Hero La Kill Ch. 4: Explosive Reunion.
Written by Aduubo, Buckichamp, and PikachuSpartan.
I OWN NOTHING. KILL LA KILL IS OWNED BY STUDIO TRIGGER AND KAZUKI NAKASHIMA. MHA IS OWNED BY TOHO ANIMATION AND KOHEI HORIKOSHI.
—
The students gathered on a dirt practice field outside one of UA's several gymnasiums across the campus. The area is fairly tranquil as the lush greens and the morning blue sky provide a relaxing but vast scene. A perfect environment to ease up the students as they take their Quirk Assessment test.
"DIE!" Bakugou screamed with ferocity as an explosion erupted, propelling the ball through the air like a cannon.
"... Oh whoa," Izuku muttered, staring blankly as he couldn't properly register a reaction to such power.
"Huh. That's neat," Ryuko commented while casually watching the ball begin to track back down to the ground.
The second the ball makes contact with the ground, Aizawa's phone beeps and he turns it towards the students to show the score.
705.2 meters.
Gasps fill the air as the Students were enamored with shock from the results that they had seen.
"Eh, I've seen crazier shit," Ryuko shrugged off, feeling indifferent by what she saw.
"Wait, you've seen CRAZIER stuff?!" Shouted a pair of students that sported pink and yellow hair.
Ryuko looked towards the two with a deadpan expression before shrugging once more. "Eh."
'What kinda chick is she?!' The two students pondered worryingly as their mouths hung open.
"What was that, you damn extra?" Katsuki boomed as smaller explosions burst within his palms.
"Huuuh? Who ya callin' extra, you cracked out pomeranian?!" Ryuko barked back and stuck her chin out, establishing dominance.
Hearing the animosity in Katsuki's voice suddenly jogged a memory in Ryuko's head. She now remembered why he seemed so familiar.
'Wait a second...Katsuki?!' Ryuko's eyebrows formed a questioning look.
"Both of you. Shut up and settle down." Aizawa snapped, garnering the attention of the two student dogs.
'Oh great… Looks like Ryuko's changed a lot since we were kids…' Izuku shrunk into his shoulders, now troubled by the possibility of two Bakugos.
"You seem confident, don't you Matoi? Think you can do better? Then go on. Be my guest," Aizawa tosses the ball over to Ryuko and gestures for her to walk towards the circle. Ryuko and Bakugou exchange cold stares as they pass one another.
Izuku watched with intrigue as Ryuko stepped into the circle. If memory served him right, he never actually saw if Ryuko had a quirk or not. Everything back then was still a bit of a blur to him though.
"705 meters, huh? Tsk, please. Piece of cake," Ryuko smirks while doing some mild stretches. She takes a deep breath before reaching for her UA sports jacket, tossing it off to the side to unveil her sailor uniform.
"Whoa! What is that?"
"I've never seen that outfit before!"
"Is she even allowed to wear that?"
All sorts of reactions could be heard as the students got a view of Ryuko's attire.
Ryuko clamps onto a pin before yanking it out of the Sekki Tekko, initiating the Synchronization. Suddenly a flashing light envelops Ryuko before she becomes visible again, donning a very different appearance. Her hair spiked up, sporting an even more wild flair to her brash look. The real shiner is how revealing her outfit made her appear to be, showing a large amount of skin to those present.
"OH HELL YEAH! AN EXHIBITIONIST!" A certain grape themed boy named Mineta squealed with excitement as blood spurted from his nose. The blonde that donned a black bolt on his hair named Kaminari soon followed suit with blood leaking down his nostril. The rest of the students were either wide eyed or just straight up dumbfounded.
"Focus Ryuko, just ignore him," Senketsu reassured her, detecting Ryuko's blood boiling in rage from Mineta's comment. But instead of listening, Ryuko would use this as leverage.
'Wha.. wha.. WHAAAAAAAT?!' Izuku appeared flabbergasted, unable to find a proper reaction. Suddenly, he could feel fluid dripping down his nose. He touched it once, seeing blood. Oh god. Was he really this enthralled? He wiped his nose and clapped his cheeks with his hands to focus.
Ryuko got into a throwing position, rearing her arm back and planting her feet hard into the dirt.
"HUAAAAAAAAA!" Ryuko screamed before throwing the ball with all of her might, the force of the throw mimicking the crack of a sonic boom.
'Whoa! Holy cow!' Izuku's eyes widened in awe. The whole class soon followed suit.
Once the ball made its landing, Aizawa's phone beeps and he turns the screen over to the students once more.
706.2 meters.
Katsuki let out an audible gasp once he laid his eyes on that score and then back at the ball.
Sparkles envelop Ryuko as she returns to her normal state. She picked up her sports jacket and swung it over her shoulder before walking back in line. As she passed a wide-eyed Katsuki, she let out a very audible chuckle.
"How's that, Blondie?" Ryuko snarked as she walked back in with the rest of the class.
Bakugo's teeth became more bare as forced grunts came out due to him holding back from screaming, making him look like a constipated chihuahua.
Ryuko stood next to Izuku with a chuckle while he shakingly turned his glance towards her.
"All of you need to know your maximum capabilities. It's the most rational way of figuring out your potential as a pro hero," Aizawa said as the demonstrations came to a close.
"Whoa! 706 meters? Are you kidding me?" The bolt haired blonde asked.
"I wanna go! That looks like fun!" The pinkette jumped in, clamping her hands together out of excitement.
"This is what I'm talking about! Using our quirks as much as we want!" A student with black hair and bulky elbows cheered on with a notably big grin on his face.
"…So this looks fun huh?" Aizawa blankly asked.
Izuku winced once he heard that. That kind of question meant that things were about to get even more intense.
"You have three years here to become a hero. You think it's going to be games and playtime?" Idiots." Aizawa spoke as a rather menacing smile crawled its way onto his face.
"Today you'll be competing in eight physical tests to gauge your potential. Whoever comes in last has none, and will be expelled immediately."
"HUUUH?!" Aizawa's announcement shocked the students, shaking them to their core.
'For a guy who looks like he could collapse at any moment, he can really be intense,' Ryuko thought as she focused on Aizawa.
'Immediate expulsion..?! Eight tests?! Oh crap, not good!' Izuku began to get cold feet. His breath hitches as he clutches his wrist. His body began shaking uncontrollably, fear clouding his mind.
'I can only use One For All 0 or 100% right now. I don't have any control yet!' Beads of sweat began dripping down his face. Izuku was starting to panic, which Ryuko would begin to notice.
"Like I said, I get to decide how this class runs. Understand? If that's a problem, you can head home right now." Aizawa brushes up his hair, letting the students see his delirious smile. It looked unsettling, but it was his way of showing that he was serious.
"Izuku? Are you okay, man?" Ryuko whispered and lightly tapped Izuku's shoulder, which snapped him out of his trance.
Izuku looked over towards Ryuko, seeing that she was checking up on him. When his eyes met hers, it felt as if his stress had faded almost immediately. His cheeks began to bloom red again the longer he stared at her.
'O-Oh crap! She's talking to me! I-I gotta say something!' Izuku thought to himself before clasping his cheeks with his palms.
"Y-yeah, I'm okay. It's just that there's a lot for me to deal with here.. I'm worried that I won't know what to do."
"Hmm? What do you mean? You do have a quirk, right?" Ryuko asked.
"Yeah, I do.. But I can't exactly use it without completely breaking myself. The power is so immense..I can't control it right now. I basically have to figure out a way to adjust to it," Izuku explained as he held his wrist in his hand once again.
Ryuko stood for a moment and pondered, getting some deja vu about how much blood Senketsu uses during her fights.
"I don't exactly know what to tell you, but don't worry too much. Just believe in yourself and you'll figure it out. I remember how smart you were back then," Ryuko placed her hand onto Izuku's shoulder with a smile.
Izuku's eyes lit up a bit when he received the words of encouragement from Ryuko. A small smile grew on his face as a sense of determination began to surface.
"Right. I'll do my best," Izuku responded.
"Are you two done?" Aizawa raised his voice towards the two, startling the pair.
"Now as I was saying. If you want to be a pro, you're going to have to push yourself to the brink. For the next three years, UA will throw one terrible hardship after another at you. So go beyond. Plus Ultra Style," Aizawa curled his finger, gesturing to the students who dared to come forward.
"Show me it's no mistake that you're here."
The students stood in silence, taken back by Aizawa's speech. He was very blunt, but what he said was true. Ryuko understood his way of teaching thanks to her brief time dealing with hardasses at Honnōji.
"We're just wasting time by talking. Let the games begin," Aizawa egged the students on, amping them up for what they were about to face.
That being said, the eight quirk assessment tests began in earnest.
Izuku struggled to move up the ladder during the first few tests. He was at a disadvantage not being able to wield One for All anywhere between 0 and 100%, clocking in at 7.02 seconds in the 50 meter dash, registering 56 kg on the grip strength test, not clearing the sandbox during the standing long jump and overmatched at repeated side steps.
Ryuko watched from a distance, not wanting to disturb Izuku whilst he did his tests. She could clearly see that he was troubled, but she also knew that he needed to figure this out for himself.
Even with the hills he faced, Izuku had a new sense of confidence thanks to Ryuko's words of encouragement. Determination was all he felt to figure out how to use his quirk and do his best on the test.
Ryuko blasted through the ranks during the first set. The augmentations from Senketsu gave her an advantage in physique and utility. Using the ventilation exhaust on her back, Ryuko was able to boost herself to land 3.09 seconds, barely scraping behind Iida. She then registers 600kg on the grip test, along with completing the standing long jump with flying colors.
Izuku was simply amazed by Ryuko's performance. He was immensely curious about her abilities with how her quirk operates, and what the limitations of it were.
It was now down to the final four tests of the assessment. Ryuko watched the first couple students take their turns during the ball toss. Her breath started to stagger, needing to get more air into her lungs.
"Ryuko, for the last three tests, let's not synchronize," Senketsu instructed.
"Huh? Why not?"
"Everytime you sync with me in and out, it's draining your stamina immensely. If you keep this up, you'll pass out from fatigue during the distance run,"
"I see. I was feeling a bit winded for a moment. Thanks, Senketsu," Ryuko showed her gratitude as she patted her Kamui.
"Are you talking to your uniform?" A student that consisted of what appeared to be an inanimate floating set of clothes asked.
"Me? Well.. -" Ryuko was then caught off by the fact she was talking to someone who was literally invisible.
"Er... It's hard to explain. This is Senkets-"
"Quiet, you two," Aizawa spoke up, cutting off Ryuko's explanation.
"Hmph," Ryuko scoffed and complied.
It was now Izuku's turn for the ball throw.
Izuku stood in the circle, staring down at the ball as his nerves started to crawl up his spine. His scores in the first set of the tests weren't something to be proud about. It was now or never. He had to step up or fail.
The students watched as Izuku took a moment to himself within the throwing circle. A look of concern began to make its way onto Ryuko's face.
"If Midoriya doesn't shape up soon, he's the one going home," Iida addressed.
"HUHH? Of course he is! He's a quirkless loser!" Katsuki barged in, which Iida was taken back by.
"He has a quirk! Did you not hear about what he did at the entrance exam?"
"Huhh?"
"Besides, you should shut up and watch from second place like a good little extra," Ryuko sneered at Katsuki with a devilish grin. All Bakugo could do was grit his teeth and snarl.
"QUIET," Aizawa reprimanded the two once more before turning his attention back to Izuku.
"Here it comes."
Izuku took a couple seconds more to collect his thoughts and then braced himself, preparing to make his mark. He reared his arm back and shot it forward as hard as he could, but not before Aizawa's eyes flashed.
46 Meters.
Izuku's eyes shot wide open, distraught at the result of his throw.
"Huh..? What gives..? I was trying to use it just now.." Izuku searched his palms as he was absolutely confused.
"I erased your quirk," Aizawa's scarf began to float along with his hair, giving a very menacing look for him. The students, along with Ryuko, were surprised by this sudden change in appearance.
"The judges for this exam…were not rational enough. Someone like you should never be allowed to enroll at this school.
"Wait.. you did what to my-" Izuku cut himself off with a gasp upon realization.
"Those goggles.. I know you! You can look at someone and cancel out their powers! The Erasure Hero, Eraserhead!" Izuku exclaimed, which had the students discussing said hero.
"You're not ready. You don't have control of your power. Were you planning on breaking your bones again? Counting on someone else to save your useless body?"
"N-No! That's not what I was trying to do-!" Izuku tried to explain himself before Aizawa's scarf wrapped around his body, pulling him within close proximity.
"No matter what your intentions are, you would be nothing more than a liability in battle. You have the same reckless passion as another overzealous hero I know. One who saved a thousand people by himself and became a legend. But even with that drive, you're worthless if you can only throw a single punch before breaking down. With your power, there's no way you can become a hero."
Ryuko narrowed her brows as she watched Aizawa lecture Izuku. She did not approve of his methods, but he was right. If you're going to break down easily, why even bother? Ryuko had the same mindset when she was ready to abandon the supposedly injured Maiko Ogure during No Tardies Day back at Honnoji.
'C'mon Izuku. You can do it,' Ryuko thought to herself.
Aizawa's scarf began to wrap back around him as he released Izuku from his grasp. His hair falling down, pooling around his head and eyes as they no longer glowed.
"I've returned your impractical quirk. Take your final throw. Hurry and get it over with," Aizawa ordered and walked away from the circle, leaving Izuku to complete the ball throw. The field was now silent as they watched him.
"I've only got one shot at nailing this. So what do I do? I still can't control my power. But I can't just give up either. Do I let the egg explode? It might be my only shot at staying at UA," Izuku muttered with a defeated look on his face.
'I have to try something. No matter the consequences!' Izuku straightens up, his teeth bared. He wasn't going to let his efforts or the ones of those who helped him be in vain.
Izuku reared his arm back again, shooting his arm forward again.
'Mr. Aizawa was right about what he said. If I can't control my quirk, there's no way I'll ever become a hero! I have to work way harder than anyone else here if I want to succeed! Even if I have a lot to learn, I'LL FOCUS ON WHAT I CAN DO RIGHT NOW!'
Time slowed down, Izuku was just about to release the ball from his hand. One For All began to activate once again, but this time, it all transferred into his pointer finger.
"SMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASHH!" Izuku roared as the ball was propelled forward by the force of his finger. The force mimicked the crack of a sonic boom, just like when Ryuko threw the ball.
The students stood in awe, absolutely surprised by what they saw. Katsuki being taken back most of all. However, Ryuko had a smile grow on her face.
'It hurts.. But not as bad as before!' Izuku was still clearly in pain, as his finger was a dark mangled mess. But he managed to lessen the amount of damage to his body by only maximizing his power towards targeted limbs.
705.3 meters.
"Mr. Aizawa.." Izuku weakly called out to get his teacher's attention.
"You see…? I'm still standing!" Izuku forced himself to form a fist, along with a strained smile that still showed determination.
"This kid," Aizawa himself even began to grin. He then turned his phone over to show the nearby students.
"He threw it over 700 meters!" The electric blonde shouted out.
"Nice! He's finally showing us his true power!" The Brunette said excitedly.
"Holy crap, you sent that thing flying! What did I tell ya, Izuku?! This is what I'm talking about!" Ryuko shouted out with a big grin. Her encouragement seemed to give a sense of warmth to Izuku, resulting in a blush returning to his face.
"But his finger appears to be broken now. Just like in the exam. This quirk is very odd." Iida commented with concern.
'What the hell was that?!' Katsuki wondered as he was reduced to nothing but a gasping mess to the point he looked as if he had asthma.
'If that damn nerd had a quirk, he would have gotten it when we were kids! This is impossible! He's up to something.'
"I'm getting to the bottom of this," Katsuki growled.
Ryuko glanced over at Bakugo, his eyes seething with fury. The nitroglicerin sweat from his palms began to ignite as well, knowing full well what he was about to do. Ryuko took a step forward with her left foot and grabbed the pin out of the Sekki Tekko, with Katsuki charging full throttle at Midoriya.
"DEKU, YOU BASTARD! TELL ME HOW YOU DID THAT OR-"
Katsuki soon found Ryuko in Sync-mode standing in his way, blocking the path toward a frightened Izuku.
"That's enough, Katsuki!" Ryuko shouted back.
She wound her right arm back, balling her hand into a fist and thrusting forward to deliver a blow right under the spiky blonde male's chin, slamming his jaw shut and sending him hurling backward 30 meters through the dirt before coming to a stop, dust clouds rising up around him.
The students all gasp in unison, the already bad blood between Ryuko and Katsuki was escalating. As Bakugo came back into view, he had a few small scrapes as his hand rubbed at his jaw, wanting to get back up to fight. Only now a shadow cascaded over him, with Ryuko standing tall. Her gaze was fixed on him, trying to make sure he didn't weave around her.
"What the hell is your damn problem? Growing up, Izuku was your friend, wasn't he?!" Ryuko barked as Aizawa stood on standby. He knew he'd normally intervene, but something about the situation had him wanting to see how things played out.
"That damn moron?! He's nothing to me. I don't know why you're protecting the bastard," Katsuki shot back, though Ryuko didn't stand down.
"Are you shitting me! I knew you got an ego boost when you got your quirk, but you're fucking insane!"
Bakugo's glare became murderous, wanting to demolish her for protecting Deku.
Upon hearing this, another memory had been jogged in Izuku's head. He remembered that day, when he fought Katsuki for the very first time. It was against him and his gang that were already harassing another kid, and Izuku stepped in to his defense.
…
"Why are you being so mean? You're making him cry, Kacchan!" Pleaded a much younger Izuku.
"If you keep on hurting him.. Uh.. I'll uh.. I'll stop you myself!" Izuku, even in immense fear, got into a defensive stance to protect the other child.
"Hmph, you wanna pretend to be a hero?" Katsuki smugly asked as he clamped his fist into his palm, making an explosion appear within.
"You don't stand a chance without a quirk, Deku."
Izuku braced himself before Katsuki and his gang charged towards him in an organized assault. Punches and kicks made their mark on Izuku. It was not a pretty sight, as they did not give him much of a chance to defend himself. Izuku was then sent skidding across the dirt in front of the child he tried to protect.
"See, what did I tell you, Deku?" Katsuki began to approach once again, prepared to do more. But before he got any closer, a young girl with black hair, sporting a red highlight in it stepped in front of Izuku with her arms stretched out to both of her sides, blocking Katsuki off.
"S-Stop it right now, Katsuki! I'm not going to let you h-hurt them anymore!" The young girl, Ryuko, shouted at him. She shakingly kept her stance, clearly afraid as well.
Katsuki and the gang were a bit surprised that another had come to oppose him, but he only scoffed and turned away.
"Tch, whatever. I'm done here. You're lucky that I don't feel like hitting a girl," Katsuki smugly commented before walking away, still at least satisfied with the beatdown he laid on Deku.
Ryuko took a deep breath before kneeling down to Izuku and the child.
"Are you okay?" Ryuko asked in a caring tone.
…
Izuku's mind raced back to the present, now finally remembering who Ryuko was. He watched as she stood in front of him once more, protecting him from the imminent danger that came at him. Izuku smiled as he clenched his fist. He was able to rekindle a long lost piece of their friendship.
"Screw off you damn extra! I won't say it another ti- ahh!" Bakugo swallowed what he was saying as Ryuko had whipped out her scissor blade and pointed it directly at him, just mere inches away from his nose while the rest of the class stood back in horror.
"If you didn't know, some folks know me as "the crazy bitch from the Kanto gang," and I ain't exactly afraid to defend myself and bust a few punks' skulls while I'm at it. So for the final time, back off, Katsuki!" Ryuko growled menacingly as the sunlight glimmered off the red blade, a standoff ensuing.
"Ryuko, calm down. I think you've made your point," Aizawa's voice came through clear as day from behind her as his black hair stood up and his eyes glowing red from his quirk, those same eyes fixed directly on Bakugo and binding cloth at the ready.
"As for you, Bakugo, you need to get your anger under control if you're ever going to be a proper hero," the scruffy pro stated bluntly, as Katsuki looked away at the ground in disgust.
Ryuko powered down, shrinking her scissor blade down to a normal size and placed it back into her holster before walking back over to the rest of Class 1A. As Ryuko passed by Aizawa, she abruptly stopped and turned her head towards her teacher.
"If I was out of line, I'm sorry. But what I ain't apologizing for is defending a friend from that damn punk," Ryuko calmly stated as she helped escort Izuku back into the crowd of students, leaving Bakugo smarting.
"Dust yourself off, kid. We still have other tests today."
With his message delivered to Bakugo, Aizawa turned foot and headed back to his previous spot. He noted how Ryuko managed to counter against Bakugo's power and ego, along with her quick instincts to move when needed.
'She might be better suited for hero work than I thought. And if I'm not around when his temper runs hot again, I think she can keep him in check,' Aizawa mentally noted.
As Ryuko and Izuku made it back to the rest of the group, the green haired student stopped for a moment.
"Ryuko," Izuku spoke out, Ryuko then turned her gaze towards him.
"Thank you," Izuku said with a smile, to which Ryuko returned the gesture and formed a fist before lightly tapping it into his shoulder.
"Heh, what are friends for, Izuku? It's good to see you again."
…
….
…..
Even the most distant threads can be re-entwined.
Aduubo A/N: THE RYUKO BATTLE TRIAL COMIC DUB IS NOT CANON TO THE FANFIC. That is all, now to Bucki
A/N: Hey there, Buckichamp here!
This is one of my favorite chapters written so far with Aduubo and PikachuSpartan (including the ones we've been able to work ahead on that aren't released yet)!
Each of us had certain scenes we had ideas to write for and they all came out brilliantly!
It's one of the fun things about this fanfiction project: We can set the course of the story, taking it where we want while also still respecting the character's identities with our own little tweaks here and there. We don't have to stick to any confirmed or speculative canon, but we aren't going to go off the rails where the story progression doesn't make sense.
Hopefully if this story keeps gaining traction, there can be some sort of stream with the three of us on Aduubo's YouTube channel explaining some things about certain decisions, favorite dialogue, etc. Also, it'll gives us a chance to interact with y'all.
That's enough of my rambling (if Aduubo keeps this entire note in LOL). You really won't see an author's note from me very often, so hopefully y'all enjoy this and continue to support us as this story moves forward!
Aduubo: Also, If u want Mako x Ryuko, go find it lol bye guest