nexusplayer: First of all, they're just 15, so no. Second, even if they're adults, I have zero idea how to write one. So, double no.

Training Ground Gamma, UA High

Musutafu, Japan

"Congratulations, Yaoyorozu. Despite the…unforeseen situation, you have shown your ability to quickly adapt to your current situation and strategic skills. Not only that, you also showed your information-gathering skills by making full use of the training ground's map. My only criticism for you is to perhaps remain calm on your situation, no matter the reason…." Thirteen compliments while subtly looking at disgruntled Bakugou. Thankfully, due to her black-tinted glass helmet, no one seems to notice it. "I know you manage to calm down before anything happens, but please let it be a reminder so it won't happen again. It could've cost you and the civilians you try to rescue."

"Understand, Thirteen-san. Thank you for the criticism." Yaomomo stated with a both. "I shall remember it."

"Tokoyami, well done on your rescue exercise and making sure the civilians are well. But, perhaps next time you might need to be more proactive." Thirteen says. "Don't simply let others command you to do what you need, but perhaps provide insights or suggestions, or maybe help your teammate with conflicts."

"I understand. I shall heed your advice." Tokoyami stated with a nod.

"Todoroki, my advice for you is to not work alone. This exercise requires a team and if you wanted to do something, perhaps ask if it's a good idea." Thirteen explains. "Your actions just now could not only jeopardize the entire mission by endangering the civilians you attempt to rescue. Rescuing requires planning and care, you don't want to harm the civilians, do you?"

"…No," Shoto mutters, lowering his head.

"Thankfully, no harm done. My suggestion is to learn the proper way. Heroism is more than just power through every obstacle." Thirteen says as Shoto nods before she looks at Bakugou. "Bakugou, what you planning to do is very reckless. If it wasn't for Yaoyorozu stopping you, you might've harmed the civilians you intend to rescue."

"…" Bakugou merely growls under his breath as Izuku internally sighs. His lack of care towards the rescue aspect of heroism shows how bad he has become, especially compared to his past self. He doesn't think the old Kacchan will come back any time soon. Izuku stops before wondering why is he even thinking about Bakugou again. Didn't he declare that he is no longer giving a single shit to Bakugou?

'It takes time, Ninth. It wasn't long since you cut your ties with Bakugou, so lingering feeling like that will appear at any time.' Nana explains.

'I hate this…my mind is already a mess, adding this bullshit only complicates things.' Izuku thought in exasperation.

'Only you could treat mental problems like this…' Banjo snorts. 'Mental issues were not meant to be simple. So, take your time, kid.'

'I'm glad none of you guys try to add more issues, especially Kudou and Bruce…' Izuku muses.

'Kid, we're not heartless like how we were portrayed in your world's media.' Kudou says in annoyance. 'I wasn't such a dick. And even if you never got your memories back, I will be acting harsh towards you but not borderline mental abuse.'

'Whoever portrayed us truly didn't understand that we're more than just being a dick.' Bruce grumbles.

'Sorry, sorry…' Izuku sheepishly apologize. As the next rescue exercise starts, Izuku can't help but raise his eyebrow as he is curious about her new confidence, and much better ability to adapt. If he remembers how she was portrayed in the early part of the story, she seems to have low self-esteem and he is curious about what changed.

'Did you have to be suspicious about your friends?' Nana asks in a disapproving tone.

'It's not suspicious, it's curiosity.' Izuku exclaims. 'I don't mind she improved mentally, but I can't help but be curious about how it happens.'

'Usually, that kind of curiosity stems from suspicions.' En stated.

'It's not, okay! I trust her! But, aren't you guys a bit curious about what caused the changes?' Izuku asks.

'Only if the changes affect negatively.' Kudo said sternly. 'Like how the history differs to what you know and something like that, not about a friend who suddenly got a confidence boost. So, tell me, why are you suspicious about it?'

'….It's something dumb….I'm scared that a bad guy try to manipulate her…' Izuku thought. 'I….didn't think too much about it first, but after seeing the sudden shift of power on the villain's side, and the existence of other Isekaid people….I'm scared that she might….' Izuku didn't finish his sentence but the vestiges understand what he's trying to say.

'…I understand your worries, but do you want me to tell you the actual reason?' Izuku merely replies with a 'yes' before Kudo continues. 'You are the reason why she's changed.'

'… What?' Izuku thought in shock.

'….you are quite blind towards the changes you made besides the obvious one, do you?' Izuku flushes in embarrassment, unable to respond. 'Think about it this way, in the original timeline, you and Yaoyorozu didn't interact at all. She has the confidence but she wasn't challenged until the Sports Festival where her confidence fell into the abyss. Here, you made friends with her and it's obvious you created a bond with her. And the USJ is completely different from how it is supposed to be. You got heavily injured and she, along with the rest of your friends, for the first time, got challenged. This leads to their confidence to shattered and feeling guilty. Their guilt leads them to make sure it will never happen again, which leads them to improve themselves more. In Yaoyorozu's case, she probably found someone who could help her, maybe a certain wolf bodyguard?'

Izuku was unable to respond to Kudo's words. How could he? He wasn't expecting the answers Kudo gave to him at all. He didn't even want to believe he was the reason why his friends became a better version of themselves. No one even thinks of him back when he was in Aldera, and he was a dick in his past life, so hearing Kudo's answer surprises him. Also, it does make sense for Lycaon to train her especially if he is similar to his game counterpart, and he is very successful at that. He supposes that it's more of Lycaon's action than his that helps Yaomomo improve so much.

'Kid, try to have a better opinion of yourself,' Bruce stated in exasperation. 'If you keep doing this, then you won't be able to see your progress and you will hinder your growth! So what if people were dismissing you like it was nothing? So what if you were not the best person!? It was your past! Not your present or your future! Stop thinking about it and move forward! That includes thinking about your lack of actions to help Yaoyorozu and maybe trying to focus on how to help her improve in the future instead. '

'……' Izuku is speechless at Bruce's words. 'Um….t-thanks…for the speech…'

'I'm going to be honest, I wasn't expecting a motivational speech from Third,' En admits.

'Indeed, he's too grumpy to even make one,' Yoichi nods in agreement.

'Oh, screw you! I can do speeches! I did that way back before the war started when I was nothing but a class representative!' Bruce exclaims in annoyance.

'… any advice for my Sports Festival Speech?' Izuku asks.

'Figure out on your own, kid. I think you can handle it since compared to how you use Gearshift these several days, I think it's much more complicated than a measly speech.' Bruce stated.

'I have no mental capacity to do a proper speech! Please an advice!' Izuku begs.

'Nope,' Izuku swears he can see Bruce's shit-eating grin and he promises he'll get back at him.

'Then perhaps, I shall provide you with an ammo.' Kudo says as Izuku blinks, not expecting help from him of all people. 'Did you know, way before the war, Bruce was a F-!?'

'NO!!! NO ONE SHALL EVER KNOW!!!' Bruce, for the first time, completely loses his composure and muffles Kudo before following up with a brawl in the background. Izuku could only sweatdrop, wondering how it ended up like this.

"Hey, Izu?" Izuku looks to see Hackmon giving him a concerned look. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Izuku says while rubbing Hackmon's cheeks. "I was simply deep in thought,"

"You know you could just tell me about it, right?" Hackmon says as Izuku nods.

"I know, but I promise it was nothing," Izuku says, earning a nuzzle from Hackmon.

"I'm going to be honest," Izuku turns to see Hanzo approaching him. "I am jealous of you and Takechi…"

"If it indicates anything, you probably get your partner next," Izuku says as Hanzo lets out a sigh.

"I should not get my hopes up," Hanzo mutters as Izuku pats his shoulder, which makes Hanzo slump down.

Later

Izuku was grateful that for the rest of the training session, things were very calm, well…except for a few things. It happened during the second training exercise which involved a group of civilians consisting of Koda, Hanzo, and Harumi and a group of rescuers consisting of Shoji, Jirou, Sero, and Eijirou. Harumi…..calling her a bitch is a complete understatement. Izuku knows that Harumi is not what she seems, but seeing her acting out catches him off guard and she somehow breaks Izuku's expectation of what is considered a spoiled bitch.

For whatever reason, she lashes out at Thirteen for no other reason than demanding to switch Eijirou for Todoroki. Everyone had never been so baffled in their life while Izuku suspect that she might've gone crazy after getting knocked out in USJ. So, to make it easier, Yaomomo pulls out a smoke grenade filled with gas with the same chemical component as Midnight's Somnambulist, judging from the pink smoke it emits, and knocks her out. Then, Yaomomo suggests she will be the unconscious civilian.

It's safe to say that a lot of boys backed away from her after the incident. Smart boys.

Besides that, no incident had occurred. They're currently in the last session where Izuku is saving Tsuyu from a fallen crane. Using OFA, Izuku lifts it effortlessly to create a wider pathway while Ochako uses Zero Gravity for easier rescue, with Ojiro helping to carry the remaining civilians, Mina and Tsuyu. As they walk out, Izuku gently places the collapsed crane aside.

"…you know, if not for what happened in USJ and what I saw just now, I would never believe you capable of lifting anything heavy," Ojiro admits.

"Ouch…" Izuku says, acting offended.

"Sorry, sorry…." Ojiro says sheepishly. "You…didn't seem to show any sign of physical strength. Your jacket and shirt hid it very well."

"You seem to forget the Battle Trial incident," Izuku says deadpan.

"Oh….right…" At least Ojiro has the decency to look sheepish. Rolling his eyes he looks at Tsuyu and Mina.

"Both of you okay? Any sign of pain or discomfort?" Izuku asks gently.

"We're fine, kero," Tsuyu stated. "We have told Ochako about it."

"Not for me, ow. I got a broken leg." Mina says dramatically, using an exaggerated gesture while looking at Izuku with a smirk. "I wish a knight in shining armor would appear and carry me like a princess."

"Sorry, your knight in shining armor is seeking another princess. Ochako, carry her." Izuku says in a flat tone, making Mina pout while Ochako chuckles.

"Geez, what kind of boyfriend are you letting your girl do the heavy lifting," Mina exclaims as Ochako and Izuku blush, making Mina smirk.

"First of all, we're not a couple," Izuku ignores Mina's and the Vestige's 'yet' in the background. "Second of all, I would rather if I don't get accused of being a pervert. So many female citizens had tried to slap me for simply carrying them away, so I would rather if Uraraka did it for me,"

"Well, I won't, so don't worry about it," Mina says with a sly smile before Ochako lifts her and carries her like a sack of potatoes.

"Don't you think you're a bit carried away with the acting?" Ojiro asks.

"Our sensei asks us to treat this seriously. I did this by acting like it's a real-life scenario. Besides, it's fun and helps to distract my mind from what happened this week." Izuku says as Ojiro remains silent, not refuting Izuku's words.

"You're okay?" Izuku blinks, not expecting Ojiro to ask about his condition. "I…know we're not exactly friends, but I saw what happened to you along with your friends….I can't help but wonder if you're okay, mentally of course."

"I've…been better," Izuku says while rubbing his head.

"….I'm glad," Ojiro says as Izuku sighs internally. "Maybe if you had any trouble, you could seek Hound Dog. It….helps."

"You have gone to seek for his help?" Izuku blinks.

"Yes…seeing your classmate covered in a puddle of blood isn't something you might forget anytime soon," Ojiro admits as Izuku winced.

"Sorry.." Izuku mutters.

"….Don't apologize," Ojiro replied. "It's…not your fault. You didn't ask to be in that situation…"

"Yeah…" Izuku mutters as they walk back, the walk is filled with nothing but a tense silence.

Later

"For this rescue exercise, there will be 16 civilians in need of rescue and 4 heroes." Hound Dog explains as they move to a huge field full of debris that looks like a warzone. "5 of you will go around the area and find each civilian, guiding them to here, the designated medical area. Make sure you carefully guide them back, go through the safest path, understood?"

"Yes!" The four members of the rescue will be Izuku, Hackmon, Ochako, Koda, and Hanzo. All five of them look deathly pale, looking like they have just witnessed a massacre and they swore they heard Cementoss screaming about 'working overtime' and 'demanding extra payment'. The five of them shake their head and look at each other before they start to discuss their plan.

"I have a plan. If you guys have any suggestions or maybe a plan of your own, please speak up." Izuku says as everyone nods. "The plan is to fully utilize Koda's quirk by calling for the animal's help and scouting for civilians before going to look for them. Then, any two of us will go look around, covering both air and ground. And whenever Koda finds someone, Hackmon relays the information by traveling through the phone. Sounds good?" Everyone nods. "All right then, now for splitting up part."

"I have a suggestion," Hanzo said. "You and Uraraka need to be in different teams in case we deal with heavy debris. Both you and Uraraka had the power to deal with them easily without harming the civilians, while Koda and I had no way to do that. Also, Midoriya's proficient with Haki, so it's a perfect skill for search and rescue."

"Besides the last part, which is not true." Izuku deliberately ignores his friends' dry stare. "That's a good suggestion. What about you guys, do any of you guys want to add a suggestion?"

"No, we're good," Ochako says while shaking her head as Koda does the same. Without any delay, Koda immediately summons a group of crows and asks for their help while Izuku and Hanzo go towards the site to look for civilians. As they walk away, Hanzo decides to start a conversation with Izuku.

"So…I can't help but be curious about how you manage to befriend them so easily. Do you plan any of that?" Hanzo asks.

"No, I don't know how to make friends properly, they just keep popping up…" Izuku mutters.

"Oh….um, sorry," Hanzo mutters while rubbing his head. Izuku let out a sigh before using Observation, detecting a few students sitting while talking together. Izuku's eyes twitch slightly. He knows that this is just a normal exercise, but the way they casually have a conversation changes the atmosphere of the situation. It doesn't feel like rescuing people, it feels like finding your friends because they're late for a meeting and caught them having fun without a care in the world. It didn't help that Izuku detected an aura belonging to a certain someone.

"Found them…" Izuku grumbles as Hanzo perk up.

"Oh, cool. But, um….why do you look a bit grumpy?" Hanzo asks in confusion.

"Nothing…" Izuku continues to grumble, refusing to elaborate. Hanzo could only look at him in utter confusion. What happens to Izuku?

Meanwhile

With Ochako and Koda

Koda can be seen following a mouse while Ochako walks a few feet away from Koda as she carries Hackmon in her arms. Ochako is still traumatized by what she witnessed during the training exercise, watching people get swarmed by hundreds of them isn't exactly great.

"It's this…way," Koda mutters as he gestures to Ochako to follow him. Ochako merely nods as she follows him.

"….Hey, Koda," Ochako calls, getting his attention. "Have you….ever think you didn't do enough?"

"….a lot of times," Koda admits. "I always…..doubt myself……wondering if I…..did enough to be here…" Koda did everything not to stutter out of nervousness. He had gone to Hound Dog talking about his nervousness and fear along with how to overcome it. He is still more comfortable talking in sign language, but he knows not everyone understands it. It was lucky he met one and he helped to connect Koda with the rest of the friends, and he was even luckier that they didn't complain about it. But, he knows he can't remain silent every day, so he has practiced, and a lot of time he uses sign language out of habit, but he tries.

"Me too…" Ochako says. "….Izu-kun had saved me twice….I….I feel like a damsel in distress instead of a proper hero….I want to prove myself that I'm also capable, you know?"

"I…get it…" Koda stutters. "It's….one of the reasons….I-I-I join the club….even though I…..never like v-v-violence." Koda covers his mouth while letting out a muffled groan.

"….then during the Sports Festival, let us do our absolute best! Let us prove to everyone that we earn the spot!" Ochako exclaims, and fire comically bursts out of her body. Koda was startled by Ochako's sudden shift of personality before nodding in agreement. Out of a sudden, they heard a scream from a distance before it was abruptly cut off by a loud choking noise. Both Ochako and Koda blink before looking at each other.

"…100 yen says that's Bakugou screaming and Izu-kun knocks him out." Ochako deadpanned.

"That screams….is Bakugou…but why do…you believe it's….Izu?" Koda asks in confusion and Ochako takes note that Koda had his nickname for Izuku.

"Have you seen how Izu-kun's face looks whenever Bakugou spouts bullshit? It screams 'I'm so done with him!' Heck, I am surprised that it takes Izu-kun this long to finally have enough of him."

Later

"Good job, you 4!" Hound Dog exclaims with a grin. "In a short time, you manage to rescue the entire 16 civilians! I can safely say this is a good record for your first rescue exercise!"

"I AM NOT GOING TO BE A FUCKING CIVILIAN AGAIN!!!" Bakugou exclaims in anger as the back of his neck and his forehead has a light bruise.

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Bakugou." Izuku deadpanned, his cheek was slightly bruised, and his left eye twitched in annoyance.

"And please, next time let Yaoyorozu be with Harumi!" Jirou exclaims in annoyance, rubbing her sore ears while looking at the unconscious girl. "I swear to god, if she didn't stop begging for Todoroki, I would've strangled her to death!"

"Please keep that woman away from me," Shoto says in a blank tone.

"What am I? A tranquilizer?" Yaomomo says in a deadpan tone.

"All right, that's enough you all." Hound Dog says in a disapproving tone. "I understand the frustration you had with the team you deal with, but you need to understand. Teaming up in the middle of heroes work can be random and you might have to be with or encounter someone you dislike. So my advice? Put aside your beef when in the field and keep civilians or villains away from it, or you might endanger others and yourself."

No one answered Hound Dog's words as they all understood his words. It's a bitter pill to swallow, but they can't do anything but suck it up.

"Now, let us go back to the bus." Hound Dog states as everyone merely walks away.

"…judging from their reaction, I can safely say it's a total failure." Thirteen deadpanned while Hound Dog slumps down. "No offense, but the rescue mission is a complete out-of-pocket. Two civilians are required to be knocked down. Sure, in some rescues, that might happen. But something like that wasn't supposed to be taught on the first day!"

"….." Hound Dog could only facepalm. He might need to talk with Nedzu regarding his class. Maybe, if he's lucky he could switch some students with Vlad King. Takechi and Kendo seem to be ideal students to switch with.

"So….I heard Aizawa had been visiting you," Thirteen says, getting Hound Dog's attention. "How was he?"

"…..he's a complete mess." Hound Dog admits. "I won't disclose too much about him, but he should've sought help since day one. Handling a man who had to deal with all of his trauma for 14 years with no professional help needs extra work."

"…okay, now I feel bad," Thirteen says with a wince. "That'll explain his entire personality."

"True, but that doesn't excuse him for ruining hundreds of students' lives. Even if he accepts some of them back, the black mark will remain in their records." Hound Dog mutters under his breath. "Anyways, yeah. He needs a long time to recover properly before he can go back to the field."

"Well, I'm glad he's getting a proper help." Thirteen stated. "Senpai was too stubborn to admit that he needs help."

"Ironically, he complains All Might for being stubborn oaf." Hound Dog says as Thirteen chuckles. As everyone was busy talking with each other, one Katsuki Bakugou could be seen glaring at Izuku with an intense glare. When 'Deku' goes to 'save him', something inside him is triggered and he lunges at Izuku out of anger and punches his cheek. He thought he'd just dodge it but to his surprise, he landed a hit on Izuku, who looked at him in surprise.

He remembers as he screamed in anger, he saw Izuku's face change into a cold fury, and in one brutal chop on his neck, Bakugou lost consciousness. He still can't fully wrap on his head. Deku, the pathetic weakling quirkless freak that he had beaten up for 10 years, managed to beat him with a single chop!? What does that mean when it took him so many punches during the battle trial!? Is he holding back!?! How fucking dare he!? He toyed with him in the battle trial! Humiliate him! And he had the gall to blame him!!?

'I swear, Deku! I'll make sure you're dead in Sports Festival!' Bakugou growls internally. As they walked, Izuku was pulled away by Hound Dog. Izuku was surprised by this and couldn't help but stammer.

"H-Hound Dog-san, I-!" Izuku was cut off by Hound Dog raising his hand, calming him down.

"Easy there, Midoriya. I was wondering if you are okay." Hound Dog says.

"…Not exactly," Izuku admits. "It's…..hard to see the person my former childhood friend had become…"

"Is….there a reason why he acting like that? He….isn't fond of the idea of talking to me." Hound Dog says.

"Of course. He sees getting help as a sign of weakness." Izuku scoffs while rolling his eyes. "As for your question, sensei. He admitted to me that he believes that I'm offering help is equivalent to me looking down on him. It…..made zero sense!"

"Superiority and Inferiority complex." Hound Dog says while rubbing his head. "This is going to be an issue….thanks for informing me about it."

"He….needs every help he can get for his ego…" Izuku mutters while nodding and walks away. Hound Dog lets out a sigh as Thirteen pats his back.

To be continued