The engine of the bus was ever so faintly heard past the casual conversation inside. The students were all comfortably seated, Grand-sensei quietly watching the automatically turning wheel and self-adjusting pedals like he was mentally dismantling the mechanisms. Lady Nagant was staring emptily towards the roof of the vehicle, still lost in shock from the teacher's display the previous afternoon. There was a passive excitement in the air, the teens all refreshed from the games and eager for the Rescue training they were about to take part in.
"Midoriya-chan, I think you've picked it up by now, but just to make it clear, I like to speak my mind." Asui clarified. The boy looked over to the frog girl in curiosity. "Your Quirk is a lot like All Might's." The pink and blue haired woman twitched in her seat. Grand-sensei did not react in the slightest.
"Y-you, uh, th-that's, um, h-how do-" The freckled Class President visibly mentally crashed.
"Hold on, Tsu-chan." Kirishima tilted his head. "All Might can use the full power of his Quirk without hurting himself, Mido-bro can only use a little bit of it."
"Yeah, and the level of power is completely different." Sero brought up. "Midoriya-san's used his full power during the Combat Trial, and it blew a hole threw four floors. You think All Might's full power is that low?"
"I wasn't trying to imply that they had the same power, kero." The verdette defended. "Two people having the same Quirk is impossible." None of the students noticed the freckled boy flinch. "I was thinking that maybe he could use that as inspiration for how he fights."
"It's greatly appreciated that you want to help your fellow classmates, Tsu-chan." The homeroom teacher started. "However, you'll actually find that taking inspiration from All Might's fighting style would be a detriment." Bakugo immediately scoffed.
"The fuck're you talking about, Snake Eyes? I was just starting to think you're actually smart, and then you sprout stupid shit like that."
"All Might has won every fight that the public is aware of, yes." The teacher explained. "However, this is not due to combative skill, but controlled application of power. He hits harder than anyone he encounters, and moves faster than anyone he encounters. Each and every fight begins and ends with a single decisive blow which instantly renders his opponent incapable of continuing. He's never needed to be an intelligent combatant, as his power is so ridiculously overwhelming."
"Are you saying that, in a situation where All Might were to hypothetically fight someone his physical match, he would likely lose?" Yaoyorozu questioned.
"What I've personally put together of his fighting style is that all of his attacks are some variation of punch, with the occasional grapple. His ranged attacks are nothing more than the wind produced from his punches, that upon meeting him in person, I am certain he discovered more on accident than intentionally. Everything revolves around his strength, with very minor nuanced application of it beyond ensuring that he doesn't kill with his strikes. In a situation he could not win with 'might' alone, he would struggle greatly."
"That's all hypothetical, though." Bakugo rolled his eyes. "No one's strong enough to win a fight against All Might, and no one ever will be."
"Precise control and polished skill dramatically empowers any level of strength." Grand-sensei elaborated. "High stamina is further heightened by learning how to expend less energy. Great durability is made greater by mastering the art of dodging. Immense power is more potent if applied to an enemies weak spot. There is no excuse to be lacking in skill. But we are beginning to stray from the original subject. The reason I say All Might is not good as inspiration in Quirk utilization is due to him not being creative with his use. Replicating his fighting style will yield the same results. It will lead to you being predictable, and easily countered."
"Grand-sensei, you seem like you have a problem with All Might." Uraraka voiced.
"I believe he could very much be smarter. I also fundamentally take issue with being over reliant on any one thing, most especially power. Forgive me if I've painted the image of disliking him." Blood-red eyes swiveled towards the gravity girl. "I have critiqued the man in front of you all too much, while complimenting him too little. There is no need to explain why he is the Number One Hero of Japan, but I will still say that I highly approve of his sincerity with saving and inspiring others. He is a guardian above all else, as befitting his role. Nearly any civilian is instantly comforted by his presence, just as nearly any villain instantly loses confidence in their success. Regardless of how lacking he is as a teacher, and how deeply I disapprove of his modus operandi, it cannot be argued that his values and reputation are exactly as they should be." The vehicle stopped moving. "And, with some perfect timing, if I say so myself, we are now at where we will be conducting your Rescue Training. If you'll please leave the bus, so that we may meet up with one of your other instructors for today's exercises."
With anticipatory curiosity, Yaoyorozu and Midoriya kept the other students from exiting in too much of a rush, the group standing outside the bus and looking to the large domed building they were to spend the rest of the class day inside. At the front doors of said building, a figure stood, their visage familiar to a few of the students.
"IS THAT THIRTEEN?!" Uraraka squealed, Midoriya just shy of being as sparkly-eyed as she was next to her. Grand-sensei smiled softly at the sight of the two of them trading information about the heroine in question. Nagant turned away, only the homeroom teacher catching her mutter of how pure the two students looked while gushing.
"It's nice to see I have fans!" The Space Hero cheered. "I'd be happy to chat with you when there's free time, but it's gotta take a back seat for now, okay?" The duo nodded while smiling brightly. "Time for introductions, then. I guess I don't need to tell you about myself with those two having done the job for me, so I'll lead with my prized training studio, the Unforeseen Simulation Joint, or USJ for short!" The space-suited heroine led the group inside, the other two teachers coming up to stand next to her.
"I do believe we were supposed to have a little more company, weren't we?" The brunet hummed, so that only the other adults could hear him. The white-clad woman waved it off, blood-red and purple catching that the hand used only had three fingers out.
"A surprise for later, let's say." At the response, a sigh escaped the tall man.
"You'd think someone so experienced would be better with their time management."
"…You'd think, yeah." The owner of the building returned the sigh. She then shifted around, the other two following so that the staff members were facing the students. Thirteen stepped forward and spread her arms out flauntingly.
"Welcome to my USJ, students! This is one of my accomplishments I am most proud of, a training center that can simulate nearly any rescue environment you could potentially be involved in! Nothing can really prepare you for the real thing, but I dare say this comes impressively close! We've got dedicated zones to help you get practice in situations you're most likely to be involved in, from collapsing buildings in the Ruin Zone to sinking ships in the Flood Zone! Cityscapes, forested areas, blazing fires and pouring rain, I've tried to cover as many corners as I could with this place!" Her bubbly pride was evident in her tone. With the major introduction out of the way, she let her arms flop to her sides. "Before we get on with the training, though, I've got one thing to tell you all. Or maybe two, actually three. Wait, there's four, possibly five… We'll be talking about a lot of things today! But, we have to start this lesson off with my Quirk." The woman started as she lifted a hand, gesturing to the silver caps on the fingertips of her suit. "My Quirk is called Black Hole. Like the spatial anomaly in question, I suck things into my body, and like Uraraka-san and Midoriya-san mentioned, I used that during rescues to suck up debris that are blocking access to civilians in need of saving. But, if I'm not careful, that same Quirk can just as easily suck up the civilians I'm trying to save." The students all tensed from the grave statement.
"With your Quirk Apprehension Test, you all discovered the limits of what you can do with your Quirks. During your Combat Trial, you learned how those Quirks can be used to harm others. Today, you'll instead be discovering how to use your Quirks to directly save lives. Quirks are our tools, they just might be our most important tools in the field, and understanding every way to use them, especially heroically, is what we'll be driving into you while you're enrolled at this school. And looking at you all now, I can see you all will be incredible heroes once you graduate!" The teens were nearly universally beaming, eager energy drumming within them.
"I love this school!" Kaminari couldn't contain, bringing Grand-sensei and Thirteen to laugh lightly while the corners of Nagant's lips turned up.
"Well then, let's ge-" The Space Hero was cut off by all attention shifting to the well-dressed teacher, whose head had snapped around towards the pavilion at the bottom of the stairs. "…Grand-sensei?" The heroine asked with trepidation. The man remained silent for a moment, pools of blood-red locked firmly on something no one else could see.
Then, he silently took a step forward, in the direction he was facing, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"…John?" Nagant's voice was tense, the woman tilting her body so that her right side was in the direction the man was facing. Wordlessly, he brought up his right hand, extending his pointer finger upwards as a sign for them to wait.
"Is…" Kirishima's own voice wavered, nervousness reverberating within him. "Is this part of the training?"
"No." Each of the students and ex-heroine all froze at the return of that voice from the first day.
Hammering their fear even deeper into the students' forms, something dark swirled into existence exactly where their teacher was focused. Almost like a fog, it encroached outwards, a near black violet wall that grew and grew. It reached a size large enough to fit a fully grown man, before expanding even more, the wall taking up half the pavilion. As everyone stared, something came through the fog, a metal rectangle the size of a wrist, colored a dirty and tarnished gold. It moved forward, revealing it was connected to a horrifically pale and gaunt hand, covering the face of the one that was stepping through. A man, thin, lanky, pale and slightly swaying with a barely leashed madness. His hair a soft blue, ragged and disregarded, stretching to his shoulders. A black long sleeve shirt and pants covered his skin, crimson shoes atop his feet, but it was even more severed hands that truly adorned his form. All over his arms, some upon his chest wherever they would stay. Psychotic maroon peered through the gaps between the fingers upon his face.
"I warned that damn Principal to at least reschedule this trip," Grand-sensei growled, "but of course, he was the one with the hyper-intelligence Quirk, and therefore knew better."
While the man covered in hands stood, hunched over with his arms hanging limply, more bodies left the fog. Nearly all of them were in casual clothes, flaunting Quirks of all types, menacing looks upon their faces. But what caught the attention of both the students and staff was the hulking mass of black muscle, taller than the homeroom teacher and possibly even All Might, that stomped up to the side of the hand-covered man. It wore only a pair of beige shorts, with white skull-shaped knee pads. Furious red tears were upon its arms, like its skin was not suited to containing what was inside. It's face was the most frightening aspect, the beak of a bird slightly slacked open to hint at sharp, pointed teeth. Above the beak, was only brain matter, without hair, flesh, muscle, or bone. It's eyes, unfocused and seemingly unseeing, were penetrating out from the pink mass in a desecration of the human form.
"Thirteen, guard the students. Nagant, backline support." Were the orders given by the blood-red eyed man as he slunk forward another step.
"Wait!" The Space Hero called after a moment, having instinctively moved as per the man's instructions before thinking. "You're a civilian, too!"
"Shut up and listen to him." The sniper snapped as she extended her Rifle, peering through the scope.
"Grand-sensei, you explained you don't possess a Hero License!" Iida yelled.
"It would only prove restricting." The man commented as he began rolling up his left sleeve.
"But-"
"Goddamn it, all of you shut up!" The pink and blue haired woman cut off. "If John's stepping up, don't tell him to pull away!"
"You're all being so noisy." The hand-wearing villain's voice was scratchy, almost whining. Annoyance as most prominent in his tone. "But you're not giving me the quest dialogue I want. I thought All Might was supposed to be here?" As he spoke, the fog coalesced into a much smaller shape, yellow 'eyes' revealing themselves while also showcasing a silver brace just below.
"The schedule we procured yesterday stated as such." The fog-being's voice was much deeper, a sophisticated tone to his speech. Blood-red and Purple eyes narrowed dangerously at the comment. In annoyance, the hand villain reached up to scratch at his neck.
"Useless fucking NPC's, bosses aren't supposed to be chance based." The man tilted his head as he continued to scratch. "I wonder if he'll come if we kill a few of these kids?"
At the clear intention to follow through on his threat, the students expected to feel that same thorough cold they experienced on the first day from their teacher. Instead, it was heat they felt. Itching upon their skin, drying their mouths and burning at their eyes. The almost painful pricking sensation that pressed upon them ramped up their heartrates and shortened their breathing. Only, they found, that turned it more difficult to breathe. Trading glances, they realized it was not a phantom sensation born our of fear from the danger, but an actual oppressive heat that bit at the very oxygen in the air. Midoriya was the first to truly understand, catching Nagant tilt her head towards the still walking 'civilian'.
"Is this Grand-sensei's Quirk?" he muttered.
"Please tell me you're done with the whole 'genteel teacher' act." There was a light pant to the sniper's voice.
"I'm still a teacher." The man corrected as he began working at his right sleeve, having reached the stairs and beginning to stalk down them. "Now is simply not the time to be gentle."
Seeing the man quietly approach, over a dozen villains smirked viciously and took aim with their various Quirks, firing without hesitation. Just as Thirteen and the students were about to shout in terror, everyone in the building witnessed the projectiles fired at the man simply disappear once they were within a few meters of him. There was no sound to the act, nor visual indication of what occurred. The items seemed to cease to exist. It took several seconds before the villains were able to collect themselves enough to stop firing, confusion rippling through the horde of thugs.
The teacher was halfway down the stairs, had finished with his sleeves, and now was continuing to move forward with his arms at his sides. Pools of spilled blood bore down on all that was below him.
Flinching, one villain howled as he dug his fingers into the ground, pulling up a massive chunk of concrete as large as a small car before hurling it at the brunet. In the same manner as the needles, strands of hair, bullets, and other projectiles, all witnessed, as if in slow motion, the boulder being erased as soon as it was within the suited man's vicinity.
Grand-sensei's face was unshifting as he reached the final step, the crowd of villains all recoiling back as he continued to walk up to them. Screaming madly, a man made of metal charged at the teacher. To their collective relief, the man did not disintegrate like everything else had been. That relief was short lived, as the teacher gracefully leaned out of the way of the heavy left hook, swept the man's feet out from under him with his right leg, and brought that foot around to stomp the metal man's neck into the ground. The concrete cratered, but what was focused on more was the sound of metal denting. The thug's body turned limp as his skin melted back to flesh. Wordlessly, the brunet lifted his foot from the villain's throat, and continued in his path. The rest of the villains further flinched back, much more uncomfortable with the prospect of fighting this previously thought to be normal man.
"He's only one guy, overwhelm him!" The scratchy voice of the Hand Villain grated the ears of those that heard it. But the underlings listened to the orders nonetheless. A group of five all rushed at the man. The sound of a gunshot pounded through the air, and the second from the right was sent flying back, crashing upon the ground unconsciously. The one in the center received the teacher's right shoe in his face, Grand-sensei having leaned back to perform the action allowing him to easily slip out of the path of the attack from the woman second from the left. With a shift of the hips, John's foot left the villain's face, and crashed into the woman's head with enough force to send her into the thug at the furthest left. Leaning slightly to place his foot firmly on the ground, the minor action once more was just enough that the remaining villain missed their attack by a hair, the brunet's left elbow rising backwards to slam into the last villain's chin. As the villain tumbled back from the blow, the teacher brought his left foot up and around in a roundhouse kick that dropped the surprise sixth villain that thought John's back was a blind spot. The end result of which, left the man once more facing the crowd of villains.
"Grand-sensei!" The man's head snapped around, dodging another attack, at the voice of Hagakure. Near-black fog had enveloped the top of the stairs, devouring the group whole. Nagant, in a panicked move, grunted heavily as she threw the limp body of Thirteen John's way. Blood-red eyes widened, and the knuckles of his right hand crashed against the side of a villain's face before he moved towards the falling heroine. As she came at him, he spotted that the back of her costume had been torn away, bringing the man to adjust his form so as to catch her front rather than her back. Projectiles that had attempted to take advantage of 'distraction' disintegrated, as other thugs came close only for further minimal movements to leave them as groaning bodies on the ground.
"Thirteen, are you conscious?" He demanded.
"And in pain." She breathed.
"Does your suit have any functions that would help the injury?"
"No, it just looks cool."
"Then it doesn't disturb your Quirk use?"
"The caps on my fingers were originally just to help with accidental Quirk use." She answered.
"Hold still." Before she could even wonder what he was going to do, the man gripped the back of her suit where her helmet connected to the rest of the material, and ripped it off completely. The helmet was flung at another thug, bouncing off the head of two before losing the necessary momentum to take out any more. From there, John brought a hand around to her collarbone, the other to the collar of her suit, and pulled the two away from each other. The woman was relieved of her suit, leaving her in a short-sleeved black recreation of an astronaut's undersuit. Without the costume in the way, the teacher was able to see that the woman's back was pulled apart, though not grievously enough to indicate permanent injury. "I don't have the means for first aid. You're going to have to fight through the pain until we can get you to Yaoyorozu-san." Mindful of her injury, the brunet picked the woman up and held her at his side while continuing to fight. To the red eyed man's concern, while he heard gunshots, he did not see any more bodies in the pavilion drop in time with the sounds. "I figure that the Fog Villain with the portal Quirk redirected your Black Hole through his portal into your back. While distracted, he then teleported the students and Nagant."
"You're good at figuring stuff out, you know that?" Thirteen wheezed as she shakily brought a hand up and called forth a small Black Hole, eating away at a bat in the hands of a villain she felt was coming too close. The teacher's eyes darted around the facility, searching, as his ears craned.
"They're still in the building. Most everyone has at least one other with them, I'm able to account for everyone but-" Blood-red orbs hardened. "…I'll deal with him later. Nagant is in the forested area between the Downpour and Flood Zones. How well can you walk?"
"What are you hoping for?"
"Get to Nagant, and tell her to get over here."
"As long as I don't need to worry about getting attacked, I can make it."
"Then don't waste any time." He ordered as he put her down, prowling forward and choke-slamming a villain with a rhinoceros Quirk. With mild tremors coursing through her body, the Space Hero began to carefully limp in the direction of the Downpour Zone.
"Who the hell're you? You're not in a costume, so you can't be one of those heroes." The Hand Villain spoke up, having calmly stepped through the crowd until he was at the front of the pack. "And you're dealing with my mobs pretty well, so you've got a few levels on you."
"Would you listen if I introduced myself?" The teacher drawled. The villain grunted.
"Probably not. You've got a good amount of stats in INT, though, to realize. What's your gimmick, huh? You the mid-boss to get me warmed up for the real thing?"
"I take it you're referencing All Might, considering your earlier comment?"
"Who else would I be talking about? You think the Mickey Mouse knockoff that runs this place counts as a boss?"
"He's not a mouse, but I get your point. A bit narrow-minded of a view, but expected if you treat the world like an RPG."
"Boss, can you help us out instead of just chatting this guy up? We can't even figure out his Quirk!" One of the thugs complained.
"It's obviously an Anti-Projectile Shield, you dumbass mobs." The lanky villain rolled his eyes. "The only shit that disappears is crap that's thrown at him, are you fucking blind?" The teacher hummed.
"I see you've been watching me closely, analyzing how I fight." Blood-red eyes passed over the black-clad villain appreciatively. "Your words are half-right, I'll give you that."
"You think you can get into my head like that?" The villain snorted. "Your CHA stat must be low, your persuasion check failed. Get him, you morons."
Momo bit the inside of her lip as her staff swung against the head of another villain. She couldn't afford to show her panic, it would both inspire the villains and lower the morale of Jiro and Kaminari. The Fog Villain had teleported them to the Mountains Zone, surrounded by dozens of villains, all eager to kill them or, she refrained from looking in the direction of a notable few that had not stopped looking her way, worse. Kaminari had been gifted a metal baton she had Created, allowing him to control his electricity to an extent and functionally tase villains that he hit. Jiro had also been given a metal bat, but she required it less as she was blasting pulses of her heartbeat as ranged attacks. The problem was, there was too many villains, and she couldn't think of a way of not exhausting the three of them long before they defeated them all. She was already panting and sweating, with the other two only in worse states than herself. Kaminari at least deterred villains a notable amount due to his body sparking with electricity, threatening to shock anyone that dared touch him. Jiro, unfortunately, did not share that same trait, and Momo, even less so.
It did not help that her mind refused to leave the thought of Grand-sensei taking on the horde of villains, a group at least triple in size what they were struggling against. He clearly displayed that he possessed no concern for projectiles, and his skill was as impressive in combat as it was upon the billiards table, but one could only do so much against over a hundred enemies. Nagant was able to snipe four or five before her attention had been redirected towards the Fog Villain, but that number was small in comparison to what still laid before their teacher.
It didn't help that the capabilities of the Hand Villain, and even worse, that beaked monster, were completely unknown. The two put off the air of being the true threats out of everyone there, which left the girl deeply concerned. Kaminari having already confirmed that they couldn't contact the outside, there was no help coming to save them.
As though her thoughts predicted the future, someone came up from behind the blonde boy. Jiro and Momo both immediately widened their eyes in horror. The boy's body immediately, sparked and crackled, the electricity doing nothing other than flowing between the two bodies. The villain chuckled darkly as he held a pistol up to the side of the teen's head.
"Sorry, you're not the only one here with an electricity Quirk. Drop your weapons, girls, or this one gets a bullet through the skull."
Kirishima screamed as he continued to barrel through villains, trying to keep the adrenaline rush as long as he could so that his terror wouldn't make him freeze, again. It helped a lot that Bakugo kept exploding things behind him. As soon as they opened their eyes in the Ruins Zone, the blonde had barked at him to 'stop staring like a moron and beat villain ass', which made him recall what Mido-bro mentioned, about how the bomber had just grown up in a bad environment. Though, it also helped seeing Bakugo play against Lady Nagant in pool. Sure, the boy got frustrated, but he seemed to be understanding of why he lost and just became determined to beat an expert sniper at her own game.
He still would have really liked Bakugo to not use his explosions in the Zone all about buildings that were on the verge of collapse. That would be really nice. The building they were inside of shook again as the crimson-eyed boy set off another particularly large explosion, and it made the Hardening-User have another micro-panic attack.
"Hey, I get the circumstances, but could you turn it down a little? We don't want the building collapsing with us inside!"
"FUCK OFF, I know what I'm doing!"
"The building keeps shaking when you use your bigger explosions!"
"And that's all it's gonna do, Shitty Hair! I'm not fucking stupid, I've been watching the support beams! If either of us is gonna bring this building down, it's gonna be you, since you've nearly taken out one of the main support beams three fucking times!"
"Wait, you can tell which are the main support beams?"
"Of course I can tell, you dumbass piece of shit! Any hero should know basic information like that!" Out of nowhere, someone tackled Kirishima from the side, sending both him and his attacker out the window. Thankfully, it was only a three-story drop, so he knew he would be just fine. "SHITTY HAIR!" Bakugo screamed as he boomed out the window, angling his hands upwards and firing himself at Kirishima and his attacker. The bomber shot into the duo, turning the three of them into a spinning, dizzying mess. The Hardening-User felt the first pair of arms get ripped off from him, before a pair of legs crossed around his abdomen. Even more deafening explosions, a jolt that made his neck ache a little, and he felt ground greet his feet a little roughly, but nowhere close to enough that he'd be concerned. Once his vision stopped swimming, he saw Bakugo standing in front of him, steaming mad.
"Are you saying you have no spatial awareness, huh, you dipshit?!"
"You knew he was there?"
"The motherfucker couldn't even keep his eyes closed, of course I knew he wasn't unconscious!"
"Oh, damn, thanks bro. That was super manly of you, but, a three-story drop is nothing for my Quirk!"
"O-Of course I fucking knew that, Shitty Hair, you think I was trying to save you?! I WANTED TO MAKE SURE YOU WERE CLOSE BY SO I COULD USE YOU AS A MEAT SHIELD, YOU GOT THAT?!"
"You really are a mini-boss, huh?" The Hand Villain exclaimed as more and more thugs were forced in the teacher's direction, only to each fail to even touch the man. "It's not like I have to worry about stamina, so I guess I'll sic my Nomu on you as a warm-up for All Might."
"That beaked mutant that's been unmoving since you came here, I take it?"
"The very same."
"You appear to be here under the serious intention to defeat him, then."
"He's specifically made to kill All Might. He's a match in every way, with some extra skills that give him the advantage." Blood-red pools swirled with something unknown as they drifted to the hulking monster.
"Is that right?" The man almost whispered.
"I got help from my Sensei, he knows for sure that it can kill him."
"…And this collection of men you have, they all are aware of this 'Nomu's' capabilities?" Came the question.
"How do you think I got so many to join in for this? We got a lot of people that know what they're talking about to advertise that we got a 100% certain All Might-killing weapon."
"I see." The brunet almost sounded distracted, clearly deep in thought. "What a perfect opportunity, then." The blue haired villain raised an eyebrow.
"A perfect opportunity for what?"
"Establishment."
"…Oh, you're trying to make a name for yourself, huh? Trying to rise above your status as an NPC? Sorry, once an NPC, always an NPC." The blue haired villain smirked.
"Nomu. Kill him." The monster turned to a blur with a ferocious howl, moving so fast, the teacher had only managed to turn his head halfway towards the beast by the time it was upon him.
Next Chapter: ̶D̶I̶V̶I̶N̶I̶T̶Y̶