AMP (IzuJirou)

by MizuToriFFN

To smile, bring hope to the world. To bring hope to the world, make them smile. Their dreams. Different, yet so very much the same. No one was born equal into this world. Izuku was always reminded of that. Kyouka always reminded herself, whether she wanted to or not. But, differences weren't what mattered; that's what they learned from one another. (Originally An Insecure Violet)

56. ReadyAim

A/N: Forgive the wait. I took a little break to start a side-project.

...Which is now 165 pages, and still not done. So, there's that.

~...AMP…~

(National Takoba Arena: Examinee Break Room)

The first round of the exam eventually ended, leaving the rest of the examinees in the break room compartment. They were allowed another fifteen minute break so the last students to pass were allowed a rest period.

"Damn it," Kyouka growled to herself, pouting as she leaned on the table, resting her cheek against her fist.

Izuku turned to her, following her gaze to see Katsuki sitting on one of the couches in the corner of the room, "You knew he was gonna pass. This part of the test was combat-based."

"I can still be disappointed. I can also still be hopeful that he'll mess up in the second half."

Tenya raised a brow at her, "I'm beginning to think you hate him more than he hates you."

"You're only just realizing that now?"

Izuku chuckled, his eyes going back to Katsuki. His friends had actually asked about Katsuki's disdain for him, back during summer. He had avoided the question enough to where they eventually dropped it, but it was a topic that he couldn't avoid forever.

No matter how hard he tried to stop it, they were an inevitable bomb waiting to go off. Izuku didn't know when or where, but it would happen eventually.

*BOOM!*

Apparently right now.

Students screamed and yelped as the ground shook beneath them, crashing and rumbling noises barreling in from outside. The row of screens on the far back wall all flickered on, showing the city area from the testing zone crumbling to pieces. Buildings fell, streets cracked, and dust billowed out into the air.

Kyouka deadpanned at her boyfriend, yelling over the overwhelming crashing noises of the collapsing buildings, "Run! By! Psychopaths!"

The intercom above turned on, the announcer's voice blaring through, "Please direct your attention to the screens and gaze upon the ongoing chaos! This is the final round! The last hundred of you will have to prove your worth by going out into the fray and rescuing innocent civilians! You're to act as you would if you had your licenses! It's time to see how you all react to rescue scenarios! Now, you might be wondering, who're you saving? Have a look at these!"

The screen suddenly switched to a large group of nearly fifty children and seniors walking through the wreckage, all scuffed and covered in dust and blood. Kyouka's eyes went wide, turning to her boyfriend, "Holy shit, they've finally lost it. They actually hurt and kidnapped a bunch of kids and old people."

Izuku chuckled, shaking his head, "Not that I'd be surprised anymore, but I think it's actually the 'Help Us Company'."

"That's right, random kid! The H.U.C are hired professionals who play injured civilians during exams like these! They'll be feigning injuries, getting themselves stuck in hard to reach places, and judging your performances! You have five minutes to prepare yourselves! Good luck!"

The intercom switched off, and everyone began talking amongst themselves. Some strategizing, some panicking because their quirks weren't suited for rescue scenarios.

Izuku looked over to Kyouka, "You find them…"

Kyouka smirked back, "You lift all the wreckage."

They fist-bumped, getting up from the table. Momo looked around at all of her friends as they followed suit, talking over the overwhelming voices of all the remaining examinees. "We should all pair up again. This time it's not about fighting, and some of our quirks may compliment each other in terms of rescue and debris maneuvering."

"Agreed," Tenya nodded. "Shoto, perhaps we ca— And he's gone."

They all looked back at where Shoto had been sitting, finding his seat suddenly empty. Kyouka patted Tenya's shoulder, shaking her head, "Can't reign in a lone wolf, buddy."

"He'll be fine," Momo sighed. "Just stick with us, Tenya. Your quirk will significantly reduce the amount of fat I would need on transporting civilians. Let's just take solace in the fact that the fighting is over."

The couple both cringed as they shared a look with each other, with Kyouka sighing at Momo, "You jinxed it."

"Hm? What do you-?"

*CRASH!*

Near the edge of the City Zone of the arena was an explosion, launching more debris into the air. The intercom turned back on, the announcer coming back, "Oh yeah, we forgot to mention! Terrorists have launched an attack in the city!"

Momo blinked a couple times, turning to the couple as the walls of the break room began to hum, each one falling down to release the students back onto the battlefield, "...This happens a lot to you two, doesn't it?"

"You learned to live with it," Kyouka sighed, picking up her Boombox from the table.

Everyone charged back into action, running for the City Zone to assess the chaos.

Camie hung back for a moment, watching everyone run ahead. Her eyes locked on to Izuku and Kyouka, running headlong into the fray without any hesitation. She had originally planned to leave at that point. She got what she needed, heard what she wanted to hear. But…

~"Nobody should be treated badly for the way they're born. I think you'll make a great hero."~

~"It's great that you want to fight back against the ignorance in the world."~

She was pretending to be a hero today. Might as well commit to the bit, right? She had taken the place of this girl because she seemed like the most fun person to play. The least she could do was pass the test for her…

Camie shrugged, taking another swig from her flask and following the rest of the examinees.

It was extremely similar to Ground Beta at UA, but on a much smaller scale. Different groups split off into the broken concrete jungle, starting the scavenger hunt for all of the injured victims. Once they reached the edge of the fallen debris, Kyouka stopped, kneeling down to the ground.

Even with her drastic increase in power, Izuku was the combat expert between them. Although they had been training together for quite a while, he had direct teachings from both All Might before going to UA, and Gran Torino.

But, Search and Rescue was always going to be her advantage in their Duo. This was the kind of stuff her quirk was perfect for.

Kyouka plugged her jacks into the ground, scanning the area for heartbeats, specifically the ones at lower speeds. These were all actors, and based on that last kid none of them were actually panicked, so their hearts had to be far calmer than stressed out Heroes-In-Training. She also needed to drown out any footsteps, honing in on the rhythmic patterns of blood pumping.

She pointed at where two collapsed buildings had made an archway, a sunken pit of rubble behind it. "There's people over there, all stuck under rocks. Ochako, that's all you."

"Gotcha!" She nodded, taking off into the chaos.

"Tenya, the freeway is still mostly clear, but there's a car pile at the end."

He nodded, turning to Momo, "Could you make me something that makes carrying citizens to the medical station easier?"

"Of course. Let's go. Once we're done, we'll head back over to Ochako." Momo quickly created skates to attach to the bottoms of her shoes, grabbing onto Tenya's shoulder before looking back at the couple. "Good luck, you two."

They wished her the same as they took off, leaving the Duo to themselves. Kyouka nodded towards another open area, past a dilapidated plaza. "There's some activity over there. C'mon."

They ran over the rock and dust covered bricks, everywhere looking the same with all the destruction. Suddenly, they heard crying. A child emerged from the dust clouds, coming around the corner of a massive pile of broken concrete. His clothes were covered in dirt, a trail of blood dripping down from his forehead.

"Help! Somebody help! My grandpa's stuck! He's getting crushed!"

They rushed over to the boy, with Izuku looking him over, "That looks bad. C'mon, let's ge-"

"What the hell was that?!" The kid suddenly switched demeanors instantly, suddenly aggressive as he glared at Izuku. His voice got deeper too, which made everyone realize these weren't even actual children. "Really?! 'That looks bad'? You would say that to an injured kid in a crisis? You didn't notice my shaky breath and all the blood on my head! Hell, you didn't even ask if I could walk! Points deducted!"

Izuku felt like he had been slapped, stuttering for a reply as he regained his focus, "Wh-? I-I-?!"

Kyouka nudged him a little, "C'mon, you got this. Where's my overly-optimistic boyfriend?"

"Kyouka, you know more than anybody that my undying optimism is also a self-defense mechanism for my scathing self-negativity."

"Yeah, well it's gonna be even worse if you fail the test."

Izuku nodded, slapping his own face before brightly smiling and kneeling down to comfort the civilian, "Don't you worry, we'll save your grandpa. That cut on your head isn't deep, you'll be fixed in no time. Could you point us in the direction of your grandpa?"

"...Mm, that's better. He's under some rocks just around the corner."

"Ok, I'll be right back," Izuku reached into one of his belt pouches, pulling out some bandages. "Kyouka, can you wrap him up?I'll go get his grandpa and take them to the medical zone."

"I've got it. I can hear more people over there too, so be on the lookout," Kyouka nodded, taking the bandages from him and unraveling the roll. Izuku was gone in the blink of an eye, with Kyouka beginning to wrap the boy's head.

*BOOM!*

Kyouka flinched at the noise in the distance, hearing Bakugou's voice screaming crassly in the distance. Maybe this was what she was waiting for, because there was no way that he was gonna be nice to any civilians. He was gonna get so many points deducted.

She finished wrapping the kid's head, but she noticed him also flinching at the explosions.

"Pretty scary, isn't it? Here," Kyouka took off her headphones, gently putting it over his ears. "Just turn on a little noise-canceling, and…"

"Hm…Not bad. Some calming music might be a little better, but this works too. Bonus points."

"I'm back!" Izuku suddenly appeared, multiple injured civilians riding on his back. Kyouka couldn't help but smirk. If only he could see himself right now. He looked just like All Might with all those people on his back. "I've got your grandpa, he's on top. Do you wanna take a ride?"

"...Are you fast?"

"The fun kind of fast."

"Yeah!" The kid climbed up Izuku, settling on top of everyone and pointing forward. "Charge!"

Izuku chuckled, looking over to Kyouka, "I'll be right back. I'll make sure to bring your headphones too."

She watched him zip off, keeping it at a safe enough speed to where nobody was falling off. She could kinda understand what little Izuku felt all those years ago now. This was just a test, none of those people were actually hurt or in danger, but she just loved to watch him do what he loved. Izuku was born for this.

Admittedly, her insecurities did bubble up again. Not due to her body, but…

Kyouka looked down at her hand, allowing a couple tiny sparks of violet to flicker across her palm. She really did have a lot to live up to. Neither Izuku or All Might had said it, and she doubted the thought even crossed their minds. They would never pressure her, but expectations were very high.

Izuku was joking back during their training on the rooftop, but it wasn't a lie that AMP was aiming for Number One. Her mindset was still just as a student, which wasn't wrong to have.

But, even if just for today, she needed to think about her future beyond getting her license.

She knelt down, plugging her jacks into the ground once more.

~...AMP…~

(Medical Evac Zone)

Izuku put the last of the people he was carrying on a cot. The area was pretty simple, only being a large number of beds, some rolling medicine cabinets, IV bags, etc. But, despite all of the civilians not actually being injured, whoever they got to play the nurse was deadly serious about her role, not breaking once.

He weaved through the people lying down on cots, some of them really committing and continuing to moan in faux pain. He found the boy from before, kneeling down to his level. "You and your grandpa are gonna be okay, you'll be taken care of. I've gotta get back out there, so can I get my partner's headphones back?"

The boy looked over Izuku's shoulder, his brows going up, a little impressed, "She can get 'em herself."

Izuku furrowed his brow, turning back to see Kyouka approaching the evac zone, two people on her back. She grunted as she did her best to slowly lower them down onto a bed, the nurse rushing over to them.

Once they were both off of her back and settled on a cot, Kyouka put her hands on her knees, groaning to herself, "Oh, fucking hell. People are so much heavier than they look."

"Kyouka!" Izuku was next to her in an instant, smiling as he put his hands on her arms, holding her up. "Did I take too long?"

"No, no I…Hah, you know, just…Hah, trying to pull my weight. But, I couldn't use 'You Know What', so I couldn't carry as many people."

"That's still incredible," he chuckled. "You're pulling your weight plenty. I can do the grunt work."

"Can't just sit back, right? We're partners."

"Mhmhm, always. It's definitely impressive seeing a one-hundred-fifty-two woman carrying two people on her back."

"Okay, first of all, I'm at least one-hundred-fifty-seven centimeters now. Second, you don't have to announce to the world that I'm short."

"Hmhmhm, not exactly tall myself. C'mon, let's-"

*BOOM!*

The intercom switched back on, blaring across the battlefield, "What's this?! The terrorists are back!"

All of the TVs in the evac zone turned on, showing a part of the testing zone deeper in the city. A horde of minions began piling out over the masses of rubble, with thundering footsteps following behind them. Standing tall above them all was the hero Izuku recognized instantly; the Number Ten Hero- Gang Orca.

~...AMP…~

"You've gotta be kidding me," Aizawa shook his head, leaning forward in his seat as he watched Gang Orca move further into the City Zone. "They're doing all this for Provisional Licenses?"

Emi turned to him, a brow raised, "Pfft, I figured you'd be all for pushing students beyond their limits, Eraser."

"These are first and second-years. Search and Rescue during a villain attack is tough for experienced Pros, much less students."

"They're looking for the next All Might," Hisashi cut in as he watched his son on the battlefield, gaining both Aizawa and Emi's attention. "The HPSC, well…We're basically the biggest All Might fans in the world. Not like Izuku or myself, but I mean he was their Golden Boy. He was everything they could've ever wanted. Powerful enough to stop thousands of crimes by himself, stop the biggest villains, and oozed so much charisma and charm that he won over not just Japan, but the entire world. He was more or less their "Auto Mode". They're desperate for that kind of hero to come along, so they're doing everything they can to get the best of the best. I don't agree with putting that kind of pressure on teenagers, but even with my solid position in the political food chain, my opinion isn't what matters."

Emi peeked over the blinder between her and Aizawa's seat, a brow raised, "They can't expect to find a guy like All Might that soon. Even the gap between him and Endeavor is a few oceans at least…Don't tell him I said that though."

"Oh, they certainly don't expect it. But, I suppose it never hurts to try. Well, it never hurts them. The students? Uh…They all signed contracts, so the HPSC can't get sued."

"Mm, I guess I never thought about the vacuum All Might would leave behind. He felt like he'd be around forever. I love the big guy, but he made shoes too big to fill."

"Eh, well…" Hisashi shrugged, seeing a green streak of light race across the cityscape. "...Probably not as big as you'd think."

~...AMP…~

(City Zone: Downtown Crossing)

Tenya came back to his group, a large, rolling gurney still attached to his armor. Momo was crouched down behind a broken pillar, stuffing her face with energy bars, and Ochako grunted as she released a large chunk of building from her quirk's grasp once Shouji had pulled out the civilians behind it.

Momo got up with a sigh, "They villains are on their way. Tenya, I need you to run a quick sweep of the area. We have to make sure every civilian is out of here before things get uglier."

"Hold up!" They all looked up, seeing Izuku and Kyouka jump down from a rubble pile and land down next to them in a flash of cyan light, with the former holding his girlfriend by the waist. They separated, allowing Kyouka to plug her jacks into the ground and listen in. "There are still some slow-moving and unmoving people scattered around, but they're far enough away. As long as we can keep the fight in this area, that is."

.

"Tell everyone you find from our class to help with the evacuation. We need more people on search-and-rescue than fighting. If you find Kacchan, uh…He'll find the action himself. If you find Shoto, tell him to block off the area with ice, keep the villains contained." Izuku clenched his fists as he began walking towards the chaos, a smile on his face, cyan lightning sparking off of his white armor, "We'll handle Gang Orca."

Kyouka whistled as she followed Izuku and whispered to herself, "Damn, that's hot…"

"Kyouka, be ready. Gang Orca uses soundwaves to paralyze his opponents."

She nodded, one of her jacks reaching back and plugging into the Boombox, the other listening closely for any specific vibrations patterns coming from Gang Orca. "Same treatment for him as Shindo, got it. Ah, the perks of an encyclopedia boyfriend. The fact that you just know that offhand is still insane to me."

"You hear him?"

"Mhm, just down the street, and approaching fast. I think I can take out his minions pretty quickly, so you can focus on the big guy himself."

"Perfect. Let's go!"

"Wait!" Momo quickly stopped them. "Gang Orca is in the top ten, correct? Do you really think you can beat him?"

Izuku shrugged, smiling sheepishly, "Honestly, I don't know. But, all we need to do is hold him off until everyone is safe. We've done that before."

"...You broke both of your arms doing that."

"I-I…Y-Yeah, but I won't have to do that this time…Probably."

Kyouka shook her head, ruffling Izuku's hair, "Translation: He's better than he was before. We both are. We've got this."

"Yeah, what she said." They took off before Momo could protest, leaping over the rubble to a more open area clear of fallen buildings.

There was only mostly uneven concrete and scattered debris from the main city location. There was no cover, but at least it was an even playing field. Izuku also knew Gang Orca's powers worked best in water, so this was about as bad a setting he could get. That didn't mean he would underestimate him though. He had seen videos of him in action plenty of times, he was still powerful on land.

Gang Orca was stomping forward, his minions all ahead of him like a protective wall. He looked up, seeing the two students up ahead, standing in his way.

"Just the two of you?" Gang Orca squinted at them as he readjusted the sleeves of his suit. "How overconfident…"

"Dozens of people have been hurt today because of you," Izuku put on a smile, sparking flying around him, Equalizer in hand.

"You're not setting another foot in this city," Kyouka continued, Boombox at the ready.

Finally, they said together, "You've gone too far, and now you've gotta deal with us!"

…Yeah, they needed to work on it. Kind of gave them a Team Rocket vibe.

Gang Orca hummed to himself, "Hm, a Hero Duo? I'll admit, that's quite interesting. It's rare to see one so young. It's almost sad to crush the life out of you…"

Kyouka's world slowed to a crawl as she watched Gang Orca's muscles flex, his right leg coming forward and his left heel lifting up off the ground. If Kyouka hadn't seen Muscular in action, she might've thought Gang Orca's massive frame meant he was a slower brawler. Sure, there was All Might, but she probably would've considered him an outlier.

However, after facing both of them, she was ready.

Gang Orca shot forward in damn near the blink of an eye, his intimidating form towering over the teens and covering them in shadow. His piercing red eyes shot wide open, and Kyouka instantly sensed the vibration patterns in the air begin to change.

Izuku quickly back-stepped as Kyouka's jacks instantly clicked into her hand speakers. She had no time to tune her gear to match the frequency, so she had to settle for overpowering and interfering with it.

She threw both fists out, soundwaves blasting Gang Orca and shaking the ground around them. He grunted from the impact, the sharp noise and intense pressure pushing him back a little.

Gang Orca was shocked to see Izuku unaffected by his soundwaves, the Hero-In-Training arcing forward in a bright bolt of light. The Pro crossed his arms over his body to block the kick. Izuku unleashed his energy through his foot, sending Gang Orca skidding back across the concrete. "Hm, that's a first."

"Yeah, sorry…" Kyouka smirked, her hand speakers placed on the ground. "Sound's my thing."

Like a spike piercing ice, cracks snaked their way across the battlefield and toward Gang Orca and his men. Soundwaves pulsed throughout the rock underneath, exploding debris from the ground and scattering all of the goons, throwing them all in different directions.

However, Gang Orca stood his ground. While perhaps a bit unbalanced, he remained in the same position and stoic expression unchanged. He had stood his ground against Tsunami-level waves before, so it would take a little more to knock him down.

Izuku shot forward, the Boombox in a wide diagonal swing from below. Gang Orca grabbed the hammer mid-swing, his other hand reaching for Izuku's face. But, coils between the speakers on the Boombox suddenly began to glow cyan, Izuku's arms matching the light.

Energy exploded out of the hammer, Gang Orca grunting as he was pushed back once again. He let go of the hammer, sighing as he shook his hand. "...You're holding back."

Izuku faltered before he could attack again, brow furrowed, "Wh-...What?"

"You're merely pushing me back. I understand the reluctance, and I admire it. I may be a hero in real life…" Gang Orca rushed forward, grabbing Izuku's face and slamming him into the ground. "But, you are to attack me as if I was a true threat! Do you not think I can take it?!"

Kyouka hissed in sympathy as she watched her boyfriend's face make a crater in the concrete. She rushed at them, ready to help. However, concrete hit Kyouka directly in her side, trapping her arm and left jack underneath.

One of the Orca minions had jumped out from behind a broken chunk of rock, laughing as he blew the smoke away from the barrel of his arm cannon, "Ha, that's pure cement, with a little fast solidifying agent. You're not going-!"

"Graah!" Kyouka vibrated her trapped jack, pumping just a little One For All through them. The concrete on Kyouka suddenly exploded into hundreds of tiny pieces, freeing her instantly.

"-...anywhere...Huh."

Kyouka vibrated the Equalizer with as much intensity as she could pulse out, throwing it out in front of her. With one jack plugged in and the other wrapped around the weapon handle, extended her jacks, swinging it around and bashing into any Gang Orca members closing in on her.

She ended her barrage by throwing the Equalizer right at Gang Orca's head.

…Who merely grabbed out of mid-air.

But, it was still a decent enough distraction.

Izuku flung the Boombox back towards Kyouka, his other hand grabbing onto Gang Orca's arm and pulsing out a large bust of excess power. Gang Orca had no choice but to let go, allowing Izuku to fire another burst out of his back, launching him up into the air. He focused his energy into his leg, the golden bolts glowing brightly as he came back down, flipping forward into an axe kick.

"Manchester Smash!"

He landed a direct hit onto Gang Orca's head, but the hero was extremely tough. 15% Full Cowl certainly hurt him, but only for a small window of time. Izuku shot his hands forward, firing another pulse of energy to not only hit Gang Orca again, but to send him skidding back across the concrete.

He made it back to Kyouka, blood dripping from his nose due to Gang Orca's attack, her jacks already plugged into the Boombox. "You ready?"

"Waitin' on you, babe!"

Izuku nodded as he placed his hands on both sides of the Boombox, surging his energy into the weapon. They conducted through the wires, just as Mei designed it to, and Kyouka cranked up the volume.

"Tesla Orchestra 2.0!" Kyouka paused at the name, raising a brow at him. "...It's more fitting now than when you used it the first time."

"I-...Hm, true."

She began to play sound through the Boombox, soundwaves shaking the earth beneath them. Izuku's energy was captured between the soundwaves, firing out with each pulse of the beat, slamming into Gang Orca and sending him back. This time, he was finally knocked to the ground, shaking from the electric shock and intense pressure.

Kyouka unplugged from her weapon. While they were supposed to treat this as if it was a real villain attack, she didn't wanna make the guy deaf. A short blast would do.

Gang Orca groaned as he got back up, a claw digging in one of his ear holes. "Impressive. You're not wrong to focus on the Big Bad, and you've done well in holding me back. However, you seem to have forgotten something…"

Kyouka furrowed her brow, her eyes widening as her jacks picked up dozens of receding footsteps. "Crap…"

They turned back, seeing most of Gang Orca's minions had gotten back up and were heading straight for the city.

"Like I said, just the two of you coming to face me is very overconfident. You cannot manage everything at on-"

*FWOOOSH!*

A massive wall of fire suddenly erupted in front of the minions just before they could reach the city, rising high above the rubble and blocking them off from entering. To the far left was Shoto, an inferno from his left side, and to the far right was Inasa standing on a broken building, using his quirk to raise the flames higher into the sky.

Izuku sighed in relief, smiling at the sight of his friend and Inasa working together. "Technically I only planned half of that, but this is even better."

"Now that's a sick album cover," Kyouka smiled, the wall of fire shining in her eyes. Her jacks suddenly perked up again, eyes widening. "Uh-oh…"

Gang Orca took the distraction as an opportunity, slamming his fist directly into Izuku's stomach, grabbing his leg and swinging him directly into Kyouka. The couple was sent flying back in a tumbleweed of limbs, the side of Kyouka's hand getting a small cut from the edge of a rock.

Kyouka groaned as she landed flat on her back, Izuku on top of her. She lifted her head up, seeing Gang Orca on them again in an instant, sharp teeth bared and fist pulled back. He punched down directly onto the duo.

Yet, he only hit the ground.

"Hm?" He lifted his fist up, seeing only a couple flickers of dissipating cyan and violet light. He turned back around, seeing the couple both on their feet again.

Kyouka vibrated the Equalizer, slamming it into the ground. "Let's finish this!"

Izuku ran to the Boombox in a burst of light, sliding to grab it and transforming it back to its hammer state. His legs glowed bright, energy crackling as he used it to launch him high up in the air. Gang Orca rushed forward, taking his liter of water out from his suit jacket. He downed the bottle, shooting water out of his blowhole at extreme pressure, practically becoming a canon.

Izuku spun around in the air, his body upside-down, kicking both his feet up towards the sky. The force of his kick launched him back down towards the ground, the Boombox swung up over his head, dodging the blast of water.

"Thunderstruck!"

Like a hammer striking a nail, Izuku slammed the Boombox down on the hilt of the Equalizer. An overwhelming ringing emitted throughout the entire battlefield, the ground beneath their feet shook violently and split open in every direction. Gang Orca and any nearby minions were blown away by the shockwave, taking them down in one swift move.

~...AMP…~

"You're makin' me miss all the damn action!" Katsuki yelled back at Kirishima, climbing up on a chunk of a broken bank replica.

Kirishima shook his head with a sigh as he followed after him. Kaminari had left a while back after meeting up with Mina and Sero, deciding that he had taken enough insults for one day. "The goal is to save people, bro. We had to help. Well, I had to help. All you did was scream at them."

Katsuki didn't even turn to look at him before yelling, "That kid was just scratched! He could walk to the evac zone and leave me to do my job. His voice wasn't shaky, he was on both feet, and there was barely any fake blood on him. He can walk, can't he?!"

"...You never even looked at him. How'd you know all that?"

"Just c'mon. I'm gonna go fight the terrorists either way, so are you gonna go help with the evacuation, or are you gonna see some action?"

They reached the end of the debris, finally overseeing the rest of the battlefield. Kirishima's eyes widened, a smirk on his lips, "Looks like we already missed it. Should've known it would be those two."

Katsuki scowled as he watched as the dust cleared away in the distance, Izuku in the center of it all. The wind blew past him, cyan sparks dissipating around him, a wide smile on his face, ready for more as Gang Orca got back up.

That nerd had gotten so much stronger since their fight at the Sports Festival. A fight Katsuki had barely won in the first place. He had improved since then too, of course. His level of performance from the beginning of the first semester to now was a night and day difference.

…But, Deku was at an unmatchable pace.

He hadn't seen him fight since their trek to the Pussycats lodge, against the earth beasts. His speed and power were unrecognizable from the festival, blowing through the earth beasts in a flash of cyan light.

He had beaten that Muscular guy. Sure, he broke his arms, but that kind of made it even more of a testament to what he had done. Katsuki couldn't help himself, he had looked into that villain. He was no fucking joke, that was for sure.

Izuku was the guy who saved the entire camp from a guy like that, while he was the guy that got kidnapped and put All Might in the fight that led to his retirement.

He watched Izuku rip the Equalizer out of the ground, tossing it behind him, Kyouka catching it and standing next to him.

Then, there was her…

Even with Deku's mysteriously appearing quirk, Earlobes was the real reason he changed. Bastard could barely form a sentence until she came along. She pushed Katsuki as far away as possible, ensuring he couldn't get in the way of Izuku's progress. Not that he wanted to talk to them in the first place, but she was a damn repellent.

It wasn't that he didn't get it. The past was none of her business, but she…Ugh, loved that nerd, or whatever.

She was Deku's never-ending battery pack, keeping him going at all times. Whatever the secret about his quirk was, she knew. She had to. But, there was no way he was gonna get any information out of her. Not a chance.

Before, she didn't like him. Then, she hated him. Now, Katsuki thought that if he was drowning, she'd toss him a cinder block.

His only option was Deku himself. He needed to get to the bottom of this.

He needed this to end…

*BZZZT!*

"Every civilian has been rescued from the battlefield! I hereby declare this test: OVER!"

~...AMP…~

Camie sat perched on the corner of a toppled over building, one leg to her chest and the other one dangling over the edge. She had saved some people, played her part. It was…weird. Really, really weird, but…

Kinda fun, in a way.

She watched as everyone began to head back to the stadium exits, ready to change out of the costumes and wait for the test results. She gazed down at the battlefield where Izu-kun and Kyou-kun had their fight.

When the buzzer had rang, Kyouka instantly dropped her weapon and practically fell into Izuku's chest, from both exhaustion and joy. He had chuckled, his arm around her as they followed everyone else out of the testing arena.

They were just so cute. Even when they didn't realize it, their love was on full display. Throughout the entire test, she had watched their eyes. Nothing but admiration and affection ever left their expressions when looking at one another.

Camie was jealous, she knew that. She wanted that so badly.

But, patience is a virtue.

She hopped down from the building, skipping across the concrete plains until she found the crater Izuku's face had been slammed into. She crouched down, smiling wide, "Ah, there you are…"

She reached inside of her jumpsuit, pulling out a small syringe and a glass vial. She uncapped the syringe, taking in the blood that hadn't dried up. It wasn't much, it probably couldn't even fill a teaspoon. But, just a little could take her a long way.

She got up, humming a song to herself as she replayed the fight in her mind, following Kyouka's footsteps to see if there was anywhere some blood could be found. Her eyes instantly locked onto some red, her face lighting up as she got on her knees, looking close at the sharp edge of a rock. She took out a second vial, letting the few drops stain the inside of the glass red.

There was still a chance that was also Izuku's blood, but what else could she do? She'd take what she could get.

Camie sighed dreamily as she swirled the two vials in her fingers, skipping back to the locker rooms to get changed.

Today was a good day.

~...AMP…~

(Twenty Minutes Later: National Takoba Arena)

"They're doing this on purpose. They know the wait is the worst part," Kyouka tapped her foot, arms crossed across her stomach.

All of the examinees had changed back into their respective school uniforms. They stood on the original platform the test had started on, waiting in front of the large stage and screen for the test results to be revealed. Anxious chattering filled the air, nerves a wreck as time ticked by.

"Agreed," Ochako nodded, having not been able to stand still since she got back out there.

Momo put her hand on Kyouka's shoulder, "As long as you tried your best."

"We passed." They turned to Izuku, determination in his eyes as he smiled confidently at Kyouka. "I know we did."

Kyouka looked down, seeing Izuku's thumb rub over the scar on the side of his hand. She instantly knew he was just as nervous as they were, if not more. Outside of Izuku's typical anxiety, this was extremely important to him.

Obviously it was important to her, too. It was to every examinee, but getting their licenses was even more crucial for the two of them.

But, above all else, this was a day Izuku had been waiting his entire life for. Even if it was just a provisional license, the mere idea of having a Hero License at all was something Izuku had thought impossible a year ago.

Kyouka took Izuku's hand in her own, smiling back up at him, "Yeah, you're right. No need to be nerv-"

"Time for the test results," Mera announced from the podium.

Izuku's eyes instantly locked onto the screen, his whole body locking up. Kyouka chuckled, clutching his hand back just as hard, "Okay, a little nervous."

Mera leaned against the podium, still barely able to keep himself awake. "We graded you on multiple factors, but the most important thing was seeing how well and fast you all acted in times of intense pressure and crisis. You'll be receiving test sheets with your scores and critiques on your performance. Everyone who passed will need to follow the attendant back in the front lobby so you can get your photos taken for the licenses. Everyone who failed, you'll be able to take a three-month remedial course, and then you'll be able to take a new test for your licenses. Hero Duos, AKA the only one here, you'll be given a third test sheet for an overall performance, and you'll receive Duo licenses along with your personal ones."

The jumbotron up above Mira turned on, showing multiple columns of names in alphabetical order. Izuku's eyes instantly began running through the names, scanning down the list at record speed.

[Jirou, Kyouka]

His heart soared at the sight. He felt Kyouka squeeze his arm, meaning she saw her own name too. But, being a Duo, it meant one couldn't pass the test without the other. Which meant…

[Midoriya, Izuku]

Izuku sighed in relief, grinning widely as Kyouka's jacks wrapped around his torso. "We did it. It wasn't that I felt we did bad in any capacity, but the criteria for the second-half of the exam was so vague, and we did get try to fight the villain all alone and Gang Orca's side-kicks almost got into-"

His rambling was cut off as Kyouka grabbed his chin, directing his gaze from the screen back to her, "...We did it. We all did, actually."

Kyouka nodded back at the screen, signaling for Izuku to read more of the names. He found almost his entire class, but the names he was looking for stood out to him the most.

[Uraraka, Ochako]

[Iida, Tenya]

[Yaoyorozu, Momo]

[Todoroki, Shoto]

"Wait, wait, hold on…" Kyouka's eyes widened, her heart beating faster as she realized she couldn't find a certain someone's name. A beaming smile grew on her face as she looked around in the crowd, finding Katsuki lividely staring up at the screen, his eye twitching and fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white. "Ahahahaha! Yes!"

Izuku cleared his throat as Kyouka's excitement garnered the attention of some of the other students, pulling her in and whispering, "K-Kyouka, c'mon. We shouldn't cheer for him failing."

Kyouka raised a brow at him, poking a jack into his chest, "He preyed on your downfall for over a decade. I'd bet a billion yen that he failed because he was a dick to the citizens. He deserves this, plain and simple."

"I'm not saying he doesn't. A failure is a failure, I just…Let's just keep this about us and our friends. That's more important. Mostly, that is. I can see you're practically buzzing over this, but you can celebrate his failure at the dorms."

Kyouka sighed, "Fine, you're right…"

"...It is a little funny, though."

"It's so damn funny," Kyouka cackled.

Her laugh was infectious, so Izuku couldn't help but chuckle a little himself. He never exactly wanted to see Katsuki fail. He didn't want anyone from his class to fail, praying on someone's downfall just wasn't in his nature…

However…

Deep down, it did feel maybe just a teeny-tiny bit satisfying.

"Todoroki!" They turned, seeing Inasa appear from the crowd and approach their friend group. He stood directly across from Shoto, arms locked to his sides, slamming his head onto the floor, "I am sorry!"

Shoto blinked a couple times as Inana kept his head on the ground, likely waiting for him to respond. "It's fine, really."

"No, you were right." Inasa stood back up, his forehead scuffed from his intense apology. "My behavior before was everything I stood against. I need to be better than those I hate, not act just like them…Oh, and you're not one of those people that I hate. Anymore, that is. I guess I'm more like my old man than I wanted."

While Shoto still remained his stoic-self, he nodded, "I was too, for a while. I'm still not someone that-...I just had some help, is all. Figured you needed some too."

"Guess so. You know, we wanted to be better than our dads, but that's a pretty low bar to go over. Don't know why I didn't see that before. Anyway, I'll see ya around! Plus Ultra, everyone!"

He disappeared back into the crowd, going back to his classmates with a wide, only a little crazy smile on his face.

Kyouka shook her head as she watched him vanish, "That guy is…weird."

"Weird is good though, right?" The couple spun around, finding Camie smiling at them, balancing back on her heels. "That's what you said in the break room."

"True, you've got me there," Kyouka shrugged.

"I saw your name up there," Izuku smiled at Camie. "Congratulations."

"I know, right?! We all passed! Totes exciting! Oooh, and I know the perfect way to celebraaate~..."

"Pass," Kyouka quickly cut her off, already seeing where this was headed. "We're, uh…extremely flattered, but we've gotta pass on that."

"Awww…" Camie pouted, turning around with a sigh. "That's fine. I'll have a better sales pitch next time, you'll see!"

"Wait, next ti-"

"Byeee!~" Camie skipped away, heading back to her class, leaving the couple just as confused as they were in the break room.

Kyouka furrowed her brow, her jacks perking up. The way she was skipping, barely making any noise whatsoever, close to gliding across the ground. It kind of sounded like—

"Uh…" They turned back, Kyouka's thoughts interrupted as she saw their friends looking at them quizzically, with Ochako asking, "Wh-...What exactly was she offering?"

"Nothing! Nothing at all! Right, Izuk— And he's a million miles away." Kyouka deadpanned at her boyfriend, whose face was completely devoid of all thought, his brain once again shattered from Camie's offer.

Kyouka's jack poked his side, shocking Izuku out of it, "A-! Ahem! I-It was nothing, just something we talked about when we met her a while ago. C'mon, we should all go get in line for our photos."

They seemed to just accept that answer, moving on and making their way to the arena exit. Izuku put his hand on Kyouka's arm, brow raised, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I…I'm probably going crazy, but…Do you remember that girl from the camp attack? The blonde girl that was following us on the way to school? I remember she was skipping when following us, barely even audible. Camie skips just like that."

"Hmm…That's…" Izuku's own brow furrowed, his memory of fighting her in the forest coming to the forefront. "Toga…"

"Yeah, that was her."

Toga was a strange kind of crazy. She seemed to take a keen interest in them back at camp. She was extremely bubbly, wide-eyed, eccentric…

"Camie and Toga…They kind of act similar…"

"...Yeah," Kyouka nodded, her eyebrows knit together in worry.

"I don't remember ever seeing her use her quirk. But, when Ochako was attacked, she said Toga used a syringe and took her-"

"Blood," Kyouka finished for him, eyes going wide. "Oh shit."

They both turned back to where Camie had gone, weaving through the crowd to find the Shiketsu High students. They bumped into students in their rush, apologizing as they went until they found them.

The only student they knew was Inasa, so they instinctively went to him first. Izuku went around him, gaining his attention, "Excuse me, Inasa? I'm sorry to bother you, but have you seen Camie?"

"Sure, she's right…" Inasa turned around, his faltering as he looked around at his classmates. He began counting them off, humming to himself as he realized she was missing. "Huh…She was here a second ago. Ah, I'm sure she's just gone to get her picture or something."

"H-Has she been acting strange today? Anything at all off?"

"I guess, but Camie's always been kinda weird. But, that's okay. I mean, I'm fucking weird, right?!"

The couple shared a glance, with Kyouka just nodding, "Yep, and good on you for embracing that, pal. But, last question. Does her quirk involve blood in any way?"

Inasa was taken aback, brow raised, "Blood?"

They shared another look, with Kyouka merely waving it off, "Nothing. Thanks. Congrats on passing."

They left the confused Inasa, moving back away from most of the other students to give them some space. Kyouka sighed, looking over to Izuku, "This is…probably bad, isn't it."

"...I don't know."

~...AMP…~

(Tokyo: Tartarus Supermax Prison)

Toshinori stared at his faint reflection in the glass, waiting for All For One to be wheeled in on the other side.

Just one conversation. Just one, and he'd never have to see this bastard ever again. He'd slowly wither away, and die in his sleep. A death that was far more peaceful than All For One deserved, but Toshinori would take anything at this point.

They were doing everything they could to put him on Death Row, but not only was the investigation into him still ongoing, but they were struggling to figure out how to kill him. All of their typical methods would prove useless, and it was understandably hard to convince the government to absolutely obliterate a prisoner's body as a killing method.

A buzzer sounded off above him, the metal doors on the other side of the glass lifting up, revealing All For One on the other side. He was completely locked in with electronic bindings and chains, sensors attached to his rolling chair. A dozen armed guards surrounded him, wheeling him in and setting him across from All Might.

One of the guards stepped up to the glass, addressing All Might directly, "Sir, are you certain you want to be left alone?"

All Might nodded, not taking his eyes off of All For One, "I'll be fine. This conversation isn't to be recorded either."

"Of cour-"

"Including the bug you placed on his chair."

The guard faltered, everyone else looking around at each other, unsure of what to do. Eventually, he cleared his throat, nodding his head, "Uh…Yes, sir."

He bent down, reaching under the chair and behind the black, wireless sensor on the bottom of the chair, taking off a small black disk. As he was standing back up, All For One quickly turned towards him, "Boo!"

The guard jumped back, every gun instantly trained on the laughing villain.

"Don't worry, son." All Might sighed. "He can't do anything."

The guard scowled at All For One, taking his leave with the others filing out behind him. Once the door was closed, All For One's laughter subsided, "How'd you know about the bug?"

"Tip from a friend."

"Ah, Tsukauchi! I haven't seen him in a while. I suppose he's also the one making sure the audio on the cameras isn't working either?"

"..."

"Mm, your silence speaks volumes. I'd shake your hand, but…" All For One moved his shoulder around, the empty sleeve of his straightjacket where his now missing arm was supposed to go. "You've robbed me of that."

"Mm. I remember back when you could reattach your limbs at will."

"And, I remember when you could drink alcohol, caffeine, and didn't need to eat ten small meals a day just to keep a normal diet. Nobody's perfect."

Toshinori rolled his eyes, leaning forward in his seat, "I have plans today, so let's just cut the useless fat out of this conversation."

"Aw, but conversing is what I do best. The only person I have to talk to here is myself."

"Well, isn't that lucky? Nobody likes hearing you talk more than yourself."

"Ha! True enough, I suppose. Bested once again. How do you do it, All Might?"

"Enough," Toshinori deadpanned at him. "Every word I speak to you is more painful than you ever put me through physically. I'm here about Shigaraki."

All For One scoffed, shrugging his shoulders as his chains jingled with his movements, "I have no clue where he is. I've been here, and if you don't remember, he's half of the reason I'm in prison to begin with."

"It's not about where he is. You'd never tell me that. But, I know you wouldn't be able to resist gloating about how you found him, what you did to him, how his father died, everything."

"Hm…It would be incredibly satisfying to see your anguish over the whole story, but…Well, that's just no fun at all, is it? Why would I ever tell you? Don't you like mysteries? How about this? I'll tell you, if you tell me who the lovely woman you brought along is?"

Toshinori's glare threatened to burn straight through the glass, his voice low and intense, "You can use your quirks?"

"Mm, nothing fun. With all of my quirks, it disrupts the sensors. In a small way, at least. I can use some of my passive ones. I need to see, don't I? Mm, although, there's not much to see around here. Oh, I can see something very interesting, however. That little sniper you ran around with…" All For One grinned as All Might's fists clenched, cackling to himself, "Oh? Is your heart beating faster? What would your new lady friend think?"

All Might didn't dignify that question, instead standing up and getting closer to the glass to look down on him, "Tomura Shigaraki. Information. Now. Either that, or I get your life support cut."

"...And? That won-"

"Oh, I know it won't kill you. In fact, I'm counting on it. Every second you spend in here will be in agonizing pain, unable to breathe, and I'm assuming pounding headaches from your failing regeneration scrambling to piece together whatever's left of what I destroyed of your brain. No oxygen, no pain relievers, nothing. It would be easy. Do you know how many guards here despise you? Do you know how many probably lost friends and family at Kamino because of you?"

"I'd actually argue it was you who failed to save th-"

"All it would take is one sentence, and they'd do it happily."

All For One eventually sighed, resting back against his chair, "Fine, fine…I guess this is the only way I can participate in the game at this point. I can't tell you much, for obvious reasons. He's probably laying low, gathering his resources as we speak. Unlike yours, my chick has left the nest."

"And, pushed you out of it."

"Mn, you say that as a jab, but I couldn't be more proud. You should be too. If my memory serves correctly, today is the day of the License Exams. That boy is going to need it if he wants to legally go out there and die by Young Tomura's hand."

"That's it? That's your plan? I'm sorry to say, but Young Izuku told me that Shigaraki seemingly doesn't want to kill him."

"His interest in the boy will pass once he realizes your ward will never turn. That's something I've always admired about you. Your immaculate ability to brainwash makes me envious."

Toshinori remained expressionless at that, doing everything to give All For One zero satisfaction from this. "...Why? Just why? Why do you do any of this? Why bother? Your empire is gone, you're slowly withering away, and what would ruling the world even bring you? What satisfaction would you get out of that?"

"Rule the world? Bah, of course you would think so little of me. My reasons aren't human. That's all I can say, really. Would you believe me if I told you I was born this way?"

Toshinori scoffed, "With you? I'd believe anything at this point. Somehow all the good went to your brother."

"Hm? Oh, I wasn't talking about when I was physically born. I meant…Ah, nevermind. Too long and confusing of a story. Time you simply do not have. More questions, please. This is the best entertainment I've had since Kamino."

"...You said he 'came pre-packaged' with hate for me. What do you mean by that?"

"You and the spoilers. It's not my place to give such juicy details away. You know how much I love my dramatic reveals."

"...Kotaro." All Might closed his eyes, sighing as he remembered the little boy that would run around Nana's living room, a wide smile on his face. "...It was him, wasn't it? He hated me after being sent away, didn't he? Instilled it into his son, too."

All For One slowly smiled, chuckling to himself, "Oh, so very close, but you're just not quite there yet. Don't get me wrong, he hated you. Pfft, of course he did. His mother left him, but kept you? Who wouldn't? But, he was still your…eh, 'brother', after all. Things are always a little more complicated than that, right? But, I suppose if you feel that bad about it, you could always just let Tomura kill you. That should even things out."

The speaker above turned on, a guard's voice coming through. "All Might, I'm sorry, but time's almost up."

All Might barely acknowledged that, keeping his gaze on his nemesis. "You said you didn't kill Kotaro. Who did?"

"Hm, I'm surprised you actually believed that."

"Because, I know you would gloat about killing him if you did."

"Ha! Very true, you've got me there. No, I didn't kill him. Honestly, I had no intentions to. He was of no importance to me. If you had gone back to look for him? Sure, but he stayed abandoned, so I just occasionally kept tabs once a year or so to see if you ever came to find him. I suppose you can take solace in Shimura's plan not being entirely worthless. Abandoning him did in fact keep me from killing him."

"So, the idea of my nephew killing me didn't come to you until later?"

"Nephew? Sure, whatever you say. But, yes, much later. I didn't interfere. It was simply a golden opportunity laid at my feet. I was watching the stocks rise and fall, and I found the perfect time to finally invest. I truly haven't lost my touch as a businessman, because his value has skyrocketed through the years. Perhaps he's still a little rough around the edges, but when he kills you all, I'll know I've done a masterful job raising him. Much better than his father, believe me."

Toshinori's scowl deepened even further, his hatred so focused and unwavering that it burned across his entire body. Part of him thought that this whole thing turned out to be a waste of time. Yet, another part of him thought it was everything he needed. All For One didn't have to tell him anything, it didn't matter. He'd find out eventually. This conversation would just make his downfall all the more cathartic.

"...He's not gonna lay a hand on me. He won't kill me, or Young Izuku. I'm going to bring him back from the darkness he's fallen into, that you nurtured. The future you think you're gonna get, the one you want? I'll smash it to bits before your very eyes, leaving you with nothing but your own self-pity until you fade into nothing, forgotten by the world. That's not a promise, it's a guarantee." Toshinori stood up as the metal doors opened behind him, looking down on All For One. "I've seen the future. Believe me when I say they won't let you win."

Toshinori took his leave, hearing All For One chuckling to himself.

"I look forward to meeting them…"

Toshinori walked back out into the hallway, seeing Tsukauchi walk out of the observation deck. He opened his mouth to speak, but Toshinori put his hand up, "I'll save you the trouble. He gave me nothing of any importance."

Tsukuachi sighed, putting his trench coat on, "Yep, I figured. But, I suppose it was worth a shot."

"It was just the same stuff we already knew or could infer. They'll remain in hiding, we'll all die someday, blah-blah-blah."

"Of course. A billion hoops jumped through and a pile of paperwork just for bullshit. Why do I get the feeling that summarizes the coming years for me?"

*Bzzzt*

Toshinori pulled out his phone, a bright smile growing on his face as he opened up his messages, finding pictures of Izuku and Kyouka's Duo license.

"I dunno…The future might be brighter than we think."

~...AMP…~

(National Takoba Arena Bus Lot)

They had gone to get their photos taken, looking everywhere for Camie. But, she was nowhere to be found.

Apparently, she was first in line, took her picture, and left without even waiting for the attendants to make her license.

They told Aizawa all of the information they had, and a part of the couple hoped he thought they were crazy. If he thought they were wrong, then perhaps Camie simply was another Hero-In-Training and this was all just a crazy coincidence.

But, Aizawa took in every word they said, splitting-off some security to sweep the whole building. He kept things vague and didn't announce anything. If there was any way that Toga's possible presence could lead back to Izuku and Kyouka's particular involvement with the League, he wanted to avoid it.

And, of course, they found absolutely nothing.

Camie had vanished without a trace, not even showing up on any security footage.

Aizawa simply told them to go and get their pictures taken, and not to worry about it for the time-being. Mainly because…Well, they couldn't exactly do anything.

They had zero proof that their theory was even correct. Accusing a fellow student of being a villain in disguise was a deadly serious accusation. Not to mention, Izuku and Kyouka weren't exactly strangers to vanishing at random. Camie disappearing didn't mean anything. As far as they knew, something serious had come up and she had to go.

Now, they sat out by the UA bus, waiting for the rest of their classmates to get their licenses.

On a lighter note, they had scored a ninety-one overall. They mainly lost points for Izuku's initial deduction from the kid, and for failing to conduct any form of threat assessment before going in after Gang Orca alone.

They both vehemently disagreed with the last one. Heroes don't have time to assess threat-level when lives are at risk, they jump in to help.

However, it probably wouldn't look good to the parents if they promoted reckless behavior in life or death situations.

Izuku sat on a stone bench, students walking by, chatting excitedly to each other about passing. His eyes scanned over the crowd, hoping to catch a glimpse of Camie, but he knew he wouldn't.

"I could just be crazy," Kyouka shrugged, sitting down next to him. "Skipping isn't some psycho-exclusive form of movement."

"Do people skip like Toga does? Barely even a noise?"

"...Not really. No," Kyouka sighed, resting her face against both of her fists. "I don't really get it though. She didn't hurt anyone, she passed the test, she didn't get any important information about us. If anything, she mostly talked about herself. She seemed to get really personal."

"If she wasn't lying, but…Is it weird that I don't think she was? I guess it's just that everything she said, I could relate to. I understood her. Which, I know that could all just be manipulation, but…If that's truly how her quirk works, then I can see her story being true. It's like Shinso, from the Sports Festival."

"True, but Shinso didn't actually turn to villainy."

"He could've," Izuku sighed, looking down at his hands as he ran his fingers over his scars. "Everyone has their limits. When everyone wants to shove you down into the dirt, some people don't have the strength to pull themselves out of it. Instead, they embrace it. Sometimes…Sometimes you get pushed too far, and you just can't take it anymore."

Kyouka rubbed Izuku's back, her other hand on his leg. It was clear Izuku was referring to himself. They had talked about it back at camp, when speaking about Kota and how anger and rage consumed the boy.

She knew Izuku battled with that kind of anger inside. He had won that battle for over a decade, but he certainly wasn't wrong. Everyone had a breaking point, even someone as pure as Izuku. He had already had his moments where his anger slipped free of his grasp, and she knew how much Izuku despised that part of himself.

"Hey, we shouldn't let her ruin today. We can't do anything else. We'll just have to handle it in due time. Today, all we need to do is celebrate." Kyouka leaned against Izuku, smiling down at his license resting on his leg, "Just take a look at that handsome beast."

Izuku chuckled, looking down at his license. He was a nervous wreck when getting his photo taken. If Kyouka hadn't been there, it probably would've been an awful picture.

When it was his turn, Izuku had looked past the camera, seeing Kyouka waving to get his attention. She mimicked taking a deep breath, and smiling confidently.

…Which meant he looked absolutely crazy. Wide eyes, wobbly and nervous smile, etc.

Izuku breathed in deep, doing everything he could to calm his heart down. It wasn't much, he was just too excited, but it was enough. He had smiled confidently and brightly at the camera just before the flash went off.

"Mn, I dunno," Izuku took Kyouka's hand, raising her own license next to his, "I like that one better."

"Nah, this is the best one." Kyouka slid her copy of their Provisional Hero Duo License out from underneath her individual license, their photos side-by-side on the card. Their joint license was a reflective silver, dark blue accents making up the design, the name 'AMP' boldly in the center, their hero names on the bottom.

"You're right," Izuku grinned, gazing down at the cards and taking it all in. Were they just provisional licenses? Yes. Did they still have a very long way to go until they were actual Pros? Also, yes. But, a year ago he didn't even think he'd make it through the front doors of UA. Not only did he make it through, not only did he pass the entrance exams, not only did he meet the love of his life there (something he also thought was impossible for him), but he made it this far with no sign of stopping. "All this, I…I waited my whole life for moments like these, but to also have this? To be a Duo, to have you, I-...I couldn-"

"Don't you dare say you couldn't have done this without me. I have absolutely no doubt you could've."

"I don't care if I could've, I don't wanna know. That's not how my life went, and I couldn't be happier about that." Izuku stared down at their licenses, still in pure disbelief, a shine in his eyes as a couple tears brimmed on his eyelids. He smiled at her, a shaky chuckle escaping his lips as he put his free arm around her. "...I love you."

Kyouka smiled warmly back, wiping Izuku's eyes while her jacks wrapped around his tie to pull him down to her, "...I love you too."

Their lips connected, pour their lov-

"PDA," Aizawa suddenly appeared in front of them, causing the couple to separate with deep blushes on their faces. "Well done today, Problem Children."

"Thanks, Mr. Aizawa," Izuku smiled up at him, the warmth in his cheeks fading.

Aizawa stepped closer, his voice low, "You're both smart enough to understand the responsibility of that license. As Pros, as a Duo, and for your specific situation. You both fought a Pro in the top ten, and you handled yourselves well. But, that means I'll be expecting even more out of you. I believe our next step should be working on the two of you fighting as a unit. When the time comes, Jirou won't be able to hide her powers. We need to make sure you two know how to fight as one, especially if your strength is a balancing act. Admittedly, both All Might and I don't know much about that. But, we'll work through it. Don't worry about Camie, not today. Just celebrate with your class, you've earned it. We'll resume training on Monday."

Kyouka scoffed, "Well, whaddya know? You do like us."

"I barely tolerate any of you," Aizawa deadpanned, walking away from the couple.

After a short while, the rest of the class made it out of the arena, their licenses in hand. Everyone was ecstatic…except for Katsuki. He had been more or less silent since the test results, glaring at the ground, hands in his pockets.

Everyone was gathered around the bus, mainly talking about how they were going to celebrate. While Momo was saying that she could pay to have food delivered, Izuku glanced through his other classmates, catching Katsuki's eyes as he leaned against the bus.

Their gazes held, neither showing any particular emotion. That was pretty much their only form of communication for quite a long time now. They hadn't really spoken to one another since their random encounter near the dorm staircase, when Katsuki had asked where Izuku said his quirk was from.

That was the only time the blonde had ever questioned it, and he had never brought it up again.

Unfortunately, Izuku had a bad feeling that wouldn't last long…

Aizawa called out to his students, a black car pulling up behind the bus, "Good job, hellions. You exceeded my expectations today. However, you all left me with Ms. Joke and nobody came to save me. My disappointment is immeasurable, and my day is ruined. Especially since I unfortunately have another event to attend tonight, so I need to go. Iida, Yaoyarozu, keep everyone in line on the ride back. However you decide to celebrate, if the building is still standing by morning, you'll have exceeded my expectations again."

Kaminari threw his hands up in exasperation, "Do you ever believe in us?"

"..." Aizawa got into the back of the black van, driving off without a word.

"Alright, everyone!" Tenya gathered everyone's attention. "Let's get on the bus in a calm, orderly, single-filed li-"

Tenya was then practically tackled into the bus by half of the class rushing inside, mainly fighting over who got the window seats. The couple followed their class, heading towards the back of the bus where there were seats left open. Izuku let Kyouka sit down first, looking out the window and into the parking lot.

He perked up as his eyes caught something. A couple rows of cars down, was Hisashi. Just as his father was getting into his car, he looked back up at the bus, meeting his son's gaze. He smiled at Izuku, raising his fist up in victory.

Izuku couldn't help but find that a grin was growing on his lips, watching his father get further away as the bus began its journey back to UA.

Izuku sat down, looking over to Kyouka, only to find her smirking at him. "I might've heard him when he took his seat. He watched the whole thing."

"I-I remember him saying he wanted to come, I just…I didn't think…"

Kyouka just took his hand, leaning her head on his shoulder as they rode away.

~...AMP…~

(Some Time Later: Evening: Tokyo: HPSC Heroes Hall Gala)

It had been quite some time since Toshinori had been here.

Same maroon and gold walls, black ceramic floors, and crimson tablecloths over the dozens of circular tables throughout the hall, and a stage at the very end with a golden backdrop and crimson curtains. It was a massive hall, voices echoing across the room, with a twenty-meter high ceiling. The blood orange sky of the setting sun could be seen through the spherical sunroof up above.

He had Ryuko on his arm, weaving through the crowd to find the UA staff table. They had already done their song and dance with the paparazzi outside, smiling and waving for the cameras. After a billion "No comment"s, they finally made it inside.

He had waved and greeted countless HPSC members he honestly didn't remember the names of. It didn't help that he had absolutely no idea if he could trust a single one of them.

To be completely fair, he highly doubted anyone below the highest tier of the HPSC knew about government-assigned assassins, but one could never be sure.

"Ah, there you are, All Might," Nezu greeted him as he reached their table. Nezu, Aizawa, Kayama, Vlad King, and Present Mic all sat at their table. Some of the other teachers were either at the tables next to them or scattered around mingling. "Are you ready to watch the government try and save face?"

Toshinori scoffed as he pulled out Ryuko's chair for her, "Not really, but a lot of people in need get money and we get free food. So, I suppose I can endure it for a few hours. Not to mention the good company."

Ryuko smiled as Toshinori squeezed her shoulder, sitting down next to her. "And, I suppose enduring it with you is one of the downsides of all this."

"Oh, trust me. There are plenty of downsides to being with me."

"Please stop," Aizawa sighed, deadpanning at the couple. He wore one of his suits that he hated, his hair pulled back into a ponytail. "I already have to deal with the Problem Children. Gimme a break from the romantics."

"Hush, you," Midnight nudged Aizawa with her elbow. "Young love is a beautiful thing. If anything, Midoriya and Jirou's relationship has made them even better heroes."

"Young love? Hmhmhmhm…" Everyone turned to the table next to theirs, seeing Mt. Lady in a sparkling, sky blue gown chuckling to herself, champagne in hand.

Nemuri raised a brow at her, "What's so funny, Takeyama?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing. Just not sure what you would know about young love. How long has it been since you experienced that? Probably fifty years or something, right?"

Nemuri scowled at her, "Excuse me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I should've spoken louder. I forgot you have hearing aids."

Nemuri scoffed, her eyes going wide, "Hearing aids?! I'm only thirty!"

Mt. Lady shrugged, "Thirty-one, but who's counting?"

"That's it!" Nemuri slammed her glass down, her chair screeching as she stood up. "You and me, let's go. We're settling this."

"Fine!" Yuu stood up with her, both of them moving out of the main dining area. The second they hit the hallway, they glanced around to see if anyone was still watching them. Their stomping turned into a quick jog to find the nearest empty room.

Ryuko sighed, getting up from her chair, "I'm no stranger to cat fights. Maybe I should make sure those two don-"

Toshinori took her hand, pulling her back to her chair, "Trust me, you don't wanna go in there. It's not what you think."

The lights suddenly began to dim, an HPSC spokesperson taking the stage to announce the first event, which was likely the auction. Toshinori leaned back, already starting the process of zoning out. He looked around at the different tables, not even seeing any HPSC board members.

Maybe that "Corrupt" stunt really scared them. They almost always showed up to stuff like this.

He didn't know why he was disappointed. It wasn't like he would ever learn anything from them. The board members were probably like Fort Knox, and asking them would make him so suspicious.

He sighed, watching as they rolled out an autographed receipt from a restaurant Fat Gum had eaten at, the paper being nearly three-meters long.

Toshinori just really hoped something interesting happened…

*CRASH!*

The sound of glass shattering echoed from above, a projectile rocketing down into the room and impacting into the table, right in front of Toshinori. Everyone swiveled around, seeing All Might blink a couple times at the bullet hole in front of him.

"...Huh, well, whaddya know?"

"Everybody get down!" Aizawa yelled. Chaos erupted in the room as civilians screamed, tables were flipped over for everyone to take cover. Pixie Bob covered Toshinori with her body as Aizawa and Vlad flipped the table, getting behind it. "Where did the shot come from?"

Nezu merely hummed to himself, not at all panicked. "Based on the trajectory of the bullet, I would say…The Tano Banking building down the street."

"Watch him," Pixie Bob said to Aizawa, nodding towards Toshinori and running out from behind the table.

Toshinori's eyes widened, "Wait, Ryuko! What are y-?!"

Pixie Bob ran towards the stage, her leg bending as the tiled floor began to crack and split open. Dirt and stone began to pile out from underground, all circling around her foot. She extended her leg, a pillar of stone firing out of the ground from under her, launching her like a bullet out through the sky roof.

…Wow. He didn't know she could do that.

He might've lucked out with this one. She was a Search and Rescue hero, and without hesitation she went to face off against a snipe-...

…A sniper.

There was no gunshot, none that could be heard, at least. The bullet had landed right in front of him, lodging itself into the table. He was sitting completely still, so whoever the sniper was must've not been a very good sho-

Toshinori was shaken from his thoughts as his eyes found the bullet hole. Toshinori's eyes went wide, the screaming and panic around him becoming nothing but white noise. He looked around, making sure nobody was paying attention to him. He reached down, pulling out the little ball from the cracked wood, soft to the touch, his heart beating wildly as he stared at the pink and indigo swirl.

He looked up at the sky roof, almost in complete disbelief.

His first thought was wondering how she escaped. His second was that she was wondering why she would shoot at him.

But, his final thought was that he knew her better than anyone. He had seen her hit targets from unimaginable distances with unmatched precision and accuracy.

She never missed. If that was the case, then…

Despite the shock, despite the confusion, despite all of the chaos around him…

He couldn't help but smile.

"What happened?!" The teachers all turned around, finding Midnight and Mt. Lady rushing back to them, both of them looking disheveled with their hair sticking out in different places, smudged lipstick, and Yuu's dress was on backwards.

Present Mic scoffed, "Damn, I didn't think you guys were actually gonna fight."

Aizawa slowly turned to Mic, deadpanning at him, "...You're an idiot."

~...AMP…~

Kaina peered through her scope, her vision lined up between two skyscrapers. She smiled as she watched Toshinori through her scope.

He picked up her bullet, his eyes going wide.

She retracted her rifle back into her arm, her job done. She just had to be sure Toshinori was the one that found the bullet and not anyone else. Kaina did feel bad for interrupting a charity event of all things. But, the HPSC would still pay all the money they promised. Now, it would just be out of their own pocket, instead of the Pros.

Besides, she knew Toshinori hated going to these events anyway, so she figured she'd save him from the boredom.

She pulled out her phone, her text already pre-typed for Kurogiri to send a portal her way. However, things were suddenly growing darker.

The sun hadn't fully set yet, so wha- There was a woman about to land on her.

Kaina fired the grappling hooks around her waist back, pulling herself away just as Ryuko slammed her knee into the gravel, rocks flying everywhere as the roof cracked underneath her. Kaina skidded to a stop, brow raised as she instantly recognized the woman in front of her.

This was the woman apparently dating Toshinori.

…The universe was just rubbing it in her face at this point, wasn't it?

Pixie Bob stood back up and rolled her shoulders back, the gravel across the whole rooftop rumbling beneath her feet, "...You shot at my boyfriend."

Kaina flicked a pebble off of her shoulder, staring emotionless at her, "...No, I didn't. How old are you anyway? Thirty? Shouldn't you go for someone your age?"

"That's none of your busine-! Wh-?! Shut up! Why do you care?!"

Kaina mentally slapped herself, keeping her mouth in check. Not only was that suspicious and unnecessary, but it was incredibly hypocritical saying she was ten years younger than Toshinori. "...Just distracting you, is all."

Kaina's grapple shot behind her again, attaching to the edge of the roof and yanking her back. She backflipped off of the edge, falling down towards the building rooftop just below.

She landed, pulling out her phone and quickly sending a voice message to Kurogiri, "Change of plans! Open a portal at the usual alley! I-...Oh, shit."

Kaina looked up, seeing Pixie-Bob riding on a wave of gravel and concrete, front-flipping and throwing an axe kick into the air. The gravel fired down at Kaina in a massive horde of rock. She quickly aimed her rifle up, boosting the velocity and firing straight through the attack, shattering the rock and leaving a large hole in the center. The remains fell around her, leaving her unscathed.

However, Ryuko wasn't done.

She fell down to the rooftop Kaina was on and brought both fists up, slamming down on impact. The concrete rippled like a whipped towel, sending Kaina up into the air. Kaina used her ascent to her advantage, increasing the velocity of her rifle as she fired, sending her further backward and keeping her off the ground.

Ryuko watched as Kaina went over the edge of the building, grappling the ledge of the roof they were fighting on and the side of the skyscraper next to them. She retracted her hooks as she detached them, firing her down towards the ground.

"No you don't!" Ryuko molded the concrete around her bottom half, manipulating the material to keep her feet connected to the ground beneath her, carrying her over the ledge as if surfing on the building's surface. She looked down at the streets below, following Kaina as she descended to the Earth below.

But, as Kaina dived down, she used her wrist grapple once more, pivoting her body and swinging around the corner of the building.

Ryuko pushed off of the building, jumping towards the corner Kaina disappeared around. She slammed her fingers into the concrete, swinging around to continue the chase.

However, Kaina was ready…

Once she rounded the corner, Kaina was attached to the building by her grappling hooks, rifle at the ready. Ryuko's eyes widened, quickly surrounding herself in concrete as Kaina fired her rifle. The bullets blew right through the material, slamming directly into Ryuko's gut and knocking the wind out of her.

She fell all the way down to the ground, just barely managing to cover her body in the remaining shards of concrete before impact. She landed in a cloud of dust, the road cracking beneath her as cars skidded to a halt, trying not to hit the hero that fell out of the sky like a meteorite.

Ryuko groaned as she pushed herself off of the ground, looking back up to where Kaina had been. But, the sniper was gone without a trace. She looked down, her eyes catching a glimpse of indigo. She reached over, picking up the bullet used on her.

If you could even call it a bullet. It was more of a ball, soft to the touch, clearly not intended for a lethal blow.

Ryuko got back up, apologizing to the drivers as she used her quirk to fix the road, letting them pass. All she had was one question.

"...Who the hell was that?"

~...AMP…~

(A Few Hours Later: Midoriya Family Apartment)

"You should've seen him out there," Hisashi told his wife as he sliced salmon, standing at the kitchen counter while Inko was pouring more vegetables into the broth. "I mean, where the hell did he learn to fight like that? Last time I checked, UA doesn't have a combat program…Wait a minute. Why the hell don't they have a combat program?"

Inko chuckled as she moved over to him, leaning against the countertop, "He trained a lot before the entrance exams. He and Kyouka trained quite regularly too."

"Oh, I can tell. She's way more powerful than I thought she was. She practically shook the entire arena. They fought Gang Orca! He's in the top ten! If they can do that at sixteen, then I think we've got a couple top five contenders on our hands. Hell, maybe even one. They got one of the highest scores out of everyone."

Inko smiled as she watched her husband gush about their son, raising a playful brow, "How would you know his test score?"

Hisashi stopped cutting, a light blush on his cheeks, "A-Ah, you know…I might've pulled a couple strings, got into the grading room. It's not my department, but technically I still rank above them, so…"

Inko chuckled as she leaned up to kiss his cheek, "Careful. Don't wanna be accused of altering your son's grade."

"Ah, c'mon, I can't control that. Besides, he clearly doesn't need that. He performed just fine on his own…Hey, you know, as I was watching him I couldn't help but wonder about something. What do you think about his quir-?"

*Ding-Dong*

Hisashi furrowed his brow, wiping his hands off with a nearby towel as he walked around the kitchen counter and through the living room. "I have a strong feeling we should be worried about any visitors at this hour."

Inko merely sighed, "Just be prepared to go to the nearest hospital."

Hisashi made it to his front door, his eyes widening once he saw his visitor, "All Might?"

Toshinori stood before him, tie undone around his neck, a small pink and indigo ball in hand.

"...I need your help."

~...AMP…~