If Trees Won't Give You Corpse Warblades, Then Make One Yourself from The Scratch.

Izuku knew that it was inevitable to gather some attention after his far from a plain friend left an impression like the one she pulled yesterday. The thing was though, that it wasn't until the very next day that it dawned on him what he truly had to deal with because of that.

When he stepped into the classroom, each and every head within the room snapped in his direction, and the very moment in which he took a seat he ended up fenced by his classmates, each one of them asking about the same topic.

"What did you say was her name!?"

"Erm, it's Junko Enoshima."

"Hey Midoriya, how did you two meet?"

"We, uh, stumped by chance a pair of weeks ago."

"What is your relationship with her?"

"Huh? J-Just friends."

Those who didn't get to hear her name, or didn't even know of her until the rumors 'Which apparently already spread through the whole school…', asked for it. Some inquired about that other rumor on whether she was actually a model, while others wondered from which school she was. For that last one he had to make up some lame excuse to avoid the question, after all, ashamed as he was to admit it, he kind of forgot to ask her about that and some other details he was curious about his friend.

After yesterday's conversation with Enoshima and her proposal to him, and save a few other relevant details, he was so engrossed in the idea of finally seeing a light for the road towards his dream that it was near impossible for his mind to focus in anything other than that.

Still, leaving aside the novelty of being cornered by his classmates without them having any particular malicious intention towards him, they kept themselves at only asking him some basic questions.

At least at the beginning.

"Midori! What do ya say about introducing me to her?"

"I, um, w-well…"

"What about her number? You must have it, right?"

"Eh? I-I don't think it is my place to hand it over without her permission."

"Midoriya, about her…"

Eventually, someone brought up the idea of meeting her, and ever since then, more and more people became bolder with their inquiries and requests. Girls who up until now had never directed him a word were putting on their best smiles while wondering if he could pass Enoshima their invitations to hang out with them. Meanwhile, the boys, some of whom Izuku remembered them stealing his lunch or, more often than not, doing worse stuff, acted as if they were long-time friends while asking if he could talk about them with her, a few being as bold as straight up wondering if it was possible for him to set them up for a date with her.

It was weird, and while Izuku might be a lot of things, he wasn't hopelessly naïve…at least not to the degree his classmates were making him up to be, less when they were so upfront about it. The strained smiles, how not a single one of them looked him in the eyes when they spoke to him, among other small details which told that, for all intents and purposes, he still was a quirkless nobody in their eyes.

And that was his main motivator to refuse their approaches to know her. Not for something like spite, but because as he discovered a day ago, Enoshima was the same as him.

Quirkless

He could only imagine how would they react, and the grim consequences that could have for her. How far they would go in their harassment if the word were to get out about that…well, it wasn't something he was willing to test.

Izuku could see the ramifications of his hesitation to reveal anything too personal about her was having. The 'magic' that made his classmates act so friendly with him was fading further away with each rejection, with a few of them already giving him the stink eye.

Sooner rather than later, things will return to how they already were.

On a brighter note, though! Kacchan wasn't among those ambushing him for answers. Which was admittedly surprising, as Izuku was without a shadow of a doubt sure that the ashen-blonde would've cornered him as soon as he did so much as to step inside the school.

It wasn't like Kacchan was acting like yesterday didn't happen though. Every now and then he could feel the glare of his former childhood friend burning with an intensity that Izuku couldn't remember feeling in, well, ever. But, weirdly enough, on the few occasions that Izuku dared to discretely look back, there was…something strange on his expression. His first guess was hesitation, but Izuku quickly discarded that. Kacchan never hesitated about anything. If he wanted to do or say something, he would do so without thinking it twice.

Although, if it is not that, what is it then?

Curious as he might be, he didn't want to poke the hornet's nest. Instead, Izuku decided to count his blessings, let the explosive boy be, and allow the matter to rest without further prodding.

Besides, it would leave a bitter taste in his mouth if he were to ruin what was potentially one of the most important days of his life. The day that he―

"And that concludes our summary of the peace treaty between the Otheon and Klayd kingdoms. Any questions?"

Huh?

Izuku gave a long stare at his professor until his eyes widened at the realization that he practically daydreamed through the entire period.

Although if that brief sigh of exasperation as his eyes darted everywhere was anything to go by, not only he didn't notice Izuku doing that, most of the class was in a similar position.

"I know you kids are busy with your incoming admissions into high school, with some of you aiming at quite the reputable hero schools," His teacher tiredly said, not without giving a brief glance at Kacchan. "But remember that if you do so without actually worrying about getting out of junior high, all that preparation might as well be for nothing, okay?"

Nobody said anything to that, with only a few people nodding at his words. Although Izuku had the suspicion that they were doing so out of the desire to wrap up the lesson more than anything else.

"Alright then. If you have that clear, that would be all for today. Class is dismissed."

Not having to be told twice, and neither being in the mood to tempt fate, Izuku was among the first to rush out of the classroom, even if he did so at a controlled pace to avoid claiming any attention.

After all, the last thing he wanted was to mess up the day he finally takes his first step into becoming a hero.

Soon after leaving the unnecessary baggage in his locker and picking up the bag he brought from home, Izuku quickly made his way out of the school.

Thankfully, he managed to leave without any strife whatsoever. From there, he walked on until reaching the Tatooin station. Doing his best at gulping down the bad memories this place brought, and instead focusing on the positive ones, he continued on his path.

Just a pair of minutes moving through the station later, he finally found whom he was looking for.

"Enoshima!" Sitting on a bench while also playing with her phone, Izuku could see his friend was there just like she promised. Not like he ever doubted her a moment though. Curiously enough, she was carrying luggage similar to his.

Maybe it is necessary equipment for my training? Or, could it be that…

Perking up at his voice, said strawberry blonde's gaze flickered in his direction with an excited smile as she got up, "Oh? You came sooner than I asked ya to be."

He couldn't help an embarrassed chuckle at that, "Well, classes ended a bit early, and I already had everything you asked for with me." He patted his duffel bag to make his point, "Besides, I, um, didn't want to risk the possibility of making you wait."

"Heh, aren'tcha a gentleman?" Enoshima chirped, making him flush in embarrassment if those red cheeks of his had anything to say about it. "Teasing aside, it's good to see you made it here. I woulda loved to meet up with ya at the school gate, though I bet things still are heated up, isn't that so?"

At that question, Izuku suppressed the urge to grimace or show any other reaction that would reveal anything.

At the time it took him to come here from school, he debated on whether or not to tell Enoshima about how things were going in school. Halfway through he settled on avoiding telling her the most concerning stuff. She was already doing so much for him. Burdening her with more issues on her plate would be straight-up abusing her generosity.

"Ah, it's not that bad, Enoshima. Thankfully, it doesn't seem that Ka―…erm, Katsuki is out for blood." He began by telling her what as far as he was aware, was a complete truth. Still, saying his name out loud after so many years felt…weird. "Sure, a few people asked about you, but it was just some basic stuff."

"Hmm, I find that hard to believe, y'know?" Izuku's heart nearly dropped when he heard Enoshima say that. Although, just before he could sputter an excuse, she continued, "I mean, are ya seriously telling me that guy isn't acting like a frightened chihuahua after I messed up with his ego?"

He mentally sighed in relief. So that's what she meant? Leaving aside the insult, Izuku could see where she was coming from, "I-I know it might be hard to believe, but I guess that with the entrance exams coming up, he believes spending his time doing just about anything else is worthier of his time."

"Well, now that sounds like that guy alright," Enoshima said with a smirk. "Upupupu, yeah, just as expected of him…"

"U…pupu?"

"Ah, it's just how I laugh when I'm super excited about something!" Enoshima cheekily replied, "Speaking of which, are you so for what is coming?"

Now that made him perk up, "Yeah, I can't wait to begin! Although, uh, where are going? You only told me to meet up at the station, so I am drawing a blank on our options."

"About that," That amused smile plastered on her face already told him he wasn't going to get any concise answers. "It is a surprise~."

"Oh…can I at least guess?"

"Sure, suit yourself."

"Okay, perhaps…is it a public park that we will use for our training grounds?"

"Nope, with too many people around in a place like that, we would be constantly disturbed to do anything worthwhile."

"Hmm, what about a gym with state-of-the-art equipment?"

"Nah, they ask for our medical registries in those places. Both to check everything is in order about our health and to make sure we don't rip them off about our quirks, or lack thereof in this case. The moment they see our quirkless status we will be lucky if they kick us out without laughing their butts off."

He winced at his friend's brutal honesty but accepted her logic nonetheless. If anything, he was glad she was thinking this through, which shouldn't come as a surprise considering she was some sort of super genius.

"Then, how about…Oh, I got it!" Izuku exclaimed with a snap of his fingers, "I heard of this beach somewhere in Takoba that was on an unofficial closure of sorts due to being filled to the brim with trash. Cleaning up the garbage could work up for―"

"Bzzzt! Third strike!" If it weren't because of Kacchan, Izuku would've wondered how someone could sound so cheerful at pointing you to be wrong. At least Enoshima was going good-naturedly about it though, "That stuff can be useful to build up muscle and some stamina, but that's about it. Nothing bad on their own, but we are gonna require more than that given our circumstances."

"I-I see…" Again, Izuku couldn't disagree with Enoshima.

"Hehe, there goes your last chance to figure it out! Too bad~."

"Eh!? There was a limit? Since when?"

"Since I sayeth so, mortal! Or, doth thee wish to defy the rules our sacred game has established? Know that we would put thy flames of ambition to rest if such were the case!" Game? Ambition? And from where did that crown come!?

"I, uh, well…"

"Kidding~, kidding~, it is too soon for that anyways." Too soon? What for? "Seriously tho, you don't hafta eat your hair 'bout it. You will see where are we going when we arrive. Speaking of which…"

"Attention, a train with a destination towards Shizuoka will arrive shortly. Please don't overstep the yellow line."

"…It appears destiny awaits. Ready to take the first step?"

Izuku allowed to drop the confusion caused, not for the first and doubtfully the last time, by his friend. Then, with a warm smile, he gave his response, "Sure, let's do this!"

At that, Enoshima returned the gesture in kind with a nod. That alone was enough to make him fuzzy…and for the guilt that was eating him to fade away.

Yeah, while the prospect of hiding something from his friend made him feel terrible, Izuku was sure that was the right decision. He had already spent more than a decade dealing with that problem on his own, and he was confident he could have dealt with it for an extra pair of months before his fateful encounter. Now adding into the formula that the realization of his dream was on the near horizon and he had Enoshima at his side illuminating said road?

Just that alone will be enough to make it a piece of cake!

Much to Izuku's relief, their destination wasn't that far away. They neared the border with Shizuoka, but that only took three stops, that's just about forty minutes away from home. He could work with that.

So, after exiting the train and with a skippy pace, he allowed himself to be guided by Enoshima to their destination. Excitement building up with every step.

At least, until halfway through their travel.

There wasn't anything out of the ordinary at the beginning, but with each passing minute after leaving the sights within the heart of the city, Izuku noticed how the houses and other occasional edifications began to lose their luster. After a while, their path was nothing but dirty streets and rusty buildings. Going as far as moving through some alleys Izuku wouldn't be surprised if, at night, they worked as gathering points for people with less-than-stellar intentions.

Still, it was by then that Izuku couldn't help voicing his concern. "Enoshima, are you sure we are going in the right direction?"

"Yep, just a few more turns and we will be there!"

He was still concerned, but with how confident Enoshima sounded, Izuku saw no reason to distrust her words. Perhaps this was a shortcut?

Whatever the case may be, he decided that his best course of action was to distract himself from his worries. He already had a topic in mind, and although it was an embarrassing one, he supposed that in itself could redirect his nerves towards healthier concerns.

"So, I think this might come a bit out of nowhere, but, uh…w-will you be busy this week!?"

At that, Enoshima gave him a deadpan expression.

Does that mean she will be?

"I mean, even the most basic of workouts takes more than a single hour, and doing so only every now and then would be of no use to us." His friend pointed out, "Both of us will be quite busy with this hero training stuff for the incoming months."

…Oh.

"R-Right, now that I think about it, yeah that was a dumb question, sorry..." Sure, he was over the clouds at understanding that from here and now he will spend that much time with Enoshima, but it still stung that something that should have been obvious went past him.

"Eh, I haven't given ya the schedule I made yet and I was a bit vague about this, I guess that justifies it." Enoshima waved off his concerns with a shrug.

"Alright then." Izuku sighed in relief, although he also perked up when he realized what else Enoshima said, "Wait, for real? You have one done already?"

"You can bet I have! I will require some extra data about you to adjust the finer details, but that can be solved after I watch your performance today." Enoshima explained, "Anyways, back to your question. Why do ya ask about whether I was free or not tho?"

"Well, you see," He couldn't hesitate about this, as delaying it will only make it harder. Enoshima already invited him somewhere else of her own volition, so it should be fine, right? Besides, he already dropped the ball so might as keep rolling with it. "U. A's sports festival will be this incoming week and, um, my mom wanted to meet my 'mysterious' friend. I-I was wondering if we could reserve one of those days both to watch the event at my home and to present you to her. Is that okay?"

Rather than an immediate reply, Enoshima gave him an impassive stare. Before long, that stoicism turned into one of those grins Izuku knew couldn't mean anything good.

Uh oh.

"Oh my~. Presenting me to your mom already? I didn't know our relationship went that far and beyond, Zuzu."

"Eeep! N-No, I-I would never think of―ack! That's not what I meant! I-It's just―"

"Hey, hey, relax! I am just messing with ya! Gee, if you kept your reactions like that, I'm gonna worry I will give ya a heart attack one of these days." Enoshima chirped.

And honestly? He was beginning to fear that too.

"In any case. The sports festival, you say? It is from Friday to Sunday, with each day reserved per class year, right?" Still trying to shake off his nerves from her previous teasing, he only nodded at her question. "Welp, I have no problem for the first or second years. For the third ones though, well, I know I told ya we will be busy with this stuff for a long while, but I admit I will be occupied myself on that day."

Hearing such news was enough to bring him out of his stupor, "You will?"

"Indeed." His friend confirmed, although her expression turned unusually serious and for some unexplainable reason, she covered the lower side of her face with a half-open fist while also touching the forehead with her middle and index fingers, "To further guarantee the success of my nefarious schemes, it is of essence to acquire some vital intel during such period of time. To attempt as such any other time would simply not do."

"I…see?" Not exactly, but he got the gist about her being busy with something important on that day.

Although Izuku could accept that, it was still a tad disappointing to hear that. Personally speaking, he would've preferred to watch the last event with her in specific because it's the third years who have the most experience, which usually made them the most interesting.

"In any case," Enoshima spoke, this time back to her normal personality. What counts as such when it comes to her at least, "Aside from that day, we can reschedule our training for either of those other options available."

"Hmm, okay," Still, while disappointed, he quickly saw the bright side of things, that being Enoshima accepting to come home this incoming week. "I will talk with my mom about which one she would prefer, is that fine?"

"Sure, just let me know beforehand, 'kay?"

"Of course!" Following his confirmation, the two of them continued on their way, and although Izuku was still wary of their surroundings, he could feel his talk with Enoshima helped a great deal in calming him down.

Or at least, to not think too much about it.

"See? I told ya we were near!" Just like Enoshima promised, after crossing a pair of admittedly shoddy-looking alleyways until finally reaching an open area, Izuku saw in the distance the edifice meant to work as their training area.

Well, that was what she was guaranteeing him.

Broken windows.

Rusted pipes.

Brick walls that were more grey than reddish-brown in certain areas, along with the occasional graffiti.

Debris and other varying types of trash covering its sides.

And as a finishing touch, all of it was surrounded by a metal fence that clearly had seen better days.

No matter how he saw it, rather than a proper training area, what Izuku saw was nothing but your average abandoned building.

For a moment, he thought Enoshima was playing a prank, but when he saw that his friend not only wasn't stopping but was intending on crossing through a hole in the broken fence, panic ran through him as he hurried to prevent her from committing a mistake.

"E-Enoshima, wait! We can't do that!"

"It's fine! It's fine! There's nothing to worry about~." Enoshima reassured him.

Not like he couldn't find himself reassured in a situation like this one though, "I-It's not! Abandoned or not, getting through that fence would count as trespassing, a-and that's illegal!"

"Actually, it is only illegal if it's owned by someone."

"Huh?"

"Yeah, I read about this stuff on the internet," Making use of his momentary confusion, she continued, "Buildings like those, even if forsaken by God, fall into the hands of the government after no one else demands ownership over them. But," Enoshima smirked as she pointed at the aforementioned structure, "This beauty, in particular, is a special case that isn't owned by a person, private company, nor claimed by those old guys in the higher echelons."

"That sounds overly convenient, don't you think?" Izuku tried to insist.

"Doesn't quit it from being the truth though," Enoshima shrugged, "From what I gathered there was some legal mumbo jumbo around it, something about dozens of parties claiming being the legitimate and absolute inheritor of this property. That mess lasted for so long and the defense for its claim became more costly than it was worth it, so everyone said 'Screw it! I don't wanna deal with this crap!' and left it be ever since then. Years went by, and this poor thing was damned to be forgotten…until it was found by moi, of course."

It sounded like a reasonable enough argument, or at least he could see plausible a scenario in which too much greed ended up ruining everyone involved. Still, while the irrefutable logic in Enoshima's words was there, he would be lying to himself if he said that he was comfortable with them. Working in technicalities that fall into a grey area like what Enoshima was proposing wasn't how Izuku would've imagined beginning his dream.

However…

Based on the explanation she gave him…he supposed that as long as they weren't committing any crime, undermining, or hurting anyone, then they truly weren't doing anything wrong.

Right?

Nervously, Izuku darted his sight towards the building as he bit his lower lip, "Enoshima…are you sure this won't get us into trouble?"

"Yep, you can confirm everything I said by yourself once we are done here for today. So long as we don't do stuff like turning it into a selling spot for drugs, the headquarters for a money laundering operation, or the gathering point for the illegal market of guns or support equipment, we have the green light to use this place as we please."

Izuku paled at hearing all of that, but after a few moments, he calmed down. Enoshima was only giving those crude examples so as to show him straight facts about where the line was actually drawn. Obviously, they would never do something so villainous, so it was fine to go with this. That's what she was meaning.

I wouldn't have come this far if it weren't because of her. If Enoshima is saying that this is okay and that even I can verify her claims on the internet, then there is nothing to be worried about.

"O-Okay," With a shaky sigh, he looked up to his friend, "I trust you."

Enoshima smiled at him upon hearing that, "You won't regret it, Zuzu."

With the issue dealt with, his friend continued on her tracks, kneeling down before going through the open spot within the fence. Only hesitating for the briefest of seconds and with an audible gulp, he followed suit.

As the duo got closer and the details of the building became clearer, some of Izuku's hesitation about this made way for curiosity when, what a moment ago he thought to be nothing more than garbage littering on the sides of the building, upon closer inspection was more organized than he expected. The tidy tires, the hung-up net, a large pipe with enough width for a person to crouch through, among other stuff that apparently was more than meet the eye outside the fence. Inspecting it all, it gave the feeling as if he was looking at an―

"Ah, I will properly show ya that later, for now, let's focus on the inside, yeah?" As if reading his thoughts, Enoshima spoke up while giving him a side glance.

Without any reason to refute her, he accepted to leave that be until he saw whatever it was that Enoshima wanted to show him.

Given where they found themselves, and as much as it pained Izuku to admit, he wasn't expecting much of what was going to be from today onwards on their working grounds.

As such, he couldn't prevent his mouth from gaping once he stepped in and caught sight of what the insides actually looked like.

Sure, the place appeared to be as old as it did from the outside, but that was about the only thing that hinted at being abandoned. The occasional webs, or half-spent bottles of alcohol one could find when buildings like these became forgotten or reconditioned for less pleasant purposes weren't anywhere to be seen. Neither could he find the stench that comes from dead critters, decaying materials, or other varying smells that surge when nature takes what was once theirs.

Yet the lack of that was nowhere near as worthy of his attention as the actual sight before him.

Far from being a deserted space, there were all sorts of equipment lined up around. Weights of varying sizes, leg racks, and even something as basic as a punching bag in the corner. Opposite of that, there was a boxing ring of all things, with its corresponding accessories hanging on one of the separators. That wasn't everything though, as further ahead and above him, he could see chains hanging up on one of the catwalks leading to the second floor with multiple couches lined up just below them.

As if that wasn't enough, this place was as big as it looked on the outside, with other entrances leading toward rooms whose existence alone was already making Izuku's imagination run wild with the possibilities about what else he could find in there.

It wasn't the rumored training grounds with cutting-edge technology that U.A. boasted to have, but considering what other options he would have been forced to pick up on his own? This was dozens if not hundreds of times better than what he could've hoped!

"This is…" Izuku trailed off, still in trance at the wonderful scenery before him.

"Heh, a take it you're liking it?" He gave her a numb nod, prompting her to continue, "It isn't mentioned in the information I found about this place, but when I stumbled into it, this and other more stuff was sprawled everywhere within the edifice. My theory is that this building was intended to be a warehouse of sorts, with some exclusivity for training-only material, but with the whole legal mess everyone was dealing with at the time, just like the building itself, they left it all to rot."

"All of this?" Izuku asked, giving it a concerned glance at the equipment.

"All of it." Enoshima pressed, "Some of this stuff looked way crappier than it does now what with the dust and other stuff smearing them in the past. You know, one man's junk turns out to be someone's else treasure or something like that. Additionally, let's face it, this neighborhood doesn't scream rainbows and free hugs. I suppose those facts made people wary of either touching any of this or even approaching the building in the first place."

Upon hearing that, Izuku raised his hand.

"Yeah, it is fine to use it. No one has claimed ownership over any of this. Besides, I haven't taken anything I found here. I either moved the equipment around the building or repurposed the dispensable stuff to better fit our conveniences, but there's nothing illegal in that."

Izuku lowered his hand. With that newfound reassurance, he took it upon himself to bask in his surroundings once more. His chest swelled up with excitement at the prospect of everything he could do with all of this.

Then he stopped midway when a thought dawned on him.

"Enoshima, when did you find this place?"

"Hm?"

"You said you found everything straggled everywhere, and that you tidied it up to make it look presentable," Which while in retrospect was such a touching gesture on her part that could make his heart explode with gratitude, something about that wasn't adding up, and this last inquiry prevented him from fully bathing in the sentiment, "But there's no way you could've done that in a single day, right?"

From what I've seen, this place is enormous. It should've taken more than a single week, perhaps two, and even then, it was barely reaching the feasible. If that was the case, then…how?

His friend blinked up a pair of times before a smile creep up to her face, "My, you already noticed, eh?"

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"Well, remember when I sent that text about me being busy with my relocation?"

"I do," He confirmed, even if he was still confused about what was going on, "From what you told me, we couldn't hang out sooner because you were dealing with that ordeal, which took you around two weeks to―" Izuku stopped midsentence, with his eyes widening in realization, "That wasn't true, was it?"

"I declare myself guilty!" Enoshima cheered, although just as fast it turned apologetic, "Sorry 'bout that white lie. The truth is that only took me a single day. What truly had occupied me was this training course stuff. I really wanted to surprise ya though, which is why I kept my true intentions a secret!"

"B-But...that would imply…"

"That I've been dealing with this since the very day I meet you?" Enoshima completed for him, hands on her hips and her chest puffed up in apparent pride, "What I told back then and yesterday, neither of them was a bluff. I will make outta you something that the world will hardly forget."

No words.

Try as he might, he couldn't get himself to let something, anything out of his mouth. Enoshima's admission left him speechless.

After all, it was too much. Time and time again his friend had conceded him miracle after miracle. Each occasion he had spent with Enoshima had brought levels of happiness he couldn't have ever hoped to reach on his own, with her most recent exploit making him see the place they were in with newfound admiration.

She…she prepared all of this…just for me?

Izuku was never arrogant enough to believe life owed him something, but every time Enoshima furtherly brightened his life, he couldn't prevent himself from wondering if this was karma's way of making up for everything he had gone through his life.

Will I ever be able to pay her for everything she has done for me?

"Come on now, Zuzu. You can cry about how awesome I am later, there's some important stuff we need to get into, right?"

Despite how emotional he was feeling, a chuckle escaped his lips at his friend's commentary. Obviously, the Midoriya genes had to hit now of all times. It took him a pair of minutes, but eventually, he managed to do as his friend suggested, calming himself enough to control the ducts within his eyes.

Once he was finally composed, he looked up at his friend, "I…I am okay now, Enoshima. Thank you, for everything really."

"Don't mention it, buddy." Enoshima reassured him, "Now, I bet you are eager to see that schedule I've cooked up for you, isn't that so?"

"Oh, right! Can I see it?" He immediately perked up.

With a smirk, Izuku watched as Enoshima put down the duffel bag she was carrying, unzipped it, and began rummaging through its contents.

Said excitement quickly devolved into confusion as Enoshima threw out of the bag everything that apparently was in the way of her notes. Beginning with that crown she occasionally wears, followed by a pair of glasses, a tablet, and a pen. She also discarded…a bunch of mushrooms, and…some fake weaver teeth?

What?

"Aha, there it is!" Finally, she managed to pick out what she was looking for. Lifting it, Enoshima brought a decently sized notebook and presented it up close to his face, "Behold!"

Doing as told, Izuku awkwardly took a few steps back to get a proper look at it, picking up a few things worth noticing about it in the process. The first of them was that on each side of its title, there was a drawing of what resembled a monochrome bear, with one side white accompanied by a single button eye, while the other was a contrasting black along a weird red eye that resembled a bolt of lightning, with a large grin plastered on its face. There was also the notebook's headline itself, which was, well…

Junko's Despairful Road to Heroism!

It was something.

He supposed that the bears were cute. They were a bit unusual but that certainly fitted his friend's eccentric personality.

Although the title weirded him out, "Why despairful? I, um, don't think that is something I would use to describe a training schedule to become a hero."

"I needed a word that would give flavor to this program's title," Enoshima explained with a shrug, "That, and something to make it clear that the routine within it is no joke. I put two and two together, and I found out that word was the best fitting."

"That makes sense, I guess?" Izuku tried to say. Truthfully speaking, his mind was more interested in what he could find in those notes Enoshima has been teasing since quite ago. With his excitement reaching its peak, he reached for the notebook so he could finally get a proper look at its contents.

Only for Enoshima to pull the training schedule away from him at the last second.

"Eh?" Wondering why she would do that for no apparent reason, Izuku looked up from where he was gazing at the notebook a moment ago. There, he became the witness of one of those rare occasions in which Enoshima wasn't her usual bubbly self, but rather her features were smeared by a non-nonsense facet.

The sudden change in mood certainly concerned him.

"Izuku," That she used his actual name instead of that nickname he had grown fond of only reinforced she meant business, "The hero school you're aiming for is U.A., correct?"

For a moment, he became perplexed at his friend knowing that without him ever telling her about it. His surprise was only momentary though. Anyone worth their salt and who was genuinely determined into becoming a Hero had the most prestigious hero school in Japan aimed as their future alma mater. That plus in combination with Enoshima's sharp mind should've made it easy to figure out.

"Yeah, that is where I am aspiring to," Izuku saw no reason to refute something she obviously already knew. Besides, maybe her schedule would require changes depending on which school he was aiming at and that was why she was making sure everything was in order. "After all, if I genuinely want to prove to myself that I am capable of becoming a hero, that's as high as I need to aim at."

"I see, now tell me, do you know what is U.A.'s acceptance rate?"

He was confused at where this was going, but still gave his answer regardless, "It's…thirty-six people out of two thousand for the Hero Course."

"Right, and do you know what advantage every single aspirant will have over you?"

With an audible gulp, Izuku gave his reluctant response, "…Quirks…"

"Yep, and all of them have, at the bare minimum, around a decade of experience training said powers. Combine that with a possibly similar ambition fueling their mindset, and you get―"

"Enoshima, what are you getting at?" He couldn't help but ask. Izuku knew she wasn't trying to discourage him, not after everything she had done for him, but just as well, he wasn't able to figure out what was trying with pointing out all those hurtful yet brutally honest facts.

Concerningly enough, he didn't receive an immediate answer. Although, if his friend was insulted at his interruption, she did a flawless job at not showing it, instead keeping herself as an intact sculpture of impassiveness. Reaching to the point he was squirming, becoming self-conscious about his rudeness from a moment ago.

Just when he was about to ask Enoshima to speak to him again, she did so on her own, while at the same time giving him the reply he was looking for.

And what a reply it was.

"The training program I have in my hands will guarantee your chances of success into passing regardless of what kind of entrance exam they bring on exponentially further than any other method you could think of. There's no room for what ifs or maybes about that."

"Really? That's―"

"However," Enoshima continued, her momentum clearly too strong to allow any interruption, "You must know that effective as it might be, it is just as unorthodox. I wasn't kidding when I mentioned before how ruthless it will be, as in more ways than one, it will ask of you to give it your eleven thousand thirty-seven percent to make up for the disadvantage you will be put at. Besides, backing away in the middle of it isn't an option. For this to work, we have to go through it to the very end." Then, Enoshima's features stoned into the deadliest serious face she had ever shown him in the brief time they have known each other, "That is my warning in courtesy of our companionship, and seeing that we haven't started yet, this will also be the last chance to back off. So, with all of that being said…what will it be, Izuku Midoriya? Will you submerge of your own volition at the bottom of despair in search of what you have yearned for your entire life? Or you will reject this opportunity and hope for the best somewhere else?"

Understanding finally blossomed in Izuku's mind after Enoshima gave him that ultimatum. This wasn't about discouraging him or twisting old wounds. Rather, it was a test. The final obstacle he had to go through before his road to becoming a hero could even begin.

Her expression, everything Enoshima told him, everything she warned he will have to go through to just barely have about the same chance as everyone else. All of it resumed to a single interrogative:

Was he capable of going plus ultra?

Unsurprisingly, he had the answer ready as soon as the question came.

"…I will do it, Enoshima." Izuku finally declared, pure determination leaking in his voice and body language, "Whatever it is waiting for me on the other side, I will face it head-on! Both for my sake and for everything you have done to allow me to get here in the first place."

Indeed, he has been waiting years for an opportunity like the one she was offering him. To shy away from it would be an insult to him and especially to his friend who had invested so much for his sake.

Enoshima gave him a long stare after pouring his commitment out, with her eyes boring into his own. It almost felt like she was looking for something in there, maybe the deeps of his resolve, perhaps something else. Whatever the case was, this time Izuku didn't squirm or backed down in any way whatsoever, as he knew she would've disapproved of something like that at a moment like this. Such song and dance continue for a pair of minutes, and when she saw that he wasn't going to waver anytime soon…

She grinned.

It wasn't like anything he had ever seen before. It wasn't teasing, or cheerful, and neither it was the crescent one he became accustomed to seeing the most on his friend. Instead, it was vicious, accompanied by a fire within her eyes, and, for the first time, it allowed Izuku to notice the slightly overdeveloped canines within her mouth.

"Exuberance, let us begin then~."