"But you do have green hair, so what's the problem?"
Izuku sighed. "I know, Mina, but I'm just saying, greenette doesn't make any sense linguistically. It's not a word, it's made up."
"All words are made up, Izuku." She shrugged.
"She's got you there, bro." Kirishima said helpfully.
Class 1A found themselves gathered outside, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their school bus. Their destination? The incredible Unforeseen Simulation Joint! The USJ, a facility that was nothing short of an extravagant display of taxpayer money hard at work. It simulated an array of natural disasters, providing the students with hands-on experience. Could the same understanding be achieved through eyewitness reports and research? How would I know? I'm not a geologist. Anyway.
"No, I mean-" he began, only to cut himself off. "Okay, so the word brunette? It's French, right? It means a brown-haired female because of the 'ette' at the end."
Mina nodded, "Right."
"So, for a guy, it's 'brunet,' ends with just e t. But nobody really says that, "
"Right."
"'Brun' is French for brown, so 'brun ette', and 'vert' is French for green. So, a green-haired boy would be...?" Izuku looked at her with his eyebrows raised, hoping Mina would catch on.
"Greenette." She said confidently.
"No, gah!" Izuku threw his hands up in frustration.
Toru patted Izuku sympathetically on the shoulder. "Just one of those things us greenettes have to get used to."
Everyone within earshot turned around, confused by Toru's comment.
"What? What did I say?" she asked innocently.
Izuku frowned, "You have green hair? How do you… How do you know that?"
"My hair doesn't stay invisible once it's off my body, silly."
"How has this never come up before now?!"
Before the invisible girl could answer, the brusk voice of Tenya Iida interrupted their conversation with an ill-timed karate chop "Everyone, please! It is imperative that as future heroes we act in a manner accordingly! Enter the bus carefully and respectfully!"
That morning, Iida had been voted the new class president. It was a close race, the final results being Uraraka with 0 votes, Tenya with 2 votes, and everyone else in the class with 1. The identity of who else voted for Iida would forever remain a mystery.
"Quit your yapping and let us on the bus already!" Bakugo yelled from the back of the line, then added, "And which one of you brainless extras is gonna sit next to me?!"
Almost everyone in the class turned away and started whistling nonchalantly, everyone except for one individual who maintained a radiant smile and leaned closer to Bakugo with anticipation in their eyes.
"Monsieur~"
Bakugo didn't acknowledge his glittery classmate for a few seconds, before he finally relented. "...FINE! You can sit next to me if you keep your mouth shut about cheese!"
Aoyama was overjoyed, and he spun into a series of almost a dozen graceful pirouettes.
"Cheese is a delicacy in Paris! Over 400 varieties each with its own flavour and texture!" Aoyama gushed, flipping through the pages of Cheeselover Monthly, a publication he apparently took everywhere with him. "My favourite is Le Roquefort! The creamy texture is as alluring as myself, oui?"
Bakugo was scowling out of the window, wishing he had taken the aisle seat so he could escape easier.
"Isn't it true, Bakugo? One must appreciate the finer things in life! An explosion of flavour, much like your quirk, non?" Aoyama continued to enthuse, hardly put off by the lack of response.
"No!" Bakugo finally answered with his fists clenched, "It's not like my quirk at all!"
"Oh my!" Aoyama dramatically put a hand to his chest. "I mean no offence mon ami-"
"There are way better cheeses than roquefort! I mean goddamn, have you never had cheddar?! Now THAT is an explosive cheese! Shit, you moron, you don't even have to leave France to get better than roquefort! Brie?! Camembert?! Damn comté?! Pfft… Roquefort…" Bakugo crossed his arms and turned back to look out of the window again.
Aoyama blinked. "Hmm, those are good cheeses, oui…" He leaned over closer, his bright smile gleaming as usual as his head tilted, "it is tres bien to meet a fellow turophile."
"The hell did you call me?!"
"A turophile! A cheese lover, a dying breed!"
"Pfft," Bakugo snorted, "It's just easy food to eat, as long as it don't stink. Simple and satisfying! You don't need any fancy stuff to make it taste good, it's just great on its own, doesn't need any extra help."
Aoyama put on a pair of sunglasses he seemed to carry around for dramatic moments such as this, then peered over the lenses. "Great on its own, doesn't need any extra help. Like you, oui?"
Bakugo felt a slight tug at the corner of his mouth and realised that he was almost smiling. "Yeah, just like me."
It was at this moment he noticed the sea of confused faces staring at the two of them, their cheese conversation being a little louder than either realised. Bakugo stood on his seat and waved a fist. "Quit gawking! Or I'll blast you losers to kingdom come!" Immediately, everyone turned back in their seats.
Sitting with a smile still plastered on his face, Aoyama said "How do you feel about… light wines?"
"What's even the point if it ain't got a bite to it?!"
The massive doors of the USJ facility swung wide open, flooding the students' eager faces with dazzling light. Gasps of wonder and excitement filled the air as Eraserhead strolled ahead, a backpack lazily slung over one shoulder.
"Yeah welcome to the USJ, truly the shining star of the UA campus etc etc. You have exactly 6 seconds to continue gawking in reverence, then we have to get started with today's activities."
"THAT'S NO WAY TO MAKE AN INTRODUCTION!" Suddenly, a mysterious voice boomed across the vast space, disrupting the awe-struck atmosphere. The hero class glanced around, bewildered, unable to pinpoint the source. Aizawa just shrugged.
"Class, meet one of our two rescue specialists," He began, before the voice cut him off.
"I'LL TAKE IT FROM HERE!"
From the centre of the room, a swirling cloud of purple mist emerged, twirling and spiralling into the form of an enormous head. Along the edges, the mist transformed into a dazzling display of LED lights. The colossal head grinned, erupted in laughter, and then split open to reveal a man with light blue, wavy hair, goggles, and a quarterstaff.
The crowd gasped in amazement as the man began to speak. "THE USJ! HOME OF HEROICS! REALM OF RESCUE! WITH ME, YOUR INSTRUCTOR FOR THE DAY! THE IRREPLACEABLE, THE IMPECCABLE, THE ONE, THE ONLY-"
"Oboro Shirakumo, hero name Loud Cloud," Aizawa interjected, his tone flat but with a hint of amusement.
Instantly, the grand presentation crumbled. LEDs tumbled to the floor, and Oboro descended to ground level. "You always have to ruin my fun, don't you?" he grumbled, earning a slight smirk from Aizawa.
"LOUD CLOUD?!" Izuku yelled out. "The actual Loud Cloud teaches at UA?! What in the hell?! I thought you were dead!"
"Whoa, kid! Don't believe everything you hear. Reports of my death were greatly exaggerated, alright? Survived a building falling on me and all that. People just like to write you off after one little incident," Oboro defended himself. "But here I am, alive and kicking! Well, mostly kicking." He lifted a trouser leg to reveal the artificial limb concealed underneath.
Aizawa, standing alongside his old friend, added, "Loud Cloud is part of a rare breed - one of a group of exclusively rescue-oriented heroes in Japan. They don't bother with rankings and prefer to stay out of the limelight. It's a solid career path, should you choose to go that route."
"Aw, Eraser…" Loud Cloud sniffed and placed a hand on his shoulder, "I think you picked a solid career path as well, buddy."
Aizawa remained unfazed. "Any questions before we get started?"
A collection of hands reached for the sky, and Oboro casually gestured over them before making his selection. "Hmmm... You! Spiky-haired kid!"
Kaminari, Kirishima, Sato, Tokoyami, and Yaoyorozu all pointed at themselves in confusion, collectively asking, "Who, me?"
"The red one!"
Kirishima scratched the back of his head and asked, "So, uh, what made you want to be a rescue hero?"
"Well, I always wanted to travel to interesting places and nearly die in them," Oboro replied matter-of-factly, but the confused and slightly alarmed expressions from the students immediately deflated his attempt at humour. "Okay, okay! I'm kidding! Truth is, I've wanted to be a rescue hero since I was a little kid. But it really hit me when I lost my foot. Picture this: trapped under a pile of rubble, no way out, life flashing before my eyes... And then I heard a voice."
"I am here!"
"Yeah! Exactly like that!" Oboro exclaimed, eagerly shifting his gaze between Aizawa and the students.
"I am here, on time!" All Might declared, doing a little half jog over to the group, waving to them. Today, he sported gym clothes - basketball shorts and a loose tank top with 'MIGHTY' on the chest and '08' on the back.
Oboro continued to pivot his head rapidly between Aizawa and the students until he became a blur. "Uh, buh! Allmuh?! Alamo!?"
"If you ever bothered to come to staff meetings, you would have known All Might was on the staff this year," Aizawa deadpanned.
"You could have sent me a text!"
"But then you wouldn't have come to any of the staff meetings."
Oboro left a trail of clouds behind him as he ran over to furiously shake All Might's hands, and quickly whipped his phone out to take a series of selfies with the big hero.
"Glad to see you're in tip-top shape, Young Shirakumo!"
His eyes widening, Oboro started to tear up. "You remembered my name?"
Before things could get any more sentimental, Eraserhead stepped in gallantly to redirect the class. "Alright, fanboy, we've got work to do. Everyone, I want you to form teams of four. Or, um… let me see." He started to count the students. "Nineteen… Damn prime numbers… Fine, four teams of four, one team of three. Or three teams of five and one team of four, whatever works. But don't even think about three teams of six and one team of one."
Kaminari looked confused as he tried to do the maths. "So you want… four teams of… huh?"
Aizawa rubbed his temples and sighed. "Just make some teams, alright?"
"Oh gosh! Oh calamity! I am forsaken!" Mina dramatically threw a hand across her forehead, her lower half obscured by a fake pile of rubble. Her role in the activity was to play 'wealthy heiress trapped in fire started by her philandering son-in-law'. All Might had been handing out cards with new roles whenever groups wanted to try a new scenario, he'd written them all out the previous afternoon and may have gotten a little distracted by tv shows.
"Don't worry, Mrs Pinkersham! For I am here!" Izuku shouted as he barged his way through the doors of the burning building. The blazing mansion set piece was a good example of the engineering marvel that was the USJ, from the outside it looked like a real inferno, but on the inside the fire gave off no heat and the smoke was harmless. For these first-year students, rescue operations were more about embracing the spirit of heroism than facing actual danger. The priority was getting the kids into the right mindset more than anything else.
A marble pillar wobbled precariously and crashed to the ground, but Izuku, in a timely manner, rolled out of harm's way. The fire might be fake, but the building still had a few surprises up its sleeve. But then, a sudden revelation struck him - Mrs. Pinkersham's chambers were right above, and that pillar was load bearing!
With a deafening crash, the entire upper floor collapsed, sending rubble and debris cascading down. Through sheer luck, Izuku caught Mina in his arms.
"My hero!" she called, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Izuku remained silent for a moment, then unleashed a shout in a surprisingly high-pitched voice, "ALL IN A DAY'S WORK, MA'AM!" With his arms still firmly around her, he maintained the same post-shout expression until Mina wasn't quite sure how to respond.
"Um... Izuku? You can put me down now."
"R-right! Sorry!" he stammered, finally releasing her from his heroic clutches. She fell to the floor with a thud, before picking herself up off the ground and giving him a disapproving glare.
"Yeah, thanks…" She muttered, brushing herself off as the two of them exited the building.
Toru gave the pair of them a thumbs up (they assumed), "Awesome rescue!"
"Phenomenal work, young heroes!" All Might praised the two of them outside the building, which immediately began to reverse itself back to a fully repaired structure. "I particularly enjoyed your entrance! I am here. Haha, goosebumps! Now, let's run through a different scenario. Young Hagakure, you'll be a rescuer! Young Midoriya, you'll be playing Johnny Memphis, card-counting con artist with a secret past! While stashing away your ill-gotten gains-" Suddenly, All Might's instructions were cut off by a deafening smash from the ceiling above them.
From high above, shards of glass poured down, and legions of mysterious people began jumping, gliding, flying, free-falling and rappelling down. All Might assumed a formidable pose to shield the students with his imposing presence. In a commanding tone, he declared, "Students, make your way to the doors. Stay low and don't look back." With that, he catapulted himself skyward, heading straight for the incoming invaders.
Mina exchanged bewildered glances with Toru and Izuku. "Is this another part of the scenario?!"
"I don't think so," Izuku replied in a low tone. "We'd better do what he says- Toru?! Where are you going?!"
Ahead of him, running at full speed toward the central plaza, Toru shouted behind her "Mr Aizawa and the other students are inside the cave systems, they might not have seen what's happening! I've got to warn them, there's an intercom system near the fountain!"
Izuku clenched his hands and looked toward Toru then back towards the doors in the opposite direction. "But All Might said to-" He threw his arms in the air in defeat "Agh, fine! I'm coming with you!"
"I'm with you, too!" Mina declared with little provocation. The three of them sprinted toward the plaza with little thought of what danger lay ahead.
BOOM!
The ground trembled as a colossal crash echoed from a far-off corner of the USJ, making the students freeze in their tracks upon reaching the plaza. Following All Might's advice, they hunkered down close to the floor, bracing themselves. The trio cautiously advanced toward the intercom, hoping to alert those inside about the chaos unfolding.
Just as they neared the communication system, disaster struck. A piece of roof scaffolding broke loose and came crashing down, landing square on the intercom. If it weren't for the clouds swirling around and pulling them to safety, this fanfic might have ended right then and there. Cut short by a falling piece of architecture.
"What are you kids doing?!" Loud Cloud angrily whispered from his hiding spot behind the fountain. "You've got to get out of here!"
"We can't just leave," Toru insisted, "There are students still out there, they might not make it out, we had to help!"
Loud Cloud sighed, they were being reckless, but damn it if he didn't have a soft spot for people being reckless. "We've got contingency plans for these situations, guys. Don't worry. Eraser probably has everyone back on the bus, speeding away as we speak."
Just then, a man dressed entirely in black somersaulted over them, tumbled on the ground, and collided with a low ledge. Undeterred, he picked himself up and hurried over to join the group. "What are you still doing here? You should've headed for the doors the moment this chaos kicked off," scolded Eraserhead, his stern gaze fixed on the trio.
"Okay, so he isn't back on the bus, speeding away as we speak…" Oboro muttered to himself.
"We were just trying to help, sir." Izuku attempted in his best 'I'm a good student' voice. It could have worked, if Mina hadn't gotten all pumped up from the excitement.
"We're here because we're heroes, damn it! And heroes don't give up, no matter what!"
His eyes glowing red, Aizawa retorted, "And heroes who have been at school for three days don't survive full scale villain attacks. The glass in the ceiling here was quirk protected, it's designed to withstand meteor attacks. Whoever broke through is strong, All Might strong. I counted at least 40 other villains piling through, and it looked like they were searching for something."
Izuku gulped, "Or someone?"
"Do you think they're after All Might?" Toru asked.
Before anyone could answer, loud clapping echoed from ahead. Peering over the side of the fountain, they spotted a scrawny, badly dressed man in a hoodie. "Well done, UA! You're really making this fun for us! Keep it up." He was about to say more when a blonde-haired boy rocketed straight for him, yelling.
"DIE!"
Before the punch landed, an enormous hulking figure landed between them, backhanding Bakugo across the facility.
"Jeez, Muscular! Cutting it close!" the scrawny man remarked.
"I got a bit preoccupied killing All Might, alright!? I'm not your goddamn babysitter!" the enormous man replied.
"You killed All Might? Rude."
"Nah… Caused a cave in, so he's busy taking care of that. I coulda killed him though, if I wanted."
Izuku quietly hissed to the others "I have to go check on Bakugo. I'm his best friend, I can't just leave him…"
In a hushed tone, Eraserhead replied, "You're not going out there. If I can neutralise the big one's quirk, I can take him down."
"I'll go," Toru interjected.
"No, it's too risky. Let me handle it-"
"I'll go. Or did you forget I'm invisible?" Toru turned the star on her chest, twisting it clockwise. Her suit clicked, and she vanished from sight. "Just because I crave the limelight doesn't mean I can't play to my strengths."
"I'm not entirely sold on this plan, Eraser," Loud Cloud voiced his reservations, shaking his head slightly. "But someone's gotta check on that furious kid, and I'd bet on the girl no one can see having a better shot than anyone else."
"...Alright, go. Loud Cloud, can you send out a fog to mask their vision? Midoriya, Ashido, once they're blinded, head directly south. Don't move in any other direction; you'll reach the doors even if you can't see where you're going. Once you're out, circle around the building to the cave's emergency exit. If All Might isn't aware of it, you can assist him with rescue attempts. If he is, the other students will be gathering there." Eraserhead nodded decisively. "Ready?"
On cue, a blue mist gathered on the ground around them, spreading across the entire plaza. Toru ran slightly ahead in the direction where Bakugo had likely landed.
The fog thickened and rose several feet off the ground, enveloping the villains gathered nearby. As Izuku and Mina sprinted for the doors, the man spoke up again.
"This won't help you hide him, heroes! I came here for a reason, and I'm not leaving until it's done! I had to live my life with my dad in prison, all because of Inko Midoriya! Her son is here somewhere, and I'm going to take from her what she took from me!" He tilted his head back and yelled to the sky. "My name is Tomura Garaki, and I'm here to kill you, Izuku Midoriya!"