Under Her Wings
"Deku-kun, do you have to go…?" Uraraka whined. She was sitting next to Midoriya at the table, hugging his arm and leaning on his shoulder.
Midoriya was in his school uniform and the case with his hero costume was next to him on the floor. The brunette, on the other hand, was in her everyday clothes, long-sleeved shirt, and sweatpants, since it was still cold, even inside the dorms.
"I got four days per week for this Work Study, Uraraka." He calmly explained, taking a bite of his toast. He then planted a kiss on her forehead and left.
Even with the house arrest, they were still going to the agencies for the Hero Work Studies. The contracts were signed before the revelation of Deku's, uh, special circle, so he and the girls were allowed to go out. Classes were still a no-go, which was very concerning. The number of subjects they would miss was simply too big, leading to a monumental task of catching up on everything.
And the cherry of the cake, being house arrested meant that their ways of avoiding Himiko were severely reduced.
"Ne, ne, Ochako-chan, let's watch something together?~" The blondie poked the brunette, hopping in the same place like an excited little kid. Uraraka didn't bother trying to hide her annoyed face.
"You still have classes to attend, Toga. Now get off me!" She said, pushing Himiko away, as the blondie decided to go for hugs.
"I don't wanna go to school if you're not coming too! Izuku won't be there either and I'll be alone…" Himiko whined, still trying to get a solid hold on Uraraka, who pushed her face back.
"And how is this my problem?!"
"This house arrest only happened because you all were caught jumping Izuku's bones and-"
"Gunhead Martial Arts!"
Uraraka quickly removed Himiko's weight and flipped her over the shoulder. The move wasn't complete and Himiko was agile enough to plant her feet on the floor. The brunette just had to release some of that pent-up frustration and get the blondie out of her case.
"~sigh~ I should have asked Deku-kun what agency he was going to… now I can't see him during most of the week because our schedules don't match and he's working on weekends too…"
A metaphorical grey cloud formed over her head as the bummed brunette ate her breakfast, pouting, and grumbling.
"Hmm, do you think I could get into the same agency he is if I asked nicely?"
Uraraka wished she had laser eyes as her Quirk right now, although her stare at the blondie was already pretty intense.
-/-
The emerald teen walked through the campus with a bit of haste in his step. His destination, the 1-H dorms. He had to pick up his support gear as Hatsume insisted on checking and calibrating everything before he left. The house arrest prevented her from accessing the Development Studio, but she still had her personal tools in her room. Of course, the pinkette brought her entire garage to U.A. Why wouldn't she?
"Just a last check…" She said, currently busy with the Air Force gloves. "Aaaaand done. Here you go, Baby. All calibrated, reinforced, and polished. Try not to bend them in non-euclidean ways this time, okay?~"
"Sorry about last time again…" He said, picking up the gear and putting it in his costume case.
"It's okay, Baby. That kind of stuff happens all the time, and I kinda need it to happen to make improvements. I also changed the springs on your iron soles so they're packing a little more~"
She held a proud smile on her face. Attending to the needs of the customer even when they are not aware of it is a skill every developer must have if they mean serious business.
"Thanks again, Mei. Um, and how are things around here?" Judging by the few glances he got once her classmates opened the door, everyone was aware of his relationship with Hatsume and… everything else.
"Oh, it's kinda the same. Some of them said it was obvious that I had feelings for you. They just didn't expect, you know… all the rest, hahaha…"
"I-I see…"
"But man, being locked out of the Development Studio for a month… Can't I shorten my sentence with community service? I have the perfect baby for cleaning around. Just a few tweaks on that debris remover and I'll be done in seconds!"
"I think it would be counterproductive…" Not that Izuku didn't trust Mei's skills, but she had a history with her inventions failing catastrophically. Even more without a thorough testing phase.
"Well, I won't hold you here any longer. Call me if anything feels strange or makes a weird noise, okay?"
"Uh, should I be worried?"
"No no, uh… call that insurance."
After giving Mei a quick peck on the lips, Izuku exited her room and the 1-H building, heading to the school's entrance gate. He was off to his Hero Work-Study at Ryukyu's agency. But on the way, his phone rang, and would you look at that, it was Kendo.
"Good morning, Itsuka."
"Morning, Izuku. ~yawn~"
"... Long night?"
"Sort of, I had to make a few explanations and put out some fires…"
"Oh… How did it go over there?"
"Well…"
"Aah, I can't believe this!" The blond teen stormed inside the building of 1-B dorms, fuming. Awase followed after, his face completely red. After him, the pitch-black teen. It was hard to tell what was Kuroiro's current state of mind. And finally, Tetsutetsu, head low and completely silent. As the door closed behind them, Monoma kept ranting, making noise so the entire building could hear.
"How?! How did we let it get to this stage?!" He paced back and forth, clearly angry.
"Umm, Monoma, my dude. I know this is kinda shocking and all. I'm dumbstruck too, trust me, but I think you're barking at the wrong tree…"
"Don't you see, Awase? This is clearly a challenge to us! That damned 1-A… no, Midoriya Izuku. We can't let this slip by!"
"I kinda agree this can't be simply ignored, but your reasons are kinda off…"
"Who cares about the reasons? And for whatever was happening in there, anyway?" Kuroiro said, nonchalantly.
"Really, man? Doesn't it bother you that Midoriya was, well… getting intimate with our girl friends? And his girl friends? And two teachers…?!" Awase questioned him, to which Kuroiro shrugged.
"If they were with him, it was because they wanted to, so it's not my problem."
"Aw, come on, not even a bit? He was dating Kendo."
"She was there too."
A faint sound of metal grinding could barely be heard.
"I don't know, so many girls after one guy… There has to be a reason behind it."
"Are you saying Midoriya did something to force them?"
"I mean, that doesn't happen normally, does it?"
"Fair enough, but Midoriya doesn't look like the kind of guy to pull a dirty trick for sex."
"I know where you're coming from, really, but still… I would never imagine him, of all people…"
"Tch, to think I let him infiltrate so easily… That serves to show we can't let our guard down when it comes to 1-A." Monoma grumbled to himself. "Awase! You better start working out, we're going to get ourselves a harem double the size of Midoriya's!"
"What the hell? Why me too?!"
More sounds of metal clanking.
"Oi oi, what is going on here?"
"It's too early for all this shouting…"
The noise in the common room went up and awakened some of the other boys, who had to come down and see the cause for commotion, possibly shutting it down for a peaceful night of sleep. Coming down the stairs, Tsuburaba and Rin. After them, equally drowsy and confused, Kamakiri and Kaibara.
Being engaged in his Rival Mode, Monoma ignored the sleepy heads.
"Think Awase, think! He got Kodai too, doesn't it make you mad?!"
"Of course I–I mean, w-why would I be mad?"
"I thought you liked her?"
"I do! I mean–yeah… but it can't be helped… can it?"
"And don't you want revenge for having your girl taken before you could? Doesn't that make your blood boil?"
"Well, kinda… but I don't want a harem! Why would I need one?"
"It's an obvious power move to make. Assert your dominance!"
"Woah woah woah, hold on just a second. Why are you two shouting about harems?" Honekuni, who just arrived, got himself into the conversation. Even half-asleep, it was easy to pick these bits of the "conversation". By now, Nirengeki, Kojiro, and Fukidashi joined the group downstairs. Shishida was a heavy sleeper and his slumber could not be disturbed. With a full audience, Monoma took his time to shine.
"It is war, then! You all, we're getting ourselves a harem!"
Needless to say, none of them understood what the blond boy was talking about. And they all ignored the sound of metal scraping.
"Yeah, and I'm gonna fly to the moon on a unicorn. Monoma, it's ~yawn~ too late for this kind of joke..." Rin said, rubbing his tired eyes.
"I am not joking, this is a task we must accomplish. Midoriya, that bastard… He clearly planned ahead since our class has more girls."
"Can someone please explain why I am awake and standing here?" Kaibara turned to Awase and Kuroiro since Monoma would probably avoid the topic for a while, instead of getting straight to the point.
"Well, you see, we went out to look for the girls, and we kind of found them… in a compromising situation..." Awase was looking for the words to ease this news for them.
"What kind of situation? Are they alright?"
"Oh, I'm pretty sure they're more than alright." Said the pitch-black teen.
"Ahem. Well, the truth is… we found the girls and… they, uh…"
"I'm declaring war on 1-A and Midoriya for making a harem out of my classmates!" Each and every one of the boys looked at him as if he had grown a second head that shot lasers from its eyes. "This shall not stand while I-"
BLAM!
"DAMN IT!"
Silence. Apparently out of nowhere, Tetsutetsu slammed his arm on the wall he was leaning against. All the way back, and until now, the steel boy was awfully quiet. This was unheard of, even more considering his usually fired-up nature. However, the "exploration group" was so shocked with the glimpse from heaven they got that no one really noticed this odd behavior. Now, everyone had their eyes focused on the trembling teen, his skin shining as polished metal. He was grinding his sharp teeth with enough force to make rather loud noises now, and while it was mildly painful to hear, it didn't come close to the state of Tetsutetsu.
"Midoriya… that bastard..."
It was a mix of sadness, regret, anger, envy, and a tinge of disappointment, all tied together by this reality check. The other guys watched with wide eyes as Tetsutetsu got visibly angrier.
And as if decided by fate, the door gently opened. Kendo was the first one and she froze in place. Her eyes scanned the room and stopped at the steel boy, who was now looking back at her. He looked so hurt… and the hole on the wall wasn't a good sign either. The others were lined after the ginger head, poking their heads out to try and see what was happening.
"Umm… look, I know you have questions, but hear me out–"
"Kendo!" He didn't let her finish, marching up to the class rep and firmly grabbing her shoulders. "Are you okay?!"
"Eh?!" Well, she didn't exactly expect this to be his first question, but Tetsutetsu had always been sort of protective with her. He did that to everybody he deemed a friend, but Kendo could see she was a special case, and after how the steel teen reacted when she revealed she was "dating" Midoriya, it became quite clear why.
"Are you hurt?! Did he do something to you?!"
"I-I'm fine, Tetsutetsu, everyone is–"
"What did he do? Does he have something against you? I swear, I'll beat that green-haired liar until–"
"Tetsutetsu, stop!" She said, pushing his arms away. He, of course, was confused, but Kendo quickly followed. "We're not doing this."
"Doing… what?"
"This! This interrogation and round of assumptions, and the consequential witch hunt that follows."
Now, talking with the girls from 1-A and Midoriya, Kendo learned how they reacted when they discovered he and Uraraka were having sex. The current situation was much, much worse, sixteen times to be precise. Not only were they caught in the act, but she was also supposed to be his girlfriend, and Kendo had to admit it was very uncommon to see a single guy with so many girls at once. Again, just by how the steel teen reacted, she predicted the direction this "talk" would take, and rather than have to clear the reputation of her beloved, the ginger head preferred to simply get over it and tell them the truth, regardless of any damage her image could take. So she took in a deep breath to still her heart.
"It is… exactly what it looks like, Tetsutetsu. I… we all were… We're all dating Midoriya at the same time. And doing some other things…" In the end, she couldn't bring herself to openly say it, but it wasn't needed. Monoma already made it very clear to the boys what she was talking about. Needless to say, they were all shocked.
"Wait… so all of you…?" Tsuburaba scratched his head.
"With Midoriya…" Rin was stuck with a dumbfounded face.
Everyone had similar perplexed faces. The only exception was the boy in front of Kendo. He went from shocked, to confused and then disheartened.
"Why…? Why him?"
"Umm, I don't… have a real reason aside from… I really like him. This must be hard for you to take. I know you, erm… I understand how you feel, Tetsutetsu… Sorry…"
The last thing Kendo wanted was to trample on his feelings, which she knew still lingered somewhere in him, at best. Losing his metal layer, Tetsutetsu glanced at the other girls, who slowly entered the dorms, leaving Kendo's shadow.
"Why… all of you? Is he that special?" He then turned to the ginger head. "Is he… that much better than me?"
Kendo felt an arrow pierce her chest. Never before she saw this person so saddened. It was almost as if Tetsutetsu didn't have this spectrum of emotions, since he was always cheering everyone on and being full of energy. So this quiet Tetsutetsu in front of her was quite hard to handle without being full of guilt. She wanted to hug him, like she would to comfort any other friend, but would this be the right thing to do? Would she hurt him even more while trying to help?
"That's not it, Tetsutetsu, I would never compare you to him, or anyone. You're an amazing person, really. Never doubt this. I know you'll find someone special that appreciates you like I do, probably even more. You just… need to keep looking forward."
She was as gentle as possible with her words. Kendo meant everything she said, but even then she knew this would take some time to heal.
Tetsutetsu seemed to be pondering over it for a while, then shoved his hands in his pockets, sighing and clicking his tongue.
"... I still don't like it… He should just pick you, after all…" The grumbling showed he was still pretty mad about it, but at least he seemed to acknowledge her decision. Kendo thought she heard something along the lines of 'punching that sneaky green-haired girl magnet', but it didn't feel like it was an immediate problem.
During this entire exchange, the rest of the class stood as spectators, and now that the show was over, their attention turned to the group of girls. Komori and Tsunotori felt particularly anxious, being under the gaze of their peers, while Shiozaki was going through all the shades of red. Since Kendo "broke the ice", Tokage took it into her hands to make things clear.
"That's it. Did you guys get the message or do you want me to get the juicy details?" They shook their heads vigorously. "Anyone else has a problem with that?"
"Well, coming from you, that's kind of expected," Nirengeki said and the boys nodded in agreement.
"Oi! What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Komori and Tsunotori-chan are a surprise, though. I never thought they were… you know, into it." Kaibara said.
"Don't ignore me, what's that supposed to mean?!"
"No no, isn't Shiozaki the most surprising one here?" Honekuni added, and all the eyes fell upon the vine girl, much to her embarrassment.
"A-a-as long as our love remains p-pure, there are no problems for me."
"Ah, piss off, you lot. You wish you could be as good as him one day." Said the lizard girl.
"I think I'll pass. Just hearing about it makes this harem idea look very troublesome." Kamakiri said, turning around and going upstairs back to his room. Soon the others followed suit.
"Wait, wait, wait! Is no one else seeing how serious this situation is?!" Monoma watched incredulously as the boys left the common room one after the other.
"Like I said, I don't really care what they do with Midoriya or whoever, as long as they're fine with it. That's not my problem." Kuroiro said as he walked past the blondie.
"You guys really don't get it, do you?! This is clearly a challenge, and I won't let 1-A hog all the glory-ahk!" The blondie was cut mid-sentence by a swift chop on his neck.
"Drop it, man. You heard them..." Tetsutetsu casually held Monoma by the back of his shirt. One final glance at the ginger head and he was off to his room, dragging the knocked-out blondie along.
As the crowd dispersed, the girls also headed to their rooms. As they passed by, Awase stopped one of them for a moment.
"Ah, umm, Kodai-san… How can I say…?" What Monoma said earlier did make him think about it. Despite Awase taking it as just a crush, he still felt something for the Cold Princess. "When did you... uh, when did you-"
"Fall for Midoriya?" She guessed his question, and she was spot on. "After the League of Villains attacked U.A."
"Well, it makes sense. He saved your life after all."
"And he is pretty cute."
"I guess so, hahaha…"
"And he is pretty hot."
"Uh, sure-"
"And having sex with him is really amazing-"
"Okay, I got the message!" This was a bit too much information. The black-haired boy sighed in defeat. He knew the most popular heroes were the ones with the flashy Quirks. Not that he wanted to be one for the fame, but right now Awase felt like he never stood a chance against Midoriya.
"You are pretty too, Awase."
Did he mishear something?
"Sorry, what?"
"You are pretty too, Awase," Kodai repeated, in the same emotionless voice as usual. "You're a fun person to hang around with, and if you focus a little more on physical training, I'm sure you'll have a lot of girls after you. I would do so."
"Wait, really?!" What should he be more embarrassed for: His crush complimenting him or the idea of being surrounded by girls like the emerald teen was a couple of minutes ago?
"Yeah. If I wasn't completely taken by Midoriya, I would go out with you." Kodai and her bluntness. The good side of it was that you could always tell she was being sincere, and Awase took it in a positive light.
"I s-see…"
"And that's basically how it went. Honestly, the reaction was less than I expected. Except for Monoma. I get him grumbling around from time to time." Kendo said.
"It doesn't sound that bad."
"And it's not. Aside from the odd glances now and then, everything is mostly the same. It can't be helped, I guess. The image of the Mother of 1-B has changed for good."
"They aren't… talking behind your back, are they?" The emerald teen began to enter protective mode.
"No no, that's not it. And don't you worry that head of yours, we can handle it just fine." She tranquilized him. "What I really miss is seeing you…"
"I miss sucking your dick too, Izu!~"
"Shut up, Setsuna!"
Midoriya laughed as Kendo tried to stop Tokage from embarrassing her by proxy.
Despite this turn of events, his life didn't change much on the surface. If nothing, being able to openly say he loved his girls was pretty liberating.
"That's pretty cute, but are you sure you'll survive not having hot, wild sex with your lovely ladies every night?~" It was the voice in his head that he grew accustomed to hearing.
"Honestly, I think we could use that short pause. What if it becomes stale, you know?"
"Oh, Izuku… that's not how it works."
"No?"
"Well, not to me, at least. And knowing the girls, that's not the case either. Sex with you will never get stale because they love you. … And because you're well endowed and an absolute beast in the sheets~"
"H-how would you know that?"
"Honey, trust me. I may be an imprint of my former self residing in your mind but I still can recognize a powerful orgasm when I see one–"
"O-okay, I get it! I don't need you m-making me feel horny while I walk on the streets."
Her light laugh sounded like clear bells as she faded away, back to her "front-row seat".
"Well, maybe we should try getting a closer look at that sometime…"
Shaking his head, Midoriya tried to clear his head. The last thing he needed was a bulge in his pants as he met the top 10th Pro Hero of Japan. Speaking of which, here he was, right in front of the agency of the Dragon Hero. Needless to say, Midoriya was equally anxious and excited to work with a Pro Hero like Ryukyu. He heard from Tsuyu and Uraraka how she was even better in person.
"Yosh, I'll give my best to–"
"Ah, Midoriya! So you accepted Ryukyu's invitation, that's good!"
The emerald teen jumped out of his skin as someone appeared out of nowhere shouting his name. The voice, however, was a familiar one.
"Hado-senpai?! I totally forgot you worked with Ryukyu."
The bubbly blue-haired girl approached him with a pout and puffed cheeks. She got a little too close, stopping inches away from his face and staring at his eyes for a while. At some point, Midoriya felt like he couldn't handle this awkwardness any longer.
"Umm, senpai? Is everything ok?"
"Humu! Midoriya-kun, that's not nice of you to say. I was super looking forward to the Hero Work Studies since Ryukyu told me she invited you." Hado said, hands resting on her hips in a comical display of annoyance.
"I-is that so…?" Yes, Midoriya didn't remember this small detail, and he also forgot about his senpai asking him out on a date. Rather, he hoped Hado would have dropped the idea altogether.
"Of course!" The pout quickly turned into a bright smile and Hado was back to her usual bubbly self. "Now let's go, we don't want you to be late on your first day working with Ryukyu~" And just like that, she held his hand and dragged Midoriya inside the agency, also gathering a lot of attention towards them like the Pro Heroes there watched them pass by, much to his embarrassment.
Despite being on the top ten of Pro Heroes in Japan, Ryukyu's agency was relatively small, in the sense that she didn't have as many Pros and sidekicks under her name. Most notably, the Dragon Hero was known for taking heroes in training to help them develop their fighting strength, so her office kind of worked as a temporary stage for many newly graduated heroes. That didn't bother her at all. On the contrary, Ryukyu always felt happy that she had some influence in the growth of the next generations.
"Ryukyu-san, Ryukyu-san! Midoriya-chan is here!" The bluenette barged into the office, never letting go of Midoriya's hand.
"S-s-s-sorry for the intrusion! I'm M-Midoriya Izuku!" He instantly entered his socially awkward mode since this was a totally new environment. Midoriya also had to keep his fan side in check. 10th Hero of Japan or not, that signature on his book could wait.
"Good morning, Hado. You seem more energetic than usual." The Dragon hero said with a gentle smile on her face.
Ryukyu had to admit, ever since Hado joined her office, not a single day was boring. Some of it came from the curious nature of the blunette, and she was glad to have her under her wing, even when the questioning became a little unhinged. Besides, she was a very competent hero already, with all the good qualities and a powerful Quirk to back it up. Now, turning her focus to someone as promising as Hado…
"Good morning to you too, Midoriya-san. I want to thank you in advance for taking my offer. Let's see that you take something useful while you're here."
"Please, I should be thanking you for having me. It's an honor to be invited by one of the Top Ten." He said, making a polite bow.
"Don't be so hung up on titles, the ranking is more for the public image." The Pro Hero said, getting up from her desk and walking past the two students. "Although, I do believe in giving credit where it's due. If the people think I deserve it, I'll do my best to meet their expectations. That's also why I invited you, Midoriya-san, or should I say… Deku, right?"
Having Ryukyu addressing him by his hero name gave Midoriya a warm feeling inside his chest. People were starting to recognize his efforts, so that meant he was making progress.
"More. I need to go even further." "Yosh, I will give my best!"
"Hm-hm, someone is pretty excited to work~" Hado chirped by his side, as giddy as Midoriya was, if not more.
"Go change into your costumes now, we're going for a patrol."
"She will spend the mornings here while I'm at class," Aizawa said monotonously, giving a small push on the kid's back.
Eri walked to the couch and climbed up, dangling her legs as she looked around.
"Can I see Deku now?"
While Ashido and Hagakure squealed at the cuteness emanating from Eri, Tsuyu got the rest of the instructions from their homeroom teacher.
"Ribbit, so while we're under house arrest, we'll look after Eri-chan?"
"I'm taking care of her training but I also have classes to lecture. I can't really ask Togata to keep an eye on her during the morning, as he has normal classes beyond the Hero Course. So that leaves you, girls, as the next available option." Aizawa didn't see any problems in taking advantage of a situation they got themselves in, to begin with. If they didn't want this, they wouldn't be literally fucking around the campus.
"Well, it's not like we can go anywhere else, ribbit."
"Exactly. Luckily, the schedules for the Hero Work Studies allow at least one of you to be here during the entire week. Also, Eri needs to interact with different people, but placing her with other kids her age is not safe yet, and I imagine it would be overwhelming. So take good care of her." The scruffy man finished, taking his leave.
"Sure thing, sensei. Ribbit ribbit~" Tsuyu croaked happily as having Eri around was always a good time. It also doubled down as a good way to pass the time while they were grounded for a month. Not having their beloved mop of green hair around was proving to be a hard task to endure already.
"Ne, ne, Eri-chan, have you learned something cool yet?" Ashido kneeled close to the grey-haired girl, beaming with happiness. The small girl pondered over it a bit, then gave an answer.
"Aizawa has a lot of apple pies."
"Eh?"
Both Eri and Ashido shared a confused look, though the former had different reasons.
"I don't really understand. Sensei is always asking me things like, 'if you have ten apple pies, and then I give you five more pies, how many do you have?'. But I didn't get any pies yet, and I don't know where sensei keeps them. I look in the room already." Eri didn't seem bothered, she just didn't understand where all those pies were coming from.
Meanwhile, Ashido was stuck between covering her mouth to prevent her laugh and having a stroke from the sheer adorableness of this precious kid.
"This is called a math problem, Eri-chan. It's meant to help you understand it better, but Sensei doesn't have real pies." Hagakure explained, petting the girl on the head.
"Aww, so I don't get any apple pies…?"
"We can ask Sato-kun to bake you one, ribbit~" Tsuyu suggested, joining her friends around the cute girl.
"Really?!" Her eyes lit up like Christmas lights at the idea of eating an apple pie. Ever since Midoriya told her there were many forms of eating an apple, she got invested in looking for and tasting each and every one of them. Recently, Eri found out about pies, and it was currently her biggest interest.
"Make sure to study and we can make it a reward for a job well done, ribbit ribbit~"
Eri would have run back to Aizawa's quarters if Ashido didn't hold her in place with a hug. It was really good to see her so excited about… about anything.
"You are very good with kids, aren't you, Tsu-chan?" The invisible girl said.
"Well, I do have two younger siblings."
"So, do you want to play something, Eri-chan?" The pink-haired girl looked as excited as the grey-haired one.
"Umm… Is Deku here?" She asked shyly.
"Muscles–ahem, Deku is out doing hero stuff for school. He won't return until afternoon."
"Ah… and where is everyone else? Like Spiky Hair-kun and Sparky-kun? And that loud one too?" She said, looking over the couch.
"They, uh… are at class right now."
"And why aren't you, Pinky-chan?" The wonders of an inquiring, curious kid.
"Umm, let's say we kind of made a mistake and we're grounded for a while... But hey, we'll be spending a lot of time together. It'll be fun!~" Ashido successfully deflected the question, also gaining a smile from Eri. A little shaky, but she was training so she could smile just like Deku and Lemillion.
"One thing to always keep in mind is your surroundings. An emergency or a crime can happen at any time, and the quickness to respond to them is crucial for a hero." The dragon lady explained as she walked across the streets, followed by the two students.
"You also want to know exactly where you are, regarding civilians present and potential hazards in the environment. For example, I can't change into my dragon form in narrow or crowded spaces. That limits my range of action a bit but also makes sure I am most effective when needed. You can say it's a situational thing."
On the back, Midoriya was furiously taking notes in his notebook, mumbling as he added his own observations to Ryukyu's experience. Meanwhile, Hado eyed him from the corners of her eyes, holding a tiny smile.
"Nejire-chan told me about a peculiar situation of yours, Deku. You're some sort of late bloomer, correct?" The question dragged Midoriya out of his inner monologue.
"E-eh? Ah, yes." He put the notebook aside and raised a fist, focusing a little. Then, something akin to a string of some black material jutted out one of the openings in his gloves. "This is called Black Whip. It's some sort of side effect from my Quirk, I think..."
It was hard enough to explain how he only "developed" his Quirk now, and the other Quirks stored in One For All only added more complexity to this problem.
"Well, it's pretty common for the description of a Peculiarity to change as the person understands its fundamentals better. Regardless, Nejire-chan said that, on the occasion where you 'awakened' this side of your Peculiarity, it went haywire."
"Yeah! It was super scary but also pretty cool. I was surprised that Midoriya had such a powerful Quirk, but-" She turned to Midoriya, invading his space as she leaned closer to inspect the black thing coming from his glove. "Why is it so small now? What happened to all those tendrils? Did you forget how to use it? Ne, ne, did you ask Hatsume-san to modify your gear? Do you know how it works? Can you make more than one rope thingy? Why is it so small again-"
"Nejire, one question at a time..." Ryukyu had to halt the bluenette's spree of questions, as Midoriya was clearly overwhelmed. From what she heard about him, the guy wasn't exactly the most articulate person when it came to social skills, and having Hado on Curious Mode certainly didn't help.
To top it off, it was a new side of his Peculiarity that he would need to sort out as soon as possible if he wanted to keep up with his classmates. Ryukyu had a soft spot for kids and she appreciated the amount of effort Midoriya seemed to put into covering the gap between him and everyone. He had to compensate for all the years the other kids had to experiment with their Quirks while they grew up.
"For now, this is the best I can do without losing control or straining myself. I was thinking about how I can best use it to help me in fights." Midoriya said, staring at his hand in deep thought. It was obvious to the dragon lady that he felt at least troubled with his current predicament. Cue for her advice, if she could give any light to him.
"Honestly, we're not exactly on the same grounds, regarding our Peculiarities, but I can tell you this one thing: there is a best place and situation to use this side of your Quirk. When it first activated, how was it?"
"Well… I was trying to reach out to someone, but I was just too far, and then it activated." Midoriya didn't see that other inheritor of One For All again, and Nana-san said that while she could somehow sense them somewhere, she couldn't 'bring them to the surface' like she did all the time. It would be very helpful if he could talk to the original owner of the Quirk.
"That sounds more like a tool than a weapon to me. While I'm sure you can incorporate that into your arsenal, I think it would be better if you trained using this side of your Peculiarity as something to help you out, instead of another set of attacks. It's just my opinion, though."
Midoriya seemed to be in deep thought at her words.
"No, it makes sense. Whenever I learn a new ability, I instantly try to make it some sort of offensive, but I don't have many options to aid in rescues and other situations… How did I miss that?!" He was shocked at his lack of sight. Once again, Midoriya fell into the trap of emulating All Might too much.
"It's a common path to heroes with battle-oriented Peculiarities, don't beat yourself too much about it," Ryukyu assured him, giving a gentle smile. There was no denying this kid was genuinely a hero in the making. She couldn't help but think if that was one of the reasons why Midnight and Mt. Lady were so… invested in him.
"You probably have fewer chances of getting hurt that way~," Hado said in a happy tone, but the green teen did take it as his senpai calling him out on his tendency to break a limb while fighting. When you look at it, so far every major progress Midoriya made was in order to prevent his arms from getting wasted.
"Y-you are right, senpai…" He laughed awkwardly, scratching his head.
"Well, that's enough talking for now, we can discuss it later on if you want. We'll split here and you two cover the west area, then come around in a circle back to the office."
"Hai!" They said together, then sprinted across the street to their patrolling zone.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"... Are you going to stand there all day?" Yaoyorozu asked without bothering to hide her annoyance, closing the book and her eyes in frustration as she held back the urge to smack the blondie with the heavy tome at hand.
"I'm fine here. Are you done reading for now?" Himiko asked with innocence in her voice.
"I can lend you the book if you want…"
"Nah, I'm okay reading with you, Momo-chan~"
The raven-haired girl felt her eyebrow twitch.
"But I insist, you looked really interested in the book. You haven't left my back for the past half hour…"
Just because she was under house arrest, didn't mean Yaoyorozu couldn't study. As the co-leader of the study group of the class, she knew most of the subjects' chronograms, so she could prepare herself and reduce the gap of contents she was missing out on. However, Himiko simply parked behind the couch where Yaoyorozu was sitting, leaned over, and apparently followed her reading. How come her very presence could be so frustrating?
Yaoyorozu got up and headed to the kitchen, where Himiko followed her. She picked up a glass of water and drank it, again being mimicked by the blondie. As she opened the fridge to see if there were any snacks left, Himiko poked her head around to peek too and the raven-haired girl felt an urge to slam the door shut so this creature would have her head stuck.
"Oh, for the love of… can you please back off?!"
"What?"
"Don't you have anything better to do?"
"Izuku is not around so… no. I already did my homework too. Do you wanna see my notes–"
"No, I don't want to see your notes!" Yaoyorozu shouted, storming out of the kitchen, steaming like a kettle. Sero jumped to the side as she passed by him with a nasty look on her face, only to see the reason for such a look come right after her.
"Momo-chan, wait up."
"Don't 'Momo-chan' me!"
"... I really don't want to be in her skin." Said the tape boy with a sympathetic look.
"But Momo-chan, I'm bored to death here…"
"And why should I care?" Yaoyorozu asked harshly as she got up to her room.
"Don't be like that, Momo-chan. How about we call this a "bonding activity", hmm?~"
"How about you stay away from me?" She said, slamming the door of her room at the blondie's face.
"Aw, come on, you don't have to be so grumpy just because Principal Mouse cut your sexy fun time with Izuku."
The door quickly opened and Yaoyorozu poked her head out, glaring at Himiko as if she could shoot death beams with her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, but it turned into a pout with puffy cheeks.
"Uuugh, how I hate this!" And she closed the door shut again, not acknowledging the smug look plastered on Himiko's face.
At the 1-B dorms, a group consisting of Shiozaki, Yanagi, Kodai, and Tsunotori were gathered at the blondie's room. Their topic of talk: Tsunotori's vast collection of manga. She took a few of her boxes out of her wardrobe, and her favorite series were all neatly organized on shelves in her walls. There was a considerable number of shelves, compared to how her room used to be.
"I gotta say, Pony-chan, this manga is pretty good," Yanagi said, going for the next volume right away.
"Hehe, I knew you would like Shiki. I'll see if my sis can send over my Junji Ito collection since you like horror so much. Another also has a good anime adaptation." The short girl said with glee. Midoriya and Kendo were completely right, it was amazing to finally be open with her friends about her hobby, and everyone was very accepting. Enthusiastic even!
"I don't know if I like this one a lot, Tsunotori-chan. All these girls are devils, and the protagonist is a shameless pervert." Shiozaki gave the blondie the volume back. Under a lot of insistence, she read the first volume from beginning to end.
"Yeah, I thought so. Honestly, I kinda wanted to see how you would react to DxD fanservice…" She didn't exactly hide the smile forming on her lips, as the vine girl did exactly what she expected, calling the girls in that manga "a bunch of depraved devils".
"But isn't that ironic when we all date the same person?" Kodai said, not looking away from her reading.
"K-Kodai-san! Please don't compare Izuku to this Issei or whatever. He doesn't think about breasts every time, and he's not openly perverted."
"Still, it makes you think, doesn't it? How we're part of a harem… doesn't it look like we came out of a manga or something?"
Yeah…
"Well, I'm not a big fan of DxD anyway. I just have them because it's a "classic". Too much gratuitous fanservice to my taste, but I think you'll like this one more. It's called Black Cat. I made a cosplay for this girl on the cover once." Tsunotori said, handing the manga to Shiozaki.
"Oh wow, this girl with the angel wings? Amazing, I would love to see it~"
"Maybe another day, I didn't bring a proper dress for it…" She said, scratching her cheek sheepishly.
"Speaking of clothes, Tsunotori-chan, any chances of you making a costume of this character for me?" Kodai turned the manga around so Tsunotori could see, pointing at the character in question.
"Erza, huh? Hmm… I don't know, her battle armor has a lot of details…" It would be a fun project for sure, but it also would be pretty time-consuming, not to mention a bit expensive.
"Then how about this one?" Kodai then showed another page.
"That's… honestly just a basic bunny girl outfit…" The blondie pointed out.
"Do you think Izuku would like it?"
"Oh… so this is why you want to wear it?"
"Yes." She looked surprisingly committed to the idea, despite her expression not changing much. Again, you had to look for the small details.
"If you don't mind me giving my opinion, Erza Scarlet doesn't match up with you a lot…"
"Is it because of my breasts?"
"K-Kodai-san!" Shiozaki intervened as the cold princess was on her way to remove her shirt.
"No, that's not it. How can I say this? Personality-wise… I think Kendo-chan would be a better fit. Especially in her Clear Heart Clothing." Said the blondie, picking up another volume, looking for a panel to show them.
"Isn't that just simple clothing, instead of armor?" Yanagi piped up.
"And why is she only using bandages to cover her chest?! How shameless." Shiozaki followed up.
"Well, it's supposed to symbolize how she took down the walls around her heart, her armors, and it's also a Battlesuit focused on offensive power. Anyway, Kendo-chan would totally rock this one, don't you think?~" Said the shortie, already excited with the idea.
"Hmm, you're not wrong…" Kodai said. "About that bunny girl get up…"
"Kodai-san!"
Tsunotori couldn't help but laugh at the flustered vine girl.
"~sigh~ Maybe one day we could make a cosplay night and have everyone wear something…"
"I'm pretty sure Izuku would love it~," Yanagi said, hinting at some wild fun time with the emerald teen.
"I-it doesn't need to end that way. But I won't lie, it sounds… interesting."
The duo of students walked by the streets with vigilant eyes, scanning the surroundings for any suspicious activity. One of them looked way more relaxed than the other, however.
"Ne ne, Deku-kun, try not to be so tense. People will think there's a problem." Nejire said, her smile always present.
"Oh… sorry, I didn't notice."
"It's okay, I was pretty anxious during my first internships and Work Studies too. We have to always be alert, but also look like nothing is going on." She said, strutting a few steps ahead of him, chin raised and with a proud face. Then, she spun around, walking backward. "That way people will be more at ease when they see us and feel safe. That's what Mirio always does! Well, uh…"
The blunette inadvertently brought up a delicate topic.
"Umm, how is senpai doing? I didn't get to talk to him recently." Midoriya tried to approach it as smoothly as possible.
"He's doing fine, considering everything. Mirio was taking care of Eri-chan while Aizawa-sensei was busy with homeroom, but now he's back to keep up with the normal classes. He's always cheering Eri-chan on, you know…"
Well, it was to be expected. Not that they thought it was the only reason why Togata would help Eri, but the possibility of recovering his Quirk wasn't something to be ignored. It wasn't the focus nor his priority, but it was still there. In fact, Hado and Tamaki were probably more eager with this idea than Togata himself.
"I see. As expected from Togata-senpai." Despite knowing the blondie for a relatively short time, Midoriya already developed a sense of admiration for him. Perhaps because they both were connected to All Might in some way.
Not only that, he could relate to Togata in the sense that both had to work hard to get where they were. Midoriya placed himself way behind him, but still in a similar situation. It was only with his determination and efforts that Togata transformed a troublesome Quirk into a powerful one, and it was the same unyielding determination that saved Eri. So Midoriya decided to carry on these feelings along in his mission. The will of Lemilion was one more thing he had to honor since Togata was intended to be the next inheritor of One for All.
"Hehe, you're doing that face again~"
"Eh? What–wha! W-w-what face?!" When he broke from his inner thoughts, Midoriya found Hado looking at him straight in the eyes, but much closer than he was comfortable with.
"You know, that "I will give my best!" face whenever you're getting serious." She said with a bright smile, then pumped up a fist in the air. "It's like "show me your motivation!", or something."
"A-ah, I… never realized I did that." He answered, scratching his head.
"But you look really cute, even when you're all serious~"
"C-cute?!"
"Ne, Deku, I was thinking. Now that we're technically working together, we could–"
"Yaaaaa!" A high-pitched scream cut Hado and got everyone's attention. Both heroes in training instantly entered into high alert mode, looking around to find the source of the problem, and there it was, just across the street.
Some random dude was holding a young woman, one arm around her neck and the other, which had the shape and looks of a lobster claw, threatening to clamp the poor woman's head.
"Let me go, please!" She shouted in fear as the thug restrained her, his eyes darting left and right frantically.
The civilians around all looked shocked at the scene unfolding, many of them recording with their phones. Some people walked away hastily but a lot of curious eyes either stood where they were or straight up got near to get a better sight.
"Oi! Don't get closer, or she gets it!" He threatened the increasing crowd, snapping the lobster claw. The sound it made only made the lady shout and squirm more.
"Let me go! I'll give you all my money! Please, don't hurt me!"
"Shut up and stop struggling! And you all, I told you to back off!"
The crowd took a step back as the lobster criminal swung his claw around, but they still kept closing the circle as more people appeared.
"Okay, everyone, please calm down. We don't want to get anyone hurt here, right, Mister Lobster?" The attention gathered to the blue-haired girl entering the circle. By the costume, anyone could tell she was a hero, or at least one in training, given how young she looked.
"Oi, Brat! I said to back the fuck off!" He said, pointing the claw at Nejire and snapping it.
"Please save me!"
"And I told you to shut up already!" Now the claw was around her head.
"Yaaaaaa!"
"Now now, why don't you let her go so we can talk in peace?" Nejire said, trying to deescalate the situation.
"Don't fuck with me! Talking? Peace? All you heroes know to do is beat people to a pulp! Who gives you the right to punish people like me, huh?!"
"Well, what you're doing now is a crime. We're just making sure Justice prevails and–"
"Justice? Don't give me that crap! How is it fair that I get beaten up for stealing a purse when there are companies full of dirty money?! I don't see you lot banging on their doors!"
"Well, it's a bit more complicated than that… If you let this poor lady go, then we can talk about that and–"
"Bullshit! The moment I let go of her you'll try and beat me too! And you're just a brat! Did you even finish school?!" He then turned to the crowd, still keeping the claw around the young lady's head.
"Listen, this game is totally rigged! I can't find a job because of my Quirk but I bet this pretty face here has no problems at all! How is that fair?! Heroes? Justice?! It's people like that brat that makes the rules, and it's people like me that have to lower their heads and obey, or else we get thrown into a cell!"
"Please… please let me go… I'll give you money, but please let me go…" The poor lady was crying as she begged him.
"Tch, it must be really good to be born with a good Quirk and a pretty face… Let's see how you go around with an ugly scar in it…"
"Yaaaaaa!"
The crowd winced in shock as the claw opened. The young lady screamed in terror. Nejire gave the signal.
"Now, Deku!"
The lobster thug didn't understand. He had a cheap mutation, only in his left arm, but still, the claw was pretty strong, enough to break weak wood. So why didn't he hear the snapping sound? Oh, there it was, the reason. Something thin and black was wrapped around his lobster arm, preventing the inferior pincer from closing. Still, where did that come from–
WHAM!
A punch straight to the face. He was lucky Deku just began training with his Black Whip. Using One for All to power that punch could cause the secondary Quirk to go haywire again, but still, Midoriya was pretty strong on his own, after all that intense training.
Dazed by the punch and surprise effect, the lobster thug loosened his grip on the young lady, staggering to the side. Deku was quick to aid her, as the shock left her on the verge of fainting.
"Senpai!"
With a swift exchange of places, Deku jumped away to secure the civilians as Nejire finished the criminal.
"Well, to answer your question, Mr. Lobster. When you put someone innocent in danger… that's when we have to act." Nejire then did a simple uppercut backed up by her Wave Motion, one hand on her hips as she effortlessly sent the criminal into the air. For someone that could knock down villains with powerful gigantification Peculiarities, this was less than an exercise.
This dude didn't stand a chance but a civilian was held hostage, so this problem required more finesse. This was one of the many lessons Ryukyu taught her. Speaking of which, the Dragon Hero arrived a few moments later along with a few police officers. At least someone in the crowd made an emergency call.
Ryukyu approached the bluenette, who was in the middle of a round of cheers and applause. It wasn't her primary intention, but she did put a good display of heroism. Despite that, she kept her composure and waved at the people with her bright smile.
"Good job defusing that situation, Nejire-chan."
"It was all teamwork, Ryukyu-san. I simply distracted Mister Lobster over there while Deku sneaked up and immobilized him." Her smile shone brighter as she pointed back at the green teen, currently occupied tranquilizing the young lady.
"Are you really okay? Does it hurt somewhere?"
"I feel like fainting a bit and my heart is racing, but I'm fine. Thanks to you." She said, slowly getting on her feet with his help.
"No need to thank me, miss. Besides, it wasn't only me." He said with pride in his eyes.
"I can see we're in good hands with the next generation. And you look pretty cute too~"
"A-ah, t-thanks…"
Before Midoriya had the opportunity to show his impression of a tomato, he got pulled around by Hado.
"Good job, Deku. You were amazing!~"
"You too, senpai! You managed to keep it cool the entire time."
Both teens said, equally excited about the job well done.
"Congratulations to you two. Just don't forget to fill in the reports to the police until the end of the day." Ryukyu said.
"Yeah, you really don't want to miss on that, Deku…" Said the blunette, laughing awkwardly.
The sun was about to set at the 1-A dorms. Eri already left with Aizawa and right now the girls were sitting on the couch next to each other, legs and arms crossed. Not only that, they shared the same expression of annoyance and distaste for the blondie standing in front of them, and even more for the request she just made.
"Come on, let me in."
"No," Uraraka answered again, plain and simple.
"I'll be a good girl. I promise I'll behave."
"No."
"Can't I just… join temporarily? Like an experience-"
"No."
"Umm… Ochako-chan, you're not making this very easy for me..."
"No, and that's final." The brunette emphasized, getting up with a huff, but before she could take more than two steps, Himiko jumped at her, sliding down as Uraraka struggled to go to her room while dragging the inconvenience incarnated.
"Give me a break, Ochako-chan, I feel lonely all the time without Izuku around. I don't have anyone else to go..."
"That's your problem, and let go of me!"
"Please, let me in, Ochako-chan~" She whined, being dragged on the floor, holding on to Uraraka's ankles as the brunette forced her way upstairs.
"I already said no!"
"Momo-chan, help me out here."
"Get lost!" the raven-haired girl said as she watched the scene unfold along with the others. It would be mildly funny if it wasn't Himiko.
"Please, please, please, I'm begging you, Ochako-chan~"
"Can you shut up and release me already?!" Uraraka had to hold on to the handrail so she could push herself up the first steps of stairs.
"Let me in, Let me in!~"
"Oh my god, FINE!"
The loud burst caught everyone by surprise, be it for the volume of Uraraka's voice, or the answer itself. Even Sero and Tokoyami, who were in the kitchen, poked their heads around the corner to see what was happening. Meanwhile, the girls on the couch seemed pretty shocked.
"Wait, for real?" Himiko lifted her head, eyes sparkling with joy.
"Ugh… yes, you can join our study group..." Said the brunette, pinching the bridge of her nose and groaning in deep frustration.
Why? Why would she want so badly to join them? Just to get on her nerves? Or was she really feeling "lonely"? Either way, by now Uraraka knew just how stubborn and persistent Himiko could be, and if she kept saying "No" the annoying blondie would continue asking. And asking. And asking, until the end of times, rather, until Uraraka lost every fiber of patience in her being. At that point, a crime would be committed, she was sure of it.
Well, there was one tiny silver lining in this self-inflicted torture. If Himiko was being her absolutely infuriating self around them, then she wasn't doing the same around Midoriya, and that was something that had been concerning the gravity girl lately. How close she managed to get to him, and how Midoriya seemed to tolerate her presence. She didn't like to second guess the love of her life, but something inside her told Uraraka this wasn't right. Like the chills she would feel when some of the girls talked to him back then.
Regardless of it, having Himiko enter yet another circle of their lives was kind of mortifying, but this was a sacrifice Uraraka was willing to make for the sake of her beloved Deku, which she hoped he was doing fine out there, being a hero and all. For a brief moment, her brain signaled that she was forgetting something. It felt important, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Actually, she couldn't focus properly because Himiko just jumped up from her position on the floor, cheering and hopping in place as she hugged Uraraka.
"Yes, yes, yes! We're finally doing best friends stuff together, Ochako-chan~ Hehehe~"
"We're NOT best friends, we're not friends, we're not even acquaintances! Back off before I kick you into the sky!"
"Okay, okay, baby steps, got it." Said the blondie, releasing Uraraka's frame as if she was a hot iron bar. Perhaps she could actually get angry enough to generate heat… "Still, I'm looking forward to that. I've been taking a lot of notes in class so you girls don't miss everything. Well, bye bye~"
And just like that, Himiko left the room, with the intense stares of the girls aimed at her back. Nevertheless, she walked with a spring in her feet and hummed happily as she went upstairs. Uraraka covered her face with both hands, activating her Quirk, and as she floated up, the brunette screamed, muffling part of it with her hands. The sentiment was shared by the others. Tokoyami and Sero looked at each other, then went back to mind their own business.
"Sorry for keeping you here at this late hour, Deku, Nejire-chan. There's something in particular that I have to address while we're at the start."
"It's okay, Ryukyu-san. To be honest, I kind of have some, uh, extra free time for a while..." Midoriya answered. By his side, Hado swung back and forth on her feet with a happy face. This wasn't exactly news to her, but she did wonder what was the reason this time.
"Yo, Tatsuma!" An energetic voice got their attention. It was quite familiar to Midoriya, but he usually heard it in the news, answering interviews. Always bold and confident, to the point some would call it arrogance, but the numbers didn't lie. She was a very effective Pro Hero.
"Miruko?!" He exclaimed in surprise as the tan-skinned lady made her way across the office, clad in her hero costume and holding a grin.
"You're late, Miruko. Again..." The Dragon hero said, shaking her head.
"Sorry about that, some losers were trying to rob a bank, and it turned into a car pursuit and then a car crash. A lot of stuff happened but I kicked them into jail~"
"Knowing you, it couldn't have taken more than ten minutes of action," Ryukyu replied.
"Well, I… kinda forgot we had a meeting after that, so I went back to patrolling." She said without apparent worry about missing out on that appointment.
"Miruko, I know you're used to doing things your way, but we're a team now. Or at least that's the intention..."
"Wait, a team?!" Midoriya, who was overflowing with the excitement of meeting another great Pro Hero in person, looked even more shocked than with her arrival.
It was well known that the Bunny Hero Miruko worked completely alone. No agency, no sidekicks, no partnerships, no teams, which was becoming a sort of trend recently. Needless to say, Midoriya was equally thrilled and surprised, as he would be watching in the first roll the formation of the very first Hero Team Miruko took part on.
"Yes, this is the topic I wanted to address. For a period, probably short," The Dragon lady quickly glanced at her friend. "Miruko and I will be forming a small team along with a couple more pros."
"Really? That's so cool!" Midoriya was trying to contain himself to not go full geek mode, but it was obviously a failing attempt. Meanwhile, next to him, Hado laughed at his antics, her eyes never leaving the green teen twinkling with excitement.
"Fufufu, I think I never saw him like this before. Cute..." She said to herself, widening the smile crossing her lips.
"Wait… aren't you the kid that broke their fingers at U.A's Sports Festival?" The Bunny hero took notice of the bundle of positive energy next to Ryukyu. She wasn't good with names, though.
Midoriya cringed at the mentioning of his early stunts. It was a little worrisome to him that he was more known for breaking his own body in fights. Probably not the best type of message to have attached to your image.
"H-hai… M-Midoriya Izu-"
"I'm Hado Nejire and this is Midoriya Izuku, and our hero names are Nejire-chan and Deku! Ne, ne, Miruko-san, why are you making a team with Ryukyu-san? Did you change your opinion? Can you hear better with your bunny ears? Can I touch them? Will you open an agency now that you're-"
"Nejire..." Ryukyu playfully smacked the blunette in the head, signaling her to hit the brakes on the questioning train.
As for the tanned woman, she stepped forward and looked closer at Midoriya. Even if she was quite shorter than him, he couldn't help but feel under some pressure with her intense stare, fierce and bright red eyes measuring him from head to toe for a couple more seconds before she backed off from his personal space, allowing him to breathe again. Then, she flashed a grin, still looking at him, one hand on her chin. Was there something on him that asked for that deep analysis?
"Midoriya… Izuku, huh? Heh, it was a hell of a stunt you pulled at the Festival, and if I'm not mistaken, you also fought that muscle villain after the Warp Incident at U.A..." He couldn't confirm, but Miruko seemed to grin even more and squint her eyes a bit as she kept staring.
"Y-yes, although both occasions ended with… not so good results." He said, scratching his cheek bashfully. So she also knew about that. That was kind of surprising. He didn't expect someone like Miruko to know that since she didn't do recruiting of heroes in training.
From her place next to him, Ryukyu crossed looks with Miruko, and the dragon hero did her best to send that "what are you doing?" kind of face, to which Miruko answered with a smirk. Ryukyu didn't like that much.
"Nah, it happens. You'll get the hang of it with time. I already knew you, Ryukyu's protegee." Miruko said, pointing at Hado, but still taking a glance at Midoriya now and then. "You have a good crew under your wings, Tatsuma."
"I do believe they have a lot of potential, and their feats only back it up." Well, she couldn't really speak for Midoriya yet, but Hado had been working with her since her second year, and she developed a lot since then. It was a small source of pride for the Dragon Hero.
"Potential, right… I can see that. Well, now that this is explained, I'm heading out. See you tomorrow or something, Tatsuma!~" Said the Bunny Hero, spinning on her feet and walking away as casually as she came in. She halted at the door for a second, then turned her head around a little. Her eyes seemed to gleam like shiny rubies.
"Show me what you've got. I can't wait, Deku..."
The grin and the look in her eyes sent a shiver down his spine.
"Was that… a challenge or something...?"
"She's usually like that, don't worry," Ryukyu said, trying to tranquilize the green teen, but it kind of had the opposite effect.
"Miruko-san is so cool!~ Don't you think, Midoriya-chan?" Hado asked the mildly stunned boy, also invading his personal space similarly to Miruko.
"A-ah, yes. No wonder she's in the Top Ten of Japan. If they made an international ranking, I bet she would still be pretty high up."
"The ranking system is more for the public image, and in a way, so is this temporary partnership. The streets are getting more and more criminals, and people aren't feeling as safe. Without All Might around, we have to provide them with this sense of safety in his place." Ryukyu told them as she walked both students out of her office and to the train station. She always made sure the students under her wings were delivered safely, even if they could take care of themselves.
Her words held much more meaning and weight to Midoriya than she knew. The Pro Heroes were taking on their hands the mission of keeping the legacy All Might alive. Midoriya was the one with the task to carry it on further.
Oblivious to his surroundings for a while, Midoriya didn't notice the slightly troubled expression Ryukyu held, despite her best efforts to hide it. She did steal a glance or two at the emerald teen on the way to the station. Hado, she noticed, didn't bother being so discreet, as she didn't really move her eyes from the boy walking next to her. The blunette had a wide smile crossing her lips.
"He looks… so cute."
End of Chapter
Aye, it's me, ya boy! Things are starting to get in motion again, and I don't mean only the next action-driven subplot. One quick question: does that short scene exchanging works fine? Lemme know in the reviews if you can. I see you readers are pretty happy I'm back working on this fic, and since it's been a while I had to reread some of the previous chapters, take some notes, the likes. And that got me thinking. What is your favorite character so far? As in, who do you think I adapted best, what is your favorite romance development? I wanna know so I can try and bring more of that.
Anyways, thanks to my beta reader again, you know who you are. And thank YOU for coming this far reading my story, I really didn't expect to get here. As always, feel free to leave a comment if you like, it is very appreciated. And if you want to poke me about the next updates, there's this Discord server (gg / nbvVH6aUTc) where I hang out. There's a bunch of cool authors there and we chat about pretty much anything. That's about it, see y'all on the next update~