Monday

The morning sun was casting light down upon the world, until it crept through the boy's room. For a while, he slept peacefully, until he opened his eyes all on his own. He looked at the clock next to his and gave a groan.

"Damn it, hate it when I wake up early."

He begrudgingly got up, and after scratching his head, he pressed a button on the alarm clock. The boy then got to his routine of showering, getting dressed in his school uniform along with his blue sneakers, and eating breakfast. However, unlike weekends, he also had the added work of making sure all his school supplies were in order. With a look in the mirror, and an expression of acceptance, he was out the door.

Instead of heading towards the bus stop, he instead headed straight towards school. It was fortunate for him that it was just a ten-minute walk. He walked along in the crowds of businessmen, women, wives, and husbands doing their errands. Takayama kept walking and walking on his usual route, until he saw something that sparked his interest. To his right, was a road, and then a wall that separated him from the grassy hill and river, while to his left another grassy hill that led into a sand pit that had patches of grass and some bushes. But in that pit were an additional four boys, all in uniform. Three were standing up, with their school bags all clumped together to the side. One was on the ground, with papers scattered all around him.

Takayama looked both ways before crossing the street, and slid down the grassy hill until he was in range to overhear their conversation.

"-so, you must be from that preppy high school. Funny, I thought guys like you weren't supposed to have any dirt on them."

All of the boys standing up chuckled at the remark, however, Takayama had one to make of his own.

"True, he may be dirty, but you guys take the cake when it comes to being slime."

All four turned to see who made that remark, and there they saw Takayama looking back, with his right hand in his pocket. Now that he could get a better look, he could see their physical features a bit better. The one to his left was bald, but not because he had a hair deficiency, it was simply that that boy had stone where his hair would be. It was like he was wearing a swimming cap made out of rock. The one in the middle had a mohawk that was tinged green, however, there were no other physical indicators that hinted at his quirk. The one to his right had hair, but it was made out of silver feathers. A few poked out of his face, like a boy who was on the cusp of shaving, or pruning if you wish.

"Hmm...all three are wearing some uniform I haven't seen before, but judging from what they said before, it seems like the school they go to isn't too prestigious."

The three thugs looked in disbelief at what he said but the one in the middle broke the ice.

"Well, well, well...looks like we got a UA elite here."

With that, the thugs were emboldened, and made a few steps forward.

"So, looks like you want to be a hero. Well, considering the fact you're in the top hero school, I guess it's only natural."

Takayama didn't let what he said affect him, he kept his poker face straight.

"Well, aren't you gonna save him hero? Come on, show us that flashy UA worthy quirk of yours."

With each sentence, the three drew closer, trying to use their numbers to intimidate. However, the boy simply replied, "sorry, but my quirk isn't something that I can 'show off'"

All three looked bemused by that fact.

"Ooooh, why's that? What? Is it unworthy of people like us? Or is it just that you're letting the rule of never use your quirk in public spaces be an excuse?"

Takayama simply sighed, "no, it's neither of those. It's just physically impossible for me to show my quirk."

The thug's expression changed from amused, to annoyed.

"Huh, what the hell are you talking about?"

It was this question that led to him slipping off his backpack and letting it drop to the ground. He then proceeded to raise his right hand that was open so that everyone could see his palm.

"Since you're curious, I'll tell you. My quirk, is called Blood Doping. It allows me to enhance anything that resides in my blood. However, I cannot enhance more than one thing. That, is my quirk."

For a moment, there was absolute silence. All the boys, whether on the ground or standing, looked at him in disbelief. Then, the three thugs started to laugh their asses off.

"HAHAHA...really!?"

"You call THAT a quirk!?"

"How did they let someone like you into the hero course!?"

Takayama just stood their with his straight face, but it was a face that was slowly turning into anger and annoyance. After composing themselves, the thugs wiped away their tears of laughter, and started getting ready for a fight. The one on the left was winding his right arm, the one in the middle was cracking his knuckles, and the final one on the right was doing an arm stretch. It was the middle one who started to speak again.

"Alright boys, this will be easy a-HURK!"

Before he could finish, Takayama swung a right hook that hit him directly on the jaw. It didn't knock him out, but it did send him to the ground.

"Wha-what the hell," he said on the ground, wiping the blood from his mouth. However, it was Takayama's time to talk.

"Look here, there were two things that I think you misunderstood. First, I don't need some flashy quirk to fight guys like you. My fists are more than enough. Second, I'm not part of the hero course at UA. I'm part of the support division."

It was this revelation that made the punks pause, but not for long. The one with the mohawk quickly got up, with a look of enmity on his face.

"So what, doesn't change that fact we're going to beat the living crap out of you!"

With this statement the other two at his side shouted with a confident, "YEAH!"

It was then that they readied their quirks with the one to Takayama's right spitting.

"Hmm, seems rock-head plans to headbutt me, while the bird-looking guy seem intent on spitting something nasty at me. Probably in the eyes. But what does the one in the middle…"

It was then that the thug with the mohawk snapped his finger, turning his thumb into a lighter.

"Oh! So that is what he can do. Though from the looks of it, that's all he can do."

"Alright boys let's…"

But before they could finish Takayama chimed in.

"Before we start, let me make it clear that there are two options for you."

The punks just responded with a look of bewilderment.

"Option one," said the boy, showing the number of fingers to make it clear, "you leave here, and the only wound you suffer is a single bruise to the cheek."

This made the one with the mohawk growl in response, "Oh yeah? What's

option two!?"

It was then that he talked in a much more severe tone.

"Option two is that the fight starts, and while I do think all three of you can beat me," the boy took of his the top half of his school uniform, revealing a white tank top underneath, "I don't think the money you could get off me OR the kid behind you can even cover half the medical bills a single one of you would need."

It was this idea that made them take a step back.

"And let me be clear, I don't mind getting blood on this tank top. I got three others like it back home."

This is what made the punks reconsider, and ultimately, give up.

"Eh, screw it," piped up the one with the mohawk, "this ain't worth our time."

With that they all picked up their bags, and scampered off. Takayama gave a sigh of relief, and put his school uniform back on. He then noticed the boy on the ground picking up the papers that were scattered around him. Seeing this, he grabbed a few papers off the ground and handed them to him.

"Here you go, buddy."

Now that he could get a better view of him, Takayama saw that the boy had very plain feature, and was wearing a uniform of dress pants, a belt, and a button up T-shirt that had a button label. But what really gave away where the student was from was the hat, a hat that had a capital S stamped on the front.

"Ah, so he's from Shiketsu High…"

The boy looked up to the person handing the papers, and Takayama just gave a warm smile in return. He reservedly accepted the papers from, while giving out a very quiet, "thank you."

Takayama continued to help pick up the scattered paper. They both did this for awhile, until the awkward silence made Takayama speak.

"So...tell me, what was their problem?"

"Well, I honestly think they were just bored on their way to school."

"Yeah...I encounter a few guys like that myself from time to time."

While Takayama continued to pick up papers, one caught his interest.

"Hey, have you been researching reforming clothes?"

The boy looked surprised at this line of questioning.

"Uh, yeah. Considering how some people's quirks cause their clothes to tear, I thought it would be useful to have clothes that fix themselves."

"Yeah, I can agree," responded Takayama with a small chickle, "there are a few people at my school who definitely could use clothes that regenerate themselves. Heck, some figure it's better to wear nothing then having to constantly pay for new clothes. Heck, I can't blame them. Even fiddled with the concept myself."

"R-Really?"

"Yep, though to be fair, mine was more gel-based. Something to come together once it breaks apart. However, I could never get the consistency right. A person would either be wearing slime, or something that couldn't regenerate at all. So I gave up on it. From the looks of it though, yours is more plant-based, like how a tree can grow new leaves."

Takayama handed the final page back to the boy as he said this.

"Yeah, that's the ide-wait a minute, you aren't going to steal my idea aren't you?" said the Shiketsu student with a look of suspicion.

"Nah," replied Takayama, with his hands up in apprehension, "don't want to get sued."

"Well...alright then."

As the boy got up, he asked a final question to his rescuer.

"Tell me, why did you decide to help someone from your a rival hero school?"

Takayama was able to give an immediate response.

"Well, there are two reasons for that. One, I hate it when people gang up on one person, so I was going to save you regardless of what school you belonged to. Second, while the world is bursting to the seems with heroes, it could always use another person who knows how to build something. So I tend to leave those school rivalries to the hero course guys."

"Wow, well thanks. Tell me, what's your name?"

It was this question that made Takayama's face turn from open and susceptible, to evasive and cagey.

"Um, isn't Shiketsu High a bit of a ways from here...shouldn't you get moving?"

It was this comment that redirected the conversation and made the other boy shift his attention.

"Uhh! You're right, I got to head to the station," the boy said as he started to run off. As he was leaving, Takayama meekly called out, "Hey. Good luck with your regenerating clothes idea. Hope it goes some..."

But the Shiketsu student just didn't hear him. With a depressed sigh, the boy continued on his way to U.A. high. He walked and walked until he was right at the front gates.

"Man, that encounter back there really took some time...good thing I always arrive five minutes early."

The gates to the school were blue with a white stripe in the middle, with a gold U housing a capital A inside of it. It also had brown walls that made a perimeter around the premises. Past the gate were several white arches, and on either side of the walkway were many trees. The path led to the man building, which were four, tall, reflective glass buildings that were about the size of an office building. They were all connected by a glass tunnel.

Takayama walked through the front gate, and began his daily life of a school student. In morning were the regular classes that anyone would expect, such as language, foreign languages, history, math, science, etc. not necessarily in that order or even before the afternoon. It was after these that it was time for lunch. The boy always bought his lunch, which today was teriyaki beef in sauce with rice and juice. He sat at a table that housed other students, but he wasn't part of their group, nor did he pay any attention to the conversation they were having. Instead, his attention was focused on his phone in front of him, and the article that was on it.

"The Hero Killer Stain, real name Akaguro Chizome, has been apprehended by the fiery hero Endeavor in Hosu, along with three other villains. The villain, who had previously killed seventeen other heroes, was finally brought to justice by the hero Endeavor, who was able to track him down."

Takayama took a second to process the information.

"Damn, I can't believe villains like him are around. To have a hero killer and three other villains attack at the same time, hmph, I'm glad all of them were stopped...But still, the most a villain ever does is cause some collateral damage cause he got caught stealing something. But this, this is the kind of event that makes legends."

For a while Takayama looked out one of the windows surrounding the cafeteria, and thought, "..hmph, can't help but think, what is it like? What is it like to face down one of those supervillains that are about something other than money. What would it be like to fight one of them?"

The boy daydreamed for a while, but then got back to reality and continued to eat his lunch. After the break, it was to afternoon classes, specifically the most fun one, support class. It was taught by Powerloader, a hero who wore a giant helmet that looked like the shovel of a excavator. He also wore giant fingerless gloves with mesh wrist guards, while metal wrapped around the ends of his fingers. The hero also didn't wear a shirt and had standard pants and boots. All the students were standing at work tables in pairs of two, except for Takayama, who was alone because his partner was sick.

"Alright class, listen up!"

The previously chatting students quickly fell silent.

"Now look here. I know everyone wants to talk about the incident that happened in Hosu, but I'll tell you something now, drop it. This is a classroom, not a gossip club, and in this class you learn things that are important for the survival of heroes out there. Your duty as support students is to make tools and gadgets for heroes so that they have an edge against the villains out there. Even the mightiest of quirks out there have their limitations, and it's the role of support to help heroes overcome those limitations. However, one faulty wire, one misplaced nut or bolt, and the item you built for someone might end up failing them in the middle of combat. You now have a dead hero on your hand, or worse yet, your support item itself kills the hero, which I'm sure none of you want. So today, we are going to practice how to work with the most common clothing material used in the hero world, and how to combine it with things like metal."

The teach then turned around and pulled something out of his desk to present to the whole class.

"Spandex," Powerloader said, presenting a pair of red briefs to the students, who responded with a groan of disapproval.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know it's a pain to work with, but someone somewhere out there decided that this was going to be the official fabric for heroes. Now pull out the spandex at your station and try to make something out of it. It can be a shirt or pair of pants, use your imagination. It's the most important tool to a support item maker aside from his hands."

With that, all the students started to get to work, and focus on the task at hand. Takayama was making a simple shirt made out of spandex, making sure that the sewing lines were nice and concealable and that he didn't tear the fabric. In order to do this, he had a look of laser focus, with beads of sweat forming around his head. But, in those few seconds of rest, he was able to pick out the others conversation. Most of them didn't interest him, except one had by two boys.

"Really!? You tore it again?"

"Oh lay off. As if you could do any better."

"Well I can."

"Oh please, you wouldn't know how to work spandex if your hands were sewing machines."

For some reason, Takayama wanted to listen to this conversation. Everyone finished their assignments, and were subsequently handed their grades, with the boy getting an ninety two out of one hundred. This brought a smile to his face, and so the day went on and on, until it ended. With that, Takayama was on his way back home, just another day to log away. He walked straight home, making no detours or stops, and finally got through his front door. He changed out of his school uniform into black cargo short and a dark red t-shirt. The boy then set about doing his homework, and when that was done, he just tried to pass the time. He watched TV, played video games, read a magazine or two, anything to make time go by. The sun was starting to set, and the growling of the boy's stomach alerted him to the fact that it was nearly dinner time. He got up and went to the fridge to see what was available.

"Huh, let's see, can have some ramen, a sandwich, or maybe some soup...hmm, could make a beef stew, but would need to get the beef and some mini corncobs. Do I want to go to the store?...yeah, I can, got nothing better to do."

With that Takayama closed the fridge, put on his shoes, grabbed his wallet, and made sure to lock the door behind him. He walked and walked until he reached the nearest convenience store near his house, passing by some businessmen, and a father and daughter taking a walk. Walking in, everything was normal. No one was being held up at gunpoint or anything like that, it was just the some bored man behind the counter with the radio music playing in the background. The boy walked around looking for what he wanted, until he came across a packet of dried mini corn cobs, and found some beef in the refrigerator section. However, while on the search for packaged goods, the radio made a sudden announcement.

"We interrupt your regularly scheduled music to bring a warning to the public. Please be aware that a series of fatal attacks are still being carried out in the general area. It is currently unaware whether the perpetrator is a villain or a wild animal, regardless, it is recommended that people do not go out at night alone. We now return to your regularly scheduled broadcasting."

Takayama approached the counter as the message ended, and he was rung up by the man behind the counter. He paid, and was on his way. However, as he was leaving, the man called out to him, "Hey kid, be careful out there."

The boy gave a thankful look back and replied, "Thanks...sure thing."

As he was leaving the store and walking back home, he noticed that the sky went from a deep orange, to a dark blue with fringes of red around it. Suddenly, the street lights started to shine, one by one. It was this, and the silence of the night, that made the boy quicken his pace. But he was stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a girl's scream pierce the night, and unfortunately, it came from the alley right in front of him. In a couple of seconds that felt like an eternity, it felt like Takayama had all the time in the world to think.

"Okay, what do you do? Do you check it out, or do you just keep moving forward?"

After a thinking, the boy came to a conclusion.

"Alright, I'll go check it out. If it's something bad, I'll call the police. But if it's nothing, I'll just keep moving."

With that, Takayama slowly moved forward, and hugged the corner of the wall that led into the alleyway. He peeked forward, and what he saw was bad. Really, really bad. The scream came from a little girl sitting on the floor, who was probably no older than six or seven years old, and she was screaming because a tall, shadowy figure was holding a man off his feet by the throat. The man was probably the girl's father, and he was bleeding from the mouth, while the girl was crying. The boy recognized them as the father and daughter he passed by on his way to the store, and he was looking at all of this with a look of horror. He quickly tucked behind the corner he was hiding behind, while he started to sweat.

"Okay, it's bad, gotta call the police."

He quickly got the phone out of his pocket and started to dial, but it was as this moment that he froze.

"But, will calling them really help? From the look of it, he's about two seconds from killing the father. Do I act first, then call the police, or do I call the police first, then act? Do I even act at all?"

But suddenly, he heard the girl scream out, "DADDY!"

Quickly turning around the corner, the boy saw the shadowy figure raise its claws, aiming right for the man's heart. But, before it could strike, someone called out, "hey! Why don't you pick on someone who knows how to defend themselves?"

All three people in the alley turned to see Takayama standing at the end of the alleyway. The shadow figure let go of the father who landed with a thud, and started to head towards the boy's direction.

"Well, guess I just set the hornet's nest on fire," he thought to himself while forcing a nervous smile. The shadow suddenly rushed towards Takayama and went for a left swing.

"Here it comes!"

The boy ducked and rolled under the swing, taking advantage of the height difference, dodging but also accidently knocking over a silver trash can. He looked up, but he didn't have any time to think as the shadow was suddenly on top of him, stabbing down with his right hand. Takayama quickly grabbed the lid from the knocked over trash can and held it up like a shield with both hands. The fingers of the shadow pierced it like a person poking his finger through a piece of paper, while the other hand grabbed the side, wrestling for control of it from the boy. During the struggle, Takayama saw the father and daughter watching him battle the attacker. The boy shouted, "GO, NOW!"

The pair suddenly woke up and got out of the alleyway with haste. With them out of the way, the boy then focused his attention back to the shadow, and subsequently gave up the struggle for the lid. He then put some distance between him and his opponent, while the other dislodged its finger from the lid. Looking for a weapon, the boy found a bottle on the ground, picked it up, and smashed it against the wall, creating a makeshift blade. However, even though he had a weapon, all Takayama could do was dodge the shadows strikes.

"Damn, this thing's fast."

But he didn't have to dodge forever, as the shadow took a big swing at him, and his eyes widened at the opportunity before him. He dashed in, and brought down the sharp end on the shadow's foot. It cried out in pain, and Takayama thought to himself, "yes! I got one in. If I can get the other foot, I might even be able to escape!"

But it wasn't that easy, as the boy felt a sudden force hit his left side, and sent him flying into the alley wall beside him, hitting it with a loud thud. The bottle that he carried with him also flew out of his hand, smashing to pieces on the ground. Takayama got onto his knees, as he was trying to regain the breath that was knocked out of him.

"Damn, what the hell just happened? Can I not get a hit on this guy without leaving myself wide open?"

However, his thought were interrupted again, as he suddenly noticed the shadow moving towards him. The shadow was suddenly looming over him, and the boy just kneeled there with a look of fear on his face. But the form of a savior came, with the sound of police sirens. Takayama and his opponent both heard them draw closer and closer, and it was this that made the shadow leap over the boy, slinking into the dark of the alleyway until it disappeared altogether. He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the ordeal was over, when out of nowhere, a pink mass like a tongue darted out of the darkness, piercing the boy's arm. He yelled out, and the tongue disappeared back into the darkness. Takayama looked at the small wound that was at the top of his left forearm, and immediately started to fix the problem.

"Alright, gotta enhance my platelets."

While applying pressure to the wound, he heard the police car pull up next to the alleyway, and turned his head to see two police officers come out of the car. One was a man and the other was a woman, and they were flashing their lights down the alleyway onto Takayama himself. Moments later, the boy was being questioned by the police in front of the alleyway.

"So you're telling me that you saw the father being attacked and rushed in to help?"

"Yep, pretty much."

"And you didn't see any physical attributes of the attacker?"

"Nope, it just appeared as one big shadow."

"Well, that's what everyone else says. Gotta say I admire your courage, but remember, you're pretty lucky to be alive. Not to mention that the first thing you should always do is call us first."

"Yeah...about that. Who did call you?"

"Oh, those two over there."

The police man pointed to the father and daughter being talked to by the police woman.

"Wait, they did?"

"Yeah, what? Did you just expect them to run away and not do anything?"

"Huh, guess I didn't factor that."

After a few more moments of questions and answers, the police got back into their car along the father and daughter, but before they started to drive off, the policeman asked, "hey, if you don't mind my asking, how'd you get that wound on your arm?"

Takayama looked at his left arm, and the wound now looked like it had been scabbed over for over a couple of weeks.

"Eh, just scrapped it while riding my bike, no big deal."

The officer gave a look of suspicion, but let it go with an, "alright."

As the car drove off, Takayama picked up his plastic bag of goods and continued to walk home

"Okay, I was lucky enough to not have to go to the hospital, and I was able to convince them not to use my name if they ever release any information to journalists. I avoided having to pay any hospital bills or get any attention on me. But the biggest problem is what's on my arm."

The boy gave a look of uncertainty at his wound.

"I don't know whether or not this is poisonousness. Heck, maybe there's an egg just waiting to hatch. Still, I felt around it, and there aren't any bumps. If it is bacteria I can just enhance the white blood cells in me to fight it off. Though, considering the fact that I didn't feel sick even a couple of minutes after I got the wound, I don't think that is it. So the most I have to watch out for are signs of bumps, fatigue, or anything else that might be telling."

Takayama gave a look behind him at the alley.

"I just hope this will be the end of it."

With that, the boy walked straight back home.

Giran was walking the night streets, passing by all the neon signs until he arrived at an apartment complex. He went up the elevator until he reached the top floor. Knocking on the only door available, it quickly opened up, with Shibata standing in the doorway.

"Giran! Come in, come in!"

The man in the purple blazer was practically dragged in, while the person dragging him made sure to lock the door behind them. The apartment itself was a two bedroom, two bathroom structure, with a living room and kitchen.

"Well, well, well, aren't you happy today?"

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?"

"Let's see, maybe it's the fact that you hardly kept in contact with me for more than a year. What happened?"

Shibata responded with a face of achievement, "the solution."

Giran responded with a face of confusion, "...the solution to what?"

"Remember what we talked about? About the idea of me beating time?"

"Yeess."

"Well, let me show you the solution."

He led Giran down the hall, past the two bathrooms, and made a right past his room straight to the other one. He opened the door and led him inside, and inside the room was a cradle.

"Giran, let me present to you...the solution."

The man looked in disbelief at what Shibata was presenting him, a sleeping baby boy.

"Um...don't tell me…"

"Yep, this is my son."

"But...why?"

"Like I said, it's impossible for me to live forever and keep going bigger than my competition. So my son will do it for me. He will be my successor, and carry on my mantle of 'Bloodsport.' Thus, I will beat time itself."

"But...but...who's the mother!?"

"Oh, I honestly don't know."

"...WHAT!?"

"Well, did you hear about that robbery at the egg storage facility?"

"Yeah, but what...my god... don't tell me…"

"Yep, artificial insemination. I spent about three months trying to get all the information I could about the eggs in storage, like which ones had the strongest quirks in case he didn't inherit mine. Then I broke in and stole the ones I desired. I tried fertilizing each one until I hit the bullseye, then I made sure it incubated in an artificial womb until it was finally ready, and boom...there he is."

Giran just had a look of absolute shock waiting for the end of his explanation.

"Wow...Shibata...have to admit...that's a pretty...creative, solution."

"Hmph, isn't it?"

The broker and the mechanic then spent a good while looking at the baby in the crib, until Giran finally spoke.

"So, what's his name?"

"Well, I was thinking of something like...Takayama."