LoamyCoffee: Excellent work here~ Always good to see someone help others with relationships blossom.
Jurota is one of the many of 1-B that I wish to know about, fanfics will keep my curiosity at bay until season 5.
Re: Yes, well, it is part of Genki's character. Once his parents got into the Talent Agency business and he started hanging out with Idol Girls, helping screen boys for his army of "Oneesamas" just seemed like natural character progression.
OmniUIShaggyOverexaggerated: Nice to know this story hasn't been forgotten.
Re: Me too. Right now I'm only juggling 5 stories after Discontinuing most of the rest. The hardest part of that, other than "letting go", was coming up with an ending in a "How it Would Have Ended" segment to give my long-time readers some Closure on the matter.
Skinnydude911: I absolutely love how Genki is playing matchmaker with Izuku and Ochako, even being sneaky in getting them alone at the ramen place and giving him advice on wowing Ochako. And then Jurota, I wasn't expecting that buddy, but I love how even when giving advice he's STILL overprotective of his onee-sama's.
Guess he got a huge boost in the love department after Tsuyu asked him out on a date after the internship.
Re: Yeah, I ship them. Izuku's "Fatal Flaw", similar to those of the original "Heroes", the ones from Greek myth (assuming you ask the Greek), is that Izuku is "too altruistic"; to the point that even Ochako is putting her feelings aside. Izuku I can understand not being able to read the room, since his formative years were less-than-informative *cough*Baka-gou*cough*. Still have no idea why people ship Katsuki/Ochako, given Baka-gou's an enormous dick. As for his words with Jurota, yeah, that's part of his character. He started hanging out with idols when he was around 10, so he's bound to become protective of them as he grows older; even after some of them nearly smother him to death with their… um… personalities.
As for the "love boost", I feel like he would've acted the same regardless of Tsuyu's answer, though now he has added motivation to do well during Internships, which will be a joy to write. It'll take longer since it's all-original, but I think the end-result should be worth it, especially as I build up to what comes next.
Guisniperman: Was that an Alice namedrop I noticed? I think that round up the Girl Trio from Arachnid. Man I miss that manga. Also I think there was some Monster Musume reference last chapter? Meh.
Re: Arachnid actually has a sequel, if you're interested; it's called Blattodea. It's named after a type of cockroach, which the primary heroine is styled after. We also get to see a little more about Dinoponera-chan, which I think is just fantastic.
And yes, I referenced Monster Musume pretty heavily.
Empyrean Asura: CAREFUL THERE GENKI OR YA MIGHT JUST BE EATEN UP LIKE A PROTEIN SNACK KEK DOES THE ALL CAPS CONVEY MY FACE SPLITTING GRIN AND HAPPY NOISES?!
Re: Yes. Yes it does.
*MHA*
The following morning at the Musutafu Train Station, five students had arrived before all the others; sans Iida…
"Denki Kaminari! Mina Ashido! Hanta Sero! Rikido Sato!" Genki listed off, the four standing shoulder to shoulder, posture straight.
"HAI!" the four students greeted with a salute as Genki paced before them.
"Contained within these envelopes are letters of introduction," he said drawing four clearly-labeled envelopes from his jacket before handing them out. "Denki Kaminari, you'll be interning with the Azure Striker: Gunvolt. Mina Ashido, you'll be interning with the Kicking Hero: Kamadouma. Hanta Sero, you'll be interning with the Spider Thread Hero: Arachnid. Rikido Sato, you'll be interning with the Herculean Hero: Kabutomushi," he said handing out the last of them before turning on his heel. "Do not lose them," he said staring them in the eye.
"I'll protect this with my life!" Denki said snapping a salute, an excited grin on his face.
"Remember, you asked me for these letters of introduction, so don't complain to me if you don't get what you're looking for out of them. Or more-likely, if you get more than you bargained for but can't escape. They aren't overly popular and they're rather niche, but they're long-time veterans and good at what they do. You open up your ears and you might just survive to see retirement in a few decades."
"He's taking this a little seriously isn't he?" Mina whispered.
*CLAP*
"EEP!" Mina yelped as his hands came together before her face.
"If you don't give this a hundred and ten percent, you will find yourself flat on your face before the first day is out. I've trained with them since I was very young, so believe me when I say, if you don't 'Go Beyond, Plus Ultra-Style', they'll chew you up and spit you back out. Pinkie."
"No need to get so territorial…" Mina flinched at the look he was leveling her.
"It goes without saying that, after pleading your cases over the phone for three hours, I don't want you to embarrass me by giving a poor showing. But more than that…" he said turning back to them. "Don't embarrass yourselves out there. Learn as much as you can, train as hard as you can, because if you go in there half-cocked, you're going to get left behind. Your standings in 1-A aren't guaranteed if you slack off. Just look at what happened to Mineta."
"Now that you mention him…" Hanta hummed aloud. "I wonder what Mineta's up to right now…"
"Worry about yourselves before you worry about him," Genki said plainly. "Any questions before I turn you loose upon Japan?"
" . . . Why do you have your suitcase handcuffed to your hand?" Mina asked after a moment, gesturing to the silver links connecting him to his attache case.
"Hero-grade costumes are hot items on the black market and a prime target for Villains of all colors. They catch you walking around with this thing unawares and anyone skilled-enough or desperate-enough to do so will try and swipe it," Genki said patting his precious cargo with his free hand. "Which reminds me…" he said fishing in his pocket before tossing something to each of them. "I have some spares for you guys. Test them out to make sure the keys work. Better to have them there and not need them than not have them and really wish you did."
"Wow, you're taking this so seriously," Denki hummed.
"I got into the Hero Course by the skin of my teeth and I'm still behind everyone else. I have to take this seriously," Genki said with a flat expression.
"Oh, well, thanks for looking out for us," Mina replied cuffing her case onto her hand, the others following suit.
*MHA*
"You've got your costumes, right?" Aizawa asked once the whole of 1-A had gathered together. "Wearing them in public is strictly prohibited, but don't drop them either."
"YEAHHH!" Mina whooped.
"And don't slur your 'yeah', Ashido," the man chided. "All of you, be on your best behavior. Now go!" he ordered, everyone starting to scatter.
"This is gonna be so much fun!" Toru whooped.
"You headed to Kyushu? It's the other way," Kirishima told Tokoyami.
"Iida!" Izuku cried out, drawing Iida's attention.
"Hey, Genki!" Kaminari called out. "Thanks again for this letter of recommendation. I'm going to be so damn cool after this!" he said pumping a fist, eyes sparkling as he fantasized an idyllic future for himself.
"Just don't drag Kaito-san down," the insectoid teen chided. "And don't call him 'Cloud'. Guy hates that joke. Fans too. Kaito'll take it in stride, but his fans will rip you to shreds. And don't even get me started on what appendages they'll do it with."
"Isn't that game, like, two-hundred years old?" Kaminari asked back.
"Historical pop culture is still pop culture," Genki returned.
"Genki-san," a voice said from behind him.
"H-Hai?" Genki yelped whirling around.
"Good luck," Tsuyu returned. Her face was as neutral as ever, but something about it caused Genki's heart to skip a beat.
"Y-You too," Genki returned.
"What about me?"
"AAUUUGH! Hatsume-san?!" Genki yelped as a certain pinkette popped up behind him.
"Please, call me Mei-chan~" the girl repeated.
"Right… Mei-chan…" Genki amended. "What're you doing here?"
"Just double-checking that you have my contact information~"
"Couldn't you just check your phone for that?" Kaminari asked.
"Quiet you," Hatsume said flatly before turning back to Genki, smiling brightly. "Anyway~ I have a little something for you too," she said holding out a slightly smaller attache case. "And remember! It's a Hatsume Mei original! Tell your friends and fanbase!"
"I'll be sure to say that," Genki said eyeing the case's contents, seeing it was the same Capture Gun she'd used on Iida, only this one had been painted to match his costume, a collection of auxiliary shells and a small manual added.
"And don't worry about the rest of your gear! I'll have your Custom Leg Parts and Auto-Balancer finished before the week is out!" Mei said brightly waving both arms above her head. "Although if you had to choose one over the other, which would you want? Have to cover my bases, you know."
"I think those Leg Parts are pretty cool," Genki returned.
"Leg day it is!" Hatsume said bolting off.
"Well… she's full of energy," Kaminari hummed. "And you know what they say about the energetic ones~"
"It's 'you know what they say about the quiet ones'," Genki countered. "Good luck with your internship. Tell Kaito-san I said hello," he said patting the blond on the shoulder. "Mina. Make sure to do lots of stretches, or you'll pull a hamstring," he advised before turning to Sero. "Make sure you work hard. Auntie's going to work you into the ground now that she knows what your Quirk is," he said before turning to Sato. "As for you."
"Yes?"
" . . . Try not to die," Genki said after a moment before bolting for his train.
"Wait, what'd you mean by that? Genki? GENKIIIII?! WHAT DID YOU MEAAAAAAAAAN!?" he cried as he chased the departing train.
*MHA*
After 2 hours 39 minutes on the bullet train…
"So…" Genki hummed as he stepped out of the station. "This is the Mie Prefecture," he said looking around, passerby taking in the sight of his uniform with muttered awe as he stepped out into Iga. As the General Course student who'd ascended into the Hero Course for the first time in years, on national television no less, his image had spread across social media, unironically, like an infestation of cockroaches.
Of course, Genki didn't pay the stares much mind as he took in the sights. There'd be time for fanservice later.
Both in Japan and abroad, Iga was known as the ninja capital of the world, being known as the birthplace of the Iga Clan of ninja back during the Edo Period. Iga had remained largely unchanged since the emergence of Paranormality two-hundred years ago, though the buildings were a bit higher and a bit sturdier-looking than in the pre-Quirk era.
The city itself was positively littered with ninja paraphernalia, Edgeshot's likeness in various styles ranging from realistic to shoujo to shounen and beyond dominating a fairly-large amount of the advertised space.
Of course, as one of the Top Ten and a diehard ninja in Japan, it only made sense for companies and businesses to adapt the shinobi's likeness after he reached the Top Ten. Especially in a city rife with ninja culture.
'Which has me wonder…' Genki mused to himself. 'How am I supposed to find a single leaf in the forest?'
Edgeshot, being a real-life ninja, didn't have an Agency with a publicized address, which in its own right made sense given ninja strongholds were meant to be secret. However, that seemed to backfire in this case because other than the name of a specialty shop with no listed address, Genki had no idea where he was supposed to be going other than a vague direction of which side of town he was supposed to go.
Adjusting his attache case in hand and the tie around his neck, Genki stepped out of the station and into Iga.
*MHA*
It wasn't hard for Genki to converse with the locals. With all the fame he'd gained from his performance in the Sports Festival, there was no shortage to the random strangers wanting to approach him for autographs or pictures; they wouldn't be worth much now, but if he "made it big" Genki could certainly see them accruing value on bidding sites in the future.
And of course, there was no shortage of insect-oriented Mutants along the way who wanted to converse with him as well. Apparently his performance in the Sports Festival was quite validating, at least for those who chose to live their dreams vicariously through others; an unfortunate truth for hangers-on of Heroes.
It took a while, since Genki didn't want to cause a PR disaster that'd hamper his later Hero career, but about a half-dozen ninja specialty shops later and eventually Genki was given directions by some long-time supporters of Edgeshot who, through the grapevine, had heard he'd be interning with Japan's No. 5.
Leaving the city of Iga proper to hike up the nearby mountains, Genki made his way up into a lush verdurous area along a footpath that looked like it hadn't changed in hundreds of years. A few tourists passed him by as they made their way down from the mountain, Genki returning any friendly waves he received until he crested the path he was on, coming face to face with an impressive and historically-accurate "ninja mansion", and beside it, a specialty shop that specialized in authentic ninja tools. As opposed to those he'd passed as he made his way through Iga, this one looked like it actually belonged in the Edo period, though a few modern-day fixtures did exist.
Feeling the air shift against his filiform hairs, Genki whirled around, attache case readied as a bludgeon as he came face to face with a man in stereotypical navy blue ninja garb.
"Matte!" the man yelped, hands held up in surrender, obviously surprised Genki'd rounded on him before he could say his piece. "You're Gokiburi Genki, correct?"
"I am…"
"Edgeshot-sama sent for you. He'll be waiting for you in the training grounds out back," the man said holding out a brochure, a set of red markings scribbled across the map on the back.
"I see. Anything else I need to know?"
"He asked that you change into your Hero costume before doing so. If you'll come this way, I'll lead you to a changing groom."
*MHA*
Even though he'd had his costume for a while, Genki still couldn't get over how smooth everything felt. Even with the addition of Mei's Capture Gun on his hip, it still felt like a second skin.
After he failed to pass the Practical Exam, he'd been devastated, thinking his dream of becoming a Hero was over. It was only because so-many events and circumstances lined up for him during the Sports Festival that he was here now, taking part in his first Hero Internships. Getting an actual Hero-grade costume was now one of his happiest memories, second only to the awards ceremony where the Number 1 Hero, All Might, had told him he'd made it.
Stepping into a clearing at the end of the trail, Genki immediately went on alert as he felt the air shift.
"You there!" he shouted, a finger extended straight ahead of him. "Don't move!"
The next moment he whirled around and fired a net at the space directly behind him, a mousy- "Kyah!" -sounding as the net wrapped around something and brought it to the ground.
"Honestly, I can't believe you fell for that," Genki said looking at the downed figure, flickering back into view as the dust gave them away.
She was a small girl, though in this day and age height was not an indicator of age, clad in extremely stereotypical ninja wear colored a very light shade of violet exposing very little. Apart from the ninja-yoroi, she had an armored forehead protector, forearm guards, and from the shin-down her feet were wrapped in armored gauze.
"So… You wanna explain why you attacked me?" he asked gesturing to the kunai in the girl's hand.
"!"
In response to this, the girl could only flinch at being caught.
"The ambush has failed. Commence attack!"
"Idiot! You're not supposed to announce it!" another voice from the treeline shouted.
"Looks like things just got interesting!" Genki grinned, giant interneurons firing as the bushes and leaves began to rustle.
Cue Naruto OST – Strong and Strike
The clearing growing incredibly bright, even with his light-polarizing visor, canopies and shrubbery suddenly burst open, three figures clad in similar ninja-yoroi running towards him with arms thrown back. Three in total, two clad in yellow and muscular, one stocky clad in green, their intent was clear as they blitzed the Mutant teen, who back-pedalled to avoid the yellow duo's powerful punches, giving the net-clad girl time to crawl away like a caterpillar.
"What kind of ninja wears fluorescent yellow?" Genki quipped as he bobbed and weaved around the twos' frenzied punches. Rolling forward between the two of them, the green-clad ninja attempted a body slam, only for Genki to scurry away to the side at inhuman speed. To the Mutant's shock however, the green-clad ninja rebounded like a bouncy ball, his body rounder and stockier than he remembered, bouncing around the clearing and ricocheting off trees causing a litany of leaves to fall.
Dodging the literal human bouncy ball was a simple feat once Genki realized the teen couldn't rebound on an acute trajectory. However, that all changed once the two clad in yellow got in on the act, their muscles bulging inside their uniforms as they began to deliver powerful arm and leg strikes, sending the human bouncy ball sailing at him from unexpected angles.
Of course, with his GIs firing, dodging the human bouncy ball was more of a chore than anything…
'No, don't get cocky or you'll overlook-'
"Suiton: Teppoudama!"
"Doton: Dorodama!"
The two in yellow letting the one in green fly away as the girl caterpillar-crawling away finally managed to vacate the clearing, the next moment two ninjas in black and blue respectively fired off torrents water and mud into the clearing from on high.
The two attacks impacting the ground and cresting into a wave that threatened to overtake him, Genki squared his feet before crying out- "GOKI BLAST!" -, a powerful blast of compressed air firing from the spiracles in his palms and blasting the center of the wave, muddy water flying backwards and spattering the blue and black ninjas, falling into the treeline and out of sight.
The sound of something tiny whistling towards him at speeds comparable to a professional baseball player, the next moment the sun was suddenly eclipsed, the Mutant teen looking over his shoulder to see an enormous hex nut sailing towards him before he dodged. Before he could get too far, the area around him was peppered with nails as large as telephone poles, the deluge of metal debris quickly ruining the already-ruined clearing. The ground growing muddy at his feet and traction slipping to near-nothing, Genki leapt atop the islets formed by the gigantified hex nuts and leapfrogged from there, the whole area looking like a set on Sasuke by the time the bombardment stopped.
"Well now, I can see why you made it into the Hero Course the way you did," a confident-sounding voice spoke up from the treeline, Genki's eyes trailing upward to see a tall student in red ninja garb standing atop a high branch, lazily tossing metallic odds and ends in his hand. "However, if you wish to approach Edgeshot-dono, you'll have to show us your true power!"
"Even though I can barely control it?" Genki countered a brow raising inside his mask.
"Don't underestimate the elites of Seijin High School!" the two in yellow said in stereo as they revealed themselves, a plethora of students in colorful, if not stereotypical, ninja garb standing around him in the treetops.
"Assuming yours is a ninja-themed school, I don't see how 'elite' you can be when some of you are wearing colors like aqua, hot pink, and even orange!" Genki quipped.
"Oi! What's wrong with orange, tebayo!" the one in orange shouted, raising a fist.
"A… Ano…" the girl in violet spoke up meekly.
"Everything! Everything is wrong with orange!" the others shouted at him.
"Excuse me…"
"Says the guy wearing pink!" Orange shouted at Pink.
"If I could just get your…"
"It's not 'pink'! It's lightish-red!" Pink argued.
"GUYS!"
"WHAT?!" they all shouted rounding on their compatriot.
"He's getting away!" the girl in violet shouted as Genki bolted back down the trail, a dust cloud left in his wake.
"After him!" Red shouted, rallying the others after him as they bound through the treetops.
*MHA*
"Tch! I can't believe we let that Yuuei brat escape!" Red said as the gathered ninja bounded through the trees. "And you! How could you get caught like that? You were literally invisible!"
"I-I don't know… He must've sensed me…" Violet said meekly, struggling to keep up.
"Doesn't matter. We'll send him packing," the Yellow Twins grumbled in stereo.
"Yeah! Edgeshot-dono doesn't need any more interns!" Blue added.
*Plonk*
"Wait! Did you hear that?" Cobalt questioned, suddenly coming to a stop.
"It came from over there!" Aqua shouted, the gathered ninja going over to the source of the noise, only to encounter-
"A river! He must've jumped in to sneak downstream!" Red shouted. "Everyone! Follow that river! Negi! Send your forces up-river!"
"Right!" Orange, aka "Negi", replied as he brought his hands together in an extremely stereotypical Kuji Kiri. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Summoning eight perfect doppelgangers of himself from a cloud of smoke, the Negi clones ran up-river with arms back, the rest of them heading down.
The colorful ninja departing at superhuman speed, the clearing in their wake was left clear and tranquil.
" . . . "
" . . . "
" . . . I literally cannot believe that just worked," Genki said as he poked his head up from the nearby bushes a minute later.
"I can."
"GAH!" Genki shouted as he whirled around, coming face to face with the No. 5 Hero in Japan, aforementioned face floating in mid-air-
No. Not floating in mid-air. The face was connected to a jet-black string protruding through the bushes.
"E-Edgeshot?!"
"Yo," the man replied with an eye smile, a single arm unfurling from the jet-black string in a friendly wave. "Excellent work. Though honestly, the Suiton no Jutsu is one of the oldest tricks in the Bansenshukai, yet my disciples fell for it. It appears I'll have to revisit the fundamentals when they return."
"Like I said before, I literally cannot believe that just worked," Genki replied in turn. " . . . What's worse is I wasn't even aiming to emulate ninjutsu, I just thought throwing a rock in the river would make them think I swam downstream. I had no idea that was actually 'a thing'."
"Oh, you'd be surprised what in ninjutsu is actually 'a thing'," Edgeshot replied. "For example, did you know that ninjas cross-dressed, a lot~?"
*MHA*
"Ano… Edgeshot-sensei?"
"Hai?"
"Are you… Aren't you going to call them back?" Genki asked as they made their way to a humble dormitory a ways away from the Ninja Mansion, humble in build but camouflaged all the same.
"I'm waiting to see how long it takes them to realize they've fallen for one of their own tricks," Edgeshot hummed. "Anyhow, this gives us a chance to show you your lodgings for the course of the internship."
Edgeshot threading the needle through the door's keyhole, Genki was waved inside and toward a room on the far end of the hall. It was rather spartan in nature with an ordinary bedroll and few amenities, but Genki noticed a collection of items on the bed that piqued his interest.
"Ninja tools?" Genki groused.
"Yes," Edgeshot nodded. "As part of your internship, I've laid out the Shinobi no Rokubu for you to familiarize yourself with. Whether or not you'll adapt them to modern-day use is up to the individual, and even though most would consider these tools out-of-date in wake of Support Items, there's still a place for them in the present," he said as he picked up the first one.
The first of the Essential Ninja Tools he held up was a conical straw hat with a small visor at one end.
"Arguably, the Amigasa would clash the most with your given costume, and even out-of-costume, its use would still clash with modern fashion trends, but you can still use it to hide your face while maintaining a line of sight in front of you. Plus it keeps the sun off your head," he replied with another eye smile. "You'd be amazed how many Heroes pass out from heatstroke~"
The next object he picked up was a length of rope with a four-pronged hook on the end. Though it looked traditional, a glance could tell it'd been made with modern materials stronger than its ancestor.
"For the hooked rope, there's always a need for a hooked rope. Even if your Quirk lets you quickly climb or descend walls, you can still use it for Torinawajutsu like your teacher, Eraserhead, and for rescue operations it's an essential Support item. This rope in particular is a Plasma Rope, capable of pulling ships if you have the muscle for it, and the hook is made of a Tungsten/Titanium alloy giving it incredible tensile strength and heat resistance," he explained. "I also won't judge if you use it for… recreational activities~" he added with one eyed smile/eyebrow waggle.
"Please don't tell Midnight I have something like this…" Genki murmured.
That thirsty dominatrix could sexualize anything.
It'd be kinda hot if she weren't so in-your-face about it.
"Next is the Sekihitsu," Edgeshot said holding up a case of colorful slate pencils. "Obviously you can use it to take notes or leave markings for your comrades to find if you have to leave in a hurry, and different ninja schools use different colors, but for those who know the meanings behind the different colors, covert messages can be passed under even the most astute villains' noses. Provided they don't know what each color means~"
'I feel like I should recognize this archetype from somewhere…' Genki thought to himself as the man gave him another eye smile.
"Next is the Inro," he said holding up a lacquered medicine box. "Carrying medicine is important for any Hero, whether it's for civilians or for yourself, plus, its rather hard to be a Hero if you have an upset stomach. You can also use it to hide snacks~" he said opening one of the segments, exposing a small cache of colorful Japanese sugar candy.
Of course, in Japan it was just called "sugar candy".
"Next is the Sanjaku Tenugui," he said holding up a length of cloth a little over 30 centimeters in length. "Even if you only use it as a cleaning rag, a length of cloth is still something good to have. Covering your face, carrying items, filtering water, making a rope, restraining or silencing someone, putting it over locks or hinges to muffle the noise that comes with breaking them, making a headband…" he listed off. "Really, it's just the ninja equivalent of a handkerchief~"
"And the last one?"
"Last but not least is the Hinade," he said holding up a flint box. "Every good ninja needs a Firestarter, and its more kid-friendly than carrying around a lighter."
"I think I can fit most of these in my belt," Genki nodded, reaching for the hooked rope before Edgeshot grasped his wrist, faster than lightning.
"Whether or not you choose to become a Ninja Hero, always remember, a Hero, like a shinobi, must be flexible in their approach, like bamboo. To a shinobi, everything is a tool, the greatest of which is your own mind. Unlike guns that run out of bullets, a good mind, has infinite ammo," he said tapping his own temple.
"Hai! Edgeshot-sensei!" Genki snapped bowing at the waist, a kindly hand patting his helmeted head.
"Come on, let's go get some ramen. You've certainly had an interesting welcome. We can start training as soon as the others get back. Assuming they haven't left Iga altogether~"
'I'd question whether or not this man will be a good influence or not…' Genki hummed comparing the man before him to Aizawa, 'but the public seems to love him, and if I'm to achieve my ambition… I need the public to love me too,' he conceded as he followed after the No. 5 Hero.
*MHA*
AN:
Finally, we can get to the good part!
Look forward to some action to follow!
GO BEYOND!
EXCELSIOR!