Aizawa Shota's No Good, Very Bad Week

by Lets Do That Again

In which Aizawa almost learns a lesson. (Part of an ongoing MarvelXMHA AU series I'm writing).

Aizawa Shota's No Good, Very Bad Week

Spider-Man, Captain Britain, and all associated characters, are property of Marvel. My Hero Academia and all related characters are property of Kohei Horikoshi

/+/+/+/+/

"Dismissed," Aizawa Shota said just seconds before the final bell rang. And it couldn't come sooner. He braced himself against his desk, resisting the urge to lay down atop it. He had way too much on his plate. First, All Might decided to just fuck everything and bring Spider-Man into the country. Then that speech made by Akaguro Chizome, the 'Hero Killer', was leaked online—though Shota wasn't so callous as to put that on All Might—and with it a steady, worrying rise of Vigilante ideation. And to top it all off, All Might was forced out of U.A., leaving everyone else to scramble and revise lesson plans and fit the extra classes into their schedules, even with Endeavor coming in and picking up some of the slack.

He barely had enough time to train Hitoshi Shinso as he'd promised the boy. He needed the extra help—his abilities were too useful to be left on the wayside because U.A.'s administration had failed him.

God, why was it only Monday?

"Uh, Mr. Aizawa, c-can I ask you something?"

Shota paused, looking up and arching a brow at Ojiro Mashirao. The boy looked like someone stepped on his grave, his large tail twitching to-and-fro, but he at least managed to look Shota in the eye. "What do you want?" Shota asked.

"I…" Whatever nerve he had left him, his tail sagging to the ground as he bowed his head. "Never mind, I'm sorry for bothering you." Yes, he should be. Shota didn't have time to deal with needless distractions. Ojiro walked away to the door, where Sero Hanta and Hagakure Toru were waiting for him.

Sero clicked his tongue. "Told ya," he said, equal parts satisfied and sad.

Hagakure placed an invisible hand on Ojiro's shoulder. "It was a long shot anyway. C'mon, we'll miss our trains."

Shota let out a breath as he watched the three leave. If they wanted his assistance, they could have not waited until the end of the day. He had other responsibilities. Like salvaging U.A.'s reputation in the wake of All Might's monumental fuck-up, and whatever the hell Nezu had to with it…God, he wished he could just sleep until it was all over. Alas, he was needed, and he found the energy to trudge out the door.

"Wah!" Shota blinked, staring down at the source of the scream. There stood Midoriya Izuku, a bundle of nervous energy as he bowed rapidly. "S-Sorry, Sir! I didn't expect you to come out of the door. Not that it's impossible or anything, it is your classroom and—"

Shota held up a hand. "Midoriya, what is it? Did you forget something?"

"Oh, no, Sir." Midoriya shook his head, pointing down the hall. "I was just heading down this way."

"…Why?" Shota asked, eyes narrowed. The main exit was the opposite way. Same with the gyms and training facilities. In fact, the only thing of note down that way was…"

"I, uh, have to meet Principle Nezu for something."

Shota hummed. He knew that Nezu had assigned Midoriya to eat lunches in his office as punishment for his little spat with Monoma Neito—a misuse of the chimera's position, in Shota's opinion. But for what reason would the boy be going there after school?

"Why are you going there at this hour?"

Midoriya's nerves vanished in an instant. Shota almost did a double take at the bland expression on the boy's face. "That's personal, Sir." He bowed, muttered a quick goodbye, and continued on his way.

Shota glared at Midoriya's retreating figure—something fishy was going on. Had been going on since the boy had first entered U.A., if he was being honest. And then there was the matter of his internship with Gran Torino. There wasn't anything technically wrong with his choice—to be honest, Shota had always wanted to meet the man that was one of the first proto-Underground Pro-Hereos—but it rankled Shota. He just knew Nezu was in the center of it all.

Just another pile of shit on plate, he supposed.

/+/+/+/+/

Shota paid special attention to Midoriya following their encounter. He needed to figure out what about the kid made him so special in Nezu's eyes.

Right now, there was downtime in the Tuesday's Hero's class—a joint session with 1-B. Midoriya was standing beside Kaminari Denki, gesturing between them.

"I don't know, man" Kaminari said, scratching his head. "I've never really tried to store my electric discharges—I've just started controlling how much I've sent out."

"Well, maybe you can't do what I do," Midoriya replied. "I'm honestly still unsure of the specific mechanics of my Quirk, so I couldn't really tell you even if I wanted to. But what if you try and keep it around your body, like another layer of clothes? You can control where your electricity exits your body, right?"

Kaminari hummed, staring down at his hands. Wild sparks of electricity shot out from his hands. He set his face into a stern frown. Slowly, the electricity calmed down, and, for the briefest second, lightning covered his hands like a pair of gloves.

"Ha! I did it! Midoriya, you are the man!" Midoriya blushed under the praise, mumbling something beneath his breath.

Shota didn't see why Kaminari was patting himself on the back—that kind of elemental manipulation was the most basic of basic abilities. Kaminari should have figured it out long before now. But then, he wasn't the brightest of Shota's current roster. If not for the kid's pure, raw power, Shota would have expelled him already.

Now that he thought about it, Midoriya was under the same umbrella in the beginning,

He was all set to expel him, before classes had even started. Someone that injured themselves during the damn entrance exam couldn't be counted on in a crisis. But Nezu overrode his decision, and Shota was forced to recant his decision.

…Was that when it started? Had the chimera seen something in Midoriya, even back then? Had they been meeting even before Shota knew about it?

"Aizawa," Kan Sekijiro's deep voice came from behind him. Shota scowled at the interruption to his thoughts, but turned around, nonetheless. "Is something wrong? Another spat?"

Shota sighed. "Thankfully, no. Things have calmed down since Monoma Neito stopped instigating things." He shot Kan a look, and the man had the grace to look embarrassed. Honestly, the boy should have been reigned in from the beginning. Or expelled. A Pro couldn't go around needlessly causing problems because of his ego.

In any case, he needed more time to sort out what was going on between Nezu and Midoriya. It was a problem, and he didn't need any more of those.

/+/+/+/+/

"Ahhh," Yamada Hizashi sank into a seat in the teacher's lounge. "You know, I think things have finally reached a semblance of normalcy, eh Shota?"

"You realize you've fucked us over with that statement," Kayama Nemuri said over the rim of her coffee mug. "And on hump day, no less."

Shota, as he had when they first entered the room, ignored his oldest friends, though he did agree with Nemuri—Hizashi could stand to keep his opinions to himself. He scratched his chin, sifting through student reports. Of course, his mind was still focused on the conundrum of Nezu and Midoriya.

Hizashi sighed. "Nemuri, you're much less attractive when you talk down to me, you know that, right?"

"Didn't stop you from singing my praises last night~!"

"I was wearing a horse mask, you couldn't tell."

"So you grinding your ass against my riding crop was, what, orgasmic spasms?"

…What?

Shota turned away from his desk, eyes wide as he stared at Hizashi and Nemuri. They stared back with arched brows. "Finally," Hizashi said. "Was wondering when you were going to pay attention to us."

"Thank god." Nemuri shuddered. "Even thinking about Hizashi naked—gah!"

"Bitch, you'd love it."

Shota pinched his brow. "What do you two want?"

"To talk," Nemuri said, walking over and placing a hand on his shoulder. "We're worried about you, Shota."

He shrugged her off. "You two are always worried about me—it's one of your most annoying traits."

"We know," Hizashi said with a warm smile, something Shota had to fight to keep from reciprocating. He didn't want to reward their inane and, frankly, disgusting little ploy. Hizashi's smile slipped away from his face. "But we—and others, frankly—have noticed that you've been even surlier than usual. And focusing a lot of attention on Midoriya Izuku."

"I get that you're worried for the kids upcoming internship," Nemuri said. "That Gran Torino guy is pretty old, even if he's got a stellar record, but Midoriya's still a kid, let him make his own stupid decisions. You didn't kick near as much fuss when Yaoyarozu Momo said her pick was Uwabami—and you know she only mentors students to put them in her commercials."

"It's not just that," Shota replied. "And frankly, spending time modeling will help Yaoyarozu get used to living in her own skin. While her current costume design is atrocious, and I still can't believe it was approved, it's not like any other design she comes up will show any less skin. Better she gets used to the attention in a controlled, professional environment than in the field, surrounded by reporters and degenerates."

Nemuri shrugged. "Fair enough. Still doesn't explain your obsession with Midoriya."

"It's not an obsession," Shota bit back.

"You know," Hizashi said with a chuckle. "The only times I've known you to be so focused on a kid is when you're on the edge on whether or not to expel them."

"Nezu's got his eyes on Midoriya, I couldn't do that even if I wanted to." His friends shared a look. "What?"

"It's just"—Hizashi crossed his arms—"I think you're letting this whole thing get out of hand. I mean, be honest, Shota, when was the last time you were so focused on one student that you didn't want to give the boot?"

A scoff. "He isn't even the student I want to focus on." Speaking of—he looked at the time. Damn, he was going to be late to meet Shinso. Shota rose to his feet. "This was a nice chat. Let's not do it again."

"Love you too," Nemuri said with a lazy wave. Hizashi was silent but did send him a small smile. Now, Shota did allow a smile onto his face. He could worry about Midoriya and Nezu later.

/+/+/+/+/

"I think I should spar with the students," Endeavor said before Thursday's Hero class.

Shota blinked, staring at the eternal runner-up. "Come again?"

"It will be good, I think," Endeavor said. "They need experience working in groups against a superior opponent."

"They do need the practice," Shota replied, scratching his chin. He'd have appreciated a little warning beforehand—but he was planning on dividing them up into groups to fight among themselves anyway. "Alright, let's do it."

The students were all waiting in gymnasium #1, already in their costumes. They'd changed little since they first started, though Hagakure was finally able to get that upgraded, armored suit—it was only pushed through thanks to All Might, just before he left, but he wouldn't tell her that. She'd pitch it in the trash. Ojiro's gi was also upgraded to armored cloth. Iida had been slowly changing out pieces of his armor, differentiating himself from his older brother's own costume. Yaoyarozu, unfortunately, still wore her initial costume, but Shota could wait until after internships were over before broaching the topic with her.

But the most obvious change was Midoriya—namely, he'd removed the hood and mouth guard from his costume, leaving him bare from the neck up. Shota had a feeling why it was removed; the ears/antennas atop it were a big target. It was a smart decision. It took Shota himself months before he was comfortable enough with his capture scarf to not get in trouble because of it.

Were that the only thing Midoriya changed about himself recently.

He gestured to Endeavor, who was walking to the center of the room. "You're going to sparring against him today." His student's all stared in unabashed shock and fear—even Bakugo looked nervous beneath his fierce grin—though Todoroki just looked exasperated. Shota tapped on his phone, the television screen overhead lighting up, his students divided into five groups of four. "And these are the people you'll be fighting with against him. Each group will have five minutes to survive or knock him off the stage—or, by some odd miracle, incapacitate him. You fail if you're pushed off the center stage." He pushed a few buttons on his phone, and center of the room, where Endeavor—his beard pointedly not on fire as he usually had it—stood, rose. "Each group will go immediately after the other, but Group 1 will get five minutes to prepare starting…now," a timer appeared on the screen, and the students quickly divided up.

Group 1—Sato, Ojiro, Mineta, and Asui—huddled together immediately. They were obviously nervous, but at least they kept some semblance of cool. If they were smart, they'd open with Mineta throwing his grape balls in every direction and then let Asui dart-in-and-out while Ojiro and Sato maintained a strong offensive.

"…Time's up," Shota said as the timer hit zero. "Group 1 starts in thirty seconds. Everyone else, stand back." The students scrambled away, leaving group 1 to climb onto the stage and meet Endeavor.

The four students nodded at each other, equally determined and terrified. Asui got down on all fours, like a frog. Mineta pulled out two grape balls from his head and bounced on his feet. Ojiro entered a martial artist's stance, his tail unfurling and hovering at waist-level. And Sato pulled out a large packet of sugar from his suit's pocket, tearing it open and dumping it down his mouth, but not swallowing it—good. He was finally learning to ration his strength. Can't afford to just blast your full-strength from the start, especially if your powers turned you into an even more aimless Hulk.

Finally, thirty seconds passed. Quick as a flash, Mineta hurled his grape balls at Endeavor.

But he was too slow.

Fire erupted out from Endeavor's feet, roaring like jet engines as he burst forward. He ducked underneath the grape balls and grabbed Mineta and Sato by their chests. He threw them onto the padded floor beneath the stage, two buzzers sounding out around the room.

Not even five seconds and they were already down two—Shota had to admit, it was impressive.

Asui immediately sprung back, but Ojiro, far braver than Shota previously thought, engaged Endeavor head on. Thankfully, the man didn't wreath himself in fire, but he still had years of experience on the student. He never struck the boy, but neither could Ojiro land a hit on him. Even with his muscular tail supplementing his punches and kicks, it was only a matter of time before Endeavor grabbed him by his Gi and hurled him out of the stage.

He turned to Asui, who had started croaking like a dying frog. But she quickly calmed herself and hopped off the stage without further preamble. A fair choice—Shota would have preferred to see her in action a bit but realizing when to cut and run was a valuable skill in the field.

"Group 2"—Shota called out—"thirty seconds."

Iida, Bakugo, Ashido, and Kaminari took to the stage. Given the way Bakugo stood apart from the other three, he obviously wasn't included in their strategy meeting.

Shota could appreciate the sheer natural talent the boy had, and the honest-to-god balls on him for thinking a 14-year-old boy could be any challenge to Endeavor, but rushing in head-first all the time would only get you killed. Even All Might—for all his many, recently unearthed faults—worked with others whenever the chance came up.

Indeed, the second the timer went off, Bakugo blasted forward. He exploded around Endeavor in a tight circle, smoke filling the air and blocking Endeavor from sight. He flew high into the air, hands aimed down at Endeavor, face split into a fierce grin.

That grin died when Endeavor leapt up through the smoke, the flames on his feet roaring like engines, to meet him and grabbed his arms. They plummeted to the earth, Endeavor throwing Bakugo out of the ring. He landed on his back, face frozen in a dazed, disbelieving expression.

Honestly, great. That boy needed a severe ego check.

Thankfully, the rest of his group hadn't been idle. Ashido doused the stage with fluid, and Kaminari kept up a steady charge of electricity, lightning sparking off the liquid. Iida ran around the stage at breakneck speed, whipping the electrified solution around like a hurricane.

Endeavor, diving back down, shot out a large gout of fire on the stage, easily evaporating the acidic solution and putting an end their strategy. He kicked his left leg out as he landed, a wave of fire shooting out and forcing Iida to fall off the stage—looks like someone forgot their suit was fireproof. Wait, did Endeavor know that? In any case, Endeavor turned his attention to Kaminari and Ashido. They were terrified, obviously, but neither attempted to flee. Courage, or recklessness?

Either way, Ashido opened by shooting her arms forward, a small—very small, she used up too much energy with her previous trick—wave of acid following in her wake. Endeavor flicked his left wrist, a burst of fire shooting out from his hand and evaporating the solution. But Kaminari wasn't idle he…ran forward? What the hell was he thinking?

Kaminari let out a shrill yell, pulling his right arm back. Lightning sparked around his body, before forming a cage of lightning around his arm. Ah, now Shota got it. Finally putting what should have been a simple ability to use, huh?

Too bad it wasn't strong enough to pass through Endeavor's insulated suit.

Kaminari, looking like an ant standing against a mountain with his fist pressed against Endeavor's midsection, stared up at Endeavor with pleading eyes. Endeavor chuckled and grabbed Kaminari by his jacket. He threw him into Ashido, and they both landed in a heap outside the stage.

"Group 3," Shota called.

"Can we forf—"

"No," he said, cutting Sero Hanta off. The boy wilted, Koda coming up and patting his back. Not that he, or Uraraka or Yaoyorozu, attempted to give him a pep-talk. They just marched to their dooms—in hindsight, maybe Shota should have personally picked the teams. Putting Yaoyorozu, Sero, and Uraraka—who all suffered brutal losses during the Sports Festival—all on the same team with the cripplingly shy Koda was a recipe for disaster.

But they surprised him.

Koda moved first, dashing forward with a harsh cry—something that struck Shota, the rest of the class, and even Endeavor dumb. But then, the boy probably didn't want to risk whatever animals he could command with his Quirk getting burned by Endeavor. And regardless, it certainly was one hell of an opening move.

Koda wrapped his arms around Endeavor, holding him in place with his bulk. Sero acted just as Koda made contact, shooting out long ropes of tape to wrap up both Endeavor and Koda. There was something eerily familiar about the way he maneuvered his ropes…But then he was distracted Uraraka slapping Sero's back, making him, his tape, and Endeavor and Koda begin to hover in the air. Yaoyorozu formed a of thick, metal blanket and draped it over Sero's shoulders, forcing him back onto the ground. Clever. But it wouldn't be enough.

Just as Endeavor started to float in the air, flames sprouted from his legs, spinning him, and Koda, in the air. Hanta tried to keep still, Yaoyorozu even holding him back, but Endeavor was too strong, and Uraraka cancelled her quirk's hold on him, Endeavor and Koda falling to the ground as Hanta cut off his tape.

Endeavor landed with a heavy 'stomp', a quick burst of flames from his back burning off the tape. Koda yelped, letting go of Endeavor and falling on his back as the tape broke off around him.

Endeavor held up his hands. "Wait!" he bellowed, stopping Uraraka, Sero, and Yaoyorozu in their tracks. He picked Koda up by his shoulders, looking him up-and-down. "Are you injured? Burned?"

Koda shook his head. "N-No, Sir." Endeavor nodded, patting Koda on the shoulder. He then grabbed him by his shoulders and tossed him out the ring.

Sero was on him in seconds, tape flowing from his elbows like a waterfall—and again, something about his movements bothered Shota.

Endeavor grabbed a large bundle in his hands and pulled. Sero flew in the air, landing in a heap outside the stage.

As Endeavor burned the tape to ash, Yaoyorozu and Uraraka finally made their move. Yaoyorozu had made a fire extinguisher, blasting Endeavor head-to-toe in foam. Uraraka burst forward, arms outstretched.

Endeavor's face was drenched in foam, but he was still able to dodge Uraraka a split-second before she would have touched him, shoving her forward and off the stage. Then, and only then, did he wipe the foam off his face, and direct a steely glare towards Yaoyorozu.

Yaoyorozu gulped, before hanging her head in shame, dropping the fire extinguisher, and jumping off the stage.

Ah, that wasn't good. Thankfully, Asui went up to her. He couldn't hear their conversation, but whatever she said made Yaoyorozu perk up.

He really needed to check in on that girl. Later. Right now…

"Group 4, go."

Aoyama Yuga, Shoji Mezou, Todoroki Shoto, and Kirishima Eijiro walked up to the stage. Endeavor was still covered in foam, but before Shota could even think about asking if he wanted a towel, the man erupted in a pillar of fire. Shota was a fair distance away from the pillar, and he was sweating buckets in seconds—he didn't want to imagine what Group 4 was feeling. Finally, the flames extinguished, and there stood Endeavor, clean as a whistle.

Aoyama, Shoji, and Kirishima were all understandably nervous at the display. Todoroki just scoffed and kicked his right foot against the ground. The ground froze over, spikes of ice shooting up between him and Endeavor. As soon as the ice reached Endeavor, he tapped his foot, a wide circle of fire shooting out from his feet, melting the ice into vapor in an instant. Todoroki gave up his assault, but he'd done his part.

Kirishima, Shoji, and Aoyama moved as one. Aoyama fired bursts of lasers at Endeavor, forcing him to move or get shot. Kirishima and Shoji stuck close together, Kirishima hardening his skin and running through the ice spikes so Shoji could grab them and hurl them at Endeavor.

Endeavor sidestepped the first volley of spikes and ducked under Aoyama's laser. He braced himself against the floor, fire shooting out of his feet like jet-fire, sending him flying across the ice towards Shoji and Kirishima. He bowled Shoji over, shooting up to his feet and catching the boy by his legs. He swung him around like a bat, Shoji's webbed limbs catching Kirishima like a bug in a net.

Endeavor spun a few more times before letting go of Shoji, him and Kirishima flailing towards Aoyama and Todoroki. But the two boys didn't panic. Instead, they both dove to the ground, and Todoroki slammed his right hand against the stage. A pillar of ice shot up beneath Aoyama, sending him flying in the air. Aoyama thrust his belly out and shot a wide laser down at Endeavor.

Endeavor spun into a crouch, an orb of fire forming around him as he was engulfed by Aoyama's laser. Aoyama crashed outside of the ring, but it gave Todoroki the time he needed.

Todoroki skated across the ice around his father. He wove a box around Endeavor, the ice so thick you couldn't see inside of it.

And then a bright orange light shone in the middle of the box.

"Get down!" Shota shouted, ducking his head as the ice box exploded in steam and fire. No ice shards hit anyone—thank god—but everyone started sweating buckets as the temperature in the room rose at least twenty degrees.

Shota peeked at the stage. All he could see through the flames were the silhouettes of Endeavor—his beard aglow and framing a fierce grin—and his son—much more stoic, but no less excited—fighting.

The fire they fought in only grew larger, steadily reaching out and lick the ceiling.

Shota scowled, hair rising and eyes flashing red. "Enough!" he shouted. The flames died in an instant, just in time to see Endeavor land a solid punch against his son's stomach, making him double over. The two Todorokis blinked, staring at the charred stage and the sweating, terrified children around them—even Bakugo was silent, staring in unabashed awe.

Shota, Quirk still going full force, stalked up the stage. He stopped right in front of Endeavor, glaring up at him. "I don't care what kind of super-human shit you and your son get up to in your own home, but this is a school!"

Endeavor, panting lightly, at least had the grace to look embarrassed. "My apologies," he said. He turned, bowing towards the students. "I forgot myself—there are no excuses for my behavior."

"My bad," Shoto said, mimicking his father.

Shota stopped his Quirk with a huff. "Damn straight." He looked down, tapping the burned stage with his foot. Still stable but could use some cleaning. He pressed a few buttons on his phone. Holes opened up in the walls, Nezu's cleaning robots zooming out and starting cleanup. Endeavor walked off the stage with his son, the latter splitting off to return to his group, and the former wisely standing away from everyone.

Shot cleared his throat, he needed some water—honestly, they could all use some. "Group 5 will have 3 minutes to prepare while the stage is being cleaned. Use it wisely."

Not that they did. While Midoriya was at least able to put on a brave front, Shota could see that Tokoyami, Jirou, and Hagakure were terrified out of their minds. Until Dark Shadow slipped out from underneath Tokoyami's shirt and slapped them.

"Get a grip!" it shouted, before returning to Tokoyami's body. Hagakure and Jirou glared at Tokoyami, who readily protested any wrongdoing on his part. Midroiya stifled a chuckle, before bringing their attention back to the matter at hand, gesturing to Endeavor. His classmates sobered, and they huddled together for the last minute they had, ironing out their strategy.

Shota didn't know where this…casual confidence of Midoriya's came from. To be sure, the boy was comfortable among his core friend group, and worked well when paired with one other person. But he didn't use to step up like this during group exercises.

Nezu was doing something to the boy obviously. Something to boost his confidence. But why? Why Midoriya, a first year, of all students?

A buzzer sounded just as the robots replaced the last panel on the stage. Endeavor hopped up one side, and Midoriya led his group, everyone but Jirou putting in earplugs, up the other.

30 seconds.

Hagakure slipped off her shoes and gloves, tossing them to the side. Jirou bent down, her earlobe jacks slotting into her boots.

20 seconds.

Dark Shadow poured out of Tokoyami's shirt, crawling along the ground and taking position on the far-end of the group, opposite of Tokoyami. The inky-black cable connecting the two was taut in front of Hagakure and Jirou.

10 seconds.

Midoriya took a deep breath, green electricity sparking off his body as his skin glowed red. He bent down in a low stance, feet staggered apart, hands uncurled as he stared hard at Endeavor.

5…4…3…2…1…

Jirou attacked as soon as the buzzer went off. Soundwaves burst out from her boots, forcing Endeavor to jump to the side. Right into the path of Midoriya and Dark Shadow, who leapt up and latched onto Endeavor's waist and arms. He tried to shake them off, but between Midoriya's enhanced strength and Dark Shadow's large form, he was having trouble. By then Jirou had redirected her soundwaves, and they were slowly but surely forcing Endeavor back. Still, he lit his right arm—the arm Dark Shadow was on—on fire. The living Quirk squawked, and Tokoyami started to sweat.

But then Endeavor jolted, and his head wrenched back, his hair in two fist-sized clumps. Shota had to hand it to Hagakure, she'd gotten much better at stealth since the year started.

Midoriya, Dark Shadow, and Jirou redoubled their efforts, slowly forcing Endeavor to the edge of the stage. His left foot slipped off the stage—and a large jet of fire promptly shot out from his foot, keeping his balance.

Endeavor let loose a brief, harsh shout, stomping forward back onto the stage. He bent down, and leapt up with a fire-assisted jump, twisting in the air. Shota heard Hagakure yelp, followed by a buzzer sounding around them. Dark Shadow let go, the fire and heat finally becoming too much for Tokoyomi through their shared senses. But Midoriya held on—no, he did more than that.

He repositioned himself on the soaring Pro. He flipped onto Endeavor's back and struck against the back of his knees. Endeavor buckled, swerving in the air, back towards the ground.

Jirou had found her aim again, and blasted Endeavor and Midoriya once more. In the air, it was much harder for Endeavor to resist the soundwaves, and he was sent hurtling towards the ground.

Damn, were they actually going to do it?

Of course, that's when their luck took a turn.

Endeavor's face hardened and his facial hair burst into flames. He flipped around in the air—so fast that Midoriya lost his grip and just barely missed the stage—and was staring face-first at Jirou and Tokoyai. The flames shooting out from his legs exploded into bonfires and propelled him forward in spite of Jirou's assault—which noticeably quickened when she realized exactly what Endeavor was planning.

When it became obvious the Jirou was fighting a losing battle, Tokoyami pulled her back, Dark Shadow expanding to protect them both. But Endeavor was too quick—as fast as lightning, he darted around the trio, grabbing Jirou and Tokoyami by their collars and throwing them off the stage.

It was over.

Shota waited for group 5 to collect themselves before speaking. "Well, you all failed, but some of you failed harder than others. I'll have more specific criticisms tomorrow. The recordings of your attempts will be available to review before the end of the day. Rest up—we're running obstacle courses in ten minutes." That got him a round of groans, but Shota ignored that in favor of sorting through the recordings. Specifically, Midoriya's—the kid just moved so differently compared to a week ago.

Endeavor walked over to him; arms crossed. "See anything interesting?"

Shota quickly closed the video. "It's nothing—just something that's been bothering me."

Endeavor arched a brow but didn't pry. Instead, he said, "I've noticed a few students that could benefit from specialized instruction."

"I know." Shota sniffed. "Believe me, some of their choices for internships aren't going to do them any favors—but it's their own faults." Endeavor stared blankly at Shota. "What?"

"That's it? That's all you have to say?"

"Excuse me?" Shota scowled. Was he really being lectured by a hastily chosen add-on?

"…Nothing," Endeavor said, turning away. "Far be it from me to tell you how to do your job."

Damn straight. He turned back to his phone—the sooner he reviewed the footage, the better. Who knew, maybe he'd even find something that could help Shinso.

/+/+/+/+/

Shota was mature enough to admit he'd hit a wall in his personal investigation into Midoriya. And he couldn't just ask Nezu about it—even if Nezu didn't block out Thursdays for administrative duties, his friend was beset at all sides by the school board, trustees, lawyers, and Shota didn't even want to know what else.

No, he wouldn't confront Nezu until he had the facts straight. But there was another source of information. Inui Ryo, the Pro-Hero: Hound Dog, and U.A.'s guidance counselor. It was a long shot, but maybe Midoriya had spoken with the man.

Inui's door opened just as Shota rounded the corner. Monoma Neito walked out, hunched over on himself, a thoughtful look on his face. Inui poked his muzzled head out the door, staring down at Monoma. But he saw Shota to the side and sighed. "Hah…Just keep thinking about what I told you, okay?"

Monoma frowned, but when he saw Shota, his eyes went wide. He quickly nodded and scurried away.

Inui waited until Monoma was out of sight before stepping aside. "Come in."

Shota entered, waiting until Inui closed the door before asking. "What can you tell me about Midoriya Izuku?"

Inui hummed. "…Is that all?"

"Yes." Why else would they have to meet?

"I see, I see." Inui nodded. "Get out."

Shota blinked. "What?"

"Ah, I'm sorry." He unstrapped his muzzle. "This thing can get in the way sometimes." He let the accessory drop, his razor-sharp fangs gleaming as he glared at Shota. "Get the fuck out."

Shota stared at his coworker in unabashed shock. But indignation quickly took its place. He set his face into a glare. "Listen here—"

"No!" Inui stomped forward, towering over Shota as he shoved a finger into his chest. An unfamiliar sense of fear shot down Shota's spine "You listen," Inui growled. "You think you can just come in here and demand information from me about a student? After everything you've done?"

Shota shook his head. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Every year—every fucking year!"—Inui's roar shook the room—"since you've started teaching I've had children come crying to me because you've torn their dreams to shreds."

God, he didn't know Inui had such a bleeding heart. "If they were any—guh!" He was cut off when Inui clapped a furry hand over his mouth.

"I'm not done talking you self-centered asshole!" Inui barked. "Do you know how hard it is to build a child—a fucking child!—back up when someone they thought they could trust utterly destroys them?"

Shota grit his teeth, shoving Inui away. "If that's all it takes, then they really don't have any business being a Pro-Hero."

Inui snarled—actually fucking snarled! "Do you know that the only—only!—reason I haven't torn you to fucking shreds is because—by some unknown miracle—none of those poor kids have killed themselves."

Wha—killed themselves? Ridiculous. Everything Shota did was to prevent stupid kids from getting themselves killed. Inui was just being overdramatic. Shota shook his head. "You know I haven't expelled anyone this year." Yet.

"Sure"—Inui nodded—"and damn me for a fool for thinking that would make this year better."

"And what the hell does that mean?"

Inui laughed like a Hyena. "I'm not holding your fucking hand—think of it like one of your 'logical ruses' or whatever you call your gaslighting bullshit. I've got enough on my plate wanting to be a good therapist to this fucking place."

Now Shota was just confused. "Wait, therapist? You're a guidance counselor."

Inui sent him a flat stare. "I'm a licensed therapist, but god forbid you advertise that in this country. Kids wouldn't come near me with a ten-foot pole." Inui sighed, picking his muzzle off the floor. "Just…Get out of my sight, Aizawa."

Shota refused to move. "You still haven't told me about Midoriya Izuku."

Now, Inui laughed. "And I'm not going to—not the least because the kid hasn't been to see me once." He grew pensive after that, but quickly shook his head and put his muzzle back on. "Seriously, get out of my office before I finally give into the daily urge to knock your teeth down your throat."

Shota wanted to stand his ground, but the sheer anger—hate—in Inui's eyes…Some battles weren't meant to be fought.

/+/+/+/+/

Shota was about to leave for the day when he received a text from Nezu. "My office," was all it said. Damn. It was sooner than Shota would have liked for a confrontation. But he supposed Nezu would have known about his almost violent confrontation with Inui yesterday…At the very least, he could get answers from the source.

The walk over was quiet, very few people staying on campus on a Friday. Even Nezu's secretary had left for home early.

The door opened before Shota, and Midoriya walked out. He wore a thoughtful frown on his face, looking down on one of those notebooks he liked writing in so much. He startled upon seeing Shota. "Ah—hello, Mr. Aizawa." He cast a nervous look back at Nezu.

The quirk-chimera just waved the boy off, sipping his tea. "It's fine, Izuku"—since when were they on a first name basis?—"this is between me and Aizawa." Nezu's smile sent shivers down Shota's spine—it was the kind of smile Nezu doled out when he was tired of pretending to be human.

Midoriya nodded, bowed lightly, and went on his way. Shota waited until the boy was out of sight before entering Nezu's office.

"Take a seat," Nezu said. Shota did so, forcefully reminding himself that he was not, in fact, a child called in for punishment. He was an adult, Nezu was his friend, his colleague—well, his boss, but they'd never been so strict with the label.

Nezu held up his teacup. "Thirsty?"

"No."

Nezu shrugged—"Your loss"—and finished his cup in one gulp. He set it down, clasping his paws atop his desk. "…Inui told me of your confrontation yesterday."

"I didn't really do any confronting," Shota said with a snort.

"Oh, Inui was very honest about what happened. By all accounts, he threw the first proverbial punch." Nezu leaned back in his seat. "He took the day off, in case you didn't know, wanted some extra time to cool off." Shota did not in fact know that—but then, it's not like he and Inui spent much time together. And given the man's previously hidden disdain, he probably didn't want to spend any more time around Shota than he had to.

Nezu chuckled mirthlessly. "Frankly, I do agree with your harsher way of dealing with things. The world is a cruel place, and its better people learn that before they get taken in by flashy lights and pretty words." He traced a paw around his neck—where one of the chimera's more prominent scars lay, behind his thick fur. Nezu sobered, fixing Shota with a harsh stare. "But he did bring up a few startling numbers that I'd previously been unaware of—numbers relating to your former students. Rest assured, when I have the time, we will be talking about your curriculum."

Shota scowled—Nezu had never sought to interfere with his classes before. And what the hell did he mean, 'when I have time'? Then what were they here for?

His friend smirked. "I didn't just call you in to inform you of a future discussion. Inui also informed me of the reason—the person—you wanted to speak to him about. An obsession, one could call it, given your recent behavior."

Shota's eye twitched—'obsession'? "I'm merely concerned," he said with an even tone. "Midoriya is a bright boy, but not the brightest in my class—or even his year. I just can't see a reason for you to take an interest in him." That was the crux of it, really? Why Midoriya Izuku? Because the kid liked to emulate All Might, who Nezu had always been fond of? He was smart, but so were Yaoyarozu, Iida, Mineta, Bakugo, and Todoroki. Yet, nothing against them, none of them were on the same level as Nezu. That support class student—Hatsume Mei—was for more up Nezu's alley with her manic, irreverent energy. To say nothing of the second and third years.

"Fair point." Nezu shrugged. "I can see why it'd be confusing. Almost as confusing as you taking Shinso Histoshi under your wing."

Shota blinked. "What? That's—"

"Hush." Shota froze—there was a terrifying gleam in Nezu's black eyes, tickling that primal, fearful part of Shota's brain. "I'm not done. Tell me, Shota, how is it logical for you to take special interest in a General Studies student—so much so that you've taken to training him in your off hours?"

"I-I—" Shota cleared his throat, forcing his hammering heart to calm down. "Hitoshi has talent, and a versatile Quirk. It's a waste that he's not already inducted in class 1-A or 1-B."

"Fair enough," Nezu said, palms outstretched. "Instant mind-control is a ludicrously powerful ability with a great many applications. But why you, and why him?"

"His abilities are known to the public—and will be further known when he becomes a Pro. He'll have to fight without being able to use his quirk. He needs my help. My expertise."

Nezu's eyes narrowed into slits. "More than your own students?"

"My students are fine," Shota bit back, anger seeping into his tone. Nezu had never questioned his teaching ability before. "They always have been."

His friend sniffed. "Let's ignore the fact that this is the first full class you've taught since you started teaching here. My main point is that your choice to teach Hitoshi Shinso is stupid."

Shota shot up to his feet, slamming his fists against Nezu's desk. "It's not stupid! He needs me!"

Nezu rose to meet Shota. "Ojiro Mashirao, Hanta Sero, Hagakure Toru! Those three are far more logical choices for you to devote special instruction to." Shota sneered—those kids were fine on their own, and they had internships coming up besides—but Nezu didn't him a chance to respond. "Ojiro is an expert martial artist—frankly, it's a toss-up between him and Todoroki as to who's the more well-trained hand-to-hand fighter in your class. It'd be very easy to teach him to your specific style of martial arts, wouldn't it? Hanta Sero has years of experience manipulating what is essentially rope to bind things—and he's already he's trying to copy your moves, if you've even bothered to notice! Hagakure Toru, admittedly, doesn't have any particular skillset that puts her ahead. But she's another person who'll have to fight, essentially, Quirkless. Even better, you already have a rapport with her—piss-poor as it is!"

Shota stared flatly at Nezu, ignoring the needles stabbing into his conscious. "If they've ever wanted personal instruction, they've never spoken to me about it."

"God, you can be so fucking dense—I can understand why Inui has to restrain himself so much! They're children, Shota! Why do they have to make the first step towards their teacher? Hitoshi didn't—I have the footage of you practically ambushing him before he left campus one day. What makes him so much more special than your own students, hm? See a bit of yourself in him, hm? A freaky little boy with freaky little powers?!" the chimera sneered. Shota jerked back at the vitriol in his friend's voice—something which made Nezu pause.

His friend leaned back, rubbing his eyes. "Bottom line, yes, I'm treating Midoriya Izuku with special favor. And, sure, it might be a conflict of interest for the principal of a school to treat one student differently than the rest." He glared at Shota. "But before you go accusing me of anything, take a look in a damn mirror and think about the twenty other kids you're setting aside!"

Shota sat back down—it wasn't like that, not at all. He just…wanted to extend a hand to someone that needed him most. Needed him more.

Nezu sighed, leaning against his desk. "…I do not have time to deal with you, Shota. I have far, far more important things weighing on my mind. So, how about this? You stop bothering about Midoriya, and I won't publicly drag you and your pet project out into the light right now, hm?"

Shota sucked in a breath. "Are…Are you blackmailing me?"

"No, this is a straightforward promise," Nezu bluntly replied. "We will be discussing how you treat your classes. Frankly, the only reason I didn't stop you the minute you sought out Hitoshi Shinso for private instruction is because I had, again, far more important things to deal with."

"Akaguro Chizome's confession," Shota said with a sigh.

"Sure, why not." Before he could even think about unpacking that statement, Nezu turned away, waving his paw. "We're done here. Beat up some criminals, ignore your students, I don't care. Just go." Shota was rooted in place—Nezu…he looked so tired.

Still, he found the will to get up and leave the office. Fine, whatever. He wouldn't push—Nezu clearly had everything well in hand.

He had important things to do to.

/+/+/+/+/

A/N: I think Aizawa's an interesting character, just a terrible person. There is no way anyone can spin him prioritizing Shinso to teach as opposed to even one of his own official students as a good thing.