Torino sat back in his rocking chair, dialing up the number on the wall. Classic devices like landlines never failed when really needed. Who had all the time to pay for all those updates and clean touchscreens? Nothing like the simple things in life that made it good. "Toshi you moron, you could've done more than just send a letter."
"... This is Chiyo." What? "Do you have dementia or do you just need glasses at this point?" He looked over, seeing he mixed up the two numbers. Damn it. "Hold on, all he did was send a letter?"
"Yep. The idiot hasn't bothered to see me in years and the moment he passes on One For All he tells me through the mail." He thought he beat common sense into him after the final fight with All For One. "So Iruma Suzuki? Looks like a bit of a green horn."
"The boy didn't know who All Might was' cause he 'never watched television'." Jungle child greenhorn, social cues were gonna suck. "Also called him 'Bunny-sensei' of all things."
Torino let out the longest laugh he's had in ages. "Okay, the boy already has my seal of approval, but how is he actually handling the quirk? I didn't see him use it in any notable way until the fight with Todoroki." To the point where most of the crowd assumed he was quirkless before then.
"Handles it well, very evasive and careful unlike the big lug."
"So someone who actually values his own safety in a dangerous situation?" This kid was already sounding like an improvement over his predecessor.
"Yep, his only actual combat problem seems to be speed. So far he either dodges everything or attacks without thinking. He can't plan or switch between strategies on the fly."
"So he's agile, cautious, and has no sense of combat. Nothing like a week of training won't fix up." Gran chuckled. "Not sure how many will send the kid offers, but I'll throw my name into the mix. Give him the option at least."
"You won't forget until the last minute like you did with that delivery situation, right?" He was silent. "You did take that prescription I prescribed to you, right?"
"I'm not senile! I just have a lot to cover throughout the week."
"You're a retired pro who only became a hero to fly freely in the air and to help Nana. You have all the free time in the world!"
"Hey, ch, static, chhh, can't talk, ctchhh."
"Bullshit, I know you have landline!" And that was his cue to hang up.
==
Nemuri sighed with joy as she listened to the crowd. Watching all these young heroes get their hearts out was a beauty in itself. Sure, like Aizawa said it was needless violence, but as long as you weren't dangerous like Bakugo or too overpowered like Todoroki, it was all in good and fun.
Now if only Suzuki didn't lose all the self-preservation he always kept in himself in his last match. It hurt seeing the kid hurt himself so brutally. She'll have to lecture him later on when they get back to designing his costume. Speaking of, she turned to Hagakure, fully clothed for the moment as she waved to the crowd. "In this corner, she's the unseen force of nature, the ghost of the sports festival, the silent but deadly TORU HAGAKURE!"
The girl in question was stone cold silent, simply glaring at the other tunnel … probably. The sheer malice was undeniable however, she hated her opponent to a t. "Bring it on, you overgrown garden weed."
"And in the other corner, an ally now turned opponent, the blooming bud of 1-B, the prickly princess, IBARA SHIOZAKI!"
The other girl walked onto the stage with the same level of hate visible on her face, making it somewhat more effective. "May your sins be brought to light for the whole world to see."
"Jokes on you, only Iruma-kun can see me!"
"Then my angel is truly a saint to forgive you for your whorish ways."
"Hey Eraser, I know you told me not to say anything bad, but can you feel that tension?"
"Nope, this seems perfectly reasonable for high school." Nemuri wasn't THAT bad back in the day!
"I'm the one who's going to meet Iruma-kun in the finals! I'm already in the same class as him, you don't stand a chance!"
"No, I'm going to be side by side with my angel and grant him the victory he deserves. I'm the only one here capable of defending him from those of malicious intent."
"Good luck you guys, let's all have fun!" The boy in question shouted obliviously. Now she was going to use the boy's distraction to go ahead and start this.
"And begin!" She shouted.
"HE'S MINE!" Both shouted at the same time. Yeesh, love triangles. So passionate yet so painful to witness at the same.
==
Kaminari watched as the two girls went at it … fists flying as they hit each other, vines flying around, clothes scratched. "One of the best battles." He couldn't agree with Mineta more.
"You do realize they BOTH like Iruma, right?" Ashido commented on the side.
"Well yeah, obviously." Kaminari deadpanned. "But on the off chance he picks one and the other is single, I might actually have a chance at a girl. Besides, Shiozaki looks pretty."
"I'm just in it for the boobage." He wouldn't go THAT far.
"You're both the worst." Jiro wasted no time in sending her jacks into their ears and shocking them.
"Ow, hey, that really hurts you know!" Kaminari just about had enough with Jiro by this point. "What's your deal?"
"Stabbing you any time you're a moron, I feel it's a pretty good deal." She shrugged.
"Why does it matter if I'm a moron? It's none of your business!" He yelled. "Suzuki's just as dumb, and you don't go stabbing him every ten minutes!"
"He has a horrible family life and was sent to the woods. What's your excuse?" She looked really defensive now.
"Yes, I'm an idiot, you've made that pretty clear by this point." He rolled his eyes, deciding to give up. "I can't control my quirk well and I'm stupid, I'm just the loser in class. Don't keep reminding me."
He turned away, planning on just getting some air. "Hey, you're not a loser." He turned to Suzuki. "I think you're really cool. Your jacket makes you look like a biker and everything. You're super confident too, it was hard to choose between you and Toru, and that lightning bolt in your hair is super awesome."
"Thanks." Knowing that Suzuki...knowing that Iruma was completely genuine in his words was very comforting. "It's just frustrating. My quirk is great, but I literally turn stupid if I use too much, and I don't know many electric-quirk users that have the same problem."
"I knew a guy who got burnt skin after using up too much electricity. Going stupid sounds much better. Trust me, breaking bones isn't fun." Well he made a good point. "Todoroki get's hypothermia from his own ice, Ochako gets nauseous from floating all the time, Minoru bleeds from his head. You're no different than anybody else here, Kaminari. We're all on the same boat."
"Just like everyone else, huh?" The kid really was too innocent."Say, have you ever played video games?" He got a shake of the head in response. "Then let me show you some great ones by Nintendo."
"Oh, then do I finally get to meet them?" … They needed to work fast.
==
Todoroki watched the fight go on between two women that he very much wanted to avoid, for safety reasons of course. He didn't envy Iruma's position in the slightest, but the boy was also dense enough to be oblivious, so hopefully he would spare himself the pain of acknowledging it. "How much longer should I be here?" He asked Recovery girl.
"Just a bit, Suzuki only left because he had enough energy to accelerate the healing … the stamina and mouth on that boy is concerning." Stamina for sure, broke his fingers a solid five times each, and that wasn't mentioning the arms and legs.
"He doesn't know when to quit." Never saw someone so eager to cripple themselves for a single person. Yet Iruma had a drive to win even when he accomplished his little goal. To suddenly avoid the blast by diving downward into the cement like some sort of rabbit in a burrow...maybe the Bunny-sensei name wasn't too far off from the truth.
"There you are, they really should get a map of this place." And now he was here. Great. "I'm glad you finally got over that rebellious streak, using your fire so well for your first time. With some training we can get you even better."
There were so many things he wanted to say, about how he was a horrible father, a horrible husband, how he didn't even remember-... He didn't think about his father once … like he forgot the man existed in that fight. 'I just forget they exist'.
His fire and father were completely unrelated...in that fight, it was just him and Iruma...it was Shoto that lost the fight with Iruma..not Endeavor...When he became the next number one...it would be Shoto...not Endeavor...Shoto's success...Shoto's dream.
"Of course sir, thank you for the complement. I'm Shoto Todoroki, but you probably already knew that from the call." Just Shoto. "It's nice to meet someone who thinks I can go far." It sounded nice to hear his own name for once.
"Nice to me … is this another game?"
"No. I don't think we've ever met, completely random stranger."
"Recovery Girl, did he get a concussion?" This was going to be fucking great.
==
Ibara grabbed the whore by the leg, now swinging her back and forth like a rag doll. "JUST! GIVE! UP!"
"NEVER YOU VINE HAIRED HUSSY!" The unholy spirit wailed as she was slammed against the pavement, not giving the girl a second to take her clothes off. She wouldn't give the whore the chance to defile the eyes of her angel. "Iruma-kun...will...never….fall..FOR...YOU!" The whore used whatever strength she had to tear the vines off of her legs, immediately stripping off her shirt.
Now it would be even harder to see the girl as she was scratched in the face. "Like he would go … for a low life … like yourself!" Growing thorns, she started using her vines like wild whips to lash out upon the area.
"Eraser, I'm scared."
"We are all, Mic. We all are."
"You think you can watch over him? Your quirk is only good for concealing yourself and nothing more!" She yelled out in the air, waving her hair in every corner she could visibly see.
"I can still use that to kick your ass!" The scream came from behind, along with a hammer hit to the back of her skull. A major mistake, as she now enclosed and began squeezing tight.
"Concede. If you go any further, I will use extreme measures." She warned the vile spirit one last time. "My angel is far too pure for the likes of you."
"He's too good for anybody! But he's the only one I've met who's able to see me!" Hagakure shouted wildly. "I'm not going to give up on the only one in this world who's capable of actually loving me!"
That … was significantly more serious than she was willing to admit. With a sigh, Ibara let the girl go … onto the grass. "Out of bounds, Ibara Shiozaki wins, get some stretchers and stop this fight!" Midnight spoke frantically.
"I'm fine!" Hagakure shouted from her spot, limping as she stood up..she guessed. It was hard to tell with her still invisible-oh, right. She got it now.
"You're clothes." She reached down and grabbed them from where she discarded them. "Here you go.."
She didn't get any verbal response, other than a slight huff before they were snatched from her grasp. Next thing she knew, the pile of clothes once again began clothing in the air, attached to an unseen body.
"Are you alright?" She awkwardly asked her opponent, who still wouldn't answer her. "I..apologize for my envy, I just wanted to show my appreciation for my angel…"
"He's not yours!" Hagakure shouted. "He's...he's not mine either...he doesn't belong to anybody." The girl suddenly sounded disgusted with herself. "I...I don't know what I'm doing." That was all she said before Hagakure made her way out. She would need to confess later, and a pastor to cleanse Ibara of her sins.