Chapter 38
Save! Test Run of Rescue!
As Class 1-A had brandished their hero costumes, they had taken a trip back to the USJ. Seeing the place once again had filled them with the same sense of wonder, and an eeries déjà vu.
"What!?" Mineta's jaw had hit the floor.
Tennyson however was very unsurprised, but Todoroki stepped forth, looking around curiously.
"That's right. The USJ is fixed." Eraser Head declared– before getting cut off by a familiar face.
"And that's not all!"
The class gasped and cheered at the puffy white jacket and black helmet walking towards them.
"Thirteen!"
"Well, well, now isn't this class a sight for sore eyes." She glanced at all of them, smiling underneath the helmet.
Ben had kept his arms crossed, but it definitely made him glad to see another faculty member recover.
"Nice to see you again, teach." He exclaimed while Uraraka raised her hand.
"Are you really okay, Thirteen-sensei?" She asked.
Tennyson raised an eyebrow. He genuinely wondered about the answer.
Thirteen shrugged. "Well… My back is still a little sore." She said. "But it was nothing compared to what your homeroom teacher went through."
Ben turned his eyes to Aizawa. Upon looking at him one more time, he really noticed how close the scarring was to his homeroom teacher's eyes, it reminded him of Midoriya's injury.
He checked on his friend as well, and couldn't help but mentally sigh. All this thinking about injuries thing certainly dampened his mood–
As if Eraser Head heard his thoughts though, suddenly his red eyes turned to him!
Ben looked away, whistling, acting like he wasn't just thinking about him!
So, Eraser Head turned back to face the class.
"There's no need to exaggerate." He stated. "We are all gathered so let's start the class, Thirteen."
She nodded, as he beckoned and walked down the stairs–
"Wait, we're just supposed to go back to class?" Kaminari opened his arms. " Like nothing ever happened here?!"
Eraser Head didn't react whereas Thirteen shrugged.
"Class IS class." She said. "Now follow me."
She followed Eraser Head down.
"Is this all we're getting though, as far as the elephant in the room?" Sato whispered.
Shoji responded to him. "They wouldn't want us to idle around one event forever." He said. "Since we're going to be heroes, they know we're going to see lots of sights like that…"
Asui joined them. "Ribbit, I agree."
Tennyson pursed his mouth, and Midoriya noticed it. His inner eyebrows raised, as he put a hand on his first scar, next to his eye.
"They're not wrong." He thought before taking note of the second one, the one he got against Todoroki which wrapped around his right hand. "There will be a lot of sights, but we'll make sure everyone pulls through. We'll save everyone…"
He looked back, and saw Iida walking with his head down. He was following the crowd from behind, wearing a grim scowl.
Midoriya nodded in sympathy.
"... as long as we also walk away from it."
Midoriya made sure to stick with Iida, as they were taken further into the facility. Going up a small range of man-made rocky highlands, they arrived at a unique section of the place.
With peaks taller than any other structure, and caverns darker and quieter than anywhere else, they arrived at a mountainous area. Shortly known as… the Mountain Zone.
Thirteen clapped her hands.
"So, let's start with a mountain-side rescue." She said. "At the bottom of this chasm, there will be three of you students. The scenario is that after an accident during a trip, all three of you have been trapped down there. One of you will be knocked unconscious, another will have a broken leg, and the last person is fine physically but really worried."
Kirishima and Kaminari made their way through the group, and looked down.
"What height!"
Tennyson palmed his fist. "Come on guys, it sounds simple enough."
Jiro confusedly looked over to him. "Yeah, real simple. *If* you can fly."
"Not really." Shoji remarked, raising an arm and transforming it into a mouth. "You have to remember, it isn't just flying out of a chasm."
"It's flying out with an injured person." Todoroki said.
Uraraka however pumped her fists up and down!
"Let's do this, let's save 'em, Deku!" She yelled as she went up to Midoriya.
He nodded.
"Y-Yeah!" He responded sheepishly. "Let's do this together. Iida, you too!"
Thirteen raised her finger. "The injured will be..!"
"... you three!"
With a dumbfounded expression, Tennyson, Uraraka and Iida found themselves at the bottom of the chasm, and Midoriya looked down at them.
"Well, nevermind." He thought.
Ben looked around, putting his hands on his hips. Iida was staying silent.
Uraraka sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Guess we really prepared for the wrong thing, huh." She said.
"Yeah." Ben responded, and clicked his tongue.
"Well, guess we're victims." he shook his head. "So… how do we do this?"
Uraraka shrugged. "Guess we just wail our arms around, and scream?"
Ben cracked a smirk.
"Okay, that sounds fun–"
"We have to divide the roles." Iida suddenly declared. He looked at them both, seeing their eyes.
"There needs to be one unconscious, one with a broken bone, and one who is distraught at the circumstance for their friends."
"Okay…" Ben raised an eyebrow, relatively taken aback at seeing the class rep activating at times, as if someone suddenly switched him on and off.
But he could deal with that.
"Do you have a preferred role?" He followed up.
Iida… shook his head.
Eraser Head looked down, and made sure all three of them were playing their roles.
"So, if you chose those three, Thirteen…" His eyes rolled, before narrowing to a group of them.
"... you four heroes will be the ones to rescue them." He raised his hand, and pointed to Yaoyorozu, Todoroki, Tokoyami and Bakugo.
Bakugo stood aside with his arms crossed, while Yaoyorozu mirrored him. However, unlike the angry teen, she was more meek and a lot more unsure.
"You may use these objects for your operation." Aizawa gestured to the rope and mountain stretcher next to the ledge, and Todoroki took that in.
"Understood." He nodded for the group, and crouched next to the ledge. With his mouth clamped shut, he examined the terrain and…
"Help us! Please!" Uraraka was yelling from the bottom of the chasm. "There are injured people!"
His eyes narrowed.
"Well, Icy-Hot?" Bakugo then came up behind him and stood over.
The ice and fire teen's eyes narrowed, before closing briefly as he got up.
"My name is Shoto." He established first. "We need to decide on who'll be going down."
He gestured to the side of the mountain before looking at the creation girl.
"A pulley system would be our best bet, Genesis. By how it seems, we could then use the rope and the stretcher to evacuate the unconscious and injured, and have them tended to immediately." He said. "Perhaps, Tsukuyomi, you could be the one to go down?"
Tokoyami nodded. "I shall do as ordered."
His eyes then turned to Bakugo.
"After that, you'll fly down and grab the panicked bystander… umm… Unnam–"
"It's King Explosion Murder! And yeah, I know!" Bakugo groaned as the class who watched on could only have sheepish smiles.
"Wow, look at Todoroki being all considerate." Kaminari nudged Mineta, and the little student had the same reaction.
"Yeah, who knew…"
Jiro looked down at him, and kept her deadpan look. However she kept her arms behind her back and focused on Todoroki's expression.
Even though one side of his face was covered by ice, she could see that his eyebrows weren't as crossed, or his forehead wasn't as wrinkled.
Midoriya noticed it too.
"He's not pushing anyone out, making sure the work is divided on some part to all of them." He thought.
It made him recall the first battle trial, when Todoroki secured the weapon all on his own.
Midoriya put a hand on his chin–
"Is everything alright, Genesis?" Todoroki asked suddenly, breaking Midoriya's concentration.
"What is going on?"
Jiro's attention then slid to Yaomomo, who was creating the pulley wheels but a lot more apprehensively. The question resulted in her snapping out.
"Hm? Yes, however I… couldn't help but think that we're skipping over something rather important." She answered.
Todoroki raised an eyebrow.
"And what might that be?" Tokoyami asked.
Yaoyorozu went to the edge of the cliff, and dropped to her knees. She raised her voice.
"Please keep calm everyone! We will get to you as soon as possible!" She said, searching and finding the three students with her eyes. Iida, who was clearly the panicked survivor, Uraraka who was sitting up with her leg extended, most likely because she wanted to imply it was broken and…
… Tennyson, who was lying on the ground, eyes closed. She felt a cold sweat wash over her, but quickly the creation girl shook her head.
"Just hang on!" She shouted again, as Tokoyami nodded.
"I see." He said. "In a crisis, it would be most logical if we were to ease the terrified souls of the imperiled. It makes so much sense upon first thought."
She got back to her feet.
"I… wanted to do this lesson properly." Yaomomo said. "And so, I thought we should be presenting ourselves first. Saving someone extends beyond just rescuing from physical danger, but also reassuring them so that they're ready to be saved."
Todoroki's eyebrows went up, and his mouth faintly opened.
"Impressive…" Kirishima also uttered from the sidelines. "She's also a real natural at this!"
"Uh-huh…" Mineta nodded as he had also crouched… and was looking at her from below.
"Yes, very good." He said, wiping away the drool–
"BRO!" Kaminari yelled.
Via an assist from Bakugo and Todoroki who held the rope, Tokoyami was taken down to the depths of the chasm along with the stretcher.
"Sorry for the wait. The Jet-Black heroes* have arrived to your aid." He said.
"I never agreed to that name!" Bakugo's yelling came up from above the cliffside.
Midoriya raised his hand and placed it next to his mouth. "I don't think he was talking about you, Kacchan."
Bakugo growled in response while two sources of light peaked behind Tokoyami's robe, and a darkness surged claws outstretched and mouth open, Dark Shadow erupted out and took his place by his side!
"So cool…" Uraraka thought as Tokoyami stood on task and took a look at all of them.
"Okay, I see it would be the wiser choice for Tennyson to be escorted up first, seeing as he's unconscious."
Tennyson immediately opened one eye. "I mean, I'm pretty comfortable–"
"Tennyson." Tokoyami and Iida said exasperatedly as Dark Shadow crossed its claws.
"Would it really kill you to leave the glory-hounding to us for once…" He added, acting even more grumpy than the other two.
Tokoyami looked up. It must have been the additional darkness' effect.
"We should put him on the stretcher and then gently take him up..." He said, putting his foot down.
The quirk remained non-compliant. Dark Shadow rolled his eyes.
"... Dark Shadow." Tokoyami stated.
When everyone started looking at him, including Tennyson, he unraveled his claws.
"Fine! Whatever." His arms stretched and wrapped Tennyson and the stretcher from below.
Iida saw the smirk on Tennyson's face as he was strapped in.
"It's best for you to obey the rules, Tennyson." He said, in reaffirmation. "So that we may get this exercise done… quickly, if possible."
"Slowly." Yaomomo raised her hand.
As Todoroki and Bakugo pulled on the rope, she stood by the cliffside with the ice from which the rope was suspended from. The second Tokoyami would let go, due to reaching the border of the shadow, she wanted to make sure nothing could go wrong.
Iida watched on from below.
Pursing her mouth, Yaoyorozu narrowed her eyes– until she caught a glimpse of the stretcher.
Tennyson came into frame. With his eyes closed and hands on his stomach, he looked… ever so peaceful. She put a hand on her head.
It felt as though the view… started to get closer, and then further away… The sight was enough to make her feel nauseous–!
"You had what you wanted?"
She heard–
"Ponytail!" Bakugo called out, making her snap back to reality!
She shook her head.
"I apologize." She responded, feeling the nausea fade. "Looking down for so long… must have made me dizzy."
"I could take over if needed." Todoroki said, but Yaomomo shook her head. It was fine…
They continued pulling. When the stretcher arrived, she also grabbed the rope and pulled it close and… put him on the ground. Her hands couldn't help but still shake faintly.
Her mind recalled back to something her father had told… when she first confronted him.
…
"The police and heroes arrived." He had said. "We testified for the attack, however the barge had fallen off the waterfall and neither the hero… nor the villains… were found–"
…
Tennyson got up, and Yaomomo wasn't able to help herself but jerk back.
"Wow, now, is that uncomfortable." He exclaimed, rubbing behind his head. "It's like, the worst part of lying on a hammock…"
Ben paused.
"What's wrong, Genesis?" He said, tilting his head. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
She, in response, looked away and brushed her bang aside.
"I'm fine." She got up. "Let's pull up the next one."
One by one, Uraraka, Iida and then Tokoyami were all pulled back up. Bakugo and Todoroki both took a deep breath, and wiped the sweat off their foreheads.
Thirteen nodded in satisfaction. "Don't knock how it looks on the outside, everyone. One lesson everyone should definitely take away here, is that rescuing people can be *some* taxing work."
Though most nodded, Sero didn't miss his chance to jeer. "I mean, yeah, but is yelling and pulling a rope really all that taxing?"
A cross-shaped vein appeared on Bakugo's cheek, as he barely kept his mouth shut.
"It might not seem like much, Sero." Thirteen responded for him. "However what Bakugo's demonstrating is something big, even for the modern heroes of our time!"
"Huh?" He opened his mouth, and seeing his students so dumbfounded, Eraser Head took the word from his colleague to explain.
"Acting in a normal manner." He stated. "Even now, many pros desperately want their presence at a scene to be justified and so, force their quirk onto the situation."
Thirteen nodded.
"I agree fully. This only complicates matters at the least, or makes them outright worse. Remember, your quirk is only a tool in one toolbox." She said. "So instead, being able to see past yourself and be willing to work for the person who has the right quirk for a given assignment, is something you should learn."
Bakugo took another breath, before standing tall again and giving Sero a glare.
The tape hero, Cellophane, in question shrunk back into the crowd.
"I understand." he said… before nudging Shoji.
"A great hero with a not-so-great attitude? I don't know…"
Bakugo's eyebrow twitched however as he had caught the comment–
"Enough." Eraser Head said. "You all will form teams. You can show me if you *can* make a great hero or not. Sero, Sato and Ashido, you're up next."
Thirteen crossed her arms.
"Aoyama, Shoji, Koda, you will be the victims."
Sato leaned down next to Ashido's ear.
"Oh boy." He whispered.
"You're telling me." She responded.
The training on the mountain-side continued as the next set of students got to work, and other sets followed suit. It was made sure that everyone got to experience what it was like to conduct a mountain rescue.
"WOOOOOOHOOOOOOO!"
Uraraka jumped off the side of the cliff, with one hand holding onto the rope.
Bringing her fingers together just in time, she made herself weightless just before landing. She put her hands on her hips and puffed her chest.
"You're the last one, Miss!" She said with a fake bravado… before covering her mouth and laughing behind her mouth.
An "injured" Tsu was standing before her, and she just remained deadpan.
"Thank you, Ochako." Tsu said–
Uraraka shushed, and Asui's eyebrows faintly went up.
"Oh, right, we're using our codenames."
Uraraka nodded before she took out a safety harness and wrapped it around her friend, after also wrapping a splinter around her "broken" leg.
"Alright. Tsu, this may feel a bit weird… but try not to freak out, okay?"
"Ribbit." Asui nodded as Uraraka then touched her shoulder and she started floating up.
Ojiro was firmly holding the rope, making sure she didn't accidentally swerve away while she was also attached to the safety harness.
"Let's do this, Midoriya. Last one." He said, and the green haired hero took a deep breath.
"I'll take care of it…"
Seeing Asui come up, he waited until she rose higher than him before extending his arms!
"Now, Uraraka!" He shouted and immediately a pink glow flashed around Asui as she fell into Midoriya's arms.
"Safe!" Midoriya shouted proudly… however Asui didn't let him enjoy the moment even for a second.
"Midoriya, put me down first, ribbit."
The greenette looked at her and tilted his head… before it hit him that he had her in a bridal carry.
"It's embarrassing even though my leg is bandaged–"
"R-Right, I-I agree!" He did as he was told, as Ojiro helped Uraraka get back up. The redness on Midoriya's face subsided. Taking a deep breath, he checked on Iida however the class prez wasn't talking unless he was spoken to.
He frowned–
"We rescued everyone!" Ojiro said.
"Excellent." Thirteen said while Eraser Head turned away.
"Then let's not waste time. It's time for you to attempt other zones."
However, with now a taste for the challenge, 1-A adapted quickly to this mere change of scenery. They didn't need to be told twice to survey the situation, come up with a plan, and then RESCUE.
Downpour Zone
EXERCISE GROUP FIVE! START!"
Gray weather loomed over the dome. Hail and gusty winds reduced visibility. Kirishima and his hero compatriots tried to make their way forth through the sidewalk as his arms hardened out of instinct.
"How are we meant to see through this thing?!" He yelled to try and communicate.
"Or hear." Jiro said from behind him. "It's hard to get a read when the wind's blowing in your ear!" She raised her hands. "Not to mention it's freezing."
Kirishima turned around and saw her purposefully crouching to hide herself more from the ice. His eyebrows crossed and he opened his arms to make himself appear larger– even though he had no shirt on himself.
This hail was no joke and unfortunately… he had no idea on where to start… as a plastic riot shield got in front of him.
"Try this instead, Red Riot." He potted Yaoyorozu, Genesis, by his side and created more of those shields as Sato held one over her.
"Normal umbrellas would not last." she stated before passing another one, and Kirishima passed the one he had to Jiro.
"We must get to lowland and open areas." Yaoyorozu stated as she got to her feet. "Let's split up and search the outsides of buildings. Our victims must have some cover, however not much. Remain in pairs as well, to watch out for any flash floods."
She strapped the shield to her forearm. It started to shake almost immediately, however she clenched her teeth and forced it to stop before turning to Jiro.
"Ambiance, you and Red Riot could become one." She spoke up again. "Sugar Rush, is it alright if we travel together?"
"You need only ask, vice prez." Sugar Rush clenched his fist. Yaomomo nodded in response, before turning to the rest of the team.
"Let's move!" She raised her shield and everyone went on their assignments.
In the meantime, the remainder of the students watched alongside the teachers by way of screens and cameras.
As Tennyson proudly grinned, Uraraka watched with an open mouth, surprised by the ordered… and collected nature.
Landslide Zone
Iida paced around the entrance slowly and methodically.
"Are there three victims, namely Sato, Ashido and Koda, Ambiance?"
Jiro, taking off her headphones, shook her head.
"Nope, there's four. Mineta's hard to see, but he's definitely not hard to hear." She massaged her temples. "Either he's too into the role, or he's afraid of the dark."
Kaminari made his hand into a fist. "Then we better extract them quickly. What's our plan, class prez?"
Iida shook his head.
"Set up a first-aid station here." He pointed behind him. "Start unpacking the items provided to us, It would be most logical if I'm the one bringing the victims here."
He put a foot forward and dug it to the dirt as he let his engines roar!
It dumbfounded Kaminari though.
"Wait, Iida, so we're just gonna stay behin–?"
As if the green light went off, the engine hero bolted forward!
Jiro and Kaminari watched after him.
"Guess so." Jiro opened her hands. "I'll be taking the box…" She left, and the rest of the class watched from the monitor room.
Eraser Head kept his arms crossed, as Thirteen kept a hand on where her mouth would be.
"I mean… It's a logical division for labor." She remarked.
"It is." Eraser Head reaffirmed. "And his decision-making was swift as well, however it is hazardous to go into an unstable environment without a partner."
"The victims could be in a time limit though." Thirteen retorted. "Bringing a partner could have hindered his movement."
"Still. It is a worthy risk." He said. "For this case, Jiro was given a faint idea of who to look for. But, in a real scenario, being so sure of a distant scan of the area, would only be a detriment for any survivors of the initial event… Anyone who survived by the stroke of a miracle."
Thirteen scoffed.
"For a guy who likes to bring up natural disasters and how unfair the world can be, you sure are optimistic, bringing up miracles."
Eraser Head put his hands in his pocket.
"I've said the world we live in is unfair, Thirteen." He turned around. "Doesn't mean someone else can't get lucky."
He sighed ever so silently, wearing even more of a grumpy expression.
"Remember everyone." He said, his voice covered with the thinnest of melancholy. "Heroes would be nothing, if they were to not have any hope."
"Understood!" Everyone repeated.
Asui looked at the screen. Iida was running with his helmet kept on. She tilted her head…descending ever further into thought.
Conflagration Zone
"Help! Somebody help moi!" Aoyama yelled and waved his hands from the top of a burning building, along with Sato.
Shoji immediately broke down the door to the building though. He unraveled his arms and turned all of his dupli-arms into ears. Closing his eyes, he listened through the crackling of fire and creaking of wood.
"There's two upstairs and one downstairs." He called behind him with two other heroes stepping forth.
"Be careful with the ice."
"No worries." Tennyson said. "We'll do this quick!" He fixed his sleeve as Todoroki put a hand on his left side. The ice that had been covering his left side as part of his costume was melting rapidly.
"We should." the fire and ice hero said. "For the sake of the people inside." He widened his stance, and fixed the cracks of his costume's ice.
"I shall provide the moisture Water Hazard needs." Shoto said as ice manifested under his right foot.
"No need." Ben shrugged. "I was looking to show off my new trick."
Todoroki felt his eyes widen, as within a green flash, a blue cowl and hood manifested around Tennyson. Once he turned, he could see glowing green eyes with lighter spots inside.
"Isn't it… *ice* to meet new people in this job… Shoto?" He said in a raspy tone.
Todoroki pressed his foot down, and Big Chill opened his mouth. As he had managed to extinguish the lower floors, Tennyson managed to tamper the flames with more control and then get rid of them. It made him narrow his eyes in wonder.
Shoji, seeing how the situation was being handled, went in while Tennyson unraveled his wings to grab and then bring down the people up top.
As Sato and Aoyama had their feet touch the ground, which they thanked them for and then moved on, Big Chill wrapped the wings back around himself and restored his cloak.
"Cool party…" He transformed back, and faced Todoroki. "What do you think?"
Todoroki's intense expression restored itself, but he still evaluated his thoughts.
"You had such control. How did you achieve it in a short amount of time?"
Ben… didn't know how to respond. "Dunno." He replied. "I just felt like I always knew."
Todoroki faintly and slowly nodded in acknowledgement.
"You also have flight… Something I didn't have." He stated.
"Intangibility too." He thought, but didn't say. There was a sinking feeling in him, that maybe it was too early to be playful with Todoroki… since he seemed to be in some uncertain ground ever since the sports festival–
"I also like the wings."
Ben raised his eyebrows. Todoroki faced the building they extinguished, which was now covered with ice and ash.
"I like how they form out of your cloak." He said, still with an uneasy tone but ultimately honest.
Ben smiled in response.
"Yeah, they make you wanna soar to new heights." He said, which Todoroki followed up with another nod, however this time, his gaze rose up the building.
Only Shoji's arrival along with the last "victim", Sero, and the instruction of the teachers could break him out of his thoughts.
"You have all done a great job for your first time!" Thirteen raised her hands, as the class had just finished partaking in five out of the six zones!
The sun outside was setting and now, they were standing before the last one.
A range of demolished buildings, torn up roads and wrecked vehicles; together, called the Ruins Zone.
"I agree." Eraser Head joined in. "For your first lesson here, you have all adapted to each of the zones well and kept a level-head."
Everyone felt their chest puffing up. All throughout the students, there was still an energetic and ecstatic air to do so much more–!
"However… " He said with his eyes glowing, forcing everyone back down to silence immediately. The glare felt as if it was staring into their souls. "The class isn't over."
"You have one final lesson." Thirteen raised her finger. "Unlike level one, the situations will be getting a little more realistic."
She opened her hands.
"Now, in any disaster you won't be having your victims in one concentrated area." Thirteen raised a finger. "They will be spread out, most likely numerous, and who knows what condition they'll be in."
"You can't count on them yelling for help." Aizawa summed up, before Thirteen nodded and continued.
"For this exercise, you will be hiding out anywhere inside this zone as bystanders. There will be an 8 minute time limit, and once that's up, five of you who will be heroes will become their rescuers."
Ashido hummed to herself, before looking up. Thirteen continued.
"On top of that, eight of the hidden ones which I'll select, will not be allowed to speak."
A light bulb went off in Ashido's head.
"Oh! So we're playing hide and seek!?" she raised her hand.
Aizawa huffed but Thirteen couldn't help but laugh.
"Well, you're right, it is 'almost' like hide and seek." She said. "However, with sort of a twist."
Everyone nodded… as did Ben. To him, this was just unbridled fun. What was there for Mr. Aizawa to hype this lesson up so much after the name picking?
"Okay." Thirteen cut in and assembled her hands. "The ones who will be seeking… are you!"
Almost instantly the students scattered, either with the help of their quirks or on foot to race all across the Ruins Zone and find the perfect hiding spot.
As announced earlier, Thirteen had chosen five heroes from among them, all of which were very well suited for the job.
"Alright!" Midoriya put his fist in his palm. "Let's start close and work our way outwards."
"I agree." Uraraka perked up.
Bakugo gritted his teeth without paying much attention.
"I mean, yeah, but is yelling and pulling a rope really all that taxing?" He was too busy thinking about what Sero said.
Ashido raised her fists.
"Understood, captain!" She said, stretching her arms. "You ready, Anima?"
"..."
Koda was nodding his head nervously.
*8 MINUTES TO HIDE ARE OVER!* Speakers across the entirety of the area blared and Bakugo's arms unraveled at the same time!
"There's no need!" He put his hands behind him. "Just follow me, garbage!"
With an explosion he bolted forward!
Midoriya shielded his eyes from the smoke, and the second it dispersed, he could see Bakugo flying away.
"Bakugo!" Uraraka yelled.
"Talk about rash!" And Ashido was right there with her, but Midoriya wasn't in the slightest bit fazed.
"It can't be helped. It's just us four. Let's start searching for the ones that can speak." He said. "According to the scenario, a lot of time has passed since the villain fight."
Ashido rested her hand on her hip, confidently as she listened, while Uraraka put her hand under her chin and looked up.
"Maybe we can take a page out of Genesis' book, and do a sweep in pairs?" She said,
Midoriya responded positively.
"Good idea." He said–
"I call Koda!" Ashido said and wrapped around the arm of the 6 foot rocky student. Both Uraraka and Midoriya tilted their heads…
"What?" Ashido asked them. "Me and Koda haven't been on a team before, and Uraraka and I always have the usual girl time."
Midoriya shrugged dumbfoundedly. "Alright…"
She started sliding on her acid. "Come on, Koda!" She beckoned with her arm.
Koda, after briefly being startled, followed after her.
"Don't just do searches from above Koda! This was an unexpected attack so people're more likely to be inside." Midoriya noted.
Koda returned a thumbs up over his shoulder.
"And be careful with the acid, Mina!" Uraraka yelled after her friend too.
Ashido, on the other hand, didn't.
Midoriya tilted his head, and shrugged.
"Let's go, Deku." Uraraka said, raising her fists and he nodded.
This was good.
They had a solid plan. If they were lucky, they'd probably find everyone before half an hour. And this exercise… would be over.
With motions that were much less still, Tenya Iida was pacing with his head down… from one end of the room to the other.
Inside the room he had chosen to hide, there was a busted up treadmill along with mats, a dashed sandbag and weights ranging from one kilo all the way to thirty.
It gave the resemblance of an old-school gym salon… a place of self-improvement.
He sat on the fancy wooden parquet, and put his elbows on his legs–
"Iida…"
His head shot up, and saw Froppy who was standing right at the doorsill with the broken windows positioned on her sides.
"Ah, Tsu." He got to his feet and stood up straight and rigid, just like his usual self. "I was unaware we had ended up in the same building during our attempts to hide from the heroes." He raised a hand.
However, Asui shook her head and closed the door behind him
"Yes, however this wasn't just a coincidence, as you most likely inferred." She stated.
The armored, speeding hero paused. His head hung down again.
"Yes." He put a hand on the back of his head.
"I came to say that I'm sorry for… what happened."
Iida turned around. His mouth pursed, as his expression was a grim one under his helmet.
"I appreciate your concern. However, he's merely in the hospital." He managed to reply to his friend. "The best medical science our country has to offer is working around the clock for his well-being."
She nodded.
"Yes, but that doesn't change that you're upset…"
"Yes." He said plainly, accidentally cutting her off. But when he saw Asui waiting with her mouth shut and usual expression, he gave the word back.
"I apologize." He said.
In response, she took a deep breath.
"It is deeply upsetting, however you have to be rational. The last thing your brother would want is for you to get hung up by his injury."
Her mouth pursed, adding a little of a pause between her words.
"He would ask you to move on."
Iida… felt his eyes widen. upon hearing those words.
"My apologies again, Asui." He raised a hand, turning to her. "But…" He uttered.
"How?"
…
"I wasn't sure if I wanted to say anything yesterday…" Tensei said. "But I… I can't feel my legs."
"What?!" Iida got up to his feet. "No way–"
"I think…" His brother said, averting his gaze and gritting his teeth. "I think… the pro-hero Ingenium might be finished."
He looked up but Iida noticed that the gaze wasn't on him for a second. Turning around, he spotted that a well-built doctor was watching from behind him. His face and hair was covered with surgical masks, but Iida could still see the long black hair and eyes. It was the third doctor he had seen around his brother after some unknown complications had risen with the first one, leading him to be indisposed. He walked away though once their gazes met.
"But only for me." Tensei said, pulling his attention back. His eyes were as open as the bandage on his head and the anesthesia would allow.
Iida shook his head.
"You… No, you still have so many people to inspire, brother! This can't be true!"
"I'm sorry." Tensei said, closing his eyes as he felt a sharp pain around his abdomen. So he relaxed, letting himself sink into the hospital bed even more.
"But I don't want it to end here… " he groaned. "That's why… I want you to take the name. Move on… for me."
…
Feeling tense, his hand shook ever so slightly before being frozen still.
"How is it… that you know my brother so well?" He asked with wonder but underlying frustration.
Asui bowed her head.
"Ribbit, I have siblings of my own." She said. "A sister and brother, and… that's what I would tell them if I was in that position."
Iida… took off his helmet.
Ben, currently in his Cannonbolt form, was laying down. For his location, he had chosen an abandoned arcade, surrounded with all kinds of atari machines.
However, just after five minutes, he found himself endlessly bored. He tapped the dial on his chest and transformed back.
"Huff…" He stretched his body before getting up. "Oh man, maybe I did too good a job to hide."
After all, he had rolled, bounced and ricocheted towards the end of the entire area. Even Bakugo at top speed would need a break to get to his hiding place.
He still got to his feet though and leaned on a wall with crossed arms. It was pretty fun to go around saving people… or being the one saved.
However his foot started tapping on the ground. One of his fingers started tapping on his arm as he closed his eyes a little.
Would it be too much to ask for… something to happen, maybe–?
All of a sudden, the shadows inside the building… wavered. He heard a heavy thud and Ben felt the air suddenly change.
"What the hell…" He muttered.
Because there was no mistaking it, that was a footstep but… no one in his class was that heavy–
He saw two orange eyes, shining from a muscular figure hidden away.
"Alright, tall, dark and not-so-sneaky…" He said, reaching for the Omnitrix as fatigue vanished from his eyes. If he wasn't wrong, the guy was over six foot and–
He suddenly vanished from sight. Ben slammed the dial.
The green flash went off, and he felt his body turn into pure energy… while a metal armor built around him–!
Asui opened her arms.
"It's like Mr. Aizawa said, heroes would be nothing if they were to not have any hope." She exclaimed.
"If my sisters were to lose hope in heroes, after I lose everything fighting a villain, I know everything I'd done would have been for nothing."
Iida looked down, clearly no longer seeing her, so she moved forward.
"Ribbit. Don't let him feel like that. Never lose hope."
Iida looked down, as his body tensed. He imagined his brother on the hospital bed again, and his expression became darker because of it.
He put on his helmet.
"I have no intention to." Iida replied solemnly. "I have hope… and that swift, proper justice will reach the responsible."
His navy blue irises were made dim, adapting as if he was pulled down from the turmoil-filled tides of the surface to the much quieter depths. The exhaust ports of his engines flashed on and off, humming ever so discreetly before booming and getting right into their full swing!
Meanwhile, Bakugo flew through the streets with roaring explosions from his hands. He dodged under a collapsed highway and cut the corner right by a helicopter wreckage in a building.
He landed on top of the building, and closed his eyes… listening.
There were no cries for help. Scowling, he flew down. As he saw a street light, he stopped the explosions,caught the pole, and spun, using the momentum to shoot himself forth.
However, it didn't make the scowl disappear from his face.
From the corner of his eye, he then saw Shoji sitting at the second floor of a half-destroyed building and a crashed car right by.
He gritted his teeth, dashed and spun around, gathering more momentum as..!
*BOOM!*
He bashed an explosion right at the car, and threw it just under the destroyed part of the building, giving him a step to go down.
"THERE! OCTOPUS ARMS, FOUND!" He yelled.
Shoji looked down, and noticed that the car was an effective enough step to get down.
"Thanks, Bakug–"
"That's *King Explosion Murder*!" He put his hands behind him and flew again as his teeth grinded together.
…
"I will leave you with this though." Eraser Head had said. "The name you give yourself is important. It is a wish, reinforcing your image now, and especially establishing… what kind of hero you want to be in the future."
…
"That IS my wish!" He thought, still continuing to soar before doing a three point landing on a sideways truck once he got far enough.
Once he got on his feet, he brought up his hand. He could feel that his palm was a sweaty mess under the glove just like he wanted it to be for his quirk.
However… an idea struck him.
"Hmph." He grunted.
Making sure that there was no one around, he took off the grenade gauntlet on his right side. And then… his glove. Feeling the cold, soothing air instantly rush to his palm, he quickly took a stance that outstretched his right hand and planted his feet.
His hand shook, almost outright spazzing as the light over the inside of his hand violently grew. He kept it front and center though, forcing it to not be blown back despite beads of sweat forming on his face, right before he let go. As if an oxygen tank was super heated, the creaking sound finally left its place for a burst and smoke as a decimating explosion roared forth.
It carved right through the asphalt, as Bakugo saw once the smoke cleared.
He felt his hand briefly tingling, feeling pins and needles, before he grunted and put on his glove again.
He clicked his tongue bitterly. "Can Ground Zero, or Incinerorar, do thi–?!"
Then came an aftershock. Normally, he wouldn't pay no mind, impacts were just as part of his explosions as fire and smoke were.
However this one rattled him… as it had taken too long to be his.
The small pebbles that decorated the larger wreckage of the city shook and clattered.
However, it all went unnoticed by the two heroes, who were just now getting into a heavy subject. Asui felt goosebumps.
"Iida, what do you mean?"
His hands tensed again, and he didn't reply.
"Iida–"
However, her ears perked up. All of a sudden, it felt as though the ground had split open as a thundering shockwave hit them!
All but faintly, they saw a black dot, launched from the city, and wobbled through the air.
"What is happening?" Iida opened his mouth, as Asui put on her goggles, shielding her eyes from the dust.
They saw it crash right to the dome and the lighting exploded before the concrete caved in and stretched before going through and letting the sunlight of the outside shine inside!
"Is that so!?"
Both Iida and Asui felt their hearts drop into their stomachs.
Unlike all the voices they heard during this school day, there was nothing familiar about this voice, and its timbre. It felt echoey as if it were being spoken from a gas mask–!
Suddenly the wall by his side bursted open, and from the rubble a muscular man emerged!
Iida and Asui immediately got on guard. This person pretty much had double their size and five times their muscle mass… wearing a black skin tight suit and an orange and gray, spiky mask.
"Even more unimpressive than the last..." The villain lowered his head, before starting to stretch his shoulder. "What a sad facade, that festival declaration was…"
"Iida, we need to get away." Asui could exclaim. However, Iida put a foot forward and dug it down firmly–
"Iida." Asui said.
The engine hero saw the villain vanish before his eyes. His head could then barely turn… and see a fist riled back.
Few Minutes Earlier
"Uraraka! Here!" Midoriya called out.
In the meantime, the rest of the appointed "heroes" were busy trying to do their job, saving all kinds of "civilians".
"Yes, Deku?" She ran by his side and heard the same voice.
"Help!.. Someone!.."
The voice came from a hole in the ground, where a manhole cover used to be. Looking down, they saw Ojiro.
"Found you!" Uraraka said.
Ojiro smirked.
"Nice going, Uravity and… Uh…" Ojiro nervously looked away, sweating. But Midoriya shrugged.
"You can say it, Ojiro. It's my hero name now."
"Okay…" He nodded his head. "Deku?"
Midoriya smiled, before seeing a collapsed and rusty long pole. He raised and checked whether it was durable. Seeing that it was, his mind got to pondering.
"If I use only a bit…?"
He closed his eyes, imagining One for All coursing through his hands.
"5%..." He thought, and when he opened them back up, the red energy veins had appeared just like he wanted.
Uraraka wore a frown as he did that. However, she didn't protest as he let it down.
"Grab on!"
Ojiro did as he was told, and Midoriya took a deep breath and pulled him up, while she looked away and spotted someone else. But before she rushed to them… she asked:
"Do you have this under control, Deku?"
Midoriya nodded his head as he fixed his grip.
"Hmm? Y-Yeah, I do." He gritted his teeth, and fully lifted the end of the pole as well as his friend outside.
"Thanks!" Ojiro said as Midoriya turned and looked at Uraraka.
"This limited amount… I can handle…" He set the pole down and looked at his hand. "But when I go over…"
She mentally nodded.
"How much is the limit?" she still asked.
Midoriya shook his head.
"8%..." he thought, but didn't voice it. The scars in his hand were evident, and Uraraka could very well remember how they looked underneath the gloves. He ended up not opening his mouth, and when Uraraka didn't either, the two… found themselves at a stand-off.
"Ummm, guys?" Ojiro snapped them out.
Immediately flushing with red, Uraraka perked up.
"Right! Rescuing people!"
She ran back to where she was originally. Now, she was sure she was hearing some rustling–
"Uraraka! Midoriya!"
The two turned, and saw Ashido sliding on her acid… wearing a desperate expression.
"Huh?.. Ashido–!"
"Get down!" She tackled her friend down. "Midori, Ojiro!"
The two managed to react swiftly as well, throwing themselves right in between the buildings– just as the ground tore open!
Washing them in a storm of dust and dirt, it felt as if a meteor had dropped from above.
Faintly opening her eyes from behind her helmet, Uraraka got back up.
"What?.." She muttered and Ashido let her go.
"It's a villain!" The acid hero said, and chills ran up Uraraka's spine. There was no way this would be happening again, however the figure emerging from the clouds confirmed all her fears… and struck at her worries.
"Tsu!" Uraraka shouted, seeing her limp body carried by the villain like a briefcase!
"It can't be! No way!" Uraraka stated, however Ashido shook her head and Ojiro showed his face from between the buildings first.
"He's already got one of us…" He said, with an angry expression on his face as Midoriya also got up.
"He must've slipped through the security system." He thought out loud. "And most likely hid until we got here."
A silent acknowledgement ran across all four of them… as the villain merely continued to walk, raising his chin up as if he enjoyed seeing them terrified.
Midoriya let a little wind kick up around him. "7%!" He declared in his head as the red veins appeared over only his arms and started to pulsate–
"Midoriya! We have to run to the exit." Ojiro tried to order, but Midoriya clapped back.
"I know!" He got into a fighting stance. "But not everyone knows that shockwave came from a villain!"
Ojiro's eyes widened, as Midoriya stepped forward, shrugging off any hand that Ojiro tried to put in front of him.
"Until everyone gets out, he needs to be kept in check–"
"No!"
A familiar voice had arrived in a rapid blue blur and a following cloud of smoke.
Iida, now standing beside Midoriya, talked while standing up straight. His once shining armor was now cracked, however his focus had remained ironclad.
"He needs to be stopped. And… she was under my care." He said, zeroing in on Tsu in the villain's hand. "I allowed her to be captured, so I apologize, I'm not running away."
Midoriya felt Iida's gaze from under the helmet and so… nodded with determination.
"Iida's right." He said. Midoriya raised his fists. "Anyone who doesn't want to fight, don't stay! You can still find the teachers!–"
"You kidding, Midoriya!?" Kirishima had joined them, with Koda and Yaomomo by his side.
That shockwave from earlier… it might have been terrifying to see, but it had served to alert his classmates.
Kirishima hardened his arms!
"Not a chance!" He yelled.
"Hell yeah, Tsu needs our help!" The stun gun hero also declared with sparks coming off his body. He was together with Ashido and Jiro–
Todoroki slid forward with ice emanating from his right side.
"And we need to be the ones to deliver it." He said with an old, familiar chill in his tone.
Midoriya nodded, and got into a fighting stance. Alone, maybe they were no match for this villain, but together… they could do this!
He saw the villain faintly turning his neck, just merely observing their increasing numbers and fighting stances.
"Good kids!"
Midoriya tensed up. After all, the villain had finally spoken up.
"But, just in case–!"
With a stomp, the villain sent a bone-chilling shockwave from under their feet and made the base of the buildings crack, before they crumbled and crashed to form walls out of streets!
"Now, the terrain is clear." The villain spoke again, glancing at all of them. "No one will sneak away, without MY say so."
Midoriya pursed his mouth. The adrenaline in him faintly died down. Sure, they all wanted to fight and get their friend back. But now, their backdoor was closed.
"Even we managed to rescue Asui– Tsu from his clutches… There's nothing that says he can't just take her back from us." Midoriya corrected himself in his own head.
They needed to fight, save, and… make a door.
Iida grumbled. From behind his mask, his seething voice hollowly echoed.
"How gracious." Iida's engines burned blue–
"AND… I AGREE!"
Midoriya's eyebrows went up as Bakugo dashed in a dark-green, black and orange streak. The villain managed to turn his head and raised his arm right as Kacchan hit him with an explosion!
"You…"
"YEAH, ME!"
Bakugo landed back.
"You lot can run away!" He declared to his classmates."I'll defeat him myself!"
"You have the gall to decide something like that yourself!?"
"I don't keep "murder" in my name for nothing!" Kacchan grinned before rocketing again, and clashing with the forearm of the villain.
Midoriya watched on warily, as the rest of the class did as well with surprise… right as the jet-black hero, Tokoyami, descended next to him with his partner, Dark Shadow.
"What is Bakugo doing?..."
"Showing off that's what!"
However, Midoriya wasn't so sure.
"I don't think so." He exclaimed.
…
"Acting in a normal manner." Eraser Head had stated "Even now, many pros desperately want their presence at a scene to be justified and so, force their quirk onto the situation."
Thirteen had nodded.
"I agree fully. This only complicates matters at the least, or makes them outright worse. Remember, your quirk is only a tool in one toolbox." She had said. "So instead, being able to see past yourself and be willing to work for the person who has the right quirk for a given assignment, is something you should learn."
…
Right as the villain threw a punch, Bakugo grabbed his arm and turned around, landing a point blank explosion to the face.
"He's doing what's most logical." Midoriya thought. If a villain like this were to spring up during a rescue operation, heroes that had combative capability should take the heat. He was doing just that! "But…"
As Kacchan was having to use both hands though, the villain was still only using one.
"... He still needs help!"
"Be careful!" Iida shouted, The villain waved the smoke away and reached forward!
With an explosion down close to the ground though, Kacchan propelled himself up, letting the blow's wind brush past the bottom of his feet. He leaped above the villain, spinning around midair, and firing off another explosion to both hit his opponent while launching himself back.
With the recoil also, he had skidded back right beside Jiro.
"HEY, EARS, RIGHT?" He yelled.
"It's Ambiance." She replied–
"Whatever!" Kacchan brushed it off. "Don't bother with warnings. Just use your quirk, and coordinate the damn weaklings to get out!"
Midoriya's eyebrows went up, but it was only for a moment. Even though he saw Kacchan's play and what he wanted to do, he couldn't turn his back! He knew he had to fight as well.
And…it looked like Iida wanted the same thing. The class prez's eyebrows knitted from afar and before Jiro could even respond, he did.
"Why…" He seethed. "How can you assume we're weaklings, Bakugo?!" Iida let his fists clench.
"Cuz you have to fight, save, AND make a door outta here, four eyes." Kacchan confidently stated… just like he had. Midoriya tilted his head curiously.
"Or can't you see that!?" Kacchan's attitude then flared up again. "So, you make the door, I'll fight AND save–"
"*We'll* fight and save." Midoriya interrupted the two of them. "Opening the door can come later!"
Bakugo rolled his eyes.
"Deku…" He seethed and Midoriya wasn't happy, but he persisted.
"Just this once, Kacchan." The self-proclaimed number one said. "You know it's for the best."
However, the disgust on Bakugo's face was painfully apparent. He looked at Midoriya's hand with such contempt–
"Incoming!" Kirishima warned them.
"Are you done getting your act together? Huh!?"
He raised his arm and kicked up air before that air got mixed in with rubble!
Bakugo crackled his palms, but Jiro took the lead.
"Step aside, Explosion Boy." The jacks plugged into her boots. "Counter-Balance!"
With a wave of sound, all the small pieces of rubble lost their momentum and fell down. But the big ones were still incoming– right as a blue laser hit them.
"Let me make your job easier, Mademoiselle Ambiance!" Aoyama put his hands behind his head and fired his laser to help out.
Midoriya nodded, and turned to Kacchan again. "Like Aoyama said–"
"Not another fucking word, Deku!" The explosion boy remained defiant.
"Hmph." The villain thought, right as he dodged a torrent of ice!