"I'm home!" Inko called out as she shut the door behind her. She sat down to take off her rain boots, taking a moment to do so. Finished, she was a bit confused. 'No reply?' She called out again "I'm home!" slightly louder this time. 'All the lights are on… Did Hisashi step out?' She fished her phone out of her coat pocket, hanging it on a hook after taking it off.

She pushed a button on her phone. A confused expression covered her face as she saw "No notifications". She glanced down the hall. All the doors were open except Izu's. She quickly scoped the house, becoming more frantic as she found Hisashi's phone in their shared room. His keys were here too.

"Hisashi!?" She screamed out. 'He… he must be inside!' Inko thought frantically, trying to make sense of the scene before her. 'His keys are here, as is his phone. But the door was locked when I got here. Did he leave through a window?' She checked every window in the house, worry growing with each one she checked. 'All the window locks are engaged. They can't be locked from the outside. Where… where did he go?'

Inko didn't know what to do. Hisashi was… gone?

Tears started to flow down her face as she called the police.

"No. No one was in the house at the time. You see our daughter is staying with my parents for the weekend." Inko sniffled. She had to intensely focus on explaining herself properly, despite her hysterical emotions. "An-And his phone and keys are still here. The door and all the windows were locked when I arrived."

"You believe he was abducted?" The officer finished for her, catching onto her point.

"Yes! I can't fathom anything else. How else could he have left the house? He is Quirkless, so it couldn't have been anything tricky." Inko couldn't help herself. She rolled her sleeves up and started wringing her hands together, trying to vent her emotions in some other way.

"Ah. Please come with us to the station to file a proper report, Ma'am. With your permission, I'd like to leave some investigators here to scan the environment more thoroughly. They may potentially be able to pick up on any foul play."

The woman simply nodded, wiping her eyes as she followed the officer out the door.

'Hisashi… please be safe. Come back. I-I'm not ready to be alone… neither is Izu. She's still only nine... Please lord be safe!'

Inko sat at the dinner table. Her leg bounced up and down constantly, wracked with nervous energy. Izu was supposed to come home today, scheduled to arrive in a few hours. 'How… how am I supposed to break the news to her? What do I say? How will she react? Will she… how will she take this?' She grabbed for her phone, quickly scrolling through her contacts. She tapped the name "Dr. Yamanaka", hoping he would pick up.

The seconds ticked by, phone ringing in her ear as she waited. It went to voicemail. 'Ah. I should have figured. He is a busy man with other clients, surely.' Her head slumped down. Izu would be able to talk to Yamanaka on Tuesday and Thursday… meaning Inko had to be extra careful and sensitive. Her hands covered her head, trying to suppress her growing headache.

'The detectives found no evidence of… anything. But the investigators agreed with me that the entire thing seemed suspicious. Realistically there is no way he could have left the house. He just… vanished. Someone… someone with a Quirk must have interfered.'

Her thoughts drifted back to Izu. Her heart strained as the weight of what was coming dawned on her. 'I'm not ready for this, Hisashi. My heart breaks everyday normally… seeing her like this. What am I supposed to do without you. How will Izu react? Please… please come home.'

Eventually Inko dragged herself up. She started preparing dinner in anticipation of Izu's arrival. Her mind was blank except for her trying to envision the many scenarios that could occur once Izu arrived. She automatically made some basic chicken and rice dish. Her subconscious realized she shouldn't make Izu's favorite. The dish would inevitably be forever be tainted by the memory... the information she'd have to reveal today. The meal was simple to make. Nothing too interesting, and she was sure it wouldn't be that good anyways. She could hardly focus on cooking right now.

Time ticked forward, and eventually the moment came. The front door's lock clicked, swinging open after a moment's pause. Izu cautiously entered the apartment. A car could be heard driving off in the distance, no doubt her grandparents returning to their home. Inko had to force her expression to remain semi-composed. She approached her daughter.

"Izu… how was the visit to Jiji and Baba's house?"

The nine year old made a disgruntled sound in lieu of actually answering. She began to remove her shoes and hang up her jacket after placing her bag of clothes on the floor. Inko swallowed. She shouldn't delay this.

"U-Uah. Izu? Darling…" The child simply looked up at her mother, still having not spoke a word. Inko led her to the couch, taking a seat right beside her. "Izu. I need you to listen very carefully. Daddy… Hisashi has… had to go. For some time. It… it's going to be just you and me for some time? Okay?" She pulled her into a hug.

Izu remained silent. Inko brushed her hair aside, hoping to look her daughter in the eyes. Inko's breath caught at what she saw. It was only there for a brief moment. Just a flicker, but it was unmistakable. The small girls eyes were watering but… for just a moment she seemed… happy? Relieved? Inko was sure she'd seen it. The edge of her lips were tilted upwards ever so slightly, but her eyes truly told the full story. She was… happy?

Ikno's mind briefly flashed back to four years ago. She'd seen this emotion before in her daughter all those years ago. When she learned she was Quirkless. She was sad, surely, but something deep within her wouldn't give up. That little bit seemed, almost… content?

Izu quickly composed herself. She'd nearly perfected the art of hiding her emotions, but such shocking information had made her lower her shields briefly. This revelation had… many implications. Their lives would change. But maybe… maybe this was a good thing. The nine year old knew what she had to do in this situation. Or… what most nine year olds would do. She forced herself to cry. She leaned forward to sob on her mothers shoulder. Inside she felt nothing but relief.

'He's gone… He's really gone…'

Inko's eyes flew open. Her breathing was ragged and she was drenched in a cold sweat. Her heart was beating like crazy. 'I… I dreamt of that day again.' She dragged her legs forward, wrapping her arms around them as she sat on her bed. The look on Izu's face was one she hadn't been able to forget. So harrowing… So heavy with emotions she still couldn't understand. Inko did have her theories, however.

'Izu… must have known. Somehow. She must know what Hisashi did… to her. I can't imagine anything else that would've caused such a strong reaction… Or… could this be more a result of her reacting to what Hisashi said? Being told that by… her father of all people would certainly have an impact. Quirk or not.' Inko still, to this day had not told Midoriya about Hisashi's posthumous confession. After reading the note he left all those years ago, everything seemed to click in Inko's mind. All the odd things she'd seen made sense. The sudden shift in her daughter, the bottomless hole she fell into, and Hisashi's guilt… it all lined up.

She closed her eyes, silently praying that Izu was doing well at UA. She still hadn't called. Inko slowly recalled the first time she read Hisashi's note. It had been a year since he'd disappeared, and he was officially declared dead. The investigation was canceled. The case was closed, and he became nothing but another name in a long list of disappearances. After the small funeral they held, a box was recovered from a safety-deposit-box Hisashi had owned for many years. The only thing it contained was hastily done handwritten note.

Inko was wracked with guilt as she went over the note in her mind, remembering the first time she read it nearly six years ago, when Izu was still nine. She'd memorized every word.

"Inko,

I made a mistake. I did something I shouldn't have to Izu, and I'm afraid I've irrevocably damaged her psyche. Despite my Quirk registration, and what I've always told you, I… am not Quirkless. I have a Quirk, an incredibly dangerous one that I've kept secret from everyone in my life. It… has the power to change someone. My Quirk is called Convince. If I use my Quirk, I can convince someone I am touching of... anything. No matter what I say they will believe it to be true for a very long time. Even if what I say is wrong, or if it goes against their morals or beliefs… their mind will warp itself over time to accept my statement.

I… before I fully understood what my Quirk was capable of… I used it on people. For silly things. I got an A on an exam by convincing my teacher. I got out of trouble. As I got older I slowly realized why I felt so… bad all the time. No one in my life would disagree with me. No one would question anything I said. I'd used my Quirk for so many small things, that over time the people I surrounded myself with would believe anything I said, without hesitation. I left that day. Moving across the country and changing my name. After seeing how it could warp people I vowed to never use my Quirk again."

There were multiple crossed out words, and some water damage on the paper.

It continued, "Do you remember, Inko, when Izu was four and a half years old? We'd just returned from the doctors with her Quirk diagnosis. She was Quirkless. You were rightfully devastated. But… I was so ecstatic. She wouldn't be cursed by my Quirk. I was so happy to have built a life with you, a legitimate one. To be free of my curse. After I vowed to never use my Quirk, I never did… except when we learned of Izu's Quirklessness. I found it within me to make an exception.

You saw it as much as I did. We talked about it. We were both worried about her. She… Izu so desperately wanted to be a Hero, despite being Quirkless. Even after the diagnosis, her hope, her enthusiasm, her desire to be like All Might didn't falter. It was… so sweet to witness. But it broke my heart.

I didn't want her to get hurt… I wanted to protect her. Everyday I'd hear of a new infallible pro hero falling. I didn't want to see our daughters disappointment as she wasted her childhood trying to reach an unattainable goal. After I saw her bottomless determination to be a hero, I felt as though I could see the future. She would try so hard, devote herself entirely to the task. But… as she got older... she would fall short. Even if she did make it pro, somehow. She would be in a world of pain and failure. Quirkless people cannot be heroes. I didn't want her to be devastated by that realization after spending so many years believing she could…

Inko. Inko I… I used my Quirk on Izu. I told her that day… when she was just four years old... I told her should couldn't be a hero. I watched, as my guilt ate away at me, as her young mind warped and tore at itself in order to accept my statement as fact. Her young determination, enthusiasm, and… hope, all clashed with my Quirk in her mind. I watched as she fell apart from the inside. She'd second guess herself about everything. She knew deep down she so desperately wanted to be a hero, but also knew she couldn't. My Quirk forced that realization onto her. I… destroyed her.

Please watch over Izu as she grows up. My Quirk is not infallible. It is supposed to grow weaker with time. Usually a number of years, but truth be told I've never seen its effects vanish entirely.. But... I fear with Izu it will last much, much longer. She will have spent all of her growing and developing years absolutely certain she cannot be a hero. Her true nature will slowly start to show as she gets older. That girl… wants to be a hero more than anything else. As the effect of my Quirk weakens, those feelings of hers will start to resurface. I worry that… even after my Quirks effects weaken with time, the doubt inside her will remain. She will have spent so many years believing it to be true, I feel that even after its effects are minimal, she will remain convinced… that she can't be a hero."

There was more water damage on the bottom half of the note, smudging the last two sentences into an unreadable mess. Inko laid back down, hands covering her face in shame. She… found it hard to be angry at Hisashi. Nonetheless tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. 'Of course… what he did was terrible. But, he had good intentions. Right? I had the same worry for Izu when I saw how deep her desire to be a hero was. She wouldn't let anything stop her, Quirk or no Quirk. He… he just wanted to keep her safe. Right? But even then. All the sadness. All the pain. All the missing moments. The time spent inside. The time spent lying in bed. The skipped meals. The self deprecation. The cutting. Oh Hisashi… the cutting! How could… how could you do this to her! She… she was so young, Hisashi. To see our daughter go through such incredible mental trauma at such a young age… we were powerless to do anything. She… she's been seeing a therapist for more than a decade now. She's only recently stopped, substituting it for sessions with a friend of her Sensei, Yagi.'

She wiped her eyes and got up. Knowing she couldn't ignore her responsibilities.

'There is one thing that still bugs me. Izu… has a Quirk now. She said it was a special subtype of enhancement? Something about accumulating power so it can take a while to manifest in the person. I'm not too sure. Izu certainly knows way more about Quirks than I do. But there is no history in either of our families of anyone having an enhancement Quirk. So it was a mutation? Those are very, very rare though… But. Now, she is pursuing her dream as you thought she would, Hisashi. I hope… I hope she has enough support to make it at UA. Make it to her dream despite her mental limiters…'

A thought crossed Inko's mind, one she had never considered. 'Should… should I tell someone at UA what Hisashi did? What's limiting Izu so much? Could… could they know a solution or treatment that would help her?!'

Izu sat on her bed, staring at her fridge. She was facing quite the predicament. She'd run out of microwavable food. All that she had left was components. Which meant… she would have to go to the common area to cook. She sat like this for sometime, hoping that if she simply waited for some magical solution to show up, it would. Eventually her stomach reminded her to hurry it up. She sighed, but stood up anyways. Heroes need nutrition… meaning she had to eat.

Izu gathered the ingredients she needed in a plastic bag. Chicken. Rice. Broth. Carrots. Nothing fancy or complicated. She'd seen earlier that the first floor had a fully equipped kitchen, so she didn't need to buy any pots or pans to cook with. She stood in front of her door. Debating on when the best time to open it was. Izu quickly checked her phone. 8:13pm, Thursday. She sighed again.

'This is prime time for… well... anything. No doubt people will be downstairs right now…' She opened her door and peered outside. The hallway was clear. She opted to take the stairs this time around, not wanting to wait around for the elevator. She walked down in silence, listening to her footsteps echo off the stairwell walls. As she reached the first floor she could hear a mixture of sounds. With only slight hesitation, she stepped out into the large room.

Izu's eyes scanned the group on the couches by the television. They sat in a circle, chatting quietly about something. 'Jiro, Ashido, Asui… Yaoyorozu? The floating pair of clothes, who I'm guessing is female based on her... chest. And the brown haired girl with pink cheeks. So all the girls are here? I wonder what they're talking about.' Izu quickly averted her gaze, making a beeline for the kitchen. She only got about halfway there before she heard someone call out to her.

"Midoriya!" Ashido called out, causing the rest of the girls to turn and look at her. Izu stopped, glancing around herself. She looked like she was caught red handed doing something illegal. Like making food was illegal. The pink haired girl got up and pranced over to the greenette. "Whatcha up to, Midoriya?" Ashido eyed the contents of her plastic bag. "Cooking huh? What are you gonna make?"

'Th-Thats a lot of questions at once.' She gulped, trying to formulate an answer to the girls question. "Uh… I was going to make some chicken with rice…" Ashido gave a smile in response.

"Sounds good. I'd ask for some if I hadn't already eaten. Hey while it's cooking you should come sit with us. We're having... girl talk. I had to kick some guys out of this place." She flashed Midoriya a questionable smile… almost… evil looking?

Izu stopped to think. 'There would be… about 15-20 minutes of downtime as this cooks where I'd just be standing around. It… it would be rude to just stand here after being invited to sit with them. Plus…' She fidgeted, trying to come to terms with what she wanted to do. 'I kind of… want to meet them. The other girls… they all seem to be over there.'

Ashido stopped to wait, knowing that Midoriya sometimes got lost in her own thoughts. This week she'd been keeping an ear out for her responses. She was truly an enigma who rarely, if ever, talked in class. Whenever Aizawa made her talk, or they had group discussions, she never seemed to give a wrong answer. On anything, regardless of subject.

The green girl looked up from her feet. She gave an almost imperceptible nod to the pink girl. "I'll… get this ready and… come over?" Izu shrugged slightly, not entirely sure if she said the right thing.

Ashido smiled brightly. She gave Midoriya an enthusiastic thumbs up. "Alright!" She skipped back over to the rest of the group, taking her seat again.

The room smelled faintly of chicken as Izu placed a cover on her rice, having already secured the chicken in the oven. She was finished. Which meant she now had to… go over. She looked over at the group of girls. They were all still laughing and smiling. They looked so peaceful and… happy. A pain struck Izu's heart. She couldn't entirely place the feeling, before she was interrupted by Ashido waving at her. The pink girl noticed she had finished.

Izu hesitantly walked over. The group had gathered around one of the circular couches, so they could all face each other while talking. Izu took a seat at one end, next to Yaoyorozu. She said nothing, but acknowledged Izu with a warm smile. She settled down in her seat, getting as comfortable as she could manage in this uncomfortable situation. She looked up at the group finally, freezing as she realized they were all looking at her. Ashido had a mischievous smile on her face.

"So Midoriya…" Ashido began. "I heard you hung out with Kirishima and Bakugo for a few hours on Monday…"

'How… did she know that? Well I guess she could've seen us go down there together. Plus it's not really... needed to be kept a secret? I guess?' Izu was surprised at the girls… accusation? But nodded nonetheless.

"Ooooh. Well that answers part of my next question then, Midoriya." The pink girl paused for dramatic effect. "Which guys are you interested in, Midoriya? Who's your type! Spill it, quiet girl!"

"The shy ones always have the most radical tastes, I'm not surprised she's interested in Bakugo. Kirishima seems like a straightforward one, though." Asui added, glancing at Midoriya.

A blush immediately filled Izu's face, her hands gripped the fabric of her pants. "I… that's not why-"

"Oooh, what did you do with them down there, Midoriya? Did you get all hot and sweaty?" Jiro asked.

'S-So vulgar! I… I mean she's technically right? Right? That… kind of counts. But maybe… phrased differently.' She spoke up quickly, hoping to dispel any myths among the girls. "W-We sparred… is all." She said simply.

Jiro laughed, her hand going to her stomach upon hearing Midoriya's response. "So what you're saying is, yes!"

Ashido made a pouty face, bummed that there wasn't more to the story. Midoriya didn't seem like one to lie. Yaoyorozu turned to Midoriya saying, "Sorry to keep the spotlight on you, Midoriya, but I do want to know. Who did you get your recommendations from? Considering you clinched the top spot on the recommendation exam, you must have some solid recommendations, no?"

Izu froze. She hated all this questioning. 'Why did I agree to come over here? I knew this would happen. Too many people want to know about my strength.' She frowned, debating on telling the truth or not. 'I… I can't lie. Someone will figure out the real answer eventually.' She waited a number of seconds before responding. Everyone else in the group was silent, evidently they wanted to know the answer as well. This was the first time in quite a while that three recommendation students made it into a single class.

Izu answered in a shaky voice. "Ah… All Might and… Principal Nezu."

An odd silence descended on the group. Many pairs of eyebrows went down, trying to discern if the girl was telling the truth or not. Izu had her head down, seemingly embarrassed by her answer.

Uraraka was the first to break the silence. "Th-Thats incredible, Midoriya! Getting a recommendation from the Number One Hero in the world! It really validates the crazy power you've demonstrated so far." The brown haired girl smiled at her. It was a very pretty, innocent smile that gave Midoriya pause.

'This girl… she means it.' Izu's heart fluttered, not knowing how to respond to the praise. 'I… she's probably exaggerating. Probably...' She gulped as she thought on her last point. 'The power I've demonstrated so far… I've only shown up to 15% when in actual combat. I reached 43% during the baseball throw, but I can't use that with full-cowling yet… at least I don't think so. My arm ached for a whole day afterwards…'

"It's true. You're quite impressive, Midoriya. Your power is truly similar to All Mights, I can understand why he would recommend you." Asui noted. She was quite observant, it would seem.

"Okay okay! We've interrogated her enough, right?" The floating clothes said. "I'm Toru Hagakure, by the way, Midoriya! Nice to meet you."

"Y-You too?"

"And I'm Ochako Uraraka. Pleased to work alongside you, Midoriya."

"Mmm." Izu nodded, she was slowly running out of quick responses, and she didn't want to repeat herself.

There was a brief pause as everyone debated where to take the conversation next. Eventually Jiro spoke up, asking "What's some music everyone likes right now? Doesn't have to be your favorite, that can be hard to answer. Just something you're into at the moment!"

Izu lost herself in the conversation. The girls had a good dynamic it seemed. Everyone had their specific niche they filled in the conversation. In truth, Izu didn't talk much at all. Only giving brief responses when they went around the group sharing answers to general questions. But… she enjoyed listening. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, and… it was a nice way to pass the time. She almost felt… included.

When there was a lull in the conversation, Ashido jumped on the opportunity. "Okay! Now… everyone's hottest boy in the class. Go! No skipping, you have to answer!" She rubbed her hands together, glad to see her evil plan was coming together. Many of the girls blushed at the question. No one wanted to answer first. Izu wanted to crumple into a ball and disappear. How was she supposed to answer this? No one wanted to go first, so Ashido took charge. "I think Kirishima… he's so sweet and has all the right values. He's perfect boyfriend material." She blushed slightly. Only Asui seemed to take notice though, as her pink skin hid it quite well.

Ashido pointed to Jiro, who was next in line. Jiro slumped her shoulders, dreading having to answer. She debated lying, but then she'd be stuck with her lie as her answer in the minds of the rest of the girls. "I… Kaminari's kind of a dunce, but he's really funny…"

"You're so matchy matchy, Jiro!" Uraraka exclaimed. "You should go for him!"

"Yeah well… It's… not my turn anymore." Jiro responded, head down in an attempt to hide her growing blush.

Izu malfunctioned. She was third and still didn't have a response ready. 'My… hottest boy? Do all the girls really have answers to that question? Isn't it rude if… some boys aren't chosen? Do they care? Well the boys aren't here to hear I guess… but still.' She fidgeted with her hands, trying to buy time as she thought of a potential answer. An image of each guy flashed through her mind. She was hoping one of them would jump out at her, or her body would give her some special response as she thought of one of them. But… no such luck.

"I uh… well." More fidgeting.

"Come on, Midoriya…" Ashido goaded, her voice dripping with mischief. The pink girl wasn't going to let anyone get a free pass, now that she'd answered first.

"Well Bakugo is… really strong?" Another odd silence descended on the group.

"Is he the hottest in your eyes, or the strongest? Or both? No dodging the question with funny answers, Midoriya!" Ashido chided, hand waving in the air in frustration.

"Uhh-" Midoriya began, but was interrupted by a beeping sound from the kitchen. 'I… I'm saved! Thank you, kitchen timer!' She looked off into the distance towards the kitchen, then briefly back at the group. "I-I should go get that… Sorry." She quickly excused herself, much to the dismay of a certain pink haired girl.

A chorus of sighs came from the other couch. "Don't think you're in the clear yet, you four!" Ashido pointed an accusing finger towards the other girls. "You still have to answer! You heard ours!"

Yaoyorozu began, tilting her head up and closing her eyes. "Well I don't see what use you'll have with my answer. I'm not interested in pursuing a relationship at UA, but if you must know… I think Todoroki has the best appearance among the males in our class."

"Ohoho. No relationship you say? We'll see about that, Yaomomo…" Ashido rubbed her hands together, imitating the classic villain trope. Yaoyorozu's stoic expression faltered slightly, betraying her true thoughts. The slightest hint of a blush crept onto her face. Yaoyorozu turned towards Asui, hoping she'd have an interesting answer to draw the attention away.

Asui stated simply. "My hottest student would be Midoriya." The other girls swore they heard a record scratch somewhere in the room. Asui looked expressionless as usual. "What?" The frog girl asked, noticing the others reactions. Ashido glanced over to the green girl in the kitchen. She was busy finishing her food. Blissfully unaware of the frogs answer, it would seem.

"Thats… okay. I dig it, Asui." Jiro responded.

"Would you have said that even if Midoriya was still here, Asui?" Yaoyorozu questioned.

"Yes. Why would I lie? Also I said to call me Tsu" The frog answered matter-of-factly.

Ashido shrugged her shoulders at the frog girl. "Not what I was expecting but I'll take it. Your turn, Hagakure!"

"Oooh oooh, definitely Kirishima for me as well! The red hair. Plus have you seen his room? So manly!" Ashido gasped, pointing an accusing finger at the invisible girl.

"You've been in his room?!" She half screamed, her hands flew up in surprise.

Hagakure crossed her arms, a smug smile covering her face (although no one could tell). "Yep, and I don't have to tell you why! Though… it's so manly. You're so right on him being boyfriend material, Ashido!"

"Gah!" Ashido looked off to the side, pouting as she was overshadowed by her classmates progress.

Asui turned to Uraraka, the last to answer. "Do you have your eye on anyone, Uraraka?"

The brunette blushed as she looked down at her hands resting in her lap. "Well… I sit next to Iida. I've been talking to him the most so far."

"Iida?" Hagakure questioned.

"That's an interesting choice, Uraraka. I had pegged him as kind of… stuck up?" Jiro stated rather bluntly.

"Do tell more, Uraraka." Ashido made a swirling motion with her hands.

"I… I thought so too! I saw what he did with Midoriya on the first day we moved in and I thought I didn't want to interact with him. But… he's so passionate about hero work. And very nice. He really… uses his head a lot and it serves him well." Uraraka confessed as she crossed and uncrossed her legs to ease her nervousness.

"I've witnessed that, too." Asui chimed in. "He certainly is devoted to learning, and is willing to help his fellow classmates." She nodded in approval of Iida, seemingly. "Though he is loud…"

Uraraka laughed at Asui's comment, smiling as she responded. "That's for sure, Tsu. It's hard to have a private conversation with him."

Ashido glanced around the room, looking for the missing green haired girl. She sure was taking her time finishing her cooking. She scanned the room. Empty. 'She left? I was too distracted by the rest of the girls answers. Huh. Guess I missed her.' She frowned. 'I was hoping she'd stick around to chat with us. Ah well… She'll come around, I'll bet. We are still in the first week after all.'

Yaoyorozu found an opportunity to change the subject, much like Ashido did earlier. She began, "What is everyone expecting the battle training exercise we have tomorrow will look like? It's Friday, after all."

"Oooh I hope we get to do some smaller battles. Either small teams or one on one fights. I want to see what people can do!" Hagakure said, her arm raised. She was presumably fist pumping, based on the way her sleeve moved.

"I'm still nervous about fighting our classmates so early on… I still am not sure what everyones Quirk's are." Jiro stated, looking around nervously. "Plus… I've heard from upperclassman that you can get pretty beat up in these trials."

"I understand your concern, Jiro." Yaoyorozu answered. "While the promise of injury can certainly be off putting, I think it's good preparation for real hero versus villain encounters. We will get injured once we're out in the world."

"Y-Yeah you're right. I'm still worried about it though…" Jiro's ears burned red, slightly ashamed of her fear.

Uraraka spoke up. "I sure hope I don't have to go against Todoroki or Midoriya. I don't know what I would do against either of them. Todoroki swept his match, while Midoriya defeated me so easily last Friday…" She paused for a moment. "Although… part of me does want to try again against her. I need to show I can do better!"

"You were quite impressive, Yaoyorozu. Your Quirk is extremely versatile." Asui noted, nodding at the black haired girl.

"I… well. Thank you, Asu- Tsu-chan." Yaoyorozu smiled at the frog, who returned the gesture as best she could.

"I didn't really get to do anything last exercise. I sure hope the teams are more balanced so we all get to learn and participate this time." Ashido paused breifly, replaying what she just said in her mind. "W-W-Well I didn't mean it like that! Of course the recommendation students will be hard to beat, but we all have huge potential, y'know? I didn't mean to offend anyone."

Yaoyorozu quickly responded. "Midoriya and Todoroki are certainly forces to be reckoned with. Out of the ten students who took the test, Midoriya scored first, Todoroki got third. I got sixth. Class 1-B has two recommendation students. The truth is, I only got accepted via the recommendation program because Midoriya scored so much higher than the second and third place students. They had to curve the scoring for the rest of us."

"Yeah I was wondering why there were 5 total recommendation students this year. Considering it's usually only four. Two in each class." Uraraka commented. "Midoriya really scored that much higher than Todoroki? And some other person beat him out as well? That's crazy considering how quickly he eliminated that team of six."

"The person above Todoroki chose not to attend, despite being offered a spot. If they had accepted…" A grim look covered Yaoyorozu's face. Her thoughts were interrupted by a large hand on her shoulder. She looked at the frog girl, questioning her hand.

"It's okay, Yaoyorozu. You shouldn't worry about what could've happened. Lots of stuff could have happened but didn't. We should all focus on what challenges are being presented to us now." Asui hoped her words were reassuring to the black haired girl.

Yaoyorozu sat up straighter, looking forward. "You're right, Tsu. Thank you for the reassuring words." She looked at all the girls in front of her. "We all should try our best instead of worrying about how we compare to others. We're all here to be heroes." Everyone nodded in agreement, feeling a renewed sense of confidence flow through them on hearing her words.

Midoriya finished her food in her room, quietly reading a manga as she did so. 'It was… nice being able to listen to all the other girls talk. It felt good to sit with them. But… I didn't want to be the only one eating in the group. That would've felt odd.' She looked down at the bowl in her hands. 'Guess I'll have to bring this down tomorrow morning. We do have a group breakfast before our training exercise.'

She gave the bowl a brief wash in her bathroom sink so to prevent it from smelling over night, leaving it to rest on her desk. She laid down on her bed, electing to simply read until she felt tired enough to go to bed. However, considering how early they got up last time she should probably go to bed soon if she wanted to get a good amount of sleep. 'I'll just finish this chapter then go to bed.' She smiled, losing herself in the story she was holding. She eventually fell asleep after reading four more chapters.

Izu's alarm blared, tearing her from the calm bliss of sleep. She sat up and rubbed her face, yawning as she did so. 'I never feel like I'm getting enough sleep nowadays. But I am keeping with my usual sleep schedule... right? She checked the time just to be sure. Indeed she was on time with her usual schedule. 'It's not like I'm exerting myself more… well maybe a little bit. But still, why am I always so tired?' She'd decided to wake up slightly earlier than she did last week. She wanted to be ready before Aizawa came to knock on their doors. She thought back to the events of last Friday. 'I guess we're having breakfast again as a group. It… wasn't bad last time? I'd still rather skip it but I don't know if Aizawa will be angry with me. I'll have to ask…'

She went about her normal morning routine, simply losing herself in the monotony of it all. She debated for a moment on what to change into. 'Gym uniform, or workout clothes? We only wore our uniforms once so far on Monday. The three next days all were focused on hero law and other non-field hero work. So if it is a safe assumption that, because Fridays are training exercises, that I should wear my gym uniform?' Eventually she chose, donning her UA gym uniform. She put a change of workout clothes in her bag as a backup. Just in case.

Thankfully the breakfast passed fairly quickly, same as before. Ashido once again sat next to her, and was occasionally giving Izu some strange smiles. Izu was quieter this time around, as she was still going over the conversation she participated in yesterday. 'Lost of opinions and… thoughts. Is that girl talk? Is that what girls do? Did… was that gossip? The boy thing?' Izu continued to question the true reality of the "girl talk". It served as a good distraction. She barely realized she'd automatically put the plates and trays away once Aizawa announced the end of breakfast.

She snapped back into reality after Aizawa made a sound at her. "We're leaving, Midoriya." He turned towards the door, gesturing as he did so. Leaving indeed. Most of the class was waiting outside while a few stragglers fiddled with their things. She headed towards the door. Emerging outside, Izu took a moment to scan her classmates. Only a handful were not wearing their gym uniforms. It was a good call, it seemed.

Izu walked at the rear of the group this time around. She didn't want to push past anyone or walk around the group just to be behind Aizawa. She was lost in a day dream when a cough brought her to attention. Todoroki was now walking alongside her, giving her an expectant look. She tilted her head back slightly to look up at him. 'Why is everyone so tall… and what did he say? Why… is this when he decides to approach me? Again when we're talking to the training exercise…'

He coughed again. "Well? What do you think, Midoriya?"

Immediately she started fidgeting with her hands. 'Not a great start to this conversation, dummy.' She gave a one word response and shrugged her shoulders. "Uhhm."

He gave her a perplexed look. It must have been a simple question. He hesitated for a moment, before asking "Did you hear what I asked?" The greenette shook her head in response. He repeated himself, saying "Who do you think deserves to be a hero in this class?"

"What?" Came her automatic response. 'What… is that question? Isn't the answer obvious? We're in UA! And why does he care about my answer? Does he even have an answer? What… how am I supposed to respond? I barely know everyone's names. That's nowhere near enough to judge how much they "deserve" to be a hero.' A frown formed on her face as she thought more and more about Todoroki's question. 'Also why is he even thinking about such a thing? He must already think there are some people here who don't deserve to be heroes. So he was trying to see if I agree on the people? What is… D-Does he have an opinion on me? Why did he expect me to be honest and answer such an… openly offensive question? Does it have something to do with his father? He did know an awful lot of information on me last week…'

Todoroki took note of her rapidly changing demeanor. She clearly didn't like his question. She bristled - her whole body tensed as she gave a quick response. "That's… a silly question." She purposely kept it short. 'I... don't like this guy… making bad assumptions about our peers so soon.'

He wasted no time in responding, though his voice was quieter now. "Don't pretend, Midoriya. You're exactly like me, I can tell. I know you had All Might as one of your recommendations. We're both disciples of some of the greatest heroes. You and I are leagues above every other student here, in more ways than just power." He clenched his fist, and his eyes radiated an invisible energy. Izu had seen these eyes before. Contempt. Disgust. Feelings she knew all too well. But he… Todoroki… was directing these feelings at other people? Classmates?

"You'd be mistaken if you think you have everyone figured out so quickly. What's your point in telling me all this?" She focused her annoyance with the boy, using it to speak quickly and concisely. She did not want to be in this conversation any longer than necessary. But… at the same time, she wanted to know more about what he thought.

"I want you to prove to the others today. Show them the gap. Let's show them how far ahead we are. You and I can help Aizawa weed out who doesn't… shouldn't be at UA. It takes a special kind of person and Quirk to be a top hero in today's world. As far as I'm concerned, only us two have that potential. We can show UA how flawed their entrance exam was, to let in people with so little going for them."

A cold rage slowly seeped its way into her. She clenched her fists at her sides, trying to calm down. 'Todoroki… you're looking down at people... because of the pedestal you were born on. The Quirk you were born with. Whether or not you've realized this is irrelevant. But you're the kind of person I can't stand the most. You, who only sees value in one dimension, will be the worst kind of hero. Like father like son, I suppose. You may save people from danger. But you'll never save people the way All Might does.'

Her next words were laced with a deadly venom. Potent enough to send chills down the usually stoic boys back. Their eyes briefly met through her curtain of hair, and he could feel the truth behind her statement. "You and I are nothing alike, Todoroki. I'll show everyone just how far ahead I am of you. Maybe then you'll rethink your flawed idea of what it takes to be a hero."

The class arrived in… a city? Many "Ooohs" and "Aaahs" could be heard as the class walked through the testing grounds. It appeared to be a fully operational faux city. Many were wondering when they would stop being surprised by UA's grand facilities. They truly spared no expense when it came to testing their students.

Aizawa led the class into a room with far too many television screens. The room resembled a buildings security center, as many of the screens had views from cameras inside a building shown on them. She seemed slightly confused as he stepped in, and quickly reached for his phone. He stepped off to one side, talking a low voice. After a brief minute he hung up his phone and turned to the class.

"It seems I will have to take command of this lesson. I was expecting All Might to teach this exercise, but he is apparently caught up in some hero work." Aizawa explained.

Many murmurs spread throughout the class of highschoolers. "All Might?! I knew he was a teacher but I figured he would be teaching the upperclassmen…" Ojiro said.

"I know right! How cool that he's going to be one of our teachers. I sure hope we get to have him soon." Sero added.

Many shared similar sentiments. It was hard not to be a gushing fan, especially when it came to All Might. He truly was like no other hero.

"Well." Aizawa interjected, silencing the chatter. "I don't know how All Might wanted to do this exercise, but I have my own ideas that I'm going to try." He paused briefly, flipping through some pages in his small notebook. He smiled briefly, glancing at the group of students. Some withered under his stare as he glanced at each student. He was clearly organizing something in his mind. Finally he broke his silence. "Okay. We're going to have four groups of five each. I will explain the rules of each encounter, so listen closely."

"The rules are quite simple." He continued. "One group will be the heroes, one the villains. The hero's will start outside the building and have to work their way in. If the heroes capture all the villains, OR wrench control over the fake bomb, then they win. Of course if the villains capture all the heroes, they win. The villains will also win if they can keep the bomb out of the heroes reach for ten minutes. Any questions?" Aizawa finished.

"Is there any reward this time?" Sato asked, ever hopeful.

Aizawa's expression remained neutral. "The reward, this time, is the experience you'll get from this exercise. Try to make the most of it by collaborating with your teammates." He stealthily glanced at Midoriya as he said this. Thankfully no one noticed. "I will announce the teams."

He glanced at his notes again, then began. "Team 1 will be Midoriya, Asui, Sero, Jiro, and Shoji. Team 2 is Sato, Aoyama, Bakugo, Hagakure, and Mineta. Team 3, Todoroki, Tokoyami, Kirishima, Iida, and Ashido. Lastly, Team 4 will be Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, Koda, Uraraka, and Ojiro."

Team 1 - Midoriya, Asui, Sero, Jiro, Shoji.

Team 2 - Sato, Aoyama, Bakugo, Hagakure, Mineta.

Team 3 - Todoroki, Tokoyami, Kirishima, Iida, Ashido.

Team 4 - Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, Koda, Uraraka, Ojiro.

Everyone slowly organized themselves into their respective groups. These ones certainly seemed more balanced compared to their last exercise. Aizawa spoke again. "Teams 1 and 3 will fight first. Team 1 will be the villains. Go get into your positions in the building I've marked here. The rest of you will wait here to watch the match with me. I will announce over the speaker when the exercise has begun. You have till then to talk strategy. Obviously use your best judgement on how much force to use. I will stop the exam and fail you immediately if I deem you are causing excessive injury or destruction to the environment."

Many gulped at their teachers last statement. That was a big thing to say so casually. The two teams not fighting began chatting up a storm. While teams 1 and 3 glanced at each other hesitantly, before finally heading towards the exit. None of the ten students said anything on the walk there. The walk was tense as each team eyed each other cautiously. Finally the teams separated, and the strategizing began.

Team 1 had gathered on the top floor of the building, surrounding the paper mache bomb. Shoji was the first to speak.

"So our enemies are... Todoroki, Tokoyami, Kirishima, Iida, and Ashido. Iida is fast. Kirishima can harden. Tokoyami has that shadow beast he can command. Ashido can use acid to melt things. Todoroki… can freeze extremely large areas in ice. Does anyone else have more information on them or should we just work with these assumptions?"

'He had a good summary. He fit right into the leader role. I maybe would've added a few small details, but he hit the nail on the head for most of them. Although… I'm pretty sure Todoroki can use fire as well. I find it odd that the son of Endeavor wouldn't have his fire Quirk. Especially considering how his ice Quirk freezes him.' Midoriya simply nodded at Shoji.

"Okay. Working with that information, does anyone see any weaknesses they can capitalize on?" Shoji asked his team.

"Well I should be able to hear them coming. I can pick out sounds that travel through the walls and floors of the building." Jiro answered.

"Okay. That's good to know, good for gathering intel. I can accomplish the same thing, but more so with sight than sound." Shoji responded.

"I could tape up some areas to try and limit the area Iida and Kirishima have to work with? Though I think Ashido's acid could melt my tape pretty easily…" Sero said, sounding rather embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"I won't be much use against Mina or Tokoyami, due to their acid and dark shadow." Asui chimed in. "But I should be able to restrain Iida, Todoroki, or Kirishima with my tongue if given the chance." A finger when to the bottom of her mouth in contemplation. The look fit her.

"I also have some sound wave attacks, but it could hit you guys as well. Plus it isn't too strong. While active anyone hit by it wont be able to hear anything, but it's not strong enough to knock them out or cause any real damage yet." Jiro added, looking down at the floor.

"Midoriya, do you have anything to add? You're pretty strong. What are you going to do?" Shoji asked the remaining member.

She'd been looking at the ground this entire time, he face hidden by her hair. She slowly bound her hair back in a ponytail, speaking only briefly. Her voice was low, in a dark tone no one had heard from her thus far. Then again, no one had heard her speak all that much to begin with. "I'm going to restrain them." Was all she said.

Shoji was a bit taken aback by her tone. Then again he knew next to nothing about the girl besides her speed and power. He was in no position to judge. "Very well. We have Quirks well suited for defence and information gathering. I recommend the four of us stay in this room while we prepare a defence based on the information we gather during the start of the test. Midoriya, due to your speed you can scout ahead and try to pick one off if you see the chance. Prioritize your own safety and come back to us if you get overwhelmed."

"Sounds like a solid plan." Sero commented.

"One question." Jiro said. "What will we do abou-"

"Begin." Came Aizawa's voice from overhead.

A rush of wind caught the four students off guard. One of the doors swung wildly from being blown open. Midoriya was gone.

The four students quickly regained their senses. "Sero, tape up some of the entrances, and create some obstacles for them in this room. Give Asui some things to swing off of." Shoji took command.

"You got it!" Sero exclaimed as he got to work.

Jiro had already moved over to one side of the building, her earjacks plugged into a section of the floor as she listened. Asui jumped into a corner of the ceiling, above the entrance Sero had yet to tape up. Shoji also got to work with his Quirk, sticking some long appendages out a window to try and scout the lower floors visually. A minute passed as they continued scouting and setting up the room for the coming fight.

Some rumbling came from the lower floors. Jiro could hear talking and the sounds of fighting on the second floor. She listened carefully, trying to pick up on key information to relay to her teammates. "Midoriya has found the heroes on the second floor." She said aloud. Shoji made a noise of approval. Sero had just finished taping up portions of the room as a defence.

Another minute passed. Jiro's face slowly warped to one of shock and disbelief at what she was hearing. Asui was quick to notice, asking across the room. "Jiro, what's wrong? What are you hearing?"

"Guys I think-" Jiro began.

"The villains have won this round. All heroes have been incapacitated." Came Aizawa's voice over the speaker.

'I know I shouldn't do this. I'm… I'm actually partially proving his point if I do this. It's none of my teammates fault they can't keep up with me. They are all better suited for supportive or defensive roles in combat. But at the same time...' Midoriya thought as she sped through the halls. Green lightning arced off the walls as she channeled 10% of Full-Cowling. She dashed for the stairwells on each floor, trying to meet the hero team as soon as possible. She rounded a corner on the second floor, and found her targets. Seeing Todoroki's face reassured her. 'I have to do this.'

The hallway stretched the full length of the building, and was quite wide. Four of the five enemies hesitated upon seeing Midoriya round the corner. Todoroki was the only one to not stop moving. Without a word, Todoroki stomped a foot forward. Ice emanated out from his foot, covering the entire hallway in an instant as the ice barreled towards Midoriya at frightening speed.

In the observation room

"It's just like last week. What he did to our team... Will Todoroki really end this match the same way?" Hagakure commented, watching the screen intently. Her pride was still bruised after her match against Todoroki. She was secretly hoping the villain team would win.

She was the only one to speak in the observation room. Many watched with bated breath, eager to see two of the top students clash.

'How will this turn out... I wonder. I fully expect a blowout in one direction. But I'm not too sure which one yet.' Aizawa thought.

In the testing building

'Hmm. His ice isn't as fast as I expected. I could easily jump to avoid this at the power I'm at now.' She smiled slightly, glad to have more proof of her power. 'It seems 10% would be enough to deal with Todoroki. That's… less than I expected. He must be able to do more, considering how much area he covered last Friday. This can't be the extent of his power.'

The four members behind Todoroki had recovered their senses since spotting Midoriya. However, none of them could advance past Todoroki. His ice covered every inch of the hallway in Midoriya's direction. It would be hard to fight on that terrain. Their minds halted as the ice collided with its target. Instantly Midoriya's entire body, up to her neck, was frozen solid.

Todoroki chuffed upon seeing his attack hit. "You didn't dodge."

The green girl said nothing in response. Her face was clearly visible, her expression one of pain and annoyance. 'It's a hell of a lot colder than I anticipated. It also stings. Feels like pins-and-needles. I'd definitely go numb if I stayed like this for any extended period of time.' She glanced down at the ice surrounding her body. 'It's maybe an inch thick in most places? Maybe slightly more surrounding my major joints. He certainly has a lot of control. Will… will any of them actually be convinced I'm trapped? I'd rather not stay like this for long…'

As Midoriya continued glancing around the room, analyzing Todoroki's attack, Kirishima yelled out. "This is our chance! Iida, lets cuff her and move onto the next floor." He didn't wait for a reply, dashing forward immediately. Iida raised a hand to protest, but the redhead was quickly gone. No time to listen to any feedback. Iida grumbled and launched himself forward, having to play along for now. Tokoyami and Ashido followed suit, shooting Todoroki confused glances as they ran past him onto the ice. He simply stood there and watched, eager to see how Midoriya would react.

'There's no way ice that thin would restrain her. I saw what she did during the grip strength test on the first day. She'll likely break out of that once Iida and Kirishima get close. Whether or not they do anything doesn't matter. I already planned for this to be a one versus five. Or more like one versus one… Once they're eliminated I can move them to a safer location to unleash an actual attack. Then we'll see how Midoriya fairs...'

Izu focused on the two quickly approaching figures. Her eyes softened slightly upon seeing Kirishima charge at her. She felt slightly bad that he'd fallen for her simple ploy. Slightly.

In an instant the atmosphere changed. Green electricity coursed through the ice, the light refracted in all sorts of interesting directions. It seemed to give Midoriya a green hazey aura. Kirishima and Iida were within five feet now. Midoriya closed her eyes and focused, trying to remain calm throughout the fight. She didn't want to use more than was necessary. Restraint was an important part of her power, afterall.

Her eyes flew open and time seemed to slow to a crawl. '20% Full-Cowling.' She calmly spoke in her mind. The odd sensation washed over Kirishima and Iida. Iida was caught completely off guard, and spent the subsequent seconds panicking, trying to figure out what to do and what was even happening. Kirishima was slightly more prepared. Before launching off the floor, he knew exactly what action he was going to take.

The redheads eyes widened slightly as his perception of time warped, but he was ready. 'Good. Don't panic, Eijiro. Remember the motion. Just because times all weird doesn't mean the laws of physics stop working.' He swung his leg out, hardened to its max. He was hoping to take out or injure one of her legs to cripple her movement. 'She's even faster than Iida, so we can't have her moving around for much longer!'

Kirishima gaped as he watched his leg fly toward Midoriya. 'So slow…' He glanced at her and his mind instantly went into overdrive. Panic set in. 'The ice is gone? She's free?! Crap wait, I'm still kicking towards her!'

The ice surrounding Izu's body shattered instantly as she tensed her whole body. Now free, she took three quick steps forward, ducking under Kirishima's slow kick. She delivered a swift 15% chop to the back of his neck. His momentum changed due to the sudden chop. He would go tumbling off to the side shortly. She turned to Iida, wincing as she saw his panicked expression. Guilt washed over her as she took multiple quick steps towards the blue haired boy. She did the same to the back of his head. His eyes instantly unfocused. He was unconscious.

She maintained her power, as she prepared to leap off the ground and rebound off a wall to get to the other two students as quickly as possible. She could see Todoroki in the distance watching. He was intensely focused on her actions, and their eyes met briefly. 'Impressive.' She thought. 'He's quite capable indeed. There's no denying that.'

Izu leaped off the wall, shattering the ice covering it. She soared through the air, passing Ashido and Tokoyami. She spun around to face them as she flew by. '22% Delaware air cannon!' She tensed both her hands, surrounding them with green electricity briefly. She fired off a blast in both directions, then finally relaxed her power. She flew over Todoroki's head landing about ten feet behind him. Time resumed normal speed, and so many things happened at once.

Two body's collided with the icy ground, sliding briefly before coming to a stop. The redhead groaned, rubbing the back of his neck in pain as he writhed. The blue haired boy simply rested face up, his face neutral, eyes closed. Two more grunts were heard only a moment later. Tokoyami and Ashido were both hit by a massive concussive force in their backs. Their trajectories changed and they smashed into the wall on either side of them. Tokoyami seemed to take the hit rather well, as he stood up after only a moment of shaking his head.

Ashido slid to the ground and breathed heavily. The hit had certainly winded her and injured her back. She was likely out of the fight. 'Three down, two to go. I'm sorry Tokoyami, but I have to prove a point.'

Todoroki spun around in the instant Midoriya flew overhead. Facing her now, he spared a glance back at his teammates. Concern briefly flashed across his features. Izu's eyes raised slightly, noticing the quick showing of emotion. 'Well… he does want to be a hero. So that makes sense. You're certainly not all bad Todoroki. I… I hope we can come around to work together.' She let out a small sigh as she glanced at Tokoyami. His breathing was ragged but he still standing nonetheless.

Dark Shadow came forward and surrounded his body, forming an intimidating looking set of armor around the boy. He quietly muttered something about 'preemptively activating' or something, but Izu couldn't quite hear him due to their distance.

The three stood for a number of seconds, no one said anything. The only sounds audible being an occasional groan from Kirishima and Ashido's direction.

Todoroki broke the silence, glancing over at his one remaining teammate. "Tokoyami, gather up whoever is still awake and move to the next floor. I will try to delay her. See if anyone is capable of still fighting, if so try to make your way towards the bomb. I will join you as soon as I can." He didn't wait for a response. He conjured a much thicker ice wall between him and the avian teen, sealing the entire hallway.

He turned back to face the greenette, and was shocked to see her body was mere inches away from his. Todoroki's eyes flew open. 'She's so close! She closed that much distance immediately?' Once again time slowed to a crawl. He took a moment to analyze her expression. Her eyes were hollow and… guilty? She didn't look happy, that's for sure. His eyes roamed down her face, trying to discern whatever he could. Her face was rarely visible. He saw her cheeks were tinged a slight pink. 'She's blushing? No… her blood must be rushing from exerting herself so much.' His subconscious took note that Midoriya didn't seem to be out of breath at all.

A massive force hit him in the stomach, he didn't even have time to look down to see what had hit him. Surely her fist. A sizeable gust of wind followed shortly after. He had no time to react, and he went flying backwards, smashing into the ice wall he'd just created. His mind struggled to form coherent thoughts. He'd bashed his head against the wall and was struggling to maintain focus. 'She… she got me?! So easily!?' Refusing to give up, he moved an arm under himself. He tried to move into a sitting position and instantly felt nauseous. 'My head… I must have a slight concussion. I… I'm out. She won.' He closed his eyes, a grimace donning his normally expressionless features.

Todoroki heard a massive "CRUNCH" off to the side. He was vaguely aware that the ice wall he'd created had been shattered with ease. Tokoyami glanced back, shocked to see Midoriya so soon. 'It… it's only been a few seconds! Todoroki was already eliminated? I… do I drop my teammates and try to fight her? I can't run from her. That must be the right choice.' Tokoyami quickly dropped the three teammates he was carrying. He forced himself to focus, going into crisis mode. He looked deep within himself and tapped into his inner darkness. His eyes turned a dangerous shade of black-purple. His dark armor flared, shadowy tendrils flared out from his arms at astonishing speed.

'Woah. Woah!' She powered up to 20% Full-Cowling, not wanting to receive another embarrassing hit like last week with Aoyama. Midoriya was astonished by Dark Shadows speed. She'd barely had time to analyze the situation after her vision was cut off by Todoroki's wall. Two massive shadowy fists were flying towards her from each side of the hallway. The fists slowed as her perception of time shifted… but…

'They're still coming! He… he really is fast! I have to dodge. I don't want to check if I can break out of those fists. He could have some other aspect of his Quirk I don't know about yet.' She jumped up towards Tokoyami, cracking the floor as she did so. Instantly the shadowy fists changed their direction to her new trajectory. 'Im-Impossible! There's no way he could react that fast! Is… does his Shadow react automatically? I never considered that the shadow was autonomous.' The huge fists clasped around her body, trapping everything but her head in solid shadow.

Her sudden stop whipped her head forward, instantly giving her a headache and slight nausea. 'I… I'm caught! I… what do I do? I need to break out. Can I? Will I hurt him if I wrench out? Can I even do it?' Tokoyami suddenly spoke. His expression was wild with surprise.

"Dark Shadow! Can you hold her?!" He yelled.

"I… I don't know! She seemed to just keep getting stronger!" The shadow monster replied.

A bead of sweat ran down the side of Tokoyami's head. Suddenly…

Dark Shadow's hands exploded outwards, dispersing into nothingness. The shadow cried out, returning most of itself to surround Tokoyami. His armor seemed to shrink in size. Midoriya appeared to levitate in the air for some time. Tokoyami watched her float there, not really understanding what was happening. 'This is different than before. It… it feels like time has totally stopped! Earlier when she dashed between us I could still notice movement. But now…' His eyes widened and his stomach dropped as he fully took in what Midoriya looked like.

Green electricity surrounded her. She seemed to have an aura around her, it was almost hard to look at. She was so… 'Intimidating…' Was the one word that crossed Tokoyami's mind.

'Full-Cowling: 35%!' Izu screamed in her heart. Wasting no time, she fired off an airblast at the avian teen. In an instant the projectile collided with him. His armor ate most of the impact, but he was blasted backwards nonetheless. He collided with the wall and let out a pained groan. His armor dissipated as he laid on the ground. He was still conscious, but… ultimately defeated.

Almost immediately Aizawa's voice echoed throughout the entire building. "The villains have won this round. All heroes have been incapacitated."

Midoriya looked down at her hands, her eyes watered as the weight of her actions crashed down on her. She looked around the ice covered room. Most of it was starting to melt. She looked at Iida, still unconscious on the ground. She looked at Kirishima and Ashido. They were both groaning in a corner, awake but with eyes closed. Guilt ate at her, but she had to hold it in. She still had to finish class. Her hands went to cover her mouth, her breathing was ragged.

'Why… why did I do this? What was the point. I… got angry and… did this?' Her hands twitched as she tried to form coherent thoughts. But none came. The rest of the day passed in a haze, she was vaguely aware of the being present for a conversation and being asked questions by her teammates and other classmates as she somehow ended up in the observation room. None of it registered to her though. Her mind was elsewhere.

Internally, she cried. A quiet, practiced sobbing that only she could hear. Her eyes remained open, hollow and lifeless.

Authors note:

Backstory! Things will certainly get more flushed out as this story gets longer.

I hope I didn't make Todoroki seem like too much of a 'bad guy'. He'll certainly have some kind of redemption later in the story. Maybe a shift of heart, we'll see. Nothings off the table!

I'll update typo's and incorrect English as I read through the chapter a few times. Its hard to notice in .doc form.

Please leave your thoughts and feedback! I read them all!

~Till next time

Review responses:

MIKE202303: I hope this answer some of your questions! I'll certainly develop it more as we go on. Plus theres some added mystery as to where/what happened to Hisashi.

Livingl: Here you go!

lemonfactoryxx: Aww. I sure hope I can delay your sadness for a while ;_;. Thank you though! It really means a lot!

Vortex The Victini: She'll certainly have lots of other experiences to help her break out of her shell! I have some fun ones in mind that just scream typical High-school nonsense. Thank you for the kind words on the opener. It's certainly a tough thing to deal with, especially alone. I hope to try and express what it's like to try and deal with feelings like this when you think you're all alone. I'm glad to hear things have gotten better!