Holding that cold bottle of cola in his hand, Midoriya instinctively glanced at the plastic bag sitting next to the girl. It was clearly from the convenience store—not long ago.
He looked down at his dusty hands and sweat-soaked clothes. Placing the bottle on the sandy ground, Midoriya hurried toward the beach.
"Alright, time for training... Now that you've got a basic understanding of controlling your strength, the next step is reinforcement training."
About ten minutes later, Konata, having finally found a song she was satisfied with, took off her headphones and handed Midoriya two sticks she had prepped earlier.
"You should be able to use your quirk at will now, right? Even if it's just at five percent."
"...Yes!"
Midoriya nodded earnestly, clenching his fists.
"Alright then..."
She paused mid-hand-off and pulled her hand back.
"Never mind, let's do a quick field test first. You can use your quirk, and your goal is to defeat me within five minutes. Think you can do it?"
"I…"
Midoriya hesitated, but Konata was already standing up and placing her phone down beside her.
"I'll stick to technique alone. Though I do have a passive that lets me reflect one attack every 40 seconds—that should help close the gap a little between us. So let's begin."
Seeing that refusal was no longer an option, Midoriya stood up as well.
The earlier training had helped. After two hours of nearly a thousand throws, the idea of controlling his strength had almost become instinctual. Before, he had to constantly visualize a metaphor—like microwaving an egg without it exploding. But now, he didn't need to.
Defeat her in five minutes? She's not using her quirk. And with that tiny body, she still thinks she can lock me down with joint techniques? Don't underestimate me!
But he had barely taken a few steps when Konata frowned and interrupted.
"Where's your quirk? Why aren't you using it? You're moving exactly the same as before."
"Huh? My quirk… I thought I was supposed to save it for critical moments…"
"Ah, I finally see what your problem is."
Rolling her eyes, Konata slapped her forehead in exasperation and turned back toward the tree.
"Let me ask you—what exactly do you consider your quirk to be? Some sort of trump card only for emergencies?"
Before the confused Midoriya could answer, she continued.
"Don't give me that excuse about your quirk hurting you. Haven't you already learned to manage 5%? If you're still thinking like that, then you've never truly accepted your quirk as yours."
She picked up the two sticks again and tossed one at him, looking disappointed.
"You need to figure out what your quirk is. Why only use it when you 'have to'? Why not keep it active and integrated at all times? You already know how to control it at 5%... Ugh, whatever, I think you just got it."
Seeing his sudden look of realization, Konata shrugged and sipped her cola.
She had barely taken a few sips before she noticed Midoriya staring at her strangely. Glancing at the bottle in her hand and then at the one by the bag, she realized… she'd accidentally grabbed his cola.
Without missing a beat, she pulled out a new unopened bottle and tossed it to him.
"It's just a soda. No need to stare like that. Here—happy now?"
Midoriya: "…"
There was no denying it—Midoriya was growing rapidly.
Once he'd had that breakthrough, his progress skyrocketed. By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, he had nearly mastered full-body quirk application. At first, he could barely walk in that state. But after a full afternoon of Konata's brutal practical sparring, he could now begin to use it in combat.
Though Konata had held back, by the end of the day, he was black and blue. Then again, she wasn't exactly unscathed either—especially after he started getting the hang of fighting in that state.
"Alright, that's all I can teach you. From here on, it's up to you."
Tossing the two sticks aside, Konata clapped her hands.
"Controlling power isn't something you master overnight. You'll need to keep working at it. As for that multitasking thing…"
She glanced at the circular and square shapes she had drawn in the sand, then erased them with her foot.
"Honestly, it's not something you have to learn. Pushing yourself like that might just mess you up. Let's call it for today."
"Thanks... for everything today."
Midoriya, now collapsed on the sandy ground and bathed in starlight, looked like he wanted to say more.
"No need for thanks, man—we're bros, right? Just don't hold a grudge for me beating the crap out of you all afternoon. …You good to stand?"
Konata waved her hand casually and turned toward him. He looked pitiful sitting there like a broken toy, most of the damage her own handiwork.
"…"
Midoriya suddenly felt oddly annoyed.
As he was about to respond and push himself to his feet, a small hand extended toward him.
"Need a hand?"
Bathed in starlight, Konata stood at the edge of the beach, her hand reaching out to him, eyes sparkling like the night sky.
Staring blankly into those clear eyes, Midoriya saw his reflection staring back.
"I-I'm okay! It's not that bad…"
Snapping out of it like waking from a dream, Midoriya flusteredly avoided her hand and scrambled to his feet.