Izuku sat alone in the preparation room. Remembering everything he had gone through to get here. And... He had gone through a lot. In general through his entire path to finally achieve his dream. To become the kind of hero he wanted to be. Becoming All Might's student, then his successor, then his student again in a more official capacity. He had been able to not only compete against his childhood friend but defeat him. He had fought against real villains. Gotten himself a girlfriend.
That last one... It might not have really been a step on his path to becoming a hero but it felt like a real accomplishment!
And then the sports festival. Competing against everyone on the same path as him at the same time. He had excelled. It felt like a lot of it was luck. His history of being put down by Bakugo insisted it was. But he wasn't so sure. He made some gambles, sure, and they had paid off for certain. But it wasn't like those gambles were based on nothing. It was all insight into how his quirk worked now that it had been enhanced by One for All. It wasn't just luck. It was a growing understanding of his capabilities, the range of things he could do. Every gambit opened new doors, giving new insights. A clearer picture of his strengths and weaknesses.
There had been one moment. One make or break moment. But even that moment of crisis facing Todoroki wasn't simply luck. It was the final crystallisation of his newfound understanding. His quirk had been partially freed from its harsh limitation. So long as he could convince himself, reach an understanding that what he was trying to pull was 'hot' in some way. Or not even that it was hot. That it could be described as hot was all it took for his quirk to affect it. Getting stuck to Ochako in the entrance exam had been the clue. Getting stuck to girls in general. And from there he was able to push it this far.
Never did get the sticking to girls problem sorted, though. That was a wonderful– Awful! It was an awful weakness! He needed to get more control and overcome it! Yeah! Luckily Kyoka was willing to help in his exposure therapy.
Unfortunately, it was on this thought that said girl entered his waiting room. Her expression perplexed as she took in her boyfriend's dopey, dreamy demeanour. "What's got you all happy?"
His eyelids fluttered as he came back to the waking world, seeing Kyoka standing there. "You." The word tumbled out without thought. His eyes bulged as he realised what he said. "Uhh! I mean...!" It took an extra second to realise it was actually a good thing he had said.
Doubly so, seeing the flush come to the usually stoic girl's face. "Oh, u-umm, smooth!" she complimented him, hiding her face with her arm by putting a hand on the back of her neck. "You started preparing lines in advance?" she asked, trying to cover her embarrassment at how unreasonably happy his answer made her.
"N-No!" he answered as she came to sit with him. The moment she was close enough he took her hand like it was the most natural thing in the world. "I just... I was just thinking over everything I've been through since I started working to get into UA. Figuring out if I'm just weirdly lucky, or maybe my luck just suddenly turned around one day."
"I don't think so." She squeezed his fingers as she leaned against him. "I went through all the same stuff you did, you know? Wasn't luck when I did it. We worked our butts off. It's okay to be proud of that."
"I know." He really did. It wasn't luck. He knew that. "This tournament proved that to me. Everyone worked so hard. Fought so hard. But I'm still in it."
"Mm-hm," was the hummed response, low and flat as she gave him an equally flat look.
"Ah! I mean–!"
The flat look warped into a teasing smirk. "I'm just messing with you Izuku. I lost fair and square, I can deal with that. You better beat that Kendo girl for me though, same as you clobbered that lizard dude."
"Yeah." Izuku winced as he remembered that match. "I feel a little bad about that one."
"He took you lightly. Not your fault you didn't make the same mistake. And after the match with Uraraka..."
"She almost had me," the boy admitted. "If she could keep up her quirk just a little longer–"
"I heard what she said."
He blinked in confusion. "What she...? Oh. You mean about t-taking her on a date."
"Yeah." An earjack twisted up to poke him in the cheek. "Hearing and sound is kind of my thing, you know."
"Right." His answer came immediately. That made sense. Until it didn't. "Wait. But how though? I thought the way your quirk works you can hear by plugging your jacks into things. We were like fifty feet in the air when she said that. How would you be able to hear from the stands with all the crowd noise when we were nowhere near any surface for the vibrations to reach? Unless maybe, I wasn't paying that much attention to our exact position so we might've strayed close enough to–"
"Dude." She grabbed his face with her other hand and forcibly turned him to look at her. "Izuku. My quirk gives me really good hearing in general. She was shouting. Nothing complicated."
"... Oh. Right, sorry," he laughed nervously, unable to ignore the pleasant warmth of her hand. "I... I guess... Yeah. We never talked about how to deal with... With that."
"... Yeah." Kyoka's features softened, saddened as she knew just as well as he did what was supposed to come next.
"I don't want to hurt her." It was a simple truth. The crux of the problem. Ochako was his first friend at UA, before he even earned his place at the school.
Kyoka nodded in understanding. "I guess, if we hadn't gotten together you'd be looking forward to that date, huh?" The fear and nerves were written on his face, worried for her reaction to any answer he might have given. "I get it, Izuku. Hard to pretend you're not into other girls when your biggest weakness is all about how attracted you are to them." Her eyes narrowed. "But dude, seriously. You've gotten stuck to every single girl you've touched in this tournament! Do you have like, no standards?"
"Of course I do!" he tried to defend himself and his overactive quirk. "It's just everyone in the competition is so... You know..."
"Hot."
He didn't acknowledge the supplied answer with words or with actions. Instead, her hand felt the squeeze of his fingers again. "Whatever happens, I don't want to lose this, or you."
She gave him a soft smile, free and unburdened by anxiety. "I know. It's like I can feel it. I don't have to be worried. You don't want to hurt me either, right?"
"Of course not."
The punk girl nodded slightly. "We'll work it out. For now, it's nothing you need to worry about. All you need to think about is how to beat Big Hands' butt."
A heavy knock on the door prevented him from answering. No wait at all given before the door opened to reveal one of the most intimidating figures in the world. The blazing eyes of Endeavour took in the scene in the preparation room with proud disinterest. "It seems I'm interrupting something." Though those were his words, there was no apology in them by word or by tone.
Kyoka stared up at the heavily muscled man wreathed in flames and decided it was time for her to get back to the stands. Leaning toward Izuku, she gave him a kiss on the cheek that looked less proper than it was. "Good luck." She smiled, before extricating her hands and her person from her boyfriend, stood and gave Endeavour a wide berth as she left the room.
"Izuku Midoriya." Izuku had heard the voice before. Endeavour was one of the best heroes alive. Undeniably the most effective one operating at the moment. So of course Izuku had seen the flame hero appear on video via television and social media. But while he had heard the voice before, there was a quality to it in person that didn't translate over recording. It was unnerving. Intimidating. The number two hero had a presence about him similar to All Might but with key differences. While All Might had a booming voice, there was no intimidation to it. It was loud and sometimes overwhelming, but also comforting. By comparison Endeavour's voice was not quite as loud, but every word seemed to carry an undercurrent of threat to it.
And he had used that voice to speak Izuku's name.
The hero student's first instinct was to say what a pleasure it was to meet him and to maybe ask for an autograph, even though Endeavour was notorious for not appreciating such frivolous things. But... Even as he rose from his seat to bow respectfully... A memory floated back to him. A memory of one of his classmates seething with fury. Stewing in a cold rage caused by the very same hero standing before Izuku at this very moment. That classmate's own father.
He stood. He did not bow. "Endeavour. Is there something I can do for you, sir? I didn't know the public were allowed back here."
"You'll find when you become a pro hero there are very few doors that will remain closed to you," the hero answered. "I've been watching the tournament. You've been putting on an impressive display. Well, save for the first round. I admit, I had no interest in watching this festival after my Shoto failed to pass the second event, but I see a seed of potential in you."
"In what way?"
"That quirk of yours," the hero, the supposed hero continued. "Its ability to draw out my Shoto's flames. I doubt you're aware. He has a childish desire to become a hero without utilising his full power, refusing to use his flames. He's hindering his own progress. But I believe with your help, you and I might work together to cure him of his stubborn streak to take the position of number one hero I made him for."
Made him?
"I believe you would make an ideal rival for him. Someone who can push him to ascend rather than sit stagnant using only half his power. Internships should be coming up for UA students, consider this a formal offer. I'll have one made in writing for the school's records. If you play your cards right and prove your potential is real there might be a spot as a sidekick in it for you after you graduate. You'll find no better offer out there and all it requires is to help my son reach his full potential."
It was absurd. Every word coming out of Endeavour's mouth carried with it an unshakeable certainty. It was surreal to hear someone speak with such confidence and be so unequivocally wrong about everything they were saying. "Thank you for the offer, but no thank you."
The victorious smile the flame hero wore during the entirety of his offer took longer than it should have to fall, the extra time due to having to process hearing an answer he never expected. "No thank you? Young man, you don't seem to understand what I'm offering here. There is no greater offer for a UA student, for any hero student in Japan to start their career. To learn under the most successful hero in the country, a guarantee of a good position to launch your own hero career."
Izuku shook his head. "No. That's not what I'm turning down, but it's what I have to turn down as well. I can't be Todoroki's rival and I can't help him if you're behind it." The student's jaw set as he prepared himself to face down one of the most intimidating heroes in the world. "I did know about his hatred of his fire quirk. I also know why, because he told me." He saw the effect the news had on the flame hero, the darkening of his expression. "I tried to reach him myself, but it didn't work. I don't think I can or I at least don't know how. But I do know... If anyone's going to help him stop feeling disgusted by the part of him that comes from you, it can't have anything to do with you. That's why I'm turning you down. If I ever want to help Todoroki, working for you is the last thing I should do."
He sat down again, facing the hero only enough to say, "Thank you for the offer. I need to prepare for my next match."
The hero continued to stand at the doorway, staring perplexedly at the student who somehow had the nerve to dismiss him. "I see. Well. I'm more than familiar with children making foolish mistakes out of their own stubbornness. I expect both you and my Shoto will learn from this in future. For Shoto, I'll make sure of it. As for you..." He paused, turning and opening the door. "I'm sure you'll muddle through on your own eventually."
The door shut behind him with a slam and Izuku released the breath he had been holding. Leaned back into his chair to let his fear response finally kick in as he took gasping breaths. He didn't regret a single word of it but to tell of the number two hero like that! What had he been thinking?!
... He was thinking how much he hated not being able to help Todoroki. And it seemed that was all he needed. Just like the slime villain, his need to save people could get him in trouble sometimes.
He closed his eyes. He still had a few minutes before the match and that burst of adrenaline he just experienced left him feeling more tired than ever. He had recovered from the damage he did to himself in the match with Uraraka thanks to Recovery Girl, but the stamina cost was real.
Just a little rest.
"Hey."
His eyes snapped open. Another person in the room. Another hero? She had to be a hero, the costume was hero all over and ab-hugging spandex wasn't usually the purview of regular people. They were great abs too. "Uhh, hi?" He didn't hear the door. Didn't hear her come in. "Wait, did I fall asleep?! I didn't miss my match, did I?!"
"You fell asleep, but you're fine," the woman promised, smiling gently at him, dropping to one knee. "We don't have much time though."
"Oh." He sighed in relief as he took the moment to get a better look at the woman. It was strange, he didn't really recognise her. Strange because, well, All Might called him a fanboy for a reason. She kind of looked a little like Midnight at the right angle but also not at all aside from the raven hair. The dark bodysuit, a long white cape, the yellow gloves, the belt. She almost looked like an All Might fan too a little bit. "I don't recognise you. Uhh! N-not that you aren't, I mean I'm sure you're a great hero but–!"
She chuckled. Her voice, her laugh, it was far closer to All Might than Endeavour in terms of presence. "Don't worry, I'm not offended. I guess I was before your time."
He couldn't keep the confusion off his face. Before his time? What? She didn't look a day over thirty-five. How could she be before his time?
"We'll be able to talk more in future. But for now, I just wanted to say... I'm sorry." She offered him a sorrowful smile. "Your path is going to be harder than we expected. We took a gamble and we lost, but," she took his hand, "We're going to do everything we can so work hard on your end, okay? One for All won't give up on you."
"Wait, what?!"
"Wow, even on me?" the strange woman asked, ignoring his alarm as she forcefully pulled her hand away from his. She shook her head, giving him a big grin with eyes closed. "Do me a favour. Tell Toshi I'm proud of him for me, would you?"
"–oung Midoriya! Young Midoriya, wake up!"
"Ah!" Izuku startled as the sensation of feeble hands shaking him returned him to consciousness. "All Might?"
"Young Midoriya, you fell asleep! Your match is starting!"
"What? All Might, I–"
The emaciated man did his best to haul his successor out of the chair. "Come on, kid, up and at 'em! Just one more and you're done with this thing, let's go!"
"R-right! Sorry!" Shaking his head out like a dog, Izuku slapped his cheeks to forcefully wake himself up as he walked with All Might through the back rooms of the stadium. "All Might..."
"Yeah? Feeling nervous?" his mentor asked with a skeletal grin. "Don't worry. You've got this. And even if you don't, I can't ask any more of you than you've already given. I wanted you to announce yourself to the world and you've done it. Everything else is gravy."
"I..." It was a dream. But he couldn't put it out of his mind. "All Might, do you know anyone named Toshi?"
"Hurk!" The diminished All Might halted for a half step, grabbing his chest. "Uh, well, I don't know anyone by that name." He glanced about in concern. "I guess it can't hurt at this point. My given name is Toshinori."
Izuku's eyes widened, his breath grew short. "Did you know a hero, a woman with dark hair, a belt kind of like yours, a white cape, yellow gloves–"
"Lllllladies and gentlemen, heroes and heroines! Welcome to the UA sports festival first year finals!"
"What...?" The number one hero stared at his successor, confusion and some deep hurt in both voice and expression. "I... I did. A long time ago. Why?"
"It... When I fell asleep in the waiting room, she was there, I guess in my dream. She knew about One for All, said it wouldn't give up on me. And... I think she wanted me to tell you she's proud of you."
The effect those words had on the symbol of peace was profound. Whatever his concerns had been, they fell away as an emotional weight crashed down on him, tears leaking from his sunken eyes.
"From Class 1-B! The girl who gets hands-on with her heroing! A master of hand to hand and always handy in a tight spot! The powerful pummeler always ready to offer a helping hand–"
"Please stop."
"Itsuka Kendo!"
"All Might," Izuku wished he could let his hero have a moment but, "What does this mean?"
"And from Class 1-A! The green bean butt-kicking machine! With a versatile quirk and incredible stopping power! The heat-seeking dynamo of the hero course! Izuku Midoriya!"
"It means we'll have a lot of things to talk about when this is over. For now," still teary-eyed, All Might slapped his students cheeks with both hands, "Focus on the match. Give it your all. Everything that comes after, comes after."
Izuku hesitated a beat, but straightened with a firm nod, marching out to the ring to face off against Kendo.
The redhead was all smiles as she watched him approach. "Who'd have thought this is how it'd go when we first met in the obstacle race?"
As he came to a stop in the ring, he gave himself a full-body shake, hopping up and down a couple of times to get blood flowing. His mind was still clouded, no getting around that. And falling asleep right before the match would do him no favours. "Not me. But I wasn't thinking about anything but the event right in front of me."
"Saying something like that, I can hear Monoma screaming in frustration from the stands."
"It's been fun getting to know people outside my class. I hope we can keep in touch once this is all over."
The martial artist frowned. "You... Mean figuratively, right?"
"Yeah? What else would I–" And the implication dawned on him. "No, of course I mean figuratively, I wouldn't want to presume I mean I already have a–!"
"Fighters ready?"
Kendo dropped into a martial stance without another word. Izuku shook himself again and took a ready stance. To someone in the know, the difference in fight training was significant and visible.
"Begin!"
Taking in a puff of air, Izuku flashed forward toward his opponent. The girl cautiously waiting for him. He was familiar with this strategy and he knew why she was using it on him. When she used it on Kyoka she was waiting to ambush her with the vast difference in martial competence. It was the best path for a quick victory. Against Izuku? He knew why she wouldn't go for her quirk. All growing her hands would do would be to give him a bigger target. He packed a lot of power. Giving him a larger surface to hit that could take more damage would just mean letting him hit her easier and harder. It didn't matter if it would be her hand, the shock would go right the way through her and knock her back regardless.
He learned from Kendo's fight with Kyoka. But she learned from his fight with Rin.
There was one potential moment in which she might attack him using her quirk. The moment before he made contact. For how cumbersome her quirk could be, she could activate it fairly quickly. It was a possibility he was aware of and so when he saw her hand close into a fist he swayed to her left side to move himself away from it, then kicked off the ground to get behind her.
The hand that had been growing shrunk back to normal size immediately. She turned to face him again. She saw his fist coming. Fast. Almost too fast for her to evade. The air pressure of it sent her eyes wide as it slipped past her shoulder.
Then, she grinned.
They had each learned from their opponents' previous matches. And so Kendo had taken a page out of Uraraka's book. Her arm curled around his outstretched arm under the shoulder, around the back of his neck, leg sweeping to take out his feet and bring him down to the ground.
Grapples.
For Uraraka, it was a desperate gambit in hopes of utilising her quirk. For Kendo, it was just another part of her fighting style. And if it was especially effective because of Izuku's unique weakness? All the better. Her other hand grew, ready to seal the deal. Izuku had power, that was undeniable. But with no leverage it meant way less. Getting him in a complete grapple, unable to make full movements, she would be able to force him out of bounds. It was over.
However. Izuku learned from his own matches too. Even if this little method was one he wished he didn't have to use again.
All it took was one foot on the ground. One single movement before she sealed him off completely. And with a force of extreme pressure, he launched the two of them into the sky just like he had against Uraraka. With a solid foothold it was far less damaging than when he had to do it off thin air but still less than ideal.
Even so, even if she still had him seemingly contained, she was in his territory now.
"Dammit!" Kendo cursed, knowing what this meant. Uraraka had the power to guide them somewhat in her match. Kendo had no such thing. If she left it like this, Izuku would have complete control! "Agh!" She ripped herself away from him, let her fist grow and slammed it into Izuku, the force of the punch overcoming the attracting force to send him plummeting straight down to the ring. She hadn't had time or ability to aim in hopes of sending him elsewhere.
It wasn't a full strength punch. It was impossible to put full weight and force into it from an airborne position. Whether the punch or the fall did more damage to Izuku was up for debate. But still he stood in the ring, looking up at Kendo as she came down toward him. Giant fist cocked back to squash him flat.
His legs spread a little for stability. His stance set for a solid collision. His fist cocked.
'Clench your buttcheeks,' Izuku recited to himself, 'And yell.' "Alaska–!"
Kendo's eyes widened. He was using a name?! She had to use a name! But she had to make the move cooler if they were doing this! She focused, strained to make her fist even bigger, as big as she could currently make it and then fought to make it bigger still! She brought her gargantuan hand down with all of her power! "TITAN'S HAND!"
"SMAAAAAAAASH!"
A tiny yet superpowered uppercut crashed directly against the middle finger of a fist that covered almost a third of the ring. The force of the blow assisted by the equally superpowered leap to meet it. A fierce wind kicked up and out to the cheap seats as the two super moves impacted one another. Both fighters' teeth grit in strain and pain as their blows competed for dominance.
An almighty crack, like the snapping of an entire tree.
"GAH!"
Kendo's middle finger broke.
The power of the two competitors blasted each other in opposite directions. Unfortunately for Izuku, that slammed him back down into the hardened cement of the ring, shattering his landing point into a small crater. Unfortunately for Kendo, it sent her soaring back up, in extreme pain.
She showed no sign nor ability to stop herself and so was caught by wooden limbs of Kamui Woods, one of the heroes on standby, before she could make a painful landing in the stands.
Izuku panted in exhaustion, before his eyes widened as the incredible pain of his right arm caught up to him. The entire limb suffering extreme damage as a result of the clash. At least it covered the less extreme pain in his legs from his upward leap. His face screwed up in agony, lying flat on his back. But in the ring. And conscious.
"Itsuka Kendo is out of bounds! Izuku Midoriya is the winner!"
-(-)-
A/N: Ugh, so behind on everything. Need to keep up with releasing things on this site.
This chapter seen early by my generous supporters on the GREAT FORBIDDEN P! Fear the P! Love the P!