I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.
Day 1
Mineta ducked under a kick before rolling away from the following punch. He was about to pounce Aizawa, but was forced back onto the defensive when the scarf shot out. Aizawa then charged forward, locking Mineta in a blur of fists and kicks once more. The Erasure Hero then did the turning back kick again, allowing the shorter boy to dodge towards his back again.
However, unlike last time, Mineta decided to latch onto him. But like Midoriya during the Sports Festival tournament, Aizawa intercepted him and slammed him into the ground.
"We've got to improve your timing and judgment. Just because your opponent's back is shown, that doesn't mean the cling would be successful." Aizawa said as he got Mineta back onto his feet.
"I know… I only got Bakugou, Kendo, and All Might because they were off guard or off-balance… And if I'm in a head to head battle, I've got to find a way to create an opening…"
Aizawa simply nodded to that before he began attacking again. Mineta dodged and deflected the strikes, his mind racing to find an opening. It also made him wonder how he even survived Stain with this level of skill. Then again, since Iida's life was on the line, the shorter boy's mind and body might've gone into overdrive. But his actions then could be a good start…
The first thing he remembered was that Stain used blades, something Mineta's baton had little issue stopping. But against Aizawa's unarmed techniques, the length of metal wasn't as advantageous for three reasons.
One, Aizawa's arms and legs weren't rigid like weapons. This would allow his attacks to reach around if Mineta didn't block correctly. And this often forced the shorter boy to dodge instead, putting him in a worse position.
Two, Aizawa's hands were empty, so he could push, pull, or disarm the baton. And because the weapon wasn't as dangerous as a knife, he could do that whenever he wanted. Really, the only thing stopping the scraggly man from doing that was Mineta's height.
Aizawa proceeded to interrupt Mineta's thoughts by quickly kicking upwards. This attack, however, wasn't aimed at his body. Instead, it had gone for his right hand and knocked it upwards. The baton didn't fly out of Mineta's hand, but his guard was blown wide open. And when Aizawa's foot hit the ground, he immediately performed a sweeping kick and knocked Mineta off his feet.
And that would be three… The baton could become a target for attacks. And while it won't fly out of Mineta's hands thanks to Fenghuang's 'unique' training… Certain attacks can create an opening long enough for another to slip through.
The shorter boy just laid there, mind processing these three notes. Was there a way to remove these disadvantages? Mineta was searching for an answer when he heard Aizawa let out a yawn. And this made him remember something the scraggly man said on the day they first met…
"If I believe you're no longer willing to learn, I will walk away and leave you on your own."
This caused Mineta to shoot back onto his feet, returning to his stance. Aizawa just stared, slightly nodding his head before tightening his relaxed form. He charged in again, throwing out a right straight that Mineta deflected. And once more Mineta was stuck in Aizawa's attack flow… But this time, the shorter boy was thinking how to overcome it.
And then it hit him.
Once he deflected the next punch that came his way, Mineta placed the baton onto his hip. He dodged the next kick and removed two hairballs from his head. It was here that Aizawa's behavior changed. He didn't follow up the kick, instead he was leaping back. This allowed Mineta to fall back on his most basic move, throwing out hairballs towards his teacher's landing.
The shorter boy then dropped one ball towards his feet, just as his teacher landed. And though Aizawa was still upright and not glued to ground, his stance wasn't at all stable. Mineta quickly stepped onto the ball at his feet and sprung forward. Aizawa wanted to move, but couldn't because of his poor footing and the hairballs around him.
Thus, Mineta was able to latch a hairball onto his teacher's shoulder and swing around onto his back. He finally made it…
"You've figured it out, good." Aizawa commented as he corrected his footing.
"Yeah I did. And thank you for putting up with my incompetence."
"Oh don't thank me just yet, cause the real training's about to begin." Aizawa replied as Mineta heard his unnerving smile form. Despite his advantageous positioning, the shorter boy felt like he was about to receive the authentic Eraserhead experience.
Day 2
Mineta was thrown off of Aizawa's back and tumbled across on the ground. Despite being able to stay on him for two whole minutes, the shorter boy still couldn't get Aizawa to grab any of the hairballs. And if he couldn't do that, then what's the point of getting better at clinging to someone? Sure, he could just steer his teacher into the hairballs on the ground…
But Mineta will not always have that option available.
The shorter boy came to a stop, his body feeling exhausted from the 7 attempts at the Ivy Cling. Mineta then looked to his teacher, who was in the middle of removing his hairball infested outer shirt. Because of Mineta's Quirk, Aizawa had to change out between spars to reset things to square one. The hairballs on the floor were also swallowed up by the shifting concrete, making the ground clean again.
"Take a quick break; I'm going to check on the others." Aizawa said as he put on a fresh shirt from a nearby duffle bag. Mineta could only weakly raise his arm and give a shaky thumb's up in response. And with only a nod, Aizawa jumped up and began climbing the platform next to them. So, there the shorter boy lay…
On the ground…
Staring at the ceiling of Gym Gamma…
Surrounded by the sounds of his struggling classmates…
"Maybe I should at least watch the others… Get some inspiration in the meantime…" Mineta groaned as he flipped onto his stomach. He then slowly pushed himself up, getting back onto his feet after a few moments. And with a deep breath and long stretch, the shorter boy went to the edge of his platform and looked around. Since he was on one of the higher platforms, Mineta could see a majority of his friends and teachers doing their thing.
Kaminari was getting tangled by his own grapple cable.
Shouji was in the middle of creating some eldritch looking limbs.
Tsuyu was crouching in a meditative state as parts of her body partly changed color.
And Midoriya was… Flicking his fingers? Again? And by the looks of it, All Might was the one who put him on this path to improvement. And though their interactions as mentor and successor were brief… Mineta was afraid this might create some misunderstandings.
Then he saw Uraraka... The gravity defying girl was successfully using her Gunhead Martial Arts to apply the effects of her Quirk mid-grapple before throwing her Ectoplasm clone towards the ceiling.
And seeing that gave Mineta an epiphany.
He quickly stepped away from the ledge before lying on the ground. The shorter boy then plucked a hairball off his head and curled up onto his side. He then positioned his arms to hide the hairball beneath him. And as though the universe heard him, Aizawa came back just in time.
"You alright?" Aizawa asked as he approached his student.
"I'm not feeling too good…" The shorter boy lied with a groan. Mineta then heard his teacher's footsteps hastening towards him. Good, prey is at their most vulnerable when they think they're safe…
Mineta felt Aizawa's fingers on his arm, causing the shorter boy to snap both arms onto the extended limb. He then pulled with all his strength, forcing Aizawa's hand onto the hairball he planted. And because of Aizawa's positioning to Mineta, the jarring shift in mood, and Mineta's speed, the Erasure Hero couldn't react in time.
The shorter boy then scurried out from under Aizawa, getting back onto his feet and drew his baton. He wanted to have some extra defense ready in case his teacher had another trick up his sleeve. But it proved to be unnecessary as the man remained glued in place. Aizawa, however, did have this proud smile on his face…
"You figured out what you were doing wrong and used my own concern against me… Well played."
"What can I say? I learned from the best." Mineta replied with a smirk. The shorter boy then folded his baton as he waited for Aizawa. And that was when the pride on his teacher's face fade, slowly being replaced by annoyance. Mineta raised an eyebrow as Aizawa's brows furrow as his glare hardened. What?
"Aren't you going to help me out?" Aizawa finally asked, gesturing to the hairball.
"Oh right. Sorry…"
Day 4
Since discovering he could just force his foe's hands onto his hairballs, Mineta spent yesterday and half of today perfecting the Ivy Cling. And because he did so, Aizawa moved onto the next phase… And that involved Mineta figuring out how to fight off 10 Ectoplasm clones. Needless to say, he practically became wine from all the kicking he received. But the shorter boy had a seed of an idea ready…
"Dude, is Aizawa-sensei trying to train you or terminate you?" Kaminari asked as he watched his short friend limp along. It was almost time to head back to the dorms, so Mineta decided to see if the Support Department had his special order ready. And along the way, he met up with Kaminari, Jirou, and Kouda. An uncommon combination, sure, but the shorter boy didn't mind.
He was just glad he had company to help take his mind off all the bruises.
"Seriously… If we didn't know any better, I'd say he's trying to get rid of you." Jirou added.
"Well maybe in another universe he is, but this is just par for the course in ours. But that's enough about me, what suffering have you guys been up to?" Mineta replied with a shrug.
"It's been the same as you, trying to figure out how to make the most of our Quirks. But I'm having trouble keeping up with Midnight-sensei; she's trying to teach me how to get more mileage out of this thing." Kaminari answered, gesturing to the grapple launcher on his arm. Mineta raised an eyebrow to that statement. That was when Kouda stepped in, which kept the shorter boy's brow raised. When did he start breaking out of his shy shell?
"Kaminari-san's learning how to use it like a whip."
"And man is Chargedolt not getting it. I mean, the guy keeps hitting himself." Jirou said with a chuckle.
"Oh laugh it up while you can Jirou… Because once I've mastered this, I'll be unstoppable." Kaminari answered as he patted the launcher. A panel on the thing then burst open and began vomiting out thick black smoke. All four of them yelped at the sight before the electric blonde threw it off his arm... That was when it caught fire.
And, as if on cue, the door to the Development Studio slammed open as Hatsume Mei came rushing out with a giant fire extinguisher.
"FIRE!" She shouted as she began spraying the launcher with thick foam. And after a few seconds of this, Hatsumei stopped and set down the fire extinguisher.
"Crisis averted… Oh hey, are you here for your order?" Hatsumei asked while leaning against the extinguisher.
"Uhh… We're here for our costume upgrades." Kouda replied nervously.
"And I'm adding repairs to mine…" Kaminari added with a sigh, gesturing to the mound of foam. Hatsumei happily smiled to that as she picked up the mound of foam, which had hardened for some reason.
"Then follow me! And can one of you help me drag that back in. Thanks." She said, nodding to the fire extinguisher. Hatsumei then hustled back into the studio, leaving the four to figure out how to even deal with it. Kouda volunteered, seeing he was the biggest of them, but Kaminari decided to take matters into his own hands. He was the one who caused the fire after all.
However, Mineta could tell the electric blonde wasn't going to be enough to move it.
"Yeah, he's going to hurt himself. Let's help him Kouda." Jirou said as she went to support Kaminari. Kouda nodded as he took the other side, using his innate strength and the three finally got the thing moving. Though this did get Mineta to wonder how strong Hatsumei actually is, since she was able to haul the thing out by herself. But he supposed that wasn't important right now.
Once the four made it into the Studio itself, Mei placed four labeled boxes on the table.
"Alright, first is Jirou Kyouka. Headphones to improve your jacks' sound detection and arm mounted portable amplifiers." Hatsumei said quickly, handing off the items to Jirou.
"Next is Kouda Kouji, your protective mask with adjustable frequency dials and other miscellaneous equipment changes." Hatsumei continued, handing Kouda his new gear.
"Kaminari Denki, conductive darts and the optical visor that keeps track of them. Once your launcher's fixed up, I'll integrate the rest of the upgrades into it." Mei replied as Kaminari put on his new shades.
"And Mineta Minoru, your Grape Stems."
Mineta received the box and took out the strange Y-shaped devices inside. One point was a longer than the other two with a meaner looking spike. The shorter boy put down the box, gripped it between his middle and ring fingers, and swung it into his hair. A small click was heard and the shorter boy felt something shoot through his hairballs.
And with one smooth pull, he removed all four in an instant.
"Good, Grape Vine acquired." Mineta thought as he began some quick image training. The shorter boy decided to see if his classmates were doing the same, only to find them acting strangely. Kouda was looking away, looking a little flustered. Jirou was both confused and appalled. And Kaminari was about to say something, but didn't know WHAT to say.
"... You guys alright?"
"Dude, I know we're men of culture but… Uh… Take a look at what you just made…" Kaminari finally said, gesturing to the Grape Vine. Mineta raised an eyebrow before examining his new weapon. And after just a few seconds, it finally hit the shorter boy of what the thing resembled. It fell to the floor just as he did, on his knees with fists balled up.
"EVERY! TIME!"
Just when he thought his 'heart' was out, his 'pants' drags him back in…
Day 7
Mineta leaned away from one kick before quickly sidestepping another. He quickly drew his baton and made a Grape Vine and intercepted another of Ectoplasm's kicks. The Vine adhered to the Hero's leg, allowing Mineta to roll and bind him to the ground. And before the shorter boy got back onto his feet, he hung his baton on his hip and removed two hairballs from his head.
Mineta then launched himself at one of the Ectoplasm's distracted clones, clinging to him. But the moment he attached himself, he sensed something from behind and immediately pushed himself into a handstand. This caused the Ectoplasm clone that attacked from behind him to hit the Ectoplasm beneath him. And before anymore could attack, Mineta leapt off and dashed between the legs of another clone.
There was a crash, but Mineta didn't look back to know his foes ran into one another. He then stepped on the hairball nearest him, launching him back at the disorientated Ectoplasms. Mineta drew his baton and swung into one of their faces, causing it to slowly melt. The shorter boy proceeded to jump off the head of another clone, scattering as many hairballs as he could at the crowd. Two or three got stuck together when they accidently bumped into each other. One stepped onto a hairball leftover from an earlier volley.
The rest, however, were still free to move. Worse still was the fact that they managed to regroup and surround Mineta again.
"Alright, let's take a break." Aizawa called out as the other Ectoplasm clones melted away. Mineta collapsed onto his knees and then his back, a sigh of exhaustion leaving his lungs. Everything was screaming and he just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep for the rest of his life. But Mineta also knew that, if he didn't master this, he would be in a lot of trouble in the future.
Oh what he wouldn't give for some of the Heaven and Earth Temple's high nutrition pork buns…
"Just to let you know, Fenghuang called me yesterday." Aizawa commented as he sat next to Mineta. The shorter boy perked up to that name, hastily sitting up to hear more. Why did his Shifu call now of all times?
"She wanted to call after the Lodge was attacked, but had a lot of investigation work to contend with. Anyway, the Radiant Wing just wanted to know how you've been holding up." Aizawa continued as he began scratching at his stubbles of a beard. Well that explained a lot, it was a well televised event… But how much of the 'behind the scenes' did Aizawa tell her?
Did he mention any of the things Mineta has or hasn't done?
"… And what did you tell her?"
"Just the basics, the home visits, the move into the dorms, the training you're undergoing now… I've told her how you and 1A were moving forward with everything you've got. And, if things continue at our current pace, you're all bound to pass the Provisional License Exam with flying colors. A rare feat even by UA's standards…" Aizawa answered as he closed his eyes. Mineta just stared at his teacher, wondering if he heard that correctly.
Those words were incredibly authentic just now.
Normally, Aizawa avoided telling the truth to get 1A to learn something. It's always 'logical ruse this' or 'logical ruse that'… He wondered what changed within Aizawa that made him more honest. Or did Mineta's own perspective change to finally perceive this side of his teacher? It was hard to say…
Aizawa, noticing Mineta being oddly quiet, opened his eyes and looked over. And upon seeing the bewilderment on the shorter boy, furrowed his brows and let a frown take over his face.
"What? Can't a teacher be proud of his students?"
"You can… But you're not exactly the kind of person who openly expresses it…" Mineta replied, narrowing his eyes at his scraggly teacher.
"I won't debate that, but it's inevitable that I would eventually show it. Despite the mess that was the unauthorized Bakugou rescue, you kids have really grown on me. And that makes it all the more difficult to hide how I really feel…" Aizawa answered as he listened to the chaotic sounds of training surrounding him. And as Mineta listened with him, he felt like he understood his teacher a little more.
His teaching style was different from Fenghuang… But it still got 1A this far. It got Mineta this far. But that still wasn't enough to stop the shorter boy from poking Aizawa about this.
"All Might was right. For a wet blanket, you really do care." Mineta said with a smirk.
"Then allow me to smother you by kicking you back into gear." Aizawa replied as he got up. Before Mineta could respond, the scraggly man picked him up by the back of his cape and plunked him back onto his feet. Aizawa then put his goggles on before more Ectoplasm clones suddenly appeared. Mineta just stared at the group before shrugging.
"Me and my big mouth…" Mineta said before plucking hairballs from his head. He then went right back into the fire with a renewed determination within his heart. A determination to meet the expectations of the two masters Mineta had the fortune to learn under.
He can't go disappointing them with half-hearted efforts, after all.
And that has been Chapter 84!
I have nothing to talk about this update, since everything here is mostly self explanatory. So for the next update, we will be doing something new with Class 1A that's a follow up from Aizawa's comment from last chapter. With that said...
Until Next Time. T1.
