New chapter time. For once I publish this at a normal time and not after midnight. (unfortunatly I had to go to work once I finished writing before I published)
CW: graphic violence, blood, vomit
This chapter also gets a bit uncomfortable with discussion about the prevalence of female heroes and the dangers that go with the profession for women specifically. I'm sticking with implying the worst but it is a very clear implication. Just a warning. If you want to skip that part it starts at "And it's more dangerous if you are a woman," and ends at " Seeing his downcast face "
==========================VI==========================
Tenno Codex Archive: Focus Schools
After receiving combat training from loyal Dax, the Tenno explored their power and founded various schools. Each school was a means to refine and control their unstable Void abilities by "focusing" on a certain aspect. In total five Focus Schools were created, each reflecting the values of discipline engrained through harsh Dax Training. Each school also created its own martial art for hand-to-hand combat.
[Madurai, School of the Fighters]
The path of Madurai, in contrast to the other schools, is all about unleashing one's power without restraint. Madurai is all about increasing damage through raw power rather than technique. The core tenets of energy efficiency were shared with the other schools.
[Vazarin, School of the Protectors]
Those of the Vazarin school choose a more supportive role on the battlefield. Able to increase the durability of the user as well as allow them to channel their Void energy to heal others. The core tenets of self-healing and reinforcement were shared with the other schools.
[Naramon, School of the Tacticians]
Naramon, the path of tactics and understanding. Followers of this school analyze and exploit the weaknesses of their opponents. They are masters of close-quarters combat, using their powers to disable and close the distance to unleash a relentless combination of blows that grows stronger the longer they persist. The core tenets of speed were shared with the other schools.
[Unairu, School of the Indomitable]
Unbreakable, invincible. Able to fight on even on the verge of death, users of Unairu are the most durable Tenno. They can increase their own durability and sunder the defenses of others, while also healing their Warframes from critical damage without a revival surge. They also can protect others with their Void energy. The core tenets of Warframe resurrection were shared with the other schools.
[Zenurik, School of the Arcane]
Rather than focusing on amplifying raw power, users of Zenurik channel their energy into their Warframes and themselves. Their abilities enhance and disrupt the enemy as well as increase the reserve of energy for them and their allies. The core tenets of energy regeneration and capacity were shared with the other schools.
==========================VI==========================
[Takoba Municipal Beach Park, July 18th, 2242]
"Well done young Izuku!" Toshinori tossed his successor a water bottle. Along the beach, an area about the size of two basketball courts had been cleared. If he had to guess, it was about 15% of the litter cleared. With seven months to go until the entrance exam, he would likely finish maybe a week or two earlier than expected, just in time for the U.A. exams. "You've achieved so much in so little time, and by yourself too!" He was worried with the way things were going that Izuku would overdo it and not stick to his training plan. Since Inko was in the know about the full extent of his training, she'd been keeping him from overexerting himself.
Toshinori looked over to the other side of the beach, where Haylee was levitating while meditating. She was taking a break from her training of stamina increase and weightlifting to increase her energy reserves while in Excalibur form. Given his lack of understanding of Warframes, he wasn't sure it would work, but she'd informed him that her reserves were increasing slowly.
"I think it's time for a break from lifting trash, we've made good progress on the beach today." Toshinori decided. "How about you practice throwing some punches?" He suggested.
"Alright!" Izuku nodded enthusiastically. He ran out into the empty patch of sand and began to punch at the air, mimicking some of Toshinori's punches as All Might.
Haylee cracked an eye open, watching his moves. 'He's not very good at it…' Izuku's punches were wide and telegraphed. With a grunt she relaxed and unfolded her legs to a standing position, dropping to the sand seconds later. With two quick Void dashes, she was standing next to Mr. Yagi. "Is that all the combat training you're having him do?"
Toshinori almost jumped, having detected the shift in the air generated by her arrival. "Ah, young Tenno!" He hurried to offer her a seat but she hopped over the bench instead. "I've been having him practice his form since I can't spar with him effectively due to my size." He was just as tall as his hero form, and even when slouching in his skinny form he still towered above the boy.
Haylee looked over at Izuku, then back to Mr. Yagi, and then back to Izuku. Then she gestured to herself, raising an eyebrow.
"Ah." Well, now he looked like an idiot. "You're both going to be a first year. Combat skills aren't a requirement." His mind flashed back to Gran Torino's battle trial on the second day of his only year at U.A. It was a lesson he was planning on repeating, although not as… intense as his former teacher had been.
Now that he thought about it, perhaps he should change his lesson plan. The battle trial was meant to gauge the current skill set of the students and see where they needed to start. Not every student was proficient in combat, especially if they got in mostly on rescue points. The difference in Izuku's combat skills against someone like Haylee would be like pitting a toddler against a 10th-degree black belt. Perhaps he should think of a different way to gauge their skills. Haylee wouldn't be the only strong student, and Torino's methods were a bit overkill for the second day. He'd have to push the battle trial back in his lesson plan.
"I'm already planning on teaching him to use a sword. Do you mind if I teach him a bit of hand-to-hand?" Haylee asked. "Because honestly, his form is shit." She stated bluntly.
"I don't see why not…" Toshinori cleared his throat. "Howev-"
"Great." Haylee interrupted before spinning around. "Oi, Izuku!"
"Yes Ten- Haylee?" The green-haired boy yelped, still unused to using her name.
"Punch me in the face." She demanded.
"E-eh!?" Izuku sputtered, wildly waving his arms around. "Punch you? I-... I can't punch-"
"Well, I meant to try to punch me. I'll defend myself." She corrected. "You ever punched someone before?"
He shook his head.
"Seriously?" He nodded at her. "Have you been in a fight at all?"
"I… a few. But I never threw a punch." He avoided her gaze.
'With how skittish he is, he probably didn't fight back too much, if at all.' She realized. 'Especially if he didn't have a quirk.' Haylee clenched her fist. There was nothing she hated more than people oppressing the weak.
Not that the current Izuku was weak. He could probably break her arm easily judging by how much weight he could lift. She shuddered to think what he could do with One For All, especially since it was supposed to become even stronger than when All Might had it. With enough experience, Izuku would be a monster. Right now though? He was panicking at the thought of having to punch someone.
"C'mon, come at me." Haylee took up a sparring pose. "Don't worry about hurting me."
Izuku hesitantly put up his hands like a boxer. Toshinori watched intently. His stance was far too wide. He drew back his fist and threw a punch. He didn't tuck his thumb into his fist. Good, he knew that much at least.
She could see his punch coming from a mile away. He was looking where he was aiming, plus it was slow and easily telegraphed. What really annoyed her was when she noticed him try to pull his punch.
Izuku didn't even see her move. The next thing he knew Haylee had swatted his hand to the side. Then she disappeared from his view.
After blocking Haylee ducked into a sweeping kick and knocked Izuku's legs out from under him, sending him facefirst into the sand. Toshinori cringed.
"What the hell was that?!" Haylee scowled.
Izuku groaned and sat up, spitting out sand. "A… a punch?" He quavered.
Haylee stalked over to him and grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him to his feet. "That wasn't a punch. You held back."
"I didn't want to hurt you!" That was apparently the wrong thing to say judging by her increasingly irate expression.
"Don't worry about hurting me dammit! Even if you hit me, it's not going to hurt and I can heal dumbass!"
"Your quirk stops you from feeling pain?"
"No, it's a genetic condition. My dad had it, and couldn't feel pain. I can feel it, but it doesn't hurt."
He remembered back when they had first met and she cut her finger. She'd been more angry about getting blood on the sculpture than getting hurt. 'Oh, congenital analgesia?"
She tilted her head. "Is that what it's called here? I think so, but I'd have to look it up later." Izuku was kinda like a walking codex of heroes and scientific knowledge. Kinda like a less annoying version of Ordan. "Not really important though. Just try and hit me. Don't worry about hurting me. See?" She grabbed her hand and yanked one of her fingers back with a sharp crack without even flinching.
Izuku paled and jerked back in shock. Toshionri sprinted up behind them with wide eyes. "Young Tenno, what are you doing!" He yelled.
"Relax, see?" Haylee held up her finger, which had gone from bruised and purple to fully healed within a few seconds. "It's not a big deal."
Toshinori put his hands on his hips and scowled. "I told said you could spar with him, not hurt yourself."
"But I'm not. I can heal, and the pain just fades away." She shrugged casually. It was kind of like when she transformed. Sure, it burned like a bitch when she changed into Excalibur but it was temporary. When she'd first transformed it hurt a lot, but once she got used to the feeling it was like an itch.
The hero paused. "That's… that's not my point. There's a difference between getting injured from training and intentionally harming yourself." Even heroes with powerful regeneration quirks didn't injure themselves unnecessarily. Regeneration had its limits, so they stuck to strict training regiments with safety protocols. Only the most foolish heroes with self-healing quirks rushed in. Just because you could heal didn't mean you had to take every hit.
But also, he didn't like to see children hurting themselves.
"Mr. Yagi with all due respect I've been shot, stabbed, burned, and more. Breaking my fingers or getting decked in the face isn't going to phase me." Haylee deadpanned to Toshinori's increasing distress. "You should be more worried about him." She jabbed her thumb toward Izuku.
"Me?" Izuku asked.
"Yes, you. Do you really think that if we're going to be heroes you'll get the luxury of pulling your punches? Fuck no. I could've easily killed you while you were on the ground." She growled.
"Young Tenno, don't you think you're being a little harsh? He's still learning." Toshinori argued. "And I told you that combat skills aren't a requirement for first-years."
"Mr. Yagi, what is the requirement for the practical exam?" Haylee challenged. She already knew from a little research online from previous years. There wasn't a NDA for participating so she knew it usually involved some sort of physical test.
"You know I can't tell you-" He started to reply, shrinking back from her irritated gaze.
"I've looked it up. It has some combat in it most of the time." Haylee interjected, Izuku nodded in confirmation meekly. "So he needs to learn the basics at least. We have like seven months. Do you really think I expect him to be an expert? Plus he will still have to clean the beach and go to school." She pointed out, then crossed her arms. "I'm not mad that he sucks at it, I'm mad that he's trying to pull his punches after I told him to not worry about it."
"While I don't agree with your language," She rolled her eyes. "She does have a point, my boy. Why are you afraid of hurting her?"
"Is it 'cause I'm a girl?" Haylee butted in. Izuku looked away guiltily. "Seriously?" She exhaled loudly in exasperation. "I'm not made of paper, Izuku."
"There was an old superhero comic in the pre-quirk era that said this best: The hammer of justice is unisex." The two teens probably wouldn't get the reference. The only reason he knew was because he was a bit of a pre-quirk hero otaku. Another thing he had in common with the young man, he guessed. "A woman is just as dangerous in a fight as a man. This has always been the case, but quirks evened the playing field even more. Tell me, do you see a lot of hero fights with female villains?"
Izuku tilted his head in thought. Haylee didn't know what he was talking about since she didn't watch the news.
"Not very many?" Izuku said after a brief moment. It wasn't really something he thought about. Now that it was brought up, he didn't remember All Might fighting all that many female villains either.
"Do you know why that is?" Both teens shook their heads. "Because statistically men are much more likely to be the perpetrators of violent crime." While studying in America, Toshinori had taken a few classes on criminal history and sociology. They weren't the most interesting of classes to him, but he found it helpful to know about how villains were created and how criminals were treated throughout history.
Even with quirks in the picture men still committed a disproportionate majority of violent crimes. It was a bit less disproportionate than the pre-quirk era, but still quite a high percentage. "That is only part of the reason why you don't see it very often. The other reasons are because of broadcasting regulations."
Izuku nodded along but Haylee just looked lost. "Regulations?"
"Well, partly regulations, part public relations. People like seeing a big scary villain getting beaten, but not so much when it is a woman." Toshinori explained. "Because according to most agencies and the HPSC hitting a woman is bad for your image. In fact, some heroes will actively avoid cases where the villain is a woman unless the notoriety outweighs the bad publicity." He said, disdain evident.
"That's fuckin' stupid." Haylee quipped. It wasn't really something she'd ever had to worry about. If someone comes at you with a weapon, you kill them. With the Grineer, female units were often just as dangerous as their male counterparts. Scorpions, heavy gunners, pilots, and especially snipers. With the Corpus, there were usually far fewer combatant female units, and usually, they had higher positions like captains or disruptor units.
Since the Corpus were "purpose-bred" (which was all sorts of ick to her), women weren't as prevalent socially. Even though Grineer were a matriarchy their clones stuck to a mostly equal command structure based on what the genetic mold was bred for.
"Yes, it isn't a good thing." Toshinori agreed. "A hero should face villainy no matter what form they take." He hated how many heroes were more worried about their image than justice. "The only thing you should consider, and not just when fighting a woman is how much force is required to take them down. Not every villain needs a "Detroit Smash" to take them out of a fight. Even without a quirk, you can easily kill someone with a single punch depending on where you hit them or where they land. Sometimes you need to test the villain's strength before engaging."
Izuku raised his hand. "How come you usually knock most villains out in a single hit then? Not just you, but a lot of pros."
"Well young Izuku, once you go pro you get a sense for gauging how much someone can take. The art of the non-lethal takedown is something that most good hero schools teach, but it can only be honed by in-field experience. I've been a hero for almost four decades now, remember?"
"He has it easier too," Haylee added. "Since he's not using a weapon. I know how to take people in alive, even when using a sword, but alive doesn't mean intact."
Izuku shivered slightly. He tried to ignore it, but Haylee did have a very violent past. Even if he didn't outwardly show it, it bothered him a lot. She was still his best friend and he knew Haylee was self-conscious about how people in this hero society would treat her. "So that means… I'll have to be careful with One For All and a sword as well…"
Toshinori and Haylee nodded in agreement.
"Now this is a good segue to another important topic, although it's not one that you would hear until maybe your second semester at U.A. Izuku, off the top of your head how many female combat heroes in Japan specifically do you know," Toshinori requested.
"Uhhhm… Ryukyu, Mirko, Mt. Lady… Black Rider… Lady Nagant before she…" he listed off a few lesser-known names as well.
"Now, compare that to the number of male battle heroes you know, especially in the Top 10," Toshinori instructed.
Both Haylee and Izuku thought for a moment. "There's only one woman in the Top 10," Haylee noted. Granted, those were the only heroes she knew about at all since they were supposed to be important.
"That is correct young Tenno. Ryukyu, the Dragoon Hero is currently the only female member of Japan's Top 10." Toshinori confirmed. "Compared to other countries like China and Germany, there isn't as high female representation for combat heroes in Japan among the higher ranks."
"But I see their fights in the news all the time?" Izuku questioned. "Didn't you say they don't like showing women fighting?"
"That I did." Toshinori nodded. "There is a lot of double standards in heroism that aren't talked about. One of which is the portrayal of female villains on the news, and the other is how female heroes are portrayed. There are reasons for this, but not all of them are good reasons."
Seeing the look of interest on both their faces, he continued.
"Back when I first started training to be a hero, the world was a far more dangerous place compared to now. Nowadays you can barely go a street in most major cities without bumping into a hero, but back then people didn't have much hope. Heroes were rare and crime ran rampant. It wasn't as bad as it was back during the Quirk Wars, but it was very bleak." Toshinori explained.
Izuku remembered his mom saying something about how bad things used to be when she was little, and how much the world had changed in such a short time.
"There weren't just fewer female heroes. Overall heroism was seen as a dangerous and unrewarding profession. Back then there were no hero rankings, and heroes worked closely with the government to stop crime." He remembered his youth after his mother died. The atmosphere when he was growing up was grim and depressing. Villains would attack, it wasn't safe to go out at night, and criminal groups like the Yakuza ran rampant. Even if everything looked fine after things were rebuilt, everyone was still afraid, because they had no hope. That was the reason he became All Might, to give them that hope and become a symbol of peace.
"In today's day and age, heroism is seen more as a career. Everywhere you look you see heroes, and everyone wants to be heroes." He shared a look with Izuku, eyes shining with pride. "But even though everyone looks at heroism, it's through the tint of rose-colored glasses. Villains are still dangerous. You see villain fights on the news, correct?"
Izuku nodded.
"Plus the victories, interviews, et cetera. Now, how many times do you see clips where the villains win?"
He never did, at least on official channels. Most of the losses were shot on phones or put on HeroTube, but rarely on the news unless it was controversial. "Not very many," Izuku realized. "Do they… censor them on purpose."
Toshinori nodded gravely. "Most hero fights are run on a delay for news broadcasts in case things take a turn for the worst. Again, this isn't just for female heroes but heroes as a whole. Nobody wants to see their favorite hero get brutally killed. It's not like the movies where the hero gets to die surrounded by their friends. Sometimes you die painfully, other times it's instant with no time to react." He looked down sadly. 'Nana…'
"He's right," Haylee affirmed. Back in the Origin System death lurked around every corner. A quick death was a luxury afforded to the few. She'd seen several people die in horrible ways, some by her own hand.
"I… I know." Izuku probably knew more than most kids about the heroics industry per his personal research. Almost every kid wanted to be a hero but few understood the risks involved because they were so enamored by the lifestyle that they could see on the surface level. "I know that being a hero is dangerous. Despite that, I still want to help save people."
"That is an admirable quality, and it means you will be an incredible hero." He ruffled his successor's hair. "But it does mean you will have to face some disturbing things and do things you aren't comfortable doing." Toshinori then turned to Haylee. "Have you thought about what line of hero work you want to specialize in?"
Haylee dragged her foot in the sand, thinking for a few seconds. "Probably a battle or underground hero? With my skills it just makes sense." She shrugged indifferently. "I don't," Her gaze shot to Izuku. "Have an issue doing messy work. Sneaking around, infiltration, that sort of thing. Maybe undercover? Honestly, I could fit any combat role."
"While you are on that topic, undercover work isn't what most heroes go for. It's largely unrewarding and unrecognized work, and usually more dangerous." Toshinori cautioned. "But I don't think that will be a deterrent for you, will it?"
Haylee shook her head. "I don't care about fame, and I'm used to the danger."
"Given your history that doesn't come as a shock to me," Toshinori said in a tone implying it was a compliment. "Back to the topic of female heroes, most of them choose to go the route of rescue or support hero." He pointed to Izuku.
"Like Uwabami, Thirteen, and the Wild, Wild Pussycats." He said instantly, picking up what Toshinori intended.
"Rescue work usually takes place after an incident, but sometimes they must go in a live combat zone. Often they don't have any protection." Toshinori remembered one team of rescue heroes, the Water Hose husband and wife duo. Both had been tragically killed in battle by an A-rank villain. Their bodies had been badly mangled to the point they were barely recognizable. "And underground or undercover heroes are a rare group, especially if they are women. In my opinion, underground heroes are the bravest type of heroes. They go in with little support, often risking their lives to take down groups much larger than themselves or go undercover to gather information."
"And it's more dangerous if you are a woman," Haylee said in agreement.
"Why is that?" Izuku asked.
"Because you are associating with shitty people with no backup. What do you think happens if you get caught?" She watched Izuku's eyes widen. "They can do worse things than killing you.."
"Oh," Izuku whispered. In the back of his mind, he already knew the answer but didn't want to process the thought.
Seeing his downcast face, Haylee decided to change the subject. "I guess I owe you an apology for getting mad that you were holding back. You're probably not used to facing someone who can heal. If I were anyone else you could seriously hurt me." She cracked her knuckles. "So come at me again, and give it your all."
"I don't approve of you using yourself as a punching bag… but you aren't going to let that stop you, are you." Toshinori sighed as the girl nodded.
"Nope!" She flashed him a cheeky grin.
==VI==
[Takoba Municipal Beach Park, July 26th, 2242]
Haylee had set a few ground rules for whenever they fistfought.
1. Anything goes. He can use any part of his body to attack her.
2. She won't fight back aside from tripping him up when he makes a mistake until he gets five points. Stomach: two points. Chest: three points. Neck and head: Five points.
3. No sword training until he gets ten points.
She'd stipulated that they wouldn't count unless they were solid hits, so a grazing blow would be zero points.
==VI==
[Takoba Municipal Beach Park, August 7th, 2242]
Izuku was on his back again, panting heavily. Every few days they would spar after finishing their strength training. It had been nearly three weeks since they started and he still hadn't managed to score a single point.
"I told you to quit looking where you intend to punch." Haylee leaned over with her hand outstretched. She grabbed him by the arm and hauled him up. "Again."
And so the cycle repeated. He rushed at her, and Haylee easily sidestepped his punch. He followed up with a kick which she blocked, although she did grunt from the powerful blow. Her arm made a cracking noise.
"That one broke my arm." Haylee cautioned, shaking the limb once the bone had mended. "Remember how much force you put into it."
Izuku closed the distance yet again. Per Haylee's suggestion he'd stopped trying to imitate All Might's wide reaching smashes.
"You aren't as big as All Might." She'd told him. "Make your own fighting style. Base it off some other heroes you've seen fight."
No matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't land a hit. Not even a glancing blow to any of the target areas. Every time he got close she would block. If he overextended she grabbed the limb and threw him to the ground. The worst part was he could tell she was barely putting any effort into it. Considering she was doing all this without fighting back Haylee could easily take him down if she took this seriously.
It was just… so frustrating. It wasn't like he wasn't improving. The amount of times Haylee had tossed him around was getting lower and lower as he made fewer mistakes. It just seemed like no matter how hard he tried her reactions stayed the same.
==VI==
Later that night, he kept repeating their sessions in his head. Haylee wasn't the kind of person to give him an impossible task. What was he doing wrong?
He'd stopped looking where he was aiming, started using his whole body and not just the arms for his punches. What was he missing? He was stronger than Haylee physically, but she was just so much faster and more experienced.
His gaze turned to his cell phone on the nightstand. He needed to sleep since tomorrow was a school day, but his buzzing thoughts kept him awake. There was an unread text from Toshinori with a video of their matched attached on display. He'd forgotten about it since he was so exhausted. 'I'll watch this before bed… maybe it will give me some ideas seeing it from the outside.'
As Izuku watched the video, he grew sleepier. He closed his eyes, hearing the rhythmic beat of his heart…
Rhythm.
Izuku's eyes shot open and he shot upright. "I got it!"
==VI==
[Takoba Municipal Beach Park, August 10, 2242]
It was obvious once he realized it. Whenever he fought her there wasn't any pattern to her defence. She reacted based on his attacks, a sort of dance between the two of them. Upon seeing it from the outside, he figured it out.
She was reacting the same way to each type of attack. Each type of punch she would counter with the same arm. If he kicked she would block with her non-dominant hand. Punches she would counter with the opposite arm to swat or block it depending on speed. Now that he knew that he could exploit it.
Haylee could tell that today was different. Izuku was carrying himself with an air of confidence. He had the same gleam in his eye as the day they figured out her Radiant Spear. He was up to something, the question was what?
She hoped that new confidence meant he would finally land a good hit on her. She didn't mind training him since he was talented and learned quickly, but she would be lying if she said she wasn't disappointed he still hadn't scored a point after nearly a month. To be fair, she was trying to be easy, but her "easy" was probably intermediate level to be honest.
'I'm going to do it.' Izuku thought, hyping himself up. 'Today I'm going to score a point!'
Toshinori watched the two teens bow to each other, and then Izuku took off sprinting toward Haylee. In these short few weeks, the boy had come a long way. It was more than he would be able to accomplish without sparring directly, and his size wouldn't exactly make it a fair fight. Plus, he was secretly grateful that Haylee had volunteered since it would eat into less of his time transformed. "Go young Izuku!" He cheered.
Izuku's first punch was just like the others Haylee had blocked. Her friend was getting faster and harder to read. Good. She raised an arm to block his punch, wincing a bit from the impact. In total, he'd broken her arm about six times during their various matches. It seemed like he finally found the right level of strength to use. Unlike previous times, however, she saw that glint in his eyes again.
He was right. She blocked it in the same way he expected. Izuku wanted to cheer but instead, he pressed his attack. Haylee jumped back but he kept on her. He needed to keep her within striking distance. Her arm shot out to try and grab him, assuming he'd made a mistake. To her surprise, he predicted that move and grabbed her by the wrist. 'Shit!' With her stomach exposed, she tried to pivot away but Izuku's grip was like an iron vice. Even with the pride she was feeling she wasn't just going to give him a free hit.
Clearly, Izuku felt the same way because he followed up with a devastating blow right to her stomach. "Gagh!" Haylee choked. 'Fuck, Izuku is strong!' It felt like all the air had left her lungs. She could already feel herself healing from the blow but Izuku didn't stop there. As she staggered back his next punch hit her square in the liver.
'I did it!' Izuku mentally cheered. He was in the zone now. Any thoughts besides his objective cleared from his head. 'Five points… she'll recover before I can hit her below the neck again.' Time seemed to move in slow motion as his fist approached her face, and he realized too late that he was putting too much force into the blow.
CRUNCH!
Her head snapped back as his fist collided with her jaw with a sickening noise of a broken and dislocated bone. She flew back a good two meters, landing on her side on the soft and warm sand.
That snapped him out of his focused state. "Haylee!"
"Tenno!" Toshinori rushed across the beach to the downed girl.
Haylee slowly rose on her hands and knees, wheezing with her jaw hanging unaligned by a few centimeters. She managed to stand albeit with a wobble since she was a bit concussed. As master and student ran up to her, she vomited a mixture of her meal and blood on her shirt.
"I'm sorry! I didn't m-mean to hit so hard!" Izuku apologized while looking like he was about to cry.
"Are you alright?" Toshinori crouched to inspect the damage, wincing at just how far Izuku had dislocated her jaw. She looked like she was missing a tooth as well.
"Nigh puafha." Haylee gargled, then paused, feeling around at her face. "Ag fuhg, ohne segnd."
"Wh-"
They both watched in muted horror as she grabbed her jaw in both hands and forced it back into its socket with a loud pop and a grunt. After that, she massaged her cheeks while smacking her lips experimentally.
"Haylee?" Izuku asked worriedly.
Haylee held up a finger to indicate she needed a second. "I said," she spat out a wad of blood into her hand. "Nice punches. Hit like a truck."
"Are you okay?" Toshinori fussed. "I'll drive you to the hospital to-"
"Calm down old man, I'm fine. Concussions don't take with me." She opened her hand. "Oh, neat. You knocked out a tooth." She held up the bloody object she'd spat out moments prior. "You want it as a trophy?"
Izuku blinked. "What? No! Why would I want… what?!" He gaped, shocked at the suggestion. "That's gross!"
Haylee shrugged. "Eh." The tooth disappeared in a short burst of Void energy, reduced to nothingness. "Figured I'd ask."
"Young lady, please don't offer your teeth as trophies…" Toshinori sweatdropped.
"I mean, I didn't need it anymore. See?" She pulled her cheek back, showing a new tooth already starting to grow.
"That isn't what I meant…"
"Whatever." She turned to Izuku, ignoring the older man's sputtering. "So, you finally figured it out. Took ya' long enough."
"Thanks…" His heart fluttered from the praise.
"But," Haylee continued. "You do realize in a real fight you won't have a month to figure that out, plus I wasn't even fighting back. Good job though."
"I know, I need to think on my feet more." He blushed.
"You know what that means right?" Haylee teased with a smirk. "You scored ten points. That means we move on to harder training and swords, well, after we get some padding. You're not as durable as me." She stated matter-of-factly.
That was a good point. Getting hurt would take time out of his training, and he couldn't regenerate like she could.
"Hey, Izuku." Haylee stared him down with a feral grin.
"Y-yes?" He replied, his fight or flight response telling him to run.
"Some of the training we can start doing now. Today's lesson is how to break out of a chokehold."
Izuku's eyes jolted open, and before he knew it Haylee was straddling his neck. His face turned beet red. It was only thanks to his strength training that he was able to avoid toppling over. Despite her skinnier frame, Haylee was heavier than one would expect. She took advantage of his flustered state to topple him, sending him crashing to the floor with a loud yelp.
Toshinori watched the two wrestle, chuckling at the boy's embarrassed face. Ah, to be a teenager again.
Try as he might, Izuku couldn't pry her legs off his neck. It wasn't enough to actually choke him, but he was still trapped.
Suddenly, a voice called out to them. "Heeeeey! Tenno is that you?!"
Haylee honed in on the voice, recognizing it immediately. "Eikyō?"
==VI==
Lumine had been taking a jog to see which missing person posters needed to be replaced. It was also a bit of cardio to keep in shape for the upcoming entrance exams she needed to take next year. As she ran along the beach her mind wandered, the blue ocean reminding her of the girl she met a few weeks ago.
She'd exchanged numbers with Tenno, but aside from a few texts they hadn't spoken since. She should invite her to hang out sometime as she promised. 'I wonder what she's been up to this past month?' She thought to herself.
Deciding to take a little break, she stopped along the wall. 'Huh. The beach looks a lot cleaner than last time. Come to think of it, wasn't someone working on it a few weeks ago?' The blonde shrugged. It must not be a large crew working on it at the rate it was going.
Lumine squinted. It looked like a skinny older man was down there talking to two other teenagers. 'Wait, I recognize that hair!' She realized. It was Tenno! She should go and say hi.
As she made her way over, she heard the sound of a boy's panicked yell, looking over to see Tenno wrestle a green-haired boy to the ground with her legs wrapped around his neck.
What the-
"Heeeey! Tenno is that you?!" She decided to make her presence known at the best(?) possible moment.
"Eikyō?" Haylee called out. "Long time no see!" She greeted like she wasn't currency choking someone.
"Tenno, do you know this girl?" Toshinori asked.
"Uh huh!" Haylee continued holding Izuku down. "I met her a month ago!"
"Name's Eikyō Lumine!" She flashed the blonde man a smile and bowed.
"Greetings young Eikyō! My name is Yagi Toshinori. I'm this young man's trainer." He pointed his thumb at the green-haired boy currently trapped between Haylee's legs.
"Is he uh, ok?" Lumine questioned. "What exactly is going on here?"
"He's fine," Haylee handwaved. "Just teaching him how to get out of a triangle choke." She looked down and saw how red his face was. 'Oh shit, I didn't think I was holding him that hard.' Seeing that, she released him. "Sorry dude."
Unbeknownst to Haylee, he wasn't lacking for air, and his blush was for an entirely different reason. "H-hi! I'm Midoriya Izuku!" He sputtered, still flustered from an experience that most teenage boys would be jealous of. "N-nice to meet you!"
This was getting out of hand. Now two cute girls were talking to him!
Now that Lumine was close, she could see there was blood (and judging from the smell) vomit on the blue-haired girl's shirt. "Uh, are you okay? There's…"
"Oh, the blood? Don't worry it's mine." She replied, which was not the right answer according to everyone else's expressions. "Oh, crap I forgot about that. Ew!" At least she got most of it on the sand and not her shirt, but it still reeked now that she was noticing it. "Welp." Haylee grabbed her shirt and started to pull it off, causing both the other teens to blush and Toshinori to look away for privacy's sake.
'Holy shit she has nice abs.' Lumine noted, looking over as she heard Izuku squeak and try to cover his eyes. He still had one eye open to peek, just enough that she noticed. 'Boys…' The blonde rolled her eyes. 'Also, man are his are his arms ripped.' She felt a bit self-conscious now about how much effort they had put into training compared to her. Not that she minded admiring the muscles they both had. Crap, was she staring at Midoriya's arms for too long? At least he didn't notice since he was staring at Haylee. Did that make her a hypocrite?
Lumine noticed that Izuku wasn't ogling Haylee. Instead, he sported a startled and alarmed expression. "Haylee…" He whispered.
'What is he…' Lumine wondered, looking back at the other girl. Thankfully Haylee had enough taste to not strip in front of people and was wearing a tank top sports bra that covered most of her body barring a bit of her stomach. It was the same shade of purple as her T-shirt. Then she saw what Izuku was reacting to.
Noticing that they were both staring at her, Haylee looked down. "Oh, the scar?" She fidgeted uncomfortably.
"Y-yeah." Izuku stammered. It was a fairly large scar right in front of her heart.
"What happened?" Lumine gasped.
"I, uh, got stabbed." Haylee refused to look them in the eye but turned around to show them her back which had a nearly identical scar. There were also what appeared to be several burn wounds with a blue and black shade that somewhat resembled metal.
"You got stabbed in the heart?" Lumine whispered, covering her mouth in shock.
Even Toshinori was affected. 'The poor girl.' His hand instinctively went to cover his wound. 'I know that she's been through a lot, but seeing it for myself.'
'She never told me about that!' Izuku, knowing the most about Haylee still hadn't been informed about her scars. "I thought you could heal…"
"It wasn't a normal blade, so it didn't heal right." The Paracesis was designed to kill Sentients specifically, which meant as a Void-infused weapon it was doubly effective against the Tenno. With a weapon like the Paracesis, it left a scar that would never heal due to the power imbued in the blade.
There were only two types of scars the Tenno could get. The first type was those gained from Void weapons, which would fade after a few years. Like the kind on Haylee's back, the second were scars that already existed or were gained following the Tennos' transformation. They manifested as patches of metallic ink-like patches of black and blue.
"I don't mind if you look at it, but I don't want to talk about it anymore." Haylee pleaded. "Can we drop it, please?"
"I'm sorry I brought it up," Lumine looked away guiltily.
"It's fine." Haylee deflected. "I should've known someone would ask about it. All you need to know is I'm fine."
The four stood in awkward silence, unsure what to say.
"So, uh, how do you two know each other?" Toshinori asked, desperate to change the topic.
Haylee's expression brightened. "Oh, we met a few weeks ago. I ran into her on my way to the mall."
"She literally ran into me," Lumine added. "Busted her lip open on the sidewalk. It's a good thing she has a healing quirk."
Toshinori and Izuku stared at Haylee. "Really?"
"What?!"
Toshinori sighed. "You worry me sometimes, young Tenno."
"I wasn't trying to get hurt!" Haylee lightly kicked the sand and pouted. "Its not like I go around getting injured on purpose!"
Izuku looked down at his fist, then back at Haylee, doubt written on his face.
Lumine giggled. "Well, one thing led to another, she ended up helping me out and we exchanged numbers. I was actually thinking about you right before I saw you. How have you been?"
"Just training with Izuku. He has a strength quirk that is too powerful for his body so he's trying to build up muscle. I've just been trying to get in better shape and just started teaching him to fight a few weeks ago." Haylee explained.
"Oh, are you going for the U.A exam too?" Lumine asked Izuku, who nodded sheepishly. "So am I! It's one of my top choices, but if I get accepted I'm definitely going."
"Y-yep! I'm trying my hardest!" Izuku leaned back, sweating nervously as the blonde girl was getting a bit too close. "Haylee's been pushing me really hard."
'Haylee, huh? They must be close.' Lumine noted.
"Yeah, he finally managed to hit me today. Three times. He even broke my jaw too!" Haylee said with too much enthusiasm, holding up her bloody shirt and tossing it onto the nearby bench.
"Nice!" Lumine raised her hand to high-five Izuku. Then she realized none of them were wearing sparring gear. "Wait, he broke your jaw?!"
"She offered me her tooth as a trophy." Izuku shivered.
"I wasn't using it anymore." Haylee shrugged. "He also hit me in the stomach and liver too. Izuku's fuckin' strong. He's broken a few of my bones now."
Lumine remembered how nonchalant Haylee was about being injured. 'Is she one of… those people?' She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Tenno, are you a masochist or something?" Lumine pointed at Haylee accusingly.
Tohsinori coughed up a bit of blood.
Haylee blinked. "Huh?" Her face turned a deep crimson and she made a choked wheezing sound. "Nononono! I'm not a masochist! Izuku, back me up here!"
In a rare show of backbone, Izuku looked away and whistled innocently with a slight blush.
"Izuuuukuuuuu!" Haylee grabbed him by the arms and started to shake him. Toshinori wiped the blood from his mouth and chuckled at their shenanigans. "Tell her! Tell her I'm not a pervert masochist!"
Of course, Izuku couldn't speak with how hard he was being shaken.
Lumine giggled at the scene before her, before descending into a fit of laughter. "Pfft! I was just kidding! Hahah!" She snorted a bit at the end.
"Jerks, the both of you." Haylee pouted, releasing Izuku who toppled dizzily into the sand. "Just so you know, I don't like to get hurt, the pain just doesn't bother me. I don't mind getting injured to teach someone something." She pointed her thumb at Izuku. "So now that he's hit me we can move on to me actually fighting back and sword training, using protective gear obviously."
"Oh, you like swords?" Lumine's eyes sparkled. "I love swords. My dad taught me and my brother how to fight with them." Her smile dimmed momentarily at the mention of her missing twin. "What type do you use?"
"I prefer using a katana," Haylee answered
"I use a European sword. I've never used a Japanese sword before." Lumine did an excited hop. "We should totally practice together some time!"
"That could be fun." Haylee peered at Izuku and Toshinori. "Are you okay with that?"
"Oh, I didn't mean with the both of you! I wouldn't want to interrupt your training sessions." Lumine corrected.
"I-I'm fine with her training with us," Izuku said a bit too quickly. "As long as Mr. Yagi is okay with it I mean!"
Toshinori suppressed another chuckle. "I don't have any issue with letting more people train with you." It would be good for both of them to hang around more people their age. He would just have to remember not to transform in front of her. Not that he'd been doing much of that anyway in case more people showed up as the beach got cleaner.
"I mean, if it's alright. I don't want to impose or anything…" The blonde trailed off.
"I assure you, it's no problem for us. I'd be happy to train you as well." Toshinori assured. "Just let me know if you need any protective gear if you are going to be sparring."
"I do have my own gear. I'll have to check with my dad about the training though." Lumine replied.
"Very good, and young Eikyō, the training is free if you were worried about the pricing. I can send your father my details so he can verify that this is all legitimate." Toshinori offered her a card he'd made in case anyone came snooping around. It was a real card too, since "Toshinori Yagi" was registered as a quirk training coach.
"Thank you, sir! I'll get right on that." Lumine smiled. "Oh yeah, while I have you here Tenno. We haven't had the chance to hang out. Me and a couple of friends are going to the mall this weekend. Would you like to come along?" Then she remembered Izuku. "And you can come to Midoriya!" It would be rude to leave him out, plus he seemed nice.
"Are you sure?" Izuku twiddled his fingers. "We just met after all."
Haylee rolled her eyes. "Izuku, she invited you. I think she's pretty sure." It would be fun. She hadn't actually done anything outside training besides errands and Izuku's birthday party.
"Neat! I'll send you both the deets." She reached into her pocket and held out her phone. "Here, type your number into my contacts. I'll make a group chat."
Izuku filled out the entry, desperately trying not to appear as anxious as he was. "Here you go."
"Great, I can't wait!" Lumine grinned. "Anyways, it's been nice catching up with you and meeting you two. I'm looking forward to training with you! I have to get going to be back home for dinner. See you this weekend!" With that, she waved goodbye and took off.
==VI==
[Group Chat]
Tenno H. was added to the group by Admin ✧Lumi✧
Midoriya I. was added to the group by Admin Admin ✧Lumi✧
Tenno H.'s nickname set to NotAMasochist by ✧Lumi✧
Midoriya I.'s nickname was set to GreenBean by ✧Lumi✧
[4 Members online, 1 member offline]
NotAMasochist: Oh, you can change nicknames on this app? Ordan must never know.
NotAMasochist: Also WHY
✧Lumi✧: ¬‿¬
DinoRawr: Lol
DinoRawr: So she's the one you told us about? Who's the other one?
✧Lumi✧: Yep! And Midoriya is her friend. I ran into her again today and invited them both.
DinoRawr: Sweet. Can't wait to meet you boat!
DinoRawr: Both*
==========================VI==========================
Yay! ¾ of the focal characters have met now.
Genshin 4.6 just dropped, and Father did indeed come home. I'm glad I made her a True Vampire in this fic because it fits her powerset and aesthetics so well. (She's just so cool!)
Izuku isn't trying to be sexist or anything with Haylee. For one, this is pre-U.A Izuku and even though he's spent a lot of time with Haylee he's still very shy around girls, as seen with Lumine. Especially with how most female heroes are portrayed in MHA, with few being battle heroes. Go and compare how many are rescue compared to battle and underground.
If you look at the statistics for women in the army they only make up about 16% of the US army (in 2022 at least). Women weren't even allowed to fight until 2013, which as of writing was 11 years ago. The statistics are pretty similar in police and firefighting as well.
Being a pro hero, even if you don't prioritize villain engagements is a dangerous job. Even if you are a rescue hero there is still a chance you will be targeted by a villain like the Water Hose duo. Its even worse if you are a battle or underground hero because especially in the latter's case if you are working undercover or stealthily you might not have backup, or a way to even get backup depending on how deep your cover is.
Keep in mind, that before All Might became the Symbol of Peace, heroism wasn't the same as it is now. Look at CH398. Japan was still recovering from the devastation quirks wrought. In this fic, it's also being hampered by AFO trying to assume control of Japan specifically while weakening other countries to not oppose him as well. Man or woman, being a hero was not a safe job.
Now, this all depends on a country-by-country basis. In this fic, do they want more women to be heroes? Yes. The HPSC wants more female heroes because anyone with the power to maintain the status quo is needed, biological sex doesn't matter to them, only power. They want their own Star And Stripe. That's why they suppress the negatives and glorify heroes like Mirko, Ryukyu etc. Everyone able-bodied is needed, especially with all the supernatural stuff going on in the background of this world. The HPSC is especially looking at Haylee and Natah, licking their lips and thinking "They could be the next symbols or a weapon against the supernatural" (because they are human or became human)
Then you have the Grineer who don't discriminate against you depending on sex. You are a slave, and if you arent grineer you die. Somehow, they are better than the Corpus in terms of gender equality.
You know its fucked up when the Grineer are the morally better option.
I think.
Is the moral of the story to not judge people by their sex and to judge them by the quality of their genes? I hope not.
I think i lost the point i was trying to make. What the fuck did i mean by this?
My authors notes are just a chronicle of my slow descent into psychosis i guess.
Speaking of judging people, Hunhow chapter next!