Chapter 25: Panic at the Mall

Shouta Aizawa slammed the door open. He had enough shit to deal with from the paperwork last night, and hearing the loud chatter of his problem children was not helping.

"Once the bell rings you should be in your… seats…"

His anger died down as he saw that every single brat was seated, and quiet as a church mouse. Huh. So they either all suddenly gained super speed at the last second, or were already sitting and were just messing with him. He decided to roll with it. Might as well get started.

"Good morning," Shouta said, as he walked up to his desk, smiling on the inside. "Let's just jump to it: When it comes to the training camp in the woods… EVERYONE IS GOING!"

Shouta tuned out the cheers of his class, before answering their questions.

"Do we really get to go to camp?!" Kirishima asked.

"Seriously?!" It seemed like Ashido was in the same boat as him.

"Yeah, the good news is that no one bombed the written exam," Shouta said. "However, when it came to the practicals… let me start with the basics: The teachers made sure they left a way for the students to win, otherwise you would never have stood a chance. We were interested in observing how you all worked together and approached the task at hand."

"But didn't you promise that the teachers wouldn't be holding back?" Ojiro asked.

"That was to get you on edge," Shouta quickly explained. "Besides, the training camp is focused on building your strength. We were never going to not send some of you."

"Let me guess, another logical ruse?" Iida asked. "Aizawa-sensei, this is the second time you've lied to us! Aren't you worried that we're going to lose faith in you?!"

"Uhh, a little blunt there, Iida," Uraraka said.

"That's a good point, I'll consider it." He wouldn't. "However, even if technically none of you failed, extra lessons are going to be planned. There are several of you who had their Quirks suddenly evolve, and others who could have helped more during their exams.

The biggest culprits were Ashido, Sato, Aoyama, Ojiro, Shinso, Hagakure, Sero, Kaminari, Bakugou, and of course, Uraraka. Aoyama, Ojiro and Sero were getting extra lessons because they either didn't show much initiative, or let their partner do most of the work.

The others were getting extra lessons due to their Quirks suddenly getting more powerful. Sato could now grow what Shouta assumed were "sugar crystals" from his body, Ashido could manipulate her acid (kinda), Shinso could now mind control people by humming, Hagakure was now fully-visible, some of Bakugou's explosions now seemed to be rainbow-colored, and Uraraka seemed to be able to detect oncoming threats like she was Spider-Man now.

So, yeah. No summer school, but extra training for all of them.

"Anyways, despite passing, we still have a week before summer vacation actually begins. Which means you all still have a week of school and Hero training. Get to it."

Toshinori couldn't help but laugh as young Asui's hair tickled his nose.

Okay, that sounded really bad out of context.

The best way to explain what was happening right now was to say that Toshinori was playing limp in his All Might form, as fake blood was covering him. Asui simply dangled her hair above his nose to make sure that he was still alive. Nope, it still sounded kinda bad.

Okay, cutting straight to the chase: This lesson was basically a murder mystery, with young Asui, Uraraka, Iida, Bakugou, Todoroki and Kodai all trying to figure out how, he, a Villain, was killed while robbing a jewelry store with three hostages, played by Cementoss, Midnight, and Present Mic. Why six students instead of five, Toshinori would never know.

There, that was the whole story. Now back to Asui's hair tickling him.

No, wait, dammit, fuck –

"Okay, All Might's still alive. He's playing, but we're supposed to think he's dead."

"The murder weapon is a knife covered in blood," Todoroki said.

"The building was surrounded by police, so we know that no one went in or out," Iida said, observing the hostages. "That means whoever killed the Villain must still be inside."

"Hold on, we should listen to what they have to say first," Kodai suggested.

"Good idea," Uraraka said, as they approached the three hostages.

Toshinori decided to take this as his cue to leave. While his colleagues gave their retelling of the events that unfolded, the blond quietly got up, and sneaked out of the building. Exiting without problem, he encountered Aizawa, who gestured to him to stay and listen.

Toshinori nodded, as he walked up towards the wall of the "jewelry store," staying out of the young Heroes' lines of sight, and listened in on their theories.

He had to admit, listening to his young students try to rationalize why the "Villain" would barricade himself into the store and Kodai realizing that Midnight was the one who called the police was pretty good, but the way it went off the rails as a tragic romance that ended with the bad guy committing suicide to save Midnight's reputation was straight-up hilarious.

He had to hold it in as Aizawa gestured him to remain silent and skiddaddle, as the Erasure Hero walked into the store to give the students a grade. "Okay, that's enough."

"Whoo! This was actually fun!" Midnight whooped, breaking character.

"Thanks, you three, you're all done here, save your strength for the next group," Aizawa said, as the other Pros headed out, waving at Toshinori as they walked out the door. "Kodai, your deductions were exactly what we had scripted for this scenario. The Villain did stab himself with their own knife, and you figured it out by asking a series of logical questions."

"Wow, praise from Aizawa-sensei," young Uraraka snorted.

"But you weren't perfect. You six overlooked one major thing. Therefore, you earned zero points," Eraserhead said. Damn, that was cold, Aizawa, even for you. "Observe."

"What?!"

"The Villain's body is gone!"

Welp, time to go.

Using his power, All Might ran off from the street, laughing. "HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"""HE'S ALIVE?!"""

Oh, those poor kids. Still, Toshinri had a role to play, and play it, he shall. "I AM FLEEING THE SCENE AND RUNNING TOWARDS FREEDOM! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

Tohsinori figured that he had about a good ten minutes before the next set of students would show up, so he figured he could take a quick break at the teacher's lounge. Powering down into his "Small Might" form, he went inside, and plopped down on his desk.

"Huh?" Looking at his desktop, he remembered that he got an email earlier today before the exercise. Might as well read it now. "It's from Melissa?"

Dear Uncle Might,

It's been such a long time! I bet you're surprised you got a message from me! I'm writing to let you know that I'll be leaving Shiketsu and heading back to I-Island for this year's I-Expo, and to visit Papa, of course! And I also know that summer is rolling around for the rest of Japan, so I'll be sending you a formal invitation soon! Can you imagine Papa's face when he sees you again?

See you soon! Sincerely,

Melissa Shield

Toshinori lifted his head up, as he remembered his younger years, telling David how he was planning to become a Symbol of Peace for the world. And even when he went back to Japan, the two of them stayed in contact. Though, in the more recent years, Melissa acted as more of a communicator between the two of them, ever since she enrolled at Shiketsu High…

"Dave… It's been too long…"

Ochako grumbled, as she put away her things into her backpack. She couldn't believe that All Might gave them a "hint" that he was alive! That wasn't a hint! Anyone could have just assumed that he broke character when Tsu tickled his nose! That was such bullshit!

Still, what happened, happened. She couldn't complain about it now. All she could do now was get through the last week of the semester, then it was summer vacation for her!

"This is gonna be great!" Ojiro smiled, as he read over the camp brochure. "I'm so glad we're all going together! It says here we're gonna be at the training camp for a full week…"

"I've gotta find a bigger suitcase…" Iida realized.

"Yeah, I don't even have a bathing suit," Kaminari said. "Guess I have to buy some stuff…"

"Yeah, like a better hairstyle!" Shinso joked.

"Guys!" Hagakure called out, getting everyone's attention. "Since we're off tomorrow, and we finally finished exams, I have the best idea: LET'S GO SHOPPING TOGETHER!"

"Hey, yeah!" Kaminari said. "We've never hung out as a class before!"

"Bakugou! See you there, right?" Kirishima called out.

"You know what? Fuck it, sure, why not?" Katsuki said.

"Will you come, Todoroki?" Yui-chan asked.

"I visit my mom on my days off," the peppermint-haired boy explained.

"Alright, we'll let you know how it goes," Shinso said.

Saturday. It was a bright sunny day, few clouds in the sky, and hundreds of people were walking around with smiles on their faces, enjoying the wonders of commerce.

"Oh, man, do I love this place!" Ashido cheered, as she and the rest of her class walked through the Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall. "It's got a ton of different stores to shop at!"

"They have a range of products from teens to seniors, and accompany all body types," Yui-chan said, analytically, as she watched Shoji and Tokoyami examine some of the wares.

"Whoa! Aren't those UA students?!"

"Yeah, it's Class 1-A!"

"I saw them on TV!"

"THE SPORTS FESTIVAL WAS SO GOOD!"

Ochako had to admit, she was kinda impressed. She didn't think a bunch of civilians would know who they were outside of class. "I can't believe they still remember that…"

Elsewhere, Jiro was talking with Yaoyorozu. "I wanna track down a new duffle bag…"

"Oh, yeah? Maybe the two of us should browse together."

"Let's see… where can I get some instant coffee mix…" Shinso wondered.

"Guess I should get some outdoor shoes for this thing," Kaminari said.

"Oh, that's smart!" Hagakure nodded along.

"Okay, why don't we split up and look around?" Kirishima suggested. "We can meet up back here again once we're done. How about we all come back around three?"

"Sounds good!" Ashido said, as everyone split up…

…leaving Ochako all by herself with Katsuki.

"Huh," the blond hummed. "Looks like it's just you and me left."

"Yeah," Ochako agreed. "What are you shopping for today? I'm getting some weights."

"I'm not shopping for anything," the red-eyed teen admitted. "I'm people-watching."

People-watching? Ochako didn't know if that was some kind of weird variant of bird-watching, or a fancy way of saying "stalking." But why would he be looking at… people…

"You're still looking for him… to this day… aren't you…?"

Katsuki was silent for a moment, before he said, "Yeah, I am."

Ochako was quiet for a bit, before she said, "Well, then we can help each other. You can help carry any weights I buy, and I'll make sure to keep my eyes peeled for your friend."

The explosive blond smiled at that. "Thanks, Round Cheeks."

Ochako smiled at that, but on the inside, she was struggling. For some reason, she was getting another one of those headaches, like the ones that were happening during the practical.

Hopefully, it meant nothing.

Yui Kodai wasn't sure what she would need for this trip.

She may be quiet when it came to speaking, letting out barely a sentence, but on the inside, her mind was going a mile a minute, a plethora of information overflowing.

Shoes designed for maximum mobility and combat would be a plus, yes. But there was also clothes she needed to consider. Would it be hot and humid out there? Plus, bug bites weren't all that appealing. Gloves? Only if they would be lifting weights out there. Speaking of…

Yui immediately stopped walking around, as she quickly walked out of the center of the mall, and pretended to window shop some of the nearby stores on the side of it. Something was off. From the corner of her eyes, she could see all of the people walking around, minding their own business, but she could tell one of them was not like the others.

She could tell that she was being followed.

Who were they? It wasn't one of the UA teachers, and it certainly wasn't her classmates. And given how discrete they were trying to be, she doubted it was one of her comrades.

Maybe some private detective that is actually following someone else here?

She needed to be sure.

The black-haired girl stood up straight, and acted as if nothing was wrong. She headed towards one of the less-populated areas of the mall, making sure she kept an even pace.

Step, step, step, step. She carefully listened for the sound of her own footsteps, before focusing on those in the distance. They were keeping pace with her, trying to be silent.

Instantly, Yui halted, and she could hear the footsteps behind her, scrambling to stay still. Too late. They already gave themselves away. Now Yui knew she was being followed.

She quickly started walking again, but this time, her steps were faster. Now, she was power walking. Now, running. Now, sprinting. She needed to get out of here, before –

BOOM!

Sidero cursed, as his cover was blown.

Overhaul was right, that little bitch was trained well. Either that, or she was hyper-paranoid. Whatever the case, she knew that he was following her, and now, he had no choice but to try and snag her before she made a scene. Unfortunately, that was too late.

The brat was running like a madwoman, with people all around her turning their heads to see what was going on. Welp, so much for the stealthy option. Sidero quickly pulled off some of the iron balls from his knuckles, and chucked them, making them grow in size.

BOOM!

Overhaul only said to bring her in alive, not unharmed.

BOOM!

Ochako and Katsuki heard the explosion, even from the other side of the mall. They quickly ran towards the other side, avoiding the people running in the opposite direction.

"IT'S A VILLAIN!"

"EVERYBODY RUN!"

"CALL THE HEROES!"

The two teenagers managed to run into Yaomomo and a few of their other classmates, who were trying to figure out what was going on. "Call the police! Get Aizawa-sensei on the line!"

Kaminari quickly did that, as the others ran forward, heading to where the explosions were coming from, seeing… absolute chaos. Yui-chan was dodging and weaving a bunch of giant metal balls that some masked maniac was throwing at her, with the grace of an acrobat.

BOOM!

A really stressed-out acrobat.

"Did she always have moves like that?!" Jiro asked.

"Yes, we all saw the video of the Battle Trial!" Iida said.

Shinso squinted. "Yeah… those moves… they look familiar…"

"It doesn't matter!" Yaomomo shouted. "Kirishima, you, Ashido, Shoji and Tokoymai, assist in evacuating the civilians! Everyone else, try to form a perimeter around the area!"

Everyone got to work right away, helping get as many people out. While that was happening, the others tried their best to try and get Kodai away from that madman, to no avail.

BOOM!

Ochako couldn't believe what was happening. Her best friend was just one bad jump away from being crushed by an Indiana Jones prop, and there was nothing they could do about it. Sure, maybe Ochako could use Blackwhip to grab Yui-chan, but that would end up running the risk of the masked dude aiming his attacks on them! And they couldn't even knock him out! They didn't have Hero Licenses, they couldn't use their Quirks to take on the bad guy!

All they could do was hope that an actual Hero would arrive to take him on.

And then, it seemed like their prayers were answered. Kind of.

A black wisp appeared between Yui-chan and the Villain, which began to grow exponentially, as a massive shadow with unblinking yellow eyes appeared. It had been months ago, but Ochako, along with the rest of her class, recognized who that was as if it was yesterday.

The League of Villains' very own warpgate, Kurogiri, had arrived.

"GODAMMIT!" Katsuki cursed. "The fucking League of Villains?! Again?!"

"No, wait!" Tokoyami called out. "LOOK!"

Everyone watched on, as suddenly, Kurogiri began warping up the massive iron balls the masked Villain was throwing towards Yui-chan, and redirecting them back towards the Villain.

BOOM!

BOOM!

"Ack! What the hell?!" the masked Villain shouted. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Leave her alone…" Kurogiri hissed.

Ochako didn't know if she was dreaming, or simply seeing things. Kurogiri was… protecting Yui-chan? This was the same guy that maimed Thirteen and helped All For One sic a bunch of Villains on her classmates. The same guy that helped bring Stain to death's door.

She tried to rationalize it. Maybe the League drew the line at killing kids? All For One did seem to be interested in their future careers, but even if that was the case…

How did Kurogiri know that Yui-chan was at the mall?

The brown-haired girl snapped out of her thoughts as she, along with the rest of her classmates, heard something loud above them. The sound of something chopping through the air.

Helicopter blades.

Looking up, Ochako saw a green helicopter flying above them. One of the side doors opened up, revealing a mint-haired woman in a green cloak and a dark suit, whose Quirk seemed to have turned her fingers into a bow, given that she was armed with arrows.

Are they some kind of Hero here to help us? Ochako wondered.

TING!

BOOOM!

Nope. Definitely not a Hero.

The lady in the helicopter kept firing down more arrows into the mall, each one of them packed with a green energy that made them explode like lightning. The students scattered, trying not to make themselves into easy targets, while Ochako decided to do something.

SNAG!

Using Blackwhip, she grabbed Yui-chan and made a run for it with One For All. These nut jobs were after her friend, so they would have to leave if they couldn't find her, right? Or at the very least, they would have to pursue her until the Heroes arrived to take them down.

It seemed, though, as if the Villains had the same idea, because the green-haired lady decided to drop down a ladder for her comrade, and cut their losses. It would only be a matter of time before the Heroes showed up. It was time for them to cut their losses and leave.

As the sound of the helicopter grew fainter and fainter, the members of Class 1-A in the mall came out of hiding. Ochako towned down One For All, sensing that the danger had passed. The only one left was Kurogiri, and he wasn't doing anything.

CRASH!

"Brother?!" Iida called out.

"I'm here!" Ingenium shouted, arriving right into the middle of it. "Don't worry kids, the police and other Heroes are gonna be here any second now! I'm gonna take down this Villain, and –"

"Ah, Tensei. I see you've recovered. I'm glad," Kurogiri cut him off.

"Wait… how do you know me –?"

"Don't worry, all will be revealed… in time."

And with that, Kurogiri disappeared once more.

The Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall was closed down afterwards, with police and Heroes looking for any traces of either Kurogiri or the two Villains that jumped Kodai. They even took to the skies, but by the time that happened, the green helicopter the Villains used was long gone.

Later that day, every classmate that was at the mall at the time was taken to the nearby police station and told everything they knew about the incident to Tsukauchi.

"Thanks for the reports, kids," the detective said. "This all helps."

"Sure thing," Ochako said. "I just wished we could have done something more to help…"

"Don't worry, you all did a good job safely evacuating the people and calling for help," Tsukauchi said. "Most people would have lost their cool, but no one got hurt today, because you all managed to remain calm. Now, I'm sure all your parents are worried about you…"

"That's true," Yaomomo said. "We should probably get going…"

"Yeah. I'll have my guys drive any of you who need it home."

After saying her good-byes to most of her classmates, Ochako walked out of the police station with Tsukauchi, to see none other than Yagi-sensei waiting for them.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there to protect you and the others…"

"It's fine," she said. "Anyways, I gotta get home, my parents will be worried sick…"

"Actually, would it be alright if I walked you home?" Yagi-sensei asked.

"Oh, uh, yeah, sure." Waving good-bye to Tsukauchi and the others, the two of them walked towards the Uraraka family apartment. "So, whaddya wanna tell me?"

"I'm sure you don't want to apologize for what happened again today, so I'll move on to my second topic: There's a place called I-Island… have you ever heard of it?"

"I've heard of it. Supposedly, it's some amazing place where all the Hero companies in the world come together with a bunch of scientists to make a bunch of cool stuff, I think?"

"That's about the gist of it. I've got two tickets, so… do you wanna go there with me?" Yagi-sensei asked. "Since you've become my successor, there are things you should know…"

"Actually… I already have two tickets. First place prize for the Sports Festival."

"Wait, really?! Geez, that must have slipped my mind…"

"It's okay! I can still come with you! I'll just give my two tickets to someone else!"

"Really? Oh, cool," Yagi-sensei said. "So, uhh… I guess you'll be going with me?"

"Yep! I'll pack my bags as soon as the semester is out!"

Danjuro Tobita wasn't expecting a call from his personal cell phone.

"Who is it, darling?" Manami asked.

"I'm not sure, love," he said, answering the call. "Hello?"

"Ah, Gentle Criminal. Just the Villain I was looking for."

Danjuro's brows furrowed at that. "Who is this?"

"For now, let's just say that I'm someone interested in partnering up with you and your sidekick. I'm planning a massive job, and I would like to inquire about your services."

"A job? What kind of a job?"

And the more he listened, the more Danjuro's heart seemed to quicken.

This was gonna be so much fun!

One week later, Principal Nedzu was giving a speech to the auditorium full of children, wishing them a happy summer, as Ochako thought of everything that had happened so far.

The Entrance Exam, the Battle Trials, the League of Villains attack, the actual USJ training, the Sports Festival, Hosu, Isamu Academy, the Final Exams, and now the attack on the mall, all of that happened in a little under four months. All within a single semester.

Regardless, Ochako knew they couldn't just stand around. All For One was still out there, and it was her job to take him down. As she headed out of the door once the speech ended, she knew she had to get ready to head out for I-Island, but she still had stuff to do.

"Katsuki!"

"Hm?"

"I wanna give you this!" Ochako said, as she handed him the ticket. "It's a ticket for this year's I-Expo! It comes with a prepaid trip via airplane, along with a hotel room!"

"Oh, uh… sure. But… Why me? Why not give it to one of your buddies?"

"I did! But apparently, Yui-chan's boyfriend already has a ticket, and Shinso said he got hired for a waiter gig on the island, so… I figured that you could take Kirishima with you!"

"Kirishima? I know that he's always trying to be buddy-buddy with me, but why not give the second one to IcyHot? Or Glasses? Heck, Kendo would have been a better option!"

Ochako scratched her head. "Truuue… but both Todoroki and Iida have Heroes in their families, so they already have tickets, and Kendo is going with Jiro and Yaomomo, and sooo…"

"So I was your last pick," Katsuki surmised.

"Pretty much."

The explosive blond groaned. "Fine, I'll take it."

"Great! See you there!" Ochako said, as she ran off to get ready.

This was gonna be so much fun!

Maguma Iwata felt his cell phone buzz. It was probably his client giving him new orders about the upcoming job. Answering it, he pressed the phone to his ear and said, "Hello?"

"Ah! Hello, fellow evil-doer! I was told by our client that you'd be my lovely assistant?"

Ayo, what the fuck?

Author's Note: Exams are over, and now segwaying us onto I-Island!

All that was really left for this chapter was the mall situation. With that done, the next arc will be taking place at I-Island, but will also have a bunch of extra characters sprinkled in to make it even more off-the-walls! Now, for the motherload of all comments!

Knightmare Lord: Hell yeah, Class 1-A got some serious upgrades!

Servellion: Oh, wow, someone new, and already coming swinging out of the gate! Okay, so, full confession, the story was originally supposed to follow Midoriya, but then I switched it up to try and make the League and their plot seem more mysterious, but I guess it didn't work out all that well. Kodai coming off as some kind of mean at the Sports Festival was unintentional, but I can kinda see how some people could interpret it like that. Another miss of mine would be Overhaul, I guess. The point with him is that there's a mystery around him, along with an actual grudge against the League. And in terms of supplementary material, I guess you could read Mirrond's fics, as they portray him a lot better as a legitimate threat than I did. Also, I hate to be that guy, but not everyone got a power-up in the last chapter, not just Koda. Although, I have to admit, the idea that All Might is still floating in the air is pretty funny, so thanks for that.

EmilMobile: Okay, finally fixed that embarrassment. Anyways, yeah, I made the Final Exams a whole lot more interesting, with the power-ups becoming relevant soon and the pain the te cheers got being a whole lot more funny. Welp, see you next time!

TheDemon1911: You're right on the money with that one!

OshNJF: No, Kodai is not Toga, she's got a mean streak of her own.

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Thanks for reading, and once again, see you next time!

- Ernalore