Chapter 46: What You Started Part 1
"How long until they-"
The air is taken from the son of Thor's lungs as All Might moves. He's gone before Izuku, Denki, Tenko, or Yaomomo can even register he was moving in the first place. But not Uncle Thor, who like the other blond hero, vanishes in a gust of wind.
Both heroes meet in the middle of the street, crashing into each other in a clash that breaks any glass still intact. The pair are content with simply pushing against each other's arms, displaying their strength. Thor's body is still lit with electricity that shocks All Might, but the Symbol of Peace doesn't even seem to notice.
"You are strong," Thor compliments, a wide smile on his face, his voice filled with excitement.
"Funny, I was going to say the same to you." All Might compliments back. "You know, considering your age."
Thor laughs boisterously. "I don't remember you having so many jokes on TV."
"Most villains I fight are unconscious before I can properly quip, so apologies if I am out of practice."
"That truly is a shame," Thor laments, and Izuku is pretty sure he's actually being genuine. "I am afraid I, too, have faced a similar problem these last few centuries. And none of my friends from work banter much these days."
"Let us try the quipping again, Hulk! Begin!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"I'm sorry for your loss."
"I thank you for your concern. So, do try to last long enough so we may exchange at least a few barbs." The lightning around the God of Thunder begins to accelerate once more.
"You'll find my stamina to be unending!!"
"As is mine!!"
Tenko bumps Izuku subtlety before whispering, "For Thor, we can just ask Kaminari's mom-"
"What was that?" Denki glares at his friend, clenching his fist as his own lightning starts to fizzle in and out.
"Nothing!"
Yaomomo looks as if she regrets their exam plans already.
"You're strong," Thor continues, unaware that his son was planning on subtracting a Tenko from the class behind him. "But, are you fast?"
All Might smirking is the only warning they get before the two heroes disappear again in a cloud of dust, only to reappear in another part of the city, punching each other, and creating a vicious gust of wind. Izuku is still trying to figure out where the pair is before they vanish again. Back and forth, Thor and All Might speed through the city, reappearing everywhere and anywhere for brief moments to punch each other, before disappearing again.
They appear once again, with Thor throwing All Might over his shoulder onto the road, cracking it. He puts his fists together to bring them down, but All Might blurs around him, punching the god in the side, and sending him sprawling into the side of a building.
All Might chases him, but Thor jumps forward, charging the hero. Thor dodges a punch, and hits All Might in the side of the knee, bringing the man down to a kneel, before hitting him with two more haymakers to the chest and head.
"Is that really-" Thor is cut off when All Might grabs his head. "Oh, I see you go for the head as well-" All Might picks up his opponent, and slams him down on the ground a few times for good measure, before throwing him.
Back with the kids, Tenko snickers. "Hey Kaminari, do you think your dad always goes for the h-"
"I swear to every god possible, Tenko."
Japan's number one hero jumps, and drives his fist into Thor, bringing them both back to the ground as they come to blows again. All Might dodges and backhands the other man, but Thor tanks it, and jumps onto All Might's back, putting the hero into a chokehold.
"You're faster than I realized." All Might leaps into the air, elbowing Thor in the side as they fall back down, back-first. "I guess, for this fight, I'll really have to put my back into it!" All Might crashes back down to Earth, landing on Thor harshly.
"Wow!" Thor chokes. "That pun hurt more than your attack!"
"This is so cool!" Izuku cheers, vibrating with excitement, as everyone else did the same. Even Yaomomo watches the fight closely, seemingly taken in by the power on display.
"Wait, Izuku, you have like ten phones!" Denki pats his shoulder rapidly. "Use one of them to start recording, quick!!"
"Yes…you should…" the four teens freeze when they realize it was none of them that spoke. Turning slowly around, they find a Ghost Rider that, despite the inability to make facial expressions, is very clearly expressing annoyance. "I almost feel as if I am committing a sin myself by making you miss this fight, but, I suppose I will have to learn to live with myself."
"He's…not supposed to be here," Denki unhelpfully points out. The exhaust pipes on the Rider's arms from Tensei's quirk rattle, as if answering the unspoken question of how he got there so fast. "Got anything, smart people?"
"He reminds me of a boss in a game I had to fight recently…" Tenko replies.
"How'd you beat him?"
"I didn't. Game log said to hide, and pray he doesn't find you."
"Now you tell me."
Ghost Rider takes a step forward, and everyone tenses…only for Mjölnir to smash into the Rider, and fly the demonic being away. "Oh!" The group turns to see Thor covering his mouth. "Must've slipped!" All Might cracks him in the side of the head for looking away.
There's a collective sigh of relief.
"Okay, since we have a way to communicate, we should split up to divide and conquer the teachers." Yaomomo takes charge, facing the group. Izuku smiles, excited for the fights, and happy to see how his classmate is holding herself. And after these exams, he'll find a way for the heroes outside of UA to see it too. "Remember to choose carefully, and go fight who you think you can beat. We can always fight some of our stronger opponents once we've gathered more of our classmates to help."
"Right!"
Shota exhales through his nose, jumping back to dodge Uraraka's next set of punches and kicks. The girl was learning quickly, but he was still leagues above her. And with his quirk erasing her win condition, removing his gravity, Shota is curious to see what she does.
Suddenly, his student thrusts her fist forward despite the distance between them, and one of her ten rings flies off her arm, streaking to Shota in a pink haze. It's too fast for him to dodge, and the device strikes him in the chest. It hurts, and pushes him back, but he's taken worse. But judging by the explosions he hears, she accomplished her mission of getting his eyes off Bakugo.
"I would've gotten out eventually!" the brash boy yells, before flying high into the air. Smart. With the sun almost directly above them, Shota won't be able to get a good look at Bakugo until he's right on top of him.
The Erasure Hero barely has time to roll out of the way as Uraraka doesn't let up. She keeps her distance, knowing she can't beat him up close, firing more of her rings at him while he dodges. Then, to switch things up, the gravity user extends most of the rings out together, creating an energy whip out of them that she brings down on top of him.
Barely dodging again, Shota nods in approval. Due to his lack of knowledge of her support item, and the weights slowing him down, she actually had him on the defensive for a moment. And he means only for a moment.
He weaves through a few more of her whip strikes before, while Uraraka has all her rings lashing out at him, Shota flings his scarf at her, wrapping around her leg, and pulling the girl off her feet. And just in time too. He hears Bakugo's yell of triumph as he throws himself down on top of him, but instead of erasing his quirk, Shota grabs him with his scarf, and throws the teen at Uraraka just as he's about to let off an explosion.
The brunette gasps, spinning her rings in front of her, and creating an energy shield just before Bakugo's explosion hits her, but the force still knocks her out of view. Bakugo charges him again, but Shota easily erases his quirk, and throws him to the side.
And here comes Uraraka again. A full-frontal assault. Mic tells him he has a secondary quirk that lets people know when he's disappointed in them. He hopes Uraraka can feel it with her choice of attack. She fights him again, her punches and kicks more focused and precise, even quicker. At least she hasn't lost her focus.
Uraraka displays a level of agility Shota didn't know she had, flipping and spinning through the air as she attacks him. This forces the hero to change his defense as his student swiftly dodges his counters, as if they've fought many times before.
"No matter how many fancy moves you try, that's never gonna work, Round Face!" Bakugo criticizes, getting back on his feet and attacking, forcing Shota to keep his eyes on the explosion user. He gets ready to wrap him up and take him out of the fight, permanently.
"Just calm down, Kacchan, I got this!" Uraraka yells back.
Shota raises an eyebrow while Bakugo's head perks up. "What'd you just call me?!"
"Oops…" Uraraka cringes, before a green light shines over her to reveal Midoriya in her place. Blackwhip wraps around Shota from behind, constricting his movements, and covering his eyes. As at the same time, a hand touches him, removing his gravity.
Oh, joy. His students are cheating.
Again.
Clearly, Shota needs to drop Midoriya off a higher structure next time.
Catching him has become optional.
Shota hears it before he feels it. But he saw her practicing many times in class to know exactly what was coming. The charging of power fills his ears as Uraraka puts five rings together, the objects whirling together in a circle to form an energy disc that she heaves at Shota.
His chest explodes in pain as Shota's weightless self is sent crashing into a building. It takes too long for his daze to dissipate, and when it does, Shota finds himself wrapped in his own scarf, hanging from a lightpost. His knife and caltrops removed from his person.
Shota lets out a long, suffering sigh as he sees Midoriya, Tenko, and Uraraka high-fiving each other while Bakugo grumbles behind him. "You're traveling to each other's testing sites now?" And of course, Nezu doesn't give them a heads up-
"Be warned, proctors!" Nezu's voice rings through his earpiece. "The students are traveling between sites to assist each other! Be aware, and be ready!"
The pro hero has a feeling Nezu waited until he was captured to announce that, and when he finds out why, Shota's revenge will be slow, methodical, and painful to all those involved.
"The point of this test was to put you in undesirable situations and see what you did with such odds," Shota says, probing to see how his students view the test. "Traveling between sites nullifies the whole point of this."
"Maybe in part," Midoriya replies. "But when it comes down to it, you're testing to see what we'd do in a situation where we were all fighting villains simultaneously," he gestures to his friends, "and we're showing you how we'd make them sorry."
…Not bad, kid. Even with everything Midoriya has shown this year so far, Shota thought he might handle this exercise straight-forward due to it being an exam, but he's pleased to see that Midoriya's out-of-the-box methods hold true, even under the pressure of a test.
But he can't just say that out loud. Shota has a reputation to keep, so he'll let Mic say it for him later. The man just grunts instead, and says, "logical, I suppose. But Uraraka and Bakugo have to now walk out of the gate to pass, when they could have just placed the cuffs on me."
"If they did, then they would've passed!" Midoriya throws his hands into the air. "And wouldn't be able to help us capture the rest of the teachers! So, we're waiting on it!"
…Shota fears what Eri will turn into if this is who she looks up for many more years.
"Blah, blah, are we done?!" Bakugo demands, twisting Midoriya around to face him. "You said that after he was captured, I could go beat the crap out of whoever I wanted! That fight wasn't nearly enough!"
"Yes, yes!" Midoriya raises his hands to placate the other boy. "You're good!"
"I know I am!!" Bakugo roars before blasting into the air, taking off to another testing site.
"Uh…" Uraraka walks slowly to Midoriya's side, looking up at the sky with him. "Are we sure letting him loose was a good idea?"
"No," Midoriya admits.
Denki cackles, enjoying himself immensely as he reigns lightning down on Cementoss, destroying his teacher's cement structures, and freeing Tokoyami and Aoyama. Denki keeps up the pressure, vaporizing any creation Cementoss tries to make before it can fully form.
He nods at the team, and stops his lightning just as Aoyama gives Cementoss a face full of naval laser. The man cries out in pain, putting a hand up to his blinded face.
"Dark Shadow!!"
"You can count on me!" The sentient quirk needs no more encouragement from her partner, ripping up the ground and trapping Cementoss under some piping, before Denki places the quirk-canceling cuffs Yaomomo had made for them onto his teacher, trapping him.
"There." Denki jiggles the rebar a bit to make sure it's in place, not that he really had any doubts. "We're good. And since I placed the cuffs, you guys can still help with the rest of the teachers."
"In the absence of your light, my darkness will always be there to return your assistance." Tokoyami dips his head a little before walking away, putting a hand to his ear to listen to Izuku's report of the others capturing Aizawa. Dark Shadow gives him a double thumbs-up while they walk away.
Denki returns the thumbs-up, mostly because he's still trying to figure out what exactly Tokoyami said.
"Um… excuse-moi?"
On top of being confused by Tokoyami, now Denki has to decipher a nervous-looking Aoyama walking up to him, rubbing his hands. "What's up, man?"
"I am unsure if I should continue with the test…" Aoyama looks between him and Cementoss a few times before slouching, and sighing. "I am afraid I was more of a hindrance to Tokoyami and Dark Shadow than help. And I feel as if you and he could have defeated Monsieur Cementoss on your own, so it would probably be best if I discontinued."
"What?" Okay, Denki was slightly kidding before, but now, he really is confused. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm sorry, I just felt like I wasn't of any help. I felt so useless, like I once again was-" Aoyama's mouth snaps shut and he looks like he's going to be sick. The usually flamboyant boy takes a shaky breath. "Apologies. I am just unsure of how much help I can be to the rest of you all."
"You're not making any sense, dude," Denki chuckles, walking up to the other teen. "Did you not just see how you blinded Cementoss and helped us secure the capture? You were awesome!!" Aoyama jumps at the raise of volume, so Denki tones it down slightly.
"Listen, you're a lot more important than you give yourself credit for." Denki crosses his arms and smirks. "And I'm already beating self-respect into my cousin and believe me, I don't mind adding another person to that list." Aoyama pales so Denki laughs to let him know he's kidding…mostly. "Point is, you deserve to pass with everyone else, and we could use your help with the rest of the teachers…and I've been asking people what they think of my new costume?"
That seems to brighten up the French boy. "If it's fashion advice you're seeking, you've come to the right place! Have you considered glitter?"
Thor groans when his back hits the ground, but All Might doesn't waste any time. He throws as many punches as he can onto the other hero, the ground vibrating with each blow, but Thor has had enough. Electricity surges, and the God of Thunder blasts All Might into the air with lightning.
He stands and raises his hand, returning his hammer to him before flying into the air. All Might rights himself, but only to be met by a Mjölnir to the gut, launching the hero even further into the air. "Don't tell you've lost the will to fight already?!"
An air pressure blast from All Might answers his question as the hero stops his flight, redirecting himself back at Thor while completing several front somersaults. "And disappoint you? Never!" All Might nears his opponent, raising his fist with momentum and air pressure built up. "California Smash!!"
Thor crosses his arms, blocking the attack, but the force still sends him plummeting back down with All Might right on his heels. "Detroit Smash!!!" The number one hero brings his fist down on Thor, creating such a powerful attack that the weather clears in the sky.
All Might tries to take a breath, but Thor plants his feet on the hero, rolling him off, and jumping back on his feet. "Oh, so we play with the weather now?" Thor spins Mjölnir, the clear sky becoming dark almost instantly. The wind the god creates around them makes the one Denki had previously made look like a light summer breeze in comparison.
"I have to say, I love the names of your attacks!" Thor yells genuinely over the wind as All Might finds his feet. "Do you believe I should do the same? How does Asgard Smash sound? Or Midgard Smash?"
"I'll tell you if you tell me where I can get a hammer like that! Most support items I've tried break from my power, but your hammer doesn't seem to have that issue!"
"It was forged of the mystical metal, Uru, using the heat of a dying star by the dwarves of Nidavellir!!"
"Hmm. That does seem to complicate my chances of getting one!"
"I'll see if I can set up an appointment!" Thor whisks Mjölnir at All Might, the magical weapon taking the hero high up into the air. When they reach the summit of the move, several bolts of lightning strike All Might, creating a bright flash in the sky.
'Almost there…almost there!'
Jiro revs the engine of the scooter Momo had made for her as she speeds to the exit while Iida distracts Gran Torino. She is almost at the gate; she just has to get there for the plan to work and-
"And where do you think you're going?!"
Yelping, Jiro swerves the scooter just in time to avoid Torino as he smashes the ground where she was a moment ago. "Bah!" The old hero bounces up to one of the buildings before bounding off, continuing his pursuit. Jiro shifts her leg, attaching one of her jacks to her speaker support item, before sending a wave of sound behind her, sighing in relief when it forces Torino to veer off course again.
She turns the corner and flips a switch on the scooter, activating secondary boosters as the purple-haired girl hits the final straightaway to the exit gate.
"That's not enough, youngster!" Torino pushes his quirk, accelerating down to Jiro quickly. But…she's…there!
Momo lowers the scope of her sniper, aiming at where Torino will be, the hero just coming into range. She's got him. Exhaling, Momo pulls the trigger, the silencer quieting the gun as the tranq dart moves to intercept Torino-
Only for the man to look up at the last second and dodge the projectile. Jiro gasps but can't do anything before Torino knocks the scooter out from under her, causing the girl to tumble on the ground.
"Not the worst plan." Torino lands on the edge of the building, holding onto the ledge. "But next time, try not to have so many variables. And use something bigger than a tranquilizer, especially when your target is little old me. Better luck next time, zygotes."
Momo narrows her eyes, pulling the bolt back of her sniper and firing again. Torino sighs, dodging. "It's not gonna work!" Momo doesn't listen, firing a few more shots, with Torino moving to the left each time to get out of the way. "I got nowhere to be! No one calls this old bag of bones anymore…so keep firing until you run out! You'll never hit me!"
There's a click behind Torino. "No, not with that." Torino can't reply before weighted nets fired from guns hidden under a couple of manholes hit him from behind, trapping the hero underneath. "We just needed to get you in the right place." Jiro shakes a small remote at him.
"Heh, better, I guess." Torino lifts himself a little. "But these can't-" the roar of an engine silences Torino as Iida appears in a blur, running literal circles around the hero with his Recipro Burst.
"Are you sure this will work?" Jiro asks Momo as she lands back on the street with her jetpack. "Why couldn't you just have shot him with another dart while he was under the nets?"
"I am more than certain he could have escaped in time to dodge," Momo responds, watching as Torino searches for an exit from his Iida-made tornado prison, his quirk slowly lowering him to the ground instead of lifting him up as he desired. "In addition, I am still not as familiar with tranquilizer darts as I should be, and was unsure of the correct dosage to give."
"But what's this supposed to do?" The old hero gasps at Jiro's question, his eyes widening as he reaches for his throat.
"Before arriving here, Midoriya gave me a quick rundown of Gran Torino's quirk, as he has had time to interview the man extensively about it." Momo's costume rips while she pulls a pair of quirk-canceling cuffs from her arm, before the damage repairs itself. "One interesting piece of information I learned is that the air Gran Torino uses for his quirk comes from the air he breathes."
Torino's feet touch the ground, followed by his knees, the man gasping for air. Momo continues, "The solution became clear to me then." She nods to Iida. "The vortex he creates sucks away oxygen. No oxygen means no quirk for escape. And eventually…" Torino falls, unconscious. "Victory."
"Wow…" Jiro says in shock. Iida ceases his running, grabbing his swaying head while Momo cuffs Gran Torino. "That was…that was hardcore."
"Midoriya was very…specific when we spoke about the degree of ruthlessness we should show villains, so I took that into consideration when concocting this plan." Momo pulls the nets off Torino. Over on the edge of the sidewalk, Iida hops over, his pipes smoking, so he could pull off the support items on his legs that Momo had given him to help him run in a circle.
"Is that who I have to thank for this?" Torino groans, coming to with one eye open. "You can tell him he's got a boot to the face coming when I find him."
"If you throw another building at me, I'm gonna be pissed!!"
Thor decimates another building with Mjölnir before it can reach him. Hail and snow pelt the combatants from the storm the god created. Freezing winds bite at their faces, but neither let it bother them.
"Oklahoma Smash!!" All Might spins in place, launching the building debris Thor had just created right back at him, mandating he cover his eyes.
"Creative!" Thor points his hammer forward, lightning surging out, and incinerating everything around him.
"The control you have over your power is inspiring!!" All Might says in awe before that same power collides into him, launching him backward.
"Why thank you-"
"New Hampshire Smash!!"
Thor's eyes widen when All Might punches the air, and propels his body back at the god. "Amazing! You have found different ways to incorporate your strength depending on the situation you're in! How did you develop-"
It is, unfortunately, a bit difficult for Thor to speak when he has an All Might slamming into his face.
"Die!!!"
"Nezu was not joking!" Snipe yells in alarm, aiming his pistols in the air to shoot down the angry ball of fire and sound barreling down on top of him. Katsuki makes a 'Tsk' sound, before barrel rolling and zig-zagging through the air to avoid the bullets as best he could.
But while Snipe was trying to keep Katsuki away from him, there was nothing to stop his classmates.
"Make him drop it!" Koda's barely-heard voice is almost immediately drowned out by Snipe's high-pitched shrieking as rats from below him climb up the hero's body and start to peck at his arm, making the man drop one of his guns.
Seeing his opportunity, Sero tapes Snipe's other arm, and disarms him, leaving the man defenseless as Bakugo drops in front of the western-style hero, his hands pressed together, and his mouth in a wide grin that shows all of his teeth as the rats flee for their lives.
Snipe whimpers. "Oh, Sugar Honey Iced Tea."
BOOM!
The storm had become a full-on blizzard. Visibility is poor, but All Might can still see Thor from where he floats in the sky, blasting lightning down on top of him. All Might's feet sink in the ground as he uses a car to block the attack. It takes a few seconds, but he gains enough footing to spin around, chucking the vehicle at his foe.
Thor easily swats the car away, but All Might is already in the air, in the god's face. "Texas Smash!!" Thor flies back from the assault, but not before countering with his hammer, flinging it at All Might, who gets brought down hard.
But before All Might can hit the ground, Thor vanishes mid-air, reappearing next to the hero. Using his flight to his advantage, Thor clobbers All Might repeatedly with his fists and lightning from the clouds, disappearing and appearing in different places as the Japanese Hero was helpless in the sky.
Thor moves faster, and faster, the hits coming quicker and harder before finally, one last massive strike of lightning and Thor brings All Might to the ground, the two obscured by an explosion of snow.
"Really appreciate you guys pulling us out of there!" Kirishima thanks them breathlessly as he, Ojiro, Tenko, Ochako, and Izuku run to get away from Thirteen. "But it's not very manly to be running away from a fight like this!"
"Sometimes it's better to choose the right fight instead of trying to fight them all!" Izuku suggests. "Besides, I got Thirteen covered by someone else!" The greenette spins around, scepter in hand, the red glow growing brighter by the second.
"If you had told me our final exams would mean I'd get to become a real life jungler, I would've never been worried in the first place!" Tenko cheers excitedly.
Izuku rolls his eyes good-naturedly. Kirishima doesn't know what he's talking about, but gives Tenko a slap on the back anyway, and Ojiro stares at his tail. "Is that a monkey joke?…"
"What?! No, no, no!"
Meanwhile, the Space Hero Thirteen jogs through the testing site, looking for their kids, only for one to find them first. "There you are…finally…"
The astronaut-themed hero looks up to see Midoriya standing above some rubble, glaring down at her. "Coming to face me alone, Midoriya? Overestimating yourself or underestimating me?"
"Neither," Midoriya replies venomously. "I've just wanted this for a while. And I am not Izuku."
The black hole user tilts their head. "You're not Midoriya? Then who…oh! You're one of his clones! But…" she lifts a finger to her helmet. "I was under the impression none of you were real? Oh! I apologize if that's offensive!"
"It's not." The clone shrugs. "But Izuku's gotten better with his scepter, so he can make me solid for a short time. But, that's all I'm gonna need." The clone conjures a pair of daggers.
Thirteen uncaps one of her fingers. "You and I seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot."
"Yeah, we have!" The clone whines like a petulant child, kicking his foot. "Izuku told me people kept confusing us in conversation so now, when he talks about me, he's got to refer to me as clone Thirteen or his thirteenth clone. It suuuucks! I'm the better Thirteen, and I'm gonna prove it by making you sorry for taking everything away from me!"
"Wait, wait!" Thirteen flails their arms in the air. "But I didn't even know who you were!"
While his clone vents his frustrations, Izuku watches Tenko and Ochako transport Ojiro and Kirishima to the next testing site. He elected to stay behind and wait. There's a crackling in his ear. "You seem to be making steady progress, aren't you, Midoriya?"
Izuku snorts, putting his hand to his ear. "I suppose we are. And I don't remember giving you access to this channel, Principal Nezu."
"Indeed, you didn't!" Izuku can hear the quirked animal's laughter through the mic. "But I am not here to simply compliment you. As this is an exam, let me ask you a question. If this was a situation you were experiencing as a professional hero, how would you respond to a secondary plan deployed by the villains?"
Izuku can feel his heart start to race, his mind already beginning to whirl into overdrive. "What kind of plan?…"
"The heroes were allowed to bring in outside help, why not the villains?" Izuku starts to complain but Nezu stops him, sounding all too pleased with himself. "Now, now, Mr. Midoriya, do you believe the tactics you use are your own? That villains wouldn't attempt to replicate the strategies you use? "
One of Izuku's notebooks is already in his hand as he flips through every page, trying to figure out what hero could be joining. Nezu hums in satisfaction. "I am not like your other teachers, Midoriya. I am not content to simply watch as you turn an assignment onto its head. This is a test after all. There should be a challenge."
Thor and All Might gasp for air, the latter lying on the ground after the former's aerial onslaught. The God of Thunder nods to himself. "You are a mighty warrior and have given me my best fight in many years. I hope we may have another bout soon, but for now," Thor lays Mjölnir on top of All Might, trapping him. "This fight is over."
The god stands, stretching his arms and cracking his neck, taking the moment of peace to look across the mock city, now blanketed in snow. "Now, if I were a flaming skeleton with a leather fetish…where would I go?…"
He begins to walk away when he hears it, Thunder. Not unusual for him. But what was strange…is that he wasn't the one to cause it…
The thunder grows louder, restless even, as Thor senses a stirring behind him.
"Who said we were done?…"
Izuku vanishes the notebook. "Fine! Bring in whoever you want. There's no UA teacher who can keep up with our entire class as we move from site to site besides Ectoplasm, and we can handle his clones easily. None of the others are fast enough."
Nezu's laugh becomes near maniacal. "And when did I say who was coming is a teacher of UA?"
Something moves out of the corner of his eye, and through his years of fanboying, Izuku recognizes it immediately. An object floating in front of his wide eyes, deceptively harmless. The air catches in his throat. Izuku knows better.
Because what floats in front of him isn't just anything.
It's a feather.
…A red feather.
Chapter 47: What You Started Part 2
Crunch…crunch
What a lovely day.
"Yaomomo!!"
Momo cringes a bit as Midoriya yells in her ear but doesn't complain. "Yes, Midoriya?" she answers while she waves Tenko and Ochako over to lower Kirishima and Ojiro to the ground, after they'd finished being transported to the new testing site. "Did you uncover who Nezu was sending?"
Crunch…crunch
It's one of those days where it's neither hot nor cold. Just kind of somewhere in the middle. And look at that, there's even a few clouds in the sky. But again, not too many. He sighs, relaxing comfortably on the roof of the building he stands on.
"Y-Yeah!" Izuku pants in the background as he replies to Momo, clearly running. "I need you to think of something and get everyone together. Nezu sent-"
Crunch…crunch
Although, if he's being honest, he can't remember a day like this ever having a random blizzard appear in one small part of the sky, and nowhere else. The thunder and lightning from the area are so loud he can hear it from here.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
The logical part of his brain says that is all being caused by a quirk. The less logical part is figuring out how to make snowballs with his feathers to forever be the snowball champion.
"Come in, Hawks. I repeat, please come in, Hawks."
Crunchcrunchcrunchcrunchcrunch-
Finishing his fried chicken at an alarming speed, Keigo Takami wipes his mouth, savoring the last bit of taste as he swallows. "You've got Hawks." He tries to hand his now empty bucket that held his chicken to a UA bot, but the machine shakes its head, backing away.
"Hey, hey! Psssst, take this." He shakes the trash at the bot, getting closer, but it continues to back away.
"I beg your pardon, sir. But I am an escort droid! I am NOT just your run-of-the-mill trash bot!"
Keigo will not be deterred. "Just take it! Holding my arm out with these metal compression things is annoying!"
Nezu's voice rings back in his ear. "Excellent. I am about to give one of my students a warning that you're coming. After all, we want them to at least have a chance at passing, don't we?"
Keigo snorts while Nezu cackles through the mic. He tries to shove his bucket into the robot's face but it slaps it out of his hand. "Hey!" In response, Keigo smacks the bot in the face…only for it to slap his hand.
Smack.
Slap.
Smack.
Slap.
Nezu continues. "I will send you a beep through our communicators, and you will head to sector 1138. From there, you are free to do as you wish to disrupt the children's plans…within reason, of course."
"Ah…" Keigo nods. Smack! Slap! "Vague instructions, open to interpretation." Smack! Slap! "Because I don't know the exact parameters of what you're allowing me to do," Smack! Slap! "You are forcing me to play it safer with your kids to ensure I don't cross your line and get myself in trouble…" Smack! Slap!
"And the media says you're just a pretty face."
"They're not wrong about that," Keigo chuckles. "But you never believed that, did you?"
"Not even for a moment!"
The teacher goes silent, so Keigo uses a feather to bring his bucket back to him, before proceeding to dunk it on the head of the robot assigned to him. Ha. He wins.
Right on time, the hero hears the beep in his ear and smiles. Standing at the edge, he stretches his arms and wings, before leaning back and letting gravity do its work. Hawks falls, happy to put his hands behind his head as he plummets back-first to the ground. The wind rushes past him, whipping his face and clothes, but he's used to it.
At the last second, before he hits the ground, using instinct and experience, Keigo spreads his wings and flaps, sending him soaring through the field, making gravity his bitch.
UA's grounds are a lot bigger than they look from the outside, but the winged hero is still able to make quick work of his flight time, arriving at his first designated test site in under a minute.
Phew, these weights really are slowing him down.
There's only one student there, talking to presumably Nezu over his comms. Green hair and wearing a mostly green and black hero costume, his enhanced sight tells him who it is immediately. Izuku Midoriya. Runner-up of the Sports Festival.
This should be fun.
Stopping above him, Keigo hears him yelling at Nezu, so to tease a bit and have some fun to start, he lets a single feather fall below him. He watches as it descends into the kid's line of sight. Midoriya recognizes what it is instantly, taking off in a sprint.
Adorable.
"Yaomomo!" Midoriya yells desperately over the comms as he runs, with Keigo floating lazily above him. There's a pause; the kid is probably listening to Yaoyorozu's reply. "Y-yeah! I need you to think of something and get everyone together!" The hero dives down like the bird of prey he is. "Nezu sent-"
Keigo drives his foot into the kid's side, launching him off his feet.
Midoriya tumbles as he hits the ground but has the awareness to roll to his feet. His hands glow, replacing the daggers in his palms with black swords that he raises in defense. "Nezu sent Hawks!"
'Thunder?' Thor thinks, looking up at the angry sky. But if he's not the one making it, then who-
"Did you hear me? I said we're not done."
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Turning around to compliment All Might again on the fight, the God of Thunder's mouth hangs open at the sight of All Might standing. But that's impossible. The only way he could be up right now is if-
His eyes travel down, a smile growing on his face. In the Japanese hero's hand being lifted by him as effortlessly as Thor could, is Mjölnir.
Yellow and blue lightning travel across All Might's body as the Thunder above them grows steadily louder, the hammer humming, almost as if eager to battle with someone new.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Meanwhile, Thor can't stop smiling. "I knew it!- Ah!" He yells in pain when his hammer crashes into his face. "Mjölnir! Why?!"
Raising an eyebrow, Keigo twitches as he watches Midoriya carefully, sending feathers around the area, and keeping one specifically next to the boy at all times. The kid's interesting, he'll give him that. And like Keigo, he has a quirk that can be applied in a number of different ways. To the point where it just comes down to imagination.
"Swords?" the hero questions casually, forming his own feather swords in his hands. "It's almost like you knew that's what I like to use."
"I'm a- uh…big fan." Keigo doesn't bother to hide his snicker as Midoriya looks like he wants to die at his own words. But still, the kid doesn't take his eyes off him, almost looking afraid to blink. "And for the record, I'd love an autograph after the test!"
"Sure, why not?" Keigo charges the boy, attempting to bring both his swords down on him, but thanks to his own reduced speed, and suspiciously fast reflexes from Midoriya, the green-haired boy is able to raise both of his swords in time to block. "Heh."
Keigo slides his sword off and the two trade slashes, their swords clanging together repeatedly while the pair tries to best the other. Midoriya's agility is on full display as he ducks, weaves, and jumps over his attacks in an attempt to throw him off, but the greenette is unsuccessful in landing a hit as well.
Sticking to sword combat only, the pro hero finds he has to steadily get more and more serious as the fight drags on. He can tell when someone's been trained and trained well by the looks of it.
"I can see you're a fan of a more riposte style of fighting." Hawks backs up to give Midoriya a little breathing room. But he still keeps a feather trained on the kid at all times. From the Sports Festival, he's more than aware of what Midoriya is capable of. "Nice to see others still using swords in today's day and age. You kids these days with all of your fancy gadgets…"
Midoriya keeps his swords raised as the two walk in a slow circle around each other. "I prefer to sit back and let my opponent show me what kind of fighter they are. Then I counter from there."
"I can see that." Keigo grins, fully okay with admitting to himself he's liking this kid more and more. "Patience is something hard to teach and even harder to apply. And believe me, when you can fly past traffic or to the front of the pizza line, waiting for things can become un-featherable."
The teen's face holds for exactly one second before he loses himself to a snort. Keigo could've taken advantage but hey, what can he say, he's having fun.
"Wa- was that a bird pun?!"
"Sorry, did I make this hawk-ward?"
Midoriya laughs again before slapping himself and shaking his head. "No, no, I won't let you distract me!"
"Alright, alright. I apologize for my fowl play there."
"Dang it!" Calming himself down a bit, despite looking like he's having the time of his life, Midoriya looks back up at him. "Whatever Nezu's paying you, I'll triple it."
"Bribery!" Keigo laughs genuinely. "Your principal was right, you really are full of surprises. And if I'm reading this right, you're completely serious."
Midoriya nods. "I know you like KFC. I have enough money to buy it for you. And I know you like Endeavor! We could rebrand to EFC! Endeavor Fried Chicken. Oh! Our mascot could be Endeavor dressed like Colonel Sanders!"
"Wait, you really think he'd agree to that?"
"When did I say we'd ask?"
It's Keigo's turn to laugh. "You're something, kid, I'll give you that. And you're still maintaining that seriousness."
"Not completely." Midoriya shakes his head. "If you say no, then for the future of my hero career, I have to say all of that was a joke."
"No need to explain anything to me. Use every option available to you in a fight." His golden eyes peek around the area they're in. "Although, it doesn't look like I should be expecting any ice anytime soon."
"Against you, I'd rather have fire anyway," Midoriya scoffs. "And while we're at it, I'd love to finally figure out how to fly."
"Ooh! Ooh!" The fully grown adult hops a little in excitement. "We could combine them and give you flaming wings!"
"…That just sounds ridiculous."
"If you say so." Keigo's wings flap a little to get ready, causing Midoriya to jump, much to his amusement. "This has been fun, but I think I'm done letting you distract me to give your classmates time to group together."
Midoriya stops, eyes wide. Oh, yeah, you ain't that slick, kid. The green-haired boy takes another step and that's when it happens. The feather Keigo had placed beside Midoriya feels nothing. No sound. No vibration. He smirks.
The Midoriya in front of him is no longer the real one.
Feathers burst around Keigo that move so fast, they act as a shield, stopping Midoriya from stabbing him in the shoulder from behind as the kid yelps in surprise. "You'll have to do better than that." The hero spins in the air, kicking Midoriya in the chest hard.
The teen grunts as he hits the ground but he's on his feet quickly, his hands glowing green. He flicks his wrists and several things happen at once. The testing area changes to a random city block in Tokyo, complete with civilians walking around Keigo with almost a dozen Midoriyas standing on the building tops.
The illusion is impressive. The people even walk around him as if to not 'bump' into the hero. But many have tried to confuse Keigo before and none have succeeded.
"What are you gonna do now bird-brain?" a clone taunts.
"My illusions are pretty im-peck-able, don't you think?!" yells another.
"Hope all this isn't too much of a bird-den!" A third Midoriya sneers down at him.
"This is cute, kid. But Toucan play at this game." The clones' smiles drop at Keigo's confident words, before he lets loose a whirlwind of feathers around the area that easily exposes every illusion and destroys every clone in the area. "I know you don't make sound when you're invisible…"
Keigo's wing twitches and he lunges right, slashing at the air. "But are you intangible?!" There's a quick flash of green as Midoriya tumbles screaming while he grabs his bloody arm. "I'll take that as a no."
The verdant glares at him. "How did-" Midoriya's eyes bulge when he catches sight of a feather stuck to his side. As the veteran hero had predicted, everything attached to Midoriya turns invisible with him, including the feather he had placed on the kid after kicking him, making tracking him while he was invisible easy.
The boy tries conjuring a few jugs of water from…somewhere; Keigo still isn't exactly sure how that one works. Midoriya moves to slash the jugs open to have access to the water inside for his ice, but Keigo's feathers are faster, snatching the jugs away before Midoriya can make use of them.
Before his opponent can register what's happening, Hawks has his knee in the teen's gut, and his fist punching the back of Midoriya's head. The kid crumbles to the ground, and the rest of his illusions fade.
"Your quirk's pretty cool, kid. A lot of different ways you could use it, like mine," Keigo tells the downed boy, his feathers returning to him. With great effort, the teen turns his head so he could look up at the hero. "If you ever figure out the flying thing and need some help, give me a call, yeah?"
"Okay…" Midoriya strains out through staggered breaths. "C-can I… can I still have that autograph?"
"If you pass your test," Keigo snorts before taking off to find more victims young minds to educate.
Izuku can't help but smile as he watches one of his favorite heroes fly away. 'I just got the snot beaten out of me by Hawks…this is one of the greatest days of my life.'
"This is one of the best days of my life!'
Toshinori hadn't felt like this in years!! As soon as he lifted the hammer, it's like his injury wasn't even there anymore! Like the decades of wear and tear on his body from hero work just vanished in an instant! If he was being completely honest, it was like he was in his prime all over again!
And don't even get him started on the fact that HE CAN LIFT THOR'S HAMMER. Wasn't he told that only those worthy could lift it? And that's him! Little old Toshinori. Despite his failures to end All for One's reign or protect young Tenko, he's still worthy…
No, now is not the time to get choked up. Now is the time for action! And maybe waving the hammer in Gran Torino's face, even if he doesn't know what it means, but still! Time for action!
And then later he can freak out about this because holy crap, he can use the hammer! If he could hold Captain America's shield right now, he might die of happiness-
Huh, maybe young Midoriya is rubbing off on him a little.
Letting instinct guide him, Toshinori summons Mjölnir back to him before racing at Thor in speeds he never thought he could achieve again. He punches the god high into the sky before flying (he's flying!!) after him.
Toshinori, in the blink of an eye, punches Thor dozens of times, before smashing him back down to Earth. Raising the hammer, Toshinori conjures, for lack of a better term, a shit-load of lightning into himself, before blasting it back down onto the weapon's original owner. The shockwave is so massive, it almost clears the entire area of snow.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
"Woah…" Thor grabs his head, standing on wobbly feet as Toshinori floats down across from him. "So, that's what that feels like."
"Is this how it feels to be you all the time?" Toshinori asks incredulously, looking at the lightning tracing his body up and down. "It's incredible!"
"It has been some time since I met another who could lift the hammer," Thor comments, not feeling like he's going to fall over any second anymore. "I commend you for such an act. You are truly, All Might."
"I thank you for the honor. But I have to ask." Toshinori tries not to sound too eager. "Could Captain America lift the hammer?"
"Of course!"
"I knew it!! It's no surprise that one as heroic and noble as him would be able to-" All Might clears his throat when he spots Thor watching him with an amused smile. "Apologies. I just believe he is one of the great heroes of his time. Now," the symbol of peace spins Mjölnir in his hand. "Shall we get back at it?"
Before Thor can answer, All Might fires a blast of lightning at the god straight on, hitting him square in the chest. The number one hero rushes in, and the pair come to blows again, hammer and fists trying to hit the other at lightning speeds.
Eventually, All Might hits Thor with an uppercut, before throwing the hammer at him. The god dodges, but that's what Toshinori expected, watching as the weapon bounces off a wall, heading right back to Thor.
But before it can hit, the Asgardian hero jumps at All Might and grabs him, spinning them around so Toshinori is the one hit by the returning hammer. "Ack!"
"Now we're getting back on track!" Thor flies high into the air, his own thunder starting to roar around him.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
"You believe just because you have my hammer that you could-"
All Might quickly strikes Thor down with a bolt of lightning from the sky.
"Oh, c'mon!"
"Where's everyone else?!"
Momo grimaces, looking at those running beside her. Kirishima, Ojiro, Ochako, Iida, and Kyoka. Not a bad group by any means, but not nearly enough with Hawks entering the field. She already had to send Tenko back out to recover Midoriya.
"Hopefully, still on their way to join us," she replies. "But if we are to have any chance in moving on, we must remove Hawks from the board, we need-" They all instinctively shiver when nearby, a large glacier of ice erupts from the forest ground. "Todoroki. And his fire."
The six students reach the clearing to find an injured Todoroki and Mina engaged with Colossus, who took the time to greet them all with a smile and wave. "Hello! Your principal informed us of your plan. I look forward to seeing how creative you can be."
Both Todoroki and Mina had taken the time to hit him with acid, ice, and fire. Colossus was unbothered.
"He is everything I aspire to be…" Kirishima all but drools.
"How are we supposed to beat him?" Ojiro looks wearily at his tail.
"I could float him?" Ochako suggests.
"That's part of one of my plans to beat him," Momo informs the group, who look a little shocked that she already had ideas. "But we will still need some people to distract him. Kyoka, you can-"
"Coo! Coo!" Feeling herself turn ice cold, Momo looks up to where she heard the bad bird sounds coming from to see Hawks floating above them, hands in his pockets. "Anything in that big brain of yours for me?"
Todoroki rolls away from Colossus and tries to send a wave of fire at the flying hero, but the X-Men jumps in front of it, blocking it.
"By the way, I wouldn't count on those reinforcements anytime soon!" Hawks calls down happily.
Momo swallows dreadfully. "Why not?"
"Let's go, guys! We gotta go, we gotta go!" Denki waves Tokoyami and Aoyama quickly over to him. "I can't carry both of you so we just gotta keep running!"
Suddenly, Tokoyami stops, a haunted look on his face.
"Hey, man! What's wrong?"
"Ornithological devastation has come for us."
Denki twists his face in confusion at his bird friend. "What?"
There's a rush of wind behind them. "Oh, have you not heard?"
Aoyama says it best.
"Merde."
"G-g-go away now please!" Koda pleads desperately with Hawks as his feathers swoop around Bakugo, and slam him into yet another pillar. Sero tries to build momentum, swinging around the same pillars but Hawks moves out of the way of his kick without looking.
"You're the kid who can control animals, right?" Koda nods nervously to the hero. "It was a good try, but I'm a human with an animal mutation so no dice. You might wanna try that on your principal, though?"
"What was that now, Hawks?" A very calm and frosty sounding Nezu inquires over the comms.
"Nothing!"
Kyoka lowers her jacks and sends a wave of sound into the air at Hawks, but he easily dodges, using his feathers to knock her off her feet. "I got him, go get the others!" Ochako shouts. Using her ring's abilities to act as platforms, she removes her weight and puts two under her feet to charge the hero.
"That's so cool!" Hawks awes before he has to start dodging her punches and kicks. "Not quite the same as flying, but a sweet alternative!"
"Thanks," Ochako huffs. "I like your feathers. They give me a good idea." She bangs her arms together and launches her remaining eight rings around her and Hawks, using them as individual projectiles to randomly attack the hero, forcing him on his toes so to speak.
Momo studies their current predicament. She has to be quick and make a decision now! She needs to get Mina and Todoroki away from Colossus to both enact her plan to immobilize him and turn their destructive quirks on Hawks. Destroying his feathers is key.
Well, if she can't get her classmates to Hawks. Then Momo will have to do the next best thing.
Her stomach glows as she removes something from it just as Ochako hits the ground next to her and bounces a little, her gravity still removed. "I can't hit him!" She coughs into her hand.
"Use your platforms and send the others!" Momo commands urgently. Ochako understands her request and places rings under Kirishima, Ojiro, Jiro, and Iida, lifting them toward the hero.
"Done. They won't last long against him."
"They don't need to. I only need a moment." The creation user continues making the items they'll need while she explains her plan to Ochako as quickly as she can. And no sooner than she finishes, the other teens are landing back on the ground in a daze.
"Go!" Momo waves Ochako off while tossing the weapons she made to her other friends. "Use these!"
Hawks flies back down after them but stops, sweat dripping at the sight of four flamethrowers pointed at him. "Don't you think this might be excessive?!"
"No!"
"Yeah, this is awesome!!"
Momo aims. "Fry him!!"
Four teenagers unload a wave of flames that would make Ghost Rider proud onto Hawks, who is forced to fly out of range. "Is that what I get for my love of fried chicken?!" All the kids hit buttons on their weapons, increasing the range of the fire. "Really?! Who thinks of that?!"
Hawks flies higher. "But you're not the first to try that on me!" Several feathers swoop in from behind the kids, slicing through their flamethrowers, disabling them. "It was a good try though."
"Then why don't you try them on for size!"
Ochako zooms in from the side, with the wave of her arm, launches Mina and Todoroki on their own ring platforms at the hero. "Super great to meet you!" Mina says cheerfully before lobbing a large glob of acid at Hawks, while a very irritated Todoroki attempts to roast the man with a torrent of fire even larger than the other kids created.
"Wait, where's metal guy?!" Hawks scans the ground, and sees it. Colossus floating about a meter off the ground, metal skin gone, snoring with a broken container under him.
"I know we could never beat you," Momo informs the hero. "But I knew we could distract you long enough for Iida to run Ochako over and incapacitate Colossus by floating him, before dropping a container of sleeping gas I gave her."
Hawks hums. "Nice. Couldn't get through his skin so you found another way." He looks around at all the tense teens around him before saying, "not bad," and flying away.
Momo let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, as did several others.
"He didn't stay to fight?" Kirishima actually looks disappointed at that.
"It's the safer move," Momo observes, taking a minute to catch her breath. "While he could stay and fight us, the majority of the class is not here, and could move to take down the rest of the teachers while he wastes time and resources, in this case, feathers, on us. Now, let's move to the next site."
Thirteen dodges an attack from Thirteen, backing up. Moving quickly, Thirteen uses Thirteen's quirk to keep Thirteen at bay while Thirteen figures something out. Oh, but Thirteen won't be fooled that easy!
"Nice move!" Thirteen yells.
"You're not so bad yourself!" Thirteen yells back.
Thirteen dashes to the side but Thirteen cuts them off, but just as Thirteen thinks Thirteen might have the advantage, Thirteen pulls a fast one, and slips away, causing Thirteen to growl in frustration.
Thor sweeps All Might's legs from underneath him, but before he can follow up, Toshinori slams Mjölnir, creating a shockwave of lightning that pushes Thor back.
The Symbol of Peace is quick to take to the skies again, spinning the hammer as he does so. "Let's see what this thing can really do!" Spinning the hammer faster and faster, All Might sucks up all the snow on the ground and in the cloud before, with a mighty yell, converting it all into a massive tidal wave that's sent hurtling at Thor.
"Pfff. Show-off," Thor mumbles before the gargantuan wave crashes down on top of him, completely leveling what's left of the test site and the next one over.
Not satisfied, All Might strikes the water with a powerful bolt of lightning, illuminating it and shocking anything it touches.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
But much to his surprise, the water begins to tremble and rise as several watersprouts emerge from where the tidal waves landed, the lightning Toshinori hit the water with still surging inside them.
And in the middle, Thor floats as his own lightning crawls across his body. "Did you forget I don't need Mjölnir to manipulate the elements of weather?!"
Boom! Boom! Zap!
"And I was beginning to worry this was getting too easy!"
"Ha! And you said you were out of practice in quipping!"
Thor points his hands forward and the watersprouts, almost like attack dogs, dive onto All Might. He tries to fly away but the tornados made of water follow, before all four descend onto him as Thor enters the vortex.
Disoriented, Toshinori can't break out as the force of the whirlwinds throw him back and forth between them, with Thor landing a solid hit to him every time he passes from one tornado to the next.
He grits his teeth in pain when the God of Thunder raises his arm, increasing the intensity of the lightning winds in the storm, so Toshinori grips Mjölnir harder, hoping for an answer.
And an answer he gets as the hammer redirects Thor's lightning attack from Toshinori back to his old master, who shouts as he's hit. The waterspouts slow, before dissolving as Thor rubs his chest.
"Incredible. That was Energy Redirection! A move not so easily taught!" The god laments in awe. "Are you sure this is the first magical hammer you've picked up?"
"I believe this is my first time," All Might chuckles. "But that move with the water was the incredible thing! Do you even need this hammer?!"
"Nice try, but you're not keeping Mjölnir once we're done here!"
"I suppose you can't blame a hero for trying."
There's a beat of silence before both parties summon huge charges of lightning and throw them at each other once again.
"You do know that the invisible girl is ten…no, twelve meters away, yeah?"
Wolverine doesn't try hard to hide his exhaustion with Keigo as the much older hero glances at him. "Yeah, you're not the only one here with enhanced senses, bub. I know where she is. And the kid with a bunch of eyes is fifteen meters to my left."
"Okay, okay. Just wanted to be sure." Hawks shifts his feet while the two stand together, waiting for more of class 1-A to show up. It seems the kids paired up with Wolverine were content with hanging back. Speaking of which… "So…why the name Wolverine?"
"Why Hawks?"
"I mean." Keigo flaps his wings for emphasis. "Kinda obvious, don't you think?"
"I guess." Wolverine is silent for a minute. "Raptor would've been better."
"Huh." Keigo puts a hand to his chin. "That is pretty cool. But I think it might be too late to change. Plus, I've grown attached to mine anyway."
"At least it's better than Archangel."
Keigo tilts his head. "Who's that?"
"Hero from back in the day. Had wings and feathers like you, but they were metal."
"Wow. That sounds pretty…metal…if you ask me."
Wolverine's exhaustion begins to rear its ugly head once again. "How old did you say you were again?"
"Twenty-two."
"Fucking hell."
Momo spots them quickly, even though she knows both the heroes knew they were coming for a long time. "Todoroki, Mina! Take the lead and destroy as many of Hawks' feathers as you can!" The son of Endeavor tries to freeze both Wolverine and Hawks, but the latter easily dodges while the former simply destroys any ice threatening him.
Thinking over her options, the creation user looks at the rest of the students. "Ochako, your rings allow you to fight long-range. Wolverine is a close-quarters combatant, engage him and keep your distance. I'll contact Toru to-"
"Not gonna happen, boys and girls!"
Without the element of surprise, Hawks easily gets behind Mina and Todoroki, knocking the boy over while the pink-haired girl skates away. "Long-rangers deal with me!" Ochako yelps as the winged hero descends on her, easily avoiding her projectile rings and kicking her back before flying back in the air to avoid counterattack.
This isn't good. Momo gulps as Wolverine stares the rest of them down. He flicks his wrist, his dangerous claws shooting painfully from his knuckles while he stalks toward them like the predator he knows he is.
Curses, there has to be something she can do. Momo watches as Hawks turns Todoroki's body with his feather, redirecting his fire attack at Mina and Ochako, who narrowly jump away. With the hero taking those three, she doesn't have many options.
Shoji, Toru, Kirishima, and Ojiro would all be cut down. And while she is more confident in her own prowess, the claws are a problem. Momo doesn't know anything she can make that wouldn't immediately be cut through by the Adamantium claws, and she can't make the metal herself. Maybe with Kyoka-
"Not to worry."
Momo's eyes widen as the sound of engines roaring to life reaches her.
"I'll keep him back while you come up with something, Vice-President!" Iida's running before Momo can say anything, bringing his sword down on Wolverine. The old hero raises his claws to block, both metals clanging harshly together.
Sword and claws clash as Iida and Wolverine trade blows back and forth, the bespectacled boy pushing the training he got from his brother and Midoriya to the limit. And while usually Wolverine would be faster, Iida keeps his engines idle, using them to move him out of the way when Wolverine gets the upper hand to reset the fight.
"Kyoka, support him!" Momo calls out as Iida uses an energy blast to throw off Wolverine's balance, but the man still charges unperturbed.
"On it!" Kyoka's sound wave does the trick, knocking the man sideways and allowing Iida to successfully parry an attack.
Okay. Not bad. Momo pulls a pistol from her hips and loads before firing several darts at Wolverine. "Iida! Kyoka! Move!" They do just in time, and the sleep darts hit Wolverine, but to Momo's horror, they don't slow him down at all. She just succeeds in making him angrier.
'Gotta think of something el-'
"Not happening!" A surge of feathers blows all the teens around him away and Hawks dives for Kyoka and Iida.
"No!"
"Round two, you oversized pigeon!"
Never in her life had Momo been happier to hear Midoriya's voice, the class president being carried by Tenko. "Todoroki!"
The other boy nods, creating a massive glacier that the greenette manipulates to chase Hawks through the air with spikes. The ice is so thick his feathers need a few tries to cut through.
"HEY! You're not the only one aiming for payback, Deku!"
If Momo had been surprised to welcome Midoriya's voice, she's downright shocked at the relief that flows through her at the sound of Bakugo's yelling. The blond wastes no time in twisting through the air exploding Hawks, the hero having less feathers to deal with him this time, having lost some and having to use the others to keep the other students back.
Midoriya lands next to her, creating stairs in the ice so the ground students like Kirishima and Ojiro could join the fight in the air. "Do you have an idea on how to deal with Wolverine?"
Tenko decays concrete slabs the X-Men had cut and thrown at Iida and Kyoka, before blasting a hardening foam at his feet, immobilizing him.
Momo shakes her head. "No! Sleeping darts didn't work! What other powers does he have?!"
"Yeah, he's immune to stuff like that because of his healing factor! He's got the metal, claws, enhanced senses…"
Bakugo detonates an explosion too close to Kyoka, causing her to cover her ears. And that's when it hits her.
"His senses!" Momo realizes. "We can overload his senses!"
"We'd need a lot of sound for that!"
"Coming right up!"
The class presidents turn around, elated to watch as Denki soars into the air above them all, Thunderstrike spinning in his hand. The clouds darken and lightning begins to pound the ground around everyone.
Hawks weaves through the air, but Midoriya waves his hands, creating illusions of lightning to fool the hero. Fire, acid, ice, and whatever else the kids can throw at the hero come for him, thinning his feathers even more. Hawks is fast, but not faster than lightning, which quickly strikes him down.
"Overwhelm his senses!!"
A lightning bolt crashes down on Wolverine and doesn't let up, the sound deafening but the class pulls together. Tenko wraps the old man up in Blackwhip as Kyoka adds her own sound waves in with the lightning. Everyone still not avoiding feathers does whatever they can to make sound.
Wolverine, a hand on his head, lunges at Iida despite literally being pelted by sound and nature itself, but Ochako pushes him out of the way. Midoriya moves but he's too far away.
Bakugo isn't.
The explosion user lands by Ochako, shoving her down and raising one of his grenade gauntlets. "Fucking die already!!" He pulls the pin and hits Wolverine point blank with an explosion larger than anything they had ever seen from him.
It's eerily silent after. Wolverine slowly gets up from the ground, injured from the blast and a bit disoriented by his senses, but not before Toru cuffs him. Momo and Midoriya move to help Ochako up, while Bakugo pants. Above them, Hawks accumulates his feathers and flies away.
"Wow…" Midoriya says in wonder. "That was- yeah. Good thing you knew about his healing factor, right Kacchan?"
"…"
Silence.
"Kacchan?"
"What healing factor?"
There's a pause before Midoriya starts to giggle hesitantly with Ochako, so hopefully that means Bakugo is joking. At least, that's how Momo will choose to take it.
"Uh…" Ochako scratches the back of her head. "Thanks, I guess, Bakugo."
He doesn't look at her, adjusting his gauntlet. "Don't look into it. Consider us even for me trying to use that shit on you during the battle trial."
Bakugo looks up to see the shocked looks of his three classmates. "Don't fucking look at me like that. The mutt wouldn't shut the hell up about it, okay? Let's just finally get this stupid test done." Red eyes lock onto Midoriya, before they look between him and Ochako. "And wait until I'm far away before you two start making out again after."
Snickering as Midoriya and Ochako start badgering Bakugo with denials and questions, Momo's comm comes to life. "Midoriya, Yaomomo, it's Tsu. Ribbit. Sato and I tracked down Nezu, but he escaped. He's headed to the last testing site."
Looking up at Midoriya, who had regained his composure, she and him nod at each other. It's time to end this.
Having gathered everyone else, all of class 1-A walk down the street to the final testing site, Izuku's and Yaomomo's site to be specific. Ruined buildings open up the area around them and ahead, Nezu stands relaxed and poised on Hawks' shoulder.
"Greetings, students!" He waves cheerfully. "You have done well to get to this point! Only three teachers stand in your way of passing as we speak! All Might, myself, and-"
There's a crash on the ground next to Nezu as Ghost Rider stands tall next to the principal, growling at the children in front of him. Izuku isn't the only one to gulp.
Except for Bakugo, who is more than happy to growl back.
"Leather fetish?" Hawks raises an eyebrow. "Not really your style, Ingenium. You thought about incorporating more of your own costume into the whole skeleton biker thing?"
"Noted."
"Any ideas?" Yaomomo asks everyone around her.
"Dogpile his ass!!" Bakugo fires forward without another word, rearing his hand back to explode Ghost Rider-
Only to be met by a causal backhand from the demonic being, who doesn't even look back as he walks forward.
"All of you! Get Nezu!" Denki jumps into the air, summoning more lightning to bring down the Rider, but only succeeds in stopping him for a second. Chains shoot out from the Rider's hands, wrapping around Denki's neck and pulling him down to the ground.
Dark Shadow is repelled by Hellfire. Kirishima, Ojiro, Sato, and Shoji are sent flying back with a wave of Ghost Rider's hand. He sees right through Izuku's illusions and clones, throwing Iida into Todoroki. An energy blast from Ochako stops him momentarily, but she too is whisked away without fanfare, all the while, the Rider walks toward them, undeterred and unbothered.
"Does he have any known weaknesses?"
"Not that I-" Izuku shouts in surprise, covering his ears as Momo fires an RPG at the advancing hero. It explodes on impact but like everything else, doesn't slow him down. "No! I researched and researched but found nothing! I couldn't-"
It hurts every fiber of his being to admit it. He had always been taught that there was a solution to any problem, he just had to be clever. But looking around, dread claws at Izuku's chest. "I don't know how to beat him! I'm not sure we can!"
"So, there's nothing we can do?!"
"Well," Izuku responds. "I have one idea." He puts a hand to his ear. "Uncle Thor, bring your fight two zones over."
"One- urk! One second!"
The sky above them darkens so much, Ghost Rider's flaming head becomes the greatest source of light. At least, temporarily. In a flash of blue, All Might lands on the ground after being blasted by lightning, with Thor touching down next to him.
Thunder and lightning intensify in the sky above them.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
"We might want to back up," Izuku advises quickly, grabbing a few of his nearby friends and girlfriend, moving back; everyone else is quick to follow with Yaomomo leading the entire class to the edge of the testing site, and as far away as possible.
All Might spins Mjölnir, generating power. "Let's end this!"
"Very well! But you should keep something in mind, great warrior!" Lightning and wind swirl around Thor as he looks up, eyes glowing. "The hammer only grants you power that I already have!!"
The two fly up in streaks of blue, crashing against each other over and over, creating bright flashes as they do. Class 1-A have to anchor themselves down by whatever means, the wind picking up dangerously.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Thor and All Might float in front of the other, lightning searing the air around them as both combatants surround themselves with tornadoes in the air that threaten to sweep the other away. But neither gives sway.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
"You should keep something in mind as well, Mighty Thor." Some of the lashing winds from the tornado around him covers All Might's arms. "Your powers aren't the only ones I have!!"
Surging forward, All Might rears Mjölnir back, a mini tornado accompanying it. "Nebraska Smash!!" Thor is hurtled back from the hit but retaliates with several powerful bolts of lightning, but All Might spins his hammer, creating a shield to block the attack.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Rain and snow trail behind the Symbol of Peace as he gathers the elements and redirects them down on the god. "New York Smash!!" Next, hail begins to pelt the pair, allowing All Might to flick his weapon, using the air pressure to rain down a mountain of blizzard he was creating down on the Asgardian. "Philadelphia Smash!!"
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Izuku looks up at the sky in awe, watching as Thor creates a whip out of lightning to throw All Might into a building. Thunder, lightning, rain, snow, ice, and wind threaten to send him sprawling, but weights created by Yaomomo keeps them all down.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Thor's blue lightning and All Might's yellow lightning strike the other so many times it's impossible to keep count, until the Symbol of Peace stops, pointing Mjölnir high into the sky, electricity fueling him. Then, with a triumphant yell, the hero swipes the hammer forward with more power and air pressure than he has ever had before. "Hurricane Smash!!!"
The storm elements fuse into a massive hurricane that slams into Thor, but the god doesn't yield, his figure only visible because of the lightning illuminating his body. "You use the powers of a God of Thunder well!! But don't forget!"
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Lightning strikes a nearby transformer, igniting it with fire, and warming the air as Thor raises his hands. Winds even greater than All Might's hurricane swirl around him in the form of a tremendous cyclone made of gales, water, and lightning.
"I am THE GOD OF THUNDER!!"
Thor's typhoon decimates anything near the fighters as even All Might is blown away. Class 1-A huddles closer together, with Yaomomo using the last of her lipids to keep everyone weighed down.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Nezu cackles hysterically, unbothered while Hawks hugs him close, the two being blown away.
"If that's true, then I will just have to go beyond!!" All Might twirls Mjölnir above him, pushing both his quirk and the power of the hammer past any conceivable limit to create a storm that scientists have said is only possible in theory. A Hypercane. "Plus ultra!!"
They lunge at each other one last time, both impossible to see behind the storm covering them.
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
All Might raises Mjölnir. "HYPERCANE…"
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Thor puts his fist back, more and more power seeping into it. "ASGARD…"
Boom! Boom! Zap!
Boom! Boom! Zap!
No one can see anything when the hit comes. All they can do is make out their voices ringing out together above the storm.
"SMAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!"
What feels like an earthquake rocks the ground. One so massive that even people kilometers away are confused when they feel the quaking. All the kids are forced to keep their eyes shut as the powerful winds wash over them, despite how far away they placed themselves.
Even Ghost Rider is forced to create several chains to anchor himself to the ground. Any remaining buildings are destroyed, trees ripped from the ground, the sky so bright, it's as if the sun was in the atmosphere.
No one is sure how long it takes, but the winds eventually cease, bringing a strange calm after them. Izuku slowly opens his eyes, lifting his head. The sky is clear and the test site is completely destroyed in front of them.
And on the ground were two figures, one standing and the other on the ground, obscured by dust. The upright figure summons Mjölnir back to him. Izuku squints as the dust clears. "Holy crap…"
Thor grins happily at him from where he stands, as All Might painstakingly lifts himself to his hands and knees.
"Yeah!!" Denki cheers, running to his dad with Tenko behind him. "That was AWESOME!! Will I be able to do all that one day?!"
"Perhaps. If you stay steadfast with your training." Thor peers over as Tenko tries to help All Might up. "Here, All Might. One such as yourself doesn't belong on his knees." He grabs the other man's arm and hoists him up.
"You certainly live up to your name."
Thor chuckles. "Do not take this to heart. I have centuries of experience in combat and using my powers. For one using the hammer for the first time, you were…" He makes a 'so-so' gesture with his hand. "Passable."
"Daaaaaaaad."
The god laughs heartily, hugging his son closer to him. "Very well. I thought you were splendid. And you, All Might, live up to your name as well." Thor holds his arm out. "And I would be honored to do battle with you again."
All Might looks from the Asgardian to the arm, before letting out his trademark laugh, grasping Thor's forearm tightly. "I look forward to it!"
"But I won't be giving you Mjölnir so easily next time," Thor remarks cheekily. "But oh my gods, you can lift it too! I can show you so many things!" He pauses. "But in exchange, you have to show me how to manipulate air pressure as you do, it's something I never thought about!"
"It's a deal!"
Both men laugh together, Tenko scratching his cheek. "For the record All Might, I was rooting for you…"
"Why thank you, young-"
Click.
All Might is cut off by the sound of the exam cuff being secured onto him by the teen. "But I still wanna pass."
As the group laughs more together, the rest of class 1-A gets to their feet, Izuku and Yamomo looking at each other. "That's pretty much it," Izuku observes, exhaling. "All that's left is-"
"Is me."
Ghost Rider stands menacingly in front of the group, ready to continue the earlier fight. Behind him, a weary Hawks, with most of his feathers missing, messily lands and dumps Nezu on the ground in front of him. The quirked animal watches the interaction closely.
"Not gonna lie, I was kinda hoping he'd be blown halfway across Japan," Izuku mumbles, looking over his beaten and battered classmates. No one is in a condition to fight, not that he was confident they could win anyway. "I don't…I don't know what to do…"
"What is the name of his team?" Izuku gives Yaomomo a bizarre look at the question, so she clarifies. "Your Uncle. What team is he a part of?"
"The Avengers?"
"And why are they called that?"
Looking at Thor, Izuku doesn't really have to think about it. He's heard the answer plenty of times. It's because if they can't defend the Earth, they'll be damn sure to-
Realization hits him like a truck. Seeing Ghost Rider and his injured classmates, Izuku looks to Yaomomo, who nods and tilts her head behind them. The gate is all but gone, but little parts of the poles holding the sign remain. She had led them there on purpose.
Izuku nods at Yaomomo and they both take a step back. They had been lucky so far but sometimes…sometimes you couldn't win. And it was better to live to avenge another day.
Both class presidents take one last step through the gate, which beeps, the system attempting to announce their pass but too damaged to do so.
Nezu claps his paws together happily. "Good! Very good! Every hero should know when it is right to tactically retreat and regroup. Sometimes, a fight is unwinnable or the losses would not be worth it. I'm glad to see you recognized this."
Ghost Rider nods. "Not all weaknesses that must be overcome are physical. The need for victory is one I have witnessed numerous times, and has driven many to their ruin."
"Tsk." Bakugo wipes his mouth. "I still think we could've taken him…"
"I am more than happy to use you as an example."
Bakugo glares daggers at the Rider but thankfully, for his own sake, he doesn't attack.
Tsu hops over and cuffs Nezu. "Congratulations, students! Your exams are over and you have all passed!"
Class 1-A's cheers are short-lived as they all collapse where they stand from exhaustion.