Bearticguy7: I am loving these, so much!
nocringeman: Thank you!
Humble3dore: Jonathan will definitely be playing a role.
AshenOne: Baba Yaga sounds pretty nice! I was also thinking of Bigfoot, a sasquatch would certainly make things a bit more bizarre. Valentine has a huge role to play in this story, and of course I get the reference!
PhanyomKnightPercival: That WOULD be pretty funny!
Vamsi: Congratulations! And welcome!
FinchFlyingAce: Hey, if you can give Beru a better arc, go for it! I'll send you a stand sheet soon, as for Tombstone, well, you know he doesn't like to be used, when he finds out he'll be PISSED, and yes it was Toga.I
Euphoria: The Stone Ocean characters are going to show up around Jolyne and Anasui's wedding.
Today was the big day.
Not only Izuku get his new airforce gloves, but the Cultural Festival was today.
Izuku was excited, VERY excited for the upcoming performance. Everyone had been working so hard, even Bakugo of all people, to make this concert be the very best it could be, and he was just itching to see the result of all of their hard work.
Hopefully, that result would be the smile of a certain ten year old.
Making Eri smile was the primary goal of everyone involved with the Yakuza raid, there must had to be a way to restore that little girl's hope for the world...
And if anyone could do that, Izuku had his money on Kyoka. She just had a habit of lifting others up, not to mention she was undoubtedly the best singer he had ever heard. It was no wonder his childhood friend ended up falling head over heels for her, she was amazing all around.
Speaking of Johnny, Izuku was delighted to hear that he had finally buried the hatchet with UA's resident ghost. Every villain has a reason for being one, and if we can save them from themselves, that just makes us better heroes!
Gyro had even begun having talks, and coffee breaks, with his former enemy, although the two often kept their mugs away from each other.
Valentine had also been doing small good deeds around the dorms, last night, Izuku saw a shadow figure standing in the corner of his room, and he initially went to attack it, only for it to disappear. In it's place was his All Might statue, good as new. Valentine, with his limited power, managed to bring one back from a different universe, and Izuku couldn't say that he wasn't touched by the gesture.
Although some alternate version of himself was probably sobbing over his ruined All Might...maybe he really does have a problem.
Kyoka, however, was still understandably bitter towards the incorporeal president, but she seemed to at the very least tolerate him. Even though her relationship with Johnny was kept under wraps for the moment, her being protective of him was no secret, although most of their classmates chalked it up to her being a good friend.
Izuku entered the common room, only to find Kaminari wrestling an orange shirt which read: "1A Band" onto Bakugo.
"Come on man, put it on! YaoMomo went through so much trouble making these!"
"GET OFF OF ME, YOU FUCKING MORON!"
Bakugo paused as soon as he saw Izuku, and Kaminari used the opportunity to force the short onto him, running away before Bakugo could retaliate. However, the explosive teen's focus was now on Izuku.
"Oi Deku, come here."
"Um...why?"
"We need to talk."
"O-okay!"
Is he going to hit me?
"I'm not going to hit you..."
HE READ MY MIND!
"...I just want to say a few things to you, and better listen! I'm part of the whole OFA group thing too, you hear me?! You have a problem, you come to me! I don't trust any of you idiots to protect it without me, so..."
"Kaachan...are you saying you want to help?"
"I'm saying you all are idiots that can't be trusted with OFA."
"You want to help!"
"I'll kill you if you say that again. Look...don't get the wrong idea, we are still rivals! I fully intend to beat you at everything! But...wearen'tenemies." Bakugo said the last part really fast, hoping Izuku wouldn't hear it, but he did. However Izuku decided to save his childhood friend the embarrassment and merely nodded and walked away, deciding to cry about it later.
He made his way over to the rest of the band, where Kyoka was tuning her bass guitar and discussing something with Gyro. "Hey guys!"
"Hey, Mop Top. You ready for today?" Kyoka asked.
"I'm probably going to break my legs with Ashido's choreography...but yeah! I'm ready!"
"Good...BECAUSE I'M NOT!" Kyoka said, deflating while Gyro sympathetically patted her on the back.
"Our singer has stage fright."
"I've never sang in front of so many people..."
"Just remember why you're doing it, and it'll be easier!" Izuku reassured her, and Kyoka have him a nervous smile.
"Y-yeah... I-I can do t-that..."
Kyoka pulled out a granola bar and attempted to eat it, but Johnny was walking by at the time, and he leaned over and took a bite of it before she could. Kyoka deadpanned as her boyfriend walked away...chewing.
"Jonathan..."
"Oi" Kyoka felt a tap on her shoulder, and Jolyne leaned next to her ear. "If he ever pisses you off, call him Jouta."
"Noted." Kyoka said, taking a bite out of the granola bar anyway. Gyro gasped mockingly.
"Dear God, an indirect kiss?!"
"Shut up, you know I couldn't give two shits about that."
Gyro grinned manically. "I'm going to bug you until you change the bet you made against me."
"I put my money where it should go, on the winning side. YaoMomo has the advantage, especially because she isn't some lovesick puppy like you are."
"You promised to help me out with-"
"Oi, it's a surprise. Yes, I did...because you helped Johnny and I get together, so it's only fair that I help you."
"And yet you aren't rooting for me?"
"I have full confidence that you are going to crack first. I'm rooting for you two, but YaoMomo is going to win." Kyoka said, poking Gyro in the ribs. "In the meantime, not only do I have to deal with this concert, on top of the favor I owe you, but I also have to find a way to let a certain blonde down without hurting him. What if he confesses to me on stage or something like that? To say no in front of all those people..."
"Confessing to you in front of a crowd wouldn't be very thoughtful of him." Izuku said, frowning. "He'd be putting you on the spot."
"You're right, it wouldn't be thoughtful...that's why I'm worried! The idiot doesn't think!" Kyoka put her head in her hands. "But he is my friend...I can't say yes of course, but I don't want to break his heart, you know? I never thought ONE guy would be interested in me, let alone two...this is so new and confusing and I don't know what to do."
"You could let it slip that you have a boyfriend, you don't have to say it is Johnny." Gyro advised, but Kyoka shook her head.
"Then it would be obvious it is him, he's the guy that I hang out with the most...you know what? I'll think about this later. We've got a show to prepare for!"
"And a favor!" Gyro raised a hand for a high five.
Kyoka looked like she was about to reciprocate, but her hand made contact with his face instead. "It's a SURPRISE!"
"Ah, Midoriya!" Aoyama came into the room, sparkling as usual. "Do you have the rope?"
"The...ro-OH CRAP! I'm sorry Aoyama, I forgot!"
Aoyama pouted. "Some disco ball I'll be...on the floor."
"You won't be on the floor! I'll run and get some right now!"
"Hold it Izuku, as captain of the special effects crew, I'll go with you." Gyro said, putting his hands on his hips. "Just to be sure it's here on time."
"Thank you Gyro! Uh...Jyoka are you going to be okay?"
"Jyo...ka?"
"O-oh, whoops..."
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Oh you are a piece of work, Mizuku." Kyoka said teasingly.
"I'm still getting used to the whole first name basis thing, okay?"
"Okay! Yeah...I'll be fine, more than fine. You just go with Zyro and get that rope as quickly as you can, alright? We NEED this to be as close to perfect as possible."
Izuku tried to keep a straight face, but relented, smiling. "Alright, will do."
Kyoka turned to Aoyama. "I'm sure Mina is expecting you, don't worry, those two always have a habit of beating the odds." Aoyama begrudgingly nodded and walked back towards the dance rehearsal. "Meanwhile..."
Kyoka smirked, ready to test out Jolyne's tip. "YOO HOOO! JOUTA, TIME TO GET MOVING!"
Silence...followed by loud crashes as the sound of heavy footsteps drew closer.
"WHERE DID YOU HEAR THAT NAME?!" Johnny demanded, stomping into the common room.
"A little butterfly told me."
"Wash your mouth out with vinegar, right now, and never speak of that cursed name again, YOU HEAR ME?!"
"Holy shit, it really pisses you off doesn't it?"
"That name is EVIL! PURE EVIL!"
"Then don't make me use it."
Johnny blinked, and Tusk Act 4 appeared behind him, cracking it's knuckles. "You know too much."
"Wait a minute! Jout- JOHNNY! I love you!"
"YOU KNOW TOO MUCH!"
Tusk wrapped it's arms around her waist and dragged her off into the darkness. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOHOHOHAHAHAHAHAHA! Stop tickling me!"
"Wow, that's a lot of rope, what are you guys going to use it for?" The cashier at the general store wondered.
"We're going to hang our classmate from the ceiling." Gyro said, bluntly.
"GYRO, DON'T WORD IT LIKE THAT!" Izuku said, the cashier had turned deathly pale. "We're having a concert, and our friend has a quirk that makes him a human disco ball...he's going to be fine!"
"Y-y-yeah man, sure..." The cashier quickly dropped the rope in the bag and waved. "H-have a n-nice day, a-and I p-promise I won't tell a s-soul!"
"Grazie!" Gyro said, waving cheerfully as they exited the store.
"He thinks we're about to commit murder Gyro."
"We might, you never know when we'll run into troub-OOF!"
Gyro had bumped into a tall man in a trench coat, with a short woman walking beside him. "Careful young man...you almost ruined my aftertaste of Gold Tips Imperial."
"Sorry about that, need to look where I'm going...hey, my girlfriend/not-girlfriend loves that stuff! She's made it for me once or twice."
"Really?" The man turned around, intrigued. "I didn't think anyone your age would enjoy tea, or be knowledgeable about it...kudos to you and your not-girlfriend!"
"That house over there must be a cafe." Izuku noted.
"Maybe I could take Momo there or something, well, we've got a festival to prepare for, nice talking to you sir!"
"Festival...?" The man said quietly, before looking at his smaller companion and silently motioning to flee. Izuku saw this interaction, and the pieces began to come together. Why is he so bothered by that? Tea? His voice being startlingly familiar...
Izuku dropped the groceries, catching Gyro off guard. "Hey there Butterfingers, careful wit-"
"Don't pull a prank on UA."
The man turned around to find Izuku glaring at him. "Excuse me?"
"Not today of all days, not after we've worked so hard. You stay FAR away from UA, Gentle Criminal."
Gyro's eyes lit up in recognition as Gentle Criminal nodded, throwing off his admittedly dumb disguise, his partner La Brava doing the same. "They caught us Gentle, what now?"
"I'm afraid you aren't the only one who has been putting in a lot of effort towards a goal. La Brava, start recording."
"You got it!"
"Seriously, you're vlogging?" Gyro asked. "Look, I know you aren't out to harm anyone, it's not your style, but people WILL be harmed if you do this. I can name three people who would be crushed if you ruined this for them."
"Hello dear listeners!"
"He's fucking vlogging."
"Sir, you don't understand how serious this is." Izuku said, never dropping his glare for a moment.
"The infiltration of UA has turned into a race against the clock! Can we make it there before these two students catch us? You'll have to stay tuned in order to find out!"
While the gentleman theif was making his intro, Gyro and Izuku shared a glance and nodded. Everyone was either too far away, or too tied up, they would have to be each other's backup. Gyro used a his air distortion technique just as Gentle turned back towards them, and Izuku leapt towards them, going for a quick knockout blow.
Only to be stopped by an invisible force.
"Sorry, my quirk Elasticity allows me to make anything stretchy, including the air!" With an elegant bow, Gentle sent Izuku hurtling right into Gyro, knocking the two of them over.
"That was kind of violent..." La Brava noted.
"Clearly that young man has a lot of power under his belt, or those two wouldn't have been flung so far." Gentle responded. "Oh, I DO detest violence, but the show must go on!"
Gentle used his quirk to bounce himself and his sidekick into the air, and Izuku and Gyro scrambled to get off of each other as they both chased down the other duo, Izuku using Full Cowling to take to the skies, while Gyro used his Roller Blade technique to keep up with them from the ground.
"They're boxing us in." Gentle said. "How clever."
"Hey, that's the kid who kept breaking himself during the Sports Festival! You know, the one that beat the shooty guy with his butt? He's crazy!"
"And the other one is Gyro Zeppeli, the winner of the Steel Ball Run. I remember hearing that he transferred to UA...we've got to hurry, they are not only insane, but competent!"
Gentle and La Brava kept bouncing as Izuku readied his new gloves. I based these off of Johnny's nail bullets, so I could keep up with him. Of course, besides the Infinite Rotation I'd say we're even, but...
Even now he's inspiring me to be better.
"DELAWARE SMASH AIR FORCE!"
Izuku fired an air bullet into Gentle Criminal's back, causing La Brava to cry out his name. Gyro kicked upwards, sending a steel ball to hit him in the stomach, sending Gentle back up.
And then Izuku hit him back down with another air bullet.
And then Gyro caught the steel ball with the top of his foot and flicked, hitting him back up.
At this point they were just playing ping pong.
Gentle activated his quirk below himself, stopping Gyro's steel ball, and he had La Brava bounced over to a construction site. The steel ball fell behind him, and Gyro grunted in annoyance.
That's what I get for holding back on my throws...I don't have time to go get it. This guy is SUPER lucky he hasn't done anything to warrant a full power throw, or he'd be a donut by now...
As Gyro was reduced to only one steel ball, he couldn't help but think back to the events that led to this encounter.
The Steel Ball Run.
Learning about Eri, Johnny sinking into depression again as a result...
Saving Eri, rescuing both her and his partner...
Kyoka's determination to cement this change, going outside her comfort zone to make that little girl smile...
This fucking bastard could ruin all of that with one stupid prank. The festival could be cancelled, all their hard work for nothing, and they would have to start at square one. That was something that Gyro could NOT accept.
Would he kill Gentle? No, the man isn't a bad person, he's a mischief maker more than anything, not unlike his mentor, Joseph, he didn't deserve to die unless he was going to harm innocent people.
Would he break all four of the guy's limbs so he couldn't get to UA? Abso-fucking-lutely.
"Todoroki, I'm not a closet theatre kid."
"You said you were in a play." Todoroki said, and Johnny facepalmed.
"Yare yare daze...that was my de-aged great-grandfather, not me."
"Wasn't he already de-aged?"
"He was de-aged again!"
"Man, didn't you say he'd outlive your grandma? That's super depressing." Kirishima said, scratching his cheek. "Is he okay?"
"He's...recovering. I know he's coming to see the concert today, maybe that will brighten him up a little bit. My Aunt Shizuka sent him a letter, and he seemed to be better after that...but, well..."
"He's your great-grandfather though...isn't it nice to have him around a little longer? Most people don't get that chance." Sero said, and Johnny nodded.
"It is...and isn't. I'm really glad I'll get to have more time with him, he's basically my second father...but I'm also concerned for his well being. It's just really hard on him, and while I value the extra time I have with him...I want that time to be happy."
"That's so manly..." Kirishima said, clenching his fist and producing a single tear.
"Er, thanks."
Johnny sighed and shook his head. Hurry up you two...I'm getting bored.
"So...are you just a theatre kid then?"
"I'm not answering that."
Todoroki narrowed his eyes. I'm onto you, JoJo. I'm going to catch you singing Hamilton one of these days, I know it.
"GOD DAMMIT STAY STILL!" Gyro exclaimed, as Gentle Criminal bounced all around them. They were balancing on the girders in the construction site, and Gentle had turned the whole thing into his personal trampoline. Izuku was currently aiming, trying to time his shot.
"I am not giving up, I will pull a prank on UA, and the two of you will not convince me otherwise, no matter how much you beg!"
"Why are you ruining our day for clout?!" Gyro demanded, his eyes trying to track the bouncing prankster.
"It is the only thing I'm GOOD FOR!"
Izuku fired a shot that was poised to hit Gentle, but the villain had guarded himself with an air barrier, and the shot ended up being reflected back into Izuku's face. Ball Breaker came and grabbed Izuku's hand just before he could topple off the girder. The OFA user's nose was now bleeding, but he seemed otherwise alright.
"I'm gonna beat the fucking Gold Tips Imperial right out of him." Gyro declared.
"Oh no, whatever will I do?" Gentle mocked, suddenly kicking Gyro in the back. This time Izuku was the one to catch Gyro, as the two fought to keep themselves from falling.
"Gyro! Are you okay?!"
"I'm going to brew a tea with poison ivy leaves, and I'm gonna force it down his throat!"
"Oh crap!"
"I'm already itching for mischief, and you would pull that on me?" Gentle said, smiling.
"It wouldn't be the first time I've given my enemies something to drink!" Gyro said with a grin. "Let's see how your palette can handle steel, shall we?"
"Huh?!" A steel ball went straight into Gentle's mouth. Gyro had anticipated where Gentle was going to end up, and has thrown his remaining steel ball into the elastic girder opposite the criminal, using it as a slingshot.
"Nyo Ho! Right in the kisser!"
"GENTLE SPIT IT OUT!" La Brava shouted. The steel ball was still spinning in the poor man's mouth.
"Talk about a tongue twister." Izuku commented, and a proud Gyro gave him a high five.
Gentle finally managed to get the steel ball out of his mouth, and threw it as far as he could. Unfortunately, he wasn't a Spin user, so the ball ended up returning to Gyro's hand.
"Thank you!"
"Don't thank me yet, I have another gift for you!"
A girder came crashing down towards an old civilian who was passing by, and Izuku dashed forward to catch it, while Gentle used the opportunity to escape.
"MOTHER-"
Izuku heaved the heavy girder with one arm and aimed the other at the retreating criminal duo, firing another air bullet at them. Gentle barely managed to avoid the attack, and he and La Brava kept going.
Gyro growled in annoyance. With only one steel ball, his Roller Blade technique would be more of a balancing act than a way of travel. "Izuku, give me a piggyback!"
"Alright!" Izuku threw down the girder, safely, and bent over without hesitation. Gyro hopped onto Izuku's back, and the OFA user used Full Cowling to propel the both of them in the air.
"I really hope he put a content warning on his video, because it's about to be inappropriate for younger audiences." Gyro stated. "He is NOT attacking UA!"
"We'll stop him Gyro, don't worry! We have to...for our friends!"
There was too much at stake if they didn't...
"Phantom of the Opera."
"I...I mean I love Phantom, but-"
"Theatre kid."
"Where did this come from?! How on Earth did you get that impression of me?!" Johnny asked.
"I'm a pretty good judge of character."
"I have never, even ONCE, brought up musicals around you."
"I don't know man, you are kind of theatrical, remember the way you defeated Kaminari and Jiro during combat training? That was pretty dramatic."
"Tokoyami had a big part in that plan, and I had to bluff my way around Kyoka in order to distract her."
"See? He's a good actor."
"Was someone talking about me?" Kaminari asked, entering the conversation. "Band practice just ended."
"We were talking about combat training." Kirishima explained.
"Oh yeah...you and Jiro really didn't get off to a great start, did you?" Kaminari asked Johnny. "You definitely had some mutual dislike going on there..."
"We never disliked each other, it's just that Kyoka was working through some problems at the time...now we couldn't be closer." Johnny said, knowing the double meaning would probably go over Kaminari's head, but it was worth a shot. "I guess she was my first rival though..."
"Yeah, you guys certainly hit it off after the USJ...but, uh...I would just be a little careful, you never know if there might be a little bit more than friendship on her end."
He's worried that I'll break her heart. Little do you know Kaminari, but Kyoka has similar worries about you. Still, I can't hate the guy for looking out for her. Johnny smiled. "Well, I can assure you that we're both just friends, and if she DOES have feelings like that, I'll...I'll be sure she isn't hurt."
Kaminari nodded, although he still had a strange expression on his face, almost as if he was...suspicious? Did Johnny say the wrong thing?
It didn't matter, he had bigger worries...
Like how Gyro and Izuku weren't back yet. There was no way either of them would be running late for such an important event...which meant they had most likely ran into trouble. Kaminari was just the distraction he needed, now that the spotlight wasn't on him, he quickly messaged the group.
Horseshoe: Gyro and Izuku aren't back yet, can we send a few people just in case they got in trouble? Preferably people who won't rouse suspicion?
Ears: I can't, the singer disappearing probably would look too good...I hope they're okay.
Encyclopedia: I'll go, they shouldn't have gone too far.
Horseshoe: Thanks YaoMomo.
Ferretface: Can't even trust the nerd with grocery shopping...I may as well go fix this shit.
Horseshoe: I can't say I was expecting that.
American Pie: Me neither.
Encyclopedia: ...
Ears: Get the FUCK out of our group chat!
Horseshoe: Where did you get a phone?
Ears: Wait...I can finally cuss you out! YOU MOT-
Johnny smiled as Kyoka typed a whole slew of curse words that would make Bakugo blush, directing all of the bitterness and resentment she had been bottling up for Valentine into one long paragraph of rudeness.
American Pie: I deserved that. Are you done?
Ears: You goddamn dickmuncher! I've got a whole LIFETIME of this for you!
Horseshoe: This is why I fell in love with you, right there.