Disclaimer: I don't own Boku no Hero Academia

Chapter 13:

"So you guys want me not to say anything?" Zach asked in a low voice, his expression dark as the words came out. "Pretend like I didn't see it was you who beat Stain?"

"We don't like it either," Todoroki started. "But-"

"Fine, I get it," Zach said. He nodded at the three in the hospital room he came to visit. He changed the topic fast while they looked at him in surprise, as they never even got to explain the reasoning for why they could not take credit for beating Stain. "Are you guys all doing alright though?" He asked.

Todoroki frowned and looked away, which made Midoriya and Iida both grin. Zach thought it was a weird reaction to have, then Iida got a more serious tone in his voice as he said, "My left arm suffered some long-term damage, but other than that we are okay."

"Todoroki thinks it's his fault," Midoriya half-whispered with a hand cupped to his mouth. "Because he's the cursed 'Hand-Crusher-" Midoriya barely got it out before he and Iida started laughing again.

"It's not that funny," Todoroki said, sounding annoyed like they had already laughed about this enough.

Zach cracked a small smile, then he just nodded at them. "Well, I'm glad," he said. "I've gotta go though," he said, making them all turn back to him to see him giving them a half, fake smile before turning back for the door. "Still have a few more days of the internship after all," he said, then he walked out and closed the door behind him fast before the others could ask him the questions he knew were on their mind. How can I hide it though? He thought, as he turned and started walking farther through the hospital.

His expression darkened more, filling with regret as he reached a door that his hand hesitantly moved towards. He knocked on it twice and heard a voice, "Come in."

Zach opened the door and he stepped inside. He walked over towards a hospital bed where a muscular man was lying with a few people on his side standing or sitting in chairs. Zach recognized a few people from the agency, but Grappler turned to them and asked if they could have the room for a minute. The others talking to him nodded and headed for the door, a few of them glancing back with looks of regret and sadness on their faces. "Lifebringer. Good to see you here. I heard from a cop friend of mine that you really helped out during-"

"Grappler," Zach began, his voice hoarse.

The man in front of him lowered his smile and he gained a similar dark look to the one Zach had on his face. Zach tried to keep himself from saying anything, from putting his problems on the man in front of him, especially now. He distracted himself, "What about Samurai? Will he be alright?"

"He's a strong one," Grappler said. "He was in the ICU for the night, it looked bad, but I knew he'd pull through. Though, there will be some permanent damage in his left arm." Grappler added it, then saw the boy in front of him scrunch his face up and bite down in mental pain. "You mustn't blame yourself for this. Samurai wouldn't either-"

"But, I could have done something," Zach said, trying hard not to let his voice crack as he looked down to his feet. "I, if I had gone over there, it would have been over in a second. I, could have ended it."

Grappler's eyes widened a bit that the boy thought that. He almost wanted to argue that there would have been nothing the kid could have done, but he saw Zach clenching his right wrist with his left hand so hard, and clenching that right fist even harder. "To do so though, would you have had to kill the villain?" Grappler asked. Zach ground his teeth but nodded his head once. "Then it is a good thing you did not intervene." Zach lifted his head, his eyes huge and shocked. "No heroes were killed during the fight. You would not have saved anyone by stepping in, breaking the rules, and hurting your own soul."

Zach gasped in and his eyes filled with water. "The actions you made last night, were the best actions you could have made as a hero. Helping civilians, and informing the police, you made good judgment calls. Oh come now, don't cry," Grappler gave the kid a smile and said, "You proved yourself out in a terrible situation. You shouldn't regret that."

"But, Grappler," Zach said, his voice coming out cracked and forced as tears spilled out of his eyes. "Your arms," Zach cried, his heart breaking as he stared at the arm-less man on the bed in front of him. He had not gotten a clear answer as to what had happened to the hero, but he imagined a hundred different scenarios. The Nomu he saw fighting all the heroes ripping Grappler's arms off. He saw the black creature pinning Grappler to the ground and taking them one at a time. He saw the Nomu biting one off, then ripping the other into pieces. Grappler had the top part of his left arm, from midway down his bicep up which the doctors had managed to save. "If I had done something, then… you could still be a hero!"

Grappler's eyes lowered and he could not force the smile on his face any longer. He bared his own teeth and would have loved to clench his hands angrily in front of him. His whole life training with those arms. Training all his different fighting techniques using them. Saving people with them. Then he turned to the boy next to him, and he thought while losing the enraged and frustrated look on his face at the kid's bowed head and the tears falling off his chin. I never once, saved people with only my fists, Grappler thought. "You're right, I can't be a hero anymore. But, the government pays a large pension to heroes who get maimed on the job." Zach lifted his head with wide eyes to see the hero lifting the corners of his mouth to smile at him. Zach's eyes grew even wider and his breath caught in his throat as the man continued, "So don't cry for me son. You've done a good job, Sazaki."

Grappler smiled more and he leaned back on the headboard of his bed he was sitting up on. "Titanium would be proud," he said. Zach froze and he stared at Grappler in even more shock while the pro hero chuckled at his expression.

"You knew, my father?" Zach whispered.

"You didn't really think, a single punch could get you an offer, did you?" Grappler asked. His voice got a little more serious, and Zach decided not to mention that two other heroes seemed to think so. He just stared at Grappler as the man turned towards him, "Yes, I knew your father. He was a great hero, someone I looked up to." Grappler then continued in a lower voice, "It was a shame what happened to him. I never let the scandals and the man he became, at the end, change my opinion of the hero I knew as Titanium though. That man, was a wonderful hero."

Zach had his teeth clenched hard, and he wiped his face of the tears before nodding at Grappler. I feel the same, the kid thought.

"I'm sure you know how easy it is for a hero's reputation to be made then," Grappler continued, and Zach nodded his head. "You don't want to be known as a hero who kills people. That's not a hero at all. Our justice system exists for a reason. If heroes go beyond that and start using lethal force all the time, our whole society becomes one run under the iron fist of the law. It would be a pretty authoritative government to allow someone like that to run around, getting paid by them to kill villains." Zach shook his head, knowing he couldn't do it yet closing his eyes because he had to see the result of his inaction if he left them open. "Open your eyes," Grappler said, seeing what Zach was doing.

Zach paused for a few seconds, then he opened them again and stared at Grappler's sides. "Sometimes, there are going to be people you can't save. You'll have to accept that if you become a hero. If you live with guilt and regret every time you fail to save someone, you'll never make it in this field." Zach nodded his head, then he heard something no one had ever told him before, "Sometimes though, you may have to kill a villain." Zach stared at the man in shock, and Grappler continued while looking sternly into his eyes. "It's not something I'd like to say to an aspiring hero in his youth, but as heroes we need to be selfless. If you choose not to involve yourself with a situation because you fear you may have to use your power, then you have lost what it means to be a hero." The boy kept staring at him with wide eyes, and Grappler finished, "It's once you're in the situation itself that you have to make the decision. Avoiding the decision, is the same as looking away. If you can't be a hero without doing that, then you can't be a hero at all."

He finished it on that, and after a few seconds Zach bowed his head. Is that why I ignored the phone call? I was in a situation where I could be a hero without having to use my powers, could I have just wanted that to continue so I chose not to look at my phone? I knew there was a chance of it having something to do with Iida, because I didn't see him outside with Manual. I knew it could have been the Hero Killer, and it wasn't fear of him that stopped me. I didn't want, to have to be in a situation where I'd be forced to make the choice. Zach clenched his eyes shut harder, And when I did get in that situation, I wound up taking off my glove. For a guy who was already on the verge of unconsciousness. Am I really cut out for this? I'm not! Not yet- but, maybe these things, will be stepping stones. Zach opened his eyes slowly and he started steadying his expression. That's what an internship is meant to be, a learning experience. I know what I need to work on now. More than making myself stronger physically, it's my resolve I need to fix. Getting involved even when I don't need to, and still not using my power- unless it becomes an absolute necessity, as Grappler says.

"Alright, now I've got to go over some things with my sidekicks and staff," Grappler began again, and Zach grimaced as he knew there must have been a lot of developments around the agency with Grappler no longer able to be a hero. There were people he knew who would lose their jobs and would not get the same pension plans as Grappler, who would need to find new heroes to work for. He thought about the sidekicks who had just lost their mentor. Zach nodded and turned away from the hero, walking for the door of the room.

He stopped though before he reached the door. His head bowed, and he held his tongue for a moment but could not hold it back. "Did you, really just choose me, because of my dad?" He asked.

"Hmph, when did I say that?" Grappler asked. Zach's head lifted and he turned it to the side to look back at the man sitting on his bed. Grappler grinned at him as he continued, "I said it wasn't just because of the punch, but I wouldn't have just invited some nobody to come intern with me just because I knew of his father. But when I checked you out, and saw that name Sazaki, I figured out who you were. That hair of yours gave it away," he added with a small laugh. "But I wouldn't have known, wouldn't have looked into it, unless I was interested in the first place. So, let's call it half and half," Grappler finished, shrugging his shoulders and trying not to wince at the pain in his right shoulder that had been messed up as well.

Zach nodded at the hero, then he turned and left the room which had the people waiting outside head back in. He walked away, thinking on all Grappler had told him. He was happy I stayed back and did what he said, so why mention the stuff about having to kill sometimes… unless, I guess the internship is over at this point. He figured now is as good a time as any to tell me. I can't believe it, Grappler's really, going to have to retire. And his arms! Zach tried not to let his eyes get wet again so he just got angry instead. What was the League of Villains doing there? Did they have a connection to Stain? Stain killed that Nomu though who was trying… Do they know about Midoriya? They tried taking him. That Nomu, it took other heroes too, but this time it looked like it was running away! Midoriya fought with the leader of the League of Villains, that Shigaraki guy. Does he want revenge? Is Midoriya in danger? Or is he being targeted for another reason? He could be. He could be, in a lot of danger.

The rest of the internship went by slowly, with many trips to the hospital with Grappler's sidekicks. They continued patrolling the streets, but there was very little crime through the whole city after Stain's defeat. They wound up spending most of it helping out the places where the fires and damage had been the worst. They patrolled construction sites, and they searched for any sign of the League of Villains members who were spotted on the roof of a building during the incident. However, since the portal-user was there too, Zach did not expect them to be able to find the villains.

It came time to leave and Zach went to the hospital again, but Grappler was released that same day and when Zach was meant to be leaving, Grappler was about to head out to announce his "retirement" from hero duties. He said that since he was a veteran hero anyway, he could pretend like it was not a forced retirement, even though he did not see a way around it. Zach stayed behind and watched for a little as Grappler told people he could still fight with the parts of him he had left, and Zach really did believe Grappler could take down some villains with his kicks and fighting experience alone, but he could see the people in the crowd pitying the hero who had a smile on his face to show them he was alright, and that the villains had failed.

He left before Grappler was finished, only able to talk to his hero for a short time before the press conference. Zach went to the train station with his things, and Iida came up to him. Iida said he had heard what happened to Grappler, and Zach deflected off the subject as quick as he could. He asked about Iida's arm, but Iida seemed to be at least well enough to travel back home earlier that week. He had returned before the week's end though in order to respect Manual who he had chose for his internship, even if he had betrayed the hero's trust with his reason for coming. There was something Zach wanted to tell Iida after Iida mentioned to him again about keeping Stain a secret. Zach had not even been included among the heroes and students who came across Stain, as without any injuries or involvement he could get away with just arriving with the police. He had not wanted to be included as he was worried his involvement would make the news refocus on him again, and no one argued that point.

Zach had his hand over his pocket and he opened his mouth after telling Iida he wouldn't say a thing since he wanted his being there kept a secret more than anyone. He froze though and Iida looked at him in confusion while Zach's hand tightened on the phone in his pants. No, there's no point in telling him. Zach said something else instead, moving his hand from his phone that had a video on it he had seen the night before and downloaded before it could get removed from the website he saw it on. Stain. He's the worst thing that could have happened to this society.

It had bothered him so much the night before that he had only gotten three hours of sleep, and restless sleep at that. He thought at first that he was relieved because the video had not gotten a glimpse of his face. But the more he rewatched Stain, the more he remembered how much the words got to him the first time he saw it, and even the second and third times he saw it by watching the video, the more he thought about how much it was getting to him. He couldn't say anything to Iida about it though, even when they brought it back up in class on their first day back.

Kaminari said that Stain seemed kind of cool, because he had seen the video too. Zach wondered how many people in the class had seen it, while Iida went on about how he could see how people thought Stain's ideology was cool but that he chose to go down the path of evil. Kaminari might be the only one, but that's still two of us, in a classroom of high school students. In villain circles, it will have spread much faster. What's worse, if even regular people, or people trying to be heroes like Kaminari, can see the Hero Killer as cool, how many villains will try to follow that ideology he had? I wanted to believe that no one would else would be that villainous, that Stain really was as murderous and scary as it gets, but there are others out there. Others, who when they see the video will become inspired. And what's worse, Stain killing that Nomu wasn't a point in the video. It would have at least cast doubt about the conclusion the villains are going to make, like it did with me.

Zach spent his school days after returning from the internship in almost constant worry. He was worried about his Quirk. He was worried about his future. When they did hero basic training, he came in last in the rescue race while distracted, but he did not think it was the distraction that made him last. As everyone stood panting in front of All Might, as he gave them useful hints, congratulated the person who fake-saved him first, Zach stared at the floor thinking about Stain. More specifically, he thought about the League of Villains. All Might gave him a standard 'You need to come up with ways to get here quicker without the use of your Quirk' that he gave to a few others who could not use their Quirk for good mobility. He had thanked All Might for it, but it was half-hearted and he started staring at the hero's back once he had turned away.

After hero basic training towards the end of the day, Zach decided he needed to do it. He looked for All Might and walked right in when he knocked and heard All Might on the other side of one of the teacher's lounges. If he had not been in there, he would have just asked a teacher to tell him where he was. All Might's voice was serious as he said, "Come in." Zach wondered why he was so stern and he opened the door, only for All Might to spit up blood and shoot out of his seat on the couch with wide dark eyes. "Young Sazaki!" He exclaimed in surprise.

"Guess you were, expecting someone else," Zach mentioned apologetically. "Really should ask, who it is first though," he added, since All Might was in his skinny, weak form at the moment.

All Might reached up and wiped some sweat off his face. The fact that it was not Midoriya but a different student made him panic, but this was the one student who his mistake was not a disaster over. Zach closed the door behind him quickly when he entered, but he stayed close to it after speaking to All Might. He took a deep breath while All Might faced him, and then the hero spoke before he could, "I heard you were at the Hosu Incident-"

"All Might, I'm sorry," Zach said, bowing his head to the hero who leaned back in some surprise and a lot of confusion. "The last time we talked, just the two of us, I was out of line." Zach kept his head bowed and clenched his teeth as he thought about how cynical he was when he was just lying on his couch after the Sports Festival. It was easier at the time not to feel anything at all, so he had said things without thinking about the feelings of the people behind the door. Since he had gotten back, he had not had a chance to say it, but he decided before coming back to school during the internship that it was not up to fate to give him the chance. He had to make the move himself. "Get out of here All Might!" "I risked your secret, shouting at you to leave when you had just come to try and help me. It was childish, and stupid," Zach said, "and I'm sorry."

He lifted his head, and he saw All Might start smiling at him which made him straighten up the rest of the way. "I am glad you came back to school," All Might said. "I was afraid after that that you would not, as were the other teachers. I believe your classmates had something to do with making you feel better. They are good friends."

Yeah, let's go with that, Zach thought. The teachers giving my classmates my address, my classmates texting and coming to my place, they may not have been the final thing to get me back but they helped. Jenny, her parents, they really saved me. Everyone here though, and All Might, Zach paused and he got a more hesitant look on his face. "About, the other thing I said," Zach continued, and All Might frowned at him like he did not want the boy to bring it up. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have tried to make you confirm- I just thought it- I tricked you," He finally said. "And for that, I'm also sorry."

All Might frowned more at the young man in front of him, a bead of sweat rolling down his face as he stared at the boy. "I hope you can be the Symbol of Peace, long enough for Midoriya to take your place." "Midoriya told you?" "No, but you just did." "Young Sazaki, I am not upset that you tricked me. But, I must ask how you figured it out."

"I'm sorry," Zach said. "It's just, Bakugo called 'Deku' Quirkless on the first day. And Midoriya calls him 'Kacchan,' and I figure they've known each other for a long time because of those nicknames. And Midoriya isn't the type to lie about it, so Bakugo not knowing didn't make any sense. Then someone once said that his Quirk was like All Might's, and I noticed that you and Midoriya had a strange relationship where you'd ask to talk to him more than the others, or just cared more or something. It's not much to go on, but I figured you were giving him his power once I heard that you were losing your own. Making him the next Symbol of Peace, or something," he added the 'or something,' at the end because he really did not know what he was talking about when he said it to All Might back at his apartment. He would have been more surprised his guess had truth in it if he had not been so out of it at the time.

All Might stared at him with his bottom lip lowered, then he muttered, "You're too perceptive." The hero had sweatdrops sliding down the back of his head, wondering if anyone else would have pieced it together from just that information. Even the other teachers at the school had not noticed yet, or so he hoped. "Also, you're not exactly right, but-"

"You don't have to tell me anything else," Zach said quickly, throwing his hands up and waving his palms at All Might. "I'm sorry I pried, and that's all I really came to say-" Zach spun to grab the door, and he threw it open and then dropped his jaw while All Might did the same behind him.

Midoriya stood there looking in with wide eyes at Zach, then he looked towards All Might in panic from what he had just heard through the door. Zach spun from Midoriya to All Might, then he said, "Um, yeah. Well I've gotta go," he realized why it was All Might had invited the person in without asking. He realized All Might was waiting for Midoriya, and telling from the serious voice All Might had had at the time, he could tell it was going to be about secrets and stuff he did not want to hear any more about. "Sorry," Zach added, glancing at Midoriya as he walked past him.

"Um, um," Midoriya turned to follow after him with his eyes. "D-Don't tell any-"

"I won't," Zach said while spinning around and continuing away backwards. "I promise," he said while looking in Midoriya's eyes. I still don't even really know what I'm talking about, he added to himself while spinning back away. He called me "perceptive," which pretty much confirms it, even though he already did. But I said more this time, so he confirmed that as well? I don't want to play detective, it just happens when I think too much! He cursed himself for making it weird now for the next time he saw Midoriya, because he knew Midoriya was not going to be able to hold back from talking about it with him. And he's going to wind up telling me stuff that I really don't know, he thought. Maybe All Might will tell him to just hold back. I hope so.

Final Exams came for the class faster than anyone had expected. Zach tried to refocus on schoolwork since nothing was coming out of the video as he thought it might. There was no rapid increase in crime, and the League of Villains weren't showing themselves either. Though he had a bad feeling about the reason crime was staying low, where all the villains who were inspired might be going and gathering up their strength, he knew there was nothing he could do until he was a better hero. He had gotten right in the middle of the pack back during midterms, and for finals he heard a few others around him talking about how they needed help, only for Yaoyorozu to offer her help.

He decided he could use it, and along with Ashido, Jirou, Kaminari, Ojiro, and Sero they all went to her house on the weekend to study. There was a training camp over the summer he really wanted to go to after all, but only the students who passed the final exam could go. Zach was stunned as were his classmates by the size of Yaoyorozu's mansion. Her driveway past the main gate alone was so large that they had been unable to see her house past all the trees on the sides of it. It took them a while to reach her house, where the huge ornate front doors opened up for them and Yaoyorozu greeted them before leading the group to the "hall." She left them in there to get the tea, and Zach looked around at the room that had a long table in it and a fireplace but not much else. It's bigger than my apartment, he thought, imagining all the rooms put together would fit in there with room to spare.

Zach had never had trouble with grades in school, getting by with top marks without studying had worked for most of his life even as he had focused more on training than school. The U.A. midterm showed him that he might have to put more effort into the next test, but after all that had happened recently he had forgotten to study much at all. The study session went better than he thought though, with Yaoyorozu helping in every subject that she seemed to be a teacher in from how good she was at it all. He took the test and though it was hard, it was no harder than he expected it to be and figured he would get somewhere near the middle of the pack again. Then came the practical exam, and he was as shocked as the rest of the class to learn that they would be facing the teachers.

His thoughts on how bad it was that they were facing the teachers was countered by his excitement over which teacher he was up against. He had to calm himself down though as did his two partners, as his team wound up being the one put in a group of three because of their odd numbers. As lucky as he thought he was, it was also unlucky and he knew it. The teachers had put students up against teachers they would have a hard time with, and they took into account that he could only do anything from up close. If I could get close to Midnight sensei though, Zach shook the thought from his mind. We need to think about how to run from her. The other two have more long-ranged Quirks, but it'll still be difficult.

Zach tried strategizing with Mineta and Sero beforehand, but none of them were able to come up with a good strategy for getting the cuffs on her. They either had to get a pair of cuffs on their teacher or make it to the exit, and as much as Mineta said getting the cuffs on Midnight should be their priority, Sero and Zach hated that they had to argue and tell him they needed to stay back. The R-Rated Hero was just that powerful in close range, that one breath in while near her and they would lose for sure. Their only other option was getting through the exit gate, but Midnight could just stand in front of it and fill it with her Quirk's knockout-gas power and wait for them to try. If they tried making a bolt for it too while holding their breaths, Zach figured she would attack them, and he doubted they could take down a pro hero quick enough to get through it without breathing.

After hearing Kirishima and Sato failed they got worried, but when Kaminari and Ashido lost too, Zach was getting really anxious. They never did come up with a good plan though. As they walked out on the field in preparation for theirs to start, Zach began, "We should go straight for the gate. I think the longer we're out here, the more of a chance of Midnight taking us down." Sero and Mineta looked at him and nodded, though Mineta's face looked distressed and he was already darting his eyes around to look for Midnight before the exam even started.

"I don't know how long her knockout-gas works for, but if we inhale it we're done for," Zach said. "Maybe we really should split up, then all try going in on different sides-"

"But then I won't be able to use my tape to get you and Mineta out, if she does fill the place with gas-"

A buzzer went off and a voice called out, "Team Mineta, Sazaki, Sero, practical exam. Ready go."

"Guys, this really is unfair," Mineta complained. "How are we supposed to get past her? There's no way!"

"We just have to try," Zach said, and he started moving in the direction of the gate.

Sero and Mineta started moving too, but they were being careful. Their testing area was covered in large rocks, any one of which Midnight could be hiding behind. As Zach was looking around while walking towards the gate, he spotted movement behind one of the rocks near him. Imagination, or- he saw a boy walking near that rock and he called out, "Mineta! Back up!"

Mineta spun to him nervously, then he looked back with wide eyes at the woman leaning out from behind the rock with a sadistic smirk on her face. Sero ran forward and bent his elbow towards Mineta, shooting some tape over and pulling Mineta up and out of the way. Zach ran towards Sero though as he did that, holding his breath and pushing right as Midnight come up to his back. Mineta yelled down from above in panic as he was thrown high into the air. She was reaching for his mask, Zach thought while ducking down under Midnight's arms, Sero falling away in front of him at the hard shove Zach gave him. That means her power is definitely reliant on us ingesting it. I thought it could have been through the skin too, but this is good.

Zach kept running after pushing Sero, trying to get out of the gas cloud that surrounded them at the moment of his push. Sero scrambled back up to his feet and he saw Zach holding his breath as he ran away. Sero held his breath too, in case the air filter on his mask did not filter out the gas. He stood up and started running after Zach, but he gasped as he felt arms grab him by his and pull him backwards. He let out his breath while his cheeks turned red as his felt his back bump into something soft, then his eyes went wide and he held his breath again as his mask opened up.

Gotta get away! Sero thought with wide eyes. He started shaking his head and looking desperately at the boy running back towards him though with his cheeks puffed out.

Before she knocks him out, Zach thought, lifting up the cuffs at his side. I need to- Midnight let go of Sero and pushed him forward before Zach reached. Sero getting pushed forward fast was not what either of them expected, and Sero slammed into Zach right before Zach was going to start his fake to the right only to dodge left and dive for Midnight's ankles. Sero hitting Zach made the boy who was pushed gasp, and Zach almost did the same but managed to hold his breath even as he hit the ground with Sero on top of him. He lifted his head and pushed Sero off, his face turning red and then purple as it tried going blue at the sight of the sadistic woman standing over him and looking down with a huge smirk.

"Ooh! Squirm more!" Midnight said, and Zach started pushing his hands down on the floor at his sides to scramble backwards. She walked towards him though as fast as he was pushing back, and he turned to try and get up.

"Ah," he gasped as a whip cracked and wrapped around his leg, tripping him back to the floor. He realized what he did and tried holding his breath though, but after letting out his voice he needed to breathe in now and he took in a huge gasp of air.

The next thing he knew, he was waking up to see Mineta bragging to Sero about how he won the exam for them. Zach's jaw dropped and he ran over, asking if Mineta was serious. Mineta bragged about how he had used his pop-off purple balls on his head to stick Midnight's whip to a rock and the handle of it to her hand, preventing her from chasing him. Then he even dragged both of them through the gate with him to top it off. Zach felt relieved, while at the same time frustrated as Mineta bragged. In the end, I didn't do anything. I had to be saved…

"Unfortunately, there are those who did not pass the final exams. Accordingly, for the training camp in the woods… everyone's going!"

Zach looked to his right with a small smile as Kaminari shot his bowed head up looking like he was about to cry tears of joy. That's great, Zach thought, relaxing a little too. I was actually planning on telling Aizawa sensei that I didn't deserve to go-

"We can go too?" Kirishima shouted.

"Really?" Ashido had tears in her eyes as she asked.

"Yeah. Some failed, but no one failed the written exam. In the practical, Kirishima, Kaminari, Ashido, Sato, Sero, and Sazaki all failed."

Guess I didn't need to say anything, Zach thought with sweat rolling down both sides of his face as he slunk down into his chair.

Sero put a hand over his face, "I knew it. Just because Mineta passed didn't mean we scored high enough." He looked over towards Zach who looked his way too, and they both sighed while looking back down at their desks.

Aizawa went on about how the teachers actually all left ways for the students to win, then he continued on, "In the first place, the training camp in the woods is one to increase strength. So those who failed need it the most. They need to get stronger. It was a rational falsehood!"

The four who had thought they were going to get left behind started cheering, while Iida complained about how the school would lose their trust for all these "rational deceptions."

Aizawa agreed, then his voice got darker as he said it was not all lies. "Failure is failure." Zach lifted his gaze from his desk nervously. Aizawa was looking at the students who failed, and he said, "We have prepared a separate time for extra lessons for you lot. Frankly, it will be harder than the extra lessons you'd get if you stayed at school."

Zach bowed his head as did the others, but he thought while looking down, This won't be that bad. We get to go to the camp anyway, and I could use the extra lessons. What did I do wrong against Midnight? Mineta managed to pass… Mineta! Should I have accepted Sero was lost and just tried making a mad dash for the gate? Would she have caught me anyway if I did? What about tactically retreating like Mineta? Would she have even come after us if both had run off? He rose a hand and rubbed the side of his head with it. In the end, I was just outmatched. As usual.

When class ended, everyone was talking about the training camp and how they needed to buy things to prepare for it. Zach didn't own a bathing suit so he chimed in too, and the class decided to go to the mall together after Hagakure suggested it.

The next day, everyone got to the mall and they stuck together for a short time at first. It was the first time they had all gone out together as a class, and Zach was enjoying the trip. A mall? I've never really gone to one, he thought while he looked around in awe at all the stores. I just buy what I need at the local stores. Malls have a totally different vibe, huh?

"Hey look! Aren't those U.A. students?" Zach heard as he was walking towards a group of his classmates all bunched up as they talked about the different things they wanted to buy. He was walking towards them with Kaminari, and they both turned right to see a couple of girls who looked around their age or maybe a little older pointing towards their group. They looked back and spotted two others they recognized, but as Kaminari started to grin at the recognition from some cute girls, both of them opened their eyes wide and then turned away fast as the boy was looking back towards them.

Zach turned away and pretended like he did not notice. Malls are too public. I haven't really, gone anywhere besides school, and Hosu City where I wouldn't have to see those people again, or at least that's what I told myself when they'd stare- "Come on," Kaminari said, grabbing Zach by the arm and pulling towards the group with a smile on his face. "I don't have any outdoorsy shoes, so I need a pair of those," he mentioned loudly as he heard the others discussing what they needed.

"Oh, me too! Me too!" Hagakure called out, moving over towards them.

"I need, a bathing suit," Zach began. He said it and noticed a lot of his classmates look at him while he spoke. None of them looked at him the same way those two cute girls just did though. Even the ones who did, right after USJ. I feel like, I don't need the approval of everyone else yet. Just my classmates seeing me normally is enough to make them forget. Maybe, once I'm a hero, things will be the same with everyone else!

Kirishima suggested they break off and go to different stores since they all seemed to have different things they wanted to buy. The group agreed and decided they would meet back up at three o'clock. Zach wound up going with Hagakure and Kaminari since he figured he could get a bathing suit at a clothing store, as long as it was not a shoe-only store.

"I feel bad for you two though, Aizawa made the extra lessons sound really scary," Hagakure said while the three of them were walking down a line of stores to try and find a good one.

Kaminari bowed his head in the middle of the three and let out an exasperated sigh. "Yeah," he said, a worried look on his face. He snapped his head back up a second later looking chipper and added, "But that I get to go at all has me thankful. I was looking forward to this more than anyone!"

"Haha, I'm looking forward to it too," Zach said. "I didn't know how much fun hanging out with everyone outside of class would be."

The other two looked left towards him and saw Zach smiling wide as he continued in a soft voice, "I bet everyone gets even closer during the training camp."

"Yeah, this is fun, isn't it?" Kaminari said, leaning back and putting his hands behind his head. "I've started losing touch with my friends from middle school. U.A.'s got us so busy all the time, you know?" Zach and Hagakure nodded as they felt the same ways. "But in just one semester I feel like I've already made a bunch of new friends."

"Me too!" Hagakure called out, punching a fist up which the other two could kind of figure out even though she was wearing a tank top so she did not have sleeves to give away her movements.

Kaminari pointed out a shop near them that had a lot of clothes in it but also shoes right at the entrance on display. As they started heading over, Kaminari continued, "I'm just glad the semester's over. It was fun but now we've finally got some time away from school." Zach thought he'd smile at the sound of that, but it just made him furrow his brow considering their last conversation. "Wouldn't it be cool if we threw an end of the year party?" Kaminari said, laughing about it as they headed into the store.

"A party?" Zach asked in surprise.

Hagakure laughed and then crossed her arms in front of her, "My parents would never let me have a party." As she finished saying it, she tried closing her mouth fast and then turned her head towards Zach. She expected to see a dark look on his face or something, but he did not, and he did not notice she was staring thanks to her invisibility so she was able to examine his face closer.

"Yeah, guess that's kind of a deal-breaker," Kaminari said, giving up on the idea as quick as it came.

"We could have one at my house," Zach admitted. They were just talking about how they did not hang out outside of school a lot, and then he felt kind of down when he thought about how they'd have a long break between now and the training camp. He turned to the two next to him and continued, "My aunt who I live with is really chill with me having people over."

The other two were surprised, then Kaminari pulled his elbows in at his sides and called out, "Oh yeah!" He looked excited, but then he turned towards Zach and said, "Is that lady really cool with it though?" He thought back to the hospital when he and Yaoyorozu went to visit Zach, and he shivered before mentioning, "She looked really strict."

"It's fine," Zach said. Aunt Maye probably would be really against it, but it's not like she'd ever find out.

"Hmm, I don't know," Hagakure started. The other two turned to her as she walked to their sides, and they stood in a triangle formation with the girl in the middle who neither could tell if she was looking at them or the other. "Even though I said we couldn't do it at my house, I bet my parents wouldn't even let me go to one at someone else's. They'd think we were going to be drinking or something."

Kaminari rubbed the top of his head and hummed, thinking about that himself, while Zach quickly said that he wasn't planning on getting drinks since they were all underage. "Though," Zach continued, lowering his left hand he had waved in front of him while quickly saying he wouldn't get alcohol. "Now that I think about it, there's not much to do at my place anyway. How do you even throw a house party?" He wondered, and the other two grabbed their chins and tilted their heads to the side to think about it.

"Well, I still think it was a good idea," Kaminari said, shrugging his shoulders before looking around for the shoes. "But for now, I need shoes!"

The three of them searched the store for some things to buy. Zach got his pretty quick since he did not spend a lot of time choosing his bathing suit, but he was going to wait for the other two since he did not want to just go off on his own through the mall. While Kaminari and Hagakure were both in line though, Zach heard a commotion behind him. "What's going on?" Kaminari asked, looking past Zach as the black haired boy turned and looked out at some people running past the store with nervous expressions.

"I'll go check it out," Zach offered since he was off the line already. He headed towards the door, but then the speakers turned on, and then Zach heard the sirens in the distance. His heart started racing as he ran out the door of the store, hearing his classmates call after him. He sprinted outside and spun back and forth, as the voice over the speakers announced that they were locking down the mall until the police arrived. What's going on?

Zach spun his head both ways, frantic as he searched for the reason for this panic. He never did locate the source. When he found out, it was at the same time as the rest of his class. Shigaraki Tomura had approached Midoriya in broad daylight, grabbing him with the same hand that had disintegrated Aizawa's elbow during the USJ incident. Everyone in Class 1-A was worried about him, and Midoriya told them what Shigaraki had asked and wanted when the police came and questioned him.

All Might, Zach thought as he listened to Midoriya speak to the cops. I want to ask him, about this. I want to talk to the pro heroes… but it's not like they won't already be thinking about it. But I want to make sure! I want to know, that the heroes realize what's happening. The League of Villains is moving again. That guy showing up here, in the middle of the day no less! Where are the villains Stain should have motivated? What are they waiting for?! Are the heroes really, just waiting for their next move? Is that all they can do? If the League of Villains is still focusing on us, and the heroes are just waiting for something to happen… then aren't we, going to get attacked again? That Nomu targeted Midoriya for a reason. Shigaraki went after Midoriya again today. Do they know about him and All Might, or is the power they share what interests the League? There are too many questions. Not enough answers. Sooner or later, there's going to be an event. The villains will make their move and we won't be ready for it. How long, until that happens? How long, until we have to face them again?

A/N Thanks for reading. Fast-paced chapter this time as there wasn't much I wanted to write about these, and I really just wanted to get to the training camp! Hope you enjoyed anyway though. And leave a review below telling me what you think or predictions for upcoming chapters!