Here it is, the thirty-eighth full chapter of Miraculous Quirks released at the right time for the one guaranteed per week as. It is time to move onto the next major arc, one that will be longer than the show/manga due to other source material being used for it but that isn't for a few chapters as this is but the start of the Forest Training Arc. That is all the administrative stuff I have for now though and as there are no questions or guest reviews to address here, though do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from y'all, I will leave this pre chapter note off here. That means that it is time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the 38th full chapter of Miraculous Quirks.
Disclaimer: I do not own either of these great works of fiction.
Chapter 38: The Beast Forest
"Now that you've finished you're first semester at U.A. and had some time off after finals, it's time for the Summer Training Camp to officially began." Aizawa said to his class as they gathered in front of him outside the school in the uniforms waiting for the bus that would take them to the training camp to arrive. "However, this isn't a rest for you heroes in the making. At this camp we will push you beyond your limits. You're aiming to become Plus Ultra, and I expect no less from the lot of you."
"Yes sir." Most of the class said in unison.
"Why do I feel like this is going to be hell." Marinette said to Adrien as they milled around waiting for the bus to arrive. "Like none of this will be anything like a normal summer camp."
"Because this is Mr. Aizawa and we're training to be heroes." Adrien said simply. "He will ensure it destroys our limits and make us grow."
"True, I am looking forward to it." Marinette said with a smile. "I want to see where I can take Lucky Charm."
"Same with Cataclysm." Adrien said. "I've already done more with it than I thought possible but that's just the start, I want to push it further."
It was finally time for the Summer Training Camp to begin and they'd all just arrived though they'd been told to drop their bags off at a point where they'd be loaded onto the bus before it arrived. Adrien and Marinette had packed accordingly with a handful of PE kits that they'd be training in, plenty of casual clothes and anything else that they thought that they'd need for a week in the woods.
In an act of independence, Mage had refused to use his powers for the trip beyond making what they needed as they didn't have much for such a week. They had to pack what they thought they needed in normal bags and take into account everything themselves. It made sense, they couldn't rely on the Guardian for everything, and as such they'd packed accordingly. Well, that and he was currently improving their Miraculouses, so he was out in Tibet while Gem looked after them.
It turned out that they were in the middle of the class in terms of bags. Some like Momo and Tsu had packed a lot of stuff while others like Ochaco and Shoji had barely packed anything. Still, they were all looking forward to the camp and the training they'd receive at it.
Until now, they'd been enjoying their break. They'd hung out as a class or in small groups at times while Marinette and Adrien had taken the time to also see more of Tokyo and do couple things there. They were in this new life together, so they wanted to make memories and Marinette naturally wanted to document everything, not that Adrien was complaining, so they'd used their break to maximize that when not training or with their other friends.
All that was in the past though, right now they had to focus on the upcoming training camp. It was going to be a grueling week, but it would make them stronger in the end. Then, when it was over, they'd return home and keep up the work before having another sit down with Mage about the camp and the coming semester. He'd promised to help them out with some advice then but only after they'd reached a certain level that the camp would help with.
Marinette and Adrien weren't going to complain though. Mage had done more than enough for them, but they needed to grow more on their own and this camp was going to do just that. They couldn't wait for it.
Neither could the rest of the class it seemed. As Adrien and Marinette were talking and looking around the class they saw Ochaco get way too close to Midoriya and embarrass him with how close she was, which was to be expected. She then suddenly went red and backed up leading a chant about camp and Marinette couldn't help but grin.
"The roots are definitely taking hold." Marinette said quietly in French to Adrien as the Mina and Kaminari got in on the chant of camp by Ochaco who was still red. "If not fully entrenched and just waiting for her to get over her own denial."
"I think so." Adrien said though he was less attuned to this then Marinette was. "But she's not being honest with herself."
"No that will come though, likely when something external forces her to deal with it." Marinette said. "She's fallen hard for her best friend, that will take some time to process but she will realize the truth in the end."
Adrien was about to respond but before he could Class B showed up. They knew this from the sudden sound of Neito Monoma's voice ranting at them in an even more deranged manner than usual and laughing about how some of their class failed their practical and how they'd have to take extra classes over camp. He was clearly gleeful about it given Class A's alleged reputation, but he'd gone even more off the deep end than last time it seemed.
Marinette and Adrien just looked at him in confusion until Itsuka Kendo karate chopped the back of his head and knocked him out before dragging him onto their bus while instructing her class to do follow her. That was when they noticed that all of Class B had been watching the display.
With Monoma out of the way it was a lighter mood though, made more so by Setsuna Tokage noting that they weren't rivals now that the Sports Festival was over and looking forward to the camp as well while the other Class B girls nodded or agreed with her before getting on the bus. Naturally Mineta was instantly drooling over them in open lust after the girls which disturbed everyone around him but other than Kirishima who tried to get Mineta to control himself they just ignored him.
"Attention Class A, our bus is here." Ida suddenly announced chopping his arms in the air. "Line up in seating order and board it in an orderly fashion."
This time around the bus was normal and the class did board it normally before taking their seats on it. Adrien and Marinette made their way to back of it where there were 5 free seats on the back row as the bus sat 27 with Aizawa up front and then the students in pairs behind though two had to sit at the back and the couple chose that option. The rest were in front of them and when they were seated the bus set off.
Aizawa tried to explain to them how long they'd be on the bus but almost as soon as they were on the highway the class devolved into what they were, a bunch of high schoolers heading to summer camp, and he gave up and allowed them this brief moment of frivolity. They would learn what was in store for them soon enough.
The bus ride itself was fun though Adrien and Marinette chose to observe more than anything with Marinette resting her head on Adrien's shoulder as they travelled. It was a typical bus ride with an attempt at music though no one could agree on what to listen to, an attempt at a few games that failed, and there even a few stories from some of the class's pasts.
Mineta told one about a homeless man who seemed to be his pervert mentor but was also a writer that was surprisingly gripping despite the little gremlin being, well, a little gremlin, and he finished it by chugging a soda in celebration. Then Tsu told a spooky story from her own past that had most of them a little scared, including Marinette as she hated scary stories.
Still, it was all fun and a good time as a class and there was even an interesting moment that allowed Marinette to learn something more about a situation she was determined to learn the full truth about. At some point before the games and stories began, Aoyama got sick and had to lie down so Todoroki, who was next to him, pulled out the seat thing for the aisle and sat in it to allow Aoyama the space while refusing to let Ida take the uncomfortable and cramped seat thing. They were trying to help Aoyama as he lay there but nothing was working it seemed.
The one moment that was confusing and sparked everything for Marinette was when Todoroki went to reach for Aoyama's wrist to check his pulse before suddenly pulling back. The class was confused and that deepened when he mumbled that it shouldn't be him because he was the hand crusher. Only Ida, Midoriya and Adrien got this, and they all burst out laughing and joking about it, but the rest just stared in confusion for a moment, or ignored them, before going back to keeping an eye on Aoyama.
Marinette however knew instantly that if it was those 3 who laughed at what Todoroki had said then it had to do with the Hosu Incident. While she was still determined to find out the truth of what happened, mainly to confirm her theory that Adrien was injured fighting directly with Stain and was the main reason for the Hero Killer's capture, and not just collateral damage, she was still in the dark. This might help her understand more though.
"Care to explain the in joke you and the other Hosu boys have." Marinette said sweetly and softly in French to her boyfriend not moving her head from his shoulder while most of the class focused on trying to get Aoyama's mind off his queasiness. "If it's you 3 who understand it then it has to date back to that incident."
"Well, it was after the fact actually." Adrien said in French. "When we were all in the hospital together recovering from what happened."
"And you still won't tell me how you actually got your wounds, will you." Marinette said looking up at him and trying to give him her best puppy dog look.
"I've told you the official story." Adrien said softly placing a kiss on her forehead. "That's all I will say on the matter that occurred while I was in Hosu."
"Fine." Marinette pouted knowing she'd still have to wait for the true story and not the official one that had been released but which didn't fully add up to her. "Can you at least share the hand crusher thing?"
"Yeah I can." Adrien said with a chuckle at it. "It's quite funny actually as I didn't realize that Todoroki had a sense of humor until that moment."
"He doesn't." Marinette said bluntly. "But it will come out once he's out of his shell."
"Well, this time he did manage to make a joke." Adrien said. "His first joke in fact, but he doesn't realize it. It was after Midoriya got back from talking to Uraraka and Ida had received the news about his own injuries. The damage to Ida's shoulder was such that it has caused some numbness and issues with gripping in his left hand, and he needs a professional surgery to sort it out but he's not going to right now."
"Why?" Marinette asked confused.
"Um, I can't say." Adrien said apologetically. "It's Ida's choice alone and his reasons are personal, so it is not my place to say."
"I see." Marinette said understanding that it was Ida's decision and if he wanted it to be private then so be it but given everything it had to do with the true story of how those four ended up in the hospital during their internships. "So, his hand is damaged."
"Correct and as we all know Midoriya's right hand is scared from what he did to it during his battle with Todoroki during the Sports Festival." Adrien said. "So, he held it up to Ida to motivate him in the way the only Midoriya can. Ida took it to heart, and it really helped him. That was when Todoroki made his joke and lightened the mode for all of us."
"How?" Marinette asked.
"Well, you see, Todoroki was a common factor in the hand injuries the others suffered, at least to his mind he was." Adrien said. "So, he thought that he was cursed because of the injuries, as well as yours in your battle with him, and he called himself the hand crusher at the end and we all laughed at his joke."
"I don't think he was joking." Marinette said with a chuckle at the image of Todoroki deadpan thinking he was some cursed hand crusher before she instinctively rubbed her upper left arm and winced at the memory of her own injuries at Todoroki's hand. "Though my hand was the least burned from that attack. The main damage was from my own actions and then the ice at the end."
Marinette still remembered the searing pain from the fire during her own match with Todoroki. It may not have left a visible scar, but it had been bad and now that she'd seen the full footage she was shocked that she'd been able to push through the injuries she'd taken before her defeat. She had though and had grown from that fight just as Todoroki had and next time she wouldn't lose to him.
She had wanted to ask more but the games began then and they got roped into them and the subsequent stories. It was all nice and good fun until the bus suddenly pulled off the highway and into a dirt semicircle at the edge of a cliff and came to a stop much to their confusion.
It was a rest and beauty spot it seemed and Aizawa ordered them out of the bus so they obeyed as they did need it after being on the bus for so long though as they did Marinette couldn't help but feel a sudden sense of dread come over her as they exited the bus to stretch or in Mineta's case find a bathroom as he really had to pee. Still, this didn't seem normal and immediately Marinette and Adrien were on edge, years of battles with akumas that could appear out of nowhere having honed their senses to such a thing.
It didn't help that there was an unfamiliar car in the spot as well and as they stretched the doors opened and two women stepped out when Aizawa said that the stop wasn't without reason and two feminine voices called out from the car. Even with the situation, Marinette had to repress a groan as she saw the pro heroes who they were meeting. This was going to give Adrien a lot of ideas and unleash his full Cat Noir pun arsenal.
That was because the women were, well, dressed like first stage cat furries. The women wore matching costumes with the only difference between them the main color with one being red the other light blue. Both wore a sleeveless top with a high white collar, cream middle, and their color on the sides and bands of red across their chests while it was bordered in yellow. This was paired with a frilly skirt in their color and knee-high platform boots with fur lining near the top.
They accessorized their outfits with a red utility belt with a cat paw clasp, a strange headdress that had to be done to try and like cat ears, actual cat paw gloves on their hands, and fully manipulative tails. Then there were the bells at their throats just like what Adrien used to have and smaller ones on upper arm bands.
In fact, the only difference between the pair other than the color was that the one in light blue had a pair of high-tech glasses on for some reason. Well, that and the red one was a brunette with a bob cut and the light blue was a blonde with her hair in a pony tail and a long strand at the front.
"Your feline fantasies are here." The brunette said with some cat like moves. "Say meow."
"Purrfectly cute and cat like girls." The blonde added with a pun that Adrien instantly liked.
"You can call us the Wild Wild Pussycats, half version." They said in unison as they finished their intro and ended in a pose for the gathered class, most of whom were confused by the new arrivals.
Marinette knew one thing though; this was going to unleash Adrien's full Cat Noir that he'd been keeping under wraps since they arrived in the future. She should have checked to see if heroes like this existed in Japan, but she didn't and she knew that the cat puns would begin flowing soon.
"Huh I wonder if they have a claim on the bell or if other cool cats can get one." Adrien muttered as they were doing their thing. "I wouldn't mind getting it back now that I can see that it is accepted in this society as well. It would be purrfect."
"I am sure that we can sort something out on that front after the camp." Marinette said with a groan at Adrien's pun. "But let's focus on this week first, I don't have a good feeling now that these two have appeared and as Class B isn't here it's getting worse."
"These are the pro heroes you will be working with this week." Aizawa said in a board tone as everyone looked at the pair, along with a young boy who was with them but seemed to not want to be there, with confusion. "Well, half of them at least as there are two others in their team."
"They're a four-person hero team that specializes in mountain rescue." Izuku said going into full fanboy mode and explaining the pros to them with a grin that most found a little disturbing. "They were founded forever ago when we were kids. This marks their 12th…"
Before Midoriya could finish the blonde woman, Pixie-Bob as the class would later learn, got clearly irate at what the green haired boy had said and was on the boy in seconds covering his face with one of her paw covered hands. It also showed that the gloves weren't just for show as actual claws were unsheathed from them but didn't touch Midoriya's head, so the gloves were clearly a support item of some sort for the women.
Most of the guys were shocked by this but the girls all understood their classmate's blunder. There were a few things you didn't say to a woman or ask them, weight and age were two such things and clearly Midoriya in his fanboy mode had missed that. Well, that and he was probably too dense to realize his mistake.
"I'm pretty sure your math is off." Pixie-Bob said with a grin on her face that held no warmth as she held Midoriya there. "I'm 18 at heart."
At that most of the class now got the picture and saw how sad it was while Midoriya could only mumble his acknowledgment to the pro hero. Still, the rest did move away from the crazy cat lady still confused as to why they were here.
"Everyone say hello." Aizawa said in a bored tone.
"Hello." Most of the class said respectfully.
"We own all the land you can see." The brunette, who they would learn was called Mandalay and was the group's leader, said as she gestured to the forest before pointing to a location somewhere in the distance. "The summer camp you are staying at is at the base of the mountain over there."
"Er, then why did we stop all the way out here?" Uraraka asked as they all noticed how far away it was and Marinette finally understood where her dread was coming from and resigned herself to what was going to come next.
"I'm afraid we both know the answer to that." Tsu said simply having also deduced what was coming.
"That can't be right." Sato said shaking his head.
"Um back on the bus, quick, let's go." Sero said nervously turning to face the bus.
"Good idea." Kaminari said. "Load up everyone."
The others all made sounds of agreement at that. It was clear that something was coming and most of them wanted no part of it.
"The current time is 9:30 in the morning." Mandalay said with a grin as her tail wagged excitedly. "If you're fast enough, you might make it there by noon."
"No way." Kirishima said his eyes wide as the full extent of the situation hit them. "Guys save yourselves."
"Holy crap." Mina added as several students turned to run back to the bus.
"Kitties who don't make it by 12:30 won't get any lunch." Mandalay added still grinning at them.
"You should have already guessed." Aizawa said as the students ran past him. "That the training camp has already started."
As they reached the bus Pixie-Bob leapt in front of them and placed her paw covered hands on the ground grinning at them. There was a blue glow from her hands and suddenly the earth swelled up and engulfed the entire class. In seconds they were thrown with a few screams over the edge of the cliff and to the ground below.
Thankfully the earth had surrounded them and just deposited them safely on the ground dirty but otherwise unharmed. Several students were on the ground but soon most got to their feet as they looked up the sheer cliff they'd just been atop a moment ago.
"Good news, since this is private land you can use your Quirks as much as you want to." Mandalay called down to them from the cliff. "You've got 3 full hours; you should be able to make it to the facility in that time. That is if you can through the Beasts Forest."
"The Beasts Forest?" Izuku asked with a slight wobble in his voice as they all turned to the forest that they now had to plow through in order to reach the facility.
"Sounds like a name right out of a fantasy game." Kaminari said sounding worried.
"Why do we keep falling for Aizawa's little tricks." Jiro said on her hands and knees as Uraraka wailed next to her and Tsu perfectly squatted frog-like between them looking contemplative. "We should have wised up by now."
"I guess there's no use complaining." Kirishima said with a shrug. "Might as well get going."
"Right but we need to plan first." Marinette said, she'd rolled with the earth so as to land on her feet and walked forward looking out unfazed by the current situation as Mineta sped off to trees to pee proclaiming that he was still holding it despite what had happened. "Girls, on me, we can work together. Adrien, Bakugo, Midoriya, you three take the boys and plan with them as there are more of you."
"Don't order me around like you're better than me Dupain-Cheng." Bakugo shouted back at her his hands sparking and grinning as he did. "I'm going to get there first just watch, that's what the best does."
However, before anything else could be said a giant, brown, monstrosity appeared in their vision just in the forest and right in front of Mineta who was the first past the tree line as he looked for a spot to piss. He was the closest and any hope of holding his bladder ended at the sight of the thing as it let go and he peed his pants while several students yelled in fear or took fighting stances. Marinette was in the latter camp on this and activated her Lucky Charm to create an item to destroy this monster and any others that they might face.
"Be calm my giant friend." Koda yelled surprising everyone by his boldness to run out first and take the initiative before anyone else while also speaking for the first time for many of them to hear but as it might be an animal it made sense for him to go for it. "You don't want to hurt him or any of us."
Alas it didn't seem to work but at the last minute Midoriya rushed in, he body glowing and sparking with power as he did, saving Mineta and carrying him away. As he did Marinette saw the clod of dirt fall from the creature's neck and realized that it wasn't an animal, so Koda's Quirk wasn't going to work on it. The blue cat lady had to be controlling it and had some earth elemental style Quirk as she'd been the one to make the earth move earlier.
As all of this was happened Lucky Charm had created something unexpected for Marinette, a pair of things. Sure, it was two of the same item, but it was more than usual. What she'd gotten was a pair of slender, futuristic, well for her futuristic, looking handguns that where rectangular with slits for barrels in a replica of the school uniform that she was currently wearing. Somehow she knew what it would do and as Midoriya grabbed Mineta she lined up her shot.
Before any in the class could act, and already Todoroki, Bakugo and Ida were moving forward to take it out, Marinette fired. A blast of pink light shot out of the end of her right gun, through the would-be attackers' ranks and over a shocked Koda's shoulder as it made its way to the monstrosity that was threatening the class.
The guns were clearly an energy weapon of some kind and didn't seem to have any recoil as the blast hit the monster in the head and went through its body to exit the rear and hit a tree that blew up from the impact. As for the dirt monster, it was torn apart by the blast and reduced to a fine earth dust.
"Well, that was more powerful than expected." Marinette noted as everyone, including the 3 who'd already began to move, turned to look at her in shock while a dirt cloud rose into the sky. "What?"
"Damn, of course you'd be ready." Jiro said admirable as Marinette stood there her right gun pointing to the sky, the left at the ground. "Somehow that look really suits you as well."
"I just got ready as soon as I knew what we were facing." Marinette said simply before taking charge of the situation. "But we need to get moving. Bakugo, Todoroki, Ida, Midoriya, you four have the greatest firepower and raw strength so go up front and be the frontal attack. Take out anything in your path and be our frontal assault force."
"Shut up I know what to do." Bakugo yelled as he blasted off.
"Todoroki, keep up with him." Marinette said to the two-tone boy. "He could set fire to the forest if he's too reckless so your ice will be needed and between you two the big ones can be taken care of with ease."
Todoroki just nodded as he headed off after Bakugo. Midoriya and Ida didn't need any orders, they knew a good plan and followed working together to help clear a path for the class with Ida's engine powered kicks and Midoriya's punches.
"Right back to the main plan." Marinette said to the mostly shocked remaining class though Adrien was just grinning as his lady showed why she had received the Ladybug Miraculous from Master Fu. "Momo, Adrien and I need weapons. My Lucky Charm won't last but I can recharge as I have some food on me but in the breaks between uses I need something. Adrien needs a staff for similar reasons."
"On it but I can't make you yo-yo as I don't know its specifics and it is clearly a special support item." Momo said as she quickly made a staff out of a dense metal for added stopping power and was about the right length for Adrien to use easily.
"That's fine give me a sword in a sheath, my yo-yo is too unique to be replicated by anyone but its creator." Marinette said. "Now, girls to me, I'll coordinate you, guys to Adrien, trust him he knows what he's doing."
"Thank you m'lady." Adrien said as the groups moved without question as it was clear that Marinette knew what she was doing.
"We need to get moving as I doubt those 4 will get rid of everything and I am sure that blue cat lady can make more between us and them to test the whole class." Marinette said as Momo began making her what she needed. "And we need to know what is coming and where to go. Jiro, you are on scouting for enemies as your Quirk is best for that. Search and directions will be Koda and Shoji so Adrien will sort that out. Momo, you are on destruction with me but don't make too big canons, go with something more handheld so as to preserve your lipids. Uraraka, Tsu, you two are together to float, toss high, and then release what you can. Tsu take to the tree and the vines as that is the best terrain for your Quirk."
"What about us?" Mina asked pointing to herself and Hagakure already defaulting to Marinette's lead, something they all did but at least Momo was stunned by the extent of Marinette's ability to calmly take charge of the current situation, but she'd dwell on that later as she finished making what her friend had asked for. "What are our roles?"
"Destabilize and bait." Marinette said simply. "Your acid can weaken the bases of these things so focus on that while your mobility and agility can get you around to help where needed Mina. Toru, the only use you have right now is as bait, sorry. Bring them in and Momo and I will destroy them."
"Can do." Both girls said with a nod, at least Marinette thought they both were as it was always hard to tell with Toru.
"Marinette, here." Momo said handing Marinette what she'd made for her. "This should work when you can't use your Quirk."
Marinette looked at the weapon with a slight confusion. The sword was in a black sheath with a circular guard and long, black handle that was clearly meant to be wielded with both hands. It also had a slight curve to it. There was a strap for it to be worn on her back and Marinette put one pistol in the skirt waistband to put the sword on her back and tighten it before withdrawing the gun again.
"It's a standard Japanese katana." Momo explained. "It's the typical Japanese sword with a single edge that I've made sharper than usual, and the metal is a strong alloy given what we are up against. It should serve you when needed."
"Ok it won't be pretty, but I can wield a sword in a pinch." Marinette said. "And a good backup. Now let's get moving."
The girls nodded and they headed into the forest, Momo making what she needed as they moved, ready to plow through the forest as fast as possible. It was time to show their teacher and the pros what they could do.
As they girls were getting ready the boys were doing the same. They'd gone to Adrien to listen a little surprised that he'd take charge under Marinette, but they all knew that the top girl in their class and her boyfriend were more experienced thanks to the French system they came from so there was some deference to them.
"Ok we have to work together to maximize this." Adrien said the staff Momo had made in in his hand and ready to use when they moved out. "It's pretty straightforward and we can use our Quirks, so this won't be too hard. With those 4 up front we can follow in their wake and take care of what gets past or is made between us and them. On that, Kirishima, Sato, you two are together leading this group as you have the greatest raw strength here. I'll back you up with my own and my Cataclysm while Ojiro and Tokoyami assist as their Quirks are a good complement for what I can do."
"Right." Kirishima said with a nod as Sato pulled out some sugar and the other two boys murmured agreements to Adrien's plan as it was where they would be best suited.
"Be careful though." Adrien said seriously to Kirishima and Sato. "Remember why you failed the practical and don't make that mistake again. Pace yourselves and take breaks to avoid overusing your Quirks and the drawbacks that come with that."
"We won't." Sato said waiting to eat the sugar for the right moment. "We won't fail again."
"Good now Mineta, Sero, you two are on incapacitate and immobilize duty as you're the best two in the class at that." Adrien said looking to the other two. "Sero, like with the race in Field Gamma, take to the trees with your Quirk and take down anything airborne because there's no way that this will be solely forest floor level monsters. Ground them for us to deal with. Mineta, you are the same but on the ground. Don't worry about destroying them, trust in us to do so."
"Got it." Sero said.
"I'll make them pay for what they did to me." Mineta wailed for once not focused on perverted things even if the reason for his motivation came from the usual part of his body that motivated him.
"I expect no less." Adrien said before turning to the next two. "Koda, Shoji, you are our directions, navigators and first warning signs though coordinate with Jiro on that front as well as she's the other recon specialist in the class. Use your Quirks to find the fasted path to the facility while also alerting us to what is coming. Can you do that?"
"With ease." Shoji said while Koda just nodded in agreement.
"Alright." Adrien said turning to the last two. "Kaminari, Aoyama you two are our precision force. Destroy what is needed and aid us while protecting our scout team but remember your limitations and don't overdo it. You both have side effects that can take you out of a fight so be aware of your limits and this time don't push them, this is about survival not growth."
"Oui, I will sparkle for all." Aoyama said.
"Ground them and I'll fry them." Kaminari said.
"Good just don't go stupid unless you have no choice." Adrien said. "Tokoyami, there is plenty of cover so Dark Shadow should be strong, stick to the shadows to keep him charged."
"As I always do." Tokoyami said with a nod. "This is the best conditions for me, shadow with enough light for control."
"Right, and on that let's move out." Adrien said and the boys roared as they charged. "Together we can do this in the time limit."
All this only took a few moments and with the 4 up front they were able to follow in their wake with ease as they began to make their way through the forest. From this point on it was pure teamwork, survival and skill as they made their way to the facility as a class while showing everyone what they could do. Of course, Pixie-Bob wasn't going to make it easy for them.
Almost as soon as they got into the forest they encountered more dirt creatures that appeared between them and the vanguard they'd sent out at the start. However, they were ready for them, and the class began to work in tandem to get through the 'beasts' and to the facility.
Marinette couldn't help but smile as they worked together to get through the forest. It wasn't easy but they could do it. She saw it all as they progressed, be it the monsters stuck by Mineta's balls, caught by Sero's tape, the way Ochaco and Tsu worked together to make a monster float before the latter threw it into the sky with her tongue and then Ochaco dropped it, Marinette noted them all. There was a lot of ground to cover to get, but they were managing it.
It was clear how much they'd grown in the semester alone, as well as since the finals. This was seen by Kirishima and Sato not overdoing their Quirks but only activating or powering up when needed and taking breaks during which Adrien, Tokoyami and Ojiro took over the front position for their group while the others fell back to take out those taped up or stuck by Mineta's balls. Even Kaminari was being sensible and not unleashing all his electricity right away while Mina was sensible sliding on her acid and destabilizing any monster she found or that were distracted by Toru's helpless act.
As this was going on, Marinette and Momo were using their ranged weapons to take down what they could. Marinette was glad to see that Momo had made an auto-canon that she could carry and focusing more on heavy ammunition for it as she fired from the hip, her shirt unbuttoned for easy access, that took out heads and chests of the monsters rather than going for a massive canon like she usually went for. Meanwhile, Marinette was shooting at the dirt monsters and blowing them apart, something Aoyama was also doing with his Navel Laser that seemed to work similar to Marinette's guns, every time she had an opening.
Of course, the time limit would run out quickly and as soon as it did Marinette pulled out a protein cube from a pocket in her skirt, something she'd had to add because it didn't have one when she got it and ate it before drawing the katana Momo had made her and charging at the nearest monster. With a leap, Marinette was at head height and took it off, running down its back as she pressed forward to take the fight to the monsters until she could use Lucky Charm again.
"Not bad bugaboo." Adrien said as Marinette reached him just as he caught a monster's clumsy swipe with his glowing left hand and Cataclysm destroyed it in a few seconds. "You know how to handle that well."
"It's more just employing what I know from using my yo-yo to it." Marinette said as they ran, taking the leg from on of the monsters while Adrien touched the other one before Cataclysm ended and he too ate a protein cube. "It will do until I can use my Quirk again."
"Then just like old times." Adrien said as he leapt and crushed the head of a monster with his staff, flipping over it to land on the other side. "Nothing wrong with doing things old school."
"For the moment." Marinette said as they continued on. "But soon it will be back to the new way things are for us."
It was grueling work, made harder by the fact that the blue cat lady clearly knew where they were and had a wide range for her Quirk which was to be expected from a pro though Marinette was certain that there was more to their situation then just that pro's Quirk. However, she couldn't focus on it as she fell into a rhythm of fighting with Adrien when she couldn't use her Lucky Charm and falling back when she could get the guns again as they were the most effective thing she seemed to be able to make to destroy these monstrosities.
All this time they were being directed from the rear by Shoji, Jiro and Koda so that they were heading in the right direction. The three members of their class with search and scout Quirks were doing a great job keeping them on track and alerting them to monsters that appeared between them and the front four who had carved the initial path and were still doing so but they were closing it on them. It was as they were moving that the alert from Shoji came of a particularly troublesome batch of dirt monsters that were now in bound.
"We've got 4 flying ones incoming and there's no way Bakugo can get up to deal with them." Shoji called out alerting them to the problem as Bakugo had been good at taking out the airborne ones that appeared before him as he could do so without Todoroki bothering him. "They're coming from different directions and he's busy with some monstrosity up front with Todoroki."
"Then we need to bring them to a common point." Marinette said towards the back as she had her guns at the moment and an idea came to her mind. "That way Sero can trap some while I deal with the others."
"How?" Jiro asked confused, she knew that Marinette was good, but this seemed a bit much even for her.
"Trust me." Marinette said spined the guns in her hands before holstering them in the waistband of her skirt at the small of her back and yelling out. "Toru, get over here!"
"What do you need Marinette?" Toru said running over as Momo blasted away the monster she'd brought to them with her acting.
"Time to fly." Marinette said with a grin. "Don't worry, I'll make sure that you aren't harmed."
Then, before her friend could act, Marinette got behind her, grabbed the invisible girl by the back of her collar and the waistband of her skirt, and then kicked her legs from under her as she spun around a few times to make things easier. She used all her strength to lift Hagakure off the ground, which was easy given her enhanced constitution, and then launched the girl high into the air at an angle as far as she could physically throw her.
"Marinette!" Toru screamed her arms waving as she flew but the sound seemed to attract the flying dirt things and they converged on her. "I don't like this!"
"Sero, take out the two nearest you." Marinette yelled as she ran after her friend while most just stared in shock at the sight though Adrien was grinning at her, and it took but a glance for them to be on the same wavelength. "Boost me kitty."
"With pleasure." Adrien said dropping his staff and falling to a knee as he laced his fingers together. "Show them what you can do bugaboo."
Marinette just smirked as she leapt up, putting her foot into Adrien's hands as he leant back and threw her upwards at an angle and over his shoulder. Behind him was a large, bipedal monstrosity that Marinette was about to use. With a flip, she got over it and placed her right foot on the back of its head before pushing herself off it with all the power she could muster and launching herself forward though at a shallower angle than she'd thrown Hagakure.
She was so focused on her task that Marinette didn't see that she'd used so much force she'd pushed the monster down and into the ground. Adrien just rose calmly, staff in hand, and spun it to bring the end down through the thing's head ending it before he ran on, Ojiro joining him this time while those watching stared at the sequence with slack jaws.
Meanwhile, Marinette was in the air as she sped towards a still screaming Hagakure. As this was happening the 4 flying things got closer, but Sero appeared above the trees on one side and bound the wings of two of them downing them for his classmates to take care of before disappearing into the branches again. As this was happening, Marinette reached Hagakure and turned to face her, looking up at her friend.
"I told you to trust me." Marinette said with a smile and a wink as she pulled the guns out from behind her back. "I just needed to draw them in."
With that Marinette turned slightly and shot both guns at the same time into the heads for the other two flying things, destroying them in seconds and downing them in the proves, before holstering the guns again in a single move. She then repositioned herself and twisted so that she could catch her friend. That came a second later as the girl slammed into Marinette in midair, but the French transfer student easily caught her princess style.
With Hagakure in her arms, Marinette looked down to and braced herself as the ground came up to her and she landed on the forest floor, her knees bent and skidding from the impact. The result was a set of grooves in the ground before she came to a stop, her back to a tree with a frazzled and dazed Hagakure still being held in her arms.
"See, not to bad." Marinette said with a smile as she put her friend on the ground and grabbed her shoulders to steady her and make sure she was ok. "You did a great job there Toru."
"Not again, please." Hagakure said swaying a bit before she noticed something. "Mar…"
The invisible girl didn't get a chance to say anything more as Marinette drew a gun and fired it sideways and behind her, the blast of light scoring a line in the side of the bipedal dirt monster behind her. Marinette could still hear it though and she turned fully to face it drawing her other gun in the process.
"Must have been off slightly." Marinette said firing the second one and taking out its head and upper chest this time. "There much better."
"We need to keep moving forward." Adrien said as he and Ojiro reached them while the 'dead' monster fell backwards to break apart on the forest floor. "Ojiro, make sure Hagakure is alright and gets to the rear guard, she needs a bit of a break."
"Right." Ojiro said.
"Marinette, let's move." Adrien said running past her.
"On it." Marinette said trusting Ojiro to take care of Hagakure as she pressed on in Adrien's wake.
"Are you ok?" Ojiro asked as the others began to catch up.
"I think so." Hagakure said still dazed but looking at her friend's back as she ran on guns drawn without any hesitation or break. "But damn, Marinette is something else. Every time I think she has to be at the point where she's got to hit the ceiling she just blasts through it. She's truly an inspiration for us."
"She really is." Jiro said. "And we will catch up to her."
Momo just nodded as she blasted another monster away but still something was nagging her. She'd had this feeling since she'd met the French pair and seen just how good they were compared to the rest of the class, but it kept getting stronger the more she saw of Marinette's character. The way she'd so calmly and decisively taken charge and led them forward without hesitation, that went beyond class and training to Momo.
There was some level of experience there, but she had no idea what it was or how Marinette had attained it, same with Agreste if what Todoroki had said to her about his own leadership skills that he'd seen during their internships when they were in the middle of their final exam against Mr. Aizawa. It was a conundrum to her but one she couldn't dwell on right now as they had to push on without distractions.
Up ahead, Marinette had no idea that this was going on as her guns timed out and she drew the katana again next to Adrien fighting by his side like she'd done countless times before. This seemed to never end but she was going to push on and keep moving until they got to the end. After all, how long could it take?
Several Hours Later
The sun was beginning to set when finally, the members of Class 1-A reached the facility. Shoji had found it half an hour earlier thanks to a tip from Koda and they'd pushed on as a class having long caught up to the front four to reach it, destroying the last few monsters only moments ago. Now, several hours later than they'd been told it would take them, they'd reached the training camp area and walked out of the trees. They were a sight to behold.
All of them were staggering as they came into the cleared area in front of the facility. None of them were free of dirt though none were injured, just exhausted and past their limits. This was clear by Bakugo holding his left wrist, the ice on Todoroki's right side, Uraraka holding a hand to her mouth as she tried not to vomit, Koda massaging his horse throat, Tsu's tongue lolling out, Ida limping having stalled an engine, Mineta's bleeding scalp, Aoyama holding his stomach, Ojiro carrying his sore tail, a dumb Kaminari and Momo having to be supported at the end of her limit and that was just the most noticeable of them.
They were all staggering as they reached the point before their teacher and the two pros where they finally stopped. Marinette was being held up by Adrien having overused her own Quirk at the end and feeling drained due to forcing out a last Lucky Charm without fully recharging earlier thus using her own energy reserves, the katana she held in her right hand falling from her limp fingers as they reached the stopping point. Adrien was better but his left hand was twitching slightly from using Cataclysm so much with it though he hadn't pushed it past its limit this time.
As they got there the class stopped and Sato fell to his knees while the rest just stood there in a near zombified state from all they'd been through. As they did, Aizawa just stared at them with his usual bored expression.
"You said it would only be about 3 hours." Sero complained somehow able to speak. "Not closer to 8."
"I guess we timed it based on how long it would take us to complete it, sorry." Mandalay said not sounding sorry at all.
"Now your bragging about how much better you are, that's so mean." Sato said with a slight whine in his voice.
"I'm starving." Kirishima said. "This is hell."
"Meow, meow, meow, meow." Pixie-Bob squealed happily behind her gloves. "I thought it would take you a lot longer against my dirt monsters, but you did great, whoever coordinated you at the start really knows how to lead."
"That would be Dupain-Cheng, the raven-haired girl with the pigtails and clear French accent who has clearly gone Plus Ultra to get here." Aizawa said in his usual tone to point out who had been responsible and showing his praise at the same time. "Other than the four who set off at the start, she was the one you heard coordinating the class with the help of Agreste, the other exchange student from France and her partner there. As such, I'll allow the closeness between them right now this one time."
All Marinette could do was nod in thanks. She was exhausted, dirty, and in need of a lot of food to recharge. Even her semifinal with Todoroki where she'd used ice to recharge hadn't left her this drained though her injuries had distracted her back then. It seemed that if she pushed past her limits and drew on her own body's energy rather than that from food then she would need longer to recharge, that was something she'd have to overcome if she wanted to be a great hero in this new world she was in.
"Yes, yes, but those four you mentioned were especially good, it's seems like you've had quite the bit of experience." Pixie-Bob said licking her lips and unable to contain herself anymore as she launched herself at the boys in question. "I call dips on these kittens; I'll groom them myself."
"That doesn't sound right at all." Adrien muttered as he held Marinette up and looked over to see the crazy blue lady who'd just put them through hell to get here surrounding Ida, Midoriya, Todoroki, and Bakugo with a crazed vigor as they tried to ward her off. "What's up with that?"
"If I had to guess, she really wants kids and knows that biology is closing her window." Marinette muttered in French so that only Adrien could here and understand as Aoyama was now on the ground in pain from overusing his Quirk and Momo out of earshot. "So, seeing young, strong, males have set her off. Good thing I'm on you right now or else she might target you as well."
"Ah I see." Adrien said still a little confused as they all watched the strange sight. "That is a bit creepy if you ask me."
"Er, Mandalay, has she always been like this?" Aizawa asked confirming the name of the brunette pro.
"She's at the age to take a mate." Mandalay said with a sigh confirming what Marinette had suspected. "So, she gets like this around prospective ones but don't worry, I'll reign her in this week."
"Speaking of people's ages." Izuku said before once again Pixie-Bob's hand grabbed his face with a pawed hand, claws out.
"Choose your words carefully boy." Pixie-Bob threatened darkly her mood changing on a dime at Midoriya's words.
"I was just wondering who the kid was." Izuku's muffled voice said pointing to the boy next to Mandalay that they had all noticed earlier. "What's he doing here?"
"Oh, this little guy." Mandalay said with a smile. "He's my cousin's son who lives with us now. Don't be shy Kota, say high to everyone, you're going to be around them for the next week so be polite."
The boy, Kota, didn't say anything so they all watched as Midoriya approached him. It was a classic Midoriya thing to do and showed how big his heart was.
"Hello, my name is Izuku Midoriya and I'm from the U.A. Hero Course." Izuku said holding his hand out to Kota. "What…"
However, before he could say anything more Kota cocked his little fist back and punched Midoriya square in the balls. That instantly shut the green haired boy up as he doubled over in pain while all the boys grimaced in sympathy for him, or in Bakugo's case smirked as it had happened to Deku.
"You fiend, a punch to the scrotum is unforgivable." Ida said rushing over to help his friend out.
"The last thing I want to do is hang with some wannabe heroes." Kota snarled and Marinette saw a look of hate, rage and sadness on the boys face as he glared at Ida and Midoriya, none of which belonged on someone so young.
"Wannabe?" Ida asked. "How old are you kid?"
"That brat's got spunk." Bakugo said with a grin.
"He's like a mini version of you." Todoroki said bluntly.
"What are you talking about you icy-hot bastard." Bakugo yelled rounding on Todoroki who didn't move or change his expression at all. "Why don't you shut your mouth before I blast you all the way to hell."
"Right, whatever." Todoroki said his point proven to the whole class.
"That's enough." Aizawa said getting the class's attention. "You had better get your stuff off the bus and take it to your rooms. Then we are having dinner in the cafeteria. After that you can bath and then sleep. Your training begins in earnest tomorrow, you had better be ready for that."
With that Aizawa turned and entered the facility. The students were still drained but at the thought of food, a much-needed bath, and sleep they found new life and headed to the bus to get their stuff and bring it to their rooms.
Mandalay and the other woman, who finally introduced herself as Pixie-Bob, helped show them to their quarters to drop their stuff off. It was one large room for the boys of class A and one, smaller one, for the girls.
Marinette wasn't a fan of not sleeping with Adrien, but she had to do it this time of course and dropped her stuff off in the traditional Japanese room the girls had as they sorted out the futons for them and how they'd sleep. Then it was a quick change into casual clothes off to the cafeteria for some need food and a bath afterwards.
None of the girls could wait for that and what the training camp had in store for them. Little did any of them know what was coming for the students of U.A.'s Hero Course as the Summer Camp in the woods began.
Ah a nice little bit of foreboding of what is to come but we are several chapters off that at the moment, first off we have some fun filled chapters and training to do. The only thing to really mention from this chapter is that for the first time I've brought in stuff in from the School Briefs light novel series that is a supplemental series in MHA that tells various stories that didn't make it into the anime or manga. In this case it's the references to what was going on in the bus that glossed over one of the chapters in the second School Briefs book (I've not read the first one hence why it wasn't included) which does include why Mineta needed to pee so badly in the anime and soon the first full chapter drawn from a School Brief book will come out, but I won't say anymore on that now. There will be a few other chapters in the future that draw from those materials, but I will let y'all know when that happens. Anyway, that is all I have for y'all so I will leave this chapter off here. If you like it or have any questions please let me know in reviews or PMs, I will try to answer them as best I could and post any questions asked between uploads at the start of the next chapter and do follow and favorite this, so you are alerted to future uploads. Do keep the reviews coming as I like hearing from y'all as you enjoy my work, it motivates me to keep producing the best work I can for y'all to enjoy. Until next time.
Stringdog
