The beach had become a habit, almost as much as his morning routine, which it had replaced. Over the course of the weeks and now months that he'd been part of Izuku's cleaning project, Takuma had gotten used to the more mundane aspects of the workout. Since his green-haired friend had fully recovered from his overworking, they had returned to a more normal schedule of hauling trash. Occasionally, Gran Torino and All Might would visit, working in shifts to help empty the truck at the nearest landfill. Of course, the "Mei tax" was still alive and well, and she constantly reminded them to keep an eye out for specific parts. No matter how hard he tried, Midoriya was in charge of that, as Takuma couldn't tell the difference between most parts or figure out what was useful for his tech-addicted girlfriend.
Despite that, spending time with Midoriya was actually pretty decent for the most part. The workout was hard enough to require his full focus, and the amount of talk about Heroes gradually decreased until they reached the time when they were both expected elsewhere. Not that Takuma completely ignored him, but there was only so much news about the Heroic world he could handle before he wanted to stab his eardrum with a nail.
Something else was also becoming clear: the beach would soon be clean. And with that, a certain bean would receive One For All. Takuma knew it, and so did Izuku. That was why his shorter friend had grown increasingly quiet as the days passed. Finally, they reached the last week before the beach was done.
Takuma sat on an old microwave that had served as a seat for quite some time now, one he had fought tooth and nail to keep Izuku from hauling off just yet. It was the perfect height for him to sit comfortably.
"This was the last load for today," Izuku said, puffing between breaths as he joined Takuma, sitting on a car seat he'd found in one of the abandoned vehicles on the beach.
"We can't fit anything else in the pickup, or the tire might blow," Takuma remarked, based on his last trip to the car.
Izuku nodded, still struggling to catch his breath from his last haul. Takuma wasn't as tired as him, sure, he was helping, but since Izuku needed to haul the lion's share to keep up with his intense training regimen, and since any more muscle mass would actually hinder Takuma in a fight, he was happy to let his friend handle most of the load.
"So, how's U.A. treating you?" Takuma asked when he noticed the grin spreading across Izuku's face.
"It's been great so far! Nedzu teaches me a lot about… everything," Izuku replied, his smile growing. "The other Heroes, the teachers—they're all everything I ever hoped for. I kind of got hit over the head with how… human they all are."
"Let me guess, they've already managed to disappoint you?" Takuma asked, unsurprised that spending time around Heroes had started to break down Izuku's hero worship.
"What? No!" Midoriya denied. "I never really thought about what Heroes do in their free time, or not as much as what they do on patrol. They all have hobbies and are just so… approachable. I feel welcome when I'm around them. Even with me being Nedzu's student, they've been nothing but welcoming, and I never thought I could spend so much time with them and learn so much. I feel like my brain's going to explode just listening to some of their conversations."
'Heroes who live up to the hype? Color me surprised,' Takuma thought sarcastically.
"Let me guess, you've already asked for autographs from half the staff," Takuma teased, a faint grin forming.
Izuku blushed and looked away. "All of them."
"Already? You've barely been there a week!"
"Mei was pretty insistent about getting her own," Izuku chuckled.
"Betrayal," Takuma deadpanned, invoking the now well-established inside joke between the three of them, earning a laugh from the bean. "By the way, not that I care much, but how's Snipe doing?"
"His treatment is going well!" Midoriya said happily. "Snipe's gone to visit some family in the U.S. He should be fully healed and back by the start of next year."
"Healing Quirk, I assume?"
"Yes. Recovery Girl used her contacts in the healthcare industry to have him treated as soon as possible," Izuku explained eagerly. "There's an entirely different protocol for treating Heroes. Besides every hospital having a ward for treating Heroes injured in the field, there's also a long list of illnesses that long exposure to certain Quirks can cause. Recovery Girl explained how well Heroes are treated and how easy it is for them to access specialists. It makes sense—an injured Hero can easily scare the public, especially if they're as well-known as Ryukyu. I kind of understand how she got back on her feet so quickly after that villain took her down with a stolen ground-to-air missile."
Takuma remembered that event. It had happened when he was working with Rumi. The Rabbit Hero hadn't been happy about it and had taken time off their joint mission to take down a few gangs to search for the villain. Takuma had helped her track him down and made sure she could get to him before he fled the country. Everything after that, like slamming him through five concrete walls, had been all Rumi. Good times.
"It's not every day a real villain tries to take out a Hero," he said, scratching his cheek.
"Heroes fight villains all the time," Midoriya shot back without missing a beat.
"No, they fight morons who think they're tougher than they really are or poor souls with addictions or mental health issues," Takuma countered. "Sinner was a real villain, with a plan and an actual goal. He knew the risks, unlike most of the 'villains' you see on the news, whose only crime was losing control of their Quirk or being in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong people. Actual villains are far more dangerous than most people realize. Sinner nearly took out a Hero with his stunt, but can you name a single Hero who's ever risked their life fighting a villain on the news?" he asked rhetorically. "If you compare the number of reported villain attacks with the number of civilians or Heroes hurt, the numbers don't add up. That's because even a minor Quirk accident can get you labeled a villain, and if the tag is removed , it's handled quietly."
"Nedzu had me look up the statistics for Hero injuries in the field… I know they don't match the number of villain attacks, but surely there's a difference between petty criminals and villains," Izuku said, partly stating, partly asking.
"Think of it this way: you're a Hero, not well-known, no merchandise, so your only income is the basic pay from the HSPC. You get bonuses for taking villains off the street, which adds to your notoriety and name recognition," Takuma explained. "Now consider that when dealing with a small-time thief, drug dealer, or any other petty criminal. More than one Hero takes the easy route and adds 'Quirk use' to their report. Because they're incentivized to label criminals as villains, and the HSPC isn't doing much to stop it behind closed doors."
"Corruption and abuse… I know there are Heroes who use their status for more than just helping people, but surely the HSPC is doing more to stop it," Izuku said with growing unease.
"Corruption and abuse, yes, but power first," Takuma replied. "The HSPC has its own rules. Why stop Heroes from doing things that give them leverage when needed?"
"You don't like the HSPC. Nedzu feels the same way," Midoriya noted as he scratched his cheek. "He hasn't told me much beyond the basics, but it's interesting that you both dislike them."
"Because we both know how the world works," Takuma said, grabbing a cigarette and lighting it. "Nedzu more so than me, I'll give him that. You can search the internet all you want, but you'll never find the information we have access to. There's no more controlled place than the web, and you won't find info someone doesn't want to be hidden. And that's not even considering Quirks that can do the one thing we can't—delete something from the internet. People hold the information you need, and you need to find those people—without dying, preferably."
"Can you help me meet some of those people?" Izuku asked, his ever-present hunger for knowledge gleaming in his eyes.
"I'll see what I can do," Takuma shrugged, filling his lungs with smoke. "You might regret it. There are some things you can't unsee."
"I still want to." his friend stated with conviction. "As for the staff, maybe if you spend more time with the U.A. Heroes, you might get a better view of them and their work," Izuku offered, a hopeful hint in his tone.
"I bet half of them are just posers here for a paycheck and couldn't be trusted not to make any situation worse just by being there," Takuma replied, much to Izuku's horror. "When it comes to Heroes, you either stumble across the one-in-a-hundred who's actually more than their title, or the rest are just there to look pretty. That's why I prefer villains—at least the real ones, they won't piss on your leg and tell you it's rain."
"They're not like that!" Izuku denied vehemently. "I-I know I've been there only a week, but so far none of them have been anything but great Heroes, people... and teachers."
That last word had some weight to it. Takuma knew Izuku's old teachers were all Quirk supremacists who took joy in tormenting him. He could imagine that for Izuku, even a simple "good morning" from his U.A. teachers would be one of the most pleasant interactions he'd ever had with an authority figure.
"I guess the truth will be in the pudding, as they say. I'll keep an open mind, but I'll be honest, U.A. or not, I'm not expecting much," Takuma said. He said it more to encourage Midoriya's hopeful outlook than out of any real faith in the Heroes he was bound to meet. If he made it into U.A., that is.
But then he felt a wave of trepidation from Izuku, a clear sign that his friend was about to broach a sensitive subject.
"Takuma, I wanted to ask something... You don't have to say yes, but I-I wanted to ask if you could let me finish cleaning the beach on my own?" Izuku asked hesitantly.
Takuma stared at him, blinking. "Sure," he replied with a shrug.
Midoriya was making progress in the confidence department, but moments like this showed it was still a work in progress.
"Thanks, I-I know it's selfish, but I need to do this," Izuku added, eyes fixed on the ground.
'And I'm sure All Might passing One For All onto you has nothing to do with this sudden need to be alone,' Takuma thought, suppressing a groan at the obvious lack of subtlety.
There were a dozen ways the trio of Gran Torino, All Might, and Izuku could have gotten him to leave the beach for a week. This was the most direct and also the most suspicious. Hell, if Takuma cared at all about finishing the cleanup himself, he could easily say no and keep coming back. But in his case, he was already looking forward to spending mornings cuddling with his girlfriend.
"Don't worry about it," he said, taking a final drag from his cigarette before flicking it onto the sand and stomping it out. "I'll be going now. Good luck with the rat."
Takuma realized Izuku was glaring at the cigarette butt in the sand. Rolling his eyes, he bent down, picked it up, and tossed it into one of the trash bags All Might had saddled them with. Midoriya chuckled softly.
"Thanks, and say hello to Mei for me!" Izuku called out as Takuma began to walk away.
"Will do. Take care," Takuma replied.
Still, Takuma's mind was elsewhere. Soon, Izuku would receive One For All. He just hoped it wouldn't hurt him too much.
Fun fact, I wanted to reach U.A. at about 100k words in. That ship has sailed!
But don't worry, this is where the meat of the story will happen !