Hey, I'm not dead! That's great! I think...
Yeah, I'm late, real life has been kicking me in the ass lately, so I'm all over the place. It's thrown my usual posting schedule completely out the window of the top floor of a skyscraper. This is the first "day off" I've actually had in like a month, and I'm just sitting here waiting for something to go wrong. Anyway, here is the next chapter of EF:RiB, hope you enjoy!
"And?" the man said softly, "How was your first day?"
"G-good," Izuku muttered as he watched Sire sit in his chair, the man giving off an air of nervousness that Izuku had never felt from him before, "I, uhm…I made some friends."
"That is good!" Sire said happily, "What are they like?"
"Oh, well Iida is…very serious, and Uraraka…" Izuku trailed off as the image of the girl flashed across his mind, his heart starting to beat faster as he swallowed, "She's the girl I drank from in the Entrance Exam."
"Ah," the man hummed, "I see. And did you, for lack of a better word, feel, anything upon meeting her again?"
"F-feel?" Izuku blushed, looking at his Sire in shock, "I…I don't know? M-maybe?"
"That is understandable," Sire said, nodding, "She is the first human you have drunk from. There is bound to be a connection there."
"There is?"
"Yes," the man replied simply, "Now, I do believe we have more important matters to attend to. Let us go to the roof."
"I AM COMING IN!" the shout made the whole class shiver with anticipation, before All Might shot through the doorway of the classroom, "LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!"
"ALL MIGHT!" the class exploded in cheers as the No. 1 Hero himself stood in front of them, Izuku almost passing out at the sight of the man.
"I have come to teach you all today! In BATTLE TRAINING!" the Hero said loudly as he held up the card, "But first, you will be needing your costumes!"
The class quietened as the hulking man slapped the wall, several shelves emerging from it, each holding a number case. The class rushed forwards, grabbing their cases excitedly as they hurried out of the room towards the changing rooms.
Izuku smiled as he grabbed his case, turning to the door before pausing. He rushed back to his desk, digging quickly through his bag, and finding the wrapped parcel his Sire had given him, clutching it to his chest along with the case as he hurried after the rest of his class.
Izuku walked out into the sun, blinking slightly in the bright light.
"They say that clothes make the man," All Might called as the class assembled in front of him, "And today you are all HEROES!"
Izuku looked around at his classmates' outfits, his eyes lingering on Ochako as she brushed her hair back to put on her helmet, exposing the side of her neck for a moment. Izuku felt slightly out of place amongst them, looking down at his fairly normal, if smart, clothes.
A dark green dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up to just below his elbows, covered by a dark grey waistcoat which clung tightly to his body, showing off his broad shoulders and toned forearms. A pair of tight, well-tailored dress pants covered his legs, the outfit completed by a pair of crimson dress shoes on his feet. He also had a pair of white cotton gloves that he pulled onto his hands, before readjusting the crimson skinny tie that hung from his neck.
Izuku smiled as he took the object that had been hung over his arm this whole time, his eyes having gone wide when he'd opened the package. With more than a little flourish, he swung the coat over his shoulders, sliding his arms into the comfortable leather and shifting slightly until it sat perfectly on his frame. He stuck his hands in the pockets, blinking as he felt something in one of them, almost laughing as he pulled out the heavy-duty hair tie. Carefully, he pulled his mane of green locks back, tying them in a small ponytail behind his head.
"Woah! You look really good, Midori!" a voice said from beside him, making the teen jump as he looked at the pink-skinned girl standing slightly too close to him, "Like a Mafia boss or something!"
"O-oh! Thank you!" Izuku replied nervously, "I was kind of worried that it wouldn't look good next to everyone else. Especially when you all look so, for lack of a better word, Heroic."
Izuku blinked as he spoke, shaking his head slightly as he thought, Oh gods, is it spreading?
"Is what spreading?" Ochako asked him, the teen jumping again as he looked at her.
"D-did I say that out loud?" he squeaked, his face flushing, "Uhm…nothing. You look good!"
"Thanks!" the brunette chimed as she looked down at her costume, "I just wish I'd been more specific. I'm not a fan of the whole skin-tight thing. It feels kind of weird."
"It suits the astronaut motif you're going for," Ashido laughed, "But doesn't Midori look dashing?"
Izuku blushed harder at her words, looking away as Ochako giggled.
"Yeah, he does!"
A look flashed across Mina's face as she grinned, about to say something else before All Might cut her off.
"Now then! Gather around while I explain the rules of this exercise!"
"So," Izuku flinched at the word, looking over to his partner for the exercise as the brunette smiled friendlily at him, "Are you…you know, going to drink that?"
Izuku looked down at the bag of blood in his hand, the one that All Might had given him in the now familiar cooler box just before they'd moved out towards the test site.
"Y-yeah," Izuku muttered, turning away from her, and breaking open the seal, "S-sorry."
"Don't be," Ochako hummed, "It's just for your quirk, right?"
"Right," Izuku replied as he drained the bag quickly, feeling the familiar sense of calm wash through his as he drank.
Folding the bag up, he slipped it into one of his pockets, cracking his neck as he looked back up at the building in front of them.
"Bakugo is almost certainly going to come for me," he sighed, narrowing his eyes as he watched the building, "That's what I think any way."
"How do you know?" Ochako asked, "I mean, you said he was your bully before, but wouldn't just rushing at you be counter intuitive to the exercise?"
"Bakugo won't care," Izuku hummed, "He has too much Ego to ignore me. He sees me as a threat to his superiority, and so will try to take me down as quickly as possible. As such, he'll come right to me."
"So, what do we do?"
"We let him."
"I'M GOING TO ROAST THAT NERD!" Bakugo growled as he stalked back and forth across the room, Iida hurriedly picking any loose debris up from the ground and zipping off to dispose of it.
"I do not understand your dislike of Midoriya, Bakugo-san," Iida said calmly as he finished inspecting the now spotless room, "He has a powerful quirk and seems to be a good person."
"BULLSHIT! THE NERD HAS BEEN LOOKING DOWN ON ME OUR WHOLE LIVES!" Bakugo spat, "AND HIDING HIS QUIRK LIKE THAT IS THE LAST FUCKING STRAW!"
"Hiding his quirk? What do you mean by that, Bakugo?" Iida tried to ask; any hope of an answer being cut off by All Might's loud shout.
"AND BEGIN!"
The two students were sneaking quietly through the twisting maze of corridors and rooms that made up the interior of the building, Izuku occasionally pausing as if to listen for something.
"He's coming,"
"How do you know?" Ochako asked quietly as he held up a hand for her to stop.
Ochako didn't have time to react as Izuku suddenly tackled her, throwing both of them to the floor as the explosion engulfed the space above them.
"Uraraka! Run!" Izuku shouted as he jumped to his feet, getting into a combat stance as Bakugo stalked towards him.
"DEKU!" the blond growled, slamming his foot on the ground as he glared at the teen, "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, YOU FUCKING NERD!"
"Calm down, Kacchan!" Izuku shouted, "I know why you're angry, and you're wrong!"
"FUCK YOU!" Bakugo roared as he launched himself forwards, "YOU'VE BEEN LOOKING DOWN ON ME THIS WHOLE TIME!"
"No, I haven't!" The green-haired teen screamed back, dodging out of the way of the explosion that swung at his face, "I've always respected you! I've always thought you were really strong! You were my inspiration!"
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" the blond screamed, swinging another punch at Izuku, "I'LL KILL YOU!"
"Fine," Izuku sighed, "You want a fight? You can have it!"
A fist slammed into Bakugo's stomach, knocking the breath from his lungs as he doubled over, gasping. Not wasting any time, Izuku clasped his hands over his head and slammed them both down onto the blonde's back, the concrete cracking under the teen as he was driven into the ground. Bakugo gasped as he barely managing to twist his arm around and unleash a powerful blast from his palm, engulfing the other teen in fire and smoke. There was a moment when he thought that he had won, only to feel a hand grip his wrist and yank him into the air.
"Nice try, Kacchan," Izuku gasped, the light burns on his face already healing, his expression strangely neutral, "But you missed."
The two rocketed down the hallway, faster than Bakugo expected as Izuku suddenly stopped in mid-air, twisting his arm to throw Bakugo, launching the blonde into a wall. The concrete shattered around him, Bakugo coughing up a gout of blood as he felt a rib snap. He managed to stagger forwards, grabbing his side as a sweeping kick knocked his legs out from under him, throwing him back to the floor.
"FUCKING DEKU! I'LL KILL YOU!" he managed to gasp as he felt the gauntlet on his arm pulse, indicating it was ready.
Izuku suddenly chuckled, backing away as the blonde teen staggered to his feet again, raising his grenade like gauntlet. The two stared each other down for a moment, Izuku still smiling slightly as the blond glared at him. Bakugo scowled as he slid the handle back on his gauntlet.
"My explosions were always limited by the amount of sweat I could produce," the blond gave an evil grin, "But these gauntlets collect my sweat, allowing me to release all of it in one giant blast!"
"YOUNG BAKUGO! STOP! THAT ATTACK WILL KILL HIM!" All Might shouted through their earpieces.
"HE'LL SURVIVE IF HE DODGES!" Bakugo spat, sliding a finger through the pin of his gauntlet, the smile on Izuku's face only getting wider, "WHAT'S SO FUCKING FUNNY, NERD? READY TO DIE?"
"Oh no, Kacchan," Izuku was laughing now, almost doubling over as he held his stomach, "It's just, well…I don't think you can kill me anymore!"
The explosion engulfed the hallway, filing it from floor to ceiling before anyone could react. Izuku was launched backwards, his entire body burning as the blast tore into his flesh. The blood inside him boiled. The Vampire smiled.
"WHAT?!"
The word caught in Bakugo's throat as the other teen leapt forwards out of the explosion, his face and upper body rapidly stitching itself back together as he used the moment of hesitation to land a powerful blow directly into the already staggering blonde's face. A sickening crunch and a spray of blood made it evident that Bakugo's nose was broken. The Vampire let out a low gurgling chuckle as he grabbed Bakugo by the arm, the blond crying out in pain as the green-haired teen landed another powerful blow against his chest, cracking another rib. The pain rocketed through Bakugo's body as he slammed a fist into the broken rib again and again, blood bubbling up in Bakugo's throat as he tried to gasp for air.
"YOUNG MIDORIYA! CEASE YOUR ACTIONS NOW!"
The voice buzzed through their head pieces, Izuku blinking for a moment then immediately backing off, allowing the beaten and bloody Bakugo to collapse onto the ground, hacking up a mouthful of blood.
"Sorry, All Might!" Izuku called, pulling the capture tape out of his pocket, an almost drunken grin on his face, "Got carried away."
"Very well but do try to show some restraint in the future!"
"Will do!"
The barrel of the second gauntlet met his face, knocking Izuku back as Bakugo staggered to his feet, a look of pure rage on his face as he prepared to fire it at point blank range.
"JUST. FUCKING! DIE!"
"Young Bakugo! Stop!"
The punch shot up, slamming into the blonde's elbow as a sickening crack filled the air. Bakugo screamed as he staggered back, his now broken limb hanging limply at his side. Izuku just grinned as the blond growled, wincing at the pain in his arm. Izuku hopped lightly on his feet, almost like a boxer as he began circling around the blond, the teen turning slowly to keep the Vampire in his line of sight. A shiver ran up Bakugo's spine as he turned, feeling strangely like a hunted animal.
"Enough, both of you!" the voice of their homeroom teacher made both of them pause, "Stop at once or I'll call this whole exercise off right now!"
"Go to hell!" Bakugo snarled as he stepped forwards, Izuku copying him. The two glared at each other, one scowling as he swayed on his feet, the other grinning like a feral beast., "There is no way in hell I'm letting this LIAR beat me!"
"Liar?" Izuku chuckled, "Whatever did I lie about, Katsuki?"
"YOU FUCKING KNOW!" the teen roared, leaping forwards as he swung his unbroken arm up, explosions crackling across the palm.
The blast slammed into a wall of muscle, Bakugo blinking in surprise as the smoke cleared, his palm pressed against All Might's chest.
"ENOUGH!" The Pro shouted, grabbing Bakugo by the wrist, "This exercise is over!"
Bakugo heard the choking sound, looking around All Might as he saw Izuku clutching his throat, their home room teacher jumping into the building, his eyes glowing red as his hair floated up. He watched as the teen collapsed to the ground, a sense of relief washing through him, quickly followed by a wave of pain. The world wobbled as the adrenaline of the fight suddenly began to wear off, the blond falling into All Might's arms as he coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"And to what do I owe the pleasure of Lithuania's most famous Vigilante visiting my office?" Nedzu chuckled as he looked at the cloaked man.
"That is ancient history, good sir," the man replied, "I have not wielded that title in decades."
"Still, I would like to know why you have come seeking me," the rat-dog-bear thing that was UA's Principal hummed, taking a sip of his tea.
"I am in need of, for lack of a better word, assistance," the man replied, making Nedzu raise an eyebrow, "An old…acquaintance appears to have found me. And I do not wish to be found."
"And so, you come to us for protection!" Nedzu laughed, "How interesting! Though I doubt that is all there is to it! Maybe it has something to do with the young Fledgling that is attending our school?"
"I am unsurprised you know of our connection," Sire replied, "But you are not wrong. After what transpired today, I feel the need to teach him has risen even further. As such, I would ask for a role in your teaching staff. Even if only to train him."
"Well," Nedzu smiled behind his cup of tea, "I can see no problems with that!"