(A/N: Surprise double update. Enjoy!)
...
After finishing his talk with Aizawa, Izuku made his way to the Support studio. Once there, Maijima greeted him and led him to a more private room away from the chaos that was Mei. The greenet was grateful so that there were no distractions while he held his meetings. He had already discussed the changes he wanted to propose to the Support teacher and Maijima was already working on drawing up the order forms. They may not all get done by the final exams but a good chunk could be with the month in between. The most critical cases being top priority of course.
The next month of school was going to be busy for the Quirkless teen but what else was new. Izuku's schedule has been constantly busy since the beginning of the school year. The hours of training, observing, tinkering, and therapy really added up over time. Adding having a sit down with each student of the Hero Course, both 1-A and 1-B, even more so. But thankfully he was being given time to do that to better fit his schedule.
He was also allowed to see them in the order he saw fit with the most concerning cases taking priority. Which was why he eagerly awaited his first appointment with his tablet full of ideas and questions at hand. Counting the seconds for the 'defective Pikachu' to walk through the door who would hopefully no longer be as defective after their meeting. Or at least not as much.
The door opened to reveal a surprised Kaminari who clearly had not expected to see Izuku on the other side. The blonde let out a huff of laughter as he closed the door and walked further into the room.
"You're the one we're meeting, Midoriya?" Kaminari asked in amusement as he sat in the chair next to him. "Huh, guess I should have known. Yaoyorozu did bring it up during lunch on your first day."
"Yeah, it's me," Izuku replied with a smile. "I've been wanting to talk to you guys for a while now. Especially you and Yaoyorozu-san."
"Me? Why?" Kaminari responded with a curious tilt of his head like a puppy.
The smile dropped from the greenet's face as he said in a serious tone, "You need to stop short circuiting yourself."
"Oh, yeah, that," the blonde said as he stared back wide eyed in shock. He then let out an awkward chuckle as he bashfully rubbed the back of his head. "I know that I get a little spacey after I go all out, but it's something I gotta deal with if I want to win, right?"
"Wrong."
"Huh?" the electric boy let out in confusion.
"I brought it to Recovery Girl's attention and she agrees that it's something we need to address," Izuku stated seriously. "How it hasn't before now I don't understand, but UA is different. Here they want you to be the best that you can be as well as safe and healthy. That includes physically and mentally."
"Okay…" Kaminari said, still confused as to what he was getting at.
"With you it's a bit of both I think," the analyst continued. "Physically because quite literally frying your brain like you do could have long term side effects. What those are I don't know but Recovery Girl should and I'd like you to speak with her. She's already working with Maijima-sensei and Aizawa-sensei to figure out Support Items and training options to help you. But you should talk to her specifically about how your Quirk affects your body medically."
"Yeah…uh, I could do that," the blonde agreed hesitantly, kind of scared of the healing Heroine but figured he should if the other was so worried about it. Like he said no one had brought that up before but now that it was pointed out he was worried too. "You, uh, mentioned Support Items? Like what?"
The inventor hummed as he looked at his notes with a hand on his chin and said, "Perhaps a device made of conductive material to help you direct your electricity since you don't have much control of where it goes outside of your body. Maybe a grounding collar or something to prevent excess electricity from traveling to your brain. Or maybe even a capacitor to help you store and redirect your electricity. Potentially even electrical bombs of a sort kind of like the one I made at USJ."
The Quirkless teen looked up to see that Kaminari was already looking overwhelmed and those were only some of Izuku's ideas. The blonde blinked blankly for a few seconds before shaking himself out of it then asked, "And training?"
"Number one would be more hand-to-hand combat practice both Quirked and Quirkless," Izuku replied. "But I think everyone needs that in this class. Well, other than Ojiro-kun who has obviously practiced martial arts. But for you specifically, we need to figure out a way for you to use your Quirk without having to rely on letting out your maximum voltage."
"Like what?" the electric user asked again tilting his head like a puppy.
"Perhaps lowering it so it doesn't take you out of commission," the greenet offered. "Or even finding out the highest you can go without going over your limit. Because it's dangerous to be vulnerable like you are when you do go too far. Especially in a real fight like at USJ."
"What do you mean?" Kaminari asked, his tone sounding hesitant, confused, and a hint offended but this was something he had to hear.
"A Villain almost grabbed you after you knocked out all the others," Izuku replied in a serious tone. "He most likely had a Quirk related to electricity and was probably the one disrupting communications. But if I hadn't warned them about that, you could have been hurt or held hostage. You need to be aware at all times in a fight or else things could go seriously wrong."
Like Aizawa-sensei's friend. You never know what could go wrong at any given time.
"I guess you have a point, but sometimes I'll have to go all out," Kaminari said with a defeated sigh. "There's just no other way for me."
Now the blonde looked like a kicked puppy resigned to his own Quirk backlash.
"That right there is why I also think this is something we need to address mentally," Izuku stressed, earning a curious look from his classmate. "Specifically, your mentality when it comes to your Quirk. You shouldn't resign yourself to a one-and-done strategy. Especially one that leaves you so vulnerable afterwards. You also don't have to rely on your Quirk to fight. I don't."
"But you've got all that gear," Kaminari countered.
"Exactly," the Quirkless teen replied. "As Aizawa-sensei likes to say, you shouldn't have just one tool in your belt. A Quirk is just one of them. I don't have one so I have one less tool but I more than make up for that with everything else I have. Plus, I've been training in self-defense for years. Support Items, analysis, and fighting ability. That's my strategy around not using a Quirk to fight."
"It certainly works for you, Mr. Copy Cat," the electric user playfully teased earning a giggle from the other boy.
"And I'm not the only one it works for," the greenet continued. "Some Pro Heroes do the same when their Quirks aren't ideal for the situation. Even our homeroom teacher does this. Eraserhead can only erase someone else's Quirk. That's it. Erase the Quirk and make it a Quirkless fight. The rest is his fighting technique combined with the use of his capture weapon. Essentially fighting Quirkless and he's one of the, if not the, best Underground Heroes."
"He really is a badass," Kaminari agreed with a nod while a shiver ran down his spine. "Absolutely terrifying too."
"It's his aesthetic," Izuku commented with a joking shrug making the other boy chuckle. "But anyway, my point is that there is more than one solution to any given problem. We just need to work on you trying to figure out a better strategy than just shock them until you're both down. Because just like that Villain at the USJ, you could go up against someone or something that won't be taken out by Indiscriminate Shock. Leaving you to their mercy."
"That's super heavy, dude," Kaminari said, that hurt puppy look was back.
"But a hard truth none the less," the Quirkless teen countered. "You short circuiting yourself is dangerous both to your health as well as your safety in a fight. We want you to be safe, Kaminari-kun."
"I appreciate that, Midoriya," the blonde replied with a sad but grateful smile. "Guess I never thought much about that stuff before. Though no one has ever brought it up before as bad or anything. I mostly just get teased for looking like an idiot."
"You're not an idiot, Kaminari-kun," Izuku declared defensively for his sake. "I know you're smart in your own ways. You got as far as the one-on-one battles after all which proves you have the potential to be a good Hero. You just need some advice and guidance to be even better."
"Thanks, Midoriya," Kaminari responded with a warmer smile, not entirely used to someone caring so much about his wellbeing when it came to the side effects of his Quirk. Not that people didn't care about him, they did, but this was new. "You're a smart guy and you did beat me by letting me kick my own ass. Guess I should work harder to not be the mentally fried out idiot anymore."
"No worries, Kaminari-kun," Izuku said with a smile, happy that the other was willing to take his advice. "We'll work together to make you the best electric Hero you can be."
Izuku had more ideas for his classmate, and hopefully friend, but this was a good start. Kaminari would have a talk with Recovery Girl about his backlash and side effects from it. She would handle the medical side of helping him figure out a better way to use his Quirk. While Izuku would work with Maijima for his proposed Support Items and Aizawa for changes to the electric teen's training. Though Izuku did wonder why Aizawa hadn't addressed it before. Perhaps he was waiting for Kaminari to change himself? Probably but that clearly didn't work.
Bet Shuuzenji-sensei is going to scold him for taking so long if she hasn't already. And that it took a student to bring up any concerns to address it. Guess no one is perfect when it comes to teaching. Everyone is a lifelong learner.
Next on the list was Yaoyorozu. The main issue with her wasn't really her Quirk per say but rather her costume. Sure, the creation girl was willing to show some skin but that didn't mean she necessarily had to, not in the amount or way the Support company had designed her Hero costume. To Izuku it was a disgrace and very inappropriate for a teenage girl. A boob window? Seriously? Just…no.
As he waited for his next 'client', he prepared his notes for the creation girl. A short while later the door opened to the pony tailed teen with a mildly surprised expression on her face. But only for a second as she smiled with an amused shake of her head and a chuckle as she closed the door.
"Of course, it's you, Midoriya-kun," Yaoyorozu said as she entered the room. "I was mostly sure it would be but I also didn't want to assume."
"I had a feeling you would figure it out, Yaoyorozu-san," Izuku responded in amusement. "Please take a seat."
The class vice president nodded and gracefully sat in a chair across from him. The fact that she was in her gym clothes did not diminish her trained etiquette and poise.
"Thank you for taking time to talk with all of us," Yaoyorozu said. "Your observational skills and strategic mind will do all of us good. I know I have much to improve on."
Her grateful tone turned solemn as she spoke. Izuku could figure what she was referring to, her loss to Tokoyami in the one-on-ones. It's true she could have done better in that fight but she has nothing to be ashamed of. Rather her loss was a chance to learn and do better in the future.
"You're smart as well, Yaoyorozu-san," Izuku stated though her grimace showed she didn't believe him. Guess he would have to help her to change that. "Did you ever think to use his Quirk against him?"
"What do you mean?" the creation girl asked, the grimace replaced with confusion.
"During your fight with Tokoyami-kun, you put a lot of focus on your creations that you typically use to fight," the greenet commented. "A staff and a shield. Which by the way you should just have a readymade version on you at all times rather than wasting your lipids on new ones each time."
Yaoyorozu's eyes widened at his suggestion. Why hadn't she thought of that?
"But you could have made other things to give you a better edge in that fight," Izuku continued. "Can you think of what that is?"
The creation girl pondered for a bit, considering her opponent and his Quirk.
"Well, his Quirk Dark Shadow is quite strong," she said. "Good for offense and defense."
"True, that's why I asked him to be on my team for the Cavalry Battle," he replied. "But what was something you could have taken advantage of? What is his weakness?"
She took a moment to think again. Considering what the young analyst was asking of her and what she could have done about it. Soon a look of epiphany grew on her face.
"Light?"
"Yes," Izuku confirmed with a proud smile. He knew she could figure it out. "Dark Shadow is affected by light or rather the amount there of."
"Which makes sense since Dark Shadow is, well, a shadow," Yaoyorozu tacked on as she continued to pick the Quirk's weakness apart. "Shadows are smaller the more light there is so if I made something with more light that would weaken Dark Shadow." She then let out a sigh and looked sadly down at her lap. "I should have made a flash bomb of sorts."
"It would have been more effective than what you did," Izuku agreed with a solemn nod. Hindsight was 20/20 after all. "But don't let that loss get you down. Think of it as a learning opportunity. Not all fights are going to be the same so you shouldn't approach them all the same. You're smart and observant, Yaoyorozu-san. Use that to find your own advantage in a fight. Be flexible."
Speaking of flexible.
"Now the main thing I want to discuss with you is your costume," Izuku stated, getting down to business.
"My costume?" she asked, surprised. "What about it?"
"To be blunt, I hate it," he said flatly, earning an affronted look from her. "Not the colors or anything but the fact that they thought it was appropriate to intentionally give you an opening in order to use your Quirk that also leaves vital areas exposed."
"Ah, I see," Yaoyorozu replied simply.
"I kind of get why they did it since your Quirk requires your creations to come from your skin," the greenet stated. "But there are so many other ways to do that rather than the blatant…chestal window."
He blushed while letting out an embarrassed cough. While he thought it wasn't right for them to sexualize a minor, he was still a socially awkward boy with a penchant for politeness.
"I know you're not against showing skin but in all honesty your suit is lacking in protection," he pushed onward despite his awkwardness. "Most of your body is exposed and whatever material they used is terrible. When you created that insulation blanket during the USJ attack, your costume was left in tatters and you had to create a new one. Further wasting your lipids while also leaving you vulnerable."
Yaoyorozu nodded as she considered his points while holding her chin in thought. It was true that her current leotard did give her ample access to her skin but the lack of protection was now glaringly obvious. She also suddenly thought of the weather how as of now in the summer heat her lack of coverage was fine, but come winter? Perhaps having more material to cover her up would be better.
"Do you have any particular design ideas in mind, Midoriya-kun?" the creation girl asked. "As I said, your perspective will be good for us to reconsider our costumes and other improvements. I trust your input and would be happy to hear your ideas."
The earnest tone of her voice made Izuku blush, a little overwhelmed that she was so willing to hear him out. That she trusted him and was open to his criticism and advice. That she was willing to change just because he had issues with her costume when she did not. Yet another aspect of UA that was different from before. Filled with people, teacher and student alike, who thought what he had to say mattered and was just creepy stalker nonsense with no value. It was…nice.
"S-sure, Yaoyorozu-san!" Izuku beamed as he pulled up his ideas. "First of all, I just want to say I am so judging whoever designed your costume. Seriously, have they never heard of a wonderful invention called zippers?"
His serious tone made her giggle as she moved to sit in a chair beside him to see his sketches better. He was so absorbed in what he was doing he didn't realize until she was already seated. The sudden closeness surprised him and he couldn't deny that he jumped a little. The reaction was unexpected and the pony-tailed girl looked at him in concern.
"Am I making you uncomfortable?" Yaoyorozu asked. "I'm sorry, I can move back. I only wanted to see your ideas better."
"N-no, it's fine, Yaoyorozu-san," Izuku was quick to assure though his awkwardness slipped out in his stutter. "You just surprised me is all."
He gave an awkward laugh to try and convince her. It didn't entirely work but it was enough to not make her feel compelled to move back. She did put a little more space between them though which he appreciated.
"Is this better?" she asked, giving him a hopefully comforting smile.
Izuku blinked in surprise that she did that just to make sure he was comfortable before say, "Oh, um, yes. Thank you, Yaoyorozu-san."
He gave her a small bow of his head in gratitude. His politeness was just too strong he couldn't help it. Not that she minded it finding it endearing.
"Please, call me Momo," Yao-Momo insisted suddenly with a kind smile. "You've helped me and the others so much. And any friend of Shouto-kun's is a friend of mine."
Izuku's eyed widened in surprise yet again. One because she made such an offer so quickly since knowing him, but also that she was on a first name basis with Shouto as well. Though they have known each other far longer than he had. If anything, it was more of a shock as he hadn't seen Shouto and Yao-Momo interact outside of their own friend group much other than in training. Plus, there was a slight pinch of something in his heart that they shared a closer bond than he thought, but he didn't know why.
Weird.
"Thanks, Momo-san," Izuku said after breaking himself out of his own head. "You can call me Izuku if you'd like."
"Then I shall, Izuku-kun," she replied with a warm smile.
The greenet sported one of his own, happy to have made a new friend. Now on a first name basis, he walked her through his ideas. Protection was the main goal here which meant covering more of her skin with a tougher material. But they also had to design it in a way that would still allow her easy access to her skin to efficiently and effectively use her Quirk. A delicate balance that they eventually were able to meet.
They decided on a sort of jumpsuit in similar colors to her original with a few added stripes for accents. The suit was sleeveless with shoulder straps and a high collar with a clasp. It was backless down to her mid back and the front had a zipper to open and had built in chest support that could also be zipped open if she needed it. The lower half went down to her ankles with openings on the outsides of her thighs as well as zippers down the sides of her calves that could be opened as well.
Her boots weren't terrible though Momo agreed with Izuku that they didn't need to have high heels. He also recommended protective gloves that could be easily taken off of her hands. Her belt he suggested should have more pockets for such things as first aid and emergency snack packs so she could refuel on the go. Then there was the book shelf.
To put it bluntly he wasn't a fan of it. Having references on hand was a good idea but a literal bookshelf? Not very efficient when it came to looking up information unless you knew exactly where it was. Plus the shelf itself was right at the end of her spine and could potentially prove harmful if she were to fall and land on it in a fight.
Instead, he suggested a computer set up similar to his tablet but in the form of wrist guards. Two just in case something happened to one of them. At first sight they would look just like regular wrist guards but had a screen that could pop open with a keyboard. That way she could easily search her reference material and quickly find what she needed displayed on the screen.
Momo was pleased with his suggestions and agreed immediately to the changes. His points were thoughtful and mindful of her Quirk as well as her safety. She really appreciated his advice and thanked him so sincerely that he blushed, still not used to praise like that.
With two students down, Izuku decided to call it a day for costume and Quirk advice. He still needed to train as much as the others. So as Momo left to return to training herself, the Quirkless teen gathered his gear and made his way to Gym Gamma. Once there he saw that about half of the others were hard at work taking turns sparring with each other with the rest observing them fight.
Oh, looks like Aizawa-sensei decided to start with hand-to-hand combat already.
They were still using their Quirks for now but it was good practice none the less. Izuku smiled happily that his teacher agreed and implemented his advice to help his fellow Hero-hopefuls improve themselves. He walked into the gym and headed towards Aizawa who was observing off to the side.
The Erasure Hero quirked a brow on sight of him and asked, "Done already?"
"For today, yes," Izuku replied with a nod. "Those two were the ones I've wanted to address for a long time. Besides, I need to train too."
"True," the teacher agreed with a nod of his own. "Well, now that you're here we can get everyone back to work."
Aizawa called for everyone's attention, breaking up the fights and having the students gather around him.
"Now then, so far all of you have gained experience fighting with your Quirks," the tired man said. "However, it was brought up by our analyst that it would be prudent for you to learn to not rely on your Quirks alone. So we will be sparring without using Quirks."
"No Quirks?" Sero asked. "Why?"
"Not all situations can be resolved with your Quirks," Aizawa explained. "For example, if there was a gas leak, Quirks such as Kaminari's, Todoroki's, or Bakugou's would be dangerous to use. One spark and the whole area would go up in flames."
The students shivered at the imaginary scenario but also nodded in agreement. Well most of them anyway. Bakugou himself just scoffed but also grimaced because he knew the man was right.
"You could also face someone like me with an ability that counters your Quirks," the Erasure Hero said further. "It would be practical to have other skills to fall back on when your Quirks aren't at your disposal. Logical, rational. Therefore no using your Quirks for this session of training. Though those with physical mutations try to keep the use of them to a minimum."
Most of them glanced at their fellow classmates that fell under this exception. It made sense. Shouji and Ojiro could do nothing about their mutations of extra arms and added tail respectively. There were also those whose physical features were tied to either their Quirk or familial genetics. Like Kouda with his rock like appearance or Tsuyu who couldn't not be frog like. Then there was Hagakure who literally was invisible all the time. Her and all the others nodded in understanding.
"First up, Midoriya and Ojiro," Aizawa ordered. The two students nodded and made their way to the spar area with Izuku leaving his gear on the sidelines. "Remember Ojiro, try not to rely on your tail. Midoriya, you know what to do."
Both teens bowed to their teacher and then to each other before getting into a fighting stance. Izuku thought this was a smart first match up. He knew that Ojiro has taken martial arts for years from what Hitoshi told him. And he himself has been learning self-defense for a long time now. The only concern he had was Ojiro's instinctive use of his tail but whatever happens happens. Izuku would fight with all his might as he always has.
"Ready. Begin."
They both lunged towards each other with practiced ease. Trading various styles of punches and kicks while blocking the other's attacks. Ojiro did his best to not use his tail though he did slip up from time to time using it to protect himself, but he was mindful to not use it to attack. Izuku appreciated his dedication to the exercise and succumbed to the thrill of the fight.
Control wavered between the two as one gained an advantage only to lose it. Ojiro almost getting Izuku into a head lock only for Izuku to evade and attempt to swipe the blonde's feet out from under him. He let the use of his tail to not fall go as it was probably reflexive. Instead going right back in with a right hook that the other deflected with his arm. They were essentially in a stalemate until Aizawa called them to stop.
"Woah, that was intense," Kaminari commented with a grin.
"I know, right?" Sero agreed with a chuckle. "But it also looks kind of fun."
"Fun, you say," Aizawa spoke, zeroing in on the tape wielder who gulped under his intense stare. "Then why don't you go next? Ojiro, out."
Some were surprised that the blonde was the one to be taken out of the lineup. But only for a moment because it made sense that the best person to experience a Quirkless fight with would be with someone who fought Quirkless. Either him or Eraserhead but that wasn't the plan of this exercise. Sero resigned to his fate and walked into the ring.
The two teens sized each other up. Sero was tall with a decent build while Izuku was shorter but with more muscle. Height could be an advantage but no necessarily a guaranteed win. The greenet would also have to mindful of the taller boy's elbows. He wasn't allowed to use his Quirk but the odd shape of his elbows could do some damage on their own.
"Ready…"
"Alright, number one," Sero said as he got into a fighting position. "Let's see what you got!"
"…begin!"
The taller boy was quick to shoot forward but Izuku stepped out of the way while landing a kick on his side as he passed. The hit made Sero stumble a little but he quickly righted himself and charged at Izuku again. The greenet blocked and redirected untrained punches the tape wielder threw at him as the shorter boy snuck in more kicks. Sero eventually tried to match his tactic but the Quirkless teen turned it against him. He grappled his leg by the ankle and then swept his other leg out from under him, pinning him to the ground.
"Holy crap, dude," Sero said, breathing heavily from the exercise. "You are such a badass!"
The class let out oohs and aahs as Aizawa declared him the winner of the fight. Well, not everyone. Bakugou clicked his tongue in annoyance at his win before jerking his scowl to look anywhere but at him. Izuku paid no mind as he helped Sero up who offered him a fist bump and a smile, impressed by his skill. The Quirkless teen eagerly returned it and beamed sensing no ill feelings towards him beating someone with a Quirk.
After that it was the rest of the class's turn. Aizawa gave a demonstration for some simple hand-to-hand combat techniques which they practiced. He then paired students up and those chosen spaced themselves out in the room. They spent the rest of the training session with half of the class sparring while the other half watched before switching a few times. That way everyone had a chance to observe and put into practice what they were learning.
Finally, the school day came to an end and they were all dismissed to go home. It was kind of nice for Izuku to go back with the rest of them to the locker room. A part of the class and a part of the Hero training. He was there learning with his fellow future Heroes and he reveled in the potential and comradery around him. Izuku couldn't help the smile on his face as he changed ready to tell his mom all about his day.
...
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