Disclaimer: Boku no Hero Academia characters and plot events belongs to Horikoshi Kohei.
To Be a Hero
welcome to camp, U.A. students!
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The semester concluded for the students of U.A. and summer vacation officially began. Due to the surprise encounter that Midoriya had with Shigaraki back at the Kiyashi Ward, the heroes and detectives were once again put on high alert for the safety of the students. The weeks before training camp started for the first-years, they were instructed to stay close and not travel far. Meanwhile, the Pro Heroes of U.A. changed the location of the camp and kept the remote location a secret even to the students leading up to the date.
Finally, today was the day the students will be taken to the camp.
"At this summer training camp, we'll have you aiming for even greater heights—for 'Plus Ultra'!" Aizawa said as the students gathered in front of two comfortable coach buses. The students in class 1-B were also present with Vlad King.
"So they let the people who failed go to the training camp, too? And you guys will be taking extra classes? None of the people in class 1-B failed!" Monoma taunted with an expression that told them he was having too much fun and ego blowing up his head. "Isn't that weird?Even though you guys are suppose to be way better than class 1-B? How can that be?"
Kendou was immediately at class 1-A's defense and knocked the haughty blonde to the ground. "Sorry!" she apologized before dragging him onto the bus.
Thank goodness for Kendou, Shiro thought as the orange haired girl called for her classmates to board the bus. At times she still couldn't believe she actually worked with Monoma and passed the exam. There was nothing wrong with his abilities; just his personality.
"It's not just the girls from class 1-A, but the girls from class 1-B will also be there...!" Mineta was having one of his perverted visions again when he realized the female count of both classes combined. "It'll be like a buffet we can pick and choose from!"
Kirishima regarded the shorter boy's unmanly fantasies with a frown, "That's about enough from you, Mineta. We're here to train. Don't you remember what happened in the locker room before?"
The boy visibly shivered, yet he was not quite deterred as this chance will be different than before. They will be out in the woods, for a week, with only each other to depend on. It was a no-brainer for any guy to want to have something risky happen. It was the law of camping!
"What did happen in the locker rooms?" Shiro asked Kirishima when she overheard. She was quite distracted that day, and for good reason, so it didn't pique her interest until now. The redhead rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as he didn't want to explain out loud how Mineta's pervertedness got the class' top two students fighting in the locker room.
"Nevermind about that! Let's board the bus, Shiro-chan!" he said with a grin. "Kaminari showed me this new game a few days ago and it's super fun! I'll show it to you, too!"
Thinking about how playing a game on a tiny screen will likely only exacerbate her motion sickness, she was about to decline when Bakugou stepped besides them to get on the bus with a huff.
"Move it, Shitty Hair. If you play on your phone the entire time, it'll die before we even reach the camp."
"Oi, Bakugou!" Kirishima called after the male and quickly boarded so that he can catch up. "Kaminari's Quirk can charge all our phones so it's fine. Come sit with us!"
"Like hell I will," Bakugou replied and scanned the bus for the quietest, most unproblematic person he could find before sitting down next to Tokoyami. Shiro frowned since Tokoyami was the person she wanted to sit next to—they sat together on the first bus ride to USJ and she liked his silence on the otherwise boisterous bus.
Kaminari happened to take the seat in front and there was only one extra space, so Shiro told the apologizing redhead that it was fine to take it before heading down to the last row to sit by herself in a window seat. This is great, she closed her eyes with a sense of peace before she heard someone else sit besides her.
"Todoroki-san?" she blinked open her eyes at the male. He was quiet too, so she was still content that he sat next to her. Another face popped out from behind to reveal a winking Aoyama.
"And me, mon chéri!"
"Ah, of course," she greeted the flamboyant male as well.
"Get seated everyone," Aizawa boarded the bus and droned. All of his students were present and he sat down as well just as the bus started moving. They were enroute to the training camp now!
It took a few hours before the bus reached its first resting spot and the excited students all rushed off the bus to get a good stretch in. The road had been pretty steady so Shiro was okay for the most part, and aside from a few comments and displays from Aoyama (with her and Todoroki blinking in confusion) the time passed by enjoyably. Todoroki even gave her one of his earbuds to listen to soft music.
"I didn't take you as someone who listened to ballads," she said curiously.
"Fuyumi plays it around the house sometimes," he replied while putting the earbuds away.
"It's really nice. You're kind of soothing."
"Soothing...?" Todoroki wondered with a warm feeling.
"I gotta pee! Where's the bathroom!" Mineta's cry broke their nice conversation while the boy ran around the pit stop in a frantic manner. It was quite literally just a small clearing on the side of the road that overlooked a vast, green forest. There was only one car besides their bus parked in the area.
"Does this even count as a rest area?" Kirishima wondered.
"Where's class 1-B?" Jiro added, looking around as well. She had thought that the two buses had left at the same time.
"There's no point stopping without a reason," Aizawa revealed as everyone suddenly grew alert by his words. The doors to the car that was parked at the side opened and two women jumped out.
"Hey, Eraser!"
"Long time no see."
Both women sported similar costumes but with distinct coloring on the sleeveless collared tops and ruffled skirts. Their costumes resembled that of a cat with even the tails, padded paw gloves, and cat ear-shaped communication devices. They introduced themselves as Pixie Bob and Mandalay, both part of the Wild, Wild Pussycat Pro Hero group.
"These are the heroes who will be working with us during the camp, the Pussycats," Aizawa explained.
Their costumes are bold... How old are they? Shiro wondered idly as Midoriya's eyes sparkled.
"They're a four-person hero team who set up a joint agency! They're a veteran team that specializes in mountain rescues! This year will be their twelfth year working—"
Pixie Bob's gloved hand shot out to shut the excited boy up with a threatened glare, "I'm 18 at heart! Got it? At heart..."
"Y-You're 18!"
There was another boy that Shiro noticed, wearing a red cap with two gold horns, who stood to the side with a frown on his face. He looked like he didn't want to be here, but she didn't have time to think about why he was there in the first place as Aizawa gave them the run down of why they stopped in the middle of seemingly nowhere.
"We own this whole stretch of land here," Mandalay pointed to the speck in the distance among the trees. "You all will be staying at the foot of the mountain."
"That's so far..." Uraraka remarked as the rest of the class became uneasy. "Why did we stop here?"
"No way... It can't be," Sato denied with a shake of his head as Sero took a step back.
"Yeah, why don't we get back on the bus, huh?"
"Let's do that," Kaminari gathered the others who were scared as well. "Fast."
"It's 9:30 A.M. right now. If you're fast..." Mandalay's tail swishes deviously. "Maybe around noon?"
"That's impossible...! Get back on the bus! Hurry!"
Rooted in her spot as she felt the bus wasn't any better than traveling on foot, Shiro watched as the group quickly turned and ran away from the heroes before it was too late. Todoroki also stood besides her since it would be uncharacteristic of him to hightail and run.
"Kitties who don't make it by 12:30 won't get any lunch!"
"Sorry guys," Aizawa said as Pixie Bob jumped in front of the runaways and activated her Quirk. "Training camp has already begun."
A blast of earth engulfed the runaways and non-runaways alike; the earth seemingly melting and reforming as it blasted them all over the cliff. Screams and shouts could be heard as the students all landed down into the packed forest without warning.
Shiro wiped a bit of dirt away from her face as she glanced back up to the small figure of Mandalay over the railing. They're not holding back about how terrible and hard this training camp will be even on the first day, she thought.
"Since it's private land, you can use your Quirks as you wish! You all have three hours to come to the facility on your own two feet!" the hero called down. "Of course, you'll have to get through... The Beast's Forest!"
"'The Beast's Forest'? That sounds scary!"
"U.A. likes to do these things way too much!"
"There's no use complaining, right? Let's just do it!" Kirishima brought up the group's morale as he pointed towards the forest where Mineta was heading before anyone else. "See, even Mineta's running for it!"
It was an odd sense of deja vu from the sports festival when the male ran ahead and then subsequently got subdued by robots. This time, they understood why the forest was called one where the beasts were. A terrifying creature more than a few stories tall growled at Mineta with its sharp teeth.
"Stay back!" Midoriya cried and jumped forward to grab the trembling boy from the beast's swiping claws. Koda had tried to control the beast since they figured it was still a type of living animal, but he was shocked to learn that it didn't work.
"I don't think think it's living," Shiro said as she looked at the creature carefully. Its color was the same as the earth on the ground and the dirt that swiped them all down into the forest in the first place.
"I see..." the male understood immediately. "It's Pixie Bob's Quirk!"
Everyone understood what they had to do then. Activating all of their Quirks, they got ready to get into battle. Since the creatures weren't living and are manipulated by the Pro Hero, it made them nothing more than the robots they had to defeat before but with more mobility. They have all gotten stronger, so this small setback didn't mean anything!
"Full Cowl...!"
"Reciproburst!"
"DIE!"
As her classmates all got into action, Shiro's right eye spun as well as she leaped towards a tree branch before jumping over the crumbling beast number one. "There's more coming!" she called out. "Two to the left, one above!"
"Alright!" they shouted back. "Let's get there by noon or we don't get lunch!"
"Let's go, class 1-A!"
The orange sun hung low on the horizon as the students of class 1-A trudged their way into the clearing where the facility at the bottom of the mountain stood, haggard and hungry.
"Oh, you're finally here!" Pixie Bob greeted them with a wide grin.
"That took quite some time," Mandalay commented while standing besides Aizawa.
Like her classmates, Shiro was feeling the repercussions of using her Quirk so much. They all controlled it enough to not cause them permanent damage, of course, but it hurt like hell. Without Recovery Girl here to heal them at will, they really had to be careful.
"Three hours... My ass..." she huffed, voicing the thoughts of everyone. Forget about lunch, it was already dinner time!
"Ah, that's the time it would've taken us. Sorry!"
"I'm hungry... I'm gonna die..." Kirishima complained as he collasped on the ground with some of the others. Pixie Bob chuckled into her padded gloves.
"Honestly. I thought it would take even longer. You guys didn't have as hard a time beating my earth beasts as I thought you would. You guys are great... Especially... You four!" she pointed her claws at Iida, Midoriya, Todoroki, and Bakugou with a sly grin. "Were you able to act without hesitation because of your experience? I'm looking forward to where you'll be in three years! I call dibs!"
Call dibs...? Shiro watched the older Pro Hero fawn over the four much to their confusion and reluctance, not knowing why that made her frown. Besides, the hero was leaving out the rest of the group to dry! She suddenly felt Hagakure limp over her back with a large sigh, using her body as a support.
"Shiro-chan! I'm so tired..."
"Yeah," she nodded in agreement and glanced at her guardian and mentor. It was then she noticed the little boy with the distinctive cap again. Having the same idea, Midoriya asked who the boy was.
"Oh, he's my cousin's kid. Come on Kota. Greet everyone," Mandalay introduced and beckoned for the boy to come over towards the group. The boy's gaze told her that he didn't like any of them. Even so, Midoriya was the first to walk up to him with a friendly smile and a hand outstretched for a handshake.
"Hi, I'm Midoriya from U.A. High School's hero course. Nice to meet you—"
Everyone gasped in pain for the male when Kota punched him in the balls. Iida ran to his friend to support him while yelling at the little boy, "Why would you do that to Midoriya-kun's scrotum?!"
"I don't intend to hang out with guys who want to become heroes!" Kota shouted with a deadly glare impressive for a kid.
"'Intend'?! How old are you?!"
"Precocious brat," Bakugou grinned, finding the situation quite hilarious. Todoroki gave him a side eye.
"Isn't he kind of like you?"
"What? Not at all! Shut up you half-assing bastard!"
The kid's totally like him, Shiro concluded. No wonder she got a familiar vibe from Kota. Aizawa quickly called an end to the charade and got everyone to bring their belongings into the facility where they will be staying. The guys are on one floor while the girls are on another. Once they settled in, they were called to the cafeteria where dinner was prepared for them.
"Thanks for the food!"
Choruses of gratitude could be heard for the banquet of food in front of them. It was enough to bring the starved students to tears since it all looked so good. Knowing that the real training started tomorrow, having such a good meal the night before was bliss.
"Anyway, today's the only day we'll be doing stuff for you, so eat as much as you can," Pixie Bob said with a smile while carrying more food to the tables.
"Thank you!"
The sound of running springs echoed through the clear night as collective sighs could be heard in the bathhouses. Finally after a long day of battleing though mud and grim, their stomachs were full and they can relax their muscles just a little at the hot springs behind the facility.
"Well frankly, food and stuff isn't really that important," Mineta drawled with a blissful look on his face. Unfortunately, it also wasn't because of the hot springs itself. He was looking up at the imposing wooden fence before him. "That's not what I'm here for. What I'm here for is beyond that wall."
"What are you talking to yourself about, Mineta-kun?" Midoriya asked since the male was acting weird at the corner by himself. Having his classmates' attention drawn towards the fence now, they could all hear faint noises from the other side of the fence where the girls were bathing.
"This feel so good!" Hagakure and Jiro.
"I love that there are hot springs here." Momo.
"Eep! Mina-chan, d-don't poke there...!" Uraraka.
"Hehe, it's so soft! Shiro-chan, it's your turn!" Mina.
The small and cute yelp from the silver-blue haired girl was enough to drive even the most reclusive males on this side into a blushing mess.
What is Ashido doing over there?!
"Nowadays, for them to not stagger bathing times between males and females is an accident..." Mineta sighed blissfully as he hugged the fence. "Yes, an accident waiting to happen."
Kaminari grew hot and excited, but also a little ashamed of the male for suggesting something so risky. "Wait, you can't be thinking of—"
"Mineta-kun! Stop it!" Once again, Iida tried to get the male to stop his perverted intentions. "What you are doing is demeaning for both yourself and the girls! It's beyond shameful!"
However, Mineta had already tuned out everyone. The only thing he could hear was his own heart telling him to continue and the joyful laughter of the girls on the other side. "Walls... Are meant to be climbed over!"
"I'll freeze him," Todoroki raised his left arm.
"Oi, Shitty Grape Head!" Bakugou shouted as he stood up angrily. "You wanna die?!"
"This is my 'Plus Ultra'! AHHHHH—!"
Just as Bakugou was going to blast an explosion at Mineta, Kota's head poked out from between the fence divide first. "Before learning to be a hero, you need to learn about being human," the boy glared and slapped Mineta, causing him to fall all the way back down.
"Mineta-chan really is the worst, huh?" Tsuyu exclaimed from the other side.
"Thanks, Kota-kun!" Mina yelled as well.
"I'll rewrite his little head into an actual grape next time," Shiro's voice was laced with venom.
The boy looked back briefly at the girls, but that was a bad mistake as he caught an eyeful of what Mineta couldn't and his young brain couldn't process before he slipped and fell over to the male's side. Midoriya caught the boy in time but the others all saw the little bit of nosebleed that he got from seeing the girls naked.
That damned precocious brat... Bakugou huffed, but he found he wasn't angry anymore.
While Midoriya brought the unconscious boy to the Pussycat's office inside the facility and was tending to him while listening to Mandalay about why Kota was so against people becoming heroes, Shiro finished up her bath first and was taking a peaceful break by herself outside to look at the moon and stars.
She reflected on the three months or so that she got into U.A. and together grew alongside her classmates. They've been through quite a lot of situations together already, and each time they all came back stronger. It only bothered her that the villains were doing the same. So, this training camp was so important for them to continue to learn new things to become a better hero.
"Can I sit?"
She raised her head to see Todoroki standing behind her with two flavored yogurt drinks in his hands. His hair was still damp from the springs, but he was looking refreshed and calm as usual. Giving the male a nod, she scooted over to make some room on the step. She graciously took a drink from him and popped the bottle open before taking a small sip.
"You like strawberry flavored, too?" she wondered after seeing that they both have the same flavor. The male nodded once and she let out a small chuckle. "I'm learning a lot about you today."
There was a brief silence that passed between the two as they just stared up into the stars. Being out in the woods, one could really see how clear the night sky was. It was definitely a change of scenery from the city.
"What you said earlier..." Todoroki's voice drew her attention back to his mismatched eyes. It had kept him wondering for the entire day, "...About me being soothing. What do you mean exactly?"
That's what's on his mind? she blinked for a second and leaned back a little with a wave of drowsiness. "I guess just exactly what it is," she said with her lips pursed. "You've always been calm and collected, but we used to not get along... We had a rocky start and I could never tell if we were friends or not because you would talk to me about your life one moment... And then declare that I was a distraction the next."
"We are friends," he said immediately, eyes searching for hers with worry.
"Yeah, I know," she found his reaction kind of endearing. "I'm just saying... Since we've confirmed to be friends, it no longer feels like I have to constantly wonder whether you'll be hot or cold every time we interact. You're so calm that it keeps me calm."
Todoroki blinked at her explanation but a relieved expression appeared on his face afterwards, "I'm glad."
"Mhm. You're so different from Bakugou," Shiro mumbled with a yawn. "He's the furthest thing from soothing, yet... He can make some really calm decision that end up being right... All the time..."
It didn't sound like the girl was criticizing Bakugou at all; rather, she sounded quite impressed with him and Todoroki wondered if they truly didn't get along as they appeared outwardly. "Shiro—" he turned his head slightly just in time for hers to loll softly on his shoulder. Using her Quirk all day was tiring, plus her Quirk being more mentally draining than some of the others.
"...Sorry, gotta rest my eyes... For a moment..." she said, already half-asleep.
Todoroki felt calm despite his heart pounding more than usual as he allowed the girl to lean on him for a little bit. In the background, Bakugou had walked in on the scene of the dual-Quirk user and ruby eyed girl talking before she knocked out. It was often the case that he always happened to be in a situation that overhears the two's conversations, but he was done slinking in the background. A scowl appeared on his face as he walked over.
"Oi, Half and Half," he kept his voice low so that it wouldn't disturb Shiro.
"Bakugou."
The response was so terse and off-handed that it pissed Bakugou off more. But the male wanted to be calm? Then he'll be calm, too.
"You got some nerve picking a fight when you never even finished the first one, don't you think?"
"I don't consider this picking a fight," Todoroki replied before moving slightly so the girl was more comfortable. "Since you heard what she said too, then I'll be the first say that I disagree on that stuff about you. You may be right about your battle sense but you're always wrong about how you're treating her."
The tick mark on Bakugou's face deepened. "You don't know anything, you bastard," he growled lowly. He didn't like the way the two were so close and the fact that he was being insulted fueled his anger even more. Despite this, he didn't lash out because contrary to what others thought of him, he can control himself when he felt like it was necessary. He was more perceptive that anyone here as well, so he would never do anything that would actually hurt Shiro. Plus, she isn't made of fucking glass.
"You have a childish way of vying for attention," Todoroki said.
"And you have a shitty way of trying to worm back into her good graces when you practically told her off at the sports festival."
That comment seemed to rile the calm male up just a little and Bakugou could tell by the slight twitch of his body and lips. The bottle of yogurt drink that Shiro was holding slipped from her grasp at that moment and fell to the ground with a clink loud enough to wake her up. Her head shot up and she rubbed her eyes in confusion for a moment before remembering where she was.
"Sorry, Todoroki-san...!" she stood quickly before seeing the blonde as well. "Bakugou?"
"Tch," Bakugou kicked his foot slightly at the missed opportunity after just starting to get under Todoroki's skin. His red eyes locked with the girl's instead, "Don't be a dumbass and fall asleep on random things. Get the fuck to bed."
"S-Shut up!" she retorted, her brows furrowing in slight humiliation at being caught dozing off. She stomped past him in a huff. Bakugou smirked and followed behind shortly after, but he paused when Todoroki called out to him.
"This isn't over, Bakugou."
"What'd I tell you?" he tilted his head with a smirk. "You're picking a fight."
Day one of training camp and Bakugou already has beef with Todoroki. Or is it the other way around? ;) Can't blame either of them tho. Muahahhaah.
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