A Hero and a 1/2

[Corwin of earth]

Ranma ducked around his opponent's arms and kicked them in the stomach, sending them reeling to the ground. The fight had moved out of the house and onto the street. Ranma didn't know why they were attacking, and he didn't particularly care. Using his erstwhile opponent as a springboard, Ranma lept at who he assumed was the leader. At least he was the one barking orders. Instead of dodging or blocking, the man reached out his hands.

'A touch-based quirk?'

Ranma twisted in the air turning his jump into a somersault. Landing just outside the man's reach, Ranma easily evaded his grasping hands. It was clear that the man had little actual training. He knew how to hold himself and didn't overreach. But his swings were too wide, his torso too stiff. Moving carefully to avoid being grabbed, Ranma swept the man's legs out from under him.

The man caught himself with his hands, his face centimeters from the pavement. The road exploded. Ranma barely dodged a shard of concrete the size of his head.

'An explosive quirk? Either way, I can't let him touch me.'

Usually, a fight made Ranma feel exhilarated. The blood pumping in his veins and the challenge of a strong opponent made him feel alive. But now, he just felt angry. That was dangerous. Anger made you sloppy. It made you care more about hurting the enemy than defending yourself. Acting like that would get him killed here. Ranma tried to center himself, to find his inner serenity, but all he found was more anger.

'Let's level the playing field then.'

"Is that the best you've got? You attack us with just some two-bit thugs and a fancy quirk? I doubt you could do anything without it the way you fight."

The man's eyes narrowed.

'That hit a nerve.'

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Izuku jumped. It wasn't intentional, just the simple natural response to being startled. He usually wouldn't have even left the ground. But with One-For-All flowing through him, he flew, Ten, twenty, thirty meters up into the air.

His mind went into overdrive. A fall from this height could kill him, One-For-All or not. He needed to create an upward thrust to slow his descent. A punch or kick would be too much. They'd send him even higher. As his upward momentum petered out and he started to fall, a plan had emerged. Bracing with his left hand, he brought his thumb and forefinger together.

His attacker had inadvertently helped Izuku by stealing his strength. With less of One-For-All's overwhelming power flowing through him, it was easier to control how much force he put into it.

Crack!

Easier, but not easy. Izuku's aim was slightly off, sending him spinning. Until he crashed down onto his back, driving the air from his lungs.

"Ha, ha, ha," the laughter was interspersed with clapping. "Bravo, bravo. I haven't seen something that funny in years. The Boss's orders are not to chase anyone that runs. So make yourself scarce, and ya won't get hurt."

Lungs burning, Izuku gasped for breath. But he forced himself to his feet. One in front of the other shoulder's width apart. Left hand out in front to block and grapple. Right hand close to the chest, ready to strike.

"Well, can't say I didn't give you a chance."

'I still can't control One-For-All well enough.' Izuku thought as he dodged a fist larger than his head. 'When he grabbed me, it felt like my sessions with Miss Ninomiya. If I can get him to drain more of the energy, I might be able to beat him.'

He waited for the last possible moment before moving. A light hop to the left with a flash of lightning carries him across the street. But as he moved, the massive fist grazed his arm, and strength flowed out of him.

'Another two of those, and I should be ready.'

But his opponent was unwilling to give him the opportunity. This time instead of a slow walk, he charged like a bull. Izuku didn't dare wait and dodged well before he was within reach. And then he had to do it again and again. By the fourth time, his legs were throbbing with pain, and he was desperately gasping for breath.

'I can't keep this up. I need to end this now.'

It started in his foot with a push. From there, it moved up his leg to his waist, and with a twist, it traveled up his torso to his shoulder. With a swing, it passed down his arm and into his fist.

And that fist wreathed in lightning met the charging villain releasing all that titanic strength in a single instance. One second, Rikiya Katsukame was charging forward, euphoric with power than he'd ever held before. The next, he was flying over the horizon.

Izuku stood panting for breath, staring at the space that had held the villain seconds before. Until his legs collapsed out from under him.

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Nodoka wasn't a martial artist, but she had married one. After years of watching him practice and train their son, she had picked up some things. Strike first and strike hard, don't give them time to think.

And so, by the time the door was open, she was already swinging her sword. The man that stepped through had just enough time to realize what was happening before the blade dug into his shoulder. She drew it back to strike again, but the sword vanished from her hands as she swung. Nodoka desperately sought another weapon. Her eyes landed on a broom, but a fist slammed into her stomach as she reached for it. She flopped to the ground in a boneless heap. Someone screamed; it might have been her.

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Ryoga was lost. It wasn't an unusual situation. Having no sense of direction did that to a person. Oh, there was a fancy medical term for it that he couldn't remember. His GPS (which wasn't very good at getting him where he wanted, but at least told him where he was) had run out of battery. He was getting close to giving up and calling for help, but his stubborn pride drove him onward.

'Just one more street, and then I'll call,' he told himself. But one he didn't, nor did he after the next street or the next.

'Why is it so hard? Just pull out the phone and call!'

He knew why, though he would never admit it. It was humiliating! He wasn't six. He shouldn't need someone to walk him home from school!

His train of thought was derailed by a scream.

His body moved before he had time to think. Vaulting over a stone wall, he dashed into a house. Running down a hallway strewn with debris, he found the source of the scream. A girl lay on a couch, her chest covered in blood. Another girl stood protectively over her. A green-haired woman cradled a child as she tried to run. And in the center of the room was a crystal man looming over a black-haired woman on the floor. He had a satisfying look of surprise when Ryoga's umbrella hurled him into the wall.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Ranma hissed and slashed with a spectral claw, scything shards of asphalt from the air. He hated drawing on his quirk this strongly; it muddled his thoughts and made it hard to think. But he didn't have a choice. Without it, he would have been skewered half a dozen times by concrete spikes.

Ranma leaped, avoiding another spike. His body was in the shape of a cat. It was getting harder to think, but that's why he trained, so when the mind failed, instinct could take over. His claws came down, seeking to rend flesh from bone. But his prey barely managed to escape. There was a sudden crack, and Ranma yawled as he was thrown onto his back by a spray of water. Dimly a part of his mind that the cat hadn't subsumed realized he had burst a water pipe.

Quickly righting himself, Ranma sought about for the intruder. He was shouting. The sound was annoying, but as for what he was saying, Ranma neither understood nor cared. Ranma slunk forward, baring his fangs. This pathetic waste of space had come into Ranma's territory and had hurt one of Ranma's clowder. The man just kept talking, not paying proper attention to his surroundings. So he didn't see when Ranma's back legs tensed. The force of his kick turned Ranma into an unguided missile. His claws cut through clothes and skin, leaving bloody tracks behind. But as the rest of him came down, the vermin grabbed his fur. There was a blinding flash of light and pain.

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Akane cursed as she punched a shard of concrete out of the air. Whatever Ranma had said had caused his opponent to unleash his quirk. The street kept exploding into shards before reforming into giant spikes, only to explode again. She could only catch glimpses of Ranma, but from what she could see, he was holding out. Which was good as everyone else was too busy with their fights to help him.

Her father and Mr. Saotome were fighting three opponents, one of which she had seen eat part of her father's armor. Shampoo was fighting a massive man who was punching at ridiculous speeds. Akane couldn't see where Izuku had ended up, but the flashes of green lightning meant he was still fighting. As for Akane, she was stuck, unable to help anyone, by a smirking ass with a force field.

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Doc Tofu was not a great hero. It was a fact he had accepted when he was still in school. He lacked the drive he saw in his fellows, that burning need to be the best consumed them. He found little joy in competition or outdoing others. Ultimately, he got his hero license for the same reason he studied medicine. He enjoyed helping people, whether it be stopping a robbery or helping an old man with his back pain. Opening his clinic had been the happiest moment of his life. And he still considered it to be his greatest accomplishment.

One of the best things about owning your own business was being able to set your hours. Something Tofu took advantage of to take long walks in the afternoon. Not that he wrote that in his schedule. No, officially, this time was reserved for patrolling. But in practice, that amounted to the same thing. What most people didn't think about (and what most new heroes despaired over) was that street crime was rare. Clever criminals avoided places where they could be easily seen and caught. And the mere sight of a hero was enough to stop those desperate or foolish enough from even trying.

And so it was that he was taking a relaxed stroll one fine spring evening when his phone rang. It was Mrs. Nakamura. Her husband had been a construction worker. Years of physical labor had given him a bad back and painful joints. He was a regular sight at the Tofu clinic.

"Hello, Mrs. Nakamura. How are you-."

He was interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

"Dr. Tofu, it's the Tendos! There's been shouting and screaming and banging. I think someone's attacking them! Come quickly!"

Some heroes were lucky enough to have a quirk that helped them get around, flight, teleportation, or just being able to run very fast. Doc Tofu was not one of those lucky few. It took him five minutes to reach the Tendo residence. What he saw when he turned the final corner took his breath away. A massive man, his face obscured by a beaked mask. His arms raised to strike down a boy.

He knew he couldn't make it in time; it was too far. That didn't stop him from trying. He ran, bellowing out a wordless cry of fear and anger, hoping against hope that it might provide a distraction. That it could slow those descending fists, even for a moment.

But just as it seemed like the boy would be crushed beneath titanic fists. With a flash of lightning and a crack of thunder, Tofu stared in awe at a man twice his height and three times his mass was hurled over the horizon.

For a moment, he just stood there, overwhelmed with relief, until he was shocked into movement by the kid collapsing onto the ground. He picked up the boy and carried him off the street. A cursory examination showed no apparent injuries. But he couldn't help but think of the types of internal damage that were hard to detect.

"Ka-."

"It's all right; I'm a hero. Don't try to talk; just rest. I'll take care of everything."

"Kas- Kasumi."

Ice water shot through his veins. Now that he was listening, he could hear the sounds of fighting in the distance. Grimacing, he pulled out his phone. He wanted to go and find Kasumi, join the fight, and break someone's face on his fist (oh, how he wanted to). But if he did that, he would leave the kid alone, with no one to care for his injuries.

Being a hero meant making the hard choices. It was like being a doctor in that way. Triage, you couldn't do everything at once. You had to prioritize. Another part of the job (for both doctors and heroes) was knowing when to call for help. Taping open an app, he pushed the big red button. And the phones of every hero in range started to ring.

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Quirk analysis notebook by Izuku Midoriya.

Page four: Ranma Saotome.

Quirk Name: Cat-Fist.

Description: Saotome is able to create a solid energy projection around his body, It has the appearance of a giant cat. The energy is a light blue and the projection is slightly transparent. It can cover only certain body parts or the entire body. It is extremely strong and can be used as armor. The projection follows the movement of Saotome's body, but with far more strength. Enhancing Saotome's blows and allowing him to jump large distances. While overall a very strong quirk it has one major drawback. When Saotome uses his quirk it alters his mental state, causing him to act more and more like a cat the longer he uses it.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Shanpu was angry. She had won the tournament only to have her prize eaten in front of her. She had spent months in the wilderness chasing Ranma. Only for that thief to swim across the ocean to Japan. Shanpu had followed (she'd bought a plane ticket, she wasn't some medieval peasant) only to spend weeks searching for Ranma with no success. (Japan was a bunch of tiny islands. How was it harder to find someone there than in the empty wilderness of China?) And then she had fallen in with some old perverted loon and his surprisingly sane disciples (they'd tried to kill him. If that wasn't a sure sign of sanity, she didn't know what was.) And now some muscle-bound thug in a stupid mask was trying to kill her.

'if I have to deal any more of this shit, I am going to kill someone.'

There was an explosion of blue light that threw concrete shrapnel everywhere. The thug stood between her and the blast, taking the brunt of the damage. Seizing the opportunity, she hefted up a fallen lamppost and smashed it over his head. Looking around, Shanpu saw that the explosion had ended all the fighting. Making sure to give her erstwhile opponent a kick, she picked her way across the demolished street to the source of the explosion.

It was a crater the width of a car. At the bottom, an exposed pipe was spraying water everywhere. At the crater's edge was another of the masked thugs; she kicked him too. A pained groan drew her attention. At the bottom of the hole was-. No, it couldn't be.

"Ranma?"

Groaning again, the girl pushed her head up and froze as soon as she saw Shanpu. Bright red hair, check. Short, check. Dark fear-filled eyes, check. Body tensed to run off in a random direction screaming, check. There was no doubt about it; this was Ranma.

Striding over to her prey felt her rage build. She had expected to feel satisfaction. But all she felt was more anger and frustration. It built and built until something snapped inside her.

"I don't care!"

"Wha-what?"

"You're not worth it. If Kelun wants you dead, she can come and do it herself."

"I don't understand. What are you saying?"

"I'm going home!"

With a huff, she turned and stomped off.

"What just happened?"

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Contrary to what most people think, heroes don't spend all their time fighting villains. They have bathroom breaks, eat, and spend a lot of time waiting for something to happen. Japan, while far from crime-free, was not one of the crime-riddled wastelands often depicted in comic books. And so when the emergency call went out, plenty of heroes were ready and eager to answer.

They came from every direction. There were some well-known heroes, Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods. But most were small-time, local heroes who had never seen the top one hundred. They arrived to a shattered street, a house with holes blown through it, and the fight over. They quickly set about rounding up the villains and tending to the injured. Later, when they cross-referenced the reports with the captured villains, they found that two were missing.

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Masato Maeda had been a reporter for fifteen years. He wasn't famous; he doubted anyone outside the studio knew his name. But he knew how to get the ratings, and nothing brought more than heroes. And for that, you needed speed. Despite what the movies showed, fights were over fast. And if you wanted to catch any of them, you needed to move faster. So it was mere moments between hearing about a fight in the residential district and him jumping into a van. Masato slammed his foot on the gas pedal as Kazuo, his cameraman, buckled his seat belt.

He sped down side streets and squeezed through alleys to avoid the tail end of rush hour. As they pulled up to the scene, Masato cursed on seeing that they were too late for the fight. But he cheered up on seeing the sheer multitude of heroes. You rarely saw more than three or four heroes at any one time. Here there were at least a dozen.

"Get some shots of the scene; I'm going to find who's in charge, then we'll see about getting some interviews," he said to Kazuo.

"Got it, boss. Want anything in particular?"

"no, get some of everything. We'll work out what we want when we've got more information."

Pulling out his microphone, he set out on the hunt for a headline.

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Two silhouettes crept through the night. Their movements were slow and stiff as though in pain. They froze at every passing car and avoided pedestrians. After hours of walking, they came to a walled compound. A stiffness left their bodies at the sight of the gate. When they passed through it, they were greeted by a scene of devastation. Bodies littered the ground, trees were uprooted, and windows smashed. The main building was alight with flame. In the middle of everything, a short, squat figure stood. Backlight by the fire, it turned to face them. Its face bore a demonic smile.

It spoke in a deep growl. "Ah, you've arrived at last." Before switching to a bright and cheerful tone. "Do you like what I've done with the place?"

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"For tonight's main story, a burglary gone wrong for the burglars. Earlier today, a group of masked criminals broke into a home while the family was having dinner with guests. Unfortunately for the burglars, both of the fathers are master martial artists. They, along with several of their children (who are also trained in martial arts), proceeded to viciously thrash the criminals. Unfortunately, several of the children were badly hurt in the struggle, but the doctors report that they should all make a complete recovery without complications. And in other news, a fire alarm led to the discovery of an arrest of an entire Yakuza compound. Authorities have declined to comment at this time."

 

[Corwin of earth]

There's a tense quiet unique to a hospital at night. A mixture of doctors going through their rounds, speaking in hushed tones to not disturb their sleeping patients, Interns silently panicking because they forgot how to perform basic procedures, and family members waiting for news of loved ones.

The waiting room, like all of its ilk, was uncomfortable, the light too bright, the chairs too small, and it was crowded with too many people. Soun's face was covered in tear tracks, and his clothing was a crumpled mess. Beside him, Genma sat in stark contrast, his face showing nothing but stern resolve, though the broken armrests on his chair betrayed his true feelings. Ranma had fallen asleep from exhaustion. His head lay on Akane's shoulder. Usually, her sisters would have teased her for that, but Kasumi wasn't there, and Nabiki would only stare at the door. She had claimed the chair closest to it, hoping to get the news sooner. Dr. Tofu stood too restless to sit, his hands constantly fiddling with his glasses. Inko had been sitting beside him but had left with Eri after they heard that Izuku would be fine.

A nurse had urged the rest of them to go home as well. Telling them that it would be hours before there would be any news and that they would be better able to help if they had been rested when the time came. Ranma, while still asleep, had blown a raspberry at the notion.

Eventually, the door opened, admitting a doctor. Ten eyes instantly locked onto her, each brimming with hope and fear.

"You're waiting for news about Kasumi Tendo, right?"

Akane elbowed Ranma in the ribs to wake him. Only to have her arm trapped under his as he snuggled closer to her, lightly snoring all the while. (She would deny to her dying day that she thought it was cute).

"Yes, we are," Genma said, "how is she doing?"

"She's out of surgery and asleep. Thankfully the bullet was stopped by one of her ribs, though the rib was badly fractured. She will have to stay in the hospital while she heals so we can monitor it for infection. And even after she can leave, it will be several months before she fully recovers. But she should fully recover."

A wave of relief swept through everyone listening. Soun stood, straightened his clothing, and bowed to the doctor.

"Thank you for caring for my daughter." Stifling a yawn, he looked around to see that everyone else seemed as tired as he felt. "And I believe it is past time that many of us were in bed."

"Yes," Genma agreed, "we should all be getting home."

"I will call UA to inform them that Akane and Nabiki will not be attending tomorrow," Soun said. "I do not think they should have to deal with school on top of everything that happened today."

"I will do the same for Ranma." Genma nodded.

"There will be no need, for I AM HERE!"

Ranma, startled awake, jumped from his chair and wrapped his arms around Akane, frantically looking around for the source of the sound. Akane yelped in surprise at having her arms full of boy and turned to Nabiki, her eyes silently pleading for help.

Nabiki just laughed; it rose from her belly. It was like a dam had burst, all the joy and relief, grief and fear that had built up inside her. All spilled out in one torrent of laughter that morphed into sobs as tears rolled down her face. A pair of arms embraced her. She grabbed back with all the desperation of a drowning woman. Her chest shuddered with each sob, each one weaker than the last until, at last, it stopped.

Looking up, she was surprised to see not her father or sister. But the broad smiling face of All Might. Her cheeks burned with shame.

"I-I'm sorry, it was most improper of me-.

She stuttered to a stop when All Might brushed a strand of hair from her face.

"There is no need to apologize. You have been through a trying experience. Anyone who would judge you would be a true villain, and I would be forced to apprehend them."

Turning to face everyone, All Might took a step back and bowed.

"I apologize for intruding at this unpleasant time when I heard about what had happened; I felt compelled to come and offer what aid I could. I shall speak with principal Nedzu tonight and inform him of the situation."

"Thank you," Soun said, returning the bow.

"There's no need," All Might said, "now, go home and rest. There will be heroes watching to ensure that nothing will disturb you."

Akane was the first to leave, still carrying Ranma, who had fallen back asleep. Followed by Soun supporting Nabiki, with Genma and Tofu taking up the rear.

All Might finally let the smile drop when they had all left the room. With his strength waning day by day, it became ever harder to bear the weight. But these were still the hardest moments, looking at family grieving because he couldn't save them. And all he could do was smile.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Kasumi woke to chirping birds and beeping electronics. Staring up at an unfamiliar ceiling, she tried to remember how she got there. Slowly at first, memories arose, a gun, pain, fighting, an ambulance, doctors, a mask over her face, and darkness.

She tried to push herself up, but the pain in her stomach stopped her.

"Ah, miss Tendo, you're awake. Don't try to move on your own. You're still recovering from surgery. The muscles in your abdomen will need to heal some before you can put any stress on them."

The nurse was tall with a cat-like face covered in light gold fur. She spent several minutes running checks on Kasumi while explaining in a light, cheerful tone everything she was doing.

"Now, some visitors are waiting to see you if you're up to it."

Kasumi nodded.

The nurse smiled and stepped out. Barely a minute later, a flood of sound descended on her, followed by her sisters. Nabiki was speaking about a mile a minute, her face in the characteristic smirk she wore whenever she was teasing Akane. But by the tightness around her eyes, Kasumi could tell she was faking, putting up a front of normalcy to hide her true feelings. Akane didn't notice and was loudly denying everything Nabiki said. She really should have learned by now that all that did was encourage her. Behind them stood their father. His eyes were red, and tears poured down his face.

"Nabiki, stop teasing Akane." The muscles in her diaphragm ached slightly from the exertion. But the looks of joy on her sisters' faces were more than worth it.

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Ryoga was lost again. Or, rather Ryoga was lost. The word 'again' implied periods of time that he wasn't lost. He new he was somewhere in the hospital (he'd found an outlet to plug his GPS in, but that didn't exactly help get around inside a building.) Turning another corner in the forlorn hope that it would take him to his destination when he was surprise by a familiar face.

"Ranma!"

Turning, Ryoga's one time schoolmate's face lit up with joy.

"Ryoga! Man, how've you been. I haven't seen you since pops dragged me off to China."

Some part of Ryoga was angered by this.

'He walks out on a man to man dual and now he acts like nothing happened?'

But mostly he was relieved. Someone who already knew. He didn't have to choose between spending hours wandering aimlessly or humiliating himself to ask for help.

"I've been fine. I'm looking for Kasumi Tendo's room, do you know were that is?"

Surprised Ranma asked. "You know Kasumi?"

"No, but I tried to help her after she was hurt and wanted check up on her."

Surprise turned to shock.

"Wait, you're the Hero mama talked about. Who save her and the girls from those thugs?"

Cheeks burning Ryoga scratched his head.

"I'm not a hero, I was just in the right place at the right time."

Ranma who wasn't listening to a word he said, latched onto his arm and started dragging him off.

"Come on, it's just over here!"

Groaning Ryoga surrendered to his fate.

'I should have just asked a nurse!'

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Detective Taro Sasaki Scratched his head and yawned. He was two pots of coffee past midnight with no end in sight. At first, the case had seemed simple. Breaking and entering, assault, and a few other minor charges. All of them with witness testimony, physical evidence, and even some video to back them up. All he had to do was write it up and send it off to the courts to handle. But then, things had gotten complicated fast. The perps had turned out to be Yakuza, Yakuza with a big expensive compound in the middle of a residential district. A compound with a vast underground lair where they had been performing human experiments. Not to mention that they had only discovered this because some vigilante had set the compound on fire.

The issue was that there was simply too much evidence. If you'd asked him a week ago, he would have said that it was impossible to have too much evidence. Usually, it was the opposite. Ledgers full of documents recording the revenue from protection rackets, prostitution, and drugs. Others detailed expenses, bribes, money laundering, and expensive medical equipment. He didn't want to know what that last one was for, but he had a grim certainty that he would by the time he was done with the case.

He was overseeing a search for secret tunnels in one of the bedrooms when he was approached by one of the techs.

"Sir, I apologize for disturbing you, but I've found something of interest."

"What is it?"

"We've found what appears to be blood stains on the ceiling in one of the common rooms."

Taro raised an eyebrow. (He'd spent a whole week as a child practicing it in the mirror after seeing a detective do it on tv.)

"How do you get blood stains on the ceiling?"

"A punctured artery would do it," the tech replied. "One of those will send blood everywhere."

"How deadly is that?"

"Very. If the bleeding isn't stopped, a person will be unconscious in seconds and dead shortly after."

Taro rubbed his eyes and sighed.

"Alright, take a sample, see if you can get a DNA match. Then start checking every wall, floor, and ceiling for more."

"Yes, sir!"

The tech rushed off. Turning back to the room, Taro called to the one officer who was not either crawling under the bed or inside a closet.

"Find anything?"

"Yes, sir! There's a safe behind the painting and what looks to be an escape tunnel under the rug."

Groaning, Taro reached for his phone to call for more backup and to report a possible homicide.

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The sun was just barely above the horizon, gilding the beach a dark bronze. In the days since the attack, Akane had felt restless and angry. Her only respite those few hours a day she spent visiting Kasumi in the hospital. Today she had woke around four and, after an hour of tossing and turning, had made a post asking if anyone knew a good place to train at five in the morning. Surprisingly Izuku replied, mentioning a beach that was usually empty early in the morning. So she had put on a tank top and shorts, laced up her running shoes, and set off in the predawn light. When she arrived, she was only half surprised to see Ranma and Izuku waiting for her.

"You couldn't sleep either?" She asked.

"No," Izuku said. "These last couple of days, all I can think about is how little I could do. All my life, I wanted to be a Hero, But when the time came, All I could do was distract one guy until I lucked out enough to catch him off guard."

"I couldn't even do that," Akane said. "I was stopped by the one with the force field. All I could do was watch while everyone else fought. I never want to be stuck like that again. I need to get better. I need some way to make up for my weaknesses, so I'll be ready next time."

Ranma shrugged and spoke with forced nonchalance. "I can't say I feel anything like that, but I'm always up for some training."

"Oh, knock it off!" Akane laughed. While throwing sand at him with her quirk. Ranma responded by tackling her to the ground and messing up her hair. Izuku soon joined them in a wrestling, laughing pile of limbs.

There, on a beach that used to be covered in trash, three friends made a pact. It wasn't written in blood, bound by law, or even spoken. But it was binding nonetheless. To never turn their backs on each other, to be together through thick and thin, All for one, and one for all.

 

[Corwin of earth]

The class was abuzz with rumors when Mina arrived. Students not showing up was perfectly normal. People got sick or had family stuff. But three students being absent at once, and then all returning on the same day a week later? That was unusual. and Unusual things aroused suspicions, made people curious. And when people couldn't get answers to their questions, they made up their own.

Mina ignored the more salacious things she heard. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that Saotome and Tendo were dating (no matter how much they denied it.) But Midoriya? No, there wasn't anything but wishful thinking backing that bit of gossip up.

The truth was probably something boring and mundane. But her classmates would spin up ever more unlikely possibilities until they learned the truth or got bored and moved on to something else.

Mina's musings were interrupted by the arrival of Mr. Kan, who short order turned the classroom from organized chaos to organized learning.

"Now, it has come to my attention that my class lacks one essential component, a representative. You have half an hour till your first class, take this time to talk amongst yourselves and then vote on who it will be."

Mina turned around to face Tsu as several people started loudly calling for people to vote for them.

"So, who're you gonna vote for?"

"I'm not sure, ribbit. Maybe Ida?"

"Ida? He is very rules-minded. I was thinking of Shiozaki. She seems calm and level-headed."

Looking to her left, Mina said.

"And what about you, Koda? Who are you voting for?"

"I'm voting for Todoroki."

"Todoroki? He doesn't seem the type, spends most of the time off brooding in a corner."

"Yeah, but you remember that time when everyone was bothering Tendo and Saotome about that whole engagement thing? He stood up to everyone and told them to stop. I think that's the sort of thing a class rep should do."

Mina blushed at the memory. It wasn't her proudest moment, to say the least.

"Ida and Shiozaki also tried to stop them," Tsu said.

"Yeah, but nobody listens to Ida, and Shiozaki just sat on the sideline. Todoroki got into the thick of it and made them stop."

Mina went silent, thinking about what Koda had said. When Mr. Kan called for everyone to vote, it was a close thing. But with a margin of one vote, Shoto Todoroki was elected class representative along with his deputy Ranma Saotome.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

"So, what does a deputy class representative do exactly?" Ranma asked while sending pointed glares toward the two traitors who voted for him.

"The role of a class representative is to represent their class, to be the link between the students and the teachers. They are also expected to take the lead in group activities. As my deputy, you will aid me in my duties and take over for me if I am not available." Todoroki rattled off in a bored tone of voice.

"Huh," Ranma said, "that doesn't sound very exciting. I wonder why everyone was so interested in it?"

"It looks good on a resume,"

"Is that it? Well, I hope it doesn't take up too much time. Pops'll get on my case if school stuff cuts into my training."

Ranma looked over and saw Todoroki staring at him with an oddly intense expression.

"What?"

"Nothing," Todoroki shook his head.

"Okay, you want to join us for lunch again?"

". . . Sure."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

Shoto didn't know what to think about his new deputy. Saotome had always been something of an enigma. On the surface, he acted like a delinquent. His uniform was never done up correctly, he wore his hair long, and he never acted respectfully toward the teachers. But he never caused trouble in class. From all appearances, he got good grades. But now and then, he'd make an offhand remark that aroused Shoto's suspicions. He'd been building a picture in his head of his classmate, and the more he filled it in, the more it looked like a mirror.

Standing in line for lunch, Shoto felt the urge to speak up, to ask if Saotome had gone through the same 'training' as he had. If he had the same unwanted ambition on his shoulders. But with each passing second that he delayed, his trepidation grew.

'What if I'm wrong? What if I'm just imagining it?'

By the time they'd joined Tendo and Midoriya, he'd talked himself out of saying anything. Sitting down, he morosely picked at his food as the others talked about some meet-up they had planned at the beach. For a moment, he considered asking if he could come. But he dismissed it. It would be a waste of time when he should be training his quirk.

"Hey, Todoroki, want to join us?"

"wha-what?" Shoto spluttered, having been caught off guard.

"We missed the first hero lesson while we were away," Tendo said. "So we're planning to meet up this weekend to get some training done, so we don't fall behind. So I asked if you want to join us? With who your father is, you've got to already know a bunch of stuff."

"Wait, who's your father?" Saotome asked.

"You don't recognize his name?" Midoriya asked. "Enji Todoroki, the number two hero? The Flame Hero: Endeavor?"

"Oh, him." Ranma turnned a quizical look at Shoto. "He's your father."

"Yes."

"You don't look like him." Saotome turned his attention back to his lunch.

"That's all you've got to say.' Shoto couldn't help but ask.

"I've never paid that much attention to the top heroes. Besides, he always seemed like a jerk," Saotome said.

"Ranma!" Tendo cried.

Midoriya, who had just taken a drink, sprayed orange juice all over his tray.

Shoto laughed, drawing shocked stares from Tendo and Midoriya.

"So, you gonna join us for this weekend?" Saotome asked.

"Yes"

Shoto still had no idea what was going on with Saotome. But he had decided that he wanted more of it.

 

[Corwin of earth]

The beach was unusually quiet for the weekend. Shoto had expected it to be crowded with families enjoying the weekend. But instead, there were only a few runners on the sand.

"This place used to be covered in trash." Tendo had explained when they arrived. "Then some local people started cleaning it up a couple of months ago. But most people haven't noticed, so it's still pretty empty."

It was rather beautiful, Shoto had to admit. Golden sand unmarred by litter, the water was a clear blue, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

Unfortunately, he couldn't properly appreciate it, as he was too busy trying not to get kicked. Shoto had suspected that Saotome had gone through similar training to himself. He had quickly been proven wrong when Their first spar had ended seconds after it began, with Saotome pinning him to the ground with his arms twisted uncomfortably far up his back. Shoto had had some hand-to-hand training from his father, but most of his training had revolved around using his quirk. Meanwhile, Saotome was a martial artist who had spent years training to fight without his quirk.

The following spar was lasting longer, but Shoto was painfully aware that was only due to Saotome going easy on him. Blocking a punch that was so telegraphed that it should have been sending up smoke signals (he would have resented it if he hadn't known that there was no way he could have seen it otherwise.) He tried to repay it in kind, only for Saotome to effortlessly dodge it.

"Hey, you're pretty good at this," Saotome cheerily said.

Shoto was utterly baffled by Saotome's ability to give out compliments with such utter sincerity that it was impossible to tell whether he was mocking you or not.

Shaking his head, Shoto tried to press the attack, only to be rebuffed by a smiling Saotome who didn't even bother to block but only leaned to the side, causing Shoto to miss by centimeters each time. At one point, he even yawned! Growling in frustration, Shoto threw himself Saotome to tackle him to the ground, only to eat sand when Saotome went from standing entirely at ease to somersaulting over Shoto's in a fraction of a second. Shoto tried to push himself up, spitting sand from his mouth, only for a pair of feet to plant themselves between his shoulder blades and pin him to the ground again.

"You've got a good grasp on the basics but not much else," Saotome said. "Your quirk lets you attack from a distance, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Shoto wheezed.

"Thought so. You kept attacking even though I was too far away for you to hit me," Saotome continued. "Also, you don't commit enough. I would have barely felt it if you had managed to hit me."

It stung his pride, but Shoto accepted what Saotome had to say. He could only use his ice on the right side of his body. If someone attacked from his left, he would have to be able to defend himself with just his bare hand.

But Saotome still hadn't explained one thing.

"Why are you standing on me?" Shoto asked.

"Why haven't you pushed me off," Saotome said. (Shoto could hear the smirk in his voice) "The spars not over until one of us gives. Are you saying that you can't?"

Shoto knew that Saotome was trying to piss him off. Unfortunately, that didn't stop it from workings. With a cry and a heave, he threw Saotome off his back and scrambled to his feet.

"That's more like it!"

'The worst part,' Shoto idly thought. 'Is that he's being sincere.'

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Akane took a break from helping Izuku with his form to take a look at how Todoroki was fairing against Ranma. She was pleasantly surprised to see that he was holding his ground. Though from personal experience, she knew that it was due more to Ranma going easy on him than Todoroki's own skill. Something about how he was fighting bothered her, though she couldn't put her finger on what it was.

Turning back to check on Izuku, she saw that he had finished the basic kata she had taught him and had started scribbling in one of his innumerable notebooks. Looking over his shoulder, she saw that under a rather good sketch of Todoroki, he was writing down notes on his fighting style and how it differed from Ranma and Akane's styles. Looking back at Todoroki, with the insight from Izuku's notes, she could see what had bothered her.

"He's overcompensating."

"What?" Izuku asked.

"Todoroki's used to fighting with his quirk. Now that he isn't, he's trying to compensate for it, but he's overdoing it."

As she spoke, Ranma took advantage of Todoroki losing his balance after a kick to sweep him off his feet and pin him to the ground.

'At least he's not standing on him this time,' Akane thought. Before turning back to Izuku.

"Anyway, I've been thinking about what you said about your quirk," Akane said.

"Yes?"

"You said that it gives you a huge burst of energy to strengthen yourself."

"Yeah, but it's hard to control how much I use. And if I use too much, my body can't handle it, and I hurt myself."

"Yes, I was thinking about it, and I may have an idea that could help with that. When I use my quirk, I can't move just one bit of the air. I have to move it all. That's why it takes so long for me to bring it up to speed. The energy gets spread across all the air in my range, so each bit of air only gets a tiny bit." Akane said.

"For you, it's the opposite. You've got too much energy all at once. So maybe instead of just your arm, you spread it to other parts of your body that you're not using so that there's less of it in your arm."

"I already did something like that," Izuku said. "When I was fighting that Yakuza."

Akane had been shocked when it came out during the police questioning that their attackers were Yakuza. She'd always thought of Yakuza as something out of history books, not something that existed in the here and now.

"I knew I only had one shot at beating him. So I was focusing so much on getting the punch right that I unconsciously on my leg and back as well as my arm," Izuku continued.

"and did that help?" Akane asked.

"Well, I didn't break my arm. But I was so exhausted afterward that I collapsed."

"That's great! So all you need to do is work on your stamina and-" a cry cut off Akane. Turning, she saw that Ranma had tripped Todoroki again, but Todoroki had managed to drag him down with him. And they were wrestling back and forth in the sand until they hit the edge of the sand and tumbled down the slope straight into the water.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Shoto's back ached from the fall, and his chest ached from being fallen on. His arms were being rubbed raw, and sand was getting everywhere. But none of it mattered because he was finally landing hits on Saotome. His view alternated between blue and gold as they rolled around, hitting, kicking, and headbutting. He just about had Saotome in a chokehold when they struck the water. Normally, Shoto would continue fighting, unwilling to give up a chance at victory. But something so surprising happened that left him reeling in shock.

Ranma . . . Changed was the only word for it. One second Shoto was wrestling with the tall black-haired boy he had come to know and want to strangle. The next, he had been replaced with a short red-haired girl.

"Ugh, why now?" She whined in a petulant tone.

Shoto realizing that he still had his arms crushing her against his chest. He threw himself back, instinctively activating his quirk to propel him further away, leaving a trail of ice in his wake.

"Wha-?" Shoto stared dumbfounded.

"Stupid curse, I can't even go to the beach anymore."

"Sa-Saotome?" Shoto asked.

"Yeah," the girl answered.

"What happened to you?" Shoto desperately asked.

"That is a long story," Saotome said.

What followed was (despite hearing parts of it twice so the Midoriya could understand) the most disturbingly fascinating thing Shoto had ever heard. Shoto had never been to China, and up until now, he hadn't known anyone who had. Despite being the closest place in the world to Japan, it had the exotic wonder of a far-off land in the minds of most Japanese people. But the stories he heard from Saotome put even his wildest childhood imaginations to shame. At the end of it, all Shoto had come to two conclusions. The first was that his childhood had been nothing like Saotome's, and the second was that he was glad it wasn't

"Is there some type of cure?" Shoto asked.

"There could be," Saotome said. "But the best chance to find one would be back in China. And that would mean dropping out of school and running away from home."

It was a daunting prospect to give up on everything, family, friends, and his career. All in search of a cure that might not even exist. Shoto couldn't say whether he would be able to do it or not, and he had far less to give up than Saotome.

"What are you going to do?" Shoto asked.

"I'm gonna finish school, then I'm gonna head back to China to try and find a cure," Saotome said.

"What about being a hero?" Shoto asked.

"Eh, I guess I could do that too." Flashing a familiar grin that looked strange on the wrong face, Saotome started heading back to where they had left their things. "Now, come on, we've got training to do."

"Wait a minute," Midoriya said. "Are you Panda Girl?"

"What? No! Of course not! Why would you think of something as ridiculous as that?" Saotome asked. Badly trying to act nonchalant.

"Well, you look just like her. And in the video, she mentions an engagement. And talks about China. Here I'll show you."

But before he could, he was pounced on by a blur of red hair, trying to wrestle the phone from his hands, loudly denying everything all the while.

Shoto turned a bewildered look on Tendo, silently begging for an explanation. Tendo just shrugged.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

Sekijiro Kan sat in his office going over the paperwork for the upcoming trip to the USJ. It was still several days away, but he liked getting things ready early rather than putting them off until the last minute. His eye caught the name of one of his problem students. It wasn't that they were problems (Sekijiro was of the opinion that there are no bad students, only bad teachers.) No, the problems were what his students were forced to deal with.

Tendo, perhaps was best off of the four. He wouldn't have thought anything was out of the ordinary if it wasn't for the engagement. But an arranged marriage was not a good sign in and of itself. He had asked her about her home life after the engagement had come out. She had denied anything was wrong, but children sadly would often cover up their problems out of fear of judgment. He had done some investigating and found no signs of abuse, but he still worried.

Todoroki's refusal to use half his quirk was also worrying. Such things were usually a result of trauma. That, along with the scar on his face, pointed in an unpleasant direction. He had rebuffed Sekijiro's tentative attempts to probe for answers, and Sekijiro feared pushing harder would only drive Todoroki away.

Midoriya's problem was comparatively simple if no less of a burden. A Quirk he could barely control that injured him every time he used it with the legacy of the world's greatest hero on his shoulders. He could understand why All Might had chosen him, but still, a part of Sekijiro resented All Might for forcing that burden onto one of his students, even if Midoriya wouldn't have been his student without All Might's quirk.

And then there was Saotome, who seemed to have all the problems of all the others rolled into one. An engagement he had no say in, a dangerous quirk that he struggled to control and used as little as possible.

So many problems heaped on children still so young. But despite all their problems, or maybe because of them. They had all come together as friends, supporting each other through their various challenges.

His musings were interrupted by a knock at the door. Quickly jotting down a note to check if there were any extra-curricular activities that might appeal to the foursome, he rose to answer the door. Opening it, he saw an empty hallway. Looking around, he heard a polite cough.

"Ah, principal Nedzu. I didn't see you there."

"That's quite alright, kan. If I could speak with you privately, something delicate has come to my attention."

"Of course, sir, step right in," Sekijiro said. Making way for the diminutive principle. "Would you some like tea?"

"No, thank you," Nedzu said. "I wish to talk to you about some of the students in your class."

"Saotome and Tendo?"

"yes, along with Midoriya and Todoroki," Nedzu said. "It's not uncommon for students to have problems with their quirks. But three in the same class is rather exceptional. Throw in an arranged marriage, and you have the recipe for something unfortunate. Inui has been hounding me about it, not to mention all the drama with 1-A."

"I was just thinking about them, actually. They've formed a strong friendship that has helped Midoriya improve by leaps and bounds. Even with what happened last week," Sekijiro said.

"Ah, I'm glad you brought that up. Inui has been keeping a close eye on them, and seeing how they have helped Midoriya has given him an Idea. He wants to form a social club for those students who have trouble with their quirks, especially those with animalistic quirks. So that they can help each other. He, of course, would be in charge due to his experience handling his own quirk. I quite like the idea. But before I give my approval, I want to sound out the students in question for their opinions," Nedzu said.

"Midoriya will definitely go for it. I can't say for sure about Saotome or Todoroki. I'll offer it to them and let you know what they say, Sekijiro said.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

Shoto sat in his room alone. The day had been filled with surprising revelations that he was still coming to terms with. The stories he had heard sounded like the plot of some over-the-top martial arts film, not something that really happened. But the pictures Saotome had shown them (not to mention his transformation) had been enough proof to convince him. Right now, he was looking for evidence for the one strange story that hadn't been told by Saotome.

He carefully typed "Panda girl" into the search bar and tapped the magnifying glass icon. The first results were all cartoon pandas wearing bows. But after scrolling a bit, he came to a video. Opening it, he saw a panda and the body of a girl, their heads obscured by the pictures of anime characters. After another bit of searching, he was able to find the original. And just as Midoriya had said, the girl in the video like just like Saotome had at the beach. Absent-mindedly, he opened another video. This one had the Panda's head replaced with Endeavour's, and Saotome's with that of All Might. He was enraptured by the sight of Pandeavour (as someone in the comments had dubbed him), tried and failed to catch All Might (he'd checked, but sadly no one had come up with a silly name for him), only to just fall short each time.

Though he didn't notice it, a smile had appeared on his face. And video after video, it grew and grew.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Kurogiri calmly wiped down the bar as Shigaraki threw a tantrum. He suppressed a wince as chairs and tables disintegrated. They were cheap and easily replaced, but the cleanup would be a pain.

"Enough, Shigaraki," the voice of All-For-One wrong out. "This is just a minor setback. There will be other opportunities."

A group of Yakuza, of all things, had attacked the home of a UA student. The school had raised its security in response, making Shigaraki's plan to attack the USJ unfeasible. Thus the need to buy new furniture.

"Take this time to prepare. You have the advantage of the first move. If you play it right, there will be no need for a sec-."

All-For-One's voice was interrupted by a knock at the door. Shigaraki spun around, eyes wide, ready to lash out. Kurogiri opened a portal to one of their other safe houses. If needed, he could move himself and, more importantly, Shigaraki to safety at a moment's notice. Moving over to the door, he cracked it open and looked through. All he saw was the empty alleyway the bar opened onto.

There was a polite cough from below. Looking down, he saw the shortest, most shriveled old man he had ever seen.

"We're closed," he said.

"Not even for family?" The old man asked.

Baffled by this seeming non-sequitur could only let out a startled "What?" As the old man somehow squeezed through the gap in the door.

"Shigaraki, my boy! It's been too long!"

"Uncle Happi?" Shigaraki said, a look of wonder and joy on his face.

"Happosai? Here? Kurogiri, get Shigaraki out of there now!"

At All-For-One's command, he instinctively opened a portal under Shigaraki's feet to whisk him away. But Happosai had grabbed his charge and swung him around in a hug just in time to avoid it.

What followed was pandemonium.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

Akane could barely keep from squealing in delight. She was wearing her costume! It looked just like her drawings, an emerald vest with tassels to flutter in the wind over a long wide-sleeved maroon shirt, a knee-length ruby skirt with more tassels over black stockings. The shirt and stockings were made of thick wool to protect from wind chill, and the vest had large pockets to store things in. In her (admittedly biased) opinion, it was the greatest costume ever.

Taking a deep contented sigh, she looked around the bus. They were traveling to a special facility for their heroics class. Mr. Kan said they could wear their costumes, but they might not be suited for the activities they would be doing. Naturally, everyone had changed into their costumes. Why wouldn't they? Their costumes were amazing!

Iida, Honenuki, and Aoyama wore suits of armor. However, Aoyama's looked more like a fairy tale knight, while the others were more high-tech looking. Koda's costume reminded Akane of a boy scout with a red and yellow color scheme shorts and backpack. Komori looked really cute in her polka-dot dress.

Asui, Sato, and Ashido were wearing skin-tight leotards in different colors and styles. Asui's was green with two broad black stripes down her chest, with a headpiece and large gloves that emphasized her frog-like appearance. Sato's was yellow and reminiscent of All Might's costume. Ashido's had a splotchy pattern of purple and green, which left her arms uncovered and had a fur ruff around the neck.

Shiozaki had a white toga, Monoma looked like a magician, and Kaminari looked like a rock singer. To nobody's surprise, Kirishima and Tetsutetsu had a similar look. Tough cloth with metal fittings, red and black, and green and silver, respectively. The main difference being that Kirishima bared his chest and Tetsutetsu his arms.

Shishida had also gone bare-chested, his costume consisting of boots, pants, a collar, and sunglasses. Shoji's costume covered everything but his arms. It was all in shades of blue, with two lines of white buttons down his chest and a band that reminded Akane of a wrestling champion belt around his waist. Tsunotori was wearing a cute dress. Akane wouldn't have realized it was a hero's costume if it weren't for the bits of horse tack.

All these fantastic costumes, with varied esthetics and styles, yet everyone boldly projected the image of a hero. And then there were her friends. Izuku's would have been alright (if a bit plain), but his mask made him look like a demonic rabbit. Todoroki's was just a tracksuit and a utility belt! Looking at it in a vacuum, Ranma's wasn't bad, a Chinese-style red shirt with gold ties, a black belt, and black pants with bronze-colored bracers on his arms. But it looked so much like the clothes he usually wore that Akane couldn't help but be irritated by it.

Akane's mussing were interrupted when the bus rolled to a stop. They had arrived.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

Eri pocked her tongue out the corner of her mouth as she concentrated on getting it just right. Ever so carefully, she rubbed the crayon up and down, leaving green spikes where there had been plain white. Once she had finished, she carefully returned the crayon to its proper place in the box before pulling out a black one. This time instead of spikes, she drew long, flowing lines that reminded her of a waterfall. Once it was to her satisfaction, she returned the crayon to its friends and closed the box. Picking it up (it was so big she needed both her hands.) She walked over to the shelves and put it back in its place. Only when everything was back in its proper place did she turn back to her creation.

The bottom of the page was brown and covered with black horizontal lines. Above it stood several figures. Two had green hair, one short and spiky, the other long and flowing. There was one with brown hair, one with blue, and a bunch with black. Sitting in the center of the page was one of the black-haired ones. This one had the longest hair of them all. And sitting in its lap was a small figure with silver hair and one long horn.

Looking over it, she nodded in satisfaction. Walking over to the table, she added it to the pile of completed drawings. Beside it sat a book with a picture of a princess in a dress on the cover. Someone had used a pen to draw a horn on the princess's forehead. Eri had been told that you weren't supposed to draw on books, but Mrs. Yuuki had said that it was alright. So Eri had taken her crayon and added horns to all the pictures inside the book as well. Picking up the book, she walked over to the giant fluffy beanbag and dived in, wriggling around to get herself upright; Eri opened the book. She couldn't read the words, but she enjoyed just looking at the pictures.

She spent a while just flipping back and forth through the book, looking at the pictures and making up her own story about what they showed until the door opened and Mrs. Yuuki walked in, and behind her was-. It was the long-haired man! (Eri had never learned his name, but he was the nice man who had told her stories and had made the floating pictures).

"Hello, Eri," Mrs. Yuuki said while crouching down. "I hope we aren't interrupting anything."

Eri shook her head.

"That's good. I've come because Mr. Tendo here has something he wants to offer you."

Crouching down beside Mrs. Yuuki, Mr. Tendo smiled. "Hello, Eri. Do you remember me?"

Eri nodded her head. How could she have forgotten him?

"Like Mrs. Yuuki said, I have something I want to offer you. Or rather, there's something I'd like to ask of you. You see my daughters, you remember them, right?" ERi nodded again. "Well, they're all grown up and are getting ready to move out and start living on their own. So I've been left all alone, and I've been feeling lonely without them. And I know that Mrs. Yuuki has been trying to find a home for you. So I was hoping that maybe you would like to come and live with me? That way, I wouldn't be alone, and you'd have a home."

Eri stared wide-eyed, her mouth open in shock. "I-I can?" Eri asked Mrs. Yuuki.

"If you want to." Mrs. Yuuki answered.

Eri jumped out of the beanbag, tripping slightly on the edge but recovering and wrapping her arms around Mr. Tendo's leg.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!" She shouted.

 

[Corwin of earth]

Shigaraki's life had not been filled with sunshine and happiness. Most of what he could remember was squalid and harsh. But there had been a time filled with fun and games. It was so long ago that it had begun to fade from his memory, and he half suspected he had dreamed the whole thing.

A time when Uncle Happi had come to visit and taken him on wild adventures through cities and forests, hunting for hidden treasure, and when they found it, they would have to run from the people who wanted to take it from them. And though it had sometimes been close, they had always escaped.

Until one day, when Uncle Happi stopped visiting, his life became grey and empty. He had asked Kurogiri and All-For-one, but they had denied remembering any of it and said that Shigaraki must have imagined Uncle Happi.

But he had proof; hidden away in his room was one of their treasures. He had known better than to tell them, though. Kurogiri would have taken it away. But as the years passed, he began to doubt himself.

Maybe he had just imagined it all? What proof was one worthless trinket? He did not want to accept that the happiest time of his life was just the result of a child's overactive imagination. But as he'd become a man, he had come to terms with it. Uncle Happi had only ever been a child's imaginary friend, and just like all other childish things, he would have to be left in the past, only a memory in the mind of the man that Shigaraki had become.

Except here he stood, solid and real, looking just like Shigaraki remembered. At first, he was happy and relieved. But as he registered All-For-One's words, it was replaced with feelings of betrayal and anger.

Kurogiri had lied to him; All-For-One had lied to him for years. He looked around the bar; it was like he was seeing for the first time, and in a way, he was. The blinders had been lifted from his eyes, allowing him to see the truth. Reaching up, he gripped his father's hand (or was it his father's? That could be another of All-For-One's lies) with all five fingers. He felt it crumble to dust.

Kurogiri tried to catch him in a portal, but some half-forgotten memory guided him, skills left rusty after years of disuse. Still, they were enough to escape. Leaping over fallen tables and broken chairs, he rushed for the stairs as Uncle Happi kept Kurogiri busy. His room was just like he had left it, his possessions scattered all about, but none of them mattered. They were just All-For-One's carrots, rewards to keep him compliant. Opening his closet, he threw the clothes on the ground. He didn't need them. He would get other clothes, clothes that he would pick. Feeling around the back panel, he found the compartment he had carved out all those years ago. Reaching in, he pulled out his treasure, the only thing that was truly his.

It was a necklace, a gold chain, and a locket. Flipping it open, he looked at the pictures inside. On one side was a woman. She had long black hair and a white cape, her face had a warm smile. On the other, a boy, Shigaraki had once thought it was a picture of him. But while the resemblance was strong, the eyes were wrong. Perhaps these were relatives of his? A cousin, or maybe a brother?

His musings were cut off by the sound of footsteps on the stairs. They were too heavy to be Uncle Happi. Searching for a way out, his gaze landed on the window. Throwing it open, he pulled himself out. The fall looked manageable, but childhood instinct urged him to look upward instead. There were handholds carved into the wall. They were made for smaller hands than his, but he soon made it onto the roof, where Uncle Happi was waiting for him with a smile on his face.

"Shigaraki, you made it. Good."

Shigaraki, the name sounded strange coming from him.

"You used to call me Shigi," he said. Fastening the necklace around his neck, careful never to touch it with more than four fingers at a time.

"I thought you might not like being called such a childish name," Uncle Happi said. A note of surprise in his voice.

"No," Shigi said. "I like it."

As they ran across rooftops, he had no idea what his future would hold. But he knew he would have his uncle by his side, and that was all that mattered.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sekijiro carefully counted his Tired and dirt-covered students to make sure that none had been left behind. Before taking his seat at the front of the bus. He was exhausted, but it was the satisfying exhaustion of a job well done.

The day had started well. The students had been excited about the trip and had spent the ride happily chatting and speculating about what they would be doing. After they arrived, they listened attentively to everything he and Thirteen had said.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Welcome to the Ruins Zone," Thirteen said. "Scattered throughout it are dummies like this." Thirteen gestured to a dummy lying on the ground beside her. "They represent injured people. Each one has a note detailing the injuries the person has suffered. In the future, you will have lessons on how to identify injuries. But for the moment, just read the note." She reached down and carefully lifted the dummy into her arms.

"Now come close, and I'll show you how to carry an injured person. Then each of you will take a turn to practice before we begin."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They hadn't had any trouble with the Ruins Zone. Well, other than the usual difficulties with learning something new.

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Koji hurried from building to building. There weren't any animals in the USJ, so he couldn't ask them for help. Panting for breath, he ducked into the door of what looked like a corner store. Sitting behind the counter was a dummy. Rushing over to it, he pulled off the note taped to the head and read it.

Head Injury.

He racked his brain, trying to remember what to do for a head injury.

"Head injury, head injury, what did she say?"

"Don't move it."

Koji whipped around. Standing in the doorway was Todoroki.

"Moving the person can exasperate the injury and cause more damage. Instead, you bring the medic to the injured person, or in this case, one of the teachers," Todoroki said.

"Ah, thank you."

Koji pulled out the radio that they had been given at the beginning of the exercise.

"I-i have a person with a head injury at the corner store by the office building. I need a medic to come and treat them."

"Good job Koda," the voice of All Might answered him."I will be there shortly."

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There had been a close call at Mountain Zone. But they had handled it with little difficulty.

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Pony glared up at the cliff. They were supposed to climb it to rescue some "trapped hikers" at the top. Thirteen had outfitted them with climbing gear and had given a demonstration of how to use it. Shoji and Saotome had quickly taken the lead, with Saotome boasting that he didn't need the harness, and were halfway up, while everyone else was only a quarter of the way. That was, everyone except her. Her hooves just couldn't find a grip on the rocky surface. Snorting in frustration, she made another attempt, scrambling at the cliff face for purchase. She slid back down.

She felt something tug on her head. Reaching up, she felt around. The guide rope had gotten wrapped around her horn.

'Wait, my horn!'

Struck with inspiration, she detached her horns and slid one under each hoof. Then she began to lift, slowly at first, but as her confidence grew, so to did her speed. Soon she was level with Saotome and Shoji, and then she was past them, the summit in sight. But as she approached it, she didn't pay enough attention to controlling her horns, and they started to wobble.

Down on the ground, Sekijiro was watching her intently. At UA they approved of boldness, Their motto was Plus Ultra, but there was a difference between boldness and recklessness. And as soon as Tsunotori was no longer at risk of breaking her neck, he would be explaining that to her in excruciating detail.

Tsunotori seemed to stumble in the air, and then she was falling. Sekijiro felt his heart stop in his chest as she tumbled through the air. He ran towards her, even though he knew there was nothing he could do. But there was someone else who could. All Might crossed the distance to the falling girl in a single bound and wrapped his arms around her.

When they hit the ground, a plume of dust obscured them from sight. Sekijiro charged straight into it. When the dust had cleared, he saw All Might holding an uninjured Tsunotori in his arms.

He was flooded with relief that almost instantly turned to anger. But he restrained himself. Now was not the time for shouting.

"Tsunotori, what were you thinking?"

"I-I couldn't climb the cliff. My hooves kept slipping."

"So, instead of asking for help or finding a different path up the mountain, you decided to try and fly up without any safety gear?"

The girl hung her head in shame. "I was frustrated. I wasn't thinking."

Sekijiro took a deep breath and forced himself to relax.

"Next time, let us know beforehand, and we'll get you a parachute."

She started at him, mouth hanging open in shock.

"What?"

"This is a UA, Tsunatori. We expect our students to use their quirks to their fullest. Plus Ultra, remember? Now back at it, try over to the right. It looks less steep."

"Yes, sir," she smiled and rushed back to the cliff.

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The students had the most difficulty with the Landslide Zone.

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Juzo swam through the softened earth into the half-submerged building. He popped his head out, took a deep breath of the stale air, and looked around. Three dummies were sitting against the wall. Taking another deep gulp of air, he dove back under the earth and swam out. On the other side, Asui and Aoyama were waiting. Asui used her tongue to lift him out onto the solid ground.

'There's three of them down there," he panted out before collapsing onto the ground.

There were dozens of buried buildings. They had all agreed that digging them all out would take too long. So Juzo and Monoma copying his quirk, had been drafted to check each building for dummies. And only after finding them would the other students start digging.

Having caught his breath, Juzo set off for the next building as Asui and Aoyama started digging with the shovels Thirteen had supplied. As he walked, Monoma came running with a water bottle. His five-minute time limit meant that Monoma had to come and recopy Juzo's quirk between each building. Taking the bottle, Juzo sucked down gulp after gulp of wonderfully cool water.

"How many are left to check?" he asked.

"Just the one," Monoma answered. "I'll handle it. You get some rest."

Juzo sagged in relief. Juzo was a good swimmer, but twenty minutes of diving would leave anyone tired.

"Thank you."

Monoma clapped him on the back.

"I'm not doing it for you. This puts me in the lead, sixteen to fifteen."

Juzo laughed and headed off in search of a good seat. Finding a small boulder half buried in the ground, he flopped down onto it. It was near the building that Saotome and Kirishima were excavating. He watched as they worked together to uncover the doorway. He felt an urge to go and help them but resisted it. His arms shook from exhaustion, and his legs throbbed at the mere thought of more work. Besides, he'd already done his part. Saotome and Kirishima were managing fine without him. There was no need for him to do any more work.

Groaning, he pushed himself to go lend a hand.

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But they had persevered. And had not missed a single dummy. Turning back to his tired class, he felt pride swell in his breast.

"Well done."

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All-For-One wallowed in pain and anger, his constant companions for eight long years. But above and beyond them was sheer disbelief. All his plans and ambitions, his revenge, and his successor all ripped away in a matter of minutes by Happosai. Not All Might, not Endeavor, or even Sir Nighteye, but Happosai? That annoying thief whose only skill of note was his ability to run away?

'I should have killed that midget years ago.'

It wasn't the end. He had backups and contingencies. He would have his revenge. On All Might, on Happosai, and on the world. It was all for him, after all, all for one.