Chapter 3 - Erasure
After the Izuku's destruction of the gigantic machine, most of the Heroes were very amazed by the strength and power he had shown, and the dedication to heroics in such a situation. All Might stood below the platform where the rest watched, dressed in a great yellow and black stripped suit, while in his muscle form. Next to him, was the skinnier, pale form of Aizawa. His scarf was wrapped around his neck, and hide everything below the nose. He focused on the reptilian creature and it's tendrils with interest.
"You see something, Aizawa?" All Might asked, glancing at his grumpy peer.
"That kid. He's awfully similar to that Jet Black that was running around a few months back." Aizawa said, lifting up his chin, and scratching his scruffy chin. "Who is that?"
"Izuku Midoriya." A voice reported, before scratching his chin. "Funny, I thought his reports said he was Quirkless."
"Late bloomer." Principle Nezu replied off-handidly, watching in fascination. "He definitely made up for lost time."
"We never caught that Lethal Protector. He just disappeared..." Aizawa remarked absentmindedly, tapping his chin. "Could there be a connection…?"
"The Protector was savage and uncontrolled." Midnight remarked, adjusting her glasses. "This one's a lot more measured in all his moves."
"Still, it can't be a coincidence." Aizawa muttered, running his hand through his greasy hair. "Two similar fighting styles, almost similar Quirks."
All Might looked as though he wanted to say something, that irritating, always beaming smile softening if just for a moment, before Nezu spoke up again after taking a long sip of tea.
"Well, I doubt it's the Lethal Protector." He said with his usual brand of cheer. "Why would he come waltzing right into an academic place full of heroes that would want to bring him in."
Aizawa didn't seem to care for that answer, but turned to the other students. "So, what the heck are we gonna do with this kid?"
Many of the teachers began to reach for small numbered signs near them, as Nezu shrugged. "Obviously, we grade his reaction to this like any other."
Aizawa watched as most of the teachers gave him 9's and 10's, a passing score. His written exam scores, his one measly practical exam point, and now about 60 on the Heroic grading would let him join. Present Mic seemed quite pleased with the score, as Aizawa leaned in towards his friend.
"You really shouldn't grade him based on guilt." Aizawa whispered, as the heroes began to review everything.
"I kinda screwed him over before the matches even started." Mic remarked, scratching the back of his neck. "Kid was like a zombie at the start, now look at him."
Aizawa looked again at the replay of the various young students, each one's technique and how they tore through each machine in their own way. Most were unrefined, or needed more training, but a lot of them were on the way to the right path. Izuku was the one that stuck out the most. His movements, while animalistic, seemed perfectly measured, like he had a sense for what was going to happen, and prepared for it accordingly. The one machine he did destroy was completely wrecked in a move that was far too careless for Aizawa's taste. Completely flattened and smashed apart. It wasn't his personal style, but it did work.
It was different, but he didn't buy the words from his colleagues. He had spent months tracking the Vigilante nick-named "Jet" and called the Lethal Protector by so many. He stalked the underbelly of the city, helping the homeless, and feasting heavily on crooks and those that targeted them. Aizawa had poured through every recording of Jet in his time. He had no reason to call him a "protector". Aizawa may have been considered blunt and unlikable for a hero, but even he had standards.
Biggest one being Aizawa didn't chomp down on people's heads. Or their limbs. Or whatever else caught the Protector's fancy.
'I don't even think Knuckleduster was that bad.' Aizawa thought wearily.
He had no reason to pity any of the criminals, but someone cannibalizing people, no matter their rap sheet or record, was something he would never support. And what annoyed him the most was how the Protector just…vanished. As though he had come up to eat for a bit, then disappeared into the darkness without another word. A lot of the more night-going heroes had tried to pursue them, but none seemed as determined as Eraserhead.
'And now this kid comes in with the same fighting style, look and everything.' Aizawa thought darkly, still glaring at the image of Venom as it worked to save Occhako. 'It can't be a coincidence.'
He gave an aside glance to All Might, who seemed interested in the kid as well. Did he know something? All Might was always a terrible liar compared to every other hero in existence. What connection did he have with the strange, vaguely reptilian beast rampaging about? Aizawa presumed he could wait until the school start and investigate Izuku himself.
'Whatever students I have, I don't want him too close to.' He thought, as he put his hands in his pockets. 'But if the others pass him, I'll have to bite the bullet.'
It would at least give him a chance to keep an eye on Izuku. If he failed, there was no telling where he could run off to with that Quirk, and Aizawa might lose any way to find a connection between him and the mysterious Lethal Protector. Even if he found no connection, he could at least keep an eye on him and hopefully put those skills to good use in heroics.
'He'll be no All Might, but powers like that will gave other villains a good reason to stay hidden.' Aizawa thought as he watched the image of Izuku-Venom pulling the machine down two strands of it's blackened, slimy biomass tendrils.
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Izuku sat on his couch, going over his hero notes, as Venom's serpentine-like head bobbed to his right, then his left, looking things over, before looking to the TV. The Symbiote seemed much more touchy then usual today. He had been acting odd the whole past week, especially after the exams.
"How much longer must we wait?" The Symbiote asked.
"It takes a while for the heroes to grade the performance and all." Izuku replied with a shrug.
"How could it take so long?" Venom hissed in irritation. "We only had one point."
"I know Venom." Izuku said with annoyance, not wanting him to pock that wound.
"I mean, that shouldn't take long to add up." Venom continued as though his host hadn't said a word.
"I get it." Izuku said in irritation, grinding his teeth in annoyance. "For someone in my head, you really don't know when to quit."
"Sorry you're such a softy." Venom teased with a chuckle. "We will avoid hurting your delicate feelings from now on."
"You're not funny." Izuku muttered, rolling his eyes, as he gave an agitated huff.
There was a knock on the door, as a package was slipped through the mail slot in the door, as the person walked off. Izuku looked up in surprise, and stood up from the couch, as Venom overtook his arm, and snapped outwards, latching onto the package and slowly drawing it into his host, like a fishermen drawing in a wrangled fish. Finally, Izuku felt it touch his real hand, as a surprising amount of weight fell onto it.
"What is in this thing?" Venom wondered aloud, his head slithering close to it.
"No clue." Izuku said with a shrug.
"It could be a bomb." Venom hissed wearily.
"Who would bomb us?" Izuku demanded in irritation.
"Your 'friend' Katsuki." Venom ventured.
Izuku gave him a rueful glare, but simply shook his head and headed to his room. The envelope was from UA itself, the stamp of approval form the highest office and everything. He looked over the envelope for any thing else, like any words or phrases written on it, but only he saw was the seal of UA, and his address written across it. He turned over and over again and again, trying to find anything else, but simply opened the door to his room, and placed it on the desk gently, not wanting to break it or anything.
Izuku held up his hand, as Venom overtook his pointer and middle finger, transforming them into blackened claws, as he hooked them into the envelope, and swipped through it, easiely slicing the paper in two, and letting him reach in and grab the small, semi-circle device from the letter. It was all black, with no writtings or markings on it.
"You think it's a bomb Venom?" Izuku asked, glancing at the small head of his Symbiote.
"I don't sense anything." Venom remarked. "Of course, I can only sense things about 10 seconds in advance, so you might still end up fried and crispy."
Izuku rolled his eyes, as he tried to tap any part of the machine, shake it a bit, and try and get it to work. No combination of pushing or prodding would get it to activate. Finally frustrated by it, he made a fist, and gently bopped the top of the machine, only for it start rumbling and vibrating, before the top flashed an off-light blue. Venom drew back slightly, eyes widening.
"You've doomed us all!" He hissed in a panic, before a hologram appeared, showing the familiar form of All Might.
Izuku gave Venom a tired glance, shaking his head at the Symbiote's panic attack as the creature bent his head low slightly, a sheepish expression in his white eyes. "Sorry."
"Hello Young Midoriya, Venom!" All Might greeted with his booming voice, the camera shaking slightly. "Apologizes for how long this took, we heroes are busy with two things; paper work and fighting crime!"
He laughed heartily as Izuku gave a small smile, and he continued. "After all, with great power comes a great amount of pencil pushing!"
A figure beyond the camera whispered something to All Might, before his hand appeared, and motioned for All Might to speed this up. All Might shrugged, his infallible smile never fading.
"Sorry, I have more to do." He stated, his voice softening from a massive typhoon to a small hurricane. "Anyway, you scored near the top on your written exams, but you only got one point on your practical tests. That, unfortunately, would mean you fail."
Izuku felt his heart drop like a stone, as tears began to well up in his eyes. All Might held up his hands, almost as if the hologram recording was trying to keep his spirits up.
"But wait, there's more Young Man!" He stated, as the screen shifted and changed to that of security footage of the offices the Heroes used while teaching.
There, was Present Mic, Venom hissing slightly at the sight of him, as the girl that had saved Izuku's face and who, in turn, Izuku had saved from the robot. He watched in shock, trying to dry out his eyes.
"Excuse me, that boy with the plain face, and the scary monster Quirk, I heard he only scored one point." She said, looking around nervously. "I was just wondering, since he helped save me, that if I could give him half of my points. It's only fair."
Present Mic seemed to consider her words for a moment, before slightly shaking his head. "I'm sorry, but that isn't allowed. I can't say much, but he'll be fine."
He gave Uraraka a pat on the shoulder, nodding slightly, as the screen shifted back to All Might. Izuku was taken a back that someone he had barely talked to would try and help him out.
"You not only risked yourself to help another, but inspired others to move and do good themselves." All Might said encouragingly. "That's the essence of what a hero is, and for that, you were awarded 60 Hero Points, putting in the passing grade."
Izuku's eyes widened in shock, as a fresh set of tears began to roll down his cheeks. Venom wanted to say something to mock his host for being so soft and emotional, but decided against it. He could make fun of him later, this was too special a moment.
"With that, you'll be able to study at UA! Welcome to the Hero Course!" All Might stated, giving a quick thumbs up. "Lucky for you, I'll be teaching this year. I can't wait to see you there and help get that Quirk to tip-top shape."
All Might gave him a final salute, before the screen faded, and a broad smile spread across Izuku's face, as he turned to his Symbiote.
"Thank you Venom." He managed through his tears.
Venom bobbed his head back a bit, before shaking it. "No, I only need you for a ride. The heroics was all you. I only gave you the powers to accomplish it."
Venom shifted his head around, looking back at the device, before hissing slightly to himself. "You are not as much of a loser as I originally thought."
"Thanks, you're too bad yourself." Said Izuku with a sniffle, as he dried his eyes, giving a small smile. "For a parasite."
"Parasite!?" Venom growled in rage. "Apologize!"
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The week after, Izuku was practically on cloud nine. The entire thing had lifted his spirits in a way he didn't think possible, and nothing was going to get him down, especially when he had Venom with him all the way. When the day finally came for the two to make their way into UA, Izuku could hardly sleep, until Venom began toying with his brain to release some chemicals to finally put him to sleep. When they awoke early, the two were able to prepare a large breakfast for Izuku's mom, and let her see them off. Venom had still kept himself a secret from her, but was showing some of his powers as he prepared the meal.
As they walked along to the great gates of UA, Izuku took a deep breath as he looked it over again. "Amazing."
"It's still the same place." Venom grumbled in his head. "What's so amazing about it now?"
"Nothing, let's get moving." Izuku replied, running off to the gates, and to get to his class.
It was a big school, and Izuku probably would've gotten lost had it not been for Venom's senses. He merely directed Izuku towards the highest concentration of bodies, on the floor and hall where Izuku knew the class was at, and let the rest work itself out. Izuku came to a stop at the giant door marked 1-A, and turned to Venom's small head projected from his shoulder.
"You think this is it?"
"Most likely."
"Alright, let's make our first steps," He said with a smile, opening the door. "Hopefully Kacchan isn't in our Class."
He opened the door, only for his smile to falter immediately, as he saw Bakugou himself seated in the back, leaning back in a chair, with his feet on the desk. The Glasses Guy, Tenya, who had helped Izuku earlier was there, standing over, yelling at Bakugou. Izuku cringed slightly. Either this guy was very brave, or very stupid, or didn't know Bakugou and what he would do quite yet.
"You must remove your feet from the desk!" He insisted, gesturing sharply to Bakugou's shoes. "This is simply improper!"
"What a stiff!" Bakugou taunted with a harsh laugh. "Where you born with that stick in your ass, or have it surgically implanted?"
"How dare you, I..." He began, before glancing over to see Izuku standing in the doorway looking at them shocked.
He darted over immediately, and before Izuku could even blink, he was standing in front of him, readjusting his glasses. "Hello! I believe we already meet Izuku. Good to see you made it in."
"Yeah. You too." Izuku said nervously, looking around the class.
"I was worried you know, you were acting most strangely." Tenya said, making a slight chopping motion with his right hand. "I was worried you wouldn't be performing at 100%."
"Nothing can keep us down!" Venom bragged, his twisted grin widening. "Not even that horrific sonic attack."
Tenya merely shrugged, wondering if the Quirk's running mouth was a reflection of Izuku's personality, or something he repressed, before continuing on. "Well, I am impressed with your abilities. You obviously knew something else about the test I didn't."
Izuku was about to say no, and say he knew just about as much as Tenya, if not less, before someone ran up behind him.
"Wow, you made it in too?" A familiar voice said behind him, excited as ever.
He turned to see the same girl who had done so much for him, standing there smiling. 'It's the girl from earlier! She looks nice in a school uniform...'
Venom sighed, narrowing his eyes in agitation, before he grumbled into his host's ear. "We need to get you laid."
Izuku blushed brightly, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Ugh, I don't think we formally introduced ourselves."
"I'm Ochako Uraraka!" She greeted with a wide smile. "It was amazing watching you at work, all those ropes or whatever you shot out, webbing I think it was."
"Not webs." Venom corrected defensively. "Not a fan of spiders..."
"I'm Izuku Midoriya." He said quickly, barely able to catch his breath from excitement. "And it was nothing, I just reacted and went from there and..."
"I thought it was cool, even if your Quirk is a little scary." She gushed on, too excited to stop. "I wonder who our teacher is, if it's a hero or..."
"He's behind you." Venom said.
Ochako raised an eyebrow in confusion, turning in time to see a… Human? Dragging himself across the ground in an over-sized sleeping bag, his tired face poking out, as he looked up at them, his face cold and tired.
"Well, well, if we're here to make friends, you better find somewhere else to do it." He muttered in agitation, as he shifted slightly to bring a juice box up to his mouth, and sucked in hard, sipping up whatever was left as it crumbled. "Let's get class started."
The three went as fast as they could to their seats, as the man, dressed in beat, ratty black cloths, with an unshaved face and greasy black hair down to his shoulders, stood up from his sleeping bag, shoulders sagging.
"So, it took you three minutes to get to your seats." He said, shaking his head. "Not good. You kids gotta sharpen up if you're gonna do well."
He dragged his bag behind him, as he walked to the front of the class. "We'll be skipping the Entrance Ceremony and heading over the to the gym. Get changed and get ready."
"But I thought..." Uraraka began.
"We teachers are free to do as we want with our glasses." He interrupted tiredly. "We don't need an entrance ceremony anyway for what we're doing. None of you are in high school anymore."
She fell silent, looking down at her desk, as Izuku looked up at him. Was he a hero of some sort? He didn't look like any that Izuku had seen, or looked like he would fit in with any for that matter. He could defiantly recognize him, but it was the name that was escaping him, and the Quirk with it. Venom, however, seemed unusually bothered by the man's pressence, slipping back into Izuku's body, and speaking into his mind.
"That is Eraserhead." Venom hissed from within Izuku's ears. "We must be careful."
'I always wanted to meet him, he has such an interesting Quirk and style of combat and...' He thought excitedly, before lowering his eyebrows. 'Wait...what do you mean by careful?'
"He was one of the heroes pursuing me when I went on my little buffet experience." Venom stated nervously. "We never meet, but we did catch sight of each other, and he was talking about bringing me in or something."
'You said no heroes were trying to find you!' Izuku thought in a panic, sweat beginning to drip from his forehead.
"I thought I could slip by with that little lie." Venom said, before making a sound as though he had clicked his teeth. "We should be very careful, he could already be..."
"Izuku, is something wrong?" Aizawa asked, giving a sideways glance, as the rest of the class began to get up and file towards the locker rooms.
"No sir!" Izuku said nervously, bolting up. "Sorry, I was just thinking about something."
"Well, get a move on, and don't let your mind wonder. You're in the big leagues now." Aizawa said, his cold expression softening only slightly, as he gestured with his head to the exit. "Come on."
Izuku bolted from his seat, and made his way to the door as fast as he could, Aizawa raising an eyebrow at his strange behavior, but merely sighing and waiting for him to leave before he closed the door behind him. It was a school of heroics. He doubted any would be normal by any sense of the word.
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The area outside that the class ended up walking to was a wide open field, almost like a track and field practice area, With all sorts of fields and areas for testing different Quirks, abilities and powers. Venom pensively popped his head out of Izuku's shoulder, looking the place over, before he turned to his host.
"What are we doing here?" He hissed in annoyance. "I'd rather smash robots, not join a track or baseball team."
"You always struck me as the cheerleader type Venom." Izuku muttered with a small grin.
Venom's eyes narrowed in annoyance, as he shook his head, before turning it to Aizawa, hands still in his pockets, back still slouched, as he looked over the group, obviously sizing them up. After a moment, he stopped, and produced what appeared to be a baseball, but with a black band in the middle, and held it up for the class to see.
"Here at UA, they pride themselves on being more free then other schools with how they run things," Aizawa explained. "And this applies to us teachers. We'll be running a Quirk Apprehension Test."
'A test, so soon into class?' Izuku thought with worry.
"Relax, Deku." Venom said, rumbling beneath his skin. "We'll crush anything Eraser puts in our way."
'I don't know about this...' Izuku mentally stated, shaking his head slightly.
"Softball throws, Seated Toe-touch, stuff like that. The schools tested you with non-Quirk related physical exercises." Aizawa explained. "The country still wants to treat us all like we're born equal. It's illogical. The Education group is just dancing around the issue. Procrastinating."
He looked around the students, many of them shocked, msot of them uncertain, as he held up the ball for them all to see, before looking to Bakugou.
"Bakugou, you scored highest in the practical exam." Aizawa stated, tossing him the ball. "How far could you throw in school?"
"About 67 meters." Bakugou said, tossing the ball into the air, and catching it a couple of times.
"Alright, now try it with your Quirk." Aizawa suggested. "I don't care what you do, just don't leave the circle ok?"
Bakugou nodded, stretching his limbs slightly, as he winded up his throwing arm.
'Alright, I'll throw it like I always do.' He thought, as his grip tightened on the ball. 'I'll just add a little boom to it.'
He pulled back, and threw it hard, yelling to the skies. "DIE!"
Aizawa remained impassive, as Izuku raised an eyebrow. 'Die?'
The explosion consumed most of the air and area in front of Bakugou, as the flaming ball tore into the atmosphere, shattering the sound barrier, before falling to the ground several meters ahead, smacking into the ground, and burning the grass slightly as it landed.
Aizawa held up the recording device from his hand for them all to see. 275.2 meters outward. The rest of the class was instantly amazed. Many of them began to mutter amongst themselves and talk with excitement about the prospects of being able to use their Quirks without having to hold back.
"This is awesome!"
"We'll finally be able to use our Quirks, this will be fun!"
"Fun?" Aizawa asked, glaring at them through his greasy hair. "So you plan on going to the greatest school for heroics, and just having a fun, dumb old time?"
He shook his head slightly, his icy glare freezing all of them in place. "Fine then. In this test, the person to score last will be expelled immediately, no questions asked."
"That's not fair!" Uraraka pipped up from the group, as they all fell silent in shock from the statement, many still trying to process it fully.
"Oh? And natural disasters that destroy whole cities are? Monstrous villains, madmen and power-hungry crime lords?" Aizawa remarked. "You came here to be heroes, so it's time to live up to that standard. Plus Ultra, right?"
He turned away, moving to pick up the ball, as he continued on. "I'm sorry to say, but UA will be running you all through the gutter for the next three years, so get used to this."
Venom seemed to sense Izuku's tenseness, squirming beneath him slightly, as he spoke. "Relax Izuku, we have much more power then most of these kids. Don't be so jumpy."
'We still have to be careful.' Izuku thought, looking around nervously. 'If he was stalking you and we show too much...'
"Relax." Venom repeated calmly. "If you act like a spastic idiot, we'll certainly get caught."
Izuku wasn't certain, but tried not to let his worry show on his face. Aizawa was studying them all, but seemed to focus his cold glare upon Izuku. Perhaps it was his worry playing tricks on him, perhaps it really was Aizawa looking him over, trying to figure out or piece it together yet if indeed Izuku and Venom were the same as the Lethal Protector he was trying to track down. He bite his lip slightly, focusing on the trials ahead, rather then letting his fears hold him back. If he started freezing up, Aizawa would notice something and start asking questions. Like it or not, he had to follow Venom's advise.
'I'm definitely cutting you off on tater tots after this.' Izuku thought as Venom merely chuckled.
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The coming tests proved easier then expected for Izuku. While he couldn't bring Venom out in full, both due to Aizawa's careful attention to detail and all, and so he wouldn't give any of the other students something to haunt their nightmares, Venom proved useful in every regard, enhancing his hands and arms with his mass to improve their grip strength, enhancing his legs to improve running speed, and a variety of other methods to improve their score. He quickly noticed that he wasn't really measuring up to many of them. Iida was faster, Shoji edged out in the strength department by a thin margin, and the list went on.
"Don't focus on them. As long as we stay away from the bottom, we can improve our abilities going forward." Venom advised, as they prepared for the next test.
"When did you become an encouraging mentor?" Izuku muttered to him, as they made their way to the baseball diamond.
"I just want you focused, so we can stay here." Venom said. "We don't have the Vigilante option anymore. If we do, Aizawa will piece together you dropping out, and the return of the "lethal protector"."
'Maybe you could avoid eating heads for once?' Izuku thought bitterly, shuttering at the thought.
"Why would I do that? They taste too good to waste." Venom replied in confusion.
"Alright, you know the drill." Aizawa said, tossing the ball repeatedly into his palm. "Use your Quirk, throw it, don't step outta the circle, got it?"
They went down the order, students called up, using their techniques, and sending the ball flying away. The highest of course, was Uraraka, who managed to send the ball flying off into the skies with her gravity power. Aizawa showed no signs of any pride or encouragement, merely recording their throw distances, and nodding for them to get back with the group. After half of the class finished, Aizawa gestured for Izuku.
"Midoriya, you're next." He stated, as he came forward, catching the ball from Aizawa, as the shimmering, slimy coating of Venom's mass overtook his right arm. His blackened claws tapped against the surface of the ball, as he walked up to the circle.
Izuku brought his arm back, and swung it forward, the ball flying into the clouds from the force of Venom's enhanced throw.
"Fantastic! In everything, we are beyond most others! Even in baseball!" Venom boasted within his head.
'Calm down Venom.' Izuku thought, carefully watching Aizawa.
Izuku headed back to the rest of the group, as several of the students congratulated him on his amazing throw, except of course Bakugou, who was merely glaring at him out of the corner of his eye. Aizawa went through the scores, looking out at the students, before displaying the scores for all to see. At the bottom, lowest of all, was Mineta. The purple, ball-haired dwarf looked ready to break down there, before Aizawa spoke.
"I won't bother talking to you about your Quirks. We'll work on what we need to throughout the year." Aizawa said, even as Mineta looked ready to drop. "Anything else?"
No one said anything, only a few giving Mineta some pitiful glances and apologetic looks. Aizawa began to walk away, before turning back around.
"Oh, and no one's getting expelled." He said, a cesshire cat grin on his usual dour face. "That was just a rouse to make sure you did you're best. You all get to stay."
He walked away, taking a small vial and dropping some sort of liquid into his eyes. Izuku watched him in confusion for a moment. When had he used his Quirk? That's usually how erasure worked, drying out the eyes to cancel a Quirk, but whose got canceled?
"Class is dismissed for today, you can all get ready for home." He said, walking away, as they all began to talk and chatter among themselves as they headed back to the gym lockers.
Aizawa rounded a corner, surprised to see the mountain-like frame of All Might waiting around the corner for him.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"I just wanted to check in on Midoriya." All Might stated, looking out at the young student, as his Quirk's blackened mass appeared from his back, forming a serpentine head. "Did you find any connection to Jet?"
"No, but the strangest thing happened." Aizawa said, pointing to his eyes. "I'm not sure what happened, but I used my Quirk on him, and nothing happened. Just a...feeling I had, that something wasn't right with it. I'll have to try it again, but I'm not sure what's going on with him."
"Hmm." All Might said thoughtfully. "What's the plan."
"I have no clue, but I'll keep him around to see what he does." Aizawa remarked, before raising an eyebrow at him. "Why are you so interested in him? Little early to be playing favorites, right?"
"Something about him caught my eye." All Might replied with a shrug.
"Other then becoming a seven foot tall, slime-covered reptile?" Aizawa asked pointedly.
"Other then that." All Might said with a nod.
Aizawa considered his words for a moment. "I think he could be a good hero, like the others, if given time."
The two stood for a moment, an awkward silence hanging above them, before Aizawa spoke.
"See you around All Might." Aizawa muttered, walking off towards the building.
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Izuku, after getting changed, made his way to the front gates to head home, before he was stopped by Tokayami, the Raven-headed student, who stepped beside him. He stood there awkwardly for a moment, as though not sure what to say.
"Uh, hey, you okay Tokoyami?" Izuku asked, looking around in confusion for a moment. Tokayami was not the most outgoing type to talk with.
"Yes, Midoriya, I was just wondering about your Quirk." He said, as Venom morphed and shifted out of Izuku's back, looking him over, falling silent as the Symbiote watched him.
"If you want to speak, then speak." Venom growled in irritation.
Tokoyami narrowed his eyes in annoyance, but merely shrugged. "I was about to ask how you keep your Quirk under control so well, but I see he can be just as rambunctious as my Dark Shadow."
A large twirling mass appeared from his chest, forming into a large, clawed hand, and giving them the thumbs up.
"Well, Venom's just a dumb parasite sometimes." Izuku said a shrug. "I keep him under control with promises of chocolate."
"Parasi…?!" Venom began, before Izuku shoved his hand into his toothy maw, stopping him. Venom shook slightly with rage, gagging, but said nothing.
"Interesting." Tokoyami stated deadpan, before turning to walk away. "I was just curious about the similarities between our abilities. Apologies, but I have to head home soon."
Tokoyami began to walk towards the exits, as Izuku began to call out for him, before stopping himself. He wasn't sure what else they could talk about. Tokoyami didn't seem to be the most outgoing sort, and Izuku wasn't sure even where to begin with their powers.
"Ah, Izuku, you're still here!" Iida's voice called out from behind him, as he turned to see Uraraka and Iida approaching, backpacks slug over their shoulders. "We were hoping to catch you before you left."
"Oh, hey Iida, Uraraka." He said, slightly surprised. Venom turned his head slightly towards Izuku. "Can't we leave now, I'm getting hungry. You won't need that spleen anyway."
"Stop." Izuku commanded quietly, before turning to the others as all three began to walk out. "So, that exam was pretty scary huh?"
"Oh yeah, that guy's a total nightmare." Uraraka said. "I'm surprised he didn't follow through on his promise. I heard from someone he once expelled an entire class."
"Then he has high standards, that I'm sure our class will meet!" Iida said defiantly, pumping his fist and chopping with the other hand. "I doubt any of us will fall short."
"Except for Mineta." Hissed Venom. "Given his...below average height."
"Venom, no short jokes." Izuku warned. "I'll cut you off on tater tots tonight if you don't watch it."
"Calm it down Deku, just poking some fun at him." Venom said, his smile broadening a bit.
"Deku? I've heard Bakugou call you that too. Why?" Uraraka asked.
"Oh, it's a nick-name. It's supposed to make fun of me." Izuku said with a shrug, looking down slightly. "He's called me that for years, and Venom kinda picked it up."
"Well, I think it's kinda cute." Ochako said with a smile. "Has a really determined vibe to it."
"Really?" Izuku asked, taken aback.
"Yeah, I do like it." She said with a happy nod.
"Then I guess there's nothing wrong with it!" He said quickly, hiding his face in his palms. "DEKUITIS."
"Really, it was supposed to be a hurtful nickname, I thought?" Iida said in surprise. "What's gotten into you?"
"I...I can't explain it." Izuku said sheepishly, shaking his head.
Venom growled to himself, shaking his own miniaturized head. "You are shameless Deku."
Chapter 4 - The Fated First Clash
Izuku was again up early the next morning, preparing himself for the day to come, not what to expect from any of his teachers. While he had settled into a comfortable schedule, English with Present Mic (Even though Venom loathed being in the same room), Lunch (which Venom was always eager to get to, several times taking control of his legs to force him along) and everything else, including art, history and normal school stuff. A lot of it was surprisingly easy, even if Venom grew restless at many times, and demanded they go off to fight something to relief the stress, or chase and eat the squirrels outside, that Venom claimed were taunting him.
So there was Izuku, preparing his notes for the coming day, as Venom, hung out beside him, his tiny head sprouting from Izuku's left shoulder, as he watched his notes.
"Do not forget the detail on English Imperialism in Ireland." Venom suggested. "Though it wasn't covered, it will impress your teacher if you know more then what was taught."
Izuku raised a wry eyebrow in surprise, as he gave a small grin. "Where did you learn about Irish history and all that Venom? Did you eat a historian's brain while I was asleep?"
"No, I just use your phone and fingers to look things up while you sleep." Venom stated, bobbing his head slightly in his form of a shrug. "I don't need to sleep, so I need something to pass the time."
"Better then you eating people I guess." Izuku muttered, as he jotted down some of Venom's suggestions. "Is that why I'm finding Godzillo's hero records and movies on my phone too?"
Venom bobbed his head again, which Izuku had come to recognize as his way of shrug. "He's similar to us. Big, night black, fangs throughout his mouth, and savage in a fight. We would do well to replicate him."
Izuku scratched his chin for a moment, considering it. "I mean, I always wanted to be like All Might, but our style is really different from him."
Izuku was silent for a moment, contemplating what Venom had said, as he considered everything. As always, he was reminded that, even if he graduated and became a hero, there was no way he was going to inspire people with his smile and positivity, not with Venom as his look anyway. He'd quickly climb to the top of the list of heroes that look like villains. He didn't mind Gang Orca, Godzillo and the like either, but scaring people didn't suit him.
"Your plans may have to change." Venom suggested, obviously reading his mind. "I know we are not exactly a welcome sight to any in need, but look at Godzillo. A vibrant movie career and life in the spot light with millions of fans even all these years later. There is something to learn there."
"Maybe..." Izuku muttered, still uncertain. He took a deep breath in, and shook his head.
He would have to pass all his classes and tests before he could try and figure out where his hero work would take him. And something big was coming up. He needed to have a hero costume. At first, he wasn't sure about it. Venom was always with him, always covering him and protecting him, while working the same look as a costume. But he also didn't want to be left out.
"Izuku, before you go to school, I have something for you." His mother called from near the front door.
Venom retreated back into his body, bubbling and moving just beneath his skin, as Izuku sat down his notepad and walked to the kitchen. He saw his mother waiting there, holding a green jumpsuit of some sort in a dry cleaners' bag,
"I saw this in your notepad, when you feel asleep studying one night." She explained, holding it out for him. "I felt bad, pitying you and all, when you did nothing but push yourself to be a hero. So I made this for you. To apologize for not believing in you."
Izuku was speechless for a moment, as he stepped forward, and took it from his mother. He blinked several times, before smiling to her.
"Thanks mom." Izuku managed, fighting back tears, as he motioned towards the living room. "I gotta get ready."
"Alright Izuku, good luck out there." His mother said with a warm smile.
Izuku went into the living, carrying his new hero costume with him, as he loaded up his bookbag. Venom snacked around, under the skin around his back, before speaking again.
"I like your mother." He remarked. "She's not quite the loser you are."
"Thanks Venom. Despite you being you, I wouldn't be here without you." Izuku muttered with a small smile.
Venom seemed satisfied with his answer, not giving another snarky remark again, as the headed to the door.
/
Izuku sat at his desk, as Venom for once remained hidden within his body, as they waited for Aizawa to arrive. The class strangely silent, as they waited, until Venom stiffened with his body, his head popping out again. Denki shuddered slightly as he watched.
"Dude, I don't want to say anything..." He began.
"It's alright, I know Venom's disgusting." Izuku said with a nod. The head came out, as Venom pulled back in shock. "How dare you!"
"What do you want Venom?" Izuku asked dryly, rolling his eyes and trying to get him back on topic.
"Someone's coming. Someone different then Aizawa." Venom reported, as the other students looked at him in surprise.
Before anyone could ask, the door swung up, and the bright red, blue and white frame of All Might was already through the doorway.
"I AM HERE, COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!" He shouted with the force to knock those closest to him out their seats, cap billowing behind him.
Everyone whispered excitedly among themselves at the sight of the World's greatest hero, as Venom retreated back into Izuku's body. All Might went to the front of the class, bounding with every step like he had more energy then most people did in their entire life time.
"Today class, we'll be doing Hero basic Training!" He announced. "The sort of thing that puts your right through the wringer, but will lay the foundation for a great hero!"
He pulled out a card from his costume, holding it out for all to see. "And today, we'll be going through Battle Training!"
'Battle?' Izuku thought with worry, as Venom bubbled beneath the skin in excitement, Bakugou ahead of him grinning from ear to ear with way too much excitement.
He hit a button on the desk, as case upon case was unfolded from the walls, each marked with a student's number across it.
"First you're going to need the look to go with it friends!" All Might declared, gesturing for them. "Costumes are the basis to all great heroes!"
The students began to file in to grab their costumes, as Izuku took out his perfect folded and prepared costume from his mother, looking at if for a moment, before nodding.
"I'll make sure to take the brunt of the injuries." Venom said within his head. "Your mother put a lot of hard work in, after all."
'Don't get soft big guy.' Izuku thought, as the class headed out to the lockers to change.
"Remember, with these, you truly have begun your path as heroes." All Might stated. "After you're done, head to the practice zones."
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
Izuku was the last to finish getting dressed, running to the practice city zones, as Venom melted through his body and overlapped, his body stretching and growing in height and power once again, as Venom's fang-filled maw twisted and snapped into shape around him. His powerful strides brought him out into the open, his back hunched slightly, as Venom took his position behind the rest of the young heroes, careful not to surprise them with his appearance.
"Alright, time to begin with today's simulation!" All Might announced with his usual wide grin.
He went into detail over what was expected of them. Divided into teams of two, each would either be assigned hero or villain detail, and work to either protect or capture a 'nuclear' weapon hidden within a building. The heroes would have to disable or hinder the villain team, and capture the weapon, or out-maneuver them and get to the weapon. All the Villains had to do was either wait them out, or knock them out. It sounded simple enough.
The students were divided up, Tenya and Bakugou ending up together, which would've made Izuku laugh had he not been so nervous about the coming test. Could he do what he needed? What if Venom went out of control?
"Deku, we're partnered up!" Uraraka said excitedly, smiling despite Venom's ferocious looks.
"I..I know.." He managed, nervously, as Venom's face split open and pulled back. "You've...you've got a nice costume."
"I know." She said. The black and white jumpsuit was adorned with pink-light purple highlights, as a visor helmet was placed over her face. "It's just a little tight. I should've been more specific."
Mineta stepped beside him, giving him the thumbs up, eyeing Uraraka. "This hero course is the best."
Venom made a grumbling noise deep in Izuku's ears. "This dwarf irritates me."
"Watch it Venom." Izuku whispered, as Venom's face twisted and snapped back over Izuku's own. Venom's deep baritone overtook Izuku's as he spoke again. "So you don't find this scary to look at?"
"A little bit, but Venom did save me right?" She said with a sweet smile. "Hard to be terrified of a Quirk like that."
"We appreciate your words." Venom stated, his Glasgow grin broadening. "We told Izuku to keep an eye on you."
Before she could ask what Venom meant by that, the Number 1 yelled to them all, drawing attention back to himself.
"Alright, the first two teams up to bat will be..." All Might declared, reaching into the two boxes with him, before yanking out a large white and red ball, each with a letter on them. "Teams A and D! D will be villains, A as the heroes!"
Izuku froze up, as Venom's sliver-like eyes narrowed and glanced over at Bakugou, who had a murderous grin on his face, as he slammed his fist into his palm, smoke rising from both hands as a vein throbbed in his forehead. Iida looked at him with slight disdain, still not liking the idea of working with someone who went against what he considered heroic, but decided against saying anything.
'Best to see how he acts. Midoriya described him as a bully, but perhaps being in the hero course will help him work some of his issues out.' Iida thought, as the two went off towards the building with the bomb. 'Perhaps we got off to a bad start. Maybe he was just trying to impress people with his rebellious attitude.'
Venom glared at Bakugou through narrowed eyes, even as he passed, clicking his fangs together slightly in anticipation for battle. Izuku was still nervously, his body shaking within Venom's glistening form, as the Symbiote snarled with annoyance slightly, trying not to get Uraraka's attention.
'Izuku, quit that.' Venom mentally ordered in agitation. 'We have nothing to worry about.'
"But He's looking for a fight. He'll come after us." Izuku said nervously. "And with fire being your weakness..."
'We will be fine. We're far too good of a match for him to defeat.' Venom replied as they followed the other two towards the building. 'Just relax and focus, we both need each other at our A-game to win.'
"Just...don't eat any heads." Izuku said, sounding like he was about to get sick.
'I make no promises.' Venom hissed with a chuckle, Izuku groaning miserably.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\
Uraraka was the first to climb up and onto the first story window, and get inside, as Venom clambered upwards, using the wall instead, after her, pulverizing and smashing the bricks leading up to it, before forcing himself through the window, rolling over his shoulder, and coming to his feet. Uraraka raised an eyebrow at his loud entrance, but said nothing, figuring Izuku would have trouble switching between a normal body and the massive alien form he had now. Venom turned to her, his muscled frame bent low to look her in the eye, as his lips pulled in to cover his fangs, trying to be as intimidating as possible.
"Do you have a plan?" He asked, his deep voice sounding like a serpent's warning hiss.
"No, I thought you would." She admitted, giving a worried smile.
Venom stood up slightly, looking around the dirty, dusty halls for a moment, before gesturing for her to follow.
"We know the bomb is at the top." Venom remarked, still keeping his voice low, as they made their way towards one of the corners. "Now we just have to make our way up there."
They were about to round the corner, when Venom came to a sudden stop, freezing in his tracks, as Uraraka looked up at him in confusion. The alien held up a finger to quiet her, as he carefully stepped towards the corner. He peeled the black flesh of his lips back, his dagger-like fangs exposed to the air, as he began to move around the corner to get a good look. Right as he did, an explosion tore through the area, knocking Venom back with a surprised roar, as he hit the opposite wall, before a second explosion roared to life towards him.
Uraraka yelled in surprise, as Venom rose to his feet slowly, half it's face burned off to reveal Izuku's own, now scorched and scared. Venom snarled in rage, Izuku's eye briefly turning black as it narrowed and focused ahead. He swung an arm out, knocking the fireball away, who gave a surprised yell of anger, before hitting another wall away from them.
"Deku, are you alright?" She asked in terror, almost running to his side.
His eye returned to it's green appearance, as he looked at her, nodding slightly, and holding a hand to stop her. He knew what this was, and wasn't going to drag anyone else into his little turf war with Kaachan.
"Yeah, it's just a scratch." He said quickly, as Katsuki rose from the rubble, smoke still smoldering from his finger tips.
Venom enclosed Izuku's face again, as he glared at Bakugou, the Explosion-using Quirk user slowly approaching.
"Come on Deku, let's not waste time!" Bakugou yelled in rage. "Let's see what your over-glorified gimp suit can do!"
Venom snapped his jaws threateningly, flexing his clawed hands in preparation as Bakugou approached, seemingly undeterred by the appearance of Venom at all. To him, this would always be Deku. Weak, pathetic, easily crushable Deku. To Venom, this was a creature who had tormented his favorite host, and made his life miserable, a boy with too much fire and confidence, who needed to be knocked down a peg.
'He's just a pebble. Just a pebble.' Bakugou thought to himself, as he lifted his right hand, small explosions sparking off his palm and fingertips. "You hide that damn Quirk from me! Don't lie, I know you lied about being a late bloomer! That's bullshit!"
"Uraraka, stay back." Venom warned.
"Remember what I told you when we were kids?" Bakugou demanded, pupils shrinking into two rage-filled pinpoints within his eyes. "No matter what Quirk you have, I'll always be better then you! You're about to learn that the hard way!"
He rushed forward, swinging his right palm at Venom's head again, as the Symbiote lashed out with his left, grabbing above the grenadier gauntlet, before locking down on his opposite shoulder. Bakugou yelled in protest and surprise, before Venom turned on his heel, and tossed the smaller teen over his shoulder, and onto the ground, with a crash. Bakugou groaned in agony as he bounced off the ground, Venom standing his ground as he bared his fangs at him.
"For years, you've been so cruel, Kacchan." Izuku said, as Venom's face peeled back like a fruit. "When all I've done is tried to be more like you. I'm not gonna be your worthless punching bag Deku forever! Kacchan...I'm...I'm gonna be the Deku who wins no matter what!"
Venom's face peeled back over his Host, his fang-filled grin taking over, as Uraraka watched with a pride-filled smile. "Today, you will learn, Bakugou...We….Are Venom."
Bakugou slowly got to his feet, eyes burning pure red with rage, as smoke rose from his entire body. Venom was almost impressed. Perhaps his pride and rage was so great, even Venom couldn't intimidate such a mad beast of a child.
"Then show me what you got!" He yelled, not the least bit afraid. "I want to see what that useless quirk of yours can do!"
Venom shot Uraraka a glance. "Get to the bomb, and neutralize it."
He focused back on Bakugou, Venom's eyes narrowed as he studied his foe. Bakugou would be focused on him, and would probably hurt Uraraka if she got in the way. Further, trying to get to the bomb would lead to them having to fight both powerful Quirk users at once. Both trying to take out Bakugou might take too long.
'This is the only option.' Izuku thought.
"I would want to fight both usually, but Bakugou has a beating coming." Venom whispered, as the Explosion-user held his back behind him, and exploded towards him. "A personal beating from us truly."
Bakugou rushed at him, explosions propelling him along, as he stopped in front of Venom, and swung a kick aimed at the side of his head. Venom's left arm shot up, blocking the striking, as he reached over with the other limb, black strands of goo and biomass shooting out and beginning to wrap around his ankle. Bakugou almost pulled back in surprise, before swinging his other arm forward and trying to blast out Venom's face. The Symbiote merely dropped him, and ran off around the corner.
In the control room far from the battle, All Might and the other students stood watching the battle, surprised at the twists and turning events, many taken aback by the appearance of Venom himself. All Might knew all about the Quirk, yet it continued to surprise him with how useful it was in a pinch.
'Usually Quirks are very situational, forcing a hero to rely on teamwork.' He thought, watching with interest. 'Yet Young Midoriya is given a Quirk that lets him have both strength and utility in many situations.'
"Why is he running away?" Kirishima asked, crossing his arms in front of his bare chest. "He could probably overpower him."
"I think he said something about being weak to fire." Momo replied, watching with interest. "He'll probably put together an ambush to gain the advantage."
Bakugou looked around, fuming with rage. First the nerd had managed to hide a powerful Quirk like that from him, then had out-maneuvered him in a fight, and was now running off and hiding while he was left on the back step. He snarled to himself, before his communicator buzzed to life inside his ear.
He pressed it with a growl. "What is it?!"
"Where are you?" Iida demanded. "I can't guard the bomb alone. Did you at least neutralize of the team members?"
"No, just stay put, I got bigger fish to fry!" Bakugou barked, as he closed off communications. He didn't need lectures, or some trying to nanny him. He could do this easy enough, especially with the gimp suit weak to fire.
He smiled as he trudged off. 'And I got more then enough fire.'
He looked around, eyes focused in rage. One of his gauntlets flashed red with a loud click. He grinned in excitement. Deku was in for quite the surprise when he finally caught the little twerp. Even with that weird Quirk of his, he hadn't changed a bit. He could've easily tried to out-muscle, but he went with what he always did, acting the coward. Bakugou almost felt like he didn't need to put him in his place, but didn't want him thinking he would let off easy.
'No matter what powers you pull out Deku, you'll always be a pebble in my way.' He thought, narrowing his eyes with rage.
As he stalked through the building, silently fuming with rage, Izuku and Venom were planning their next move, Venom gripping the corner of a ceiling, just out of sight, though a little difficult to completely blend in, given his incredible size.
"What's the plan, Deku?" Venom asked, looking around and alert for any approach from Bakugou.
"We need to keep him busy so Uraraka can get to the bomb." Izuku replied, as he started to mutter slightly, before Venom hissed to silence him.
"We should make for the outside, you and I both know Uraraka isn't quite up to stuff in personal combat." Venom replied. "Especially with one such as Iida."
Venom began to scale across the ceiling, heading towards one of the outer windows. If they could scale up the side of the building, they could avoid the whole trouble of Bakugou, and team up against Iida without Katsuki able to catch up with them. He climbed towards it, before something barreled towards him from the corner of his eye. Venom reflexively jumped away from the ceiling, as something blurred to where he had been climbing, and an explosion of fire and noise, as Venom hit the floor, rolled across the ground, and came to his feet, fangs barred.
"Come on Deku! No holding back you little shit!" Bakugou yelled, sparks flying off off his fingertips, as the grenade-shaped gauntlets on his arms flashed red again. "Show me what your Quirk can do! No running this time!"
"I think our plan has hit a snag." Venom muttered, as he watched Bakugou carefully. "We'll have to develop another approach."
Venom grinned all the more, sadistic joy seeping into his voice. "An approach I like most!"
\\\\\\\
Iida stood in front of the dud bomb, trying to contact Bakugou again with his ear piece. He had no clue where Bakugou had run off, and he was refusing to answer any further communications. He grunted in annoyance, shaking his head slightly, as he readjusted his glasses.
"This has been a disgraceful experience." He muttered, putting his helmet back on. "First being a worthless villain, then being stuck with such a teammate. Troublemaking may come naturally to him, but to me...it is a disgrace to the family name!"
He took a deep breath, as he focused ahead. He needed to pass this course, and give it his all, even if it meant disgracing the family name for a moment here. He took a deep breath, and threw out a deep, booming villainous laugh.
"I will be the greatest villain this course has ever seen!" He declared with a wide, devious grin behind his helmet. The school required he give it his all, so that's what he would do.
He snapped out of it when he heard stifled laughter from one of the corners of the room. He narrowed his eyes, looking towards there, as he titled his head slightly.
"Uraraka? How did you sneak in here, hero?" He asked, surprised. Bakugou had been so eager to try and go ahead and capture them, and he had let one slip by? 'He did seem focused on Izuku. I hope his rivalry isn't blinding his strategic abilities.'
Uraraka meanwhile, covered her mouth and hid behind one of the pillars, absolutely surprised and terrified Iida had managed to hear her over his...acting. If Iida knew she was there, there was no way she could take him alone, given his strength and skill in battle.
"Uraraka, if you are there, you had better surrender, I will show now mercy, hero!" Iida shouted, beginning to step towards her hiding spot. "I know your power! There are no objects in here for you to use!"
She stiffened, trying to think something out, as she heard the distant sound of explosions and roars down below, a great many things, obviously, getting smashed and destroyed in their battle. She was almost thankful Deku/Venom had told her to run to the bomb instead of staying to fight. Iida stopped, clicking his ear piece again.
"What is going on down there?" He demanded.
\\\\\\\
Venom jumped away from another explosion from Bakugou's palm, as he watched the gaunlets around his wrists carefully. Something was going with them. He had a bad feeling about those. He growled slightly, as Bakugou pointed his right hand at them.
"Young Bakugou, this is getting out of hand, hold back!" All Might called within his ear.
"He'll be fine as long as he dodges!" Bakugou yelled as he released the pin from his wrist gauntlet.
"This isn't good..." Yagi muttered, before a massive explosion tore free from Bakugou's palm, and blazed towards the two.
Venom roared in agony, as he barely got out of the way, the left side of his face and part of his arm instantly burned off, as he fell to the ground, smoke rising from the two. Izuku got shakily to his feet, groaning slightly, as his eye focused on the burnt parts of Venom's form. It was gray and flaky, like ash, as it feel away from his body and crumbled away out of sight.
"You alright Venom?" He asked, terrified, everything across his body feeling like it was on fire.
"This is very painful." The symbiote reported, sounding like it was struggling to focus through the pain. "I told you, fire..."
"I know, fire hurts you badly." Izuku replied, still uneasy. "We have to finish this now."
"Were it so easy..." Venom grumbled, as Izuku's visible eye turned black, and the two focused ahead on Bakugou.
"Young Bakugou, do that again, and you'll be disqualified." All Might yelled within his ear. "Such a move is not only unbecoming of a hero, but dangerous to your allies, hero or villain."
"Damn it." Bakugou growled to himself, left eye twitching in rage, as he turned to Izuku. "Come on Deku! Your quirk talks a lot about eating organs, but you're acting like the same nerd you've always been!"
Venom stood up, Izuku and he looking down at Izuku's exposed arm. Bakugou ran at him, and jumped towards him, as Izuku reached out his exposed arm at him, as he pulled back his Venom-covered arm, the mass shifting and increasing the size of his fist, before Bakugou blasted an explosive blast at his arm, flying over Venom's head, and fired a second blast behind his back, Venom's mass flaking off and crumbling off some of Izuku's back, as Venom struggled to stay on his feet.
"Here it comes, your favorite right hook!" Bakugou shouted in mocking praise, swinging his right forearm, and slamming the gauntlet into Izuku's left, a loud crunching sounding throughout the room
Izuku stumbled, Venom roaring in pain, as Bakugou grabbed the slick, blackened mass of Venom's left arm, and used his explosions from his other arm, to spin himself around faster then normal, before throwing Izuku over his shoulder.
"Deku! You will always be beneath me!" He shouted in rage, as Izuku hit the ground with enough force to put a small crater into the ground.
The world spun around Izuku for several minutes, as his exposed turned back to it's normal color, now bloodshot and unfocused, as he struggled to his hands and knees, before crawling away as quickly as he could. Once he had put some distance between himself and Bakugou, he stood up, his Venomless arm and face slightly scorched and bruised, the exposed hair singed and smokey, but he stood up, breathing hard, not down and out yet. His eye turned pure black once more, as he focused ahead at Bakugou.
"You've hide your Quirk, this nasty monster inside you for years!" Bakugou shouted, flexing his fingers as sparks flickered from them. "I know you've been mocking me. Why else would Venom talk as much shit as he does? He's just saying what his owner doesn't have the balls to!"
'He's got a point, you are a bit...submissive.' Venom mentally muttered, as Izuku glared out at Bakugou, ignoring Venom's barbs.
"It's only because you're so cool, that I want to beat you." Izuku said defensively, shaking slightly in his boots.
At the control room, the rest of the students watched, many of them taken aback by the short melee. Even against something as massive and brutal as Venom, Bakugou had shown no mercy, not even hesitation, throwing himself into the fight with reckless abandon. It would be impressive if his merciless attacks weren't so brutal to the rest.
"He's completely instinct driven." Momo muttered in a mixture of fear and awe.
"His attacks are impressive, but barely worthy of even a villain." Tokoyami muttered, shaking his head.
"Ah, teach, should you step in on this?" Kirishima asked All Might, worried. "This is getting a little out of hand."
All Might said nothing, merely watching as Izuku struggled to get away from Bakugou. Perhaps he should. He knew these two had history with each other, and he definitely could tell a hated rivalry between the two was brewing deep in their hearts, but part of him wanted to see where this could go, especially what Izuku could do. Despite all appearances of both him and his Quirk, he had the makings of a hero in him.
'If I want to see how far he can go, I have to see his limits.' All Might thought. 'Venom's already powerful, and if we can push him, there's no limit to what this Young Man can do.'
Midoriya focused his glare, Venom's white eye narrowed and focused like a hawk sighting a pigeon, Izuku's, though pure black, filled with determination and pent up rage, despite the obvious terror on his body.
"We should retreat." Venom advised cautiously for once. "We need to recover and..."
"No, we don't have time!" Izuku muttered back, almost too loudly for either one's liking, as he locked eyes with Bakugou. "I want to be able to beat you, you idiot!"
"Don't look at me like that, you damn nerd!" Bakugou yelled at him, holding up one of his palms, as smoke gathered and built up in it once more.
"Uraraka, be ready!" Izuku yelled into his communications device, not waiting for a response as he squared off with Bakugou.
"I'm giving you everything I've got Deku!" He shouted, sparks fizzling and building up on his palm, as Izuku-Venom ran straight at him, Venom's fangs barred in a horrific smile of anticipation and hunger.
He jumped upwards, right above Bakugou's head, hands out-stretched to strike him, right above the young Hero-Hopeful, as Bakugou throw up his palm, as energy flared from it. Both yelled at the top of their lungs, as a massive explosion tore through Bakugou's hand and raced towards them. Izuku could feel Venom shudder and vibrate in fear across his body, but waited...waited, until finally, at the last possible second, he flicked his hand out, and sent a tendril of mass away, latching onto the remains of one the shattered window frames Bakugou had destroyed in his rampage. The explosion, meanwhile, tore through the entire ceiling, racing up through the building, and destroying everything in it's path.
At that moment, near the top floor, Ochako had grabbed onto a pillar, much to Iida's confusion, until he felt the ground rumble beneath them. He looked down for a split second, only for a massive fireball to tear apart the ground beneath them, ripping the column free, as Uraraka removed the gravity from it, and swung it like a bat with a confident smile.
"Sorry Iida, but we've gotta win this one!" She said, as she swung the pillar, and smashed several of the shattered pieces of stone and rock aside, and towards him at high speed.
Iida lowered his face and raised his arms, trying to block out the flying stones and debris from his face, as they ricocheted off of him. Uraraka dropped the stone pillar and jumped over him and the gap, making herself weightless with her Quirk, as she sailed over head. Iida only had time to look up in shock, before released and latched right onto the bomb.
"Bomb, captured!" She declared in triumph.
"Impossible!" Iida yelled in disbelief, still playing the part of the stereotypical villain to the end.
As she did so, Izuku climbed off the window frame, staggering slightly, as parts of his costume flickered with tiny flames, Venom slowly receding back into his body and fading away, as he took another step, looking absolutely drained. Bakugou didn't even look at him, eyes locked at the massive hole he had been tricked into making above him, as Izuku stumbled backwards, and leaned against a wall, eyes shut tightly.
"The Hero team...Wins!" All Might announced over the communications, before immediately racing off to deal with Izuku's injuries. He cursed himself, Toshinori wondering if he had let this fight go on a little too long.
Bakugou looked on in shock, mouth agap, hardly noticing anything changing, as Iida and Uraraka approached. They were stopped by the sudden appearance of All Might, who appeared in the door way leading into the room where Bakugou and Izuku were.
"You two need to get back to the class." All Might said softly but firmly.
"But Deku..." Uraraka began to protest.
"It's admirable you're looking out for your friend, but I need to handle this." All Might responded with a small smile. "Besides, it's a bit dangerous to remain here. Don't get yourselves hurt trying to look out for a friend."
They both looked uncertain, but after a moment, nodded, and headed for the bottom floors. All Might watched them closely, nodding to himself, before walking into the room. Bakugou still seemed in shock, and All Might wasn't sure why.
'I...I lost?' He thought, not for the first time. 'With...my own power…?'
He staggered a bit, as All Might put a steady hand on his shoulder. "Now Young Bakugou, this loss is nothing to let yourself get worked up about. Win or lose, you should be able to always take something away and learn from your battles."
He placed a large, powerful hand on his shoulder, as Bakogou nodded slowly, as though coming to his senses. He looked up at All Might, who patted his shoulder, before moving towards Izuku. Despite seemingly being knocked out, he was leaning against the wall, the only thing one could see, was that his eyes were shut tight, and his breathing was shallow. All Might approached slowly, wanting to make sure he was okay before he called for medical transport or Recovery Girl.
"Young Midoriya, are you alright?" All Might asked softly, trying not to startle or terrify the young man. "Can you stand?"
Izuku nodded slightly, as his eyes slowly opened, entirely black like Venom, as he took a shuddering step, and took a deep breath before his eyes cleared again. He breathed in deeply again, shaking slightly. His hero costume soaked with sweat. All Might could see the bags under his eyes, and his skin looked pale and frigid even.
"I'm calling you medical transport." All Might said, hitting his device. "Yes, I need help here, ASAP."
"I'm fine All Might." Izuku slurred, looking like he was struggling to even stay standing.
"No, you're not Young Midoriya." All Might stated, before turning to Bakugou. "Young Bakugou, please, head back to the rest of the class."
Bakugou silently nodded and disappeared, a brief glimmer of guilt in his eye as he left quickly, as two machines appeared, carrying a stretcher between them. Izuku shook his head slightly, as All Might put a gentle hand on Izuku's shoulder.
"Young Man, just visit Recovery Girl. You don't look well at all." All Might said, his booming voice somehow soft and reassuring.
"We're fine." Venom said defensively, sprouting form Izuku's shoulder.
"I'll go." Izuku said, turning to nod to Venom, who stiffened for a moment, before nodding, and retreating back into his body. He laid down, and was carried out.
All Might watched him leave, still very worried. Had he over-exerted himself? Why was Venom being so touchy. He shock his head, and merely waited for Izuku to leave, before looking around to make sure no one was around, before turning off the cameras with the device in his wrist, and deflating and turning back to his skinny form, giving himself some time to breath and cool down, before heading back to the class.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\
All Might got back to the class, returning to his muscle form once more before any could see him, as he marched in, holding up his paper and pencil.
"So Class, today the heroes won, but whose the real MVP today?" All Might announced, stopping all of them from their gossip and muttering amongst themselves.
"I know, Teacher." Momo stated holding up her hand. All Might nodded to her, to give her the go ahead.
"It was Iida of all of them." She stated, putting her hands on her hips. "Bakugou was aggressive and strong in the fight, but he was too focused on his personal grudge with Izuku to truly reach his full potential. Izuku tried his best to keep Bakugou out of the way, but overextended himself and knocked himself out, taking himself out of the fight."
She gestured towards Ochako and Iida. "Uraraka was quick to move, but went too far with her powers, and took advantage of the fact that this is only training. Iida meanwhile, adapted to all his opponents, tried to change on the fly, and didn't let his ego blind him."
Iida looked absolutely touched, smiling proudly to himself, as he touched his chest. All Might meanwhile, carefully hide his reaction, an eyebrow shooting up in surprise.
'That...that was better then anything I could've said.' All Might thought, tensing up. 'How can she be a better teacher then me?'
All Might didn't stop for a second, not wanting to seem unprepared or foolish in front of his students. "Yes, that was perfect, very good Yaoyoruzo!"
"Now, let's move onto the next Teams!"
The rest of the teams went by as normal, Todoroki amazing everyone with his ice powers, Tsuyu and Tokoyami coordinating their abilities well, but halfway through, All Might had to stop the exercises after receiving an important call from the Nurse's Office. He called up one of the other teacher's on break, and headed out. His heart race with worry as he rang off to there as quickly as possible, not wanting to waste any time with a student on the line.
It did not take him long to arrive, finding Izuku knocked out in a bed, and Recovery Girl looking over some files. Though he wanted to, he couldn't afford to deflate himself, least Izuku wake up and see his secret.
"I'm glade your here." Recovery Girl stated, turning in her chair, and holding up some pictures for All Might to see. "Something was off with him, and I couldn't do a full X-ray. The machine produces high-frequency noise that might damage him, so I had to use one of my Assistant's quirks."
She showed All Might the 'X-ray' of Izuku's organs, and the severe atrophy they had endured. His spleen was gone completely, the lining on his stomach looked rotted, his liver looked like that of a 70 year old chronic alcoholic, and his heart looked like he had endured several cardiac events. All Might was absolutely horrified by what had happened. His mouth went slack, as he blinked in horror, looking at the student.
"I don't know if it was you and your...lacking training methods, or something else, so I gave him some food that his...Quirk Venom likes." Recovery Girl said, motioning to a plate that once held chocolate chip cookies and some Chicken nuggets. "Then I went back to have a look."
She held up the second set of pictures, all of his organs extremely healthy, to the point All Might would've sworn they looked healthier then any normal teenager.
"I have no idea what caused the healing, and his Quirk began to act up." She stated, gesturing to Izuku. "I gave him some medicine to put him to sleep just in case his organs acted up again, and called his mother. He himself was dodgy as well."
"Should I speak with his mother?" All Might asked, deflating to his skinny form.
"Yes, but I need to know more before I release him." Recovery Girl replied, looking at Izuku in worry. "If this Quirk can eat him up like that, we need to plan out how to do exercises like this."
"I encountered him once more he came here, but everything seemed normal." All Might remarked, looking at Izuku's prone form. "Even if Venom is a bit...dark in humor."
"When he wakes up, I need either you or Aizawa, whichever teacher he feels most comfortable with, to talk to him." Recovery Girl stated.
It was a few minutes before he finally did wake up, and All Might quickly returned to his muscle form to hide his injuries, as Izuku looked around in confusion.
"What happened?" He asked, still dazed and confused.
"Recovery Girl was rather scared for you, Young Man." All Might said with a laugh. "She just wanted me to ask you some serious questions is all."
Venom's head shifted and twisted out from Izuku's shoulder, as he looked him over. "Why are you hiding?"
"What?" All Might asked in confusion.
"I can see your organs are damaged, one of my abilities. One lung is almost non-existent." Venom replied, as Izuku looked at his 'Quirk' in shock. "What happened."
All Might looked at the Symbiote sternly, before merely shrugging, and deflating, his body reducing to that of the sickly, scrawny man from before. Izuku was quiet in an instant, his mouth agap as he watched his hero and idol reveal himself like this. His costume, once form fitting, now a baggy, oversized cloths on him.
All Might undid part of it, revealing the right side of his chest, and the horrible red wound across it.
"I had a run in with a villain a while back." His voice far more remote and less bombastic then before. "Destroyed most of my respiratory system. For the sake of everyone and society, I've been keeping this a secret, understand, both of you?"
His words were pointed, eyes focused completely on them. Izuku shuttered, fearful of disappointing or angering his idol, but Venom only nodded slightly, nonplussed by the entire thing.
"I gain nothing from revealing it." Venom hissed, as Izuku silently nodded, eyes focused on the wound.
"Alright, I shared my secret, now it's your turn." All Might said, gesturing his head towards Venom. "When I encountered you, I thought it was a strange Quirk, this Venom, but now I'm seeing all sorts of strange things. A weakness to sound and fire, and now Izuku's organs being atrophied like mine, before regrowing. What's going on?"
Venom looked at Izuku, fearful and pensive, then to Recovery Girl, gruff and expecting, before finally looking back at All Might. He seemed uncertain of what he was about to do, before finally nodding to himself, and speaking for all to hear.