Izu laid in bed with her hands outstretched above her. The light from her phone screen made her squint slightly. The small device seemed especially bright when compared to the usual pitch blackness of her room. She'd been fawning over the few texts they'd exchanged as a group for quite a while now, constantly reading and rereading them.

~~~
E. Kirishima: I made this group for us to talk in!

T. Asui: Sorry for asking you two so suddenly for your information. I didn't know when I would see you all next in private. Asking in front of others can cause awkward moments.

E. Kirishima: No it's fine! I was glad to get your numbers as well.

I. Midoriya: Yeah, I agree.

E. Kirishima: I'm part of a few groups like this through Line. Definitely a different crowd over there however.

E. Kirishima: Do you guys have Line?

T. Asui: I don't anymore. I used it briefly in Middle School, but didn't see the point when I can just text my friends.

I. Midoriya: Line is an instant-messaging app right? Social media type thing?

T. Asui: Yeah. It's pretty popular. There's more to it than just messaging. There's ways to share things about your day, you can join public communities, and some other stuff. Kirishima would probably know more than me.

E. Kirishima: You covered it pretty well, Asui.

I. Midoriya: So we're using this group to talk then? What should we talk about? I'm not very experienced with my phone.

E. Kirishima: Can talk about whatever really! Just imagine we're in person.

I. Midoriya: I'd rather not.

T. Asui: That's OK.

T. Asui: We can share thoughts and opinions with each other? Propose a question to hear feedback? Or just talk about class things.

I. Midoriya: I guess those are good ideas? I find it a lot easier to explain myself in text, so I can see myself using this group like that. Gives me time to plan out what I want to say. It's not as intimidating as being face to face.

T. Asui: That's honest of you. I'm glad you see the benefit of it!

E. Kirishima: "Ease of expression is of utmost importance"

T. Asui: Whose quote is that?

E. Kirishima: Dunno. I made it up. It's my quote then! Sounds smart though, right?

I. Midoriya: Haha. It does. It's true, too.

She laughed! Asui and Kirishima thought simultaneously upon seeing Izu's text.

E. Kirishima: I had fun today. We should hang out again sometime soon!

I. Midoriya: Yeah?

T. Asui: Of course! It's late though, so I am going to check in for tonight.

E. Kirishima: Same. See you guys for tomorrow's training! Fridays are always exciting at UA!

I. Midoriya: Good night.

E. Kirishima: Peace.
~~~

Izu let her hands fall downwards, letting her phone rest beside her. She finally closed her eyes, ready to try and fall asleep. Texting… wasn't as intimidating as I thought it would be. I was so surprised when Asui asked for Kirishima and I's numbers. I… couldn't have imagined myself ever asking something like that. Even if we were all friends already. I'm excited to keep talking to them, though. It really is so much easier to say what I mean when I don't have to worry about… people. She frowned, eyes still shut.

Ugh even now I don't know how to phrase it. People aren't the problem. It's not like I blame them for my inability to express myself. Nor do I think that Kirishima or Asui are especially judgemental. Quite the opposite in fact. It's definitely a 'me problem'. But this is a temporary solution. I'm… excited to see where it goes.

~In Asui's room~

She was also in bed; curled under a multitude of different sheets and blankets to keep nice and warm. Frogs typically fell asleep quickly, so Asui rarely had time for pre-sleep thinking. Even so, she was unable to stop her mind from wandering.

I asked them for their phone numbers! And they said yes! Her large round eyes, even while closed, scrunched up from her exaggerated smile. Her hands, both of which were also above average in size, covered her mouth in glee. Even in her own room, under countless blankets, in pitch blackness, she still couldn't help but hide her smile. She was just so excited!

That was the longest string of sentences I've ever heard Midoriya say, too. Speaking in class for her must be hard… especially when it seems like she always has so much to say. Kirishima is nice, too. Even if he did kind of throw a wrench in my plans. I couldn't exactly ask him to leave, or ask Midoriya to dinner with him there. Oh well. The more the merrier I guess…!

Izu absentmindedly floated through the early morning activities that always happened on Fridays. Aizawa would act as everyone's unscheduled alarm clock, knocking loudly on each door. They would all gather downstairs for a group lunch, then exit and head towards their destination for the day.

She still wasn't feeling 100% back to normal unfortunately. Her stomach still felt a bit queasy, and standing up too quickly gave her some intense vertigo. Before leaving her room, she experimented with how high she could comfortably push her Full-Cowling. She'd managed to reach 35% before her head started to throb. Thankfully she didn't experience any headaches or migraines outside of using Full-Cowling. That would've really sucked. Big time.

1-A, all dressed in their gym uniforms, followed Aizawa outside of their dorms towards two large busses. Aizawa ushered them towards one of the busses, then crossed his arms as he waited for something. Off to the side a few dozen yards away, Izu could see Class 1-B was also congregating outside their dorm room, led by Vlad King.

Yaoyorozu raised her hand high. She waited a second, realizing that Aizawa was facing away from her. She walked over with quick steps to get closer to him as she put her hand down. Then, begrudgingly, she spoke up. "Busses? Where are we going today, Sensei?" She asked.

Aizawa turned to look at Yaoyorozu with tired, dreary eyes. He sighed as he came up with a suitable reply. "We're going to the USJ today. Thirteen and All Might, who are both already onsight, will give you all more information once we are there." He mumbled something afterwards, but it was too quiet to hear.

Yaoyorozu nodded as she turned away from Aizawa, looking over the class for Iida. She began talking with Iida, who was trying to organize the class into groups. Something about entering the bus in an orderly fashion… but he was having trouble maintaining the attention of the entire class.

Izu wasn't helping Iida's case. She was quietly muttering to herself, going over the 'key points' she intended to practice today when using her power. First, I need to focus on switching the strength of Full-Cowling rapidly. Second, I need to pay close attention to the electricity surrounding my body. I've already determined, through experiments with water and fragile objects like tissue paper, that it's not 'real' electricity. It definitely won't burn anything if I'm moving, but when I'm not in motion it goes kind of wild. It's burned grass before, interestingly enough. Lastly…

Somewhere deep within herself, Izu knew she had a third point. A very important one, not related to One For All. But... not one she felt ready to openly acknowledge yet, even just in her own thoughts. At the moment, even thinking about... "it" was too much of a risk. Nezu pushing her on the issue didn't help. She hadn't had time to sit down and be honest with herself yet. So much has happened lately, and so much more was scheduled with no slow down in sight. Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she looked towards the bus. Iida had successfully corralled most of 1-A onto the bus, and he was now gesturing in her direction.

The bus used an open layout which, much to Iida's chagrin, ruined his boarding plans. Everyone had filed onto the bus and simply took whichever seat was available. Izu did so on auto-pilot, not paying any attention to her surroundings. Asui stood around for a moment, watching the green haired mystery out of the corner of her eye. Seeing Izu sit down, looking dazed, Asui made her way over. She planted herself in the seat next to Izu, who gave no reaction. Taking a moment to look at the rest of the students and how they arranged themselves, Asui spotted Kirishima was sitting next to Bakugo. Asui looked at him for a few seconds until he took notice. He shot her a thumbs up and a small smirk upon noticing where Asui decided to sit.

Midoriya sure does live in her own head… Asui noted.

The bus began its journey, and the class began a chorus of conversations. Asui, feeling awkward sitting next to a silent Midoriya, took out her phone and began typing away. A few seconds later, Izu's pocked vibrated.

She keeps her phone on mute? Interesting…

Considering how rare phone notifications were for her, Izu immediately snapped out of her trance. Fishing her phone out of her pocket, she tapped at it with a questioning look. Asui had texted her. Izu turned slightly to give the girl next to her a perplexed look. Asui was silently thankful for her frog-like face. That paired with her generally stoic demeanor meant she was quite good at holding a poker face when she wanted to. She stared out the window in front of her, pointedly ignoring Midoriya's glance.

~~~
T. Asui: Whatcha thinking about?

Izu, having read the text, spent a number of seconds debating what her next action should be.

I. Midoriya: I was going over what I need to focus on during today's session.

T. Asui: You're very committed. Anything you feel like sharing? ^‿^

I. Midoriya: It's not very interesting, trust me. Just some specific things I need to keep track of.

T. Asui: If you say so. What do you think the USJ is, then?

I. Midoriya: I know it stands for 'Unforseen Simulation Joint'. I read about it in the student handbook.

T. Asui: Sounds like we'll be focusing on rescue today. 'Joint' is an interesting word choice for this place.

I. Midoriya: Is it? Like a Pizza Joint or something?

T. Asui: You could say that.

I. Midoriya: I guess they wanted it to fit the USJ acronym? Who knows.

I. Midoriya: Also why are we texting? You're sitting right next to me.

Izu shifted slightly in her seat, glancing at Asui again to make a point.

T. Asui: Idk. It felt like the right thing to do. You said you have an easier time expressing yourself when you can type it all out.

I. Midoriya: I did say that. Isn't this annoying for you, though?

T. Asui: You really don't have to worry about that. If this is how you're comfortable talking, then this is how we'll talk. No need to rush into anything.

T. Asui: But no. It's not annoying. I text my family often enough. I have two younger siblings.

I. Midoriya: You're being awfully patient with me. Is there a reason you're going out of your way like this?

Izu saw Asui smirk out of the corner of her eye as she tapped away at her phone.

T. Asui: I like making friends. A small accomodation like this is no problem if it means we can get to know each other.

Izu frowned as she read 'accomodation'. Why do I need those around me to… accomodate me? That just feels… wrong. Her phone beeped again.

T. Asui: And again, two younger siblings.

I. Midoriya: Um. Thank you? Though I don't know what I did to warrant this.

T. Asui: Think of it as an ongoing investment in friendship. Who knows, eventually this won't be necessary.

Again Izu cringed as her eyes darted over 'necessary'.

I. Midoriya: Well what do you want to know then?

T. Asui: Huh?

I. Midoriya: You said we should get to know each other.

T. Asui: Oh. Right I did.

T. Asui: What's your favorite color?

I. Midoriya: Green?

T. Asui: That makes sense. Green is a good color. We're both green.

T. Asui: Okay another question. One moment, I need to think of a better one.

I. Midoriya: Sorry I didn't mean to make this hard on you. I can think of some questions.

T. Asui: No it's fine! I usually prepare for things like this beforehand. I'm not the best spontaneous conversationalist.

I. Midoriya: I sympathize with you there.

T. Asui: ^‿^

I. Midoriya: Who is your favorite Hero?

T. Asui: I don't know. It's hard to decide things like that on the spot. I can't exactly take back my answer after I've given it. Favorite is pretty definitive.

I. Midoriya: In that case uh…

T. Asui: No superlatives!

I. Midoriya: Superlative?

T. Asui: Best, worst, favorite, least favorite. Those types of questions.

I. Midoriya: Um

I. Midoriya: How tall are you?

Izu turned to look at Asui again. She slouches all the time. She also bends her knees when standing…

T. Asui: I'm 5ft 3. I think. I definitely look shorter though because of my posture.

I. Midoriya: Doesn't that hurt your back? I'm 5ft by the way… also short.

T. Asui: We can be short together!

T. Asui: And actually the opposite. It's oddly strenuous to keep my back straight. Something frog related, probably.

I. Midoriya: Oh. Do you have a favorite frog?

I. Midoriya: Is that a weird question to ask you?

I. Midoriya: Wait we aren't doing favorites. Nevermind.

Asui snickered as she read over Midoriya's rapid-fire texts.

T. Asui: Haha that's fine. It's an easy question to answer. It's not weird. My favorite frog is the Glass Frog.
~~~

Their conversation had to be put on hold, as Aizawa's commanding tone demanded their attention. "Everyone off the bus, we're here. Line up outside and wait for further instruction."

Class 1-A and 1-B gathered outside their buses and organized themselves. Some students briefly intermingled, exchanging greetings and other pleasantries from one class to another. Despite being sister classes, they didn't get to work with each other all that often. At least not so much in the first couple weeks of school. Aizawa and Vlad King were talking off to the side, and Vlad King made a point to repeatedly tap his wrist.

He leaned forward, speaking to Aizawa in a hushed tone. "What's the point of them serving as bodyguards if we arrived here before them? Wouldn't now be the perfect time to catch us off guard?"

Aizawa simply shrugged in response, keeping a watchful eye on the tree lines around them. There was no point in panicking now, especially since all they could do was wait.

Izu watched the two teachers carefully, wondering what they were up to. He's upset? Is something wrong? Could just be how he acts. I've never really interacted or seen Vlad King for more than a few seconds at a time. Some whispering nearby caught her attention. Many students were in awe over the massive building that stood in front of them. The absolutely gargantuan USJ was circular in shape, with a curved dome ceiling. This was by far the biggest singular building they'd seen at UA thus far. Izu did a quick 360. All around them was forest. Aside from the landmark USJ building and the road they arrived here on, the land looked almost entirely untouched.

After several minutes of standing around, and Vlad King letting everyone know how frustrated he was, an odd humming permeated throughout the area. A dazzling silvery blue light distorted a large area nearby and, after a dim flash, fifteen people materialized in an instant. Izu immediately recognized most of them. Pros. From monday. She knew most of them by their hero names, but there were a select few she hadn't seen or heard of before. She spotted Mirko among the group and their eyes briefly met. Mirko shot her a devilish smile. Izu quickly looked away, embarrassed.

Giddy chatter enveloped both first year classes as the Pros made their way over to the two UA teachers. The group of Pros had a quick discussion led by Aizawa and Vlad King, after which seven of them made their way towards the USJ ahead of everyone else. Some are leaving ahead of us? Izu watched the backs of the first group get farther and farther away until she noticed the rest of the Pros, Vlad King, and Aizawa approaching. Just behind Aizawa was a blue haired woman dressed in an elaborate blue kimono. I recognize her from when we were underground. She's the one who can teleport people.

The woman in question seemed to wear an eternally paranoid expression. Her eyes never stopped darting around, always searching for danger. As the group of veterans got closer, Iida raised a hand and spoke up. "Sensei! I was unaware that we would have additional observers for this lesson! Could you inform us what they will be looking out for?" His arms waved in wide arcs in tandem with his small speech.

Aizawa spared Iida a glance, but turned more to address the two classes as a whole. "They are here more for me and Vlad King. They will be observing you, yes, but more so because we need trained eyes to watch you and feed us usable information, rather than directly critiquing you themselves. We cannot be everywhere at once." Aizawa gestured towards himself and Vlad King.

"Make no mistake, today is nothing more than a tour of the facility." Aizawa gestured towards the building. "It was logical to have both classes receive the tour at the same time so we don't have to explain the different terrains more than once. Take notes if you have to, though you will undoubtedly become familiar with the USJ over the months."

Deciding to leave the specifics to Thirteen, Aizawa finished his explanation. He stealthily bit the inside of his cheek as he made an effort to control his expression. Even though he was normally a very controlled and low-key person, Aizawa hated lying. It always got to him.

Well, half lying. Lying by omission? His answer to Iida's question was truthful, that was partially why the Pros were here. In reality they're more here to serve as glorified bodyguards. The USJ is huge, and we don't have the numbers in UA's faculty to watch each student group adequately. Normally such precautions would be unnecessary, but… the recent breach has everyone on edge. Nezu acknowledged that this would be the perfect time to strike at UA's student body, considering how spread out we will be. Each simulated terrain area is as big as multiple football fields. The building itself has to be so comically large in order to house all six different terrains.

A few of the sharper students in both classes noticed some contradiction in Aizawa's response. Why are so many Pros present for a tour? Aizawa specifically stated we won't be doing any actual training today. They're in full costume too… Izu noted.

Nevertheless Aizawa motioned for 1-A to follow him. Vlad King followed suit with 1-B, as the Pros manned the back of the large group of first years.

Izu lagged behind her class slightly, as she almost always did. She heard some loud footsteps quickly approaching her, and Izu steeled herself for what was to come.

"Hey kid." Mirko greeted as she got close.

Izu glanced back, holding her head low. Unsure how to respond, she gave Mirko a weak wave. "H-Hi." Now closer to her, Izu truly noticed the bunny hero's appearance. Her hero… costume? Is very revealing. Oh my god! She quickly averted her eyes as a blush bloomed on her face. Mirko's costume consisted of a white leotard. It was decorated with various designs of blue and yellow around her chest and… hips. The aim was to seemingly accentuate her more… obvious… assets?

Mirko quickly approached, resting a hand on Izu's shoulder. Izu noticeably tensed at the contact. "Listen, All Might told me what happened on monday. There's no need for you to be all bothered by it." She said, hoping to sound comforting.

Izu's mind froze and her heart rate spiked. Thankfully her body managed to keep walking with her class, seemingly on its own. She knows what happened? Wait, All Might knows?! Did Nezu tell them?!

The shorter girl's face was hidden, making her hard to read, and Mirko already found her silence slightly off putting. She continued, "I had no idea your Quirk could have such serious drawbacks if you pushed yourself that hard. I guess it makes sense that you were going all out." Her hands went to her hips and she let out a loud, triumphant laugh. "You seriously impressed me with your speed and power, kid!"

Thankfully Izu's mind managed to process what Mirko had said. She doesn't know. Izu determined. Or at least, if All Might does know, he lied to her. Izu thought back to her rather uncomfortable conversation with Nezu. He did promise me he wouldn't tell anyone anything… unless it continued to be a problem. Nezu… doesn't lie.

Izu shook her head to reset her thoughts. With a deep breath, she turned to properly address her new mentor… only to once again be startled by her appearance. Mirko considered herself quite adept at reading people, and she was quickly beginning to get a hold on Izu Midoriya's character. She noticed the quick aversion of her eyes. Her smirk returned once again full force.

"T-Thank you? I… I shouldn't have done what I did though. I ended up missing so many days of training because... All Might told me to try and win all my battles from now on. So that's what I did." Izu, seemingly satisfied with her explanation, looked up at Mirko for a response.

The bunny heroine wore a confused expression as she mulled over the girls words. Huh? Why is she confused? Izu thought, going over what she just said.

Izu continued. "Um! I should specify that I'm not blaming All Might! I just—"

"You worry a lot." Mirko interrupted. Her face was oddly sullen, almost sad. Their eyes met, and Izu was surprised at how much care she could see in her gaze. "I didn't think you were blaming All Might." She shrugged her shoulders. "You said you wanted to try and win? You put up a hell of a fight!" Mirko bumped Izu's shoulder with a fist. "Be proud, kid."

It was Izu's turn to be confused. "But… I didn't come close to victory."

Mirko sped up, turning to walk backwards in front of Izu. "Maybe not. Listen, I'm not the best with words, but maybe over the next week I can put into perspective what you did on Monday." She reached forward, poking Izu in the shoulder. "I was very impressed. All Might was too. You two have a history, right? So I'm sure you already know what he thinks."

Izu nodded, unsure where Mirko was going with this. She's very physical. Izu noted, remembering all the little proddings Mirko's done in the short conversation they'd had thus far.

Mirko followed up, adding on with a grin. "Just watch me over this next week. You're smart. I have faith you'll see what I mean." With that, she spun around to once again walk forwards.

Izu nodded again, still not fully understanding what Mirko was alluding to. Though she did have a question, and jumped on the opportunity since she was seeing Mirko again sooner than expected. "Um. How should I address you?"

Mirko craned her neck to look backwards. "Huh? Didn't we go over this already? Of all things to worry over…" She shrugged. "I don't care. Call me whatever. 'Rumi', 'Usagi', 'Usagiyama', 'Mirko'." She paused to think for a moment, then leapt on an opportunity to see Izu squirm. "Some fans, mostly guys, call me 'Babe', or 'Hot stuff'. I'm all for being called names like that, if you prefer…" She tried to look as sultry as possible, while still being 'technically' appropriate to UA's standards. Hey, Midnight gets to walk around doing shit like this! I'd like to see someone call me out on my little imitations!

Izu looked at the ground as she debated with herself. She's letting me pick a name? This… could be good practice with being less formal. Still not looking up, Izu quietly mumbled out. "I'll just go with Rumi."

Rumi snickered. "That's unexpectedly bold of you. In that case... you're Izu!"

~A few weeks ago, inside Nezu's office~

"How was your previous mission, Hanayama?" Nezu inquired as he sipped from his small teacup, hoping to make some small talk with the blue haired woman in front of him.

"Fine. You know I can't go into much detail." Hanayama responded.

"Of course of course. Ignore my rampant curiosity. I—"

"I always try to." She drawled.

"Mmm. I can see that." He paused, raising his eyebrows as he expected a retort from the woman. When she gave none, Nezu resumed. "Obviously our meetings are usually quick and concise. So… Do you have any questions or concerns?" He folded his hands, resting them on his desk.

The woman in question, Mai Hanayama, stood still as a statue in the center of Nezu's office. Despite being offered a seat, she opted to remain standing. Her arms were crossed in front of herself protectively, and she wore a harsh expression. The wide sleeves of her blue Kimono laid flat against her front, the designs clashed with one another as they didn't line up. Her scrunched cheeks paired with her eternally narrowed eyes made her look quite intimidating.

"None for the task you've given me." She answered. "But I am wondering if you plan to renew our contract once this is over? It is of no concern to me either way, due to all the competition."

Nezu was surprised. "Would it be a problem if not?"

"I said it is of 'no concern'. Meaning I don't care." She repeated.

"Indeed you did." Nezu rubbed his chin. She never fails to catch me off guard with these responses of hers. I'm not used to her level of bluntness. "When would you need to know by? We have you for the rest of the first semester. So… about three more months." He tapped a folder on his desk to accentuate his point. He nodded at her. Your contract.

"The halfway mark. Six weeks from now. Need to know when I am to start sifting through other offers. UA's competition is getting more bold with their offers, you know." She shifted her weight from one foot to the other as well as crossing and uncrossing her arms, flipping their positions.

Six weeks. That should be more than enough time. "Six weeks is fine. I will let you know before then if we plan to renew."

Hanayama shrugged her shoulders in response. The aura of nonchalance around her was thick and obvious. "Fine." Their eyes met, and Nezu fully took in how bored she looked. "Adjourned?" She asked.

Caught thinking, he took a moment to respond. Hanayama tapped her foot on the ground, her nonexistent patience had already run out. Nezu's eyes snapped upwards. "Oh! Of course. Please be on your way." He gestured towards her dismissively, hoping the tone of his voice would appease her.

She gave no reaction. After a split second of glowing, the woman vanished into nothingness, leaving silvery sparkles in her wake that quickly dissipated.

Nezu, in a rare moment of pettiness, rolled his eyes at the spot where the woman once stood. "Your usefulness barely manages to counteract how insufferable you are, Hanayama. It's obvious why you're not a Hero." He rubbed his face with both hands. "It also doesn't help that you account for just over 20% of the schools ENTIRE budget. I swear, anyone who works for any Government gets to be like her. In their own league of snootiness and self importance." Nezu lifted himself out of his chair and walked over to the other, completely ignored, teacup he had set up prior to this recently finalized meeting. I'd forgotten she never accepts anything remotely food related. I guess she survives off her overly cautious nature, though. Gathering the tea set up, Nezu exited the room to put everything away.

A few seconds after his departure, a deep purple swirl dripping a dark fog appeared just above Nezu's desk. A pale, cracked arm emerged from the small circle. It gripped the folder left sitting on the desk with two fingers, before raising it up through the swirling purple void. A few seconds passed before the folder, in identical fashion, was lowered back through the hole. The hand adjusted it slightly, hoping to leave it exactly as it was found. Then, as quickly as it appeared, the hand and purple swirl vanished.

Nezu reentered the room a minute later. Positioning himself behind his desk as usual, he glanced at the folder with inquisitive eyes. Did the pages always stick out diagonally? He spent only a moment thinking about the matter, quickly deciding it was not important enough to waste time on. He quickly stashed the folder away in one of the many filing cabinets. Nezu had many important, and stressful, matters to think on at the moment.

~Same time, in a bar somewhere~

"Let me see the photos, Kurogiri."

Foregoing a reply, the man clad in dark purple smoke simply extended a phone forwards. Shigaraki carefully gripped the phone with four fingers, holding it in front of himself. He used a finger from his other hand to swipe across the screen. They'd managed to photograph all six pages in the folder. He quickly read over all of them.

The young man's wicked smile grew as he read over each page. Seeing this, Kurogiri spoke up. "Tomura, what news have you discovered?"

"Contact Master. Right away."

"It was a good decision to hold back. I'm glad you followed my instructions not to alert her of our presence, Tomura." A man, wearing a gritty metal mask covered in tubes, praised his ward.

"She was a well kept secret." Was Tomura's simple response. "Are you going to deal with her? Should I?"

The man chuckled. "Approaching one such as her is not so simple. Teleportation Quirk's, especially one as fast as hers, must be carefully planned around." He glanced at the portal Tomura arrived through.

Tomura followed his masters direction, looking at the portal. "Kurogiri? You demonstrated how he would be overpowered. Speed is the answer."

"Yes, indeed. Kurogiri is not a perfect warp, however. He takes around 0.75 seconds to create a portal capable of transporting a person, yes? When panicked, I've no doubt that this… Mai Hanayama is capable of near instant teleportation. Even if only on herself."

Tomura didn't reply initially. He glanced at the Doctor sitting a few feet away, then turned back to his Master. "What will you do then?"

"For now? Watch. Observe." The man answered.

"We couldn't hire her? That would be an easy way to bait her in." Tomura questioned.

"Her clientele is exclusive, as I'm sure you saw. The wealthy elite. Governments around the world. And… prestigious academies." He raised an open hand, clenching it into a fist as he finished his sentence. "One such as us couldn't hope to get into formal contact with her. No."

"Then…" Tomura urged his Master to continue.

"Her existence is an issue, yes. She is one of the stepping stones you will have to overcome eventually, assuming we do not deal with her so soon."

"Another thorn in my side…" He growled. A dry hand slowly raised up to the base of his neck, eager to scratch.

"Leave me, Tomura. I have much to discuss with Dr. Ujiko." He waved his hand towards the still open portal.

Tomura nodded, giving no response. He quietly made his way through the portal, returning to the bar. As Kurogiri's portal vanished, quiet footsteps approached the chair the masked man was confined to.

The man reached up, undoing a few latches on the base of his mask. "What do you think, Doctor?"

The Dr. wasted no time. "She is a magnificent specimen! Teleportation Quirks are so incredibly rare. Especially one as versatile and powerful as this Hanayama's! We must look into her parents and relatives, when possible." The enthusiasm in his voice was obvious. Genuine excitement was a rarity in this gloomy lab of theirs, but always welcome. "All For One, we must plan for her capture. The documents Tomura copied tell of the end of her contract with UA."

All For One finished unlatching his mask. He slowly lifted it off his head, revealing a wicked smile. The bottom of where his eyes would be tilted upwards in unadulterated excitement. His facial muscles struggled to properly express the emotions coursing through him. "Indeed she is a rarity. I can barely remember the last time I saw a power I wanted… NEEDED to steal so desperately." He shifted in his seat, sitting forwards slightly. "But we must be careful."

"Of course, Master. It is a shame the documents did not have details of her Quirks specifics. Though I am not surprised."

All For One nodded in agreement. "The time will come for her capture. For now, we can let Tomura experiment. So long as the woman thinks we are interested in UA instead of her…" All For One tapped his fingers rhythmically on the armrest of his metal chair. "Though I am interested to see his reaction to her. She will undoubtedly ruin his upcoming plans."

"You are not worried about his safety?" Ujiko questioned.

"I am, of course. But so long as Kurogiri is by his side, I am not worried about Tomura's capture. Kurogiri has been instructed to extricate themselves, by force if need be, if things don't look to be going their way." All For One turned to 'look' at Ujiko, giving him an oddly warm smile. "You should have more faith in your creations, Doctor"

Ujiko bowed his head. "There are few creations I am truly proud of. But I thank you for your unending praise."

AN:

Shorter chapter in preparation for… a much longer and (hopefully) exciting one. Also yes, 1-A and 1-B are both at USJ. ^‿^

Reminder that the last joint scene took place "a couple of weeks ago". Some time before the current lesson at the USJ, which is what AFO was referring to when he mentioned Tomuras 'upcoming plans'. (Minor spoilers of next chapter. Oh well)

Woah elaboration on my first true OC. She won't be part of the main cast, so don't expect her to show up in more 'fluff' chapters. At the moment she's serving more as a plot device to drive and complicate some other events. Details of her power will come when appropriate.

Eventually I will move away from using "I. Midoriya", "E. Kirishima", and "T. Asui" for the text message parts. When they eventually decide to give each other names in their phones!