Chapter 10
Aizawa watched on from his isolated room, thankful for the quietness that surrounded him as he made his own notes about the one sided battles that had come and gone. There had been some mildly entertaining moments and he would need to give some 'special' lessons to some of those who had done extremely poorly but they were here to learn after all.
It just so happened that there seemed to be someone else in the class who was more than willing to try and teach the brats a lesson.
Other members of the faculty who watched the footage might see things differently however he could see the small indications here and there with the movements. It was clear that Shirou was toying with his opponents but had he gone at the same level of strength he had done against the professional heroes then there wouldn't have even been a contest. The fact that he had actually gone along with it showed that either he didn't want to waste their full power because he saw them as no kind of threat, or if he wished to show them something. Perhaps it was a mix of both, maybe something completely different.
The fact at the end of the day was that Shirou had toyed with them in such a way it would likely inspire them to be better than the person they were today.
That being said, Aizawa knew that there was another lesson that the brat would teach before the day was over. The kid had an annoying sense of foresight considering that at the start of the lessons he had been the one to tell All Might who their team leader was, despite the protests that had been made by his peers.
It had been a trick that he himself wouldn't have considered which would make it all the more interesting to see how he would play this out.
...
Todoroki stared at the entrance to where he and his teammates would be proceeding through shortly in order to begin the task set before them. A task which had been made easier by the groups that had come before them, but nonetheless one which seemed almost an impossible assignment. Still though, they were expected to show just what made them students of the academy and he intended to do just that.
"Stand behind me," he instructed as his quirk flared into life. They had nominated him as team captain and they trusted him to instruct them to the best of his ability. Considering how widespread his quirk was, it was in their best interest to listen to exactly what he said.
Those behind him could only watch in awe as the building that their targets were holed up in became encased in ice, both externally and internally. "Wow," said Ashido, unable to stop the word from coming out of her mouth.
"Will you be okay?" Shoji asked of the other member of the team, the one with the amphibious quirk.
"It will be a strain," said Tsuyu. "Even standing out here I can feel myself wanting to find somewhere warm."
"There's no shame in staying," declared Todoroki. "Due to my quirk, our capabilities as teammates is at a disadvantage. While I can use the other half of my quirk to keep your temperature stable it will reduce my own abilities during the oncoming struggle."
"I'm sorry, I wish I could be of more help," stated Tsuyu, fully knowing that the drawback to her quirk in these conditions would be more of a hinderance than anything else.
"Don't worry, we'll win this for you," stated Ashido giving her female classmate a thumbs up for good measure.
"Let's move, the longer we wait the longer they have to counter," said Shoji knowing his role in the upcoming scuffle.
"Right," agreed Todoroki as he lead on at a brisk pace. His costume came with shoes that weren't affected by the change in terrain, being able to walk over the ice as if it were nonexistent. Unfortunately those who were backing him up had no such equipment and had to tread carefully.
He had discussed this with them beforehand and how it would hinder them as a unit. At the start of the competition he had planned on doing the same thing, regardless of how it affected those around him. When he had watched the first team fall without a single member of Team E falling, he knew that he needed to count on those who he had been assigned with.
He wasn't his father after all.
"Where do you think they'll be?" asked Ashido, trying to break the silence that had encompassed the group. She hadn't needed to speak to break the silence however as the roof creaked before breaking, all three members of Team A diving out of the way in order to avoid a majority of the debris, though they were unable to avoid it all. "You guys okay?"
"Yeah," said Shoji, a little battered from some of the floorboards that had unexpectedly crashed on top of him. "To answer your earlier question, I believe they're above us."
...
Tsuyu stood outside of the frozen complex awkwardly. She hadn't technically been eliminated from the competition so she was theoretically still in the bout, even if her contribution to the oncoming fight was minimal if anything at all.
She could tell however that this was a learning point for her. Tsuyu wanted to be a hero, one that was able to help in any kind of situation. Looking at the terrain only a handful of feet in front of her knowing that she could do nothing was a blow to her pride. She had to talk to some of the people in the school to see if it was possible to get some modifications done to her hero attire. While what she had was more than suitable in most conditions, Tsuyu wanted to be a hero that could help in all situations.
There was another learning point here, one that she hadn't thought of on her own and before she knew it, she was about to play a much bigger part of the game ahead, regardless of the conditions.
...
The three members of Team A moved slowly, taking in their surroundings as they progressed further and further into the building. It wasn't a large building by any stretch of the imagination, however the two students they were facing could very well be lying in wait to ambush them from any vantage point accessible.
Unfortunately, their set movement came with another setback, that being that Ashido and Shoji were starting to suffer from the effects brought about by the conditions they were in. Todoroki had been mildly sceptical when they had swiftly accepted the plan he had put forth but they had agreed to do so, regardless of how it would affect their bodies. Had they not mentally suffered the attack from above with the roof caving in, there was little doubt that they would be moving at a quicker pace. The looming threat of the roof coming down on them once more or perhaps even the ground from underneath them giving way made them extra cautious.
Understandably so.
"Ahchoo!"
"Bless you," said Shoji in response.
"Thanks," replied Ashido as she wiped at her nose.
It made sense that it was the last room of the house located on the top floor, with the only entrance being the door and the only alternate escape route being the window that was four stories above ground. What was more unnerving was the fact that Shirou sat on a chair in the centre of the room, his fingers interlaced under his chin as if he were a spy movie villain. Standing behind him and to his right was Jiro, rubbing at her arms to try and create some extra warmth.
The two members of Team E however were not the only ones in the room.
"Tsuyu!" shouted Ashido, noticing the fourth member of their team being held hostage in the corner, a cage made of steel swords keeping her entrapped in the corner of the room. "Let her go!"
"If I was going to let her go, then there would have been no point in capturing her in the first place," said Shirou as he leaned back in his chair, seemingly content with the decision he made. "While your decision to control of the terrain was a surprising one, unfortunately it has lead to your ultimate downfall."
Todoroki didn't rise to the bait but knew that time was of the essence here. Tsuyu's quirk was at a complete disadvantage and a single look at the girl showed that she was beyond suffering. He needed to find a way to finish this quick, though any more ice that he created would inevitably drop her health even quicker.
While he had sworn never to use the other half of his power, for the first time in what felt like a lifetime, he could feel the heat inside him itching to be released.
"What do you want?" asked Shoji, knowing that they needed to speed up whatever process this was if they were to rescue Tsuyu before she suffered anymore than necessary.
"Out of every member of the class, Todoroki here is probably the one that I would struggle to fight," stated Shiro. "I mean look around us, this all happened in the space of a couple seconds. It's not to say that I can't beat him in a straight fight but this isn't a straight fight now is it. The point of a team battle is in the name, the battle you brought forth however wasn't suited to your team."
"Can we hurry this up?" asked Jiro, clearly getting agitated by the length of time this was taking.
"Fine," said Shirou as he stood up, pulling a pair of handcuffs out of his pocket. "I could force these on you and win outright but you wouldn't learn anything from that. After all, when I'm in such close proximity to you my own safety is compromised. So, Jiro here is going to put the handcuffs on you at the same time as Ashido there puts her handcuffs on me. Does that sound like a good compromise?"
"We'll take it!" shouted Ashido, speaking for her team. While Todoroki was technically the leader, the decision in front of her was an easy one. They weren't losing the match, they were drawing if anything which was far better than what any of the other teams had accomplished.
Todoroki meanwhile didn't like the outcome and bit at the inside of his lip. The issue with not liking it however was that he really couldn't see another alternative, at least not one that he would willingly rely on. "Fine, we have a deal."
"Good," said Shirou as the swords around Tsuyu vanished. "Get her out of here Shoji, somewhere warm."
"Of course," he said before springing into action, crossing the distance between where he had been standing and where Tsuyu was in a matter of moments. As he took Tsuyu to safety, Shiro held out his arms while Todoroki did the same.
"No funny business now, you wouldn't want to be known as someone who goes back on their word now do you," said Shiro as Jiro took the handcuffs from him and proceeded to where Todoroki was standing.
"You have my word," said Todoroki as Ashido walked past him, crossing paths with Jiro, the two girls nodding to one another in a sign that they weren't going to try any funny business. It took a few seconds for the girls to get in position, with the handcuffs placed around the boy's wrists.
"On the count of three," instructed Jiro.
"One."
"Two."
"Three."
The locks slid into place at the same time, capturing both Todoroki and Shiro simultaneously.
"Shiro and Todoroki have been eliminated from the test, Team A has been eliminated from the test. The winners are Team E!" All Might's voice boomed through the speaker system.
"Wait, what?" said Ashido, highly confused about the situation unfolding around her before the conclusion hit her head on. Pointing at Shirou, then Jiro, then Shirou again, over and over. "You mean this whole time, you weren't, but you were, when you're clearly, but why!"
"I was the biggest target," said Shirou as he stretched his arms, shattering the link that connected the handcuffs connecting his wrists together. "Why would we make me the team leader when everyone was out to get me?"
"Not like we didn't strongly suggest it," said Jiro, crossing her arms. "Now can we get out of here, it is freaking freezing!"
...
Rin sat in Shirou's living room, or the small enough area that could remotely be described as a living area. She sat at the coffee table, her head cusped in her palm while her elbow sat on the table. In front of her, Shirou worked in the kitchen whipping them up some dinner, already having declined her help for the night.
She had long since learned that while her skills as a mage were immense, her culinary skills weren't to the ridiculous level that Shirou had pushed his ability to. Him declining her entrance to his sanctuary was a simple way of saying that he wanted to make something immaculate tonight, not just decent.
There was also the distinct possibility that he didn't want her to force him to talk about the day's events. Despite the fact that he had managed to maintain a decent amount of restraint while not doing anything out of hand. Even when he had summoned the fabled red spear into his hand to terrorize the explosive student, it wasn't to harm the kid more than a touch psychologically.
There were hundreds of spears in Shirou's arsenal but she knew that that one was his go to. How could it not be? Had it not been for that night so long ago, who knew where either of them would be right now? Her seemingly foolish choice to save him, had she been more cold hearted than she had been, Rin severely doubted that she would have survived the war.
"Are you going out tonight?" she asked curiously.
"No, I don't know the defence system yet and what it will do to anyone trying to get in or out at this time of the evening," answered Shirou, his back still turned to her. "If I do decide to go out, I'll need you to hold down the fort in my absence. I probably won't be able to get back in until sunrise, maybe even later."
"Of course, use me as you see fit," scoffed Rin, knowing that if Shirou decided to not come home one evening it would be her job to 'convince' anybody who came asking questions that everything was fine.
The sound of culinary equipment being placed on the countertop caused Rin to freeze momentarily. "You know I don't mean it like that."
"I know," said Rin as she got up from her seated position and made her way to the kitchen. She stood there for a handful of seconds before Shirou turned to look her in the eye. Rin reached up and held his cheek in her palm, her thumb tracing just above his jawline. "I've been by your side for decades Shirou, if anybody knows, it's me."
"What would I do without you Rin?"
"Perhaps you would have decided to save people by opening up a soup kitchen and feeding the endless masses as opposed to charging into battle time and time again but what do I know," said Rin as she shrugged her shoulders. The crack of a genuine smile on Shirou's lips allowed her own smile to seep forth.
They stood there, gently smiling at one another until Shirou returned to his work, knowing full well that Rin would eventually yell at him if he were to leave something on the stove too long. If he was going to make dinner tonight he was going to make it right.
...
Todoroki sat in the confines of his bedroom, the day still weighing heavily on his mind. By now it was more than likely that most of his family was asleep, all but his father who hadn't returned home for the night. His father, the number two hero.
It was no secret in their family that their father, while respected greatly as the hero that he was, wasn't winning any father of the year awards any time in the foreseeable future. Shoto hated him for the most part, having decided many years earlier that he would never use the part of his quirk that he had inherited from him.
Today though, today was the first time he felt like he should have truly allowed that part of his power to shine forth. He wasn't upset about the loss, not by any stretch of the imagination. Considering how many professionals Shirou had been able to take down one after the other, even if he had said that a one on one battle against him would be difficult, he still sounded confident in his victory.
What upset him though was how his quirk had been used against his team. Those who had stood by his side and nominated him as their leader had been ineffective to work alongside him because of what he had done. One of them had had to be rescued because of how badly they reacted with his quirk.
At least half his quirk.
He raised his left hand up to eye level, staring at the appendage knowing just what it was capable of if he so chose to use it. How it could have been used today to help his teammate in her time of need.
Todoroki went to bed that evening with a number of thoughts clouding his mind knowing full well that if he was ever going to make it in this world of heroes, half his quirk may not be enough to get him through.
Chapter 11
Aizawa stared at the group of teenagers in front of them, many sporting glum looks most likely from the previous day's activities. He didn't blame them. The students in his class had made it past some of the most gruelling challenges in order to simply attend the academy. Having told All Might to alter what he had planned for a larger long term purpose was potentially overstepping his bounds but he didn't care about any potential fallout. These kids were his responsibility after all, and he would prepare them for the worst that the world could throw at them.
That also included the media that had been waiting to ambush them out the front of the school. The weight that was on their minds from the previous day and potentially haunted them that night didn't exactly make them the most reciprocal for what the journalists wanted from them. Effectively information about the number one Hero being a teacher.
It did serve as something of a diversion but other than that they weren't prepared for what was out there. All it took was to get on the wrong side of one of the media outlets and then the slander could begin. A single mistake could be taken out of proportion and a career that had taken years to build up could be torn down in mere hours. Children weren't meant to deal with such things.
"Now, I need you all to focus," he said calmly. "Each of you went through something difficult yesterday and that was the point. You are in an elite school, remember that. There will be ups and downs and sometimes it will be difficult to pick yourselves off of the ground. Not every mission you go on will end the way that you want it and if you are mentally unprepared for something of that nature to happen it can leave you in a vulnerable state."
"I watched and analyzed your battles and if you wish to discuss my findings come find me in your spare time. I'm not going to tell you what you did right and what a lot of you did wrong in front of the rest of the class. I'm sure you went over it all when you went home and rested afterwards. You all will have come up with differing thoughts on just what happened but I can tell by the looks on your faces that you all came to roughly the same result."
"Suck it up and move on."
Aizawa's words stung at those in attendance but he truly did mean them. He did not know a single hero out there who hadn't suffered at some stage in their career but when they were in their darkest they had two options before them. To either better themselves, or retire.
Very few retired.
"Now, onto business..."
...
"And then he just shifted the conversation to classroom leadership as if it was nothing," chuckled Shirou as he sat atop the roof, a lunchbox in his hand.
"Well I can see his tactic, dump all of the depressing stuff on them first and foremost before trying to lighten the mood. So how did they work out who their class leader would be?" asked Rin as she laid down on the rooftop, her own lunchbox empty by her side as she stared at the clouds with her hands behind her head.
"Basically everyone wanted the position for themselves to start with before it got put to a vote," sais Shirou in between bites.
"How many voted for you in the end? I take it those four that you helped through the exercise yesterday voted for you?" stated Rin.
"I refused to partake," said Shirou as he put his now empty container to the side. "Chances are that while those four may have voted for me, it was clear that there is animosity between me and roughly half the class at this point."
"True, no point in leading them when they don't want you to," stated Rin as she pushed herself into a seated position. "Though I know that you would have made them fall into line one way or another."
"You think I would have become a dictator?"
"Please, a warlord is more befitting a title for you wouldn't you say?"
"Emiya Shirou the Warlord, I wonder how that would go down in this world," chuckled Shirou conjuring ideas of endless wave after wave of people trying to take him down in the name of justice.
"I can tell you exactly how it would go," said Rin in an almost sultry voice. Sadly though that was where the train of thought screeched to an almighty halt as sirens started to sound, causing Shirou and Rin to snap into action.
'Security Level 3 Has Been Breached, All Students Please Promptly Evacuate.'
"I hope our houses haven't been ransacked," stated Shirou.
"Really, the entire academy has been breached and you're worried about our accommodations," said Rin as she watched Shirou move to the edge of the rooftop and look down. "What do you see?"
"We've got nothing to worry about, it's just the press," declared Shirou, becoming visibly more relaxed.
"Really, the press got in through the giant barricade that you're worried might have a camera ready to catch your movements in the middle of the night," said Rin as she lowered her arm, the magical energy she had been charging dissipating.
"Well they weren't exactly subtle about the way they got in," declared Shirou. "It looks as if the gate has basically crumbled into nothing."
"Considering this world, I'm really not surprised by that," said Rin as she flicked some loose strands of hair behind her ear. "With such a destructive power, they knew they could get through the barricade and if they know they're getting paid handsomely for the scoop they'll do whatever it takes to get it."
"I guess so," said Shirou with a sigh. Rin couldn't tell whether or not the man in front of her was disappointed by the fact there was no threat or not. Chances were that he was just restless.
The confrontations the previous day had probably spurred him on a fair bit, with battle after battle. Unfortunately they were not the same kind of fights that he had spent decades going through. If anything he had played the endeavours out like some sort of chess game, strategically putting his pieces where he needed them in order to achieve victory.
While others might have seen the fights he had been in as something extraordinary to witness, Rin knew that he was restless. They had likely only tickled at the battle prowess that he had wanted to exert but knew to hold back quite significantly when dealing with children. The fact that he had dealt with the ice crafting teenager in the way that he had showed one very specific thing. Were he to combat him, he would have to do so seriously and in doing so, he couldn't have guaranteed Todoroki's safety.
He needed action.
Despite the fact that the perimeter would likely be heavily guarded tonight considering the large hole that was once the entrance, Shirou would go out tonight. That touch of confrontation only fueled his need for conflict. Whether he would spend the night capturing villains as if he were a vigilante or whether he would test the might of the heroes who patrolled the streets, she didn't know nor did she care.
Shirou would return to her the following morning and would not say a thing of the injuries he would potentially sustain, or whether the blood that might be on his clothes were his or anothers. Shirou had devoted so much of his life to battle in order to protect those who couldn't protect themselves. He was not the Archer she remembered from so long ago. Whether or not the person he had become was any better or worse, she did not know nor did she care.
All she knew was that when he returned, she would be there waiting to help him if he so needed.
...
The flashing blue and red illuminating the night sky was always a dead give away that trouble was at hand, though from what Ryuko could see it looked as if the police were finalizing the issue. From her viewpoint three stories above, she counted four standard police vehicles and one heavily armoured van. Whatever they were finishing up with, it had been something big.
There was something else that bugged her about it all however and that was the fact that she couldn't spot any professional heroes in the vicinity. It was more than possible that had a professional hero helped in this escapade that they had been called off for another situation but she felt that that wasn't the case.
She was momentarily glad that she wasn't patrolling with her intern. Nejire had the unfortunate tendency to be straightforwardly blunt at the best of times.
It didn't take Ryuko long to make it to where the police were stationed, one of the detectives noticing her arrival. "Evening," he said politely with a tip of his hat.
"What's the situation here?" she asked as she watched a blue coloured man get pushed into the back of the armoured van.
"Drug bust," he said pointing to the inside of the shop. "A laundromat on the surface but behind the scenes is something else."
"I can imagine," said Ryuko. "Who took them out?"
"We don't know, we only came when bystanders heard the sound of gunshots and called us," said the cop.
Ryuko bit at the inside of her lip as she considered this information. There were only two real options she could think that it could have been and unfortunately since there had been no cooperation with the police beforehand, that left only one real option. "Vigilantes?"
"Vigilante, singular, these guys seemed to be unashamed in telling us that little tidbit of information."
"I see."
"He even stated that he gave away his name, or his alias I guess you would call it. Does the name Archer mean anything to you?"
"Archer," repeated Ryuko wondering if she had heard that term somewhere before. Perhaps she would reach out to some of her contacts and see if they had any idea. "I will see what I can find out."
"That would be much appreciated," said the policeman earnestly. "The only other real intel we got on him was that despite calling himself an Archer, he defeated them all with only a pair of swords."
"Swords, you mean similar to that kid who took on all those heroes a little while back?"
"We thought so as well but we sent word to U.A. we were informed that with the extra patrols on duty there was little to no chance that their renegade student had gotten out for the night. We asked them to check just in case and the principal informed us that Hound Dog went to check just to be sure but returned with intel letting us know the suspect was accounted for. Hence we have reason to believe it's somebody with a similar quirk, or perhaps even a copycat of some sorts trying to make a name for themselves by utilising someone else's infamy as it were."
"Perhaps, did they give a description of the individual?" asked Ryuko. As the officer jotted down the notes that he and his team had managed to grasp thus far, the number nine hero in the country had a troubling feeling that something here was just out of touch just a little too much for her liking. U.A was miles from where she was currently standing and with the thought of the security the academy had at its disposal, nobody would sanely try to get in or out without some fear of being caught.
Yet a teenager who was more than willing to go toe to toe and successfully hospitalized a number of professional heroes with a smile on their face wasn't someone you'd initially call sane. While she had no real jurisdiction in the academy and how they did things, she would ask Nejire to keep an eye out for her.
Best case scenario, she was being over paranoid and nothing would come of this.
Worst case though... well she'd get to that point if it arrived.
...
Shirou sat at the back of the bus, his eyes closed as he paid little attention to the conversations flowing around him. They were on their way to a separate facility where they would be doing some 'Rescue' training which had gotten many of the students pumped.
Next to him sat the Vice President who had managed to garner quite a number of votes having managed to fight alongside him the day before. Jiro had originally taken the top spot as President of the class but after Iida's performance gathering the attention of the students during the crisis regarding the media (Shirou had been unaware that there had been a crisis) the brother of Ingenium had taken the top position.
If Jiro had wanted to use this opportunity to try to get to know Shirou a little better, she had struggled from the get go. She had offered to share her music with Shirou who had brushed her off, opting to rest in silence. Hence she now found herself flicking through a multitude of tracks in some sort of curiosity, wondering what kind of genre the person beside her would appreciate.
"If we're talking about the double whammy of flashy and strong, then you have to consider both Todoroki and Bakugo."
Shirou tuned in mildly, quickly figuring out that they were talking about their quirks and how the populace would see them.
"I think we're also forgetting about the elephant in the room, or bus as it were."
Shirou allowed a sigh to escape his lips before opening his eyes to find a number of people staring at him. "I mean, you can't deny it after yesterday Shirou," said Kaminari, a cheeky smile off his face. "The way that you managed to exploit our weaknesses and use your teammates to the best of their ability, that's something only the pros can do."
"Indeed," said Tokoyami, his arms crossed over his chest. "While your quirk might revolve around weapon creation, it is clear that you trained extensively in various forms of combat."
"What do you reckon Shirou, could your sharpest sword penetrate my armour?" questioned Kirishima, his arm hardening as he laid out the verbal challenge.
Shirou sighed once more as he leant forward, knowing full well that the entirety of the bus would be listening in to what he was about to say. "For me to answer that, there is something you need to know about my...quirk," said Shirou, still feeling how odd it was to describe his ability as something similar to the oddities the rest of the planet could accomplish. To further prove the point he was about to make, he focused for several seconds before a beautiful katana appeared in his hands. "This katana is one of Masamune's creations, one currently held in the National Museum. Every single weapon I can craft, is one that I have seen before. As soon as I lay my eyes on a weapon, I can recreate it down to the smallest of details. Though this will not work on firearms, something about the inner mechanisms I'm unable to replicate."
To further iterate his point, Shirou unsheathed the blade and held it upwards, the light coming through the windows gleaming off the polished steel. "Now tell me Kirishima, would you still wager your challenge against a katana crafted by one of Japan's greatest swordsmiths?"
All heads shifted as one to where the teenager in question was sitting. His look of confidence from before was still apparent on his face though cracks had begun to show. "Geez, you're putting me on the back foot here mate," he said sheepishly as he rubbed at the back of his head. "I mean I thought you just created stock standard weapons like some sort of factory, knowing that you can only recreate those you've seen before, and clearly you've seen some of the best, makes me feel underprepared."
"So," started Tsuyu, interjecting her own thoughts on the conversation currently unfolding. "If what you are saying is true, you can't create an original weapon?"
"Which then begs the larger question," said Midoriya as he focused on Shirou. "How many weapons have you seen?"
"More than you can imagine."
It was a simple statement, yet a highly effective one. Every person on that bus had crafter their own idea of Shirou's backstory after having witnessed his clash with the heroes on social media. Thus they all used their theories to craft an idea of just how many melee weapons Shirou had been subjected to over the years, with the now included knowledge that all he had to do was visit a museum and their greatest treasures became tools for him to utilise.
The numbers that came from there ideas however painted a terrifying portrait. The class went silent at that information and the rest of the bus ride carried on with a sense of unease resting over it.
...
"This lesson will serve as a fresh start!" declared Thirteen, the professional hero capable of crafting Black Holes. He had already gone over how his quirk, while perfectly capable of helping someone in a time of need, could also be something that went terribly wrong if used incorrectly. Shirou was appreciating the fact that the person before them had informed those in front of him that the quirks they had at their disposal could both be used to help in any given situation, but everything had the potential to turn south instantly. Overconfidence usually had the unfortunate side effect of getting thrown into a situation one was ill prepared for.
"Let's get to studying about how to wield our quirks for the sake of human life! Your quirks emphatically do not exist to hurt others! Please leave this exercise having fully understood that your quirks exist to help other people! You have my gratitude for listening so intently and patiently!" concluded Thirteen, complete with a bow towards the students in front of him.
A round of applause was sent out but Shirou sent no such attention. He had greatly enjoyed the speech that had been given. It was just unfortunate that at the end of it he had noticed something changing, shifting ever so slightly. He wasn't the only one. As Shirou looked towards the nearby water fountain, Aizawa also moved his gaze towards the area.
It only took a couple of seconds, but that was enough as people with harmful intentions stepped out of a warp area that was all too familiar to Shirou. For Aizawa, his full concentration went onto the protection of the students, barking instructions without a moment having been spared. Shirou meanwhile braced himself for the coming conflict, immediately coming to the understanding that he may have played his hand far too soon for his liking.
"I wonder if All Might will show up if we kill the kids?"
Those few words send shivers down the spines of all the students in attendance, though it wasn't the spokee that Shirou focused on, his gaze looking on to the man with the power capable of bringing all these people here. For how could he confidently swing with a blade when there was an opponent who could alter where his strike would land?
Chapter 12
Aizawa looked at the teenager beside him and the manner in which he braced himself for the coming conflict. His hands were prepared and ready to summon a weapon to his side at a moment's notice and if instructed, he would undoubtedly go down there and be a force to be reckoned with.
The teacher however knew, that while possibly capable of assisting him, he couldn't send a kid down into a battlezone.
"Protect them," he commanded. "Remember, heroes don't kill."
With his words said, he turned and started barking orders to his fellow hero in Thirteen. As Midoryia tried to argue that he couldn't take them all on and that his battle style wasn't suited, he lowered his specialized visor onto his face. "A hero always has more than one trick up his sleeve," he concluded before he leapt off the railing.
As he descended towards the pack, his quirk activated, preventing himself from being fired upon by those who had ranged abilities. Landing amongst them, he went to work, his capture tape quickly binding multiple enemies and with a swift tug, was able to make them collide together. Probably not enough damage to take them out for the duration of the battle, but it gave him some time to work on the rest of them.
"He erases quirks huh," said a bulk of a man, his body made of stone and had an extra two arms at his disposal. His strength amongst those around him who had been hired for the job was second to none and because his quirk was mutation based, he sincerely doubted that the man in front of him had the ability to render him merely human. "Can you even..."
That was as far as the man got before immeasurable amounts of pain coursed through his body. Despite the hardness that he possessed, an arrow had pierced through his calf sending pain shooting through his system. Aizawa, seeing the opportunity before him, capitalized by punching the man square in the face and enacting his way of capturing those who did have mutation quirks. While the assistance was appreciated, he needed to tell the brat that he should have a little more faith in him.
...
"C'mon! We've got to evacuate!" shouted Iida trying desperately to grab the attention of those who were watching their teacher go against the invading forces.
"I'm afraid I cannot allow that."
The class froze in place behind Thirteen, the hero garbed in the astronaut attire stretching out his arms in order to prevent anybody directly in his shadow from stepping forth into the black vortex which had manifested before them. Stepping from the shadows was the villain responsible for being able to directly transport all these people into the facility.
"Greetings," he said in a surprisingly polite tone. "I apologize, but we took it upon ourselves to enter Yuuei Academy, the base of heroes, in order to engage with All Might, the 'Symbol of Peace.' We were wondering if we would be allowed the opportunity to extinguish him you see. Was All Might not meant to be at this juncture? Perhaps had something been altered? Ah well...setting that aside..."
Whatever was meant to immediately follow was cut short as the students and Thirteen watched in awe as Shirou almost materialized behind the villain who was impeding their path. His arm was held back over his shoulder, his weapon on choice poised to strike and in a single motion, he swung.
Thirteen was unable to react in time as the black vortex appeared next to him and the weapon collided with his shoulder with enough force to almost break his arm. He could hear the students cry out in shock about what had just transpired but he was already breaking down several important facts, most notably the fact that he hadn't been mortally wounded by a bladed weapon. Instead of his flesh being sliced by steel, he had been hit with a shinai, a training weapon used for kendo.
"Curious, and here I was thinking that you would have gone straight for the kill," said the villain, almost perplexed by the fact that he hadn't been able to read the situation in its entirety. "Wise though, knowing full well that I had the ability to manipulate where your strike would land."
"I have a couple theories regarding how best to get past your power," said Shirou as he rested his manifested weapon of choice on his shoulder. Torashinai seemed to be purring in his ear, almost upset that it hadn't struck true of its intended target.
"My, if your mind is working it's way into getting through my quirk then you are more of a villain than I," they said before twin portals opened mere inches from Shirou's face. The other side of the portals came through two attacks, one from Bakugo and one from Kirishima. The explosion that Bakugo unleashed struck him square in the face while Kirishima's blow cracked him across the kaw, knocking his head violently to the side.
"Shit!" cursed Bakugo, likely more angry with having missed the target in front of him than having hit Shirou.
"Sorry man," apologized Kirishima.
Shirou merely rubbed at his jaw as he turned his head back around to face the shadowy figure in front of him. "The strength of those blows would have rendered any normal man unconscious, yet here you stand," they said menacingly. "I believe we are lucky to have brought him along."
Shirou's eyes sharpened at the mention of someone who the man before him believed could match or even surpass him in combat. It was during this singular moment that black tendrils spread in all directions, swiftly encompassing all in their wake. Shirou mentally cursed as he tried to leap backwards away from the darkness that threatened to consume him to no avail. He could only hope that those who had been furthest away from the man had been able to escape his clutch.
"Scatter."
...
Aizawa stumbled to the side as he avoided the knife strike which threatened to slice open his abdomen. He couldn't allow any more damage to befall his body, not after having had his elbow broken and nearly disintegrated by the man whom seemed as if he was partially leading the group.
If his ability and the fact that he had been the first to deal some manner of damage wasn't an indication that he was one of the strongest present, then the fact that he had gone into a monologue helped solidify the idea. Villains and their monologues, just stupid ways to boats about how superior they were or how the world would change because of their nefarious plan.
It was then that the shadow loomed over him and he couldn't help but turn to look at who was about to strike him down. Large, was the first word to come to mind considering that the man's hand looked as if it could crush his skull with minimal effort. The exposed brain looked as if it was an obvious weak point but with it being as open as it was meant the person knew that they would have to defend it when the situation arose.
A beastial arm began it's decent towards him and Aizawa knew that he had to move. He had no way of anticipating how quickly the blow descended upon him, striking him clean and causing his specialized goggles to go flying off of his head. He crashed to the ground spectacularly, his body reeling from the damage that it had sustained.
Aizawa struggled to push himself to his knees, feeling blood flow from freshly made wounds. He knew that he had to move but his body refused to respond at the pace he wished of it. Turning his head, he was able to watch the behemoth march towards him at an almost leisurely pace. That was until the projectiles began to rain down, encircling him as if protectively. Barely a second was all it took for near twenty swords of differing sizes and shapes to create a barrier between him and all those who wished him harm.
Understandably, they all looked upwards curious as to where the weapons had fallen from. Aizawa, whilst knowing, couldn't help but look himself to find Shirou falling from a height that should have been impossible for him to get to in the first place. Despite the impending death that potentially awaiting him from having fallen from such a height with the ground waiting for him below, Shirou had summoned a bow to his side and had the string pulled backwards before launching an arrow.
Said arrow was knocked to the side by the monster of a man, the target of Shirou's attack. Seemingly unfazed, Shirou opted to send three more arrows outwards, each weapon striking the calf of its intended target and rendering them essentially incapable of fighting any longer.
Shirou then struck the ground. Struck the ground hard. Aizawa couldn't help but swallow a lump that had formed in his throat as having watched Shirou fall and hit the floor. From the moment the swords had implanted themselves into the dirt and Shirou hitting the surface had taken no more than three seconds, yet well enough time for anyone without a strength quirk to have their bones shatter and their life potentially lost.
Aizawa was not one to gawk at a situation at the best of times. Watching his student stand up after having hit the ground at a speed which should have rendered him immobile, was such a circumstance which he would be forgiven for having made the expression he currently was.
He had hypothesized that there was more to Shirou than what met the eye. His feats during the opening test he had crafted had proved that Shirou was not only capable of crafting weapons, but that his quirk may have altered his body in such a way that it allowed him to utilize said weapons to their maximum potential.
This was merely a hypothesis, one that he had intended on taking a long time breaking down and proving through numerous tests. Now however he merely had to hope that whatever the truth was, it was enough to walk away victorious.
...
Shirou allowed the bow in his hand to dissipate into nothing before his trusted twin blades formed in his hands. He had his eyes set on a single target, the one who had been able to bat the arrow that had threatened to pierce his flesh out of the sky as if it were nothing. True that it had been an unnamed arrow, just something that he could manifest without a second thought but the ability to knock something travelling that fast out of the air with ease warranted his attention.
It was clear that the creature's attention was now on him now, Aizawa seemingly momentarily safe, at least long enough for him to get his wits about him. That wasn't the only person whom he was the target of and battle instincts allowed him to duck beneath the punch that had been aimed at the back of his head to sail over him safely. Driving the pommel on Kanshou into the person's abdomen, Shirou was able to tell instantly that they would not be getting up to fight any time soon. Regardless, he did not take his eyes off of the true threat.
Rightfully so, as the behemoth charged at him swiftly, it's arm pulled back and prepared to take him out in a single blow. Leaping backwards, Shirou was able to watch as the fist embedded itself into the ground, a solid spiderweb of cracks spreading out in a wide diameter from where the blow had struck. If those watching had expected fear to come into his being from watching such a display of strength, they were sadly mistaken.
As soon as his footing had become stable, Shirou proceeded forward. Twin blades outstretched in each arm, he watched as the uppercut barrelled towards him, a finishing move that would have potentially incapacitated him were it to directly land. It never even touched him however as he arched backwards, the fist striking nothing but air as Shirou slid beneath it before striking out with both Kanshou and Bakuya, cleanly severing the left leg off of the beast.
That was only part of his attack however as he got up from his kneeling position, twisting as he crafted his distance. During his turn however he was able to outstretch his arm and allow Bakuya to cleave a chunk out of the creature's stomach. Shirou skidded away as he braced himself for a follow up but momentarily paused as the sound of clapping echoed throughout the otherwise silent area.
"Congratulations, you really are strong," said the man who was covered by hands that gripped themselves onto his body. "However, you forgot to take something into account. This Nomu was designed to take out All Might, not small fry like you." As the words were being said, Shirou could only watch as the recently named Nomu began to regenerate. First the wound in it's stomach sealed shut before a new leg burst forward from the stump he had previously severed. "Now...what will you do now?"
Shirou kept his composure, something which many in his position would never have been able to accomplish. The twin blades which he relied so heavily upon vanished from his grip as he adjusted his stance. Taking a moment to manifest the weapon he envisioned, he knew that it wasn't his fighting style of choice but it was one that could eliminate the probability of regeneration...possibly.
He had never tested this weapon against somebody with regenerative abilities after all.
The Nomu charged forward, faster than it had before in a display that it was deciding to get serious after having had to regrow its leg. Shirou pulled the head of the weapon down in order to absorb an amount of the damage he would have taken, keeping his arms rigid so that no part of the point was close to his skin. Regardless of that he was knocked back however, skidding several feet backwards with his heels kicking up dust as he came to a stop.
"That is a beautiful weapon there, I imagine it could fetch quite a bit of money," mused the limb covered man from the sidelines, admiring the golden spear that Shirou had in his hands.
Shirou paid him no mind, instead speaking to somebody else in attendance. "Can I leave you to protect my back?" he asked.
"Who do you take me for?"
"Good," replied Shirou as Aizawa sprung into action, the minutes he had had in isolation allowing him to return to the fight, despite the broken limb that rendered his combat ability limited. Against the small fry however, even with only a single arm he believed himself more than capable of handling those who had been brought to the fight.
The Nomu seemingly paid Aizawa and the ensuing battle no mind as it focused solely upon Shirou who seemed to be taking this brief moment of respite to prepare himself for what was necessary.
...
From the nearby waterway, the trio of Midoriya, Asui and Mineta watched on in shock. The trio had been able to successfully immobilize those who had wished to do them harm utilizing their quirks. Now however, none of them could come up with a way to help in the situation that was unfolding before them.
Midoriya knew that the latent power inside of him had the ability to turn the tide of a battle in an instant yet the broken finger he had sustained from taking out those of lesser strength kept him immobilized. He didn't have enough control over his quirk to be able to actually make a worthwhile contribution to the battle about to take place. Or more importantly, were he to jump into the action, chances were that he would get in the way and those more capable of fighting would get injured protecting him.
He hated it. All this power and no safe way to use it.
One for All begged to be used but he could do nothing in this moment of time.
Midoriya could only watch.
Watch and learn what it truly meant to be a hero.
...
Shirou allowed himself to be on the defensive, focusing on ducking and weaving the slew of fists that came his way. He knew that he was unlikely to win in a battle of stamina, due to the fact that the shadowy figure had clearly pointed out this creature as their trump card. Or if this turned out to not be their trump card then he would get to that when he got there.
Now however, he saw an opening.
The creature's arm had overextended by the barest of margins as Shirou struck, the point of the spear he was wielding striking as the creature was retracting it's arm, severing the hand at the wrist. "Don't you ever learn," said the man from the sidelines, mildly adjusting the palm which clung to his face. "You're such a one trick pony, finish him already Nomu."
Nomu however remained fixated in place, staring at it's wrist where it's hand should have been growing from. The correct wording being, should have been. Seconds ticked by as the Nomu clearly attempted to regrow the severed limb to no avail.
"What did you do?" asked the hand encased man, clearly wanting some answers.
"This is Gáe Buide," announced Shirou, not moving from his position and prepared for an oncoming attack. "This weapon is cursed you see, no wound made by this weapon will ever recover."
Seconds ticked by as Shirou's explanation slowly sunk in before the villain began to shudder. "Cheat...you cheater...how can a weapon be cursed? How can you have such a weapon?"
"Please, if I showed off half the weapons I have at my disposal you would never believe where I'd seen them before," said Shirou as he sprung forward, utilizing the distraction he had caused. Before the Nomu reacted, it's left leg had been severed at the knee, causing the creature to drop down, unable to balance itself properly.
Twisting on the spot, Shirou used his momentum to take off the corresponding arm off at the shoulder before twisting the weapon above his head and cleaving off the right leg. The Nomu, for all intents and purposes, growled out something incoherent but it was clear that it was a message of rage.
Shirou mercilessly removed the fistless arm of the Nomu, rendering it merely a torso with a head. The red haired teenager allowed the weapon at his disposal to vanish into nothingness, no more needed to be done with the cursed weapon. At the same time however, he couldn't feel like the true strength and speed that the creature had at it's disposal hadn't been used on him. After all, he wasn't their target, All Might was.
"No...no...NO!" shouted the villain, clearly distraught about the outcome.
It was also at this time that the shadowy villain arrived, appearing out of the darkness that had been crafter mere feet from where the leader stood. He took several moments to summarize the situation before making the smartest call he could.
"Come, let us recollect on our defeat," he said calmly.
And with that, the duo vanished from their position. Shirou allowed himself to take a breath of fresh air before he turned around to see Aizawa still dealing with the fodder. Calling Bakuya and Kanshou back to his side, he opted to give his assistance, whether it was wanted or not.
...
Scrambling out of the water, Midoriya, Asui and Mineta could only watch as their teacher and peer rendered their opponents unable to continue. Calling Shirou a peer however was an overstatement if there ever was one.
The battle, as short as it may have been, was done at a speed they could barely keep up with, only able to recognize damage well after the attack had been swung. Adjusting his gaze slightly, Midoriya noted that a number of his fellow students whom had avoided the initial separation, watching over the supporting rail, seemingly unwilling to join in the fray. He didn't blame them in the slightest, both seemed more than capable of taking out the handful that remained on their own.
It was stereotypical however, that as the duo managed to take down their final opponent and allowed a moment of reprieve that the door to the facility broke open, debris flying in all directions.
"I am here!" declared All Might. Seconds later the number one hero realized that the unease he had felt, whilst true, had already been rectified, leaving him standing there like some sort of buffoon as he mentally worked out what had happened.
"So...everything seems to be in order here...though I don't remember other's being invited to participate as villains, did I miss a notice?"
"Get medics here now!" shouted Aizawa.
"Understood."
Chapter 13
The rippling of flesh beginning to reshape itself into something resembling a limb was halted as Shirou brought the cursed spear back into reality. He had noticed the beast relatively motionless but had kept his guard up regardless. At the first sign of the regeneration he had brought Gáe Buide back into existence. In doing so, the wounds which had attempted to regrow were prevented from doing so.
"Do you think that was wise kid?" asked Aizawa from nearby, clutching at his damaged arm. "Telling them how your weapon worked."
"They had seen what had become of this thing because of Gáe Buide, they would have come up with a similar conclusion on their own," explained Shirou as he drove the head of the spear deep into the ground.
"So you were helping them then," declared Aizawa.
"No, I was giving them just one reason to fear me."
Aizawa couldn't prevent the hairs on the back of his head from standing on edge at Shirou's words. He had known that a number of heroes had struggled to capture him before the school term had even commenced and having watched his display and even fought by his side it was easy to understand how they had struggled.
"We got lucky in this instance," said Shirou as the main doors opened, All Might leading medical personal into the building as well as a number of heroes. "This guy here was meant to be their way to take down him. They just didn't realize that they'd come across me."
Again, Aizawa was unable to prevent the chills that spread across his body. He had felt firsthand the strength that this monster had possessed and it was abundantly clear that his regenerative abilities were something extraordinary. During the fight however, when it was unable to grow it's limb back, it had paused, confused almost about why something wasn't going the way it should. Could incredible strength and the ability to regenerate limbs have been enough to take down All Might, it was hard to tell and he was thankful that he would never have to witness such a clash.
"So you're saying you're stronger than All Might."
"Don't know," said Shirou with a shrug. "I do know that I ended up being a better match against someone who was brought here to absorb blow after blow from a man with great strength. I doubt it even went full bore at me, probably could only regenerate so much or take so much damage in total before reaching it's limit, hence not going all out. By the time they realized how much danger they were in, it was all over."
Aizawa sharpened his eyes as he looked at the boy in front of him, though it almost looked as if he was looking at a hardy battle veteran. Even the way he had just broken down the bout with the creature that resided near where they were standing was more than some heroes filled out on their official reports. Unfortunately that didn't give him much detail regarding what Shirou was truly capable of in the grand scheme of things. Having been able to block a blow which theoretically shatter bones was something which no normal teenager have been capable of doing, not to mention reacting in time in the first place. The ability to systematically disassemble his opponent with no second thought was concerning but he was not going to nitpick about that now.
Also, and he wasn't going to say this out loud, he felt like the teenager had been doing an experiment of sorts regarding the creature who was still breathing despite the damage it had taken. Shirou seemingly had been testing the time that it took for the beast to regenerate and possibly working out whether injuries recovered at the same time or whether there was a delay due to the number of injuries that had been sustained. It was terrifying thoughts but ones that he had to keep in the back of his mind under the possibility of being true.
For now, he needed to report just what had happened.
...
"Look, it's not your fault," said Jiro as she rubbed at Momo's back. The two of them plus Kaminari had returned from the space in which they had been teleported still shocked by the developments that had taken place. Kaminari in more of a literal sense than the two women but that was a different topic.
They had done well in the situation they had found themselves in, surrounded by the opposition and being able to take down a majority of those who opposed them was no easy feat. It was just unfortunate that one of the enemies were able to get past Kaminair's widespread attack and take the boy hostage, almost willing to kill the boy if the two of them were unwilling to cooperate. That of course had changed entirely when his peripheral vision had caught sight of his ticket out of the academy leave with only one other individual leaving him effectively stranded. With All Might standing in the doorway and his leadership having actively fled the scene, he had thought it wise to take this opportunity to surrender and hope that in doing so he would spend less time in prison for his actions.
Learning however that every other group that had been set upon by villains however had managed to overcome their respective obstacles without any showing of defeat had left a sour taste in Yaoyorozu's mouth. If that wasn't bad enough, word had quickly spread about just why the most dangerous individuals had retreated when they had. If it had been the arrival of the number one hero, she would have been more understanding on the situation. To learn however that it was the doing of the individual who had successfully guided his team to victory through hellish conditions however to succeed where many others would have failed the previous day.
Emiya Shirou.
It wasn't like she wasn't aware that he was skilled. Far from it. She had no idea how far the gap was however. Part of her had believed that all the footage she had seen of heroes going against Shirou and his accomplice had shown the heroes in a good light. They were professional heroes and as such she had willingly believed that they had been pulling their punches against people who were in the middle of a crowded area.
Apparently she was wrong in her beliefs. She now fully understood that the heroes had not been pulling their punches. Shirou and by all accounts his partner, were incredibly powerful. There was no two ways to look about it.
"What was it like?" she said softly, almost inaudible due to the amount of people around them. "Having him lead you."
JIro found herself leaning backwards, her gaze shifting towards the roof. "It was...odd," she said with a sigh. "You know that feeling, when everyone has faith in you but you feel that deep down you can't live up to their expectations. Shirou made us believe that we could not only live up to those expectations, but surpass them. I mean, he told me to fight Tokoyami head on, fully aware that I was the team leader and that if I failed it meant the team was out. He gave me advice, pointed out some oncoming attacks I should have been aware of and helped lead me to victory and without him, I doubt that I would have even thought I could beat Tokoyami."
"So...he gave you faith...in yourself?" summarized Yaoyarozu, unsure if what she was saying was correct.
"Yea," said Jiro as she found herself playing with the jack dangling from her left ear. "Could I have done any of that without him, I doubt it. All of us, I think we got better from just being near him, by having help us and believe in us."
"Believing in yourself," said Momo as if stuck in a trance, Jiro opting not to continue as personal came by to check up on them for what felt like the second time more than necessary.
...
Shirou watched as the behemoth of a creature was wrapped up in 'supposedly' unbreakable bonds. Honestly he seriously doubted that the restraints would have any effect on Berserker but that was a thought for another time. He got the subtle nod of the head from an officer nearby, signalling for Shirou to remove Gáe Buide from this plain of existence once more. As he did though he started counting internally the seconds ticking by before the creature successfully was able to have fully grown limbs once more.
Despite being physically at its peak, the beast made no effort to resist it's capture, almost submitting to the law enforcement as further restraints were placed on the newly acquired limbs. The exposed brain gave Shirou the unsettling feeling that the creature before him was being controlled, or at least had been whilst the invasion was unfolding. If it was being controlled, then that meant that somebody was controlling it, which unfortunately meant there was a mastermind.
Shirou was broken from his moment of concentration as he felt a presence behind him. Turning slowly, he found himself looking at the form of Midoriya, the boy almost struggling to keep his composure. Shirou could understand why, undoubtedly rumours had spread based on the very true fact that he had dismembered something that the association that had attacked them believed could kill All Might.
As for Midoriya, the small lad was doing his best to keep head strong, especially after what had just went down. He, Asui and Mineta had found themselves in a battle against the numbers before finding themselves able to turn the situation into their favour. That also meant that they had returned in time to see a chunk of the bout that had taken place.
"Can...could you...train me?"
The question was slow and ill paced considering the context. Midoriya hadn't quite been sure how to ask said question without directly insulting All Might. The number one hero had put so much time and effort into helping him get into the prestigious academy in the first place that it felt as if he was breaking an unspoken promise. With that said however, All Might was still a professional hero, as well as a teacher. There was minimal time that he would be able to get a one on one training session in with the top hero.
So he had to look elsewhere.
"Ask me again, properly," instructed Shirou.
Midoriya swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat before stiffening himself, both physically and mentally. "Could you train me?" he repeated, determination ringing through his voice.
"No."
Shock ran through Midoryia's system as he stood there flummoxed, having not expected to be shut down in such a manner. He knew it has been a long shot but he hadn't thought that he had had no chance whatsoever.
"Why?"
Surprisingly, it wasn't Midoriya who had spoken. Rather it had been Yaoyorozu, the teenage woman having seen her green haired peer making his way towards Shirou and with Jiro's words ringing in her ears, had chosen to approach as well.
It seemed however she wasn't the only one. In groups of twos and threes, Class 1-A found themselves standing in front of Shiro with two exceptions of Todoroki and Bakugo. Somehow, it wasn't surprising to anybody in attendance.
"Why won't you teach him? Or teach us for that matter?" asked Momo, finding her voice. "It doesn't matter that we're students, villains came to us in our school and attacked us. Our teachers did what they could but..."
"Then let them teach you," interrupted Shirou, jabbing his thumb over to where the professional heroes were congregated. A couple of them had the great idea to look upset by the fact that their students didn't have faith in them, more so Midnight who was pouting at the thought that the teenagers didn't want to be taught by her. Unfortunately that seemed to will the crowd on more than it should have.
"Then how did you learn?" asked Kirishima, his hands clenched into fists. "Can't you at least tell us how you learned?"
"I fought," said Shirou, recalling the training he had gone through against Saber. "I fought against someone far stronger than me, again and again, over and over. Every time I fell, I got back up. If you wanted me to train you, then I would knock you down, time and time again without hesitation. If you were able to last a second longer in your final bout than your first, then congratulations you successfully made progress. I didn't have the luxury of time on my side to gain strength and only had that option out of desperation and necessity. Without it, there is little doubt that I would not be standing here right now."
His words hung in the air and he could see that a few of the students were still contemplating the idea of training with him, for at least a single session. Running his fingers through his hair, Shirou allowed a sigh to escape from his lips. "If you really want to train with me," he said slowly, hoping he wouldn't regret the decision he was about to make. "Meet me in the gymnasium after the final bell."
His instructions, understandably triggered some of the teachers who could hear what he was saying. "Oi! Oi!" shouted Present Mic as he crossed the distance between where the two groups were standing, kicking up dust in his wake. "These kids just went through hell, and you want to beat them up more before they have a chance to recover? What kind of heartless man are you?"
"Will their enemies give them time to breathe?" asked Shirou, the glance he sent at the teacher causing the professional hero to take half a step backwards. "Of course not. They don't care if you're exhausted, fatigued or injured, they'll see that as an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. At that time, regardless of your condition, you have to stand up and give it everything you have and more."
Shirou knew that his message had been received, but he felt like he needed to add insult to injury. "Plus Ultra."
He could almost see the anime style tic mark appear on Present Mic's forehead at the school motto's being used against him. Thankfully, before he could rise to the taunt, Principal Nezu spoke up and in doing so brought the attention upon himself. "While Mister Emiya's words do ring true, I do know that rest and recuperation is important to one's understanding of themselves. Sometimes to simply be able to reflect on how one progressed throughout the course of the day is something truly wonderful in it's own right. I do know however that you are teenagers and as such some of you may or may not have had your fair share of action today. If you feel as if you still have something to prove, then I encourage you to join Mister Emiya in the gymnasium where Midnight will overlook proceedings."
"However, this is truly optional and any injuries sustained in said exercise will not be looked over by Recovery Girl and you will have to let your bruises, welts and cuts heal in their own time. You might consider them your badges of honour or horrible blotches on your skin, it matters not. I have full trust that Mister Emiya will not use potentially lethal methods in teaching those of you who join him but I also believe he will not go easy on you. You have been warned."
Shirou couldn't help but internally thank the principal for speaking up when he did and he wasn't silly enough to use any lethal weapon against schoolchildren. Torashinai would more than likely be enough. Now there was the grand question however of how many standing before him would be foolish enough to fight him.
...
The remainder of the school day seemed to drag on and on before the final bell rang, signalling that they were free to leave the premises. Todoroki meanwhile had no intention of leaving the grounds when the rest of the academy opted to head home. Many of his fellow Class 1-A students had the same mindframe. Shirou had already been permitted to head to the gymnasium to prepare himself for the training he was going to give.
'Training' being the subjective word in that statement.
He could hear the gossiping of his peers as they marched around him to the gym. He cared not for their meanderings as he focused on the objective before him. Could he go toe to toe with Emiya Shirou? He was going to find out one way or the other.
The doors to the gymnasium opened up, Ashido being the one to open the entryway to reveal that Shirou already had his first opponent standing opposite him. While it momentarily shocked some of those around him, Todoroki quickly worked out that this was likely a way for upperclassmen to have an opportunity to go against one of the best the school has to offer in a semi controlled environment.
He, along with his peers, entered the area as quietly as they could before closing the door behind them. Other than the two competitors and Midnight, there were only two other students in attendance, likely friends of the person who had challenged Shirou. It would be interesting to see how someone else who had yet to see Shirou in action could face off against him.
Or it would just be plain interesting as numerous screams of shock echoed around him as the person whom had challenged Shirou found himself naked, his clothes falling off his body without any warning whatsoever.