I do not own My Hero Academia or JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
Sorry for the wait, but I've been sick. Not with Covid, thank gods, it was just a cold. But it still killed my ability to write for awhile.
"The scores for practical exam are out!" Hizashi shouted, because he only had three volumes, loud, louder, and his quirk. Blessedly, he was on the lowest setting, which was lamentably still several decibels above anyone else's voice.
All of the teachers were gathered in a large, darkened room, staring up at a massive screen currently displaying a scoreboard with the rankings of the passing examinees. Between the large screen on the wall, and the rows of chairs facing it, the room looked more like a movie theater than any sort of conference room.
"I still can't believe the first place student has zero Rescue Points." Nemuri said. As she spoke, footage of the boy was pulled up onto the the screen in front of them, "And he completely blew everyone else out of the water, too."
"It is rather unusual. Usually those with a balance between Villain and Rescue Points score highest." Ken observed.
"The faux villains are programmed to go after the biggest threat on the battlefield. It's suppose to force the examinees to pace themselves, otherwise they'll be completely ignored by the robots in the second half when they start slowing down and aren't seen as a threat. 'Cept, this one didn't slow down at all." Snipe said, always one to provide surprisingly insightful commentary, "He managed to keep up a steady pace of destroyed robots all the way til the end of the exam. Furthermore, he seemed to figured out how the faux villains registers threats, and used his loud and flashy quirk to bring 'em in and destroy them with counterattacks. Between his strategy, his endurance, and his sheer power, he was able to snag the number one spot with ease." The man gave a low whistle as he watched the footage of the blonde teen decimating his enemies, "Pretty impressive. It's been a long time since anyone's scored anywhere near that high."
"I like him. He seems very talented." Nemuri purred, "Too many men have no clue what they're doing and tire out too quickly."
"Er..." All Might said awkwardly as he shot a confused glance at her.
"She does that a lot. You'll get used to it." Majima explained with a tired sigh. All Might didn't seem too reassured by his words.
"Still, while it may be surprising just how well he did, I think we all expected him to pass." Hizashi piped up, "After all, he was one of the two kids from the sludge villain incident."
"Yes, and the other one did quite well too." Ken said, bringing up some footage of the green-haired kid, "He managed to come in third place."
"I'm kind of surprise he doesn't have more Villain Points. From the footage I saw of the sludge incident, he looked like an absolute beast in combat." Nemuri said, tapping a finger to her chin.
"He still displayed a high aptitude for combat, but it looks like he was just as focused on protecting other people as he was simply earning Villain Points." Snipe said, "It actually lines up neatly with his actions against the sludge villain, where he was focused on trying to save his schoolmate from the villain's clutches rather than simply attacking. Boy certainly seems to having the priorities that a hero should down pat."
"He also has a record." Ectoplasm said bluntly, calling attention to something most of them were already thinking about. Curiously, All Might glared at him when he said that, though it only lasted a second and nobody else seemed to notice as Ectoplasm continued, "I shouldn't need to remind everyone that his actions against the sludge villain were illegal. I'm actually surprised you let him into the school, Nedzu."
With his words, everyone turned to stare at their principal, who in turn stared back at all of them simultaneously. He was giving them that shrewd smile that rarely left his face and made it clear that he already had the answer to whatever questions they might ask him.
"It's true, normally, the boy's record would've prevented him from even taking the entrance exam, but he is a rather unique case. You would not believe the number of Pro Heroes and even police officers who called to talk with me about letting him try. And even beyond that, his criminal activities saw major news coverage, alerting me to his situation far before the screening process of applicants began, allowing me to draw my own conclusions on his situation." Nedzu calmly explained. As he spoke, he turned to look at the screen once again. It was clear he wasn't avoiding their gaze, as some people might do if a room full of Pro Heroes was staring at them. Rather, he was simply directing their attention to the footage of boy, "He behaved recklessly at the time, true. But, between his injuries and complete lack of any sort of training, I would say that he handled the situation rather well, all things considered. Better than many of our own students might have. Further, his performance during the exam shows clear improvement. Not once did he recklessly place himself or others in danger. In fact, he displayed the most caution towards himself and his fellow examinees out of anyone in the exam. And even the time he was in danger was due to circumstances completely beyond his control. So, I think we can all agree that he deserves a spot in the hero course, record or no."
All Might seemed to deflate slightly. Was he upset with Nedzu for allowing what was sure to be a problem student into the school? No, that didn't seem likely, considering the glare he gave Ectoplasm earlier. More likely, he was relieved for some reason. Weird.
"Honestly, even if what he did was illegal, the public loved him." Hizashi said, placing his hands behind his head and leaning back, "So it's not like we have to worry about a backlash for letting him in."
'Since when has the public ever been a good judge of character." Shouta thought with annoyance. Looking at the boy on the screen, he just knew that the kid was going to be trouble, 'I better keep a close eye on him.'
-000-
Toshinori walked up and down the length of the shore while he waited. He still had plenty of time until young Midoriya arrived, since he had gotten there early. He found himself coming to the beach quite often, despite the fact that he hadn't been there frequently since the sludge villain incident (His recent training sessions with young Midoriya not withstanding). Usually he came there when he was feeling stressed or simply needed think. There was something deeply relaxing about the sounds of the beach. From the noise of the waves softly crashing against the sand, to the gentle howl of the wind, and the crunch of sand underfoot. It helped to calm Toshinori's nerves, which were almost always tightly wound. It was even better at night, when the noise of people and seagulls was less frequent. Also, it was nice to see the place completely cleaned up.
Well, almost completely clean. With an annoyed sigh and a shake of his head, he bent down to pick up some cans of beer that had been left lying on the sand. This place had barely been cleared for a couple months, and already people were littering again. As he was throwing the trash away, a shout snapped him from his thoughts.
"YAGI-SAN!"
Turning around, Toshinori saw young Midoriya running down the beach towards him. By the time the boy reached him, he was completely out of breath and looked about a second away from collapsing onto the sand. Considering he spent the last several months picking up trash by hand, his stamina should be better by now. Which probably meant...
"Did you run all the way here?" Toshinori asked, a faint tinge of disapproval in his voice. It would certainly explain why the boy was early.
Young Midoriya nodded his head in response, still too out of breath to speak. Toshinori sighed, this kid really didn't seem to understand his limits.
"First off, congrats on passing." Toshinori said, reaching out and giving the boy a pat on the head, "I know I already said it on the hologram, but I thought I'd say it again in person. Secondly, you should know that I haven't actually told anyone at U.A. about our friendship. I guess it's not really a secret or anything, but I've gotten used to keeping my personal life private. Plus, I was worried that you might think you got in because of your connection to me. Also, it might raise some awkward questions among the staff about how you learned that I'm All Might."
"Wait, does the school know about your time limit?" Midoriya asked.
"Yes, it was rather necessary to tell the other teachers. But, they don't know anything about how I got my injury or One For All." Toshinori paused to think for a moment, "...Actually, I don't think most of them even know my real name."
"Recovery Girl does. She knows that we're friends too." Midoriya quickly said.
"Yes well, she and Nedzu are the exceptions, I've been close to both of them long before I became a teacher at U.A., so they both know everything." Toshinori said.
"It was pretty shocking to hear that you're going to be a teacher at U.A., though I guess it's not too surprising." Midoriya said, "You probably planned on going to work at U.A. to search for a successor, originally."
"Yes, Nedzu offered me a position almost immediately after I was injured. I've just been putting it off." Toshinori shamefully admitted.
Young Midoriya fidgeted nervously. To Toshinori, it was clear that there was something serious on his mind. Before he could ask the boy about it, Midoriya spoke, his voice somber, "I... I know you want me to take your quirk, but if you find someone else at U.A., someone who would be a better choice to be your successor than me, then I think you should give it to them." Midoriya said quietly, not meeting his gaze.
"I'll keep it in mind." Toshinori said with small nod. He already promised to not talk with young Midoriya about taking One For All until after he completed his first year, so he didn't say anything more. The idea that he might find another potential successor before then had crossed his mind on occasion, but he never really gave it much thought. It seemed unlikely to him that he would find someone better than young Midoriya, so he decided not to worry about it for the time being. If it did happen, they could discuss it more and figure he'd out what to do then.
Before the air between them could turn uncomfortable, young Midoriya's head perked up and he turned to Toshinori with an odd look in his eye.
"Hey, Yagi-san? Did you know ahead of time what the entrance exam was going to consist of?" Midoriya asked.
"Hmm, Yes. Why?" Toshinori asked in return.
"So, you knew that there were going to be Rescue Points?" Midoriya asked.
"Yes..." Toshinori said hesitantly. He didn't know where young Midoriya was going with this, but he had the distinct impression he wasn't going to like it.
"Then, is that why you told me that having the heart of hero would be important, right before I took the exam?" Midoriya said, giving Toshinori a look. It was similar to the one associated with parents who caught their kid doing something they shouldn't. Although, young Midoriya's didn't carry near the same weight, probably due to their respective ages. It still made Toshinori feel a bit awkward, though.
"Er..."
"Yagi-san." Midoriya said in a disapproving tone.
"He-hey now. What I said was strictly encouragement, nothing more. At most, it could've been considered a hint." Toshinori quickly defended himself. Why was it that everyone he knew felt the need to constantly chew him out? Midoriya, Naomasa, Nighteye, Gran Torino, Chiyo. Well, those last two were probably allowed, considering their status of terrifying doctor and terrifying former teacher, respectively.
"Yagi-san." Midoriya's voice became more exasperated, causing Toshinori's eyebrow to twitch slightly in annoyance.
"I didn't actually give you any information about the exam, it was just one small comment. I can't believe you even remember it." Toshinori said defensively.
Young Midoriya sighed and stopped staring at him. He twiddled his fingers nervously, and spoke quietly, "It's just... You've already helped me so much. I know I'm lucky in a lot of ways, from how powerful my quirk is, to meeting you and getting training, to actually getting into U.A. So, I don't want any preferential treatment just because you're my teacher. That wouldn't be fair to everyone else."
"...Okay, I promise I won't do anything like that again." Toshinori sighed. He could understand where young Midoriya was coming from. Then, he gave the boy a smile, "You'll be completely blindsided by every pop quiz, I guarantee it."
"Erf." Midoriya let out a strained noise, followed by a small laugh "Is it too late to change my mind?"
-000-
"It's absolutely wonderful that two of our students made it to U.A." The... principal? Guidance councilor? Bah, who fucking cares. The dickhead spoke with a self congratulatory smile on his face, as though he was somehow personally responsible for their success. In reality, the two of them making it into U.A. was more in spite of their time at Aldera, than because of it.
Katsuki also noticed Deku flinch when the dickhead emphasised the word 'two'. His own eye twitched as well. There were few that could possibly sour the fact that he was getting into U.A., but knowing that Deku was going to be there with him managed to do the trick. Still, Katsuki couldn't explode right now, so he settled for radiating his displeasure into the room. It was a skill he picked up from his mom.
"Of course, it doesn't come as a surprise. Everyone knew for awhile now that you'd both make it in." The dickhead said cluelessly. Deku flinched again, Katsuki's waves of displeasure became stronger, dickhead didn't notice either.
The asshole continued to blather on for longer than necessary about shit Katsuki couldn't care about, such as bringing prestige to Aldera's name and shit. He also managed to make several more comments that, while innocent to anyone else, seemed to be intended to make Katsuki and Deku uncomfortable. By the time they were done, the foremost thought in Katsuki's mind was wondering if the dickhead was actually some kind of hyper-observant sociopath who was intentionally trying to piss him off, or if he was just a dense sack of shit. Ultimately, Katsuki leaned towards the latter.
As the two of them were leaving, with an air between them that felt tense with a threat of turning violent, Deku decided it was a good idea to start fucking talking. Katsuki wondered if Deku some sociopath who was intentionally trying to piss him off, or if he was just a dense sack of shit. He leaned towards the former.
"So, I noticed how well you did on the entrance exa-" The nerd started, but Katsuki was quick to cut him off.
"Shut up." He said firmly, before taking a deep breath, "I've actually been having a pretty good damn week, and am in a surprisingly pleasant mood right now." Which was actually true. He had been in high spirits ever since he saw his ranking on the entrance exam. It was actually starting to freak the old hag out to see him in such a good mood all the time. It was understandable though, up until recently he had been constantly doubting his own abilities, and the universe kept giving him reason after reason to think that he might be weak, so seeing actual proof of his strength and skill felt better than anything else.
And the absolute last thing he wanted was Deku talking about it. He didn't need that bitch finding a way to ruin it.
"So, if you just shut the fuck up and leave me alone, then I'll let you off the hook for completely ignoring me when I told you to not go to U.A." Katsuki snarled. He wasn't really sure why he brought that threat up, but it just kind of popped into his mind.
Once, Katsuki had had a big plan for his origin story, where he went to some no-name middle school and he alone rose above his humble beginnings by pure skill and determination to become the greatest hero. It was silly and childish and, most importantly, never going to happen, all things he had known for awhile now, even if he had been in denial. But reality loved to break through his delusions and denial, and after the sludge villain incident, it was pretty damn clear that Deku was going to be heading to U.A. too.
And... he actually came to terms with that, shockingly. But, that didn't mean he was any less pissed off about having to be around that fucking asshole for the next three years.
"Kacchan." Deku started, and his tone was different from the usual whimpering, apologetic tone he usually had. There was no fake fear or hesitation in it. Was he finally dropping the act?
"Deku, please. I don't want to deal with your shit right now." Despite coming from his mouth, the words sounded foreign to his own ears. Not just what he had said, but the way he said it too. It came out as a sigh. He sounded tired, drained.
Deku seemed even more surprised than him. A look of shock and mild fear crossed his face as he took a step backwards. Katsuki wondered if that was a genuine reaction or not. Either way, he took it as an opportunity to leave.
As he walked away, his mind started yelling at him for how he just behaved. He acted weak, like a cowards, and in front of Deku no less. Why would he do that? He was so used to yelling and shouting, used to acting tough show everyone how strong he was. So, why the hell would he act like such a bitch in front of one of the people he knew looked down on him? Deku was one of the people he needed to prove his strength to most of all.
Fuck, fuck, FUCK, FUCK! Katsuki pulled at his hair as he walked away.
He hated this shit. He hated Deku. He hated how confusing everything was around him. Hopefully, the universe would throw him a bone and put them in different classes at U.A., because if he had to deal with this any more, his head might explode instead of his hands.
I am once again in that awkward position where I kind of want to have the next couple chapter take place in the time before U.A., but at the same time I also kind of want to just skip ahead like the series did in order to get to the good stuff.