My Super Robot Academia

by Navek

When Izuku was four, it seemed like his dream of becoming a hero was over. But after a day with his father, that dream is reborn into something greater. "Maybe I can't become a hero like All Might...but I can build a hero just as great as him!" Get ready for a hot-blooded, heavy metal revolution!

3. The Gravity Girl

Author's Note 1: My Super Robot Academia is a non-profit fanfiction series.

My Hero Academia is a property of Bones, Funimation, and Kouhei Horikoshi.

Any original characters or concepts are owned by Navek and xpegasus.

Please support the official release.

Chapter 3: The Gravity Girl

"Kacchan, we should probably stop."

"Come on! Are ya getting tired already?"

"I mean, I could properly last another mile…but Mei looks like she's gonna pass out."

"Ugghhhhh…."

"Alright, fine. Let's grab some drinks in this store."

Two years had passed, and Izuku, Katsuki & Mei were now starting their final year of middle school. The three were on a Sunday morning jogging session through the streets of Musutafu and stopped for a break inside a convenience store.

Katsuki was dressed in dark orange sweatpants, sneakers, an orange sweatshirt wrapped around his waist, and was wearing a sleeveless black t-shirt that showed off his muscular arms and toned torso.

Izuku was clad in a light green tracksuit and his signature red shoes, while Mei was clad in a burgundy one with white sneakers. Izuku was definitely in better shape than he was at the start of middle school, but he wasn't quite as in shape as Katsuki. However, he definitely had more stamina than Mei.

"Ten-minute break, guys," Katsuki said.

"Oh, thank god," Mei said as she plopped down next to the snack stand. The eccentric inventor unzipped her top, letting out a sigh of relief while Izuku politely looked away, and Katsuki's face turned red. "That feels so much better."

As it turned out, puberty has been extraordinarily kind to the Hatsume girl. She was easily the bustiest girl in their grade, and it was plain for all to see in the gray sleeveless undershirt she was wearing. A few boys in the store checked her out…until they saw Katsuki glaring at them.

"Did ya really have to unzip in public, Crazy Eyes?"

"But it's so hot! Why do I even need to do this stupid running?! I'm not even applying for the hero course!"

"Hey, a little exercise is good for you, Mei," Izuku replied.

"And if you didn't, you'd just be getting fat in that lab of yours," Katsuki retorted. "The last thing you need is more fat on ya."

Mei pouted and glared at him for that.

"I mean, you seem to like that fat," Izuku mumbled.

"What was that?" Katsuki asked.

"Oh, nothing," Izuku said with a knowing smile as he looked over the energy drink.

Honestly, it was amusing to Izuku. It had been blatantly obvious since 5th grade that Katsuki had developed a crush on Mei. The explosive teen never outright admitted it, but Izuku knew Katsuki like a brother. He saw the jealous looks whenever Mei hugged Izuku, the light blush that would appear on Katsuki's face whenever Mei smiled at him, and the bemused smile Katsuki had whenever Mei talked about a new invention. And countless other little things that proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Katsuki was head over heels for Mei.

Of course, whenever Katsuki was pressed or teased about his feelings for the pinkette, he would go full tsundere and adamantly deny it. And Izuku wasn't sure if Mei even knew what a crush or romance was outside of the manga she read. So it seemed their romance was on the slow burn…but that didn't mean Izuku couldn't have some fun teasing his friends.

But while the three were resting, they heard a commotion happening outside. Out the window, they saw people running somewhere.

"What's going on?" Izuku asked out loud.

"Dude, there's a supervillain loose near the train bridge." They looked over to see a teenager showing his phone to his buddy. "Ami said she spotted some heroes heading to the scene."

"Well, there's your—" Before Katsuki could finish, he and Mei noticed Izuku was suddenly gone. And knowing their friend, it took them less than a second to figure out where he'd run off. "Dammit, Izuku!"

"No! More running!"

A few minutes later, Izuku arrived at the crime scene alongside a crowd of people, with Katsuki and Mei not far behind him. And on the train bridge overhead, everyone saw a gigantic man with a dinosaur-like nose roaring.

"Woah!" Izuku said in awe.

"Holy shit! What the hell did that guy do?" Katsuki said out loud.

"Apparently, he stole some lady's purse." A guy standing next to Katsuki answered.

"Wait, that's it? Lame!"

"Deactivate your Quirk and surrender peacefully!" A policeman said over a megaphone while his squad aimed their weapons at the giant criminal. "We have you surrounded!"

"EAT SHIT, PIGS!" The criminal shouted, grabbing a rail from the train tracks and throwing it at a nearby building. Civilians ran screaming as chunks of the building came crashing down. One man tripped as he ran. Then, as his life flashed before his eyes, the rubble suddenly stopped. The civilian looked up and saw his savior was a muscular man in a blue & green costume, wristbands that looked like caution signs, and a metallic headband.

"It's Death Arms!" Izuku said with glee, taking notes as the crowd cheered on the roughhousing hero. The crowd then noticed water flowing around them and forming a fence in front of them.

"I recommend staying back, folks." A shorter man dressed like a firefighter, wearing a mask with a singular yellow eye, proclaimed. "Let the professionals handle this."

"Ooo, it's Backdraft!" Mei said, her mind racing as it thought of devices that could aid his water manipulation Quirk. The crowd once again heard the villain roar as the police fired tranq bullets at him, to no avail. But then, another hero swung onto the scene, retracting his elongated wooden arm as he landed on the train tracks.

"Your rampage ends here, criminal scum!" This hero was clad in dark blue spandex and had arms & a helmet made of wood.

"Oh, hell yeah! Kick his ass, Kamui Woods!" Katsuki shouted with excitement while the girls in the crowd swooned at the sight of the up-and-coming hero. The giant villain swung his colossal fist down at Kamui, but the agile hero was quick to leap away, his arm transforming into a wooden whip that allowed him to swing out of danger.

"Endangering innocent civilians! Destruction of public and private property! Halting rush hour traffic! Truly, you are the embodiment of evil." The wooden hero proclaimed as he landed on a nearby electric pole. "Looks like you've earned my full wrath!"

Anyone who followed Kamui's career knew what was gonna come next as his right arm began to split into several quickly growing tendrils.

"Here it comes!" Izuku shouted with excitement, Mei and Katsuki just as hyped up as their friend.

"Forest Lari-"

"CANYON CANNON!"

Before Kamui could strike, a woman leaped from the crowd and grew to the size of a building in the blink of an eye. The momentum of her double kick sent the villain crashing into the evacuated street below while she landed with a heavy thud. The woman had long, creamy blonde hair, a horned purple mask, and a spandex costume that was primarily purple & orange but was beige around her bottom half, highlighting certain…assets.

"Hey, everybody! The name's Mt. Lady," she said, addressing the awe-struck crowd with a cheeky smile. "I was just in the neighborhood and thought I'd offer some ass-sistance." Mt. Lady knew what she was doing, wiggling her rear end towards the crowd. The sound of several…interesting people taking photos followed.

"Huh, she must be new," Mei stated while Izuku frantically took notes about this debuting heroine. However…

"OUI, FATASS!" Katsuki shouted, getting everyone's attention. "I wanted to see Kamui beat that bad guy, not you waving your overgrown chee—"

Izuku quickly muffled Katsuki before he could rant while he and Mei dragged the flailing blond away. "Sorry about that! Our friend is just, uh, enthusiastic. We appreciate all you guys do."

"Oh, and if you guys need any good support gear, keep an ear open for Hatsume Industries!" Mei said as the two dragged a belligerent Katsuki away. All four heroes sweat-dropped as the trio left the scene and thought the same.

"Weird kids."

The Next Day…

'Alright, so if I use this capture data, I can have Striker emulate the movements more efficiently. But the question is, who should be the mo-cap subject?' Izuku thought as his final class of the day neared its end, the teacher's words just background noise to him.

"Midoriya."

'All Might's way too fast for Striker to emulate. Probably should automatically cross off any speedy hero like Ingenium.'

"Midoriya."

'Maybe I should use footage of old brawler heroes like Crimson Riot. Or maybe a more modern one like Fatgum. Or-'

"IZUKU!"

"AAAGHH!" Izuku fumbled, seeing Katsuki smirking at him while the rest of the class and their teacher chuckled at his reaction. "S-Sorry."

"Anywho, before class is let out for the day, I'd like to remind all of you that you need to submit your high school applications and career assessments to the guidance counselors by the end of the week if you haven't already." The man said as he held up the submitted ones as a demonstration. "But I can probably guess what you all want to be."

The excited middle schoolers joyfully showed off their Quirks, as all of them at least wanted to try their hand at applying for a hero high school. Izuku chuckled at their enthusiasm while Mei tried to join in…by zooming her eyes in and out.

"Yes, yes, you all have wonderful Quirks that are perfect for hero work."

As Izuku looked at his classmates' various Quirks, he saw the shit-eating grin on his best friend's face. 'Oh no,' Izuku thought.

"You shouldn't lump all of us together, teach," Katsuki stated loudly. "Most of those losers would barely make it as a sidekick, let alone a fucking pro."

"Oh, and what the hell makes you so special, asshole?!" A student with rock hands shouted.

"Language!" The teacher said while Katsuki stood up on his desk.

"Because while you extras have been spending the last few years twiddling your thumbs and goofing off, I've been training my ass off! The best heroes have the best work ethic and drive, and I'm following in their footsteps! I'm guessing all of you applied for some no-name schools while I'm aiming for the top: aiming for U.A. High School!"

A lot of the students were stunned by this. U.A. (or United Allies) High School was THE top hero school in all of Japan. It was insanely hard to get into with a notorious challenging entrance exam, and anyone who graduated from there was guaranteed some modicum of success as a pro-hero. After all, top 10 pros like All Might, Endeavor, and Mirko all graduated from U.A.

"So I hope you guys like being footnotes in MY legend."

"Kacchan, why?" Izuku mumbled while Mei giggled, and the other students booed and yelled at Katsuki. Izuku always knew his friend had an arrogant side. Of course, it was a lot worse when he was a kid. But, quite frankly, his powerful Quirk, good grades, and hard work ethic slightly justified Katsuki's attitude. While Izuku thought his friend was amazing, he often wished the explosive boy would reign it in from time to time. This, along with his hair-trigger temper and general crassness, was the main reason why he and Mei were Katsuki's only friends.

"Actually, if I'm reading this right, Hatsume and Midoriya are aiming for U.A. as well," the teacher stated.

"Yup! I'm joining the support course and putting Hatsume Industries on the map!" Mei proclaimed with a big smile.

"And I'm gonna try for the hero course too!" Izuku proclaimed. The rest of the class was silent for a moment…before they all started laughing like a pack of hyenas. Izuku let out a disappointed and frustrated sigh.

"Seriously, Midoriya?! A Deku like you wants to try going to UA?"

"Bakugou's an ass, but at least he has a Quirk! A worthless idiot like you couldn't even pass the entrance exam."

"Maybe you and that spastic robot of yours can dance your way in."

Honestly, this wasn't anything Izuku hadn't heard before. Anytime someone their age other than Kacchan and Mei learned that Izuku was going to try and become a hero without a Quirk, they called him all sorts of names and mocked him. That mockery got worse when he told them about his plan to build a super robot, calling him a childish idiot. Izuku had gotten numb to these insults, but they still stung a bit.

Mei frowned and glared at the jerks laughing at her best friend. She made sure to remember their faces, so she knew who was getting stink bombs and/or a glitter bomb snuck into their lockers. As for Katsuki…

BANG!

The laughing stopped at the sound of a small explosion, Katsuki's face turning from smug arrogance to anger.

"Listen up, ya dumbasses! Sure, Izuku doesn't have a Quirk, but so fuckin' what?! At least he's got the balls to try and aim for the top, which is more than I can say for any of you losers!"

"Bakugou, sit down, or it's a week of detention!" The teacher said, finally having enough of the swearing and screaming in his class. Luckily for everyone's sake, the final bell rang, and everyone started packing and heading home. The trio of Izuku, Katsuki, and Mei started walking a familiar path.

"I appreciate what you did, Kacchan, but-"

"But nothing! Those idiots don't get to make fun of ya if they ain't even got the spine to try to go to UA. You should tell them to fuck off!"

"I don't think that would work," Mei said. "Izuku swearing is like a puppy barking."

Izuku chuckled in agreement before addressing Katsuki again. "Besides, I plan on proving them wrong with actions instead of words."

The blond nodded in agreement. The three soon arrived in a small private junkyard nestled between two buildings. They saw a familiar face walking towards the gate.

"Professor Lim!" Izuku and Mei greeted.

"Hey, Prof," Katsuki said, the older woman smiling as she saw the three teenagers she had gotten to know quite well over the last few years.

"Good to see you, kids." The woman was watching a video on her phone. Out of curiosity, Izuku peeked and saw it was a video of All Might saving people from a collapsing building.

"That's the Jakuto Mall collapse from a week ago."

"Yup. Shame All Might was in his civilian clothes," Lim said as a perverted smirk appeared on her face. "That costume does wonders for his tuchas."

Izuku and Mei sweat dropped at Professor Lim's statement while Katsuki just grumbled. One thing they definitely learned about the coding expert was that she was a big fan of male heroes. Specifically, how great their butts looked in spandex.

Izuku pressed a button on the door, and the gate slid open. Higari was busy hammering away at a private project in a far back corner of the junkyard. The Excavation Hero was trying to build a real-life version of a flying drilling machine he had seen in an old tokusatsu movie as a child. It was a long shot, but he had the frame built.

"Ah, there's the crew," Higari said before approaching his protégé. "So, ya ready for today's testing, Izuku?"

"Sure am!" Izuku said excitedly.

A few minutes later, Katsuki was helping set up a training dummy. At the same time, Mei and Lim prepared the camera to record the following test. The garage door attached to Higari's place opened, and the sound of metal feet stomping soon followed.

Out of the garage came Izuku, strapped into an open cockpit in the center of a torso. The prototype body was made out of welded parts from old WWII war machines, and Izuku's cockpit was made out of a driver's seat from a dismantled car. A targeting harness, joystick controls, and a computer/keyboard were attached to it, and it had wires coming out of its back, attached to a massive battery unit on wheels.

This was Proto-Striker, and it was the closest thing to Izuku's dream of a piloted super robot that he and Power Loader had made so far.

"Still looks like a clunker," Lim commented.

"Hey, we work with what we can get," Higari retorted. Most of his earnings went to maintaining his office and keeping the machines he used for hero work up to code. So for personal experimental projects like Proto-Striker, the inventive duo had to make do with whatever scrap metal and old equipment they could find.

"Okay, we're rolling!" Mei said as she turned the camera on.

"Hey, Izuku here." The boy said, moving the right joystick to make Proto-Striker wave its right arm. "And today, we're testing out what's possibly the most important weapon in a Super Robot's arsenal: the Rocket Punch!"

"Well, a version of that," Higari interjected. "We're using a wire to return the fist back."

"But the principal is still the same." Izuku then looked in Katsuki's direction, getting a thumbs-up from him as he finished setting up the targets. "Alright, here we go."

Izuku pulled the right trigger back, PS's right arm rearing back like it was about to throw a punch. The targeting screen moved down in front of Izuku's face, targeting the dummy made of scrap metal. With a punch of a button, the clamps near PS's elbow unlocked, and Izuku took a deep breath before looking at the target.

"Wired Knuckle!"

Izuku pulled the trigger, and Proto-Striker launched its arm forward. Rockets came to life and launched the fist ahead, a thick black wire connecting the fist to the elbow. The fist went further and further, almost reaching the target when suddenly…

SNAP!

The wire broke, and the fist went flying, smashing the target and into a pile of scrap.

"Huh. I mean, it technically worked." Lim stated while Izuku sighed. He got out of Proto-Striker before he, Mei, and Higari went over to examine the arm.

"Think the rockets had too much thrust?" Mei asked.

"Naw. If we went any lower, it wouldn't have enough force to stop most villains with enhanced durability." Izuku replied as he held up the broken wire. "Maybe the wire was just too flimsy."

"Well, I can't really afford the high-end stuff." Higari said before thinking about it for a moment. Then, an idea flashed in his mind. "But I think I might know a place where we can get something better than this for free."

After school the next day, Izuku and Higari took the Pro-Hero's truck and drove to a beach…well, to call it a beach was a little off. Dagobah had become an absolute trash heap in less than two decades, both from the garbage that would wash up on shore and the stuff people just straight-up dumped. It was absolutely disgusting.

But as the old saying goes, one man's trash is another man's treasure. So the two split up, reading to call each other if they found something they could use in Striker's arms. Izuku looked around and eventually came across an old fishing boat.

He climbed onto the boat and looked at the net wire in the back. Izuku pulled and felt the old wire. Not only was it not in the best condition, but it was made out of thinner material than the wire he had already used.

But then, the chain connected to the ship's anchor was in way better condition. Sure, it was a tad rusty, but a bit of cleaning should make it right as rain. Izuku tapped on the chain. It was definitely more durable than the wire they used. And if a link broke, they could simply replace it with a new one.

But as Izuku started to think about the possibilities of adding a chain to Proto-Striker's arms and the structural changes needed to accommodate it, he noticed something. The boat he was on had started floating.

"HUH?! WHAT?! Why is the boat floating?!" Izuku freaked out.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" A feminine voice shouted from below. "I didn't know anyone was on it! I can release-no, wait, that'll just crash it."

Izuku quickly put it together that this unseen girl (or possibly a very effeminate boy) has used their Quirk to make the boat float. He looked down and saw that he wasn't that far up. Just a few feet. "Give me a sec."

Izuku jumped off, rolling as he hit the sand to reduce impact. "Okay, you're good!"

"Right! Release!"

The boat then crashed onto the sand, the bow breaking in several places. Izuku then heard footsteps approaching him, and he looked up.

"Are you okay?" She was a girl about his age with short brown hair, dimples on her cheeks, and brown eyes. She was a bit on the chubby side, with decently-sized breasts. She was dressed in dark purple sweatpants, sneakers, sweat wristbands, and a sleeveless black shirt.

"Ya, I'm fine." But then, Izuku's brain started again. "So you used your Quirk? Some kind of telekinesis?"

"Actually, I negated its gravity." The brown-haired girl replied. And before she knew it, this green-haired boy was up in her face, green eyes sparkling with an excitement matched by his smile.

"That's so cool! How'd you do it?!"

"I…um…I just touched it." The girl held her hands up, showing small pads on each of her fingertips. Izuku, ever curious, touched her pads with his own fingers, quickly figuring out that the pads were a mutation as part of her Quirk.

'They kind of feel like cat paws.' But then Izuku looked at the girl and noticed her eyebrows raised curiously. And that's when it hit Izuku that he had just invaded a stranger's personal space. And a girl at that. The boy's freckled face turned red, and he immediately retracted his hands and stepped back, his arms flailing.

"Oh god, I'm sorry! I just get really excited when I see cool Quirks, and I-I-I…sorry." But then the girl giggled.

"Nah, I get it. I'm pretty hyper myself when I get excited about something. No big whoop." She then held her hand out. "Let's try this again: Hi, I'm Ochako Uraraka."

Izuku gave a small smile and shook her hand. "My name's Izuku Midoriya."

"Young Uraraka, what was that noise?!" Asked a man in his…well, it was hard to tell exactly how old he was, but he certainly was no spring chicken. He was an incredibly skinny skeleton of a man with tan skin, messy yellow hair with exaggerated bangs, a pointed chin, and peculiar-looking, sunken-in black & blue eyes. His white t-shirt, long cargo pants, and black shoes all seemed like they were one size too big for him, despite how tall he was.

"We're fine, A—Mr. Yagi." Ochako replied.

"Good to hear." Mr. Yagi then noticed Izuku. "Oh, hey there, young man."

"Hello," Izuku replied. He was a bit unnerved by the man's appearance but knew better than to be rude. Something about the man's voice made Izuku feel at peace and want to trust him.

"Haven't seen you around these parts."

"Well, my sensei and I were just looking for spare parts for our experiment." Speaking of the devil…

"Yo, Izuku! I know this ain't exactly what we're lookin' for, but I found an industrial fridge that can help with the coolin—oh, what's up, Yagi?"

"Maijima? Should've figured I'd see you rummaging through here at some point." Yagi said as the two shook hands, confusing the two teenagers.

"Sensei, you know him?"

"Yep. This is Toshinori Yagi, secretary and part-time hero trainer."

"Really?" Izuku asked with a raised eyebrow. "I mean, I can see you being a secretary, but you don't really look…um…"

"It's alright, young man," Toshinori replied. "For medical reasons, I haven't been able to exercise properly in years. But I got plenty of advice left in this old noggin." He then addressed the brunette. "Young Uraraka, this is Higari Maijima, otherwise known as the hero Power Loader."

"Really?!" Ochako then looked over at the shorter man. "Huh; you look waaay different without your fancy robot armor."

"I get that a lot," Higari replied with a good-natured chuckle before addressing his pupil. "So, did ya find anything useful?"

"I did! I found a chain that could work on that boat." Izuku replied. "But I got no idea how we'll carry it back."

"Oh, I can help!" Ochako volunteered.

"You sure?" Izuku asked, getting a nod in return. And as the two teens got to work on moving the chain to Higari's truck (with Ochako making the chain weightless), the two adults were left alone to talk.

"So that's the boy you were talking about?"

"Yup. The kid's a bit odd, but he's got grit," Higari said before he looked up at his taller counterpart. "And speaking of students, I didn't think you would ever take one on."

Toshinori looked at Ochako as she walked away with Izuku. "Young Uraraka's got the potential to be a great hero. So I just figured I'd help her reach that potential."

As the two walked to Higari's truck, the two teens talked, both realizing they were in their final year of middle school. And…

"You're aiming for UA, too?"

"Yup," Ochako said as the two secured the chain into the truck bed. "Mr. Yagi promised he'd help me get into shape before that."

"Okay, but why are you guys at Dagobah beach of all places?"

"Well, clearing all of this," Ochako gestured to the mountains of trash around them, "Is apparently going to be my main exercise. And it's also supposed to help me train my Quirk better."

"…that's kind of weird."

"I know, right?!" Ochako exclaimed. "But he also said that cleaning this place up would be a good public service."

"I see," Izuku replied. "Makes sense. Heroes do public and charity work all the time, so you might as well get used to it."

"That's pretty much what he said, too," Ochako said as she sat on the sand, looking up at the boy. "So what course are you going for?"

"The hero course."

"Oh, neat. Me too! You must have a pretty cool Quirk to aim for that."

Izuku sighed and thought, 'Might as well get this over with.'

"I…I don't have one."

Ochako's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

Izuku nodded and prepared for the worst. Laughing, name-calling, saying he was a delusional moron. He had heard it all before.

"Huh. I mean, I heard UA changed it so that Quirkless kids could apply for the hero course. I guess it was only a matter of time before someone tried it."

…what?

"You…" Izuku began, eyes wide with shock. "You don't think I'm weird? For trying?"

"I mean, I haven't heard of a Quirkless hero before, but I've read some old comics about heroes with no superpowers." The brunette said as she looked up at Izuku with a bright smile. "And my folks always said that if you're willing to put in the work, you can accomplish anything. So ya, I'm sure you can do it!"

Who was this wonderful girl, and where had she been all his life?!

A bit later, Izuku and Higari drove off, Ochako waving to the two as Izuku waved back from the passenger seat. Ochako wondered if she would see the green-haired boy again.

But it turns out she didn't need to wait long. After school the next day, Izuku walked toward Dagobah Beach with Katsuki and Mei in tow.

"Oh, I've found some spare parts from here. I built my first hover boots using a bunch of old fans," Mei commented. "Ah, memories."

"It smells like shit," Katsuki stated. "You sure they're here?"

"Come on, missy! Lift with your legs, not your back!" The three turned a corner and saw Ochako carrying an old tire, grunting and sweating as she put it on a truck bed, with Toshinori guiding her. "Alright, let's try that old ice box ne— Oh, hello, Young Midoriya. Who are your friends?"

"Mei Hatsume."

"Just call me Bakugou, Scarecrow."

"Kacchan, that's mean," Mei retorted.

"You say that like I care." The blond said before looking at Ochako. "So Izuku said you're trying to go to UA too."

"Um…ya," she replied, wondering how someone as warm and friendly as Izuku was friends with someone so…not. Katsuki looked her over for a second before speaking up again.

"Meh."

"MEH?!" Ochako and Toshinori shouted.

"You made her sound way cooler."

"That's because you haven't seen her Quirk yet!" Izuku exclaimed. Ochako got the message and decided to show this blond jerk that she wasn't 'meh.'

'I know I'm kind of the average side, but not 'meh.'" The brunette approached an old 40-yard dumpster and placed her hands on it. Pink light appeared from her fingertips, and the massive dumpster began to float in the air, absolutely weightless. Ochako turned around with a cocky smirk, seeing Izuku looking on with excitement. Mei was absolutely astonished, and even Katsuki's eyes widened in surprise.

"…okay, that's actually pretty damn cool."

The four teenagers didn't know it yet, but this meeting would be the start of a new friendship. For the next few weeks, the trio would come to visit Ochako and Toshinori, checking on their progress. They enjoyed chatting with Ochako during her breaks and learned a bit about her.

"So, what's your favorite hero?" Izuku asked as the five sat and enjoyed lunch (well, the teenagers did, since Toshinori's condition heavily restricted his diet) near the sea wall.

"Well, I'm really into rescue heroes. And I gotta say that Thirteen's definite fav!"

"Isn't that the lady who dresses like an astronaut?" Katsuki asked, receiving an excited nod from her. "Okay then. Obviously, All Might is the best there is, but you got guys like Vlad King and Mirko in close seconds."

"I can probably guess why you like Mirko," Mei said with a suggestive eyebrow raise, only to get a chop from the explosive boy.

"I ain't no hornball, Crazy-Eyes. It's because Mirko kicks ass and ain't afraid to tell people to piss off."

"Ya, All Might's awesome, but there is something cool about underground heroes like Eraserhead," Izuku commented. Neither boy saw the slight grin on Toshinori's face when they mentioned All Might.

"They got any local heroes in Mie, Uraraka?" Mei asked, getting a confused eyebrow from the gravity girl. "That's where you're from, right?"

"How'd ya know?"

"You got a bit of a Mie accent. My papa's from Mie Prefecture, so that's why I recognized it," Mei explained.

"Okay then. Well, my town had this local hero called Wind-Walker, but ya probably haven't heard of him."

'Three, two, one.' Katsuki thought to himself, bemused as he saw Izuku's face light up.

"Oh, that's the air-steeping hero. He's stationed out of Jakuto." Izuku said before connecting the dots. "Wait, you're from Jakuto?! But that's more than four hours away by train."

"Actually, Young Uraraka and her parents just moved here to Musutafu," Toshinori explained before he continued and elaborated. A few weeks ago, Toshinori was visiting some family in Jakuto. He'd been shopping at the local mall when it suddenly collapsed, and Ochako saved him from getting crushed by a heavy object. Toshinori was so impressed that he offered to start training her for UA. Ochako's parents had been hesitant to allow it since the train ride alone would be a more than four-hour round trip every day. But when Toshinori learned they owned a construction company that had fallen on hard times, he figured he could kill two birds with one stone.

"The Hero Agency I work at had been in need of repairs and renovations," Toshinori explained. "I offered them the job and covered the cost of them moving to Musutafu. It's still a bit far from my agency in Tokyo, but it's much more affordable."

"Wow, that was really kind of you, Mr. Yagi," Izuku said. "By the way, what Hero Agency do you work at?"

Toshinori froze for a moment before rubbing the back of his head. "Oh, it's not a big deal or anything, but I work at Might Tower."

Izuku's eyes went wide as dinner plates. "M-M-Might Tower, that means you work for—"

"YOU WORK FOR FUCKING ALL MIGHT?!" Katsuki shouted, almost blowing out everyone's ear drums.

Seemingly unbothered by his friend's outburst, Izuku leaned towards Toshinori with a huge, and the blond swore the boy's eyes were sparkling. "Oh my god! Have you actually met All Might?! What's he like in real life?! I hope he's nice." Izuku asked, moving around Toshinori like he had just downed 20 shots of espresso. Toshinori was taken aback while Ochako and Mei giggled at the boy's antics. "Does he wear his costumes around the office? Or is that only for press releases? I heard that the Might-Mobile is up in the higher blocked-off levels for sentimental value. Is it true? Oh wait: you've probably gotten him coffee! All Might seems like a black coffee guy, but you never know…"

Eventually, Izuku's string of questions became less coherent as he continued to ask more and more, becoming a barrage of excited babbling. Toshinori looked at Katsuki. "Is he okay?"

"Give me a second," Katsuki said before approaching Izuku from behind, holding his hand behind his friend's head, and firing off a small explosion. Izuku yelped like a puppy in surprise. Then, realizing what had happened, Izuku turned to Toshinori and blushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry about that," Izuku said

As the weeks went by, naturally, Ochako's parents wanted to meet these new friends she couldn't stop talking about. So, after a few discussions, Mitsuki decided to host a get-together at Bakugous' house. The four youngsters, their parents, and Mei's brother, Koshin, were all hanging out in the backyard.

"I'm telling ya; those rookies didn't know a tamp from a postal digger!" Hiede Uraraka said with a laugh and a can of beer in his hand. He was a man with dirty blonde hair and a muscular physique.

"Well, you can't blame them," Gin Hatsume said. The man was burly, standing taller than the other fathers with a full pink beard and arm hair. "Learning how to use tools is part of the job."

"You following any of this?" Hisashi asked Masaru.

"Just barely."

Across the yard, the mothers were having a discussion of their own. Or rather, Mitsuki was showing Asuka Uraraka and Suzuki Hatsume pictures of her and Inko in college on her phone, much to the green-haired woman's embarrassment.

"I'll admit I didn't know what to expect, but Inko and I blew those nerds away." The picture showed her as Cure Blossom and Inko as Cure Marine.

"Oh my. I don't think I'd ever have the confidence to do something like that," Asuka stated. She looked like an older version of her daughter with back-length brown hair.

"I could probably pull something like that off," Suzuki replied. She was a woman with lilac hair and golden eyes.

"Mitsuki, stop showing them that!" Inko said with comedic tears.

Meanwhile…

"Nice to meet you. I'm Koshin Hatsume." The high-schooler said with a smile. "I gotta say, I'm happy Mei finally has a lady friend."

Ochako looked at Koshin before whispering to Mei, "Hatsume, is it weird that I think your big brother's really cute?"

"You wouldn't be the first," Mei said with a sigh. "Though I really don't see it."

"Better not let the Catty Brigade hear ya." Katsuki joked while Izuku gave a nervous chuckle.

In three months' time, Ochako had fully integrated herself into the friend group. And it became official when Katsuki gave her a nickname.

"Round Face?" Ochako asked as they had lunch in a local ramen joint.

"Have you seen your face? You're like a goddamn circle," Katsuki said.

"Don't take it personally," Mei said. "Kacchan gives nicknames to everyone. Though he hasn't called Izuku a nickname in all the time I've known them."

"He used to call me Deku," Izuku said.

"That wasn't a nickname: that was an insult," Katsuki replied.

"Deku, like 'dekiru'? Doesn't that mean 'you can do it?'" Ochako asked.

"No, Deku means 'wooden doll.' It's a way of calling someone 'worthless,'" Izuku explained.

Ochako gaped at Katsuki. "Why would you call your best friend worthless!?"

"Because I was a kid, and kids are assholes," Katsuki.

Ochako turned back to Izuku. "Well, if it's any consolation, I like 'Deku.' It's punchy and catchy, and I think it could make a great hero name." A bright smile spread across her face. "Plus, I think it sounds kind of cute." She didn't notice the blush spreading across Izuku's face.

As the months trudged on, the group found themselves growing closer, even starting to call each other by their first names (well, Izuku, Ochako, and Mei did. Katsuki still called her Round Face and she took to calling him Kacchan, to his irritation.) And as the UA Entrance Exam was getting closer, everyone took their training more seriously than before.

Izuku often spent entire nights working on Striker, only going home when Higari told him to.

Ochako was determined to clean all of Dagobah Beach and followed Mr. Yagi's workout routine to the letter.

Katsuki spent hours a day blowing up target dummies until his arms started to hurt.

While Mei wasn't training for the Hero Exam, she kept tinkering, hoping to blow the support course entrance exam out of the water with a new baby.

And while the four trained solo or with their respective teachers, there were also plenty of times that they spared and studied together. Ochako and Katsuki would often test their skills against Izuku's Proto-Striker, giving all three a chance to test their skills while providing Izuku with valuable data to improve Pro-Striker's design.

Before the four knew it, it was a week before the entrance exam. Izuku was having dinner with his family when his phone pinged. Ochako had just sent a group text, and Izuku's jaw dropped when he opened it.

"Ochako did it!" Izuku exclaimed as he held his phone up to his parents. "She actually cleared all of Dagobah beach!"

"Really? That's amazing!" Inko said.

"The girl's got grit, that's for sure," Hisashi commented before chowing down on some more Lo Mein. But the older Midoriyas then saw their son's eyes widen and his cheeks turn red. "Um…you alright, buddy?"

"Y-Ya, I'm fine," Izuku said, quickly putting his phone away before going back to awkwardly eating dinner. The reason? Well, Ochako took a selfie of her and Mr. Yagi, with Ochako flexing her right arm in a show of pride. Izuku knew his brunette friend was getting in better shape compared to when the two first met, but she was absolutely shredded now! And for some reason, the sight of her bicep made his heart start racing. Weird. Maybe he just wasn't used to seeing her in a sleeveless top yet.

And then…the day came.

The sky was clear, the wind was calmly blowing, and Izuku was in his Aldera Middle School uniform, standing in front of the gates to UA High School. From a bird's eye view, the main building was in the shape of an 'H,' and the pathway to the school was lined with statues of heroic alumni. Hundreds of other UA hopefuls were walking toward the school. Some were cocky, some were excited, and a lot of students, Izuku included, were nervous about taking an exam that could change the very course of their life.

"It's finally time," Izuku mumbled to himself before taking a deep breath. "Let's do this!"

As the green-haired boy walked forward, he tripped over a loose tile. 'Or I could just die.'

"Woah there, Izuku!" The boy felt a touch and a familiar sense of weightlessness, turning to see Ochako's smiling face. "Don't knock yourself out before the test starts."

"Right. I guess I should watch my step," Izuku chuckled before Ochako let him down.

"You should've seen him earlier." The two turned and saw Katsuki and Mei walking toward them. "I swear if I didn't know he was Quirkless, I would've thought this nerd had some kind of hyper-energy Quirk."

"Well, can you blame me for being excited?" Izuku replied before looking back at UA. "And a little nervous?"

"Don't be! We're gonna crush this damn test!" Katsuki shouted with his usual bravado.

"Well, I gotta go to a different building, but I made these!" Mei pulled something out of her pocket and handed them to her friends. They were charms; a green gear for Izuku, a pink comet for Ochako, and an orange grenade for Katsuki. "Mama said that some handmade charms from a person you care about can really increase your luck! So good luck!"

"Good luck to you, Mei!" Ochako said with a wave as their pink-haired friend went to another building.

"You're gonna do awesome!" Izuku joined in.

"Try not to scare everyone else there, Crazy-Eyes!" Katsuki said, smiling down at the charm before pocketing it and looking at the main building. "Alright, let's fucking do this!"

"Right!" Izuku and Ochako said together. The three youngsters walked towards the building, ready to show what they were made of, to prove why they deserved to walk the hallowed halls of this world-famous hero school.

This was gonna be the day when everything changed.

Author's Note 2: So now we got Ochako in the fold! And anyone with a passing knowledge of My Hero Academia should see where I'm going with this! We also got the Entrance Exam next chapter…and we're gonna get some major action after three chapters of setting up the characters!

Next Time: First Deployment! Striker's Grand Debut!

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