Chapter 91 - Perfect Your Styles, Heroes!
Before everyone left to join their families for the last day of the year, a private talk was held between a select few students. "Go to Endeavour's?" All Might was surprised to be sure. Most notably. "The Four of you? That sounds good, you should definitely take advantage of this opportunity!"
"I didn't get much fieldwork done since Hosu," Yuki admitted, a calm but dangerous flame behind her smile. "Plus, I've got a score to settle with that flaming asshole."
"That's... understandable," All Might cleared his throat, both Katsuki, and Izuku unaware of what the two were talking about.
"What should we do about my One For All training?" Izuku perked up.
"I think it's going smoothly now," The ex Pro replied, putting the papers down. "With Young Azuru with you this time, anything to do with Blackwhip manifesting lately shouldn't be an issue; no other quirks have abruptly appeared, right? If you can visualize the locking and unlocking properly I don't believe it'll go out of control again,"
"Yes, sir," Izuku was eager to master Blackwhip but he had to be cautious of any other developments.
"If it were me I'd just blow it all away," Katsuki snarked, clearly bored of the topic.
"I can imagine it," Izuku smiled.
"He's just jealous cause sooner or later you'll have a quirk that takes over his ability to fly through the air." Yuki pointed out while cleaning her mask.
"Hah! I've already mastered air mobility, what can some gliding quirk do to match that!?" He boasted.
Yuki rolled her eyes. "Sure-sure, we'll see..."
"This is good timing for you both, Young Bakugo, Azuru," Their squabbling was paused to look to All Might's encouraging smile.
"You both and Endeavor are similar in ways, although your reasons are different," He leaned forward seriously, placing his fingers together. "It will be good for you to see the current Endeavor up close." Then his smile returned, holding a fist out. "If you three are going to become top heroes, then don't miss this chance!"
"Finally, made it in one piece," Yuki sighed in relief, hopping off the bus with a pop of her joints. "Not really a fan of buses,"
Then she was nudged by Katsuki, the group turning to face quite the unnerving sight, Endeavor was smiling. This was the first time in months since Yuki had seen the new Number One hero up close. Their last encounter was Hosu, but the times back then he was much less open to the idea of her running her own life, especially Shoto's.
"Welcome to working for the Endeavor Agency," He greeted before his whole picture turned dark purple, shadowing his expression with rage. "That's not what I feel like though," An awkward gust of wind howled by. "Because Shoto asked, I gave my permission reluctantly, but I wish Shoto came on his own."
"Oh, then why'd he say you accepted my notice regardless?" From behind the boys, Yuki squeezed her way to the front with a smile dripping with venom. "I mean, it can't be that the top hero in Japan is feeling guilty for what he did to me, no?"
"..." He didn't speak, in fact, he expected this once he agreed to the request. Of all students he didn't wish to confront again, it had to be the one Shoto found to ground his new path away from Endeavor, and the one he hurt the most.
"Yuki..." Shoto grabbed her shoulder but she softened her smile briefly to reassure him as he slowly let go.
"I came to learn what I couldn't during my work experience, ya know, since you tried to forcibly hook me and Shoto up, threatening my sister, who at the time, was still in a coma," Yuki dug that knife in deeper, twisting it slowly.
"He did what?" Katsuki's voice hissed and Izuku looked slightly paler, unable to find the words momentarily.
"...for that, I apologize," Endeavor spoke quietly to her, looking at her with the newest expression she's seen on his face, remorse, in his own stubborn way. "What I had said and done cannot be taken back, however, you were right about me back then."
One note appeared, bold and true from her heart. 'Go Fuck Yourself' another appeared, this one with a little more to say while she winked to Todoroki. 'Let me skip to the fine print, eh? Don't insult my friend beside me, don't insult my Mom, and don't ever use my little sister like a crutch or run Izuku's name into the dirt'
He kept his teeth knitted, acting as though he already won. "Your attitude toward me needs to be adjusted." Yuki took that as her cue to raise her arms challengingly. Prior to this arrangement, she made a very detailed complaint to Mr. Aizawa encase things got... ugly that may damage her standing at UA, all green lights if certain criteria met
'You think you can threaten me? I'm a sexy, one-woman army compared to your tinderbox ass, here's a little advice from an actual hero, money can't sway all hearts and minds, and what you call 'rebellion' is what I see as 'realization', Todoroki doesn't need you anymore to succeed, the Sports Festival taught him that not you' Her hand grabbed his tightly, snapping him out of his stupor for a second
'It's my life, and I don't need some dead-beat father and a crappy hero to tell me otherwise, I will continue to intern here because refusing to learn from you would be a horrible decision on my part, but that's all you are under a mountain of lies, deceit, and greed'
Yuki's venomous gaze began to subside to a neutral frown. "I can't take your word on that," She tapped a hand to her chest. "I had no voice then, my actions were all I had to express my feelings, to be put in that position felt horrible," Taking a breath, she put on a tiny, hopeful smile. "I've got a whole Work-Study to see you for myself, try not to lose your head, 'kay?"
The boys all sighed in relief as Shoto took the opportunity to add. "Back on topic, you were the one to give permission so you have no right to complain," Yuki slipped her arm around his neck.
"He's right~" She sang.
"I've thought so since the supplementary lessons, but you're kind of cringy," Katsuki commented, causing Yuki to snort in laughter.
"Shoto, are you really friends with this boy!?" Endeavor yelled quietly but many still looked in their direction since he didn't exactly blend in
"But, if I can see how the top hero works, I don't really care about anything else," He concluded as Yuki pinched her nose.
"People are starting to notice us..." She hid behind Shoto.
"I thought I told you to choose your friends wisely!" Endeavor's expression twitched.
"He's really mellowed out, huh?" Yuki murmured in her best friend's ear.
"Mm," Shoto didn't express if he agreed or not, keeping a stare that put Kyoka's to shame.
"Thank you for allowing us to do our work-study with you," The voice of reason, Izuku, pipped up, adjusting his red, blue and yellow scarf. Like Yuki, Izuku had only really had one impression of the Flame Hero. "At the Sports Fesitval, honestly, since then, I've been scared of him, but something about him has changed."
"Come along then," Reluctantly, Endeavor turned to lead the students toward his agency. The group shared a look, then followed.
The walk was rather tame, nothing was said for a while as no one really had anything to say, Yuki had said her piece, now she was spectating, she and SIVA analyzed the hero before to the hero now. For however long their Work-Study lasted, they would see how far Endeavor had come, and hopefully, learn what their flaws may be.
"We will do our best to learn from the work of the number one hero," Izuku announced, Yuki smiling fondly at his willingness to try and coax information out of the stoic man leading them.
Endeavor passed the greenette a glance, clearly lost in thought before turning away. "Shoto's not me... right?" His odd reply silenced the lot, leaving Yuki to feel a buzz radiate through her head.
Warning | Energy fluctuations are present nearby | Several blocks away
SIVA's own warning was a step behind, Endeavor bounding over the railing to sprint full-tilt in the direction of the alert. "Sorry, but I don't plan on looking out for anyone other than Shoto!" His flaming facial hair came to life, discarding his briefcase. "If you want to learn, watch from the back!" His eye caught something over his shoulder.
Shoto had conjured a line of ice to traverse faster, Katsuki equipped his grenade gauntlets, Yuki slipped her mask on as blue clusters infected her uniform, reconfiguring it into small propulsion devices. Lastly, Izuku attached both his air force gloves and Merger Gauntlet as Yuki had.
"Please, give us your instructions!" Izuku yelled back.
"Watch! From the back!" He repeated, increasing his flame's output. He quickly discarded his causal clothing, his hero suit revealed underneath before taking off like a flaming comet ahead of the students, leaving only a hot wind to smack them in the face.
"Come on, follow me!" Yuki waved, leading them through the shortest route to the point of impact. "He outclassed your detection, Siva? Is that possible?"
I used various network antennae in the area to bolster our ability to pinpoint crimes or accidents | But human intuition | Is something I cannot compete with
Acknowledging this, Yuki noted the glass in the nearby buildings had been removed, and a massive flash of searing hot flames melted the primary source of that missing element. Whoever did this, they were fleeing into an alleyway just as Endeavor arrived. "Right, then take a left!" Yuki instructed as the boys changed their direction to intercept.
Endeavor was catching up to the old man manipulating glass, "Now!" He squawked.
"Yes...!" Four men had set an ambush seconds before Endeavor would burn, or that would've been the case had the students he ran ahead of not intercepted.
Izuku caught the guy with a long metal pipe, Yuki warped to hold another in a headlock who recoiled from the burnt metal wires. Katsuki was ready to blast the third in the face with a stun explosion while Shoto froze the ground, holding the fourth and second in place for Yuki.
That was the plan until several red feathers swept the crooks off their feet. "Huh? Oh, work-study students? Sorry, I was just a little faster," Hawks quickly took care of the men, leaving the teens high and dry. "I thought Endeavor was in trouble."
"Did it look like I was in trouble?" The Flaming man grunted, detaining the lead villain.
"It did, didn't it, Shoto?" Hawks landed before the boy.
"Sure..."
"I thought I told you to let me know when you were coming," Endeavor reminded though Hawks certainly didn't look to care.
"Well, I just happened to be in the area," He shrugged.
Once apprehended, with some whining from the glass villain, the situation was resolved quite quickly. Hawks strolled over as Yuki pleasantly observed the fan boy shine at the other hero's presence. "N-nice to meet you! I'm in UA's Hero Course, Class 1-A! I'm Izuku Midoriya!"
"You stand any more straight people will think you're a lamppost, Zuzu," Yuki hummed, seeing his face turning red at her public teasing in front of the Number Two hero.
"Hahaha, 'Zuzu', what a funny name!" Hawks grinned. "I know you, the kid that busted his hands against glaicers."
"Huh?" Izuku blinked.
"I heard about you from Tsukuyomi. Man, I wanted to work again with him too," Hawks sighed.
"Where is Tokoyami? Isn't he continuing his Work-Study at the Hawks Agency?" Izuku inquired though the laidback hero nodded.
He rubbed his shoulder, "He's working back home with my sidekicks, I'm too busy so I feel bad,"
"Back there, I was faster than you," Katsuki glowered.
"Here we go again..." Yuki rolled her eyes, leaning against a tree.
"I wonder about that," Hawks mused, curious himself of the boy's top speed.
"Well? What do you want, Hawks?" Endeavor got to the point of the matter of why the laidback hero was poking his nose around.
"I don't want anything this time, but Endeavor - have you read this book?" Hawks held up a red-covered book titled 'Meta Liberation War', a black stain to shape a sinister eye mask on the front. Upon seeing it, Yuki's calm attitude turned dark, and her curiosity melted away.
"I'll pass," She stood up straight, walking toward another tree with a sour look on her face. "Anything about that psychopath tastes like bile in my mouth."
"You know about it?" Shoto asked as she threw her hands up.
"Yeah, waste of time!" With that vague comment, she leaned against a tree and mindlessly scrolled through her phone.
"Well, guess not everyone's a fan," Hawks chuckled.
"What is it?" Endeavor noted Yuki's disdain but listened anyway.
"Well, you know, it's gotten really popular recently," He expressed with great joy, something that kept Endeavor's eyes close. "It's from a long time ago, but it has predictions about the present," He flicked through the pages quickly, quoting them. "'if you give freedom to a limited number of people, then the negative consequences will go to others',"
"If you don't have time to read it all, I've highlighted some parts for you, so you can just read those parts," Hawks stepped closer to offer his book. "The leader of the Meta Liberation Army, Destro, ultimately wanted, you know - a society completed by personal responsibility! It goes with the times!"
Hearing this, Izuku glanced over to Yuki's lack of care for Hawks' words, cleaning her nails dismissively. "That goes against Yuki's words back then..."
'-The way I see it, the law is there to keep order and peace, but the definition of a hero is to not break the law but to uphold the peace built atop their foundations. That's the moral reasoning alot of heroes today have forgotten'
"Is that why she doesn't like it?" It was another mystery unfolded about his partner that gave him an inquisitive thought.
"What are you saying?" Endeavor wasn't following, rather, the mannerisms in which Hawks spoke didn't align with the usual, carefree attitude.
"If that comes to fruition, then we'll have free time on our hands," Hawks didn't smile, his face was an unknown to Endeavor, something was amiss.
Hawks just put his arms up defenselessly. "I just want to take it easy, really; just go around on leisurely patrols, complain that nothing happened today, and then go to bed. The best life," He put his fist against his cheek on the table. "I want to make it a world where heroes have too much time on their hands,"
"Why do I feel like something is not right?" He questioned it further, his interactions with the hero under him in the ratings. "What does that look on his face mean?"
He took the book willingly with Hawks close enough for him to see the severity in his eyes. "Please make sure you read it."
"Still, the book the Number Two hero is pushing, I should read it too, maybe the secret to his speed is hidden in it!" Izuku rubbed his chin thoughtfully as Yuki giggled at the idea.
"Sadly, all you'll find is gibberish," Yuki offered with a slight smile. "Trust me, if I could agree with Kovik on one thing, it would be we both would hate the society the book details," Kovik fought for the sake of a House that had changed, for an Archon who died long ago, something so devoid of balance would sicken him. "But... that's just my take, it's not a bad written piece... I guess."
Suddenly, Hawks spun around with a sparkling aura. "Oh! I brought this just for someone like you!" He held out four copies from his jacket, though he did put one back since Yuki was clearly against it.
"So prepared! Where did they come from?" The oddity of the hero perplexed Izuku endlessly.
"That's right! It's the age of Number Two! If you got speed, I think the power to predict what's coming ahead goes with it," In a burst of wind and feathers, the boys held onto a book each. Yuki agreed, if people were to start acting out on part of this Meta Liberation then it would be wise to understand their motives.
"He's really too fast even handing these out?" Izuku was amazed while Shoto stared at his.
"You really love this book, huh? To have so many copies..."
"I think it's so he can spread the word about it," Izuku was correct, and the machinist narrowed her eyes on the airborne hero.
I do not believe this is the case | However, something isn't right | His words and tone to Endeavor suggest a more pressing matter
"You think Hawks is trying to tell Enedavor something?" Yuki inquired, brow raising as the group continued to chat.
Perhaps | Time will tell | We should be on guard for these followers
Eventually, Hawks took to the skies. "Do your best with your work studies, all the five of you!"
A change of heart occurred for Yuki, she glanced over to Endeavor's copy, it might have been just her nerves acting up but she wanted to know what it was Hawks had highlighted for him. "The Second Part, what does that mean...?" Maybe later she could ask to borrow it herself. Her posture slumped. "But I really hated that book in school..."
"Wel, this feels very familiar," Yuki exhaled, taking in the busy office she interned for months ago. Nudging Shoto, she played with an air keyboard. "Think we'll be doing more paperwork again? I think my right hand's gears might seize up again."
"I don't think they'll want to replace another desk if that happens," He replied, painfully aware of the last time her prosthetic glitched.
"Welcome to Endeavor Agency!" The most pronounced of the sidekicks had big red-orange eyes and pointy teeth, with prominent flaming green hair, Burnin.
"We're the Flaming Sidekickers!" The rest announced themselves.
"It's the famous sidekick, Burnin!" Izuku recognized her instantly. With a smug grin, Yuki scooted beside him.
"Hey there, Kamiji!" Noticing the bluette her flaming hair radiated.
"There's a surprise!" She bumped her fist to Yuki's immediately before calling out to the office. "Hey, busy bees, your favorite organizer's back for more!"
"That UA student with Endeavor's son!?" "I thought she'd never come back!" "...finally, someone can organize this mess...!"
"Ehheheh, I'll... see what I can do when I'm free," Yuki sweatdropped nervously at the praise as she pushed Izuku's jaw back in place. "I did a lot to help them before Hosu so everyone... kinda really likes me cause I'm like a serious freak for organization, though that's more Siva's fault."
How anyone works in this mess | It boggles me to no end | I will not accept this chaotic organization
"That aside, this is Bakugo and Shoto's first work-study, right?" Burnin pulled the conversation back. She pumped her index finger toward them. "We'll have you boys working like us starting today!" Then Burnin motioned around the room, some coming over to greet Yuki again who smiled bashfully like last time. "But as you can see this is a big agency!"
"In other words, there won't be much time for you to shine!" She warned Katsuki who actually grinned at the challenge.
"Interesting, so we need to beat the pros are their own game?" He summarized.
"That's right!" She answered, pointing at Yuki again. "I like your friend, he has fire!"
"That's Dumb-Dumb in a nutshell, tell him a task is out of his reach and he'll blast down a whole mountain to reach it," Yuki threw her hands down, shaking her head. "You can count on me to keep at least Katsuki and Izuku right on how things work."
"Thank you, Yuki," Izuku smiled as the bluette flashed an 'OK' sign.
"Anything for you, Izuku," Just then, something popped up on her phone. Quickly, she brought up the news feed to see a report from last night.
'BREAKING NEWS - Reports of another victim who appeared lacerated atop a nearby hero agency building. The victim is reported to have died of blood loss and suffered a vicious intoxication of poison from the wounds' It was brief, but Yuki felt a sharp twang of fear run up her back.
"Poison from slashes..." She shook her head, putting her phone away. "There's too little intel to think about that, besides, he's gone now."
|Your friend?|
"Yeah," The hustle and bustle increased around her, and thoughts of the article slipped from her mind. "Busy as always, huh?"
"Never dull, now you're upfront and center so be ready, Aksis!" Burnin declared, taking off to deal with business of her own. "Welcome back to chaos, you two!"
"Let's hurry up and start working already!" Katsuki punched his palm impatiently. "I'm mad after that spoonbill cut in!"
"Are you talking about Hawks!?" Yuki and Izuku craned their necks to him.
"Will you two stop that!?" Katsuki irked.
The hero beside them waved his hand down. "I acknowledge your spirit, wait for Endeavor's instructions, okay?"
"There are over a hundred requests, right!? What're you doing!?" Katsuki barked loudly.
"Kacchan, stop it," Izuku attempted to quell his short temper.
"I can knock him out if you want?" Yuki covered her fist with metal barding as Izuku spun with his hands up to stop her.
"Please don't make it worse."
After waiting patiently, Endeavor had made his choice to teach the four of them himself. Before that, he had to know more so within a training hall, the four had geared up, Yuki keeping her mask on this time. "I'll train you three, but first, Deku, Bakugo, Aksis, tell me about yourselves. Tell me what you need to work on right now and what you can do."
The boys looked at Yuki first, her eyes flashed with surprise. "Oh, um, okay, ladies first I guess," Twirling around, Yuki brought both her hands up. In the right, red nanites formed in a small swarm, to her left, her blue variation. "As it stands, since my last Work-Study, my quirk's evolved in terms of power, and efficiency,"
She closed her hands, eyes flashing down to a serious stare. "I can't use the blue ones effectively yet, roughly fifty to sixty percent, and I can't revert back to my red ones since they're less powerful," Taking in a breath, she locked eyes with ENdeavor. "I guess what I'm trying to say is I want to perfect what I know while improving my control over the remaining forty percent so I can be as strong as possible when Kovik and I meet again,"
Endeavor nodded slowly, "That Splicer from Hosu, and the one that created that monster at Camino," Closing his eyes, he kept her thoughts in mind before proceeding. "Very well, follow my instructions to the letter, in that time, focus on bolstering your power in intervals constantly,"
"Like waves?" She cocked her head.
"Exactly," Moving on, Izuku stood forward next, clutching his left arm.
"I'm much the same as Yuki, I need to harness my full power," Izuku declared but there was more to it than that.
"Your quirk was a super-strength so strong you hurt yourself... right?" Endeavor confirmed.
"Yes, though I found a way to control it early on I still had to limit my output until my body was suited to handle more, but..." His face twisted with uncertainty, trying to place his words carefully. "After all this time, um... there's like this secondary thing... like, um... it started manifesting in a different way..."
His constant fumbling with words was beginning to agitated Katsuki for many reasons, Yuki then poked the nerd's freckled cheek, eyes curved supportively. "Just explain it in full, he'll understand."
"Show me," Endeavor kept his patience.
Pointing his fingers into a gun, his improved gloves released a tiny strand of black energy from a knuckle vent before it fizzled out. "If I concentrate and release just about as much as I can tolerate, this is as much as I can handle right now,"
"You did make two to bind me before but then they slammed us together like two trains," Yuki winced, remembering how her nose actually broke from that.
Izuku nodded, "Exactly, if the output wavers, it'll pour out and get out of control,"
Endeavor cocked his head slightly, "By 'Control' what do you mean? What is it you want to achieve with this power?"
"Oh, boy, you did it now," Yuki whistled, eyes flashing like 0s.
"This is actually a power that's flexible, like a whip, I want to turn this from a risk into a weapon I can use," He recalled stopping Shinso's falling debris with a binding of whips. "Right now, I'm trying to control it the same way I use Air Force - oh, 'Air Force' is a long-distance attack using wind pressure, I've gotten the right output for it now but my gloves help with my accuracy at the moment,"
Izuku was rambling so fast the text scrolled like credits behind his friends and girlfriend watching silently, unable to say a word.
"In my current state, if the amount I can tolerate without stressing my body is about 65 to 70%, then airforce only needs 20% but at stronger thresholds, I require the gloves to accurately control their trajectory. At this point, even if I don't injure myself there's a painful grating, and it affects my movements. That's why I've practiced releasing the power in an instant and revert to a lower output to avoid backlash. If I can do this with the current Blackwhip, then theoretically I should be able to use it. But in the first place, I adjust my power output as I move, so adding another factor to that's hard to juggle in my head. I've been training so I can do it all at the same time, but it hasn't been going that well."
"It's so long I don't know what he's talking about!" Burnin blurted out in exasperation. "You sure picked a strange one, Aksis!"
"I'll take the compliment." Yuki beamed with her chin raised slightly.
"Analyzing yourself, huh?" Shoto noted.
"Graah, shut up!" Katsuki growled.
"So, you're saying you want to constantly be able to adjust back and forth while fighting?" In all the known universe, Endeavor had cracked the code, Pandora's Box had split wide open.
"Yes," Izuku answered.
"By the Great Machine, he actually figured it out...!" Even Yuki couldn't quantify any of it.
"You understood him!? You're not Number One for nothing!" Even Burnin was impressed, herself tuning out about a quarter in.
"You've had trouble with your quirk, I see, you're one of us too, huh?" His eyes shone with understanding, Yuki knuckling the nerd's shoulder.
"As you know, this club sucks," She jested, leaning on Izuku's shoulder.
"Next, what about you?" Katsuki was last.
"I want to know what I can't do. That's why I came here," Katsuki replied.
"Hahahaha, so cheeky!" Burnin cackled.
"Shut up! Why are you even here, anyway!?" A massive red tick emerged above him.
"I'm on standby right now,"
Turning away from her, Katsuki clenched his teeth, "I meant what I said, dammit, with my Explosion quirk I've been able to do everything I wanted," That view wasn't the same anymore, "Even if I only had one quirk I'd be the strongest, I also learned that just being strong doesn't make you truly strong, there's always someone higher,"
He failed to beat Izuku time and again, Yuki outranked him long ago without him realizing it, rather, he denied it, others displayed those traits before he started to learn to do things differently. But above all else, there were people and monsters out there that surpassed him tenfold, that stood in a peek of their own making.
Pointing to himself, he kept it simple. "I came to find out what I still need to surpass the Number One hero." The others knew this well, but his convictions had changed from the start. Before he would just charge forward brazenly without thinking, now, Katsuki was trying to learn while he could.
"Very well, then let's-" Endeavor moved for the exit to begin their work-study.
"Can I go, too?" Shoto spoke up.
"You're here to learn Flashfire, aren't you!?" Endeavor yelled expectantly.
Shoto's voice remained steady and cool like frost, raising his right hand slightly. "I've put in the practice you drilled into me when I was a kid, on my right side," No animosity could be found in his gaze, he held no hatred, no scorn. "Looking back, my head was filled with pointless hatred toward you,"
"After entering UA, and spending time with these guys, competing, my eyes were opened," He saw his faults, how Yuki, Izuku, Katsuki, Yaoyorozu, and the others chipped away at his closed-off heart. "Endeavor, in the end, I'm doing what you wanted," He clenched his fists, facing his father coldly. "But remember, the one I admired was the person I watched on TV with Mom,"
"I came here as a fledgling hero, in order to become someone worthy of being a hero of my own free will," His path was clear now. "I came here to use you, sorry, but I'm only here because it's convenient, Number One," In Endeavor's eyes there was pain, realization... acceptance. "Don't put on the parent act in front of my friends."
There was a great silence that didn't last, Endeavor pivoted toward the door. "Right, very well," The four were taken back by that lack of response to being called out on his wishful thinking. Not once did his flames dim. "From now on, I will look at your four as heroes."
And so, our Work-Study began.
But we were woefully unaware of the trials ahead of us.
Rescue, Evacuation, Fighting, Endeavor had mastered them all and his Agency does the same, to compare to that meant the four had a mountain to climb. By the time they caught up, everything had been swept away. The hit and run suspect was apprehended by his sidekicks by the time they touched down on the tarmac.
"-it takes me longer to get warmed up in the winter," Katsuki excused himself bluntly as Yuki rubbed her chin.
"I can't just pull metal from buildings, so I'm limited to just Blackbird for mobility," Unlike her battles before, she couldn't rely on the destruction around her to win her fight. A hero protects, not destroys for their advantage.
"Bakugo, did you notice?" Shoto inquired, earning a scary look from the blonde.
"There's nothing you could realize that I couldn't, anyway, just spit it out!" He hissed under his breath.
"So petty..." Yuki rolled her eyes.
"He used flames to propel himself whenever he sped up," Shoto examined. "The Jetburn he used in Kyushu with the Nightmare, he probably compressed that and made it into propulsion," Now he understood his limitation. "I know because I have the same quirk, the speed he can bring out at a high temperature, and the delicate control over his flames to do that..."
"He's saying he mastered your mobility before you," Yuki dumbed it down.
"What the hell!?" He grabbed Yuki's collar as she shrugged nonchalantly. "Anyway, you just noticed this now?"
Shoto smiled at the obvious "Yeah, I took the long way."
"Let me say one more thing," Endeavor prodded his thumb down the alley be blocked, beyond the buildings was a busy motorway. "There's a big street that way,"
"I see, by emitting flames to intimidate the suspect, he diverted him from causing a much more serious crash!" Izuku summed up, Yuki popping her hip for her hand.
"All that in only an instant, parallel processing, huh?" Now it made sense, his reaction times were built upon the accumulation of experience, he simply picks what scenario mirrors the crisis and acts and adapts accordingly. "He's like you Siva."
|Only with a human element, impressive|
At that moment, Yuki gave chase with Endeavor, the boys catching up behind her. "We can't afford to hesitate now, this is as real as it gets!"
SIVA | Augment | Blackbird
"Thanks!" With that, her clusters formed their angled plates and jet burners against her shoulder blades, propelling her faster over the buildings. Then she grinned, "Here's an idea - Winter's Rush!" At her feet, she bent the edges of metal structures slightly to better land and launch forward, her distance was shortening between propulsions.
Below, Izuku leapt over rooftops. "You're not going to work with your sidekicks?"
"At Kyushu, I and Hawks split up the work, but normally, heroes need to be able to do everything by themselves," Endeavor explained. "Also, I had noticed the glass villain's minions earlier!"
"So petty...!" Katsuki huffed, trying to catch Endeavor.
"Kacchan..." "Oh, like you're one to talk, Dumb-Dumb!"
"Bakugo, you said you wanted to know what you couldn't do. It's true that your movements are fast, for a rookie, anyway," The group flew over a busy street, high above cars and trucks toward the other half the city. "But, right now you saw you couldn't beat me."
"In winter, I need time to prep-"
"Are you going to make that same excuse when you don't make it in time!?" Flames bulged and expanded at Endeavor's landing, blocking the force of a whole truck from running down two people. "This isn't class, if you don't make it in time, it isn't points you'll lose for a grade, it's a person's life."
With the flames extinguished, Izuku and Yuki rushed to the woman in front. "Are you okay?" While Izuku checked the woman, Yuki placed her hand on the burnt grid of the truck, checking through its systems. Unfortunately for the driver, he was an idiot.
"Oi!" Yuki tossed the door open, mask slit into a glare. "You better hope you have good insurance for nearly causing a horrific accident - you weren't paying attention to the road!"
"I-I'm sorry!" He quickly got out to apologize as the woman ranted and raved in his face as Izuku tried to calm her down.
"Aksis," She turned to Endeavor. "You also have no excuse, your limitations with augmentation is of your own making, a person's life cannot be brought back on half-attempts,"
"...I know," She clenched her fist, stealing some of the burnt metal for herself, converting it into blue clusters around her belt. "I won't let that happen again,"
Yuki turned to check on Izuku handling his part but something caught Yuki's eye if only briefly, dug deep into the white wall of a building across the street, large, crescent markings scarred the concrete and walkway. "Those weren't done by the truck..." Something about them gave her goosebumps and sickened her stomach
"Aksis!" Izuku called back, and she immediately sped off after them, Endeavor once more miles ahead.
"I got the drinks," Yuki climbed up from the building's edge, then realized Endeavor was saying something important, making her eyes flash to smaller dots. "Ah, super serious talk, carry on," She silently skipped around to place a drink in their hands.
"First, you need to be able to do two things at once without thinking. When you do that, add another thing, no matter how strong the power, its foundation is still steady accumulation," He instructed Izuku on his power, as Yuki nudged him.
"Remember what I taught you about power fluctuation, tell me, how often do you think of that now?" Her burning question as she inhaled another donut made his eyes widen, it was true, he never really thought of it, a natural impulse to regulate control.
"There are exceptions," He didn't turn around, but it was clear he was thinking of the symbol before him. "But those who aren't exceptions just have to accumulate it. At least, that's the only way I know how to do it,"
"Even if you're doing repetitions of the same thing, the experience you get in school and on the job are completely different. Take what you cultivated in school, and get your body used to it here - in the best environment possible," His flames roared on like his tone and words, heavy, full of conviction like never before.
"He's changed a lot..." Yuki was watching him closely, the man she knew before had been burnt up more and more, now, something else was motivating her to do better, something the Flame Hero she resented could never achieve.
Commitment took root in Izuku's mind, "I was given so much by All Might," Receiving his quirk after so much back-breaking labor. "I experienced so much after entering UA," His and Yuki's final push to finally bring down Muscular to save a single child. Defeating Overhaul and Dren with himself merged with Yuki. "It feels like I'm being led around by the nose at dizzying speeds," All Might's final ember going out, and Yuki recovering with a smile.
"...but even so, I..." He instinctively found his hand interlocked with Yuki's, the girl noticing before tightening her hand around his.
"What? You can fail without worry," Endeavor shrugged off the seriousness of the lunch break, facing them. "The success or failure of four like you has absolutely no effect on my work!" This was up to them, their initiative, Endeavor wouldn't waste time on people not willing to commit.
"That's right, I'm moving forward at the fastest speed I can right now," Izuku raised his fist with Yuki's, sharing a determined frown. "Go Beyond... one thing at a time, forward!"
Finishing up their rest, the heroes quickly spurred into action once more.
To Be Continued...
Back at Endeavor's Agency and like I wasn't going to slap a block of text with Izuku speaking, the Flame Hero cracked it somehow. The title's in reference to when Izuku first learned to control OFA from Yuki so it seemed fitting for all of them. I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; seeya in the next chapter, Heroes!
Next Chapter Intermission: Reperfecting Renegade
Akio pulled the backdrop down to a darker tone with a skull and music note on it, "Time to flip the script with more of us!"
Jura appeared with a big grin, "This'll be a riot with the three of us!"
Valstrax ruffled both their heads when she landed, "Four you mean!"
Kyoka rolled her bored eyes but managed a small smile, "Sure, fun."
Akio and Valstrax waved their arms in front of the rocker, "Come on, more energy!"
Jura chuckled with his arms crossed, "Hahaha, well, coming soon; Reperfecting Renegade."
Kyoka shrugged away from the glow the trio gave off, "I'll pass - Go Beyond-"
Then everyone chimed in, "Plus Ultra! - There you go!"