The Teacher's Aide
5: All-Out Giant Monster Fox Attack!
Izuku was still convinced the past two weeks were part of a fever-dream induced by overworking his body. He might even be comatose in a hospital somewhere after his supposedly phenomenal showing at the U.A. Entrance Exam. Was it considered an isekai if he was still in his own world?
"Pretty sure that's just a fever dream, kid." Some random passenger standing beside him on the train said. Izuku flushed and stammered an apology to the other riders for his muttering. Most ignored him and the bothered party just wished him better luck in his next life.
Anyway...
He was still a student of U.A., the famous Hero Academy. He was enrolled in the Hero Course, in class 1-A, even! His education was overseen by Aizawa-sensei, aka The Underground Hero Eraserhead! Then, the up and coming Solar Strike – the 20th most popular Pro Hero in the entire nation – was even working to become a permanent teacher at the academy! If that weren't enough, his Heroic Foundations class was headed by the Number One Hero himself, All Might!
Furthermore, he'd become the man's protege and successor in wielding the powerful stockpiler Quirk: One For All. The very Quirk that made All Might the Hero that he was today!
If this is a dream, please don't let me wake up, Izuku thought with a giddy grin.
And then the train was derailed by a Kaiju.
...Nah, even with that, this was the best dream he'd had in years.
Katsuki hated taking the train this early for two reasons.
The first being that he had to wake up a whole hour earlier than he was used to in order to get through his morning exercises. It was worth it, to keep him at the top of the pecking order in his class at U.A. Granted, considering his class had his second reason for hating taking the early train in it, that wasn't saying much.
As stated before, the second reason he hated taking the early train was because that worthless nerd Deku took the same damn train. No amount of glares or snarls would keep the boy from boarding it either, but at least he wisened up on day two to not board the same car as Katsuki.
Still! It was annoying seeing the little bastard at class, why did he have to be on the same train!? If only he could just–argh, it was so damn frustrating! But what was Katsuki supposed to do? Destroy the loser's train pass? Katsuki acknowledged that he was capable of being a dick at times, but you don't screw with other people's train schedules. The fact that Katsuki knew his mother would literally kill him if he tried to damage Deku's train pass was not important.
At all.
Screw anyone that thought otherwise! Those bastards could go jump off a cliff and di–!
Dammit. Katsuki growled as the image of glaring red eyes and a supernova floated in his head. That bastard T.A. had gotten in his head, and they'd only had two conversations! ...Granted, he'd also eavesdropped on one of Uzumaki's conversations with some other extra Hero-wannabe, but that didn't prove anything worthwhile! All the asshole did was spew some crap about not beating up villains! What kind of Pro Hero said that when there was that leaked video about him literally dismantling a city-destroying cult?!
Hypocrites and liars, Katsuki snarled as his hand balled into a tighter fist. Everywhere I turn, just another goddamn hypocrite or liar!
The public announce system's chime did little to calm the bombardier's nerves, but it fuzzed out when the conductor spoke. A tense second passed before the message relayed overhead was repeated.
"-I repeat, we will have a slight delay to Mustafau's Station. It appears to be a 'Kaiju Incident' on the train tracks. Please remain calm. Heroes are en route and the delay will be over momentarily."
God. Damn. It. Katsuki ground his teeth before he started shoving his way through the slightly panicked crowd to the front window. He was not going to be late for class and not know why the Hell he was! These damn extras needed to get over themselves, this would be settled in a moment!
"Get the Hell out of my goddamn way!" Katsuki snarled at another extra that was murmuring with their literal fish lips. His red eyes went wide when he saw what it was everyone was so worked up over.
Big.
That was big.
"Goddamn." Katsuki muttered as he pulled his phone out. He quickly sent a text to Aizawa, who sent a reply saying he was aware of the situation and that his tardiness would be overlooked just this once. Dick. Also–
"What the Hell does he mean 'don't go fight it'!? I'm the goddamn best in the whole damn school! That sonova–!"
Then the train car was derailed by a massive swinging paw.
Once Katsuki woke up, he'd be pissed that the fight was over.
Nishiya Shinji had seen a lot in his five year career as a Professional Hero.
He'd seen Best Jeanist take down The DewGang, a group of liquid-emitters that were enamored with the long defunct product from overseas and led by a mutation-quirk Villain known as Gong, a dewgong-headed individual that was...rather simple in etiquette.
He'd even seen Endeavor rescue a dog from a tree. The dog was fine...for the most part. (The tree, however, did not survive the encounter.)
Then there was the time Shinji saw Airjet–Actually, he had to sign an NDA on that one. Thinking about it wasn't a crime, but there were the occasional psychics that cropped up and the last thing Kamui Woods needed was to be involved in a legal scandal because he thought about his standing NDA.
Point being, Kamui Woods had been a professional for five years and still he found himself capable of being surprised by Quirks and the people around him.
That said, Shinji had never seen a giant fox roaming around the area. He thought only Mt. Lady's ego could get so big.
"That bitch is stealing my thing!"
Speaking of fat asses… Kamui Woods thought as he side-eyed the trembling newcomer that had been a pro for not even a year. He looked back at the snarling fox and then sighed.
"Well, go get it."
"What?" Mt. Lady looked at him, baffled by his instruction. "Me?!"
Seriously? Kamui Woods felt his eye twitch. He could not produce the amount of wood needed to contain a Kaiju. Stupid Kaiju-classes.
"Yes, you." He said. "You're the only Hero in the area that could come close to stopping that thing."
"...I'm sorry, Kamui, but I can only grow to twenty meters!" Mt. Lady gesticulated at the fifty meter tall fox. "That thing is twice my size!"
"That sounds like it's your problem. Flex woman."
"Wha–Why are you being so mean to me!?"
Well, your debut totally overshadowed my handling of the situation you debuted to stop, Shinji thought. It still stung, being overlooked for freaking fanservice of all things. He shook his head and threw an arm towards the monster fox. "Just go try and stop the damn thing!"
"Why don't you?! You could distract it with a stick, right?" Mt. Lady huffed and crossed her arms. She flicked a hand at him. "Go on, I've got better things to do with my time then watch you play fetch with a pooch."
"...I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that." Kamui Woods growled. He glanced back at the fox and– "Okay, wha–How does it have thumbs?!"
"My, my. What a fascinating specimen."
Nezu was many things.
A keen strategist.
A former science experiment.
A Principal, with emphasis on the 'pal'.
A not-so-secret Anarchist against the realm of man.
A member of PETA.
But first and foremost, Nezu was a Hero. So, as much as he enjoyed witnessing such wanton destruction caused by the canis-superior that was traipsing around the city, he had to act. His phone was pulled out and he hit the number 1 on his speed-dial. It was answered immediately.
"Toshinori, are you on your way to work?"
"Not presently, no. There's a bus of orphans in threat of being roasted alive due to a pile-up just outside of Tokyo."
"And you heard about this, how?"
"I have a smartphone, Nezu. I'm almost sixty, not a savage."
Note to self, hack the Mightphone to turn off his news feed. Selectively. Perhaps sign him up for some amusing fan mail. And a dreadful magazine subscription. From one of Endeavor's sidekick–No! Sir Nighteye's preferred subscription.
"Nezu?"
Ah, he was plotting again! Silly him!
"Sorry, I was lost in thought. There's a situation developing in Mustafau."
"I can get there in thirty minutes! I just have to save these orphans–"
"I'm sure you will, but I don't believe we'd have a city in thirty minutes." Nezu chuckled in amusement as he watched the many news stations' coverage of the Rampaging Monster Fox. Really, it wasn't even that bad. The Fox had some sort of sentience to it, it was trying to avoid damage, after all.
"What? Is it a Villain of some sort? Are the local heroes in need of aid?"
"No. It's a Kaiju."
"...Er, pardon?"
"You heard me. Kaiju. Like that American Hero, Godzillo?"
"Ugh, crap. I hate Kaiju Incidents."
"Because it's guaranteed to leave collateral?"
"Because they hit really, really hard!"
The Number One Hero in Japan just whined.
"...All Might?"
"Yes, Nezu?"
"Use whatever remains of your amazing Quirk to grow a set." Nezu hung up and rubbed his face. High Spec darted from thought to thought as fast as the synapsis his neurons could manage and it landed on his next best plan.
The teacher aide.
Nezu dialed the boy's number. It rang twice, before a groggy voice answered.
"'M off on Thursdays, Nezu."
"Indeed you are, but we have a situation in Mustafau."
"Does it have something to do with the earthquakes?"
"Uzumaki, do you have a window?"
"No. Got crap pick because of the rush move. Still hunting for an apartment."
"I'm surprised you don't have–Wait, where are you living?"
"With Auntie Rin and Uncle 'Bito."
"Oh, that would explain why you don't know." Nezu mused. Uzumaki's current residence, if it was where he thought it was, was currently on the opposite side of the city, practically along the edge of the prefecture. No wonder he thought it was an earthquake.
"If that's all sir, I've got some sleep to catch up on–"
"Naruto, I will be frank with you." Nezu stared at the screens playing the news as one copter zoomed in on the fox's head. What was that? By the ear? …Oh, my, what a twist! "We have a Kaiju Incident in the making as we speak."
That seemed to get his attention.
"Hold up! A Kaiju Incident!? For real?!"
"Yes." Nezu smiled as he heard sheets and bedding get tossed over the line. "This would be the first one in twenty-two years."
"...I'll be there in five minutes!"
"And Naruto?"
"Yeah?"
"I believe we may also have an unintentional hostage situation."
"I'll go through proper de-escalation protocols."
"Make us proud." Nezu hung up and started typing up the frame for this incident's press release. He did not want to risk having to go against those bastards in Homeland Animal Control Syndicate. They were a bunch of hacks.
Yu Takeyama was used to a lot of things on the job.
The leering – it was flattering and raised her popularity, so she tolerated it.
The occasional civilian wandering too close to a dangerous incident — she was always super careful whenever she had to max out in the city, and still she had to foot the bill for the collateral. Unbelievable.
The Villains getting a good hit in – it happened every now and then. Usually other size altering villains had less training in combat than she did and focused primarily on their quirk. Fighting other giants was easy as pie.
Fighting an actual Kaiju? Totally not the same. nor in her job description. She blamed the minimal funding at her Hero Academy alma mater on the lack of Kaiju-combat classes!
At least her sneak attack went well, but if only punching it in the snout did more than piss it off.
"How did I let that wooden jackass talk me into this?! Down boy! Heel!"
She dodged back against the snap of its very sharp teeth as spittle flew from its maw.
"Bitch!"
"Rude!" Yu huffed. It was a surprise to have the giant fox growl a word at her, but she overcame that surprise easily. "You're trespassing in a no Kaiju-rampaging zone, pal. Power down the Quirk and come quietly or I will have several new fur coats for the Annual Billboard Hero Chart event!"
"Move!" Its hand-like paw swiped at her aggressively and she jumped back. Shame about that small office building. Thankfully, the area had been mostly evacuated...From what she could tell, anyway.
What? She had other priorities right now! Don't judge!
"Away!" The Fox snarled. It lunged at her again and she kicked it in the jaw.
"Yeah! You! Go away!"
"Thot!"
"...Okay, you die now!" Yu snarled, running in and sliding under the monstrous animal that was twice her size. "Time to even the playing field! You're getting neu...ter…ed?"
Where was its–? There was no sign of any genitalia. At all.
The Hell is this thing?!
"DIE!"
What?
Oh, that was a lot of large teeth going in her side.
Mt. Lady cried out as her arm was pinned to her ribs and her flesh was pierced. The Fox pulled her out from beneath it and whipped its head back and forth. Something tore and it wasn't just Yu's suit.
"Lady, shrink!" She faintly heard someone shout at her. Kamui Woods? No, his voice was rougher than the one that shouted. After she considered the option, Yu shook her head and she grit her teeth.
"It'll rip my arm off!" And that was the best outcome.
"Dammit—Hold on!"
"Yeah, make it sound difficult, why don't you?!" Yu snapped at the unhelpful newcomer. She balled her free non-dominant hand into a fist and reared it back. With a defiant cry, she threw her punch.
The punch bounced right off of the tooth and now she probably had a sprained wrist. Great. This exposure was so not worth it!
"Lacquered Chain Prison!" A bunch of trees sprouted around the Monster Fox's left front paw. The growl from the monster in question shook Yu's entire body.
That lying sonova–He said he couldn't stop it! My sweet ass! Yu cursed the wood-based Hero. Then she found herself thanking him for intervening when the Fox decided that Kamui was too much of an annoyance to be left alone and flung her to the side. As she flew, she used what little wits she had to let her Quirk go and shrank.
She probably should have done that after she finished flying.
"Oh, crap! Crap! Crap!" Yu flailed with her good arm and legs as she cleared three blocks before rooftops started getting close to stopping her flight.
"Mt. Lady, go limp!"
That was the same unhelpful dickbag that told her to risk losing her arm. So, what, was this his debut? Great. She was about to get saved by a rookie. Her numbers were going to tank!
Still, she'd be alive, so...Yu begrudgingly listened. Silver lining? Maybe.
Something as firm as a steel girder braced her back and shoulders while another firm girder hooked under her legs. She found herself cradled against a solid wall of muscle. Oh, god, this wasn't Death Arms with some new mutation or support gear, was it? She was never going to live this down if it was.
"Hang tight, I gotta roll." Her savior (UGH!) hissed to her.
…Okay, if it was Death Arms, his voice had just become like, ten times sexier. Or was that the blood loss talking? Yu decided that if it was Death Arms, her newfound attraction to his voice was due to the blood loss.
Gravity rolled around her before they hit something solid enough to cause a loud bang on impact. Her savior shifted fast and wind billowed around them. Faintly, Yu heard the people whisper and mutter, but their words were lost. The awe in them was palpable and she felt bile build in her throat from her worst fear coming true: Being paired up by the paparazzi with some D-lister.
If she kept her eyes closed, she wouldn't have to acknowledge reality. She could live in blissful denial and keep her dignity. However, being a blind hero without a quirk that supplemented it was not her brand. Being a blind giant hero was...that would be bad. She'd have to open her eyes.
Resigned to her fate of being paired with Death Arms for the foreseeable future due to what would be a Tabloid photo cover, Yu cracked her eyes open to see the radiantly glowing form of a man a bit younger than her.
Wait, she recognized this guy.
"S...Solar Strike?"
"Ah, hey, you know my name! Awesome!" The younger Hero – Thank God, it wasn't Death Arms! Her reputation was safe! – beamed at her. Literally, that was a bright grin. Yu squinted and started to tune the guy out. "Glad I was able to get Kamui to distract that glorified fuzzball."
"...Y...Aren't you...off duty?" The HPSC didn't like Heroes heroing off-duty outside of a crisis. It meant more paychecks had to be signed or something. Probably less payout overall. Crap, he wasn't cutting into her pay was he?!
"Got called in by U.A.'s Principal." Oh, supplemental. Sweet, Yu's paycheck was safe. Now just to angle herself a bit for the pictures–Wait, was he putting her down?
"Stay put until paramedics come to assess your injuries." Solar Strike instructed. Oh, yeah, bleeding, she was doing that. Quite a lot of that–Annnd now his jacket was off. Wow, look at those shoulders.
Um...Damn.
Yu wanted to say 'Marry me', but in her unprepared and blood loss-riddled state, she muttered: "Murray May."
"Um, I'm pretty sure it's still April?" Oh, great. A confused pity laugh. He noticed her flub. His smile seemed genuine though, so...win? "Just sit tight, alright?"
"Uh-huh." Yu did not trust herself to speak right now. The Insurmountable Hero crouched down and launched himself away, back towards the monster fox and Kamui Woods. Yu leaned back and looked up at the sky.
Huh. This could be caused by her blood loss, but Solar Strike appeared to be a hunk. And he was in her age range.
He's what? One, two years younger than me? …I could find out with a date…
"Hey, Kari! We got a bleeder!" Oh, hey. Paramedic. Awesome. "Ma'am, we need to–Oh, wow, you're Mt. Lady! Oh, can I get an autograph for my sister–Er, once we get you fixed up, I mean."
She offered a shaky thumbs up.
"You held out well, Shinji-senpai." Naruto praised the Hero he just saved from being crushed in the jaws of death. His Lacquered Chain Prison was surprisingly effective at tying up the Monster Fox's paws and limbs.
"Call me Kamui in the field, Uzumaki." Shin-Er, Kamui panted out.
"Right, right. Sorry, day off and all." Naruto admitted as he landed on a rooftop several blocks away. The Fox kept glaring at him, not surprising since he was a giant glowing beacon when his Quirk was active, but unnerving all the same.
"What are you doing here then?"
"Nezu called me in."
"Surprised he didn't just unleash All Might on this thing."
"He thinks it might have a ride-along." Naruto explained. Kamui Woods looked at him in confusion and he shrugged. "Unintentional Hostage Situation."
"Oh, terrific...This is why we need more Fauna-aligned Quirks in the field." Kamui rubbed his face...Mask? Was that his face or his mask? Naruto was never sure. "So, what, someone saw a fox sniffing around and decided to attack it? Then when its Quirk activated, it snowballed and took someone?"
"Dunno, I'm gonna go ask."
"What?!"
"It was growling words." Naruto shrugged. You'd have to be deaf and braindead to not recognize that the Monster Fox had been insulting Mt. Lady. He grinned and clapped Kamui Woods on the shoulder. "Lighten up, senpai. Take five, I got this."
"Wai–" Naruto leapt off before he could finish. Ah, dick move on his part, but today was his day off. He was not spending any more of it in a fight with a Kaiju if he could help it. He soared over to the giant fox and hovered in front of it. It glared at him and let out a roar that was more akin to a loud bark.
He recoiled and playfully waved his hand in front of his face.
"Wheew, buddy! Your breath is rank!"
"Boy!" The Fox growled.
Naruto grinned. He knew it could talk.
"That's me, then, yeah?" A sharp snort made him nod. "Yeah, okay. So you can talk, huh? Can you tell me what happened, big guy? Or we gonna have to go a few rounds?"
"Move!"
"No, no-no-no. Don't start that again." Naruto chided with a wag of his finger. The Fox snarled and snapped its teeth at him and he arched a brow. "How sharp and mighty your teeth are, grandmother…"
"Pest!"
"Pest?! I'm trying to help you, pal!" Naruto crossed his arms. "You won't keep rampaging here. Last chance, tell me what happened an–"
A subtle jaunty tune rang from his pocket.
"It's Pinky and The Brain. Pinky and the Brain. One is a genius, the other's insane–"
"I need to take this." Naruto said, holding up one finger while he pulled his phone out. "One moment?"
The Fox kept glaring at him, but made no move to attack. That was promising.
"Thanks!" Naruto grinned before he leaned into his phone call. "Sup, Nezu?"
"Look at the base of its left ear. There's a young child."
"Uh-huh...Okay." Naruto squinted and sure enough, there was a white speck among the large streak of black. "Yep. I see 'em."
"Ask about it. Hurry up, the longer this goes on, the more likely that someone stupid is going to do something to make this worse."
"Got'cha. I'll call you back in a second." Naruto hung up and tucked his phone away. He grinned at the fox. "So, uh, bud? Where'd you get the kid?"
"Kit." Its left ear flicked. More of the fur was displaced at the base. Sure enough, as Nezu said, there was a child in rags clinging to its ear for its life. Light reflected from her body, but Naruto didn't have to see her face to know she was probably terrified. "Scared."
"Yeah, I'm sure she is."
"Help?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I can help her." Naruto's smile turned gentle as he lowered his glow. He floated over towards the child and carefully held his hands out. The child whimpered and ducked closer to her protector's ear – yes, further inspection revealed it to be a girl. He shushed her whimpers and offered his hands. "C'mon kiddo. I won't hurt you. Let's get you down, okay?"
She whimpered and uttered things in a language Naruto didn't have a hope of understanding. Great. Language barriers suck. Despite that, he managed to coerce her into being held by him.
"Okay, I've got her." He readjusted his hold on the girl and grinned at The Fox. "Think you can shrink down?"
"Try." The Fox rumbled, almost unsure. Its giant red eyes closed and its brow furrowed. It started small, a slight shrink that was hardly noticable, before stopping as the Fox let out a roar.
"The He–Whoa! Easy pal!" Naruto jerked back and cradled the girl in his arms as the Fox snapped at him. He shot away, before looking back to see the Fox writhe and roar in an indiscriminate manner. His brow furrowed, it wasn't chasing him. It seemed like it was in pain? "What the–?"
"Hey! Shiny! Get down here!" A megaphone broadcasted a shout. Naruto glanced down at the speaker. A man with obsidian protruding from his body glared up at him, a megaphone in his right hand. The Hero looked at the girl in his arms, who had gone very still.
"Friend of yours?" He asked. She curled into his shoulder and whimpered. Golden eyes narrowed and looked back at the man. "Yeah, I didn't think so."
Hesitantly, he descended from the sky to hover a good six feet off of the ground.
"You really shouldn't be this close to a rampaging Kaiju, sir."
"Give me that kid!" The man shouted, foam frothed from his mouth, his bloodshot eyes looking in different directions. Naruto took a breath and put the kid down beside a nearby mailbox with a pat to her head.
"Stay." The word was lost on her. He pointed to her, and then the mailbox, and held a finger up to indicate waiting. She understood that gesture and hid behind the postal service's pickup point. Naruto then turned to the raving mad man whose eyes gleamed with drug use. Foamed mouth, reddened eyes – Trigger. "Sir, if you don't put that megaphone down and get out of the way of the rampaging Kaiju, I'm going to move you."
"Like Hell! I won't tell you -oof!" The stone man snarled only for him to double over like a cheap lawn chair as The Hero buried his fist in his gut in the blink of an eye. The stone that shielded his body shattered all around him and fell away like a cheap shell. He dropped like a thrown rock and Naruto rose back up.
"Sir. I will not tell you again. Move, or be moved."
The man wheezed and pulled a weapon from his jacket. A gun? Laughable. The drug user rolled to his back and fired the contents into the air, before he promptly passed out. A flare? What was the purpose of–?
"Shiny Man Die!"
"Oh, wonderful." Naruto turned a flat gaze to the Fox that was now charging towards him. "Well, that's what I get for being nice. Dammit, I'm not even supposed to be working today."
With a resigned sigh, he shot at the Kaiju like an illuminated bullet. He bypassed the fangs and claws, not really in the mood to deal with the deft agility, and went under the legs to the rear.
Huh, no twig and berries. Naruto frowned before he shook the annoyance off. Okay, plan B.
He made a grab for the large tail. It flicked just as his fingers tickled the tip, and then split apart like a spiral banana.
Okay, not one large tail but... one, two, three... His hyperactive mind counted the total. Nine. Nine tails. Giant Fox. Giant Ninetails. Sure, okay. Let's just get a fistful of a few.
It took five minutes to gather a good amount of his tails. Naruto grinned, ignoring the sweat that built along his brow and started to rise up.
"C'mon, big guy! Let's go for a spin!"
"I hate Trigger." Nezu muttered, having found a clip of the fox being hit by a very small speck. Typical Channel Five News, going above and beyond in regards to coverage. He'd have to increase his donations to the station come sweepstakes time.
"We're here live at Mustafau Station Bridge, behind us we can clearly see the rampaging Kaiju. It had seemed to stop moments ago, but just resumed its frenzy!" Channel Thirty-Six's reporter on the scene declared. "Wait, wait, I-I believe Solar Strike is re-engaging! Yes! Yes he is! He is–Holy Mary, mother of God...Solar Strike is lifting, I repeat, lifting the Kaiju into the sky!"
It was unbelievable to see such a hulking monster just so easily taking airborne. Very few had the ability to even attempt such a feat. Then again, this was one of U.A.'s most prominent graduates. As soon as the Kaiju was taken to the skies, the flaring speck swirled in the sky like the center of a solar system of blurring orange fur.
"The Kaiju is being spun like a top an–...Oh, (BLEEP). He isn't going to throw that thing, is he?"
"He better take the shockwave of that drop into account." Nezu mused as he took a sip of his tea. He chuckled as the city shook with the Kaiju's impact. "Oh, who am I kidding? He won't."
"Did we get that? Takeru! Did you get that on camera!?"
"Pretty sure the camera's busted!"
"(BLEEP)!"
Okay, so, in hindsight, throwing the Kaiju-Quirked Fox straight down into the city after building momentum was not his best move.
It certainly got the message across, though!
What that message was, Naruto wasn't entirely sure. He really needed to get back in touch with Yamanaka and hire her as his P.R.-slash-Social Media manager so that someone with the know how could spin it for him.
At least the fox shrank down upon being knocked out by the attack.
Before the smoke cleared, he went and grabbed the little lady he tucked away. Thankfully she was still by the mailbox, curled into a ball in her diamond form. Durable kid. She was elated to see him though. And started yammering in that language he didn't know. He only knew some English and a smattering of Spanish.
As far as Naruto knew, Solntse wasn't from either.
"You, little miss, are quite the chatterbox once you get going, huh?" He asked, amused as he walked toward the Kaiju Incident Recovery Tent with the child sitting on his shoulders while he carried the unconscious, shrunken Kaiju in his hands. Diamond Girl, oblivious to their language barrier, let out another chatter and clapped her hands in merriment. He ducked into a Tent with an Oroborus around a fan posted outside. "Yo! Uncle 'Bito! Auntie Rin! I need a translator for...I don't know, European maybe? And a vet!"
"Well, if it isn't Mister Collateral Damage!" Naruto's 'Uncle', Nohara Obito (aka The Relief Hero, Tobi) looked up from where he was bandaging an older man's bleeding head. The dark-haired man had orange-tinted goggles over his eyes and wore a navy utilitarian uniform not unsimilar to a military medic's typical gear. He patted the elder on the shoulder and walked over to meet his taller 'nephew' with a similar grin. "Gone out to stop a Kaiju attack and came back with a kid and a pet. Overachiever."
"Ha-ha, very funny Uncle 'Bito." Naruto rolled his eyes. He shoved the unconscious Kaiju into his uncle's hands. "Here, fix this. I need Auntie Rin's brainpower."
"What the Hell am I supposed to do with this thing?" Obito asked, holding the unconscious fox like it was an ugly child.
"Get it a nice pillow or something, I don't know! You're the Rescue Hero!" Naruto called back as he walked toward a curtained bed. He reached up and pulled Diamond Girl from his shoulders and held her securely against his chest. She babbled something at him and he grinned. "Honey, I wish I understood what you said, but don't worry, Auntie Rin will check you out for any boo-boos. How's that sound?"
"Sounds like you picked up another stray cat...That is not a cat." The bewildered woman had shoulder length brown hair and big brown eyes, the latter locked on the child in her arms. Two purple bars rose from either cheek and her navy uniform matched her husband's.
"Auntie Rin!" Naruto grinned as he shifted Diamond Girl to one arm and embraced his aunt/godmother in a one-armed hug. He backed away and gestured to the kid in his arms. "This is Diamond Girl, Diamond Girl, this is my Auntie Rin! And she probably knows whatever language you're speaking."
Diamond Girl gave a shy wave.
"Ohh, just look at this sweetie!" Nohara Rin (aka Medikit, the Patch-Up Hero) smiled sweetly at the girl and rubbed her diamond locks. "Hi there, sweetheart, it's nice to meet you."
The girl gibbered something in her language and his Aunt hummed and nodded. She began speaking it right back to her, much to her (and Naruto's) delight. They exchanged a good minute long dialog before Auntie Rin took her off Naruto's hands.
"Solar Strike, this is Yelena. She's from Russia. And she is four." Rin embellished her origin country and her age. Naruto grinned and rubbed Diamond Girl–Er, Yelena's head which made her preen under his touch.
"Four!? Wow, you're so brave to be so far from home, ya know?!" He praised, glad that his aunt was here to translate for him. He met Rin's gaze while tickling the girl's side with a few pokes and prods. "You mind taking care of her for a bit while I call my boss?"
"No need, Uzumaki!" Nezu proclaimed, hopping up onto a crate. His sudden appearance certainly surprised those unfamiliar with the U.A. Principal's eccentricities.
"Jeez-us!" "Ah, my heart!" "Eeek, a mouse!"
"Am I a mouse? A cat? A platypus? Who knows? All that matters is–!"
"That you sign my paycheck and approve my overtime?" Naruto deadpanned.
"Well, yes to one of those." Nezu smiled. "I'll speak to the HPSC on your behalf in regards to whatever this overtime you speak of is–"
"Typical." Naruto's mutter was echoed by his aunt. At least she understood and sympathized with his struggle.
"–And ensure that this, Yelena, correct?" Nezu asked. He said something to the girl in her native tongue and got a happy trill from the child. "Reunites with her family. I do believe Edelweiss and Geode will be quite elated to see their daughter again."
"I'm not familiar with those names." Naruto admitted.
"Oh, I didn't tell you?" Nezu asked. "This young wonder is the daughter of Russia's Number Six Hero. She's been cracking down on human trafficking over the past year since young Yelena's disappearance into the underworld."
Naruto glowered and clenched his jaw.
"Human trafficking, huh?"
"Indeed. Quite odd that we found a victim of such a thing so shortly after the Cult of Pein, a known organization that made quite the profit in the horrid practice, was overthrown. One might even think that Cult could be behind this." Nezu mused. He smiled at something Yelena said and chuckled. "Well, you have gained quite the admirer, Uzumaki. But I must ask, what happened to the Kaiju?"
"Oh, I left it with Uncle B–"
"Ow, dammit! Watch your fingers, people! It bites!"
Yips and growls caused some yelps and cries before a small red furball shoved its way to where Naruto stood. The diminutive fox barked and yipped as it darted around Auntie Rin's legs. Yelena cried out happily and reached for the animal.
Rather than risk it growing again to appease the child, Naruto snagged the fox and hefted it under his arm. It yipped and whined and laughed as Naruto held it out to Yelena to be pet.
"That is too adorable for words." Rin muttered.
"You wouldn't be saying that if you knew what it was saying." Nezu chuckled.
"Don't ruin this for me, Nezu."
"Well, everything seems to be under wraps here. Uzumaki, you'll be speaking at a press conference tonight about the Incident."
"Press duty? What–?!"
"Naruto." Auntie Rin gave him 'The Look'. Naruto hung his head in defeat and acquisited with a grumble. So much for sleeping in. Rin nodded and then smiled at Yelena. "(Say goodbye to the cute fox, Yelena. Auntie Rin is going to give you a checkup before we go call your mommy.)"
"Buh-bye, Fuchs!" Yelena waved at the fox and then at Naruto as Rin carried her away. "Buh-bye, Solntse!"
"Oh, that's too cute." Naruto gushed, forgetting about the Quirked animal he was holding for all of three seconds before it bit him on the hand. He glared at the Fox's red eyes as it glared back at him. "Gah! You little bas–!"
"Language, sport." Obito warned as he walked by, briefly nodding at Nezu. Nezu waved back before he faced Naruto.
"Uzumaki, come with me and I'll brief you on your approved topics for the press conference. Bring our new fuzzy friend."
"Yeah, my pleasure." Naruto mumbled. The Fox growled at him and gnawed on his hand. He squinted at it. "You're one bite away from becoming a fur coat, Fuzzball."
The Fox released his hand and licked his face.
"Gah, stop! Stop, ya know! That's so gross!"
AN: Happy Memorial Day!
Such a morbid celebratory statement...Like, yeah, don't get me wrong USA FTW and all that patriotic jazz, but...Happy...Memorial...Day.
People DIED for this holiday.
Kinda effed...Meh, I'm getting paid time and a half for working it. I'll stop complaining.
And so we meet the first International OC! Mother Russia's Diamond Darling, Yelena!
Will she be back? Who knows?
