Ch. 31: Taking the Mantle
After a while of mental preparation and struggling not to gag, Izuku managed to swallow the hair strand and keep it down.
"Good. You swallowed it, yes?" All Might asked.
"Yeah, but I don't feel like anything's different yet," Izuku said.
"Well, of course not. Your body has to process the hair first," All Might explained. "It should kick in after two, maybe three hours."
[I'm starting to wonder if this is all a big sham.]
Izuku chose to ignore Ddraig's thoughts.
"And once it does, that will mean you have officially taken the mantle of becoming my successor," All Might said. "One more thing… I would prefer that you do not use One For All until tomorrow after school. You just received this power. It would be irresponsible of me to let you take it for a test drive without my supervision, after all."
"Makes sense," Izuku nodded.
"Anyways…" All Might then shrunk back to his skinny form. "We'll discuss more of this later. If you have any questions or need help before then, you can talk to me or the Principal."
"Okay, thanks. See you, All Might."
"Take care, young Midoriya," Toshinori called as Izuku ran off.
The next day in the Class 1-A homeroom, the majority of the class had a few questions. Normally, there were 24 desks in the room for the 24 students, but today, there was an extra, 25th desk right behind Tomoe's. This, of course, had pretty much everyone making comments and questions about it.
'So it's our class, huh?' Izuku had a good idea of what the new desk meant.
And then, Aizawa entered the classroom, bringing everyone's chatter to a halt. "Alright, first things first. I'm sure you're all wondering what the new desk is about," Aizawa began with his usual amount of energy. "Put it simply, Class 1-A is getting a new student."
"WHAAAT?!" The majority of the class shouted in surprise, with the supernatural-privy students being somewhat less surprised than the others.
Ignoring the expected outburst from his students, Aizawa turned to the door. "She should be here by now."
The reveal of the new student's gender caught some of the boys' attention, especially Mineta's. The door then opened and a beautiful Italian girl with blue hair that had a green fringe entered the room.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Xenovia Quarta. I'm new to this class, please take good care of me."
The class had varying reactions from amazement to excitement.
'Quarta? Oh yeah, she never mentioned her last name back then.' Izuku thought.
"Our new classmate is a foreign bombshell!" Mineta shouted in excitement. "Must record! Three sizes!"
"Man, we've got another hottie in our class, are we lucky or what?" Denki commented.
"I look forward to getting to know you all, like I already know a few people here: Izuku, Eijiro, Mina, to name a few," Xenovia added, causing nearly everyone else, including Aizawa, to look in surprise.
"How come you get an early preview to a gorgeous gaijin like her? You greedy bastard!" Mineta growled as he put the squeeze on Izuku's shoulder. His cursing came to an end when Tomoe smacked him from behind with a notebook.
"C'mon, man, give us some deets. How'd you and the others get to be friends with her?" Denki asked Eijiro, and without any hostilities, unlike Mineta.
"Wow, Mina. I'm amazed you and the others already knew her before," Tsuyu said, holding a finger to her chin.
"Enough!" Even with the bandages covering his face, Aizawa managed to flash his Quirk toward his students, causing them all to straighten up and go silent. Even the ever-stoic Xenovia, backed up a step, intimidated by her new homeroom teacher.
'I just froze up by instinct. It felt like I was face-to-face with her right then…' Xenovia mentally noted, thinking of the one person back at the Vatican who could put the fear of God in her.
"Now that introductions are done, Quarta, your seat is all the way in the back, behind Meguri," Aizawa said, pointing at the empty seat behind Tomoe.
As Xenovia walked toward her desk, she gave a small smile to Izuku as she passed him by. "Looks like we do get to work together."
While Izuku let Xenovia's words sink in, Mineta, from behind him, gritted his teeth in envious rage.
Later at lunchtime, Izuku and his friends all gathered to eat lunch together.
"So, Xenovia, how's your first day?" Yumi asked.
"Pretty uneventful, pretty ordinary, I'd say. Not what I expected from a class for Heroes," Xenovia answered.
"Oh yeah, first we gotta get our normal studies outta the way," Mina said. "But when they're done, that's when we get to training in some actual Heroing."
"Even though it's Hero School, we're still high school students. Our normal studies are just as important," Itsuka added.
"I see, makes sense. I look forward to it," Xenovia said.
"Seeing as you are new to our class, Quarta, as Class Rep, I can assist you with anything you need," Tenya offered. "Of course, you could also speak with any of our other classmates as well."
"Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."
"So what made you decide to enroll in U.A.? It kinda seems out-of-the-blue that you transferred to our class pretty close to the Sports Festival," Ochaco said.
"Oh, it's because of Izuku," Xenovia replied, getting Ochaco and Tenya's attention. "Back in Italy, I had a sheltered lifestyle of sorts. And last week, when I visited Japan with a friend of mine, I heard Izuku give a heroic inspirational speech that really spoke to me, and I guess I figured out what I wanted to do with my life." Xenovia explained while censoring out the supernatural bits as best as she could.
"Wow, inspiring others to become a Hero too, huh? You're that close to being a real Hero, Deku," Ochaco complimented, though she internally felt weird about him being so close with another girl, almost like she was being left out.
"Yes. I don't know what you said to her, but knowing you, Midoriya, it must've been truly inspirational!" Tenya joined in.
"Well, I guess so," Izuku bashfully said.
"Aw, look at him blush," Rias teased.
"Wouldn't be Izuku otherwise," Asia giggled.
Unbeknownst to them, they were being eavesdropped separately by Katsuki and Shoto.
All the former thought was that she was just another one of Deku's friends and another opponent he intended to take down in the Sports Festival. The latter, on the other hand, thought about Quarta revealing how Midoriya had inspired her to be a Hero, and then he thought back to when All Might invited him to eat lunch with him the prior week. 'Midoriya… First All Might, and now the transfer student. You might be someone to watch out for…'
Eventually, the time for Heroics class had arrived, and some were looking forward to working with their newest member.
Speaking of 1-A's newest member, Xenovia's Hero costume mainly consisted of a blue version of her Exorcist outfit with the same black fingerless gloves and thigh-high boots; she also wore a green belt.
Mineta and Denki were particularly excited at how form-fitting the outfit clung to her body, emphasizing her curves.
"So, what do we normally do during Hero class?" Xenovia asked.
"All sorts of stuff like combat training, rescue drills, physical exercises, and also problem-solving," Izuku replied.
Then, the students all heard a familiar boisterous laugh. "Ready for another lesson in the world of Heroes, ya newbies?" All Might announced as he made his entrance. "I… am… here!"
"So that's All Might…" Xenovia noted as she stared at the hulking figure of a man before them.
"Yeah, that's him," Tsuyu said.
"You sound like you don't know him," Hanta commented.
"That's because I don't. I'm only remotely familiar with him," Xenovia replied. "Honestly, back in Italy, I never had much interest in Heroes, so I don't even know most of the top Italian Heroes."
"Say what?" Izuku asked, bewildered. He was gonna have to give her a crash course on Pro Heroes later.
"Speaking of newbies…" All Might turned to Xenovia. "Welcome to the Hero Course, young Quarta. My hope for you and everyone here is that you all learn and grow to be the very best Heroes you can be."
"I look forward to it, sir!" Xenovia responded.
"Excellent! Without further ado, let's get started!"
The lesson for the day was an obstacle course, with the class split into groups. During the exercise, Xenovia fared well, owing to her natural athleticism. Plus, her Knight Piece certainly helped as well.
After school, Izuku headed to one of the battle centers as All Might asked. Conveniently for him, Rias had given all the Hero Course members in the ORC the go-ahead to skip club activities to train for the Sports Festival.
"Ah, young Midoriya. Good to see you're here," Toshinori called out. "You ready to start training?"
"I am!" Izuku declared, more ready than he'd ever been in his life.
The two headed over to a more open area in the battle center where there weren't that many buildings in the way.
"Since this section has plenty of open space, it should be a good place for you to start practicing One For All," Toshinori said. "First off, I'd like to know how your Quirk works so we can figure out how it might sync with One For All."
"Well, my power, I call it Boosted Dragon. I can temporarily double my power every ten seconds and I can also take on a few dragon traits such as scales and wings. I can also transfer the Boosted power to something or someone else."
"Hmm, that's quite the combo platter of powers you've got, and now you've added One For All to the plate," Toshinori commented. "Still, that boosting effect, combined with One For All's already massive power stockpile, seems way unpredictable. Let's make sure you're used to handling One For All before we start having you use it and your power together."
"Yeah, I understand," Izuku said. "So, now, how do I use One For All?"
Toshinori buffed up to Muscle Form. "Feel the power coursing inside you, and concentrate."
"Uh-huh," Izuku nodded.
"Even though your body is already a proper vessel, the physical backlash of One For All can be intense. So don't lose focus!"
Izuku nodded and turned to the street before him. He dug his heels into the ground.
"Then, I want you to clench your buttcheeks and yell this from the depth of your heart!"
Izuku brought his right arm back, fist clenched tightly. He clenched his rear end, concentrating, and his arm started glowing with red energy veins.
"SMAAASH!!!"
Izuku struck his fist out forward, and not a millisecond later, a powerful gust of wind blasted out into the street. Even All Might, in his buff form, felt himself flinching from the force of the blast.
Then, when the winds died down, All Might looked to survey the result, and what he saw was truly astonishing. The street in front of him was utterly stripped of pavement and some nearby buildings had sustained quite the damage, if not totally demolished. Glass windows had been reduced to miniscule shards raining down everywhere. All from just one of Izuku's One For All punch.
All Might's mind was totally blown. He remembered how when he received the Quirk, he was already a prodigy who was able to handle the full power of One For All, but his first use of the Quirk could hardly measure up to what young Midoriya had just done.
'This was his first time using One For All, and yet, it makes my first time seem like nothing! This is the result of One For All growing in power over time! The torch I passed onto you is but a small flame right now, in time, it will be kindled until you wield a raging inferno! The more powerful you become, the more you'll outshine me. Eventually, I'll retire, my job complete. Whew, deep stuff, All Might…' All Might thought.
"AAAAAAUUUUUUGGGGHHH!"
And then came a sudden shout of pain from Izuku to bring All Might out of his thoughts.
"YOU IRRESPONSIBLE, DUNDERHEADED FOOL!" Recovery Girl yelled out to Toshinori after he brought Izuku in after the boy's first test run of One For All. She then proceeded to smack the emaciated Symbol of Peace on the head with her syringe cane. "What were you thinking, All Might?! You're lucky the boy's arm is still attached to him!"
Izuku winced at the thought of the opposite scenario happening.
"I'm sorry!" Toshinori apologized.
"Well, it's no good apologizing to me!" Recovery Girl fumed. "Telling the boy to use 100% on his first try! Honestly, there are plenty of better ways to see what he could do with One For All at this stage, Mr. Natural-Born Hero! Look what it did to him after the years it's grown inside your idiotic body!"
"Um, All Might, she knows about One for All?" Izuku asked cautiously, worried that he would become the recipient of her ire likewise.
"Yes, sonny. I know," Recovery Girl said, her tone changing to that of a caring grandmother. "I'm one of the few people close enough to be trusted with that secret. I was also there when this nimrod got that terrible wound that left him in this sorry state."
"That's right. I have Recovery Girl to thank that I managed to make it this far," Toshinori added.
"Now, enough talk about the big oaf. How are you doing?" Recovery Girl asked as she inspected Izuku's bandaged arm. "No tingles or aches, I hope?"
"No, everything's good. Just a little tired, I might need a nap," Izuku said, his eyelids somewhat heavy.
"My Quirk stimulates your ability to heal, but healing takes energy. It's not my fault, that's just how the body works," Recovery Girl said. "Get too many big injuries, your stamina will be shot, and you'll die instead of healing, so be careful." She warned him as she dispensed a piece of candy for him.
"YOU MEAN THIS COULD KILL ME?!" Izuku yelled as he took the candy.
"Yes, and now that you know that, I hope you've realized you can't rely on others all the time and you must learn how to control that new Quirk of yours so that you don't destroy your own body."
Izuku broke out of his freaking out state when she said those words. "Yeah, you're right. I won't always have someone to heal me as good as new. I have to get it under control." He nodded seriously.
"Good boy," Recovery Girl smiled.
"So, any advice on how not to break my bones again, All Might?" Izuku asked.
"Well, right now, your Quirk is either all or nothing. All you need is to learn to control your output. Then you'll be able to adjust exactly how much power you're using," Toshinori explained.
"I just need control?" Izuku asked to confirm.
"You're overflowing with energy at the moment, like a glass overflowing with water, but with training and practice, your body will hold it better. Then it's yours to command!"
"Yes, but right now, you should go home. More work now would only hurt you, and I just healed you with my Quirk, so no more physical activities from you today," Recovery Girl said.
"Understood," Izuku nodded. Even if Recovery Girl didn't tell him, he knew that he did not have the strength in him to continue training with One For All for the day.
A few minutes later, Recovery Girl stepped out to let Izuku have some private moments with his mentor. And said mentor was trying to give Izuku tips on trying to control One For All. Emphasis on "trying."
"You can harness One For All. It's simple," Toshinori encouraged. "YOU HAVE TO FEEL IT!"
Izuku tried to feel it, but couldn't quite get it. "Can you be a little more specific?"
"You already know what it's like to fire on all cylinders," Toshinori said.
"Yeah, like a lot of broken bones," Izuku retorted.
"No! I'm talking about the rush inside! You must've felt it coursing through you! What was it like?"
"Um, a 'Bzzzzt!' Or, no, like, 'Whoosh!' Or maybe 'Ka-Pow!' Or, um…" Izuku guessed before coming to a definite answer. "Ooh, I know! An egg about to explode in a microwave!"
"Hahaha! That's pretty boring, but okay!" Toshinori responded. "If that's the metaphor you wanna go with, then lower the wattage, or decrease the cooking time. Whichever one works, keep focusing on that image and keeping the egg from exploding, alright?"
'I can do that…' Izuku thought.
"The more you concentrate, the faster you'll learn. Control over One For All isn't gonna happen overnight. But I know you'll nail it, soon. You just gotta keep trying!" Toshinori gave a few more words of encouragement.
Izuku nodded, then realized that he still needed to ask All Might something.
"Before I go, there's something I want to ask," Izuku took a couple of shaky breaths, trying to figure out how to ask his question. "Um, so, some of my friends, arguably the best ones I've had. They helped me get so far, and I feel bad keeping secrets from them, and…"
"You wanna tell your club friends about One For All?" Toshinori guessed. "Or should I say… Your Devil friends?"
Izuku did a double-take.
"Wait, you know?!"
"Well, truth be told, I happened to see your fight against that Fallen Angel thanks to the Principal," Toshinori admitted.
"Oh, I see…"
"And there was a part of me that did think you and your friends were special in some way, though I wasn't exactly thinking of being Devils."
"…So, can I?" Izuku asked hopefully. "After everything they've done for me… It feels wrong keeping something like this from them. At the very least, can I tell Rias? It's because I met her, otherwise I don't think I would be here right now. I feel like I owe her that much at least. Though I understand if you don't want me to."
Toshinori sighed softly as he processed his young successor's words. "Well, truth be told, I have nothing against Devils, and I've seen how much you appreciate them. And I'm not saying that you can't, but I still want you to know the risks. If the existence of One For All happens to leak to even just one wrong person, it could bring about trouble that U.A. won't be able to defend you or the others from. But still, if you can trust them with this, then I can too."
"Oh, thank you, All Might! I swear, my friends can be trusted!" Izuku said.
"I can understand why you would want to tell them, your girlfriend especially."
"W-W-Wait! It's not what you think!" Izuku shouted, his face going red.
"Hey, don't worry. There's no rule saying that U.A. students can't date. And if I may add, you're a lucky one to have her."
With his hands now covering his face, Izuku replied. "All Might, please! I know Rias is very beautiful, and we spend a lot of time together. But we're just friends! That's all!"
"Oh, but I never specifically said it was young Gremory," Toshinori teased, chuckling as he saw the clouds of steam coming out of Izuku's head.
He wasn't the only one as Ddraig was laughing his head off inside Izuku.
Then, Toshinori decided to give Izuku a break. "Hey, come on, kid. You know I was just teasing ya. Anyway, back to the original topic, young Kirishima and young Ashido also know this, and when you tell your other friends, make sure you tell them just how important this secret is."
"Yeah, I will. You can count on me and my friends," Izuku vowed, earning a smile from Toshinori.
A few days later, Izuku was doing some off-campus training at Takoba Beach. Despite what he asked of All Might, he found out that breaking the news to the others was easier said than done. So, in the meantime, here he was, trying to gain control over his new Quirk.
As he tried to release a portion of One For All's power, he tried to imagine the egg not exploding, but he could still feel too much power about to be released and was forced to stop to not injure himself.
"GAAAHHHH!" Izuku shouted in frustration as he fell on his back, staring up at the sky. "Why isn't this working?"
[Maybe you could use a new perspective. If what you're doing isn't working, then it's time for a new inspiration.] Ddraig said.
"Okay, anything you have in mind?"
[The way I see it, that egg in a microwave thing isn't the best example. I mean, One For All is inside you, but you're not the microwave in this sense, it's more like the egg.] Ddraig explained.
"Yeah, you've got a good point," Izuku concurred. "So then, what image should I use?"
[Rather than a new image, maybe I can be of some help.] Ddraig said.
"Really?"
[Yes. After all, I am inside you just like One For All is. Now, sit down, close your eyes, and meditate.]
Doing as he was told, Izuku sat down, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes.
[Take deep breaths and relax. Search deep inside you, and find the source of your Quirk.]
Izuku allowed his body to relax, taking slow, deep breaths as he searched One For All inside himself. He eventually found it, and it started out as a ball of light which then changed into eight different colors before converging to form a fiery aura.
'I-I found it! It's like eight different colored lights merging into a single fiery aura!'
[I see. Good. Now reach toward that source, and let the power flow into you, but only a little.]
Izuku imagined himself reaching out a hand toward the light. The moment he touched the flames, he felt a soothing warmth as he felt the fiery aura travel up his arm, also causing it to surge with power.
It was then that he felt several hands overlapping over his own. He had no idea what that was about, but he didn't question it as they didn't feel aggressive and he felt a little bit more in control of One For All. He felt like he could split off a tiny portion of One For All's total power and use only the amount he was sure he could handle.
Settling on 5% of his total power, Izuku brought his fist back, looked forward toward the horizon, and sent out a small punch.
The result was a small gust bursting forward, nothing too big, but definitely more than what a normal punch would send out. But what satisfied Izuku the most was that his arm was unbroken, completely fine even after using One For All. Not only that, his arm seemed to have green sparks of electricity crackling around it.
"I did it," Izuku said in relief.
"That was impressive."
"Yeah, I just need to do that again and- wait!" Eyes widening, Izuku turned around and saw a familiar redhead and blonde. "President!? Asia!? When did you two get here!?"
"A few minutes ago," Rias answered. "I've had a hunch that there was something different about you recently, and judging by what you just did, it seems it was a good thing I listened to my gut." Then, her expression changed to intrigue and concern. "Izuku, that blast you just did now… You didn't have your Boosted Gear out, and I know for a fact that it wasn't by magic. Was that… from a Quirk?"
"Well… Yeah…" Izuku admitted. "I've been meaning to explain, but I just couldn't figure out how to break the news."
"How… How did you get a Quirk?" Asia asked.
"I'll… do my best to explain," Izuku said. He explained everything he knew about One For All to Rias, from how All Might made the offer to how Eijiro and Mina already knew.
The more that was explained to the girls, the more surprised they grew. It was evident in their eyes.
"That's… a lot to take in," Rias muttered, trying to process everything.
"We already knew that All Might took an interest in you, but him giving his Quirk to you… I don't know what to say…" Asia added, also trying to process what she just heard.
"Yeah…" Izuku nodded.
"A Quirk that's been passed down for decades, possibly centuries, growing more powerful during that time. No wonder why this can't be common knowledge," Rias acknowledged. "Hard to believe something like that exists, and now you have it."
"You can count on us, we'll make sure it stays a secret!" Asia vowed.
"And right now, that was the first time I managed to reel in its power without breaking any bones," Izuku added.
"That explains why you were at Recovery Girl's office frequently these past few days," Rias said.
"Well, if you get injured again, you can come to me and I'll fix you up good as new," Asia offered.
"I'll keep that in mind, thanks," Izuku replied.
"Once again, you surprise me, Izuku. First, the Boosted Gear, then your dragon heritage, and now the Quirk of your idol and the Number One Hero," Rias said with a small laugh.
She then put her arms around Izuku's back and pulled him into an embrace, making sure his head was in her bosom. "You truly are the greatest. As a Devil master, I don't think anyone's ever had an amazing servant such as you."
Asia pouted in jealousy before hugging Izuku from behind, making sure to press her boobs into Izuku's back. Rias saw this and gave her Bishop a challenging smirk.
Meanwhile, Izuku smiled, trying desperately not to pass out from the warm embrace of Rias and Asia's breasts.
There we go, another chapter done. Sorry if you think it's too short.
Izuku has officially received One For All from All Might. Despite Ddraig helping Izuku out a bit, he isn't gonna get the idea for Full Cowling yet, though he won't be injuring himself as much as in canon.
Xenovia officially joins the Hero Course and she is in 1-A. Looks like she wasn't kidding when she said to Izuku that they would be working together.
One more thing, I won't jump into the Sports Festival right away, I would like to do just (hopefully) one more chapter before we do.
See you next time. Go beyond! Plus Ultra!