18Author's Note: Hey guys I hope you had a lovely Easter Sunday. Anyway, here's Ch.12 I hope you enjoy it and thanks for reading. I also want to say thank you to does that gave me some helpful criticism about how I made Deku act a little too much like All Might. I have toned down how much Deku resembles All Might, it's just that since I will not be including All Might in this story that I feel the need to reference or have call backs of him through Deku. So expect a few references/call backs here and there, but nothing too over bearing.
Destroy...
A pair of golden eyes snap open and Genma Hazaki (Demon's Blood) nearly jumps out of his bed. He breathes heavily, frantically scanning his room while clutching at his heart. He's shirtless and sweating profusely over his heart is a large a X shaped scar as well as other nasty scars across his body. When he realizes that he woke up from a nightmare, he visibly relaxes before he rubs his eyes, and swinging his legs off the bed. He can feel his hair sticking to his head from the sweat.
Sighing he stand up, scratching his head; making his already terrible bedhead even worse. After giving a hefty yawn accompanied by a good stretch Genma begins his usual morning routine. He quickly washes his face and teeth, followed by patting down his messy hair, gets dressed, and he loosely throws on his school blazer and tie before looking in the mirror one last time.
His golden eyes stare right back at him with a bit of apprehension. His eyes narrow with defiance before heading down to the common room for some breakfast.
Ch.12 Chasing Number 1
Genma stands inside the elevator but just as he presses the first-floor button Akugun Bakugou (Gravity Burst) enters. Somehow, his clothes and hair were dealt with more haphazardly than Genma's.
Akugun yawns just as the door closes. "Morning, Red."
"Bakugou."
The two stand there in silence as the elevator makes it descend.
Without looking, Akugun tries to interact with his classmate. "How you feeling?"
Genma hesitates before answering. "Like crap."
Akugun gives a brief chuckle. "Yeah, I figured. You really got your ass kicked, yesterday."
"You didn't do any better!" Genma snaps.
In that same moment the elevator's door opens.
"Please, keep it down." Mitchio Kitsune (Fox) whines, he's sitting at a nearby table eating cereal. His fur is incredibly messy, and his ears are pointed in opposite directions. "It's way too early for this. Plus, I'm still sore from yesterday." He rolls his aching shoulder to emphasize his point.
"Same," Soun Ren (Drill Hands) adds from his seat across from the fox boy. "my hands are still burning from all the drilling I did."
When using his quirk his hands are vulnerable to friction thus causing his hands to burn if he drills for too long.
Genma and Akugun head off for the kitchen while other students sit around the dining tables, each enjoying their own breakfast while also dealing with various levels of drowsiness.
Kyuen Midoriya (Ishim) eats her breakfast along with Ioko Sakishiro (Substitute) and Utage Kaminari (Electrical Cords).
The blonde looks over to the emerald-haired girl. "Your Dad was absolutely brutal." She gently rubs a finger where Deku grabbed her cables. "I mean, what was up with that?"
Kyuen looks down looking somewhat embarrassed. "Sorry about him. He sometimes doesn't know how to hold back." She then smiles. "But if it makes you feel better. He did get chewed out by my Mom last night." Kyuen giggles when she remembers that particular conversation.
##########(Flashback)#########
After the class were attack/healed by Nurse Harm (Pain Therapy), they were transported back to the main U.A. campus. From there they were allowed to take the rest of the day off. Kyuen opted to go home with her father afterward so she could spend the rest of the day with her family before returning to the dorms just after dinner. Less than 30 seconds after her mother returned home Kyuen informed her about the supposed villain attack.
Shoto Midoriya is a tall gorgeous woman with half-red and half-white hair tied back in a long ponytail. Along with heterochromia eyes: one being blue and the other grey. On the left side of her face is a large burn mark that has faded over the years but is still quite noticeable.
Deku (One For All) smiles nervously. "Are you mad?" He asks cautiously.
"I'm not mad." The woman turns to face her husband giving him a dark look. "I'm disappointed."
Shoto Midoriya! The Fire & Ice Heroine, Shoto! Quirk: Half-Cold & Half-Hot!
She can generate fire from her left side and ice from her right.
This gives her both great defensive and combative abilities.
Deku falls over as if a giant arrow has struck him.
"I mean, why would I be mad?" She continues. "You only took part in an exercise that mirrors a traumatizing situation that we had as students." Deku can feel another verbal arrow piercing him. "Why would I be mad, that you attacked a group of children? Some of them happened to belong to friends of ours. Tell me, Izuku. Why would I be mad?"
The Symbol of Peace silently screams in terror as one of Japan's greatest heroes berates him. He tries to explain his reasoning, but it does little to help.
Meanwhile, their daughter is recording the whole thing with a smug grin on her face. She really does enjoy her family's company.
########(End Flashback)#######
"I love my Dad but sometimes he really doesn't know how to hold back." Kyuen smiles as she remembers times when her and Kacchan would spar. Akugun takes the seat opposite of her holding a bowl of cereal and a piece of toast in his mouth.
Ioko turns to Kyuen. "I-I know he attacked us, but your dad is so cool."
Osha Hourai (Beetle) looks up from a nearby table. "He was super strong, tchk tchk."
A vein pops on Genma's head when he overhears that comment. Still feeling pissed about the fact that he lost the fight.
Soun leans back in his chair. "I should have asked him for an autograph."
"He's so amazing!" Several other dormmates cheer out.
"It must be awesome being the daughter to the Number One Hero!" Mitchio bluntly comments.
Kyuen smiles in appreciation, but it slightly falters with nervousness. Akugun notices understanding the sign and tries to redirect everyone's attention. "You guys should have seen my folks' reactions."
Ioko tilts her head. "Your dad is Ground Zero and your mom is Uravity, right?"
"Yup." He smiles smugly.
"How'd that go?" Utage asks, matching her tilting head with Ioko's.
"Both were pretty pissed, but for different reasons."
"Why?" Both Ioko and Utage ask tilting their heads in the opposite direction.
"Well my Mom was just freaked out that I was in supposed danger and was potentially traumatized - as if that could happen. While my Dad...my Dad was upset that he wasn't allowed to take part in the exercise."
"Eh!?"
"Yeah, he was saying that he would love to beat the crap out of some wet behind the ear shitstains that don't know how the real world works."
"What!?" the girls sputter.
Kyuen averts her eyes and has one thought. 'I expected as much…'
At that moment the elevator to the girl's wing opens and Sekiko Geki (Split-Up) steps out looking like she woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
The usually introvert girl passes by their table. Ioko turns in her chair and shyly looks up at Sekiko. "Are you okay?"
Sekiko pauses and turns eyeing the hazel-eyed girl. "What are you talking about?" She asks dryly, her eyes narrowing as if trying to figure out Ioko's intentions.
"Um, well yesterday when Deku att-"
Sekiko, looking like she was offended, slams her hand on table making Ioko flinch and drawing the other's attention. "Listen up little girl, I don't need sympathy from you." Her gaze hardens. "Got it?"
"Y-Yes!"
"Good." And the standoffish girl leaves for the kitchen.
Utage, Akugun, and Kyuen watch the dark-skinned girl as she takes her leave. 'What's her deal?'
Ioko looks down in disappointment wondering what she did wrong. She has a few ideas but…they all point to it being her fault.
After everyone finished their breakfast Tenshun Iida (Jet Engines), the Class Vice President, managed to gather everyone and lead them all to homeroom. They actually arrived early, and they all ended up scattering into small groups across the room causing Tenshun to feel dejected that his classmates aren't properly preparing themselves for class.
"Why don't any of you take school seriously!?" He cries, a waterfall of tears flowing down his face. Kikue Hana (Polymia), the Class President, pats his back and gives him a sympathetic smile.
"Ahhh! Why do we have class!?" Warau Odori (Springy Limbs) flails in her chair looking absolutely affronted. "It's so not fair!"
"I knoooowwww." Soun leans forward in his seat. "We should have the day off."
Utah Eikyuu (Lullaby) is delicately patting her right ram-horn as if it will break apart on her. "Hmmm, my horn's still aching~." Her horn was partially broken by Deku, but Nurse Harm managed to heal it, unfortunately, that meant she had to break the horn even further to allow the sadistic healer's quirk to fix it.
After a few more disgruntled complaints about being in class, Octovade (Wiggle) slithers in with his usual greeting, a good morning. "In light of yesterday's… fun and educative activity."
'Is that what he's calling it?' Class 1-A thinks dryly.
"We have something special in mind for you all today."
"What kind of special?" They ask cautiously.
Without warning, the door flings open and an inspiring figure appears in a somewhat fabulous yet silly pose. "I am here! Walking through the door like a normal person!"
"It's Deku!" Most of the students cheer, forgetting that the same man attacked them less than 24 hours ago.
Kyuen shrinks in her seat sweat-dropping. 'It's my Dad.'
Genma clenches his fists, still disappointed from his loss and seeing the cause of his failure is not helping matters.
Yup, it's Deku in all his glory with a cheery and inspiring grin on his face, and his iconic green and white hero costume.
The Symbol of Peace struts up to the front of the class. "It's great to see all of you up and about!" Still grinning, he closes one eye, and gives them a thumbs up. "How are you all doing today?"
"Great!" They answer enthusiastically.
"Liars!" Akugun shouts, trying to expose the truth, but he's drowned out by everyone else's cheering.
"Yes, well let me start of by apologizing to you all. Although the point of yesterday's exercise was to test your endurance and perseverance." He rubs his neck and his grin becomes apologetic. "I'm afraid I may have taken it a little too far."
Kyuen gives her father a deadpan expression. 'A little!?'
Deku notices and shivers after noticing how much Kyuen looks like her mother when she's upset. "S-so, to make it up to you I will be supervising an activity today!"
The class pales and they immediately lose their excitement.
Deku notices but smiles in order to lighten the mood. "Don't worry I won't be attacking any of you this time. In fact, I think we will all find this to be rather fun! But I won't explain more until we're all at Ground Theta!"
After a record-breaking costume change and a rumbustious bus ride Class 1-A meet the one and only Symbol of Peace at Ground Theta. Ground Theta is a large suburban based arena that includes a number of apartment buildings and houses, streets, and yards full of either grass, shrubs, and/or trees. It provides an abundance of places to hide.
"Oh my gosh! You all look so cool!" Deku practically squeals in delight letting his inner otaku to show itself as Class 1-A steps off the bus wearing their costumes. He even starts scribbling in his notebook. Some of the students can't help but wonder where he was hiding that thing.
The students give various thank yous and some provided poses to show off their awesomeness.
"Alright students we will be performing a sort of battle exercise." The students flinch. "Don't worry I won't be attacking any of you. Actually," Deku jabs a finger at them. "you will be the ones to attack me!"
Their eyes widen. "What!?"
"Yes, you heard right. For today we will be playing tag!"
"Tag?"
"Well, sort of." Deku reaches into his pocket and pulls out a notecard. "Here's the scenario an elusive criminal has escaped into the suburbs. There are 20 heroes on the scene, and it will be their job to track down and apprehend the villain."
Tenshun shoots his hand into the air. "Excuse me, sir!"
"Yes!?"
"When you say 20 heroes do mean that we will be going after the villain all at once?"
"That is correct!"
"Who will be the villain? Will it be Mr. Watanuki?" Tenshun points to Octovade who's standing near the bus behind them.
Their homeroom teacher shakes his head. "No, I will be monitoring the exercise and provide commentary afterward."
"Then who…" Tenshun's eyes widen in realization as does most of his fellow classmates.
"Yup, I'm the elusive villain! But like I mentioned before I will not be fighting back."
"What are you trying to take it easy on us?" Akugun questions trying to sound upset but still comes off as amused.
Deku gives a light chuckle. "Not a chance. Anyway, this is how the exercise will work." Deku reads his cheatsheet. "I will enter the suburb and after 3 minutes you will all be free to hunt me down. To pass all you need to do is to have at least one of you tag me, and feel free to use your quirks. But please try to keep the property damage to a minimum." Deku, still smiling, looks towards Genma.
Genma averts his eyes and scowls. 'No promises.' He thinks bitterly.
Deku sweat-drops but doesn't lose his cheerful smile. 'What's up with this kid? Did I do something to offend him' He brings his attention back to the rest of the class. "To give you an extra incentive; the one who manages to tag me gets a special reward from me personally!"
"REWARD!" The class cries out in surprise and excitement.
"What is it!?" Utage asks looking somewhat fangirlish.
"You'll have to win to find out."
"I'm so going to win!" Tanuki (Anthropomorphic: Human Form) proclaims.
Deku's smile widens, he can feel the excitement radiate off the students. "Shall we begin, you bunch of newbies?"
The heroes in training stand ready waiting for the signal to begin the exercise.
"Man, I'm so going to win this!" Haigo Yokowari (Self-Amputate) declares "I bet it's a limited addition Deku action figure!"
Utage places a hand on the zombie teen's shoulder. "I wouldn't get your hopes up. I mean he's not wearing Yielding Weightsthis time."
"We should try working together." Tenshun announces. "Afterall we-'
RING!
At the sound of the bell the students take off for the suburban arena. "That prize is mine!" They shout.
"Hey, wait for me to finish!" Tenshun yells before running after them not wanting to be left behind.
As they enter, the trainees begin to split up into different parts of the arena,
Genma sprints to a nearby alley separating himself from the others. His mind once again flashes to his beating the day before. 'I'm coming for you Deku…'
Rakish Ashitaka (Footloose) peers into a nearby house from behind a large hedge. He can see Deku standing inside without a care in the world. 'There he is.'
He presses play on his phone allowing "Sweet Dreams" to play in his wireless earphones. This activates his quirk and he dances/slides his way out from the hedge and races towards the house.
He jumps breaking through the large window. "I've got you!"
Deku simply steps aside allowing Rakish to soar right past him in a comedic fashion. "Nice try."
Rakish manages to land on his feet but he slides across a rug. While Rakish is still moving Deku grabs the rug and literally pulls it from under his feet causing the dancer to trip and fall onto his back.
"You really need to think things through. You can't be too impulsive. Especially, when it you're unaware of your surroundings." Deku then throws the rug on top of Rakish and because of his flailing he somehow manages to tangle himself. "See ya." He salutes and jumps through the window.
Rakish manages to free himself. "Get back here!" With a twirl he chases after the Number One Hero.
Deku lands in the nearby street before taking off in a run, admittedly he's moving pretty slow compared to how he usually is. Rakish bursts out of the bushes and chases after the pro hero. Rakish just barley catches up to the green-haired man his arm outstretched ready to tag him. Just as Deku reaches an intersection his body sparks with green electricity before he disappears like a blur before Rakish's eyes. At the same moment Haigo runs out from the intersecting street and Rakish, going at a much faster speed, crashes into his classmate. Haigo is hit so hard his body parts break apart sending them scattering across the street.
Haigo's head bounces off the sidewalk before rolling around and falling onto its side. "Really? Again?" He whines, because this same thing happened the day before.
Deku watches from a nearby rooftop chuckling to himself as he watches the two teens stumble about and yell at each other for getting in the other's way. "This is a lot more fun than I thought it would be." Deku's smile wavers slightly. 'But they could be doing better. The whole point of the prize was not to give them incentive but to see how they react. Will they try to push each other away for their own success? Or will they put aside their selfishness for the greater good?'
Deku side steps as Shou Moewaki (Glow) leaps at him from behind. The light-green glowing teen blinks before comedically falling into the bushes below. Honestly, it's amazing he thought he had a chance to sneak up on the pro, especially, considering the teen's flashy mutation quirk.
Deku cups his chin as he thinks. 'Of course, there will always be competition for popularity, but a hero's job is to protect and serve the public first before their own needs. Hopefully, these students will realize that.'
Deku squats down letting the green electricity to surround him before leaping high into the air. After posing in midair he lands a fair distance away. Before he can relax, he's surrounded by a group of 15 nearly identical girls. The real Sekiko stands to the side as her diversely colored clones attack their powerful foe from nearly every angle.
The clones dogpile onto each other. "I got him!" They cheer with various levels of enthusiasm and attitudes, since each of them represent a different aspect of Sekiko's personality.
Sekiko smiles in satisfaction.
"Are you sure about that?"
Sekiko spins around to look up the grinning and sparking hero. "How did you?"
"You have such an amazing quirk. Is it alright if I ask you some questions?"
Sekiko scowls and lunges at him while her clones do the same but Deku evades the attack and swiftly climbs up onto a nearby light post.
"Perhaps we can talk later!" Deku jumps and hops across various rooftops leaving a scowling Sekiko and her clones behind.
The dark-skinned girl's fist clenches as she watches her target escape. "…Dammit."
Deku lands in a yard allowing the quiet atmosphere to sink in. He takes a few steps but for a split second he senses the ground beneath him begin to crumble. In that instant he leaps into the air and avoids Soun's underground ambush.
Deku ends up on another street before he begins to run. Tanuki in his Animal Form bursts out from a tree morphing into his Muscular Form to tackle the pro hero; of course, Deku avoids the attack. He runs away with Tanuki giving chase, but from behind a nearby wall Warau springs out and flings her outstretched hand towards him. Deku is able to bend backward allowing the hand to soar over his head and crash into Tanuki's face. Reflectively, Tanuki grabs her hand to remove it but in doing so he accidentally reels Warau in and they accidentally headbutt each other.
Deku watches feeling a bit amused but also dejected. 'They're getting hurt despite the fact that I haven't even touched them.'
Deku takes a knee as he watches through a nearby window in the attic of a fake house. He's not tired but he thought that he'd let this exercise go on for a little longer. He can see Rakish, Haigo, and Warau running around in the background looking frustrated as they search for him.
Deku yawns and watches as Seiko's clones run around on the streets below. He yawns again and rubs his eyes. 'I'm starting to get sleepy…WAIT!'Deku tries to stand back up but admittedly the drowsiness is overcoming him and as he observes the room, he notices tiny glowing music notes floating in the air from the little door leading into the attic.
He realizes that they are a result of Utah Eikyuu's quirk, Lullaby. He made sure to take some good notes on that ability especially after being partially affected by it the day before. Luckily, the mask he was wearing provided him with some sound cancellers, but they weren't enough to completely shutout her quirk.
Deku covers his ears turning back to the window, but he stops when he spots a black costumed teen hanging out in front of it.
Mitchio grins, from behind his white fox mask. "Go ahead and try, but just remember what you said earlier." He's refereeing to how Deku basically promised not to attack anyone.
Deku spins around and heads towards the only other window but Utage Kaminari is there waiting for him as well. Clearly, they used her quirk to locate him since she can detect electromagnetic waves, even those produced by the likes of someone like him.
Utage smirks as her cables outstretch to her sides trying to extend her reach. "Got you."
Despite the situation Deku's grin widens. 'Yes! This is a solid strategy that takes advantage of the circumstances. Trap me inside and allow Young Eikyuu to subdue me, clever. However…'
With a great display of power Deku smashes through the side of the roof creating a gaping hole. While the students watch in awe, the electrified Deku takes the chance to escape. Deku looks back briefly and he can see Mitchio giving chase with Utage trying to get Utah's attention. Despite the fox boy's agility, he's not fast enough to keep up with the Number One Hero.
As Deku moves through the air, his instincts warn him of an incoming attack, and he spins avoiding a blur that launched itself at him from below.
"Curses, almost had him!" Tenshun exclaims while readjusting his flight's direction so he can go for another attack.
Using his Jet Engine quirk and his suit's wings, Tenshun propels himself at Deku just as he's about to land on the roof of an apartment complex. Just as Deku lands he rolls forward evading an incoming wave of water tendrils. The pro hero snaps his head up to see Una Furu (Wavy Hair) lashing out more tendrils at him while Kikue, who's also present, does the same with multiple chains of arms and hands. Deku, covered in sparks, dodges the barrage of the attacks however he is forced back towards the edge of the roof. There Tenshun tries to tag him again and Deku barely manages to avoid it, but as he moves a kusarigama wraps around his right arm.
Deku looks over and sees Yowami Ie (Pinpoint) tossing his weapon over to Osha. The large blue beetle pulls on the chain. "Got you!" They shout.
"Not yet you don't!" Deku manages to use his superior strength to pull the chain out of Osha's grip.
At the same moment, Tenshun once again charges but using the kusarigama Deku wraps it around the Iida boy. Deku tightens the chain, binding Class 1-A's resident flyer, and let's go allowing the teen to fall onto the roof. Una and Kikue try to lash out; Deku swipes his hand generating a gust of wind that repels the attacks while also causing the students to try and prevent themselves from being swept away.
With their offense all but destroyed Deku takes off for another part of the arena leaving the students behind. 'Well done kids! Finally, some real teamwork.'
Unfortunately, Deku put a little too much power behind his jump so when he landed on top of an unsuspecting house he caved-in the roof. "Oops."
As Deku surveys the damage a glimmering magenta aura forms around him. "What tha?" With a small flash he disappears and Ioko occupies his previous space, having used her teleporting quirk to switch spots with the pro hero.
Deku reappears inside a backyard surrounded by large trees and thick walls. Before he can react, a large gravity blast pushes him into the ground.
Akugun floats overhead, having used his quirk on himself, he aims his hand behind himself, and blasts himself towards Deku. "I've got you!"
"Oh, no you don't!" Deku evades Akugun's attempt to tag him but in that same moment Akugun expertly spins around and manages to hit the pro hero with another Gravity Burst.
Because he's now in zero gravity Deku is flown right into the wall but he manages to cushion himself with his arm. Deku kicks himself up into the air but in a flash of glimmering magenta light he finds himself back on the roof that he caved-in.
Meanwhile, Akugun uses his quirk to launch himself up towards Ioko, who after using her Substitute quirk ended up in the air. Once there Akugun produces a small harmless shockwave that hits her but rather than blasting her away it allows to float in the air.
Deku while still in motion is encased in ice.
Kyuen jumps and charges. "You're mine, Dad!"
While still in the ice, Deku's smile broadens, "My you really have gotten better. I'm so proud." A tiny tear leaks from his eye. "But you still have a ways to go!" One For All sparks wildly, Deku breaks free of his binds and dodges his daughter's outstretched hand.
Deku heads for the ledge but a spiral of flames surrounds him. Grinning he kicks his foot in the air that blows the fiery prison away. He runs for the ledge but once again Ioko, who remained floating up above, uses her Substitute quirk transporting Deku into midair. There the pro hero starts descending rapidly, Akugun rockets himself upward to meet Deku.
Deku observes him with a bit of fascination and pride. 'Man, they are really persistent. Then again, I did have a hand in raising these kids, so I guess I had this coming. It's a good strategy: assault me with rapid attacks while also trying to throw me off with sudden changes in the environment.'
Deku tucks in his legs and aims them down at the fast approaching gravity manipulator. When the kid gets close enough Deku springs his legs out towards him generating a small vortex that not only knocks Akugun of course but also allows Deku to fly away.
Ioko uses her lavender visor to zoom in on the escaping hero. "I-I can-"
"No, wait!" Kyuen shouts holding her arm out stopping Ioko from moving. "If you try to switch with him, you'll be the one flying away, and we won't be able to prevent you from falling." She glares up at her father in frustration but with a bit of enjoyment. "We'll just have to go after him."
Rakish and Warau hop across rooftops looking for their target, they had both seen and heard a loud crash in the area, but both of them fail to notice the very same target watching them from below in a dark narrow alley.
'To be honest I thought for sure that at least one of them would have gotten me by this point.' Deku thinks, wipe some sweat off his brow. 'Well maybe I'll just hang out here for a little while before heading out again…is it getting hot?'
For some reason the temperature in the alley is rising despite the fact that it's completely encroached by shade.
Deku stands up looking around for the source of heat. His instincts, after years of pro hero work, send shivers down his spine as if to warn him of nearby danger. Suddenly Deku sparks up and leaps forward just as a red object smashes into the spot he was previously occupying.
'What was that!?'
From within the cloud of dust and heat a pair of fiery golden eyes glare up at the pro hero. Genma roars, his right arm covered in his armorized blood, as he pounces at Deku.
Deku's smile falters as he dodges Genma's fist which ends up crashing into the nearby wall. "You really need to control that temper of yours."
"Shut up!" Genma shouts aiming his red claw at Deku. "I will defeat you, Deku!" Genma's aura flames rage as he slashes at the Symbol of Peace.
Deku barely manages to step back before jumping onto a nearby fire escape. "Sheesh, all you have to do is tag me."
Rather than answer Genma jabs his claw into the wall before launching himself up. While in midair his right arm demorphs and his left arm transforms. He once again slashes at Deku but the pro hero grabs the ladder above them and slams it down creating a flimsy but effective shield against the raging teen's attack allowing Deku to retreat back down to the alleyway below.
"Stop moving!"
"Aw, what's the matter?" Deku jumps back avoiding another attack. "Come on this is supposed to be a fun exercise."
"Be quiet! And fight back!" Genma tries to kick Deku with his demonic foot but of course he misses.
Deku leads Genma out of the alley and into the open street. "Oh, I see is this about yesterday?" The crimson student strikes again but misses. "I get it, trust me. I'm sure your pride has been hurt, but you don't have to let one defeat define you."
"Shut it! You don't know anything about me!" Genma points an accusing demonic finger at his opponent. "All you need to know is that I'll be the one to defeat you!"
'What's up with this kid? Where is this rage coming from?' Deku swings up on top of an electrical pole in order to avoid another assault of attacks. "Tell me young man. What's driving you?"
Genma frowns. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean…what's your ambition? What do you hope to gain? What is your dream?" He smiles brightly while posing as if to inspire the young man. "Why do you want to become a hero!?"
The two opponents stare at each other one full of hope and excitement while the other is a bit surprised and offended by the question.
Genma's eyes shadow over thanks to his hair; he takes a few moments to think before he answers.
"I'm going to be powerful." He says softly. "So much so that I can create a bright future for the world." Genma finally leers up at Deku, who can see a fiery ambition in the boy's golden eyes. "But you stand in the way of that!" Genma's right leg becomes a red mass of armor and with a burst of great speed and strength he bounds towards the electrical pole that Deku is occupying.
Genma kicks the pole breaking it apart. Deku hops off and lands softly on the street but Genma morphs his right arm grabbing the tall pole and swings it at his target. Deku sweats nervously as he ducks letting the pole whoosh past his head before it slams against a wall and shatters into a hundred of tiny pieces upon impact.
"You have such strength, but you're too savage, too unrefined." Deku jumps over Genma as he charges him only for the student to break the wall apart with his punch. "Remember young man, the power of one's quirk doesn't determine how good of a hero one will be, but their actions and their ideals."
The Demon's Blood user snarls. "Stop preaching your philosophies, they're annoying."
Deku smiles bashfully. "Yeah, I'm well aware of that."
Genma bares his shark-like teeth he's absolutely pissed at this point having been humiliated by the same opponent two days in a row. His blood is boiling, his heart is thumping, and his flame like aura is whipping out from his demonic hand. In all honesty he can feel a rampaging monster within him trying to claw its way out using his anger as a means to do so.
Genma lunges reeling back his fist and shouts. "TAKE THIS-"
"Out of the way, Red!" Akugun flies out of nowhere and kicks Genma to the side. Akugun slides across the ground as Genma is knocked into a mailbox. "He's mine!"
Genma recovers and clashes heads with Akugun, immediately forgetting about his original target. "No way, I was here first! You should just stand back before I kick your sorry ass!"
"What did you say?" Akugun asks dangerously. "I'LL KICK YOUR ASS YOU STUPID RED-HAIRED BASTARD!"
"BRING IT, YOU GRAVITY FUCKER!"
A watching Deku watches on with mild amusement. 'They totally forgot about me.'
"You morons!" Kyuen appears from a nearby street looking like she has been personally offended by the boys' actions. Behind her is a confused Ioko who's struggling to keep up.
Kyuen charges at the boys. "Kyuen Chop!" She chops both of the bickerers on the head, knocking them to the ground and possibly giving them concussions. She then grabs the two by the collars and starts shaking them. "The task was to get him not each other!"
"Blame him!" They both shout simultaneously while pointing accusing fingers at each other.
Kyuen glares daggers at both them, it's super effective, and both boys look away with some fear.
Ioko however seems to be the most terrified despite the fact that she not the one facing the emerald-haired girl's wrath. 'W-who knew sh-she could be so s-s-scary?'
Kyuen lets the two go and they fall back onto the asphalt. She takes a breath before speaking. "Well, it's not too late. We can still…get…him…" Looking around she notices that her father is no longer present. "You've got to be kidding!" She screams into the infinite sky.
Deku sprints across the suburb passing by other Class 1-A members, but he's moving so fast that they can't even attempt to catch him. Hell, some them aren't even sure if it was him running by. 'Phew, that could have gotten hairy. But I have to admit it's a bit disappointing. Yeah sure, I maybe the Number One Hero, but I'm still giving them opportunities, yet none have been able to do it.' While still running, his mind flashes back to Genma's declaration. 'He has so much anger I wonder if that's how he draws out his quirk, but…he also seemed…hateful towards me. Hm, maybe I should ask the teachers about it they may-HOLY SHIT!'
Before Deku knows what happened Kenji Nouenbou casually reaches out his hand and tags the target's shoulder as he runs past a bush.
Deku comes to a stop but it's already too late. Kenji is leaning against a nearby fence hiding which is partially hidden by a large bush. He doesn't have a drop of sweat nor is he breathing heavily suggesting that he hasn't been exerting himself throughout the exercise.
The antennaed boy smirks looking very pleased with himself. "You were too distracted."
After signaling the end of the exercise Class 1-A meet back up with their supervisors at the exit where the bus is waiting for them. There they make their way back to the main U.A. building, they change back into their uniforms, and gather together in their homeroom.
"Alright everyone please congratulate our winner, Kenji Nouenbou!" Deku announces with glee.
The students clap from their seats although half-heartedly. 'How did he even win?'
"It's so not fair." Rakish plants his face onto his desk.
Warau pounds her hands against her desk. "Man, I really wanted to win!"
"I still can't believe my plan didn't work." Mitchio grumbles his ears drooped down.
'How did he even manage it?' Kyuen wonders to herself. 'Did he use his quirk? Wait…what is his quirk anyway?'
Kenji smirks at his classmates, they in turn glare at him.
"And here's our prize! A one of a kind hoodie signed by me!" Deku holds up a green hoodie with black and white patterns to resemble Deku's own hero costume, scribbled on the left side of the hoodie is Deku's signature.
Kenji smiles as he takes the hoodie. "Thanks."
"You're welcome! You earned it!" Deku gives the blonde a thumbs up before turning to the rest of the class. "Now can anyone tell me where everyone went wrong?"
No one answers for a while but eventually Kikue raises her hand. "A lot of us chose not to work together in order to gain the prize for ourselves."
"That's correct. Now as a pro hero you will always be competing for popularity, but heroes must set aside their selfish tendencies for the favorment of the greater good. Now some of you realized this fact while others…not so much." Deku says the last part rather bluntly causing some of the students to slouch in their seats. "Don't feel so bad, you're only students after all it's expected that you would make mistakes, but what's important is that you learn from them and improve yourselves. Understand?"
"Yes!" The fledgling heroes respond.
"Good, now I would love to stay and chat, but unfortunately a hero's job is never done. I'll be going now, but don't worry this won't be the last you see of me. Take care everyone!" And with that, Deku waves as he exits the classroom.
"He's so nice!" The students all say at once.
A few seconds later Battle Fist enters ready to start the history lesson.
Osha turns to Kyuen from his desk. "Your dad's so cool, tchk tchk."
Kyuen smiles softly. "Yeah, he is."
Meanwhile, Genma glares at the door as if waiting for Deku to reappear through it. He is still taking these defeats personally. Growing up it was instilled in him that a loss is a major offense to one's self and their interests. So much so that it can lead to one's own demise.
Near the back of the room, Kenji observes Genma from his seat as if trying to figure out a puzzle.
Deku arrives at the teacher's lounge where Vlad King, Creati, Lemillion, Prof. Stein, and Octovade are waiting for him. Vlad King sits at a large table alongside Creati and Lemillion all of which enjoying a cup of tea. Octovade stands nearby preparing coffee and Prof. Stein is occupying the couch looking like he really wants a smoke but knows he'll get in trouble if he does so.
Deku salutes his fellow heroes. "I am here!"
"We know." They reply monotonously.
Creati (Creation), wearing her usual office wear, puts down her cup of tea. "So how was the lesson?"
"I thought it went rather well. Those kids show a lot of promise."
"Really, does that include Genma Hazaki?" Creati asks hesitantly.
"…You saw?"
"Saw it and heard it." Vlad King holds up his U.A. pass, which projects a holographic image of Genma attacking Deku it also plays the audio of Genma's declaration.
"The Problem Child strikes again." Lemillion (Permeation) despite his playful smile sounds rather disappointed.
"What's up with that kid. When he attacked me, he wasn't trying to tag me but hurt me."
Prof. Stein (Thread Sutures) leans back in his seat like this new development is proving to be an interesting experiment, but he still holds an air of shiftiness around himself. "That is unclear. Although I bet Creati has something to say about that."
Creati raises an eyebrow. "You knew?"
The scientist smirks. "I am a scientist it's my job to observe things."
Vlad King eyes Creati. "Ms. Yaoyorozu what is Mr. Shutain talking about?"
Creati looks around and sees everyone eyeing her with curiosity, she sighs in defeat. "I've been doing some more digging into Mr. Hazaki's past."
"And?"
"Well there's still not much to go on. I contacted his middle school and as it turns out Mr. Hazaki was only there for a year. He was apparently homeschooled throughout most of his life. And according to his teachers he was always rather aggressive towards everyone else. Other than that he mostly kept to himself."
Octovade cups his chin. "That's not much to go on. What about his parents?"
"I looked into that, too. Unfortunately, that is also a dead end. His mother passed way over a decade ago and the cause of death was diagnosed as a weak heart. His father, however, is alive and works for an American company, but he's been on an extended business trip for the last couple of years. I've tried to contact him, but we only have his company's number and they have yet to contact me back."
"What his father's name?" Deku asks curiously.
"From what I can find it's Yaomi Hazaki." Creati replies.
Vlad King scratches his head. "Hm, I don't recognize it."
"If you'd like," Deku starts. "I could contact the Chief of Police, he's a personal friend, and see if he can get someone to look into Young Hazaki."
Creati shakes her head. "Admittedly that would be beneficial, but we really don't have a cause or reason to do so."
Octovade clasps his tentacles together. "I guess we'll only find out in time."
A sullen silence falls over them as they ponder about Genma Hazaki's past and intentions.
Deku claps his hands to redraw everybody's attention. "Well I better get going. I'm supposed to be on patrol in an hour."
"Right," Creati nods. "do take care. Oh, and tell Shoto I said hello."
"Of course, but this won't be the last you see of me. I will be back for the Sports Festival, got to cheer on my daughter after all."
Creati's smile broadens. "Yes, I believe she'll do well. Her strategic mind definitely gives her an advantage. As well as the fact that her quirk isn't so self-destructive." She gives Deku a cheeky look both of them remember their days back at U.A. especially their own first year of school.
Deku rubs the back of his head and chuckles sheepishly. "Yeah, well, until then, I wish you all good luck with these fledgling heroes!" Deku spins around and exits the room marching towards the exit. 'I wonder…what Young Hazaki will show us during the Sports Festival. Perhaps, I'll really find out what drives him.'
Author's Note: I really hoped you enjoyed Ch.12 I know that I really enjoyed writing it. Please leave a comment and/or criticism I am trying to improve my writing and this story. Also, I will probably be late on next week's update. Unfortunately, a lot of life stuff has hindered me from writing, I don't have writer's block, it's just that I needed to focus my attention on these other issues not to mention I do have finals coming up so that may also slow down my writing as well. That said I will try to have Ch.13 up and ready by next week, if not it will be up the following week. Thanks again for reading.