Yay, third chapter!
I like how this is shaping up so far.
Reviews!
Drakus: (CH2) There are going to be a lot of new command words. I have a master document lol. But yeah, we are going for realistic dark here.
Sgt117: (CH1): Not really, but it is a fun coincidence!
memeiordthe69thbruh: (CH2) Here it is!
Izuku rolls out of bed at 5:00 am sharp. He slept for maybe 4 hours, but that's fine. Insomnia never really affected him anyway. Grabbing his preworkout powder, his shaker, along with a lifting belt, and some other workout gear, he heads down to the gym, sipping the preworkout. It as still excessively sweet, in his opinion, but it still worked.
Slamming the rest of the preworkout, Izuku gets started on his workout, he, somewhat stupidly, decided to do legs on his first day at school. Where he has to walk the campus. Whee. After a quick jog and stretching session, Izuku starts his workout, slowly working up to a 3 plate single on squat. Snapping his lifting belt shut, Izuku takes a deep breath, bracing his core, before moving the weight with practiced effort and ease. Slamming the weight forward, Izuku ignores the spotting in his vision, and pops his belt as he sinks down in a low squat, unweighted. Pulling his headphones off, Izuku focuses on his breathing as he drops down to sitting on the floor.
"Dude! That's so manly!" A voice Izuku vaguely recognizes says. Izuku looks over his shoulder to see a boy with bright red hair smiling at him, his shark like teeth as sharp at Tokage's
"Yeah, thanks. I'm just getting started. You're...Kirishima?"
"Yeah, man, and you're Midoriya, right? Dude, that is such a manly squat!"
"Yeah, thanks man. I still got more to go. What'd you have today?"
"Oh, arms and chest! Most manly lift!" Kirishima says, and Izuku chuckles
"Gonna have to agree to disagree. I think it's back." Izuku says, rising back to his feet.
"I mean, all lifts are manly, don't get me wrong! But why back?" Kirishima asks, and Izuku chuckles
"Gotta get that V-Taper on point. 'Sides, my chest is fine as is. Plus, deadlift is best lift." Izuku shrugs
"That, I can get behind. Anyway, have a good workout, Midori-bro!" Kirishima says, holding out a fist, which Izuku gladly taps, before moving on with his workout.
By the time Izuku is finished, he's pretty sure he either no longer has knees, or has attached quad muscles. Or hamstrings. Or calves, for that matter.
"I am become Bulgarians, destroyer of legs." Izuku groans on the floor as he curses the gods for inventing split squats.
"Yo, Midori-bro, you good?"
"I'm alive." Izuku groans, as Kirishima pulls him to his feet, barely.
"Dude, how the hell are you alive?"
"Pain, caffiene, and spite." Izuku groans, cracking his back before re-racking the dumbbells he was using.
"I saw you do squats, leg press, Bulgarians, calf raises, hammy curls, RDL's, and I think I saw you do Nordic curls. I reiterate. How are you alive, bro?"
"Pain. Caffiene. Spite." Izuku repeats, and Kirishima chuckles.
"Shit, man, you're too crazy to be here. I should join you sometime for a workout. See if I can hold up."
"You look stronger, not gonna lie. I think you'd be fine.'
"Yeah, but your volume is insane." Kirishima notes, and Izuku shrugs.
"Eh. So be it. This is my heavy leg day, anyway." Izuku says, ripping open a gel packet, and slurping it all up in one go, the somewhat harsh and bitter taste barely affecting him.
"Jeezus, dude. What're your maxes?"
"90 kilo bench, 150 kilo squat, 190 kilo deadlift. You?"
"About the same. 100 kilo bench, 140 kilo squat, 180 kilo deadlift."
"Got you beat then, huh?" Izuku smirks, and Kirishima shrugs
"By 10 kilos. I'm not too worried about it. We'll both just have to get a lot stronger and manlier!" Kirishima says, holding out his arm, which Izuku gladly clasps, Arnold style, before the boy smirk, and head off to their dorm rooms to shower and get ready for the day.
-DMJ-
Izuku slipped into his third class of the day, 'Quirk Studies'. It was a required course for all hero students, but Izuku was one of the few who was qualified to take it right now, but he figured he could hammer it out now.
Pulling on his collar, Izuku adjusts his red tie of the U.A. 'hero' course tie. Gen ed was green, matching the jacket. Business was a bright yellow, and support was a metal grey. It was a fancy little, stupid system, in Izuku's opinon. But it did work.
Sitting down in the second to front row, he studies the classroom carefully. No window, pretty standard from what he had seen of the U.A. campus. Four exits, two in the front, two in back. It made him uncomfy he couldn't see them all, but he was at least close to the ones he could see.
He was in a class with mostly older students. He recognized a few. Yaoyorozu, in the front row, opposite side. Bakugo, who came in a few minutes after Izuku, to his immediate right. Jiro, to his mild surprise, took a seat next to Yaoyorozu. He knew she wasn't a recommended student. Girl must be smart as hell. And then a boy he vaguely recognized from the dinner, with split white and red hair, sitting in the back of the room.
As Izuku messes with a notebook, the teacher, a man with a minor mutation quirk, cat like eyes and a lazy, swishing tail, walks in, and sits down on the edge of his desk, setting his phone face-down on the desk as a bell rings distantly.
"Good morning, all. Now, how many of you are hero students?" The man, asks, and Izuku narrows his eyes. He recognized a disdained tone when he heard it. Nonetheless, he raised his hand, along with all of his dorm-mates, and a few older students
"Hmph. I would suggest all of you drop this course." The man says, and Bakugo, true to form, shoots to his feet, pissed off
"And why the hell would we do that, you cat-boy band reject?" Bakugo snarls, as Izuku yanks him back into his seat.
"That's exactly why. All of you, especially you first years, are arrogant, idiotic children who don't know how to properly analyze quirks. All of you will fail this course, as do almost all hero students every year. So I would sug-"
"Neko." Izuku says lazily, his eyes boring into the teacher, who raises an eyebrow at him.
"What?"
"Your quirk name. It's Neko. Not the english word 'Cat'. It's 'Neko'. You're American." Izuku says
"And just how do you know that?" The man asks
"Your phone." Izuku says
"It's an Iphone. What's your point?" He asks
"Your case. It's an American brand. I can see it on the back." Izuku says, and the man glances at his phone, with a brand name in English words on his case.
"Well seen. But how do you know it's 'Neko'."
"You're at U.A. Working in a Japanese school, as an American. You speak fluent Japanese, but it's all formal. Meaning you learned it from a site, or an app. You willing learned it, and learned it well. Seems to me we have a bit of a...what do you Americans call it? A 'weeb' on our hands?" Izuku smiles lightly, and the mans face darkens as the room snickers
"...What's your point?"
"You have a cat quirk. You're a weeb, thus...Neko. It's not powerful, meaning you wouldn't add anything like 'Amazing' or 'Strong'. Your quirk is nothing more than a minor mutation quirk, with a bit of an Americanized Japanese twist." Izuku says, and the man's eyes narrow further, gaining a predatory glare
"So one of you managed to figure out my quirk. My poi-"
"I want to make a bet." Izuku says, tapping his pencil on the desk as the man's tail twitches irritably.
"What kind of bet?" The man growls
"If you can figure out my quirk before the sports festival, I will personally drop out, taking the rest of the first years with me." Izuku says, and all of his dorm mates turn to stare at him, eyes wide
"...That seems like an unsafe bet." The man asks, and Izuku shrugs
"We can always retake the course. It'll be listed as an 'Incomplete', and I'll explain to my teachers your hostility to hero students as one of the main causes." Izuku says
"...So I lose either way."
"Maybe. But you get bragging rights." Izuku says, a wide grin spreading across his face.
"...An interesting bargain. Any rules?"
"No looking at my quirk file. That's just cheating. You can observe Hero classes if you wish, or just find people to talk too. No asking teachers directly. Other than that...no other rules." Izuku shrugs, as the man considers the game.
"..I will take you up on your bet. Your name?" The teacher asks
"Izuku Midoriya. Welcome to hell, old timer." Izuku grins, a manic look in his eyes
After class had finished, his 4 dorm mates swarmed him, all of them angry or confused
"Midoriya, what are you thinking?"
"Izuku, what the fuck!" Bakugo growls, and he's promptly glared at by Yaoyorozu
"Language..." Yaoyorozu says, before realizing she didn't know his name.
"Katsuki Bakugo, remember it! I'm gonna be number one some day. Still, Izuku, the fuck?"
"He's gonna figure out your quirk eventually! He has two months!" Jiro snaps, raising her jacks threateningly
"I must admit, it seems like a short-sighted bet." The heterochromatic boy says
"Oh, would you all relax? He won't figure it out." Izuku sighs, as he rolls out his neck.
"What do you mean? Your quirk is to dissolve things!"
"No, it's a stealth quirk! Have you heard how quietly he walks?"
"Neither of you fuckers are right! It's so much weirder!" Bakugo snaps
"It's none of them." Izuku sighs
"What do you mean?" The Heterochromatic boy asks
"Oh, that's simple. I don't have one." Izuku grins, a stupid expression on his face.
"...Huh?"
-DMJ-
A few hours later.
Izuku walks into the 1A classroom, munching on a protein bar. He's the last to arrive, by the looks of things. He looks at the few faces he recognizes. Bakugo looks over at him, gives him a small nod, but does just that. Yaoyorozu gives him a studying gaze, Jiro with a confused one, and the heterochromatic boy, who learned was Shoto Todoroki, was quietly looking at him as well. Kirishima gives him a sharp-toothed smile, and Rikido flashes him a small grin.
The 4 from the quirk studies class were shocked he didn't have a quirk. Bakugo knew, obviously, but he had seen what Izuku could do. Yaoyorozu called him a liar. Izuku told her to prove him wrong. Jiro seemed to not believe him. Todoroki...he couldn't quite read. Which is saying something for Izuku.
Taking his seat behind Bakugo, Izuku opens his phone, (which he was still getting used to), and opened the news.
It was an article about a wrecked warehouse, and reports of a cloaked villain attacking the heroes, along with reports of dozens of dead mercenaries and other villains. Including nearly 3 dozen men who seemingly died of simultaneous heart attacks. Hm. The doctors were better than Izuku expected.
"Surrender! We don't want to hurt you, Omega!" The guard commander shouts
"That's rich, coming from you!" Izuku snaps back, not even moving from his hiding spots. He knew the power those rifles carried.
"Look, kid, you're fucked either way? You think the heroes won't put you down?"
"You think they can?" Izuku growls back, having enough of this charade.
Leaping over the barrier he's behind, he uses the one Command he swore he never would.
"DEATH!" Izuku shouts, feeling like his vocal cords will tear.
Izuku shakes the memories from his head, looking around the room, and then spots...
"Is that a damn sleeping bag?" Izuku mutters, standing up from his desk, and walking over to the yellow lump. Bakugo watches him, confused, and then spots what Izuku is looking at, and does a double take. Did he really not notice the giant yellow sleeping bag?
Walking up to the bag, Izuku kicks it lightly, and feels something solid underneath. Narrowing his eyes, he rolls the sleeping bag over so he can see the figure inside it. Shota Aizawa.
"Oh, son of a bitch." Izuku growls, and then gives a firm kick to the bag, rousing the sleepy hero
"Wake up, sunshine. World's ready for your scary ass." Izuku growls, as the students in the room stare at him in mild shock, including a boy with blue hair and glasses
"Sir, it is unkind to curse and wa-"
"Shut it, Alfred. This sleepy fuck is our teacher, isn't that right?" Izuku asks, as Aizawa glares at him, his eyes glowing with Erasure. An empty threat for Izuku.
"...Get back to your seat, Mr. Midoriya." Aizawa sighs, and Izuku complies, but not after giving one more kick.
Aizawa growls, but ignores the slight as he stands up, stepping out of the sleeping bag.
"It took you all too long to notice me. You wouldn't have if Midoriya wasn't an exceptionally aware young man." Aizawa says, as the bell rings.
"My name is Shouta Aizawa. And I will be your Hero studies teacher for this semester, as well as as co-teacher for HERO 101, your practical class. I expect only the best from all of you...now, there's supposed to be an orientation...but we will be skipping that. You all have gym uniforms under your desk. Put them on. Meet me outside in no less than 15 minutes." Aizawa says, then walks out of the room.
For maybe half a second, Izuku and the rest of the class are still, before there's a mad scramble towards the door. Izuku just waits it out, ignoring the shouting from Bakugo, and the snaps back from the blue-haired boy.
Izuku stands up, sighing lightly, walking out of the room with a controlled pace, finding his way to the locker room, where all the other boys are frantically changing. Izuku quickly pulls his full top off, including a wife-beater he wore to stop sweat from showing through his white shirt.
"Woah, Greenie, what's with all the scars?" A boy with yellow hair and a black lightning bolt in it asks, as Izuku bites his lip.
His torso is covered in dozens of scars. About 10 or so are surgical. From his time in...that facility. The others are all battle wounds that had healed. Ugly, rough, patchy things. Command was powerful. But not good enough to heal away scars. Even his arms are still covered in deep, purple, angry scars.
"None of your business, blondie. He's got a past, like us all." Bakugo says, and Izuku gives him a silent, but meaningful gaze.
"Yeah, we all got a past, but he looks like he lost a fight to a villain with a weed whacker quirk!" The boy gestures, and that makes Izuku laughs.
"Ah, yes, it was an Evil weed whacker man that got me. Weed Whacker, the scariest of all the villains." Izuku laughs, making the other boy blush as the other boys chuckle as his expense.
"Hey, I just wa-"
"Hey, you're good. Look, I had a rough past couple of years, and I really don't want to discuss it." Izuku says, his voice firm, but calm.
"Shit man, you being vague on purpose?"
"No in so many words." Izuku shrugs, pulling his shirt on, ending the conversation.
-DMJ-
All of Class 1-A it outside in outside in 10 minutes, and quieted when Aizawa walks out, holding a case of equipment.
"Hm. Good. You're all practical. Now, Midoriya, come up here. I want you to show them something."
"Uh...okay?" Izuku asks, confused, as he Aizawa tosses him a softball, which Izuku easily catches.
"You noticed me first. You get first dibs at this. Step in that circle and throw the ball." Aizawa says, and Izuku blinks, but obeys.
"With or without my quirk?" Izuku asks, and he hears Yaoyorozu gasp lightly behind him.
"With. This is a quirk assessment test." Aizawa says, and Izuku hums lightly.
Getting a feel for the ball, and look at the space he has, he decides for the most practical course of action.
Strength
Izuku pulls his arm back, and launches the ball with as much as he would dare, putting in as much effort as he did throwing those rebar pieces.
The ball rockets off, and Izuku feels his shoulder half dislocate, hanging partially limp, before he quickly jams it back into the place, barely even grunting at the pain.
"Not bad. Watch the shoulder."
"I'm fine. I can handle any injuries my quirk causes." Izuku replies testily
"See. That's what I'm looking for. Pushing yourself with injury or incapacitation." Aizawa says, showing the crowd Izuku's distance on the ball throw. 1.97 kilometers.
"This is the effort I expect. Now. Let's get to it."
The tests are fairly standard for what Izuku had expected.
A 50 meter dash, which Izuku clears in 3.9 seconds, just behind Bakugo, who had a 3.8, even when using Speed. The boy in blue, Izuku learned he was named Iida, had come in first with an incredibly impressive 2.92. Him and Bakugo were a distant second and third.
In Grip strength, Izuku takes fourth, behind the boy with six arms, Kirishima, and a boy who could seemingly summon a bird demon.
In the standing long jump, most of the class clears the sandbox, and it doesn't matter beyond that.
In the side-steps, Izuku comes roughly high-middle of the back. He was agile, and quick on his feet, but not exactly like this. He was much more suited to free-running.
In the ball throw, he takes third overall, behind Bakugo, who launched it over 2 kilometers, and a shorter girl with light brown hair, who seemed to just remove gravity from the ball, rendering an 'infinite' score.
He takes 5th in push-ups, behind the six armed boy, who just switched out his arms, Kirishima, Bakugo, and a boy with a tail, he was using it to assist him.
He, proudly, takes 1st overall in pull-ups, crushing nearly everyone, save Bakugo and Kirishima, who both put up a wildly impressive 50 to Izuku's 60 in 2 minutes.
While not the most flexible, he takes second among the boys, and all the girls, save Yaoyorozu, crush him easily, especially the all-pink girl, who basically folded herself in half.
In sit-ups, he takes 4th, behind Bakugo, Kirishima, and Todoroki. That was honestly fine to him.
In the distance run, he takes 5th again, behind Yaoyorozu, who just made a bike, Bakugo, who used his explosions, Iida, who used the engines legs he had, and Todoroki, who just skated along.
When Aizawa shows the results, Izuku gets a solid third, behind Bakugo and Yaoyorozu. He guessed the strength were based partially on gender. That was fine to him.
"Well, as you can see, some of you need to improve a bit. But I am mildly impressed with the top three, especially you, Ms. Yaoyorozu." Aizawa says, giving her a small nod.
"Now, there is something else I want to show you. Here are your rankings from both the general exam and recommended exams." Aizawa says, pressing another button, showing more rankings.
Unsurprisingly, all numbers were within 40. Yaoyorozu was 1 overall for the recommended, and Bakugo was 1 overall for the general. Todoroki was 3rd for recommended, Jiro was 29th for the general exam, 12th in this particular test, and Kirishima was 9th. But Izuku's name had no second number. And Iida was quick to take notice.
"Mr. Aizawa! Midoriya's name doesn't have a number! Is that a mistake on U.A.'s part?"
"U.A. makes no mistakes, Iida. I didn't take a test." Izuku says calmly.
"...What do you mean, didn't take a test!" The shortest boy, and person, in the class, one Minoru Mineta, shrieks. This guy's voice pissed him off.
"I didn't take one. I was a special admission case." Izuku says simply.
"Special Admission?" Jiro asks, crossing her arms under her chest.
"Yes. Special Admission."
"So what, you have blackmail on someone? You don't deserve to be here!" Minoru shrieks, and Izuku's slightly smile fades, his eyes darkening.
Walking up to the short boy, Izuku squats to be at eye level with the boy, his dark green boring into Mineta's purple ones
"You know, Mineta...it almost seems like you don't belong here. You were ranked lowest in the general exam in this class. And you're at the bottom of this test. So. You tell me. Why should you be here?" Izuku asks quietly, just loud for everyone to hear.
"Be-because I actually took the test unlike you, you cheat!" Mineta snaps, and Izuku's eyes narrow
"I could wipe the floor with you or anyone in this class in terms of quirk analysis, academics, quirk versatility, strength, natural stamina, pain tolerance, drive, intelligence, battle planning, medical knowledge, and how to fu-" Izuku growls, his voice sharper and louder this time
"That's enough, the both of you. You all passed. Go get changed. You're dismissed." Aizawa's voice snaps, and Izuku stares at the boy for a second longer, before standing up
Izuku walked off, pulling his training shirt off. Damn thing stuck to him too much.
Izuku heard a loud wolf whistle, and he turns around, and sees the pink girl, Ashido staring at him unabashedly.
"Holy shit, Midoriya, you look ~good~." Ashido crows, and Izuku smirks
"Well I'm glad you think so, Alien Princess." Izuku laughs back, and Ashido laughs loudly, as the other girls either stare back just as hard, or merely shake their heads.
None of them comment on the scars. But one takes notice. She's concerned, pursing her lips, but doesn't comment. Her jacks dance back and forth a bit, but Izuku doesn't notice.
He doesn't need too, right now.