for us; and I don't even know who he is or what he's like! While I'm here trying to figure all of this out; Haru-san has been the one to be my role model for this entire time. I don't know how to feel about this anymore. A man who I don't know yet has provided for us versus a man who has been there for us and… Ugh, I don't know anymore…"

To see the truth of the matter was a rather painful yet eye-opening thing. It was never about who she was or what she was doing; her son was dealing with how he felt about everybody else in the grand scheme of things. He just wanted to give everybody a fair assessment and struggled out of his need to find the right answer that would leave everybody content. Her son was just too good of a person for something that was supposed to be her responsibility to begin with.

It couldn't be helped. She had to let Izuku know what it was that would be best for him and decided to put things to rest. Standing up from her chair and rounding the table; she embraced her son and could feel the tears pricking at her eyelids.

"My dear son. My one child. You truly are too kind. I can't imagine how much this was affecting you and it was all because I kept hesitating. I should have been honest from the beginning and tell you that it isn't your responsibility to help make my decisions. I should have been stronger and trusted you more…"

Izuku felt a bit melancholy with how burdened his mom felt over her own happiness. If he couldn't help like he wanted, then there was only the other option. Both of his arms wrapped around Inko as he returned her embrace to help console her as well.

"I just want you to be happy. You raised me on your own and all I could ask from you is to find happiness as well. If Haru-san makes you feel that way; then I'm happy that he can do that for you."

A bit of a sappy moment for the Midoriya household as the two of them kept hugging for a bit before finishing dinner and going to bed. It was a restful night for both as a major hurdle keeping them apart had just been cleared and now it felt like things were finally looking up for them.

Two Weeks Later

It was finally time for the grand opening of the UA Sports Festival. The arena was packed to the brim with spectators from all around the country. Outside the arena was a plethora of vendors and stalls with all sorts of meals and treats for anybody with the paper to buy. News channels were all getting their equipment set up for each of their own live broadcasts of one of the greatest sporting events of the year.

Through the crowds of families and other young men and women were the professional heroes taking in the sights of the festival. Kamui Wood and Death Arms had some time to spare before the sporting events and had decided to check out the sights before they had to start judging the events and start their scouting.

"Usually it's the senior event that gets the most attention. One last year to prove themselves tends to get them motivated like nothing else; but the freshmen are something else this year."

Death Arms gave Kamui Wood a look of affirmation with his opinion of the major players this year.

"Yeah. It's just too bad that they had to increase security this year too. Oh well, fair's fair."

All around them it looked to be that there were more police officers standing around since the previous year. What made the heroes additionally wary were those among the crowd who were concealed and monitoring the event from their vantage point; wherever they may be.

"Status update on officer A23; all clear."

"Copy, officer A23."

UA Academy ESD Main Office

Back at the UA Emergency Security Department main office; the support technicians were all working in coordination with the undercover officers in monitoring any possible suspicious activity. Dozens upon dozens of undercover agents disguised as couples, families, event coordinators, cleaning staff, and other roles were all doing regular status updates while their exact coordinates were being tracked in real time.

Body cams were giving live feeds for review in case any kind of incident were to occur. To identify the threat with something that could be reliably called back upon without any sort of inconsistencies. It was a thankless and difficult position to fill, but the ESD managed well enough and it showed.

UA Sports Festival Arena Green Rooms

The entire class of 1-A were all acting rather carefree in comparison to the ever vigilant Iida; who was now currently losing his head while yelling at everybody to get ready for the opening ceremony. Iida would have been a far more likable classmate had it not been for his rather bizarre standards of what made a good class representative.

Off to the side on one of the locker room benches sat Katsuki with Mina and Izuku chatting with one another right next to him. Like it or not; the three of them had actually become a lot more amicable with one another and had instinctively grouped up out of instinct after two weeks of nonstop pain and agony that Haru had put them through in preparation of this event. While Mina was just showing Izuku something on her phone, another one of their classmates decided to make his presence known to Izuku specifically.

"Midoriya."

Izuku looked up from the puppy photos Mina had been sharing with him as Todoroki had called out Izuku by name. The rest of the room had been quick to see what was happening as Todoroki had been objectively voted as the strongest in the class by the other students. When they all decided by word of mouth; it had been solely based on quirk ability rather than skill or other possible exterior factors.

"Todoroki? What's up?"

The scarred boy had a rather intense way about him. It wasn't anything malicious or wrathful; it was something intense that Izuku and the rest of the room hadn't been clued in on.

"Objectively, I would say that I could beat if we were to go one-on-one."

"Uh, yeah. I think so?"

His claim wasn't based on opinion alone. His quirk lended him an advantage in range as well as potential versatility for how it functioned versus Izuku's version of One for All. It seemed to be that Todoroki was just trying to get under Izuku's skin by throwing the boy's self esteem under a bus and undermining him by belittling Midoriya. Mina and a few others in the room felt the sudden urge to put the rather boisterous boy in his place at that moment. Mina was already eager to go with an unexpected addition of Bakugou winding up for a fight.

Seems that the past few weeks did more than just reinforce his sense of direction and mobility. Surprisingly it was Izuku who put his hand on Mina's shoulder that got everyone to settle down before a real fight broke out.

"All Might has kept a pretty close eye on you since the beginning; hasn't he? Whatever it may be; It's not what I care about. One thing is for certain, though. At the end of this, I'm going to be the one to beat you."

A declaration of war coming from somebody who truly had every right to be reckoned with. Kaminari made a move to try and calm down Todoroki at first; he quickly readjusted his sights when he saw Bakugou stand up and raise his hand like he was gonna reduce the ice user to dust at the bottom of a crater. Mina was no better as it was clear she too was about to snap before Izuku spoke up and confronted Todoroki.

"I know you're stronger than me. Everybody here would agree that your gifts have made that obvious."

There was a strength in Izuku's eye as he challenged the ice user in his own right as somebody who has fought for what he wanted out of life.

"But all of us have something to prove here. We're all fighting to beat each other and rise to the top. Rather than just saying you'll beat me…"

Raising his right arm up and towards the arena through the wall; he pointed straight at the open space where the competition was to take place.

"Do what's necessary out there and prove it."

Deep inside Todoroki was a small spark of something he hadn't felt in a very long time; if at all in his lifetime. The whole room felt a spark of something as they all felt like they were about to take on the world and whatever it had in store for them.

All of them were all marching through the arena tunnel towards the exit with the sounds of cheers and fanfare getting louder and louder the closer they were to the exit. The light was almost blinding when they stepped out and were greeted by a colosseum of spectators all cheering for them. Hell of a way to start a school sporting event; that's for sure.