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The sun hung high in the sky, spilling golden light across the landscape. The heat wasn't unbearable, but it was enough to make the air feel thick, the kind of warmth that clung to your skin and made every breath just a little heavier. A soft breeze rustled the treetops, shaking loose a few stray leaves that drifted lazily to the ground.
Birds chirped in the distance, their songs blending with the faint hum of cicadas. It was the perfect day for a casual hike, and a handful of people took advantage of the weather, trailing along the dirt paths that wound through the forest.
But deeper in, past where most hikers would bother to go, the air held a different energy.
In a small clearing surrounded by towering trees, a boy stood alone. His spiky blonde hair was damp with sweat, stray strands clinging to his forehead.
Shirtless, he only wore a pair of black shorts, the fabric slightly dusted from the dirt beneath him. His chest rose and fell in slow measured breaths, the definition in his muscles highlighted by the sun filtering through the leaves.
Suddenly, a grin stretched across his face. Without warning, he threw his hands up into the air, sending a faint spray of sweat flying off him.
"LEEEETTTTSSSS GOOOOOOO!!!!"
His voice ripped through the forest, sending birds scrambling from the treetops. He held his arms up for a moment, chest heaving, sweat dripping from his chin.
Then, taking a deep breath, he exhaled and turned his gaze forward.
━─━─━─━─≪◈ SYSTEM STATUS ◈≫─━─━─━─━
[NAME] ➤ Katsuki Bakugo
[AGE] ➤ 14
[QUIRK] ➤ Explosion
◇───STATS───◇
[STRENGTH] ➤ D+
[SPEED] ➤ D+
[ENDURANCE] ➤ D+
[INTELLIGENCE] ➤ A
◇───SKILLS───◇
Palm Explosion ➤ LVL.1
(The ability to generate and control nitroglycerin-based explosions from the palms. Current control - Basic.)
━─━─━─━─≪◆≫─━─━─━─━
"Still garbage… but at least it's something," Bakugo muttered, exhaling as he made his way over to a tree. He dropped down, back pressing against the rough bark, letting the shade cool him down. His eyes flicking back to the status screen floating in front of him.
Five months. Five long months just to get this far. It barely felt like progress, but at least now, after all that grinding, something finally changed. All it took was one more week of pushing himself past his limit to level up his stats.
And yet… his Explosion skill still hadn't leveled up yet. No matter how much he trained it, no matter how many ways he tried using it. 'What even counts as a skill? How do I even get more?' He frowned, tapping his fingers against his knee. The system wasn't exactly giving out tutorials, and he'd been testing every kind of move he could think of, but nothing new ever showed up.
He wasn't exactly sure how the skill system worked, but whatever...he'd figure it out eventually.
With a lazy wave of his hand, the status screen disappeared. He slumped back, letting his body sink further into the tree, with his head resting against the bark.
The cool shade, the faint rustling of leaves, the distant chirping...it all felt oddly peaceful.
Weird. The old him? Yeah, no shot he'd be out here willingly. He was the type to stay inside unless absolutely necessary. The idea of hiking? Touching grass? Voluntarily? Hell no. He hated extra effort, and he definitely hated nature.
But now? He actually liked it...
He wasn't sure if it was some weird fusion of his soul and Bakugo's, but his personality had definitely changed. He had anger issues now...like, actual anger issues. Half the time, it just felt like he was starving and getting irrationally pissed off at the dumbest shit.
Still, what really threw him off was the fact that Bakugo actually liked hiking.
With how loud and aggressive he was, you'd think he'd prefer somewhere like a gym are something. But no, apparently, Bakugo found peace and quiet in nature. ' Maybe that's why he always had such a complicated relationship with Deku. ' He thought.
Deku was the only thing Bakugo could never outrun, no matter how hard he tried. The dude just wouldn't quit. Always standing back up, always chasing, always looking at him with those damn eyes. He probably hated Deku for one simple reason...no matter what he did, he could never break him.
'Honestly, Deku's a shitty main character at the start… way too much of a crybaby for my taste.' he mused, running a hand through his sweat-damp hair. 'That's why I'm a bit hesitant about wanting to help the guy. He needs way too much hand-holding... But I have to.'
As much as he hated to admit it, there was no way he was soloing Shigaraki (AFO) and the league of villains by himself. Shigaraki was a monster in his own right...no, worser than a monster. Even with every top-tier hero jumping him, dude still walked out like nothing happened.
'Even if I somehow managed to steal One for All for myself and get stupid strong, it wouldn't be enough. I'd still get stomped. If I wanna survive this, I need him.' He let out another sigh, staring up at the sky through the gaps in the leaves. 'As annoying as it is to admit… Deku's probably the only one who could actually beat him.'
The way Deku used One for All was insane. Dude was pulling off high-speed calculations in the middle of fights like it was nothing, stacking multiple quirks on top of each other without a second thought.
'If I want to survive the end of this... I need to make everyone way stronger than before or somehow stop Shigaraki before he gets to his OFA stage.' Bakugo crossed his arms, staring off into the trees.
After a few moments of thinking everything over he pushed himself up to his feet.
No point in dwelling on it now. His training for the day was done, and there wasn't much else he could do out here.
Might as well head home...
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He finally made it home, stopping at the gate of a massive three-story house. Even after months of living here, the sheer size of the place still threw him off. It wasn't some gaudy mansion, but it was definitely high-end...sleek modern design, a large front yard, and a gate that felt unnecessarily fancy.
This was something he wasn't sure he'd ever get used to. The him from before lived in a cramped, run-down apartment that barely had enough space to stretch his legs. It wasn't much bigger than those tiny New York apartments he'd seen online. But now? He was living in straight-up luxury.
After all, his parents weren't just anyone...they were top-tier fashion designers.
And they made hella bread.
Stretching his arms over his head, he pushed open the gate and stepped through. He barely had the door open before a voice boomed from inside.
"IS THAT YOU, KATSUKI?!"
Bakugo flinched. 'Shit…'
From the kitchen, a woman stepped out, wiping her hands on a dish towel. She wore a plain white T-shirt tucked into a dark black skirt, her feet lazily slipped into a pair of purple flip-flops. Her hair just as wild and spiky as his, making it impossible to deny the resemblance between them.
Mitsuki Bakugo, his mom and, on top of that, drop-dead gorgeous..The kind of woman who turned heads without even trying. 'How the hell did Masaru pull that off?... If she wasn't technically my mother, I'd probably hit that..no hesitation. But I'm a man of morals. A man of honor.'
"Yeah…" he muttered, already knowing where this was going.
The closer she got, the more her nose wrinkled. Then, bringing up her hand to her nose, she pinched it shut, waving a hand in front of her face like she'd just walked into a pile of shit.
"Ugh! You smell like absolute shit!"
SMACK!
Her palm met the top of his head, snapping his neck forward till he was almost hunched over. "Oi! What the hell was that for?!" Bakugo barked, rubbing the sore spot.
Mitsuki didn't miss a beat. "Who the hell are you yelling at?!"
Bakugo clenched his jaw, biting down on his bottom lip in frustration. His first instinct was to yell back, but instead, he sucked in a deep breath, calming himself down. 'Just relax…no reason to get mad.' He mused, coming to his senses. "…Sorry," he muttered, barely above a whisper.
Silence.
Mitsuki just blinked at him. Her lips parted slightly, but no words came out. For once in her life, she actually looked caught off guard. After a moment, she sighed, shaking her head. "Tch. Growing teenagers these days…" she muttered under her breath, more to herself than anyone else.
Then, just like that, she snapped back to normal. "NOW GET YOUR STINKY ASS IN THE SHOWER! AND GET READY FOR DINNER!"
As much as he wanted to snap back, he held it in. Bakugo's anger issues were a pain in the ass, but if he really tried, he could keep them in check...somewhat. It took a lot of effort, though, and right now, he was using every ounce of restraint not to bark back.
With a quiet huff, he shoved his hands into his pockets and turned away, taking the stairs two at a time. The house was stupidly big, way bigger than necessary, but at least it meant he had space to himself.
Reaching the second floor, he made his way down the hall to the bathroom.
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"What's all the ruckus down here…?" A voice came from the top of the stairs.
Bakugo glanced up just as footsteps padded down toward them.
Masaru Bakugo, his dad. A man with shaggy brown hair, blue-framed glasses, and a weak excuse for a mustache sitting on his upper lip. He was dressed as casually as ever, rocking a plain green shirt, brown shorts, and white slippers like he had nowhere important to be.
"Nothing, sweetie…" Mitsuki waved him off with a sigh, already turning back toward the kitchen.
Masaru blinked, adjusting his glasses. The guy looked like a total pushover, the kind of man who apologized when someone else bumped into him. How the hell he managed to pull someone like Mitsuki? No one knew. Maybe his charm was just on a level.
Shrugging, Masaru made his way over to the dining table, sliding into his usual seat with the ease of a man who had long since accepted his place in the household hierarchy. "So, what's for dinner, honey?" he asked, his voice calm, almost too calm, not even caring what happened...the arguments were an everyday thing, the best he could now is just to ignore it.
"Teriyaki chicken with veggies," Mitsuki replied, not even looking up as she continued prepping in the kitchen. Her tone was clipped, but not annoyed, just the usual angriness she carried in her voice.
"Sweetie… is it just me, or is Bakugo acting a bit weird?" Mitsuki muttered as she set the plates down.
Masaru, who had just gotten comfortable in his chair, raised a brow. "What do you mean?" He adjusted his glasses slightly, looking confused.
"I'm not sure… but he's been acting off for the past few months," she said, crossing her arms.
Masaru chuckled at that. "I mean, he is a growing boy. He's a teenager, Mitsuki. He's going through that delicate phase in a man's life… who knows? He might have a girlfriend."
Mitsuki froze for a second, staring at him like he just said the dumbest thing imaginable. Then she scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, right. Like that brat would ever waste his time on a girlfriend."
Masaru just chuckled again, leaning back in his chair. "You never know. Maybe he's finally mellowing out a bit."
Mitsuki narrowed her eyes. "Mellowing out? Katsuki? Don't make me laugh. If anything, he's been acting too calm. It's weird."
Masaru hummed, adjusting his glasses again. "Maybe he's just growing up, Mitsuki. Kids change."
Mitsuki didn't look convinced. She leaned against the counter, fingers drumming against her arm. "You're right...I'm thinking too much into it." Mitsuki sighed, her gaze flicking to the clock on the wall, her brows drawing together. "BAKUGO, HURRY UP!" she yelled, her voice carrying through the entire house like a damn shockwave.
Masaru, completely unfazed, just sat there, sipping his drink like his eardrums hadn't just been assaulted. It was almost impressive how he could tune her out, like he'd mastered some kind of special ability over the years.
Up on the stairs, Bakugo flinched, clicking his tongue in annoyance. He had been sitting there, listening in on their conversation, but now it seemed like his peace was officially over. 'Tch. Guess I really have been acting different… but whatever. If they're just chalking it up to "growing pains," then that works in my favor.' With a stretch, he finally pushed himself up, taking his sweet time before heading down.
"I'M COMING!" he yelled back, just as loud.
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