The Behemoth Hero: Like Father like Son

As the end of his first year at UA draws ever closer, Takuma Takenaka is determined to become a Hero of the same caliber as his father was. And the past year has given what he needs to achieve his goal: knowledge, experience, skills, his first friends and perhaps a drop or two of confidence, but it won't be easy. Villains, overestimating his own abilities, stubborness as well as his own social skills are all hurdles in his way, which he will need to overcome in order to survive the growing dangers in Hero society.

Chapter 1: Tartarus

Chapter Text

The cell is a bit chillier than usual, which clues Masahiko in to the fact that it's starting to become winter. Not that it matters, the cell is always a bit chilly, the guards wouldn't turn up the heat if he asked, and he's stuck. Here forever. He stares up at the ceiling of his padded cell, letting his left leg dangle of the side of his bed. Something's eating at him, has been for a few months. It started small, like the feeling he had forgotten an incredibly minor chore that didn't really matter, but it's been growing. Now he almost feeling anxious, like he's a mouse that can somehow sense a hawk is approaching.

Which strikes him as weird. Sure, the guards beat him sometimes, but that's nothing new or unique to him. It's not like any of the other inmates scare him. None of them can use their Quirks, it's not worth the hassle even for those that don't have something to restrict theirs. Masahiko raises a hand and turns it into a fist as well as he can. Each of his fingers is covered in steel casings, thick ones. And they're sealed tight, if he were to try to take out his claws all he'd succeed in doing would be to hurt himself. He used to do it, just to distract himself from the boredom, but it's lost what little charm it had.

The fact he can't use his Quirk isn't even what he hates most about his "gloves", it's the fact they're so clunky. It took him well over a year to learn how to hold a spoon, two to figure out chopsticks. He has the fine motor-skills of Brute. It's a line of thought he has often, comparing himself to the moron that had once been his subordinate. There had been a whole team of them, Masahiko being the one calling all the shots. Back when he could move around the way he wanted. Back when he was free.

"I'm not letting you get away!"

The lizard's final words ring clear in his mind, bringing a small smirk to his face. "Yup, you got me. Hope it was worth it." he chuckles quietly. That final attempt to grab him had been reckless, and possibly pointless. It had caught him off-guard, sure, which is why he killed him instead of hopping out of the way, but Masahiko finds it hard to believe it was worth his life. By the time he had yanked his claws out of the idiot's jugular he had tried to organize some form of retreat with the cargo, but then more Heroes started rolling in.

If he had killed him straight away, they probably would've made it, but he had instead tried to just knock him out of the fight and wound up wasting time, though that doesn't change the fact that him throwing his life away had been stupid. But no matter how much he thinks about that guy, he can't manage to hold a grudge. "I guess we both got each other pretty good." he mutters, closing his eyes only to open them when he hears a monotone ring as his cell door opens. "Alright maggots, breakfast. Behave yourselves." a guard growls over the speakers.

Masahiko walks out into the corridor along with the usual crowd, a few missing, most likely in solitary. Nobody says a word as they line up and passively walk towards the cafeteria like they're supposed to, but that doesn't stop the guards from giving out a few whacks with their batons. They're a special bunch. They all fall into one of three categories. The ones like Masahiko, with Quirks that can be neutralised with special measures. Then there's people that are smart enough to not cause trouble, selected after a long enough period of good behavior, though their Quirks still have to be "harmless" enough, usually with something to restrain them while they're out too. Finally, there's those that can't do anything, though there's only one person that fits that bill.

Masahiko peeks his head out to the side, spying that person in question a bit in front of him. He's one of the most recent arrivals, he around Masahiko's height, so roughly 180 centimeters, and he has dark brown hair, but that's nowhere as interesting as the fact both his arms are missing. As seems to be his will to live, or do anything, really. Defenceless, meek, quiet. It's no wonder the guards are making him go to breakfast. It's the only meal any inmates can get outside of their cells, but it's not for any humanitarian reason. Tartarus isn't for reformation, it's for containment and, when possible, punishment.

They have to behave at breakfast, but the only criteria for that is to not do something the guards dislike. If anyone were to be inclined to steal food from another inmate, then that's free game. If anyone wants to beat anyone else to a pulp for stealing, that's free game. It's frankly expected, the guards want the inmates to hurt eachother. Too much and they "intervene", though that doesn't hurt any less of course.

As they enter the cafeteria one of the guards grabs the guy without arms by his left stump while carrying a tray with a bowl of miso soup, another with rice, and a small plate with a bit of fish. It's the same every morning, and none of it is ever any good. But it is better than going hungry. The guard sets the tray down at the most distant table, then shoves the guy down onto the bench. He sits at the same spot every morning, where everyone can see him. Everyone can eye him up. Everyone can decide to try to be the one that takes his food.

It's not like he can eat it himself anyway. He don't got no hands.

Seeing as it's really a victimless crime, Masahiko decides that today he might as well be the one to take the easy pickings. He's not gotten the chance yet, and it just might be what he needs to get his mind off this nagging feeling. As he grips his own tray as firmly as he can with his restraints he saunters over to his target, noticing the other inmates scowl at him, though none of them try to get there first.

"Hey there, Stumpy." Masahiko greets with exaggerated and fake friendly fashion. Stumpy doesn't respond. He's just staring at his food, though Masahiko gets the feeling he doesn't really see it. He tests his theory by grabbing the tray and sliding it across the table towards himself. Stumpy doesn't manage as much as a blink. Whoever gets to his food first just grabs it and walks away, most likely content with the easy dubble portion, but Masahiko needs something a bit more than just grub.

"Mind if I sit here?" he asks, plonking down next to his fellow inmate before he even finished his question. That gets a reaction. Stumpy's eyes widen in anxiety, and he looks at Masahiko with uncertainty. "S-sure..." he whispers, quickly looking away. Masahiko chuckles, picking up Stumpy's piece of fish with his chopsticks and taking a bite. "So does somebody feed you in your cell when it's time for lunch and dinner?" he inquires, feeling just a little giddy as he starts to squirm. "Or do you have a tube you suck on? Like a water bottle in a hamster cage?" he continues, leaning closer with a smug grin.

"N-no... I... I...-" "Yeah, somebody feeds you, right? 'Here comes the airplane'-type deal, yeah?" he interrupts, making Stumpy turn his head away from him. This could still be fun. "Not gonna answer?" Masahiko chastises playfully, moving on the rice. No response. "You don't have a lot going on in here, do you?" he taunts, giving his new friend a smack on the head. He dares a peek at the guards, and sure enough they're watching him. Bullying the cripple too much might just inspire them to give him a beating, if only for their own amusement, but they seem to tolerate it so far. "Or maybe you've got too much in there. Thinking about your arms? Do you miss-" "Leave him alone."

The voice is strong, and unmistakable. Masahiko feels himself crack a smile as he flicks his eyes to the new arrival, something Stumpy doesn't do himself. She's a bit shorter than the two of them, but she's just as well-built with an athletic physique and a stance that betrays her combat experience. Her purple and pink hair frames her serious face which glares at Masahiko with contempt. Lady Nagant, the Hero turned Villain.

"Didn't know you two were friends." he responds. "We're not. But you have his food. You can leave him alone." she retorts, her voice as cold as steel. "Why? Do you feel he deserves better?" he counters, gesturing at Stumpy then at the rest of the cafeteria. "Do any of us deserve anything else than what we're getting?" he asks, loud enough for people to start staring again. Lady Nagant doesn't answer, but Masahiko notices her eyes narrowing a little like she sees his point. "I believe..." he proceeds, snatching the soup from Stumpy's tray along with a spoon.

"...that everyone gets what they deserve. The fact we've all gotten caught and thrown in here means we deserve to be here. The fact that he isn't standing up for himself means he deserves to get pushed around. And if you feel differently and try to stop me, whichever one of us loses will deserve whatever comes next." he elaborates, inviting her to try. He's not entirely sure why he's antogonizing her, it's most likely just because of boredom. He has no idea what her Quirk is, but it looks like she only has a shock collar on.

She could probably use her Quirk if she wanted to, the guards might even let her get away with it depending on their whims, unlike Masahiko. If he could he imagines he could take her pretty easily, but if the both of them were to fight Quirkless he wouldn't bet on himself.

But she doesn't act hostile, or rather she doesn't try to knock his teeth in. She continues to glare at him, but sits down opposite to him and calmly grabs the rice from his tray. "Help yourself." he mutters, feeling both reliefed and disappointed. Apparently he has a baby sitter now.

Chapter 2: Coach Takenaka

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"Mind your form. Six. Seven." Takuma counts, crouching down on one knee next to Shinso, who seems to be downright miserable. His face is dripping sweat and red from exertion, with even a few pulsating veins visible. He only manages a grunt, though Takuma suspects it is strain from the push ups rather than a response. "Mind your form. Eight." Takuma continues. "Alright, that's nine. One more." he urges, trying to be supportive. Shinso's breathing grows even more laboured as his arms shake worryingly. He rises slowly, incredibly slowly. He's not even halfway up when he stops and finally collapses, landing on his face.

"Damn it..." Shinso hisses, balling a fist and slamming it down weakly on the mat. Takuma bites his lip, unsure as to what he should say. This is only their second training session, and they haven't been at it for long. "So... uh... I get that this is frustrating, but I think it's an improvement! You didn't do them on your knees this time, that's way harder!" he says with some sincerity and some fake excitement, forcing a smile and giving Shinso a thumbs up, trying to emulate Kirishima a bit. "Don't patronise me." Shinso gruffs inbetween heavy breaths.

'That was maybe a little patronising.' Takuma thinks, grabbing a towel and handing it over to Shinso who wipes himself down. "Sorry... But... it is still an improvement. Besides, training to failure means that you're putting in enough effort to see results. So that's... good. Results are... what we're after." he mutters, trying to be a bit more genuine this time. His own, stiff self. Shinso doesn't answer, instead reaching for a water bottle and draining it. "Alright, let's take a break before we continue." Takuma says, met with even more silence.

But Shinso doesn't object, which is something, he supposes. They sit down on the mat, Takuma looking around at the others in the gym. They don't really pay them any mind, but they're all working hard. Pumping iron, doing flips and sprinting on treadmills, they're all in good physical condition. Takuma thinks he recognizes most of the students present from the Hero course, though nobody from his class is there at the moment. He takes a quick peek at Shinso who is also watching the others, perhaps bothered by how big the gap is.

Whatever he's thinking, he clearly feels Takuma's eyes on him, so he shoots him a look, prompting Takuma to look away. It's a little awkward. 'Do I say something? Should I just shut up until we keep going?' he wonders anxiously, taking another peek and making eye contact with Shinso, again, who looks like he's starting to be a bit annoyed. More than usual, anyway. Takuma quickly averts his eyes again, lightly clapping his hands on his thighs as if it would somehow make things less awkward. 'This is so much easier with my friends.' he thinks as he's starting to sweat, feeling Shinso look at him intently.

"So... did y-you have anything good for breakfast?" Takuma finally musters, unable to just sit and be weirdly quiet. "What?" Shinso almost whispers, sounding downright perplexed until his expression changes to one of understanding. "Oh. Yeah, I did. I've been eating oatmeal and peanut butter for breakfast. That's supposed to have a lot of protein and calories." he answers bluntly. "Oh, good. Yeah that's what I meant." Takuma replies, relieved it worked out. "Just... uh... don't forget your vitamins. But that sounds like a good breakfast! Solid start!" Takuma sputters, forcing another smile.

Shinso just grunts non-commitaly and looks away, again. Takuma lightly chews on his lip, feeling like both of them are pulling teeth. "Sorry." Shinso mutters, catching Takuma off-guard. "Wuh?" he responds, less than eloquently. "I get that I'm not the easiest person to talk to. This is just... frustrating and strange." he elaborates, rubbing the back of his neck. "Oh... I-I get it, no worries. I'm not good at this either." Takuma reassures with a bit of forced laughter, getting the feeling he's feigning so much enthusiasm that he might just be insulting Shinso's intelligence.

And Shinso's expression seems to suggest just that, slightly emotionally pained and perplexed. He shakes his head and seems to struggle to find the right words for a bit, until he opens his mouth. "That's not really what I meant. I don't get why... nevermind." he sighs. Takuma purses his lips and looks around the gym again, wondering if he should offer to train Shinso somewhere more secluded, like the woods. 'But it's getting so cold out...' he thinks, shivering at the thought when his eyes land on one of the students from class 1-B.

He's running on a treadmill, and he looks to be alone. Takuma isn't sure why he's recognising him, he's incredibly normal looking, just a guy with short brown hair. Though he doesn't know his name, which might be useful since they'll be having a joint training excercise with their class in a few days. He really should look them up in the year book or something. That'd make it easier to keep track of everyone.

"Why do you keep staring at that guy?" Shinso asks with a cocked brow. "Wuh?" Takuma mumbles, ripped from his thoughts before feeling a little sheepish. "Sorry, I got kinda lost in thought. He's from class 1-B and my class will be training with them soon. Just thinking about that." he confesses. Shinso bites his lip and looks away again, like he's unsure about if he should say whatever is on his mind. "Are they strong?" he wonders. Takuma looks from him to the boy on the treadmill and then back again. "Honestly, I've no idea. I've never really seen any of them in action. Other than the... uh... Sports Festival. Briefly." he explains, pursing his lips. "But I'd assume they're strong, yeah."

"What about your class?" Shinso prods. Takuma leans back and stares at nothing in particular. "Yeah. Everyone is always giving 100%. And we have some... that I'm sure will become top Heroes." he continues, thinking about Midoriya, Todoroki and, as much as he doesn't like it, Bakugo. Those three are a safe bet, not that Takuma considers himself a gambler. "Probably in the top 10."

"When... do you think we can move on to combat training?" Shinso asks, almost shyly. Takuma feels his eyebrows rise involuntarily. "This is our second training session. We haven't..." he begins, trailing of as he's unsure of what he should say. He wants to point out they haven't made much progress, but that's both true and untrue. Shinso has managed to do more push ups than last time, but that would have to be because he's not as lanky as he was last time, not because of the training. He wants to say that they should focus a bit longer on the basics. But Shinso looks a bit like a sad puppy with the way he's averting his gaze.

"I don't know what your Quirk is. I kinda need to know that to figure out how to incorporate it into whatever your fighting style will be." he says, hoping it'll work as an excuse to postpone it at least for a bit. Plus, he is a bit curious. He waits expectantly, though with reservations when he sees Shinso tense up. My Quirk... is Brainwashing." he reveals, sounding like he's expecting the worst. "Huh... okay. Not sure how we'll turn that into a fighting style, but... sounds strong." Takuma responds, rolling his thumbs.

Shinso locks eyes with Takuma, looking oddly surprised before smiling softly, a smile Takuma finds himself returning, even though he's a smidge confused. "So... Do you want to get back to it?" he offers, and Shinso stands up with almost a bit of pep in his step. "Yeah. No point in slacking off."

Chapter 3: Joint Training

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Takuma clenches his jaw and grips his cloak, desperately trying to nestle himself deeper into it despite the fact he's as well nestled as can be. The cold breeze feels just awful. The temperature control system on his suit is trying to heat him up, but it is more designed to allow him to last longer despite unfortunate temperatures rather than focusing on comfort. Not even his new cloak is doing enough for him. It's black, made of fire retardant synthetic wool, loose fitting and reaching down to his ankles. It's not very special other than that. Once he transforms, it will stay the same size, laying like a small blanket on the back of his neck.

The thought of being without his cloak proper once his transforms makes Takuma shiver even more, though when he glances at his classmates he wonders if he might just be a wimp instead. They're all walking towards Ground Gamma where they're supposed to meet Class 1-B for some training. Like Takuma, a lot of his classmates have changed into the winter versions of their costumes. Yaoyorozu has a cloak like him, Ashido has a small jacket on top of her usual clothing, for example. Hagakure has too, rockin' a pair of boots instead of running shoes.

Other than that, she's dressed the same as always, meaning barely. Takuma watches her gloves and boots move around excitedly, matching the tone of her voice, and feels a chill rip through him in empathy. 'I'm digging out my tail warmer as soon as I get back to the dorm.' he thinks with another shudder. "Geez, you're shaking like a leaf. You really don't like the cold, huh?" Sato says next to him, with sympathy that seems slightly lesser to his amusement. "No. We've been having all our classes indoors for a while, s-so I'm basically being thrown in at the deep e-end." Takuma responds through teeth that are starting to chatter.

"Man, that sucks. But hey, it's still just the start of winter. It's gonna get way colder, so maybe we'll keep having class indoors!" Sato offers, though through observing the coy smile on his face and the teasing in his tone, Takuma manages to theorise that he might just be, in fact, teasing him. Mr. Aizawa wouldn't factor in something like that unless it was literally life-threatening. He cracks a small smile and shakes his head. "Thanks." he scoffs before playfully bumping into Sato, sending him stumbling a little to the side. "Sorry. Must've slipped." he lies shamelessly, right before Sato bumps right back into him, just a little rougher. "Same here." Sato hums with amusement.

And then they slip again and again, each time a little harder, their smiles growing as their spontaneus game progresses. "Whoops, sorry! This must be an icy patch." Takuma speculates after bumping into Sato again. "Seems that way!" Sato retorts, putting a bit more 'oomph' into his bumping, which results in it being basically a full on body slam. He catches Takuma off-guard, which results in him flying and crashing into a concrete wall, with a decently audible impact.

"Sato, be careful!" Uraraka shouts out, sounding concerned. Sato sputters a bit, struggling to respond, but it seems he doesn't bother once they hear laughter coming from Takuma. Wheezing laughter, which seems unaffected by the clear effort he makes to hold it down. "That... that was my fault." Takuma chuckles, feeling his cheeks flush as he rubs the back of his head. It's a little tender, so he'll probably get a bump, but he doesn't care. He looks up to see the whole class stare at him, but he doesn't avert his eyes, smiling a little bashfully.

Sato looks a little hesitant, likely worried he shoved him too hard while Kirishima, Sero and Kaminari look like they're amused. Most of the girls look like they're worried about his noggin, with the exception of Tsu and possibly Hagakure, the former more looking curious than anything else. They're all looking at him, but while maybe a little unnerving, he's fine. It's been a few days since he told them about his father, and since then things have just... been easy. They're basically the same as before, only better. There's this calm whenever he's with them he doesn't remember feeling before.

Takuma gets up and dusts himself off, still chuckling a little sheepishly. "That was my fault. I got carried away." he repeats, which seems to be sufficient for the class to let it go, letting them proceed. Takuma returns to Sato's side, this time without intentions of tomfoolery. "Maybe we should save some of our energy for the lesson." Sato suggests, which Takuma feels is sage advice. Their little tussle did already warm him up, and with the risk of stumbling again the juice isn't really worth the squeeze. But... he's gotten into a certain mood.

"Yeah, that's probably smart. But what do you say we make things interesting? Let's see which of us can... I dunno... win harder?" he laughs, realising he could've worded it better. Sato chuckles a little sheepishly himself, then turns his eyes to the ground, almost seeming downcast. "That'd probably be you." he mutters. Takuma furrows his brow and opens his mouth to ask him what he means, but a voice interrupts him. A voice that reminds him of a time when he was cleaning his ear and shoved the cotton swab a bit too deep.

"And there we have them! Class 1-A, looking even more arrogant than usual!" Monoma's voice rings out loudly as Class 1-B makes their advance. Takuma's eyes land on him first of all, and he can't help but think he's dressed a bit like a waiter. But another student soon catches his attention. Tall, dressed in an oddly ragged green cloak, and mantis-like. Kamakiri has his glare fixed on Takuma with the same intensity as all the other times, which he still feels is fairly undeserved. He's looked up the names of everyone in Class 1-B in the yearbook, and Kamakiri looked much more polite in his picture.

But Monoma once again puts all attention on himself when he whips out a piece of paper and starts gloating about how according to his own research people liked their play marginally more than their performance. 'Considering his bias, I don't think that data is very credible.' Takuma thinks as Kendo closes the distance between herself and Monoma to smack him upside the head, but unfortunately for him she's a bit too late as Mr. Aizawa's Capture Scarf gives him a real snug wrapping. Around his neck.

"Be quiet. Let's get started." Mr. Aizawa grumbles without a hint of shame on his face. Not that it seems necessary, as Vlad King next to him doesn't seem upset with his actions, standing stoicly with his hands on his hips. "He's right. Come with us." he gruffs, walking in sync with his colleague deeper into Ground Gamma. The classes obediently follow close behind, a few from 1-B making sure Monoma is alright before making him hobble along. And for the thankfully short journey, Takuma catches Kamakiri glaring daggers at him.

Once they arrive at an area with a big screen, Vlad King turns around and adresses them. "Alright, I'm gonna explain this once, so pay attention! Class 1-B and 1-A are going to compete against each other in teams of four in five seperate matches. The goal is simple. You're all to consider the opposing team Villains that must be apprehended. Capture all opponents and you'll win. You'll lock them up in those cages." he explains, gestruing towards the big screen with his thumb. And while the screen isn't a cage, it is showing a cage.

"We'll decide the teams by drawing lots." Mr. Aizawa mutters, and the two teachers pull up boxes for their respective class from somewhere. 'It's always a little strange when UA does something so simple when it's usually over the top.' Takuma thinks as he sticks his hand inside and rummages around, finally grasping a slip of paper. He pulls it out and inspects it, seeing a "2". And, mere seconds after everyone has pulled up their slips and less than a minute after Takuma thought it was a simple solution, the screen flashes, showing how the teams are built up.

ROUND 1

KIRISHIMA / JIRO / SERO / AOYAMA VS TETSUTETSU / HOENUKI / TSUNOTORI / TSUBURABA

ROUND 2

MIDORIYA / ASHIDO / TAKENAKA / SHOJI VS TOKAGE / SHIOZAKI / SHISHIDA / KAMAKIRI

ROUND 3

YAOYOROZU / IIDA / HAGAKURE / URARAKA VS KENDO / BONDO / RIN / KODAI

ROUND 4

TODOROKI / SATO / TOKOYAMI / KAMINARI VS MONOMA / KOMORI / KAIBARA / KUROIRO

ROUND 5

BAKUGO / ASUI / MINETA / OJIRO VS AWASE / YANAGI / SHODA / FUKIDASHI

"Yes!" three voices cry out in unison. Kirishima, Tetsutetsu and Kamakiri, to be exact, the first two turning to eachother while flashing competetive grins. "You seem excited." Tokage, a girl in a pruple suit, says to her teammate with an amused tone. "This is exactly what I've been waiting for!" he responds passionately, raising an arm to point at Takuma. "Now we'll see who's easy pickings, Takenaka!" he declares, placing the attention of everyone squarely on Takuma. He's a little taken aback at the challenge, and as he inspects the faces of everyone in Class 1-B he feels the corners of his mouth involuntarily creep up.

His smile feels as stiff as Mr. Aizawa's casts after the USJ, yet he can't stop, not with everyone staring at him. Their expressions range from amusement, excitement and mild curiosity, but one of them has a fairly predictable reaction. "Oh, what's this? No clever response? Guess you're not ready to back up that trash talk!" Monoma taunts while giving Kamakiri an encouraging pat on the back. "Uh..." Takuma answers, unsure if he's really earned this level of hostility, when a few of his classmates step in front of him.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Ashido demands, the sudden outburst blindsiding Takuma. "Yeah, what's your problem?" Hagakure adds, pointing an accusatory finger towards Monoma, though it seems like Kamakiri is the one to take it personally. "You stay out of this! He's been looking down on me ever since the Sports Festival, and now I can finally put him in his place!" Kamakiri roars back. Takuma is torn between feeling touched that his friends are standing up for him and mortified that they're fanning the flames. "I-I-I think there's been a b-bit of a mis-" "Please, Takenaka's gonna fold you like a towel!" Mineta cuts off Takuma in a volume that should be impossible for someone so small, his words making his feelings lean more towards mortification.

"You're all full of energy today." Mr. Aizawa growls in a low voice as his hair and scarf start to rise up into the air, like cobras preparing to strike. "Pay attention." he hisses, sending a chill down his of students' spines, and at a minimum making Kamakiri and Monoma regain their composure. Mr. Aizawa's glare stays for a while as he scans all the students present, and he only stops using his Quirk when Vlad King steps forward. "The matches will last 20 minutes. If there isn't a winner by then the victory will go to whichever team has the most remaining members." Vlad King explains as they all settle into their groups. Takuma lets out a sigh of relief as he sits down next to Ashido, who notices a new arrival. "All Might and Midnight are here together!" she announces, and Takuma follows her gaze towards a set of nearby stairs.

She's not lying. All Might and Midnight are showing up together. "Is it a date?" she continues teasingly, but Midnight dismisses the notion without batting an eye. The two first teams leave in preperation for the upcoming match, and in unison Takuma's team leans closer together. "So since we don't have a lot of time, we should probably try to come up with a strategy." Midoriya suggests, and the three of them nod in agreement. "Especially since that jerk has it out for Takenaka!" Ashido adds, oddly steamed for his sake. Takuma sneaks a peek over at their upcoming opponents and sees Kamakiri zealously discuss strategy with his teammates. Clearly eager.

'Oh boy...'

Chapter 4: A little excited

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"We should start by sharing what we know about their Quirks." Midoriya suggests, earning three nods from his teammates. "I suppose we might as well start with Kamakiri..." Takuma pipes up, rolling his thumbs. "He's able to grow blades out of his arms, and that's about all we know. He showed them during the Cavalry Battle back during the Sports Festival, but we dealt with him and his teammate before he could really do anything. Though they look sharp so... we can assume they're sharp." he asserts, though not very assertively.

"And Shiozaki can manipulate the hair on her head so they can function like tentacles. She seems to have excellent control over them, and she can make them multiple times longer." Shoji continues from a recently grown mouth. "Hmm... That's not a lot to go on, and they would have a much clearer picture of our Quirks since we all made it to the finals." Midoriya muses, and Ashido starts to pout. "So unfair..." she mutters. "Well, this isn't very helpful, I get that, but... Shishida is supposed to have a transformation-type Quirk. Tiger said something like that at camp." Takuma shares.

"Though I have no idea what it could be, or how big the change is. Maybe he'll grow as big as me, maybe bigger, maybe his transformation doesn't even change his size at all." he continues in a grunt, about as pleased with their lack of information as the rest of his team. "Transformations as big as your tend to be quite rare, so I don't think there's a big risk of that." Midoriya offers with an encouraging smile, which is very sweet, but it's overshadowed by Ashido's sudden cheerfullness. "But what if he does? It'll be like that movie!" she says, absurdly excited as usual.

"What movie?" Takuma asks before he can stop himself. "There was like a giant lizard, and he fought this giant hairy thing, I think it was like a big gorilla or something." she recounts, clearly digging deep in her memories. 'Giant lizard? Like Go-' "Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was a gorilla!" Ashido continues, rubbing her chin with satisfaction. "So... did 'the lizard' win?" Takuma asks, leaning forward slightly. "Yeah, he did! But he took a few bad hits. I think the gorilla shoved a tree down his throat or something, I'm not sure." she responds, prompting Takuma to wince and raise a hand to his throat like he needs to protect it from hostile timber.

"Maybe we should get back on track." Shoji interjects. "Right, sorry." Takuma chuckles a little sheepishly. "We don't know much, but I think I have an idea." he continues, pointing a claw at himself. "I'll go in first and try to bait them into attacking me. I think Kamakiri will at least take the bait. If he does, then his teammates will probably support him. Then you two can move around and close in on them while Shoji takes keeps an eye out so we don't get caught with our pants down." he schemes, cautious optimism dwindling slightly when he sees his teammates hesitate.

"That sounds a little risky, what if they overpower you? We have established we have a disadvantage when it comes to intel." Shoji retorts, and Ashido and Midoriya nod in agreement. "I can handle it..." Takuma mumbles, clearing his throat when he realises his words are dangerously close to a whine. "B-besides, I don't think they can overpower me. Not if I use the Emperor form." he elaborates in a whisper, excited when he sees their eyes light up. "That changes things, no way they can take that form down easily!" Ashido whispers back with glee.

"Are you sure? I doubt they're gonna hold back." Midoriya points out, but judging by his tone he's not willing to dismiss the idea. "Don't worry, I've been practicing. I can hold it for fifteen seconds now, but I can probably squeeze it for twenty, maybe more." Takuma reassures, which unfortunately makes Midoriya look more skeptical. "Is that really a good idea? You've said yourself that it's really intense." he points out, but Takuma smiles in response. "Go beyond, right?" he says, which slowly seems to win Midoriya over. "Alright, if you're sure." he responds with a nod and small smile. "I am. Honestly, I'm a little excited to use it." Takuma confesses.

"Fighters take your marks!" Vlad King shouts into his microphone, raising one hand skyward. "And start!" he hollers, swinging down his arm just before a loud buzzing comes to agree with him. Turning his eyes towards the screen, Takuma is a little taken aback at how Tetsutetsu charges forward, his entire body shimmering chrome. "C'MERE RED RIOT!" he hollers, leaving his teammates to eat his dust as be busts through a wall in search for his quarry. His advance is so loud and so brazen that the 1-A team doesn't even need Jiro's Quirk to notice it.

They quickly stratergise, and while Kirishima stands firm the others pull back, getting to the high ground just before Tetsutetsu closes in. Aoyama fires off a beam towards him which doesn't so much as slow him down. Kirishima's entire body turns rock hard as he throws himself at Tetsutetsu and they both strike eachother on their respective left cheeks. They wail on eachother with astounding ferocity and speed, literal sparks flying every time they make contact. Kirishima lands a fierce uppercut on Tetsutetsu, staggering him and giving him a window.

He grabs him by the wrist and delivers another punch to his temple before spinning him around and putting him in a full nelson. "CELLOPHANE, CAN'T STOP TWINKLING!" Kirishima screams, making Tetsutetsu's fearsome expression flip into one of confusion, then to realisation as Aoyama prepares another blast while Sero readies his elbows. Aoyama blows the steel student a kiss and gives him a wink, but just as he's about to blast off his beam the big pipe he stands starts melting like butter in an oven. Aoyama's face contorts into sheepish astonishment as he slurps down waist-deep into the metal.

Sero starts to sink as well but shoots tape at a nearby wall and attempts to pull himself free, only for a pair of horns to fly from Tsunotori and strike him in the gut, slamming him down into the sludge again. Takuma can help but let out a gasp, astounded at how well strong the 1-B team is starting, it's like a well planned ambush. Tetsutetsu takes advantage of the surprise and swings his head back, striking Kirishima in the face. He stumbles ever so slightly, but it's enough for Tetsutetsu escape his hold and drive his fist into Kirishima's stomach which hardens just in time.

They resume their battle while Jiro ducks to the side, narrowly avoiding another set of horns, only to sink into the ground as that too has a sudden pudding-like conistency. Their opponents seem to let Tetsutetsu have Kirishima all to himself as they surround Aoyama, Sero and Jiro. "HAH! Went off without a hitch, like we could expect anything less from Honenuki, with him having gotten in on recommendation!" Monoma cheers, like he's having the time of his life. "Would you give it a rest..." Takuma mutters sourly to himself.

"A brilliant plan by my students! Real Steel's daring charge was so loud Earphone Jack couldn't focus on the rest of the team as they caught up unimpeded! And with no answer to Mudman's Quirk, they have this match in the bag!" Vlad King announces, loudly and proudly, earning the stink eye from a few 1-A students for the unashamed bias. "I wouldn't count them out just yet." Midoriya says, just loudly enough for his team to hear as he points to Aoyama on the big screen. His face wears a strained expression as a beam blasts out of his confines, clocking Honenuki in the skull, shattering the front of his helmet. "Gah, what a cheap shot!" Vlad King cries out in despair.

As Honenuki falls down, encouringly limp, Kirishima beats Tetsutetsu down and grabs him by the ankles, spinning him around and sending him flying towards Tsuburaba. His body, no longer of steel, slams into a transparent wall that seems to have come out of nowhere. But while the wall can block Tetsutetsu, it can't block Kirishima. He smashes trough and grabs him by the collar, then hurls him towards Tsunotori who just about manages to evade, placing two hovering horns under her feet to zoom back before firing horn after at Kirishima.

He swats them to the side, clearly struggling to think of a way to get at her as she stays well out of reach, when Tsuburaba gets up and throws himself at Kirishima's back and puts him in another full nelson. He screams at his teammate to go for it, and she sure does. A final pair of horns slams into Kirishima's stomach and chest, sending both of them flying before a transparent box appears around Kirishima, seperating the two of them. Tsuburaba pushes himself away, crashing to the ground while Kirishima slams into the cage.

Class 1-B roars in celebration while 1-A maintains suspenseful silence, hoping for a comeback that never comes. Tsunotori's horns slide under Tetsutetsu's and Honenuki's unconcious bodies and pull them away, at which point she and Tsuburaba just wait out the time. With Sero and Jiro buried down to their necks and Aoyama seemingly crippled by a pained tummy, no matter how much they struggle they're stuck in place until the screen displays victory for the B team.

Chapter 5: Black Stuff

Chapter Text

"Absolutely spectacular victory!" Vlad King and Monoma cry out in unison, not so much as a hint of shame from either of them. "Doesn't seem like Honenuki is coming too for a while. We'll have to send some robots to dig them free." Mr. Aizawa grumbles, loud enough for people to hear but not loud enough for them to tell if he's talking to them or himself. "Next teams, get into position, we'll tell you when to start." he continues, this time being less ambigious about who he's adressing.

The two teams exchange glances before setting off, walking leaving their classmates behind and entering the narrow corridors of Ground Gamma. It's a slightly tense silence, though that just might be Takuma's own nerves and mild excitement. It might be an exaggeration of what an industrial area really is, or at least an exaggeration of such an area's size, then again it might not be. Perhaps this is how they really look, with pipes and scaffolding running everywhere, and chimneys out of every building. One chimney in particular reaches up to twice the height of Mt. Lady.

'Must be the main one.' Takuma thinks, and with slow and firm movements he checks his gauntlets, making sure they're loaded and in place when he catches Tokage staring in his direction. They lock eyes and she doesn't so much as twitch, smirking confidently. He looks behind himself in case there's someone there, only to realise that he's at the edge of his team.

"Nope, I'm looking at you." she says with a slight chuckle, like she finds his confusion amusing. "Oh... uh... H-hello." Takuma sputters, caught off-guard by the attention. "I like your Quirk. It's really cool." she continues, not bothered in the slightest, playing with a strand of her hair. "Oh... t-thank you. W-what's yours?" Takuma responds, figuring they're making conversation. "Don't answer that. And stop fraternising with the enemy, Lizardy." Kamakiri hisses, placing himself between Tokage and the Class A team.

"You've been hanging out with Monoma too much. This is just a bit of friendly banter, right before a friendly training session. We're still gonna crush it, but no sense in not being friendly." she retorts calmly, placing a hand on his shoulder to rein him in. "Well, looks like this is where we part ways. Be seeing you in a bit." she continues with a wave, leading her team off another corridor. 'She sure is friendly. Much more than Kamakiri.' Takuma thinks as he follows the others in the opposite direction.

"Are we ready?" Midoriya pipes up, snapping Takuma out of his thoughts and making him nod along with Ashido and Shoji. "Get ready! Get set!" Vlad King booms through the speakers, prompting Takuma to transform. "And go!" Vlad King screams, accompanied by a loud buzzing. Takuma takes a deep breath then starts to advance only for Shoji to place an extended hand on him. "Hold on, something's not right." he says in a low voice, at least a dozen ears listening intently. "What's wrong?" Takuma wonders, carefully inspecting their surroundings.

"I can't pinpoint anyones location. It's like there's hundreds of them clattering around the arena." he responds. 'They can hide from Shoji? That takes skill.' "Deku, Pinky, you'll have to be extra careful, maybe stick a little closer. But we should still be able to stick to the plan." Takuma rumbles, waiting a moment for them to agree before rushing in. They all look at eachother, clearly uncertain, but eventually nod. "Doesn't seem like we have time to come up with something else. Let's do this!" Midoriya shouts, giving them the signal to advance.

Takuma charges forward with a roar that echoes over the faux factory, sticking to the wider paths while recounting the plan in his mind. 'Get far enough that I look isolated, get jumped, get reinforced. Use Emperor.' he finishes, suppressing a small smile.

But the urge to smile is suddenly gone like a shot, replaced by a tingle running up his spine. He grinds to a halt and scans his surroundings, seeing the expected plethora of buildings with chimneys sticking up tens of meters, scaffolding and pipes running across rooftops and up and down the sides. Many nooks and crannies to hide in, should one want to lay in ambush. Or seek to be ambushed. He's being watched. He looks from side to side, trying to catch sight of whoever is preparing to pounce on him, but just barely hears scampering above and around himself. 'Doubt it's Shiozaki. Her Quirk might work in an ambush, but moving around like that? No, better for her to stay put. I have no idea what Tokage's Quirk is, and nothing concrete on Shishida, so that leaves an educated guess.' "I thought you wanted to settle the score. You'll have to do-"

*Tching*

It's short, quiet and cold, Takuma barely registers the shadow that moves across the rooftops. Though he certainly notices the chimney that falls down towards him, easily the length of a bus. With not enough space to dodge Takuma instead raises his arms and strikes it, shattering the brickwork. As bricks and mortar fly across the area like hail, more cutting noises sound around them. Scaffolding and pipes fall one by one, crashing down onto the behemoth. Nothing he can't handle, but it'll leave bruises nonetheless.

"This won't stop me." Takuma grunts, shaking off the pile of metal that has accumulated on top of him. "I'd be disappointed if it did. But it's just a matter of time before I finally get the satisfaction of beating you." Kamakiri retorts, are rare smile plastered on his face, small as it might be. He's actually rather imposing, standing some twenty meters away on a rooftop, arms crossed and tattered cloack swaying in the breeze. "I doubt that. I really doubt that." Takuma rumbles taking a few steps closer, letting the debris flatten under his feet.

He'd feel a little bad about insulting Kamakiri, essentially being the jerk he's got him pegged as, but keeping Kamakiri's focus on him is part of the plan. And, just maybe, paying him back for the coming bumps would be nice. "It's not like you can do any real damage." he continues, to which Kamakiri rolls back his shoulders. "Oh, I think I could." he snickers while raising an arm, a deadly blade replacing his hand. "But as much as it pains me, that's not my job right now. It's keeping you distracted." he finishes, sounding remarkably pleased with himself.

Takuma notices a brown blur to his left, raising his guard just too late, being struck in the jaw with enough force to send him stumbling into a nearby wall. Blinking through the dizziness, he sees Shishida, larger and more muscular, though not as big as himself. More like a normal-sized gorrila, funnily enough. Takuma thrusts with his right hand, attempting to grab Shishida by the torso, but he twists his body and shrinks, reverting his transformation. He hops off Takuma's outstretched arm towards his face, transforming again and landing another solid hit on his snout.

Takuma raises his hand up high and slams it down where Shishida lands, who only narrowly leaps out of the way. But just as the ground under Takuma's fist cracks, something comes out. Dozens upon dozens of writhing tentacles shoot out from under his hand and envelops it, climging up all the way to his elbow and pinning him in place. He tries to pull free when more tentacles shoot out from the ground and wrap around his left leg, then his right, then his other arm. Finally more sprout out from underneath his head and wrap around his jaw like muzzle.

"Well, that worked like a charm." Tokage's voice carries as she comes into view along with Shiozaki, or rather, her floating head. "The wicked titan has been restrained. Let us give thanks for this victory." Shiozaki says, eyes closed and hands joined together. "We'll take care of that once we've won, Vine." Tokage chuckles, her head zooming closer to Takuma, inspecting him with glee. "Like a real life dinosaur." she proclaims, sounding like she thinks he's a cool museum exhibit, not even blinking at the growl coming from him, shaking the ground. "Not that impressive." Kamakiri grumbles, arms once again crossed.

"The others are closing in." Shishida announces, sniffing the air. "Midoriya, from the south, Shoji and Ashido from the east. I'll keep Midoriya busy while you..." he continues, trailing off as his eyes drift towards Takuma. Takuma, and the vines binding him, snapping one by one despite the fact he's not thrashing about, merely growing. The 1-B team look on with increasing concern for just a moment before Shishida leaps at him, punching him in the throat while Kamakiri leaps up high and slices above Takuma, sending more debris careening down towards.

Only for it to be smashed into pieces by Midoriya, who then jumps off a wall and into Shishida, sending them both flying. Takuma's frame continues to grow, the vines snapping like rubber bands and flying everywhere. Finally the ones around his jaws snap, and with a deafening roar the Emperor stands tall, frills on full display. He looks down towards his opponents and raises his hand once, seeing Kamakiri grab Shiozaki and leap of out the way, but he still slams it into the ground. He feels the vibrations shake the ground and hears the rattling of metal all around.

It's almost intoxicating, the power behind his strikes and the effortless ripping of his confines. A stark contrast to holding his ultimate form, just these few seconds already has his heart hammering away, but he doesn't care. Spotting Shishida duking it out with Midoriya, he extends a hand and grabs at the advesary, accidentlly driving his limb through concrete walls like they were made of sand. It's like holding a mouse along with half a dozen pebbles. He watches Shishida pointlessly thrash against his grip, but with just the most miniscule bit of pressure from Takuma, Shishida looks like he's ready to pass out.

Lub-dub

It's only when he releases Shishida, haphazardly dropping him off by Ashido, when Takuma realises he's shaking. He can't even muster much of a thought, all of his effort is placed on holding the transformation, but he knows he needs to take out the others before he reaches his limit. Letting out another growl, more gutteral and involuntary, he turns around and stumbles. His left hand is tied down by enough vines to mummify an elephant, but it won't hold him for long. He starts to strain against it, feeling it give way when something grabs his attention.

Or rather someone, Kamakiri, and he does it by leaping onto his face. "You're gonna have to do better than that!" he hollers, raising a blade and stabbing into Takuma's nostril, making him roar in pain. It's the last bit of extra motivation he needs to tear himself free, but just as he does Kamakiri hops off into the sun, towards the main chimney, but what comes next, Takuma doesn't notice. Not when the violent thumping from his heart suddenly goes quiet.

In a flash an intense pain spreads from of his chest all the way to his throat, all the strength pouring out of him like water through a sieve. He barely notices himself reverting to his human form, down on all fours, distracted by the pain, cold sweat and shaking, scarcely being able to draw breath. But somewhere through all of that, he vaguely hears what sounds like panicked shouts, and sees a shadow move over him. A big one. Perhaps without meaning too, he flops over to his back, eyes pointing up to see what should be the clear, early winter sky. But he just sees what he thinks is the main chimney of Ground Gamma, coming closer and closer.

Then, he's hurtling through the air, dazedly wondering how he came to be here only to crash into a pipe and hearing something crack. A white flash obscures his vision, but while it slowly fades he can still vaguely hear things going on. Concrete cracking, steel snapping, and voices shouting. Faintly, his heart starts beating again, right in time for him to feel to hands shake him. Blinking through the pain and battling to take a breath, his vision eventually reveals Ashido. Her face screams panic and confusion. The fact he's not quite dead seems to be a small comfort.

"Takenaka, can you hear me? Are you okay?" she asks, checking him for wounds. "Grab him, we need to get out of here!" Shoji's voice cries out a few meters away, making Takuma look over. He's carrying an unconcious Shishida on his back, only sparing one arm which he holds outstretched in front of him as if to guard himself. And when moving his gaze a little to the left, Takuma sees what has him so afraid. Something black, like crackling energy, whipping around in what looks like multiple tentacles. It's smashing through buildings as if they're not even there, chunks of concrete and metal hurtling through the air.

And in the center of it all is a small figure, being flung around like a ragdoll. One wearing a familiar green costume.

"Mido-hnng..." Takuma grunts through the pain as he forces himself to stand up only to fall to his knees and clutch his right side. 'Damn, I think I have a few broken ribs. Shouldn't be more than three, though.' "Don't move so much, we'll get you to safety." Shoji says, which Ashido takes as a cue to grab him by the arm and try to pull him up, but he forces himself from her grip. "No, no... we gotta help Midoriya." he slurs, stumbling forward only for Shoji to step in front of him. "You can barely move, you'll only get yourself killed." he argues, though its clear from his he doesn't love the idea of leaving Midoriya. "Mr. Aizawa should be here soon, he'll stop whatever's going on." he elaborates, just as Midoriya is flung into a wall.

"We don't have time." Takuma grunts as he forces himself to transform, suddenly feeling like he has a shard of glass buried in his chest. "I should be able to... shrug of any hits. I have to... I have to help." he musters, taking a few shaky steps before finding his balance somewhat. "Be careful." Shoji whispers, barely loud enough for Takuma to hear, as he picks up a bit of speed, clumsily making his way towards the danger zone.

'I've got to grab him and hold him in place before he breaks his neck.' Takuma thinks as Miodriya crashes into a bit of scaffolding. "Midoriya! Try to come over here!" he hollers, raising an arm to shield his eyes as another tentacle strikes into the ground and runs along it, making a tear in the asphalt that's at least 30 meters long. "No, stay back! I don't- augh- know what's happening!" Midoriya cries out as he's being thrown around by the arm where it looks like the energy is coming from. "Calm down! Whatever's going on, we can- AAHG!"

The roar of pain is accompanied by a crash, as the tentacle that whips Takuma by the shoulder sends him stumbling into a small warehouse and through the wall. "Takenaka, I'm sorry! Get away!" Midoriya pleads as Takuma gets up shakily. He blinks repeatedly to stop himself from seeing double, trying to find any sort of pattern to how Midoriya is moving. 'This can't be anything but One for All. Assuming it works as a normal Quirk at least somewhat, he shouldn't be able to use it unconcious.' Takuma reasons through his exhausted mind. 'Sorry, Midoriya.'

When he enters the Emperor form again, it is not with a triumphant and excited roar, but a pained wail. The shard of glass he felt earlier feels like it grows even more than the rest of him and releasing splinters that course through his veins. He swings his right hang and tries to grab at Midoriya, missing and trying again with his left one, this time catching him. He plants his hand on the ground, struggling against the raging energy. He eventually releases his transformation, keeping a tight grip on Midoriya's costume as he shrinks.

They make eye contact, Midoriya's face being one of understanding and acceptance as Takuma cocks a fist and punches him in the head. As if with the flick of a switch the black stuff disappears, letting the two of them flop to the ground. The silence that's come over the arena is heavy, everywhere Takuma looks everything is in ruins. As Takuma rolls over, off of Midoriya to lay on his back, he suddenly realises how cold he is. The only source of warmth is the growing pool of crimson blood pouring from the wound by his shoulder. Hardly a comfort as everything finally turns dark.

Chapter 6: In the nurse's office

Chapter Text

When Takuma starts to slowly awake, the first thing he notices is the metallic taste in his mouth, the second thing is that his mouth is dry as sandpaper. And that's just a prelude to a whole heap of misery. He has a headache, and a more general ache pretty much everywhere. His eyes open with significant effort and finds that he's in bed, but not his own. Inspecting his surroundings, it's not hard to conclude that he's at Recovery Girl's office, going by the fact he can see nothing but the cubicle curtain surrounding him.

But even if that wasn't enough for him to realise where he is, the subtle sound of Recovery Girl's voice would be enough. Slowly, as he stirrs more and more he picks it up a bit clearer, though he's not quite able to discern what's being said. Her voice is quite serious, and it's soon joined by All Might who sounds rather melancholy, a jarring dichotomy from the Hero Takuma grew up seeing on TV. "That is very strange. I'll see what information I can find one the previous wielders of One for All." All Might says, and Takuma persumes that if he had heard the rest of it it might've made a bit more sense.

'Am I eavesdropping again? At least it's not intentional, I suppose. And he's talking about One for All, me being here shouldn't be a problem.' Takuma thinks groggily, dangerously close to falling back asleep. 'Shouldn't be a problem. They said themselves that Recovery Girl knows about Midoriya's-' "Midoriy-AHH!" Takuma attempts to rise as soon as he remembers his classmate, but is thrown down with a yelp as his torso explodes with searing pain, particularly his left shoulder. As he clenches his jaw and tries to compose himself, he feels the tense silence that comes over the room like a looming shadow.

It takes a few seconds before he hears the familiar tap tap of Recovery Girl's cane on the floor, and a few moments later the curtain around him is pulled away. The room is illuminated by a slew of lamps while the window shows almost pitch darkness, telling him he's been out for a while. Recovery Girl's eyes stare into his for just a moment, revealing a rare uncertainty from her before she looks over to his shoulder. "Oh dear. You've ripped your stitches." she mutters, walking over to a small step ladder to fetch. Takuma then looks over to All Might, whose expression is one of barely masked yet overwhelming unease. "Ah, you're awake. You had it rough our there, eh young Takenaka?" he says with a forced chuckle in a failed attempt to ease the tension.

Then Takuma sees Midoriya, in a bed to the right of himself. He has bandages wrapped around his head, right arm and leg, multiple small cuts on his face and a bump the size of walnut above his left eye where Takuma punched him. And he looks devastated. His lower lips quivers slowly as his breath hitches, clearly struggling. "Takenaka... I... I'm so s-" "I'm not mad." Takuma cuts off, a little surprised at himself. Midoriya's eyes widen in surprise while All Might looks hesitantly hopeful. Recovery Girl has placed the step ladder by Takuma and climbed it, tending to his shoulder while still keeping tabs on the conversation.

Takuma feels a small chuckle escape which is soon replaced by an embarrassed grimace. "Sorry, I shouldn't laugh. But whatever that was, you clearly weren't in control. It's not your fault." he continues, grunting in pain as he looks around the room, finding that they're alone. "Since it's just the four of us, I hope you don't mind me asking. Was I hearing things, or did you mention One for All?" he inquires, looking back to Midoriya and All Might. "Y-yes... After you knocked me out, a man spoke to me, like in a dream and yet... not a dream." Midoriya explains.

"He was one of the previous wielders of One for All. He told me that black stuff was his Quirk, called Black Whip. He said that I'm going to manifest six more Quirks. Then he told me that Black Whip came out because I... I wanted to pull you out of the way from the chimney." he continues, his pained expression returning. "But I couldn't control it, so it threw you across the arena. Then it just kept destroying everything... and it nearly killed you." he recounts, clenching his free hand as All Might puts a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "If it weren't for the fact you were transformed, you would've been cut in half." he whispers as his eyes start to wet, glancing at Takuma's bandaged shoulder.

Takuma doesn't answer right away, instead closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, sinking further into his pillow. He feels Recovery Girl's hands retreat from his wounded shoulder and hears her climb down the step ladder with hesitant steps. "Do you remember what happened after my match with Tsu?" Takuma finally asks, half-rhetorically, leaning into it when he doesn't get a response. "I imagine you do, you saw the state I was in. I felt awful. Even after Tsu forgave me and everyone in class seemed to move past it, I still felt guilty. I still do in a way."

"It was too easy. I could've crippled her, even killed her, but everyone just glossed over it. Until my internship with Gang Orca." Takuma recounts, smiling slightly at Midoriya who looks back with an uncertain expression. "He forced me to actually adress the problem, he made start to get my temper under control and mind my strength. I get that I'm rambling, and maybe you don't share my perspective, but... What I'm trying to say is that I get it." he continues, feeling his smile widen as Midoriya looks stunned. "If you can promise me that you'll get this 'Black Whip' under control, then you and me are nothing but peachy."

Midoriya continues to look gobsmacked, his eyes growing even wetter, so much so that Takuma gets a little worried he'll start crying, but he suddenly grits his teeth and wipes his eyes with his free arm. When he lowers it, he stares back at Takuma with a face of pure determination. "I promise!" he promises, which Takuma finds promising. "Glad to hear it. And if you need help, with Black Whip or any of the other ones, I'd be happy to." Takuma offers, trying to hold back a snort when All Might practically deflates from letting out a sigh of relief.

"I have some work to put in myself. I'm not sure what happened when I used the Emperor form, but I'm gonna need to get a handle on it." he muses, thinking back on the match. "I'm sorry dear, but I can't allow that. I examined you when you were unconcious, and you were in bad shape. Very bad shape." Recovery Girl interjects as she hops onto a chair. "What do you mean?" Takuma asks slowly, a prickle of anxiety coming over him. "This Emperor form of yours is much too straining on you. Increasing the dose of the enzyme is simple enough, but transporting it in your blood stream from longer than a few seconds is too much."

"As your body grows, so does the energy needed to sustain the transformation. Your normal transformation is fine since that's you operating within your biological limits. You're built to do that. However, a transformation twice the size requires not only more enzymes, but they must be transported faster through your bloodstream. That means your heart must pump harder and faster, to a very dangerous degree. The sudden intense strain can, as happened earlier today, simply make it stop." she explains, her professional tone still carrying sympathy.

"So... so... if I..." Takuma begins, furrowing his brow before shaking his head. "No, no, I-I've been practicing for months. I've slowly been able to hold it for longer, I probably just overdid it this time, if I-" "Dear." Recovery Girl cuts off, her voice more serious than Takuma has ever heard it. "Those improvements were most likely just mentally getting used to the form rather than your body adjusting. But even if it were, it doesn't change the facts. Your heart did start beating again, but there are never any guarantees. If you use that form for longer than a few seconds, and I strongly advice against even that... you're likely to die."

The intense silence that was present before Takuma and Midoriya could talk has weaseled its way back to them, no more enjoyable now than then. Takuma opens his mouth and closes it, trying to think of anything to say, a suggestion that might lead them to a less depressing conclusion. But nothing comes to mind, so it seems the unstoppable form has come to an end.

"I know that's upsetting to hear, and I'm sorry. I hadn't seen it in action before, so I had assumed your body had adjusted better to it. But this isn't the end of the world. It might feel like it, but it's not." she says, giving him a gentle smile. Takuma returns it half-heartedly before looking down at his bandaged shoulder. "Now, since you're both still hurt you'll have to spend the night here, and I'll patch you up tomorrow morning. Do either of you need anything before we leave?" Recovery Girl continues, making the two invalids look at eachother.

"Just curious, but how did the other matches end? Was anyone else hurt?" Takuma asks. "Nothing serious, Recovery Girl could fix them right away. Your match was was interrupted so it was a tie. You class won round 3 and 5 while class B won the fourth on, so it was all a draw at the end." All Might reveals, not sounding partial in the slightest, unlike Vlad King earlier. "If that's all, we'll-" "Oh!" Takuma blurts, accidentally interrupting Recovery Girl. While he grimaces at his impolite outburst, she looks as patient as ever. "Uh... I-if either of you have the time, could you go to the dorm and feed Pudding?" he asks hesitantly.

"I'll go, as soon as we've talked with the Principal. And we'll let your friends know you're awake and well. Well... mostly." All Might responds, ending with a slightly sheepish chuckle.

The two finally make their exit, turning off the lights and closing the door, leaving Takuma and Midoriya alone. Though Takuma is exhausted, he feels sleep will be late to come. With the conversation about the Emperor form echoing in his mind, he thinks it'll be quite a while indeed. "Well, goodnight." he says out into the darkness. "Goodnight." Midoriya responds, sounding tired as well. Takuma purses his lips and barely stops himself from blowing a raspberry, not wanting to make too much noise. 'Is that really it? I worked so hard to just get a handle on it, and now I just put it on the shelf?'

"Gotta be another way." he thinks to himself, though struggling to come up with one. "Did you say something?" Midoriya pipes up, clueing Takuma in to the fact he said that out loud. "Oh... sorry. Actually... do you think Recovery Girl was right? T-that I should avoid using Emperor from now on?" he asks, already suspecting what Midoriya will say. "Well... yeah. If there's a risk it'll kill you, you can't use it." Midoriya responds, confirming his suspicions. "Still, it is a shame. But if it's any consellation, I think you're plenty strong without it."

"Thanks. And it is." Takuma sighs, rolling his head in Midoriya's direction, not expecting to see much in the darkness. And yet, he sees two green peepers watching him, vaguely illuminated by slivers of moonlight through the window. It's a bit of an awkward moment, and from what Takuma can see of Midoriya's face he's of a similar mind, yet neither of them break eye contact. "Uh..." Takuma begins, unsure of what to say. "You ever been at a sleepover?" he lands on, oddly enough. "Huh? Uh... no, not unless you count at camp, but I don't think that counts." Midoriya answers, as confused as Takuma.

"Hah... yeah, I haven't either." Takuma answers with a forced chuckle, staring up into the ceiling, suffocated by the awkward atmosphere. "So... why did you ask?" Midoriya inquires. "I don't know... isn't this a little like a sleepover?" Takuma guesses, not wanting to admit he just had an unfortunate lack of brain capacity for a moment. It takes remarkable willpower to not grimace just in case Midoriya is watching him. But he eventually hears what sounds like a small chuckle, followed by a bigger giggle. "Pfft... S-sleepover! I-I'm sorry, it's just... Hehe... I don't think it's a sleepover when we're in hospital beds, haha!" Midoriya musters, struggling to contain his laughter.

And perhaps it's the fact that he can't contain it that makes it extra contagious. Slowly but surely, as is routine, Takuma starts giggling only for it to grow in intensity. Giggles turns to guffaws, which then turn to howls. "OH... OH... M-MY..." Takuma sputters inbetween gasps for air. "Y-yeah?" Midoriya sputters himself between his laughter, which makes Takuma laugh even harder. "MY RIBS!" he cries out in a mix of pain and amusement, clutching his side as a single tear rolls down his cheek. They both keep laughing, calming down slowly, in Takuma's case it's not hastened even slightly the pain that jolts through him with every careless snicker and snort.

"We... we should probably get some sleep." Takuma finally says, wiping his eyes with his palm. "Sounds good. Goodnight." Midoriya answers, once again sounding tired but in better spirits. "Goodnight." Takuma mumbles back with a smile on his face, feeling sleep gently envelop him.

Chapter 7: Mera of the Hero Commission

Chapter Text

"Mwah!"

With a peck on the cheek from Recovery Girl, Takuma feels the pain in his body ebb into near disapperance. But as he looks at his left shoulder, the mended flesh still has a glaring scar that starts just below his collar bone and ends underneath his shoulder blade, marked from his now removed stitches. He inspects his first scar for a moment, a bit sheepish when he catches himself thinking it looks a little cool. His father would probably have thought so, though his mother might be more concerned about how he got it.

Though as he isn't eager to be caught oogling himself, he gets up and puts his gym jacket on. All Might had gone ahead and brought him and Midoriya a fresh set of clothes since their costumes had gotten almost as damaged as they had. He pulls up the zipper and nestles into it, already feeling chilly, and a little awkward. Recovery Girl and All Might are there like last night, but they brought Mr. Aizawa with them. They've kept the secret from him so far, and Takuma doesn't intend to be the one that messes everything up, but he can imagine Mr. Aizawa was trickier for All Might to fool than the rest.

"I'm glad that you're able to stand up, Midoriya." Mr. Aizawa says in a slightly less monotone voice than usual. 'What am I, chopped liver?' Takuma thinks as he picks up an offered vitamin gummy from Recovery Girl and pops it into his mouth. "I need your help with Eri. After the joint training was over yesterday I asked Monoma to come over to your dorm. I think he'll be useful in getting Eri to control her Quirk, but... he can be a bit much, you might've noticed. I think you and Togata will be good emotional support." he drones on, bringing a small sparkle into Midoriya's eyes.

"Of course! If she needs me, I'll be there." Midoriya responds with a wide smile. "Want me to help? I doubt she remembers me, but I could whip up some finger sandwhiches or something and then leave you to it." Takuma offers, but Mr. Aizawa shakes his head. "A nice offer, but you're needed... elsewhere." he grumbles, sounding like the words leave a bad taste in his mouth. All Might steps forward, a grimace on his face conveying a similar disgruntlement. "Yes... there's somebody that wants to speak with you. Can you come with me to the Principal's office?" he requests.

Takuma glances from All Might to Mr. Aizawa, then to Midoriya who looks like Takuma feels, namely concerned. But the alternative of telling his teacher 'no' doesn't feel like it'd accomplish much other than make things difficult for the both of them. "Uh... Sure thing, sir. I'll see you around, Midoriya." Takuma says with a wave, falling behind All Might as the two start to walk in eerie silence. He purses his lips and looks around the empty corridor which seems a bit longer than usual.

"I realise the way Aizawa and me acted might make you uneasy, but I think you'll be fine." All Might pipes up after a while, looking over his shoulder towards Takuma. "Just... make sure that you think before you answer." he continues, which only makes Takuma more uneasy. 'Who the heck am I meeting?'

When they finally reach the Principal's office All Might knocks twice on the door, about to knock a third time before a cheery voice calls for them to come in. All Might slides the door open and steps aside, allowing his student entry. Takuma swallows the lump that has formed in his throat and walks through to the other side, mildy surprised at the sight that greets him. The Principal sits at his table, sipping from a cup of steaming hot tea with both hands, and opposite him sits a man. Takuma would be hard pressed to think of a more fitting word than disheveled, though tired or exhausted might fit the bill.

He sits there in a wrinkly suit, a large lump of messy hair on his head, a few strands reaching down to his generally unintressted face. It takes just a moment for Takuma to recognise him from the Provisional Licensing Exam. It's Mera, of the Hero Commission.

"Hello there, Takenaka! Glad to see you're feeling better! Would you like some tea?" Principal Nezu offers with a jolly wave. "...If it's not too much trouble, then yes please. Sir." Takuma answers before turning to Mera and bowing respectfully. "Good morning." he says. "Morning. Please, have a seat." Mera mutters back. Takuma does as he's told, sitting down next to the Principal who had already hopped a bit to the side on the sofa. Mera locks eyes with him, his dark, tired eyes having an element of strange intensity.

"Thank you for bringing him here, All Might. Why don't you go check in on Eri?" Principal Nezu suggests, but despite his smile Takuma can tell he's not happy with sending All Might away like some errand boy. All Might doesn't say anything, merely bowing slightly before turning and leaving, a faint sigh audible before the door is shut. "I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Mera, and I work for the Hero Commission. I'm sorry for taking up your time with this, I'm sure there are plenty of other things you'd rather be doing." Mera says, finally breaking eye contact and glancing down at a document.

"But there is something I need to discuss with you, and the sooner the better." he continues. "No problem at all, sir." Takuma answers, whispering thanks as the Principal hands him a cup of tea. He resumes his eye contact with Takuma, letting the three of them sit in oppressive silence which only seems to bother the student.

Takuma squirms a little in his seat, gathering his courage and deciding to cut to the heart of the matter. "Am I... in trouble?" he asks, his voice a bit more shaky than he would like. "Technically speaking, I suppose you should be." Mera says bluntly. "A certain event on I-Island this summer comes to mind. But you don't need to worry." he explains with a casual wave. "You only acted to try to stop the Villains, so we don't see an issue with letting it stay under wraps. I'd just like you to answer a few questions." he elaborates, but Takuma can't help but feel like there's an implication.

"I'll help as best I can." he answers, taking a sip to wet his dry mouth and earning a grunt of acknowledgement from Mera. "To get to the point, part of the Hero Commission's work is keeping tabs on particularly powerful Quirks. We have files on thousands of people in Japan, and you're one of them. It's not terribly exciting, usually it's just copies of the Quirk Registration Forms." he mumbles groggily, raising his cup which seems to be filled with coffee rather than tea, and taking a sip. "But when there is a significant development, we go ahead and get information directly. You recently got a new form that I've heard you call Emperor. I'd like you to tell me about it."

Takuma resists the impulse to narrow his eyes, desperately not wanting to be rude. 'You would've seen the Emperor form back during the exam. Why wait until now?' he thinks, trying to keep his face neutral. "I'm afraid there's not much to tell. Not anymore. I learned just yesterday that if I use that form too much, my heart... might stop. The school nurse has asked I don't use it anymore." Takuma explains. "Which I believe I mentioned yesterday on the phone." Principal Nezu interjects happily, though there is a hint of 'I-told-you-so' in his tone that makes to corners of Takuma's mouth twitch.

"I believe that's right, but I still had to confirm it. So then, to be clear, you can't use that form?" Mera prods, leaning a little closer. "Technically I can. But... it's inadvisable. Most I've been able to squeeze out of it is around twenty seconds, but again... it could stop my heart." Takuma responds before taking a sip of his tea. Mera leans back into his own sofa, letting out a sigh. "Glad to know that report is going to be short, if nothing else." he slurs, more to himself it seems, before looking back at Takuma. "Apologies, it seems I've forgotten my manners. I should congratulate you on your success. You've made a bigger splash than most people your age." he continues, taking a whiff of his coffee then chugging it.

"Oh... t-thank you?" Takuma says uncertainly, not having anticipated the new topic. "Yes... working with Gang Orca, getting a work-study with the Wild Wild Pussycats, getting on TV, the list goes on." Mera mumbles, stretching as he lets out a yawn. "From what I hear, you've even gotten to meet the CEO of Detnerat." he finishes, making Principal Nezu perk up. "That seems off-topic, doesn't it?" he says with a gentle smile, like he finds the statement funny. "Ah, I'm just making conversation now. Truth be told, I was hoping I have another cup of coffee before going back to the office." Mera retorts, a rare, almost unnoticable smile appearing on his face.

"Of course, go ahead." Principal Nezu says. Mera nods and reaches into a bag sitting by his side, pulling out a large thermos. "I hope you can excuse me being nosy, but I feel the need to ask. What did the two of you talk about when you met?" he wonders inbetween sips from his cup. 'Being nosy is something the two of you have in common. What are you after?'

"Well... he asked me about the night the League of Villains attacked at the summer camp." Takuma answers slowly, maintaining eye contact. "Anything in particular?" Mera wonders, his smile gone. "He asked about my fight with Compress." Takuma asnwers, just as slowly. "Anything in particular?" Mera repeats, an odd glint in his eyes. "He asked how Compress fought." Takuma responds curtly, perhaps more curtly than he should, but the studying gaze Mera has is making him uneasy. Mera empties his cup again then stands up. "Seems I made you uncomfortable. Sorry about that." he mumbles, putting his thermos back into his bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

"I should get back to the office. Thank you for your time." he says as he turns on his heels and exits the office. Takuma stares at the door Mera just went through, unsure what to make of the interaction, though he's convinced it wasn't very pleasant. "I think you handled that well." Principal Nezu says, snapping him out of his thoughts. "It turned into a bit of an interrogation at the end. Quite peculiar." he continues, sipping his tea. Takuma looks from the Principal back to the door, then at his tea. "Was what he said true, sir? Do Commission employees check in on people that have... "noteworthy" Quirks?" Takuma asks.

"I'm sure they keep files. Though this is the first time I've experienced them setting up this kind of meeting." he answers, his voice hinting that he's as curious as Takuma is.

Chapter 8: Belated Interview Practice

Chapter Text

Todoroki and Bakugo have finally gotten their Provisional Licenses, well earned after months of diligent work. In fact, less than an hour of getting them, they had managed to stop a gang of Villains that had tried to rob an entire street. This had earned them an interview, which hadn't necessarily gone well. Takuma feels a little bad about, exclusively for Todoroki, but he's more so amused by the published product, snickering at it with his classmates. He had intially been in his room when the interview was being conducted, but he would regularly hear Bakugo scream his lungs out.

At first he would shake his head, but after twenty minutes he had snuck down and watched the spectacle with a few of his classmates. The interview had gone on for about an hour, but the used footage is a nice even five minutes. "You must've bonded during your training, given how well you two worked together, huh?" the interviewer's voice comes out of Kaminari's phone. "That's right, we're friends." Todoroki's voice replies, and Takuma struggles to contain a snicker as he notices a distinct lack of protests from Bakugo.

He had been cut from the entire thing, other than his angry face in the corner. Takuma takes a bit of pride in the fact he's restraining himself as much as he is while Sero and Kaminari are laughing downright manaically. His smile dies down when he overhears a newsbroadcast form Midoriya's phone about the chaos and destruction that had engulfed Deika City. Nine days have passed since then. The death toll had been mercifully low, but there was still a number of injured. Mr. Yotsubashi was among them, which according to Yua had caused a significant bit of chaos in the Detranat conglomorate.

Detnranat had some office building there that Mr. Yotsubashi happened to be in at the time, she didn't or couldn't share many more details than that, but luckily she had been at the Sleek Tec. office when it happened. 'Though he did survive, which is something. He was nice. Hope he'll get better soon.' Takuma thinks, letting out a small sigh and leaning back in his chair. It's a somber subject to think about. "In the past, if there was an incident with this many casualties, everyone would be blaming the Heroes for their ineptitude in the field. But right now, I suppose you could say we're at a critical juncture in time. For the most part, I've seen more encouragement than disapproval." another voice from Midoriya's phone says, leading the class to discuss the subject, in particular the "Look! Boy".

He seems to have given a lot of people some fresh perspective on Heroes, not just Endeavor. But at the mention of him, Takuma sheepishly looks over his shoulder, stealing a glance at Todoroki. He's facing Ashido, who is currently gesturing towards her peepers. He has an expression that isn't too different from his usual one, but something about it seems more melancholy. Though, the fact he's not looking at Takuma gives him a bit of hope it's not from when he... snapped.

"Not so fast, kids." a voice chimes up, accompanied by the sliding of the door. "It may look like there's a renewed love of Heroes. But think about why." Mt. Lady strides like she owns the place, placing herself right by Mr. Aizawa's desk with Ms. Midnight by her side. "The world's on fire and everyone is scared. Are people cheering for Pros they've got ample faith in? Or are they praying desperately we don't get our butts kicked?" she asks, assuming a position that makes her posterior prominent, which just might be intentional, but not Takuma's concern as he places himself on ceiling inspection duty.

"Our job's been more about celebrity in past years. Now the world wants to see real Heroes again." she explains, just as Mr. Aizawa appears in the doorway wearing his sleeping bag. He slurs an explanation, that Mt. Lady is a guest instructor to teach them how to handle publicity. 'Great timing...' Takuma thinks a little bitterly as he stands up while Kirishima tries to hype the class up.

They suit up and are soon gathered outside in front of a stage Takuma doesn't remember seeing before today, which is a UA trait he feels he should be used to by now. "In today's class, you'll all be practicing Hero interviews!" Mt. Lady exclaims before inviting Todoroki up first. It takes a bit to get the ball rolling, the ball being Todoroki understanding that he and Mt. Lady are supposed to be playing a bit of pretend, but then he demonstrates his ultimate move, "Heaven Piercing Ice Wall". That, and a bit of an explanation about his move makes it all end up becoming a good interview. Takuma thinks so, anyway.

When asked why they're supposed to show of their ultimate moves, Mt. Lady squats down on the stage and looks them over. "Sweet baby first-years. Remember, you're just starting out, it's not like everyone knows who you are." she says, putting her hands together. "Your ultimate moves are like your personal calling cards. People won't forget you if you show off your assets. They're also handy when teaming up with others, and as ways to frighten off Villains, too. Those moves help people learn to trust you with their lives. We don't yell out the names of our attacks just because it sounds cool."

Takuma catches himself nodding slowly, along with her reasoning, lightly chewing on his lip. 'Makes sense. I don't think there was a single Villain that wouldn't be dripping with sweat when All Might would scream out one of his Smashes.' he thinks, a ball of anxiety forming when he remembers that night in Kamino. 'Well, almost no one.'

"Now then, let's keep the interviews comin', shall we?" Mt. Lady suggests, and a whole heap of hands shoot up to volunteer, Takuma's right among them. Mt. Lady calls up Iida and Yaoyorozu first, but then her finger points to him. "Alright then, get up here!" she calls out, making Takuma take a deep breath. He lowers his hands and rolls his shoulders a bit before turning his face into a mask of stone. He strides up Mt. Lady, absentmindedly checking his gauntlets are firmly in place, trying to suppress his bubbling anxiety.

"What a win! You took care of that Villain like nobody's business!" Mt. Lady praises, and thanks to Todoroki going up first Takuma knows that he's supposed to play along, which he does with a firm nod. "What's your name, Hero?" she asks, pointing her microphone to him. "I am the Behemoth Hero: King Komodo." Takuma rumbles, debating whether or not he should cross his arms, but that doesn't really feel like something Gang Orca would do. "Ooh, that's a powerful name, I like it! Tell me, your highness, what kind of ultimate move do you have tucked away in the royal armoury?" she asks teasingly, giving him a sly wink.

Takuma has to stop himself from breaking his stoic expression in favour of a sheepish grimace. He takes another deep breath, choosing his words carefully. "I don't have one. But it doesn't change anything." he finally responds, trying to keep his voice steady. "Oh?" Mt. Lady says, her expression going from a slightly disappointed one to a mildly curious one. "I don't have an ultimate move I can readily use, but it doesn't matter. It's not an ultimate move that makes a Hero, it's tenacity." he elaborates before he can even really stop himself.

"A real Hero doesn't throw in the towel or surrender. They keep fighting regardless of the odds. It doesn't matter if they're... injured, or outnumbered." he continues, swallowing the lump forming in his throat while hoping it's not noticable. "A Hero is one that fights on, regardless of the odds, even if it costs them their life. T-that... that's the kind of Hero I aspire to be." he finishes, feeling his claws dig into his palms as his fists clench on their own. "Huh... this was supposed to be about ultimate moves, but honestly, giving that kind of reassurance to the public would be the best way out. Nice work." Mt. Lady responds, giving him a small thumbs up.

Takuma nods to coney his gratitude before turning around and walk off the stage. The words had just poured out of him, he's not sure where they came from or if they even made sense. Besides, it's not like he would be upset if his Emperor form could be used, so why did he act so dismissive? He raises a hand and rubs his eyes, suddenly feeling tired, yanking it away when he feels someone touch his shoulder. It's Tsu, reaching up high to give a bit of reassurance. "You okay, Takuma?" she whispers as Uraraka gets called up. "Was it obvious I was nervous?" Takuma chuckles, giving her a small smile.

"I'm fine. It's not as bad as being on TV, but I guess I rambled a bit. Thanks, though." he says, turning his eyes to the stage as Tsu pulls her hand away, seemingly satisfied. The others do really well when giving their interviews, except for Bakugo who decides to be his usual abrasive self. Other than him, things go smooth as butter, until a certain green-haired boy gets up on stage, stiff like he's in a full body cast. "Deku, yes? What a treat. I saw you in action." Mt. Lady says, making Midoriya crack a really nervous smile. "I'm glad. Really glad. Just super glad." he somehow wheezes, sounding like he's on the brink of death.

Takuma bites his lip, silently cursing himself. 'I'm sorry, Midoriya. I should've given you the advice Ragdoll gave me. But this is just practice. You'll be fine.' he thinks, wishing he had the sense to help his friend. "I'm sure we'd all love to know what was going through your head." Mt. Lady continues. "Just that I'm still glad." Midoriya responds. "Many viewers have noted that your moves seem to be based on All Might's patented combat. Do you admire him?" she prods, seemingly unbothered by his struggling. "YES!" Midoriya blurst out, startling Mt. Lady a bit.

"But I didn't want to just copy All Might, so I tried to customize my moves so they feel unique to me while also being true homages to him." Midoriya explains, before launching into a massive explanation about his combat style, stunning everyone, Takuma left mouth slightly agape. 'Nevermind, he's doing great.' Takuma thinks, scartching his head. He would never have expected Midoriya to so seamlessly speak with confidence during an interview, but he's like a master. He does eventually slow down, leading to Mt. Lady to ask him about an ultimate move.

Everyone watches in suspense as they wait for the same thing, even if only a few of the people present know what it really is. They're waiting for Midoriya to use Blackwhip. Midoriya closes his eyes and slowly raises his arm. The air is practically vibration with suspense. Takuma shifts his weight from one leg to the other, feeling his heart beat, both anxious and exctied to see this power again. In an instant, a steam of black mist shoots out of Midoriya's hand, at least a few inches, before fizzling out. Once more, the entire class is stunned while Midoriya looks ecstatic.

Takuma can't help but crack a grin at the incredible difference in control, giving Midoriya two whole thumbs up. "Don't be happy about something so weak." Bakugo growls a few meters away, earning a glare from Takuma. "Shut up..." he catches himself muttering, though it doesn't seem Bakugo heard him, which might be for the best.

Chapter 9: Q&A

Chapter Text

"Okay, so... if you're feeling warmed up I guess we can get started." Takuma says, feeling a little warm in his clothes himself. Shinso looks a bit more flushed than he is, though not exhausted by any means. "Yeah. Let's start." Shinso responds, loosening the zipper on his jacket slightly. He's still on the thinner side, most likely under a healthy weight, but he looks sturdier than when they first started. "Well, then... how does your 'Brainwashing' work? How do you use it on someone?" Takuma wonders, shifting his weight from one leg to the other.

"I activate it by speaking to the person I want to use it on. I just need to ask a question, and when they answer they're under my control. Though if I give them an order that requires them to use their brain they snap out of it. It also stops working if they suffer a hard enough physical impact." Shinso responds, to-the-point as usual. "Hm... how many people can you use it on?" Takuma prods further. "I can activate it on one person at a time, but I can hold it over more people. Not sure how many." he explains, making Takuma nod along absentmindedly. "Well... sorry, but like I said I don't know how to turn that into a fighting style. Ideally, you might not need to fight if you can just trick Villains into a conversation. So I suppose... we'll just go through the basics for now." he suggests, sliding into a basic stance. "Mimick this position."

Shinso does as he's told, Takuma only making a few minor adjustments before picking up a pair of focus mitts he had gotten from storage earlier. "Punch these. I'll move them around a bit at times, so be ready. I'll gauge your stamina, reaction time and the amount of force you put into your punches." he explains, raising his mitts as Shinso nods. He throws a few jabs and the occassional heavier punch, without what Takuma would consider precision, but he sure has a determined look in his eyes. "I thought of something the other day. Winter break is coming, but I'm going to be kinda busy." Takuma speaks up, moving the mitts, turning a jab into a near miss.

"With what?" Shinso wonders, though he doesn't sound very interested. "Well, our whole class has an assignment..." Takuma explains, purposefully vague. They're being sent off to a place called 'Nabu Island', a piece of land in the middle of the ocean with a tropical climate. Most of his classmates are expecting a vacation. "So we're going to be away for the rest of the year, at least. And my home room teacher has been hinting that there's supposed to be something aftar that." he continues, moving the mitts, slipping the right on past Shinso's punch. "Then after that, we're getting to go to our families to celebrate New Years." he rambles, mostly absentmindedly, wincing when he realises that might be not be the case for the other courses. They have to be escorted by a Pro, and there's only so many to go around.

"We don't get to do that." Shinso gruffs as his panting starts to grow in intensity. "Heh... uh... sorry." Takuma answers, giving a stiff and hopefully adequetly apologetic smile. "It's alright." he retorts, his tone indicating that he doesn't really want to dwell on it. Takuma purses his lips and let's Shinso beat on the mitts for a bit, feeling awkward. "Why did you bring it up?" Shinso questions, sounding annoyed as usual. "Oh, right... Do you know Recovery Girl? Or at least where her office is? She should be free during the break. I was thinking you could visit her, and ask her to teach you some stuff."

"She does that?" Shinso wonders, now sounding a bit interested. "Yeah. Treatment, I mean, not combat, that's not really her thing. I mean she might whack somebody with her cane, but... but that's not relevant to our conversation." Takuma answers, whispering the latter part in a self-directed chastisement. "Anyway, I'm sure she's willing to teach you something. She's great." he continues, slowly pulling back his hands when Shinso puts his own on his knees, panting heavily. Takuma waits for a moment for him to resume his stance, but shrugs and sits down instead.

"So... should we practice strengthening your Quirk?" he offers, earning an unsure look from Shinso. "How would we do that?" he mutters, shrugging lightly. "Well... you'd use it." Takuma responds, unsure why that needs explaining. "On who?" he asks, like he doesn't think Takuma has thought things through. Shinso's frown slowly dissolves as Takuma points a claw at himself. 'Who else?'

Shinso continues to give a very peculiar look, but eventually sits opposite him. "Alright. What are going to do?" he wonders, this time sounding near polite. "You'll use your Quirk on me. Try to make me 'use my brain', however you want. See if you can't push past this limit of yours." he explains, offering a smile. "Alright then. What should I ask?" Shinso wonders, making Takuma pause. "I'm... not sure." he answers, and suddenly everything turns just a little fuzzy.

He can still see, hear, smell, all of it, but everything is a tiny bit more muted. Everything but Shinso. If anything, he pops out a bit more. A small smile plays at his lips, and a clever gleam in his eyes clearly communicates 'gotcha'. He inspects Takuma for a moment, clearly considering something. "What's the capital of Luxembourg?" Shinso demands, and all of a sudden everything returns to normal as a chill runs down Takuma's spine. "Buh..." Takuma sputters before shaking his head. "L-Luxembourg City!" he answers desperately, making Shinso face fall flat.

"Sorry... Uh... let's go again." he offers, making the Shinso's smile return. "You sure?" he wonders. "Sure I'm sure." Takuma says with what's meant to be a casual wave, trying to play it cool as he falls into Shinso's trap again.

Takuma learned that Shinso was toying with him a bit after the second time, so afterwards they just went straight to the point. On repeat, since any question Shinso tried to make him answer while under his control just snapped him out of it. Now Shinso's got his head buried in his hands, groaning from what appears to be a severe headache or crippling frustration, neither of which Takuma thinks he can cure. Most he figures he can do is hand him a bottle of water and offer him a bit of encouragement. "It's not so bad. This is just the first time we've done this, I'm sure you'll get it eventually." he reassures his purple 'pupil', extending a bottle which is accepted reluctantly.

"Sounds like there's going to be a next time." Shinso muses, taking a small sip. He glances at Takuma with a somewhat wistful expression, then flicks his gaze out towards the gym. "Hey... why did you offer to help me in the first place?" Shinso asks, only to be met with silence. Silence which lasts for quite a while, so long that he returns his peepers to Takuma, who's watching him with pursed lips. The keep staring at eachother as a realisation dawns on Shinso. "I'm not going to use my Quirk." he promises. "Oh... well... I guess..."

"When we talked... or screamed, I guess... and you told me you didn't even try during the practical portion of the exam... it reminded me of myself, just a bit. I don't know if you've noticed this, but I'm a little awkward at times." Takuma explains, rolling his thumbs. "Yeah, I've noticed." Shinso says bluntly, making Takuma chuckle. "You should've seen me when I started at UA. I didn't try to talk to anybody, when I had to I constantly made things weird. I had never had friends before, so I didn't try to then either. My classmates helped me with that. I have friends now. I guess I thought I could help you out like that." he explains, suddenly feeling a little shyer.

"We're friends now?" Shinso asks, sounding genuinely surprised. Takuma looks away and shrugs. "If... you don't mind." he responds, rubbing his neck. "Yeah... sounds nice. But in that case, I should probably apologise. I was... a bit of an ass to your for a while. So... I'm sorry." Shinso grumbles, clearly embarrassed. Takuma offers him an understanding smile before looking away again, not wanting to stare when he's uncomfortable. "No biggie." he mutters, his smile still present.

Chapter 10: A holly jolly Christmas

Chapter Text

It is 13:57 PM, something Takuma is very much aware of as he's staring intensely at his phone, watching the minutes go by. Mr. Aizawa had told the class yesterday that the work-study program would be started up again, not just for those who wanted to, but for everyone, though he said they'd get assigned to an agency once they return from Nabu Island. In the mean time, they're free to try to get with their preferred Heroes, an opportunity Takuma had practically leapt at. He had called Gang Orca as soon as he could but he hadn't picked up, instead sending him a text.

I have a lot of work at the moment. If you call me tomorrow around 14:00 we can talk.

The text had been sent before he had been able to send one himself to explain what he wants, but with Gang Orca graciously offering his time he had just sent a text thanking him. So now he's waiting, patient, impatient and excited all in one, for the time to be right. Speaking of, 13:58 PM.

He's sitting in bed, absentmindedly playing with the ball on his Santa hat. Yaoyorozu had gone ahead and made a bunch for all of them, not just hats but complete Santa outfits, giving Takuma a green one with a hole for his tail. It's nice and warm, but it's not all of Takuma's holiday spirit made fashion statement. His tail is wrapped with a cord of Christmas lights, and a star is even attached to the tip. Not his idea, that credit goes to Ashido and Kaminari, the latter having charged up a battery for the lights that Takuma has in his pocket.

With the pleading looks they had given him, he didn't have the heart to refuse, though the star chafes ever so slightly. He shakes his head to rid himself of distractions, and focuses again on the time. 13:59 PM. 'Will I be a bother if I call him now? The text did say "around" 14:00, so technically now should be fine, but maybe I should wait a few minutes. Then again, he must be busy, running a tight ship and all that, so maybe I should call him on the dot. Whatever, it's just a minute, it probably isn't a problem.'

Shaking his head in an attempt to free himself from the prison of his own thoughts, he pulls up Gang Orca's contact info and gives him a dial, pursing his lips. The first signal rings, then the second, then the third, the fourth one just starting before Gang Orca answers. "Hello, or Merry Christmas, I suppose." his strong voice echoes through Takuma's phone. "Hello, and Merry Christmas, sir!" Takuma answers, giving a fairly relaxed salute. "I apologize for making you call during the holidays, I imagine you'd rather be relaxing. Regardless, what was it you wanted to talk about?" Gang Orca continues, sounding a little like he could do with a bit of relaxation himself.

"If anything I should thank you for making time for me on Christmas. But UA recently told us that we would start doing work-studies again after New Years, and... seeing as Todoroki and Bakugo have their licenses, I'm hoping the remedial course is over. Provided it is... could I do a work-study with you?" he requests, his anxiety and anticipation making him chew lightly on his lip. "I suspected that was it. Yes, I'd be happy to have you." Gang Orca answers, so quickly Takuma can't help but be a little surprised. "Oh, g-great! Thank you!" he responds, earning a low chuckle from his mentor.

"UA had already contacted me requesting I consider taking in a few students. I'd like you to ask two of your classmates if they're interested in joining you. Mezo Shoji and Kyoka Jiro. Send me a text if they accept." Gang Orca explains, making Takuma nod despite the fact they can't see each other. "Of course, I'll ask as soon as I see them, sir." Takuma pledges, smiling widely at the thought.

"Thank you. So then... How have you been?" Gang Orca inquires. "Huh? Oh, I've been fine. Good, even." Takuma answers, slightly caught off guard. "Good. That's good. And... school is going well, I hope?" Gang Orca wonders, sounding oddly hesitant. "Yes sir. It's going well. We're... supposed to be having a short field trip to Nabu Island, we'll fill in for a few days until a new Hero can move there, the last one retired. So... that'll be... good. I hope. We're actually leaving tomorrow." Takuma explains, confusion and curiosity growing.

"It sounds good. You'll get some experience in a low risk setting. And... are you getting along with your classmates?" Gang Orca continues, making Takuma pause for a moment that's so long it borders on impolite. "Yeah, everything is great. But... and I'm sorry if this is out of line, sir... are you feeling alright?" Takuma asks in return, bracing himself in case he gets chewed out. "I'm fine. Why do you ask?" he responds, his voice once again strong and commanding. "W-well, sir, it's just that... you've never really made small talk like this." Takuma explains, shifting a bit anxiously.

"No. I suppose I haven't." Gang Orca agrees before clearing his throat. "I apologise, I'm probably just tired from work. I'll send the schedule for the work-study to your email, you can share it with the others if they wish to join you. I'll let you get back to your holiday celebration." he asserts, the abrupt ending to their conversation giving Takuma whiplash. "Oh, o-okay. Merry Christmas, sir." he stammers, giving a slightly stiffer salute. "Merry Christmas. Have a good one." Gang Orca says, his tone a little softer before hanging up.

Takuma stares at his phone's screen as it goes dark before moving his gaze to Pudding, who is resting on Takuma's pillow. "I hope he's feeling okay. That was... a little peculiar." he says, looking to Pudding as if he could expect an intelligent and insightful comment. Pudding doesn't offer one, insightful or otherwise, instead hoping down from Takuma's pillow and walking towards the door, watching it with lazy expectations. "Fair enough. I should get started." he agrees, opening the door and walking down the stairs.

The sweet melodies of familiar and possibly over-used Christmas songs greet him as he enters the common area. Looking around, he sees most of his classmates. Sato, Tsu, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu sit by one of the tables, playing some card game, Uraraka and Midoriya are putting up a few final decorations, both with suspiciously red cheeks and cherry smiles, while most others are gathered by the TV, watching a movie. "Hey Takuma, how'd it go? Ribbit." Tsu pipes up when she spots him, throwing down two kings, which seems to put Todoroki in a bind, judging by his expression.

"It went well, I'll be having my work-study with him." he responds, glancing and Shoji and Jiro, who both seem to be thoroughly enjoying the movie. 'I probably shouldn't interrupt.' he thinks as Yaoyorozu smiles at him. "We're glad to hear it. Why don't you join us? This round is almost over." she offers, throwing down two aces, making Sato cover his face and groan. "Thanks, but maybe later. I've got to start on dinner." he responds with a smile of his own before turning on his heels and striding into the kitchen. "In that case, let me help." Sato offers, rising from his chair.

"Keep playing, I'll be fine. The kitchen is honestly too small for the both of us." Takuma quickly insists, gesturing for him to sit back down. Sato's face conveys a clear dissatisfaction. "...You sure? I can... Ah, whatever." he quickly relents, slumping down into his chair and picking up his cards again. "Skip me, then." he grumbles, at which point Yaoyorozu picks up the pile and puts it to the side, starting another one. "Just let us know if you change your mind, we're right here!" she calls out to him as he enters their little kitchen.

He has absolutely no intention of asking for help. Partially because he doesn't want to pull them out of their fun, mostly because he's excited to cook for them. 'This is the first Christmas I've been excited for in years, and it's thanks to them. Time for me to pay them back.' he thinks with a growing grin, cracking his knuckles and washing his hands. 'I'm going beyond.' he thinks, stifling a small excited giggle.

They're not having dinner until around seven o'clock. Plenty of time. It doesn't take long for him to whip out an assortment of pots, pans, knives and ingredients, and even less time for him to get cooking. The clacking sounds of blade against cutting board, the sizzling of various meats being fried and deep fried, light humming of the oven and bubbling of pots become an even sweeter melody for him as he almost enters a trance, whipping up dish after dish.

He only snaps out of it once his phone rings, the buzzing is unmistakable. He can't help but frown as he pulls out his phone, but gets a more amicable expression once he sees it's Pixie-Bob. "Merry Christ, ma'am!" he greets, vigorously stirring a stir fry. "Heeeey Takenaka~!" Pixie-Bob answers cheerily, and just a little slurry. "Everything good, kid?" Pixie-Bob asks with a giggle. "Uh... Yup. Everything's peachy, is everything good on your end?" he retorts, nestling the phone between his shoulder and cheek to resume his cooking.

"Yeah it is, it's Christmas! We're done working for today, we've opened a bottle of wine, we're having a great time." she explains happily. 'You're drinking? It might be Christmas, but it's only what, two in the afternoon?' Takuma thinks, glancing to clock to find that ir's actually 18:52 PM. "Wah!" he yelps in surprise, accidentally letting his phone slip from his grip and fall with a clatter. "Everything alright?" Pixie-Bob's voice wonders through the device, as Takuma desperately picks it back up again. "Yep yep yep, everything's peachy! W-what were you saying?" he answers, scurrying and hurrying around the kitchen to finish up.

"Right right... d'you have a work-study? Where you at with that?" she asks. "Got one today, at Gang Orca's agency. Sorry." he blurts out, cutting several pizzas into appropriate slices. "Like we said, that's fine, that's fine... But... d'you think you can help us with something else?" she prods, sounding like a cat about to snatch a canary. "I'll try, ma'am." Takuma answers absentmindedly, perhaps not paying as much attention as he should. "Hero League Baseball. You follow it?" the Pro inquries. "A bit." he answers, moving on to filling a bowl with pieces of fried chicken.

"Well, we've made it to the finals! Given that Heroes are the ones playing, we don't have a set team other than ourselves since we don't know who's free. We pull in whoever we think will be good, and you would be great. It's on a Sunday, wanna help us out?" she almost coos, not that Takuma notices. "Would love to, no problemo. Anything else? I-I'm kinda in the middle of something." he pledges and pleads. "Oh? Right, don't let me keep you. Merry Christmas!" Pixie-Bob says in farewell, making Takuma nearly sigh in relief. "Thank you, sorry, tell the others I said hi, bye!" he blurts out before hanging up.

He opens a cupboard to pull out glasses for them all only to find there isn't a single one. They're all gone, as if whisked away a ghost, or Krampus. He whips around in a panic only to find that all the food that he placed on the counter has vanished as well, culprits being his classmates, even Sato. "Oh, you've snapped out of it." Sato says as he's hauling away the fried chicken towards the "living room" area, followed by Takuma's eyes. The others have pulled all the couches and ottomans together, forming a crescent surrounding two low tables. Several tables have been moved over there as well, stacked with everything he's whipped up to the degree there's no table visible.

There's what you might expect from a Christmas table, fried chicken, pizza, cream stew and potato salad, smaller dishes like takoyaki and tempura shrimp but also some foreign faces, like American style turkey, Swedish meatballs and Polish pierogi, and those are just a handful of what he's cooked up. Uraraka, Kaminari and Ashido are all practicaly drooling, inspecting the fine spread before them with glee. "When you said you were gonna cook I thought you'd take an hour or two. Didn't think you had all this planned, ribbit." Tsu croaks, concealed behind a massive pile of mashed potatoes meant to go with the turkey.

"Yeah, this is absolutely nuts!" Kirishima hollers, trying to find space for the soda somewhere. "You're the best, Takenaka!" Ashido, Kaminari and Uraraka cheer, each about to grab a piece of takoyaki when Shoji intervenes with mutliple hand. "Let's wait till everyone's had a seat." he suggests, making them all give him puppy eyes. Takuma does his best to keep his bashful smile at a less embarrassing size, absentmindedly playing with the star on his tail as he joins the gathering. They sit down and, with proper etiquette, start filling their plates, their conversation eventually drifting to work-studies.

"Are the two of you going back to join Ryukyu?" Jiro asks, looking at Tsu and Uraraka. "Yup, we are. What about you?" Uraraka responds, earning an unsure shrug. "I had my internship with Death Arms, but I haven't reached out yet. Bothering him on Christmas probably won't increase my chances. Though we haven't talked since my internship, so I honestly don't know if he'll accept me." she sighs, giving Takuma a very handy reminder. "I got one with Gang Orca earlier today. He asked me to tell you and Shoji you're free to come with." he reveals as he sinks a claw into a ball of takoyaki and plops it into his mouth.

"Huh?! Why didn't you say anything before?!" Jiro blurts out, exasperated, startling Takuma and nearly making him choke on the tasty nibble. "Sowwy..." he musters between coughs, impolite as it might be to speak with food in his mouth. "I'd be happy to join you." Shoji interjects, lightly patting Takuma on the back to make certain there's nothing in his airways. "Uh... M-me too. Sorry." Jiro mumbles, getting a thumbs up from the still recovering Takuma. He's about to shed some light on what they can expect from Gang Orca when the front door is suddenly opened. Mr. Aizawa peeks his head in before the rest of him follows suit.

A little red and white bundle by his leg grabs Takuma's attention, and after a quick examination he finds it is actually little Eri wearing a Santa dress. She looks a wee bit confused, particularly about how Christmas is supposed to be celebrated, but when they all sit down and let her join in on the feasting she seems to enjoy herself, not to mention the food, particularly the tempura. With a proud smile Takuma watches as his classmates dig in with gusto, leaning back into the couch and heaving a heavy sigh. "You good, chef?" Ashido asks, prodding him a bit in the side, drawing a chuckle from him.

"Don't know if I've ever been better."

Chapter 11: Coffee date

Chapter Text

Kugo raises his giant fist and gently knocks on the door to Mera's office, feeling a mix of curiosity and annoyance. When the Hero Public Safety Commission had contacted his agency, they had requested a meeting in person. It's not uncommon, but in his experience a fair share of these meetings could be done over the phone, or even an email. The risk that this is a waste of his time is what fuels his annoyance, yet this time he's meeting with Mera. Kugo has worked with him on for a while now though the remedial course for Hero students, and the two have established a rapport he feels.

Importantly, Mera is always exhausted. If whatever this meeting is about could be summed up in an email, then he almost certainly would've done it via email, especially since Christmas is in a few days. "Come in, come in..." Mera's groggy voice slurs from the other side of the door, just as Kugo was about to knock again. He grabs the handle and slides it to the side, greeted by sight of Mera hunched over in his chair. His desk is littered with documents, envelopes, folders and coffee mugs, and underneath a mop of messy hair Kugo can see his usual tired expression.

"Ah, Gang Orca, glad you could make it. Please, have a seat. Do you want some coffee? One of these cups should be clean." Mera offers, gesturing towards the seat opposite his while reaching for a thermos. "I'm fine, thank you." Kugo responds as he crouches ever so slightly to pass through the doorway before settling in the chair. It creaks in protest under his weight. "I hope you don't if I have some." Mera replies, already pouring himself some brew. "Of course not. If I might get straight to the point, what was it that you wanted to talk about?" Kugo says, not thrilled by Mera's sudden quizzical expression.

"Wanted... yes... I wanted to talk to you about... something..." he mutters, digging around the pappers on his desk. "Ah, there it is." he finally says, clearly more to himself than his guest, grabbing a folder. "By request of the Hero Commission, UA is going to allow first-year Hero students to resume work-studies. Perhaps you've already been contacted by them. But our topic for today is Takuma Takenaka." Mera explains, quickly rousing himself from his drowsiness as he reads through the folder. "Is that right? And what about him?" Kugo asks, straining himself to not narrow his eyes.

"We want you to invite him to a work-study. We have a few concerns about him, nothing major, but we're hoping you can help us out." he explains, taking a quick sip of his coffee. "You recall being briefed on the Meta Liberation Army as well as their leader, Rikiya Yotsubashi, correct?" Mera prods, waving the folder around a bit. "I do." Kugo replies bluntly. "Thought as much. Mr. Yotsubashi is the CEO of Detnerat, which recently bought up a smaller, but still solid business by the name of Sleek Tec. Where Takuma's mother just so happens to be a part of the upper management. Yotsubashi has already made contact with Takuma." Mera reveals, pulling out a photo from the folder and handing it over.

Kugo accepts it and inspects it. It's clearly taken from a distance, but it appears to be of Yotsubashi and Takuma, the latter unmistakable thanks to his tail. They appear to stand in a parking lot, discussing something. "And now, we've heard from UA that he has invited the Takenakas to Detnerat's New Years Celebration. I don't think I need to tell you this is concerning. If Yotsubashi were to... wrangle him into a certain way of thinking, then he'd be dangerous. Very dangerous." Mera continues, pulling out another photo, this one of a forest. Thick trees lie broken like twigs, and a boulder is scarred with claw marks Kugo recognizes.

"You believe that is a real risk? I personally find it unlikely." Kugo responds, his face a mask of stone concealing his concern. "Personally, I have no damn idea." Mera concedes, leaning back and locking his fingers together. "On the one hand, kids are impressionable and he seems to have a positive opinion on Yotsubashi, not to mention he is his mother's boss. And he has shown he's willing to break the law when he thinks its necessary. He didn't do much when he went with his classmates to try and rescue Bakugo from the League that night, but he did go along with it. He also helped stop the Villains that took I-Island hostage last summer, I'm sure you've heard of it."

"On the other hand, he seems like a smart kid, and none of what I just mentioned are guarantees. That's where you come in." he continues, a certain glimmer in his eyes that tells he is very much awake. "From what we've gathered, he looks up to you, he even seems to consider you a teacher. You mentioned he called you after the Provisional Licensing Exam." Mera points out. Kugo nods slowly, still trying to maintain a neutral expression. "We want you to keep an eye on him during the work-study. A close one. Monitor his actions, consider his words. If you think there is a risk Yotsubashi could recruit him, you just have to let us know so we can stay on top of it." Mera urges, almost sounding pleading, staring into Kugo's eyes.

Kugo slowly, and wordlessly, reaches forward and takes the folder from Mera, who yields without a fight. He opens it and sees a few documents, mostly notes about Takenaka's actions, personality and Quirk. He spots a picture of him in his Emperor form, back when it was caught on camera for TV. Another one, showing Takenaka swing Kugo over his shoulder during their fight at the Provisional Licensing Exam. It had actually caught him off-guard. And another one, showing him posing with the Wild Wild Pussycats. "I realise you... may have a personal attachment to Takenaka, but I hope we can still count on you." Mera says in a low voice, finally making Kugo furrow his brow and toss the folder onto the desk.

"To be frank with you I'm almost insulted. My personal feelings have never gotten in the way of my work. And they never will." he gruffs, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Of course, of course, I meant no offense." Mera quickly assures, but Kugo raises a hand to silence him. "Furthermore, any attachment to Takenaka would be another reason to agree to this. I've no intention of seeing him become a terrorist." he continues, looking into Mera's eyes once more. "I'm glad to hear that. Thank you." Mera retorts, raising his cup to his lips only to find it empty.

Chapter 12: Rookie Hero Agency!

Chapter Text

Class 1-A is hard at work, all of them motivated to turn their very own (albeit temporary) Hero Agency into a well-oiled machine. Most of them are out on Nabu Island, working hard in whatever capacity is needed. A good chunk of them are currently at the beach, keeping everyone safe, some are scattered elsewhere, while the rest are at the villa they're staying at, answering calls and taking "missions" to the best of their abilities.

Except two, Takuma and Bakugo. In the case of the latter, he seems to think the missions are beneath him. He doesn't seem to care to find missing dogs or help the community clean the rain gutters. As for the former:

The phrase 'Survival of the fittest' is well known in all corners of the world. Most assume that it comes from Charles Darwin, and while it did make its way into his work, it was actually coined by a man named Herbert Spencer. Some also interpret it as meaning the strong survive and the weak can go suck a lemon, in a sense that might makes right, but in actuality it means that the ones that are able, or fit, to adapt to their immediate enviroment are the ones that can survive successfully. And in Takuma's case, his fitness is dubious.

If he were to venture out of the villa he'd be barely lucid. Going from the middle of winter to the middle of summer, with switching hemispheres, has knocked him out of commission harder than most everyone he's ever fought, with few exceptions. He had suffered from a heat stroke shortly after they arrived, and he isn't feeling too energetic now either.

So while everyone else is working hard, he's resigned himself to desk duty. If he can't do anything important, he can at least do something boring. Filling out reports of what everyone else does, using form E7, of course. He's in his Hero costume like everyone else, his temperature-regulation system doing the best it can, dabbing himself with a wet cloth and greedily gulping from a jug filled with equal parts water and ice. In a few days, he might adjust to the heat. But not today.

"Hey, Takenaka? You doing alright?" Hagakure speaks softly, alerting him to her presence. "Mhm." he grunts non-commitally, looking at where she ought to be. "Tokoyami just reported in, he found that puppy and is heading to the owner's house now." she explains, earning a tired nod. "Got it. What was it, a... uh..." he trails off, rubbing his temples. "Dobberman. He found it in the woods, east of the old power plant." she says, helping him out. "Right, thanks. I'll write the report, and have it ready when the owner verifies the mission was a success." he slurs. Hagakure thanks him then departs, letting him tap away at his keyboard. "Fear not granny, I'm on the way!" Iida eagerly declares, though it seems Takuma has finally gotten used to his strange and sudden outbursts, as he doesn't even raise his head.

'Ingenium, aiding an elderly woman.' he thinks, making a mental note as he struggles to find the pen to make an actual note, eventually realising he tucked it behind his ear. "Lost child in a shopping center! Is there anyone available to come with me?" Uraraka asks out loud, getting Midoriya and Jiro to tag along. 'Uravity, Earphone Jack and Deku, finding a missing child.' he jotts down.

So it goes, for what feels like an eternity, but is probably a bit shorter. Making reports, slowly tapping away at his keyboard and wishing the weather was cooler. As the day draws to a close, his classmates eventually return to their lodgings, exhausted from a hard days work, slouching on various chairs.

"How about fewer small jobs?" Sero pipes up, his query directed to the class president and deputy. The others nod and murmur slightly among themselves, but Yaoyorozu shakes her head. "I'm afraid that's not really an option. The small stuff is what gets reported, and we can't shirk our responsibilities. If we want the islanders to trust us, we all have to work hard." she says, gently but firmly, which seems to be enough to tide them over.

"Hey, uh, does that go for all of us? Cuz I know someone who hasn't done anything since we got here." Mineta asks teasingly, making Takuma anxiously look up from his laptop, feeling a little relieved once he sees Mineta point an accusatory finger to Bakugo. "Well somebody's gotta stay behind and watch the office, moron. What are you gonna do if a Villain shows up while all you geniuses are out there doing stupid crap, huh?" Bakugo growls back with his usual attitude.

"Well, Takenaka's here." Ashido points out, making all heads turn like clockwork in his direction. He gives a tired, sheepish smile in response. "That groggy bastard can't even watch his possum!" Bakugo bites back, making Takuma scowl. "He's a cat." he snaps, a bit harsher than might be necessary, but he gets a deep sense of satisfaction seeing Bakugo look back at him with something resembling genuine surprise. "Huh?" he grunts.

"He's a cat, not a possum. And Mr. Aizawa is watching him for-" "I SAID POSTURE YOU DAMN CLOWN!" Bakugo roars, loud enough to scare some birds in the backyard, and making Takuma notice he is in fact slouching quite a bit. He looks over to their classmates, finding quite a few of them chuckling, leading him to think he might've in fact misheard.

"Yeah, well... I heard possum." he mumbles, straightening out his back and feeling his cheeks flush slightly. "Sorry for the intrusion, is t-this a bad time?" a new voice pipes up, bringing their attention to the hallway where a group of islanders have gathered, many of them carrying food. They hand the food over, along with their thanks, which revitalises the class greatly.

They stuff themselves to the brim, and as the sun finally starts to sink below the waves and taking its oppressive heat with it, Takuma feels more like his usual self, if a little stiff. Physically, that is. He snatches up the empty plates and gets started on the dishes, smiling contentedly as he hears Bakugo being stuck with the night watch for his sloth.

Everyone eventually starts chugging along to bed, wishing eachother good night and sweet dreams. He keeps washing away, plate after plate, glass after glass. There is admittedly a dishwasher, but he doesn't want it to disturb anyones sleep, and they'll need it all for breakfast tomorrow. Besides, it is nice feeling useful.

"You seem more energetic." Sato's voice carries from across the room, startling him slightly. "Oh, hey. Sorry, I didn't notice you. Can't sleep?" Takuma asks, looking over to him. He's leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed, inspecting Takuma with a strange somber expression. "No. I wanted to check on you. Thought you might feel better now that its cooled down a bit." he retorts. "Well, you're right. I feel much better now, though I imagine it won't last. I'll probably feel like crap tomorrow too." he replies half-jokingly, taking care of the cutlery.

"Good, that's good. N-not that you'll feel worse tomorrow, but... uh... that's you're fine now. You are fine, right? Like... you're basically in normal shape?" he asks, clearly uncomfortable, rubbing his neck. "Uh... yup. More or less. Why, what's up?" Takuma asks, rinsing of the remaining dishes while watching his buddy curiously.

"I... uh... I want to fight." he grunts, rolling his shoulders back. Takuma watches him for a minute, unsure if he heard him right before drying his hands on a towel. "Come again?" he finally musters, making Sato shift his weight from one foot to the other. "I want you to come with me, so we can finally have that rematch. Please." he clarifies before clearing his throat. There is an awkward silence between them for a minute, but Takuma eventually nods along. "Sure. Let's... let's go." he responds, gesturing for Sato to lead the way.

Chapter 13: Battle by Moonlight

Chapter Text

It's a strange atmosphere which hangs over them, to say the least. Sato is leading him down to the beach where they'll be able to duke it out in peace, neither of them saying anything. Takuma has his lips pursed, trying to figure out how he's feeling. They've talked about having a rematch on occasion, and Takuma has had the passive stance that it'd be fun. It seemed Sato thought so too.

But that word doesn't seem applicable. Neither of them are excitedly skipping along the dirt path down to the beach, eager prove themselves and exchanging lighthearted banter. Sato's not grinning and flexing his bicep. They're just walking in silence that is almost uncomfortable. Steadily approaching uncomfortable, even. Ruminating on it just a bit more, Takuma does decide he is a little uncomfortable, or at the very least concerned. "So..." he begins as they reach the end of the path, their feet sinking into the pristine white sand.

"Why now?" he finally asks, rolling back his shoulders, just to do something. "Seemed like a good time. When this trip is over we'll have our work-studies, then it's back to UA. I doubt we'll have the time for it any time soon if we don't take care of it now." Sato nearly gruffs, not even looking over his shoulder to adress him as he keeps walking. As if following an unspoken set of instructions, Takuma walks closer to the shoreline and waits until Sato finally turns around, some 30 meters away. They look at each other for a moment, unmoving.

Sato's dressed in normal sweatpants and a t-shirt, both dyed blue from the pale moonlight. He pulls out a sizeable chocolate bar from his pocket and starts munching away, almost impressing Takuma with how effortlessly he fits the entire thing in his mouth in a few seconds. "I want you to promise me something!" Sato hollers over the gentle rushing of the waves, his voice carrying with surprising firmness. "What's that?" Takuma shouts back just before transforming. "Don't hold back!" Sato says, his request followed by a gutteral war cry as he charges towards Takuma.

He pulls back his right arm and balls his fists, slower than he would be due to running over the sand. Takuma braces himself and watches him intently as he closes the distance between them in case it is a feint, raising his left hand at the last moment to catch Sato's fist. As Sato's knuckles crash into Takuma's palm, he feels a distinctly sharp pain jolt through his arm. He grits his teeth as a hiss slips out, attempting to wrap his claws around Sato's lower arm only for Sato to deliver a surprisingly swift jab with his left hand on Takuma's knuckle, stalling him for a fraction of a second, just enough to pull his arm out.

Takuma hops back like a rabbit to get some distance, spinning around and batting at Sato's legs with his tail. Sato jumps over it, but as he's airborne Takuma drags his claws over the beach and throws a carts worth of sand at his face. He just about manages to raise his guard and block it, but obscures his vision doing so, letting Takuma get a good hit in.

He smacks him with his right hand before he even touches the ground, sending him tumbling over a small sand dune. He stands up slowly as Takuma thinks he can spot a surprisingly intense glare, but he charges forward wordlessly. Takuma throws his own punch Sato dodges, but as he goes to deliver an uppercut to Takuma's jaw the behemoth twists his body, merely getting a scraped cheek. With their bodies so close Takuma makes a clapping motion, swatting at Sato from two sides. Sato makes the split second decision to catch his hands, putting the two in a deadlock.

He can see the regret flash over his friend's face, even through the otherwise strained expression and beads of sweat. The two of them are fairly evenly matched in terms of strength, Takuma having a slight advantage as he exters his weight over Sato. He when he tightens his grip on Sato's fists, feeling the bones, his and Sato's, creak in protest, he supports himself on his tail and stands up, hoisting Sugar Man up into the air. And, twisting his body one final time, he swings him over his shoulder and slams him into the sand.

Heaving heavy breaths, he anxiously watches Sato for any sign that he's getting up, slowly reverting when he sees Sato remain motionless, eyes closed and brow furrowed. "You... you okay?" he asks, worried he might've gone too far. "It wasn't even close." Sato groans, his voice quivering slightly as he slowly covers his eyes with his arm. Takuma opens his mouth but closes it slowly, eventually offering a hand. "C'mon, I'll help you up." he musters, squirm a little in place as Sato doesn't even twitch.

He stands there for a while before slowly settling down next to him, sinking into the sand. He crosses his legs and starts rolling his thumbs, staring out to the horizon, or what's visible of it through the veil of the night. The gentle rushing of the waves and whistling of an occasional wind is the only noise for what feels like quite a while. 'Something is up. Your friend is upset. Figure it out.' he thinks to himself, feeling frustrated that he doesn't know what to do. "So... uh... w-why'd you want a rematch? Here and now, I mean." Takuma eventually builds up the courage to ask, daring a peek at Sato who still hasn't moved an inch.

A long, drawn out sigh comes as his response. "You're leaving me in the dust." he says. "When we had our first match, I thought it was pretty close. I thought me and Ashido could've won, it didn't feel like... I dunno. I guess I thought you and me were close to the same level. I wanted to be. I had fun trying to beat you whenever we had our competitions." he explains. "But I didn't make it past the Cavalry Battle in the Sports Festival, and you got third in the whole thing. I needed your help to study. I didn't pass my finals. You did." he continues, his voice cracking slightly at the end.

"You managed to save Ragdoll at camp when I was stuck at the cabin. Provisional Licensing Exam, you had me beat on every damn front. I-I... I was sitting on my ass eating chips when you went out and got your first work-study." he grunts, his voice actually rather shaky now. Takuma stares on, paralysed, as he sees a tear roll down Sato's cheek from under his arm. "That's when I finally started to get it. That we aren't on the same level. You're smarter than me, stronger, y-you're a better cook." he sobs, clenching his fists.

"I guess I just... wanted it confirmed." he whispers, but his words ring loud as thunder to Takuma. He just watches, feeling a crushing shame come over him. "I... I... I didn't realise you... felt like this." he eventually answers, hesitantly crawling closer. "B-but it's not true! I-I don't think-" "I don't need you to coddle me." Sato cuts him off, but there's no real sharpness to his voice. The oppressive silence returns for what feels like an eternity, but Sato eventually breaks it again. "It makes sense you're better. Your Quirk is more impressive. But you also have a real reason to be a Hero."

Takuma slowly bites down on his lip as he waits for Sato to continue, but he doesn't. So he swallows the lump in his throat, and scooches just a bit closer again. "Why did you want to become a Hero in the first place?" he asks, ashamed he's never asked Sato before. "I thought it'd be kinda cool." Sato groans in response. "I wanted something more exciting than becoming a baker like my parents." he elaborates, sounding like the admission causes him physical pain. Takuma nods slowly, flicking his gaze out towards the ocean once more. "My... my dad is my reason."

"I figured. Makes sense you'd actually have drive." Sato answers. "Don't rag on yourself." Takuma chastises meekly, but Sato just chuckles joylessly. "He's... he's not my only reason. He was my first, but he's not the only one anymore." Takuma continues, taking a deep breath. "I didn't want another kid being told their dad won't be coming home today. Or their mom. I didn't want anyone to to have a their life ripped to pieces like that. That's why I applied to UA. But... a-and I get this might sound weird... I'm staying because... it's fun. I-It's kinda cool." he stammers, forcing a smile and a chuckle.

Sato finally lifts his arm a bit, inspecting Takuma with an unreadable expression that is still enough encouragement for him to keep going. "I... I'm happy. For the first time in my life since my dad... died... I'm happy. I'm excited to go to class, I'm excited to spend time with you, a-and everyone else, I... my life feels like a life now. And... a large part of that is you." Takuma says, his smile shrinking but becoming more genuine as Sato curiously cocks a brow. "What do you mean?" he wonders, slowly getting up into a sitting position and leaning closer, wiping away a tear.

"You were the first one to really try to talk to me. You were weirdly persistent about it." Takuma chuckles. "If you hadn't been, I don't know what way I'd be. I... I'm grateful." he says before wincing and clapping himself on the face. "N-not where I was going with this. My point w-was, I'm not just doing this because I want to honour my father. Not anymore. I'm doing this because... it makes me happy. I think it's alright to do things for more than one reason. Your reason for applying to UA... I-I thinks it's fine, but if you don't, then... you can find a reason for staying." he suggests.

Sato slouches and props his elbows on his legs, staring out towards the horizon, clearly deep in thought. Takuma studies his face while trying not to stare to intently, flinching when Sato looks over to him. "I... guess that makes sense." he mumbles, scratching his scalp. Takuma feels himself crack a smile in relief, but manages to stop himself from chuckling, wanting to contain himself somewhat. They return to silence, not uncomfortable or oppressive, rather serene, and look out towards the horizon. They sit there for quite a while.

Chapter 14: Beatdown

Chapter Text

"Ugh..." Takuma groans after emptying his jug, wiping away a drop of water running down his chin with his palm, then groggily going to refill it. The heat isn't as unbearable as it was yesterday, though it might grow to be. Either way he isn't having a good time. "Hello there, you've reached the UA Hero Agency! Oh, your suitcase has gone missing? Sure sure, we'll send someone right away!" Ashido speaks into the phone, clueing Takuma into the fact they're sending someone to find missing luggage. He's clever like that.

Hagakure and Aoyama seem pretty eager to get to work, and Ashido manages to convince Mineta after letting it slip the woman on the phone sounded really cute. "Shoji wants to know if anyone is available to back him up at the beach!" Yaoyorozu calls out, to which Ojiro volunteers while Tokyami takes on the burden of the regular patrol, just as Takuma plonks back down into his chair. 'Mineta, Hagakure, Aoyama finding missing luggage. Ojiro-' "I'm going down to the Nijima's to help out with the fields!" Midoriya calls out before exiting right behind Tokoyami.

'Ojiro, helping the Nijima farm. No. Wrong. Midoriya helping at the farm, Ojiro on patrol...'"Ugh..." Takuma grunts, rubbing his temples and trying to unscramble his brain for a moment. 'MIDORIYA is going to the Nijima's. Tokoyami goes out on patrol and Ojiro helps Shoji down on the beach.' he types down, double-checking for grievous errors. He doesn't find any, but then again he's not feeling that sharp. He continues to not feel too sharp as he works the day away. The sun reaches its apex for the day and slowly starts to set, taking a bit of its oppressive heat with it as the sky starts turning orange.

Some come, some go, but Takuma keeps his posterior firmly in place, only getting up for some water every now and again. A phone rings, and rings for quite a bit until Takuma looks up to see that nobody else is there to answer. He pushes himself up from his seat with mixed feelings. On the one hand, he's fine with having a break from writing reports, one the other, he's still groggy enough that answering the phone won't necessarily go smoothly. But he doesn't get that far as he gets an unexpected and only partially unwelcome saviour in Bakugo, who lumbers over to the phone himself.

"Yeah, what?" Bakugo growls as Takuma plonks back down in his seat. 'Nice. Real nice.' If it's something lame I'm hanging-"

A panicked voice echoes through the phone, even though Takuma can't make out what it says he hears the urgency which commands his attention. "I know that voice, you're that kid from yesterday. Well nice try, but we're not falling for it this time, brat." Bakugo grumbles, just in time for Midoriya to appear and snatch the phone from him. "Yes, hello? Hello, this is Deku!" he says, treating the conversation with far more respect, but he freezes. It doesn't sound like he's getting a response, and when the turns to look at Bakugo there is a certain intensity in his gaze.

"What did she tell you, Kacchan?" he demands. "It was that brat from last night, she said there were Villains by the fishing harbour." Bakugo growls, grinding his teeth. "But-" he continues, but Midoriya is already out the door. "There's obviously not a Villain, you damn moron!" Bakugo screams after him, increasingly agitated. "That's not for you to decide." Takuma snaps, making Bakugo whip his head around. Judging by his expression, he didn't realise Takuma was there. "Her Quirk is making illusions, she pulled the same crap last night." Bakugo all but spits, but Takuma looks back to his screen.

'Hagakure, Aoyama and Mineta still haven't come back. There's a chance Bakugo's right, but they should be somewhat close to the harbour. I'll call them and see if they can spare anyone.' he thinks, unlocking his phone and picking out Mineta from his contacts. But as he clicks to call him, he sees he doesn't have a signal. "Bakugo, do you have a signal?" he asks, but he's already walked back to his little corner. "Messy haired, loud-mouthed, good-for-nothin'..." Takuma catches himself grumbling, quietly, forcing himself to get up again and looking around.

As if on cue, people start returning from wherever they were and whatever the were doing, giving him the chance to ask if any of them have a signal, no dice. There's a growing ball of anxiety in Takuma stomach, and he catches sight of Bakugo in his little corner, checking his phone. His eyes narrow ever so slightly, which doesn't bode well at all. "Let's not jump to conclusions. There could simply be something from with the base island's transceiver station." Yaoyorozu points out followed by tires screeching and a man's voice pleading with them to hurry.

"There's a Villain on the island!" he says, his face dripping with sweat as the class assembles outside. "He's tearing apart the shopping center! Your people are trying to hold him back!" he explains. "Reporting in! We've got a Villain down at the beach!" Tokoyami's voice carries from up above. Takuma tilts his head upwards, learning that Tokoyami can apparently fly if he's being carried by Dark Shadow, but he saves his confusion for later. "Ojiro is holding him off, but he needs help." he continues, rallying the class.

"What's the plan, class rep?" Iida asks Yaoyorozu, who gently bites down on his finger for a moment, deep in thought, before facing the class with a fierce look in her eyes. "Bakugo, Kirishima and Kaminari, you three take down the Villain by the shopping center! Ashido and Jiro, you're with me, we'll handle evacuation down town. Iida, take Todoroki, Sato and Tokoyami and deal with the Villain by the beach. The others are probably evacuating any civilians there while Ojiro is fighting, so Uraraka, you help them." she orders, then turns to Takuma.

"I know the heat is bad, but can you-" "Yes." Takuma cuts her off firmly. "You're going to the beach then, help in whatever capacity you can." she says without missing a beat. "Let's go!" she orders, and they all start rushing. "Sugarman, I'll give you a lift." Tokoyami says. Sato nods and lets Tokoyami pick him up. The two fly into the air as the rest of them continue their sprint, and it doesn't take long for Takuma to fall behind, stumbling around. He doesn't make it 100 meters before falling to his knees, dripping with sweat.

"Damn it..." he grunts, forcing himself to stand up. "King Komodo!" Uraraka shouts when she sees he's not with them. The others pause and look back, filling him with a mix of emotions. Anger, frustration, shame. "Keep going, I'll... I'll catch up!" he shouts in-between heavy panting and trying to resist vomiting. "We need all hands on deck!" Uraraka says, reaching for him. He's about to protest when she grabs him by the wrist, and he feels himself start to float. She drags him along as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

'Right... Zero Gravity.' he realises, smiling a little sheepishly. "Thank you..." he mutters. It's embarrassing that the help is necessary, but he tries to make himself aero-dynamic as they charge to the beach. They arrive just in time to see a huge heteromorph smack Ojiro and send him flying. Takuma has to squint to focus his vision, but sees what appears to be a giant bipedal wolf in a trench coat. Shoji throws himself towards him but he grabs him by the face and hoists him up into the air. Iida charges him delivers a kick that should be devastating to his cheek, but the Villain just smirks as Iida pulls Shoji to safety.

Todorki sends out a torrent of ice and Sero shoots out streams of tape, both making contact and restraining the Villain. Tokoyami flies by and drops Sato like a bomb, but as Sato cocks back his fist and roars in righteous fury, the Villain sneers. "You think that'll hold me?!" he taunts, busting out of his confinement like its nothing and landing a blow on Sato. Sato rolls across the beach like a tumbleweed, crashing into some rocks which shatter like glass. "Sato!" Takuma cries out as he rushes over on pure instinct, keeping a wary eye on the Villain, who the others are barely able to keep at bay.

"You okay?" he asks, crouching down next to his friend only to get no response. 'He's out cold... strained breathing, indicating a possible concussion... all that from one hit.' he thinks, throwing a glare to the Villain. He carefully picks up Sato, a feat which feels herculean, not only from Sato's massive frame but also the heat. He carries him over to Tsu and Uraraka, who are still busy helping the civilians. "He's not... it's nothing fatal. He'll be fine once he wakes up." Takuma calls out, getting a nod of acknowledgement from Tsu. "Same with Shoji and Ojiro, but we're still down three people." she says, making it Takuma's turn to nod.

"Yeah. This needs to end." he growls, more to himself than anyone else. He puts a hand on Sato's shoulder and leans a little closer, swallowing the lump in his throat. "Bad luck. I'm sorry." he says before striding over to where the others are fighting. "He's holding us back with raw power..." Todoroki hisses, frustration showing and growing. "Iida, any ideas?" Sero asks, but it's Takuma that answers. "Get me close." he huffs, wiping his forehead with his palm. "You can't be serious, you could barely get here." Sero retorts, and even though his face is covered Takuma can tell he's not impressed.

"Tsukuyomi, throw me." he growls, making Tokoyami shift. "Are you sure?" he asks, making Takuma grind his teeth. "For the love of- Yes, I'm sure. He's got strength. But I can match it. I'll beat him down and give you an opening." he snarls, and after a second Tokoyami nods, wrapping Dark Shadow around him, and just like that he's flying through the air.

"Aw come on! This didn't work with the last brat, what makes this one-ACK!" The Villain's boast is cut short, just as he was readying another punch, by Takuma's form abruptly growing. Four tons of bone and muscle crash into him, knocking him flat as the behemoth keeps going, tumbling a bit over the sand dunes. "You were saying something?" he asks, watching the Villain stand back up. Sandy, but not much worse for wear. "Nice trick. You seem a little sturdier than the others, but I've had bigger." he taunts back.

"That so? You got a name?" Takuma retorts, as the two start circling each other, inching closer and closer. "Chimera. Doubt you've heard about me, though, I try to keep a low profile." he chuckles, flexing his claws that Takuma notes are similar to a bird's talons, like an eagle or owl. "This seems like an exception." Takuma notes, making Chimera shrug. "Not quite. This is usually how we do things. We just don't leave witnesses." he says, giving Takuma a sneer. They both freeze when they're some ten meters apart, and then simultaneously throw themselves at each other.

Chimera delivers a hard blow to Takuma's chest, but the behemoth shrugs it off, landing a decent blow himself on Chimera's shoulder. Chimera remains standing but slides across the sand, glaring at Takuma. Takuma hisses and bares his frills, to hype himself up if nothing else since it doesn't seem to startle his opponent. The two hulking beasts charge again, they attack and attack, and while Chimera can dodge most of the ones coming his way Takuma is too sluggish, forcing him to tank the blows instead. Chimera jumps up and delivers a kick to Takuma's snout, dizzying him for a moment. He hops back and swings around with his tail, catching Chimera by the feet and tripping him.

He balls a fist and slams it down at Chimera who narrowly rolls to the side and throws sand in Takuma's eyes, blinding him. "You're too slow!" Chimera jeers as he lands a blow on Takuma's jaw, snapping his head upwards. Chimera slips under him and works his down from his throat to his stomach, punch by punch. Takuma tries to make some distance between them, swingingly blindly with his claws only for Chimera to catch him by the fingers, twisting them and making the bones creak. Takuma hisses in pain but blinks away enough of the sand to see something, blurry though it might be.

The details of the Villain's face slowly comes into view, revealing an infuriating smirk, but even though he's got a solid grip on Takuma he's locked himself in place to maintain it. He raises his free hand and slams it with an open palm towards his foe. Chimera predictably catches it, giving Takuma a deadlock. He supports himself with his tail to tower over Chimera, forcing his entire weight down on him. A guttural hiss rolls out from Takuma, he shakes his frills as his tongue rolls out of his maw, his entire body heaving with heavy breaths.

He squeezes hard on Chimera's hands, adding a hint of a pained grimace to his smirk. "This really the best you've got?" Chimera asks with unnerving confidence before taking a deep breath, puffing up his cheeks almost theatrically, and Takuma soon finds out why.

Flames spray from Chimera's mouth and cover Takuma's chest, making him scream in pain and try free himself , but Chimera doesn't give him an inch, instead pulling him closer and throwing him over his shoulder. The impact is hard enough to kick up a small cloud, making Takuma cough as his ragged breaths pull sand into his lungs.

Laying sprawled on his back, he can just about tilt his head a bit to the side before he vomits, the strain of which makes his chest burn with pain. He digs his claws into to sand, trying to force himself to rise once more, but his vision starts to fade and he feels himself shrink. Somebody speaks, he thinks. He doesn't recognise the voice, he can't tell what they're saying or even what their tone might imply, it could be multiple voices even. Everything starts to blur, the vague voices grow quieter, the only thing Takuma tangibly notice is his ragged, breathing and the searing pain on his chest. Until that too, mercifully and frighteningly, fades away as he loses consciousness.

Chapter 15: Sore Loser

Chapter Text

He wakes slowly, to the sound of heavy rain on a metal roof. There's a foul taste in his mouth, and an indescribable dryness. His head his throbbing, his breathing is laboured, and there is an almost pulsating pain covering his chest. He swallows the lump in his throat almost involuntarily, fighting valiantly to not fall asleep, when he feels something wet and cool dab against his forehead, feeling like an angel's kiss. He can slowly start to make out two voices.

"...like the ultimate recovery position for guys. If I was in his shoes, that'd perk me up anyway." a familiar lisp says. "I guess that makes sense. So should one of us do it?" another voice, more monotone, retorts. "Are you kidding? It has to be a girl, obviously." the lisp counters. "Why's that?" the monotone voice asks, sounding genuinely puzzled. " A: Their thighs are way softer, and B: when the guy wakes up he gets an eyeful of the the girl's-" "Where... where am I?" Takuma finally musters, forcing his eyes open and seeing Mineta and Todoroki next to him.

"Oh hey, you're awake!" Mineta says, pulling the wet cloth away from Takuma's face and setting it aside. "Do you need a lap pillow?" Todoroki asks earnestly, but Takuma shakes his head. "Water..." he mumbles, trying to sit up but hissing in pain, clutching at his chest. "Easy, easy. Here." Mineta orders firmly, extending a glass of water that Takuma knocks back instantly. Mineta grabs a pitcher and goes to refill it, but Takuma snatches it and brings it to his lips. He empties the whole thing, barring the drops rolling down his chin and onto his chest.

When he's finished his arm limply falls to the side, but Todoroki deftly grabs the pitcher before it crashes to the floor. "What... what happened? Where are we?" Takuma asks, looking around his surroundings. They're not at the villa, he can tell that much. He's been put on a futon, and his torso has been bandaged. Mineta and Todoroki look at each other with melancholy before looking back at Takuma. "We're at the old power plant. You had a heat stroke. That's why you passed out." Todoroki explains. "We jumped in as soon as we saw that guy breathe fire and tried to get him off you, but while Iida managed to pull you away... we couldn't stop him from retreating. He was just too strong." Todoroki recounts, clearly frustrated.

Takuma processes the words for a moment, feeling his fists ball and heart start to beat just a little bit faster. "He got away." he repeats lowly, feeling more awake with each passing second. "I'm... I'm sorry." Todoroki says, but Takuma shakes his head. "You were trying to keep the islanders safe. I was supposed to take him down." he growls, forcing himself into a seated position despite the pain. "Hey, chill out. We can't do anything right now anyway, so don't let yourself get worked up." Mineta urges, putting a hand on his shoulder and gently trying to make him lay down again.

"Why did he run in the first place? He clearly had the upper hand." Takuma suddenly realises, grimacing as he struggles against Mineta. "Okay, but seriously, take it easy." Mineta says, sounding like he's chastising a child, and Takuma begrudgingly obeys, laying back down again. "That part was weird. I was down town when it happened, but a giant fat Midoriya just appeared, and a little girl's voice said to 'help Deku'. Then a bit later lightning flashed in the sky." he says, and Todoroki nods. "A bit after that, a flare went off and he just... left. It seems he went to regroup with his allies." Todoroki explains.

"How many?" Takuma wonders. "Four in total, we think. They beat the one down town, we have him locked up, but there's also a woman and another man. The man managed to beat Midoriya and Bakugo." Todoroki answers. "What?!" Takuma shouts, jolting up before hissing in pain. "A-are they-" "They're alive. Unconscious, but alive. A few doctors are tending to them." Todoroki quickly assures him. Takuma firmly grabs Mineta by the wrist and stops him from forcing him down once more. He looks around, but sees that there's nobody injured with him.

"The doctors wanted us to move you somewhere cooler, for the heat stroke." Todoroki explains, as if reading his mind. "And... I'm afraid there was only so much they could do for the burns." he continues, sounding oddly remorseful. "How bad?" Takuma asks, feeling oddly neutral. "Well, your suit and scales provided some protection, and he didn't... burn you for long, so second-degree burns. But you still shouldn't move around." Mineta reveals. Takuma ignores him and forces himself to stand, noticing the upper part of his Hero suit is dangling by his waist. Examining the chest, he sees a sizeable hole has been burned through it.

"How are Ojiro, Shoji and Sato?" he asks, putting on the upper part of his suit through a grimace, before locating his gauntlets placed on a nearby table. "They're fine, relatively. But Mineta's right, you probably should rest a while longer." Todoroki says, making Takuma shake his head. "I'm not going to. If they're fine, I'm fine. What needs to be done?" he asks, crossing his arms to give his statement an air of 'end-of-discussion', but stops when the movement hurts. Todoroki and Mineta exchange glances, the latter sighing deeply. "If that's how it, then we're supposed to have a meeting pretty soon. You can wait there." he lisps.

"But if anyone asks, we told you to rest." he adds, threateningly pointing a finger towards Takuma who just nods. He leads them through a corridor and into a large hall where futons and sleeping bags are strewn about, leaving little space to walk. Children and elderly sit huddled together while the adults are gathered in lines, at the end of which some of his classmates are located, passing out what appears to be soup and rice balls. "I suppose I should go to the infirmary. The doctors might need more ice." Todoroki says, and they nod in acknowledgement as he takes a different route.

Takuma studies the faces of the islanders, all of them look either frightened or exhausted, but most appear to be both. He straightens out his back and puts on a stoic face, fixing his gaze on the other end of the hall. He feels his classmates stare at him as he walks by, but he doesn't acknowledge them for now, figuring they'll insist he gets some rest. "Are people still working in the kitchen?" Takuma wonders after stealing a glance at the prepared food. There's a lot of it, but there's a lot of civilians as well.

"Yeah, but they should be done soon. I doubt they need help." Mineta says, like he can read Takuma's mind. He opens a door to and spots Sato, bandage wrapped around his head, currently carrying a chair. He sets it down slowly, next to one of four tables that have been put together into one large one. It seems he's just finished preparing a meeting room. He looks incredibly unsure as he looks at Takuma, eventually moving his gaze to Mineta then back up. "Good to see you up." he says, forcing a smile and chuckling a little awkwardly. "You too." he answers, looking around.

"Anything you need help with?" he continues, frowning when he sees Mineta shake his head while looking at Sato. "N-no, I actually just finished." Sato quickly insists. Takuma nods absent-mindedly and carefully sits down in one of the chairs, trying not to grimace. "Alright, I'll see if the others are ready soon. So just... wait, I guess." Mineta says, heading back outside while mumbling something under his breath. Takuma feels Sato's eyes on him, but when he looks up at him Sato looks away.

Takuma purses his lips, drumming his claws against the table. The atmosphere is rapidly turning awkward. "So... someone probably said this before, but... you should be resting." Sato pipes up, a little timidly. Takuma has to stop himself from making a face. "Yes. Mineta and Todoroki mentioned something like that." he responds, a bit more curtly then he feels he should've. "Well why aren't you? You looked pretty bad." Sato counters. Takuma is starting to get rather annoyed at all the insistence, but when he sees Sato's concern he takes a moment to compose himself.

"I can't afford to. Midoriya and Bakugo were both knocked out, and with... three Villains still out there, possibly more, now isn't the time for me play the role of invalid." he explains, adjusting in his seat. "The islanders are scared. They need to believe we can keep them safe. And we will." he continues, feeling his shame return in greater force. 'I will.'

Sato still looks hesitant, but he clearly takes Takuma's words into consideration. He starts to nod slowly, chewing lightly on his lips. "Alright. If you say you can fight, then I believe you." he declares, making Takuma flash a surprised but grateful smile. Their attention is pulled away when the door opens again, and the rest of class 1-A starts entering, a number of his classmates questioning why he isn't resting, but he once again insists he's fine. Yaoyorozu takes a deep breath then speaks up, commanding their attention.

"Bakugo and Midoriya are still out of commission. One of the islanders, a boy, is trying to heal them with his Quirk, however... we need to be prepared to account for their absence." she says, clearly unnerved, before sighing, and it's only then that Takuma notices she looks exhausted herself. "To give a brief overview of our circumstances... communications are down, and the island doesn't have any power, other than here from what Kaminari has been able to supply. We can't contact anyone for help, but I made a drone earlier. It's headed for the mainland, and it'll send out an SOS once it's close enough. But that's at least six hours away, and then the Pros have to assemble and travel here." she explains.

"In the meantime, I doubt the Villains are gonna sit around and wait." Ojiro comments. "Right now, our top priority is to protect the people of the island. If that means fighting Villains, so be it." Iida says. "How? That one guy beat up Midoriya and Bakugo so bad they almost didn't survive!" Mineta points out anxiously. "Then there's the beast... Chimera, was it? He was... uh..." Todoroki trails off, looking uncharacteristically shy when he glances at Takuma. "E-either way, our numbers are dropping. Kaminari and Yaomomo both used up a lot of their Quirks already." Jiro interjects.

"We know there are at least three Villains left, but there could be more." Tsu says, and Kirishima nods. "If they attack us together, we probably don't stand a chance." he says somberly. "Do we know why they're here in the first place? What are they after?" Takuma asks, but all he gets in response are a few dejected expressions and shaking of heads. "From what we know they haven't made any demands." Iida elucidates. 'Taking out communications makes it obvious they don't want Pros to show up. The island is isolated, but there can't be much money to be taken from here. Besides, at their level they could rob a high profile bank if it was something simple like that.'

"I know what the Villains are after! It's me." a new voice cries out, pulling Takuma from his thoughts. It's a young boy, with brown curly hair, dressed in a t-shirt and blue shorts with suspenders. "What did you say?" Iida wonders. Takuma leans a little closer but stops when it hurts his burns. "That bad guy said he wanted to steal my Quirk." he continues. "He has the same Quirk as All for One." Tsu points out, genuine concern coming through her normally neutral voice. "That complicates things. Even more if possible." Takuma gruffs.

"Hiding the kid by himself would just pressure the Villains into taking hostages, and we can't realistically hide the entire population of Nabu from them." he elaborates, a few of his classmates murmuring in agreement. "You have to hand me over to the Villains! He said he wouldn't kill me! And it's fine if I end up losing my Quirk, as long as it means everyone on the island is safe." he pleads. "No, we can't do that." a familiar voice growls. Midoriya enters the room, looking a little beaten up but far better than Takuma would've thought.

He reveals he's fine thanks to the boy, whose name is Katsuma. He approaches him and goes down on one knee, then flashes that gentle smile they've all seen so many times before. He reveals that Katsuma's Quirk activates cell, and with it he managed to heal Midoriya's injuries, piquing Takuma's interest even more. Midoriya promises that they won't let anyone hurt him, or steal his Quirk. "Why are you losers so on edge? All we have to do is kill some stupid Villain, right?" Bakugo's voice carries from the door. The sight of him, a little roughed up like Midoriya but still fit-for-fighting, is a relief.

They're all quickly reinvigorated, each of them pledging for the fight, Takuma included. They produce a map that the local librarian had brought with her, and come up with a plan. Nabu is connected to another, smaller, island by a land bridge which disappears when the tide is high. On that smaller island is an old castle ruin. "That leaves only one route for the Villains to reach us." Midoriya says, tapping on the map with his finger. "When they approach, we'll split them up with a pre-emptive strike, use the terrain to our advantage."

"The civilians can hole up in the cave on the side of the cliff. We'll personally guard Katsuma and Maharo. We should also secure an escape route in case it comes to that." he continues, making Takuma look up for a moment to ask who Maharo is, before noticing there's actually a girl next to Katsuma. He connects the dots. Todoroki asks how they're supposed to fight the Villain with multiple Quirks, to which Midoriya reveals his body can't seem to handle the strain of fighting for too long, presumably why he needs Katsuma's Quirk.

They're going to engage from a distance in waves, and make him wear himself out. "And how do we split up the other two?" Takuma asks, to which Yaoyorozu raises a hand. "I should be able to make a canon, or something similar, to shoot at them. Just enough to drive them away from eachother. I'll need a bit of time to rest first, but I can do that while we're moving everything to the island." she explains, and Aoyama suddenly gets a twinkle in his eye. A twinklier on than usual. "Madam President! If it is a blast that is needed, then the blaster I will be!" he declares, striking a fabulous pose, earning the class rep's gratitude.

"That looks like the entrance to a cave. If we can bring either of the other two in there, I'll be in my element, so to speak." Tokoyami interjects, tapping on the map. Takuma peeks a little closer at it, hearing Ashido suggest that they make the ground under the Villain cave in to trap them in there. He scans the rest of the map, finding a locale for himself, a small lake at the edge of a waterfall. He places a claw on the map himself, carefully so as to not damage the paper. "And we'll lead the wolf here. If you start blasting here, he can be forced to hop down the cliff. It's not a far drop, so he'll make the choice, but far enough he will need to find another way forward. That'll lead him to the lake, naturally." he explains, feeling his classmates listen attentively.

"Where I'll handle him." he declares, his heart feeling hot with anticipation. He only notices the silence that follows after far too long, pulling up his gaze where he sees the others look oddly hesitant. "I don't... I don't know if that's such a good idea." Sero says, rubbing the back of his head. Kirishima nods along, forcing a smile. "Yeah, maybe you should-" "You don't think I can win?" Takuma demands, an involuntary scowl forming. "Don't take it personally. But you have to admit, it didn't go well last time you fought him." Shoji says calmly.

"I was hot, that's why I want him by the lake. The water'll cool me down." Takuma explains, tapping on the lake once more, this time leaving a small hole. "Well what about his fire? Are you going to dive every time he breathes it at you?" Sero argues, but Takuma raises an arm and shows of his gauntlet. "These things launch bolas, made up of three weights. I'll get one to wrap around his snout, locking his jaw. Jaw muscles can exert a lot of force when biting down, not so much when opening up." he counters, grinding his teeth when he sees the others remain unconvinced.

"Even if that works, how are you going to get one around his mouth? He isn't just going to let you." Jiro wonders. "I can do it. I let him get away, he's my resp-" "Dude, you didn't let him get away, you got wrecked!" Sero points out, and whatever expression Takuma gives him makes his face fall flat. Takuma feels his claws dig into his palms as his breathing grows more uneven, he needs to stop himself from starting to shout, but what comes out his a low, rumbling growl, bordering on a hiss.

"Yes. I did. I was supposed to stop him, but I didn't. It is my failure, it is my responsibility. I am going to fight him, and I promise, I will not lose this time." he says, moving the meet the eyes of everyone present, barring the children, as if daring them to argue with him more. Most don't meet his gaze, not until Tsu stares back at him does he pause. "Takuma, we're not picking on you." she says, her words making Takuma feel like a child being told he's being bad. He opens his mouth, no idea what he's about to say when Tsu raises her hand to stop him.

"After you were knocked out, Iida left you with me and Ochako before he joined the fight. You stank of burnt flesh, your eyes were rolled into the back of your skull, you could barely breathe. None of us want to see you in that state again." she explains, her voice firm but with a pleading look in her eyes. Takuma feels a new shame nestle in his stomach, and he breaks eye contact, casting his eyes down. He takes a few moments to slow his breathing before looking at everyone. "I... I appreciate that. But I didn't come to UA to fill out paperwork while others put their lives on the line. If any of you fight Chimera, you can easily end up like I did. Or we can all end up... worse. I think we all know that. I'm sorry, but I refuse to leave him to anyone else, not after failing once." he declares, not as a challenge, merely a statement.

"You... you don't have to fight him alone. I'll back you up." Sato pipes up, steeling his resolve. "I need to make myself useful too, and... I-I got as much right as you do!" he follows up, like he's anticipating Takuma to argue. "Yes, yes... As deputy to the class president, it is my responsibility, and as a previous opponent to Chimera, I also declare that... I have the right to thrown down with him too!" Iida adds, chopping the air. "Not to be rude, ribbit, but you're not the most agile guy I know. I think I'll have a better chance to wrap his snout shut. If you'll have me." Tsu suggests.

Takuma looks between the three of them, slightly conflicted. "I... I said he's my responsibility. Though... I guess it'd be unfair of me to refuse to let you fight. Not to mention stupid..." he mumbles, feeling a slightly bashful smile form. "Alright. Thank you." he says to them before feeling a tap on his shoulder, turning around to see Todoroki. "I would've prefered to fight Chimera myself, too. And as much as I like you, our Quirks wouldn't work well together." he says, and Takuma can't help but nod. "Yeah. I like you too, but fire or ice, either would mess with me. And I plan on getting close to Chimera." he retorts.

Todoroki nods firmly, his cold expression growing a little chillier. "Be careful. But win." he requests, offering his hand that Takuma takes and gives a firm shake. "Don't worry. No matter what, I'll stop him this time."

Chapter 16: The King's Fury

Chapter Text

It's a beautiful day. The gentle rushing of the water is soothing, there's birds chirping in the nearby trees, and there's hardly a cloud in the sky. The sun is rising, though it's not gotten terribly hot just yet. But with the sun beaming like it is, Takuma feels he's made the correct choice in keeping his feet in the water. The lake's a bit more of a basin, it's not large at all, nor is it deep for the most end. Once he transforms, he'll be above the surface standing, but he can submerge himself to cool himself off. A few waterfalls at the top fill it, while a waterfall at the end lets it flow further.

He raises a hand and gently traces his thumb over his chest. Katsuma's Quirk had healed him well, very impressive for such a young boy, but he hadn't been able to do anything about the scar. It's unsightly, if a typical burn, visible through the hole in his suit. It covers most of his pectorals. He's also had to deactivate the temperature regulation system of his suit since he can't have electricity running through the damaged wiring, especially not when he's supposed to be in water. The basin will have to do.

He slowly swings his right leg up, letting droplets splash onto the surface as he looks at his bare wrists. It's a little strange, this is going to be the gauntlets 'maiden voyage', he sorts feels he should be the one to use them. But he has no other choice than to trust Tsu, not that that is anything near unsettling or unappealing. She's floating around in the basin herself, ready to dive down at a moments notice, while Iida and Sato stand a bit behind him. None of them are saying anything, merely waiting for the signal, letting the sun climb higher and higher.

The unmistakeable booming of Aoyama's promised beam grabs their attention, the shining light clashing with the sun and winning, if only for a moment. As the beam dies down the rapid fire of Yaoyorozu's canons follow, a particular barrage creeping closer and closer to a nearby cliff. Takuma narrows his eyes as he sees Chimera's figure leap off the cliff, landing a ways away. He rises and exchanges looks with Iida and Sato. They nod wordlessly, moving to hide in the foliage while Takuma starts wading deeper into the basin. Tsu's already gone underwater.

He stops when the water reaches to his waist, waiting for Chimera's arrival. A small droplet of sweat rolls down his temple, moving down his cheek to fall off his chin. It lands with a small splash, amusingly in time for Chimera to show up. He marches through the trees and comes to a stop a bit away from the basin, crossing his arms as he's watching Takuma. "Nice day for a dip, huh?" he says with a smirk. "Yeah. Why don't you hop in? Pool's open, water's fine." Takuma responds, splashing a bit with his hand while remaining stone-faced.

"I'll pass. Where are the others?" Chimera deflects, looking around. "Just me. All that's needed." Takuma retorts, furrowing his brow when Chimera starts to laugh. "Oh, my mistake! My name's Chimera, I must've confused you with a brat I fought yesterday. He was not 'all that's needed' to bring me down." he taunts, a wide grin showing off his sharp teeth. Takuma slowly transforms, rising above the water level while looking at Chimera, showing off his own teeth. "Yeah. I'm not the guy you fought yesterday. Call my bluff if you want to." he rumbles, and Chimera cocks a brow before chuckling. "Why not? I've got five minutes. But try to give me a fight this time. Cuz when I'm done, I'll find your little friends." he says, stepping to the edge of the water.

Just as he prepares to jump out to Takuma, Tsu's tongue shoots out from under the surface and wraps around his leg, yanking him in with a surprised yelp. Takuma starts charging, his movements turning the previously calm waters into crashing waves. Chimera pops up, gasping for air with a furious expression. He glares at Takuma and puffs up his cheeks. "Over here!" Sato shouts as he hurls a boulder at him with terrifying speed. Chimera twists his entire body and drives his fist into it, shattering it into pieces, only for Iida to zoom by over the water and deliver a kick to the back of his head.

Takuma closes the distance and throws himself at Chimera, both hands and all claws outstretched. Chimera catches him once again, and opens his mouth. Takuma sees the orange glow of fire for a moment, but there's a small splash to the side. Tsu flies up into the air, the water drops accompanying her sparkling like diamonds as she extends her right arm and takes aim. The monstrous head on her wrist bares its teeth to Chimera's snout, and with a swift Shwoop the bola wraps around it, sealing it shut. There is a brief flash of realisation coming over Chimera's face, but it's not there for long.

Takuma hoists himself up with his tail and swings Chimera over his shoulder, down under the water. He dives down after him right away. Chimera's eyes stay wide as the two peer at each other through the water. Takuma pushes down, holding him to the bottom. He tilts his head to the side, dodging Chimera's kicks, but otherwise stays still, holding his breath. Moving around will make his body consume what precious oxygen he's got sucked into his lungs. And with his lungs being considerably larger, he's hoping Chimera will run out before he does.

Chimera eyes quickly go from surprised to furious as he looks around, testing his strength against Takuma's, then testing the rope around his mouth. Takuma sees him struggle against the latter and feels him fight against the former, but neither yields. Chimera then pulls his legs closer to his chest before kicking off his shoes, revealing talons on his feet like those on his fingers. He tightens his grip on Takuma's hands and presses his feet against his foe's right hand then swiftly pulls them back. Takuma grimaces in pain, quite surprised to see trickles off blood mix into the water.

Chimera smirks at him and prepares to do it again, but Takuma rises. He pulls the two of them out of the water, taking a deep breath while Chimera greedily sucks in as much air as he can through his nose. Chimera uses his own immense strength to try to pull himself free, Takuma feeling his right hand start throbbing in pain from the cuts when another boulder from Sato crashes into the Villain's back, this one too shattering into pieces. Chimera's body jolts in pain while Takuma starts swinging him. "Ingenium, you're up!" he hollers, letting go.

As Chimera flies through the air Takuma sees a gust of wind and dust move from one end of the basin to right where Chimera is about to land. Iida delivers a kick to his ribs and sends him flying into a tree that snaps like a toothpick. Takuma reverts, panting heavily as he feels Tsu grab him. "Shame he didn't pass out down there, but things are going smoothly, ribbit." she says before wrapping her tongue around his chest and swimming to the shore, bringing them both to the edge with incredible speed. "Yeah. So far so good." he retorts, letting Tsu lift him up with her tongue and set him down.

Sato and Iida are already engaged with Chimera, barely keeping up but preventing him from pulling the bola from his mouth. "Plan B, then." Tsu says, pulling up her sleeve. Takuma nods and carefully drags his claws along her exposed skin so as to not scratch her. "Careful, like I said, don't let it get on your skin." she reminds him as her mucus starts to form a good coating. "I didn't even know you could do this. Like I had no idea Tokoyami could fly. I miss one lesson and suddenly everyone levels up without me knowing." he mutters, inspecting his paralysing manicure until he's satisfied.

He turns around and sees Iida barely managing to dodge a kick from Chimera. "Stay focused. You've got this." Tsu says, giving him a small pat on the shoulder before he charges towards Chimera while transforming. 'I better.' he thinks, roaring loudly to get Chimera's attention. He stares at Takuma, eyes burning with pure fury, and he quickly assumes a stance. As the distance between them practically disappears, Chimera lands a solid uppercut on Takuma he nevertheless shakes off. He doges a haymaker and swings his tail at Chimera's feet.

Chimera hops over it and tries to slice at Takuma's eye with his talons, but Takuma turns his head, dodging by a figurative hair. As Chimera's back turns to him from the movement Takuma deftly snatches his left arm with his own and holds him in place. He raises his right arm, claws outstretched, and brings it down.

His claws tear through Chimera's soaked trench coat, leaving not-too-shallow cuts in his skin. Chimera tugs against his grip, but immediately Takuma feels the difference. It's limp, it's weak. He lets go of Chimera and the Villain falls to his knees, groaning in what Takuma assumes is shame. "Like that? Paralysing mucus, courtesy of our wonderful Froppy." Takuma chuckles between heavy breaths, stumbling back and admiring their work. Chimera's eyes are filled with not only fury, but something bordering on hate, mumbling something through his muzzle.

"We beat him. T-that went without a hitch!" Sato says, excitedly pumping his fist. "Exemplary work, from everyone!" Iida declares, raising his hand in triumph that Sato high-fives. "I... heh... I can't believe I wanted to fight without you guys." Takuma says, going to smack himself in the face in amusement and self-discipline when Tsu's tongue wraps around his wrist. "Yuu shuul wash ya hanns." she says before releasing him. "I meant it, don't let it touch your skin." she points out, making him smile sheepishly. "Right. I'll be right back." he says, hurrying over to the basin and kneeling to dip his hands in the water.

He smiles contentedly as he scrapes claw against claw, removing the mucus. There's a slight tingly sensation in them making him wonder if the mucus had been potent enough to seep through or if he's imagining things, but he doesn't feel sluggish, so it can't extend to his limbs either way. With Chimera beaten, it's like a weight has been removed from his heart, it feels light as a feather now. And, in an instant, it feels like it's been turned to ice when he sees Tsu fly past him, over to the other end of the basin and into a tree. Unlike with Chimera, it doesn't shatter. She crashes into it with a faint yet audible yelp, then falls to the ground, clutching her ribs, her face contorted in pain.

"That's... that's impossible." he whispers, blinking rapidly as it would reveal the truth, the truth being that Tsu didn't just crash into that tree, that she's fine, that truth. That truth has to be true, because Chimera's on the ground, he's paralysed, Takuma saw to that himself. There were only three Villains roaming about, and the other two are being dealt with by the others. There's shouldn't be another Villain to fight them, so the only Villain with them is Chimera. And Chimera can only still be fighting in Takuma had failed. Again.

But the truth is ugly, it's Tsu coughing up blood, because Chimera is still fighting, because Takuma failed. Again. He turns his head to see Chimera stand up straight, growing. Feathers sprout from his lower arms as his muscles bulge freakishly, horns start to protrude from his head, his animal features grow more pronounced, fierce and dangerous. His coat tears from the strain and falls down to his feet, and with a grimace his jaw snaps the bola in two, the weight clattering to the ground. What comes out is not a stream of flames but a pure concentrated beam.

He swings his head and lets the beam dance over the area, scorching stones and igniting trees, nearly incinerating Iida and Sato who barely manage to get out of the way. But while Iida is still fast enough to soon have made some distance, Chimera pounces on Sato in the blink of an eye and sends him flying with a kick. His eyes then land on the still kneeling Takuma, answering his stunned gawp with a grin. "I assumed that 'Froppy' meant the frog girl. Thanks for the heads up." he chuckles. Takuma's breathing starts to grow heavy, heavier than the exertion and heat from the spreading flames should make it, uneven and agitated. "Oh, yeah. I can read you like a book. And yeah, I agree with you. This is your fault." Chimera coos, his words drowned out by a deafening roar from the now transformed Takuma.

"Why won't you stay down?!" he bellows, leaping towards his foe despite Sato's and Iida's warnings. He ducks under a swing from Chimera but positions himself to get a kick to the jaw, and he instantly feels the difference in force. Chimera's transformation wasn't just for show. "Are you asking for a serious response?" Chimera taunts, deflecting strike after strike from Takuma who puts more and more force behind them. Chimera opens his mouth once more, Takuma leaping to the side and letting go of his transformation instinctively.

The gust of hot air from the beam is almost enough to knock him out with how much it disorients him, but he forces himself to transform again only for Chimera to land an uppercut, then a kick to his exposed chest, sending him tumbling away. The force makes him lose his transformation. "King Komodo! Calm yourself, we must think this through!" Iida urges while kneeling next to him. He gets up and looks around. Everything flammable is on fire, Chimera is some twenty meters away from him and Iida. The basin has started to glow orange from the wildfire, and it's to Chimera's right, maybe ten meters. Sato's gotten back up too, clutching at his side while coughing into his fist. His white gloves make the fresh crimson apparent.

"I need to get him in the water. That'll let me fight unhindered." Takuma whispers, anxiously waiting for Chimera to make his next move. "Understood. I'll get you your opening." Iida whispers back, prompting Takuma assume his Cat Combat stance.' The heat's bad enough as it is. If I transform, I won't make it.' he thinks grimly before charging against Chimera. "The hell is this? You run outta juice or somethin'?" he hollers, letting off another beam Takuma barely dodges by throwing himself to the side. He rolls with the motion to get back on his feet, while Iida's engines let off a deafening boom. "Recipro Turbo!"

He practically flies around the area, landing kick after kick on Chimera who can barely keep up, though the attacks get shrugged off they seem to be enough to annoy the hell out of him. Takuma's lungs feel like they're on fire by the time he gets close enough, at which point Chimera seems to remember him. He leaps towards Takuma, his talons poised to slice him in half, forcing him to transform and raise his arms to shield himself. Chimera's talons clash with Takuma's scales, and the scales yield, leaving significant cuts on his right forearm.

"Why the hell won't you stay down?" Chimera snarls, preparing another beam only for Sato to leap up on his back. He squeezes his legs on the sides of his neck and clamps his maw shut with his hands. "King Komodo, do it! Finish this!" he screams. Chimera reaches up to grab him with his left hand while Takuma once more pounces on his foe. Chimera's fingers wrap around Sato's arm and yanks him off, and as he slams Sato into the ground, Takuma's teeth sink into his flesh.

His jaws snaps around his right arm, a metallic taste telling him he's drawn blood, and with a forceful roll he pulls the two of them into the water. The cooling effect is almost jarring, almost, but right now there's only the fight, there's only making sure Chimera actually stays down this time, there's only making sure he can't hurt anyone else. He glares at the Villain and grabs his left arm with his own right, leaving his left free to wrap around his snout and grip down on it hard. It's an awkward position that leaves them mostly locked in place, but Takuma starts swimming with his tail, following the gentle current, taking them over the edge of the waterfall.

If there are rocks at the bottom, Takuma doesn't notice. They both breach the surface, Takuma sucking in air through his teeth and Chimera through his nose, again. Takuma pulls Chimera to one side with his head and another with his arms, Chimera thrashing wildly all the while, but he does not stop until he hears a distinct *pop*. Chimera's cry of pain is muffled by Takuma's hand, but he lets go only to deliver a blow to his head. And he strikes him hard.

As Chimera reels from the strike Takuma releases his grip with his right hand and raises two balled fists, bringing them down on his back. "Y'know what? I'm glad we're on the same page!" Takuma finds himself roaring as he lands an uppercut on his opponent. "It was my fault! If I had beaten you first time around, we wouldn't be here! There'd at most be two of you lunatics threatening this island, you wouldn't have had the chance!" he spits, striking him in the ribs hard enough to feel bones crack. "What's the matter?! I thought you said you wanted a fight this time! Well, it's here, I'm here!"

His fury burns hotter than an inferno, landing savage blow after savage blow on an enemy that puts up less and less resistance each time. "So damn smug, threatening my friends, hurting my friends! Did that make you feel strong? Did it make you feel big?" he asks, grabbing Chimera by the neck and dunking him under the water. "Do you feel big now?! Well?! DO YOU FEEL BIG?!" he demands, water running down his face. A second passes, no more, when he realises something. There's no resistance. Chimera isn't resisting.

He pulls him up and throws him onto the river bank in panic, scurrying up to check on him. He's gasping for air , but his breathing is laboured. He's reverted back to his smaller form without Takuma noticing, cuts and bruises cover his body. His right arm is clearly dislocated, blood running from the open wounds and mixing with the water that's pooling underneath him. Takuma freezes, shrinking to his human form, and raises a hand to his mouth, realising this is the first time he's tasted blood not his own. It's enough to make him want to vomit.

Chimera stirs, but doesn't open his eyes. "No... no more." he groans. Takuma shakily opens up his sling bag and pulls out a soaked bandage. Not ideal, but he has to stop the bleeding so he uses it as a tourniquet. Inspecting the wound though it makes his skin crawl, Takuma notices it hasn't reached down to the bone at least. His muscles must've resisted most of his bite force, though that's a small comfort if a comfort at all. He slowly turns around and goes back to the river, seeing that they've followed it quite a way. Kneeling and scooping up a bit of water, his hands start to shake more and more as he brings it up to his mouth, rinsing it in a desperate attempt to get the taste of blood out when a sob finally forces its way out.

He chokes and sputters, trying and failing to keep it together as tears start rolling down his cheeks.

Chapter 17: Company Mandated Fun

Chapter Text

Fists pulsating in rhythm with his pounding heart, adrenaline coursing through his veins, teeth sinking into flesh. Into another person. His battle with Chimera has been playing on loop in his head ever since the Pros had showed up. They had taken Chimera into custody, and given him treatment. He's alive, which is something. Two of his comrades had also been taken into custody, but not their leader, who apparently is called Nine. Midoriya and Bakugo had kept little Katsuma from him, but he's missing, there's not a trace from what Takuma heard.

He had been replaying the fight in his head, from when Recovery Girl had patched him up, he hadn't even noticed how hurt he was, during their journey back to the mainland, their brief return to UA, and even now. Even now, gazing out of the car window into the dark streets, he can't help but think back to it, like he's going to come to some form of realisation. Like he's going to be able to find a point where he started to take things too far. Not that knowing would change anything.

"You're looking rather tense." Midnight coos from beside him, snapping him out of his thoughts. "I'm... thinking about Nabu Island. It was pretty intense at times." he responds, purposefully vague. "Understandable. But to be honest, I think your class handled it quite well." she retorts. "Thank you." he says, trying to sound sincere, still looking out the window. "Y'know, it's a bit rude that you're refusing to look at me." Midnight chastises, making Takuma wince. He takes a deep breath and slowly cranes his neck over to look at her face. If he were to look down, he'd see bold fashion.

From what little he had seen, her dress is black, possibly made of satin, cut in such a way that a good chunk of her legs are visible, and the upper part covers the essentials and not much else. Takuma had quickly averted his eyes when he had spotted her, and when he was told she would be accompanying him to Detnerat to keep him safe, he felt like he could sink right into the earth. Mineta, who was supposed to be accompanied home by Cementoss, had quite literally fallen to Takuma's feet and pleaded with him to trade, but Mr. Aizawa said the assignments were final before he could accept.

He really, truly, genuinely does not understand why. While everyone else is going home for their New Year's celebration, he is going to Detnerat's party. The company that owns the company his mother works at. It's a proffessional setting, hence why he's in the suit Yaoyorozu had made for him. They're even being driven there in a similar car that had taken him and Mr. Aizawa to sushi. "My apologies, ma'am. I suppose I'm... nervous." he says, and a wry smile comes over his teacher's face. "About what, exactly?" she asks, and by her tone Takuma infers she knows what about, exactly. "Well, this is... a rather professional setting. A-and... I'm not... I-I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but... I'm not sure you'll be allowed. Inside. The building." he explains, his gaze glued to her eyes, kept there like he had a gun to his head.

"Is it the dress? Is the neckline too modest?" she asks, feigning ignorance and glancing down, giving Takuma a chance to return to his window, his ears flushing as she laughs. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't poke fun. But I don't think we need to worry about that. I've always had a talent for winning bouncers over." she says with such confidence Takuma can't help but believe her, not that that puts his mind at ease.

They eventually arrive at Detnerat's headquarters. Mr. Yotsubashi had invited the upper management from several subsidiaries, personally extending the invitation to Yua, asking her to invite Takuma along. While he assumes they both would've preferred a quiet night at home to catch up, he understands she couldn't really turn him down. Company mandated fun. Hooray. "I look forward to meeting your mother." Midnight says as they approach the entrance, catching Takuma by surprise. "Really?" he responds, to which she nods. "Of course. I'll have to thank her for raising such a diligent and... obedient boy." she purrs in his ear, making him freeze and take a deep breath.

"Okay... Um... Ms. Midnight. I know you like to joke around, but... don't say anything weird in front of my mom. Please?" he requests, pursing his lips while maintaining eye contact. Midnight's expression goes from confident and playful to mildly surprised, before an almost entertained smile forms on her face. "Alright then, if you insist. I'll be on my best behaviour. Hero's honour." she says with a chuckle. He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding in and thanks her, preparing to enter the building when she grabs him by the shoulder, telling him to hold on.

He does as he's told and turns to face her, pulling back a bit when she gets rather close. Her high heels clack against the pavement as she slowly steps towards him, her smile once more turning ill-boding as Takuma can't help but avert his eyes, looking at a lamp post. "Oh don't look so scared, I won't bite. I promised, didn't I?" she chuckles as he feels her trail a finger over his shoulder. "You just had something on your collar." she continues, removing her hand and putting on a voice that's innocent and sweet. "Thank you, Ms. Midnight." he says through gritted teeth before turning around again, feeling his face burning red.

With no more delays they arrive at the entrance, Takuma telling the security guard his name and showing a document from UA stating he has Midnight with him as protection. The guard checks and confirms Detnerat agreed to it, and lets them inside, though not before telling the R-rated Hero that he's a fan. He does not specify in what respect.

The building's conference hall has been converted into a ballroom of sorts, decorated as one at any rate. Takuma isn't sure if the chandeliers are a permanent fixture or if they're just for the celebration, but he can't quite decide which is stranger. Tables are lined up, packed with loads of dishes, appetisers and deserts. Takuma hears Midnight give a long, drawn out whistle, and spies her looking around from the corner of his eye. It is quite impressive, but he's more concerned about finding his mother. He checks his phone and sees the text, making sure that she is indeed supposed to wait for him near the windows, in the corner to the south side.

They get quite a lot of people staring at them as the walk, or Midnight does to be more accurate, mostly from men who in turn get stared at by their (assumed) wives and girlfriends. Midnight doesn't even look like she notices, which Takuma almost admires. He hates the attention, and he's only in proximity.

It doesn't take long for Takuma to spot Yua, by a window holding a wine glass, looking at her watch. She's wearing a burgundy red high neck maxi dress, and her hair is braided and draped over her shoulder. He doesn't want to shout so he decides to get a bit closer, cracking a smile when he spots her blow a raspberry out of boredom. "Hi mom." he says, making her jump up a bit in surprise. She looks over to him, and the smile which had begun to form on her face dies down instantly, her eyes fixed on someone right behind him. He thinks he knows who.

He chuckles a little awkwardly and gestures to Midnight. "This is Midnight, she-" "Excuse us." Yua interrupts, firmly grabbing Takuma by the hand and leading him away. He's caught by surprise, only looking over his shoulder to give Midnight an apologetic smile when there's already a good deal of distance between them. "I-is it the dress? I know it's not the most-" "Takuma." Yua cuts him off, her voice trembling, looking at him with a dead serious expression. "Y-yes?" he stammers, feeling incredibly nervous. Yua opens her mouth and closes it, clearly battling to keep her composure.

"You... are sixteen now. And... since you are sixteen, it makes sense that you... have certain interests." she whispers, raising her hand to silence him when he's about to question what she means. "But. When you said you were bringing an escort, I-I had assumed you meant a bodyguard. Like Mr. Aizawa." she elaborates, making Takuma look at her in pure unfettered confusion. Her words slowly sink in, replacing his confusion with horror. "Mom." he whispers back, battling to keep his own composure. "Ms. Midnight works at UA. As a teacher. Modern Hero Art History. She's known as the R-rated Hero."

Yua's upset expression only changes slightly, namely two things. She purses her lips, and her face turns a bit red. "Ah." she wheezes after a long pause, averting her eyes. "That... rings a bell. I think. I think it rings a bell. That would explain her... bold choice of dress. Sorry." she mumbles, rubbing her face with her free hand. "It's... fine. Let's just introduce you two before she gets suspicious." Takuma answers, turning to lead her back to his teacher, eager to end the conversation. She mumbles something that sounds like compliance and follows him.

"Sorry about that, Ms. Midnight. This is Yua Takenaka, my mother. Though I suppose you knew that..." he mutters, before shaking his head to regain his focus. "And this is Kayama Nemuri, also known as Midnight. She teaches Modern Hero Art History at UA. She's the... bodyguard I mentioned." he says, gesturing between the two of them. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for keeping an eye on my son." Yua says with flawless professional politeness, giving a small bow. "The pleasure is all mine. And don't worry, I intend to keep a lot more than my eyes on him." Midnight responds with a low chuckle, earning two very particular looks. From Takuma, a look that is as chastising as he dares, and from Yua, a look of moderately concealed fury. "And that means what, exactly?" the Takenakas ask in unison, earning an amused smile from Midnight. "My ears, of course!" she responds, her smile shifting into a dangerous smirk. "They're rather sharp, you know."

Mother and son both become completely stone faced at the implication, hesitantly glancing at each other. Their faces simultaneously become pained grimaces, by tiny increments, one asking the other if the Hero is saying what they think she is. And, they both conclude, she is. "I am terribly sorry. I was o-out of line." Yua says through gritted teeth, bowing deeply. "Well, can't say I haven't gotten worse assumptions. And the dress might be a bit much now that I think about it. Takuma here didn't mention just how professional of a setting this was going to be." Midnight answers with a playful shrug and faux accusatory tone.

Takuma bites his tongue, literally, as Yua looks up a little hopefully. "So let's try to put this behind us, shall we? It IS a pleasure to meet you. And thank you, for entrusting us with your son." Midnight finishes with a much more friendly smile. Mother and son once more glance at each other, daring to relax just a bit before smiling back. "Very gracious of you, thank you. It is nice to meet you as well. And... heh... thank you for taking care of my son." Yua retorts, clearly still sheepish.

"King Komodo!" a violently excited voice cries out, as soon enough Takuma feels something, rather someone, tackle his leg and clamp on tight. "Oh, hello Riku." he greets with an exasperated chuckle, unsure how he's gotten used to it. "Happy New Year! I'm so glad you're here, Dad said we were invited to this weird party and I said I wanted to stay home and play board games but he said that your mom was invited so you might've been too and you are!" the horned boy says, grinning from ear to ear. Takuma quickly scans the room, seeing the rest of Sleek Tec.'s upper management and their families gathered around Mr. Yotsubashi, all of them closing in on Takuma and his mother. Mr. Yotsubashi commands most of Takuma's attention. He's in a wheelchair.

"Takuma, how wonderful to see you! All's well, I hope." he says, even more cheerful than last they met, catching Takuma off-guard. "O-oh, yes... yes sir, I'm just fine. Glad to see you in high spirits." he replies, earning a small laugh from the man. "Of course I am, it's a celebration! Every new year I invite the upper crust from each company in the Detnerat group, and every time it's simply wonderful!" he says with a big, almost goofy smile, before turning his head to Midnight, looking a little surprised. "Ah, and Midnight is your charming companion, I see." he declares, at which point they both exchange introductions.

"Whoa, is that you girlfriend?!" Riku asks in awe, and a loud volume. Takuma grimaces while catching Midnight giggle into her hand, clearly amused. "My teacher, actually." he clarifies, trying to keep his voice steady. "You're dating your teacher? That's so cool!" Riku exclaims, verbally gut punching Takuma. "Wha- No it's not! A-and I'm not!" he blurts out, making Midnight snort. "Oh I think you're pretty cool." she laughs into her fist, fighting to contain herself somewhat. "Not helping." he whispers in a hiss as Mr. Yotsubashi joins in on the laughter, though it is clearly forced.

"Ha! Well I'd have to agree, you are rather 'cool'! As much as I do not want to disturb you, there is something I'd like to pick your brain about. Would you mind if I borrowed you for a little bit?" Mr. Yotsubashi asks, the blunt invitation catching Takuma, not to mention everyone else present, by surprise. He gives his mother a quick glance, her unsure expression once more shared by her son, but he nods hesitantly, not sure he'd dare anything else. "Of course. Let's... let's go, then." he says, giving Riku an apologetic smile once he starts to complain, swiftly getting his mouth covered by his older brother.

"Splendid! If you'd just follow me, then." Mr. Yotsubashi requests, turning his wheelchair around with remarkable guile. "The rest of you, enjoy some refreshments, I'll rejoin you shortly, I'll still have to introduce you all to some people you'll be working with." he declares before rolling away. Takuma turns to his mother and gives her an unsure smile and gentle pat on the cheek before hurrying after, the clacking of Midnight's heels following close behind. Mr. Yotsubashi slows and looks over his shoulder past Takuma and at Midnight, his smile never faltering.

"Something the matter, madam?" he asks, making Midnight smile apologetically. "Sorry to intrude, but I am here to keep an eye on Takuma. For his own safety." she explains. "You Heroes really take your jobs seriously. But I'm even less of a threat to Takuma than I was when Eraser Head was his escort, I assure you." Mr. Yotsubashi chuckles, gesturing to his legs. Takuma hurriedly turns to Midnight and makes a vague gesture encouraging her to let it, and him, go. For the first time tonight she looks displeased, her brilliantly blue eyes filled with a rare seriousness.

"Fine, fine, have it your way. I'll be close by, though." she relents, her playful demeanour back in full force. Takuma mumbles something he thinks sounds like thanks before he and Mr. Yotsubashi get going again.

Chapter 18: Sisyphean Rage

Chapter Text

Takuma opens the door to Mr. Yotsubashi's office and lets the man roll in, stepping in after him and gently closing the door. He tries to keep a neutral face to not betray his unease, but he finds this strange. "If I might be so bold, what is it you wanted to discuss, sir?" Takuma asks, glancing around the room.

It's a spacious office, luxurious even, precisely what you'd expect a CEO to have. There are two comfortable looking chairs in front of a large rosewood desk, but none behind it. Presumably there was one until recently. Mr. Yotsubashi doesn't acknowledge him, instead rolling behind his desk and reaching for the lamp that rests upon it, struggling slightly to reach it, but he perseveres before Takuma can do it for him. The light from it casts long shadows over the rest of the room, illuminating Mr. Yotsubashi's face which is near unrecognisable.

There's no smile. His cheerful demeanour is completely gone, in its place is a tired melancholy. His cheeks appear slightly sunk in, and there is a hint of fear on his features. "I'm sorry for bringing you here, truly. I know you'd rather catch up with your mother. But... I'm troubled." he finally speaks up, looking up at Takuma with sad eyes. "Over what, sir?" Takuma asks after a moments hesitation, though he thinks he can make an educated guess. "What happened in Deika City. I'm trying to stay positive, but... I'm not the same man that I was before. I see things more clearly now." he says in a low voice, yet Takuma can hear him clearly.

"I was frightened. 20 people managed to nearly destroy the entire city in less than an hour. I was fortunate, very fortunate, to make it out of there alive, if not in one piece. There were many that didn't." he continues, staring at his desk. "It was terrifying. We tried to defend ourselves as best we could if we couldn't run, but... I saw a young woman who couldn't do either." he explains, his voice cracking slightly at the end. "What does that mean, sir?" Takuma asks, feeling his mouth turn dry.

"She was in the same room as me when it happened. Villains burst in, one of them lunged at her, though I managed to shove her out of the way. I told her to run, and only fight if it was necessary, but... she was stammering and sputtering, saying she couldn't fight. It was illegal." he reveals, chuckling joylessly. "Forgive me, it's not funny, merely... absurd. She heard me tell her to fight and focused on that. She was in shock, of course, but when we started to flee she didn't... come with us, she didn't fight back. Her name Takamaki. She's dead now." he reveals, lip lower lip quivering.

Takuma moves forward and puts a hand on his shoulder without thinking. "It's not your fault, sir, y-you're not a Hero." he musters, earning a sad smile. "No, I suppose I'm not. But couldn't I have done something? Couldn't we have stood our ground to drive them off? Didn't she have the right to defend herself?" Mr. Yotsubashi wonders, raising a hand to cover his face. Takuma watches wordlessly, feeling a pit grow in his stomach. "That is what I wanted to ask you about, seeing as you're on your way to become a Hero. If the law makes good people hesitate to defend themselves, not to mention others, is that law right? Mr. Yotsubashi prods.

"I don't think people should... I don't think they should be eager to fight back. Things can get intense in a fight, more than I think most people realise. It's... easy, for things to get out of hand." he mumbles, the pit intensifying as he remembers Chimera. "It's better to leave things to the professionals." he continues. "But there weren't any professionals. Not there and then. And even if there were, would they have been able to save us? Would you have?" Mr. Yotsubashi counters, making Takuma slowly pull away. He feels his breathing grow a bit more shallow.

"I mean no offense. But having Heroes to keep us safe only works when they're on the scene, and as unfortunate as it is, they do not always win. Do we, the people, not have a right to defend ourselves? Why should we fear punishment for using something that's part of who we are just to keep ourselves safe?" the CEO continues, a burning determination growing in his eyes. "...You're talking about Meta-Human Liberation." Takuma says after a moment, a new sense of unease coming over him. "I'm not surprised such a studious young man as yourself knows about it. How do you feel about it?" he asks, raising a handkerchief to dab at his eyes.

"It's... a nice thought, I suppose. Or rather, I see why people would think so, in times like these." Takuma responds, taking a step back. "But... I still think fighting is best left to the Heroes. The ones that... can protect." he continues, looking out the window. "I see. But, as a businessman, I think you need to be ready to have your believes challenged." Mr. Yotsubashi says, the sound of a drawer sliding open pulling back Takuma's gaze. He picks up a small pocket whk and hands it over to Takuma. The words 'Meta Liberation War' are written out on the blood red cover.

Takuma hesitantly accepts it flips through the pages, settling on a random one and skimming it. He's frankly not sure he wants it, but he doesn't have the heart to reject it. "Read a bit of it, and should we get the chance to talk further, I merely want your thoughts." Mr. Yotsubashi says, letting out a relieved sigh. "Now, I've kept you long enough. I hope this hasn't dampened your mood. I'll not bother you or your mother for the rest of the night, so please try to enjoy yourself." Mr. Yotsubashi says, his own mood significantly better. Takuma thanks him and excuses himself, heading to the door.

"Are you coming, sir?" he asks, holding it open for him, but Mr. Yotsubashi shakes his head. "No, no, not right now. I need a moment, but thank you for asking." he assures, and Takuma offers him a forced smile before walking away.

The pit in his stomach doesn't go away. He slips the book into his back pocket and heads back to the area he had last seen his mother, mercifully finding her nearby. She's settled on a couch next to Midnight, and her expression catches Takuma off-guard. She's smiling, at Midnight. She's clearly listening intently to whatever the Hero has to say, raising her hand to cover a small gasp. Midnight herself is smiling oddly wholesomely, about to continue when she spots Takuma and waves him over. "There you are! And still in one piece." she says as he approaches.

"Uh... yup." Takuma replies, not sure what else to say. "Midnight and I were just discussing how you're doing in school." Yua interjects, looking a little excited. "You seem to be getting along just fine." she continues, and Midnight nods. "Uh... yup." Takuma replies, again. "Ah, hold still for a moment." Midnight interjects, rising to her feet and reaching for his neck with what he assumes is peaceful intent. "You had a little something on your collar. Again." she claims with a slightly mocking click of the tongue.

"Oh...thanks. I uh... I don't mean to be rude, Ms. Midnight, but I'd like to talk my mom for a bit." he deflects, earning a casual wave from his teacher. "No need to be so antsy. Stay in sight and it's fine. I'll keep my ears to myself this time." she responds with a wink, making Yua chuckle a little awkwardly.

Takuma offers Yua his hand and pulls her up from the couch, at which point they go to an empty corner. "So, what's wrong? Girl trouble?" Yua prods with a strange tone. "What? Why would I have girl trouble?" Takuma asks, cocking a brow. Yua's eyes widen for a moment before pursing her lips, looking like she's battling a smile. "Oh, just curious. But... there does seem to be something bothering you." she defelcts, her voice turning a bit more serious. Takuma opens his mouth then closes it, unsure how to phrase it.

"It's... about what happened on Nabu." he finally musters, wondering why such a simple phrase took so long to say. "I heard about that. I asked Midnight about it, and she said you all handled it well." Yua says with a supportive tone, but Takuma shakes his head. "I didn't. I didn't." he almost scoffs, leaning against the wall. "I... I wasn't feeling well in that heat. You know how I can get, and going from the middle of winter to summer there... it was bad. When the Villains showed up I tried to fight one of them, and... it went poorly. Or, that's one way of putting it, I guess."

"He could breathe fire. He sprayed it over my chest." Takuma reveals, raising his right hand to his torso, indicating where Chimera got him. Yua's earlier excitement is replaced by pure horror as she cups his cheeks with her hands. "Oh sweetie, are y-" "I'm fine. I'm here, I'm alive." Takuma quickly reassures, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb. "It hurt, but I'm fine." he reiterates with a gentle tone, which seems to calm his mother somewhat. "Were you scared?" she asks, to which he pulls back and sighs. "No. No, I was angry."

"The Villain I fought, he had already hurt three of my friends to the point they couldn't fight anymore. I was angry that he hurt them, so I tried to beat him. When I woke up later, I was angry that I lost. We lured them into a trap, and I fought the same Villain with Tsu, Sato and Iida. I thought we beat him, so I let my guard down." Takuma recounts, feeling that same rage start to boil inside him again. "And he hurt Tsu, broke her damn ribs. And as we fought, he hurt Sato too. That's twice I had failed to stop him, I was so mad, I refused to let there be a third time. So I... I..." Takuma trails off, biting down on his quivering lip, trying to not cry from frustration.

He feels Yua reach up and put a hand on his shoulder, calming him if only slightly. "I bit him." he finally says, looking over to his mother. Judging by her face, she understands that it's serious. "I bit him, I bit another person, like an animal. I-I... tore his arm out of its socket, I clawed at him, I dunked his head under water, I-I wasn't... thinking, I was just beating him down. I lost control, but I thought was past that." he rambles, feeling himself start to shake. Yua looks around the room, seeing that a few people are glancing their way. She looks out and makes some strange gesture with her hand, and Takuma follows her gaze and spots Midnight, who nods in understanding.

She grabs him by the hand and leads him away into a random but still impressive office, pulling down the shutters to the inside. She lets out a deep sigh, then plonks Takuma down on the sofa. "Sorry about that, but you seemed to need space." she says, settling down next to Takuma and holding his hand. "Thank you. I... I only snapped out of it after he was beaten. As in I... I think I kept beating him a bit after he stopped being a threat." he continues, swallowing the lump in his throat with great difficulty. "I think you need to remember that was a very dangerous situation, so-"

"I've trained for danger." Takuma interjects. "I've fought actual Villains before, this wasn't the first time, I don't get why I... why I keep losing control. A-at camp, when I chased Compress, I might've actually killed him if I had caught him before I pulled myself together. And with what happened on Nabu, I... I have to ask. Did Dad ever... struggle with this? Did he ever take things to far?" he asks, looking at her with a mix of fear and hope. Yua purses her lips and looks away. "N-no. I can't say he did. He never brought it up, I never heard anyone else saying something like that either. He was reckless, but... not like that." she admits in a low voice.

Takuma clenches his jaw and looks away, processing the information. "So I'm uniquely dumb." he muses. "I think you might be exagerat-""You weren't there." he snaps, jumping to his feet and begining to march around. "You didn't see him, you didn't see what I did, you didn't see how I fought! I-I could've killed him, would've if I took just a little longer to realise what I was doing! I couldn't protect people, the islanders or my friends, so I snapped, I-I was acting like a... a..." His agitated rambling loses steam and pacing grinds to a halt. He slowly places his forehead on the wall with an audible thump.

"It keeps happening. Am I just a violent person?" he whispers into an oppressive silence. "If I'm out there next time and I snap again, what happens if I kill somebody? A-at the same time, people need me, need Heroes, to keep everyone safe. Can I do that with losing it again?" he mutters, more to himself, he's so quiet he doubt Yua hears. All the same, he feels her arms wrap around him from behind and feels her body press against back. "I'm sorry sweetie." she whispers back, sounding like she's holding back tears. "I wish I had some advice."

He takes a deep breath and turns around, quite awkwardly as his mother doesn't let go or even ease up on her grip. "That's not your fault. And I'm the one that should apologise, I-I shouldn't have shouted at you." he retorts, planting a quick kiss on her forehead while returning the embrace. "So... I'm sorry, Mama. I just... don't know what to do. I thought I had gotten a handle on it, but... I'm repeating myself." he mumbles, the realisation making him few a little embarrassed. "That's okay." Yua reassures through a sniffle, retreating from the hug and guiding them back to the sofa.

"But I think you'll manage. I might not have any advice, but Gang Orca probably does." she says, offering a small smile while shaking his shoulder in a manner he assumes is supposed to be encouraging. He imagines that conversation wistfully, not eager to tell the man who helped him get a grip just how royally he screwed up. It won't be fun. But it's his best option. "He probably does. Almost definitely, actually." he agrees, pulling out his bright green handkerchief from his breast pocket and handing it to his mother. She accepts it gratefully and dabs at her eyes, getting a bit of mascara on them. She then lowers it and puts it to her nose, trumpeting into it with a very respectable volume.

Her eyes widen and she looks rather flustered, forcing a smile. "I-I'm sorry, I did that without thinking." she mutters, grimacing at her thoughtlessness. "It's fine. Yaoyorozu hosts tea parties sometimes, she's taught us proper etiquette. We just fold it like this." he says, reclaiming his property and folding it deftly, so nothing unsavoury is visible before tucking it back in his pocket. "You have tea parties at UA?" Yua asks, sounding rather intrigued. "Sometimes. Yaoyorozu and Sato actually have daily 'tea meetings'. She brings the tea and he brings the cake. Sometimes they make enough for anyone that wants to join in." he explains, leaning forward and supporting himself with his arms on his legs.

"Ooh... you've never mentioned you go to tea parties." she chastises teasingly, bumping into him though he doesn't budge an inch. "I suppose I didn't want to make you jealous." he teases back. "How thoughtful. And... does Tsu go to those tea parties?" Yua prods, pursing her lips to hide a smile. "Yeah, she does. The only one that's never gone is Bakugo as far as I know. Why?" he counters, cocking a brow. "Just curious, just curious! You two just sound close. When Midnight and I were talking, she let it slip that you call each other by your first names." she elaborates, raising her hands as if surrendering something.

"Yeah, I guess I'd say we're close. She's great. She asks pretty much everyone to call her Tsu, but I suppose I'm the only one of the guys that has extended the same courtesy to her." he muses, looking up at the ceiling like he could search his memories on it. "Hmm... would you say like spending time with her?" Yua continues with a very strange manner of articulation. "Yeah? Yeah, I like spending time with my friends." he retorts, cocking his head to the side like a dog. "Alright, alright, I'll drop it." Yua says, throwing her hands up in the air.

"You're in a weird mood." Takuma points out, not sure what she's dropping. Yua chuckles and shakes her head. "I'm just glad I have the chance to talk to you. No more talk about work, for either of us, how's that sound? Just tell me about your friends, and fun classes." she suggests, making her boy chuckle in kind. "Sounds good. What do you want to hear about?" he inquires. "How about those two you'll be having your work-study with? Shoji and Ojiro, was it?" she offers. "No, Shoji and Jiro. Ojiro is the guy with the tail. Jiro is the girl with those "wires" on her ears."

"Oh, Jiro's a girl?"

"Yeah, she and I had our practical finals together. She's nice, and a really talented musician."

Series this work belongs to:

← Previous Work Part 2 of The Behemoth Hero: King Komodo

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sbsullivan15, LiloB, Evolvingcrystal, stopdropanroll, Mimikyu_oli_Shyder, EulalieYaveva40, and Angel_loves_meh as well as 9 guests left kudos on this work!

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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 1 Sat 18 May 2024 01:44AM UTC

The Dragon has return.
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The slaughterer is here.
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NAGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
🔫

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 1 Sat 18 May 2024 10:15AM UTC
  
  It took a bit longer than I had anticipated, but he's on his way!
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  Sure hope he stays locked up. 😰
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 1 Sat 18 May 2024 05:58PM UTC
    
    That's ok. 👍
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    yeeeaaahhh........ 😓
    
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Angel_loves_meh on Chapter 1 Sat 18 May 2024 05:23AM UTC

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 1 Sat 18 May 2024 10:16AM UTC
  
  🥰🥰🥰
  
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EulalieYaveva40 on Chapter 1 Tue 16 Jul 2024 05:49PM UTC

Right out the gate.
Right out the freaking gate, the very day I found out you'd started Part II, and I'm almost speechless with joy.
This characterization of a villain who'd successfully killed a hero and then faced the music, the pointing out of how Tartarus looks like a monument to human rights violations even in canon, the tease of Lady Nagant and Chisaki, the possibility of the villain who'd killed Takuma's father joining them in the prison break . . . perfection. Pure anticipation. A re-ignition of interest and excitement for a story even after reading an impressive 92 chapter monstrosity (in a good way!). I salute you, Fishing Knight!
I absolutely love how the Masahiko still thinks of Great Komodo, yet doesn't resent him for his imprisonment. So many villains these days are so . . . whiny, you know? It's never THEIR fault they were a violent thief/murderer/whatever, it was always someone else's fault for how they turned out. This maturity and sense of respect reminds me of the really classy bad guys from old TV shows and movies. I love it!

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1. EulalieYaveva40 on Chapter 1 Tue 16 Jul 2024 09:24PM UTC
  
  As classy as a criminal/bad guy/villain can be, anyway.
  
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2. FishingKnight on Chapter 1 Sat 20 Jul 2024 10:03AM UTC
  
  I'm really glad you like it so far, thank you so much! I'm really looking forward to writing more about Masahiko, I have some fun plans for him.
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 2 Tue 11 Jun 2024 08:52PM UTC

"Sorry... But... it is still an improvement. Besides, training to failure means that you're putting in enough effort to see results. So that's... good. Results are... what we're after."
That is true.
---
The start of a new friendship.

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 2 Wed 12 Jun 2024 07:16PM UTC
  
  Progress is allowed to take time, especially when you're just starting out. Though that doesn't mean it's any fun 😅
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 2 Wed 12 Jun 2024 07:24PM UTC
    
    "It gets easier.
    Every day it gets a little easier…
    But you gotta do it every day — that’s the hard part.
    But it does get easier."
    
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Angel_loves_meh on Chapter 2 Fri 14 Jun 2024 05:06PM UTC

Poor shinso, yay they're becoming friends <3
Awesome thank you author!
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 2 Sat 15 Jun 2024 06:14AM UTC
  
  I'm glad you like it 😁
  
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EulalieYaveva40 on Chapter 2 Tue 16 Jul 2024 05:58PM UTC

This was so cute, and a great second chapter!
While action addicts like me tend to want BANG BANG BANG, one of the reasons I appreciate MHA is how well the canon author balances the meat of the story with filler and palate cleansers. These are high schoolers after all, and it's a good thing to see Takuma coming out of his shell and making the effort to mentor someone else, even if it's only the basics. You see it all the time in the real world, the biggest show of progression is when you've reached a point where you can teach someone else what you've been learning, and I love how Takuma is growing as a person not at an unbelievable pace, but in stages, with a few bumps along the way. Wonderful! I'm looking forward to seeing how Takuma's development will be affected by everything going forward.

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 2 Sat 20 Jul 2024 10:04AM UTC
  
  🥰
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 3 Sun 21 Jul 2024 04:35AM UTC

❄❄❄
---
["Geez, you're shaking like a leaf. You really don't like the cold, huh?"]
He's a lezard.
OF COURSE he doesn't!
---
[Takuma catches Kamakiri glaring daggers at him]
Knowing his quirk, it's pretty accurate.
---
Oh!
He's going to be in the tentacle event, right?
---
["You stay out of this! He's been looking down on me ever since the Sports Festival, and now I can finally put him in his place!"]
Wow.
You really missread the whole thing.
And HARD!
---
Oh boy indeed.
---
Quick Question!
Did you saw the last episode of the anime? 🙂
(Season 7 episode 11)

Last Edited Sun 21 Jul 2024 04:36AM UTC

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 3 Sun 21 Jul 2024 09:53AM UTC
  
  Yeah, he missread it, but good luck convinging him off that right now 😅
  ---
  I haven't seen it yet, I'm waiting for the entire season to be out so that I can binge it. 🙂
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 3 Sun 21 Jul 2024 05:15PM UTC
    
    Oh boy. 😓
    ---
    ☺
    
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 4 Wed 14 Aug 2024 08:12PM UTC

Plotting and FIGHTS!

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 4 Tue 20 Aug 2024 04:58PM UTC
  
  They be schemeing...
  (Sorry about the late reply, king)
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 4 Tue 20 Aug 2024 06:39PM UTC
    
    It's ok. 👍
    
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 5 Wed 28 Aug 2024 01:57PM UTC

["Nope, I'm looking at you." she says with a slight chuckle, like she finds his confusion amusing. "Oh... uh... H-hello." Takuma sputters, caught off-guard by the attention. "I like your Quirk. It's really cool." ]
A lizard conversation.
---
["You've been hanging out with Monoma too much. This is just a bit of friendly banter, right before a friendly training session. We're still gonna crush it, but no sense in not being friendly."]
I like her.
---
["Are we ready?" Midoriya pipes up, snapping Takuma out of his thoughts and making him nod along with Ashido and Shoji.]
They're not ready.
---
The raging darkness has emerged!
---
[They make eye contact, Midoriya's face being one of understanding and acceptance as Takuma cocks a fist and punches him in the head.]
...
Wait, what?

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 5 Wed 28 Aug 2024 02:16PM UTC
  
  They thought they were ready, and isn't that what really matters?
  ---
  Was that final bit unclear?😅 Takuma needed to knock Midoriya out in an attempt to stock Black Whip, Midoriya understood, so he didn't try to resist as Takuma knocked him out.
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 5 Wed 28 Aug 2024 02:28PM UTC
    
    Oh no.
    I understood it.
    I was more like:
    "Oh fudge, he punched him.
    They didn't do that in the manga."
    
    I was just not ready, I guess. 😅
    
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 6 Mon 02 Sep 2024 09:34PM UTC

["Ah, you're awake. You had it rough our there, eh young Takenaka?" he says with a forced chuckle in a failed attempt to ease the tension.]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1N5lZw7e78
---
["Y-yes... After you knocked me out, a man spoke to me, like in a dream and yet... not a dream." Midoriya explains.]
MINDSCAPE!!!!
---
[He said that I'm going to manifest six more Quirks.]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bnUWuAO0oU
---
[Midoriya continues to look gobsmacked, his eyes growing even wetter, so much so that Takuma gets a little worried he'll start crying,]
OH NO, HE'S GOING TO DROWN US!!!!
---
[it seems the unstoppable form has come to an end.]
I see it more like a last resort kind of thing.

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 6 Tue 03 Sep 2024 06:29PM UTC
  
  Considering that one scene from the Sports Festival, Midoriya could probably weaponize his crying, drowning someone isn't IMPOSSIBLE
  
  Last Edited Tue 03 Sep 2024 06:29PM UTC
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 7 Sun 29 Sep 2024 06:15PM UTC

Midorita: ✨_✨
—-
[Which I believe I mentioned yesterday on the phone." Principal Nezu interjects happily, though there is a hint of 'I-told-you-so' in his tone]
😅

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 7 Mon 30 Sep 2024 07:14PM UTC
  
  The little bear-dog-mouse creature DID tell him so, so💅
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 8 Sun 27 Oct 2024 04:09AM UTC

The title. 😅
---
[Todoroki and Bakugo have finally gotten their Provisional Licenses, well earned after months of diligent work.]
https://youtu.be/9bnUWuAO0oU?si=u9QOvulDm1W9yRK6
---
[hey suit up and are soon gathered outside in front of a stage Takuma doesn't remember seeing before today, which is a UA trait he feels he should be used to by now.]
Nedzu: At UA, we're always fully prepared for anything at the last moment. 👍

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 8 Mon 28 Oct 2024 01:41PM UTC
  
  I mean, the title is what it is 😅
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 9 Sun 17 Nov 2024 05:30PM UTC

Yeah!
Friendship!!!
https://youtu.be/9bnUWuAO0oU?si=FY20Ey224JNZgK2I

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 9 Tue 19 Nov 2024 02:13PM UTC
  
  yaay!
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 10 Fri 27 Dec 2024 10:36PM UTC

[His tail is wrapped with a cord of Christmas lights, and a star is even attached to the tip. Not his idea, that credit goes to Ashido and Kaminari, the latter having charged up a battery for the lights that Takuma has in his pocket.]
😅
---
🎄

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 10 Sat 28 Dec 2024 08:41PM UTC
  
  It's only Christmas once a year, he might as show his holiday cheer 🎅
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 10 Sat 28 Dec 2024 09:03PM UTC
    
    https://youtu.be/9bnUWuAO0oU?si=8emRN3rgLevbzW9r
    
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 11 Wed 15 Jan 2025 05:08PM UTC

☕
---
Plotting time.

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 11 Thu 16 Jan 2025 06:30PM UTC
  
  ☕
  
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2. 1. Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 11 Thu 16 Jan 2025 06:32PM UTC
    
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stopdropanroll on Chapter 11 Thu 20 Mar 2025 06:22PM UTC

Hey, really glad I read this! I’m very fond of it now

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 11 Fri 21 Mar 2025 08:13PM UTC
  
  Thank you, I'm happy to hear that!
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 12 Fri 21 Mar 2025 10:15PM UTC

Takuma is getting heated.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 12 Mon 24 Mar 2025 03:00PM UTC
  
  He's feeling it, alright...
  
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NiyaNiya390 on Chapter 12 Sun 23 Mar 2025 04:07AM UTC

Awww I kinda wanted to see the trip to Nabu and him being affected by the heat more😭😭 Great chapter though I'm loving this story and his socially awkward self🥰🥰

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 12 Mon 24 Mar 2025 03:02PM UTC
  
  That's fair, sorry! But don't worry, that sun is going to rise, and he'll start being affected by the heat again. And thank you, I'm super happy to hear that 😁
  
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Mimikyu_oli_Shyder on Chapter 13 Mon 19 May 2025 07:24PM UTC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldzO6RL7yXE
---
["I... I'm happy. For the first time in my life since my dad... died... I'm happy. I'm excited to go to class, I'm excited to spend time with you, a-and everyone else, I... my life feels like a life now. And... a large part of that is you."]
You're kind of already are a hero, Sato.

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 13 Tue 20 May 2025 06:55PM UTC
  
  I've always been fond of the trope that real heroes make a great impact with something seemingly small 😁
  
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EulalieYaveva40 on Chapter 13 Mon 19 May 2025 09:19PM UTC

I had to go back and reread to make sure I had all the context for the new chapter, and it was absolutely worth it! Beautifully done and so fun to read! I loved this spar, this reason for Sato to want a rematch to contextualize his feelings and desire for growth, and Takuma admitting he now has a reason to stay on the path of a hero. He’s growing past his tragedy, healing and becoming a strong, inspiring hero in his own right. Fantastic return, 10/10!

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1. FishingKnight on Chapter 13 Tue 20 May 2025 06:58PM UTC
  
  You're too kind! I've been posting way too infrequently, but I hope I can be more consistent from now on.
  Not confident enough to promise anything, mind 😅
  
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