AN: Sorry it took a bit to get the chapter out but now we move on into the Internship arc. I know it's a slow start but please enjoy the chapter. Feel free to DM me or leave a comment or any feedback. Please fave, follow, and support the fic. Thank you and enjoy the show.
(Cover Story, Sniper's Redemption part 3, the three figures begin to fire at the large gate in front of them as two large spotlights shine down on the cloaked group from the guard tower.)
Tokyo Station
Today was the big day for the Heroics Course, it was time to start their first internship as heroes. Everyone present was wearing their U.A uniforms and carrying their suitcases that contained their hero uniforms.
"All right, you know what to do," Aizawa stated while watching over his students and their sister class. "You know the rules: no hero outfit unless given permission."
"Hai!" exclaimed Mina cheerfully.
"Be professional, Ashido." scolded Aizawa.
The pink-skinned girl deflated, losing some of her previous excitement. "Yes, sir,"
"*cough*hardass!*cough*" Rayleigh fake coughed loudly before exaggeratedly looking around and then glancing at Aizawa. "Oi, Suzi, Fujin thinks you're a killjoy."
"You're not helping, geezer. They need to learn how to be professional," growled Aizawa, glaring at the older man. Aizawa heard some of his students, especially Mina, snickering at Rayleigh calling him out.
"I get you want them to be professional but let them live a little. They aren't going to be in high school forever."
"Fine, fine," waved Aizawa before looking at the group. "Just be on your best behavior while on the job."
"And please try to stay out of trouble," added Sekijiro, hoping his class won't be a trouble magnet like 1-A.
"On an additional note for the Devil Fruit users, I gave your mentors a heads up on your situation since you have two different powers," Rayleigh reveals to the group.
Both classes then started to chat with each other about who they were going to intern under. "Who did you intern with?" Awase asked Kaminari.
"I'm interning under Thunderstruck!" Kaminari answered, his chest swelling with pride.
"So, Class Prez, which hunk do ya want to intern with?" teased Setsuna, glancing at Kendou before smirking. "Someone decent, at least."
Kendou then playfully nudged the green-haired girl. "Well... I'm going to intern under Fat Gum."
"Why him? What can he teach you?" Setsuna asked curiously.
"Well, he can endure most physical attacks because of his Quirk, since I did accidentally broke Juroto's hands during my first time training with my Devil Fruit."
"I'm also going to intern under Fat Gum," Momo added, joining the conversation. "Both of our Quirks are based on fats, so I believe he could help me be more prepared for field work."
"Nice choice! It looks like you and Ms. Prez will do great with your internships!" Setsuna wrapped her arms around both girls' shoulders. "This is going to be great!"
"Thank you, Tokage-san," replied Momo with a smile. "Good luck to you as well."
Over in a different part of the group, Reiko and Tokoyami were facing away from each other, both teens sporting a prominent blush. "So... how are you?" asked the bird-headed boy.
"I'm g-good," replied Reiko. "I am going to work under Pixie-Bob."
"Is It because your Devil Fruit and her Quirk specialize in long-distance control?"
"It is," she then turned to face Tokoyami. "Who did you pick, Tokoyami-san?"
"Well-" Before being cut off by Dark Shadow, who was now face to face with the white-haired girl.
"Fumi is going with Hawks."
"... I was going to tell her that." groaned at Tokoyami, glaring at his sentiment Quirk.
"You'd take too long trying to look cool."
"... " Tokoyami couldn't come up with a response to that. When he looked over to see Reiko, he saw stars in her eyes. "Are you alright, Yanagi?"
"Y-you interned with the number 3 ranked hero in Japan, Tokoyami?" Reiko stuttered in excitement.
"Yes, his Quirk can help me with my own Quirk control and my Devil Fruit." the bird-headed boy answered.
"That's so cool," she whispered.
Over with Kirishima, he was 'attempting to chat with an oddly quiet Bakugo. "So who are you with, Bakubro?" asked the Hardening Quirk user.
"I'm going with Gang Orca, Shitty Hair," said Bakugo, clearly annoyed.
"You don't sound happy about it?" commented Kirishima, raising an eyebrow.
"No shit!"
"Isn't Gang Orca the current number 10 Hero in Japan?"
"I wanted to work with Best Jeanest since he was the highest rank offer I had!"
"He might be a higher-ranking hero; However, Gang Orca has what you need." chimed in Rayleigh, appearing behind Bakugo.
The explosive blonde jumped a foot into the air in surprise before glaring at the old Haki user. "Would you quit doing that, Geezer!?"
"I do this to keep you on your toes for when you unlock your Haki", explained Rayleigh' before adopting a more serious expression. "As for why you are interning under Gang Orca, it's because you have yet to control your emotions, and you let your pride cloud your judgment."
"I'm not that prideful!"
"You're not helping your case; regardless, you will need to learn humility not just as a Hero but as a person. Besides, you are getting an internship for 2 weeks rather than 1."
While Rayleigh and Bakugo were talking, Kirishima felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to face a smiling Mina. "Hey, Kiri, I wish you luck on your internship."
The redhead scratched the back of his head and gave his old middle school friend a toothy smile back. "Thanks, Mina, I'm definitely going to show Fourth Kind how manly I am."
Mina blushed at Kirishima's proclamation. "You-ah...excutemeIhavetogonowtositwithPony" She blurted out before running off.'Kirishima looked over at Rayleigh and ,Bakugo who watched the exchange.
"What was that about?" Kirishima asked the pair. Bakugo could only facepalm at the response while Rayleigh snorted.
"Looks like your Quirk really does make you dense, Red." snarked the old man.
"What did I do?"
"Why do you think she's nervous?"
A metaphorical light bulb appeared over Kirishima's. "Oh, Ashido is nervous about her internship too!" Pounding his fist into his other hand.
Rayleigh just put his hand on his shoulder and sighed. "Ah, to be young and innocent again."
Kirishima tilted his head in confusion and attempted to ask him what he meant, but the old man just turned to look over where Izuku was, leaving him hanging.' The green-haired boy was currently talking with Ochako about her internship. Behind him, Bakugou glanced at Kirishima and smacked him upside the head for being dense.
"Gunhead?" questioned Izuku.
"Well, I wanted to learn close-quarter combat after thinking about my performance from the Sports Festival," admitted Ochako. "He's probably my best chance to get better."
"I think a melee hero to reckon with, Uraraka-san," replied Izuku.
"Who are you interning with, Midoriya?"
"Uhh, actually, I was going to train with All Might's mentor."
"No way!" the Zero-Gravity user gasped with stars in her eyes. "Is he an old-school Hero?"
"He is, but All Might has mentioned that he is a very strict teacher," Izuku then began to sweat when he remembered a certain detail that he was dreading. "And he is Silver-sensei's best friend; oh God, what have I done?" While Izuku zoned out pain he was going to go through, Shoto walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention. The green-haired yelped in surprise and jumped into Ochako's arms, being held bridal-style. "Todoroki-San, please don't do that!"
"Apologies, Midoriya, however, I wanted to thank you." stated the fire and ice users with a bow before giving a ghost of a smile.
"Oh, uh, you're welcome."
"Also, is it normal for 'Uraraka to hold you like that?'
The pair glanced at each other before blushing up a storm. Ochako was so embarrassed she let go of Izuku, who fell to the ground with an auditable thud. The green-haired boy quickly jumped to his feet to face Shoto. "Uhh, Todoroki, who are you interning under?" He asked him.
"My father."
Izuku was rather shocked by his answer. Meeting Endeavor in person during the sports festival 'was something he was not going to forget, especially with how tense Endeavor had been with Rayleigh. "Are you sure you want to intern with him?"
"He's the only one who can properly train me on how to use my fire. He may be a terrible father, but he's the Number Two Hero for a reason," admitted Shoto.
"Endeavor is a bad father, Todoroki?" Ochako asked her classmate while tilting her head.
"The less said, the better."
Ochako, picking up on Shoto's rather sharp response, didn't want to prod any further. "Sorry, Todoroki." She apologized. While Ochako apologized to Shoto, Izuku was trying to find Iida. A moment later, he found the Engine student. His expression was somber, which Izuku noticed. However, as soon as Iida made eye contact with him, he turned his face away.
'Iida, why do you look ashamed?' thought Izuku, looking at his classmate in concern. Shaking his head, he had a somber expression while looking at Bakugo. 'And did I do the right thing for Kacchan?'
Flashback to a few days prior
Izuku was thrown to the ground hard. He tried to get up, but Rayleigh already had a bokken pointed at his head. "Get up and try again." The old Haki user stated.
Izuku breathes and throws himself at Rayleigh again, only to be hit in the back of the head by the wooden sword he's using. The green-haired boy crumpled to the ground while Rayleigh sighed. "Alright, you're starting to get too reckless, so let's take five."
Izuku nodded, clutching his sore head. Since meeting Izuku, Rayleigh had observed his very turbulent relationship with Bakugo. At first, he summed it up to the latter having ego; however, the way he was incredibly hostile towards Izuku told him it's more personal.
"Do you remember my question to you when we first met?" Rayleigh questioned Izuku, placng the bokken down.
"Yes, Silver-San. You asked me if saving Kacchan was worth my life."
"Kacchan, sounds like a childhood nickname. Care to explain more?"
"Kaachan and I have been friends since we were little."
"Let me guess, it changed when he got his Quirk?"
Izuku flinched on instinct as memories flooded his head of Bakugo getting praised for his powerful Quirk and how he belittled Izuku for not having one. "H-he did…"
Rayleigh nodded his head. "And from what it sounds like, there's more to it."
"I don't want to talk about that day!" cried Izuku, shaking his head vigorously.
This immediately caught Rayleigh's attention. "It's okay, you can trust me, right?" the old man tries to get Izuku to calm down.
"Right... right... right..." Izuku repeated a mantra. "Do you promise not to get angry with Kacchan?"
Rayleigh raised his hand in front of him. "I promise,"
"... it was... was... the final week of Aldera," the green-haired boy stuttered out.
"Keep going," Rayleigh stated, motioning for him to continue.
"He told me... to jump off the roof if I wanted a Quirk in the next life."
When he said that, Izuku looked up to see Rayleigh had an unreadable expression. Internally, the old man was feeling all sorts of emotions, but the dominant emotion was cold fury.
"I know what he said, is bad, but please give him a second chance!" Izuku pleaded.
"A second chance is for those who deserve it; he hasn't shown he deserved it," stated Rayleigh firmly.
"Please, that is all I ask, Silver-sensei, I don't want to ruin his chances!"
Taking a few calming breaths, Rayleigh thought back to his old student. An image of Bakugo was overplayed with a fit blonde boy with a buzzcut shooting a death glare at him. 'It's your fault,' said the image before it faded. The old Haki user had to take a few breaths and close his eyes to calm himself down. 'Bakugo is not him, Rayleigh. You promised yourself you would steer him away from the Dark Fist's path.'
"Silver-san?" Rayleigh then opened his eyes to look into Izuku's.
"Midoriya, what Bakugo told you that day was completely unacceptable for anyone to say. I will give him a second chance for your sake; however, I will be informing the staff about Bakugo's actions," replied Rayleigh, placing his hand onto Izuku's shoulder.
Izuku, however, is unsure about Rayleigh's decision. "Are you sure? Don't you think that's going a bit far?"
"Bakugo lived most of his life getting his ego stroked and lacking humility and discipline. He needs to know that his actions have consequences. He won't be kicked out of U.A., but if he messes up his second chance, he's not going to get a third."
"Thank you…"
Izuku was shaken out of his thoughts to see Ochako looking at him in concern. "Are you alright, Deku?"
"Oh, sorry, Uraraka, I just spaced out."
The pair soon heard an announcement on the P. A system. "Attention everyone, the train for Hosu has arrived."
"Oh, that's my train! Wish me luck!" exclaimed Izuku, before bidding Ochako farewell and making a beeline straight to the door as a few other students boarded the train. He took his seat near the window and looked out to see the bubbly brunette waving to him.
Izuku blushed before noticing Rayleigh taking a seat across from him. "Well, sit back and relax. We have a fairly long ride ahead of us," replied the old man. "The train ride will be about an hour."
"Alright," Izuku decided to settle down into his seat for the long trip.
"Still, it's been a while since I've seen Sora in person." lamented Rayleigh.
Izuku finally noticed that the old Haki master was referring to Gran by a nickname. "Sora?"
"It's a nickname I've given him since his given name is Sorahiko."
Then a question formed in Izuku's head. "How did a vigilante and a pro-hero end up becoming friends?" He asked his teacher.
"Well, it all started when Sora was chasing down a fallen Yakuza head, Don Amanogawa," answered Rayleigh as he recalled meeting Gran for the first time.
A scrawny man wearing a suit and tie ran as fast as he could through a crowd of people. The man was thin, bald, and had a curled eastern dragon tattoo on the back of his head. "Dammit!" shouted Amanogawa, pushing and shoving anyone who got in his way. "Out of the way!" He saw an alleyway coming up and quickly turned the corner.
Before he could get any further, a large figure struck Amanogawa across the chest with a powerful punch. The figure was a large 6'4 foot tall man mainly wearing yellow wearing a domino mask. "You aren't going anywhere, punk." smirked the tall man, approaching the downed Yakuza.
"You bastard…" growled Amanogawa, taking a deep breath and blowing out a cloud of dust at the hero. "Eat dust!"
The hero quickly jumped high in the air to avoid the dust cloud before a cutlass was thrown from behind him and embedded itself right into Amanogawa's left shoulder. The Yakuza howled on pain and tried to get the sword out of his shoulder.
"I wouldn't recommend that." Said a voice behind the Pro-Hero. The hero turned around to see a figure coming out of the shadows. From the darkness came a man wearing a brown long coat with a black undershirt with a skull and crossbones plastered on the chest, a light red sash, dark green pants, and black boots. The man was clean-shaven and had long, flowing blonde hair. "I suggest you step aside, Hero. I have a score to settle."
"And hand off a yakuza head to some random vigilante, no thanks!" replied the Pro-Hero, getting into a fighting stance.
"Oi, I'm not a random vigilante." retorted the vigilante as he got into his fighting stance.
Behind the Pro-Hero, Amanogawa tried to pull the cutlass from his shoulder. "Gotta get away - it's my only chance." the head muttered. Before he could struggle further, the yakuza was punched in the face by the Pro-Hero and knocked out.
(Play Cody's theme Super Street Fighter 4)
"That takes care of that, " the Pro Hero remarked while shaking out his hand. "Now, let's get this over with!" The hero dashes toward the vigilante, aiming to KO him with a simple kick, only for the vigilante to quickly sidestep out of the way and punch him in the ribs.
The Pro-Hero grunted; the punch definitely fractured a rib. He quickly recovered and performed a snap kick at the vigilante. The vigilante managed to block the kick, only to be sucker punched in the face.
The vigilante stumbled before punching back with a haymaker. The hero tanked the hit despite the blow making him bleed from the nose. "First blood." quipped the Vigilante. "So, what's your name?"
"Gran Torino, the hero who will take you down." responded the hero, spitting some blood out of his mouth.
"You can call me Blackjack." responded the vigilante. Without a second thought, both charged at each other once again. Blackjack went for a kicking combo to the face.
Gran Torino backstepped to avoid the first kick but took two more kicks to the chest. As a result, he was sent back a bit but recovered midair using his Quirk.
The vigilante raised an eyebrow, "Heh, nice Quirk, mind telling me what it does?" asked Blackjack.
"You'll find out - now!" replied Gran, quickly zooming between walls to rush Blackjack with a flurry of punches.
The vigilante then tackled Gran to the ground and was about to deliver a punch to the hero when the pair soon saw Amanogawa run past them.
"Oh no, you don't!" Said the pair simultaneously. Gran activated his Quirk and shot off like a rocket while Blackjack was still holding on to Gran's cape, which caused the hero's flight to go off.
Amanogawa managed to run out of the alleyway but not before seeing the oncoming human missile coming straight towards him and plowing him across the street.
(End OST)
Gran quickly shook his head to see that Amanogawa was unconscious again, and right next to him was Blackjack. "Yeah, that was a dumb idea," he groaned.
"You know I have to take you in, right?" replied Gran.
"Yeah, but you need to catch me first." Blackjack then took out a shell-like device and pressed the top of it as soon as it was pressed, smoke spewed from the shell, completely covering the area.
Gran coughed and hacked as the smoke got into his eyes. "Damn it, a smokescreen!" And just as suddenly as the smoke appeared, the smoke dispersed with Blackjack having disappeared into thin air.
Gran looked down to see he still had Amanogawa in his custody, but he couldn't help but feel frustrated that the vigilante slipped through his fingers. "Damn…"
"Good times," lamented Rayleigh. He turned to see Izuku, who had his jaw on the floor. "What?"
"What kind of friendship starts with a brawl?!" the One for All user's exclaimed in sheer bafflement.
"Most of my friendships, actually, with a bit of blackmailing added to the mix," the old man shrugged as he leaned back on his seat.
"That is a strange foundation for friendship," Izuku added, the poor boy still wrapping his head around his teacher's method of friendship.
"Eh, I wouldn't have it any other way. So, I suggest that you take a quick nap." Rayleigh suggested.
"Got it," Deku responded, leaning back into his seat as well. He was going to need it if Gran Torino's training was going to be as harsh as Rayleigh's, he's going to need it.