|Chapter 14: Interlude – Two Heroes (Part One)
All Might's Residence, Early Morning
Izuku was standing with Akira in All Might's backyard, which also housed a very nice looking private jet. The two both had suitcases and were wearing normal clothes.
Izuku wore black pants with neon green pockets, as well as his signature red shoes. He also wore a white t-shirt with the kanji for 'Plus Ultra' on it. Over that, he wore a dark, forest green jumper with a bunny hood at the top; he kept his sleeves rolled up. He also had his headphones, visor, and mask with him.
Akira wore fully white pants and also had red shoes on, though his were mostly black. He also wore a loose white t-shirt with the kanji for 'Kitsune' on the front. Wrapped around his waist he wore a mustard hoodie and wore his black fingerless gloves from his hero costume.
From the plane, a deflated All Might walked out with a smile on his face. "Good morning my boys!" He shouted excitedly. "Are you two ready for our trip?"
All Might had invited the two to I-Island for their first week of summer vacation before they went to the training camp. Izuku, being the winner of the sports festival, had gotten two tickets. However, he ended up giving those away.
Flashback, U.A, After School
"I don't need your shitty tickets, Nerd." Bakugou said before stomping off.
Izuku had just offered him and Kirishima the two tickets to I-Island seeing as he already had bought his own over a week prior. Though the blonde did want to go, he would rather die than accept those tickets.
The green haired teen turned to Kirishima and handed him the tickets. "Told you he wouldn't accept them." He said with a small smile.
The red haired teen sighed and took the tickets. "Looks like I haven't actually done much." He said dejectedly.
Izuku patted him on the shoulder. "No, you definitely have." He said, getting a confused look from the spiky red-head. "Compared to middle-school, the guy isn't as much of an asshole." With his input given, he walked off.
Kirishima smiled widely. "Thanks for the tickets, Midori-bro!" He shouted before running off to catch up with Bakugou.
"Yessir." Izuku and Akira responded lazily, still a little tired.
All Might didn't care though and waved them on bored. "Then let's get going!" He bellowed.
Izuku passed his suitcase to Akira and then began to walk along the runway.
All Might saw this and became confused. "Young Midoriya, where are you going?" He asked.
It was at that moment Izuku realised he had forgotten to mention something. "Oh, sorry, All Might." Izuku apologised with a sheepish smile. "I'm taking myself there." He explained. " I just came here to give my bags to Akira."
The symbol of peace raised an eyebrow. "You already have a ticket and place to stay?" He asked.
Izuku nodded. "Yeah, I got a huge amount of money from all the All Might merch I sold." He said with a bit of embarrassment. "The ticket and apartment barely put a dent in it."
All Might seemed sad. "Why'd you sell all the hero merch you had of me? I'd like to say I have the best figures out there." He said with a bit of pride at the end.
Izuku chuckled at him. "Cause I got a life sized one right here, it even speaks." He said jokingly.
The symbol of peace deadpanned at him. "Alright then, suit yourself." He shrugged. "Young Hikaru, let us depart!" he shouted before walking back into the plane.
Akira didn't say anything and just walked in. He quickly chucked the bags he was carrying away and sat down in a chair, falling asleep instantly.
Izuku prepared himself as he walked down the walkway, he equipped his visor, earphones, and mask before starting to run. Behind him, the plane had already started and was beginning to catch up. As he reached the end of the runway with the plane, he pushed off, taking off to the skies beside the plane.
Inside the Plane
All Might chuckled lightly at Akira's sleeping form. For a workaholic that was similar to Izuku, he was pretty relaxed. Reminding himself of his other student, he looked out the window and smiled at what he saw. Izuku's hair billowed behind him as he happily floated through the sky, spinning, and touching the clouds. He remembered back when Nana and he used to fly around, she would sometimes do the same.
2 Hours Later, I-Island
During the trip, Izuku had stopped flying a bit and just sat on the wing of the plane. When they finally saw I-Island, his eyes widened and he jumped off the wing, flying down to the landing zone for those with flight quirks.
Now he was standing and waiting for Akira and All Might at the entrance, marvelling at the sight in front of him. There were so many heroes roaming around the island, and this wasn't even the whole island.
"Enjoying the sight, Young Midoriya?" All Might asked, leaning down to his green haired successor. He was now in his buff form and wearing his costume.
Izuku nodded. "This place is great!" He said excitedly. His danger sense went off and he caught his bag with one arm. "Thanks, Akira." The teen said with a calm smile.
Akira frowned. "Right, danger sense." He reminded himself. "I always forget about that one."
"So do I." Izuku admitted. "It's mostly instinct at this point."
Their conversation was cut short as an attendant walked up to them. "Welcome to I-Expo." She started. However, she stopped short as she realised who she was talking to. "All Might!" The woman shouted, losing her calm attitude.
Her shout received the attention of everyone around them. Their heads quickly turned to the source of the noise and they saw their symbol of peace. A crowd instantly formed around him as civilians rushed to greet the symbol of peace. Izuku quickly floated above him and Akira jumped on the hulking man's shoulders.
"You're the best, All Might!"
"You saved my life three years ago, man!"
"Can I kiss you?!"
The two watched as All Might gave out autographs and photos to everyone. Akira got caught in a few of the pictures but decided to roll with it and posed as well. Eventually, the crowd dispersed and continued with their day.
"Wasn't expecting such a warm welcome." All Might said sheepishly. "We're gonna be late."
Akira leaned down and put his face in front of All Might's. "Late for what?" He asked.
The large blonde grabbed him off his back and put him on the ground. "I wanted to visit one of my oldest friends that I haven't seen in a while." He smiled as he briefly reminisced the past. "You two wanna tag along?" All Might asked, turning to them.
Izuku and Akira looked at each other before nodding. "Sure, why not?" They both said in unison.
"Oh, by the way." All Might said, remembering something. "I haven't told him about One For All so try and keep that under wraps."
The two teens zipped each other's lips before locking them and throwing away the key. Akira had to reach a bit higher since Izuku was still floating.
"Are you gonna walk or just keep floating?" The black haired teen asked.
Izuku smiled at him. "Float."
Their conversation was cut short as they heard someone shout- "Uncle Might!"
"Uncle Might?" The two teens said in confusion.
Turning to the source of the noise, they saw a teen with long, blonde, flowy hair. She wore white jeans with a raspberry pink shirt. The glasses that covered her aqua blue eyes somehow didn't fall off her face despite bouncing around on a pogo stick. Said pogo stick fell to the ground as she burst forward to All Might, arms wide.
"Hahahaha!" The symbol of peace laughed as he caught her, swinging her around. "It's so good to see you, Melissa!"
"It's been forever, I'm so glad you came!" The blonde, Melissa, said excitedly.
"I'm glad to have received the invitation!" All Might replied, equally excited.
The two blondes were reminded of their company by a loud cough. Turning around, they saw Akira was the one to cough and saw both him and Izuku looking at the two with confusion.
"Ah, Young Hikaru, Midoriya, I almost forgot." The hulking man said with a sheepish smile. "This is my friend's daughter, Melissa."
The blonde girl waved at the two. "Hi, I'm Melissa Shield." She greeted with a smile.
The two teens waved back. "Akira Hikaru."
"Izuku Midoriya."
"Are you two Uncle Might's students?." The blonde asked as she began to circle the teens. "What kind of quirks do you have?"
"We're both energy types." Akira answered.
"Are these your costumes?" She asked, seemingly confused.
"Our costumes are back in Japan but they look pretty similar." Izuku answered. "We don't really have that much need for support gear or flashy outfits."
Melissa could see a few scars on both of their arms and frowned. "Are you sure about that?"
All Might smiled as he saw his niece ramble off ideas. However, they did have somewhere to be. "Melissa, shouldn't we be…" He started.
"Oh!" Melissa said. "Right, let's go see Papa." She grabbed her pogo stick and… it folded onto her wrist. "It's right around the corner." The girl pointed as she began to walk away.
The three quickly walked to catch up with her. In the back of his head, though, Izuku thought he could feel something wrong, but he ignored it and continued to float on.
I-Expo Platform
A small group of people stood on a platform that allowed them to observe the island. The area was dark and made it hard to see them properly. A figure at the front had his phone out and was speaking to someone.
"We've snuck into the expo without a problem, when can we expect the goods to arrive?" The figure asked.
"Six hours; gate 66." The voice on the other end answered.
The man nodded. "We'll be waiting." He said before hanging up the phone.
Office Laboratory
A chubby man with light dark blonde hair accompanied another tall man with brown hair and glasses.
"I thought your daughter's school was taking a break for the expo." The chubby man said in confusion.
"They are, she's doing her own independent study though." The other man said with a bit of pride.
"I am my father's daughter." Melissa said from the doorway, surprising the two. "For better or for worse."
"Oh, Melissa, it's good to see you." The chubby man said.
Melissa smiled. "Right back at ya, Sam." She said with finger guns. "Thanks for keeping an eye on Papa for me, I hope he hasn't been too much of a handful."
Sam chuckled at her jab. "The only problem David has here is remembering to eat."
David frowned. "I'm not that bad." His statement earned him a deadpan look from the other two. "What're you doing here, sweetie?" He asked.
"Well…" Melissa started. "I thought I would bring over a guest as celebration for you completing the first stage of your research." She stepped out of the doorway, revealing her surprise.
"No way…" David said as he stared at the large blonde symbol of peace.
"YES! I AM HERE! SHAKING IN EMOTION FOR OUR HEARTFELT REUNION!" All Might bellowed, going through several poses.
"Toshi- All Might!" David exclaimed. "Is it really you?"
All Might quickly rushed forward and grabbed the man in a hug. "I came all this way to see you!" He shouted as he spun him around.
Melissa giggled at her uncle. "You surprised, Papa?" She asked.
David's shocked face was replaced with a small smile. "Yeah, completely."
All Might chuckled as he put his friend down. "We've both got Melissa to thank for that." He said. "How long has it been?"
"Come on, don't make me say it, I feel old enough already." David replied, getting a laugh from himself and his friend. The two fist bumped each other as they calmed down.
All Might turned around to his students, both were standing there with amused smiles. "Midoriya, Hikaru, meet my old friend, David-"
"Shield." The two teens said in unison, cutting off the symbol of peace.
"We know who he is." Izuku said as he stopped floating and stood on the ground properly. "It's an honour to meet you, sir." He and Akira bowed.
David smiled at the two. "Students of yours?" The man queried.
All Might nodded. "Indeed, some of my best." He said, letting a bit of his favouritism show.
David noticed something strange about All Might and decided to investigate. "Melissa, would you like to show these two a tour of the facility?" He asked with a smile.
Melissa nodded, smiling back. "Sure, let's go, you two." She said as she walked out of the office. The two boys followed behind, Izuku floating off the ground again.
As they left, David turned to Sam. "You too, Sam." He said with a smile. "Go have some fun, I wanna catch up with this lump of muscles."
Sam chuckled and walked to the door. "I'll see you two at the expo tonight then." He said before leaving and shutting the door.
As soon as he confirmed no one else was in the room, David turned to All Might. "I haven't heard you cough once, what's happening?" He asked.
All Might gave him the biggest shit-eating grin he could muster. "Well…" His form began to return to its quirkless state. "I got better." He said, fully deflated.
David's eyes widened as he observed the blonde's form. "W-what the hell?!" He shouted in disbelief. "You look almost the same as you were during your young age, plus a few wrinkles." His jab at the end was followed with soft laughter. All Might glared at him slightly before joining his friend in laughing. "H-h-how is this possible?"
The symbol of peace smiled. "My students." All Might started. "When I first began to train Young Midoriya, I told him of my injury and he showed me to his best friend, Young Hikaru, who has what I have to say is one of the most powerful healing quirks on the planet." He said with great levels of pride. "They both shared their energy to give my cells a boost and let them repair, ever since, I've been having the time of my life!"
David looked shocked, to say the least. "Let's get you down to the lab, I wanna get some stats."
With Izuku, Akira, and Melissa
"I gotta say, there are a lot more heroes here than I thought there would be." Izuku said as he floated alongside Akira.
His best friend nodded. "Yeah, they even got Godzillo here!" The black-haired teen exclaimed as he pointed to the giant lizard-like man. 'He's so huge!'
Melissa nodded happily. "Yup, the expo has invited a bunch of heroes to show off new gear and please the crowd." She explained. "The events are in full swing."
Izuku whistled as he saw a hero flash his sword for a group of tourists. "I'll say." 'I'm definitely getting a sword when we get home.'
"Oh! You have to check out this place!" Melissa exclaimed as she ran into a high-tech museum. The two chuckled at her energy and quickly followed behind her.
Pavilion
"Daaammmnnnn." Izuku and Akira said in unison as they observed all the high-tech gear around them.
After Melissa explained a bunch of the support items, they stopped at the centre of the room. "So, any questions about this place?" She asked.
The two shook their heads. "Nah, but I gotta say, this is all extremely impressive." Akira said, fascinated beyond words.
Izuku nodded at his sentiment. "He's right, this stuff is great."
Melissa smiled as she looked around the centre. "Yeah, most of these inventions are patented from stuff Papa invented." She sighed as she closed her eyes and let her mind run wild with ideas. "I can't wait to see how this helps save more people."
"You really look up to your Pa, don't you?" Akira asked.
Melissa nodded. "I wanna be just like him someday, that's why I'm studying at the academy here. But I still have a lot more to learn if I'm being honest." She said.
Akira smiled lightly. "With the way you explained everything earlier, I'd say that you're doing fine."
The two chuckled lightly before Akira felt a chill run down his spine. Confused, he turned around and was met face-to-face with his girlfriend. Judging by her facial expression, she was seething with rage.
"Oh, Ocha, what are you doing here?" Akira asked with a hint of nervousness.
"You look like you're having fun." Uraraka said in response.
Looking to his right, he saw Yaoyorozu and Jirou. "Oh, you two as well, and you're all in costume?"
"Yeah, how's your day been?" Yaoyorozu asked with an off look.
Jirou looked like she was holding in laughter but didn't say anything.
After examining their looks and rethinking over his interaction with Melissa, it became painfully clear to Akira what it must've seemed like to them.
"W-wait, hold on." Akira stuttered out. "I-I know what this looks like but-"
The black haired teen was interrupted by a loud laugh above them. Looking up, they saw Izuku floating above them with a huge grin.
"Izuku, what're you doing up there?" Akira asked, confused.
The greenette's laughter calmed down as he floated down to their level, though he still didn't touch the floor. "Well, I saw Uraraka and the others before they spotted us and decided to pull a little prank." He started. "I whispered to Jirou to bring you guys over here and let the rest unfold."
The group looked over to Jirou and she let out her laughter. "Hahaha, it was totally worth it." She said, walking up to Izuku and fist bumping with him. "Get dunked on."
Akira decided he needed to sit down. "Is there anywhere that we can get a drink?" He asked Melissa.
The blonde nodded. "The café has some really nice tea."
Café
"Wait, so you guys have worked with actual pros?" Melissa asked with starry eyes.
As soon as they got to the café, the girls sat down at their own table and Melissa asked them questions about their time at Yuuei and their costumes. Meanwhile, Akira sat down with Izuku as they both quietly enjoyed some apple juice.
"That was a dick move." Akira said, putting down his glass.
Izuku finished off his and put his glass down as well. "Consider that payback for what you did to me and Mina after the exams."
The black haired teen grumbled slightly but relented. "Fair point."
"You two want a refill?" A familiar voice asked them.
Looking up, they saw their classmate Kaminari. "Kaminari." They both said in surprise. "What're you doing here?" They asked.
The electric blonde smiled. "Well, the island needed extra work staff so I decided to apply. It's pretty fun, I get to check out the expo while on break and I'm getting paid. Also, a lot of ladies come around here." His eyes landed on Melissa and he whistled. "Where'd you guys pick up that bombshell?"
Izuku chuckled. "Careful, that's All Might's niece." He said, causing the blonde to take on a straight face.
'Ah, so death awaits me at the end of that bridge.' Kaminari thought before sighing. "Well, plenty more fish in the sea." He said. "Besides, I think I got a real chance with Ji-"
"Kaminari!" Another familiar voice shouted, getting all their attention. "Why aren't you working? You can't be slacking off! Where is your work ethic?" Turning to the voice, they saw Iida, in his costume, speeding towards them.
"Oh, Iida, you're here too?" Akira asked, watching as the blue haired boy picked up Kaminari from the ground.
"I come from a family of heroes, it's only natural to assume I would receive an invitation to this event." Iida explained while readjusting his glasses.
"I was wondering if you'd be here." Yaoyorozu said. "My invitation was given to me because my father holds shares in the expo's sponsor companies."
"She also ended up getting extra tickets so us and the other girls gambled for them." Jirou added. "Uraraka and I ended up winning."
The brown haired girl nodded. "The others are here; they just can't visit the preview." She explained. "We're all gonna be looking around tomorrow."
Izuku perked up at that. "Oh, that's right, I almost forgot." He started. "I'm supposed to be hanging out with Mina later today, almost slipped my mind." Akira and Kaminari smirked at him. "Oh grow up." The greenette chided with slightly pink cheeks. However, his blush disappeared as they all heard a huge explosion.
"Woah, what was that?" Akira asked.
Obstacle Course
The group of Yuuei students ran to the source of the explosion and found a large obstacle course. They entered the arena stands and their attention was quickly captured by the current contestant.
"With a finish time of 33 seconds, he's taken eighth place!" An announcer called out.
Standing at the top of the course, they saw a familiar mountain of red hair. "Kirishima!" The girls said in surprise.
"Please welcome our next challenger!" The announcer called, getting everyone to look at the starting line. There, they saw a familiar head of spiky blonde hair.
"Bakugou!" The girls said in surprise once again.
"GO!" The announcer called.
Instantly, Bakugou shot himself towards the mountain course with his explosions. He quickly obliterated the first robot with ease and used an explosion to redirect himself in mid-air. He did the same for the next four robots and zoomed quickly to the last one where he shouted "DIE!"
'Yup, that's Bakugou.' The others all thought collectively.
"Wow, with a run time of 15 seconds, he's won first place!" The announcer called out.
Bakugou smiled and fist bumped Kirishima as he walked away from the course. "Hey look, It's Midori-bro and our classmates." Kirishima said as he pointed to the group.
Bakugou frowned and used his explosions to get up there. When he did, he looked at Izuku. "I thought the whole point of giving us your tickets was because you didn't want to go." He said.
Izuku shook his head. "Nah, just wanted to do something nice." He said.
Bakugou grumbled but decided to try and do what Kirishima talked to him about; small talk. "So, any of you wanna try out the course?"
The group seemed surprised by his question but only Akira answered. "Sure, I'll break your record." He said with a grin before walking down to the arena.
"That's not what I asked!" Bakugou shouted at the black-haired teen's retreating form. "Kiri, get your butt up here!" He said to the hardening teen.
The red head obliged and quickly made his way up to the stands. As he did, Akira walked out to the starting platform.
"Alright, we've got a new challenger!" The teen had removed his jumper from his waist and put his power output on high, causing golden sparks to engulf his form. "GO!" The announcer called.
Akira shot off much faster than Bakugou and reached the first robot in less than a second. He obliterated both the robot and part of the mountain behind it. The rest of the robots fell just as easily and he finished the course faster than the others could process. As he finished, his friends looked at him with awe. Uraraka cheered him on hard.
"With a run time of eight seconds, we've got a new first place!" The announcer called, getting a round of applause from the crowd.
"That was awesome, Akira!" Uraraka said as she tackle hugged him.
The black haired teen hugged back and gave Izuku a fist bump. "Agreed, that was pretty good."
Bakugou grumbled something about beating records but Kirishima smacked him upside the head for that.
All their conversations were cut short as the announcer screeched. "Insane, with 14 seconds, we've got a new second place!"
Looking to the course, they all saw it was covered with ice, and they only knew one ice-user that was capable of something like that. "Todoroki!" They all shouted to the red and white haired teen.
Said teen looked up and seemed surprised. 'Midoriya and the others?' Nonetheless, he awkwardly waved at them and made his way up to the stands. As he got there, he was greeted by the group.
"Todoroki, it's nice to see you." Yaoyorozu said, waving at him. "What are you doing here?" She asked.
"My father was invited, I'm here as his representative." The heterochromatic teen answered in his usual tone. His eyes shifted to Melissa and he tilted his head. "Who's she?" He asked.
"All Might's niece." Izuku answered plainly.
Todoroki looked slightly shocked. 'I'm gonna have to add this to my theory board when I get home.' "So, have you all tried the obstacle course?" He asked.
Akira shook his head. "Only Bakugou, Kirishima, and I have, the others declined."
Todoroki looked to Izuku. "You sure you don't wanna try? It's not difficult but it's a lot of fun." He said.
Izuku looked down to the course and thought for a bit. "Well…" He started. "Ah, what the hell, why not?" The greenette shrugged before floating down to the starting platform.
After he left, Todoroki turned to Akira. "Has he been floating all day?" He asked.
Akira nodded. "Yeah, it's just a thing."
Izuku calmly floated down to the arena platform and hovered at the start.
"Alright, we got ourselves a new challenger, y'all!" The announcer stated. "Will he flop, or will he rise to the top? Let's find out!"
Izuku's legs glowed bright with the energy of One For All as he raised himself higher above the ground.
"GO!" The announcer exclaimed.
Izuku didn't move from the platform and sent a powerful 30% kick towards the arena, sending a large torrent of wind towards it at the speed of a bullet. All the robots were simultaneously destroyed and the small mountain cracked slightly.
The announcer and the audience stared, dumbfounded at what they saw. "Five s-seconds, new first place." Everyone in the crowd quickly got over their shock and began to roar at Izuku with applause.
Izuku floated up to his friends in the stands and laughed at their shocked looks. "I think that means I win." He said, smiling.
Bakugou was foaming at the mouth but kept himself in check. 'In, out, in, out…' Barely.
Akira just shook his head, already used to this. 'Overkill but alright.'
Todoroki and Melissa both observed the course and the damage it sustained. "I keep forgetting that you can do that." The heterochromatic teen said in his usual calm tone.
Melissa on the other hand was not so calm. "That was insane!" She shouted. "That kind of power is monstrous!" The blonde looked to the girls of the group. "Are all your classmates this powerful?"
Jirou shrugged and gave a half-nod. "In terms of raw power, Midoriya, Todoroki, Hikaru, Tokoyami, Bakugou, and Kaminari have that in spades." She explained.
"But in terms of combat prowess, Midoriya, Hikaru, and Bakugou stand at the top." Yaoyorozu added. "But the others also have immense power, just not on their scale."
Melissa looked at them with a huge smile. "You guys are gonna make such great pro heroes!"
The group all smiled back at her, even Bakugou calmed down enough to manage that.
Izuku felt his phone go off and decided to check it. Turning it on, he saw a text message from Mina that read 'Hey! I'm at the residential area, u here yet?' His eyes went wide and he shoved his phone back in his pocket. "Well, hope you guys have fun looking around the expo, I'm off to see Mina." He said as he began to float higher.
Akira decided to take a jab at him before he left. "Don't do anything I wouldn't." He said with a chuckle.
Izuku's face exploded red and he quickly shot off towards the residential area. He was so embarrassed, that he didn't feel the ping of danger sense in his head.
Gate 66
"So, All Might is here." A large figure said to himself as he put away his phone and observed his workers open a large box. He smirked as his face glowed red for a second. "That won't be a problem."