Chapter 28: A Conversation with Midoriya
"Even though Aizawa-sensei said U.A. isn't a place to make friends, it's still great to discuss things with friends after an intense battle!"
Mina Ashido said with a look of satisfaction, taking a large bite out of a hamburger.
"What I want to know is, why did you all tag along..." Yoshikage Kira said with a sense of resignation. After he had accepted Izuku Midoriya's invitation, Kirishima had overheard and loudly declared, "The class rep is going? I'm going too!"
Soon, everyone nearby had heard and expressed interest in joining. Kira, having only been invited, had no say in the matter. He could only watch as Midoriya, who had wanted to say something, was given no chance to object, and the group of four swelled to over a dozen. Besides Bakugo, and Hagakure and Todoroki who had left due to injuries, basically everyone else had come.
"I'm quite interested in this kind of commoner restaurant," Momo Yaoyorozu said, holding a tray and sitting down to Kira's right with a reserved smile. "I never had any friends before, so I could never find anyone to come to a place like this with me."
When Kira told the owner of the restaurant that they were all U.A. students, the owner had enthusiastically led them to the second floor, telling them they would have it all to themselves. It was essentially a private party for Class 1-A.
"Who made a rule that you have to come to KFC with friends? I come here alone all the time," Denki Kaminari said without looking up, his fingers flying across his handheld game console.
"You just don't get it," Minoru Mineta said, sitting next to Kaminari. He was kneeling on his chair, leaning forward to watch the game screen. "A guy like you, who just buries his head in a game at KFC without a care for the atmosphere, wouldn't understand. But when other people come here and sit alone at a single-person table, with no one across from them, they're attacked by the lively atmosphere all around. They think they're being laughed at by all the groups of friends. Every glance from the people around them feels malicious, and they subconsciously want to flee."
"This place... is a forbidden zone for the lonely!!!" As he finished, Mineta stood up on his chair, slapped Kaminari's shoulder hard, and burst into tears. "I'm so glad you all came with me!"
"I get it, now let go!" Kaminari's fingers didn't stop moving as he tried to shake Mineta's hand off his shoulder. "If this keeps up, I'm going to lose!"
"Ah... I lost."
Ignoring Kaminari's "discipline" of Mineta, Kira walked over to Midoriya's table and tapped on it. "Care to talk? About your Quirk and... Katsuki Bakugo."
Kira keenly sensed Midoriya's surprise. He subconsciously started to stand up, but with great willpower, he kept his expression calm and forced a smile. "S-sure."
Kira pretended not to notice and sat down. Seeing Midoriya's nervous expression, Ochaco Uraraka stood up and said, "I'm going to go check on the others," and left the table. Tenya Iida also said he was going to buy another hamburger and went downstairs.
"Now it's just the two of us," Kira said softly. "I don't usually like to pry into other people's privacy, but I want to know what's going on with your Quirk. Bakugo said before that you were Quirkless, and you seem very inexperienced with using it now. Is it a recently awakened Quirk?"
Seeing his hesitation, Kira added, "Of course, you don't have to say anything if you don't want to. This is just a friend's concern."
On the night the results were announced, Kira had gone to Seaside Park and witnessed a deal firsthand. Although the man was eventually caught by All Might and the goods were destroyed by the delivery man before they could be shipped, leaving no evidence.
But from their conversation, Kira could guess that the drug had the power to enhance Quirks. In other words, it could also potentially give a Quirk to someone who was Quirkless.
Although Kira didn't really believe it, Midoriya's unusual Quirk and its powerful side effects made it a possibility that he had used such a drug.
"There's nothing to hide. I was Quirkless before. You can just ask Kacchan," Midoriya said, clenching his fists. "My Quirk was given to me by someone else."
"Who?"
"...I can't say who specifically," Midoriya said, his head bowed.
"That's enough." From his words, Kira could tell that the power was given to him by someone he respected deeply. It was possible that this person's Quirk was the ability to bestow Quirks on others. In any case, as long as he hadn't used that unknown drug, it was fine.
Kira was very interested in that drug. Although he knew it might have side effects, if it could get rid of the homicidal urges that Yoshikage Kira's abilities had brought him, he would accept any side effect.
Midoriya looked up at Kira. "Actually, I've always wanted to thank you. For healing my injuries and for stopping Kacchan..."
"It's no big deal. We're friends, right? If you keep bringing up small things like this, it'll just bother me, and I might hesitate to help you next time."
"Sorry!" Midoriya smiled and rubbed his head. "We're friends!"
Kira didn't know that although Midoriya said this, he would still firmly remember every time someone helped him. He was surprisingly stubborn in that regard.
"I have one more question," Kira said, squeezing out some ketchup and bringing a fry to his lips. "...What's the deal with you and Bakugo? I know you went to the same junior high, but he doesn't seem to treat you like a friend at all."
Kira knew Bakugo was a hot-tempered guy, but when he talked to him, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not, he could always hear a disdain for Midoriya, an emotion that could be called "hatred."
Midoriya showed a rare, helpless smile, as if he didn't care about Bakugo's attitude toward him, as tolerant as a mother with a temperamental child.
"Well, Kacchan and I were in the same class since kindergarten. He was always amazing, able to do things others couldn't with ease. He grew up in an environment of praise from adults and admiration from his peers, so he came to believe he was better than everyone else. He gradually became a bit conceited and didn't want to accept help from anyone in any form. In his eyes, he was the strongest, and everyone else was, at best, someone he could help."
Midoriya was lost in his memories, smiling as he spoke. "But, even someone like him can get into danger. He can show a face that's pleading for help..."
"Are you talking about... the Sludge Villain incident?"
The Sludge Villain incident happened when Bakugo was in his third year of junior high. Famous heroes often left behind extraordinary deeds in their youth, standing out from the crowd, and Bakugo was that kind of person.
At the time, he had been captured by a villain in an alley. Even when Pro Heroes arrived, they were helpless against that particular villain. But Bakugo held on his own for over ten minutes without any help, an achievement that would make even adult Pro Heroes feel ashamed. In the end, he was saved by All Might.
"That's right," Midoriya nodded. "Kacchan is someone I admire greatly. And so, I have to defeat him."