THUD
Izuku never saw the person that he bumbled into, only catching the sight of the dozens of bouquets rushing toward him in the corner of his vision before they crashed together. He braced his legs at the last second to stop himself from being flung out into the street but whoever had hit him had no clue he was there so instead they stumbled forward further into him. Through the mass of arranged flowers a forehead snapped forward, connecting with his before the other person stumbled backward dropping some of their load.
Oh no, his quirk-
Slash. Cut. Blade.
His skin began to tingle across his arms, legs, mouth and backside before he felt a sharp pinching sensation start off painfully dull before it lanced upward in intensity enough to make him gasp out. His head elongated, his mouth stretching wider to accommodate a pair of fresh, new mandibles that erupted outward from the back row of his teeth - cursing outward from either side. At first glance they did not feel like an insect's mandibles, they were stiff in his mouth and he felt like he could not move them.
He felt his skin part underneath clothes as multiple growths surged upward, it was enough warning for him to jump back out of anyone's arm's reach.
RIP
Tears formed in his clothes as chitinous-looking blades speared out from where he had felt the most pain on his skin before. The outer sides of his forearm sleeves burst as meter long blades slashed outward. His pants along the front and outer sides of his shins and thighs were similarly shredded as three curved blades, as about half as big as the ones on his arms, tore free. Finally, the back of his hoodie blew out as three more meter long blades grew downward, one vertically from where his spine met just below his neckline and two from his shoulder blades. All three together seemed to form a protective cage around his backside which he thought would certainly block anything that tried to slash him across the back.
Taking a closer look at his arm to see where the blade emerged from his skin he saw that shelled chitin, almost like an exoskeleton, had grown around it. He wondered if a knife could cut through it or if it would be deflected like a sword hilt?
He felt a tremor of weakness course its way through his body, as his quirk used his stamina to complete the transformation of the one it copied.
"Izuku! Are you okay?" Itsuka cried out, worry in her voice, and stepped forward one hand raised as if to grab him. He blushed at her slip of using his personal name but he shook his head and motioned for her and Asui to stay back. He had to make sure he did not hurt either of them.
"W-wait. Please, w-wait just- let me make sure nothing else is...going to pop out of me," he growled out the words over his new mandibles. OF COURSE something like this would happen to him, no thanks to his damn quirk again. His clothes were ruined and now he stuck out like a sore thumb. He felt anger steam up inside of him, normally he would just accept it and move on but this time...this time he just wanted to shred something with the copied quirk.
Fortunately a new voice pulled his attention away from his own thoughts.
"OI! That's MY quirk!" Izuku looked to the shout's source, it was a praying mantis?
A young man who looked about his own age with a mohawk of green hair that was much lighter than his own. The mohawk sat on an insect looking face with a familiar set of mandibles. He was slightly taller than Izuku and had light green skin that reminded him of pea soup. The man whose quirk he had copied dropped the remaining bouquets he had been holding and shockling sent Izuku a feral grin, "FINALLY! A worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary! Fight me!"
Something in Izuku started to twist.
"Fine!" Izuku growled, flexing his arm blades. Why was he agreeing to this? He didn't know, but he just had to fight. Now. "Name the place!"
"Ha! Okay. Come around the shop, there is an alley-" Praying Mantis was interrupted by Itsuka interposing herself between the two of them.
"Hold up!" her fists grew, separating them as she shoved them between where they stood - not grabbing or touching either one of them but close enough to push if someone tried to move. "You two just can't violate the Quirk Usage Law just to fight!"
"It'll be fine. So long as nobody sees us," Izuku huffed, the exoskeleton on his arm was itchy so he scratched at it. She snapped her head around at him and looked at him like he had grown a second head.
He'd done that before and it had only left him with a massive headache.
"This is my fight!" Praying Mantis growled while he rolled up his sleeves, once they were up to his elbows he flexed his arm and activated his quirk. Two blades grew out from his own forearms, they were much longer and broader than Izuku's were, which confirmed he had a transformation quirk. "Butt out of this and step aside-"
"TOGARU!" WHAT the hell? YOU dropped the Satou order all over the street? Are you crazy?" a loud woman's voice shouted, and actually made Izuku's opponent, Togaru, retract his blades and shrink in on himself as he slowly turned to a new arrival.
The woman that emerged was older than him but had the same mantis family resemblance, sans any mandibles of her own. Her green hair was styled as a braid and she looked pissed. She wore an apron with a dozen pockets which were stuffed with all kinds of flowers and pruning tools.
"But Aunty-" Togaru tried to protest but was interrupted as his aunt brought her hand up. It changed in a flash, morphing into a scary looking scissor claw that she clamped together sharply - a clear message for silence - or else there would be consequences.
"Don't you 'But Aunty' me! Your plane back to Nagasaki leaves tomorrow morning and we still have orders to fill. You promised your father and I that you would help us through the summer end rush before you went back to school. We still aren't done and you literally dropped a customer's order so you can go off and fight?" the woman hissed, fire seemed to leap from her eyes.
Izuku could not help getting a vague sense of deja vu. It was like watching Aunty Mitsuki scold Kacchan.
"Actually, it was an accident." Asui calmly said as she intervened, stepping up to the florist on a warpath.
"Oh, really?" Togaru's Aunty shifted her glare to the Frog-quirk user who much to her credit remained unflappable in the gaze of doom she was receiving.
"Yes. We were in a rush to meet a trainer for our quirks when these two" she nodded her head to Izuku and Togaru, "Accidentally bumped into one another."
He saw Togaru's eyes widen before he gave Izuku and his friends an appraising look, the gears turning in his head. His aunt continued to stare, seemingly unconvinced maybe? Was she...waiting for something?
"It wouldn't be any trouble if we helped pick all of this up." Itsuka offered, "I'll let our trainer know we will be a little late."
That seemed to be the words the older woman was waiting for.
"I accept," she replied flatly, her scissor claw shifting back into a normal looking hand - which she used to smack the back of her nephew's head, "Well? What are you waiting for? Get to it!"
Despite himself, Izuku grumbled as she turned and walked away - there was not going to be a fight. He wanted to fight! He wanted to prove how sharp his blades were, he wanted a challenge and beat his oppon-hold on. Izuku mentally shook his thoughts. Why was he acting so aggressive? He never showed his anger in public like this. That was something more like Kacchan would do.
"Are you okay?" Kendou asked, the amazon carefully placed a normal sized hand on his shoulder - avoiding skin contact. He looked up into her eyes, they were so full of concern - for him. It just tore him up that he had worried her. What kind of friend was he?
He nodded.
"Yea. Just…" he stumbled, "My quirk...just gets me...you know?"
"Yea, I know." Kendou puffed out her cheeks as she tried to think of something to make him feel better, "At least you have a cool quirk to show Gran Torino, right?"
"Right." he mumbled, glancing at the blades that had grown from his arms for a moment before he bent down and began to help pick up the scattered flowers. After a period of silence while everything was gathered and rearranged it was Togaru who broke it.
"You all are applying to U.A. too, aren't you?" he gave them a stare, as if daring them to try and lie to him.
"We are. A friend knows a retired Pro who is helping us with our quirks this week," Kendou acknowledged, handing him a bouquet, she hesitated over her next words as if weighing the pros and cons, "Do you...want to come too…?"
He wasn't sure how Gran Torino would react to that. From what he had been able to piece together from what Itsuka had mentioned about him he probably would not be happy at all.
"I can't." Togaru growled, gnashing his teeth. Kendou and Asui visibly relaxed when he turned to look at Izuku, "I still got these deliveries for my Aunt's shop. Then an early flight back home to Nagasaki."
Izuku groaned in disappointment, which earned him more odd looks from his two friends, "I guess that means we won't be able to fight...until the Entrance Exam."
U.A. changed the content of each exam year by year. Sometimes it was giant robots, other times it was sparring between examinees, and other times the practical was like some TV talent game show. Though, Togaru would at least be in the city for a few days while he waited for his results.
"Damnit." Togaru cursed, dumping the last bouquets into a basket on a motorcycle that sat on the street in front of the shop. WIping his hands on his pants he turned and pointed to Izuku,
"The name is Togaru Kamakiri...and you better be there at U.A. or I will hunt you down. You owe me a fight."
"Don't worry. I'll be there, and the name is Izuku Midoriya." he flexed his arm blades and grinned almost as feral as Togaru. That seemed to satisfy the mantis man who nodded and hopped on his motorcycle, but before he could drive off a thought occurred to Izuku. "Hold on. I..could you...could I have some of your hair?"
The words tasted like slime in his mouth. It was embarrassing to ask a complete stranger for their hair. Even after they had discovered his quirk could work with cells from a quirk holder's body he had not asked. Just asking his two friends who knew about that ability of his quirk had been embarrassing, but asking a complete stranger?
"What?" Togaru nearly toppled sidewards off of his bike in surprise, the look on his face was...concerned, "Why? You aren't going to eat it or something?"
"NO!" he shouted with a stressed groan. He hid his face behind his gloves, this was so awkward and embarrassing. Why couldn't the ground just swallow him whole right there?
"He needs it for his quirk. To practice. Kero." Asui came to his rescue again. Her tone sounded neutral but he thought he heard a suppressed giggle. Kendou was less subtle about it before she cleared her throat.
"Yea, that way he can practice with your quirk and get better for your fight."
"That does...make sense." Togaru hummed, looking between them all. After a few seconds he shrugged his shoulders and brought a hand up, a small blade about the size of a knife grew out from the palm of his hand. He pulled on some of his hair and swiftly cut it off before he offered it to Izuku who gingerly accepted the...gift. "Just be there at U.A."
"I will, I will." Izuku murmured, nodding his head. Like hell he wasn't going to go to U.A! Whatever test they had he'd beat it down and-
...was this how Kacchan felt all the time?
After Togaru departed on his motorcycle, Izuku quickly fetched a small baggy from his backpack and carefully deposited the hair sample into it before stuffing it back into his bag alongside two more which held Kendou and Asui's hair samples. It had been his mom's advice to carry bags around with him in case he found...donations for his quirk.
He wasn't a creep. He wasn't a creep. It was all his quirk's fault.
They continued on their way without further incident, following the directions that Kendou had been given. He had trouble at first walking with his new appendages but he was able to tuck them in closer to his body so he didn't accidentally cut or stab someone. His taller friend rambled on about the motorcycle that Tagaru had ridden off on, she liked motorcycles and had plans to purchase one once she graduated U.A. and received her license.
He also thought about Togaru's quirk, jotting down his thoughts in a notebook as he walked. He was good at multitasking. It was a transformation quirk which he believed allowed him to grow blades from his body. How many could he create at once? How hard did Togaru have to concentrate on his quirk to keep it effective? Could he control the sharpness of his blades? What happened if one was chipped or broken off his body? He'd have to test the sharpness when he had the chance. Would they regrow in Izuku's body if one came off? He had a lot to consider for his hero outfit if he was going to use this quirk.
It was enough to distract him from his anger until they finally arrived at their destination.
"Are you sure this is the correct address?" Asui asked, a finger on her chin.
"It...matches what Mr. Yagi gave me." Kendou responded, frowning as she double checked her phone.
The apartment building that Gran Torino occupied as his home and agency looked like it had been condemned for the last forty years but no one had quite gotten around to knocking the building down. Windows were shattered, patches of brick had fallen off the sides, the paint had not been redone in decades at least. To complete the look of utter ruin, a tall fence with hazard stripes surrounded the building except for the front entrance where a 'Welcome' sign hung limply above.
All three hero hopefuls stared at the building, none of them moving to knock on the front door.
"It looks haunted…" Izuku murmured.
"...or the scene of a grisly murder." Kendou sighed, her broad shoulders falling. After a few seconds she steeled herself, standing up straight and slapping her face lightly before she strode toward the door.
"Midoriya...do you want to bet that Gran Torino is still alive in there?" Asui asked, giving him a side glance.
"Um...I don't gamble…" Izuku lied and mentally kicked himself to follow after Itsuka. She had already knocked on the door by the time he had begun to move and much to their collective surprise the door swung open and-
Itsuka screamed!
"Oh my gods, he's dead!" she shrieked and charged inside. Izuku gave Asui a look before they both followed quickly after her. Getting to the doorway he looked inside, the lights were off but there was enough light from outside to see his friend picking up a small, wrinkled old man in a hero's costume consisting of a monochrome bodysuit and yellow cape and boots. Itsuka had a hand on the man's back. On the floor he saw red- blood? He also saw chunks of meat...were they his organs?!
"I-I-Itsuka d-don't t-touch th-he body! We have to c-call the police!" Izuku gasped, his body shaking as he stared at the corpse.
Behind him, Asui sniffed the air and he could feel her tilt her head to the side, "Ketchup?"
"O-oh. My apologies." the corpse spoke, lifting its head up from the ground and smiling shakily.
"He's alive!" Izuku and Kendou shouted together, staring at the old man as he shakily got to his feet - using a cane he had been laying on to prop himself up.
"I was carrying something to eat when I tripped. Haha." Gran Torino huffed softly before he clapped his hands, the lights coming on and illuminating the inside of the building...which looked just as rundown as the outside. His beady eyes looked between the three friends, "Oh. You must be Itsumi, Iruma, and Toru that Young Toshi spoke of, eh?"
He didn't remember their names.
Was...was this a prank by Mr. Yagi? He looked to Itsuka for clarification but she seemed as equally bewildered as he was.
"Y-you are G-Gran Torino right?" Itsuka asked softly and slowly, as if the sound of her voice would knock the old man over.
"Ohoho. Yes. That's me, youngster." he laughed softly before it became a series of hacking coughs which he had to thump his own chest to clear, "Now then...why are you here?"
He didn't remember why they were there.
Izuku's opinion of Mr. Yagi dropped by several levels. This was the teacher that had the man frightened?
"To train our quirks." Asui answered flatly, still giving the same unflappable face she had shown to the pissed off florist not too long ago.
"Ah, yes..ah, yes." Gran Torino said, tapping his chin in thought for several seconds before he brought up his cane and pointed it directly at Izuku, "You have the copy quirk, yes? Good, you already have a quirk active. Why don't we test it?"
The old man's shift in demeanor sent a chill down everyone's spine. The dazed look was replaced with a smirk and a look that promised...pain. Before Izuku could answer, Gran Torino burst up into the air - a contrail of air fuming from the soles of his boots- and landed on a wall, then in a moment he was blasting off to another wall and another wall getting faster each time until he stopped with a crash against one wall, hitting with enough force to make the concrete crack.
"W-what? But I can't-" Izuku tried to protest but was interrupted by a loud scoff from the Pro Hero.
"What? Can't hit a fragile old man? Well you are right about that, whippersnapper, but only because you'll miss every time you try to swing those clumsy looking potato peelers of your's."
Izuku wanted to try and disarm the situation but that anger, that need to fight he had felt earlier with Togaru boiled up inside of him and pushed down his confused and nervous thoughts. Instead he glared back at the old man and balled his hands into fists. "I'll show you! Just don't fall over and die on me before I beat you!"
"Ahh. The folly of youth, I'll never get tired of it!" Gran Torino sneered, leaping off the wall and bouncing around again moving faster with each leap.
"Midoriya-!" Itsuka began to say but he ignored her as Gran Torino finally leapt back toward the ground and toward him.
"Take this!" Izuku growled, swinging his forearm blades forward in front of him - only to have it pass through air. Gran Torino had only made it look like he was charging at him, instead he had slammed into the ground just out of reach of his blades - and then leapt back up into the air. Izuku knew that was bad because he had leaned forward too far into his attack, he couldn't move fast enough to turn around as he heard Gran Torino bounce off the ceiling almost directly above him and come down somewhere behind him.
"Too slow." the old man taunted, his fist smashing into Izuku's back between his shoulder blades and sending him rolling forward. Despite looking like he had one foot in the grave the old man had a lot of power to his punch.
"Gah!" Izuku hissed in pain, stumbling forward and just barely keeping himself on his feet. He whirled around slashing with his blades again but Gran Torino was already gone, back into the air in a flash and coming back around to swipe at Izuku's side sending him spinning and falling against the room's only couch.
He tried to stand up but quickly found that one of his arm blades was embedded into the couch, tearing a hole through the upholstery.
"You're going to pay me back for that." Gran Torino stated as he leapt down on the other side of the couch and slapped both his gloved hands on top of Izuku's head knocking him down into the couch hard enough to hit his chin and slip on his feet.
"Damnit! You old bas-" Izuku bit down on his words as he struggled to get up, the blades on his legs kept getting in the way, hooking on the carpet so it took him longer to pull himself back up. When he looked up Gran Torino was still there, he looked unimpressed and had taken off one of his gloves.
"You might have someone else's quirk but that doesn't mean you know how to fight with it. Try mine." Gran Torino said before pressing his open palm into Izuku's face.
"Wait-" Izuku's plea was muffled by the old man's sweaty palm, he felt this quirk activate a moment later.
Fly.
Izuku felt a gap open in the soles of his feet, followed quickly by the rush of air.
"Have a nice flight, Iruma."
"Yaaah!" Izuku shouted as he shot upward, the air pressure suddenly blasting from his feet was powerful enough to blow his shoes off, yank his arm painfully from the couch, and send him careening toward the ceiling. He hit it - hard - with his back, the force of his newly acquired quirk sputtering out a moment later and sending him falling from the high ceiling back down to the floor.
Gran Torino simply stepped off the couch and backed up a few paces before Izuku crashed down onto the couch face first, the blades of his arms and legs now all sticking into the furniture - he tried to free himself but his blades wouldn't budge no matter how hard he tugged. Already he was losing stamina fast so he did the only thing he could do.
Sigh and fall forward in defeat.
"I give up." Izuku groaned into the couch cushion.
"Good, that's over with," Gran Torino sounded smug, "Now, how about you tadpole?"
