Chapter 5

Ghosts

"Hey, Deku." Izuku jumps to attention from his notes, as usual lost in his own thoughts at the back of the class, already knowing the day's lessons in this dreary middle school, so enrapt by his own analysis that he barely heard the final bell. As expected, he finds Bakugou standing over him, but without his usual scowl. "That training you're doing. It a big enough stomping ground get away with using my quirk?"

"H-Huh?" Izuku covers his mouth and mumbles to himself as he considers it. "I… I suppose, but it also depends on my trainer and who he's sending to substitute today while he's away. I'll need to test him to be sure it's alright for you to join us. E-Even I don't know who's subbing for him today." He sits back. "A few days ago, it was Vlad King and Power Loader, to hand off my new support equipment and make sure I know all the risks of blood-based quirks."

He raises an eyebrow. "Damn, you met Vlad King? Lucky bastard. Still, if that's the grade of people you're getting as subs…" He trails off for a moment, really thinkin about whether to address that. He decides against it and shakes his head. Not here, it'd cause the kind of scene even he doesn't wanna deal with. "Just call him and check, so I know what the hell I'm doing next. It's either that, or the arcade."

"Got it!" He pulls his phone out and sorts through to one of his latest calls, redialing All Might.

He responds in his usual deflated and gentler tone. "Midoriya, this is quite early. Aren't you just getting out of class?"

"Yes sir, but I had a quick question for you. You see, Kacchan is looking to join in on my training today, and I wanted to be sure you thought it was an alright idea, and that your substitute today would be alright with it."

"Well, thank you for calling that in. Hmm, let's see… ah, yes, I recall who's subbing today. Now, you said young Bakugou was also looking to get into UA, right?"

"Driven beyond all reason, sir."

All Might breaks into laughter. "Good, good! Well, I'm sure my replacement today will be eager to meet another upcoming student. He may seem rather stoic, but he puts a lot of faith in his students, and always looks forward to meeting new prospects and testing them. Bakugou seems to be quite the intense young man, so I'm sure he'll handle it just fine, even thrive. I'll give him a call and a warning, and he'll be ready for you both by the time you get there."

"Thanks! Good luck with the rest of your trip, can't wait for you to get back and see my progress!"

"Thank you, Midoriya. And tell your mother I said hello!"

"Of course! And thanks again!" Izuku hangs up and starts packing his bag. "Alright Kacchan, you're cleared to come with! We're headed to Dagobah's beach park."

Katsuki raises an eyebrow. "Dagobah? The one with all the trash?"

Izuku nods. "Part of my training is cleaning the whole place. Everything up off the beach, into the lot, and driven off to be recycled." He finishes packing and slings his bag onto his shoulders. "Works out every muscle due to the variety there, great weight training, endurance, and it's the kind of charity work heroes were founded on. Honestly…" He nervously chuckles. "The first few weeks were kinda hellish, since I was working out a lot of muscles I didn't even know I had."

Katsuki snorts and shakes his head. "Alright, whatever. The training's lame, but I'll get to work with a pro on it, I guess it's something." He pushes himself off the desk he'd been sitting on and marches out. "Let's get moving. Sooner we're there, the better."

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All Might sighs as he pockets his phone and keeps sorting through police records. The desk in front of him is piled high with similar reports, all filed away as useless, inconclusive conjecture. But there's simply too much, transferred from departments all over Japan, some even imported from other countries. A few appearances in Italy and Greece, more in America- largely on the west coast- scattered all over Europe, largely in prime upper-class vacation areas, and many more produced similar reports. It all comes down to the image of one wealthy and powerful person subtly causing havoc with their quirk, then leaving others to take the blame.

He pushes himself back from his desk and sighs deeply, dragging his withered hands over his face. "…. Tsukauichi, we need to compile a full report on this and get it to the Public Safety Commission immediately. Have them spread it to all relevant countries' own governments and have every case involved studied more closely. These men need to be freed."

Tsukauchi raises his head from his own file and snaps it shut. "That's quite a large list of detainees. Won't be quick and easy, and I'm not quite sure how many of them will feel about it. Not to mention, if word about a quirk like that gets out, it could cause panic and a bit of a blame game. We'd need to sign NDAs and set a lot of them into witness protection programs, give them whole new identities, until we can corner Echidna or find some way to test whether someone's really need controlled by her or not."

All Might scratches his chin. "Well, a good deal of these files mention a sense of euphoria when their powers were activated against their will, like a powerful drug trip, followed by a bout of depression. Likely some sort of biochemical effect of her quirk. If we can have departments keep an eye out for anyone new who may have been manipulated by her, we can have a full range of tests done on the next case or two to see if we can isolate a physical trace of the quirk's aftereffects."

Tsukauichi chuckles as he sets his file down. "Sometimes, I forget there's actually a brain beneath all that hair. Dave must have rubbed off on you."

All Might snorts. "Of course he did, the man was my partner for half my career. Now, let's get these names and departments down so we can get these victims slated for testing and release."

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Izuku rolls his shoulder to subtly adjust his freshly-strapped support gear, which Katsuki side-eyes with some apprehension. "That thing seriously stabs you in that vital of a spot every time you use your quirk?"

He nods and shrugs it off. "I mean, it's no different than Vlad King's gear being plugged into his arteries for easy access. And my vessels don't scar easily. Skin does, but my circulatory system heals shut cleanly every time."

"Really? Damn, that's actually kinda sick." He snorts and chuckles softly. "Well, who do ya think will be down here for your training?"

"No idea, honestly." Izuku shrugs. "But we'll find out in a moment." He jogs down the steps and through the mess of garbage as Katsuki paces behind and side-eyes the mess.

"Who the fuck dumps an entire car on a beach?"

"Not sure, young man." His attention is drawn ahead to Izuku silently squealing as he stand before a tall, dark figure in a trench coat, sporting a custom navy and gold helmet baring only his iconic oversized teeth. A U. A. teacher and professional hero known as Ectoplasm. "Quite the conundrum, but for now, at least serves the purpose of adequate weight training, does it not?"

Bakugou develops a feral grin as he steps up. "Well I'll be damned. You of all people are invested enough in this loser to help train him? I thought you'd be up at U.A. teaching the third-years right now."

"Ah, no, I actually don't have any classes today. As for Midoriya, I've heard nothing but good things from Vlad, Power Loader, and Snipe."

He turns glares at Izuku. "Ya never mentioned Snipe."

Izuku throws his hands up defensively. "I-I'm just trying to keep this under wraps and not draw too much attention while I'm training! W-We wouldn't want paparazzi coming here and making a mess of it, r-right?"

He stares for a few moments, but huffs and shrugs it off. "Yeah, anything to keep the vultures away."

"Well…" Ectoplasm clears his throat. "I suppose going into your careers with that state of mind is helpful, not seeking the attention and fame. Eventually, we all learn to hate them that much, unless you're just full of yourself. Learn to treat them well and keep up a good reputation, but avoid them when you can and try not to let them too close to your personal life."

Izuku shudders. "Y-Yeah, my mom would have a heart attack if she opened our front door to find it swamped with reporters."

Katsuki snorts. "Literally. And mine would just tell them to fuck off and slam the door in their faces." He stretches and sets off a few sparks in his hands. "So, Ectoplasm. If you're here to train us, how do ya feel about combat training? Your clones would be pretty good for that, right?"

While Izuku gives Katsuki a horrified stare, Ectoplasm hums and hangs his head as he thinks. "Well, that's quite the proposal. My lack of strength enhancing abilities means I can't significantly harm you so long as I hold back, but my clones make for a wonderful simulation of the pack tactics employed by most villains. An excellent idea, young man. If Izuku agrees, then I whole-heartedly endorse it. I just warn that I won't quite go easy on you. I won't cause any real harm, but you're sure to be sore afterwards, and perhaps a bit humiliated."

"Not if we roast your ass first!" Katsuki grins wildly and crouches into a battle stance and peeks over to Izuku. "Pick a quirk and get your ass in gear! And make it a good one, I don't want you holding me back!"

Izuku pauses in shock, but slowly steels himself and nods, looking to his belt to determine the optimal combination with Katsuki's quirk. Dealing with multiple opponents in terrain like this and avoiding an ally is sure to be a complex endeavor, so he'll need something strong, but flexible. His options are still limited, only six vials on his belt at all. All Might is out of the question for this situation, and he needs to work on more variety in his experience. Vlad is a bit dangerous in this unclean of an environment- his eyes widen as he homes in on a particular sample. He was told never to use it for weight training here because it would defeat the purpose, but for this, it's perfect. He reaches for a blue and tan sample and quickly injects himself. "Suit Up!" As it sinks in, his suit bursts form his skin and seals in place, the colors shifting to have a bit of navy amidst the green, including a blend of those colors in it's glowing veins. His horns, rather than growing from his forehead, burst from the sides of his mouth into an exaggerated, W-shaped moustache.

Ectoplasm's eyes widen as realization kicks in. "Oh dear god, they got you a Snatch sample."

Katsuki's jaw drops, but then he slowly starts to laugh, hands sparking as he turns to stare down Ectoplasm. "Oh you are so fucked!" He leaps forth and sets off a blast at the ground to vault overhead and bring pain from the sky.

Ectoplasm immediately spits out a glowing mass that splits in four directions. One launches up to block Katsuki, while two form atop nearby large garbage piles, and the fourth generates beneath him to attempt to block the incoming wave of sand Izuku generated. He backflips onto a beached car and produces another five, three of which move to intercept Katsuki as he maintains his aerial approach, and two remain at his sides.

He looks to Izuku and finds that unlike Snatch, only the upper and outer layers of his suit is becoming sand, while a thin, slightly alien-looking membrane remains attached and his helmet remains entirely intact. Untrained, that quirk seems unable to produce much sand, but what little he has at his disposal is a threat in these conditions. Blending in with the ground, seeping through thin spaces between the garbage, all undetectable.

As he and his clones dance and weave around the two children, always kept on the move by their dual tactics, he can't help but admire the synergy and strategy of it all. Katsuki can run wild with his quirk without risking harm to his ally, while the ally provides the perfect distractions and traps to keep the target from gaining the upper hand, dividing his attention as widely as possible. The land and sky are both accounted for, and little can be done to deter them. At this moment, Ectoplasm is certain that both these children can grow to be impeccable heroes.

Not that they can win. There's only so much even talented children can do to deal with an experienced hero. In the short matter of half an hour that Izuku's chosen quirk lasts, Katsuki has been tricked into running into a total of five fridges, two cars, and a set of lockers, and then locked in an ice chest for a moment. Being able to produce enough clones to convince a bull-headed opponent to charge into something they can't see through the wall of bodies is always useful. He was certainly impressed that the majority of them were only glancing blows, diverted from full collisions by well-timed blasts. The ice chest required him to actually hook the young man with his leg and sling him in. Izuku on the other hand was having trouble manipulating the sand and his body at once, leaving him open to be captured, but he was cognizant of that weakness- enough so to keep enough sand on his person to repel his would-be captors with a ring-shaped blast. That gave him enough time to retreat and be promptly rescued by Katsuki's overhead approach moments later.

They're soon both seated on the steps down to the beach, getting a short rest form that spar before cleaning the beach, hunched and winded, but satisfied. Katsuki's uncharacteristically quiet for a few moments. "… Hey, Deku. Why'd you agree to bring me out here?"

"Hm?" He raises his head and stares. "What do you mean? You're my oldest friend. Why wouldn't I?"

"Cuz I'm an asshole, obviously." He huffs. "Think I didn't realize that? Why else do you think I've gone easier on you the last year?"

Izuku's taken aback, but he slowly looks out over the beach. "Yeah… yeah, I guess you're right. But what convinced you to be so much better? I mean... you're still… kind of cruel sometimes, but I know you mean well."

"Yeah, well, most of that goes to keeping others in line." He grumbles and takes an aggressive bite out of a protein bar. "… Last year, I saw a few others going… too far."

Izuku flinches as he recalls that day. Some upperclassmen came along to kick him around, insisting they could have his "quirkless ass" framed and his mother's life ruined if he didn't step up and finish their work for them, if he was such a "brainy little shit". Either he had to do their work for them, or leap off the roof if he wanted his mother to live peacefully.

He went on to write their essays for them, but all three students were expelled without explanation shortly after, and ever since-

He looks up to Katsuki in shock. "You reported them. You… saved me from them?"

Katsuki hunches over and glares at the ground. "I saw those assholes and realized… that's the direction I was going in. But I also realized they were villains. Genuine little villains, whether they were using their quirks or not. So dealt with them, and decided I would never become that."

Izuku remains stunned into silence for a few moments, but slowly smiles and sits back, staring up into the sky. "I know you won't. You're better than that. You're gonna be one of the best heroes in the world."

"Hey!" He snaps and sets off small blasts. "I'm gonna be number one, damnit!"

"That's if you get through me." He smirks. "Also, 'number one', you just blew up your snack bar."

"FUCK!"

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A.N.: How's everybody doing? SO yeah, writing is getting a bit quicker and easier for me, and I have some potential bonuses for those of you who want to determine some upcoming content for this fic! On my P8treon, I'll soon be uploading a list of characters whose quirks I'm considering having added as permanent additions to Izuku's henshin roster, and you can vote on who will be included! And soon enough, I'll also be putting up a poll for upcoming speedpaint videos, which includes my designs for Izuku's costume here, and my version of Naruto from Konoha's Fatal Joke! So, pop over to the Envoy of Kairos youtube channel and P8treon, and give em a look! If you have trouble finding them, my youtube channel recently uploads Celeste, Terraria, and soon Diablo III playthroughs. That should narrow down the search well enough.