The room was silent as the screen went blank. The student's eyes all turned to another monitor, displaying an expanding plume of smoke rising from the massive hole just blown out of the roof of the building.
"Woah…" The silence was broken by a stunned Sato.
"Dude, what was that?!" Kaminari cried out.
"It was like an actual bomb went off!" Mina had sparkles in her eyes as she stared at the still rising cloud of ash and dust.
"Did you see the way Midoribro deflected it?" Kirishima lifted his head and arms toward the sky as he cried out. "It was so MANLY!"
As the class loudly discussed the fight they just witnessed, only four of the students were silent, eyes still on the black screen.
Tsuyu stood frozen in Himiko's arms, unable to look away from the empty screen. Something about what she had just witnessed bothered her, but she couldn't place exactly why. The way Himiko's grip on her tightened more and more as time went on told her that her instincts were spot on.
Something horrible had just occurred, and not a single one of their classmates had even noticed.
"They don't even realize what just happened, do they?"
None of them, except for Yaoyorozu, it seemed.
She turned, seeing the tall woman standing next to them. She had a concerned look on her face as her gaze stayed glued to the largest monitor.
"No, ribbit. The explosion broke the cameras too soon for them to notice, I think." Tsuyu muttered.
"The cameras didn't break."
Tsuyu turned her head to stare at the woman hugging her tightly, a confused and worried ribbit escaping her lips as she caught sight of her friend's face.
Himiko, whose face was normally flushed red with blood whenever she was near one of her two favorite people in the world, was currently pale as a ghost. Her pupils, having had the admittedly cute change in shape that cats were known for, were narrow slits. Her breathing was tight, as if she was moments away from having a panic attack.
Tsuyu had seen Himiko have similar moments during the first year the trio had known each other. When she was still acclimating to staying with the Midoriyas, she would sometimes have nightmares, dreams where she was still at that awful place with her awful parents.
She would be locked away in a dark room, told over and over again that she would never see her friends again, that she was a monster and that she would be "Fixed for good this time".
Tsuyu or Inko always had to hold the girl as she cried herself back to sleep. It had taken months before the night terrors eventually stopped.
…Probably because she made it a habit of sneaking into Izu's bed most nights to cuddle him as she slept.
Tsuyu would have almost chuckled, if that look of horror wasn't on her friend's face right now.
Her throat tightened as she took in Himiko's expression, unable to form the question just on the tip of her tongue.
She was suddenly very thankful Yaoyorozu was also there.
"W-what do you mean, To-Himiko?" It was clear the woman had also caught on, as her brows scrunched up, her hands clenching together in front of her. "How do you know?"
"I know they didn't break, because All Might turned them off."
This comment brought the other women up short, their gazes turning back to the console at the front of the room, only now noticing that something was missing.
The churning worry in Tsuyu's gut suddenly plummeted like cold lead as she realized what it was.
"Speaking of All Might, ribbit, when did he leave?"
A pair of mismatched eyes stared up at the blank screen.
Todoroki had been paying extremely close attention to this fight. With the fight consisting of two of the major powerhouses of the class, it was very important that he not miss a single detail.
This was why had noticed the details that none of his class had.
The exchange All Might had with Bakugou, his mind filling in the gaps based on the large man's order to stop the attack. The unrepentant smile the blonde had when he ignored the order.
What truly happened right at the end of the fight when the two forces met.
The fact that All Might turned the screen off, before sprinting out of the room too fast for most eyes to follow.
His eyes narrowed at the last detail.
"Hmm…
Izuku groaned as the world seemed to fuzz back into existence.
He opened his eyes and tried to move as everything swirled around him, only to find his body stuck.
He looked down, blinking his eyes to try and clear his blurry vision, finding himself buried under some stone and other debris.
His arms ached as he pushed himself free of the rubble, stumbling to his feet as he pulled himself out.
As he stood there on his two feet, he shook his head trying to remember what had happened. He rubbed his eyes as memories came back to him.
Being in class, entering the building with Uraraka, having the fight with Bakugou so that the the gravity girl would have a chance to find the bomb.
It was as he remembered the final attack, and his last ditch effort to counter it, that he realized something else.
He pulled his hands away from his eyes, still blinking to try and clear his vision. His… hands.
He could have sworn he was still in his wolf form when he lost consciousness, yet here he was, bruised and aching, in his human form.
"Did I transform back when I fell unconscious? Maybe that's why everything hurts. Maybe I transformed back while in the air, and impacted the wall in my human shape?"
His brows furrowed in confusion at the thought.
"That doesn't make any sense. I've fallen asleep as a wolf, but didn't transform back. Pretty sure I've fallen unconscious before during training and didn't change back, so why did I do it now?"
He shook his head again, his thoughts and vision still hazy.
"Maybe I got a concussion from hitting the wall? Nothing a quick transformation won't fix."
A plan set to fix his remaining injuries, he activated his quirk, sure that it would-
Izuku fell to his hands and knees as a surge of weakness washed over him. He struggled to breath as he fought to stay awake, darkness creeped in at the edges of his suddenly clear vision.
His everything narrowed in on that need to stay awake, to get up.
"Come on, get up… she might shtill need my help…" He tried to encourage himself to fight, but his words were slurring as the darkness continued to creep in.
He was moments from falling unconscious again, but he couldn't let himself. Not when the victors hadn't been announced yet. It couldn't have been but moments since he deflected Bakugou's attack, right? Surely not long enough for the fight to be over.
He felt a large hand land on his shoulder. He tensed up as much as his tired body could, expecting another attack, only to sag in relief as a voice reached his ears.
"It's alright, Young Midoriya, the battle is over."
Izuku barely managed to lift his head enough to see the large form of his mentor crouched before him.
He blinked dumbly as he tried to comprehend the words.
"B-but, the bomb…Uraraka. She shtill needs my help…" It was becoming harder to think. As every second passed, it became harder and harder to stay awake.
All Might chuckled, shaking his head in exasperation.
"Not to worry, that last move you pulled gave her the chance to secure the bomb." The large man spoke softly, trying to convey something, but it was oh so hard to worry about that as a fresh wave of relief almost brought him under.
"Oh… That's good…" Speaking was difficult, every blink of his eyes becoming harder to open.
He felt himself being lifted into an embrace that made him feel safer than he's probably ever been.
Well, not as much as when Himiko and Tsuyu hugged him. Nothing ever beat a hug from his two best friends. They gave the best hugs, even with Himiko sometimes nibbling on him, or Tsuyu sticking her tongue to him. It only made them better.
Not that he would ever tell them that.
Izuku felt himself giggle like a fool as his mind wandered.
"Now then, let's get you to Recovery Girl so we can get you fixed up." He felt the rhythmic rocking of the large man walking carefully, holding Izuku in his arms. "And while your recovering, I believe Nezu will be having a word with Young Bakugou about his actions today."
The last thing Izuku heard as his teach/mentor sped up, as he slipped back into unconsciousness, was a door in the distance slamming open, and someone desperately calling his name.
The doors slamming open announced All Might's return, holding an unconscious Izuku in his arms.
"Zuku!"
"Izu-kins!"
Tsuyu and Himiko ran up to the large man, panicking at the sight of their hurt friend.
All Might paused, the leg that he had used to kick the door open dropping down as if he were about to take a step. His eyes widened when he took in the class, almost like he had forgotten they were even there.
The women reached the hero, both of them resting a hand against Izuku's shirtless form.
"All Might, ribbit, is he ok?" Tsuyu asked, her blank stare not leaving the heroes eyes, looking for reassurance.
Himiko couldn't tear her worried eyes away from Izuku's shirtless form. She felt her face heat up at the sight of his chest.
The two women heard the rest of the class coming closer, voicing their own concerns over their injured classmate, but unable to process any of it.
"Don't worry, he's just unconscious. I'm taking him to Recovery Girl to make sure he is ok." He smiled down at the two women as he spoke.
He turned his gaze to the class as a whole.
"On that note, class will be ending here! Please go ahead and return to the locker rooms to change out of your costumes. Please consider how they functioned today, as our next class will be covering how they can be improved. Now watch as I leave the room, like a Hero in need!"
All Might proceeded to dash out of the room, a blast of wind following in his wake.
The two women hesitated a moment, something itched at the back of Tsuyu's mind.
Something about the smile the number one hero put on had bothered Tsuyu, but she couldn't quite figure out why. It looked wrong.
All Might was known for smiling even in the face of great danger, so it wasn't a stretch to believe that he was fantastic at putting on a fake smile.
Something about the one he just showed them seemed forced, even for the number one hero. He had kept glancing down at the young man in his arms, something along the lines of concern flashing in his glowing blue eyes.
Whatever had just happened in the test site wasn't just bad. If whatever it was had All Might of all people concerned, then it must have been terrible.
The doors swung open again, showing Uraraka, gasping for breath as she rushed into the room, towards Tsuyu and Himiko.
"Where's Midoriya, is he ok?!"
Bakugou was pissed.
Not only had that damned mutt survived his attack, that stupid cheeks had managed to grab the bomb before he could finish the job.
And to add insult to injury, All Might had gone out of his way to grab the idiot after the match was over.
He seethed as he entered the locker room, ignoring all the extras praising how amazing his quirk was. Of course it was amazing. It was his quirk, after all.
He slammed his locker closed as he finished changing back into his school uniform. He sped towards the door to exit, determined to vent his anger out at the gym on campus.
"Maybe I can use shitty hair as a punching bag. His quirk should make a good punching to test out my quirk on. I need a moving target to practice with."
He exited the room, stopping dead when he caught sight of the man waiting outside.
Leaning back against the wall next to the door was their homeroom teacher, Eraserhead.
Something about the glare leveled on Bakugou sent a chill down his spine, but he refused to look away, to let the man know he was scared of him.
After a few seconds of silence, Bakugou's nerves were starting to get the better of him. He was just about to curse the man out, when Aizawa spoke.
"Follow me, Bakugou. The Rat wants to have a word."
Eraserhead turned around and walked away, not even bothering to check if the blond had heard the order.
Cursing under his breath, Bakugou followed after him.
The next few minutes were infuriating. The bomber kept asking what the hell the Dean would want with him and was met only with silence.
The part that was really pissing him off was that his teacher was giving no outward signs that he was even hearing him.
Bakugou was considering cursing the man out again, when they stopped in front of a set of large wooden doors.
Something about how plain they were seemed off to him. He figured the Dean of UAU would have had something a bit more ornate carved into the wood. Even putting some edging around the sides make them stand out some, but no, they were just plain wood.
He would have almost called them cheap if it weren't for the fact that they stood between him and possibly the smarted man in Japan.
There's no way Nezu would skimp out on the doors leading into his office, considering the absurd budget this school had, right?
The doors swung open before Eraserhead even had the chance to knock, a squeaky voice calling out to them.
"Do come in, please."
As they entered, Bakugou took in the oddly bare room. He had expected to see several diplomas hung on the walls, various trophies or awards from his work as a hero sitting on shelves, but none of that was found.
The walls were bare except for a one covered in photos, none of which showed Nezu in them. They all showed heroes, or more precisely, hero students. Some were of the student receiving diplomas, like on graduation day, others showed bruised and battered men and women. They had proud smiles on their faces, the frames listing whatever deed they had just finished performing during their time at UA.
From saving hostages, to capturing villains, to saving people from burning buildings. A few even listed the hero as having just saved a kid's cat from being stuck in a tree.
Not a single picture listed something Nezu himself had done.
"I see you are taking in my little collection. Quite impressive isn't it?"
Bakugou's eyes turned forward, towards the speaker.
Sitting in a chair far too large for him, yet somehow designed to seat him comfortably, right at desk level, was a small anthropomorphic weasel of some sort.
Nezu sipped from a cup of what smelled like tea, smiling lightly as he savored the taste.
A smile that immediately set Bakugou on edge. He couldn't tell why, but something about the animal had him sweating.
Maybe it was the scar marring his face, or the smile that held no kindness. Maybe it was the beady black eyes that refused to blink as he stared at the young man.
He couldn't figure it out, but whatever it was told Bakugou that he was not going to enjoy this meeting.
"W-what? Collection?" Was all he could force through his suddenly clenching throat.
"Yes, my collection!" Bakugou almost sagged in relief when the Dean turned his attention away, his smile turning almost fond as he looked over at the picture filled wall. "Every photo hung on the wall captures the first act of heroism a student has performed during their time here at UA. It's always unfortunate when we have to rotate the older pictures out. Only so much space on the wall, and with how many students we get every year, it's inevitable that new ones take up the spaces of the old."
Nezu sighed, almost sadly.
"At least we give them to their respective heroes when they get swapped out. A little reminder of where they came from. It warms my heart to see my students grow from the hopeful children they arrive here as, into the great heroes they become when they leave. A few special cases usually survive the rotations, but not many. Would you believe that some heroes even ask to get them before it's their turn to be taken down?"
The small mammal chuckled wistfully.
"Not all of them grew to be amazing heroes. Some even decided to become small time. Focus more on helping people in their neighborhoods. From helping people rescue lost pets, to helping older folk when their bodies make it too difficult for them to move around. I am proud of every one of my students, even those who don't take the hero course. I even keep the photos of those who retire early. From crippling injuries to those who lose their lives. I even keep the ones for heroes who decide that this life isn't for them."
Nezu took another sip of his tea.
"Why would I keep the photos of heroes who quit, you might ask? Very few heroes make it out of the business unscathed. Most keep going until they can't anymore, so it's a wonderful day when a hero is able to retire, and live out a peaceful life. I'm proud of every student who graduates from my school, even those who only last a year or two, realizing the hero life is too much. I'm proud of each and every one of them."
Nezu sighed fondly as he stopped talking, finishing off his cup of tea and making himself another.
"You're probably wondering why I'm telling you all this, instead of jumping straight to why I invited you here, yes?"
Bakugou nodded his head dumbly. He still struggled to form words.
"I am explaining this to you, so you understand the importance of what I am about to tell you."
The weasel's smile dropped as he turned to Bakugou.
"I have no intention of ever putting you up on that wall."
Bakugou wasn't stupid. He knew that for every one of Nezu's students to make it up on that wall at one point or another, would mean that even worthless heroes made it up there.
To not make it up on that wall. The implications could only mean one thing. To not make it onto that wall meant not graduating.
Were they… kicking him out? No, they wouldn't do that, he was the strongest student there! There was no way they would expel the NEXT NUMBER ONE HERO!
"Not as you are now."
Bakugou had just been about to lash out; to tell them how stupid it would be to kick him out of UA. Instead, Nezu's words made him quirk an eyebrow in confusion.
"I believe that every one of my students have the potential to excel in any field of study they choose during their time here. Heroics, support technicians, business, all of them. That said, they must not only show that they want to be in that field, but that they will improve that field with their presence."
Nezu let a silence linger for a moment, to let his words sink in as he took another sip of his tea.
Of course they would only keep people who improve things. It's better that they separate the chaff from all the rest. The useless people shouldn't be UAU. It would just drag everyone else down with them.
…So then why was he here. Why was Nezu telling him all of this.
"Tell me, Bakugou. Do you believe you becoming a hero would improve the world of Heroics in any way?"
The question baffled the blonde. What kind of stupid question was that?
"Of course I would! When I become the Number One hero, I'll be taking out more villains than even All Might!"
"Just taking down villains? What about civilians, do you not intend to help them?" Nezu tilted his head as he asked the question.
"Who cares about them. If they needed my help, then that's on them! They should have stayed out of the way!"
Nezu's smile dropped at the young man's response.
"I see… in that case I have one final question for you, before we get to the ultimate goal of this meeting." The mammal put his hands together as he leaned forward. "Do you believe that heroes should be punished if they commit a crime?"
Bakugou narrowed his eyes at the question.
"What does it matter what I think? If those dumbasses want to fuck around, then they should get what's coming to them!"
Nezu's smile returned, and he clapped his hands together.
"I'm glad we agree. Now let us get to the crimes that you have committed, Mr. Bakugou!"
The loudmouthed blonde's eyes bulged.
"WHAT?! What crimes?! I haven't done anything!"
The rat just chuckled, reaching forward to punch a few keys into his computer.
"Oh I beg to differ, Mr. Bakugou. Property damage, battery, use of excessive force, disobeying the direct orders of a hero filling the role of your instructor."
Nezu paused at the last charge.
"…Attempted murder."
Bakugou's jaw dropped at the last accusation.
"While most of these can be washed away as being part of battle training, even expected during your time here, the last two are far too serious to let slide. At UAU, it is imperative that you follow the instructions of your teachers. If they tell you not to do something, it would be in your best interest to stop whatever it is you are doing immediately."
Bakugou flinched at the last word. Something about the way it was said made that same unknown feeling he had been having this entire talk spike in severity.
"Disobeying your instructors is usually punishable by giving you extra homework, detention, or even suspension depending on the level of severity."
That feeling seemed to abate a little. So what if he gets suspended, he could just make up the missing work by putting in even more effort than he has been.
"Attempted murder, however, cannot be so easily dismissed. While we may not be pushing full charges on you, as this could be construed as a training accident, we will be removing you from the Heroics Course."
"WHAT?! You can't remove me! And what do you mean I tried to kill someone; that's a fucking LIE!"
Bakugou was seeing red, there was no way this RODENT was expelling Katsuki Bakugou from UA!
"Oh, I assure you, I can. And as for me lying about what you've done?" Nezu reached over, pressing a button that turned on a screen hanging on the wall behind him, displaying a familiar scene.
"Young Bakugou, do NOT use that attack! It has not been properly vetted, and could cause severe injury or damage to the building!"
Bakugou felt that odd feeling again. It was growing to the point where it was becoming impossible to ignore.
… and he had a terrible suspicion of what it really was.
"If he thinks he's so much faster than me. ALL HE HAS TO DO IS DODGE!"
Bakugou watched as he pulled the pin on his gauntlet and the wave of fire it released. The howl met his attack, the two merging and exploding upwards, blowing a hole up and out of the building he had just been in earlier that day.
The recording was paused, but he was unable to tear his eyes away.
"Do you understand now?" Nezu's voice was filled with a seriousness that confirmed Bakugou's suspicions.
That unfamiliar feeling, that felt so anathema to him?
It was fear.
"T-the hell are you talking about? I didn't kill him. I didn't even hit him; his stupid howl stopped it!"
The view on the screen had been from the side of the hall facing Bakugou's back, showing that his attack had in fact been stopped. That's how it appeared from that perspective, anyway.
"And that is where you are wrong, Mr. Bakugou. You did hit him."
Nezu pressed another button, showing a perspective from the opposite end of the hall, showing that damned Deku-mutt from behind as he faced the attack.
It showed him howling into the oncoming wave of fire and force, blowing most of it skywards as Bakugou remembered.
While it had redirected most of it, there was only so much you can do by essentially yelling at a bomb, and a large wave of explosive energy still made it through the wolf's attack, engulfing him in flames.
The video paused as a smoking form was thrown out of the blast at high speeds, impacting the far wall with a crunch. The smoke wafting off the body made it impossible to determine the damage, but it wasn't lost on Bakugou that it had to be bad.
He felt a bead of sweat run down his forehead at the sight.
"S-so what if he got hit? His quirk heals him, I SAW him transformed back!"
Nezu nodded in agreement with the desperate excuse.
"Yes, his healing is honestly quite incredible. Healing damage even as his transformation breaks his body down. It's not unreasonable to assume he might be able to recover from this. Tell me, how much do you know about healing quirks?"
Bakugou gulped nervously, racking his brain frantically to recall everything he's learned about the very few healing quirks that existed.
"W-well, there aren't many of them. I-including Recovery Girl, there aren't a lot of them in the world."
"There are many individuals listed as having a "Healing Quirk", only about 7 of them cover full body recovery. These do not include quirks along the lines of a lizard tail that can fall off and be regrown, I mean the type of healing that effects the whole body, and only 1 person over in Italy can regrow limbs. But even that does not come without cost."
By this point, Nezu had clambered up onto his desk and started pacing back in forth as he continued his lecture.
"Tell me, Mr. Bakugou, what do these, and even most emitter quirks, have in common?"
The blonde's brow furrowed in confusion.
"I know Recovery Girl's quirk uses the stamina of whoever it's used on to do its healing, so most emitters use some form of internal energy… So they all use something to make them work, I guess? What does that matter?"
Nezu paused in his pacing and pointed a furry finger at Bakugou.
"Precisely! They all require some form of resource to make them work, thus making their use ultimately finite, depending on the situation. Pending a period for recovery, of course."
The mammal hopped back into his too large chair and clicked away at his keyboard again.
"You asked me why it matters? Young Midoriya is currently in the nurses office, with Recovery Girl running scans on him. Do you know what those scans said?"
Bakugou could only shake his head in the negative.
"Young Midoriya is suffering from a severe case of quirk exhaustion. This means, that he pushed his quirk to the absolute limit to heal himself."
The blonde froze in his seat as the Dean of UA turned his gaze upon him. Those beady black eyes seemed to tear through him, as if he was staring directly into his soul.
"If you had done more damage than you did, there is a very good chance Young Midoriya would not have survived your attack, and here you are, without a speck of guilt or regret. That is why I am removing you from the heroics course."
Bakugou felt like the world was collapsing around him. His future as number one hero seemed to be slipping from his fingers.
A spark of hope came to him. UA may be a bust, but perhaps he could-
"And before you get any silly ideas, understand that I am contacting all other hero schools to apprise them of this incident, and to forbid you entry to any heroic courses in Japan. While I may be permitting to you remain in our General Education courses, be aware that you will be taking mandatory therapy sessions with Hound Dog twice a week, possibly more if he feels it is necessary."
Nezu pressed another button on his desk, and Bakugou barely heard the doors to the office swing open.
"Please remove yourself from my office, and start packing your things. Someone will be by to escort you to the General Education dormitories."
Bakugou hesitated, trying to muster up a rebuttal, and argument of any kind. Those eyes, though… They promised no quarter, no negotiation. They practically begged him to say something, just looking for an excuse to make things even worse for him.
He rose to his feet, his body running on autopilot as he headed for the open doors.
"Mr. Bakugou, one more thing?"
The shell shocked man slowly turned, returning his gaze to that monster disguised as a fuzzy animal.
"If I do not see substantive improvement from you by the end of your four years here, you will be barred from graduating from this school, is that understood?"
Bakugou nodded dumbly, and let his feet continue to carry him away.
Nezu sighed as he watched the door close behind the young man.
"Are you sure that was a wise choice? If it were me, I would have expelled him on the spot." The voice came from the only remaining occupant of the room.
"Why Shota, that's precisely why the decision was ultimately mine to make!" Nezu cackled at the ever-tired Eraserhead, who had been standing behind the blonde malcontent in case he tried anything.
"I'm serious, Rat. He's a liability. If he takes his anger out on any of the other students-"
"Then he will be removed." Nezu interjected. "My decision to keep him here was not made lightly."
Nezu's expression turned contemplative.
"Villains have been on the rise in the last few years, and missing people rates continue to rise. With All Might's dwindling time every day, we can't afford to turn someone like Bakugou out onto the streets. His hot-blooded nature could push him towards becoming a vigilante if he loses the path to becoming a hero. Or worse…"
"You're worried he could become a villain?" Shota's eyes narrowed.
"Yes. The records from his previous school are too clean to get a proper baseline of his history, but from what we've seen of him so far? It is very like that he would turn vindictive, and take his anger out on other people. It wouldn't the first time a dejected hero hopeful changed sides after being expelled. It's why we as a hero school must be better than the others. It is our duty as educators to try and help them, even if they don't realize they need it themselves."
The perpetually tired man groaned as he seemed to accept the logic.
Shota always was Nezu's favorite pet. He could always be convinced to see things his way eventually. He was also one of the most pragmatic humans he had ever met, which helped.
"Fine." Shota grumbled, sending a glare at the not-a-man. "But if this comes back to bite us, it will be entirely on you."
"Of course, Of course. I will be keeping a close eye on him going forward." Nezu wave the man off. "With that inconvenience out of the way, I believe we have some scheduling to deal with. With 1-A short a student so early in the semester, some of our curriculum will need to be adjusted to account for the odd number of students in their class."
Shota grunted noncommittally, and exited the office, leaving Nezu alone.
He pressed a button on his desk, a shutter sliding closed on the only window in the room, blocking out both light and keeping any possible surveillance from looking in. He turned his chair so that he faced the screen showing the paused video of the battle trial.
He reached back, pressing another button, and the video resumed.
He watched as the smoke cleared from Midoriya's body as the wall crumbled, partially burying him in debris. He stared intently as the wolf's head was revealed.
…Or what was left of it.
His face had been scorched through skin and muscle, showing bone in various locations. His eyes had been flash-boiled, leaving only empty sockets behind. His ears were reduced to charred nubs. His front legs showed similar levels of burning, leaving just red muscle.
Moments later, the familiar flash of light encompassed Midoriya, leaving the human lying there, covered in debris. He almost looked unblemished, except for the burn scar running down the left side of his cheek down his chin in a long triangular pattern ending partway down his pectoral.
Nezu suspected that Midoriya was extremely lucky. If scars could be left behind after his regenerative healing, there's no telling how much worse this incident could have been.
He watched the boy struggle to his feet, and collapse as he attempted to transform. It was almost a relief that the burn disappeared, but Nezu understood the what it meant.
He had pushed his body to heal with nothing left in the tank.
He wasn't positive what the consequences would be for doing so, but had his suspicions.
He felt his paws clenching, a low growl escaping his normally well-maintained mask.
Nezu turned back to his desk, pulling a drawer open and removing a blank, unsuspecting notebook.
Flipping it open, the mammal couldn't help the feral grin that spread across his muzzle.
This whole incident had gotten him riled up, and there was one thing that always did a fantastic job of mollifying his baser urges.
Turning his gaze towards the page, taking in all of the names running down the paper. He passed over all of those that were crossed out, locking his gaze on a particular name yet to me marked.
Some people were due an unpleasantness, and Nezu was in just the right mood put in his maximum effort.
"Plus Ultra indeed…"
A well-known rumor spread to a new year of students, as cackling could be heard from every ventilation shaft throughout the school.
Izuku's eyes flickered open, irritated by a bright light overhead. He promptly closed them tight when he registered the headache driving a spike through his brain.
The sound of yelling coming from nearby certainly didn't help.
"Will you two PLEASE get out of my office?! You will disturb my patient!" The irritated voice from an older woman spoke.
"That patient is our friend." A younger feminine voice responded.
"I don't care what he is to you; he needs his rest. And all of this yelling is not going to help!" The first voice again.
"I'm sorry if this comes off as rude, ribbit, but you're yelling too." A new voice spoke up.
"Yes, because speaking at a lower volume is CLEARLY not getting through to you youngsters!"
Izuku groaned, holding his head as another spike of pain wracked his already frazzled mind.
"Izu-kins!" A yellow blur leaned over what he now realized was a bed in the nurses office.
He blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision, recognizing the familiar sight of Himiko now inches from his face.
"Izu-kins, are you alright? How many fingers am I holding up?!" The concerned questions only exacerbated the aching in his head.
"Himi, I'm fine." He reached a hand up, placing it on her head to give her some fond pats. "And you aren't holding up any fingers."
The blonde blinked owlishly, eyes dilating as the head pats continued. She looked down, only now seeming to notice that she had her hands clutching tightly to a hospital gown that had been put on him at some point.
Whether it was to save his modesty or standard procedure, Izuku wasn't sure.
Izuku winced as a syringe-shaped cane impacted the side of the bed.
"You are most definitely not fine!" Came the voice of who he now remembered was Recover Girl. "You're suffering from what is possibly one of the worst cases of quirk exhaustion I've seen in years! What in the world did you do to push yourself that hard?"
Izuku grimaced at the diagnosis. He tried to recall exactly what had happened. He remembered deflecting part of Bakugou's attack with his howl, but then everything had gone black.
A flash of waking up in his human form before being picked up by All Might crossed his mind.
"I... I think I transformed during the battle trials? I don't really remember; I was unconscious at the time." Izuku shrugged, still petting Himiko's head, who was now purring.
She was currently resting her head against his chest, eyes closed as she enjoyed his touch.
"Ribbit, this is after taking a bomb to the face." Tsuyu added helpfully.
"Hey, I deflected it!" Izuku said indignantly, only to curl in on himself when Tsuyu gave him one of the most deadpan stares he'd ever seen from her. "Mostly…"
"So you used your quirk to heal yourself." Recovery Girl muttered, currently in serious nurse mode. "Have you often used your transformation to heal yourself?"
"Yes. But I've never been this tired after doing it before." The greenette answered.
The older woman hummed, stepping over to a nearby computer. What looked like a bunch of medical information was being displayed.
"The damage must have been quite severe then. You are exhibiting symptoms similar to people with emitter quirks who have pushed themselves to the absolute limit."
"I wouldn't know about the damage. I woke up after having already transformed, fully healed. Er, mostly healed."
Recovery Girl turned to him; a brow quirked in curiosity.
"Mostly healed?"
"W-well, when I woke up, I felt sore, and my eyes were kind of blurry. I figured that because I had transformed while unconscious, so I tried to transform again. Only…"
"Yes?" The nurse's eyes narrowed slightly.
"O-only, I didn't transform. I-I just felt really tired, and almost fell back unconscious. That's when All Might showed up, and I guess he brought me here." Izuku was sheepishly scratching the back of his head with his free hand.
"Foolish. Absolutely FOOLISH!"
The shout caught Izuku off guard. He stared, wide eyed at the older woman as she paced back and forth. Every step she took, she slammed the cane down hard in obvious agitation.
"Do those buffoons seriously not teach you students anything about safety or control before pitting you against each other like a bunch of wild animals?!"
The three students watched the tirade with bewildered expressions. Even Himiko had opened to her eyes from the blissful head pats the watch.
"It's like they expect you youngsters to just figure things out on your own! Foolish, foolish, FOOLISH!."
"Um…" Izuku barely managed to mutter out.
Recovery Girl stopped her pacing, glare turning in their direction, before shifting to a softer smile.
"I'm sorry dearies. Don't mind me, I've just realized that some people are in for a long overdue talk. Here, have some gummies, they will help you regain some of your energy." She handed Izuku a small pouch of gummy bears with a grandmotherly smile. "They will have to do for now, as your are too exhausted for me to use my quirk on you right now."
The elderly woman pulled a cart towards the bed. It had what looked like a change of clothes and a plastic bag sitting on top of it.
"I had your personal effects brought up after you arrived here. Go ahead and get changed, and then get something more substantial to eat. Once you've recovered some more, I want you to come back for another check-up."
Her smile turned a bit more serious, something about it unnerving Izuku.
"And no using your quirk until I've deemed you healthy enough, is that understood?!"
"Y-yes, man!" Izuku nodded his head slowly, trying to not agitate the rapidly receding head ache.
As Izuku downed the provided candy, Recovery Girl turned to the two women standing close to their friend.
"Best you two step out for a moment so he can get some privacy to change."
"Aw, do we have to~" Himiko whined. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind letting us watch, would you Izu-kins~?"
Izuku choked mid-swallow, his face rapidly heating up at the suggestion.
Himiko started laughing, only to get a cane to the shin.
"Out, the two of you! The last thing he needs while he recovers is him passing out from a lack of proper blood flow. Now shoo!" Recover Girl waved the vampire off, giving her a proper dose of the stink eye.
Tsuyu reached forward, pulling the still giggling blonde away.
"Come on, Himiko, ribbit. Let's wait for him outside the room."
Izuku gulped, finally getting control of his coughing fit, letting out a sigh of relief.
As the door shut behind the two women, Recovery Girl released a sigh, before turning back to the young man with a serious look that rapidly gave way to grandmotherly concern.
Or so he assumed. He didn't have a grandmother, so he wouldn't know.
"Now that those rascals are gone…" She seemed to hesitate. "I just want you to know, that as a nurse and registered doctor, I have sworn the Hippocratic oath to not spread the medical information of my patients. That said, since your were brought in here practically half naked, I couldn't help but catch a glance of certain… marks on your body."
Izuku had just grabbed the bundle of clothing and put a hand on the curtain surrounding the bed, preparing to close it for some privacy. He paused when her words registered.
"As your nurse, is there anything you would like to tell me deary? I promise that nothing you say will be spread to anyone else, not even the dean." Her tone was careful, not trying to force an answer.
Izuku turned his gaze to her, eyes shifting as if he were trying to detect something, breathing in a few times through his nose.
The concern she showed seemed genuine, and Izuku felt like a lump was suddenly in his throat.
Swallowing heavily, let a weak smile spread across his lips.
"Thank you, but… I-I don't want to talk about it. H-Himi and Tsu are already helping me get over it, but I appreciate it."
The nurse's expression turned almost… sad? She quickly shifted it to a more comforting smile.
"You shouldn't have to "get over" something like that, but I won't pry. Just know, that if you ever want to talk about it, I or our in-house therapist Hound Dog would gladly lend an ear."
Izuku's eyes started to burn, so he closed the curtain to hide them and the trembling he suddenly felt.
Hesitating, he turned towards the hidden hero/nurse, speaking softly.
"I… I'll think about it. Thank you."
"Anytime, deary."
He couldn't see whatever expression the small woman had, but her tone of voice carried with it a level of understanding brought that lump in his throat back.
Distracting himself, he quickly changed out of the hospital gown he wore, purposefully not looking down at his torso before donning his change of clothes.
As he opened the curtain, he tried to hide how he was feeling, but as he opened the door to exit he knew he failed.
As he met the gazes of his two best friends, their worried gazes told him that they knew what he was feeling.
They rushed forward to wrap him in a group hug that immediately made him feel warm inside, lifting his mood a little.
"Midoriya!"
Izuku turned to the side, still holding Tsuyu and Himiko tightly, to see a familiar bob of brown hair.
"Uraraka? What are you doing here?" He asked.
She held her hands together tightly in front of her chest. Her brows were scrunched together in worry as she walked up to the still hugging group.
"I-I wanted to make sure you were alright." Her eyes watered slightly. "After I grabbed the bomb, I rushed to try and see if you were ok. After that big explosion, I was worried you might have been hurt."
He watched as she started to fidget with one of her fingers with her other hand.
"W-when I heard that All Might brought you to the nurse's office, I was afraid something a-awful had happened. That you distracting Bakugou so I could run ahead had…" She bowed down, her hair hiding her face. "I'm sorry! I shouldn't have left you to face him alone. I-I should have stayed behind to help! Because of me, you got hurt…"
Izuku stared at her before looking down at the two women hugging him. It was then that he felt the wet patches bleeding through his school uniform.
He felt awful. Because of him, because he couldn't control himself and fight carefully, his friends were now crying, and Uraraka felt the need to apologize to him.
"I-it's alright. It was my fault that it happened." He felt his face scrunch up in guilt. "I was reckless, and I got hurt because of it."
He tried to put on a reassuring smile, but he could feel how brittle it truly was.
"I'm just glad to see that you're ok."
He heard Uraraka sniffle, and as she stood up, he realized that she was fighting back tears.
Both struggled to speak, wanting to, but unable to accept that the other was at fault.
Izuku was thankful that Tsuyu chose that moment to pull away from the hug.
She glared up at him with wet eyes.
"Neither of you are at fault, ribbit."
"Yeah, it's that Jerk Bakugluck's fault!" Himiko had pulled her head away from his chest to chime in, though she kept her arms wrapped around him.
Izuku was stunned. She often mashed Bakugou's name with other words to insult him when he was being especially awful. He suspected that she did it to draw the bully's attention away from his targets at the time, but that one always seemed to piss him off the most.
Somehow, her use of the name now had caught him off guard.
A noise brought his attention back to Uraraka, who was shaking, with her arms crossed over her gut. She was hunched over, her hair obscuring her face once again.
He was about to ask if she was alright when he heard a snort, then a giggle, then she turned her head up to let out full blown laughter.
Izuku watched in bafflement, turning his head when he heard Tsuyu let out a ribbit filled laugh.
He felt himself let out a small chuckle, feeling it turn into laughter when he caught sight of Himiko's proud smile.
Uraraka got a small manner of control back, wiping tears from her eyes as she look to the blonde with curiosity. "Bakugluck?"
"Yeah. Because he loves to suck his own dick so much!" The explanation mixed her absolutely unrepentant smirk had the three letting out uncontrollable belly laughs.
Izuku felt a weight lift off of him as he laughed. His turned a fond gaze back towards the far-too-proud-of-herself cat still glompfed into his side.
Tsuyu and Himiko always managed to make him feel better. Even his worst funks never seemed to survive more than 5 minutes when he was with them.
He felt butterflies in his stomach as he looked between the three women. Shaking his head, he pushed that feeling down.
"Probably just really hungry."
Almost as if the universe was agreeing with him, his stomach rumbled loudly, shocking everyone.
Another fit of giggles spread through them as his cheeks turned pink, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
Tsu was the first to get control of her giggling. Even so, a few still escaped as she spoke.
"Ribbit ribbit, on that note, I think we should all go get something to eat. Recovery Girl said he needed to eat to help him recover, and it's just about dinner time." With one hand she grabbed Izuku's free arm, and with the other she grabbed one of Uraraka's hands. "Let's head back to the dorms and I'll make some Katsudon for you, Izu."
She pulled them after her as she started walking down the hall, Himiko being pulled along on account of never having let go of the wolf man.
Izuku felt a smile spread across his face, so wide that it practically hurt. His watched the froggy woman as she pulled them along, still releasing little ribbity giggles every once in a while.
As he watched the bow her hair was customarily tied into sway back and forth, he couldn't help but think.
"Gods I love this woman."
…
"Wait, what?"