Izuku was struck in the back once more; he lost count after the eighth time. Gran Torino was bouncing off the walls and hitting the teen in his blind spots. Even though he hadn't needed to use it in years, the retired hero's quirk was as dangerous as ever. Izuku was learning the old man's movements and started to come up with a pattern. When he lost sight of the small man, he waited only for a moment. When the green haired teen heard the 'woosh' of air behind him, he turned.
"You're trying to get a pattern, huh. Not a bad idea," Gran Torino commented before he jumped over the teen's grasping hand. "But cha got ways to go from there." he finished before sending a roundhouse at the student. When the blow landed, the elderly hero knew something was up.
'Kicks don't feel like that' he thought as his foot decelerated when it was a centimeter away from the teen's body. His momentary shock was enough for Izuku to attempt another grab, but with another blast of air, the retired hero got away.
"That your original quirk?" he asked with trepidation. Izuku shook his head.
"Quirkless," he stated. "Did I pass?" the question hung in the air for a moment.
"The hell do ya mean? Ya didn't touch me." Izuku didn't say anything, but held his hand to show otherwise; in the teen's hand was Gran Torino's yellow cape. There was a pregnant pause as the retired hero checked his collar that the mantle was attached to prior.
"Huh, well ain't that a thing." he deadpanned before taking a seat. He gave a hard glare before he asked what was on the old man's mind.
"Alright, where the hell d'ya learn how to fight like that?" when Izuku started talking about it, Gran Torino had only one thought.
'Leave it to Toshi to pick a kid that already has a mentor.'
The next day, Gran and Izuku spent the morning in a discussion about quirk usage.
"From the videos I've seen, your jet quirk only had a limited amount of thrust, so I'm trying to find the factor that accounts for that. It probably involves-" the teen was starting to mutter until the retired hero brought him out.
"Lung capacity" he started "Jet takes the air from my lungs, so it's been awhile since I could use the blasts I used ta as a young man." Izuku took this information and brought his hero notebook #14 to record it. When Gran looked over the teen's shoulder to look, he was shocked if not irritated.
"O-oh, sorry if you can't read it" Izuku apologized. "Chinese characters can hold a little more meaning than Japanese ones, so I write my hero and school notes in Chinese instead."
"Are there any other ones ya know that I don't?"
"I learned Chinese, English, Italian, and a little Spanish. Anima-sensei taught me Chinese calligraphy as a way for me to learn control, and I asked to learn more languages after a while." Izuku gave a shy smile as he scratched the back of his head. Gran was impressed with the kid's effort. learning any language was hard, but the green-haired teen could switch between four in his mind in his mind. The old hero walked up to the sink to put the plate away before turning his head towards his nomination.
"Suit up, kid. We're going on patrol today, and it'll be in Shibuya. There's more trouble there for you to get the gist of a heroes patrol work." Izuku nodded earnestly. It was time to be a hero.
Deku figured out that it was supposed to be a nighttime patrol when he saw the arrival time; the cover of darkness would cover up a lot, even in a city as bright as the metropolitan area. His repaired costume had something that he lacked previously, thanks to Anima and All might recommending it. It was a utility belt for miscellaneous things like cash, his phone, a thermal blanket, and the capture tape that any hero nowadays had for suppressing quirks. He appreciated them for looking out for their disciple. The teen was thankful the train had a charging port for his phone so he could research the area while not having to worry about his only communication device running out of battery, though he received some flak for being on his phone from Gran Torino. When Shibuya station was called, he and Gran Torino got out of the train to find it raining.
"Ah well. Criminals won't be as common, but we'll still patrol because we're here" Gran Torino looked at the rain in scorn before preparing to get drenched. They took the back alleys the patrol route to make it more likely to come across a villain. They only came across a young girl in a short dress. Her face looked to be in her late twenties, but Deku could tell that she was younger than that by the amount of makeup that came off her face.
"Hey, do one of you want a good time?" her voice was barely audible over the rain, and both heroes could tell she didn't want to be there; she was probably forced to by someone else as no one wanted to be in the rain, let alone in that revealing clothing. Deku walked over to her and pulled some money from his belt. Gran Torino was shocked that the kid was going to take her up on the offer, but his nominated hero dashed the idea with his next words.
"Let's get you out of this rain and somewhere safe. How about we go to a nearby restaurant. I'll pay for the time if you need it, but you look like you could use a hand more than anything." the young girl was apprehensive, but with a small smile and a projection of chi, the hesitation was gone.
That night wasn't good for getting a paycheck due to the rain, but when she looked back on that day, she was glad she decided to go out in the downpour that night. It started as any other night, but she needed a client soon; Nin'i would be collecting the debt in a week.
It was a cold and rainy night, but she tried to endure. She was probably going to catch a cold, but it didn't matter. Soon enough, she heard footsteps and got in a seductive pose her 'co-worker' Nami once taught her. Her hopes fell when she saw the costumes. If she was lucky, they would ignore her or take her, but if not, there was a good chance she would be sent to the police station.
"Hey, do one of you want a good time?" she asked, knowing it wasn't a good idea. The old man would have lost his drive by how aged he looked, but if she could get the young boy, then she could earn enough until next month. It also didn't hurt that she thought he was cute; if she had to have "those" activities, she preferred it to someone her age. Her hopes were brought up when she saw the green haired boy pull some money from his belt and walking towards her. The words he spoke to her when he held out the money were not what she expected though.
"Let's get you out of this rain and somewhere safe. How about we go to a nearby restaurant. I'll pay for the time if you need it, but you look like you could use a hand more than anything." she didn't know what to do. The other girls told her that any offer like that would be a trap, but it was coming from a hero. Weren't heroes suppose to help anyone?
She wasn't sure until she saw him smile.
His smile was so pure, so innocent, so clear in the intent of wanting to truly help, that she swore he was glowing. With a smile like that, she felt like she was already safe and protected, and it made her feel awful inside. Here she was, an illegal prostitute trying to earn a few bills from a hero, while he only wanted to help. It made her aware of how dirty she was. She thought the rain would hide her tears, but they apparently didn't as the green-clad hero came to give her a hug. She tensed for a moment, but when he made no move other than comforting her by rubbing her upper back, she held on tight and cried. Every emotion, every feeling that she pushed down to not feel the pain came out. Her choking sobs rang in the alley as the green hero only held tighter. he felt like her older brother when he was well; when he wasn't struck by lymphoma and in the hospital with racking coughs and burning temperatures. It was nothing like the cold hands of the loan shark or Nin'i. When she had nothing left to cry, she felt the hero start to gently put her down, but she only gripped him.
"Could… could you just hold me a little longer?" she pleaded with a sore voice.
"Of course. Just let me know when you want to go inside." he calmly told her. When she finally let go, the green hero asked the old hero he was with- Gran Torino he called him- for his cape, which the two then covered her shoulders with as they walked to the restaurant.
'Onii-chan' she thought in her head. 'I met a real hero, and he saved me.'
When Deku got the small group a booth in the corner of the diner, he ignored the scornful glances he was given for helping who was technically a criminal. He first ordered tea and a shake for the young woman, who he figured was in his age range, before asking for some tea himself.
"Why were you out in the rain?" he decided to start with a heavy question.
"Do you really not know? I'm one of "those" girls. You know what I'm talking about." she sounded remorseful in her response. The green-clad hero shook his head.
"I didn't ask what you were doing, I'm asking why? You don't seem like you wanted to be there, so why were you?" he hated asking, but he wanted to know how he could help, or even if he could. When he saw her shoulders shaking, he hurriedly corrected himself.
"A-ah, y-you don't have to tell me if you find it too hard!" he picked up a napkin to hand to her as she wiped her tears.
"No, it's… it's just that it's been so long since someone cared," she told him. The young girl explained everything; the fact she lived alone with her brother until he got sick, that she got targeted by a loan shark, and that after she couldn't pay with part-time jobs he practically sold her to a pimp.
"I wanna run, but If I do, then onii-chan would… onii-chan would-" her thoughts were cut off as Deku knocked his chair over to hug her again.
"It must've been hard." he managed to get out as he silently cried for the girl he met not twelve minutes ago. When he managed to get his emotions under control again, he sat down and let a wry chuckle escape.
"I'm sorry. I'm crying for someone when we haven't even introduced ourselves; I'm Deku, a student at UA trying to be a hero." he gave a small smile as he projected his chi again to calm her down.
"Ha-Hadena… I'm a ninth grader at Shōtō middle," she answered shyly. Deku found her situation even worse after the fact she was younger than him. He resolved himself to help in any way he could.
After some light conversation and food arriving to help her feel better, the two heroes and the rescued victim walk to the battered woman's shelter closest to them and had the police come to take statements. When they brought a specialist, they gathered enough evidence to go arrest the ringleader. When Deku was getting ready to leave, he came up to Hadena. With a small piece of paper
"Here. The group doesn't advertise much in Japan, but the doctors in the group take difficult medical cases for cheap. Give them a call. They even have a couple people who know Japanese as well, so language isn't a problem." the slip of paper had a number, a website, and the organization's name: Kane Remedium. It was started by the Oliver Kane, a deceased member of the Outliers by the hero name Arcane: a sorcerer and a surgeon that specialized in treating injured and ill people with bizarre quirks. Hadena Looked at the slip of paper thoroughly so she could remember even if she lost it before putting it in the most secure place she had. She then ran into his chest in another hug.
"Thank you…" she whispered softly. Deku petted her head softly.
"It's what a hero would have done. It's why I've been trying hard to be one." she looked up to the green-clad hero.
"But you already are. You're my hero." her words made the older teen smile as she let go and ran off to get something. Gran Torino came up soon after Hadena left.
"I gotta admit Deku, yer more than talk. Even many pro heroes would've just let her fall through the cracks, myself included." the elderly hero was being completely honest. He had no shame admitting it, but he became a hero for personal reasons and nothing else. Looking at the kid help a complete stranger like it was the most natural thing in the world was a sight to see. Toshinori wore his fake smile like a shield to act as a shield, but Deku used his as a blanket of comfort. It was similar, but the ninth user of One For All wore the smile naturally. the kid wore his heart on his sleeve, and held no shame in that fact.
"I'm not that great. She just looked like she needed a hand, so I gave her mine. I've got two after all." the duo chuckled at the bad joke. When Hadena came back, she was holding a clipboard and pen. She held them out to the green hero.
"Could I get an autograph from you? I know you aren't a hero yet, but…" she trailed off shyly, making Deku smile once more.
"Only if you promise to be there when I graduate," he said jokingly before he wrote his name to her. Her smile made Deku's look dim by comparison in the hero's mind. He knew he did good.
Writing this chapter made me misty eyed to the point of having to take a break, but I felt it were tears well spent. I find that it's small moments like these are fun to write. for any interested, Hadena is Japanese for 'flower' and 'colorful' while Nin'i means 'free will' and 'pleasure'... so you can imagine someone with a street name like that. If you like it or think I could do better, give me a review; I do read every single one I've received with joy. Till Next time!