Chapter 40: A Train Toward Training
A familiar darkness surrounded Ochako as she opened her eyes. Turning her head she couldn't make out anything around her but it only took a second for her to realize what was going on.
It's about time.
Suddenly she found herself standing on a very recognizable beach. The setting sun caused the sand and sea to shine like brilliant jewels as stared out toward the seemingly endless sky.
"Ah, I recognize this place."
Looking over her shoulder, Ochako saw Nana's silhouette slowly come into focus as the previous holder slowly came to a stop next to her.
"You do?"
"Yes." A warm smile crossed Nana's face as she stared out toward the sea. "I trained Toshi here."
A startled laugh escaped Ochako before she could stop it, causing Nana to turn and raise an eyebrow in her direction.
"Sorry. It's just that All Might taught me here as well." Ochako sighed as she glanced down at the perfectly clean sand beneath her feet. "It was a dump but he had Izuku and I worked together to clean it." She looked back up and over at Nana. "I thought that First said I would be hearing from all of you soon."
"It's only been a week and change Ninth." Nana laughed as she gave Ochako an even wider smile.
"I know I just…" Ochako's lip pulled down into a pout. "I was hoping to know more about what's happening to me before I leave for my internship."
"You leave in the morning." Nana's eyes sparkled as she sat down on the sand, patting the space next to her. "So you're getting your wish."
"Now I know where All Might gets his literal attitude from." Ochako gumbled as she took her place next to Nana. "Will the others be joining us?"
Nana shook her head. "No. One for All is still gaining power so any vision like this takes… time to put together." Her smile faltered slightly as she stared out toward the ocean once more. "So as much as I would love to have an extended conversation with you there's much we need to discuss."
Ochako stared at Nana for a moment before she slowly nodded her head. "Alright. So where are we starting?"
"Quirks." Nana bluntly responded as she held out a hand palm up. "There are six Quirks that are contained within One for All and as we mentioned last time we tied each to an emotion." A bright purple flame appeared in her hand. "My Quirk, Float, is tied to love and you've already been tapping into its power."
"I have?" Ochako asked as she stared at the flame in Nana's hand. "What does Float do?"
"Float on its own does what the name implies, it lets you hover in the air." Nana let out a soft chuckle. "But with the power of One for All, Float becomes flight." She gave the younger woman a grin. "When was the last time you revisited your lunch due to using your Quirk on yourself?"
"I-" Ochako cut herself off as she started to think back over the past few months. "...not since I took One for All."
"Exactly." Nana beamed as she closed her fist and extinguished the fire held there. "You have and are loved and so Float started to respond to your call. But Float isn't the only Quirk you've accidentally tapped into."
Ochako nodded a few times to herself as she thought back to the previous conversation she had with the past holders. "Didn't Fourth say that I had used his Quirk as well?"
Nana's smile told Ochako that she had remembered correctly. "He did. Fourth's Quirk is called Danger Sense and we chose to tie it to fear." She paused as a dark look crossed her face. "You tapped into Danger Sense a few times but most notably during the attack at the USJ."
"I remember a voice or something helping me out… Was that Danger Sense?"
"In a sense." Nana laughed at her unintentional joke. "You haven't tapped into Fourth's Quirk but the holder himself."
Ochako's brow scrunched together. "So I need to be afraid of something to gain Danger Sense?"
"Sort of." Nana responded with a nod. "Though if your fear moves on to terror then you'll find yourself using Sixth's Smokescreen."
"There's a difference?" Ochako asked as she did her best to keep up. "Those sound like the same thing to me."
"To feel fear is to be afraid of something you can see or understand. When you are afraid your mind is still in control, you can still think through your decisions." A somber look danced across Nana's face as she shook her head. "Terror makes you feel helpless. It is fear taken to the extreme and freezes the body and the mind. It's in moments of terror that a body can react without thinking."
"I see…" Ochako watched Nana for a moment and saw that the Seventh holder was losing herself in thoughts of the past. Desperate to help, Ochako forced as much warmth and curiosity into her voice as she could. "So what are the last two?"
Recovering, Nana gave her a thankful smile. "There is Fifth's Blackwhip and Second's Gearshift. You heard Fifth complain about having anger as his choice already but Second…" Nana shook her head sadly. "Second actually requested that we don't tell you how to unlock his Quirk."
"Why?" Ochako asked as she grew annoyed. "It's going to be my Quirk. What right does he have to demand that?"
"He says that it is for your own protection." Nana held up her hands in a placating gesture. "He's concerned about the damage that overuse of his Quirk can cause and since we didn't have an argument against his reasoning the collective agreed. I actually wasn't allowed to tell you the name of his Quirk because Second feared a certain analyst in your life might figure it out for you." A playful grin split her features. "Oops."
Ochako stared in awe at Nana for a second before a laugh escaped her and she fell onto her back. "Gods Izuku is going to have a field day with all of these Quirks." She pushed herself back into a sitting position as she gave Nana an appreciative smile. "And I'm guessing that you weren't meant to tell me all of the others either."
"Not exactly." Nana smirked as she looked toward the sky. "I was meant to just tell you all I could about Float and how to access it." She turned back toward Ochako. "But I figured that you should know what is coming your way and I didn't give details." She shrugged. "I'm sure that dean of yours can work with Izuku to figure them all out long before you actually access them."
"Thank you Nana." Ochako whispered before a loud crack rang throughout the beach. "What was that?"
"Our time coming to an end." Nana responded as she pushed herself into a standing position, dusting the sand from her clothes as she did so. "We expect great things from you Ochako." She extended a hand, pulling Ochako upright after the younger woman had taken her hand. "Trust your mentor, train with your newfound powers and discover what is to come. But most importantly…"
The world around Ochako started to fade to black once more until only Nana was left.
"Remember to smile."
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Izuku couldn't help but hum to himself as he stood alone in the 1-H kitchen listening to music. He'd never been the best cook but part of him enjoyed the task of making a meal for others to enjoy.
The fact that it also served as a distraction from what was going to happen later in the day was just a bonus.
Hero training. I've been training with All Might so anything Miruko can throw at me won't be too bad… Right? He let out a weary sigh. She's going to kick my ass.
Glancing over at the clock on the wall he fought back a wince. Where the hell is everyone? Normally Rui would be up by now. The thought didn't linger as, with a mental shrug, he resumed cooking, his focus returning to the grilled fish in front of him.
I just hope that Miruko is going to be fine with me using a tracksuit as a costume. Izuku sighed. Not the best for a debut but everyone was too busy. I really should have asked Nezu about it at the start of the year. He let out a snorting laugh. Actually… if I told start of year Izuku that he would be going for a hero license I would have forced myself to see Recovery Girl for brain damage.
Removing the last of the filets from the charcoal grill in front of him, Izuku carefully portioned out six plates. He glanced around the still empty common area. I guess I can set the table as well. Where the hell is everyone?
None of his classmates made their appearance during the minute it took to relocate the prepared meal from the kitchen counter to their table. He turned to look at the two sets of stairs on either side of the building before letting out a tired sigh. "I guess I'll have to wake them up." Shaking his head, Izuku slowly trudged toward the male side of the building and headed up the stairs.
The second he disappeared up the stairs a head of pink hair popped around the corner of the last landing of the woman's stairs, a manic smile on her face. "Finally." Mei turned toward the rest of her class, sitting on the stairs behind her, and waved them forward. "He's gone up the other side." With that Mei grabbed the case next to her and quickly charged into the main living area.
"Then we better hurry." Yuuko responded as she grabbed the briefcase next to her and started off after Mei, causing Maina, Rui and Taji to scramble after her.
++++++++++++++++++++
Izuku couldn't help but get a feeling of foreboding as he descended the stairs. Where the fuck is everyone? Rui and Taji aren't in their rooms. Did their flight leave earlier than I remembered? He fought back a groan at the thought of having made breakfast only for his class to be long gone. Shit… Well I guess I could invite over some of the- His thoughts came to a screeching halt as he exited the stairs to see all five of his classmates sitting around the dining table happily munching away at the breakfast he'd made.
"What?"
"Oh there you are Izuku." Taji smirked as he set his chopsticks down. "We were wondering where you ran off to."
"Come join us." Rui added with a wave. "Lunch Rush apparently delivered breakfast for us and it would be a waste to let it get cold."
Rooted in place, Izuku could only stare at his friends as they all gave him looks of mock concern. All but Mei who was vibrating in her seat, giving her best impression of a hamster high on cocaine.
"I think we broke him." Maina whispered with a giggle as she pushed her chair back and walked over to Izuku. "Come on Izuku. You need to eat."
"Last meal you're getting before Miruko kicks your ass." Yuuko added helpfully as she kicked Mei in the shin, stopping the crazed inventor from jumping out of her seat and spoiling their surprise.
"Right…" Izuku eyed them warily, his gaze lingering on the still visibly excited Mei, before he took his seat.
The rest of the meal passed with silence punctuated by the occasional mutter of thanks in Izuku's direction. The moment the plates were empty Rui activated their Quirk and tentacles of water sprang from his arm and carried everything toward the counter, all without them leaving their seat.
"You should do that more often." Taji commented with a laugh, enjoying the growing frustration he was feeling from Izuku.
Yuuko chimed in as Izuku's mouth opened to comment. "I think we've made Izuku suffer in anticipation long enough." She turned and gave Mei a nod. "Go ahead."
"PERFECT!" Mei shouted as she bolted from her seat and charged into the ring of sofas on the other side of the room. Bending over, she quickly picked up three briefcases and sprinted back to the now empty table. "It's been torture having to wait to show you our babies."
Shocked, Izuku stared at the cases, recognizing exactly what they were. "Is that…"
"You're very own hero costume." Taji laughed as he slid one of the cases in front of himself and opened it while Mei and Maina did the same with the other two. "We couldn't let you run off and be a hero without the proper gear, could we?"
"I… guys…" Tears started to form in the corner of Izuku's eyes as he stared at his classmates. "I don't know what to say."
"Well say something after you've seen what we did." Yuuko joked as she motioned toward the cases. "We all pitched in on it. Though Mei did the lion's share."
"Just the boots, the staff, the rebreather, the holo-pad installation and the carbon weave." Mei responded with a wave as she pulled the costume out of its case and laid it on the table. "All simple stuff really."
Izuku's eyes went wide as he saw what his classmates had made for him. The main costume itself consisted of a padded black jumpsuit with green accents that ran along the sides or were in clusters of dots on his legs. Next to the jumpsuit was a pair of armored gauntlets, a metal rebreather and a familiar but different pair of boots.
"The rebreather has air filtration as well as voice modulation built in, the gauntlets were made with kinetic absorption in mind so they should cushion any punch you throw but not the damage you do." Mei pointed to the left gauntlet. "This one has a built in holo-pad that I tied to access the schools main systems as well as the HPSC's hero net."
Reaching over, Mei grabbed the pair of boots and shoved them in front of Izuku. "These are your new and improved battle boots. I'm calling them Battle Boots Plus! Same hover technology as before but with a longer life, increased durability, streamlined design and-" She turned the boots around so Izuku could see the back. "an added vent to the back so you can give your kicks a little extra oomph."
"Much like a certain rabbit hero I imagine." Izuku responded with a smirk as he picked up and turned one of the boots over in his hand. "These look amazing Mei."
"We also got you these." Maina commented as she pulled out a pair of pouches and set them next to the rest of Izuku's costume. "One has basic medical and survival supplies and the other… well…" She opened the pouch in question to reveal that it was full of multicolored gummies.
Izuku stared at the haphazard stack of gummies for a moment before looking up at Maina, a question clear on his face. "How did you get these?"
"It turns out our shy little Maina has some sticky fingers." Rui chuckled as they reached over and closed the pouch that was full of Recovery Girl's gummies. "So make sure you don't get caught with this."
"I-I won't." Izuku stuttered as he looked over the costume that his friends had made for him. "How did you do this? When did you do this?"
"Why did you think we told you we were busy with a project this week?" Yuuko asked with a smile. "We were working on this for you."
"Can't have the future CEO of H Industries going out and not looking his best." Mei grinned as she shoved the costume toward Izuku.
"H Industries?" Izuku asked as he looked around the room.
"Apparently Hatsume Industries is now H Industries." Rui laughed while Mei nodded her head sagely.
Izuku stared at his friends and classmates once more, the moment dragging out until Taji let out a soft cough.
"Well, go try it on."
Laughter chased Izuku as he grabbed his new gear and took off toward his dorm.
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Himiko looked at her gathered friends as they crossed the barrier and entered the train station. "Why does it feel like I'm sending all of you off to war?"
"It's not our fault, kero, that you chose to stay behind. But since my train leaves in five minutes." Tsuyu leaned forward and placed a loving kiss onto Himiko's lips. "Don't let Nezu kill you." She took a step to the side and repeated the process with Emily. "See you soon kero."
"See you in a week, Tsu." Emily whispered in response as she pulled Tsuyu into a hug.
"Kero." Tsuyu blushed lightly as she pulled away from the embrace and waved toward the rest of the group. "Be safe!"
A few similar sentiments were shouted at Tsuyu's quickly vanishing form as the rest of the group watched her walk away. Standing around, the rest of the group looked at each other for a moment before Mezo motioned toward a few benches.
"Should we sit down?"
Without even looking around, Izuku nodded and started toward the open seats. "Probably."
"What? You don't think people enjoy a large group of students standing around blocking the flow of traffic?" Himiko teased as she and the rest of their group followed after Izuku.
"I mean it's not like we'll be sitting around long."Ochako commented as she slid onto the bench next to Izuku.
"And it's only a week." Kashiko added as she pulled out her phone to absentmindedly scroll before she spotted a small group of their fellow U.A. students making their way over. "Yaomomo! Over here!"
Momo led the other group as they wove through the crowd with Eijiro, Setsuna, Yui, Manga and Neito on her tail.
Momo smiled at her vice president as she got closer. "Are you going to Tokyo as well?"
"I'm not." Kashiko responded before waving at Ochako, Izuku, Mezo and Itsuka. "These four are."
"Apparently Miruko has set up shop in Tokyo for the week." Izuku added with a shrug and a grin.
"So the rumors of you training with her are true?" Neito asked as he raised an eyebrow.
Izuku turned and gave Itsuka and Emily a look. "Rumors? I wasn't trying to hide it."
"We just thought that you might not appreciate all the attention." Itsuka responded while Emily nodded along.
"Not that it worked." Manga laughed, the words hahah literally appearing on his face. "All the rest of us could talk about is who we thought you were going to intern with."
"Really?" Izuku looked at the rest of the members of 1-B to see their nods of agreement. "Why?"
"A Quirkless man making it as far as you did in the sports festival who then has rumors flying around about joining the heroics program." Setsuna rolled her eyes. "Why do you think?"
"When you put it like that…" Izuku muttered, earning a nudge from Ochako in the process.
"Don't act like we haven't been telling you that all week." She glared playfully at her boyfriend. "Admit it, you would be doing the same thing if the positions were reversed."
"She's got you there." Hitoshi drawled with a chuckle at Izuku's stunned look.
Closing his jaw, Izuku locked onto Hitoshi. "Et tu?"
Hitoshi smirked. "Of course."
Izuku glared at everyone before his shoulders sagged and he let out a tired sigh. "I guess I better get used to it, huh?"
"Yep." Ochako answered as she leaned over and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. "Now come on, our train is leaving soon."
"Tokyo, here we come." Eijiro shouted as he pumped a fist into the air. "Training with Fat Gum is going to be so manly!"
"It will be an enlightening experience for sure." Momo gave Kashiko a quick nod. "Best of luck on your internship."
Kashiko returned the nod as she, Emily, Himiko and Hitoshi watched even more of their friends leave. A content silence overtook the group for a moment as they watched them vanish into the crowd before Himiko cuddled into Emily and Hitoshi leaned back and closed his eyes.
"I still have an hour until my train." Emily sighed as Himiko leaned further into her side, causing her to wrap an arm around her in the process.
"Wanting to get away from me already?" Himiko teased as she closed her eyes in contentment.
Emily snorted. "No but I want to get out and see what being a hero is actually like."
"Where were you going again?" Kashiko asked as she called Chart in her glasses.
"Hosu." Emily's face scrunched up in concentration. "Though I know that X-Less is based in Chiba so I don't know why I'm meeting him there."
"Hosu?" Himiko let out a contemplative hum that sounded almost like a purr. "I think I saw a few others heading there as well."
"Todoroki, Tokoyami, Tetsutetsu, Awase, and Tsunotori." Hitoshi added before cracking one of his eyes open to see their shocked looks. "What? Iida-sensei had a list and I got a peek at it."
Shaking her head, Kashiko's mouth pulled down into frown. "What's going on in Hosu that requires heroes like Hawks and Endeavor to be there?"
"No idea but it makes me happy I'm heading in the opposite direction." Hitoshi chuckled as he closed his eyes once more. "Osaka should be far enough away from whatever insanity is about to happen there."
"Oh you are sooo asking for a disaster to strike Osaka." Himiko laughed as Hitoshi froze up. "You shouldn't tempt the universe like that."
"I can't blame him." Kashiko dismissed Chart before leaning her elbows on her knees and placing her head in her hands. "I'm hoping that nothing too crazy happens. I'd love to spend my week training with the Wild Wild Pussy Cats and call it good."
Emily turned to look at Kashiko. "You're going to be, where? Kōfu, right? There shouldn't be much going on there."
"Maybe a few mountain rescues." Kashiko shrugged. "They'd be good practice for Chart all things considered."
"Damn the Izu-Crew really is getting scattered across Japan." Himiko whined as she nuzzled into Emily, ignoring the looks her three friends were giving her. After a moment she cracked open an eye and saw the confusion her statement had caused. "What?"
"Izu-crew?" Emily asked as she looked down at Himiko.
"Of course." Himiko nodded. "What else could we be called?"
"Why do we need a name?"
"Who agreed to that?"
Both Hitoshi and Kashiko asked at the same time, causing Himiko to smile.
"Nobody." Himiko's smirk only grew. "I made the group chat I get to name us."
++++++++++++++++++++
"Why are we on a chartered flight?" Yuuko asked as she and the rest of 1-H stared at the red, blue and yellow plane that was sitting in front of them.
"Forget that. Why are we on a chartered flight with All Might's plane?!" Taji exclaimed as he looked around them. "This has to be a prank. Right?"
"No young Noda, this isn't a prank." Toshinori answered as he approached the group with a wide smile. "Nezu asked if he could use the plane and All Might agreed since he's busy at the university."
All five students turned toward Toshinori, none of them recognizing him.
"And you are?" Rui asked as Toshinori closed the distance between himself and the students.
"Yagi Toshinori. I'm a member of the support staff at U.A. as well as a former pro hero." Toshinori nodded toward the plane. "In fact I worked alongside All Might for some time."
"Really?" Mei's eyes were dancing as she looked Toshinori up and down. "Wait… You're the one that trained Uraraka and Izuku!"
"I am." Toshinori laughed as he motioned toward the plane. "And I'll be happy to answer questions or share stories but we really should be boarding."
After a quick scramble onto the plane the phrase 'hurry up and wait' was dancing through more than one mind as the sat still on the tarmac. Seizing on this delay, the support students all took up seats that allowed them to look at Toshinori.
"So why are you going to I-Island? I didn't think we needed a chaperone." Maina asked while Yuuko and Taji nodded along.
"Ah, well I'm not actually going to the island with all of you." Toshinori laughed as he sat back in his chair. "I have some business for All Might to take care of there and since all of you were going to be using his plane." He spread his hands in a 'and there you have it' gesture.
"So you're not going to be with us the whole time?"
Toshinori shook his head as he focused on Taji. "No I have my own errands to run while I'm there but our paths will cross I'm sure." A sly smile split his features. "I heard all of you are going to be mentoring under a good friend of mine."
"You know David Shield!" Mei shouted as she bounced forward. "This keeps getting better! He's going to help me make so many babies."
Toshinori could only stare at Mei as he attempted to process what the energetic inventor had just said. "I… Um…"
"Inventions." Yuuko sighed as she grabbed Mei by the back of her shirt and forced her into a seat. "She means inventions."
"Oh." Toshinori shook his head to refocus himself before his smile returned. "Yes David should be quite helpful when it comes to new creations."
"I don't think we should interrogate Mr. Yagi about our mentor soooo." An evil gleam appeared in Taji's eye as he stared at Toshinori. "Tell us about training Izuku and Uraraka."
Chuckling, Toshinori met the eager looks he was getting with a massive smile. "Well where to begin. Seeing young Midoriya when I met him was nothing more than skin and bones so when we…"
++++++++++++++++++++
"I must say. We're all quite excited to have you."
"Kero? I'm the one that's excited." Tsuyu responded with a smile as Kanami led her toward the docks. "I was hoping for any water based hero to send me an offer, let alone Selkie." She gave Kanami a smile.
"Well I'm glad I twisted his arm into sending you one." Kanami winked at Tsuyu as the pair rounded a corner and came face to face with the wide expanse of the ocean. "It will be nice to have another woman on board. Even if it's only for a week."
"I can imagine." Tsuyu smiled as they started down the steps and toward the docks in front of them. "Which one is our ship?"
Kanami pointed toward a corvette sized ship. "She's right over there. The Oki Mariner, our pride and joy and your home for the next seven days. You're in luck, a normal tour is three weeks." Kanami let out a dramatic sigh. "But apparently U.A. won't let us steal you for that long." She gave Tsuyu a grin as they made their way closer.
"Kero, what's it like being out there all that time?"
"It's interesting." Kanami said as the pair came to a stop before the jetty that led to the Oki Mariner. "You get to know everyone very well very fast but it's not too bad. We spend most of our time near the coast so it's not too disorientating. Though when we do get out to sea…" A content sigh slipped out as she stared into the distance. "...you should see the stars. There's no light pollution so you can see thousands of them, even the Milky Way on a good night."
"Kero…" Was all Tsuyu could say as she tried to picture it. "I don't think I've ever seen that many stars."
"Well we'll just have- look sharp!" Kanami cut herself off as a large seal heromorph approached, waving at them as he got closer.
"Captain." Kanami answered with a sharp salute, causing Tsuyu to give a panicked one of her own.
"Now Sirius I told you to not tease our intern." Yoshiyuki laughed as he stuck a hand out toward Tsuyu. "Seki Yoshiyuki, better known as the hero Selkie at your service."
"Asui, kero, Tsuyu." Tsuyu responded as she shook the offered hand. "Hero name Froppy."
"Welcome to the crew Froopy." Yoshiyuki laughed as he motioned toward his ship. "Would you like a tour of your new home away from home?"
"I'd love one, kero." Tsuyu responded as she quickly fell into step behind Yoshiyuki as he led her toward the Oki Mariner.
"Captain if I may?" Kanami gave Tsuyu a playful smile as she addressed Yoshiyuki.
Yoshiyoki raised an eyebrow as he stared down at his second in command. "Go ahead."
"Asui was telling me that she's never really seen the stars. I was thinking that we can fix that for her before the week is out."
Yoshiyuki stared at Kanami for a moment before he let out a high pitched squeal and placed his hands over his mouth. "Such a good idea! That shall be our first mission this week!"
That's kinda cute. Tsuyu thought to herself.
Gods, that's so embarrassing. Kanami sighed despite her smile.
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"He's been awfully quiet." Ochako muttered as she nodded toward Neito who had taken a seat on the far side of the compartment and away from the rest of the U.A. students.
"Monoma's been like that since the festival." Itsuka replied as she turned to look where Ochako was indicating.
"It seems like my fellow shrub head here managed to knock some sense into him." Setsuna laughed as she detached her arm to nudge Izuku.
"All I did was beat him though." Izuku glanced over at Neito. "It wasn't like I talked to him at all."
"You beat him and did it without a Quirk. Imagine how that makes someone who's Quirk is useless without other Quirks would feel." Yui quietly answered, causing the rest of the group to look at her.
"Huh and here I thought that you'd be quiet the whole trip." Setsuna managed to tease before Itsuka jabbed at her.
"Knock it off."
Overacting, Setsuna bowed her head. "Yes mom."
Itsuka sighed as she pinched at the bridge of her nose. "Why do I even try…"
Eijiro stared at Itsuka for a moment before clearing his throat. "Anyway. Do you think that we're going to be picked up at the station? Because Fat Gum is manly enough that I can see him doing it."
Mezo shook his head. "I'd be shocked if we are all picked up by our mentors." He chuckled. "Can you imagine the scene that Fat Gum, Gang Orca, and Godzillo would make standing together in a train station?"
"We should add Ryukyu's dragon form into the mix as well." Itsuka tried, and failed, to fight back a laugh. "All of them towering over everyone with Miruko in the middle."
"And yet she would still be the most imposing one there." Manga added with a faint shiver. "Everyone knows she towers over any room she's in." He turned to look at Ochako and Izuku. "Are you sure you'll survive a week training with her?"
The couple shared a look before giving Manga a deadpan look before answering at the same time. "No."
"I'm sure Miruko will be a very informative teacher." Momo responded, giving the pair a sympathetic smile as she did so.
"She's never had an intern before so maybe she'll go easy on you guys to test the waters." Mezo added despite the look on his face making it clear that he didn't believe what he was saying.
"Sure and maybe Japan will crash into the mainland." Izuku shook his head. "She's going to run us ragged but honestly?" He gave Ochako a smirk. "We are kinda looking forward to it."
"Going Plus Ultra even outside of school." Eijiro pumped a fist in the air as he gave the pair a massive smile. "That's so manly!"
The group couldn't do more than laugh as the train came to a gentle stop and the doors opened. Looking at each other, they all quickly joined the crowd before making their way toward the heart of the station.
"Oh I guess he did come." Momo exclaimed as they spotted Taishiro's tall form towering over the crowd.
"I knew it." Eijiro whispered under his breath before charging off into the crowd and toward the pro hero.
Momo turned to follow after him before pausing and looking over her shoulder. "See all of you in a week."
Manga laughed as he watched Eijiro bounce on the balls of his feet once he reached Taishiro. "Is it just me or is Eijiro just a giant puppy?"
"A giant indestructible puppy." Setsuna corrected with a smirk before her eyes lit up. "Shit that's one of Godzillo's sidekicks! Later!" With a detached handwave, Setsuna strolled into the crowd and disappeared.
All too soon Ochako and Izuku found themselves standing alone and off to the side of the central area with still no sign of Rumi or anyone attached to her.
"Miruko doesn't have sidekicks, right?"
Izuku shook his head. "No. She's a solo act." He snorted. "Well until today that is."
"Why do you think she changed her mind?" Ochako asked as she leaned into Izuku's shoulder with her own. "It's all kinda weird."
"I think the HPSC forced her." Izuku bluntly responded as he continued to scan the evershifting crowd. "They want to make sure all heroes 'do their part' when it comes to the next generation and since Miruko hasn't ever had an intern…"
"They made her get one." Ochako nodded as she thought over Izuku's logic. "Yeah that makes sense to me. Do you think we were meant to-"
"There you are."
The bitterness in the voice directed at them caused the couple to flinch before turning to look at the owner of said voice. Their eyes went wide as they stared at Mirai as he closed the distance between them.
"Midoriya, what took you so long? We should already be on our way back to the office." Mirai stared down his nose at the young man before he reached out and grabbed him by the arm. "We don't have time for foolishness. Come, we have training to attend to."
Sharing a look of confusion and concern, Ochako and Izuku missed the sudden change in Mirai's eyes as Foresight activated. The Quirk didn't get long though as Izuku yanked his arm out of Mirai's now slack grasp as Ochako started to protest.
"Just who do you-"
This time a rage filled voice cut her off.
"Oy beanpole what the fuck are you doing touching my kit?"
Mirai, Ochako and Izuku all turned toward the sound of the newcomer's voice only to see a pissed off Rumi standing behind All Might's former sidekick, her foot thumping incessantly on the ground.
"Well?" Rumi raised an eyebrow as her ear twitched.
"I was just leaving." Mirai replied as he straightened his suit. "I thought he was someone else."
"No you didn't." Rumi bluntly responded as she glared at Mirai. "Now get lost. These are my kits and we have actual training to get to." Her eyes almost seemed to glow as they narrowed further. "Unless you want me to give them a practical lesson right now."
"That is unnecessary." Mirai spared Izuku one last glance, a hint of a smile on his face, before he turned and left.
Rumi watched the other pro hero leave until he vanished in the crowd before turning toward her two interns. "Alright, we need to get you settled in so we can get to work." She nodded toward the couple's bags. "Grab your shit and we'll get started." Without waiting for a reply, Rumi turned and started to walk away.
Sharing a mixed look of confusion, worry and more than a little awe the pair grabbed their things and quickly chased after their new mentor.
++++++++++++++++++++
"So what's it like being a rescue hero?" Kashiko asked as the countryside flew past them. "I've been thinking of going that route but I'm not sure."
"It's very rewarding." Tomoko answered, her eyes never leaving the road. "We mostly save stranded campers or hikers but if we weren't doing it who knows what would happen to them." She tapped at the steering wheel with one hand. "But sometimes they call you in for a major disaster and those… Those are the hard days."
"You guys were involved in the last earthquake cleanup, right?"
"Yeah." Tomoko's face fell. "That one was a mess from the start. Turns out most of the newer buildings were being constructed with subpar materials because developers wanted to cut corners." Her lips pulled back in a slight snarl. "Bastards didn't even think about what would happen if the damn things came crashing down."
"Sorry I brought it up." Kashiko muttered as she felt the anger radiate off of Tomoko.
"It's not your fault." Tomoko shook her head before her smile was back in place. "But everyone on the team is looking forward to having a new kitten to train. We don't get many people who accept an internship with us." She smirked. "I guess we're too intimidating."
"Midoriya did tell me to expect all of you to chip in with my training." Kashiko laughed. "So maybe it's having four pro heroes teaching you that scares people off."
"Maybe…" Tomoko glanced at Kashiko for a moment before giving her a wink. "But I think we can blame Pixie-Bob. Poor girl is man crazy." She looked back at the road before turning their truck down a well worn dirt path. "So is Midoriya is the support student that was attacked at the festival, right?"
"Yeah that's him." Kashiko shook her head in disgust. "We were all so pissed that Bakugo did something like that."
Tomoko nodded in agreement. "You and every pro hero in the country. I take it that those two have a history?"
"You could say that." Kashiko sighed as she stared out the window. "It's Midoriya's story but I'll just say that Bakugo gave him the scars."
"Oh." Tomoko's teeth ground for a moment before she took a deep breath and smiled once more. "Well would you care to know a story about this Midoriya that I guarantee he's never told you."
"How would you have a story about Midoriya?" Kashiko turned away from the window and looked back toward Tomoko. "You didn't even know his name."
"Well we never got his name." Tomoko giggled. "We had just finished a rescue in Musutafu and were getting some much needed coffee at an outdoor cafe when this scrawny kid with wild green hair timidly walked up to us and asked if we were the Wild Wild Pussy Cats. Now we were back in our civilian clothes so it's not like it was obvious who we were but somehow he knew. Myself, Mandalay and Pixie-Bob were all speechless that someone would recognize us but, thankfully, Tiger stepped in and told him that we were."
Kashiko couldn't help but smile as she perfectly pictured the scene in her mind while Tomoko continued. "I just remember his eyes lighting up before he pulled a notebook out of somewhere and asked for our signatures. Naturally we agreed and started passing around the notebook while he asked what we were doing in Musutafu."
"Mandaly was getting ready to respond but Pixie-Bob cut her off and said that we'd give him an answer if he agreed to a date." Tomoko shook her head as she laughed, turning the truck off the road and onto a long dirt driveway. "By the time Tiger put her in a head-lock to get her to stop it was too late our little fan was already as red as a tomato and could barely speak."
"What did Midoriya do?" Kashiko whispered as she fought back her own laughter, desperate to get more of the story.
"He muttered something about how he thought Mandaly was cuter before grabbing his notebook and sprinting away." Tomoko answered with a loud giggle.
++++++++++++++++++++
"What do you think that Ibuki and Saya wanted from us?"
"I'm not sure." Kaishin's head turned from side to side as he padded along next to Akina, searching for something among the dark of the night. "It is weird to request a meeting this late at night."
"It's not that late." Akina countered as the pair made their way toward the edge of campus. "Maybe he wants to talk about our internship? Nobody ever mentioned it during classes today."
"Talk about our internship at nine at night?" Kaishin shook his head, his curled mane bouncing. "We should just head back, this is a terrible idea. They aren't going to want to talk about our internship." He snorted. "Hell, I don't want to talk about it. We did practically nothing for a week."
Akina stared down at her lifelong companion before shaking her head playfully. "It can't just always be the two of us Kai. We said we were going to try and make some friends and here's a chance."
Kaishin stared up at Akina for a moment, his red eyes boring into her indigo ones. "It's always been the two of us. I fail to see why we can't just leave it at the two of us."
"Because I want more friends?" Akina quietly answered as she reached over and gently stroked Kaishin's fur. "I love that I have you but Kai… Between mother, mom's death and moving schools every year we have nobody."
"We have each other." Kaishin softly replied as he leaned into Akina's hand. "Other people can betray us, like our mother."
Akina sighed as she came to a stop before dropping to a knee so that she and Kaishin's faces were on the same level. "Kai, you can't seriously expect us to spend the rest of our lives with only each other. Right?"
The pair sat in silence for a moment before Kaishin slowly lowered his gaze and shook his head. "No."
"Then we need to trust other people. We need to try and make some friends." Akina flashed him a smile as she scratched the Quirk behind the ears. "You can still be distrustful but at least give people a chance."
"Fine." Kaishin huffed as they started walking once more. "But if they turn out to be bigots I reserve the right to tell you I told you so."
"Deal." Akina laughed before motioning toward the building now in front of them. "That's gym Six right?"
"It should be." Kaishin looked around, his eyes narrowing, until he spotted what he was looking for. "Yes there on the side. It looks like the lights are off though."
"That's weird." Akina craned her neck to look up at the windows. "Maybe they have the lights on in the lower part?"
"Possibly." Kaishin grumbled as he stalked toward the main entrance ahead of Akina. "We should move with caution, little one."
"For once I have to agree." Akina muttered as she moved to stand next to Kaishin, her hands reaching out to grab the handles. "You know if they're just sitting around we're going to look incredibly dumb throwing the doors open like this."
"I'd rather look dumb and be safe than be complacent and hurt."
"You can't get hurt." Akina countered with a smirk.
"But you can." Kaishin stared at the door before lowering himself into a crouch. "Go."
Moving as one, Akina threw open the door a millisecond before Kaishin pounced through the now open doorway. Landing with a snarl his head twisted from side to side, searching for any possible threat and finding none.
"See I told you that you were being overly cautious." Akina called as she entered the empty front area. "Do you think we're just the first ones here?"
"I guess…" Kaishin's voice trailed off as his nostrils flared. "I smell something."
"Something or someone?" Akina asked as she moved past Kaishin and toward the main gym area.
"Both." Kaishin answered as he increased his pace to get back to Akina. "I think we should-"
"Ow." Akina cut Kaishin off as her hand flew up to her neck. "What was-" She didn't get any further before her eyes closed and the world went black all while the sound of Kaishin's roar filled her ears.