First off, I don't own My Hero Academia in any way, other than my characters of course I mean you can't copyright original characters. Anyways enjoy and leave any feedback to me regarding the story or chapter. I'm probably open to constructive criticism...nah I'm messing with you, of course, I'll take all the criticism I get.
Rain.
The colorless clouds filled the sky as water was falling from them, hitting the hard pavement. There weren't many people on the street as they would be getting away from the torrent, with some were clutching onto their umbrellas, hoping they wouldn't be hit. Cars passing by would occasionally run over puddles that were being collected in lips in the road, splashing the muddy water on the unsuspecting passerby. Occasional lighting strikes rumble the city of Musutafu but no one seems to bat an eye, after all, there are more things to worry about other than the weather.
Even in this the gloomy weather, sirens can be heard in the far distance accompanied by heroes running toward the sound of danger. These heroes work tirelessly to protect and give people a safe lifestyle, a lifestyle where no one will have to fear from those called villains. The reason is simple for the reason there are such things in this world such as heroes and villains, and that reason is quirks. Quirks are the new face of society; powers awaken from birth and matured throughout the lifetime. However, there are always the unlucky ones who are born without these special powers. The quirkless are shunned for not having quirks due to their genetics locking the power in place.
Shinjiro Tojou is one of these people. He looks to be a young boy, no younger than 16, with pitch-black hair which went down to his azure eyes, wearing a simple red t-shirt with a small wooly sweater covering it and beige pants stretching all the way to his ankles.
He was exhausted, his legs wanting to pass out at any given moment, but he couldn't afford to slow down though. With each step, he was creating mini splashes on the water layered concrete, which was created thanks to the heavy rain. With all the people under a roof, there wasn't really anyone on the streets seeing a teen run in the rain and even if there were they would think that he didn't have an umbrella and was running to find some cover. Shinjiro couldn't tell if he was soaked in sweat or rain as he was constantly checking behind him, raindrops impairing his vision, before turning a corner and going into a small mall. He struggled to catch his breath as the sliding doors closed behind him.
"Excuse me sir but you can't come in here if you're going to make a mess."
Shinjiro looked up, seeing a security guard staring at him with his arms crossed and looked pretty annoyed.
"Oh I'm sorry, I- I didn't have an umbrella with me," Shinjiro said while bowing apologetically.
"Oh don't worry sir, I understand…jeez with this rain we would be flooded in a couple of hours. Ah here, you must be soaked" The guard said before handing him a small towel to dry himself before the floors could get any wetter.
"Thanks a lot, mister" The teen said while drying himself with the handheld towel.
"Mister? Please don't call me that, you make me look old! I'm in my early twenties you know."
Shinjiro managed to get a good look at the guard after drying his hair who was just about as tall as Shinjiro himself, who was 5'8. The guard had fair skin and didn't have wrinkles on his face wearing the classic officer's clothing with a stun gun and baton to his side, along with a walkie talkie on the left side of his chest.
"Say, what are you doing out in that rain? Where are your parents?" The guard asked before pressing the button on his walkie talkie and asking for a janitor at the entrance they were at.
"Well… I was walking back from the grocery store since I had to get a few things and I noticed I was getting followed by someone." Shinjiro started. "Then he started chasing me and the next thing you know I ended up here." He knew that telling the guard this information would be helpful as he is an officer of the law.
The guard raised his eyebrow at the teen's statement, he shifted his eyes away from him before looking back at him and said "Alright, follow me so we can call your parents to come pick you up and keep you safe for the time being. We're also going to ask you a few questions regarding the stalker you mentioned."
Shinjiro nodded before following the guard into a restricted area closed off to the general public. It seemed like the guard was leading him into the security room that was stationed somewhere in the mall, but after a few minutes of walking, Shinjiro felt as if something was wrong since the unrefined walls of the mall began to change with each door they pass. From grey to a darker shade and the unrefined walls soon became smoother and smoother that you couldn't see the adhesive glue in-between the bricks.
"Umm, I don't think this is the way to the security room" Shinjiro said as his body began to shake as chills started to work it's way down his spine. He felt the air go cold around him and his blood leaving his system.
"Trust me, this is the right way to the security room" The guard said while still looking straight ahead.
"Here, go through this door, and on the other side is the waiting room." He gestured to a cyan door that didn't fit the now dark grey walls. It looked very run down as opposed to the very modern looking walls and walkway. There was a single flickering light shining down on them making the hallway even more intimidating than it was before.
"Something is really wrong, I need to find a way to get out of here" Shinjiro was panicking as his eyes darted around the hallway leading to the door, examining each section as a way to aid him in his escape. He grew pale as there was nothing but clean-cut walls all around him so he couldn't just grab a pipe off the wall and hit the guard with it. His mind was racing thinking of all the possibilities and outcomes that could happen. Could he just book it and risk the guard grabbing him and possibly killing him right there and then? Or would he comply and try and find a way out once he's inside of the unknown room? These types of questions were running around in his head, for once he was glad to have his mother's analytic skills, but he couldn't come to a conclusion before he was suddenly and rather violently grabbed by the guard.
Instinctively Shinjiro threw his fist at the guard hoping it would connect, but before the fist could even come close to connecting he felt the air around him get thicker. Even if he couldn't see mist, he could feel the air slowly consume him and flowing into his nostrils. In just a few seconds Shinjiro felt his entire body go numb, his bones and muscles slowly melting making him lose any connection to his limbs he already had. Soon he was on the floor, his entire body sprawled and contorting itself in a way that definitely wasn't natural.
"Now, now we don't want our little guest running away now do we?" The supposed guard bent down and under the single flickering light, he gave Shinjiro one final look. His facial expressions were darkened due to the lack of light but Shinjiro could see what kind of face that man…no, that monster was making. It was the look of someone who found pleasure in the kinds of things he'd do and to Shinjiro, this meant he'd played right into the belly of a beast. With one last breath, he stared right back at his captor before shutting his eyes for what was possibly the last time.
*Hours earlier*
Beep! Beep! Beep!
A loud sound tore through the silence of a small bedroom. Shinjiro groaned, slamming his hand onto the digital alarm clock sitting next to his bed before pulling the sheets over his head and drifting back to sleep. He stayed like that for a while before…
"Shinjiro! Wake up or else you're going to be late for school!" He heard the blinds being ripped open before the sheets over his head were pulled off, blinding his eyes momentarily.
"Oww, Mom my eyes. You didn't have to be so rough, I was going to get up anyways" Shinjiro complained while groggily shuffling to the bathroom.
His mom rolled her eyes."Don't lie to me, you were going to sleep until I came in to wake you. Your siblings are already up and are downstairs eating breakfast. Now hurry up! Just because it's Friday doesn't mean you get to slack off."
Shinjiro's response back was just a simple groan but that was enough to get her off his back. He went back to getting ready for school and real soon he stepped out of his relatively basic bedroom and worked his way downstairs. He was barely a few steps down before something shot past him, creating a little wind in the process. It buzzed alright for a few seconds before slowing down and landing in the palm of an older boy.
"Hey bro! What'd you think of my new invention? I made it so that it can shrink to micro levels so it can not only help with medical situations but also-"
"No one cares about your bug Daichi" Another voice rang out.
"HUH, what did you say Ayano? Am I too smart for your little brain to possibly comprehend what I'm saying." The older boy, now known as Daichi, shot back. Daichi was the oldest sibling in the family, at the age of 18, with messy brown hair with goggles sitting on top of it and dark brown wore baggy clothes with a soft sheet of soot covering it.
"M- Maybe both of you should c- calm down" Another voice had called out but unlike the previous two, this one was much quieter. Shinjiro had made his way to the dining table and sat down while his two siblings were fighting. He swore he could see sparks flying between the two.
"Sorry, you had to deal with this Hina." Shinjiro apologized. But the girl, now known as Hina, shook her head. Hina was the second oldest sibling alongside Ayano and being twins, they are polar opposites in terms of personality but looked almost the same you couldn't tell who's who. She had short light brown hair with a small green hair-clip, dark brown eyes, and sported a school uniform from U.A., which was one of the most prestigious heroics school in the world. Ayano, on the other hand, had long blonde hair, blue eyes, and was also sporting a U.A school uniform but she didn't wear the tie.
"It's fine Shin-nisan, I'm used to this now. Ayano and I only get one day off, so of course, she would be rowdy at times." Hina replied with a slight chuckle. This was Shinjiro's life in a family of six, which was filled with a new type of chaos almost every day.
"Now kids, just because it's Friday doesn't mean you can slack off." Came a voice from the nearby living room. He wore a simple set of clothes coupled with glasses that reflected the light, making it hard to see his dark brown eyes and held a cup of coffee while reading the daily newspaper. This was Tatsuo Tojou, also known as the Mind Hero: Mind Breaker for being able to use telekinesis and can get inside of people's heads.
"You heard your father, settle down and finish breakfast all ready! Or will I have to send down one of my cleaning robots?" Shouted Shinjiro's mom from the second floor. Everyone comically shivered at the mention of cleaning robots, clearly having bad memories of their "cleaning" experience.
"Good, you lot have finally calmed down. T- Thanks honey" Tatsuo yelled back, even though he was shaking in his boots. This was Rikona Toujou, she had medium length dark brown hair, azure eyes, and wore clothes that were slightly bigger than her with an apron over it. She is known as Queen Construction for her quirk being able to construct anything using any kind of material.
Rikona made her way downstairs and saw all five members still comically shaking. "Hm? Are my cleaning robots really that scary? All I did was set them to car wash mode." She asked with comical question marks floating above her head.
"DON'T GIVE US THAT" They all shouted in synchrony.
"The last time I got the cleaning treatment, the robot malfunctioned… a- and it did u- unspeakable things to me" Daichi slowly sank into his seat. "Maybe I should analyze those cleaning robots so I never have to deal with that again!"
"If you think your cleaning experience was bad then mine and Hina's were worse!" Ayano started. "Almost 12 hours of n- n- non-stop cleaning, Mom you really need to fix those things!"
"Oh, I'm sure you all are just exaggerating" Rikona laughed it off, however, it was Tatsuo who decided to step in.
"Honey, as much as I want to agree with you but the kids are right. The robots malfunction too often and your quirk is meant for construction, not robotics. Plus, I honestly think making those robots was a waste of time especially with-" Rikona immediately shot Tatsuo with a death threatening glare making him stop and taking a huge gulp.
"First off, my robots are perfectly fine as I inspected each and every part for anything that could possibly cause the robots' malfunctions. If they do eventually have malfunctions then maybe it what you guys are doing to the robots that cause them to malfunction. Plus I do a touch up every so often- blah blah blah" Rikona then proceeded to rant about how her robots were at prestige condition with Tatsuo trying to convince her that the robots weren't but Shinjiro wasn't awake enough to care.
"Alright, I'll be heading out now." He just said back to his bickering parents and confused siblings before closing the door and sighing in relief. Shinjiro started to make his way to the bus stop until a voice called out to him.
"Shinjiro-san!" Came running a familiar face that was instantly recognized. He was quite small in terms of physique, his dark green eyes gave him an innocent look, noticeable freckles on his face, and the one thing that stands out is his fluffy dark-green hair. "Shinjiro-san good morning!"
"Ah, Midoriya-san good morning!" Shinjiro's mood instantly shot up after seeing Midoriya. Once they found out that they were both quirkless, they instantly connected with each other and became best friends. Midoriya, who was usually very reserved, felt at ease talking to Shinjiro and would usually go on mumble sprees around him which usually ends with a head chop. Of course, even the best of stories don't have a happy story throughout as they got bullied a lot.
"Hey, are you excited? In a few months, we'll be able to become heroes! Plus I can't wait to see the other heroes in action and learn from the very best- mumble mumble mumble" Midoriya kept mumbling until a sudden hand came flying down onto his head, making him wince in pain and drop down to the floor. "Owww, Shinjiro-san can you please stop with the head-chopping?" He said while rubbing his head.
Shinjiro just chuckled in response. "Nope, but seriously man, I think you have a mumbling problem. Also, I guess I'm excited about trying to become a hero."
"No, I don't have a problem! Also don't feel down that just because we're both quirkless doesn't mean we can't become heroes. Show some more spirit"
"Heh, are you sure you're an introvert? With the way you're speaking, you'll be getting girls in no time" Shinjiro teased.
"N- nooooooo, Shinjiro-san why would you say that!" Midoriya started sweating and frantically shook his arms everywhere.
Shinjiro just laughed before calming down and saying "I'm just kidding man, but seriously don't lose that skill of yours."
It took a while for Midoriya to calm down from his sudden outburst. "Don't ever say that Shinjiro-san, you know how I always act. Moving back to the question I meant to ask, doesn't your mom have an analytic mind?"
"Well, I guess you could say that but that doesn't necessarily mean I have an analytic mind" He said while thinking about the numerous times his mom went on explaining how when she's in her zone, her mind analyses everything like some kind of overpowered anime protagonist. "Ah! I just remembered. You've been kind of quiet lately ever since that jerk ass Bakugo burned your superhero notebook. Are you really that sad over it?"
"Ah- uh- No! That's not the case, it's just that I've been really busy lately, so that's why we haven't hung out in a while." It didn't take a genius for Shinjiro to realize Midoriya was hiding something. The way his expressions changed and the way he spoke was suspicious, plus he was shaking so that further advances his suspicions.
"Are you sure Midoriya? I won't push for an answer but if anything happens, I'll be here."
"Y- Yes, everything's fine, and don't worry about it. It's nothing to do with Kacchan"
With that Shinjiro sighed in slight relief, but still had his suspicions. "If you say so Midoriya" Before going back to discussing heroes, All Might mostly, and what events had occurred last night.
Turns out, they had both reached school in the time they were talking. They kept talking till they reached their classroom, giving each other a quick glance before opening the door. As if it was the perfect timing, an explosion occurred right as they opened the door which added a layer of black snow all over their already black uniforms.
"Ladies and gentlemen, you're quirkless!"
The classroom, which was already filled with people, erupted into laughter at the sight. The two teens just stood in silence slowly dusting off the char, Shinjiro on the verge of acting out and punching the one guy who caused the explosion. He would have if it wasn't for one person who stepped in.
"Bakugo, you should already know that this type of behavior is not permitted here and it's certainly not permitted in U.A." The people who were laughing at the two quirkless teens immediately stepped to the side, showing a beautiful girl with long purple hair, black irises, fair skin, and a stern look on her face. "All of you to your seats."
With that one statement, everyone took their seats leaving Bakugo and the quirkless pair standing.
"Why do you keep interfering moon girl!" Bakugo spat out.
"If you keep acting like this you'll be kicked out of U.A before you even step in it." She replied back; Bakugo just grunted and went to his seat mumbling under his breath mostly likely cursing her. "And the two of you, you both should get that soot off you before you come into class."
"Yea, thanks Mahiru. You don't have to step in every time Bakugo causes a mess though" Shinjiro said, slightly blushing while scratching the back of his head. While Midoriya was acting like himself who bowed profusely and apologized for causing a mess.
Mahiru just giggled "Oh, don't flatter me boys. After all, the ones with quirks are meant to protect the quirkless, that's how the world works now." She said before taking her seat.
Shinjiro just sighed and slowly walked to his seat as bells rang throughout the halls of Aldera Junior High.
After another uneventful day at school, Shinjiro was mentally exhausted but somewhat relieved since it's in another few hours it's going to be the start of the weekend. As he was packing his stuff, Midoriya decided to come up to him.
"Shinjiro-san, what's wrong?"
"Hm? What do you mean Midoriya?"
"I mean…you kind of disturbed."
"Oh" Shinjiro was puzzled, usually he'd always have an answer for these kinds of things but even to him, things seemed off. "I don't know, I guess something feels different. Maybe blame it on the growth hormones?"
Midoriya just nodded and went back to his desk to finish packing his things. Shinjiro still couldn't shake the feeling that something seemed off but dismissed it and went back to packing.
After Shinjiro and Midoriya walked out of the school, Shinjiro felt a small buzz in his pocket. Pulling out his phone he saw a few messages from his mom telling him to buy some groceries on his way back home. He sent a quick text back before turning to Midoriya.
"Hey, is it okay if I head back now? I have to pick a few things from the store for my mom"
"It's okay, I have to do a few things as well" Midoriya kindly replied. "I'll text you later, see ya!" He said before running away, Shinjiro just simply waved back and started walking the opposite direction while looking at his phone. He skimmed through all the items his mom needed him to buy before putting his phone in his back pocket and pulling out his wallet.
"Looks like I'll need to ask my mom for a little raise after this"
He thought while looking at the amount of money he had left before closing and stuffing the wallet back in his pocket. He sighed once again before continuing the slow walk home.
A small ding as glass doors slide open show Shinjiro walking into a small grocery store. The store was quite empty at this time of the day so he could take his time to slowly find the items he needed. The only people in the store were the clerk and a few students in-between the small aisles. Shinjiro began going through the aisles and picking a few items off the shelves and putting it in a small basket he took from when he entered the store.
He was focused on searching for his items he didn't realize he was about to bump into someone until it was too late. They had both fallen to the floor, spilling all the items Shinjiro had in his basket.
"Ow, I'm sorry- wait Mahiru-san?" Shinjiro shrugged off the pain of hitting the floor and got up. "Mahiru-san you okay?" He asked before extending his hand to her. She took it and Shinjiro pulled her up.
"Yeah, I'm okay I guess. You should really watch where you're going Shinjiro" She said with a small pout.
Shinjiro just chuckled "Come on, Mahiru-san don't need to be so formal with me when we're out of school. Can't a childhood friend talk to you now?"
"I thought I said we aren't friends" Mahiru coldly replied. Next thing you know, Shinjiro's on the floor comically sulking.
"Awwww, Mahiru-chan says we aren't friends anymoreeee" He cried.
"Mou! I guess we're friends okay!" Mahiru shouted.
"Yay! She said we're friends now!" Shinjiro jumped up and pumped his fist in the air like he won a lottery.
"Y'know, sometimes you can be a handful," She said with a red face.
Shinjiro and Mahiru met each other in kindergarten and due to Shinjiro's personality back then, he made her his friend with relative ease. During that time, their friendship never dwindled and they'd do everything together with both of them begging their parents to let them hang out every day after school. However, as they both got older, Mahiru started to distance herself from Shinjiro for reasons that he couldn't understand. Even though they're in the same classroom, Mahiru treats him like he isn't there. They'd still run into each other every now and then, starting a small chat to fill the void.
"Haha, so where's that trio who keeps following you along?" He asked.
"They sent me to buy snacks for some party today."
"Oho, a party? How come I wasn't invited?" He teased.
"It's a party between girls, none of your business"
"Wow, harsh but fair coming from you." He said before they both stood in silence for what seemed hours.
"So I should get going-"
"So I should get going-"
They had said that at the same time which made the atmosphere even more awkward. Both had small blushes on their faces and had looked away, not daring to make eye contact.
"Someone please come and save me from this day called disaster" It was as if the world had heard what Shinjiro was thinking when someone had come running and grabbed him and comedically slammed him onto the floor.
"What do you think you're doing to Mahiru-sama pervert!"
"Ow ow ow ow ow, Honoka lay off me will you!" Shinjiro was wincing in pain as he felt like his entire arm was about to get torn off.
"Honoka-san get off him, we're still in the store you know!" Mahiru shouted.
"Ah, hehehe" Honoka nervously laughed before getting off Shinjiro "I guess I forgot huh"
"Ugh, I feel like my arm's just been cut off" Shinjiro complained.
"Oh quit being a baby, you're a man! You'll be fine" Honoka said back.
"It's easy for you to say!"
"Honoka! You can't just go pinning random people to the floor!" Came another voice. Shinjiro looked up and saw two more girls coming over to them and it was then he got a good look at Honoka. She had blue eyes and orange hair which she tied into one ponytail but some parts of her hair were so short that it would slip out of the headband.
"Rin? Nico? I thought you guys said you were getting things for the party?" Mahiru asked.
"We've already bought all the items and placed them in your house. We just decided to check on you since you were taken some time. I didn't know you were hanging out with your boyfriend here." Nico teased before bursting into laughter, that last sentence made Mahiru tense and visible steam was coming out of her ears.
"Nico! Wh- why would you say those types of th- things!" Mahiru managed to get at least those words out of her mouth.
Nico meanwhile was laughing so hard she was practically wheezing. Everyone sweatdropped when she started rolling on the floor in laughter, gaining some looks from the cashier and other customers. Nico had purple eyes and long black hair which she tied into two ponytails that dangled on the sides.
"And the three idiots strike again" Rin giggled. Rin had black eyes and short fluffy orange hair that seemed to change shades once it went down to the tips. "Hey Mahiru, if you want to spend time with your boyfriend you could have just told us y'know."
"HE IS NOT MY BOYFRIEND!"
"Aw, Mahiru-chan you're so cute when you're flustered" Honoka added.
The teasing continued with Shinjiro trying to calm everyone down, but as expected, none of them were listening. This continued to go on for a few minutes until they were interrupted by a cough behind them. There stood the store manager with his arms crossed, impatiently tapping his foot, words can't describe the look on his face.
He spoke up "I won't tolerate this kind of behavior from any of you. I should have you banned from the store in fact."
The group instinctually huddled up, waiting for the worst.
"However-" He started. "Because all of you are regulars of mine and everyone gets along… I'll let off with a warning this time."
The group sighed in relief. "BUT-" They all comically jumped and went back into their little group huddle. "If any of you do something like this again, I will not hesitate to ban you all from this store. Am I clear?"
They nodded as fast as you would expect for frightened teenagers.
After regaining their composure, the girls decided to finish paying for their items and said their goodbyes leaving Shinjiro back to where he was. He decided not to dwindle and got the stuff he needed, before leaving the store he heard the cashier warning him that it may rain soon.
"Don't worry about me, I'll get home before the rain even comes" Before walking out the doors to a dark and cloudy sky. He briefly examined the stricken skies before turning in the direction of home, until he bumped into someone.
"Ah sorry…about that" He paused after seeing the person he bumped into. His pitch-black business suit wasn't that sketchy but the way he looked at Shinjiro, underneath that raven hat, showed interest. The voice inside Shinjiro's head screamed danger but his legs wouldn't move, captivated by the aromatic scent of lavender on the man. The ominous man stuck his hand out as if inviting him on a ride with the devil.
Shinjiro however, snapped back to reality as his eyes widened. His eyes were deceiving him as now the man stood, no longer a man with talons for his hands, tusks forming in his teeth and a small horn bursting through the top of his hat.
Shinjiro stumbled backward, dropping his grocery bags, before regaining his footing and took off. He didn't bother looking behind as he ran aimlessly, hoping to lose the very creature before him. "What the hell is that thing! I need to call dad or mom or anyone for that fact!"
He struggled to pull his phone out of his pocket, hitting speed dial on the first contact that popped up. "Midoriya? Ah screw it, he'll have to handle the police" Wind was rushing through his dark silk hair as he put the phone up to his ear.
"Come on Midoriya, pick up!" The phone rang one final time before he heard a voice from the other side.
"Ah Shinjiro-san, I'm sorry but I'm a little busy right no-"
"Midoriya! I need you to call the police right now!"
"Eh? Shinjiro-san calm down, what's going on-"
"I have no clue but right now I'm getting chased by some maniac! Tell the police to go to the grocery store, I'm going to see if I can loop back around!"
"Shinjiro-san you're not making any sense-" Before the phone call cut out suddenly. "Eh? Shinjiro-san? Shinjiro-san? I wonder what's going on over there?" I asked himself.
"Young Midoriya! Break times over!"
"Ah coming All Might!" He said before putting his phone back in his pocket. "Guess I'll have to call him later then"
"No nononono, that bastard sliced my phone!" Shinjiro gritted his teeth as he watched bits and pieces of electronics fall to the ground. Standing in front of him was the same man but he had changed in appearance. Now his skin was a dark-green and looked it as if scales replaced his smooth skin, the horn on his head grew bigger and had bent to look like a hook and most disturbing of all was how his irises had changed to a crimson red and the sclera a bright yellow.
Shinjiro was shocked, never before had someone have a quirk that allowed them to change forms, nonetheless turn them into a monster. The man acted like one too, hunching over and grunting while staring at Shinjiro with malicious intent before leaping at him. Fortunately, Shinjiro dove in time avoiding the attack before starting to run again with the monster giving chase albeit slower than he imagined. The monster took heavy steps, breaking the ground underneath him and started to roar creating a rush of wind. Shinjiro covered his ears as the powerful roar made it's way to him, eventually pushing him backward until he lost his footing and went with the roaring wind.
He kept flying until his body came in contact with the ground and sent him tumbling. He rolled to a stop, grunting in pain but he managed to bring himself up and seeing the monster slowly making his way to his prey. Shinjiro took this chance to start running again, thunder booming in the background.
As he was running, he spotted a group of people before running towards them. He hoped he would lose the monster in a big group of people and started to blend in, wiping his sweat on his forehead. His senses were now on hyper-alert, constantly scanning the area around him and looking for the nearest police station. It was then he realized where he was, the main part of the city where it's streets were always busy. He walked straight for a while before turning left into a small alleyway where a single phonebooth stood.
He fiddled around in his pocket before bringing out a few coins to insert into the booth. He slotted the coins into the booth and started to punch in numbers. He couldn't even get to the 5th number before he heard a menacing snarl behind him. Out of pure instinct he swung his fist behind him and hit something hard, he pulled back wincing in pain and saw the monster standing in-between him and the ticket into the open.
"No more running" Was all he simply said before taking off his black school uniform revealing a white long-sleeved collared shirt and throwing it to the side. He formed a defensive stance with tons of possible scenarios forming in his head. "I may be quirkless but that doesn't mean I can't put up a fight!"
The monster went towards him and swiped his sharp talons at him, but Shinjiro easily dodged the slow swipe and countered with a couple of short punches to the torso. But the monster felt no pain and backhanded Shinjiro, flinging him into a couple of garbage bags. Unlike the monster, Shinjiro held his head in pain and tried to get up only to see the monster swing his fist down. He rolled out of the way as the fist connected to the floor, leaving a fist-sized crater. Shinjiro realized he couldn't do anything that would somehow stun or hurt the monster so he started formulating different ways on how to make a run for it.
He didn't have time to think for long since the monster took another swing at him this time hitting the concrete wall behind him before Shinjiro took this chance to run into the open. However, the monster had predicted his movements, grabbing him and slamming him against the wall allowing for a face to face with the monster. He was afraid if he moved in the slightest it would the end for him so he was dead still as the monster started to examine the teen. Occasional grunts and snarls came from the beast but it did nothing as lightning struck behind them in the background creating the illusion of a more demonic creature in those bloodshot eyes.
Rain soon began to follow with both teen and monster still in the same position, in an intense eye deadlock. Shinjiro decided to drop his eyes to the floor and stopped a pair of thrown out fireworks and an idea flashed in his head. Due to the fact that the rain isn't that heavy, it's possible to light fireworks to cause a distraction but he'd just need a fuse to light it. He then studied the monster's claws which were probably sharp enough to rip through metal. "This is perfect if I duck down and grab the fireworks I would be able to use the claws to create a spark. Now I just need to time it correctly"
He decided to not wait any longer since it's possible the rain could get heavier. He quickly ducked down and grabbed the fireworks, thanks to the slow reactions of the monster he was able to strike the claws with the fuse creating sparks and lighting the fireworks. It was dangerous to hold fireworks as it goes off but to Shinjiro, getting burned is better than death.
He held the fireworks close to the monster's face as it went off, stunning the monster and made it stumble back. With its eyes disoriented, Shinjiro took the chance to run out into the open streets now empty with cars replacing the people. He didn't know where he was going anymore but he just kept running while checking behind him. He'd stomp through puddles and slip-on manhole covers but he kept running, his azure eyes covered by a layer of water.
His pace slowed down when he couldn't see anything in his line of sight behind him. After stopping and checking if the monster was following him, he went into the nearest mall and caught his breath as the sliding glass doors closed behind him.
"Excuse me sir but you can't come in here if you're going to make a mess."
Shinjiro looked up, seeing a security guard staring at him with his arms crossed and looked pretty annoyed.
"Oh I'm sorry, I- I didn't have an umbrella with me" Shinjiro said while bowing apologetically.
"Wake up."
"Huh? Excuse me?" He was confused as to why the guard was saying those words.
"Wake up. Wake up"
Shinjiro felt his eyes were getting real heavy, fighting the urge to close them but every attempt was futile before his vision faded to black.
"Wake up."
"Hey, kid wake up."
Shinjiro opened his eyes to a man staring down at him. He got up from the position he was in and held his head.
"Hey kid you good? I saw you lying here unconscious in the rain. Lucky for you, the rain had just cleared up."
"I- I think I'm fine" Was all Shinjiro said. His voice was coarse, his throat in need of water, but he shook off the sensation as the man helped him up.
"You need me to call an ambulance or anything?" The man asked.
"N- no, I'm fine. I just need to go home right now. Thanks for helping me"
"No problem! Can't leave a person in distress after all! Even though I'm not a hero, doesn't mean I can't help people in need"
Shinjiro just bowed back before walking off in the direction of home. Once he was out of sight, the man pulled out a phone and opened up a GPS app, showing a red dot moving away from him.
"Now, let's see the results and what you'll do…Shinjiro Tojou"
