Sup people. I'm back from the dead, it seems. Yay. Honestly, I have no excuse other than the fact that life caught up to me in the worst ways possible the past few years. I started college almost three years ago, and since then things just went downhill. Relatives passing away, finals hitting me like a semi-truck, personal dramas and whatnot. I practically went off the deep end for a whole year and a half. I'm still not fine per se, but at the very least, I'm motivated enough and inspired enough to put up a chapter right now. My RWBY and Ace Attorney works though, I'll explain at the end of this chapter. But for now, just enjoy the second chapter of A Path to Heroism. Enjoy.
Path to Heroism
Chapter 2: Meet the Elites, A Quirk Passed Down
(Location: Dagobah Beach)
It was a late afternoon on Sunday, and Ryuuji had just finished his routine jog around town and right now sitting on a broken fridge watching his newfound friend Izuku pull it with difficulty, along with All Might in his muscle form.
"MOVE IT SHONEN! LET'S START WORKING THOSE SCRAWNY MUSCLE OF YOURS, HAHAHAHA!" the hulking man exclaimed with joyful laughter.
"Easy... for... you to... say...with you...and Ryuuji...I'm...pulling in... four hundred kilos.. right now," Izuku huffed between each pull. 'Though it feels way heavier than that. Must be the fatigue setting in, I guess.'
It has been eight months since Izuku and Ryuuji met, and their friendship has been going strong, with Ryuuji joining in on Izuku's jog once in a while. The two shared a common interest in heroes (though he can never be as avid a fan as Izuku) and Ryuuji's sociable personality surprisingly meshed well with Izuku's shy and awkward personality.
Though the two has talked for quite some time, the green-haired boy still hasn't figured out is friend's Quirk, and not without effort. Every time he asked Ryuuji, he simply put on a smile and said, "I'll let you figure it out on your own, hihihi."
Needless to say, he was keenly observing the boy for any signs of his Quirk, but his physical traits didn't reveal any clues on what it could be, apart from it being a physical-based Quirk from how lean and muscular he was, but a strength enhancement Quirk was out of the blue seeing as he never showed any display of super strength (at least, not one that he knew of). Even with his aptitude on Quirk analysis, he was quite frankly stumped.
'From what I've seen so far, we can cross out a mutant-type Quirk seeing as he has no physical traits that implies so. That only leaves an Emitter or Transformation type, but looking at his physical build, it's likely to be something that enhances physical strength, but contrary to belief, he doesn't show any sign of enhanced strength or speed whatsoever, so it would most likely be a technical type Quirk that's an emitter, but it must be really strong for him to be given recommendation... ' was his mutter as he continued lifting a tire for a monster truck. This went on for a while before All Might gave him a light chop in the head.
"LESS MUMBLING, MORE TRAINING MIDORIYA-SHONEN! THIS TRASHES WON'T MOVE BY ITSELF Y'KNOW!" All Might called out. Izuku stammered out an apology and continued lifting. Ryuuji gave a chuckle before he was given the same chop to the head, "DON'T THINK YOU'RE EXEMPT FROM THIS RYUUJI-SHONEN! YOU WILL NEED THIS FOR YOUR TRAINING TOO!" The black-haired teen simply grinned and gave a mock salute before proceeding to do the same thing as Izuku, pulling a broken cooling unit.
This went on for a few hours, until the sun starts to set, signaling the coming of night.
"ALL RIGHT, SHONEN! THAT WILL BE ENOUGH FOR TODAAAA-" All Might said before gushing blood as he transformed back into his skinny form, inciting a laughter from Ryuuji.
"Man, that never gets old," he snickered while wiping a tear from his eyes.
Izuku ignored their interactions, having gotten used to it by now, as well as being too tired to react at this point. As he drank from a water bottle, he began speaking, "Kurogawa-kun, you mentioned about something important you want to talk about?"
"Maa maa, Izuku. Haven't I told you to just call me Ryuuji? Kurogawa makes me sound old, you know?" Ryuuji chided lightheartedly, getting a nervous apology from Izuku, "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I probably won't be around for the next month."
"What's wrong?" Izuku inquired curiously. While Ryuuji doesn't really show up every day, having his own training schedule to follow, he usually made an effort to come by at least once a day.
The other teen rubbed his neck and grinned sheepishly and replied, "Well, it's just that the test for the recommendation students is coming up soon, so I was thinking about making the most out of it by training. That's all."
This struck Izuku by surprise and he flailed his arms nervously. "Oh, o-of course. I don't really mind. I'm a-actually surprised you didn't mention this sooner." He cleared his throat before continuing, "So do you know what's going to be on the test?"
"Well, I heard it's just like the normal entrance except it being more challenging." Ryuuji simply shrugged before putting on a grin. "I'm honestly just pumped up seeing other people with strong quirks like me. I even heard they were increasing the number of recommended entries. Isn't that awesome?"
All Might, who was by the sidelines listening to their conversation was in thought. 'Looks like the principal went through with his initiative on increasing the number of entries for the hero course after all.' It was a decision that was made by Nezu, after anticipating All Might's retirement which might come sooner or later. The official reason being that the school needed more outstanding Heroes to prepare for the era after the Symbol of Peace is over.
The conversation went on before the gaunt man interrupted and said, "Now, it's getting late boys. I'm sure you two need to get back to your home soon right?"
Izuku and Ryuuji looked at the watches respectively and went wide-eyed. "Shoot, I'm late. My mom's gonna be mad at me. Izuku, see ya in a month, okay? And see ya around Toshi-jisan!" He waved at the pair before jogging away at a brisk pace towards his apartment.
"Kurogawa-kun is really impressive. To think that he wasn't even afraid of the exam at all." Izuku breathed in awe.
Toshinori simply laughed, "That's exactly the reason why I gave him that recommendation, Midoriya-shonen. That kid doesn't know what it means to fear. He'll make a great hero someday." He then saw the look on the boy and ruffled his hair. "And once we're done with this training, you're gonna be just like him, boy. Count on that."
"Then...why didn't you just give One for All to him?" the question struck the man cold. "He seemed worthy of it. He's even more prepared for it than me. So why not just give it to him?"
Izuku had questioned this after a few weeks of meeting Ryuuji. The black-haired teen seemed like a person who was made to help people with his exuberant smile and fearless attitude. On the other hand, he was just a scrawny, Quirkless kid who simply got lucky.
The tall man sighed. He realised this issue might come up sooner or later. Before answering the boy, he gave Izuku a punch to the head.
"You really need to work on that confidence of yours, boy. We can't have our Symbol of Peace be a muttering coward after all." Izuku flinched at his words, but he simply continued, "As for that, firstly, he rejected my offer."
"What?! WHY?"
"Because he wanted to be a hero with his own power, so having mine is just out of the question. And secondly..." he took on a more somber expression, which piqued Izuku's curiosity, but he held his tongue, "I couldn't bear having him with the burden of his power. Not after what happened."
"After what happened?" Naturally that was the question he asked. The look on All Might's face made him quickly take back his words. "Y-y-you don't have to a-answer if you want. I-I-I was just being curious-"
No, it's alright, shonen," the man interrupted, "you were simple curious. But I cannot answer that question for now. Not until he can finally accept it, at least."
"...Alright," the teen obeyed. He understood a that a something has to be kept secret for a reason. "... All Might?"
"... Yes, shonen?"
"Do you actually know what his Quirk is?" He had to ask this one at least.
Toshinori simply gave a nervous chuckle and replied, "You should find that out yourself, Midoriya-shonen." The boy simply sighed. Another dead end, he supposed.
(Location: UA Academy)
The two weeks went by like a breeze, and before you know it, it was the day of the test for Ryuuji. Right now, he was standing in front of UA, wearing a black and white winter coat, with his school uniform underneath and carrying his bag.
"Whoa, this place looks awesome." He stared at the H-shaped building rising high with an excited grin. "This is gonna be my school in a few months from now. Can't wait till I actually get inside."
"You sound awfully confident, " Said a feminine voice from behind. He turned around to see a girl, slightly taller than him, with black hair in a spiked ponytail, wearing a red winter coat (that looks costly) and black skirt with matching leggings. Even with the bagginess of her jacket, he could tell that she was quite blessed with curves underneath it. "I assume you are a part of the students for recommendations, correct?" She spoke with a formal and polite tone, and a small smile on her face.
"Yeap. My school ain't really a big deal, so I got mine from a pro-Hero who's a relative of mine," he said with a friendly grin. He then offered her a hand. "The name's Kurogawa Ryuuji. I'm assuming you're here for the exam too, right? What's your name?"
"I'm Yaoyorozu Momo. It's a pleasure to meet you, Kurogawa-san," The girl, now identified as Momo replied with a smile as she took his hands and shook it.
Ryuuji gave a small laugh. "Maa, maa Yaoyorozu-chan. Just call me Ryuuji, please. Calling me Kurogawa-san make me feel old. I'm pretty sure I'm not old enough for that stuff yet." He gave off another laugh, to which she returned by a light giggle. She could feel that he was a nice and friendly person from first impression.
"If you say so, Ryuuji-san."
"Anyway, to answer your first statement just now," He said, bringing back her earlier words. "There's no sense in being afraid, you know? If I wanna be a hero, then I won't settle for anything less than UA. So, I'm gonna pass this test, no matter what." He turned back towards the school and spread his arms with a happy expression. "Isn't that what this school is all about? To go beyond-
"PLUS ULTRA!" Another voice screamed with him loudly, causing the two to flinch. When they turned to the source, they saw a very tall boy, with a shaved haircut and his right arm up high pumping up in excitement. "Sorry! But I couldn't help but hear your passionate speech just now. You sound like a man with a fighting spirit, y'know! And I always wanted to say 'Plus Ultra' loudly once. My name's Yoarashi Inasa. It's A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU!" As he said his introductions, he bowed so hard, his head hit the concrete pavement and cracked.
Momo could only smile nervously at this... interesting individual, while Ryuuji laughed out loud.
"You're really funny, you know that?" He howled as he laughed. "If you haven't heard me before, the name's Kurogawa Ryuuji. Just call me Ryuuji, he then gestured to Momo, who awkwardly waved at him, "and this is Yaoyorozu Momo. You're also taking the recommendation test, I'm guessing?"
"Of course! It was an honor to be given this chance! I'VE ALWAYS WANTED TO JOIN UA, Y'KNOW!" His passionate scream attracted more than a few stares, and Momo started to feel embarrassed standing there, while the purple-eyed teen was oblivious to it.
"Well, I guess we can talk more after this. The written test's about to start and we don't wanna be late, right?" He said with a cheeky smile, and the other two muttered silent curses and they rushed through the exam site. Ryuuji simply laughed out loud, finding their reactions funny, before making his way to the exam site himself.
'This place is gonna be interesting. I can just tell,' he happily thought.
A few hours later...
The trio of newly-met acquaintances were now standing alongside the other students at what seemed to be a huge obstacle course, after finishing their written exams. Ryuuji peered over the other contestants looking for anyone interesting. Much to his disappointment, none of them seemed to stand out much apart from him, Momo, Inasa and three other people.
The first one was a boy with white hair and teeth coming out of his cheeks giving him the appearance of a skeleton, with a laid-back expression, not seemingly caring about the tense nature of the exam.
The second one was a girl with moss green hair, giving a toothy grin, showing her sharpened teeth, as she was stretching herself up confidently. Right now, she was talking to the skeletal boy from before so they were likely to be acquainted from before this.
The last one was a boy with his hair being half-red, half-white and a prominent burn scar on his red face. But what actually caught his attention was his eyes, which was bursting with hate and he could not help but feel something wrong.
'That guy looks like he's got some issue,' he thought.
"That guy's Todoroki Shoto," Inasa called out from his sides, ejecting him from his thoughts. Ryuuji looked at him as he continued, "You might've heard of him. He's Endeavor's son, and I heard he's the real deal. They even said he was shoe-in guaranteed to pass this test."
Ryuuji simply nodded with a frown. The name Endeavor wasn't really foreign to him, being the No. 2 ranked Hero in Japan. He wasn't really the biggest fan of him, as the man was the epitome of unfriendliness in his opinion, but his skills were undeniably top-notch. So, the fact that his son was recommended to UA was not really surprising. 'His Quirk must be something related to fire. He must be pretty strong with it.' The thought brought a grin to his face.
"I personally don't like his eyes, but let's see what he can do," Inasa stated with a frown.
"What's wrong with his eyes?" Ryuuji asked, even though he somewhat knew the answer.
"It looks too much like Endeavor. I hate it," the shaven haired boy grumbled hatefully.
Ryuuji wanted to retort, but eventually held his tongue. He figured it wasn't his business to meddle in, so he simply continued observing the others while stretching. He then saw Momo from a distance who was stretching her body.
What happened after that surprised him and most of everyone there. She unzipped her jacket and took it off, revealing herself to be only wearing a black sports bra covering her ample bosom. This instantly made everyone in the room to stare at her curvaceous figure, boys (and some girls) drooling and blushing, and girls muttering in jealousy over her.
Momo felt a little self-conscious listening to their remarks. It wasn't her intention to flash everyone like an exhibitionist. It was how her Quirk works! And it wasn't her fault that she had a larger chest than most girls her age. It was in her genes! Beautiful genes, but genes nonetheless.
Ryuuji meanwhile was eye twitching at the sight. 'What the hell? Is she an exhibitionist or something?' Somehow, this made him more hot-blooded and he cried out 'YOSH!' before proceeding to mimic Momo and taking off his top, revealing a lean and muscular body and nothing else. "I'm ready now! LET'S DO THIS!" He shouted passionately.
Cue another widened eye from the crowd, screaming in their heads 'What the hell is up with these people?!' Fourteen-year-old kids weren't supposed to look like that. The world was seriously unfair sometimes.
Momo, who was watching the spectacle had to cover her face in embarrassment. This was not how she envisioned things to be. She had never even seen a topless male in her life, and her rich, sheltered, noble eyes were not prepared for what she was seeing. Ryuuji wasn't undesirable by any means when he first met her (she thought his attitude was adorable), but he was a lot more... hot underneath that baggy jacket.
'Must. Resist. The. Temptation. To. Look.' she chanted in her head repeatedly. Thankfully, her purity was saved by the voice of the examiner on-site.
"HEEEEEEY LISTENERS, GOOD TO SEE YOU'RE ALL HYPED AND READY!" The loud voice came from a man with blond hair pointed upwards like a pencil tip. He was wearing a black leather jacket and a speaker device on his neck. Everyone immediately recognised him as Present Mic, a well-known Pro-Hero and one of the staffs of UA.
"ALL RIGHT! YOU GUYS JUST FINISHED YOUR WRITTEN EXAM, SO NEXT UP IS YOU PHYSICAL APTITUDE TEST!" He announced boisterously. He then gestured to the large obstacle course and continued, "THIS HERE IS A THREE KILOMETER Obstacle COURSE BUILT SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS OCCASION. YOUR JOB IS TO REACH THE END LINE! YOU'RE WELCOMED TO USE YOUR QUIRK TO PASS THIS TRIALS. NOW, ANY QUESTIONS?!"
There was only silence as the students simply went into their standby position.
"NO QUESTIONS? THEN..." He stopped with a dramatic pause, before shooting his arms up in the air. "START!"
And the crowd went wild. Todoroki who was silent the whole time, rocketed through with blocks of ice propelling him forward with insane speed and control. Inasa with his wind Quirk, lifted himself up and flew through, attempting to catch up with the dual-haired teen. Momo, out of some sci-fi flick, created a rollerblade with jet boosters and dashed through, not far behind the two. Ryuuji on the other hand...
"YEAH!" He shouted as he jets through the course midair, using his Quirk to fly at almost breakneck speed. He was leading with a small margin, inciting surprise from the competitors.
'He can fly?! What kind of Quirk does he have?' Momo thought. She thought that he would have some kind of physical enhancement Quirk of some sort with how physically built he was, but it seems she was mistaken. And it doesn't seem like he had anything to support his flight, so it had to have been with his Quirk.
'Damn, he really is the real deal!' Inasa thought with excitement. Never had he felt his blood pumping this fast until now, and he was relishing in the feeling right now. Then, he turned towards Todoroki, who was ahead of him slightly and gave a small frown. 'This guy's really good too. It's just his eyes that I can't shake off. It's exactly like Endeavor's and it's pissing me off,' he quickly shook it off and put on hot-blooded grin, 'Well, I might be wrong though. I'm just really pumped up right now!'
Meanwhile, Todoroki was narrowing his eyes at Ryuuji who was ahead of him and getting further away as time goes by. 'This guy's good. But I'll beat him with my ice, no matter what.' He then sped up even further, before catching up with the spiky-haired teen, who showed a bloodthirsty grin.
"Oi, oi, you're good man. Your Quirk's really awesome," He screamed with vigor, "but I'm not gonna lose!" He then flew ahead even faster, catching everyone by surprise, especially Todoroki before eventually reaching the finish line at first place.
"AND AT FIRST PLACE, NO. 29 KUROGAWA RYUUJI!" Present Mic announced from his post. 'Holy shit, that was less than a third of the average yearly time. What the hell are these kids on?!'
Not long after that, Inasa and Todoroki arrived, the shaven haired boy getting second place with a photo finish, followed closely by Yaoyorozu who placed fourth. Inasa was cheering at his accomplishment, while the dual-haired boy and spiked-ponytail girl were simply panting in exhaustion.
Ryuuji went and approached them with a warm smile. "Oi, good race there, everyone."
Momo gave a tired smile and replied, "You too. Congratulations on winning. You were amazing just now. We really couldn't keep up with you."
"Hihihi, thanks Yaoyorozu-chan." He then turned towards the dual-haired teen. "Shoto. Great job at the race just now, you almost got me there. Honestly, I'm surprised, I thought you had a fire Quirk, being Endeavor's kid and all. But ice's awesome too. Hey, after all of this is done, why don't we all go and-"
"Shut up," Shoto interrupted coldly, inciting a flinch from Inasa and Momo, and a confused expression from Ryuuji, "I'm not here to make friends. This is an exam, so passing is all that matters anyway. Honestly, I wasn't even thinking of competing until you went past me." He then brought his face up and sent a chilling glare to Ryuuji and said, "and don't ever relate me to that Endeavor. Ever. Again."
Momo simply covered her mouth in horror, not knowing what to do. Inasa on the other hand, after getting over his surprise, sent a bone-chilling glare towards Shoto. "You're just like him, aren't you?"
The boy in response turned towards to taller teen in outrage. "What did you say?" But as he advanced towards Inasa, a hand touched his right shoulder. He turned around to see Ryuuji holding him with a goofy smile.
"Maa, maa. Let's not get too hostile, alright?" he offered calmingly, "We just finished the race, so I'm pretty sure we're all just tired, so let's just leave it all behind, okay?"
The atmosphere was tense for a moment, Momo simply looking at both parties back and forth, looking to see if any of them were willing to back down. Inasa kept his glare at Todoroki, who was focused on Ryuuji. Ryuuji himself kept up that calm smile, not wavering at all.
Eventually, Todoroki backed down, walking past Ryuuji but not before bumping with his shoulders harshly. He simply left the scene with a sour expression. Once he was gone, Momo finally exhaled out of relief. She didn't even realised that she was holding her breath thanks to how tense it was. She turned towards Ryuuji in concern and said, "Ryuuji-san. A-are you alright?"
The teen simply gave a confused look, "Of course I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"
Momo blinked her eyes before stammering out, "I-I j-just thought you might've been upset with how Todoroki-san treated you just now."
Ryuuji simply gave a heartfelt laugh, further confusing the girl, before he elaborated, "I'm not really mad at him, you know. He's probably got something in his mind. I'm not gonna hold a grudge or anything."
The spiked-ponytail girl looked at him at awe, before shaking her head fondly. "You really are one of a kind, Ryuuji-san."
The boy laughed in response. "Well, it's nothing." He then gave a cheeky grin and continued, "Like I said, after the exam's done and all, why don't go have some food together. We might as well get to know each other seeing as we're gonna pass the test."
Momo gave a light giggle, and nodded. "I wouldn't be opposed to it." Inwardly she thought, Ryuuji-san seems like an interesting person, but I can't say I hate it. I probably couldn't find a better company than him.'
"How 'bout you, Inasa? You joining?" The excitable teen turned towards Yoarashi who has been silent for a while. "Hey, dude. What's wrong?"
Inasa jumped in surprise for a moment, before answering, "I don't know. It's just, Todoroki just now really struck a nerve on me. If he really is joining UA, then..."
"Then what?"
"... I might just drop it right now." He confessed after a while.
"WHAT?!" Ryuuji and Momo exclaimed in shock. They didn't expect such a response from the normally hot-blooded teen.
"Surely you wouldn't drop out simply because of Todoroki-san, right?" Momo placated in an attempt to convince him.
"It's just... I HATE PEOPLE LIKE HIM!" He exclaimed in anger. "I don't think I'll ever accept him as a hero with those eyes of his. He's just like-" He was cut off by a fist to the head by Ryuuji who looked pissed.
"IDIOT! And that's gonna stop you from your dream?!" He asked angrily while grabbing Inasa's collar.
"I'm not gonna stop being a hero!" The shaven haired teen bellowed out in outrage. "I'll just go to Shiketsu or something. I just can't stand to be around him, okay?!"
"Didn't you say you wanna go to UA more than anything?" His words struck Inasa dead on. It was true. UA was his dream ever since he was a kid. Ryuuji continued on, "If you have a dream, you gotta stick by it. You don't let anything or anyone stop you, you got that?! If you stop aiming for your dream simply 'cause of one guy, then you're gonna regret it for the rest of your life." He let the taller boy go but he pressed on, poking Inasa on the chest. "You don't like Todoroki? Fine, then prove him wrong. Better the better hero than him. Then he'll see that you're right. Don't. Let. Him. Win. Got it? Now, where do you wanna go?"
"UA," the taller teen muttered out.
"I can't hear you!" Ryuuji ground out.
"UA!"
"Again!"
"UA!"
"WITH FEELINGS NOW!"
"UUUUUUAAAAA!" Inasa instantly took a step back, and raised his arms upwards before screaming at the top of his lungs. Then he looked at Ryuuji. "Ryuuji! I can't thank you enough for showing me the way. I wasn't thinking straight. I'm honestly ashamed at myself for even thinking about running away. I'M TRULY SORRY!" He apologised and bowed so hard he hit his head on the concrete and cracked it, causing Momo to flinch. When he stood back up, you can see his head bleeding.
"Are you alright?" Momo asked worryingly. That had to have hurt.
"I FEEL BETTER THAN EVER!" He replied loudly, getting a squeak from Momo. At least he was back to normal. "Oh, and Ryuuji. I'm sorry, but I will have to decline your offer! I'm afraid I have to get home early today. MY HUMBLEST APOLOGIES!" He bowed deeply again, inciting another flinch the girl, while Ryuuji laughed uproariously.
"You're funny!" He said in between laughter. "And it's fine. We can hang out any time. We're both going to UA, amirite?" He gave his trademark smile and snickered.
"Of COURSE!" The Whirlwind Quirk user gave a vigorous nod.
Momo who was watching this exchange couldn't help but smile. She was really impressed by Ryuuji managing to bring Inasa out of his slump. From the moment she met him, he has shown himself to be a passionate person, but this made her see him in a new light altogether.
'Ryuuji-san...really is one of a kind.'
(Location: Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall)
It was around 5pm when the exam was over, and now the trio of Ryuuji and Momo were eating at a barbecue grill inside the shopping mall.
"Waaaah, so this is what it feels like to be in a commoner's restaurant," the girl breathed out in awe, as she stopped to look at her surroundings.
Ryuuji laughed at her antics. "Hihihihi. You really are interesting, Yaoyorozu-chan. Is this really your first time in a place like this?"
Momo then shuffled nervously while poking her fingers together. "Well, to tell you the truth, I actually came from a wealthy family, and I've mostly been sheltered apart from attending school, so I have never experienced outing such as these."
"Hihihi, don't worry so much. I think it's cute." He said with his trademark cheeky grin.
This brought a blush on Momo's face. 'D-did he just call me c-cute?'
"If you want, I can take you out some other time."
"E-E-Ehhhhhh?!" Her face reddened even more from his casual remark. 'Take me out? Like a date? Isn't this going a little too fast? I-I'm not ready for this!'
"What's wrong, Yaoyorozu-chan? You look red. You okay there?" He leaned closer in concern causing her to go atomic red.
"I-I'm fine. Just feeling little bit warm here." She lied unconvincingly, hoping that he would buy it. Fortunately, he did. She sighed in relief. 'I don't think he even realised what he's doing here. ' "So, w-what exactly do you mean by t-taking me out?" She stammered out.
Ryuuji gave her a confused glance as he swallowed a piece of beef. "What else? You said you never went out, right? I could show you the places around here if you want."
"Oh," she let out a sigh, experiencing some mixed feelings about his words. On one hand, she was happy that he wasn't actually flirting with her, only being obliviously charming, but on the other hand, she was...disappointed?
"Oh yeah, Yaomomo-chan. What exactly is your Quirk?" Ryuuji inquired curiously, while waiting for another piece of meat to be cooked perfectly.
Hearing that new nickname made her stumble for a few moments, "Eh, Yaomomo?"
"Oh, you like it? I was just thinking. Yaoyorozu is kinda a mouthful to say all the time so I figured, why not call you by a nickname, and that's what I came up with." He said it with a sheepish grin. "Or is it bad? I can come with another one if you don't like it-"
"No, no, no. It's fine!" She flailed her arms in panic, making the boy confused. "I was just...caught by surprise. That's all. You may continue calling me that if you wish." She said with a graceful smile.
Ryuuji stared at her for a moment before laughing. "You're really weird, Yaomomo-chan."
Momo gawked at him and stammered out before sighing and eventually giggled. 'Guess I should take that as compliment coming from him.' "You wanted to know about my Quirk, right?" The purple-eyed teen nodded enthusiastically. "Well, my Quirk is called Creation. To put it simply, I can create anything I want from my body using my own fat storage. I can't create anything organic, but as long as I know its molecular structure, everything else is fine."
Ryuuji was quiet for a moment, simply staring at her with complete awe, making her blush slightly. Then he spoke, "That. Is. Awesome!" She almost jumped in surprise with how loud he was, and a few of the other customers began staring at them. He realised this, and sheepishly grinned. "Sorry. But seriously. Your Quirk is amazing. The sheer versatility of it is insane. You could do almost anything with it!" His sheer excitement was akin to a child getting new toy. "You really are amazing Yaomomo-chan!"
The girl cannot help but feel giddy at his praise. "It's nothing, Ryuuji-san." Not wanting to be the only one being questioned (and being admittedly curious herself), she turned the tables on him. "Speaking of which, what is your Quirk, Ryuuji-san? It's only fair since I told you about mine." She said, giving a smug smirk as a form of challenge.
Ryuuji in response snickered. "Well, I guess that is fair...you know what? Why don't I just show you." He returned the smirk, and with a flick of his wrist upwards, all of the meat on the grill started floating.
Momo stumbled in shock at his display. Then it dawned onto her. "Telekinesis."
"Close, but not quite."
The girl looked at him in surprise. "It's not? But you're making them float? It has to be a form of telekinesis. What else could it be?"
Ryuuji gave a smug grin. "You're a smart girl. I'll let you figure it out." He then brought the meat down. "How 'bout you tell me what happened there just now?"
"You floated pieces of meat in mid-air." She noted in deadpan.
"From your point of view, yes." He retorted cheekilly. "From my point of view, those pieces of meat were pulled away to a center of attraction."
"Pulled away to a center of attraction?" she mumbled out. What's that supposed mean? She was hard in thought for a few moments. "Could it be something to do with attraction force?"
"Almost there. Now, what are the two major attraction forces that we know of?" He supplied helpfully.
'It can't be magnetic. There's no metal there whatsoever, so that only leaves...' "Gravity?"
"Ding ding ding. We got a winner here." He chimed happily. "I can manipulate the gravity pull between two objects at any given time. I call it Gravity Field."
"That's amazing." Momo breathed out in awe. "I still have a few questions though." Ryuuji focused his attention on her as she continued. "You said you pulled those meats to a center of attraction. But there wasn't anything to pull to. So how did you-?"
"Are you sure there's nothing there?" He cut off cheekily. She simply looked confused. "It might be small, but it's there nonetheless." To make a point, he flicked a finger towards her direction, and she felt a breeze hit her face.
"Where did that come-" and that's when it clicked. "You used the air particles?"
"You caught on quick, Yaomomo-chan." He grinned. "Yeah, I used the air as the center of attraction and pulled the meat towards it, while at the same time decreasing the pull between the meat and the planet. I can manipulate the pull of every single particle here Yaomomo-chan. That's what my Quirk does."
His explanation left her in shock. "But how did you even manipulate the particles in the first place. We can't even see them, so how did you-"
"Maa, maa. Settle down, Yaomomo-chan." The boy chided her lightly, and she blushed in embarrassment over her loss of composure. He then continued, "To answer your question, it's a part of my Quirk Adaptation. Like how those with Mutant type Quirk adapt their bodies accordingly. What mine did though is give an extrasensory sensation. Kinda like a sixth sense. With it, I can sense everything within a certain range. Even the particles around me." Momo listened to his explanation eagerly, but she could not help but cringe at that information. Before she asked her question though, he continued, "and before you ask, yes it was nauseating at first, sensing all those billions of particles, but I got used to it eventually."
After listening to all of this, she couldn't help but be impressed at Ryuuji. "You must be really good with your Quirk. It has to take a lot of control to do that." She complimented him with a sincere smile. "It's no wonder you got the recommendation."
Ryuuji blushed lightly and rubbed his neck shyly. "Oh, it's nothing. I just worked hard on it, that's all. If anything, your Quirk is way more impressive than mine." Momo simply looked at her in astonishment. "My Quirk's cool and all, but that's really all it could do. Yours though. I can tell it takes a genius to use it as amazingly as you did." His expression then turned mischievous. "Though it does explain why you were giving everyone a show just now, hihihihi."
The girl's eye widened in embarrassment, remembering what happened earlier. "O-of course, that was my intention! I needed to remove my c-clothes to use my Quirk. What else could it be for?"
"I thought you were just being an exhibitionist," He blurted out, snickering mischievously as she gave a pout at his response.
"Mou, Ryuuji-san. You're not supposed to say that to a lady, " Momo huffed in indignation. Looking at her reaction, he couldn't handle it any longer and laughed boisterously, almost shedding out tears. The spiky-ponytailed girl tried to hold her pout, but eventually gave up and joined him in laughter. She knew he wasn't actually making fun of her, only being himself which she appreciated. When the pair settled down, she gave a genuine smile to the boy. "Ryuuji-san. I really appreciate what you're doing here. I hope we get to talk again in the future."
Ryuuji, true to his character, gave his signature grin. "I don't really know what you're thanking me for, but sure. And of course, we're going to meet again. I'll be seeing you in UA, aren't I?"
"Hopefully, in the same classroom?" She inquired with a wink in an attempt to to be bold.
"Even if we're not, I'll still make time for you. You're precious to me now." He replied back, returning the wink with equal fervor, causing her to squeak and blush furiously.
'He doesn't realise what's he's doing to me right now, is he?' She thought. Either he was flirting with him from the start, or he was just naturally charming without meaning to. Both options won't bode well for her poor heart. Not wanting to embarrass herself any further, she simply nodded meekly. 'This boy will be the death of me, I swear.'
The dinner continued on smoothly, with the pair getting to know each other even further.
(Location: Dagobah Beach)
The next day, we turn our attention back towards the green-haired successor of One for All, starting his day with his intense training regimen, lifting away a steel girder. It has been two weeks since Izuku last saw Ryuuji, and he started to notice something.
'I don't know what exactly happened, but ever since Ryuuji left, my training seemed much easier. I even made quicker progress than what All Might expected. He said with how I'm progressing, I could be done before the ten months is over. So, did Ryuuji do something to affect my training? If so, what exactly did he do? Does it have something to do with his Quirk. How does it affect my training? This requires more research... ' he muttered loudly as he continued carrying the trash around him absentmindedly. This continued on for quite some time, when suddenly-
"Wait, where's all the trash?" He looked around the beach looking any signs of garbage pile, but he found none whatsoever. "Did I? There's no way I actually-" He climbed towards the mountain of garbage he cleaned up previously and gazed upon the beach. With tears on his eyes, he finally realised, "I did it. I cleaned it all. The beach, I, I cleaned it up!"
With immense pride bursting from his chest at the sight of his job well done, only matched by his exhaustion, he screamed towards the horizon, not realising that someone was watching him.
(A few moments before...)
Toshinori parked his truck just outside the beach, before walking towards the beach, to check the progress on his protege's training. He, like Ryuuji has also been absent from last month, to finalise his admission to UA as one of their faculty members, only dropping in once in a while.
'It's been a month since I left Midoriya-shonen on his own, and now that I've finalised my paperwork to UA, time to see his progress,' the man thought in his skinny form. As he made his way, he saw the young boy standing on mountain piles of garbage, 'Wait a minute?! What the hell?'
He sped towards the edge, looking towards the beach, currently clean without a speck of trash lying around. 'Did he actually clean the whole place?! On his own? With a month to spare?!' He stared at Midoriya, currently screaming his lungs out, proud of the young boy.
"Oh. My. GOODNESS!," He could not help but buff himself up at the sight before him. When he saw Midoriya fell from the pile, he quickly dashed and grabbed him, cradling the boy on his arms. "YOU REALLY OUTDID YOURSELF, MIDORIYA-SHONEN. YOU WENT BEYOND PLUS ULTRA, AND I COULD NOT BE ANY PROUDER," he said warmly.
"I just kept going, and by the time I realised, the beach was already all clean," Midoriya said weakly, his exhaustion finally catching up to him.
"AND IT WAS ALL THANKS TO YOU, MY BOY," the hero replied warmly, his signature grin shining brightly. "AND WITH A MONTH TO SPARE, NO LESS. TRULY, YOU WENT BEYOND MY OWN EXPECTATIONS, MIDORIYA-SHONEN."
As he set the boy on the sand, letting him stand, he took out his phone, before showing a photo he took towards Izuku. "THIS IS HOW YOU LOOKED LIKE NINE MONTHS AGO, SHONEN." The green haired boy stared at the screen, his old self looking all scrawny and in his own honest opinion, a little pathetic. "NOW, LOOK AT YOU. SEEMS LIKE A PERFECT VESSEL FOR ONE FOR ALL TO ME, HA HA HA!" The man let out a joyous laugh.
"I, I can't believe it. This, this all just seems unreal," Izuku mumbled shakily, still not quite believing it himself.
"Well, you better believe it, 'cause it's all you, Izuku," A boisterous voice said. The mentor and protégé looked up to see Ryuuji, sitting on the rails of the staircase to the beach, his signature grin on his face. "Yo, long time no see."
"Kurogawa-kun/KUROGAWA-SHONEN!" All Might and Midoriya cried out.
The spiky-haired teen leaped out from the rails, landing perfectly on the sand. "I'm pretty impressed, Izuku. I knew you're gonna pull it off," He gestured excitedly towards the beach, "But this? Looks like using my quirk on you did something after all, hihihi."
The looks on the Toshinori and Izuku's face were priceless to say the least. "...You did what?" The green haired teen asked dumbly.
"I used my quirk on you," Ryuuji chirped happily. "Here, watch this." Izuku watched as his friend pointed at him, before suddenly, he fell to his knees. In a split second, he felt his body becoming heavier, before regaining control of his body once more.
He stared at Ryuuji, wide-eyed and panting from the sudden experience. "Was that... your Quirk?"
The teen happily replied, "Yeap, we'll talk about this later but basically control gravity." Izuku's eye turned even wider, but before he started his barrage of questions, Ryuuji interrupted him, "Toshi-jisan, don't you need to give Izuku One for All now?"
Toshinori, who was staring at the two, snapped out of his thoughts and coughed. "AH, YES. THANK YOU, RYUUJI-SHONEN. I ALMOST FORGOT." He turned towards Midoriya, who stared at his mentor expectantly. "NOW, MIDORIYA-SHONEN. ARE YOU READY TO RECEIVE ONE FOR ALL?"
Izuku did not hesitate and nodded, "Yes."
"HAHAHAHA, AS EXPECTED FROM YOU MY BOY. WELL THEN," The number one hero then pulled a strand of his blond hair and gave it to the teen.
"EAT THIS."
"..."
"..."
"... I'm sorry, can you repeat it again. I think I'm hearing things wrong." He must be really tired, he thought.
"I SAID, EAT THIS."
"WHY DO I NEED TO EAT YOUR HAIR?!"
"IT'S THE ONLY WAY TO PASS DOWN THE QUIRK! AND HONESTLY, HAIR IS THE LEAST GROSSEST PART OF THE BODY I CAN GIVE YOU! SO JUST EAT IT!"
"NOOOOOOO!"
Ryuuji could not help but laugh at the exchange, as Izuku swallowed down All Might's hair with disgust.
Author's Note: ANNNNNNNNND DONE. Finally, something productive after three years. I'm not gonna say much about this chapter except for how much rewrite happened to get this done. Ideas were spilling, but none of them stuck through. It wasn't my best work, I'll admit but it was a hopefully a satisfying chapter for you, readers.
Regarding my Ace Attorney and RWBY works, I'm planning on putting them on hold for the moment, since currently I just can't get any ideas on how to proceed with either of them. That and I have no mood to write them anyway, and I really need them to even get inspiration. Especially with RWBY, which by the way, has disappointed me after Volume 7 (Seriously! What. A. Disaster). So, it will take a while before my interest for it shows up again.
Now that's done, I'm not promising anything for the next chapter, but hopefully I can update it in the near future, when my ideas are still flowing. I'm still in a bad place currently, and my thoughts are an absolute mess right now and I'm just not seeing the light at the end of my tunnel anytime soon. Writing helps, but that could change in the future.
Anyway, if you like this chapter, please click that favorite and follow button, and don't forget to leave your reviews. Those are greatly appreciated, especially if it helps me become a better writer. Until next time.
King of Blacks, signing out.