Internships?!
Reiko drifted awake as she heard snickering and laughing, her eyes fluttered open as she stared at Setsuna, her phone in her hands as she took photos of whatever she was laughing about. She finally noticed that the camera was pointed right at her. "W-What..?" She tried to get up but felt herself held down by something, or more appropriately, someone.
She blushed slightly and looked up, seeing Izuku, snoring softly and mumbling in his sleep. She tried to move but the action only caused him to hold her tighter. 'How did this happen?!' Reiko was for once, not composed, she didn't have her mysterious voice, she was just a girl who was flustered because the boy that made her heart skip beats was holding her tremendously close.
The ghost girl wiggled, trying to escape, but again he just pulled her closer, until their faces were centimeters apart, she could feel his breath as she stared into his closed eyes. It made her gulp.
Setsuna grinned as she took one last picture before putting her phone away. "Setsuna, come on, help us put the sleeping bags away." Kendo chastised her. "And let those two sleep." She grumbled.
Shinso took a glance at the red head, for once she had her hair down, and he had to admit, she looked rather nice that way. He shook his head before rolling up his sleeping bag before hanging said head. 'Just do it…' The boy turned to Kendo and with all of bravery made his way over. "Hey.. Kendo.."
The redhead looked up towards him and tilted her head, "Yeah?"
Shinso looked up before looking away and rubbing his neck, "I just wanted to say… thank you… for inviting me and everything. It means a lot." He stole a glance back towards her to see her smile.
"No problem! It's what friends are for." That damn smile….
"Ok.." Shinso mumbled and went back to putting his sleeping bag away.
Tetsu came back, finished throwing out all of the trash from last night. He turned to Izuku and saw that the boy was still holding onto Reiko, he whistled in response, "Man, he's holding onto her like a lifeline."
Pony smiled, "It's cute!" She whispered, not wanting to wake up Izuku.
The greenhead grumbled and mumbled, "I'm gonna be… a hero…" He got out and trailed off back into quiet snoring. That made the group smile and laugh.
Reiko had given up trying to get out and just made herself comfortable, though being here was already quite comfortable in and of itself. She got…closer…laying her head on his chest, she forgot how muscular he was. She could feel how defined his pecs were through his shirt, and she could hear his heartbeat too. It was soft and gentle. She loved all of it. "I could find myself getting used to this.." She muttered with a smile, bringing her arms up and wrapping them around his midsection.
Setsuna smirked. "She's daring!" She whispered to Monoma, "I told you, they are adorable together!"
Monoma admitted with a sigh that she was quite right, though it wasn't anything official yet, "Just don't push them together, let it happen naturally." He advised the shark toothed girl. Surprisingly she nodded along to his advice.
The group of friends helped wrap everything up, throwing all of their trash away and putting all of their sleeping bags away before finally gathering around the two. Reiko blushed as she glared at her friends, Setsuna still smirking like a madwoman. "Do something, will you?" She said.
Komori smiled, "But you two look so comfortable!"Reiko flushed once more and turned away.
"Awww come on, don't be embarrassed Ghosty!" Setsuna said just a tad too loudly.
The noise caused Izuku Midoriya to stir and his eyes flexed in discomfort at the noise as his brain finally told him to get up. His eyes fluttered open, wincing at the brightness of the room as he looked into the gazes of his friends, they were all smiling widely, Setsuna was certainly giddier than usual. The boy blinked in confusion, "Something… on my face..?" He asked tiredly before feeling the weight in his arms.
With a small glance down, Izuku let out a squeak as he gazed at Reiko in his arms, she looked absolutely adorable. Yet, he knew that despite him enjoying this, he couldn't do this, they were just friends. Quickly, and messily, he let her go, backed up, and smacked his head on the wall. "Gah!"
The group winced as Izuku grabbed his head, Reiko got up and helped him massage, "Please do try to be more careful."
"I-I'll try.." Izuku blushed.
They all laughed and helped Izuku up, Pony getting him an ice pack from the fridge.
The entirety of the group went back to the beach to enjoy one more day of fun before they went back to studying. "Hey, Midoriya?" Izuku and the rest of the group turned to Shinso as the boy seemed confused, flipping through the pages that Izuku had given him on the Aim to Pass: American Dream Plan.
"Yeah?" Izuku asked.
Shinso flipped to a certain page, the plan talking about cleaning a beach. "Well here it mentions cleaning a beach, Dagobah…" He looked up as they just arrived, seeing the pristine sands of the beach, not a speck of trash in sight. "Did…. did you do all of this..?" All of them looked at Izuku to see him sheepishly scratching his cheek.
"Maybe…?"
Monoma clapped Izuku's shoulder, going on about how truly amazing he was while Tetsu began shaking him, calling him a manly man, Izuku overloaded from the praise. The rest were in awe, cleaning up an entire beach worth of trash? That was crazy!
"Crazy…" Komori smiled.
"Awesome…!" Setsuna grinned
"Insane…" Kendo sighed.
Everything was back to normal and Izuku couldn't' be happier about that. They chatted to their heart's content, had fun as they drenched each other in more water, even getting Monoma and Shinso to join in more this time, raced out into the distance and back to the beach, and eventually his friends departed as they still had to go to school the next day. And from the sinking feeling in his chest as he went to bed, it was going to be big.
Or well, bigger than it had usually been.
Izuku smiled as he walked onto his train stop, getting on to make his way to UA High. He glanced around, a bystander lifted his head up and stared at Izuku, blinking, before yelling. "HEY, YOU'RE THAT KID FROM THE SPORTS FESTIVAL!" And so the hell storm began. Everyone on the train crowded around Izuku, asking for autographs, pictures, asking if he was single or taken, all of it made Izuku blush as he wasn't used to so much attention. Eventually, the train doors opened and he exploded out with Full Cowling. "Thank you for your support!" He said with a smile before running off.
He blushed, looking like a tomato, not used to all of the people crowding around him. He slowed and stopped using Full Cowling, not wishing to get into any kind of trouble, before a person ran past him, with a yellow raincoat on. Though due to the robotic movements, Izuku made an educated guess, "I-Iida-kun!"
The figure stopped and turned, allowing Izuku to see a neutral face on the robotic boy. "Oh, Midoriya… I didn't recognize you... Did you need something?"
Izuku paused before speaking, "I wanted to say I'm sorry about Ingeniu–"
"It's fine!" Iida yelled, before coughing and pushing his glasses "Everything is fine, though, thank you for your condolences." Before Izuku could say anything else Iida sped off to UA, making the Class B student frown. "There's definitely something wrong…" But he would have to find out another way, unless prodding and prying was his only solution, he'd rather not try that.
Izuku now found himself in his classroom, sitting with a sigh as he enjoyed the familiar location. He was one of the first ones there and he decided to pull out his notebook and get to writing more notes on his quirk, which he had referred to as because there were people that didn't know about One For All, SuperPower.
He finished the rough sketches for his Air Force gauntlets, the name still made him smile, before moving onto the rest of the suit. While he had the same concept as the original, which he was calling Alpha, the new suit, Beta, had been much more defined compared to the last one. Izuku had researched all kinds of things that he had needed to prevent his quirk from breaking his arms. And he had found certain ideas that he hadn't quite translated to any drawings yet, but he would ask his designer, whoever it would be, about them.
He just hoped that, if it turned out to be Hatsume, that she didn't go crazy with it. In the back of his mind he sighed, knowing that the mad scientist was most definitely going to go cravy with whatever he was going to give her to work on.
Though, that left him with one last idea.
"My legs…" Izuku muttered. His mind traveled back to his match against Todoroki. Once his fingers were done and he knew they couldn't handle One For All anymore, he had switched to his legs. And despite the fact that he had overcharged his leg, the limb seemed relatively fine compared to his arms when he had overcharged them, so that begged the question. "Can my legs take more..?" That would make sense…they were larger compared to his arms, more muscle, more power spread evenly throughout…
Tapping a pencil on his desk, Izuku moved and got to writing, "But.. if my legs can take more then… Instead of just using punches I should try using kicks too, that would change a lot of adaptation, a complete change in fighting style would be necessary, but it would be very beneficial." He took a look back and then immediately started sketching, "Big, they need to be held tight onto my legs, and so they can take all the shockwaves from when I kick, rough material for the boots…" He muttered and nodded before adding, "Steel tipped and toed, there has to be a lot of reinforcement on them…"
"Hey prez?" Izuku stopped his musing and looked up to see Kaibara standing there, "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt, but that Todoroki guy is at the door to see you." The representative raised a brow before shooting out of his seat and heading for the doorway, where he saw the son of Endeavor standing there, his bag on his side, clearly showing that he hadn't gone to class yet.
"Is something the matter, Todoroki-kun?" Izuku asked as he stepped outside and then closed the door to the classroom.
Todoroki had pulled out his phone and looked at Izuku before sighing, bringing his cellphone up and handing it to Izuku, the screen displayed a contact screen, the new contact reading "Midoriya" as the blank space for the number remained blank, Izuku looked up to Todoroki with a raised brow "You want my phone number?"
The boy nodded, "Yes."
Izuku obliged, typing his phone number in before handing it back. Todoroki held onto the device with both hands before typing, Izuku's phone in his pocket vibrated and he pulled it out, the basic black phone pinged as a notification popped up, on the screen it read an unknown number as Izuku tapped on it. On the screen read a basic
Unknown: Hello
Izuku smiled and looked back up to Todoroki before typing back.
Midoriya: Hi o/
He grinned as he saw Todoroki perk up, Izuku saved the number and put his phone away, letting out a hand for Todoroki to shake, "So, wanna be friends?"
The half and half boy took Izuku's hand and gave a firm shake. "Yes…"
"AHEM!" They both paused and turned back to see Aizawa standing there, his arms crossed. "I suggest you both get to class." The Erasure hero said. Izuku and Todoroki both nodded and Izuku smiled, "I'll see you around, Todoroki-kun!" He raised a hand for a high five and Todoroki raised a brow and a hand as well, to which Izuku smacked with his own, "High five!" He grinned.
Though Todoroki was even more confused.
Before he could ask any questions Aizawa cleared his throat again and Todoroki moved along, "Bye Midoriya, and… nice hair." He waved as he walked away with Aizawa leading him. Izuku grinned at the compliment as they both turned the corner and returned to class, when he got back in, he saw that most, if not everyone, was there already. He quickly took another seat and paused as his eyes landed on Yanagi.
His mind went back to yesterday morning and a blush crept its way onto Izuku's face. Just remembering what had happened was enough to make him flushed. He still didn't even know how it happened! 'I mean yeah our sleeping bags were right next to each other….' That was probably a bad idea, well at least he knew for next time.
Setsuna grinned as she looked at what was going on, Izuku's blush, Yanagi's as well, god she loved it so much. Her torso disconnected and floated before a shoulder wrapped around Izuku's head, "We should totally have another sleepover!" Setsuna smiled at the blushing Izuku.
"WELL!" The door slammed open with a harsh thud. "Your next sleepover is gonna have to wait because for the next few weeks you lot will be interning with heroes!" Vlad King yelled as he entered the room. He grinned as all of his students quieted down, Izuku and Setsuna were both intrigued and moved to their seats rather quickly. "Alright, good!" He made his way to the podium, "During the Sports Festival heroes from all over Japan scouted you all to see who they would want to take in as interns!" He pressed a button and a ranking showed up on the board behind him.
Izuku gulped as he was at the top, a solid 4692 sitting at the top. "This is just our class. However, in both A and B combined, Midoriya gained the most offers." Kan commented with his usual gruffness, it made Izuku blush. People wanted him at their agencies! Though, he noticed that the rest of the class didn't have quite as many. Even the next one, Shiozaki, had barely 256 offers.
"That's the difference…" Izuku heard the class mutter around him, "With first place!"
Kan smiled as Izuku blushed, hiding his head in his notebook. "Yes! You'll see the difference between the rest of you and first place, but don't worry, we will find all of you a place to intern at!" He yelled before pulling out massive stacks of paper. All of the stacks of paper varied in height. "Alright, now! Allow me to pass these out!" Kan walked around the room, handing everyone a different stack, seeing all of his students either seize up in nervousness or grin in determination.
However in the case of Kodai doing nothing as she held her usual emotionless face.
"These are lists of all the heroes that asked you all to intern with them." The class turned to Izuku's desk, seeing a ginormous stack there. Kan couldn't help but grin in pride, "I want a decision in two days!" He yelled and his class all nodded with a shout of "Yes sensei!"
The man couldn't help but grin as all of his students got to sorting through their papers, looking for the perfect choice, what he didn't expect however was for Midoriya to shoot a hand into the air, it being barely visible from behind the massive stack on his desk. "What is it, Midoriya?" Kan asked with a raise of his eyebrow.
Izuku simply smiled in response as he grabbed the notebook that he was always taking notes in, "Kan-sensei, I was hoping to make some changes to my costume before we leave for internships, so I was wondering if I could go to the support studio during our heroics period or lunch to get those changes in."
Their teacher smiled widely, "HAHA!" The man's laugh shook the entirety of the class, it was even greater than All Might's iconic laugh. "I like that Midoriya! Already improving upon your costume to be a better hero! Yes, you can go to the support studio." Kan crossed his huge arms and smiled in pride.
Smiling with a wide berth, Izuku immediately got back to sorting through his picks. Taking out all of the lower ranking heroes, which thankfully the papers were organized by hero rankings, so Izuku didn't have to do that himself. It's not that he didn't think lower ranked heroes weren't capable, they definitely were, but Izuku needed to get as much experience as he could from someone good, someone strong, and hopefully high ranked.
So when throwing out all the lower ranked ones, stumbling upon one without a rank definitely tripped him up. The page had a label at the top in big bold letters. "Underground hero…?" He didn't even know that underground heroes could participate in internships. Looking at the page, and the name labeled as well as the picture of a gruffy man made Izuku pause, "Eraserhead…" Izuku mumbled with wide eyes.
His mind traveled back to the USJ, seeing the Erasure Hero fight with all he had, it had definitely earned Izuku's respect and awe. All Might's successor decided that he'd keep that page for consideration. The rest of 1-B went throughout sorting their choices as well.
Tetsu grinned and slammed a hand down on the table, "I'm going with Fourth Kind!"
Izuku regarded his steel friend with a smile, "That's a good choice! He'll definitely help you become a better hero!"
Kendo followed Tetsu's example and showed Izuku hers. "I picked Uwabami!"
However, she did not get the reaction she expected. Izuku seemed… confused. "Really…?" He asked with a head tilt and a raised brow before coughing into his hand, "I-I mean… she's a good hero, but she mainly focuses on her modeling career, so I don't think she'd be a good choice for you." He got up and moved to her table, sorting through her stacks of internship offers. "Here look at this one!"
Vlad grinned as his students moved about, Izuku helping some of his friends with picking internships, he felt a bit bad before he yelled, "Alright!" The class locked up and turned to him, "Before you all go to your classes we have something serious to discuss." Okay, now that locked onto their attention. "IT'S TIME TO PICK HERO NAMES!"
"HELL YEAH!" Awase pumped a fist into the air and instinctively dodged under Shiozaki's vine smack, causing Kaibara who was right behind him to get smacked instead. "Fuck!" Manga's head turned into an exclamation point in his excitement and the rest of the class cheered.
Vlad King grinned before coughing, "Now now, alright, so–" Glancing at the door, expecting something but getting nothing, Vlad coughed again, "So!" …nothing, "God damn it…" He cleared his throat before yelling, "SOOOO!" With a quick yelp, the door was pushed open and Present Mic strode in. "Mic I swear! Pay attention!"
"Sorry Kan! I was looking at the ratings for my podcast–"
"I don't care!"
Eventually the two teachers stopped bickering before Mic stepped to the front, "Alright Little Listeners!" Present Mic grinned as Kan passed out white board and markers, "Today marks one of the biggest decisions you'll have to make as heroes! Picking your name!" Mic wanted to scream louder but he didn't want to damage anyone's hearing. "If you wanna do a test-run with a name you will be able to change it later! But–!" He pointed at the crowd, "Be careful with what you pick! You get too famous and you'll be stuck with it!"
With a tired sigh, Kan stood next to Mic, arms crossed, "I believe you'll all make good choices, now, let's get started!"
"YEAH!"
"Yeah, no, that's stupid."
"YOU'RE STUPID YOU–" A vine slapped Awase before he finished speaking, his name "Welder" being rejected. With a huff he returned to his seat. Kaibara moved up next with a wide grin, the class waiting for the terrible name he was going to spew out, "I choose, The Twisting Hero: Spiral!"
…
"Boo..!"
"Oh screw you Awase!"
It was… decent. Still a tad boring, but it was acceptable.
Next up was Kamakiri, who with a wide grin slammed his board down, "The Slicing Hero: Jack Mantis!"
Now that one, while a little stupid, was interesting. Izuku entered a thinking pose, muttering aloud, causing everyone to turn to him. "Ah yes, a play on those Jack The Ripper and Praying Mantis, one because he uses blades like the famous murderer but also because of his resemblance to a praying mantis, hmmmmm while the connection to the murderer might be a bit troublesome I believe it could work…"
"Shut up stutter!"
"Ah! SORRY!" Izuku yelled with embarrassment.
Monoma chuckled, despite everything he had told Izuku, the boy still hadn't gotten that stutter under control.
The next couple of names passed in a blur, with Kuroiro proclaiming himself as the Scheming Hero: VantaBlack, which was one of the first actually kinda good one in most of the classes' opinion. Though, Kendo's name "Battle Fist" was a tad lackluster. As was Kodai's "Rule" which was a reference to a ruler, since her quirk dealt with the size of things.
However, "The Mushroom Hero: Shemage!" Komori proclaimed with a wide smile.
That one made Izuku grin, the first amazing one, a reference to a type of mushroom, while also sounding like "She mage" or a female mage, she did make mushrooms pop out of nowhere which was certainly magical, and…
With a bonk on his head, Izuku paused, looking up to see a floating hand which made him turn to Tokage, "You done nerding out Greenie?" He was, but still it was a good name. And all of the class agreed, proclaiming, "SHEMAGE!" loudly, much (or should I say mush) to Komori's embarrassment.
Next was Shiozaki, "Maria" which must have been some sort of reference to the bible that Izuku didn't understand. And then it was Shishida with, "The Beast Hero: Gevaudan!" Izuku would have to do a bit of studying for that reference later, but it would be interesting for sure.
Then there was Shoda with "Mines'' which was a tad boring, or as Kamakiri put it, "That name is almost as ass as you look!" Which earned him a smack from Kendo and a scolding from Shishida for being so rude. After Pony's "Rocketti" there were a string of pretty good ones, Tsuburaba's "Aeris", Tetsu's "Real Steel", "Lizardy" was kind of lackluster though, "Comicman'' was pretty good though, having a classic comic book feel to it.
Next up was the other recommendation student, Juzo Honenuki's "Mudman" was similar to Fukidashi's Comicman. Bondo's "Plamo" was interesting, being a reference to something plastic, Izuku needed to write more notes on Bondo's quirk.
"Now!" Monoma stood up with a lot of bravado, "It is my turn!" Monoma stalked to the front of the room and slammed his board onto the podium, "I am the Phantom Thief!" With a small bow, he added, "Pleasure to make all of your acquaintances." Izuku grinned as the stereotypical character definitely fit Monoma.
And now, it was his turn. Izuku sent one last glance back down to his board before nodding to himself, "Now or never…"
"Alright, Midoriya, your turn!" Vlad King yelled as Izuku shot out of his seat.
The boy squared his shoulders, stood tall, and walked forward with a grin on his face. He had been thinking about it a lot, almost as much as his costume and what kind of hero he wanted to be. But, after what his friends had done for him, and knowing how many other people had gone through things as he did.
How powerless some people have felt.
How weak.
How useless.
Izuku Midoriya decided to be a light for those people, even if people made fun of his name, it's origin was a bad one, but his close friends had helped mold it into something better. Something that he hoped would inspire others, whether it be hope, or happiness. With a wide smile, Izuku placed his board down.
"Woah, you sure about that one Prez?" Awase asked.
"Midoriya, did you misspell your choice…?" Shishida wondered.
They were worried and confused, but some smiled, as Izuku brightly yelled, "I'll be the Unyielding Hero: Deku!" He would never give up, he would always do his best, and show everyone that he could do it, that he could be a hero, and he would inspire as many people as he could.
Present Mic and Vlad King mumbled and glanced at each other in alarm, "Are you sure about this one little listener?"
Izuku regarded his English teacher with a nod, "Yes Yamada-sensei! I've never been so sure of something in my life."
Kan nodded, "Well, if you're absolutely sure about this Midoriya, then alright, we'll allow it."
"Thank you sensei!"
"You're sure you wanna use Deku as your hero name?" Kendo asked with a raised brow as they all got ready for lunch, slinging bags on their shoulders, pushing chairs in, and tidying up their desks.
Izuku nodded, placing his notebook on Superpower in his bright yellow bag, zipping it shut with a smile, "I thought about it a lot last night." He paused and rubbed the back of his neck, "Really, thank you guys a lot, I haven't been able to stop smiling since you guys did that for me."
Yanagi smiled and gave him a nudge, pushing him towards the door, "Tis what friends are for, just like Monoma said all that time ago."
"Yeah!" Tetsu joined in.
Izuku thanked them, "Do you guys mind if I head to the support lab? I need to get some changes done to my costume."
Monoma waved a hand, "Not at all, Midroiya, do you wish for any of us to accompany you?"
"A-Ah no! It's okay! You guys should go and eat!" Izuku protested, after all he didn't want to waste their time, lunch was rather important after all.
"Are you sure, Midoriya?" Komori asked with a head tilt, "We wouldn't mind."
That made their class leader smile, "I know you guys wouldn't mind, that's why I want you guys to go eat, lunch is important, you guys need the energy, I packed lunch today so I'll just eat it in the support studio while I'm talking with whoever is going to handle my costume."
Well they couldn't protest to that, so they agreed, although Yanagi was of course reluctant, but eventually she conceded.
Izuku left class in the opposite direction his friends went and went for the support studio, what he didn't expect to come across was–
"YOUNG MIDORIYA!" An enthusiastic All Might in a terrible suit, though Izuku thought it looked good since he had no fashion sense (however he was still confused since that suit was destroyed at the USJ, unless All Might had multiple suits of the same design? Which was rather unpractical, it was almost like he was a cartoon character in a tv show.)
"A-All Might!" Despite knowing the man for months, Izuku was still excited and surprised every time he showed up. "What are you doing here?"
The man grinned widely before holding up a brown paper bag, "Lunch, wanna join….. Me…?" The man tilted his head, "Young Midoriya what happened to your hair…?"
Izuku smiled at the man's behavior, "My friends cut it during a sleep over the other day."
"OH! HAHA! Well, I think it looks very good on you, my boy!"
The boy's smile just grew more at the compliment, "Thank you All Might! And about lunch, I have to go to the support studio, but we could walk together and eat on the way."
"Very well!"
The two fell into step together and made their way to the support studio, chatting about how they had been doing since the sports festival, before All Might reached into his pocket. "S-So, Young Midoriya…" All Might coughed into a hand and pulled out a small piece of paper. "For your internship, Gran Torino wanted to train you… so, here's his address and–"
"Actually." Izuku cut off his mentor, "I've already decided who I'm going to intern with, All Might." He stated matter factly.
"Oh?" The giant pro regarded his pupil with a raised brow, "And who might that be, Young Midoriya?"
"Eraserhead."
"PFFFT!" All Might deflated in a cloud of smoke, spitting up blood in the middle of the hall in shock "A-A-Aizawa?!" He yelled, the red liquid still in his mouth, seeing his student nod only left him with one question, "W-Why?"
Izuku's brows clenched as he thought, "After the sports festival, while I was revamping my costume, I realized something." He had been too busy trying to copy All Might, only relying on his fists, yet Gran Torino showed him he had more than just that. "I tried emulating you, but I'm not you All Might, and I'll never be you." Toshinori perked up and his eyes widened at his student's words, "I'm going to be my own hero, I have to be my own hero, and I've already made steps towards that with my new gauntlets and boots, but I want Aizawa-sensei's help." He thought back to the USJ, and remembered what Eraserhead said before jumping into the sea of villains.
No one is a one trick pony
"I… I need to find my own way, All Might, my own strength, I've gotten by so far with emulating you and Gran Torino, but I need to find out who I am as a hero." Izuku gazed at his mentor, emerald eyes filled with determination and grit. "So please, allow me to do this." His mouth sat in a firm line and showed his seriousness.
Seriousness that All Might had to commend his student for. With a bow of his head, All Might nodded, "Alright, I wish you the best of luck Young Midoriya." God knows Aizawa wasn't going to go easy on the boy.
"Thank you!"
All Might chuckled and patted the boy on the back, "You're very welcome, Young Midoriya, now let's get you to the support studio."
"Alright!"
They quickly made their way to the support studio and Izuku walked up to the giant metal door that was the entrance to the support studio and knocked, "Hello! Can anyone help me–"
BOOOOOM
"YOUNG MIDORIYA!" All Might yelled as the giant door crushed him.
"DAMN IT HATSUME!" Powerloader yelled as the dust covered the entire hall.
The dust cleared and All Might stood in shock, seeing the door embedded into the wall of the hallway, however an undamaged Izuku standing in the middle. "Y-Young Midoriya…? How are you fine!"
Izuku perked up and turned to his mentor, "O-Oh! I forgot to tell you, I've been applying my quirk in a bunch of different ways leading up to the Sports Festival, they're still pretty experimental though." He rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, "I honestly didn't think that one was going to work, it was only in theory…"
"What was…?" All Might asked dumbfounded.
His student only grinned, "Well, my quirk not only gives me super strength but super speed as well, so I was wondering how fast I would have to move to cut something, I found that if I have a high enough percentage and if I have my hand in a knife position then the wind produced can cut through things!" Izuku said with a chipper smile.
'S-Scary….'
"Anyways!" Izuku turned and made his way into the support studio, "Hello? I was looking for some help on my costume!"
"DID SOMEONE SAY COSTUME!" In a blur, a pinkette covered in dust stood in front of Izuku, looking like she was on something as she shook him by his shoulders. "Let me work on your costume!" She had a crazed smile on her face, and it was one that Izuku matched as he pulled out his notebook that he had his sketches and designs ideas in.
"How do these work?"
Her smile only seemed to grow, "Oh, this is going to be the start of a beautiful partnership!"
Izuku and Small Might left the support studio, one with a giant smile on his face, the other with a horrified expression. "Young man… your mind really is terrifying…" So many ideas on how to improve his quirk usage and yet there was still more that couldn't be incorporated into a suit just yet, "I mean, you wanted to add a blade to your hand!"
His student could only scratch his cheek in embarrassment, "Well, it would have been an improvement on that wind pressure cutting idea I had…" He chuckled in embarrassment, "Plus, don't heroes use blades? I mean I know Eraserhead uses a knife."
"Yes, but he's an underground hero."
Izuku nodded, the difference between daylight heroes and underground ones had become very interesting, he knew he wouldn't be one, but he could learn a lot from them. An entire new world of heroics was at his fingertips and he was going to get as much as he could.
"I know."
They continued their walk until they arrived back at the 1-B homeroom, "Well, thank you for lunch Yagi-sensei, I'll talk to you later, and I'll let you know how my costume turns out!"
"You're very welcome, Young man!" The sickly blond smiled at his pupil, proud of the growth that had happened already in such a short time at UA. He was almost unrecognizable from the small and frail boy he had met a year ago in that alleyway. He couldn't help but feel pride at that, he laid a hand on the boy's shoulder, "Good luck with Aizawa, he'll put you through the ringer, that's for sure."
Izuku couldn't help but smile, "Wouldn't have it any other way!"
"Facing challenges head on! I wouldn't expect anything less from you!" He patted his shoulder before chuckling, "Well, I best be off, after all, while a hero's number one enemy is villains, a teacher's is paperwork."
The two shared a laugh as All Might departed.
The ninth wielder of One For All smiled to himself, knowing that whatever he faced with Aizawa, he would do it with everything he had, and that he would rise to the occasion and become the best hero he could be.
"Alright class!" Kan yelled as they once again entered Training Gym Gamma, his yells shook the giant building and Izuku could only gulp at how strong the man's lungs were. Seriously, how did he not lose his voice all of the time? "Today, we're going to be focusing on applying your quirks in ways previously not thought about, for example if your quirk only works for fights, perhaps focus on mobility."
Tokage whined, stretching and popping her back, "I mean alright teach, but some of us got pretty versatile quirks."
"Then just focus on improving what you can today, things you're lacking in."
"Phooie, okay…"
"Alright! Break!" At Kan's yell, the class dispersed and Izuku found his own corner, after all he had some testing to do.
"Legs…" He muttered to himself, pulling out his phone. There were a couple heroes that had piqued his interest, the Ingenium family, Mirko, Gran Torino, and the youngest Iida himself, Tenya. "The key is balance…" They perfectly knew how to balance the core of their body when they were only on one foot, or even in mid-air in the case of Torino and Mirko.
"Now.. how do I go about doing that…." Well first, he could get used to what Gran Torino did, bounce around, that would help him control his balance. Then after that he could try incorporating kicks, although… "I could ask Kendo for help on the basics."
For now though, parkour basics.
Izuku climbed to the top of one of the small mounds before jumping to a wall. 'Now…how do I do this…?'
Yeah…. He didn't really think it through…
Izuku smacked into the concrete and gasped before sliding down the wall and hitting the ground. "Okay… this is going to take a while." But he wouldn't give up.
He took to the walls over and over, hitting them, sliding down, smacking his face, collapsing to the ground, falling again and again until one time where he jumped off the wall into another, and then fell down that one…
It was gradual but as the period progressed he had improved, just from one piece of stone to the next, adjusting his footing the moment before he landed and jumping to a new area, great leaps that made him feel like he was soaring. Well that was until he slipped and promptly fell around 30 feet.
"MIDORIYA!"
He just heard the yell and scrambles before he saw that he was surrounded by familiar faces. "Are you okay..?" He felt someone grab his back and help him sit up, though he winced.
"Someone, go get Recovery Girl!"
He blinked and felt his back tighten as he tried to get up, "W-What?! N-No I'm okay!"
"Midoriya, stay down." He felt a rough hand press on his chest and he coughed at the pressure, "Ah!"
"I'm *hack* okay…!" He tried but it was unconvincing. Then, Izuku felt soft hands on him, he knew these hands. They had protected him before, and they cut his hair, "Reiko-chan, I-I'm okay..!"
He could almost feel her frown in response, "No you're not, you fell from a considerable height, the only reason you aren't damaged more is because of the durability that your quirk gives you, now please, stay down, so you don't make it worse…please…"
Despite wanting to protest, to convince everyone he was okay, he found himself conceding at her pleads.
"Is he alright?" Komori asked as she kneeled next to Yanagi.
"That was quite a fall…" Shoda muttered.
Izuku grimaced, he did not like being crowded. "Give the guy some space." Setsuna complained, pulling some people away. "He needs it."
"Clearly…" Monoma crouched next to his friend, "What hurts Midoriya?"
He shook his head, "Fine.."
His friend could only sigh, "Clearly not." Izuku Midoriya had made leaps and bounds since getting to UA, he had improved drastically from the quiet and shy boy they had all met. Even so, it was still clear that some scars from his past still haunted him despite all of their best efforts. 'I mean of course just a couple of months at UA wouldn't be enough to get rid of all he's had to go through…' But was it too much to hope that it did?
"Y-YOUNG MIDORIYA!" The sound of soft footsteps entered the gym as a skeleton looking man bursted in, looking distressed and coughing a lot. He was wearing a yellow pinstripe suit and looked scared for his life, "W-Where's Midoriya?!"
Kan looked at him in alarm before hiding his expression, "Mr. Yagi! He's right over here!"
The gaunt man ran over before kneeling next to him, noticing the bruises coating his body from smacking into the wall so many times, "Young Man!" Toshinori gave a disapproving look.
"M-Mr. Yagi!" Izuku stammered.
The skeleton man's face turned serious, his eyes holding a look of anger,"What did I tell you during your months leading up to the entrance exam! Don't push yourself too far! That'll have the opposite effect of what you want!" He scolded the boy like a father would.
Izuku looked away and chuckled. Remembering when he collapsed leading up to the entrance exam. "Oh no! Do NOT play that card right now young man!"
Yanagi coughed and the duo looked at her. "Excuse me, but would you mind explaining who you are?" She remembered this man, from after the USJ, she was in Recovery Girl's office with Izuku, one of the heroine's regulars, he said. Yet, there was still something nagging her about him. His voice was just too familiar. And his suit..
The man stammered, "O-Of course! I'm Toshinori Yagi, I was Young Midoriya's personal trainer leading up to the UA entrance exam."
There was a pause.
And then a scream.
"YOU MADE GREENIE INTO THE BEEFY BOY HE IS?!" Setsuna yelled as she pointed at the thin man, "B-But…"
"I'm so thin…?"
"Yeah…"
The man chuckled a bit, though his smile was disgusting to everyone there, "I lost my stomach and a lung a long time ago, can't really get muscle because of that, but I was quite strong back in my day, as muscular as Young Midoriya here!" He flexed an arm under his suit with a wide grin. "But, it was his hard work that got him to where he is. Though…" He turned back towards his student, "He tends to work himself too much sometimes.."
Izuku managed to sit up despite his friend's protests, "I-I'm okay…"
"I'll be the judge of that!" The gathered students watched as Recovery Girl stumbled over, looking at Midoriya with a lot of ire and slight rage. "What did I expect….. Barely a day back and you're already in trouble…"
"Sorry…" He got out.
That made her smile, "It's alright, honestly you youngster." She extended her lips and kissed him, Izuku glowed for a brief moment before it went away, "You need to learn to be more careful, stop pushing yourself so much."
"But…" Izuku looked down, "I.. need to be as strong as I can."
Those few words struck a chord with a lot of the class, and it made them curious as well. Kan crossed his arms and glanced at Yagi, 'Why does he need to be so strong, All Might…?'
Yagi patted his head and smiled, "You have three years at UA to become the best hero you can, young man, take some time to rest every once and a while."
"A-Ah yes sir!"
Recovery Girl smiled at the interaction, their relationship was the complete opposite of Toshinori and Torino's. "Well, I'll be on my way now, be careful, please. Kan, make sure he doesn't do too much more than this please." The blood hero nodded.
Izuku gave her a small grin, "I'll do my best!" He grinned as she walked away and jumped from his sitting position, landing on his feet, turning around and facing the small mountain that was located in Gym Gamma. "Kan-sensei!" He yelled without looking at the man, "May I try one more time!?"
Yagi sighed, "Is that really wise young man..?"
And Kan grinned, "Do your best! Go for it!"
"Midoriya…" Yanagi groaned as Izuku squared his shoulders. The class stood back as sparks of lightning danced across his skin, some wary and nervous, others excited. "Be careful.."
Izuku looked back and nodded with a wide smile, "You got it, Reiko!"
"I- um.. Thank you.."
Izuku faced the mountain and sucked in a breath, "Full Cowling…" He crouched, the sparks growing in intensity, he could smell the ozone around him, filling the air, the static making his hair stand on its end, the power, the feeling of his body being lighter than usual, the strength that encompassed him. He started at five…then ten…. And finally.. "Fifteen percent!" His body felt like it was creaking, but he could handle it!
"Let's do this!" In an instant, a bunch of air hit his class as he vanished, jumping around the mounds like a rabbit jumping in a field. He was fast, ridiculously so, Kan and Yagi were the only ones that could completely follow him. The rest of the class could barely make him out before a giant green light appeared in the air, "WOOO HOOOOO!" They heard him yell.
Tetsu grinned and crossed his arms, "Nice to see him havin' some fun."
Kendo did the same but sighed, "But he has to be more cautious."
Izuku aimed a finger at the sky and let out a Delaware Smash that sent him careening down, producing a small smoke dust cloud as he landed on both of his feet. He couldn't help but let out a mad smile at the result. "I did it." It was a small step towards where he wanted to get to, but anything counted in his eyes.
Kan could only grin, "That's the way!"
Toshinori couldn't help but smile, 'Just like that!'
"That's my rep right there!"
"Our rep Awase!"
Reiko couldn't help but smile, despite her anxiety, "You're improving at an alarming rate." It was astounding. And..attractive..
The class all gathered on the train station platform nearest to the campus, Izuku looking around for something as his class and class 1-A got ready to head out for their internships. "Midoriya." Vlad King walked up to the boy and looked around, "Where's your costume case? Everyone else has there's but you don't have one." It was true, while everyone else had their normal school bags, a bag of clothes, and their designated hero course costume case, Izuku only had the first two.
Izuku rubbed his neck, "I sent it in for upgrades at the start of the week and I still haven't gotten it back.." He hadn't heard from Hatsume at all since he sent his costume in.
His teacher grumbled but nodded. "Well, your classmates will be leaving, best to say your goodbyes now and go get your uniform after."
"Got it Kan-sensei!" Making his way to another part of the platform, Izuku found his group of friends all sitting around each other. as they talked, trying to get rid of their nerves. They all held their cases with them. No one had made as many improvements as he did, that's why they were ready to go unlike him. The support company had already finished the costume, yet Hatsume's alterations were taking time. "Hey guys."
Monoma perked up and grinned, "Ah! Midoriya… I… where is your costume…?" He asked perplexed.
The group turned to him, seeing the lack of a case.
"Yeah, what's up with that Greenie?"
"Hatsume still hasn't finished, I'll have to head back to school to get it, grab whatever she's finished and use that…" He was a little disappointed but it didn't matter too too much.
Yanagi grumbled, "Well, that's quite unfortunate…"
Izuku smiled at her, "It's okay Reiko-chan." That seemed to alleviate her mood.
Setsuna wiggled her eyebrows, though it was unseen by Izuku and Reiko, before Kendo told her to stop.
"But alright." Izuku grinned and bowed, "Good luck to all of you!" He rose back up and gazed at all of his friends. "Our first experience as true heroes. Do your best guys!"
"You already know I'm gonna knock some heads!" Tetsu yelled, steeling up for a second.
"We'll do our best shroom!"
"That we will… kekeke…"
"Got it Midoriya!" Pony pumped a fist into the air.
Monoma smiled and got up, walking to Izuku, with Reiko right next to him, "Future heroes?" He raised a fist.
Izuku glanced at it, breaking out into a smile bigger than any one All Might had ever made. "Future heroes!" They bumped their fists together.
"FUTURE HEROES!"
And just like that, they were gone, and Izuku was by himself in an empty train platform. Silence cut through the train station as all the hero students disappeared, yet Izuku couldn't help but feel excitement as he got ready to head back to the school to pick up his hero costume. As he was making his way to the exit, he felt a crawl up his skin, a feeling of dread, and a sound, something cutting through the air, clothlike….
In a jump, Izuku activated Full Cowling, jumping over where Aizawa's capture gear passed right where he had been. However, as he was about to land, he felt Full Cowling slip away and he landed in a fighting position without his quirk active.
Eraserhead stepped out of a shadowed part of the station, holding his capture weapon with one hand, his goggles over his head. "Good, you were able to react, but what will you do now without your quirk?"
Izuku gulped, without his quirk he knew there wasn't much he could do, they both knew that. Despite that, despite how outmatched he was, he still raised his fists, ready to fight. "I'm ready for whatever you're going to throw at me, Eraserhead-sensei!"
The Erasure Hero nodded, "Then let's begin!"
End here