Chapter 13
As we waited for the next class, I could hear Deku mumbling. I looked back and saw how he was writing in a notebook. From the looks of it, it seemed to be a new notebook. I wonder if that's where he's writing about all these extra's quirks. If so, I should try to get it sometime soon. But when would be a good time to take it? Since I was also curious about what quirks our classmates have.
It would give me the upper hand to get Deku's notebook. But neither of us has seen our classmates in full action. So, even he was in the dark. But knowing the nerd, he had an eye for details. And since everyone in the room were pebbles in my path, it was best to take them down. Which is easier if I knew their weaknesses.
Just as the bell rang for the next class to begin is when All Might burst into the room. "All Might!" The shriek from Deku hurt my ears. But I expect nothing less from the ultimate fanboy. Yet I couldn't help but notice how the hero stared directly in Deku's direction. It made me uneasy.
While we got ready in the locker room, I took note of the other boys. Most of them seemed to have simple hero suits that could pass for street clothes. But what caught my attention was how Deku had a scar on his lower back before he covered up with what I could describe as a girl's one-piece swimsuit. What was that about? I quickly looked away as I tried to finish putting on my suit.
And when we met up with All Might at the training sight, is when I looked back at Deku. At that, what he wore seemed similar to his parkour get-up. From the teal baggy pants that were compressed just above the ankles. A red belt that had a set of pouches on both hips. Then a loose sleeveless teal hoody that had a mask attached to the hood. Not to mention the black compression sleeves from the weird under-bathing suit. And a mask that was all black with metal pieces that shot up like bunny ears. But of course, he wore a pair of those high-top Nike Air Force 1s. What is with him and those red sneakers?
When All Might announced the teams, I felt almost insulted that I was paired with four eyes. At that, even he seemed offended. But maybe this was as good a chance as any to see if he was worthy to be Deku's friend. Besides being a pain in my ass, I can acknowledge that he seems ok. But he doesn't shut up and is all about rules. So, maybe it was too good to be true of him and the nerd to become friends. Almost like they shared the same personality, just that he was more annoying than Deku. And that's saying a lot.
As four eyes started talking up a storm about what we should do, I tried not to blast him. I needed to focus because I was a little too thrilled that my opponent was Deku. When the timer began, I left the base and went in search of that nerd. Knowing him, he would already guess I was coming. So, I'll keep from touching the ground and use that as my opening. But it takes me a bit to control myself in the air. Especially with what I noticed yesterday.
It didn't take me long to find the nerd. Now it was my chance to blast him, but he somehow dodged it in time. "What are you going to do now, Deku?" I just couldn't stop smiling as I could tell that stupid nerd was shaking before me. Some things never change, especially the weak stance he held. Which makes this even a greater win since I know he'll lose like always.
When I went to blast his face, I was shocked that he didn't move back. Instead, Deku went under and grabbed my arm. Did he just read my moves? Wait! That's when I remembered about that notebook I burned. He's not reading my moves. He KNOWS my moves. This got me thinking, am I that predictable? "I'm done, Kacchan!"
I got up and looked back at Deku. Besides his left sleeve burnt off, it doesn't seem I left even a scratch on him. At that, he still stood but was no longer shaking. "Done with what, Deku?" I started to charge at him, and he blocked my fist from hitting his face.
"From being your damn punching bag." And just then, I felt something hit my face, knocking me back. Did he just punch me? I even felt something run down my nose, as that side of my face hurt. Wiping away my nose, I watched as the two ran from me. Looking at my hand, I was shocked to see blood. Somehow I couldn't help but smile. So, the nerd is finally fighting back. About god damn time!
As I ran after Deku, I notice how that round face was nowhere to be found. So, that's your plan. Fine with me. If you don't want to be my punching bag, then you better be ready to hit with all you got. Because I'm not holding back this time. And when I win, I'm going to make you tell me why you lied to me all these years. I'm going to beat the truth out of you. Along with making you pay for looking down on me, you damn nerd!
When I finally caught up to Deku, I decided to see if my suit request was answered. Once I pulled the trigger, I was overjoyed with the punch my blast did. But I did notice one major thing that I need to fix. I had no control over the size of the output. The blast even took me by surprise and had me bracing against the wall so that I wouldn't be thrown back. Definity is something I need better control of. Which means that for now, I can't use that again. It also didn't help how it left my arm shaking from the recoil. This wouldn't be good in the long run.
So, for now, I attacked Deku with smaller blasts. At that, I was able to fake him out and get a hit on his side. Which meant my first thought was right. I need to switch up my style of fighting so I don't get predictable. But even when I can finally get hits on Deku, something felt off. It was irritating how he yet used his quirk against me. Was he holding back? Come on, nerd! You know better than that. I thought you wanted to stop being my punching bag.
Even though I tried not to give him a chance to think, with constantly hitting him, something plague the back of my mind. What is the nerd waiting for? Perhaps I should use my blast again and finish this. Thankfully my right tank wasn't as full as before. But hopefully, Deku doesn't see past my bluff. At that, I silently hope he would dodge my attack. Especially because I would then get the win on the following attack.
I can't believe what I'm seeing. Deku didn't dodge. He took my blast full on and use his attack to break the ceiling. What is going on? At that, hearing how I lost was impossible. I could never lose. Especially not to Deku. But here I was standing after losing. I was such in shock that I didn't even hear what All Might said.
Deku was mocking me. That just has to be it. He's been doing so our whole lives. But why had he never told me? Even though that would be impossible. Right? We knew each other almost our whole lives, and this never came up. In fact, we all believed he was quirkless. So, how was this all possible? At that, I lost. I never lose.
The day seemed to have gone in a blur when I noticed it was time to go home. As I left the classroom, I still didn't know how to feel about losing to Deku. It feels so humiliating. And just as I got out of the school, I heard someone running in my direction. When I looked, it was him. Even though I was angry, I couldn't help but just look at his bandage arm. "Kacchan, please hear me out."
The way he slowly walked towards me made me nervous. I never felt nervous like this before, and it was frightening. Just as Deku was within arm's reach from me, my heart started to race. It didn't help that my chest and shoulders also felt heavy. "What do you want, nerd?"
"I told you how I can't tell you what's been happening. But I can't keep it in anymore. So please," I watched as tears ran down his face. All while Deku's face turned red. And watched how he was on the verge of one of his anxiety attacks. Times like these had me wishing I could help him, but I was still so angry. He made me feel like a fool. "It hurts not to tell you. So, please just believe me when I say how this power was given to me."
Hearing that had my anger building. But I was also in disbelief. Not only that, a strange tight feeling in my chest was making it hard to breathe. Especially how I tried fighting from crying. Yet tears still found a way to burn down my face. "Don't you dare lie to me! Stop looking down on me! Just stop it!"
I watched as Deku fell to his knees as he cried and gripped his chest. "But I could never lie to you, Kacchan. You know this!" The way he looked at me was too painful to bare. He's the one who wrong me, and yet I wanted so badly to comfort him. It's not fair!
I couldn't take it and started to walk away. I'm not going to stand here and listen to Deku's lies. While I tried to get rid of my own tears, a certain hero showed up. That damn All Might. He even dared to touch me as he spoke. "Don't you dare lay a finger on me!" I pushed him away from me.
When I got home, I was beyond grateful that my parents weren't there. Storming to my room, I allowed the tears to run down my face. When I made it to my room, I couldn't stand looking at my All Might doll. I grabbed it and was about to throw it until I just froze in place. Memories flooded my mind as I recall all my time spent with Deku.
Deku was never strong. He always cried. Even when I or others bullied him, he just… I looked at my doll, and for some reason, I started to laugh. Maybe what he said was true. All because it sounded impossible, it doesn't mean it can't happen. After all, he never had a quirk until now. During our last year in middle school was the first time he started working out.
I hugged my doll and went over to my computer. As I search the internet for any information about the possibility of people getting quirks later in life, I just had a huge grin. Deku only won because of a power that wasn't his. That just has to be it. So, it just means that he cheated. Making this all the more fun to improve myself. He might have a quirk now, but what I should really worry about is the fact that he was smart.
As I did my research, I did come across a few interesting articles. Especially since they spoke about a war against someone who could take and give quirks. While reading one of the articles, I noticed that much information was missing. Such as names and where this war took place. It didn't help how there was another article that spoke about a supposed brother to the quirk-taking man.
While reading that article, I had a weird feeling about this. Especially with how the photos in this article had three males. One of which stood out to me. He had a scar that went down his forehead to his right cheek, with a part crossing his nose. This guy had red eyes and short spikey red hair. He wore what seemed to be a soldier's uniform and armor plating on his wrist.
I read more about these three males and was surprised at how they all had a few things in common. From how the blue hair guy was part of red hair's team. They're the ones who found the supposed brother. But what really stood out to me was that they had the brother's quirk. Which got me thinking back to Deku. Even though this war happened years ago, it does hints at possible quirk-sharing. All the more proof that Deku wasn't lying to me. Perfect.
If what these articles are saying is true, then I have an advantage over Deku. Then again, I recall how All Might was acting around us. From how he stared mainly at Deku. Even how he appeared right after Deku told me his powers was given to him. What is the connection between the two? I should probably keep a close eye on them. Besides that, I have an uneasy feeling about All Might.
…
I still couldn't believe how right Deku was about Bakugo. That guy was fast and ruthless. I'm still in shock that Deku heard him coming and saved me from getting blasted. Unlike Deku, who took the full attack. And as I ran to Ida, I could hear the commotion between the two. What is their deal? Weren't they friends at one point?
Even though we won, I was still in shock. And when we went back to the classroom, I happened to notice how Bakugo was dead silent. The way he walk also seemed still. Almost like he wasn't there and just went through the motions. But when the school day finally came to an end is when I saw how he was looking around. I wonder why. Especially with how sad he seems not to find whatever he was looking for.
Bakugo wasn't even gone for two minutes when Deku finally showed up. While everyone tried to talk to him, I couldn't help but notice he did the same thing as Bakugo. He was looking around, even trying to look past our classmates. Then watching his smile turn into a frown confused me. "Hey, Deku." He looked over at me. "Do you want to hang out?"
Deku gave me a smile as he started walking out the door. "Maybe some other time." That's when he started running. Is it possible that Bakugo was looking for him earlier? And was Deku looking for Bakugo? Now, that was something interesting. Why would they be looking for each other? Doesn't Bakugo hate Deku, from what Deku had told me? Especially when he told me Bakugo would bully him.
As I turned into the school entrance, I spotted Deku on a skateboard. "Hey, Deku!" He stopped and looked over at me. I quickly caught up to him. "I didn't know you had a skateboard. What brought this up?"
Deku smiled as he picked up his skateboard and folded it. I watched in disbelief as he placed it in his book bag. "I don't ride often. But today, I just wanted time to think, I guess." He had a big smile as we continued walking to class. That was until we stood in front of the classroom. It was then I heard him whisper. "I hope Kacchan isn't still mad at me." But before I could ask him anything, he smiled, and we went inside.
Besides trying to pick out the class president, the class morning seemed to go by smoothly. But whenever I looked over towards Bakugo and Deku, I couldn't help but notice something. Besides Deku writing in two notebooks, he seems to always be hunching down on his desk. Can he even see when the teachers write on the board? Even Bakugo seems to hunch, but not also much as Deku. It did leave me questioning things, but I should mind my business.
Come lunch, I sat at the tablet with Deku and Ida. Those talked among themselves as I ate. But as lunch was reaching its end, I noticed how Deku's plate seemed almost untouched. "You not going to eat, Deku?" That's when they both looked at me.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I must have been too distracted. After all, this is the first time I sat and spoke to someone during lunchtime." Deku had a smile and took up his chopsticks.
"What does that mean?" Deku was only taking tiny bites and just smiled at me. And before I could say anything else, lunchtime was over. Even Ida seemed confused by Deku's behavior. Maybe it wasn't anything. But before any of us got up, Bakugo was behind Deku and forced him to sit back down. "Hey! Leave Deku alone."
The look Bakugo made had me regret ever opening my mouth. He then looked at Deku, and I watched how Deku immediately took a few big bites of his lunch. Was that really all it takes to get him to eat? That was strange. From the little I know of Bakugo, he sure was full of surprises.
On the way back to class, I couldn't help but notice the large smile Deku had. He was even mumbling. I was only able to hear a few things here and there. From something about friends and how someone wasn't angry with him. Could he be talking about Bakugo not being angry with him? Which would be strange because Bakugo always seems angry.