Alright welcome back to Project Velocity, it's been a few still it's been update, so it's time. Last Time, it was the break-in and Izuku had to step in to handle the panic, and afterwards showed how much his anatylic mind was able to notice with the few seconds he got viewing of the front gate. And he told Principal Nezu and the teacher of UA what he say the break in. Now with the day moving on and class soon to be over, it times to see how Ochaco reacts to the break in and how she'll use it to her advantage to get close to Izuku.
As always I do not own MY HERO ACADEMIA or any of their characters.
With that, let's begin.
Izuku thought about what he had heard Principal Nezu say. What kind of conversation would need to be had specifically with All Might? Izuku thought about this as he walked back to Classroom 1-A. Opening the door Izuku pushed the train of thought and switched to force on Heroic classes. As Izuku walked over his desk Mr Aizawa looked up and said, "Good you've returned, We can begin class properly."
With All Might absent, Mr. Aizawa led the class through the beginning of basic training, such as how to use their quirk to subdue an opponent and force them to surrender. Through the afternoon, the students of 1-A practised what Mr. Aizawa had taught them, sparring against each other and seeing how long they could fight. When the final bell rang, everyone picked themselves up and headed to the changing room to wash up and change back into their normal school uniform.
As Izuku took longer to get into the shower, he wasn't surprised that as he walked out to the front gate he found Ocahco already waiting for him. Ochaco didn't say anything but joined him walking across the street and to his bike. She stayed quiet during the drive to her apartment, where Izuku pulled into an empty parking spot. Izuku parked his bird and then waited for Ochaco to get off, yet when she didn't. Izuku looked over his shoulder and asked, "Is everything okay?"
Ochaco must have been deep in thought as she said, "What? Oh, yeah. I'm just thinking about lunch." Ochaco then paused and it was a few breaths before she continued with, "When the alarm went off, the panic that encased the room. I won't lie, I felt myself starting to panic too. I thought some villain had broken and I just froze. I had no idea what to do, how to help, but there you were, calm and in control. You switched so fast from our conversation and you knew what to do and you were able to focus on it. Without you I would have gotten swept away in the crowd, but you, you got me out of the lunch room and then you prioritized protecting me. It made me feel vulnerable, and then I realized we don't have any training with our quirks and until we do. And being reminded of what happened to Eri, it made me realize how underprepared I would be if I was in that kind of situation. If something happened, there would be nothing I could do, because I don't have the skills or knowledge that you do."
"So you feel useless." Izuku said. He became glad he still had his helmet on, as Ochaco slapped the back of his head. Despite all the training he had, he still didn't know how to talk to girls. One of the few failures, Inko was still trying to correct.
"I didn't say anything like that… but I guess in a way, yes. Yesterday, I was out of the fight within minutes and then during lunch, the only help I was was because of what you told me to do. And all it was, was getting you above the crowd." Ochaco said, making the last part a quiet mumble.
"Hey, we're all at different levels of skill. Look at Ojirou, he's been training in martial arts for life so that would put him above, say Kirishima. But Kirishima obviously has some training so that would put him above you." Izuku said then quickly covered with, "Combat training that is. We all come in at different levels and if we try to compare ourselves to others, our faults and downfalls just become more apparent compared to. But that doesn't mean one is more important than the other."
"But it could take forever for me to catch up." Ochaco said in a desperate tone of voice. She wished she could see Izuku's eyes so she could tell what he was thinking. She was tired of not being able to use all her skills, but if Izuku trained her then it wouldn't be too suspicious for her to have said skills.
"You said you know the basics, right? You said you had a small stent of training." Izuku suddenly asked.
"Yeah." Ochaco said and had to recall how she had said she knew the basics so Izuku wouldn't be too suspicious when she slipped up, "But it's been a while since I've practiced then."
"What discipline did you practice?" Izuku asked as he began to tap his fingers against the handles of his motorcycle, thinking about what form of martial arts would be best for Ochaco to learn.
"Karate." Ochaco said.
"Um." Izuku hummed as he thought over the different forms of Karate. It was an expansive fighting style, but for Ochaco and her quirk, she would want something that was more based on grapples. "While karate is a good base to have, I think your quirk and its five finger contact requirement, Judo with its strike and grapple would be the best for you to learn."
"Would you be willing to teach me? To help me to catch up on the rest of our class." Ochaco asked in a begging tone.
Izuku paused for a second, "I can do that. In fact my mom and I have been thinking about training Eri at home. The basic form and how to throw her fist, so she can protect herself. You'll be a good test dummy to see how well I can teach."
Ochaco slapped Izuku's helmet again, but this time it was more playful, "First I was a decoy and now I'm a test dummy."
"Alright, alright, I'm sorry." Izuku said but couldn't help but chuckle, "Alright, why don't you head inside and get a pair of training clothes. UA's uniform isn't going to be doing you any good."
Ochaco nodded as she jumped off the bike. She ran up the stairs and into her apartment. Not even taking the time to take off her helmet or her backpack, she hurried over to her bedroom. Going over to her dresser, Ochaco pulled open the bottom dresser and pulled out a set of workout clothes. Ochaco then quickly pulled out her phone and sent a text to her handler, "Have a chance to get closer to the target. I'm taking it."
Ochaoc felt that was all she needed to share, nor did she feel like she needed to ask if this was a good option. Madam President had been against Ochaoc being able to use her training. She always claimed that if Ochaco came in as a trained student that was potentially just as trained as Izuku. Iuzku would notice and begin to find out how Ochaco was so well trained. With not many avenues that gave the same amount of training as Project Velocity, Izuku would eventually come to the correct conclusion.
Yet Ochaco was tired of having to hold herself back. She had trained, she should be able to use them. And if this was how she would be able to, she was willing to pretend she had never been taught before.
Closing her phone Ochaco stuffed her workout clothes into her backpack. She picked herself up and sped and walked out of her apartment. After making sure to lock the front door, Ochaco hurried down the steps. Getting back to Izuku, Ochaco slipped onto the back of the bike.
"You said it would be best if I learned Judo." Ochaco asked for clarification.
"Yes. With your ability to take away your opponent's gravity with your hands, it would be advantageous to learn how to grapple your opponent. This can help disable your opponent and provide more opportunity to use your quirk." Izuku said, as he shifted his motorcycle back into gear and pulled out of the parking lot.
As they pulled out onto the road Ochaco brought up a comment Izuku had said in passing, "Earlier you talked about everyone's combat level. You mentioned Ojriou would be above Kirishima, who in turn is above me. Who would you say is at the top and at the bottom?"
"I haven't made a full ranking of our classmates, you have to take into account everyone's quirks, as some lend themselves to more combat, how they use their quirks. Though for combat skill and strength I would say Bakugo and I are at the top, while I would say Hagakure is at the bottom as her quirk would lend itself to stealth. Though that is not to say Hagakura couldn't take someone out if she managed to get the drop on them." Izuku said as he coasted up to a red light.
"You and Bakugo, what about Todoroki." Ochaco said as it was important to find who Izuku saw as a threat. If Izuku did turn out to be a villain, it was important to whom he would be hesitant to try and fight his way out of against.
"His quirk is strong, he is the son of Endeavour, but he seems to just be spamming his quirk rather than being tactile with it. He is going for overall strength rather than technique. And have you noticed he only uses half his quirk." Izuku said.
"Yeah, he must have Endeavour's fire since he's able to melt his ice." Ochaco said, then caught herself and hoped Izuku wouldn't catch on. She had to quickly change the subject, "What about intelligence."
"Oh, Yaoyorozu, no doubt. The way she explained her quirk she would need to be pretty smart to be able to use it. I also have a feeling that using creation requires a sharp mind. As for the bottom, Ashido and Kaminari." Izuku said, causing Ochaco to laugh. They laughed at the expense of their classmates as they drove to Izuku's house.
Arriving at Izuku's home, Izuku pulled into the garage and parked his motorcycle off to the side of the family car. As Izuku clicked the button to close the garage door, Ochaco got off and began heading inside and after putting down the kickstand and turning the engine off Izuku quickly joined her. Walking through the door they were both attacked by Eri. Eri tackled Izuku but also reached out for Ochaco, but she managed to take a quick step out of Eri's reach.
Izuku caught Eri and wrapped her in a big hug. He looked down at her and asked, "Hey Eri, how was your day?"
"Good." Eri said, then noticed the wrapping on Izuku's forearm that had been revealed as Izuku's sleeve had been pulled up, "Did you get hurt again?"
"I did, and guess what? It happened while I helped protect others. But don't worry, my school has a nurse who has a quirk that can heal people." Izuku said as he threw Eri into the air. As Izuku caught Eri, she reached out for Ochaco. Ochaco laughed and smiled as she pulled Eri from Izuku's arms and then carried her as they walked into the dining room.
At the table Ochaco sat Eri down in her chair, then Izuku and Ochaco pulled out their homework to work on it together. Ochaco got the feeling that Izuku already knew the material and was simply going over it again for her sake. Nor did it help that she noticed Izuku would write the answer on his worksheet until after she had
With everything they had to go through and with Izuku working with Ochaco, it took them nearly an hour to get it all done. After slipping the packet back into their backpack, Izuku grabbed Eri and then signalled to the living room. As Izuku headed to the living room, Ochaco grabbed her workout clothes, which consisted of a pink tank top that was thin enough to reveal the black sports bra underneath, and light gray sweatpants, from her backpack and disappeared into the bathroom and quickly changed.
After putting her hair up into a ponytail Ochaco walked back to the living room. She immediately noticed that Izuku had changed into a pair of dark green shorts and a white t-shirt, and had his own hair into a ponytail. Ochaco tried to distract herself from seeing how the white t-shirt hugged Izuku's upper frame.
Ochaco managed to find a distraction by noticing that the layout of the living room had changed. The coffee table had disappeared, with the couch and lazy body had been pushed up against the wall. And two large dark blue practice mats had taken their place in the middle of the living room. Izuku pushed them together as Ochaco walked in and said, "Seems like you've done this before.
This caught Izuku's attention, causing him to turn and look up at Ochaco. He took her thin pink tank top and the black sports bra behind it. He took in how the combination showed her flat yet somewhat muscular midsection, how the gray sweatpants hugged her legs and the two front bangs left out of her ponytail framed her face. Her hero costume was even more fitting, but this time Izuku had pulled some leg hair to stop himself from commenting.
Izuku froze a bit and Ochaco had to ask, "Is something wrong?"
Izuku's mind managed to use the pain from pulling the hair to restart his brain and come up with a response, "No, you look like you're ready to start." Her thighs looked so nice in the sweatpants, that made Izuku immediately mentally slapped himself to make himself focus.
Ochaco looked over the practice mats again and then asked, "I thought we were just going over the basics. What's with the mats?" Izuku spoke as if he wouldn't be teaching her anything grappling or takedowns for some time.
"In case you pick things up quickly," Izuku said, as he redid his hair tie, then stepped onto the practice mats and gestured with two fingers for Ochaco to join him. As Ochaco walked up to him, he continued, "For starters let's see how hard you can punch. I believe your grip strength was 125 kilograms during Mr. Aizawa's quirk assessment and you didn't use your natural strength for the ball throw. So I need to get a gauge of how strong you are."
Ochaco was surprised Izuku remembered her score for a random test, but then again Izuku had a ranking of who was the strongest in class. Maybe he had used more than just the heroic class lesson to judge people. That meant he was more perspective than the files had stated, meaning Ochaco would have to be even more careful so Izuku didn't catch onto her mission.
Ochaco was pulled from her thoughts as Izuku took a step back and held his right arm, with his hand up and his palm facing her, "I want you to punch it, full strength."
Ochaco looked quizzically at Izuku's hand and then at Izuku. Iuzku nodded to his hand and wiggled his fingers, signalling she had heard him correctly. Yet she was still confused, "You want me to punch your hand?"
"Yes. so I can get a feeling of how strong you are." Izuku said, waving his hand back and forth a bit, "Judo and Karate are more than just grapples, kicking and striking play a part in it too. So hit me."
Ochaco looked at Izuku and smirked. It took a few moments for Izuku to figure out why, once he did he said, "My hand." as he nodded down to his hand that was still stretched out in front of him.
Still not understanding the point, Ochaco sighed as she drew back her fist. Then swung it forward and hit Izuku's open palm. Izuku barely felt an impact, "I said full strength, don't worry you're not going to break anything."
Ochaco nodded and drew back her left fist again, then with a breath, Ochaco stepped into the punch and pelted Izuku's hand. Izuku hand barely moved back, but his palm was starting to turn red, along with Ochaco's knuckles. She waited for an answer, perhaps even a facial expression. Yet Izuku didn't say anything, he didn't raise an eyebrow as he lowered his right and then shifted around his body and held up his left hand. He locked eyes with Ochaco and said, "Alright time for your right arm."
Without the previous hesitation, Ochaco drew back her right fist and similarly took a step forward, then rocketed her fist into Izuku's open palm. Their hands connected and Izuku's hand moved back a bit from the impact. Time seemed to freeze, and then after a second Izuku slowly looked down at his hand. He then fell to his knees and began to scream in pain.
Not noticing that Eri didn't look concerned, Ochaco quickly dropped down to help Izuku, but she found him laughing to himself. Ochaco couldn't believe it, he had made her think that she had broken his hand. "You jerk," Ochaco said, then went to slap Izuku. Izuku let Ochaco hit him, but as she drew back her hand, Izuku's hand reached out and grabbed Ochaco's wrist.
The next moment Izuuku rotated Ochaoc's wrist into a hyperextended state, making it hard to move her arm. Izuku looked up and smiled then let go of Ochaco's arm. "Do you know why police get tased and pepper sprayed as part of their training?" Izuku asked, and Ochaco shook her head as she tried not to show her discomfort as she rotated her wrist a bit, "It's so they know how it feels when they do it to other people. So I won't be simply teaching you how to grapple people and take them down, I'm going to make sure you know how it feels to be on the receiving end. Do you still want to do this?'
Ochaco rotated her wrist a bit, it was a little numb, but that feeling quickly disappeared. Her trainer hadn't been that forceful with the lessons, nor was he as direct. "Yes." Izuku smiled and nodded as he stood back up. Over the coming evening, Izuku showed Ochaco how to properly grip a person's wrist and not allow them to slip out of her hand. It began with how to force Izuku's hand up by bending his thumb and forcing his other fingers to follow. An hour before dinner was called, she began to get the muscle memory down. Then Izuku had her close her eyes and practice the motion without sight.
Once dinner was called and done Izuku switched Ochaco to locking her opponent's wrist and keeping them from the full range of motion, while limiting the strength they could call upon. Ochaco struggled, in the beginning, to get the rotation of Izuku's wrist proper, without losing her own grip as Izuku's wrists were surprisingly flexible. However, as the night went on she began to get a baseline of the technique. As the sun disappeared and night took over the sky, Izuku called it an evening and brought out the mochi.
When Ochaco first saw the mochi she had to stop herself from greedily taking most of it. Training with Izuku had her working up an appetite and having to restrain herself from showing her previous training was more mental work than physical. So as Ochaco popped the first piece of the dessert into her mouth she was able to relax and push all the stress out of her body.
Once the small dessert was gone, Inko took Eri to bed. While Ochaco and Izuku returned the living room to its normal state. As Izuku took the practice mats and disappeared into the garage, Ochaco brought the coffee table back into the living room. Then Izuku came back and pushed the couch back into place, while Ochaco pulled out her phone and looked at the time. It was at that moment she realized how late it was into the evening. She needed to get home if she wanted to get some decent sleep for school the next day.
"Hey Midoriya, I need to get home." Ochaco said as she turned to show the time on her phone.
"Sure," Izuku said, letting go of the couch, he looked over at Ochaco and nodded. He then walked to the kitchen and began through all his backpacks. He looked through all the pockets of his backpack but was unable to locate his keys. Letting go of his backpack, Izuku looked over at the stairs and asked, "Mom, do you know where my motorcycle keys are?"
"I don't keep track of those. They're your responsibility, besides did you forget I was against you and Katsuki getting them early." Inko said, as she walked into the living room, then looked between Ochaco and Izuku.
"Then can you drive Uraraka home." Izuku said as he walked back to the living room and leaned against the wall.
"Sorry, I haven't seen my car keys all day. I remember having them in my hands this morning, but I must have put them down somewhere and then forgot about them." Inko said. Izuku looked over at his mother for any signs of lying, yet he didn't see any. Through Project Velocity Izuku didn't have that normal of a childhood, so Bakugo was really the only close friend he had. Apparently, Inko had some plans in the works.
"It's okay, I can walk home. It's not that far." Ochaco said, shouldering her backpack. With spring coming around, the night won't be too cold and she had sweatpants on.
"No, no, no we can't have that. You don't know what kind of people you can run into late at night. It's not safe." Inko said. Izuku wanted to groan at how thick she was laying it on, but then Izuku had a thought of what Inko was trying to achieve. But why, did she have some kind of bet? With Mareo, he was a gambling man. Maybe Aunt Mitsuki, those two love to gossip with each other.
Izuku sighed as he looked at Ochaco and said, "You remember my offer of you're welcome to come over anytime you want to. I think it might have to be extended to sleep over when you want to. Besides, it has to be lonely sleeping alone in your apartment."
Izuku immediately went red at his word and turned away from Ochaco and Inko. Ochaco's face was a little red too, as she thought about the offer. After a deep breath, Ochaco focused on Inko and asked, "What about my uniform?"
"I can have that wash overnight," Inko said, walking over and grabbing Ochaco's backpack. Ochaco watched this and realized what was going on, Inko wanted her to stay over. Ochaco looked over at Izuku, maybe he noticed, but then he wouldn't say something about it, so maybe he hadn't.
Ochaco turned to Inko and accepted the offer, but then rubbed her knuckles, "Though I need a pair of gloves." That confused both Midoriya and Ochaco quickly explained, "In the past, something I would wake up floating in midair and would be sick for the day from overuse of my quirk. Or with bruises all over my body from falling in my sleep."
Izuku clicked his tongue and said, "That makes sense, I can find a pair of gloves. Mom, can you grab a pillow and some blankets?"
Ochaco watched in surprise Izuku and Inko worked in perfect sync to gather everything for her. Ochaco was more surprised when Izuku returned with his own pillow and blanket. Izuku handed her a pair of artisan gloves, they're made out of thin breathable material, they were a little tight on Ochaco's hand, but it felt like her hands were receiving a small hug. Inko helped Ochaco set up on the couch, while Izuku threw his pillow and blanket on the recliner. When questioned, Izuku said it didn't feel right to leave Ochaco to sleep alone in the living room.
Once everything was set up, Inko excused herself and retired for the night. Ochaco settled down on the couch, while Izuku laid the recliner back. As he lay in it looking up at the ceiling, his phone went off. He turned it on and saw he had received a notification from Ilda. It said, "Call at the earliest convenience."
Izuku tapped the call button and as soon as the line connected he said, "Hey Ilda, wasn't expecting you to be up so late on a school night."
"Yes, normally I won't, but your concern over this little girl made me want to help as soon as possible." Ilda said, from the other side of the call.
"So what news do you have for me?" Izuku asked as he shifted his head to hold the phone against his shoulder.
"I talked to my brother and he said the underground contact is stationed in Wasukako prefecture. The old ground of the Shie Hassaikai. The rumor is one night there was a commotion at the main Shie Hassaikai's hideout late one evening. After some gunfight, a person dressed in a black stealth suit broke out through the front gate carrying someone with white hair. The people on the streets couldn't get a good look as the person moved quickly and with the Shie Hassaikai on their tail, most people made themselves scarce, afraid to get caught in the crossfire. Some reports have the person engaging in some firefight on the freeway, then disappearing somewhere in Musutafu. The trail goes cold there." Ilda said,
"So the rumors have Eri placed in Musutafu. Does your brother's contact know how far these rumors have spread, how many people know about the rescue?" Izuku asked. There had been other cars on the freeway that night, besides just the truck and he had seen a few people on the sidewalk, people who were bound to talk about what they saw. Yet Izuku was hoping most would chalk it up to some late-night hero activity, but it seemed some wrong people heard the news.
"It seems most believe that it was a group of people that broke into the hideout. Seems you worked so efficiently that you did the work of a small team. That's what most people focus on, as that's what appeared on the news. As for the rescue, I have the name of the man that told my brother's contact about it. Want me to send his name over?" Ilda asked.
"Yes." Izuku said, his voice going a little cold. A small ding went off and another text came through a name and a photo. Izuku pulled his phone away from his ear to look at the photo.
"Jona Koji, it's believed he works for a rival yakuza family that's been fighting against the Shie Hassaikai for some years now. Matsu Prefecture." Ilda said as Izuku looked over the information in the photo.
"Mug shot, he's got an arrest history?" Izuku asked as he looked over Jona Koji. He had short hair with a large scar over his right eye that went back and cut in his hair. He had a single ear piercing on his left ear and was missing some teeth.
"Some bad gang fights, but nothing that didn't result in more than a day or two in jail. Are you going to go talk with him?" Ilda said, his voice taking on a hint of concern.
"I need to know if Eri is safe or not." Izuku said, then remembered who Ilda's family was, most importantly who Ilda was, "Nothing outside the law, no quirks or anything of the sort. I promise no vigilant work. Thanks for the information Ilda."
"I'd hate to see your name appear on the morning news." Ilda said.
"It won't promise," Izuku said, then ended the call. He looked up at the ceiling and began to rub the bridge of his nose. It wasn't as bad as it could be, but Izuku was still worried. It was silent until Ochaco spoke up.
"You really care for Eri, don't you? That's why you aren't going to tip your trainer or someone in a position who can talk to the man. You want to hear Eri is safe by your own ears." Ochaco asked. She had seen how protective he acted when it came to Eri, sometimes it was as if he was a different person.
Izuku looked at Ochaco, even with the moon missing from the night sky, with his enhanced eyesight he could see the worry on her face. She had sat up against the armrest and was looking over at him. "I agree with Ilda, you might have a bodyguard license, but there is still a limit on that. I'd hate to see you take something too far."
"Yes, I've become protective of Eri and I won't stop stressing about these rumors until I hear them from Koji for myself. Call it my achilles heels, but I don't want to see Eri hurt ever again."
"What if people know where Eri is because of the rumors, are you going to kill Koji to stop him from spreading them?" Ochaco asked.
Izuku paused for a second then chuckled, "That would be irrational. If I killed him because he was spreading rumors of Eri's location, then I would have to kill everyone he's told. If we're lucky, he doesn't know Eri's location and if he does, I'll hand him over to Hawks. Who can use his hero statues to make Koji stay silent."
"You know Hawks?" Ochaco asked as that was the only thing she fully heard. Yet Izuku never brought up that he was friends with the #3 pro hero, despite how much of a hero nerd Izuku was.
"Trained with him as a kid. He trained with my mentor. '' Izuku said. He tried not to grin as he saw Ochaco's chin drop
It was a few moments before she spoke again. Once she found her voice she said, "Midoriya you've done a lot to protect Eri, you and your mom. And I know people aren't supposed to know about her, but there's only so much you two can do. She's recovered physically, but you keep bringing up that she hasn't smiled. I think you need to get some professional help for her."
Izuku looked back at the ceiling, then said, "You mean therapy? I agree but there's still a lot we don't know about Eri or why she was abused by Overhaul. All we know is that her blood was used to create a new quirk drug. But that's it, we don't know how it works or how it deals with her quirk. We don't even know her quirk and if Eri knows what her quirk is, she hasn't said anything about it I know. So right now sitting down with a therapist isn't going to do much for either party involved. The only person that can tell us is, is locked up in prison and I don't think he's willing to tell us.
"Maybe with time, but that time isn't right now." Izuku sighed.
And that's Chapter 26 of Project Velocity, Ochaco use the break into to get Izuku to agree to train her, so she'll be able to use some of her training. And then Ilda get in contact with Izuku about this information regarding Eri, that could lead to some trouble down the road
Next time is the beginning of the USJ attack it's time to see how Izuku and Bakugo and Ochaco advanced training comes it handle. Hopefully no one dies.
Next Chapter: Advancing Learning from Advanced Lessons.