I hate cheaters; I really do. They screwed with my exam schedule and gave me too much grief from having to deal with that. Even though I can't prove it, I'm damn sure the exam was harder for it. Oh well, I can only take my frustrations out playing 7 Days to Die, booting up creative, and designing a stupidly fortified fortress from which I massacre all zombies that dare approach it.

Chapter 26: Downtime

With the crowd roars still ringing through the TV's speakers, partially confused and angry that All Might messed up the end by saying 'Thanks for your hard work' instead of the school's motto of 'Plus Ultra'. Midoriya didn't really care for that as he softly closed his notebook, filling 3 of them throughout the afternoon. Hours spent combing through the footage, listening to Present Mic and Eraserhead's commentary as he wrote down these observations and his theories about every first year that even got a modicum of spotlight.

In other cases, as with that Tokoyami boy and Bakugo, he was given a chance to refine what he knew about them as the former was merely a guess that he had a weakness to flames. Still, now it seemed closer to just light in general as Bakugo's match with him was less power and more him weaponing that apparent weakness. For the latter, Midoriya was mildly impressed that he had managed to make some improvements since they last saw one another, but there was only so much he could do in 2 weeks, as Koharu bluntly stated, if they decided to have a rematch, as things stood, Bakugo would end up ash.

But they weren't the only ones that drew his eye. Todoroki, Asui, Yaoyorozu, Sero, Kirishima, and so many others from class A and B had such amazing quirks and exciting ways to use them. Part of him wondered if he would have gotten along with them, but the rest shot that down had heroic quirks and didn't think in a way that threatened the mold. At best, it could have easily been a repeat of middle school, but now that he had freedom and acceptance, he refused to return to being the weird kid.

With Hasaki on dinner duty, Kon sat next to Midoriya on the couch. "This is the 3rd time seeing it, and it's still wild that they had to chain up that Bakugo brat just to give him his medal. You'll think he'll be happy with winning the whole thing, or did he want to fight the 3rd years?" He asked.

"He's always been competitive, but he wants to beat the best to be the best, and well, that last match wasn't Todoroki at his best." Midoriya didn't have many positive memories of Bakugo, at least recent ones. Still, if there was something that stayed consistent with him, it was his pride and its genuine element. He didn't like it when people kissed up to him when he hadn't done anything. To him, glory unearned wasn't glory at all.

While he could tell that he had been pissed to take second both in the obstacle race and then the cavalry battle, he seemed to be having fun with the 1v1s. At least, he was still the finals as they had all seen it, the brilliant flames Todoroki had the gall to keep inside. Midoriya froze at that moment, so lost in his glee at the wondrous sight that the rest had steered clear of as he held the TV close to his face, a big smile on his face.

When he finally collected himself and got back to taking notes, he had to rewind the fight just to see what his opponent, Uraraka, had even done to illicit such a response when facing them had not. His best guess is that she said something to him that triggered it, but they couldn't hear anything with the field having no mics. When he just barely won, Uraraka's foot landing just out of bounds while he passed out soon after, Izuku could admit that he had been eager to see him use those beautiful orange and yellow flames again when he fought against the youngest Iida.

But then he didn't. He just stuck to that stupid ice. It was…frustrating, but it worked. Sure, he took a hit, and Iida nearly won. However, Todoroki still defeated him via capture, which was not terrible for the pyro-loving teen. Of course, he saved it for Bakugo to cap off the first-year festival in style…

But he didn't use it!

Midoriya figured out that his quirk seemed to be related to the sides of his body. His right side appeared to be the source of his ice, and when He went back through all the footage, that held true, whether it was his foot or hands. If it was right, it created or covered something in ice. But when his flames burst forth into the world, a breathtaking sight, Midoriya could contain himself enough to see that it was coming from his left.

So, watching him, time after time, refuse to strike with his left side, letting Bakugo either land hits or stop mid-attack and let him go, all that stupid ice angered him more than he realized it would. He could perfectly understand why Bakugo would be less than amused with that result, as it seemed like Endeavour's son hadn't learned his lesson from nearly freezing to death against them.

"No shit, who would have guessed he had fire? Didn't you and Hasaki say he was close to being a snowman at the USJ?" Kon's question cut through his haze of irritation, the heteromorph looking towards the kitchen area of their hideout as the sole human female in the group prepared their meal, the woman's back to them. At the same time, her hair helped her carry out the smaller tasks.

"The fool was." She paid more attention to the rice she was making than the conversation. It wasn't like it was a surprise to her anyway.

"That just means, at least to him, that he can't be called the undisputed best when his opponent didn't give it his all before losing to him." Midoriya concluded though Koharu called it moronic, that Bakugo couldn't even calm himself enough to take the metal that humans value so much and then piss off to rage off-screen. Still, having seen enough, Midoriya shut the TV off to save power as while they weren't lawful citizens who paid for utilities like water and electricity, that only meant that they couldn't be blatant about it as the last thing they needed was someone noticing that an apparently abandoned building water and electric usage.

"Was he just trying to compensate for their defeat at the USJ?" Kon asked, as last he checked, he barely survived a matchup against Midoriya.

"That boy is more beast than human." Hasaki waved it off, as the brat had been nothing but disrespectful, loud, and dismissive the entire time he had been on screen. But at least he wasn't an idiot, as he didn't take chances dealing with that Mina girl, even when the crowd boo-ed him for having the balls to treat her like a threat.

"You trying to start something?" Kon asked, glaring at her for her choice of words.

In response, she looked over her shoulder at them, bored of the conversation. "Please, we've all done things that range from questionable to outright messed up with a shred of remorse." Kon didn't change his face, snarling at her before, and at last, he cracked a grin.

"Can't argue that." He laughed, as none of them could or even wanted to claim to be good people. They might have reasonable goals, but that didn't change their methods or how much they enjoyed using them. "What about the Iida brat? Any word on him?" He turned his attention to their resident hero expert as he tended to his snake, who was resting on the other side of the sofa, Midoriya taking the middle spot.

"I've checked my usual sources, but aside from the news that his brother was attacked by Stain and he was rushed into surgery, there isn't much else out." Midoriya whipped his phone out again, a different one to the one he once owned when he was still a lawful citizen. Opening up a couple news apps and hero-centric forums, he saw that more had been added since he last checked an hour ago. Still, there was little actual information about it. Well, there was confirmation that the two other heroes Ingenium were found with had been declared dead on the scene since they were taken away in body bags.

Reaching into his pocket, Kon raised an eyebrow as he picked out a fresh cigar and placed it in his mouth. Using his quirk, he lit it and took a nice drag of it. "Stain was the one? Poor bastard's lucky he was found alive; didn't they find at least 2 of his victims missing heads?" Kon asked, though he cared little for the man in question and was more curious about how he managed to survive.

"There's not much about it, just that he and his sidekicks in the area were looking for Stain. Ingenium went dark for a few minutes, and when 2 of his sidekicks located him…well, it was too late, he was down, and Stain was long gone. He and the 2 heroes he must have been there to try and save." Midoriya replied, but he didn't think more would get out since the Iida family had already stated they'd keep things from here private unless necessary.

Kon whistled, as Ingenium might have never broke the top 50, but he wasn't a slouch. He was known for his speed, and after his encounter with Midoriya and Slice, he seemed to have taken it as a reason to improve. With him down, Kon was pretty sure that he was the highest-worth mark Stain had managed to add to his tally. "What's his body count now with Ingenium off the board?"

"Let's see, he's killed around 15 pros-17 now and injured another 23 so bad they had to quit the game. Where Ingenium lands on depends on whether he survives the night and gets back on his feet." Hasaki looked up in thought, as it had been quite the talk in the underworld, weaklings and opportunists alike salivating at the idea that Stain could somehow usher in a new age where they could thrive.

"Stain's been quite busy, moving his way from the Sea of Japan coast in Chūbu to the Pacific, but it looks like he's moving north-east since this latest attack is in Kantō." Flipping through another of his notebooks, Midoriya landed on the section he dedicated to Stain, from reported appearance, threat level, list of known victims, and a map of Japan with the dates and names of those attacked.

Leaning over, Kon saw how Stain had been moving, with a pretty big target environment as a possible end goal. "Maybe he's moving his way up to Tokyo?"

"I don't think so; Tokyo has the highest concentration of pros, including more than a few in the top 50." Midoriya replied as while there was little on Stain's quirk, his victims were all injured or slain with knives or a sword, survivors never reporting anything that could imply he could take on stronger targets or even larger search parties. Now, he could have a quirk that isn't so obvious. Still, seeing how his hunting pattern was closer to an ambush predator like a python, it was safe to assume that whatever it was wasn't suited for straight combat.

"I doubt that matters much since he's hunting heroes like big game." Hasaki noted. "Besides, with him going after a big name like Ingenium, even if the guy makes a full recovery, there is no way the pros will let that slide; as far as this is concerned, he's already one of the most wanted villains out there. What does it matter if he does to them rather than vice versa?"

"Cops and gangs, all the same." Kon huffed out smoke.

"If he goes to them, it might be a better option as no one knows his criteria. He's attacked heroes 13 times now, yet nothing links them. So Stain can appear anywhere he pleases, target random pros, and be gone before anyone can stop him." Midoriya replied that from what he could gather and speculate, Stain's selection methods were inconsistent at best and non-existent at worst.

6 of his targets had or have criminal charges against them. Still, most were minor offenses that, at best, could lead to a suspended hero license. Only one had a serious charge of a DUI, which didn't result in any injuries but property damage. The rest? No such thing; many even were active members of the communities they policed, well respected and good at their jobs; one had even served as a sidekick under Wash and was well-liked for his campaigns to ensure elementary schools were as clean as they could be for the health of the students. Midoriya was sure he still had his poster back in his old room.

Koharu suggested that maybe Stain was picking people that were like Hasaki and Kon, heteromorphs and women, which might have held water if both groups were the minority of his targets as he's only gone after 6 heroines, one of whom was killed. Heteromorphs were even less likely, as he had just 4 confirmed targets in that community. Maybe the heroes knew more about this; in fact, Midoriya was optimistic that they did, as this was an ongoing investigation, and they wouldn't just show their hand, but as far as he was concerned, Stain might as well be picking names out of a damn hat.

"Maybe that was deliberate; Koharu suggested that the murderer could be purposely targeting randomly to ensure his foes couldn't guess his next move," Midoriya spoke again.

"That just means we need to be ready to move on a moment's notice. Stain might like being the most wanted man in Japan, but I like not needing to worry about the top ten bursting through the ceiling as we sleep." Kon replied, as he was confident they could handle themselves in most fights, but when you had so many enemies with so many resources and aid, you'd need to be a fool to challenge that without a solid plan and resources.

Hasaki laughed in agreement. "Let him and the League get the lion's share of the attention. It makes it all the easier for us."

Sometime later, Nine and Makihara returned from some business in casual clothing, making it harder for people to identify them. When they walked in, while Hasaki laid into Makihara for leaving when it was their day to cook, leaving her to handle everything, Nine approached Midoriya.

"I trust that it was a productive day." Nine started as Midoriya handed him the three notebooks he had been working on without prompting.

"3 notebooks, 3 years of students after 3 viewings." Midoriya stated as Nine looked through the notes, sketches, and theories. He and Makihara had seen the festival in real-time, at least pieces of it, because they didn't remain in a single place long, so it was good that Midoriya had taken the time to study what could easily be their next foes, especially U.A's third years.

Though reading through it, just 2 of them seemed worth any worry. Hado, with her wave quirk, and this Amajiki fellow, thought that threat level was entirely resting on if he ever dealt with his crippling anxiety, as Midoriya noted multiple times when he failed to take the initiative or was otherwise pushed around.

"Um, three 3s, that makes nine." Nine rolled his eyes at how Midoriya giggled at that joke; instead, he kept reading before gazing at their youngest member.

"Good work, with these, we can make better plans going forward. We also spoke with Giran before we returned. We'll meet him about some new gear in a week in Hosu." Midoriya preened at the praise as he got up to get a drink of water.

"He also said he might have some clients lined up for us, but what's to double-check." Makihara, keeping his distance from the still-pissed Hasaki, added. "Asshole's just making us wait." He looked away when she glared at him, hoping she hadn't poisoned his food.

After they had their dinner and went over some more stuff, they all retired for the night. Midoriya was no exception as he quickly fell asleep. Within his dreams, he found himself in a familiar place, one that once surprised him, but he had grown used to it, even if it still awed him every time he saw it.

Blinking to fix his vision, he saw that he was surrounded by flames, all the world made from its beauty and warmth, from the structure of the temple walls and ceiling around and above, down to the clothes he wore. A glance revealed that he had been dressed like he would have been as he worked at the temple. The shrine maiden uniform was much more vivid than ever as the white and red flames that formed it burned bright.

Midoriya didn't move from his seiza position. Instead, he took a breath, letting the hot air and smell of ash and smoke calm him and soothe a part of him like nothing else could ever imitate. Even as he looked through the brown flames that made the floor, he saw the city beneath him, one he had never reached nor intended to reach burned, but nothing fell, nothing crumbled, and no one collapsed. Instead, they swung and lashed about in a violent frenzy, a sign of worship and love for the flames.

As his eyes started to glow, they also grew content and relaxed. Midoriya started to recite a mantra, the first words being stated slowly, but not a syllable out of place, a sound mistimed. "Purify and cleanse us, make our spirits pure and clear." In response to his mantra, the flames around him reacted, growing in power and intensity, the temple walls rising ever higher while the roof, rose with them, burned brighter that he was akin to the sun.

As the clothes he wore flared and rose, exposing parts of his arms as his 'sleeves' rose like they were in water. Closing his eyes, he smiled as he continued, almost like singing a lullaby. "Kagutsuchi, lord of fire, born from the burned womb of creation and death, progenitor of the 8 volcanoes. Hear my prayer and grant us your power. Bring us under your protection from the darkness."

Beneath the brown and beige flames on the floor, he sat on, there was movement. Not from the people perpetually and lovingly burned by the tens of thousands, but from something else. Something bigger as a leviathan was swimming through the sea of flames, its form shadowed by flame and smoke, its movements sending rumblings through the entire dreamscape, but Midoriya didn't react to it, merely continuing with his mantra, his heated breath slow, steady and gaining in power.

"Kagutsuchi, lord of fire, born from the burned womb of creation and death, progenitor of the 8 volcanoes. Hear my prayer and protect my loved ones. Bring us under your protection from the darkness." He chanted, lowering his head to the floor, his forehead just barely above the inferno on the ground, his arms placed on it as he bowed in worship to his god, to the deity he had served as its shrine maiden without shame or error.

His chanting continued, repeating these two lines repeatedly; even as smoke leaked from his lips and his lungs burned, he didn't stop. Even as the world around him only grew hotter and the flames rose ever higher to a limitless sky, he continued his mantra as he would have any other day where he attended to the fire of the temple.

Izuku didn't know how much time had passed within his dream; it could have been minutes, it could have been days-he didn't count, for it held no meaning or worth to him. But soon enough, he ceased his mantra as he rose his burnt, beloved hands to the sky, his head still bowed. "Thank you, Kagutsuchi, lord of fire." As if summoned by this, the surface of the flames bubbled as it trained to restrain that beneath it. Still, surface tension failed as the leviathan swimming beneath him broke the surface and took to the air.

His quirk came to rest upon the surface it had just escaped from, solid and visible like he was. It seemed larger than it had been the first time they had spoken, its body easily twice as long and thick, as if with each encounter, his quirk got closer to appearing like a perfect fusion between a serpent and an active volcano, its form still bubbling and rumbling as magma flowed and turned within its body. With its tail swaying side to side as if it didn't weigh over a ton, his quirk speaks.

"You've come a long way since you embraced me since you decided to cease locking me away like an impure thought." As he expected, his quirk's voice was deep, rumbling, and heavy with all the weight of a lava flow. As it spoke, it encircled him with its form, trapping him with its body filled with iron and volcanos, but those piercing, slit eyes remained on him.

"How could I not correct that mistake?" Midoriya asked, wishing that he had some prayer beads. "How could I ignore the blessing my lord gifted upon me any longer?" His quirk was pleased by that statement, its jaws opening just a little, allowing refined lava to leak from its fangs into his outstretched palms, sizzling as they burned his flesh. Still, he felt no pain as the drip continued till his hands overflowed.

"Then continue to embrace, for I am your power. I am your might. And through our connection, this world will burn and be reborn anew." His quirk stated, Midoriya's bowed head smiling as he couldn't wait.

Slowly, Izuku's eyes opened. Yawning, he rose from his slumber. Looking out the window, he saw that the sun was barely visible as it grew; a glance at his Edgeshot-themed clock showed that 05:22am. Hmm, it must have slept in. Typically, he was up around 5am thanks to all the work at the shrine, necessitating that he became an early bird. Scratching at his hair, which he had tied into a neat bun for then, he got up from his bed, revealing that he wore an oversized Wash T-shirt that exposed a shoulder and went as far as his knees, covering the light purple shorts he wore.

He walked over to the small window, made from 2-way class; there was still a part he could open so long as he kept the curtains up; that way, a nice morning breeze would enter. He shivered a little when he did so, but it was a good shiver as this part of town was away from the city center, and most of the industrial parts had long since shut down. Throw in the fact that it was on the outskirts, and that meant he got some fresh outdoor air.

Humming the theme song to an old All Might cartoon he watched growing up, he went over to the table he had where he kept most of his hair and face products. As he sat and started undoing his bun to get his hair into a ponytail, Koharu slithered towards and up his leg from her bed in the corner. Climbing up his leg, she greeted him with a lazy good morning.

"Good morning to you as well. Did you sleep well?" He smiled as he opened the drawer and got his hands on the hair relaxer that Hisaki had ordered. Twisting it open at the same time his hair burst from its bun, he reached into the jar and gathered a generous amount before working it through it. Koharu talked about a dream when she got revenge on that stupid baby deer she wanted to eat whole by shifting into her new enlarged form and how it ended with the rest of the forest critters lining up to serve as her next meal.

Izuku laughed at that, as he knew such dreams were meaningless and self-indulging, meaning that you didn't have much burdening you. Things had been well for them, so he hadn't expected such, but one could never be too sure. As the gel did its job and forced his ever-stubborn hair to conform, Koharu asked about his dreams. "They were…productive and enlightening," he replied, though he didn't go into details about them.

His hair done up, he didn't change out of his sleepwear as he went downstairs to start making breakfast for everyone. Filling up the kettle with some water to boil, he opened the fridge, got some eggs, bacon, cheese, and onions out, and got to work. Chopping up the onions into fine pieces, he mixed that in with the cheese and some spices from the cabinet before cracking eggs into a bowl and whisking them to perfection, all while a pan he placed on the stove heated up.

With that done, he poured the egg into the pan and then quickly added the chopped eggs and cheese. As he cooked that, he grabbed a second pan and started frying the bacon. He hummed a little song as he swayed side to side, keeping an eye on both pans, ensuring that the bacon didn't burn while the eggs cooked well. He turned the pan on itself and flipped it, sealing the partially cooked contents within the shell of the egg.

From there, it wasn't long before the first batch was done, which he placed along with three strips of bacon in a bowl and set to the side, where Koharu happily started munching. "Thanks." He stated to her, appreciating the meal as he got to work making breakfast for the rest of them. That was the sight that Makihara found when he walked down from his room, out of his costume and in a set of purple and red PJs, his handsome face unobscured by cloth.

"Morning." He greeted the smaller male.

Offering a smile, Midoriya pointed to the table, which already had 3 plates of steaming food ready to eat. "Morning, you can grab a plate from the table. I'm almost done making this last batch of bacon."

"Let me make some coffee first," Makihara yawned into his hand as he approached the coffee maker, something he had been clear they needed. "I need some caffeine to wake me up in the mornings." He poured coffee beans into the top, along with water and milk from the fridge. Knowing that his friend wouldn't be much company till he had that first cup of Joe, they fell into a comfortable silence as Midoriya finished making breakfast and placed the used pans and utensils in the sink to wash later.

As he sat down, Nine was the next to appear, still looking good despite it being a little past 6:30am. Koharu bet he spent time getting himself presentable before leaving his room, but neither he nor her had the means to prove that. He offered a nod to both as he sat down, a book in hand as he started to eat the prepared food, quickly joined by Midoriya and Makihara, the later having a piping hot mug of coffee whose smell brought a smile to the typically bandaged man's face.

As they ate, the last two appeared, Kon's fur still wet from the shower he took. At the same time, Hasaki's hair was a mess, a fusion of an old broom and bird's nest, which none commented on as she had a habit of eating, then hitting the shower and doing her hair. Good mornings were exchanged, but the group was silent as they ate. Here they were, the so-called 5 Thunders, one of Japan's rising villain groups, all ranked in the same range of C-rank, eating breakfast like any other group of roommates would do, most in PJs.

Midoriya found moments like this to be the best parts of his time with them, as while sure, he wasn't out and about setting fires and bettering the world, but there was a comfort and joy in being able to have quiet moments with his friends, people he could trust with his life. It was also somewhat amusing as he had gone his entire life being told that villains were cruel, cowardly, and cunning, spending all their time either committing crimes, running from the law, or scheming on how to do both, only for him to see first hand that any successful group like their own spent most of their time laying low, relaxing and managing their affairs.

He had once asked Nine about it, and he only reached a hand over to his head and, as he rubbed the younger boy's head, told him that you need to be genuinely pathetic to spend all your time plotting like some wannabe demon lord. Speaking of Nine, he offered to clean up for Izuku, which the boy happily took him up on the offer as he went upstairs to shower, reappearing around 40 minutes in his much more stylish clothes, his hair done up with his headpiece firmly in place.

Plumping on the sofa with a pen and his notebook, he turned on the TV to the news. "-Ingenium's condition is being kept secret, but sources claim that his condition has been stabilized since he was rushed into the ER."

"What is known at present is that the Idaten agency was in the area after they received an anonymous tip that the hero killer, Stain, was in the area. Ingenium and 3 other sidekicks were searching the area when Ingenium was reported to have found a lead. However, we are sad to inform you that the 2 heroes he had found, Stargazer and Mirror-force, were declared dead at the scene." The new caster was straight-faced as they reported what many would consider a tragic event. Even to villains like them, while they didn't care much about heroes, they weren't so callous that a loss of life meant nothing to them.

"We are Channel 5 News, send our deepest condolences to the friends and families of these fallen heroes, cut down in their prime by a madman. We also wish that Ingenium makes a speedy recovery but takes this time to be with loved ones." The newscaster stated before moving on to other things, such as stats of Stain, bringing in criminal and villain experts to give their 200 yen about the situation. Still, Midoriya muted it, as it wasn't anything new.

"Can't say I was expecting much. If the Iida family has declined to speak with the press, then the media will just keep repeating and overanalyzing what they do have." Kon said it aloud.

"I can only guess that the hospital's in hot water as there is no way a member of the Idaten agency was the source. Someone's losing their job for that slip-up." Hasaki noted that the press could be ravenous, which was why stuff around the private lives of heroes was so fiercely defended. Even gossip columns knew where to draw the line as heroes and their agencies can and have dragged them through legal hell.

"Do you think Ingenium will recover? He didn't seem like a bad guy when we saw him." Midoriya asked them, with Nine not even needing a moment to think.

"The Iida family is one of the oldest hero families in the world. They've been agents of the state going back three generations. Such prestige has also garnered them a substantial amount of friends, favours, and cash, much like oil barons of the early 20th century." He stated that while the Iida family didn't make a big deal of their wealth, they were easily worth tens of billions of yen.

"If there is a treatment out there, a medical expert they can contact, they have already considered it and will spare no expense on getting either." Nine wouldn't be shocked if they flew in experts from across the world and paid top dollar for it.

"I doubt it. Medical tech is still where it was over 80 years ago. Even breakthroughs they announce they've made are shit we could have achieved decades ago if people didn't have to deal with the rise of quirks." Hasaki threw in as she liked to watch such shows, talking about what could have been and how, while quirks had brought many good things, they slowed development to a near crawl for the first few decades. Once heroes become common and accepted, most fields were focused on ways to support this multi-trillion-dollar industry.

Even the famous I-island was mainly for researching quirks and support tools. So Ingenium better pray that whatever Stain did to him could have been dealt with in her grandparents' time. Otherwise, he was shit out of luck.

"How funny is that? Anything related to capturing villains or helping heroes is given all the press and funding, but helping the common people like heroes claim to, well, that's not as important." Makihara laughed at the absurdity of the situation.

"What, you one of those people that wanted to take a summer vacation to the moon?" Kon asked him.

"If it wasn't expensive and proven to be safe? Why the hell not?" Makihara shrugged, as sure there wasn't much to do on the Moon, it being the Moon and all, but give people time, and he figured they'd build stuff up there that'll keep them entertained.

"I prefer to remain on earth if that's all the same to you." Nine added, though Midoriya did think that there was something that they weren't thinking about when it came to medicine. Yes, development had slowed drastically since quirks appeared, but what about them which he asked.

"Midoriya, you need a hero license to use your quirk, period. Not even doctors have the legal authority to use it when helping patients." Makihara stated this as if it were a well-knownt Midoriya would contest that.

"Wait, really?" That didn't make sense! Sure, quirk laws were pretty restrictive but there had to be crave-outs for professionals who would have better training and skills then any rando on the street to use their gifts.

"There is a reason that Recovery Girl went into heroics before medical school? It's why, even in her youth, she spent most of her time in hospitals." Nine replied, as he had read about it in the past and found it as moronic as Midoriya did. Sure, some countries had got with the times and made the change. Still, they were the minority and mainly done in places with sparse medical facilities.

Midoriya was silent, chewing on that little bit of info as it made sense. He had never seen cops use their quirks and wondered if they get similar training to heroes. What about construction workers? Someone like Death Arms would be the employee of the month, while Lady makes most cranes useless, yet…had he ever seen a super-strength or gigantification user allowed to use their gifts like that? "…Well, I have to pray for Ingenium since that feels like the only help he's getting."

That is the end; some stuff was cut as it didn't fit the final product, but I'm happy with what I have with this. As the chapter called it, it's downtime, as I can't always have them doing something significant. It also served as a fun way to just relax and not have to write something too complicated. But the next chapter should have some action, so if you're eager for that, don't worry; it's cooking and will be served soon.

Also, I'm thinking of writing omakes for this and Path of Waves, as well as little snippets of canonical events and situations that are more comedic and hard to fit into chapters as they stand. Do you have any thoughts on that?

The next chapter should be out on July 3rd.

Special thanks to my Patrons(s):

Alexei Barrett

Brayden

Shawn Carroll

rlp31-

ShelDrake

Yvetal247

TheCoolest7248

Uknown Grimoire

Sit Lord

Austin McConnell

p a t reon . com (slash) Ducksmakegreatminers