"AND ON THE OTHER SIDE WE HAVE THE MENACING MIGHTY SHINSOU HITOSHI!"
Hitoshi walked toward the arena, more nervous than he'd ever been.
His heart was pounding louder than it had been at the entrance exam.
But Hitoshi would rather fight a thousand of those Zero Pointer robots than the fight he had ahead of him.
Midoriya Izuku.
Someone who was a thousand times stronger than him.
Someone who had struggled more than Hitoshi ever would.
Someone who was more deserving of the title 'Hero' than any of the idiots in the Hero Course.
His best friend.
The person he respected the most.
The person who understood him better than he did himself.
The person who made it all so clear for Hitoshi why he wasn't ready to join the ranks of titans above him.
Hitoshi knew from the start that he was weak, that he was inevitably going to lose, that much was obvious. But if there was anyone that he was going to lose to it was definitely Midoriya, better than that brat Bakugou whom Hitoshi had a striking suspicion has some sort of a history with his best friend.
"THE FATED BATTLE BETWEEN THE TWO DARK HORSES OF GENERAL STUDIES! BUT ONLY ONE WILL COME OUT ON TOP!"
The moment was finally upon them, no more stalling, no more dreading, it was finally time.
"START!"
Hitoshi managed to crack a nervous smile. "Heh, I doubt this is going to be as easy as me asking you to walk out of bounds right?"
Izuku chuckled. "Y-"
He suddenly stiffened.
Wait what!? But how!?
"WHAT'S THIS!? IT SEEMS EVEN THE AMAZING MIDORIYA IZUKU IS NO MATCH FOR SHINSOU!"
No, that shouldn't be… Hitoshi's brainwashing shouldn't have been able to get past Izuku's negation.
"H-hey where you going? Stop joking around…"
Midoriya just ignored Hitoshi and continued walking.
"COME BACK!" Hitoshi tried issuing a command.
But Midoriya didn't even flinch, he just kept walking until…
"MIDORIYA!"
He finally walked out of bounds
Midnight stopped to process what happened, before finally waving her flag down. "M-Midoriya is out of bounds!"
But that means…
"Shinsou is the winner!"
He had won.
Midoriya walked to the edge of the arena where he bumped into the wall, seemingly knocking out ofHitoshi's brainwashing and falling to the ground.
Hitoshi scrambled to Midoriya, helping him up and out of the arena.
"WHAT A GREAT DISPLAY OF SPORTSMANSHIP FROM SHINSOU! GIVE IT UP FOR-"
Hitoshi drowned out the commentary as they entered the tunnel.
Midoriya leaned against the wall of the tunnel to rest.
"What happened there? How the fuck did my quirk even work?"
Midoriya simply shrugged, "I guess my right hand can't completely negate your brainwashing, just enough to stop you from issuing secondary commands."
Hitoshi narrowed his eyes. "Really?"
Midoriya scratched his cheek with his left hand, "Ahh, such misfortune. But hey! At least you made it to the Hero Course-"
*PUNCH*
Midoriya held his cheek in pain. "AH! What was that for?"
"You fucking liar!"
"Huh? What do yo-"
*PUNCH*
"You didn't even fucking notice me using my quirk on you!"
Midoriya stood in shock realising that he'd been exposed.
"Why? You wanted to be a hero just as much as I did… So why?"
"Shinsou-san…"
"You had the same dream as I did! So why did you give up!? Did that dream mean so little to you!? Was it pity? Or were you lying straight to my face the whole fucking time!?"
Hitoshi grabbed Midoriya by the collar.
"ANSWER ME!"
Midoriya simply turned to look away from Hitoshi's rage filled glare.
"And here I thought that I was your best friend, but I guess that was just all in my head."
Hitoshi dropped him to the ground and slowly made his way out, but not before saying one last thing.
"I thought you would be the one person who could understand me…"
Izuku just stayed there crouched on the ground.
That was the biggest blow he had taken the whole festival.
"Such misfor- No… I can't even blame my luck this time."
This wasn't the work of luck, fate or destiny.
This was merely the selfishness of a naive child who did whatever he wanted, without even considering the feelings of the friend closest to him.
Of course Shinsou would feel cheated after what he did, Izuku practically spat in his face.
All he did was undermine all the work that Shinsou put in, and made his victory to feel unearned.
Izuku basically told him that he wouldn't have made it to the hero course if not for him.
Izuku stared up at the dark ceiling of the tunnel, where he could hear the echoes of the crowds cheers.
Maybe it was for the best that someone who had such a flawed understanding of helping others, not be in the hero course after all.
Izuku sighed.
"Such is Midoriya Izuku…"
"Midoriya-san!?"
Izuku slowly turned to see the figure of a cute brunette running toward him.
"What was that!? Are you alright!?"
Izuku remained silent, but there weren't any words Uraraka needed to hear. Not when everything was painted so bluntly for her to see, like the scene of fresh murder.
Uraraka simply raised a helping hand. "C'mon, Bakugou's going to get down here any moment now. You don't wanna run into him right?"
Heeding her warning, Izuku accepted her hand and got up.
As they walked back he could only keep telling himself that he did the right thing. Convincing himself Shinsou deserved that spot in the hero course more than he did, that he would have just spread his misfortune to the class and the hero industry as a whole.
Maybe with time they would both come to understand, when Shinsou joins the ranks of heroes along with Kacchan it would all be obvious then. And if he didn't then Izuku wouldn't mind…
Izuku almost chuckled, it wouldn't be the first time Izuku lost his best friend because of something he did. But this was far worse than being quirkless, being quirkless meant Izuku was too powerless to be a hero. This just simply meant that Izuku was just an awful person, much less a hero. A terrible person who didn't even consider Shinsou's feelings on the matter…
Izuku looked up at Uraraka holding his hand, dragging him back toward the seats, and he recalled the conversation they just recently had.
Maybe if he wanted to be at least a little closer to a hero, he should start by trying to be a good person.
Why?
Why was this the only thing on Hitoshi's mind?
He had won hadn't he?
He overcame his biggest hurdle in this festival hadn't he?
He won against Midoriya Izuku.
He won against his closest friend.
He won against the one boy he thought deserved to be a hero.
More than any of the spoiled idiots in the Hero Course.
Hitoshi didn't know the reason.
But for Hitoshi it wasn't so much a matter of how, but why?
Why had Midoriya give up?
Did it really mean that little to him as he accused?
Was it really pity?
Did he truly rather give up his place in the hero course for Hitoshi's sake?
Or was there another reason?
Hitoshi truly had no idea.
To him Midoriya was as indecipherable as a Millennium Prize question.
In the end there was really no one that could understand Hitoshi.
But…
"WE HAVE THE VIOLET UNDERDOG SHINSOU HITOSHI!"
There was someone that could possibly understand Midoriya more than he.
One who'd known Midoriya for far longer.
"AND WE HAVE THE BLONDE BOMBSHELL, but more literally, IT'S BAKUGOU KATSUKI!"
Hitoshi faced down the furious firecracker in front of him.
Bakugou Katsuki had a ferociously expectant look to him. Hitoshi assumed that he was being invigorated by the high of winning the previous matches, along with the expectation of winning against his weak general studies opponent.
"THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! THE GRAND FINALE! THE FINAL COUNTDOWN! THE SHOWDOWN OF A CENTURY! THE ELITE HERO STUDENT WHO TOPPED THE ENTRANCE EXAM! VERSUS! THE SENSATIONAL UNDERDOG FROM GENERAL STUDIES WHO CLIMBED HIS WAY TO THE TOP!"
Suddenly Hitoshi spoke so softly only Bakugou could hear.
"Hey…You've known Midoriya since you were kids right?"
"What? Why the fuck are you bringing this up now?"
The question shocked all thoughts of dominating the festival out of Bakugou's mind.
But Hitoshi had to get it off his mind before the match started.
He want- no, needed to know why Midoriya Izuku just gave up like that.
He needed to know why the most heroic person he knew just gave up like that.
For the first time becoming a hero was secondary to him.
"I just… I just need to know why he just lost like… like that. After all we planned together, after all we trained together…"
Hitoshi looked him in the eye for the first time.
"Why did he just give up on being a hero like that?"
"Huh? Why the fuck are you asking me? Like I give a fuck about that damn loser! If you're asking me, he was going to fucking lose from the start! That quirkless loser always half assed everything!"
Half assed? The Midoriya he knew put his all into everything.
"That idiot always said he was wanted just like All Might! ALL MIGHT! For fucks sake he probably couldn't be a damned janitor let alone All Might! All Might was the strongest, All Might always won! But Deku? He's fucking quirkless! He never achieved jack shit in his pathetic life! He couldn't even measure up to those extras even in shit that didn't involve quirks."
Angry sparks crackled in his palms.
"But he fucking tried anyway! And where did that get him? Dumped into the side cast with the rest of you rejects! And what's worse! He started to throw a fucking hissy fit! Cutting classes, making Aunty Inko worry, just being an overall dumb, piece of shit! And for what? Failing an exam he never even tried for? That fucking failure never put in any work! Never worked out! Never studied! Always doodling in that weird book of his when it didn't do shit! I mean fuck! Are villains going to fucking wait for you to doodle their mugshot before they beat you into the ground?"
"…"
"Really it's probably better that the fucking loser lost when he did! Better than him getting destroyed by the first villain he sees out there! Fuck he'd probably get fucked on the first day of class! I would have blown that fucker to bits without even trying! In fact that coward was probably too fucking scared to even face me here! You fucking get it now? He's probably ran dick between his legs at the thought of fighting me! That's why-"
"s…t ..p"
"Huh? What the fuck was that you reject!?"
"I said Shut Up."
His eyes going blank, Bakugou Katsuki complied to his order.
Hitoshi's eyes glowed with powerful rage.
Rage he never felt before.
He was used to feeling sad when people shit on his dreams.
He was used to people calling him a villain.
But now Hitoshi felt pure anger.
"Hey Bakugou…"
Anger for the piece of shit that was insulting his best friend.
"Go fuck yourself."
The camera cut to the award ceremony.
Apparently U.A had to censor the end of the final match.
As the podium rose up, the audience could see Shinsou, Bakugou and Tokoyami, taking first, second and third place respectively, except Bakugou was chained up like a wild animal trying to claw his way to Shinsou. Only the live audience that day could tell the tale of why.
Midoriya Izuku volunteered himself for fourth place, not having the stomach to face his friend at the ceremony.
When the gold medal was placed around Shinsou's neck the crowd cheered with contagious glee. But Shinsou could not bring himself to share their elation.
The week after the festival ended, the transfer was announced. Shinsou Hitoshi would be the newest student in Hero Class 1-A.
It seemed like Izuku had lost his only friend in school.
The whole stadium gave a congratulatory round of applause, including Izuku.
But Shinsou still had a frown etched on his face.
Izuku had tried to talk to him after class but all he said was…
"I only talk to people in the Hero Course."
The word's he said might have seemed cruel and hypocritical, but the message resounded clearly in Izuku's heart.
'Right your wrongs and take your rightful place in the hero course, then we'll talk.'
Talk.
Talk so that Shinsou could understand?
Talk so they could become friends again?
Izuku shook his head.
That would be too selfish of him.
The hero course had 40 seats total with a vacancy of 1, and Shinsou Hitoshi had just taken the last spot.
If Izuku tried to get into the hero course now, all he would do is steal the future away from a hero that would save countless lives.
All Izuku would be doing is crushing dreams and killing innocents for his own selfish desire.
Besides Shinsou only became friends with Izuku because they had similar ambitions in the same place.
But now Shinsou was in the Hero Course, he was better than Izuku in every way. Someone as heroic as Shinsou would definitely find better friends in his new class, he could finally find friends that could understand him.
He didn't need to talk to someone like Izuku ever again.
*Pzzt-fwip* The screen flickered off, as Izuku let out a heavy sigh.
This was definitely a lot to take in, and he wasn't just referring to the marathon of an event he just binged through.
*Gurgle*
"Izuku… My tummy feels weird…"
Izuku woke up from his daze and saw an empty bowl, greased with a layer of butter.
"Eri…" Izuku shook his head. "What did I tell you about filling yourself up with popcorn?"
*Gurgle* "I'm sorry…" The little glutton clutched her queasy belly and groaned.
Izuku laid her head down onto one of the couch cushions. "Drink lots of water ok? I'll head down to the pharmacy to grab some stomach medicine."
"Ok…" *Gurgle*
Izuku picked his head as he strolled down to the shopping district.
The more he learned about the previous Midoriya Izuku, the more Izuku felt confused.
Why was it that everyone Izuku knew put him up on this pedestal that simply did not exist? From what he saw, from what he managed to remember from all this, the only conclusion Izuku could come to was that he was nothing but a selfish jerk who did what he wanted and ran his mouth whenever it was convenient for him.
Did he even mean what he said to those girls? Or was he just mouthing off empty words simply to make them feel better?
Did he even hear the words that he yelled at Todoroki? Or was it simply just bullshit to get him to lower his guard?
Did he try to get Shinsou's opinion before he forcefully hung the title of hero on him like a 10 ton ornament made of solid gold?
Izuku honestly didn't know, and was pretty sure that the previous Midoriya Izuku didn't either.
"Oof! Hey watc-"
And of course as luck would have it, Izuku ran into a certain purple haired boy who he couldn't even find in himself to speak to, quite literally.
Shinsou scoffed and tried to brush past Izuku lacking any ounce of concern from the endless days that they trained and studied together.
"You know if my best friend was here, I would tell him that he was right." Izuku spoke out to the street. "That I really didn't understand him at all, and it wasn't my place to force him into a position that I thought was best. And also that… I'm sorry."
"…"
With that Izuku simply walked off, back on track toward the pharmacy.
Hitoshi walked back to the 1A dorms, his mouth silent but the voice in his head was louder than Kaminari on the first day of summer.
Did that idiot really think this all was just about him? I mean it was his fault, but making Midoriya feel like shit wasn't what Hitoshi had in mind at all.
His plan was already in the works, he just needed the evidence and the set-up, then Midoriya would be on a one way road into the hero course alongside Hitoshi.
He knew Midoriya would never accept if he simply quit and tried to push Midoriya into his spot, no Midoriya would rather have Hitoshi in the hero course alongside him or not be in the hero course at all. Besides, doing it that way was what put them into this situation in the first place.
Hitoshi stared at the entrance of the grand hall that hero class 1A.
But the spot in class that Hitoshi needed to create, person who Hitoshi needed to evict, needed to be someone who rightfully did not belong in the hero course. Someone who was everything but a hero, someone who wasn't even a good person, and someone who Midoriya wouldn't mind getting the boot.
"Quit day dreaming and move it, Mind Fuck! You're not the only one living here!"
Hitoshi clicked his tongue as he was forcefully shoved aside.
Thankfully there was one person who perfectly fit the bill…
