In the Training Dreamland, everyone was trying to make their own "special moves". Mina was trying to improve her acid spray, and messing with the ph for something that would melt one thing, but not another. Denki was trying to change his electric output by differing volts and amps, but he needed a break after a while. Mineta was practicing traps with Sero who was focusing on mobility.
"Focus on me." the Ectoplasm clone warned Izuku, who was looking at his classmate's efforts. The martial artist turned to his opponent before his mental trigger went through his mind.
'Save them'
With a single phrase, Izuku transformed from an earnest teen to a smiling protector. The clone's eyes widened at the sudden change before Deku charged at it like a bullet. Ectoplasm dodged the hero's kick, but wasn't prepared for the wind pressure that extended the martial artist's effective range.
Izuku noted the knockback distance before closing the distance. The clone tried to get a kick in, but Deku refused to give him the needed space, focusing on forearm strikes while invading his opponent's space as much as he could. The copy stepped on the teen's foot, only to slide as Deku dropped into a three-point stance. The smaller surface area of its pegleg failed to find purchase, leaving the hero-in-training the perfect chance to switch to Sambo and secure his opponent to the ground. After failing to leverage itself up, the clone tapped the teen in the universal message of 'I give'.
"Impressive use of your speed to extend the range of your kick and your takedown was very smooth; I didn't have much chance to recover. I take it you want to focus on the martial arts rather than called attacks?" the clone questioned as it was given the chance to rise.
"Yeah." Deku admitted. "My style is about quickly changing my rhythm mid-fight, so calling attacks do me little good. One thing I want to practice though is facing multiple opponents; one on one is good for practice, but I'm screwed if I don't know how to deal with a group." The Ectoplasm clone nodded before calling to the real one.
"Hey, the kid wants to try group fighting, so send four more over!" the overseeing hero looked over before vomiting up a few more clones and sending the requested number over and one over to Katsuki, who demolished his.
Izuku hurt all over and was dead tired. Unlike the match with the single clone, Izuku had his rear on a platter when more than two clones came at him at once. He supposed it made sense; all of his spars and fights so far have been one on one, or he was on a team fighting a single person. This was the first time he fought against a group on his own. Using his chi, Izuku checked his body over. Noting the strain on his joints, he decided that seeing the support department was a smart idea.
"Hey guys, I'm going to see the support department to see if they could alter my suit. You wanna come with?" he asked his friends after the class came out of the locker rooms.
"What do you want them to do?" Eijiro asked.
"I've noticed the strain my quirk puts on me, so I'm gonna see if they could reinforce my suit to mitigate the chance of injury." the green-haired teen answered.
"I've also noted the drawbacks of my own quirk, maybe I should see what they could accomplish for me as well." Tenya agreed.
"Yeah, my costume is kinda not doing much. You think there's some kind of armor I could try?" Eijiro thought aloud. With other classmates thinking of things they could see the support department improve or add, most thought it'd be a nice idea to check in for an upgrade.
"Hold on," Momo called out. "If we all go at once, then we'd just swamp the support workshop. Let's go in teams of four, spread over five days so everyone can take their time with specifics." seeing the logic in that, it was soon decided that Izuku, Tenya, Eijiro, and Rikido would be the first group, owing to the fact Izuku suggested it and they were all physical fighters. The guys set off to see the development studio.
Izuku's instincts warned him before his eyes did, and the teen reinforced himself just as the door to the workshop blew off its hinges in a fireball. Something non-metal impacted the teen, and he caught it while bracing himself. After his hearing came back and the dust cleared, he noted what, or rather who, he caught.
"Hatsume-san!" he called out to the person he was setting down. "Are you okay? Do you need me to take you to Recovery Girl?" he continued to fuss over the girl who was just thrown by an explosion.
"Huh? Oh, aren't you from the festival?" she asked as if the explosion was a normal occurrence. Taking the fact Power Loader was just griping about her recklessness, it apparently was.
"Er, yeah. My friends and I were coming to see about upgrading parts of our suit." at the word 'upgrade, Mei surged into Izuku's personal space. Forcing down the instinctual reaction of attacking what was charging him, the green-haired teen looked at Power Loader. Taking the hint, the teacher pulled his student back.
"Mei, learn to calm down. If you all would come in, the systems should have dealt with the fire." everyone walked in after the supporters, taking the last comment into consideration. The hero looked at Eijiro before asking.
"What do you think of the current costume, and what would you like changed?" Power Loader questioned. The redhead looked to his briefcase before answering.
"It's easy to move in, and lightweight, but I'd noticed how much I focus on tanking hits; some easy to move in armor would be nice. Keeping the muscle aesthetic would be preferred, but if it's not possible for both, then I'd prefer not bleeding out." Eijiro half-joked. the excavating hero liked the kid's response; praising, quick to the point, and reasonable.
"I'll see what I can do. Would a spartan breastplate work? I'd also suggest a target emblem." Eijiro nodded at the armor idea but looked at Izuku when he heard the odd term.
"He means having a sigil put on center mass." the hero-fan explained. "If someone's shooting at you, you want them to hit the part with the most protection, and not a weaker point or bystanders, so you use a sigil that works like a target. 'Target emblem' is just the slang." hearing the explanation, the hardening quirk user agreed. Tenya was the next.
"I'm glad that it's lightweight and aerodynamic, but I was wondering if you could improve the radiator to my legs, and add some extra protection without compromising weight by a large margin." Power Loader liked these kids already for the concise feedback and upgrade parameters. They knew that for one aspect to be focused on, another was sacrificed, And they could prioritize. He looked at the noted he wrote on the student requests and made sure it was well written.
"I'll try to keep it from being more than five kilos heavier, but if it is, I'll call you back. Do you want a target on you as well?" he asked, but the speedster refused. He'd rather not get hit at all if he could help it. When Rikido had his turn, he wasn't as concise.
"I, uh, like the belt storage, but my outfit doesn't do much. Hearing them, I'd also like some added protection, from knives and bullets, but nothing that's gonna restrict my movement. Also, some support to my knuckle area." while Power Loader wasn't as happy about the lack of direction, he had improved far more while working off far less input with professionals. Writing down some basic Ideas, he then turned to the last member of the group. Izuku took a small breath before answering.
"My costume has nothing wrong with it, but I noticed how easy it was for me to overextend in my combat style; I came to see if there was a way to add joint support without sacrificing mobility. I also noted the impacts from my kicks are putting a lot of force on my lower body, so something that would help with recoil without softening the blow to my target would be welcome as well, but I'm fine if it's not possible." Power Loader was very impressed with this student's response. The other kids were concise, but this kid knew more than the surface layer of what the support department could attempt. Before he could write down the response, Mei chimed in.
"Oh, oh! I like this one, can I work with him?" she asked almost bouncing. The teacher was wary of letting her loose on the poor kid, but before he answered, he saw Izuku thinking about it.
"I'm not against letting you try, but if you try and make it like the exoskeleton you had in the festival, then I'm drawing the line. Ah, If Power Loader-san is okay with it." the martial artist added. The excavating hero took a moment to ponder.
"Hatsume is of the few that could do just what you asked, but I can't guarantee she won't go off without you being there, or even with. If you're fine with the risk, I'll let you two work together. But I'll need to see the written forms and product before it leaves the shop. For the rest of you, I'll need to make forms for the design office to approve, all of which should be done in a week at the latest." he answered. Mei was jumping with joy as she dragged Izuku off to the corner for testing.
"Thank you, sir, If there is any way we could help make it easier for you or speed up the process, do let us know." Tenya bowed to the adult.
"Thanks for the offer, but other than coming if called, all this is on us." Power loader smiled. Just before three of the four left, Eijiro gave a heads up.
"Oh yeah, Power Loader! The rest of the class is coming by later to give feedback and ask for tweaks. We're coming in groups of four throughout the week to not swamp ya, so heads up." the redhead called over his shoulder.
"Letting me know, and spreading out so I can prepare for everyone? That's it, Class 1-A is my favorite class to support this year!" the hero announced. Izuku, staying next to Mei as she went from idea to idea, could only think one thing.
'I hope it's worth it.'
He didn't get back to the dorm until well after ten, to which he passed ou on the bed in his clothes.
A week had passed, and everyone had gotten their new hero outfits. Izuku was getting used to the different feel kicking now had with the coil system; Anima was impressed with the blowback feature, and explained it very well.
"Say you give a kick with a value of twenty. Normally, physics dictate ten points go to damaging the target while the other ten goes back into your leg. With your gear, however, the blowback helps you by having sixteen points go into the target instead of the normal ten, with only four points being absorbed by your leg. That also lets you hit harder without hurting yourself. The creator is a fucking genius to make that work."
Everyone else got upgrades as well, though some outfits were changed more than others. Toru and Momo, with Anima's contact, had both managed to make their suits from unstable cloth, going invisible on Toru while letting Momo create massive things without sacrificing her modesty; she also could get rid of the boob window her last costume had, much to her joy.
"Hey Deku," Katsuki called to Izuku, quietly. Turning to meet his old rival, Izuku was a little worried about his drop in volume.
"After class, get wolf grin and meet me at beta; I wanna fight you, and he's gonna be the ref."
And that's a wrap! 1-A has new costumes and now Bakugo's picking a fight. I was thinking of doing the fight later, but I thought it'd be better now. Thank you all for your comments so far, they really are helpful. As for the comment by TheAlienHeart, I would do some highschool romance, If I knew how. I was the odd kid in the corner more focused on a book than the girls around me, so I have no clue how to do romance at all. If I manage to figure it out, I may try, but as it's not a focus, I'm fine letting it be off screen. Till next time!