AN: Yoo-hoo! Back again with another chapter. Some people have been asking about my update schedule. To be honest, there isn't a consistent schedule. I mostly started this fic because I was bored and haven't found a temp job yet (I just graduated college and am moving to a new city for a job in a few months, so I needed temp work until I moved). But I just got hired for a full time temp position so my time is a bit more limited. I'll have to see where I can fit in writing with my new schedule. I do not intend to give up on this fic! But there is some adjustment i need to do on my end before I can sort out an actual schedule.
Once again I thank KyrosVasera for his tremendous aid in beta'ing this chapter!
Without further ado...
Chapter 4
Izuku gulped as he stared at the muscular form of the number one hero, All Might. It had been a couple of days since he asked his mom to get them in touch.
He wasn't sure if All Might would actually agree to meet with him, but he guessed his mother was right about the hero being worried about him.
The green-haired teen had been nervous in the moments leading up to seeing the famous hero again. He wasn't really sure why.
All Might seemed a little uncomfortable himself, Izuku could vaguely make out the look of guilt on his face as he stared at him.
'Does he feel bad because I went missing…?' the boy thought curiously, yet also somewhat surprised.
The blonde hero coughed before looking around them. Izuku had asked the man to meet him at Dagobah Beach after he finished school. It would be a private place for them to talk and give Izuku the space to show the man his new quirk.
"I guess... there's no point in holding this form, huh?" The blonde hero grunted before he expelled in smoke, shifting into his true form.
"I'm glad to see you safe. I was worried when I couldn't find a trace of you…" he trailed off.
Izuku shook his head at the hero "I-its o-okay...I uh, I'm alright now" he awkwardly replied.
"Good." A pause. He was relieved to see the boy alright. If anything, the kid seemed more than alright.
Catching himself staring, All Might internally growled at himself 'Come on, he's just a kid! Why are you so acting so weird!?'
"So…" he started, "where did you go?"
Izuku lightly scratched his cheek, "U-uh, actually. That's part of the reason I wanted to talk to you" he admitted.
All Might raised an eyebrow.
"I-I don't remember much after you left…The next thing I knew, I was at the hospital."
All Might frowned, "So you're wondering if I knew anything about what might have happened to you after I left?"
Izuku nodded "Y-yeah, did you maybe hear or see anything?"
Toshinori sighed, "Sorry kid, but this is the first time I've seen you since I left the rooftop.
Izuku sighed in disappointment.
"You really don't remember anything?" The blonde questioned, causing Izuku to shake his head in the negative.
'Could this be the work of some villain? But what would they want with him?' Yagi thought in confusion.
"The most I know of about what happened after I left, is that there was a fire on the rooftop." The hero admitted, "I got worried when I first heard about it, but the police hadn't found any sign of you being there when it started."
Izuku nodded "Yeah, my mom told me the same thing."
"Actually, that reminds me...I have something of yours" Toshinori dug into his pockets and pulled out a charred notebook.
Carefully, he handed it over to Izuku, "The police found this left behind after the fire had been put out. Your mom let me borrow it to see if I could find any clues about where you went. Didn't find much on that, but I gotta admit, you really have a talent for analyzing quirks" the blonde finished awkwardly.
Izuku took the charred book carefully, a soft smile on his face "...thank you" he looked up and saw another guilty look on the other man's face.
Frowning, Izuku bit the bullet "Y-you're...feeling guilty about what you said to me that day...and about me going missing... aren't you?"
"Erg!" Toshinori grunted in surprise, 'Well, he is remarkably perceptive...the book is proof of that'.
"What I said was hars-"
"True" Izuku cut him off, causing him to stare at the boy in surprise.
"I-it was t-true" the greenette admitted, "I thought about it ever since I woke up. You're not wr-wrong. Being quirkless means you are powerless against villains."
"Midoriya...I"
"To be a hero is to protect people, no matter what. That's why I wanted to be one. It wasn't ever about beating villains for me. Maybe that's because I didn't want to think about that part when I was quirkless…" he looked up at Toshinori.
"S-so I u-understand where you're coming from. There is only so much I'd be able to do to protect people if I was facing a vi-villain" the greenette paused for a moment. "What you said made sense, when I thought about the dangers heroes went through. I understood why you wanted me to think about what was in my reach...to think about being a police officer or something to serve and protect people."
"So you're not wrong All Might! And you don't have to feel guilty," he finished, staring at All Might.
Toshinori was taken aback at Izuku's admission. But couldn't help but agree with him 'He's... really mature for his age...huh.'
"That's...th-that's actually the other reason I wanted to talk to you" Izuku began."Something happened to me when I disappeared last week... that's why I wanted to know if you knew anything." Toshinori raised an eyebrow at the boy.
Izuku suddenly vanished from his line of sight. The blonde's eyes widened as he felt a rush of wind blow past him. Turning around, he gaped at Izuku who had somehow appeared behind him in a blink of an eye.
'What! Did this kid just teleport?'
"I have a quirk now...I don't know how, but I know it had something to do with my disappearance" Izuku dropped the bomb.
'How...what? He said he was quirkless before... it's unheard of a quirk developing this late naturally. That's...not possible is it?'
All Might stumbled for a moment "How…?"
"I-I don't know. I thought maybe I was a late bloomer, even if it seemed unlikely...but…the timing is a bit suspicious. I go missing and then, boom, pop out with a quirk" he laughed awkwardly while rubbing the back of his head.
Toshinori wasn't laughing, or even smiling, as he listened to Izuku. His thoughts were in a frenzy.
'Kid goes missing for a week with no memory of it...and then gets a quirk? He's right, that is way too suspicious...it couldn't be him...could it?' Yagi frowned in worry.
"Midoriya, are you absolutely sure you don't remember anything? Not even a moment?" Izuku gulped as a shadow seemed to cover the blonde man's face.
"U-uh N-no. Th-the n-next thing I knew was w-waking up at the h-hospital" he replied nervously. Why did he suddenly seem so intimidating?
Toshinori sighed "I believe you...but the moment you remember anything. You need to tell me, okay."
"H-huh? Do you know something? Is it bad?" Izuku panicked.
Toshinori shook his head "No, don't worry. Just come to me as soon as you remember anything" he replied, a bit more firmly.
'It can't be him... right? He couldn't have survived…and...he wouldn't just give Midoriya a quirk, right? What purpose would that serve him' Toshinori thought in concern.
"U-uh All Might! A-are you okay?" He was broken out of his thoughts.
"Yeah…I'm okay…" he replied, clearly distracted.
Izuku frowned, knowing the hero was lying but decided not to push him. He had a favor to ask after all.
Coughing to get the blonde man's attention he nervously began, "um...s-so...the main reason I want to t-talk to y-you…" he paused for a moment, "uh...now that I have a quirk...I want to be a hero...one that can protect people from villains. A-and. I was wondering if...if you could help me train me in my quirk!" Izuku closed his eyes and waited.
Toshinori paused as he looked at Izuku. 'He wants me to train him?'
Thinking for a moment, the man asked, "Why?"
Izuku opened his eyes and nervously started to play with his hands "Uhm...well. I've been practicing using it. A-and I think I'm getting the hang of it but...I don't think I can get used to it completely in time for the U.A. entrance exams."
"So you want to get into my old Alma Mater, huh?"
"Y-yeah! I want to be the greatest hero in the world...to save people with a smile on my face...just like you do! And to do that, I want to go to U.A.! Just like you once did" He admitted.
Toshinori felt a sense of deja vu, recalling similar words from the boy during their conversation on the rooftop.
"So...why should I train you? Don't you think it's a little unfair to the other applicants?" The blonde man asked.
Izuku flinched and stared at the ground "Yeah
...you're right. It is a little unfair...but...everyone else...they had most of their lives to train using their quirks...I just got mine and barely understand it. I just figured out how to activate it at will, and even then, sometimes it disperses on its own. I don't know anyone else who could help...and I'm a mutation so I can't even ask my mom for advice because our quirks are different...so I'm stuck trying to figure it all out on my own." He clenched his fists.
"Everything I try training with isn't enough. I need my reaction time to keep up with my speed. I built an obstacle course to help with that but all it did is make me memorize the course. I need an actual teacher. Someone to keep pushing me, and to spar with. Until then, I'm limited in what I can teach myself...you were the only person I thought who could actually help me" Izuku stared up at All Might.
"I have to work a lot harder to catch up with all the other applicants. But right now I just don't have the resources to do that. And so all I can do...is ask for your guidance...even if it isn't as a full-time trainer, If I could just spar with you or just get advice from you from time to time...that would be enough."
Toshinori silently stared at the boy in front of him 'He's really put in the effort, huh?' he sighed.
Izuku frowned upon hearing the hero sigh. "Yeah... it's selfish…I shouldn't be here begging for you to teach me. I should keep trying until I get it right" the green-haired boy shook his head. "I'm sorry for wasting your time All Might. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me" he bowed slightly before turning to walk away.
Toshinori sighed again "Kid, hold up. I didn't say no."
Izuku paused "huh?"
"Geez kid, you really like rambling to yourself and deciding things before you even hear the other side, huh?" The blonde shrugged. "I understand where you're coming from…you remind me a lot of myself back when I was young. Learning a whole new quirk on your own isn't easy."
"Y-you mean?" Izuku looked on with hope.
"I haven't decided yet." Toshinori shook his head. "But what you've asked…it's understandable given your situation. So, I'm going to think about it."
Izuku's eyes started to glisten before he started to bow up and down rapidly towards All Might "Th-thank you!"
"Calm down kid, before I decide, I want you to tell me everything about your quirk, and what you've done so far to train it...and why you think I would be able to help."
"Y-yes, sir!" Izuku happily cried before launching into an explanation of everything he had done.
'It bothers me that he doesn't remember a single thing about his disappearance...but I don't think his quirk has anything to do with All For One...even if he were somehow still alive, It's not like him to give a random kid a quirk. Plus, Midoriya is far too invested to be a hero to be a part of any plot with him...right? Nonetheless, at least this way, I can watch over Midoriya and make sure nothing happens to him.' Toshinori thought to himself. 'But still...what happened to him then? To suddenly make a quirk appear in him at such a late age…it really is unheard of.'
The blonde stared at Izuku as he recounted the last week. 'Could it really be some miracle...or is there something else at play?'
XXXX
"You're wasting my time, there's nothing interesting here. Just let me leave already." A white-haired man with white eyes and light pink skin growled into a phone as he pounded a table with his fist. His arms had curious white streaks running along where his veins would be.
"Sorry, the boss demanded that you stay at your post for a few more days."
"Seriously? What happened around here that you guys are so dead set on making me watch the streets of all things?"
"As we've discussed, sir, we had reports of suspicious energy readings in the region about a week ago. You're to report back on anything peculiar you might see" a voice from the other end of the phone line responded.
"Well, I've seen nothing. There's nothing here. And what's this energy reading you keep spouting about? How am I supposed to know what's peculiar if I don't even know what I'm looking for!"
"The device we provided you should be able to find the source of the energy signature we detected."
"That thing stopped working after day two. It took me to some broken up street and went crazy for a while. Now it doesn't even react. It was pretty goddamn annoying though."
"...and you neglected to report this?" The voice on the phone sounded irritated.
"I didn't know what the thing was beeping for. Thought it was broken or something. God, when that Giren fella told me he had a job for me, I thought I was gonna do some heist or something exciting. Not watch some fucked up street for a week."
"You said the device led you to that street. Did you at least find out what happened to it?" The voice on the phone ignored the white-haired man's complaints.
"Heard some people talking 'bout lighting hitting it or something. I dunno" he shrugged.
"...curious. We'll have to keep you there for another few more weeks then. Keep the device with you at all times. Make sure to leave it on and let us know if you find anything."
"A few more weeks? I'm practically dying from boredom! I don't wanna do this shit no more. At least tell me why you're making me do this!"
The man heard a sigh from the phone. "We'll double the normal rate."
"Triple!" He demanded.
"We'll meet half-way. Report if you find anything" the white-haired man growled as his phone call got dropped.
Grumbling himself he started to walk through the room his temporary employees had rented for him.
"stupid organizations and their dumb secrets." He grumbled to himself. Scratching his right arm, he twitched when a flake of skin peeled off.
"Ugh, I need a swim." He muttered.
XXXX
"So...you want me to punch you really fast" Toshinori deadpanned. They had been talking for some time, the sun had nearly set now.
"Well...as fast as I can handle. You're the only person who I think could force me to train my reflexes. Everyone else would be slow motion!" Izuku exclaimed.
The greenette gained a thoughtful look on his face, "That's honestly the biggest thing. I need to build up my spatial awareness. My speed will only be so helpful if I can actually react to what's around me. And even though I start to see things in slow motion, I can't always respond fast enough."
"And I'm guessing the obstacle course doesn't really help because you just remember where all the obstacles are?"
Izuku nodded "yeah! I need someone who can surprise me in super-speed!"
"But why don't you just spar with people at normal speed? If you're just trying to train your reflexes, wouldn't doing it at your base work too?" Toshinori asked.
Izuku shook his head, having thought of that, "When I'm running around in superspeed, my body doesn't move the same way as without it. There's more air resistance and drag I have to consider.'
The blonde hummed in thought. 'He has a lot of potential...there have been speed-based quirks in the past, but none that seemed to make the user feel like time slowed down around them.'
All Might folded his arms over his chest "Alright, Young Midoriya" he started.
Izuku straightened up, "Yes?!"
"I'll help you out" the green-haired teen beamed at him and started to repeatedly bow to the blonde man again.
"Thank you All Might! I'll do my best to learn from you!" He shouted.
"But, I can't train you full-time" All Might continued.
Izuku looked up and nodded "I understand! I wouldn't want you to overexert yourself and waste your time! I-I appreciate any time you can lend me!"
Toshinori twitched 'Overexert myself? Does he think I'm an old man!?' he coughed out blood.
"AHH!?" Izuku shouted in horror. Waving his arms around in a panic, he asked, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah" he wiped his mouth. "Anyways, I came to do a job in this city, so I can't always be around to help. But I can help you sort out a plan to help you prepare for the U.A. entrance exam. But it'll be up to you to follow it."
"Y-yes, sir! I'll do my best!" Izuku shouted in determination causing Toshinori to grin.
"That attitude!" The blonde hero transformed into his muscle form and pumped up his fist in a pose "I LIKE IT!"
Izuku's eyes widened in awe at seeing his favorite hero at full power.
"Young Midoriya! When I'm done with you, you're gonna ace that exam and leave everyone in the dust!"
"Hai!" Izuku also pumped up his fist.
Smoke covered the symbol of peace as he transformed back.
"Though I am still curious about your disappearance...have you tried to jog your memory?"
Izuku tilted his head in thought before nervously laughing, "I...I uh, actually got caught up in the excitement of getting a quirk that I haven't really tried."
Toshinori couldn't help but slightly smile at the kid. "Well, you should give it a shot. The last thing you remember was our rooftop conversation, right? Maybe if you go back there you'll remember something?" He offered.
Izuku gained a thoughtful look on his face before nodding "You're right! I'll give it a shot."
Toshinori nodded, "You should head home now, get some rest. Take my number so we can keep in touch!" Izuku's eyes widened in shock as he handed over his phone.
"I'll text you when I can start training you, so keep an eye out" he finished as he handed the greenette his phone back.
Izuku stared at the digits in absolute reverence 'All Might gave me his number!? This has to be a dream' he pinched himself.
Toshinori sweatdropped 'A fanboy to the end, huh?'
"J-just don't go spreading it around okay?"
"O-of course n-not! I will protect it with my life!" He saluted.
"Uh...yeah, okay." The number one hero started to walk out the beach before pausing for a moment.
"Midoriya... I'm really glad you're safe" Toshinori turned to look at him briefly before smiling.
Izuku smiled back and nodded as the man transformed into his hero form again and jumped off.
'So cool…' Izuku thought before glancing at his phone and hopping around in excitement 'I really can't believe I have All Night's number! I need to show mom!'
XXXX
'That took a lot longer than expected' Toshinori thought to himself as he soared over the city, 'guess I'll have to push back my meeting with Nezu again' he sighed.
He had come back to Musutafu to teach at his old school for one main purpose - to find a successor. He and the principal of the school were supposed to meet to discuss possible candidates to inherit his quirk but between the principal's busy schedule and his random acts of heroism along with the situation with Izuku, the two haven't been able to meet yet.
'I guess it's not the end of the world. I'm still signed up to be a teacher at U.A. next year so I wouldn't be deciding until I meet them all as a teacher anyways…' he thought. He was a bit nervous about teaching though.
'I guess helping out young Midoriya will be a good way to figure out how to teach' All Might never really gained any teaching experience. His own hero education felt extremely rushed due to him having to focus on finding a way to take down All For One, so he couldn't even look back at that for reference.
'Honestly, the only thing I really remember about my days at U.A. was Gran Torino beating me up over and over again' he shivered at the memory of his old teacher before a thoughtful look overtook his features.
'Gran Torino...I wonder how he's doing...hmm maybe I should introduce him to young Midoriya. Both of them have speed-focused quirks so he might be helpful to the kid' he thought to himself.
'Although, he only ever became a teacher because of Master's request to train me. Wouldn't hurt to try though right? What's the worse that could happen? Another beat down?' Toshinori gulped, '...Maybe it's too early to introduce them…'
Yeah, he should try working with Izuku on his own first before thinking about introducing him to one of his old teachers.
Also, Gran Torino was probably going to be really annoyed with him for not visiting him earlier and Toshinori didn't have the guts to deal with that right now.
Not that the number one hero would ever admit that to anyone.
XXXX
The Next Afternoon
Nejire hummed to herself as she walked alongside Mirio and Tamaki with a bounce in her step. They had just gotten out of school.
"So! How are you guys feeling about this work-study stuff? Who are you gonna apply for?" The blonde U.A. student grinned at two of his closest friends.
Nejire started to add little skips to her step, "oh oh! I don't know! There's just so many heroes that I don't even know where to start!"
"I'm surprised A-Aizawa-sensei didn't take that privilege away since you flew away from class" Tamaki curiously looked at the cyan haired girl.
"He threatened to…but then he said something about how it'd be more troublesome to keep me around" Nejire pouted causing Mirio to laugh and Tamaki to snicker.
"What did he even make you do?" Mirio asked.
Nejire huffed, "He forced me to tie a bone to my back and let loose a bunch of dogs at me and took a nap while they chased me around for like two hours every day after school for the last week."
"... that's so mean" Tamaki sympathetically smiled at her.
"Wow! I bet your stamina increased from that though!" The blonde grinned.
Nejire tilted her head in thought, "I guess! I can now fire off about two or three more beams after flying around a bit!" She smiled to herself in pride.
"Hah! Sensei is really rough around the edges, but all he was doing was just giving you extra training!" He punched the air."At this rate, we're gonna be the best students at U.A.!" He exclaimed as his friends smiled at him.
"Oh!? But what about you guys? Did you find an agency to do a work-study with Tamaki? Mirio? Which one? Who's it with?" Nejire questioned.
"S-some heroes w-with d-diet-based quirks were interested in me because of the sports festival l-last year...might go to one of them" Mirio beamed at Tamaki at his response.
"That's awesome Tamaki! You're gonna get crazy strong by training with any one of them!"
"...maybe" the dark-haired teen whispered back.
"What about you Mirio? Do you already have one?"
Mirio rubbed the back of his head "I'm not sure yet. I'm doing some research later to see who would be good for me...but I still don't have the best control over my quirk yet so I've been focusing on that!"
"Ooo how's that going? Did you make any progress yet? Why don't you just reach out to one of the heroes that offered you an internship after the sports festival last year?" Nejire fired off.
"I got used to phasing through objects, but I occasionally mess up if I'm trying to do it really fast! And it's still hard to figure out how to change the direction I go when I'm bouncing out of the floor" the blonde admitted before laughing to himself "and...not many people wanted to work with me after I accidentally flashed everyone on tv during the festival" he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head as his friends laughed.
"But this next sports festival! We're gonna ace it! I gotta good feeling about it" the blonde cheered them on.
"...yeah" Tamaki nervously nodded.
"Come on Tamaki! Be more confident. Give me a POWEERR!"
"...power…" the dark-haired teen whispered.
"POWER! You too Nejire…huh?" The two males looked towards the direction that Nejire used to be. She had disappeared!
"Nejire?"
The two U.A. students looked at each other in slight confusion before shrugging and making their way back home. She was probably fine. It wasn't the first time she had disappeared like this.
XXXX
Nejire had been following along with her friends when she saw a familiar head of green hair across the street they were walking through.
Squinted her eyes, she tried to get a better look at the green-haired person's face before her eyes widened.
"It's him! I found him again!" She beamed in excitement before skipping over to the green-haired figure, completely forgetting about Mirio and Tamaki.
"It's been a while!" she thought in anticipation. She was going to interrogate him.
XXXX
Sorry, I have to meet with an acquaintance today. We'll have our first training session soon, I promise. In the meantime, why not run through your obstacle course again? Or maybe even try to jog your memory? If you do remember anything, let me know immediately.
Izuku sighed in disappointment after he had read All Might's text. He knew the man was busy but he was really hoping they'd be able to meet today.
The test for U.A. might be 9 months away, but Izuku wanted to get as far along with training his quirk as he possibly could before it.
But, it seemed today wasn't the day to start training with the number one hero. The greenette wasn't really in the mood to go through his obstacle course again - it was pretty boring at this point. Instead, he had listened to All Might's second suggestion and was on his way to investigate the building he last remembered being on before his disappearance.
"AIHH?!" He shouted in alarm as a hand suddenly grabbed onto his shoulder.
He immediately shook off the hand and lept away, turning to face his assailant.
"Huh?" He blinked in surprise as he stared at the bemused face of a cyan-haired girl.
"Hey! Hi! It's been like a week! And you never called me!" She pouted.
"H-huh?" Izuku stared at her confusingly.
"Huh? Do you really not remember me! You saved me remember! Did you hit your head? Oh! Did I give you amnesia when I fell on you?" She leaned forward to inspect his face.
Izuku nervously blushed "uh-uhm. What?"
'She's s-so close!' he thought.
The girl curiously blinked, "Wow. How often do you have girls fall onto you from the sky?" She teased.
"My name's Ne-ji-re Ha-do" she sounded out with a smile, "We met last week remember! I was flying and then fell and then landed on top of you!" She recalled, her hands vaguely animating the story.
Izuku blinked and raised his eyebrows in recognition "o-oh! Yeah, I remember! Sorry... it's been a hectic week!" He smiled at her.
Nejire beamed at him "Yay! I was worried I'd have to fall on you all over again! So, how did you go missing!? I've been going crazy thinking about it! Oh! And what's your name again?"
Izuku sweatdropped at her forwardness "Uh, Izuku Midoriya. It-its nice to meet you...again. sorry about not calling you, it really has been a hectic week" he shuffled his feet. "And u-uhm. I actually don't know how I went missing. I'm actually trying to figure it out now!"
"Huh? You don't know? What do you mean?" She looked at him confused.
"Uh, I just don't remember it. I was on a roof and then the next thing I knew was that I was in the hospital and a week had passed" he wasn't sure why he was telling the girl this.
Nejire blinked in astonishment "that's crazy?! Wow! So are you doing an investigation?" She seemed to become more excited.
Izuku furrowed his eyebrows "I...guess. Yeah? All Mi- I mean my...trainer...told me to go to places where I can jog my memory" he breathed a sigh of relief as he caught himself from revealing that he was learning under All Might. They hadn't discussed it but the greenette figured it would probably be best if he didn't publicly announce their situation.
"Trainer? What are you training for? A contest? A marathon?" She gasped as she recalled their earlier conversation, "are you training to become a hero?"
Izuku blinked in surprise 'I guess...well, she was the one who suggested it, now that I think about it. So it's not surprising she remembered'.
The greenette smiled "Actually yeah…" Nejire's smile got wider.
"wait, so you're on a quest to find your memories right now? Can I help? I wanna help! Where are we going?"
"U-uh. I was walking over to that building…" Izuku dumbfoundedly pointed over his shoulder.
"Oh? Is that where you disappeared? What were you doing there? It looks familiar! I think it was on the news but it was on fire" she exclaimed before zeroing down on him "did you start the fire?"
"Wh-what? No! The last thing I remember was being on that roof before I d-disappeared" he answered causing her to nod thoughtfully before an excited glint entered her eyes.
"H-huh?" He grunted in surprise as the girl suddenly took his hand and started to pull him away 'Sh-shes holding my hand!?' he thought in shock.
"Well come on! We're gonna solve a mystery! This is so exciting!" The girl started to pull him along.
"Oh okay?" Izuku just followed along confused, not really sure what else to do.
"Ooo a hat!"
XXXX
Nejire shook the handle to the door that would have led them to the roof of the building Izuku last remembered being on before his disappearance.
"It's locked!" She huffed in annoyance, a black detective hat sitting on her head.
"They must have locked it down while they worked on repairs," Izuku noted. "It would be weird for a bunch of kids to ask to get into the roof. They'd probably try to call our parents."
Nejire slowly nodded, a small frown on her face. Placing her arms across her chest, she turned to the greenette "so what do we do now, Watson?"
"Why am I Watson?" He muttered.
"I have the hat! So I'm Sherlock!" She pointed to her head causing Izuku smile in exasperation.
"R-right. Anyways... since it's locked we obviously can't get through the front door. Even if we wanted to ask for permission, I doubt we get it. Not to mention there wasn't any type of building manager or doorman downstairs for us to ask to let us through...breaking in is obviously not an option" he cupped his chin in thought.
Nejire hummed in thought before a lightbulb lit up above her head. "Oh! I know!"
"Huh?"
"We fly there!" She exclaimed.
Izuku blinked, recalling that she did mention that a couple of times.
"Oh yeah! Your quirk!" He grinned in excitement as she puffed up with pride. "You never told me about it! What is it? Is it just flight? Can you do more than just fly?"
Nejire smiled back, "Well, I would've told you about it if someone had remembered to call me" she hummed, causing Izuku to blush.
"S-sorry!" He sheepishly replied.
Waving him off, the cyan-haired girl continued, "It's called Wave Motion! It turns my vitality into energy that I shoot out! I can also manipulate it around my body! Which lets me float around and fly!"
Izuku's eyes sparkled in awe as he started the scribble in a notebook he had pulled out from his bookbag while she was talking. "Amazing…by vitality, I'm guessing you mean your stamina right? So that must mean as you use your quirk you must get tired, right? So most of the training you probably have to do is to build your stamina levels. That would increase your quirk's output. And you said you can shoot energy out? Like beams? That plus with your ability to fly must mean you're a mid to long-range specialist, with your flying ability being incredibly helpful in making you mobile" he muttered as he scribbled into his book as Nejire looked on blankly.
'h-he got all of that from my explanation?' she thought, feeling somewhat buried by his muttering.
"You'll probably excel at fighting big, but slow, villains by being able to keep them at bay from a distance while also easily avoiding thei-" Izuku felt something poke him on his nose, breaking his train of thought.
"Wow! You must really like quirks" she giggled. Izuku blushed at the contact.
"S-sorry!"
"Anyways! Want me to fly us up to the roof? I've never carried someone with me before but...I think I can definitely do it!"
"A-are you sure? Wouldn't we get in trouble since we're not Pro Heroes? And also, the last time...you fell" he said, causing her eye to twitch.
"Only because I got distracted! I have better control over it now!" She pouted. "And besides! I have a provisional license! So even if we get caught I'm sure they won't get too mad... probably" she explained.
Mirio, in his eagerness, begged U.A. to let them participate in the provisional licensing exams. She, him, and Tamaki barely managed to scrape through it even with their difficulties in controlling their quirks at the time.
Izuku frowned, not fully certain of the idea, "I...I mean, I don't want you to get into trouble".
Nejire waved him off, "I'm curious about you! I wanna know what happened to you too ya know!" She grabbed his hand again before marching back outside.
"W-Wait! Isn't flying onto a locked roof still breaking in?"
Nejire shrugged, her gait not the least bit slowed "We're not breaking anything! So nope!"
"B-but! It's still i-illegal?"
"Shh! Come along Watson! We've got a roof to get to! And a mystery to solve!"
Izuku sighed.
XXXX
Izuku bit back a scream as Nejire seemed to momentarily drop in the air.
"Sorry! Carrying someone isn't as easy as I thought!" Nejire nervously laughed and held onto him tighter.
The greenette's face suddenly did an award-worthy performance of a radiator 'We're s-so close…'
The cyan-haired high schooler had her arms around his stomach as they rose, somewhat shakily, up towards the top of the roof. Izuku had nearly fainted from nervousness when Nejire had wrapped her arms around him to lift them off.
"Wow! You're really warm again! I should keep you around for winter!" She chirped at him as she finally hovered above the rooftop.
"Ack!?" Izuku yelled as they suddenly dropped.
"Oof!" Nejire grunted as they collapsed onto the roof. "We've got to stop doing this" she giggled at the red face of the boy under her.
"Ye-yeah" he stuttered, his blush intensifying.
Standing up, Nejire stretched her arms out and let out a yawn "That was more exhausting than I thought it'd be. Guess I need to build up my stamina more" she tiredly mumbled to herself.
Looking around, she noticed the roof had an assortment of materials lying around them. Some scorch marks and piles of ash and soot dusting the area as well.
"Guess they were in the middle of fixing it huh!" She exclaimed.
Izuku nodded as he got up and took a look around.
"Yeah…this place is definitely familiar" he noted.
"So! Remember anything?" The girl asked him curiously.
Izuku frowned and shook his head, "No...not yet."
"What were you doing on the roof by yourself anyways?" She looked at him accusingly.
"I ran into All Might, he took- or I guess, I tagged along with him after he saved me from a villain. And we talked here"
Nejire's eyes widened in awe "You met All Might? What? When? What was he like? What'd you guys talk about? Are you two friends? Is he super strong? Oh! Did you find out why he makes rabbit ears with his hair? What type of product does he put in it?" She leaned over to him with her hands pulling up her bangs to resemble All Might.
Izuku stumbled back "o-oh um. Y-yeah. And...I don't know?" He replied, causing her pout in disappointment before standing up straight again.
"Hmm well! Maybe we should reenact what you do remember! You can be All Might! And I'll be you!" She tossed her detective hat to the side and started to ruffle up her long hair into a ball.
"Is this what you do every morning?" She asked, causing him to sweatdrop.
'My hair... doesn't really look that messy...right?' he thought before shaking his head.
"U-uh. Well...he said he had to go and then walked past me and out the door" he furrowed his eyebrows while retracing All Might's steps.
"And then...I? Stood there...for a while?" He muttered as Nejire adopted a thinking pose.
"This isn't as exciting as I thought it'd be" she mumbled as her hair dropped back down to her knees.
"And then...did I leave?" He walked over the roof's exit.
"There are scorch marks all over there!" The cyan-haired girl pointed out.
Looking down, he narrowed his eyes.
"It...looks like something blew up here?" Squatting down to the scorch marks, he reached out his fingers to touch it when he felt a phantom shock shoot through his arm.
"Ah!" He grunted in surprise.
"You okay?" Nejire asked in concern.
"Y-yeah" he, glancing at his hand before a memory shot through his mind.
"Wait...it was raining!" He recalled, stepping back to look at the sky.
"And there was...a lightning storm? And everything was...weird. Like...the lightning was dancing" his eyes widened as he remembered a bright flash.
Looking down as the scorch marks below him, he grasped onto the door handle.
"I was standing here! And then I looked up and…" he recalled a bright flash of light, "I think...lightning hit me? And then the next thing was...I woke up in the hospital?" He spoke in confusion.
"Huh? You were hit by lightning!? How did you survive?" Nejire asked in shock.
Izuku scratched his head "I don't know? And when they found me I didn't have any injuries that you would get from a lightning strike" he muttered.
Nejire stared at him blankly before walking up to him.
"...are you a ghost?" Izuku blinked in surprise.
Nejire lightly pinched his cheeks "You can't be a ghost right?"
"N-no?" He blushed.
Sighing in relief the cyan-haired girl hummed in thought "But then what happened in the next week? Oo this just got more confusing!"
"But I wonder...does my quirk have something to do with that lightning strike?" Izuku thought aloud.
"Eh? I thought you didn't have a quirk?" Nejire glanced at him in surprise.
"Oh!" He smiled apologetically "s-sorry, turns out I do! It just didn't show up until after I met you."
"What!?" Nejire gaped " and you said it might have to do with being hit by lightning? Is that possible?"
Izuku scratched his cheek "uh. Well. I guess it is now?"
Nejire just stared at him in absolute confusion before beaming at him "You're really interesting Izuku!"
Izuku blushed, "th-thanks?"
"You know! There was another freak lightning storm a week ago! I remember reading about it online!" Nejire suddenly recalled as a thoughtful look overtook her features.
"...yeah! Apparently, a lightning bolt struck the street and destroyed it! Do you think it has anything to do with you?" She exclaimed, causing Izuku to look at her curiously.
"Huh? Last week? Really?" He asked as she started to scroll through her phone.
"Yeah look!" She showed him her phone.
Street Destroyed by Stray Lightning Bolt Last Night!
Izuku furrowed his eyebrows 'but that's not possible...lightning hits the tallest point...it shouldn't be able to hit the street directly?' his eyes widened as he saw the date of the incident.
"Wait! That's when I was found!" He exclaimed.
Nejire's eyebrows shot up before she started to hop around in excitement. "Another lead! We should go now!" She hastily grabbed her discarded hat before dragging Izuku away with her once again.
"Wait? W-why are we going to the e-edge of the roof? I unlocked the do-AHH?!" Izuku yelled as Nejire wrapped her arms around him again and jumped off the roof.
He held onto her for dear life as she slowed their descent onto the ground.
"Th-that's...I... I fe-feel sick" he groaned.
Nejire giggled in amusement before grabbing the dazed boy by the hand again and running off in the direction of their next destination.
"Hey! Wait! You never told me about your new quirk!" She exclaimed, not slowing her pace in the slightest.
"... speed" he murmured.
"Huh?"
"I goo fasht" he slurred, still feeling a bit sick.
XXXX
"That's so cool! Everything really slows down around you?" Nejire asked in awe.
Izuku blushed "Y-yeah! It's a really cool feeling!" He admitted.
"So like if I do this!" She started to wave her hand across her face rapidly, "you just see it super slowly?"
Izuku nodded with a bemused smile "yup!"
"Wow, I bet you can dodge everything then!" She suddenly karate chopped him on the shoulder causing him to wince.
"Oh! Sorry I didn't mean to" she nervously apologized causing him to laugh a little.
"It's okay! I'm still getting used to it… but maybe one day, yeah! I'll be so fast no one can touch me!" He grinned at her and vibrated his hand at super-speed.
"That's so cool!" She admitted in awe.
'She called me cool!'
"Hey look! We're here!" She suddenly called out.
Izuku stopped as they reached their destination. They looked over the street that was featured in the article they saw.
It seemed that the street had been repaired, certain parts of it were darker in color - resembling newly placed asphalt.
"Mmm, do you remember anything yet?" Nejire glanced back at the boy.
Izuku frowned as he looked around. The area seemed somewhat familiar to him.
"A little? Not much? This place seems kinda familiar...even though I don't think I've been here before." He stared up at the cloudy sky above him and furrowed his eyebrows.
Rumble
"Sounds like it's gonna rain soon," Nejire muttered.
Izuku silently glanced over to the patches of new asphalt.
'Lightning struck there huh…' he winced as something pushed his shoulder, a sharp stinging sensation running through it.
"Outta my way!" A muscular figure suddenly shoved Izuku to the ground.
"Hey! Watch where you're going!" Nejire shouted at the man in annoyance.
"Tch, whatever brat!"
Izuku groaned as more images flashed through his head.
A vortex of energy, voices crashing around him. His mother calling out to him. A crackle of lightning.
Izuku's eyes widened as he remembered rushing through the streets, a trail of green lightning behind him, just before he crashed into a pile of trash and passing out.
"..ku? Izuku?" Nejire called out to him.
"H-huh?" He snapped back to reality.
"Are you okay?" Nejire asked worryingly as she leaned over him.
Izuku blinked "oh! Yeah!"
"That jerk, he just ran over you! I was gonna fight him if you hadn't fallen over!" She huffed in annoyance.
"It-its okay. I think I remembered something" he patted himself off as he stood up.
"Really!? What was it?"
"I think...the bolt of lightning was me"
"Uh...are you sure you're okay?"
Izuku nodded, "Yeah! I don't know where...but, I think...when I first got hit on the roof, I was taken somewhere. I don't remember much but it looked like...a vortex of some kind? And then I started running and the next thing I knew I was running from here and out towards the streets before I crashed" he theorized, "I do remember my mom saying something about how people found me in the trash…"
'Though…' his face scrunched in thought, 'I don't have lightning trailing behind me when I run...but... that's the only thing that doesn't match up?'
Nejire's eyes widened "We figured it out then! You were taken away by the lightning!" She paused "wait, that doesn't make any sense!" she frowned.
"That doesn't seem possible? And like, where did you go? Why did you come out a week later? You don't remember anything while you were in that vortex thingy?!" She questioned.
Izuku frowned and shook his head "not really, no."
Nejire dropped her head, her detective hat falling to the ground, "Every time we find something it just leads to more questions."
"S-sorry?" He apologized.
"Well," she straightened up and offered a smile to him, "guess that means I'm gonna have to stick around you!"
"H-huh?" Izuku blinked.
Nejire pouted, "aw, do you not want me around?"
"What? I-I didn't s-say that!"
"Yay! Now! Before I forget! Give me your number!" She smiled at him again, thrusting her phone in his face. "Otherwise you might forget to call me again!"
Izuku simply nodded, not sure what else to do "s-sure."
XXXX
"Fuck this thing!" The light pink-skinned man growled. The white vein-like structures lining his arms seemingly sparking.
He threw the device in his hand to the ground and stomped on it as bystanders curiously stared at him.
He was going out to grab something to eat when the device that the sketchy organization gave him started to beep again. He ran off towards the direction the digital compass on the device pointed towards and shoved his way through a bunch of people. Unfortunately, he only found his way back to that same street the device led him to a week ago before it stopped beeping again.
Annoyed, the man decided to just quit his job.
'Fuck Giren and his connections. This job is too goddamn boring. I'm gonna do something better with my time.' he internally grumbled.
'Better clear out before they notice I quit. Those people give me the creeps.' he thought before growling in annoyance, 'Don't have much on me right now though...maybe I should rob someone and then run for it. Might as well make the stay here worth it.'
He wasn't some high profile villain by any means. He was just low on cash and Giren set him up with this gig. But he really didn't have the patience to do whatever scouting work they wanted him to do. Especially since they didn't even tell him what to scout for. The machine was just annoying and led him to empty streets.
He wasn't cut out for this type of "high maintenance" villain work, he was just a petty thief.
'I should've just rejected the offer. Could've made way more money just by robbing a bank or something' he thought with frustration as he stomped back to his temporary residence.
He was gonna squeeze out something profitable from this city before leaving, but he had to plan first.
AN: Honestly, I just loving writing Nejire and Izuku scenes. Maybe I should start a drabble fic with them...hmm. Anyways, let me know what you think! Until next time.