Class 1-A Watches Ben 10

by Celestial Empress Sandra

Class 1-A and a handful of teachers are whisked away to learn about the flaws of their hero society and beliefs in heroes in general. And so, two multiversal creatures show them the flaws of their hero society by learning proper hero lessons from the most unlikely place... A ten-year-old boy with a fancy watch on his wrist.

9. Hunted

A/N: Hello, everyone. Just a few things before we begin: I feel like most of you didn't understand my Author's Note at the end of the last chapter. All those suggestions for reaction ideas weren't ideas I plan on doing and wondering what you guys would like to see. That was me suggesting YOU GUYS to try and do some reaction fics of your own. That way, you could have something to do while you're waiting for me to work on this. And it definitely WASN'T an invitation for you to send me DOZENS of ideas of reaction fics you want to see.

And please stop SPAMMING these ideas as guest reviews, like someone wants me to make a fic of Naruto reacting to Bleach "so Naruto can be jealous of Ichigo having friends in family". That's the dumbest reason to make a react fic EVER. Besides, I hardly watch Naruto, I only have the VAGUEST idea of how the characters act and behave, so the reactions would be bland and soulless.

---

The Chimeran Hammer, ship of the alien warlord, continued to orbit the Earth. Inside the ship, on a levitating platform, three spotlights shined on three bounty hunters. The first was thin with purple and black armor, the second resembled a yellow robotic half-human/half-crustacean and the third wore bulky gray armor and had a pillbug-like shell covering their face.

"Begin the audition." The Warlord declared.

"Oh, no! It's the evil guy's ship!" Kaminari said nervously.

"Wh-who are those guys? And what does he mean by 'audition'?" Mineta asked, equally concerned.

"I see. He's outsourcing." Midnight realized.

"Outsourcing? What do you mean? The thing politicians are always complaining about?" Kaminari asked, dense as ever.

"These men must be bounty hunters. He's offering the job of retrieving the Omnitrix to mercenaries outside of his usual employment, because his robots failed the initial attempt to capture Ben." The R-Rated heroine explained.

"That makes sense. Robots may be more loyal, as they have to follow strict programming, but they have no instinct, no judgment, they aren't as good at adapting to new situations or thinking outside the box. They can only come up with the most basic decisions, like moving back if the enemy is attacking or getting too close, or attacking when they have the advantage. They're straightforward and predictable enough that even Ben, a child, can figure them out. Whereas these mercenaries DO have all those qualities I mentioned. They can adapt to situations better. And since they're likely full grown adults, they can come up with plans that would stump Ben. And might have arsenals the robots don't." Todoroki elaborated.

"Solid reasoning, Todoroki. Well done. But don't forget to take that advice yourself." Aizawa explained, reminding the boy of their final exams, where his relatively straightforward strategy almost lost him and Yaoyorozu the match against their teacher.

The first immediately fired up a jetpack and landed in a circle of basic flying drones. He pulled a small blaster from a compartment on his joint and shot a few down. A few fire back, to which he rolled out of the way and fired small rockets from his wrist in retaliation. He then pulled a grenade out of another compartment for another cluster of drones.

"Whoa! This guy's got more weapons than Yaoyorozu!" Sero exclaimed.

"He kind of reminds me of Boba Fett!" Ashido said excitedly, before becoming worried as she remembered this guy was likely a villain who would go after Ben.

A red flash from the cards in the loudmouthed teacher's hands signaled new information for the unsavory character. "Sixsix! A genetically mutated Sotoraggian! His power armor is decked out head-to-toe in weapons and he can fly with his jetpack! And he's further enhanced by nanomachines, hence the mutations." Present Mic declared.

"He's certainly quick on the draw. And clearly skilled with his weapons." Yaoyorozu noted.

"Yeah. That was a calculated throw of that grenade, getting it to bounce off that one robot so it wound up right in the middle while winding down those last few seconds before it explodes." Jiro elaborated. He weapon knowledge had also increased significantly, due to her girlfriend's reliance and constant studying of weaponry.

The second bounty hunter jumped down to join, pounding one on his way down, grabbing another with a massive claw and using them as a projectile against another. Two more of the drones rushed him, but he caught one with his claw and crushed it, before pulling out a sword and splitting the other in two.

"Whoa! This guy looks tough! That claws crushed those robots like tin cans! I don't think I wanna test myself against it." Kirishima said, surprised.

"I thought the whole point of hiring bounty hunters was to get actual living things, not more robots?" Bakugo questioned.

Another red flash then appeared in Mic's hands. "Kraab! A cybernetically enhanced Piscciss Premann! During one of multiple wars between Piscciss and Pyros- the sun Heatblast's people live on- Kraab lost 95% of his body and had to be converted into a cyborg to save his life. But he is now far stronger and more durable than a normal member of his race." The radio host informed the rest of the audience.

"Oh, man... Now I kind of feel bad for him." Uraraka said sadly.

"Don't be too quick to offer sympathies, Uraraka. We don't know the circumstances of this war. The Piscciss could've been the instigators." Iida advised.

"Really? So, I shouldn't feel bad for the Japanese soldiers who died or got mutilated in WWII? Pretty sure you guys were some of the instigators, stealing territory in East Asia and the Southwest Pacific Islands." Maverick countered Iida's claim.

Iida was shocked at this. "Th-that's hardly comparable! Most of our soldiers were just fighting in the name of our country-" Iida began, before realization hit him. "Oh. I see." He said in understanding.

"Remember, students: even if someone fights for the wrong side, it doesn't mean their demise or mutilation should be celebrated. Even I have tried to destroy All For One, but I wouldn't have held a parade if I had destroyed him in the end. Many people in war are just following orders, doing what they believe is best for their homeland." All Might told the students.

All of this was quite a heavy discussion for the group, some of them unsure how to move on from this. "Well, at least he's tougher now. And that claw looks like serious business, like Kirishima said. It's pretty cool." Hagakure said awkwardly.

"But that sword of his must be impressive to cut through other metal like that." Ojiro noted.

"And somehow, I doubt we've seen much of what he can do so far." Asui said suspiciously.

A platform opened up on the ceiling and a gigantic attack droid fell to the floor, ready to fire at the two.

"Oh, man. It's another big one like the one Diamondhead fought!" Sato exclaimed.

"It makes sense. If they can handle it, there's a good chance they're on the same level as Diamondhead." Present Mic informed the students.

"They may have the strength of Monsieur Diamondhead, but they will never have his elegant panache." Aoyama declared.

However, the third bounty hunter decided to take his turn, deploying a hoverboard and riding it right into the droid's laser blast.

Everyone was shocked and horrified at the apparent demise of the mercenary. "Oh, no! Why would he do that!?" Koda asked in horror.

"Hold on. For some reason, I don't think he's done yet." Shoji told the quiet one of the class.

When the smoke cleared, he was completely unharmed. Without a moment to lose, he flew into the droid's chest and punched right through it. He then folded his hoverboard back up as flaming robot pieces fell to the ground.

"Whoa! He doesn't have a scratch on him!" Kaminari exclaimed in shock.

"I thought he looked like the biggest and toughest, but I wasn't expecting THAT! He smashed right through him." Uraraka said in shock.

"And yet, somehow, I get a different vibe from this one." Jiro said, tilting her head as she looked at the hoverboard rider.

"Anything on him, Mic?" Aizawa asked his friend.

Mic looked down at his cards strangely, flipping through them and waiting for a flash, but it never happened. "Nothing. Weird." He said, raising an eyebrow.

"We'll see under that mask in due time. All shall be revealed then." Anemone explained.

A video screen of the warlord in his recovery tank appeared inside the room.

"Impressive. You are all hired. Your objective - is to retrieve the Omnitrix." The warlord spoke with his breathing labored as he showed them a picture of the watch. "The one who succeeds collects the reward. Do not disappoint me." He warned them. And a moment later, three pods jettisoned from the warlord's ship and fell to Earth.

A few smarter members of the audience made a face at this. "Well, now he set them up to fail." Aizawa said.

"Huh? What do you mean, sir? Three of them means that there's three times the chance that he wins, right?" Ashido asked.

"If they were all getting paid equal shares, that would be the case, but he clearly said only the one who actually brings him the Omnitrix will get paid. That means even if they manage to defeat Ben, they'll start fighting each other over who gets to bring him in and get the reward, which could give Ben the chance to escape, or to turn the tables. Or, they could possibly even wind up killing each other for it." Midoriya explained.

"Indeed. Few forces in this universe are stronger than greed. It can often blind us and push us to do extreme things to get the object of our desire." Tokoyami agreed.

"In other words, money's a hell of a vice. And people will do anything for it. Even kill." Dark Shadow simplified his partner's words.

"Good analysis, all three of you." Aizawa said with a nod of approval. "But unfortunately, that might be one of the only reason Ben survives this. Because he's out of his league on this one." He said.

"What? No way! With totally manly aliens like Diamondhead and Four Arms, there's no way Ben loses!" Kirishima said confidently.

"They're powerful aliens, but as far as we've seen, Ben barely knows how to use them. The kid's had some clever ideas, but there's not a lot of skill behind what he does. He's still learning the ropes. And he's about to go up against three hardened pros. Think of your Final Exams, but if we teachers had actually been going for the kill." Midnight told them, leaving a few of them in dread, knowing some of them barely scraped through by a hair, or failed miserably.

---

On Earth, Max had constructed a small target practice structure of strung up tires and soda cans. "You ready?" He asked his grandson.

"Whoa! That's awesome! They built a training course!" Sero exclaimed.

"A bit basic, but it's good for what they had on hand. And it's just good young Ben's getting SOME training to sharpen his skills." All Might said.

"But do you think it will be enough for Ben to deal with the bounty hunters?" Mineta asked worriedly.

"Hm... I wish I could say yes, but we are talking about THREE alien mercenaries who seem to all be highly skilled. I can't say I like his chances." The former symbol of peace said, causing the students to grow concerned. "But, young Ben has surprised us before." He added to give them a little hope.

Ben, already inside the structure, smirked and slammed down on the Omnitrix, transforming into Diamondhead. "Oh yeah." The Petrosapien declared.

"Remember to think out there, Ben. Don't just try to muscle it. 'Might isn't always right'!" Max reminded him.

"Wise words, indeed." Yaoyorozu said with a smile and a nod of approval.

"Unfortunately, I doubt it will sink in." Aizawa said pessimistically. (For Ben OR these students.) He mentally sighed.

"How can might not always be right?! Using your muscle is the best! It's so manly!" Kirishima declared excitedly.

"Yeah! And it's totally awesome to let loose with all you've got!" Kaminari said, just as eager.

"You mean, until you fry your brain?" Jiro teased.

"I know, but it's always fun!" The crystalline creature insisted as he formed his hand into a spiked stump.

"See!? Ben gets it!" Kirishima and Kaminari said together.

"Tch. Idiots. It doesn't matter how strong you are if you don't know what you're doing. Why do you think you both failed your final exams? Because you didn't think and make a plan. You just ran in, thinking you could beat down a pro just because your have good Quirks." Bakugo told them.

"Um... We were watching your fight, you pretty much tried the same thing until Deku talked some sense into you, Katsuki Bakugo." Uraraka reminded her boyfriend chidingly.

"I STILL HAD A PLAN!" Bakugo snapped.

"But he has a point. No matter how strong you are, brute strength isn't always going to work. You have to use your brain, too. Even All Might had to think about how he fought some opponents. Isn't that right, All Might? Like the Nomu at the USJ?" Midnight asked, to which the former symbol of peace nodded.

With that, Max pulled a lever, sending six cans flying in the air. Diamondhead spun around and fired six crystals, piercing each one.

"Whoa! So he can make projectiles! That already makes him WAY more versatile!" Midoriya said in amazement, remembering back to his theories on the Petrosapien from the first viewing. (VindicaTIOOOOOOON!) He thought triumphantly in his mind, happy his theory had been proven correct.

"Such a gorgeous and elegant projectile! True panache! And Monsieur Diamondhead's aim is quite impressive." Aoyama exclaimed.

"Especially since Ben probably only recently found out Diamondhead can do that." Asui added.

Max made target boards lower behind Diamondhead, who spun around and shot them as well. Diamondhead had restless fingers and excitedly shot cans from behind his back and a target cactus in front. He somersaulted and nailed some pull-up targets a fair distance away. He morphed his spikes back into his hand and blew on his "hot" finger.

"Wow, he's so cool! Look at those moves!" Hagakure said.

"Heck yeah! Show us your sick skills, Diamondhead!" Sato cheered.

But several of the more mature and level-headed audience members frowned at the Omnitrix-wielder's actions. "Anybody can do a somersault. It's not that impressive. And shooting from behind his back just limits his ability to line up his shot and makes it more likely he'll miss." Todoroki said, confused why they were getting so excited.

"Oh, boy. And now he's getting cocky." Present Mic groaned, already seeing the transformed boy's downfall coming.

"He's gonna mess something up. I just know it." Dark Shadow said.

"Indeed. Confidence is one thing, but he's clearly OVERCONFIDENT, especially for just shooting some targets. Overconfidence leads to complacency. And complacency leads to sloppiness. And letting your guard down." Tokoyami declared sagely.

Gwen watched him from a lounge chair, rather unimpressed. "Show-off..." She huffed, applying some sunscreen on herself. (There were several agreements.)

"Focus, Ben. Think!" Max reminded him yet again.

"Don't worry, Grandpa." Diamondhead said dismissively.

"Benjamin Tennyson! You should listen to your instructors... instructions! He is the one teaching you how to be the best version of a hero you can be! But that can only happen if you listen and allow the lesson to sink in!" Iida scolded.

"He's lucky it's his grandpa and not Mr. Aizawa. He'd be strangling him with his scarf right now." Ashido whispered.

"I don't think he COULD strangle Diamondhead." Shoji said.

"Believe me, I'd certainly try. But in the meantime, I'd suggest YOU ALL don't give me a reason to do so to you, like talking behind my back." Aizawa told them, sending shivers up all the students' spines.

"How have they not called CPS on this man? I get he's allowed to run his class how he wants, but I kind of doubt that includes literally choking out his students. I doubt their parents would be too thrilled. I'm sure Inko would be pulling Izuku out of there in a HEARTBEAT." Maverick whispered to Anemone, who shook her head and shrugged.

"He really should pay attention and focus." Koda said.

"It's just like Tokoyami said, he got cocky, now he's already thinking he's a pro. It's only a matter of time until he gets sloppy." Ojiro noted distastefully. As a martial artist, he knows to always listen to his instructor, take all of his training seriously and never settle for his current level.

Some cans then came flying at him. He bobbed out of the way and shot them behind his back, but he didn't notice a tire swinging towards him. It beaned Diamondhead in the face, knocking him back and causing him to shoot crystals everywhere, forcing Max to take cover. Gwen screamed and hid as the crystals hit her chair and sunscreen bottle.

"Ooh!" Many of the students exclaimed with a wince after watching the Petrosapien get knocked down by the tire.

"How the hell did a TIRE send a beast like Diamondhead flying? He must weigh as much as a truck!" Bakugo snapped.

"Tires are quite a bit more powerful than people give them credit for. The rubber is quite thick and very tough. They can put huge dents in cars if they're moving fast enough." Yaoyorozu explained.

"Indeed. That's why you must never underestimate a threat, no matter how insignificant they seem." Iida elaborated. [1]

But then, several of the students gasped when they saw the projectiles flying at the other two Tennysons. "Max! Gwen! Get down!" They cried out.

"Why would he shoot like that as he's getting sent flying!?" Mineta exclaimed in concern.

"He probably panicked after he got knocked down. He obviously didn't mean it." Jiro said, but she, too, looked rather concerned.

"And that's why you pay attention and stay focused. Even if it's just a training, letting your guard down could lead to a disaster that could get someone killed." All Might said in a troubled tone, unaware of the future irony of his statement.

"The kid's really starting to let all these heroics go to his head." Present Mic said.

As she starts crawling out from under a table, the leaking sunscreen lands on her head. "Urrgh!" She grunted angrily.

Diamondhead laughed relievedly as he got back up. "Oops, my bad." He apologized.

"Are you kidding me?! That's all you have to say after almost skewering them!" Uraraka said in disbelief, almost wanting to give the petrosapien a taste of her Comet Home Run.

"Seriously, you'd think he'd be a little more concerned he almost shish kabobed his own family!" Hagakure agreed.

"Well, in Ben's mind, everything is fine, so there's no need to be too upset about anything. No harm, no foul, as it were." Anemone said.

"Yeah, that's not how it works. You almost kill me, there's A LOT of foul there." Ashido said, she and several other audience members not liking that way of thinking.

---

The family was now driving away in the Rustbucket. "You rockhead, you almost turned me into Swiss cheese!" She complained to Ben, now back in his normal form.

"I said I was sorry. What else do you want?" Ben questioned, crossing his arms and looking away.

"You could at least LOOK like you're sorry." Asui said.

"Or he could try taking responsibility for almost hurting them and try to be better." Tokoyami agreed.

"Somehow, I kind of doubt he's gonna do that." Dark Shadow said.

"Come on, guys. He's just a kid. I'm sure he'll get better." Koda told them shyly.

"What we want is for you to take that thing on your wrist more seriously, Ben. It's not a toy. You've got to think when you use it." Max told him.

"Exactly. I know he's a kid, but he shouldn't have this much of a hard time getting that lesson through that thick skull of his." Aizawa said harshly.

"Hey, you know kids. Most of the time, they're gonna do what they want. Your class certainly does." Present Mic told him, earning himself an elbow from the narcoleptic teacher.

"But they learn eventually. And that's what we're here to see, remember? Give the kid a chance." Midnight told them, mostly Aizawa.

Ben didn't seem to take their words into consideration, however. "I know, but come oooon! You guys have seen me in action. I'm the baddest Ben in town! I've kicked so much alien butt, my feet hurt!" He declared cockily, putting his feet on the table.

"That sound familiar to anyone else, just more profane?" Kaminari asked the rest of the bakusquad jokingly, while rubbing a finger under his nose to "slyly" point at Bakugo, earning giggles from the rest of the group.

"I heard that, Pikachu! And at least I don't talk hot shit right after a massive screw up!" Bakugo snapped.

"Plus, I'm pretty sure he's only actually fought aliens twice so far." Sero pointed out.

"Yeah. And Gwen had to help him both of those times. First by saving him from that small robot with a shovel, then by telling him to use water to beat the Limaxes." Shoji added.

Gwen quickly pushed them off, however. "Yeah, well, one of these days, you're gonna screw around and get your own butt kicked and I hope I'm there to see it!" She declared.

"Be careful what you wish for, young Gwendolyn." Aoyama told her.

"Yeah, that's so not manly!" Kirishima added.

"Not only that, it's pretty stupid, considering if Ben loses, whoever he's fighting is either going to try to take over the world, or cause huge amounts of death and destruction. Which could easily include her." Todoroki said.

"Dream on, geek face!" Ben said, confident as ever.

The Rustbucket started sputtering and slowing down on the road. "Uh oh, that doesn't sound good." Max said, looking for a place to pull over.

---

Meanwhile, the hoverboard hunter monitored a tracker that led him to Max's target-practice structure. "This is where the Omnitrix was last activated." "Hoverboard" informed his "partners".

"Wait, they can somehow TRACK the Omegatrix!?" Kaminari asked in concern, an emotion shared by the rest of the audience, before they heard him mispronounce the device's name again.

"Om. Ni. Trix. It's not that hard, dude." Sato told him.

"How'd you even come UP with that?!" Jiro asked. [2]

Anemone giggled and rolled here eyes, but answered. "Yes, but only when it's active. Once Ben changes back, they're in the dark until he changes again." The Apophis girl told them.

"So, they should be fine as long as Ben doesn't transform for no reason, right?" Hagakure asked.

But then, the entire audience froze when they heard and processed her question. "Oh, no..." They all said at once, knowing Ben was almost GUARANTEED to use the watch for something ridiculous.

The two other hunters watched him from a cliff. SixSix spoke to Kraab in an unintelligible alien language, then flew over to the structure with his jetpack.

"You can say that again. A rock pile like this is better off space dust!" Kraab agreed.

"Um... What did he say?" Ashido asked.

"No clue. Countless universal observers have tried to figure out how to translate Sixsix's language, but to no success." Anemone said.

"That being said, based on Kraab's response, I'm guessing he said something along the lines of 'this planet ain't shit'." Maverick added.

The students then looked at the bounty hunters in offense. "Hey! Earth is pretty great, as far as we're concerned!" Hagakure snapped, the rest of the students shouting in agreement.

"Hoverboard" continued tracking inside the structure, until his tracker pointed to a can impaled with crystal. Just as he reached for it, SixSix snatched it with an extendible grabbing appendage from his armor. He tried inspecting it first, but "Hoverboard" grabbed the appendage and tugged it clean off. The angered SixSix, who extended six more armed appendages, as well as a small, fleshy arm from his shoulders, while "Hoverboard" put his hand on his gun.

SixSix spoke in his alien language once again. "Whoa! Big talk from a 'gearhead'!" Kraab declared in amusement.

"Hoverboard" then got up in SixSix's face. "Get in my way again, and I'll teach you how to say 'dismantled'." The masked mercenary threatened.

SixSix backed down, sheathing his appendages, fold out wrist rockets and extra arm. He then cursed him in his alien language, before flying away.

The group sat in silence during the tense moment of the bounty hunters having a standoff. But once Sixsix stood down and flew off, they let out a breath they didn't realize they'd been holding. "Oh, man. I got chills from that." Mineta said, shivering.

"Looks like you were right, Midoriya. So far, they're fighting each other more than Ben." Sato said to the green-haired boy.

"Yeah. When money's on the line, people are willing to do anything to get it." Uraraka said, knowing all her determination to be a hero coming from her desire to earn money and improve her family's living situation.

"But like Mr. Aizawa said, Ben might be able to use that to his advantage and trick them into fighting each other." Midoriya pointed out.

"Only if the idiot thinks for once when he's fighting." Bakugo huffed.

"Hoverboard" let go of his gun and walked away. Kraab leapt up and spun his four legs very fast, acting like a drill and burrowing into the ground.

Many in the class were shocked at Kraab's ability to use his legs like a drill. "Okay, that was pretty cool, I'm not gonna lie." Kirishima admitted.

"Remember, Kirishima, he's a villain. And for all we know, he might be able to use that as an attack as well." Iida said, concerned for the Tennysons.

"Hoverboard's" foot then tripped a cord and targets rose from the ground. He spun around and shot the structure with his gun, destroying it in a giant explosion, before he rode away.

"Whoa! That gun is pretty crazy, ribbit!" Asui said in shock.

"Oh, come on! That's not fair! He's already strong enough to smash right through that giant robot, that should be enough! A gun like that is just overkill! You don't get to have both of those!" Kaminari complained.

"Unfortunately, young Kaminari, this isn't a game where players need to be limited or balanced. Villains and mercenaries like these can have all the fire power they want. And we heroes have to grin and bear it and figure out a way around it. Let's hope Young Ben can do so." All Might said in frustration.

---

Max managed to park the Rustbucket in a ghost town. "Huh, looks like nobody's home." Ben noticed.

"Not for a while. My IntelliMap program says this is Slaterville. Incorporated in 1857 after the discovery of silver. Went bust in the late '50s when the mine ran out." Gwen explained.

"Why does everything out of your mouth sound like a book report?" Ben asked boredly, to which Gwen scowled at him.

"There's nothing wrong with being well informed, Benjamin. In fact, it's quite beneficial! You should try it!" Yaoyorozu huffed at the boy on-screen.

"It's okay, Yaomomo. We all know it's good to be smart. And that's one of the reasons YOU'RE so great." Jiro said, cuddling into her girlfriend in an attempt to calm her down.

"Still, she has a point. The kid acts like learning ANYTHING is gonna kill him." Midnight said with a roll of her eyes.

"It was pretty common back then. If it wasn't something they cared about or WANTED to learn, boys didn't care AT ALL. And, in general, America just tends to prioritize individualism and free spirits over education, letting their kids do what they want instead of following strict rules and an insane emphasis on education." Maverick explained.

"But, at least that means that there's no civilians around that could get hurt." Aoyama said, trying to give any good news he could.

"Aha!" Max declared as he took his head out of the RV's hood. "I think I found the problem." He said, holding up a dripping tube with a crystal shard running through it. "Leaky fuel line." He told the kids.

Ben smiled sheepishly at this. "Uh...'lucky shot'?" He said innocently.

"I'd say that's pretty UNlucky." Ashido said.

"In hindsight, they probably should've parked further away from the training site so the RV wouldn't get damaged in the event of a misfire." Iida said.

"I should be able to patch it up." Max assured them.

"Sorry, Grandpa. Let me help!" Ben offered, turning the Omnitrix dial. "Maybe Four Arms. No, wait, Upgrade!" He tried to choose an alien.

"-I think you've done enough, Ben. I'll handle this." Max told the boy.

Ben was stunned at this, but complied. "Okay... Guess I'll just check this place out!" He said, walking away.

"Wow. Ben looked like that hurt him a little." Sero said.

"Because Max isn't letting him be the big hero and letting him solve the problem." Shoji told him.

"What an idiot. I'd have Upgrade supe up that piece of shit RV any chance I got!" Bakugo scoffed.

"He's trying to teach Ben responsibility. Because he messed up and damaged the RV, he doesn't get to help fix it. And, he's trying to teach him not to rely on the Omnitrix for everything. A careful and efficient job well done is better than a simple quick fix any day." Aizawa explained.

"Should we tell them to call it the Rustbucket?" Anemone whispered to Maverick.

"Eh. It's fine. 'The RV' is shorter than 'The Rustbucket' anyway, even if it is only by one syllable." Maverick said.

Max and Gwen watched Ben head into town with a big smile on his face. The senior then looked to his granddaughter. "Maybe you should, um..." He began, but stopped as he tried to think of a sensitive way of saying what he wanted to.

"-Make sure he doesn't somehow blow everything up?" Gwen asked, to which Max nodded. "I'm on it." She said with a wink, before following after her cousin.

"Wow, that's crazy. It almost feels like they don't trust him at all." Koda said, feeling a little bad for the boy.

"It makes sense. He is pretty much the reason they're stuck there right now. Plus, it's not like Ben hasn't given them any reasons to doubt him, ribbit. He's used the watch to goof around any chance he gets, really. If any of us were this irresponsible with our Quirks, we'd probably be expelled. Maybe even put in jail for illegal Quirk use, ribbit, ribbit." Asui said.

"Yeah, but whenever something serious is going down, he's always done his best to stop the villains and save everyone he can- even the villains like Jonah! He's still got a lot of growing up to do, but I'm sure get better. That's why we're here, after all, to watch him make mistakes and grow from them to become a better hero, so we can be better heroes, too." Midoriya said, putting faith in the boy.

Many smiled at his words and even those who have been speaking rather harshly of Ben taking a moment to consider his words. "Well said, Midoriya. I suppose some of us have been rather hard on Ben. He is still a child, after all. He has much more room to grow than we do." Iida admitted.

---

Ben strolled into an empty warehouse. "Oh, talk about old school. Look at all this junk!" The boy noted as he picked up an old wrench.

"BEN? BEEEN?" Gwen called from outside.

Ben peered outside and saw Gwen walk past the warehouse. He then got a devilish smile and started turning on the Omnitrix.

"Ben, noooo!" Hagakure tried to chide the boy.

"Seriously! Like, HALF of your problems would be solved if you two stopped messing with each other!" Sato complained.

"Boys vs. Girls. A battle as old and unending as time itself." Kaminari declared, trying to seem sagely or poetic.

"To be fair, she's messed with him even when he hasn't done anything to her. Turnabout IS fair play." Present Mic said.

"Not if it gets a band of violent mercenaries to come after you." Midnight countered.

"But BEN doesn't know that, just us." Mineta pointed out.

A flash of green shot out of the tall warehouse entrance, which Gwen spotted and frowned.

The sound of smacks flooded the room as everyone, even the hosts, facepalmed. "Does this boy EVER stop and think for a minute?" Tokoyami groaned.

"Pretty sure we've already seen the answer to this and it's 'not once EVER'." Dark Shadow said.

"But now, the Omnitrix is active, which means those bounty hunters can find him." Ojiro said in concern.

---

A tracker suddenly got a bead on a location. It was on SixSix's hand. He studied it before flying away in that direction.

"Well, whoever he picked, I hope it was a good one." Uraraka said worriedly.

"He's likely trying to scare Gwen, so the obvious choices would be Grey Matter for being something small, tiny and potentially slimy crawling all over her, or Ghostfreak for the obvious reason of being a ghost. If it's the latter, they might have a chance, depending on how much Ben knows about Ghostfreak's powers and how to use them in combat. If it's the former... I really don't like his chances." Todoroki analyzed, not noticing the hosts trying to hide their giant smirks.

---

Gwen stood at the entrance of the warehouse. The inside was noticeably darker. "CALLING ALL DWEEBS!" She called out. No response.

She worryingly walked in, passing by a certain area, a creepy shadow following after her. As it reached her, it passed through her, causing her to shiver. At which point, Ghostfreak appeared in front of her. "What's the matter, Gwen? You look like you've seen a Ghost - Freak!" The ectonurite cackled.

While a few rolled their eyes at Ben's attempt to scare his cousin, many were relieved because of Todoroki's previous theory. "Alright! It was Ghostfreak! That means Ben can win, right?" Kirishima said.

"Yeah! Unless these guys can hit ghosts, they're done for!" Ashido cheered.

"Don't get too excited yet, students. These are presumably highly skilled and seasoned mercenaries from space. It's entirely possible other species have learned of and know how to deal with Ectonurites like Ghostfreak. Never assume the battle is one because one side has a powerful Quirk." All Might told them.

"Get over yourself, doofus. You don't scare me." Gwen scoffed.

Suddenly, the ground started to tremble. Something underneath started heading straight for the two.

Ghostfreak pulled Gwen away before it hit. Kraab emerged from the ground and walked menacingly towards them. Gwen gasped at this. "But he does!" She said as the bounty hunter advanced on them.

"Well, at least it's just him." Sero said.

"Yeah. Ben definitely has a better chance one-on-one." Uraraka agreed hopefully.

"Maybe. But crab cakes already surprised us with his drill legs. What do you want to bet he's got more surprises?" Bakugo said, instilling the other students with a sense of dread.

"No problem, I'll handle this guy." Ghostfreak said confidently as he flew up to Kraab. "Oh, man... You put the 'ug' in 'ugly'!" The ethereal alien taunted.

"Hand over the Omnitrix and I promise you won't suffer- much." Kraab demanded, pinching his metal claw.

"Dream on, 'claw-boy'." Ghostfreak scoffed, before moving his eye along the cracks in his body so he could talk to Gwen behind him. "What's he talking about?" He whispered.

Several members shivered at Ghostfreak moving his singular eye along his body. "Okay, that's just creepy." Hagakure said with a shiver.

"But seriously? I know this is the first time he's heard the watch's name, but why else would aliens be after him?" Aizawa questioned.

"Well, it does still make sense. If you don't know what someone is talking about, even if you have an idea, you don't want to guess and say the wrong thing." Midnight reasoned.

"Duh? Why else would some alien track you down? It wants the watch, Einstein!" Gwen snapped.

The students quietly chuckled while the teachers besides Aizawa laughed at Gwen saying the same thing as their colleague. "So, Eraser, how's it feel to have the same thought process as a ten-year-old girl?" Present Mic said with a smirk.

"She's a kid with a good head on her shoulders. So I'm glad she came to the same conclusion I did." Aizawa said, trying not to react to his friend's jabs.

"You don't have to get snotty about it, Ms. Know-It-All." The spacial specter huffed, bringing his eye back around to talk to Kraab. "Sorry 'crabby', the watch and I are kind of- attached." Ghostfreak informed him.

"Not for long." The crab-like alien declared with another pinch of his claw.

Ghostfreak suddenly flew towards him in a much more hostile manner. "You have no idea who you're messing with." He warned, sounding far more threatening than normal.

This earned another shiver from the students while even the teachers became a bit unnerved. "Does anyone else think that was a bit darker than usual for Ben?" Midoriya asked, quite shaken up.

"Maybe he's trying to lean into the fearsome ghost aesthetic?" Yaoyorozu suggested, just as disconcerted.

"I doubt it. Even when Ben's trying to scare his enemies, he's never been this sinister about it. I think Ghostfreak is affecting him somehow." Todoroki said, even the normal stoic dual-Quirk user somewhat unnerved.

"I was just about to say the same thing." Kraab challenged.

"Oh, yeah? Do you know this one? 'Now you see me, now you don't!" Ghostfreak declared, disappearing from sight, leaving only Gwen there for Kraab to see, who laughed nervously and ran away.

"Don't just leave her there, you idiot!" Jiro exclaimed, worried about the Tennyson girl.

"Good thing he's only interested in the Omnitrix." Hagakure said.

"Yes, but much like the Limax assuming Max's form, he could use Ben's attachment to his family against him, using her as leverage to make Ghostfreak surrender." Iida pointed out.

Kraab stepped back and carefully looked around him. Ghostfreak tried to sneak up behind him, but Kraab's head spun around. "You're as arrogant as you are dim-witted!" The crustacean alien laughed, using thermographic vision, allowing him to detect Ghostfreak.

"What?! He can see him, even when he's invisible!? No fair!" Ashido exclaimed in disbelief.

"Thermal vision, of course. All living creatures give off at least SOME level of heat, which will reveal their location, unless they have on some form of heat insulating suits. But Ghostfreak doesn't have that and, despite being ghost-LIKE, he is still a living creature, so he must have some form of biological functions, including body heat." Midnight explained.

"And it would work on you, too, Hagakure. And you wouldn't be able to blind him with your light refraction ability. Bright lights don't work on thermal vision." Anemone helpfully added, causing the invisible girl to slump in defeat.

"It goes to show, no matter how good a power may seem, there's always SOME way to counter it. So, you have to be able to be more than a one-trick pony in the event someone can figure out a weakness to your power." Aizawa added.

Kraab faced him and fired an orange liquid from his large claw. It landed on Ghostfreak, uncloaking him. "Blech! What happened?!" The ectonurite demanded.

"Your protoplasm is now solidified, making it easier to do THIS!" Kraab declared as he punched Ghostfreak into a wall.

This caused many jaws to drop. "No way! He figured out a way to hit a ghost!" Kaminari said, utterly dumbfounded.

"Mon dieu. We greatly underestimated this mercenary! Despite his appearance, he is more than a simple brute." Aoyama said, starting to fear the Piscciss Premann, but now was even more concerned than before.

"So, not only could he see Ghostfreak when he was invisible, so now he can't even be invisible or intangible. And I'm guessing Ben hasn't figured out the telekinesis yet, so he can pretty much only fly now. So he's at a pretty big disadvantage." Asui said worriedly.

"Come on, Young Ben. You can do this. Just use your head and THINK! There's a way you can still win this." All Might urged the boy.

As he recovered, Kraab advanced and tried to puncture him with his legs. Ghostfreak dodged and tried to tackle Kraab, but he batted him away with his claw, landing on the other side of the warehouse.

Gwen ran over to help him up. "Oh, man. Who is this guy?" Ghostfreak asked his cousin.

"Remember when I said I wanted to be there when you finally got your butt kicked? I take it waaaay back!" She said.

"Yeah, maybe wanting the only guy who can protect you from evil aliens to lose wasn't a good idea." Sero said sarcastically.

Kraab then caught up to them. "You're the super guy, do something!" She told him.

Ghostfreak then flew up to Kraab. "You better keep your claws to yourself-" The ethereal alien warned, moving fluidly from side to side, making his movements somewhat difficult to track.

However, Kraab opened his big claw and shot an electric blast. "AAGH!" Ghostfreak cried out as he went flying back.

"Oh, come on! Are you even trying!? Throw a punch or something, dumbass!" Bakugo snapped.

"I know. He at least went for a tackle first, but now it's like he's just trying to spook Kraab into backing off. And something tells me he doesn't spook easy." Uraraka agreed.

"That would be the problem with having ten different aliens with powers to choose from. That's ten different powers he has to learn to use and the different ways TO use those powers. Plus, he seems to favor some over others, like Heatblast and Diamondhead, so he's probably neglecting to find out everything each of these aliens is really capable of." Midoriya noted.

Gwen watches as Kraab walked up to him and stood tall on a platform as the ectonurite struggled to get up.

"Hardly worth the hunt..." Kraab said, preparing to finish his target. (A shout of "NO!" rang out from every member of the audience.)

Gwen suddenly spotted a switch box behind the two, connected to the platform, which gave her an idea. "BEN, GIVE HIM A LIFT!" She called out to her cousin.

"Ooh, using what's around you to your advantage. Pretty clever, little lady!" Present Mic praised.

"Yeah! They make a pretty good team." Ashido said with a smile.

"Makes you wonder what would happen if SHE got the Omnitrix instead of Ben. She might be even better with it than he is!" Mineta said, before gaining a lewd expression. "Not to mention, I'd like to see what the female versions of those aliens look like." He whispered to himself with a drooling grin.

"She'd at least be more responsible with it, I'm sure." Aizawa said, again missing the two smirking hosts. [3]

Ghostfreak spun around, noticing the switch box, and pulled the lever. Kraab's platform suddenly shot up towards the ceiling, squishing him against it.

"D-do you think that killed him?" Asui asked, a little disturbed.

"Somehow, I doubt it. These aliens all seem to have superhuman durability and Kraab is further enhanced by cybernetics. I'm sure it hurt, but I doubt it would kill." Yaoyorozu said.

"I know we agreed that Ben wouldn't be in the wrong if he killed these villains in life or death situations such as these, but it still feels... strange that such a thing could be an acceptable outcome." Iida said, conflicted.

"It's never easy, but sometimes, the situation is just too dire. There may come a time when you're facing a villain and the only way out is if it's you or them. Don't let it be you." Midnight told him.

Gwen then ran over to Ghostfreak as he reverted back into Ben. "Ben, you okay?" She asked in concern.

"Oh, man... That was even weirder than when I normally go Ghostfreak." The boy said, slightly disturbed.

"So, transforming into Ghostfreak is a strange sensation for him? That does not bode well." Tokoyami said, now having strange, mixed feelings about his current favorite alien.

"Oh, please, don't let something be wrong with Ghostfreak! Why does it have to be my favorite?!" Dark Shadow whined.

"Maybe it had something to do with that weird stuff he was sprayed with?" Kaminari suggested.

"I hope that's all it is." Koda said in concerned, not wanting to see what problems could come from the Ectonurite.

"Come on. Let's get out of here before 'crab cake' wakes up." Gwen told him, the kids running out of the warehouse as Kraab's still-crushed body twitched.

Unbeknownst to them, the bounty hunter with the hoverboard was inside, watching them.

"Oh, great. The tough guy." Shoji groaned.

"Why didn't he help his friend? That's super unmanly!" Kirishima snapped.

"We already established the fact that they aren't working together and it's every man for himself. As far as he's concerned, he's looking at one less competitor." Ojiro said.

"Still, it's weird he didn't try to attack Ben now that the watch isn't working?" Sato pondered.

"Maybe he's studying and evaluating him, seeing everything he can do before he attacks." Uraraka theorized, having also learned to observe her opponent and take advantage of any weaknesses or openings she finds when learning martial arts from Gunhead.

"We'll have to wait and see." Iida said.

---

They ran back to Max at the Rustbucket. "What happened?" Max asked in concern.

"You know, the usual. Some jumbo-sized crustacean burst out of the ground and attacked Ben. It said it wanted the watch, only it kept calling it the 'Omnitrix'..." Gwen informed him.

Ben, however, was still smiling, despite the beating he just took. "Just let me go Four Arms and I'll turn him into a seafood special!" He declared confidently.

"Right, because that worked out for you so great last time." Jiro said sarcastically.

"To be fair, Four Arms IS a much better fit for direct combat than Ghostfreak. Still, if he had countermeasures for Ectonurites, it's possible he has one for every alien within the Omnitrix." Yaoyorozu noted.

"No time. Repairs are done. We're out of here." Max told the kids.

"But Grandpa-!" Ben tried to argue.

"No arguing." The elder insisted, ushering them into the vehicle. And with that, the Rustbucket pulled out and headed back on the road.

"Are you kidding me!? Don't run like little bitches! Wait for the watch to recharge and rip that tin can to shreds!" Bakugo snapped.

"But remember, even if he is incapacitated, he's not the only threat they have to worry about. There's still two other mercenaries after the Omnitrix. Who CAN still attack them at any moment." Iida reasoned.

"Still, it seems wrong to run and leave a villain on the loose." Asui said.

"Maybe, but like we said before, they're only after the Omnitrix, meaning they won't have any reason to target civilians, especially since any random citizens they find wouldn't have any connection to Ben. Therefore, they wouldn't think to go after any civilians. And that's assuming they find any, since the area's been abandoned." Todoroki explained.

---

As the RV traveled down the road, Gwen looked out the window for their pursuer. "No sign of 'crab guy' yet!" She informed her family.

"Well, he better not show up if he knows what's good for him-!" Ben declared confident as ever.

"I don't know, Ben. That really didn't go well for you last time." Midoriya said, despite knowing the boy couldn't hear him.

"Wait, they went to war with the Pyronites, right? Maybe turning into Heatblast would give him PTSD and make him not want to fight!" Kaminari suggested.

"That's... kind of messed up, Kaminari." Ashido said.

"Besides, with that in mind, he probably MADE SURE he has weapons specifically to beat Pyronites." Sero added.

Suddenly, they felt a thud of something landing on the roof. And just as suddenly, a circular sawblade started cutting open the ceiling. "I think we just picked up a hitchhiker!" Gwen said in concern.

SixSix then tore open the ceiling and peered inside, causing Ben and Gwen to scream. "Who's that?!" Gwen cried out.

"Beats me!" Ben exclaimed.

"Sacrebleu! The device STILL hasn't recharged!?" Aoyama exclaimed worriedly.

"It usually takes about five minutes." Anemone said.

"Crazy how long five minutes seems when you're in life threatening danger!" Jiro complained.

"It really is, honestly. This might surprise you that the whole USJ incident only took an hour." Midnight told them.

SixSix started reaching for Ben, but Max slammed the brakes, causing SixSix to fall off in front of the RV. Max then confidently hit the gas, running over the bounty hunter.

Many of the crew were shocked at the elder's actions. "Oh, jeez, Max! I know it's life or death, but that's kind of insane!" Kirishima said in shock.

"When you're family is in danger, you'd do whatever it takes to save them." Asui told him, knowing she might do the same if it meant saving her siblings.

Bakugo, however, was laughing. "Hell yeah, old man! Turn that Boba Fett wannabe into Roadkill!" He declared, cackling like a madman.

"That's definitely... one way to ensure he stays down." Midoriya said, still uncomfortable with the idea of lethal force. [4]

But his smile soon faded as the RV came to a stop right after. He got out and saw the tires were all deflated, having been covered with spikes. To make matters worse, SixSix started getting up.

"Oh, man. He's probably gonna be SUPER mad now." Koda said in concern.

"It didn't even slow him down! These guys are beasts!" Sato exclaimed.

"Man, I'm starting to get really worried about what would happen if aliens come to the planet to try and take it over instead of just wanting the watch." Hagakure said.

"I don't think their world would stand a chance. Even ours would probably have some serious issues." Shoji agreed in a troubled tone.

Quickly searching for some cover, Max pointed to a mine entrance. "In there!" He told his grandchildren and the trio run in.

Before SixSix could chase them, tremors interrupted him. Their source, of course, being Kraab, as he erupted from the ground. "Remember me?!" The Piscciss Premann demanded as he slammed down on SixSix.

"Well, that answers whether he's alive or not!" Mineta exclaimed fearfully.

"But now they can use that distraction to escape. It wasn't smart on his part, but they're lucky that villain decided only the one who brings the Omnitrix gets paid. Them fighting between each other is giving the Tennysons a SERIOUS break right now." All Might said in relief.

"And, if they're REALLY lucky, one of them might put the other out of commission, or both." Present Mic added.

---

Inside the abandoned mine, the Tennysons steered a corner and stopped to catch their breath. Ben slowly peered around the corner, allowing him to see the outside. No one was at the entrance. "Whew, the coast is clear!" He declared.

However, Kraab then burst out of the ground in front of them. "Don't you get tired of being wrong all the time?!" Gwen snapped at her cousin.

"Well, to be fair, he wasn't wrong AT THAT TIME." Iida admitted.

"I'm more annoyed by the fact she takes the time to jab at him rather than taking the time to run." Aizawa said with a roll of his eyes.

"The Omnitrix! Give it to me!" Kraab demanded.

Max threw a nearby piece of metal at Kraab, but the alien crustacean crushed it instantly with his claw, causing the Tennysons run away.

Ben began tapping the Omnitrix to get it to work. "Come on, do something. Anything!" He pleaded with the watch as they avoided Kraab bashing into a wall.

"Ugh! Why is five minutes taking so long! Work, Onitrix! Work!" Kaminari pleaded. [5]

Everyone rolled their eyes at Kaminari mucking up the watch's name again, but nodded. "He has a point, all of this feels really long to not even have been five minutes." Uraraka admitted.

"Surely it can't be much longer. The time will be up soon. It HAS to..." Yaoyorozu said, though sounded more like she was trying to convince herself.

The tunnel they ran through emptied out into an open chasm, trapping them on one side. Gwen gasped at this. "Now what?" She asked in fear.

Max looked around and spots a cable car. "We 'take a ride'." The grandfather declared.

Ben and Gwen jumped into the cart while Max started it by pulling a lever. Kraab had nearly caught up to them, but Max managed to get the car going and leapt across the gap to catch it himself.

"Whoa! That was a huge jump to make without a Quirk! Way to go, Max!" Asui said, of course enjoying seeing good jumping ability as someone with a frog Quirk.

"Yeah. That dad bod really doesn't do him justice. He's in great shape for his age." Sato agreed.

"Indeed. He must still do quite intense exercise to keep himself so fit." All Might added.

"Wonder if there's a reason for that?" Present Mic said a little quieter, All Might and Midnight nodding in agreement.

Aizawa, however, noticed something different. "But now they're hanging above a giant chasm by a simple cable. And that claw and shear through robots." He said, giving the audience a sense of dread.

"What a pathetic excuse for prey!" Kraab declared, preparing to cut the cable with his claw, but suddenly, he was shot backward by SixSix.

The students froze with fear when they saw Kraab about to sever the cable, but sighed in relief when Sixsix blasted him. "That was way too close." Mineta sighed in relief.

"Good thing Hentai Face was stupid and decided only one of them would get the reward. They've done more damage to each other than Ben has." Bakugo said.

"That might have actually been the plan." Midoriya theorized.

"What do you mean, Deku?" Uraraka asked.

"That villain knows how powerful the Omnitrix is, so he wouldn't want to risk one of the bounty hunters taking it for themselves, so maybe he planned for them to fight and exhaust each other, so they if they managed to take Ben down and take it, they'd be weakened from fighting him and each other, so he could take them out easily with some robots." The greenette explained.

"That... makes quite a bit of sense, actually. Thoroughly deplorable, but what else would you expect from such a villain?" Iida said.

SixSix flew after the car, shooting at it and knocking the Tennysons around. Gwen peered above the car and saw SixSix gaining on them. "We got company, closing in fast!" Gwen alerted her family.

"We need a plan." Max told them.

Finally, the Omnitrix became active again. "Yes! Who needs a plan, when you have the watch? I'll take care of this!" Ben declared, slamming it down.

The audience groaned at seeing Ben recklessly selecting an alien with little, if any thought, even stating he's going in without a plan. "YOU need a plan, clearly! Or did you already forget you got you butt kicked as Ghostfreak?!" Jiro reprimanded.

"Seriously, I know you already explained he doesn't like anything related to academics, but does he have a problem just thinking IN GENERAL!?" Ojiro asked incredulously.

"Again, he's a child. He already said it in the beginning: 'Might isn't always right, but it's ALWAYS fun.'" Maverick reminded him.

"That's something he HAS to grow out of. No matter how strong you are, it means nothing if someone can figure out how to get around that strength, or figure out your weakness, like solidifying Ghostfreak's protoplasm, or fire extinguishers on Heatblast." Midnight said.

"No, Ben. That's just what it wants!" Max tried to warn his grandson, but it was too late.

Ben turned into Diamondhead and leapt out of the car, grappling SixSix and causing them to plummet down the chasm.

"W-well, at least it's Diamondhead. He's just about indestructible." Koda said hopefully.

"That WE know of. He might have a specific weakness they can figure out." Aizawa pointed out.

"These guys in particular won't wind up exploiting it, but he is vulnerable to sonic attacks." Anemone told them.

"Oh. So I could beat Diamondhead. Awesome!" Present Mic declared confidently.

"Ben!" Max called down to the Petrosapien. At that moment, the two flew back up and into the wall on the other side of the chasm. The cable car continued through a tunnel. "Max Ben, come on!" Max pleaded with his grandson.

"I'll catch up. First, I've got to put some dents in this walking soda machine!" Diamondhead declared as he got back up.

Diamondhead prepared to attack, but Kraab grabbed him from behind and threw him into a wall.

While they walk toward him, Diamondhead leapt at the two bounty hunters. With his right arm as a spike, he slashed at them, Kraab dodging it, but it connected with Sixsix. He then gut punched the the multi-armed alien with his left hand, blocking a swing from Kraab's claw with his right, then turning and punching him in the face with his left hand.

"Alright, Diamondhead! Putting in work! Show them they messed with the wrong alien!" Sato cheered.

"But he separated them! Now they're on two different sides from him, so he has to watch his front and his back! Gunhead told me you should always try to keep your enemy in front of you." Uraraka said in concern.

But then, Sixsix rushed in and blasted him in the stomach with a blaster, knocking the Petrosapien back into Kraab, who also gut checked him with his claw. This then allowed Sixsix to rush in again and strike him in the back, at which point Kraab grabbed him around the midsection, lifting him and slamming him down into the floor, before flinging him back into a wall.

"No! Ben!" Ashido exclaimed in horror.

"They ganged up on him! So unmanly!" Kirishima snapped.

"Well, They are villains, after all. They aren't afraid to use underhanded tactics." Iida said in a distasteful tone.

"Even if it was one-on-one, both of them are more skilled and more maneuverable than Diamondhead. Ben jumped into a battle he had little to no chance of winning, now he's finally paying for that carelessness." Aizawa chastised.

SixSix started walking to him, but Kraab held him back. "Back off! That reward's mine." The cyborg crustacean snapped.

SixSix then snapped back in his alien language. "Well, you don't have to get personal-!" The Piscciss Premann complained.

"What do you think he said to him?" Shoji said.

"Based on the context, I'd guess either something about his family, or the fact he's mostly a cyborg." Todoroki theorized.

"Either way, that's pretty messed up." Sero said distastefully.

Suddenly, a metal ball fell to the ground at their feet and released a gas that knocked the two of them out. A few feet away from them was "Hoverboard", who fired the grenade. He then flew over to Diamondhead, picking him up by his back spike and carrying him out of the tunnel.

"Whoa! It's hoverboard guy!" Mineta exclaimed.

"To be honest, I had almost forgotten about him!" Aoyama said in surprise.

"But at least he knocked both of them out. Do you think he's actually saving Diamondhead?" Kaminari asked hopefully.

"I doubt it. He's probably capturing him for himself finally." Asui guessed.

"And now, there's no one or thing conveniently around to save him!" Midoriya said worriedly.

---

Once they came out of the tunnel and back into Slaterville, he threw Diamondhead to the ground. "Billions of beings on this planet and the Omnitrix winds up on the wrist of a foolhardy youth." The bounty hunter grumbled.

"Trust me, you're not the only one who feels that way." Aizawa sighed.

"BUT! We agreed Young Ben is proving himself to be a decent hero, if he can simply learn to use strategy over strength." All Might said.

"Well, like I told your buddies, this thing doesn't come off. I've tried." Diamondhead told him.

"Of COURSE it doesn't. Its power utilizes alien DNA, which binds to the host's own genetic structure. It cannot simply be removed like - taking off a hat..." "Hoverboard" explained.

As he spoke, Diamondhead sneakily readied a blade and rushed to attack him. Hoverboard, with his back turned, expertly dodged and counterattacked with an uppercut that sent Diamondhead flying.

"Oh, come on, Diamondhead! Sneak attacks aren't manly at all! And you're a hero!" Kirishima complained yet again.

"I know you don't like it, Kirishima, but catching you're opponent when they're off-guard is a solid strategy. The first strategy we've seen Ben use this entire viewing. Diamondhead's outmatched here, he needs every advantage he can get." Ojiro defended the Petrosapien's actions.

But then they saw the uppercut. "Ooh! But even then, it wasn't enough of an advantage. This bounty hunter seems more skilled than the others." Yaoyorozu said in concern.

"But, does anyone else feel different about this guy?" Dark Shadow asked.

"Indeed. He's making no effort to capture or attack Diamondhead, unless directly attacked first. And he's actively giving him more information about the Omnitrix." Tokoyami agreed with his other half.

"Bastard must like the sound of his own voice." Bakugo scoffed.

"No... It feels like more than that." Midoriya said, feeling more deeply invested.

"Your choice of warriors is based SOLELY on brute strength, without regard for any strategy. Do you ever pause to consider your actions at all?" The bounty hunter lectured.

"Hey! I kick more than my share of alien butt!" Diamondhead snapped.

"-Such as your recent success in the mine shaft with the bounty hunters." "Hoverboard" pointed out.

"Oof. That's gotta sting." Ashido said, knowing that had to be quite a hit to Ben's ego.

"One of the best ways to get someone to see their flaws is to point out their recently failures or shortcomings. Once they see their current way of doing things isn't working, they're more likely to reflect on the error of their ways and be more willing to course correct." Midnight explained.

"It was two against one!" The Petrosapien insisted, rushing in with both arms as spikes.

"Good heroes don't make excuses, young listener. They work to better themselves, so they don't make that mistake again." Present Mic declared.

"Besides, Ghostfreak was one-on-one." Jiro added, referring to the fight back in the warehouse.

"But, he won that one!" Kaminari countered, failing to see the big picture as he often did.

"Through sheer luck, because Kraab happened to step on hydraulic platform and Ghostfreak happened to be near the lever." Todoroki told him.

However, the bounty hunter easily stepped to the side while pushing down Ben's right arm attempting to stab him with his left arm, which he then used to backhand him, knocking him back a few steps. "You were moments away from losing your life," He told the boy, using his left arm again to deflect Diamondhead's left arm stab "- and the Omnitrix." He added, raising his left arm again and deflecting the Petrosapien's right arm stab, pushing his left arm aside when he attempted another stab, finally shoving his face to knock him back.

"Victory should've been swift and effortless." He continued to lecture, deflecting YET ANOTHER simple left hand stab with his right hand, uppercutting Diamondhead with his left hand, knocking him back. He came in for another right hand stab, but a one-inch punch from the bounty hunter's left hand sent him to the ground. "The Omnitrix is not some toy for your amusement. It's the most powerful weapon in the galaxy. The key to an epic battle between good and evil." The masked mercenary told him.

The group was shocked just how effortlessly this mercenary was holding back Diamondhead's assault. "Whoa. It's like he's toying with him." Sato said in shock.

"Not only that, he's actively taking the time to lecture him. It's certainly not a speech he wants to hear, but one he NEEDS to hear." Iida agreed, quite surprised himself.

"And hopefully, he's FINALLY putting into perspective just how important that watch is and he shouldn't be messing around with it." Aizawa said.

"To be fair, sir, even WE didn't know it was as important as this guy is making it sound." Sero admitted.

"Then whose side are you on?" Diamondhead asked.

"...You're still alive, aren't you?" The bounty hunter said simply.

"You're a good guy?!" The crystalline creature questioned in disbelief.

"WHAT?!" The entire audience shouted, even the teachers.

"So, all this time, this guy's been a hero!?" Uraraka said in disbelief.

"I guess that makes sense, since he saved Diamondhead from the bounty hunters." Asui admitted.

"But then, why is he working for the evil alien!?" Mineta questioned.

"My mission is to retrieve the Omnitrix at all costs. Since it is attached to you, I will bring you back for its removal." "Hoverboard" told him.

"Ah, a double agent, I see. That's actually quite clever." All Might said.

"All Might, how can you say such a thing!? Such actions are disgraceful! Betraying someone's trust is already bad enough, but performing acts of villainy, even if it's ultimately for a good cause, is unacceptable! No hero should ever stoop so low!" Iida declared harshly.

"It's morally compromising work, but like you said yourself, Iida, it's ultimately for the greater good. It put him in a position to get the Omnitrix and ensure that the monster that wants it doesn't get it. And now, Ben can go back to having a normal life if it's removed. And he won't constantly be using a dangerous superweapon as a toy. It's beneficial for everyone at the end of the day." Aizawa told the class president.

"But, if Ben didn't have it, no one would've been able to stop Animo! Or Jonah! OR the Limaxes!" Ashido argued. "Plus, I don't know how I feel about him taking Ben to remove it." She said in concern.

"He'll probably bring him back after it's removed... most likely." Sato assured her, although he sounded quite uncertain himself.

"I'm more concerned about HOW he'll remove it." Todoroki said.

"Oh, no. I'm not going anywhere." The Petrosapien refused.

"It's not your choice." The bounty hunter told him.

"It is now...!" Diamondhead declared, before tackling him, causing him to drop his folded-up hoverboard.

"Alright, Diamondhead! Finally landed an attack!" Kirishima cheered.

"Tackles are a little tricky to avoid. But that doesn't mean he's won yet. Especially since he didn't get his arms pinned, so he can fight back." Ojiro told him.

He grabbed Diamondhead by the face and threw him off, getting back up. "It's disturbing how little you know of this alien's strengths and weaknesses. You barely scratched the surface of its potential!" "Hoverboard" continued to lecture.

"Yeah? So what makes you such an expert?" Diamondhead asked, slowly getting back to his feet.

The bounty hunter's helmet slid open and revealed a face almost identical to Diamondhead's, although his crystals have a more bluish hue and he had green eyes. It was another Petrosapien!

This caused everyone's jaw to drop. "It's another Diamondhead!" Kaminari cried out.

"Another Petrosapien. No wonder he knew how to handle Diamondhead so easily, or how he smashed that robot like nothing." Midoriya said in awe.

Finally, a familiar green flash came from the cards in Present Mic's hands. "Tetrax! A Petrosapien! A former mercenary with a checkered past, he now works as a bounty hunter fighting the forces of evil! As a Petrosapien, he can do anything Diamondhead can- and more, considering he's older and has more experience." The loudmouthed teacher declared.

"So... he used to be a villain?" Asui said, uncertain how to feel.

"It's hard to say. 'Checkered past' can be pretty vague. But without context, it would be a mistake to immediately condemn him. He may have done some things that are frowned upon, but we don't know if he's done anything truly wrong." All Might said uncertainly.

"But for now, he's the best chance the Tennyson's have to survive this." Yaoyorozu declared.

"You're... Me!" Diamondhead explained.

"Wrong. I am a noble warrior, you are an impulsive annoyance!" Tetrax told him.

Suddenly, the Omnitrix timed out.

The students looked concerned as Ben was returned to his helpless child form. "Well, if he had ANY chance before, it's gone now." Shoji said in concern.

"But at least we know he's not gonna hurt Ben." Koda said in relief.

"For now." Dark Shadow interrupted.

"True. We only know he plans on removing the Omnitrix. We don't know if Ben can survive that process. Or his methods of space travel." Tokoyami admitted.

"We have wasted enough time." The true Petrosapien said, picking Ben up by the back of his shirt collar.

"Hey! Let me dooown!" Ben snapped.

Tetrax looked for the dropped hoverboard, but it had disappeared. Kraab suddenly walked out from behind a building, hoverboard in hand.

"Oh, crap! This guy again!" Hagakure squeaked in fear.

"But no sign of Sixsix. Does that mean he finished him off?" Jiro questioned.

"That might be the best case scenario, but I doubt it's that easy." Midnight said suspiciously.

"Looking for THIS?! You're not getting off this planet with the Omnitrix. And just to be sure..." The Piscciss Premann declared, looking off to the side, where SixSix then appeared, holding Gwen and Max.

Many gasped in horror at seeing the powerless Tennysons in the mercenary's clutches. "Oh, no! Max and Gwen!" Aoyama said in concern.

"Let them go, you bastard! A real man wouldn't take hostages! He'd settle it one-on-one!" Kirishima snapped.

"We've already seen this guy's a coward when he ran from Tetrax! Of course he'd do something this low!" Ashido ranted.

"Hands off!" Max snapped

"Let me go!" Gwen cried out.

"See, we've decided to work together! And split the reward - and you, in half!" Kraab declared, clamping his claw while Ben was left slack-jawed.

"Oh, great! That was the only reason they lasted this long!" Bakugo snapped in annoyance.

"That is the problem with taking a target multiple people are after. Now you've painted multiple targets on your back." Iida said in concern.

"In hindsight, he should've probably tied them up or something." Sero agreed.

"But now they have Tetrax on their side! Maybe he can help them!" Uraraka said hopefully.

---

The two groups were left in a standoff in the setting sun.

"Oh, man. Classic cowboy movie! This would be so cool if this situation weren't so bad!" Present Mic said.

Tetrax continued to hold Ben, while SixSix held weapons to Max and Gwen's faces.

"Leave them alone!" Midoriya snapped.

"The watch JUST went off. So it's not coming back online any time soon. Ben's pretty much out of this fight now." Aizawa growled, not liking the situation and hating that he couldn't help.

"Well, surely Tetrax has this, right?" Mineta asked hopefully, but was shaking like a leaf.

Kraab made the first move, shooting beams at Tetrax. However, the Petrosapien blocked them with his back, shielding Ben. He then fled into a house and dropped Ben inside, who looked up to see Tetrax shielding against Kraab's heavy fire by simply standing.

"Whoa! He is just as tough as Diamondhead! Those blasts are bouncing right off him!" Kirishima cheered.

"No duh, Shitty Hair! We already saw him tank that giant beam from the giant robot!" Bakugo scoffed.

"But, why is he retreating?! They've still got Gwen and Max!" Ashido exclaimed worriedly.

"Perhaps he's just trying to get Ben somewhere safe. Hopefully." Midnight said, a feeling of suspicion rising in her gut.

SixSix snapped at Kraab in his alien language, likely berating him for risking damage to the Omnitrix. "Don't blow a gasket, 'metal-mouth', I know what I'm doing!" The Piscciss Premann snapped back.

Inside, Ben turned frantically to Tetrax. "What are we waiting for? We've gotta save them!" He insisted.

"Don't be foolish. Keeping the Omnitrix secure is the only priority here." Tetrax told the boy, lifting him by the shirt again.

The class was shocked and angered by his words. "What? But, you're supposed to be a good guy!" Uraraka shouted to the screen, her feelings towards the true Petrosapien quickly souring.

"Dammit! He truly IS still a low-down mercenary. He may not be a villain, but he is no hero." Iida condemned the crystalline creature.

"Not to me. That's my family!" He declared.

"You cannot save them. You would soon be overpowered and captured. The obvious choice is for me to retrieve my hoverboard, so that we may leave the planet." Tetrax tried to reason with the child.

"I'd hate to say it, but he's right. There's nothing Ben can do in this situation. He's a liability until the Omnitrix recharges. Which won't be soon enough." Aizawa admitted angrily.

"But... He travels through space with just that Hoverboard? That should be impossible! There's millions of light-years between planets! They would have to achieve hyperspace travel to reach other planets in timely manners! That board shouldn't be capable of such things! And he must be some form of oxygen-breathing species! That's impossible in space!" Yaoyorozu exclaimed.

"Maybe he just needs it to reach his ship in orbit or something?" Jiro theorized.

"But-" Ben tried to argue, but was interrupted.

"Stay here." Tetrax ordered, putting Ben down and running out the door.

Tetrax leapt through the smoke of Kraab's fire and launched a volley of crystals that flew past Kraab, pelting SixSix's body, only bouncing off his armor, but still packing enough punch to knock him to the ground. Kraab saw this and turned around, seeing Tetrax rushing in, leaping right towards him. He swung his claw at the Petrosapien, but Tetrax leaned forward and extending his legs to be in a diving position, passing over the claw harmlessly and snatching his hoverboard out of Kraab's hand.

"Whoa!" Everyone exclaimed, shocked by the Petrosapien's moves, while also breathing a sigh of relief he TECHNICALLY still saved Max and Gwen.

"He's a pretty quick shot. Plus, the way he swung his arm like that caused the shards he fired to hit SixSix in all different parts of his body! And it rattled him enough to knock him down!" All Might said, impressed.

"Still, that was quite risky when he had hostages. Lucky Sixsix didn't have his guard up and wasn't holding them in front of him." Midnight said.

But then, they were amazed when he easily evaded Kraab's attacks and reclaimed his hoverboard. "Okay, he's got some pretty good moves, not gonna lie!" Kirishima said excitedly.

"Smart. It's impossible to completely dodge in the air without a Quirk that allows you to fly or launch yourself with force like Bakugo's, but maneuvering and adjusting his position in the air JUST allowed him to avoid that hit. He's pretty agile for a guy made of heavy diamond." Ojiro noted.

"And Kraab leaned way too far into that claw swipe to adjust, so he was wide open. He probably couldn't caught Kraab with a clothesline there, but he did what he needed to and got back his board." Uraraka said, starting to feel SLIGHTLY better about Tetrax.

"Now let's see what he does with it." Bakugo said eagerly.

He opened the board and flew away to avoid blasts from the now-recovered SixSix. He circled back and leapt off the board, his heavy crystalline body rapidly plummeting towards the ground. Max, Gwen and Kraab wisely chose to run away, but Sixsix decided to continue shooting at the Petrosapien, right up to the point where he landed on the armored bounty hunter.

Several audience members winced at the crash-landing. "Ooh, that's GOTTA hurt!" Present Mic said.

"We can assume Petrosapiens are lighter than cars, for a swinging tire to knock Diamondhead back, but they're still made of some form of rock, so Tetrax must weigh AT LEAST a few hundred pounds, maybe even close to a thousand. So that falling from multiple stories in the air would be like if a car DID hit you." Yaoyorozu analyzed.

"Maybe I should try dropping down on someone in my Hardened form!" Kirishima announced his idea.

"I mean, that'd probably hurt, but you still weigh the same, so I don't think that'd work." Ashido admitted, placing a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder at his idea being shot down.

The cybernetic crab and the non-powered Tennysons took cover from the sizeable dust cloud created by the impact, while Tetrax grabbed Sixsix by the throat and lifted him out of the small crater created by his impact, knocking him back with a powerful right underhand punch to the stomach and left hook, sending him skidding across the ground. The Sotoraggian sat up and fired a rocket from his wrist, but Tetrax formed a large diamond construct to shield himself. Kraab dropped down behind the crystalline mercenary, swinging his claw at him, but the Petrosapien caught the large limb, using the momentum of the strike and his lowered position in the crater to pull the Piscciss Premann off balance and throw him over his shoulder.

"He can create constructs! That's amazing! Depending on if they have to be right in front of them where they touch the ground or not, that could be used both defensively AND offensively! This opens up even more possibilities!" Midoriya said in amazement, writing the information and his ideas down almost fast enough to create smoke.

"At the very least, it can make quite sizeable shields to protect both themselves and any civilians they might be protecting. That could be VERY useful." All Might said, impressed and eager for Ben to potentially use these abilities in the future as Diamondhead.

"Whoa! That was a really good over-the-shoulder throw!" Uraraka cheered.

"It helps Kraab was leaning so far forward to hit a target so low, so he probably didn't have great leverage." Asui added with a smile.

Kraab landed a few feet from the house where Ben was in. Ben saw him and looked at the Omnitrix, now recharged. "Alright, hero time!" The boy declared, rushing back inside.

Kraab looked up and saw Ben fleeing back into the house and crawled in while SixSix kept Tetrax busy.

The group was happy the Omnitrix was active again, but quickly lost that happiness when they saw Kraab up and after him. "Uh-oh. Ben, you better pick an alien quick!" Kaminari said in concern.

Ben hid behind a table and turned on the Omnitrix. The dial first landed on Four Arms, but rather than choose the warrior alien, Ben paused and thought back on everything that happened earlier today.

First he visualized, then remembered the words, of his grandfather. (Remember to think out there, Ben. Don't just try to muscle it. 'Might isn't always right'!). Max's wisdom echoed in his mind as he remembered getting laid out by a simple swinging tire.

After that came the lecture he received from Tetrax, a warrior ACTUALLY as capable as Ben believed HE was. (Your choice of warriors is based SOLELY on brute strength, without regard for any strategy. Do you ever pause to consider your actions at all?) The masked mercenary's words rang through his head, along with the memory of the bounty hunters overpowering Diamondhead in the mines.

"Good. The lesson's FINALLY sinking in." Aizawa said with a smile, he and several others happy Ben is finally learning.

"So, he's going to be smart about it now, so he's probably not picking a brute strength alien like Four Arms or Diamondhead. So who, then?" Iida wondered.

"XLR8 would be pretty good. He could beat them down before they could even see it happen! Plus, he could use his speed to make dust clouds and blind them and leave them open!" Jiro suggested.

"Perhaps he could use Upgrade to take control of their technology and use it against them." Todoroki theorized.

"Let's just wait and see, kids, shall we?" Midnight said, smiling at their ideas, but eager to see Ben's plan herself.

With the reminder of those humbling moments in his head, Ben turned the dial past Ghostfreak, XLR8 and Upgrade, until he found the alien he wanted and transformed. However, the transformation couldn't be seen from behind the table.

The flash of light alerted Kraab, who smashed the table, but found nothing. As he rooted around in the rubble, Grey Matter spied him from the ceiling.

"Grey Matter!? Are you freaking kidding me!? What can that small fry do?!" Bakugo snapped.

"Ever heard the expression 'big things come in small packages', Bakugo?" Ojiro asked.

"He's small, but he's smart. Just like me! I bet he's totally got this!" Mineta declared.

He then leapt down onto Kraab's head, causing him to shuffle around, clawing at his head. "GET - OFF - ME, YOU TINY LITTLE...!" The Piscciss Premann snapped as he continued swiping at the Galvan on his head.

But Grey Matter avoided his hands and slipped down into Kraab's neck and rooted around in the electronics underneath. "There should be a nerve cluster in here somewhere." He said to himself, finding some wires and ripping them out, causing Kraab to stumbled around blindly and stagger out of the house yelling out in pain.

Grey Matter eventually ripped out a wire that caused Kraab's entire head to spin around, until he came to a stop... And fell to the ground, completely out of commission. "One down!" The Galvan declared proudly, jumping down from the cybernetic crab.

A few winced at the idea of a tiny creature crawling on you where you couldn't reach and ripping nerves out of their neck. "Yikes. Suddenly, tiny things seem a lot scarier." Ashido said nervously.

"That is the problem with cybernetics, though. One wrong wire and it all goes to hell." Present Mic said, he and the other teachers remembering a few occasions where the robot practice villains had loose wires, breaking down and needing repairs.

"I'm a little surprised the spaces in his neck are open enough for something to reach in and grab wires like that." Hagakure said.

"To be fair, Grey Matter is pretty small, so he can get into tiny nooks and crannies like that. Plus, I doubt many people would be willing to get that close with that giant claw." Sato said.

"Either way, only Sixsix left now. And he seems to be the easy one." Shoji said.

Tetrax and SixSix continued brawling, SixSix swiping his claw-like hands at Tetrax, who dodged and hit Sixsix with a left hook to the side, swinging a right haymaker to the Sotoraggian's head, but he dodged and grabbed Tetrax from behind, using his jetpack to fly him up in the air and suplex him into the ground.

Again, there were many winces at this attack. "Yikes. Good thing Petrosapiens are super durable." Asui said with a wince.

"So much for him being the easy one." Dark Shadow grumbled to Shoji.

"Hopefully that doesn't put him out of commission." Tokoyami said.

Grey Matter gasped as he noticed the Petrosapien's defeat, which allowed SixSix to spot him and aim his wrist-rockets at him.

"Grey Matter! No!" Koda cried out.

"Come on, Tetrax! Get up! Make a shield, do something!" Kaminari exclaimed frantically.

However, Max quickly jumped on SixSix's back to throw his aim off. "Ben! Run!" He told his grandson, but SixSix threw Max to the ground and started menacingly spinning his circular saw close to his face.

"No! Not Max! Put that saw away!" Hagakure said fearfully.

"Dumbass! You've got no Quirk! You can't help!" Bakugo shouted.

"And yet, he's strong enough to carry a full-grown human in one arm and jump further than Olympic athletes. But no, that's not enough to help. Nevermind robots being soft enough for Gwen to smash with a shovel." Maverick mocked Bakugo's way of thinking.

"Still, he's doing whatever he can for family. That is to be praised." Iida said, thinking of his brother.

"NO!" Gwen cried out in horror.

Thankfully, he was distracted when Grey Matter hopped onto his shoulder. "Guess who?" The Galvan declared, reaching around for wires much like he did for Kraab. (They sighed in relief, but said nothing.)

Tetrax got up and saw SixSix fumbling with Grey Matter on him. "I told you to stay out of my way!" He snapped at the amphibian alien.

"Wonder what would happen if I did this!" Grey Matter declared, ripping wires in SixSix's armor. This caused Sixsix's jetpack to go haywire, making him take off and fly uncontrollably in several directions, before slamming into the supports of a water tower. The armored bounty hunter eventually dove to the ground, the thrust of the jetpack dragging him across it. He finally came to a stop right in front of Kraab, who was still on the floor.

"Whoa! Talk about a wild ride." Kaminari said with a chuckle.

"Getting dragged across the ground like that must've hurt like hell, even in armor." Jiro added.

"And that's without getting smashed through stuff." Hagakure agreed.

"Wait... What he got smashed through, was a water tower. A very old water tower. No way it still stands after losing a leg." All Might realized.

Grey Matter then noticed the water tower's supports failing and the tower starting to teeter... right towards them. "I hate this planet..." Kraab grumbled as Grey Matter ran over him, before the tower came crashing down on the bounty hunters and burst open with water.

"Ooh!" Several members of the audience exclaimed with a wince as they watched the bounty hunters get crushed by the tower.

"Yeah, they're definitely out now. Even if they aren't squished, their electronics are probably fried." Asui said.

"Do you think Grey Matter planned that?" Uraraka asked.

"Well, he's supposedly part of the smartest species in the galaxy, so there's a good chance." Midnight said.

"Only one way to beat the desert heat, don't you think...?" Grey Matter said to Tetrax.

"Pretty smart... for a human." Tetrax (rather backhandedly) praised, to which Grey Matter nodded.

"Hey! We humans can be pretty smart sometimes!" Ashido exclaimed in offense, several students exclaiming in agreement.

Tetrax then used a device to deploy a small flying cube. It traveled to where Kraab and SixSix were laying, growing to engulf them, then shrinking back to its original size, shrinking them along with it.

The audience was awed by the technology Tetrax just used. "Okay, that was pretty awesome." Kaminari said.

"All the technology these aliens have is incredible. I wonder what Hatsume would have to say about all these devices?" Midoriya wondered.

"She'd probably never stop working until she made them herself." Iida sighed, knowing the girl's tenacity to perfect her "babies", as well as dreading her attempting to get him to test them.

Grey Matter timed out as Tetrax placed the cube in his pocket. "I'll return as soon as I am able!" The Petrosapien told the boy.

"What about this?" Ben asked, raising the Omnitrix.

"It's in good hands until then." Tetrax assured him.

"Alright! Ben gets to keep it!" The Bakusquad, minus Bakugo himself, cheered.

Maverick then appeared behind Aizawa, leaning in as close as he could to the left side of the Erasure Hero's face. "You hear that, Aizawa? A highly-trained alien bounty hunter thinks Ben is capable and trustworthy enough to keep the Omnitrix." The mantis man said with the biggest shit-eating grin on his face.

Aizawa rolled his eyes at this. "As long as the lesson sticks and he actually thinks about what he's doing." He said, but then couldn't help but smile at the screen. "But, since he learned that, he's making good progress to becoming a decent hero." He admitted.

But then, he handed his hoverboard to Ben. "This may be of some use in the meantime." The Petrosapien offered.

"Oh, come on! He gets an awesome hoverboard, too!? That's not fair!" Ashido complained.

Anemone and Maverick shared a look, then smiled, the serpent woman waving her hand. Suddenly, a round object was dropped into the arms of each audience member, all of them quickly recognizing them as the collapsed form of the hoverboard. "YES!" All the students cheered.

"Well, this is gonna be a lot of fun!" Present Mic said excitedly.

"This could come in handy with my Quirk. I could basically fly by and crop dust villains with it." Midnight said.

"Ugh. Like these kids weren't hard enough to manage. Now they'll be able to fly." Aizawa groaned.

However, a handful of students then realized something. "But, wait..." Yaoyorozu started.

"Oho, man! Are you serious?!" The boy asked in excitement. But he soon lowered the excitement when he remembered something. "Hold on... You said you needed this to get off the planet." He pointed out.

"Selective disinformation." Tetrax said simply.

"Huh?" The boy asked, looking to Gwen.

"He lied." His cousin told him as if it were obvious.

"Tetrax! Lying is immoral and disrespectful!" Iida snapped, chopping away with his arms.

"ALMOST went a whole viewing without it." Maverick lamented, snapping his fingers.

"You DO remember he's a mercenary, right? They aren't known for great morals." Todoroki told him.

"But, then... why lie about that?" Hagakure asked.

"Maybe he wanted to see what Ben would do when the watch came back on? Maybe he was giving him a chance to prove himself?" Uraraka suggested.

Tetrax then took a few steps forward and pulled out a device from his belt, bringing his helmet back over his face and he pressing the device, teleporting him away.

"How come you get all the cool alien stuff?" Gwen complained as she looked at the hoverboard.

"Fits my style." Ben said proudly.

"Riiight... I have something for you too!" She said, before pouring sunscreen all over his head, getting back at him for when it happened to her earlier.

"Gwen! That was mean!" Asui scolded her.

"To be fair, he did get her drenched with it earlier." Jiro admitted.

"Well, other than somewhat wasting sunscreen, it's harmless fun, at least." Yaoyorozu said with a small giggle.

"Ugh! Hey! What'd you do that for?!" He complained.

"Wouldn't want that big head of yours to get sunburned." She teased him.

"That is the concern now, his head was already getting too big by the start of this. We don't need it getting any worse." Aizawa said.

"I'm sure Young Ben will learn to control his ego soon enough. Plenty of heroes struggle with it. But as long as he doesn't showboat in the middle of a fight, it shouldn't be a problem." All Might assured his colleague.

---

Back on the Chimeran Hammer, the Warlord and a bioid lieutenant watch a feed of Earth, a spec of light exiting the planet and shooting off into space. "Betrayed..." The Warlord realized in anger.

"Ha! Sucks for you, Hentai Face!" Bakugo laughed.

"Yeah! No watch for you!" Uraraka taunted, giggling a bit as she joined Bakugo's antics.

"Of course, each failure is only going to increase the villain's anger. I imagine if he ever gets his hands on young Ben, it won't be pleasant." All Might said in concern.

"Sensors indicate the Omnitrix is not with the mercenaries." The bioid informed its master.

"It would appear the creature who possesses the Omnitrix - is as clever as it is fierce. But I shall not be denied." The Warlord declared through labored breathing.

Several students couldn't help but chuckle at this. "Yeah, about that..." Hagakure giggled, knowing "Clever" was not a very fitting word for Ben, at least at the current time.

"Oh, man. Can you imagine his face when he finds out Ben's just a kid?" Sero laughed.

"Big bad alien overlord, constantly foiled by a ten-year-old. That's gotta be a hit to the ego." Jiro said with a smirk.

"But it's exactly that point that makes him dangerous. He does seem like an egomaniac, so having that ego constantly damaged will only make him angrier, like All Might said. and all he currently has is time to sit and stew in that anger. And something tells me the fact Ben is a child won't make him go easy on Ben." Midnight said in concern.

"Oh, you have no idea." Maverick said too quietly for the audience to hear, looking uncomfortably to Anemone, who shared his look of discomfort, the two remembering how painful of a process Vilgax's device to remove the Omnitrix looked.

---

"Well, what did you think?" Anemone asked.

"That was awesome! So manly! That HAS to be the most action we've seen in these viewings so far!" Kirishima cheered.

"I really liked seeing all the new things Petrosapiens are capable of! That might make Diamondhead his most versatile alien! Maybe even his most powerful in general!" Midoriya said excitedly.

Maverick immediately laughed at this for a few seconds, but quickly composed himself. "At the moment, he's certainly a contender, you might have a point." He quickly corrected himself.

"It was a little annoying seeing Ben be so arrogant, but at least he got better by the end." Ashido said.

"Still, it was relatively tame compared to some Pro Heroes." Mineta admitted, thinking about Mt. Lady, dreading the memories of his internship.

"I'm just happy the brat's finally learning to use his head a bit. Now as long as he stops treating the thing like a toy, I'll be happy." Aizawa said.

"And I find it quite satisfying that it was Grey Matter he used to ultimately put a stop to Kraab and Sixsix. It's always satisfying to see mind win over muscles." Yaoyorozu voiced her opinion.

"Well, that's good. Still, this viewing was a bit more serious than the last few, so fortunately, the next one will have a bit more levity to it." Anemone said as she began the next viewing.

---

[1] BTW, I know I never mentioned it, but the screen pauses if they're talking for extremely long times so they don't miss anything important.

[2] Shoutout to the guest who gave me that Kaminari mispronunciation and Jiro's response to it. Sorry I couldn't give a name, but they didn't put a name with their response.

[3] Even if we ignored her using Four Arms to cheat at bowling- and even though she didn't ACTUALLY burn anything down- her first transformation as Heatblast was a little reckless, juggling a fireball and making her name in the sky with fireworks that RAINED DOWN FIRE.

[4] Sorry if it seems like I'm really hammering in this idea, but they are both children and heroes. Death is a concept they'd try to avoid at all costs, so even if it is necessary, the idea of lethal force would really take a while to sit right with them, if at all.

[5] Shoutout to my friend MilkGuy for that mispronunciation AND the info about Kraab being turned into a cyborg from the Piscciss/Pyros wars.