With the tournament creeping closer, Izuku had upped his exercise regime. Just using parts of the armor were putting a strain on him and he needed all the muscle he could get. He'd made a habit of jumping out of the train one stop earlier than usual and running rest of the way to school. Then before start of the regular lectures he did a quick but intense workout at the school gym. Mei had also shown up to measure his development.

Izuku started his workout doing squats with weights. After ten reps he dropped the weights and jumped at the pole above his head and did ten pull-ups. After that he dropped back down and continued doing squats. And then it was back to pull-ups. After just two sets his legs were on fire and his arms felt ready to tear off.

"Come on! Work those deltoids!" Mei yelled.

Izuku grinded his teeth and tried to finish his latest set of pull-ups but finally his grip gave out. When he tried to catch his breath, Mei gave him a light kick in the ribs.

"No one's paying you for sleeping! Move that ass and show me some sit-ups! Plus Ultra!"

Cursing his fate Izuku moved on to sit-ups while Mei timed him. He did sit-ups until his stomach started crumbing and he lost count.

"Take five." Mei said.

Izuku was left panting on the floor and blinded by sweat. Mei wrote something down in her notebook.

"Forty-eight sit-ups in a minute. I guess that's adequate." Mei said.

"… adequate?" Izuku panted.

"I built a jetpack in my garage. It takes more than that to impress me." Mei said.

Izuku poured some water on his head from his bottle and wiped his eyes clean from the sweat.

"… I don't know how long I can keep this up." Izuku said.

Mei smacked him over the head with her notebook.

"Quit your whining. If being awesome was easy, everyone would do it." Mei said and then smiled: "Do you want to know what does impress me?"

Izuku nodded.

"This." Mei said and showed him her notes.

In the notebook were his fitness test records over the past six months. His first performance in the one-minute challenge made him wince.

Push-ups: 8

Sit-ups: 25

Squats: 22

Pull-ups: 0

Cooper: 1980 meters

After six months of training his numbers were a lot more commendable.

Push-ups: 56

Sit-ups: 48

Squats: 36

Pull-ups: 17

Cooper: 2950 meters

Izuku gave Mei back her notes and she put them in her bag. After six months it wasn't just his performance that had improved. He'd gained a ton of muscle definition and girth. His once scrawny physique was now solid and well-built. Even the school uniform couldn't hide it. And he was only getting stronger.

There was rustling when someone picked up the notes. Mei's look turned savage. Izuku turned to look and saw that Todoroki had entered the gym, picked up the notes from Mei's bag and was now skimming through them. Mei yanked the notes from his hands.

"Can we help you?" Mei said.

Todoroki had to turn his head to see them both with his good eye. Izuku wondered if it would be possible to build Todoroki a working eye prosthetic.

"You really think this will help him survive the tournament?" Todoroki said.

Like his face, Todoroki's voice was stripped of any emotion and came out as an unsettling monotone.

"No. Science will help him win the tournament." Mei said.

"Like he did with Bakugou?" Todoroki said.

"We won that fight. If Aizawa hadn't…"

"A pyrrhic victory. It won't be just Bakugou in the tournament. What happens when he runs out of energy in the first leg of the race?" Todoroki said.

"Are you worried, Todoroki? Can't stand the competition?" Mei said.

"You should be worried too. This isn't a game." Todoroki said.

"I can…" Mei said.

"Stop talking like I'm not here!" Izuku said.

Todoroki turned his attention to Izuku. Todoroki was impossible to read. The most expressive thing about him was the burn scar over his damaged eye.

"Listen, Midoriya. I'm grateful what you two did when the villains attacked but you'll only get yourself hurt. Trinkets can't compete with Quirks."

Mei stepped on Todoroki's blindside and flicked him at the tip of his nose. Todoroki flinched and for a moment there was a flash of emotion on his cold face. Mei on the other hand had ran past anger into lividness.

"Who the hell you think you are? Sorry if we can't all be born with a rich and famous daddy. Some of us have to work to get ahead." Mei said.

Todoroki's face hardened.

"You know nothing about my father."

"I know whose name was in your recommendation. Are you worried about the tournament? You should be. Soon, everyone will see what you really are." Mei said and smiled: "A loser. I know them when I see them. Guess your mom was the same. Was that why she bailed?"

Todoroki turned pale and rigid. Bakugou was the same just before he came at you swinging. Izuku stepped between them.

"… I think you should go. And… I'm sorry."

Todoroki leaned in closer and his silent fury was infinitely more terrifying than Bakugou's brash cruelty.

"I'll be seeing you at the tournament. Deku. I can't wait."

Todoroki stomped out. Izuku's sweat had turned cold. Mei looked after Todoroki with the creepiest smile on her face Izuku had ever seen.

"… what… what the hell was that?" Izuku said.

"Business. Izuku?"

"… yeah?"

"Would you say you owe me? You should because you do. I'll give you Bakugou. In return I want you to fuck up Todoroki. Do to him what you would do to Bakugou." Mei said.

Behind Mei's smile lurked something ugly and hateful. Izuku caught a glimpse of it before it hid back behind Mei's smile.

"Take a shower. I'll see you in class." Mei said before picking up her bag.

After showering and getting dressed, Izuku headed to class. When school started he'd been ecstatic getting normal lectures from heroes but after a few weeks he'd began to share Mei's distaste for regular classes. Even if they were just four hours a day, they were still four hours he could have spent on getting work done. Unlike Mei, Izuku still put in an effort during class. Mei just slept through them and it showed in her grades. Except in math which she aced test after test. It was also the class Mei hated the most. Math was the language of science and Mei spoke it fluently. High-school level problems bored her to tears.

When the classes were finally over, Izuku started heading back to the workshop with Mei. He couldn't get the encounter with Todoroki out of his head.

"Midoriya! Hatsume!"

Momo was walking towards them with another student, a blonde guy with a tail.

"Momo! What's up, girl?" Mei said.

"Can't complain. Congratulations on becoming famous." Momo said.

"Thanks. It's everything I thought it was." Mei said.

"Good thing you found a new editor too. Your older videos were unwatchable." Momo said.

"Oh? Uh… well… yeah. So… you need something?" Mei said.

"Yes. This is Mashirao Ojiro." Mei said.

"Nice to meet you." Ojiro said and shook their hands.

Ojiro had a strong grip and a callused hand.

"We have extra time for self-study in preparation for the tournament and we were wondering if Izuku wanted to take part in our martial arts training?" Momo said.

"… really? You want me to come?" Izuku said.

"Yes. We saw your fight with Bakugou. If you had any form, you would've won." Momo said.

Izuku and Ojiro shared a look. How could Momo be so lacking in tact and still be so likable?

"… I… I'd love to join." Izuku said.

"You're goddamn right you would. In return Momo will be joining us for dinner later. We could use more of that fiber." Mei said.

Izuku joined Momo and Ojiro at the gym. Excitement made him forget his soreness. And Todoroki. The popular kids were inviting him to join them. Momo was wearing the standard U.A gym outfit but Ojiro had put on a well-worn gi and a black belt.

"Have you ever done martial arts?" Ojiro said.

"… no." Izuku said.

"I've been into karate and judo since I was seven. I've also been boxing for a couple of years. We should be able to get the basics down in a couple of weeks." Ojiro said.

"I've been practicing silambam all my life." Momo said.

"… sim sala…"

"Silambam. It's an Indian martial art that uses weapons." Momo said and used her Quirk to form two staffs.

She threw the other staff to Izuku.

"You're in good shape so we'll train by sparring. You okay with that?" Momo said.

Izuku tested the weight of the staff and nodded.

"Let's begin." Momo said.

Momo was tall but she moved lightly on her feet and her attacks were savage. Even when Izuku managed to block one blow, Momo got three in he didn't see coming at all. When Izuku tried to figure out the rhythm to her attack, Momo would just come at him from a different angle. The way she moved her feet was like dancing and it was the source of her strength. Every blow started from her toes and by the time she swung her staff, the strike had her entire body behind it. She was also having fun. Izuku had never seen a grin that wide.

Izuku was too slow to dodge a thrust and it grazed his cheek.

"Oh no." Momo said and seized her offense.

The staff had left a gash on Izuku's cheek and was bleeding profusely.

"Oh no. No. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"… its okay." Izuku said and pointed at the scars on his face: "I've had worse."

"It's not okay. Momo shouldn't have been so tough with a novice." Ojiro said.

Momo took out a first aid box and wiped away the blood. She sprayed anti-infective on the cut before closing the wound with a band aid. She put the bloodied handkerchief in her pocket.

"I… I think we should stop for the day." Momo said.

Izuku shook his head.

"… I can still keep going and Ojiro promised to show me the basics."

"If you insist. You should take the glove off, so your grip won't slip." Ojiro said.

Izuku glanced at Momo but then took off his glove revealing his scarred hand. Ojiro's and Momo's eyes widened but they didn't say anything.

Ojiro led Izuku to the tatami and did a bow. Izuku followed suit and then he flew. Ojiro could easily throw him around with all the martial arts experience he had under his belt. Still, Izuku sensed that Ojiro was holding back. He wasn't using his tail at all and was always careful to make sure that Izuku landed softly. That made reading him easy. When Ojiro tried to do another throw, Izuku turned the tables on him and slammed him in the ground.

Momo who had been watching worried from the sidelines actually gasped. Ojiro looked at him shocked. Izuku couldn't help but smirk.

"Don't underestimate me." Izuku said.

Ojiro smiled and Izuku helped him back up. For the next half an hour Ojiro knocked Izuku around in earnest and left him a sore mess. Izuku couldn't have been happier. When they were done, Momo handed them drinks.

"We'll be meeting every day after classes until the tournament starts. If you want…" Momo said.

"I'd love to join!" Izuku said.

Momo smiled.

"I'd love to have you." Momo said before blushing: "I mean to join us for training!"

Momo finished her drink quickly and ran for the showers.

Ojiro sighed.

"… something wrong?" Izuku said.

"No. I just was had my hopes up about Momo but… it's nothing." Ojiro said.

They headed to the showers.

"I hope you succeed." Ojiro said while they were undressing.

"… I… thank you. And thanks for today." Izuku said.

"My pleasure." Ojiro said.

"… it's just… aren't you afraid that I'll use this against you in the tournament?"

"Maybe a little but… I know what it's like. Wanting the impossible." Ojiro said and brushed his tail: "This thing is basically just an extra arm. Next to the big shots in my class I'm basically Quirkless." Ojiro said and then looked horrified: "Sorry! I didn't mean…"

"… it's okay." Izuku said.

"Okay. Good. But I knew that I wouldn't be a hero with just my Quirk, so I took up martial arts. Maybe I should buy a set of those power gloves."

"… they're not cheap." Izuku said.

Ojiro started drinking a protein shake while Izuku undressed. When he got his pants off, the protein burst out of Ojiro's mouth.

"What the hell?!"

Izuku covered his privates. His face was burning.

"Stop staring!"

Ojiro looked away before laughing.

"No wonder Bakugou is always so pissed. Jealousy does terrible things to a man."

Izuku showered with his undies on while Ojiro smirked like a jackass. He dressed while he was still half wet and burst out of the locker room leaving laughing Ojiro in the dust. While he was on his way to the workshop, Izuku felt being watched.

He turned to look at the empty hallway. This had been going on ever since the villains attacked. He'd been feeling someone's eyes in the back of his neck.

"… someone there?" Izuku said but got no answer.

Was U.A haunted? Or was he just being paranoid? He wished that was the case, but Mei had complained about the same thing. Like someone or something was stalking her. Izuku hastened his steps and was still red-faced when he made it back to the workshop. Mei was hunched over her desk and tinkering on a helmet. An extension cord ran from the helmet to Sagan's computer. Mei's phone was blasting 's Flatline.

"… why are you still listening to that?" Izuku said.

"As a reminder that believing things that just ain't true will screw us over." Mei said and looked up: "How did it go?"

"… it will go better tomorrow." Izuku said and rubbed the band aid on his cheek.

"That bad, huh?" Mei said and showed him the helmet: "Maybe this will cheer you up. Besides the shock absorber and paint, this thing is done. Want to try it?"

"Yes!"

Izuku took the helmet. It was surprisingly light. The large visor reflected his excited face back at him. The helmet was put on in two parts to keep it form fitting. Izuku placed the two parts around his head and they clicked into place. The world came to life in a way he had never seen. Through the visor he could see Mei's height and weight clearly. As well as any weak points that would be easy to break in a fight.

"Do you hear me, daddy?" Sagan said inside the helmet.

"… yes." Izuku said.

The helmet made his voice sound… strange. Robotic.

"I'll help you monitor the armor and keep an eye on your energy levels. When we're working together, daddy can beat anyone." Sagan said.

"… I… do you have to call me daddy?" Izuku said.

Sagan let out a scream.

"Daddy doesn't love me!"

The locks on the helmet opened and the helmet fell off Izuku's head. Sagan's computer went dark. Mei cursed and tried to turn the computer back on.

"Come on, Sagan. Daddy is just being shy." Mei said.

Sagan's face appeared on the screen briefly.

"Leave me alone!" Sagan yelled before going dark again.

"Well, shit." Mei said.

Izuku put the helmet back on the table.

"… sorry."

"Tell that to Sagan. You're a shit dad."

Izuku winced.

"… Mei?"

"Yeah?"

"… about Todoroki. What happened?" Izuku said.

Mei thought about it for a moment.

"Izuku. Walk with me."

They left the school and after a twenty-minute walk arrived at a brand-new apartment complex. It was new enough to be still shining.

"What do you think?"

"… looks new." Izuku said.

"That's because it is. I hate it and everyone who lives in it. One day I'll bulldoze it down and piss on the remains." Mei said.

Mei showed him a picture on her phone. It was a large old house. Well-kept and well-loved. New generations had added new wings to it.

"They had to tear it down to build that atrocity." Mei said.

"… that was your home." Izuku said.

"Was it? Was it really? If it was mine, how could Endeavor just take it? My family had owned that house and the land it was built on for six generations. When dad was sued over that interview, he had to sell it to cover the bills."

Mei stared at the building.

"I loved that house. I swore I'd buy it back when I became rich but… I didn't become rich quickly enough."

Izuku gave Mei back her phone.

"… I was never able to find that interview your dad gave." Izuku said.

"Endeavor buried it deep. I can tell you what it was about. That bitch Rei. Dad's childhood sweetheart. Too bad she liked guys who were richer than dad. Dad never got over her."

Izuku thought back on the picture of Rei he had seen in the yearbook. She hadn't struck to him as a gold-digger. But… he'd been wrong about people before. Bakugou was living proof of that.

Mei squeezed her phone harder.

"Mei. Dad actually named me after that bitch. Do you think changing a letter fooled anyone? It didn't fool mom and she didn't much like finding that out."

Mei threw a stone at the apartment complex.

"She has a new family now. A new daughter too." Mei said.

Izuku felt a sting of pain in his chest.

"… my dad started over too. I… have two little brothers. I… I've never met them." Izuku said.

"And let me guess. They're not Quirkless freaks." Mei said.

"… yeah."

"Good for them." Mei said and smiled without mirth: "We were never meant to be born, you know? We're not the children our parents wanted."

Izuku thought about mom and how much easier her life would have been if her son hadn't been… defective. How much easier it would have been for everyone if he'd been something… better.

"But it's like I said. The world doesn't owe us happiness." Mei said and flipped off the apartment complex: "So, put out your middle finger and be happy anyway! Plus Ultra!"

Izuku laughed and put up his own middle fingers.

"Plus Ultra!" Izuku yelled.

"Plus Ultra! Fuck you, Endeavor!"

"Plus Ultra! Fuck you, dad!"

They both began to chant while giving the world the finger.

"Plus Ultra! Plus Ultra! Plus Ultra! Plus Ultra!"

"What are you doing?!"

The apartment complex was one of those fancy buildings that came with its own security. When the guard started closing in on them, they bailed. When they had shook off the guard, they started the walk back to school.

"I had an awesome idea." Mei said.

"… aren't those the only kind you have?"

"Yes, they are. You should give a speech during the tournament. Call your dad out. Tell everyone what he did. Let's see how your replacements like that."

"… I can't."

"Sure, you can."

"… I don't want to hurt my brothers like that. They're just kids."

"You'd do them a favor. They should know they're dad is a pretender." Mei said.

"… we are what we pretend to be. They can at least enjoy the illusion… of a father."

"Fine. Whatever. But you're still going to hate fuck Bakugou with science, right?" Mei said.

"Oh, hell yes."


Under Overhaul's orders Shuichi drove Dabi to the seedy part of town. It was like a refuge center for broken families and failed careers. Everything just felt grey and hopeless. His old home hadn't changed. When they drove past people, they turned to look at them with hopeless eyes. Finally, they arrived at a rundown apartment building and got out of the car.

The elevator was busted, and they had to climb the stairs to the fifth floor. Dabi knocked on the door. The man who opened the door was middle-aged and looked like he'd walked to hell and crawled back. When he saw a glimpse of Dabi, he tried to shut the door but Dabi already had his leg in.

"Kawada? The reporter?" Dabi said.

The man could only nod.

"Our boss wants to meet you." Dabi said.

The man put on faded jeans and an old hoodie. He followed them like a man facing his execution. Dabi sat next to him in the back of the car and they drove to the Shi Hassaikai compound. Overhaul was waiting for them in his study. He'd even taken off his mask for the occasion and smiled to the old reporter.

An empty gesture. Overhaul's eyes were as dead as ever. Even when he smiled.

"Welcome, Mr. Kawada. I'm Overhaul."

Kawada could only nod.

"You look terrible. Past ten years must have been hard. What was that lawsuit with Endeavor about?" Overhaul said.

"I… I interviewed one of his underlings. Blacksmith." Kawada said.

"And now you have to work for trash tabloids just to survive. Barely surviving by the looks of things. Well, that changes today." Overhaul said and handed Kawada a memory stick.

Kawada stared at the memory stick.

"… what is it?"

"Scoop of the century and a chance to get some payback at the hero industry that crucified you. Dabi. Spinner. Take him back home." Overhaul said.

"Just one thing. When will you give Toga her reward?" Dabi said.

Overhaul turned to look at Dabi.

"What?"

"Toga is getting impatient." Dabi said.

"Then pacify her! We have better things to do than amuse a lunatic." Overhaul said.

"Overhaul, you don't want to get on her bad side." Dabi said.

Overhaul put his mask back on.

"Dabi, don't test me on this."

They drove Kawada back to his apartment. When Kawada had climbed out of the car, Dabi just stared out of the window while Shuichi drove. Finally, he spoke.

"Take me to Toga's place." Dabi said.

"Why?" Shuichi said.

"Cuz I told ya. And cuz I need to wake up Dabi and give him his clothes back."

Dabi… melted away and suddenly Toga was sitting in his place. Shuichi almost drove off the road. He'd thought that Toga's psychotic grin was the scariest thing he'd ever seen but that was before he'd seen her angry.

"That cunt fucked me over! I did his job and he fucked me over! His girl Toga! This is bullshit!"

Shuichi could only nod and wonder if he'd survive jumping out of the car. Toga kept ranting the whole way to her lair. Finally, she turned to look at Shuichi.

"Ya are okay, scale boy. I think I like ya." Toga said and pecked him on the cheek.

It didn't take long after Toga had disappeared inside her lair that a naked Dabi came running out clutching his clothes.

"Fucking drive!" Dabi screamed after getting in the car.

Shuichi did.