Aizawa wasted no time in relaying the news to his students.

"Everyone is going to the camp!" He sneered, eyes lighting up as he proudly proclaimed, "It was another logical ruse!"

A handful of students cheered in relief. Sero sighed as he collapsed into his chair while Satou grinned and nodded. Kirishima pumped his fists as Mina and Kaminari both jumped in the air with glee.

"You should have seen it coming. Why would I keep the worst performing students from going to the place where they would improve the most?" He put up his hand, silencing the cheering flunkies as he looked directly at them. "However! Don't think that just because you're going to the camp doesn't mean that you won't face disciplinary measures. While you are there, you will also go through remedial courses, run by both me and Vlad. Don't expect to have an easy time there."

"But what about Midoriya?" Kaminari groaned, gesturing at the student on the other end of the room. "He didn't pass, either! Why do we have to do that and he doesn't?"

He opened his mouth to give a dry retort, but was cut off when Iida stood up, smacking his hands on his desk. "That is completely unfair to Midoriya! We were told there was an accident during his exam, something he had no control over! That was very insulting, Kaminari. I advise that you apologize at once!"

The electric student was taken aback by the outburst. He looked over to Izuku, who was currently engrossed into the small handheld console in his hands. He wasn't sure if what he said was the reason the other student had distracted himself with a game, but the possibility of that being true tugged at the corners of his stomach.

"Hey... Sorry, Midoriya." He scratched his head, looking away. "I wasn't thinking. I shouldn't have gotten myself worked up."

"It's fine." The green haired boy responded, not even giving him the courtesy of looking up at the person apologizing to him.

After everyone awkwardly took their seats, Aizawa placed a stack of brochures on the desk, motioning for Iida to pick them up and pass them to his fellow students. The teacher continued, "After this, you'll have the rest of homeroom as a study hall. Read over the brochure for the lodge and plan accordingly."

As he exited, the class practically exploded in fervor and optimism. Most of that was lost on Izuku, who kept his head ducked down as his little avatar explored a vast desert in search of creatures to hunt...

Or at least, it would have stayed that way, had the student council president not quickly marched over to his desk, placing a hand on the top to get his attention.

"I should say something on the matter of your game use during class..." He began. "But, I think I'll let it slide just this once. I'm not sure if you heard, but Hagakure had suggested we all go shopping at the mall tomorrow to get supplies."

Izuku paused the game, placing it in his backpack. Paranoia be damned, he didn't particularly feel like joining his class, especially at the behest of someone as indecipherable as her. "Yeah... I was just planning on going by myself later."

Iida's expression flattened to an almost solid line as he looked down in... disappointment? Izuku couldn't tell what it was, but it certainly made him feel unwell.

"Well... I would like it if you came with us. Uraraka certainly would appreciate your presence. And... And I would really like it if you could be there. I understand if you can't, though."

Izuku felt his face flush, his eyes widening as his intestines lurched downwards. He resisted the urge to place his hands over his stomach, instead returning with as much of a smile that he could muster.

"I guess... I g-guess I could. I'll... see you there?"

"Alright, Midoriya!" Iida proudly proclaimed in the middle of a sportswear shop. "I've narrowed it down to these two!"

Izuku nearly fell back as two different shirts were shoved into his face, one a striking green, and the other a deep blue. They looked extremely thin, the material opaque but shimmering from the overhead lights.

"Do we really need these? We've got workout clothing." Izuku put his in front of him, feeling the smooth material as he gently pushed it away from him. Truth be told, he didn't want to be here. There were too many people... too many tiny things pushing him into situations he wasn't comfortable in. He would rather be at home, or at the bar.

"Yes but these are for post workout!" The other student replied, pushing them forward enthusiastically. "You need to wear proper clothing to allow your sweat and body temperature to wick away after you finish exercise. The last thing anyone needs is for a health issue because they didn't maintain their health!"

"Oh..." Izuku replied, not finding any reason to go against his de-facto partner's advice. "I'll... take the green one, then."

"Great choice!" He replied triumphantly, placing the other one back on the rack. "I think it suits you well, it matches with your hero outfit!"

"Yeah... along with my hair... and my eyes..."

"Is something the matter, Midoriya?"

He shrugged. "I dunno. I just thought about it now, but... isn't it a little weird that everything I have is basically the same color?"

"Not at all!" Iida responded with force, whipping his arm out towards the other student. "I think as long as it's both appropriate and something you're comfortable wearing, it's perfectly fine!"

"I guess. Is there anything else we need to get!"

"Uraraka is still buying shoes with some of the other female students. As for us, we have all the essentials..." he replied, pulling out a small piece of paper from his pocket. He scanned over each line, making sure everything written on it was taken care of. "Sunblock... extra undergarments... athletic wear... that seems to be- Oh no!"

"What? Something wrong?" Izuku asked, genuinely concerned by the outburst.

"I forgot to write down some of the things I need." He folded the paper back up. "I need some more metal cleaner and some replacement soles."

"Shouldn't you go to like... a specialist for those?"

"There's a shop in the mall my family has used for generations to maintain their quirk!" He replied, very proud of that statement. "The shopkeeper there keeps special stock for us."

"I see." Izuku replied, trying to hide the exasperation building in his voice.

"If you would prefer, you can wait in the plaza while I take care of things there." Iida responded, picking up on the other student's stress immediately.

"Oh, I don't want to be rude-"

"Izuku, I'm saying this so that you don't have to go." He lightly reprimanded, hands falling to his sides. "I know you don't usually do public excursions such as this ones, and I've been told that getting some repose is beneficial in situations such as these."

The green haired student sighed at the... not very subtle way he was putting it, but at the very least he was trying to be polite and considerate.

"If you insist." He concluded, lowering his head as closing his eyes. "I'll probably be somewhere by the fountain."

"Perfect!" Iida's smile widened, the student excitedly pointing whole-handedly towards both his partner and the exit. "I won't be gone for too long!"

Izuku nodded, the edges of his lips curving upwards as he watched as the other student paid for his clothing and walked out of the store. He followed suit, paying using a part of the ludicrous amount of cash Endeavor had paid him as part of his field study.

He plopped his bag on the ground, just slightly under the rim of the fountain at the center of the plaza. He practically slammed his behind on the stone surface, pressing his palms flat against the marble top. He leaned back, staring at the sky. He sighed, feeling the warmth of the sun rays beating against his skin. He felt his eyes close, the sounds of the lively crowd being slowly drowned out and replaced by the rush of water behind him. For the slightest of moments, he felt peace, some sort of calming sensation as his problems slipped from both the front and back of his mind.

Then suddenly, that sensation evaporated as a shadow covered his face, coldness and dread settling into the bottom of his stomach as his heart began to beat like a drum.

The moment he opened his eyes, he felt cold sweat build on the back of his neck as he realized what dragged his mind back into reality.

Shigaraki was there, standing over him with an almost... indecipherable look on his his scraggly hair and rough, frayed hoodie lay a visage that was undoubtedly angry... but not towards Izuku. He stared down the younger villain, almost as if picking him apart with his eyes, eyes narrowing as he observed every feature of the student's face, as if he had never seen him before in his life.

"Shig-... Brother?" Izuku gulped unsure of what to make of the situation.

The older villain simply sat himself next to Izuku, lifting his hand to grasp the kid's shoulder. His fingers twitched as they hovered only millimeters above the cheesy monogrammed t-shirt, yet the green haired boy utterly refused to flinch or even show a sign of resistance. He only stared back at Shigaraki in innocent confusion.

In response, he raised the stakes by moving his cracked hands towards the boy's neck, clutching the skin with his whole hand, except for his pinky. It held out over the surface, wavering back and forth.

"You're not scared?" He asked, his voice half-growl and half-monotony.

Izuku slowly shook his head. He quietly whispered, "I trust you."

The young adult's fingers dug slightly harder into the student's skin, but he showed no signs of resistance.

"You've changed." He noted, staring his partner up and down.

"What are you talking about?"

"It wasn't long ago that you were quick to attack. You even bragged to Toga about hurting people. You changed."

"I'm still-"

"You're not still anything." Shigaraki cut him off, his free hand moving to his throat, his impulsive scratching kicking in. "Things changed. I don't know what stats or traits were rerolled, but it's not the same."

"...I don't know what to say." He choked out, the tendrils of unease sliding up his chest. "I'm just... I don't know."

Izuku's heart nearly skipped a beat as he felt Shigaraki's pinky finger press down on his throat. In the brief moment it took him to wonder why his throat hadn't crumbled to ash in a gruesome experience, he realized that the villain had lifted a different finger just before pressing down.

Shigaraki still stared down at him, confusion and anger settling on his face.

"I t-trust you." Izuku almost squeaked out, trying to recompose himself. "I always h-have."

"What do you want out of this?" The older one asked, brows furrowed. "You've been honing your skills this whole time... what do you want?"

"I... want... I wa-want to make a wo-world for y-you."

"Really?" He snorted, scratching his neck harder. "You could have the chance to loot the world... and you'll take none of it for yourself? What do you want?"

"I want f-for you to be ha-happy!" He almost shouted, his voice cracking. "Please, tell me what's wrong!"

"Be quiet." Shigaraki commanded, his fingers digging even deeper into Izuku's neck. Izuku nodded.

The villain sighed, clenching his teeth as he looked away. "They were right. You're useless right now."

"What?" Izuku's eyes widened, the fog of confusion planting innumerable questions into his mind.

"They told me they were sending you away so you could spy on the enemy. You're becoming like them. I don't know what you're supposed to be anymore."

"You're still my brother!"

"Is that why you've been holding yourself back when we play games together?" He sneered. Izuku's mouth hung open at the accusation. "You seriously thought I wouldn't catch that? It's no fun to play with someone who lets me win, let alone someone who would have beat me all the time. I stopped playing with you for a reason."

The student muttered out a weak apology.

"So now... my party member isn't the same, tries to hide how much they progressed, and has no ambition." He slammed his fist sideways onto the marble of the fountain, taking care not to break it. Izuku's eyes scanned wildly around, relieved no one took notice of the outburst.

"What... wh-what do you want me to d-do?"

Shigaraki reached into the pocket of his hoodie, pulling out a small cylindrical device, with a button on one end. "Simple. All you have to do is press this button when you reach the campsite. Then just... leave it anywhere. Out of sight. Get it?."

Izuku slowly reached out, his eyes and lips quivering as he felt the item get dropped into his hands. He pulled it close to his chest, before placing it in his pocket. He didn't need an explanation for what it did. He knew.

"Now..." The villain trailed off. "We wait."

"For... for what?"

"For a friend to notice you." He grinned, his smile reaching up to the tips of his ears. "I'm sure that won't take long, will it? After all, you were invited out here by them."

Izuku's mouth hung open, his fear and dread mixing together into an endless void that threatened to envelop his gut. Before he could make any sort of response, he heard a dreadfully familiar voice call out for him.

"Izuku! Where are you?" Iida cheerfully called from within the crowd.

Shigaraki's ears perked up at the sound. "Oh, him? Is that the guy you manipulated into liking you? Looks like you made a good choice with that."

Izuku looked down, hands clenched in his lap as he did his best to keep the tears from welling up.

When they were finally able to see each other, it didn't take long for the realization to set in on the bespectacled student's face. He gritted his teeth, engines flaring up as he prepared himself to take off towards the villain-

"I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Shigaraki called out, motioning towards the younger villain sitting next to him. "I'm only one finger away from making a disgusting mess out of your friend."

Izuku clenched his eyes shut, trying his best to stifle the whimpers that were bubbling up his throat.

Iida reluctantly stood back up, walking slowly towards the villain. "Release him. Now."

Shigaraki responded by standing up, dragging the other student up with him. "Not too fast. Just keep in mind... we're in an area with a lot of faceless nobodies. You try to come after me, things will get very nasty. CERO-Z."

Iida clenched his hands, shaking in place. "You... you're a monster."

Shigaraki let out a cruel laugh, dragging Izuku back into a meandering crowd. "Just worry about your own skin, hero. If you get too ahead of yourself, you'll end up worse than your brother."

The villain practically disappeared into the crowd, letting go of Izuku at the last moment. He stumbled forward, quickly being scooped up into the other student's arms in a tight hug.

"You're okay." Iida quickly assured. "You're okay. We're going to call the police."

Izuku said nothing, wrapping his arms tightly around Iida as he quietly sobbed and shuddered into his chest.

The questioning at the police station went about as well as expected. While Naomasa was out surveying the bystanders, someone else handled Izuku's personal happenstances. It went well enough without having to resort to outright lying. He honestly had no idea Shigaraki would show up, and he did spend the majority of his time chastising him. From the looks of it, the interviewing officer really didn't have much to add or expect. He kept his hands tightly clasped together as he said all he needed to say and nothing more.

After confirming no one was harmed in the incident, he was released from the uncomfortably tiny room, where he was greeted with the familiar face of Naomasa Tsukauchi.

"Good to see that you're doing well, despite everything." He half smiled, trying to console the boy. "Come on, we'll wait outside for your mother. All Might is waiting outside for you as well, I believe he wants to speak with you."

Izuku grimaced, nodding as he was led through the mundane corridors of the regional police headquarters and back out onto the street. True to his word, the proud, broad figure of Toshinori Yagi, suit tightly hugging his muscular frame, stood on the sidewalk. His fingers slowly rubbed in between and against each other, betraying the sense of anxiety he was trying to hide.

"Young Midoriya..." He trailed off, regret seeped into his voice. He quickly bent into a deep bow, head facing the ground. "I am deeply sorry for what happened today."

Izuku felt a sense of mild incredulity flow through him, unsure of how to react to this.

"I... You don't need to apologize. Nothing today happened because of you."

The pro hero stood back up fully, the boys words having no effect on his sense of guilt.

"Even so," he reaffirmed, "I wasn't there. It was shortsighted of me and the rest of the staff to allow you all to remain unsupervised. I should have been there for you."

Izuku looked away, eyes trailing down towards the grass lawn next to him. He still wasn't entirely comfortable having these kinds of conversations with All Might.

"You shouldn't make promises like that." He quietly replied, swallowing thickly as he felt the weight of the situation settle on his stomach. "You can't be there for everyone. It's not your fault. And... we're unsupervised most of our days anyway. If they were going to target someone, it could be at any time."

Toshinori's mouth hung open at the blunt statements. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he recognized it for the morbid effort to reassure him that it was, but it really only succeeded in feeding his fears.

Tsukauchi looked back and forth between the two, before speaking up. "Well, either way, things were resolved without harm. Let's not forget that."

Izuku nodded, muttering "yeah," as his estranged somewhat-mentor did the same.

However, any attempt to mend things further was interrupted as Inko practically appeared around the corner, rushing towards her son as her voice warbled in and out of hysterical sobs. She almost knocked him over with how forcefully she hugged him, but her strong stance kept him from completely collapsing.

"Oh heavens, Izuku! You're alright?! I came here as soon as I could!"

"It's... I-it's okay m-mom." He replied, her visibly distraught appearance causing his own emotional state to crumble. "I wa-wasn't hurt."

It took some stressful moments of back and forth reassurance before his mom was completely able to address the other two people present. Once she could regain her composure, she faced them head on, her brow furrowed in righteous anger as she spoke.

"After that disastrous exam, not even a week after, I get a call from the police telling me that my son was held hostage?!" Her voice took on a commanding tone, the forcefulness practically making both grown men consider backing up for their own safety. "Is this supposed to be the norm for heroes in training?! I want an explanation now !"

Toshinori opened his mouth to speak, but Tsukauchi managed to beat him to the punch. "Ma'am, I am terribly sorry that this incident occurred. There was simply no way to predict something like this happening."

"How many villain attacks is my family going to endure?" She stepped forward, pointing menacingly at the officer, while holding Izuku firmly by the arm with her other hand. "First the USJ, then getting kidnapped by a- a monster, and now this?! Am I supposed to be okay with this?"

"I sincerely apologize." All Might bowed again, making sure his voice was heard. "I do admit, your son has been in many situations where his life was put in danger. I promise to you that I will do everything I can to ensure his safety. I've saved him before, in both the sludge villain incident, as well as the USJ, and I fully intend to continue-"

Izuku's eyes widened in horror at what just came out of the pro hero's mouth. Inko's grip tightened on her son, the new information not lost on her as she interrupted him. "Sludge villain incident? What on earth are you talking about?"

Toshinori looked down at the boy, a confused look on her face. "You... didn't tell her?"

Inko froze, looking down at her son. He was doing his best to just... melt into the ground. "What... what is he talking about, Izuku?"

"I... I was attacked by a villain a few months before I signed up for Yuuei." He muttered as quietly as possible, hoping in vain that his mother wouldn't hear it. "All Might saved me. It's not important, really..."

"It was important, really." All Might immediately added. "You were seconds away from dying. You were lucky I was chasing him down at the time."

His mom lowered her hand, clutching her chest. Izuku didn't have to look to know she looked incredibly pained... betrayed even. "Why... why didn't you tell me?!"

Izuku sniffed, trying to stifle the guilt tearing up in his chest. "I just... d-didn't want you to w-worry."

She froze at the statement, hands falling limply to her sides. "I... That's no reason to not tell me."

"I know." Izuku weakly replied, still unable to look at his mom.

She looked back to the pro hero and the police officer, tears once again welling in her eyes. "So... even before Yuuei... his life was in danger. There's just... no stopping it, is there?"

Tsukauchi stepped forward, placing a hand on her shoulder as he looked sympathetically down at her. "Ma'am, if that were possible then I wouldn't have a job... and neither would All Might, for that matter. What we can do is stop the people who would harm him... and with the right training, teach him to do the same."

She stared back at the officer for a long time, before grimacing and sighing in defeat. "You're... probably right. I would be a terrible mother if it was my decisions caused him harm down the line... I couldn't forgive myself if that happened."

Before anyone could respond further, her fiery spirit re-ignited, motherly instincts once again imposing her will onto those she was speaking with. "But... if this is the best course of action, then you need to be the best mentors for him. I won't accept anything less from you."

Toshinori bowed, his own spirit restored. "Miss, I promise you that I will do everything in my power to protect him. I won't let him fall into the hands of a villain again, you have my word."

"Then he can continue going to Yuuei." She reaffirmed. She looked back at Izuku, who still couldn't bear to look at her. She sighed, "Izuku... I'm not angry, okay?"

"I'm sorry." He weakly replied.

"I know... It's because you wanted to keep visiting your friends, right? I understand." She began, turning him so he had to look at her. "We won't have to discuss this, so let's make a promise. We put both of this behind us, but I don't want you leaving me in the dark like that again, okay?"

Izuku froze for a moment, but he finally forced himself to nod and mumble out a quiet "Yeah."

He was quickly pulled into a hug, and he returned it fully. After they let go of their embrace, it wasn't long before they left for home, giving polite farewells to the two professionals in their midst.

However, the two men weren't done talking. As soon as the Midoriyas left, they resumed speaking.

"So..." Tsukauchi began. "We can assume he was directly targeted."

"That seems to be the case."

"Then it's possible the League of Villains will go after the other students, too. You need to be more careful. Not just with Midoriya, but with everyone."

"I know." All Might replied, fists clenched. "I can't stop worrying that this was a test of some sort. Poking at our defenses and looking for a weak spot."

"Then go after the thing poking you." The police officer advised. "I don't have any doubt that the Yuuei faculty will have no issue being more proactive. It's time to start biting back. I'll do what I can on my side. The police have been playing second fiddle to pro heroes for a long time, but with these recent events I know support has been going on to reign in the lax officers and heroes. I'll nudge things as far as I can for the police to ramp up their duties."

All Might nodded, but he had no words to respond with.

"You know... I'm just going to put it out there. You're a great pro hero, leaving your role at Yuuei and being a hero full-time is still an option-"

"Absolutely not." All Might cut him off, not even considering it for a second. "I can't break my promise... and I really do want to see him grow into a fine hero."

Tsukauchi smiled, looking up at the starless sky. "Well, it's good to see you're committed to your decision. Good luck... you're going to need it."

It wasn't really unexpected when Aizawa had announced to the class that their field trip location had been changed due to "unforeseen circumstances." There wasn't any need for any explanation either, as most of the class resisted the urge to cast a worried glance back at Izuku. He looked okay, for better or worse, and no one really felt like singling him out over it. After a moment of suffering the presence of Monoma Neito (which Kendou had graciously cut short), they were loaded onto buses and shipped off to their new mystery location. Izuku nervously poked a finger into his pocket, feeling the cold metal of the cylindrical item bite back at him. He placed his hands on his lap, doing his best to co-mingle with his classmates and provide some form of friendly entertainment.

It was getting more natural for him to have friendly conversations with the fellow heroes in training, and truth be told... he didn't quite mind the feeling either.

After a few hours' drive, they were stopped along the bend of a mountainous highway, the curb extended to let them stop, rest, and take a view of the absolutely monstrous forest laid out in green swathes before them.

Izuku stretched his arms up, groaning out as his cramped muscles managed to unclench and stretch out. He looked over, seeing most of the class do the same. Iida was doing some sort of set regimen, repeatedly alternating between squatting and bending to touch his tips of his sneakers.

Aizawa stepped quietly down the stairs of the bus, holding his clipboard and wearing the cruel smile that told everyone that something terrible was about to happen. Izuku naturally tensed up, his muscles complaining about being used so quickly after being sedentary for so long. Before he had the chance to process the situation, he was waylaid by the sound of something rumbling up the hillside. A rock and dirt platform rose up beyond the rail, carrying two young looking women and... a small, very angry looking boy.

"Rock on with these sparkling gazes!" One woman called out, as she struck a warrior pose, claws extended forward.

"Stunningly cute and catlike!" The other shouted, arms stretched towards the sky as she hiked her leg up like a cheerleader.

Together, they shouted, "We're the Wild, Wild Pussycats!"

Izuku didn't need the introduction, though Aizawa was sure to provide one for them. That being said... they never quite explained what they were doing here.

Mandalay pointed out to the horizon, at the base of a mountain miles away. "This is all our area. Your lodging is at the base of that mountain, all the waaaaaaay over there!"

Izuku gulped, his mind slowly piecing together what they were about to do. And he didn't like it one bit.

The implication was also not lost on Sero. "Hey... guys... that's a long ways away... let's get back to the bus!"

A group of students slowly began shuffling away, and it was then that Izuku fully understood why Aizawa had that smile on his face.

Pixiebob spoke up, tapping the pads of her gloves together. "It's... like, around 9:30 now... yeah, lunch time will do. Anyone not there by 12:30 is going without lunch!"

"Sorry, kids." Their teacher spoke up, placing his clipboard at his side. " Your training has already begun."

Izuku watched as Pixiebob slammed her hands on the ground, and in that moment the entire area around him turned to sludge, the ground beneath him disappearing as he felt himself get dragged off the cliff and into the forest. He screamed, watching helplessly as a wave of dirt pounded into him, the air knocked out of his lungs as he collided to the ground. He tumbled around, before he rolled to a stop, sunk halfway into the landslide. He shifted around, managing to pull himself onto his feet. Luckily... or perhaps thanks to Pixiebob's skills, no one was seriously injured.

The cheerful voice of Mandalay called from high above, where the buses and adults stood, unharmed. "Make it to the lodge in three hours! It's our property, so use your quirks as much as you want! Good luck traveling through The Beast's Forest!"

Kaminari rubbed his arm, dusting himself off. "That sounds like a name ripped from Dragon's Quest..."

Izuku wasted no time on the task at hand, bounding forward. He jumped up, using his air mines to carry him up past the canopy. He flung himself upward, grunting at the impact left on his body without his armored uniform. The leaves scraped at his arms, leaving small red streaks everywhere.

When he finally broke through the thick layer of flora, he was greeted with the overhead sight of the expansive forest, his mountain goal looming in the distance. He did his best to reorient himself in the air, angling himself towards his destination.

Before he could react, a massive rustling of trees brought his attention to his side. He watched in horror as a massive, brown beast erupted upwards, reaching towards him. He didn't have time to react, let alone go on the offensive. It extended its clawed hand outward, and slammed him down like it was merely spiking a volleyball. He felt his guts rearrange as he was sent hurtling towards the ground faster than he rose. The leaves scraped his body once more, and he braced his arms as he saw the ground rapidly approaching.

However, instead of hitting the ground, Iida blasted towards him, practically snatching him out of the air as they were both sent tumbling along the ground, a much softer landing than Izuku anticipated. He pushed himself to his feet, grabbing Iida's arms to pull him up as well.

"That... thing..." He panted, trying to move back towards some more students. Clearly he wouldn't be able to work solo on this exercise.

"I know!" Iida grunted back, moving with him. "We saw it jump out for you."

They met back up with another small group of students: Tokoyami, Tsuyu, and Ochako. They didn't spend any time speaking, the sounds of the beast right upon them. They quickly scattered, though Izuku and Iida quickly countered. Izuku launched a barrage of Air Mines at its arm. The impact caused it to fracture, large chunks of the appendage falling off and landing on the ground. Iida quickly followed up by charging his leg, kicking a particularly large chunk at the fractured arm, which caused it to sever entirely. The beast howled and bounded away, disappearing in the trees.

"It won't be gone for long." Tsuyu stated bluntly, looking at the fallen arm. "It's made of... dirt."

"It must be Pixiebob's ability, then." Izuku concluded. "I know they've been doing this for over a decade, but I didn't know her ground-shaping ability allowed her to make golems."

"We need a plan now." Iida called back. "If it's densely packed dirt... we may be able to break it apart. Tokoyami, break the arm apart. Try to give it plenty of sharp edges."

The bird headed boy nodded, calling upon dark shadow. It made easy work of the arm, breaking it apart with the hard edges it needed.

Uraraka didn't need any commands to do her part. She touched every single piece, causing them to float and hover a few feet off the ground. There were only a handful of pieces, five in all.

"I've got another idea." Izuku spoke up. "Tokoyami, can Dark Shadow claw a hole into the center of the rocks? It doesn't have to be big."

"I'll do my best." He replied. With a small 'Aye aye!' from the birdlike quirk, it quickly sank its claws into all of the pieces, a small hole leading into the center. Izuku looked at all of them, staring at the holes for a moment each.

However, Tokoyami didn't have time to question why he was doing that. A roar not far from them, and the deafening pounding on the ground told all of them that their planning time had run out. They all tensed up, Tokoyami and Uraraka staying back as the other three took places in the front. The moment the beast appeared, they all launched their floating rubble at it, Tsuyu and Iida kicking as hard as they could, while Izuku propelled his forward by mines. They all collided with the chest and head of the creature, fractures appearing everywhere.

Then suddenly, all of their launched projectiles exploded, sending shrapnel into the beast, finishing the job as its head, chest and last arm disintegrated. They collectively sighed in relief as the creature collapse, what was left of its body ceasing to function.

"That was a good idea, Midoriya." Tokoyami noted. "What brought that about?"

Izuku grimaced, recalling the last time he did something like that. It ended with All Might's eyes shredded and everyone in the hospital.

"I just got the idea. Not much I can say about it."

Ragdoll peered through the trees, pointing out and wildly exclaiming, "They're almost here! That's earlier than you said, Mandalay!"

Mandalay crossed her arms over her chest, smiling. "That's good. I didn't think they'd get here for another couple of hours."

Tiger walked up, placing a hand on his coworker's shoulders, a smile firmly planted on his face. "It's a good thing you didn't put money on it."

Pixiebob joined the rest of the group, ready to receive the new guests.

"Come on now! You need to have more faith in them. I put a lot of work into those golems, and they tore through them pretty easily." She pointed behind her, towards Aizawa. "Plus, I doubt Eraserhead over there would put them through the ringer like that if they couldn't handle it."

"It's not about whether or not they can handle it." He muttered nonchalantly, as he scanned over the schedule planned out on his clipboard. "They don't have the luxury of slacking. They're not safe. We're accelerating their training as quickly as we can."

Mandalay turned to face him, her normal smile replaced with a concerned gaze. "Still, this is pretty intense. I'd expect this type of training to be done by second or third years."

"We're planning on having all of them obtain their provisional licenses by the end of the year."

The Pussycats collectively nodded, understanding the substantial task given to them. Even among the highest performing schools, it was practically unheard of for an entire class to make it through the utter chaos that was the License Exam. They really couldn't hold back, if they did it would basically be sabotage.

It was at that moment that the children finally made it through the forest, breaking into the clearing with gazes of tired and weary relief. The Wild, Wild Pussycats quickly fell into formation, posing dramatically as they began to congratulate the class in front of them.

"You guys finally made it!" Mandalay cheered. "I've got to say, some of you performed quite admirably out there!"

Pixiebob pointed towards Iida, singling him out. "You acted without hesitation to save your friend. Something tells me you have previous experience?"

Iida grimaced, a hand slowly rising to his chest. "I do."

"Good. That means you have a head start." She looked around towards the others. "All of you did extremely well in this first test, but don't get too cocky. We'll make sure to whip you further into shape! The golems were just the beginning."

Ragdoll laughed, waving her hand. "Now now, they just got here. They'll have all the training they need tomorrow. For now, let's treat them to a nice dinner!"

Tiger laughed gruffly, before addressing the students directly. "Don't expect this kind of treatment from now on, though! From tomorrow on, you're responsible for making your own food, so I hope you have some good chefs with you!"

Izuku wasn't sure how this kind of training would compare with what he received from Kurogiri and Sensei. But most of his wandering thoughts were drowning out with the eerie feeling of being watched. His eyes trailed beyond the pro heroes, where a small child, who clearly was still in elementary school, had parked himself on the corner of one of the lodges. He leaned against the wall, glaring at him. He recognized the fury buried under that gaze, the cold nostalgia sending shivers down his spine.

"Um... Mandalay?" He pointed towards the child, who immediately averted his angry stare towards the ground. "Who is he?"

"Oh, him?" She turned halfway, gesturing towards the kid. "He's Kouta, my nephew. He's staying with us for the time being, so please be kind to him."

Pixiebob clapped her hands. "Now, for the time being, please follow us to the mess hall! You all must be deathly hungry by now."

Almost immediately, the class followed the group of heroes. Izuku stepped forward, but a small pressure placed on his shoulder held him back somewhat. He looked towards it, seeing the disembodied sleeve of Hagakure's uniform hover near him.

"We need to have a chat. Meet me in front of the dorm tonight. Bring it with you." She murmured, loud enough for only him to hear it.

"Got it" He quietly replied. He quickened his pace to catch up with the rest of the rest of the students, but once again he got sidetracked. Kouta was still staring harshly at him. He knew from the onset that he definitely didn't like him, but... That glare was so unnatural, yet familiar. He felt himself walk up to the boy, crouching slightly to better meet his height.

"Hey... how are you? My name's Izu-"

Before he could finish his sentence, he was met with a lightning fast jab to his groin. He felt the color drain from his face as his mouth hung open, hands quickly covering the attacked region before he unceremoniously face planted himself into the ground.

"Tch." The boy clicked his tongue.

Izuku heard the dull thuds of someone running up to him. Based on the volume and intensity of the yelling, he guessed it was probably Iida.

"What is the meaning of this?!" He cried out, grabbing Izuku by the shoulders to pull him back up. "Hey, Nephew! What did you hurt him for?"

He didn't respond at first, opting to shuffle away with his hands in his pockets. After a few seconds, he finally told them. "I don't abide by jerks who wanna be heroes."

'Abide?' Izuku thought to himself. 'How old is this kid?'

He knew there really wasn't much interpretation for the events that just occurred. It was abundantly clear that Kouta did not want to interact with him.

But, even so... Izuku felt himself instinctively drawn towards him. Some selfish, childish wish buried in the back of his head, begging him to unravel the mystery that was this kid. He just... didn't know what he was going to find, or if there was anything he could do to fix it.

The dinner itself went by extraordinarily well, with everyone eating so ravenously that the adults wondered whether or not these kids had gained the ability to forego chewing and swallowing. One of the Pussycats muttered that it was "like watching a flock of seagulls find an abandoned feast on the beach," though with the cacophony of eating noises, no one was quite sure who exactly said it.

Izuku was no exception, practically downing bowls of rice, fried veggies and fish with extreme prejudice. The only times he stopped was when Kouta entered the room, his curious mind making his animalistic desire to consume everything take a back seat as he tried to pick apart the kid from a distance. It didn't seem to be lost on the child, who would turn back to hatefully glance at the boy who dared to invade his personal space.

Following the dinner, the boys and girls were separated as they went to different hot springs, on opposing sides of a rather tall and imposing wooden wall. Izuku practically sunk down into the water, submerging everything but his face as he revelled in the luxurious and revitalizing waters. He had made the occasional small talk with Iida, but other than that nothing of significance occurred. Truthfully, he was just doing what he could to keep his mind off of his planned meeting later that night. He was already uncomfortable being around Hagakure, but this meeting in particular tugged at the edges of his stomach, threatening to swallow him up. It was just easier to avoid it, rather than mull over something that was going to happen regardless of his choices.

But... the hot springs relaxation was little more than a fleeting moment. As they all retired to the dorms, it was only a matter of time before everyone else fell asleep. After all the events of the day, very few people could probably muster up the resolve to stay up. Izuku just hoped he wouldn't regret having only a few hours of sleep. He got by with only a handful of hours of sleep per night during his training with the League, but unlike those times, he wasn't given the same sort of restorative energy that Sensei could give him.

He quietly rolled over, checking to see if everyone was asleep. After he confirmed it, he quickly activated Obfuscation. It had been a while since he used it, but it still felt natural to him, working into the minds of everyone around him and subtly erasing his presence from their minds. He slowly pushed himself to his feet, tiptoeing to the door and slipped out. It was only a short trek down the well maintained halls until he was out on the patio.

Despite being unable to see anyone, he could still sense his quirk working its way close by. He didn't know exactly where they were, but it was safe to assume who it was. He quickly retracted his quirk from their mind, revealing his presence to only them.

He immediately felt an invisible hand grab his forearm, quietly guiding him out into the forest. They made sure to stay off the dirt path, keeping in the grass. They walked only a short distance, until Izuku felt no more foreign presences nearby.

Hagakure sighed. "Goodness me, that was tense! Hope no one wakes up while we're gone."

"Then let's make this quick." He muttered, rubbing his arms. "What do you want?"

"Do you have the device?"

The boy reached into his pocket, pulling out the small metal cylinder. It had lost its cold bite, becoming rather pleasantly warm in his hands due to it leeching off his body heat. He nervously ran his thumb over the button.

Hagakure sighed, patting him on the shoulder. "Good job, Izukkun! I was worried you might have left it at home."

"So you just wanted to make sure I have it?"

"Not quite." She stopped walking, turning him by the shoulder to face her directly. "I wanted to make sure you use it. Go on."

Izuku's breath caught in his throat as he felt shocked by the statement. "Wha- why?!"

"Relax, Izukkun!" She playfully chided, giggling. "It's not that I don't trust you, I just like seeing the work verified for myself. Unless... is there a reason I shouldn't trust you?"

"N-no." He slowly responded, staring down at the device in his hands.

"Then you should have no problem doing it now." She quickly filled in the silence he left. "This is something Shigaraki and Sensei have been looking forward to for ages. You're not going to let them down, are you?"

Izuku clutched the device tightly, his lips quivering slightly as his hands shook. "You... You don't have any right to hold that over me."

"You're the one who let me hold it over you. And I won't be able to hold it over you after you push the button."

He didn't respond, just staring at his hands as his breath refused to stabilize. He didn't know why he was having this dread build up within him. He was... He was loyal to his brother, wasn't he? If he wasn't... what was all the years he spent with him for? Was this why he became so cold and distant, because he could sense his loyalty wavering?

He knew the answer to that last one... Shigaraki had said as much. He was right... Izuku was changing into something unrecognizable, straddling a terrible fence with no guarantee that either side was particularly better. But... the thought of abandoning his brother...

He didn't even finish that thought, before his thumb practically moved itself up to press the button. He suppressed a whimper as the red button lit up, activating and sending its location to back to its owner. His stomach dropped even further as he watched it get lifted out of his hands. Hagakure reeled her hand back, tossing it skyward. It disappeared into the dense forest, resigned to a fate of never being found again.

"You made the right choice, Izukkun." She turned back to him. "They'll be here in a few days. If it'll make you feel better... we've been given an order to avoid casualties if possible. All the more... how should we put it, heedless people will be patrolling the outer areas. So as long as everyone sticks to the dorms, we should be fine."

"Okay." He choked out, his legs barely able to keep him up. "Let's go back."

She patted him on the shoulder again, though she didn't lead him along by the hand like last time. He quickly activated his quirk, trekking back through the trees and back into the dorm area. Unsurprisingly, Aizawa was awake, but neither of them had managed to give themselves away, slipping past his lit room with little trouble.

Izuku quickly wiggled under his blanket, dispelling his second quirk. He buried his face into his pillow. His actions left him feeling absolutely hollow, unable to even bring himself to cry. His physically and emotionally drained body quickly pulled him off into sleep, a dim trail of thoughts in the back of his mind wandering would happen with this new attack on the students of 1-A.

Izuku wasn't given time to ponder the events of last night. Not that he particularly minded that. Practically from the time the sun rose, he was shoved out the door in a crumpled up uniform. He vaguely remembered someone asking why they weren't wearing their costumes, but it was met with something about the equipment that would ultimately benefit them not always being there. They had to toughen their bodies first. It did make sense, somewhere in the back of his mind.

The problem was, he wasn't given a lot of time to actually get his bearings. Shouta was kind enough to teach them a valuable lesson, at least. Bakugou may have had his ego bruised when he was used as a prime example of a disappointing lack of improvement, but at the very least it appeared that it spurred him to start training in earnest. Izuku grimaced at the revelation, the realization acting as a splash of ice cold water to his eyelids. He wasn't entirely sure of his own improvement, to be honest. He did do a lot of supplementary training with the League, but much of it was more the mental, sometimes ephemeral side of things. Kurogiri took entire months at points just to hammer in the nuances of anticipating enemy moves, and acting accordingly. But that hardly mattered when the focus of this training was raw strength.

At the very least, he was glad that his quirk was more of a mental class one. Quite frankly, the types of training set up by the other students was downright scary. Bakugou was literally shoving his hands into boiling water, Uraraka had been throwing up intermittently for the past few hours, and god knows what Tokoyami is going through. He's never heard him scream like that... and from the looks of it, the rest of the class hadn't either. Speaking of that... most of the class was screaming in agony over one thing or another. Sero, Kaminari- both of them had been screeching at the top of their lungs for a while now... and seeing the trails of blood flow from Mineta's head like small crimson streams made his stomach churn. Was this... really okay?

Izuku felt his feet get yanked out from under him, his face immediately smacking against the ground with a dry thud.

"You got distacted." Tiger pointed out, letting go of the boy's ankles. "I know you're probably wondering how everyone else is doing, but for now, let's focus just on yourself, okay?"

He groaned, pushing himself back onto the ground with little effort. Truth be told, his calves felt like they were on fire, and his forehead had an annoying needle-like pain surging underneath the skin, but he was relatively fine compared to the rest of the others. He wasn't sure if it was just because of the nature of his quirk, or perhaps something Sensei had done to him. But now was not the time to worry about that.

"Sorry about that." He mumbled out.

"It's alright!" The large, muscly man shouted out. "Let's see if we can make things a little tougher for you! You don't really look like you've been exerting yourself at all. What have you been doing?"

"I was told to use a layer of air mines underneath me to maintain a height of a few centimeters off the ground as long as possible. Aizawa-sensei wanted me to focus on making them quickly enough to stay off the ground, but keep them precise enough for me to keep my balance."

"Well, I'm going to be honest here, and it looks like you've got that down pat at this point." He brought his comically oversized paw to his chin. "I think I've got an idea. Hey, Pixiebob!"

Said woman bounded towards the two of them, placing her hands on her hips. "What'cha need?"

"Little squirt over here isn't being pushed hard enough. I was thinking maybe you could make some super hard pillars, and we can have him bounce back and forth between them for a few hours? Sure beats having him standing still all day long."

She smiled, immediately accepting the proposal. "That sounds great, actually!"

"Good. Just put them around-" He cut himself off, looking down at his watch as he realized something. "Ah, shoot! It's five minutes 'til break. If we just start him now he'll just be wasting time. Well... let's just call an early break. Moving the time up by a few minutes won't mess up anything. Just put them up... that clearing should be fine. I'll go get the rest of the students."

With a snap of her fingers, the Wild Pussycat raised eight giant pillars from the ground, compacted so densely that they looked impervious to any damage.

"Don't worry about breaking them. They're much harder to crack than the golem." She reassured the boy. "But for now let's take a break. Make sure to get some water, but don't eat anything. You'll regret it later, especially with how much you'll be moving around."

Izuku fought back the urge to grimace at the mention of food. He didn't really like that they were only allowed one meal a day with this kind of training, but... he didn't feel like seeing what he ate a second time today. "Thanks."

"Your friends are heading over to the picnic area. I don't really think you need to rest your laurels or anything, but this is gonna pretty much be the only time you'll be able to talk with them until supper time."

"Got it." He nodded, turning around to join everyone. But... the corner of his eyes caught something. Someone watching him. He turned his head only slightly, seeing a small pair of yellow horns protruding from a red hat, hidden beyond the trees. The splash of warm colors against the greenery receded, quickly disappearing from view, as the watcher moved on to other endeavors, probably leaving to spy on the others. He turned back around, facing Pixiebob.

"You've got a sharp eye." The pro hero commented. "He does that for pretty much everyone who comes around here."

"I know Mandalay said that Kouta was her nephew..." He began, "But... that isn't the whole story, is it?"

She sighed, face souring as she looked away. "It's... complicated. It's not really my place to say, but... Alright. It won't hurt anyone to let you in on what's happening with him. You know the hero duo, Water Horse?"

"Vaguely." He replied earnestly. "They were fighting a villain who killed them- wait. Were they...?"

"Yeah." She answered quietly. "He's... well, what child wouldn't take their parent's sudden murder harshly? No one, let alone a five year old should have to go through that. We're doing our best, but Mandalay... she's trying to give him a home. Honestly... it's hard to tell if he likes being here. I get the impression that sometimes he's only here because he's got no other place to go."

"He hates heroes, doesn't he?"

The pro hero's shoulders dropped, giving the boy an almost... defeated look. "That easy to tell, huh? Yeah, he hates them. He's... been very vocal about how he feels like his parents abandoned him... and left to die, instead. But there's little we can say to convince him that it ain't like that. He just doesn't understand the world, he doesn't want to understand why things had to happen this way."

"He hates heroism... because it took his parents away from him." Izuku concluded. "He blames everyone."

"Yeah... that sounds about right." She bitterly acknowledged. "You sound like you're more on his wavelength than any of us."

"I had... similar experiences." He admitted, nervously scratching his neck.

"And yet you're here training as a hero." She noted. "Maybe there's hope for him, after all. Say... don't tell anyone this, but... if you can get him to warm up to you while you're here, we'd all really appreciate it. I don't exactly have anything to give you in return, but... he's a kid, y'know? Everyone needs a friend they can rely on. And you sound like you'll be able to relate to him better than any of us."

Izuku felt his lips pull back in anxiety, leaving a quivering, unsure expression on his face. With this new information, he received a clear explanation for why the boy seemed to inspire such visceral feelings of a guilty kinship. But even so, he only had a second hand connection to that kind of situation. Kouta received firsthand experience, having to live with the death of his parents. It only seemed to cause the sense of guilt to deepen inside of him. Was it right to compare Kouta's feelings to his own?

He knew he wouldn't be able to find the answer to such a loaded question. At least, not without trying. Even so... Kouta was in a unique position among everyone here. Pixiebob may only have an inkling of his life, but she wasn't actually wrong about him being the best person to approach the child.

"I'll try." He finally answered.

"I'm glad." She sighed, placing a reassuring paw on his shoulder. "I'm sure you'll do fine."

He gave a weak smile in return.

"Just don't think you'll be catching a break on training because of this." She half-jokingly replied. "Now, I've talked your ears off enough. Go chat with your friends, kitten. I'm sure they're waiting for you."

The break didn't last long, and after some moments of silent exhaustion, everyone had returned to their assigned training, everyone giving it their all as they finished the grueling 13 hour training period. As the sun began to sink towards the horizon, the pro heroes all looked at each other as they called out, signalling the end of the day's training. It was with strained limbs and shallow breaths that everyone sluggishly made their way to the cooking area.

True to their word, the Wild, Wild Pussycats did not prepare any meal for them. They were considerate enough to leave a number of wooden cases out for them; upon opening it was revealed they were filled with a number of vegetables and some bags of rice.

"Oh, come on!" Mina groaned, hands awkwardly splayed outward. "I can barely touch anything after my training, and they expect us to cook?"

"Hey... is there any meat?" Kaminari looked around, peering into the other containers. "All I've got are veggies, man!"

"It appears that they aren't going to give us any." Momo replied, standing up to announce to the rest of the class. "If you are worried about your protein intake, it appears my crate is filled with soybeans. I'd advise everyone get a good amount, there's not really anything else here that would give you a well rounded diet."

"I'm surprised you can even eat." Tsuyu bluntly noted. "I was watching your training, I've never seen someone scarf down so many candy bars in one sitting."

Almost in an instinctual reaction to the observation, Momo quickly placed her hands over her stomach, biting back a beleaguered expression as her stomach sickly groaned at the prospect of new food.

"I'm... going to be eating something small. Just enough to maintain my physical wellbeing. And... please don't mention anything sweet again while we're here."

"Hey, uh..." Izuku began, pulling the lid off the final container. "I think I know what we're supposed to make tonight."

Everyone crowded around, wondering what exactly he was talking about. Did the heroes leave something that told them what they needed to make? Peering inside, they found...

A giant canister of flour. A large tub of room temperature butter. And an almost bucket sized container of curry powder.

"Guess we're having Curry Rice." He sighed, throwing the lid away. At the very least, the prospect excited some of the class members.

"Well, it looks like we're going to be splitting the roles up!" Iida called out. "Who here can make curry? And rice? We need some people to prepare the vegetables, too!"

The class collectively looked at him in confusion, which he responded by explaining further. "I'm getting the impression they want this to be a survival class. So we should all work together to get this done as quickly as possible!"

It didn't take long after that for everyone to fall into step. Everyone was delegated roles based on their needs; they didn't need more than 4 cooks for everyone, and two or three on rice. The rest were relegated to vegetable prep. Izuku, Iida, Bakugou, and Uraraka were all cooking the curry, with Momo and Mina on rice duty. Mina was particularly thankful, since all the other jobs were more intense and her skin was already extremely brittle. Having them under constant water was a boon.

Bakugou constantly overstepped his bounds as cook, berating both the people doing the prep work and the ones cooking next to him. He spoke significantly less animatedly with Izuku, but he didn't particularly mind the crass commentary from his classmate. If there was one thing he could never beat the blonde student at, it was cooking things. If he said something was wrong, then there was almost undoubtedly something wrong. He handled his own station wonderfully, despite the absolutely staggering number of red blisters that covered his hands and forearms. In the end, it came out tender, mild, and slightly sweet, courtesy the expert knowledge of the blonde student.

It wasn't long before everyone had scrambled to the picnic tables, practically digging in like animals as they ravenously downed the meal. Perhaps it was due to the grueling exercise, or the quality and freshness of the ingredients, but to the entire class, this was easily one of the best meals they had in their life. Compliments flowed like water, everyone feeling proud at their accomplishment.

Iida sat himself down next to Izuku, grinning wide as he dug into his own meal.

"I have to say." He said in between bites. "It's really nice to see everyone come together like this."

Izuku nodded, smiling. After downing a large portion of his meal, he responded. "Yeah, it's... it's really nice."

"So, where do you plan on going after the license exam?"

He practically spit out his food at the question. "That- it's a bit early to be asking that, don't you think?"

"Not at all!" He grinned, pushing his glasses up further on the ridge of his nose. "You should always have your future planned out! Will you be working with Endeavor again?"

The green haired boy nervously laughed, scratching his neck. "I don't think he wants me back. I did end up improving my skills while I was there, and he pays me ridiculous amounts of money, but... he's not fond of me."

"Well... if you don't ask, he might not send anything. That is if you want to intern with him."

"What about you?"

"I think I'm going to go back to Hosu City Hero Offices."

"Really? You've got to have better offers than that!"

Iida nodded, looking down at his food. "I have. But I don't think it would be right of me to go there. I messed up when I went there last time. I want to go back a second time, and perform hero duties in earnest. It's my way of making it up to them."

The other student bit his tongue, unsure of what to say. In the end, he settled on what was on his mind. "That's... very noble of you."

"I'm glad. Well, if you don't get in with Endeavor, I'm sure you'll have no problem getting a spot in Hosu as well." He placed a hand on Izuku's shoulder, squeezing tight. "It wouldn't be too bad, working together for a month. But only if you want to."

He felt his jaw slightly tremble at the offer, and he looked away from his friend, out into the forest. His optimism... it was too much to bear sometimes. "I'll... I'll look into it. It wouldn't be too bad, I guess."

His momentary guilt complex was interrupted, as he saw the familiar speckle of Kouta's red and gold hat move through the limbs of the trees, disappearing from sight. No doubt he was spying on them again.

"Do we still have leftover curry?" He turned around, looking at Iida.

"Hm? Yes, there should be a few more plates' worth in one of the woks. Are you getting seconds?"

The boy stood up, grabbing his own empty plate. "No. Well, I am. But not for me. I'll be back when I can."

Kouta liked his hideout. It was high enough that he could see the tops of trees for miles, and even if it was raining, he could just hide out in the little cave behind him. The Pussycats didn't know where it was, though that was probably out of politeness. Ragdoll could easily find him if she wanted to.

He spent his dinner time doing what he normally did; splash water onto the mountainside, kick rocks around, and sit down and think about... things. He didn't have a particular thing to mull over. Sometimes it was conversations with people at school, sometimes it was the occasional rescue effort he was brought to. Sometimes, he didn't really think at all.

This was one such time; despite all the events that had transpired today, he didn't really want to think about it. He hated them. Every single one of them. They were just as horrible as he thought they would be-

"Wow... this is quite a cool hideout." Izuku quietly complimented, causing a surprised Kouta to yelp as he jumped up from his sitting position.

"What are you doing here?!" He glared, grunting the question out as threateningly as he could.

"Oh... I just followed your footsteps." Izuku replied, shrugging. He held out the plate of still hot curry in front of him. "We had some extra. I figured you might want some."

"I don't! Get out of here!" He shouted back, emphatically waving the older student away.

"Well... I'll just leave it here, in case you change your mind." He sighed, placing the dish on a flat rock next to the boy. He turned to leave, but froze at the sight of the horizon. The sunset was a dim yellow, casting the sky a dull pink. Thin wispy clouds streaked the sky, and the trees almost seemed to sparkle from the light. "...I didn't realize there was a view like this up here."

"Well it's my view." Kouta stated matter-of-factly. "Now go. The last thing I want is to share my hideout with someone like you."

Izuku shrugged, looking down at the angry boy. "I'm getting the impression you hate me."

"Why wouldn't I? You're just as crazy as the rest of them... dressing up in costumes and calling yourselves 'heroes' and 'villains,' all so you can go around killing each other!" He picked up a pebble, throwing it at the student next to him. "I see you all the time, the only thing you guys talk about is your quirks. You're all just showing off. Idiot."

Izuku felt his heart pang. He crouched down, sitting on the edge of the cliff, feet dangling. The ground beneath this outcropping was hundreds of feet below. "It's messed up, isn't it?"

"Haaaah?!" Kouta incredulously responded. "You're the one in the training program!"

"I know, and I got the light end of the training. You saw what everyone else went through." He swung his feet back and forth, leaning back to look up at the sky. "They're all doing it willingly, too. That's not what normal teens are supposed to be going through."

Kouta glared at him, but he found himself short on words.

After a moment of silence, he continued. "I was told about your parents. That's rough."

The small child clicked his tongue in annoyance, glaring out on the horizon. "I don't need another person telling me how I just 'don't understand.' You're all the crazy ones."

"Why would I say something like that?"

"Because that's what everyone says!" He screamed, stomping his feet. "They... they left me. They left me so they could die. They didn't even beat the villain."

"They left you in the hands of someone who just as easily could be gone." Izuku replied, rubbing his thumb against his chin. His eyes widened as he realized what just came out of his mouth. Was that something he should be saying to an eight year old? Why did he say that?!

"They... they did." Kouta immediately quieted down. His former rage only seemed a pale shade of what it used to be. "I didn't think about that."

"Well... I'm not entirely right." Izuku tried to backpedal his last statement, somewhat. "They're rescue heroes, so they're not fighting villains. They're just... helping people, you know?"

"Yeah, I know." Kouta looked out onto the horizon.

Izuku reached out, pushing the plate on the rock between them ever so slightly closer to the boy. He took the hint, staring half-annoyedly at the high school student, before he reluctantly grabbed the plate and fork. He slowly took a small pile of rice and curry, putting it in his mouth and chewing slowly. He swallowed it, staring down at the plate.

"It's lukewarm. But it's not terrible." He muttered.

The green haired boy chuckled. "Well, next time don't wait around to eat it."

"...Fine." The curt reply was followed by the young child eating it at a modest pace. After eating a bit, he spoke up. "What's your name?"

"Izuku Midoriya."

"Oh, that was you?"

The high schooler looked confused, tilting his head. "What are you talking about?"

"Pixiebob mentioned you were held hostage at the mall by a villain." He muttered, putting more food in his mouth.

"Oh, that!" He exclaimed, realization settling in. "Yeah, that... scared a lot of people. It's the reason we're here."

"That dude with the scarf talked about you too."

Izuku's breathing all but stopped as he processed what Kouta said. Ice began to settle on the bottom of his stomach. "What... what did he say?"

"He said there was an 'incident.' Didn't say anything about it." The boy relayed. "He said you were a special case, and something about 'directing your potential.' I wasn't really paying attention"

It didn't take much effort to fill in the gaps. At the very least it assuaged his worries. "I see. So what do you do up here?"

"Watch the forest." He shrugged. "Nothing much else."

"Doesn't that get boring? No offense."

Kouta shrugged again. "Kinda. But I'd rather be here."

"I see." He thought about it. He didn't really like anyone down there, but still... this really didn't seem like fun. He couldn't imagine coming here every day and just... staring at the sunset the whole time. He thought about something that could help that... he got an idea. "Hey, I need to go get something. I'll only be gone a few minutes. Can I come back here?"

The boy's eyes widened, and his mouth hung open at the question. "Ah- uh- hrmph. Fine. I guess."

Izuku didn't waste any time. He slid off the edge of the cliff, causing Kouta to cry out in surprise as he reeled back. A few precisely placed air mines sent him flying back in the direction of the dorms. True to his word, he came blasting back in only a few minutes. He sailed over the outcropping, timing the arc of his flight so he only fell a few feet onto the rock surface.

Kouta greeted him by throwing a rock at his face, conking him right on the forehead. "You idiot! Showoff! What kind of person dives off a cliff like that?!"

Izuku immediately put his hands up in response, trying his best to avoid the growing bump above his eyes. "Sorry! Sorry! I won't do it again."

"You better not!" The boy crossed his arms over his chest, glowering at the high schooler. "So what was so important that you had to dive off a mountain?"

Izuku reached into his pocket, pulling out a small case with a zipper on it. He opened it up, revealing a small handheld console strapped inside, along with a collection of game cartridges. "I got this as a present a long time ago. I played it to death, really. I was thinking that you could borrow it while I'm here. It'll give you something to do, at least."

The child walked up to him, looking in the case. He slowly took it into his own hands, studying it.

"It looks old."

"I think it's older than me, honestly." Izuku admitted sheepishly. "But it does hold its charge really well! I only have to plug it in every 3 months or so."

Kouta slowly closed it, zipping the contents back up. "Thanks. I'll try it out later."

"Awesome. Let me know what you think about it when you do." He peered around the hideout. He pointed his thumb at the maw of the cave. "What's the cave like?"

"I dunno. It's good for when the rain comes down?" He shrugged. "It doesn't really go anywhere. It's just a dead end in there."

Izuku looked around the other side of the cave entrance. It was the rest of the outcropping, though something caught Izuku's eye. There was a section of the wall that was split into a craggly, webbed section. It was dripping water, too. There was no way that's a natural formation... and if it was caused by water...

He turned around, looking at Kouta as he addressed him. "Is that where you practice using your quirk?"

"That's none of your business!" He yelled back, visibly embarrassed. He turned his head away, glaring at him from the corner of his eyes.

"...Do you mind showing me?"

The boy entirely turned around, doing his best to avoid making eye contact. "It's dumb. I just do it when I'm angry because it makes me feel better."

"Well... if you don't want to, I can't force you. But I do want to see it."

"Fine!" He sauntered past Izuku, bumping into him as he tried to shoulder check the person who was almost twice his height. "This is stupid. It's just a quirk. You're weird!"

As much as he was insulting Izuku, he didn't seem like he was wholly against showing his abilities to the high schooler. Kouta planted his feet firmly against the ground, throwing his open palms forward. Almost instantly, a large stream of water shot out of his palms, arcing forward and splashing against the rock wall in front of him. The water cascaded in all directions, some of it dispersing into a mist as much of it simply dripped down, through the cracks and onto the ground.

"Wow, cool!" Izuku complimented. "So how long did it take to make those cracks?"

Kouta blushed from embarrassment, rubbing his still wet palms against the back of his head. "Three years. That's just from me hitting the same spot for so long. It's not impressive."

"It's still cool." He insisted. "Though... have you tried making the water stream smaller? It could make it stronger, like a water cutter."

The kid shrugged. "I didn't try that."

"Well, why not now?"

"This is still weird." Kouta reaffirmed. He held out only one hand, furrowing his brow as he tried to concentrate on his power. When he activated his quirk again, a small stream surged forward like a lance, hitting the rock wall with a mighty force. He felt his hand begin to wobble around from the sheer force of the water. He brought his free hand up to grip his forearm, trying to stabilize his posture. After a few seconds of the stream, he stopped. When the water cleared, he saw that he made a small hole in the rock, just big enough that he could stick his whole index finger in. "Woah..."

"Wow." Izuku exhaled, mentally taking notes and murmuring them out loud. "I was wondering if the pressure would stay the same, or it would increase from concentrating it. It's like a water pressure jet. I wonder if there's a limit to how much you can concentrate it..."

Kouta swung around, clearly not enjoying the fact that his quirk was now the center of attention. "Shut up! I'm not here so I can show off my quirk for you."

"Right... sorry." He bowed his head, letting out a nervous laugh. "Sorry. I used to study quirks a lot. I was really obsessed with heroes when I was younger. I studied quirks endlessly."

"And now?"

"I only do it when I have to." He admitted. "I... don't really care much for heroes anymore."

"They tend to throw things away." Kouta muttered, kicking a pebble off the cliff. He looked back up to Izuku. "You don't talk like any of 'em, though. Why aren't you saying something like 'Heroes have to do this!' or some other stupid line?"

"Well..." The older student sighed. "To be honest, they have to do that. But I believe they have to because they've been put up to it. The villains talk about how they hate what heroism has become, which is why they're fighting them. Heroes have to stop the bad guys, because no one else will. It's a vicious cycle."

"Is it the heroes' fault or the villains'?"

"I don't think it's either. I think it's everyone else." Izuku immediately batted back, a response that visibly baffled Kouta.

"W-what kinda screws are loose in your head?!" He cried out. "That's crazy talk!"

"Is it?" The older boy calmly challenged. "The regular people put heroes on a pedestal, and idealize it to the point that only the strong and most appealing make it on top. People want heroes to be pop idols who risk their lives on a daily basis, while they get to sit back and watch."

Kouta shifted uncomfortably, but he tried his best to hide any emotional reaction from the high schooler whose voice began to drip ice and venom seemingly from nowhere.

"And..." he quietly responded, "...and what about villains?"

"There will always be people who just want to hurt others. But there are also people who are villains because they were neglected, and left to rot while people ignored them. They thought a hero would save those in need but they never bothered to get one. They just refuse to help."

Kouta gulped, feeling the anger seethe off of the other person there. But despite that... he took the words he spoke... and his mind already began to apply it to his past experiences. His parents fought off that murderous villain all alone. And... being told he was too young to understand why they had to die, some of the gears began to click in the back of his mind.

"My parents... they keep telling me they had to die like that, as heroes. But... they have to believe that, because if they didn't... it would mean they would have to share the blame since they spread that lie."

"That's one way of putting it." Izuku concluded.

"Why... why are you a hero if you hate heroism so much?" Kouta asked.

"Well, because I was asked to." He shrugged, answering truthfully. "I don't know if I'm going to stay until the end, let alone get licensed as a hero. But I made a promise to be here, so... I have to."

"They want you to become a hero?"

"Well- not exactly. It's hard to explain. I don't know, to be honest. The people here... I realized that I like them quite a bit. And at times... they make me feel like I should be a hero. They... really care. A lot."

"Do you want to be a hero?"

Izuku paused, sighing uncomfortably as he found a clear answer non-existent. "I... I don't know. I'm at a point where I'm stuck between being a hero and rejecting it. Choosing either... I'll hurt someone no matter what I choose. And they both really want me to make a choice."

His mind's eye wandered back to the device he activated the night before. His stomach dropped and froze as he realized that he had already made such a choice. The realization hit him hard, and he felt the urge to vomit quickly rising up his throat.

He abruptly stood up, limbs stiff as he felt his guts churning. "Sorry." He stiltedly spoke. "It's starting to get real late. I should go."

He grabbed the empty plate, carrying it at his side.

Kouta's eyes narrowed, but he didn't comment on the matter. " ... can come back tomorrow if you want. I'll try out your games tonight."

Izuku slightly nodded, turning to leave. He shuffled down the path. Just as he reached the halfway point, he heard the thuds of Kouta's shoes move to the edge of the cliff, looking over to get a view of the older boy below him.

"And, hey!" He called out, causing the older boy to turn around. "You're the only one allowed. I'll splash you off the cliff if you bring anyone else!"

The high schooler's eyes widened, and he let out a tiny snicker at the threat, causing his lips to ever so slightly twitch upwards. "I got it!" He called back.

It didn't do much to mend his guilty conscience, truth be told. But the longer he mulled over it, the more he realized that despite the minimal effect on him, he still felt like it meant something to him. Kouta wasn't really approachable, let alone friendly. But the kid hadn't outright rejected him either. And on some level, they managed to find some form of solidarity with each other. Pasts intertwined with similar threads.

'Perhaps... ' He thought to himself as he walked home, ' perhaps this isn't so bad.'