Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Vongrak.
Izumi POV.
"Are you sure about this place?" Mai asked, confused, as she looked around. We had just entered what seemed to be a fairly large gym—if the huge sign outside was to be believed. It was big, bigger than I expected inside—but for some reason, it was completely empty.
And I wasn't just talking about people, there was absolutely nothing inside, no machines for training or exercising or anything, it was totally empty, only the lights being on and the lack of dust around showed that it wasn't a completely abandoned building.
"I don't know, you tell me, if you didn't get lost, then this must be the place," I said, shrugging as I walked towards the center of the room.
"Get lost? I may not know Nagoya, but I'm more than capable of following a map." Mai said, glaring at me. I looked at her amused.
"So they tricked me, Mirko just sent me to an empty building." I said jokingly.
"You sound too funny for someone who just got scammed," Mai said dryly, looking around almost impatiently.
"I mean, it's not the end of the world? I still have time to find another heroine to do my Work Studies with." I said, shrugging.
"Even so, I can't believe that a heroine would give you a false address, which is completely un-" My eyes widened, without hesitation I grabbed Mai's neck and pulled her back mid-sentence, just in time to dodge by a few centimeters a kick so strong it seemed to drag the wind due to its force.
My gaze fixed on the person who had just attacked us, Mirko, with a huge, savage smile.
"Mai!" I ordered Mai, who still seemed confused, yet I moved her body again avoiding another blow from Mirko. She had spun in the air enough to deliver a downward kick in Mai's direction, I pulled Mai towards me and spun with her as I jumped back.
Mirko kept moving, barely touched the ground, she shot out like a spring in our direction, I grabbed Mai's waist with one hand, pressed her body to mine and threw myself to the side, dodging her attack once again by a few centimeters, even so, I could feel the force behind that kick, she pushed into the air again with such force that it pushed me slightly, I corrected my center of gravity immediately.
Luckily, Mai finally reacted, her body lit up and transformed into her katana form. I gripped the hilt tightly and spun around. Mirko's eyes shone with excitement. Still in the air, she turned her body upside down, placing her hands on the ground. I could see her fingers pierce the floor, her arms bulging as she forced her entire body to spin with tremendous force.
I saw Mirko's muscular legs tense tightly as she began to spin. I met her kick with a downward strike, Dance. My sword collided with her kick, the force behind both blows shaking the ground as it cracked even more. Damn, it was like hitting a goddamn indestructible battering ram.
To my surprise, Mirko let out a huge laugh, applied more force, turned her body even more and her kick repelled my sword upwards leaving me completely unprotected, my eyes opened slightly as Mirko continued to turn, her other foot was about to reach me with my guard unprotected.
I clicked my tongue, Wado Ichimonji emerged from my shadows, I grabbed the sword as fast as I could, lifted one leg, placed the blade in front of my knee and hand, and took Mirko's blow. I gritted my teeth as my single foot, my only point of support, clung to the ground, preventing me from being thrown to the other side of the building.
I spun around, deflecting the kick and forcing Mirko to keep spinning. That didn't seem to bother her; she just kept spinning with the same momentum and attacked me again. I clicked my tongue.
I raised both swords above my head, I squeezed both swords with all my strength, Sound Breathing: First Form: Roar, I lowered both swords without holding back in the slightest, the swords collided with a brute force, which was matched by Mirko's leg.
She abruptly stopped her spin, but didn't give up. She kept pushing even when the ground broke beneath us and she lost her grip. Finally, we were both thrown back several meters.
Mirko spun vertically several times and landed on the ground, looking at me with a wild smile.
"Come on, kid! You can do better!" Mirko laughed uproariously, her legs bulging once more, so strongly it seemed as if there was a small burst of air when they tensed, then she vanished. I ducked without hesitation; she was fast, damn fast.
Faster than Ruby, without a doubt; she was almost as fast as AFO, which was incredibly impressive. And her strength was far from negligible; her legs could exert more brute force than I could, and that was saying something.
Even so, I was not intimidated, I turned my body and attacked Mirko, who spun around in the air again, her legs going in opposite directions and colliding with my swords, stopping them with a metallic noise.
I clicked my tongue. Mirko was face down again and I attacked her at great speed, dozens of attacks in a fraction of a second. Mirko just smiled widely as she began to spin her whole body. She used her hands to jump in my direction, her legs colliding with all my attacks with ridiculous coordination.
Mirko's body spun around, her legs went in different directions without any problem, Mirko's three-dimensional mental map and proprioception were ridiculous, no matter the angle at which her body was, she could react almost immediately to any attack that was thrown at her with an equally ridiculous force.
I pushed my speed to the limit, but Mirko easily kept up with me. I could feel my arms trembling every time my sword hit her feet; it was like hitting something truly unbreakable. I could feel the dull recoil with every blow.
Mirko spun once more, this time lifting one of her powerful legs into the air, and spun vertically. I didn't even bother to catch it, I dodged it to the side letting the heel pass close to my face and hit the ground causing it to create a crater.
I got back into position, finally imbuing my swords with Haki.
"Ryuma's Grandson using Haki?! Can't you beat me without it?! Use your Quirk!!" Mirko laughed happily, I stopped my haki mid-sentence and clicked my tongue.
"You damn lunatic! You should have brought Maki and let her fight that brute!" Mai growled into my hands, and I chuckled. I took a deep breath, gripped my swords tightly, and charged at Mirko again. She laughed uproariously and came straight at me. We collided once more, shaking the building again.
With a moment's hesitation, my shadows spread beneath Mirko. Orochi's head emerged, jaws agape, attempting to devour Mirko, which it did. Orochi swallowed Mirko and held her inside for exactly 1.3 seconds. Mirko's leg pierced Orochi's head from the inside, and the other severed its head completely.
My snake turned into a pool of shadow, yet I took advantage of its brief distraction to attack. I let more of my summons emerge. Mirko dodged my attack only to see an Escape Rabbit launch a kick at her head.
Mirko looked confused when the rabbit's kick connected with her cheek, her eyes widening as her head snapped slightly from the force of the attack. While she hadn't been able to make her rabbits as lethal as a Caerbannog rabbit, they were definitely stronger than the average rabbit.
Each clone had the strength of an average person; it wasn't much, but considering Rabbit Escape could create hundreds of them in an instant, yes, it was terribly annoying.
Mirko turned her body, not even using her legs; her hand struck the rabbit, completely destroying it. Even so, more and more rabbits appeared. Hundreds and thousands of them filled her vision, and I took the opportunity to hide among them.
I heard Mirko let out another laugh as she began to massacre the rabbits. That was the only way to put it. Each of her attacks killed a dozen of my rabbits, and she could launch too many in just a few moments. The number of rabbits dwindled rapidly.
Even so, I hid among my rabbits and attacked her from her blind spot. I almost sighed with relief when my blow connected with Mirko's back. I was almost expecting her to use the same trick Mirio did to avoid my Selfless state.
Even so, my attack did no real damage; it was completely absorbed by her aura, and only made her smile almost maniacally and increase her attack power. After the first attack, it was more difficult to get close to her blind spot. Mirko moved and turned rapidly, never staying still for even an instant, protecting all her blind spots at once.
My attacks caught her off guard, but not enough to land a second blow on her body. Finally, my rabbits were completely killed, including the original Escape Rabbit. Shadows dripped across the completely destroyed building.
Mirko finally stopped and smiled broadly, I prepared once again to attack.
"Ah! That was a really good workout! It's been a long time since I've exerted myself like that!" Mirko said cheerfully, beginning to stretch lazily. I huffed as I lowered my swords, but kept a wary eye on Mirko.
"I'm glad, I certainly feel the same way. My classmates may be strong, but they're still far from this level." I said completely honestly, my breath still steady and steady, but I could feel the sweat accumulating on my body. Mirko just let out a laugh.
"It's not their fault, it's your fault, you're the monster!" Mirko said cheerfully, I shrugged.
"Maybe." I said playfully.
"Okay, then, why should I hire you as my intern, Ryuma's grandson?" Mirko asked, looking at me. I blinked and surveyed the building's destruction around me.
"I thought this was the test." I said dryly. Mirko snorted.
"I said it was a good exercise, not that I'd hire you for it. However good it is, I still work alone, kid. I don't have the time or the desire to teach a student." Mirko scoffed.
"Not even if you could train like that every day?" I asked her playfully. Mirko shrugged noncommittally.
"Once again, it was fun, but beating up villains is just as fun. I'd have less time for that if I did this," she said easily.
"I have a part-rabbit quirk and wanted your advice?" I asked as I let Escape Rabbit's power manifest in my body, causing a pair of ears to grow. Mirko looked at my ears and blinked a few times.
"That just sounds like I'll have to waste more time teaching you." I simply pointed, clicking my tongue.
"I'll do all the paperwork you need?" I asked again. This time, Mirko took several long seconds to really think about it.
"Seriously, that's the one that works??" Mai asked incredulously. Mirko snorted dryly.
"Listen, girl, paperwork is the most boring thing in the world, it's the villain no hero can defeat." Mirko said seriously, and I stifled a laugh.
"So?" I asked playfully. Mirko finally snorted, looking me up and down.
"Fine, I'll make an exception, Ryuma's grandson. You're strong, I admit, but if you slow me down, I'll just abandon you, and don't expect me to treat you gently." Mirko said dryly.
"I'm Izumi Miyamura," I said simply as I let Wado Ichimonji fall onto my shadows. Mai detransformed, but still stayed behind me, cautiously eyeing Mirko. "And this is Mai Zenin," I introduced us. Mirko just shrugged, uncommitted.
"I don't care about your name, or the sword girl's name, get your papers ready, kid, and come on, I have a patrol to do, you'll follow me, why didn't you come in your disguise?" Mirko said without stopping.
"Don't worry, I have everything I need." I said as I pulled out the papers and a spare costume I had in my pocket. Mirko just smiled broadly.
"Oh, that quirk of yours is getting more and more interesting," Mirko said easily. I sighed in relief. Well, let's see how this internship goes.
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Taylor POV.
"Are you ready?" Aizawa-sensei asked from beside me. I took a deep breath, tightened my grip on my briefcase with my costume inside in one hand and Shusui over my shoulder in a sword bag, and finally nodded.
"Yes, Sensei," I finally said. Aizawa simply nodded before leading me to the helipad atop the main UA building, and I followed him immediately. As we approached, I spotted someone in a blue and black uniform with a cap, seemingly taking in the UA campus around us. I couldn't blame them; UA was truly impressive and ridiculously enormous.
"Strider." Aizawa said as he approached. Strider turned around and came closer, extending his hand.
"Eraserhead?" Strider asked. Aizawa nodded, grabbed Strider's hand, and shook it.
"I hope the PRT brought you up to speed, Strider." Aizawa said in perfect English with barely a slight accent. Strider sighed almost in relief at hearing him speak in her language.
"Yes, yes, of course, I'm supposed to come in every day for the next three weeks, minus weekends? At this same time every day, drive someone to Brockton Bay, and then bring them back four hours later." Strider said professionally before glancing at me sideways. Aizawa nodded.
"Yes, it seems everything is in order, thank you for your work. Now, this is Taylor, the person you're bringing in. She's a UA student, has a contract with the PRT, and will be interning with the Protectorate for the next three weeks." Aizawa said as he introduced me. So he used my first name; I guess he wasn't really interested in using my old last name or the new one in front of Strider. I stepped forward.
"Hello, nice to meet you, Strider, thanks for the ride, I guess." I said awkwardly as I extended my hand. Strider nodded as she grabbed my hand and shook it.
"Likewise, I must say, this... contract is one of the strangest I've ever had. I mean, just because it came from the PRT, I rarely get to teleport individual people, and it's certainly the first time it's been a student. But that's where the weirdness ends. There was a wealthy person who paid for a trip for their chihuahua to Hawaii because she said it was too stressed in the city." Strider said, amused. I heard Aizawa snort dryly as I raised a surprised eyebrow.
"Is it okay for you to tell us that?" I asked, surprised. Strider scoffed.
"I'm not a doctor, there's no client confidentiality, I'm listed as a registered independent contractor, do you know how much paperwork I had to do to be allowed to teleport people to different countries? A ton, I tell you, and I have to register every trip I make and every person I take, so there's nothing confidential about my trips." Strider snorted, I blinked a few times, that... I guess it made sense.
I was almost certain that Ruby's aunt, this Raven woman, had no part in that whatsoever, and I know she often drives different people around without a second thought. I'd have to ask Ruby.
"That... I guess that makes sense." I said awkwardly.
"As funny as those anecdotes are, it's time for you to go to Brockton Bay." Aizawa interrupted us, and Strider nodded immediately.
"Of course, Eraserhead." Strider said without hesitation. "Are you ready?" Strider asked in my direction. I looked at Aizawa, who nodded while looking at me.
"Remember what you talked about with the principal, do what you have to do, then we'll worry about the consequences. We'll be on top of it, call us or send us a message, and good luck, Taylor." Aizawa said, switching back to Japanese. I looked at him and could feel a warm feeling from the care Aizawa and Principal Nezu showed. I was truly grateful to have my insects to help control my reaction to them and prevent me from blushing. I simply nodded.
"Understood, Sensei, see you later." I said firmly and approached Strider. "I'm ready." I said simply. Strider nodded, placed a hand on my shoulder, glanced at Aizawa, waved to him with her free hand, and suddenly the entire landscape changed with a muffled noise.
I blinked several times and looked around. UA had been erased long ago. Now we were on the outskirts of a city I couldn't recognize, but it was covered by a light dusting of snow. But most importantly, the light had changed. We went from the afternoon sun at 3 PM to almost total darkness. "Where... are we?" I asked Strider, tensing up.
"Alaska, just outside Anchorage," Strider said without hesitation. "I have a limit of about... 5,000 km or a little more. I have to make several trips to get to Brockton Bay, and I need a few seconds for the trip." Strider said, and I felt the tension dissipate and almost sighed with relief. "And now, our next stop," Strider said, touching my shoulder once more. "Welcome to Vancouver, Canada," Strider said cheerfully.
I blinked again to recover from the extreme change of scenery; once again we were on the outskirts of another city, but one completely different from Anchorage, that… wow.
"This is truly incredible." I couldn't help but say, Strider chuckled.
"I know, I get told that often, and I love my quirk too," Strider said playfully. I nodded, almost mesmerized, gazing at the city. "And our next stop is Brockton Bay, the Protectorate's headquarters," Strider announced, tapping my shoulder once more.
This was my third trip and I'd gotten used to it enough, but I ignored it anyway and looked around, especially at the city in the distance, which I recognized immediately.
Brockton Bay, I was once again in Brockton Bay after more than two years.
I couldn't help but feel a pain before sighing wearily as I composed myself.
"And we're here!" Strider said happily.
"Strider, Miss Hebert," a third voice said as it walked toward us. I turned and saw two people approaching. My eyes lit up in recognition. Armsmistress and Miss Militia.
"Armsmistress, Miss Militia, I brought your student." Strider said as she nodded, and Armsmistress nodded.
"Thank you for bringing Miss Hebert, Strider. We'll be expecting you in four hours, at 7 AM," Armsmistress said. Strider just nodded.
"Of course, I'll be here," Strider said, raising a hand in greeting before disappearing with a muffled noise. Now both heroes' attention was focused on me.
"Welcome back to Brockton Bay, Miss Hebert." Armsmistress said as she extended her hand, which I grabbed without hesitation.
"Thank you for the welcome, Armsmistress. It's good to see you again, though I had hoped it would be in better circumstances," I said curtly. Armsmistress just sighed.
"Me too, Miss Hebert, me too." Armsmistress sighed. "This is Miss Militia, second in command of the Protectorate. One of us will always be present while you're doing your internship here. If you have any problems, you can tell either of us." Armsmistress said, introducing me to Miss Militia. I could see her smile, even though only her eyes were visible and half her face was covered by a scarf with the American flag.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Hebert," Miss Militia said gently as she extended her hand.
"It's an honor to meet you, Miss Militia." I said completely sincerely as I shook hands with one of Brockton Bay's most famous heroines.
"Alright, now let's go. We have a lot to cover today, and we need to introduce you to the group of heroes you'll be assigned to," Armsmistress said immediately. I took a deep breath and looked at the building. It's time to do this.