Aaaaand we have the 20th chapter of A Hero's Creed! I had no idea I'd continue this story when I started that drabble from a dream, but here we are because I couldn't find any good MHA X AC fics and just had to roll up my sleeves and say "fine, I'll do it myself!". Not to stroke my own ego or toot my own horn, but I think I'm doing a pretty damn good job so far if your reviews are anything to go by. Speaking of:
assassinsbladegh: I can't really answer your question, because I don't know the answer. I'm letting the story develop on its own, so I guess you can say Pairings are Undecided. Izuku might end up with an OC I haven't made yet. I don't think it will come to that, but I can't promise anything. Anyway, I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations!
Gamelover41592: I hope this one is just as good.
izukusonjackson: One problem with that suggestion: the memories of Pre-Quirk ancestors would not help any of the students, so there's just no reason for the Animus to be used in the school system. Plus, Nezu sees their war as something to be contained and not perpetuated on campus, so no overt monitoring ops. The Assassins and Templars will just have to recruit the old fashion way.
LEGOBRICK13: *Screaming in response, but more like that of a monkey yelling at another in confusion* And Tenya will not calm down. He is physically incapable of such.
Also *points at you* You put that Momo back where you got it! Put it back! No, don't run off! I need that there! Very important! Do you know how hard it is to find a morally-graying Momo? Freaking impossible, I tell you! Wha- Hey! Get back here! You can run but I've locked the doors, you thief!
Monkey D. Conan: Shifting loyalties and choices aren't so uncommon, even in the AC universe, but I intend for any such shifts to come at a serious price. Also, what will Tenya's crusade hold for him? You'll have to wait a while longer to see because we have a lot more background action here compared to Canon. But yes, things will slowly get darker. That's the plan.
Ranger McAleer: Oh yeah, Aizawa will not pull any punches. In the Assassins, it's get better or die. There is no room for coddling, not that Aizawa is prone to such to begin with. He gets it from his father. Also whaaaat? Izuku using a POE as the main character? Pfft, no. No way. Well, maybe? Who knows? I might be stringing you along with a red herring.
Shadowwolf1997: Dr. Hyde did mention they had the Assassins on the ropes before the Dawn of Quirks and, while a few Templars may still admit to respecting the Assassins for their skills, their return hasn't endeared them to any of the red-wearing flock. I'm glad you picked up on their elitism, too. That's what I was going for.
Steelrain66: Two things: Maybe, maybe not. I refuse to answer. Also, AC timeline is more like a slow slide into quicksand, not the train crash of sudden calamity like in MHA, so the "awkward" will have to wait because, well, secrets.
Wizardwolf 1020: Keeper isn't some divine mind-wipe angel that can singlehandedly win Japan for the Assassins. Yeah, he's got some pretty cool abilities with his Quirk: Memory Loss, but he has to be able to touch the person to use it, so no "blanket wipes" for all the country. Also, as seen with Tensei, he can clear related ideas and let the brain fill in the spaces left behind. In this case, he wiped any mention of ideas related to "Templars" including the history lesson Kido gave and of Stain being one, but he can't stop Tensei from learning about it later. It's like watching a video of yourself when you were a baby; you don't remember it, but there's the proof. Also, he can't implant suggestions like Tenya thinks, Tensei is just that mature and cautious about the whole situation. As for Unity, I can't play it myself since I don't have the right tech for it, so I've started watching a playthrough online. I'm not deep into it, so I haven't seen any of the references in it yet.
That's all I have to say this time, so on to the chapter!
Chapter 20:
The Naming of Heroes
Monday brought with it a storm, Izuku having stuffed himself into a long, water-resistant sweatshirt under a poncho before starting his trip to school. In other times, he might have taken the train —and he still did on occasion if his training from the night before was particularly harsh— but he had woken up this morning to a note on his desk ordering him to practice his free running, parkour, and stealth in the downpour on his way to school. (A postscript at the bottom also chastised him for not waking up when the note was delivered, but that was neither here nor there.)
As it was, Izuku now found himself on a roof, the rain soaking into his shoes as he tried to minimize the splashes his steps caused. Both of his hoods, those of both his sweatshirt and his poncho, hid his face and protected his eyes from the rain. It was good training for when he would take missions as an Assassin, something he felt would be sooner rather than later with internships coming up, but he had to constantly worry about slipping and considered asking Mei if she had any ideas for sole grips.
Shoes were not the only thing on Izuku's mind as he flipped from one building to another, his eyes scanning the other rooftops for cameras or pedestrians. Now that he had revealed himself using his bo and rope-dart to all during the Sports Festival, Master Aizawa had all but banned him from using them in his time acting as an Assassin. He would be allowed to carry the latter for emergencies, but this last weekend had seen the beginning of his training with various swords, daggers, a grappling hook, and the air rifle —all items he was forbidden to touch as a Hero student.
"Initiate Midoriya," Master Aizawa said as he offered the trainee another sword-and-dagger set as they tried to find the best fit. A katana had been the first attempt, but with Izuku's current size compared to the sword, he could do nothing effective while holding the weapon. While he could use it with two hands, not being able to defend while attempting to act with another hand was a dangerous position for any Assassin at work. They had slowly downsized and branched into other weapons, but Izuku had still felt drawn toward a two-weapon blade pair, so they had been testing different combinations. "I believe this could be the pair for you. At two-thirds the length of your standard katana, in your right hand is a wakizashi and in your left, at only one-third length, is the tanto. In ages past, they were both companion blades to the katana of the samurai."
Izuku studied them, extending his arms to see how their weight felt. Both were lighter than the Kanata, as expected for their smaller sizes, but both were shaped like the larger blade even if the smaller of the two was the size of a large dagger. Izuku felt a smile come to his face. Slowly, carefully, he rotated the swords into reverse grips and back, practicing slow moves with them the same way he had with the other blades he had tried.
"I like them, Master Aizawa," he said. "They feel better than the others."
His teacher gave a nod before offering the sheaths for the blades for the student to replace them. Izuku did so before taking them for himself, strapping the sheaths to his hips the way he had been shown. He put the wakizashi on his right and the tanto on his left.
"Then your first order is to learn how best to draw them quickly, Initiate. In our line of duty, drawing your weapon in a timely fashion could be the difference between life and death. It matters not how you choose to wear them, only that you make their deployment efficient. Aim for a deployment of one second by the end of Sunday. That should be a decent start."
"Yes, Master. I will not disappoint you."
"Do remember as well, by taking up these weapons, you are inheriting a long and dangerous legacy. Swordsmanship is not nearly as common as it was during the Golden Age of Assassins, but blades like these carry meaning. Swords have taken the lives of millions through the years, friend, foe, and civilian alike. These tools are not toys to play with. By training with these, you must remember that people will die at the end of your swords. And if they do not, it will be your head or that of someone you care for that will roll. You will spill Templar blood —only Templars, not the innocent— with these blades for the free will of humanity or die in the attempt. Please, train hard so the latter does not come to pass."
"I understand, Master." Izuku bowed. "I will do so."
Aizawa accepted that and left the verdet to his practice, the Master Assassin turning his attention to Tsuyu where she was training to carry multiple kunai with her tongue.
These memories came to Izuku and passed in a moment, the boy landing and rolling to maintain his momentum before UA faded into view from the fog of falling rain. The student slowed to a stop at the closest lip, looking down to study who was around. Movement made him turn his head, a figure Izuku identified as Iida kicking up a spray of water as he ran toward the building.
Izuku clenched his jaw, silently swearing to himself to never let Iida know of his loyalties. News had broken of Stain's —or as Izuku knew him, Master Akaguro's— attack on Ingenium and Kido with the confirmed death of the latter and the retirement of the former. If Iida learned of Izuku's connection to his brother's attacker…
The verdet shivered at the thought, casting it aside. He moved to the closest alley and climbed down, checking his surroundings again before stepping into the street and walking the last hundred steps to the doors of UA.
"Good morning, Izuku, ribbit."
"Good morning, Tsu." Izuku smiled as he removed his shoes to put them in his locker. He froze with a blink and turned back, trying to understand what he saw. Tsuyu stood in a drenched uniform, her arms held out as Momo blew her off with a handheld hair dryer plugged into the wall. "Uh, what's this?"
"Asui decided she wanted to walk in the rain on her way to school," Momo replied with a small frown, working her way down one of Tsuyu's sleeves with the dryer. "While I understand your proclivity for water, Asui, please remember that to drip such over the hallways of the school would be a hazard to your fellow students. As your class representative, it falls to me to maintain our decorum and ensure we as a class do not interrupt the days of the other classes."
"Sorry, ribbit." The frog-girl tilted her head with a smile, showing no signs of regret for her actions. "When it rains, I just can't help myself because of my Quirk, ribbit."
Momo let out a tired sigh, creating a second hair dryer and extending it to the other verdet. "Izuku, please assist me. We will be late if I attempt to do this alone."
"Ah, sure," the boy replied, taking the machine.
The three of them barely arrived in class as the bell rang, Tsuyu's clothing still damp but dry enough to not drip water through the hallways. The trio had just taken their seats when Aizawa, enshrouded in his yellow sleeping bag, rose from behind the podium. He blinked at the class with bloodshot eyes, a scar running over the eye that had previously been covered with an eyepatch since the attack at the USJ. He did not bother taking his sleeping bag off.
"I hope all of you had a relaxing weekend," he started, holding back a yawn. Something shifted within his sleeping bag, one of his hands appearing with a nutrition pouch the tired teacher sucked dry in moments. "As you know, we have had an empty seat in the hero course since the end of the first day of classes. This is no longer the case. I would tell you I'm happy about that, but that would be a lie since it means more work for me. Therefore, I am indifferent to tell you that that seat has now been filled. I suspect many of you would think it would be Hitoshi Shinso who would fill this seat, but it is not. Someone from 1-B has been transferred into your class and Shinso will take their seat in Kan's class. Now then, enter."
The door to the room slid open, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Pony Tsunotori stepping into the room. She maneuvered herself to the front of the room and gave a small bow.
"We met after Sports Festival," she said, several members of the class brightening at her appearance. "I am Pony Tsunotori of America and my Quirk is Horn Cannon. Please treat me well."
"Pony!" Mina and Toru cheered.
"You all can talk at lunch," Aizawa interrupted. "Tsunotori, you can take the empty seat between Midoriya and Yaoyorozu. Do not worry; it has been disinfected after its previous occupant."
And almost visible question mark appeared over the American's head at the last comment, but she stepped forward, taking the seat as instructed. As she sat, a shiver went down Izuku's spine.
"Now then," Aizawa continued. "You all performed well enough in the Sports Festival… for the most part, which means many of you have earned internship requests. Before you all go nuts over it, internships will begin at the end of next week. I think this is inefficient, but I have been outvoted. As it is, I will now go through the schedule for the next couple of weeks.
"Many of your classes have changed their lesson plans to focus on Quirk and Hero Law in preparation for the possibility of you all being in the field. We will have a presentation of your Hero codenames this coming Friday after which you will be given any internship offers you received. In previous years, the naming class was sprung on you by surprise, but complaints piled up enough to lead to a change to include a warning beforehand. A list of words or phrases to avoid and a list of Hero codenames already in use will be posted on the doors of every teacher's office. If your first choice of name is rejected, please have a back-up."¹
Aizawa paused, studying his students. Each and every one looked invigorated with one exception, Shoto Todoroki's face as blank as it usually was. Aizawa took a breath before continuing.
"You all will be in the streets and/or training directly with pros. I understand this is exciting, but do not get your hopes up or imagine you will start your careers by charging into a burning building or taking down criminal syndicates. First Years rarely get internship offers directly and usually go to one of 40 agencies that have a partnership with UA, or else they train with one of the teachers as we go through our minimum quotas to maintain our licenses. You will have your offers for one week after choosing your codenames during which you will make your selection. Are there any questions?" Ochako raised her hand. "Uraraka?"
"What if we don't like any of our offers?" she asked.
"Then you should get over it. They clearly see something in you, so you should swallow your pride or bias and pick one. Anyone else? No? Good. Now everyone open your Rule Changes of the Ages textbooks to page 394. We need to start covering modern law in depth."
"My brain is mush," Mina complained as her lunch tray hit the table with a clack, her head following to land beside it. She turned her head, fake tears rolling from her eyes. "Why do rules have to be so confusing? How do they expect us to remember all of them while fighting bad guys?"
"You guys too, huh?" Tetsutetsu chuckled, 1-A and 1-B having split themselves between several tables. At their table in the corner of the cafeteria sat Izuku, Ochako, Iida, Kirishima, Tetsutetsu, Pony, Awase, Shishida, and now Mina. At another table, Izuku could see Momo trying, once more, to finish drying Tsuyu's uniform while using Kaminari as a battery, much to his fellow Initiate's bemusement. "Yeah, I get it. Give me a guy to punch and I can do it all day. Put a book about law in front of me and I'm more likely to take a nap."
"Tetsu, you must increase your knowledge of legal and illegal actions," Shishida said, the boy having shaggy, brown hair over most of his body, sharp teeth, and glasses. The beastly student adjusted his glasses by pressing the bridge with a middle finger. "If you do not, you may find yourself on the wrong side of the law. Ignorance is an unacceptable excuse for a Hero-in-training."
"Yeah, I know," the white-haired student waved. "It's just not nearly as cool. You know what is, though?"
"What?" Ochako asked, giving the wanted response to the rhetorical question.
"Joint Heroics!" Tetsutetsu and Kirishima answered in tandem, smashing their hardened fists together in a powerful fistbump.
"I'm excited, too!" Awase put in. "I mean, we only got to see what you guys in 1-A could do during the Sports Festival, so getting to do some training with you all before internships should be a lot of fun! I mean, Kan-sensei says we'll be doing Joint Heroics every day for the next couple weeks. I'm hype!"
"It calms me," Pony admitted. "Getting moved to 1-A had me scared I'd not see 1-B for long time."
"We're just across the hall," Tetsutetsu reminded her. "Speaking of, what's it like having Aizawa as a teacher?"
"He's… different than Kan-sensei," Pony decided, putting one finger to her lips as she thought. Her head tilted. "He speaks slower but does less explaining. Slower speaking is good for my understanding. It confuses me that he wears sleeping bag, though. Seems like something manga character would do."
"He's an Underground Hero," Ochako explained. "Aizawa-sensei does most of his hero work at night, so he doesn't get that much sleep. As long as he can show results, the principal gives him and the other teachers full reign to do whatever they want within the law."
Izuku nodded along, not trusting himself to offer any words on the subject.
"Underground Heroes are incredibly effective for dealing with crime," Iida agreed. "It is their specialty as a majority of crime happens at night. They do not, however, rank highly in any popularity polls because they usually avoid the media and the public eye, so they are not the Heroes most people think of. Their contributions are very respectable, even if they are behind the…" Iida trailed off.
"Iida?" Izuku questioned. "What's up? You don't usually stop in the middle like that."
"Oh, it is nothing," Iida waved off a touch too quickly. "I simply started to consider the differences between the average Hero and Underground Heroes. The latter does not typically receive nearly as much praise as the former, wouldn't you agree?"
"Well, it's like you mentioned with the popularity polls," Shishida commented. "Underground Heroes do a lot of work to keep us safe, but watching villains get stopped is what makes people feel safe. It's an interesting dichotomy within our society even beyond the differences between Rescue Heroes and Battle Heroes. Typically, though, Underground Heroes have a closer relationship to the police than more famous ones like All Might or Endeavor, being called on to carry out raids they don't want to attract attention with. One could say many Underground Heroes act almost like bounty hunters or detectives."
"Yes, a dichotomy." Iida frowned, but it was gone so quickly that Izuku thought he might have imagined it. "So then, which do you feel is most important? Or, perhaps, which do you aspire to be?"
"I can't be an Underground Hero," Ochako offered. "I need to support my family, and Underground Heroes aren't as well-off as those that get popular. You know, merch and all that."
"Tetsu and I are gonna take the spotlight!" Kirishima grinned. "We're gonna inspire kids just like the Heroes that inspired us!"
"I do not know yet," Shishida admitted. "We all, myself included, still have much to learn which will alter our development as Heroes."
"I don't care for the popularity," Pony said. "Not late-night person, though."
"You know me," Mina began, smirking. "I love the camera. I wanna save people but I wanna get recognized for it to. I mean, I'd do it anyway, but still."
"I'm with Shishida," Izuku shrugged. "My Quirk isn't all that noticeable, so I don't think I could be some big, obvious pillar of society like All Might. I'll settle for support and rescue at any time."
"You don't care for camera?" Pony questioned.
"Eh, not really," Izuku replied, rubbing the back of his head. "I wanted to become a Hero because of All Might, but that's like, literally every other kid. As I got older, I decided I wanted to protect my mom and considering her reactions to the Sports Festival, I think it's best I limit how much she sees me fighting on TV."
"Awe, we've got a momma's boy over here!" Kirishima teased.
"Shut up!" Izuku shoved his shoulder with a roll of his eyes. "She's all I've got. Of course I'd want to protect her."
"All you've…?" Kirishima's eyes widened. "I'm so sorry, Mido-bro. I didn't mean to—"
"No, it's ok," the verdet insisted. "I don't really know anything about my dad. He and my mom weren't married and he died in a villain attack before I was born. They didn't even find a body since the whole office was burned down. Turns out fire-breathing Quirks don't make your skin fireproof."
"Damn, that's dark, bro," Tetsutetsu said.
"Like I said, it was before I was born." He waved it off. "Anyway, Mom's parents got sick when she was in her twenties and my dad's family have always been MIA. Mom's the only one I have."
"Not anymore," Ochako insisted. "You've got all of us now. Through thick and thin, you're one of us."
Izuku smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes, because he knew he had secrets that would cause Ochako and plenty of others to renege on that friendship. Still, he was going to do everything he could to protect as many smiles as he could, lest they be trampled under the Templars' boots.
It was Thursday, Izuku finding himself with his back shoved into the wall of one of Site Gamma's many buildings. He edged his head around the corner, finding nothing, before pulling back quickly. He couldn't risk looking away from his front for too long, after all.
His Hero costume had changed after several long talks with Mei from the Support Department and his various teachers within the Brotherhood, such having come about after long consideration about dividing Midoriya the Hero student and Midoriya the Assassin Initiate. His suit was still a green robe, but now much more reminiscent of the ninjas of old. A gator covered his mouth and nose while his hood remained to hide his headphones, the gear specially designed to pick up and track subtle sounds he might otherwise miss. He had two rope-darts, one attached to the underside of each of her forearms where his hidden blade bracers would normally be, and his bo was strapped to his back for easy deployment. His eyes were covered by a visor, such interfaced with the headphones to give a minimap that showed where sounds came from relative to his location, but the topography and building layout left much to be desired.
It was a prototype, but Mei assured him it only had a 20% chance of blowing up in his face.
The rest of his outfit was a muted green, a bandolier with nothing permanent on it wrapped around his body from shoulder to hip. He fully intended to fill it with useful gadgets by the time he graduated —assuming he stuck with the costume design— but he didn't know what gadgets those would be at the moment. His boots were coated in steel, their soles threaded with grooves for friction and traction.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are," Izuku muttered to himself, palming a paint grenade from his bandolier. Their current joint training with 1-B was a free-for-all paint battle where each person got two "lives" but had to wait five minutes after their first out before returning. And, if they were unlucky enough to be out their first time at the end when only one person remained, too bad, it's a loss.
Izuku blinked, activating his Eagle Vision to make sure he didn't miss anything only for a red shine to appear in his peripherals. He froze, turning his eyes slowly as he blinked away his faux-Quirk.
"Take this and begone, 1-A!" Neito Monoma yelled, throwing the paint grenade in his hand. Izuku threw his own before fleeing down the alley, trying his best to muffle his footsteps even as the whoosh of the paint grenades going off echoed behind him. He turned only for a moment, Monoma having avoided the paint and disappeared into the city's backstreets.
A laugh echoed from above, Izuku ducking into a shadow before looking up to locate the noise. Pony floated above on her horns, raining down paint grenades whenever she thought she caught a hint of one of her fellow students. Her blonde hair whipped in the wind, a true smile on the American's face.
"Izuku," a voice whispered, the green-clad boy turning to identify the speaker.
"Uraraka," he replied, the girl's pink costume doing little to hide her in the shadow of a dumpster.
"We need to take Pony out or she'll just keep picking us off," the brunette insisted. "She's already gotten Iida, Aoyama, Sero, Tsuburaba, Shishida, Kaminari, and Kamakiri."
"Damn," the boy muttered. "I never thought I'd wish Bakugo was here, but of course he's in the other group. With Todoroki, too. Any ideas?"
"Yeah, I think so. I can make my grenades weightless to reach her, but I'm not strong enough to get them there without Pony seeing them first. Can you?"
"I think so," Izuku nodded, studying the buildings around them. "Ok, here. I'll climb onto one of the roofs and you can throw the grenade to me. When you see paint falling from the sky, we've done it. If you hear me yell, run." He turned, scaling the closest wall without waiting for Ochako's answer. She watched him go, plucking a faux-explosive from her own belt and wrapping her hand around it. Once Izuku reached the top of the building, he held out his hand, the girl tossing the tool up into his waiting palm.
Up above, Izuku pressed his back into the tip of a stairwell cover, hiding behind it to stay out of Pony's sight. Above, she studied the surroundings, throwing a pair of paint grenades into some alleys on the other side. Someone screamed, the pieces of Setsuna Tokage literally falling apart as Pony's bomb of blue paint splattered her. Izuku shook the weightless grenade in his hold before pulling the pin and throwing it as quickly as he could.
It exploded, Pony letting out a gasp as the purple liquid splattered over her back. "Aw, dammit!"
"Izuku, help!"
The boy jerked at the call, running to the edge of the building to see Monoma chasing Uraraka through the alley. The verdet jumped, his ridged soles carving lines into the building as they slowed his decent to a more-controllable speed as Izuku chased the pair, hopping between the two walls as he got lower and closer.
"No you don't!" Izuku yelled, falling on top of the 1-B student from behind, knocking him to the ground. "I got him, Uraraka!"
"Good, hold him there!" the girl said as Izuku got the other boy into a full nelson, Monoma reaching up to grab at Izuku's face. The verdet looked up, but he was too late to react as Ochako stuck her tongue out, throwing a paint grenade. "Sorry! And that's for taking the risk with Pony!"
"Shit!" Yellow splattered over the pair, rendering both out. Izuku frowned under his mouth covering as he tried to wipe his visor clean. Considering he hadn't gotten any notifications of Monoma's approach before the whole deal, it appeared the tech Mei was building for him still had several kinks to be worked out.
"Is this how you see the world?" Monoma asked, Izuku turning to see the other boy's eyes a golden color. "You are on the lighter side of red. I suppose you don't like me, as expected, but I suppose that's better than you thinking I am below your notice."
"I mean, you did declare my whole class your enemies before the Sports Festival," Izuku admitted. "I don't really have anything against you, Monoma. Come on, let's get to the resting tent so our timers start."
"Very well." He blinked away the effects of Izuku's 'Quirk' to follow the 1-A student. The two walked in silence for a minute, Pony flying over them in her attempt to reach the tent as quickly as possible.
"Monoma?" Izuku questioned.
"Don't talk to me."
"I just have a few questions."
"So? Doesn't it hurt your great 1-A ego to talk to a 1-B student like me?"
"Of course not," Izuku chuckled. "I just want to know, by what mechanic does your Quirk function? Can you copy even Mutation-Style Quirks?"
"You're… interested?" the blond blinked. "You aren't just trying to dig up information on my class, are you?"
"I've talked to… Pony," Izuku began, still feeling a touch awkward about the American's insistence that they use her given name, "about you all. I love analyzing Quirks, but secondhand information isn't nearly as good as getting it from the source. So, can you change your body when copying a Quirk? Like, would your elbows change if you were to copy Sero's Tape?"
"Er, well, yes," Monoma admitted slowly. "I'm surprised; you're the first person to ask how, even including my classmates. With a touch, I can alter my DNA for a limited time to Copy someone else's, but the more different someone is from me, the less time I have. And, I have to have some idea of which body part the Quirk comes from."²
"Really?" Izuku hummed, pulling his notebook from somewhere and writing in it. "Do differences include things like hair and eye color or height? What are your longest and shortest times?"
"Why should I tell you that?"
"Oh, I suppose you don't have to," Izuku sighed, the sheer disappointment in his voice shocking his walking companion.
"...Six hours," Monoma muttered even though he didn't want to admit it felt good for someone to take such an interest in him. "That's how long I had my mother's Quirk when last I tried. When I Copied Shishida's Beast, I only had it for ten minutes. Usually, I can maintain Emitter Quirks like Komori's Mushroom for one hour. And yes, things like hair color do make a difference. If I copy the Quirk of a blond, I'd have about five-to-ten extra minutes than a similar Quirk from someone else if all other factors are the same."
"Wow, that's amazing," Izuku muttered, letting Monoma war with himself between enjoying praise and not wanting praise from a student of 1-A. "Can you use any DNA of a person?"
"Unfortunately, no. I have to be able to touch them to get live DNA from the source, so I can't Copy someone who is dead or not present. It can be quite inconvenient, but I can Copy up to Four Quirks at the same time, each with a separate time limit, but I can't Copy any new ones until one I have times out. That did me in during the Sports Festival."
Internally, Izuku's mind was awhirl with what that meant. Monoma said that he was able to Copy another person's DNA in order to utilize their Quirk, but he had managed to Copy Izuku's Eagle Vision, which was not a Quirk (not that Monoma knew that). Still, if the 1-B student could increase the range of his Quirk, possibly through a Quirk Awakening like many Heroes go through at some point, then it might be possible for him to Copy another person's entire appearance as well as their Quirk. It might be possible for him to be distantly related to Master Akaguro's apprentice Himi what with the blond hair and imitation-like Quirks, but considering the young Assassin of the two had run away from her family, asking about such would probably bring far too much scrutiny in return for information that didn't change anything.
"You have an incredible power, Monoma," Izuku said as they reached the tent. Both reached forward, starting timers with their names listed above. Pony bounced over by the corner, waiting for her chance to return. "It must really take a lot of mental flexibility to be able to use so many powers."
"I… Well… I suppose it does!" Monoma turned his nose upward, preening. "It pleases me that you have learned your place under my superior skill and wit!"
Izuku just chuckled, letting Monoma go on and on about his greatness as the verdet wrote more thoughts into his notebook.
He couldn't say why, but he felt his notes might turn out to be very important one day. Perhaps it would be time to ask Master Aizawa about any unknowns in class 1-B.
"I hope you all have been thinking about it for the past week," Aizawa began, staring at his class with half-lidded eyes. "It's time for you to select your Hero codenames. This is not something to take lightly. While it is probable that these will only be temporary, there is still a chance that these names will stick and become your Hero identity for the remainder of your career—"
"That's why you need something good!" Midnight interrupted, kicking the door aside as she made her entrance, sauntering her way before the class. "If you don't have anything that revs your engine, you just might end up with something vanilla, if you know what I mean." She licked her lips, sending a shiver down the spines of several of the male students.
"Yeah, I'm not good with this sort of thing," Aizawa admitted, already climbing into his sleeping bag. "Midnight's in charge of today's Heroics Informatics class. Wake me up when you're done."
Aizawa slumped over, already snoring.
"Now that the sourpuss is clocking out, everyone take a whiteboard. You all will write down your first choice for the name you will use during your internships. But before we start, several of you received internship offers and you will be given them in print when we finish today. If you'll look to the board..." Midnight turned, clicking a button on a remote. The board behind her lit up, several names appearing on it, each with a bar some length correlating to how many offers that student had.
Momo Yaoyorozu: 1,756
Shoto Todoroki: 889
Ochako Uraraka: 529
Katsuki Bakugo: 427
Tenya Iida: 332
Izuku Midoriya: 290
Fumikage Tokoyami: 187
Tsuyu Asui: 152
Pony Tsunotori: 61
Eijiro Kirishima: 59
Yuga Aoyama: 17
Hanta Sero: 14
Toru Hagakure: 2
"As you all can see, a respectable number of you received offers," Midnight noted. "This isn't that common for first-years, but plenty of eyes were on you all after the news about the USJ. You'll note that everyone in your class that reached the the third round received offers, so keep that in mind for next year. For those of you who did not, don't worry. I'm sure Aizawa's mentioned this, but UA has partnerships with 40 different agencies who have blanket offers to every Hero student, so you won't miss out on the experience." She cracked her whip. "Moving on, it's time for your codenames! Is there anyone who wants to go first?"
"I'll go!" Mina offered, jumping to her feet. She joined Midnight at the front of the room, dropping her whiteboard onto the podium. "I'll be the Acidic Hero: Alien Queen!"
"Bzz!" Midnight denied, her arms crossed with an X. "I get you're trying to play to your looks, but a name like makes you sound more like a villain. Do you have a backup?"
"I was kind of hoping I wouldn't need one," Mina admitted, rubbing the back of her head. "Can I think about it?"
"Of course," Midnight nodded. Aoyama stood as Mina took her seat, the blond strutting to the front. He posed, holding out his board as sparkles danced through the air around him.
"Having discussed my ideas with mes parents et tuteurs, I have decided on a chivalrous portmanteau. My moniker shall be the Princely Hero: KnightLight!"
"How clever!" Midnight cheered. "It certainly fits with your knightly aesthetic. I approve."
"Mes remerciements." Aoyama took his seat once more, a satisfied smile across his lips.
"Who's next?" their teacher asked.
"I'll go," Tsuyu offered, making her way to the front with her board. "I've been thinking about my Hero name for a long time and I'm sure about it. I'll be the Rainy Season Hero: Froppy."
"An excellent name!" Midnight praised. The success of the last two encouraged the rest of the class, the names Tailman, Chargebolt, Red Riot, Anima, Sugarman, Uravity, Tentacole, Earphone Jack, Cellophane, Tsukuyomi, and Invisible Girl all passing Midnight's internal test. Both Iida and Shoto opted to use their names, neither having been able to settle on anything they felt comfortable with. Mina returned, choosing to settle with Pinky in the hope that she would find something better in time. Then…
"King Explosion Murder!"
"Hard no!" Midnight denied. "What's your backup?"
Bakugo frowned, turning his board around to erase and replace something. He spun it around.
"Lord Explosion Murder!"
"The honorific is not the problem," Midnight told him. "Go find a name that does not include the word murder."
As Bakugo returned to his seat with a scowl on his face, Izuku stood, making his way to stand beside his teacher in both legal and illegal matters. He offered her a smile before turning to the class.
"When I was younger, every Hero name I could think of was some play on, or homage to, All Might," he admitted, drawing a few chuckles from his classmates. "The problem with that is that my power is nothing like All Might's. His is not a legacy I could pick up, even if I wanted to."
"Get a move on, stupid Deku!" Bakugo yelled, earning him several dirty looks.
"Getting to the point, I've decided I want to be a Rescue Hero. I want to save people when they think all hope is lost, to show them that no matter how dark it seems, hope will always shine in the darkness if only you can see it." He turned his board. "That's why I will be the Searching Hero: Eagle Eye."
"I think that sounds like the perfect name for you," Midnight smiled as the class voiced their agreement. All save for Bakugo, who gave a loud harrumph and turned away. Izuku soaked in the praise as he returned to his seat, Pony passing him as she took her turn.
"I am Japanese citizen through my mother, but I was raised in America," she began, reiterating information everyone in the class should know already. "My family has long legacy even before Dawn of Quirks. I am proud of my family and where I am from, so I want to honor that." She spun her board around, showing a star in the center of her chosen name. "I am Texas Hero: LoneStar!"
"I think giving yourself a name based on a legacy should hold you to a high standard, even higher than others," Midnight commented. "If you want to honor where you came from, you won't see any argument from me. Just make sure you do your best to live up to your own expectations. LoneStar it is!"
A growling Bakugo settled for the King Explosion (Murder) God: Dynamight, leaving only one student without a Hero name. Every eye turned to Momo in her seat at the far corner of the room, the girl calmly writing her chosen codename. Upon completion, she stood and carried her board to the front.
"Similar to Pony, I also have a family legacy to maintain. As a Yaoyorozu, I hope to lead people to greatness, to teach them and build them up to lead others. I hope for a world where everyone can learn from each other in peace. I want to save people and spread understanding into the world, to make it a place where my loving little brother Kyo doesn't need to be afraid of anything. That is why I have decided on my name." She smiled, spinning her board around. On it was written:
The Wisdom Hero: Minerva.
End of Chapter 20
¹ If the timetable seems weird here, that's because it is very different than in Canon. In Canon, they returned to class on Wednesday, had to name themselves (surprise!), and then pick from their offers by the weekend. I'm sorry, that might be efficient mathematically, but having to make such choices so quickly is not the best idea for students in my opinion. So, I changed it. Besides, stuff in MHA moves way too quickly.
² Yes, this is also different than Canon. I understand that, but what's a merging of universes without a little change here and there like with Awase before? It's not like DNA plays a huge role in the AC universe anyway, right? Riiiight?
On to the questions! Classes move on, but how can Midoriya further change his differing skill sets? And how might these two lives of his collide? What do you think of the new student of 1-A? What did you think of the joint training and the alterations I've made to Monoma's Quirk? Also, internship offers come through, and some of them aren't nearly as high as in Canon! But, what do you think of the different Hero names for some of the characters? I'm quite proud of them. And finally, who would you like to see Izuku intern with? We've seen several Heroes who are Assassins he could go to (Such as Mirko and Edgeshot), but there might be other candidates I haven't considered, so give me your suggestions! The same goes for Momo and Tsuyu as well! What do you think? As always:
Read and Review!
-SwordOfTheGods