All Might walked into the lower level and frowned. Standing in the middle of the parking lot was Izuku. Just Izuku. Katsuki was nowhere to be found. So something was up. And if something was up…
Ahh, so Young Midoriya came up with a plan… Wait, he wouldn't drop this whole building on me with him in it, would he? All Might paused. No no, he wouldn't. Not with Young Uraraka watching and… why is his barrier up? And why is he covering his ears—?
Boom
Boom
Boom
Suddenly all around the parking lot, a series of explosions went off. One of them was right behind All Might as he jumped forward to avoid the rubble falling on him. Landing, All Might tried not to look shocked. But after a few seconds the echo of the explosions faded and nothing else broke. As All Might examined the damage, it appeared that the only thing that had been destroyed were the exits.
"So what exactly is the plan here, Young Midoriya? Trapping yourself in here with me? I hope you don't expect me to believe that Young Bakugou ran off for the gate. So he's in here somewhere."
Izuku smirked. "Maybe."
Oooh good. Attitude. That's… wait, why am I getting attitude? That's reserved for people that are winning… Or think they're about to win…
"Young Midoriya," All Might began carefully. "What are you planning? Now that you've trapped yourselves in here, I can just look around and find Young Bakugou. And worse yet, now you've cut yourself off from the exit gate. A foolish deci—"
"Three things." Izuku cut All Might off, holding up three fingers. "Firstly, we're not trapped in here with you, you're trapped in here with us." Izuku dropped a finger, while at the same time his barrier finally shimmered out of existence. Along with his green aura, which was strange. "Two, Kacchan and I aren't concerned about the exit gate at all."
"What?"
"What?" Hitoshi asked. "Did he really just say that?"
"What part, the 'you're trapped in here with us' or the gate thing?" Kyouka asked back, just about as shocked at what was going on as anyone in the room.
"Both."
"Errr, we sure All Might didn't hit Midoriya a bit too hard earlier?" Hanta questioned nervously. "Cause isn't Midoriya… you know… smarter than this?"
"You'd think," Himiko said offhandedly.
"Ouch, kero."
"I'm just going off past experience here." Himiko ignored her friends since… "What we need is to ask someone who's just as crazy as Izuku to figure out what's going on…" Himiko's hand snapped up and she pointed at Denki. "And no I don't mean me." Denki deflated as Himiko viciously killed his joke. "So Ochako, you got any… idea… why in the fuck are you smiling?"
Sure enough, unlike every other sane person in the room, and Himiko, Ochako didn't look worried. In fact, not only was she smiling, her smile was twisting into a perfect mirror of the one forming on Izuku. Manic and brimming with an unknown confidence.
Also a tad on the crazy side.
"And three," Izuku's demeanor was now practically a one to one of how he was back when he faced Katsuki in the sports festival finals. A crazed mad lad that had the most dangerous weapon of all on his side. A plan. "You're not going to have any time to spend looking for Kacchan."
Izuku clenched his first and spread his feet out, as he got ready. "Because you'll be dealing with me."
All Might raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Big words from someone that was… that was…Young Midoriya?"
All Might trailed off as Izuku hunched over, teeth clenched, and his arms bent inward and up. He sounded strained, and All Might didn't have any idea what was going on.
And then red streaks of energy began to criss-cross over his body. They moved outward, from his chest and spread, covering his legs and arms and even up around his face.
Spread it out. Don't let it just fill up one part of your body.
Izuku recalled the conversation he and Ochako had the night before. Instead of focusing all his power into one place when he used his Quirk, he would spread it out, so as not to damage the thing he wanted to move. He also recalled the feeling of holding the power back. Towards the end of the training, it had felt like he had been able to throw a punch with just around five percent of One for All's power. But now, instead of that five percent stored up in just his arm, he spread it all throughout his body.
"Y-Young Midoriya!" All Might was in a panic, rushing forward to stop what was happening. "I told you to not use—!"
The power of One for All spread throughout Izuku's body. The unbearable strain and pain he used to associate with the Quirk soon began to vanish. As it did, the red streaks over his body began to fade away, and in their place, green arcs of lightning danced and sparked around Izuku's body.
Izuku stood upright, let his body relax, and brought his hands out in front of him. Looking down at his palms, Izuku opened and closed his hands. "That was a lot faster than the last time. I think pretty soon, it'll be instantaneous."
Lowering his hands, Izuku, still with green lighting dancing around him, smiled up at a stunned All Might who was only a foot or so away. There was no mistaking the pride beaming from Izuku while All Might was still picking his jaw off the ground. "I figured it out."
"Young—"
All Might was cut off as Izuku closed the distance between them, lept up into the air and slugged All Might across the jaw, with enough force to send the hero backpedaling.
The punch echoed throughout the whole parking lot.
Katsuki, hidden in the back and trying to work up as much of a sweat as he could, stopped to stare dumbfounded at what had just happened. "What in the fuck?"
"YEEESSSSSS!" Ochako screamed in triumph. "GET HIM DEKU!"
"What the hell?"
"Whoa, look at that?"
"Midoriya stole my thing!"
While her classmates were shocked, Himiko whirled around and grabbed Ochako by the shoulders. "You bitch! Is this what you and Izuku were so coy about?!"
Ochako flashed Himiko a toothy smile. "Maaaaybe."
Himiko's bad eye was twitching under her patch.
"Wait, so is this," Shouto paused to make sure he picked his words carefully. "That ability Midoriya tried but that ended up hurting his body?"
Ochako freed herself from Himiko and nodded at Shouto. "Tactile Psychokinesis. That's right. Basically, he pumps his body with his psychic powers and gives himself a huge boost in strength and speed."
Mei squinted at the screen. "His aura is different. And the crest isn't…"
While Izuku's body was crackling with green lighting, the crest on his head wasn't making the green ears. Something Mei found peculiar.
"Yeah!" Denki yelled. "Electricity is my thing!"
Ochako shrugged. "We think it's just a side effect of how he's using his Quirk."
Gran Torino leaned forward, smirking as he watched Izuku slug All Might in the face, then over the students' shocked cries asked, "And how did he figure out how to use this? Last I heard he was still having issues. To the point that All Might forbade him from working on it anymore until after the finals."
A few eyes turned to Ochako, some of them belonging to her teachers. "Ah well. After he started getting used to turning the power down inside his body, he then figured out another way to make it so the strain wasn't so bad. Before, he was just pumping up an arm with his Quirk. Now he's spreading the power throughout his whole body at the same time."
Gran Torino nodded, humming in approval.
"Wait, what do you mean turning his Quirk down?" Mina asked, eyes stuck to the screen.
"Well he can't use all of his Quirk, so he can only use a percentage. Right now at least. We're sure that as his body gets used to it, he'll up the power."
Tenya recalled the power displayed back in Hosu City. There was a huge difference between that and what Izuku was using now. "What percentage can Midoriya use safely then?"
"He guessed it was around five percent."
That got a lot of shocked responses.
After that first punch, Izuku landed on the ground and immediately kicked off, propelling himself away from All Might before the hero could reach out and grab him. Izuku's momentum carried him into a parked car. Driving his feet into the side, Izuku kicked off again and headed straight back for All Might, though this time he hit him from behind.
Smack!
Izuku kept going, letting his speed carry him past All Might so he was outside of punching range. Then he bounced off to the side, so he could zoom by and strike All Might from a different angle. At the very least he wanted to make sure he didn't attack All Might head on. He might have finally gotten a handle on One for All, but he knew it wasn't near what All Might had. So, Izuku resorted to hit and run tactics.
Just like Gran Torino had used against him.
It was a blatant copy of Gran Torinos fighting style, but if it works, who cares.
Punch
Punch
Pun—
All Might's hand shot out and Izuku was huffing as he tumbled away. Gasping, Izuku twisted around and kicked off the ground as All Might reached for him, hitting the ceiling of the parking lot.
All Might turned and swiped at the air, expecting Izuku to immediately bounce back down. He was impressed. Ecstatic even. Not only had Izuku made an astonishing breakthrough, but he was using One for All competently in a fight. Going as far as to adequately mimic Gran Torino's fighting style. Both knew going head on wouldn't work, so Izuku was working around that issue.
Good job, Young Midoriya. You're… still on the ceiling?
All Might's hand passed through the air harmlessly as Izuku, green lightning replaced with his regular aura, was pressing himself up against the ceiling. Then his cheeks puffed out.
Ohhh he's going to set me on fire aga— Hot hot hot!
After letting out a blast of fire, Izuku let his body fall and the lightning came back. Pulling his fist back, Izuku yelled, "Detroit Sma—!"
All Might's hand reached out and grabbed Izuku, pulling him in so that he could wrap him up in a crushing bear hug. "Ack!"
"Gotcha! What are you going to do now?" Izuku hacked and coughed as All Might began to squeeze. "I just saw something very interesting. You can't use both at the same time, can you?"
Izuku swore he felt every rib and vertebra in his back pop as All Might crushed him. It was also getting hard to breathe. The air was getting pushed out of his lungs and he couldn't suck it back in. So a blast of fire into All Might's face was out.
Izuku also had to deal with the fact that All Might had caught on to his problem immediately after seeing the switch once. Izuku couldn't use both his Psychokinesis and One for All at the same time. The same issue existed with his Boric Pyre. It just took so much concentration to use One for All that trying anything else made him lose his grip on the Quirk.
He was sure he'd get the hang of it eventually, it was just like figuring out how to use his other two Quirks together. It'd take time. Unfortunately, that didn't help him right now.
"Wh-what'll I do—"
Oh, talking is hard. Not a good idea to try that. Izuku chided himself.
"That's right. I've got you and—"
Punch.
Punch, punch, punchpunchpunchpunchpunchpunchpunch!
—I'll do this!
With his arms free, that meant Izuku was free to just pummel All Might's face. Which—while he certainly didn't enjoy it—Izuku wasn't exactly doing a lot of damage with either. And with him having less and less air to work with, his punches were getting weaker.
Brain, plan A isn't working!
Fall back to old reliable!
Use my head!
…DON'T HEADBUTT HIM!
Izuku switched out of One for All and reached out his hands to the sides, his green glow flaring to life. At the same time All Might cocked his head to the side. "And what do you think you're doing?"
This! Is what Izuku would have yelled if he had any air left in his lungs. Instead, he just focused on the cars on either side of him, and once he had two, grabbed them. All Might's eyes went wide when he realized what was coming. A second too late. The two cars were yanked off the lot and slammed into his sides with enough force to make him drop Izuku, who scurried back and sucked in some lungfull breaths.
While Izuku caught his breath, All Might shoved the cars away and after a pause, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, leaving a red smear on it. "Hmph, all that for a drop of blood."
"Once a god bleeds, it's no longer a god," Izuku said back. "You're not invincible, All Might."
All Might smirked, with the bloody lip Izuku had just given him. "Impressive, Young Midoriya. Very impressive. If I was playing the role of your teacher, I'd be proud of you. I might even sing your praises too. But, in case you forgot, right now, I'm a villain. And," that threatening aura that had sent chills throughout Izuku's body was bad and in full force, "if that's the best you can do with your new power, then you don't have a prayer of winning." Izuku watched All Might start to walk towards him, then, with a swing of his fist, shatter a concrete pillar. "That's power. What do you think will happen to you when I hit you with it?"
Psyching himself up, Izuku slapped his hands together before he took up his fighting stance, green lightning dancing over his body. "You're only strong if you can hit me, All Might."
"Overconfidence is dangerous, Young Midoriya, or did you miss Young Uraraka's match?" The concrete cracked as All Might kicked off, charging right into Izuku as he got ready to attack.
Right jab!
Izuku was already leaning to the right as All Might's right fist shot out and popped the air where his head had been. Making a crack like a whip being popped.
Right jab!
Izuku kept leaning to his left as All Might pulled his fist back to throw the second jab. Stepping in, Izuku threw a flurry of punches into All Might's right side before he stepped back to avoid the second punch.
Left hook!
Izuku shuffled to the right, getting himself moved around to All Might's back, just as he twisted his body around to throw the hook across his body.
Right arm swing!
Izuku ducked down, as All Might's massive arms whizzed by overhead. Izuku for good measure threw a punch into All Might's knee.
Left!
All Might's punch missed and Izuku threw a barrage.
Right!
Izuku was already out of the way and countering.
Hook!
Jab!
Haymaker!
Izuku's legs burned, his hands hurt and his head was starting to spin. Even with One for All pumping through him, he wasn't getting the damage he needed. He needed to deliver a shot that would stagger the towering hero.
Left haymaker! Left side! Scar! Scar!
All Might's fist destroyed the air Izuku used to be, as Izuku was leaping back and then kicking off the ground, throwing all his weight and strength into his punch. "Detroit Smash!"
Izuku's fist was about to slam into All Might's side when the giant hero kicked off the ground and sailed backwards, putting several yards between himself and Izuku. While All Might looked at Izuku in shock over what had just happened, Izuku gaped in shock, equally surprised.
"Did I just win that? ... Oh wow, the room is spinning." Izuku's legs suddenly gave out as he sat on the ground to collect himself.
The exchange of blows had been intense for both Izuku and All Might.
It had also lasted for only a few short seconds.
"What are you doing sitting on your ass?!"
"What in the holy fuck was that?!" Miruko screamed.
No one else in the room seemed able to give her an answer as many of the pro heroes were left picking their jaws off the floor. Gran Torino himself had leapt out of his seat after the second punch thrown by All Might, eyes wide. "Did that just?"
"WOOOO! GO DEKU!" Ochako just cheered regardless of what had actually happened.
Himiko had pulled off her eyepatch and was rubbing her eyes, winking one and then the other, making sure her vision hadn't just gone crazy. "Where the fuck did that come from?"
Ryukyu was scratching her head. "Umm… U.A. still checks for performing enhancing drugs, right?"
Ochako had to seriously bite down on her tongue so as not to explode at that. Fortunately for her, Tenya was one step ahead of her. "I resent the implication that Midoriya, or any U.A. students for that matter, would resort to something as unethical, dangerous and illegal as using some kind of performance enhancing drug!" He chopped his hands down every other word for good measure.
"Midoriya has been training non-stop since he got back from Hosu City, kero," Tsuyu added. "It only makes sense he's gotten better."
"That's right!" Eijirou yelled, "there's nothing manly about drugs! They're no good!"
"Well, Trigger is at least," Himiko said offhandedly.
A few eyes looked at her. "What?" More looks with Himiko giving everyone looking at her a bored glare. "Let's just focus on Izuku kicking ass people."
Tsuyu leaned forward, looking at her with those big Froppy eyes. Himiko groaned, "Look, you know how people need to make sure their pot brownies are labeled. Well sometimes I wish people were labeled."
…
Ohhhh.
"So it was someone you ate?" Denki asked. "That tracks."
A pause before Himiko added. "Seeing sounds was pretty dope though."
Mt. Lady carried on the conversation before it got sidetracked. Scratching her head, she looked at Izuku. "I mean, he was rather impressive in the sports festival. So maybe…" She wilted when the other pros looked at her like she was nuts. "Never mind."
While the students were too busy cheering on their classmate, already captivated with the many twists and turns the exam had had, the heroes in the room, pros and teachers alike, were racking their brains over what they had just seen.
Aizawa had his arms crossed. He knew full well the kinds of improvements Izuku had gone through the last couple of months. He had a very solid grasp on where Izuku was. Both with his Quirk control and his combat abilities. Even taking into consideration the surprise that he had developed and refined his Tactile Psychokinesis, it was still something Aizawa had been expecting to see eventually. All Might had given updates on the super move's progress. The last being that Izuku was on the cusp of figuring it out. Something Izuku had apparently done alone with Ochako the night before the written exams, if her and Himiko's exchange was anything to go by.
But even then, even then, that didn't explain how Izuku had just dodged and countered the punches All Might had thrown. Even with enhanced speed and strength, he didn't have the experience to know how to move like that. Izuku's movements had been sloppy, over exaggerated and about at the level a first year should be. An exceptional first year but a first year all the same. But even with all that, Izuku had just pulled off something in those scant few seconds that should have been impossible. Despite the handicap All Might had, Izuku shouldn't have been able to avoid a single punch. Much less, the flurry that followed.
Something had just happened, and no one in the room had any explanation for it.
While all of this was going on, no one noticed Mei slip out of the room.
"What are you doing sitting on your ass?!" Katsuki exploded out from behind a row of parked cars. "Get the fuck up!" Tossing his last grenade right at All Might's feet.
All Might crossed his arms over his body as he tanked the explosion, blanketing him in a cloud of smoke and dust. The shock from the blast was enough to help Izuku shake the dizzy spell and hurry to his feet. It was now or never.
All Might coughed as he wiped away at the smoke. He could also taste blood in his mouth and it was more than just the busted lip Izuku had given him. Despite their rough start, the pair had done well to wear him down. While he still had time before he would have to drop his transformation, the weights and his students' perseverance had worn him out.
I suppose it's time to end this before—
"ARRRRRHHHH!" All Might recognized Katsuki's yell, and the small explosions that must have been propelling him. Through the smoke, he could just make out the boy's shadow. He saw a hand, glowing with a prepared attack, start to breach the smokey veil, but All Might reached out and grabbed Katsuki's arm, redirecting the explosion away.
As the smoke cleared and All Might got a good look at Katsuki, two things stood out. One, the boy was wearing a feral grin, and two, he only had one of his bracers. All Might was holding the arm that didn't have one.
Wait? What's going on?
Katsuki swung his body around, and leveled his other hand with All Might's face, pointing his one Grenadier Bracer dead center. Then the support gear glowed green, and the grenade lever safety was pulled back. But not by Katsuki.
Uh oh.
The air around the bracer and All Might's body shimmered as a bright green barrier went up to protect Katsuki, just as Izuku rushed forward and shoved the other refilled Grenadier Bracer, that Katsuki had tossed him after All Might was lost in the smoke cloud, right into All Might's left side.
…Now that's cheating.
Izuku pulled the lever back while he put up a barrier to protect himself. Izuku pulled both pins, one with his own hand and the other psychically, and All Might was enveloped in blinding light.
The explosions ripped into All Might while Katsuki and Izuku were, more or less, protected from the worst of it. The barriers shattered from the explosion and both Izuku and Katsuki were thrown backwards. Tumbling across the pavement, they both clawed to get back on their feet and rushed to the smoking crater, both pulling the cuffs they had been given. Diving head first into the smoke they reached out and—
"Team Midoriya and Bakugou have passed."
Elation filled the control room as the class cheered on their classmates. Teachers and pros gave nods of approval, impressed with the final match. Himiko grabbed the first person she could, a very lucky Tsu, and swung her around happily. Tsu very much enjoyed the ride. Tenya was chopping at the air, both congratulating and admonishing the pair for such a reckless plan. Hitoshi was wondering if he should tell him that there was no way they could hear him while Shouto just shook his head, knowing there was no point in trying. Ochako, elated beyond words, was floating up towards the ceiling, screaming happily.
On her way back to the main campus, Mei heard the announcement while she looked over her handheld, carefully studying what it displayed.
Flat on his back, and ears still ringing from the blast, Izuku wasn't sure what was going on. Everything was spinning, but he was pretty sure it was because he had been so close to a giant explosion, and not because of anything he had done that was Quirk related.
But as the ceiling stopped spinning like a wheel, Izuku was able to start making out shapes and colors. Then people. All Might, with cuffs on both his wrists, was shaking Katsuki's hand, a giant smile on his face while Katsuki just looked like his normal, if scuffed, self.
The shadowy woman also looked quite pleased.
…Wait, huh? It's them again… or just her?
With All Might and Katsuki seemingly oblivious to the third party, the shadow walked around the pair, looking down at Izuku. Most of the figure was just a black shadow with a faint pink glow around the edges and it had bright piercing yellow eyes. But as the shadow got closer, bits and pieces of the darkness seemed to fade away.
The shadows outline had made Izuku think it was a woman, but now as the shadow faded away, Izuku could see more of the person underneath. She was a beautiful woman with a tough demeanor. Her bare arms were lined with muscles but she seemed to have a caring nature about her. Long black hair with short bangs and a half-up-half-down bun. She wore a black body suit that just seemed to make every one of her muscles stand out, along with a pair of yellow gloves, a red half-cape around her waist and a large flowing white cape over her shoulders. Izuku didn't see the full picture all at once as the shadow kept moving, as if to swallow her back. But even separately Izuku could tell she was very beautiful.
The shadowy woman smiled as she knelt down beside Izuku, and gave him a thumbs up. "Not bad, kid. It looks like Toshinori picked a winner."
Errr, thanks, pretty shadow lady?
The shadow laughed, and made to ruffle his hair, though her hands had turned back into shadow and Izuku didn't feel anything. Then she stood up, and as more and more of her began to recede back into the darkness, she looked over at All Might. Even as more of the shadow swallowed her up, Izuku saw a proud smile, and some tears in her eyes. "I always knew you were special."
Then, she was gone, and Izuku was left to wonder if she was even really there. Or at least that's what he wished he could wonder, because if past experiences told him anything…
"Oi Deku! You dead or what?!" Katsuki walked over to Izuku's side, and roughly kicked him. "If you're not dead, then get the fuck up."
"Go away Kacchan, I think I wanna take a nap."
"HA HA HA HA! I don't think anyone could refuse either of you a good night's rest. You both earned it. Congratulations on your win. You got me good at the end," All Might winced and rubbed his side. "Really good, y-ouch."
"Screw sleeping," Katsuki cut in. "You me and the nerd have a conversion to have. Or have you forgotten, Deku?" Katsuki looked down at Izuku. Waiting to see if he was going to go back on his word. He didn't think he would, but he also wasn't sure if he was going to pull a, 'let's do this tomorrow' bullshit.
Izuku closed his eyes, then nodded. "All Might, can we use your office?"
"Of course. I think that would be best."
After the match was over, Katsuki, not wanting to wait any longer, had been insistent that they take care of business as quickly as possible. So, still covered in bits of rubble, the three were on their way to All Might's office, after hopping on a bus to take them right back to the main campus. It would be the most private place that they could talk. Katsuki had grunted at the idea. Commenting that he had seen Izuku, Ochako and Himiko leave the office many times.
"Define many," Izuku asked. Surprised that apparently their group had been being watched and he hadn't noticed. Especially since Katsuki wasn't exactly known for being subtle or stealthy.
"Remember when your shithead old man showed up?"
"Umm, yeah?"
"Since then."
It dawned on Izuku and All Might that they might actually really really really suck at keeping things a secret.
"Well… um… perhaps I should mention to Aizawa that you have a talent for espionage, Young Bakugou." The annoyed growl from Katsuki made it clear that that was not a great idea. "Yes well, I'll brew us some tea and then we can… oh?"
When the three had turned a corner, coming to where the room was, they found that they were not alone. Standing in front of the door to All Might's office was Mei.
"Umm," Izuku sorta just came to a stop, with Katsuki almost running into him. "Hatsume?"
"The hell is Inventor Chick doing here?"
All Might coughed into his hand, frowning. His time limit was quickly running dry. So he needed to move things along. "Ah, Young Hatsume," he smiled brightly as he walked up to her. "What can I do for—"
Mei walked past him, ignoring him completely, and marched up to Izuku. Not used to being so utterly ignored, All Might almost tripped over his own feet. Mei was now almost nose to nose with Izuku and he, taken aback at how close she was, stammered and tried to take a step back to get some space. There was something about the neutral expression on Mei's face that he found incredibly disconcerting. Also her eyes, it was like they were looking into his very soul. When she reached up and plucked the crest off Izuku's forehead, he wasn't sure what to say.
"Um?"
"Tactile Psychokinesis," Mei spoke. "A technique you developed by focusing your psychokinetic powers inward to boost your physical abilities. Towards the end of your exam, that's what you used to throw hands with All Might, right?"
…How does she know what 'throw hands' means? Darn it Toga I know this is your fault.
Izuku nodded. "I, yeah? When I first used it I really hurt myself, but thanks to All Might's training and some fine tuning with the amount of power I use, I can use it in a fight now."
"Hmm," Hatsume eyed him carefully. "You weren't glowing like you normally do."
Izuku laughed nervously. "Yeah I'm pretty shocked by that. I guess when I use my Psychokinesis inside my body instead of outside, it changes my glow. The lightning looks pretty cool though, doesn't it? I guess you were watching my exam, huh?"
"Everyone was. All the teachers and heroes and all your classmates watched."
Izuku beamed with pride.
"But I wasn't just watching, you know. I was taking readings," Mei said. She pulled out a small device from her pocket. "Remember how I said I can get signals from the gear I made for you? It's how I knew you blew past my safety factor last time."
Izuku wasn't beaming anymore.
"Well, I was getting all kinds of great data. Was giving me all kinds of ideas on how to keep improving my babies and making your costume as reliable as possible. You know, to keep you safe and alive. Which is my job."
Izuku could only nod.
Hatsume held up the device, showing off a screen with a chart. It had a few different peaks and valleys, along with a timeline at the bottom as she scrolled through. Izuku quickly realized that this was power and heat readings from his exam. It showed the ebb and flow of the battle over the course of the exam. But when Mei reached a point towards the end of the timeline, the line graphs suddenly went flat, with only a few blips sprinkled throughout. "See here Midoriya?"
"Y-yeah?"
"I don't have any readings. For the whole end of the exam, nothing. It's almost like you were fighting All Might, while not using your Psychokinesis." Mei held up the crest. "My baby is supposed to give you ears when you use your Quirk. But, it wasn't on at the end either." Mei put the device away, while she played with the crest. Looking like she was about to pocket it as well. "Midoriya I—"
"Hatsume," Izuku interrupted Mei, "I wasn't using my Psychokinesis Quirk. In fact, Tactile Psychokinesis is just something I made up to hide the fact that I have a third Quirk."
Izuku could feel Katsuki's eyes on him after he said that, but he ignored it. "If… If you're still willing… would you like to join Kacchan with me and All Might in his office? We were going to have some tea. While I… explained. Everything."
Mei looked at Izuku, rolling the crest over in her hand as she did. "Everything?"
"Yes."
Mei looked at Izuku some more, then down at the crest in her hand. For a few seconds she was still, before she sighed, took Izuku's hand and put the crest into it. "You know, you could have saved me a whole lot of trouble, right?'
Izuku looked away. "Sorry."
Mei shrugged. "Eh, not a big deal. At least I can finally figure out what's going on. That whole 'hysterical strength' thing was such a lame excuse. So it's not like I'm shocked or anything. So what kind of tea do you have, All Might?" Mei, suddenly back to her normal self, threw the group for a loop. As All Might listed off some of the flavors he had as he invited her in, Izuku was left with Katsuki in the hall.
"Are you fucking serious?" Katsuki asked. Not screaming at this point. More like he just had to say it.
Izuku sighed. "If you're upset you not the only one learning today—"
"I'm not fucking upset about that, Deku. I'm trying to figure out how you decided that not telling her of all people was a good idea. For fucks sake, I thought she was already in on the secret."
"Wha?"
"She's you fucking tech, you dumbass. She should have been fucking number one on your list of people you need to tell. You don't tell the person making your fucking gear you have a third Quirk? You. Are. A. Fucking. Dumbass." With that said, Katsuki marched into the room, wondering if All Might had any spicy tea.
As Izuku chuckled to himself as he followed into the room after everyone. He honestly couldn't really argue. Izuku closed the door behind him and got ready to talk. A few seconds after, if someone had passed by there, they would have heard a loud hiss, seen what looked like white steam whiffing up from around the door, and then heard a particularly shocked and still angry shout.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
"So I wonder why All Might brought Izuku straight back here instead of to the control room with the rest of class?" Himiko asked, "Think he's in trouble?"
Ochako shrugged. "I doubt it. Probably wanted to talk to Deku privately about what happened at the end of the exam."
Himiko smirked. "What do you think I'm talking about? Wasn't Izuku sorta banned from using One for All?"
Ochako pulled at her school uniform's tie. "Technically he was banned from using it since he couldn't control it. And since he can now control it, he didn't break any rules."
Gran Torino huffed as he walked beside the pair. "Well, aren't you a smart cookie?"
After the exam was over, the class was told that the staff would go over the exams, both written and practical, and tally up their scores. They would be given the results once they were back in class after all the hero classes took their exams. So it was some time later that the class got back to the main building and changed out of their costumes.
Himiko smirked. "And I thought I was the one always looking for ways around rules."
Ochako pointed at Himiko accusingly. "This and that are totally different. You just outright break them! I…" Ochako rubbed her chin. "I just find the wiggle room."
Gran Torino smirked while Himiko rolled her good eye. "We're exactly the same and you know it."
"Shut it. Look, we're finally here. So we'll put this to bed." Ochako knocked on the door. "It's Uraraka and Toga."
"Oh, Uraraka," Izuku's voice came through the door.
"Ah! Come in. Come in," All Might's voice called back.
Ochako swung the door, and she smiled brightly. "Deku! That was an amazing fight! And Alllll… ummm."
Ochako almost tripped over herself when she saw that it wasn't just Izuku, who was at the counter making a fresh pot of tea, and All Might in the room. Mei was sipping on some tea, sitting next to a very solemn looking Katsuki. Then there was All Might, still in his hero costume but shrunken down.
Ochako had to pivot hard, even as her mind raced as to what the actual fuck was going on. "Ummm, Mr. Yagi, you're here… In your All Might cosplay! Did you come to congratulate Deku?"
Katsuki looked up at Ochako and sneered. "God you're lame."
"Kacchan," Izuku warned.
"That was almost as bad as the shit you tried," Katsuki shot back. "So don't get all pissy because I called your girlfriend out for being shit at trying to cover your ass."
"Say wha," Himiko asked as she came inside with Gran Torino closing the door behind them. "Who's what now? You talking to me?"
"Girlfriend, not 'side piece,' bitch!"
"Kacchan!"
Mei sipped at her tea some more. "Oh good, we're back to yelling. He's finally over his shock."
Ochako looked at everything. Took the whole scene in. She stood motionless as she felt her world come to a sudden violent, horrifically brutal, halt. "No."
Izuku found some more tea cups and started preparing drinks for Ochako and Himiko. "So um… I guess you two should know. We… that is to say I… um…" Izuku scratched at his neck.
"He told us the whole kit and caboodle," Mei said with a smile. "We know about All Might having like an hour he can be all muscle up, which explains why he tends to vanish for no reason lately, we know about All for One and that whole mess. What else did we get told?"
"One for All," Katsuki finished. "And how All Might gave it to Deku."
"No."
Everyone stopped and looked at Ochako. All Might, Gran Torino and Himiko noticed that her hands were clenched into tight fists and her body was starting to shake. "No." She repeated again.
"Now listen kid before you—" Gran Torino tried to step over to her, but Ochako exploded before he had a chance to say anything.
"HOW COULD YOU LET THIS HAPPEN?!" Ochako screamed at All Might, who was taken aback. "OF ALL THE PEOPLE, HIM?!"
"Y-Young Uraraka, please just settle down and—"
"I WON'T!" Ochako growled out, her anger bubbling over as she stormed over to All Might. "You're supposed to be Deku's guide! You're supposed to protect him. And you let this happen?!"
"Uraraka please just—"
Izuku tried to step in, but Ochako kept going. Swinging her hand and pointing right at Katsuki. "Out of every single person in school he's the worst person you could have let find out. How, how can you screw up this badly?!"
Katsuki was on his feet, hands sizzling and smoking. "You better watch you damned mouth or—"
There was a flash of silver as Himiko stepped behind Katsuki and pulled out a knife that she pressed against his throat. "Sit. Down."
"Whoa whoa whoa!"
"Oh yikes."
"Young Toga!"
"EVERYONE STOP!" Izuku screamed, bringing the chaos to a sudden halt. Everyone turned to look at him. "Toga. Put the knife away. Now… Please."
Izuku ended his request softly, looking at Himiko and pleading with her. It was obvious that he didn't want this. None of it. Himiko sighed and pocketed the knife, before she backed off and grabbed herself a cup of tea and found an empty seat next to Mei. Katsuki rubbed his neck while glaring at her, but ultimately sat back down.
All Might deflated and was back in his seat, though he was keeping a careful eye on the whole situation. To say he hadn't expected such a negative reaction to this was an understatement. The raw hate that had bubbled out of Ochako was startling.
Gran Torino didn't sit down right away. He was keeping an eye on Himiko. He only relaxed a little when she pulled the knife back out and chucked it into a corner, where he could grab it and hold onto it before he sat down.
That just left Ochako, the last one standing and still fuming. Izuku looked at her and winced at the anger he saw. But at the very least, she was giving him a chance to explain. "This was my decision, Uraraka. For both Kacchan and Hatsume. They both put it together."
Ochako ground her teeth together. "I'm not upset about Hatsume. It makes sense for her to know. But him?"
"He's been putting the pieces together for a while now, Uraraka. All Might and I… Our stories had some gaps," Katsuki loudly rolled his eyes, "and there were some other mistakes that happened too. So Kacchan put it all together and confronted me about it."
Ochako's eyes narrowed. "Confronted. Is that why you were gone for the rest of the exams? Miruko said she sent Gran Torino after you two since it looked like things were going to get heated… Wait, did he blackmail you?!"
"WHAT?! NO!"
Mei tilted her head to the side. "Wait, I thought you were going to fail the test because your fight got so nasty? That's what you said earlier."
Ochako's eyes bulged while Izuku moved to defuse the bomb Mei had just dropped in his lap. "NO! No, that had nothing to do with the secret! Totally unconnected!"
"He was threatening to make you fail your exam?" Ocahko asked. Izuku hadn't denied the fight, just what it was about. And she sure as fuck was going to find out why Katsuki almost completely upended Izuku's hard work.
"No. Uraraka I was the one threatening to pull out of the exam rather than team up with him. My choice." Ochako's eyes were now wide, her mouth hanging open but Izuku kept going. "We had a fight over something else and… I sorta kinda… punched him. And then said I wasn't going to team up with him because of it. But he apologized and its all fine now."
Himiko raised her hand. "Hold the fuck on. He apologized? What, like he said he was sorry?"
Katsuki growled but Izuku nodded. "Yup."
"…Holy fuck, did you record it?"
"Move. The fuck. On."
Deciding he didn't want to spark anything else off, Izuku kept going. "Anyway. Like I said, Kacchan already had all the pieces. So I had a choice, acknowledge that there was something going on but not tell him, or… you know. Tell him."
Ochako had a hand rubbing her brow. "And you went with the second option? Instead of telling him to f— To get lost?"
"Yeah?"
"Why? Deku, you have to give me a reason here."
Gran Torino coughed. "Technically—"
"Old man," Himiko whispered. "Do not even try to make Izuku think he doesn't need to tell Ochako. Not if you don't value your fucking liver."
"…I have your knife."
"You have one of my knives."
"I can give you two reasons, Uraraka," Izuku went on, not hearing the side convo going on. "One, is that Kacchan wasn't going to let this go. He would obsess over this to the point I'm worried it would affect his grades."
"You're not responsible for that. It's his own fault if he can't just leave well enough alone."
"Maybe, but I'm kinda the same way so I guess it's sympathy pain… or whatever the actual term is. If I knew there was a secret going on with All Might right in front of me, I'd be doing everything I could to figure it out."
"Deku," Ochako sighed. "You're not that dumb. You're a smart and responsible person."
"Uraraka, I jumped onto All Might's leg the first time I met him just before he jumped up into the sky. Remember?"
Ochako recalled that story. She was back to rubbing her brow. "And the second reason?"
"Kacchan still… does and says a lot of stuff I don't like. I mean I punched him today. But… I value what we started to have after the sports festival. And not telling Kacchan would probably… Well I'm almost certain it would destroy it. Trust is important and all that."
Ochako really wished Izuku hadn't brought up that whole rivalry thing. Because with that, it made this bad decision make sense to him. Because she could just about see it from his perspective. Izuku was good, kind and wanted to be friends with people. He wouldn't willingly do something to damage a relationship. She knew this, and she had a feeling others knew it too. So she took a breath, counted to ten, and, "I don't agree with this Deku. Not one bit."
Izuku winced.
"But… If this is what you want to do," She waited to see him react, and he nodded. "Then… I'll go along with it."
All Might sighed. "I'm glad you'll support—"
"I said go along with it. Not support i," Ochako quickly corrected All Might. "This is a mistake. A mistake that shouldn't have been allowed to happen." She made sure to give All Might and Gran Torino some dirty looks. "But if it's an argument every time we meet up… that's not going to help anyone. So I'll go along with it, and make sure Deku comes out of this better and stays safe." She crossed her arms. "That's all I can give you, Deku."
It was enough for Izuku, who bowed towards her. "Thank you Uraraka… Thank you."
With the crisis seemingly over, Gran Torino added something, "Look. At the end of the day, whether you like each other or not isn't really relevant. What matters above all else is that everyone in this room understands the monster Midoriya is up against. And that it's our responsibility to ensure he's ready for the day he faces All for One. Everything else is secondary, understand?"
The angry ones in the room gave small grunts while others nodded. So at least for now, the issue was settled.
"If we're done here," Katsuki grunted, "then I'm gone." It had been a few minutes of quiet as everyone just decompressed. "Want to get out of this costume and go take a fucking shower."
Mei tilted her head to the side. "Didn't you rush everyone here after your exam? That's what he said, right?"
"Inventor Chick, shut the hell up." Katsuki rubbed his brow. "You're fucking annoying."
"Um actually…" Izuku cleared his throat, nervously running his finger over the rim of his cup. "There's, um… something I'd like to ask All Might. Now that explanations are over and everyone is, um… settled down. Though," Izuku glanced at his phone, noting the time, "it is getting kinda late…"
"Young Midoriya, if you have something you wish to ask or say, we will of course wait on you," All Might said with a smile.
Himiko was already up at this point, assuming that since Katsuki was leaving she could leave too. She was tired and also wanted to get started on her revenge against Midnight. "If we're late for dinner, I'm snacking on one of you."
Ochako, despite still being in a sour mood, reached over and pulled Himiko back into her seat. "You sit, and what did you want to talk about, Deku?"
Izuku rubbed his neck nervously, but he was committed to getting an answer, even if the question probably was going to cause a lot of problems. "Um… So All Might…"
"Yes?"
"When you use One for All… do you ever… um… see people that aren't really there?"
Ochako almost dropped her cup while Himiko stared at Izuku like he had grown a second head.
"Or maybe…hear voices?"
"The fuck?"
"You see… the both times I've used One for All… I… I had some kind of vision. There were eight people. They were foggy, almost like living shadows but their eyes, I could feel power from them and… one of the shadows looked a lot like you, All Might."
Almost as one Ochako and Himiko turned from Izuku to All Might. All Might threw up his hands. "That's too freaking scary!"
Izuku almost fell out of his seat, shocked at how scared All Might looked. "Wait! I thought for sure you'd know something!?" Sighing sadly, Izuku lowered his head. "Well that settles it, either I'm going crazy or One for All is haunted."
Ochako frowned. "Wait, hold on. What do you mean the both times you used One for All?"
Izuku blinked, then laughed nervously. "Sooo, that's the thing…"
Izuku laughed jubilantly as he leapt from tree to tree, green lightning crackling over his body. Even the tiny percentage of One for All that Izuku had spread throughout his body was enough to give him the mobility to leap around like a green glowing monkey. Or rabbit. He could hear Ochako cheering him on, absolutely ecstatic as she watched.
Landing on a branch, Izuku could feel the power of One For All giving his muscles the strength to absorb the landing and then kick off again. Up into the air, and back towards Ochako in the clearing. Laughing and feeling on top of the world. Izuku pulled his legs in and did what any teenager would do sailing through the air. He did a backflip.
And just like any teenager who tried to do a backflip for the first time, he totally missed the landing and fell flat on his face.
"OOF!"
"D-Deku!" Ochako rushed over to make sure he was alright, though her hurried pace slowed as Izuku just kept laughing joyfully. "You knucklehead." She reached down to give him a hand.
Izuku, still smiling brightly, looked up and reached out to take her hand. But standing behind her smiling face, were eight dark shadows. Even in the dark of night, Izuku could make them out. And the glow of their eyes. Eyes that were looking right at him.
Ochako blinked a few times before she exploded, face blue and her body shaking. "WHY WOULDN'T YOU TELL ME I HAD GHOSTS BEHIND ME!"
Izuku held up his hands defensively. "I thought maybe I just hit my head on the landing. Since when I blinked to get a better look, they were gone."
Himiko scratched her head. "Soooo what? Is Izuku just nuts? Brain damage? Or are we really going to sit here and say that One for All is haunted?"
Gran Torino was rubbing his chin, while All Might leaned forward. "When I was younger, much much younger, I saw them too."
Heads turned. Katsuki scowled. "The way you freaked out made it seem like this was a new fucking thing? Shouldn't that have been one of the first things you warned Deku about?!"
Ochako quietly hated that she was in agreement with Katsuki.
"It was a very long time ago. It was only the one time it happened. After that, I never saw anything like it again. My master too, also had a similar experience."
Izuku sighed in relief. "I'm not crazy, thank god."
Mei had a notepad out, and was scribbling away. "So I get to make a baby to detect ghosts! Oh, this is gonna be fun!"
"Holy shit, it's ghosts." Himiko rubbed her head. "Because that's what this story needs. Fucking ghosts in Quirks."
All Might shook his head. "I don't think it's anything complicated like that. It's not ghosts or spirits, but traces of will. Something left behind by the previous wielders. Not something intended or something that can be interacted with. Though I didn't see them myself right after getting One for All like you, Young Midoriya. Your connection with it must be strong indeed."
Izuku beamed at that, despite the weirdness of the conversation.
"You did say that One for All is much stronger for Deku than it was for you," Ochako pointed out, "maybe that has something to do with it?"
"Perhaps."
"So where does this theory come from then?" Ochako asked. "You seem to have a pretty good idea of what they are even though you saw them just once."
All Might nodded. "The theory comes from my master, the previous wielder of One for All, Shimura Nana."
Katsuki latched onto that name immediately. "That's who you and the old man were talking about earlier. So she wasn't just some other teacher then."
All Might smiled. "She was more than just a teacher, that's correct. We had this talk a long time ago. She was telling me about a dream she had. She called the shadows 'vestiges.' She thought that One for All has more stored up in it than just power. Perhaps the feelings of the previous users, the ones that cultivated that power, were recorded into One for All. Their wants and dreams. She said that 'feelings always come before power.' One for All is… our impossible dream. Each user builds towards something and… if our time is cut short before that dream is realized… We can meet again inside One for All."
Himiko hummed. "That's creepy and lovely. Oh, is that why All Might is one of those dead shadow things? A little bit of him got recorded over when he sent it to you,"
"Please don't say dead shadow things. I'd like to sleep tonight," All Might whimpered.
"At least it's something… er, I was going to say simple… about how it at least it's not ghosts," Ochako said with a sigh.
Katsuki frowned. "Hold on a second. Deku," Izuku looked up, "didn't you ask if All Might heard voices too?"
And suddenly the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees.
"Um… yeah." Izuku rubbed his hands together nervously, as all eyes were back on him. "So, um… at the end of the exam… I saw the vestiges again… or well… one of them. She," All Might and Gran Torino leaned forward, "she, um… spoke."
"Check please," Himiko groaned. "I want off this ride now."
Mei leaned forward, eyes sparkling. "Do you think it was her? All Might's teacher?!"
All Might shook his head. "I was never spoken to. This is… incredible."
Ochako held up a hand. "Okay, before we start jumping the gun, how can we be sure?"
Izuku scratched his chin. "Hmmm, Oh! All Might, do you have anything that would have her voice? And or maybe a video? You haven't shown me what she looks like. The vestige I saw was a lot less fuzzy. So if it matches…"
All Might frowned then nodded. "One second." Walking over to his office's desk, All Might reached in and pulled out his cell phone. Mumbling to himself, "I know I saved it in one of those cloud things… Ah, here we go. Nana… sent me this after I won the sports festival years ago."
Flipping his phone around, All Might pressed play and showed the group the video message he had saved: "Hey there Toshinori!" Izuku went stiff and his eyes went wide. "Congratulations! Not only did you win, it was an utter devastation! Ha ha ha ha ha! Oh… maybe best I don't word it like that. Or I'll sound too much like Sorahiko. But I'm proud of you." The video of Nana smiled brightly. "Of course I'll be seeing you later to celebrate with a feast. Kotarou and a certain lazy bum," off-screen an annoyed hand swiped at Nana but she laughed as she ducked it, "are looking forward to seeing you too. Though if he offers you a beer, this time turn it down." The call ended with someone complaining that it was just the one time, and it wasn't his fault. No kid should be almost two hundred centimeters.
Putting the phone away, and taking a moment for himself, All Might cast his gaze back to Izuku, but the look on the boy's face said it all. But Izuku still had to say it. Still had to put it into words.
"That was her. The one that spoke to me after the exam. That was her."
As that sank in, All Might took a breath and asked, "Young Midoriya. What did she say?"
"'Not bad, kid. It looks like Toshinori picked a winner.' Then she looked at you, and she looked… proud and kind of sad before she said, 'I always knew you were special.'"
When All Might's eyes started to water, Himiko hurried to dig out a hanky for him. "Here you go, big guy."
"My thanks, Young Toga. I just… need a second."
"Okay, so these aren't just shadows. If the shitty nerd is actually right about this, these things, ghost, or whatever, are more than just little bits of feelings. Feelings don't talk. They don't interact with the damned world." Katsuki crossed his arms. "And of course it's fucking Deku who is the first to deal with them."
Ochako frowned. "Why are you mad at him for that?"
"Who the fuck said I was mad? I'm just laying out that All Might's theory is shot, and we got nothing else to go on."
Gran Torino coughed. "That's not entirely true." Every head turned to look at the old hero. "You see… Nana didn't tell you the whole story about that dream she had."
Katsuki groaned. "Are you fucking kidding me?"
Izuku ignored Katsuki. "Gran Torino? What do you mean?"
Gran Torino leaned back in his seat. "So the dream she had, she told me about it back when she had had it. The shadows and the whole bit. It's even how she started to come up with the idea that more got transferred over when One for All is passed from one person to another. But what she didn't tell you was this. One of the shadows talked to her. Said that this man, that looked like a fuzzy shadow, walked up to her and sorta looked her over. After a bit he just said, 'the time has not yet come,' and vanished. After that she never had the dream or saw the vestiges or whatever again."
"Why wouldn't she tell me that part?" All Might asked.
Gran Torino shrugged. "Not sure. Maybe since you only mentioned seeing the shadows and not hearing them, she didn't think about it. Or maybe she didn't want to burden you with anything else at the time. Hell, after the one talk she never talked to me about it again either."
Ochako hummed, leaning forward and cupping her hands together. "So what do we do now?"
Izuku tapped his chin before standing up. Then startling everyone around him as green lighting began arcing and sparking over his body.
"The fuck?!"
"Deku?!"
"I swear to god if he goes all The Exorcist, I'm fucking leaving!"
"This is so exciting!"
Izuku, with One for All pumping through his body, looked around the room. But all he saw were the people who were supposed to be there. No shadows, and no voices. "Nothing's happening."
"Are you fucking out of your mind?!" Katsuki shouted.
Izuku just shrugged, before he stopped using One for Al. "I guess it's not going to happen every time then."
"Soooo, what do we do now then?" Himiko asked.
All Might thought about it. "Until we know more, or until the event happens again, it might be best not to dwell on it for now."
"Really?" Ochako didn't look convinced. "You think that's for the best?"
"I do. We know from three generations of wielders of One for All that these vestiges exist. We now know they do carry some semblance of self. But at no point when they do appear have they indicated or done anything that could be seen as a threat. Nor do I think they ever will. If these vestiges are some remnants of the past wielders, then they come from people that dedicated their lives to stopping All for One and protecting people. Heroes. I'm willing to place my faith in One for All."
The group looked at All Might, then towards Izuku, who was looking at his hands. "I… I think you're right, All Might. I could feel a power from them, but never anything like ill intent. I don't think there's anything to fear from them."
"Of course, I'm not saying we just ignore them if they should appear again. I think it best you let us know immediately. Or if there are any other weird phenomena that you experience. Agreed?"
"Yes sir," Izuku said with a firm nod of his head.
"Alright, I'm fucking done." Katsuki stood up. "Don't care if there are any more ghost or phantoms or whatever. I'm going home." Without so much as a goodbye Katsuki was out the door.
Mei frowned. "Wooow. Not even going to help us clean up the room? The small dick energy is real."
Izuku groaned and shot Himiko a look. "You've got to stop, Toga."
Himiko just beamed. "Never!"
Ochako was up and out of her seat, reaching the door before muttering, "I.. gotta use the bathroom." And was gone.
"All that tea went straight through her," Mei said as she helped pick up some cups. "Or she's trying to get out of cleaning duty too."
Izuku waved it off., "Oh, it's okay. She does a lot for me all the time. I'll get her cup clean."
Himiko frowned, watching Izuku pick up Ochako's tea cup, then looking towards the door Ochako and Katsuki had left through.
Katsuki had a headache. After everything he had learned today, all it resulted in was giving him a huge fucking headache. What the fuck?! What the fuck?! WHAT THE FUCK?!
He knew he was going to be in for a story, but to get plot bombed with immortal villains, generational Quirks, the fact that the freaking number one hero was losing his fucking power and was actually fucking Yagi Toshinori, that Izuku had that power and that it was now even stronger than All Might's, just to top it off with fucking god damned ghosts, was enough to make his head feel like it was going to split open. He wasn't sure what he was going to do, but he felt that tomorrow he was going to punch Izuku in the face for this.
Not that he hadn't asked for this, but come on. You don't pull that kind of shit and not deserve a fucking punch to the face.
Also, after all of this, he almost kinda technically worked for Izuku.
Nah fuck that. I'll just kill this All for One bastard or whatever and make all this One for All shit pointless.
Katsuki didn't bring this up during the initial talk, but he almost felt like there was a disconnect between Izuku and All Might. He got the feeling when Izuku talked about beating this All for One, it was in the traditional sense. Beat him up and throw him in jail. With All Might, it felt like it was the more permanent sense. Especially since All Might admitted he had tried to kill All for One. Which was a shock, All Might going for the kill. Kinda a crazy idea. Almost as crazy as the idea of Izuku having any kind of killing instinct. Izuku was not someone that would ever be willing or able to take a life.
So that could be a huge problem down the line.
Katsuki was so engrossed in his own thoughts he didn't hear the hurried footsteps behind him until they were right on him.
"BAKUGOU!"
Katsuki looked over his shoulder to find Ochako standing behind him, face scrunched up in a frown and her eyes burning. "We're not done yet."
Katsuki just rolled his eyes. "Got nothing to say to you, Round Face." And went back to walking down the hallway.
Ochako gaped at getting completely ignored before she stormed forward and put herself in front of Katsuki. "Don't you dare ignore me." She stepped forward until she was face to face with him. "You do not just get to trick Deku like you did and walk away."
"Not dealing with whatever hysterical shit you got going on. I don't give a shit if you don't like that I know, and I don't give a shit how you want to rationalize it in your fucking head. So shut the fuck up, and get the fuck out of my way."
Ochako sneered. "If you think for a second I'm letting a threat like you just walk away, you're insane."
Katsuki raised an eyebrow. "Don't fucking push me or you'll learn real quick what kind of threat I can be."
Ochako was shaking, the rage inside of her, everything she had held back during the meeting was starting to bubble over. Miruko's words, telling her to let her anger fuel her, to empower her, and not control her were getting drowned out by the beating of her heart, echoing in her ears like a war drum. More and more she just wanted to reach out and snap Katsuki's—
Katsuki looked over Ochako and spat out, "It really eats at you doesn't it? The fact that Deku decided to make a decision without you. I get that you baby him like a fucking doll or something, but considering how fucked-up of a job you've done keeping him 'safe.' Maybe it's good he didn't fucking wait for you to tell him what to do. He maned the fuck up and took some responsibility. While you, what the fuck have you done for him? I wasn't the one that left him to get smacked around by that Nomu. And it sure as shit sounds like you did jack-all to look out for him in whatever mess you were involved in at Hosu City. Maybe it's time to leave the job to someone who's actually capable of looking out for him."
Katsuki words cut into Ochako. They cut deep, leaving bloody wounds in her soul and heart. They also cut the very last threads of her patience and self-control.
SMACK!
Ochako's hand whipped out, and struck Katsuki across the face. The strike was hard enough to knock him off his feet and leave him floating in the air as each of Ochako's fingerpads made contact.
"The fuck—!"
Ochako grabbed Katsuki and screamed as she turned and slammed him into the nearest wall. "You motherfucker!" There was no more control. No more sense of self-restraint. The simmering hate Ochako felt for Katsuki was now a full blown, frozen turkey in the deep frier, out of control blaze. "How dare you! You selfish arrogant bastard! I'll—"
She didn't get the chance to finish as a yellow streak slammed into her and tackled her to the ground. "Turn off your Quirk. Now!" Gran Torino made it very clear he wasn't messing around as he twisted Ochako's arms back, leaving her hands almost touching, but instead of pushing them together himself, he was giving her one chance to make the correct choice. But if she did anything else beside put her fingers together, she was fucked. "Don't make me knock you out, kid."
Still seething, Ochako had to think about what she wanted to do. The fact she was actually thinking about it made Gran Torino grit his teeth. Because if this went south, there was no telling how bad this was going to go. For Ochako, for Katsuki, for himself and for Izuku. Because he had a very sneaking suspicion that Izuku would not give a damn what reason there was. The moment he finds out he had to knock Ochako out, the kid may very well go for his throat. Ochako was his hair trigger. And anyone what messed with that was fucked with a capital F. But finally, mercifully, Ochako pressed her fingers together and hissed out, "Release."
Katsuki fell to the ground, only just having time to brace himself. "You fucking bitch!" He was about to charge, but Gran Torino had already blasted off Ochako and moved to block Katsuki. Pushing him back, further down the hall, and putting enough distance between the two that they couldn't suddenly start fighting again.
"No one do a damned thing. Is that clear!" Gran Torino gave Katsuki a look before turning to Ochako, who was getting back on her feet, whipping away some blood from her nose and mouth. "Kid, you don't move from that spot. Am I clear?"
Gran Torino almost flinched at the hate in Ochako's eyes as she looked his way. Though those eyes weren't directed at him but at Katsuki. He was just caught in the crossfire.
Holy fuck. I thought the kid was bad earlier. What the hell?
"I want an explanation, now. What the fuck is going on? You do not use your fucking Quirks on each other."
Katsuki spat, "You wanna try that again, bitch?!"
"Kid," Gran Torino looked back at Katsuki, "just shut up." Gran Torino then addressed Ochako. "You better have a damned good excuse for the stunt you just pulled."
Ochako didn't wilt under Gran Torino's glare. She just pointed at herself. "I'm doing my fucking job. The one neither you or All Might seem to take seriously."
"What?"
"You let Deku tell him," she jabbed her finger Katsuki, "about One for All. About everything. The person that made Deku's life a living hell for ten years! You let Deku get tricked into telling him instead of protecting him. So if neither of you are going to deal with him," Ochako's knuckles popped as she closed her fists, "then I will."
"You fucking bitch. You wanna go, then lets—"
"Will you shut up!" Gran Torino was almost tempted to let Ochako get in a few swings, just because he was done hearing Katsuki's mouth.
Almost.
"What do you think is going to happen kid? What?" Gran Torino was racing to get this taken care of. Because if it went on too long, things would get messy.
"He only cares about himself. Nothing would make him happier than to sell Deku out. Either to the media, or the League of Villains themselves."
Katsuki almost did a double take. "Are you fucking high?"
"We both know you'd rather be on their side. You're more a villain than any kind of hero. You'd join their side just out of spite and jealousy." Gran Torino was unsettled with that. Because it sounded like Ochako actually believed it.
Katsuki spat, "You dumb fucking bitch. You think I'd ever go to their side? You think I'd want to join a group of losers?" Katsuki's face twisted, a feral snarling grin spread over his face as his red eyes glowed, reflecting his determination. "News flash, bitch. I only care about winning. And the best kind of winning is the way I've seen All Might win. Any other kind of victory would just taste like ash. No matter what, nothing will ever change that!"
Katsuki's hands were turned upward, fingers curled into claws as his palms smoked. "As for Deku and One for All, I don't give a shit. In fact, this is perfect. All it means is that when I beat him and become the strongest hero, it means I beat him and All Might combined. A perfect fucking victory for me."
Katsuki's voice was getting more deranged, more twisted and crazy. "I can't fucking beat him if he's not at his fucking best. So I need him to get strong. I need him training all that power he's got now. And I won't fucking let anything fuck that up. Psychokinesis, Boric Pyre and One for All. Deku will have all of that, and he'll still only ever be second. So do you get it? I'm the best fucking person to know this shit, because I'm the only one here that's going to work to make sure Deku is at his best! Because that's the only way I'll ever accept my win."
Gran Torino wasn't sure if that was the most psychotic thing he'd ever heard or the most inspirational. It was twisted, self-serving and fucked up. But it also made his position crystal clear. Any threat of him being a turncoat, was utterly ridiculous.
"Well kid," Gran Torino asked, "I think that should settle this dispute. Don't you think?"
Ochako's eyes darted over Katsuki. Her face twisted with every word he said. She hated him. Hated hated hated him. And the idea that he had been brought into this group of trust ripped at her soul but, and as much as it made her physically sick to think it, she couldn't detect any kind of lie from Katsuki's fucked up counter to her. She could taste blood and bile as she was forced to acknowledge the simple, hateful, truth. "Fine."
Gran Torino sighed, oh thank god. "Okay. This is done. And out of respect for Midoriya I'm going to say this once. This doesn't get brought up. This never happened. You," he looked at Katsuki, "left and you," he turned back to look at Ochako, "went to the bathroom like you said you were doing. I got strings I can pull if this got recorded by security. So don't even think about it. This didn't happen. Move on. Understand?"
Katsuki huffed and turned to walk away. "Fuck if I care."
"Bakugou!" Ochako called after him. Her eyes narrowed into slits, with death reflecting in them. "If you ever do anything to betray the trust Deku's given you, I will kill you."
No one in the hallway doubted for a second that Ochako wasn't bluffing. That wasn't a threat. That was a promise of intent. Ochako would kill him.
From the shadows in the hallway, a yellow eye watched the three disperse. Fortunately for Gran Torino, the camera's in that area had suffered a little technical glitch. Himiko would have to make sure to return Mei's little device quickly. Seeing Katsuki leaving, then Ochako, with Gran Torino soon after… She knew things would get bad. She had seen the look in Ochako's eyes. Fortunately, apparently Mei wasn't totally insane, since she had passed her device to her, and told her what button to press to turn off the cameras.
Letting out the breath she had been holding, Himiko slipped back towards All Might's office. She had been ready to step in if Gran Torino hadn't been able to get things under control. She loved Ochako too much to let her hands get stained with blood. If anyone was going to deal with Katsuki, should the need arise, she would be the one to do it.
Izuku and Ochako, they were the ones that needed to stand out in the light. They needed to be the ones that were beacons of hope for the future. Himiko, she knew her role, even if she kept it hidden from them. In Green Tea Rescue, she was the one that would get her hands dirty. She was the one that would walk in the shadows, and tread through the muck and blood.
She would not let either of the ones she loved touch the darkness of this world.
The hour was late and the sun now set under the horizon. Izuku grabbed his bag and hummed happily as he moved to get off the empty train. Behind him, Ochako walked to see him off. Her stop was a little down the line. Stepping off the train, he turned to look at Ochako, and beamed up at her. "We did it, Uraraka. We passed."
Ochako's smile matched Izuku's. "We sure did."
The train gave a small announcement that the doors would soon be closing and that passengers should stay clear. "Um, Uraraka?"
"Yes, Deku? What is…" Ochako paused when she saw that Izuku's cheeks had turned a little pink. "…it?"
"I… haven't forgotten my promise."
Ochako flushed and fidgeted around. "O-oh? That's… that's good." She didn't think he was going to confess now of course, but hearing him say that, it made her feel all warm inside. "I'm… really looking forward to us getting to talk."
Now it was Izuku's turn to feel all warm. "Okay. I just… wanted you to know that." Izuku glanced down at his shoes, shifting his weight from one to another. "Um… Uraraka… Can I ask you a question?" If Izuku was pink before, he was now a glossy apple red. Ochako found it adorable. "So… earlier today… You um…"
Oh… Oooh. It didn't take Ochako long at all to figure out what Izuku was getting at.
"You… said that…I could…" Izuku moved his hands, mimicking the outline of something similar to an hourglass shape., "Were you you…" Izuku wasn't able to finish anything he started to ask, but Ochako understood every single word said and left unsaid.
Was I serious about letting Deku touch me?
Had she just been teasing, or had the offer been sincere?
Perhaps the day's events emboldened her. Maybe now that certain feelings between them were out in the open, despite the promise of them giving each other another chance to talk about them, Ochako didn't feel the need to hold back. Maybe Himiko had become a really bad influence on her.
Regardless of the reason, Ochako leaned forward, and cupped Izuku's cheeks with her hands, her pinkies extended so she didn't accidentally float him away. "Deku." Her voice was soft and sweet. Like a rich velvet cake. "I'll make you a promise. After we have our talk, I'll let you know. Okay?"
Izuku gulped hotly. Ochako could feel his body starting to heat up. It made her fingertips tingle. The whole situation made her own body feel hot. With a touch and some soft words, she could make Izuku melt in her hands. Forget feeling emboldened, she felt empowered.
On the flip side, Ochako remembered the way it had felt when Izuku had held her that night after their special dinner. His hands on her waist, then those fingers brushing over the small of her back. There was a very real and guaranteed possibility that she'd be putty in Izuku's hands too.
A melody came through the train speakers. A final warning that the train would be leaving the station and that the doors would be closing any moment.
Gingerly, Ochako pulled away. As her fingers ran along Izuku's cheeks, Izuku took an unconscious step forward, trying to keep the contact. But all too soon they were separated, Ochako on the train, and Izuku on the station. The doors creaked as they started to close.
"Good night, Deku."
"Good night Uraraka."
Izuku watched the train leave and almost floated down the road from the station. Today, honestly, had been amazing. Some surprising twists and turns, yes, and getting a chance to sucker-punch Katsuki had been surprisingly therapeutic, but in the end, it had all worked out.
Reaching home, Izuku threw open the door, "Mom, Eri! I'm home!"
Inko stuck her head into the hallway. "Izuku!" She came out and wrapped her son up in a hug. "How did your tests go?"
"It went great actually," Izuku said proudly. "Sorry I'm a little late for dinner, though."
"Oh, it's fine. I'll get it warmed up for you," Inko said happily.
Izuku kicked off his shoes when he noticed there was an extra pair by the door. "Do we have guests?"
"Oh yes," Inko said as she and Izuku walked into the living room. "You'll never guess who came by to visit. You remember Doctor Tsub