In the training room at Might Tower, sat a large metal cube, it was the size of a small car, and probably weighed as much as a small truck. All but one of its sides were perfectly smooth, creating nearly clear reflections of the training equipment around it. However, the remaining side was riddled with small dents and scratches that had long since removed its lustre.

Across from the cube, several feet away, Izuku sits eyes closed, dressed in a plush bathrobe, leaning back in a vibrating massage chair, listening to calming music as he loses himself in the warmth of a bubbling foot bath. The soft pressure of the massage on his back, feet and shoulders, combined with the soothing melodies in his ears, relaxes him to the point where he could drift off any second.

Underneath the bathrobe is a skintight full body suit, a gift from Recovery Girl so that she could monitor his quirk and his body during his training.

And yes, this was training. Even if it was unusual.

Izuku begins to fade away, his brain conjuring images of him as a hero, dressed in a sleek costume with red, white and blue. He's walking down a road in a park, on either side of him are blooming sakura trees, towering above him.

He's holding the hands of two little children, one a boy and one a girl, both who have gotten lost. They smile and cheer, the three of them walking down the path. They feel comfortable, they feel safe.

This makes him happy.

He also notices that he feels like there are shadows in the corner of his vision that he can't see, hiding amongst the Sakura trees. Despite this, he doesn't feel tense as he feels the shadows watching him, rather he feels calm.

Relaxed.

Just then, the signal to begin jolts him from the daydream as the arm chair buzzes three times in quick succession under his arms. His eyes open wide as he thrusts his hands forward, the image in his head shifting as a villain manifests before him on the sakura tree path.

He hasn't met this villain yet, nor will he ever. This villain is a figment of his imagination, embodying everything Izuku wants to stand against. They're not real, they're a tool for him to channel his anger towards.

He imagines the villain sneering at him, eyes darting between him and the children. As the villain looks at them, they begin to cry and move to hide behind Izuku. The image angers Izuku and in an instant he feels the muscles in his hands tense as he wills two large tendrils to lash out towards the metal cube.

They strike almost simultaneously, the second strike bisecting the path of the first with two loud clangs. Afterwards the tentacles retract, allowing him to observe the aftermath of his attack as the dark energy begins to slither back into his hands.

The sight of the cube causes him some disappointment as it appears his strikes left no noticeable marks, and in response he determines to push himself further.

The instant the tendrils finish retreating into his hands, he thrusts them forward again, projecting the image of the villain in his mind once more. Using the righteous anger within him to fuel the quirk

He imagines the villain using their quirk to harm others.

bang!

He imagines the sorrow of those who have suffered the consequences of the villain's anger.

Bang!

As he continues attacking the cube, his imagination begins running away from him, and instead image of the villain shifts to Katchan.

Bang!

Then what he imagines Tsubasa's grandfather to look like.

Bang!

Then Native

Bang! Bang!

Then the slime villain who attacked him.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Then that mutant who assaulted him in the alleyway and got off scot-free!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Then his dad.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Who hurt his mom.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Who abandoned him.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

And who…

Suddenly, as his mind conjures the image of his father, he feels the shadows from before, the shadows that were hiding among the Sakura trees.

They appear in his mind, along with the image of his father. Who stands with a smile Izuku can only describe as pure evil as the shadows encircle him.

Instead of the calm from before, now he's suddenly accosted with a wave of emotions he can only tangentially relate to anger.

Fear. Hatred. Anguish.

THUNK-BANG!

Izuku is pulled out of the vision as he feels a roar of pain echo from his hands.

He barely even gets to witness the mangled form of his right hand before his eyes go wide as he notices the tendrils, larger than ever before, lashing out in all directions. The force of the tendrils lifting him into the air, nearly flinging him against the tall ceiling of the room.

He screams, his pain overwhelming his mind as he tries to call to his mentors for help.

He grabs at his right hand with his left, desperately willing the tentacles back into his misshapen hand.

It refuses.

Then suddenly, his grip goes slack as the heavy boot of Gran Torino slams into the back of his head. Knocking him out cold.

As his body slumps, the tendrils begin lazily retracting back into his body, following him down as he falls from the air.

Using the jet engine like propulsion of the holes in the bottom of his feet, Gran Torino expertly uses his quirk to dart into the perfect position to catch Izuku before he hit the floor.

As the old man slowly lowered himself and his trainee to the floor, Recovery Girl stood up from behind the machine she had been monitoring Izuku's vitals with. Running over to them to check Izuku for injuries.

"Sorahiko… Did you need to be so violent?" She reprimanded as she checked the back of his head which was already beginning to bruise. "I'm sure he could have reigned the quirk in."

Deciding he was mostly fine, she kissed Izuku lightly on the check, and a soft lime green energy hovered there for a second, before defusing throughout his body. Most of it moved towards either the back of his head or to his hand.

Once the energy reached his hand, Gran Torino watched in fascination as the bones clicked and clacked back into place, cringing slightly as the visceral sounds.

As the healing energy faded, Recovery Girl walked over to the machine to check it for damage.

"I don't think he could have, Chiyo." He said grimly as he followed her. "I saw the look in his eyes. There was fear, the type I've only ever seen when you're fighting a losing battle."

He looked down at the kid in his arms, a soft frown of concern on his face.

"I didn't think this kid had the sort of anger in him that'd make the quirk go berserk like that."

"You're right, I don't think he does." Recovery Girl answered cryptically, causing him to throw her a look of confusion.

In response, she beckoned him over to the machine.

"Look here. Normally when he uses the quirk, it looks like this." She pointed to a reading that Gran Torino only really saw as a squiggly line. "But when he had the outburst, it looked like this."

She pointed to another squiggly line, although it was far more chaotic, it looked almost the same to him.

"I don't see what you mean."

"It's flipped." She said, and when looking again he saw she was right. If you were to place them over each other, every time one of them was at a high point the other would be at a low point.

"It's hard to say for certain, but I think this could mean that instead of him influencing his quirk to use it, the quirk influences him to use itself."

"What, are you saying the quirk activated itself?" Gran Torino blinked. "Quirks don't do that."

"They do, sometimes." She countered. "Such as when they're sentient."

…

"You can't be serious."

"Why not? One for All has already been acting plenty weird in his body." She said gesturing at the carnage around them.

Looking around, Gran Torino decided her statement was fair. Toshinori had his growing pains with One for All, but nothing as wild as this.

Several of the large training machines were damaged, one had been uprooted, the massive bolts that had kept it in place snapped from the pressure, and one of the taller ones had been twisted beyond repair, as if the quirk was trying to wring its neck.

The cube?

It was currently lodged deep in the reinforced wall on the far end of the room. Thankfully the walls of the gym were modelled after the training rooms used by high-ranking heroes, otherwise a two ton block of steel would have been flung into the city.

Looking back at the young man sleeping in his arms, Gran Torino grumbled under his breath.

"Nana, you shouldn't have passed on the quirk, your successor's successor is going to be the death of me."

"What was that?" Recovery Girl asked, although she was clearly focused on the machine before her.

"I'm going to take him up to your office to rest, then I'll contact the Sherlock impersonator to tell him about the damage." He said, turning to the doorway.

"Sir Nighteye?" Recovery Girl asked. "Why not Toshinori?"

"He's busy. Nezu is throwing a party for his sponsors, and the meathead agreed to be there." He replied. "Apparently he's going to play an important role at the event, but really, I think the rat just wants to parade him around to show off his new toy."

Recovery Girl snickered at the comment. "You're still so harsh on him. Nezu did a lot for us back in the day."

Stopping in the doorway, Gran Torino didn't turn as he spoke with suppressed anger in his voice.

"He also showed me he's no different from the scientists that experimented on him."

He walked off before she could say anything.

"My, my, Nezu. When you mentioned an extravagant event, I certainly didn't imagine this," Uwabami said, her voice soft but sly as she offered an elegant curtsy. Her ballgown was a breathtaking fusion of Victorian elegance and modern flair, the neon colors peeking out from beneath the black frills making a statement. Even more striking, her hair had formed into three sleek cobras, their movements almost hypnotic as they coiled gently near her head.

"Uwabami!" Nezu greeted with enthusiasm, walking to the edge of his platform. With an exaggerated bow, he took her hand and placed a light kiss on it, playing up the role of a Victorian gentleman. "The pleasure is all mine to have you grace this event."

From his waist-height platform, Nezu had a commanding view of the event, his elevated pedestal perfectly positioned for hosting as the small statured creature he was. His small table with refreshments added a playful touch to the set-up, and he grinned, fully aware of how humorous it all looked.

Uwabami chuckled softly, her cobras swaying gently as she raised her champagne glass. "No, the pleasure is truly mine. A whole model city district for a party? That's quite the extravagant display, even for you." She gestured gracefully around them. "I admire the ambition."

As she spoke, her gaze swept over the park around them, now the vibrant heart of the celebration. The event sprawled across the central park of the model city, illuminated by the soft glow of countless lights strung between trees and poles, casting a warm, ethereal hue. Snack bars and elegantly set tables dotted the scene, their surfaces gleaming under the mingling moonlight and city light, creating an enchanting blend of nature and urban charm. The buzz of conversation and the clinking of glasses filled the air, punctuated by soft music drifting from the countless speakers placed throughout the purely artificial setting.

Nezu's eyes twinkled with delight as he caught her admiring the surroundings. "Thank you! Although, this wasn't just for the party," he added, a playful note in his voice.

"Oh, I know," Uwabami said, taking a sip of champagne. "You also arranged it for our on-campus accommodations this weekend, quite a bold display of wealth. I passed by the Grand Medusa Hotel replica on my way in—just as grand as the original."

Nezu's smile widened, mischief dancing in his expression. "That too. But there's another, far more practical reason for all this, one I'll be revealing very soon."

Uwabami raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "A practical reason? Now you have me curious, Nezu." She leaned in slightly, as if trying to coax the secret from him. "Care to give me a hint, or are you keeping us all in suspense?"

Nezu chuckled, shaking his head. "No spoilers, I'm afraid. But I promise, it will be worth the wait."

She laughed lightly, her snakes seeming to join in with a subtle sway, and soft hisses that Nezu knew only a few would be able to hear. "Well, I can't wait to see what you have planned." She glanced around the room, her eyes landing on a familiar face. "If you'll excuse me, I've spotted an old friend. I'd love to catch up before the big reveal."

"Of course," Nezu said with a gracious nod. "Please, mingle to your heart's content."

As the model floated gracefully across the floor toward her old friend, Nezu took the opportunity to slip back to his chair. Upon its arm lay his headset and microphone, tools he'd need to continue orchestrating the evening's events.

He slid the headset over his small, rounded ears and tapped a few buttons to locate the right signal.

"Power Loader?"

"Ready sir."

"Excellent. Give them 5 minutes before we begin. I think I need something to drink to ease my dry throat anyway."

"Will do sir."

As the line clicked closed, the rodent hopped off his chair and waddled toward his personal snack bar. He placed the headphones down and picked up a small Nezu sized plate.

Perusing the options, Nezu selected a few finger foods and arranged them meticulously on the plate. With his food arranged to his liking, he reached for a glass and filled it with some rat-friendly champagne. Amused, he began stacking the snacks in a neat little tower, wondering just how high he could go before the stack risked collapse.

"Ahem."

The small hairs on the back of his neck rose. His plate wobbled as his paw tightened around it, almost sending a sausage roll tumbling back to the counter. He swung his head toward the sound, eyes wide, the prey instinct rooted deep with in him screaming of danger.

Then, the cold logic of his quirk enhanced brain caught up to his instincts and overpowered the illogical reaction.

"Mr. Chizome Akaguro." Nezu composed himself with a smile. "My apologies; I hadn't noticed your arrival."

The man before him was one of the contacts recommended by Nezu's friend from the HPSC—a wealthy figure who, curiously, was not dressed to flaunt it despite the prestige of the event. His suit was plain and understated, nearly blending with the formal wear of the waiting staff, and his hair was cut in a way that emphasized neatness over style.

Without the prominent mutations distorting his facial structure, he might have passed for an unremarkable man. His large, angular jaw and tiny almost non-existent nose, however, pushed his features into the uncanny valley—or at least Nezu recognized that such features would invoke such a reaction from a human.

As a rodent he was personally unaffected by that that psychological phenomenon.

Still, Nezu couldn't help but wonder how his guest had managed to sneak up on him Nezu's quirk, among other things, granted him heightened senses that should have allowed him to detect anyone approaching him via the sound of their footsteps.

"No worries," the man said with a polite smile, his large teeth showing as he talked. Nezu also curiously noted the large lumps that formed all over the man's tongue, which appeared much larger than most, explaining why the man's jaw was so unusually large.

"I startled you." The man observed. "It's fine—my face isn't the most pleasant to look at."

Nezu shook his head, quick to correct him. "Not at all; your appearance is of no concern to me," he replied with a reassuring smile. "I was simply surprised I hadn't heard you approach." Nezu waggled his ears playfully. "These are usually quite perceptive to footsteps."

The man let out a dry, almost raspy chuckle. "You don't judge others by their appearances. That's rare," he said, a glint in his eye that left Nezu with the sense he'd passed some unspoken test. "Is it by principle or does your unique life experience as a rodent among apes make you naturally more accepting of the effects quirks can have on appearances?"

Slightly taken back at the bluntness of the statement, after all, humans typically danced around the topic of his inhumanity, Nezu nonetheless appreciated it. He was always eager to have such discussions with people and few had the intellect and knowledge to make it a dialogue rather than a monologue with a few questions and comments thrown in.

However, before Nezu could respond, his headset sprang to life on the table.

"Nezu, may we start?"

His eyes flicked from his guest to the headset, momentarily uncertain about which task to prioritize. When he turned back to the man, however, he found the space empty, his guest already vanished into the crowd.

Nezu stared for half a second in mild disbelief, scanning the crowd for a sign of his mysterious guest. Even with his quirk enhanced sense and being in the middle of a conversation with the man, he managed to slip away unnoticed.

Chizome Akaguro. The man had now piqued Nezu's interest, and the rodent had to resist the irresponsible desire to search for him. Although he determined to talk to him later.

Now that his decision had been made for him, Nezu picked up his headset.

"Yes, you may proceed," he answered, scanning the crowd one last time, unable to shake the excitement that the encounter had stirred within him.

"Mt. Lady, it's rude to grab more than one glass from the waitstaff," Kamui Woods chided, crossing his arms. "People might think you're only here for the free drinks."

"And what if I am?" The accused quipped back, lifting an eyebrow as she dual wielded two glasses of champagne that she had just liberated from a waiter who passed by her.

Her outfit was a sleek dark red modern dress that complimented her bright blond hair. Accompanying it were red crystaline platform shoes, meant to make her look taller, and a large crystalline head-set that resembled the horns from her hero outfit, matching her shoes.

According to the design and branding team that Edgeshot referred her to, she was still rather new to the hero scene, so incorporating features in her outfit that reminded others of her hero persona would increase recognition of her brand and make her more memorable to other heroes at the event.

She still objected to the idea that she had to wear the platforms. She was tall enough as is, she didn't need them to look tall. If push came to shove she could just use her quirk to make herself half a meter taller, although that did risk a very embarrassing outfit malfunction if she lost control.

However, her objections were ignored, and now she was stuck waddling around the event like a penguin as she tried to maintain her balance.

She silently envied her friend, his bark like skin made him memorable enough that he could wear what he wanted. He even kept his mask on to continue the mystery about whether it was part of his face or not.

Yet at the same time the fashionista in her fumed that out of everything he could have chosen to wear, he had chosen a polo neck and jeans with sandals. His outfit was boring.

Admittedly, being boring was his way of protesting against the showboating heroes often do at social events like these. He was annoyingly idealist about hero work and had lectured her many times about her own showboating being antithetical to true heroism or whatever.

At least if a paparazzo snapped a photo of them together, she'd look fantastic by comparison.

"Besides," she said, raising her glass, "I'm not going to get drunk on a few sips of champagne. Lighten up a little!"

Kamui Woods gave her a withering look but then raised his hand, politely declining a server's offer of a sparkling drink.

"No thanks," he said. "Alcohol dries and damages wood. Not great for… well," he gestured at his bark-like skin with a faint smile.

The server shook their head with a professional smile. "These are non-alcoholic, sir; we're mindful of dietary restrictions."

Kamui gave Mt. Lady a sideways glance as she raised one of her glasses, wordlessly urging him to join her. Relenting, he took a glass, nodding at the server as they bowed and moved on. "It's impressive how accommodating they are."

"It's becoming more common place, nowadays." An unfamiliar voice remarked, drawing their attention. "Quirks are wonderful things, I feel its only right that society continue to adapt to make the lives of those with quirks easier."

Both heroes turned to see a tall, broad-shouldered man with an athletic build approaching. His build fit well in his sharp black suit with fine white pinstripes, and his garish green tie was almost enough to distract them from his rather prominent nose. Said nose was large and sharp, and was accompanied with spiky orange/brown hair and a somewhat receding hairline that revealed to dark spots on one side of his forehead.

Stopping beside them, he offered a warm smile. "Apologies for interrupting—I couldn't help but overhear. I've been hoping for a chance to speak with the two of you since I arrived. My name is Rikiya Yotsubashi, CEO of Detnerat."

Their eyes went wide at the name. Detnerat was one of the big three native support item companies in the nation, alongside Turvulen and Nekamura. Detnerat was the least involved in heroics, and specialized in creating support gear suitable for civilians, but they had quite a few impressive hero names who used their equipment.

"Detnerat? The honor's ours, Mr. Yotsubashi." Kamui Woods said, and Rikiya waved him off.

"No, no, call me Rikiya, please. I'm just a man who sits behind a desk all day, compared to me the two of you are celebrities. In fact, I'm quite impressed by your dual rise to stardom, you've been making some waves with those powerful quirks of yours."

Mt. Lady smiled, basking in the praise. "Thank you! It's been a wild ride since my debut. Honestly, I'm surprised I've made it big enough to get an invite here."

"With that quirk of yours? Common, you should be more confident in your abilities. I see you easily breaking into the top 50 by the end of the year."

"Ha!" Kamui Woods barked, before quickly realizing that he had laughed out loud.

Hastening to clarify, he waves off the glare from Mt Lady and addresses the curious look from their interloper. "If she wasn't so lazy, I'd say you're being too conservative with her ranking, as it stands she'll be lucky to make it into the top 200."

This statement, surprising to no-one did not soften Mt. Lady's anger, and earned him a slap on the arm. The sound of her hand striking his wooden arm caused a few people to become curious onlookers, causing her to become more embarrassed.

"Oh?" Rikiya turned his attention to Mt. Lady, sizing her up. "And if our friend here trained as much as you'd like, where do you think she would rank?"

"Top 20. Easily." Kamui answered without hesitation, his confidence catching Mt. Lady off guard enough to draw a grin from her as several of the onlookers seemed to have heard the comment and began to whisper among themselves.

"My, my," Rikiya said with a smile towards Mt Lady, but turned his attention to Kamui. "That's quite the ambitious statement, but how would you rank yourself?"

The question seemed to genuinely stun the wooden man, as the words got stuck in his throat as he tried to answer.

"Top 20." Mt. Lady replied, just as confident as he was before, earning a look of surprise from Kamui. "Oh, don't look at me like that. We've been rivals since school, if I'm top 20 quality, so are you. And if you're to shy to brag about it, I will do that for you."

Eyes flickering between the two heroes, as he observed their friendship, the CEO saw an opportunity he wanted to capitalize on.

"Interesting. And if you were to be sponsored by Detnerat, do you think you'd rank higher?"

The heroes shared a look, Mt. Lady clearly ready to jump for the opportunity, though Kamui seemed to want to temper her reaction.

"What would we get? And what do you get?" Kamui asked before she could jump in blind.

"My company has no shortage of resources. We'd fund your training facilities, provide your hero outfits, we can even negotiate a special rate for our other support gear. In exchange, you do some photo shoots for some of our civilian gear. I think the two of you are rising stars with the potential to go super nova with the right motivation, if I can attach my brand to you before you get there, it makes our connection seem more genuine to the average consumer. Reflecting well on both of us."

Mt Lady looked at Kamui again with almost pleading eyes, while he remained clearly sceptical.

Before anyone could respond, however, the crowd began murmuring and pointing toward Nezu's platform as it slowly rose above the crowd. Like a pillar ascending to the sky.

"We'll revisit my offer soon, it seems our host wants our attention," Rikiya said with a knowing smile, and the heroes nodded in agreement.