Hello, hello! A New Pencil returns to the desk!
"Underline" is when a character is speaking Japanese, and a lack of one is when the character is speaking English.
Italics is either thoughts, a flashback, or a song/poem.
I do not own Kingdom Hearts, My Hero Academia, OMORI, or any of its characters.
Chapter 11: Battle Trial - What Friends are For
It took at least 5 minutes until Sora returned from the nurse's office, where he dropped Izuku off and thanked the nurse, Recovery Girl, for helping him. He recognized her as the one who healed him after his not-so graceful concrete fall in the Entrance Exam. He left after thanking her, seeing that he didn't want to be late this time around.
As he returned, All Might was speaking to the class. Team D and Ochaco were back with them.
"Oh, Sora-kun! Is Deku-kun okay?" Ochaco asked him.
"He'll be fine," Sora smiled, "Sorry if I interrupted you, All Might-sensei."
"Not a problem, Sora-shounen. Thank you for taking Midoriya-shounen into proper care," All Might returned it with his own, before addressing the class, "As I said before, the MVP of this match was Iida-shounen."
Everyone was surprised, except for Momo and Shoto. Sora was more pleasantly surprised than anything. Iida did look ashamed before All Might's declaration earlier.
"But the heroes won, kero," Tsuyu noted, "Why not one of them?"
"Valid question, Asui-shoujo." All Might nodded, "Anyone like to take a guess?"
(Play KH 3 OST - Scala Ad Caelum)
"Hai, All Might-sensei," Momo raised her hand with confidence, "Iida-san embraced this challenge. He was the only one who truly adapted to his assigned role. Allow me to explain."
She glanced at Katsuki, "Bakugo-san's judgment was clouded due to his personal grudge against Midoriya-san. And as you pointed out earlier, Bakugo-san using that long-ranged attack indoors is foolish.
"Midoriya-san's plan was also rushed and poorly thought out. It resulted in him being rendered helpless. That is also not smart." Momo then glanced towards Ochaco. "Uraraka-san let her guard down in the battle. Had she treated the fake weapon as if it were real, she'd have never used and risked such an imprecise move."
Momo finally glanced over to Iida, "Iida-san was fully prepared for his opponent's arrival. He had a strategy, and never lost sight of his mission to protect the weapon, even if he got foiled in the end. Technically, the Heroes won, yes. But they took advantage of the fact that this was training. They didn't respect the spirit of this trial."
Sora saw Ochaco looked slightly ashamed, while Tenya's face brightened ever so slightly by the praise. But the rest of the class was gawking at Momo's seemingly over-the-top explanation. When she had finished, Sora let out a low whistle.
"Uhh… right. Well… you overlooked a few things," All Might said, "Iida-shounen could've relaxed a little more."
Momo seemingly ignored him and continued with the same aura of confidence she had when Sora first met her, "One should always start with the basics and devote themselves wholeheartedly to learning. That's the only real way to become a top hero."
The others simply stared at her, seeing as not just a pretty girl but a smart one at that. Well, everyone except Bakugo, who found his shoes rather interesting at the moment. Sora had an odd look on his face. Momo wasn't wrong, as learning is a key way to grow, but it wasn't really the only way to be a true hero. There will always be things that will be forever unpredictable and unlearnable. Forever unfair, like Aizawa had said, and as a hero, it was their duty to fight it. Take the most recent fight for example. Katsuki had changed his fighting style to throw Izuku off his guard, and faced with a disadvantage, Izuku needed to think of something quick, however irrational it would've been in a realistic sense. However, he wasn't planning on arguing with Momo on said topic.
But when Momo said starting with basics, it brought a sour taste to Sora's tongue, as he was reminded of how well that worked for him last time in the Mark of Mastery. Sure, it was part of the test, to travel back and start from the beginning, but they were all tricked by Xehanort, and Sora nearly paid the price, and lost almost all of his strength he had gained in his first two journeys. It wasn't the fondest of memories Sora had.
(Silence)
"Ahem! Now then," All Might coughed, "It's time we blow this joint and move to the next match! Think of what you have seen and discussed as we tackle this training further!"
"Hai!" the rest of the class minus Bakugo said.
(Play MHA OST: U.A. Reporting for Duty!)
Now it was Team B, consisting of Shoto and the masked dude named Mezo Shoji vs Team I, consisting of Mashirao and Toru. Each team prepared themselves, and Sora saw that Toru was taking off her gloves and boots, and though Sora saw this as a good idea, it still struck him as odd and a bit awkward that she was technically naked.
(Play MHA OST: Strategy vs Wilderness)
The battle started, and then abruptly ended.
It wasn't even a battle. It was a slaughter. Shoto had taken the reigns and practically froze the entire building before either his teammate or his opponents could do anything, technically freezing his opponents as well. All Might commented that Shoto was wise enough to get the payload as soon as possible, without any injury to his teammate.
Sora, however, saw the flaw. Realistically, this was a good strategy by overwhelming your opponents. But Shoto's opponents were his own classmates. And if this was how they were rolling, then Sora saw this as unfair for Shoto's companion, Mezo. Neither that team or Shoto's teammate got a chance to show what they were made of. Sora knew they deserved to be here, or they would've been expelled by Aizawa already. He could see their potential, and he wasn't planning on letting it go to waste.
Sora finally said in English, "Guess I know who I'm with and against, now."
"Huh?" was the collective question on his classmates' minds.
And I plan to make it better for them. Sora looked determined.
(Play MHA OST: Hero A)
The matches went by. Team H vs Team J was very even, and Sora got a little creeped out when he saw Fumikage's Quirk, Dark Shadow, manifest. It looked like a Heartless, akin to the Dark Figure that Ansem and Terra-Xehanort possessed, but he was glad Tokoyami was using it for the side of good. It ended with Team H winning the match.
Team C took on Team G. However, Momo seemed to take up most of the work, as the little kid named Mineta was clearly more focused on… other things. Sora finally learned that her Quirk, Creation, wasn't pulling things out of thin air, but rather using the fat in her body to create and pull those objects from her body. No wonder why she was so slim. Kaminari and Kyoka were a good pair, but due to Denki's limit with his Quirk, Electrification, they lost.
Team E battled Team F, and it was a little more uneventful than the others, only being bested by Shoto's power play. Rikido's Quirk was helpful, but he could only go five minutes until tiring out. But Sora was fascinated by the fact his Quirk gives him a literal sugar rush. Koji could talk to animals, and that was something Sora wished he could do, as the animals here weren't like the ones back where he was from.
Mina's Quirk was great too, releasing acid from her body. Yuga's was great also, but he was trying super hard to make it look more flashier than it was, and Sora didn't mind. However, that did cost them the match.
Each trial, except for her own, Momo always gave out a critique for each team, while some was harsh, there were some good bones thrown into the mix, so it wasn't all that bad. Sora was only half-listening as he could barely keep up with her. She wasn't as bad as Midoriya when it came to muttering, but it was still a little difficult to keep up.
Every time, Sora had his AR Device on and connected to the headpieces, so he heard every single thing without missing a beat, as well as processed all the information on his classmate's Quirks to his Gummiphone and Journal.
After the most recent trial ended, his was about to begin.
(Silence)
"Alright!" All Might declared, "It's time for the final round! Sora-shounen and Shoji-shounen as the Heroes, and Team I reprise their roles as villains! Get yourselves ready, teams, and go beyond!"
"Hai!" the four of them nodded.
As Sora walked with them, he noticed that the air looked rather gloomy. Toru's shoes were slightly dragging, while Mashirao's tail was drooping. Mezo himself looked a little down. Sora could feel their shame after what Shoto pulled off. While it wasn't bad for any serious fight, once again, Sora was reminded that these were normal people, training to become Heroes. He didn't know if Shoto saw that, but he wasn't complaining. So long as Shoto didn't have this attitude towards his own friends, then there wouldn't be friction between them. So, to hype up and motivate them he did what he does best, and connected.
"Mashirao, Toru." he called out in Japanese, causing them to look over to him. He held out his hand with a polite smile, his eyes no longer showing that competitive glow, but rather one of camaraderie, despite this being their first interaction. "I might be on the opposing side, but I'm optimistic about your chances too. Let's all do our best, okay?"
Ojiro looked rather shocked by this level of sportsmanship, but Hagakure was quick to react, clasping Sora's hand in her own. "Yeah. Good luck you guys."
"Heh heh," Sora rubbed his nose, while Mezo extended his arm to Mashirao, who responded in kind with his own.
The ones watching were moved by Sora's sportsmanship. "He's so manly, dude." Kirishima told Kaminari.
Sora and Mezo waited outside the building, and while Mezo put on his earpiece, Sora pocketed his and tapped his AR Device so as to pair with Mezo's earpiece.
"No need for the earpiece?" Mezo asked him.
"Not while I have this," Sora pointed to his device, "You can hear me, right?"
"Loud and clear."
"Great. I'll keep the other earpiece in my pocket as backup just in case."
"Now!" All Might said over the loudspeaker, "Let the final match of today BEGIN!"
(Play: Final Fantasy 7 Remake OST - Bombing Mission)
Sora immediately tapped Mezo's shoulder, "Grab onto my shoulders. I have an idea,"
Shoji did exactly that, "Okay. What now?"
"Hold on tight." was all Sora said as he enveloped himself and Shoji in blue light. In a burst of controlled speed, he and Shoji scaled the building they were supposed to infiltrate, before landing on the top. Mezo was surprised by this abrupt pace and how fast Sora scaled it.
"Got it. We're up." Sora grinned, extending a fist towards his teammate, "Let's go and win this thing, Mezo. Together."
If Mezo wasn't shocked already by his show of sportsmanship, he'd be shocked at how kind Sora was to him. With a nod and a fistbump, the two went inside through the rooftop, and found themselves at a staircase.
Sora pointed to his ear, before cupping it to signal Shoji to create some ears to figure out where the payload was. Shoji did just that, listening to the wall with four ears.
"Well?" Sora whispered.
"The payload's on the 19th floor. Just several floors below ours." Shoji deciphered through his ear-limbs, "I'm hearing more sounds there too, and loud footsteps. More than one."
"So they're both on that floor." Sora simplified, and Shoji nodded.
"Can you use your arms to slow your falls?" he asked.
"Only slightly. Why?"
"I'm gonna jump down. When I tell you, jump down after me."
"What?" Mezo almost shouted, but kept quiet enough to make sure they were undetected. Sora reassured him with a warm smile, summoning his Keyblade, before leaping over the railing. He made his descent, and somersaulted before landing down on the ground without much trouble. He swung his sword to the side and rested it over his shoulder.
He did a thumbs up to assure Mezo he was okay, "Now your turn. I'll do my best to catch you."
Mezo nodded, and jumped, using his arms to parachute his way down at a slower pace. Sora then raised his hand, concentrating on the spot below his teammate. "Wind," he whispered, and a small tornado of wind formed at the bottom, slowing Shoji's fall and allowing him to land safely. The small tornado disappeared.
Sora then looked around, "This is..."
Shoji glanced back to the stairwell, "16th floor. Not the one the weapon is on."
"Do you know where specifically?"
"Give me a second," Mezo planted an ear limb onto the floor, before looking back to Sora, "Two floors down."
"Got it." Sora nodded, before they began searching for a way to get down two more floors.
Mezo took point, using his ears against the walls and in front of him, while having a pair of eyes to watch their backs. Sora readied the Kingdom Key in case there were intruders, being sure to keep his senses up. Suddenly, Mezo stopped, and Sora followed suit.
"We've got company," he told Sora, and they quickly scrambled to a closet to hide in as they heard footsteps running in their direction.
"Hagakure-san, I heard something here," they heard Mashirao say, "I'm gonna check it out."
"Got it. Let me know if they're here."
Sora unrolled his capture tape as he snuck up to Ojiro in hopes of ambushing and subduing him. However, to his surprise and dismay, it made a loud ripping noise. Loud being an understatement.
Uh oh...
Mashirao was quick to react and caught Sora off guard with a spin kick, knocking him back, before Mezo caught him. Sora quickly recovered and made haste by raising his blade to block Ojiro's upcoming tail strike with the Kingdom Key. However, it was a feint, and Ojiro used that to his advantage, grabbing Sora's blade and trying to pull him in for a punch. But Sora let go, ducked, and used the momentum to headbutt Mashirao in the stomach, knocking him back and dropping the Kingdom Key, which Sora resummoned to his hand after rolling to his feet. They were now in the open room outside the closet.
With a turn of his head, Sora signaled for Mezo to go to the weapon, and Mezo nodded, rushing past the two of them.
"Hagakure-san, I found them. Shoji-san's going your way." Mashirao told her.
"Got it. I'm ready for him." she replied from her earpiece. Sora and Mashirao stared each other down.
"You could have fought me two on one, you know." Ojiro pointed out.
"It's only fair we have a one on one fight." Sora remarked, "Besides, I trust Mezo enough to leave him on his own. Now it's just you and me, Mashirao."
"Yes it is, Nakajima-san. Let's do this." Ojiro smirked, before lunging towards Sora, spinning around to hit him with his tail, but Sora wasn't gonna fall for it twice. He quickly leaped into the air instead of engaging his opponent, but then Mashirao jumped up after him after landing where he used to be. Sora dodged a punch mid-air before grabbing his outstretched arm, but then he saw Ojiro's tail wrap around his other arm. As they fell due to gravity, Ojiro with a better grip with his tail, flung Sora to the ground, but the Keyblade Wielder used his blade to cushion the fall before flipping back onto his feet as Ojiro landed.
He then amped it up by using his Flowmotion to increase his speed slightly, blitzing towards Ojiro and nearly taking him by surprise. Mashirao was fast enough to block the strike that came afterwards, but wasn't prepared for what came next.
Sora's left hand was engulfed in flames, as he reared it back in preparation.
"Blaze!" he called out, releasing the fireball from his hand. Ojiro narrowly dodged the ball of flame, before rolling away from a downward strike. Sora then attempted to move back to gain some distance, but Ojiro saw this, and rushed him before Sora could react, and landed a solid hit on Sora's chest with a sidekick. Sora winced from the impact, skidding to keep his footing, but Mashirao's tail tripped him, making him fall on his back. But before he could do so, Ojiro grabbed his weapon arm, before throwing him over his shoulder and towards the wall.
Sora decided to turn it up a notch, and flipped himself upright, landing on the wall, before enveloping himself in blue light, before he reared his Keyblade back to strike Mashirao, but he countered with a swing of his tail. The two objects collide, locking for a bit before Mashirao pushes Sora back. The two were panting, but Sora was showing less exhaustion.
"Wow. You're pretty good." Sora complimented, taking a deep breath and calming down.
"You're not too bad yourself." Ojiro returned, while panting slightly. To his dismay, he found that Sora wasn't as tired, but was clearly showing signs of slight fatigue. He got his fists up in preparation for the upcoming fight.
Meanwhile, Class A minus Midoriya and Bakugo was watching the fight in awe.
"Wow!" Denki said, "He was pretty cool at the Entrance Exam, but seeing him hold his own here against an actual person is even better. I'm even more impressed that Ojiro-san's got him on the ropes."
"Not to mention that Quirk of his." Hanta complimented, "He can summon that big skeleton key at will, and call it back to him. Not to mention he shoots fireballs from his hand!"
"Kero, don't forget that little gust of wind he made to slow Shoji-chan's fall." Tsuyu noted.
"Huh. I didn't notice that."
"That's fascinating." Momo said with interest, "Seeing how he uses it up close, it looks more and more like my Quirk, but yet it doesn't."
"Wait, you can do it too?" Denki asked.
"No. My Quirk requires me to know the properties of the things I'm making, and I can't create fire from my body. For him, it seems like he just needs to call out the thing he's creating or manifesting."
"You're almost correct, Yaoyorozu-shoujo. It does look like your own Quirk." All Might said, "Sora-shounen's Quirk is called Summon."
"Summon?"
"Yes, indeed. He can summon objects and natural elements out of thin air, as well as remove them when he wishes." All Might explained, "A very versatile Quirk, if I say so myself."
"I see. So the blue aura he generated around himself and Shoji-san at the start of this trial… it must be an application of his Quirk, summoning that around him to allow him to scale that building. It is likely some unique element he can summon at will." Yaoyorozu theorized, "Not to mention that the fact he can summon natural elements like fire and wind, and may likely have more than just those two elements. He'll be a hard one to beat in terms of Quirk strength, that's for sure."
It also explains that little stunt he pulled with his charm yesterday, she thought as she recalled returning the shooting star charm to Sora, and how it disappeared from his hand, But where does it go, I wonder?
She already knew how well he could use his Quirk, and it was no thanks to that mad scientist and those black monsters. But she kept quiet about that, knowing that was something personal for Sora.
The others seemingly agreed with Momo's theory, but were a bit jealous at how versatile Sora's Quirk was.
(Silence)
Back at the actual trial, Mashirao was still recovering from the battle, while Sora stood at the ready. Noticing how exhausted he was, Sora dismissed his Keyblade.
"You okay?" he asked with concern, "Did I go in too hard on you?"
"Huh? Wait a minute." Ojiro looked up in surprise, "You're not even trying?"
"I am putting effort in. I'm just holding back enough so that I don't severely hurt you." Sora explained kindly, scratching his hair. Ojiro considered his words, and saw that though Sora was panting, he was relatively unharmed, and still had enough stamina to continue fighting.
"Sorry if you took it the wrong way," Sora sheepishly replied, "I didn't want you to get discouraged when we were fighting. Especially with what happened last time."
(Play KH BBS OST - The Worlds)
Ojiro relaxed and smiled slightly. Sora was considering how he felt from last time. It was the same with Shoto here: He stood absolutely no chance against the foe before him, but this time, unlike Shoto, Sora had gained his respect. Very rare for a Villain these days to have respect for the Hero upon their first encounter.
"How courteous of you." Mashirao said to Sora, "But you'll have to capture me if you want any chance of getting to the weapon."
"And that's exactly what I plan to do." Sora smiled, before resummoning his Keyblade. He knew Ojiro wouldn't go down without a fight, and Sora wouldn't either.
(Play: Crisis Core FF7 OST - Conflict)
Sora lunged at Ojiro, but as he swung, the tailed student ducked under his blade, tackling him to the ground, with Ojiro on top. He tried to reach for his capture tape, but Sora kicked the ground to get himself out of Mashirao's grasp, before jumping back up with both feet forward, kicking the captured tape aside.
"Almost had me there, Mashirao." Sora commented, before going for the attack again, this time using Flowmotion again to amplify his speed. Ojiro managed to block Sora's blade, but he was pushed back by the momentum of Sora's lunge, and in a flash of blue light, Ojiro was pinned to the wall by the Keyblade Wielder.
It was over.
Mashirao had a blade at his throat, while his feet were pinned by Sora's own, preventing him from moving. Sora himself had a smile on his face.
"Gotcha." Sora said.
"So you did." Ojiro said with a smile, before closing his eyes in resignation, "I accept defeat."
"It was a great fight. It wasn't that easy for me, honestly. If I was at your level, I'd probably be the one in your shoes right now," Sora smiled, "Let's do it again sometime soon."
"I'd like that." Ojiro agreed, as Sora wrapped the capture tape around his foe.
(Silence)
Sora then puts a hand onto his AR Device, "Mezo, this is Sora. Mashirao's out of action. How are you holding up?"
"At the floor where the weapon is." came the reply, "Almost made it there, but they've set up traps that I'm currently trying to disarm at the moment."
"Careful. Toru's ready for you. Given she's invisible, she could be anywhere." Sora warned as he made sure the tape was all around Mashirao, before giving him a reassuring grin, before heading off to where Mezo was going, "I'm coming after you. Let me know when you're at the weapon. I'll be there for backup in case you need it."
"Got it." Mezo looked around, using his limbs to make ears to decipher any sounds Hakugure might make. Given he was dealing with somebody invisible, he had no need for his eyes.
Or so he thought.
(Play: KH BBS OST - Makaukau?)
Suddenly, he felt something grab hold of his neck, and a weight dropped onto him, and he started to struggle as he felt the grip tighten slightly. Toru had caught him from above without a sound, and it was paying off. Shoji tried to shake his body further to try and throw Toru off, but she was already wrapping capture tape around his body. He managed to throw her off by spreading his limbs out on all sides, but Toru was ready for that, and in a matter of seconds after she touched the ground, Mezo was completely wrapped in tape.
"Whoopie! Captured!" Toru cheered, "Now all that's left is Nakajima-kun!"
Mezo sighed, admitting his defeat, "You were good. I could hear you moving, but you didn't strike until I was right where you wanted me."
"Uh-huh!" she grinned, though Mezo couldn't see it, "Those traps were simply to lead you here, so I could literally get the drop on you, Shoji-kun!"
"You did a good job with it. Where do you wish for me to go now that I'm captured?"
"Next to the bomb, please," Hagakure told him upon realizing Mezo needed to be moved.
Toru helped Shoji up and moved him to the payload, before climbing up another pillar and holding on to the remaining capture tape, waiting for her next unsuspecting victim.
(Silence)
Sora finally managed to get to the room with the weapon, and found Mezo captured and strapped to it.
"Mezo! Hang on!" Sora shouted, before running over to his teammate.
"Nakajima-san, look out!"
(Play: KH 1.5 Remix OST - To Our Surprise)
Sora immediately sees capture tape rolling around him, and quickly reacts by summoning his blade in reverse grip, spinning around himself to cut through the tape before it gets to him. He turned around to find the roll on the floor. Rats. This would be tough.
He looked around frantically to find any signs of movement, but found none. He felt somebody tap his shoulder, and he turned around to see nothing, before he felt his hood being pulled over and his AR Device snatched from his head. He tried reaching it, but Toru flung it away and got out of reach. She also managed to snatch the tape on Sora's belt, unrolling it in an attempt to capture Sora with it.
But he wasn't gonna go down easy. Reacting as soon as she took the tape, Sora leapt into the air, a light-blue aura and snowflakes coming from his free hand.
"Blizzard!" Sora called out, summoning an ice shard that made contact with the ground, expanding and becoming an ice crystal that sent snowflakes in the air, some landing on Hagakure. Not much, but enough for the Key Bearer to locate her. Using Flowmotion, he managed to grasp her wrist that had the capture tape, and attempted to reach for the tape before Toru grabbed it in her other hand. She kicked Sora in the leg, causing him to lose his grip, but he pivoted on his right foot and grabbed her other arm, forcing her to drop the tape.
But she managed to kick it away before Sora could crouch down and grab it, before planting another foot onto Sora's face, knocking him back. Sora rubbed his head before noticing Toru make one last dash towards the tape. Ignoring the sting of his face from her kick, he summoned his Keyblade, before casting Blizzard again, but this time, the ice shard left a small trail that Sora leapt on and slid on to catch up to Toru at breakneck speed.
Toru saw the shard and ducked to avoid it, but was too slow to recognize and react to Sora, as he snatched the tape and began to unravel it all around her. She tried to move out of range, but she didn't account for Sora to amp up his speed. In a flash of blue and white, Toru was encased in the capture tape like a mummy. A loose end of the tape was grabbed by Sora as he caught her in the air before landing and placing a hand on the weapon.
"That ends that." Sora said.
(Play: KH Union Cross OST - Game Central Station)
"And with that, the Hero Team WIIINS!" All Might declared proudly.
"Alright!" Sora cheered.
"Aww, man." Toru groaned, "We lost again!"
"But look on the bright side. You guys did so much better," Sora reassured her, "Almost got me a couple times back there. Also pretty smart to knock off my headset too."
Toru considered this, before letting out a smile, "I guess we did. It was better than getting frozen and feeling like going through boiling water afterwards."
Sora nodded assuringly. He went over to cut the tape off Mezo with his Keyblade, but as he went over to Toru, he paused a bit.
"What's wrong?" Hagakure asked him.
"Uh… you know where you put your clothing at?" Sora asked while looking away slightly.
"O-oh." Toru got the message, "J-Just cut me loose and look away once you've done that. I-I can get the tape off myself."
"Sounds good. Sorry."
"N-No problem, Nakajima-kun."
"It's okay to call me by my first name, Toru."
"Oh! Alright, Sora-kun."
Sora chucked with innocence, unaware of Toru's bashfulness. He signaled for his teammate to go on ahead. He obliged with a slightly confused look, and Sora cut the cape slightly, grabbed his AR Device, and turned and followed Mezo towards where Mashirao was, not looking back to give Toru some privacy.
When he arrived, Mezo had already undone Ojiro's restraints.
"Shoji-san told me about your fight with Hagakure-san." Ojiro told Sora as the latter put on his headset.
"Okay. And?" Sora asked.
"Be honest." Mashirao looked at him, "I was told she managed to get out of your grip. But I think you let go on purpose. Your grip is really strong, and there's no way she could've gotten outta it that easily. So…" he walked up to him with a questioning tone, "Did you?"
"May~be." Sora said while placing his hands behind his head.
"You purposely let your fight with her drag on?" Mezo asked.
"Don't get me wrong. I wasn't toying with any of you." Sora explained, "You guys were all looking down in the dumps after the previous match with Shoto, and my words of encouragement earlier could only do so much. So I made it my personal duty to make sure you guys didn't feel like you were fodder compared to the others. You guys are wonderful contenders, and I know you'll be great Pro Heroes too, so I wanted to show you guys that."
"So you purposely held back, letting us get a few shots and boosting our confidence," Ojiro simplified.
"While having faith that I'd deal with getting the payload alone," Shoji finished.
"Uh-huh." Sora nodded, "And look at that. You two plus Toru played more important parts unlike last time, and you guys nailed it."
Mashirao smiled again and Mezo closed his eyes.
"You are a very strange person, Nakajima-san." the tail-bearing Hero-in-Training said.
"In a good way?" Sora asked.
"A good way."
"That's great. And Mashirao," Sora told him, "It's fine to call me by my first name. I don't regularly use my surname often anyways. Same with you, Mezo."
"Gonna be a hard habit to break." Mezo noted.
"Culture, am I right?" Sora jokes.
"You can say that."
Sora laughed joyfully, a laughter that the other two joined in with afterwards as they went to the entrance to the building they were stationed in. They waited for Toru, and when she arrived, the four walked back to the Monetary Room, all of them content with what they had done, with Sora whistling a cheerful tune to make the mood lighter.
(Play: KH 3 OST - Shipmaster's Shanty)
The four of them arrived back with bright smiles, much to their classmates' surprise.
"Whoa. That's a first." Hanta said.
"How are you all so happy? Especially after you guys lost the firs-" Mineta began, before being slapped by Tsuyu's tongue to shut him up.
"Magic," Sora grinned cheerfully, leaving some of his classmates baffled.
"Well done, either way, for the four of you." All Might said to them, "The MVP this time around was Hagakure-shoujo."
Sora smiled proudly, despite not getting the MVP. He was happy for his invisible classmate, who was slightly shaking from the shock.
"Anybody like to explain why?" All Might asked, and immediately Momo's hand shot up as she explained in detail once again.
Sora excelled in the basics, but he let his guard down a few times, especially in his bouts with Mashirao and Toru. Mezo followed orders, but was reckless in disarming the traps and letting his own guard down. Mashirao also made the same mistake Sora did. Toru was simply acting the way any villain would, just like Tenya. Heroes won but had some issues with this, and Villains had issues with yada yada yada. Sora spaced out as she continued her evaluation and critique, at least until she was done.
And once she did, All Might said, "Well done! Full marks all around, shounens and shoujos! The only major injury was caused by Midoriya-shounen. Excellent work!"
"It's nice to hear words of encouragement, especially after Homeroom, kero." Asui said, "Aizawa-sensei was kind of a buzzkill."
Everyone nodded, while Sora noticed All Might was slightly slouching.
(Silence)
"I'm happy to bring such positivity to my class!" All Might smiled, "That will be all for now, students. I should check on Midoriya-shounen, now. Watch a Hero exit… like he has SOMEPLACE TO BEEEE!"
With that statement, he rushed off in a cloud of smoke.
"Wow. THAT is a Hero." Denki replied.
"Never gonna be able to run that fast. Bummer." Mashirao replied.
"Awesome." Mineta said.
Sora simply smiled. All Might was very passionate about what he did, and Sora had no arguments there. However, he was a bit concerned for Izuku. He mentally thanked All Might for going to check up on him, and he hustled after his classmates to get to Afternoon classes.
(Play: MHA OST - Lunch Song)
Afternoon classes were similar to the morning ones, with Government, Science, Geometry, and Economics. Thankfully, Sora was able to keep up with them, especially Geometry, which was a tad bit easier than the entirety of math in his opinion. He also made it worth that he get enough notes and an extra sheet of work for Izuku's sake as he was still recovering in the infirmary by the end of those classes.
Soon, school had once again ended. Sora wanted to go see Izuku, but he had a date with somebody at the Support Course, and he was going to find out who. Moments later, he found himself at the metal door once again. The door opened to reveal Power Loader.
"Heya, Nakajima-san," Power Loader greeted.
"Hi, Power Loader-sensei. Glad to see there's no explosion this time," Sora jokes, before his expression turns to a formal one, "Jokes aside, I'm here to see somebody."
"See who?"
"That's the mystery. They just told me to meet them here through this note in my case," Sora presented it to Power Loader, and after a few seconds, he gave it back to Sora.
(Silence)
"I think I know who's asking for you. He's over at the back of the room, just past Hatsume-san," Power Loader pointed past a girl Sora had seen before. She was the one who apparently made the explosion the day before.
"You seem less than happy to even talk about him," Sora noted, "What happened?"
"He's another Developer like me. Only issue is that he's stingy bout his payment and property. Not always a great guy to work with." Power Loader explained to Sora, "Said he was gonna leave and go elsewhere a month ago, but something changed his mind, so now we're stuck with him. Gotta wonder why he stayed."
"Hmm…" Sora hummed, slightly worried about who he was going to deal with. He went over to where Power Loader told him to go, but he couldn't see anybody.
Weird.
"Kupo, kupo."
(Play: Kingdom Hearts Concert - First Breath - Gearing Up)
That voice was unmistakable. He looked around again.
"Down here, kupo."
Sora looked down to find the source of the voice that was speaking in English. There was no doubt about it. A big round nose. A puffy red antenna on its head; white fur; tiny ears; small purple bat wings. It was a creature that Sora had met many times on his adventures, always there to lend any items Sora needed… for the right price, that is.
"You're… you're a Moogle!" Sora said surprised.
"That I am, kupo!" said the Moogle in question, before it floated up to Sora's face, "I'm surprised to see you here, of all places, though, kupo." it whispered in Sora's ear.
"Me too." Sora whispered back, "But how are you here?"
"Sheesh, I thought you'd realized by now, kupo! Don't you know we set up shop everywhere we go, kupo?" the Moogle said in a quiet voice so they weren't overheard, "It would be surprising for there not to be a Moogle around these parts, kupo."
"Fair enough,"
"But I have to ask, kupo. What brings our number 1 customer around this neck of the woods all by yourself, kupo? Don't you normally have your friends with you, kupo?"
Sora scratched his cheek in embarrassment, "It's uh… it's a long story."
"I see, kupo. You're keeping secrets, kupo." the Moogle deduced, "Fine. I won't pry."
"I'm surprised you've called me here, though,"
"I just wanted to see if it was you, kupo. You've got yourself a reputation among us Moogles, kupo." said the Moogle, "Not to mention that I'm the only one here that actually knows how most of your stuff works, kupo. Business wasn't doing well here, honestly, kupo. Doesn't help that I haven't found out how to make mine and their materials compatible yet, kupo. Was about to leave town until you suddenly showed up outta the blue, kupo. So, I decided to apply here as a Licensed Developer, kupo, in case you needed assistance from yours truly, kupo-po."
"Wow… thanks for that," Sora said, "But… how am I gonna pay for your stuff, though? Munny doesn't exactly work as proper currency here."
"Aw, shucks, kupo. I'm glad you at least care about that, kupo." the Moogle scratched the fur on its head, "There's no need to worry about it though, kupo. I'm already covered for helping the other kids here, kupo. And like I said earlier, you've well known among our folk, and you're the biggest spender of all the customers we've seen, kupo. All those prize postcards you've sent us have become a big pile of little papers in one of our storage rooms, kupo. Not to mention that you've gotten a whole lot of recipes for us to use to synthesize new items, kupo. So," the Moogle cleared their throat, "On behalf of all the Moogles around and about, I'll give ya this freebee, kupo. All items you request from here on out are free of charge when you're with me, kupo."
"Wow! Really?" Sora said shocked, "You're way too kind. Thank you."
"Least I can do for you, kupo. At least now I have a reason to stay here, kupo," the Moogle said, before glaring, "Just don't let that freebee get to your head, kupo."
"I don't plan on it." Sora nodded. He wasn't that selfish to ask for many items at once all for himself. He still kinda felt a little spoiled at the Moogle's offer, but he wasn't stopping him. If this was what his heart wanted to do, then he had no arguments.
(Play: MHA OST - Among Kosei)
Power Loader walked up to the two otherworldly beings in front of him, "Seems like you two know each other well, Mogway-san." he said in Japanese.
"Mogway?" Sora asked, before looking at the Moogle, "That's your name?"
"It is, kupo." Mogway said matter-of-factly, before turning to Power Loader, "We do know each other a bit, kupo. Sora volunteered to test our company's Support Items this past year, kupo. But he stopped a bit to prep for U.A. kupo."
"Do you always have to say 'kupo' at the end of each sentence?" Power Loader asked.
"You get used to it over time, Power Loader-sensei." Sora reassured him.
Unfortunately, Mogway's history with Sora had caught Hatsume's attention, before she bolted up to the three, "He helped test your Support Items?! That makes him the perfect person to help test out my babies!"
"W-Wait, what?! Babies?!" Sora exclaimed, before Hatsume began to feel him up. Literally. Her hands were already touching Sora's body, which made him very uncomfortable.
"Hey, kupo! I got dibs on him when I got his costume, kupo!" Mogway shouted, grabbing a lock of her hair and pulling, to no avail. Sora was grateful that the Moogle was trying in some way to help his predicament, even if it wasn't doing much.
"Hey, hey, lock it down, both of you!" Power Loader pried Mei off of Sora, and Mogway off of Mei, "I can't believe this. You two met up yesterday and you're already at each other's throats. Sorry about that, Nakajima-san."
"No worries, Power Loader-sensei, and please, just call me by my first name. No need for the last name formality with me." Sora told him, "Though honestly, I really hope I didn't start anything."
"I think you did."
"Oh boy…"
"Thanks for stopping by, anyways, Sora,"
"No problem." Sora gave him a thumbs up as he walked away, but not before hearing some more words.
"I call dibs on his next request!"
"No way, kupo! His stuff's mine to fix, kupo!"
"For Pete's sake, you can't call dibs on a person!"
For the health of his eardrums, Sora closed the door before the argument became something worse. He sighed in relief as it went shut.
So a Moogle was here. That was a relief. Now he could restock on some items when he had the chance. Maybe even better… he could possibly repair some of them. But for now, he's planning on going back to the classroom to check up on Izuku.
(Play MHA OST - Bright and Cheerful)
Turns out his friend was doing just fine. As Sora got to his classroom, he saw Izuku surrounded by most of their classmates, trying his very best to keep up with their individual chatter towards him. Seems like Izuku's performance impressed many of them.
Sora simply passed by, watching Izuku stammer a bit as their classmates bombarded him with questions. Izuku turned to Sora, silently screaming for his help, but the Key Bearer simply smiled and gave him a thumbs up, mouthing, "good luck." making the green haired boy slouch down in distress.
"So noisy." Tokoyami stated.
"Tokoyami-kun! Stop using the desk like a chair! Get off this instant!" Iida demanded.
"Dude, just chill out." Kyoka said.
"You don't understand." Tenya said, "Our upperclassmen use these desks. I can't just condone disrespectful actions towards them!"
"Still noisy," Fumikage repeated.
"Heh. Quite a crowd we have." Sora muttered with a grin, "This'll be an adventure to remember."
(Silence)
Denki and Ochaco walked into the class, and it seemed that the electro kid was trying to ask her out, but she was quick to run to Izuku upon noticing him, leaving behind a dejected Denki and a really quick answer to his question. She asked Midoriya why he still looked a bit woozy, he said something regarding his stamina, before realizing that Katsuki was not present. When Ochaco told him why, he immediately bolted out the door to find him.
Sora stood up to follow, but found himself surrounded by the same classmates that were badgering Izuku earlier.
(Play: KH MoM OST - Dearly Beloved)
"Heya. You need something?" Sora asked them.
"You're the guy with the Summon Quirk, right?" Hanta asked him.
"The one and only. I'm Sora." Sora smiled, "I do have a last name, but I prefer being called by my first name, if that's okay."
"Fine by me," the black-haired teen said, "I'm Hanta Sero."
"Eijiro Kirishima."
"Mina Ashido!"
"Yuga Aoyama, mon ami." Yuga said this with a very flamboyant tone.
"My name's Mineta!"
"Rikido Sato."
"Tsuyu Asui, but you can call me Tsu-chan." Tsuyu added.
"Fine by me, Tsu." Sora grinned, remembering how Ventus preferred being called Ven by his friends.
"You were so amazing out there, Sora! You and your Quirk!" Ashido praised him, "You ran circles around both Ojiro-kun and Hagakure-chan!"
"Not to mention you gave both a good fight, too." Kirishima added, "That's some manly stuff."
"You didn't break a sweat!"
"What else can you do with your Quirk, Sora?" Mineta asked him
"Yeah, yeah. Tell us, tell us!" Ashido got into Sora's face, "Can you summon other weapons, and shoot out rocks and lightning?"
"How many things can you summon at once?"
"What's it's weakness, kero?"
"Guys, guys, wait a second!" Sora raised his hands, "One at a time. I can't answer all of them at once when they're thrown at me like this!"
But on the inside, Sora was beaming with happiness. Now that Izuku was no longer an outcast, he could at least focus on what he does best and connect with more people. Now he had something better to tell his mom and his friends at Faraway Library.
"Okay, okay." Sora smiled as he asked, "Who's first?"
How do I see Sora?
I see him in some ways similar to Izuku. A positive and cheerful soul who doesn't care for control over others. Underneath the power he has, he is simply a boy who wants to make friends with everyone he meets, though it does make him come off as rude and informal at some times. He's a person who's always there to help in any way he can, and does his best to smile on despite all the things he's been through. He's always been the one to do anything and everything for the sake of his friends and for strangers, asking for nothing in return.
That's how I see the Guardian of Light.
And with that, Chapter 11 is done! Short chapter, to put it lightly. The Battle Trials come to a close, and Sora has met a Moogle by the name of Mogway! Least now he can rest easy with the Moogle here, since he can now restock on the items he doesn't have anymore. As a bonus, he's making more friends again! Nothing awkward can happen now... right?
Onto Reviews!
Dragon-XZero: Yeah, that is true. In this version, Sora does learn Japanese (Thanks to San Fransokyo), but he still has some small hiccups and trouble speaking and reading it. And yeah, the World Order in canon is confusing, especially with that example. Keep in mind this is a KH 3 that's slightly different from the main canon.
Laplase: It could be one... it could be the other... could it possibly be both? Who knows... what ails our hero has yet to be determined.
Wizardwolf 1020: Now that is a great suggestion Wolf. I'll think about it in the coming chapters to come, but like I told Captain Imaginat, don't expect everything you're hoping for to pop up in full.
KHVSFF: Thank you so much for the feedback!
Gamelover41592: Thank you! And yeah, Sora does have the AR Device, or rather, a modified copy of it.
the mysterious Mr.E: To put it in the words of Ansem, "Only a heart that is strong and true can wield the Keyblade." I can't answer that question honestly, for that is up to the Keyblade to decide whether any of Class A is worthy to wield it.
PUBLISH: I agree. Sora's knowledge on darkness wasn't the best back in KH1, thinking the Heartless were the root of the problem every time. Then again, nobody's was back then. And yeah, you can say it was similar to Hans's dark aura.
Engineer4Ever: If that's the case, I hope I can deliver on Shimizu's character!
Guest: Yeah, I wanted to show Sora's lack of knowledge when it comes to technology, so he might have accidentally done something to connect with the earpieces. Who knows. And yeah, nearly all of us cringed or chuckled or laughed when Tenya used his "Villain Voice," and Sora is in the third category, though he does keep it in for a few moments before it bursts like a dam. Thanks for your review and stay safe out there!
Guest: Well, Sora has to catch him doing it first. Without proof, Minoru's off the radar for now.
The OC Maniac: You honor me with your feedback this time round, OC. I agree both you and Dragon-XZero have a point, and I don't take offense to that. Don't worry, though. Sora's Japanese will be on the same level as his English given time, but yeah, thanks to both of you for pointing it out!
What did you think about this chapter? I'm glad if you enjoyed it, and I'm sorry if you didn't and it didn't meet expectations.
Here's a small blooper since this chapter feels smaller than the last two. Enjoy!
Thanks for reading this story, and until our paths cross again!
(Play: Sneaky Snitch (Kevin MacLeod))
Sora pointed to his ear, before cupping it to signal Shoji to create some ears to figure out where the payload was. Shoji did just that, listening to the wall with four ears.
"Well?" Sora whispered.
"The payload's on the 19th floor. Just several floors below ours." Shoji deciphered through his ear-limbs, "I'm hearing more sounds there too, and loud footsteps. More than one."
"So they're both on that floor." Sora simplified, and Shoji nodded.
"Can you use your arms to slow your falls?" he asked.
"Only slightly. Why?"
"I'm gonna jump down. When I tell you, jump down after me."
"What?" Mezo almost shouted, but kept quiet enough to make sure they were undetected. Sora reassured him with a warm smile, summoning his Keyblade, before leaping over the railing.
...
...
...
Several seconds later, a loud, sickening thud was heard as Mezo, along with everyone in the Monitor Room, winced.
"...Ow..."
11/26/2022 Update: Changed Shounen to Shoujo for the girls. Thank you for pointing out my mistake, Engineer4Ever!
