Chapter 10: Actions Prove Why Words Mean Nothing
It didn't take long for spring to arrive, as well as the start of U.A., but it sure felt like a while to Midoriya. It had only been a couple months after the entrance exam, but so much had gone down. There was never a dull moment, but every moment felt dull. It was hard for the boy to explain, but Gami seemed to understand it just fine.
Ishihara's death had hit him hard. He sometimes found himself walking to the blue house in hopes he could be let inside, only to meet the police tape that surrounded the property. He heard the family had already had the funeral, and as much as he knew he wouldn't get an invitation, it still left him awfully depressed. All he really had were the few plates the man had given to him for taking cookies home. Those ceramic plates stayed on the bottom shelf of the bookcase with his flowers. He would never risk them falling and breaking.
But currently, the teen wasn't in the comfort of his room with his flowers and his plates. No. Right now, he was in the principal's office at Aldera. His day at school had been as it usually was, except for the teacher telling him that the principal wanted to see him and Bakugo after class. He wasn't sure what the man wanted with him at first, but now, he had made it obvious.
"How wonderful that two of our students have made it into U.A.!" the plump man stated. The comment would have been nice, if it weren't for the subtle messages he knew the man was pushing.
Midoriya opted to stand still towards the back of the office. His gloved hands picked at his uniform pants. He desperately wanted to leave this situation, and he knew Gami felt the same.
Said man stood next to his successor, up against the wall. There wasn't much space in the office, so the ghost could feel that a portion of his form was more like in the wall. He also wasn't comfortable in the situation and was ready to head out.
"Especially you, Midoriya!" he continued, despite the growing tension in the small office, "That's a miracle we never expected!"
The principal's words made him want to puke. He wasn't the quirkless miracle they thought he was. He was strong. He was capable. And he now had the confidence to know that he was all that, even without his powers.
Bakugo was also in the office, but stood closer to the principal. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and his shoulders slumped back. Though the blond hadn't pulled anything too brash since the sludge villain incident, he still wasn't eager to be this close in proximity to him.
Eventually, the principal finally stopped talking, and the boy took the opportunity to leave the room. He rushed out of the school, not wanting to be caught with Bakugo after hours. He passed by the courtyard, and the beautiful tree in the center seemed to wave him goodbye. Of course, he knew it was only the wind, but it was nice to pretend sometimes.
He entered his alleyway shortcut like he did every day. It was a long path to take and it always seemed to be dark no matter the time of day. The alleyway still gave the teen chills, but he was constantly on alert. That was a skill he had gratefully picked up after the sludge villain incident, and it hadn't disappointed him yet.
So Midoriya knew that Bakugo had followed him into the alleyway. The teen's loud and harsh footsteps betrayed himself enough, even without his keen sense of observation.
That didn't mean he was expecting the blond to shove him up against a building wall.
"What dirty tricks did you use to do it, you quirkless shit," Bakugo growled and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. He pulled the boy close to his face and yelled again, spit flying everywhere. "HUH?!"
Midoriya flinched on reflex, shutting his eyes and raising his gloved hands to protect his face. He was more composed around his other peers, but something about the angry blond just didn't sit right with him. Maybe it was because they were friends at one point? He didn't really know.
"I was supposed to be the first and only from this shitty school!" he continued furiously and thrusted the teen against the wall once more, "You've ruined everything!!"
The timid boy looked to Gami, who was desperately trying to pull Bakugo off of him. When the spirit finally understood that his arms would not solidify and would only continue to pass through the student, he moved to yank on his successor instead. But the minute the specter lifted his head up slightly and made eye contact with the trapped teen, he hesitated. Something in his friend's eyes screamed at him not to intervene. So he backed off wearlily, but kept his guard up.
But Bakugo didn't catch the little interaction, His tunnel vision was only focused on his rage. "I thought I told you not to try for U.A. I told you-"
Midoriya didn't mean to react, honestly. But his body moved before he could think.
He grabbed Bakugo's arm, the one holding him against the alleyway wall, tightly. He burrowed his gloved fingers deep into the uniform's fabric, half hoping to bruise the skin. The teen still kept his head down during all that. His unruly hair dangled over his eyes, and blocked the blond's startled reaction from his sight.
"Well, I've got full faith that you'll turn out to be someone great. And if you're planning on going into heroics, then I'll just have to keep an ear out for you."
"S-somebody told me…" he started shakily, his heart heavy.
"I meant what I said when we first met. Quirk or not, you are going to be a great hero one day Midoriya."
"That I could become a hero!"
He slammed his feet on the ground, steadying himself.
"Ka-" the boy corrected himself, "Bakugo…"
Said teen barely registered the words being said to him. He didn't understand why useless, worthless Deku kept going. All their other classmates had already given up on competing with him, and they had quirks. So why didn't Deku just give up too?
Midoriya wasn't sure where this courage was coming from. He had stood up for himself in front of Bakugo before, but it was usually in a more passive way. Never something as brash as yelling back though. But he didn't question it, and just let his mouth run.
"I earned this!"
Gami certainly wasn't expecting an outburst from his successor, but that didn't mean he wasn't proud. He knew the boy hated confrontation, as well as the attention that followed. But that just made the few times he snapped all the more prideful to watch. The man knew he couldn't force the boy to be more assertive towards Bakugo or the others, but he was glad that he was growing to be more confident at the very least.
"That's why I'm…" the teen locked his grip on the blond's arm and pulled it off of him impulsively. He couldn't stand how aggressive or touchy Bakugo was, always seeming to creep into his personal space to ridicule him or make him feel miserable. After way too many times of him using his quirk on the shoulder where his father's scar laid, he'd grown to dislike any time Bakugo laid his hands on him, whether it was on said scar or not.
But right now, he wasn't focused on the blond's lack of personal awareness. Sure, he had removed the invasive grip on his collar, but that didn't mean he was done yet. He wasn't the useless, worthless Deku that Bakugo thought he was. He was a changed person. The sludge villain incident changed him. Meeting All Might changed him. The entrance exam changed him. Ishihara's death changed him. Gami's consistent support changed him. And Bakugo needed to realize that.
He began to distance himself from the blond, walking down the alleyway towards the other end. Bakugo, while still in shock, began to go after the teen. But Midoriya quickly turned to face him, his glare stopping the angry boy in his tracks.
"I'm going to be here no matter what, so get used to it…"
He didn't need to yell it out, or check on Bakugo, as he walked out of the alley.
He knew the blond heard him loud and clear.
Gami rushed to catch up to the teen. He got to see Bakugo's reaction clearly, and it put a smile on his hidden face. The spirit wasn't expecting such a fierce declaration from his successor, but neither was Bakugo, based on his seething expression.
He caught up to the boy right as he turned onto another street, but said boy didn't seem to notice.
"That was not like you…"
Midoriya jumped at the sound of his mentor's calm voice. He tightened his grip on his backpack straps. "Yeah… sorry about that."
"I did not mean it like that, not in a bad way anyway."
The normally reserved teen looked up at that, "Hm?"
"Nevermind. It was nice to see you stand up for yourself though."
And then the teen looked back down bashfully, but regained his composure, "I heard enough already from the principal, I didn't want to hear more from Bakugo of all people."
"I guess that is understandable…"
The two continued to walk together, but Gami was merely following his successor. He assumed that they were heading home at first, but the boy didn't turn down the street like he was supposed to. The man didn't question it though, and just kept following without a word.
As for Midoriya, he really didn't know where he was going. He was simply walking wherever his feet were taking him. He was a bit shaken after the confrontation with Bakugo in the alleyway, but it felt good to finally tell off the blond. It was something that didn't happen often, but when it did, it felt like striking gold. But his mind was now wandering aimlessly, just like he was. It didn't really matter where he was going, as long as it was away from that alley.
He noticed that he had stopped, so he shook himself out of his thoughts and looked up to figure out where exactly he was.
He froze when a partially destroyed quaint, blue house met his gaze.
The boy had found himself walking to the house as a force of habit, but as much as he tried not to, he ended up here multiple times a week. Each time he did, the house's perimeter was blocked off by police tape, and would only permit him to come so close. But that wasn't an object of complaint for him. He was quite fine with looking out at the friendly house from a distance. Ending up at Ishihara's home wasn't what made him freeze.
What made him freeze was the fact that police tape no longer fenced him out.
He took a slow step forward, into the area where before, the tape hadn't let him cross. He stopped and listened, but there wasn't any sound. No policeman telling him to leave, no bystanders asking him what he was doing, but also no Ishihara calling him to come inside. It was bittersweet, but he was going to take advantage of the fact that no one was going to tell him no.
Midoriya made his way up the front stairs, savoring each step on the weathered, but homey concrete. His hand moved to brush against the metal rails, and though he couldn't feel the smooth steel, the chill still seeped through his glove. It had been such a while since he had gotten to walk up these steps, and it almost made him burst into tears. But he wasn't going to cry out in public, so he forced the tears back in and continued up.
When he finally reached the front door, the teen wasn't sure what to do. He wanted to knock, but he was positive no one would answer. He did remember Ishihara going on about his family, but as far as he knew, the older man lived alone. And if someone did answer, what would he say? There wasn't any real reason he was here, other than the pull of something unnatural. No person in their right mind would let a stranger in for no reason, even if that stranger claimed to know the owner of the house.
"Um Izu, what are you doing exactly?"
"I… don't really know…"
But even then, the boy made no effort to remove himself from the property. His instincts were telling him to wait, even if those instincts didn't really know what they were waiting for. But his gut hadn't failed him yet, so he gave the feeling a chance and continued to wait right in front of the door.
"I really think we should get goi-"
That's when the front door opened.
At the door was a woman. She looked older, but definitely not as old as Ishihara, and had long, brown hair that nearly reached her mid chest. She jumped, not expecting him there, but quickly composed herself. She took up an annoyed stance, almost like it hurt her eyes to look at him.
"Excuse me," she said snarkily, "but what are you doing here?"
Midoriya hesitated, not expecting someone to open the door either. He began to introduced himself even though she hadn't asked his name, "Um, I'm Mi-"
"I know who you are," she interrupted hastily, "you quirkless brat. You're wasting my time, so scram."
The teen flinched at the declaracion. She must live somewhere in the neighborhood then, if she knew he didn't have a quirk. But he still tried to get a word in, "Please, I-"
"Ishihara-san, who was at the door?"
Both parties stopped at that call, though for completely different reasons, but the woman recovered faster and called back.
"It's nothing Takagi, just some quirkless kid," she replied and then turned to look at the boy, "who's about to be leaving."
Midoriya shuddered, but didn't move as the unknown voice from before made his way to the front door.
"Nonsense Ishihara-san, I'm coming to see for myself," the voice called out again as the footsteps grew louder.
The brown haired woman seemed to grow a shade paler, "No, no, it's fine, really. There's no need-"
The puzzled teen shared a glance at the specter next to him, who seemed equally lost. The man just shrugged at his successor, at a loss for what to do. Getting no real helpful advice from the ghost, he decided to just wait and see who came to the door.
And right at that thought, a black haired man in fine clothing met his curious gaze. The man's dark, brown eyes met his own and he looked away with embarrassment. He hoped this man was more open to what he had to say, if he could get his timid voice to say anything.
"Hello!" the man began first, to which Midoriya was grateful for, "Who might you be?"
"Um, I'm Midoriya Izuku and I was hoping-"
"Wait," he interrupted. Goodness, was anyone going to let him talk today? "Did you say your name was Midoriya Izuku?"
That made the boy do a double take, "Um, yes and-"
"Oh, that's wonderful!"
The death duo shared another quick look of bewilderment, before the teen returned his attention to the man in the sharp suit. He was a bit weary of why this man was interested in him, but the cheerful smile in front of him pushed back his worries enough to hear him out.
The man must have picked up on his hesitation, because he started to back track, "Ah, sorry. Let me introduce myself. I'm Takagi Masa, and I'm the Ishihara family's executor."
He then gestured to the brown haired woman that had answered the door originally, "This is Ishihara Tadao's daughter, Ishihara Kohoni."
The newly introduced Kohoni coughed, "Takagi, what are you doing? We have work to do."
Takagi simply flashed her a bright smile, before continuing on with his tangent, "I'm sure you already know, but as the Ishihara family's executor, I'm in charge of making sure that Ishihara Tadao's will is properly taken care of."
Midoriya, in fact, did not know this. Between training for U.A. and keeping out of trouble at Aldera, he hadn't had the chance to brush up on legal studies. But he merely nodded his head and let the man keep talking.
"Ishihara Tadao did name one Midoriya Izuku in his will, but hadn't left any way to contact him. I was wondering how I was going to get in touch with you, but the universe works in mysterious ways it seems."
That statement definitely caught the teen's interest. Ishihara has left him something in his will? That certainly surprised him. Though, he hadn't had the faintest idea of what it could be.
"Well, why don't you come inside Midoriya-kun? Since we'll need to talk things out."
The boy barely croaked out a response, "Um, sure I guess…"
Takagi then ushered him inside, to the shock of Kohoni. But she composed herself enough to come back in as well. Gami was left alone, wondering if he should really intrude on a matter this sensitive, but he decided to join his successor just in case. He quickly phased through the door to catch up.
By the time he did, Midoriya was now sitting at the home's small dining room table with Takagi, Kohoni observing from the kitchen doorway. He could tell the teen was nearly in tears, and not only because he was finally back in the house. The spirit recalled Ishihara patching up the boy a few years back at that very table, where he later came out as quirkless. That day was momentous to his successor, as he finally had the support of someone other than the ghost himself. But Gami stopped reminiscing when the raven haired man piped up again.
"Normally, we wouldn't do things here," he started, "but you just so happened to catch Ishihara-san and I finalizing the details of her portion of the will."
The teen nodded in understanding, waiting for the man to continue.
"Luckily, your visit still works out pretty well, since I've already set aside the items bestowed to you."
Takagi reached over to a stack of paper on the dining room table and shuffled through them. He pulled out a few sheets from the center and laid them out in front of the boy. He picked them up to examine them, but the man started talking again.
"Because you're under 18, as the executor, I'm supposed to hold onto your inheritance until you come of age. But, the items you've inherited hold little monetary value from a legal standpoint, so I can offer you them now."
Midoriya picked out his name in the set of papers that Takagi had handed him. He really was written into Ishihara's will. But he couldn't find what his inheritance was in the mass vomit of words. He looked up to the executor, finally realizing he had stopped talking, "Do I… need a lawyer for this?"
The man chuckled, "Typically I would recommend one when dealing with inheritance, but like I said before, what you've inherited is of so little monetary value, that it's really not necessary. Though, the decision is still entirely up to you."
The teen eyed his mentor briefly, hoping that was enough to catch the spirit's attention. Thankfully, it was.
"I only remember dealing with a few inheritance proceedings in my time, but from what I do know, I think you are alright."
He gave a curt nod in acknowledgement before moving to respond, "I guess I'm good then…"
"Oh wonderful!! You've saved me quite a bit of time, Midoriya-kun. Oh, I love how clean this is turning out to be!!"
Midoriya, Gami, and Kohoni watched in silence as Takagi sang praises to himself. For dealing with a deceased's will, the man was oddly bubbly, but the boy guessed it came with the job. Takagi seemed to realize he was making a scene and calmed himself down enough to continue with the proceeding.
"Well Midoriya-kun, follow me," he stood up from his chair, prompting the teen to get up as well, "I've laid out your inheritance in the living room."
The suited man walked out of the dining room abruptly, so he dashed after him. Gami didn't trail behind as far, interested to see how the situation played out. The last to leave the room was Kohoni, who was a bit annoyed, but also surprisingly intrigued.
The boy had to stop himself, nearly crashing into Takagi. The executor seemed a bit hasty in his actions and that was starting to get on his nerves, but the man has been nothing but nice to him, so he refused the urge to call him out. He stayed close behind as the man slowly walked into the room, but still couldn't see much.
"Here it all is," he stated and moved out of the way, allowing Midoriya a perfect view of the coffee table.
On said table was a cardboard box, carefully folded together and taped. Only the top flaps were left open, so he cautiously made his way over to peer inside. Gami too was curious, but opted to let his successor take the first peek.
Midoriya wasn't going to lie, he was nervous. He really wasn't sure what to expect in the box, but he knew it wasn't going to be anything bad. He wished he could tell that to his brain though. His hands were shaky and sweaty, and the boy was afraid he wouldn't be able to open the box like this. Still, he willed up any confidence he had left and slowly lifted open the flaps.
The first thing that caught his eye was a glint of sunlight. It nearly blinded him, so he had to step back. But upon further examination, there wasn't a miniature sun in the box. Instead, there was something silver that reflected the sunlight coming in from the window. He carefully lifted the silver object out to get a better look, and almost dropped it out of shock.
It was a beautiful, silver kettle with an antique finish. He quickly switched to holding it by the thin handle as to not smudge the polished surface. It looked so pristine, so he assumed it was unused and kept away in an attic or something. But when he turned it over to check, he could see the scorch marks it wore from time over a stove. That nearly brought him to tears, but not for the reasons you'd expect. The searing on the bottom of the kettle merely confirmed to the boy that this was most likely the kettle Ishihara used to prepare tea for the two of them.
Clearing his consciousness, he gently set the kettle down onto the coffee table and moved to look in the cardboard box again. Inside, the next thing his eyes picked out was a notebook with a light brown cover, so he wrapped his fingers around the slightly worn spine to pull it out. At first glance, he wasn't sure exactly what the book contained, as it had no words on the cover, so he tenderly flipped through the pages. But he couldn't tell what the book was about even then, so he stopped on a random page to examine the scrawls. After reading the first few lines, he figured out it was a recipe. Going back to look at the other pages, the teen realized that the whole book was full of baking recipes. Cookies and pastries that Ishihara loved to bake and serve when he came over.
That actually brought him to tears, so he placed the book down next to the kettle before those droplets fell.
Tagaki watched the boy grow more and more emotional at unboxing the items left for him. The executor smiled warmly at the sight. He knew first hand how emotionally valuable inheritance could be, despite whatever its monetary value was. Honestly, he was glad it wasn't worth much, or else he would have had to hold onto it by the terms of his position.
Kohoni was practically indifferent to the situation, but not without curiosity. She wondered what relations this kid had possessed with her father. By now she had lost most of her hostility towards him, but that didn't mean she was eager to be around him.
Midoriya figured he had wasted enough of Takagi and Kohoni's time crying, so he wiped his eyes and reached into the cardboard box again. There was one last thing inside, so he grabbed it with both hands and lifted it out. The item was a wooden box, and a bit heavier than he expected. He put the box down onto the coffee table and ran a gloved hand over the smooth wood. It had a golden clasp on the front, so he popped it open and raised the lid.
When the sight of the chess set he and Ishihara played with met his gaze, the waterworks went into overdrive. He collapsed onto his knees and held the open box tightly to his chest as he sobbed, startling the two others, as well as the ghost, still in the room.
Gami quickly moved into action, floating over to assist in any way he could. But it was Kohoni who actually said the first coherent sentence.
"What is it?" she craned her neck to try and get a better look, "A chess set?"
"Indeed, Ishihara-san," Takagi replied, "That, along with the kettle and recipe book, were specifically left for Midoriya-kun in the will."
Said boy seemed to compose himself enough to close the box and get back up on his feet. He sniffled out a quiet, little "sorry" before placing the chess set back into the cardboard box.
"Nonsense," the suited man interrupted, "These situations are always emotional."
The teen rubbed the stray tears from his eyes and wiped his wet hands on his school uniform. He made sure his hands were dry enough before grabbing the recipe book and kettle to put them into the box as well.
The brunette woman broke the silence again, her nosiness getting the better of her, "What exactly was your relationship with my father?"
Midoriya was startled at the seemingly sincere question directed at him, especially from a person so hostile towards him at first. But he took the time to think about it. There were so many ways he could describe the relationship he had with Ishihara, and yet not enough words. He didn't take too long though, just to ensure the woman's patience didn't run out.
He finished packing away the three items and shut the cardboard box. He placed a hand onto the top to force the two open flaps down.
"Ishihara-san was… a really close friend."
Kohoni looked shocked, "That's it?"
The boy laughed and picked up the cardboard box carefully, making sure not to disturb any of the items inside.
"Well… I'd like to believe he thought the same of me. But I'm sure he had many friends other than myself."
The younger Ishihara scoffed, "Well, obviously."
Midoriya continued despite the quip, "And while I'm sure I was not Ishihara-san's first friend, he was most certainly mine."
Takagi's smile fell a bit, but he picked it back up before anyone could notice. The brown haired woman didn't make any outward expressions, but she swore she felt a sharp tug on her heartstrings.
Gami wasn't hurt at that declaration. It was technically the truth. The older man was his successor's first "human" friend. Besides, the specter was already aware that he would forever be the O.G.
The teen paused at that and took a moment to reminisce. Ishihara was a lot of "firsts" for him.
He was the first person he had a premonition about, and the first person he saved.
He was the first person who had ever invited him over, and the first person to bake treats for him.
He was the first person who had ever patched him up, and the first person who supported his dreams.
The boy held the cardboard box close to his chest, squeezing it tightly in his arms.
"I'm really thankful to have known him."
The first day of U.A. arrived faster than Midoriya thought it would, but he was ready. He set his phone alarm early for that morning, even earlier than he normally got up for his deathly duties. He wanted to give himself plenty of time to pack and prepare. The last thing he wanted to do was arrive late on the very first day.
Gami had helped him pack the night before though, so he didn't feel at all stressed waking up this morning.
He straightened out his new U.A. uniform, the grey a nice change from the black of Aldera. The spirit had attempted to teach the boy how to do his tie, but his efforts were fruitless. He still walked out of the house that morning with a poorly done, fat tie, as well as his signature red sneakers and his black leather bag.
The subway ride didn't feel as long as it was, and evidently enough, the duo walked down the beautiful path they had taken before for the entrance exams. Just as the teen had hoped, the trees now grew lushious green leaves on their branches and framed the walkway luxuriously. He almost wished he could spend the whole day out here, but knew that wasn't an option.
He calmly strolled down the halls of the prestigious school, looking for his class. He had studied the map that came with the acceptance letter, but still managed to forget where he was going in the awe of observing every nook and cranny. Thankfully, the ghost had looked at the map as well, and was now leading the boy down the right hall. The two finally arrived at a large door that read "1-A" on it in big, bold lettering. They both stopped to stare mesmerizingly at it.
"Well, that is certainly one massive entryway…"
Midoriya chuckled, "It has to be accessible to everyone, no matter their quirks."
But after that, he felt his laughter die off to replace his nervousness. Once he entered that classroom, he'd be in a room full of the best of the best. That thought made his heart sputter. Did he deserve to be here? Even though he technically didn't have a quirk, he did have powers. Did that make his acceptance count, or was it a petty excuse? What if he was taking this spot from someone else who really deserved it? His head started to spiral again, but Gami caught it before he could fall any deeper.
"Just remember that you earned your spot here," he spoke softly, "You took the same exam as everyone else, and you came out on the very top."
The boy smiled up at his mentor, "Yeah, you're right."
He moved his gloved hands to grip at the sliding door and pulled it open slowly.
His mind drifted back to Bakugo in the moment, as well as the other kid that embarrassed him from the entrance exam, but he shook it off the best he could.
"Let's just hope they're in the other class…" he remarked to no one.
"Who?"
And that's when the door opened up all the way to reveal the blue haired boy yelling strictly at Bakugo right near the front of the room.
"Nevermind, I think I know who."
"Remove your foot from that desk!" the strict boy from the exam berated, "Such an action is insulting to those who came to U.A. before us as well as the craftsmen who made the desk!!"
"Like I care," the blond scoffed, not moving his foot, "What middle school are you from, extra?"
Midoriya deadpanned. It was just his luck that both kids happened to be in his class. He wasn't sure how he'd deal with Bakugo, but he hoped at the very least he could get on good terms with the other boy.
Said boy gasped at Bakugo's response, but answered the question, "I'm from Somei Private Academy. My name is Iida Tenya."
"Somei?!" he repeated with a smug grin, "A stuck up elitist, then? I should blow you to bits."
Iida grew even more flabbergasted, "Blow me to bits? Do you really wish to become a hero?!"
It was then that Iida noticed the green haired boy standing nervously in the doorway. He shuffled over to him to introduce himself again.
"Oh dear…"
"I'm from Somei Private Academy…" the teen started again.
"Ah, I heard you from before," he interrupted, not really wanting to hear the same spiel from before, "Um, I'm Midoriya Izuku. Pleased to meet you, Iida…"
"Midoriya…" Iida mumbled out, causing said teen to flinch. That name reminded him too much of home. Maybe he could get his classmates to call him by a nickname or something. "You perceived the true nature of that practical exam… while I did not."
The reserved boy and his mentor shared a look. He hadn't really perceived anything during the exam, he simply did what was right. He couldn't just stand and watch as the nice brunette got hurt, or as the giant robot tore up the mock city. He wasn't expecting to get any points, much less 60 rescue points, but he wasn't complaining.
"I misjudged you!!" Goodness was that boy still talking? "I hate to admit it, but you were the superior candidate!"
"Ah, well I only did what I thought was right…" he whispered, not enjoying the attention he was getting from the other kids in the classroom, "Um, I'm going to go sit down now."
He started walking away from the blunt male. This was definitely not how he wanted to start his first day, but if he walked away from the spotlight now, there was still a chance he could get away with a quiet rest of the day. Though, it didn't seem like the universe wanted that for him, because just as he attempted to move away from Iida, the class door opened again.
"That curly hair, it's you!"
Midoriya recognized the voice, but he still jolted from surprise. He turned around and sure enough, it was the nice girl from the entrance exam. He smiled softly and tried to make his way to his seat. The brunette didn't seem to realize his discomfort though, and walked right up to him.
"You got in! Just like Present Mic said!!" she cheered enthusiastically, pumping her fist into the air, "It makes sense though! That swing was awesome!!"
The timid teen grew more nervous at her loud and bubbly personality, but at feeling the ghost run a cold, boney hand through his hair, he calmed down enough to respond, "Um, well I have to thank you for speaking on my behalf…"
Gami just listened as the talkative girl rambled on and on to his successor. He took the time to examine the other kids in the classroom. There were certainly a variety of quirks to say the least, and each student looked unique, but his gaze inevitably landed on the seething blond. The spirit could tell Bakugo wasn't happy about the arrival of his friend, but he hadn't made any attempts to quip at him yet, much less attack him. That was definitely an improvement from Aldera, so the specter wasn't too upset.
"So we got our entrance ceremony and guidance sessions today, right?" Gami wondered if all these kids just liked to talk, or if his successor was just quieter than he thought. But nonetheless, she hadn't waited for a response before continuing. "I wonder what our teacher will be like? Boy am I nervous…"
Midoriya chuckled nervously. He felt the same way, but he was eager to go sit down. They were still at the front of the classroom and he could feel the eyes on the two of them. He wondered where the teacher was, considering he still wasn't in the classroom yet.
"If you're here to socialize, then get out."
Ah, speak of the devil and he shall appear.
He watched the brunette turn around towards the open door in shock, and he turned to look as well. And while he didn't know what to expect considering his homeroom teacher, he certainly wasn't prepared to see a haggard looking man wrapped up in a yellow sleeping bag. He pulled his hand out of the bag, along with what looked to be a juice pouch. He gave the pouch a nice, long suck, before moving to stand up. He unzipped the sleeping bag and let it fall to his feet, revealing his outfit, which consisted of a black jumpsuit and a familiar grey scarf.
Oh my god! That's Pro Hero Eraserhead!! the teen's analytic mind snapped into overdrive.
"This is certainly interesting…"
"It took eight seconds for you to quiet down," the rugged man stated bluntly, "Time is a precious resource. You lot aren't very rational, are you?"
The class didn't really know how to react to the man, or his declaration. Many simply gaped like fish.
The man didn't waste any time though and continued talking, "I'm your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shota. Pleased to meet you."
Once the man introduced himself, Midoriya was sure he was Eraserhead. If the scarf didn't give him away, the name surely did. He was arguably the boy's favorite underground hero ever, and had a few pages in a notebook dedicated to him, his quirk, and his fighting style. Of course, it was unlikely that his other classmates had ever heard of him, since he really tried to stay out of the media spotlight. But he wasn't about to call the man out, since the teacher obviously didn't introduce himself as Eraserhead for some reason.
"Change into your gym clothes and out to the grounds," he said, not skipping a beat, "Your clothes should be in a locker assigned to you in the class locker rooms.
The teen didn't want to be the first person to leave the room, so he hesitated and let Iida, along with some other students, leave first before following them to the locker room.
"That was Eraserhead, correct?" Gami inquired.
He nodded subtly, trying not to draw any attention to himself. He walked into the locker room and looked for his own. All of the lockers had numbers plated onto them, but also had sticky notes as well. He assumed that the sticky notes had their names on them, so he searched for his. Finally finding it, he opened the door to see his gym clothes, which were a dark blue with white lines that spelled out the school's initials. Quickly unfolding them, he realized the tops were short sleeved.
Luckily, he had come prepared just in case.
Placing his backpack into the locker, he opened it and pulled out a black, long sleeve turtleneck. He had purchased a few more of these shirts, thin and moisture wicking for any sort of summer activities. He had placed one of them in his bag in the event he needed it for school, not really expecting to be out on the grounds on the first day though.
Midoriya closed his locker and moved towards the bathroom stalls. All the other boys were changing out in the open, but he wasn't too keen on revealing his scars. He knew the burn one would attract a lot of attention at the very least, and that was definitely something he didn't want. He knew some kids were giving him weird looks, but he tried not to pay any attention. He opened one of the stall doors and walked in with his gym clothes and turtleneck.
"It was a good thing you decided to bring that with you."
The teen hummed out a noise of approval, taking off his uniform top to slip on the turtleneck. The neck was tall enough to cover the bit of the burn scar that peeked out of his uniform, and the sleeves reached all the way to his wrist to shield his other injuries from view. And that was just the way he liked it.
"Do not let them get to you. They are just being curious."
"I know," he whispered under his breath.
He figured there would be stares if he decided not to change out in the open, so he wasn't too surprised when he was proven correct. That was simply the nature of curiosity. When someone acts out of the ordinary, it draws attention. He was used to it.
Though, one stare remained on him a bit longer than the others, and returned once he left the stall as well. The boy didn't notice it, but Gami certainly did. At first, the old ghost assumed it was Bakugo.
But a certain head of candy cane hair made him reassess his initial assumptions.
"A quirk test?!"
Midoriya had hung around the back of the class once he got outside. He wore the gym clothes just like everyone else, just with his black turtleneck underneath. It covered the parts of his neck and arms that his gym uniform did not. Paired with his usual black, polyester gloves, and he was comfortable and ready to go. He and Gami tuned in to the conversation currently playing out.
"What about the entrance ceremony or the guidance sessions?" he heard the nice brunette from before exclaim. He really needed to learn her name.
"You don't have time to waste on that stuff if you want to become heroes," Aizawa began.
At that, hushed murmurs grew from the class, so the teacher proceeded speaking.
"U.A. is known for its 'freestyle' educational system," he continued, and the whispers died down, "That applies to us teachers as well."
Aizawa walked over to what the teen presumed to be an area for softball throwing, and beckoned the class to follow. The new first years shuffled over nervously, including Midoriya. Just because he knew that man was Eraserhead didn't make him any less intimidating. Actually, the pro was probably more intimidating with the knowledge that he was such a scarily effective underground hero, despite his non offensive quirk.
"Softball throwing, standing long jump, 50 meter dash, endurance running," the boy was confused at first why the hero was listing basic exercises, but he then realized that those were the kind of tests that he had done in gym class back at Aldera. Of course, he didn't say anything, and the teacher continued. "Grip strength, side to side stepping, upper body training, seated toe touch."
He looked towards his mentor, who seemed a bit puzzled. I guess it was fair to assume the man didn't perform anything like standardized athletics testing during his adolescence. He doubted there even was standardized athletics testing 5 centuries ago.
"You all did these in middle school, yes?" Aizawa addressed the confused looks in the crowd, "Your standard, no-quirks-allowed gym tests."
The homeroom teacher scoffed seemingly at his own statement, "This country still insists on prohibiting quirks when calculating the averages of those records. It's not rational. The department of education is simply procrastinating."
Midoriya couldn't deny what the pro was saying. The education system was sorely behind when it came to implementing transitions for quirks in the classroom. He remembered Aldera's rules when it came to quirks, not only the ones pertaining to use in general. His middle school allowed a lot of unfair treatment depending on the quirk a student had. Bakugo and himself were prime examples. He had hoped for some changes while he was still in middle school, whether by Aldera or by the department themselves, but he knew not to expect anything. As they say, hope for the best and expect the worst.
"Midoriya," Aizawa called out, startling the boy out of his thoughts, "Where are you?"
"Um, right here sir…" he responded passively, moving to the front of the crowd. Gami moved up with him, passing right through the other students.
The tired looking hero eyed his extra clothing, but chose not to call him out. Instead, he continued on his tangent.
"You came first in the entrance exam, correct?" the gruff man didn't wait for a response, "How far could you throw in middle school?"
The teen shuffled a bit at being called out, and grew more nervous at the whispers coming from his classmates. He picked at his gloved fingers in an attempt to calm himself down.
"Uh, 46 meters sir…"
"Great, now try it with your quirk. Do whatever you need to. Just don't leave the circle."
He simply nodded and walked into the circle drawn on the ground. Aizawa tossed him the ball and he caught it snappily. He could pick out Bakugo's voice yell out loudly over the crowd.
"Hah, what's Deku gonna do? He's just a quirkless runt!"
Iida stepped right in to defend him, "Quirkless? So you haven't heard about his feats during the entrance exam?"
The two then devolved into squabbles, but Midoriya tried not to listen in. He was stressed enough as it was. Gami ran a hand through his successor's hair, hoping to ease him. The pro seemed to have caught onto the boy's hesitation, so he added a short comment of encouragement.
"Give it all you got."
He nodded softly at the advice and tossed the ball from hand to hand. He opted to take off his gloves, but decided against it, deeming it not necessary. He quickly glanced to the side to look at his mentor, who stood outside the circle as to not get in his way.
"Do not worry about Bakugo or the others," the spirit reassured, "This is your next step."
"Yeah…" the teen mumbled. He shook off his nervousness for now. He didn't want to waste any more of his teacher's time. He had done enough hesitating, so he decided to just jump in head first.
He threw the ball directly above him, as high as he could. He could hear the startled gasps from his classmates, as they were most likely assuming he would throw it forward. But he didn't have any time to think about them. He was completely focused on launching this ball as far as he could. This was his shot, and he was going to take it.
As the ball was in the air, Midoriya flexed his right hand and summoned his scythe. Quickly grabbing it with his other hand, he lifted it behind his head. He only had a single moment before the ball fell back down, but he poured as much DT as he could into his weapon. He could also hear the breaths of shock at the sight of the massive scythe, but he ignored them as well. He could feel a tiny tingle at the base of his spine, but paid it little attention.
The teen watched the ball begin to fall back down to earth. He was hoping to pull the same stunt he used to take down the zero-pointer. So once the ball got right where he wanted it, he let his weapon come down.
I'll prove my worth right here and now!!
He knew the scythe didn't hit the ball, but that was his plan. He could hear his class yell and cry in surprise as his weapon audibly tore through the air. And just like the swing with the zero-pointer, a loud explosion rang as the shockwave sent the ball flying. It took a few seconds, but eventually the ball came crashing down. A few beeps came from Aizawa's direction, so he turned to look, and faced the shocked expressions of his classmates.
"It's important for us to know our limits," the teacher started up. He showed the crowd, as well as Midoriya, the monitor that recorded his score. The screen flashed and then showed an impressive score of 1,139.6 meters. "That's the first rational step towards figuring out what kind of heroes you'll be."
Aizawa was arguably more shocked than the other kids, but not for the same reasons. He flashed his own quirk right as Midoriya had swung his weapon, and was flabbergasted that nothing had happened. He wasn't sure how that was even possible, since his quirk was obviously not a mutant one. He was going to have to pull the kid after the tests and take him to Nezu for an explanation. But right now, he kept himself composed and proceeded with his plans.
Bakugo would probably give the pro a run for his money though. He was completely bewildered at what had just happened before his eyes. But his shock quickly turned to rage as his palms started sparking.
"What the hell? Explain yourself, Deku!!" the blond screamed as he charged at the shy boy with his explosions firing off in every direction.
Midoriya flinched and his scythe disappeared out of stress. He raised his gloved hands to shield his face from the incoming attack. He didn't notice that the tips of his gloves started to disintegrate without him meaning to.
Gami initially shied away from the amount of light being produced, but he sprung into action. He figured he wasn't going to turn solid to stop Bakugo, so he prepared himself to yank his successor out of the way.
It was then that the blond was halted in his tracks, a few strands of cloth wrapping themselves around his body. His explosions also stopped completely, but he didn't seem to realize that.
"What the?" he grimaced, "This cloth… it's stiff!!"
"It's a capture weapon made of carbon fibers and a special alloy wire," Aizawa corrected, "And geez, stop using your quirk already."
That was when Bakugo realized his explosions had stopped. He looked back at the teacher, but continued to struggle against his binds.
"I'm getting serious dry eye over here."
Midoriya moved a bit away from the raging blond, but let his excitement take over at seeing his favorite underground hero in action.
"Wow, you really are Eraserhead!!"
The class began whispering again, and that's when the teen realized he had just said that outloud. He looked down embarrassingly as the pro released Bakugo from his capture weapon.
"So you know of me, kid?" the teacher questioned, "I try to stay out of the media."
"Um, well you're quirk is pretty interesting," he mumbled, "and I do analysis as a hobby…"
He didn't say any more than that, so Aizawa proceeded to get the rest of the test going. He could tell this was going to be a long day.
The boy returned to the group, where he was swamped by Iida, the brunette, and a few other classmates.
"Woah!" she cried, "Now that's a hero-like record if I ever saw one!!"
"Indeed," Iida observed, "Thinking back on the entrance exam, that is certainly a strange, but powerful quirk."
Midoriya smiled and thanked them for their nice words, but was eager to be out of the spotlight.
"Nice swing. You are getting better at that move."
He huffed in content at the ghost, but made it seem as if he was panting for breath.
The class seemed to realize that the tension from before was gone, and immediately grew excited at the prospect of using their quirks. Comments flew left and right from the rest of the students.
"Woah, this is awesome!"
"1,139 meters? Seriously?"
"So we can use our quirks for real! Man, the hero course is great!!"
"This is going to be fun!!"
Both the teen and his mentor noticed how annoyed their teacher was growing. The specter personally knew that look the man was giving, and figured he was just about to snap.
"Fun you say?" he stated eerily.
Aizawa turned slowly to stare at the group of first years and loomed over them. He held up his hand to examine it, but neither of the death duo could figure out why. Midoriya believed it was symbolic. Gami believed it was personal.
"You're hoping to become heroes after three years here…" he growled lowly, "and you think it'll be all fun and games?"
The class shut up at that, but it was too late. Everyone could tell the mood shifted again, and their teacher was pissed.
"Alright then," Aizawa replied sarcastically, "The one with the lowest score across all eight events will be judged as hopeless…"
He could hear the cries of protests begin to emerge at his declaration, but it would not change his mind. They had pushed the normally nonchalant pro over the edge.
"…And will be expelled."