Life's a Game 2.0 - GreyTail - 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia (2024)

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

“Oi, Deku, where are the snacks?”

“Snacks?” Izuku Midoriya asked, a look of confusion crossing his face, “What snacks? You only asked for drinks?”

“Yeah, but you took so long we got hungry,” Fingers laughed, jabbing at Izuku’s sides with his extended digits, “Now hurry the hell up and go get us some snacks!”

“Yeah!” the other boy shouted, “It’s all your crappy quirk is good for, anyway!”

[Quest Updated: Deliver Drinks. Deliver drinks and snacks to Fingers and company. Reward: 2 experience.]

Izuku flinched slightly as the screen appeared in front of him, sighing as he quickly left the room to return to the vending machines. He kept his eyes down as he made his way down the familiar corridors of his middle school, standing in line to wait for the vending machine to become available. He looked up only when he was standing right in front of it, eyes darting to the number that floated above his head in the reflection.

[2]

The number was, as always, encased in square brackets, just like the numbers that appeared above everyone else’s heads. He had, over the years, managed to figure out that the numbers somehow correlated to a person’s strength and abilities, and the higher the number, the stronger they were. Most people his age had the number five over their heads, which seemed average, with most normal adults not getting much higher than ten or eleven. There were exceptions, of course, but they were exceptions for a reason.

Heroes. Most Heroes had numbers in the high forties or even fifties, denoting just how much stronger they were than the average person. Sighing, Izuku picked up the snacks he’d bought, checking his already dwindling pocket money and wondering if he’d have enough to placate Fingers and his cohorts tomorrow, turning around and slamming into someone.

“I-I’m s-sorry!” he squeaked as he scrambled to gather the snacks he’d dropped, body going cold as he heard the person speak, looking up into angry red eyes.

“The f*ck do you think you’re doing, Deku?” Katsuki Bakugo snarled as he loomed over the green-haired teen, “You running errands for those extras, but making me come out to the vending machines myself? You forget about me or something?”

“O-of c-course not!” Izuku squeaked, looking up at the [11] that hung over Bakugo’s head, shivering at the double digits, “Y-you just d-didn’t ask and-.”

“Ask?” the blond growled, “ASK? I shouldn’t have to ask you anything, Deku! You should be coming to me and asking what I want!”

“R-right!” Izuku swallowed, praying he wouldn’t see the familiar screen appear, his hopes being dashed a moment later as Bakugo raised his fist.

“I’m going to teach you not to forget me again, Deku!” he snarled.

[Quest: Survive. Survive the fight. Reward: Variable]

------

Izuku hissed quietly as he applied the plaster to the bruise on his cheek, looking around the empty nurses’ office with a sigh.

The school nurse always seemed to be out when he needed help, not that she gave much the few times he’d actually seen her, mostly just throwing a few plasters or bandages his way and ignoring him. This meant that he’d gotten quite good at tending to his own injuries, but it hardly mattered much, as he was almost sure to get more before the end of the day.

Sighing, he looked into the small mirror hanging on the wall, his [2] still floating above his head. This was his life at the moment, a weakling compared to everyone else his age, with a useless quirk that only told him just how weak he really was.

His dream seemed so far away, yet he couldn’t help but grasp for it, just in case.

Just in case something amazing happened.

------

“You can’t just say that to someone, Kacchan,” Izuku sniffed as he walked home, making his way down the familiar storm drain, “What if I actually did do that?”

Shaking his head, Izuku forced the dark thoughts to the back of his mind, straightening his back as best he could and trying to walk confidently forwards under a bridge lined with garbage. He froze a moment later as the manhole cover behind him rattled, a screen appearing in front of him.

[Quest: Survive!!! Survive until help arrives! Reward: 100 experience]

“One…one hundred?” Izuku squeaked, that was the highest amount he’d ever seen for a reward, and the presence of exclamation marks didn’t make him feel any more confident.

“Huh, a medium sized body suit,” the voice chuckled cruelly behind him as Izuku turned to look at the massive mound of green sludge that was rising from the manhole, “Lucky me!”

Izuku barely had time to register the number above the sludge person’s head before he was engulfed, the sludge forcing its way into his body as he desperately tried to fight back. He looked up at the number again, shivering.

[32]

This was it. He was going to die here.

“Never fear! For I am here!” the loud shout echoed from the open manhole, a muscular blond figure leaping out of it with a wide smile on his face.

“Oh sh*t!” the sludge said as All Might drew back his arm, hitting it with a powerful punch that scattered it across the storm drain instantly.

Izuku could only stare at All Might as the darkness closed in around his vision, his gaze falling on the strange numbers above the man’s head just before he passed out.

[99 (24)]

------

“Hey kid, wake up!” Izuku coughed as he came to, quickly rolling over onto his hands and knees as he threw up a pile of sickly green sludge.

“It’s okay, let it all out. Wouldn’t want you getting sick from that stuff!” All Might laughed as Izuku wiped his mouth on his sleeve, “Well now, good citizen, it is time for me to take my leave!”

“Huh?” Izuku said as he watched All Might pocket a pair of soda bottles, before crouching down to jump away, Izuku’s eyes darting back to the strange numbers above the Pro’s head, questions boiling in his mind, “W-wait!”

And suddenly they were flying over the city, Izuku screaming as All Might looked down at him in confusion.

“Hey, let go!”

“If I let go now, I’ll fall and die!” Izuku shouted back through the harsh wind, his eyes tearing up.

“Oh, right,” All Might muttered, looking around for a rooftop for them to land on.

The pair landed easily on the roof, Izuku collapsing to the floor as he gasped for air, barely managing to get back to his feet as All Might prepared to jump away again.

“Wait!” Izuku shouted, “Can I… Can I still become a Hero even without a strong quirk? Even without one suited to fighting?”

“Without a strong quirk?” All Might said, turning to look at Izuku in mild confusion, before it transformed to a look of apology as steam began to rise from his body, “Look kid, you have to have your priorities straight. Not everyone can be a H-.”

He was cut off as the steam enveloped him, being blown away a moment later to reveal the skeletal man now standing there, the two staring at each other in shock.

“Ah…sh*t,” the blond man muttered as he coughed up some blood.

“A-all Might?” Izuku asked, his eyes darting to the numbers again, going wide at what he saw.

[24 (99)]

“They switched,” he said softly, starting when All Might spoke.

“Yes, I am All Might,” the skeletal man groaned, “Now, I can’t have you spreading this around on social media, okay? It’s very important that you don’t.”

“O-of course, All Might, sir!” Izuku nodded, “But…how did this happen?”

“How, you ask?” All Might sighed, lifting his shirt as he sat against the railing, revealing the massive scar, “It all started with this. Got it about five years ago, and it’s been cutting into my time as a Hero ever since.”

“O-oh,” Izuku said as he stared at the scar in amazement, wondering how anyone could even be alive after taking an injury like that, let alone continue to be a Hero, “You were saying something earlier?”

“What? Oh, right,” the man sighed, “You need to have perspective, kid. I’m not going to tell you that anyone can be a Professional Hero, but there are plenty of other everyday Heroes out there. The police, the fire department, doctors. If you really think your Quirk is as weak as you say it is, then maybe try out for something like that instead.”

“O-oh,” Izuku said softly, sagging visibly as he wiped his eyes, “Y-yeah, maybe you’re right. If my quirk really is that weak, then I should…”

He was cut off by the explosion, the two looking up at the rising cloud of smoke in surprise.

------

“KACCHAN!” Izuku yelled as he charged towards the sludge Villain, ignoring the screen that appeared in front of him as he hurled his bag into its face.

Somehow, it worked, making the Villain recoil, and giving Bakugo a moment to breath as Izuku started to dig his hands desperately into the muck. He barely saw the massive pseudopod bearing down on him, only able to shut his eyes as he waited for it to impact.

“NEVER FEAR! FOR I AM HERE!”

The crowd immediately let out a roaring cheer at the shout, All Might leaping over them and obliterating the sludge Villain with a single uppercut, grabbing Izuku as he managed to snatch Bakugo’s wrist, preventing them from being blown away.

The next couple of hours passed in a blur for Izuku. Later, he would vaguely remember being scolded by some of the Pro Heroes on site for acting so recklessly, even as they praised Bakugo. Izuku wondered why they hadn’t done anything despite most of their numbers being higher than the sludge Villain’s. He would also remember Bakugo coming and yelling at him about not needing Izuku’s help. He would even remember the dark thoughts he’d had as he walked home in tears, thinking that his dream was over.

But none of that mattered now. All that mattered was what All Might had just said to him, Izuku falling to his knees as he sobbed happy tears.

“You too can become a Hero!”

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

Izuku’s eyes shot open as his alarm went off, scrambling out of bed and hurriedly getting dressed. Today was going to be the first day of his training with All Might, which meant he had to be ready for anything! He all but inhaled a small but filling breakfast of oatmeal, before rushing into the bathroom to brush his teeth. As he quickly scrubbed the brush against his teeth, his eyes drifted to his number, the teen freezing as he looked at it.

[3]

When had that happened? Was it something he’s done recently? He’d technically completed the quest to survive the sludge Villain and earned 100 experience points, right? Was that what had done it? Did that mean that fighting was the best way to gain experience? But if he had to fight people on the level of the sludge Villain, he would most probably die!

The second alarm startled the boy out of his thoughts, quickly finishing brushing his teeth and rushing out of the apartment with a quick goodbye to his mother, hurrying towards his future as the case of his number was all but forgotten.

------

“You want me to what?” Izuku asked as he looked out over the dump of a beach.

“Clear this beach of junk!” All Might said, still in his skinny form, “You see, Heroes don’t just save people, they are also public servants! Now, we only have ten months to get you in shape enough to have a hope of containing the power of my quirk, so let’s get cracking, young Midoriya!”

“R-right,” Izuku nodded as he looked at the screen that had just appeared in front of him, a slight smile on his face.

[Quest: Clear the Beach. Clear the beach of junk in the designated time. Reward: variable.]

------

“OH MY GOD!” All Might shouted as the teen toppled from the top of the pile of junk on the sidewalk, the man darting forwards to catch him gently before he hit the ground, “Not only did you clear the portion I set for you, you cleared the entire beach!”

“T-thanks, All Might,” Izuku gasped as he was carefully place on his feet, staggering slightly as he looked out over the empty beach, the evening sun sinking slowly beyond the horizon, “I just…I just felt like I had to.”

[Quest Complete: Clear the Beach. Bonus Objectives: Clear the designated area in the time limit. Clear the entire beach. Reward: 10000 experience. Bonus Rewards: 1000 experience. 1000 experience.]

[You have levelled up! Current level: 8]

“Huh?” Izuku blinked as energy flooded through him, his exhaustion vanishing in an instant as he looked at the two screens in mild confusion, “I’m…I’m level eight now? And what’s with these ridiculous amounts of experience? All this just for cleaning a beach?”

“What was that?” All Might asked, looking at the teen in concern as he returned to his skinny form, “What’s this about levels and experience?”

“Oh, uh…” Izuku muttered, “Sorry All Might, just my quirk being weird.”

“Ah, I see,” All Might nodded, before bursting into his muscular form and pulling out a hair, holding it out to Izuku, “NOW! IT IS TIME! EAT THIS!”

“What?” Izuku blinked as the muscular man shoved the hair into his mouth, making him gag as he was forced to swallow it, “Ugh, bitter.”

“Sorry,” All Might said meekly as he returned to his skinny form, “I washed it with scented shampoo last night to try make it taste better. Now, try not to do anything too taxing for the rest of the night. It’ll take a few hours for One for All to fully integrate into your body!”

“R-right!” Izuku nodded, still glancing at the two screens that had appeared to him earlier, “Uhm…thanks All Might. For everything.”

“Anytime, my boy!” the man laughed loudly, “I’ll do my utmost to support you from now on as my successor!”

------

[New Data detected. Decoding…]

Izuku stared at the screen in confusion, watching as it blinked in front of him. The last thing he remembered was going to sleep, so did that mean he was dreaming right now?

[New Data Decoded. Integrating…]

Izuku could only stare at the new screen as well, unable to move his body as he realised that he was feeling strangely calm, like this was the most normal thing in the world.

[Data Integrated. Recalibration necessary. Recalibrating in 3… 2… 1…]

“What?” Izuku managed to say as the screen disappeared, leaving his floating into an empty void for a moment. He managed to blink for the first time in what felt like hours, his body suddenly responding to his commands as he started to flail slightly, a sense of panic rising in his chest, “What’s going on?!”

Just as suddenly as the screen had vanished, it reappeared, the sense of calm washing through him again as he stared at the new screens that appeared.

[Recalibration complete.]

[Welcome to The System {User1}. Please state your name.]

“Uhm…Izuku Midoriya?” Izuku replied, wondering why the calmness had vanished when the “recalibration” had started, and returned when it finished.”

[{User1} now registered as {Izuku Midoriya}.]

[Calculating Stats…]

“Stats?” Izuku blinked, looking around as the screen continued to blink in front of him, “You mean like in a video game?”

[Stats Calculated. Stat Screen now available.]

“Stat screen?” Izuku asked, turning to look at the large screen that appeared just to the side of the first, showing a column of words and numbers.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 8

Stats:

Strength: 44 (999)

Dexterity: 19

Endurance: 22

Intelligence: 29

Wisdom: 11

Charisma: 6

Free Stat Points: 40

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

“What?” Izuku blinked, “Is this…is this for real?”

It really was like a video game. Was this somehow his quirk’s doing? All Might had warned his that One for All could power up a quirk, so was this what that was. Tentatively, he reached out and touched the first of the System Skills.

[Analytical Eye]: Allows the User to view details about others, such as Level, Stats and Skills.

“Wait, does that mean that I’ve only been able to see levels up until now?” Izuku asked, “And now I’ll be able to see Stats and Skills as well? This is…This is amazing!”

He quickly selected the second System Skill, excited to see what it did.

[Inventory]: A sub-space accessible only by the User. Can be used to store up to 44kgs of items.

“Wait…an inventory?” Izuku gasped, “And it seems like size doesn’t matter, only weight! This is so cool!”

He quickly selected the final Skill, reading over what it did happily.

[Friend List]: Allows the User to register Friends.

Sub-Skills:

[Message]: Allows the User to send text-based messages to individuals on their Friend List.

[Voice Chat]: Allows the User to have voiced communications with individuals on their Friend List while in range. (Current Range 1.1km)

“Wait…” Izuku gasped, “This is like a Telepathy quirk! This is incredible! And it seems like the text-based version doesn’t have a range limit at all! Amazing! Do I have anyone on my Friend List?”

[Friend List]:

<Add New Friend>

“Oh, obviously not,” Izuku sighed, “I mean, I only just found out about it, so that makes sense. Oh! I should add my mom, and All Might as soon as possible!”

Already excited by what he had discovered about his quirk, Izuku selected the next Skill, the only one of his so called “Extra Skills”.

[One for All]: Increases the Users physical strength.

Subskills:

[Float]: Allows the User to float in the air{locked}

[Smoke screen]: Allows the User to produce smoke from their body{locked}

[Black Whip]: Allows the User to produce whips of dark energy{locked}

[Danger Sense]: Allows the User to sense danger in the surrounding area{locked}

[Fa Jin]: Allows the User to store up kinetic energy in their body and release it{locked}

[Gear Shift]: Allows the User to alter the speed of objects they touch{locked}

“What is this?” Izuku asked, reading, and re-reading the descriptions of the Sub-Skills, “Are these…Are these extra Quirks?”

Shaking his head, Izuku closed the windows, pausing as he got to the Stat Screen, looking at the Free Stat Points in interest. Experimentally, he put one into Endurance, blinking as both it and his Strength went up. Intrigued, he selected the Strength Stat, reading over what it said.

[Strength]: Governs physical ability. (Please Note: Strength Stat reduced to prevent damage to body. Increase Endurance to raise maximum available Strength.)

“No way,” Izuku gasped, closing the window, and putting a second point in Endurance, his Strength really raising by two points on its own, “This is…Wow!”

Izuku was about to pour all his points into Endurance, before he paused, looking over his other stats in interest.

“I don’t want to risk becoming unbalanced, right?” he muttered to himself, “So, how do I want to do this?”

------

“Deku,” the voice made Izuku freeze as the nice girl hurried off, turning to face Katsuki as the blond snarled at him, “What the f*ck are you doing here?”

“K-Kacchan!” Izuku squeaked, blinking as the stat screen appeared in front of the other boy.

Name: Katsuki “Kacchan” Bakugo

Level: 12

Stats:

Strength: 26

Dexterity: 24

Endurance: 20

Intelligence: 29

Wisdom: 22

Charisma: 16

Skills:

[Explosion]

“Wow,” Izuku muttered as he read over the screen, “You’re…really strong.”

“What was that, Deku?!” the blond growled, “Get the f*ck out of my way!”

“R-right! Sorry!” Izuku squeaked as he stepped aside, letting the other boy pass.

------

“It’s Present Mic!” Izuku muttered as Bakugo radiated anger beside him, grinning when the blue-haired boy with glasses called Izuku out for making noise.

Izuku quickly found himself outside his testing area, looking around at everyone around him, his eyes wide as he marvelled at their stats, muttering to himself.

“Oh wow!” he said softly, “Everyone here is at least level ten! And they’re stats are pretty high as well!”

“Excuse me,” the loud and stern voice startled Izuku as he turned to look at the blue-haired boy that had called him out during the orientation, “What are you doing? Are you here to distract us?”

“W-what?” Izuku swallowed nervously, “N-no! I’m just a normal test taker! Like you!”

“Are you sure?” the boy continued, “Your constant muttering is disturbing the others.”

“Oh, s-sor-.”

“GO!”

The shout startled the crowd, all turning to look up at Present Mic standing on top of a tower beside the open gate.

“THERE ARE NO COUNTDOWNS IN REAL LIFE, KIDDOS! GET MOVING!”

Izuku darted towards the test area, quickly getting distracted as he watched the other examinees obliterating the robots with their quirks. He blinked as a screen appeared in front of him.

[Quest: Complete the Practical Exam. Earn points by defeating robots and helping others. Reward: Variable.]

“Helping others?” Izuku muttered as he ran off in search of some robots of his own, musing to himself, “I mean, I would do that anyway, but they never said anything about it in the briefing…is it a hidden test?”

“Hey, watch it!”

The shout drew Izuku out of his muttering, looking up just in time to see a pair of one-pointer robots looming over him. Shrieking in terror, he threw out a sloppy punch, hissing as his fist collided with the hard metal, and sent the head flying off. The second robot punched him in the gut, making him stagger back, but it barely hurt, the two of them looking down at its broken hand. Izuku yelped again as it charged him, grabbing its arm and easily throwing it over his shoulder to smash into the ground, destroying it.

“Huh,” Izuku breathed, “That was…that was easier than I expected.”

He paused for a moment as he quickly opened his Stat Page, checking the numbers again.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 8

Stats:

Strength: 104 (999)

Dexterity: 20

Endurance: 52

Intelligence: 30

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 10

Free Stat Points: 0

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

He’d boosted most of his stats up by only a few points, except for Endurance, which he’d poured thirty points into, resulting in him having a massive amount of strength as well. Now he’d just defeated two of the robot Villains in quick order without taking much damage, and it was only halfway through the exam.

“Twenty-three,” the blue blur that shot past him said as Izuku recognized the boy from earlier, the pipes coming out from his calves spewing fire.

“E-eighteen,” he heard gasped, spinning around to see the nice brunette girl dropping several more robots around her.

“Oh,” he said, realising something, “I’m really behind.”

Suddenly, the entire cityscape shook, a massive robot emerging from behind a building, and crushing it beneath its treads as it moved towards them. Izuku turned to run, before he heard a gasp of pain.

“Ow!”

Looking back, he saw the brunette girl, his mind already gone as he ran towards the giant robot, screens appearing in front of him as he charged forwards.

[Warning! Using full strength will damage your body!]

[Do you really want to use full strength? Y/N?]

[New Skill Created: {Override}]

[{Override} Activated]

Izuku let out a throat ripping yell as he launched himself into the air, drawing his arm back in a punch as he slammed the fist into the giant robot’s face, cratering it instantly.

[Condition: Crippled (Left Leg) Gained. Condition: Crippled (Right Leg) Gained. Condition: Crippled (Right arm) Gained.]

The screens appeared in front of Izuku as he fell, his mind a haze of pain and adrenaline. He barely felt the hand slap his face just as he was about to hit the ground, allowing him to float gently down to the ground, before quietly passing out.

Chapter 3

Chapter Text

It was a week later, Izuku staring dead-eyed at the television when his mother burst into the room, tears in her eyes.

“Izuku!” she wailed, waving the envelope wildly in the air, “It came!”

Izuku grabbed the letter, rushing to his room and ripping the paper envelope open, scrambling to catch the papers that flew out as a small metal disc landed on his desk, a hologram appearing above it.

“…You received 60 Rescue Points!” the image of All Might shouted happily, “Bringing your total score to 62! More than enough to pass! Congratulations, Young Midoriya! This is your Hero Academia!”

Izuku was crying so hard he didn’t see the screens that appeared in front of him.

[Hidden Quest Complete: Pass the Entrance Exam. Earn enough points to pass the Entrance Exam. Reward: 2500 experience.]

[You have levelled up. Current level: 9]

------

“DEKUUU!”

[Quest: Survive. Survive the fight. Reward: Variable]

Izuku flinched as the familiar screen appeared in front of him, turning to look at the fuming blond. Bakugo hadn’t so much as spoken to him all day, not since they had both been congratulated for getting into UA by the Principal that morning. Well, Bakugo had been congratulated, Izuku had mostly been given a few back-handed compliments. Now they were standing in an alleyway on Izuku’s way home, explosions already crackling in Bakugo’s hands.

“How the f*ck did you pass?” the blond hissed, his voice rising as he spoke, “How the f*ck did you cheat your way into UA, Deku?!”

“I-I didn’t!” Izuku gasped, coughing as the other teen suddenly grabbed him by the throat, slamming him against the wall.

“Don’t f*cking lie to me!” Bakugo roared, “The only way a weakling like you could get into UA would be to cheat! Did you sell yourself to someone or something?!”

“N-no!” Izuku croaked, trying to push the other teen off, both blinking when Bakugo was sent stumbling back easily.

“THE f*ck WAS THAT, DEKU?!” the blond screamed, leaping forwards again, “I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”

Izuku ducked the explosion that slammed into the wall, leaving a large scorch mark on the bricks as he tried to scramble away. He let out a choked gasp as Bakugo snatched the back of his collar, yanking him backwards and spinning him around as Bakugo slammed an explosive punch into his gut. Izuku gasped as he staggered back, before blinking and standing up right.

“What the f*ck?” Bakugo snarled, clutching his fist as he stared at the equally shocked Izuku, “Why the f*ck did I hurt my hand punching your worthless ass?”

“It…it barely hurt?’ Izuku muttered, jumping when Bakugo let out a scream.

“What was that, Deku?! You think I’m weak?!”

“What? No! It’s probably just because I increased my Endurance!” Izuku said as the blond suddenly attacked him again, sending out a rain of explosive punches against the green-haired teen, “Kacchan! Please stop!”

“f*ck YOU!” the blond howled, winding up a right hook.

Izuku caught the punch as it sailed towards his head, flipping the startled blond over his shoulder, and slamming him into the ground, the concrete cracking beneath Bakugo’s back. The blond immediately wrenched his hand free, spinning around to get back to his feet and unleashing another barrage of explosions and punches against Izuku.

“You worthless little sh*t!” he roared, “NOW I’M REALLY GOING TO KILL YOU!”

Surprisingly, the punches started to slow, Izuku simply weathering them as they came, the pain building up, but still manageable for the teen. Suddenly the onslaught stopped, Izuku looking back at Bakugo as the blond panted in exhaustion, his eyes wide in shock. Looking down, Izuku realised that all the explosions had shredded his shirt, revealing the tightly packed muscles beneath.

“What the f*ck?” Bakugo breathed heavily, “When did you…how did you? WHAT THE f*ck, DEKU?!”

“I-I just worked really hard!” Izuku shouted back as Bakugo stalked towards him, “I’m sorry!”

“Hit me!”

“What?” Izuku blinked.

“If you have all those f*cking muscles, then why aren’t you f*cking using them! Hit me!” the blond roared.

“N-no!” Izuku gasped, “I…I don’t want to do that!”

“I SAID f*ckING HIT ME!” Bakugo screamed as he launched himself forwards with an explosion, Izuku shrieking as he swung a fist up instinctively, catching Bakugo in the jaw and throwing him sideways into the wall, the bricks all but shattering under the force.

The alleyway remained quiet for a moment as Bakugo staggered back, blood pouring from the wound on his head as he stared at Izuku in shock.

“That punch was sh*t,” he muttered, before collapsing to the ground in a heap, Izuku immediately panicking and calling an ambulance as he tried to stem the bleeding.

------

The next few months shot by in a blur, the time strangely peaceful for Izuku.

The day after their confrontation in the alleyway, Bakugo had come into school sporting a bandage around his head and plaster on his cheek. The blond had refused to elaborate how he’d got them to anyone, only claiming that he didn’t care enough to remember.

Of course, Izuku kept up his training regime the entire time, even managing to discover something amazing as he did. After a particularly long run one day, one that left him exhausted and gasping for air despite his massive Endurance, a screen had appeared.

[Endurance +1]

Izuku had been confused at first, but after checking his Stat Screen, he had confirmed that his Endurance had indeed gone up a point, also increasing his Strength. This made Izuku realise something amazing.

He could train his Stats outside of levelling up.

This resulted in the teen spending every free moment working on ways to increase his various Stats as fast as possible. He didn’t need to worry about Strength too much, as that would naturally increase with his Endurance, but he still did weight training and other strength exercises just in case it would help later on. Endurance was the easiest by far, Izuku only having to push himself as hard as he could on his runs.

He’d also joined a kickboxing gym recently, remembering what Bakugo had said about his punch, and had found that becoming a literal punching bag for some of the other members helped increase his Endurance as well. Dexterity had proven rather difficult at first, until Izuku had found a few HeroTube videos on Parkour, which he’d watched and studied heavily, before practicing by himself in a local park, earning him a few points in that Stat as well. He even managed to rope his mother into trying out Yoga with him, which also helped raise it another point.

The really difficult ones were his non-physical stats, though. Intelligence seemed obvious, he would just have to study, but apparently his current coursework wasn’t enough to challenge him, so he started looking online for the high school curriculum and studying that, raising the stat about a point a week. Wisdom was weird, he’d actually gained a few points over the course of the months, usually each time he thought of some way to improve his other Stats or integrate what he was learning into his slowly emerging style. Last was Charisma. The Stat hadn’t risen at all, despite Izuku having met and sort of befriended a number of people at the gym. He had an idea of why that was but wasn’t entirely sure.

But now it was time. Time for Izuku to realise his dream.

Looking up at the gates of UA in his school uniform, Izuku called up his Stat Screen one more time.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 9

Stats:

Strength: 112 (999)

Dexterity: 23

Endurance: 56

Intelligence: 32

Wisdom: 18

Charisma: 10

Free Stat Points: 5

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

Izuku had been tempted to spend his Free Points on more Endurance at first, but had decided to hold off in case something happened that required him to have more points in another Stat. Now, however, he put that thought aside as he pulled open the door to class 1A, being surprised by the scene he saw.

The blocky blue-haired boy from the exam was busy scolding Bakugo for having his feet on the desk, suddenly stopping as Izuku entered the room.

“Ah, you!” he said, hurrying over and chopping his hands through the air as he spoke, “Greetings, I am Tenya Iida, I come from Somnei Academy, and I wish to apologise to you!”

“A-apologise?” Izuku blinked, “T-to me?”

“Yes!” Iida said loudly as the rest of the class watched them, “You were able to discern the true intention of the Entrance Exam, were you not?”

“I was?” Izuku asked slowly.

“Yes, the Rescue Points,” Iida nodded, looking confused, “Did you not know?”

“Not really?” Izuku shrugged nervously, “I mean, my quirk did mention something about helping people to earn points, but I would have done that anyway.”

“Then you are certainly worthy of your place in UA!” the other teen barked as the last of the students filed into the class.

“Hey, it’s you!” the familiar brunette said as she walked up to Izuku, smiling at him, “I just wanted to thank you for saving me from that giant robot in the exam.”

“O-oh,” Izuku blushed as he tried to hide his face, “Y-you’re welcome.”

“You’re not here to socialise,” the gruff voice said from the floor, the students all looking down at the yellow caterpillar that lay at the door to the classroom, the thing shedding its sleeping bag and revealing a lanky man in a black jumpsuit, “I am Shota Aizawa, your new homeroom teacher.”

Izuku immediately checked the man’s stats.

Name: Shota “Eraserhead” Aizawa

Level: 48

Stats:

Strength: 46

Dexterity: 54

Endurance: 24

Intelligence: 31

Wisdom: 47

Charisma: 18

Skills:

[Erasure]

[Capture Weapon]

“Wait!” Izuku shouted, “You’re Eraserhead! An Underground Hero!”

“That I am,” the man grumbled, giving Izuku an appraising look before pulling a set of gym clothes from the sleeping bag, holding them out to the students, “Go get changed and meet me on field Beta, we’re having a test.”

“A test?” the class asked, “But what about the Entrance Ceremony?”

“A waste of time,” their new teacher growled, already halfway out the door, “Don’t be late, or I’ll expel you.”

------

Izuku let out a relieved sigh as he looked around the rest of the class, or, more accurately, looked at their Stats. Most of the class were level ten, with a few exceptions. One was a blond boy by the name Yuga Aoyama, who was only level seven, actually below Izuku which surprised the green-haired teen. Then there was the blue-haired boy who had introduced himself earlier and a tall girl with a spiky ponytail, who were both level twelve, and Bakugo, who had managed to raise his level to thirteen. The one who surprised him the most, however, was the boy with red and white hair, one Shoto Todoroki, Izuku wondering if he was related to Endeavor, who was level seventeen.

“Midoriya!” the shout startled him out of his thoughts as Izuku looked towards the teacher, the man scowling at him, “Pay attention. Now, throw this ball as far as you can.”

“Y-yes, Sensei,” he barked awkwardly, catching the ball, and hurrying into the chalk circle.

Taking a calming breath, Izuku wound up the throw, stepping forwards as he hurled the ball with all his Strength, or, at least what his quirk allowed him to use. Technically he could use his [Override] Skill to use more, but that would probably result in a broken arm at least. He quickly pulled up the information for the Skill as the class watched the ball sail into the distance.

[Override]: Allows the User to override safety measures and use full Strength Stat. (Warning! Will most likely result in heavy damage to body.)

“Hmph,” the scruffy man grunted as his phone finally beeped, “705.2 metres. Not bad.”

“T-thanks,” Izuku nodded as he hurried back to the group, blushing as the other students congratulated him.

“Deku,” the quiet growl made him freeze, turning to look at Bakugo as the blond stalked towards him, “I still don’t get how your weak ass quirk managed to get you so f*cking strong, but don’t think that I’m going to let you beat me! You understand?!”

“Y-yeah!” Izuku squeaked back.

“What’s his deal?” a blond boy with a black lightning bolt in his hair asked, watching Bakugo stalk off, “I mean, your quirk is a Strength Enhancer, right? It’d make sense for you to be strong.”

“Oh, not exactly,” Izuku said, blushing as the boy looked back at him, “It, uhm…my quirk is a bit weird. It lets me do a bunch of things.”

“Like?” the boy asked.

“I can…I can see people’s levels and Stats?” Izuku replied, watching as the other boy seemed to process this, before a wide grin crossed his face.

“Seriously?” he asked, stars appearing in his eyes, “Like in a video game? What are mine? Can you tell me? And you said you could also see our levels! What’re those?!”

“Oh, well…uhm…” Izuku said as he held up his notebook defensively, “I uhm… I wrote them all down in here. Sorry, I probably should have asked first.”

“Enough chatter,” Aizawa grunted as he walked past, “We need to finish the comprehension test and find out which of you is getting expelled.”

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

The class stood silently as the teacher tapped at his phone, a large holographic screen appearing a moment later.

“These are the results, don’t ask how they were calculated,” he grumbled as he glared at the students, as if challenging them to ask.

“I’m safe!” the shortest boy in the class shouted happily, “Hot babes, here I come!”

“What?” Izuku blinked as he looked at the screen, “I came last? B-but how?”

“You weren’t trying hard enough,” Aizawa grunted as he dismissed the screen, slipping his phone into his pocket, “You relied too much on your quirk.”

“Wait, but wasn’t this supposed to be a quirk comprehension test?” one of the other students asked, “Using our quirks was kind of the point, right?”

“I said don’t ask how the scores were calculated,” Aizawa grunted.

“Who cares!” the short ball-haired boy shouted, “I’m not getting expelled!”

“No one is getting expelled,” the teacher interrupted, a grin stretching across his face, “It was a logical ruse!”

“Of course,” the tall girl with a spiky black ponytail said, “There’s no way that a teacher would actually expel a student on the first day.”

“I don’t know,” the muscular boy muttered, “I mean, he contradicted himself pretty hard when he was talking about over relying on a quirk.”

“What do you want, then?” Aizawa huffed as he walked off, “Another try without using your quirks? We don’t have the time for that. Just get back to class, you’ll find your class schedules on your desks.”

------

“Hey dude!” Izuku jumped as the blond grabbed his shoulder, tensing up as he spun around, startling the other boy, “Woah! I’m not gonna hurt you! I just wanted to ask about your quirk.”

“M-my quirk?” Izuku blinked, looking at Kaminari in confusion for a moment, “O-oh, right, you wanted to see your Stats.”

“Yep!” the boy grinned as Izuku pulled his notebook from his inventory, the object appearing from thin air, “Dude! That’s so cool! Does that mean you have like an inventory as well?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah,” Izuku muttered as he flipped through the pages until he came to Kaminari’s page, “Here.”

“Awesome! I’ve always wondered what my Stats would be if I was a video game character!” the blond laughed, “Huh? Why’s my Wisdom so low compared to the other Stats?”

“Oh, it may be something to do with your quirk,” Izuku explained, “D-does your quirk have any side effects?”

“Yeah, if I overuse it, I sort of fry my brain,” Kaminari said almost proudly as Izuku stared at him in shock, “It’s cool, I’m used to it!”

“What’re you guys talking about?” a female voice suddenly asked, the pair turning to see a small crowd watching them.

“Oh, Midoriya was showing me my Stats!” Kaminari said happily, showing off the page in the notebook, “I bet he already has a page for everyone in the class!”

“You do?” the brunette asked, Izuku blushing as he nodded, “Can I see mine?”

“Me too!” a boy with a wide grin and large elbows called out.

“Same!” a girl with bright pink skin laughed.

Izuku blinked as he was suddenly surrounded by people, all looking at his notebook and talking happily as they introduced themselves.

“It certainly is strange to see one’s abilities quantified as numbers,” the tall obsidian-haired girl said as she looked at her own page, introducing herself as Momo Yaoyorozu.

“I think they are an excellent indicator of where we need to improve!” Iida said loudly, chopping his hands through the air as he turned to Izuku, “Your quirk is very impressive!”

“I, uhm…thank you?” Izuku managed to mutter.

“But what are your Stats?” a girl with long earlobes, called Kyoko Jiro, asked, looking at him, “Or do you not like to share that information?”

“O-oh, it’s no problem!” Izuku squeaked, quickly grabbing the book, and writing down his Stats, “It’s just, they’re a little…weird.”

“Weird?” the group asked, looking at the numbers.

“Wow, your Strength is really high!” one of the boys said, “And so is your Endurance!”

“Yeah, but his Charisma is super low,” Sero chuckled.

“Your intelligence is also quite high,” Yaoyorozu hummed, “But that doesn’t mean much when we don’t actually understand what the numbers mean. Do you know what the scale for power is?”

“Huh? O-oh, yes,” Izuku nodded, “Or, at least sort of?”

The class looked at him expectantly as he stared back for a moment.

“O-oh, right!” Izuku blushed as he pushed through the group towards the board, grabbing a marker and starting to write on it, “S-so, from what I can tell, fifteen to twenty is about the average Stat for a normal adult. Most Professional Heroes have several Stats in the forties, with at least one being higher than that, usually depending on their quirk.”

“Wait, but your Strength is over one hundred already,” Hagakure said, “Does that mean you’re stronger than most Professional Heroes already?”

“T-technically, I guess?” Izuku muttered, “My Stats are a little weird because of…a Skill I have. It means my Strength scales with my Endurance, and I kind of put a lot of points into that.”

“Points? What Points?” Kirishima asked.

“Oh, Free Points,” Izuku replied, “I get five each time I level up. It lets me get stronger faster, though I can also increase my Stats through hard work and training.”

“Dude,” Kaminari said slowly, “Are you saying that the reason your Charisma is so low is cause you were going for a Min-Max build?”

“What?” Izuku blinked, looking at the blond in confusion, “I…I don’t think so?”

“Who gives a sh*t!” Bakugo suddenly shouted, startling the class as he stalked out the door, “Just cause he has high numbers doesn’t mean Deku’s sh*tty quirk makes him better than me!”

“No one was saying that, though,” Jiro sighed, watching as the blond slammed the door shut behind him, “What’s his deal, anyway?”

“Oh, Kacchan is just sort of like that,” Izuku replied, “Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize for him,” the girl shrugged, “Anyway, your quirk is pretty cool, Midoriya.”

“Oh, t-thanks” he said as he blushed, the rest of the class still discussing their Stats.

------

“BATTLE TRIAL!” All Might shouted as the class cheered, already rushing to grab their new costumes as soon as the Pro revealed the cases. Izuku swallowed as he picked up his case, a nervous excitement rushing through him as All Might gave him a quick wink and thumbs up.

------

[Quest: Complete the Battle Trial. Complete the practical exercise by capturing the bomb, both “Villains”, or losing. Rewards: Variable.]

“Huh,” Izuku muttered as he read over the quest screen again, “That’s more info than usual.”

“What are you talking about?” Uraraka asked, making him jump, “Something to do with your quirk?”

“O-oh, yeah,” Izuku mumbled, “I, uhm…I sometimes get these quests that help me level up and stuff.”

“Wow, that’s cool!” the brunette beamed at him, “I wish it was as easy as that for me!”

“O-oh, s-sorry,” Izuku replied softly.

“Don’t be,” she grinned, “Anyway, is there anything else your quirk can do that could help us? I know you’re really strong already, and have your inventory thing, but is there anything else.”

“Just my Friend List,” Izuku said as he blushed, leaning away from the girl, “It let’s me talk to people really far away by a type of telepathy and stuff.”

“Cool! Add me to it then!” she said, Izuku almost choking.

“A-are you sure?”

“Yep!”

“Okay then,” Izuku nodded as he activated the Skill, watching as the name “Ochako Uraraka” appeared in his Friend List below his mother’s, “T-there.”

“Cool, how does it work?”

“W-well, you just need to want to send me a message and think it,” Izuku explained, “Though if we’re more than about a kilometre apart, it’ll only appear as text.”

“Useful,” the girl’s voice said in his head as she smiled at him, “This way we can communicate without alerting anyone else! It’s really cool!”

“Y-yeah!” Izuku replied, blushing hard as Uraraka burst into laughter, talking aloud.

“You even stutter in your head,” she giggled, “That’s hilarious!”

“S-sorry,” Izuku muttered back, blushing harder.

“Don’t be,” She smiled, “Come on, let’s win this thing!”

------

“DEKUUU!”

The familiar shout echoed down the corridor of the fake building as Bakugo launched himself at the pair, Izuku just barely managing to tackle Uraraka to the side as the blond shot past.

“I’m going to beat the sh*t out of you, nerd!” the blond snarled as he landed behind them, “Then everyone will know that you and your sh*tty quirk mean nothing!”

“W-why are you doing this, Kacchan?” Izuku asked as he scrambled back to his feet, pushing Ochako behind him, speaking to her with his quirk, “Get going. I’ll hold him off here.”

“Are you sure?,” she replied, Izuku just nodding as she turned and ran up the nearby stairs, “Good luck!”

“OI!” Bakugo yelled as he shot towards the other boy, “Quit ignoring me, Deku!”

“I-I’m not!” Izuku shouted back as he caught the quickly approaching punch, hurling Bakugo over his shoulder, sending him slamming into, and then through, a wall, startling the green-haired teen, “Uhm…sorry?”

“DEKUUU!” the scream came from the hole as Bakugo blasted his way back through it, bringing his hands forwards and peppering Izuku with rapid explosions, “f*ckING DIE!”

The blasts barely hurt as they slammed into Izuku, but they did obscure his vision, meaning he didn’t see the fist that slammed into his nose until it was right in front of his face. Staggering back, he blinked back the pain, raising his arms to block the next punch that shot towards his face.

“That all you can do, Deku?!” Bakugo roared, “f*cking hide?!”

“No,” Izuku grunted as he twisted his upper body, making Bakugo overextend his punch, before bringing a knee up and into the blonde’s gut.

Bakugo gasped as the attack hit, throwing him up into the ceiling, the thick concrete cracking as he slammed into it. He barely managed to catch himself as he began to fall, blasting himself back as Izuku swung a punch at his falling form. Getting back to his feet, he snarled at the other teen, before the bracer on his arm pulsed, a cruel smile coming over his face.

“Oi, Deku,” he chuckled, raising the bracer to point it at Izuku, “You remember how my quirk works, right? Well, these bracers store up my sweat and let me release a massive explosion all at once!”

“Young Bakugo!” All Might shouted through the ear pieces they were all wearing, “Stop immediately! That could kill him!”

“Not if he dodges!” the blond cackled, sliding his finger into the pin.

“I found Iida,” Ochako’s voice said in Izuku’s head, “He’s two floors up, towards the back of the building, just above where I left you, I think.”

“Great,” Izuku replied, his mind going a mile a minute as he watched Bakugo begin to pull out the pin, a plan forming in his head, “Watch your feet.”

“Watch my fee-?”

The rest of the message was cut off as Izuku leapt forwards, catching Bakugo off guard with his speed as he grabbed the bracer, pointing it straight up at the ceiling just as the blond pulled out the pin. The explosion rocketed through the already damaged concrete, blowing out the floor and blasting through the next one as well. The two boys stared at each other for a moment, before Bakugo jumped back, lifting his other gauntlet.

“f*ckING DIE, DEKU!” the blond just screamed as he yanked the safety back, going for the pin again.

“YOUNG BAKUGO! ENOUGH!” All Might roared as he appeared between the two boys, grabbing the bracer and yanking it off the blonde’s arm in one swift movement, hurling it out of a window where it exploded violently, shaking the whole building, “THIS EXERCISE IS OVER!”

“f*ck YOU, ALL MIGHT!” Bakugo howled, leaping around the man to get at Izuku, “IT’S OVER WHEN I SAY IT’S OV-!”

The shout was cut off as All Might chopped the back of the blonde’s neck, sending him crashing to the ground, unconscious.

Chapter 5

Chapter Text

“IT’S OVER WHEN I SAY IT’S OV-!”

The recording ended abruptly as Nedzu looked over his tablet at the two men sitting on the other side of his desk.

“So,” the bear-dog-rat thing that was UA’s Principal chirped, “What are we going to do about this?”

“What is there to do?” Aizawa yawned, “Bakugo’s a little headstrong. We’ll just have to temper that.”

“Is that what you’d call it? Headstrong?” Nedzu hummed, “Because I would call it having a disregard for authority at the very least. Something which is, quite frankly, unacceptable in not only this school, but Hero Society as a whole.”

“What are you saying, Nedzu?” Aizawa muttered, “If you really think it’s that big of an issue, I’ll talk to him about it.”

“I don’t think that’ll be enough,” the skinny man beside him sighed, fiddling with the cuff of his oversized shirt, “Young Bakugo is…I’d say troubled. He needs more than a talking to. He needs to face the consequences of his actions.”

“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Aizawa growled at the blond, “I already said I’ll talk to him.”

“Not necessary,” Nedzu chimed in, “I’ve already done some investigating after All Might brought this to my attention. It would seem that Bakugo-kun has had a serious lack of authority figures in his life up until this point. As such, we will need to address this post-haste before another incident like this can occur. Speaking of which, I have a question for you, Aizawa-san.”

“Yes?” the man yawned.

“Why were you not present for your class’s first Foundational Heroics lesson?” Nedzu chirped, making the man start, “Which was subsequently taken alone, by a teacher with no prior experience?”

“Uh…” the man started.

“Last I checked, it was a requirement that the Homeroom Teacher of a class be present for each and every Foundational Heroics class, so as to monitor and assess the progress of each student in their class,” Nedzu continued, a wide smile on his face, “Perhaps you forgot this, as you have not had a first year class in…oh, how many years?”

“Well, you see-,” Aizawa tried to cut it.

“And where, pray-tell, were you during this lesson yesterday?” Nedzu asked, pulling up a video feed of a yellow sleeping bag lying on the couch in the staff room, “Not sleeping, I hope?”

“I work two jobs, I need to catch what sleep I ca-,” Aizawa said, freezing as Nedzu frowned at him.

“Perhaps that is the problem,” Nedzu nodded solemnly, “You work too hard. Maybe you should take some time off.”

“What?” Aizawa blinked, “What are you saying, principal?”

“Nothing,” Nedzu hummed, “Just a suggestion. Anyway, back onto Bakugo’s punishment!”

------

“Bakugo has been suspended for three days due to his excessive use of force yesterday,” Aizawa grumbled as he stood in front of the class, the students all turning to look at the empty seat.

“Only three days?” Jiro asked, looking back at the scowling teacher, “Isn’t that a bit lenient? Didn’t he like, directly go against what All Might told him to do?”

“No one was seriously injured,” Aizawa just grunted, “So that was the punishment decided on, don’t question it. Now, you have something important to decide. Your class representative.”

“SO NORMAL!” the class shouted as Aizawa stepped to the side, making to get into his sleeping bag for a moment before he paused, letting out a loud sigh.

“How do you want to do this?” he grumbled, gaze flitting to the camera in the back corner of the classroom in annoyance.

“We should have a democratic vote!” Iida shouted over the others, “It is the only fair way!”

“How about we choose whoever has the highest Charisma?” Kaminari said, “That has to be an important stat for being Class Rep, right?”

“I still think a vote is better!” Iida called.

“Yeah,” Sero hummed, “But I mean, if we’re going off Stats, we might as well choose the person with the highest total Stats.”

“We should vote!” Iida said loudly.

“The person with the highest Stats?” Ochako grinned, turning to look at Izuku, “That could only be one person!”

“Voting would be the most optimal way,” Iida tried to interject.

“So, it’s decided?” Aizawa grumbled, looking around the class as they cheered, “Fine, Midoriya is Class Rep. You can choose your Vice-Rep yourself.”

“But…a vote?” Iida said softly.

------

Izuku stared blankly ahead as he quietly muttered to himself, ignoring the food in front of him.

“Hey Class Rep, what’re you up to?” Ochako asked as the boy yelped, looking at her in surprise.

“O-oh, s-sorry,” he muttered, “I was just trying to think of who my Vice-Rep should be.”

“It is kind of hard to pick, huh?” the brunette nodded, sitting down beside him, “We don’t really know each other that well yet.”

“Y-yeah,” Izuku nodded.

“Greetings,” Iida said as he approached the table, sitting opposite the pair, “I was hoping to talk to you, Midoriya.”

“Talk? To me?” Izuku blinked, “S-sure, what about?”

“The position of Vice-Representative,” Iida said plainly, “I will be honest, I had hoped to gain the role of Class Representative myself, but it seems that that was not to be. However, I would gladly assist you in your duties as your Vice-Representative.”

“O-oh!” Izuku gasped, nodding slowly, “I, uhm…I would really appreciate that.”

“You should add his to your Friend List, then,” Ochako chimed in, making both boys look at her in confusion, “That way you’ll be able to stay in contact wherever.”

“That…is a good point,” Izuku nodded, pulling up the menu and sending the request to Iida, the other boy blinking as the screen appeared in front of him.

“Is this a part of your quirk, Midoriya?” he asked, Izuku nodding, “Very well, I accept. Now then, I also wished to talk to you about something else. Your Stats.”

“M-my Stats?” Izuku blinked, “What about them?”

“They are too unbalanced,” the blue-haired boy hummed, “While I am not particularly familiar with video games, I understand that your Stats are based off of a similar system. While I have no right to dictate to you how to distribute them, I think it would be best that you begin diversifying your skills through your Stats.”

“That…actually makes a lot of sense,” Izuku muttered, pulling up his Stats Screen and looking at the numbers.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 10

Stats:

Strength: 112 (999)

Dexterity: 23

Endurance: 56

Intelligence: 32

Wisdom: 18

Charisma: 10

Free Stat Points: 10

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

“Oh, I levelled up,” he said in surprise, “But what should I put points into? Most of my Stats are above average already, only Wisdom and Charisma are below twenty.”

“Then I would suggest Charisma,” Iida nodded, the green-haired teen looking at him in confusion, “What Kaminari said earlier in class was true, Charisma is most likely an important Stat for work as a Class Representative, as well as for a Hero, so increasing it would be best.”

“O-okay,” Izuku nodded, immediately putting all ten points into the Stat, a sudden tingle rushing through his body, “Woah.”

“Are you okay?” Ochako asked as he grabbed his head, shaking it slightly.

“Yeah, just a little lightheaded,” Izuku replied, “That…felt weird.”

“What exactly did you do?” Iida asked.

“I increased my Charisma to twenty,” Izuku replied, grabbing his bowl of katsudon and starting to eat.

“Wasn’t it only ten before?” Ochako asked, the boy nodding, “Wow, so you basically doubled the number? That explains why you’re not stuttering or mumbling anymore!”

“I’m not?” Izuku blinked, touching his mouth, “I guess so, huh?”

“Heya!” the familiar voice called, the three turning to see Ashido, Kaminari and Kirishima approaching them as the pink-skinned girl laughed, “You guys also here to butter up the Class-Rep?”

“Butter me up?” Izuku asked, “What for?”

“To try and get the Vice-Rep position,” Kaminari said, “Aizawa-sensei said it was up to you to choose, right?”

“Yeah, I guess,” Izuku nodded, finishing his food.

“Woah, what’s up with Midoriya,” Mina asked, “He’s not all, y’know, awkward all of a sudden.”

“Oh, he doubled his Charisma,” Ochako said, the green-haired teen just nodding, “So that’s probably it.”

“Oh wow, I really wish I could do stuff like that,” Kirishima laughed as he sat down at the table with the other two, “It would have helped a whole bunch before!”

“How?” Izuku began to ask, being cut off as the alarm suddenly started to blare, “What?”

“What’s going on?” Iida asked a passing third year as the boy joined the quickly growing crowd.

“It’s a level three alarm!” he replied, “It means that someone’s broken onto campus!”

“What? How?” the blocky teen asked as the other boy was swept away by the crush of people, turning to his classmates, “We need to calm everyone down, this is dangerous!”

“Yeah, but how?” Mina asked, looking somewhat fearfully at the press of people.

“Uraraka, can you float me up above the crowd?” Iida asked, the girl nodding as she tapped his shoulder, Iida looking over the crowd and out the windows, “Ah! It’s just the Media! How did they get in?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Izuku shook his head, “We just need to get everyone’s attention and tell them, right?”

“Yeah, but how?” Ochako asked.

“Like this,” Izuku replied, jumping onto a table, and pressing his fingers to his lips. An ear-splitting whistle rang through the cafeteria, making almost everyone turn to the source in surprise, Izuku shouting to them all, “You can calm down! It’s just the Media! Look out the windows and you’ll see!”

“He’s right!” a shout went out from the edge of the crowd, several more confirming what he said a moment later.

The six students watched the crowd slow as they began moving out the doors of the room more calmly, Izuku hopping off the table as Kirishima and Kaminari helped pull Iida back to the ground.

“That was quick thinking, Midoriya,” the blue-haired teen nodded, “Though standing on the table was disrespectful, I see how it was necessary.”

“Sure thing, Iida,” Izuku chuckled as they made their way out of the cafeteria, gathering with the rest of the students on the main field, a swarm of Ectoplasm clones coming out to take class register as they gathered in lines.

A short while later, they found themselves back in their class, Izuku standing at the front as Aizawa grunted.

“Have you chosen a Vice-Rep yet?” the teacher asked.

“Yes,” Izuku nodded confidently, the rest of the class looking at him in surprise, “Iida.”

“Good,” Aizawa yawned, “Now get ready for your next lesson, I need a nap after what just happened.”

------

“sh*t!” the shout echoed through the small room as the controller turned to dust in the man’s hands, “Stupid boss! I totally had him! This game is rigged!”

“You say that about so many games, Tomura Shigaraki,” the dark mist wearing a bartender’s outfit said flatly, “Is it not just because you tend to rush into these…Boss Fights too quickly?”

“No!” the man barked, grabbing another controller from the box on the bar beside him, “My Stats are high enough, Kurogiri! All I need is Strength and Dexterity! But the stupid boss always hits so damn hard, even when I dodge!”

“Maybe you should increase some different Stats then?” Kurogiri sighed, “Maybe increase your…health somehow? For more survivability?”

“What do you think I am? Some noob that can’t avoid damage so I have to up my Stats just to survive?” Tomura snorted, “Hell no! I’m going to own this stupid boss my way or not at all!”

“Very well, Tomura Shigaraki,” the bartender sighed as the man went back to swearing at the screen of the television, “We shall see how you do later.”

Chapter 6

Chapter Text

“So, despite what happened the other day, you’re all still going on the field trip,” Aizawa muttered as the class cheered, “Midoriya, you’re the class rep, so make sure they behave.”

“Yes, Sensei!” the teen replied.

“Huh, is it just me, or is Midoriya more confident?” Jiro asked as they collected their costume cases, “I wonder what happened?”

“Oh, he put some points in Charisma,” Ochako explained, “That’s probably why you noticed.”

“Huh,” the dark-haired girl hummed, looking at the casually chatting boy for a moment, “That explains it, I guess.”

“Ooh, does Uraraka-chan have competition?” Mina chuckled as she bumped her hips against the shorter girl.

“W-what?!” Jiro squawked, hiding her bright red ears behind her costume case, “How can you ask something like that?!”

“Competition?” Ochako blinked, “For what?”

“Nothing,” Mina cackled as she hurried out of the room with the rest of the students.

------

“Okay, so the bus has non-standard seating,” Izuku called out, “So, I guess you can sit wherever you like?”

“My seating plan,” Iida muttered defeatedly behind the boy as they stepped onto the bus last, both sitting in the centre area, Izuku beside Ochako, with Iida on his other side as the bus began to move.

“So, what’s it like basically being a video game character, Midoriya?” Kaminari suddenly called out, making everyone look at Izuku, “I mean, you upped your Charisma, right? Did it feel weird?”

“Uhm…” the boy paused, before nodding his head, “Yeah, at first at least. It was sort of like my head was tingling and stuff. Then I just felt…more confident, I guess?”

“Your head?” Yaoyorozu asked, “Hmm, that’s somewhat worrying. Maybe you should get yourself checked by Recovery Girl just in case your quirk did something to your brain.”

“That’s true,” Izuku nodded, “I hadn’t thought of that, actually. Thanks for the advice, Yaoyorozu!”

“You are most welcome,” the tall girl smiled happily.

“Looks like Uraraka-chan has more competition than she thought,” Mina chuckled under her breath.

------

“I only count nineteen students and do not see All Might,” the mist Villain hummed, “Did the schedule change? Never mind, I still have a job to do!”

Izuku blinked at the screen that appeared in front of him as the mist man started to spread his body out.

Name: Oboro “Kurogiri” Shirakumo

Level: 39

Stats:

Strength: 19

Dexterity: 58

Endurance: 18

Intelligence: 21

Wisdom: 34

Charisma: 28

Skills:

[Clouds]

[Gaseous Form]

[Portal Body]

“Not on my watch!” Thirteen shouted as they activated their quirk, starting to suck in some of the mist.

“How annoying,” the Villain growled, opening a portal behind the Pro, “Have a taste of your own quirk, then!”

“Sensei! Look out!” Izuku shouted as he tackled the Pro to the ground, just barely avoiding the suction through the portal behind them.

“Midoriya! What do you think you’re doing?” the Pro shouted as the teen jumped to his feet.

“He has a quirk that lets him open up portals with his body!” the teen shouted as he turned back to the Villain, “He was about to use your quirk against you, so we’ll have to fight him carefully!”

“My, a confident one, aren’t you?” the Villain chuckled, spreading his form out once again, “Now, scatter and die, young Heroes-in-training!”

“Oboro!” the shout made the Villain hesitate for a moment, just long enough for most of the class to scatter away from him, before shaking his head and enveloping the few that weren’t fast enough.

“Who are you calling for, brat?” Kurogiri growled, turning his glowing yellow eyes to glare at Izuku.

“I don’t know,” Izuku swallowed nervously, “Why don’t you tell me, Shirakumo?”

“That name…” the man blinked, shaking his head again, “How do you know that name?”

“None of your business,” Izuku shouted, glancing at Thirteen as they edged around behind the man, “Now, Sensei!”

“Wha-?” the mist man was cut off as the powerful suction suddenly yanked him backwards, straight towards the Rescue Hero as the metal bracer around his neck started to disintegrate, “Damn you!”

The Villain vanished into a cloud of his own mist, the remaining students all letting out a breath as they looked at who was still with them.

“What do we do now?” Mina asked, Izuku blinking as he looked at the screen that had just appeared in front of him.

“All of you, get out,” he replied, turning towards the stairs, “I…I have to go save them!”

“Midoriya!” Thirteen shouted as the teen shot off, “Get back here!”

------

“Too many!” Kirishima grunted as he fended off another of the Villains that charged at him, just barely managing to knock the man away as he was pressed further into a corner, “Dammit dude, why’d you have to end up like this?!”

Behind him Kaminari staggered around, his face strangely simple as he just let off a quiet “whey” while giving a double thumbs up.

“Kirishima!” the shout sent a feeling of relief through the red head as he looked around for its owner, spotting Midoriya charging into the back of the group of Villains that had him surrounded, punching, kicking, and throwing them around, “Are you okay?”

“With you here, never better!” he shouted back, punching a surprised Villain in the nose with a hardened fist, “But Kaminari messed himself up pretty bad! We gotta get him out of here!”

“Got it!” Izuku shouted as he tossed another Villain into a wall, cratering the brick and mortar under them, “Grab him while I clear a path! Get back to the entrance!”

“You got it!” Kirishima shouted as he grabbed the still wheying blond, tossing him over his shoulder and charging down the gap Izuku had made in barely a few seconds, “Damn bro, you really are strong!”

“Just get him out of here!” Izuku shouted as he held of a few of the more ambitious Villains, before sending them flying.

------

“Come on, little ladies,” the Villains cackled as they slowly approached the two girls, steadily shrinking the circle around the pair, “Drop your weapons and come along quietly. We promise not to hurt you too bad!”

“This isn’t good,” Jiro muttered as she brandished the machete Yaoyorozu had made, the taller girl wielding a staff.

“We promise to treat you nice,” another Villain laughed, “If you show us a good time, we might even let you live!”

“SHUT UP!” the shout startled everyone as the boy landed heavily on the ground in front of the man who just spoken, jumping up to deliver a devastating uppercut to his jaw, sending him flying over the crowd, “Yaoyorozu! Smoke screen, now!”

“What?” the girl blinked, before seeming to understand what he wanted, quickly making a cannister on her arm that shot into the air, blanketing the area in smoke.

The two girls gasped as they were suddenly scooped up, finding themselves under Izuku’s arms as he charged forwards, jumping at the last moment. They erupted out of the side of the smoke screen, Izuku skidding to a stop as he put the two girls down before turning to the smoke cloud and sliding into a combat stance.

“Both of you, run! Get back to the entrance while I hold them off!”

“What about you?” Jiro asked as Yaoyorozu started pulling her away.

“I’ll be fine,” Izuku said, shooting her a confident smile over his shoulder, making her ears turn slightly red as she started to run.

------

“Tell me everything you know about this attack,” the two-toned teen growled to the frozen Villains.

“W-we don’t know sh*t!” the tengu-like man said through his chattering beak, “C-come on kid, you ain’t really g-gonna leave us here to f-freeze, are yah?”

“Maybe,” Shoto replied flatly.

“Todoroki!” the shout made the boy turn his head, watching as Midoriya awkwardly slid across the ice Shoto had covered the area in, “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” he nodded, “What are you doing here?”

“I got a quest to find everyone,” Izuku said as he got his balance back, “You’re the last one left. Come on, we have to get to the entrance!”

“The main attack in in the plaza, though,” Todoroki said, “Shouldn’t we go help there?”

“No!” Izuku barked sternly, “Are you crazy? That’s probably where the leaders are!”

“Exactly why we should-.”

“No,” Izuku repeated as he grabbed the other teen by the arm, pulling him away from the still frozen Villains, “We’re going to the entrance right now!”

“Oh,” Shoto muttered as he let himself be pulled along, “Okay.”

------

“Dammit Kurogiri,” Tomura growled as the misty man slumped on the floor beside him, dark blood dripping onto the concrete, “If you weren’t our warp gate out of here, I’d kill you right now!”

“I…apologise…Tomura Shigaraki,” the man replied, “I had not…expected them to be so…organised. Especially that one boy.”

“Who cares,” Shigaraki grunted as he watched the small figures running up the staircase to the entrance, two more just starting the climb, “Nomu!”

The hulking figure beside him suddenly twitched, having not moved an inch since they’d arrived, Shigaraki giving a sick smile as it shivered in anticipation of receiving an order.

“Go kill some of those brats,” he chuckled, watching as Eraserhead slowly fought his way through the crowd of nobodies he’d brought with him, “Maybe that’ll get All Might to show up!”

------

“Everyone else should be almost out,” Izuku said, panting slightly as they sprinted up the stairs towards the entrance, “So we just have to-.”

He was cut off as the massive beaked monster slammed into the ground in front of them, slowly turning to stare at them with blank eyes. Instinctively, Izuku checked its Stats, his face going pale.

Name: Wazukana “Nomu” Jikan

Level: ???

Strength: 500

Dexterity: 100

Endurance: 800

Intelligence: 4

Wisdom: 7

Charisma: 1

Skills:

[Super Strength]

[Super Speed]

[Super Regeneration]

[Shock Absorption]

“Oh sh*t,” Izuku muttered, glancing at Todoroki, “We can’t fight this guy! He’s way to strong!”

“Then I’ll just freeze him,” Shoto hummed, ice shooting out from under his right foot, encasing the creature in moments, “That should hold hi-.”

The ice groaned as the thing inside visibly moved, sending cracks spiderwebbing across it.

“What? How strong is he?” Shoto blinked in surprise.

“Five hundred,” Izuku said, grabbing Shoto by the arm and dragging him around the escaping creature, “So run!”

They had barely made it halfway up the stairs when the ground beneath them shook, both looking back to see the hulking form right behind them, fist raised as it swung a punch at Todoroki. Thoughts raced through Izuku’s head. How could he save them? Should he use his [Override] Skill, like in the Entrance Exam? But that would leave him a liability if it didn’t work. He had to find a way to stop, or at least slow down, the thing behind them.

Izuku blinked as he realized that he had just moved between Shoto and the incoming fist, crossing his arms in front of his face as he prepared for the impact. It would probably kill him anyway, but he had to try and save Todoroki. He had to try save at least one person. He had to try.

[Heroic Act Detected. Hero Point Gained.]

[Would you like to spend your Hero Point to unlock a new Skill? Yes/No?]

Izuku could only stare as the world around him froze, fading out into a familiar white void, only the screen floating in front of him. He quickly selected yes, staring in amazement as the list of Skills appeared in front of him. They were broken down into groups based on his different Stats, with more powerful and advanced Skills being available for a Stat the higher the number was. Shaking his head, Izuku quickly began scrolling through the list in an attempt to find something that could help him. He spent several minutes, finding a range of interesting abilities, but nothing that suited the situation.

“I need something to slow that bug guy down,” he muttered, half remembering something, quickly scrolling to the end of the list, to a section marked ‘Extra Skills’.

Swallowing, he found what he was looking for, selecting it, relieved to see it only cost one Hero Point to unlock.

“What the f*ck do you think you’re doing?” the voice surprised him, the teen turning around to see a man with a thick diagonal scar across his face stalking towards him, “Just taking my quirk like that?!”

“Taking…your quirk?” Izuku asked, shaking his head a moment later as he glared back at the man, “I need it to save my classmate!”

“I don’t give a sh*t!” the ash blond roared, “You can’t just activate it like that! It’s a massive power drain! You’ll just end up killing yourself!”

“And I’m fine with that!” Izuku shouted back, even surprising himself, “If I can…If I can save just one person…even if it costs me my life, then I will!”

The earnest expression stunned the man for a moment, before he let out a quiet growl.

“f*cking hell, you’re just like him, aren’t you?”

“Him?” Izuku asked, blinking at the man in confusion, “Who are you talking about?”

“Never mind that,” the scarred man grunted, stepping forwards, “You need to know how my quirk works, and I can’t get out of here until I teach you, so listen up good, brat!”

Chapter 7

Chapter Text

Shoto Todoroki watched as the world seemed to slow down around him, his classmate and representative leaping behind him as the fist bore down on his back. He wasn’t entirely sure, but if what Midoriya had said was true, then this person was far too strong for either of them to survive a hit. So why was the green-haired teen throwing himself into the path of the attack? Shouldn’t he be trying harder to escape? Would Shoto have done the same if the attack had been going for Midoriya instead?

Shoto did not like that question.

Instead, he planned, throwing a ramp of ice up the entire length of the stairs, and opening his arms to catch his classmate when he was hit. The Nomu’s fist slammed into Izuku, a sickening crack echoing through the air as the boy was launched backwards into Shoto’s waiting arms, the monster’s movements suddenly slowed to a crawl. Shoto coughed as he was slammed into the ice ramp, shooting up it from the sheer force of the punch. Suddenly, they were in the air, then they were hitting the ground at the top of the stairs, rolling across the paving as Midoriya cried out in pain.

“Are you okay?” Shoto gasped, eyes going wide as the other teen staggered to his feet, his left forearm entirely purple as it hung at an awkward angle, “Midoriya?”

“I-I’m fine,” the boy gasped through gritted teeth, barely standing, “Help me get out of here, that…thing, will only be slowed for a few more seconds.”

“Right,” Shoto nodded as he hurried over to the boy, hooking his unbroken arm over his shoulders and basically dragging him towards the open door.

An angry howl echoed through the air, sending a shiver up Shoto’s spine as the beast suddenly slammed into the ground in front of them, cracking the flagstones as it landed, turning to face them once again. Shoto immediately froze it in place, hurrying around it as the ice groaned and broke, the creature freeing itself almost immediately, ripped skin healing over in seconds. Shoto flinched as the massive hand reached for him, just as the gust of wind brushed against his face.

“NEVER FEAR! FOR I AM HERE!” All Might’s strong voice rang out over the USJ, Shoto looking up in awe as the man held the Nomu’s hand back in his iron grip, “And I am ANGRY!”

------

“Kurogiri,” the pale-haired man said as he looked up at the entrance to the building, “Bring All Might down here. Now.”

“Are you sure, Tomura Shigaraki?” the mist Villain hummed, seemingly recovered from his earlier injuries, “Would it not be better to let the Nomu tire All Might out first?”

“I said bring him down here now!” the man shouted, “I want him to know who killed him, and he won’t if he never meets me!”

“Very well,” Kurogiri sighed, opening up a portal in the air, a number of surprised shouts coming from the figures as they fell through, “Hmm, it would seem I brought two students with as well.”

“Whatever,” Tomura giggled, stepping forwards as All Might jumped back to his feet, almost immediately re-engaging the Nomu in a battle of strength, “It’s pointless, All Might! Nomu was made to be your equal! You’ll never be able to beat hi-!”

His victory speech was cut off as the wave of ice shot at him, making him shriek as he leapt back, barely dodging the attack.

“What the hell?” he growled, looking at the two students still lying on the ground, one lifting the other up as ice emerged from the ground around his foot, “How dare you interrupt me!”

“All Might, do you need help?” the red- and white-haired boy asked, ignoring Tomura completely as he started to pull his apparently unconscious classmate away.

“Don’t ignore me!” Tomura shouted, darting forwards as he reached for the two students, laying his hands on each of them, “Huh…so cool, Eraserhead.”

The Villain looked over his shoulder at the man staring at him, eyes glowing red as he charged forwards, throwing a punch at Tomura’s jaw. The Villain danced back, ducking, and weaving as he cackled, counting down under his breath.

“You know, I noticed something interesting while you were fighting my minions,” Tomura said, “The intervals between when you activate and deactivate your quirk get shorter with each use. Which means…”

Aizawa hissed as the man blocked his elbow strike with his hand, his hair falling as his quirk deactivated, pain lancing up his arm as the sleeve of his jumpsuit and his skin started to rot away. Aizawa leapt back, activating his quirk again, the pain thankfully lessening as his arm fell limp at his side.

“Thought so,” Tomura chuckled, “Well? Aren’t you going to try again, Eraserhead? You need to protect your precious students, don’t you?”

Aizawa glanced to the side as he spotted Todoroki dragging Midoriya away, the green-haired teen’s arm obviously broken.

“Looking away is a bad idea,” Tomura cackled as he shot forwards, grabbing the capture weapon that was thrown at him and reaching for Aizawa’s face, “Nomu! Now!”

The two Pro Heroes blinked as the monster vanished from in front of All Might and appeared behind Aizawa, grabbing the man by the back of the head, and slamming his face into the ground, blood splattering out onto the concrete. The beast lifted him up, about to do it again when the punch slammed into the side of its head, making it drop the Pro as All Might caught him.

“That’s not going to be enough, All Might!” Tomura cackled as the Nomu immediately rushed back at the blond, forcing him onto the defensive as he tried to protect the injured man in his arms, “You’re going to die today! And there’s nothing you can do about it! Kurogiri!”

“What?” All Might blinked as the floor seemed to fall out from under his foot, sending him toppling backwards, looking over his shoulder to see a black void opening beneath him as the Nomu pushed him into it, “sh*t!”

“DIE, ALL MIGHT! DIE!”

“ALL MIGHT! NO! [OVERRIDE]!”

The shout startled them as the green-haired boy seemed to appear from no where in front of Shigaraki, swinging his unbroken arm in a punch straight at the man’s face. Time seemed to slow as the Nomu abandoned its post of pushing All Might down, racing over to block the punch with its body, succeeding as it took the blow, the shockwaves pulsing repeatedly through its body as it seemed to struggle to stay upright, falling backwards in slow motion.

“Dammit!” Shigaraki screamed, “Nomu! Kill this brat!”

“Young Midoriya!” All Might shouted as the beast loomed over the teen, dashing forwards, “Get out of there! Now!”

“You have to…hit him now, All Might,” the teen muttered as he fell backwards, his eyes sliding closed, “Go…Plus…Ultra…”

“Dammit!” All Might screamed as the teen hit the ground, his face a furious snarl as he drew back his arm, “Detroit SMASH!”

The punch smashed into the Nomu, which was reacting far too slowly as a second punch slammed into it, followed by a third, then a fourth, then half a dozen more, followed by another dozen. The creature could barely get its arms in front of it as its body started to swell, heat building inside it as its massive muscles tried to compensate for the sheer barrage of force hitting it.

“And to finish it off,” All Might growled, sweeping his fist low as he swung into a massive uppercut, “DETROIT SMASH, PLUS ULTRA!”

The Nomu groaned as the punch slammed into its gut, its body bulging unnaturally as it let out a pained whine, before it was launched into the air, slamming into the roof of the USJ and smashing straight through. All Might panted as he stood, glaring at the Villain in front of him, the pale-haired man staring in disbelief as the blond knelt down to scoop up the unconscious boy at his feet.

“You…you beat Nomu?!” the man shrieked, “How?! It was made to fight you in your prime! And you’re definitely not that strong!”

“It’s true,” All Might chuckled coldly as he cradled the teen gently, steam beginning to rise from his body, “It took me about two hundred and fifty more punches than it should have to defeat that thing, but that was enough. I still have some gas in the tank, but I think it would be better for us to part ways and lick our wounds for now.”

“You…You…” Tomura snarled, leaping forwards with his hands outstretched, “DIE, ALL MIGHT!”

The gunshots echoed across the plaza as the Villain cried out in pain, bullet wounds appearing in his hand and shoulder as he collapsed to the floor. The other Villains all looked up at the Pros gathered at the top of the stairs, grinning down at them as they posed for a moment, before descending onto the crowd.

“Dammit!” Tomura screamed, “Kurogiri! Get us out of here! Now!”

“Right away, Tomura Shigaraki,” the mist Villain said as the black mist enveloped the young man.

“All Might!” Shoto called as the man held Izuku gently in his arms, the teen wanting to run over to him to take his unconscious classmate, but unable to leave his bleeding teacher.

Suddenly, a wall of concrete shot up around the man, Cementos lumbering into view as the other teachers dispatched the remaining Villains. Inside the wall, Toshinori Yagi deflated in a blast of steam, collapsing to the ground as he held the unconscious boy to his chest.

“Dammit, Young Midoriya,” He muttered, “What were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t, sorry,” Izuku replied, making Toshinori startle as he scrambled to pull the teen upright, looking him over in surprise, not a scratch on him, even his shattered arms healed.

“What?” the blond said in disbelief, “Young Midoriya, what happened to you?!”

“Oh, uhm…” the teen said sheepishly as he scratched his cheek, “I guess I levelled up?”

------

“I think we’re all overlooking a bigger problem,” Mic growled, leaning back in his chair, “We may very well have a traitor!”

“What makes yah say that pard’ner?” Snipe asked, looking around at the rest of the teachers present, “I mean, it’s not like it could be any o’ us, right?”

“Snipe’s right,” Midnight said, “We can’t start accusing or suspecting each other all of a sudden.”

“Mic’s not saying it’s definitely one of us,” Aizawa grunted from the seat beside the blonde-haired man, scratching at the thin layer of bandages wrapped around his head, “It could be one of the students.”

“That is unfair, Aizawa-san,” Yagi said, “We cannot just accuse someone without any evidence!”

“Very true, All Might,” Nedzu nodded, getting the room’s attention once again, “But we have other information to cover before that, namely, the potential identities of the two ringleaders of the attack on the USJ.”

“What?” Midnight gasped, “You have them already, sir? But how?”

“One from a piece of evidence that was…ahem, acquired by Snipe-san in the fight,” Nedzu explained, holding up a folder with a photo of several blood splashes attached to the front, “And the other from the report of one Izuku Midoriya.”

“Whoa, wait,” Mic said, “Midoriya knew one of the ring leaders? Do you think that means he’s the mole?”

“IMPOSSIBLE!” Yagi suddenly shouted, jumping out of his seat as he glared at Mic, “Young Midoriya would never cavort with such people!”

“And how do you know, All Might?” the other blond asked.

“Because I…” Yagi trailed off, before sitting back in his chair with a huff, “Because I just do, trust me.”

“Trust isn’t exactly something we can have a lot of right now, All Might,” Aizawa grunted, “Mic does have a point. Who was Midoriya able to identify?”

“The portal Villain, alias “Kurogiri”,” Nedzu replied, opening the first folder to show a familiar smiling face under light blue cloud-like hair, “According to him, his quirk showed the man’s true name to be Oboro Shirakumo.”

“What?” Mic, Aizawa and Midnight said as one, Midnight continuing as the other two stared blankly at the folder on the desk, “But Oboro died years ago, Nedzu! This is impossible!”

“Perhaps not,” Nedzu shook his head, “I interviewed Midoriya-kun myself after reading the initial report, he was entirely honest and sincere in his answers. I even called in an associate to ensure that.”

“And the other person?” Snipe asked, looking worriedly at Mic and Aizawa as they sat in shock, “Who’re they?”

“We don’t have an exact identity just yet,” Nedzu explained as he opened the second folder, “But DNA evidence does show a relation to a known individual in the HPSC database.”

“A criminal in the system?” Snipe asked.

“No,” Nedzu shook his head, flipping over a picture to reveal a smiling woman in a Hero costume, “A Hero.”

“What?” Yagi blinked as he looked at the familiar face in shock, “But…no…how?”

“You know her?” Midnight asked the shaking blond, “Who is she, All Might?”

“She is…was a woman by the name of Nana Shimura,” he replied softly, “My Master.”

Chapter 8

Chapter Text

“All Might!” Izuku called as he chased after the skinny man down the empty corridor, startling him out of his thoughts, “I wanted to talk to you quickly if that’s okay.”

“Huh? Young Midoriya?” Yagi muttered, shaking his head slightly to clear his mind, “Of course, what’s wrong? Is it to do with your quirk?”

“Sort of,” the teen replied, looking away for a moment before a screen appeared in front of Yagi, making him jump slightly, “I just added you to my Friend List, please accept.”

“Friend List?” Yagi hummed, accepting the offer, “Interesting. And what does being on this list do?”

“Oh, it lets me message you,” Izuku explained quickly, a screen popping up in front of Yagi with the message Hi, All Might on it, “And you can message me as well. We can also talk as long as we’re within range of each other, though only between each other.”

“Wow, that is…quite the ability,” the man said.

“Yeah, I’d been meaning to add you to my Friend List for a while, but couldn’t find a time to ask,” Izuku smiled, “But after the USJ…well, I figured it was best to just do it, right?”

“Ah yes,” Yagi nodded, “You would have been able to contact me far faster had we had this, I suppose. Though I must ask, what’s the range on this ability of yours?”

“Oh, uhm…currently about a kilometre,” Izuku said, “But that’s only for the Voice Chat portion. The Text part doesn’t seem to have a range limit, Uraraka and I tested it out the other day after school and we could message each other easily even when we were both at home.”

“Uraraka?” All Might chuckled, patting the teen on the shoulder, “Good to see you’re getting on with your classmates, Young Midoriya. Though do try to keep focus on your studies.”

“What do you mean, All Might?” the boy asked, blinking for a moment before his face went bright red, “N-no! It’s not like that! We’re just friends!”

“Not to say that there won’t be developments later, of course,” Nedzu chirped, dropping down from the vents onto Izuku’s shoulder, making the other two stare in surprise, “Though I must say, this communication ability of yours sounds quite impressive, Midoriya-kun. Would you mind adding me to your Friend List as well?”

“Oh, of course, Principal Nedzu!” Izuku nodded, quickly adding him, “There we go. That’s four people so far.”

“Only four?” Nedzu hummed, the teen nodding, “I would have thought you would have added your entire class by now. Maybe you should do that come the new week.”

“Add my whole class?” Izuku blinked, “I mean…I suppose I should.”

------

“Which is why I’d like to add you all to my Friend List,” Izuku explained to the class, Aizawa standing to the side, yawning through his bandages.

“Wow! That sounds so cool!” Mina said excitedly, “So we’d all be able to talk to each other with our minds?”

“Uhm, not exactly,” Izuku shook his head, “As far as I can tell, you’d only be able to contact me, but I could relay information between everyone.”

“That’s still pretty manly,” Kirishima chuckled, “I’m totally in!”

“f*ck that!” the shout echoed around the room as the class looked at the blond, “I ain’t doing sh*t with Deku or his sh*tty quirk!”

“You don’t have a choice, Bakugo,” Aizawa sighed, “This is an order from Nedzu himself.”

“Uhm, actually, the people I invite have to be willing to be on the list,” Izuku said, “Otherwise it automatically declines the offer. I’ve already tried sending Kacchan a request a couple of times.”

“You what?!” Bakugo snarled, “You used your sh*tty quirk on me without saying anything, Deku?!”

“Bakugo, sit down,” Aizawa growled at the blond as he jumped up, the explosions that had been crackling in his hands dying, “Now. I don’t want to have to report this to Nedzu.”

“Tch,” the blonde clicked his teeth, falling back into his chair as he crossed his arms.

“Anyway,” the teacher sighed, “Let’s get on with this. Midoriya.”

“Yes, Sensei,” the boy nodded, looking away for a moment before the screen appeared in front of the man.

“What? Why are you inviting me?”

“Because Nedzu told me to?” Izuku replied, making the man groan before accepting.

“Of course he did,” the teacher sighed, leaning against the wall as he watched the students.

Izuku quickly sent invitations to the rest of the class, smiling as each person accepted.

[10 Friends Detected. [Party] System Skill Unlocked.]

“Huh?” Izuku blinked as he stared at the screen that had just appeared, “What?”

“Is something wrong, Midoriya?” Aizawa asked, “Can you not add any more people to your Friend List?”

“No, that’s not it,” the teen shook his head, “I just got a new Skill for having ten people in my Friend List, though.”

“A…new Skill?” the teacher sighed, “Well, you can check what it does later, just finish adding the rest of the students first.”

“Oh, that’s done,” Izuku hummed, opening his Stat Screen, and checking the new Skill immediately, “I wonder what it means by “Party”?”

[Party]: Allows for the formation of a party. Party size is equal to Charisma/5. (Current Maximum Party size: 4)

Sub-Skills:

[Party Chat]: Allows for messages to be sent to the entire Party.

[Status Share]: Allows the Team leader to view Party Members’ Status.

“Oh, of course,” Izuku chuckled, “I should have guessed.”

“Guessed what, Midoriya?” Aizawa sighed.

“I think my new Skill allows me to form a Party with anyone in my Friend List,” Izuku explained, “It also lets everyone in the party talk to each other with my quirk.”

“Most interesting,” Nedzu’s voice came through the speaker, making the class jump, “Your quirk is becoming more versatile by the moment, it would seem, Midoriya-kun. Most interesting indeed.”

Aizawa just groaned as he gave Izuku a pitying look, the teen staring back in confusion.

------

“It was decided that, after the last couple of…incidents, that occurred during your Foundational Heroics classes, that we would do a simple activity today,” All Might said as he stood beside Aizawa, reading from the cue card in his hands “A capture the flag game! You will be sorted into teams of four, with one of you being designated the “leader”, who will play a special role in the group!”

“And what is that role, All Might?” Iida immediately asked, his hand shooting into the air.

“We’ll tell you after the teams and leaders are decided,” Aizawa grumbled, yawning loudly as he pulled out two familiar boxes, “Teams are random, so come draw a ball.”

“But why teams of four? There will be five groups then?” Yaoyorozu cut in, the other students all nodding.

“It’s a round-robin style contest,” All Might explained, checking the card in his hand again, “The winners of the last round will stay on, while the losers wait for their next turn. Think of it as an endurance test as well as a game of skill!”

The class nodded along as they each made their way forward, drawing a ball and separating into their groups. Izuku soon found himself standing with Aoyama, Jiro, and Sato, nodding to each in turn as they nodded back. He quickly looked at the rest of the teams, checking everyone’s Stats at the same time. Mina, Kirishima, Kaminari and Ojiro stood to one side, discussing who should be their leader, while Koda, Shoji and Tokoyami tried to ignore Mineta’s wails about there being no girls in their group. While both teams had potential heavy hitters, it was the other two teams that worried Izuku the most.

Bakugo had ended up in a team with Todoroki, Sero and Iida, meaning they had two people with high mobility in Sero and Iida, two with high capture capability in Sero and Todoroki, and two general powerhouses in Todoroki and Bakugo, the blonde currently shouting that he was the Leader. The final group consisted of all girls, Yaoyorozu, Asui, Uraraka and Hagakure talking quietly. Honestly, this team worried Izuku more than Bakugo’s, as they had a near perfect stealth operative, great general manoeuvrability and probably most dangerous of all, a good strategist.

“Make sure to pick your “Leaders” quickly,” Aizawa muttered, yawning once again, “We don’t have all day.”

“That shall be moi, non?” Aoyama said, tossing his cape dramatically behind him.

“That’ll have to be you, right Midoriya?” Jiro said, the green-haired teen looking at her in confusion for a moment.

“What? Why?” he asked.

“Well, you have that “Party” ability now, right?” Jiro continued, “Which means you can talk to all of us and keep track of our condition or status or whatever.”

“I shall gladly take the position, should you not wish, mon ami!” the blond said loudly.

“Jiro does have a point,” Sato nodded, “I mean, we have a pretty balanced team, I think, so having you as the Leader to help us communicate would be best.”

“Oh, okay,” Izuku nodded, “Hold on, let me activate [Party] quickly.”

The screens appeared in front of the other three, each accepting, Aoyama doing so in mild disappointment. Izuku blinked as new screens appeared before him, quickly shrinking into his peripheral vision as they faded away. With a little experimentation, he found he could call up the general information on each of his team members with just a thought, making him smile as he nodded.

“Okay, now to test the [Party Chat],” he said, activating the Sub-Skill, “Can you all hear me? Reply in your heads.”

“Loud and clear,” Jiro nodded.

“Yeah,” Sato replied, “I can also hear Jiro. This is kind of weird, but also pretty cool.”

“I am hearing you all sparklingly clear!” Aoyama added, “Though not as sparklingly as moi!”

“Excellent,” Izuku replied, looking at each of them in turn, “Now that we know how this works, we can use it to plan our approach.”

“Midoriya!” the shout startled the four of them as they turned to look at Aizawa, the man scowling back at them, “Who is your “Leader’?”

“Oh, uhm…me,” the teen replied, Aizawa just nodding as he turned to the rest of the class.

“Right, and now the big reveal,” he said with more than a little sarcasm, “The “Leaders” are the flags.”

The room remained silent for a moment before the class spoke as one.

“Huh?!”

“I said what I said,” the teacher sighed, reaching into one of the boxes and pulling out a ball, “It’s capture the flag, but the “Leader” of each team is the flag. You have to capture them and bring them back to your base to win the round. First team to go up is…Team Mineta.”

“And they shall be facing…Team Bakugo!” All Might said as he drew the second ball, “Please make your way to the training grounds quickly!”

------

“No way!” the short ball-haired boy whimpered as the other three marched him up to their base, “We’re all going to die! Did you even see who’s on his team!”

“We did,” Tokoyami replied, Dark Shadow leaning on his shoulder, “That does not mean we shouldn’t try.”

“But we’re going to die!” the boy whined again.

“I highly doubt Bakugo would cause a repeat incident,” Shoji sighed, “It wouldn’t do him any good to get suspended again.”

“But-,” the boy continued.

“Enough,” the two of them growled, “Just stay behind us if you’re so worried!”

“Begin!” All Might’s voice boomed through the earpieces they each wore, the four looking up as they heard a series of popping sounds in the sky, eyes going wide.

“f*ckING DIE!” the scream echoed over the base as the blond slammed into them.

------

“Ahem,” All Might cleared his throat as the rest of the students watched the screen, “Team Bakugo wins.”

“One flag went and captured the other,” Yaoyorozu said, looking at the teachers, “Doesn’t that defeat the point of the exercise?”

“Not really,” Aizawa muttered, simply pulling another ball out of the box, “Next group, Team Midoriya, get going.”

Chapter 9

Chapter Text

“Next team is in position!” All Might’s voice came through the earpieces, “Begin!”

The class watched the screens as Team Midoirya just looked at each other, occasionally making faces but not talking at all.

“I know it’s probably Midoriya’s quirk,” Hagakure said as they watched the silent team, “But that’s actually kind of creepy.”

The silence of the one team was interrupted by the yelling and shouts of the other, all four members charging straight towards the other team’s base.

------

“Back the f*ck off, Half-n-half!” Bakugo screamed, “I didn’t need you extras in the first round, I don’t need you now!”

“That is not in the spirit of the exercise, Bakugo!” Iida shouted through the earpieces, racing down the straight roads as fast as he could, “You need to stay back and-.”

“Shut the f*ck up, Glasses!” the blond roared, letting off another powerful explosion to propel himself forwards faster, “I’ll deal with those chumps and bring Deku back before any of you can f*cking blink!”

“Jeez dude, we’re just trying to help,” Sero called.

“I don’t need your sh*tty help!”

The four of them arrived at the plaza that marked the other team’s base almost as one, Bakugo flying through the air, Shoto sliding along on his ice, Iida running and Sero swinging. Just as they cleared the buildings a wave of sound slammed into them, shattering Todoroki’s ice and making the other three stumble slightly. They looked at their opponents just in time to see the four silent teens nod as one, moving with unnerving coordination.

Izuku jumped towards Sato, who caught him in his large hand, and hurled him with all his might straight at the still reeling Sero. The smiling boy barely had a chance to react before the punch met his gut and sent him sailing back down the street.

Jiro twisted a dial on her boots, focusing the sound onto Todoroki as he tried to raise a wall of ice, causing it to shake violently, falling apart almost as quickly as he could produce it. A sudden burst of concussive light smashed through the weakened barrier, hitting the teen in the chest, and throwing him backwards into a storefront. Shoto could only lie dazed as he tried to figure out what had just happened to him.

As soon as Todoroki was taken out, Aoyama twisted his body, drawing a sweeping arc across the ground right in front of Iida, cutting off his straight-line sprint towards the group. Skidding to a stop, Iida blinked as a shadow loomed over him, looking up just in time to see Sato charging straight at him, slamming powerfully into the armoured boy, and sending him flying.

As one, the three students turned to Bakugo, who had just finished shaking his head to clear it, blasting him with sound, light, and hurled rocks as he was forced to dodge around them, screaming insults the entire time. He was so focused on the incoming attacks, that he failed to notice the green-haired teen sneak up the building behind him, leaping from the roof and tackling him from behind.

The sudden extra weight saw the blond react too slowly, getting hit by a blast of sound and a light beam at once, a large rock slamming into him a moment later as he flailed in the air, the figure on his back squeezing his neck in a chokehold. The two fell, slamming heavily into the ground as Bakugo tried to beat his attacker off with elbows and kicks, each strike getting weaker and weaker until he finally fell still.

The standing team remained motionless for a moment, before Izuku jumped to his feet and hurled the unconscious Bakugo into the large cage in the centre of the plaza, Jiro and Aoyama slamming the door shut a moment later.

“Team Midoriya wins!” All Might called out, the four students finally letting out a noise as they all cheered together.

“We did it!” Jiro laughed, falling back as she panted slightly.

“We are truly sparkling, mes amies!” Aoyama said as he twirled around.

“Yah,” Sato grunted, slowly coming down from his sugar high.

“We really did do it, didn’t we?” Izuku said almost in disbelief.

“Oh, come on, Midoriya,” Jiro chuckled as she stood and walked over to him, “Don’t be a downer. Anyway, the next match will be harder, I don’t think that the next team will be kind enough to deliver their flag right to us.”

“True,” Izuku nodded as they watched the medical bots wheel Bakugo out of the cage, Sero, Iida and Shoto able to walk under their own power after being given a moment to rest, “I wonder who we’ll be up against?”

“Next,” Aizawa’s tired voice came through the earpieces, “Team Hagakure.”

------

Izuku groaned as he slowly came to, staring up at the white ceiling tiles of the Nurse’s Office in confusion.

“What? What happened?” he asked, trying to sit up as a sharp pain pulsed in his head.

“You took a nasty fall,” Recovery Girl said from the other side of the room, looking over to him as she hopped off her chair and walked over, pulling a small flashlight from her pocket, “Three stories right onto your head, you were lucky to get out of it with only a mild concussion.”

“I…fell?” Izuku muttered, the memories coming back to him as she shone the light in his eyes.

His team had gone on the offensive, using his quirk to keep in contact as they split up and moved. It was Izuku’s job to stay back and out of the way, running along the rooftops to help coordinate the others. It had been going well, Sato tearing through most of the basic traps the other team had set up, and Jiro managing to locate Hagakure quickly. They’d managed to hold off Asui and Yaoyorozu long enough to corner the invisible girl, then Izuku had been hit in the back by something and had fallen off the roof. Everything after that was blank.

“So…we lost?” he asked Recovery Girl, the woman giving him an unimpressed look for a moment, before just shaking her head.

“I don’t know, but that’s hardly important,” the old woman huffed, “I mean, really? Caring more about your victory than your health? What is it with you kids these days? What would you have done if you were more seriously injured? Badly enough that you had to drop out?”

“Oh, uhm…I suppose…find another way to be a Hero?” Izuku replied, his head still fuzzy.

“Find a…? Are you serious? You’re almost worse than Toshinori,” Recovery Girl sighed, stepping back from the bed, “Anyway, you’re mostly fine. I was just waiting for you to wake up before I healed you. I tend to do that with minor injuries, just to make sure people have enough energy to heal them properly. Here.”

Izuku blinked as she kissed him on the cheek, the dull throb in his head fading quickly as he began to feel slightly more tired. With the pain gone, he could think clearly again, thanking Recovery Girl as he got out of the bed, realising he was still in his Hero costume.

“How long has it been?” he asked.

“About four hours since you were brought in,” Recovery Girl hummed.

“Ah, the lesson is probably over then,” Izuku sighed, blinking in surprise “Wait! Four hours? That means it’s after seven! My mom will be so worried!”

“Don’t worry, we called her and explained everything,” Recovery Girl hummed, hopping off her chair as moving over to a large box, “One of the other teachers will drive you home shortly. As soon as you help me move this box, of course.”

“Uh, sure,” Izuku nodded, looking at the books inside the box, picking one up to read the cover.

Basic First Aid.

[Skill Book Found. Would you like to consume Skill Book? Yes/No?]

“What?” Izuku blinked, “Consume? Skill Book?”

“What’s wrong, deary,” the old woman asked, giving him a concerned look, “Feeling lightheaded?”

“No,” Izuku shook his head, dismissing the screen, “Just a, uhm…quirk thing. I’ll get these to the storage room now.”

“Thank you,” Recovery Girl nodded as he lifted the heavy box with relative ease, carrying it out of the door and down the hall.

Once inside the storage room, he slid the box onto an empty shelf, turning away for a moment, before looking back at the box. Nervously, he reached inside, picking up one of the books and reading the cover again. Just as before, a screen appeared in front of him.

[Skill Book Found. Would you like to consume Skill Book? Yes/No?]

“It’s just one book. It’s not like it’ll actually be destroyed, right?” Izuku said as he accepted, blinking as the book suddenly began to glow, the weight of the object vanishing from his hand a moment later as the light vanished, leaving him standing in the storeroom in confusion, “Wait…what just happened?”

The speakers in the hallway crackled to life a moment later, Nedzu’s voice coming through as chipper as always.

“Would Izuku Midoriya please report to the principal’s office? Thank you.”

------

Tomura growled as he flexed his hand, the bullet wound already healed by a quirk Sensei had, but the appendage still aching.

“Are you alright, Tomura Shigaraki?” Kurogiri asked as he cleaned a glass behind the bar, “The Doctor has already seen to your wounds, but are you still in pain?”

“I’m fine,” the man snorted, turning back to the television in the corner of the room, “Sensei just hasn’t contacted us in a while.”

“Are you worried?”

“No!” Tomura barked, shaking his head as he glared at the television, “Sensei already said it wasn’t my fault! It was the damn Heroes! And those Hero-wannabe brats!”

“Quite right,” Kurogiri nodded, trailing off at th end of his sentence, “They certainly proved more…adept, than expected. Especially that one…”

“Huh?” Tomura grunted, “What was that? Who are you talking about?”

“Nothing, Tomura Shigaraki,” the bartender hummed, picking up a new glass and cleaning it, quiet returning to the room.

“Girran hasn’t gotten back to us yet, either,” Tomura muttered, glancing at the door before returning to his watch on the television, “What’s taking him so long?”

“It has only been a day since we initially contacted him,” Kurogiri replied, “It is obviously not that easy to find help of the quality we desire. These things take time. And we have plenty of that right now as we wait for your wounds to fully heal.”

“Right, time,” the young man snorted, still staring at the TV.

The two fell into a familiar silence once again, Kurogiri simply cleaning glasses as Tomura stared at the television, tapping his fingers against the bar.

“Don’t think I’ve ever seen this bar before,” the unfamiliar voice said as the door opened, a group of people stumbling through, obviously drunk, “It’s in a sh*tty part of town, so maybe the barkeep won’t cut us off like the last asshole!”

The rest of the group laughed loudly as the made their way to one of the booths, not paying attention to Shigaraki as he glared at them.

“Barkeep! A round of beers!” one of the men shouted as they flopped onto the seats.

“I’m sorry, but we are currently closed,” Kurogiri hummed, bowing his head in apology as the group fell silent.

“What? But the sign was on!” another of the group, a woman, shouted, “We saw it and everything! That means you’re open!”

“We don’t have a sign,” Kurogiri replied curtly, “This is something of a private establishment. Please leave.”

“Private establishment?” one of the men slurred as he staggered to his feet, obviously the most drunk of the lot, “Then what about that asshole? How come he gets to be here but we gotta leave?”

“Asshole, huh?” Tomura growled as he stood from his seat, turning to face the drunk man, “You were told to leave, so get out!”

“f*ck you, brat!” the man shouted, throwing a sloppy punch at the pale-haired man, blinking in surprise as it was easily caught, a scream shooting from his lips as his hand started to decay.

The others stared in shock for a moment, before the woman screamed, desperately running towards the door. A portal opened in front of her just as she reached it, making her stumble as she ran right back into the bar, looking around in confusion.

“Honestly, I needed some stress relief,” Tomura chuckled as he stepped towards the woman, grabbing her by the throat before she could react, her eyes rolling back in pain as her throat began to rot, “Looks like you’ll have to do.”

“G-get off her!” one of the other men shouted, grabbing a bar stool, and swinging it at the man, blinking as the object vanished into a dark mist, “What?”

“Just shut up and scream,” Tomura grinned, dropping the woman, and stepping towards the man, his hands outstretched.

Chapter 10

Chapter Text

Shota looked around the quiet street, the sun shining down on him as he tugged at the still slightly uncomfortable capture weapon around his neck. He may have had the thing for almost a year already, but that didn’t mean he was used to wearing it. He looked over at his buddy beside him, the two young Hero students smiling at each other as they walked along the patrol route, Shirakumo waving to some kids watching them from a nearby Nursery school.

The ground suddenly jolted, screams and shouts filling the air as Shota looked around in surprise. Clouds filled his vision, their edges tinged black as he was pushed back, the building falling around him, dark clouds above him holding back the rubble. He crawled out of the collapsing building, tears pouring from his eyes as he stumbled into the too bright light.

He stared at the arm. Sticking out from under the rubble as though reaching out for help, the other Heroes desperately trying to lift the massive blocks of masonry off the body. But it was too late. Shota knew that. He stared at the body as it was lifted from the rubble, placed on a white sheet, another being placed over the bloodied face.

“Oboro,” Shota said, just staring at the body as the world around him faded, “Oboro.”

The black mist rose slowly, engulfing the body in thin tendrils as Shota found himself pinned to the spot, unable to move even as his friend’s corpse was lifted into the air. Cold, empty eyes stared at Shota as he stared back, the mist washing over the face, two blazing yellow eyes replacing them as the body turned in the air, standing in front of him.

“Shota,” the voice that was so familiar said, “It should have been you.”

Aizawa snorted awake, scrambling slightly as he slid off the sofa that he’d fallen asleep on, catching himself just before he faceplanted into the floor. Shaking his head, he pushed himself up, sitting properly on the couch and rubbing his face with his hands as he tried to drive the dream from his mind.

“You have the dream again?” Hizashi asked from the nearby chair, putting his book down as he stood, Shota noticing the blanket that had probably been draped over him now lying on the floor.

“No,” he grunted back.

“Don’t lie to me,” Hizashi sighed, sitting next to Shota as he slipped an arm around the man’s shoulders, “You were saying his name. You only do that when you have the dream.”

“It wasn’t the dream,” Aizawa muttered, standing up and stepping away. Technically it wasn’t, the dream had never ended that way before.

“Shota,” Hizashi sighed, standing behind him, reaching out, but pausing at the last moment, “Do you want to talk about it?”

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Aizawa growled, shaking the last of the sleep from his mind, turning to the door, “I need to go on patrol.”

“You don’t have a patrol tonight,” Hizashi said soothingly, finally placing his hand on Shota’s shoulder, “Nedzu changed your schedule, remember? Come on, let’s get you into bed for once so you can sleep properly.”

“I…no,” Aizawa muttered, shaking Hizashi’s hand off, “I…I need to go on patrol.”

“What you need is sleep, Shota!” Hizashi said pleadingly, “Please!”

“No!” Aizawa shouted back, “I can’t! I’ll see him again if I…!”

“So, it was the dream,” Hizashi sighed, before cracking a slight smile as he stepped towards Shota, “You always get cranky after having it. Come on, I’ll be right next to you.”

“I said no!” Aizawa growled, pulling away from the other man, “I just need to go on patrol!”

“For what?” Hizashi asked, “To distract yourself? To pretend like we don’t know? Shota, you have to stop! You have to rest! You aren’t the only person who misses him, but-!”

“It should have been me,” Aizawa yelled, spinning to face the other man as he shouted, “We both know that it should have been me that day! At least then the two of you wouldn’t have to…to feel like this!”

“Shota,” Hizashi blinked, his brow furrowing as he slapped the other man across the face, “Is that what you think?! That we wouldn’t feel for you? That I wouldn’t feel for you?”

Aizawa blinked as he lifted a hand to his cheek, before turning away and walking silently to the door, grabbing his capture weapon as he left.

“And where the f*ck do you think you’re going?!” Hizashi shouted, leaning out of the door as Shota stormed down the hallway.

“On patrol,” the man replied, climbing out the window and jumping into the darkness.

Hizashi sighed as he slumped against the door post, sniffing as tears began to leak from his eyes.

“You know, you idiot,” he muttered, “You know that he would miss you even more.”

------

“Woah,” Izuku said as he opened the door to go to lunch, “So many people. What’s going on here?”

“Scoping out the competition,” a boy with tall purple hair said as he stepped to the front of the crowd, “Did you know that if you do well enough in the Sports Festival, then even a General Education student can move up to the Hero Course? So, that means we’re all coming for your seats, Hero students! This is a declaration of war!”

“Oh!” Izuku said, “Uhm…well, good luck then?”

“Hmmph,” the boy snorted as he turned away, Izuku quickly checking his stats.

Name: Hitoshi Shinso

Level: 5

Stats:

Strength: 12

Dexterity: 11

Endurance: 12

Intelligence: 18

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 25

Skills:

[Brainwashing]

“Huh,” Izuku muttered as he watched the teen disappear into the crowd.

“What was that, Midoriya?” Ochako asked, startling him out of his thoughts, “You were staring into space for a second there. Were you checking his stats?”

“Oh! Uhm…yeah,” Izuku blushed as he rubbed the back of his head, watching as the crowd slowly dispersed, “I probably shouldn’t do that to random people, should I?”

“It may be seen as an invasion of privacy, yes,” Iida nodded as he joined the two, “Now, we should head to lunch quickly! We have Basic Heroics this afternoon, and proper nutrition is a major part of being a Hero!”

“Oh, that reminds me!” Izuku gasped, quickly moving down the hall as he called back to them, “I have to go see the principal now, so go ahead without me!”

------

“Astounding as always,” Nedzu hummed as he sat in his chair, “Your Quirk really is a thing of miracles!”

“I wouldn’t really say that,” Izuku chuckled, “It’s just…really useful, I guess?”

“Useful isn’t the word I would use,” the Principal grinned, “But that’s beside the point! You have already used half a dozen books today, are you feeling well?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Izuku said as he called up his Stats Screen, looking over it in mild amazement.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 11

Stats:

Strength: 120 (999)

Dexterity: 23

Endurance: 60

Intelligence: 35

Wisdom: 21

Charisma: 20

Free Stat Points: 5

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

[Party]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

[Basic First Aid]

[Basic Electrical Engineering]

[Basic Structural Engineering]

[Basic Mixed Martial Arts]

It had only been a week since Izuku had “accidentally” used the Basic First Aid book to gain a new Skill and had been called to the principal’s office, but in that time Nedzu had practically showered him with Skill books. Of course, they had started slow, only using one at first, then two the next day, and three the day after. Now he had just finished using six in a row, his head starting to feel like it was about to burst.

“It’s interesting that all the Martial Arts manuals you gave me combined into one skill after the tenth one,” Izuku hummed, opening the Skill description, and reading over the dozen or so fighting techniques he now knew, “It’s a pity that I can’t perform them that well yet though.”

“True,” Nedzu chuckled over his cup of tea, “But then again, that would make you absolutely terrifying!”

“I suppose,” the teen nodded, recalling how, while he had the theory of how to perform the various martial arts, his body wasn’t used to actually doing them, making his movements stilted and slow, “Guess I’ll just have to keep practicing.”

“That you will!” Nedzu laughed, pressing a button on the intercom on his desk, “Now, time for our next test! Eraserhead, if you would kindly come in.”

“What’s going on?” Izuku asked as his homeroom teacher entered the office.

“Just a simple experiment, Midoriya-kun,” the principal chimed, “I have a theory about your ability to use Skill Books and would like to test it. Now, if you could invite Aizawa-san to your party, please.”

“Okay,” Izuku shrugged, inviting his teacher, the man immediately accepting, “Now what?”

“Now, he takes this,” Nedzu said as he handed the older man a leatherbound book, “Can you use it as a Skill Book, Aizawa?”

“Yes,” the man replied, looking at the book in mild surprise, “There’s a screen asking if I want to.”

“Then use it,” Nedzu chirped happily, Eraserhead just sighing as the book began to glow, then vanished, “Now, Midoriya-kun, if you would check Aizawa-san’s status, please.”

Izuku nodded as he looked at his teacher, activating his [Analytical Eye] Skill.

Name: Shota “Eraserhead” Aizawa

Level: 48

Stats:

Strength: 46

Dexterity: 54

Endurance: 24

Intelligence: 31

Wisdom: 47

Charisma: 18

Skills:

[Erasure]

[Capture Weapon]

[Basic Strategy – Chess]

“Aizawa-sensei has a new Skill!” Izuku gasped, “It’s called Basic Strategy – Chess!”

“Wait…” the scruffy man groaned, looking at Nedzu in dismay, “You aren’t thinking of making me-?”

“Play chess with yours truly?” Nedzu grinned, “Why, what a brilliant suggestion, Aizazwa-san! And if you do so, I may just be tempted to increase the number of patrols you’re assigned.”

Izuku saw the teacher’s eyes widen slightly at the mention of more patrols before he schooled his expression back into neutrality.

“Well, that proves the theory,” Nedzu hummed, “So now to put it into practice!”

------

“This is Midoriya,” Kan said as the class looked at the smiling green-haired teen, “He’s going to be helping you all learn Basic First Aid today.”

“Wait, isn’t he one of the kids from 1A?” a blonde sitting at the back of the class sneered, “Why do we need his help for anything?”

“Because, Monoma,” Kan sighed, “Either you can learn the skill the hard and old-fashioned way, or we can use Midoriya’s quirk to speed up the process by months. 1A have already done this, so we know it works.”

“What’s the method?” the red head asked, putting her hand up as it grew slightly, “And what’s his quirk have to do with it?”

“My quirk is called System,” Izuku suddenly spoke up, “Or, at least that’s what I call it. It allows me to see stuff about people like in a video game, so stats and skills and things. I can also form a party and, we just recently discovered, use Skill Books to gain new Skills. By combining those, others can also learn new Skills far faster than they would otherwise.”

“Aptly put, Midoriya,” Kan nodded, before looking back at the class, “Of course, this will only be theoretical knowledge, which means you’ll be having practical lessons with Recovery Girl at a later date. But this will speed the whole process up substantially.”

“Wait, like a video game?” one of the boys asked, “Seriously? That’s pretty cool! What are my stats?”

“You’ll all be receiving a printout with your stats on them,” Kan interrupted, “To let you see your strengths and weaknesses compared to others. Not that you have to share them if you feel uncomfortable doing so.”

“Cool,” several of the class said as Kan stepped back.

“Alright, the floor is all yours, Midoriya.”

“Thank you, Kan-sensei,” Izuku grinned, looking out over the class, “Okay, so first I have to add you all to my Friend List.”

Chapter 11

Chapter Text

“Yaoyorozu.”

The tall girl looked up from her meal as Izuku sat in the seat opposite her, Iida and Ochako taking the seats to either side of him.

“Yes, Midoriya-kun?” she asked, “Is there something I can help you with?”

“Yeah, I was hoping I could talk to you about my Stats,” he said, “Or, well, stats in general, really.”

“Of course,” she replied, “I would be happy to help, though I don’t know if I can. I’m not that well versed in video game mechanics.”

“That’s actually perfect,” Izuku smiled at her, “I want to get an outside opinion on some things.”

“Very well, ask away.”

“Okay, so I know that I can increase my Stats just by working hard on them, but I’ve been having trouble with some of the non-physical stats,” Izuku explained, “Namely Wisdom.”

“Wisdom?” Yaoyorozu asked, “So why come to me?”

“Because you’re the smartest person in the class,” Izuku shrugged, making the girl blush slightly at the compliment, “You have both the highest Intelligence and Wisdom out of any of the students I’ve encountered. I wanted to know how.”

“Well,” the girl said, “I do study a lot. Mostly because my Quirk requires a great deal of knowledge on chemistry.”

Izuku nodded, quickly checking her Stats.

Name: Momo “Yaomomo” Yaoyorozu

Level: 12

Stats:

Strength: 17

Dexterity: 18

Endurance: 19

Intelligence: 35

Wisdom: 24

Charisma: 16

Skills:

[Create]

[Advanced Chemistry]

[Basic Engineering]

[Basic First Aid]

“Yeah, I can see that, you even have an advanced Skill in Chemistry,” Izuku nodded, “But I was wondering how that translated to a higher Wisdom stat?”

“Well, what do each of your stats represent?” she asked.

“Well, Strength, Dexterity and Endurance are pretty self-explanatory,” Izuku shrugged, “I’m pretty sure Intelligence is linked to how much I know, because it goes up when I study new information, and Charisma is my social skill, though I still haven’t managed to increase that without using my Free Points, either.”

“And Wisdom?” Yaoyorozu asked.

“I have no idea,” Izuku shrugged, “Honestly, it seems to go up randomly.”

“Are you sure?” the girl asked, “I can understand the rest of your stats, though Wisdom does seem a little odd. You see, a person’s Wisdom is often conflated with their knowledge, but not simply how much they know.”

“What do you mean?” Ochako asked.

“Well, how to explain it?” Yaoyorozu hummed, pausing for a moment to think before continuing, “Wisdom is often seen as a person’s ability to use their knowledge to its fullest. Simply possessing a lot of knowledge is useless if one does not understand how best to use it in an active situation.”

“Active situation?” Izuku muttered.

“Take my quirk, for example,” Yaoyorozu said, holding up a hand as a small matryoshka doll emerged from her palm, “I not only need to know the chemical composition of something to make it, but also how to shape it and it’s inner workings as well.”

“Inner workings?” Izuku said, his eyes going wide in amazement, “Wait, so when you make things with mechanical parts, you have to know how those parts all fit together?”

“Exactly,” the girl smiled, “As well as possible chemical reactions, for things like flashbang grenades, and the chemical composition of the materials themselves, to avoid them from breaking too easily.”

“Amazing,” Izuku said, staring at her in awe, making the obsidian-haired girl blush slightly, “So that means that I need to learn to apply my knowledge to raise my Wisdom? That actually makes a lot of sense! Oh!”

“I’m glad it does,” Yaoyorozu nodded, “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“Not right now,” Izuku grinned, “In fact, you’ve helped me plenty! My Wisdom just went up a point just from this conversation!”

“That’s great!” Ochako laughed, “Just don’t let it go too high, or you might turn into a monk!”

“I don’t think that’s how it works, Uraraka,” Iida said as Izuku began muttering to himself, his food all but forgotten.

------

The next couple of weeks passed in a blur for the students, each working hard in class and equally hard out of it to train for the upcoming Sports Festival. Izuku trained after school with Aizawa, slowly mastering his new [Mixed Martial Arts] Skill, getting his body to become used to the movements, and even combining some to create new combinations of moves. Doing so actually helped to raise his Wisdom a few extra points, making Yaoyorozu’s theory that Wisdom was linked to his understanding of his knowledge seem all the truer.

Izuku had even managed to get the older man on the back foot at one point, before the teacher had become more serious and easily thrown him across the room. His private “lessons” with Nedzu also continued, though they weren’t using Skill books anymore, rather trying to raise Izuku’s mental stats as much as possible.

Now the class sat in their waiting room at the UA Stadium, waiting for the First Year Sports Festival to begin. Izuku checked his Stat Screen one more time before they went out.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 11

Stats:

Strength: 124 (999)

Dexterity: 26

Endurance: 62

Intelligence: 36

Wisdom: 27

Charisma: 20

Free Stat Points: 5

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

[Party]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

[Basic First Aid]

[Basic Electrical Engineering]

[Basic Structural Engineering]

[Basic Mixed Martial Arts]

He still had the five Free Points from his last level up available but had decided to keep them handy in case he needed a boost in a Stat for whatever reason. His Endurance, and thus Strength, had also gone up a bit from his practice with Aizawa, as well as his Dexterity. The biggest difference was in his Wisdom, which had jumped a whopping six points in the last two weeks as he started to use his knowledge to the fullest, rather than simply letting it sit in his head. Overall, he had the highest total Stats of his entire class, even beating out the students that were higher level than him like Katsuki and Todoroki.

“Midoriya.”

The room went quiet as Todoroki spoke, standing in front of Izuku as he closed his Stat Screen.

“Your Quirk is strong, and your Stats are quite high,” the red- and white-haired teen said, “But I will win.”

“Uhm,” Izuku blinked, looking at Shoto in mild confusion, “I’m not sure what this is about, but I don’t plan on holding back, Todoroki-kun.”

The other boy just nodded, turning to walk away as the announcement that the Sports Festival was starting came over the loud speakers.

“That was…odd,” Izuku muttered as the class all began making their way to the door of their waiting room, heading out towards the field.

They emerged into the sunlight to the sounds of hundreds, if not thousands, of people cheering, looking up in amazement. Izuku felt a pang of panic for a moment, before it was quickly overpowered by a new feeling, excitement.

“Wow, that is a lot of people,” Ochako said from beside him, “Kinda makes you feel nervous, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Izuku nodded, “But also weirdly excited.”

“Yeah,” the brunette grinned, “Come on, let’s hurry to our places!”

The students quickly lined up, Mic announcing the classes as they emerged, before calling Bakugo to the stage. The blonde simply announced his intention to win the entire Sports Festival, earning him a series of shouts and jeers from the other students as 1A just sighed. After a few more announcements, Mic declared the first event, the students all watching the massive screen in anticipation.

“AN OBSTACLE COURSE!” the man yelled over the loudspeakers, “PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING GOES AS LONG AS YOU STAY ON THE TRACK! SO, USE YOUR QUIRKS TO YOUR HEARTS CONTENT!”

“Just don’t overdo it,” the still lightly bandaged Aizawa said from beside the man.

The students gathered at the starting line, jostling for position as they tried to get in front of the others, Izuku hanging back a bit.

“Deku,” the growl made him turn, watching as Bakugo approached him, “I’m going to win this whole thing, so don’t think that you or your sh*tty quirk stand a chance!”

“R-ri-,” Izuku paused as he began to stutter, before clearing his throat and looking the blonde in the eye, “No, Kacchan. I’m going to do my best, whatever you say. I’m also aiming to win this. I’m not the weak Deku you once knew anymore!”

“Tch,” the blonde clicked his teeth as Izuku blinked, a screen appearing in front of him as he stared at it in shock, “Whatever, you’ll still lose.”

Izuku shook his head as the blonde walked away, shoving to the front of the crowd as Midnight called for the students to get ready. Izuku glanced at the screen again, before dismissing it, it wasn’t time for him to get distracted.

“Ready?” Midnight shouted as the lights turned yellow, before flashing green as a loud buzzer sounded, “GO!”

------

“Why are we watching this?” Tomura growled as the screen showed the horde of students rushing out of the stadium, almost half of them struggling to free themselves from the quirk of one of the front runners, their feet frozen to the ground, “It’s stupid.”

“Because, Tomura Shigaraki,” Kurogiri hummed, “It is useful for you to learn of your possible future enemy’s abilities. Perhaps you’ll learn some of their weaknesses as well.”

“I’d prefer to be playing my game,” the pale-haired man growled, “I almost have that stupid boss down.”

“Now, now,” Kurogiri hummed, “You need to focus on your recovery, still. And the stress of playing that game won’t help.”

“Whatever,” the man huffed, leaning against the bar as he glared at the television, his eyes going wide after a moment, “Wait…it’s that brat!”

“Which one?” Kurogiri asked, looking at the screen as it focused on a green-haired teen who had charged into first place, already crossing the second obstacle, “Ah, him.”

“He’s strong,” Tomura growled, “And he did that thing to the Nomu that made it slow down, allowing All Might to beat it easily. I wonder if that’s his quirk?”

“Not entirely,” the familiar voice said as the image on the screen changed, showing a shadowy figure, “Rather, it may only be one of his Quirks.”

“Sensei!” Tomura gasped, “What do you mean one of his quirks? Is he like a Nomu?”

“Somewhat,” the man replied, “Though also something more. Yes, definitely something more. How interesting that we were able to find the next inheritor so quickly.”

“Inheritor?” Tomura mumbled, “What are you talking about?”

“Just something from the past,” Sensei hummed, “But that is for later discussion. No, now you should only know that he is potentially the most dangerous person you could face. I want you to avoid him at all costs for the time being.”

“What?” Tomura gasped, “But Sensei! He ruined my plan! I want to kill him for that!”

“Of course, Tomura,” Sensei replied calmly, “And in time you will. But first you must become stronger. Much stronger.”

“How?” the pale-haired man asked.

“First, by acquiring a team,” Sensei said, “One that you can trust, and use to your own advantage.”

“I understand,” Tomura said as he grinned cruelly, before a knock on the door made him look up, the door opening to reveal Giran, “And it seems that the first members have just arrived.”

Chapter 12

Chapter Text

“Hiya!” the blonde girl said happily, flapping her arms in excitement as she introduced herself, “I’m Himiko Toga! Are you going to be our new friend?”

“Friend?” Tomura sneered, before remembering the words his Sensei had just said to him, a cruel grin crossing his face, “Yeah, sure.”

“Yay!” the exuberant girl said, looking at the taller man beside her, “Come on, introduce yourself as well!”

“I go by Dabi at the moment,” the black-haired man replied flatly, eyeing Tomura as the pale-haired man sat on a bar stool, “That’s all you need to know for now.”

“Fine,” Tomura said, a pang of annoyance flashing through him at the other man’s apparent arrogance, “I am Tomura Shigaraki, and I am going to be your new boss.”

“Boss?” the girl repeated, “But you just said you’d be our friend!”

“I can be both, can’t I?” Shigaraki asked, “Anyway, what are your stats? Skills? Quirks? Tell me everything.”

“A bit forward, don’t you think?” Dabi chuckled, “Don’t you think we should get to know each other a bit better first?”

“Fine,” Tomura growled impatiently, “Start talking.”

“You first,” Dabi shot back, “Why don’t you tell us more about this whole gig? Why do you want people like us? What’s our first job going to be? And how much are we getting paid?”

“Paid?” Tomura snorted, “You’ll get paid when you’ve proven yourselves worthy of getting paid.”

“Then I’m out,” Dabi sighed, turning away, “No pay? Bullsh*t.”

“We have the funds to afford you,” Kurogiri cut in, making the scarred man pause, “And you shall receive a decent amount for your services.”

“That sounds better,” Dabi muttered, turning back, “So, my other questions?”

“We need loyalty,” Kurogiri continued before Tomura could speak up, “Even if it must be bought. And you’re here because Giran has vouched for your ability and skill. As for the first job…”

“How would you like to f*ck with some Hero wannabes?” Tomura cut in, smiling cruelly once again.

------

“AND WITH THAT, WE HAVE OUR CONTESTANTS FOR THE FINAL ROUND!” Mic shouted over the speakers, “WHICH IS… A TOURNAMENT, OF COURSE!”

The students all looked at each other as the announcement was made, sizing up their opponents as Mic called for a lunch break.

------

Izuku sat with his friends as they ate, looking up as the shadow fell over him.

“Midoriya,” Todoroki said as the green-haired teen looked back at him, “I want to talk to you. Privately”

“Oh, okay,” Izuku said as he set his empty bowl down, following after the other teen.

They quickly made their way to one of the entrances to the field, Todoroki leaning against the wall as he began to speak.

“You made me break a vow I made in the last round,” the teen said coldly, “You made me use his quirk.”

“His quirk?” Izuku blinked, staring at the other teen in confusion for a moment, before something clicked in his head, “You mean the fire?”

“Yes,” Todoroki replied, “Tell me, do you know about Quirk Marriages?”

“Yeah?” Izuku nodded, his eyes going wide as he realised what the other teen was getting at, “You aren’t saying that…”

“Yes,” Todoroki cut him off, “My father bought my mother like cattle, all for the chance of breeding the perfect quirk. All for the chance of creating me.”

“That…That’s horrible,” Izuku breathed as the other teen lifted a hand to the scar on his face.

“My mother gave me this scar,” he said, “Because I look too much like my father. It was that day that I decided. Decided never to use his quirk. To become the number one Hero with only my mother’s quirk.”

“Only…That’s…” Izuku paused, staring at the other teen in shock for a moment before shaking the feeling off, “That’s stupid.”

“What?” Todoroki said in surprise, “What do you mean by that?”

“I don’t understand everything, but you’re telling me that you’re only putting in half the effort of everyone else here?” Izuku said, his voice becoming stern as he spoke, something in him fighting back his usual timidness, “That’s stupid. And frankly, disrespectful to everyone else in this school. We’re all trying our hardest to grow and get stronger, but you’re limiting yourself to only half your quirk because of a vow you made as a kid?”

“Well, yes, but-!”

“But nothing,” Izuku cut him off, turning away, “I’m going to be using all my strength to win this thing, Todoroki. You should be too.”

Shoto watched as Izuku walked off, looking down at his hands as he thought about what the other teen had just said, before shaking his head dismissively.

------

“WELCOME BACK, LOYAL LISTENERS!” Mic shouted over the speakers, “IT’S TIME FOR THE FIRST ROUND OF THE TOURNAMENT!”

Izuku eyed his opponent, the familiar purple-haired boy grinning confidently back at him. He quickly checked the other boy’s stats, eyes going wide in surprise.

Name: Hitoshi Shinso

Level: 5

Stats:

Strength: 12

Dexterity: 11

Endurance: 12

Intelligence: 18

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 25

Skills:

[Brainwashing]

He hadn’t improved any of his stats in the weeks since Izuku had last seen them, annoyance rising in Izuku as he glared at the other boy. Was he hoping to coast through the competition using only his Quirk? That sounded unfair and lazy to the green-haired teen.

“What?” Shinso asked casually, “That’s a pretty nasty look you’re giving me there, buddy.”

“Brainwashing, huh?” Izuku replied, startling the other boy, “That sounds like a powerful Quirk, how does it work?”

“Huh, how’d you know…?” Shinso snarled, glancing over at Midnight as she called for the match to start, “Well, whatever, I’m still going to win!”

Probably a mental Quirk, Izuku thought quickly as the two started to circle each other slowly around the ring, But he hasn’t used it yet, which means it must have a trigger. But what? He keeps talking, so maybe time? Or is it response based?

“What’s up? Cat got your tongue?” Hitoshi goaded Izuku, a look of worry flashing across his face when the teen didn’t respond, “You were pretty chatty a moment ago. What happened?”

Okay, probably response based then, Izuku nodded, simply smiling kindly at the other boy, who stared back in confusion, I have this.

Shinso shrieked as Izuku suddenly leapt forwards, diving to the side to avoid the punch the green-haired teen was winding up. Izuku responded immediately, grabbing the back of Hitoshi’s jacket, and hurling him from the ring, where he landed heavily on the ground with a thump.

“Izuku Midoriya wins!” Midnight called as Izuku hopped off the raised arena, hurrying over to Shinso as the other teen sat up.

“Sorry about that,” Izuku said, holding out a hand to help the other teen up, “I know you were probably thinking that you could get through with your quirk, but it was a bad match up.”

“Whatever,” the purple-haired teen muttered as he slapped the hand away, getting up himself, “Not like I care how you found out.”

“Oh, it’s part of my quirk,” Izuku started to reply, before his eyes went blank, a screen appearing in front of him.

[Condition [Brainwashed] gained.]

“Got you,” the other teen snickered, before the feeling faded from Izuku, the boy walking off even as a few of his class cheered him on, making him stop for a moment, before continuing through the exit.

------

The other fights went by quickly, Izuku soon finding himself back in the arena standing opposite his next opponent.

“Midoriya,” Shoto Todoroki said coldly.

“Todoroki,” Izuku replied with an equally cold tone, “Have you thought about what I said?”

“You’re wrong,” the two-toned teen growled back, “And I’m going to prove it in this fight.”

“BEGIN!” Midnight shouted as Shoto immediately launched a barrage of ice from his foot, Izuku simply winding up a punch as the glacier shot towards him. Fist met ice, and the ice shattered, spraying frigid air and chunks of ice across the field. Shoto blinked in surprise, trying to peer through the mist that had formed, before Izuku suddenly shot out of the fog beside him. Shoto let out another blast of ice, Izuku leaping over it and slamming a powerful kick into his chest, making him gasp as he staggered back.

“Is that it?” Izuku goaded, an unimpressed look on his face, “You’re just going to keep attacking me with your ice? You’ve already seen that that won’t work, Todoroki!”

“Shut up!” the teen snarled as he threw another iceberg at the other boy, Izuku backhanding it away, once again shattering the ice.

“Not until you use all your power!” he shouted, darting forwards again, suddenly dropping to the ground as he flipped onto his hands, spinning around, and slamming his heel into Todoroki’s right shoulder before he could react.

Izuku suddenly flipped into the air, grabbing the arm and yanking. The resounding pop echoed over the arena, making several of the audience wince as Shoto gasped in pain, his right arm hanging limply at his side.

“I only dislocated your shoulder,” Izuku said as he stepped back from Shoto, “It’ll hurt, but will be easy enough to fix.”

“What are you doing?” Shoto growled as he stomped his foot down, Izuku avoiding the blast of ice that erupted from under him, before darting forwards and kicking the inside of Todoroki’s knee, forcing him to the ground.

“I’m forcing you to use your whole quirk, Todoroki,” Izuku said flatly back, “And if I have to cripple your right side to do it, I will.”

“Cripple?” the other teen said, his eyes going wide as he forced himself to stand, his leg aching painfully as he was forced to favour his left, “I won’t let you!”

“Then stop playing around!” Izuku roared, charging in with a punch straight at Shoto’s head, fear momentarily overcoming the teen’s mind as flames blasted from his left side, forcing the other teen to dodge back to avoid being burnt.

“You…” Shoto growled, “You did it again.”

“I did,” Izuku hummed, his expression still blank, “And I’ll keep doing it until you use your full power on your own!”

“NO!” the teen roared, slamming his right foot down again, wincing at the pain in his knee as the sudden iceberg enveloped Izuku, “I win!”

“No,” the sound of creaking ice filled the air as the glacier cracked, and then shattered, “You don’t!”

Izuku erupted from the glacier, slamming a powerful punch into Shoto’s gut, making him vomit slightly as he collapsed to his knees, the green-haired teen backing off as he gasped for air.

“Get up,” Izuku said coldly, “This fight isn’t over.”

“WHAT IS MIDORIYA DOING?!” Mic shouted over the speakers, “IT’S LIKE HE’S TRYING TO GOAD HIS OPPONENT INTO SOMETHING!”

“Maybe he is,” Aizawa grumbled from beside him, “Though it doesn’t seem to be working.”

“Why?!” Izuku suddenly shouted, making Shoto look up at him, “Why do you do this?”

“D-do what?” Shoto gasped as he staggered painfully to his feet.

“Why are you trying to be a Hero?” Izuku asked, “For yourself? For your father? For revenge?”

“Revenge?” Shoto muttered as the other teen stood opposite him, “No, I just want to prove-.”

“You’re only proving that you’re weak, Todoroki,” Izuku cut him off, “Now, tell me why you want to be a Hero! Not some bull sh*t about a vow! Not to show up your father! Tell me why!”

“Why?” Shoto said softly, “Why do I want to be a Hero?”

Memories flooded through his mind, his mother’s face coming into view as he felt a warmth he had long thought forgotten in his chest. Flames licked at his left side, bursting out in a torrent as the ice around him melted into steam almost instantly.

“Thank you, Midoriya,” he said as he stood up straight, even as his right side ached, “I remembered why.”

“Good,” the green-haired teen smiled back at him kindly, “Now, let’s finish this!”

“Yes!” Shoto shouted as he slammed his right foot down, unleashing a glacier many times the size of any he had before, shooting straight towards Izuku.

Izuku grinned even as the massive wall of ice rose above him, threatening to fall at any moment.

“You’re finally doing your best,” he said quietly, “I might as well go all out as well!”

The glacier rose into the air as the crowd gasped at the sheer size of it, before it suddenly vanished, shattered and blown away in a single second, leaving them stunned as the smoke and fog cleared, revealing Shoto lying on the grass, a stunned look on his face as Izuku remained in the ring, his right arm turning purple as he struggled to stand, the shout still echoing in the air.

“[OVERRIDE]!”

Chapter 13

Chapter Text

“You are not taking part in the next round!”

“What?” Izuku gasped as he looked at the irate woman in shock, “But-!”

“No buts!” Recovery Girl snorted, “You shattered your right arm! There’s no way I could allow you to continue fighting after that!”

“But couldn’t you heal me?” the teen asked, the woman just glaring at him.

“The sheer amount of energy it would take to heal the kind of injury you have would keep you knocked out for a whole day, if not longer,” she huffed, “So no. And I’m not going to heal you just so you can go back out there and get hurt again.”

“Why not try?” Nedzu chimed as he entered the medical tent, making both look at him in surprise, “If Midoriya-kun is unable to operate under his own power after having his arm healed, then he’ll withdraw from the Tournament. However, if he is, I shall take full responsibility for any other injuries he obtains.”

“Nedzu,” Recovery Girl growled, before letting out a defeated sigh, “Fine, but I don’t like this!”

“Of course you don’t,” the chimera chuckled as he watched her kiss the teen on the cheek, his arm glowing slightly as the purple bruising began to quickly fade.

Less than a minute later, Izuku was standing, letting out a loud yawn as he stretched his newly healed arm.

“I think I’m okay now,” he said as Recovery Girl just stared at him in disbelief.

“You should be unconscious!” she said, “If not from the pain of the injury itself, then from the healing from my Quirk!”

“I have a lot of Endurance,” Izuku chuckled, looking at Nedzu as the rat-like principal just grinned back, “Does this mean I can fight in the next round?”

“It would seem so, though I would ask you not to injure yourself as you did earlier,” he chuckled, “Perhaps refrain from using that Skill of yours, “Override” was it?”

“I can do that,” Izuku nodded, “I only used it in the last fight because I felt like if Todoroki-kun was going all out, then I had to do the same.”

“An admirable sentiment,” Nedzu nodded.

“But a dangerous one,” Recovery Girl added, before turning away from both of them, “Now get out! I have others to attend to, and you’re standing in the doorway!”

------

The shockwave echoed across the field as the two teens kicked, Iida struggling against Izuku as the green-haired teen started to over-power him.

“I don’t intend to go down easily!” the blue-haired boy shouted, fire starting to spit from his exhausts, “I had hoped to keep this secret a while longer, but it seems I need it now! Recipro-burst!”

The flame jetted out from his calf as he threw Izuku backwards, immediately shooting forwards to place another powerful kick onto the other teen’s ribs. Izuku flinched as the attack hit, before grinning, wrapping his arm around Iida’s leg and pinning it to his side.

“Got you!” he shouted, surprising the taller teen as he started to spin, dragging Iida with him.

The two spun for several seconds, before Izuku suddenly released the leg, throwing the now dizzy Iida out of the ring to land heavily on the grass.

“Midoriya wins!” Midnight shouted as Izuku waved to the crowd, before hopping off the platform and going to help Iida up, the crowd cheering louder as the pair shook hands and smiled at each other.

“SUCH A SHOW OF SPORTSMANSHIP!” Mic yelled over the speakers.

“Ah, the joy of youth!” Midnight hummed, wiggling suggestively, “Makes me feel nice.”

The two boys made a point of ignoring her as they exited on opposite sides of the stadium, Izuku shivering with nerves as he waited for the final round to begin.

------

“It’s time.”

Izuku took a calming breath as he walked out to the ring, stepping up the stairs to see his opponent across the concrete, the blonde scowling at him.

“AND IN THE FINALS!” Mic shouted, “IZUKU MIDORIYA, ABLE TO OVERPOWER HIS OPPONENTS WITH HIS IMMENSE STRENGTH, VERSUS KATSUKI BAKUGO, WHO BLASTS THEM AWAY WITH HIS POWERFUL QUIRK!”

“I’m going to win this, Deku,” the blonde snarled, sliding into a ready stance even as Midnight lifted her riding crop, “And prove that I’m still stronger than you!”

Izuku simply checked his opponent’s stats, trying to remain calm even as nerves rushed through his body.

Name: Katsuki “Kacchan” Bakugo

Level: 16

Stats:

Strength: 29

Dexterity: 27

Endurance: 23

Intelligence: 30

Wisdom: 24

Charisma: 17

Skills:

[Explosion]

“You’ve gotten quite a bit stronger,” Izuku said, “But is that going to be enough this time, Kacchan?”

“Shut the f*ck up and fight!” the other teen growled, explosions crackling across his palms.

“Begin!” Midnight shouted, Bakugo immediately launching himself forwards with a powerful blast, swinging a fist to punch Izuku in the face.

Izuku ducked the blow, countering with his own punch to the blonde’s gut, throwing him up into the air. Bakugo responded by throwing a blast down onto Izuku, launching himself up higher as he gasped for breath. The two stared at each other as the smoke cleared, revealing a slightly singed Izuku while Bakugo kept himself airborne with well-timed explosions.

“What are you doing, Kacchan?” Izuku called, “Didn’t you want to fight?”

“Oh, I’m going to f*cking fight!” the other teen roared, launching himself up higher as he began to spin, “I just wanted you to be able to see your death coming! Howitzer Impact!”

The blonde flew down towards Izuku, spinning rapidly as the smoke formed a cone behind him. Izuku wound up a punch as the attack approached, before suddenly darting to the side as the blast hit the floor where he’d just been standing. The resulting explosion covered the field in smoke and rubble, a gust of air blowing it away to reveal that a massive chunk of the ring had been blasted away.

“You’re f*cking running, Deku!” Bakugo screamed, “That’s all you were ever good at! f*cking running away and getting caught up in sh*t that didn’t involve you!”

“That’s two things, Kacchan,” Izuku replied as he shot from the smoke, suddenly flipping onto his hands, and bringing his heel down on the surprised blonde’s shoulder, forcing him to his knees, “And I think that’s the first time you’ve ever complimented me!”

“GO TO HELL!” the blonde roared as he unleashed a powerful explosion at Izuku, the green-haired teen flipping away with ease as he landed on the ground, “Don’t think your fancy tricks will work on me!”

“They seem to be doing a pretty good job, so far,” the other boy goaded, “So, how about we stop playing around?”

“Playing?” Bakugo blinked in surprise, “You think I was f*cking playing? I’m always serious!”

“Then you have no hope of beating me,” Izuku shrugged, giving the blonde a smirk, “I mean, I’m not even being serious right now.”

“DEKU!” Katsuki roared as he launched himself forwards, bringing his right arm forwards in a wide punch.

“You always lead with your right!” the other teen shouted as he grabbed the wrist, swinging around and throwing Bakugo over his shoulder, slamming him hard enough into the floor that the concrete shattered beneath the other boy, “It’s a bad habit!”

“Go to hell!” the blonde coughed as he yanked his hand free, staggering to his feet, “I’m going to f*cking win this!”

“No,” Izuku shook his head, his expression changing as he slid into a combat stance, “You’re not, Katsuki.”

Izuku using his real name stunned the blonde for a second, but it was long enough for Izuku to appear in front of him in a burst of speed, slamming a punch into his gut, forcing him to vomit at the force as he was thrown back. He barely managed to catch himself as he sailed over the edge of the arena, using an explosion to blast himself back in.

“OH, AND BAKUGO WAS THROWN OUT OF THE RING!” Mic shouted, “DOES THAT MEAN HE’S OUT?”

“He didn’t land on the ground and seems to still be capable of fighting,” Aizawa hummed beside him, “So no.”

“SO PRAGMATIC!” Mic laughed.

“Deku,” Bakugo coughed as he got his breath back, “You little sh*t! I’m going to f*cking kill you!”

“Try me,” came the response, Izuku waving for him to come.

“RAAARGH!” Bakugo let out a wordless roar as he unleashed his most powerful explosion yet, launching himself towards the other teen in a flash of speed.

Izuku responded by jumping forwards, almost matching the blonde’s speed himself as they collided. Punches and kicks slammed into Katsuki rapidly as he unleashed explosion after explosion at his foe. The crowd gasped and cheered in equal measure as the arena filled with smoke and wind, barely giving them glances of the two fighters laying into one another. Finally, the sound of explosions and hits died down, the smoke clearing to reveal the two beaten up fighters standing in the middle of the ring.

“I’m…going to…win…” Katsuki gasped for air as he staggered forwards, slowly lifting an arm as weak explosions crackled over his palm.

“No, I am,” Izuku responded, breathing heavily as he caught the slow attack, squeezing the wrist, “Goodbye, Kacchan.”

“What?” the blonde blinked as the punch slammed into his face, and everything went black.

------

“Todoroki!”

The shout made the boy turn as he walked towards the school gates, blinking as he saw who was calling.

“I’m glad I managed to catch up to you,” Izuku said as he ran up, “How’re your injuries?”

“Healed, thanks to Recovery Girl,” the teen replied flatly, looking at the bandages that covered the other teen.

“Good to hear,” Izuku nodded awkwardly, “I, uhm…I just wanted to apologise. For some of the things I said in our fight. They weren’t exactly nice.”

“It’s fine,” Shoto shook his head, “You were right.”

“I still just wanted to say sorry,” Izuku repeated, “And to ask if you’d be my friend?”

“Aren’t I already on your Friend List?” the scarred teen blinked in confusion.

“Well, yeah,” Izuku chuckled, “But that’s more of a convenience thing. I wanted to ask if you’d be my real friend.”

“I…okay,” Shoto shrugged, blinking as Izuku gave a bright smile, grabbing his hand and shaking it happily.

“I’m glad,” the green-haired teen said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Shoto replied awkwardly, before Izuku turned away and hurried back to the school building, waving back at him as he went.

Shoto stood silently for a moment, before looking down at his hand.

“A friend, huh?”

------

“So, when is this job actually going to happen?” Dabi sighed as he sipped on a glass of whiskey.

“In time,” Kurogiri replied, “We are still waiting on our informant to provide us with a location.”

“But that could take ages!” Toga pouted as she spun in the centre of the bar, playing with the knives in her hands, “I’m bored!”

“Then get the f*ck out of here and go do something,” Shigaraki snorted, his fingers moving rapidly over the buttons on the controller, his eyes glued to the television screen, “You’re distracting me.”

“Nerd,” Dabi chuckled, before jumping as the man let out a shout of victory.

“f*ckING FINALLY!” Tomura laughed, “Got you, you dumb boss!”

“What’re you playing?” Toga asked as she looked over his shoulder, “Looks like fun.”

“It’s more serious than that,” Tomura snorted, “It’s a hardcore game.”

“Can I give it a go?” the girl asked, “Can you make people bleed in it?”

“Yeah, there’s a status for that, but Bleed builds are for scrubs,” Tomura growled.

“Huh,” Dabi said as he also approached, “Been a while since I’ve played this series. I usually go for a magic build, you know, throwing fire and sh*t.”

“Noob,” Tomura chuckled, “Real gamers only need Strength to beat the bosses.”

“Explains why your health and stamina are so low,” the scarred man laughed, “And isn’t this just the first boss? This game came out months ago.”

“Shut up,” Shigaraki snorted, before shoving the controller into his chest, “If you’re so good at these games, then you try!”

“Aw, but I asked first!” Toga huffed.

“Sure,” Dabi shrugged, grabbing a bar stool, and quickly starting a new character, “They still doing that thing where the first boss always kills you?”

“Yeah, it’s bullsh*t,” Shigaraki huffed, “So just hurry up. I want to see you lose already.”

“Slow down, crusty,” the man laughed, “I haven’t played in a few years, give me some time to get used to the controls first.”

Chapter 14

Chapter Text

“Pick who you want to intern with by the end of the week,” Aizawa grunted, “But before that, we have two other important things to do.”

“Two?” the class asked, excitement running through them.

“First, you need to pick your Hero names,” the teacher sighed, the class cheering loudly, “And second, you’ll find a list of three potential martial arts on the last page of your handouts. Pick one.”

“Huh? Martial arts?” the students said, looking at each other in confusion, “Why?”

“Nedzu’s decision,” the teacher sighed, “You’ll each get a Skill Book to learn the theory of your chosen fighting style, and Midoriya will use his Quirk to teach it to you.”

“Oh wow!” Mina gasped as she looked at the last page of her hand out, “What’s Capoeira?”

“It’s a fighting style based around dance,” Izuku explained, suddenly going through a series of fluid motions, ending up on his hands as he paused, “Like this. I saw you had a Dancing Skill, so I thought it would work for you.”

“That’s awesome!” Mina gasped, “I’m totally choosing that!”

“But why are we getting martial arts now?” Ochako asked, “Aren’t we about to go learn this kind of stuff on our internships?”

“Yes,” Aizawa grunted, “But Nedzu thought it best to prepare you as much as possible.”

“Why can’t we choose multiple martial arts though?” Kaminari asked, “Like, we know Midoriya’s quirk can teach them to us, so it’d be really fast to learn a bunch, right?”

“We still don’t know the short- or long-term effects of using Skill Books. Especially for those that don’t have my Quirk,” Izuku explained, “So it was decided that you’d all only be allowed to use one Skill Book a month, while being monitored for changes.”

“Monitored?” the class asked, Izuku just nodding, “But what about you?”

“Well, we’ve figured out that I’m usually okay using them,” Izuku shrugged, “Though that could just be because of my Quirk. We have to be more careful with people who aren’t under its influence all the time.”

“Still,” Kirishima hummed, “Getting even the theory of a fighting style is pretty manly! I want boxing!”

The rest of the class quickly chose their new fighting styles, Izuku happily helping them use the Skill Books they got as Midnight entered the room with a cart of small white boards.

------

“And how have you been, Midoriya-kun? No problems with your quirk?”

“Not really. Just…there’s something that’s been bugging me about my Quirk lately,” Izuku said as he sat with Nedzu in the principal’s office.

“Oh?” the mammalian creature hummed through his tea, “And what would that be?”

“I haven’t gotten any active quests lately,” Izuku explained, “I mean, I completed a Hidden quest for winning the Sports Festival, but other than that, I haven’t seen a quest for weeks, not even for Basic Heroics exercises.”

“I see,” Nedzu muttered, sitting back in his chair for a moment before continuing, “Perhaps it is simply because you have not encountered something that is enough of a challenge for you? Tell me, what is your current level?”

“Oh, twelve,” Izuku said as he pulled up his Status Page, “I levelled up from the hidden quest for the Sports Festival, but other than that, nothing.”

“That is quite the high level for your age, is it not?” Nedzu asked, Izuku nodding.

“Yes, but most of my class have similar or even higher levels,” Izuku shrugged, “I just…it’s a bit worrying. I used to get quests for just about everything, from fetching groceries to helping a cat out of a tree, even if they only gave a couple of experience points each.”

“As I said, perhaps it is simply because you have, let’s say “out levelled”, those kinds of quests,” Nedzu nodded.

“Yeah, I guess,” Izuku sighed, “It’s just…I kind of miss them. It was sort of nice to be able to see something telling me I was helping someone.”

“I understand,” Nedzu chuckled, “Though perhaps you’ll get something with the upcoming Internships.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Izuku nodded, “Though I hope it’s nothing bad.”

“As do I,” Nedzu replied, “Now, I do believe that your class chose their Hero Aliases this morning. So, tell me, what did you choose?”

“Oh,” Izuku blushed slightly as he spoke, “I chose “Deku”. I know it’s sort of got a bad history behind it, but it was what was already on my Status Page, and well…I kind of want to take it back, I guess?”

“Oh?” Nedzu chuckled, “I am glad to hear that, Midoriya-kun. Now then, onto our usual training!”

------

A week quickly passed, Izuku and his class standing on the train station platform as Aizawa spoke to them.

“Make sure you don’t do anything too reckless,” the man sighed, “You’re representing UA on these internships.”

“Yes, Sensei!” the class called as they excitedly talked, each holding their costume cases.

“Iida,” Izuku said as he approached the silent teen, “Are you okay? You haven’t been talking to anyone the past few days.”

“I’m fine, Midoriya,” the boy replied, smiling at the other teen, “Just…nervous, I suppose.”

“Oh,” Izuku nodded slowly, “How’s your training with your new Martial Arts Skill going? I know you chose one focused around kicks.”

“It’s going well,” Iida nodded, “It has helped me find quite a few flaws in my original fighting style and has given me some ideas as to how to improve.”

“Great!” Izuku smiled, “Well, good luck in Hosu.”

“Thank you,” Iida replied flatly, a faraway look in his eyes.

------

Izuku looked up at the dilapidated building, wondering if he’d gotten the address right as he stood in front of the door.

“This is the address All Might gave me,” Izuku sighed as he looked at the piece of paper in his hand, “I suppose I’d better just go in.”

He knocked, jumping as the door swung open to reveal a strange man in a white and yellow hero costume lying in a pool of what looked like blood. Izuku immediately shot to his side, checking the old man for injuries as he called out to him.

“Sir? Sir, are you okay? Did you fall?”

“Huh, good response,” the old man growled as he suddenly stood up, giving Izuku an appraising look before dusting himself off, the front of his costume somehow not stained at all, “Don’t worry, kid, it was just ketchup.”

“K-ketchup?” Izuku blinked, looking down to see the open bottle lying in the puddle of red, “Oh, thank goodness! I only have the Basic First Aid skill, so I was worried I’d have to call an ambulance.”

“Hmm,” the old man hummed as he opened the silver case holding Izuku’s Hero costume, pulling it out to inspect it, “Not bad. Put it on.”

“What?” Izuku blinked, staring at the old man as he turned back to the teen.

“I said put it on.”

------

“Okay,” Izuku hummed as he inspected the costume, “It fits well.”

The costume itself was simple, a green jumpsuit with black lines, with extra padding over his vitals and supports on his arms and legs. It was pretty similar to his first costume, the one his mom had made for him from his old design but was made with far better materials. He felt a slight pang of guilt at that thought, the original now sitting in a box in his closet, only slightly damaged, gathering dust after Todoroki had suggested his Support Company to the green-haired teen.

“You done?” the old man’s voice called from the other room, pulling Izuku out of his thoughts as he quickly stood and headed out.

“Yes sir!” Izuku nodded as he walked out, the metal soles on his shoes clicking against the ground, “Are we going on patrol?”

“No,” the old man grunted, looking over Izuku again, “We’re testing you to see how well you’ve adjusted to One for All.”

“What?” Izuku blinked, before the man suddenly vanished, slamming a punch into the teen’s gut an instant later.

“Quit staring and protect yourself!”

[Quest: Survive! Survive the training fight! Rewards: Variable.]

Izuku stared at the quest screen in surprise for a moment, earning him a kick to the back as he tumbled to the floor. He immediately popped back to his feet, watching in awe as the old man shot around the room at speed, occasionally jumping in to land a strike from Izuku’s blind spots. The teen stumbled around, trying to keep up for a moment, before managing to calm himself.

I just have to survive, he thought, watching as the man landed on the microwave, crushing the machine before taking a deep breath, But is that good enough?

Izuku crouched into a defensive stance, taking the attacks as he tried to figure out the man’s pattern, something clicking in his mind as he suddenly spun, grabbing the costumed figure by the leg just as he was about to kick the teen in the back again. A blast of air from the sole of his foot caught Izuku off guard, making him blink and stagger back, letting go of the foot as the man flipped easily through the air and landed on the floor.

“Not bad,” the old man growled, “But nowhere near good enough. How much of One for All can you use right now?”

“Use?” Izuku blinked, “Uhm…my Strength is at one-hundred and twenty-eight out of the full amount…so about thirteen percent, I guess?”

“Right, because of your quirk,” the old man sighed, shaking his head at Izuku’s surprise, “Toshinori told me about it. It’s supposed to function like one of those video games you kids are always playing, right? Well, show me.”

“Uhm… yes,” Izuku nodded, quickly inviting the old man to his Friend List, “Here.”

“Interesting,” the old man hummed, looking over the screen before accepting, “Well, it may be a decent stop gap, but it’s not enough for you to really use the full power of One for All.”

“What do you mean?” Izuku asked.

“You have access to other abilities through One for All, don’t you?” the old man grunted, “Well, why aren’t you using them?”

“Oh! I, uhm…I kind of forgot about that,” Izuku blushed.

“Not good enough. Tell me what they are.”

------

“Ha! Gotcha!” Dabi laughed as he killed the boss, Tomura growling in annoyance beside him as Toga cheered, “There, see? Told you I’d get it this time, and I only got hit once.”

“Bullsh*t,” the pale-haired man snorted, “You’re just using an easy build. And you grinded for like four hours!”

“Well, duh,” the scarred man laughed, “That’s the point of these games, isn’t it? It’s only as hard as you make it for yourself. And a decent build also helps.”

“I want a go now!” Toga chimed happily, “I wanna try that Bleed thingy that Shiggy was talking about!”

“No,” Tomura growled, “It’s my turn to-hey!”

“You can play after her,” Dabi hummed as he handed the controller to the blonde girl, “Let her have some fun as well.”

“No! It’s my game!” Tomura whined, pouting as Dabi got up from his seat.

“And you can play it whenever,” Dabi sighed, “Let her have a go, when she gets bored or frustrated you can have a turn again.”

“Fine,” the man growled, slumping back into the old sofa they’d moved in front of the television, “But it’s still my game!”

“We know, crusty,” Dabi sighed as he turned to Kurogiri, the man already holding out a drink.

“You seem well versed in the art of…managing people,” the bartender hummed.

“Had to be,” Dabi shrugged, taking a sip from the alcoholic drink, “Had kid siblings when I was young, as the eldest you gotta know how to handle them.”

“Ah, I see,” Kurogiri nodded, ignoring the way the man froze slightly as he seemed to realize what he’d said, “I won’t pry any further, then.”

“Thanks,” the scarred man muttered, before turning back to the pair on the sofa, “Oi, Toga. If you’re going to go Bleed, you’ll want the third starting build. Also, you’re not going to take hours on the character creator, are you?”

“But I want my person to be pretty!” the girl huffed as she followed his advice.

Chapter 15

Chapter Text

“Definitely the Quirks the of the previous holders then,” Gran Torino huffed as Izuku finished reading from the list, “It’s interesting that they’re all locked, though.”

“Well, Gear Shift isn’t,” Izuku replied, “I unlocked that with a Hero Point during the USJ.”

“Hero Points, huh?” the old man sighed, “Any idea how to get more of those, then?”

“Uhm…sort of? I have to do something Heroic, I guess,” Izuku shrugged as he helped the man put the new microwave in its place, “Though I’m not sure what that means.”

“Figured,” Gran Torino muttered, “But are these Hero Points the only way for you to unlock the previous holders’ Quirks?”

“What do you mean?” Izuku asked.

“Your Quirk is strange, so there may be facets of it we don’t know about yet,” Gran Torino snorted, “Well, we might as well get started on that. But first, lunch!”

“Lunch?” Izuku blinked as the older man nodded at him, grinning.

“Taiyaki!”

------

[10 acts of Minor Heroism performed! Gained 1 Hero Point. Next Hero Point at 100 acts of Minor Heroism. 10/100.]

“Huh,” Izuku said as he set the small child down after getting them down from the tree, “I just got a Hero Point.”

“What for?” Gran Torino asked, sending the kid on her way as she thanked them.

“Ten acts of Minor Heroism,” Izuku replied, “Though it says I’ll only get another point after I do another ninety.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” the old man sighed, before looking at Izuku, “Well?”

“What?” the teen asked, dusting himself off slightly.

“Aren’t you going to check if you can get a new Skill or whatever they’re called?”

“Oh! Right, sorry!” the teen blushed as he pulled up his Status Page, marvelling at the screen for a moment.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 12

Stats:

Strength: 128 (999)

Dexterity: 28

Endurance: 64

Intelligence: 36

Wisdom: 28

Charisma: 21

Free Stat Points: 10

Hero Points: 1

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

[Party]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

[Basic First Aid]

[Basic Electrical Engineering]

[Basic Structural Engineering]

[Basic Mixed Martial Arts]

He focused on the Hero Points, getting a screen that showed a list of Skills he could buy with it. He quickly scrolled to the end, blinking as he saw the price of unlocking the Sub-Skills of One for All.

“They’ve gone up,” he muttered.

“What?” the old man called, making Izuku jump.

“The cost of unlocking a Sub-Skill of One for All,” Izuku hurriedly explained, “They’ve increased to two. It was only one before. It’s uhm…probably a balance thing.”

“Balance?” Gran Torino asked, giving the teen a confused look.

“A video game term, it means a limitation so that I can’t get too powerful too quickly,” Izuku explained, “I guess it makes sense, with my Quirk being like a video game and all.”

“Huh, pity,” the old man sighed, “Well, it said you just had to complete another what? Ninety acts of Minor Heroism for the next one, right? Then let’s get to it!”

“W-what?” Izuku blinked.

------

Izuku collapsed onto the bed, too tired to even take his costume off as he let out a breath.

They had spent the entire day running all over the area in an attempt to get him to one hundred acts of Minor Heroism but had had to stop as night came and Izuku felt himself becoming exhausted. They had done everything from finding lost pets and carrying groceries, to saving a kid that had fallen into a river and preventing a car accident. Yet somehow, they still hadn’t hit the goal. Tiredly, Izuku rolled onto his back, bringing up his Status Page again and focussing on the Hero Points, bringing up the familiar screen. Wondering, he tried to focus on the option in a different way, asking what he needed to do in order to get another Hero Point.

He sat up in surprise as the new screen appeared.

Hero Point Achievements:

Acts of Minor Heroism: 59/100

Acts of Basic Heroism: 2/5

Acts of Heroism: 1/3

Acts of Great Heroism: 0/1

“What?” he said, staring at the screen for a moment, before putting the pieces together, “Wait, so then…saving the child from drowning and stopping the car accident were probably acts of Basic Heroism, and the act of Heroism was from the USJ. So then what constitutes an act of Great Heroism?”

“Oi, you still awake?” Gran Torino called from the other side of the door, “Go to sleep, we have a lot of work to do tomorrow, and you muttering to yourself all night won’t help!”

“Y-yes, Gran Torino!” Izuku called, quickly closing the screens, getting undressed, a feeling of warmth and excitement in his chest as he quickly got into bed.

------

“We’re going to be going to a larger area tomorrow evening,” Gran said as they walked back into the old building, “So be sure to rest up tonight and tomorrow.”

“A larger area?” Izuku yawned as he headed to the kitchen, starting to cook for the two of them.

“Hosu,” Gran nodded, “It’s more metropolitan, so hopefully we’ll be able to get you a few more of those achievement things completed there.”

Izuku just nodded, pulling up the screen he’d found the night before.

Hero Point Achievements:

Acts of Minor Heroism: 88/100

Acts of Basic Heroism: 3/5

Acts of Heroism: 1/3

Acts of Great Heroism: 0/1

“There wasn’t too much to do around here today, apart from that purse snatcher,” he sighed, “So you’re probably right.”

“Of course I am!” Gran barked, sitting at the table, “Now, which Quirk are you going to unlock with this second point?”

“Which quirk?” Izuku asked, looking back at the man, “I don’t know. I might take the Float one, as that would increase my mobility, but each one has so much potential!”

“I agree with Float,” the old man nodded, “You’re fast, but being able to move through the air would increase your speed even more. Not to mention that it was hers.”

“Hers?” Izuku blinked as he dished up the Takoyaki, looking at the man in confusion.

“Has that idiot Toshinori not told you anything?” Gran Torino sighed, “No, I suppose not. The seventh holder of One for All, Nana Shimura. She had the Quirk Float.”

“Oh! I see,” Izuku nodded, “Did you…did you know her, then?”

“She was a friend, yes,” the old man sighed, looking away, “A good friend. Only reason I even bothered getting a Teaching license was to help her train Toshinori.”

“You helped train All Might?!” Izuku gasped, “What was he like? As a teenager, I mean. This is prime All Might lore!”

“Lore?” Gran huffed as he started to shovel the Takoyaki into his mouth, “More of that gamer lingo?”

“Yeah, sorry,” Izuku chuckled as he joined him, “I’m just…I’m just really interested to learn more about All Might, you know? What happened to her?”

“She died,” Gran replied flatly, “Or…more she was killed. Worst day of my life. I had to drag Toshinori away as she faced down that bastard all alone.”

“Killed?” Izuku gasped, “By who?”

“Toshinori really hasn’t told you anything, has he?” Gran Torino sighed again, “Fine, I might as well tell you, seeing as you are the latest holder, though I myself don’t know all the details. Apparently, it all started with two brothers…”

------

Izuku stared up at the ceiling as the story Gran had told him swirled around his head.

A great evil? A quirk that could take and give other quirks? And apparently only One for All was immune to its effects? And the man may even still be alive? It was a lot of information for the teen, and he was almost regretting having learnt it. Shaking his head, Izuku rolled over, opening his Status Page, and staring at his stats. Would they be enough by the time he had to face this great evil? How could he better improve himself for the upcoming fight? He still had ten free points left to spend, but was it smart to use them right now?

Shaking his head again, Izuku quickly assigned the points, deciding that delaying the act wouldn’t do him any good.

------

“Huh?”

“What is it Tenya?” Manual asked as the teen stopped on the sidewalk.

“Nothing,” he muttered, “One of my classmates just sent me a message.”

“A message?” the Pro asked as he looked at Iida’s empty hands, “How?”

“Oh, I apologise,” the teen bowed slightly, “It is a function of his Quirk. He is able to send text-based messages to anyone on a list.”

“Oh, okay,” Manual nodded, “What did he say? It must be important if he’s sending you a message now.”

“Just that he and his mentor will be in Hosu later this evening,” Iida replied, looking back at the screen as it faded away, “He wanted to know if we could meet.”

“That’s a great idea!” Manual grinned at the teen, “Tell them to come by the Agency when they get here, we’ll go on an evening patrol together.”

“Very well,” the teen replied as he responded to the message.

------

“Do you two have to be here right now?”

“Yep, Crusty,” Dabi hummed as he concentrated on the screen, “Just ignore us while you have your meeting with whoever.”

“It’s Stain,” Shigaraki growled, “And you’re going to ruin it by playing while we talk!”

“I’m sure it is,” Dabi chuckled as he finished off the boss, stretching before handing the controller to Toga, “Your turn, Toga.”

“Yay!” the blonde said as she quickly changed to her character, “I wanna see that big guy bleed!”

“I have returned,” Kurogiri said as the black portal opened, a tall and lanky figure festooned in knives stepping out after him, “And I have brought our guest.”

“Stain,” Shigaraki said as the other two looked up, their eyes going wide at the sight of the man.

“Holy sh*t, it really is Stain.” “STAINY!”

The two shouts echoed around the room as the blonde hurled herself off the couch, knives already in hand as she gleefully charged the man. She barely made it two steps before the figure slammed a booted foot into her gut, throwing her backwards and over the couch.

“An ambush?” Stain snarled, glaring at Shigaraki and Kurogiri in anger.

“No!” Tomura growled, before managing to calm himself slightly, “No. That one is just…enthusiastic.”

“I love you, Stainy! Let me have some of your blood!” the girl shouted as Dabi held her back, even as blood started to stain the front of her uniform.

“Unusual company you keep,” Stain growled back at Shigaraki, “Are you the one the portal user said was the leader?”

“Yes,” Shigaraki smiled cruelly, “And we want you to join us!”

“No,” the man replied flatly.

“No?” Shigaraki blinked, “What do you mean no?”

“You are but children, no drive, no ambition,” Stain snarled, suddenly launching himself forwards and stabbing Tomura in the shoulder, “No conviction!”

“The f*ck?!” Dabi shouted, his hands igniting as he released Toga, the blonde readying her knives as she stared hungrily at Stain.

“Enough!” Kurogiri shouted, silencing the room for a moment as everyone looked at him, “Perhaps we started on the wrong foot. Shall we try again?”

“Conviction?” Shigaraki growled under the man, grabbing the knife in his shoulder as it rusted away, “Why would I need something like that? Though, I guess if you were to ask me, I’d say it’s All Might.”

“All Might?” Stain asked as he jumped back, dropping the crumbling blade.

“Yeah,” Shigaraki sneered, “I want to destroy him! Make him sob and beg at my feet before I kill him!”

“Then we have nothing in common,” Stain growled, looking at Kurogiri, “You, send me back to Hosu. I still have work to be done.”

“Very well,” the bartender sighed, opening another portal behind the man, which he quickly stepped through, “Shall we go after him?”

“Yes,” All three replied as one, Shigaraki glaring at the other two before stomping through the portal.

Chapter 16

Chapter Text

“Iida said to meet at Manual’s Agency,” Izuku said as they sat on the train, “I know where it is, so we’ll get there pretty quickly.”

“You know where it is?” Gran Torino asked as he ate from the package of fast food, “How?”

“Oh! I, uhm…I’m a bit of a Hero fanboy,” Izuku blushed, “I have a bunch of Hero Agency locations memorised.”

“Good to know,” the old man hummed through his food, squawking as the train suddenly screeched to a halt, sending the meal flying to the floor, “What’s going on?”

“All Passengers, please remain calm,” the electronic voice said, “There has been a Villain attack in Hosu, the train will be delayed.”

“Villain attack?” Izuku asked as the side of the train suddenly smashed inwards, a Hero slamming through the hole, “What’s going on?!”

“Protect the passengers!” Gran shouted as the grey-skinned creature entered through the hole, looking around with unblinking eyes before the Pro slammed into it, carrying it out of the train, “I’ll handle the Villain!”

“That’s a Nomu!” Izuku gasped as he rushed to the hole, staring out at Hosu as fires raged across it, a screen appearing in front of him, “No way…this can only mean…Iida!”

------

“STAIN!”

The shout echoed off the alley walls as the white armoured figure shot towards the man, Stain grunting as he blocked the quick series of kicks, one snaking through and hitting him in the ribs.

“Another Hero?” he growled, “But this one looks familiar. Never mind, I shall simply cull you too.”

“You bastard!” the armoured man shouted, “You crippled my brother! You’re going to pay for that!”

“Oh? Now I recognise you,” the man hummed as he readied his sword, “Your armour is like that of Ingenium, that fake!”

“Don’t you dare say that name!” Iida roared as he leapt forwards again, shooting out a series of quick kicks, before finishing with a powerful round house that threw Stain back, even though he’d blocked it with his sword.

“It matters not,” the man grunted, lifting a knife as Iida realised his calf was hurting, blood dripping off the tip of the weapon, “You too shall fall!”

“IIDA!” the shout surprised both of them as the green bolt shot into the alleyway, colliding with Stain, and throwing him across the space, “Are you okay, Iida?”

“What?” the teen blinked, “Midoriya? What are you doing here? How did you find me?”

“I told you we were coming earlier,” Izuku said as he jumped back from the Hero Killer, “And I found you by looking in all the places Stain usually tries to kill people. Sorry, it took a while.”

“Two of you now?” Stain growled as he jumped back to his feet, “And both children? I would hate to end you so young, but if you face me, know that you will die!”

“No!” Izuku shouted as he glanced at the screen beside him, looking back at Iida as the other teen blinked, “We’re going to take you down!”

------

“What?”

“What is it, Shoto?” Endeavor growled as they hurried through the streets towards the sounds of screaming and explosions.

“Midoriya just sent me a message,” the teen said, “He says that they found Stain? Location incoming?”

The teen jumped as his phone went off, pulling it out and staring at the ping in confusion.

“Found Stain?” Endeavor growled, a cruel grin crossing his face, “Where? Lead the way!”

------

“Hopefully that worked,” Izuku muttered as he glanced at Iida’s Status in the top corner of his vision, having just added him to his Party, “Are you hurt, Iida?”

“He caught me in the leg,” the other teen replied, “But I am otherwise fine.”

“Silence!” Stain shouted, licking the blood off the knife as Iida suddenly gasped, Izuku’s eyes going wide as the screen appeared in front of him.

[Party member Tenya affected by [Bloodcurdle]. Paralysed for 4:30.]

“Paralysed?” Izuku gasped, “Is that your quirk?”

“Interesting that you found out so quickly,” the man chuckled, “But yes, I can paralyse my foes. Now prepare to die!”

Izuku darted back as the man shot forwards, the teen grabbing Iida and throwing him back to get him out of harm’s way. He raised his arms as the jagged blade came down, thankful for the metal braces under the fabric as the sword ground against them, not reaching his skin. He spun on his heel as he deflected the blade, quickly bringing himself inside Stain’s reach and throwing a punch right into the man’s gut.

“You fight well for a child,” the man grunted as he flipped backward, landing on his feet as he clutched his stomach, “And you are strong. Tell me, why do you fight?”

“Why?” Izuku blinked, before setting his expression, “Because it’s the right thing to do! I have people to protect and save, so I fight with all I have!”

“A good answer,” Stain chuckled, “Perhaps you are one worth leaving alive. The Ingenium clone, though…he shall have to die!”

“No!” Izuku shouted as the man shot towards him, before seemingly vanishing.

“Above you!” Iida shouted from the far side of the alley, Izuku looking up and reaching for Stain, his hand barely brushing against the man’s boot.

“Got you!” Izuku gasped, Stain blinking as his entire body suddenly slowed, moving through the air as though through thick molasses.

“What have you done?” he growled, fighting to move faster even as the teen wound up a punch, slamming it into his side as the effect ended, throwing him into the wall of the alleyway.

“I have a few tricks up my sleeve,” Izuku replied with a grin, darting back faster than before as Stain swung his sword, “And I’m not done yet!”

“You’ve gotten faster,” Stain growled as Izuku began leaping around the alleyway, only coming in to attack the man’s blind spots, which Stain easily parried, scowling as his body slowed again, “No…it is your Quirk…You can alter the speed of things you touch.”

“Only partially right!” Izuku shouted as he shot forwards, slamming another punch into the man’s jaw, knocking him flying.

“Midoriya!” Iida shouted as Izuku felt the burning sensation across his cheek, hurriedly touching the cut before looking at the knife he hadn’t noticed in Stain’s hand, already at his mouth.

“NO!” both teens shouted, before the gout of flame washed over the man, forcing him back as he cried out in pain.

“Stain,” the familiar voice growled as Endeavor stepped into the alley, “I have come to end you and your reign of terror!”

“Oh?” the man coughed, “Another fake? Delivering himself for culling right at my feet?”

“The only one to die today will be you!” Endeavor roared as he charged forwards, his flames flaring up on his costume as he swung a burning fist at the man.

“Midoriya,” Shoto said as he stood beside the surprised teen, “Sorry, I told my father about your message, and he insisted on coming.”

“That’s fine,” Izuku breathed in relief, “Come on, let’s get Native and Tenya away from here until the paralysis effect wears off.”

“Paralysis?” Shoto asked as the two heard a loud thump, turning to see Stain looming over Endeavor, the man’s flames out as a long cut on his arm bled heavily, “What?”

“Oh no!” Izuku shouted as he leapt forwards, flipping onto his hands and shooting towards Stain in a double flying kick, armoured soles slamming into the blade of the sword just as it began to drop.

“Get out of here, brat!” Endeavor snarled from the floor as he seemed to struggle to move, “I’ll handle this!”

“You almost died,” Shoto said as he hooked his arms under his father’s, freezing the ground beneath them as he dragged him back, “I think you should be thanking Midoriya.”

Izuku didn’t hear that as he barely managed to hold off the Hero Killer, the man stronger and faster than he looked as he fought. Jumping back just in time to avoid the slash of his sword, Izuku quickly checked his stats, eyes going wide at what he saw.

Name: Akaguro “Stain” Chizome

Level: 59

Stats:

Strength: 85

Dexterity: 86

Endurance: 40

Intelligence: 38

Wisdom: 44

Charisma: 52

Skills:

[Bloodcurdle]

[Mixed Martial Arts]

[Blades]

[Stealth]

[Parkour]

“He’s strong,” Izuku breathed, before shaking himself off and steadying his breathing, “But I’m still stronger.”

“What was that, child?” Stain growled as he glared at Izuku, “You think yourself stronger than me?”

“Oh, I know I am,” Izuku replied, “I can see your stats. Your Dexterity is more than double mine, but my Strength is almost triple yours!”

“Stats?” Stain asked, “And you think that being stronger will help you?”

“No,” Izuku shook his head, “But it’ll definitely help! Now, Todoroki!”

Stain blinked as Izuku dove to the side, a wave of ice shooting towards him as he slashed through it with his sword, before a blast of fire washed over him again, forcing him back as he hissed. He didn’t get a moment to rest as the green blur slammed into his again, his entire body slowing as he fought against whatever power the teen was using against him. He barely got a moment to react as three punches slammed into the same spot on his ribs in quick succession, cracking the bones as he grunted in pain, before being launched into the wall again.

“ENOUGH!” he roared, staggering slightly as he found his feet, turning to glare at the panting teen, looking like he was barely able to stand, “You wish to face me so much? Then perish!”

“NO!” the sound of engines filled the alleyway as Iida shot forwards, slamming a roundhouse kick into the man’s head, throwing him back as Izuku collapsed to his knees in exhaustion.

“YOU FAKE!” Stain screamed as the wave of ice suddenly froze his feet to the ground, Iida slamming another series of kicks into his head and chest, making him fall back.

“STAIN!” Iida shouted as he raised his leg up, bringing it down on the man’s head, “DIE!”

“Iida!” the shout caught Iida off guard as his body suddenly slowed, looking back at Izuku in shock and rage as the teen touched him, “No! You’re a Hero!”

“He crippled my brother!” Iida shouted, looking back down at Stain, “I have to…I have to make sure he can’t do that to anyone else!”

“He’s already unconscious,” Shoto said as he hurried over, looking down at the blank-eyed stare the man was giving to the sky, “We won.”

“No,” Iida muttered, fighting against the drag of Izuku’s Quirk, “NO! He has to-!”

“Enough!” Izuku shouted as he grabbed Iida’s leg, shoving the boy back as Gear Shift ran out, making him fall back onto the ground, “You don’t have to do anything, Iida! We won! Stain is unconscious! He’ll pay for his crimes!”

“But he hurt my brother! And killed so many others!”

“And do you want to be just like him?” Izuku shouted back, stunning the teen for a moment, “A killer? What would your brother do?”

“M-my brother?” Iida blinked, looking down at the still form of Stain, “He would…he wouldn’t…”

“Right,” Izuku nodded, smiling kindly at Tenya as he held out his hand, helping the teen back to his feet, “He wouldn’t do that. Now, can you two handle the rest?”

“Us?” Shoto asked as Izuku nodded, “Sure. Why?”

“Because,” Izuku said as his eyes closed, collapsing forwards into Iida’s arms as the screens appeared in front of his eyes, “Gear Shift…really takes it…out…of me…”

[Act of Great Heroism Detected. Awarded 2 Hero Points.]

[Quest Complete: Rescue Iida!!! Rescue your friend from almost certain death! Reward: 1500 experience. Bonus Objective: Defeat Stain. Reward: 15 000 experience.]

[You have levelled up! Current level: 14.]

------

“So, those are Nomu, huh?” Dabi asked as the four of them watched the destruction below, “They’re pretty creepy.”

“Get used to it,” Shigaraki smiled as he looked around, “You’ll be working with more in time.”

“So much blood!” Toga giggled as she watched the carnage, “I want to go and taste it all!”

“We do not have the time, right now,” Kurogiri said as the spotlight of the news helicopter swept near them, “I believe it is time for us to leave.”

“Fine by me,” Dabi shrugged, dragging the starry-eyed Toga through the portal after him, “I don’t want to get spotted too soon.”

“Tomura Shigaraki?” Kurogiri asked as the man stared into the distance, a cruel grin still on his face.

“Yeah, yeah,” he said, walking through the portal, “I’m coming.”

Chapter 17

Chapter Text

“Midoriya! Midoriya!” Iida shouted as the boy tumbled into his arms, “Izuku!”

“I’m fine,” Izuku blinked as he stood back up, looking perfectly healthy, even the cut on his cheek gone, “Sorry, Gear Shift is a massive power drain, but I levelled up so I’m okay.”

“That is good to hear,” Shoto nodded as the three looked back at the unconscious form of Stain, “What do we do with him?”

“Find some rope or something to tie him up, I guess?” Izuku shrugged, “We should probably start carrying something for that.”

“That would be smart,” Iida nodded as Shoto opened a nearby dumpster.

“I found some rope,” he said, pulling a bundle out of the trash.

“Wait, what?” the other two said, “But…who throws out rope?”

“Someone who doesn’t need rope anymore?” Shoto replied flatly.

“If you three are done chatting,” Endeavor growled as he sat up from the floor, “We can bind Stain and take him in. And make sure to check for hidden weapons.”

“Yes sir,” Izuku nodded, as Shoto gave his father a look.

“You’re acting quite high and mighty for someone who did almost nothing,” the teen muttered, making the older man flinch slightly.

The three quickly tied up the unconscious man, pulling a half dozen knives out of his boots and sleeves as they went. Finally, Endeavor hoisted the still injured Native and unconscious Stain onto his shoulders, leading the trio out of the alleyway, just as a group of Heroes ran up to them.

“Endeavor!” the woman at the front shouted, “We need your help! No one else is strong enough to take…down the…Villains…is that Stain?”

“Yes,” the man said, depositing the body to the ground, “Now, about these other Villains?”

“You mean the Nomu?” Shoto asked, drawing a confused look from the Pros, “That’s what they’re called, we were attacked by one in the USJ.”

“Nomu, huh?” Endeavor grumbled, “Well, they shouldn’t be too hard to defeat.”

“Oh no!” one of the Pros shouted, pointing down the street, “Here comes one now!”

Endeavor reacted immediately, hurling a spear of fire at the creature, hitting it in the eye and making it drop the woman it was carrying. Endeavor shot forwards in a burst of flame, sailing through the air to catch her and land further down the street. The Nomu cried out in pain as it swooped down towards the group, everyone flinching back as it grabbed at them.

“What?!” Izuku gasped as it grabbed him, hoisting him up into the sky, the teen looking up at it in shock as he read its stats, “Wait…Tsubasa?”

The Nomu paused for a moment, before a dark figure suddenly dropped onto its back, plunging a small knife into its brain, causing it to cry out in agony. The three dropped, the Nomu crashing into the ground as Stain caught Izuku under his arm, landing deftly on the ground. Stain wasted no time twisting the blade, causing the creature to shiver, then fall still.

“STAIN!” Endeavor roared from the other side of the street, immediately charging in as the Hero Killer stood, dropping Izuku to the ground.

“ENOUGH!” the man roared, hatred and bloodlust radiating off him in waves as he turned to face the group of Pros, who all stood frozen in place, “You fakes! Just try and stop me! There’s only one person I’ll allow to kill me! ALL MIGHT IS WORTHY!”

“You…you killed him!” the pained shout startled the group, all eyes turning to Izuku as he knelt beside the fallen Nomu, “I…I knew him…from when we were kids…AND YOU KILLED HIM!”

The scream echoed over the street, filled with pain and anguish as Izuku leapt to his feet, slamming an upper cut into the surprised Hero Killer’s jaw, throwing him up into the air, only to collapse to the ground unconscious again. Izuku immediately leapt onto the man, throwing punch after punch into his scarred and noseless face.

“Izuku!” Iida shouted, running forwards, and pulling the angry teen off the man, “Enough! You’ll…you’ll kill him if you carry on!”

“Tsubasa!” Izuku shouted, a gut-wrenching roar leaving his throat as he suddenly fell limp in Iida’s grasp, “TSUBASA!”

------

Izuku woke up slowly as he stared at the hospital ceiling, his body feeling fine, but his mind a swirl of thoughts.

He’d seen the name of a Nomu before, in the USJ, so why had seeing Tsubasa’s name set him off like that? Was it because he knew him? The winged boy had just vanished one day when they were ten, the rest of their group figuring that he’d just moved without telling them. Now Izuku knew better, he knew that the boy had been kidnapped or something and been turned into one of the Nomu. Did that mean that all Nomu were humans? How were they made? Why hadn’t he heard anything about Tsubasa’s disappearance?

“Midoriya?” the voice dragged him from his spiralling thoughts, Izuku looking over to see Iida and Shoto lying in beds near him, the heterochromatic boy talking, “Are you okay?”

“I’m…I don’t know,” Izuku admitted as he looked back at the ceiling, “I don’t know.”

“You said something at the end of the fight,” Shoto continued, “That you knew the Nomu. What did you mean by that?”

“Todoroki!” Iida gasped, “You can’t just ask that! It is obviously a point of contention for Midoriya!”

“Oh, sorry,” Shoto muttered.

“It’s…it’s okay,” Izuku breathed, sitting up and rubbing his face, “I…I did know him. His name was Noaru…Noaru Tsubasa…though Kacchan just called him Wings. He was…one of our friends from when we were kids. He disappeared when we were about ten.”

“One of your friends?” Iida asked, “But…that means that Nomu are…?”

“I think so,” Izuku nodded, making the other two pale, “They’re made from real people.”

The room fell silent as Izuku stared blankly ahead, before the door clicked open, a number of people walking in.

“Greetings, ruff,” the dog-headed man greeted them, “I am Tsuragamae Kenji, and I am the Head of the Police.”

“Head of the police?” the three teens said in confusion.

“That’s right,” the man nodded, before turning to a plain looking man in a tan trench coat, “And this is Detective Naomasa. And you of course know Eraserhead. We have come today to speak to you about the incident involving the Hero Killer: Stain.”

“Stain,” Izuku muttered, clenching the sheets in his hands.

“That is right, bark,” the head of police said, “I am to understand that you all were instrumental in his capture?”

“If you mean we were the ones to do it, then yes,” Shoto nodded.

“Todoroki-kun!” Iida gasped, “You can’t just say that!”

“No, that matches up with the reports we have,” Kenji hummed, “Even Endeavor admitted that he wasn’t that much help in the actual apprehension of the Hero Killer.”

“My father did?” Shoto asked in surprise.

“Yes,” Kenji nodded, “However, we unfortunately cannot allow it to get out that Stain was caught by a group of Interns, even when in the presence of a Professional Hero. As such, the official report will be that Endeavor was the one to capture the Villain.”

“What?” Shoto growled, “What are you saying, mutt?”

“Todoroki-kun!” Iida gasped, “You can’t call him that!”

“It’s quite alright!” the dog-headed man laughed suddenly, before returning to his serious demeanour, “I understand that you probably do not agree with this, but it is for the best. It will take serious targets off your backs from the Hero Killer’s fans and followers, though there is little we can do about the apparent final blow coming from your friend.”

The room turned to look at Izuku, still staring ahead blankly as he glared at the wall.

“Other than that,” the head of police said, “Is there anything you can tell us?”

“Nomu are made from people,” Izuku suddenly spoke, turning to look at the room, eyes falling on each of them one by one, “The winged Nomu that Stain…killed. I knew him from my childhood.”

“Midoriya?” Aizawa asked carefully, “You…knew him?”

“Yes,” the teen sighed, “I…I don’t know what to think now. Knowing that they were…are humans. Sensei, what should I do?”

“I can’t answer that for you,” the scruffy man sighed, looking at the teen in sympathy and more than a little pain, “But I suppose the best bet is for you to go see Hound Dog once your internships end.”

“What?” the three said in surprise, “You’re not ending our internships now?”

“That would be illogical,” the man shook his head, “You still have a lot to learn. And you weren’t that badly injured in the fight, so you should be fine to continue. The most serious case was Iida getting stabbed in the leg.”

“Yes, Sensei,” the three nodded, looking at each other for a moment, before smiling.

------

“So,” Gran Torino hummed as Izuku walked back into the dilapidated building, “You beat the Hero Killer?”

“Huh? Oh…yeah,” Izuku replied as he joined the man at the table, “I know you told me to protect the civilians, but…”

“You got a Quest, didn’t you?” Gran sighed, Izuku nodding.

“To save Iida,” the teen explained, “The way it was worded…it sounded like he was going to die.”

“Never mind that,” Gran huffed, “I have to say, getting your message thing in the middle of the fight almost got me killed. Distracted me. You’ll have to be more careful with that in the future.”

“I-it did?” Izuku gasped, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s nothing,” Gran sighed, “Now, did taking down the Hero Killer get you anything? Another Hero Point?”

“Oh, yes!” Izuku nodded, “It actually got me two points, for an act of Great Heroism.”

“So, you should have three now, right?” the old man asked, “Good, then pick one of the Quirks from One for All so we can start training you in it.”

“O-oh,” Izuku said, quickly pulling up the screen and scrolling to the end, “I’ll get Float then, to improve my mobility.”

“Hmm,” Gran muttered as the teen selected the Sub-Skill, confirming that he wanted to unlock it.

The world faded out around Izuku, once again placing him in the familiar white void, looking around, he spotted a tall and muscular woman with a hairstyle similar to his mom’s smiling at him, giving a small wave.

“Hey, kiddo,” she said friendlily, “I’m Nana Shimura, though you probably already knew that. And I’m gonna teach you how to use my Quirk.”

------

“-The Japanese army ended up having to be called in to help face the unknown Villains, using tanks and other heavy ordinance to eventually subdue them,” the horned news caster said, Shigaraki grinning as he watched the television, “Most of the Professional Heroes on site just weren’t able to stand up against them.”

“This is really scary, isn’t it?” the female news caster beside him said, shivering, “Thinking that there are people out there that are that strong and are Villains.”

“True,” the man replied, “However, thanks to the combined efforts of the Heroes and our troops, they were defeated.”

“Perfect,” the pale-haired man cackled as he sat back on the sofa, “The Nomu are basically front-page news.”

“Just after the capture of Stain, you mean,” Dabi hummed from the corner, reading through a newspaper, “Damn, I didn’t think he’d get done in so soon after meeting him. He seemed stronger than that.”

“Yes,” Shigaraki hummed, “But no matter, they think that the Nomu and Stain are linked, which should bring some powerful allies to our cause.”

“And what is that?” Toga asked, humming as she kicked her feet on the sofa, “I mean, Stainy was saying that we didn’t have a cause or anything, before.”

“Let’s say…freedom,” Shigaraki cackled as he switched the TV over to his console, grabbing the controller and booting up the game, “Now, onto the next boss.”

“Hey, it was my turn next!” Toga huffed.

Chapter 18

Chapter Text

“Thank you so much!” Izuku said happily as he bowed to Gran Torino, clutching his costume case to his chest, “You taught me a lot.”

“Damn well hope so,” the old man chuckled, before going serious, “You’re a good kid, Midoriya. Don’t lose that.”

“I…I won’t,” the teen nodded, “Again, thank you.”

“Sure, whatever,” the man sighed, “Now get going, you’re going to miss your train otherwise.”

“Yes sir!” Izuku grinned as he hurried off towards the station.

------

“But if we’re talking about transformative internships,” Kaminari laughed, “It has to be you three! You took down the Hero Killer!”

Iida, Izuku and Shoto all looked up as he spoke, the class falling silent as they all stared at the three boys.

“How do you know that?” Shoto asked, “The news said Endeavor captured him.”

“Yeah,” the blonde shrugged, “But you at least fought him, right? And Midoriya knocked him out at the end. What was that thing you were yelling about though? Knowing the Nomu?”

“Ah,” Izuku muttered, looking away, “It was…nothing.”

“No, really, what was that abou-OW!” Kaminari yelped as the earphone jack jabbed him in the side, looking at Kyoka in surprise, “What was that for?”

“He obviously doesn’t want to talk about it, Jammingyay,” the girl growled, “So leave it.”

“Jeez, okay,” he muttered, walking back to his desk, “Wonder what Basic Heroics will be today?”

------

“A RESCUE RACE!” All Might shouted as he held out the card, “Something fun after your internships!”

“Ah, shouldn’t rescue training take place at the USJ, All Might?” Iida asked as the class began to chatter.

“That is for disaster training, Young Iida,” the man chuckled, “This is just a race!”

“I see,” the teen nodded, dropping his raised hand, “I apologize for the interruption.”

“Quite alright,” All Might nodded, “Now, onto the groups!”

Izuku shook himself out as he walked to his starting position, taking a deep breath as readied himself. The rest of his group was positioned around the training ground, also probably waiting for All Might to announce the start of the race. A moment later, a buzzer sounded, All Might’s voice echoing over the tightly packed industrial zone, and Izuku jumped.

“No way!” several of the class shouted as he shot into the sky, watching on screens nearby, “Midoriya can fly now?”

Izuku just grinned as he hovered in the air for a moment, allowing the momentum of his jump to carry him forward a bit, before dropping down onto a pipe, leaping forwards with all his strength as he reactivated Float, soaring through the air at speed. He had to drop a few more times to keep up his momentum, occasionally flicking his fingers to keep himself from going off course. He quickly reached the bottom of the silo he’d heard All Might shouting from, leaping straight up its side, and sailing over the top.

“My goodness!” All Might shouted in surprise as the teen landed in front of him, “What…what did you just do, Young Midoriya?”

“Oh, I unlocked another Sub-Skill of One for All,” the teen quickly explained, glancing back to see if he could spot the other students, “It’s called Float. Gran Torino told me it belonged to your Master.”

“F-float?” All Might gasped, “Y-yes, it did. And now you have it?”

“Sort of,” Izuku grinned, “It’s a little tricky to use, I’ve only had a few days practice, but I’m pretty good at it already.”

“I’ll say,” All Might muttered, “Did you…did you perhaps see my Master?”

Izuku nodded, blinking as All Might gave a sad smile, before quickly schooling his expression as Sero leapt over the edge of the Silo.

“What the hell was that, Midoriya?” the smiling boy panted slightly, “You were flying!”

“More floating,” the green-haired teen chuckled, “It’s uhm…another part of my Quirk. I can buy certain Skills, and that was the newest one I got.”

“Damn,” the other boy huffed, “That’s kind of unfair.”

“Sorry,” Izuku blushed, rubbing the back of his head.

“Nah, don’t be,” Sero chuckled, “It’s pretty damn cool if you ask me.”

------

Izuku was deep in thought as he made his way to Nedzu’s office, not noticing as the other student walked around the corner, bumping into him.

“Oh, sorry!” he said, blinking as he looked at Shinso in surprise, the teen looking a little worn out and ragged, “Shinso, right? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” the purple-haired teen muttered, stepping aside as Izuku walked past, “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“Oh, right! Thanks!” Izuku smiled, glancing back as he hurried on, checking the other boy’s stats quickly, eyes going wide at what he saw.

Name: Hitoshi Shinso

Level: 6

Stats:

Strength: 15

Dexterity: 14

Endurance: 14

Intelligence: 20

Wisdom: 15

Charisma: 25

Skills:

[Brain Washing]

“Huh,” Izuku muttered to himself, smiling slightly, “He’s gotten stronger.”

------

“Incredible,” Nedzu said as Izuku hovered in the air in front of him, “Quite the useful ability if I do say so myself! And I do!”

“Thank you, Nedzu sir,” Izuku smiled as he dropped back down to the floor, “Though the cost for unlocking the Sub-Skills of One for All went up again. They now cost three Hero Points.”

“That certainly makes sense,” Nedzu nodded, pulling a large textbook out from under his desk, Izuku reading the cover in interest.

“Game Theory and Design?” the teen muttered.

“Why yes!” Nedzu chuckled, “I thought that perhaps this would be of use to you, considering the nature of your Quirk. Though of course I made a point to read it myself first, quite interesting.”

“Oh, that makes sense,” Izuku nodded, picking up the book, immediately getting a prompt asking if he wanted to use the Skill Book, which he accepted, letting the new knowledge settle into his mind as the book vanished in a flash of light, “Oh wow, this actually explains a few things.”

“Good to hear!” Nedzu said happily, “Now, if you would be so kind as to check your Status Page, I would like to see how you’ve grown.”

“Of course, Principal,” Izuku nodded, opening the screen, and starting to copy it down.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 14

Stats:

Strength: 132 (999)

Dexterity: 33

Endurance: 66

Intelligence: 40

Wisdom: 32

Charisma: 24

Free Points: 10

Hero Points: 1

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

[Party]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

[Basic First Aid]

[Basic Electrical Engineering]

[Basic Structural Engineering]

[Basic Mixed Martial Arts]

[Basic Game Theory]

“Huh,” Izuku said as he finished writing the numbers out, “Some of my stats have gone up. Guess it was because of the training I did with Gran Torino.”

“That would certainly make sense, yes,” Nedzu hummed as he looked over the page, “You are quickly outpacing your classmates, I must say. You are almost on par with many active Pro Heroes. Very impressive.”

“Oh,” Izuku mumbled, “I don’t really want to leave them behind too much, but it’s a little difficult when I keep levelling up and training so hard.”

“I’m sure it’s fine,” Nedzu chuckled, “It shall simply work as motivation for them to try harder.”

“I suppose,” Izuku sighed, “What do you suggest I put my Free Points into?”

“Why ask me?” Nedzu said, sipping from his cup of tea, “It’s your Quirk, so you get to decide.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true,” Izuku nodded, “I’m starting to feel a little unbalanced in terms of Strength and Endurance, so maybe I should put more points into Dexterity? Increase my speed and flexibility?”

“That sounds like a good plan,” Nedzu nodded as the teen dumped all ten points into the stat, “How do you feel?”

“Looser,” Izuku hummed, shaking out his body, before bending right over, his head nearly touching his legs, “It’s strange.”

“I am sure,” Nedzu chuckled, “Now then, onto our usual exercises, I should think!”

------

“Wait, so it’s just robots?” Mina asked, cheering, “Then this’ll be easy! We’ll really be able to let loose!”

“Only if you pass your written exams,” Aizawa grumbled as he walked in, the class hurrying to their seats.

“Wait,” Kaminari paused, grabbing his head, “I was so caught up in the internships and training that I completely forgot to study!”

“That is unforgivable!” Iida shouted, “Knowledge is a powerful tool for Heroes!”

“Hey, Yaomomo has the highest Intelligence Stat in the class, right?” Kyoka hummed, looking over at the tall girl as she blushed, “Maybe she can help tutor you?”

“Yaomomo!” Kaminari cried, “Please impart onto me your great wisdom!”

“Oh!” the girl gasped, “Of course, I’d happily tutor anyone who needs it.”

“Me too!” Mina shouted, Sero nodding behind her.

“I could use some help with maths,” Kyoka hummed, holding up her notebook.

“Of course!” Momo said happily, “I’ll organise some nice tea for us as well! Do you all like Oolong? Perhaps I should see if I can get some Emperor Black Tips!”

The four students just smiled at the beaming girl, taken aback by her bright smile and apparent naivety.

“Now why can’t you be like that?” Kirishima chuckled at Bakugo, the blond snarling at him.

“You want tutoring?” he growled, “Fine! I’ll tutor to f*cking death!”

“That’s the spirit!” the red head laughed.

“Oh, Midoriya,” Ochako said as she looked over at the boy, “You have a pretty good Intelligence as well, right? I’m struggling a bit with Hero Art History, can you help me?”

“Oh, sure,” Izuku nodded.

“Ah, it would be untoward to allow two members of the opposite sex to interact alone!” Iida said loudly, making the brunette blush, “I shall accompany you to ensure nothing happens!”

“And Buzzkill Iida strikes again, kero,” Tsuyu chuckled, making the blue-haired boy look at her in confusion, “But I’ll join as well, if that’s okay?”

“Sure,” Izuku grinned, “Though where should we meet? My apartment is kind of small.”

“We can study at my house, kero,” Tsuyu hummed, “My siblings will be there, but they won’t disturb us if I ask.”

“That sounds great, Asui,” Izuku nodded.

“Call me Tsu, kero,” the girl replied flatly.

------

“So, you’re the new hire?” Dabi hummed as the scaled man adjusted the mask over his face, “What do we call you?”

“Spinner,” the lizard-like man said, looking over the rest of the group, eyes drawn towards the television in the corner of the room, and the blonde girl, pale-haired guy and young boy staring at it, “Uhm…are they playing a video game?”

“Yep,” Dabi replied, sipping at his drink as he eyed the muscular man sitting in the back corner of the bar, muttering quietly to himself as he picked at the scar over his eye, “Just a couple more and the Vanguard will be ready, wonder who Giran will bring us next?”

“Wait,” Spinner hummed as Shigaraki opened the stat sheet for his character, “What’s with that build? It’s kind of sh*t.”

“Not you too,” the pale-haired man growled, “All you need to win this game is Strength!”

“Not really,” Spinner shook his head as he slid onto the couch, “I mean, I’m a Strength main myself, using great swords, but you have to balance out your stats so you don’t get one-shot.”

“You play this too?” the man asked, glaring at Spinner like he was competition.

“I’ve finished this game a few times, yeah,” the lizard-like man nodded, “It’s pretty good, though not quite as good as the previous one in my opinion. Bit too easy.”

“Easy?” Shigaraki snorted, looking at Toga, “Tell that to this noob!”

“Hey!” the girl huffed, “I’m further along than you, aren’t I? Doesn’t that make you the noob?”

“Shut up!” the man yelled as he died to the boss, “f*ck!”

“Just restart, dude,” Spinner chuckled, “Your build is already broken, so you might as well try again.”

“No,” Shigaraki growled, “I like my way of playing!”

“Fair enough,” Spinner sighed, “Oh, hey, there’s a hidden Strength weapon just off to the side over there. It’ll compliment the disaster you call a build.”

“SPOILERS!” the pale-haired man shouted.

Chapter 19

Chapter Text

Izuku glanced at his phone as he checked the address again, making sure he was at the right house. Nodding, he rang the doorbell, walking through the gate as the front door opened.

“So,” the gruff voice croaked as the bullfrog-like man glared down at the teen, “You’re one of my daughter’s classmates?”

“Oh! Uhm…yes sir!” Izuku said hurriedly, “Izuku Midoriya, a pleasure to meet you!”

“Hmmph,” the man snorted as he stood in the doorway, before a familiar voice called out.

“Please don’t try to intimidate my friends, dad,” Tsuyu said as she appeared behind the man, making him sag slightly as he looked at her.

“It’s a father’s job to protect his daughter, Tsu,” he rumbled, the girl just shaking her head with her usual blank expression, “Fine, sorry.”

“You can come in now, Midoriya,” Tsuyu said as her father went back inside, holding the door open for him as he entered, “We’ll be studying in the dining room. I wanted to do it in my bedroom, but my dad said no.”

“I see,” Izuku nodded as he took off his shoes, blinking as he came face to face with a pair of children staring at him from a doorway, “Oh, are these your siblings?”

“Yes, kero,” Tsuyu nodded, looking back at the pair, “Samidare, Satsuki, come say hello to my friend.”

“Are you Nee-chan’s boyfriend?” the young girl suddenly asked, Izuku lighting up in a blush.

“No way is he sis’s boyfriend,” the slightly older boy huffed, “He’s nowhere near cool enough.”

“Not…not cool enough?” Izuku asked, looking at Tsuyu in confusion.

“Sorry, kero,” she chuckled, “Satsuki asks pretty much everyone that question, and Samidare is at that age where he only cares about stuff that he thinks is cool.”

“Oh, I see,” Izuku nodded, smiling down at the children, “No, I’m just your sister’s classmate. And what about Heroes? Do you think they’re cool?”

“That’s a dumb question,” Samidare laughed, “Of course Heroes are cool. But sis is going to be the coolest of all the Heroes!”

“Then I think we’ll get along just fine,” Izuku chuckled, “I think Heroes are cool as well. Are the others already here, Asui?”

“No, you’re the first one to arrive,” Tsuyu shook her head, “And call me Tsu, kero.”

“Uhm…sure,” Izuku blushed slightly again as she led him through the house to the dining room, the teen beginning to pull his books from his inventory.

“Woah! How are you doing that?” Samidare gasped from the doorway, having followed them.

“Oh, it’s part of my Quirk,” Izuku smiled, “It allows me to store a bunch of stuff in a special dimension. Up to my Strength stat in kilograms.”

“Strength stat?” the boy asked, “Oh! You’re the one sis was talking about! The guy with the video game quirk! I guess that’s pretty cool.”

“Thanks,” Izuku chuckled as he continued to unload his books and stationery.

The doorbell rang again, Tsuyu hurrying off to answer it as Samidare continued to watch Izuku, the green-haired teen fidgeting slightly under his intense gaze.

“So, uhm…who do you think is the coolest Hero?” Izuku asked, blinking as the boy laughed.

“Sis, of course,” the boy said, “She’s going to save all the people that get washed away at sea and beat up all the illegal smugglers!”

“I see,” Izuku nodded, “What about All Might? Do you think he’s cool?”

“Of course I do!” the boy huffed, “He’s the number one Hero, so he has to be cool! Are you dumb or something?”

“No,” Izuku chuckled, before leaning down to the boy and whispering, “Hey, want to know a secret? I was personally trained by All Might to get into UA.”

“What?” Samidare gasped, “No way!”

“Yes,” Izuku smiled, holding out his phone, “I even have his phone number to prove it.”

“Woah,” the boy gasped, before looking thoughtful, “Maybe you are cool enough to be Sis’s boyfriend, then?”

“I told you before, kero,” Tsuyu said as she led the blushing Ochako into the room, “I only like girls, Samidare.”

“Oh, yeah,” the boy nodded, “But Midoriya-nii is pretty cool, so I wouldn’t complain if he did become your boyfriend.”

“Not happening,” the frog quirked girl hummed, before giving Izuku an apologetic look, “No offense, Midoriya.”

“None taken,” Izuku nodded, smiling as Ochako sat beside him, “I mean, it’s not like we have much time to worry about relationships while learning to be Heroes, right?”

“R-right!” Ochako barked, sitting upright as her cheeks flushed some more.

“Oh, did Satsuki ask if you were Asui’s girlfriend?” Izuku asked the blushing brunette.

“Yeah, it, uhm…it caught me off guard,” she mumbled, looking between the two green-haired teens, “I mean, I wouldn’t be against it or anything! But I already have someone I like and-.”

The brunette gasped as she cut herself off, covering her face with her hands as she started to float, letting out a stream of indecipherable words.

“Oh? Who, kero?” Tsuyu asked with interest.

“Nobody!” the other girl squeaked, “Just forget I said anything!”

“I bet it’s Midoriya-nii,” Samidare grinned, “He’s pretty cool, so he wouldn’t be a bad choice!”

“N-n-n-no!” Ochako stammered, bobbing against the ceiling now as she blushed even harder, “It’s not what you think!”

The doorbell rang again, Tsuyu hurrying off to get the door as Izuku helped Ochako down off the ceiling. A minute later, Iida entered the room, chopping his hands through the air as he spoke.

“Your house is lovely, Asui,” he said, “I had no trouble finding it.”

“Thank you, kero,” the girl replied as they all sat down at the table, “And call me Tsu.”

“Now then!” Iida cleared his throat, “Shall we get on to studying?”

“Boring,” Samidare sighed as he walked away, “Call me when you’re going to do something cool.”

“Go play with Satsuki, kero,” Tsuyu called after him, “Make sure she doesn’t bug us.”

“Sure thing, Sis.”

------

“So,” Tsuyu said as the two boys left, saying goodbye to the girls after their study session, “Who is your crush, kero?”

“W-what?” Ochako blushed, “W-why are you asking that?”

“I might be a little jealous, kero,” Tsuyu hummed, pink tinting her own cheeks as she looked at Ochako, the girl blushing harder.

“What do you mean by that?” the brunette asked.

“I mean I have a bit of a crush on you,” the frog quirked girl shrugged, “So I was interested in who my competition was.”

“C-competition? C-crush?” Ochako squeaked.

“Yeah?” Tsu hummed, “Don’t worry, I’m not going to try hit on you or kiss you or anything. Unless you want me to, of course, kero.”

“I mean,” Ochako mumbled, “I wouldn’t complain…I do kind of like girls myself, but I prefer guys.”

“Guys like Midoriya, kero?” Tsuyu smirked, the expression strange on her usually blank face.

“W-well…yeah,” Ochako blushed harder, “But I’m pushing those feelings down. At least until after we become Heroes.”

“That’ll be a long time,” Tsuyu hummed, “At least another three years or more. Are you sure that you’ll be able to wait that long? I don’t think I would.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Ochako asked.

“Cause I like you, kero,” Tsuyu shrugged again, making the brunette blush harder, “And I don’t believe in hiding my feelings. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

“No, it’s fine,” Ochako replied, “It’s just…a bit overwhelming.”

“I see,” Tsuyu nodded, “Your train only leaves in a couple of hours, right? Want to have dinner with my family?”

“Free food?” Ochako blinked, making the other girl chuckle, “I mean, sure! That’d be nice.”

“Does that mean you’re Nee-chan’s girlfriend now?” the small voice asked as Ochako and Tsuyu looked at Satsuki, Ochako lighting up in a blush again.

------

“Jiro-san?”

“Huh?” the girl blinked as Momo spoke to her, her ears lighting up in a slight blush as she realised that she hadn’t been listening, “S-sorry, Yaomomo, what was that?”

“I was asking if you understood what we just covered,” Momo replied, looking at the other girl in concern, “You were just staring at me.”

“O-oh! Sorry, I didn’t mean to!” the black-haired girl muttered, looking down to hide the blush that was spreading to her cheeks.

“It’s quite alright,” Momo smiled, “Shall we all take a break? You must be getting tired after all this studying.”

“Yes please!” the other three at the large table said as one, flopping down onto the hard wood as they groaned.

“Hey, Jiro,” Mina suddenly chuckled as Momo left to go fetch them some more tea, “I saw the way you were looking at Yaomomo. You got something to say?”

“What?” the punk girl gasped, shaking her head, “N-no! Not at all!”

“Woah, wait, do you mean Jiro’s got a crush on Yaomomo?” Kaminari suddenly gasped, making the girl glare at him, before he held up a thumb, “Nice!”

“What are you talking about, Jammingyay?” Kyoka growled, readying her jacks.

“Just that Yaomomo’s pretty hot,” Kaminari shrugged, “I mean, I would try if I thought she was in my league.”

“And she’s not?” Mina chuckled, the blonde grinning as he shook his head.

“Oh yeah, way out of my league,” he laughed, “Smart, pretty and a recommendation student? No way I’m getting that homerun.”

“You’d definitely strike out there,” Sero chuckled, “Then again, I don’t have much hope either.”

“Yeah,” Mina sighed, “Yaomomo’s just so…perfect. It’d probably be hard to be in a relationship with her.”

“You too?” the two boys asked, patting the girl on the shoulder.

“Well, I don’t know what you three are talking about,” Kyoka huffed, “I just got distracted, that’s all.”

“By Yaomomo?” Mina chuckled, “Maybe by her lips?”

“Or her che-YEOW!” “Or her bu-OW!” the two boys yelped as Jiro jabbed them each in the ear with her jacks.

“Shut up!” she shouted, “I do not have a crush on Yaomomo!”

“No body said you did,” Mina just grinned, “But maybe now we think you do. Tsun-tsun.”

“I am not a Tsundere!” the girl yelled as she tried to jab the other girl, Mina dancing out of the way as she laughed.

------

“Learn faster, dammit!” Katsuki shouted as he hit Kirishima in the head with a rolled-up book while they sat in the diner, “You’re gonna f*cking fail at this rate!”

“I dunno, man,” the red head sighed, sitting back as he finished the mock exam, sliding it over to the blonde who began to furiously mark it, “I think I did pretty well this time.”

“You f*cking think?” the blonde snorted as he finished, holding out the paper, “Cause you f*cking passed.”

“Woah, really?!” Kirishima said excitedly, “Manly!”

“Yeah, f*cking whatever,” Katsuki growled, “But you can f*cking do better than this! Do it again!”

“Aw, come on man, let me at least have a break first!” Kirishima sighed, sitting back in the chair, “Hey, why didn’t we do this at your place? I mean, I know that my place is a little chaotic and far away, but why a diner?”

“My house?” Bakugo snorted, “Cause my old hag of a mom wouldn’t have left us the f*ck alone!”

“Aw, so you just wanted to be alone with me?” the red head chuckled, blushing slightly, “That’s sweet.”

“What the f*ck are you talking about, sh*tty Hair?” Katsuki yelled, smacking the other teen on the head again, “I’m just here to f*cking help you study cause you’re such an idiot!”

“Jeez dude, sorry,” Kirishima laughed as he hardened his head against the onslaught, “I was just saying it’s nice. That you’re nice. At least under all the swearing.”

“f*ck you!” Katsuki barked.

“Gladly,” Kirishima laughed, making the pair suddenly fall silent as they stared at each other in surprise, “Uhm…that didn’t come out like I meant it.”

“What, you got a f*cking problem with gay people?” Katsuki grumbled, looking away to hide his slight blush.

“Nah, not at all. I’m all about free love and that stuff,” the red head said hurriedly, “I mean, everyone is hot, right?”

“What?” Katsuki blinked, “You f*cking bi or something?”

“Pansexual, yeah,” Kirishima blushed, “I like pretty much anyone.”

“Huh,” Bakugo grunted, “Well, who gives a sh*t?! That isn’t why we’re here! Now get started on the next f*cking test!”

------

“Wait,” Mina said, “Why are the teachers all here?”

“Because,” Nedzu hummed as he popped out of Aizawa’s capture weapon, “We have decided to step up the pace of your training! You’ll be placed in groups of two that will each face a teacher!”

“A-against the teachers?” the class shouted, Nedzu just grinning as he nodded.

“Now, the groups have already been decided on, so get into your pairs and join your assigned teacher in a bus!” the principal laughed, a gleam in his eye.

Chapter 20

Chapter Text

The bus was silent as the three figures were driven towards the testing venue, Izuku glancing back at Katsuki, who was sitting as far away from him as possible, glaring out the window. All Might sat in the front, watching both nervously as the bus finally pulled up in front of the massive gates to the area, the roofs of several buildings poking out over the top of the walls.

“We’re here,” All Might said as they got off the bus, the huge gates opening for them, revealing what looked like a downtown business district, “I shall head in first. You have ten minutes to discuss strategy before the buzzer sounds and the exam starts.”

“I don’t need sh*t,” Katsuki growled, “I’m gonna come straight for you and win!”

“I-I see,” All Might replied, before leaping off into the distance as the two teens walked into the venue.

“Stay the f*ck out of my way, Deku,” the blonde spat as he stalked forwards, Izuku just sighing loudly as he followed behind him, making the blond spin and glare at him, “What? You got a f*cking problem?”

“Yes, actually,” Izuku replied flatly, startling the other teen, “I don’t even know why we were paired up. We obviously don’t like each other, so I don’t get why they’re forcing us to work together.”

“Don’t like…? I f*ckING HATE YOU, DEKU!” Katsuki shouted, explosions crackling across his palms.

“My point exactly,” Izuku sighed again, “Look, we’re up against All Might, so our best bet of passing is to run.”

“f*ck that!” Katsuki snarled, “I’m gonna beat the sh*t out of him!”

“What?” Izuku blinked, shaking his head in disbelief, “That has to be the stupidest thing you’ve ever said, Katsuki.”

“f*ck YOU!” the blonde roared, jumping forwards as he swiped at Izuku, the teen dodging back easily, before surging forwards and slamming a punch into Bakugo’s chest, throwing him backwards into, and through, a brick wall.

Katsuki lay stunned for a moment, before he jumped to his feet, snarling like a rabid beast as Izuku stood in the hole.

“You see?” Izuku asked, “How do you expect to be able to win against All Might when you can’t even win against me? All Might is a lot stronger than either of us, even working together, so our best bet is to run!”

“f*ck that!” the blonde roared, “I’m the best, and I’m going to prove it, here and now!”

“Tsukasa,” Izuku said flatly, a look of pain on his face, “Do you even remember him? Our childhood friend? Though I guess you only ever called him Wings.”

“Why the f*ck would I give a sh*t about an extra like that?” Katsuki spat.

“I met him on my internship,” Izuku continued, “Sort of. He was a Nomu. But…but he’s dead now.”

“What?” the blonde growled, staring at Izuku in confusion, “The f*ck are you saying, Deku?”

“That the Nomu are people,” Izuku replied, “That they used to be people, Katsuki.”

“And why should I care?”

“That’s exactly the problem,” Izuku muttered, “You don’t. You don’t have a compassionate bone in your body, only seeing others as obstacles or barriers. You won’t be able to become a proper Hero if you’re like this.”

“A proper Hero? f*ck you, Deku! I ain’t a f*cking coward!” Bakugo barked, stalking forwards, and barging past the other teen, “I’m gonna face All Might down and win! Then we’ll see who’s a proper Hero!”

“Fine,” Izuku sighed, turning away, “You can go act as a distraction for all I care, Katsuki.”

“A distrac…I ain’t nobody’s f*cking distraction, you sh*tnerd!” the blonde roared, spinning to glare at Izuku again, “You’re just a f*cking coward!”

“The exam is about to start,” Izuku hummed, looking up as the buzzer sounded, “I think we should get going no-.”

He didn’t get to finish his sentence as a massive wave of force suddenly demolished the ground, buildings, and street just beside them, leaving a clear path right to the other end of the testing zone, All Might standing at the far side as he called out.

“Come on, little Heroes!” the man shouted, “I am a Villain! You either need to beat me or escape to win!”

“ALL MIGHT!” Katsuki screamed as he launched himself straight towards the blonde man, screaming bloody murder the whole way, Izuku just shaking his head in disbelief as he hopped onto a nearby roof with Float.

“If he wants to act that way, then fine,” Izuku muttered, staying low as he skirted around the fight that had already started in the centre of the zone, “I’ll pass on my own.”

------

Recovery Girl sighed as she watched the exams unfold on the numerous screens set up in the medical tent, shaking her head as she turned away.

“While I understand the need for such exams,” she muttered, “It doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

A buzzer sounded, making her look back at the screens, watching as Cementos freed the two teens from the prison of concrete he’d buried them in, ending the test.

“At least he held back,” she grumbled, “They don’t look too hurt, just upset at failing.”

A second buzzer quickly followed, Recovery Girl nodding as Ectoplasm led his students out of the building, the cuffs clinking around one of his prosthetic legs as he walked.

“Looks like we won’t have too many injuries this time, with any luck,” the old woman sighed, before glancing at a particular screen, “Except maybe that fight.”

------

Izuku glanced back at the battle raging in the distance, able to see the two figures clearly as they clashed, one ragged and panting as he tried to unleash another explosion, the larger one easily dodging it, appearing beside him and back handing him through a wall. The first exploded out of the rubble, throwing himself recklessly back into the fight, Izuku just shaking his head as he hurried towards the gate.

He paused as he reached the open exit, looking back again just in time to see Bakugo getting pinned to the ground by All Might with a railing, the blond struggling weakly as small explosions crackled across his palms. Izuku shook his head, turning back to the gate. If Bakugo had been defeated, he only had a few seconds before All Might would realise where he was. He took a step forwards, then another. Then he swore quietly under his breath.

------

“And another group passes,” Recovery Girl said as Aizawa entered the tent, “They did quite well.”

“That they did,” the man grunted, “How is our special exam going?”

“Worse than we hoped,” Recovery Girl sighed, pointing at the screen, “The two separated immediately after having an altercation. Bakugo has been attacking All Might since, while Midoriya snuck around the battle and headed to the exit.”

“Hmmph,” the man grunted, “They’ll both fail then. The point of this exam was to get them to work together.”

“I don’t think it’s as easy as that,” the old woman sighed, “It seems this goes far deeper than just a simple grudge or dislike of each other.”

“Whatever,” Aizawa sighed, pulling out his sleeping back and lying down in one of the beds, “Wake me if anything interesting happens.”

------

“Come now, Young Midoriya!” All Might shouted as he looked around for the other teen, “You can’t just abandon your teammate like this. That isn’t very Heroic!”

“I’d hardly call him a teammate!” Izuku shouted as he shot up into the air, using Float to get the height advantage, before flicking his fingers behind him to swoop down towards the pinned Bakugo and All Might, “He wouldn’t listen to a thing I said! Why did we get paired up anyway? I told you about some of the stuff he’s done to me!”

“Ah,” the Pro said, blinking slightly in surprise, “But you only told me you were bullied? You never said anything about Young Bakugo?”

“It was heavily implied, All Might,” Izuku shouted as he darted in, taking advantage of All Might’s hesitation to rip the railing pinning Bakugo to the ground out, throwing it at the Pro Hero, “I mean, I literally said that someone in my class once told me to kill myself!”

“Wait…that was Young Bakugo?” All Might gasped, before the punch slammed into his left side, making him wince, “Ah, going for the weak spot, I see?”

“Sorry, All Might,” Izuku gave him an apologetic look as he jumped back, “But I have to win this!”

“Then I shall not hold back!” the blonde laughed, winding up a punch as Izuku jumped back again, crouching down to weather the blast.

The punch swung forwards, unleashing a powerful wind as Izuku suddenly spun, grabbing the unconscious Bakugo from the ground, and slinging him over his shoulder, before jumping into the air. He hovered for a moment, looking like he was straining to keep afloat, before the blast of wind hit him, sending both teens soaring through the air towards the exit. All Might swore under his breath as he suddenly realised what Izuku had done, darting forwards to try and catch up to them, the power of his own punch working against him as they just barely outpaced him.

“Bakugo/Midoriya Team Pass!” the electronic voice chimed as the pair sailed through the gates, landing heavily on the ground as they lost momentum.

“Young Midoriya!” All Might shouted as he caught up to the two teens, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, All Might,” the teen sighed as he got up, stretching slightly, “But we should get Katsuki to the Medical Tent. You beat him up pretty badly.”

“Ah, well…I suppose I did,” the older man blushed as he carefully lifted the blonde into his arms.

------

“So, there were some failures,” Aizawa said to the class as they waited nervously, “As well as a near pass. So, you’ll all be going on the Summer Training Camp.”

“LET’S GO!” Kirishima shouted as the class cheered, Aizawa smirking slightly at their excitement.

“Of course, those that failed will still have to take remedial lessons,” the teacher added, killing the mood slightly, “And Midoriya…”

“Yes, Sensei?” the teen asked, confused.

“You only just passed,” the man said, “So watch yourself.”

“Only just…? Why?” Izuku balked.

“You basically abandoned your teammate, but you did go back for them, thus, a near pass,” Aizawa grunted.

“What?” the teen shouted, “I didn’t abandon anyone! Katsuki was being too hard-headed to work with, so I left to pass the exam! And I only went back because-.”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses,” Aizawa huffed, pulling out his sleeping bag, before pausing, putting it back away with a tired sigh, “Anyway, you’ll all need to get the things on the provided lists.”

“Woah! So much stuff!” Kaminari gasped as he read over the pages, “I only have a swimming costume and a couple of other things, I’m going to have to buy so much!”

“Same here,” Mina chuckled.

“Then how about we go out as a class?” Tooru called, making the class turn to look at the invisible girl, “We can go to a shopping mall together and buy the stuff we need!”

“That is an excellent plan, Hagakure!” Iida said loudly, “We shall meet tomorrow then!”

------

“Is something bothering you, Midoriya-kun?” Nedzu asked as Izuku half-heartedly worked on the puzzle in front of him, the teen sighing as he sat back.

“Yeah,” Izuku nodded, “The exams. I was wondering why Katsuki and I got paired up, it’s not like he’s subtle about hating me.”

“Hating you?” Nedzu hummed, “Whatever do you mean?”

“I know he yells and swears at everyone, but he especially does it to me,” Izuku explained, “I mean, why have none of the teachers said or done anything about it? I know why they didn’t back in middle school; they didn’t want to ruin Katsuki’s chances of getting into UA, but…I thought it might be different here.”

“That…is an excellent point,” Nedzu muttered, “Why have none of the teachers’ made reports about Bakugo-kun’s attitude and actions?”

“So, yeah, I was just wondering why we were paired up for the exam,” Izuku finished.

“Hmm, well, I shouldn’t really be telling you this, but I feel it may explain some things,” Nedzu replied, “Your pairing was decided on by Aizawa, and he did so in an attempt to get the two of you to work together in order to, in his words, “Get over your differences”.”

“Differences?” Izuku laughed, “Is that what he thinks my relationship with Katsuki is? Not at all!”

“Then what is your relationship with Bakugo-kun?” Nedzu asked.

“He’s…he was my bully,” Izuku said, taking a deep breath as he spoke, “He pretty much beat me up at every opportunity just because my quirk was weak. It’s actually weird, now that I think about it, he barely targeted anyone else, mostly just me. I wonder why?”

“Why indeed,” Nedzu nodded, “It is good that you are prepared to talk about this, Midoriya-kun. Many find it very difficult to speak of such trauma.”

“I guess it’s because my Charisma is a lot higher than before,” Izuku chuckled weakly, “I’m a lot more confident than I ever was and feel like I can at least trust a few people in UA.”

“Only a few?” Nedzu asked.

“Yeah, like you,” Izuku replied, “And All Might. Though even though I told him about what happened, he didn’t realise I was talking about Katsuki at the time.”

“I see,” Nedzu hummed, “Well, I think that’s our time for the day. I’ll see you after the weekend, Midoriya-kun. Enjoy your shopping trip tomorrow!”

“Goodbye, Sir,” Izuku nodded as he left the room, Nedzu pulling out his phone and making a quick call.

“Ah, All Might,” he squeaked, “Would you be able to come talk with me for a moment?”

Chapter 21

Chapter Text

“Oh wow!”

The class was gathered in Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall, looking around at the plethora of shops as people stopped to stare at them.

“Hey! Aren’t you the guy that won the first year UA Sports Festival?” a girl suddenly asked Izuku, her friends giggling behind her, making him blush slightly as he nodded, “Awesome! Can we get a photo with you? Give me your number and I’ll send it-!”

“We have things to go buy,” Ochako suddenly interrupted the group, pushing Izuku away as Tsuyu smirked to herself.

“Uraraka is right!” Iida called, “We all have different things we need to go purchase!”

“Then we should split up and meet back here in a couple of hours,” Kirishima suggested, the rest of the class agreeing and walking off in groups, leaving the brunette and green-haired teen alone.

“Oh,” Ochako said as she looked at Izuku, blushing slightly as he chuckled quietly, “I, uhm…I guess it’s just us?”

“I guess,” Izuku nodded, before his head snapped to the side, “Wait, is that shop selling a Limited-Edition Golden Age All Might action figure? And for how much?”

“Why?” Ochako giggled as he raced over to the window, following closely behind him, “Do you want to buy it?”

“Not really,” Izuku shrugged, “I have one myself. Bought it when I was a kid, saved up for over a year to afford it. I was just surprised that they went for so much these days. Glad I kept it in the box.”

“I see,” Ochako nodded, “Well, uhm…I kind of need a lot of stuff, like Bug Spray, so should we get going?”

“Oh, sure!” Izuku grinned at her, making the brunette blush a little more, “I think I saw a pharmacy that has what you need just over there.”

------

“So,” Mina hummed as their group checked out the swimming costumes, looking over at Tsuyu, who was comparing two similar options, “Why’d you insist on us leaving Midori and Chako together?”

“No reason,” the frog-quirked girl hummed, “Just for their own good, kero.”

“Their own good, huh?” Mina grinned, “So, you’re setting them up? What a good friend!”

“Not really,” Tsuyu croaked, “More like trying to get Ochako to sort out her feelings. I don’t like having partners that pine after other people.”

“Huh?” the pink-skinned girl blinked, “What does that mean? Are you also interested in Midori?”

“It’d never work, kero,” Tsuyu laughed softly, shaking her head, “I’m too gay for Midoriya to handle.”

“Wait…so then the one you like is…?”

“Yep,” Tsuyu interrupted as she made her choice, putting the costume in her basket, “You should choose something as well, kero.”

------

“Hmm,” Iida hummed as he inspected the running shoe, “Hmmm…”

“What’s up, Vice-prez?” Kaminari asked, kicking his feet to the ground to get used to the new shoes he was wearing, “Something on your mind?”

“I was just thinking that maybe we should not have left Midoriya and Uraraka alone,” he muttered, putting the shoe back on the stand, “They may do something…untoward.”

“What are you saying?” the blonde chuckled, “They aren’t secretly dating or something, are they?”

“Not to my knowledge,” Iida shook his head, “Though their feelings for each other are rather obvious.”

“Really?” Hagakure chimed in, “I mean, Ochako likes to look at Midori a lot, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look at her that much. Maybe it’s one-sided! Oh, poor Ochako!”

“I doubt it,” Iida shook his head again, “Though I am hardly an expert on such matters.”

“I’d say,” Kaminari laughed, “Usually you’d keep these sorts of things about your friends a secret, but you just blurted it out!”

“Ah, I did, didn’t I?” Iida sighed, “I shall have to apologize to them both later.”

------

“Okay, so that’s everything we both needed from the list, right?” Izuku asked as he and Ochako walked back to the meeting spot, the massive bundle of bags holding their purchases safely stored in his [Inventory].

“Yeah,” Ochako smiled, skipping along beside him as they went, “Oh, hey! They even have a roasted mochi stand! I want to get some!”

“Sure,” Izuku chuckled at the bright look on her face, walking over with her as she started to count out her money, looking slightly depressed, “What’s wrong? You short on the cost?”

“Y-yeah,” the girl muttered, “Sorry.”

“No problem,” Izuku said as he stepped forwards, ordering a few pieces from the seller, “I’ll pay. I have enough for a bag or two.”

“You really don’t have to!” Ochako gasped as Izuku accepted the packets, handing one to Ochako, who immediately took a bite, smiling happily, “Thank you.”

“Such a cute couple,” the round man behind the stall chuckled as they stepped away, making both teens blush as they looked at him, “Reminds me of my wife and myself when we were your age.”

“O-oh!” Izuku almost choked, “We aren’t a couple! Just friends! Sorry!”

“You say that now,” the large man hummed, “But I can see it in your eyes. Good luck, both of you!”

“Thanks?” the teens muttered as they hurried away, both trying to hide the furious blushes on their faces from each other.

------

“Oh, Tsu is over there with the others!” Ochako said as she and Izuku made it back to the meeting place, hurrying off towards the group of students and leaving Izuku alone.

Shaking his head slightly to clear his thoughts, Izuku started to walk towards them, when a familiar voice called out to him.

“H-hey!” he turned to see the girl that had been asking for the photo before standing with her friends, the rest of the group still giggling as the girl looked down slightly, blushing, “Uhm…sorry to ask this, but is that girl…is she your girlfriend?”

“What?” Izuku blushed, “N-no! Just a friend!”

“Really?” the other girl gasped happily, “Then…could I get that photo now? And your number? So I can send it to you?”

“Oh, uhm…” Izuku floundered for a moment, looking over the girl. She was cute, with an obvious dog mutation quirk, her tail wagging excitedly behind her as she smiled at him, “I’m sorry, are you…uhm…are you flirting with me?”

“Huh?” the girl blushed harder as he asked the question, looking away shyly as she licked her lips, “Y-yeah, I guess?”

“Sorry, I just…” Izuku muttered back, “I’ve never had anyone flirt with me before. It’s a bit of a surprise.”

“Really?” the girl asked, her tail wagging happily again, “Then can I get your number? My name is Koinu, Koinu Airashi.”

“Uhm…sure?” Izuku blinked as the other girls gave a quiet cheer, making their friend blush harder as they all gathered around him, holding up V signs as the dog-girl took the photo.

“Thanks so much, Midoriya-kun!” Airashi said happily, her tail wagging rapidly as she exchanged numbers with him, “Here’s the photo! I’ll message you some time!”

“Sure,” Izuku blushed as the group of girls hurried off, before shivering, feeling like someone was glaring at him as he turned to look back at the group of students, noticing Ochako turn quickly away as he did.

“Wow, your first fans?” Jiro suddenly said as she and Yaoyorozu walked up behind him, making him start, “They were all pretty cute.”

“I am so jealous!” Mineta growled as he bit into one of his balls, “Why don’t cute girls give me their numbers yet?”

“Probably because you’re a creep,” Jiro sighed as they headed back towards the group.

------

“Dude, I brought my console over so we could do contest runs, not so you could rage every time you lose.”

“Then why do I keep losing?!” Shigaraki shouted at Spinner, glaring at the sleek screen set up on a table beside the outdated television set, “We’re using the same starter build! It’s bullsh*t!”

“Skill issue, I guess?” the scaled-man chuckled, drawing a hateful glare from the pale-haired man, “Jeez dude, calm down. Let’s just try again, you can go against Mustard, it’ll be more fair.”

“Hey!” the middle schooler growled, “I’m pretty good at this game as well!”

“Yeah, but I’ve finished it a couple of times, so I’m better,” Spinner laughed as he handed over the controller.

“Whatever,” Shigaraki and the teen muttered as one, before glaring at each other, preparing to start again.

------

The students chatted as they milled around by the two busses, Aizawa watching them for a moment before he called out.

“Alright, you lot! Onto the bu-!”

“Ah, Aizawa-san, I am glad I caught you!” the chipper voice of the principal interrupted him.

“Huh? What are you doing here, sir?” the tired man sighed.

“Oh, just here to give a quick revision to the list of Remedial students,” he chimed, Aizawa giving him a confused look.

“But we already know who is in the Remedial Course,” Shota said, “What do you mean?”

“Just this,” Nedzu grinned as he produced a thick sheaf of papers from somewhere, “Katsuki Bakugo?”

“Huh? The f*ck you want?” the blonde shouted as the class turned towards the principal.

“You’ll be joining the Remedial class,” Nedzu hummed as the blonde blinked in shock, before snarling.

“The f*ck do you mean? I passed the sh*tty exam, didn’t I?”

“Technically, yes,” Nedzu replied, “But after some review, it was decided that it would be best for you to join in the Remedial students.”

“Review?” Aizawa grumbled, “Why didn’t I hear about this?”

“I am sure I included you in the memo I sent out,” Nedzu grinned, “Perhaps you need to remember to actually read them. Anyway, here is Bakugo-kun’s personalized Remedial Course, make sure he sticks to it!”

“What?” the teacher groaned as he leafed through the pages, “How is he supposed to properly train if he has to waste his entire morning doing this stuff?”

“Well, he’ll just have to work extra hard in the afternoons, then. I’m sure you’ll find a way, Aizawa-san,” Nedzu chuckled, before producing another equally thick stack of papers, “Oh, and before I forget, here is Midoriya’s personal training regime as well.”

“Midoriya’s?” Aizawa groaned again.

“Yes, well, he’ll be missing a week or so of our private lessons, so I felt it important that he at least keep those up in the afternoons.”

“Fine,” the man growled, taking the second stack of papers before turning back to the class, “Now that that is over, get on the bus.”

“This is your fault, Deku,” Katsuki growled as he shoved past the other teen, glaring at him angrily.

“No, I really don’t think it is, Katsuki,” Izuku sighed as he stepped onto the bus as well.

------

“We’re here,” Aizawa said as the class filed off the bus, looking around the empty stopping point in confusion, eyes falling on the three figures standing off to the side.

“Where is here?” Mina asked.

“We’re the Wild, Wild puss*cats!” the two women shouted as they posed, “And we’re here to help you all train!”

“Train?” the class asked, the two nodding enthusiastically, “How? We aren’t at the campsite yet, are we?”

“The training has already begun,” Aizawa grinned as the ground surged beneath the students, throwing them over the edge of the cliff and down into the forest below, “You have until lunch to get to the mountains over there. Good luck.”

“Lazy kitties who arrive late don’t get any food!” Pixie-bob shouted down as the students pulled themselves out from the pile of dirt, “Now, try not to wet yourselves as you make your way through the Forest of Beasts!”

“Oh,” Mandalay added, “And feel free to use your quirks! This is our territory after all!”

The class looked around in confusion for a moment, before the hulking figure emerged from the tree line, several of the students gasping in fear as the massive beast charged them. Just as it cleared the tree line, the beast crumbled, Izuku slamming though its chest as Iida took out one of its legs, Shoto freezing the other in place as Katsuki blasted its head off.

“Come on,” Izuku shouted, “They’re only made of dirt, so it’s probably Pixie-bob’s quirk! We just have to fight our way through!”

“Right!” the class cheered as they started using their quirks on the other earth beasts that emerged from the woods.

Chapter 22

Chapter Text

The students groaned as they made their way out of the forest, the sun already setting as they looked at the small group standing in front of them.

“Mew mew mew,” Pixie-bob giggled as she looked at the exhausted kids, “Seems you took a little longer than we thought.”

“What the hell was that?” Sero moaned tiredly, “We had to spend the whole day fighting just to get here!”

“I even gained a whole two points in Endurance,” Izuku said as he staggered towards their teacher, pausing as he noticed the small figure standing behind Mandalay, “Hey, who is that kid? Wasn’t he at the rest point before as well?”

“Yes,” Mandalay hummed, looking back at the boy, “This is Kota, my nephew. Say hello, Kota.”

“Hi, my name is Izuku Midoriya,” Izuku said as he crouched in front of the boy, his eyes going wide as the kid suddenly swung a punch forward.

The adults and other students stared as Izuku gripped the young boy’s wrist gently but firmly, stopping his fist just short of hitting the green-haired teen in the crotch.

“Let me go!” the boy shouted, “Stupid wannabe Heroes! I hate you all!”

“Oh, wow,” Izuku muttered as Kota pulled his arm free and stomped away, “I, uhm…I didn’t know I could do that.”

“What just happened?” several of the other students asked, looking at Izuku, as he stared at his hand in surprise.

“Well, at least some of you are still prepared,” Aizazwa grumbled, “Anyway, go get some food, then unpack and take a bath before bed.”

“Yes, Sensei!” the class called as they walked tiredly into the building.

------

“Clay pot! Clay pot!” Kirishima and Kaminari cheered as they ate, filling their bowls and faces with rice.

Izuku sighed as he watched the rest of the class being loud and boisterous, glancing over to the young boy who was carrying a box of vegetables. He watched as the kid seemed to struggle slightly, before getting a grip on the cardboard and carrying it to the kitchen.

“What are you looking at, Midoriya?” Ochako asked, startling the young man out of his thoughts as he turned to look at the girl seated beside him.

“Oh, nothing,” Izuku muttered as he grabbed some more food, “Just thinking.”

“Well, it must have been important, considering how high your Intelligence is, right?” the brunette chuckled, “So, what was it?”

“Just something about that boy, Kota,” Izuku hummed through a mouthful of food, “He reminds me of someone.”

“Oh really?” Ochako blinked, “Wh-?”

“Alright, you lot!” Aizawa shouted over the noise, “Finish eating. You have one hour before lights out, so make sure to bath first!”

The room shouted in acknowledgement, the students quickly finishing their food before hurrying towards the baths.

------

“This rocks!” Mina said happily as the girls entered the large ornate bath after washing, “I could get used to this kind of lifestyle!”

“It’s only meant to be for today, though,” Ochako sighed happily as she sank into the hot water, “Tomorrow is meant to be training.”

“Aw, way to burst my bubble,” the pink-skinned girl laughed as she splashed some water at the brunette, “But anyway, what’s up with you and Midoriya? You two have been awful close since we all went to the Mall together!”

“N-nothing!” the girl squeaked, hiding her blush below the water as she ducked down, “Nothing at all.”

“Ooh! I bet she likes him!” Tooru gasped, “Is that true, Ochako-chan? Do you like Midoriya?”

“N-no!” Ochako shouted as she stood up, glaring at the invisible and pink-skinned girls, “It’s not like that!”

“Says you,” Mina giggled as she fell back into the water, before looking up at the large wooden wall that separated the male and female baths, a desperate, and annoyingly familiar, wail coming from the other side as Kota glared down into the boys’ section, “Oh, thanks for watching out for us, Kota!”

“Huh?” the boy said as he looked over the other side of the wall at the girls, before his face went pale and he staggered back, almost falling off the wall before a hand shot up and grabbed him.

“Careful,” Izuku said as he floated in the air behind the boy, “You almost fell and…”

The girls stared up at the two boys as they stared back, Izuku’s eyes going wide as his entire head went crimson.

“I am so sorry!” he squeaked, before dropping down behind the wall, taking the struggling Kota with him.

“What just happened?” Jiro blinked as the girls all stared at the wall, Ochako still standing as the rest were in the water.

“I think Midoriya just got an eyeful of Ochako-chan in her birthday suit,” Mina laughed as the brunette let out a startled noise, before toppling over into the water, steam bursting from her head as her face went crimson, “Oh no! Ochako-chan!”

------

“Is she okay?” Izuku asked as he burst into the back room in only a towel, letting out a sigh of relief as he saw the sleeping Ochako on the couch, a towel draped over her and an ice pack on her head.

“She’s fine, just passed out from the heat of the bath, we think,” Mandalay sighed, shaking her head, “The other girls told us what happened, you really should be more careful in the future.”

“I-I will!” Izuku stammered, looking away in embarrassment, “I really didn’t mean to peek.”

“Well, the other all said you saw nothing of them,” Mandalay chuckled, “But the pink one kept going on about you seeing all of this one. You’ll need to apologize quite a bit to her for that.”

“I-I will!” Izuku muttered, his face going bright red again.

“Huh?” the brunette on the couch muttered, sitting up slowly as she rubbed her eyes, “What’s going on? I was just in the bath and…”

“Ah,” Izuku blinked as the pair stared at each other, Ochako blinking back as her eyes darted over him, taking in his tightly packed muscles, “I, uhm…I just came to check that you were okay and…Oh.”

“Oh?” Ochako blinked, watching as his eyes flicked down, before looking down at herself, realising that the towel that had been draped over her had fallen down when she’d sat up, exposing her chest, “Oh…”

“This is ridiculous,” Mandalay sighed, shaking her head as she lifted the towel to allow the girl to cover herself, “You two should be more careful. You may be dating, but that’s no excuse.”

“D-DATING?!” the two squawked as the older woman looked at them in confusion.

“That’s what the pink one said,” Mandalay shrugged, “That the two of you were a couple. Are you not?”

“N-NO!” the two shouted, both shaking their heads vigorously as they went bright red.

“Well, considering you’ve both seen each other pretty much naked at this point, you might as well be,” Pixie bob laughed as she entered the room, carrying a tray of drinks, handing one to Ochako, “Though no funny business on this camp, okay? We’ll get int trouble if you do!”

“WE’D NEVER!” the teens squeaked in unison, glancing at each other in surprise, before both went crimson again.

“All teens say that,” the blonde chuckled, “But the temptation is always strong.”

“Pixie bob,” Mandalay sighed, “Stop pestering them. And Midoriya-kun was it? Please leave so that Uraraka-chan can calm down enough to be able to go to her room.”

“I…right, yes!” Izuku said hurriedly as he spun on his heel and left the room.

Mandalay just sighed again as she looked over at the blushing brunette.

“He saw me…twice…” the girl muttered.

“And he better have enjoyed it,” Pixie Bob added as she leaned against the back of the couch, earning a ball of paper being thrown into her face by Mandalay.

------

“So?” Mineta and Kaminari asked as soon as Izuku entered the room, wide grins on their faces as they stared at him.

“Uhm…what?” he said slowly, looking back at them in confusion.

“What’s you see, man!” Mineta huffed, “I bet it was heaven! All those legs and thighs and boobs! I am so jealous of you! Like Yaomomo! How big were her boobs?”

“I…what?” Izuku blinked, before his face went red, looking away in embarrassment, “I didn’t see that, the girls were in the water, so I…saw nothing.”

“Liar,” Mineta grumbled, “Not even a nipple?”

“No!” Izuku gasped, shaking his head as the image of Ochako standing in the water came to mind, “I didn’t see anything!”

“I don’t believe you!” the short boy shouted, trying to grapple Izuku to the ground, succeeding in only lifting himself off it, “Damn you and your ridiculously high strength! Hey, wait, does your quirk have a screen shot feature? Please tell me it does! You must have snapped a few shots of the girls! Come on, even Urar-!”

“I said I didn’t!” Izuku suddenly snarled as he snatched the diminutive teen off him, holding him up by the throat, “So stop asking!”

“Can’t…breath…” the boy choked out, “Kaminari…help…”

“No way, dude!” the blonde said as he backed away, “You went too far targeting Midoriya’s girl, this is your grave.”

“My what?” Izuku blinked as he looked at the other boy, who shrugged.

“Your girlfriend? Uraraka? You ran off pretty fast once you heard she passed out,” Kaminari grinned, “And the two of you have been pretty close lately. You even went off together at Kiyashi, right?”

“Yeah, but what do you mean? We were just buying stuff for the trip?” Izuku said slowly, “I mean, the mochi guy did say we made a cute couple, but-.”

“I knew it!” Kaminari laughed, “You two are totally dating! You owe me, Sero!”

“But we aren’t!” Izuku protested, “I swear! It’s not like that between us!”

“Yet,” Sero grinned as he pushed Kaminari away, “Just try to make it official before the end of the camp, right? I have a bunch of cash on this.”

“Official? Cash?” Izuku blinked several times before he started to glare at the boys, “You’re betting on if I get a girlfriend?!”

“Not if, when,” Shoto said, “And not a girlfriend in general, Uraraka specifically.”

“What? You too?” Izuku gasped as he stared at the two-toned boy in disbelief.

“I would have you know that I have not partaken in this betting pool, Midoriya!” Iida suddenly added.

“We have you down for after we all graduate, Vice-prez,” Sero chuckled, making the blocky boy begin shouting in indignation.

“WOULD YOU ALL SHUT UP!” Pixie Bob roared as she threw open the door, “Some of us are trying to get their beauty sleep!”

------

“So?”

“So what?” Ochako asked as the girls all lay on the futons in their shared room.

“So, are you and Midoriya going to actually date now that he’s seen you naked?” Mina continued, making the brunette shoot up in the bed and stare at her wide-eyed, “What? We all want to know!”

“N-no!” the girl squeaked, hiding her face in her pillow, “It’s really not like that!”

“Says you,” Tooru laughed, “But we’ve all seen what he has, and it’s a pretty nice package.”

“What does that mean?” Ochako blinked as she lowered the pillow slightly.

“Oh, well he was only wearing a towel when he ran past us after you passed out, so we may have seen some things,” the invisible girl giggled, “You’re a lucky woman.”

“I didn’t see anything,” Momo said, Jiro also shaking her head as Mina stared at the empty air where Tooru was.

“I did, kero,” Tsuyu nodded, “Though I don’t really have a point of reference for that sort of thing.”

“W-wait! You saw Midoriya’s…that?” Ochako gasped, her face going bright red again.

“I did,” Tooru giggled again, “And like I said, you’re a lucky woman, makes me a little jealous.”

“N-NO!” Ochako shouted, hurling her pillow into the invisible girl, “IT’S REALLY NOT LIKE THAT!”

“WOULD YOU ALL SHUT UP!” Pixie Bob yelled as she slammed the door to the room open, “First the boys, now you? I’m trying to get my beauty sleep over here!”

Chapter 23

Chapter Text

The class all yawned as they stood in the early morning sun, Aizawa glaring at them as he explained the training they were going to do.

“As for you, Bakugo,” he sighed, holding out the thick stack of papers, “Take these and go meet with Tiger inside the main building, he’ll be handling your remedial training for the morning.”

“This is bullsh*t,” the blonde snarled as he snatched the papers and stalked off.

“As for the rest of you,” Aizawa hummed, his familiar sardonic smile stretching across his face, “Get ready for hell.”

“I’m so sleepy,” Ochako yawned as she walked towards the training area, jumping slightly as Izuku moved to walk alongside her, both blushing heavily.

“Hi,” he said nervously, “I, uhm…I wanted to apologize for last night. I didn’t mean to see anything.”

“O-oh, it’s okay, it was an accident, right?” the brunette muttered, freezing as he suddenly reached up and ran a hand over her hair.

“Oh, sorry,” Izuku blushed harder as his hand darted away, “It’s just, your hair was all messed up, I was just trying to straighten it a bit.”

“T-thanks,” Ochako nodded, “L-let’s just get to the training, yeah?”

“R-right,” Izuku nodded as they looked away from each other, the rest of the class chuckling as they hurried to their stations.

“Midoriya,” Aizawa said as the teen looked around for whoever was supposed to be helping him train, “Nedzu has a special exercise plan for you. It’s all written down here, so follow it to the letter. You’ll do physical conditioning in the morning, and mental exercises in the afternoon.”

“Oh, yes Sensei!” the teen nodded, accepting the second stack of papers, quickly reading through the first few pages, “Wow, this is a lot.”

“Whatever,” the older man grumbled, “I’m sure you can handle it. Now stop stalling and get to work.”

------

“This is f*cking stupid!”

“But it is necessary,” the massive muscular man sitting opposite the blonde said as they glared at each other, “You need to learn some manners, so this is how we are doing it.”

“A f*cking tea party?” Bakugo snarled, “How the f*ck is this supposed to help me?”

“By teaching you manners,” Tiger repeated, “Now, you’re not allowed to swear from this point on, or you’ll fail. We can work on your general attitude later, but for now let’s just work on your language.”

“Fu-,” Katsuki started, before cutting himself off, “Fine. This is stupid anyway.”

------

“What in the…” class 1B said as they stared at the other students, their faces going pale as they watched the insane training.

“This is what we’ll be doing with all of you,” Kan said as he looked over the wide area, “The Wild Wild puss*cats will be available to help you as well, though you should all already know what you’re meant to be doing.”

“This is insane,” Neito muttered as he looked over at the closest figure, the green-haired teen doing some sort of crazy physical exercise regime, “How are we supposed to survive this?”

“By working harder than you ever have before,” Aizawa muttered as he approached, “Now, get to it, we don’t have all day.”

------

“I’m exhausted,” Sero moaned as the students staggered towards the outdoor cooking area, picking at the dry skin on his face and arms, “We’re going to be doing this every day for the next week?”

“Whey,” Kaminari said as he wandered along behind the boy, his face simple as he gave double thumbs up.

“That’s not all, little kittens!” Ragdoll shouted as she appeared behind a stack of boxes, “The pampering has ended! You’ll be cooking for yourselves from now on! Tonight is beef stew!”

The students all groaned, before moving forwards to collect the boxes of ingredients and pots.

“Don’t worry, we also have some fun activities planned for you all in the evenings!” Pixie Bob called, “So eat and wash up quickly!”

“Yes,” the kids groaned as they started to set up to cook, Ochako looking around in confusion for a moment.

“Where’s Midoriya?” she asked, the other students chuckling as she blushed.

“Worried about your boyfriend?” Pixie Bob giggled, making the girl blush harder, “Don’t worry, he should be finishing up his afternoon exercises right about now as well.”

“So unfair that Midoriya gets to spend half the day resting inside while we all have to work our butts off all day!” Mineta moaned.

“I wasn’t reasting,” the green-haired teen said as he hurried over to them, “I was doing puzzles and schoolwork to train my mental stats.”

“Still unfair,” the short boy huffed.

“Considering that the work he’s doing is for the college level, it isn’t really,” Aizawa grumbled, “He just has to train his quirk in a way different to all of you.”

“Not to mention he has to work twice as hard on both to keep up,” Kan added, watching as the students cooked.

“Did you gain anymore stat points then, Midoriya?” Momo asked, the boy nodding happily.

“Yeah, and the principal also sent a bunch of Skill Books for me to use as well.”

“Oh? Like what?” Ochako asked as she joined his cooking group.

“Well, one of them was for cooking, so I’m excited to try it out,” the green-haired teen grinned, “Come on, you can help me.”

“They’re such a couple,” the other students all chuckled as the pair froze, before shaking their heads vigorously, their faces bright red.

“Remember, Midoriya,” Sero chuckled as he whispered in Izuku’s ear, “Official before the end of the camp, right?”

------

Dabi stood on the cliff, looking down over the campsite as the kids cooked, a cruel grin on his face.

“So, the last two members will be here tomorrow night?” the muscular man in the cloak and mask asked, “They’d better hurry the hell up! I want to taste some blood!”

“Yeah, yeah,” the scarred man hummed, “Just remember who we’re here for, okay?”

“I’m so excited!” Toga grinned as she hopped from foot to foot, adjusting her slightly unwieldy gear, “I can’t wait to taste some of them!”

“That’s creepy, TOTALLY COOL!” the masked man shouted as he stood behind them.

“Keep it down, Twice,” Dabi hummed, “We don’t need them knowing we’re here just yet.”

------

Izuku glanced back as he spotted the young boy walking into the woods, quickly getting up to follow him.

“Where are you going, Midoriya?” Ochako asked, looking over at the boy as he quickly loaded up a second plate, covering it in cling film before walking towards the forest as well.

“Oh, uhm…I was just going to take some food to Kota,” he said, “I just saw him walking into the woods, and I don’t think he’s eaten yet.”

“Okay, want me to come with you?” she asked, before immediately blushing, “I mean, if you want?”

“I, uhm…sure?” Izuku blushed as well, the girl getting up as they walked off.

“I wonder where he went?” Ochako hummed as they walked through the dark woods, “It’s kind of hard to see in the dark.”

“Yeah, hold on,” Izuku nodded, handing the plate of food to the girl as he jumped, floating up into the air to get a better view, “Ah! I see him! He’s heading up a cliff.”

The two teens hurried after the boy, quickly catching up as he stopped to stare out over the camp.

“Kota?” Izuku called, making the boy snarl as he spun around to glare at them.

“What do you want? This is my secret base! You can’t come here!”

“Secret base?” Ochako asked, looking around at the wide ledge they were standing on, “That’s pretty cool.”

“You bring your girlfriend here to make out or something? Cause you can’t! Just leave me alone!” the boy shouted, making both teens blush as the shook their heads.

“N-no!” Izuku said hurriedly, “We were just bringing you some food, it’s beef stew.”

“I don’t want to eat your sh*tty food,” the boy huffed as Izuku placed the plate on a large rock nearby, “I bet it tastes like sh*t!”

“It’s actually really nice,” Ochako said, “Midoriya cooked it himself with a new cooking Skill he got, so it tastes great!”

“Whatever,” the boy snarled, turning away from them, “I know what you’re like, idiots trying to become Heroes. You’re just going to die!”

“Die?” Izuku blinked, squinting slightly as he looked at Kota’s Stats, “Wait, your family name…it’s Izumi. You’re related to the Water Hose Duo, aren’t you?”

“Huh? You know about my parents?” the boy spat, “Well don’t! It’s not like they’re around anymore, anyway!”

“Right,” Izuku nodded, “They…died, didn’t they? Fighting a Villain.”

“Yeah, being stupid Heroes, and leaving me all alone!” Kota shouted, Izuku spotting the tears forming in his eyes, “So leave me the hell alone, you wannabe Heroes! You’re all stupid! I hate all of y-!”

Kota was cut off as Ochako suddenly stepped forwards, kneeling down, wrapping her arms around the nearly crying child, making his gasp.

“I’m sorry about your parents,” she said softly, “But you shouldn’t hate them. They were just trying to make the world a safer place for you and others.”

“What the hell do you know?” the child sniffed, his tears starting to drip from his eyes.

“It’s okay to cry,” she said soothingly, “You shouldn’t bottle your feelings up like that. I don’t know what it’s like to lose someone, but I know that keeping your emotions inside you isn’t…it isn’t healthy.”

“S-shut up!” Kota said, the tears flowing freely now as he gripped her t-shirt, “You…you don’t know anything!”

“I’m sorry,” Ochako simply repeated, squeezing the boy a little tighter as he let out a sob, “But it’s okay, we’re going to become strong Heroes that won’t leave people like you behind.”

“Yeah right!” Kota wailed, pressing his face into her shoulder as he cried, “Y-yeah…right.”

Izuku watched slightly awkwardly as the boy cried in Ochako’s arms, walking forwards, and placing a hand on her shoulder as she looked up at him, a sad smile on her face. They stayed like that for a while, before Kota suddenly pushed himself away, wiping his eyes and nose on his arm.

“Are you feeling better?” Izuku asked softly, the boy looking away as he grunted.

“I’m fine, now leave me alone! This is my secret base, not a place for you two to make out!” he huffed, smirking slightly as the two teens blushed hard again.

“R-right,” Izuku nodded, helping Ochako to her feet, “We’ll leave you be, then.”

Kota watched as the two teens walked off, before glancing over to the plate of food on the nearby rock, walking over and grabbing it. Taking a mouthful, he blinked, shaking his head.

“It doesn’t taste that sh*tty, I guess,” he muttered, taking another bite.

------

“Thanks,” Izuku said as they made their way back to the campgrounds, “I don’t know if I could have gotten him to open up like that on my own.”

“It’s fine,” Ochako blushed, “I just…I wanted to help him. Cause that’s what Heroes do, right?”

“Yeah,” Izuku nodded, the pair falling into a comfortable silence as they walked.

“Uhm…” Ochako said after a few minutes, looking at Izuku in the pale light of the moon that filtered through the trees, “About what I said before…about keeping your feelings bottled up.”

“Yeah?” Izuku nodded slowly.

“I, uhm…I may have been doing that as well,” she muttered, “My feelings…my feelings about you, specifically.”

“About me?” Izuku blinked, “What do you mean?”

“I mean that…I mean that I think I like you,” the girl said quickly, her blush visible even in the dim light, “I think I really like you.”

“Y-you do?” Izuku said, “O-oh, uhm…I…I think I like you too.”

“You do?” Ochako gasped, a bright smile on her face, before she quickly turned her head away, he face bright red, “That’s…that’s nice.”

“Yeah,” Izuku muttered.

The two of them stood in the woods, both blushing heavily as they waited for the other to say something.

“So…” the pair said at once, both turning to look at each other before pausing, Ochako letting out a laugh.

“You go first,” she said.

“N-no, it’s fine, you go first,” Izuku shook his head, the girl giggling at him.

“Okay, uhm…I don’t really want to rush into this,” she explained, “I had initially wanted to keep my feelings bottled up until after we graduated, but…well I haven’t really done that, have I?”

“No,” Izuku shook his head, “Uhm…so, what now?”

“I don’t know,” Ochako replied, “I mean, maybe a kiss would be too much too soon, so…could we just hold hands for now?”

“O-oh, sure!” Izuku nodded as he reached out for her hand gingerly, the girl slipping her hand into his, careful to keep a finger lifted so she didn’t activate her quirk.

“This is…nice,” she said as she blushed, “Come on, it’s almost curfew, we should hurry back before we get shouted at by Aizawa-sensei.”

“Yeah,” Izuku hummed as he let himself be pulled along by the girl, staring at their hands as he blushed.

Chapter 24

Chapter Text

“So, kero,” Tsuyu said as the girls settled down for the evening, “You and Midoriya were gone for a while earlier. Anything to tell us?”

“No,” Ochako blushed, “I mean…not really.”

“Not really?” Mina grinned, “The two of you were holding hands when you came back, and you were both grinning like idiots! So, something must have happened!”

“Wait, what’s this about?” Kendo asked, “Are Uraraka and Midoriya dating or something?”

“N-no!” the brunette gasped, “I mean…not yet, I think? We…we both kind of confessed and…”

“Yes!” Tooru shouted, “Pay up, girls! I win!”

“Win?” Ochako blinked as the rest of the girls groaned, pulling out money as they handed it to the giggling invisible girl, “Wait…you were betting on when I would confess?”

“Yes, they were,” Tsuyu sighed, “I didn’t, but then again, I already knew you liked Midoriya. Now the question is if he’s willing to share, kero.”

“Share?” the other girls in the room blinked, “What do you mean by that?”

“I like Ochako-chan as well,” Tsuyu shrugged, “I already told her, but it’s up to her at the end of the day, kero.”

“Wait…so you also want to date Ochako-chan?” Mina gasped, “Can you do that?”

“Sure, why not?” Tsuyu croaked out a laugh.

“I’m surprised you haven’t said anything about this, Ibara,” Kendo chuckled as the rest of the girls crowded around Ochako, asking her all sorts of questions.

“I do not see why not,” Ibara hummed, “Polygamy is perfectly legal, nor is it frowned upon by the lord.”

“I see,” Kendo nodded, “Well, good to know. Anyway, we should all quiet down and get to sleep, we have a lot of training to do tomorrow.”

“Right,” Ochako nodded, “We don’t want Pixie Bob to come shout at us again, either.”

------

“Lucky bastard!” Mineta growled at Izuku as the boys chatted before lights out, “I saw you and Uraraka come back from the woods! You were holding hands and grinning like fools! What did you do?!”

“What? Nothing!” Izuku gasped as the rest of the boys turned to look at them, “She just confessed and…well, yeah.”

“Yes!” Sero cheered, “I win! Hand over your money, lads!”

“Hold it,” Kaminari said quickly, “The bet was for when they’d start dating, but Uraraka only confessed, right? So, you’re not officially dating yet?”

“Uhm…I guess not?” Izuku blushed, “I mean, I’m not against it, I do like her as well, it’s just…it’s probably not the best time to do it? We might only start actually dating after we graduate, just to be sure.”

“Dammit, man! You’re costing me here!” Sero huffed, “So, you really didn’t do anything in the woods? You were gone a while.”

“N-no!” Izuku spluttered, “We just held hands after we talked to Kota a bit!”

“Holding hands, right,” Mineta growled, “I bet it felt real nice when you were just holding hands.”

“Her hands were really soft,” Izuku nodded slowly.

“I bet other parts of her were soft as well, weren’t th-?” the short boy was cut off as Izuku glared at him, making him squeak in fear, covering his neck with his hands.

“We only held hands,” Izuku muttered, “Anyway, I’m going to sleep now. You all should too.”

“Midoriya is right,” Iida nodded, “Let us bed down for the evening, everyone!”

“Midoriya,” Shoto hummed as the others settled down, “Congratulations.”

“Oh, uhm…thanks?” the green-haired teen replied, slightly confused as the other boy pulled his blanket over himself.

------

“Tonight is curry!” Ragdoll shouted as the exhausted teens made their way to the outdoor cooking area, “Better cook quickly and eat lots, cause we’re doing a special event afterwards!”

“A special event?” the students said excitedly, looking at each other, “I wonder what it is?”

Izuku chuckled as Ochako helped him peel and chop the vegetables, the pair talking happily as the other students grinned at them. The cooking was done quickly, the two classes sitting to eat as they talked, Izuku blinking as he felt someone push their way between him and Ochako, looking down to see Kota sitting between them, a plate of food in hand.

“Hey Kota,” Izuku grinned, “You’re joining us tonight?”

“Shut up,” the boy muttered, “I’m just making sure you two don’t do anything stupid.”

“Right,” the pair chuckled, also eating their food.

“Aw, you three look like a family!” Tooru giggled from across the table as the three blushed, looking away as they ate, “It’s really cute!”

“I said shut up,” Kota huffed, “I’m just here cause the food is okay.”

“Thanks,” Izuku chuckled, “Ochako and I made it together.”

“With love, right?” Mina laughed as the pair blushed again, “You two make a great couple!”

“Enough chatter,” Aizawa growled, “Hurry up and finish eating, then wash your plates, we need to get this event over with so you can all go to bed.”

“Yes, Sensei!” the two classes called as they ate faster.

------

“Everyone is here,” Dabi hummed, looking back at the group, his eyes lingering on the large creature in the back, “Now we just have to wait a little longer, and we’ll be set.”

“Dammit, I want to taste some blood now!” Muscular growled, fiddling with his cloak and mask, “I’m getting bored just waiting!”

“Have some patience,” the other masked man said eloquently, “We know who we are after, so make sure you don’t harm him.”

“Yeah, yeah,” the large man grunted, “I’ll just rip a limb or two off him if I have to. The rest are fair game though, right?”

“Sure, if you’re okay killing kids,” Dabi muttered, looking up at the night sky, “Let’s do this.”

------

“A test of courage!” Pixie Bob shouted as Mandalay explained the rules, “Try not to wet yourselves out there!”

“Everyone draw your lots,” the woman said calmly, “That will decide your pairs. The other class will have thirty minutes to prepare to scare you as you make your way through the forest.”

“I am with you, mon ami!” Yuga said excitedly as he walked up to Izuku, “Let us show them no fear!”

“Right,” Izuku chuckled, looking over to see Kota heading into the woods, probably to his secret base, “When do we go?”

“We are last on the list, a true shame!” Yuga sighed, “But still, it shall give us time to prepare!”

“Cool, do you mind if I just go check on Kota quickly? I promise to be back in time,” Izuku nodded, already walking after the boy.

“Of course, attend to the rambunctious child,” Yuga nodded, “I shall send you a message via your quirk once we are to depart.”

“Thanks,” Izuku called as he hurried after the boy.

Izuku quickly made his way along the path he’d taken the night before, following after the boy until he caught up just at the base of the cliff.

“Hey Kota, sorry to bother you,” he said as the child glared at him, “I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m fine,” Kota huffed as he made his way up the thin path towards the ledge, Izuku following close behind, “You don’t have to follow me.”

“I just wanted to talk some more,” Izuku shrugged, “I mean, if you want to?”

“Whatever. Your girlfriend isn’t with you tonight?”

“No, well…Uraraka isn’t really my girlfriend,” Izuku blushed, “At least, not yet or anything. We haven’t really talked about that.”

“Whatever,” the boy sighed as they reached the ledge, heading around a corner and pointing his hands at a worn-out section of the rock, water suddenly spraying from his palms as it slammed into the rock.

“Oh! You’re practicing with your quirk?” Izuku asked, Kota just grunting as he focussed, “That’s cool! How does it work? Do you produce the water yourself, or do you form it from the atmosphere?”

“Don’t know,” Kota muttered, “The quirk doctors haven’t figured it out yet.”

“Oh, well, either is really cool,” Izuku chuckled, looking out over the forest as he heard the first screams, “Ah, the test of courage has started. Wait…what’s that?”

“What’s what?” Kota huffed, looking out over the woods as well, quickly spotting the blue flames rising in the distance, “A fire?”

“Oh no!” Izuku gasped, “I have to tell everyone!”

“How?” Kota huffed, “We’re too far away to-.”

“Done,” Izuku said, blinking as the stream of messages came back, dismissing them all except the one from Aizawa, reading over it quickly, “Okay, Aizawa-sensei is having Mandalay call everyone back. We should head back too.”

“Whatever,” the boy muttered, walking back towards the path, “Aunty Mandalay just called me as well. Let’s go.”

“Huh, lucky me,” the unfamiliar voice said as the large, cloaked figure slammed down onto the ledge in front of them, “Green hair and freckles? You’re one of the kids we’re after, right?”

“What?” Izuku blinked as he immediately used his quirk on the man, gasping at what he saw.

Name: Goto “Muscular” Imasuji

Level: 68

Stats:

Strength: 84

Dexterity: 32

Endurance: 45

Intelligence: 21

Wisdom: 19

Charisma: 24

Skills:

[Muscle Augmentation]

“Kota, we have to run!” Izuku shouted as he scooped up the small boy, running to the edge of the cliff.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going, brat?” Muscular shouted as he shot forward, throwing his cloak and mask aside and his pants bulged, “You ain’t going anywhere!”

Izuku skidded to a stop as the man darted in front of them, jumping back as the muscle fibres grew over the Villain’s arm, the punch shattering the rock where he’d just been standing. Izuku’s eyes flicked over the screen that had appeared in front of him again, quickly dismissing it as he growled in annoyance.

“So, I have to defeat you, do I?” Izuku muttered, “Dammit, I just wanted to run!”

“As if a scrawny brat like you has a chance!” Muscular laughed, “I’ll even be nice and let you have a free hit! How’s that sound?”

Izuku grimaced, the older man obviously confident in his abilities, before he set Kota down behind him.

“Kota, go hide,” he ordered the boy, who staggered back and fell, tears pouring from his eyes.

“You…” he sobbed, “You’re the one who…who killed my parents, aren’t you?”

“Huh? Who?” Muscular hummed, “Sorry kid, you’ll have to be a little more specific, I’ve killed a load of people.”

“The Water Hose Duo!” Kota shouted, “You’re the guy that killed them!”

“Oh, those two?” the man laughed, reaching up to touch the thick scar over his eye, “Yeah, I guess I did. They gave me this scar though. Guess it’s fate we met up! I’ll send you to see them in a minute once I’ve dealt with this other brat!”

“You said you would give me a free hit, right?” Izuku growled, glaring at the man, “Are you really going to honour that?”

“Sure, why not?” Muscular laughed, “Give me your best shot, brat!”

“Fine!” Izuku shouted as he shot forwards suddenly, travelling far faster than he should have been able to, winding back his arm, “Take this! [Override]!”

The man blinked as the teen suddenly appeared in front of him, barely giving him enough time to form the first layers of padding muscle fibres over his torso, before the fist slammed into his gut. Goto blinked as he felt his internal organs rupture from the force, before he was sent flying backwards off the cliff at speed, sailing through the air as he stared at the teen in shock, the boy’s arm hanging limply at his side.

“What the f*ck?” he managed to gasp, blood spewing from his mouth as he crashed into the forest below, bouncing off trees and smashing through branches, covering himself in muscle to protect himself from the battering before he hit the ground.

Back on the cliff, Izuku quickly turned to Kota, scooping him up in his good arm before leaping over the edge of the cliff, the pair sailing through the air as the younger boy shrieked in surprise and fear.

“It’s fine,” Izuku panted slightly, gritting his teeth against the pain of his shattered arm, “This is part of my quirk, I can float us both to safety!”

“Your arm is broken!” Kota shouted, “What did you do? Did you beat him?”

Izuku quickly checked the quest, before shaking his head as he heard worrying sounds coming from the ground beneath them.

“No, but I think we’re about to fall!”

“We are?” Kota managed to say before he screamed again, the pair dropping out of the sky as a massive tree hurtled through the air towards them.

Izuku caught himself with Float again just before they hit the tops of the trees, using them to jump forwards again, staying low to try and avoid detection. He glanced down as he felt Kota clinging to him in terror, grimacing at the look of fear on the young boy’s face.

“It’s going to be fine,” Izuku said, smiling as brightly as he could at the child, “I’ll get us to safety, I promise!”

“You bastard!” the shout made Izuku look back as he stared in surprise, the muscular man coated in exposed muscle fibres as he leapt from tree to tree after them, shattering branches and trunks as he chased them, “I’m gonna rip you limb from limb!”

Chapter 25

Chapter Text

Izuku growled under his breath as he shot through the air, the campgrounds in sight as he leapt forwards off another tree, flying into the clearing in time to see his teacher dispatch a Villain, the scarred man turning to mud.

“Midoriya!” the man shouted, “Almost everyone is back, get inside the main building, the pros will handle this!”

“We have a Villain chasing us!” Izuku shouted back, “I have a quest to defeat him, Sensei! Take Kota to safety!”

“What?” the man blinked as Izuku tossed the boy at the man, Aizawa quickly catching the child as he watched the massive Villain erupt from the woods, smashing trees out of his way as he laughed.

“You’re going to regret that, brat!” Muscular shouted as he charged straight for Izuku, blood spraying from his lips as he spoke, “We might be trying to capture you, but they never said you had to be in one piece!”

“Capture?” Aizawa muttered, before he activated his quirk, the man suddenly shrinking as his muscle fibres shot back into his body.

“What the hell?” the Villain blinked his single eye as he looked around in confusion, spotting the older man as his eyes glowed red, “Dammit, guess I’m taking you out first!”

“Like I’d let you!” Izuku shouted as he appeared beside the blonde man, slamming a kick into the side of his head, throwing him aside.

“Midoriya, wait!” Aizawa shouted, “You’re in the area of effect of my quirk if you fight him like that!”

“It’s fine, Sensei!” the teen shouted back, “My Stats still apply, I just can’t use my Skills!”

“Little sh*t!” Muscular growled, throwing himself back at Izuku, “I’m gonna crush you!”

“You’re weaker than me like this,” Izuku said as he danced out of the way of the flurry of punches, “So I’m going to take you out!”

“Like hell you are!” Muscular roared, swinging a punch at Izuku again, blinking when the teen caught it easily in his uninjured hand, squeezing the man’s fist tightly, the sound of breaking bones filling the air as blood sprayed out from between the teen’s fingers, “AAARGH!”

“How much longer can you keep it up, Aizawa-sensei?” Izuku called as the larger man stumbled back, his hand a bloody mess.

“Twenty…no, thirty more seconds!” the teacher replied, gritting his teeth as he watched the bloody brawl.

“More than enough time, then!” Izuku shouted as he swung a kick up at the staggering Villain, slamming his foot into the man’s crotch, a sickening crack resounding through the air, “Take this!”

The Villain collapsed to his knees as he grabbed his crotch, a look of pained surprise on his face as the teen spun through the air, his heel slamming into the man’s temple at speed, snapping his head to the side. The three of them watched as the Villain remained still for a moment, before collapsing backwards, unconscious.

“Midoriya!” Aizawa shouted as soon as he was sure the man wasn’t about to get back up, finally letting himself blink, and spotting the purple arm hanging at the teen’s side, “You’re injured! Get inside, now!”

“No!” Izuku shouted back, his eyes flicking to something in front of him, “Some people are still in the woods! I have to go save them!”

“You have to do nothing!” Shota screamed, about to activate his quirk again when the blast of blue flame separated them, “Dammit, not again!”

“Sorry, Eraserhead,” the scarred man chuckled, “But your fight is with me right now.”

Izuku glanced at the man as he walked out of the forest, blue flames in his hand.

Name: Touya “Dabi” Todoroki (Clone)

Level: 39

Stats:

Strength: 32

Dexterity: 21

Endurance: 89

Intelligence: 22

Wisdom: 24

Charisma: 26

Skills:

[Cremation]

“Wait,” Izuku blinked, “Your family name is Todoroki? You’re related to Endeavor?”

“What?” the scarred man said, “How the hell did you know that?”

“Midoriya, give me a breakdown, now!” Aizawa shouted.

“It says he’s a clone, whatever that means, and his highest stat is Endurance somehow,” Izuku replied, looking between the two men, “Also, his real name is Touya Todoroki!”

“sh*t!” the man growled, “I can’t have that info getting out just yet, guess I’m going to have to kill all of you!”

“Got it,” Aizawa barked, “Now get inside!”

“Sorry Sensei,” Izuku muttered as he activated Float, leaping over the trees, “But I have to go save them!”

------

Ochako gasped as the thick needle stabbed into her thigh, the blonde beneath her making kissy noises as she felt the blood being sucked out.

“Tsu! Are you okay?” she shouted as her friend managed to pull the knife pinning her to the tree by her hair out.

“I’m fine, kero,” the other girl replied, “She only cut my tongue a bit.”

“Oh, this is so fun!” the girl laughed, “Hi! I’m Himiko Toga! Can we be friends?”

“No!” Ochako shouted as she started to feel slightly lightheaded, the needle in her leg sucking blood out way too fast, “Just stay down!”

“Aw,” the girl pouted, “Pity.”

“Ochako! Asui!” the shout drew their attention as the boy dropped down through the branches, landing lightly on the ground as he looked at the three of them, “You caught one? Good. Almost everyone else is back at the lodge!”

The three girls stared at the boy, his right arm hanging limply at his side, already heavily bruised, while his clothes were stained in blood.

“Izuku!” Ochako gasped, “Are you okay?”

“It’s not my blood,” the teen replied quickly, darting forwards, kicking the blonde in the side of the head as she stared at him in awe, knocking her out, “You two get back to the lodge, I still have three people to find!”

“How do you know that, kero?” Tsuyu asked.

“My quirk, I have a quest to save the last five people in the woods,” Izuku explained quickly, “You two are the first ones I found.”

“Hold on,” Ochako said as she got to her feet, rushing over to Izuku as she pulled her shirt off, grabbing a nearby branch that was mostly straight, “Let me at least bandage your arm!”

“No time,” Izuku grunted as she started to shred her shirt, “I have to-.”

“Stay here for a minute,” Ochako cut him off, looking at him sternly, “Let me help you a bit before you go, alright?”

“I…alright,” Izuku muttered as he let her roughly splint his broken arm.

“My, how romantic,” the voice said from above them, the three teens looking up as the man dropped down, touching the unconscious blonde girl, making her vanish, “But I do believe you are our main target, young man.”

“What did you just do?” Izuku gasped, about to use his quirk before the hand closed over his face, and he found himself suspended in a glowing blue expanse, “What happened?”

He looked around, trying to break out of the space, panic starting to set in as he found he couldn’t move. Minutes felt like hours as he struggled against the seemingly unbreakable space, before he was suddenly released, looking around the clearing in surprise as a hand closed around his neck, pulling him backwards into a familiar dark portal. Looking to the side, he stared as Katsuki was dragged in beside him, the pair looking at each other in fear as the world went dark.

“We got who we were after,” the raspy voice hummed, “Make sure they don’t fight back.”

------

Ochako sat stunned, wrapped in a shock blanket as the paramedics and Heroes rushed around them, the rest of her class talking quietly.

“Are you okay, kero?” Tsuyu whispered to her, making Ochako jump slightly.

“I…I’m fine,” she muttered.

“That’s a lie,” Tsuyu hummed, “You’re not okay at all, are you, kero?”

“I said I’m fine!” Ochako snapped, glaring at the placid expression of the other girl for a moment before letting out a sigh, “Sorry. I promise I’m okay.”

“But you’re not, kero,” Tsuyu pushed, “We both saw that man…do something to Midoriya. Make him disappear like that. You can’t be alright after that.”

“I…I…” Ochako tried to say, her voice cracking as she felt the tears spill down her cheeks, turning to bury her face in Tsuyu’s shoulder, “They took him! They took Izuku! And I couldn’t do anything to stop them!”

“I know, I couldn’t either, kero,” Tsuyu hummed, slipping her arms around the sobbing girl, “I’m sorry. If I had just been a little faster, I could have caught that man, but it all happened too quickly.”

“Uraraka, Asui,” the voice of their teacher said as the green-haired girl looked up, Ochako still crying into her shoulder, “The police need your statements about Midoriya’s abduction. You two were the only ones to see it.”

“We’ll be there soon, Sensei, kero,” Tsuyu hummed, still trying to comfort the crying brunette, “Just give us another minute.”

“Right,” the man nodded, looking guiltily at Ochako as the girl sobbed harder, “I…I should have stopped him. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, Sensei,” Tsuyu shook her head, “None of us managed to stop this, kero.”

“I’m your teacher, though,” Aizawa grunted as he turned away, “I should never have even let this happen in the first place.”

------

“f*ck you!” Katsuki spat as he struggled against his restraints, the thick chains pinning him to the heavy chair, his hands locked in a sturdy steel casing, “Let me out so I can kill you all!”

“Not happening,” Dabi hummed as he leaned against the bar, sipping at a drink, “You’re staying locked up until the leader gets here.”

“Why’d we have to have this one?” Toga huffed as she held the icepack to the side of her head, “I wanted the other one! He was cuter, all covered in blood and broken!”

“The other one?” Katsuki spat, “You mean Deku? Why the f*ck does everyone care more about that bastard than me, huh? What’s so special about him?”

“Nothing you need to know…yet,” the raspy voice said as the back door of the bar opened, the pale-haired man walking in, “Now, let’s get down to business. I want you to join us.”

“f*ck off! I’ll never be a Villain, you crusty faced f*ckwad!” Katsuki snarled, struggling against his restraints again, “Let me out and I’ll prove it to you!”

“You say that now,” the man hummed, “But you haven’t even heard our offer yet.”

“Like I f*cking need to!” Katsuki growled, “The answer is no, whatever you f*cking say!”

“So, if I asked if you wanted to be a Hero anymore, you’d say no?” the man chuckled, the sound grating.

“f*ck you!” Katsuki spat, “You ain’t going to fool me, crusty! I know what you lot are after!”

“And that is?” the man asked, smiling slightly as the blonde fell silent, “I thought so. Well, right now, what we want is you. Specifically, for you to join us. To fix this broken world so that everyone can be truly free to express themselves as they wish.”

“Some pretty high and mighty bullsh*t you’re spouting,” Katsuki growled, “Why the f*ck would I bother to help you with that? You’re f*cking Villains!”

“And who decides who is a Villain or a Hero? You? The HPSC? All Might?” the man asked, Katsuki snapping his mouth closed as he looked away, “Exactly, to us the ones’ called Heroes are the real Villains, stopping us from doing what we want, what we need. We’re forced day in and day out to hide ourselves away, to pretend that we don’t feel the desires inside us, slowly building up until we can’t keep them down anymore.”

“The f*ck are you trying to say, handjob?” Katsuki snarled, “That the system is broken? No sh*t, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong!”

“True,” the pale-haired man sighed, “But that doesn’t mean it’s right either. We’ll let you think on that for a bit. Maybe you’ll come around to our way of thinking in a few days.”

“As f*cking if!” Katsuki growled again, glaring at each of the Villains in turn, before leaning back and scowling at the ceiling.

------

Izuku gasped as he was dropped onto the hard concrete floor, his arm aching painfully from the jolt, quickly getting to his feet as he looked around the strange room. Tubes and pipes lined the walls, all leading to a large chair, in which sat an imposing figure, Izuku instinctively using his quirk on them, blinking at the response.

[Error]

“What?” he said, “But…that’s…what?”

“My trying to use your quirk on me already?” the voice chuckled from the man, sending a shiver up Izuku’s spine, “That’s not very polite, young man.”

“Who…?” Izuku gasped as the man stood, stepping forward into the light, “What are you?”

Chapter 26

Chapter Text

“My, that’s a rather rude thing to say,” the man chuckled, “What, you ask? Last I checked, I was human, just like you.”

“Then…then why don’t you have a status screen? Or stats? Or…anything?” Izuku asked, his mouth moving before he could think.

“A status screen, you say?” the man chuckled again, rising slowly from his seat, “Perhaps it is because I simply surpass what your quirk can read? That makes me rather proud, actually. It’s quite the impressive quirk, I might add, especially the part that returns you to full health once you, what was it? Level up? I wouldn’t mind trying that out myself.”

“What?” Izuku blinked as the hand closed over his face, only catching a glimpse of the hole in the palm before he gasped, feeling like something was being dragged out of him.

The world faded away, Izuku suddenly finding himself in the familiar white void, except this time the strange man was with him, still gripping his head. Screens flickered into being in front of him too fast for Izuku to read, before the man gave a disappointed grunt and released him, staggering back.

“My, how…interesting,” he said as they both stood in the void, “I had expected…more. But never mind that. It would seem that One for All has already fully bonded to your own quirk, so I can take neither. A true pity, but easily remedied with time.”

“What are you saying?” Izuku gasped, forcing himself to his feet as he stared at the scarred face of the man, “One For All is bonded to my quirk? Taking them? What are you talking about?”

“Ah yes, introductions are in order, are they not?” the man laughed, “I am the one known as All for One, as is the name of my quirk. It allows me to take and give quirks as I see fit.”

“Take…and give?” Izuku blinked, “But…but that’s impossible! You can’t just steal people’s quirks like that!”

“Oh, but I can,” All for One laughed, holding his hands behind him as he looked around the void again, “And I must say, this place…inside your quirk, it is rather bland, don’t you think? A sea of nothingness.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, it always been like this,” Izuku replied, “This is…it’s where I go when I unlock a new Skill.”

“Unlock a new Skill, you say?” the man hummed, “My, that must be quite useful, gaining new abilities like that. I understand you have already unlocked two of the previous users’ quirks, correct? The second and seventh?”

“He has,” the familiar voice said as Izuku spun around, staring at the two people now standing behind him, several more shadowy shapes looming in the distance, “But we’re all here. Waiting.”

“My, how nostalgic,” All for One chuckled as he looked at the man and woman, “To think I would get the chance to see you two again after I so brutally slaughtered you all those years ago. It would bring a tear to my eye if I still had one.”

“Quiet, All for One,” Nana barked, “You have no power here. You can do nothing in this space except observe.”

“Are you sure?” the man grinned, lifting an arm.

WARNING!
Hostile action detected in System Zone!
Isolating…

Hostile Entity detected.
Isolating…

Hostile Entity Isolated.

“What?” the man blinked as nothing happened, the space around him seeming to shift as he froze, “What is this?”

“The Ninth’s quirk,” the Second said, “It’s far more powerful than even you, Shigaraki. Like the Seventh said, you have no power here.”

“I see,” All for One hummed, “Then I suppose I shall just take my leave.”

“You can’t do that either,” Nana shook her head as the man paused, the two adults looking at Izuku, “Not without the permission of the Administrator.”

“Administrator?” Izuku asked, looking back at them, “Who? Me?”

“It is your quirk, brat,” the Second grunted, “You’re the one in control here. We were only able to access this space after you let us in.”

“But I didn’t?” Izuku blinked, “You appeared when All for One said your names? Or…your titles, I guess?”

“Because you wanted someone to help you,” Nana nodded, “So we were allowed access, Izuku. This space, whatever it is, is your world, you control everything in here.”

“I do?” Izuku said slowly, looking back at All for One, “Then…then could I…could I lock him in here forever?”

“I don’t see why not,” the Second shrugged, “Though that may not be a good idea. It may be like keeping a computer virus in your hard drive, there’s always the risk it could break out and ruin everything.”

“Oh, right,” Izuku nodded, “So then I should just, what? Eject him?”

Eject Foreign Entity?

[Y/N]?

“Huh? It’s that easy?” Izuku blinked as the screen appeared in front of him, “Then…Yes?”

Foreign Entity being Ejected…
Foreign Entity Ejected.

“What?” All for One gasped, before he suddenly blinked out of existence, Izuku staring at the empty space where the imposing man had just been standing.

“What just happened?” Izuku asked, looking around as the white void began to dim, the two adults starting to fade away, a look of shock on the Second’s face as Nana just laughed.

“I think that’s the first time his plans have gone as wrong as that,” the woman chuckled, “I don’t think he was expecting that at all!”

“But…but what now?” Izuku asked as the void continued to vanish, the two Vestiges along with it.

“No idea,” the Second muttered, “You’re obviously protected from his quirk, so you should be safe for the immediate future, but that’s only if you survive whatever he does next.”

“Wait…survive?”

“Don’t worry, Izuku,” Nana called as the void vanished around him, “I’m sure you can manage!”

And Izuku was back in the dimly lit room, All for One staggering back from him in surprise.

“My, that…that has never happened before,” the man gasped, apparently out of breath as he stumbled back, falling into his strange chair, “Doctor, come here.”

“Of course, Sensei,” the familiar portly man said, hurrying out of the shadows to All for One’s side, adjusting the goggle-like spectacles over his thick and bushy moustache, “Are you alright?”

“Just a little tired,” the man hummed, turning his head towards Izuku, “Attempting to steal the boy’s quirk did not go as expected.”

“I see,” the Doctor nodded, looking at Izuku as well.

Even in the darkness, Izuku didn’t even need his quirk to recognize the man, a shiver running up his spine.

“Doctor Garaki?” he asked slowly, “What are you doing here? Why are you helping this…man?”

“Doctor,” All for One said slightly breathlessly, “This boy is more dangerous than I expected. Kill him. Then get us out of here.”

“Of course, Sensei,” the doctor hummed, turning to face Izuku as he called out, “Nomu! End him!”

Izuku just stood in shock as the wall behind him shattered.

------

“Where is Sensei?” Shigaraki muttered as he stared at the blank television, “He should have called by now.”

“I do not know,” Kurogiri said as he also looked at the blank screen, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“Maybe he f*cking died?” Katsuki spat, grinning as the pale-haired man spun on the couch to glare at him, “What? Scared that I’m right?”

“Sensei would never die like that,” Tomura snarled, glaring at the teen, “I know Sensei, he’s too strong to lose to anyone, even death!”

“Yeah right,” Katsuki chuckled, “I bet he sh*t himself when he died as well!”

“You brat!” Tomura shouted as he leapt over the couch, stalking towards Katsuki as he flexed his hands, “Maybe I shouldn’t bother trying to convert you? Maybe I should just kill you!”

“Bring it, hand job!” the blonde growled back, “Just let me out of these chains and I’ll show you real pain!”

The knock at the door made them all pause, looking at it as the voice called out.

“Kamino Pizzeria!”

“What the f*ck?” Tomura snarled, “Who ordered pizza?”

“Not me, I COULD GO FOR A SLICE!” Twice shouted, before the wall of the bar exploded inwards.

------

Izuku was running.

More accurately, he was leaping around the hallways using Float as he tried to outrun the certain death that was the hoard of Nomu following him. He hissed as one of them fired a spear of bone at him, forcing him to twist out of the way and crash into a wall, jostling his already broken arm. He scrambled up, reorientating himself as he kicked off the wall, throwing himself down the corridor just before the hoard slammed into the space he’d just been. Nervously, he glanced at the screen that had appeared just before the Nomu had started chasing him, when the doctor had ordered them to kill him.

[Quest: Escape!!! Escape the secret base without dying! Reward: Variable]

How, exactly, the reward could be variable when if he failed he would most probably die, Izuku did not know, but he didn’t really care at the moment, focussing fully on just out running the monsters behind him. He still didn’t understand what had happened in his inner space, what his quirk had apparently done to All for One, only that it had somehow weakened the man. That had to be a good thing, right? Izuku just didn’t know.

He dropped out of the air as he came to a split in the corridor, sliding along the floor, narrowly avoiding another lance of bone and several blasts of energy, before hurling himself back into the air to the left. The Nomu behind him screamed and snarled as they chased after him, scrambling over each other to be the first one to take a bite out of him, some probably quite literally, as they looked more like wild animals than people.

The roof above him rumbled, knocking down dust as Izuku glanced upwards, wondering if that meant he was close to the surface, or if it was just one of the Nomu behind him causing the shaking. Should he risk an Override? Maybe break his way out to the surface? But if that failed it would leave him without either of his arms, putting him at even more of a disadvantage. He was starting to get tired, having pushed both Float and Gear Shift to their maximum just to keep ahead of the Nomu, he was almost out of steam.

Then, something beautiful came into view. A set of stairs heading up, light streaming in from torches as several people walked carefully down them.

“MOVE!” he screamed, “GET OUT! THERE ARE NOMU AFTER ME!”

“What?” the shout carried down the long hallway, the beams of the torches focussing on him as he shot forwards, before they noticed the dark shapes behind him, “Everyone! Retreat!”

Izuku flipped himself in the air, landing on the stairs as he looked up at the night sky, the moon full as he took a deep breath of fresh air, ignoring all the people staring at him from the top of the staircase. And he jumped.

He shot up like a rocket, Float and Gear Shift working in tandem to send him soaring up into the sky, the teen looking down at the startled faces of the Heroes as they stared at him, before the literal fountain of Nomu shot out after him, firing off bone spears and other energy quirks as they spread out in an attempt to get him. Izuku watched as the Heroes reacted almost instantly, spotting Endeavor immediately incinerating several of the Nomu as he waded into the thick of the crowd, felling the creatures one after the other.

“I did it,” Izuku sighed, glancing at the quest screen again, expecting to see it completed, when a spine of bone slammed into his shoulder, making him scream in agony as he began to fall from the sky, his concentration broken.

“Catch him!” someone shouted, Izuku barely able to make out who as something slammed into his back, burning his spine with cold as he let out another agonizing howl, “sh*t, they’re all focussing on him!”

“Prominence Burn!” the shout shook the air as the heat exploded outwards, the sounds of the Nomu screaming as they were all caught in the blast, those closest to Endeavor being vaporized instantly, while the ones on the outside of the blast weren’t much luckier. They fell over as their bodies were badly burned, making them easy pickings for the other Heroes, the wave of heat buffeting Izuku through the air as he whimpered and moaned.

“I have you!” Endeavor yelled as he snatched the teen from the air, blasting flames from his legs as he slowed their descent, “sh*t, he’s badly injured! Spinal injury and losing blood fast!”

“Level up…” Izuku moaned as they landed heavily, making the Pro look at him strangely, “Have to…level up…”

“What? Now is not the time to be spouting nonsense, boy!” the Pro snarled as he charged through the crowd, reaching the edge of the blast zone quickly as the remaining Nomu all surged towards him, “We need to get you to a hospital immediately!”

“No!” Izuku screamed as he flailed in the man’s arms, somehow knocking himself out of Endeavor’s grasp as the man kicked a dog-like Nomu away, the teen collapsing on top of it, “Have to level up!”

The Pro tried to grab the teen again, blinking as the boy threw himself forwards with only his one arm, his legs hanging uselessly behind him as he slammed into the dog-like creature, closing his hand around its throat.

“I…I’m sorry,” the boy gasped as he tightened his grip, the creature flailing ineffectually against him, “But I have to level up!”

The sound of crushing bone and ripping flesh echoed through the air as blood sprayed out from between Izuku’s fingers, the Nomu in his grasp twitching, before falling still, a screen appearing in the teen’s vision as he let out an exhausted sigh of relief. The moment didn’t last long, the remaining Nomu all charging towards him, before Endeavor loomed over him, blasting them all back with waves of fire.

“What are you doing, brat?!” the man shouted, “You should just let yourself be saved!”

“Sorry,” Izuku muttered as he collapsed against the Nomu’s corpse, “I just…had to…level up…”

And darkness took him as he passed out.

Chapter 27

Chapter Text

Izuku groaned as he cracked his eyes open, blinking slowly as his mother suddenly came into view above him, blocking out the painful light that was shining down from the ceiling.

“Izuku? You’re awake!” she gasped, happy tears already pouring from her eyes as she looked over at someone, “He’s awake!”

“Izuku!” the familiar voice made him start as Ochako appeared in his vision as well, the girl staring down at him in a mixture of shock and relief as she suddenly fell onto his chest, “You’re okay!”

“I am?” he asked, his throat feeling like sandpaper as he croaked out the words, “Sorry, thirsty.”

“Of course!” Inko said quickly as Ochako got off him, helping her lift him upright and holding out a glass of water with a straw for him, which he gladly took, sipping at the refreshing drink, “Are you really okay, Izuku?”

“I think so?” Izuku replied, looking around the hospital room in confusion, “What happened?”

“You were saved by Endeavor,” Ochako said, looking away, “I…some of us were there, but we couldn’t do anything but watch. There were too many Nomu and…”

“Wait…you were there?” Izuku blinked, “Where? Why? It was dangerous! You could have been hurt!”

“We weren’t,” Ochako said quickly, “We left as soon as all the Nomu started coming out from underground. We knew we’d just get in the way.”

“I…oh,” Izuku nodded, “That’s good. Wait, “we”? Who else went?”

“Kirishima, Iida, Todoroki, Yaomomo, Tsuyu and me,” Ochako replied, “We…Yaomomo had attached a tracker to one of the Nomu in the forest, and…and I couldn’t just not do anything!”

“That was dangerous, though,” Izuku said, staring at her in disbelief, “I almost died just running away from those things! If you’d been caught, even by a Hero, you’d have been in tonnes of trouble!”

“I know!” the girl shouted, tears pouring from her eyes, “But…I couldn’t…I watched you get taken right in front of me! I couldn’t just do nothing while you were in danger!”

“But why?!” Izuku shouted back.

“Because I love you, you idiot!” the girl sobbed, “Because I love you, okay?!”

“I…oh,” Izuku said as he stared at Ochako in shock, before his mother smacked him on the back of the head, “Ow, mom?”

“You just made your own girlfriend cry, young man,” Inko said sternly, “I think that’s a decent enough reason for some corporal punishment.”

“I…wait, g-girlfriend?” Izuku stammered, looking over at the sniffling Ochako, who was looking away as her cheeks flushed, “But I thought we…weren’t we going to wait?”

“Not anymore,” Ochako muttered, wiping her eyes as she turned to look at Izuku again, “Not after this. I love you, and I want to date you, okay?”

“I…” Izuku stuttered, his brain shorting out as Inko just sighed beside him.

“This is where you say yes, sweety,” his mother chuckled, shaking her head, “And I’ll be honest, I don’t think you could have chosen a better young woman.”

“Oh, thanks, Midoriya-san,” Ochako blushed heavily as she looked away again.

“Please, call me Inko,” Inko laughed, “If you’re going to be dating my Izuku, well, that practically makes you my daughter-in-law already.”

“D-daughter-in-law?” the two teens shouted as Inko just grinned at them, both their faces crimson.

------

“What happened to Katsuki?” Izuku asked as the two females bustled around his room, tidying up and just generally keeping themselves busy.

“Oh, Bakugo was also saved,” Ochako said happily, the smile not having left her face since the two of them had agreed to date, “By All Might. The Villains managed to get away though.”

“Really? How?” Izuku gasped, Ochako just shaking her head.

“Don’t know, they didn’t say on the news, only that they managed to rescue you and Bakugo, and that neither of you were badly injured,” the brunette explained, pausing to take his hand and squeeze it gently, “He’s in a room a few doors down.”

“Oh,” Izuku nodded, squeezing back as the girl blushed, her smile turning giddy as Inko sighed at the pair of them.

“Well, I suppose I had better head home,” she said, “Izuku will be getting discharged tomorrow, but I wonder if it’s safe to leave him on his own tonight?”

“M-mom? What are you saying?” Izuku stammered.

“That I don’t want grandkids just yet, but I think someone responsible should be here to watch over you and make sure you don’t do anything foolish,” the woman hummed, winking at Ochako as the brunette blushed again.

“Okay,” Ochako nodded, smiling at the older woman as Inko left the room, leaving the two of them alone, “Your mom is nice.”

“Yeah,” Izuku nodded, “Though maybe we should get someone else responsible.”

“What? Why?” Ochako gasped, staring at him in shock.

“You snuck out to try and rescue me,” Izuku chuckled, “I don’t think that borderline Vigilantism is very responsible.”

“Oh, shut up!” Ochako laughed along, “How are you able to make that kind of joke, anyway?”

“Twenty-four Charisma,” Izuku shrugged as the pair laughed some more, before Ochako smiled at him.

“Hey, can I get on the bed?” she asked softly.

“Huh? Oh, sure,” Izuku nodded, expecting her to just sit down, freezing when she climbed on top of the mattress, lying down beside him, “What are you doing?”

“Well, I could sleep in one of the chairs,” she said, “But this seems much more comfortable. Plus, I have to make sure you don’t go anywhere in the night, don’t I?”

“I suppose,” Izuku blushed as he lay down beside her, the brunette snuggling up beside him as he slipped an arm around her, the girl humming happily as she closed her eyes.

“Goodnight, Izuku,” she murmured, a happy smile on her face.

“Goodnight, Ochako,” he muttered back, suddenly feeling extremely tired as they fell asleep beside each other.

------

Izuku woke up to the sound of a camera shutter going off, quiet whispering reaching his ears as he came out of his peaceful sleep.

“Quit it, you’ll wake them up!” someone hissed as he cracked his eyes open, glancing at the group of students standing beside his bed and staring at him.

“What?” he muttered, trying to sit up, finding himself pinned down by a comfortable warmth, the other students all freezing as he looked at them.

“Oh, hey Midoriya,” Kaminari snigg*red, hiding his phone behind his back, “Sorry, we didn’t mean to wake you.”

“It’s okay,” he yawned, looking down to try and figure out why he couldn’t sit up, staring at the head of auburn hair resting on his shoulder, his arm wrapped tightly around the owner’s waist, practically pulling her on top of him, “Ah, that explains it.”

“Explains what, exactly?” Sero laughed, his usual grin wider than normal.

“Why I couldn’t sit up,” Izuku mumbled tiredly, “Hey Ochako, everyone is here to visit, wake up.”

“Huh?” the girl muttered as she stirred against him, looking up at the crowd of students for a moment, before she settled back down against Izuku, “Mine.”

The group suddenly burst into an uproar, laughing and cheering in equal measure as the pair were startled fully awake, staring at their classmates in shock.

“Congratulations!” Tooru and Mina cheered, “When’s the wedding?”

“W-wedding?” the two said in unison, looking at each other in surprise, before they both burst out into blushes.

“Not for a while, I hope,” the older voice called out from behind the students, everyone turning to see the green-haired woman smiling at them, “While I fully support your relationship, I think it’s a little early for marriage, don’t you Izuku?”

“M-mom? Why’re you here?” Izuku gasped, the other students all respectfully greeting the woman as they moved out of her way.

“To fetch you, of course,” Inko chuckled, “You’re getting discharged today, so I came to take you home. Of course, Ochako-chan is welcome to come with us.”

“I am?” Ochako blinked, finally fully awake, yet seemingly hesitant to get off Izuku, “Thank you, Mido- I mean Inko-san.”

“Of course, it’s also so nice to see that all your classmates came to visit you,” Inko hummed happily, wiping a tear from her eye, “It makes me so happy to see you have so many good friends, Izuku.”

“Thank you, Ma’am,” Iida nodded, “Knowing your son is an honour!”

“That’s good to hear,” Inko laughed, “Now, how about we all give Izuku some space to change, then we can get something from the cafeteria so you can all catch up before we go home?”

“Yeah!” the class cheered as they filed out of the room, Inko looking expectantly at Ochako, who was still lying beside Izuku.

“That means you too, Ochako-chan,” the woman said, a slightly mischievous grin on her face, “Unless you want to watch Izuku change, or something?”

“Considering I’ve already seen her naked, that might actually be fair,” Izuku laughed, both women suddenly staring at him in surprise, “What?”

“You would actually let me?” Ochako blushed.

“What’s this about seeing her naked, Izuku?” Inko hummed, a glint in her eye, “You didn’t peek on her, did you?”

“Not on purpose!” Izuku said hurriedly, “I swear, it was a complete accident!”

“It really was, Inko-san!” Ochako added, “He was saving a boy from falling in the baths at the camp and he floated up over the wall by accident!”

“Well then, if you both say so, I suppose I’ll have to believe you,” Inko sighed after staring them down for a moment, “But still, come on, Ochako-chan. It’s not that I don’t trust the two of you, but I would feel better if Izuku could change on his own.”

“Okay,” Ochako blushed as she got off the bed, waving to Izuku as the pair left, leaving him staring at the door in amazement.

“Wow,” he said to himself as he got up, “I have a girlfriend.”

------

“And this is Izuku when he was four,” Inko said as she showed off the photo album, Izuku sitting on one side of her blushing as Ochako sat on the other cooing, “This was just after they identified his quirk, he was so excited!”

“He’s so cute!” Ochako laughed, looking over at the blushing boy, “Though I guess that never really went away, did it?”

“I don’t know,” Inko hummed, tapping her chin with a finger as she smiled, “I would say he’s just become quite handsome now.”

“I agree,” the brunette nodded as she blushed as well, “Though that isn’t entirely why I fell for him.”

“Oh? Do tell?” Inko asked excitedly, “When did my little boy first capture your heart?”

“I think it was in the entrance exams, he beat up the big Zero-Pointer robot to save me,” Ochako hummed, “It was so heroic, I couldn’t help but feel something for him. I guess it all started there.”

“You also saved me, Ochako,” Izuku chuckled, “If you hadn’t taken my gravity when I was falling, I probably would have been badly injured.”

“But that was months ago!” Inko gasped, “You couldn’t have been keeping those feelings down that long, could you?”

“I was,” Ochako sighed, “But I realised that it’s not healthy to do that. Plus, letting them out helped me meet an amazing woman!”

“Oh, who?” Inko asked, an inquisitive look on her face.

“You, of course!” Ochako laughed, hugging Inko tightly, “You’re so kind and loving! And your food is amazing!”

“Oh, why thank you dear,” Inko said happily as she flipped to the next page, showing a photo of Izuku in an All Might onesie, “Oh yes! This photo is one of my favourites! I still have that outfit, and a couple of spares, just for when Izuku has children of his own! Which may be sooner than I expected.”

“Mom!” Izuku shouted as the woman laughed, both teens blushing hard as they looked at each other.

------

“Where is Sensei?”

“Safe,” the Doctor said through the small television screen, the rest of the League sitting around the tiny apartment watching as Tomura growled at the television set, “For now. Things did not go…as expected in his meeting with the Midoriya boy.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Tomura snarled, “He managed to hurt Sensei somehow, so I’m going to hurt him back even worse!”

“Of course, Tomura Shigaraki,” the Doctor nodded, “In the meantime, I will do all I can to help Sensei recover his strength. You have my word on that.”

Chapter 28

Chapter Text

Izuku stared at the ceiling as he lay on the couch, a blanket pulled over him as he tried to sleep.

Unfortunately, that was a little difficult, thanks to the thought of Ochako being in his room only a few meters away, sleeping in his bed for the night. With a tired sigh, he opened his Status Screen, looking over it.

Name: Izuku “Deku” Midoriya

Level: 15

Stats:

Strength: 136 (999)

Dexterity: 43

Endurance: 68

Intelligence: 40

Wisdom: 32

Charisma: 24

Free Points: 5

Hero Points: 1

System Skills:

[Analytical Eye]

[Inventory]

[Friend List]

[Override]

[Party]

[Map]

Extra Skills:

[One for All]

[Basic First Aid]

[Basic Electrical Engineering]

[Basic Structural Engineering]

[Basic Mixed Martial Arts]

[Basic Game Theory]

He had managed to go up a level by killing that one Nomu, earning himself a number of notifications which he’d just read through. Of course, there was the one telling him he’d levelled up, but it had been accompanied by another, this one telling him he’d gained a new System Skill. It was simply called [Map], and the explanation of what it did was simple but clear.

[Map]: Allows the User to view a map of the local area, marking entities as Ally, Neutral, or Hostile.

It was just as easy as ever to activate the Skill, the small circle appearing in the top right corner of his vision, showing two green dots close by to him, and a number of yellow dots in the apartments around them. Nodding his head, Izuku dismissed the map, watching as it shrank to a tiny dot in the corner of his vision, the symbol fading out until it was just barely visible.

“It’s a powerful Skill,” he muttered, thinking of the myriad applications it could have, “It’s sort of like Ragdoll’s quirk, now that I think about it, except shorter range.”

“Izuku?” the sleepy voice said, the boy sitting up on the couch to see Ochako standing in the doorway to the lounge, “You’re still awake?”

“Oh, yeah,” Izuku blushed as he saw her standing there, wearing a set of his All Might themed pyjamas, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just…couldn’t sleep,” she yawned, “Your room is nice, but…well, seeing all those All Might’s staring down at me is a little weird.”

“Oh, sorry,” Izuku blushed, watching as she walked over to him, sitting on the couch beside him and leaning her head tiredly against his shoulder.

“It’s okay, I think it’s cute,” she giggled, “But also a little weird. In a good way though. It shows you really have passion.”

“Thanks,” Izuku chuckled, swallowing as he glanced over at the girl, his eyes darting to her chest for a moment, the loose shirt showing off some of her cleavage, “Uhm…is there anything I can do to help?”

“Maybe,” the girl said softly as she blushed, snuggling closer to him, “Can I sleep here with you?”

“Are you sure?” Izuku asked, “I mean, the couch isn’t that comfy, wouldn’t you prefer the bed?”

“Are you inviting me to sleep in your bed with you?” Ochako chuckled, pressing her head against his neck, “How bold.”

“N-not like that!” Izuku gasped, “I was just saying that the bed would be comfier and…okay, yeah, that does sound a little suspect, now that I think about it.”

“Anywhere is comfy for me with you,” Ochako hummed, her eyes closed as she was already starting to doze against him, “Cause you’re there.”

“Hmmm,” Izuku hummed as he also started to feel tired, slipping and arm around the brunette’s waist, pulling her down to lie on top of him on the couch.

“Love you, ‘Zuku,” the girl mumbled, gripping his shirt as she lay on top of him, her head on his chest.

“I love you too, Ochako,” Izuku chuckled as he instinctively kissed the top of her head, the pair quickly falling asleep in each other’s arms.

------

“Thanks for taking me home,” Ochako blushed as the two of them stood outside her apartment.

“Not a problem,” Izuku blushed back, “I mean, you are my girlfriend, it would be weird if I didn’t make sure you got home safe.”

“I like that,” Ochako chuckled, laughing at Izuku’s confused look, “Being called your girlfriend. It makes me happy.”

“Really?” Izuku blushed a little harder, “That’s good to know.”

“Do you want to come inside for a bit?” the Brunette asked, fidgeting a little, “The next train doesn’t leave for a while, and I can make some tea or coffee for you to drink.”

“Oh, sure,” Izuku nodded as the pair stepped through the door, looking up to see two pairs of eyes staring at them from the darkness on the apartment, Izuku immediately stepping in front of Ochako as he slid into a protective stance, “Ochako! Look out!”

“OCHAKO!” the voices shouted as the two figures scrambled across the floor towards them out of the shadows, the girl just sighing as she flicked on the light.

“It’s okay, Izuku,” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder, “It’s just my parents.”

“Your…parents?” Izuku blinked, looking at the two middle-aged adults in front of him, the woman looking like she was on the verge of tears while the man was glaring daggers at the boy, “Oh, uhm…nice to meet you?”

“You brat!” the man shouted, going to grab Izuku, who easily dodged out of the way, “How dare you try and steal my sweet Ochako away from me!”

“Calm down, dad,” the brunette sighed, “Izuku isn’t stealing anyone. Also, I don’t belong to you.”

“You’re my little girl, Ochako!” the man huffed, “It’s my duty to protect you from any and all men forever!”

“Oh, my baby girl is growing up,” the woman suddenly sobbed, shoving past the man to pull both teens into a tight hug, “And you’ve found yourself a fine young man! I am so proud of you!”

“Thanks, mom,” Ochako chuckled.

“Honey, you’re ruining the moment!” Ochako’s father muttered, “I was just trying to be intimidating!”

“Nonsense, dear,” the woman said as she released the teens, “I’m sure that this young man can protect our daughter just fine. You saw his performance in the Sports Festival, didn’t you?”

“But I’m her father!” the man huffed, the pair quickly falling into a slight argument.

“Your parents seem…nice,” Izuku said as the two of them watched the bickering couple, “Uhm…should I go?”

“Nonsense!” Ochako’s mother suddenly said, “Come in, come in! We have so much to talk about, Izuku-kun!”

“Are you sure?” Izuku asked, looking at Ochako as she sighed, before smiling at him and nodding, “Okay.”

“First, some tea!” Ochako’s mother said happily, “Can you handle that, dear? I want to talk to Izuku-kun a bit before you start glowering at him again.”

“But…” the man started to say, falling silent as the woman glared at him, “Yes, honey.”

------

“So, what now?” Dabi sighed, “The big boss is currently down for the count, and we don’t exactly know what to do next.”

“Shut up,” Shigaraki growled, “I’m trying to think.”

“Don’t hurt yourself, then,” Magne chuckled, just grinning when the pale-haired man glared at her.

“We need to level up,” Shigaraki muttered, “Get better stats and gear to take on the Heroes.”

“And how are we supposed to do that?” Toga hummed from the corner, playing with her knives and syringes, “I mean, we’d need money at least. And we aren’t going to get any more from your Sensei.”

“Says who?” Tomura grinned, “Sensei may be injured, but the Heroes don’t know that. They also don’t know about the Doctor or that much about us.”

“Are you sure about that?” Twice asked, “THEY’RE ABSOLUTELY CLUELESS!”

------

“His name is Touya Todoroki,” Izuku said as he sat in the interview room with the three men, All Might scowling as Endeavor stared blankly, Tsukauchi nodding along to everything the teen said, “I’m not sure, but I think he’s related to you, Endeavor.”

“Did you just say…Touya?” the large man blinked, his flames flickering low as he stared at the teen, “But that’s…how can you be so sure?”

“My quirk,” Izuku explained, “It lets me see information about people, such as their stats and names.”

“So, he’s really alive?” Enji breathed, sitting back in his seat, “But…how? That man…he can’t be my son…Touya is dead.”

“The investigation never actually found a body, though,” Tsukauchi cut in, “So it’s entirely possible that he somehow survived.”

“And the man you met with?” All Might asked, “You’re positive he called himself All for One?”

“Yes, All Might,” Izuku nodded, “In the…System Zone, even the other two recognized him.”

“Other two?” Endeavor blinked, “What other two?”

“Part of my quirk,” Izuku said hurriedly, “I have, uhm…like AI in it that help me use it? They know a lot of stuff.”

“AI in a quirk?” Endeavor narrowed his eyes as he looked at the boy, “Interesting. Perhaps you should come to me for your next internship. I would like to know more about this.”

“W-wait, really?” Izuku gasped, “I, uhm…I’ll think about it, Endeavor.”

“But back to the Villain called All for One,” All Might said again, “You say he tried to take your quirk? But he couldn’t?”

“Yes, it seems like there are safety features in my quirk as well,” Izuku nodded, “Kind of like an Anti-Virus for a computer. It also…did something to him. I’m not sure what, but he looked exhausted after he was expelled from my quirk.”

“Interesting,” All Might nodded, letting out a sigh as he also sat down, touching his left side, “So that man really was still alive as well. Though it seems you’ve helped weaken him, Young Midoriya. That is a good thing, thank you.”

“You’re welcome?” Izuku said slowly, “Uhm…that’s all I know about them, Touya and doctor Garaki, so is there anything else?”

“No,” Tsukauchi said as he looked down at his notes, “Thank you, Midoriya-kun, you’ve been a great help. You can leave now.”

“Come, Young Midoriya,” All Might nodded as he got up, “Aizawa is waiting to take us both back to UA. You have something important to do there, do you not?”

“Oh, yeah,” Izuku nodded back, “We’re moving into the dorms today, aren’t we?”

------

“Welcome to Heights Alliance,” Aizawa grumbled as the students all stood outside the massive building, “This will be your new home until you graduate.”

“So big!” “Manly!” “Manifique!” the class shouted as they hurried into the building, looking around in awe.

“Before you all go to unpack, I need to set a few ground rules,” Aizawa huffed as he followed them in, “First, no fighting; you want to spar, book a dojo on campus. Second, keep the place clean; you’re all sharing this space from now on, so keep each other in mid. And third, no sharing rooms; at lights out, you’re all in your own rooms, no exceptions.”

“I bet that last one is just for Midoriya and Ochako-chan,” Tooru laughed, the entire class turning to look at the blushing teens, their hands clasped together.

“No, it applies to everyone,” Aizawa grunted, “No sharing rooms at all.”

“Wait, so we can’t have sleep overs?” Mina pouted.

“You can if you do them in the common room,” Aizawa sighed, “And with proper supervision. In other words, me.”

“I guess that’s better than nothing,” the pink-skinned girl sighed, “Anyway! Can we go unpack now? I want to see my room!”

“Go ahead,” Aizawa nodded, watching as the kids dispersed to their sides of the dorms, grabbing Izuku and Ochako by the shoulders as they started to part ways, “Also, you two…”

“Yes, Sensei?” the two said, looking up at the man.

“No funny business,” the man sighed as the pair nodded, “I mean it. And even if you do, be careful and use protection.”

“P-protection?” Izuku stammered, blushing harder as Ochako giggled at him.

“Don’t worry, Sensei,” the brunette said, “We’re taking it slow, that probably won’t happen for a while.”

“Good to hear,” the older man sighed, “Now get going and unpack.”

“Yes, Sensei!” the teens called as they hurried up the stairs to their new rooms.

Chapter 29

Chapter Text

“I’m beat,” Kirishima sighed as he sat on the large couch, “Who knew unpacking would make you so tired?”

“Mood,” Sero chuckled, looking up as the girls approached the group of boys, “Hey ladies, you done unpacking too?”

“Yep!” the girls said, Tooru and Mina jumping forwards, “Which means it’s time for a room tour!”

“A what?” the boys all said, the girls nodding, “A room tour?”

“Yep,” Tooru said excitedly, “And we can vote on who has the best room afterwards as well!”

“Sounds like fun,” Kaminari laughed.

“Be prepared to be dazzled by my sparkle!” Aoyama called as they all headed towards the boys’ side of the dorms first.

The room tours went quickly, each of the students showing off their new spaces happily, though they skipped Mineta’s room, and Bakugo had already gone to sleep. The students now sat in the common room again, discussing who had won.

“Sato, definitely Sato,” the girls all said, “For his fluffy and sweet angel cake!”

“That’s totally unfair,” Kaminari huffed, “Just cause he bribed you all!”

“Aw, thanks guys,” the large muscular teen chuckled, rubbing the back of his head, “I appreciate it.”

“But everyone’s rooms are so different,” Jiro hummed, “I honestly wasn’t expecting Todoroki to have tatami mats.”

“But it was obvious that Midoriya would have a fanboy’s room,” Tooru giggled, “So much All Might, it was a little surprising!”

“Oh, that’s nothing,” Ochako laughed, “You should see his room at home, there’s even more All Might stuff!”

“His room at home?” the rest of the class asked, looking between the two teens as they suddenly blushed, Mina grinning manically.

“So, you’ve been to his place, Ochako-chan? And in his room? When? And why?” the pink-skinned girl asked rapidly, hooking an arm around the brunette’s shoulders, “Come on! Spill it!”

“It was nothing,” Izuku said hurriedly, “She just stayed over one night, and I let her sleep in my bed.”

“With you?” Mina’s grin grew wider as she asked the question, “Like at the hospital?”

“N-no!” Ochako gasped, “We didn’t share his bed, we just fell asleep together on the couch!”

“Wow, you two are moving really fast, aren’t you, kero?” Tsuyu hummed, “Makes me a little jealous.”

“N-not at all!” the two teens said together, blushing hard as the rest of the class laughed.

“Hey, if you’re looking for a partner, I’m avai-,” Kaminari started to say.

“Not interested,” Tsuyu replied flatly, making the boy sag, “I only like girls, kero.”

“Damn, fair enough though,” the blonde sighed, “Girls are pretty great.”

“That aside, it is about time for bed,” Momo said as several of the others yawned, “We have something important tomorrow, according to Aizawa-sensei, so it would probably be best that we go to sleep now.”

“Yeah, I am really tired,” Ojiro nodded, “Good night, everyone.”

The rest of the students quickly said their good nights as well, splitting off to go to their rooms, leaving Izuku and Ochako walking slowly towards the stairs. The pair waited until everyone else had gone, before glancing at each other.

“Good night, Ochako,” Izuku said softly as he squeezed her hand, “I love you.”

“I love you too, Izuku,” the brunette blushed, squeezing back, “Good night.”

Izuku took a step away, blinking when the girl didn’t let go of his hand, pulling him back gently. He turned as she stepped up to him, leaning up and pressing a soft kiss to his lips, making the boy freeze as Ochako giggled, waving as she darted off. After a moment, Izuku lifted his hand to his lips, a goofy grin on his face as he slowly walked back to his room.

------

“Super Move training,” Aizawa said as the students gathered in the gymnasium, looking around at the large concrete floor as Cementos and Ectoplasm waited off to the side, “That’s what we’ll be doing for the rest of your holidays.”

“Wait, so we don’t even get to relax?” Mina moaned, “That’s unfair!”

“It would be illogical to let you all sit around doing nothing while we have you here,” Aizawa growled back, silencing the protests, “So that is what we’re going to do. Cementos and Ectoplasm are here to help as well, so don’t waste this time.”

“Yes, Sensei,” the class called as they each went off with their own Ectoplasm clone, quickly settling into working hard.

“Midoriya,” Shota sighed as he approached the boy, the closer students glancing over as he spoke, “You’ll only be here half the day, the rest will be spent with Nedzu, understood?”

“Oh! Yes, Sensei!” Izuku nodded, “Thank you for telling me.”

“Whatever, that just means you’re going to have to work twice as hard as everyone else to make up the time, so get to it.”

------

“So good to see you again, Midoriya-kun!” Nedzu squeaked as the teen entered the office, “I so missed our little games and puzzles while you were away and recovering. Oh, and congratulations on the relationship, though I hope you won’t let it get in the way of your studies or training to be a Hero.”

“Of course not, Principal,” Izuku said, “It…it is nice though.”

“I am sure,” Nedzu hummed happily, “Now, I do believe you recently gained another level, correct? That should make you level fifteen by now.”

“Yes,” Izuku nodded, “Though my Stats haven’t gone up at all, probably because I didn’t have enough time on the Training Camp.”

“Perfectly understandable,” Nedzu nodded, “But still, we should get to working on raising them as much as possible!”

“Right, so what’s on the agenda for today?” Izuku asked, the principal giving a wide grin as he spoke.

“War.”

------

“This is not what I expected,” Izuku said as he sat behind the computer, staring at the loss screen, “I mean, when you said “War”, I thought you meant like combat tactics, not…real-time strategy games.”

“Ah, but these games employ and require quick and reactive thinking, as well as a good grasp of combat tactics,” Nedzu hummed happily, “Not to mention I have been finding them quite an enjoyable hobby on the side.”

“You’ve been playing these games on your own?” Izuku asked, looking at the principal in surprise, “I didn’t take you for a gamer.”

“I would not have called myself one, either,” Nedzu chuckled, shaking his head, “But I must say, these games have a great deal of potential as teaching aids, especially for Heroics.”

“So…is this it?” Izuku asked, looking back at the screen as Nedzu sent him another PVP challenge, “We’re just playing games today?”

“Of course not!” Nedzu laughed, “We’ll just do one more match of this one, then move onto something more physical to get your blood pumping!”

“More physical?” Izuku blinked, “What do you mean?”

“I believe it is called a DDR36 machine,” Nedzu chuckled, “It is quite the enjoyable and exerting activity!”

------

“Hey Izuku,” Ochako called as the teen walked into the dorm common room, Aizawa following behind him, immediately smiling as he headed over to her, “You’re back late, did Nedzu keep you longer for some reason?”

“Yeah,” Izuku chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head, “I mean, sort of? He wouldn’t let me leave until I finished the hardest dance song on max difficulty with more than eighty percent accuracy.”

“Dance song?” the brunette blinked, “Eighty percent accuracy? What do you mean?”

“It would seem that Midoriya has unfortunately introduced the Principal to the world of videogames,” Aizawa sighed as he looked at the confused students, “He even bought a DDR machine.”

“Wait, what?!” the class shouted, staring at Izuku in jealousy, “You were playing games all afternoon?”

“I guess?” Izuku flinched back as they glared, “I mean, it was sort of like training in the end, because I wasn’t given a choice in what I was doing, and it helped me raise some of my Stats.”

“Still, that’s totally unfair!” Mina huffed, “You got to play around with the principal while we were all being worked to the bone by Aizawa-sensei!”

“I’m sorry?” Izuku squeaked as he dodged the pillow the girl threw at him, making her pout even more, “Anyway, I’m going to go have a bath quickly.”

“Your boyfriend is so lucky, Ochako-chan,” Tooru laughed as the green-haired teen hurried away, “Not only does he have a great girlfriend, but he gets to play videogames for half the day! That’s still unfair though!”

“Oh, thanks,” Ochako blushed at the weird compliment, “But yeah, it does feel a little odd that he gets to play games for so long.”

“Nedzu’s training is tougher than you think,” their teacher sighed as he walked away, “Don’t be too hard on Midoriya just because what he’s doing sounds like fun. Use that energy to improve yourselves.”

“Speaking of improving ourselves,” Kirishima said, “Where’s Bakugo? He left after the Super Move training and hasn’t been back since?”

“He’s in a meeting,” Aizawa said flatly, “I’m not at liberty to tell you any more than that, but you’re welcome to ask him later, if you want.”

“In a meeting?” the students asked, “With who?”

------

“It must have been scary, being kidnapped like that,” Ryo Inui said to the scowling blonde, “I understand if it’s difficult to talk about.”

“I wasn’t f*cking scared!” Katsuki shouted, his eye twitching as the councillor picked up a marble from a bowl and dropped it into a large jar, making a loud clinking sound as it joined the others, the jar already over half full, “I wasn’t scared.”

“Perhaps you didn’t feel scared, but maybe worried? Confused?” Ryo continued.

“Not at all!” Katsuki spat, “I could have wiped the floor with those f*ckers-“ *clink* “-those Villains if they’d let me out of that sh*tty-“ *clink* “-stupid chair.”

“I see,” Hound Dog nodded, checking his notes, “Well, you certainly seem to be fine for the most part, both mentally and physically, but we’ll be having these sessions three times a week for the next few months just to be sure.”

“Whatever,” the blonde scowled, “Can I fu-ahem, can I go now?”

“I think so,” Hound Dog nodded, “Just make sure to be here again the day after tomorrow, same time. This is also part of your remedial course training as well, after all.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Katsuki grumbled as he left the room, slamming the door shut behind him as he went, Ryo just shaking his head as he chuckled to himself, pouring the marbles from the jar back into the bowl.

“Well, I believe we’ve made some progress,” he sighed, “At least, I think we did.”

------

Katsuki scowled as he stomped down the empty halls of the school building, making his way back to the dorms at a steady pace.

“Why the f*ck do I even need this sh*t?” he spat under his breath, “Manners practice? My manners are f*cking perfect! And therapy just because some sh*tty Villains didn’t know what was good for them? So f*cking stupid!”

The blonde scowled as he continued out of the building, turning towards the dorm area, stomping his way down the sidewalk. It would take him fifteen minutes to walk there, only five if he ran, but at this point he didn’t feel like getting any sweatier.

Katsuki paused at that thought, looking down at his hands as he felt the damp sweat cooling in the evening air. When had he even started sweating? It had been hours since the Super Move training, not that that had been all that hard, and Hound Dog’s office had been air conditioned. So why was he so damp?

Shaking his head, he thought back to what the councillor had been talking to him about for so long, never pushing too hard, but probing at various things, frustrating Katsuki as he would have preferred the man just ask him outright.

“What’s your relationship with your classmates like? What about Midoriya? He came from the same school as you, correct?”

The questions echoed in the back of his mind as he froze, a cold sweat dripping down his spine as he stared ahead. He’d answered that question plainly, that he didn’t care about that stupid Deku, that he was nothing but a pebble in the road that had proven to be more annoying than he’d thought it would be.

But was that true? Especially now?

Katsuki started walking forwards again as he pushed the thoughts to the back of his mind, trying to ignore them as he hurried back to the dorms.