Raito Household, Akihabara – 7:43 PM
"I see you managed second place then Kioshi," a deep voice said. Kioshi stared at the man with a slightly angry expression but composed herself. She didn't need an argument now. Her opposition was a tall man with the same long golden blonde hair as hers only slightly shorter. His eyes were different, being a sharp dark red colour, unlike her soft ocean blue ones. Only just returning from work, he still wore his work uniform which was a crisp white button-up shirt with black tie and black slacks.
"Yes, father" she answered quietly. Her father, Makoto Raito glanced at the results sheet he held before placing it on the table.
"Not bad" he muttered before staring at his daughter dead in the eye. "But this is a mistake Kioshi."
"It is not father," Kioshi said with a slight growl, her fists clenching. "It is my future and I decide what I will do with it."
"And what about the company then?" Makoto asked. "You should have thought about these things before applying Kioshi."
"I don't have to" Kioshi answered him. "I was invited by the school to participate and I accepted."
"A school that has hardly existed for ten years Kioshi" Makoto grunted. "When the media finds out that you're going to attend some shoddy school with a bunch of those freaks then this company will sink."
"Freaks?!" Kioshi shrieked, her glorious angelic wings spreading as she stood up. "Is that what you think of me then?! A freak?!"
"No, you're normal like the rest of us son. You're an Emitter. Not Transformation or Mutant. You're just like me" Makoto told her sternly. Kioshi wanted to snap his neck for that. As soon as the dark thought entered her mind, the ethereal glow of her wings died down and they folded back up. "Good. Now that you've calmed down, we can discuss this and-"
"I'm going."
Makoto was slightly surprised at the statement. Kioshi glared at the man with anger-filled eyes.
"I do not care what your opinion is. I am going to choose a future I want to choose father. And if you don't like that then too bad." Both father and daughter glared at each other before Makoto finally got up.
"I knew this would be a waste of my time" he grunted as he turned and walked away. Kioshi continued to glare at her father's back as he walked out of the grand dining room but pausing as he reached the doorway. "Sooner or later you will grow out of this silly little rebellious phase and realise I was right. A proper son would have listened to his father." Makoto turned his head slightly so he could look at the girl.
"Then again, you aren't a proper son, are you Kioshi?"
Makoto then left without another word, leaving Kioshi seething with rage. Anger turned to sadness as she lowered her head, feeling a tear roll down her face.
"But I'm not your son. I'm your daughter."
Tenshi Household, Southern Musutafu – 8:16 PM
Ryoken wasn't hungry at all. Only finishing the exam a few hours earlier, one would have thought he'd be starving after running around so much. But no, instead he just poked his pasta with his fork, the delicious food not tantalizing him in the little.
"Forty places available and you scrape the bottom of the barrel." Ryoken snapped out of his thoughts, looking up at Amon Tenshi who sat at the other end of the long table, still in his suit from earlier. "Even worse is the fact you lost to the Raito girl and some punk foreigner nobody's even heard of." Ryoken ignored the mildly racist comment looked back down at his food in shame. "Ryoken!" Amon snapped angrily. Ryoken's head jolted up, his full attention given to Amon. "Look at me when I'm speaking to you" Amon growled.
"Sorry… father" Ryoken said feebly.
"Better" Amon huffed before eating another mouthful of pasta and continuing his rant. "In addition to that, you almost lost control, again." Ryoken felt himself go red with embarrassment but dared not look away unless he wanted to incur Amon's wrath. "At least your performance here was better than that pitiful excuse displayed in the U.A. exam."
"Sorry father," Ryoken said quietly. "I will try harder during classes."
"I should hope so" Amon huffed. "As my protégé- no, as my son I expect better from you. Understand?"
"Yes, father" Ryoken said.
"Excellent" Amon said, now having finished his meal. "Have Mira clean up this mess and go to bed. You'll be up early tomorrow."
"Understood father," Ryoken said quietly as he turned back to his food. Amon stared at the boy for a second before leaving the dining hall. Once he was out of sight, Ryoken pushed his bowl forward and smacked his face against the table.
"FUCKING OLD MAN" he growled while the Hellhound began barking and growling like the rabid animal it was. Ryoken clenched his fists as he tried to push the beast back inside, the monster screaming like mad. It wanted out. To rip out the throat of that bastard that kept him here as a prisoner. To satisfy its hunger.
F̶̢̱̞̰̹͓͍̬̆͜͜Ḝ̶͙̝̗͖͕͕͎̬̺̪̲̤̽̓͌͑͆͘Ą̵̨͉̭͍̯͖̺̱̽ͅŜ̷̡̼̞̭̱̹͖͇̜̼̼̝̠͔̾̕͝T̶̛͔̺̗̹̓̿̈́̈́̀̄͠͠͝
Ryoken sucked in a deep breath and pushed the beast back, bounding it in chains once again as it screamed at him to be let out. There was no way he was losing. He refused. He raised his head and stared at the bowl in front of him for a second before leaving the table.
He wasn't hungry.
North Musutafu, Konseigo Academy – 8:37 AM (Two weeks later)
Maruchisu was shaking.
This was it. All the hard work he had put into training, the written and the physical exams had earned him a spot at this Hero academy where he'd spend the next three years training to become one of the best. All he had to do was get through the classes and pass his exams.
"I'll become a Hero. And then I can thank him…"
But there was still a problem that lingered…
"Where the hell is the classroom?"
Maruchisu had wandered into the school with a map in hand, bag on his back and full of confidence. But he soon found himself lost as he roamed the huge halls of Konseigo Academy which was packed to the brim with more mutants than Maruchisu could count, each one different to the next. Most of them paid him no attention, but some gave the occasional hateful glare at him. Maruchisu understood this well, of course, having no visible mutant features of course. They just saw him as another Emitter which looked down on them like all the rest. But Marichisu was determined not to let this get to him. He'd show them that he belonged her just like them.
"Teriaa-san?"
Maruchisu nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound of Ryoken's voice.
"T-T-Tenshi-san?" The normally cheerful boy stuttered. "What are you doing here?" Maruchisu wanted to slap himself for asking such a ridiculous question.
"I'm looking for my classroom" Ryoken answered unphased.
"Oh, I see then" Maruchisu replied, moving away from the wolf boy. The image of Ryoken at the end of the exam was still burned fresh in his mind. Those wicked serrated teeth, razor-sharp claws, and hollow eyes as all traces of humanity had left the boy when he attempted to attack them. Maruchisu dared not to wonder what would have occurred afterwards had Ryoken not been stopped and scolded by the man in the suit.
"Teriaa-san, mind if I walk with you?"
Maruchisu almost jumped again as Ryoken strode alongside him.
"Of…course Tenshi-san" Marushisu replied, slightly hesitant to answer. "We seem to be going the same way for now."
"Yes. What class were you assigned to?" Ryoken asked as they walked through the hallways.
"Class 1-1" Maruchisu answered.
"What a coincidence then, so am I," Ryoken said.
Maruchisu could feel himself paling over the prospect of sharing a class with this wild beast for the next three years. Suddenly he then stopped himself.
"Did I really just think of him like that? A wild beast?"
An immense feeling of guilt then washed over him as they walked towards the classroom. It was thoughts and comments like that which had caused the divide in society in the first place. But then again, the boy did try to attack him at the end of the exam…
"Ah, we've arrived."
Ryoken's comment knocked Maruchisu back to reality as he gazed at the sign above the large oak door in front of them, displaying a '1-1' on the front.
"Are you kidding me?!" Maruchisu practically shouted. "I spent ages looking for this damn room and it was right around the freaking corner!"
"At least we're here now," Ryoken said before looking at the door solemnly. "This is it then" he then continued as he placed his palm on the door handle. "This…is where we become heroes."
The door slid open and instantly on the other side, Ryoken was greeted with the sight of Chizu standing beside a desk.
"Oh! It's you! The wolf boy that went crazy!" She cried out in realisation. Ryoken sweatdropped at her statement of him 'going crazy.' He didn't mean to let it slip out…
"Chomp, I thought we agreed not to talk about it," an irritated voice said. Ryoken looked over to see Miyuki lifting her head from behind a book. She had visibly shrunken in size but could still tower above the other students.
"Nice to see you too," Ryoken said in an irritated tone. Miyuki just looked at him for a minute before burying herself back into her book.
"Don't mind her, she's just been freaking out over today since it's our first day and everything" Chizu explained. "She was an absolute train wreck this morning worrying over everything."
"Chomp!" Miyuki cried out, her face reddening in embarrassment. Chizu just laughed and stuck out her tongue teasingly at her friend.
"What about you? You're not mad at me?" Ryoken asked. He'd noticed Maruchisu's timid reaction from earlier and knew exactly what this was about.
"Oh, that? Water under the bridge" Chizu said with a wave of her hand. "I actually can't remember much anyway."
"Right…" Ryoken replied before surveying the classroom.
There were a few other students already there, mostly in their own groups talking quietly amongst themselves. Of the ones that were present, three stuck out as loners. The first one was obvious, Kioshi Raito. She sat by herself with her wings glowing softly as she stared out the window, uninterested at the commotion in the classroom. The second was a short brown-haired girl desperately trying to avoid any attention but was causing the reverse to happen as several students were now staring at her. The last was a rather strange looking boy whose body seemed to be covered by a dark exoskeleton which gave him an insect-like look. He stood in one of the corners of the classroom, glaring at both girls angrily with his arms folded. His gazed shifted and he locked eyes with Ryoken. He then clicked his tongue in annoyance and looked away. Ryoken frowned angrily at the insect boy and was about to speak up when someone jumped the gun before him.
"I'd appreciate it if you moved, thank you" a female voice huffed. It was blunt and angry but seemingly monotone at the same time. Ryoken turned to see a severely mutated girl standing behind him. Her skin was green and slimy, hair long like octopus tentacles and right arm several times larger than a normal human's and wrapped in bandages.
"You can just walk around me you know," Ryoken told her. Mizuchi didn't back off from the boy.
"I don't care," she said with a frown. "You're blocking the doorway, now move." Ryoken scowled, the Hellhound barking like a mad dog in his head. However, he didn't give in, simply moving aside for the girl all while glaring at her, smoke escaping the corners of his mouth. "Cute trick mutt" she commented before making her way over to a desk.
"Mutt?" Ryoken growled in a dangerous tone.
"Oh dear…" Maruchisu trailed off as he watched the scene unfold, having slipped into the classroom from behind Mizuchi.
"Well, I mean look at you," Mizuchi told him. "You act like a rabid dog and look like one. At least try to make yourself presentable." Ryoken gave a glance down to his uniform, noticing his slightly dishevelled appearance.
"And of course, I forget my tie on the first day" he grumbled. The male uniform was fairly standard, a simple white button shirt under a black blazer with gold lining and black trousers along with a red tie. The female uniform had the same coloured shirt and blazer with the same gold lining, but the girls sported a red skit instead.
"Ah just ignore her wolf boy, she's only trying to get under your skin," Chizu told Ryoken as he moved into the room so he wouldn't be blocking the doorway.
"Oi, you!"
The head of each student turned towards the door to see an athletic silver-haired and sharp-eyed boy standing in the doorway, his face scrunched up into a look of fury as he pointed an accusing finger at Kioshi. "I ought to pay you back for tricking me angel girl" he yelled as he walked into the classroom, moving carefully so not to hit the jet engines attached to his body against any of the desks. Kioshi gave a small sigh, standing to her feet.
"It was a competition" she spoke, her voice soft but carrying a nasty edge to it. "Whilst I am above lying myself, tricking you was the only way that I would be guaranteed first place."
"Which you didn't get anyway" Shinmei growled under his breath, glaring at Sakura who was trying not to make herself noticed. He recalled the end of the entrance exam after she had wrestled with the giant drone near the exit, throwing him off her back in the process and causing him to fall a few places.
"It was still a dick move!" The boy yelled angrily.
"Great, another annoyance to ruin my day" Mizuchi muttered.
"I heard that!" The boy snapped at her.
"At least you didn't almost come dead last" Ryoken said quietly. Maruchisu looked over, noticing the boy's depressed expression.
"The past is the past and you can't change the outcome of what has occurred. So please just drop this pointless argument" Kioshi said with a sigh, cutting in before the silver-haired boy, Michael his name, could start a fight with Mizuchi. Michael growled, looking as if he was about to throw a punch at the angel but ultimately backed off, storming over to a desk and sitting down.
"Wow, day one and we're already bickering like a bunch of elementary schoolers, wonderful" a new voice cut in. The majority of the class turned their heads to see the newcomer. He was rather short with a lanky build and short grey spiky hair with sharp silver eyes and a mocking smile. He strode into the classroom rather confidently, his grin growing wider at all the staring faces. "I mean, aren't we supposed to be better than those worthless Emitters? I'm surprised that a mutant like you would insult your own kind" Ryuichi continued, casting a look at Michael who just gave a small growl.
"Says you" Ryoken huffed. "Where's your mutation then?"
"Ah, ah, ah," Ryuichi said, waving his finger in front of the wolf boy's face. "A magician never reveals his secrets, Devil Dog" Ryoken froze as Ryuichi strode off with a smile on his face.
"How the hell does he…?" Ryoken pondered but gave up as the final students walked in.
"Are you sure this is it Okimoto-san?" The sweet voice of Koko asked.
"I'm… sure Hae-chan" Enkai answered with a hint of worry in his voice. This had to be it. They had been wandering the halls for the past fifteen minutes trying to find the classroom. Enkai's suddenly perked up at the sight of Ryoken standing in the classroom. "R-Ryoken-kun? You're here too?" He asked in surprise.
"First name basis already?" Maruchisu asked.
"Whatever you're about to say, don't," Ryoken warned with a fierce glare.
"R-Right" Maruchisu stuttered in surprise, backing away with his hands held up defensively. Jeez, that boy had issues alright.
"Yeah, I suppose we're all having classes together then Okimoto-san" Ryoken relaxed as he then spotted Koko behind the fish boy. "Um…Hae-chan was it? How are you feeling after the exam the other week? That was a nasty hit you took" Ryoken asked with concern. The small girl had slammed into him quite hard when he attempted to catch her after she was thrown by the drone. Hopefully, there was no lasting injury. Koko gazed up at Ryoken, trying to give a response to the concerned boy.
But all she could see was the face of a bloodthirsty predator.
"I'm…fine…" she said feebly, looking down at the floor. Ryoken's ears twitched. Of course, he should have expected that the poor girl would be afraid of him. He hadn't seen any of them as he left the exam and wondered if they were alright. But Koko's reaction, Miyuki's attitude and Maruchisu's jitters told him all too well what the problem was.
They feared him.
Like all the others, they saw him not as a human, but an animal that should be locked inside a cage.
"I…understand then…" Ryoken said quietly. Before another word could be spoken, Ryoken moved past Chizu and picked a desk. They obviously didn't want his company, so why stick around then.
"I feel kinda bad…" Chizu said quietly as she watched Ryoken unpack his things. "We should have said something about it…"
"What's there to say about it?" Miyuki protested. "He tried to kill us. If anything, he should be apologising for what happened."
"Are you even listening to yourself Yuki?" Chizu frowned. "If anything, you're the one to defuse the tension, not instigate it."
"Instigate?!" Miyuki yelled in a hushed tone. "What have I done wrong? He tried to kill us! Of course, I'm going to be angry."
"H-He did say that his Quirk sometimes gets out of hand…" Enkai chimed in quietly, frightened not to incur the wrath of the two arguing girls. "He doesn't seem like he wants to hurt anyone."
"I don't hate Tenshi-san."
The group turned their heads towards Koko who seemed to be a little nervous.
"He saved me during the exams, why would someone who wants to hurt others do that then?"
Miyuki was about to respond but then frowned as she through for a moment. Koko was right. Ryoken had helped each other of them during the exam in some shape or form.
"But what happened at the end…it just brought back a few bad memories" Koko then added.
"We should just talk to him when we get the chance" Chizu then said. "Sure, he was a bit of a jerk but maybe he isn't that bad." The mood remained sour for a sort while before Sonja came rushing over from another table.
"Hae-chan! You didn't tell me you arrived!" She cried.
"Oh, hello Fuyuishi-chan," Koko said with a smile. The mood immediately began to feel better as Koko and Sonja began to converse.
"I didn't see you after the end of the exam either! I thought you didn't make it!" Sonja proclaimed.
"Sorry," Koko said, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "I had some things to take care of."
"WAIT?! YOU MADE IT IN!"
"Jeez, why are you so surprised Chiro-kun?~"
"It's just… GAH! I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU KOKO-CHAN!"
"Ah! Chiro-kun! Don't start crying now!"
"Sorry…"
"…"
"So you're moving away then…?"
"…I am."
"We won't see each other again for a while then…"
"Don't worry Chiro-kun! ~ We'll see each other as Heroes soon enough~ We'll be Heroes together once you graduate U.A!~"
"Y-Yeah… Heroes… the two of us… me…"
"Hey! Hae-chan!" Koko quickly snapped out of her thoughts and back to reality, looking up at Sonja who has spoken.
"Sorry, what did you say?" She asked sweetly.
"I said we're heading to the auditorium. One of the teachers just asked us to gather there now for an induction" Sonja explained. It was only then that Koko noticed the majority of the class was moving towards the door.
"O-Oh, coming Fuyuishi-chan!" Koko called, racing over to the door as the class began their long trek through the school.
North Musutafu, Konseigo Academy Auditorium - 9:10 AM
"Are you sure about this? We could postpone it and wait for Orca-"
"No" a feminine voice interrupted Trashman. "Orca is busy, and we need to get things moving already. I want to make a good impression on these kids, despite what I am."
"They're not going to like it though…" Trashman trailed off.
"They don't have to" the woman replied. "But I need to reach out to them."
"If you say so" Trashman sighed before looking out to the stage where Jotun was standing, gazing at the sea of students who were busy bustling into the auditorium. It wasn't long before the final few students had made their way into the hall and the induction could begin.
"Good morning all" Jotun spoke into the microphone. "My name is Jotun and I am one of the teachers here at Konseigo Academy. I would first like to congratulate you all on making it into our esteemed school. We expect great things from all of you and to help prevent the slander of Mutant kind." Jotun could feel the mood tense at the mention of the social divide. Most of these kids weren't strangers to the abuse already. But hopefully, they'd be the ones that would end it. "However, I am not here to give today's induction, that is reserved for the head of our school. Students, I'd like to now pass the mic over to our principal, Miss Kazuki Hanzai!" Jotun stepped aside to let the woman walk on stage. Murmuring began amongst the freshmen once they saw the sight of their headmistress. Her hair was a magenta colour, styled long and wavy and seemed to almost float in the air as she walked. She turned her head towards the crowd of students, her crimson eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at their perplexed faces. Her build was perfect for a young and upcoming hero, a diamond-shaped figure with a sizeable bust that only complimented her beautiful features. But her attire wasn't that of a hero's at all, instead being strictly business and professional which consisted of a short red skirt, white buttoned shirt and red women's blazer.
"Greetings" Kazuki began, her voice soft and sweet but carrying an air of professionalism to it. "I can see some of you scratching your heads and why I look so familiar; well allow me to shed some light on that." Kazuki took a deep breath and clenched her fists, bracing herself for the worst. "My civilian name is Kazuki Hanzai, but my hero name is The Gravity Hero: Horizon; former top ten hero and an Emitter."
The auditorium immediately burst into an angry uproar coming from a majority of the students. Kazuki sighed, expecting this reaction. But though they wanted to fix society and repair the broken image of Mutant kind, right now they were no better than those who slandered and oppressed them. Emitters and Mutants really were two sides of the same coin at times. It made working with them so much harder at times.
"I can't believe she's one of them!" Sundaa hissed angrily from the back of the crowd where he and the rest of 1-1 were sat.
"And I thought here we'd hear the last of those Emitters" Shinmei huffed. "I suppose not."
"Can't we give her the benefit of the doubt?" Sakura said shyly.
"The benefit of the doubt?!" Michael burst out, Sakura yelping in surprise. "Try doing that when every Emitter you've met is racist scum!"
Sakura merely shrank in her seat at Michael's outburst at her as the boy then joined in on all the jeers and boos from the students.
"OI! SHUT IT!"
The booming voice of Seagull instantly drowned out the rest of the noise, causing the uproar to die down. All the students merely gawked at the bird Mutant who growled and went to move towards the stage. But Kazuki held her hand up, telling the man to back off. Seagull, though fuming, nodded and move back to his spot at the side of the room, leaning against the wall with his arms folded.
"Thank you, Seagull," Kazuki said before beginning her speech. "Are we all finished then?"
Silence was the answer that Kazuki hoped for and received.
"Good. Now I want you to take a good look at yourself. You all want to change society, right? Not with that attitude you won't. Two wrongs don't make a right and acting as bad as those who've oppressed you in the past will solve nothing. That's not saying I'm trying to make out Emitters as the victims, they aren't as Mutants have done nothing wrong to receive the slander from them. But if attitudes like this continue then society will crumble. This is where my school comes in." Kazuki took in a deep breath as she surveyed the room.
"Konseigo Academy was built as a haven for Mutant kind ten years ago. And to this day it still holds that honour. Behind these walls, you will receive no slander, no oppression whatsoever because of your appearance. And that's the society I want you to help me build. A society where there is no slander due to what we look like or how we act. Deep down we're all still human no matter how we look and everyone needs to understand that. By becoming the heroes of tomorrow, you will help lift the negative views on Mutants by showing that we are just as good as Emitters. I do not want to cause conflict; I want to fix things. I believe we can work together with Emitters to become a proper functioning society once more and live in an era of harmony." Kazuki smiled, a look of confidence on her face.
"And as the principal of this academy, I will do absolutely everything in my power to make sure you all feel safe behind these walls and are raised into becoming great heroes for the future which we can depend on. The progress of trying to fix society is slow, but as the saying goes, Rome wasn't built in a day! I look forward to having this journey with you and seeing you mature into respectable adults. And with that, all I can say is welcome to Konseigo Academy!" Kazuki stepped away from the microphone and bowing respectfully at the students before departing. But a dark thought lingered in the back of her mind as Trashman congratulated her from behind the curtains as she stepped off the stage.
"I hope I managed to reach all of their hearts…I must have, for the sake of a better future…"
North Musutafu, Konseigo Academy - 9:40 AM
"I can't fucking believe this!" Sundaa growled as he walked along the corridor with the rest of class 1-1. The rest of the induction had been uneventful, just a speech from Jotun and then a brief on the school's rules and regulations.
"Please calm down Foenikkusu-kun!" Sonja pleaded as she followed. "There's no need to be so angry!"
"Why?! She's one of them!" He hissed at the green-skinned girl, venom lacing every word.
"But she's different" Sonja protested. "She doesn't hate mutants."
"She did seem like she wanted to try and make things better from her speech" Miyuki cut in.
"And you expect everyone to just trust her?" Sundaa asked in disbelief.
"Have you ever taken a look at her background?" Sonja asked. Sundaa didn't reply which Sonja took as a signal to continue. "When Principal Hanzai first opened the school, she lost her spot on the Billboard Charts due to the backlash. Eventually, she removed herself from the rankings because it became too much for her to handle. If she really did hate Mutants, then why would she even open the school in the first place?"
Sundaa just blinked in surprise at Sonja's information.
"Just how much does she know about this place?! I hardly know anything!"
"Nothing to say? I thought so" Sonja huffed and walked past Sundaa who was trying to process everything.
"It still doesn't excuse all the shit we went through," he then muttered under his breath. His throat began to throb at a particular memory which kept popping up in his head no matter how hard he tried to forget it.
"I'll never let those scum hurt me again."
Miyuki could only give a worried glance at Sundaa who had a dark look in his eyes. It scared her as Ryoken had before.
"Is everyone here a literal psychopath?" she thought. "First Tenshi-san tries to kill us, now Foenikkusu-san looks like he's about to murder someone." This was the exact thing that she was afraid of when she was walking with Chizu this morning on the way to the school. Now she just wanted to go home and forget all this.
"I hope everyone doesn't take the news too badly," a sweet little voice said. Miyuki turned back to see Maruchisu walking alongside a white-haired girl with rabbit ears. Her name was…Yonamine if Miyuki recalled. Yonamine Kiyoko.
"Me too, but I can't help but feel I'm in the same boat as Principal Hanzai" Maruchisu responded.
"How so?" Yonamine asked.
"Well…we're both Emitters, well I'm kinda like one in a way. A lot of people have been giving me really dirty looks this morning since I don't appear to have a physical mutation like you all, despite being a mutant" Maruchisu explained. He was honestly getting sick of it at this point.
"Oh yeah!" Yonamine suddenly said in realisation. "You're the one who can clone himself right?"
"Yep," Maruchisu confirmed as they soon reached the classroom. Before he could continue, an angry-looking Ryoken walked past, muttering a soft 'excuse me' through gritted teeth. Maruchisu frowned slightly as he watched the boy take his seat. Seems Sundaa wasn't the only one to have a poor reaction to the news about their principal. The drone of the school bell snapped Maruchisu out of his thoughts.
"Guess we should take our seats then," Yonamine said. Maruchisu agreed with the rabbit girl and followed her, sitting at a desk beside her.
"Good Morning All!" A joyous voice called out from the doorway. The student's heads quickly turned towards the source, seeing a rather large stuffed bear in a suit striding into the room, humming a rather pleasant tune to himself.
"Oh my god!" Yonamine suddenly cried out, jumping to her feet. "You're Plush! One of the former top ten heroes!"
"Indeed, I am," the bear said with a smile. "Look like you've done your research."
"But who hasn't heard of you?" Yonamine protested. "You had one of the coolest debuts in Hero history!"
"Oh, it was nothing," Plush said with a chuckle. "I was merely doing my job as a Hero for this society." Plush then reached the desk at the front of the room, pleased that each student was now seated. "And that brings me onto right now. My name is Yogi Fukuhara, known as the Teddy Bear Hero: Plush for some of you. For the next three years, I'll be your homeroom teacher and your teacher for Modern Hero History." A commotion started between the students as Yonamine practically squealed in excitement.
"This is so cool. We're actually learning from Pro Heroes" Yonamine giggled to Maruchisu who only gave a small smile in response.
How did this girl have so much energy?
But, he was also getting excited over this prospect. Whilst U.A. was the only school where its entire staff was made up of Pro Heroes or former ones, many other hero academies also followed the same tradition by having their hero course teachers as Pro Heroes. It was better to learn from someone with experience.
"Now before we can begin, are there any questions I can answer?" Plush asked.
"Why is our headteacher an Emitter? I thought this school was exclusive to Mutants?" Shinmei huffed from the back. Plush's face fell slightly. He'd been expecting something like this to pop up eventually this morning.
"Mrs Hanzai is our headteacher because she is also the founder of our esteemed academy" Plush began. "Several years ago, she proposed the idea of a Mutant exclusive academy to the Hero Public Safety Commission since many schools were starting to have an imbalance of Emitter and Mutant Quirks, the former having higher numbers due to favouritism. The Commission agreed to her proposal and she took charge of the project, eventually becoming the school's principal. While she may be young, she had been an incredible principal who strives for Mutant rights."
"Fair enough" Shinmei replied.
"Any more questions?" Plush asked.
"Is the principal the only Emitter here?" Sundaa asked.
"No, there is one more among the staff; the Trash Hero: Trashman." Plush explained. "He's another advocate for mutant rights and an admired teacher who formerly taught at Shiketsu Highschool a few years ago before being transferred here."
Sundaa let out a quiet growl but didn't say anything else.
"Any more questions?" Plush asked. Nobody raised their hand. "Then let's get started!" Plush cheered, his attitude suddenly shifting from serious to upbeat.
"That was quite a change in persona…" Ryoken though from the back as he watched Plush go about his business, placing papers on everyone's desk.
"These will be your timetables for this year. You will have regularly scheduled classes along with your separate Hero Course classes" Plush explained. "Your course shall differ slightly from general education; however, we still teach you the same core subjects which are Maths, English and Science. As for the Heroic Studies, its split into both theory and practical work. Practical's are usually undertaken on Fridays and take the majority of the day."
"Don't you think it would be better if their actual Heroic Studies teacher explained this to them?"
Plush blinked in surprise as Seagull stood there leaning against the door.
"It's him…" Maruchisu thought, recalling Seagull from the induction assembly and how he'd yelled out against the students for their disrespect.
"Oh Seagull! I didn't realise you'd be here so soon!" Plush exclaimed in surprise.
"Just trying not to waste as much time as possible" Seagull said as moved off the door and walked casually in the room. "Not bad…" he muttered as his bird-likes glanced over the class. He soon reached the front desk, Plush moving aside so Seagull could give his little speech to the students. "Greetings, I'm Shiro Takami, also known as the Bird Hero: Seagull. I'll be your teacher for both the theory and practical aspects for your Foundational Heroics classes. Seagull then clicked a button on the remote he was holding, the projector flaring into life. He stepped back to allow the students to gawk at the information displayed on the screen.
Exam Results
1st Sakura Itou – 40m 22s
2nd Kioshi Raito – 41m 56s
4th Shinmei Habataki – 44m 50s
6th Michael Ulfberth – 45m 59s
9th Miho Hibari – 47m 19s
10th Yonamine Kiyoko – 47m 23s
12th Mizuchi Suijin – 47m 58s
15th Ryuichi Kageyama – 49m 37s
22th Kira Fumetsu – 54m 47s
25th Chishio Usui – 56m 40s
28th Mugi Tetsuyaki – 58m 12s
29th Koko Hae – 58m 49s
30th Sonja Fuyuishi – 59m 01s
31rd Miyuki Hidaka – 1h 00m 08s
33rd Maruchisu Teriaa – 1h 01m 12s
34th Sundaa Foenikkusu – 1h 01m 34s
35th Chizu Ishi – 1h 01m 39s
36th Isou Tanabe – 1h 02m 00s
37th Enkai Okimoto – 1h 06m 35s
38th Ryoken Tenshi – 1h 06 36s
"These are your results from you entrance exam coupled with your completion time" Seagull explained. "Frankly, I'm not impressed," Seagull said disapprovingly. There were a few gasps from the students while others growled in anger.
"So, we're not good enough for you then?!" Michael burst out, jumping to his feet angrily.
"Yeah!" A dark red-haired girl, Miho, agreed. "I got in the top ten. That alone justifies my abilities."
"While that is true, you don't meet my standards," Seagull said plainly. "You want to be Heroes? Then you lot better get your asses in gear and work much harder than that. The real world is much crueller than a simple exam like that."
"Barely," Seagull said plainly before turning back to the class. "Raito, Michael, Kiyoko." The trio's heads perked up at their names being listed off. "You three show the most potential out of the lot so you three are good enough for me to waste my time on then." Michael slumped back into his seat, grumbling at Seagull's wit in using his own words against him. "Itou, Hibari, Habataki. The three of you showed some promise but not enough. You'll need to work on your skills a bit more, specifically you Itou." Sakura felt herself go red with embarrassment, burying her face in her hands. Miho growled furiously, looking as if she wanted to kill the birdman right there and then.
"As for the rest of you" Seagull continued. "You all need to work on your skills if you want to impress me." Enkai sank lower into his seat, ashamed of himself while Maruchisu blushed in embarrassment and both Ryoken and Sundaa growled viciously.
"Are you serious?!" Miho shrieked as she stood up. "You believe me to be on par with this lot!"
"Interrupt again and that's detention for you," Seagull said coldly "I am in no mood for your piss poor attitudes after what occurred earlier." Miho opened her mouth to retort but growled when nothing came to her mind and sat back down. "That goes for all you," Seagull said, casting a glance at Michael which just clicked his tongue in annoyance.
"Most of you are quite inexperienced, we're going to skip straight ahead to training and ignore any assessment tests," Plush said, taking over from Seagull for fear of hurting the student's feelings any further.
"I have a question sensei!" Kioshi called out, raising her hand.
"Yes, Raito-san?" Plush answered before Seagull could call her out for interrupting.
"Isn't it standard procedure for all academies to perform a Quirk Apprehension Test?" She asked. Over the past few years, Quirk Apprehension Tests were becoming increasingly common in many hero courses; the trend having started from U.A. Highschool. It wasn't long before they became a standard part of the hero course.
"Normally yes, but it's a bit difficult due to you all being mutants" Plush explained. "The tests are performed in a fashion that allows us to see the limits and applications of a student's Quirk. We can then use the data collected from the tests to figure out the best way for us to develop your Quirks."
"However, it's difficult to further develop a Mutant's Quirk" Seagull continued from Plush's explanation. "Most Mutants end up with only an increase in their strength and speed due to their Quirks aside from the odd few such as Hibari, Tenshi, and Teriaa who have Emitter based applications for their Quirks. The rest of you would only benefit from an increase in physical aptitude. Therefore, it's more worthwhile to skip ahead to training rather than waste time on the assessment tests."
"I understand. Thank you for answering" Kioshi said in understanding and lowered her hand. It made sense to Maruchisu instantly. Emitter Quirks were much easier to develop than Mutants unless their bodies mutated a second time.
"Carrying on with what I was talking about, we're going to be throwing you in the deep end and starting with combat training straight away," Seagull said, an excited uproar coming from the students.
"Combat training?! Are you serious?!" Yonamine cried in excitement.
"Hell Yes!" Maruchisu yelled with a fist pump.
"Finally! I can kick some ass!" Michael yelled.
"Settle down please!" Plush called over the noise while Seagull flipped over to the next slide on the PowerPoint.
"Our first big training session will be taking place either this Friday or next Friday depending on how fast we can get your costumes completed" Seagull explained as he then pointed to the board. "You will be paired in teams of two and selected to fight against one another as teams of heroes and villains. The villain team will start the match at the top floor of a building, working their way down and evading the heroes until they can escape. The objective of the heroes is to capture the villains before they can escape, similar to a game to tag if you will."
Michael quickly stole a look at Kioshi, being met with the same irritated eyes.
"We'll settle this then."
Shinmei was glaring daggers at Sakura who was quickly scribbling down notes from the presentation.
"It's time I paid you back for making me look like a fool."
"The full rules and explanation will be given at the start of the exercise but that is the general gist of it" Plush continued. "Now, raise your hand if you brought your costume forms here with you today?" A large majority of the class raised their hands. "Good, these are due to be handed to me on Wednesday for the costumes to be finished by Friday. If you need help with a design or how to best suit your Quirk, then come and speak to either me or Seagull. We also have spare forms for those who don't have theirs today." Seagull then went around the classroom handing out the forms to those who were missing them.
"If you are unable to finish the form by Wednesday or the costumes take longer than expected, the training will be postponed until next week," Seagull said as he finished handing out the last of the forms. Plush almost giggled at the sight of twenty excited students in front of him. All of them eager. All of them ready to prove themselves after the hard trial that was the entrance exam. As if on cue, the bell rang for the first period.
"As your timetables show, this period is Foundational Hero Theory. So we'll be working on your costume designs until next period. Please provide a brief description of your costume and add an image if you would like. Don't forget any minor details, everyone! Sometimes it's the small things that can make the biggest difference!"
"You have one-hour starting now!" Seagull announced. Instantly, twenty pencils took to the papers, scribbling down any ideas or adding additions to any previous designs that had been made over the two-week break before the start of term.
"Alright, everyone!" Plush announced. "Let's get those creative juices flowing!"
Unknown Alleyway, North Musutafu - 10:23 AM
Gang Orca sighed as he ducked under the police tape and entered the crime scene. He had a school to run, he did need problems like this popping up in his jurisdiction. But as the main advocate for Mutant rights, he had to attend considering the…circumstances. He approached the two police investigators who were chatting further ahead; the pair frowning when they saw the hero approach them.
"Gang Orca here" Gang Orca greeted as he showed the men his hero licence. "I believe the case has now been handed to me. Where is the body?" There was silence before one of the investigators sighed before pointing behind him. Gang Orca looked over the man's shoulder, seeing the bloody corpse of an associate. "Thank you" was all Gang Orca said as he walked past the two investigators, one of them clicking his tongue in annoyance. It seemed that not even the police spared Mutant's no mercy. Gang Orca surveyed the corpse, the hero's blue costume now a bloody torn mess and his mask missing. "Jack, do you have the report?" Gang Orca asked his sidekick. A rather handsome man dressed in black and with a face slightly resembling an insect joined his boss' side; his two hooked blades on the sides of his face glistening in the small patches sunlight that made it into the dark alleyway.
"Yes sir" he answered, raising the notebook he had.
"Cause of death?"
"Severe injuries to both the chest and head. Examination shows the lungs and heart were crushed as well as the brain as obviously seen."
Gang Orca hummed to himself and thoughtfully scratched his chin. The Tentacle Hero: Tentacole was not an easy opponent. With the strength of an ox and powerful regenerative abilities, taking him down would be no easy feat. But here he was now, bloody and battered in a back alley with most of his brain leaking out the side of his crushed skull.
"Is it the same suspect from the Triad Incident?" Gang Orca asked. Jack Mantis shook his head and flipped to the next page.
"Unfortunately, and thankfully" he began, muttering the last comment under his breath. "-it isn't the same suspect. The victims from the Triad Incident were other criminals and not heroes. The leader's statement saying that their attacker did not intend to kill them. And while most of them had serious injuries, there was nothing life-threatening and no other casualties."
"At least we do know it's the same villain from the attack last week. The injuries on Gevaudan's corpse are almost the same, minus the crushed head" Gang Orca commented. It was rather worrying. Two attacks in the space of a week and so close to the school. The scariest part was that both victims were Mutants. The conclusion was obvious. "They're going after Mutants only."
"It appears so sir" Jack Mantis said gravely.
"There's no need to fuss around with this anymore Gang Orca, I've got it covered from here."
The two mutants turned to see a blond-haired and blue-eyed male walking up to them. His attire was a black tuxedo that had various pocket watches attached to his belt. He smirked smugly as he approached the pair, snatching the report from Jack Mantis' hands.
"The hell is your problem?!" Jack Mantis yelled angrily. Phantom Thief smirked.
"This case has been passed to my agency, so I'll be taking charge here."
"But you forget that this area of Musutafu is under my jurisdiction" Gang Orca stated, glaring slightly at the younger man.
"Commission's orders I'm afraid," Phantom Thief said in a slightly teasing manner. "It's better this way since you people would muck it up just like last time."
"Why you arrogant, smug, racist son of a-!" Jack Mantis began, moving towards Phantom Thief.
"Jack, stand down" Gang Orca warned, grabbing Jack Mantis' arm.
"But sir-!"
"Stand down" Gang Orca repeated, his tone much more serious this time.
"He's right, you'd only be further tarnishing your kind's name" Phantom Thief teased. Jack Mantis said nothing as he yanked his arm free from his boss' grip but still glared at Phantom Thief who stood there smugly.
"Just be sure to tell us about any developments that you find. I do have an entire school full of our kind to look after" Gang Orca huffed.
"But of course," Phantom Thief said with a bow, still smiling smugly. Gang Orca motioned to Jack Mantis and the two turned to depart.
"I can't believe I used to go to school with that jackass" Jack Mantis huffed.
"Let's just forget about it and focus on preparing the school for the near future," Gang Orca said, a serious look in his eyes. "I have a nasty feeling that this isn't the last we're going to hear about this."
North Musutafu, Konseigo Academy Lunch Hall – 11:09 AM
"Ah! This is such a pain!" Maruchisu moaned as he stood in line with his food tray. "I can't believe you guys already have final ideas for your costumes," he said to Enkai and Isou who stood with him in the line.
"Mine's pretty simple Teiraa-san," Isou told him as his food was placed onto his plate. "I didn't need to do much work."
"Yeah, but you guys have Quirks that work with costumes!" Maruchisu complained as he picked out a sandwich from the selection. "I can't copy my clothes, so I'd just rip them."
"W-What about asking the t-teachers for help Teiraa-san?" Enkai suggested meekly.
"I suppose I'll have to" Maruchisu sighed as he then paid for the meal before following the other two boys to a table. The lunch hall was quite busy at this time, but thanks to some connections that Sonja supposedly had in the school, she'd managed to somehow reserve a series of tables near the entrance for most of the class to sit together and get to know each other. A majority of the class was already seated at the various tables, all centred around a game of cards that was occurring at the very moment. The current players were Ryuichi and another boy, Mugi Tetsuyaki, who had a rather… unique appearance. His skin was a bronze colour while in place of his mouth was a toaster slot along with two more on top of his bald head. His indigo eyed gazed carefully at the cards he held in his hand before glancing up at a smirking Ryuichi who held his cards up. Mugi placed down a two of clubs and waited for Ryuichi to make his move.
"Game set and match!" Ryuichi called as he picked up the card and displayed his hand, showing three kings and a three, four and five of clubs. "I win again." Mugi let out a sigh as placed his hand back onto the deck before Ryuichi shuffled it once more.
"I have to say Kageyama-san, you have a talent for playing rummy" Mugi spoke, his voice deep and guttural with a hint of it being metallic.
"Why thank you Tetsuyaki-kun," Ryuichi said with a sly grin as he shuffled the deck once more. "It's one of my many."
"What's going on here?" Isou asked as his group sat down alongside Koko, Chizu and Miyuki who were also there.
"Kageyama-san brought a deck of cards to play with" Sonja explained as she tucked into her soba. "So far he's beaten everyone at rummy."
"Ugh! He's too good at this!" A herculean girl complained. Kira Fumetsu was her name as she towered above all those who sat there, rivalling the quiet and cool Miyuki in height even. She rolled up the sleeves of her jacket, revealing more of the sickly pale flesh that clashed with her bright amber eyes.
"You're not getting lunch from the canteen Fumetsu-chan?" Maruchisu asked confused.
"Oh! Because of my Quirk, I can't eat normal food" Kira explained as she took off the lid to her soup.
"Eww! What the heck is that?!" Michael shrieked from along the table as a foul odour filled the air.
"You… wouldn't want to know" Kira said, frowning slightly. Michael suddenly realised his mistake.
"Oh crap! Sorry, Fumetsu! Didn't mean to offend ya!" Michael yelled apologetically.
"It's… fine" Kira said, feeling slightly better as she began to eat. From there the conversation started, the students slowly growing to know each other better and work from their first impressions. Most of them had stuck together in their exam groups and were thankful they ended up in the same class together.
"-And so Kiyoko-chan has been trying to find Raito-chan all lunch because of that" Mugi explained as he took a bite from his Takoyaki which he had somehow managed to fit in his mouth. "We offered for Itou-chan to join us, but she declined."
"I see," Isou said, turning his head towards Michael. "So Michael-san… you're from overseas right?" He asked, immediately taking a mouthful of rice after speaking.
"Nah, my parents were but I was actually born here!" He proclaimed proudly.
"I guess that would explain the English name then," Maruchisu said reminiscing slightly about his own life. He then noticed someone familiar walking towards them. "Hey! Habataki-kun! Come join us!" Shinmei froze when he saw Maruchisu waving him over to the tables.
"No, thank you" he snorted. "I'd rather not associate with peasants." He then walked off without another word.
"Aww, he didn't have to be so mean about it" Koko pouted.
"Who the hell does he think he is!" Michael raged while the others tried to calm him down.
"It's not surprising considering who he is though…" Sonja trailed off. Michael was about to ask her a question before Enkai suddenly spoke up.
"Ryoken-kun!"
Ryoken paused, looking over to the seated group with curiosity.
"What is…this all about?" He asked, perplexed.
"Fuyuishi-chan managed to reserve a group of tables for us to eat together" Enkai explained.
"Are…you sure you want me to join you...?" Ryoken asked hesitantly.
"Of course!" Enkai protested, much to Maruchisu and Miyuki's slight dismay. Ryoken thought about it for a minute before finally deciding to take a seat next to Ryuichi. An awkward silence filled the air for a moment, Ryoken now sinking in his seat slightly in slight embarrassment. Koko was about to speak up, but Chizu cut her off before a single word could leave her mouth.
"Guys! The Billboard Charts just updated!" She yelled, turning her phone for all to see.
"Are you serious? Like right now?" Maruchisu asked, slight excitement in his voice.
"Yeah!" Chizu confirmed. "I think it's this month's monthly update."
Ryoken made a mental note to thank Chizu later for lifting the sour mood as the freshmen scurried through their bags and pockets for their phones.
"Wow! Nejire-Chan is in eighth!" Kira cried.
"Ah! Where's Ingenium though?" Maruchisu called. "I can't find him!"
"He's dropped down to nineteenth" Isou commented from beside him as he scrolled through his phone. "A real shame."
"Nooooo!" Maruchisu wailed. "He deserves to be in the top ten!"
"Hey, it looks like Ground Zero's jumped from fifth to third" Ryuichi said with interest. "He's almost caught up with Lemillion."
"And as always Deku reigns number one," Ryoken said flatly, placing his phone down and cracking open his can of soda.
"Sad Invictus dropped a few places," Sonja said with Koko agreeing with her as the hero had dropped from third to fifth with Ground Zero's recent triumph.
"Is Gang Orca still on the rankings?" Sundaa asked. Sonja shook her head.
"He dropped out of it a few years back."
"I don't get why Lemillion so high though?" All he can do is walk through things" Michael huffed.
"He is very popular with a lot of people" Sonja explained.
"I know, but Ground Zero should-"
"Lemillion deserves second place, first even," Ryoken said, cutting off Michael. The other stared at him in surprise.
"You a big Lemillion fan then Tenshi-kun?" Isou asked curiously.
"Not really" Ryoken answered, scrolling through his phone again. "But he deserves credit where credit's due."
"I still think Ground Zero can beat him" Michael boasted. "He doesn't seem that tough."
"Try getting punched in the face by him then" Ryoken muttered quietly, falling on deaf ears to all but Ryuichu who had noticed his slight change in demeanour. The topic of the recent hero rankings continued for the next few minutes shortly afterwards before Miyuki suddenly stood up.
"Excuse me please," she said quietly as she moved past those sitting next to her and walked over to the bins located near the table.
"Did we say something wrong?" Sundaa asked in confusion. Ryoken felt a sinking feeling in his chest as he knew what this was about.
"I'll go talk to her," he said, moving to chase after the talk blue-skinned girl who'd walked out the cafeteria. However, he had found that the girl had somehow disappeared after walking out of the room. The hallways were silent and almost empty as Ryoken walked slowly down them, keeping an eye out for Miyuki.
"Pity she didn't stay for another game of cards," Ryuichi said, Ryoken whirling around to see the silver-eyed boy standing behind him with a devious smile. The Hellhound let out a low growl as Ryoken's ears began to twitch.
"A real shame…" Ryoken trailed off quietly. He moved to leave. "I can't see her so we should go back to join the others."
"Yes, I would love to hear more about your escapades with Lemillion, Tenshi-kun."
Ryoken froze mid-step as soon as Ryuichi finished speaking. He turned to the boy who had a smug grin plastered onto his face.
"How did you…?" Ryoken trailed off in shock.
"I never miss a trick" Ryuichi grinned, then beginning to walk around the boy slowly. "It was quite a horrid incident to say, truly terrible." His smile grew wider still. "I wonder what our classmates would have to say on the matter?" Ryoken's eyes widened as Ryuichi was now in front of him again.
"What do you want?" Ryoken growled in a dangerous voice.
"Just a favour" Ryuichi replied. The Hellhound screeched angrily in Ryoken's mind, the mental chains holding it back beginning to snap one by one. "You help me whenever I require assistance, and I'll happily keep my mouth shut about your little accident that happened a few months back," Ryuichi smirked, content with his handiwork. What he didn't expect was to be grabbed and held up by shirt by wolf boy who glared at him with fierce yellow eyes.
"Listen to me, now," Ryoken said dangerously low tone. "What happened then is none of your business, so stay out of it." Smoke trailed from the corner's of Ryoken's mouth as his canine fangs began to reveal themselves. "I'm not going to be doing you any favours anytime soon, so forget whatever you're planning." Ryoken let go of Ryuichi, the smaller boy dropping to the floor while patches of dark fur began to grow over his bare arms. "And if you even think about telling anyone about what happened, I can assure you…you won't be able to run fast enough."
Ryoken then winced as the Hellhound pulled loose from its chains, forcing its way into his mind. He gave a loud grunt, forcing the beast back inside its cage as his features began to disappear. A look of fear crossed his face as he realised what he'd just said, what he'd been intending to do.
"I just threatened to kill him…"
Worse off was the fact he'd enjoyed it. He'd enjoyed forcing his superiority over the weaker boy, relishing in the thought of being able to rip the smug grin off his face. And he was supposed to become a hero for god's sake. He watched as Ryuichi picked himself off the ground, chuckling slightly. Ryoken didn't want to hear it and took off running down the hallway. But his ears still picked up the next few words that came out of Ryuichi's mouth.
"My, my, that wasn't very heroic now was it Tenshi-kun?"
Ryuichi simply dusted himself off before watching the boy disappear down the end of the hallway and then walking back into the cafeteria. He didn't notice Miyuki watching him from behind a corner, only one thought running through her mind.
"What the hell was that about?"
Mizuchi watched from the back corner of the cafeteria as the rest of her classmates gathered around the set of tables Sonja had reserved for the class. She watched as they crowed around Enkai who was in the middle of a game of cards with Kira. Her grip around her soda can tightened as her anger increased while watching everyone with Enkai and hearing Maruchisu and Chizu cheering him on. With a final growl, Mizuchi crushed the can with her claw, it's contents spilling over her thick exoskeleton. She looked down at the mess, huffing before making her departure from the cafeteria. She had only just stepped outside before walking straight into a frantic Yonamine.
"You stupid girl!" Mizuchi snapped. "Look where you're going next time!"
"S-Sorry Suijin-san, I didn't see you there" Yonamine squeaked. She had been looking for Kioshi practically all lunch which had resulted in a wild goose chase over the entire school. "Suijin-san, have you seen-"
"I don't care" Mizuchi growled, cutting off the bunny-eared girl. "Talking to you is a waste of my time, I have better things to do."
"You don't have to be so rude Suijin-san!" Yonamine protested, getting up on her feet. "I was only asking a question!"
"You think I care about your feelings? Please! That's the last thing I'd do. Now get out of my way." Mizuchi then shoved past Yonamine, knocking the girl back slightly with her claw. "Feelings" she muttered quietly as she walked towards the doors leading outside. "What trivial things." Yonamine watched the girl leave and sighed, her ears falling slightly.
"Well, that was a rather vulgar display."
Yonamine turned to see a familiar boy walking towards her, the left side of his face hidden by a simple half mask with a single black eye while his long hair obscured his ears, being longer on the left side. Simply put, the boy looked as if he'd rolled straight out of bed with his long and messy hair. He smiled gently at the small girl, holding his hand out to help her off the ground.
"Thank you…Usui-san wasn't it?" Yonamine thanked.
"My pleasure," Chishio said, still smiling. "There was no need for her to be that rude."
"I know!" Yonamine agreed. "I was only trying to ask her a question." There was a mischievous glint in Chishio's bright red eye.
"And what question was that may I ask?"
"I was only trying to find out if she knew where Raito-san was" Yonamine explained. "She helped pay for my lunch and I just wanted to thank her properly for it and find some way to pay her back."
"I guess you could just buy her lunch tomorrow or something" Chishio suggested as the pair began to walk. "We'll be able to see her later back in class."
"Yeah…" Yonamine answered, then energy she had earlier disappearing slightly. A puzzled look crossed Chishio's face.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"I don't…have a lot of money" Yonamine mumbled, her words barely audible. Yonamine's face reddened as Chishio stared at her with a curious look. "My mother doesn't earn a lot, so I have to be careful with how much I spend normally." The poor girl looked as if she was going to cry.
"There's no need to be embarrassed about it, Kiyoko-chan" Chishio said with a smile. "I'm sure you'll be able to make a lot of money as a Hero. You could help your mother with your earnings."
"You really think so?" The rabbit-eared girl asked, hope in her eyes.
"Of course. You might even become as popular as Mirko once was" Chishio told her. The masked boy couldn't help but smile at the renewed passion that was ignited in Yonamine's eyes.
"You're right actually," Yonamine said before fist-pumping. "I'll do it! I'll become the richest hero ever!"
Chishio chuckled at her enthusiasm.
"I suppose I could play around with her for a bit," Chishio thought to himself as he listened to Yonamine excitedly babble about becoming a Hero.
"Why don't we return to the cafeteria Kiyoko-chan? You could tell me more about your troubles while we walk."
"Huh? But what about Raito-chan?" Yonamine asked. "I have to find her."
"You'll be able to speak to her once classes start after lunch. We'll all be back together by then" Chishio explained to her.
"O-Oh…I didn't think about that…" Yonamine said rather sheepishly. Chishio chuckled at her realisation before she joined his side, the pair making their way back to the cafeteria.
North Musutafu, Konseigo Academy Class 1-1 - 3:47 PM
The day's end couldn't have come any sooner for the Class 1-1. The rising tensions were beginning to become too much for the children to bare and upon the final bell, many of them made a quick getaway from the classroom. The only two who remained were Maruchisu and Ryoken, the pair having been elected by Plush to help clean up.
"I guess that does it then," Maruchisu said, slinging his bag over his shoulder.
"Yeah…" Ryoken replied uninterested. There was a brief moment of silence before Maruchisu broke it.
"Hey, Tenshi-kun." Ryoken looked over to see Maruchisu ushering him over. "You coming?"
"Oh..uh…right" Ryoken answered, picking up his belongings and following the other boy out of the door.
"So…what did you think of our classmates then?" Maruchisu asked, attempting to break the awkward silence.
"They're…alright," Ryoken answered hesitantly.
"Yeah, they seem to be quite a handful" Maruchisu replied with a small chuckle as they walked down a staircase, ignoring Ryoken's downcast expression. "Fuyuishi-chan and her group seem really nice" he continued, recalling how he'd spent lunch with her, Koko and Isou after everyone had finished eating. "Shame we didn't get to speak to them after the exam."
"Teriaa-san…why are you even talking to me?"
The question caught Maruchisu off guard as he stopped before the main doors that lead out the building. Ryoken continued for a short while, then pausing and looking back at his classmate.
"What do you mean by that Tenshi-kun?" Marushisu asked.
"Don't beat around the bush" Ryoken huffed. "I know you and the others don't like me after what happened in the exam. Yet here you are talking to me. Don't you hate me?"
The silence from Maruchisu was answer Ryoken needed as he huffed and opened the door.
"I thought so" Ryoken growled as he exited the building, Ryuichi's earlier words playing on loop.
That wasn't very heroic now was it Tenshi-kun?
Ryoken was on the verge of giving up on that point as he heard the Hellhound screech. If they wanted him to play the part of monster, then he'd play it for them alright.
"It was wrong of me Tenshi-kun!" Maruchisu blurted out. Ryoken paused and spun on his heel, spotting Maruchisu running after him. The smaller boy panted for air as he reached Ryoken, bending over. "I…was afraid…of what…might have happened" Maruchisu said between breaths, his guilt from that morning resurfacing. "I did dislike you partially for what happened, but I realised I was wrong after speaking to Okimoto-san."
"Um…Teriaa-kun, could I talk to you?"
Maruchisu paused for a moment, letting Enkai catch up with him as he made his way back to class. The hallways were packed full of students rushing to return to class as their lunch break had come to a close.
"Sure thing Okimoto-san, what can I do for you?" Maruchisu answered, following Enkai to a quiet corner of the hallway.
"I was wondering if we could talk about…Ryoken-kun…in private?"
All traces of happiness seemed to vanish from Marsuchisu upon the mention of the wolf boy's name.
"Sure…" Maruchisu trailed off as Enkai lead him to an empty hallway. "What is it about him then?" Maruchisu asked, his voice echoing through the empty hall.
"It's just…I get the feeling you and some of the others don't like him too much…" Enkai said.
"Well…I mean…I…Kinda?" Maruchisu stuttered in surprise.
"You don't have to hate him though!" A determined look crossed Enkai's face. "He didn't mean to attack you at the end of the exam."
"I don't-" Maruchisu cut himself off before he could continue. He was wrong. He knew it deep down inside of him as the guilt washed over him, his earlier thoughts from that morning coming back to him.
He did hate Ryoken.
"Ok, you're right, I do hate him for that" Maruchisu admitted. "I get how you're trying to defend him Okimoto-san, but you weren't in my position. You never saw the look on his face as he leapt at us. That look on his face and those eyes of his, it scared me Okimoto-san."
"The look of a savage beast, right?" Enkai asked.
"Yeah, something like that" Maruchisu answered before noticing Enkai's downcast expression. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"Is that what you think of Ryoken-kun then? A savage beast?" Enkai asked in a low voice, almost growling even.
"What?! No! I don't!" Maruchisu protested but then hesitated slightly, the gears in his head turning as realisation dawned on him. "I'm such an idiot" he facepalmed.
"No, you're not" Enkai disagreed. "I understand why you were scared Teriaa-kun, but Ryoken-kun didn't mean it." He let out a sad sigh. "He told me about his Quirk Teriaa-san, how it can get out of hand and run wild sometimes" Enkai continued. "It's not fair to hate him for something out of his control."
"Y-Yeah…you're right" Maruchisu agreed.
He was going to need to have a long talk with Ryoken.
"Okimoto-san explained to me more about what you had told him about your Quirk after the exam, and I'd like to apologise for misjudging you" Maruchisu explained. Ryoken was taken aback slightly.
"Why… is he apologising?"
"N-No, I should be apologising to you Teriaa-san," Ryoken said quickly. "I-I shouldn't have let my Quirk scare you all like that after the exam."
"But you couldn't help it Tenshi-san" Maruchisu protested. A determined look crossed over his face. "I will admit I'm still a little afraid Tenshi-kun, but I shouldn't hate you for something out of your control."
Ryoken could only stare wide-eyed at the boy who stood there, determined to try and make amends with him.
"What is this…warm feeling...?"
"T-Thank you Teriaa-san," Ryoken said, bowing at the smaller boy. It was now Maruchisu's turn to be perplexed by the other boy's words and actions.
"Wow, …he was so stubborn and aloof back in the exam."
"It's…quite alright Tenshi-san," Maruchisu said a little unsure. "Let's keep walking. We'll be here all evening if we don't move."
"Of course," Ryoken said in realisation and the pair soon departed the school grounds. It was a pleasant afternoon. The sun was still high in the sky and a gentle breeze blew through the streets below to relieve residents of the heat. Ryoken soon broke the silence.
"Teriaa-san?"
"Yes, Tenshi-san?" Maruchisu answered curiously.
"Would you consider us…friends?" Ryoken asked hesitantly.
"I guess so. We would have ended up friends either way" Maruchisu answered with a smile warmer than a thousand suns. Ryoken couldn't help but give a small chuckle.
"I see" Ryoken answered, turning his gaze to the empty roads ahead. "It's nice to have people to talk to normally…after my Quirk had pushed so many away."
"Wow, he is acting differently from the exam." Maruchisu couldn't help but be surprised by Ryoken's change in attitude from the events that had occurred two weeks ago.
"That's unfortunate to hear Tenshi-san" Maruchisu sympathised. "Maybe if you open yourself up more like you're doing now, you'd find it easier to talk to people."
"And what do you mean by that exactly?" Ryoken asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You're acting way different than you did during the exam" Maruchisu explained as they rounded a corner. "Back then you were quite stubborn."
"I just happened to be quite focused back then" Ryoken countered.
"Sure, you do" Maruchisu teased.
"One more word and I'll fry you" Ryoken huffed.
"Ah! There's the Ryoken we all know and love!" The smaller boy laughed.
"Please shut up," Ryoken said quietly, his face reddening slightly.
"Your tail's wagging Tenshi-san."
Ryoken almost leapt out of his skin at the comment, quickly, grabbing the appendage with both hands in an attempt to keep it still as his face went red with embarrassment. Maruchisu could only giggle as he watched Ryoken walk awkwardly with his tail gripped in both hands and an embarrassed look on his face."
"Speak of this to anyone and I will murder you Teriaa-san" Ryoken growled.
"Oh come on" protested Maruchisu. "It suits you~"
"Suits…me?" Ryoken asked, slightly dumbfounded. Maruchisu immediately realised what he said.
"I mean because you're a dog and everything, and dogs like to wag their tails and stuff, so I was just making the comparison you know," Maruchisu said rather quickly.
"…Right," Ryoken said slightly perplexed before continuing as silence filled the afternoon air.
"So…hero costumes then… You got your one sorted?" Maruchisu asked, attempting to rid the awkwardness in the air.
"Sort of" Ryoken answered. "I need to refine a few details about it so the suit doesn't rip when I transform."
"I feel you on that one" Maruchisu agreed. Ryoken raised an eyebrow. "My clones will tear through my clothes when I transform. I had to have my shirt off during the exam, remember?" The memory quickly surfaced in Ryoken's mind, recalling how the smaller boy had taken his shirt off during the exam and how his duplicates had run around the examination field naked.
"It's a shame your clones can't slip through your clothes" Ryoken commented as they reached the station. "It would be easier for you to fight then."
"I know" Maruchisu moaned. "I wish there was a hero with a similar predicament to me. I could base my costume on theirs."
"Yeah. I guess not many hero's Quirk's directly affect their costume, aside from Lemillion's I guess" Ryoken said as they walked inside the local train station. Maruchisu stopped in his tracks as Ryoken walked up to the ticket office.
"Tenshi-san, you're a genius!" He suddenly yelled out.
"I am?" Ryoken asked. Maruchisu was in his face with his hands on his shoulders before the wolf boy could say another word.
"I just need to base my costume off of Lemillion's one. I can't believe I forgot how his costume works alongside his Quirk. I bet if I can ask Seagull-sensei to help me, he might be able to reconfigure my costume to let my clones slip through me!"
"Teriaa-san! You're causing a scene!" Ryoken yelled. Maruchisu paused his babbling to quickly look around, seeing the strange stares the two high schoolers were getting from the other passengers in the station.
"A-Ah! Sorry, Tenshi-san!" Maruchisu quickly let go of the brown-haired boy and bowed apologetically. "I just had a quick flash of inspiration and I got excited I can find a way for my Quirk for properly work for once."
"It's…alright" Ryoken replied as he dusted himself off. "You'd better start on the plan's soon if you're to make the deadline." This had unfortunately set of Maruchisu into panic mode upon recalling the tight deadline for the costumes.
"You're right Tenshi-san! I need to get on with it as soon as possible then!" Maruchisu then turned and made a beeline for the station exit. "I'll see you tomorrow Tenshi-san!" Maruchisu called back with a wave. Ryoken hesitated for a second but waved back.
And if one looked closely, they would see the faintest smile had appeared on the boy's face.
Maybe I don't have the play the part of monster anymore…
My goodness! Has it really been eight months?
I really need to make a schedule for these things :'(
Apologies for talking ever so long with this, I had a real lack of motivation with this chapter and left it in limbo for a long-time which it shouldn't have. That and real-life issues came up too but I'm trying to set myself a schedule so I can get this written quicker for your enjoyments. I am determined to get this story done no matter what!
Anyway, I hope everyone is doing well even with how the current state of the world is. Please look after yourselves and take care of one another!
And don't forget to wash your hands too!
I guess I don't have much else to say, but if you did enjoy this chapter then leave a review why and I'll see you all in the next update!
Take care all!