I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.

Midoriya and Mineta woke up in the boys room, their bodies still sore. No one else was around, so it must've not been that late. However, before any other thought could manifest, their stomachs began rolling like thunder. Midoriya looked to Mineta as he looked back. The same word left their mouths at the exact same time.

"Dinner."

They then carefully stood up, feeling their muscles scream 'too soon'. Mineta tried to stretch out some of it, but quickly decided against it when something popped in his shoulder. Midoriya did his best to walk straight to the door, though it was more of a hobble at this point. He slid open the door and immediately ran into Kouda.

"Ah! I'm sorry." He apologized as he stepped away, allowing Midoriya and Mineta through.

"Don't worry about it Kouda-kun. But could you tell us what happened after we passed out." The green haired boy replied.

"Not much really… We brought you to the infirmary, ate curry, took a bath, and we're now all doing our own thing. Ashido-san's trying to get people together for a dance party, but I'm not sure how it'll go given how tired we all are." Kouda answered as he fidgeted with his hands. It was always strange hearing him talk; his big body completely contradicts his gentle voice. But at least the guy only opens his mouth when needed, unlike somebody Mineta knows...

"Hey, if we had enough energy for catch, I'm pretty sure Mina could pull it off. Anyway, are there any leftovers? We're starving." Mineta commented before patting his belly. The thing then began rumbling, loud enough to reach their timid classmates.

"Iida-san saved extra for you both. It's in the kitchen." Kouda said. Midoriya and Mineta simply nodded to him before heading off. As they walked, or rather limped, to their destination, they ran into either their classmates or members of 1B. Most simply applaud them for their performance earlier that day, hoping they'd see more in the future. Monoma, on the other hand, simply scoffed at them and taunted them about their mediocre skills.

While Mineta wanted to tear the bastard a new one, he was too tired. But the shorter boy was going to remember this moment if he ever goes head to head with the pompous idiot. Whatever the case, Midoriya and Mineta finally made it to the kitchen. It took them all of five seconds to find the leftovers; they were packed nicely into two insulated containers on the counter.

And cracking them open, they found their meals to still be quite warm.

"To intense training and great friends." Mineta said, raising his glass. Even if it was just water, the shorter boy couldn't help but celebrate their first day of training.

"I can drink to that." Midoriya replied, tapping his glass against his friend's. They took a big sip before attacking the 1A curry with hungry passion. Honestly, it was quite terrible. The meat was overcooked and tough, the vegetable chunks were uneven, and there wasn't spice in the sauce. Hell, the sauce was still a bit watery.

However, it still tasted great. Hunger and companionship really can make the most of any meal.

"Thanks for the meal… So, what now?" Midoriya asked, turning to his friend. Mineta began thinking about it, setting his spoon down before a burp left his system.

"Excuse me. First, wash these dishes. Then, I've got no idea. I still have a bit of time before I join the failure gang for remedial Hell. And I'm pretty sure Aizawa will kill me if I do something and miss it." Mineta replied, setting his dishes in the sink. That was no exaggeration. The shorter boy was certain that his former master would definitely throttle him for skipping class. Not only that, Bakugou and the others would comprehensively erase him for taking it easy.

Midoriya hummed to that as he thought about it, scrubbing their dishes. However, even with that done, neither of the boys actually figured anything out. Mineta began flipping through a memo pad that was on the fridge, seeing if any of its blank pages could lend any inspiration. That was when Midoriya snapped his fingers, his eyes glimmering with enthusiasm.

"I know! Let's go update the Hero Analysis! We need to edit the Wild Pussycats' entries and add some in for Class 1B."

"It has been a while since we touched that thing up… Sure, I'm game." Mineta replied as they began walking. The two began making their way back to the boys' room to retrieve the things they need. But as they walked down one of the halls, Midoriya looked out the window and stopped. Mineta raised an eyebrow, the question on his tongue.

However, seeing his partner's eyes, he could tell he was intently focusing on something. So climbing up onto Midoriya, Mineta saw what he saw. Kouta was playing catch all by himself in the moonlight. He threw the ball high into the air before running over to catch it. A few of the times, he caught the ball. Others, he simply missed and it fell to the ground. And every time that happened, Kouta would trudge over to the ball with a sad look on his face.

What's more were the light in his eyes. Whenever his cap moved away, even just for a moment, Mineta could spot how dull they were. They reminded the shorter boy of all those times Midoriya despaired over his unattainable dreams. There also seemed to be ghosts of the past dwelling within his sharp eyes.

"Mineta-kun…"

"Change of plans?"

"Sorry…"

"Don't be Midoriya. This is far more important." Mineta replied, hopping off of Midoriya. It was here that the two broke out into a run, ignoring the strain it put on their weary bodies. That was the extent of the flame that burned within their hearts. And until this matter has been resolved, there it would remain.

It didn't take long for Midoriya and Mineta to exit the lodge. And upon approaching the boy, they noticed just how long he's been out here. His shirt, shorts, and shoes were dirty. He had a few small scrapes on his skin. His breathing was heavy with fatigue. His arms were hanging at his sides, baseball gripped in his right and an old mitt fitted over his left. And then there were the tears that were pooling in his eyes.

"Mom… Dad… I did it… I caught a 100 throws… Just like you said I would…" He said with a whimper. The dam broke after that. Kouta fell onto his knees as he began crying. Mineta could only watch as a lump formed in his throat. He found it hard to believe that this was the same Kid who punched Midoriya. But then again, things are never what they seem to be.

"You must look deeper within for the truth…" Mineta thought as Midoriya stepped forward. His hand was outstretched towards the younger boy.

"Kouta-kun…"

Like a switch, the young boy snapped back to his loner persona. He swatted Midoriya's hand as he hurried back onto his feet, facing the Hero duo with a scowl on his face. His eyes, however, were still reflecting the sorrow he truly felt.

"What're you doing here!? You're supposed to be passed out!" He shouted.

"We woke up. And then we saw you out here. It's not a good idea to be out after dark you know." Mineta replied, stepping forward. Kouta turned his glare at him this time. But because of the tears, the shorter boy didn't really feel that intimidated. Even if he was, he couldn't turn tail. Not while Kouta needed their help.

"Why do you care? I'm doing just fine…" Kouta said with a growl.

"Even if you are, you're still making people worry. Being out here, getting all scuffed up, playing all alone… Someone will care, it just happened to be us tonight." Midoriya replied. The green haired boy was still kneeling, his eyes shining with the stalwart spirit Mineta knew him for. Kouta bit his lip, clearly trying to come up with a response. Though after a while, he simply turned away and began stomping back to the lodge.

"Then tomorrow it won't be. Get this through your skulls, there's nothing I need from YOU." He said, spitting that last word.

"And yet you seem to need our baseball." Mineta replied. Kouta froze, his eyes slowly meeting the shorter boy's gaze. His façade had slipped, genuine surprise had overtaken his anger. He gapped like a fish out of water, trying and failing to find something to say.

"H-How do you know it's yours?" He blundered out, finally breaking away from Mineta's stare.

"How could I not? Not many people carry around the official American MLB ball. But what I want to know is what'd you need it for?" Mineta answered, folding his arms across his chest. The younger boy first looked at the ball in his hand, finding what Mineta had said was true. And he then proceeded to seal his lips shut. His eyes were also looking all around for some kind of escape route.

"Mineta-kun, don't be so blunt. I'm sure Kouta-kun has a very good reason for this." Midoriya said as he stood back up. The green hair boy had this hope shining in his eyes, a look that caused Kouta to fidget even more. The duo waited for a response, both of them wondering if this was a bit too much pressure. But considering how he hadn't shouted and ran away yet, they might be getting through to him.

Alternatively, there might be something on Kouta's mind that's stopping him. Either way, they were managing to communicate with this aggressive child.

Kouta's face began to flash through many emotions. Anger, sadness, apathy, hope… The boy was definitely struggling on what would be the correct choice. To continue this conversation and open up, or just run away and remain closed. And as the seconds pass, the young boy had slowly but surely settled on an answer. Not without hesitation however.

"I… I just wanted to… N-Never mind! If you want your ball, just take it!" Kouta began quietly before shouting at the end. He then threw the baseball towards Midoriya and Mineta. However, given the boy's improper form and inadequate strength, the ball didn't fly very fast or in any complex way. It drifted closer to Mineta, so he was the one to catch it.

Quickly, before Kouta could turn and run, Mineta threw it back to him. The younger boy fumbled the catch, but ultimately stopped the ball from falling to the ground. Kouta then stared at Mineta, but it was Midoriya who said something.

"Don't worry Kouta-kun, you can keep it. We may not know the reason, but we do know the ball represents something important to you. And I'm sure that, with this, you'll be able to keep it even closer to your heart."

Kouta looked at the duo, eyes wide with confused curiosity. His eyes then turned to the baseball that rested in his mitt. Clenching it tightly, he turned back around and slowly walked into the lodge. The young boy disappeared from sight after that. And neither Midoriya nor Mineta said anything, opting for contemplative quiet.

There is one thing, however, the two could agree on. Had Kouta thrown their ball back at them, right then and there, they would've been locked out of his heart. It was a gamble… But it had paid out in the end. Now it was only a matter of time before the boy said something.

"Hey Midoriya."

"Yeah?"

"We'll save him, right?"

"Of course. Tonight was risky, but Kouta-kun did open up a little."

"Then let's plan out for tomorrow. We need to be ready for whatever's next."

Midoriya patted his friend on the back as Mineta felt the resolve dwelling within his hand.

"Absolutely."

And that has been Chapter 69.

In canon, Midoriya had difficulty connecting with Kouta since he had no idea how to approach him. However, by creating something, Mineta and Midoriya have a higher chance of reaching the young boy. Through the baseball that was being thrown around, a connection was being made. And when there's a connection, one's message could reach the other better.

Or so I believe... But what do you think about all this? How would you approach a situation like this?

I've got no other news, so I'll just jump into the preview. Next week, we'll be going even deeper than before as the fruits of our duo's efforts slowly pay off. So with that said...

Until Next Time. T1.