Chapter 9: A Dark Past
Takoba Beach, Two Days Later
Izuku felt One For All hum within him as he stood on the patio of Takoba Beach, peering out over the railing at the ocean. The rising Sun's first lights glistened beautifully off the morning tide and he smiled. Moments like these were a favourite of the green-haired teen; the beauty of the world would always astound him.
"See, I know you did not call me out here at five in the morning just to make me watch you stare blissfully off into the sunset." Akira, on the other hand, appreciated the beauty of sleep. "What is the reason?" Sleep he was missing by being out here.
"What, we can't just relax?" Izuku joked, getting a tired and exasperated sigh from his friend. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding." He turned away from the ocean and faced Akira. "We're here because… I'm pretty sure I got another quirk."
Akira's eyes suddenly stopped drooping and his heart was visibly glowing. "Alright, you now have my full attention and I am awake." He stretched his arms out and rolled his neck. "What's this one?"
Izuku held out his hand as he reached down to feel for the feeling of the new quirk. "I'm gonna be honest, this one was a lot more difficult to get to work than I thought it would." A dim pink glow suddenly engulfed his right arm. "Do you remember the end of my match with Todoroki; after our clash?"
Akira shook his head. "No, I do not; you and Todoroki clashed so hard that you made enough smoke to cover the entire arena for two minutes." He explained, jabbing at his friend.
A jab that the greenette ignored. "It was me."
"…" Akira raised an eyebrow at that. "Yeah, I know, I just said that; it was you and Todoroki."
Izuku shook his head. "What? No." He raised up his arm and smoke began to wisp off him. "The smoke was me." His arm's glow intensified and he shot his hand up, creating a large plume of dark smog above him. "I thought it was Todoroki at first but…" The greenette shot his other arm up, this one charged with One For All, and dispersed the smoke with a flash of wind. "I could feel it."
"Huh." The black-haired teen nodded slowly. "I mean… That's kinda cool? It'd be pretty useful for stealth… Actually, a stealth screen and super strength sounds terrifying if you're on the receiving end."
Izuku nodded back. "Yeah, but there's something about it that I feel like I'm missing…" More smoke wisped off his arm and took the form of a face before disappearing. "Oh, yeah, I also met another one of the users." He quickly said. "He's the one that helped me out of Shinso's mind control; completely snapped me out of it."
"Ha! I knew it had to be some quirk bullshit that helped!" Akira exclaimed before getting serious after Izuku sent him a look. "So, what did this one look like?"
"Kinda like… Best Jeanist but short and his hair was black." Izuku explained, remembering that as the first thought to enter his mind when he first saw the vestige. "He's the only one that's ever appeared like this… I wonder if the others will be out soon?"
"Well, that bridge can be crossed when we get to it." Akira said, shrugging. "But… One For All, Float, Danger Sense, and now… Smokescreen." He shook his head with a laugh. "Four quirks… Crazy."
Izuku laughed at that as well. "I'm mostly worried about how I would be able to explain this to everyone." He rubbed the back of his head in thought.
"Hmmm…" An action Akira copied. "Wait, activate the smoke again." Izuku did so and the black-haired teen observed the very dim pink glow that coated his arm when he did so. "Alright… Activate One For All." The pink glow disappeared and was replaced with One For All's normal glow and pink veins of power. "… Yeah, I got it."
Izuku raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Really." Akira nodded. "You got your pink veins whenever you activate One For All and Smokescreen evidently seems the same but across your entire body; so…" He waited for his friend to try and catch on, but he didn't. "Ugh; just say that the smoke is a result of you spreading your 'energy' across your entire body and 'burning' it."
Izuku took a moment to digest that before a smile worked his way onto his face. "Oh, wow!" He nodded. "That actually works perfectly." Holding up his arm, he activated Smokescreen again. "Saying this is an energy quirk really leaves us with a lot of room to wiggle."
"Yeah; I'd recommend coming up with an actual cover name for it though." Akira suggested before taking out his phone. "Alright, we've been here long enough; we're going back to my house and I'm going to sleep while you make us both breakfast."
Knowing that he at least owed his friend that much, Izuku nodded. "Okay then." Before flying off, holding Akira by his arms. "Oh, didn't Aizawa-Sensei say he was gonna tell us about the internships today?"
Akira thought about it before slowly nodding. "Yeah, pretty sure he did." He swung up and got onto Izuku's back. "I looked into it yesterday, it's some kind of programme the school has where we go work for hero agencies to get experience."
Izuku's eyes widened. "Really?" At Akira's nod, he pumped his fist. "I hope he does internships; it'd be fun to work there."
"He…?" Akira asked, an expectant look on his face. "… Or not."
Izuku kept flying.
Musutafu Station, Three Hours Later
Light thunder boomed across the sky and rain poured down over all of Shizuoka; the clear morning sky from earlier having been replaced by this light storm. In this weather, Izuku and Akira both walked to Yuuei from the train station.
Usually, Izuku would've flown them, however…
'Five in the morning was too early.' The greenette was very tired. 'I should've just waited then gone to Akira's; it didn't even have to be at the beach.' The only silver lining to that was the black-haired teen's Mother made the best hot chocolates.
A silver lining that wasn't enough for Akira. 'I barely got any sleep.' Mentally, he was trying to send the forces of chaos upon Izuku. 'Creatures of the void, old as time, bring down judgement swift and divine-'
"Hikaru, Midoriya!" However, before the black-haired teen could continue his summoning, a voice called out to them. "What are you two doing waking at such a slow pace?" It was Iida, running towards them wearing nothing but a raincoat. "We risk running late!"
Now, in actuality, they weren't risking being late in the slightest; matter of fact, they were on the track for being early. But being as tired as they were, neither Izuku nor Akira actually knew what time was in that moment and panicked.
"What?!" Akira, now very much awake, followed Iida as he ran past them. "Damnit! I thought we caught the right train!"
"I thought we did too!" Izuku was not far behind. "Crap!"
And so, that is how the students of Yuuei became audience to three of their uprising hero course students running and screaming through the school gates early in the morning. In record time as well.
"How much time do we have left?" Akira asked as he shook his umbrella violently. "Shit, are we already late? Man, Aizawa-Sensei is gonna kill us!"
Iida put away his boots and raincoat into his locker at a much slower pace. "We have ten minutes until the first bell." He said, closing his locker.
"Oh my God! We're late by ten min-" Akira suddenly paused as he registered his fellow student's words and he looked to him with a flat expression. "I'm sorry… We're early?"
Next to him, Izuku's shoulders and entire demeanour visibly relaxed. "Thank the stars."
However, Iida did not relax with them. "No! Yuuei students should always aim to be ten minutes early; so, we are on time." He explained as he adjusted his glasses. "Just barely, but on time nonetheless."
His panic now over, Akira's body relaxed and he went back to being tired both physically and with life. "May chaos find you, Tenya Iida." He said before walking off. 'Hopefully Ochako got here early as well.'
Izuku watched Akira walk off with a shake of his head before turning to Iida. "Iida." He had read the Hero Boards two days ago after the festival. "About-"
"If you wish to say something about my brother then you may abstain." Iida said, holding his hand up. "My brother is fine; we all are." He walked off to class after that.
And Izuku followed behind silently.
The tragedy of Ingenium had been at the forefront of the Hero Board since the festival; sometime during the event the engine hero had been attacked. Now, not only was the attack big, it was the attacker.
The Hero Killer: Stain.
Ingenium was merely one in a long line of heroes that been severely crippled or killed by this man. An anti-hero who travelled across the entirety of Japan whose entire ideology was about culling the fakes of society. And while the man had revealed fake heroes before, some heroes – like Ingenium – he fought only to spread his message without any real proof of fake behaviour.
Despite all this, the man did have an effect. Similar to All Might, every city he locked his sights on found their crime rates dropping upon his visits. However, that was where the similarities ended. All Might dropped crime rates because his presence quelled the thought of crime in the villains; Stain dropped crime rates because his actions spurred the heroes to better themselves in fear of being his next target.
'Even if he is effective, it's not the right type.' Izuku thought, his eyes scanning Iida's body as they caught up to Akira.
While the greenette was never good at reading social cues or reading the room, he was always good at reading people. When he focused, he was more than capable of discerning a person's emotion through their eyes and body language.
Iida's was one of repressed, vengeful rage.
Class 1A
"I could barely believe the amount of attention I was getting!" Mina exclaimed as she swung her legs, sitting on Izuku's desk. "I had people talk to me on my way to the train station, at the train station, on the train, and even when I was walking to school!" She threw her arms up in the air. "It's like we're celebrities now!"
Ochako nodded furiously, sitting on Akira's desk. "The Mochi place by my apartment gave me my favourite flavour for free!" She still had said Mochi – a lot more than one would expect – floating around her in a personal orbit. "It feels really cool to be recognised like this."
"A bunch of little kids came up to me on the train and called me manly!" Kirishima said, pointing to himself. "And then they all tackled me in a manly group hug!" The class could see tears visibly building up in the redhead's eyes. "I've never felt so loved and invigorated by a bunch of strangers."
Hagakure twirled her chartreuse hair around her finger. "I don't know how you guys could deal with all that! Even though I didn't do well on the festival, I still had people staring at me and smiling!" She hid her face in her hands. "It was so embarrassing!"
Ojiro sent her a deadpan look. "Can't you just turn invisible though?" His question fell on deaf ears as Hagakure visibly ignored him.
"Well at least you guys had positive interactions!" Sero whined, letting his head fall down on his desk as he pouted. "The kids on my train told me, 'Don't worry about it!'"
Tsu stifled a chuckle before smiling at him. "Kero, don't worry about it." Her teasing solicited another whine from the tape teen. 'Hahaha… Suffer.'
The door suddenly opened and Izuku, Akira, and Iida walked in. "Good morning, everyone." Izuku waved with a yawn and a tired smile on his face as he sat down at his desk. "What's going on?"
Mina leaned backwards and locked eyes with the greenette. "Good morning to you, too, Izuku." She said with a sweet smile. "We were just talking about all the people that recognised and congratulated us on our way here because of the festival." The girl jumped off his desk before sitting backwards in her own chair to face the greenette, bouncing in place. "What about you; how many people talked to you on the way here?"
"Uh…" Izuku chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, no one." He said, earning himself surprised looks from everyone else. "Akira and I blend in really well with a crowd."
Said black-haired teen nodded, laying his head on Ochako's lap. 'Sweet sleep.'
"Seriously? How could no one recognise you?" Kaminari asked, pointing at Izuku. "You literally won the entire festival; you have an entire sub-board to yourself! How?"
Izuku just shrugged with an embarrassed smile. "I mean, I am a little plain looking." He said with a chuckle. "It's not hard to dismiss me."
Mina blinked, her face and expression flat. 'I'm sorry… Did he just say he was plain looking?' She asked herself, looking at his perfect, adorable, and handsome face…
To her anyway.
However, before the pink girl could say anything, Jirou suddenly spoke up. "Aizawa-Sensei's coming; ten seconds!" Before immediately rushing to her desk.
The class was quick to follow her example and cleaned up themselves and any mess they found as they did.
"Morning, class." Once more, just before Aizawa walked through the door and offered them his usual, dry greeting. "I hope you're all well." He said, walking up to his podium.
"Good morning, Aizawa-Sensei!" The class said in unison, forced flat expressions on their faces.
Not that Aizawa noticed – and if he did, he didn't care – since he simply dropped his sleeping bag and chugged his coffee down. "Alright, homeroom today is instead going to be replaced by a special hero informatics class." He secretly enjoyed the panicked expressions the class had when he spoke vaguely.
'A special informatics class?! Ah crap, that probably means something like a quiz!'
'I'm not ready for a quiz! I've barely memorised the hero law section we were given and my overall theory sucks!'
'Why does he speak so vaguely?! It's giving me anxiety!'
Unluckily for whoever had the last thought, Aizawa decided to let the tension build for an entire minute before speaking. "Today you will all be creating… Code Names." The man mentally chuckled at their resigned sighs. "This is the day you create your hero persona."
"Yes!" The majority of the class shot up out of their seats with excitement. "We get to do something exciting!"
However, that excitement was quickly curb stomped after Aizawa turned on his quirk. "Sit." His instructions were followed immediately and he smiled. "Good; now, these hero names are for the internships that I mentioned before the festival." The class sat up at this. "These internships are a part of a programme Yuuei has with the hero agencies of Japan; you spend a total of one week with a pro hero getting real world experience."
"Aizawa-Sensei?" Shoji raised his hands. "How do we choose what agency we intern with?"
Aizawa brought out a remote. "At the festival, you were all being scouted by the heroes there." He explained, getting an understanding look from his students. "And for those of you who impressed the pros, you will have been sent offers from them to intern with them."
Momo raised her hand. "And for those of us that did not?"
Aizawa turned his eyes to the onyx-haired girl. "Offer or not, all of you will be participating in this programme and have an internship… Somewhere." The man turned on a hologram and brought it in front of him. "Speaking of offers, these are all the offers you received."
Class A – # of Internship Offers:
Shoto Todoroki – 4,123 Offers
Katsuki Bakugou – 3,556 Offers
Akira Hikaru – 3,481 Offers
Tenya Iida – 2,784 Offers
Momo Yaoyorozu – 573 Offers
Fumikage Tokoyami – 444 Offers
Denki Kaminari – 272 Offers
Eijiro Kirishima – 138 Offers
Mina Ashido – 99 Offers
Ochako Uraraka – 86 Offers
Hanta Sero – 20 Offers
Izuku Midoriya – 1 Offer
The class looked at the number of offers with incredibly confused looks. "What the hell; those numbers are way out of whack." Kirishima said, scratching his head. "Not like the festival placing at all."
Mina nodded and crossed her arms. "Yeah, why'd Izuku only get one?" She asked.
Izuku looked a bit disheartened that he only got one offer but looked on the bright side. "One's better than nothing, right?" He asked with an awkward chuckle.
Mina turned around to look at the greenette and nodded. "Yeah, but you totally kicked ass out there at the festival!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms up. "And you won!"
"Yeah, dude, you went through half the tournament without using your quirk." Akira reasoned from behind Izuku. "And then you finished it with one of the best fights this Sports Festival has ever seen and a single punch that didn't even touch Kat."
Bakugou grumbled under his breath at that. "It was a double backfist, so it was two punches but whatever."
While his students argued over Izuku's number of offers, Aizawa also looked at them with own confusion. 'That's not what he had; where'd the rest of them go?' However, he couldn't think on it for long as he heard his class get too rowdy. "Alright, that's enough." The students instantly quieted themselves. "Remember, offer or not, you're going to be doing an internship."
"Oh, that's why we need hero names!" Sato exclaimed in realisation. "We need them for the general public while we're interning."
Ochako squealed as she shook Akira's shoulders. "Ah! I'm so excited; I can barely contain myself!"
Aizawa shook his head. "I get being excited, but you have to take these names seriously, alright?" He said, looking at his students. "If you're not careful with the hero name you choose then-"
"You'll have hell to pay later!" Midnight continued, kicking the door open with flair. "Isn't that right, Eraserhead?" Energetic and loud as ever.
Aizawa sighed and nodded. "Yeah, that." He quickly summoned his sleeping bag from the cat and coffee Gods before cocooning himself. "Alright, Nemuri, they're all yours." And disappearing to his corner.
Midnight took a moment to shake her head at her co-worker before turning to the students. "Okay, my dear young ones, take these whiteboards and start brainstorming hero names!" She exclaimed, throwing whiteboards at all of their heads, expertly ignoring their cries of pain. "And do remember to think carefully on these names; they are the first brush in painting your hero persona." Her words were obviously taken to heart by some and ultimately ignored by others. "Nature and name do often agree; now, start thinking!"
Ten Minutes Later
Midnight looked around the class and saw that most – if not all – the students looked like they had their names. "Alright, am I correct to assume that you've all written down a hero name?" After the whole class nodded, she smiled. "Great, then come up when you're ready and give your names!"
Her exclamation caused most of the students to widen their eyes. 'Wait… We're presenting these?'
Aoyama, however, was unphased – just as always – and waked up first. "I shall be The Sparkling Hero: Blast." He said, revealing his whiteboard with his usual calm tone. "You won't stop me from dazzling Japan."
Midnight smiled at the name and gave a thumbs up. "Alright! It sounds great; next!"
Mina bounced up to the podium and slammed her whiteboard down in front of herself. "I'm gonna be The Acid Hero: Alien Queen!" She exclaimed with a large smile.
A smile that Midnight did not return. "That thing with acidic blood?" She asked in disgust; those movies had horrified her as a child and still do. "I'd say it sounds too villainous."
The teacher's words caused Mina to pout, but Izuku spoke up before the pink girl went to sit down. "I'd say it's a great name that people would appreciate." He said, shooting a smile at Mina. "Besides, it fits Mina to a T." Izuku saw Midnight wasn't convinced and decided to close the argument. "Not to mention, there a lot more hero names in circulation that sound more villainous than Alien Queen."
Unable to come up with an argument to that, Midnight relented. "Alright then." She turned to Mina and waved her off. "Alien Queen it is."
The pink-skinned girl beamed and skipped past her seat to give Izuku a hug. "Thanks, Izuku!" She exclaimed in a sweet tone before moving to sit down. "You're the best!"
Tsu decided she'd be next and hopped up to the podium. "Kero, I've had this name in my back pocket since before middle school." She croaked out before revealing her whiteboard. "I'm gonna be The Rainy Season Hero: Froppy."
Midnight nodded her head furiously. "Aw, that's so adorable!" She cooed. "And it'll be popular with the kids; I approve!"
Kirishima practically ran up to the podium, pushing Kaminari and Jirou back into their seats as he did. "I'm next!" He dutifully ignored the protests of the aforementioned teens and showed his whiteboard. "I'm gonna be The Sturdy Hero: Red Riot!"
Midnight smiled gleefully at the teen. "Is that a homage to The Chivalrous Hero: Crimson Riot, I hear?" She asked in a teasing tone. "Such an old legend to be inspired by."
Kirishima nodded. "His interviews are the entire reason why I still want to be a hero!" He exclaimed before touching his hair. "He's also why I dyed my hair like this; I'm gonna show everyone I can pick up his mantle!"
'Aw, he such a golden retriever! It's adorable!' Midnight thought to herself before nodding. "A lovely name, Kirishima; next!"
Jirou shot up and decided to take after Kirishima by pushing Kaminari down into his seat. "Ha! Got here first." Also ignoring the electric blonde's cry of protest, she revealed her whiteboard. "I'll be The Sound Hero: Reverb!"
Midnight clapped and jumped up and down. "Wonderful choice!" She looked confused when she saw the punk rock teen look at her with a bloody nose before rushing to sit down. 'Huh?'
Continuing the trend, Shoji decided to also push Kaminari and walk up to the podium; like the others, he ignored the blonde's cry of confusion. "My hero name shall be The Scouting Hero: Tentacole." He said though one of his arms.
"Alright, combining tentacle and the kanji for octopus." Midnight nodded at the logic with a smile. "I approve; great name!"
Sero laughed as he ran up and pushed Kaminari down into his seat, joining the bandwagon. "I'm gonna be The Tape Hero: Cellophane!" He ignored the blonde's cries and instead smiled at what he knew was a great name.
"Yes!" And Midnight obviously agreed. "It fits and rolls right off the tongue; amazing!"
Ojiro let his monkey tail extend behind him and push Kaminari into his seat and rushed up to the podium with a chuckle. "I'm going to be the Martial Arts Hero: Tails." The tailed teen had the decency to at least offer his fellow blonde an apologetic look.
Midnight smiled. "A perfect name; it completely reflects you and matches your quirk!"
Sato leap frogged over his entire row to push Kaminari back into his seat, laughing as he did so. "My hero name will be The Sweets Hero: Sugarman!" He exclaimed happily.
"I love it!" Midnight stuck up her thumb. "Great name!"
This time, before anyone could even think of getting up, Kaminari activated his quirk across his entire body before bursting up in front of the podium. "No more!" He took a second to breath before revealing his whiteboard. "My hero name is gonna be The Lightning Hero: Raikiri."
Midnight clapped lightly and jumped up and down again. "A very cool name, Kaminari!" And similar to Jirou, she tilted her head in confusion when the blonde looked at her with a bloody nose. 'What is it?'
Hagakure suddenly appeared in front of the podium, shocking Midnight from her thoughts. "Haha! Y'all should've seen your faces!" She exclaimed before revealing her whiteboard. "I'm gonna be The Light Hero: Luminous!"
Midnight threw the sometimes-invisible-girl a double thumbs up. "That's a great name! Who's up next?"
"Me! Me! Me! Me!" Momo exclaimed as she ran over to the front of the podium with a smile. "I shall be…" She flipped over her whiteboard after a moment of suspense. "The Creation Hero: Genesis!"
Midnight clapped at the name but made sure not to jump. "Amazing work, Yaoyorozu!" She praised with a sweet, motherly smile. 'Alright, so it was the jumping.'
Shoto walked up next and just showed off his whiteboard without any sense of flair. "My hero name will be Shoto."
Midnight's smile faded and she raised her eyebrow. "Really, that's what you're going with?" She tilted her head at the ice teen. "Are you sure you don't want to try for something else or…?"
Shoto simply shook his head. "No, not for now."
"Well… I suppose if you're going to change it later than it's acceptable." Midnight said with a shrug. "Next."
Fumikage walked to the front of the class and Dark Shadow popped out before presenting their whiteboard. "Fumi and I decided on The Night Hero: Tsukuyomi!"
Midnight held her hands to her face. 'Aww, that's adorable.' Before nodding her head furiously. "Yes! It has a nice spooky vibe to it!"
Koda timidly walked out to the podium and attempted to sign before realising he could just turn his whiteboard around. "Here it is!" His whisper shout was only heard by the first row but his hero name had the whole class's attention. The Animal Hero: Beast.
"Hell yeah, Koda!"
"Great name, bro!"
"Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!"
Midnight also nodded in approval and smiled at the supportiveness the students seemed to have with each other. "It's an amazing name, Koda! Great job!"
Bakugou stomped up to the podium after Koda and slammed his whiteboard down with a grin. "I'm gonna be King Explosion Murder!"
Midnight shook her head. "No, absolutely not! Change that immediately, Bakugou."
"What?!" The explosive blonde looked at his teacher appalled. "But that's a great name!" The really funny part is that he genuinely thought so. "This is the name villains are gonna piss their pants to when they hear it come out of some civilian extra's mouth!"
"Little Green Might over there might have been able to persuade me with Alien Queen but that is not going to be allowed." Unluckily for the blonde, Midnight didn't think so. "Change it, Bakugou."
And so, Bakugou stalked back to his seat with a downcast look, mumbling underneath his breath. "I've been saving that since kindergarten; it's a great name."
Ochako bounced up to the podium next, still eating her Mochi from earlier. "I'm going to be The Space Hero: Uravity!" She exclaimed in a sweet tone.
"There we go, something nice." Midnight said with a smile, ignoring Bakugou's whine. "And it fits you perfectly."
Akira nodded. "Yeah, it sounds cute." He laughed as his comment caused the space girl to blush and rush to her seat. 'Damn, I'm down bad.'
Iida walked up to the class next and presented his whiteboard. "I shall be Tenya."
'Really? Another first name?' Midnight looked to the blue-haired teen with a raised eyebrow. "Are you really sure you want to go with this?" Iida said nothing and simply nodded while readjusting his glasses. "Alright then, I'll allow it."
Bakugou stormed back up to the podium, a pout on his face. "This is my back up name." This time, he lazily turned around his whiteboard. "It's The Explosion Hero: Ground Zero."
Midnight nodded with a smile. "There we go, a much better name; it even rhymes!" She offered the blonde a double thumbs up. "You can sit; I approve."
Bakugou sighed as he walked back to his seat. "Stupid rhyme is why it's second choice."
Akira took a small moment to laugh at the explosive blonde before walking up to the podium. "Well, I'm going to be The Healer Hero: Akira!"
"Seriously, you as well?" Midnight asked with an incredulous expression. "Are you sure?" At the nod she received, she relented. "Alright, fine, fine; at least you decided to put something before your name."
Finally, Izuku walked up to the class. 'Come on, think…' He looked at his whiteboard, desperately trying to think of something before shrugging. 'Nope; I got nothing.' Before ultimately giving up and revealing his whiteboard. "I'm going to be The Ninth Hero: Izuku."
Midnight simply offered the green-haired teen an exasperated sigh before nodding. "I'm not going to argue on this one; it's acceptable." She said. 'For now…'
Nodding back, Izuku went back to his seat, ignoring the confused looks he got from the rest of his class. 'The Ninth' was just a reference to himself being the ninth holder of One For All.
They didn't need to know that though, they could think of their own explanation for it.
"Alright." Aizawa suddenly appeared in front of the podium, shocking his class into silence. "Now that you have your hero names, you will choose what agency you wish to intern with." The man held up a box filled with holo-projectors. "For those of you that received offers, the staff has compiled them on these holo-projectors for you." Before bringing out a stack of forms. "And for those of you that didn't, you will choose from one of forty agencies on this sheet; choose wisely."
Midnight went around the room and passed out the forms while Aizawa simply threw the holo-projectors to the students that got one. "Alright, my dears, you'll have until the end of the week to choose so think wisely but quickly." The purple-haired hero said before leaving, Aizawa not far behind her.
"Wait, we only have two days?!" The class asked in unison as they watched their teachers exit. "This isn't a light decision; we need more time!" However, their cries fell on deaf ears as the heroes had already left earshot. "Damnit!"
Principal's Office
Nezu looked up from his paperwork and smiled as Aizawa barged into his office. "Ah, Aizawa, to what do I owe the pleasure?" He asked, bringing out his tea set and pouring himself a cup. "Tea?"
The tired hobo-man sat down in front of the principal, putting his coffee mug down. "I prefer caffeinated drinks, Principal Nezu." He said before taking off his sleeping bag.
'Ah, so it's a conversation he takes seriously.' An action that caused the chimera's eyes to widen in light shock. 'Judging by that and his tone… He must be talking about his students and- ah, Midoriya.'
Unaware that the principal already knew what he wanted to talk about, Aizawa began to speak. "I'd like to talk to you about Midoriya's offers, sir." He started, not missing the glint he saw in Nezu's eye. "I was at the meeting when we discussed them; he had so many offers that he even had requests from agencies from all the major countries across the world."
Nezu nodded. "Yes, I was quite surprised when some of the I.R.O.H's top operatives asked for him; Star and Stripeeven personally asked if she could have a chance to have him as an apprentice." He took a sip of his tea with a light chuckle. "Though, given her own old apprenticeship to All Might, and Midoriya's similarities to the man, it makes sense."
Aizawa's eyes widened. 'Alright, maybe I was asleep for that part of the meeting.' Before shaking his head and deciding to just ask the question. "What happened to Midoriya's offers?"
The chimera took another sip of his tea and presented a folder to Aizawa. "While many pros personally contacted me in hopes of getting Midoriya, one was particularlyadamant about it."
Aizawa took the folder and he raised an eyebrow. "And you agreed to this why?" He asked, not at all getting the point. "I thought you were supposed to be the smart one."
Looking a tiny bit affronted, Nezu finished off his tea. "I am, Aizawa." Before standing on his desk and taking the folder out of his employee's hands. "Read…" He flipped to a certain page in the folder before giving it back to Aizawa. "This."
The man took the folder, eyebrow still raised, before reading it. "Hmm… Wait, classified? Redacted?" Before his eyes widened as he read the folder. "The HPSC… This isn't a reason to have Midoriya trained by him, this is a reason to keep him away." He stood up as he spoke and put the folder down. "Where'd you even find all this?"
Nezu shook his head with a sigh and sat down in his seat. "You're not seeing the bigger picture here, Aizawa." Before raising an eyebrow at the black-haired man. "And do you really think me incapable of hacking the HPSC's entire network; I'm offended." The chimera poured himself another cup of tea and took a sip. "I'm interested in this, Aizawa; I do not say that lightly."
"Oh." And Aizawa apparently knew this. "But… Okay, look, I know he's not like the folder in person but what if that's a mask? I don't want to send my students off into a sector of the hero business that shouldn't have to exist."
Nezu chuckled. "I assure you, my old student, I will personally see to any problems that arise." He said before getting back to his paperwork. "Are we understood?"
Knowing he wasn't going to get anymore responses from the principal, Aizawa nodded. "Yes, sir." He looked at the folder on the desk one last time before walking away. 'I wouldn't have guessed someone like him would have such a dark past.'
Class 1A
Mina swerved her chair around to Izuku's desk and threw her holo-projector on to it. "Hey, Izuku, help me out here." She said as her offers list popped up. "I've got just under a hundred options and I have no idea who to choose."
Izuku suddenly woke up from his head down position and blinked his eyes rapidly. "I'm awake! I'm awake! No detention!" He saw Mina stare at him and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, Mina; Akira and I had an early morning."
The pink-skinned girl moved her eyes to look at Akira with a raised eyebrow. "Is that why he's sleeping on Ochako's lap right now?" She asked.
Before Izuku could answer, Akira flipped both the greenette and Mina off. "Blame Izuku; dumbass had us up at five in the morning." He drawled into Ochako's lap; the brunette was blushing lightly but did nothing to remove herself from atop the other teen's desk. "And don't knock it until you try it; I'm sure Izuku wouldn't mind sleeping on yours."
That immediately got both Izuku and Mina to blush and they both sputtered out useless rambling before recomposing themselves. "S-so, Ochako." Mina was the first to recover and went to quickly change the conversation. "Have you chosen your internship agency yet?"
"…Yeah." The brunette answered after taking a moment to consider if she should tease her friend or not. "Akira and I both settled on going to Gunhead's Agency."
Her words received confused looks from the others. "Gunhead, kero?" Tsu questioned, raising an eyebrow. "I can understand why Hikaru would want to-"
Izuku coughed. "Fanboy."
"But why would you go to Gunhead, kero?" Tsu continued. "I thought you said you wanted to be like Thirteen and become a rescue type."
The gravity girl ran her hand through Akira's curls with a nod. "I still do but even Thirteen knows how to fight, Tsu." She explained before gesturing to Mina. "And my fight with Mina at the Sports Festival showed me that I have a lot to learn."
Akira hummed and leaned into her touch for a moment before raising his head from her lap. "And I'm going with her to help her out; also, I've been wanting to learn Gunhead's style for years."
Izuku coughed again. "Fanboy."
This time, however, Akira didn't miss it. "Oh, I'm sorry, is that Mr. more All Might merch than anyone else on the planet I hear talking?" He asked with a teasing tone and smile. 'Wait…' A smile that dropped when he saw his words had no effect on the greenette. 'Where's the blush?'
"Hmmm, do I really have that much All Might merch?" Izuku asked no one in particular, looking up at the ceiling as if in thought. "Mmmmm… Nope! I think I finished selling all but four figures of that just last month…" The greenette looked at Akira smugly. "So, I reiterate; fanboy."
In the front corner of the classroom, Bakugou subtly logged out of his online shopping account before opening his offers list. 'Scottland's Number Seven?'
Back with the others, Akira just stared at his best friend for a moment before plopping his head back on Ochako's lap and flipping the greenette off. "Well at least I got an offer from one of my favourite heroes."
The black-haired teen's words reminded Mina of Izuku's one offer and she turned to the green-haired teen. "Oh, right; who sent in your offer?" She asked. "You haven't told us."
Izuku eyes widened slightly. "Oh, right, I haven't checked yet." He chuckled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. "I fell asleep before I could even grab my holo-projector." The greenette stood up and grabbed his singular offer before opening up. "Well, well, well…"
Everyone else in the class looked to the podium after hearing the green-haired teen's words and their eyes widened at the name on display.
The Wing Hero: Hawks.
"Holy shit! The number three hero?!" Kaminari asked in shock, turning in his seat. "He still remembers you from after the entrance exam!"
Kirishima fell out of his chair. "Dude, who cares if you got one offer now; you've got the youngest hero to make the top ten ever and one the fastest heroes on the planet asking for you!"
Iida secretly grumbled at that from his seat in the back of the class.
Unfortunately, no one noticed as Fumikage stood up. "I too received an offer from Hawks to intern with him." He looked directly at Izuku. "While I know you have only worked with the man once, I would still appreciate your opinion on me choosing him."
Izuku shrugged. "I mean, like you just said, only worked with him once and that shouldn't have even happened." He chuckled at that before continued. "But… He made things simple and quick, so I'd say he'd be a great pick."
Fumikage digested the greenette's words and looked at his other three best options. 'What do you think, Dark Shadow?' His quirk answered him mentally and he nodded before looking back at Izuku with a smile. "Well then; I suppose I shall be joining you in Fukuoka City."
RING!*
The bell suddenly rang and everyone dropped what they were doing before running out of the classroom. "Lunch Rush time!"
However, before Izuku and Akira could leave, they both received messages on their phone. Knowing who it was, the two teens read All Might's message and saw that he wanted them in his office.
"Damnit, now we're gonna get stuck in the line." Akira drawled out, turning out of the class in a different direction than everyone else. "He better make this quick; I want my chicken."
Izuku chuckled at his friend as he followed. "I'm sure it won't be anything serious."
A sudden poke on the greenette's back made him turn around and he saw Mina. "So… Where are you two going?" She asked, Ochako behind her nodding in confusion. "Cafeteria is that way."
Izuku smiled at her. "Sorry, Mina, Akira and I just have to go handle something really quick."
Akira nodded and walked up to Ochako. "Yeah, don't worry, I'll be down there soon enough." He gave her a peck on the forehead and smiled as she relented. "Now go eat something."
And as the four spoke outside of their class, none noticed Iida walk off to the principal's office with his internship form and rage in his eyes.
All Might's Office
"Ah, my boys, you got my message." All Might said as he watched his protégées walk in. "Please, sit." He got up from his desk and sat down on one of two couches in his office while gesturing to the other. "How are you both doing today?"
Izuku sat down and smiled widely. "We're doing great, Yagi-Sensei!" He exclaimed with a cheery tone.
"Well…" Akira did not match his friend's expression at all. "I could've done without being up before the Sun rose." He glared at Izuku for a moment before putting on a smile. "But other than that today's been pretty peachy."
All Might raised an eyebrow at the two. "Up before dawn?" He asked, his head tilted to the side. "What in the world were you doing up so early; I don't even get up that early."
An embarrassed chuckle came out of Izuku. "Yeah… That was me." He admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "I told Akira to come to the beach because I wanted to show him the new quirk I unlocked."
All Might's eyes widened and he leaned forward. "Another one?" At his protégée's nod, he gestured towards him. "Well, what is it?"
"It's a pretty interesting one." Izuku started, raising his arm and letting a pink glow overcome it as smoke began to build off. "From what Akira and I can tell so far, it's a-"
"Smokescreen." All Might cut off his students, getting a surprised look from them. "The quirk of my master's predecessor; I am familiar with this one." His face dropped his smile and he sighed. "The man who possessed this quirk, the sixth holder of One For All, was one of two holders that resisted having One For All taken from them."
Izuku and Akira both raised their eyebrows. "Have One For All taken from them?" They both asked at the same time. "What do you mean?"
All Might's expression grew grim and his head dropped to the floor. "My boys, I called you in here to tell you… The origin of One For All." His tone was audibly solemn and filled with sadness. "And the darkness that is its past."
Akira sat up just a bit straighter, eyes widening. "The origin of One For All?"
Izuku focused on the last part of the man's statement. "Its… Dark past?"
All Might lifted his gaze from the floor and looked his students in the eyes. "Do you two remember what I told you about One For All?" He asked them. "What it is?"
Izuku nodded. "One For All is a stockpiling quirk that's been passed down through eight generations of holders." He started. "Growing stronger as each new holder passes it…"
"And it's only passable only through both the will of the holder and the ingestion of their DNA by their successor." Akira finished off the explanation for his friend.
"Yes, very good." All Might nodded a small smile appearing on his face for a fraction of a second before disappearing. "But I never told you the most important detail… One For All's original holder, the first holder of the quirk we share… Had it given to him by force."
Izuku's eyes widened. "One For All… Was forced onto the first user?"
Akira raised his eyebrow. "By who?"
"One For All was never a natural quirk." All Might started, shaking his head. "It is a combination of two quirks; a quirk forged within the first user's body by a third quirk." Rage flashed on the large blonde's face for a moment. "That third quirk… Was All For One."
The blonde's students both looked at him with confusion. "All For One?"
All Might nodded. "It is one of the oldest quirks on the planet; a quirk from the first generations that allowed the man who possessed it to steal and take the quirks of others whenever he pleased." He explained, causing his students' eyes to widen. "The man that held this power used it to unify an army of followers by giving them quirks and promising power… Some, however, couldn't handle the quirks he offered them and became mindless, living dolls."
Realisation flashed across Izuku and Akira's face. "The Nomu."
All Might sighed as he nodded. "But not all were subject to such a fate; some could handle the quirks they were given while others had the new quirk in their body merge with the one they already held." The large blonde held up his right hand. "One who shared this fate was All For One's younger brother; a quirkless man who had the power to stockpile energy forced upon him." His arm began to glow a dim, gold. "Except he wasn't quirkless; he had a reduced version of his brother's quirk that let him pass on quirks but not steal them."
Seven rainbow lights shot out of All Might's arm and orbited the room; white, orange, red, yellow, crimson, pink, purple. Wind picked up around the three and the office became ground zero to a storm before it all suddenly disappeared.
And as it did, realisation came to Izuku and Akira. "The quirk to stockpile power." The latter started. "Combined with the power to pass on quirks…"
Izuku continued. "Created One For All."
"Indeed, it did." All Might said, his eyes once more drifting away from his students. "Indeed, it did."
An action Akira didn't miss. "There's something you're not telling us." He said, looking directly at his teacher. "The story isn't finished, is it?"
All Might stood up from the couch and walked to his office's window, peering out to the storm that continued to rage outside. "All For One, with his ability to steal quirks… Stole a mass of life quirks; Longevity, Super Regeneration, Century… He prolonged his life."
Akira's head dropped as his suspicions were confirmed. "I knew it." He whispered under his breath. "There's always a catch."
All Might couldn't look his students in the eyes and watched as lightning flashed outside. "All For One lived and continued to build his empire in the shadows; the younger brother could not beat him in his own lifetime and entrusted the quirk to future generations… All the way to me, five years ago." He felt where his old scar used to be and sighed. "I thought I beat him… But it's clear from the Nomu that I failed in One For All's mission; to defeat the greatest of darkness' avatars."
Izuku suddenly reached the same conclusion his friend had and leaned back on the couch. "One For All's mission… Mymission."
"Forgive me, Young Midoriya, Young Hikaru." All Might turned around and the man got on one knee in front of the two boys, bowing his head. "Placing such a burden on your life… It was not my intention; had I known that he was still alive I wou-"
"We'll do it." Izuku and Akira said together.
Their words served to shock All Might into raising his head. "Wha-"
"We'll do it." Izuku repeated, pumping his fists together. "We'll take on this burden."
Akira nodded and decided to sit up. "Can't be helped, so we'll finish what you and the other holders started."
For a moment, All Might simply stared at the two in surprise, his eyes widened and expression that of shock. "Hahaha…" Before it suddenly returned to his usual smile. "Oh, my dear boys, I was afraid of scaring you both off." He sheepishly admitted, laying his hands on their shoulders. "Trust that I shall be there with you on this journey and will fight beside you for as long as I can." The man turned to Akira. "With the life you have given." Then Izuku. "That you have both given me, I will use it to fight."
Izuku and Akira both smiled widely at their mentor and bowed their heads. "I owe the realisation of my dream to you, Yagi-Sensei." The greenette started. "You gave me my power; I promise to save all I can with it."
Akir nodded. "We both will." Before leaning back on the couch. "Now… Was there anything else you needed to tell us or ask us?"
All Might thought for a moment before nodding. "Ah, yes, there is." He went back to his desk. "I wanted to ask you both if you've chosen an agency to intern with yet."
"Oh, yeah, we've both already chosen." Akira said, nodding. "I'm going off to Gunhead's Agency."
Izuku also nodded. "I'm heading back out to Fukuoka to intern with Hawks."
All Might smiled at them widely, forgetting a certain stack of papers to his left. "Ah, is that so?" At their nods, he nodded back. "That's good to hear then; I wish you both luck on your internships." He looked to his clock. "That's all I have to say; I'd suggest you both get down to the cafeteria for lunch."
The boys' eyes widened and they both shot off the couch. "Bye, Yagi-Sensei!" Before kicking open the man's door and sprinting off, quirks activated and creating a gust of wind down the hallway as they left.
All Might chuckled lightly at the two's actions and was about to bring out his own lunch until he felt a tug on his mind. 'Wait, there was something else I was supposed to tell them.' He thought for a moment before letting it go. 'Eh, couldn't be that important.'
Yamanashi Prefecture
An old man with grey-white hair suddenly snapped his cane in half before standing up to his full height. 'Toshinori is being dumb…' Despite his old age, the man still stood tall and held a muscular build that could only belong to a veteran. 'I can sense it…' But he immediately leaned back down and peered into his microwave. 'Eh, nothing new there.'
Musutafu Station, Start of Next Week
Aizawa stood in front of his class at the train station with his usual tired look; despite that, he still managed to glare at them. "Please tell me that you all have your costumes with you." His students all raised their briefcases and he nodded. "Don't forget, you wear them only with the permission of the lead pro at the agency you intern with."
Mina bounced excitedly and did a salute. "Yessir!" She exclaimed.
An exclamation Aizawa fixed with a glare. "Speak clearly, Ashido." He reprimanded. "It's, 'yes, sir.'"
This time, Mina deflated and her head drooped. "Yes, sir."
"Good." Aizawa nodded at her and turned to the rest of his students. "I'm trusting you all to behave yourselves out there; you're not just gaining experience, you're representing Yuuei." He explained, stressing the last detail before smiling. "Uphold our reputation and show those pros what you're made of." And with that last piece, he walked off.
Leaving in his wake an invigorated class of first year hero students. "Yes, sir!" They all exclaimed together before moving off to their trains. "Whoo!"
And as they dispersed, Izuku and Akira both ran off towards Iida. "Iida!" Akira called out in a serious yet soft voice. "Stop walking and look at us."
The blue-haired teen did just that and Izuku walked up to him. "You know that you can talk to us, right?" He asked, placing his hand on his friend's shoulder. "We're all ears if you need us to be."
Akira nodded at what Izuku said but didn't feel like beating around the bush. "We know what happened to your brother was unforgiveable." He started, getting Iida to flinch. "But I don't want you going off and doing something you'll regret." There was obvious worry lining his tone.
And Iida didn't miss it. 'To have class representatives-no, friends that would worry so much about me…' He smiled at the two and shook his head. "I'm flattered that you two are worrying about me." His hand went to Izuku's and he removed it from his shoulder with a pat. "But you need not; I'll be fine." And with that, he walked off, not at all easing his friends' worries.
'Iida…' Izuku didn't miss the rage that flashed in the blue-haired teen's eyes. "He's still angry…" The greenette sighed and dropped his head. "I wish he'd just talk to us."
Akira placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "We can't help him now." He said with a sad smile. "We can only hope that the pro he's interning with will be able to take care of him." His eyes shifted to one of the other platforms and he sighed. "My train's here." The teen put out his hand. "See you next week?"
Izuku smiled back and nodded. "See you next week." Doing their handshake and ending it with a hug, the greenette let Akira walk off with one last jab. "Hey, don't do anything stupid out there."
Akira turned around and started walking backwards. "How can I; I'm leaving all the stupid here with you." Before taking Ochako's hand and jumping onto their train. "Have fun, Izuku."
Said greenette shook his head before walking off to his own train. 'Huh?' However, before he could, he felt on his arm. "Oh." And turning his head back, he saw Mina hugging holding his hand. "Mina!"
"Were you about to walk off without saying goodbye to me?" The pink-skinned girl asked, turning the rest of Izuku around and pulling him towards her. "No, 'good luck' or 'I'll miss you, Mina?'"
The greenette didn't miss the pout on Mina or her playful tone and decided to answer with his own tease. "I'm sorry, Mina." He said in a husky tone, pulling her towards him and closing the gap between them, putting them chest-to-chest… Kinda-well, Izuku's growth spurt put Mina's face up to Izuku's chest.
And that turned her entire face lavender. "Aha… I… Hi."
"Hi." A blush that Izuku knew he matched on his own face. "Good luck at your internship." But he continued with his teasing regardless. "I'll miss you."
"…" Pushing down her blush, Mina threw her arms around Izuku's neck and hugged him tightly. "Stay safe out there, dork." She said into his chest, nuzzling it.
'Oh.' And while initially taken off guard, Izuku put his arms around her and hugged her back just as tight, his smile becoming softer. "I'll see you next week, Mina, stay safe."
"Midoriya!/Mina!" However, their hug was soon broken apart by both Fumikage and Hagakure respectively. "The train is here, quickly!"
And with that, the two reluctantly separated before running off to their trains, a warm feeling in their hearts and near permanent blushed on their faces.
Train to Fukuoka
Izuku barely slid into his train in time, the doors just missing his uniform pants by an inch. "Nice of you to join." An action that made Fumikage chuckle. "I thought I was going to have to wait for you to fly over."
The greenette laughed at that and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm gonna be honest, I thought I'd have too as well." He admitted before sitting down to the bird boy. "We've got about an hour before the train gets there." Izuku grabbed some strawberry pocky from his bag and offered the other teen some. "Pocky?"
An offering that Fumikage accepted with enthusiasm. "Yes, please." He took one and Dark Shadow came out to grab his own before looking at the greenette. "May I ask you a question?"
Izuku nodded. "Sure; go ahead."
"I saw the videos of your fight in Fukuoka with those… Nomu creatures." Fumikage started. "And your subsequent interview with Hawks afterwards." Izuku shivered at the memory. "But videos reveal only so much; might I ask what I can expect from Hawks?"
"Hmmm…" The greenette hummed and thought for a bit while twirling a pocky stick. "Well, unlike most of the current top ten, he was actually pretty laid back." He started, taking a bite. "But he did snap into gear the moment he knew there was danger and shot forward without hesitation; so, on that note…" Izuku threw back the entire packet of pocky into his mouth before finishing it in one gulp. "Expect to be kept on your toes and quick on your feet."
"Ah…" Fumikage nodded, finishing his pocky stick with a down look. "I see…" At the greenette's quizzical look, he sighed. "I am not exactly the fastest runner, Midoriya; I trust you remember my 50-metre dash?"
Izuku nodded. "Yeah, I recorded everyone's results during the test and…" His brain finally caught up to his mouth and he chuckled sheepishly. "Oh, right." Fumikage, while doing great on most of the tests, did not shine when it came to running. "Actually…" Though, this did present Izuku with a rare opportunity. "I might have an idea for that."
Fumikage raised his eyebrow. "Really?"
Nodding, Izuku summoned his notebook from the nerd dimension. "Yeah, wanna hear it?"
Fukuoka City, One Hour Later
"Welcome to Fukuoka City, folks!" The train's driver said over the speakers. "Make sure to watch yourself as you step off the bullet train and please take all your possessions with you."
As Izuku and Fumikage walked off the train, they found that – to their surprise – Hawks was already waiting for them. "Well, well, well." The red-winged hero walked forward with a smile. "Looks like I got my pick of the litter." His eyes travelled to Izuku and he nodded at him. "And it also looks like I was right; told you Yuuei would take you."
Izuku rubbed the back of his neck with a chuckle. "Yeah." Before smiling brightly and bowing before his new mentor. "Thank you for the offer, Hawks! I promise not to let you down!"
Fumikage nodded next to the greenette and bowed as well. "Yes; it is truly an honour to have been considered by one of Japan's greatest heroes."
Hawks turned to raven-boy and looked him up and down. "You're Tokoyami, right?" At the teen's nod, he smiled brightly. "Well let me be the first to tell you that you're gonna have a lot of fun here so be prepared for a chill week of being badass." He looked at his wrist – which did not have a watch – before nodding. "Alright, first things first before we begin here; because of protocol, we'll be referring to each other by our hero names." The man clapped his hands and pointed at his two interns. "What are they?"
Fumikage placed a hand on his heart. "I am-" Dark Shadow came out with his arms crossed. "We are The Night Hero: Tsukuyomi." His quirk smiled at him and receded.
An action that Hawks raised an eyebrow at before shrugging. "Alright, that sounds great." He turned to look at Izuku. "What about you, greenie? What great name will the people of this city recognise you as?"
Izuku actually chuckled in embarrassment. "Yeah… About that." He rubbed the back of his neck. "It's The Ninth Hero: Izuku."
Hawks looked at the greenette with a deadpan look. "Your school really let you come out here with your first name as your hero name?" His students both nodded – plus Dark Shadow – and the man shrugged. "Alright, it could've been worse; you could have gone with 'Greenie' or 'Captain Celebrity Jr.'" He chuckled at that. "Though, after what I saw at the festival, 'Mini Might' or 'Scrap-ling' would be more fitting."
Izuku grumbled at that and pouted. "I'm not a mini or junior anyone." He said before patting himself on the chest. "I'm an Izuku."
Hawks smiled and his wings stretched out before he flew just above the ground. "Alright, Izuku." Two feathers shot out from his wings and picked up his students' briefcases. "Let's fly over to the agency."
"Actually-" Fumikage went to explain he couldn't fly yet but the man had already shot off. "What now?"
Izuku took off his bag and gave it to the bird boy. "Hold this for me." After he did, he lied down on the ground before hovering above it. "Jump on my back and hold on tight."
"…" Fumikage raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
Izuku nodded. "Don't worry, I do this with Akira all the time." He reassured with a smile. "It's safe… Mostly."
Not hearing the last part, Fumikage shrugged before jumping on. "Let us be off then." Just behind him, Dark Shadow came out to hold both teens' bags. "Hawks may already be at his agency."
And with that, they flew off.
Omake – Hero Informatics: Villain Class System
Class 1A
Aizawa gazed upon his students with his usual, tired stare before taking a deep sip of his coffee – he finished the mug in one gulp. "Alright, class, last lesson I described to you all what we in the hero business refer to as the Villain Classing System; can anyone explain to me what it is?"
Momo put up her hand first and Aizawa nodded at her. "It's the system heroes use to sort villains into different classes based on the threat level they pose after committing a crime."
"Very good, Yaoyorozu, thank you." The black-haired man turned his eyes to Kaminari. "And how many classes of villain are there, Kaminari?"
The blonde in question had been balancing a pencil on his nose until the shock of hearing his name jolted him straight. "Uh…:" He looked around him in panic before he managed to catch Jirou slipping a piece of paper under her arm. "Oh, six!" And with his answer, he smiled.
'Damnit, sparky!' A smile that caused Jirou to slam her head into her desk. 'Wrong Goddamn way! How did you read that upside down?!'
"Wrong." Aizawa shook his head in disappointment at the answer and decided to pretend he didn't see Jirou trying to help her classmate. "If there were only six than the world would be a lot safer; there are nine." Looking a bit more to the right, the man fixed his eyes on Shoji "And these nine are?"
Luckily for the white-haired teen, he at least knew this much. "F-Class, E-Class, D-Class, C-Class, B-Class, A-Class, S-Class, SS-Class, and Z-Class."
"Perfect." The black-haired man looked behind Shoji and to Sero. "Sero, describe the lowest three classes of villains."
"Uh…" Pausing, Sero secretly – not really – flipped the pages in his book to the notes on the topic. "The lowest three classes make up the bulk of villain society; weak, everyday criminals ranging in crimes from petty thievery and minor gang activity to bank robbery." He read robotically, scratching his head as he struggled to read his own writing. "At most two pro-heroes would be needed to take on the strongest of this bracket."
Aizawa nodded. "Good, but don't read your notes next time." Turning more to the right, he looked at Tsu. "Asui, care to explain the middle three?"
"Kero, alright." Remembering her notes, the frog girl began her explanation. "The middle bracket are villains that step into the territory of organised crime; they're strong, smart, and have a good hold on their fighting skills, quirk skills, and craft."
"Good job." This time, the black-haired pro turned to the left side of the class. "Aoyama, what is the most notable thing about the middle bracket villains?"
Caught off guard from the question, the calm blonde quickly sat up straight and stopped staring at the reader. "C-Class, B-Class, and A-Class villains are more often than not in league with other villains to maximise their efficiency and reduce their chance of being caught."
"Thank you." Seeing that his resident foreign student was actually paying attention, he then looked at Izuku. "Midoriya, please explain to me the final bracket of villains."
The greenette in question smiled. "S-Class, SS-Class, and Z-Class villains, the rarest and most dangerous villains." Closing his book, he simply let himself talk rather than focus on his notes. "They stand at the top of villain society and spend more time in the shadows than they do in the limelight so that the full scope of their abilities isn't known."
"Correct." Looking behind the greenette, Aizawa gazed at Akira. "Hikaru, continue."
"The villains in the top bracket pose threats to multiple cities and even entire nations either because of their tact and intellect or the pure amount of power they hold." Akira started, definitely not looking at his notebook. "Z-Class villains specifically change the world even after their death."
Smiling at the answers he was getting, Aizawa looked back over to the right side of the classroom. "Bakugou, can you give me an example of a Z-Class villain?"
"Pfft, easy, there's only been like six in the last century." The blonde said before sitting up properly. "The Volcanic Goddess: Pele." His choice of villain got an eyeroll from the class. "A Hawaiian woman active during the dark ages of quirks with the most powerful magma quirk in history; no one knows what bastard stopped her, but we do know that her getting her ass whooped created an island the size of Samoa that the I.R.O.H now occupies."
Aizawa ignored the manic smile Bakugou had while talking about the old villain and instead nodded. "Correct; Pele's actions are known worldwide and had an effect that forever changed the world." He looked at the rest of the class this time. "However, you won't be seeing someone like that out at these internships; you'll be dealing with the lowest bracket, maybe a B-Class at worst."
Shoto raised his hand. "Sensei, what happens if we do encounter a villain a part of the top bracket?"
A wave passed over the class and their teacher's eyes went red. "If that happens, I don't care if you're with a strong hero. You. Are. Children. You. Will. Run." With that message delivered, he turned off his quirk, just in time for the bell to ring. "Anyway, that's all, go have lunch now."