-Chapter 20: Awards-
As the sky turns orange from the setting sun, fireworks explode over the stadium. The arena was filled with all of the students who participated in the day's events. A large strip of land was missing just outside the cement center that was the arena for the tournament.
"The first-year students have completed all of the events for the UA Sports Festival." Midnight broadcasted across the stadium's sound system. "Now kick back and relax because it's time to start the awards ceremony!"
From the missing strip in the ground, confetti and smoke shot out. From within the smoke, four figures could be seen on a podium. The middle section was the highest with a single person on it, followed in height by the left section with a single occupant, and the final section was the lowest with two people standing there. As the smoke cleared, the crowd could see the victory podium. Ben Tennyson stood on the middle section with the number one in gold written on the side. Shoto Todoroki was on the left side with a two in silver. Fumikage Tokoyami and Katsuki Bakugo shared the final section with a three in bronze under them.
Bakugo looked ready to kill the next person who got close to him, forcing Tokoyami to take a hesitant step back. Despite winning second place, Todoroki seemed out of it, leaving Ben beaming in glee, thinking about the one close to him.
As Ben was looking at the crowd of students, he noticed that a blue-haired classmate of his was missing. Looking at Ashido, he mouths to her, "Where's Iida?" only for her to shrug, not knowing where their class rep went. The American could hear a booming voice before Ben could think further about his classmate.
A confidant laugh could be heard across the stadium, followed by "Citizens! I AM HERE, with the medals!" He landed in front of the podium in a perfect three-point landing. Standing back up, he pulled four medals from behind him.
He walked up to the lowest podium first. Both boys bowed their heads so All Might could place their medals around their necks. "Young Tokoyami and Young Bakugo, congratulations. The two of you showed great strength and ambition. If every hero has a quarter of what you two showed off, the world would be a much better place."
Heading over to Todorki next, as All Might places the medal over the boy's head, he questions him. "I've met with your father on several occasions, Young Todoroki, and he has been quite troublesome to work with almost every one of them. I am not too far off by saying that your father has put a lot of pressure on you,' am I?" The second-place winner only lowered his head, breaking eye contact with the Symbol of Peace. "As I thought. Remember, young man, despite what he has told you, you have the potential to become a great hero on your own merit."
All Might was standing tall over the first-place winner. "Young Tennyson, I am quite impressed with your unique power set." The number one hero started in his booming laugh, speaking fluent English," If you weren't one of my students, I would like to spare against you myself to truly get a feel of your capabilities. I understand that being far from home can be pretty challenging young man. I remember when I went to America to hone my skills, everything was so different, and everyone treated me differently because I was a foreigner. I bet the same is true for you. I'm sure your family is incredibly proud of you. If they were here, I bet they would-" All Might had to stop his sentence when he noticed the young American begin to tear up before he fell to a knee. Kneeling down himself, All Might pulled Ben into a tight embrace. "Don't worry, Young Tennyson, if you need anything from the staff, let us know. We are here to help." All Might said, surprisingly somber and quiet, into the boy's ear.
Taking a step back from the medalist of the number one hero proudly calls out. "Here they are! The winners of this year's sports festival! But listen closely; any of you first years could have ended up on this podium. Think about your actions today. You've challenged one another, forcing each other to improve to grow into what I think will be one of the best generations of Pro Heroes yet. Ha ha ha!" All Might guffaw at the end of his speech
…
"All of you did incredibly well today," Aizawa tiredly started. "You have the next two days off to recuperate. I'm sure the pros watched the festival will want to recruit some of you. We will look over the request forms and inform you when everyone returns to school. In the meantime, get some rest and maybe watch the upper-level students' sports festivals. You might learn a thing or two."
"Yes, Sir!" The class called out minus Iida due to him still being gone.
…
With the class being dismissed, everyone began filing out into the hall—besides the Omnitrix wielder and his friends, much to Aizawa's annoyance.
"Shota, any idea to where Tenya went? We last saw him when he took that call from his mom." Ben asked the tired teacher.
"I can't say much about Iida's situation because it's a personal matter. But I can say that he left due to a family member getting injured. Also, Ben, what did I say about calling me by my first name?" Aizawa stated while staring the American in the eye.
"Not to do so on campus or in the field, sorry Aizawa, I thought it would be ok because we are here with my friends." Ben sheepishly apologized before something clicked for him. "Hey Green, isn't Tenya's bother Ingenium?"
"Yeah, he is, the Turbo Hero: Ingenium, the hero that will chase down any villain…" Midoriya started his muttering spree before picking up what Ben was suggesting. The green-haired boy quickly pulled out his phone and found a message board dedicated to injured heroes. "Um, guys, this isn't good."
"What, what happened?" Uraraka then looked over the shorter boy's shoulder, causing her eyes to widen. "Oh no…" The gravity girl was left speechless.
"Kero, it can't be that bad, guys," Tsu states before using her tongue to snag Midoriya's phone. The frog girl then reads out the tile of the most recent post. "Let's see, 'Pro Hero Ingenium is Hospitalized After Deadly Encounter With the Hero Killer: Stain."
"Oh shit," Kirishima blurts out, pulling out his phone and finding similar posts across social media between discussions about the sports festival. "Guys, he was in Hosu, just on the other side of Tokyo."
…
Tenya Iida was almost like a statue in the corner of his brother's hospital room. The bespeckled teen could only stare at his brother's unconscious form. Tensai just came out of surgery not too long ago and was still strapped down with several wires and medical equipment keeping track of his vitals. His father, the previous Ingenium before his first son took up the mantel, was asleep with his mother in two of the chairs in the room. The stress they felt today took almost all of their energy.
Suddenly the youngest Iida began to vibrate in short bursts. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he notices a flurry of texts from his friends, all from their group chat.
…
Mina A.: TENYA WHAT HAPPENED?!
Eijiro K.: Dude we saw the news about your brother
Izuku M.: Is your brother ok?
Tsu A.: Tenya if you need anything let us know
Tsu A.: If anything happened to my siblings I would shut down
Uraraka O.: We want to help however we can
Ben T.: Where are you?
Tenya I.: My Brother was attacked by the Hero Killer during the festival. He just came out of surgery, and his vitals looks stable. The same can't be said about many of his sidekicks.
Izuku M.: Your brother normally doesn't patrol around Hosu. What brought him out there?
Tenya I.: Unofficially, he was searching for Stain. The Hero Public Safety Commission thinks that sending too many heroes will cause too much of a disturbance, so they have been sending heroes outside of the top ten to hunt him. We are at Hosu General Hospital. He just got out of surgery.
…
"T-Tenya," was faintly heard in the room, drawing said boy's eyes away from his phone. "Is that you?"
"Tensai!" Iida all but shouted as he was next to his brother in a flash. "Everything is going to be ok. Mother and Father are here; they told me that the doctors told them that you are going to make it, but I could tell Mother was withholding something. I'm not sure what, though."
"Little Brother, I'm sorry. I'm supposed to be the one you look up to-"
"No, there is no need to be sorry. I'm just happy you are alive. Rest, please." Iida pleaded with his older brother.
Smiling through the pain, Tensai rested his head against his pillow. "Sure thing, little bro."
…
Iida heard a commotion outside his brother's room an hour later. Not wanting to wake anyone, he quietly opened the door to see his classmates scrambling through the hall.
"What are you guys doing!? The blue-haired teen whisper-yelled at the scrambling teens.
Kirishima shot up like a meerkat. "Guys, this way!" the red-headed student pointed down the hall at Iida, causing all six of them to charge at the cracked door.
Forcing their way into the hospital room, the group of teens awoke Iida's parents.
"What is going on here!?" Iida's father, Tenkai, whisper-yells at the group of teens.
Midoriya quickly bows before the retired hero, "I'm sorry about causing a disturbance, Sir."
Ben approached the Iida patriarch, saying, "This was my idea, Mr. Iida. I lost my family before moving to Japan. I didn't have any friends until the school year started, and your son and my friends here," The American gestured to the group of teens behind him," became a second family for me. I know better than anyone what it is like to lose someone close to them, and I didn't want to leave my new family alone in a time of crisis." Ben began to have tears in his eyes but quickly wiped them away. "I understand that you don't know any of us, and I doubt you want a bunch of strangers in here, but if you allow us, we want to be here to support your family."
Ashido stepped closer to Ben, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Sir, we all have the next two days off of school, along with your son. If you need anything let us know. As Ben said, Tenya is a part of our family, and we want to support him just as much as you want to support both of your boys."
Tenya, the usually stiff boy, was in awe of his friends' drive to ensure he and his family were supported. He had to remove his glasses to wipe away the tears forming. His mother, Tomoko, hugged the boy from behind.
"Your friends are incredible, Tenya." She whispered into his back. She then called out to her husband. "Tenkai, let the children stay. They came all this way to help us. It's the least we can do."
The Iida patriarch nodded in agreement with his wife. "Ben, was it?" Tenkai asked.
"Yeah, what can I do for you?" asked the American.
"The look in your eyes, I've seen it many times in the field." Tenkai then placed his hand on the brunette's shoulder. "I didn't get a chance to watch most of the festival, but from what I did see, you have much more experience than the average first year. May I ask how?"
"Well, you see," Ben started telling the Iida family about how his grandfather was a retired hero, and once he found out Ben wanted to be a hero, Max stopped at nothing to ensure Ben was well-trained and trained well.
…
Two hours passed in the blink of an eye with Ben's stories being told. "I remember early into my training, Grandpa Max would bring me into the desert and set up an obstacle course for me to run through. Being an arrogant ten-year-old with fresh new powers, I would try to smash through everything. I would demolish every course only for him for me to rerun it. I can hear him now. 'Ben, might isn't always right.' He definitely had to hammer that listen home, and I still forget it from time to time." The American then sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
"Tell me about it," Kirishima chimed in, "I remember shortly after Ben moved to Japan, I ran into him at the gym, and we would spar from time to time. Man, some of his forms are gnarly. He has this one guy that looks like Frankenstein. Using his electricity, he made my muscles spasm out, forcing me out of my hardening."
Before the group could continue their stories, they heard a sound from the middle of the room. "Yo-your Grandfather sounds like a great man." Everyone turned their heads over to the bed to see Tensei awake.
"Tensei!" the Iida family all stood up, rushing to the bedside.
"How are you doing, son?" Tenkai asked.
"Do you need anything?" asked Tomoko.
"I'm doing as well as I can, Father, and maybe some water, Mother." Tensei choked out. "Tenya, I have something important to tell you."
"What is it?"
"I want you to take up the Ingenium name for me."
"What do you mean? You're Ingenium. We can't both be Ingenium." Tenya asked almost hisytericly
"Little brother, I can't be Ingenium any longer."
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"I-I can't feel my legs."
…
After hearing the news about his brother's early retirement, Iida requested that his friends leave for the night, and he would call them in the morning. In the following days, Iida didn't talk to anyone. The most anyone heard was that his family appreciated their company, but they wished to be alone for now.
…
When classes started back up, seeing Iida sprint into the school from the pouring rain was a pleasant surprise.
"Tenya!" Ashido called out, running up to the blue-haired teen. "How is your brother doing?"
"Tensei is doing well." Iida started, "Let's get to class. I bet the others are already there waiting for us."
…
Inside the classroom, the students talked about the last couple of days. Most of the students were elated to get the attention, but one student, in particular, was not fairing too well.
"Hey, Green, you doing alright?" Ben was worried for Midoriya. The boy looked like his soul was ripped out of his body.
"Y-yeah, everything is good. Just a lot of people on the train recognized me from the tournament. I just need a moment."
"I get that. When my family secret got out, we were bombarded by everyone back home. Give it a bit of time, and things will calm down." Ben offered some advice.
Suddenly a bubbly blur glomped onto the nervous teen. "Deku, no worries about everyone." Uraraka beamed. "You are amazing, and everyone now realizes that."
"Th-thank you-" The greenette was cut off by Ashido slamming the door open.
"He's coming!" at her call; in a blink of an eye, everyone was seated.
"Good morning." Aizawa tiredly called out, free from any bandages across his body. "Glad to see everyone is on their toes today. It's going to be needed. We have a big class today on Hero Informatics. Mainly info on what heroes you are going to be."
Raising her hand Jiro questions the teacher. "Mr. Aizawa, what do you mean?"
"Everyone here will be selecting codenames for themselves.-"
"This is going to be awesome!" Ashido was excitedly bouncing in her seat as other students declared similar statements.
This action was met with the glowing ruby orbs of Aizawa's quirk activating. Out of fear, the unruly students quickly calmed down, acting as if nothing had happened. Deactivating his ability, Aizawa begins to make eye contact with every student. "This is related to the pro hero draft picks I mentioned before our two-day break. Normally first years don't receive very many, but this year has proven that you lot are anything but normal. Pros sending offers to first years mean they are investing in your potential. Any offers can be rescinded if their interest in you dies down before graduation, though."
"Meaning we will need to prove ourselves after we've been scouted?" Asked Ben
"Correct. I will hand out papers with the number of requests you have received after class. The names of the top three ranked heroes in your lists will also be given to you. If you want a more detailed list of heroes, just ask. Also, if you didn't get any requests, don't be discouraged; you can send offers to the heroes for your internship."
"INTERNSHIP!" the class called out in unison.
"Yes, internships; you didn't think that heroes were requesting to have you just to put you on their mantel, did you?" Aizawa snarked. "Since you all experienced live combat during the USJ, Nezu has faith in all of you that you will be able to handle internships so soon."
"But before you go into the field, you need hero names!" a voice from the hall called out. "You have to be careful, though. What you pick today could be your codename for life." Midnight stated, strutting her way next to Aizawa. "You don't want to be stuck with something utterly indecent."
"Midnight will have final approval over what your codenames are. Names have never been my forte. Now if any of you will be needing me, don't." The tired hero suddenly crawls into his sleeping bag in the corner of the room. "One last thing. The name you give yourself is important. It helps reinforce your image as a hero. What you want to be and do as a hero in the future should be easily figured out from your name." Without another word, the man was asleep.
…
The students quickly formed small cliques brainstorming ideas for what hero names they could have. Ben was with his regular group of Ahisdo, Kirishima, Tsu, Midoriya, Uraraka, and Iida.
"Um, guys, before we start brainstorming, I want to ask everyone a question." A very nervous Midoriya asked, "Would it be ok if Todoroki joined us?"
"Yeah, of course," Ben answered for the group. Turning to see the dual-haired boy standing off the side like a statue. "Todoroki, there's no need to be nervous. We won't bite." The Omnitrix wielder waved the boy to come to hang out with them.
"Thank you, Tennyson, or should I say, Ben? I want to become friends with you and your group."
"If you don't mind me asking, what brought this change of heart?"
"During my match with you and Midor-Izuku," Todoroki corrected himself, "I realized that by focusing on proving to my father, I don't need him, I became cold to those around me."
"Literally." Ben quickly joked, "Sorry, force of habit to make terrible puns."
"So the first step to warm your icy heart is making friends." Ashido quipped, finishing Todoroki's thought."
"Indeed." The dual elemental user then turned his attention to the rest of the group before bowing to them. "I hope we can form strong bonds in the future."
Kirishima quickly grabbed the boy's shoulder. "There is no need to bow. You are among friends. Now let's pick out some hero names!"
…
Tsu and Uraraka already had names in mind. Thinking about this moment since they were kids made today's assignment much easier. Ashido and Kirishima had some difficulty figuring out a hero name.
"Oh, Eijiro, you should go with The Unbreakable Hero: The Rock!" Hagakure chimes in from the group next to them.
"I like that first part, but I'm not feeling the second." the redhead was staring intensely at the whiteboard he was given to write down his hero name.
"Ben, I think I have a name ready, but I can't think of a title," Ashido asked the American.
"Hmm, what about going simple, The Pink Hero?" Suggested Ben.
"Your right simple works." She then gives him a one-armed hug. "Let's look at what you got." Ashido looks over at Ben's whiteboard. She could see four names and two titles on the board, all written in English.
"What do you think?" Ben awkwardly asked.
"English isn't my best subject, so give me a second. Ok, I get wanting to have Omni in there because of your support item, but it doesn't click right for you. Scrap both the name Omni and The Omni Hero title." Ashido takes her marker and crosses out said items. "Ben 10? Isn't that a little on the nose?"
"What?" Ben responded a little indignantly. "It rhymes, it's my name, it's my favorite number."
"It's dumb." Ashido then crosses out that name as well. "Plum, plumb, plumi?" The pinkette was having a hard time with the word.
"Plumbier." Ben corrected the confused girl. Catching their French-Japanese classmate, Aoyama's attention for a moment. "Grandpa Max had a plumbing theme to his gear."
"Ah, unless you fight with a plunger, I don't think that name will work. But this last name could work, but you won't be able to use it as a title either."
…
Despite sitting with the students, Todoroki still chose to refrain from engaging with the chaotic group, not knowing how to start a conversation with them. Once Ben was done figuring out his hero name, the American noticed how distant the newcomer was.
"Hey, Shoto, any ideas on a name?" Ben attempted to ease the nonsocial Todoroki into the group.
"Honestly. No." Todoroki said matter of factly. "I've never had time to think about something like this. Growing up, I spent all my free time on training."
"Need help then? From naming all my forms, I think I'm pretty good at creating hero names."
"Says the guy wanting to call himself Omni." Interjected Ashido.
"I never thought that anyone would be interested in my normal form, so I never thought about it." Ben retorted before turning his attention back to Todoroki. "Ignore her; she likes getting on people's nerves." This caused the pinkette to stick her tongue out at Ben.
"I can tell. How do you normally develop a name for your forms, then?" Asked Todoroki.
"It normally depends on the transformation, but I always try to make a pun relating to the powers or appearance of the form." Ben then snapped his fingers, pointing at Todoroki, "Remember Humungousaur,"
"Little hard to forget the form that threw me out of the arena."
"Right, well, I got Humungousaur from humongous and dinosaur and smashed the two together." Ben made a motion to smash his hands together.
"Ok, so what about Freezer Burn?" Questioned the elemental user. "It has both my fire and ice."
"I see what you are going for, but it doesn't have that flair." Ben contemplated, "What about Celsius? No, that's lame."
"Shoto, your father's quirk is Hellflame, right?" Asked a sheepish Midoriya
"Yes, what about it?"
"Wh-what about Hellfrost? You are taking something that is your father's and making it your own, similar to your quirk."
"I like that, Izuku. Great idea." Ben gave the greenette a thumbs up. "What do you think, Shoto? It feels like you're sticking it to your old man and redeeming the family name a little."
"Initially, I was hesitant, but you make a good point, Ben." Todoroki nodded. "I need to be the one to make up for my father's mistakes."
"That sounds great, Shoto," Ben patted the scarred boy on the shoulder before leaning to whisper in his ear. "Speaking of his mistakes, I overheard you talking to Izuku during the festival. I think you should tell the others. We can only help if we know what happened. I already told them about my emotional baggage, and everyone is willing to help."
This news caught Todoroki off guard. "I see. When I tell the others, will you tell me about yours?"
Leaning back in his seat, Ben nodded. "Of course I will."
…
A small timer began going off in front of the class.
Stopping the small device, Midnight called out. "Ok, class, we should show off what names we came up with."
One by one, students made their way to the front of the class. Starting with Aoyama's I Can Not Stop Twinkling, which sadly got shot down. The French-Japanese boy changed the sentence of a name into Twinkling Knight. Many students had fairly straightforward names like Ojiro's Tailman, Stato's Sugarman, Hagakure's InvisiGirl, and Jiro's Earphone Jack. Others had more unique names, like Koda's Anima, playing off his control of animals, Tokoyami's Tsukuyomi, inspired by a lunar deity, and Shoji's Kraken, going with an octopus theme for his arms. Yaoyorozu needed a little extra nudge with her name, going from Creati to Genisis. Kaminari and Sero were in similar situations as Yaoyorozu changing their names from Lightning Rod to Charge Bolt and The Tape to Cellophane, respectively.
Ben's friend group was the last to present, not counting the explosive blonde who sat in front of Midoriya and Ben. Their froggy companion was the next to show her hero name.
"I've had this name ready since grade school." Tsu croaked out before turning her board around and showing off, "The Rainy Season Hero: Froppy!"
"That is an amazing name, Tsu. It makes you super approachable." Midnight beamed, giving her student a golf clap."
Barging his way up, Bakugo all but shoved Tsu out of his way and loudly declared. "I am King Explosion Murder!"
"That's definitely not going to work. I love the passion in the name, but you can't call yourself that." The erotic teacher motioned for the boy to return to his desk to rethink his name.
Kirishima followed everyone else's lead showing his whiteboard calling out. "I will be The Unbreakable Hero: Red Riot!"
"Taking inspiration from Crimson Riot, aren't we, Kirishima?" Midnight asks cocking her hip to the side.
Scratching the back of his rocky head, the boy sheepishly states. "Yeah, I've looked up to Crismon my whole life. He's super manly."
"I see. I like it, Kirishima. Hopefully, one of these days, you will be able to work alongside him."
"Thank you, Midnight. That is one of my goals as a hero. I want to thank him for inspiring me."
Ashido skipped to the front of the class, holding her board over her head. "I am The Pink Hero: Alien Queen!"
Ben was nudged by Sero, who sat diagonal to him. "So if she is the Alien Queen, what does that make you the Alien King?"
"Shut it, Hanta," Ben whisper-yelled at the tape user with an ever so slight blush while throwing a pencil at him.
"Lord Explosion Murder!" was yelled from the front of the class catching the boy's attention.
"Bakugo, what did I say? You can't call yourself that! Try again." Midnight sounded tired, pointing to the boy's seat.
Uraraka was next, calling herself Uravity, combining her name with Gravity. She was followed by Midoriya, who simply wrote, "Deku. I will be Deku. This name was once used as an insult calling me useless. Recently I have started looking at the name through a new lens. Deku will be the name of a hero, someone who can do anything." The normally timid boy could stand confidently while making eye contact with Uraraka, Iida, and Ben.
Iida, surprisingly, wasn't ramrod straight like the class expected. The blue-haired boy's shoulders had a slight sag to them. Turning the whiteboard around, he revealed his first name. "Tenya. I will one day bare the name Ingenium like my brother, father, and grandfather before me. I don't think I can bear that name yet, so once I'm ready, I wish to go by Tenya."
The engine user got thumbs up from everyone who was in the hospital with his family that night. Seeing their constant support, Iida could pull his shoulders up, regaining his lost confidence.
"I will be The Redemption Hero: Hellfrost," Todoroki stated. "I got this name from my friends." Not saying much else, Todoroki sat back down.
Bakugo made his way up to the front of the class one last time. Calling out his hero name as his someone stole the fire that was driving him. "I guess I will go with Ground Zero. I will probably change this later, but this works for now."
This left Ben as the only student to show off his hero name. The boy made his way to the front of the class. Standing firm, he showed off the whiteboard. "I am The Hero of Heroes: Changeling!"
AN: I'm sorry if the passing is a little off for this chapter. This ended up being both the end and the beginning of the USJ and Stain arcs.
I recently came into contact with W. R. Rawlins; they are amazing. They specialize in ghostwriting, marketing, and editing works for writers. You can find their Insta wrrawlins or go straight to their website at wrrawlins (Remove the spaces and all that fun stuff)
As always, if you have any comments or critiques, please do so in the reviews.