Shattered Fate (MHA/SM/Naruto/Ranma)

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 1 - A New World​

"Oh, come ON!"

Peter was used to strange experiences by now. Swinging away from Lady Liberty when the world suddenly shifts and changes, leaving him without either of his weblines and twenty meters in the air of some other city, it wouldn't make it into his top ten. It wouldn't have been the first time it happened in the last few days.

Reacting quickly while he still had the forward momentum from his previous swing, Peter shot out a web to one of the nearby buildings and then yanked the flexible cord so that he landed on the side of the building.

Now that he had a solid wall to stand on, he tried to get his bearings. He was in a city in the middle of the day. The buildings were, on average, ten stories tall and close together. It looked much like his last residence in Queens, with plenty of vehicles and pedestrian traffic. A few of those pedestrians were even looking up at him and pointing.

Deciding he didn't want to invite more onlookers, he crawled up the rest of the way to the roof of the building he was attached to while putting his mask back on. He was glad he had gotten it before he tried to leave Staten Island.

Standing on the roof, Peter looked out towards the city skyline and quickly determined he was not in New York. Or New Jersey. He didn't recognize any landmarks that could tell him where he was. It was when he noticed a billboard several streets down that gave him a clue.

"Is that Asian?" Looking as closely as he could from this distance, it resembled some Asian letterings he had seen in different media. He was no expert, even if he liked the occasional manga or anime, to tell if it was Chinese or Japanese. Or Korean. Or Vietnamese. All he knew was it was lettering from somewhere in Asia.

"That is Japanese," said a woman with a barely detectable English accent who spoke into his ear.

"Uhhh, Karen, does that mean I'm in Japan?"

"Possibly. No Stark network is detected. Auxiliary networks are also missing. Signals are present, primarily using a binary signal, but the higher languages do not match previously known languages. I can only access them once I have enough time to process and decode them. Accessing local computers to observe their languages could speed up the process. This includes satellite signals for GPS locations."

Peter sighed but looked back at the billboard. It was of some man in a costume flexing his impressive muscles. He figured it was some advertisement for an Asian superhero movie since he didn't remember anything about any supers from Asia. That was also when Peter felt a tingle to warn him of something, but not directed at him.

BOOM!

The explosion took him out of his introspection, swinging his head to look at the growing plume of smoke several blocks behind him. "Oh god!" He leaped from the roof and aimed an arm to catch a corner of a building further down to start his web-swinging. He needed to hurry if he was going to get there in time to be of any help.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Oh, hell no!"

Sakura had already been falling, so being in the air wasn't surprising to her. Going from a wasteland to a city certainly was. A moment ago, Kaguya had been below her after hitting her head with her fist. Sakura flipped forward and adjusted her fall so she would land on her feet. The various pedestrians and strange machines nearby had all stopped to gawk at her arrival.

"Sasuke! Naruto! Kakashi!" she yelled out, scanning in every direction to pinpoint her teammates: nothing, no sign of them or Kaguya. Sakura was seriously worried this was another attempt to separate them.

Sakura wasn't sure if Kaguya was neutralized or not. Naruto and Sasuke had just touched her when the world had shifted like the previous times. But unlike those times, she was alone. Knowing Kaguya's propensity to appear out of portals near and far, she turned her senses to detect her arrival as best she could.

The pedestrians around her started mumbling, wondering what she was doing. Some ignored it and returned to what they were doing before; some sped away even faster, and others even pulled out little metal sheets and looked between those and herself. One or two, however, moved closer.

"Miss? Are you okay?" A gentleman in strange clothing asked her. He seemed to have a white shirt and some black pants, a black jacket, and some cloth hung around his neck that went down the front of his chest, completing the ensemble. The slicked hair to the side presented someone who was well-groomed. The man was not a fighter.

"I'm fine." She barely glanced at him, still trying to keep her senses on detecting Kaguya. She didn't want to be rude, but getting distracted could be fatal.

"You don't look fine." Said another pedestrian that had come forward, this time a middle-aged blonde with shoulder-length hair woman in a light-blue sundress. Her hair had hints of gray in them. "Your sleeve is ripped off, your clothing is damaged, and those are acid marks on your arm!"

Sakura wanted to avoid explaining the situation. The amount of time spent trying to tell them she was fighting for the world's survival could be a critical mistake. The destruction of her headband and losing her flak jacket made it much more difficult to prove she was a Konoha ninja. She supposed she could show off a chakra technique, but that wasn't assured to work. Now that she had thought about it, she realized there was a discrepancy. 'Why weren't they under the Infinite Tsukuyomi?'

She turned more of her attention to observing her surroundings and noticed that the buildings seemed larger and blockier than the wood buildings of Konoha she was familiar with. They looked like they were made out of brick or cement primarily. The street was entirely solid, as were the sidewalks. Those strange metal machines had people inside them and moving without anything pulling on them, faster than carriages.

"Girl, you are clearly in distress," the woman said, watching Sakura's bewilderment increase as she started looking everywhere. "I think we need to call a pro-hero for you."

Sakura turned back to the woman, her puzzlement at her words just another stone on the pile. "A pro-hero? What is that?"

The woman looked confused for a moment before firming herself up. She turned to the young man, "Dear, please call emergency services. We need to get her some assistance as soon as–"

The screams startled the woman out of completing her instructions. She turned to look down the street from which chaos had sprung.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Zzzzzzz…"

Ranma didn't wake from his sleep as he fell from fifty meters into some foliage. He did register the small tree that snapped and cracked under his fall, but only in the way a person might bang their feet into a wall while dreaming. The sunlight shining through the trees and hitting him on the eyelids was more annoying than any fall could hope to generate.

On the other hand, the angry squirrel, with righteous anger at having nearly been crushed by the stupid human, did register for Ranma, primarily by jumping on his face and attempting to scratch out his eyeballs and permanently marking his good looks.

"Gah! Get off! Get off, pops!" Ranma cried out as his hands reached up to get the annoying appendage off his face while sitting in a daze. "Huh?" Ranma asked in confusion as he noticed it wasn't his father attempting to wake him up but an angry squirrel several feet in front of him. His brain was still sluggish as the squirrel barked and screamed at him as it stood on its back legs, trying to size him up for a rematch. The staring match was good for Ranma, giving his higher brain functions time to finish the boot process.

"Pffft. Get lost, shorty." Ranma dismissed the squirrel, instead turning his eyes and head to stare at the forest he'd woken up in. The squirrel looked ready to attack because of the snub, but then Ranma twisted backward so fast from where he had been sitting that his legs rose over his head until his arm tapped on the forest ground, pushing himself into a standing position in one fluid motion. The squirrel took the loss gracefully and went to find a new home.

"Where the hell am I?" Ranma asked as he inspected his surroundings. He didn't see any camping equipment, signs of his pops, or his various acquaintances that would explain why he was in a forest. Though the destroyed tree gave him a clue that they weren't nearby, he had experienced another flying lesson. Though, on closer inspection, the damaged tree and ground weren't that serious for one of his typical sessions.

Ranma ignored that part and leaped to a nearby tree, bouncing between the various branches to get to the top. He looked out to find no signs of civilization from the direction he had come from. The hill in front of him was blocking his sight. "Sheesh, Tomboy! I think you set a new record." He presumed it was Akane's handiwork since he was still in his boxers and the white muscle shirt he always wore to bed.

He had to leap to another tree to get a good view of the area. He saw a large body of water with more hills and mountains beyond it. There was some form of civilization that way, a village at least, and some smoke rose from it. It seemed as good a place to start as anything else.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter swung around the last corner to see the building putting out smoke. It was a ten-story building; the lowest floors were reserved for various shops, while the ones above were for apartments. It had a sister building that together they took up the city block with an alleyway between the two.

The main concern was the gaping hole on the side of the building. It went deep inside the interior from the third floor up to the seventh. There was a raging fire near the hole that appeared to be starting to spread at a rapid pace.

Peter swung around and landed on the roof of a building across the street. Looking into the hole, he saw the damage was even worse inside than it was out. Floors were gone, making it an entirely open structure, leaving only fragments from the top floors. The bottom was covered with debris, showing some of the lower levels had collapsed further from the weight of the falling material. The damage extended nearly to the other end of the building.

The only upside was that it had only hit the hallway, removing many doors and entrances but leaving most residences intact. Though, the spreading fire wasn't going to leave them alone for long.

Peter was trying to figure out what he should do when his lenses flared to life, showing an x-rayed wireframe with highlights noting the building's framework and interlaced with infrared to show hotspots and possible life signs appearing on his HUD display. The most important part, however, was the line of 'Structural integrity compromised, collapse imminent.' There was even a little timer noting that he had approximately two minutes.

"You need to hurry, Peter."

"Thanks, Karen," Peter said as he leaped into action. Too much pressure on any structure point, like a wall, floor, or ceiling, could worsen things until he had a better idea of what to do. As he flipped into the building, he used some webbing to hold a few of the structure points inside together into a single thin string that also acted as a platform he could stand on.

Inside, the heat was intense, even in his suit that had thermal protection, and it looked like it was starting to weaken some of the steel beams used to stabilize the building. Peter shot his webbing out at the structure points and the fires, mainly since his webbing had been redesigned at various points to provide improved thermal resistance. When he had finished, the inside looked more like a funnel spider's nest. The ambient temperature had dropped significantly, instead of the roasting temperature that could burn flesh, to a temperature more applicable to standing close to a heater. The timer for the collapse had shot up, earning him many precious minutes.

Just as he was finishing replacing his web cartridges with some fresh ones when his spider-sense (thank you, Peter two for that much better name) went off before one of the floors above collapsed and dropped a terrified and screaming resident down into the maw. Peter reacted quickly, leaping and catching them mid-air in a princess carry and then landing on one of the walls.

"Hang on, I'll get you out in a moment," Peter said as the startled teenager clung to him tightly. Peter hopped out of the large hole and landed on the sidewalk, setting the boy down. Once he was sure the boy had his footing, he re-entered the building.

"Karen, create a plan based on priorities and positions to maximize chances of getting everyone out safely." His HUD started displaying new information as calculations began to occur and potential routes started to appear.

"Peter, start with the critically injured. I am listing them in order with efficient paths to follow to maximize your time. I also have listed how much time to spend on each, depending on the available information. These figures will update as new information is acquired, and I calculate more efficient paths." Karen said, her calm voice doing much to help his nerves as he found the first target on the list.

Peter went into action, finding the ones in the most danger were in a residence that had already partially collapsed. "Hello? Is anyone there?" Peter called out, hoping that getting their attention would speed up getting them out. He couldn't see anything with normal vision; too much debris from the ceilings, walls, or furnishings was in the way. But the enhanced vision did let him know people were over there.

An older woman's voice whimpered near the center of the room that he only heard because his suit had enhanced the sound, near what must have been a dining room table. Peter crawled on the walls and ceiling, occasionally moving stuff out of the way as carefully as possible to prevent further collapse. He reached it a moment later and found the source of the sound trapped beneath the table and part of the ceiling.

"Ma'am, just hold on; I'll get you out of there in a second," Peter said calmly and reassuringly. His HUD was updated with the best focal point to lift the table, and even recommended where to put it. Peter grabbed and threw a few more significant and complicated pieces of debris. Soon as he had the dangerous parts taken care of, he carefully lifted the table that still held chunks of debris on top of it. He tossed it to the side as soon as he was sure it was safe.

Peter's HUD updated again, displaying the older man as in critical condition and unconscious but relatively safe to move. The woman looked to be in her early sixties and was holding her side where blood was leaking out due to some rebar sticking out of her. When the woman went to try to pull it out, Peter softly grabbed her hand, keeping it away from the metal.

"You can't, ma'am; you'll bleed too much." The woman stopped reaching for it, whether from doing as he said or losing the strength to do so, Peter didn't know. But it did give Peter the time to inspect the rebar piece, finding it had punctured the flooring below her. Reaching down, he used both hands to stabilize her, though it did cause minor jerking of the rebar in her side and a cry of pain, but he put one hand around it, using just his fingers, and carefully squeezed the rebar, causing the metal to dent around his fingers. He lifted her carefully but firmly, ripping the rebar from the floor.

He set her back down for a moment before he used his webbing to carefully wrap around the wound to keep the pressure up and minimize blood loss. After getting the approval from Karen, he lifted her into his arms again.

Peter looked around for the best way to exit the building. He was not going back through the hole like this. His HUD quickly showed him that the window would be safe enough, but he would have to kick out part of the building as the window was too small to go through.

Peter walked up to the window, checking down below to make sure the way was clear before he attempted anything.

Seeing that the ground below was clear enough, he stepped away from the window and prepared to kick it out.

"¿Anata wa hīrōdesu ka?"

Peter turned towards the voice, finding a pre-teen girl looking down on him from the floor above and to the side, seeing as the wall had collapsed on that part. She was on her knees and had been crying.

"Peter, she is speaking Japanese," Karen said. "I will display translations and help you speak any responses as needed." Peter's HUD then lit up with a translation of what the girl had said. 'Are you a hero?'

Karen started displaying a response for him when his spider-sense warned him something was wrong, and then his HUD updated that the ceiling below her was collapsing. Peter wanted to shout a warning, but it was too late. As the girl fell, Peter aimed one of his hands, still holding the woman, towards the far wall, shooting off a web wide enough to act more like a hammock as the young girl fell into it. As she rebounded, Peter breathed a sigh of relief as he timed it just right to catch her between the ceiling piece she had fallen with so that she didn't hit the more rigid surface. He slowly released more webbing until she was safely on the ground.

The girl stood up before staring at his mask, unsure of what to do, and seemed to be waiting for Peter to do something. Peter got a suggestion and followed it, "Wa-ta-shi wa Hi-ro." He followed Karen's slow wording to help him sound it out. Peter was sure he butchered it. But it appeared to have worked as the girl's eyes lit up before closing them with tears, and she rushed to him. He had to lift the woman a little so she wasn't jostled when the girl slammed into him at waist height with a crushing hug.

Knowing he was in a desperate time crunch, he looked to the window again. His suit's AI came up with another solution. He turned back to the girl and spoke as Karen continued to help him with pronunciation. "Sen-aka ni not-te."

The girl looked up at him, then nodded while releasing her hug on him. Peter turned away from her and kneeled, giving the girl access to his back. She hopped on, looping her arms around his neck as best as possible. Part of his nano suit pulled away from his arms and legs and wrapped around the young girl, securing her to him.

Peter walked to the window and took another quick inspection of the ground below, noticing more pedestrians were gathering outside and looking up. Stepping back again, he lifted a foot and kicked out hard at the base of the window, destroying it and sending it flying to the ground below while startling some nearby pedestrians. Peter followed it quickly and landed as softly as he could, letting his legs bend and absorb as much of the impact as possible.

Peter hoped Karen would give him the words to let the girl know she could let go, but those nearby pedestrians made it moot as they rushed to his side and helped get the young girl off his back after his suit had retracted from her. Once she was off, he lowered the woman to the ground, setting her on her side to reduce the touching of the rebar.

Another pedestrian reached to inspect her as Peter was taking stock, but he had to reach his hand out again to stop them from trying to pull on the rebar. When the man looked up in shock at being thwarted, Peter shook his head before moving his hand over the wound and said, "pur-es-shā." The man got the hint, taking off his shirt and applying pressure to the wound and his webbing. Seeing as his two deposited charges were in decent hands, Peter leaped to the new hole before returning moments later with the unconscious man.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Junichiro was not a happy man. He had just finished liberating the money and jewelry from that stupid Old Man Danuja on Main Street. The Old Man pissed him off enough times in the past, deriding him just because his first name made him sound like a thief. So what if he sliced up the Old Man? The Old Man deserved it for that final insult to him about how he always expected this of him.

He had just left the building when a freaking pro-hero arrived outside; just his luck. And it was one of Ingenium's sidekicks. That meant he didn't have the time to fight him because the bastard's teammates would swarm him if he stuck around. Getting away also would take a lot of work; he needed to create enough distractions and time to get away.

Smirking now that he had a game plan, he sprinted down the sidewalk as pedestrians watched on. He came upon the first group as they desperately tried to get out of his way. It didn't matter to him, as his hands flashed out with his knives and cut through them as he passed them by.

He ignored the screams as he ran, slicing every other pedestrian, some with minor cuts to deep lacerations. He didn't go for killing blows right now, as that would be a waste of a swing. He needed the heroes occupied, so creating as many bodies as he could to keep them too busy to follow. "Oops." He said before smirking. That one had cut off the arm of a young boy.

"Stop, you villain!" The sidekick was still chasing him, and it was getting annoying. He needed to disappear as quickly as possible.

Turning his head around as he ran, he yelled at the guy, "I'll stop cutting when you stop chasing, loser!" He cut two more on his way until he noticed the hero finally got the hint. Good, it looks like he would get away. Now, he'd cut through the alleyway ahead, and he would be in the clear.

He was smiling in triumph when he was just a second away from the alleyway when it became impossible to smile because a fist had destroyed his jaw. His body slammed into the concrete wall, which cracked with the force of his body impacting it. Unlike his victims, he was lucky in that he fell unconscious immediately.

Sakura watched him closely for a moment to ensure he was down for the count. Satisfied that the scum wouldn't be getting up for hours and that even if he did, his screams of pain due to the destroyed mandible that would alert anyone nearby that he was awake was enough for her to ignore him for now. She had considered just using a kunai to his temple, but this place was strange enough, and she didn't want to attract too much attention.

She looked to the long sidewalk filled with injured civilians, noticing that none had reacted quickly or aggressively. Moving to inspect the closest injured civilian, she saw the cut was sharp, leaving relatively smooth lacerations. But they were deep, tearing through all the muscles, ligaments, blood vessels, and bone.

At this point, the woman who had been talking to her ran up to her, panting hard in her sprint. "Miss, we need to get them to a hospital as quickly as possible. Some of those lacerations look deep, and they could bleed out if th–"

"I know," Sakura said, interrupting the woman while giving her a nod of approval. Her terminology was different from what ordinary civilians used, meaning she had training in medicine to some degree. That could help significantly with getting this mess organized. "We need to get them to a centralized location to treat them by the severity of their wounds more quickly. I don't know what you use to classify injured patients, so please inform me on the way."

The woman was getting one surprise after another. First, seeing the young girl with pink hair at neck level appear out of nowhere from above. She was injured and disoriented, though she had a sharpness to her eyes she had only seen in heroes or professionals. Then the screams started, and she watched as a villain ran down the street as the villain was cutting people up along the road at the intersection, obviously trying to occupy the pro-hero chasing him. She saw him give up as he started trying to treat the wounded. She had already started running towards them before she realized what she was doing.

Before she even had time to think of shouting something back at the girl, she had already moved, appearing right beside the villain and punching him in the jaw, causing him to hit the wall and then collapse. That had almost stopped her sprint, but she kept moving.

Now this girl was showing skills and enough knowledge of medicine for at least implementing a temporary field hospital. She suspected she might be a Pro-Hero, but her earlier reaction made her question that.

When she saw the girl reach back to the laceration, she got another surprise when her hand started to glow, and the laceration, with the muscle and flesh beneath the wound, closed with the same glow. 'A healing quirk!'

"Follow me," the woman said before turning and yelling at the civilians that had stuck around, some trying to help their injured friends and loved ones. She let the pro-hero that had been chasing the villain secure them. She turned back to the pedestrians and yelled at them. "Grab them and follow us!" She then led the way toward wherever this incident had started.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Goto screamed as he cradled his destroyed left eye. He was used to pain, but this one stung severely. The two pro-heroes had used pressurized water to tear through his skin and eye, bypassing his rigid muscles. After adjusting to the pain, he looked up with his one working eye and gazed where he had thrown the two pro-heroes. They had smashed into the side of a building, and both were down, especially with those broken limbs. One of them was barely conscious, looking in his direction. He was trying to lift his arm to send another attack his way.

Goto snorted at the attempt of bravado. But he also noticed that the two had eaten up too much of his time; he couldn't see any other villagers around at this time for him to sate his bloodlust. Goto was pissed; he had been looking forward to adding at least a dozen more corpses to his score. With his injured eye, it might eat up too much time trying to chase them, and more heroes might arrive, meaning he might not get anyone else and could risk capture.

The village was supposed to be an isolated area with little to no risk, allowing him to go wild! He decided that the two would have to do it for now. He had to give them some minor points for pulling that off; he had expected them to be easy to squash, allowing him to move on to the other villagers. But instead, they offered up their bodies as a sacrifice.

Goto looked around, finding a nearby boat big enough for people to live in. He went to the side of it, using some recent damage from their fight as a handhole. His muscle fibers swam over his body as they rearranged themselves to give him enough lift strength for this task.

He lifted it above his head and turned towards the downed heroes. He smiled maliciously on seeing the fear in the man, knowing there was no chance he or the woman could stop this in time. He reared his arm back and threw it like a javelin toward the pair.

His smirk died as the cabin cruiser was stopped mid-air, leaving grooves in the gravel from the feet of the figure that was bleeding the momentum. The boat hung there for a moment before lifting and revealing a kid. He was barefoot, wore dark boxers, and a white muscle shirt, had his black hair in a freaking pigtail, and had a smirk. Goto hated him immediately.

Ranma turned back to the two people in the life preserver jackets and matching water masks behind him who he had just saved. He could see the woman had short brown hair, while the man had even shorter black hair and a little mustache.

"Are you two alri– gah!" The interruption came courtesy of a blast of water to his face. She had to juggle with the boat for a moment as her height and balance had shifted, but it was a minor issue. She momentarily rested the cruiser on her shoulder as she wiped the water and wet red hair from her face and glared at the man. Her glare relaxed as she noticed he had already fallen unconscious.

Ranma stepped to the side and out of the way as she put the boat down gently before it tipped to the side. With that finished, she turned back to the asshole who had thrown it. "Dude, not cool. That would have killed them." He was reasonably tall, had a large upper body musculature, blond hair, and a big fresh wound on his face over his left eye. He looked like one of those muscle gym guys that gave off an air of superiority just because they thought they looked impressive and believed they were the top dog. She enjoyed destroying their egos. Doing it as a kid had always been fun, but doing it as a girl would be new.

She saw him eyeing her wearily, obviously put out by her catching something that took him a bit of effort to do. But then he smiled maliciously. She knew that kind of smile, someone who got bloodlust. Guess he was one of those types.

"Aren't you a little young to be a hero?" Gota asked calmly, "And what the hell kind of quirk lets you be strong and turn into a girl?"

"Don't know what the hell you mean by quirk, dumbass, but I'm a martial artist. It's my job to protect the weak. Even if it is from other weaklings," Ranma goaded him, smiling as if she didn't have a care in the world with her arms behind her back as she slowly walked towards him. It worked perfectly. Again.

Goto's muscles burst from his arms in a massive bulk as fury took him. He sped forward with an intense burst of speed faster than the human eye could track, cratering the ground behind him. He brought his arm down, prepared to crush her. But as his arm passed through her body, she disappeared entirely, and he cratered the ground where she had stood with his fist.

"Missed me," a cheerful voice said just to his right, literally right by his face, less than a foot away. She still had that mocking smile, and her eyes were closed. He ripped his hand out of the ground and swung it at the annoying brat, hitting her head clean off– only for her to suddenly be a few feet back, his swing having missed her by centimeters. The air pressure from the swipe only swished her hair around.

Goto growled deeply as his muscles increased in quantity and size. He howled in anger and eagerness. "Let me see your blood!" He shot off, faster than before, closing the gap, but still touched nothing as his arm shot through her. He saw her beneath him as his body passed over her previous position. She had folded her body back and so low that she treated his massive form like a game of limbo. Even as he passed her face, he noticed she was still smiling!

He crashed his massive foot into the ground, stopping his forward momentum as quickly as possible and turning to face the little bitch. But she wasn't there. He turned side to side, but she was nowhere in sight.

"Yo! Slowpoke! Up here!" He twisted his head up to look above himself to see the baffling sight of her standing right above him, leaning down to look him in the eyes. Standing on his head!

The muscle fibers around his neck sprung up to attempt to catch her foot while his arms raised to do the same thing. Just as they closed on her, she disappeared again, and then there was pain!

His body folded forward, making it easy to see her in front of him with her foot sticking out of his gut. Her smile still mocked him as if she wasn't concerned about facing him. It was becoming something he hated with every fiber of his being! Now, he'd use every fiber he had to snuff her out!

Ranma hopped backward as the guy's body exploded with what looked like muscles bulging out and reforming. His muscles started building to ridiculous proportions, at least quadrupling his starting size, covering all of him save his face. It didn't matter to her if the loser had to try to use some cheats to even the playing field. It wasn't going to make a difference in this fight.

"You can't hurt me like this, even if you are fast. Your punches won't get through my thousands of layers of muscle!" It was apparent his empty and bleeding eye socket was not a detriment to him. More likely, it was just egging him on.

"You're still a dumbass," Ranma said as she dropped her smile and looked him sternly in the eye. "It's still easy to hurt you."

Goto gave her an unimpressed look, broken out of his rage by her changing attitude. "Oh? And how do you– ACK!" Goto was interrupted, his nose crunching due to her fist. He flew a few feet back from the force of the blow, which put him in a severe daze. After a moment, he steadied himself using an arm on the nearby building.

He sneered at her, "Dirty little trick, you bitch. You don't have the balls to take me on mano-o-mano."

"I was just showing you how much of a dumbass you are, dumbass. But I said it's still easy to hurt you. That includes not using your weak point."

"Wha–"

The explosion of noise spread throughout the entire village, and the shockwave destroyed most of the nearby windows and threw a wave of dirt into the air. Not that Goto cared about that.

Goto was barely conscious. His gut was screaming at him in agony, making the destruction of his eye and nose pale in comparison. It was a sharper and deeper pain than any he had felt in his entire life, and it spread to the rest of his body, making his arms and legs lose any strength they once had as they became numb to everything but the pain!

His one good eye could only barely see a blur through the torture, but the girl's cold and indifferent eyes stood out as she stood there with her fist thoroughly jammed into his stomach, lifting his entire body by a foot. He had no more time to register this disaster as she casually tossed him ten meters into the air before a kick sent him flying faster than most missiles over the town and into the surrounding forest. He crashed through the trees until his body embedded itself into the hill by several feet.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Kamihara Shinya, or Edgeshot as he was more widely known, was certainly not in a happy mood. While he tended to be very understanding that not everyone was on the same level as himself or the other top-tier heroes, it got to be very frustrating when dealing with those with a gross misunderstanding of their capabilities and badly overstepped what they should be trying to do.

Case in point. Even though he was smiling and used a cheery voice, the words he was using as he browbeat and threatened, subtly, the other pro-hero morons that had been on the scene. His questioning them about their intelligence and competence would have the people that knew him best either run or try to get between him and the draw of his ire.

The reason for his ire was due to the massive amount of destruction that had occurred, with casualties mixed in. While the villains that had caused most of the damage had been handcuffed, they had been taunted and underestimated by the same pro-heroes he was chewing out. Instead of trying to contain or de-escalate the matter, it exploded with disastrous results. The villain with the plasma-based projectiles had been alarming, causing untold amounts of damage and injuries, and if the information was correct, a few lives.

To add to his aggravation, he had seen an enormous plasma bolt launched well past the local crisis zone, and he had just gotten confirmation that it had hit an apartment building. He desperately wanted to leave the scene to further reduce the damage from this disaster, but he couldn't until law enforcement with the proper type of restraints arrived to make sure the plasma user didn't wake up and make it worse than it already was. So the moron's got his ire.

He was enjoying the white-faced idiot's looks of terror after describing how thorough the investigation into this incident and all other incidents involving them would be. As well as the possible monetary and legal consequences of just today's actions would probably incur. He then noticed a new group of police vehicles approaching.

He left the hopefully soon-to-be ex-pros to contemplate their fate to step up next to the plasma user. He observed the newly arrived officers getting equipment out of the vehicles, paying particular attention to the thermal-based restraints a pair of officers was carrying. He genuinely smiled as the two officers hustled over and watched as they quickly and methodically attached the restraints to the villain. Shinya closely watched the villain to ensure he wasn't faking it or suddenly woke up. He waited until they were attached correctly and inspected to ensure no more failures occurred. Finished, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, officers. I would stay and chat, but there is another emergency I need to get to quickly." Shinya waited for the two officers and their supervisor to nod in acknowledgment before he shot his body at an incredible speed toward where he knew the apartment building was. Even at the speeds he could travel, it still took him nearly thirty seconds to arrive, showing just how far away that bolt of plasma had gone.

His string-like body reformed as he arrived, only to witness something he had not expected. While it is evident that this was the building, considering the gaping hole and some smoke escaping from the various gaps in the structure, he had not been expecting it to look more like a spider's nest around the large hole and multiple points of the building. He saw one of the large webs being actively used by residents as a slide, landing them in front of rescue workers that greeted them as they escaped from the building. Other webs appeared to be holding parts of the ceiling in place, keeping the sagging structure in those parts from collapsing. Others were holding up collapsing walls, preventing them from falling toward the crews below. The entire structure looked like some young kid's poorly made homemade paper model that got infested with spiders.

He wasn't sure whether he should be amused or annoyed by the trapped local pro, caught in a spider's web attached to a lamppost several feet above the ground. He could hear mild muffled screams, barely getting through the webbed mouth. The fact that the local first responders and other nearby pro-heroes were ignoring him as they went about safely getting as many of the residents clear of the building was quite telling.

He was wondering where all the webbing was coming from, but got his answer as a hero in a full coverage costume that was skin tight leaped out of another hole on the ninth floor. He had grabbed the wall on his way out and flipped himself up so he was standing on the outside of it.

He pointed his hands toward the ground as the first responders backed up. He quickly shot webbing out to attach it to the street and then to the base of the window and its sides, creating another slide. He then turned his head to look inside and gave whoever he was looking at a thumbs-up before the first resident climbed out of the window and slid to safety. The hero watched as more residents started repeating the same action before he somersaulted down the wall and entered through another opening in the structure.

Things looked reasonably well in hand, which pleased Shinya greatly. Much better than the potential horror show he had expected. The only concern he had was who the newcomer was. He didn't remember any reports of new heroes anywhere near this city with any sort of quirk similar to what this guy was displaying.

He was figuring it best to kill two birds with one stone by offering assistance to the one that seemed to have things in order and sate his curiosity about the hero's identity. Shinya folded his body and shot across the street, sliding through an open window to reform himself a few feet from where the other pro was lifting a second child into his arms. The children's mother stood nearby, waiting for the hero.

Before he had even begun to reform himself, he noticed the hero had reacted to him, turning and pointing a hand toward him. The hero still seemed cautious but started lowering his hand, even as the civilians jumped. After he finished, he asked, "How can I help?" His ego did not require him to demand leadership in this instance. He knew good work when he saw it.

Shinya got his first good look at the hero. He was shorter than himself, though not by much. His suit had a dark blue base, with red boots, red midsection, mask, and part of his arms and gloves were red. The red had a web-like pattern stylized on it. His chest had a giant golden spider, with the legs going up and down his chest and around his back. The mask had some white lenses, preventing one from seeing his eyes. It was one of the most professionally made super-suits Shinya had ever seen.

"Edgeshot! Good thing you're here as well!" the woman exclaimed as she smiled at him. She turned to look at the other hero with a puzzled expression, clearly unsure of what to do in this instance. It didn't take her long to decide as she turned back to Shinya. "I don't think he speaks much Japanese; he only seems to be saying small sentences slowly."

Shinya found that curious, but hopefully, something he could work with. "Can you understand me?" He waited as the other pro seemed to take his time before receiving an "Hai" in response. The accent was helpful since it gave him an idea to start with. <"Do you speak English?">

The hero sagged in relief, having been extremely tense. <"Oh, thank god! You don't know how stressful trying to speak Japanese has been!"> He had to juggle the kids momentarily, as they had both noticed and recognized Edgeshot. The hero's voice sent some alarm bells off in his head. He sounded young. Something to deal with for later. "Anyways, we just need to get these three out of here and then som–"

The hero interrupted himself as he tensed up, and his lenses widened. Shinya was about to ask what was wrong when the hero threw the two children out the window. It happened so fast Shinya didn't have the time to react. His body started folding up, prepping to save the two kids thrown out the window, when the other hero aimed one of his hands towards the children, shooting two strands of those webs that he had observed earlier, while his other hand and body reached for the woman. That is also when Shinya heard it. He had been around enough collapsing buildings to know the sound of their death knell.

Reacting quickly, he reached the window just as the other hero tossed the terrified woman toward him. He caught her as they both exited the building, and Shinya could see the ceiling collapsing. But the hero didn't make for the window either; he took off deeper into the building and went through a hole in the floor Shinya had noticed earlier. Even as he was falling and folding parts of his body to catch the rebounding children as they started swinging downwards, he kept an eye on the building to observe the other hero's progress. He caught glimpses of him as he scrambled through the floors, crawling and leaping between ceilings, walls, and floors even as they fell around him. Just as Shinya landed safely outside, the building ceased its collapse.

Shocked by this turn of events, he handed the children to the mother before folding himself even smaller and creeping through the building until he found the other hero holding up where the ceiling was collapsing. After checking the building, it was clear that without the hero holding it, the entire building would finish collapsing in on itself. It had to weigh so many metric tons that he couldn't give a proper estimate, being the focal point of seven floors. The warped metal I-beam on the floor proved the heat and weight were too much for it.

<"Anyone else?"> Edgeshot asked, not wasting time. He'd already wasted too much with his previous interruption.

The hero grunted, trying to make minor adjustments as he held up the entire building. The building started collapsing again, even with his efforts of holding it up, when four golden metal spider legs exploded out of his back, then two shot upwards while the other two shot downwards. They spiked into the ceiling and floor before appearing to create washers. They acted as an additional brace that halted the collapse again. The front of his suit had also changed, the arms, legs, and torso looking very different than before.

<"Northwest! Corner!">, the hero grunted as he tried to speak, pausing as he got out the words. <"Top three! Floors!"> Another pause filled with hard breathing. <"Fifteen! People!... Hurry!">

He shot up through the multiple ceilings to reach the first of the floors, finding four people. He didn't waste time with the introduction; he used his quirk to shoot several strands to destroy the wall and windows, making it easier to exit. After enough of his body had reformed, he picked them up, using some strands to wrap around and secure them more tightly, before leaping across the alleyway and into the next building. He set them down roughly, not having the time to be kind about it before he was out the window again and went to the next floor without even going into the building and then up.

This time, he got out five people in another repeat, though he could set them onto a roof this time instead of breaching a building. As he glanced back as he was settling them down, he was glad the ones from above had seen him do it and started backing away from the window.

He entered the final floor, finding the last six. As they started to come together, he felt the building shake again, the building had finally given up, and he didn't think the other hero would be able to stop it. He hoped he would get out okay, but considering his strength, he probably did have a way out. He saw and heard floors and walls collapsing, moving from the inside and out. He saw the entrance to their room caved in and the ones across the hall as they fell into the maw of destruction. He finished gathering the panicking residents and prepared to exit the building when he heard it.

A faint cry. It sounded like a young child, a girl around five or six. Only due to his years of experience could he pinpoint where it had come from as fast as he did. Deeper on the tenth floor was a cabinet large enough for a child to crawl into, and it had already tipped into the abyss.

Shinya's arm folded and shot off towards the cabinet, but it was too late. It had slipped past his line of sight as he looked on in horror. Before he could even consider moving to save her, the other hero was in the air, holding the ripped-off cabinet door while his other hand had yanked the young girl into his arms.

Shinya finally left with the last of his charges, depositing them with the others. He watched the building for signs of the other hero as the outer wall and roof collapsed inwards. He saw him explode from the collapsing ceiling, his back taking the brunt of any impact away from the girl. He was high in the air and started falling toward the street below. The hero twisted one of his arms to shoot a web off to a nearby building, causing him to crash into the side of the building with a painful grunt, again taking the brunt of the impact away from the girl. Unfortunately, he lost the grip on the webbing, sending them falling towards the ground again, though only six stories instead of the previous twelve.

The hero reached out, his fingertips barely catching on the side of the building, and slowed his fall again before that was lost as well. Shinya moved to grab them but was too slow compared to the metal spider-legs as they shot out of the building and intercepted the falling duo. The legs seemed to melt into the hero before bursting out of his back again, catching onto the side of the building and stopping their fall about three meters from the ground.

Shinya reformed himself just below the hero as the legs lowered the two by carefully crawling down the few meters. The hero rested on his knees as he set the young girl down. Finally alone and the job completed, the hero started trying to stand on his shaking legs before he lost his body's fight with consciousness and collapsed. Shinya caught him before he could fall to his knees again.

The hero never heard the cries of triumph from all the rescued residents, first responders, and pro-heroes.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ai was extensively familiar with medical emergencies. It came with her job of twenty years as an Emergency Medicine Physician, more commonly known as an ER doctor. She had seen nearly every conceivable type of injury and physiology, being head of her department. She had to see the victims of hundreds of villain attacks in the past, most as they arrived at her hospital and others when she arrived on the scene. Though it was rare, she had also been first on-site for a few villain attacks.

The site of a villain attack was always a terrible mess that took a force of will and strength to herd shocked and injured pedestrians into anything that resembled order. And order was essential to make sure people were diagnosed and treated correctly. Failing to give an injury proper care could lead to significant blood loss and infections. Failing to treat symptoms like shock or burns could lead to patients' systems crashing, complicating their treatment.

The young pink-haired girl, who gave the name of Haruna Sakura, was already showing signs of being perfectly capable of commanding a field hospital. Her tone of voice, charisma, knowledge, and the force of her personality made every person listen to her as they ran along.

Sakura commanded nearby pedestrians to get blankets or coats and start putting them on the sidewalk in a line just as they appeared at the start of this incident. Everyone obeyed her nearly instantly; if anyone so much as started breathing a sign of backtalk, her glare leveled them, and they followed whether they wanted to or not. Ai was already getting some tape out of her purse, four different colors to note the triage levels. After the patient was placed on an impromptu bed, Ai tore a small piece of tape and started applying them based on the severity of their wounds. Some were easy to determine, while others took her a few seconds as she had to move clothing or limbs away from the injuries to assess their damage.

There were only a few greens, including the person she had seen Sakura already heal. There were a few more yellows than greens, but the vast majority were red. She was not happy to put a few black tapes, one of them being the shop owner brought out by another pro-hero, holding his bleeding throat. She hoped the girl's quirk could prove crucial to saving them. The number of patients was already past twenty.

She had almost finished categorizing them when she heard some exclamations of alarm. Ai looked up to see Sakura pushing several people back and away to create space. When the girl pulled a scroll from the pouch on her leg, she wondered about its importance. She rolled it out, and AI could see some odd lettering on it. The girl brought her hands together when she finished the section she had rolled out. Her hands rapidly performed a few strange signs before a puff of smoke exploded from the scroll.

While it was startling, seeing rolls of compressed white cloth and rolls of large blankets appear from the puff of smoke and now resting on the scroll was astonishing. The girl then took one of the rolls and unfurled one of the blankets, putting it in the open space. She then spread another roll of cloth, showing medical tools. The white cloth looked like gauze, which Sakura had someone distribute. Lastly, she took out a jar of dark pills.

"Shuzenji-san!" Ai looked up at being called by Sakura. "Move anyone that needs immediate medical surgery to this blanket! I'll be ready in a moment!" Ai nodded to the girl, allowing her to return to preparing her field hospital.

Ai looked around to see who was available and was pleased to see another of Team Idaten arrive. "Enigma! Please carry the patients with the black markings to Sakura!"

When the sidekick looked at her, she pointed to where the pink-haired girl was waiting. She knew the girl, who went by the hero name of Enigma, had enough experience and training to know what to do. Enigma's size increased as her quirk was activated, making her body turn black and look more like putty with how malleable it was. It allowed her to pick up one of the injured civilians and then carefully deposit them where Sakura directed her.

Ai went back to categorizing the rest of the patients, glad there were only three blacks. She had been directing available people to apply pressure on the wounds to reduce the bleeding as she went along and was pleased that people continued to do that. Finished with that part of the task, she returned to Sakura's side to see her starting on the shop owner.

The man was holding on by a thread, having been sliced by one of the blades across his throat. He was suffering from asphyxiation and going into hypovolemic shock. He didn't have long, and it was a miracle he was still alive. One of the other pro heroes who had recently arrived had been holding a cloth to the wound, buying him precious time. Sakura removed the hero's hand carefully, and for a moment, the inside of his throat was visible before being covered by the man's precious lifeblood. She put her hand over the wound, and her hand glowed again along with the injury. After several seconds, she used a wet cloth to show the new raw skin.

The pro-hero holding his neck closed almost recoiled in shock at seeing that before he gathered his courage and continued to apply pressure to the man's other wounds. One by one, Sakura closed those wounds. The skin wasn't perfect, still red and marked, but it kept the man from losing any more blood.

After closing the wounds, Sakura put her ear to his chest as the man took shallow breaths. She removed the man's shirt by making her fingers glow again and cut it away from the chest area, throwing it to the side. She took those same fingers and cut into his chest over one of his lungs.

Ai wondered how she would get the blood out of his lungs when the girl's hands glowed again. She sat there watching for a moment before the blood flew out of the wound and floated in the air, radiating the same glow as her hands. She then sealed her incision and put the floating blood on one of the clothes previously used to hold his lifeblood.

She then took a few pellets from the jar and opened the man's mouth, inserting them. Then she raised him so he was sitting up before she applied her fingers to his throat. They glowed again, and a few moments later, the man swallowed.

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief as she lowered him and turned to Enigma, "Take him back to another bed; he's out of the danger zone for now. He'll still need some rest and needs to be kept warm." Enigma carefully lifted the man before transporting him to another blanket.

Ai wanted to talk about what had just happened, but she knew now was not the time. They had too many patients to alleviate their curiosity. She moved over to the following critical patient and prepped them.

It continued like that, moving from patient to patient, closing wounds, and feeding some of them a pill. More patients took their place after Sakura stabilized the critical patients. Ambulances and EMTs arrived, providing additional assistance and reducing their workload by taking the already healed patients and all the green and yellow tags. More sidekicks from Team Idaten came, along with the police. They helped get everything organized and the uninvolved pedestrians out of their way.

When Sakura started working on the boy with the severed arm, all of the medical professionals paused as they watched the girl reattach it after a few seconds. She asked him to move his fingers one at a time, and the boy could do it. When Ai finished watching that miracle occur, she had to yell at them all to get back to it.

When they were down to the last few patients, Ai noticed that Sakura was starting to struggle. Her brow was sweating badly, and her hands were shaking. But she soldiered on. Her hands stopped glowing halfway through work on the last patient before she pushed herself to finish it.

Sakura's eyes could barely focus after that. "Who's next?" she asked AI.

"That's all of them, sweetie. You need to rest. You're too exhausted, and we must treat your burns."

Sakura struggled to get up, fighting against several soft hands that tried to keep her down. "I need to get up; they still need me. Sasuke-kun… Naruto… Kakashi-sensei…" She was starting to win the tug of war, even with Ai and one of the other pros using both hands to keep her down. "They need m–"

Sakura finally collapsed, allowing Ai to breathe a sigh of relief. She flagged one of the EMTs for a gurney, and they set the girl on it before wheeling her to an ambulance.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Iyashi no Sato was a beautiful place to live. The air was clean, the view of the lake was pristine, and the people were some of the friendliest you could find in Japan. Everyone who lived in their village loved it. Everyone knew everyone else and worked to help each other out when the small things that life threw at them occurred: medical hardships, financial woes, romantic dramas, or petty thefts.

Their village was home to a husband and wife duo of pro-heroes that dealt with some of those problems and acted in harmony with their local sheriff. They acted as tour guides and rescuers for the surrounding forest and the lake, helped with medical emergencies, and de-escalated and protected them when violence occurred. And they did it with professionalism, courtesy, and kindness. Every villager loved their pro-heroes. When the duo started a family, the village helped raise their son Kota. That family was their village's treasure.

So when the walking disaster that was that man entered their village, they had no idea of the monster in their midst. When Sheriff Koji approached the lost man to assist, they never expected the villain to reach out and grab his head. The man's muscles had increased and looked to be trying to crush Koji's head like a grape, but the timely arrival of their heroes saved him. While they hadn't hurt the man, it was distracting enough that the man had dropped Koji.

Their heroes played a game of cat and mouse with the man. Unfortunately, the pro-hero team of Water Hose was the mouse since the man shrugged off everything the team threw at him. All they could do was knock him off course and distract him while they tried to evade. They had to intervene a few times when one of their villagers had gotten too close to the villain. Their fight raged on as buildings were destroyed and people were evacuated. One of the buildings must have caused a gas leak as an explosion sent smoke into the air.

Muto Daichi, their village leader, and Mayor for over thirty years, was terrified. He was doing his best to lead the retreat of his charges. Volunteers searched the buildings and homes as quickly as possible, and those that needed medical attention were carted away. They had no idea how far they had to get from the monster, so they fled. Daichi tried to keep things organized.

He had already contacted the next closest hero agency, and other pro-heroes were coming. Daichi had been informed that further agencies, some with more prominent names attached to them, were contacted and on their way. That is also when he got the name for their villain: the A-rank villain Imasuji Goto, also known as Muscular—a man with scores of murder charges to his name.

Daichi was on the outskirts of their village, waiting for the last few stragglers checking the homes for anyone attempting to hide away, when they all felt the explosion rattling their village and shattering some glass.

They knew the heroes couldn't do anything like that, which meant it could only be the villain. He noticed most villagers had stopped to gawk at where the explosion had come from. "Go! Keep going! Don't dawdle, or their sacrifice will have been for nothing!" As the last villager scrambled into the surrounding forest, Daichi noticed figures in the air before one of them shot off like a missile in their general direction, crashing through trees and sending up clouds of dirt.

Daichi was glad that none of his villagers were in that direction since the terrain was rockier and harder to traverse. Considering the object that the villain must have sent flying might be one of their heroes, Daichi decided to take the risk to see if they could save them. "Gou, come with me!" The larger man nodded as they both moved toward where the cloud of dirt was slowly calming down.

It took them a minute to reach the site. They used their shirts to cover their mouths and used their hands to shield their eyes as much as possible. They arrived at the crater, swinging their hands to help clear the dust as they tried to get a good look at what impacted the ground. Daichi fell back with a scream of terror as he saw the face of their tormentor. He scrambled around like a crab before running into Gou's legs.

The dust finally settled, giving the two a good look at the villain. His left eye and the skin around it were destroyed, and his nose was crushed, causing it to bleed. His one good eye was open but completely white, showing they had rolled back. His mouth was wide open as they noticed several teeth had been smashed. The image was of someone in total agony and had lost consciousness, which was precisely what had happened.

Knowing something must have happened in the heart of their village, Daichi got up and sprinted toward where Goto had come from. Gou was a few steps behind him, with other villagers that had kept an eye on the two following behind.

When he reached the center of their village, he was not expecting to see their unconscious heroes set down on a blanket with a young red-headed girl moving them around and inspecting their wounds. As they neared them, Daichi was thrilled to see both heroes breathing, though slowly. The young girl also noticed their approach.

"Hi! Can you guys get some pillows and medical supplies for these two? They are a little banged up." The girl smiled at them before going back to inspect Moriko's arm.

Daichi didn't know how to respond for a moment, but it didn't take him long before he turned to the others, only to find them already rushing towards some of the still-standing buildings. He turned back to the young girl, curious to discover what had happened, but saw her walking towards a nearby stack of newspapers.

The girl grabbed a few and rolled them up, putting them in an armpit before she reached for more of them. Just as the girl had held a few more, her hand stopped as she stared at the paper. She sat there for several seconds, just staring at it. Daichi was worried, so he questioned her about it. "Is something wrong, miss?"

She remained silent as if she hadn't heard him before she finally responded. "What's the.. date? Today's date?"

Curious as to why that mattered so much to her, he responded. "March 30th."

She remained silent but then, in a quiet voice, asked, "What year?"

Further confused, Daichi answered, "2146."

"Shit!"

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 2 - Inquiries​

"What?"

Daichi considered Endeavor's reaction to being informed that the villain had already been stopped. The man had already traveled a few dozen kilometers toward his village when the Mayor had finally been able to contact him. The police were still sending more officers to arrest and transport the villain. "Yes, the villain has already been defeated. He is unconscious and being looked after."

Endeavor was someone who worked hard to be well-read in every situation. When this call for a top-tier hero was forwarded to him, he read up on both the villain and all of the pro-heroes that might be involved, and there was one thing that was clear to him: none of them could take on Muscular.

"Who defeated him? How was he defeated?" Endeavor acted more like a detective than most pro-heroes; he hunted down leads and irregularities whenever he found them to lead to more activities that needed his attention or were handed off to police and other agencies when required. His primary drive was to be thorough. He ensured a threat did not remain a threat and all aspects of it were handled. Much like his power, he burned things out completely. It was why he had earned the title of solving the most crimes of any pro-hero.

"A young girl," Daichi realized how incredulous this sounded, especially considering the villain and who he was currently talking to, so he decided to expound on the situation further. "Or at least we believe it was her. We didn't witness the fight, but she acknowledged that she defeated him."

"Did you ask her how she defeated him?" Endeavor knew many elements of this situation made it significantly more complicated. Dealing with the how was first, followed by the who and what. The why mattered little to him.

"She said she punched and kicked him."

"Did you ask her what her quirk is?" Endeavor knew punching and kicking someone like Muscular would mean applying either of two paths. Her quirk allowed her to bypass his physical superiority, much like people like Midnight could perform, or they were physically strong like Muscular… or All Might.

"Yes, but she just looked at me like I was weird and returned to what she was doing."

"And what was she doing?" Endeavor asked, somewhat curious.

"She was helping rebuild some of the buildings." Daichi had been surprised when he had first caught her doing that but welcomed it. "She was doing a good job of it and has been very quick. She seemed to move like a speedster at times. She wasn't using a hammer to put the nails in, just her fingers. She seemed like she has had experience with building or repairing before."

"So she has a strengthening quirk of some sort," Endeavor mused, which made this possibly troubling. An ability to neutralize someone like Muscular could also be dangerous, depending on its nature, but a strengthening quirk, on average, was much deadlier. "What else has she done?"

"When the other heroes arrived, she seemed confused for a moment but then just shrugged and moved on. Whenever the heroes or police tried to question her, she just said she was a martial artist. She kept an eye on Water Hose, ensuring they were doing alright until they were evacuated about twenty minutes ago. Beyond that, she seemed more curious about things going on and continued to help clean up the village."

"Any other irregularities to her?"

Daichi had to think for a moment but did come up with something. "Well, I don't know much, but when I first encountered her, she saw one of the newspapers and reacted badly to the date. She even asked me what year it was, and when I answered her, she swore. Aside from that, she has only seemed curious or cheerful."

Endeavor paused in thought. A lost child or kidnapped and recently escaped. Someone upset by the date, especially the year, usually meant they had lost time. Either due to being misplaced or being held somewhere that they couldn't escape. This further complicated the situation.

Her interference, especially since the conversation hadn't hinted at all of her having a pro-license, meant that they were dealing with someone who had broken the law. But the law was flexible in cases where the lawbreaker couldn't know the law. They needed to discover the full extent of what was occurring before they could apprehend and charge her.

Endeavor, as strict and direct as he was, wasn't stupid. He knew that cases like this were best not handled by someone like himself when questioning them. He could break hardened criminals with a glare, but children tended to clam up. They needed someone with a softer touch. He knew of several, but an easy one came to mind, especially considering who was involved with this situation.

"I will be there within an hour. Make sure the girl stays around. I will contact someone to interrogate the girl and act as backup." Endeavor said before he hung up.

Daichi winced, knowing this could explode badly. He really didn't want anything to happen to the girl. Their village owed her.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ai had a full plate when she accompanied the ambulance to the hospital. But it was also one so much lighter than it should have been. Instead of at least three body bags and dozens of nurses and doctors scrambling to save lives, they were checking to ensure their incoming patients remained stable and were on the road to recovery. Their blood bags and gauze stock took a minor hit instead of nearly depleting their stores.

All because of a girl who came out of nowhere and performed miracles. Even her mother-in-law couldn't perform some of the astonishing feats she had seen. A girl with acid burns on her right arm had other minor cuts and bruises on her body and one of the worst cases of extreme fatigue that Ai had ever seen. Her clothes were dirty and had been slashed and burned, both acidic and thermal.

Then other oddities were discovered when they brought her to the hospital, such as the odd diamond mark on her forehead. They couldn't quite define it and left it alone. The things she had on her included more scrolls, but also daggers and throwing stars that were razor sharp. Some staff wanted to open the scrolls to inspect them, but Ai shut that down and had all her stuff left in one spot, and no one was to touch it. Her hair and body had been filthy, and she was given a quick wash once they confirmed she was stable.

She did rounds to ensure everyone was healed and tested to ensure things were going smoothly. Those that hadn't received Sakura's aid were on the mend and recovering correctly. Then, when things had calmed down enough for everyone to breathe easier, she was bombarded by her nurses and fellow doctors about what had happened, especially since their first reports had been accurately dire. She told them her story. Many wouldn't have believed it if it hadn't come from her.

Then Ingenium arrived, and he had to wade through fans before speaking to his sidekicks. After he had spoken to them, he sought her out, praising both herself and Sakura. He was especially interested in the girl, but she knew him well enough to know it wasn't for anything to give him an advantage. He wasn't one of those types of pro-heroes; he truly cared about others. He hoped to meet and thank her for her assistance when she felt better. She let him go with a promise to do that when Sakura was feeling up to it.

Things had calmed down, and patients were resting when one of her nurses informed her the police were there and that they had entered Sakura's room. She feared she knew what this was about but wouldn't let it go without a fight. So she rushed off to the hero girl's room. The officers that stood outside didn't attempt to stop her, only to find an officer putting handcuffs on the unconscious girl's wrists to the bed.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?"

They stared at her, so she decided to repeat her question. "I asked you, what the hell do you think you are doing!?"

A few of the officers looked uncomfortable before they looked at the officer with a trench coat. He was decently tall and had short black hair. Ai didn't recognize him at first, but it came to her after a few moments. Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa.

"I'm sorry, Doctor Shuzenji, this is more of a precaution at this time," he said to her calmly.

"On what grounds do you have to put her in cuffs, especially while she tries to recover?"

The detective sighed, knowing the conversation would have some unpleasant elements. "The unauthorized quirk usage and extreme force. Those would have us look into her and talk to her about that. But that wouldn't be enough to handcuff her, I know." The detective took off his hat and set it on the bed. "We are using the cuffs now because we have no record of her. Anywhere. Ever."

"What?" Ai had not expected that. While it wasn't impossible, it was scarce for anyone to go without any record. Whether from doctor visits to update their quirk with the registry or using anything that dealt with transportation or public services. Precisely because most of those services were provided free of charge, enabling even the poorest of families to be seen at least at one point in their life.

"We ran her image, fingerprints, blood, and what was described of her quirk, and nothing popped. Not even potential parents or grandparents. We don't know her situation, but considering the state she arrived in and her capabilities, we must consider that she might try to run at the first opportunity." Naomasa sat in an empty chair and then looked Ai in the eyes. "Considering what she did, we do not want to hold what she did against her. We need information, and currently, she is the only one that can provide it. But we also know she is a possible flight risk.

Ai didn't like it, but she understood it. "I want to be here before and when you start asking questions."

Naomasa smiled, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Hello, Detective."

Tanaka Hayate turned to see the pro-hero Edgeshot waving at him. His hero costume looked much like people viewed ninjas, with a traditional Japanese vest with red yarn acting to hold things together with his blue robe, baggy pants, tabby shoes, a face mask for his mouth, and a long scarf. His gray hair to one side was folded into 3 sharp points, two above his head and one down to his chin.

"Hello, Edgeshot. Thank you for the assistance earlier. That situation was really starting to get nasty." Hayate grabbed a water bottle and offered it to the Pro, who accepted it. "Here for a status update?"

"Yes." Shinya untied the knot to his mask from behind his head before he lowered it and took a sip of water from the bottle. He took a few more while the detective waited patiently. He capped the top and set it to the side but didn't reattach his mask yet.

Hayate sighed, as this part wouldn't be pleasant to go over but was needed. "So the perpetrators, in this case, were mostly a minor gang, but not a criminal one. Most of their quirks weren't anything to write home about, save the plasma user, a kid named Takashi Daniel from the States. He was a foreigner that had recently moved here to be with extended family but had a minor rap sheet from overseas. We don't have much on him yet, but we've requested inquiries."

Hayate continued, "From the most accurate report I have, it looks like the gang wasn't actually doing anything illegal. They were being rude and catcalling to some passing women, but nothing bad. Officer Saito had arrived to try to tone them down and ensure it didn't escalate. The gang reportedly didn't want to at first, but Officer Saito, whose report I am following, was getting them to come around. Supposedly, Takashi Daniel was helping the officer calm the gang down."

"Shit," Shinya said as he started rubbing his eyes. One more item is thrown on top of this shitpile of a situation.

"Yeah, you already see where this is going," Hayate agreed as he took a sip from his own water bottle, more to drown his bile than to quench a dry throat. "Anyways, the local morons arrived and immediately started insulting the gang while demanding they surrender to the authorities. That riled them up and destroyed all of Officer Saito's hard work. Then the other Pros arrived on the scene and didn't do a damn thing to make things better, only worse. It's unclear who threw the first punch, but it quickly started to get violent."

"The gang and the pros started duking it out. Officer Saito and Takashi tried to de-escalate, but one of the pros injured the guy's cousin. Badly. I hear he's still in critical condition. Anyways, another pro was about to throw another attack at the cousin that might have killed him when Takashi threw that first plasma ball in a panic to stop him." Hayate closed his eyes to give himself the pause he needed to continue. "Shots went wide, and the kid was terrified as the heroes started trying to seriously injure him to take him down. From what I have gathered, every time he used his quirk was only trying to keep the pros at bay."

Shinya knew how this was going to play out. He had heard and experienced enough to know what path this would take, but he had to check how far along it was. "Heard from the Safety Commission yet?"

"Yes," Detective Tanaka spat the word out with as much venom as he could muster with such a simple word that told far more than it usually should. Hayate looked over at Shinya; he could see the signs of anger below the surface.

It took him at least a minute to calm down, but he decided to move on since there wasn't anything they could do there. "What was the damage?"

"One of the pros was injured, stray fragments from Takashi. Two officers were injured, including Saito. Thirty-four civilians were injured, and five civilians are dead. That was the local stuff. The apartment building had sixty-two injuries, most were fairly mild, but ten were seriously wounded, and five were in critical condition. Two fatalities. One was caught in the hallway where the blast hit directly; we only know about that one because of security cameras. The second was crushed on the ground floor due to the falling debris." Hayate replied sadly before his mood picked up as he continued the report. "That was the bad news. The good news is that one-hundred and thirteen residents' lives were saved by our Spider hero."

"Saved? How bad was it?" Shinya had been there, so he knew it was dire, but it was the way the detective said it that interested him.

"We did some time stamps using video, and the Spider hero got to the building after the explosion in under a minute. The hero quickly entered where the bolt had hit and proceeded to use his webs. You saw how hot those blasts could put out?"

"A direct hit could melt a car down in seconds." Shinya thought he knew where this was going but followed along.

"Some engineers did an assessment. They noted the heat from the blasts and where in the apartment it was hit. Photographs and video from the wreckage confirmed it. That building shouldn't have been standing for anything over three minutes. One of the engineers visited the site and said the fifteen minutes it was standing should have been impossible. That heat would have degraded the support structures in just a few minutes for the weight to do the rest. They said due to the building's age, the explosion, and the heat, a cascading effect would have occurred to pull the entire thing down."

Shinya could only blink; that was far worse than he had anticipated before he had arrived. "Would the whole structure have gone at that point?" He knew an explosion sometimes did and sometimes did not take the entire building with it. It usually depended on what was damaged, the integrity of the building, and how it was destroyed.

"Most likely, but there was still a chance some of the support structures on the outside could have been left standing. We don't know," Hayate signed, "There hasn't been enough time to piece everything together to know what could have happened. At least half of the residents would have died from the collapse. Maybe a few survived it, and some not in the collapse would have died too."

Shinya knew preliminary investigations like this usually resulted in mix-bags, so he wasn't surprised. "So his webbing did what exactly?"

"Two things. First, it acted to absorb around eighty percent of the residual heat, which bought the support structures some serious time. Before the stuff started to dissolve, some of the firefighters tried to take a blowtorch to the webs to get through a portion, and it resisted it very well. Second, that stuff was strong! Tensile strength was at least as strong as steel or higher. Its adhesive capabilities were more than sufficient to adhere to most surfaces. Cutting it worked well, but pulling it would be nearly impossible."

A whistle escaped Shinya as it seemed the only appropriate response to that. That was damn impressive stuff, and he saw it had many uses just from his observation.

"Yeah, that webbing of his made the engineers all giddy, and they collected some in a test tube to be sent off to some labs for testing. So anyways, mister Spider webs the point of impact up so much that it reduces the ambient heat. A few images and videos showed the inside where the damage was the worst, and the engineers said the Spider looked to have hit most of the support structure and reinforced them with each other by his webs, basically making it so all the forces balanced each other out instead of one or two focal points leading to a collapse. That hero knew what he was doing when he did that. Bought the building a lot of time."

"That fits what I remember seeing; he went straight for that support structure that had collapsed. He seemed to know where to go and what to do."

"Right. Our guys analyzed the residents' location when they came out and what the medical reports said about their condition. So after stalling the collapse, he went for the critically wounded. Based on severity, he got all of the injured residents out first. Then he systematically got everyone else. But things started going wrong. Ceilings, walls, and everything in between started collapsing. But the hero was always in the right place at the right time to hold the building together and get people out. Then there was another local idiot who started getting in the way."

Shinya chuckled, knowing precisely who Hayate was speaking of. "I found it rather hilarious to find a pro-hero stuck to a spider-web on a lamppost, his mouth gagged by more webbing, and no one was doing a thing to help him."

Hayate turned serious for a moment. "You saw one of the outside walls dipping, correct?"

"Oh, what did he try to do?" Shinya asked, collapsing his face into his hand for a moment. He could think of a few things but didn't know his quirk.

"Guy couldn't seem to get to the higher floors to help, so he started trying to climb it from the outside. His quirk works like Rock Lock, keeping things stable as one unit."

"Oh god, so he put too much weight on the thing while he tried to climb, causing the entire wall to collapse?"

"Got it in one. Luckily the Spider noticed and was there in time to prevent it from collapsing, especially onto the crowd behind him. He was there before it could get far," Hayate said. "Then, after quickly figuring out what was going on, he told the guy to back off in some slow but somewhat accurate Japanese to just support like the rest. But the guy got arrogant and told him that he had to listen to him since he was just some random visiting Gaijin hero. Guy argued with him for thirty seconds before the hero disappeared to take care of another emergency."

"And the moron started doing it again, didn't he?" Shinya asked. He was seriously considering seeing if they could leave the guy there for a week, webbed and gagged.

"Yep. Forced the Spider to come back, grabbed him off the wall, threw him towards the light, and then webbed him to it. The Pro started mouthing off before his mouth was gagged by the webbing. Not a soul tried to get him down, even after the collapse. He got down because the webbing dissolved after two hours."

Shinya laughed at that. He could tell that Hayate was impressed and liked the hero. And that was a challenging thing to do. He couldn't fault him for it either since he felt the same way.

"The Spider seemed to know about the danger before anyone else, always on the move to deal with one emergency or another before it happened. Even ones he shouldn't have known about." Hayate said, obviously confused and intrigued about how it was done.

"Yes, when I first met up with him, I was shocked when he threw the kids out, but he knew what was going to happen before I even saw the signs. And he knew exactly where to go when that support beam had melted. He didn't have to search for it."

Though there was one fault that Shinya could think of, it was more in why it was missed. "Did you find out what the deal was with that last kid? The Spider seemed to know where everyone else was, but that kid seemed to slip through."

Hayate sighed, "Turns out she's got a quirk that acts like a null zone around her. It can cut off things like sound, light, or other spectrums. She hid in the cabinet and activated her quirk, something one of her parents taught her to do when an emergency happened, and she didn't know what was happening."

"So she was practically invisible. Probably to whatever the Spider used to find people." Shinya said.

"Yeah. We're just glad she stopped using her quirk as the cabinet started falling, and he got to her in time."

"Actually, he started moving towards her before she turned it off."

Hayate paused at that, surprised. "What? How do you know?"

"Because I only had less than a second from when I heard her to when she disappeared. It was why I couldn't get to her in time. If she had been a fraction of a second earlier, I would have been the one to catch her," Shinya said. Hayate knew he was speaking the truth; he did not exaggerate. There was no point in his eyes. "She had barely dipped out of sight before he was there."

"Does he have some sort of precognition?" Hayate speculated.

"Maybe, I don't know. But what else can you tell me? Like, how strong is he? He was holding that building up for about a minute, mostly by himself and whatever those metal legs were," Shinya asked.

"The engineers estimated that the weight he had to hold up was forty-five to eighty metric tons." That was a weight class that was well beyond most pros.

"Speaking of the legs, here's the most important part of that entire fiasco," Hayate said as he looked Shinya in the eye, trying to stress the importance of this. "All of this stuff we've seen to some degree or not, but the last part of that incident made the engineers go nuts. I kid you not; when they saw the recording, everyone shut up and couldn't take their eyes off the footage. They then put that video under a microscope and would only tell me one thing. Nanites."

Shinya was not an expert in engineering or technology, but he knew what nanites were and that they were potentially a big deal. Nanites were something that scientists and engineers had been working on for decades and had yet to be successful. And Shinya had just seen the usage of them five hours ago. That made this an explosive matter.

They already had the Hero Public Safety Commission involved with the other part of this disaster, which he did not want them involved with. "Did you make sure they knew not to talk about it?"

"Yes, I stressed that this was a sensitive matter, and they seemed to understand."

"Good," Shinya said as he started making his way out of the room. "I'm going to make some calls."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Mommy! Daddy!"

Sosaki Shino, in her turtleneck sweater that was loose around her neck, knee-length skirt, dark leggings, and some heeled shoes, grabbed her nephew and prevented him from running to his parents. They had just arrived and were currently being wheeled to the emergency room. They had come by airlift, and by chance, they encountered them as they were transporting them. Her shock at seeing them in that state had made her lose her hold on him.

"You need to wait, Kota-chan." She knew it was hard, but they had to let the doctors do their job. "Let's ask a doctor if they can tell us anything, okay, sweetheart?"

Izumu Kota, a young boy of five years of age with short dark hair like his father, was hesitant, shaking in fear ever since they received the call. But he put on a brave face as he nodded. She smiled at him, proud of his courage, as she led him to find someone to tell them what was happening.

It took some time, and various nurses and doctors tried to redirect the two to an appropriate physician until they found someone that filled them in. The doctor informed them that they both had severe injuries from broken bones, contusions, and some internal damage, but their lives were not in danger. They were still trying to treat and categorize the damage for a better assessment.

Shino hugged her nephew in relief, knowing it could have been far worse. All she knew was that her cousins had fought a dangerous villain and were injured. Those situations could lead to horrible outcomes in their profession. As she held Kota, she noticed he wasn't as relieved as she was. She did not want to make him think he might have lost his parents, especially when they would be okay. "They'll be okay, Kota! They just need rest." This calmed him, though she doubted he would be okay until he was in his parent's arms.

At this point, the rest of her team approached her, all in civilian clothes. They all looked worried for the hero team, Kota and her. She smiled at them, appreciating their support in this situation.

"How are they?" asked Tatsumo Ryuko, their team's blue-eyed, long-haired blonde and primary troublemaker. Out of costume, she wore an attractive but still modest sleeveless blouse with a v-neck that did not show cleavage and a skirt that went to her knees. Her hero's name was Pixie-Bob.

Her other two teammates stood next to and behind her. There was Shiretoko Tomoko, who had large round eyes and long green hair. She was wearing a simple string-strapped sundress. She was their team's eccentric and fun-loving member, almost always sporting a smile. Though, her smile was somewhat muted as she waited for the news. Her hero's name was Ragdoll.

Her last teammate was the only male on their team, and he was tall and muscular, with short brown hair and a triangular-shaped goatee. His casual clothes included a t-shirt with a cat's face and knee-height shorts. He is Chatora Yawara, who also went by the hero name of Tiger.

Shino turned to Ryuko and addressed her question. "Banged up badly, but they should be fine." They all smiled at that, glad to hear the news. That was also when Shino's work phone rang. Curious to know who was calling her at this time and hoping it wasn't an emergency that she and her team needed to deal with, she answered it. "Hello? Mandalay speaking."

"This is Endeavor." Shino lost any semblance of a smile, knowing the ass was royal. "I need you to meet me at Iyashi no Sato as soon as possible."

Shino was well aware of the village her cousin guarded, so she needed clarification why she would be required there. "Why do I need to meet you there?" She almost asked if she needed to deal with the villain or something, but that made no sense since this was Endeavor.

"The villain was stopped by an unknown, most likely underaged and unlicensed girl." Now that started to make some sense, but Endeavor still wouldn't care about her presence if it was just that. "But some possible details about the girl make the case more sensitive than normal. She may have been lost or kidnapped. For years." Ah, the final piece to explain why she would be called instead of Endeavor handling it himself.

"Why are you not leaving it to the police to investigate?" While heroes could help with investigations, it was usually left to the police to do the questioning and legwork. That was their job, after all.

"Timing and familiarity. I requested Detective Tsukauchi to help with the investigation, but he's been drawn to another case. He's sending one of his deputies by car, but he will not arrive for several hours. We need more information as soon as possible. Not to mention your team's quirks could prove useful to the situation, either for further investigation or if the girl decides to run."

Shino sighed, acknowledging the sound reasoning. "I was taking care of Izumi Kota, and we only just heard the initial prognosis of my cousins. It will take me a little time to find someone to watch over him."

"Understood." While Enji usually did not show it, he was a father and knew juggling children could get complicated. "I am authorizing and preparing transport to speed up your arrival once you are ready. You'll be contacted about the details shortly."

Shino knew the situation was handled, but there were a few unanswered questions about the ordeal. Both for herself and Kota. "Endeavor, I've only gotten bare bones about the incident; what can you tell me about what happened?"

"I don't have much, the young girl may have a strengthening quirk that allowed her to beat Muscular, but we don't know the strength of her quirk or any other details."

While it didn't register with her immediately, she almost dropped her phone in shock when the villain's name finally connected with who he was. Her teammates looked very concerned, and her eyes began to water as she looked over to where Kota was being hugged by Tomoko. She knew who Muscular was; most higher-tier heroes were regularly informed of severe threats like him. Her cousin's battered body was easily explained by having run into a villain like him. The fact that they were alive was what was surprising. And she was very, very thankful for that.

"Thank you," Shino said to Endeavor, far more softly than she ever expected to treat the Pro-Hero. "We'll be there as soon as we can."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Ai-chan?"

Ai looked up from the medical reports she reviewed to see her husband standing by one of the nurse's desks in his white doctor's coat. His face showed his apparent Japanese descent, but it always sported a kind smile matched by his gray eyes. His hair was a little longer than most men wore theirs, having a length of about ten centimeters, and was black with strings of gray beginning to form. The only feature of his that stood out was more pronounced laugh lines inherited from his mother.

Usually, she would be mindful of her public image and showing affection, but today's stress made her not give a damn. She made her way to him and hugged him deeply. He put his arms around her and rocked her side to side. They stayed like that for a bit while her staff smiled softly or politely ignored it, knowing she needed it.

When enough of her stress had been released, they separated from the hug, though they still held each other at arm's length. "That bad, eh?" Kenji asked her as he smiled softly at his wife.

"It was nearly far worse," Ai said. She avoided looking him in the face as she remembered all the injuries she had seen. "We were fortunate."

"Oh?" Kenji asked, curious. He had heard that there had been a villain attack with dozens of injured civilians. When he heard a rumor that his wife was also on the scene, he knew her day off had been royally ruined. He wished to go see her as soon as he had heard, but two things prevented him from doing so: he still had to complete his shift at the hospital and knew that Ai would not want to be interrupted like that.

Ai took him over to her desk, where she sat in her chair while he pulled an available chair nearby. She then told him everything that happened with Sakura from beginning to end. To hear the girl had a healing quirk that, while maybe not as immediate or thorough as his mother's, was more versatile and worked on patients his mother would not have been able to use on them.

When Ai went over the critically wounded, two of them at death's door due to blood loss, only to be pulled back and on the road to a solid recovery, he smiled. Then to hear of the reattaching of the boy's arm and how he almost immediately regained usage of it. All Kenji could do was get out of his seat and hug her again, letting her head rest against his stomach. While not the same kind of stress as watching patients die and being unable to do anything about it, it was still there.

After another minute of cuddling, she pushed him back to the chair to continue the story. She told him that most patients were on the way to recovery. However, all of the critically injured parties were being held long enough to ensure there were no inadvertent side effects or the chance Sakura's quirk reversed itself. She even told him the villain was recovering slowly after surgery on his shattered mandible. After seeing what he had done to his victims, Ai felt no sympathy for his long road to recovery.

Then she came to the part that was adding to her current stress: the condition of Sakura and the fact that she was handcuffed to her bed while the police patiently waited for her to wake up. While he squawked in outrage on first hearing of it, he calmed down after hearing the detectives' reasoning.

When her story finally came to a close, Kenji got up to put a hand on his wife's shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Ai-chan." He received one of her radiant smiles and a hand on his. Then he ruined it in an act of betrayal. "Still haven't eaten anything since breakfast, right?"

"I have too!" she squealed in outrage, using the hand that had been holding him to instead hit him in the stomach.

"She's lying," Kenji smirked as he looked over at the nurse who said that. Ai turned a death glare in their direction, but they hadn't even bothered to look up from the paperwork she was working on.

"I have! I had…" She started turning pink as she had difficulty remembering what she had eaten. "... a banana," she said weakly, knowing she would lose this battle.

"Half a banana," the same nurse said, still not looking up, though Kenji could see the slight smirk on her lips. Then Ai was further betrayed, though this time by her body growling in hunger.

Kenji chuckled as he stepped away to leave. "I'll get us some dinner." He turned to the nurse, "Junko-chan, do you want anything?"

"A few yogurts would be appreciated, Shuzenji-san."

Kenji nodded as he started to turn away, only to almost be run over by another of his wife's nurses. "Sorry, Shuzenji-san, but I need to talk to Shuzenji-sensei."

Ai had heard that and stepped closer to see what her nurse needed in such a hurry. "What is it, Keiko-san?"

"She's waking up! She exited out of deep sleep when I examined her just now, so it could be any second now."

Ai's attention was undoubtedly grabbed, as her excitement and nervousness skyrocketed before her professionalism took over. Turning to her husband, she requested a change to the order. "Get something for Sakura as well, Kenji? I imagine she will be famished."

"Certainly! Anything for our local hero!" Kenji chuckled as he left.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Hello?"

"Hello, Dr. Shields. I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time?" Shinya asked.

"No," David Shields chuckled, curious why he was being contacted on one of his secured and private lines. "How can I help you, Edgeshot?"

"We… have a situation," Shinya said, waiting for David to confirm.

"Go on."

"An incident in Toyonaka, Osaka province, led to an apartment building collapse. While there were a few fatalities, those were only due to the initial blast. Early estimates are that most of the people that were in there should have died, but other than the initial fatalities, everyone was safely evacuated."

David smiled at that but knew Shinya was setting up the context for him, so he didn't interrupt.

"The one who got everyone out safely was a foreign hero we have no record of, and his abilities do not match any known quirks. His observed abilities, such as sticking to walls or enhanced strength, aren't unique. He also seemed to be able to shoot some webbing out of his wrists that we are unsure whether they are a product of his quirk or a support item at this time."

"Interesting, but I suspect there is more?" David asked.

"Yes, he seemed to have precognitive capabilities, but we don't know whether they are due to his quirk. But the main reason for contacting you is his suit."

"His suit? What was special about it?"

"At first glance, it looks like a well-designed, skin-tight, full-body suit. Both aesthetically and practically. The lenses have some fine machinery, which cannot be created at home or in simple shops. But those are the simple parts. There was another component of his costume that flowed across his body, almost like water, that could form legs that acted as a brace to help hold the building up at one point."

"That… is fascinating, and I think I would love to see those," David said.

"I am sure you would, especially since they separated and acted independently, away from the hero."

That surprised David. It also made David realize why he had been told about the hero's abilities. Either the hero had multiple quirks, or he had multiple advanced support items that supplemented the hero. And if Edgeshot tried to hint that the legs had been a support item, that meant there were few possibilities, some of which shouldn't be possible.

"Detective Tanaka Hayate was on the case, and he had been talking with some engineers helping to evaluate the situation. They were shown a video of the end of the incident, where the legs jumped out of the building, intercepted the hero, and flowed into him, then shot the leggings out of the back to stop his fall. Once he was on the ground, they flowed back and reformed part of his suit. The engineers combed over that, and they could only come to one conclusion: nanites."

"Shit," David said, as his hand rubbed his forehead. The only reason he wasn't calling the powers that be was that Shinya had contacted him directly, and it was in the hands of someone who saved many lives. If it was nanites, the situation could become messy and explode into political power grabs, criminal activity, or world-ending affairs, depending on what was happening.

Shinya chuckled at David's response, having much the same reaction.

"So you want me to come over to help evaluate or contain the situation?" David asked.

"Evaluation. The hero was also American with an east coast accent if I had to place it. We need to limit contact until we can properly evaluate the situation."

"Understood," David said before a thought came to him. "Please send some fake but believable data through my secure email. If this turns into a situation where we don't want outside hands to know, sending real data is dangerous."

While Shinya was less well-versed in tech than some, he was proficient. He needed to be for some of the infiltration missions he performed to get sensitive data without criminals being aware. He was also aware of why David was asking him to do it. "Already prepared. I've also had Detective Tanaka and anyone we've had contact with start to create false trails and delete some of the sensitive data. But some of the videos are already out, so we just have to hope no one catches on for now. I will try to have the real data available for you when you arrive so you can review it on the way."

"Thank you, I should be on my way in an hour or two. See you soon, Edgeshot."

"You as well, Dr. Shields."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Todroki Enji made for an imposing figure as he stepped off the helicopter. He was tall for most Japanese, but coupled with that were his broad shoulders, intense stare, and the fact that part of his body was always on fire. He wore a tight, navy turquoise bodysuit that showed off his muscular form but had stripes of lava red going up and down the suit. His flames accentuated it; primarily, his heavy boots and shoulders were aflame. His face had a beard and domino mask created by his quirk. His short but spiky red hair was visible. He moved forward as the rotors started their spindown behind him.

The Mayor was trying to withstand the wind and barely succeeding but greeted the Pro-Hero. "Thank you for coming, Endeavor!"

Enji was all about being professional, which meant first dealing with the primary threats. "Where is Muscular?"

"He's over there," Daichi said as he pointed at the edge of town, "the police have him cordoned off, and the restraints are still on their way; they should be just a few minutes out from what I heard last."

Enji walked toward the direction the Mayor had pointed while he observed the status of the village. The quaintness of the village had obviously been disturbed but wasn't as bad as it could have been, considering the villain involved. Several buildings had obviously been destroyed or badly damaged, while a few showed signs of significant repair already being performed. He was known to go over the top with his destruction, both the surroundings and the people he targeted.

"What were the casualties?" Endeavor asked as they walked along.

"Sheriff Koji looks to have a cracked skull and is in critical condition. The Izumi's took some bad hits and several broken bones, but they aren't in critical condition. Those three have been airlifted already. We have an assortment of bruises and a few broken bones, but that was the most of it." Daichi relayed the information to the pro-hero as they walked. "It is due to the Izumi's that Koji even survived. They kept Muscular pro-occupied and got everyone away."

"Well done. Especially considering how outmatched they were." He didn't give it often, but he was not above praising the actions of other heroes, especially when so clearly outmatched. They appeared at the edge of town and saw police and a few other pro-heroes surrounding the place Muscular had been driven into the hill. "What of the girl?"

"She's… started to get restless, I think. She appears all over, watching people work and asking odd questions." Daichi sighed in concern, "she's acting like a toddler."

Enji grunted but decided to save that for later. As they were nearing the site, they noticed some additional police vehicles had just arrived, with several officers removing heavy-duty restraints. Enji looked over where Muscular had been embedded into a crater that was vertical and deep enough to crack the hill's bedrock. Enji noticed multiple trees that had been knocked down on what must have been the path he was sent. This confirmed his belief that the girl likely had a strength quirk. A powerful one at that.

He looked at Muscular as he rested there, noting the destroyed eye, broken nose, and bruised face. The damage around the villain's eye didn't match the rest of his injuries; it looked more like it was torn out and not an impact. Enji crossed his arms and waited for the police. They had set up the restraint system and were just reaching out to touch him when Enji noticed some twitching.

"Back off!" Enji yelled as his flames rose, preparing to attack the villain. It was good he had warned them, as no sooner had the men retreated their arms that Goto thrashed as he awoke. His one good eye had a crazed look as he tried to process his situation, his face twisting in agony as one of his hands went to his gut while his body shook. It took several seconds before his eye could focus again, and he could see the police around him.

Goto sneered in contempt until he noticed the hero pointing a ball of fire at him with his right hand. It took a few seconds for his mind to piece together who this was. Goto looked concerned before his face changed again, this time to resolve. Enji had seen it enough times in the past. Goto would go down fighting, taking as many with him as he could. Enji watched the villain, waiting for the twitch of his muscles to indicate when he would fight when the man's eyes tracked to somewhere else. His face morphed to fear as the man, still cradling his stomach, tried to back away deeper into his crater.

"St–sta--stay b--ba--ack!" Goto stuttered in terror.

The villain wasn't even paying him any attention. He was looking to Enji's left. Seeing that he didn't appear prepared to do anything but cower, he took a chance to look to his left. All he saw was a short red-headed girl with a pigtail a few steps behind him, leaning to peek around his frame. She appeared relaxed and gave the villain a warm smile.

"Hi, dumbass!" Ranma replied cheerfully; her eyes closed, and her smile widened. The villains gibbering increased in volume. "Are you going to behave and let these nice officers arrest you? Or do you want to play again?"

"Ar–arrest me! J–just keep her aw--away from me!"

The officers with the restraints looked stupefied as the villain held his hands toward them while never taking his eyes off the girl. They didn't know what to do, so they looked to Enji for directions. The pro-hero was confused but nodded at the officers while still pointing the ball of fire at the villain. They moved slowly at first, almost everyone holding their breath as the officers attached the restraints until they were properly fastened. They double and triple-checked the restraints so that no mistakes were made. Once they were sure, they led the villain toward the armored truck. They had trouble keeping up with the villain as he seemed more eager than they were to get in it.

The officers and pro-heroes breathed a sigh of relief, though they all turned to look as the young girl walked away. She started whistling as she put her arms behind her head and headed towards the village.

Enji felt a familiar emotion just then: extreme annoyance. To add to it was that that emotion was usually reserved for dealing with the antics of his rival, All Might. How the man had upstaged him at every turn without even trying.

Now came a tiny girl that made a mass murderer flinch in fear while he stood imposingly before him. The man had been more afraid of her than possible immolation, and all she had done was smile at him. Letting his emotions drive him, he followed behind her.

"Stop, girl!" Enji commanded her, having reached the edge of town before he had caught up. The girl paused in her walking as she tilted her head back to look at him. He stopped just behind her as he stared down into her eyes. He was over fifty centimeters taller than her and over twice her mass, but she didn't show an ounce of fear when she looked up at him. She looked bored. "We need to ask you some questions, and you need to answer them."

Ranma shrugged before her head righted itself, and she continued walking towards the village. "Sure, but I'm going to get something to eat first. I'm starved."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ai sat in the chair next to Sakura and waited. She was alone in the room after kicking out the officers and the detective. She wanted to be sure Sakura woke up to a friendly face. She sat in the dark as she considered the situation that was Sakura.

She knew she was strong, both physically and mentally. She had shown up out of nowhere and had been in a fight. She had been confused, revealing to Ai that she had not expected to be where she was. Then when the screams had started, the girl had leaped to both stop the criminal and save dozens of strangers.

Ai had suspicions that she was both a trained fighter and a medic. Her strength and quirk made her astonishing at both, but she was still kind. But of all that she knew of Sakura, one thing bothered her greatly. She was so young!

To be as strong as she was, took years of training. That meant the girl had been trained vigorously from a very young age. Ai was familiar with the eyes of soldiers and professionals; those were what she saw when she first met her. How much of the girl's younger years were taken from her to turn her into this? How much of a choice did she have?

The fact she had no known history in any of their systems meant that whoever trained her hid her from the world. Most likely to prevent interrupting the weapon they were developing. That angered Ai deeply.

The mother of two never lost her maternal instincts. They screamed at her to protect and comfort the girl, but she didn't know what to do. If she pushed too hard, the girl could respond negatively and run, not seeing the harm in how she was raised. Doing too little could result in the same thing. What Ai needed was information.

She needed Sakura to reveal enough so they could get a clearer idea of her situation. She knew asking too many questions, or the wrong kind of questions, could also push her away. The detective was a good man, but he might overdo it.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft knock on the door. Looking up, she softly called out for them to come in. Her husband entered, though she could still see the detective and some officers waiting outside. Kenji had three trays of food he was juggling, so Ai got up to relieve him of one of the trays.

"Which one is for Sakura-chan?"

Kenji pointed his head at the tray cradled in his arms, so she carefully relieved him of it as she set it down on Sakura's table beside her bed. She opened it up to find it full of scrambled eggs, bananas, watermelon cubes, kale and spinach salad, and some oat bread.

She smiled as she put the lid back on and moved to relieve her own tray from Kenji, kissing him on the cheek as she did so. "Thank you." He gave another of his warm smiles as he carefully moved another chair close to his wife. The two ate quietly as they waited, knowing that Sakura could wake up at any moment now.

They were halfway through their meal when Sakura started to softly moan. Ai set her dinner to the side and moved up next to the girl. Her head was turning this way and that as she fully came awake. Her eyes opened, though only in slits, and her face cringed. Obviously a case of dizziness and a headache.

"Hello, Sakura-chan," she said softly.

"Shuzenji-san?" Sakura asked, trying to focus on the doctor's face. The girl started bringing her hands up to her head when the one handcuffed to the bed clinked and jerked her hand to a stop. After a moment, the girl looked at the cuffs and then turned to look at Ai with questions in her eyes.

"The police did that as a precaution, dear. They were worried you would leave before they could ask you some questions." Ai used one of her hands to caress her hair softly, trying to calm her worries. It hurt Ai a little to see her breathe in and give in to the inevitable, but that was better than some other reactions she had predicted. "I have some food for you; it will get your energy up and help you recover faster."

Sakura looked to the side and saw the tray and the table sitting there, "Thanks."

Ai raised the back of the bed so that Sakura could sit up, then moved the table in front of her and released the lid. The girl took a fork with her available hand and dug into the food with gusto.

"My husband and I were just eating our own meal over here, so once you are finished, if you are up for it, we can have the detective come in to ask you those questions. Is that alright, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura finished chewing and eating her current bite, then turned to inspect the man, seeing him give a kind smile while he sat to the side. "Okay."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

<"Edgeshot-san?">

A tap on his shoulder woke Shinya from his small nap at the hospital. He was sitting on some chairs a few doors down from where the pro-hero had been resting. Shinya turned to the person that had woken him. The question was repeated. <"Edgeshot-san?">

<"Yes?"> Shinya asked in a soft voice.

<"The hero has woken up,"> the nurse said as he took a step back, giving Shinya plenty of space to stand up.

<"Good,"> Shinya said as he stretched his limbs momentarily. Shinya thanked the nurse before quietly making his way to the designated room. He slid the door open and stepped inside. There, he saw an exasperated doctor conversing with the other hero.

"You need take off mask," the doctor said in broken English.

"I'm sorry, sir, I can't do that," the hero said as he held his hands up in apology, obviously trying to calm the man down.

<"Miya-sensei?"> The doctor turned to regard Shinya, <"I can handle it from here.">

The doctor sighed before walking to the door. <"I still haven't been able to properly evaluate him. If you get him to take his suit off, please inform us.">

<"Certainly."> Shinya waited until the doctor had entirely left before turning back to the hero, fidgeting on the bed. "Hello again."

"Ummm, hi?" Again, the tenor of his voice made Shinya suspicious about the hero's age. One of the many oddities to him. "Where am I?"

"You are in a hospital in Toyonaka."

"Ummm, where is that?"

"In Osaka Prefecture, Japan."

"... crap."

Shinya could only chuckle lightly. "I take it you were not expecting to be here? Where were you expecting to be?"

"New York," the young man responded.

"I take it you are American, then?"

"Yeah, I was swinging when I suddenly popped up here." The hero paused for a moment, seeming to consider his words. "Do you seriously not know who I am?"

"No. Should I?" That was a curious question that presupposed that the hero expected to be known, even here in Japan.

The young man put his hand to his chin as he seemed to be thinking deeply, obviously trying to work out the situation. "That doesn't make any sense… Doctor Strange said… he didn't say anything about… this is confusing."

"Doctor… Strange?" Shinya asked, folding his arms as he stepped up next to the bed. "Who is that?"

The hero looked up, and Shinya couldn't use his face to tell how he was reacting, but his body language was easy to read. "What? You know! Doctor Strange!? From the Avengers?"

"I have no idea who that is or who the Avengers are." Shinya remained calm, knowing that while the information he was getting made no sense in the current context, it seemed essential to the hero. It helped paint a clearer idea of what was occurring.

"What!? How can you not know who– but–"

"What are their quirks? What do they look like? We may be dealing with a translation issue."

"Huh? What do you mean by quirks? Their mannerisms or personality? How would that help?"

Shinya had to admit the eyes had confused him as to why they seemed to contract and focus at times. But now he realized it actually helped him to notice some of the facial expressions he made. They most likely worked when the boy's eyes widened or narrowed. It was an exciting piece of technology.

His question confused him, though, "Their abilities? The ones they were born with? Like this?" Shinya held up his hand as it thinned to become like a thread before returning it. "I was sure Americans used Quirk to define them?"

"Their abilities, oh you me– wait, born with? Uhhh, they weren't born with their abilities… well, maybe Thor…."

"So they were born quirkless?" A hero team that was quirkless? Maybe that was why he hadn't heard of them? "That's curious."

"Quirkless, I don't understand what you are ta– oh… no. No. No, no, no, no, no!"

"Are you alright?" Shinya was getting concerned because the hero was beginning to freak out.

"Oh fuck!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Author's Note -

Chapter 2 is out. Current plan is for Chapter 3 to release next week on Sunday, with Chapter 2 posting to FF.net on Saturday. Chapter 3 is 15k while Chapter 4 (still some editing and grammarly to run) is 25k+. After Chapter 3 is released, I will probably slow the release schedule to 2 weeks, possibly more after that.

Depends on how much time I have. Chapter length really depends on what the goal of the chapter is and making sure I get all the necessary bits in. So length will vary, but 10k is about the minimum, average will probably be 15-20k.

I ended up posting on FF.Net under MHA and Spider-man, even though Naruto has a larger cross-over section. I know there are a lot of people that hate Sakura out there, some of which I can agree with, but mostly put that at Kishimoto's feet for under utilizing her and limiting her. I've also heard hints that his editor made him concentrate more heavily on Sasuke as well, which I am sure might have eaten up time that could have been used for Sakura more. This story will try to make her closer to what she should have been and beyond.

One thing that I was shooting for, is using honorifics and trying to keep the Japanese culture relatively intact based on the manga of MHA. I've tried to strive for accuracy on them, but please let me know if I am getting things wrong. With it being 150 years in the future, I can imagine more melting of other cultures, especially American, into things, so it doesn't bother me too much.

Some of the things that might be off is because I was stuck on how to write things, like Ai and Kenji. Both should normally receive the sensei title, since they are both doctors (not revealing what type Kenji is yet), but when you have an environment where people have the same last name and title, usually something is done to diversify them. The more senior or those that are in charge tend to get the title, so I had them give Kenji -san. If they went to the other's office, he would receive sensei while Ai would receive -san.

Why I have decided to use honorifics has much to do with how much subtlety is invoked by their usage that I like. But for those unfamiliar with it, it can be confusing. I am considering giving a Key or something at the end of one of my chapters for a quick breakdown for readers unfamiliar with it. Let me know if you think it is a good idea.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 3 - Interrogation​

Shinya was worried as he sat outside the spider hero's room. He had shut down after his freakout over something. Some revelation about his situation that he hadn't shared. He hadn't even gotten his name or his hero name; that would hopefully make things easier. The case was too puzzling; they made no sense on their own. And too many of those pieces were worrisome.

First was his suit, just because of the implications of what it could mean. Shinya hadn't even gotten close to asking anything about that, so he was still left in the dark. But because of his suit, he was limited on whom he could contact. Functional nano-machines were a terrible– horrifying weapon in the wrong hands. That meant only a limited number of people could know. As far as Shinya knew, only himself, Detective Tanaka, the engineers, and Dr. Shields were mindful of what they might be. It didn't mean others couldn't piece it together, so they had to act fast.

Then there was the fact that the hero was too young to be an adult. His limited communication made it difficult to tell, but the more they conversed, the more it solidified in his mind. The chances of him being licensed were dwindling, making the boy's actions not something he could publicly praise as the young hero deserved. Shinya had yet to even get to thank him for his help. The conversation had quickly been derailed.

While being an American was not pertinent, other than dealing with his license, the additional information he learned was currently making him try to work out scenarios in his head. He had talked about an unknown hero and a hero team called the Avengers as if they were people he should know.

From how the hero described it, he had just popped up in their city; thus, he was a displaced American citizen. Easy enough to deal with, and warping quirks certainly exist that could cause a situation like that. But his reaction to quirks was the real kicker to his problem.

Shinya hoped it was a translation problem, but his gut told him it wouldn't be that simple. He tried to think of plausible scenarios where, if you took what the boy said at face value could account for it, and there were too many problems sticking out. His brain started going with more… implausible scenarios, but they still had complications.

His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Detective Tanaka. <"Edgeshot, how's the hero?">

<"Worrisome,"> Shinya said, making Hayate raise his eyebrow. Shinya then informed the Detective of what had happened when he conversed with him and shared his thoughts on what was going on.

<"That… is worrisome,"> Hayate said, certainly agreeing with the pro-heroes thoughts. <"My initial reaction is to claim he's delusional or lying. I would even suggest getting a doctor here to make a psych evaluation… if it wasn't for his suit.">

<"Yes. Most of the scenarios I've thought of have one glaring problem or another,"> Shinya sighed as he looked downwards. <"The easiest way to resolve this is to ask him more questions. But I am worried it is just going to make it worse.">

Hayate could go for a drink now, but they had work to do. <"At least Dr. Shields should be here soon; I got a call that his plane landed about twenty minutes ago. ETA of ten to fifteen minutes. Hopefully, he can give us a quick enough evaluation, even if the hero doesn't answer any more questions.">

<"Indeed,"> Shinya exited his seat and moved towards the hero's door. <"By the way, how's your English?">

<"Pretty good,"> Hayate said as he followed the pro-hero into the room, closing the door behind him. He looked at the other hero as he sat there with his head in his hands.

"Feeling a little better?" Shinya asked, a few feet from the bed.

The hero looked up slightly before his head lowered again. "Kinda."

"Let's get some things out of the way first. We… got derailed from some of what I wanted to talk to you about earlier," Shinya said. "First off, let's do some introductions. My hero name is Edgeshot, while my real name is Kamihara Shinya. Or Shinya Kamihara might be more familiar to you. In Japan, we say our family name first, followed by our personal name."

"Right, I remember reading about that in a world history book about different cultures." The boy was sitting on the bed with his legs crossed and hands in his lap as he spoke to them.

"The man behind me in a trench coat is Detective Tanaka Hayate. He's the police detective in charge of the destruction of that apartment building." Hayate gave a friendly nod and a smile behind him. He had shoulder-length brown hair that was swept to the side. His features were sharp compared to most but weren't too extreme like some quirks would cause.

"Oh, hi. I hope everyone is doing okay from that?" The hero asked.

Hayate spoke up this time, "Mostly. We'll get to that soon; we don't want to get sidetracked again."

"Oh– right! My bad!"

"Anyways, we were hoping you could tell us your name?" Shinya chuckled; the kid was energetic, kind, and polite. If he had or could get a hero license, he would be fun to watch and work with.

"Oh! Umm… I'm… Spider-man," the teenager answered.

They waited a moment, but the teen didn't want to elaborate. "Can you tell us your real name?"

The aptly named 'Spider-man' turned his head to the side while an arm propped it up. He was trying to think of how to answer, so the two let him. "Umm, I'd really rather not. At this moment." He seemed sad and apologetic.

The pro-hero and Detective looked at each other before the Detective asked the question they both had, "Can you tell us why not?"

"Ummm, it's complicated. Really complicated." The hero looked at the two. They were obviously hoping for him to uncomplicate it, at least somewhat. "Let's just say I was bitten in the ass really hard by people knowing my identity recently. And I don't know what my current situation is right now."

That was reasonable enough, though that was obviously a loaded answer. They shared another look, with Hayate indicating with his eyes that Shinya should continue. The pro was really hoping this wasn't going to end up badly.

"How… old are you?"

"Ummm, eighteen?" Spider-man answered.

He certainly didn't sound eighteen, but people's bodies came in all shapes and sizes, so his voice sounding younger was easily believable. They decided to save that for later. "Do you have a pro-hero license?"

"A… what? Pro-hero license? Something from the Sokovia accords?"

"Sokovia?" Hayate asked, clearly another word they weren't familiar with.

"Oh, right, you guys probably don't have that. Then, no, I don't think I have a license– oh crap, am I in trouble?"

"No," Hayate answered quickly, "not at this time, and if I can help it, not ever." Hayate breathed deeply before he looked at Spider-man in the… lenses. "This is one of the other things we wanted to do. We wanted to thank you. We don't have the full evaluation yet, but you saved quite possibly over a hundred lives this morning. Even one more death from that chaban geki would have been bad. A hundred?"

"More? Some people died?" Spider-man seemed to collapse in on himself on hearing it.

"Nothing you could have done. They died before you even got to the building. Only two died at the apartment building and died on impact or falling debris. Some residents are still in critical condition, but last I heard, they are expected to pull through."

"Wait, impact? Was it shot at? Well, the debris scattering inside hinted at it, but I didn't have time to properly evaluate it," the young man seemed to mumble on that last part as he thought it over.

"Yes, it was due to a stray shot from another incident several kilometers away. Edgeshot handled that incident, but he couldn't get away for a time to check on it. I don't want to go over it now; it isn't very relevant to our situation." Spider-man nodded, realizing it needed to be tabled for now.

There was a buzzing noise from the Detective, who took out his smartphone to look at it before putting it away again. "We've got a situation on our hands. Regarding you," Hayate said as he looked at Spider-man in the lenses. "That was a text from an expert we called in. He just arrived at the hospital and will arrive in a few minutes. We'll leave that until he arrives, but your conversation with Edgeshot earlier raised another one."

Shinya picked up the conversation, "What do you call your abilities?"

"Umm… superpowers? At least as a general term." Spider-man answered after a moment's thought.

"How did you… get these powers?"

"It's… complicated and kind of goes with my identity to a degree, so I don't want to give any details. But… it was due to an accident."

"When I talked about quirks, you realized something. What did you realize?"

Spider-man sighed as he looked at his hands, obviously debating what to say. "I… it's complicated and probably unbelievable for you guys."

"Give it a shot," Hayate said, "we're pretty open-minded."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Bullshit!"

Ranma shrugged her shoulders. If the jerk didn't want to believe her, that wasn't her problem. She continued on as she pulled a chef knife from the kitchen she was borrowing. She had asked the mayor guy where she could get some food, and he gave her carte blanche to use whatever she wanted. She felt like something other than junk food, so she used one of the local restaurants to make her own. They even prepped several dishes and ingredients, so it simplified it.

Using the knife, her hand blurred as she diced the vegetables razor thin and in less than a second, after adequately rinsing them as her mother had taught her. The big guy who had decided to follow her glared at her as she worked. If he was expecting her to make him something, too, he was sorely mistaken. He hadn't said 'please.'

Ranma would have been using the grill for the fish, but it seemed something was damaged in the fight, so it wasn't working. The stove, at least, was working, so she started cooking the fish and the egg and boiling the vegetables simultaneously. It still took a few minutes since the food had to cook properly, but soon she assembled her food along with a bowl of rice and miso soup that had already been prepared. She was rapidly moving between the tasks, her hands a blur at times.

The food dishes were tossed onto the counter where she was deciding to eat as she took the pans into the back and cleaned them in a few seconds. She got a pair of chopsticks out and ate her breakfast; all the while, the big guy that was on fire glared at her. At least the jerk was letting her eat her food in relative peace. She decided to forgo eating rapidly to extend the tranquility a little longer. Seeing him literally put out steam while she ate was a bonus she wouldn't admit to enjoying.

Once she was finished, she took the plates to the back and washed them before returning to sit on the same stool. "So, what's up?"

"You claim to be a hundred and fifty years in the future, and you ask me, 'What's up?' How about the truth, girl."

"Name's Ranma, by the way," she said as she spun around in her seat. The extra narrowing of the guy's eyes meant success. "And I did tell the truth. Went to bed last night on April 2nd, 1990. Woke up in the forest, tried to figure out where I was, beat the dumbass, then saw the date in the newspaper. No idea yet how it happened, but I'll figure it out and get back." She paused her spinning as she looked thoughtful, "I wonder who might have done it this time? Happy? Most likely. Gos? Is he even still around? Kuno?" She continued listing a few names as she tapped a finger on her chin in thought.

The big guy growled a bit before asking her another question, "Beyond the… date from where you come from, where do you live?"

"Eh? Oh, I live at the Tendo Dojo in Nerima. Well, usually. Sometimes I stay with Mom at our house, but the Tendo Dojo is where you normally find me."

"Why do you live at this Tendo Dojo? Is your family name Tendo?"

"No, I'm Saotome Ranma. We live there because my old man wants me to marry a Tendo. We've lived there a few years now."

The big guy seemed to think for a moment before asking her his next question, which Ranma was perfectly willing to let him do. "Did you see anything unusual about where you were in the forest? Any hints of anyone else being in the area?"

Ranma tilted her head a little as she thought of it. "Well, nothing seemed odd about the area, and I saw no signs of anyone being there."

"Do you know how you got to the forest, then?"

"Oh, sure! I landed there."

"Landed… but you said you woke up in the forest?"

"Yep!"

"Did you fall unconscious when you landed? That wouldn't sync with your earlier claim of not knowing how you got there."

"Eh? Oh, no, I was asleep when I landed."

"Then the landing woke you up."

"Nope!" Ranma was having fun messing with the guy. He seemed to keep making all sorts of silly assumptions while he was literally on fire.

"Then how do you know you landed?" The big guy was developing a tick above his eye as he tried to process her simple story.

"Because of the small groove in the ground I woke up in and the damaged tree. It wasn't a very large beech, only like five meters tall. Went through several of the main branches and damaged the trunk something fierce. I nearly hit a squirrel or something since it was pissed at me and was picking a fight. Woke me up, the little punk."

Ah, yes, that look again. The one of disbelief of telling someone just the tiniest nuggets of her life. Sometimes it was fun, like now, but usually, it was just annoying. Most people didn't seem to realize just how 'air quotes,' crazy life could get, believing everything fit into their narrow understanding of the world. But once they started to experience a fraction of her life, even just witnessing from the sidelines, people tended to get used to what they called insanity. What she found aggravating was that the guy on fire disbelieved her.

And they thought Ryouga popping up out of the ground on a random school day, picking a fight, then asking her to help them with some bizarre scenario was insane. That's a Tuesday. Try random princes from kingdoms no one ever heard of before kidnapping your fiance, you, or both of you, just so he can marry them in some weird custom. Or, as one of the most horrible days of her life, a giant ghost cat wants to marry your Chinese Amazon fiance by trying to trap her as a cat, and you have to go on a date with the cat and kiss it!

Ranma's body shuddered at the memory, causing the fire guy to raise an eyebrow. "What was that about?"

"Just remembering something unpleasant."

"And what was it?"

"I ain't telling," Ranma said with finality as she crossed her arms. The guy was getting aggravated even further by evidence of him rubbing his forehead.

Ranma decided to do something proactive while he questioned her, so she put her hand on the seat, steadied it, lifted her body to cross her legs, and then twisted on the fulcrum of her shoulder until she was upside down. She spun the seat and then did some one-finger push-ups. The guy eyed her as she performed the task; annoyance, curiosity, and a minimal amount of respect appeared in his eyes.

"What is your quirk?"

"Huh? What do you mean quirk?" She turned her head to watch him as she spun, deciding that she wanted to up the ante and allow her to look at him more appropriately. She applied pressure to the top of the seat so it started to lift off its four solid legs onto two and then one leg. Then with two fingers, she started 'walking' on the rotating seat like it was a log.

"A quirk is the ability you are showing right now."

"How is training a quirk?" She tilted her head in confusion as she swapped hands without missing a beat.

"A quirk is the manifestation of your strength, speed, agility, and balance that you are currently displaying."

"You aren't making any sense, dude! How is training and skill an odd behavior? That is what it means, right?" She put her unused hand to her chin as she tried to think. Her other hand had her fingers start doing a dance number on the seat as it went along. "I think that was what they described the word as in school."

The guy used a full hand to rub his face for a few moments before he looked up with a glare at her. The squeaking of her seat spinning probably wasn't helping.

They were interrupted by a knock on the restaurant's door before it opened to show one of the officers. He did a double take as he looked at her, staring until the big guy coughed into his hand. With the spell broken, the officer reported, "Endeavor-san, we just received a report. The Pussycats are two minutes out."

She winced a fraction at the name, which the big guy seemed to have caught. Great, probably meant she'd have to deal with the little demons soon. And annoying questions that she wasn't going to answer. Nope! No way, no how! Not even if they threatened her with cats!

The big guy turned to the officer, "I'll meet them at the landing pad." He then turned to her, preparing to say something when he had a second thought. "Where did you land in the forest?"

She hummed as she thought of it, tapping her chin while grasping the chair firmly and stopping the spin. "I think it was northwest or west-northwest of here, about two to two and a half kilometers away." She tilted the seat back down and righted her body to be right side up.

"Thank you. Stay here."

"Eh, okay."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"You can come in now, Detective," a voice came through the door loud enough for him to hear.

Naomasa sighed as he stopped leaning against the wall, leaving his coat, hat, and gloves on the chair beside him. He nodded to his fellow officers before entering the room. He saw the two doctors sitting in chairs near the bed, their dinner meals on top of one of the tables, and the girl's meal. The girl, Sakura, was sitting up and giving him a bored look.

He would almost prefer her to be scared or startled since that would be easier to deal with. A bored look meant she knew what was coming and wasn't impressed. Considering the possibilities of the girl's origin, that wasn't good. But at least it wasn't anger.

"Hello, I am Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa. I understand your name is Haruna Sakura?"

"Yes."

"I apologize for the usage of the handcuffs, but it was felt due to the nature of the situation that there was a high chance of you attempting to run before we could question you."

"Yes, an exhausted girl in a hospital gown's first instinct will be to run to avoid questioning.." Sakura rolled her eyes at the Detective.

"Exactly." When Sakura looked Naomasa in the eyes, he returned it to show that he knew she was capable of such an action. After holding eye contact for a time, Sakura finally sighed.

"What do you want?"

"To know what you are and where you came from."

"Human."

"You know that is not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?"

"You are trained in combat to such a degree that you can move at high speed while delivering a hit that can shatter a jaw while at the same time controlling the strength of it so you don't go overboard. With your medical knowledge, you could have chosen less debilitating strikes with your strength to neutralize the criminal. But you also did not go for an immediate kill. This tells us you intended to do exactly what you did to him."

The girl remained silent as the Detective continued. "You are trained in field medicine to a high degree, even with the usage of your quirk. But you have zero records in any government system we have access to, which includes most of the world. That means your training was 'off the books.' Either a medical school not accredited by most of the world or personally trained by someone else."

"Additionally, you appeared out of nowhere, were on high alert, and then confused. You were also injured, acidic burns on your arm being the most obvious, with your clothing showing signs of combat from burns and cuts. Your equipment included various weapons, kunai and shuriken most notably, some scrolls and other equipment for performing surgeries."

Naomasa saw that Ai was worried about what he was saying but did not seem surprised. She had come to similar conclusions, at least.

"All of this, combined with your lack of reaction to my inquiry, means you were trained to deal with interrogation. We have people like that; we call them soldiers. Trained for warfare."
Naomasa waited to see if the girl would give a reaction, but she just continued to look bored.

"Soldiers are not unusual, and sometimes records of them are purged and hidden by their governments or groups. But there is one thing they are not. A child." That actually got a moment of confusion before she schooled her features. That was good.

"Child soldiers have been outlawed in almost every civilization on the planet. That means someone has illegally trained and weaponized you from an early age."

Naomasa sighed as he rubbed his head, relaxing a little from the interrogation. "Look, Haruna-san, our conflict is not with you, but whatever organization or individual turned you into this. I could have played the spy game and come off soft-handed while watching you, inserted tracking bugs into your clothing before returning them to you, or any other ways we would normally treat an unknown soldier or spy."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at that, so Naomasa continued. "I am playing straight with you, revealing my hand because of three things. First, your actions did stop a criminal and saved lives; we are very thankful for that. Second, whoever trained you did not make you a mere cold-blooded killer; otherwise, the criminal would be dead and likely would not have taken action to save so many civilians. Third, your age suggests you were either manipulated or had no choice in what you became."

The minor glare that Naomasa got from her from that last line meant she didn't like the insinuation. He had seen it before, just like most people or groups that came from cults or gangs.

"I need enough for us to evaluate whether we need to take action or not. The ends do not justify the means, Haruna-san. We take that seriously."

Sakura remained silent and continued giving him a level-headed look, obviously not budging. He hoped this wouldn't come to a fight, but her stubbornness and training would result in that outcome.

"Detective?"

Naomasa turned to Ai, "Yes?"

"Can I speak to Sakura-chan alone?"

"You may," Naomasa walked towards the door, holding it open for the other Shuzenji following him out, "I'll be right outside."

"Thank you, Detective."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"The multiverse?" That was not what Shinya had been expecting. Though he could have come to that conclusion eventually, it was so outrageously out there that it seemed the least likely explanation. Shinya looked at Hayate, who seemed even more dubious of the possibility. But he knew the Detective well enough that he wouldn't outright dismiss it. They needed more. "Do you have anything to offer that might be more proof?"

Spider-man almost replied instantly before he seemed to think about it further. "Maybe? I'd have to check with Karen if there is anything we could use to help prove it."

"Karen? Who is Karen?" Hayate asked.

"Oh, she's my suit," he said as he tapped on his chest plate.

"You're… suit?"

"Yeah, she runs a lot of functions on my suit for me," Spider-man said.

The pro-hero and Detective looked at each other, trying to figure out how to respond. They were interrupted by a knock on the door. Hayate walked over to it and opened it, showing Doctor David Shields standing outside.

The scientist was taller than most Japanese because he was Caucasian and from America, so his 185 cm was not unusual. He was of average build with unkempt brown hair and a small goatee on his face. He wore a dark blue shirt with a breast pocket, and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His pants were gray-blue jeans and some sneakers. He also sported some glasses.

"Ah, Detective Tanaka, I presume?" David asked before peeking inside and seeing Edgeshot as well. "May I come in?"

"Certainly, Doctor Shields," Hayate said as he stood to the side and waved him in. The Detective closed the door behind him.

After stepping in, David got his first look at the primary reason for his visit and was already impressed. He had worked on and designed hundreds of hero costumes to various degrees in the past, and the one in front of him was one of the best he had ever seen. Aesthetically it was very well designed, but that tended to be subjective. But David was more impressed by the things that were difficult to see.

The lenses, at first, were only slightly impressive, but he caught a glimpse of them refocusing. That indicated they were mechanical like Shinya had suspected, possibly functioning as some form of focus system. That was impressive; machinery that is that small and advanced lends more credence to the claims he had heard.

The other parts were challenging to see, even for him. The slight bulging of the wrists and waist indicates something was beneath them. The wrists he couldn't put an immediate guess to, but maybe were related to the 'webs' that supposedly came out of his wrists. Perhaps a support item that created different uses for them. The belt was also tricky to see but likely stored some helpful stuff. Very tiny stuff, but stuff.

He couldn't determine the material composition, but it was high-end. He could also tell that certain parts of the suit, like around the head, arms, and legs, were very high-quality synthetic cloth. The metal, especially around the torso and leaking to the arms and legs, also looked flexible and robust. Based on Edgeshot's report, which he read as closely as he could on his way here, those were part of the nanite system.

If he needed evidence of someone possibly creating a nano-suit, he was getting enough just from looking at it now. You needed advanced manufacturing capabilities to produce anything as tightly controlled as he saw. Most people would just think it was a skin-tight costume, but David saw it as the technological marvel that it was. This would likely take him weeks to design and a few months to manufacture.

Leaving that for now, David smiled warmly as he addressed the young hero. "Hello, I am Doctor David Shields. I'm a scientist and engineer; Edgeshot-san requested me to evaluate your suit."

"Umm, my suit? Why would you need a scientist to evaluate it?" Spider-man asked, confused about the direction this had taken.

"It's specifically regarding some observations made while you were helping with the evacuation of the apartment building. The reports I was given and some recorded video footage gave us a hint, and I was called in. After reviewing the evidence myself, I agreed with their evaluation," David said before diving right to the heart of the matter. "Specifically, we are concerned about your suit having nano-technology. And the implications of it."

"What? Why would that be a– oh… oh right! You guys don't have nano-tech, do you?" Spider-man asked the pro-hero and Detective. The headshakes confirmed his guess. "If you guys don't have nano-tech… okay, yeah, I can see the concern. I really hope you won't try to take it from me? That won't end well for anyone."

"Do you have some proof that it is nanites?" David asked, getting very fascinated by the conversation. The other things he had just said were intriguing and indicated something more than an isolated scientist or engineer way ahead of the curve.

"Umm, yeah, I think we can manage something like that. Hey, Karen? Can you– thanks." As he said, parts of his costume, specifically the metal parts, started moving across the suit. They traveled down his right arm and settled into his hand to form a small projector, which lit up and displayed a 3D model render of his suit above the hand.

While Shinya and Hayate were surprised to see this, it had nothing compared to David's reaction. His wide eyes and face shifted between absolute wonder and terror. He knew all the implications of what was involved with what the hero had both said and shown in front of him. Nano-technology guided by an A.I. Either one could shift the future of their world in unknowable ways, while together, once it was revealed, would shock the foundations of their world, much like the introduction of quirks had.

It took several seconds for David to find the controls to his mouth again, but when he did, he had to confirm a few things. "This… Karen, I take it she is an A.I. attached to the nanites?"

"Umm, yeah."

"Is she a general or narrow A.I.?"

"Oh, she's a general A.I., specifically a natural language user interface with self-programming capability. She does have some restrictions, though."

"Where did you get that suit and the A.I.?"

"From my mentor, Tony Stark."

"Tony Stark? I've never heard of him," David was confused. He figured he would at least have heard of someone so brilliant to have created nano-technology and a general A.I.

"I'm not surprised you haven't. But on my world, he's the greatest hero that has ever lived." The young man said, looking and sounding very proud yet saddened.

"Your world?" David asked, now further confused.

"We had just gotten to that part when you arrived, Doctor," Hayate said. David turned back to look at him, wanting him to elaborate further. "He claims that he came from another universe."

"Another… universe?" David said in amazement, looking between the hero on the bed and the two men.

"He hadn't gotten around to the details about that yet. Hopefully, he can explain it to us now," Shinya said as they waited.

"It's complicated."

"Complicated how?"

Spider-man sighed as he tried to think of how to explain things. "There's a ton of… baggage that starts from older events that eventually lead up to what happened. Some of this is also why I don't want to take my mask off. And I don't think you'll believe some of it if I tell you."

Shinya sighed, looked around, and then picked up one of the nearby chairs and set it a few feet from the bed, a comfortable distance. Hayate and David did the same thing. "Start from where you think you can at the beginning. I think a more complete and better picture is needed than a quick snapshot. It will help with the context more."

"Ummm, do you want a start from my beginning? Or some others?"

"Let's start with yours. If we need context on some things, you can explain those."

"Okay."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Shino looked out at the surrounding forest as the helicopter neared the village. The rest of her teammates sat silently near her; they had been filled in on what she knew so far. Since this was hero work, they wore their costumes.

They all wore a costume that was essentially the same thing but in different colors. They wore a shoulderless, high-colored shirts that looked more like a vest with straps reaching across. The shirt only reached just above their belly buttons. There was a large and fluffy skirt with an inner lining to help keep the skirt fluffed as it was, some heavy shin-length boots rated for any rough terrain, and a layer of fur at the top. Their gloves were oversized and made to look like large paws with nails at the tips that could also act as weapons. On their heads was an exaggerated headset that went around the back and served as a transceiver for radio communication, but it was made to look like they had ears on the top of their heads. To finish their look, they had a cat tail sticking out of their skirts and wore makeup to stylize after cats.

Shino's red and white costume went well with her brown hair that barely went past her ears. Ryuko's was blue and white, but she also wore a visor across her eyes. Tomoko's was yellow and white, while Yawara's was brown and white. Wearing these costumes made them identifiable as the Wild Wild Pussycats, the pre-emptive team that was the experts at dealing with mountain rescue operations.

As Shino looked on, she wasn't sure what to think of the situation. She didn't have enough information on the girl they were interrogating to form a proper opinion. There were dangers and pitfalls to assuming she was a good person just because she interfered with Muscular. Then there were the oddities that Endeavor had said about what was revealed. She would do the best she could and hoped it would be enough.

As the helicopter crested the hill, she saw the lake and the village's roofs creeping through the trees. "The village is in sight," Shino said and then saw her most enthusiastic teammate, Tomoko, look out the window to see the village. Then she felt an arm go around her shoulder in a quiet hug from Ryuko while Yawara gave a smile and a big thumbs up. She smiled back in thanks before turning back to the window to see they had arrived.

She saw Endeavor walking towards the docks as their helicopter lowered. The helicopter landed on the part of the dock set aside for them, then the pilot raised a hand and gave them a thumbs up. Shino opened the door, and they all stepped through and walked toward the approaching number two hero.

"Thank you for coming," Endeavor had to shout a little to be heard over the still-spinning blades. "I did a preliminary interview to get a baseline of what we are dealing with."

"What did you find out?" Shino asked.

"She claims to be from a hundred and fifty years in the past and does not appear to know what quirks are. While she didn't outright say it, she claims her abilities stem from training and skill, not a quirk."

That… had not been what she expected to hear. "Do you believe her?"

"At this time, no. She hasn't given me enough to believe her, but I also tried to probe her for lying and was unsuccessful. She appeared unaware of quirks, using the older and less used definitions of personality quirks. That is a detail few would pick up on, and crafting a story like this makes little sense. But it is not outside the bounds of possibility."

"Anything else?"

"She gave her name as Saotome Ranma and had lived with a family named the Tendo's in Nerima for some time due to an arranged marriage. Lived with her father while her mother stayed at her residence. Her sense of shame in her clothing is almost absent. She is currently only wearing a tank top and some boxers, so when she performed some 'exercises,' she nearly exposed herself and didn't appear to notice. In terms of capability, she is swift, precise, and powerful even with her fingers and a sense of balance that few could hope to match. I witnessed those as she performed those exercises."

He seemed to think for a moment before deciding to share any information that could be key to figuring this situation out. "Muscular awoke just as we were going to put the stronger restraints on him. He was willing to fight even when I was standing before him, but the girl popped up, and he became terrified. His type tends to get off on bloodlust, so for him to become terrified of her, I believe she dominated the fight so badly that he knew subconsciously he would have no hope of winning. Be very careful around her."

Yawara nodded, "Understood."

"She gave enough details about how she arrived that I will see if I can confirm it. The more her story checks out, the more likely she may be telling the truth. Any discrepancies can help with uncovering the truth." Endeavor turned to their leader, "Mandalay, use your telepathy to inform me of any important developments. Ragdoll, use your quirk to lock onto her in case she runs. She's in the restaurant at the end of the street." He then walked off a bit before blasting into the air with a trail of fire.

They watched Endeavor fly away before Shino turned to her teammates, "Shall we?" It took them a minute to reach the restaurant before they entered it. They found the girl leaning in to inspect some of the local items with curiosity. They weren't expecting her to do that from four meters in the air, her toes gripping the ceiling slats.

Shino stepped into the room, allowing her teammates to walk in after her. "Excuse me, are you Saotome Ranma?" After a moment, the girl turned in their direction and… flinched? She repeated it as she inspected all four of them; a tick appeared above her eye.

"Yes! What do you want!?" Ranma practically growled at them. Shino was confused; everything she had heard showed no negative emotions toward anyone here. Maybe Endeavor had done something? But he had seemed almost respectful towards the girl.

Shino prepared to reply when she felt a hand on her back. Looking to her left, she saw Tomoko leaning from behind her in her typically eccentric attitude, but then her eyes widened and became very serious. Tomoko stepped around her to stand beside her, not taking her eyes off the girl. She must have seen something with her quirk because not a moment later, she was taking her gloves and helmet off and popped off the cat tail they all wore. Shino looked at her other two teammates for a moment in confusion before they both nodded and proceeded to do the same thing Tomoko had done. Once all four had set their equipment to the side, they turned back to look at the young girl and saw she was much calmer.

Tomoko stepped forward, her smile wide as she spoke, "Hi Ranma! Thank you sooo much! Mandalay was really worried for her cousins there."

Ranma was much calmer now but became confused, "You're… welcome?" She then dropped from the ceiling. Mandalay almost panicked for a moment before the girl twisted in the air to land softly on her feet as if she had only taken a step. "Cousins? Whose Mandalay?"

Shino stepped up next to her teammate, "My hero name is Mandalay. My cousins were the hero team Water Hose."

"Umm, hi? Water Hose? Who are they?"

"They were the injured couple you saved from that villain."

The lightbulb went off in the girl's head as she finally made the connection. "Oh, right! No problem!" Her face adopted a wide smile as her thumbs rested on the waistband of her boxer shorts, and her body language relaxed even further. "Wasn't going to let the dumbass squish them with a boat."

"Boat? What boat?" Ryuko spoke up.

Ranma turned to the window and pointed outside at a boat a little further down the street. "The dumbass had picked it up and threw it at your cousins right after they gave him a nasty wound on his face. Luckily I got there in time to catch it." They all looked at the large boat, a cabin cruiser, and had to weigh over seven-thousand kilograms. "Taught the dumbass a lesson for that stunt."

Yawara turned back to Ranma, smiled widely, and gave a thumbs-up. "I approve!"

Ranma smirked at the tall, muscular man in a frilly skirt. But her attention was grabbed as Shino stepped towards her. "Ummm is something wro–" Ranma was interrupted from asking her question as the woman leaned down and hugged her.

"Thank you," Shino whispered into her ear.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ai sat there gathering her thoughts after the Detective left. She wasn't entirely sure how to approach the conundrum that Sakura presented. She decided to start with something she figured Sakura would be pleased to know. "Sakura-chan, do you want a status update on our patients?"

Sakura sighed, much of the tension going out of her, at least for now. "Yes, please."

Ai smiled, glad to have found something to relax them both. "Our critical patients are all on the mend. Their wounds are healed, with only a few having faint scarring. Those may heal further, but I don't know if your quirk will allow those to heal naturally."

Sakura gave her a confused look for a moment, one Ai mentally made a note about before she continued. "I did observe that your healing was not just healing the skin beneath, but also the muscles, nerves, blood veins, and even bone. We took some scanners to all the wounds to ensure nothing was missed, and you did a spectacular job!"

Ai gave her most expansive smile, which had the effect of making Sakura blush. Ai had to giggle at how cute it looked on her, which made Sakura pout, and further giggles resulted. After calming herself, her report continued. "The patient's hemoglobin levels are low but within safety levels. Some other doctors are already prescribing medicine and diets to increase their iron levels."

"Young Yoshi, the boy whose arm you re-attached, is doing well. His doctor put him through various tests to ensure the reattachment got all the bones, muscles, and nerves. Last I heard, they had a few tests left they wanted to try, but the attachment results are far better than we could have done."

"Good," Sakura said as she smiled softly, "re-attaching limbs can be tricky."

"Yes, they are. But that does lead us to one concern." Once Sakura looked her in the eyes, Ai continued, "We were worried about whether your quirk had a time limit attached to it?"

"What?" Sakura looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"Does your Quirk reverse its effects after a certain time? We want to be sure in case the wounds might re-open."

"No, my healing does not reverse itself," Sakura said, confusion still evident. "What do you mean 'quirk'?"

That brought Ai up short. "What? What do you mean?"

"I have no idea what you mean when you say quirk. I am familiar with the definition, but the colloquialism doesn't work with how you use it."

Ai was thoroughly confused now, much like how Sakura appeared to be. How could Sakura, a trained field medic, not know the definition of a quirk? Especially after using her own quirk to perform miracles? Then she thought of some of what Detective Tsukauchi had described of her possible upbringing. If she had been personally trained and made to feel her quirk differently, she might not realize the significance of it. "I mean the special ability you were born with, the one that allowed you to heal your patients."

"Are you talking about a kekkei genkai?"

"Bloodline ability?" Ai was unfamiliar with the word's usage, though she quickly thought of some context that might explain it. "Well, in some ways, yes. Plenty of children inherit their parent's quirks. But I meant, in general, that most people have a quirk."

"Are you talking about chakra?"

Another unfamiliar word, at least in the context it was used. "I… think we might be speaking about the same thing. Here, let me show you my quirk." Ai raised her hand and lit the dim room. Her hand glowed a soft white light under her skin. She held her hand out for Sakura as she reached forward to feel it.

"That isn't chakra." Sakura's hands felt Ai's momentarily as her face went through the gambit of emotions, such as amazement, confusion, and finally settling on fear.

"This is my quirk. Certainly nothing fancy like shooting beams of energy or transforming." Ai looked at Sakura calmly as she tried to get Sakura to understand what quirks are, "is chakra what you call your quirk?"

"No, chakra is the energy inside us that can be shaped to do what we want."

"What energy?" Ai was worried about the fear in Sakura's eyes and still wondered why there was still confusion.

"My chakra has recovered enough to let me show you." Sakura then proceeded to do something similar to what Ai had done, but it was a small and local glow and was external instead of internal. "This is my chakra, shown externally."

"That is just manifesting your quirk, correct?" Ai had seen that effect before when she was healing flesh.

"While I don't understand what a quirk is exactly, it is not chakra. What else can you do with your quirk?"

"That is it. If I work on it, I could brighten it, but my quirk is limited. I tend to use it as a night light." Ai was smiling at her small joke, trying to alleviate the tension. "Other people's quirks can be even more limiting or expansive."

"That doesn't sound like chakra at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone is born with chakra; as we age, we are trained to focus our energies to grow our chakra and learn to shape it. After it is shaped, we release it to perform actions."

"What… kind of actions?"

"Almost anything. Thousands of techniques."

Ai was worried but intrigued by what Sakura was talking about. "What kind of techniques?"

"Things like my healing. I learned that from my… sensei. She taught me most of what I know about medical-jutsu."

"Taught?" Ai was having a difficult time understanding what Sakura was getting at. Quirks tended to do specific things. Sometimes you could expand it with training and ingenuity, but the way Sakura spoke of it, it seemed like others she knew could do the same thing she did.

"Yes, taught. While some Jutsu are tailored to certain bloodlines, most Jutsu could be used by anyone. So long as you had enough energy and knowledge on how to shape it."

"Besides your… medical-jutsu, what other techniques are you talking about?"

Sakura paused, hesitating to tell her anything before her expression firmed. "Growing up, we attend an academy that teaches us what we need to know. Let me show you one of the techniques we are taught."

Ai watched as the girl's hands pressed together in different configurations, like ritualistic hand gestures you might find at shrines. Sakura then called out, "Release!" There was a poof of smoke that appeared next to Sakura's bed, startling Ai.

"Oh my!" Ai shouted. She was surprised to see a duplicate of Sakura standing at the side of her bed. The copy stood there and smirked at Ai as she tried to understand what was happening. Though, Ai noted it wasn't an exact duplicate. It was wearing something similar to what she had first seen her wearing, along with a heavy green vest and a headband with a metal plate with a symbol etched into it. Sakura's face also looked different.

Before either of them could continue, there was a knock on the door, followed by the Detective's voice. "Is everything alright in there?"

Ai took a moment to get her wits about her before looking at Sakura, silently asking her for permission, and Sakura nodded. "We are okay, Detective. But you'll want to come inside."

The door opened, showing the concerned face of the Detective. "What's the mat– what!?" Ai noticed Sakura's amused smile as the Detective looked on with some shock at the clone beside her bed.

"Sakura created this… clone."

"What!?" The Detective's face whipped to Ai.

Sakura spoke up then, "Shuzenji-san showed me her quirk. It is nothing like my own… ability."

"Yes, quirks run a range of different abilities. That should not be surprising for your quirk to be different from hers." The Detective seemed lost as to what was going on.

"Sakura explained that she has an energy inside her, what she calls chakra, that she was taught how to shape from a young age. She and others were taught how to create this clone."

"But her quirk was reported to be regarding healing, was it not?"

Sakura looked at the Detective more intensely before she addressed him, "I think I know what may be happening. I am willing to provide information about myself and where I am from, but I need information first."

"Depending on what you need to know, we can work with that," Detective Tsukauchi replied just as intensely.

"I doubt this will be sensitive information," Sakura waited until the Detective nodded. "Where am I?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"What is the blip?" Shinya asked. The story so far had been riveting and fantastical, even by the standards of their world. Advanced technology, abilities that could be created in laboratories or accidents, alien invasions, sentient super robots, sorcerers, and gods? All of it happening in a world without quirks. Where over 99.999% of the population had no special abilities. Then traveling to another world to fight an absolute monster, someone with capabilities that make the famed All-For-One look like a toddler. Hearing how he scoured an entire moon's surface and threw it at the hero sitting in front of them. How, after picking up one of those stones, he could reverse time!

His A.I. provided images and videos of some of the events to accompany his storytelling. Especially the ones that had occurred on the planet Titan. Seeing that monster perform his violent acts was very convincing for the three.

"It was Thanos' goal. I was told he traveled to different planets to cull half of the population to help with 'overpopulation,'" the hero said while using his forefingers and middle fingers to mime air quotes. "But it was too slow for him; he had to go planet to planet to do this. So he wanted a way to speed it up and do it in one shot. The Infinity Stones were his path to this. The… blip… was him accomplishing it. Half of all life in our universe turned to dust."

"What!?" All three listeners shouted at once. That was beyond the imagination to occur. That made the dark times after quirks started appearing pale compared to the horror this blip must have been.

"Yeah, it was horrible. Our world kind of… gave up in a lot of ways. I didn't experience that, though, since I was one of the ones that turned to dust," Spider-man said, dropping yet another bombshell on the threesome.

"You… died? But you're alive now? What happened?"

"So, after Thanos left Earth, the Avengers gathered and went after him. But the bastard had destroyed the stones, so they could not reverse the actions. During the blip, another hero called Ant-man disappeared, using some special particles that, when used properly, could shrink or expand the distance between your molecules. It also did some funky stuff with force, gravity, and other natural laws. I never heard an excellent explanation of how they are supposed to work. Ned hypothesized that Hank Pym purposely misleads people about the science of it."

"Anyways, Ant-man, or Scott Lang, had been trapped in the Quantum Realm, which is basically the space between subatomic particles. Time and other rules of our universe change or flow differently down there. Five years after the blip occurred, a freak incident returned him to normal, but he only experienced about five hours there. The rest of the Avengers realized it was a possible means of time travel. Mr. Stark found a way to navigate through time, so they went into the past, got all the infinity stones, and brought them to the future. Doctor Banner snapped us all back to life."

"That's incredible," David said. It was like reading a crazy science fiction novel or a comic book.

"Unfortunately, when they went back in time, Thanos and his army were able to tag along. So we had to fight his whole army and him as well. It almost spelled disaster since Thanos was able to get the glove with the stones. We only won because Mr. Stark stole the stones at the last second, then used them to wipe him and his army out."

The sadness Spider-man showed as he told this part made it apparent something more had happened. "What else happened?" Hayate asked.

"Just wielding the stones… they put out gamma radiation. A lot of it."

"Oh no," David realized the implications immediately.

"Mr. Stark died just to try to bring me back. He wanted to bring everyone back, but I was told by his wife that I was the main reason he did it."

The three listeners had a difficult time finding anything to say to that. They all dealt with heroics in various degrees. To go to such lengths, those people were true heroes. So they waited in silence for Spider-man to pick up his tale.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Errr… so, whatcha want?" Ranma asked after Shino let her go, turning her face to the side while playing with her pigtail. Shino noted that her face had a decent amount of red, which made her look so cute!

Deciding it was time to get to business, Shino opted for straightforwardness. "Endeavor asked us to question you."

"Who?" Ranma asked with a confused expression.

"The big guy with the flames," Ryuko responded.

"Oh! Him. Let me guess, he still doesn't believe me?"

"Not yet," Shino said as she saw Ranma give an eye roll. "In our line of work, we do encounter many strange events. But we also encounter people that attempt to deceive in one form or another, as well as people that are deluded." Shino saw the girl was considering her words as she frowned in thought, "Have you heard of Occam's Razor?"

"Ummm, no?"

"Occam's Razor stipulates that whatever is the simplest explanation tends to be the correct one."

Ranma snorted at that, "Not for me! Tends to be more of the opposite in my experience. Most of the explanations end up more from left field."

Shino raised an eyebrow at that claim but decided to go along with it for now to get more information. Shino didn't think Ranma would try lying for malicious reasons, but there were plenty of cases of good people lying to protect themselves or others. Sometimes it was better to go along with people's stories. It lets you get a better picture of their delusions or sometimes makes it easier to catch liars in the act.

"Sooo! Ranma! How'd you get so strong?" Tomoko asked as she took a seat at the counter.

"I'm a martial artist. I've been training my whole life." Ranma seemed rather proud of that fact.

"Oh?" Yawara's attention was grabbed. Shino recognized the look in his eyes, especially when anything regarding training was brought up.

"Yep! I'm the best!" Ranma cried out with a look of smugness as she stood up straight with her arms crossed.

"And what is your quirk?" Shino asked while she gauged Ranma's reaction.

"Quirk? Why do you people keep asking about that?" Ranma asked. She seemed more exhausted by the question than annoyed. Shino couldn't detect any falseness to her confusion, and so far, Ranma read like an open book.

"We ask because eighty percent of the world's population has one."

"Why wouldn't it be a hundred percent? I thought everyone had a personality quirk. It tends to be what makes us unique, right?" Ranma was rubbing her head in confusion at the constant discussion around quirks.

"That is an older definition than what we tend to use these days," Shino said. "Quirk is a word we use to describe a person's special ability they are born with."

"Special ability?"

"You saw Endeavor being on fire, correct?" Ryuko asked. "Or the 'dumbass' with the muscles?" She giggled at the playground insult of the notorious villain while Ranma nodded. "Endeavor's quirk allows him to put out flames from his body, while 'dumbass' could grow and manipulate his muscle fibers."

Ranma tilted her head as she considered that, "Oh? I just thought the big guy was related to Saffron or something. Minus the bird parts."

"Saffron?" Shino asked. "Who is that?"

"A brat I had to fight a year ago. He could put out a ton of fire, too."

That confused Shino. Ranma had claimed to be from a hundred and fifty years ago, meaning quirks had only started to be known about. Something was off, but she couldn't put a finger on what.

"Then how are you so physically strong?" Ryuko asked.

"Training," Ranma replied, her eyes asking her why she would question it.

"Training wouldn't get those kinds of results. Not without something to enhance it," Ryuko responded, crossing her arms as she challenged her.

"Well, I guess if you don't account for Ki, then I could see where you are coming from. But that's still just training."

"Ki?" That got Yawara's attention as he leaned forward, "Actually using Ki? Are you a Ki Adept?"

"Yeah? That is a word sometimes used to describe us.

"I know some circles tout that Ki usage is a means by which some pro-heroes can enhance themselves. Even when their quirks don't enhance their own body normally." Yawara said as he rubbed his chin in thought. "It is claimed that those that push their bodies to the limit can get stronger, faster, tougher, and perceive more around them."

Ranma nodded, glad one of them was knowledgeable so she wouldn't have to start from scratch on it.

"Really?" Ryuko asked, curious about what her teammate was explaining.

"Yes, but it is rare and is only a noted minor improvement, at least compared to what we heard Ranma was able to perform," Yawara said as he looked at Ranma for more of an explanation.

"That's beginner's stuff," Ranma seemed dismissive of those noted achievements. "I got to that step when I was six."

Yawara narrowed his eyes as he looked at Ranma, "The claims I hear are only from those who would go Plus Ultra in their training. Only the greatest of heroes or martial artists could achieve such."

"Plus Ultra?" Ranma said the unfamiliar phrase before she shrugged and handled the question. "Yeah, you have to push yourself to your limits constantly. You can unlock Ki unconsciously, but to go past it, you have to mentally focus on it and take control of it. After that, more training allows you to grow and expand what you can use and help enhance yourself further."

"So… her abilities are not a quirk?" Shino asked Yawara, who seemed to know what Ranma was talking about.

"Nope!"

Shino twisted her head towards the teammate she had not expected an answer from. Tomoko had a big smile as she seemed pleased with being right on the answer. That was when Shino considered the nature of her teammates' quirk and what it sometimes told her. One part that was not often stated was that it could tell her whether someone had a quirk. In hindsight, it should have been something they started with. Shino's head dropped to her palm as she knew her teammate would be rubbing it in their faces for the next few weeks.

"If your abilities are based entirely on Ki, with no quirk, how did you train?" Yawara asked; he was taking this rather seriously.

Ryuko was concerned about Yawara's reaction, "Why is that important?"

Yawara's eyes narrowed as he pinned Ranma to the spot, "the claims I was told were from people who had to go through regular life-threatening events. Extreme combat. And Ranma here just claimed she had accomplished this when she was six. And apparently hasn't stopped."

Now Shino was catching on to what Yawara was implying. She, too, fixed Ranma to the spot with her eyes as she repeated the question. "How were you trained? Give us examples."

Ranma didn't react to the glares at all. Shrugging, she answered them, "started with days of katas and full contact sparring. Not much focus on physical training at first. After I unconsciously unlocked my Ki, concentration on physical abilities was added."

"How much time was spent training? What about other activities such as school or relaxation?" Ryuko asked.

"Almost all the time I was awake was training. We trained while we ate, and I did what I could during school hours. At least when I attended school."

Shino was starting to hate these lines of questions, but they needed to be asked. "How do you train while eating?"

"We would try to steal each other's food, so if I was too slow, I wouldn't get much to eat," Ranma said so casually that it was apparent she didn't think it was a big deal.

"They starved you!?" Ryuko asked, clearly outraged. She wasn't alone in that opinion.

"Not really, it felt like it plenty of times, but I would always have ways of getting more. For years I thought Pop just loved to stuff his belly and lord it over me, but recently I realized he always made sure I had enough or had ways to get enough. He used it as a means of driving me."

"How were you not constantly in the hospital recovering from injuries or over exhaustion?" Shino asked.

"I didn't think about it much when I was younger, but my old man was very careful with the pace he pushed me. Always right on the edge, but not enough to seriously injure myself with debilitating injuries. At least until I was able to heal faster with Ki. During times of exhaustion, we would meditate or do less intensive physical training, like hand-eye coordination or precision by picking up single pieces of rice with chopsticks."

"After I was able to use Ki, we picked up the pace and kept it to a knife's edge. While I was annoyed, he only went overboard a few times." Ranma shrugged, accepting and appreciating most of what her old man had done for her. Didn't stop her from beating him black and blue at times, though.

"Is one of those times the pit?"

That question seemed to startle Ranma as she snapped her head to look at Tomoko. Shino also looked at her teammate to wonder what she was talking about.

"Wha-what are you talking about?"

Shino turned her gaze back to Ranma, realizing she was trying to dodge the question. Shino was getting a lump in her stomach at the implication. If the training Ranma had just talked about didn't bother her, what kind of training would get Ranma to want to avoid it?

Tomoko lost her serious expression, instead just giving Ranma another broad smile. "Nothing!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Here they are, Detective!"

Naomasa turned around to the officer and accepted the materials, "Thank you, Officer Sone." The man saluted after he was done before promptly leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

He set the material on Sakura's bed and shuffled through them to find a few specific ones. He pulled out a detailed map of Japan first. He unfolded it and turned it towards the young girl. He then pointed towards an area near the midway point between the island chains of his nation. "This is Tokyo. As I said earlier, we are in the district of Hosu, west of Tokyo."

Sakura studied the map intently for a minute. "How did you– never mind, I can ask that later," she said. "None of these land masses look familiar. But what is the scale?"

Naomasa pointed to the small markers near one corner of the map, "these lines mark distances per section, so you can use it to estimate how large an area or distance between different points."

Sakura used her fingers to track the map before she pulled her hand away in surprise. "This island is much larger than most of what I am familiar with."

"I suspected as much. Here, let me get a map of Asia out."

After he finished that task, he gave it to her. She repeated her earlier study of inspecting the map closely. "Again, nothing looks familiar."

Naomasa chuckled; he was going to enjoy this next part. It was fun when you could healthily shatter someone's worldview. He pulled out the following map and gave it to her when it was ready.

When Sakura noticed that the previous map only covered a small section of this map, she was left speechless. She did notice some oddities with this map; entire sections were missing on the top and bottom of the map. "What are these missing sections?"

After pointing at a few of the sections, Naomasa chuckled. "Those sections are drawn that way to deal with the curvature of the Earth. Creating a 2D image of a 3D sphere is not so easy without losing things. A 3D model of Earth or maps only dealing with those sections are easier to see without that problem."

Sakura nodded her head, accepting his explanation. She looked through every land mass and island chain, trying to find her home. He wasn't sure where it was, but the longer it took her, the more worried he was.

After ten minutes, she sighed in defeat. "I don't see it here." She then shuffled the map to some of the oceans, especially the Pacific. "One possibility is that there are land masses you haven't found in these oceans."

"How large is the land you come from," Naomasa asked.

"The nation I am from is roughly a quarter of the size of Japan, while all of the surrounding nations together are roughly four times the size of Japan."

That startled Naomasa. "That's impossible."

Sakura blinked at him in confusion. "Why? If your boats are stopped before making it to our landmass, you wouldn't be able to find it, correct?"

"While boats having difficulty navigating parts of the world is not unusual, what you are proposing is impossible, but it has nothing to do with boats."

"What do you mean?"

"A land mass that size would easily have been detected by our satellites."

"What is a satellite?"

"A satellite is an object with various instruments that is shot into space and then orbits the Earth. They perform various tasks, one of which is to take images of the Earth and send them down to us via signals."

"What? From space?" Sakura was clearly confused, "but how?"

"We send it to space with large rockets, then using electronic signals, they send their data back to us."

Sakura didn't look to believe him, so Naomasa took out his phone and started fiddling with it.

"What is that?" Sakura said as she stared at his phone.

"It is a cell phone, a multi-purpose tool used for processing information and communications," Ai said, speaking up for the first time as the Detective was busy looking for something.

It didn't take him long, but he turned it back around so Sakura could see the screen. She was clearly surprised by the images appearing there. Then Naomasa pressed the play button on the video.

Sakura marveled at the little device, showing moving images that displayed a large object in the distance. Suddenly, the base of the thing shot a great blast of fire and smoke much larger than the object itself. After several seconds, it lifted off the ground, slowly gaining acceleration and rising into the sky. Ai heard the countdown and the booster ignition as the device played it back.

After the video was finished, Naomasa held out his hand for the device. Sakura was marveling at it, both for the device, the video, and what it showed. She did hand it back, and Naomasa proceeded to do more with the phone until he found another video to play. He gave it back to Sakura and hit play again.

This time, Sakura saw a man… floating with other objects next to him. He wore a blue one-piece suit of some sort, talking calmly towards the screen before the picture moved to show outside the dark window she had seen. She initially didn't know what she was looking at, but it clicked. Some areas on the object looked like the land masses she saw on the global map. Sakura sat the phone down, clearly shocked by the revelations.

Naomasa took his phone back and placed it in his pants pocket. "Now you can maybe understand how I was saying a land mass that size would be impossible to hide."

Sakura nodded her head before she grasped her forehead with both hands.

"Do you want to explain to me what is going on?" Naomasa was curious about the girl. The girl was skilled and kept the information provided as minimal as possible but had not appeared to be deceiving them.

His family had a history of lie-detector quirks. He had become skilled at it just by observing his family and their interactions outside of it, including the little tells and hints. He had been forced to do that to keep up with the rest of his family, having been born quirkless.
It was one of the reasons he was a well sought-after Detective.

"I was hoping my first theory was correct. But it can't be if what you showed me is true." She didn't even look up as she said it.

"And what do you think is happening?"

"This isn't my world."

That brought Naomasa up short, "Explain yourself."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"That was when Doctor Strange was trying to hold the fractured parts of reality back. I... came up with a solution, only I think it backfired in a way I wasn't expecting." Spider-man said as he continued his story.

All three were spellbound by the story he told. Hayate and Shinya could understand just how difficult of a situation he had been put through. Being tricked by a liar like Beck, they knew the hero would not give up his suit willingly. And they couldn't fault him for it, considering his past experience and that they knew their society wasn't any better in many ways. Then the final parting shot reveals his identity to the world, splitting his world's opinion as to whether he is a hero or a villain.

The first part, of revealing their identity, they couldn't understand very well since almost all heroes were known. But they had heard stories of villains going after pro-hero families in the past. If the support structure wasn't there in society to protect the heroes and their families, hiding your identity made more sense.

Both hero and the Detective were very familiar with the fickleness of the public. It was part of why they didn't raise much of a stink over actions from the Safety Commission and why trying to keep the public's trust was so essential for them.

While his actions of going to the sorcerer to cast a spell on the world so they would forget were a little extreme, they could understand it. The fault lay with both Spider-man and the sorcerer, but it mostly came down to communications, assumptions, and poor planning.

Then there were the events of people from other universes coming to his own, the truth about what happened to them in their own universes, and the fact that the young man took extraordinary steps to save them. The loss of the only family he had left due to trying to help them struck them hard.

Knowing how dark of a place he must have been, they couldn't fault him, his anger, sadness, and hatred. Getting help from different versions of himself, men that the hero seemed to treat more like older brothers from how he spoke of them. The drive to still save the villains and succeed. That struck them deeply.

"The solution I came up with was that everyone would forget who I was. Peter Parker."

Hayate caught on to it first, "if they don't remember who you were, then there would be nothing for the 'spell' to latch onto."

"Yeah, but as I was leaving, that was when I showed up here."

"Instead of the world forgetting who you were, it… kicked you out?" David proposed.

"I think so," the hero said, "I don't even know if anyone even remembers me on my world anymore. That or if it just kicked me out, and they wonder where I am."

All four sat there, letting the weight of their emotions settle. Eventually, the Detective picked up the conversation, "That… is quite the tale. And that complicates things more than we expected." He rubbed his brow as he tried to think of the best way to phrase things. "Our world is different in some ways, but in others, they are similar. Much like how you described these 'Sokovia Accords,' our world created a profession called a Professional Hero, or Pro-Hero for short. While your world only has a few enhanced individuals, our world is littered with them. Over eighty percent of the world population has a quirk."

"Eighty… percent? Oh… crap." The hero seemed to grasp the significance of that fairly quickly. Hayate had already determined the young hero had a genius-level intellect.

"As a result of a series of mistakes, built on mistakes, the world's governments licensed our heroes, but they must go through schooling and take a series of tests to get that license. The license tests a range of skill requirements to ensure those we put into the field have a minimum capability of performing the job."

"So, like a Medical Doctorate? With getting a medical license?"

"Yes, a very apt comparison," David said. "Normally, schooling is required for it, but there are some cases where a person can take the license without it. But it is infrequent."

"And I don't have a license," the hero stated the obvious.

"Yes, what you performed was an act of vigilantism. The government does not look fondly on it and can make getting a license harder or impossible," Shinya said. "I've met some other vigilantes and have even been ordered by the government to capture them. It is never a pleasant duty, especially when the hero did a good job."

Spider-man cringed inside his mask, dreading where this conversation was going.

"But your situation is more akin to someone breaking the law where no one got hurt, but due to a reasonable case of ignorance, could not know the law." Hayate did not like the circumstances here; he was an officer of the law and followed it. "Some laws were written to be flexible, but heroics is one area more complicated than most. There is some leeway we could use, but I don't think we can use it."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want the information getting out about your suit. Not at this time," Hayate said as he looked at the hero. "There are going to be too many competing interests that will want to get their hands on it. Official, unofficial, and criminal elements. If they knew what you had, you wouldn't get a moment's rest. The government may decide to rig any evaluation so that you are forced to hand it over or be hunted for it by people like him," Hayate said while pointing at the pro-hero sitting next to him. "And I am unsure if I can trust any government to have that power."

"So what can I do?" Spider-man asked, clearly concerned.

"Two paths, neither of which I like, but one is unfair to you due to your history. Option one: we go very public with everything. Make it very difficult for the governments or criminal groups to try to target you because the spotlight will make it harder for them to make excuses. Criminal elements will also have a harder time since they tend to require working in the shadows."

"Even without hearing it, I'm inclined to go for option two already," Peter said dryly while Shinya snorted.

"I think you'll prefer this one. Option two: we hide and bury the incident as much as possible. But that will mean you'll have to stay hidden or out of the way until things have calmed down. And basically, sweep this under the rug legally."

"I… might have a suggestion to help with that," David said. When he had everyone's attention, he continued, "We could say that we were testing an experimental super-suit. Specifically, my team. Edgeshot can say he gave temporary authorization once the severity of the incident was reported. He then comes with me to I-Island; it would give him the time to acclimate himself to our world and keep him out of the public eye. Any questions or references can be forwarded to us regarding the circumstances. We can just say it is confidential and that we can't reveal the details of it."

Hayate hummed as he rubbed his chin in thought. "That could work, but this might bring a little heat on you, Edgeshot."

The pro-hero nodded, accepting the risk.

Hayate turned to Spider-man, "Unfortunately, that will mean you'll have to remove the mask so we can create an identity for you. I have some contacts that can help. I am sure Dr. Shields and Edgeshot might also have some means of helping with those."

The hero sighed, hating the scenario he was in. "I really don't want to do this again, but I don't have a choice. Karen seems to like you guys as well." He reached his hand up to pull on the top of his mask, it loosened a bit, but he hesitated before pulling it off.

The other three gasped after looking him over. He was a plain Caucasian youth with short brown hair. Even with the already healing bruises, dirty face, and messy hair, he could be considered handsome… in a few years. They were shocked because he did not look to be the eighteen years old he had claimed, but more like he was fourteen.

"My name is Peter Parker."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Endeavor landed on the forest floor as he inspected the spot he was told about. It had taken him nearly thirty minutes to find it, but the girl had been reasonably accurate on direction and distance. The problem had been how inconspicuous the spot was. Finding a small, damaged tree in the region of a square kilometer was difficult.

He inspected the tree, seeing several branches heavily damaged or destroyed, along with the trunk having a chunk taken out of it. The way the branches bent indicated something fell instead of being broken from below or the sides. It also lined up with the small trail of dirt of an object impacting the ground.

Considering the size of the impact, it wasn't likely to have been a smaller object traveling at high speeds or a larger one traveling at slow speeds. The weight would be around forty to sixty kilograms, and a fall time of three seconds, putting it about fifty meters or more in the air.

The girl likely fit within that range, which increased the likelihood of her telling the truth about that part at least. He kneeled closer to the ground as he felt around it for the softness of the dirt, further confirming his earlier estimates.

He started looking around the area for other indicators when he heard angry barking. He looked up and saw a squirrel on the damaged tree near one of the damaged limbs. Appeared to be a brave, yet foolish, member of its species. Enji ignored it as he turned back to inspect the surroundings. He saw no other apparent signs to give away the story.

Enji shot up to the trees to hover near the tips, knowing the girl could easily reach these points. He saw the top of the village and headed towards it. He wasn't bothering to go all out, so it took him a minute to arrive.

He landed in front of the restaurant he had left the girl and expected the Pussycats to be. After opening the door, he was greeted by the sight of the girl looking through the cupboards, obviously searching for something. He saw she had already collected a few steel skewers, so she had a plan for something. The Pussycats were distributed in different parts of the room, with Mandalay and Ragdoll sitting while Tiger and Pixie-Bob were standing or leaning against something. He also noticed that their helmets, gloves, and tails were absent. After a moment, he found them all piled up by the doorway next to him.

"I am unsure if I wish to beat on your father or shake his hand," Tiger said.

"Eh, get in line. You're not the only one with a bone to pick with him. And their claims are better than yours. When Mom learned about some of the training, she whacked the panda on the head with blunt objects any time she saw him. It wasn't until he went away for a week on a 'training trip' that she cooled down enough from it. Still hits him occasionally when she is reminded of it."

"What kind of blunt objects?" Shino seemed eager to hear the answer to that, which was surprising for Enji to hear from the kind and soft-spoken woman.

The girl didn't even turn around from her task as she answered. "Whatever she could get her hands on. Plates, pans, tables, statues, whatever the heaviest or hardest thing she could lift that was nearby. Tendo-san wasn't happy about some of the destruction she caused, but he shut up and hid whenever she looked his way." She closed the current cupboard after scouring it and moving on to the next one.

Enji wasn't sure what kind of conversation he had stumbled into but decided to avoid it for the time being. He coughed into his hand to get the other heroes' attention, which succeeded.

"A word? Outside?" After receiving some nods, Enji stepped outside and waited. He leaned against the porch as he heard them speak to the girl, and a quick reply was given. Once all the Pussycats had left the restaurant, he addressed Mandalay. "I inspected what I believe was the site of her arrival. It matched her description, and I saw no additional signs to indicate anything else. She appeared to fall about fifty meters, damaging the tree and the ground around it. So that part of her tale checks out. What have you found?"

Mandalay seemed to gather her thoughts for a moment before she replied. "We haven't been able to get much, but she is most likely telling the truth. About all of it."

Enji's eyebrow rose at that declaration, "How did you determine that?"

"She reads as a very open book. While she could be an excellent liar, I find it unlikely. Especially since the things she has claimed have panned out to have truth to them." Enji gave her a look to continue, so she did. "While we can't verify her claim of being from the past very well, the details she has given show she's not familiar with quirks at all, but not necessarily special abilities. It did take some time before they were given the label of quirks, and she spoke as if she encountered some of the early quirk users, maybe even before the earliest recordings."

"Interesting. It is often said it was the 'earliest recorded' appearance of a quirk; there is the possibility others had them before then. What about her claim of her abilities not being a quirk? Is it another case of not knowing what it is called?"

"No," Mandalay said before she glanced at Ragdoll and Tiger, "she claimed it was pure training but did stipulate that Ki manipulation was involved."

"Ki? I know some circles tout it as being real, but no one has displayed usage of it to the degree she has shown." Enji was at least intrigued, though still skeptical.

Tiger took the reins, "The claims I have heard say you must push yourself hard and constantly to gain any sort of build-up of Ki, significant improvement in performance compared to before. But Ranma claims that that is the beginner's steps and that there are tiers of Ki usage far beyond our current knowledge. She also claims to have unlocked that at the age of six."

"Six?" Enji was surprised. He understood pushing yourself to your limits and starting to train while you were young were crucial to achieving success. But from what he remembered of the claims to unlock Ki, it was a brutal and dangerous affair.

"Yes," Mandalay said while rubbing her forehead. "She says her father kept her at a knife edge on training, pushing her training to extremes we haven't attempted. Her father appeared to have known what he was doing, giving her the drive and encouragement to push her boundaries for years. The fact she claims she was rarely injured enough not to train speaks of his capability."

Their conversation was momentarily interrupted by a shout of "Yatta!" from inside the restaurant before it was swiftly ignored.

"What did Ragdoll confirm? The reports on her Search quirk mention being able to tell when someone is quirkless."

Enji smirked as Mandalay's hand palmed her face. Someone had forgotten some aspects of a teammate's quirk.

"No quirk!" Ragdoll exclaimed, "She doesn't have a quirk!"

Enji was quiet as he thought about the enigma the girl represented. If it was confirmed that she did not have a quirk or use it on Muscular, then there was little in the way of any legal trouble since she did not use a quirk on another person, that resulted in injury. While underaged quirk usage was not typically heavily penalized, when it involved the injury of another person and was intentional, it did become more serious. Her actions would align more with standard assault and not assault while using a quirk.

The fact her physical assault was in defense of another and did save the lives of two pro-heroes against a known mass murderer would make anyone hesitant to even try to take action against her. While it still would be necessary to get her tested since her abilities being a quirk that could bypass Ragdoll's own quirk was a possibility, it did not seem likely.

This left the question of what to do with her. She was too young to live independently, and foster care would have difficulty handling her. She was too brazen with her usage of her skills, especially if it is proven not to be a quirk. That could cause all sorts of complications and concern down the line. Trouble that would likely lead to his agency being called up regularly to deal with it since he had first contact with her and made the evaluation. Not to mention how brazen she was in admitting her situation.

Just dumping her into the system wasn't going to work, and the girl did not seem the type to stay there. She had a disregard for authority, and her abilities would make it impossible to restrain her without calling certain pro-heroes, which would likely include himself. That would mark his record to a degree and could quickly become a public mess.

He eyeballed the heroes in front of him as an idea came to him. Though, why Ragdoll seemed distracted by something, he didn't know.

"How is your interaction with her? From what I could tell, she seemed to respond well to your questions."

"Our… initial interaction was not very good," Mandalay said as she looked at her feet. "I have a theory on why, but I don't want to push her on it yet. But she quickly warmed up to us after that. She listened and answered our questions and seemed very relaxed around us."

When Mandalay looked up, her face went white as she looked towards him. Her hands covered her eyes as she whispered, "Oh no!" Shinji figured she had realized where he was leading the conversation, but then Pixie-Bob started giggling to the side. Enji looked in her direction, but she lost it even further as she bent over, laughing and pointing in his direction.

Enji was now confused, especially when Tiger pulled out his cell phone and took a picture. Ragdoll was smiling as usual when Enji realized her eyes weren't looking directly at him but off to his side somewhat. And what was that smell?

"Hey, can you turn it up some? They're cooking too slowly."

Enji turned to his left and then up as he saw the girl hanging upside down from the patio rafters. She had some skewers with pieces of marshmallow on them, which were held directly over his flames.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ai sat there, trying to digest the story that Sakura was weaving. She could tell that the Detective was skeptical about her story, but she was wearing him down, having collapsed into his seat as she told her tale. She and the Detective had obviously considered horrible scenarios that Sakura had been made to endure regarding turning children into soldiers with useful or dangerous quirks. Training them as brainwashed soldiers that performed deeds on the black market, criminal groups, or various governments.

Reality was far, far worse.

While she obviously left specific details about her own Village, or city, as a more appropriate definition to describe the size, she was willing to give generalities. Villages where children are taught from a young age to be killers. Trained to be ninjas. That surprised the two of them when Sakura revealed she was a ninja.

When questioned why they would need to be trained as killers, Sakura revealed some of the overall states of the world she was from. It was like hearing about Feudal Japan but with superpowers. Wars, spying, backstabbing, assassinations, and protection details. Those were all common occurrences, often advocated and paid for by the rich and powerful that saw easy ways to get richer and more powerful.

When she told them of some of the things she had done as a child to advance her career as a ninja, had initially made the Detective and Ai angry at the Village for doing such things before Sakura assured them that her Village had taken significant steps to minimize the negative aspects of her Village's actions. Detective Tsukauchi tried to point out how that was just trying to excuse away atrocious behavior when Sakura revealed what the other Villages would do to their people. Her Village sounded like a saint compared to some of the examples she gave. Actions like pitting entire classes of students against each other to the death, leaving few of them alive.

When it was questioned why they would start these behaviors in the first place, Sakura revealed what life was like for ninja clans before the Villages. The constant war between competing clans, seeing entire bloodlines wiped out regularly, including any children. Ai and Detective Tsukauchi realized that while her village was severely flawed by today's standards, it had been a giant leap forward compared to hundreds or even thousands of years of bloodshed.

A few additional showings of her chakra usage helped strengthen her argument. The clone, a transformation, water manipulation, and other abilities she said she could perform.

Others around her being able to perform many of the same Jutsus meant that this chakra energy was tangible, and it did not behave like quirks. This gave significant weight to her words.

Then Sakura revealed what had recently been occurring, the war that was fought, and where she had just come from. She explained about the chakra beasts, monsters with the power to wipe out villages with the swipe of their tails or launch blasts up to the size of small nuclear detonations. That the war had seen most of the Villages and former enemies coming together to fight an enemy that seemed driven to destroy all of them and had the power to do it. She told them about the man known as Madara and the Ten-Tailed Beast. Then she told them about the fight with Kaguya and her abilities. Sakura had just delivered a blow to her head, allowing her teammates to finish the battle, when she found herself in their city.

Which, for Ai, explained her behavior when she first saw her appear. A young girl fighting people with monstrous strength and power that might even eclipse All Might. It was both frightening and endearing. But to go from an exhausting and horrifying battle to seeing a villain injuring civilians and getting involved, using the last of her strength to heal them. Ai felt pride towards Sakura. Too many people would consider it not their fight, or it wasn't worth the energy and resources to waste on people inconsequential to what she had been facing.

Several times, Detective Tsukauchi tried to poke holes in her story to see if he could find weak points in her theory. But Sakura's information was too complete. If Sakura's report was accurate, then these were things they would have seen.

Detective Tsukauchi remained quiet for a few minutes after Sakura had finished her tale before he finally spoke. "Haruna-san, I am sorry you had to go through all that." Sakura looked ready to argue when the Detective raised a hand to stop her. "I realize where you are from; the rules and environment are very different. I will not hold it against your village, even though I know you held back information that would make your village look bad, but they were dealing with a bad hand that was not prone to a healthy environment. It is too easy to ridicule people from a position of privilege, which we have in our own society. The best I could hope for if we make contact with your Village would be to impart knowledge, wisdom, and a helping hand."

"Thank you for that," Sakura said. "I can understand where you are coming from. I wish and hope to change things for the better. We started making some strides during the war that I hope is continued. Maybe if we weren't at each other's throats all the time, we wouldn't have to take such drastic actions."

"While that handles the situation with where you are from, that unfortunately does not resolve what to do with you," the Detective rubbed his nose as he continued. "Do you know of any way to get home?"

"At this time? No," Sakura said as she slumped into her bed. "While I know some of the principles of space-time ninjutsu, it is a challenging area of study. The only ones I know that can breach dimensions were those with a kekkei genkai like Obito or Kaguya."

"Would your village try to reach you here?"

"I… don't know. It depends on what they know. For all I know, they could be here as well since Kaguya had previously transported us all together."

"If I could get a description of them, their abilities, and their personalities, I can keep an eye out to see if they appeared elsewhere in Japan or the world. I just hope this Kaguya isn't here with you." Sakura nodded her head in agreement.

"Unless we learn something productive about how to get you home, we are stuck with what to do with you. You have no family, resources, or knowledge about our world. By law, you are an orphan."

"I understand."

"Most orphans, especially with no family or friends to rely on, go to orphanages or a foster system. But your situation is far too complex, and I worry about other groups deciding to recruit you if they learn even a fraction of your history and capabilities. Especially our own government."

"I know the type," Sakura said with some steel. "I have no interest in working with such organizations."

"Good. I'll try to prevent any of this information from getting back to them but keep an eye out for it. With enough time, they will find out and approach you in various ways. If I catch wind of it, I'll try to warn you if I can."

"I appreciate that."

"That still leaves us with what to do with you. You're too young to be left on your own, so you need a guardian of some sort." Ai noticed that the Detective was looking at her as he talked. "I have some ideas on what we could do in that department."

Sakura got the hint as well as she stared at the older woman. Ai sighed, obviously put on the spot. "We can take her," Ai said before smiling. "We'd be happy to help her."

"Good. I know you already have experience dealing with young teens. What's one more?"

Ai folded her arms and glared at the Detective. "Shows what you know!"

"Wait, what?" Sakura said, her voice dripping with confusion.

"You can stay with me, Sakura-chan. My youngest recently le–"

"No, I wasn't asking about that. What did you mean by dealing with young teens?"

"My children are all adults now, so dealing with another young teenager won't be something I am inexperienced with."

Sakura looked even further confused, "I'm seventeen."

That brought Ai and the Detective up short. "You don't look like you are seventeen, dear!"

Sakura looked further confused before a bit of panic entered her eyes. "Do you have a mirror?"

Ai stood up and rummaged through a few cupboards and drawers before returning with a hand mirror. She handed it to Sakura, who immediately looked into it. Her face looked exactly like the one she had worn several years ago. Many of the subtle markers of growing into an adult had evaporated.

"What the hell!?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Author's Note - Took a little longer to post than I intended. Woke up late and found a few parts to give minor edits or research on. (like trying to remember how the Pym particles work) Then another quick Gramarly check.

I have settled on how I will release chapters now and in the future. Once I have an arc completed for first draft form at least and first few chapters are ready to post, I will begin posting and will post every week until that arc is completed. This both makes it so chapters come regularly when they are ready, but also lets me take the time to make sure the whole arc structure is finalized. The first arc completes on chapter 4, with the next arc I am about half way through. Once Chapter 4 has finished editing and things are ready, will concentrate on first draft of that entire arc.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 4 - New Beginnings​

Sakura held the mirror as she inspected her face. Her lips, nose, and chin were reduced, her cheekbones had shifted to their previous states, and her face had more baby fat. It was a face she had had years ago, not the one she had seen the last time she had looked in a mirror. The mirror dropped into her lap as she tried to process what was happening.

Ai and the Detective looked on with some concern. "I take it you look younger than you are supposed to?" Ai guessed. After receiving a nod, she asked another question, "And you don't know how it happened?"

"No! Nothing about those fights resulted in anything like this!"

Naomasa sighed, another complication to add to the pile of problems with this case. "None of the quirks involved in today's incident could do anything like this. Shuzenji-sensei, you were one of the witnesses to her arrival. Did her appearance change from then until now?"

"No, Sakura's appearance did not change," Ai answered, shaking her head to emphasize it.

"So your supposed de-aging occurred before or during your… transfer to our universe?"

"Supposed?" Sakura asked.

"I am not disbelieving you, but your face may have changed while your body is still older."

Sakura and Ai both nodded their heads as they considered the possibility. "We'll need to give you a full body checkup, more than what we gave you when you were admitted, Sakura. You can compare it to what you remember."

The Detective walked over to the door, pausing with his hand as he turned to them to speak. "In the meantime, Haruna-san, get some rest. We'll still have some questions, but they shouldn't be much. We'll try to get things put together and arranged legally so you can stay with Shuzenji-sensei." He opened the door, wished them both well, and then exited.

Naomasa closed the door to Sakura's room, picked up his coat, hat, and gloves, then stepped past his fellow officers. He headed down the hall until he reached a door that led to a staircase. He went up two stories and then back in the same direction he had left. He entered a dark room and closed the door behind him.

"So, what is your opinion on the situation?" Naomasa asked as he turned back towards the other occupant in the room. The man sitting there was tall with short blond hair swept to one side and well-groomed. His boots were brown and went to his shin, covering the blue jeans he wore. His long-sleeved jacket and the snood were also made of blue jeans. What was truly unusual about the snood was the belt that kept it up and the buckle that sat near his mouth. This man was Hakamada Tsunagu, better known as the pro-hero Best Jeanist.

Tsunagu lowered his legs from the table he was resting on as he turned to the Detective. "Complicated and messy," Tsunagu said as he took out a comb to guarantee his hair hadn't gotten out of place while waiting. "It probably was a good thing that Shinya was occupied. If she was raised as a ninja, that might have grated on them."

Naomasa snorted at the idea of those two meeting at some point. "Your opinion on the girl?"

"Loyal, kind, and intelligent. Haruna's reluctance to tell us anything at the start had more to do with her upbringing and uncertainty about where she was than any hostility with us. Playing it straight with her looks to have been the right call. You gained her trust as well as respect."

"This entire situation has turned out far better than I expected, but at the same time is far worse," Naomasa said as he stared down at some of his notes. "I wasn't expecting her to open up as much as she did. Her background is more complicated than I anticipated. I am glad I don't have to get involved in a diplomatic nightmare."

Tsunagu nodded at the observation and moved on to another vital topic regarding Sakura. "Considering her obvious passion for medicine, it was a good suggestion for Shuzenji-sensei to take her in. That will hopefully keep her engaged while she acclimates to our world. So, if she is stuck here, what are the chances of her sticking to just the medical field?"

Naomasa stared the pro-hero in the eyes, not even having to think of the question to find the answer. "None."

Tsunagu smiled at the frankness of the reply, though it was difficult to see with his unusual mask. "Well, Shuzenji-san is a good pick to help with that aspect. If Haruna can adapt and does go for her license, she will take the pro-world by storm."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"And here is your passport," Detective Tanaka said as he handed the document to Peter. Peter inspected the open document briefly before putting it into the bag he had been given.

"Thank you," Peter said as he zipped up the bag and put it around his shoulder. It held all the fabricated documents, a few spare clothes, other supplies, his costume, and a small secure container they put his nano-suit in.

"Well, Parker, it has been a pleasure," Detective Tanaka said as he smiled at the young hero before turning to the older man beside him. "Doctor Shields, keep an eye on this one. I look forward to his debut if he gets around to it."

"I will, Detective. Stay safe out there." David bowed to the Detective, which was returned. Peter caught on a moment later and gave a rough one, but neither man called him on it.

"Have a safe flight, you two." Detective Tanaka nodded once more and turned to walk the quarter mile to his vehicle past the nearby hangars.

"Come on, Peter. Let's go," David said as he turned to the ramp. Peter watched the Detective go for a few more seconds before he followed his new guardian. Peter followed the man up the steps into the plane and checked the insides. It looked like most pictures he's seen of private jets, just different from the ones he'd been on.

"You know, I was half expecting you to geek out about being on a private jet," David said as he watched Peter store his bag, "but then I remembered you telling me about the flights you took on Stark's own jets. So, how does it stack up to his?"

Peter looked around the cabin some before he answered. "Well, there's a full-time pilot and no fabricator in the back. Mr. Stark also had an open bar."

"Fabricator?" David asked, his interest clearly peeked.

"Yeah, after Happy picked me up in the Netherlands, he let me access the fabricator in the back of the plane. That was where I created my normal suit. I made some design changes that helped me with the fight with Beck."

"You are telling me that you designed a state-of-the-art costume in the back of a plane within hours?" What Peter was suggesting baffled David. He had expected an entire facility line had been required or a great deal of time was required to produce the suit.

"Ummm, no?" Peter said. "The flight only took about forty minutes. Most of the designs were already in its catalog, so I picked one that I liked and worked for what I needed, made a few adjustments to my web shooters to up the voltage on the electrical discharges, and made a few other slight adjustments. The fabricator was able to get it done in about thirty minutes."

David was floored as he learned the second most sophisticated costume he had ever seen, especially after he had gotten a look at the inside of the suit to see the circuitry and lining involved, as well as seeing the HUD for the lenses, had been created in a fabricator in the back of a plane in twenty minutes, with editing done before fabrication took place.

David knew they had taken different paths, with Stark concentrating on engineering, computer systems, and mechanical designs while he focused on ways to modify quirks. But just hearing the list of accomplishments this man had was starting to make him feel inadequate.

David was shaken out of his thoughts as the speakers crackled to life, "Dr. Shields, are we clear? We can get a spot for the runway in a few minutes."

David fumbled for the button for a moment before pressing it. "Yes, you are cleared to take off."

"Roger that, sir. We should be in the air shortly; please be sure you and our passengers are buckled in."

David proceeded to do just that, though Peter had yet to be told to do so. Once he was properly secured, he continued the thread of thought. "While conceptually I can understand with an A.I. and such fine machinery you could accomplish such a task, but the amount of power required to do that is not something you could take on a plane!"

"Oh! Yeah, his fabricator was powered by an Arc Reactor."

"You said something about an Arc Reactor when discussing Stark, but what is it?"

"The Arc Reactor is a miniature fusion reactor."

"How small are we talking?"

"Some versions could take up an entire building; that was the prototype Mr. Stark's father had created decades ago. Mr. Stark created a miniaturized version that fits in the palm of your hand." Peter used his hand to show the approximate size of the device, around the size of a softball.

"How much energy did it output? What about leakage, radiation, or waste?" David asked as he opened a drink.

"The first couple versions of the Arc Reactor used palladium, which had minor leakage. But another element was found, and it was safe. No leakage, radiation, or waste. The first version he created outputted three gigajoules a second. Lat–" Peter was interrupted by the other man spitting out and choking on his drink.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Shino watched Endeavor's helicopter take off, kicking up the usual dirt and wind. That was one headache down. Unfortunately, he had decided to leave her with possibly a significant and ongoing problem to deal with. Shino sighed before she turned to the rest of her team, noting that Ryuko was still munching on a marshmallow while the other two held onto the skewers they were given.

"So… what do you guys think of his… suggestion?"

"Sounds like fun!" Tomoko shouted as she sprayed her arms out above her.

Shino and the others stared at Tomoko, though it was evident by the smiles that Yawara and Ryuko also sported what their own thoughts were.

"It would be interesting to interact with her further," Yawara said as he brought a hand to his chin in thought. "Especially if we can adopt some of her training ideas for the future. If she could train us to unlock Ki usage in any capacity, it would make us more effective heroes."

"She's a blast! She's definitely got serious hero potential and isn't stuck up," Ryuko added, a giant smile on her face.

Shino sighed; it seemed their lives were going to become more complicated. Then again, if Ranma hadn't shown up, her life would have absolutely been more difficult. She would gladly trade this over the other every day of her life.

"Ah, Mandalay! Thank you for coming."

Shino turned to the elderly gentleman as he approached, "Hello, Mayor Muto. How is the village holding up?"

"Much better, thanks to the Izumis and Saotome-san," Daichi said as he stood a few feet away. Shino could tell he was exhausted from trying to manage everything but was in good spirits. "How is Kota-chan, by the way?"

"He's at the hospital with his parents. They had just arrived when Endeavor contacted me, so I got a local hero I could trust to keep him company."

"I'm glad to hear it. It was good that Kota wasn't here for the attack, though I imagine he still is rather rattled after hearing of it. Are you returning to the hospital once you are done here?" Shino nodded, "then I'll have Kure-san pick up some stuff from their home they might want with them for their stay."

"Thank you, Muto-san. I know they will all appreciate that."

"Good, good. Well, now that we have those pleasantries dealt with, I mainly sought you out because Officer Tamakawa arrived ahead of schedule. He was able to make good time. I sent him to Saotome, but I figured you might want to be nearby to assist further."

"Oh, good! Hopefully, we can finish here quickly then," Shino said as she walked towards the restaurant.

"Tamakawa?"

Shino stopped and turned her head to look at Yawara, "what is it, Tiger?"

"That is one of Tsukauchi's deputies, isn't it?" Something was clearly bugging Yawara about the situation.

Ryuko picked up the thought trail. "Yeah, isn't he the one with the head of a-- oh no."

Shino's face drained of all color as she remembered the officer in question. She noticed she wasn't the only one on her team. Shino turned to the mayor, "Muto-san! We need to stop Tamakawa from me–"

The scream of primal terror in a high octave was all the evidence she needed to know they were too late.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Sakura-chan! Are you ready to go?"

As she looked away from the bathroom mirror, Sakura sighed, "In a moment, Shuzenji-sensei!" She returned to the mirror again, repeatedly looking at her younger face. She was younger than she should be. The health checks done by the hospital and the ones she had done to herself all told the same story.

On her world, this de-aging would not dramatically change her life since her village considered graduating from the academy as the time they became adults. It didn't matter the age, whether at seven or into their twenties, acquiring their hitai-ate was the mark of entering adulthood.

This new world, however, was drastically different from hers. The city she was currently in had almost as many people as all of Hi no Kuni. And it was just a district of Tokyo, which, combined with all of its districts, dwarfed the populations of all the countries Sakura was familiar with. While it was one of the most populated cities for this new version of Earth she was on, its total population was pitiful compared to the rest of the world.

Then there was the fact she could communicate with any other part of the world instantaneously. She was used to communications taking days to travel any decent distance. She could get on one of their airplanes and go around the world in less time than it took to get to the border of Sunagakure.

While those facts did not directly impact how her new age affected her here, they did influence the world's culture. A world that was separated by more considerable distances and massive obstacles like their oceans but could easily be overcome with their technology. This made it so war had nearly disappeared. While fights of opinion or resources still occurred, they were smaller in scale than the full-on wars of centuries past or every decade on her own world. They did not feel pressured to have children become legal adults, to fight, kill, and die at a young age. The main danger to people was bandits, accidents, and natural disasters. This gave them the leisure of letting children be children.

She was genuinely happy to see this. When she was younger, she didn't think much of it. But after getting older and becoming a medical-nin, it was hard to see the younger generations come in with battle wounds or knowing they would never return.

Her primary issue with it was that she now counted as not being an adult. Her actual age would be on the border of adulthood, and she might have gotten away with the legal difficulties. But because now she was three years younger, she couldn't.

She might have if her situation was not a secret. Her origin from another world, her age, and being a ninja might have allowed her to be a legal adult in this new world. But with that came the complications and attention of groups she wanted to avoid getting involved with at this time. She did not want to deal with people like Danzo, who saw the ends justifying the means. So she was stuck with being a legal child.

At least it is under Shuzenji-sensei who knew her history and treated her more like an adult child. She also respected her knowledge and skill, probing at her medical expertise to verify what she knew and determine the differences between their worlds. And there were differences, primarily when it dealt with areas like molecular biology or nuclear medicine. Their technology was far superior to her worlds, and the only thing that gave her home a leg up on them was chakra.

Sakura turned away from the mirror and exited the bathroom to find Shuzenji-sensei with luggage and a light jacket. Shuzenji handed over the coat to her, which Sakura gladly accepted and wore over her t-shirt. Sakura then took the bag that held some additional temporary clothes and what was left of the equipment she had arrived in. Her weapons had received sheaths, but she was allowed to keep them.

"Come on, let's not keep my husband waiting."

They stepped out of the room to see Kenji talking with a few of the nurses. Their conversation halted when they noticed them leaving and Kenji saying goodbye as he approached them. "Ready to go?"

"Yes, Kenji-kun. Let's get out of here."

"Bye, Haruna-san! Good luck out there!" Sakura turned to see the nurses smiling and waving at her as the Shuzenjis approached the exit. Sakura turned to them and quickly bowed, then returned to her spot behind her new guardians. She had already experienced more mechanical marvels like the elevator, so it wasn't new to her as they made their way to the exit.

She did stop when she saw the main door entrance after it opened automatically for someone that reached it before them. "What?"

Kenji noticed her pause, then traced her sight. "Oh, those are just automatic doors. They have some sensors that detect when motion occurs within a certain space and then tell the doors to open."

"How… how does that work?" Sakura asked in confusion. While she was not adverse to some of the effects of technology, she was confused about how they achieved them without chakra.

"There are several means of achieving them, but these are based on infrared light. It is sent out, and the light reflecting back to the sensor detects when a change occurs. If a change occurs within the specified area, it will trip the sensor and cause the door to open."

"Like sonar?" Sakura asked. Some chakra techniques could use sound like bats could, so the basic concept was not new to her.

"Yes, but using light invisible to the human eye instead of sound waves," Kenji replied as he waved his hand in front of the sensor area and saw the door open.

Shaking her head at yet another marvel of this world, she followed them as they made their way to their vehicle. The walk was short, giving Sakura ample time to observe their surroundings. She had already learned about auto-mobiles, the broad-ranging types, and the sheer quantity. The computer she had been allowed to use even briefly explained how combustion engines worked, which had been easier to understand than the computer she had learned to use.

She had already seen out the windows of the hospital, but seeing it from the street was different. The structures made Konoha's tallest and most prominent buildings look tiny in comparison, not to mention how much glass and metal was involved. Just one of the buildings could have provided enough steel for every ninja in her village for a decade. It baffled her how different the use of resources was compared to home.

"Here we are," Ai said as they approached a dark blue vehicle with four doors that Sakura remembered was called a 'sedan.' She pulled a set of keys from her pocket, and the car clicked. "Get in the back seat, Sakura-chan."

"What was that?"

"Hmmm? Oh, that was what we call a key fob. It lets us lock or unlock the car by pressing some buttons. It sends out a signal that the car door recognizes. It has a unique signal that is specific to your vehicle."

As Ai opened the door with the handle, Sakura observed that the door she was looking at had a similar handle. She lifted it and heard the mechanism click, and the door loosened. Opening it, she saw the inside had soft seating, so she entered.

"Be sure to buckle up," Kenji said as he finished getting in. She observed as he pulled the strap on the side and then fit it into the small lock on a belt to his other side. Sakura looked to her sides and found similar devices. After repeating the actions, she heard the engine turn on, and the
car started moving forward.

As they made their way through the city for the next forty minutes, Sakura observed it in all its glory. Skyscrapers were over fifty stories tall, and smaller buildings were only a few stories tall and hidden amongst their neighbors. The number of people she saw at any time along the streets or places of gathering made the busiest parts of Konoha weep with envy.

Then there were the types of people. The most straightforward observation was the different skin colors, heights, clothing, and hairstyle. Then there were the people with odd appendages, body types, facial structures, non-human skin, and so much more. Some looked like animals, while others she couldn't identify. She was used to seeing oddities among people, but not at this quantity or this diversity. Or the fact that they were all civilians.

There were a few sites that Ai or Kenji pointed out as historical or popular sites when they passed them. One was even a mall, which, when Sakura asked what that was, she was surprised to hear it had hundreds of individual stores selling all manner of products. Ai recommended taking her to hunt for clothes or other things she would need later this week.

Soon they had left the more significant buildings and entered what looked like residential homes. It got quieter, with fewer vehicles and far fewer pedestrians. Soon they arrived at a three-story house with a thick stone wall surrounding it that was two to three times larger than some of the other lots of land. "We're here."

The vehicle pulled around the circular tiled-stone driveway and stopped, followed by the noisy engine being turned off. The house looked like a combination of old and newer designs, with clay-tiled roofing between the three floors familiar to Konoha. The front entrance had two large rooms a meter taller than the rest of the house, with glass walls that showed the interior.

Sakura followed their lead, unbuckling and exiting the car when they did. She observed that while the home looked large, it was still in tight confines of the outer wall, reducing the available open space. But what little open space was filled with beautiful greenery and some stone paths to walk it. Sakura couldn't help but admire it. "It's beautiful!"

"Thank you," Kenji said as he opened the trunk to get some luggage out. "It is one of our joys, beyond our work and children."

Ai led the way to the house, with Sakura a few steps behind and Kenji bringing up the rear. The door material looked modern, with some sort of display on the side of the door. Ai touched the screen with a keypad next to it and then inputted what must be a passcode. The front door opened a moment later.

The inside was laid out with another mix of old and new. Tatami mats were used for the flooring but with modern materials, while the walls were solid. "Follow me, Sakura-chan. I'll lead you to your room." Sakura followed the older woman up the stairs and down the hall to an open doorway. "Here we go, dear."

The room had a very comfortable-looking bed with white bedding, a glass desk, and what Sakura saw was a T.V. hanging on the wall. It also had a dresser and a closet. The room wasn't large but was more than enough for her needs.

"Shopping will have to wait a few days until I get another day off from work."

Sakura nodded as she put her bag on top of the bed before she sat on it, surprised by how comfortable it was. It felt like a marshmallow compared to her old beds. "That sounds fine," she said, collapsing onto the bed.

"Oh, Ingenium has been asking to meet you. I held him off until you left the hospital, but he hasn't relented."

"Ingenium? Isn't he a pro-hero?" Sakura asked as she looked at Ai.

"Yes, you met a few of his sidekicks during the incident. Do you want me to arrange a meeting? We could do it during the shopping trip."

"Okay? I guess?" Sakura was unsure how to take that.

"Don't worry, dear, he's one of the good ones. He wanted to thank you personally for your assistance and piqued his curiosity."

"Alright."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Melissa Shields waited at I-Island's airfield as her father's jet was taxied towards the hangar. Her father had taken off one afternoon in a rush, leaving for Japan without telling her why. It wasn't that unusual for him to travel or be secretive, but he would typically hint at why he left before he usually took off. She knew it had to be significant.

While she talked to her father daily, she had only been told something today. He was bringing a new ward to I-Island, and they would stay with her and her father. That worried her since the possibilities for why her father would take in a ward and still be this secretive were limited. It could be something dangerous or, worse, embarrassing!

She stepped towards the plane after it stopped, using a hand to hold her long blonde hair from blowing into her face due to the winds from the sea. She watched the door open, showing her father as he smiled down at her. She waited until he stepped off the final stair before she threw herself into his arms. "Welcome back, Dad!"

David hugged her, "It's good to be back, Mel." He held her before him after a few more seconds of the hug. The two smiled warmly at each other before Melissa looked towards the plane entrance to see a Caucasian teenager with a bag on his shoulder. David turned to see Peter standing there, waiting for them to move, so David took Melissa a few steps away from the plane so Peter could get out. "Melissa, I would like you to meet Peter Parker."

Melissa stepped towards him, holding her hand out. "Hi Peter, I'm Melissa!"

Peter smiled, shaking her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Melissa."

She turned to her father, readjusting her glasses as she glared at him, "So, do you want to finally spill on what's going on?"

Peter shuffled around, holding his bag closer, while David chuckled. "Soon, Mel. We need to get past security before I can tell you anything."

Melissa sighed before she started walking towards the nearby carts. Another hour after waiting a week won't hurt. But you are treating me to ice cream later!"

"Sorry for making you worry, Mel. Come on, Peter, let's go before she decides to extract more from me," David said as he chuckled and led the way.

They entered the cart and rode it to a smaller security checkpoint than the main one for the city. It was for official I-Island business, so it saw less traffic and thus a much smaller line.

"Welcome back, Dr. Shields," one of the guards said as they stepped up. "Anything to declare?"

"Good to be back, Sam," David said as he stepped up before handing some papers to the guard. "This is my new ward, Peter. He has a costume in the bag as well as a containment unit. I can't tell you what is in the containment unit."

Melissa was surprised. Peter having a costume in the bag was unusual, but including a containment unit meant it was something big. Those only got pulled out for being extremely dangerous or top secret.

The guard shuffled through the paperwork until he found the part authorizing the usage of the containment unit. Seeing that everything else was in order, he continued his job. "Please take the unit out of the bag, put your bags and other supplies onto the scanner, and step through the detector. You'll need to hand the device to Akira," he said as he pointed at another guard near the scanner, "before you step through."

Peter did just that, pulling a container smaller than a basketball out of his bag and handing it to the other guard before putting his load onto the belt. They stepped through the machine without a beep, and the other guard returned the container to Peter. Another guard was inspecting the scanner before whistling in appreciation. "Wow, that is some suit you got there! The machine is having a hard time with it. We must inspect it by hand to ensure things are in order.

When the bag was finished, another guard took it to the end of the table where the trio met them. Melissa watched as the guard pulled out a costume that looked of good quality, but nothing she could see to indicate how special it was. When the guard looked into the opening, Melissa saw lines of wires embedded into the cloth mesh, and she realized it was more complex than it looked.

The guard looked at the headpiece first, turning it inside out as she checked around the lenses. It was difficult to tell, but the lenses mainly looked like a one-sided mirror, but she saw some of the signs of retina displays. The guard set it down without a peep.

Next was the suit's waistband, which took the guard a few seconds to figure out how to open since it was more of a one-piece suit instead of pants and a top. She had to fold some of the cloth around the waist to reveal the hidden compartments. She pulled it all down, revealing dozens of little cartridges, some other items, and a spot for holding a cell phone on the back. She pulled out one of the cartridges and tried to look inside them, seeing some form of white substance inside. "What is this?" She asked as she held it up.

"Synthetic Web-fluid. Used for my web-slingers," Peter pointed to his gloves, "to allow me to shoot a polymer compound that is similar to silk."

The guard raised an eyebrow, "what are its base components?"

"I use salicylic acid, toluene, methanol, h-heptane, carbon tetrachloride, potassium carbonate, ethyl acetate, hexane, BHA, and sodium tetraborate." Peter listed it off so fluently that Melissa was impressed. While she was curious to know whether any of that would work, especially since multiple components were just solvents, to be able to list that off like that meant he was familiar with chemistry.

The guard initially looked skeptical since some of those compounds could be dangerous, so she turned to David. "It's safe enough."

The guard nodded before she looked at the other item, looking expectantly at Peter. "Chemical to dissolve the webbing faster."

"Also safe," David spoke up again.

The guard put everything back before she turned to the gloves. It was harder to turn them inside out, but she got enough to see the frame of the shooters. After checking it, she turned it over to look on the outside. She saw the little nozzle near the wrist and where the cloth could pull away to allow for swapping out the cartridges from the belt.

"Alright, everything looks in order," the guard said as she put everything back into the bag carefully before holding it out to Peter. "You are cleared to go."

"Thank you," Peter said before recovering his bag.

"Again, welcome back, Dr. Shields," the first guard said.

"Thanks again, Sam."

They walked away from the checkpoint towards the elevators that led to the city proper. On the elevator ride up, Melissa smiled as she stared at the doors. "So, you shoot silk out? Considering the costume, you must have a spider theme going on?"

Peter tilted his head as he glanced at her before turning to David. The older man smiled and gave a subtle nod. "Yes, I have a spider theme going." Peter sighed, he should be more used to confirming this to new people after Beck, but it still left him uncomfortable.

"So, does your quirk allow you to control the webs? Or does your quirk mimic some spider characteristics, and the webbing is just an addition?" Melissa finally turned to look Peter in the eyes, her own growing in size.

"Yes… and no," Peter said as he tried to think of how to explain it. The whole situation, with every special ability being labeled a quirk, made it awkward to explain. "At least to the second part, I can't control the webbing other than with my web shooters."

"What do you mean?"

"It's complicated, but I have abilities similar to a spider but proportional to its size."

"Proportional to its size?" Melissa blinked at that as she thought about how that would work. "Some spiders can move and jump very quickly and, like ants or other insects, have a strength greater proportional to their mass."

"I have strength, speed, and agility like a spider."

"Oh, that's interesting! So when you activate your quirk, does your body change enough to look like a spider? Is that why you wear a full-body costume, and it's bigger than what fits your current body?"

"Uhhh… no? I don't change at all. I have those abilities all the time, even now."

Melissa blinked a few times while trying to process what Peter was saying. "That… doesn't make any sense. That doesn't sound like a transformation quirk, and you aren't showing any signs of a mutant. Emitters don't tend to work like that, either. How do you even know it is spider related, then?"

"I can also stick to other surfaces and have a warning sense. But those aren't limited to spiders. I know it is spider related because of how I got the abilities."

"Oh? One of your parents has a similar quirk? A modified variation of an inherited quirk?"

"No. I didn't inherit anything like this from my parents. I wasn't born with it."

"You… you were given your quirk from someone else?" Melissa asked. That was highly unusual but not an impossibility.

"It isn't a quirk."

"Isn't… a… quirk?" Melissa seemed to have stalled. "Wha– what do you mean? It isn't a quirk? How? What is it? Are you a cyborg or an android?" Her hand started reaching up toward his cheeks to poke at it, but he leaned back to avoid the confused and inquisitive girl.

"No. It was due to a lab accident. Some tests were being done then, with a spider contaminated by one of the tests, and then it bit me. It rewrote my DNA, and I gained my abilities."

The elevator was quiet as David looked at the nervous boy and his daughter as she failed to process the information. After a few seconds, he leaned over to her and waved his hand up and down in front of her face with no reaction. "That's new. Parker, you have done the impossible. You have broken my daughter." At the horrified expression on his face, he chuckled. "Don't worry about it. You just shattered some of her understanding of the world. I can't wait to see her reaction when you get to the good stuff!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Shino and the others streamed inside the restaurant but saw no sign of the girl. At least until they looked up to find her attached to the ceiling. Her terrified eyes were staring down at the lone officer in the room. Dressed in a standard Tokyo police uniform, with a long-sleeved light blue shirt and black vest, he looked back up at her with a befuddled expression. Or what was likely a befuddled expression since the head of a tabby cat didn't always translate accurately from a human's facial expression.

"Tamakawa-san?" Shino asked as she walked slowly towards the officer.

After hearing his name, Sansa finally seemed to break the spell he was under. Though it still took him a second to reorient himself from the strange reaction of the girl. "Uhh, oh, umm yes Mandalay?"

"Can– can you please step outside with me? I'll explain what is going on." She paused as she glanced up at Ranma, noticing how she seemed ready to break and run away. "But I think it would be best if we did it away from Ranma."

"Sure." the officer glanced back up at Ranma, noticing how she twitched when he did. He turned and walked towards the door.

Once he was outside, Ranma visibly began relaxing, so Shino turned to her teammates. "Pixie? Tiger? Can you try to calm her down and maybe find out what is going on with her? Don't press her if she doesn't want to talk about it, though." The two heroes nodded and walked past her and below Ranma. "Ragdoll, since you seemed to see something earlier, can you come with me to explain what is going on with Officer Tamakawa?"

"Sure." The two heroes stepped outside to see the officer wilt, even though they could only see him from behind.

"Officer Tamakawa?" Shino asked, "I don't think it is what you think it is."

Sansa didn't bother to turn around, "you don't have to make excuses, Mandalay-san. It's just a fact of reality."

"Again, it isn't what you think. We believe we know what is happening while we haven't heard it from her."

"I know what's going on!" Sansa said, turning to glare at the two heroes. "I am not blind to it!"

"Do you know her reaction when she first met us?"

Sansa blinked, finding the question a bit odd. "What was it?"

"She became startled and defensive."

"So she didn't know who you were? So what?"

"Ragdoll looked at her then took off her accessories; when we all took them off, she calmed down."

"Why would that matter?"

"What are our accessories, Officer?" Shino challenged him.

"You wear fake cat tails, paws, and helmets that… look like… cat ears?" Sansa finally seemed to catch on to what she was hinting at. "She's… scared of cats?"

Shino turned to her friend, "Ragdoll, I know you don't normally like to reveal things like this, but I think it is important. What did you see?"

Tomoko had a grave expression, a klaxon warning Shino that this would be bad. "I saw… a pit. A dark pit in the woods, a man wearing a white gi and a headband that shifted between man and a panda standing above it, closing it with a wooden hatch. Inside the pit was a young child wrapped up in rope and meat. And dozens of cats swarming the child, fighting each other for the meal."

Tomoko watched as Shino's face gradually lost all color, and her eyes widened. Something similar had happened to Sansa, though it was harder to tell. Then she delivered the coup de grace, "the only word I heard was 'Dad.'"

"WHAT!?"

Tomoko used some fingers to try to get the ringing to stop. She couldn't form a smile as she looked at Sansa, too annoyed by the pain he had just caused. Luckily for her, the officer had forgotten how language worked, though he was clearly trying. It also gave Shino time to recover, but all she could do was sag in resignation. Sansa eventually recovered as well, but his anger led the charge.

"Where is her father?" Tomoko and Shino could see his hand fingering his baton.

"Officer Tamakawa," Shino started, getting his attention. "The situation is extremely complex. We've learned some details that make finding her father nearly impossible."

"Is he dead?" Shino couldn't fault the total lack of empathy that phrase held.

"Probably, but not for any normal circumstances. She claims she woke up in the forest this morning with no knowledge of how she got here–"

"She did say she fell," Tomoko added helpfully.

"Right. She fell at least twenty meters in the forest and did not wake up, not because she was knocked unconscious, but because the fall barely registered for her." Shino had said this to stress just how powerful the girl was. "She said she had been asleep in her bed last night, on April 2nd."

"So she was in a coma for–

"1990."

"-- What?"

"Yes, she claims to be from a hundred and fifty years in the past. With no idea of how she got here."

"That's ridiculous!"

Shino explained what else they had learned about her and her abilities. Sansa was skeptical, both from the claim of where she came from and her being quirkless, but agreed that for a tentative position, it was enough for now. Eventually, they returned to discuss what he was there in the first place to do.

"I will still need to question her, to find out as many details as possible so I can investigate her past. If she's telling the truth, hopefully, there will be some evidence we can track down. Maybe someone from her family can be found."

"I think we need to get something to cover your head." Shino noticed the mayor off to the side, trying to be on hand but not intrude on official business. She waved him forward as she called for him.

The man approached them, clearly concerned about what was happening. "What do you need, Mandalay?"

"Can you get some sort of head covering for Officer Tamakawa? Ranma is… scared of cats. So we need something that hides his head as best as possible."

"Preferably something I can still see out of since I will need to write notes."

The mayor blinked at the odd request, and their hero's fear of cats disoriented him. "Let– let me see what I can scrounge up."

While they waited, Shino filled Sansa in on what else Endeavor had suggested and his reasoning. While it was certainly unusual, it did seem well thought out, so Sansa agreed. The mayor returned at this time, so they spent a few minutes covering Sansa's head to hide any possibility that he looked like a cat. They had even found some sunglasses. When they finished, there were some signs his head wasn't ordinary, but not that he looked like a cat.

They stepped toward the restaurant's door again, with Shino and Tomoko leading. When they looked inside, Ranma was relaxed, though she was more alert than earlier. Shino stepped up to Ryuko, whispering something in her ear. After getting a reply, she waved to the entrance, and Tomoko opened the door for Sansa.

After the officer stepped inside, Shino held her breath as she waited to see how Ranma would react. She was happy to see that Ranma, while she looked more guarded, did not seem to see the officer as a cat.

"Saotome-san?" Sansa asked.

"Umm, yeah? Who are you?"

"I am Officer Tamakawa. I was called in to investigate the situation, particularly regarding you."

"Me?" Ranma asked, sitting up straighter. "Why would you investigate me?"

"While Mandalay has already filled me in on what has been going on, I was originally contacted because of concerns about why you were here." Ranma opened her mouth, but Sansa beat her, "Primarily concerns about whether you were held against your will. If that was the case, then investigating who did it and a means to get you home were needed."

Ranma tilted her head as she thought about it before nodding, "Okay, I guess I can see that. But why do you still need to investigate me if that isn't a concern?"

"Mostly to investigate how you got here. But also to gather and verify your history and find family members.

"I can just go home to do that. Why would you need to do that?"

"It has been a hundred and fifty years; it isn't likely any family members you know are still alive or descendants even live at the same places as before. Especially considering the chaos of the last century."

Ranma grimaced, "Okay, they might not be living at the same spots, I guess, but I would expect a few to still be around. But what do you mean chaos in the last century?"

Sansa and a few others sputtered at suggesting that some family members would be alive after so long. "How can you expect any of them to be alive?"

"Several of my family members were skilled Ki users. So a hundred and fifty isn't too terrible."

"How long can Ki users live?" Yawara asked.

"Well, the old ghoul was over three hundred, and the pervert was slightly older."

Yawara smirked at the idea, but Shino stopped him from going down that rabbit hole. "The chaos we discussed was the coming of quirks and society adapting to it."

Ranma tilted her head, using a hand to rub her chin as she thought of it. "I don't get it."

"Get what?" Sansa asked.

"Why would that cause a problem?"

"Quirks provide a range of different abilities; some are fairly benign while others are dangerous," Sansa said. He was glad to see her nod, "as a result, you have those that would use them in dangerous ways. People like Muscular would get quirks and hurt other people. Others would rob and cheat. Then some people became careless while using their quirk to have fun. Property damage, deaths, injuries, thefts, and more became regular occurrences. And society was not ready at that time for it."

Ranma winced as she finally understood his point. "Okay, I get it," she said before sighing, "so what did you want to know?"

"Well, some general details to start. Then some additional information we can use to help us narrow down what to look for." Sansa pulled out a pad of paper and a pencil, ready to start his notes. "Let's start with your full name, date of birth, parent's full names and birth dates, and known residences."

"Saotome Ranma," she said as the officer wrote it down. "Date of birth is November 25th, 1971. Saotome Genma and Sa–"

"Wait!"

Ranma paused as Sansa called a halt. "What?"

"You said 1971?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"You said it was 1990 when you disappeared?" The other observers finally picked up on what Sansa was talking about.

"Yeah?" She was clearly still lost on why that was a problem.

"That would make you eighteen years old."

"Yeah? What about it?"

"You do not look like you are eighteen!"

Ranma shrugged, "I know. Pretty sure someone fed me a mushroom before doing whatever they did to me."

"Mushroom?"

"Yeah, I think they were called the Mushrooms of Time or something like that," she said as she tilted her head back to remember.

"How does a mushroom make you go from eighteen to something like fourteen!?"

"The mushrooms de-age you based on the size of the mushroom, one centimeter for one year of age. Just another item on my bucket list of things to find." Ranma folded her arms at the indignation of dealing with more problems.

While the range of quirks was diverse and strange, a quirk that could change someone's age was possible. But it was the fact it came from a mushroom that should have made that impossible. Especially before quirks had spread.

"That's impossible!"

Ranma just shrugged her shoulders. "It's magic, not too surprising."

"While quirks can seem magical, they are not magic!"

"So?"

"Magic isn't real!"

"Sure it is."

Sansa was obviously aggravated at this turn of events. "How do you even know about these… magic mushrooms?"

"Ryouga found the forest they grow in, which will make finding them a nightmare," Ranma said as she rolled her eyes. "He ate one and turned into a five-year-old. He was trying to grow larger ones to change back, but stuff happened, and I was fed a five-centimeter one. Spent a week like that. Annoying. At least I'm not that young."

"This happened before you arrived in our time?"

"Yeah, a few years ago for me."

"That still should be impossible. Magic isn't real." Sansa was becoming a broken record.

"Wanna bet?" Ranma saw the disbelief on several faces. "Let me get some hot water."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Hmmm, Sakura? Add this to your pile," Ai said as she handed the blouse to the younger girl. As she looked around the shop's selections, Sakura put the blouse on top of her other clothes. Sakura and Ai had been shopping for the last four hours, with clothes being the current target.

Konoha, for her world, had a good selection of different styles and choices. It was a central location, ideal for traders to go through. But the few shops they had visited in this single mall made most of those selections pale in comparison. It had several styles she was familiar with but dozens of new ones she had never seen before. The quality, on average, was far better as well. Most clothes on her world were poorly made, with the exception being from a skilled seamstress. She usually got her clothes from those seamstresses, so she was used to higher-quality clothing. Sakura had asked how it was done and learned that much of it was using machines to rapidly and consistently create patterns at a quality and quantity that outstripped home. Just another example that they had far surpassed her world technologically.

While clothing stores were the most numerous in this mall, it was still only a fraction of the other stores. They had shopped at stores for beds, furnishing, electronic equipment, music, and her favorite: a bookstore. She was promised that they could return to the store or another one later.

Then there was the food. Food carts were frequent, and the quality was terrific, but the variety amazed her. She saw barbeque joints much like those that some of her friends would frequent and a ramen shop where she wouldn't have been surprised to find Naruto if he were here. But then there were the new types of food she had never heard of before. The American burger was mostly ingredients she was familiar with, but how it was put together made it look delicious. Then there was Mexican food, using flatbreads, meats, onions, peppers, and sauces that gave exciting aromas. Indian food had similarities to Mexican but an entirely different style of spices and mixtures. There were a few others, but Ai-sensei had said they would grab lunch after they finished clothes shopping.

"Okay, Sakura-chan, I think this is enough." Ai deposited another skirt into Sakura's arms. It was a couple dozen blouses, skirts, leggings, and dresses. Enough to give her the basics of a wardrobe. She had even found a few clothes combinations similar to what she wore in Konoha. "I'll wait out here for you. If you want an opinion on any of the choices, feel free to ask."

"Thank you, Ai-sensei," Sakura said as she walked to the dressing room.

Some picks were odd, but she had seen girls wearing similar things as they walked through the mall. The clothes came in myriad styles, from the basics of short and long-sleeved blouses to some more irregular ones, such as sleeveless or blouses that left her shoulders or back bare. The skirts went from long to short, some with ruffles or slits. The leggings were the simplest of the bunch. She especially liked some of the shorts, reminding her of her usual style at home, though with different materials. The colors tended towards darks and some lights, but nothing bright.

It took her a half hour to finish going through the pile, but when she came out of the dressing room, she only returned a few selections to Ai. "These are the only ones that really don't fit with me."

Ai inspected the choices, mostly with more fluff than was practical. It seemed Sakura did not enjoy frills. "Do you want to pick up some more in the styles you liked?" She asked this while she set the clothes neatly in a nearby basket for the shop to organize unwanted selections.

Sakura nodded, so they returned to the previously visited clothes racks and added more to her pile. She found a few other selections for which she needed the dressing room, but it took less time. Once they were done, they paid for the clothes, and Sakura picked up the other bags of items they had purchased.

Seeing the pile, Ai had to sigh, "I think that will have to be all for now, any more, and it will just get awkward carrying them around." Sakura's pout almost made Ai change her mind, but she thought of a better solution. "Don't worry, I know of another bookstore closer to home we can go to. It is also bigger than the one in this mall."

"Shannaro!" Sakura's arms shot above her head, not even displaying the weight or awkwardness of her burdens. Ai had to smile at the exuberance, which was at odds with her meek demeanor. Ai had only seen minor signs of it, but it was good to see Sakura being so enthusiastic.

Checking her watch, Ai realized they only had a little time before another appointment was due. "Come on, Sakura-chan, let's get some lunch before he arrives."

"Right."

The two made their way to the food court, which was moderately crowded at this time of day. Sakura smiled at both the selection of food and the crowds. The food smelled incredible, figuring a few of her friends would be jealous of the choices available. Especially Choji.

"Hmm, how about pizza, Sakura-chan?" Ai asked as she looked around at the various options, noticing one in particular.

"What's pizza?" Sakura asked as she looked at Ai, then followed her line of sight to a store with some sort of yellow triangular-shaped food with some brown circles on top of it.

"What's pizza?" Ai repeated Sakura's line as she smiled at the girl, "If I didn't know your history, I would say you need to spend a few sessions with my husband." Receiving only a deadpan response, Ai continued. "Pizza is the undisputed most popular food in the entire world. It originated in Italy, which is in Europe, but America popularized it to the rest of the world. It is a thin dough shaped into a circle, with marinara, mozzarella cheese, and various toppings. Then it is cut into slices and eaten by hand."

"All right, we can do pizza." Sakura tilted her head as she thought of it. She wasn't familiar with some ingredients, but it sounded appealing.

They stepped up to the line, and Sakura saw over a dozen trays of pie, many missing slices. Customers would place an order to a worker on the other side, and then the employee would pull from the selection, while workers behind them would occasionally replace a tray with a new one. It looked like an economical means of distributing food. When it was her turn, it took her longer than others. She started to get grunts of displeasure from the workers and customers for taking so long. But as soon as Ai whispered, conspiratorially and loudly, that she had never heard of pizza before today, most of those frowns turned to smiles. She finally settled on a plain cheese slice after they learned she hated spicy things and one with mayonnaise, fish, and seaweed.

They found a table near a window that looked out to the street. After putting the food on the table and the bags to the side by the window, Sakura repeated Ai's action of pulling a few napkins from the container. Ai didn't waste time and ate her pizza, obviously pleased with the taste. Sakura's eyes widened as she bit into her first slice. The dough was somewhat familiar in taste, but it was the crispness of it that surprised her. Then the cheese was milky, grassy, and a little sweet, but with an undercurrent of sourness that she immediately fell in love with. The sauce, which is hidden at first but reveals itself after chewing for a moment, was sweet, tangy, and acidic, which complimented the dough and the cheese wonderfully. A layer of oil on the top rounded it out to just cause a rush of dopamine in her brain to be released.

"Oh my!" Sakura could only stare in wonder at what she had in her hand.

"Good, isn't it?" Ai said as she finished swallowing her own bite.

"I love this cheese but have never had anything like this sauce! What is it?" Sakura looked at Ai for an answer.

"Marinara, it is a sauce made primarily from tomatoes, along with a few other herbs and spices," Ai took another bite after explaining that bit.

"It's so good!" Sakura took another, more significant bite as she sought more of that dopamine high. Conversation ceased as the two women ate their food. The slices were quickly consumed, Ai dabbing her mouth and hands with the napkin before watching as Sakura picked up her second slice. This one was creamier but with a heavier bite of sour and salt. The fish and seaweed just added more to the overall flavor that, while very familiar to the cheese slice, felt like it was leagues away. Sakura quickly finished her bite and just continued to enjoy her food.

She was almost done eating when there was a minor commotion near the entrance of the food court that grabbed their attention. Both were glad to recognize it as non-violent, allowing Sakura to return to her food and ignore the situation. Due to her eyes being closed as she ate, she didn't notice Ai waving her hand and then beckoned with it. After finishing the last bite, she finally opened her eyes again, only to see a new person standing beside the table.

She blinked as she looked at a tall, handsome Japanese man with blue eyes and short, dark blue and slightly spiky hair. The only other odd feature was his eyebrows, that looked like they were pointing away from him on both sides. He wore a white T-shirt with a few heavy lines down the front. He smiled at the two of them before he turned to Ai. "Shuzenji-sensei! It is good to see you again. I hope E.R.'s work has been calmer these last few weeks?"

"It has, Ida-san. It is good to see you as well. Grab a chair," Ai said as she pointed to a nearby empty table. Ida did so before he turned to Sakura, "You must be Haruno-san?"

"Yes. You're the… pro-hero Ingenium?"

"Yep. Shuzenji-sensei probably explained why I wanted to meet you, but I'll say it anyway. Thank you for your assistance." He momentarily got out of his chair to bow deeply to her before returning to it. "So I read my team's report about the incident and was very impressed." His smile widened as he saw her blush ever so lightly. "From what they observed, you could move quickly and had an incredible punch, taking out the villain with one hit. I heard he was still expecting more surgeries down the line to be able to open his jaw."

Sakura winced a little, wondering if she had gone too far in this new world. Tensei noticed and decided to relieve her of any guilt as he remembered the man's actions. "You saw what he did to the citizens, and you were new on the scene. He needed to be taken down quickly and decisively, just like you did."

"I know. I just am not used to how things are done here," Sakura said before sighing.

That surprised Tensei. "What do you mean?"

"Sakura-chan is from a remote region of the world," Ai spoke on Sakura's behalf. "She was kept isolated and was trained from an early age."

"Really?" Tensei looked between the two women before settling on Sakura. "Did you enjoy it there?"

"Yes. It's my home. My family and friends all live there."

Tensei noticed the sad smile she had. "Is there some difficulty with returning?"

"We haven't been able to find it yet," Ai said. "She was sent here by a warping power, and our knowledge and Sakura-chan's haven't helped locate it. Tsukauchi-san is doing some investigating to try to find it."

"I was going to offer my team's services to help, but that man is a bloodhound when hunting down clues. Still, if you ever need my assistance, please ask."

Sakura smiled at that while Ai replied, "Thank you, Iida-san."

"So, what is your quirk anyways, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura glanced at Ai before returning to Tensei, "It isn't like most quirks you are familiar with." After receiving a raised eyebrow, she explained, "It functions more as an energy that is extremely malleable."

"Malleable? So your quirk isn't just being able to heal?" He asked as he rubbed his chin in thought while his eyes stopped focusing on hers. "So your ability to heal is just manipulating this energy in other people to cause a reaction, resulting in the body healing from a wound? This energy is also what gave you your speed and strength? Hmmm… so it must be even more versatile than that. Shuzenji-sensei said you were trained, meaning someone would have to know your quirk could apply to medical purposes. I assume some of the people in your village have similar abilities?"

Sakura blinked in amazement at that accurate summation of her situation. "Ummm, yes."

"Extraordinary!" Tensei smiled even wider as he noticed he got a deeper blush out of her for that. "So, what are your plans in the meantime? Especially if it proves difficult to return you home?"

"Shuzenji-sensei is working on getting me caught up on the things I need to know, like world history and current sciences."

"That is an excellent start, but I meant more of what you want to do."

Sakura blinked at the question. She had barely even thought of that question since she had learned she was on another world. "I… I would like to study more medicine."

"That sounds great! But what kind of job would you want in the future?"

"A doctor of some sort," Sakura answered, clearly confused about where this was going.

"Oh, stop beating around the bush, Iida-san! Ask your question more directly," Ai said in exasperation, though she was smiling.

Tensei had to lean away, clearly intimidated by the older woman, as he raised his hands to placate her. "Alright!" He took a moment to orient himself again before he looked Sakura in the eyes. "What about being a pro-hero?"

"Wha?" Sakura was clearly not expecting that.

"Look, you already proved you could be a great hero with what you did, stopping the villain and organizing and providing emergency treatment for everyone there. But what impressed me was how you took charge and worked with everyone. That showed a remarkable amount of leadership. Some of my people still tease the sidekicks that were there that they started taking orders from a teenager."

While Sakura did a full-on blush, Ai could only cover her mouth and giggle into it as politely as she could. She knew precisely how commanding Sakura could be, having been the first to be swayed. "Oh my, I do hope it isn't too bad."

Tensei snorted, "No, most of it is good-natured. But some of them have been taking it badly. I wondered if Sakura wouldn't mind visiting our facilities to help with 'training.' See how quickly the ones doing the mocking fall under her sway."

Ai couldn't be polite in how she laughed now, having to bend over the table like that. Sakura also giggled, letting Tensei know his plan could succeed. He waited for the two of them to calm down before he spoke again. "But I am serious about whether you want to pursue being a pro-hero. You already have the skills and knowledge to do some of the most difficult parts of the job and clearly are calm and level-headed when it matters. Your quirk is amazing, but giving yourself speed, strength, healing others after a battle, and whatever else you have in your arsenal? That is unique because, to my knowledge, it has never been seen."

"I… I don't know," Sakura said, unsure how to answer. "From what little I have learned about pro-heroes, much of it does not sound appealing. That isn't to say that what they do isn't admirable, but how it is treated doesn't sit well with me."

"Well, I can answer any questions you have about it. But I think I know of one that can be a big incentive for you already."

"What's that?"

"If you went on to study medicine and become a doctor, would you want to use your quirk to help?"

"Of course. Why would I not?"

"Because in most public settings, which includes most forms of work, quirk usage tends to be illegal or at least heavily frowned upon."

"What? Why! That doesn't make any sense!"

"It primarily has to do with regulation. Due to the number of people with quirks and the different types, it can be hazardous. Pro-hero licenses are more like a certification that you are trained in using quirks and usually towards bettering society."

"That doesn't seem fair," Sakura said.

"Sometimes it isn't, I agree. But sometimes, those strict rules are necessary in a world where people bend and break the rules regularly. Take, for example, the speed limit on cars… you do know what those are, right?" Tensei asked after Sakura showed confusion about his example.

"I… think so?" Sakura asked before she tilted her head. "Those limits are there so cars don't become dangerous?"

"Correct. Say the speed limit says sixty kilometers per hour; what speed do you think drivers will be at?"

She thought about it for a few moments before sighing. "While most people will use close to the speed limit, a good portion will go over it and push it to the boundaries. Then the outliers clearly break past it. This is the same with people using quirks. The laws must be stricter because people will always push the boundary of what is allowed."

Tensei turned to Ai, "You have a scarily intelligent girl on your hands. Do be careful with her." Sakura squawked at that but noticed he had a friendly smirk on his face. He was teasing her.

"Anyways, due to the range of available quirks, the profession of pro-heroes was created as a deterrent to those that break that boundary. Some had suggested it for the police, but that opens another big can of worms regarding who can lawfully arrest someone. Keeping the pro-heroes separate from the police largely avoids that problem."

"Okay, I can understand that, I guess," Sakura sighed, clearly annoyed with this rule.

"You are far from the first and will not be the last to express that opinion."

"So if I want to use my ability to heal for medical operations, I must have a pro-hero license. But then I couldn't be a doctor."

Ai chuckled, "Oh no, you most certainly could."

Sakura blinked a few times as she stared at Ai. "What do you mean?"

"My mother-in-law is a pro-hero with an extremely rare quirk that allows her to heal others. She does not tend to do the flashy stuff you see most pro-heroes put out and never has. But her fame in the medical community is legendary. She has historically operated as a first responder or visited hospitals nationwide to heal wounded people."

"Really?"

"Yes, but while her quirk is quite powerful for what it does, she got a medical license to know when and when not to use it. Much like you had your training on how to use your own ability. These days she works as the nurse on staff for U.A. High School."

"U.A. High School?" She had heard of the schooling system in this world, but Ai was making it sound special.

"It is the most elite school in Japan for training upcoming heroes. Instead of a normal high school, people there train to become heroes and get their license by the time they graduate," Tensei said. "I graduated from there years ago."

"Sounds like the academy back home," Sakura said as she thought about it.

"From what you have told me of it, yes, it is very similar," Ai said.

"Haruno-san, I see you could still use some time to think about it. Considering your age, you still have plenty of time. I would suggest asking for advice from Recovery Girl before making any decisions, though." Tensei reached into his pocket to pull out a card and then handed it to her. "Feel free to contact me if you have any more questions or want to come by, whether it is for just seeing how we do things or if you want to assist with 'training.'"

Tensei got up from his chair and pulled out his sunglasses. "Well, ladies, it was a pleasure speaking to you. Have a safe trip home!" Tensei finished putting the glasses on as he walked away. The two women got up shortly after and left for home.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter bit into his Cuban sandwich that was balm for his soul. It had been a few weeks since he had a chance to stop at Delmore, even before the entire fiasco that ended with him stranded in this universe, so getting something that was at least passingly familiar helped with his wistfulness for home. The deli's seating wasn't very comfortable, but he still melted into it.

"Typical New Yorker," David said as he unwrapped his sandwich. "Withdrawal symptoms from New York deli sandwiches tend to make them cranky."

"I am so relaxed right now that I am going to ignore that insult," Peter replied after swallowing a mouthful of food.

Melissa was ready to start eating, but the byplay made her giggle. David opted out of continuing the playful teasing to eat as well. When Melissa finished eating a few bites of her food, she picked up where they had left off.

"So, Mr. Multiverse, what happened next?" Melissa asked.

Peter chewed and then swallowed his current bite before answering her. "So after we settled the dispute with the Guardians, we explored the planet Titan a little, getting the lay of the land. Mr. Stark and Quill started fighting over who would create the plan when Mantis noticed Dr. Strange was doing something funky. He was using the Time Stone to actually view different possible futures based on actions they could take."

"Wow! Was he actually bending space-time to view the future? I know some quirks do that, but this stone just let him do it?"

"It could do more than just view the future; you could manipulate time itself, though, only locally. He could wind time on an individual object or an area. I learned from him later that there had been an incident in Hong Kong that the city and our planet were at risk of being consumed by some other dimension. Dr. Strange used the stone to revert the local event, making it so it never occurred. No one had any idea of what had happened."

"That's insane!" Melissa was getting much better at the curve balls Peter introduced to her understanding of the universe. She only broke twice so far, much to her father's disappointment.

"Anyways, Dr. Strange used it to view over fourteen million possible futures," Peter said, pausing a moment as Melissa's eyes widened as she grasped the scale of such an act. After all, so few people understood the significance of it. It was almost twice as many seconds as Melissa had been alive. "He said out of all of those possible futures, he only found one that allowed us to win."

"Only one?" Melissa asked. "How– how dangerous was this Thanos?"

"I've fought some pretty powerful people before, people that could level buildings and even city blocks… but none of that was even remotely close to him. Thanos himself was stronger than the Hulk! Beat him in a fistfight with ease, from what I was told. During the fight, he got a hand on me and smashed me into the ground harder than any hit I'd ever taken. We even restrained him with everyone's help and tried to pull the glove off, but he still was able to resist all of us and keep the glove. He could do things with the stones on a scale I never dreamed I would see. He pointed the glove at one of the moons orbiting Titan, covered the entire face of it with power, and then threw it at us!"

"He threw a moon!?"

"Well, kind of. He didn't shift the actual moon there; he scoured its entire surface, creating chunks of rock from the size of cars to stadiums, then threw that at us. I didn't get an accurate number, but it was about one-third the size of our moon. It was much closer than ours since it looked about five times bigger than our moon from the surface."

That much power was far outside the scale of even All Might. The fact that Peter had faced such a threat amazed her.

"I tried to keep everyone else safe from that while Dr. Strange fought him. Reality and space were bending around that fight, but Thanos beat him. Then Mr. Stark stepped in and actually injured him!"

"Wow! This Mr. Stark must have an amazing ability to do that!"

"Umm, no, it was just his armor."

"So what was his ability?" Melissa asked, not having caught on to what Peter had meant, thinking it was a support item that helped him to fight such a being.

"Ability?"

"Yeah, his quirk? Or super-power, as you called it?"

"He doesn't have one."

"He– he doesn't have an ability?"

"No, he just had his armor that he built himself."

"That– that– that's not possible! You have to have an ability to be a hero like that!"

"Why would he need an ability?" Peter raised an eyebrow.

"Normal people are too weak!" Melissa looked down as she slammed her fists into the table to emphasize her point. Whether it was for Peter's benefit or, as David suspected, her own.

"That doesn't matter." Melissa looked back up into Peter's eyes, seeing them have an unmoving will to them. "What makes a hero is what you do with what you have. My Aunt May told me that with great power, there must also come great responsibility. There were Avenger members that didn't have special powers, but they had skills that were useful and a will to do what was right."

Melissa was quiet for a time, trying to absorb what Peter was saying, but it wasn't meshing with what she was told growing up. "How could Stark… how could a normal person go up against a being like that with just some armor?"

Peter realized that Melissa needed this and was probably told she couldn't be a hero because she was 'quirkless .' "It wasn't just simple armor. It was power armor leagues ahead of anything we had at the time. Mr. Stark was one of the richest people in the world, but his mind let him do that. His armor let him withstand hits from tanks, could lift those tanks, could fly at Mach speeds, shoot lasers from his palms, and so much more."

"That's not possible! The power draw alone to do some of those actions would be insanely difficult. You can't fly around with a power cord attached."

"That was because he created the arc reactor," Peter replied and wasn't surprised by her questioning look. Peter held up his hand to show how large it was, "it was a handheld fusion reactor, or cold fusion, that had an output of over ten gigajoules of power a second and could last for years."

"Ten gigawatts!?" Melissa shrieked.

David looked a little concerned as he saw some nearby diners look their way before turning back. He didn't notice any scientists or investors he knew, so he didn't think it would be a problem for now.

"That's not possible! A full nuclear reactor facility can barely output one gigawatt!"

David was worried about his daughter, as she seemed to be on the verge of breaking down from being given all of this conflicting information. He didn't try to stop it, though, knowing she needed this more than he had.

Thinking further, Peter thought of an idea and grabbed his bag. "Here, let me show you."

"Wait, you have one?" David asked as he unfolded his arms and sat up straight.

Peter finished pulling out his suit and a case for tools, then flipped the suit inside out. "A miniature one, yeah. It's built into my suit. Ned and I spotted it the first time, and it only outputs a fraction of what a full one does." Peter grabbed a few mini screwdrivers and carefully removed a panel behind the chest plate. Once it was released, a bluish glow lit up their faces as they gazed at the miniature fusion reactor.

"That's the size of a dime! How much does it output?"

"About a hundred million watts. More than enough for my suit's needs and then some."

David leaned back and gave Peter a look of exasperation. "If I had known you had that in the suit, I would have required you to keep it in the container as well."

"Wait! If his suit wasn't in the container, then what is?" Melissa was snapping her head between the two as she demanded an answer.

"That is not something I will say here, Mel." David was relatively quiet when he said that, causing her mouth to snap closed.

Melissa leaned back and rubbed her forehead as she tried to think things through thoroughly. "Okay… okay… so power isn't much of an issue. But… how can he control the suit? That would have to be some excellent controls for him to do most of that."

"While his suits did have some controls to perform a lot of functions, it was also his–"

Peter was halted by David reaching over to lightly grab his arm, preventing him from saying anything more. "Not here, not like that, Peter. Don't explain it in public."

"Uh, sorry, sir," Peter said. David removed his hand after that.

Melissa was beginning to hyperventilate from all these secrets being kept from her. Secrets that were more important than what she had already been told, no less.

Peter noticed her mood, so he tilted his head as he tried to figure out a way to tell her when an idea came to him. He turned to David, "Can I show her? All she needs to do is put on the mask." Peter picked it up and held it out towards her.

David sighed, deciding that that was acceptable. "All right."

Melissa cautiously picked up the mask and began fitting it over her head. Once she had it on, she noted that it was rather loose until suddenly, the mask automatically tightened around her head until it was snug. The lenses had been semi-transparent until they suddenly lit up, and Melissa could clearly see out of them. A HUD display was present with icons off to the side that she wasn't familiar with. She saw a few markers that said some functions were offline but didn't know their relevance.

It began cycling through various options when she noticed something mentioning accessing local devices. She was unsure what it was doing before she noticed phone numbers attached to the devices, and one of them was hers! Before she could comment or even react to that, she saw her contact list appear briefly before some of her phone's photos surfaced, only displaying for fractions of a second. But they were hers.

"Hello Melissa, it is nice to meet you," said a woman's voice.

Melissa looked around rapidly for the person who spoke but saw no one. "Who's there?" She asked both the woman and the other two that were sitting there.

"That's Karen," Peter whispered to her. "She's my suit."

Melissa froze before her mouth opened to scream. Luckily for them, her father was ready, and his hand could cover her mouth in time.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"I… I will investigate what I can," Sansa said to Mandalay as he rubbed his forehead through the ski mask he wore. The heat was nagging at him but was largely ignored in favor of the headache that had formed regarding Saotome's predicament. "I was going to get Tsukauchi's help with this originally… but quite frankly, I think I would be laughed at for accepting the explanation of magic."

"Understandable," Shino said as she tried to absorb all the various examples that Ranma had listed as personal experiences. Many of the effects sounded like quirks, but the usage and appearance made it likely that magic was real or that Ranma had encountered multiple quirks from hidden people. The fact that Tomoko had again claimed that no quirk was present and that changing forms because of the temperature of the water was not heard of before made the explanation of 'magic' sound reasonable. Too many odd situations piled on that broke normality.

"I don't know how much luck I will have, but I'll try to find what I can."

"Thank you," Shino said. "But I do worry about whether he will accept the offer. The more I learn of him, the less I think he'll accept it."

Sansa paused as he thought it over, "If we treated Ranma as a normal child, I would say it would fail. So don't treat them like one."

"What do you mean?"

"Even if you ignore their being eighteen years old, Ranma strikes me as independent and far more flexible with dealing with the world than most young adults. He is not presenting panic or concern about being away from home, lost in time, or younger than they previously were. Piecing what stories they told us means they have experience dealing with these things."

"Oh, yes. You're right," Shino said as she connected the dots. "Ranma isn't lost and doesn't need a guardian."

"Exactly. Instead, offer it as a roof over their head as they adjust to the situation and try to offer assistance to get them home or resolve their troubles. If Ranma thinks he has a lead, offer him help. If those leads resolve his issues, that's great. But if not, offer support. But do not smother him with it."

Sansa paused as another thought struck him, "He has experience with being younger. From the way he described it, it was very unpleasant. Make sure you explain that most of the world would treat him as the age they appear. That includes schooling or attempting to be alone. But I think he'll respond positively if you sincerely offer to act as a middle ground for them. That and get a psychologist."

"That I knew shortly after meeting her. Him." Shino winced after correcting herself. "Pronouns are going to be fun to deal with regarding them."

"Luckily, your team has experience with it already," Sansa said.

Shino blinked, surprised. "You knew?"

"I am good at my job," Sansa said, the smugness dripping from his words. "I read up on your team when I was informed you would be involved. Tsukauchi isn't the only reason our department is well thought of."

Shino giggled, giving a slight bow in acknowledgment, "Touche."

"Anyways, I should get going. It is a bit of a drive back." Sansa glanced at the restaurant, feeling they were far enough away; He pulled the different coverings off his head and handed them back to Shino. "Stay in touch and let me know how things are doing."

"Thank you, Officer," Shino said before bowing respectfully. "Have a safe trip home."

Shino returned the bow, "Thank you. And good luck."

Shino watched as he walked off and out of sight before she turned around and re-entered the restaurant yet again. She found a thoroughly wet Ranma still soaked with cold and hot water. Ryuko and Tomoko had been having fun and examining Ranma closely on every change, noting all the little distinctions. Yawara was off to the side, a range of emotions going across his face that made it hard to nail any of them down. She suspected she knew what some of them likely were.

Shino sighed but wasn't surprised the two women were still going at it. Ranma was being gracious and had obviously encountered people that had been fascinated by the change before. "Would you two cut it out? You're acting like you've never seen shape-shifters before."

Ryuko turned to Shino, "I know. But I've never seen one change due to water before!"

Ranma twisted his head to stare at her, shocked at the revelation. "Wait! You've seen this before?"

"Oh yes, many times," Ryuko said as she parsed the hair on Ranma's head, nearly losing her place as Ranma tried to twist his head to look at her. She was apparently trying to look at his scalp or the roots of his hair before pouring more cold water on him. "Ooo, a totally natural redhead! Down to the roots!"

"Wasn't red hair almost unheard of back then?" Tomoko asked, trying to remember if her knowledge of Japanese history was accurate.

"Yep!" Ryuko said, "very rare and exotic! Must have had all the guys gawking at you all the time! I'm jealous."

Ranma choked on her words as she was horrified at Ryuko for suggesting such a thing.

"Oh, don't give us that look. You enjoyed it, didn't you?" Ryuko inquired as she leaned in close. She saw a tinge of red added to Ranma's cheek, causing her to smirk in glee. "You did!"

"Gah! I– I did not!" Ranma tried to defend herself but saw she failed at convincing anyone.

"Sadly for you, Ranma. Red hair is far from the most exotic hair out there anymore." Ryuko sighed at the lost opportunity, "You'll be almost normal. No more special hair color to give the edge over all the other ladies!"

Someone enjoyed getting attention. Shino almost missed the pout that Ranma's face had for the barest of moments before it was covered. And she hated that part of herself that wanted it if the wince and disgust that followed it was any measure to go by.

"Wait," Ranma said as she thought of the implications, "is it because people dye their hair? I heard that was becoming some sort of fad recently."

"While dyeing hair is still common," Shino said, interrupting the two troublemakers, "it pales to the fact that generations of quirks have resulted in odd mutations that have run the gambit of hair colors. Then you have people with different colored skin, fur, scales, or
other abnormalities."

"What? Are they all descendants from the Musk Dynasty or something?" Ranma blinked at that, not having expected that answer.

"Musk Dynasty? What is that?" Shino asked. She was unaware of the reference.

"A tribe in China that lived near Jusenkyo. They started as a tribe of male martial artists that sought to perfect the art of form mimicry, basically copying the movements of animals. Eventually, they learned about Jusenkyo, and for a thousand years, the tribe would take animals they had beaten in combat and then throw them into the Spring of Drowned Girl. They had a magical artifact that locked the curse and married them. Their descendants started acquiring characteristics of the animals."

After hearing that, Ranma noticed that all four of her listeners had disgusted looks on their faces. Ryuko responded first, "Gah! That is disgusting and so, sooo wrong!

"Ugh, yeah. I grew a healthy appreciation of disgust when I heard that story. They at least stopped that part of the tradition. But the males are still raised in almost complete isolation from women. They were extremely powerful, but their brains broke if they caught sight of a boob." Ranma smirked as the rest of them broke out in laughter.

After getting control of herself, Shino answered Ranma. "No, they are not related to the Musk Dynasty. They are just ways that people's quirks express themselves."

"Oh. Okay."

Coughing lightly into her fist, Shino pressed forward. "To your earlier question,"... or back, "Yes, we have encountered shape-shifters. In fact, it is a fairly common type of quirk. They range from minor changes or localized changes to full-body changes like yours. I have seen instances where gender could be changed, but those usually took the shape of other people."

"Really? I guess that's why none of you were getting angry or calling me a pervert," Ranma was rather thankful for the reprieve.

"Pervert?" Shino asked, not having expected that. "Why on earth would we call you a pervert?"

"Well, I changed into a girl," Ranma said as if that was obvious. It was an apparent response to Ranma, considering the number of times she had received it.

"What? Why on earth would changing into a girl make someone– oh." Shino lowered her face into her palm. Yet another stupid aggravation.

"They are fools," Yawara said for the first time in a while. "Fools that don't understand and don't want to understand. They let their fear guide them."

Ranma almost interjected, feeling she needed to defend Akane when the rest of what Yawara said was too true for her liking. Instead, she winced as she accepted he had a point. Akane was better now, but she indeed started off that way.

"You should listen to Tiger," Tomoko said more seriously. "He knows what he's talking about."

Ranma blinked a few times as he looked at Tomoko, unsure of what she meant by that. "He knows? Knows what?"

"Tiger here is a shape-shifter for one," Ryuko said.

Ranma turned to him, surprised, and his eyes grew a bit larger as Yawara displayed his quirk by extending his arm and wrapping around the other like a snake would. "Cool!" Ranma said as she smiled, "That could be interesting in a fight!"

"The other reason is that Tiger is familiar with your gender issue," Ryuko said.

"Huh? What do you mean? Does he shift into a woman or resemble a woman at times?" Ranma asked before glancing at Tiger and seeing that the clothing did not try to hide any noticeable female anatomy. Though wearing a skirt like that did seem a bit off.

"No," Yawara said as he picked it up from his teammates. "I was born female."

Ranma almost rejected that notion as nothing in her figure pointed towards that. But then again, he had encountered some hideous women in the past and had seen very muscular women. So it didn't seem unreasonable. "So you're a girl? Ah, I'm so sorry! You really do look like a guy!"

Yawara smirked at that, his ego pleased. "Thank you, but no. I am not a girl."

"You're not? But you guys don't know about Jusenkyo or magic, so how could– oh! Your quirk or whatever, does it also let you change into a guy?"

"No, my quirk doesn't allow for that kind of shaping," Yawara smiled a little as it seemed that Ranma wasn't quite getting what they were talking about.

"Ummm… was it another quirk that changed you?" Ranma was running out of ideas.

"No, it was surgery."

"... surgery? Someone performed surgery on you to turn you into a guy?" Ranma was vaguely aware that hospitals could change people, but this was well beyond what he knew was possible. And the implications were beginning to get to Ranma.

"Yes, they did,"
Yawara noted that Ranma's fists were tightening, and her teeth ground out some of those words. Better to nip it in the bud now.

Ranma's eyes took on a very dangerous tint to them. "Where are th–"

"Because I asked them to."

The anger was snuffed out like a bonfire colliding with a tsunami. Ranma became very still, while her face and eyes became white. Her mouth began to open and close before a very squeaky voice asked the only thing her brain could ask, "What?" Yawara was right; Ranma had never encountered someone like himself before.

"My body was born female," Tiger said before pointing at his head, "but my mind saw myself as male."

Ranma didn't know how to take that. She was utterly lost at the concept of someone willingly changing their body. Eventually, she realized she had encountered that before. Herself. Specifically with how she considered herself a guy even when she had mammaries. But the absence of a curse that caused it in the first place didn't make any sense. "But– but you were born a girl?"

"From what I know of Japanese and world history, especially since the subject matter interested me so much due to being directly impacted by it, it wasn't until right before quirks began to show that the general population became aware of transgender people. They have always been around, as history and biology have shown. Different cultures reacted differently, some accepting while others wanted to bury it."

"What?" Ranma asked, clearly taken for a loop and trying to understand. "Really?"

"Yes," Yawara said as he stepped closer to Ranma, making her look up to see him. "Because of the strangeness of quirks, odd and unusual circumstances with people have become generally accepted by most people. That includes us."

"Us?"

"I was born in the body of a girl but with the mind of a man. I was able to resolve my issue." Yawara then reached out, put a hand on one of her shoulders, and squeezed it lightly. "You were forced into a similar situation through no fault of your own, just like I was not given a choice of what body I was born with. I will help you with whatever you decide to do."

"... thanks," Ranma replied shyly, trying to avoid any of their gazes.

Yawara released her shoulder and took a step back, giving her both time and space to sort it out in her head. It didn't take long before Ranma looked back at them, a more genuine smile than the typical smirk she sported. Yawara continued, now that Ranma had absorbed his offer. "This leads us to another complication we need to discuss."

"And what's that?" Ranma asked.

"What to do with you," Shino said. "More specifically, on what you should do now. With your family being in the past, you have little to no options on resources or places to stay."

"Well, I can just camp in the woods and hike back to Nerima tomorrow."

"And what then? Especially if they are not there? How would Officer Tamakawa contact you if he found a lead or wanted to ask more questions to narrow things down further?"

Ranma opened and then closed her mouth as she realized they might have a point. She tried to tilt her head as she thought of it. "Well, I can just camp as I travel, trying to find leads. Maybe I can call regularly or drop by his office?"

"That isn't very practical, and you know it. Not to mention your new age. Police officers, other Pro-Heroes, and many other people would stop you and question you," Shino pointed out for Ranma.

"Well, I can avoid them altogether or explain it."

"And how much time would you waste having to avoid the police or Pro-heroes? Not to mention making it more difficult for your search? It will lead to conflict down the line, as police and pro-heroes will talk to others, and people, in general, will become aware of you and push harder and harder to stop you because they think they know what's best for you."

Ranma winced at that; that was a possible outcome she did not want to deal with. She had already dealt with it while she was traveling with her old man and the problems he dealt with by running away from them. Seeing how so many of those problems came back and bit her later on, did not make that a pleasant option. "But what else can I do?"

"The normal and legal way, because of your body's age, would be going into foster care. Temporary guardians would support you in place of your parents for shelter, care, education, and legal matters. This would require being treated like your age, which I don't think you could escape no matter your choice. That includes school and other heavy restrictions society puts on children." Ranma's look of disgust told them all they needed to know about what she thought of that. "There is a third option, a sort of middle ground."

Ranma blinked as she waited for Shino to speak again.

"We could become your guardians. We know and believe your story already, so you won't have to roll the dice wherever you land. We know of your issues and will work with you to achieve your goals of returning home, recovering your age, or reconnecting with your family. You won't have to explain how your abilities and your curse are not quirks, though we will still need to have them officially tested from a legal standpoint."

Ranma was speechless as she tried to understand. Why would they offer something like that? While they were fun and not judgemental, she racked her brain to come up with an explanation and came up blank. She eventually gave up and just asked. "Why?"

"Endeavor made the original suggestion before he left. He proposed it because he predicted that the first and second options for you would most likely lead to catastrophe. He recognized the potential for a third option, even when he didn't have all the available information."

"The fire guy? Why would he suggest that?" Ranma was confused; that guy seemed to expect people to do what he told them. She'd dealt with their type most of her life, especially her father. She tended to enjoy poking them with a stick like she would do to dangerous wildlife.

"Endeavor tends to be strict and wants things done professionally and quickly. I won't go into some of his history since you'll not know the context. He predicted what he thought you would do if left alone and if you were put into a foster system like we are legally bound to try to do. He saw an opportunity to prevent that. Partly because it would reflect badly upon him."

"The other reason is he's a big softy towards kids," Ryoko said. "Not that he'll ever admit it or explain himself."

"Huh? Him?" Ranma was not expecting that after meeting and aggravating him like she had.

Shino sighed, "We know a little of Endeavor's history. Most Pro-Heroes keep up with each other, especially ones you might work with at some point. He's always been fairly strict and driven, but his current excessive attitude is more of a response from personal tragedy."

"Oh," was all Ranma could respond with. She was beginning to think she might owe the man an apology. If she ever did meet him again, she'll have to do just that.

"Anyways, his suggestion was a good one to start with, but what we've learned about you since then makes it the best choice we can give you," Shino said.

"So you're offering because of what he suggested? I really don't want to impose on you."

"You already did something for us, for me personally, when you saved the lives of my cousins. Not just them, but also saved Kota from having to grow up without them."

"Kota? Who's that?"

"Their son, he's five years old right now. I watched him for the day as his parents were on duty." Shino smiled as Ranma smiled as well. "For that, I owe you a great debt. One I hope to repay by helping you."

"Ummm, you don't owe me anything," Ranma said as she put her two index fingers together while shyly looking away.

"Ohhh! She's so cute!" Ryuko couldn't help herself as she closed the distance and hugged the girl's head to her chest. It made the girl's face even redder, making the blonde giggle.

"Thank you. But much like you, our profession and drive is to help those in need. It's what we do and what we are. But this is your choice. If you want to try another option none of us see, we can try that."

After squirming out of the blonde woman's grip, Ranma tried to think. They were right about her not liking either of the original options. No resources or home would make it difficult to do what she needed. It could slow her down and make it harder to hunt down leads. The only good thing about it was it gave her the freedom to act quickly. Which is what the Panda liked to do. The other option of foster care sounded like it could be a real mess, with no freedom to do what she needed to do.

The third option only offered a little less freedom but protection from elements that could get troublesome made their offer sound appealing. The 'why' was the only reason she didn't go for it, but they did have a good reason. Reasons she would have offered if she were in their place.

"Okay," Ranma sighed before she perked up and smiled. "I'll do it."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura turned the page of the book she was reading while her head bobbed to the music she was listening to. The current chapter goes over extensive research and treatment plans for radiation dermatitis, which usually occurs in patients treated for cancer or the occasional quirk that puts out radiation. The photograph images were crisp, making it easier to recognize in reality compared to mostly hand-drawn drawings she was familiar with back home.

While her world did have printing press technology and photography, it was rare and tended to only be available for the elite and wealthy members of society. Her world did not disseminate information, guarding every morsel of knowledge as if it was life and death. It was only trusted if your village produced or stole that knowledge. Her village employed both technologies but was heavily guarded. Konoha's medical library was one of the greatest on her world, mainly due to Tsunade's hard work.

But in this world, it shares its knowledge freely. If a new discovery was made, researchers wrote about their discoveries to be reviewed by other researchers to critique or find problems with their data. As a result, you had access to more data more freely, which could inform or contradict your own data that you couldn't see before. If the research passed enough criteria and was supported by enough data, it was accepted by the community as most likely true. That made getting accurate information more accessible. And she loved it!

She was also enjoying the music she was listening to; it was upbeat and fast-paced, using instruments that her world didn't have. Some songs were in languages she wasn't familiar with, but they were still catchy and exciting.

She was about to turn the page again when she felt a presence from behind, so she turned her head to see who it was. She reached up, removed her headset, and turned the rest of the way in her chair to face Ai. "Yes, Shuzenji-sensei?"

"Dinner will be ready shortly, and our guest has arrived."

"Shuzenji-sama?" Sakura asked, her face lighting up in interest.

"Sama?" Ai asked, amused at the honorific.

"Well, it would be confusing to call all of you sensei all the time. That is part of why I call Kenji san instead of sensei. And I have read some stories about her and even read one of her books on the type of trauma that can occur in combat."

"Oh? Found it in Kenji-san's library?"

"He let me borrow it."

"Did you like it?" Ai asked.

"It was complete, especially for the differences between our worlds."

"She'll be happy to know you liked it. I filled her in on some of your history and abilities when she arrived, but not much more than a basic overview of what you've told us. She was impressed but especially enjoyed how you handled yourself in Hosu. Anyways, let's not keep her waiting too long?"

Sakura nodded before turning off the music, marking the book, and following Ai out of the room. As they descended the stairs, she heard the front door opening, and a male shout rang out. "I'm home!"

"Welcome back!" Ai said as she moved to the front door to greet her husband. Ai helped him remove some of his outer clothing as he shed them and his shoes. Sakura remained respectfully back, letting the two greet each other after he finished.

"I see Mother has arrived. And hello to you, Haruno-san." Kenju said first to his wife and then turned to lightly bow to Sakura.

"Hello to you, Shuzenji-san," Sakura said, returning the bow.

"Well, I better go greet my mother before she nags me about being a disrespectful son," Kenji said while smiling, his mouth twitching into a smirk as he noticed Sakura's slightly concerned face.

"Take Sakura to meet her, dear. I was just getting her to introduce her to Mother when you got home, and I have a few more vegetables to cut before dinner is ready."

"Certainly, come along, Haruno-san," Kenji said as he swept his arm towards the front room and walked with the extended arm as if leading soldiers into battle.

"Yes!" Sakura said in excitement, pumping her fist as she got into it. She had noticed Kenji had a playful and fun personality that she enjoyed being around. Ai left them to it, opting to return to the kitchen.

The living room was done in Western style, with its carpeting, full glass outer walls that displayed the garden, comfortable recliners and couches, and a large T.V.

There had been one chair that wasn't used and had not fit with the decorum of the room but was currently occupied by an ancient woman. She was short in stature and held a wooden cane in her lap. Her hair was gray and tied up into a netted bun on the back of her head. She wore a simple dress with a blanket scarf resting on her shoulders. Her plumpy face had a small nose and eyes that were nearly closed. Her mouth was ringed by a severe case of laugh lines. This was Shuzenji Chiyo, mother of Kenji and the legendary pro-hero Recovery Girl.

"Ah, Kenji! Good on you to visit your mother first thing when you get home. Such a good boy," Chiyo said in an old and tiny voice, but the tone was filled with kindness. Sakura could see the barest signs of a smirk on her lips.

"Of course, Mother. I know better than to receive your ire. Rare as it is, it is horrible to experience." Kenji seemed to shudder before smirking, "Any pro-heroes receive it for being irresponsible lately? I know your smacks still pack a punch."

Chiyo snorted. "No, All Might hasn't been by lately for me to discipline him, and the rest have gotten wise." Sakura raised an eyebrow at the casual interaction with this world's number one hero. "Now, enough about them; give your mother a hug!" Chiyo smiled widely as she held her arms out toward him. He laughed as he obeyed, giving her a firm squeeze.

After finishing their hug, she turned to Sakura before returning to Kenji. "Now, Kenji, don't forget your manners and introduce me to the young lady?"

Kenji stepped beside Sakura and said, "Ah, Mother, let me introduce you to this wonderful young girl, Haruno Sakura."

Sakura stepped forward and bowed respectfully. "Pleased to meet you, Shuzenji-sama."

Chiyo smiled as she got out of her chair, even if it was difficult, and then bowed to Sakura with the same level of respect. "Pleased to meet you, Haruno-san." After exiting their bow, Chiyo turned to her son, "Sama? What mythical nonsense have you been feeding her, Kenji?"

"Why everything, Mother! Aren't you the slayer of dragons and rescuer of helpless princes?" This caused Sakura to giggle, prompting another smile from Kenji.

"Tsk, of course not Kenji. I don't slay dragons, you know that."

"I noticed you said nothing about the helpless princes."

"Obviously. They are helpless, aren't they?" Chiyo replied, earning a louder fit of giggles from Sakura.

Ai walked in a moment later, towel in hand from drying her hands. "Dinner is ready." Ai smiled after seeing the smiles and the burst of giggles from Sakura. "I take it their banter is to your liking Sakura-chan?"

Getting control of herself, Sakura turned and walked towards Ai. "Yes, it is amusing. I am jealous, Shuzenji-sensei. You've had such interesting entertainment for years!"

"Understandable, dear. They are a rare show, taking strides to be fresh and original. I considered selling tickets at one point but found it too impractical." The fake squawks of outrage from mother and son caused both of the other women to giggle as they walked away.

"Shuzenji-sensei, do you need help setting the table or bringing the food in?" Sakura asked.

"You can help me with the plates, Sakura-chan. The table is already set."

Sakura followed the older woman into the kitchen and grabbed a few of the covered plates and bowls, then using her tree-walking technique, made sure the plates, bowls, and even the food didn't wobble as she brought them in, kneeled without spilling anything, and set them down on the low table. The show of dexterity got some polite claps from the kneeling observers. Ai also came in with the last two dishes and set them down.

Sakura went to her seat next to Chiyo and across from Kenji and kneeled in casual seiza on the soft cushion. Ai did the same, sitting closest to the door. This gave Chiyo the seat of honor at the table. Ai began distributing the dishes to everyone while they remained silent, though Sakura's eyes lit up with joy on seeing a few items. Once everyone else's food was served, Ai served her own meal. Once everything was finished, they put their palms together and said, "I humbly receive," before they washed their hands with the provided towel and picked up their chopsticks to begin their meal.

It remained silent as they ate, all of them enjoying the peace. After a few minutes and some plates were emptied of food, Chiyo asked about one of the dishes. "Umeboshi, Ai-chan? Why the change from pickles? I don't remember you doing that before."

Ai finished eating her current bite before she wiped her mouth, "It is a favorite of Sakura-chan, and since ume is in season, I thought it appropriate."

"Oh, a favorite, Sakura-chan?" Chiyo asked the younger girl. "Is the anko dumplings also a favorite? I don't think Ai-chan has made it before."

"Yes, to both dishes. Shuzenji-sensei asked me about my favorite dishes, so I was pleased to see them."

"Well, I look forward to trying the dumplings as well. Now, Sakura-chan, where is it that you come from?"

Sakura turned to Ai, unsure of what she had told the older woman already. Ai accepted the hidden question and gave the finger signal that full disclosure was okay. Turning back to Chiyo, Sakura answered her question. "I come from a village called Konohagakure, located in Hi no Kuni."

"Hidden in the Leaves?" Chiyo said, both as a question and sounding it out to herself. "That is an old-fashioned name for a village, though it does sound charming. What kind of village was it?"

"Like the name describes, we are 'hidden' in the leaves, so we are surrounded by large forests in every direction, though our village does rest against a large cliff face. The size is closer to a large town or a small city. Unlike here, we mostly use wood and stone for our buildings, and are only a few stories tall at most. Surrounding our village is our protective wall."

"Protective wall?" Chiyo asked. "To keep out animals from the forest? How large and strong is this wall?"

"It is twenty meters tall and almost two meters thick, made of hardwood and stone. It surrounds the entire village and is a hundred and fifty kilometers long."

All of the Shuzenji paused in their eating to stare at the girl. The actual size of the wall had yet to be heard. "That is not to keep simple animals out!" Chiyo said, but being the only local with actual combat training, no matter how limited, she could guess several reasons. "How dangerous are the animals in your world? Or is it to keep people out?"

"Both," Sakura said. "Most common animals were similar to the ones you have here, but some areas have far deadlier animals than any I have heard of, save maybe your dinosaurs. They are the only equivalent in size or danger to some of our animals. Even then, the walls wouldn't keep the most dangerous of them out. For those creatures, we would normally find them coming before they breached the wall, and even if they did sneak up on them, the wall's destruction acts as an alarm to everyone."

"How would you fight such creatures?" Kenji asked. "From what little I have heard, your world's technology is sporadic, and your weapons lack any punch to damage them."

"Our shinobi would fight them off if that were to happen. Usually, the largest of creatures know to avoid us and are intelligent enough not to pick a fight."

"Shinobi?" Chiyo asked.

"Yes, it is our primary and the most elite fighters on our world."

"Are you a shinobi then, Sakura-chan?"

"Yep! I'm one of the strongest kunoichis in our village. Ino-chan and Hinata-chan are my closest rivals for that title, though Hokage Tsunade-sensei is stronger. Well, at least before I finished my Strength of a Hundred seal," she said as she pointed at the odd purple diamond on her forehead. "After that, I think I might give Tsunade-sensei a run for her money now."

"What is that anyways, Sakura-chan? When we examined you, we couldn't tell what it was. It wasn't a tattoo or normal paint marking, but it wasn't glued to your forehead. We thought it was a manifestation of your quirk and left it alone."

"It's a chakra seal used to store chakra, mostly for a specific technique that Tsunade-sensei uses and taught me."

"What is chakra?" Chiyo asked, "I know of it for traditional medicine for some esoteric purposes, but it sounds like you are describing something tangible."

"There is some crossover between the two, but chakra is the energy we utilize for our jutsu. Your closest approximation is Ki or Chi, but it differs from that, more like half of what we use."

"Fascinating!" Chiyo said though she took a moment to ask her next question, tapping her chin that held her chopsticks as she paused in her eating. "So this energy is what you use to heal? Is it automatic, or do you have to control it in a specific way to perform it?"

"Chakra has to be shaped and controlled in specific ways to get different effects, but the possible effects are immense. A good analogy of how to think of it is using words for a specific effect, but when you combine it with different words, you get a new effect."

"Interesting, so what are some of the basics?"

"Well, there is what we call shape transformation and nature transformations. Shape transformation affects the form, movement, and potency that can impact the technique's size, range, or purpose. Think of it more like language rules and how to structure things. Then there are nature transformations that can be split into two sections. There are five elemental nature transformations that include fire, wind, lightning, earth, and water. They form a circular diagram that makes them weaker or stronger against the next in line."

"So you could create a flame and similar effects with the others?" Kenji asked. He had only heard the bare-bones description so far, so it was interesting to hear how it functioned.

"Yes. Using shape transformation on a nature transformation can be the difference between creating a flame to light a candle or a giant moving snake made of fire. Combining different elements could create a new jutsu with unique properties, such as earth and water to create mud or wood."

"That is very versatile," Chiyo commented.

"Then there is the other type of nature transformation called yin and yang, which is spiritual or physical. Genjutsu, for example, is primarily a yin release, and my medical jutsu is primarily yang."

"Genjutsu? Illusions?" Kenji asked.

"It is a way to attack a person's senses, frequently blinding you to what is really happening and overwriting a person's senses. I could, for example, make you see and hear an intruder entering the house that doesn't exist, or do the reverse where everything appears normal while it is on fire around you."

"That sounds terrifying!" Ai said.

Sakura sighed but figured honesty was the best solution here. "It can be. If you are unprepared or not trained to fight it, it can leave you helpless. More advanced versions can be used to torture or kill."

"Oh my, it sounds as if your world is hazardous," Chiyo said. She wasn't worried about Sakura, not at this time. Just because someone had a dangerous ability did not mean they would use it to harm others. Otherwise, most pro-heroes would be locked up, and many civilians as well.

"It was. Shinobi are primarily mercenaries. We are hired to perform reconnaissance, protection, or assassination jobs."

"Assassinations?" Chiyo asked, and that did concern her.

"Sometimes. Usually, reprehensible targets like bandits, warlords, or other shinobi endangering people. Tsunade-sensei and the other Hokage before her, at least from what I know of them, usually tried to use more diplomatic solutions when possible." Sakura looked sad as she explained it, but her mood took an even darker turn as she remembered some of the deeds she had read about and suspected, like the Uchiha massacre. "But darker events occur, with some people in our village thinking that destroying the problem is the better solution. Some other villages are more open to performing such deeds without caring about the consequences."

"That also happens in our world, even now in this peaceful time. As it has always been throughout human history," Chiyo sighed. "But it must be fought, and we must do what we can to stop such methods."

Sakura nodded at that, finding it similar to her thoughts of late. "When I found out how different our worlds were, how peaceful your world is, I wondered if we were just broken. But then I read about your world history, which reminded me so much of our own. Your world wars reminded me of our ninja wars. I learned how they started, and it reminded me of the petty bickering and one-upmanship that also happens on our world."

"So I wondered how you could go from that to this. I learned of how your different countries started working together towards shared goals as you traded and shared information. You let your civilians move from one country to another. Then, when leaders would begin to start it all over again, civilians stood up to them. Let them know that it was not acceptable. Civilians prefer peace because their lives are safer that way. They want the freedom to choose because they can choose what helps them most. I didn't realize how much power they had until I learned of things like your civil rights movements."

"Yes," Kenji said with a smile. "Those who seek power for themselves often forget that they rely on those they wield power over. They prey upon those around them to prop themselves and make them feel superior. But if they can no longer get what they need to survive from those around them, they either have to go elsewhere or do it themselves. When the world's civilians learned they had this power over them, tyrants began to fear them."

"Tyrants are just bandits. That's all they are. Of all the missions I went on, dealing with bandits were the missions I felt made the world a better place. Especially after seeing the carnage they left behind when they prayed upon people that couldn't fight back," Sakura said.

"Then I learned about how quirks began and how they threw your world into chaos. But it wasn't nations or clans fighting each other; it was individuals and small groups preying on each other's citizens. Bandits that used their quirks to get ahead. But your society didn't deal with them like mine would. You arrested and imprisoned them; we would have killed them. That confused me. Why would you do that?"

Chiyo sighed, knowing Sakura was being honest. "Our world learned that lesson a few centuries ago. We would spare them because people do stupid things. Things they regret. But if all they can expect is death and there can be no redemption, they will continue to do such actions. Then some accidents or people got things wrong, punishing someone innocent of the crimes they have been accused of. Lumping everyone together just leads to more tragedies."

Sakura considered Chiyo's words, recognizing them as having some validity. But it seemed impossible to achieve on her world... but she realized it wasn't. She had seen proof on her world; it didn't have to go down that predictable path. And this world proved it could work.

"I…" Sakura lost her train of thought as memories struck her. She wasn't sure how to voice it, but it had been something she kept coming back to. She decided to lay it all out, even as her composure began to break. "I have a teammate, Naruto. He was always pulling pranks and was loud and obnoxious, but that was his way of trying to reach out; to respond to the pain inflicted on him by people in our village as he grew up, all because he was used to cage a monster. Even I mistreated him, copying what others did because I was too immature to see how much pain he was going through or how similar it was to my own pain."

"But he was also the most reliable person I have ever met. He was strong and tenacious, and his will kept him pushing forward," Sakura said as tears began to shed. "His dream at first was to become the Hokage, so everyone would acknowledge him. But along the way, he noticed others like himself. People were in pain because of how they were treated or the actions that surrounded them. They lashed out at others to make others feel the same pain they felt or to make people pay retribution. He realized that it didn't work; it only created more pain. So he didn't want to fight to win for his own sake, but he strived to understand and connect with people. He fought to help them understand they were not alone."

"Eventually, he wanted to create peace for everyone, not through killing anyone that opposed him or controlling everyone, but by making everyone understand that we don't have to kill each other to survive. Most of us initially dismissed his dreams and goals, seeing them as impossible or foolish. But he started winning people over, including me. He saved our entire village after a devastating attack, not by beating or killing the opponent, but by making them understand there was a better way. First, by actually taking the time to understand them."

Sakura's audience was smiling now. Chiyo recognized that Sakura was working through some of her trauma and anguish that must have been building up for some time, even before she had arrived if she was reading her right. She looked at Kenji, trying to get his opinion on it, and he gave a slight nod and lowered his hand to remain silent.

"Eventually, a group of powerful shinobi started enacting a plan that endangered the world. This caused all the most powerful villages to unite and fight them. Events occurred, horrible battles with thousands of shinobi dying, but we were holding on. We were fighting together, working together. Several times we almost lost, but we were able to pull through. Naruto was at the head of that effort, leading and inspiring them, making us believe we could do it. We all lost friends and many lost family members as the fight continued until we had one fight left. It was the hardest fight against Kaguya." Sakura shivered at the memory of the power Kaguya wielded.

"Almost all that was left standing against her was my original team: Naruto, Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, and I. There was Kakashi's old teammate, Obito, who was originally one of the opponents we faced in this war, but Naruto and Kakashi reached him, and he helped us against Kaguya. He died saving Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi, taking a hit meant for them. Our team worked together to seal and lock her away like he had been before. Naruto and Sasuke had a way of doing it if they could both touch her, but she was so fast that she was dodging their attacks. That is where I came in; I hit her as she dodged, pushing her into their hands. I saw them touch, and then I was here, over Hosu City."

Sakura was openly crying now, her words slurred a little as she went through the memories. "I don't know what happened to them. I want to imagine they succeeded, that they are all back home, freed our friends and comrades, and that maybe, just maybe, Naruto's dream could come true."

Sakura sat there for a full minute before she stopped crying and worked to pull her emotions and will together. Eventually, she looked up into Chiyo's eyes with a resolve that the pro-hero had only witnessed in a few people. "Then I look at your world, billions of people working together in peace, living as fully as they can with smiles. I realized that this was his dream. Naruto's dream. It is possible to achieve. And it is so beautiful. Now… now there is nothing more in the world I want than to see his dream come true. I want to return home, but I want to bring it back with me. To show him how to achieve his dream. How to preserve it."

"Shuzenji-sama?" Sakura asked after giving her words time to settle.

Chiyo looked back into Sakura's eyes with a firm and steady gaze. She knew what was coming. "Yes, dear?"

"I realize that just achieving that dream is not the end of it, but that it must be maintained, nurtured, and protected. Protected from bandits, people that take from people to prop themselves up. But I know just killing them, like our world would do, doesn't help in the long run. I want to know as much as possible about how it is achieved, how to maintain and nurture this peace, and how to keep it safe. I see now that your pro-heroes are one way to maintain it, an important way. I want to learn how to do that. Please teach me how."

Chiyo's laugh lines distorted further as she gave one of the biggest smiles in her life, just below the birth of her children, grandchildren, and marriage. Chiyo gave the only words Sakura needed to hear. "With pleasure, my dear."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

David led the way into the secure part of his home: his office and lab. After Melissa and Peter entered behind him, he turned to close the door and activated the additional security. "Alright, Mel, we're secure."

"Oh. My. God! You have an A.I.!?" Melissa exclaimed. Her outburst didn't surprise either of the men, considering how restless and bouncy Melissa had been on the way home, always turning towards Peter and barely restraining herself from shouting her question. "That wasn't just a simple narrow A.I. either! It pulled data from my cell phone, learned about me, and composed a competent greeting! Is it general? Or just a broader narrow A.I. with enough programmed responses?"

"It is a general A.I. with restrictions," Peter responded. Peter saw her eyes open as she squealed in delight, so Peter explained it further. "Mr. Stark created his first general A.I. years ago before he even created the Arc reactor or became Iron Man, named after his family's butler, Jarvis. He did create it with acronyms in place, but that doesn't matter."

"Yes, I wonder how long it took him to come up with the acronym," Melissa said with a knowing smile.

"He was smart and witty, so probably not very long," Peter answered. "Anyways, he mostly designed it as an assistant and general protection. It was a natural language user interface with self-programming capability. He set up massive data banks to help his algorithms and data sets, so he could more easily help design and test any engineering schematics Mr. Stark would come up with. When Mr. Stark created the Iron Man armor, Jarvis assisted him with managing and controlling the armor."

"A-maze-ing!" Peter didn't know how she did it, but she seemed to be reaching new heights of excitement. "But why did you say your A.I. is restricted?"

Peter grimaced a little but knew it needed to be said. It was a warning that all engineers and scientists must be cautious of. "Karen is purposely restricted due to another invention of Mr. Stark's that became a serious problem. After the battle in New York, Mr. Stark started working on a system that would act as a guardian for the Earth against threats from space. They had recovered a weapon that was used by Loki in that battle that had gone missing, one that housed the Mind Stone."

"Like the Time Stone or the others?" Melissa asked, starting to connect the dots.

"Yes, exactly. They examined what they could of the stone and discovered that it was an even more advanced mind than Jarvis. They tried to create an interface to work with it, especially since Thor would take the stone home the next day. It wasn't working, but while they were out and Jarvis was running scenarios, it suddenly succeeded, started taking over everything, and attacked Jarvis. Ultron, the name of the program, went on to threaten the Earth and almost succeeded if it wasn't for the Avengers."

"So the restriction is primarily for limiting growth and potential, to prevent 'Skynet.'" Melissa sighed in defeat.

"Yes, but that wasn't the end of the story." Melissa perked up at that, so Peter continued. "Ultron was trying to create himself a new shell, an ultimate body that would be 'perfect.' The Avengers stole the body before it could be finished, and Ultron could upload himself into it properly. Mr. Stark also found out that Jarvis did survive the attack, but had to hide away, acting as a barrier to Ultron getting nuclear launch codes. With Dr. Banner's help, they integrated Jarvis into the body that Ultron was completing and created Vision. He was a mixture of Jarvis, Ultron, and the Mind Stone that was very human-like. I met him before, and he was kind and gentle, treating everyone with respect."

Melissa smiled at that, glad to know that murder bots were not the only outcome of advanced A.I. "So why the restriction?"

"I… I think it has more to do with slowly improving them and removing more restrictions as things go on, like raising a child and not forcefully growing up like Ultron did. Ultron took the information and its basic goal, then came to its own conclusions. Vision was different because it was tempered by Jarvis' experience."

"That… that makes sense," Melissa said.

"Yeah. Karen's been a big help in some of my fights. She helps keep me informed when I cannot notice some details, giving me specifics and calculations."

Melissa sighed, "Okay… okay… okay. My curiosity regarding Karen is sated, though my mind is going a million kilometers a second. But…" she said, before glaring at her father, "What's in the box? I hope it isn't one of those stones!"

David sighed before turning to the container, "No, Mel, it isn't one of the stones. I don't think I could get away with trying to sneak out with one of those. Based on Peter's description, they would easily be the most dangerous objects in the world, above nukes, contagious diseases, or any quirk."

He unlatched the container and opened it, allowing Melissa to see a piece of metal inside. She couldn't tell an immediate usage for it, only noting that the top looked like some of the technology they used for their hologram projector systems. It didn't look in any way dangerous or secretive. "What is it?"

Peter approached it, moving his hand above and activating the projector. Melissa noticed what looked like a male mannequin figure with parts of a costume that somewhat resembled Peter's own costume but only covered a few parts of his body. Primarily the torso, arms, and legs down to the knees. There were also some text messages displaying power levels, which were beginning to get low, and about the suit being offline. There was also an indicator of something else being low, but when she read what it said, she couldn't believe it. "Th-that can't be. Is that– is it really nanomachines?"

Peter moved his hands above the projector and touched some of the hologram items, responding to his motions as if the hologram were a keyboard. Peter selected one of the arms, using his hands as if it was a touch screen to zoom in on the arm and selected it. He then hit the activate button, causing the projector to disappear. Peter lowered his hand until he almost touched the device when it began to flow upwards and then down Peter's arm until it matched the section Peter had previously selected. Peter then held his hand out to Melissa, palm up. "Feel it."

Melissa hesitantly reached forward and felt along the arm, noticing that it was a hard, metallic surface, but it hugged his skin like spandex. She felt along the wrist, where the arm would normally move downwards, but there were zero seams in the armor as if it was simply one continuous piece of metal.

"I'll move my arm a little, and the nanites can readjust if needed, but the metal weave is also pretty flexible while incredibly sturdy," Peter said before he did just that. "The nanites create cell structures that are far sturdier than steel or titanium that are significantly thicker. A similar principle that carbon fiber or other synthetic supermaterials use. The structures also create micro vacuum pockets that can help lighten the weight further. This means the suit is heavily resistant to impacts, vibrations, heat, and excessive electrical currents."

Melissa had difficulty speaking, but David liked seeing the sense of wonder in her eyes. She touched it, not finding anything significant in bulk other than near the wrist and forearm, which she noticed was a housing unit for more of his web fluid and more complex devices when needed.

"How– how is it powered and controlled? Is it self-replicating?"

"There are thousands of micro-arc reactors that work with the suit. They act as localized power for the sections of the suit that need it. The power spreads through the nanites, but those arc reactors can more easily be drained and lost than a normal arc reactor, so they tend to work with a larger housing unit when possible. But this allows the nanites to separate from the main 'swarm' and retain enough power for a time."

Peter then pointed to the slightly bulkier wrist. "The larger housing units tend to be where computations units, data storage, and sensors are stored to make it easier for the nanites to talk with each other and provide enough additional functions the suit needs. A linked copy of Karen is present, but it is narrower in its function since most of its computation is geared towards controlling the nanites."

"As for self-replicating, they can replenish themselves or increase their number, but only in a specially designed holding pod so the nanites don't start replicating things from things they shouldn't. The pod also acts as a means of charging the suit to make sure the arc reactors are replenished. Which is totally going to be a problem since my charging unit is back home. That's why it is mostly kept in this state, I lost too many nanites recently, and it can't fully cover me. My normal suit lets the Iron Spider work with it, and the nanites can sometimes go where they are needed."

"This is another invention of Stark's?" Melissa asked.

"Yeah. It was the last suit I got from Mr. Stark. When that alien ship came to New York, I went to help Mr. Stark and grabbed the side of the ship as it was lifting off out of the atmosphere. My normal suit wasn't rated for space, so I started falling unconscious. Mr. Stark had launched this at me and caught up with me just as I was about to fall off. The Iron Spider suit is rated for space, and it saved me. I got on board, and we arrived on Titan after freeing Dr. Strange."

David hummed as he went over what Peter explained about the nano-suit. "How did you learn how the suit operates, Peter? From what you told me of the sequence of events, you had little time for Mr. Stark to give you that data."

"After we landed on Titan, I asked Mr. Stark a little about it. He gave me the details about the micro arc reactors and how the nanite swarms talked to each other. I got more information from a manual I was given by Mrs. Stark and Happy after the funeral when they gave me the charging and housing unit for the suit."

"Did the manual give you a schematic and enough details to recreate it here, if you can remember it, and we can assemble the technology?" David asked.

Melissa knew her father, so she turned to address him. "You want to re-create all of this, all of what Peter's talking about, don't you, Dad?"

"Me? No. I am too set in my ways, and I can't devote the time to it, not with all the other projects I am required to still direct," David said, quickly shooting down her question. He smirked after she glared at him, knowing she didn't believe him. After all, why would he ignore possibly the most significant technological advancement goldmine their world had seen in over a century. "I have no intention of doing the research and building all of this. Instead, I expect Mr. Parker to do so… and you'll help him, Mel."

"M–me? Me?" While Peter looked intrigued, Melissa was thrown for a loop at that claim. "Why– why would you give this to me?" Melissa's voice went quiet in disbelief, searching her father's eyes for an explanation.

David moved over to one of his office chairs and sat down; he leaned forward so his elbows could rest on his knees as he looked up into Melissa's eyes with a calm smile. Before addressing Melissa, he turned to Peter since he had included him. "Peter, do you want to recreate what you can of Stark's… legacy? I guess we should call it."

"I– I don't know, sir," Peter responded.

"Okay, a couple of quick questions for you then. First, should it be re-created? Any of it?"

"Ummm, some of it, certainly. It is potentially dangerous technology in the wrong hands, but that is like any advanced technology."

"That's fine. We can work to develop a tiered list of what is safe and what is not, create safety protocols or make sure that some of the technology is not re-created if you feel it shouldn't. Just be prepared to defend your position because I will challenge you on them." Peter nodded, allowing David to move on. "Second question and it is important that you listen closely to the wording of my question: do you think Mr. Stark believed you could follow him? Not just in being a hero, but working to be a scientist and engineer of his caliber."

Peter was at a loss for words, unsure of how to respond. He didn't think he was worthy of it, but the way David stressed his wording made him go over what Tony had done, what Tony had given him. Clearly, he thought Peter had the morals to use it, but Peter had yet to consider whether Mr. Stark believed that he had the intelligence or knowledge to use them. He gave him his suit, Karen, a nano-suit and the means to continue using it, and then there was Edith. His final message to him had said the next Tony Stark. Not the next Iron Man. Mr. Stark felt he could do it, even if he did screw up along the way a few times.

Then Peter started remembering all the technology and science lectures Tony had given him or his own questions that Tony answered with glee. Peter had always found the lessons fascinating but never questioned why Tony talked to him about them. Those weren't things he needed to do. He could have brushed Peter aside, told him it was classified, or he wasn't ready. But he never did! The only time he didn't was when other things were more pressing. One of the first things Tony did when he met him was praise him for creating his webbing!

"I– I think he did believe I could do it. I always thought it was just being a hero he was teaching me to be, helping me along, but it was more than that." Looking down at his feet in shame, Peter said, "I never– I never realized that until now."

David smiled, glad that his suspicions were confirmed. "So, third question, now that you realize that Mr. Stark believed in you, do you want to try to take up his mantle in more than just being a hero?"

Peter thought of how much good Tony had done after he became Iron Man, not just in stopping conflict as a superhero, but by helping to advance science and technology, as it catapulted the world's technology to new heights. It was only visible in some places because scale and manufacturing could only output so much, but it was being seen in colleges worldwide. Tony was making money from much of it, but little could be considered gouging. And he often gave away large chunks of that money to other sectors. The only reason Stark Tech was so profitable was because they were the best at what they did.

"I– I think I want to, sir. And thank you," Peter smiled.

David returned his smile before turning back to Melissa. "Come here, Mel," David said as he held his hands. When she stepped close enough, he grabbed her hands and looked up into her questioning eyes. "First, I have done you a grave disservice, Mel. For that, I am truly sorry. It is a disservice that I did to myself many years ago but one I should not have repeated for you."

"What– what disservice?"

"I wanted to be a hero, to be able to help people like your Uncle Might. I have succeeded in some ways; it hasn't been useless, but it wasn't in the same way he could as a pro-hero. I was heartbroken but settled for what I thought I could get. And I pushed you down that same path when we learned you were quirkless, even with your wanting to take after All Might. I saw how much it hurt you like it had hurt me, but I thought it was the only path we could take. It was the only path society would let us take. It blinded me to new possibilities."

As Melissa had gotten closer, David leaned his head down until the top of his head was pressing into her stomach. "Only after meeting Peter and seeing the technology he brought, the stories he told of people that weren't born with special abilities like a quirk but instead used their minds and skills to complete tasks against threats as great or greater than any we have ever seen. It made me realize there was a path forward for me, but more importantly, I saw a path for you. You can become a hero like you always dreamed of becoming, one I believe you were always meant to be."

Melissa began crying then, as she wrapped her arms around her father's head. It started slowly, but then the deep abyss of her despair was uncovered. Her wails broke his heart as he realized how deep and dark it had been, but he reached behind her to pull her closer and let her be free. While it pained him to hear it, it also brought him great joy that it could be filled!

Peter smiled softly as he stood to the side, not daring to interrupt. The family moment between the two made him think of his Aunt May, something that is still a gaping wound in his own heart. Or losing M.J. and Ned, though they were still alive. Those thoughts and the other's emotions made his own tears fall.

They remained like that for over ten minutes, each lost in pain. When David felt Melissa's arms release his head, he sat upright and looked into her watery eyes, but he could see a new spark in them, brighter and more luminous than he had ever seen before. To him, her old spark was like the brightness of the sun. But this new spark was a supernova explosion. If ever there was a moment in his life where he thought he had made a difference, this was it.

But David knew there was still more they had to deal with, more to discuss before action could be taken. "Now that that is out of the way, you two must figure out what you want and need. Simply ask, and I will do everything possible to provide it." David's smile turned serious for a moment, looking at both teenagers. "But due to what you have and will be trying to create, others will try to steal. So be careful and prepare yourselves for that possibility by limiting who you talk to. I will have to reveal something to higher-ups for some items I predict you will need, rare elements, and the like. But I will keep it as hidden as possible for you. The longer we keep it hidden, the closer you two could get to completing enough of it that you'll be able to protect yourselves. Once we can prove to the rest of the island that what we have is workable, scaling everything will become much easier."

"Understood," Melissa said, nodding her head in agreement.

"Yes, sir!" Peter said.

"Another thing, due to Peter having an ability that can pass as a quirk, he has more options for getting a pro-license, which I presume you will want to get?" David asked the boy.

"Yes, sir."

"Unfortunately, Mel, society will not allow you to seek a license until you prove you don't need a quirk to stand among them. Your road will be harder, but I think you know that."

"I do."

"I think where you should get your license, and quite possibly the best chance for you, Mel, is not in the U.S."

"Why not?" Peter asked, more curious than upset.

"I have dealt with many of the greatest schools for pro-heroes worldwide. They all have their share of problems, but few have an avenue we could try."

"If not the U.S…" Melissa said as she thought about it before she lit up in realization. "U.A.!"

"Correct, Mel."

"Ummm, isn't that a school in Japan? I remember Edgeshot or Detective Tanaka saying something about it at one point."

"That is also correct, Peter. U.A. is Japan's most elite hero school and one of the world's best. But four things are going for it that make it stand out for your goals. First, All Might graduated from there and has good relations with the staff. Second, Peter made a solid impression on Edgeshot, who is also an alumnus from U.A., so that is two of the top five heroes in Japan that you have an 'in' with. Third, their support school is one of the best in the world, meaning it would give you easier access to tools and equipment to make and maintain your tech. And fourth, Nezu, the Principle of U.A., is a scarily intelligent man. One of the most intelligent beings on the planet, in fact. But because of what he is, he understands those that stand out like you would Mel and could easily see the potential of the technology once you get it off the ground."

"That sounds fine and everything, Dr. Shields," Peter interjected. "But I don't know Japanese!"

David and Melissa laughed before David answered the question. "Then we've got ten months to teach you and not a moment to waste!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Well, Mandalay," said the Doctor who was evaluating Ranma as he turned to the pro-hero, though she was in her civilian clothes now. "I am sorry, but Ranko-san is quirkless, just like her brother."

"Really, Doctor?" Shino said, acting as if she was concerned about the outcome. She didn't know the man well enough to reveal enough details to him, but it was good to get a professional's opinion to back up Tomoko's evaluation. It gave more strength to Ranma's claims of being from the past, especially if it was needed to convince anyone else. "So both of them are quirkless. That is unfortunate."

"It does happen from time to time. Genetics can have recessive genes appear, especially if both parents have it. Because they are fraternal twins, their chances of getting it increased significantly. For being young teens, they are some of the most physically fit people I have ever met without a quirk boosting them, including pro-heroes I have seen. If I hadn't been able to rule it out with other means, I would have said they had a quirk that enhanced their muscles and made them denser."

"That makes sense, Doctor. They did tell us that they had been trained from an early age. Is there anything else you need, Doctor?"

"Hmmm, no, but my assistant can give you the paperwork for both of them regarding their quirk registration." The Doctor looked at the young red-headed girl before he reached over to his stash of candies on his desk and held it out towards her. "I'm sorry, my dear. Hopefully, this helps with the news."

Ranma, or Ranko as she went by in her girl form, pulled out one of the candies, seemingly not reacting to any of the news. The Doctor had seen her earlier emotions be bright and chipper, so this emotionless state broke his heart.

"Well, we should get going now that we have the official duties dealt with first. I am looking forward to seeing my cousins."

"The Izumi's? I heard they had woken up. Pro-hero work can be hazardous, but they showed they were genuine heroes doing what they did. I am glad reinforcements had gotten there in time to save them."

Shino put a hand on Ranma's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Yes, I was glad someone had arrived in time. Come on, Ranko-chan, let's not leave your brother and the others waiting too long."

Ranma stood, still showing no emotions, following Shino out of the room. Once out of the room, they made their way towards the hospital lobby for this floor, where the rest of the Pussycats were waiting in chairs.

Yawara and Ryuko were reading from their phones, though Ryuko was giggling in that perverse way that told Shino she was looking at possible men to entrap– date. Shino remembered the claw marks on her face when she suggested a more accurate word. Tomoko had some wireless earbuds she was using and kept her eyes closed as she danced in her seat, not caring about how she looked to everyone else.

Ranma's face changed to a smile as she said, "Hey guys, all done!"

The three looked up at their arrival before putting away their devices and standing up. "Same results as before?" Yawara asked.

"Yeah, he said I'm quirkless," Ranma replied. "Though, I still don't know why you had me test twice or pull back my Ki. That was a bit hard, but it was good training."

"If your Ki abilities and your curse are not the results of a quirk, then it is important that the doctor wasn't aware of them so that it didn't contaminate his tests," Shino said.

Ranma still looked confused as she tried to work it through, her eyes scrunched and her head tilted as she failed to work it out alone. Yawara decided to help, getting a better read on how Ranma thought than the others. "Ranma-kun, you said you were trained in multiple martial arts disciplines, correct?" Ranma nodded but didn't otherwise respond. "Think of it like training in a new school. If you were trying to learn the new school's techniques, you need to limit yourself to that style until you have the groundwork established before integrating it into the rest of your style, correct?"

Ranma's eyes widened as she realized what he was getting at before he smiled in appreciation. "I get it. He would think the curse or my Ki were a quirk and would have a harder time understanding what was happening. Things would be too mixed and harder to separate them."

Ryuko smirked as she looked between the two of them. "Makes sense that only a combat jockey could get through to another combat jockey."

Her joke made Shino and Tomoko giggle, but Yawara's confused question, "What's wrong with being a combat jockey?" made it even louder.

"Come on, let's get going," Shino said, though she still giggled after saying it. She led the way to the hospital's elevator before taking it up to the upper floors where patients were kept for recovery. Ranma and Yawara were discussing as they walked as the older man questioned the expert for more details and knowledge on Ki usage and training methods. The girls just left them to it, giving each other occasional smiles at how well they were getting along.

When they arrived in the wing that her cousins were staying in, some nurses recognized them and smiled, a few giving small waves as they went about their work. They found someone sitting outside the door.

The man was tall, about Yawara's height, and had a similar build of heavy muscles and broad shoulders. Or at least he had, Ranma noted, as it appeared he was beginning to lose that muscle mass and was getting thinner. His hair was crimson and somewhat spiky, but streaks of gray were starting to run through it. He seemed to be calmly resting with his eyes closed but aware enough of his surroundings. His clothes were plain, simple blue pants and a white T-shirt, though they were good quality. Ranma could tell, though, that he was a good fighter, possibly stronger than Yawara. But she saw the signs of someone who was no longer fighting, the muscle mass being one, with other minor signs of motion being another. The lack of a left forearm explained the retirement.

"Iwamoto-sensei, thank you for coming and watching over Kota-chan and my cousins," Shino said as she stepped up towards him and bowed respectfully.

The man opened his eyes and turned to her, his smile letting his pointy teeth poke through. He got out of his chair and returned the bow. "Certainly, Mandalay-chan. When Tiger-kun told me what was happening over the phone, I figured I'd do what I could to help." His smile widened even further, giving full view of his sharp teeth, "learning who they faced and how they faced him made it an honor to do so. I am just glad someone was able to intercede."

Shino looked over her shoulder and smiled at Ranma, causing Ranma to blush a little and look away. "As am I, Iwamoto-sensei. As am I."

The man traced her sight to the short red-headed girl. While his combat instincts had begun to dull over time, they were not dead. What he saw in the girl was nothing. Absolutely nothing. That terrified him. Even toddlers would give you some sort of prick, like comparing yourself to an ant. This was more akin to staring into an endless void, knowing that if you reached out, you would touch nothing, but the void had no such limitation and would stare back. Or smirk, as the case was here when the girl noticed him looking at her. "So she's the one? I can see why."

Shino and Ryuko looked surprised, though Yawara nodded, and Tomoko smiled wider. "You do?" Shino asked.

"When you reach a point in your training and combat experience, you begin to be able to pick up traces in people's motion that can tell you about them, things like how much they use a leg, how far they can bend it, and more. Quirks can make it harder, like Tiger-kuns, but there are still signs. Please, tell me your name." He asked, bowing deeply, specifically a saikeirei, a bow at a forty-five-degree angle reserved for prominent people and the most profound veneration. This surprised all four of the heroes with the degree of respect he showed her.

Ranma was very surprised. She had never received this respect from any fighter she had just met. She rarely received it after trouncing them and their entire dojo, but never after meeting them and them knowing very little about her. She returned the bow, though it wasn't as deep as the man's own, as it would insult the honor he was showing her. But it would have made most people who knew her sputter at how much respect she was showing someone who wasn't her mother. "Saotome Ranma, heir to the Musabetsu Kakuto Ryu, Saotome branch. And what is your name?"

"My name is Iwamoto Katashi," Katashi said before finally exiting his bow after seeing Ranma withdraw hers. Though he did find it curious that her bow was with the hands to the side. "I am a retired pro-hero; I once went by the name of Crimson Riot. I've been around for some time, but I am curious how one so young has the skills you do. Do you have a quirk that prevents you from aging or at least appearing to be your apparent age?"

"Before coming here, Sosaki-san had me tested for quirks, and I have none," Ranma said. While it was annoying how everyone leaped to quirks, he didn't imply her skill was related to a quirk, which made her happy. He was just surprised someone her age could get there so quickly.

"Truly? Amazing," Katashi said, pausing as he gathered his thoughts. "I mean this with no disrespect, but how did you beat Muscular with no quirk? His ability to absorb damage would require significant force to take him down, and his muscles act as sufficient armor to prevent hitting weak points. His previous incidents would show he would run if he wasn't getting what he wanted or there was too much chance of being caught. So he wouldn't stick around long enough for him to grow tired."

"She is a Ki Master," Yawara said. "Well beyond anyone I have ever heard of outside of ancient legends or mangas."

Katashi's eyes widened in shock, but it matched that void of experience he saw. He turned to Ranma, "I may be retired, but I am not averse to learning new things in my old age. I don't know your situation, but if you ever find yourself willing to take on students, I humbly request being shown many things." He bowed to her again, just as deeply as earlier.

Ranma bowed in response, "It would be an honor."

Katashi smiled at that. He turned back to Shino and the others, "I've held you up enough as it is; go ahead on in. All three are sleeping now, but I think they would be glad to see you. I'll stay guard out here, but feel free to ask for anything." He bowed once more to Shino and the others.

"Thank you, Sensei," Shino said before the retired hero retook his seat, though he remained wide awake and smiling. She smiled at it, happy he had found something to be interested in again since his forced retirement. She knew it hurt him not to be out there helping.

They left him there and entered the room. She saw the two beds her cousins were on but was surprised they were pushed together with the railings down on that side. This was not standard hospital protocol. The why was easy enough to see as she saw Koto snuggled between his parents as they held him and each other dearly. Koto's tears had obviously won over the hospital staff's hearts to break protocol like this; she sympathized with them as she knew how effective they were.

Her cousins had a few casts, some I.V.s, and blood bags, but they looked healthier than they did when she first saw them arrive. More color in the cheeks and skin, the blood and nutrients doing wonders for their appearance. Their faces, general appearance, and body language all looked like they had gone through some mental anguish. But being together like this made them content, and it was healing the mental wounds they had suffered, along with the physical ones.

Her cousin must have heard the door click closed as Ryuko had closed it behind them, as he woke with a start. But he quickly calmed down when he saw who it was. "Shino-chan?" he asked softly, and a warm smile formed.

"Hi, Ryu-chan," Shino said as her warm smile formed. The fact he didn't glare at her for the honorific she used meant he either didn't care or was too tired to respond to it. "How are you feeling?"

The man sighed, "Sore, but at least the pain meds have dulled the physical pain for now. Though waking up at all and seeing Moriko alive and Kota by our sides makes it all worth it. Where did you go? Riot-sensei said you got called in for something hero related?"

"Endeavor was sent as a backup for dealing with your attack. He called me to help with the situation in Iyashi no Sato, some unknown variables he wanted a softer hand in dealing with."

"Endeavor? But we couldn't hold the villain off long enough for him to arrive. Was he close at the time?" Ryu asked.

"No, he wasn't. And he wasn't the one that dealt with Muscular. The one that took him down was the one that saved you both."

Ryu's eyes widened, surprised. "Who was it?"

Shino looked behind her, "Ranma-chan? Can you come here?"

Ranma stepped forward somewhat hesitantly. Most of her experience had been indifference or outrage due to what she needed to do to protect them. She rarely, if ever, dealt with people after she had rescued them. She did get the occasional thank you, which always made her feel good at being a martial artist and made her creed that she learned from her father worth following.

Once Ranma stood beside the bed, Shino put a light hand on her shoulder. "This is Saotome Ranma; her situation is… complicated. We can fill you in on the details once you leave the hospital. But she was nearby when she saw the smoke from your fight. She stepped in and caught a boat that Muscular threw at you, saving your lives."

The look of wonder and thanks that Ryu shot at Ranma warmed Shino's heart again. Today had been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions, but she was glad they were ending on many positives.

The rest of the Pussycats also stepped forward, putting their hands on Ranma's shoulder or head as reassurance, making her blush again.

Ryuko spoke up, like a proud older sister praising a younger sibling, "Yeah, Ranma-chan here showed up and then proceeded to kick dumbasses ass." She leaned forward and conspiratorially put her opposite hand to the side of her mouth. "That's the nickname she gave him, and I am agreeing his name forever shall be 'Dumbass.'"

Ryu gave a short bark of laughter, which he regretted a little from the moment of pain, but his primary concern was Moriko and Kota. Luckily, it seemed they only moved in their sleep a little. He gave a warning shot to the blonde, but she just smiled and showed she didn't care. Which she proceeded to prove as she continued the tale.

"Ranma-chan put a serious hurt on him and knocked him out by driving him into one of the hills near the village. Endeavor showed up at the same time that the restraints the police brought had arrived, right before the dumbass woke up and gave everyone a fright. Endeavor was ready to cook him on the spot, and the guy looked ready to take that risk, but then Ranma-chan just peeked around Endeavor's frame to cause the guy to whimper in fear in front of everyone. Dumbass then begged to be locked up to keep her away from him. He walked faster than the police to the back of the truck!"

Ryu was having difficulty not laughing, even with his hands trying to hold his mouth and jaw shut. It was getting to be a bit painful, but he didn't care. The only reason he wasn't busting a gut was his wife and son beside him.

He saw Ranma appear to be smiling and nodding her head, but it was what the rest of the Pussycats were doing that almost made him break. Yawara in the back was giving a big thumbs up and a smile, Tomoko was weaving back and forth with her arms outstretched, and Shino's facepalm and a severe case of trying not to giggle only made things worse. But then Ryuko leaned forward again, her eyes and smile relishing the death blow she was about to give. "And I have the video to prove it!"

His laughter was nearly ear-piercing as his body shook. It did the job Ryuko had sought, of driving the fear of the encounter out of him. She wanted to ensure that any time he remembered that monster, the memory of what happened after would be within easy grasp and keep that fear at bay. And that needed to happen as soon as possible to ensure it was adequately linked.

The fact none of her teammates had stopped her meant they knew why she had done it. She'd have to do the same for poor Moriko, who was now waking up from her slumber. Kota-chan would have to wait; he was too young to hear it. And he was awake now as well.

"Ryu? What's wrong" Moriko asked, though she quickly noticed their guests as well. "Shino-chan?"

The mention of his aunt's name made Kota immediately perk up and ignore his laughing father. He twisted around until he found her, "Auntie Shino!" He scrambled over his father's writhing legs to squeeze her with his arms as hard as he could, crying his eyes out at his family being together again. Shino hugged as hard as she dared, knowing the five-year-old couldn't withstand her full strength. It was challenging not to do so.

Moriko smiled at seeing the two hug, but it switched to a smirk when she looked at her laughing husband and the look of pleasure on Ryuko's face. She remained quiet as she let both groups calm down, but she did inspect the others. She was glad to see Tomoko and Yawara in good health, but she grew curious at the appearance of the young redhead.

"Ryu, what's going on?" Moriko asked after he finally settled down enough to actually respond to her question. Kota had fallen back on the bed after repeatedly crying his heart out. He smiled as he gave a fist bump to Yawara and a quick hug to Tomoko. He was snubbing Ryuko since it was her fault for making his father laugh so much. Kota did glance curiously at the unknown girl.

"I am sorry, Ko-chan. We'll tell you later about Ryuko's ill-timed," he said as he glared at the offender, "but hilarious joke she shared." Ryu didn't notice the knowing smirk his wife gave the blonde as her face returned to normal before he turned back to her. "But Shino-chan told me how young Ranma-chan saved us from the villain. And then proceeded to stop and apprehend him."

Moriko's eyes widened. The girl was so young and against a monster like Muscular, which meant she had a powerful quirk. But it was Kota who paid particular attention to what he said.

"You're a hero?" Kota asked Ranma. "You saved my Mom and Dad?"

Ranma rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "Yeah, I did. Though I'm a martial artist instead of a pro-hero, it's pretty much the same. We protect the we– Ack!"

She didn't get to finish her reply on account of a five-year-old latching onto her head with his legs going around her neck and her head being squeezed by his whole body. She almost lost her footing and fell, but not because Yawara had caught her. No, it was entirely her own balance. And no one could prove her wrong.

"You're the best, greatest, superest hero in the whole world!" Kota shouted at the top of his lungs as he cried and laughed at meeting the person responsible for guaranteeing his parents didn't leave him.

Everyone else just laughed at her odd position as she let the young boy cradle her head, unsure how to treat it. "Ummm, okay?" Ranma muffled out.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

[Author's Note - So I know some people do not like super-long chapters like this. I do enjoy them, so long as they have a purpose behind it. I didn't want to break up each character into their own chapter, especially since how I have been writing it has a certain flow to it. I did look to see if I could break this chapter into to two, but then it would just feel like a Part 1 and Part 2, which I also didn't want to do.

The best middle-ground I could come up with, is using either AO3 or FF.net and split each chapter into smaller bits for those readers that like smaller chapter chunks of 3-5k average. I am leaning towards doing this for AO3, since I tend to prefer reading and finding stories on FF.net, even with it's problems. Please let me know if you think this is a good idea. If people also like it, I may split either SB or SV similarly. This allows people from both camps to hopefully enjoy the story.]

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 5 - The Exam​

"Here we are, Ranma-kun!" Moriko hollered as she drove up next to the school. The wife half of the hero couple Water Hose smiled at how Ranma hadn't removed his eyes from the main school building when she pointed it out to them when it came into view. After all, U.A. was an awe-inspiring sight for a school.

She drove up in front, finding one of the many temporary parking spots that dozens of other cars used to deliver potential students. She exited her vehicle, and Ranma followed, though he still stared at the school. She circled around the car as he closed the door.

She inspected the youth whom her family had gotten to know so well over the past year. Ranma was not perfect, but they were undoubtedly worth knowing. What mattered was his heart; it was one of the finest she had met. He may be egotistical and prone to acts of retaliation, but she lumped that mostly on his upbringing from his father, Genma. That man was even more flawed than Ranma. The fact he helped make Ranma a better person than he was would be why the rest of her extended family would hug him for that achievement… right after hitting him with the heaviest objects they could find!

She stood before him, inspecting his clothes to ensure everything was in place and that he looked professional. He had decided to wear what he usually found most comfortable: red silk shirts in a Chinese style. This one had longer arms since it was February. His dark blue silk pant legs complimented them, as well as his black slip-on. They were comfortable for him and wouldn't raise too many eyebrows if his curse activated. He had been thrilled on Christmas when he had been given several sets of them, especially when Ranma learned they had been adjusted so they could more easily fit both of his forms if he changed. That had been one of the most annoying things about his curse for him.

"Well, you certainly look presentable, Ranma-kun." Ranma finally turned his head back to look at her, smiling as he did so. "Do you feel like you are ready for the exam?"

"I think so. Shino-sensei did say I was ready for it."

"Well then, I wish you luck on the written exam. It can be tough, but if Shino-chan says you are ready, you are." She smiled as she patted him on the shoulder.

Ranma raised an eyebrow, "Not going to wish me luck on the practical?"

Moriko snorted, "As if! It isn't a question of whether you pass; it is a question of how badly you break the curve!" She smiled as he smirked back at her; his ego and confidence lifted some. She found he always did better when he had more confidence. That was the case with most people, but it impacted him significantly. She didn't mind feeding it occasionally because he usually did the right thing either way. "Now get in there, you don't want to be late, and it is a big school."

"Right, thanks a lot for driving me, Moriko-san," Ranma smiled.

Moriko beamed before she hugged him and was pleased to feel him return it. Pushing him back again, she gave him a final instruction. "Now get in there!"

"Yes!" Ranma said as he prepared to leap towards the entrance.

"No ki-jumps, Ranma!" Moriko called in a warning, stopping him in time.

Ranma looked embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his head. "Right… forgot." He then walked to the entrance and left Moriko with the car.

"Good luck!" she shouted just before he went through the entrance. After he was out of sight, she got back into the car and drove somewhere nearby. She would wait until he was done with the exam.

Ranma walked forward until halfway toward the main building and just stopped there. Several dozen boys and girls walked along the long path toward the school. Some were talking with each other, and the occasional bout of yelling occurred among the young people. There was even some angry yelling behind him, but he ignored it.

He looked up in awe at the size of the main building. It was over twenty stories tall, and each floor was closer to five meters than the typical three. Its width and length were impressive, but its unique architecture made it stand out. Instead of just a single large building, it was like four skyscrapers set near each other on a combined base at the bottom, with two-story tall walkways between the different buildings. It made it look like a giant H from any side you looked at. It completely dwarfed the last school he had gone to, Furinkan, by a couple orders of magnitude. Especially when you included all the property that belonged to the school. He really hoped he wasn't blamed if a fight broke out and damaged something. He did not want a repeat of having to deal with fiancees, delusional upperclassmen, loopy principals, or panty-stealing midgets. He couldn't afford the repairs!

"Move it, you Extra!" a loud and obnoxious voice said from behind him, but Ranma ignored it.

He glanced to the sides and saw multiple other tall buildings, though they were still smaller than the main one, and all were part of the school's grounds. He had never seen a piece of property with this much real estate in Japan ever! Not even the American bases he had passed by in his youth could compare to this.

"I said move it!" the same obnoxious voice said, sounding even angrier than earlier and closer now.

Ranma had only bothered to learn a little about the campus before he had left, thinking it would be just like Furinkan or maybe more expansive, like some of those private academies he had heard about.

"Get the fuck out of my w–- ay?" The voice halted its demand as it encountered something it hadn't expected. Specifically, his leg had been caught by Ranma's hand as the boy tried to kick him to the side.

Ranma's handhold around his ankle was like steel, with no give. Even as the youth tried to peel Ranma's hand away from it. The boy then tried using his other leg on Ranma's back as leverage to get out of the hold. When that didn't work, he started punching and kicking with everything he had. But it didn't even budge him.

After it was made very clear to the boy that he had no chance, he even began to panic a little if Ranma could tell by his voice. So the foot was released, and Ranma just walked off towards the school. He smirked as he heard the boy land and the curses that followed it soon after as Ranma walked on and never bothered to look back at him.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Man, it looks even bigger in person than I expected!" Peter said as he walked through the entrance closest to the train station. David and Melissa's directions for getting here were spot on.

His plane had just arrived early that morning.

He had gotten breakfast along the way. Japanese breakfasts were not his preferred meal, but the Shields had tried to get him used to it since it was the cultural norm here. He was used to one plate of eggs, bacon, and potatoes in various forms, sometimes pancakes or donuts. Here, they served rice, soups, and other mixtures. It was good, but still weird for him.

He made it on time, seeing a hundred or more kids moving back and forth on the property. He had experienced something similar at Midtown High, with large groups of teenagers attending different classes. U.A., however, was so spread out due to the sheer size of the buildings and the campus. Even inside, it was taller and broader than he was used to at Midtown, though seeing some possible students that were three meters tall and one or two meters wide certainly gave good evidence for why it was that big.

Peter, being Caucasian, stood taller than many of his potential classmates. But nowhere like he had expected from what he had initially known of Japan. Here, mutant quirks and other biological changes resulted in a broader range of potential sizes and shapes of humans. He would have boggled at the sight if he hadn't grown used to it on I-Island.

Deciding he needed to focus on where he needed to go, Peter looked down at the instructions he was given. They were written in Kanji and Hiragana, though Peter had written down some of it in English off to the side for some of the stuff he still had difficulty understanding. He was improving, with Dr. Shield, Melissa, Karen, and his Japanese instructors helping him. But he didn't have any of those crutches here at the moment.

He stared down at the hiragana; he remembered most of them well enough now, but a few still stuck out and were difficult to follow. He looked down and then back up at the signs above the doorways, realizing he might have gone in the wrong direction. It looked different from what he expected. He was starting to get worried.

{"Excuse me, are you an American?"} a female voice asked from his side in English.

He glanced towards the one that had asked and found a girl in a dress shirt and skirt. She was shorter than him head to head by about fifteen centimeters, but the horns on either side of her head made it debatable who was taller than who, as they would make her at least twenty centimeters taller than him. They pointed straight up, looking like goat horns, and had a similar color and texture. Her blue eyes were a little larger than expected, with a round nose that could almost not be seen and a small mouth. Her long hair was blond and wavy, and he saw what he thought was a small bushy tail behind her. Glancing down, he noticed she didn't have regular human legs or feet, more closely resembling the back legs of a horse and its hoofs. It made her look cute and innocent and would be perfect for working in a petting zoo.

{"Yes, I am an American. I was born and raised in New York,"} Peter said, a little glad to switch to his native English. Speaking Japanese was easy for him since he got plenty of practice at his new home.

{"Awesome! My name is Pony Tsunotori, and I'm from Wyoming!"} Pony said as she introduced herself.

Peter smiled as he responded, {"My name is Peter Parker, pleased to meet you, Pony!"} He then held out his hand to her, and she gladly shook it. {"Do you happen to know where room C147 is? I need to get there for the written exam."}

Pony winced before poking her index fingers together and looking to the side. {"Actually… I was kind of hoping you could help me find where I needed to go. My Japanese is horrible, even if my family comes from Japan. And don't get me started on reading Kanji! Do you know where B123 is?"}

Peter frowned; it seemed that both of them were lost. {"Well, it might be better to help each other find where we need to go than to hunt for it ourselves."}

{"Yes, that sounds much better. How's your Japanese?"} Pony asked.

{"I can speak it better than I can read or write it, so let's try asking someone else?"} Pony nodded her head at his suggestion, so Peter looked around at the students around them and tried to get a feeling of who to ask questions to. He did try asking a few, but they were ignored, told no time while pointing at their watches, or declined as they didn't know.

He saw another boy taller than he was, with a muscular build and peach-colored skin. His head looked like a rock as it poked upwards, but his face looked more normal and kind as he was shyly looking around. Peter asked him the same question.

The boy looked a little startled, then embarrassed as he had been spoken to, but Pony just stood there and let Peter take the lead while he smiled warmly and hoped it would be enough for him to help them out. It took a few seconds before the young man started making hand signs, making Peter realize he was probably mute. He had studied American Sign Language a little but wasn't recognizing any that the boy was using.

"I'm sorry, I am not familiar with those signs. Here, let me see if what I can remember works." Peter then proceeded to use a few signs he remembered. The boy looked surprised but also confused as he tried more words, one of which he did recognize. "Lost?"

The boy smiled and nodded his head. "Are you asking us if we are lost?" The boy repeated the gesture. "Yes. We are. Ummm, do you know where this room is supposed to be?" Peter asked as he pointed down to his sheet.

The boy glanced at it momentarily and thought deeply before wincing and shaking his head no. He gave more hand signs but seemed to be struggling and was disappointed when Peter failed to understand what he was saying.

Peter tried to figure out what was going on when he realized something. "Wait, are you using American Sign Language?" The boy shook his head. "Is it... Japanese Sign Language?" The boy nodded his head rapidly and happily. "I'm sorry, I only know a little of the American system, nothing of the Japanese one."

The boy was disappointed further but did end up giving a smile to show his appreciation for trying. "Hey, my name is Parker Peter. Maybe I'll see you around and try to learn a little of Japanese Sign Language in the meantime."

The boy smiled gratefully before walking off, waving at them as he left. Peter returned the wave as he walked off before returning to Pony. {"Unfortunately, another failure. But he seemed really nice. Alright, let's see if we can find anyone else,"} Peter said, not giving up.

The next boy he decided to ask had what Peter recognized as a black student jacket for boys with buttons down the front. He was a little taller than Peter and had black hair that was a little spikey as it pointed downwards. He had a determined face, but Peter recognized some signs of being nervous.

"May I ask a question?" Peter asked the boy as he gave a little bow, hoping he was performing the keigo correctly. None of the others had responded negatively towards it, so he believed it was correct.

The boy stopped to look at him, curious and knocked out of his thoughts. "Sure, what do you need?"

"Pony-san and I are lost and trying to find which room we are supposed to go to for our exams," Peter said, indicating the girl, who smiled as well. "We're both Americans, and our Japanese still needs some work. So I apologize in advance for any disrespect we may give."

The boy grinned widely, his eyes closing as his sharp teeth showed off. "No problem, dude! I'll help if I can. Where do you need to go?"

Peter showed him the sheet, and the youth's grin became puzzled, making Peter think they had another failure on their hands. But then he grabbed the sheet a little tighter to bring it closer, Peter allowing him to do so. "Oh! That's why you're lost!" He laughed out loud, pointed at the sheet, and turned to Peter as his grin returned. "Dude, those numbers aren't the classrooms you are after. Those are the seats!"

Peter's eyes widened at the realization. "So, where do we need to go?" He went up next to the boy and looked closely at the sheet.

"You need to go to that auditorium," He said, pointing down the hallway.

Peter stared at it for a moment before he smacked his face with his palm before chuckling a little, and the boy did the same. {"Pony, give us your sheet; let's verify where you need to go as well."}

After handing it over, they quickly confirmed it was the same auditorium, just a different row and seat number. He informed Pony of it, and she excitedly threw her hands up. "Yay!"

Glad to finally resolve that, Peter turned back to the boy and gave him another bow. "Thank you so much!"

"No problem, dude," he said as he also gave a bow. "My name's Kirishima Eijiro; I'm shooting for the Hero course."

"Parker Peter, I'm also shooting for the Hero course." Peter paused, then turned to Pony. {"What course are you shooting for? I forgot to ask earlier."}

{"Hero course!"} Pony shouted, excited.

Peter turned back to Eijiro and saw him give a big thumbs up. Seemed he knew that English word as well. "We need to hurry, but I wish you luck, and maybe we'll see you for the practical exam."

"Sure thing, Parker! Good luck!" Eijiro said as he walked off, waving.

{"Alright, Pony, let's go,"} Peter said as he led the way.

{"So, Peter, do you like manga or anime?"}

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"In there, Sakura-chan," Chiyo said as she pointed at the door. Sakura quickly opened it for her while carrying the extra supplies Chiyo had wanted to bring along.

Sakura looked around the room, seeing it as a decent-sized room with only a few beds. Considering the nature of the school, she had expected at least a dozen of them. "Why are there so few beds, Shuzenji-sama? Considering what you've told me about the school and the size of it, I expected more beds in the infirmary."

"This is more of my private office, for those I must watch more closely while they recover. There's a larger room through that door," Chiyo said, pointing at another door. "That one houses a dozen beds, but there are additional smaller rooms throughout the school and at different sites. I am not the only nurse or doctor here, just the most senior and the only one with a healing quirk. I frequently have to go to different sites when needed. But since any part of the school could potentially see an injury occur, whether the Hero course, Support courses, or even some General courses, getting them to a room and immediate medical care tends to be more important than one large central location."

"That makes sense. Multiple field hospitals allow for quicker and immediate treatment, while the larger ones provide more space for the more difficult cases after they have been stabilized and can be transferred."

Chiyo smiled, she knew Sakura would have figured that out after getting a little more familiar with the layout, but she had limited knowledge of how things were spread out for now. "Here, help me unpack and get things ready. While I tend to be called to the site with the more critical injuries, other medics on staff need the supplies."

"Right!" Sakura whooped as she began helping unbox and followed Chiyo's instructions as they quickly organized things. They were about halfway done when the door opened again, and four people entered. Three wore purple medical scrubs with name badges, and two wore doctors' coats over them. The fourth was a beautiful woman with long dark purple hair that was reasonably spikey. She wore a rather flattering business suit, considering her decent chest was on display with a deep cleavage readily visible. The two male doctors had blushes on their faces, and the woman nurse's eyebrows twitched, giving Sakura an idea about how she acted.

"Recovery Girl! You're here a little early. How have things been at home?" the flirtatious woman asked.

"They have been going well, Midnight. I mostly went home to bring Sakura-chan here when I returned," Chiyo said, smiling at the other woman.

Midnight's eyes lit up as she looked down at the short young girl. Her pink hair was just below her chin, and she looked adorable in the outfit. The top looked like a sleeveless qipao, but it only came to her waist. She wore a short pink skirt with slits down the front and back and wider slits on both sides connected by a belt, but it looked like it made things easy enough to move in to not cause any impediment. Under that skirt, though, she wore some skintight dark green shorts. She wore some sandals on her feet that looked rated for hiking, though the front allowed her toes to be visible. Midnight loved her immediately.

"Oh, she's so cute!" Midnight reached forward to hug the girl to her bosom, but she was ready and had stepped back a few steps. Midnight walked to follow, but Chiyo's cane interceded on Sakura's behalf.

"Enough of that, Kayama-san. Sakura is helping me and doesn't need your brand of flirtation or sadism."

Kayama Nemuri looked slightly outraged, but Chiyo's stern glare and using her family name got her to drop it. No need to get the same punishments Yagi would get. She could learn, Yagi couldn't.

"Sadism as well?" Sakura asked, raising an eyebrow, looking between Chiyo and Nemuri.

The type of smile Sakura received at that confirmed it, though Nemuri was a little surprised that instead of fear or shock, Sakura actually smiled.

"With a name like Midnight, I take it you are also a Pro-hero?" Sakura received a nod from the woman. "You remind me of a sensei and friend from home. I think you probably have a similar style of dressing for work. Something skimpy that makes the boys' nosebleed and the girls outraged?"

"Oh my, you know me so well already?" Nemuri asked in delight. "What would your friend wear?"

"Chain mesh, a mini-skirt, an overcoat, and sandals like mine. And nothing else," Sakura replied quickly. The fact the two males in the room had far-off looks as they tried to imagine it didn't help the other woman's twitch.

"Oooo, I liiike it!" Nemura cried out in delight. "Is she nearby? Or near Tokyo, at least?"

"No, she's from my homeland, and it's very far away and difficult to get to."

"Well, if she's ever in town, send her my way, would you? I think a girl's night would be so much fun!"

Sakura smiled, "I think she would enjoy that if the chance ever came up." She glanced at the clock and realized the time she had to get to the exam room was less than she had expected. "Shuzenji-sama, I need to get to my exam. I am sorry we didn't finish in time."

Chiyo smiled, "Go along, dear. Have fun!"

Midnight turned back to Chiyo, "Shuzenji-san, I like her. So she's taking the exam? Is it the hero course?"

Chiyo smiled, "Yes, and you'll be one of her teachers."

Nemuri raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh? Confident in her passing? Even the practical?"

Chiyo gave her a smirk, which the staff didn't see very often. "Oh, she's going to crush it."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"What's up, U.A. Candidates! Thanks for tuning into me, your school D.J.! Come on and let me hear ya!" shouted Yamada Hizashi, better known as the pro-hero Present Mic.

The tall man was slim in figure and had long blond hair that was all spiked upwards like a cockatoo. He wore a pair of headphones, stylish triangular sunglasses, and what looked like a colossal boombox fitted just below his chin that went to his upper chest. He wore black leather clothing like a punk or a biker would, though the jacket collar was tall and curved upwards towards the front.

He put his gloved hand to his ear, waiting for a reply, but all he got was silence from the large auditorium filled with students. "Keeping it mellow, huh? That's fine; I'll skip straight to the main show. Let's talk about how this practical exam will go down, okay? Are you ready?"

Again, all he got was silence. Most students just stoically looked back, though some spoke softly to their classmates nearby. One boy with a messy crop of curly green hair and some freckles was muttering about how it was Present Mic and how he listened to his radio show every day. He started speculating about whether all the teachers were pro-heroes.

The boy next to him didn't appreciate it. "Shuddup." This one had short, spiky blond hair and seemed a little pissed as he listened to the presenter.

Hizashi spoke up again, keeping his promise of going over the practical. "This is how the test will go, my listeners! You'll be experiencing Ten-minute-long 'Mock Cityscape Maneuvers'!" Behind him, a massive screen lit up to help identify where each of the seven sites was. "Bring along whatever you want! After this presentation, you'll each head to your assigned testing location!"

He explained more, describing that each 'site' was filled with fake robot villains, called faux-villains, that gave different points, and their job was to earn as many points as possible. Attacks against other examinees were prohibited.

"May I ask a question?" a voice called out as a tall boy in a jacket and tie who stood up and raised his hand. His short dark blue hair was neatly combed, and he wore small square glasses. Since he didn't hear a no, he asked his question as he held up one of the sheets describing the part of the test they were on. "There appear to be no fewer than four varieties of faux villains on this handout! Such a blatant error, if it is one, is highly unbecoming for U.A., Japan's top academy! We're all here today hoping to be molded into ideal heroes!"

He turned and pointed behind him by several rows at the green-haired boy, "And you, with the curly hair! You've been muttering this whole time–- ack!"

His accusation was cut off because a soft hand grabbed his tie and forcefully pulled him into his chair with a sharp yank. It looked rather painful as he landed in the seat incorrectly and accidentally hit someone on the other side. Everyone else had just found it amusing and snickered.

The stern-looking boy readjusted himself into his seat and straightened his clothing before apologizing. "Sorry, Haruno-san."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura stepped off the bus that unloaded all the participants for this site. She had not expected it to look like an actual city with a large chain fence surrounding it. They were next to the gate entrance.

The style of going to a gated ground and then competing reminded her of the Chunin exams. Though, this time, she was alone, and it would not require fighting each other or deaths to occur. She was fighting a bunch of metal machines designed for it. While she couldn't go completely wild, she was more free to loosen up than she had been for some time.

She'd only been able to do that once on a training trip that Tensei had her join for his team. It had been in a vast meadow. Tensei had asked her to show them what she could do, with many of the sidekicks behind him exchanging money on bets. When she did show them, those hands trying to trade bets ended up dropping all of their money as they saw the destruction she caused. It put a smile on her face while Tensei sported a massive grin. Afterward, every sidekick in his agency that had disparaged her gave her a wide berth and complete reverence.

Speaking of the Iida family, she was saddened that Tenya had to go to another site. This kind of thing was more fun to do with friends and people who knew what you were capable of, but she wasn't worried. She did hope he did okay, but she didn't expect many issues for him. He was far too straightforward, but at least he seemed to soften up some around her and wasn't as stiff. His brother had applauded her for accomplishing the unthinkable, even if it was moving the mountain by an inch.

"Hey, check out the babe!" a loud male voice said. Sakura glanced to her left and saw a boy was pointing at her with a few other guys that looked about the same. She ignored them as she looked back towards the gate, waiting for the start.

"She doesn't have much of a rack, but those are some hot legs she's showing off, and the hair is cute." Seems some of the idiots had bonded over looking at women. If they didn't want to get their head in the game, she wouldn't complain.

"Hey, cutie, want to follow us as we go through the exam? We can help you get a few points!" One of them said as they walked up towards her. All three of them fit the stereotype of dumb but muscular jocks. Why did she have to run into the cliche here?

Sakura looked at her watch; it was still a few minutes from the beginning of the exam. She reached to her belt, pulled out her gloves, and slipped them on.

"I think she's scared. See her putting on the gloves? Probably scared of breaking a nail or something!" The three of them laughed and then walked off. She was glad it was over for now.

"Good job ignoring the idiots," a girl said from her other side. Sakura looked over her shoulder to find another girl about her height with pink hair, though hers was fluffy and unruly. Her skin was an even lighter shade of pink, her eyes were a black sclera with yellow irises, and two small yellow horns sticking out of her head that looked somewhat like an insect's antenna. She wore shorts, a white T-shirt, and a brown jacket.

Sakura smirked, "Usually best to ignore them. Unless they enter your personal space, then it is wherever they are most vulnerable. If they get handsy, the crotch is in play."

The girl giggled and gave a quick bow, "Good criteria! My name is Ashido Mina, but you can call me Mina!"

Sakura returned the bow, "Haruno Sakura, you can also call me Sakura. Us pinkies need to stick together, right?"

"Damn right!" Mina said as she threw a fist up in excitement. "So, what's your quirk?"

"It's complicated, but I labeled it 'Chakra.' I have been told it is an extremely versatile quirk," Sakura said with a smirk, giving the agreed-upon method of describing her abilities. After all, trying to explain it to someone new would take forever. "Think of it more like an energy that I can do almost whatever I want with it."

"Oh, that sounds awesome!" Mina said, excited for a new friend. "Mine is simpler; it's 'Acid,' I can conjure whatever kind of acid I want and throw it around."

Sakura nodded her head; that was a strong quirk. She rechecked her watch, "It's starting in a few minutes. Let's get ready."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter looked on as he saw the mock city. He was thrilled that it would be something he was familiar with. He loved swinging through cities.

Peter had been happy to go to I-Island, but one of the best benefits was the free usage of quirks, so he regularly swung through the city. He had become something of an attraction with his wild acrobatics. And he didn't have to worry about crime while he did it! Few people were in desperate situations there, so they did not need to turn to crime. Not to mention the number of pro-heroes that frequented the island tended to scare anyone who would try to do it. So his web-swinging was out of sheer joy or a means of traveling.

He looked around but was sad not to see any students he had met today; no Pony, Eijiro, or the mute boy. Though, Peter didn't know if the mute boy would be shooting for the hero course. He looked around to see who else was there or what their quirks might be. He wasn't worried about performing well but curious about what he might encounter. He did see one guy with actual black skin and white hair. And not an African descent type of black, but the literal color of black. He saw a few people with animal-like features or other odd mutations. And… was that guy's head an actual speech bubble? He saw writing appear on it, while the rest of his body looked normal with fair skin. That was officially the weirdest quirk he had ever seen now.

He did see one blonde kid trying to pose as if he was trying to 'twinkle' or whatever it was. But the loudest was some kid with short spiky blonde hair yelling at a bunch of the others and shoving his way to the front.

Peter looked at his watch and noticed it was almost time. Peter grabbed and equipped his extra pair of web shooters from his pockets. Since he was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and shorts designed for activewear, he didn't have to worry about his clothing getting in the way. He also wore a belt that had slots for additional cartridges.

These web shooters were a recent creation and were slimmer and sleeker than his old homemade ones. They provided many of the same modifications for his webbing as his regular suits provided but not requiring Karen to make any changes. The new shooters worked much like gears on a bike and had a couple of useful switches he had practiced with extensively at home.

With the shooters attached, he moved the trigger mechanism on both hands for active and triple-checked his cartridges and backups. He was prepared to unload a lot of webbing for this.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma looked over the area as they all gathered near the gate. He was saddened to see no one with any real training. People had no training everywhere he went.

While Katashi was an experienced veteran and very good for what he had, he still was far from what he considered a refined fighter. Regarding Ki, only Yawara, Tomoko, and Katashi had begun to touch their Ki with his guidance. Yawara and Katashi due to their physical prowess, while Tomoko had her own quirk that worked like Ki Sensors. They had helped each other develop their skills, with Tomoko improving her quirk and normal senses to new heights while he had begun to expand his own senses.

The others had improved and started to unlock unconscious Ki usage, including Moriko and Ryu, who were the furthest behind. He hoped to get more of them moving toward that before he had to attend school full-time. He had already given them plenty of exercises to help them along.

While he was ruminating, he noticed a pretty nervous kid who was on the thin side. He would almost call him short if it wasn't for the fact he was the same height as himself. His messy green hair was his most notable feature, along with some freckles. Ranma saw that the kid was fitter than he looked in that tracksuit. And if he was observing it right, he had only recently started his training in the last year. To make that much of an improvement in less than a year was impressive. The training wasn't up to his standards, but he'd been told his standards were plain batshit insane. That meant, compared to most people, this kid had trained really hard.

Ranma decided to walk towards the kid and hopefully help settle his nerves. The kid was walking away from him and seemed to be going towards some brown-haired girl when he was intercepted by a taller youth with glasses. Oh, it was the guy that asked the question in the auditorium. Ranma was close enough to hear now.

"I humbly apologize for my behavior earlier," Glasses said as he bowed in apology. "I was informed by a friend that it was rude and presumptuous of me to assume you were not taking the exam seriously and were instead mumbling to fight nervousness. Please forgive me."

Ranma paused as the skittish kid was surprised but worked his nerves up to bow back. "Ap- Apology accepted."

Glasses stood up and walked away, back straight as he made his way towards the gate. The kid watched him go and didn't notice as Ranma approached him. "Still nervous?"

Green-haired jumped a little, proving that he was. "Ummm, yes?"

"Well, there are ways to deal with it, especially before a fight," Ranma said. "And almost every one of them is mental."

"Umm, okay. What should I do?"

"First, don't let your fear control you, which is what is happening here. Your nerves are getting shot because your brain is anticipating conflict but also worried about the outcome because of what you'll face."

The boy nodded his head, understanding that he was correct. "How do I deal with the fear?"

"Identify clearly why you are nervous and fearful, then tackle it. Do that by breaking down what you need to do and plan how to do it."

The boy blinked, surprised by the sound advice.

"I take it one of your concerns is fighting?" A rabid nod. "You didn't actually spar during your training, did you?" A quick shake. "Okay, then, what are you facing out there?" Ranma said as he pointed towards the course.

"Faux-villains." Ranma raised an eyebrow, making the boy re-evaluate it. "Robots."

"How do you take down robots?"

He paused, looking down as he thought about it, mumbling a little. "Attack critical and weak points like sensors or CPUs, attack joints that connect important parts."

"What do you need to watch out for and avoid?"

"Their limbs and weapons?"

"So what do you need to do?"

"Get in close, avoid the limbs and weapons, hit their lenses or other sensors, weak points such as their CPUs, or damage their joints to disable or destroy them."

"Good. Now hold out your hand," Ranma said as he held his own to show him what he meant. The kid did just that, curious about what he intended to do. "What isn't your hand doing now?"

The kid was confused until it suddenly struck him that his hand wasn't shaking as much anymore. It had a few minor tremors, but it was otherwise steady. He recognized that he wasn't as scared anymore and had become calmer. He looked up in shock at Ranma.

Ranma smirked as the kid discovered what had happened. "Remember, nervousness is when your brain is worried about conflict and the consequences of that conflict. Separate it out and attack it by making a plan. If you don't have enough information, make a plan to get information. Use the fact that you are nervous to realize that you don't have a plan, then build one."

The kid gave a huge smile at Ranma, to which he returned with one of his roguish smirks. "My name's Ranma."

"Uh, Izuku."

"Good luck out there; I'll try to watch for you."

Izuku bowed to him, thanked him, and headed closer to the gate. Ranma looked up towards the entrance and backed up some so he could more easily see the timer indicating it was about a minute left before it started. Without much thought, his arm moved to his side to stop the person about to run into him. It touched something rather round and squishy that his brain quickly recognized, making him sweat from the anticipated danger he had just encountered. Especially since it didn't appear there was anything between it and his hand.

"Kyaa!!" The girl he had just touched screamed.

Ranma hesitantly looked her way, purposely not looking at what his hand was touching, and only found… a pair of gloves. His Ki senses were telling him there was someone there. How was… oh, oh, that wasn't good. He quickly removed his hand, backed up a few steps, and gave a profound bow of apology.

"I humbly apologize! I felt you about to run into me and reacted to stop an accident. It was not my intention to touch you inappropriately! Please forgive me!" Akane and others that knew him in Nerima would have done a spit take if they saw him do this a year ago.

The girl growled and then proceeded to hit the back of his head. Repeatedly. With no reaction from Ranma indicating pain or complaint. The girl appeared to finally give up, her invisible arms crossing if he was one to guess by the motions of the gloves. "Okay, fine! I forgive you! Just don't do it again."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Oh, Yagi-chan! Nice of you to join us," Nemuri purred in pleasure as she saw the man walk into the monitor room.

Toshinori Yagi, the pro-hero named All Might, the number one ranked hero in the world given the title of the Symbol of Peace, sighed at the flirtatious attitude of the U.A. teacher. "Good to see you as well, Midnight."

He passed her by and then sat next to the school's Principal. It was far easier to do so in his civilian form like this than in his more impressive hero form. He looked like a skeleton; his features were more angular, with longer limbs and a longer neck. He was also missing his eyebrows, and his eye's sclera was dark. His hair was medium length, blond, and wild. One other noticeable feature was the two long clumps of hair that fell to the sides of his face.

The only teaching staff for the Heroes course that wasn't there was Present Mic since he acted as the announcer for the start and end of the exam. The other person relevant to the Hero course that was also missing was Recovery Girl, but her being on hand for medical attention was more important. She could comment on the performances later.

Most staff not dedicated to running the exam were here, observing for safety reasons, grading purposes, and general entertainment. Everyone liked to see the new crop of kids and see how they did. Two dozen screens actively switched between the various students as they also ensured the equipment was working correctly.

They were doing a final systems check before the countdown ended. Teachers looked at the various students, staring at them as they noted who might be interesting. The Principal noticed Toshinori's eyes were looking at one monitor specifically. Considering what he knew of Toshinori's quirk and the last ten months of his behavior, he suspected he had already passed it on, and one of the students on the screen was the one that had inherited One For All, the most vital quirk in the world.

The Principal, Nezu, observed Toshinori's behavior, noticing he was nervous and wincing as he continued to watch. He suspected that he was worried for his successor. That meant someone that was barely ready to inherit it. Considering how nervous the mossy-haired child was, Nezu suspected he might be the one.

They watched as another boy, one in a red shirt and sporting a pigtail, started talking to him. The kid calmed down as they spoke. If Nezu had to guess, the pigtailed boy was giving the short-haired one some advice to calm his nerves. Nezu watched Toshinori as his apprehension seemed to vanish, smiling at the interaction between the two. Both boys would be ones to monitor for the future.

"So, anyone you have your eye on this year?" Nezu asked the rest of his staff, making Toshinori realize he was caught, but he didn't say anything. Nezu got some no's and a few that were in the process of being considered. The unmistakable 'yes' from Nemuri surprised everyone because it wasn't said in a flirty or sadistic manner as was her norm.

"Oh? Whose caught your eye?" Nezu asked as the rest of the staff listened attentively for her to reply.

"Examinee 6449."

Nezu stood in his chair, as he was far too small to sit in a chair like an average human. Being only eighty-five centimeters in height made that rather difficult. And while he was considered a man by those that respected and worked with him, he was not human. He was more a mixture of several different animals, primarily a mouse, but also some features from a bear and a dog. He had white fur, pawed hands, a long furred tail, short rectangular ears, a long and pointed muzzle, and beady black eyes. The giant scar across his right eye showed his life's difficulties.

None of the staff would even entertain the idea that this made him lesser than them since he was the most sharply dressed person there, with a dress shirt, a red tie, a black double-breasted waistcoat, and matching pants. The fact he was also one of the most intelligent beings on the planet also helped. Few would want to fight him in a game of wits.

Nezu used the controls on the side of the chair to bring up the relevant monitor system that tracked the students. It pulled up a profile image, her listed quirk, and the camera that she was currently tracked on. "Why her?"

"I stopped by Shuzenji-sensei's office, showing some temporary emergency staff where to go. Shuzenji-san was present with the girl. She piqued my interest when we conversed, but what Shuzenji-san said is making me watch her more closely."

"And what did she say to interest you so much?" The rest of the staff had also grown interested, as Recovery Girl did not exaggerate about hero work and often smacked offenders who went too far. Toshinori had an intimate familiarity with it.

"I asked her if she was taking the exam and the hero course. She said yes and that I would be one of her teachers. I asked her how confident she was about her passing. All she did was smirk and say she'll crush it," Nemuri said.

That surprised them, but one of the operators interrupted them by calling out the start of the exam.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Seeing the timer down to two minutes, Sakura looked at Mina and quickly determined she probably couldn't keep up with her. She was fit and could run decently, but not in her league. She had already been disheartened about not doing it with a team, but Mina wouldn't be quick enough to get herself to the areas they needed to be to make the best impact.

She almost started apologizing for needing to leave her behind when an idea came to her. The exam said nothing about working together with other examinees. Just that fighting each other would disqualify them. She had already observed that most pro-heroes fought alone most times, with a few notable exceptions that tried to work together.

Tensei's team did try, but they had no one on their team that knew how to work together other than in a loose sense. The fact that they attempted compared to all the other hero agencies made her respect them more. Tensei didn't get upset when she had explained as much to him but winced, knowing she was right. But when she started getting some of his sidekicks to work together better, he begged her to help them to train their teamwork.

Before she arrived, they were a reasonably well-oiled team from a logistical standpoint, but they needed improvement in combat. After her training, they had become more acceptable in any scenario in which teamwork was necessary. Their ability to stop villains, deal with disasters, or anything else that needed cooperation improved by an order of magnitude, and they were being praised everywhere they went. Many had dismissed her initially, but after they saw the fruits of their labor, their heads were held a little higher.

Thinking of one of Kakashi-sensei's first lessons to them, she smirked as her idea formed fully. "Hey, Mina, I got an idea."

Mina looked over at her new friend and saw she had a wicked smirk on her face. She was curious about what was going on. "What's up?"

"Let's work together for this as teammates!"

"But we're not supposed to work–"

"Where in the rules does it say that?" Sakura asked, interrupting Mina. The pink-skinned girl blinked as she tried to think of where she had read it but came up blank. She was sure she had read it somewhere on the pamphlet. "The rules only say you can't fight each other. You don't think you can work together because of how the scoring works. You're competing with the other competitors for points, so it puts you into the mindset that working with someone will likely get you fewer points."

Mina's eyes shot wide as she realized that Sakura was correct, then her face began to expand as a giant smile formed, forcing her eyes to close. "You're right!"

"One of the first lessons my Sensei taught me was to always look underneath the underneath. It means you need to look for the things other people don't look at because all you are doing is seeing the things staring you in the face. I'll be fine alone, and you would be as well, but we'll clear more ground and robots together. Especially if we set up attacks that benefit each other. Provide cover where the other is weak."

"Great! So I can control my acid by changing its solubility and viscosity, and I use it to create some big splashes." Mina displayed this by throwing a hand around and producing a big splash of acid, looking more like a wave. "I can also produce a less corrosive version."

Sakura watched her display it and thought about ways it could be used. Her preferred mode of transportation would make it easier if they were close in, which she could already cover. "Can you do a long-range attack with it?"

"Not really," Mina looked embarrassed as she rubbed the back of her head. "I haven't figured out how to do that yet."

Sakura thought of how she had to shape her Chakra differently to get results, wondering if Mina could do something similar. She had noticed that a few of Tensei's sidekicks operated similarly.

"Okay, I have two ideas. One might be better in the long run but needs more practice. The other, I think you might be able to do now, considering what you've told me," Sakura said as she smiled. "Are you any good at ball throwing?"

"I can throw a pretty mean fastball," Mina said, wondering what she was getting at.

"Okay, let's go over there first to test it," Sakura said as she led Mina away from most of the crowd. "First, summon your acid into your hand and see if you can form it into the shape of a ball. Can you alter the viscosity after you have expelled it?"

"No…?" Mina replied but wasn't actually sure of her answer.

"Try this. Hold your hand out and create a small ball of acid in your hands. Keep its solubility low for now and focus on the viscosity.

Mina did just that, creating a lump of acid that's base quickly spread out.

"Alright, now, without adding any additional acid to it, see if you can alter its viscosity," Sakura said as she observed it closely.

Even after Mina's face scrunched up with effort, nothing changed. Sakura thought about it a little more and came up with several ideas. "Okay, add a little extra acid with a much lower viscosity."

After a few moments, the sludge ball dissolved further until it was just a pool of acid, making Sakura smile. "Okay, start again, only this time, force the viscosity as high as possible. We want to be as close to solid as possible. Try to shape it into a ball."

This time, a slimy ball appeared in her hand that only had its outer edges deforming. Mina smiled at it.

"Now toss it up and down a little; make sure it is still solid enough," Sakura said as she looked around for something to test it with. She decided a nearby rock of decent size was a good testbed. She noticed the ball kept most of its form as it bounced into the air. "Now, throw it at the rock."

Mina did just that, seeing it splat and rebound but leaving a part of itself on the rock as it crawled down. Mina was a bit sad at that, but it was still better than she had before.

"Alright, now repeat the same steps. Right before you throw the ball, add a little more with a lower viscosity like you did earlier," Sakura said, expecting a more favorable result.

Mina was confused until she realized what Sakura was getting at and soon mirrored Sakura's smile. She formed the ball, winding her arm, added the extra acid, and then threw it. The ball of acid flew through the air like a soggy baseball, but when it hit the rock, the entire glob stuck to the rock creating a giant splash of acid on the object. Mina's eyes lit up at its success, and she screamed joyfully.

"Alright, now you have a ranged attack." Sakura grinned.

"Awesome! And thank you so much for that! I can't believe I didn't think of that before!" Now that she thought of it, she wondered why Sakura had worked with her to figure this out. "So what can you do with your quirk, Sakura? You didn't tell me much of what you can do yet."

Sakura could cover a vast list, but she decided to keep it simple and something that worked in Mina's favor. "I'm strong and fast. I'll deal with getting us where we need to go and dealing with anything nearby. We'll stay mobile, and I'll deal with anything in front of us while you take any targets you can find to the sides."

"Right!" Mina said as she pumped her fist.

"First, you'll get on my back and ride along." That caused Mina to blink, surprised. "We're not staying on the ground. Too slow." Mina winced a little. "Don't worry, you won't fall. I have a way to keep you secured to leave both your hands free and mine."

Curious about what she meant as Sakura turned her back to her and kneeled down a little; Mina decided to trust her and see what she meant. She climbed onto her back, arms around her neck and legs hugging her waist. It felt awkward, and she wasn't sure how well this would work as Sakura stood up.

"Okay, take your hands off," Sakura said as she turned back to look at Mina. The girl was hesitant at first but quickly found no problem, and she had a free range of motion on her hands, much to her surprise. "Your pelvis and legs are secured to me while I leave your torso free to do what you want. I am holding you to my body with an attractive force using my Chakra."

Mina's smile widened as she saw the potential, "This is awesome! Let's kick butt!"

"Shannaro!" Sakura said in excitement as well.

"And… Begin!" the loud voice of Present Mic said, surprising the two of them as they had lost track of time. Candidates had already sprinted through the gate as they tried to use their limited time to make what impact they could.

As she leaped four stories to land on one of the walls, Sakura quickly ensured their own lead. To the surprise of the candidates below, she continued running on the side of the building as if it were the ground. The girl ran oddly, her arms held out to the side, almost as if she was acting like a kid playing airplane.

Mina was initially terrified, as this was beyond what she thought Sakura meant. But she quickly realized that she was very secure in the position and that Sakura was right about holding her there. Her fear turned into excitement as she began to have fun.

"Two dead ahead! One on the roof and one on the ground; take out the one on the ground!" Sakura yelled.

"Okay!" Mina said as she saw the one she had talked about. She formed a ball, added the extra acid, and then threw it toward the target that had only just now glanced up at them. The acid ball splashed against it, causing the metal to dissolve rapidly and destroying the faux-villain two-pointer with the scorpion-like tail.

Mina noticed they had gone up after throwing her acid and were going straight toward Sakura's target, one of the big, bulky three-pointers with rocket pods on top of both shoulders. She wasn't as scared as earlier, trusting Sakura to know what she was doing. Mina was surprised when Sakura grabbed the torso of the robot while running at full speed and then proceeded to become airborne again, over a dozen meters above the roof with the robot still grasped in Sakura's hand. She noted that her hand was crushing the metal with physical strength instead of the attractive force she had used so far.

They soared over that roof, and Mina saw a few more faux-villains on top of the next building. Sakura threw the one in her hands at the center robot, crushing them both into the roof in a heap of twisted metal. That left two to the side for Mina. She formed an acid ball in both hands before throwing one and the other at her targets, hitting them on their torso or head, destroying them as the acid went to work.

Sakura leaped across the street and ran on that wall, heading straight towards another group of faux-villains down below. Mina quivered in anticipation and glee.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Wow! Look at them go!" one of the general ed teachers said as the monitor watched the progress of the two girls. "That's impressive, but is that even allowed?"

"Nothing in the rules against it," another teacher said as they watched.

The Hero staff began seeing why Recovery Girl had spoken highly of her. The girl was strong, fast, had some sort of attraction quirk, and was not adverse to teamwork. That put a smile on a few of their faces, as that tended to be rarer in heroes. Their eyes were then attracted to the other screens as events happened elsewhere.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"And… Begin!"

The angry blonde kid exploded forward. Most of the rest of the candidates were surprised and became stalled. Peter bypassed them by leaping four stories above most of their heads and shot a web toward one of the buildings. It caught, and Peter pulled on it, changing his direction and increasing his velocity. He heard a few startled shouts from below as they watched him fly past them.

He shot off another line to the other side of the street, this one to act as a counter to his current momentum and a pivot as his body curved on the new trajectory. Another web caught another building further down the street as gravity started to take its hold on him. Each web he shot out ensured he didn't smash into a building. As he began his downward arch, he let gravity build momentum to again increase his speed. He found the first target ahead, a big three-pointer aiming at the charging and explosive blonde. Peter shot another web that helped redirect his motion but still on the same arch as he swung downwards.

Peter passed the blond to his side and noticed the kid's eyes tracking him in shock before Peter smashed into the robot's body. Peter's legs compressed as he forced more acceleration into the robot. It tilted backward as it flew into the air and began to rotate. While still crouched on the smashed robot, Peter shot his arms off to the sides and fired more webbing after flicking a switch on his launchers. Four balls of webbing went flying out with unerring accuracy towards several more robots, hitting them and exploding with a bit of force that rocked them back a little, making it easier for the webbing to find other surfaces to attach to and immobilize them.

Just after shooting off the balls, Peter noted the speed and angle he was at was ideal and kicked off hard against his temporary footpad, causing it to cancel out the remaining momentum as it dropped to the concrete with a crash as he went soaring into the air.

Peter heard the scream of outrage that followed him. "Those were mine, you piece of shit!"

Peter could only laugh in joy and shouted back in friendly banter. "You snooze, you lose! Better luck next time! You'd better hustle, or nothing will be left!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Oh! Did you see that?" another observer yelled excitedly as they watched the screen showing Peter swinging away.

"Yes, the act was impressive. But what impresses me more is that it may have all been calculated on the fly," said their resident mathematics teacher. He wore a closed tan cloak resembling a trench coat and a black facemask that left his blank eyes open and his wide grinning mouth. His ears and mouth were covered by a jaw-guard that also went over his nose. Hero name: Ectoplasm.

"On the fly?" Another teacher asked. He had a large and muscular body, short gray-blue hair, and upside-down fangs peeking out his mouth and the hero name of Vlad King. His real name was Kan Sekijiro, and he was the homeroom teacher of class 1-B.

"Yes," said the Principal as he also took note of and agreed with Ectoplasm's evaluation. "While he may have good instincts and some experience, he is likely calculating his pendulum swings and linear acceleration to generate maximum acceleration and power. He hit the three-pointer at the correct location to generate the amount of rotational inertia for the mass and shape of the three-pointer to reduce the loss of momentum." Nezu was glad that it appeared there was another student to keep an eye on.

"I'm interested in what those things on his wrists are. They appear to shoot what looks like silk out of them, which either work to augment his quirk or the silk was created in a lab," said Power Loader. He was in charge of the Development Studio, where the Support Course created most of their gear, and he usually managed to be quiet during these gatherings, save when exceptional support items tended to grab his attention. "Considering his apparent ability to calculate, I can't discount him creating both himself. Impressive engineering and chemistry work if that is the case."

Nezu smiled. While every year, there were a few candidates that stood out, there tended to be maybe one that stood out to a significant degree. So far, there were two. Correction; three. Nezu looked at the monitor Toshinori's eyes could not peel away from. One that had been following the green-haired boy. The pigtailed one had just entered the picture again.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"And… Begin!"

Ranma watched as everyone else sprinted into the arena, nearly shoving each other aside. Izuku was near the back since he had become distracted and started to panic again. Ranma checked the grounds, finding several small stones he started leaning over to pick up. He was on his fifth one when Izuku noticed he was nowhere to be found in the throng and looked back to see him there.

"Uhhh, Ranma? It's started!"

Ranma finished picking up his eighth one before looking at him and smiled, "Don't worry about me. I'm just picking up a few tools. I'll start in a second. The first bit will be messy anyways; I'd just end up stealing everyone's points!"

Izuku was shocked to see how casually he was treating it. He was concerned that he wasn't taking the exam very seriously, but he decided to trust him. If he knew so much about combat already, he had to know what he was doing, right?

Ranma watched as Izuku took off before he picked up his twelfth stone. Some observers near the bus gave him weird looks, but he ignored them. A full minute after the timer had started, Ranma picked up his twenty-fifth stone and had just crossed onto the grounds. Ranma leaped, quickly reaching the roof of the closest building's edge as he took off at a decent jog, though the speed was more relative to a full-on sprint for most people.

He took a leap up to another building that was a few stories taller. He glanced around and got a feel for the current state of the arena. He glanced around and noticed a few people standing on the buildings or moving around. Looking further out, he saw a few of the robots that were well past the majority of the candidates, ones not likely to become targets any time soon. Most were nearly at the edge of the grounds and standing on roofs. He counted and estimated their distance. He took eight rocks from his pile and then, with a flick of motion, sent the rocks all on different trajectories that destroyed every robot's head he had targeted in an explosion of metal shrapnel.

Satisfied that he took out some of the easy ones that wouldn't interfere with the other candidates and gave him a healthy boost of points to make up for his time, he felt out to see who was where. He felt Izuku was further along, so he checked on him first. A quick few hops and he was looking down at him as he encountered a one-pointer. It was the simplest of the robots, with two arms connected to a torso and a single, large wheel. He began to panic again and was freezing up while the one pointer got ready to attack. Just before it could strike, Ranma flicked another rock.

For Izuku, Ranma's advice had been a big help in settling his initial nerves. Still, when facing an actual opponent, he realized he needed to figure out how to avoid its attacks or how to attack it, not to mention using his new quirk. When the machine began to raise its limb and brought it down towards him, he raised his hands to try to ward it off and closed his eyes in terror. This is why he didn't see the explosion of sparks as metal was sheared through, and the limb quickly became useless. He did open his eyes after a moment after not feeling any pain. He was shocked to see the faux-villain was crippled but not down.

"Hey, you okay, Izuku?" Ranma's voice reached down to him.

Izuku looked back and then up to find Ranma crouched on the roof and looking down at him. One hand held his pile of rocks, and another tossed one up and down. He wondered if Ranma was the reason for the limb's destruction when he heard another crashing sound as another faux-villain popped out of the wall next to the first one. Only because he was looking at him did Izuku see the rock Ranma's hand was tossing suddenly flick in that direction, and another explosion was heard behind him. He peeked to see the new robot and saw its head was totally destroyed, looking like the rock had gone through the entire frame.

"Hey, how about I walk you through the steps to fight it?" Ranma called down as he grabbed another from his pile and was ready to toss it.

Izuku looked back up at him before turning back to the faux-villain as it started to try to move again after trying to adjust the destruction of the limb. Izuku firmed himself up before shouting back to Ranma. "Okay!"

"Great! First, can you damage it with your quirk?" Ranma may not like relying on quirks very much, but he figured the guy could use the crutch for now and could get used to not depending on it later.

Izuku winced but decided to be somewhat honest about it. Ranma was helping him, after all! "I… I don't know if I can! I've never really used it before."

"Really? Okay, cool. Even though you've trained hard recently, your limbs need to be stronger to do enough damage. You need a force multiplier. Look to your left; you can use that long, thin pipe."

He did just that; seeing the pipe he had talked about, Izuku quickly picked up the one-and-a-half meter pipe and held it in both hands. But he needed to learn how to do it properly. "What now?"

"First, you need to grip it right and put your feet in the correct position, or you won't have enough power to damage it. Use your right hand on the back of the pipe and your left hand near the middle. Bend your elbows and point the end toward where you want to stab. Good! Now, right foot back, just below your right hand, left foot forward and near your left hand."

Izuku quickly followed his instructions as the faux-villain started to limp in his direction. But he followed Ranma's advice; he had yet to lead him astray.

"You need to do a quick practice stab before you try it for real. That way, you are confident you are doing it right when you attack. Use your left hand to guide the pipe to the proper location and to give it more power. Your right hand will provide most of the thrust from your hands. Once it is on target, your right hand can push forward to give you more reach. Your left foot needs to point toward the target. When you go to attack, step forward with your left half a step, use your back leg as a brace, and shove your body towards it. Your arms and legs will move as one. Give it a shot!"

Izuku followed as closely as he could, and while he felt it was clumsy, it worked. He began to get excited that he could do this.

"Good job! Solid first attempt. Get ready because now it's time to do this for real," Ranma yelled.

Izuku started panicking again but quickly firmed up as he knew he wasn't in much danger if Ranma was there, and he now had a plan of attack.

"What you're going to do is counterattack after dodging its attack. It will be harder for it to attack you that way. It only has one limb, so you only need to worry about that side. The easiest way to deal with it is to dodge to the left, which gets you away from the attack and still in range to attack the head. Wait for my signal, jump to the left, and attack the eye like you practiced."

Izuku waited as it crawled the last little bit towards him, it raised its only good limb, and Izuku started watching it. "Eye's on the head! Only watch the limb with your peripheral vision while your eyes are on the head, or you will miss when you attack! Pay attention to its motion!"

Izuku turned his eyes back onto the head as he focused and waited. Finally, the limb stopped rising and held there briefly before it quickly lowered towards him. Izuku was surprised when he jumped at the same time that Ranma called it out. He stepped forward and thrust the pipe into the eye, destroying it and other innards inside, causing it to spark and short out. The faux-villain collapsed the rest of the way in a heap as he realized he had done it! He got a point!

"Great job, man! Now you know how to do it. Keep at it; you only have a little time left, so do what you can! I'm off. I've got a few more I need to destroy and one or two others I want to check on that are out there.

Izuku shouted at him as he started to turn away, "Thank you!"

"Good luck!" Ranma yelled, waving at him as he jumped to another roof.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Did that guy just waste two minutes teaching him how to fight… in the middle of the practical exam?" a general ed teacher asked, sitting a few rows behind Toshinori as he conversed with the non-Heroics course staff members.

"Yep."

"What the hell? First, he delays entering so he can pick up some rocks, then he shows off by destroying faux-villains up to a hundred meters away with pinpoint accuracy with those same rocks as if they were a heavy caliber rifle. And then he wastes another two minutes showing a competitor how to destroy just one!?"

"He's interesting," Toshinori whispered, followed by a chuckle, not loud enough to be heard. The pigtailed boy had boosted Izuku's confidence. While the likelihood of Izuku passing by acquiring enough combat points wasn't good, there were other ways to gain points. That method played into his strengths, and he still had his quirk to use. He just needed an opportunity to do it.

He was hoping both boys passed. Helping them become outstanding heroes would be a great way to go out as he passed the torch to the next generation.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura and Mina had destroyed about forty faux-villains together by this point, giving them scores in the upper thirties. They came upon an open area that appeared to be a small park where a few other candidates had arrived, but there were far more faux-villains than candidates. The two had become a well-oiled machine as they carved through the throng of machines, startling people as the unchallenged robots were being downed quickly.

Sakura smirked as she looked ahead; three robots had lined up in a perfect column. Mina watched as Sakura hit the first one while she took out one to the side, but her grin widened when its body didn't cave in but shot off to smash into the other two and then through the stone wall behind them.

Soon, only a few left in the area were already being fought over by the other examinees.

"Where should we go now?" Mina asked.

"Hmmm, probably down another of these side streets, away from the others. We wouldn't have to compete as much with them for targets that way."

"Sounds good! Let's get… oh, pause on that! Check who it is!" Mina said as something caught her attention. Sakura looked over her shoulder to follow where Mina was pointing and found the idiots from earlier staring at them with their mouths open. Sakura giggled at how stupid they looked.

"Hiiii, boys!" Mina yelled out while she waved at them, causing them to flinch a little. "Could you come and help poor little old us? I think Sakura broke a nail on that last hit, and we are soooo useless now. We need big strong boys like yourselves to protect us!"

The boys seemed to sputter as they were called out on the spot, though one of them almost seemed to believe her words, regaining his smirk and opening his mouth to reply.

Sakura inspected her gloved hand, playing along with Mina's act. "Nope, I didn't break a nail there. Thank goodness!"

"Oh, well, then get lost!" Mina shouted at them, her attitude shifting from flirtatious to a commanding tone. Two of them turned to run away, dragging the one who had believed Mina along with them. That left the two pink-haired girls to giggle in delight. "That was fun!"

"Yeah, it was. Ready to get going again?"

"Sure, onward– huh? What's going on?" Mina asked as the ground began to shake.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter was having fun. While he didn't get to do it often on I-Island, there were some testing grounds he used that some scientists wanted him to do practice runs on to see how well it worked before being given to pro-heroes to run. They liked to use him because he helped them make it harder for the heroes, which they appreciated as it gave them a better workout and training. It was the same here, only with more people, broader environments, and more targets.

Peter saw a two-pointer on the corner of the roof, aiming to leap down toward some students. He shot his web at the calculated timing, so when it did jump, he caught it in mid-air, and a yank of his web line threw it off course and unbalanced, only to smash into the ground below, damaging it but not taking it out. One surprised student opted to take the easy target and looked at Peter, giving him a thumbs up for the assist.

Peter returned it and moved along, constantly jumping around the street, web swinging and running on walls as he occasionally got within range to punch or kick a faux-villain. He had a solid amount of points now, but he kept getting distracted as he helped his fellow candidates in various ways.

Peter used his webs to act offensively and defensively. Some he used to immobilize limbs, weapons, or the entire machine, making them easy targets. Others he threw off balance, like the last one, or his webs blocked their path, keeping them from ambushing a candidate already attacking another faux-villain. He also used it to prevent bad falls or being slammed into walls if they were launched. Peter's webs helped to get people out of harm's way, sometimes due to being too close to another's quirk that ended up being too destructive, like Mr. Explody.

The kid who had his targets stolen by him earlier and then taunted used that as extra fuel as he exploded in speed and destructive power, seemingly berserk. But Peter saw it wasn't reckless. He was efficient in his movement, and his explosions were calculated for the targets he was dealing with. Others were in danger of his quirk because they were not judging the situation correctly and got too close.

While the kid's language was foul, he saw that he was really getting into it. The two bantered at each other as they scoured the course and destroyed anything in their path. Peter even helped him set up a few attacks as he pulled two robots closer to a third that all fell to just one of the kid's explosions. The kid didn't curse him out after that, but his language was still foul.

Peter tagged another one-pointer and then pulled and swung it so that it flew over his head, releasing just a little of his webbing so that the radius of his pendulum swing got just a little bit longer so it smashed on top of a two-pointer.

Peter noticed that only a few faux-villains were left in this area and that Mr. Explody was also looking for new targets. That was when Peter's spider-sense started going off, warning him something was coming.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma landed on another roof with fewer rocks in his hand than when he had seen Izuku last. He had seen glasses making a good showing of it, moving at impressive speeds, using kicks to destroy the faux-villains, and moving quickly to another. Ranma didn't bother to take the ones others were already concentrating on, focusing on the ones that ambushed or overwhelmed the other students and those not being noticed by anyone else.

He did find it curious for a few of the faux-villains to just be 'floating' in the air when he saw the brown-haired girl touching them and tapping them upwards. The looks on the machines were comical when they realized they were no longer held down by gravity. He grinned as she made her way down the street.

He also sensed the invisible girl, using his Ki senses to finally spot her making a path. She turned off the machines by stepping up to them without them noticing and pulling a few wires. Other robots would stare at it in confusion as a pair of gloves and shoes just walked up next to them and repeated the same process. He laughed as one of them seemed frightened, backing away as it panicked and looking around to spot what was deactivating them.

Ranma leaped over a roof, landing next to another boy with multiple limbs spread out around him with membranes connected to them. The boy didn't jump at his arrival; the eyeball on one of the limbs that stared at him seemed to explain why.

"Sup man, looking for targets?" Ranma asked as he looked around. He got a good look at the guy, who was tall and muscular, with his arms having free reign due to the black muscle shirt he wore. He had pale gray hair swept forwards, covering the top of his face, while the lower half was covered by a blue mask just below his eyes that covered his ears, nose, and mouth. His head was somewhat elongated, making his large eyes more on the side of his head than an average person's.

"Yes, they are becoming scarcer. The only ones I am detecting are the ones that will take me too long to get to." Ranma noted the sound didn't come from a typical mouth but a mouth that formed on one of his extra arms.

Ranma nodded his head, looking around as he used his Ki sense. It was difficult for non-living beings, but it was possible since everything had Ki to some extent. He found a group that was isolated but was several streets away. That could be the group he was referring to. He pointed in their direction, "You mean those ones?"

He saw him give him a look, not a look of surprise, but more like he was re-evaluating Ranma. "Yes."

"Want a lift?" Ranma asked with a grin. "Name's Ranma."

He turned to face Ranma for a moment, looking at him straightly, and then nodded. "Mezo."

"Nice to meet you, Mezo. I'll grab the back of your shirt and jump over there. Hang tight."

Mezo didn't flinch, having already seen Ranma's ability to leap. Ranma performed the feat without strain, covering the distance in seconds. They landed on the roof overlooking the group of five that hadn't detected them yet. Ranma perked up as he saw a few other faux-villains even further away on a couple roofs, so he used a few stones.

Mezo saw it but didn't react to the action, instead focusing on the ones he had an eye on. "Thank you."

"No problem. Do you need any help getting down or fighting them? Or you got this?"

Mezo's facemask shifted a little, and the mouth on his hand formed a grin. "I've got it."

"Good luck!"

Ranma watched as he dropped the few stories to land on a three-pointer, then used his arms to rip it apart, all of his hands going simultaneously. Smiling, Ranma considered what else to go for when he heard a loud rumble behind him, coming from the direction he had just been.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"We have a good showing this year," a calm but serious voice said as he observed between the monitors. "We have a good baseline as well as many standouts."

The voice belonged to a man that looked more like a gray brick than a human. His entire body was gray and oddly shaped for a human, looking more like a cement block that gained some human characteristics. His eyes were small and beady near the top of his head, and he had an abnormally long mouth that curved downwards at the edges, making it look like he was always frowning. He also had gray hair that looked closer to cement shavings than human hair tied into a small ponytail. This was Ishiyama Ken, U.A. teacher for Modern Literature, Pro-Hero name of Cementoss.

"The pigtailed fellow is certainly interesting. He hasn't missed a single throw, even one that was a hundred meters away." The Pro-Hero, known as Snipe, commented. He wore his cowboy hat, an old-school gas mask, and a red poncho. "Even with that speed, those rocks should not impact with that much force. They should explode at best, but we see them penetrate the entire body."

"Yes," Nezu agreed. "His accuracy and technique are already extremely impressive for someone his age." He got a couple grunts of agreement from the other teachers nearby. "But what really fascinates me about him is that his listed quirk isn't anything like what we've seen so far."

"How so?" Snipe asked.

"His listed quirk says he changes into a girl. And that's it," Nezu said, causing most of them to turn their heads to look at the small man.

"Most likely a system or clerical error," said a shaggy-haired man as he gazed at the screens, never taking his eyes off them as they shifted between them regularly. "Could be purposeful to mislead for some reason, but stupid to reveal it by taking the practical exam like this." The shaggy-haired man was the lesser-known hero who went by the name of Eraser Head. His real name was Aizawa Shota, and he was the homeroom teacher for class 1-A.

"Agreed."

"Another candidate we've been watching may have another problem with their listed quirk, but I am unsure for now."

Nezu looked over at Midnight as she watched the two pink girls wreck the place. They had already racked up an impressive score. He pulled up Haruno's profile again, looking at the listed quirk. "That… is vague. Chakra? Listing it as a form of energy that can be shaped and molded into whatever purpose the user wants?"

A few teachers narrowed their eyes at that, but Midnight just calmly kept watching, smiling as the two girls seemed to taunt some boys that had harassed them before the match began. She liked both of those girls.

"Things are quieting down, fewer faux-villains available for people to fight. They'll start shoving each other to get what they can. I think it's time," Vlad said.

Nezu inspected the numbers and saw that Vlad was correct. "Well, let's see how they deal with them." He nodded his head to one of the operators looking at him. The man returned to his console, flipped the safety glass up, and pressed the button.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"The ground is opening up!" Mina said in surprise. The ground split as huge hangar-like doors popped to the side, forcing Sakura to leap away. As it opened, Mina gasped in shock as something rose from inside. "Oh. My. God! It's HUGE!"

Sakura glanced at it and was surprised to see the zero-pointer shown in the presentation being raised by something beneath it. It was large, nearing the size of the giant summons Toad Boss Gamabunta or Giant Slug Katsuyu. It had a giant, human-like torso with oversized arms, hands, and a head. The head was mostly a long rectangular block that stuck out like a muzzle with a flat face. Eight red sensors on the front face contrasted with the green paint covering most of its body. It was able to move because of two large tracks connected by a giant axle that went through the waist of the robot.

When the lift finished raising it up, it moved on massive tracks towards the rest of the candidates. One of its arms grabbed a corner of a building, causing it to crack and collapse around it, showing its destructive grip. But it was so slow!

"We need to get out of here!" Mina shouted, clearly in fear of the giant machine. She was surprised that Sakura hadn't moved an inch as she watched it. "Sakura?"

Sakura watched as it hit another building, causing debris to fly and hitting a few students, injuring them as it moved along. Her face firmed up as she looked at it, "I'm going to stop it, Mina. It's going to seriously hurt someone running around like that."

Mina stared at the back of Sakura's head in surprise but looked back and saw the same thing Sakura was. People were limping and collapsing on the ground as they held injuries. Everyone else was panicking as they tried to get as far away from it as possible. She was terrified! She hadn't been this scared since she had stopped a giant man from threatening her classmates. But she knew she had to help. She just didn't know what she could do. "What should we do?"

"You might want to get down, for now, Mina. Try to guard the others from debris and get everyone away. I'll get its attention and hold it until people are far enough away," Sakura said in a serious but calm voice. "Then start getting people together for first aid. I'll be back to help with that soon."

Mina nodded her head, as that was reasonable. With Sakura being so strong and fast, she had the best chance of getting its attention to lead it away and escape. Mina unfolded her legs as Sakura kneeled down and released her. Once she was free, she started running towards the panicking people. "Right! Good luck!"

Sakura watched her go for a moment before running faster than before, but nowhere near her real speed. She picked up a blue mailbox before lifting and throwing it. It shattered on impact, dented, and shifted its head, quickly getting its attention. She stood there as it turned and rolled towards her, raising its arm to smash her into the ground. She looked at the position everyone was in, both where Mina was trying to get everyone away. The park had been cleared almost completely, so she waited for it to get closer.

Mina watched it approach Sakura as she scrambled to grab the closest stragglers away from the enormous robot. She had used her acid to eat away a few pieces of debris to free some of them. A few others opted to help, letting their shoulders work to carry each other away. A few of the stronger students could carry them in their arms or on their shoulders. She had yelled at them to congregate into a single area to make it easier for first-aid to be applied, far enough away from where the zero-pointer was currently at.

However, Mina started to get worried as Sakura hadn't moved from her spot as the thing approached. The terrifying robot was so close to her now, and Sakura was just standing there, looking up at it. She knew she was powerful, but Mina was still worried about her new friend. She didn't have to stand there if she was trying to lead it away! "Sakura!" Mina yelled, seeing the zero-pointer's hand raise to crush her.

Sakura then looked back at the ground, raised her fist, and screamed what Mina quickly recognized as her favorite phrase. "Shannaro!" And then she punched the ground.

The ground shattered in an area twice as large as the zero-pointer, the very earth breaking so badly that massive chunks of dirt, stone, and cement became like capsized toys in bathwater. Everything nearby shook from the shock of that impact, as buildings weaved back and forth as if there was a great earthquake, objects jumped in the air, and few people nearby could keep their footing from the combined might of the earth shaking and the shockwave. Mina was not one of the lucky ones, having tried to hold up someone else as they tried to get away.

For the zero-pointer, it spelled its doom. Below the mock city, the ground was hollowed out in grand industrial caverns. The ceiling that held the surface above had cratered and collapsed. As a result, the dirt, stone, and cement began plunging into the caverns below, helped along by the weight of the zero-pointer as any chance of having a footing was removed. Its arms had tried to find purchase, to hold it up, but it was like quicksand as it all fell into the gaping hole that was forming beneath. Its body began to disappear, even as the arms finally got a grip on some dirt that was not falling into the hole. But it had found it too late, and only its upper body, arms, and head were visible to anyone there. The ground it had found came loose, unable to hold its incredible weight, dumping it the rest of the way as its head and arms disappeared.

There was complete silence after the zero-pointer crashed down below and was no longer moving, as well as the ground and buildings had stopped shaking. The silence spread across the entirety of the mock city. While those who had not seen it was wondering what had happened to cause such a tremendous noise and shaking, the ones who had witnessed it could only stare at the pink-haired girl as she stared into the hole that was her handiwork. Everything was forgotten, including their own wounds or dignity.

Sakura stood up, tapped her hands together to remove the loose dirt, and then jumped the entire distance of the hole, landing only a few meters away from Mina. Sakura's smile returned as she spoke. "Okay, all done! Let's get everyone together so we can heal some wounds!"

Mina couldn't form words or actions as she saw her friend casually walk up to one of the idiot guys from earlier, his leg bleeding from a nasty gash, and collapse on the ground. Sakura took her gloves off, storing them away on her belt. Then she took some sealed gauze and a water bottle from one of her pouches. The boy was terrified of her but couldn't find the will to move. She used the water to rinse away the blood and dirt near the wound before using the gauze to finish cleaning what was left, making it easier to see. It started bleeding again, but then Sakura's hand glowed a light green and moved over the wound. When her hand finished tracing it, there was no more bleeding. She wiped the blood away to show no signs of an injury.

The boy was shocked at the lack of pain. He inspected his previous wound, finding it completely healed. Looking back at Sakura, he only saw her smile down at him before holding out a hand to help him up. The boy timidly took it.

Mina's shock evaporated as a new emotion took her. She grinned and yelled out the only appropriate response for her. "Awesome!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"So that's what she meant by crushing it," Midnight said as she stared at the monitor, a slight disbelief entering her voice as she watched the zero-pointer finish falling into the hole. The rest of the observers were silent as they watched in surprise or sported huge grins.

"I suppose that is what she meant. I just wasn't expecting it to be so literal," Cementoss said as Sakura leaped across the gap. "No one is working below the mock cities, correct?"

"No," Power Loader said, a bit of relief in his voice. "But that is going to be a pain to fix. Oh well, it's a good challenge for the students."

"What is she doing now?" This time it belonged to a female, though from the outside, it would be impossible to tell their gender. Her costume resembled an astronaut's white space suit with a black dome on top. She was the Pro-Hero who specialized in search and rescue, Thirteen. "Wait, did she just heal that wound?"

"Yes. The girl is just full of surprises," Nezu said with a giant grin on his little face.

"Something's happening with another gimmick!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Woof, he's a big guy," Peter said as he looked up at the zero-pointer moving down the street toward him. He was glad no one else seemed close enough to be in danger.

"Don't bother; those aren't worth any points. No point in taking it down."

Peter looked to the side to see Mr. Explody walking up to him, also glaring at the zero-pointer. "Oh, so you only want to show how badass you are by the number of points you have?" Peter asked in a mocking tone. "That's fine, totally understandable. Who would want bragging rights for taking down a giant mech? Run along now," Peter said, waving his arms toward the blonde as if shooing him away.

"The fuck you say?" The blonde shouted in Peter's ear, much as Peter predicted. "I'll kick its ass and then get more points!"

"Oh, okay!" Peter said, grinning back at the boy, receiving a glare at first, but a hint of a grin formed. Peter looked back at the zero-pointer. "Considering the size and weight, it would take you a while to get through the shell, its arms would get in the way, and the head looks sturdy enough that it will take a few explosions to do enough damage to it."

Blondie growled at Peter for his evaluation but couldn't fault his analysis. But he got enough of a read on Peter to realize he probably had a plan. "So, what's your idea?"

"Well, its torso and head are being held up by the treads, but those axles look mighty thin compared to the rest of the body. One good explosion on both sides will cripple it. I'll handle getting it to fall the rest of the way. Once it's down, you can hunt for more normal robots while I secure it."

He nodded his head at that; it was a sound strategy. The boy was strong, so he probably could do it once it was crippled. But there was one part of it he was more curious about. "Why not just destroy its head when it's down?"

"I want to get a peak under the hood. I'm curious how they got it set up," Peter said, rubbing his chin with a hand as he thought of it, wondering how it compared to the robot designs on I-Island. Peter turned to him with a grin. "By the way, what's your name? I could keep calling you Mr. Explody, but you'd probably try to blow my face off the first chance you get."

The blonde's face twitched in rage, his hands bursting in small explosions to do just that, but he decided now wasn't the best time. "Bakugo Katsuki."

"Parker Peter."

"Just don't use that name again, or I'll only ever call you Shitface," Katsuki said with a malicious grin.

"Well, if I ever want to change my name to Shitface, I know what to do!" Peter said. "Ready?"

Katsuki didn't bother giving a reply. Instead, he exploded forward as he rushed towards the zero-pointer, using his explosions to generate speed. The things arm moved to intercept him, but some of Peter's webbing thwarted it, connecting it to the building next to it. It only slowed it down, though, as it eventually pulled part of the building along with it. Katsuki threw some of his sweat at the thing, causing it to explode just enough to further throw off its aim and let him slip inside.

He was close to its base on one side, throwing as much sweat as possible at the axle with many gears near it. It was only one and a half meters thick of metal, but like Peter had said, much thinner than the rest of the body. The explosions cracked the metal and destroyed all the extra gearing as Katsuki ran to the other side. He was a little surprised it didn't try to back up, but as he glanced up for a moment, he saw dozens of web lines leading to Peter's hands as he was straining on the ground, preventing the robot from leaning back.

Katsuki grinned as he saw the final axle, throwing another series of sweat droplets that exploded. His sweat produced something very similar to nitroglycerin, explaining why it exploded in the first place. He kept running, getting away from the front of it as he heard Peter grunt even louder, then the zero-pointer, without its support, fell forward. Its arms only slowed it down instead of stopping it.

The ground shook as it landed, and he felt the wind on his back. Once that was settled, he looked back to see Peter had leaped above and shot his webbing all over the thing, covering its limbs and body, preventing it from being able to move. After that, Katsuki exploded off with a grin as he hunted for more faux-villains.

Peter saw Katsuki take off just as he finished securing the zero-pointer. Now that that was done, he started whistling as he crawled around on the head and hunted for a hatch to the innards. He found it soon after, popped it open, and looked inside. "Now, what do we have here?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"He actually got that kid to work with him?" Vlad asked, raising an eyebrow as he noted that accomplishment. "That one I marked as being a solo act entirely."

"It was difficult to see, but I think he challenged him while also offering him chances to show off," Nezu said as he rubbed his equivalent of a chin. "A form of reverse psychology. The boy with the exploding quirk is exceptional and intelligent. His personality is just explosive, just like his quirk. But explosions can be shaped and directed. I think they both knew what was happening, and the offer was too good for him to pass up."

"Either way, they safely took down a zero-pointer with minimal damage to the surroundings or the robot," the shaggy-haired man said. His half-opened eyes looked tired and flat, but he still observed everything. "What is he doing now?"

Power Loader looked closer at the screen, beginning to suspect what he was doing. "He's opening one of the access hatches for the innards. He is trying to shut it down without severely damaging it, checking the designs, or both. Either way, more evidence to show a strong intellect and interest in math, science, and engineering. I'm half tempted to try to steal him for Support."

Several teachers chuckled at that as they watched the zero-pointer stop moving, apparently shut down.

"Student down! In the path of a zero pointer!" All eyes turned to the screen as it showed a brown-haired girl on the ground before it, obviously in pain from the fall.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma, from his position on the roof, saw the giant machine as it was moving along. He had hurried back to the street he had previously been on where Izuku and the others had been near. They had only started to hear the rumbling, having been too preoccupied with dealing with the faux-villains to notice it before now.

When it turned the corner and used an arm to crush one of the corners of a roof with ease, every student was aghast before they started to run away. That was good, in Ranma's opinion. He didn't think they had the skills or ability to take it on, so getting out of its path was their safest option. Ranma stood there, one hand in a pocket, the other holding onto the few stones he had left. He started checking in on the ones he already knew.

The invisible girl was on the far side of it, with the zero-pointer moving in the opposite direction from her. She was also getting enough distance to stay safe, which was good. Glasses and the Gravity Girl were closer, though Glasses quickly got away. Izuku also looked terrified, but Ranma supposed that was understandable, considering he had barely been able to take a few one-pointers and wasn't up to something like this. He had finally gotten up and started to run away.

That was when Ranma saw Gravity Girl had tripped due to the pavement cracking, causing her to scrape her knee and yelp. This left her too close to the zero-pointer as it didn't look like it had noticed her. If it kept moving as it was, she could be run over, or falling debris could seriously injure her.

Ranma lifted a hand as he pointed his open palm toward the head, preparing to prevent anything like that from happening. But because of his position, he saw motion from the corner of his eye that made him take notice.

Izuku had also seen that the girl had fallen. Then, without any hesitation, he sprinted towards the giant robot, bent his knees, and then leaped upwards with about as much power as Ranma could until he was at the same height as the head, his fist pulled back with a tremendous amount of power, ripping the sleeve he wore.

Ranma grinned at what the little guy was doing. Ranma prepared to assist if he was needed, letting his senses triple-check on everything when– "NO!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Hagakure Toru panted as she distanced herself from the giant robot. Today had been a rollercoaster of a day. It had started off well, feeling she had done well enough on the written exam. She was excited to take the practical exam but had to undress behind the buses after arriving. She had run towards the gate to ensure she wouldn't be left in the dust.

Then some guy backed into her path. She worried she would crash into him, but something worse happened! He reached out a hand and stopped her… by groping her! That had startled her and was very uncomfortable. The guy had looked surprised when he turned her way, then immediately started bowing and apologizing. She decided to take her anger out on him by hitting the back of his bowed head, but that didn't even phase him! With no way to pay him back for it and time being short, she said she forgave him, but it still made her so mad!

Then the exam had begun, and she was making short work of the robots as she pulled a few vital wires out. They couldn't see her, even with her gloves and shoes still being worn. She had earned quite a few points doing that, enough to believe she would pass!

Then the giant robot showed up. Luckily, it didn't notice her, turning instead towards where most everyone else was. She kept her distance, watching for a moment to ensure everything was okay. She looked down other streets she could go to get more points when she heard the cry of pain.

She turned back to see the girl with the gravity quirk had fallen. She could barely see past the massive robot, but she saw enough. The brown-haired girl didn't seem like she would recover in time to get away! Since the giant robot didn't even realize she was there, Toru decided to try to rescue her. She sprinted down the street behind it, worried that she would be too late. It was dangerous, but it was a fact of life if she wanted to be a hero!

She was halfway there when she heard a massive explosion above her. She looked up, and her world filled with terror at seeing the robot falling backward and directly on top of her!

She cried out as she crouched down, putting her arms above her head to protect it, wishing with all her might that this wouldn't be her end. But she knew there was no hope. She was going to die.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Hohohoho!" Midnight laughed, clearly excited by the action. Almost all the teachers were grinning ear to ear at that show of heroics and action. Some even shot their hands up in excitement.

"Well, this year's crop is outstanding!" Cementoss was smiling widely, though it looked odd on him.

"Yes, they are remarkable!" Thirteen said.

"Three gimmicks down in one year? I don't think anything like that has happened before." Vlad was looking thoughtful as he put a hand to his chin in thought.

"At most, one or two gimmicks in a year are challenged. Occasionally one is damaged, and even rarer than that, one is stopped or destroyed," Nezu confirmed for his staff as he continued to grin. "So three being stopped or destroyed in a year is unprecedented."

"And it isn't just the ones destroying them that is impressive; look at those helping each other. That gravity girl was able to save the poor boy in turn, even if it did leave her out of the fight as a result," Thirteen commented. She looked back at another monitor, "Then there is that emergency first aid station those pink-haired girls set up, quickly treating wounds to get everyone back on their feet."

Nezu looked at Toshinori, catching his enormous grin. He then looked at the monitor and saw the boy was crippled by his actions; his legs and arm were severely damaged. He hit one of the buttons before him, calling up a particular communicator. "Recovery Girl, you'll be needed at site B. There's a boy whose legs and arm are badly damaged. He does not need immediate medical attention, but he will need your care anyways."

Recovery Girl's voice echoed through the speakers, "Understood. I saw the action on our monitor's here. I'll be there swiftly to render aid."

After turning off the communicator, Nezu turned back to Toshinori. "So, Yagi-san, you're happy with your pick?"

Toshinori glanced at Nezu before coughing and looking back at the monitors. The fact that there was a little bit of blood with it as he pulled a handkerchief out of a pocket didn't distract Nezu. "Errr, yes. I was worried he wouldn't make it because we were on a time crunch, but he succeeded. Though I worry about how he'll react at first since he doesn't know about the Rescue Points."

"Understandable. But you are still not to tell him. Revealing that you are teaching is still a secret, too, for now," Nezu said.

Toshinori sighed but nodded. "Understood."

Then a loud voice was heard from the speakers and penetrated the room. "It's all over!"

Present Mic officially calling it had the operators work to shut down all remaining faux-villains. Teachers began to stand, conversing with each other about the various arenas and possible students. Many were talking about their favorite moments, with the destruction of three gimmicks being the primary thing being discussed.

Others began assisting the operators as they started going through safety checks and their equivalent of roll calls. The systems mostly did it automatically, but manual checking was always good since they could sometimes slip the systems and need to be traced
due to the nature of people's quirks.

Five minutes had passed, as many walked away and others continued to work or converse. Some still watched the monitors, seeing the various reactions of the candidates. Some cheered and were excited, having performed well. But many were crying in despair, knowing they had lost their one shot.

The heroic teachers and the Principal continued to sit, watching this. Knowing that they were dashing the dreams of thousands. The least they could do was watch, soak in their pain as their penance for denying them their hopes and dreams.

And it was a good thing they were there, for they were the first to notice the slight panic of one of the operators. "Where is she?"

A hand touched the woman's shoulder, startling her. She looked back and saw Snipe looking at her monitor before asking her a question. "What's going on?"

"There's a girl, Examinee 4298," she said after returning to the monitor. "None of the cameras can find her!" She pulled up the listed girl, displaying her picture and quirk.

Snipe noticed the fact she was invisible before he even saw the quirk and realized what could be the problem. "How was the system tracking her before?" Snipe looked back as a few other hero teachers stepped closer to observe.

"It tracked her gloves and boots that she wore. Those had to be manually entered into the computer to track her. But the system can't find her at all right now!" The woman continued to switch between any monitors in the arena she was in; none of the computers were marking her.

"Pull up the history, see where it last recorded her being. That should help us narrow things down," Eraser Head said.

The operator nodded, pulling up the system for record tracking. She put in the examinee's number, and it showed a history. Quickly, it started playing as it displayed all the monitors they had been tracked on from all the cameras. She sped it up so they could get a general feel for her path. When it reached closer to the end, they saw the gimmick appear with her being ignored as it chased the other students.

But all of them recognized which street that was on, and a bottomless pit in their stomachs opened as a hypothesis began to form for them. Only thirteen could even begin to voice it, the rest too glued to the monitor as they watched in horror. "Oh god, no…."

They watched as the girl stopped, which a few recognized as the same time stamp for when the girl had fallen earlier. They saw the invisible girl sprint toward the back of the zero-pointer, moving to help the girl that had fallen. They saw the explosion flash from above and the back of the zero-pointer collapsing on top of her.

"YAGI!!!" Eraser Head screamed at the top of his lungs as others sprinted for the exit.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Chiyo got off the cart, using her Pro-hero costume's cane to help support her as she walked along. She reached into her doctor's coat and pulled out some candy, tossing it to a few students who looked exhausted. "Well done. Here's some Haribo candy for all! Eat up, dears!"

She turned off her visor, having already arrived at the destination. She saw a few other assistants trying to assess things, moving candidates along and away from those who were injured, but still, many of them had congregated near the injured boy.

Chiyo saw the boy she was here for, seeing that Nezu's assessment was spot on. His legs and arm were mangled. She stood over him, checking to ensure there was nothing about his injuries that her quirk would cause a problem with. From what she had observed from the video and seeing him in person, it seemed his strength quirk was too much for his body, damaging his legs and arm with their usage. The boy was a hero, but that quirk might cripple him.

Finding nothing that would interfere, she leaned down, and her lips extended out to smooch him. After standing back up, she saw her power go to work as her quirk healed the damaged arm and legs, glowing green as they re-aligned themselves to their correct positions and his wounds disappeared. Poor boy would be out of it for a time.

Chiyo turned to a few of the assistants, "Please take him to the medical station for observation."

"Yes!" They quickly loaded him up on a stretcher and walked to one of the available vehicles that had just arrived.

Chiyo turned around, looking around to make sure everyone else was okay. She saw the poor girl that had recently vomited but only saw the signs of nausea and a scraped knee. She walked over to her anyway. "How are you doing, girl? Can you make it back yourself?"

The girl started sitting up, obviously recovering some already. "Yes, I think so. Will he be alright?"

Chiyo smiled, glad the girl was concerned for the poor boy. "He'll be fine dear; he just needs some rest. My quirk can regenerate wounds quickly, but it takes them out of it." The girl was nodding her head, slowly getting her strength back.

One more inspection and she almost started walking back to her cart when her communicator crackled to life.

"Recovery Girl!" Chiyo recognized the voice as Eraser Head. She knew he would not contact her like this, shouting in her ear, unless it was drastic. It caused her body to become rigid in concern. "We just verified that there is a candidate under that zero-pointer you are at!"

That news caused her own bottomless pit to open as she glanced back at where the zero-pointer was. Knowing a child was under there, most likely dead, made her nearly panic. But her years of experience as a Pro-Hero prevented that. Instead, she listened as Eraser Head gave more instructions. "All Might is on his way! Clear out the candidates. More medical and emergency staff will be there soon!"

If there was any hope of saving that child, they needed to be fast, which meant they required clearance so Yagi could work. She turned to all of the remaining candidates as she abandoned her kind grandmotherly voice. "Everyone BACK! NOW! Evacuate the area immediately!" While it hurt her voice to do it, time was of the essence.

Many were startled by the sudden shift, but most obeyed. Luckily, the local assistants were moving even the stragglers away. The only one left was the girl with shoulder-length brown hair as she struggled to get down. Chiyo moved over to her, doing what she could to help the girl. Once she was down, she reached over and gave her a smooch on the cheek.

The girl was surprised, reaching up to touch her cheek, but she felt her leftover nausea disappear as well as her scraped knee. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome, dear. But we need to move! Time is of the essence!" Chiyo said as she began to lead the girl away, but they didn't get far before their communicator went off again.

"Too late, Recovery Girl, get off the street! You have about five seconds!" Eraser Head said.

"Girl, off the street! Now!" Chiyo was glad to see her follow orders as they hugged the wall and entered an empty building.

Not a second later, an explosion occurred outside, and a loud voice called out, "Fear not! Why? Because I am here!"

"Get to work, All Might! Don't waste a second!" Chiyo yelled after sticking her head out. Unlike his civilian form, his hero form was a large and muscular man with a square jaw. Another difference was that his drooping clumps of hair became stiff and pointed upward, looking more like an insect's antenna. She was pleased to see his face turn from the broad, friendly smile he always tried to sport to the serious one he wore when real work was required.

Chiyo leaned back inside as she heard him lift and toss pieces of the giant robot. But he had to be extremely careful because it had broken apart on its fall. Its arms had also damaged some of the nearby buildings, causing partial collapse onto the robot and burying it under additional debris.
There was also the fact they needed to find out for sure where she was under all of it. Moving the wrong pieces of debris or robot could cause a collapse of any pockets. Pockets they were hoping she was trapped in and they could get to her in time. Chiyo looked back at the other girl in her charge, knowing she would have to answer some questions.

"What's going on? Why's All Might here!?" The girl saw him lift a piece slowly, inspecting beneath it and around, before tossing it behind him into a growing scrap pile.

Chiyo sighed, knowing that hiding it wouldn't make a difference in the long run. "We just learned that a potential student was under there," she said as she pointed at the giant robot. She started regretting telling her as the girl put both hands to her face in a look of total horror as she looked on. She started shaking, and Chiyo was trying to figure out how to get her out of there.

Chiyo looked out as she observed All Might was going too slow for her tastes, but she knew the man had to be extremely cautious. Moving things carelessly could seal away any chance of finding her alive.

Chiyo was surprised, however, to hear the girl's following words. "I– I can help!" Chiyo's first instinct was to deny it, knowing she was just a child and they needed professionals to do this. But then she remembered what this girl's quirk was. She looked into the girl's eyes, seeing a firm resolve to help there. She still saw her other raw emotions flickering on her face, but those were under control.

"What is your name?" Chiyo asked.

"Uraraka Ochako!"

"Come with me, Uraraka-chan." Chiyo then led the way toward where Yagi was working.

All Might turned towards them, concern growing on his face, "Recovery Girl! You and the girl should stay back!"

"The girl can help, All Might! Her quirk negates the gravity of an object, allowing it to be picked up and moved with ease!" Chiyo told him.

All Might considered the nature of the quirk, deciding that that was a handy ability at this time. "Move over to that other side, point out to her which pieces to use her ability on!"

Chiyo nodded, guiding Ochako to the desired spot. Moving quickly, both teams began clearing the debris as a large pile began to form. A few times, Chiyo had to use her ability on Ochako to help her recover and force her to eat some of the candy she had. It was slowly taking it out of her, but it had sped up the search by a good deal.

Other teachers and emergency personnel arrived as they worked, some taking over moving debris for Chiyo and Ochako, freeing them up to only use her quirk. Ectoplasm's arrival was the most notable, as he quickly cleared the small debris with his clones, filling in for thirty people able to work seamlessly together.

But it was taking too long!

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"They are almost there. Just a little more to where we estimate her to be," Eraser Head informed Nezu.

"Understood. Please keep us informed of any further updates, Eraser Head," Nezu said. The shaggy-haired teacher nodded before walking away to another station.

Everyone had bleak faces, and many wanted to be out there, helping with the digging. But people were needed to ensure the rest of the candidates were accounted for. A few had been missing but were found to be safe on refined searches. They were just in a couple of the blind spots the cameras missed. But there was one that was beginning to worry them.

Nezu looked to the operator as he continued looking through every camera in the area where the candidate boy had disappeared. When Nezu heard it was one of the boys that Toshinori had his eyes on, a Saotome Ranma, he knew All Might would take it badly. The only bright side was that all they saw was him disappearing entirely.

Snipe, who was used to tracking targets, was providing his assistance. "Let's do this. I want to do this one frame at a time. Pull up the main one with him in it and the secondary cameras. What are the frames per second on them?"

The operator looked at what cameras they were using while answering. "We have a collection of different cameras. Some are recording at thirty FPS, while a few are doing sixty to a hundred and twenty. But the faster ones are at a lower resolution, meaning the detail is shot to hell. Because detail tends to be important, we have a greater quantity of those than the higher FPS. The main one looking at the candidate was a sixty."

They skipped to when he had disappeared, only a few seconds before. In slow motion, they watched again as he pointed toward the zero-pointer with his palm as if he was going to do something. "Skip forward by twenty frames until he disappears." They did that. "Now rewind by ten frames." He reappeared. "Now skip forward one frame at a time."

As they observed, they saw in a total blur as part of his body seemed to move, followed by his whole body in the next frame, before finally disappearing.

"There!" Snipe said, pointing at a minor blur at the edge of the screen. "Get the timestamp for the other monitors for that!"

The man did just that, finally seeing an unrecognizable blur. "Frame by frame, let's see if we can track his path."

As they watched, Snipe's concerns began to turn into reality as they saw the blur seeming to touch the wall across the street before heading straight for the base of the zero-pointer. The final visible frame showed him disappearing under it half a second before impact. "Eraser Head!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"All Might, come in!" Toshinori heard in his earbud.

After clearing the piece of debris in his hands, he reached up to touch it, activating the microphone. "I'm here! What is it, Eraser Head?"

"Another candidate was missing that we were having trouble finding! We just found out he's under the zero-pointer as well!"

"Another one is trapped under here as well!?" he yelled loudly, shock making him say it out loud. That also got everyone else's attention that was working. How could they get so careless as to miss not one but two students being trapped?

"Yes, he was fast enough to barely be caught by our cameras! But he is definitely under there!"

"We're almost to where you said the first one is at, but we'll keep digg–"

All Might halted in his reply as the pile shifted. "Who shifted the debris?" he shouted his question, worry evident in his voice. Before anyone could reply, the mound moved yet again before it started to rumble. Then All Might noticed it was beginning to lift up. He was the only hero present that was supposed to be strong enough to do that. And he wasn't even touching it at the moment!

Then he saw a yellow glow from inside, like light reflecting off a pool of water. It got brighter as it lifted higher, and they could see deeper into the debris field.

"There!" Chiyo called out, pointing inside.

As they watched, the torso of the zero-pointer continued to rise, and some of them finally saw that someone was in there! They were glowing yellow, not from their skin, but some form of cloak of light that surrounded them. Finally, it lifted enough for everyone to clearly see them.

Toshinori stared as he took the figure in. The glowing figure was the pigtailed youth. He was holding up the massive and heavy object that likely weighed eighty metric tons. He was sweating heavily, and his arms shook ever so slightly, but his eyes were determined as he continued to lift it.

But what also marveled him was that at his feet was the invisible girl they had been digging for and had feared was dead. Her skin had a layer of dust that made it easier to see her, but her gloves and boots also helped mark her. The best part was that they were moving! She was alive!

Toshinori's smile was not the forced smile he tended to wear when he was out and about but a genuine smile that was softer in nature.

Now lifting it about as high as it could go, the boy turned his head to look at them. "About time you guys got here! What took you so long?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

AN - Shout out to Boldish42 and Iron454 for their assistance on Beta Reading.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 6 - Orientation​

"Yagi? Aizawa? How did things go with the Hagakures?" Nemuri asked of the two heroes as they walked in and sat down. The rest of the heroes paused in their discussions as they waited.

The two men sighed, both exhausted from the ordeal. Though they gladly took it in exchange for Toru's life. "About as well as could be expected. All of them took it badly, especially when we explained it was a lack of safety procedures that allowed it to occur in the first place," Shota said as he got his eyedrops out and applied some to his eyes.

"We aren't sure if young Hagakure will attend or not. I ensured she knew that her actions leading up to the accident were heroic and that she already proved she had what it takes to attend our school. That it would be an honor to train her." Toshinori said, even as he coughed some blood into a handkerchief. "She seemed conflicted, but I hope she does take it."

"Yes, a quirk like hers can be incredibly useful in the right situations. Against the faux-villains, since she had nothing they were programmed to look for, she could just walk right up to them and take them out. Stealth like that can be indispensable out there," Shota said. Most of the heroes' heads nodded at that, all remembering instances where her quirk could save lives or stop villains.

"How about Saotome?" Snipe asked, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "He was the other one trapped under there. How did his parents take it?"

The two heroes' reactions were vastly different, with Toshinori chuckling in good humor and Shota expressing his aggravation as he slouched in his seat, looked at the ceiling, and covered his face with his hands to hide from the world.

"Young Saotome," Toshinori said, "hadn't bothered to tell his guardians what happened. Supposedly, he spoke more about the other candidates than himself, like young Midoriya."

"He didn't tell them!?" Present Mic yelled without using his quirk. "And you said guardians? Who are they, and what happened to his parents?"

"I don't know the details, but I got the impression that they were dead," Toshinori said, displaying a bit of sadness, but it was brief before his smile returned. "As for his guardians, they are people most of you know. The Wild Wild Pussycats."

That raised quite a few eyebrows from around the table as they looked. "The mountain rescue team?"

"When we told them what happened, they laughed!" Toshinori chuckled at the memory, though it had been confusing at the time and not what they had expected. "They congratulated young Saotome while wondering why we were making a big deal of the situation. So there won't be any issues on that front."

Some of the teachers were confused, while some others chuckled along with him. Nemuri and Hizashi laughed, but mostly as they now knew why Shota was reacting the way he was. He always got annoyed when he felt important things like heroics were not taken seriously.

"Speaking of, what has been determined to be done about the problem in the future?" Toshinori asked.

"More checks regarding candidates that can be harder to detect, like Hagakure. She wasn't the only one to do so, just the one that was a greater concern," said Snipe. "Every time the gimmick is in action, all candidates need to be identified, especially any that have recently been near them or can get close to it quickly. Manual checking will occur by operators watching them, and if someone slips, a local pro hero is informed and will be on hand to assist. If the operator, pro hero, or observer deems it, the gimmick will shut down to prevent an incident. Heroes or others can prevent candidates from doing anything more."

"That's better, but we should see if more safety measures can be improved before the next exam," said Shota as he sat up.

"The Principal is looking into it," Snipe replied. He received multiple nods from the various pro-heroes.

"So, has the grading been completed?" Toshinori asked, curious since this was his first year as a teacher.

"Yes," Kaito said, moving a few papers around before finding the relevant ones and handing them over to the new arrivals.

As they looked it over, their eyebrows raised at the top three scores. It shouldn't have surprised them, considering what they had witnessed.

Saotome Ranma: Forty-six Villain points, one hundred rescue points.

Haruno Sakura: Sixty-one Villain points, eighty-two rescue points.

Parker Peter: Sixty-four Villain points, seventy-five rescue points.

"All three are within seven points of each other, and we haven't seen scores like this in a long time," Kaito said, shaking his head. They had responded in disbelief initially, but many had watched them in action and could not honestly fault the scores. Many had also noted that at least Saotome and Haruno had held back, though they had no idea by how much.

Toshinori was surprised, chuckling as he thought of the three candidates. He decided to continue down the list, looking at others he was interested in.

Midoriya Izuku - Four Villain Points, sixty Rescue Points.

Izuku had an excellent score, especially for so few Villain points. He was proud of his successor for accomplishing what he had in such a short time. Toshinori then decided to look at some other names from the incident.

Uraraka Ochako - Twenty-nine Villain Points, Thirty-five Rescue Points.

Hagakure Toru - Thirty-four Villain Points, thirty Rescue Points.

Both girls showed they had a hero's spirit, and he was happy to see them with such healthy scores. Though he was saddened that Ochako's rescue points didn't go up for the assistance she gave in trying to free Hagakure and Saotome. It was understandable since the exam had already ended, though.

Toshinori then looked at the last name he was familiar with, knowing already the boy had done very well on the practical.

Bakugo Katsuki - Eighty-two Villain Points, ten Rescue Points.

"How did the written exam go?" Toshinori asked, hoping none of the students would be removed for poor academic grades.

"All those that passed the practical did well enough with the written. Though, when Parker's written exam was finished, Maijima argued with Nezu about placing him in the Support Course," Kaito chuckled.

Several teachers turned to look at the man. They had known he had shown interest in the candidate, but to argue with the Principal over it? "Why?"

"He did well enough in the humanities and had one of the highest math, science, and engineering scores. But his multiple choice test was dinged for several incorrect answers for chemistry and physics, even to the point where he wrote in his own answers to them." Kaito smiled as the other teachers looked at him in confusion. "Maijima heard and looked at it himself. He recognized one of the questions that Parker modified: a high-level physics question, and the test was wrong."

The teachers blinked, surprised that someone would actually mark against the sheet. While a few students would attempt that each year, the fact that the boy had been correct was surprising. "What did Nezu do?" Midnight asked.

"With Maijima present, they contacted his legal guardian, David Shield," Kaito said.

Toshinori had been drinking some tea but spit it out over the table and a few documents, earning some chuckles and glares around the table while pounding his chest. He then dealt with some blood that had coughed up shortly after. After he got himself under control and the other teachers were still looking at him, Toshinori asked his question. "David? David is his guardian? How? Why?"

"Oh, that's correct; you have a history with Dr. Shield, don't you, Yagi-san?" Kaito asked.

"Yes," Toshinori responded, putting it mildly.

"I don't have any details. That wasn't part of their discussion. You'll have to ask Dr. Shield yourself." After receiving a nod, Kaito continued. "They asked Dr. Shield, who confirmed that Parker works with support gear. But he is dedicated to being a hero, first and foremost, mostly due to events before Dr. Shield took him in. Maijima accepted that Parker could use the Development Studio while he was here. Dr. Shield commented that Parker plans to install and present some new tools the school will be given. Something called the M.P.S. Maijima got very excited and agreed instantly."

"M.P.S.?" Sekijiro asked, "What is that?"

"I don't know," Kaito replied, "All Maijima would tell me is that it is revolutionary. I'm interested to learn more."

"I'll have to contact David when I get a chance. I am interested to hear why he took Parker in as a ward," Toshinori said. "So, the written and practicals are done. Do we have a proposed class list?"

"We were trying to work that over now," Sekijiro said. "Due to the… power differences on some of the students, the nature of their quirks, and the dangers they pose to themselves or others, we are trying to organize the students as best as possible."

"What is the main contention?" Shota asked though he had a good idea of what they might be.

"A few givens," Sekijiro said. "Putting Bakugo and Midoriya with 1-A makes the most sense. Bakugo because his quirk and personality are likely to blow up, so it is easier for you to control him with your quirk. Midoriya because his quirk is so self-destructive."

While Toshinori wasn't happy about his quirk damaging himself, he knew this was sound reasoning until Midoriya could gain enough control of One For All.

"Beyond that, it's a question of trying to balance out the others. Saotome will be in 1-B, as he has the least need for 1-A. There are arguments for Parker or Haruno to be in 1-A, such as Haruno's ability to heal if Izuku injures himself again or Parker to help balance Bakugo."

Toshinori nodded but was saddened that Ranma wouldn't be in the same class as Izuku. He had been a big help with steadying Izuku and seemed like a good role model and friend for Izuku. But he couldn't try to play favorites without revealing the importance of Izuku to the other teachers, which would lead to revealing details about One For All.

"We've spread out several other future students, trying to balance things out. We're also waiting for the Principal to arrive. He had some research–" Sekijiro was interrupted due to the door opening again. The staff looked towards the door, but many in the back could only see the small, round ears of the Principal as he walked in. "Ah, Nezu-sensei. We were just talking about you. Have you finished your research?"

The small animal man crawled up his chair before standing on it to look out at his staff. "Yes, I have Kan-san. Thank you all for waiting. And welcome back, Yagi-san and Aizawa-san. So, what was the order of business I interrupted?"

"We were just discussing the distribution of the students. Primarily on where to place Haruno and Parker," Sekijiro said.

"They need to go to Class 1-A. Saotome as well," Nezu said as he smiled.

The room was silent as they all stared at the small man. "Whaaaaat? Are you crazy?" Hizashi asked. Nezu wasn't surprised by the response. Though he was glad to see that instead of voicing outrage, Sekijiro and Shota narrowed their eyes as they looked at him.

Toshinori smiled a little that Ranma and Izuku would be in the same class but was still surprised by the sudden events. That was a massive shift in the balance between the two classes.

"My decision on that is final." Nezu paused as he let that sink in, the staff still at a loss about the turn of events. To make a declaration like that was unlike him. But Nezu had earned their trust, so they spoke no more about it, though he knew two of them would want a deeper explanation. Nezu decided to help their mood. "I have also received word that Hagakure Toru has accepted to attend our Hero course."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

After the meeting, Nezu walked towards his office and was pleased that both homeroom teachers, Sekijiro and Shota, followed him. After stepping inside, he went to his chair and poured some tea for them as they took their seats. After graciously being thanked, and they all took a sip, Nezu got to the point.

"You're wondering why I would stack the scales so heavily in 1-A's favor."

"Yes," both homeroom teachers said at once, but Shota left it to Sekijiro to pick up the thread. "You wouldn't do that normally, so I presume it concerns your research. What did you find?"

"Not enough to come to a proper conclusion, but enough for me to take precautions."

Shota narrowed his eyes as he looked at the Principal. "Precautions? What kind of precautions? And if they concern you, why would you allow them to attend?"

"The concerns have nothing to do with their character or their capability. All signs point to the three of them becoming outstanding heroes. Possibly some of the greatest, though in different ways," Nezu responded.

Nezu then set his tea down to look them both in the eyes. "As for precautions, part of it is your quirk, Aizawa-san. But I cannot tell you about the precautions I am discussing. Primarily because of the nature in which my concerns have arisen. I will tell you this, though," giving both men his utmost attention, displaying the seriousness of it. "I hope I am wrong."

Both Shota and Sekijiro were taken aback by it. Nezu, to their knowledge, had never acted this seriously about something, save when combat was involved.

Nezu relaxed, letting both men know that part of the discussion was over. "When I have enough information to confirm my theories, and you've grown familiar with the children, I will inform you."

Nezu then turned to Sekijiro, "Some of the information may be need-to-know for some time, Kan-san, so please be patient with me." Nezu then turned to Shota. "Aizawa-san, do be careful with them and keep an eye out."

Both men could only nod in reply, accepting his answers for now.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter looked down at his instructions as he walked through his new school. The day would mostly be spent meeting his new classmates, followed by orientation and guidance. Having gone through High School once before, Peter was familiar enough with the basics to know what to expect. There were noticeable differences, what with this being Japan. One of the most significant was that most of their classes stayed in the same classroom, and only the teachers changed rooms.

Peter triple-checked that the room he needed to find was 1-A and his assigned seat. He had ensured that it was Classroom 1-A and not a seat number, unlike the last time he was here. The embarrassment from Melissa laughing about his dilemma had been bad enough, but Karen's mild scolding for dropping the ball on his Japanese had made him work hard to correct his mistake.

Peter had also found a map and asked for directions from a staff member. So, he was steadily making his way there. He also wore the school uniform, which was odd, but he had learned it was standard across Japan. It consisted of a long-sleeve, buttoned white shirt, a gray jacket with blue-green stripes at the wrist, both sides of his jacket by the red tie, one across the shoulder, and matching pants. The uniform was also marked as being in the Hero course with a button on the shoulder. Though it wasn't part of his uniform, he did have a bookbag on his back.

{"Peter!"}

Peter turned his head at hearing his name and smiled as he saw one of the friends he had made during the exam. {"Pony! It's good to see you."}

Pony finished walking up to him, smiling widely. {"So you passed? Did you get into the Hero course?"}

Peter grinned, {"Yes. Class 1-A."}

{"Oh, I am in 1-B. But you still passed! We'll have to hang out during lunch or after school sometime."} Despite being sad that Peter was in another class, Pony was happy for him.

{"That sounds great. By the way, I watched a few episodes of that anime you suggested,"} Peter said while Pony looked on with interest. {"Gross!"}

Pony saw that Peter looked disgusted, worrying that he hadn't enjoyed it, until she noticed it shift into a smirk as he observed her. Pony giggled. {"Yes, it is. It's a remake of an old series, but still relevant."}

{"Yes, disposal of trash and producing cheap food is relevant. Also a good example of being careful with your creations. But it is still gross!"}

{"I'm sorry, Peter,"} though her wide smile showed she wasn't. {"But when you told me you were really into sciences, it stuck out to me."}

Peter sighed but had to give her that. In addition to learning that she grew up on farms, growing food was an important subject matter for her. They walked along as they talked about a few other manga or anime but had to stop as he arrived outside his homeroom. After extracting a promise to meet for lunch sometime this week, Peter entered 1-A's homeroom.

Peter noticed twelve others had already arrived, three girls and nine boys, with a few having noticeable mutant quirks, and he recognized two faces. After a few moments, he realized there was a third he recognized. Eijiro's hair had changed significantly; it was now red and spiked upwards. He also noticed his seat was in front of the least friendly of his acquaintances, the exploding blonde, Katsuki. The boy that he had previously named Mr. Explody. Peter had a dozen nicknames in store if the blonde wanted to throw out other names for himself, but he opted to wait to see what he did.

Peter reached the last row and sat in the second seat. Eijiro and the mute boy recognized him and waved in greeting, so he waved back. The other students gave him curious glances, but he was quickly ignored.

After sitting, he looked around the room to get a feel for his new classroom. It was reasonably up-to-date and looked more pristine than any classroom at Midtown. It didn't surprise him since U.A.'s school budget was massive compared to his old high school. He did see some small sort of retractable storage unit on the wall nearest him, making Peter curious about their purpose. The back had some large cubbies and a large window, but the room had almost no decoration.

His desk was simple, similar to most Japanese desks he had seen in photos, though there was a front covering for the desk that hid their legs. The chairs were moderately decent, blue and large, but only mildly comfortable as there was thin padding.

Since nothing else seemed to be happening, he opened his bag, moved his suit to the side, and pulled out a notebook and some pencils. He didn't look up when the door opened again, too engrossed with his notes.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma poked at his shirt collar, desperately wanting to loosen it up. He was required to wear the school uniform, even though he asked and prodded if there was any way to just wear his favorite Chinese sets, but every adult had turned him down and said he needed to wear it. The only thing he got to pick to wear was his shoes, so he wore his regular slip-on shoes. That was one thing Furiken had over U.A., but he relented and went with it.

Though Ranma had asked what to do if he changed, he'd been told he'd be fine. The little smirk on Ryuko's face, while Yawara and Tomoko had looked away, made him seriously question the legitimacy of that claim. He was instructed to inquire about it after orientation had finished.

He found the 1-A homeroom and entered, looking around at the assortment of students. He saw that nearly three-fourths had already arrived. Looking around, he found his seat in the second row, second from the back. Looking at everyone else, he only recognized the multi-armed Mezo from his exam. The other two sets of arms ended in stumps, but considering he had seen ears, eyes, and mouths form on those arms, he figured they could shift.

Ranma used the middle aisle to get to his seat and greeted the familiar face while walking towards it. "Sup, Mezo."

"Ranma," Mezo said as he turned to look at him, his mask still present. Ranma noticed the voice came from one of the arm stumps. His uniform was modified to be sleeveless on account of his mutation.

"Glad to see you made it," Ranma said with a happy grin as he entered the aisle.

Mezo turned his head slightly as Ranma passed him, his eyes crimping subtly. "You as well."

Ranma walked the rest of the way and sat behind a large boy who looked like a face on a rock with peach-colored skin. Behind his seat was another boy, almost as tall as Mezo or the rockheaded one. He seemed to have the most mass of anyone in their class, but more like a weight-lifter would. He had short spiky brown hair; his most noticeable feature was his giant lips. Ranma was just glad they looked normal, not the grotesque lips that Konatsu's 'family' had. He still had nightmares about those… freaks once in a while.

After sitting, Ranma looked around, seeing that to his left was some boy with white and red hair, with a bit of scarred flesh under the red. An old wound. To his right was an empty seat. Ranma was tempted to put his feet on his desk, but Shino had dragged a promise out of him that he wouldn't do that. So instead, he just slouched in his chair, legs pressing up against the front wall, his head leaned back to stare at the ceiling, closed his eyes, and waited.

When he heard footsteps coming up the middle aisle, Ranma opened an eye to peek at who it was. But all he saw were some clothes walking– oh, that's right. It was her, the girl he'd accidentally groped. Ranma sat up as she came near, causing her to halt. Seems she remembered.

Ranma sighed, then tried to give a weak smile and a little wave but figured now wouldn't be a good time to apologize to her again. Seemed he was right, as, after a few seconds, she walked past and sat behind the red and white boy. It felt even more appropriate as he slouched in his chair again, though not from boredom this time. He was glad she had passed, but it would make things awkward and complicated.

Ranma didn't bother looking up as the door opened again.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Sakura!"

Sakura turned to the side and smiled on seeing Mina running up to them. "Hi, Mina. Looks like you passed as well?" Mina was wearing the girl's version of the uniform, substituting the pants for a thigh-length skirt the same color as the boy's pants, much like the one she was wearing.

"Yep!" Mina said, then looked over at the taller boy beside her, who had glasses and a severe expression. "Who's this?"

"Mina, this Iida Tenya. Tenya-kun, this is Ashido Mina."

"Pleased to meet you, Iida," Mina said as she bowed.

"Please to meet you, Ashido-san," Tenya replied as he bowed.

"Great! We should probably get to class, though," Mina said as she helped lead the two toward their homeroom.

Tenya opened the door first, walking in stiffly as was his nature to do so. He spotted his seat number quickly and almost walked towards it until his eyes caught sight of the blonde-haired boy with his legs on his desk. His body became even more rigid as his face twitched and his eyes crazed. He turned his body and started taking an exaggerated step toward the blond.

Mina and Sakura had stepped into the room behind him and saw his reaction. Sakura sighed before grabbing and holding his shoulder without effort, even as Tenya tried to apply his weight to get out of it. Mina looked a little lost as it happened but shrugged her shoulders and made for her desk.

After several more seconds of Tenya continuing to fight her on it, Sakura addressed him more directly. "Tenya-kun, don't. It is not your place to do that at this time."

"But such delinquency! I must uphold U.A. as–"

"No, Tenya-kun, you don't," Sakura interjected calmly. "The teachers will address this if they want to. Wait until you verify how the teachers will handle the situation before you stick your nose in."

With no give in Sakura's grip and her words getting through to him, Tenya straightened up and turned back toward his seat. He ignored the odd looks and smirks he received from a few classmates.

As Tenya approached his desk, his eyes locked onto another boy who seemed lazy. Right next to his own seat, no less. She considered intercepting him again, but it appeared Tenya opted not to call the boy on it. He just sat at his desk and stared ahead.

Sakura sighed in relief, then she smiled. She was glad that he was able to reign himself in this time before she moved to the last row and sat in front of a Caucasian boy that was writing in his notebook.

Only a minute passed before the door opened again.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Midoriya Izuku was nervous and excited. He tried to use Ranma's advice to deal with his nervousness but found it wasn't as helpful this time as it didn't involve an actual fight.

He had been devastated that he had gotten so few points for the practical exam, knowing that with so few being acquired, the likelihood of him being chosen was close to zero. But at least he had a chance, all because of the advice of a stranger. He had been able to combat and destroy a few of the faux-villains, but he knew it wouldn't be enough. He had let All Might down.

But then came the mail. Izuku learned from All Might that there was a second way to earn points, a secret way. Specifically, Rescue Points. He had earned enough to pass! The last few weeks before school started, as he finished his middle school year, his emotions had become a rollercoaster.

As he found room 1-A, which had a massive door, he firmed his resolve and opened it. He was disheartened immediately on noticing that Kac-chan was present. And if he was correct, Kac-chan's seat was right before his own. He breathed a sigh of disappointment but still looked around. He recognized a few from the practical, including the guy with extra arms and the boy with glasses.

But he didn't see Ranma or the brown-haired girl.

Izuku approached his desk, trying not to attract Kacchan's attention. As he glanced away as he passed him, Izuku noticed there was one other student he hadn't seen. He was slouching back in his chair, and due to the position and height of the other students, as well as their shorter stature, he hadn't seen him there. At first, he wasn't sure who it was but caught sight of a dark pigtail on the back of his head.

Izuku smiled at that, happy that he had made it and they would be in the same class. Izuku finished by sitting in front of a girl with black hair in a spiky ponytail and next to a boy with red and white hair.

The door opened as he finished sitting down, and the brown-haired girl entered! Both of them were in the class with him! He noticed her looking around the room before seeing him. She waved her hand wildly as she smiled, making Izuku blush and hold the back of his head some. He waved a little as well.

The girl reached the last open seat, the back of the first row. Just as she sat down, the door opened again.

It was a man dragging some sort of yellow bag behind him. He was slender, had long and messy shoulder-length black hair, his eyes looked fatigued but were still wide awake, and he had stubby facial hair. He was wearing a black long-sleeve shirt and black pants. He also had some sort of long cloth scarf that was wrapped around his neck and shoulders.

"Hmmm, remained quiet while I stepped in. Not bad. Then again, some of you are barely paying attention," the man said. "I'm your homeroom sensei, Aizawa Shota. Pleased to meet you."

Izuku noticed that Ranma had finally sat up, Bokugo had lowered his legs off his desk, and the boy ahead of him had stopped using his notebook.

Shota then reached into his yellow bag and pulled out some clothes. "Quickly now, Change into your gym clothes and head to the grounds."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"A test of our quirks?"

The question came from many in the class as they walked outside on a track field. They wore the gym clothes they were assigned, most everyone wearing the same thing, boys and girls. It was dark blue pants with a white line going down the front of each leg to the waist. The shirt was also dark-blue, with short sleeves and a high collar. The same white lines were on the front, but the part that met the leg formed diverted and met each other in the stomach area, with an extra line in the middle to make it look like an A. Another white line came from the shoulders and across the torso to meet.

The only exceptions were Mezo and Ranma. Mezo made sense; his extra arms needed the extra shoulder space, much like his regular uniform. Ranma, however, had shorter pants, only going up to above the shins instead of the ankles. Some questioned why that would be, those especially unfamiliar with him supposed it was due to his quirk, or someone got a size incorrect.

"What about the entrance ceremony? Or guidance sessions?" Ochako asked, clearly confused.

"No time to waste on that stuff if you want to become heroes," Shota answered, not even bothering to turn toward her as he led the way to a part of the field. Just before they arrived at the position he wanted, he clarified the situation more. "U.A. is known for its 'Freestyle' educational system. That applies to us teachers as well."

He turned to them as they arrived next to the shot-putting, a large circle with straight lines going out to mark distance for throws. "Softball throwing, the standing long jump, the fifty-meter dash, endurance running, grip strength, side-to-side stepping, upper body training, seated toe touch. You did all of these in middle school, yes? Your standard no-quirks-allowed gym tests."

Shota paused as they let them absorb that, "This country still insists on prohibiting quirks when calculating the averages of those records. It's not rational. The Department of Education is just procrastinating."

Shota turned to Katsuki, "Bakugo, how far could you throw in middle school?"

"Sixty-seven meters," Katsuki replied.

Shota tossed a ball to the blonde, "Great. Now try it with your quirk. Do whatever you need to do. Just don't leave the circle. Give it all you've got."

Katsuki stretched a little, limbering up as he prepared himself. He wound himself up and threw the ball as hard as possible. As the ball was about to leave, a loud explosion blasted from his hand, sending the smoking ball flying away, further and far quicker than he could have before.

The class looked on, some excited as they watched the ball disappear from sight for most of them. A few continued to track it until it landed some distance away.

Shota held a small device in his hand, which beeped. "It's important for us to know our limits." He then held out the machine, which displayed the distance the ball had been thrown, which was 705.2 meters. "That's the first rational step to figuring out what kind of heroes you'll be."

"Whoa! This is awesome!"

"Seven hundred meters? Seriously?"

"So we can use our quirks for real? Man, the hero course is great!"

These were just a few of the comments the students made to each other, while others just looked on and waited.

"Awesome, you say?" Shota asked. His head lowered some as he started slouching, but his eyes never left the students. "You're hoping to become heroes after three years here… and you think it'll all be fun and games?"

His eyes stared at the excited students, their expressions dimming a little. "Right," Shota said as his voice filled them with dread. "The one with the lowest score across all eight events will be judged hopeless and will be expelled."

The students quieted at that, shocked at such a claim. Several students began to panic, clearly concerned. Izuku was one of them, realizing he was vulnerable, considering that his quirk was so destructive to his body.

Shota stood up and pushed his hair out of his eyes. "Your fates are in our hands. Welcome, this is the Hero Course at U.A. High!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"3.04 seconds!"

"5.58 seconds!"

The short, thin, pole-like, camera-headed robot at the end of the fifty-meter dash called out the results after Tenya and the girl with long green hair and frog-like features, Tsuyu Asui, crossed the line of the fifty-meter dash. Tenya's score was the best yet, almost touching the three-second mark. He got applause from many of his classmates as they looked on with approval. As they both stepped away from the field, they received congratulatory waves and the occasional hand on the shoulder.

It continued like that as more students went through their own tests, some clearly enhancing themselves with their quirk, while others were stuck with just their physical capabilities.

"Saotome and Rikido, you're up next," Shota called out as he calmly waited. The two boys stepped up to the track.

Rikido Sato was the large boy with large lips that sat behind Ranma. Sato walked towards the track's starting position. He placed his feet on the pads and used his arms to prepare himself for a running position. Sato adopted a serious face as he prepared for the test to start. Though, that face was a bit ruined as he looked to the side to see what Ranma was doing.

Ranma just stood near the front of the track, his body relaxed and his hands in his pockets. He didn't even appear to be attempting anything. Nearly everyone was looking at him in confusion.

"Ready… GO!"

The confused students became astonished as Ranma disappeared, already passing the finish line, when their eyes found him again. He came to an instant stop just past the finish line. Sato almost stopped his run but was able to keep going.

"1.63 seconds!" The robotic voice called out again. Barely anyone was paying attention to Sato's slower score, even himself.

"Holy shit!" Eijiro called out. Even Tenya was shocked at his time being halved like that.

"Saotome!" Shota's voice rang out. Everyone turned to look at their sensei, as he looked and sounded pissed. When Ranma looked his way, Shota confirmed it. "Take this test seriously! Do it again, but I want something closer to your real speed!"

The student's eyes boggled at that, clearly confused why he would claim it like that. His real speed?

Ranma sighed but nodded as he returned to the starting line alone. Now having a clearer idea of what to expect, they observed the entire track instead of where he was at the start.

"GO!"

Again, he disappeared in a blur. They could barely track him as he passed the finish line again.

"0.61 seconds!"

The jaws of the students dropped, only a few keeping their composure.

"Better, Saotome. But still not quite what you showed near the end of the practical exam," Shota said.

"He's even faster than that!?" One golden-headed student yelled. He had short spiky hair with a black lightning-shaped streak in his hair above his left eye. The rest of them stared between their sensei and Ranma as he walked back toward the group.

"Eh, the ground is a little harder to get the boost of the speed I needed to get under the gimmick," Ranma said with a shrug.

"Wait, under the gimmick?" Izuku asked in concern.

Shota's eyes closed, realizing that the boy who had punched the gimmick over hadn't been made aware of what else had happened that day.

Toshinori, in his All Might form, was trying to hide near the buildings but could still hear the conversation with the little device he had borrowed. He winced as he knew Izuku might take this badly. Possibly destroying his drive to be a hero! He hoped Shota would put a stop to it until he could talk to Izuku about it personally.

Shota agreed, even if he hadn't heard Yagi's thoughts. "That's en–"

"Yeah, I had to dive under the gimmick to rescue her," Ranma said as a thumb pointed towards Toru, "when she ran to try to rescue her." His other hand casually pointed towards Ochako. "The gimmick almost landed right on top of her after you punched it."

Most of the students were lost while trying to track the events and figure out what had happened. But the fact that Ranma had said it so calmly and casually, as if he described getting his morning breakfast, just made everything worse. It contrasted so abysmally with what he said that they were left in a daze.

On the other hand, the teachers groaned at the boy for stepping on the multiple landmines in his path without care. Shota noted that from what he had observed of the boy's blithe attitude to the entire event or the danger involved, it shouldn't have surprised him.

The three students who were actually involved, their reactions were much more extreme.

"That was you!?" Toru yelled at Ranma, shock in her voice and what little body language they could read from the moving clothes. After a pause, her clothes turned towards Izuku. "You punched it!?"

Ochako looked upset, realizing that her fall had put another person in danger as they attempted to rescue her. The self-doubt and hatred towards herself began to spiral out of control for creating such a dangerous situation.

Izuku took it the hardest. His eyes bugged out as he realized he had almost killed someone. The fear and self-doubt came roaring to the forefront of his mind. His brain tried to rationalize the situation but was failing; they were excuses. He tried to save one person and nearly killed another. All Might would have saved everyone! Only one bit of hope remained for him. He turned to Ranma, his voice quivering, "You– you got her out from under it in time?"

"Nope. Crashed right on top of us. Had to hold it up until All Might, the other teachers, and her could clear enough for me to lift some of it," He said as he pointed at Ochako again.

Toru was slightly surprised at the addition of Ochako but left that for later as her anger at the green-haired boy for almost killing her was at the forefront of her mind. She stalked towards Izuku, ignoring how he collapsed in despair as his legs gave out from under him.

As she reached the green-haired boy, she opened her mouth to yell when she felt a flick on her forehead that surprised her more than it hurt, knocking her off her warpath and targeting her anger to the one who had flicked her.

Izuku was dead to the world until he felt that same flick to his forehead, stopping his fall into the abyss. Ochako received a similar impact on her forehead, but it was from a tiny pebble hitting her. All three teenagers looked at Ranma, who had snuck up right in front of them in their distraction as he lowered his hand.

Shota and Toshinori watched in surprised silence, not expecting the boy to do that. Shota had been preparing to move forward to do what damage control he could do to get them on track, but the youth got there first.

"Look, all three of you need to cool it. You– err, what is your name?" Ranma asked.

"Uraraka Ochako."

"Ochako, don't beat yourself up over creating the situation. Things happen, and accidents occur. Your mind was focused on getting away; your focus on the terrain could have been better, and you misstepped. It happens. Now you know. Keep it in mind the next time you have to run away from something."

Ochako slowly nodded, taking his words to heart.

"And you made up for it when you helped All Might and the teachers get to us sooner. I was worried she– Uh, I didn't catch your name before either." Ranma said, a little embarrassed as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Hagakure Toru."

"Thanks. I was worried Toru was running out of air near the end, so Ochako, you helped."

Ochako looked surprised, but she slowly smiled as she listened to him.

"Uraraka-san also saved him," Tenya interjected as he pointed to Izuku, "after he punched the gimmick. He was falling, so she touched him with her quirk to stop his gravity and, thus, his fall."

Ranma looked over at Tenya, surprised at the information he shared. "I didn't know that! Good job, Ochako!" Ranma turned to beam a smile at the girl and a thumbs up. Ochako smiled and blushed at the praise.

"As for you two," Ranma said towards Toru and Izuku as they followed along, "you both were doing the same thing the other was doing, just in different ways based on what you could do. Never apologize or feel bad for trying to save someone's life. The only thing you should possibly regret is how you did it."

Ranma turned to Toru first, pointing towards her head that wasn't visible. "Toru, your quirk makes you hard to detect. That can be very useful in situations, but that also leaves you vulnerable because friends might be unable to tell you are there. Keep that in mind, and always try to learn to anticipate and avoid potential friendly fire. It can and will happen. I was barely able to notice you in time. Izuku couldn't."

Whatever anger Toru felt towards Izuku began to evaporate as she considered his words, realizing it was partially her fault. But she noticed Ranma didn't tell her not to do it in the future, but as something to keep in mind as a real danger.

Ranma crouched down so he was closer to Izuku's current level. "Izuku, you aren't familiar with your strength, are you?" He received a shake of green hair as a response.

"Strength to do something like that can be great, but you must also realize things must go somewhere. Even a normal person could throw something that could injure someone if they don't know where they are throwing it. Like throwing a rock or a baseball over a fence. What if many people were on the other side, and it hit them in the head or somewhere else? They could be seriously injured. This is the same thing, but the consequences can be much more dire. So learn to control your strength and be careful where you throw it around."

Surprisingly, Ranma had learned that lesson many years ago from his father. The old man could be careless but didn't perform actions that endangered others. Unlike many of his rivals in Nerima. Well, except in rare situations that involved something like a cure for their curses.

Izuku had been looking at his hands as they lay on the ground, the depression hitting him hard. But when it was mentioned how just throwing a rock over a fence was the same thing, he realized what Ranma was getting at; Izuku raised his head and stared into Ranma's eyes. Though tempered by the consequences of his actions, his resolve had returned. "Right."

Ranma stood back up, offering a hand to Izuku, who took it and was raised to his feet. The entire class and teachers had heard it, many taking his words to heart and thinking of their own situations while others re-evaluated the pig-tailed boy.

Toshinori's smile widened, barely having heard the lecture. But he was pleased that all of them had dispelled the doubt and anger.

Shota was the most surprised of all. He had already begun to believe that the boy either didn't take things seriously or didn't care. Now Shota realized that the boy just didn't care about any personal danger to himself or whether he received praise for his actions.

It explained why he had started to walk off after Hagakure had been pulled out from under the debris and confirmed to be okay, safely under Chiyo's care. It explained why he hadn't told his guardians what was essentially, to him, inconsequential. Ranma considered it the obvious and right thing to do, only caring and striving to produce a positive result.

And the Pussycats had known it. It was why they had laughed and praised him instead of concern or outrage at not being told what had happened or the personal danger he had been in. They already knew he had the makings of a hero. As Shota fully absorbed it, his smile grew. He had seen too many heroes shirk their duty when presented with personal danger or only do it for glory.

For Sakura and Peter, they smiled along. Both were already familiar with the notion in their own separate ways.

Ranma paused momentarily as he remembered what he had seen that day, and a thought hit him. He looked at Izuku, a hand on his hip and the other on his chin, as he ran with the idea. Izuku wondered what that was about until Ranma asked Shota a question. "Hey, Sensei?"

"What is it, Saotome?"

"I have an idea to help Izuku get control of his quirk. Can I take him off to the side to work with him on it?" Ranma asked, turning his head to their sensei.

Shota almost told him no. One of his goals for this entire exercise was to see how the students adapted to the pressure and found unique ways to use their quirk. But he considered the nature of Izuku's quirk and how he injured himself so severely, Shota decided to see what Saotome had in mind. While it might make testing Izuku harder, it would let him test Saotome further, which was at least equally important in his mind. He stepped closer before asking his question. "What is your idea?"

Ranma thought briefly about how to explain it, but he decided to be vague. Explaining to people that Ki wasn't a quirk was always annoying when it came up. He would have to since this was their sensei, but there were better times. "Well, from what I remember seeing, our abilities are similar to each other. He is basically filling limbs with energy and using that to attack. But there's too much energy, causing his limbs to rupture after using so much of it. I want to see if I can help him work through how to lower how much energy he is using."

Shota considered the boy's words, finding them accurate descriptions based on what he saw and heard. And if Saotome's ability was similar, he might be able to help him get control of it. "Fine, take him over there, closer to the building. But only teach him how to regulate it so he doesn't hurt himself. Nothing else."

Ranma followed Shota's gesture and found it near All Might's hiding spot but did not mention him. He didn't care if the guy wanted to follow them. "Sure, Sensei."

Izuku had looked surprised and then pleased by Ranma's offer and their sensei's approval. So the two boys went off to the side.

Shota shouted something before they got far. "Saotome!' When Ranma looked back, he saw Shota giving an unusual smile. "You'll still have to finish the rest of your tests and run through those tests again after you activate your quirk!"

That halted the students. They turned as one as they stared at their sensei and then towards the other two classmates. Wondering what the hell was going on. Hadn't he already used his quirk?

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma led Izuku towards the school building, near where All Might was hanging around the corner. He figured their sensei wanted someone to supervise, so he decided to go along with it. Ranma led Izuku a meter or two from the stairs. "Okay, go ahead and take a seat."

Izuku did so, curious about what was going on. He sat down but adjusted his legs to copy Ranma's as he crossed them comfortably. "You… said you had an idea to help me?"

"Yeah. I saw you use your quirk to attack the gimmick and noticed how you damaged yourself. Makes sense why you didn't try to use it on the smaller villains," Ranma said as he let his elbows rest on his knees.

Izuku nodded after a moment. It was true, but he didn't know it then. But he also couldn't explain it without revealing he didn't have a quirk before that day.

"Anyways, energy builds up rapidly in your body, giving you a ton of power to attack with. Correct?"

"Yes…"

"Okay, so not too different from myself. You just have it where it is already at full power."

Izuku nodded, as Ranma had already explained that to their sensei.

"When I unlocked it, it was slower and far less powerful than what I have now. I had to grow and expand it by training and meditation."

Izuku nodded along, with curiosity and interest shining through.

Ranma continued his explanation. "While it is much more powerful now, I still have to be careful how I use it. Think of it like picking up a glass. You could shatter the glass using your normal strength, but you don't. Why is that?"

Izuku thought, mumbling more to himself than answering Ranma. But Ranma didn't take offense; he saw he was working it out in his head. "Because we become used to picking up objects, we know we don't need to apply too much pressure to hold it or that too much can break it. The reverse is if we don't grip something hard enough, it will slip through our fingers. But then that also–"

"Right," Ranma interjected, "So, what do you need to do?"

Izuku blinked as his train of thought was derailed. "I need to learn how to grip it without breaking."

"Again, correct. But unlike with muscles, you aren't used to using this energy. And it isn't just the objects outside your body that can take the damage, but your own. So it is more complex. Tell me, how would you describe what you feel?"

Izuku looked up and opened his mouth, catching himself before speaking. He needed to word what he had told All Might without revealing his discussion with the pro-hero. "I describe it like an egg in a microwave."

Ranma leaned back, thinking about it. He wasn't a technology expert, so he didn't know how a microwave worked. But he had seen Akane do that deed. Multiple times. And learned why, thanks to his mother's attempted lessons with Akane. He was glad he eventually didn't need to dodge the exploding hot water heater, at least for reasons outside of scalding water.

"Okay, why does an egg in a microwave explode?" Ranma asked.

Izuku had to spend a second remembering himself, "Because the shell traps in all of the water vapor in the egg, causing it to expand and thus explode."

"Good. But why doesn't it happen when you drop it in boiling water?"

Izuku paused, unsure himself. "I don't know."

"With boiling water, the egg cooks slower than the microwave. The microwave heats it up to maximum with no way to release what is inside before it finishes cooking."

Izuku nodded, seeing how that made sense.

"But that is an analogy for things we already know. You don't know how much you can take now, right?" Ranma asked.

"Ummm, yeah."

"Here, think of the shell as your body, with your muscles, bones, and everything else as the water. The heat is your power. At this time, you don't have any labels for the heat, and you don't know what the boiling temperature is for the egg itself. So you don't know what any button press you do will cause."

Izuku had not considered that he didn't know the microwave's controls. All Might had just told him to try to lower the temperature, but he didn't know how. "I… I need to find out what the buttons do!"

"Yep!" Ranma said, a smile on his face as he looked a bit excited. "But you are also stuck with the egg always being there. You can't take it out. So what else do you need to do?"

"I… I need to measure it somehow. Figure out how hot and how fast it is heating. I need to stop it before it cracks the egg."

"Now you're getting it! But there's another thing I noticed: your arms and legs didn't become seriously damaged until after they hit something. That means doing something that generates force, causing the egg to explode. Think of it as the egg rolling to hit the wall or bouncing off a surface."

Izuku looked perplexed but soon realized what Ranma was getting at. So long as he didn't use the power on anything, he could start to get a feel for it. He grinned widely; maybe he would get it to work soon!

"Here's what we'll do. You'll hold out your arm and try to slowly build up energy until you figure out what the settings are. I will tell you when to stop. Then, when you have the controls dealt with, we test how much your body can take, starting from low until we notice your body can't deal with it."

"Right!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Toshinori watched, a broad smile on his face, as Ranma guided him as he felt out his quirk. There were a few abrupt stops and a twinge of pain from Izuku, but nothing serious. He was starting to make progress!

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Alright, now that that interruption is finished, let's continue with the tests," Shota said as he turned to the rest of the class. He looked at one girl in particular, "Yaoyorozu-san, you'll take Saotome-kun's spot for any duo tests for now." He received a nod from the girl. "Next up is Shoji-kun and Jiro-san."

The tests continued, some providing intriguing ways to use their quirks, but nothing as impressive as Ranma or Tenya's scores. At least until Sakura's turn appeared.

Sakura and Toru both stepped toward the starting line. While Toru opted for the starting blocks as a simple tool to improve her speed, they noticed Sakura had opted not to use them. She had squatted down but wasn't as low as the other racers when they used foot pads. What was curious to many was that her arms were held closer to her sides, flying out behind her.

"Go, Sakura!" Mina said in encouragement.

Tenya had never seen Sakura go all out, having only heard bits of what she was capable of from his brother. What he had heard meant she would easily beat his score in the dash, but he didn't know by how much.

Sakura knew that Ranma's speed was a bit above hers but decided his original timing was a better mark to shoot for. She wanted to show off a bit but was still a ninja, so hiding her full capabilities was natural.

"Ready! GO!" Shota shouted.

Sakura sprinted off, replicating much of Ranma's first showing as she disappeared from the starting line and reappeared at the finish. Only those with exceptional perceptions or viewing the whole track could follow her.

"1.56 seconds!"

Few people paid attention as Toru crossed the finish line five seconds later. As Sakura returned to the group, Mina sported a big grin and held her hand up for a high five for the two girls. Sakura welcomed it.

"That was awesome, Sakura! I can't wait for the grip, ball toss, and lift tests. I want to see how well you do on those!"

"Yes, well done Haruno-kun!" Tenya said, his voice nearly robotic as his arm waved up and down in front of him.

"Thanks, guys."

At that point, Sakura was swarmed by a few other classmates, all asking her questions about how she had accomplished that. Sakura explained that her quirk was tough to describe, so she would do it later.

While the rest of the class congratulated Sakura, Katsuki and Peter were called to step up to the starting line. As they walked, Katsuki took a shot at Parker. "So, shitface, think you can beat me?"

Peter continued walking as he turned to face the blonde, a smirk forming. "Oh? So my name has been changed to Shitface already? Well, I guess since my name has already been changed, then your name is–"

"Don't you dare fucking say it!" Katsuki said as he stopped his walk; his eyes glared with murderous intent as his face filled with fury. Additionally, his hands lit up with tiny explosions that looked like firecrackers.

"Oh? Then what's my name?" Peter asked, his face trying and failing at being innocent, on account of his eager eyes and twitch of his lips.

"Shut it… Parker." Katsuki then turned back to walk toward the starting line. Peter followed, not saying a thing, but the rest of their classmates had seen his pleased look.

They both prepared themselves by using the starting blocks. Peter had already determined that his explosions had come from his hands; something on them caused them to go off. He had also seen him flick his hands, and if his eyes weren't deceiving him, drops of liquid were flicked out to cause the explosions. Peter wondered if it was something like nitroglycerin. He wasn't sure yet if he could control when it went off or if he just knew how to cause them to go off himself in his hands. He didn't have all of the information, but he had enough.

Peter estimated he would use it the instant they started to get as big of a boost as he needed, much like he used in the practical to keep up with him. The explosions wouldn't be too much for him, but subsequent explosions might make moving more difficult if he was next to him. He needed a good start and decided not to hold back much.

Eijiro looked on with excitement. He had been pleased to see Peter had made it but had not had much opportunity to talk to him. He had heard about Sakura from Mina, so he wasn't too surprised by her accomplishment. Eijiro had yet to learn what Peter's quirk was or what he was capable of. He looked forward to seeing what he could do.

"Ready! GO!" Shota shouted.

Katsuki did much as Peter had predicted, using his hands to explode forward quickly. But it didn't impede Peter, as he had already started moving before Katsuki could react. He shot forward faster than Katsuki could, crossing the finish line.

"1.71 seconds!"

Katsuki passed a few seconds later, shooting past Peter as he had a more challenging time stopping his inertia.

"3.28 seconds!"

Katsuki cursed as he finally stopped skidding forward. Parker had still beaten him! He turned back to glare at him, but he'd already started walking back to the rest of the class. Pissed at losing, Katsuki walked back himself. He ignored the congratulations he received, deciding to wait for the next event as his mood soured.

"Parker! That was awesome! I had no idea you were that fast!" Eijiro said as he congratulated Peter and gave him a slap on the back of his shoulder. "By the way, what is your quirk?"

Peter turned to him and replied, "Thanks, Kirishima. As for my quirk, it's called Spider. It gives me some of the abilities of a spider based on the proportions. That includes speed, strength, jumping ability, and more."

"Wait, so, like the little things scurrying on the ground or walls and all? Can you climb on walls too?"

"Yeah. I also created devices that let me shoot synthetic silk, like a spider's web."

"Really? Sweet! Can't wait to see it!" Eijiro paused their conversation as Peter turned to another classmate.

It was the peach-skinned boy with the rock-like head in place of any hair. Eijiro was surprised when Peter started making hand signs he didn't recognize. It took him a moment to realize they were one of the sign languages. He watched as Peter continued to run through them, with the other boy seeming to observe. After he finished, the boy smiled and began to run through his own signs, smoother and faster than Peter had.

"So your name is Koda Koji?" Peter asked after he finished. The boy, Koji, smiled and nodded again. "Nice to meet you, Koda-san! And I'm sorry, I haven't had enough time to learn more than the basics."

Koji smiled, giving a thumbs up to show it was fine.

"So your name is Koda?" Eijiro asked. Koji turned to him, nodding, but started fidgeting with his hands and looked away in embarrassment, showing he was still timid. "Nice to meet you, Koda! Maybe Parker can help me learn some sign language as well." Eijiro and Koda both smiled at that, while a few other classmates nearby had also noticed the same thing.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku concentrated, trying to bring up his power slowly. The first few times, he hurt himself, though only a little bit. His arm was more sore than broken, like he had exercised it too much, and his limbs needed resting.

But he had been able to dial it back as Ranma walked him through how to feel his power as it was pulled up. He had a better grasp of it now; he had slowed it down as it grew, then began to halt it before it reached any dangerous point. They hadn't tested anything yet, but it wouldn't hurt him now based on how much he used.

He slowly began to get a feel for the range of how much he put into it. He started labeling it as percentages, an easier way for him to visualize it. Ranma had said to use what worked for him, though it might limit him potentially.

He was now trying to find some of the lower settings, places he would start with to see how badly his body reacted to an impact, then slowly raise until it became too much. Izuku was excited; he was so close!

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Toru was nervous. Not just because she was currently the student with the lowest score but because her mind was trying to make sense of the boy named Ranma. She hadn't believed it was an accident when he had stepped into her path and groped her. She had set it aside at the time because she had a much bigger priority she had to deal with.

But then she got trapped beneath the gimmick. She was shocked to realize she wasn't dead, but it was so dark! All she knew was someone else was there, holding it up as she rested against their legs. She had heard the other teachers making their way to them, the rumbling of debris as it moved. She didn't know if the person holding the weight would lose their match with the heavy object or if the rumblings would cause the rest of it to collapse. Then, as the rumblings started getting closer, breathing became more difficult. Toru recognized it as their oxygen was running out, and they had a limited time. It had been the most terrifying twenty minutes of her life.

Her one hope remained strong, though, always holding it up, never relenting. When she felt she would lose consciousness, as her breathing became painful and she started to panic, her savior began to glow. It was warm and comforting but didn't help with her lack of oxygen. Then the weight was lifted, the seal was cracked, and she could breathe again. She was too dazed from the encounter, barely hearing the other voices as she was pulled from the rubble. She had recognized a few of the people around her, one being All Might.

Toru believed All Might had saved her, especially when he showed up with their current sensei at her house. Her parents had been livid on learning their daughter had almost died, with Aizawa and All Might taking the verbal punishment with stoicism. They had threatened to withdraw her application, sue the school, and publish what had happened. And they still stood there, bowing deeply, not trying to run away or deny it.

Then All Might said that her act of trying to save the unknown girl, Ochako, made her a hero in his eyes. No matter what, Toru had earned her place in the U.A. Hero Course if she desired to attend. Hearing that from such a legend had been why she decided to attend after all. Chiefly because she had believed he had saved her.

But now she knew she had been wrong. A boy her age, a boy who had groped her, had saved her life. She had no idea how to take it. Her anger at the other boy for putting her in that situation had been the only thing she could grasp at the time, letting her anger take control. Then she was stopped and told she was heroic but shouldn't blame the boy. She knew her quirk put her into dangerous situations, so her anger evaporated when it was pointed out to her.

She still glanced regularly towards him, so when a hand lightly touched her shoulder, she jumped in freight, and a small yelp escaped her before her hands could cover her mouth. The class glanced her way for a moment but lost interest. She then turned to find Ochako looking at her with concern.

"Are you okay, Hakagkure-kun?" Ochako asked.

Toru lowered her head, though it wasn't visible to the other girl, and decided to answer honestly. "I don't know."

"What's bothering you? Is it about what Saotome-kun said?" Ochako asked, tilting her head as she tried to piece it together.

"No. He's right about that. I know my quirk can be a danger to myself. There's always a risk of someone not being able to see me. It's happened a few times before, and I can't fault the other boy for doing what he did to save you." Toru turned to look at Ochako. "And I don't blame you for tripping. Like Saotome-kun said, it happens. Thank you, though, for helping to get me out." Toru turned and bowed to the other girl.

Ochako gave a bow in return, smiling widely as it puffed her cheeks out and made her pink cheek marks stand out more prominently. "You're welcome. And thank you for trying to save me. I think we're even on that score. But you still haven't said what's bothering you."

Toru sighed, "It's not what he said that confuses me. It's what he did. During the practical exam, as well as before."

"Before?" Ocahco asked, a little surprised. "What did he do before the exam?"

"I was shedding my clothes behind the bus," Toru said in embarrassment; seeing Ochako blushing also didn't help her mood. "Then I ran towards the gate before the timer finished so I wouldn't be behind, but he backed up in front of me. I thought I would run into him when his hand reached out and groped me!"

"Whaaaat!?" Ochako put her hands to her mouth, blushing again as she realized she had gotten the class's attention again. She whispered the following words, "he groped you!?"

"His hand reached out and was right on my chest. He apologized and said it was an accident. I didn't believe him, but I had the exam. So I decided to deal with it later by reporting him. Now I've learned that he's the one that saved me!"

A light went off in Ochako's head as she realized Toru's conundrum. "You're not sure which is the real him, then? Is he just a perverted groper, or was it just an accident? Did he save you for some other reason, like he was trying to make you forget about it and fall for him, like in all those horribly trashy romance novels or movies?"

"Yeah."

Ochako sighed. This was going to take a lot of work. "I don't know either. I think the best we can do is to watch him, see what else he does." She turned to look Toru in the eyes before realizing she couldn't. And then a thought struck her. "Wait. Hagakure-kun, do you know how Saotome-kun knew where you were?"

Toru blinked, confused at what she meant before her invisible eyes lit up. "No, I don't!"

"You said he backed up. Did you see him glancing your way at all before you almost ran into him?" Ochako asked.

"No, he was talking to someone else for a moment. I don't remember who, then he backed up."

"So maybe he heard you coming?" Ochako thought, but that didn't explain how Ranma knew where Toru was when the gimmick fell. "Didn't sensei get on Ranma's case for not going as fast as he did to get under the gimmick?"

"Oh, yeah," Toru said, connecting more pieces together. "Where was he, anyway?"

"I don't know. I never saw him during the exam. I saw everyone else running around, including you, but I never saw him."

"He was on the rooftops," a voice said, startling both girls. They turned to see the imposing figure of Mezo as he stood nearby.

"Ummm, what do you mean?" Toru asked as she looked up at the tall boy.

"My quirk allows me to see and hear more than most people," Mezo said as he raised an arm and then had his extra appendage grow an eye and an ear, but also showed the mouth he was currently speaking with. "Saotome had been on the roofs for most of the practical exam. He helped several other competitors out, including Midoriya-san. He walked him through how to fight, allowing him to take down a faux-villain."

"Before we started the exam?" Ochako asked, growing interested in what Mezo was saying.

"No, during the exam," Mezo said, watching as the two girls blinked in confusion. "Midoriya was also the one that Saotome was speaking to before he backed up Hagakure-san. He was helping give him advice to calm down his nerves."

"Really?" Toru asked. Though, now that she thought of it, she might have seen the messy green hair that Izuku had. Mezo nodded at her, making her consider.

Ochako then realized something else. "Wait, if he was on the roofs, how did he know where you were, Hagakure-kun? He wouldn't have seen Midoriya-kun or me if he had been behind the gimmick. If he was beside it, the gimmick would have attacked him. If he was in front, then how could he see you?"

"He has enhanced senses, to some degree," Mezo said, catching the girl's attention again. "He could detect a group of faux-robots several streets away that was well out of sight and would have been impossible for him to detect normally. I think he used that to find you, Hagakure-san."

"Oh! So, maybe he did sense me then… and later. That… that makes more sense," Toru said, relieved. She now had a better idea of his character; maybe he had accidentally done it? Either way, she had more to work with. Ochako's earlier suggestion of watching him was still a good idea, but she didn't feel as frantic about finding the answer. She turned to Mezo and gave him a bow. "Thank you… Shoji-san?"

"Yes, my name is Shoji Mezo. And you are welcome, Hagakure-kun," Mezo gave his bow as three people smiled, though only one was visible.

"Uraraka! You're up!"

Ochako jumped a little, looking towards their sensei and the open spot for the ball throwing. She quickly made her way to the field.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Again!"

The sound of a fist meeting palm resounded louder than a boy Izuku's size could typically cause.

"Again!"

Again, his fist met palm as Izuku struck Ranma's hand again. This time, causing himself to wince just a little as that one had pained him some.

"Okay, that's good enough. So four percent is pushing it with continued impacts. Probably best to keep it to three percent, but maybe occasionally raise it to four or five percent for greater impact when it's needed," Ranma said as he looked at Izuku as the boy stared at his own hands. "For the tests, things like the ball throwing, you could probably get away with five percent or maybe a little higher, just so long as it is limited. The more time you dedicate to the task and using your quirk, the lower the percentage."

Izuku looked up, excitement and eagerness in his eyes. "Right!"

"Okay, I think we've got it enough, and it looks like they will be finishing up the endurance runs shortly. Let's go see what Sensei wants us to do," Ranma said before walking back to the rest of the group while Izuku followed along.

A thought crossed Izuku's mind, considering that this was the fourth time Ranma had helped him. "Saotome-kun?"

"Hmmm?" Ranma asked, glancing back at Izuku as they walked, hands in his pockets. "What's up?"

"How are you so good at this?" Izuku said before realizing he needed to clarify. "I mean, how are you so familiar with fighting or training?"

"Ah," Ranma said before shrugging. "I've been training my whole life. My old man started training me in martial arts as a toddler, then took me on a ten-year training trip."

"Ten– ten years!?" Izuku was shocked; that was most of their life!

"Yep! But I got separated from him and the rest of my family last year. I haven't found any sign of them since then, and that was when my current guardians took me in. Since then, I've been training with them and some others. I train them in fighting while they teach me other things. They helped me a lot with how to train someone, speak to them, and try to understand it from their point of view. It really helped when Kota wanted me to train him, too, and he's only a little kid, so learning to speak simpler helped. He would get nervous too, so I learned how to talk to him about it."

"Wow, that's amazing!" Izuku found it fascinating. It was such a different life experience than his own. No wonder he knew so much and was so good with his quirk.

They finished their walk, approaching the group again. "Sensei, we finished," Ranma said to Shota.

Shota didn't turn around, continuing to observe more of the students as they completed the endurance run. "Were you successful?"

"Yep! He's not able to use much for now, but he knows how to use his power without hurting himself," Ranma said. Izuku stood off to the side, still holding his arm a little from some of the earlier attempts.

Shota nodded, doing the numbers on his checklist. They still had at least one or two rotations for people to test their endurance, which took up most of the time. He could test them while the others finished as he kept an eye on them. But he also noticed the twitching in the boy's arm. "Haruno-san, please come here."

Sakura looked up at being called, moving towards their teacher and noticing the other two had returned. "Yes, Sensei?"

"Recovery Girl gave you the green light for treating wounds, including using your quirk. Please inspect Midoriya's arms if you can," Shota said while pointing at the green-haired boy.

"Yes, Sensei," Sakura said before stepping towards Izuku and holding her hand out. Izuku blushed and started to stammer but eventually obliged. Sakura inspected the arm, noticing the minor shaking of his arms. She felt it and looked at Izuku's reaction when she gripped certain parts of his arms. She then put her hand over it, and her chakra glowed lightly as she scanned it to confirm. "Looks like a bad case of strained muscles, but there might be a danger of Rhabdomyolysis if you had gone much further. If you do go further, come see me or Recovery Girl."

"Rha– uh, what?" Izuku tried to repeat the word for a moment but failed.

"Rhab-do-my-ol-y-sis," Sakura repeated the words, sounding out the phonetics for him. "It is a serious medical condition where your damaged muscle tissues release proteins and electrolytes into the blood. If left untreated, it can damage your heart and kidneys and cause permanent damage or death."

Izuku looked stunned and then fearful as he looked at the slightly shorter girl, only a few centimeters shorter if he were to estimate.

As she said that, her hands glowed again, and Izuku found his arm had begun to rapidly feel better. Once she was done with one arm, much to Izuku's shock, she held out a hand for the other and repeated the same procedure.

Completed, Izuku held his arms in amazement before looking at Sakura and giving her a big smile. "Thanks!" Then his surprise about his arm gave way to the fact that he was speaking to another pretty girl. He blushed and looked away while trying to provide a more appropriate answer. "Err– umm… than-thank you. Ummm, Ha– Haruno-san."

Sakura smiled, then giggled at the boy's awkwardness to her. She then noticed that the other boy, Ranma, was looking at her as if he was trying to figure something out, his hand to his chin and his head tilted. "What is it?"

"That's an interesting… quirk," Ranma said, though he was also looking her up and down.

Sakura almost rolled her eyes, first thinking he might be another Letcher. But she soon recognized the look of someone evaluating someone's skill. The situation was far more interesting if he was intrigued by what he saw in her stance.

She turned back to Izuku, "You should be good to go." Her smile returned as the boy blushed yet again.

"Saotome. Midoriya. Follow me." Shota said.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Katsuki was not having a good day. No one had bugged him before class had begun, but he recognized several of the arrivals. Parker was the first, whom he didn't mind as much. He made for a worthy rival. The fact that Parker had been able to get under his nerves with his taunts was frustrating but manageable. But Parker also didn't seem to care about his attitude, so long as he didn't call him names.

The second to arrive, whom he recognized from when he had entered the U.A. grounds for the exam, was Pigtail. He'd already been in a bad mood after passing Deku, so his temper was on a hair trigger. When Pigtail had ignored his demands to get out of his way, he decided a good kick would serve as a reminder. Only his foot was caught just before he hit him, and he couldn't get his foot out! He tried everything short of his quirk and made no progress. Then he was dropped, and the extra hadn't even bothered to look at him once!

To add insult to injury, Deku arrived as the third. And he apparently had some sort of history or interaction with Pigtail. The way they talked made it sound like Deku had stopped a gimmick, which was ridiculous for the quirkless boy. But too many confirmed the claims; even their sensei seemed to agree.

But the final nail was that they were being dominated on every test. While Saotome hadn't done anything but the dash, he had heard enough to know he would not be a pushover for the other tests. Parker had shown he was near the same league as Saotome, though he had already known it to an extent. But Forehead had also shown them all up!

Only the girl extra with that gravity quirk, or whatever it was, had beaten any of their scores. Not even the extra that could create whatever she wanted, such as the canon she made to shoot the ball, could beat them.

He knew going in that he would be near the top of the class. There might be some decent challengers in the class to make things interesting, but he hadn't expected to be left in the dust by multiple people in all categories. Making him not in the top spot or even the top three, but fourth or lower!

Now he watched Deku prepare to take his tests later than the rest. As Deku sprinted off, he almost tripped, barely catching himself before speeding up to cross the line. It was a notable increase, a few seconds faster than he remembered his old scores had been, but it wasn't as impressive as he had been led to believe. It still set his blood to boil. He was supposed to be quirkless and left behind! Had the little shit been messing with him this whole time? Laughing at him behind his back?

His quirk started going off in his hands as they twitched, and his anger took hold. It got louder as his temper rose, a hair's breadth away from charging at Deku when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to glare at the owner, supremely tempted to turn his quirk on the owner for interrupting him. He found Parker there, holding him back.

"Not a good idea, Bakugo," Peter said, following Katsuki's previous line of sight. Peter didn't know why he was so pissed, but maybe he knew one of them. The fact he was only now getting pissed probably had to do with the green-haired boy's results.

Katsuki glared at him before giving a tsk of annoyance and pulling his hand from his shoulder. Even if it pissed him off further, Parker was right. He opted to leave it for now and figure out why the fuck Deku lied about being quirkless later. The little shit.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku was excited! While he had trouble adjusting to his new levels, especially for things with continuous motor control like running, he had improved significantly on his old records. He only used a little bit of power in each limb at a time, which for things like running, made it awkward since your balance gets thrown off because you were pushing and moving faster than before.

Some tests, like grip or standing long jump, were much easier since it was a singular task. Others he could only make a little of an impact on, like the toe stretching he was currently trying to do. He had caught up with the rest of the class since he wasn't required to wait for everyone else to finish.

He knew his scores weren't anything special. He had seen Ranma do most of those same tasks at the same time as him, and he crushed it. He had also heard how well Haruno and Parker had done, performing similarly to Ranma.

After his last test, he stood up with the rest of the class as they nervously waited, dreading who would be expelled. Izuku didn't think he was in grave danger anymore, but he was worried for Toru as he had heard she routinely had one of the lowest scores, only able to beat out a few of the others for last place on one or two activities. She wasn't the only nervous person, as Ochako looked scared.

"Well, time for the results," Shota said as they all looked on. He pressed a button on his device and lit the air with a small holographic screen. "Your total scores simply reflect your performance in each of the events. Explaining the process would be a waste of time, so all you get are the final rankings."

They looked at the score, and all eyes turned towards Toru. Because of her quirk, they couldn't read her facial expressions, but they could hear her voice creaking as her sobs started. They could also see her clothes shaking and moving. Ochako reached for her shoulder, but their sensei continued to speak.

"Also, I was lying about expelling someone."

Silence. Too many were shocked by the blatant admission, or at least the ones more prone to speaking were. Ochako's hand had also paused right above Toru's shoulder.

"That was a rational deception," Shota said as his eyes and mouth widened in malicious glee. "Meant to bring out the best in all of you."

"Whaaaaaaaaaat!?" Four voices at once asked the question, primarily those that had been seriously concerned or completely fell for it.

"Anyway, we're done here. Your documents about the curriculum and such are back in the classroom. Give them a look," Shota said as he started to walk back to the school.

"Sensei, aren't you forgetting something?"

Shota paused, realizing there was something he had forgotten. He had gotten so much joy from messing with his students' heads that he forgot the important test he had planned. He turned around and faced the speaker, reaching into his pocket for the water bottle and tossing it to Saotome. "Right, get changed and do the tests again."

Ranma caught the bottle before unscrewing it and raising it above his head. Everyone else watched in curiosity, wondering what was going on. They remembered he said something about Ranma using his quirk and having to do the tests again, but it made no sense. Wasn't he already showing his–

"What the hell!?" Half the class shouted as Ranma poured the water on his head, shrunk fifteen centimeters, his hair turned a bright red, and he was clearly a girl now. They watched as she readjusted her clothing and then went to the track to start everything over.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura left the classroom with her things as she approached Chiyo's office. Her thoughts were on the day's tests. She had been surprised to see the speed and strength of Saotome and how close Parker was to them. But there was a starker difference between those two; Parker looked like many others with enhanced strength in this world, letting their quirk dictate how they fight. But Saotome was different. He was trained.

Extensively trained if she had to place it, more than anyone else she had observed in this new world. Some heroes took taijutsu, or martial arts as they liked to call it here, seriously and could give some of the genin or Chunin from home a run for their money. But that was the ordinary ninja. Before today, she believed Lee or Sasuke, when they were genin, could have defeated any of them with pure skill. But she needed to figure out how good Saotome was, which intrigued her.

Tsunade had trained her hard in taijutsu to use their enhanced strength and how to dodge attacks as their need to survive every battle was necessary as a med-nin. She could appreciate the skill of Gai, Kakashi, Lee, Sasuke, or even Naruto now. Ranma, at least from what she could see, moved like the lazy tiger that was Kakashi and was nearly unreadable, while she also detected some of the pure power and strength that Gai exuded.

"Sakura! Wait up!" Mina said, jogging towards her friend. "That was awesome what you did today. Still not as spectacular as what you did in the practical, but awesome!"

Sakura smirked, broken out of her musing as her friend praised her. She wondered how she would take it if Mina learned she was still holding back. And how much. "Thank you."

"I saw Iida heading out. Why aren't you going with him?" Mina asked, curious. The two obviously knew each other, so she was surprised they didn't leave together.

"Iida lives in some apartments nearby, while his family lives near Tokyo. I am staying with Shuzenji-sensei. Her home is closer than mine by a good distance, so it makes more sense than having my own apartment. And I will be helping Shuzenji-sensei in the office and at home as needed."

"Shuzenji-sensei? Do you mean… Recovery Girl? Are you related to her?" Mina asked, a little shocked. She had followed Sakura after the practical was finished, helping with a few of the injured, and watched as she helped others from other courses who had injuries. She had met the elderly pro-hero and was praised by her for assisting Sakura in caring for the wounded. Both during and after the exam.

"She is the mother of my current guardians. They've been helping me this last year, preparing me for entering U.A. after I wanted to become a pro-hero," Sakura said, a small but sad smile on her face as memories surfaced.

Mina noticed it, as well as the mention of guardians, but opted not to push on that front. "Cool. I would like to stay and chat, but my train will be here soon. My family lives in Musutafu, so it isn't too far."

"Have a safe trip then, Mina," Sakura said as Mina walked away, both waving at each other. She heard Mina greet the spiky red-haired boy before she turned back toward Chiyo's office.

It only took her a minute to reach it, and she knocked on the door when she arrived.

"Come in!" Chiyo said, voice slightly muffled. As Sakura entered, Chiyo looked in her direction and smiled. "Ah, Sakura-chan, done with orientation, I see?"

"Yes, Shuzenji-sama. Aizawa-sensei had us do some quirk tests," Sakura said as she put her bag on an available desk and looked around. She noticed no one was currently in this office, but that shouldn't surprise her too much as it was orientation day. "He reminded me of Kakashi-sensei."

"Ah, yes. Aizawa-san tends to cut to the chase and deal with things directly. Always has, from what I heard when he attended U.A. himself. He warned me he would do a quirk apprehension test today and that I might see Midoriya-san in my office. So I am surprised he never showed. Did you heal him?" Chiyo asked as she lifted her glasses.

"Yes, Shuzenji-sama, I did heal him. But the damage was nowhere near what you expected."

"Oh? So the boy's learned to regulate his power so soon?"

"Saotome-san mentioned their abilities were somewhat similar and opted to assist him in trying to regulate them. From what I observed when I glanced their way, Midoriya-san was trying to fill his power into his arm while Saotome-san watched, probably telling him when he was going too far so he could shut it off. Once he got a feel for it, they tested it to figure out how much he could use without injuring himself. Saotome-san did a good job of it."

"Ah, yes, Saotome-san. An interesting child. I was informed by the staff about him after the fiasco at the end of the practical exam and was impressed by what I saw. Helped multiple students while keeping them safe. From what I saw, he'll be a good rival for you regarding physical ability," Chiyo said. She had known Sakura was worried about her skills becoming stale since few could keep up with her.

"More than you know," Sakura said, causing Chiyo to look at her for an answer. "He's been trained. Very well trained from what I could see."

That surprised Chiyo. She had grown accustomed to Sakura's level of training, having seen her spar with some of Team Idaten. Even with keeping her physical capabilities to a minimum, she had destroyed them all in hand-to-hand combat. So to hear the Saotome child was well trained was extremely high praise, putting him well above most everyone.

"You can't wait to spar against him, can you?" Chiyo asked. She already knew the answer as the girl's grin widened.

"Nope!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma grumbled as he stuck the offending garment into his bag while walking towards the school exit. He knew that smirk from Ryuko meant he would have to deal with something embarrassing. He planned to chew them out over the phone when he got home.

He also knew he would go along with it. Yawara and the others had done an excellent job of 'deprogramming' him. It still was confusing, and he tended to fall back on old habits, but he knew rationally that they were weak excuses. He sighed as he left the front entrance and made for the property gate.

"Saotome-kun! Wait up!"

Ranma paused in his introspection and annoyance at the uniform rules, seeing Izuku and Ochako approaching him. "What's up, Izuku?"

"Ummm, we were wondering what the deal is with your quirk?" Ochako asked.

"It's complicated, but the quirk requires applying cold or hot water to activate it. I don't have any direct control over it," Ranma said with a shrug.

Ochako had more questions on that front but needed clarification on something else. "I mean, do you have two quirks or something? One for turning into a girl and another for your physical skills?"

"Nope."

The two blinked at that, not having expected that answer. "But, if all you have is a transformation quirk that lets you perform better, why can you fight like that in both forms? From what I remember, usually transformation quirks like that only give the enhanced abilities in the quirk form."

"Oh, that's not a quirk."

The two stared, dumbfounded at the boy's reply. "What?" Izuku squeaked out.

Ranma smirked, "Yeah, my strength and speed come from training and Ki usage."

"Ki? What's that?" Izuku asked; he was bewildered.

"Simplest explanation for most is that it is life force energy," Ranma said. "It is also called spirit energy, stemming from your spirit and the world around you."

The two blinked, clearly not understanding what he was talking about.

"Have you ever heard of old Chinese and Japanese legends, read manga, or watched anime with advanced martial arts?" Ranma asked.

"Do you mean… like Fist of the North Star?" Izuku asked. "An old classmate talked about it once, having been written before quirks appeared and how it was a classic. I read some of it, but it didn't seem as interesting as watching Pro-heroes since they were real."

"Not a bad pick," Ranma said as he remembered reading it when he was younger. "But yeah, similar to Fist with those auras and other attacks. Certainly not a direct comparison, but close enough for the concept."

"Oh, wow!"

"But how is it not a quirk?" Ochako asked, still trying to understand.

"Quirks are unique to the person. Even though you might inherit a similar quirk from a parent, it is still unique. Ki is something everyone has and can learn to use."

While Ochako was shocked, it was mild to Izuku's astonishment. He had wanted to be a pro-hero like All Might since he saw that clip of his debut when he was a child. But the only path he knew could let him do that was if he had a quirk. So when he had learned he was quirkless, it shattered him. But now he discovered there might have been a way if he understood Ranma right.

"So, what does the Ki do to allow you to be physically strong?" Izuku asked, his eyes showing an edge to them.

"Once you have enough built up, you can push your body beyond the normal physical limits. This includes improving the strength of your body in almost all aspects. It makes it harder to damage you while amplifying your strength and being able to sense things around you better."

"Sense things? What do you mean?" Izuku asked.

"My Ki sense allows me to feel all of the Ki around me. Think of it like hearing. You can only tell something is over there when you hear a sound. But if you refine it, you can more accurately tell where things are. If you get good enough with it, you can see the world like a bat does, but with Ki."

"That's what you did!" Ochako shouted in excitement as the puzzle pieces were finally falling into place. "You could sense Hagakure-kun when she almost ran into you and when she was behind the gimmick!"

Ranma blinked in surprise, "How did you know she almost ran into me?"

"She told me about your run-in before the practical exam. She thought you had purposely done it because how else could someone have known to do that. Shoji-kun said you had enhanced senses, but it still wasn't making much sense to us," Ochako smiled.

Ranma grimaced at the claim that he had purposely done it but couldn't fault Toru. "Yeah, I can sense others and things like danger. It isn't always on and can get confusing, but I sensed her coming and thought I'd prevent an accident. I was aiming for her shoulder, but I think she stood up at the last moment to try to break, and then that happened," Ranma's hand rubbed his pectoral as the memory of his own experiences with that particular pain returned. "Not something I'd want to do to another person, especially a stranger."

Ochako noticed the motion, his facial expression, and his words and tone to know he probably had experienced that himself. Or herself, if Ochako understood it right. She smiled widely, another point added in favor of the boy. "You should explain that to Hagakure-kun, Saotome-kun."

Ranma paused but sighed as he knew she was right, "I'll try to tell her tomorrow."

Izuku looked between the two as his ignorance was on full display. "Huh? What's going on?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"See you tomorrow, Kirishima," Peter said with an easy smile.

"You as well, Parker!" The boy gave a small wave as he noticed the pink-skinned girl walking towards him.

Peter smiled as he started his trek toward home. He didn't see Pony around but figured he could find her later this week to talk. Besides, he had things he needed to do at home as he needed more time to finish setting things up.

He wished he could just web-sling, but this wasn't home or I-Island, so he couldn't. He made his way to the train station and boarded it. He saw a few of his new classmates getting on different trains or sections, but none were close enough to initiate a conversation. He got off his stop as he made his way towards home. It was a well-off area, with homes more prominent than the average apartment. Though they were nowhere near as large as some houses like Stark or Flash had, they were nearly as expensive as those.

He had argued with Dr. Shield about spending so much on it, but he had been convinced that space, security, and privacy were needed. It was a two-bedroom home with one large and one giant room, not including the small dining room or kitchen. Just sufficient enough for his needs, especially if he had visitors like Dr. Shield or Melissa needing to stay the night. It had been planned that the second bedroom would be Mel's once they finally cracked their primary roadblock and she could finally attend U.A.

As he walked to the gate, he smiled and looked up at the camera. He put his hand on the panel by the door and then his passcode, unlocking the electronic gate as it opened for him. He approached the front door, repeating the same process but with a different passcode. He then pressed on the screen again, but to anyone else that could or would look, there was nothing there and no reaction.

After entering the home, he closed it behind him, hearing the heavy bolt locks seal into place as the windows tinted black.

"Building is secure. Welcome home, Peter," Karen said after everything finished.

"Thanks, Karen," Peter said out loud.

"You're welcome. How was the Orientation?" the A.I. asked as Peter exchanged his shoes in the genkan. While he hadn't grown up with it, and it wasn't as common in Japan as it once had been, it was still a custom he had been encouraged to adopt.

"We didn't actually attend an orientation," Peter said. "Our homeroom sensei, an Aizawa Shota, tested our quirks. Seems he's the type of sensei to throw us in the water to see if we sink or swim."

"Previous research says that Aizawa Shota is a U.A. alumnus with the pro-hero name of Eraser Head. His noted quirk is that his eyes can cancel out emitter and transformation quirks, making him a powerful counter to many quirks. He was an independent underground hero not connected to any agency or group. He began teaching at U.A. four years ago. That is most of the publicly available information. Anything more may require more cross-reference checks or accessing secured systems," Karen said.

"No reason to risk it for now. But that's convenient for us if he tries to use his quirk on me since we were running with my abilities being listed as a mutation quirk," Peter said as he stepped into the largest room, around the size of Happy's apartment.

The house, and especially this room, had been reinforced and secured by some contractors before he did his own check for any bugs or other ways to spy on them. He had only finished installing his computers and hooked them up to the house last night. Once that was done, he uploaded a copy of Karen to the systems to do her checks and security before the router was connected to the internet.

He hadn't touched the crates in the middle of the room, but it was his plan for today. "Well, let's get started. I want to call Mel with a couple new iterations I thought of before our sensei arrived, but we need to get these up first."

"Understood. Since there are no sensors for me to observe this part of the home, please inform me when crate 2-C is fully unboxed and ready for activation. I will connect to the drones and continue assisting with auxiliary sensors while you focus on the larger crates."

"Sure thing, Karen," Peter said as he grabbed the top of the wooden crate and popped it off, nails and all. Once it was properly out, he smiled at the multiple metal containers that awaited him. All with the Stark Industries logo on the side.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

A/N - Thanks again to Boldish42 and Iron454 for Beta-reading.

I had hoped to get this out on Sunday, but it took me a little longer in the middle of the week to finish some of this as well as one of my Beta-readers having real life get in the way. They got it to me last night, but I was too exhausted to complete it. I hope to have 7 ready for next beta-read sooner and ready by Sunday, as well as 8 and 9.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 7 - Battle Training​

Sakura awoke slowly as her alarm gradually increased in volume while a flute played a soft melody. She was tempted to curl up into her covers and pillows to enjoy it a little longer, but she knew she had too much to prepare before leaving for school.

After a good stretch and wiggling of her limbs, she got up and moved to her wardrobe, grabbing some exercise clothes. Once they were on, she went into the washitsu and moved some of the furniture to give her room. She needed to find a better place to exercise, as she couldn't get what she needed from such a small room, but it would have to do for now.

She had already talked to Chiyo about what to do regarding proper exercise, but her location needed to be better for easy access to the wide open spaces she would prefer or the local woods. It wouldn't be much of an issue if she didn't have to restrict herself on her speed or had alternative means of transportation, but she was out of luck on that front. She spent an hour trying to generate some sweat while avoiding damaging furniture.

Once she was done, she made her way to Chiyo's room, knocking on the door softly.

Chiyo's voice rang out, "Yes, Sakura-chan?"

"I finished my morning exercise, so I was going to start on breakfast before I do a cold wash, Shuzenji-sama. Is there anything you need before I start?" Sakura said through the door.

"Thank you, dear, but no. I should be out shortly."

Sakura started the morning meal of rice, soup, fish, and a few sides. Being fast and intimately familiar with sharp objects, preparing and cooking the food was accomplished quickly. Once everything but the rice was ready, she saw Chiyo enter the kitchen dressed and prepared for the day. She took the plates and bowls, putting them on the table as Chiyo fiddled with the rice maker.

"I'll be right back, Shuzenji-sama," Sakura said before she left for the bathroom.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma sighed as he entered the front door of his apartment. He was glad his guardians had staked out this spot near some decent-sized woods, giving him ample space for morning workouts. It wasn't as good as sparing against his pops in the morning, but it was sufficient.

The fact he missed having his pops throw him out the window into the pond as a wake-up call for morning sparring sessions had surprised him. He really did miss the old panda. He wished he could have found anything about his family, old records, or even family graves. But in the past year, they had found nothing. Not even a photograph of them or the Tendo family. The ward of Nerima had been horribly impacted by the arrival of quirks, just as many other places in the world had been.

None of the homes in the area had looked even remotely familiar. There was no Furinkan High School, no Ucchan's or Cat Cafe, and not even the Kuno family plot was there. Ranma had attempted to go to the Saotome and Tendo family graves, but even those sites had been damaged, and no records remained of either family.

It wasn't until after he had visited the places he used to be familiar with and then shown pictures and video of the destruction that had followed in the last century and a half that Ranma was no longer so dismissive of the dangers of quirks. Martial artists could get destructive and cause problems; it was a simple fact of life for someone of his caliber. But quirks were like guns, more dangerous with minimal training or misuse, even if the higher tiers of martial arts could outperform most weapons or quirks.

Taken out of his introspection, Ranma knelt before the small family shrine he had set up. It listed his Mother and Pops, the Tendo family, Ukyo, Konatsu, Ryoga, Akari, and even Koron, Shanpu, and Musu. As much as there was antagonism between many of them, they were still his loved ones, family, and friends. Ranma spent twenty minutes meditating in front of it, helping him to acquire the focus needed for the day ahead.

Once done, he took a quick cold wash in the bathroom before she went to the bedroom. After the tests yesterday, she asked about what to do regarding her uniform. She had been handed a skirt and told all students were required to wear the designated uniforms... for their gender.

Since it had already been agreed upon that she would alternate almost every day, she would need to wear one to school. She really was not a fan of skirts or dresses, but she could wear them.

Ranma had called and tried to chew her Guardians out for not warning her beforehand. But Shino had pointed out how she would have tried to find ways around it in advance or not to attend at all. Ranma wanted to deny it, but Shino and the others pointed out specific instances in the past where she did just that. Repeatedly.

She put on her uniform, glad the boy's and girl's uniforms only had minor differences. Her uniform had been altered to allow for size changes, especially since it wasn't under her control if water found her. She was just not looking forward to the looks she would get if she did change while dressed like this. Yawara's lessons helped deal with the logic, but experiencing it was a separate matter.

Now appropriately dressed, she grabbed some onigiri from the fridge and left for the day's lessons.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Morning, Pete!"

Peter perked up at hearing Melissa's voice come through the speakers, almost as much as his morning coffee did for him. He turned to see the blonde girl giving him a bright smile, having been connected via the wall monitor they had set up. "Morning to you as well, Mel. Any results on those iterations from last night?"

Melissa sighed in disappointment, "Those new iterations didn't work. I swear, trying to reverse engineer something to an earlier model seemed easier in the planning stages."

"Yeah, we're getting close, though. The containment unit was stable in the last twelve iterations, so I think we solved that. We are still stuck on mostly the ignition sequence and stabilization. We'll get it eventually," Peter said. "How's your Dad?"

Melissa smiled, "He's doing well. We have more buyers lined up for the M.P.S. from some of the support companies that recently visited. About twenty are being ordered for now as a limited supply, but they wanted ten times that. Tony estimates they'll be ready for shipping within two weeks. The fabricators are getting serious attention, especially since they can work with almost any material. You saw the look in their eyes when they saw the combination of the two systems."

Peter chuckled, "Yeah, like holding a juicy steak in front of a dog."

Melissa giggled at the analogy but decided to continue with the news. "Dad's gotten more push-back from the board again. Their recent attempts to fill his position have failed. Sam's been trying to hold things together, but he's been fighting Dad about shifting to running the company, claiming that it isn't important."

Peter sighed. Samuel was a nice guy, but they were limited on who they could inform of Stark Industries' fundamental goals. In fact, the number of people they had on staff was the three of them and the engineers that had initially evaluated Peter's 'debut.' Detective Tanaka suggested it after doing thorough but discreet background checks on them. The fact they were still staying quiet about his suit made it more of a reward than anything else. Peter loved seeing their faces light up like kids on Christmas.

Peter saw Melissa's eyes shift to the side briefly before smiling and turning back to him. "Tony just confirmed that the school will receive a few M.P.S. shipments later this evening. They expect you to showcase it after your final class tomorrow."

"That sounds great! I can't wait to show them," Peter said.

"Peter, you have four minutes before you need to leave to make the train," Karen said over the speaker system.

Peter jerked as he realized he had lost track of time. Melissa had heard her, so she said her goodbyes and killed the connection.

Peter hurried and got his school jacket from one of the chairs he had set it on. He opened his bag to add more supplies and verified his regular costume was present. Closing the bag, Peter grabbed a few extra slices of toast and made for the entrance. As he put on his shoes, he looked at the picture frames he put up after everything else was finished.

After his outside shoes were tied, he smiled at the photographs. "Wish me luck, you guys!" Peter gave one final wave to the pictures of his Aunt and Uncle, M.J. and Ned, Tony, Happy, and his 'brothers.' Peter then left the house to start his new semester of classes.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku sighed as Present Mic left the classroom; their English classes had finished for the day. They only had one more class left before lunch and the far more exciting second half of the day. Sadly, Izuku lacked classmates he could speak to easily, so it was difficult to pass the few minutes before their next teacher entered.

Ranma was on the other side of Todoroki, but Izuku didn't want to disturb the quiet boy by speaking past him. The boy with red and white hair did not seem interested in conversing as he usually sat there, staring ahead and ignoring most of his classmates. There was also another boy, Tokoyami, the one with the mutation that gave him the head of a bird, that sat in front of the boy with dual colors. While he didn't seem nearly as unapproachable as Todoroki, he still had this feeling of him wanting to be left alone. Speaking to Hagakure, even if she was invisible, didn't seem like a wise move. He had put her life in danger, which still upset him when he thought about it, but the more significant reason was that she was a girl. Not to mention Yaoyorozu would be just as challenging, if not more so, as she sat behind him.

He wasn't even going to entertain the idea of speaking to Kacchan. Especially since he had heard him growling in front of him several times throughout the day.

The door opened, and their next teacher stepped into the room. He recognized the hero Ectoplasm, making Izuku smile at another well-known hero teaching them. The hero teacher introduced himself as Honenuki Kaito, better known as Ectoplasm, and would be teaching them Math 1. It would entail quadratic functions, trigonometric ratios, sequences, permutations and combinations, and probability. The students were looking between their books, what Kaito was writing on the board, and their own notes.

Their teacher started quizzing many of the students on several equations to get a feel for who knew what. Izuku was okay in math but was left in the dust by a few classmates, like Yaoyorozu and Haruno. Both of them had already known the answer to the more problematic questions, showing their aptitude and knowledge was above the rest of the class.

But as they were twenty minutes in, most of the class had noticed that their teacher hadn't asked even one question to the only student not paying any attention to the class: Parker. It had started slowly, but over half the class eventually kept glancing his way and wondering why their teacher hadn't called him on it.

Kaito sighed; he was glad he had predicted this and came prepared. He knew that just telling students to leave it alone would only eat at them and make them feel Parker was given special treatment. They would resent him and cause trouble if it wasn't nipped in the bud as soon as possible.

Kaito spoke a little louder, ensuring he had the entire class's attention except for Peter's. "Alright, since most of you cannot concentrate on these questions, I will throw up four questions on the board. All of you are invited to try to give a correct answer, but it will not count against you if you get it wrong. Extra credit if you do get any of them right. Write it down on a piece of paper and bring it up to me. You may leave your seat if you wish to get closer."

He saw the inquisitive looks he received but quickly turned his attention back to the whiteboard behind him. Kaito grabbed the sheet he knew he would need as he quickly wrote the equations and graphs on the board. It took him nearly ten minutes, and he had to triple-check all of his work, but eventually, he had them all written up. He had already noticed a few students leaving their seats to look at the board closer before returning to them.

With less than ten minutes left for the class, only Haruno and Yaoyorozu gave him answers. Bakugo, Midoriya, and Iida had been trying to figure it out before giving up a few minutes earlier. Most of the rest of the class had been lost the entire time while still looking at Parker as he sat there, not paying attention.

"Good attempts, Haruno and Yaoyorozu, but the mathematical and chemical equations are wrong for the answers to the first and second questions," Kaito said to the disappointment of the two girls. What he said next put smiles on their faces. "You will still receive extra credit for making good attempts."

"Now, to show you why I put those questions on the board," Kaito said, getting the class's attention again before turning to the last student. "Parker!"

Peter looked up from the calculations he had been doing, startled at hearing his name yelled, before turning to look at their teacher. "Yes, Sensei?"

"Please come up and answer these questions as quickly as possible. We have about seven minutes left."

"Umm, sure," Peter said as he got out of his chair and walked towards the first problem while the teacher handed him a marker. He spent a few seconds looking at it before quickly writing down the answer and moving on to the next question until all four had been answered. And there were still two minutes left on the clock.

The rest of the class had been looking on in wonder, many thinking there was no way he could possibly know the correct answer to all of them. But when he finished the last one, and the teacher glanced at his paper again, he stunned them all. "All of the answers are correct. Thank you, Parker."

Peter smiled and nodded, before glancing toward his seat, wanting to finish the last set of equations he was working on to give to Melissa later. He turned back to their sensei, however, to check for approval. "Do you need anything else, Sensei?"

"Please stand next to me. I need to explain why I had you answer those questions," Kaito said as the young man stood beside him, wondering what this was about. Seeing how his class was looking at him, he started to get an idea.

"The first question was from Tensor Calculus and was an equation dealing with General Relativity, specifically with positive spacetime curvature for orbital reentry. The second problem was the chemical process to make synthetic Palau'amine. The third problem was for Fusion Physics, for fusing deuterium and tritium to create helium and how much energy is outputted. The final problem is from Quantum Field Theory and a problem for polarization vectors of a massless vector field."

Kaito noted that most of the class was glassy-eyed as it was well above their current knowledge. Still, the brighter students, especially Yaoyorozu and Haruno, seemed to grasp what he was talking about as their eyes were near the size of dinner plates. The bell wrung, signifying lunch, but no one got up yet as they were still paying attention.

"None of the fields of science or mathematics we teach here at U.A. will help young Parker here as he is well past those. He has been given permission by the Principal and our Mathematics and Science course teachers to do self-study during those sessions. He will occasionally be out of class during those times at the request of other teachers. If you want to know further, that is up to Parker if he wants to answer. Class dismissed."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Peter made his way through the food line, glancing around the room as he tried to spot Pony. He spotted her horns and blond hair just before the cafeteria staff asked what he wanted. Quickly giving his order, he progressed through the line, grabbed a root beer, and approached the cafeteria tables.

He spotted Pony as she had sat down with a pale-skinned boy with beige-colored hair, large dentures, and no lips that reminded him of their mathematics teacher. He made his way over to her. Seeing as her back was to him, he called out to her when he got close. {"Hey, Pony!"}

Pony turned to look at him, smiling widely. {"Peter!"}

{"Got somewhere I can sit?"} Peter asked as he looked at a few of the available chairs.

Pony looked at what was available and pointed to one across from her, {"Sure, sit over there!"}

Peter took the offered spot, putting his tray and drink down before smiling at his friend and her acquaintance. Peter decided to kick off by greeting the acquaintance, especially since he knew Pony's grasp of Japanese could have been stronger. Peter bowed his head and said, "Nice to meet you; I am Parker Peter."

The boy smiled and bowed back, though it was odd to see a smile without any lips, before he stuck his hand out towards Peter for a handshake. Surprised, Peter shook it as the boy spoke his own greeting. {"Nice to meet you, Parker. I am Honenuki Juzo."}

{"Is Juzo your given name? Sometimes when Japanese people speak back in English, they still give your family name first, unlike most Western cultures,"} Peter said with a slightly cocky grin.

Juzo grinned back, {"Yep, and good point. I'll have to remember that for next time."}

{"And your English is pretty good!"}

{"Thanks, I haven't been out of Japan before, but I have relatives in the States."} Juzo said. {"California, specifically."}

{"Raised in Queens, New York."}

{"So, what brings you to U.A.?"}

{"It was where my guardian recommended I go,"} Peter replied, picking up his chopsticks and shoveling a little rice into his mouth to start eating.

Jezo and Pony looked curious, primarily as she hadn't heard why he was attending U.A. yet. {"Why would he do that, Peter?"} Pony asked.

{"It's complicated, but he has several contacts at U.A., so it fits the bill better. Also, because Edgeshot is an alumnus and a friend."}

That surprised them both. Having Japan's number-five hero as a friend boosted their potential for getting in. {"But you weren't in the Recommendation Entrance Exam?"} Juzo asked, curious as to the reasoning.

Peter was stumped until he remembered the other way to attend the school was through recommendations from known Alumni or influential public members. {"Yeah, the whole reason I was with a guardian is part of why I left the States. My Aunt had died in a villain attack, and all of my records in the U.S. got wiped. So I officially didn't exist. I couldn't take the Recommendation Exam without those records."}

Pony and Juzo both winced in sympathy. {"I'm so sorry, Peter. I didn't know,"} Pony said, saddened that her first friend at U.A. had such a traumatic experience. Juzo nodded his head in agreement.

Peter wore a sad smile as he paused in his eating. {"Thank you, Pony. And it's fine. I haven't told very many people about it yet."}

"Parker!" Another familiar voice said to their side, taking them out of their introspection.

Peter turned to the new voice, smiling again as he saw two other new friends arrive with trays. "Kirishima, Koda, nice to see you both! Grab a seat!"

The two boys did just that, with the redheaded Eijiro and rock-headed Koji sitting beside him. "Kirishima and Koda, you remember Pony, right?"

The two boys smiled. Eijiro gave a wide and toothy one, while Koji's smile was shy and accompanied by a small wave. "Sure, and I hear you got into the Hero Course, Pony," Eijiro said excitedly.

"Yep!" Pony said in excitement, nearly jumping in her seat after accomplishing her dream. "I take it you made it as well?" Pony asked.

"Sure did! I crushed those robots. They didn't stand a chance!" Eijiro said as his grin returned.

"Pony," Peter said as he got her attention again. "You technically already met him, but let me introduce you to Koda Koji. Unfortunately, my Japanese Sign Language isn't ideal yet, but I'll do what I can, Koda."

Koji made a few signs with his hands, trying to keep it simple so Peter could be able to translate.

"He says it is nice to meet you, I believe," Peter said, looking at Koji for confirmation. He received a shy but happy nod.

"It is nice to meet you as well, Koda," Pony said as she smiled at the boy.

Peter got the last greeting out of the way before he could resume eating. "I would also like you to meet Honenuki Juzo," Peter said before he decided to get a little clarity from him. "He is also from the Hero Course, Class 1-B, if I am not mistaken?"

"Correct. Nice to meet you, Kirishima-san and Koda-san," Juzo said as he nodded to both boys.

They nodded in return, but Eijiro didn't turn to his lunch like Peter had. He instead grinned as he turned to Peter with a burning light in his eyes. "What you did yesterday was freaking awesome, Parker! But what you did at the end of Math class was unbelievable!"

Pony and Jezo looked up while they ate a few bites, wondering what he was getting at. They noticed both of the boys were looking at Peter in wonder. Swallowing her mouthful, she asked her question. "What happened?"

Peter sighed, a little shy at the praise he was getting, but he didn't stop his redheaded friend. Eijiro told them the story about what had happened, some of which Peter had only guessed at since he had been a bit distracted.

Juzo looked shocked; that was well beyond what he had expected. "What were the equations on? You didn't explain that part."

"Calculus, chemistry, and physics," Peter said easily enough.

"That doesn't sound impressive enough for your class. Give specifics, please," Juzo said. "Uncle Kaito would not let you ignore his class if it was entry-level."

"Uncle?" Peter asked, with Eijiro and Koji looking curiously at the boy, though he supposed the teeth showed a family resemblance. Juzo gave a nod of confirmation while still waiting for an answer.

Eijiro spoke up again, excited to explain things further. "Sensei said something about the first question being about orbital reentry or whatever. The second was for some synthetic chemical, and the last two were about fusion and quantum… something. I couldn't even tell what any of that meant from those equations, just a bunch of letters and numbers to me. I noticed the chemical one, but that was all I could tell. It all looked like alien writing to me!"

Peter sighed before giving a more accurate answer. "Tensor Calculus for precision orbital reentry that included the curvature of spacetime, a chemical equation to create synthetic Palau'amine, the energy output for a fusion reactor with a given quantity of deuterium and tritium, and an equation for quantizing massless vector particles."

Pony, Eijiro, and Koji looked lost at his description, but Juzo was astonished. While he didn't know enough of the needed fields to understand the equations, he was smart enough and knew enough that those equations and fields of study were highly challenging. While it wasn't inconceivable for some in the support classes to be able to do some of those equations, to do all four in minutes was so far outside his understanding. "Holy shit!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku got back early to his seat after lunch was over. His excitement was hard to restrain. His mind had jumped between what happened at the end of math class and his anticipation for the first class after lunch.

Most of his classmates sat together during lunch to discuss what Parker had done. It would have included Koji and Eijiro if they hadn't decided to grill Parker instead. Yaoyorozu and Haruno had begun to talk about the complications of the equations their Sensei had put on the board and where they had been wrong. Just listening to them discuss it was enough to give him a headache.

But the one universal conclusion among them was that Parker was a super genius. He wasn't the only genius in their class, as shown by Yaoyorozu and Haruno's discussion, but even they were awed by his completing all of those equations so quickly. They hypothesized he was dealing with cutting-edge theoretical physics, chemistry, or quantum field theory research in his notebook. The rest of them listened attentively as they got a better appreciation.

But now he was waiting for the one class he was greatly anticipating, not just for what it entailed but also for who was teaching it, as he knew more than most of his class what was coming. He sat in his seat as the rest of his classmates streamed in the five minutes before class started.

When Ranma entered, she still got some odd looks as she was in her girl form and wearing the skirt. Izuku had overheard a few female classmates talking about her, but Ranma ignored them. Most of what Izuku had overheard was his classmates' confusion about treating Ranma as a girl or a boy. The girls weren't the only ones, but the boys discussing it were fewer in number and just as confused as the girls.

The class finished getting into their seats as there was one minute left. The conversations started to die down as the seconds ticked. Izuku was far from the only student excited as they waited to see who their teacher would be.

"I HAVE…" a loud baritone voice said outside the room, barely being suppressed by the wall. Then the door opened quickly, and a figure stepped through. "... Come through the door, like normal!"

All Might stood in the classroom, his broad muscles shown off with the red skin-tight shirt and blue pants, with some white lines and circles forming on both. He wore a yellow belt with yellow gloves and boots, though they were accentuated with winged flairs. He also had heavy clasps on his shoulders to hold his blue cape. His hair sported his usual yellow antenna right above his forehead. It was a look everyone in their class had seen at various points.

The students were excited and talked loudly with their neighbors or to themselves. They had not been expecting All Might to be teaching them. They watched All Might walk to the front of the class, showing off some minor poses as he grabbed an object from his belt.

All Might looked his students in the eyes, looking between them and glad to have their attention, though he was nervous as it was his first time teaching. He was careful not to show it as he put his world-famous smile on and began his prepared speech. "Hero Basic Training! The class that'll put you through all sorts of special training to mold you into heroes!"

All Might paused momentarily, letting it sink in as the students waited for him to continue. "No time to dally. Today's activity is this!" He removed the object from behind him, a considerably sized plaque with engraved writing. The students read it, many getting excited at what it entailed. "Battle Training!"

"And for that, you need these!" All Might said as he pointed to the side wall opposite the door. A clicking noise was made, and some cupboards with numbers attached to them popped out. "In accordance with the 'Quirk Registry' and the special request forms you filled out before being admitted…," All Might said, letting the students jump to the conclusion themselves.

Most of the class got out of their seats excitedly, all saying the word All Might had been leading them to: "Costumes!"

The students left their desks to each get their own costumes. Izuku didn't get out of his seat. Instead, he hugged his bag to him. That also let him see he wasn't the only one not getting up. He noticed Ranma hadn't bothered to move, and Parker was still sitting. Both had grabbed their bags like he had. He wasn't the only one that already had their costume.

"Grab your bags! We're going to Ground Beta! You'll change in the locker rooms there."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku got off the bus and headed towards the locker rooms. As he made his way, he noticed that Ranma was walking towards the girl's side. Some girls seemed hesitant, but no one appeared to say anything.

Izuku entered the room, quickly found his designated locker, and removed his school uniform. He then took out the costume his Mom had made him, one made from a full-body jumpsuit with elbow and knee pads. It took him a bit, but eventually, he got everything on, including his mask. When Izuku completed, he noticed he was the last to leave. He hurried towards the grounds, hearing All Might's voice just past the entrance.

"Looking good is very important, ladies and gentlemen! Look alive now because from today on, you're all heroes!" All Might said as Izuku stepped into the stadium. "Shall we begin, my young wards? It's time for Battle Training!"

Izuku looked at his classmates' costumes, finding them a wide range of looks. Some looked simple, like everyday clothing, with a few attachments that set them apart. Others looked like obvious fashion statements for heroes. Most of his classmates were easy to guess who they were, with a few of the girl's costumes making Izuku rather glad for his mask as a full facial blush formed as he started looking at them.

"Ah, Izuku! Cool costume, very practical!" Ochako said to one side, causing Izuku's eyes to expand at how form-fitting hers was. She looked embarrassed after Izuku realized he was staring a little too long.

Uraraka wore a black, form-fitting, full-body suit with a light-pink line down the front and a bright pink collar. Around her wrists were light-pink giant bulbs that he couldn't tell their purpose at this time, with the more brilliant pink on some handles. Her feet had rather large futuristic boots that enclosed the entire leg and were light pink.

Izuku approached where All Might was standing and waited for them together. "We're all here then? Looking good!" All Might said as he looked his students over. Though, Izuku was a little confused why All Might covered his mouth and looked to the side after looking at him.

"Sensei! This appears to be the same testing grounds used in the entrance exam. Will we once again be performing cityscape maneuvers?"

This question came from one that looked like a mixture between a samurai and a biker from the future. He had a white helmet with a full white face mask. He wore a black jacket under heavy white metal armor for his torso that had what looked like pipes that went from the back to behind him. His arms and legs also had heavy metal coverings, leaving him with some black gloves. On the back of his legs were more of the pipes. It took him a bit, but he ended up placing him as most likely Tenya since he remembered him having odd legs during yesterday's test, and the voice was familiar.

"Nope!" All Might said, his smile returning. "You'll move on to step two: Indoor Anti-personnel Battle Training! Villain battles are most commonly seen outdoors, but statistically, the most heinous villains are more likely to appear indoors."

All Might continued his lecture as he put a hand to his chin. "Think about it! Backroom deals, home invasions, and secret lairs! In this hero-filled society of ours, the cleverest villains out there lurk indoors!" All Might shifted his posture again, fists on his waist. "You'll now be split into Villain and Hero teams and face off in two-on-two indoor battles!"

"So, no basic training? Ribbit," Tsuyu asked.

"Practical experience teaches you the basics!" All Might replied, "The distinction here is that you won't fight disposable robots."

Several students' hands went up, but they started speaking anyway.

"What determines victory?"

"Can I just blast everyone away?"

"Are you threatening to expel someone, like Aizawa-sensei did?"

"How do we proceed to divide ourselves into teams?"

"How fabulous is my cape?"

All Might struggled as he realized he was losing control. "One at a time! My quirk isn't super hearing!"

After they stopped, All Might continued after reading a small slip of paper from a pouch. "Listen up, the villains will be hiding a nuclear weapon in the hideout, and the heroes must go in and take care of it. The heroes have a limited amount of time to either capture the villains or secure the weapon. The villains must either capture the heroes or protect the weapon until the time is up."

"Your battle partners will be decided by…," All Might said as he reached over to a small box, grabbing it before turning back to the students and showing him what was written on it. "Drawing lots!"

"Is that really the best way?" Iida questioned.

"Makes sense; Pros often have to team up with heroes from other agencies on the spot during emergencies," Izuku noted, relieving All Might.

Iida turned to look at Izuku before turning back to their Sensei, "I see. I apologize for getting ahead of myself. My mistake."

"It's fine! Let's just get to it!" All Might said as the students approached and reached into the box.

The students began lining up and drawing their lots. When Izuku's turn came, he drew an A, marking him for Team A. The other person that had drawn an A was Ochako! Izuku stared at Ochako as she smiled at the team they had formed. Izuku was once again thankful for his face mask.

He saw a few other teams getting together, but his attention was pulled back to All Might as he brought out two boxes, one marked Villain and the other Hero. "Moving on, first up are these!" All Might then pulled two balls from the boxes before calling them out. "The hero team is Team A! The villain team is Team D!"

Izuku looked over to see who was– Kacchan. And Tenya. This wasn't going to be pretty.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Katsuki stood in the room with the 'nuke,' seeing as it was just a giant paper mache when Tenya inspected it. They had both inspected the room some but found there wasn't anything special about it. It was just a bunch of columns and windows to the outside.

His hero costume was composed of a jagged black mask that flared orange in the back, a black tank top with an orange x over it, some sort of metal neck brace open in the front, dark black pants with heavy black boots, and metal shin guards. On his wrists were some large accessories that looked like grenades.

Katsuki was glad he would have the chance to face off against Deku, both to see what his strength was and to finally call him out for lying about being quirkless for so many years. But Katsuki also wanted to win because he already knew he was behind compared to several classmates.

"Hey, so Deku has a quirk?" Katsuki asked his fellow villain.

Tenya looked at the blonde in confusion, "Who is Deku?"

Katsuki grunted in annoyance, realizing the boy wouldn't recognize him by that name. "The male extra we're facing."

It took a moment for Tenya to figure out whom Katsuki was referring to, but he did have enough to narrow it down. The fact the boy didn't use his name confused him, but he opted not to investigate that for now. "He has a monstrous strength, but it appears he had difficulty controlling it until yesterday. Saotome-kun appears to have been a great help to him."

Katsuki growled, but it matched what he had seen and heard. Though he immediately discounted the 'monstrous' part of the explanation. From what he had seen, it was a minor boost compared to the genuine monsters in their class. He planned to confront him about it, but the priority was to ensure he won. Deku was low on his list of threats to deal with.

"Since you seem familiar with him, do you have a plan?" Tenya questioned.

Katsuki took another look around the room and considered the rest of the layout of the building. "Yeah, I'm out of here. Fighting in here is stupid." He turned and began to walk away.

"I'll come with you."

Katsuki grits his teeth in a snarl. "Just stay and guard the bomb. I don't need your damn help."

Tenya stepped closer to Katsuki, though he avoided getting too close. "That may be, but you'll have it anyway. This is a team battle, so there will be more than one opponent you will be facing. While I do not know if you can defeat them alone, working together significantly increases our chances of success."

Katsuki paused at that. He could handle Deku on his own, and the girl wouldn't be an issue either. But while he could fight them himself, there was always that chance it would become too risky if they could put up a better fight than he anticipated. The girl Extra was a sideshow but could become a problem if he ignored her. If this had been the day before yesterday, he'd forget Extra here and just go crush the bugs. But yesterday did happen, and he knew he wasn't the best. Not anymore. Not with Parker, Forehead, or the Pigtailed Bastard being present. He couldn't just coast along to be the strongest like he had previously thought, even against a bug like Deku.

Deku…that nerd had hidden something from him for years. What could he do? Katsuki didn't know, not for sure. Which meant the nerd could try to pull some stupid trick. Katsuki would still win, but he didn't just want to win. He would crush him. And he could use Extra here to ensure it.

Katsuki thought further, visualizing how the fight might go, and developed his plan. "Alright, here's what we'll do."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku and Ochako made their way toward the building as they looked at its blueprints. Ochako was excited; she couldn't wait to start, especially with the difference between yesterday's and today's tests.

"I'm so glad there's no punishment for failure like Aizawa-sensei had," Ochako said before glancing at Izuku. She looked with concern at Izuku after noticing that he was shaking badly. "Are you okay? You're shaking some."

Izuku paused, realizing she was right and his mind was running away. He was glad Ochako mentioned it. He used Ranma's previous advice to start to calm his nerves. He started planning ahead for what was to come, but that required him to think of what Kacchan would do, mainly because of his reaction to his passing, and he would probably be pissed about him having a quirk.

"Sorry, I was just nervous about having to face Kacchan," Izuku said as he began to calm down.

"Kacchan?" Ochako asked, recognizing the significance of what the name meant. "Is he an old friend?"

Izuku winced, visible to Ochako since the lower part of Izuku's mask was down. "Kind of. We've lived near each other since we were kids, and I always looked up to him. But he's also kind of been bullying me."

Ochako looked on with surprise, though from what she had seen of the boy, it wasn't too surprising. He was loud and called people names, calling most of the class 'extras' whenever he would address them.

"He's strong, confident, and his quirk is powerful, and he knows how to use it well. But I also don't want to lose to him," Izuku said as his resolve firmed up and his plans began to settle. "He believed I was quirkless, so he would be mad at me. He will hit us hard and fast, but he'll probably leave you alone to start. He also doesn't tend to work with others, preferring to show he is the strongest. He'll focus on me, so you must stay back until I have his attention, then move on toward the objective. He's too tenacious and difficult to target, and your quirk won't be of much use against him because his explosions would still allow him to move freely."

Ochako looked on with surprise at how well thought out the quick analysis was and how well he knew his reaction. She nodded along, thinking of who she would have to take on. "Iida, we don't know him as well, but from what we have seen, he seems straightforward and fast. He… I think he'll stay near the bomb. But he would also have to get close to me to attack, which could allow me to use my quirk on him and buy me the time to get to the bomb."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll take point, so when Kacchan attacks, I can create an opening for you to get past him."

"Right! Let's do this!" Ochako said, pumping her fist as she psyched herself up.

The two heroes entered the building and snuck inside through a window. They began going through the hallways towards the next set of stairs as they made their way up. Izuku approached corners carefully, trying to detect or anticipate Kacchan's attack. Ochako was several meters back, more than enough distance to keep her safe from an initial blast while checking their backs.

On the second floor, Izuku crept up to one of the corners as he prepared to peak when he heard a rush of movement. Izuku threw himself back as Kacchan bounced off one of the walls above them, his glove pointing in his direction. Izuku braced himself as the explosion added more momentum, sending him flying backward and smoking, landing near Ochako's feet.

Ochako gasped in surprise at the sudden attack but quickly tried to get Izuku back on his feet, his mask damaged and showing part of his face. They didn't have time to discuss what was happening as Katsuki charged their position. He had leaped to the hallway wall again before diving at them with both hands pulled back.

Izuku grabbed Ochako and dove below the attack as it was too powerful to do anything but dodge. When they stood again to face Katsuki, he turned back toward them more calmly than before. Izuku pushed Ochako behind him, seeing this as their chance. She stepped back as Izuku held his position, keeping their eyes on the dangerous target before them.

"Nice dodging, Deku," Katsuki said calmly before his face became enraged as his voice raised in volume. "You piece of shit! Have you been lying about being quirkless all these years?"

Izuku put his hand behind him, trying to wave Ochako on to go on ahead. "It's complicated, Kacchan!"

Ochako was only a few meters away from the hallway Katsuki had come from when he yelled even louder than before. "I'm going to kick your ass, Deku!"

They watched as Katsuki brought both fists back and slammed them forward at the same point before him, creating a large and deafening explosion. Izuku and Ochako had to look away momentarily as it was so bright. It also spelled disaster for them, as they didn't hear the rapid footsteps behind Ochako.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Watch closely and try to learn something, everyone!" All Might said as the rest of the students stood in a nearby building with many 2D projections instead of monitors. The projections showed all the different floors, usually one to three cameras for every room or hallway. The rest of the students stood around, watching over the displays.

A few had more vested interest than most of the class, seeing as they had become involved with the students.

"That's low, Bakugo! Sneak attacks are so unmanly!" Eijiro yelled as his eyes were glued to the display.

"Yet it is a valid strategy. This is practical experience, after all!"

"Midoriya can definitely dodge!" Mina said, glancing between Eijiro and the displays.

"Both sides did well," Sakura said, grabbing a few interested parties attention. "Both anticipated the coming battle and planned accordingly. Bakugo remained silent before springing his ambush, which was well executed for his level. Midoriya expected something like this, so he was the point man to make sure they wouldn't be caught in an ambush like that. If he had been more careless, that could have taken them out of the fight."

They watched as Bakugo followed up the attack, nearly jumping over them as they dived beneath them. Most of the rest of the class gave approval as Midoriya dodged beneath it, grabbing Uraraka down in time. Sakura smiled, recognizing the possible strategy involved with that maneuver, though she wasn't the only one who noted the purposeful clumsiness of it.

They watched as Ururaka slowly backed up even as Bakugo stalked forward. Izuku had given some signal before raising his fists as he prepared for the next attack. Bakugo shouted something before setting off a large explosion in front of them, louder and brighter than expected based on what they could see and the other two's reaction.

That was when they saw Tenya step around and use a burst of speed to hit Ochako in the back, grabbing her and nearly shoving her into the ground in complete surprise. His hands moved fast as he put the capture tape around one of the limbs, indicating she was sufficiently captured and was now out of the fight. Tenya had accomplished all this before Midoriya could finish getting his eyes and ears re-adjusted. Sakura smiled in approval.

"Another ambush! So unmanly!" Eijiro cried out, his hands pulling on his hair in anguish. No one noticed the slight twitching the redheaded Ranma went through.

They watched as Midoriya finally noticed Iida lifting Uraraka. He was shocked and sprinted after the other boy but was too slow to stop him. Especially as Bakugo used that time to close the gap.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku realized too late how stupid he had been! His ears and eyes still hurt from that flashbang Kacchan had set off, but he had chanced a look behind himself to check on Ochako to make sure she was alright, only to see her on the ground with Iida holding her to the floor.

He panicked and sprinted for her, hoping to prevent her capture. His uneven lunge was thrown off due to unfamiliarity with his quirk and the previous flashbang, making it clumsy and slow. Iida had already picked her up and was carrying her off when he had recovered.

He was lucky his hearing had returned enough to hear the extra explosion from behind that reminded Izuku that Kacchan was still there. He turned and twisted just in time to catch the right arm he knew would be coming for him. He twisted his body, putting his shoulder up near Kacchan's, and then lowered himself and threw his childhood friend into the hallway floor. The boy skidded forward a little but quickly recovered.

Izuku looked up and was heartbroken to see Iida had already escaped with Ochako. They had captured her. He had let her down, and now he was alone against his childhood tormentor and friend. Winning this trial just got significantly more challenging. He watched as Kacchan got to his feet quickly and turned to leap, another explosion prepared in his right hand as it reared back.

But Izuku had better control of his quirk now. He could use it without hurting himself. He wasn't the same as before; he had a way he could win. Izuku tracked Kacchan's motion, used a bit of strength in one of his legs to push himself forward faster than expected, and closed the gap. His hand reached out and grabbed Kacchan's elbow, then Izuku spun him around by his arm, spinning him behind him until he released him toward the wall that had been to Izuku's right so that the blonde boy would crash into it with his back.

Kacchan still crashed into it, but an explosion he set off behind himself reduced his momentum and thus his impact, though it cratered the wall before he hit it. He pointed both hands down, creating more explosions to send him flying above, and avoided an empowered punch that finished the wall.

"You piece-of-shit liar!" Kacchan screamed as he kicked off the ceiling, redirecting his motion as he dive-bombed Izuku, bringing both arms forward for another double explosion and aimed for his back. But Izuku dived through the hole to avoid the hit. He got his feet from under him as he skidded along and bleeding his momentum.

Izuku looked up into Kacchan's rage-filled eyes, his own determination present. He wasn't the same pathetic Deku he had been a year ago. But there was one thing about Kacchan's accusations that stung Izuku badly. He wasn't a liar. He hadn't hidden a quirk from Kacchan for all these years, but how could he hope to tell him without revealing the truth? That his quirk was literally All Might's quirk. A hero that both of them had looked up to as they grew up. While Kacchan didn't go to such extremes like himself, he knew All Might was his goal and his hero.

Izuku briefly considered what Ranma had told him, using that as some excuse to explain his change. But that thought would be a lie, and it didn't sit well with him.

"I'm not a liar, Kacchan!" Izuku pleaded, "But I can't tell you why! I'm sorry!"

He hoped he would be believed but knew he wouldn't and was quickly proven right as it angered the boy even further. Kacchan flew forward with another burst of explosions, his right arm cocked again. Izuku responded in kind as he shot forward as well, shooting to intercept the cocked fist yet again.

This time, Katsuki was ready as he brought his left palm forward, shooting a minor explosion right in front of him, catching Izuku by surprise, disorienting him, and throwing off his aim. Katsuki grabbed Izuku's outstretched arm with his right hand, grabbing around his wrist with his entire glove.

Katsuki's previous explosion had also reduced their momentum, so they didn't smash into each other. He then set off a short series of explosions with his left palm as he used it to generate momentum; he pivoted around the arm, dragged his arm behind his back, and corkscrewed in the air, with the other boy dragged along behind him.

Izuku went flying over Katsuki as his arm felt as if it was being ripped out of its socket, and found himself flying towards the ground for a horrible crash as he was released. Izuku strengthened his legs and arms just as he got them beneath him. The impact hurt, but not as much as it likely would have if he hadn't pulled that off in time.

Izuku looked up just as Katsuki was making his own landing and made a move to dive after him yet again.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

The spectators were going crazy as they watched the two go at each other. The two boys quickly proved to be adaptable and instinctual. The back-and-forth fights with the occasional breaks where the two yelled at each other continued. Both sides landed hits, but neither could take out the other since they mitigated the more punishing blows.

All Might kept his smile up but had grown worried as he watched the battle with Izuku. He was very proud of his successor's performance, especially as he had only gotten enough control of his quirk to not injure himself just yesterday. He showed a great deal of talent for fighting. His opponent was also highly talented, creative, and instinctual in his fight. The two of them could readily grow to be outstanding heroes in the future, and he was looking forward to that possibility.

But what worried All Might was what he heard during the two young men's battle during the occasional verbal outrage they would spew. He realized why Katsuki was so angry at his protege. They had grown up together, so for Izuku to suddenly develop a quirk out of nowhere without Katsuki learning about the truth would make the temperamental boy angry not just for being lied to but angry at himself for not realizing the truth.

He was glad that Izuku was opting not to reveal the truth, but he now knew this was eating him up. He didn't know how to help them without telling the truth. But the truth was too dangerous; he couldn't reveal it to Katsuki without putting him at far more risk than what the truth would alleviate. He would have to think about it. A talk with the Principal later this week could help him figure out what to do.

The two boys continued as the time dwindled, neither getting the upper hand. Both would need to see a healer after this, All Might was certain. He wasn't sure about using Haruno for that task, but the girl had been cleared to provide on-site medical treatment.

When his stopwatch started beeping, warning that time was quickly running out, All Might sighed as he knew Izuku would be heartbroken. He watched the last few seconds dwindle before he moved his hand to the microphone as the time finally ran out.

"Time's up!" All Might said through the speakers, bringing the listeners' and the combatant's attention. "Villain team wins!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

The four combatants stood before All Might and the rest of the class. Ochako looked depressed, having been taken out before she could do anything. Izuku's suit was nearly unsalvageable, having torn in multiple spots. His face and arms sported bruises that were becoming visible and made more than one classmate wince in sympathy. His bangs covered his eyes as he looked down in total defeat.

Tenya looked pristine and held his head high as he waited. Bakugo was also similarly banged up like Izuku, but despite winning, he looked pissed. After All Might called it, he had almost restarted the fight and kept looking at Izuku and gritting his teeth.

"The V.I.P. in this battle was Bakugo!" All Might said aloud. Only a few of the students weren't surprised. Seeing the confusion, All Might decided to test his students. "Does anyone know why?"

"Well, Bakugo fought the longest and hardest, and he started with that ambush, ribbit," Tsuyu said, trying to reason it out. "But Iida captured Ururaka and got away with her…." She wasn't sure how to treat it and was not the only one.

"Shouldn't it have been Iida or Midoriya, sensei?" Jiro asked after raising her hand. She ignored the glare she received from Bakugo for that. "Iida trailed after Bakugo captured Ururaka and kept a level head." She continued to ignore the even harsher glare from Bakugo. "And Midoriya planned well but had not anticipated Iida's ambush."

"No, though I can understand how it could appear that way," All Might said. "Anyone able to explain why it isn't?"

"While Iida is smart and can think tactically, it is not something he is used to putting into practice just yet," Sakura said, "Once a plan of action was decided on, he stuck to it completely. When Bakugo could not subdue Midoriya as fast as they anticipated, he didn't assist because that wasn't their plan. Iida ensured he didn't get in the way after Uraraka was down while also getting her out of the way of any potential stray shots."

Sakura smiled at Tenya with a bit of pride in her eyes. Tenya noticed it and gave his own subtle smile in return.

"So the one who came up with the ambush plan was Bakugo. Everything about that initial charge was planned and improvised. He needed to get past them while ensuring he had their complete attention. The second attack was purposely set up so they would dive beneath him to escape." She looked at Bakugo as he smirked at her before asking him a question. "Bakugo, your signal was the last sentence you said before you used the flashbang, correct? It was to let Iida know to attack after the next use of your quirk, right?"

He raised an eyebrow as his smirk dropped a little but nodded. "Yes."

"The plan had been to set up a scenario to hit them while their attention was on him; improvisation was needed. Once the scenario was primed, then they attacked. With one down, Bakugo was to hold Midoriya there or defeat him. Iida being nearby, might be able to help but could end up in the crossfire. So the plan involved Iida making one attack and then retreating, with or without Uraraka. This also set up subsequent attacks by Bakugo. With Uraraka neutralized, Iida was the last line of defense while Bakugo fought it out."

"Well stated, Haruno!" All Might said, trying to figure out how she knew all that. He only knew because he had access to the full voice comms. He then looked at the rest of the class, "Anything else to critique?"

They noticed Parker's arm was raised, several students lowering theirs as they grew interested in what he had to say. "The place to fight was also well chosen. Explosions are more easily focused in smaller quarters, meaning you have less maneuverability to dodge or suppress their impact. Not to mention that sound reverberates in a closed environment more easily, so the air pressure from the blast waves is more effective."

"Then there is the fact that the room with the bomb would offer too many opportunities for a quick turn changing the battle in their favor. Not to mention that bombs usually don't react well to other explosives. The only chance it might not set off the nuke was if it was an unarmed military-grade nuclear weapon."

That surprised the entire class, as explosives near a nuke sounded like a horrible idea! All Might decided to ask since even he didn't know the answer. "What do you mean by that, young Parker?"

"Military-grade nuclear weapons come with multiple series of protections against an accidental detonation. Nuclear bombs combine fission and fusion; you cause a fission reaction that compresses everything into a fusion reaction. This causes a chain reaction causing fusion and fission detonations. There are multiple safeguards in place preventing the mixing of materials. If not deactivated properly, those safeguards will prevent the components from mixing. All safeguards have been deactivated when someone 'arms' a nuclear warhead. If the villain team had armed it, any impact or jostling could set it off."

"Okay… that is… good to know, young Parker." All Might said while the rest of the class just stared. "Anyone else?"

"Bakugo and Izuku's techniques were adequate for being untrained," Ranma added. "Bakugo was more instinctual and had good creativity, while Izuku was calculating and anticipating his opponents' attacks."

"Thank you, Saotome," All Might said. He was sweating a little, being shown up so well by his students. He decided it was time for the next match, "Teams B and I are up next!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma looked over the room that had the fake weapon. They were on the top floor, much like the previous battle. It had enough maneuverability that several different options were on the table. From what she had seen of the hallways, while she could easily fight there, it would be difficult for Toru. Not to mention who their opponents were. Mezo's arms would make it impossible for Toru to fight him adequately due to the distance he could cover and his senses. Todoroki could put out ice, but Ranma needed to figure out how much he could generate or control.

Ranma looked at Toru, who was only wearing a pair of light blue gloves and brown-gray shoes. Toru was also inspecting the room, and his senses told her she glanced her way occasionally. Considering she had done that throughout the day, Ranma decided now was the best time to deal with that issue. Ranma was glad for the lessons she had gotten on politeness from her guardians.

"Hagakure-san?" Ranma asked, getting her full attention. "I apologize for the confusion before the practical exam began last month. It had not been my intention to touch you inappropriately. I sensed you entering my personal space after I backed up and attempted to hold you by your shoulder to prevent a collision. I didn't calculate you attempting to straighten up at that time," Ranma said before bowing to her. "Again, I apologize."

Toru looked at Ranma, who was wearing a short-sleeved red shirt in a Chinese style, with some clasps holding the front of the shirt. She also wore some black silk pants, with the middle being tied by a dark cloth belt and some slippers.

Toru considered the other girl– boy– girl's words, and she was leaning toward believing her. Ochako had informed her what she had learned yesterday, making more sense than before. But having been invisible for so long, someone being able to sense her so accurately was not something to which she was accustomed. She decided to find out how good she was. "You can sense me? What does that mean?"

"I can sense your Ki. While my normal senses are better than normal, I can't visually see anything. I can hear, smell, and feel you around me like a blind person might have their other senses enhanced somewhat. It can also sense emotions, especially strongly felt ones. I don't always have it on 'full' since it can be distracting, but I always have it partly on within a meter or two. My Ki sense lets me get more of an actual image of you than those senses, so I can detect your body and where you are at. Including limbs and other things."

Toru considered her words but decided to test things. She took off her gloves and raised her left hand. "Which hand am I holding up?"

"Your left."

"Can you see my fingers?"

"Yes."

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Two… four… three… five… one– oh, that's just rude," Ranma said with a glare at her.

Toru giggled, suitably satisfied. "Thank you, apology accepted," Toru said, her tone lighter than before.

Ranma smiled in return, glad that snafu was behind them for now. Best to concentrate on the battle now. She started trying to play different scenario's out in her mind. Unless Todoroki or Mezo were much more powerful than they showed, she could finish this test rather quickly without showing more advanced techniques. But this was training.

A few years ago, she probably would have done it so she would win, her ego demanding nothing less. But she had matured some before becoming younger again and had become a Sensei. She looked toward Toru and noticed she was taking her boots off and leaving her gloves off. "Why are you taking everything off?"

"I figure it is best to go full stealth against them. I might be able to capture one of them from behind," Toru said as she looked for a place to store her equipment.

While not a bad strategy, Ranma knew that against Mezo, it wouldn't be very effective. Against Todoroki, there were a few unknowns. Best to get what information she could fill in for now. "How are you against cold temperatures?"

Toru looked at her, wondering why she was being asked that. "No better than most anyone else."

Ranma narrowed her eyes before deciding her plan wasn't usable at this time. "Put your boots back on at least, and possibly your gloves. You don't have anything else to keep you warm right now?"

Toru blinked a few times, surprised at the suggestion. "Why?"

"Against Mezo, your being invisible won't be of much use. He has even better-enhanced hearing and other senses than I do. The only thing I have on him is my Ki sense. He'll know where you are and is smart enough to ensure he tracks you the entire time."

"Mezo?" Toru asked.

"Oh, uhh, Shoji. Sorry, I don't normally use honorifics or family names. I usually save those for my Mom and others I respect."

"Not your father?" Toru asked, wondering why one would be respected and the other not.

Ranma snorted, "Hell no! My old man doesn't get that respect unless he does something super awesome. At least until he does something stupid shortly after."

Toru giggled again before turning back to the subject at hand. "Okay, so Shoji-kun, I won't be able to sneak up on him. Todoroki-kun has ice powers… oh, I get it now. If he's got ice powers, the area around him or near his attacks will be cold. That also means the environment will get cold!"

"Yep," Ranma said, glad she was catching on. "Mez– Shoji will also make it part of his mission to watch his back, knowing you might threaten him. So your invisibility isn't going to be particularly effective at the start. During the fight, we'll learn more about what Todoroki is capable of and how cold it will be, so you can know whether you can withstand his impact on the environment. They will expect you to wear what clothes you can, so when you are certain you can withstand it, you can take them off and use them as a surprise action."

Toru nodded as she grabbed her gloves and boots and started putting them back on.

"For now, stay back and out of sight and out of the line of fire. I'll watch your position so stray shots don't go your way. Let them concentrate on me, and I will keep them occupied; you try to move towards them occasionally. If you see an opportunity, go for it. I'll force their attention on me when I sense you making a move."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"They're both in the same room on the north side of the fourth floor," Mezo said as he kept several ears pinging to their location as another limb created a mouth for him to speak from. "I recommend we be careful. While Hagakure is not a real threat to us, Saotome will be a nightmare to fight."

Mezo glanced at his current ally after giving his evaluation above. Todoroki Shoto's costume comprised a white dress shirt, off-color white pants, and white boots. It looked very plain, save for this left side was covered entirely in what looked like ice, save for his boots. The ice also covered his left eye and glowed, making it a little eerie looking.

Shoto didn't even look in Mezo's direction, instead giving a dismissive snort at the suggestion that Ranma would be a threat. "It won't matter. Get outside; it's going to get cold."

Mezo considered his suggestion but noticed he didn't seem to think his warning about the dangers of Ranma was sufficient. Mezo didn't know how powerful Shoto was, but Mezo got at least a decent grasp and knew to take it seriously. "What do you intend?"

Shoto glared at the other boy, finally taking in his appearance after dismissing him earlier. Mezo still had a face mask and was sleeveless, but his mask was larger and midnight blue, going over his light-blue tunic and light-blue pants, with some buttons on the front that looked more like eyes and a dark blue belt with a golden eye sitting prominently on it. He also wore dark blue boots.

"I'm going to freeze the building," Shoto commented. "Their feet will be trapped in the ice."

"That might work on Hagakure, but it won't even slow Saotome down," Mezo said, crossing his arms as he looked Shoto in the eye.

The boy glared back at being challenged but opted to consider his words. "I can freeze him more completely when I get to the floor he is on."

"How fast can your ice move? How strong is it?"

Shoto narrowed his eyes a bit, answering honestly. "I can attack in the blink of an eye. The ice can enclose someone and is stronger than normal ice."

"The speed, I don't think, will be a challenge for Saotome, and neither will the strength," Mezo said, who received another glare from the boy. "I observed Saotome in yesterday's assessment tests and the practical exam. He is fast and strong, has some enhanced senses, and could do other things that I still don't understand how he did them. Like flicking small rocks a hundred meters away that destroyed robot heads in a metal shower."

Shoto paused. That last one spoke of experience, likely something from the practical exam most of the class had to take, and it was not something he had seen in yesterday's tests. That made him a threat as he accepted that the boy knew what he was talking about. "What do you propose we do then?"

Mezo concentrated as he thought of how to fight someone like Saotome. "First, can you control your ice to be more thorough on a specific target?" Mezo asked.

"Yes."

"We start with your initial attack. Hit Saotome as hard as possible, and I will help determine its effectiveness. If it is not effective enough against Saotome, then if it can at least negate Hagakure and you can hold Saotome long enough, I can go for the weapon. If not, we must work together to create an opening to attack."

Shoto paused as he evaluated the initial plan, finding it sufficient. "Tell me where he is, and then get outside."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma paused as she followed the two several floors below. It was still tricky, but her senses let her get enough of a read on the two's emotions. She was reading quite a bit of arrogance from Shoto and annoyance from Mezo. She knew Mezo had a good head on his shoulders, so if he was getting annoyed, the other boy probably wasn't listening to what he was saying. Shoto was annoyed because of the discussion, meaning he didn't like being questioned or slowed down.

Ranma tilted her head as she worked it over, quickly going over what information she had. She knew Shoto had seen her at yesterday's field test, so he should know how strong and fast she was. So for him to still be that arrogant meant that he thought he was strong enough to take her on anyways. His physical capabilities could have been more impressive, meaning his ice was his focus and more powerful than previously shown. That meant fast or overwhelming attacks, probably both if he was that confident. He also had to avoid damaging the bomb and not permanently hurting them, so he thought he had solid control.

As Shoto seemed to pause, Ranma observed his arrogance, confidence, and impatience cutting out, and Mezo's aggravation was satisfied a moment later. Mezo got through to the other boy, it seemed. Ranma ran a checklist of all the attacks Mezo might have seen her do, and there were a few that he might have used to get through to Shoto. Nothing super impressive to Ranma, as she hadn't used anything spectacular in her mind. But there were a few that made identifying what she could do to be more confusing. Ranma then saw Mezo reluctantly walking back outside while Shoto just looked directly at her spot after Mezo had pointed her out.

Ranma smirked as their likely plan of attack formed, and an idea came to her. She waved at Toru to get her attention as she mimed using a zipper on her lips and stayed where she was. Toru seemed to understand as she nodded and gave a thumbs up.

Ranma then removed her silk shirt, revealing the exercise bra she wore underneath, though it was longer than most she had seen and could almost be considered a tank top. Toru's mind shifted to jealousy for a boy to be so well endowed, but it was brief. After all, Ranma wasn't as impressive as another classmate of theirs. Ranma tossed the silk shirt at Toru, confusing her even as Ranma mimed putting it on. She became further complexed even as she put on the shirt when Ranma removed her pants to show… boxers? She wasn't sure why she wore that, but after being tossed the pants, she didn't require any additional instructions before she put them on.

Ranma then continued the game of charades, trying to explain the game plan to her as quickly as possible. Toru was confused but caught on quickly enough that it made some sense, making her smile and nod. It was an odd sensation to nod and have someone realize she was doing it.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Thank you, Haruno-san!" Izuku sighed with relief as the pink-haired girl finished healing his bruises and cuts. He was the first to receive her treatment, with Kacchan and Ochako next in line. His embarrassment of being treated by a girl was at the back of his mind as his body wasn't screaming at him about his pain.

"You're welcome, Midoriya," Sakura said with a smile before turning her attention to her grumpier patient.

Izuku walked away to leave her to her task. He looked back as Katsuki came off all abrasive as he regarded her, but he seemed willing to let her do her job without a fight. Izuku looked back and returned to the rest of his class as he saw both teams preparing. His body seemed to feel phantom pains but they were brief and went away quickly.

Izuku watched the monitor as the next match began. It had also been eye-opening for him as he had seriously misjudged Kacchan. He had not expected him to actually work with Iida. At first, he had thought Iida had just taken the initiative himself, but what Haruno-san had said made too much sense.

He felt awful for letting Ochako down. He was going to have to apologize to her after school, but there was something else niggling at his thoughts that he needed to deal with. He strode up to their teacher as he stood off to the side.

"All Might?" Izuku asked softly, trying not to attract attention.

All Might almost replied with his usual boisterous voice but quickly realized what Izuku was doing and spoke softly. "Yes, young Midoriya?"

"I…" A thousand things to say ran through his mind. Most of them were some form of asking forgiveness for failing his idol, but something firmed in him. He had stood against Kaachan, an incredible fledgling hero, and held his own! At least a little. So his mind fell on an older thought. "I learned something about Saotome-san yesterday, something I need to talk to you about. It's important."

All Might blinked in surprise, not having anticipated that at all. He had expected disappointment and an apology from Izuku, so this came out of left field. "All right. I'll find you after class is finished."

"Thank you," Izuku said with a smile and more cheerful than before. Then his eyes widened in shock as cameras showed a world of ice appearing, and the temperature drop was felt even in the control room.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Shoto sighed after he completed his task. He had taken Mezo's warnings with enough care to go beyond what he usually would. The building was covered in his ice like he had planned, but he put more effort into the spot Mezo had said Ranma was at. That section should be covered in two meters of ice, thick and sturdy. He waited until Mezo returned and was shivering.

"Well?"

"They're talking and panicking. Their breathing shows they are cold. Saotome says she's trapped and can't get any leverage to get out. Hagakure had her boots on and was able to get out. She's trying to free Saotome now," Mezo said as he tried to keep his body temperature up.

"Good. I will go up alone; stay outside where it is warmer." Shoto commanded. "Inform me on comms if anything changes."

Mezo considered voicing his concern, but Shoto didn't seem interested in listening as he started walking away toward their goal. He decided to let him go but had a bad feeling about it. Once outside, Mezo tracked Shoto's progress as he climbed the floors and reached the room with the objective. He was a little concerned as Ranma stopped talking, and the ice was absorbing too much noise for him to differentiate her breathing from Toru's. The cold made it hard for him to concentrate, and he kept a hand near the button for their communications equipment.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

The class watched. They had been wondering what Ranma was doing, giving her clothes to Toru to wear and Ranma's miming. More than a few classmates quickly followed what Ranma had mimed, though even fewer of them understood the trap she was setting.

When Shoto attacked, they were all startled to see how strong and controlled his ice was. But when they looked at the monitor, they saw that Ranma had avoided it entirely, having leaped towards the ceiling and landed on the new block of ice that had formed where she had previously stood. They then saw her shouting and touching the ice with her hands, and while they couldn't hear her, they did see her smile. Toru escaped her own trap, though her boots were left behind, as she ran to the side of the block of ice next to Ranma. She was shouting as she hit the ice with her arms in futility while hopping around due to her cold feet. After a minute, Ranma gave her shoes to Toru, making it easier on the other girl as she continued to hit the ice pointlessly.

They watched as Shoto approached the room before Ranma disappeared as Shoto neared the room with the bomb. Only those with exceptional perception saw the blur of motion on the monitor; the cameras had barely picked it up. They watched Shoto finally enter the room, only to see Toru standing there. His blank expression became confused momentarily before shocked understanding took its place as his body stiffened. But it was too late; Ranma dropped from above, and with a single chop to his neck, Shoto fell to the ground.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

All Might suppressed a chuckle as he stepped up to the line of students. After Shoto was downed, Mezo tried to get inside to get at the bomb, but the cold and Ranma's interference made that impossible, and he was captured.

"So, Young Todoroki, do you know what happened?" All Might asked.

Shoto stared ahead, not looking at anyone, continuing to think over the situation while rubbing his neck as the soreness lingered. He knew the basics, just not the details. "I underestimated them. Even after Shoji's warning."

"That is true, and you did take steps to account for it. But what happened?"

"I don't know."

"While Shoji did warn about Saotome's enhanced senses, you did not consider the possibility of you being observed in return," All Might pointed out. He wasn't the only one curious about how Ranma could do all she had. But he was the only one in the room that had seen Ranma's quirk registry, which still only said he changed into a girl and back.

Shoto and Mezo both looked at All Might before they closed their eyes in realization. Shoto said, "She sensed us well enough to learn what we would do. They faked being trapped."

Shoji picked up the thread. "And Saotome knew of my capability to hear things further away, just like I knew of her abilities to a degree. They made it sound believable that Todoroki had trapped them, even with our additional precautions, causing us to drop our guard. When Todoroki got close enough, Saotome moved into a place to ambush while Hagakure remained in place to draw our attention."

"And I wasn't expecting Hagakure to be wearing clothes. Instead, I was looking for Saotome, and my eyes were drawn to her clothes. I took too long to realize it was Hagakure," Todoroki finished as he glanced to the side where Ranma and Hagakure were standing.

Toru was still wearing Ranma's shirt and pants as the temperature was still rather cold, and Ranma didn't seem to care about it. Toru wore a smile that no one could see at the twist she got to play. She never expected to play the role of the visible person!

Ranma had a bit of a smug grin because the arrogant boy had underestimated them. Especially when he expected to just steamroll them both. However, she figured it was a good lesson for Mezo to be cautious of what his senses told him. She'd have to ensure he didn't take it too hard later.

"Does anyone else have anything to add to the evaluation?" All Might asked.

Momo held her hand up, indicating she did have something to say. "While the Hero team made some mistakes on assumptions, their plan was still good, and they did listen to each other. They improved on their initial plan, with Shoji-san's excellent senses pinpointing Saotome-san's position, and Todoroki-san's control and power were exceptional. Those facts should not be overlooked."

"Indeed," All Might said, realizing he had forgotten to praise them. He then decided to get the show on the road again. "The M.V.P. of this battle was Saotome for a well-thought-out plan and execution, especially considering the opposing sides' abilities. Hagakure understood and followed the plan well, even when Saotome used gestures to fill her in. Todoroki's biggest mistake was underestimating their opponents and not taking his teammate's advice seriously enough. Shoji failed by relying too much on what his senses told him."

He waited until the four acknowledged his grade. "Next up, we have Hero Team G and Villain Team C!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura looked around the room. Each team was using a different building, but the interiors all seemed similar, with a large room where the bomb was located and then tall hallways and a few larger rooms throughout the building. They were empty shells and many without doors to them. The most significant difference between the previous battles was that their bomb was on the middle floor, not the top.

Sakura was wearing the same outfit she had for the practical exam but with one exception: she had a replacement Hitai-ate, her forehead protector, with the symbol of the Leaf on it, resting on the top of her head as a hairband. It made her feel nostalgic and returned a piece of her old life to her.

She was saddened that her forehead protector had been destroyed in Kaguya's fire dimension, even if it was the one created for the Shinobi army instead of the one that marked her as a member of the Leaf. While wearing one created by anyone but her home wasn't the same, it at least gave her a link to her home and her profession. She would wear this one proudly.

Sakura looked over at Yaoyorozu and was not put out by her outfit. She wore a sleeveless, high-collared, crimson leotard with a large yellow belt and some crimson boots. The fact that there was a cut in the leotard from the top to her navel, showing off her impressive bust, barely registered. She wouldn't be surprised if she gave some boys a nosebleed. But after becoming friends with Anko, it was mild compared to her old friend's casual clothes.

"So, Momo, what do we know about Jiro and Kaminari?" Sakura asked, as it was best to compare their information before making a plan.

Momo looked at Sakura, pausing as she considered what she knew. "Jiro uses sonics, considering both her ear lobes and her boots, which have speakers. Hypothetically, she could use it for both attack and sensing. She may be able to detect our position either from noise or sonar."

Sakura considered what she knew about Jiro Kyoka and found it lined up. Kyoka wore a light red shirt, black leather jacket and pants, and boots with speakers built into them. She also wore some white, fingerless gloves. Her long earlobes ended in stereo jacks that could extend, and she could control them like prehensile tails.

"I agree, and she's intelligent enough. I think she will be leading the two of them." Her thoughts then turned to their other opponent, Kaminari.

Kaminari Denki looked more like a rockstar, with a black jacket with lightning marks in white blazed along it and his black pants. He wore a white t-shirt beneath the jacket, visible since the jacket was wide open, and some fancy glasses. Denki also wore a communication device on his right ear with a small antenna sticking up.

"Kaminari struck me as too laid back and will follow her lead. His costume and abilities appear to stem from electrical attacks. Do we know if it is just by touch, or can he project them?"

Momo considered it, but they had no way of confirming it. "We don't know, so best to assume the worst."

"Agreed," Sakura replied. She had many ways to fight this with little to no risk to herself, but she also wanted to include Momo. "Can you give me a basic overview of your quirk? I know you can create things from your skin, but what are your limitations?"

Momo explained to Sakura what she could do. After she finished, Sakura smiled. "I have an idea."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku looked on as they watched Kyoka and Denki enter the building. Kyoka used her earlobes to plug into the walls as Denki was lit up, prepared for any attack. Knowing the speed and strength of Haruno made them very cautious.

Izuku looked to the side, seeing Ranma not actually observing the displays. She was tapping her chin with one of her fingers while looking up at the ceiling. He didn't have to blush as much when he looked her way as she had pulled a second pair of clothes from her bag, allowing Toru to continue wearing her outfit.

He wasn't sure how to treat Ranma when she was like this. She was a boy and a girl at times, which confused him. She was also tied with Tsuyu for being the shortest in the class at hundred and fifty centimeters, compared to Ranma's male height being nearly equal to his own hundred and sixty-six centimeters.

Izuku then noticed Mezo stepping up behind her. "Ranma, well done on the fight."

Ranma looked behind her and up at Mezo before answering. "You did well, Mezo. Todoroki was just too sure of himself. I noticed your frustration and his confidence and pieced together what would happen from what I knew of you two. Getting people to work as a team can be hard, especially when one is too sure of themselves. I should know; I was in his shoes once. And yours."

Mezo nodded. He knew he had made some mistakes and let his guard down. Shota's overconfidence just made it easier to be fooled. It was a good lesson for both of them. "Thank you for that. I hope to not repeat such mistakes in the future."

Ranma smiled widely, "Sure thing! That's what training is for, finding your weaknesses and correcting them before you go into a real fight."

Izuku nodded along with Mezo, understanding her point. Though, Izuku was curious about whether there was anything he could have done differently in his own battle. "Ranma-san?"

Ranma and Mezo glanced his way, "What's up, Izuku?"

"During my fight, was there anything I could have done differently?" Izuku asked.

Ranma paused, thinking, "Well, before the fight, sure. Training and other things on how to fight. I saw your moves were not ingrained and a bit clumsy, but not bad for lack of sparring practice. Further control of your quirk might have helped, but that can be dangerous to practice on your own for now. As for during the fight, your primary issue was underestimating your opponents working together, right?"

Izuku nodded, agreeing with all of her points. "Yeah, I've known Kaachan for years, and I never would have expected him to actually work with someone."

"Well, suppose you had expected them to work together; what could you have done differently?"

Izuku thought about it, trying to visualize how the fight would go differently if he had expected them to work together. "I could have had Uraraka-san just start running towards the objective instead of inching towards the hallway to sneak away while I attacked Kacchan."

"That's one possibility, but it has dangers for Ochako being able to take on Iida. Her quirk allows her to negate the gravity of objects she touches, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, in the hallways, that would be bad because there are surfaces all along the hallway Iida could use to push himself where he might need to go. And that assumes he doesn't grapple or take her down, preventing her from getting away."

Izuku nodded again, "What could I have done then?"

Ranma crossed her arms as she turned to look them both in the eyes. She smirked as she looked both boys in the eyes as she prepared her explanation. She still had fun doing this to her Guardians at times. "My family has a secret technique that has been known to strike fear and confusion in the hearts of many. It has won us many battles that were on the verge of defeat. People cannot hope to understand its strength until they see it in action."

She grinned wider as Izuku and Mezo both had her utmost attention. She noticed a few other classmates were listening in, as well as the ear of their teacher.

"What– what technique is that, Ranma-san?" Izuku asked. It sounded powerful to cause that kind of reaction.

"The secret technique is founded upon the tenets of motion, contemplation, and opposition. The technique's name is Fast Break!"

"So… what do you do?"

Ranma stood up, closed her eyes, and said, "You move forward to attack and then…," Ranma said as she paused for dramatic effect and pointed a finger into the air, "You run away!"

Izuku and Mezo blinked at that, thoroughly confused and not expecting a... cowardly suggestion like that. "What?"

"Dude, that's so unmanly!" Eijiro yelled from where he had been listening. It once more made Ranma's eye twitch.

Ranma dropped the facade and relaxed, seeing that her listeners had been caught in its trap perfectly. "You listened to how I built it up, expecting some terrifying technique, right? But when I explained it, it confused you, didn't it?"

"Yes." Both boys responded, giving her a bit of glare for that.

"That is part of the point of the technique," Ranma said as her grin returned. "It throws your opponent off guard because it contradicts what they anticipated from you. It takes them longer to react than if you had just run away without saying a word. And even when they do start to react, their emotions are out of place. If you don't know what to do during that time, keep yourself in motion while devising a plan. That gives you time to evaluate the situation."

Ranma then turned to Izuku. "In your situation, it would have gotten you out of that ambush faster and safer because it puts your opponents off-guard for first anticipating a devastating attack and then realizing what was actually happening. Any additional steps in their plan would fall apart due to it."

Izuku started to nod rapidly as he understood what Ranma was saying. He really wanted his notebook handy so he could write it all down. The other observers looked far more skeptical, though they had come around some.

"After that, you had two ways you could have used it. If you could get outside with Ochako, she could use her quirk on you or both of you while you carry her. You then scale the outside building faster than they could run up the stairs, or they would try to follow. Iida could beat you back there if they realize what you are doing in time, but that would make it a two versus one to get to the bomb before Bakugo arrives. The only downside is trying to find where the bomb is located."

Izuku and Mezo both blinked at that, not having considered that to be an option. "The other method also has Ochako using her quirk on you, but instead, you run through the hallway carrying her again. With your quirk, you would be faster than her, and with her negating your gravity, it would be easy to move around. It would be tougher, but you should be able to maneuver faster and get closer to the bomb. Your primary concern would be Iida catching up and stalling you long enough for Bakugo to catch up. At that point, one of you buys time for the other to get to the objective."

Izuku thought about her suggestion, realizing those were both better options than just letting Ochako try to fight Iida by herself. Izuku bowed to the girl as he thanked her. "Thank you very much, Ranma-san!"

Ranma grinned and bowed back. "No problem, Izuku."

She then looked back at the displays, showing Jiro and Kaminari had started making their way through the bottom floor. Then her eyes widened, and she smacked a fist into an open palm like a hammer driving a nail. "That's it!" Ranma shouted.

"Huh? What is?" Izuku asked as the rest of the class looked her way, including All Might.

"I was trying to figure out Haruno's training, but it seemed like a jumbled mess, and I couldn't tell what she was grounded in. I finally just figured it out!" Ranma was giggling now, pleased with herself.

"Ummm, what is it?" Izuku asked.

"Yes, young Saotome, what is it?" All Might asked as well. The entire class was curious.

"She's a Ninja!"

"... What!?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Jiro was getting irritated as they went along. Someone had created a white noise generator that threw her off her hearing. Considering how intelligent the two girls were and Yaoyorozu's quirk, it made sense.

But she was diligent about being careful. The two previous trials had shown ambushes and trickery. She did not want to underestimate them and knew about Shoji's senses being fooled. After grilling Kaminari about his quirk, she had him constantly have his quirk ready to stun, so if Haruno tried to pull a move similar to Saotome, she would get a shock.

She also had one earlobe plugged into the speakers in her shoes, ready to go immediately. She had just put an earlobe into the wall when she heard sprinting footsteps ahead of them. Two sets, meaning they were both rushing forward. "Get back and get ready! They are both coming down the hallway!" Jiro growled. As she backed up herself, moving the other earlobe to her other shoe, both prepared themselves.

That was when Yaoyorozu came around the corner. She had some contraptions in her hands that looked like balls and rope. But she didn't seem like she was winding up to throw them. Instead, she calmly faced them down, prepared for anything.

"Uh, where's Haruno?" Kaminari asked, confused.

"She's still around the corner; I heard two sets of footsteps. They must be preparing some sort of amb–" At that point, Jiro paused, having heard an extremely faint gurgling sound behind her.

She turned her head to look behind her to see what was wrong, only to become terrified as she found Kaminari struggling and then losing a fight to stay conscious as an arm was wrapped around his neck and a hand to the back of his head to keep him there. It was Sakura! She was standing on the wall above them and leaning down, holding Kaminari upside down in her choke-hold. It might have surprised her that Sakura wasn't being zapped if it wasn't for the insulation cloth covering his head and her arm, preventing contact. The worst part was the blank, upside-down stare Haruno was giving her as she did it.

Jiro recovered from her shock, only to hear motion behind her. She twisted around and tried to dive away, but the capture net was too broad and fast for her to do anything, and she went down, her feet not pointing in a helpful direction due to the twisting of her fall. She also noticed that Kaminari had fallen unconscious and been set down before Haruno approached her.

"Shit!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"See? Ninja," Ranma said with smugness in her voice.

Everyone else could only look at the screen with terror after seeing Sakura appear from nowhere. The fight was quickly over, and the match was called.

"They can be so annoying to fight, popping up out of nowhere with lethal intentions," Ranma said, nodding before turning to the rest of the class. "What's wrong with you guys?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

All Might was impressed and terribly confused by what he had watched on the screens. He needed to understand Sakura's quirk better, but it was beyond his expectations of how quirks work. She seemed to have multiple quirks, but her quirk listed she could achieve numerous effects with just one. Either way, she was highly versatile.

"Young Jiro and Kaminari, I can say you did nothing wrong. You were up against two extremely versatile and intelligent people. They set up the situation to counter your abilities and your teamwork, preventing almost any means for you to win. You were operating with too little information to counter them," All Might said, even though they both looked depressed and glanced at Sakura multiple times.

"How did she get behind us?" Jiro asked. "I heard her coming down the same hallway as Yaoyorozu. Even with the speed she showed yesterday, she couldn't have gotten behind us in time.

"She was never there, young Jiro," All Might said, a little confused as he hadn't seen anything on the cameras to indicate what had happened. "In fact, she avoided the camera's altogether until she appeared by Kaminari and placed him in that hold."

Jiro looked at Sakura again, her face showing both amazement and fear. And it seemed Sakura had no inclination to share her secrets. Luckily for the rest of them, someone else knew them well enough.

"She clung to the ceilings and purposely avoided the cameras from every angle," Peter said, catching their attention. "You saw her ability to adhere to the wall, so spotting and avoiding the cameras would reduce any risk of detection. Beyond that, I don't know."

The class nodded in appreciation but turned their attention to Ranma as she spoke up. "She also reduced her presence significantly, so your senses would have difficulty detecting her. So even if you glanced her way, your brain and other senses would discount it as irrelevant."

"As for why you heard her coming up the hallway," Ranma said as she rubbed her chin in thought, "I think she did something to trick your senses. She sent a pulse of energy toward you right before you heard them coming up the hallway. The energy caused a minor change in your own, near your brain, which probably explains why you heard multiple sets of footsteps."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at that accurate assessment while the rest of the class stared between the two of them. All Might asked, "And how do you know this, young Saotome?"

"I felt her from here, though it was harder to track from this distance. But then she suppressed herself well enough that it was hard to detect her. It was subtle but well executed."

"Is this true, young Haruno?" All Might asked.

Sakura gave a minor glare at Ranma for revealing her secret on that front but opted to be truthful. They weren't enemy shinobi or villains, after all. "Yes, it is true."

"Impressive," All Might said, "And terrifying!" He smiled, letting Sakura know he wasn't counting it against her. "Well done, Haruno and Yaoyorozu. A perfectly executed ambush and takedown. You took significant steps to reduce the abilities of your opponents and strong tactics to take them down quickly. Sakura is the M.V.P. this round."

The four combatants nodded, accepting his assessments.

"Now, for the next trial! Hero team H versus Villain team J!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Besides minor differences, Peter found their building the same as the others. Their bomb was on the fourth floor, but it had the same building structure and the same bomb. The room and hallway layouts were different. Some rooms had pillars, while others didn't.

He looked at his teammate for this, Eijiro. His costume consisted of the absence of a shirt, showing off his muscular body. He did have some shoulder pads that were red and looked like gears, but that and a wired guard around his face were the only things on his upper body. He wore dark pants, a red half-cape with jagged ends, and some heavy black boots. He did have a sizeable English R over his belt buckle.

Peter was wearing his regular suit, the black and red one he had made before he fought Beck. He had gotten a few compliments on his costume, and some were eyeing his lenses, especially after they saw the focus system working. But the only one that seemed to be observing with a critical eye was Yaoyorozu, though she had not said anything.

"So, Eijiro, I don't think I actually heard what your quirk is. All I could see was some sort of hardening if I had to guess. Considering your results from the other tests, you also get enhanced strength with it?" Peter spoke up and attracted his attention.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, my quirk is hardening. It gives me enhanced durability and some strength. I can even break concrete with enough effort," Eijiro replied. "What about you? Anything else I should know?"

"Well, I already told you what my quirk is, but one thing I left out is a sixth sense I have that warns me of danger." Peter then pointed at his wrists, "My suit also comes with some additional features if I want, but I'm not going to have all of them active for this. I have that support gear that allows me to shoot webbing I told you about."

Peter shot a line of webbing to the ceiling, gripping and hanging from it to show the strength and tension.

"Wow, man. That is wicked!"

Eijiro continued to smile before his features turned more serious. "So, how should we do this?

"Well, I figure we've got a few different ways," Peter looked off to the side as he considered their options. "From what I observed, Asui appears to have a mutant quirk. I would say some sort of frog, so she might be similar to me in abilities. Frogs are also known for long and powerful tongues."

Eijiro thought hard about it but couldn't fault Peter's reasoning. "Yeah, that sounds about right. And Tokoyami has something going on with those dark arms under his cloak."

Peter dropped to the floor, tilting his head as he thought of it. "Yeah, we don't know enough about his quirk to make a proper evaluation. But I think a bigger question is, what kind of tactics are you open to?"

"I prefer head-to-head battles," Eijiro said with a grin as he smacked his fists together. "Like what Midoriya and Bakugo did."

"Okay, but I don't think our opponents will do that," Peter said, deflating the other boy.

"Yeah, I know," he said as he looked towards the floor. "I just can't get into this mindset of being a 'Villain.'"

"Then don't."

"Huh?" Eijiro jerked his head to look at Peter. "What do you mean?"

"Instead of thinking of it like a Villain, think of it as a Hero trying to protect a nuclear weapon from falling into the hands of some villains. You called for some backup, and it's on the way, but you only have a little time. So you are trying to hold them off."

Eijiro blinked before his grin returned. "You're right! Thanks!"

Peter smiled, though the other boy couldn't see it due to his mask. "So think of it like this: you are trying to protect the objective, but you know the villains might use underhanded tactics to neutralize or get past you. Would you let your pride let you make a mistake and allow them to get it and possibly kill thousands or millions of people?"

Eijiro deflated again, as that did not sit well with him. "No. I can't allow that."

"Nothing wrong with wanting to be straight and honest," Peter said. "But recognize not everyone is going to be like that, and when you encounter them, be prepared to use different tactics."

"Okay, so what do you suggest?"

"Well, nothing says we can't use a straightforward and honest approach, but we need to shape the battlefield until that is the only way they can move forward. If all other avenues are cut off, or there are too many roadblocks, and they don't have the time, they will be forced to go straight at you."

Eijiro was shocked before his grin grew slowly. "Tell me more!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Tsuyu and Tokoyami went through the building and were on the second floor. They had already seen every trial had included some sort of ambush or trick by the villains, so they had prepared several tactics. They had an idea of Eijiro and some of Parker's abilities, but there were still some unknowns. There was also the intelligence Parker had displayed, so they were cautious of underestimating it.

Tsuyu was sticking to walls, crawling along at a fast pace. She wore a bright-green and black bodysuit, beige gloves and belt, and darker green thigh-high leg coverings. It didn't look like she wore shoes or boots on first inspection since her shoes looked like a frog's foot. Closer inspection would have revealed the three large toes in front acted more like flippers for swimming, and the back toe was a flexible heel. She also wore some oversized goggles above her head.

Tokoyami Fumikage was running behind and near her, ready to respond to any threat. He had Dark Shadow, an independent entity attached to him, sticking his arms out of his cloak in preparation. Fumikage's costume was a black cloak with black pants and boots underneath it. The oddest thing about him was that his head closely resembled that of a black eagle-hawk mixed with some slight human features. His enlarged, piercing red eyes peered over his hooked yellow beak. Swept-back black feathers completed the look of a bird of prey.

They tried to listen and sense anything coming but detected nothing. Tsuyu did find something unusual as she rounded the corner. She paused as she stared ahead at it. Fumikage was concerned for a moment, but she didn't seem tense, so he looked around the corner and saw what had confused her.

Ahead of them, by a few meters, was a wall that shouldn't be there. But it wasn't a typical wall; instead, it looked more like a spider's web. "I don't think Kirishima did that, ribbit."

"No, I don't suppose he would," Fumikage said. They both hesitated to get closer, fearing a trap or ambush. "Is there another way around it?"

Tsuyu took a moment to remember the blueprints they tried to memorize. "Yes, ribbit. But I suspect they might have done the same thing there."

"Agreed, let's see if Dark Shadow can get through."

His quirk shot forward out of his cloak, closing the distance to the impromptu wall in a moment. The being, mainly a deep black with some midnight purple shading, also looked like a bird but with large, yellow, and glowing eyes. It also had two long, misshapen hands that seemed to shift, as did his body as it shot forward. It reared back a fist and hit it as hard as it could.

Tokoyomi was surprised to only see it stretch.

"That stuff is strong!" Fumikage said as Dark Shadow continued to punch and shove it to no avail. The walls it was connected to were taking more damage than the webbing itself. He decided to see what else he could try, so Dark Shadow moved back and shifted one of its hands into claws and then sliced at it.

He was shocked when it sliced right through with minor resistance.

"Okay, cutting force works against the webbing, but not punches or kicks," Fumikage said as he recalled Dark Shadow into his cloak and prepared themselves. But after waiting for several seconds, nothing happened. "They might not have expected us to try that here."

"Or they thought we couldn't get through it," Tsuyu added, unsure. "Let's move, but be careful. Ribbit."

Fumikage nodded as they moved out with Dark Shadow prepared again to guard their backs. The fact they reached the stairs without anything else getting in their way surprised them. "Were they expecting us to take the alternate route?"

"Maybe," Tsuyu said as they went to the next floor, and she continued clinging to a wall.

They reached another hallway, and another web was in their path. "Are they just trying to slow us down? Ribbit." Tsuyu asked.

"Quite possibly. Let me tear this one down as well." Dark Shadow shot out again towards the new wall.

It was only because of how attentive they were that they heard the sounds of running. But what confused them was that it was coming from the wall to their side. Fumikage retracted Dark Shadow as fast as he could while jumping forward and barely avoiding the rampaging form of Eijiro as he burst out of the wall, creating a large hole in it. The fact that he didn't stop and burst through the other wall surprised them as the boy disappeared. They heard him smash another wall and heard him running.

"What the hell?" Fumikage asked, trying to look through both holes to figure out what was going on. They still heard his distant footsteps as they tried to understand.

"Leave it, ribbit," Tsuyu said as she approached the spider web.

"Right," Fumikage said as he followed along. Dark Shadow once again cut through the webbing, and they made their way toward the last turn before the stairs. But as they turned, they saw another web blocking their path. Dark Shadow prepared again, but more footsteps were heard from behind!

Fumikage leaped back the way they came as Tsuyu prepared to try to tag Eijiro, but he just plowed through both walls without stopping. Tsuyu jumped down as she saw Eijiro tear through another wall and was out of sight before she could use her tongue.

"What are they doing?" Tsuyu asked. Obviously, they had something in mind, but it only made a little sense other than distractions and slowing them down.

Fumikage thought about it and wasn't liking the conclusions he was heading toward. "I think they are trying to separate us. Maybe try to get one of us to follow Eijiro ." He leaned to look at the walls beyond but didn't find anything unusual yet. "He'll be back soon. Let's get to the next floor!"

Dark Shadow tore the webbing again, but to their surprise, it wasn't a singular wall; the entire area was filled with spider-web gunk. Fumikage's eyes widened as he realized too late that they were in the trap, "Ambu–!"

He was cut off from his warning as he was suddenly jerked backward, flying down the hallway with Dark Shadow dragged along. He flew halfway before he started skidding, his speed slowing down before he impacted the far hallway, knocking the air out of him. Dark Shadow finally caught up to him and pulled off a rope attached to his back. It looked like more of that webbing. He looked towards Tsuyu to see her hopping towards him, but then he finally spotted Parker as he exited the hole Eijiro had made earlier in the wall before he pointed his arm towards Tsuyu.

"Duck!" Fumikage shouted out, startled to see Peter had already gotten so far down the hallway. He was further surprised to see that instead of the web line he had expected, the shot expanded over Tsuyu's ducking head to create another wall, and he lost sight of her.

He stood on slightly shaky legs, preparing to have Dark Shadow tear through the webbing again, when his eyes widened as he heard more sprinting. He turned in time to see Kirishima charging straight at him with a big grin. Dark Shadow moved to intercept but couldn't stop the juggernaut that was Eijiro, and Fumikage was still too winded from the earlier impact to dodge. He was picked up and carried forward, rushing past the first entrance Eijiro had made, only to be thrown backward.

He was glad he didn't smash into a wall or the hard floor but instead into another bouncy web wall that hadn't been there before. The only downside was that he barely got his hands and knees under him when he rebounded to lessen the impact. Dark Shadow hit Eijiro from behind, knocking his head forward a little from its strength but doing little else before returning to Fumikage's side.

"Sorry about that, man, but I don't think you would have just gone for a straight-up fight or that Asui would stay out of it. So we needed to separate you two. Now it's just the two of us. I'm not going to give you a chance to get out. So if you want out, you'll have to go through me first!" Eijiro said, punching his fists together as he anticipated the coming fight.

Fumikage looked around, seeing the web wall behind him, additional walls blocking the hallway they had just come from, and the opening Eijiro had created earlier. They were trapped, and the only way he could get out was to cut through the webbing.

Fumikage started getting to his feet as he got his breathing under control. "You're right. I wouldn't have fought fair. But I guess I have to if I want to get past you."

Eijiro's grin widened. "That's the spirit! May the best man win!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Tsuyu was in a bit of a panic as she was cut off from where Fumikage was. She tried to shove or do something against the web wall, but it did nothing. She looked behind her and found only one way out of the area. The original path to the stairs was still covered in webbing, and she had no hope of getting past that, and a new wall blocked off one of the holes Eijiro had made. Her best bet was to try to get to Fumikage through the one opening.

She was extremely hesitant as she went through the hole; Tsuyu was already hearing the brawl Fumikage was in with Eijiro, meaning she was stuck dealing with Peter. She had only caught a glimpse of him as Fumikage was pulled down the hallway before he shot around the corner.

He could be anywhere in here and was probably waiting to ambush her. She slowly made it through the room by crawling on the ceiling as the fight got louder and louder. She checked all the corners regularly and tried to stay hidden, but she still didn't detect him. And that concerned her. She made her way to the hole in the wall and crawled down before peeking through it, her lengthy hair dangling beneath her. Seeing nothing, she looked back into her current room and also found nothing. She turned to start walking through the hole but came face-to-face with Peter's red mask with the large lenses.

"Boo."

It was so sudden and unexpected that even her calm composure failed as she shrieked and hopped away, her leap being a little clumsy as she barely got a foot under her to stop her from making a bad landing. However, one knee still had to touch the floor to prevent her momentum from causing her to fall over.

Unfortunately for her, it also gave Peter time to shoot more of his webbing at her and catch her leg, trapping it to the floor even as she tried to lift it to dodge. Her other leg was captured as Peter flipped into the room, pointing another hand at her.

Tsuyu knew she had little chance now that she was trapped and had nothing to get her out, so she shot her tongue out as fast as she could as he prepared to hit the wall. But Peter contorted his body, so it missed his torso and flipped away as her tongue tried to redirect and tag him. But he was so fast and agile that he avoided it no matter what she tried. He went behind a pillar, making it more difficult to follow him with her tongue, and she didn't want him to web it as well. Tsuyu retracted it to shoot it off again when she had a chance.

Peter capitalized on that as he shot a small ball of webbing at her, blocked visually by her reeling tongue. She couldn't react in time as it caught her over her mouth, preventing her jaw from opening again. The sudden surprise made her panic as she tried to pull it off, but Peter struck again, and his webbing trapped her arms. She could barely move now. She watched as Peter stepped towards her.

"Sorry about that, Asui-san. That tongue was too dangerous for me not to block it."

Tsuyu grunted, acknowledging that it was a valid tactic to block her best weapon. When he stepped closer to her, he got one of the capture bands and put it around her wrist. She was now officially out of the fight.

"Here, I'll get you out in a second," Peter said as he reached behind himself and pulled something out.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Well done, young Kirishima and Parker. That was an excellent display of shaping the battlefield," All Might said as he addressed the four returned students.

Eijiro had a wide grin, ignoring the scrapes, cuts, and bruises on his body and a few on his face. He was in an excellent mood since, in his opinion, the fight with Fumikage and Dark Shadow had been fantastic. Fumikage had almost escaped at one point, but he was left too vulnerable, and Eijiro could hold onto him and get the capture tape tagged to his arm, ending the fight.

Fumikage was similarly roughed up, as he had a few tears in his cloak and seemed a bit sore. Because of the feathers on his head, you couldn't see any bruises or cuts, but he did rub one spot occasionally. He had a neutral expression and gave a good account of himself.

Tsuyu had no injuries, though she still occasionally was spitting to the side, much to Peter's embarrassment, as apparently some of his webbings got stuck to her tongue. It had been problematic to get it to dissolve, but they had finally gotten it all out. The after-taste, however, still lingered. She didn't seem to hold any of it against Peter and had praised him after the battle.

After completing the trial, Peter removed his mask and smiled softly at his classmates. They had put up a pretty good fight and had been cautious of traps. From what Karen had reported afterward, Fumikage had even figured out their plan near the end. Still, they needed more information about his abilities and how his webbing worked in order to properly defend themselves.

"Young Asui and Tokoyami, you both did well and took lessons from the previous battles to heart. I heard some of your plans, and you were prepared for ambushes like the previous trials," All Might said. "Do you know what went wrong?"

Fumikage and Tsuyu thought hard, though Fumikage looked down as he crossed his arms while Tsuyu looked up and tapped her chin with a finger. Fumikage got there first. "That first wall was a test, wasn't it?"

"Indeed it was. The intent was to discover your abilities since your quirk wasn't well known then and whether either of you had anything to get through it. But you never saw them observing you, did you?"

"No. So how did they know?"

"Parker, would you mind showing them?"

"Sure," Peter said and then looked down at his chest. The rest of the students were confused about what he was talking about when the spider-like symbol on his chest suddenly popped out and started hovering in the air.

"What the hell?" Many of the boys in the class exclaimed.

"Oh, how cute!" This came from the girls as the drone hovered around until landing in Tsuyu's hands. They were surprised by how it behaved, seeming to appreciate the attention it was getting from the girls as they all crowded around to look at it. Tsuyu was also trying to pet it, curious about how it worked.

"How does that help them?" Kaminari asked while inspecting it from behind the girls.

"Yes, young Parker, how does it help?" All Might requested an answer as well.

"It has cameras and other sensors built in, so the video gets relayed to my suit, and I can see the video feed," Peter responded, smiling as the girls continued to coo and aww at the tiny drone.

"How do you see the video? I don't see anywhere you can display it on your suit," Momo said, looking up from the drone.

"My lenses can display full video and more," Peter said. "It stayed out of sight and started tracking them from behind so we could observe them. We put our plan into motion once we knew how Tokoyami's quirk worked and that Asui had no easy way to get through the webbing."

The drone began flying again and rushed to Peter's chest before settling in, much to the girls' disappointment
.

"Parker gets the M.V.P. for this round for developing a well-executed plan that played to your allies' strength. Well done!" All Might said, with Eijiro, Tsuyu, and Fumikage all patting him on the back or shoulder.

"Last group is Hero Team F versus Villain Team E!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Mina was excited to get started. All the other matches had fired her up, so she looked forward to proving herself. The other fights had shown the importance of tactical thinking and not underestimating your opponents, so she thought hard about what they should expect.

That Sato guy wore a simple, bright-yellow, full-body suit, except for the holes for his eyes, mouth, and hair in the back. He also had white gloves, boots, and a belt. She hadn't interacted much with him, only the shared lunch where they listened to Sakura and Momo discussing what their Sensei put on the board. He seemed like a straightforward brawler type. She had seen him eat something a few times, and his muscles bulked up for some of the tests yesterday, so she had a loose idea of his quirk.

Koda was similarly strong but was very shy. His costume was also a yellow suit, but it only reached his knees and elbows. Up and down the front of his torso was a red section with an image of a mouth with simple teeth. He wore yellow shoes with a red stripe on the bottom and top. She had no real idea what his quirk was.

She knew her teammates' quirk since his was pretty straightforward, being a laser beam from his belly. Aoyama was also the most flamboyantly dressed of their class, wearing what looked like medieval armor, with his belt present for his laser beam that came from his navel. Parallel twin ports were visible at his knees, where he wore metal boots over his black cloth pants. He also had black gloves and metal wristguards. His face sported fancy-looking red glasses that looked more like wings and went well past the sides of his head. To finish the look was a long purple cape.

Mina tried to work with him about what they should do, but Aoyama either came up blank or talked about himself in a heavy French accent. She didn't think he could help much, so she tried to think of their strengths and weaknesses and what they could do to succeed.

In terms of physicality, neither she nor Aoyama had a chance against the other two boys. They didn't have enhanced strength, while the others did. They also didn't appear to have any ranged attacks, which Aoyama did. While she had a means of attacking from range, she was very hesitant since her acids could be dangerous to living beings.

One thing she knew, when you were up against foes that were bigger and stronger than you, it was essential to be quick and agile instead, to prevent being grabbed in the first place. She decided they would use that. Their plan was to rush to the objective as quickly as possible.

Mina used her acids to make the ground slicker as she moved along, hopping onto walls and jumping around to present a difficult target. If they encountered a roadblock, she would use her acid to make new doors to get around it and just keep moving. Aoyama was to pin one or both of them down with his lasers, buying her time to get past.

She was also delighted her own costume had proven up to the task of being acid-proof, and the look was fabulous! She wore a sleeveless, purple, and turquoise bodysuit in a camouflage pattern that ended just above her bust, a white face mask over her eyes, and some heavier boots. She wore a cropped, tan, sleeveless waistcoat with a rich white fur collar.

They sped through the floors, not encountering resistance. They were just outside the door where the bomb was, so instead of using the regular entrance, Mina ran outside the room and splashed acid to melt through the walls to create many new doorways. She had been able to peek inside and catch a glimpse of surprise on both of their opponent's faces. They were scrambling to accommodate for the extra entrances, which was when Aoyama made his presence known as he shot a laser at Sato, catching him on the side and knocking him down.

Mina noticed that Koda had looked alarmed, moving to Sato's side to get him up while trying to keep an eye out for more laser beams. She used that opportunity to rush inside, sprinting for the bomb.

Sato was getting to his feet and was still groggy when Koda moved to try to intercept her. He might have made it if another laser hadn't been shot into his path, making him pause. This allowed Mina to finish her sprint and touch the bomb.

"The hero team wins!" All Might shouted through the speaker system.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Mina was all smiles as she stood in line. Aoyama wasn't any different than usual, but no one paid him much attention. Koda and Sato both looked saddened and depressed, though not as bad as they had earlier. Mina had been friendly with them after the match ended.

"Well done, young Ashido and Aoyama. You are the only Hero team to succeed today, so well done," All Might praised the two, glad that one Hero team had succeeded. "Ashido gets the M.V.P. for this match for developing a plan of attack based more on speed and creating openings. You knew neither of you had the strength or size to compete with your opponents, and only Aoyama had a reliable attack against them. But your speed and ability to create new doors were decisive in the battle."

All Might turned back to the rest of the class. "You all have done well today. Mistakes were made, but this is why we train: to learn from our mistakes before going out to the field. Take to heart what you learned in your own trials as well as those of your classmates. Class is dismissed!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku watched as his classmates swarmed each other as they talked about some of their favorite parts of the day's trials. He had already received praise for his fight against Kacchan, but his mind was elsewhere, and most of his classmates recognized it. They all streamed back toward class after they finished in the locker room.

Izuku looked sadly at his damaged costume. His mother's hard work was ruined as the damage made it impractical. He had been told the costume departments could fix it, but it would take some time.

He was the last to leave the locker room and walk toward the school. Though, that plan took a pause as his attention was grabbed.

"Young Midoriya!"

Izuku looked to the side, seeing All Might in his weakened form. He would have his chance to talk to him now, so he walked over to him behind the locker room. Izuku looked around carefully before addressing the man. "All Might."

"You said you wanted to talk to me?" Toshinori asked, "Something important about Saotome?"

"Yes. Uraraka-san and I caught him before he left the school yesterday as we were curious about his quirk. It didn't make sense that changing into a girl and back allowed him to do what he did, especially when both forms could seem to do the same things."

Toshinori paused as that had been a similar question the staff had. His quirk registry only ever mentioned the shift change, nothing about his or her other abilities. They had discussed needing to address it, but Principal Nezu eventually shut it down and said to leave it. That had confused many of them, but Nezu had gained their trust for good reasons.

"Did young Saotome explain what was going on?"

"Yes," Izuku said and seemed to struggle with something. "He said that his only quirk was the shape change."

Toshinori blinked at that. His first instinct was that he was lying. But Saotome had been blatantly displaying their capabilities, so lying about it did not make much sense. Especially after interacting with them, they had seemed honest.

"Did he explain how he could do what he did?" Toshinori asked.

"He said it was training and using something he called Ki."

Toshinori blinked, not having suspected that claim. "Ki?"

"He asked me if I was familiar with it from old legends or manga. I mentioned one, Fist of the North Star, and he said it was similar in concept. He said everyone had access to Ki; it only took training."

Toshinori sighed. He had heard the word before, as it was often mentioned in some mangas or animes he had read or watched himself when growing up. There was also the odd colleague or two convinced they were onto something. But he didn't know anything about it outside of that. "I've heard the word before, but I am unfamiliar with it being remotely possible."

"After I got home, I looked it up. It stems from old legends of martial artists from Asia, with China or Japan being the most well-known."

Toshinori thought about it and came up blank. It was clearly causing problems for young Izuku, making him question things. "Why are you so concerned with it?" Toshinori asked softly.

Izuku was silent for a moment before answering. "I wonder if I might have been able to do something, to become a hero, without you sacrificing your power."

Guilt. Toshinori was familiar with that feeling, having questioned that himself when his master had given him her powers. If she hadn't, maybe she would still be alive. In the last year, he had come to more closely understand his old master and her choices. It hurt, but he also felt closer to her. Toshinori spoke softly, "Do not beat yourself up over this, kid. From what it sounds like, if it is true, Ki is a scarce and almost unknown ability. I was unaware of it, and it seems most heroes are unaware of it. You lacked knowledge and likely could not learn about it if it is limited to such small circles."

Izuku nodded but was glad to hear it from his hero. He felt guilty for the other question he was about to ask. "There was another reason I wanted to talk to you about it, All Might-Sensei."

"Yes?"

"I… I had talked to Saotome-san about how he was so good at explaining things to me yesterday, and he said he had been training his guardians and some others." Izuku then looked up at Toshinori, "I was thinking of asking him for training."

Toshinori blinked, surprised, but he did not take offense. Instead, he smiled, as he knew he wasn't the best teacher at this time. "I have no problem with that, young Midoriya. If you are looking for my permission, you have it."

Izuku smiled; the guilt washed away. "I'll ask him-er her after class is over!"

"Good! Saotome is a good match for you for now, so let me know how it goes. In the meantime, I will research Ki and try to dig up what I can about it."

"Alright, Sensei!" Izuku paused as he realized they had spent some time talking, and he was way behind the rest of his class. "I need to hurry back to class! I'll talk to you later, Sensei!"

Toshinori smiled again as he saw his successor run back to the school, using his quirk to speed up. But his mind turned back to young Saotome. He had performed feats of speed and strength that neared his own at times, at least more so than most other heroes or quirks. And if it wasn't due to a quirk, then that was even more spectacular. He hoped Saotome decided to train his successor, helping young Midoriya get stronger and better.

In the meantime, he would do his due diligence and find out what he could about Ki. He got out his phone and used one of his contacts. He was glad to hear a response shortly after. "Naomasa, it is good to hear your voice. I have encountered a complication and hope you can point me in the right direction."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

A/N - I tried to have this ready for Sunday, but ran into a slew of issues:
1. Boldish convinced me on a few points of the story needed further adjusting. I ended up writing two new sections and some edits to other parts. The story was stronger for it, but that added to the delay.
2. My weekend was completely shot, since I had to help transport a new vehicle to another state. I had hoped to have some time to work on the story, if not for the other two problems that popped up.
3. I only had a few hours of sleep the night before we traveled, so it wasn't pleasant. An extra person went with us to switch on/off with me on driving, so it wasn't dangerous, but it did make any chance of working on the story inbetween nearly impossible.
4. Forgot my ADHD meds, making it harder to concentrate even when I did try.

So I've been slaving away at it today when I can and finally got everything done. Still waiting for another pass from my beta-readers, but can always edit in those changes here or you can read he final draft on FF/AO3.

Chapter 8 and 9 are shorter than the previous 3, at least in their current states. 8 grew when I extended some scenes that needed them or ones I had thought I could cut out, but it is still smaller. 9 Is expected to grow as I have some more I plan to do to it, but currently sits as the smallest chapter of the Arc. Really hope I get 8 done before Sunday!

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 8 - Class President​

It had felt like the Battle Training had taken all day, but it had only been a few hours. Unfortunately, that meant another hour of regular schoolwork for the day. After the stress and excitement of Heroes vs. Villains, World History dragged on somewhat.

As their World History teacher left the room after the final school bell rang, students began to pack up or flock to each other. Sakura was packing up her things so she could head out when she was approached by her two opponents from earlier.

"Haruno?"

As Kyoka waited in front of her desk, Sakura looked up and behind her. She also noted that Denki had moved in front of Shoji's desk. "Yes?"

"We heard after training that Saotome called you a Ninja. Is that true?" Kyoka asked.

"Huh?" Sakura was confused by being confronted like this and that someone had been able to tell she was a shinobi. She also noted that Mezo didn't appear to be in a hurry to leave and had looked her way.

"He– she did call you a ninja," Mezo confirmed that the claim was accurate. As the three looked at Mezo, he continued with what else Ranma had commented. "She had said she had difficulty nailing down what style of fighting you used."

Mina and Tenya had also come over, having overheard Mezo's comment. "Yeah, I am curious about that as well, Sakura," Mina said.

Sakura looked at her audience and wasn't surprised by Tenya remaining silent about it, as he both knew the partial truth to that as well, that it was her choice. He had learned his lessons on that front some time ago. She sighed, deciding that the modified 'truth' was sufficient.

"Yes, I am a shinobi. I was raised as one from a young age," Sakura said. Mina, Kyoka, and Denki all made exclamations of surprise and began to shoot out some rapid-fire questions.

"Do you have a black full-bodysuit?"

"Do you have shuriken?"

"Did you ever fight a samurai?"

"Have you ever had to hide from enemies underwater, using a reed to breathe?"

"Did you, like, dose yourself with poisons so you can't be taken out with'em?"

"Do you have any black eggs?"

They halted, however, after Sakura raised a hand. "I was raised in an isolated part of the world that had little to no contact with most of it. Due to an incident with someone with a warping power, I was separated from my home last year and have been trying to find a way back. Because of how isolated we were, we don't know where to look."

"Woah, for real?" Denki asked.

The trio looked downcast at hearing the story. None of them could say they'd been through anything of that magnitude, but they could imagine getting separated from home was a horrible experience.

"So why did you want to become a hero?" Mina asked.

"It's a healthier means of resolving issues and conflict than my home is used to dealing with. I want to learn all I can about the hero system, so if I can return home, I can teach it to them."

"I thought pretty much the whole world used the Hero system, though?" Denki asked in his confusion.

"You moron! She just said they're isolated!" Kyoka exclaimed, smacking the back of his head lightly.

"Hey! Does that mean you don't know a bunch about modern Japan? We should totally hang out!" Mina piped in.

"I've actually been here for a while now; I'm pretty much caught up." Sakura smiled. "But I suppose hanging out wouldn't be too bad."

Sakura received a smile from each of them as they got up to leave. "Well, feel free to ask us for any help, Haruno," Kyoka said before making her way to the door.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Ranma-san! Wait up!"

Ranma stopped and turned to find Izuku following behind her, and Ochako was also trying to catch up. "What's up, Izuku?"

The freckled boy paused as he tried to get his head around the fact he was speaking to a girl. But that girl was Ranma. He barrelled through to the point before he got too stuck on that thought. "I was wondering if you could train me?!" He yelped.

"Eh?" Ranma asked, a little surprised, giving Ochako the time to catch up. "Sure."

"Wow, really?! I-I actually didn't think it would be that easy…," Izuku muttered before he realized he didn't know any other details. "Umm, so what do we do?"

"Well, you can follow me for one," Ranma said as she shrugged and began walking again. "I was going to check out the martial arts clubs here to see if they are any good."

Izuku and Ochako both blinked at that. "Ummm, I thought we weren't allowed to join clubs?" Ochako asked.

"I looked into that before school started," Ranma said, with thumbs in the waistband of her skirt. "Turns out it isn't against the rules for those in the Hero Course to join clubs, just not recommended since most people are already swamped by the course load."

The other two blinked, not having known that.

"Wouldn't have mattered to me anyways; almost all of my free time is spent training. But that isn't why I am checking them out. Most school clubs are limited to the basic sport. I would be teaching my own school of Martial Arts," Ranma noted before looking at her other follower. "Are you here to ask for training as well, Ochako?"

Ochako was surprised, not having expected the conversation to drift to her. But after a moment, she smiled. "It wasn't why I came over here, but I think I can try it," she said before looking away, and her face turned red. "I embarrassed myself today."

"Eh, it wasn't too bad, Ochako. They just had a good plan." Ranma waved off her self-recrimination.

They soon came to one of the gym areas. They paused when they noticed Ranma headed to the lockers and decided to wait outside since they didn't have their gym clothes with them. Izuku stole a glance at Ochako before looking away with some discomfort. He felt so guilty about how battle training went down. He really should have done better. But Ranma was back before he could even envision how to apologize for his failure. It only took her half a minute before she exited wearing the clothing she did for the recent battle and her hands in her pant pockets.

"Ummm, Ranma-san? Why are you wearing your costume?" Izuku asked.

"Eh?" Ranma reacted in puzzlement before the light turned on. "Oh, I don't really have a costume. These are just my normal clothes."

"You don't have a costume?" Ochako asked, "Why not?"

"Don't want one," Ranma replied.

The other two heroes in training couldn't understand. "Why?" Izuku asked.

"My primary goal is to be a Martial Artist. But my code requires that I protect the weak. It overlaps with what a Pro Hero is supposed to do, so if I want to do that without getting into trouble, I need a license."

"Why wouldn't you want to be a Pro-Hero?" Izuku asked. It confused him and ran counter to his own thoughts.

"It's fine," Ochako said with a smile and catching Izuku's attention, "Not everyone who becomes a Pro-Hero does it just to become a Pro-Hero." Ochako, on the other hand, did have different goals in her life and understood Ranma's point.

They continued to follow Ranma as they entered the gym. Inside, they found diverse groups wearing doji's or other uniforms and various mats people were practicing on.

Their entrance was noticed as several groups turned to look at them. A few started walking towards them, smiling at the thought of new members. As they neared, though, a few caught sight of the orientation buttons on their shoulders. The reactions varied, ranging from indifference, disappointment, or outright hostility. "What are you Hero course students doing here?" One of them asked, with nothing in their voice to indicate their thoughts.

"Checking out the local martial arts clubs, seeing if they are any good," Ranma responded easily with a shrug of her shoulders.

"You're not allowed to be here! Hero Course students are barred from club activities!" One of the more hostile members yelled.

"Nope," Ranma replied, hands still in her pockets and not acting bothered at all while she looked at all the various groups. "Wouldn't matter to me even if they were. Part of checking your clubs out is to see if anyone has any skills. You got other members that are out at the moment?"

"No, this is all of our members," one of the boys from the Judo club replied with curiosity.

Izuku and Ochako were already feeling a bit intimidated by some of the glares they were receiving from a few members. Still, a crowd had already begun to form, listening in on what was happening.

"Damn, then this part was a bust." Ranma sounded depressed before shrugging. "But, pretty much what I expected."

A few members started glaring at them harder, making Izuku and Ochako even more uncomfortable. "What the hell do you mean by that?" One of them asked.

"Well, I'm not impressed by what I see. You guys all suck."

Izuku and Ochako had thought Ranma was here to join a club, not insult them! They looked ashen as they stared at their friend, as the intensity of the room grew exponentially. The entire room looked ready to kill them on the spot. They were quickly encircled, with no way to escape.

Izuku caught sight of one boy that was smiling as he made his way to the front. He looked like a young adult, likely a third-year student. "Well, we can't just let a challenge like that go unanswered." Izuku's hopes were dashed as his smile turned malicious. "I challenge you to a duel!"

"Not good enough," Ranma replied, much to the pair's horror. "All of you at once. If any of you can even touch me, then maybe I'll consider you impressive enough."

The boy stared at Ranma, trying to assess her before deciding. "Challenge accepted!"

They quickly reached one of the largest mats, with Izuku and Ochako herded along. Every karate, judo, and kendo club member stood ready to cream them. Ochako tugged part of Ranma's shirt to get her attention before whispering in panic, "What are you doing?"

Ranma looked back at her new students, seeing their fear and confusion. But she smiled to help reassure them. "It's simple, really. It's called advertising."

The pair blinked in bewilderment as Ranma made her way to the center of the mat. They huddled close together on the side, but they were closely guarded by a few of the members.

"Rules?" One of the leaders asked.

"Up to you if you want to use quirks. I'd just be careful with any quirk usage so you don't injure anyone else," Ranma answered. She looked totally relaxed, her arms folded behind her back and tipping back and forth from her toes to her heel as she waited. "I'll already be handicapping myself significantly anyways."

"Then anything goes."

"That's the spirit!" Ranma replied with a wide smile and a bounce in her step.

Using her words as the start call, multiple members charged in. The members appeared to prepare punches, kicks, and bokkens as they moved to engage.

Izuku became tense when they started closing in, and Ranma hadn't even moved! Then she suddenly slid backward a meter as if on wheels, avoiding three attacks from the front and sides. Another slide happened as those first attackers finally realized she wasn't there anymore; this time, the slide to the side was to avoid a roundhouse kick to her head. She then leaned back so far that her torso was parallel to the ground, allowing the next attack, a swipe of a fist and a bokken, to sail over her, the bokken hitting the puncher's arm and causing a cry of pain.

A karate member tried to capitalize on her awkward position to swipe her legs out from under her with a sweep of his leg, but she simply did a light hop over it with a backflip. Ranma countered-attacked with her legs, kicking out at the bokken user and the leg-swiper upside down. They keeled over, clutching their guts, crying in pain and out of the fight.

Before Ranma had finished her backflip, she then intercepted another punch making its way toward her as she continued twisting. One set of toes touching the ground, the other catching an arm in the bicep before the swing could generate any force. The fact the attacking girl was in the air when she tried it caused her center of gravity to shift badly, and she landed awkwardly on her back and head.

A brief pause occurred after watching those last few exchanges as many stared in disbelief. Ranma hadn't removed her arms from behind her back.

"What's wrong?" Ranma asked. Then he tilted her head just a little as she closed her eyes and smiled. "Have you guys finally decided that you do suck?"

Ranma's grin widened as the enraged members re-engaged even more vigorously. She easily avoided attacks by continuing to slide around the mat, her body contorting as her legs intercepted limbs, bodies, and weapons, disarming or disabling the attackers. Her kicks were punishing as she used her opponents as springboards to move around the mat. She was impossible to hit.

Their numbers at the start were over thirty fighters, and fifteen had already gone down. Quirks began to activate as the club members tried to equalize the playing field. Some grew in size, changed shapes, and others started using various melee or ranged attacks. Sure of their superiority, they charged in again.

But the outcome didn't change, and Ranma's arms remained behind her, never unfolding. But the most impressive thing, Izuku noticed, was that she wasn't a blur of motion. Her speed and strength didn't look greater than anyone else's on the mat. Something else Izuku realized was how efficient she was with her movements: no exaggerated motion was shown. He opened his bag, pulled out his notebook and pencil, and began muttering as he tried to think of what to write. But he had a hard time doing that as his eyes continued to watch Ranma decimate the club members.

There was another pause in the combat when only a few fighters were left beside Ranma. She just stood there, patiently waiting. Most downed combatants tried to get off the mat, some having to pull their friends away.

Once the mat was cleared, the remaining fighters waited. Their leader spoke up again, giving Ranma a deeper evaluation. "You must have some sort of precog quirk."

"Nope!" Ranma bragged. "I'm just that good!"

"Bullshit!" The leader shouted, outraged at the suggestion and insult of being bested by some first-year. "No one's that good! Especially not some newbie hero student!"

"I don't care what you think. And I already got what I wanted from this," Ranma said. She then turned to look at two other observers that had shown up before the fight started. The audience had missed their entrance as they focused on teaching her a lesson. The new observers were staring in disbelief at the mat and at Ranma. "Sup, you two! Looking for a decent martial arts club to join?"

Izuku, Ochako, and the rest of the audience turned to stare at the new arrivals. Both wore a dogi with some black belts around their waists. One was a girl with long orange hair tied to the side by a ponytail. The other was a boy slightly taller than her with short yellow hair and an odd but large tail sticking out of his back.

"I'm almost done beating these duds," Ranma said with a smirk before ducking to the side and leaving a leg extended over her previous position, tripping the person who tried a sneak tackle. She stood back up and looked very chipper. "We can talk when I'm done."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Parker-san?"

Peter stopped walking, looked up from the map he had been reading, and turned, seeing Momo walking toward him. "Can I help you… Yao… I'm sorry, I don't remember your name correctly," Peter said as he blushed in embarrassment.

Momo bowed as she did a proper greeting. "My name is Yaoyorozu Momo; it is nice to meet you."

Peter returned the bow and the greeting.

"I was wondering about your drone from earlier," Momo asked. "I don't think many of the others noticed the significance of it, but that drone was very advanced. Where did you get it?"

Peter smiled, glad that he had an easily available answer for it now. "We designed and manufactured it a few months ago."

"We?" Momo asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Melissa and I. We've been working over the last year on multiple projects we're collaborating on. Her Dad is helping us get our corporation off the ground and deals with many of the business and logistical aspects."

"What kind of projects?" Momo didn't care if he felt she was fishing for information, as that was what she was doing. Her Mother would never let her hear the end of it if she didn't at least ask. "Those questions from Ectoplasma-sensei didn't deal with engineering or machine intelligence, but with high-level physics and chemistry primarily."

Peter smiled at that. She had already shown she was brilliant and her knowledge. "While I can do some A.I. work, I leave most of that to Melissa since that tends to be a field she specializes in."

Hearing that name again sent a warning bell through Momo's head. She had heard that name sometime recently but didn't have a photographic memory, only an eidetic. Momo decided to probe on that point. "Where do you live? Or at least used to live?"

"I live by myself nearby for now, and I grew up in Queens, New York. But I've been staying with my guardian for the last year on I-Island."

Momo finally made the connection, surprising herself. "Would your partner be Melissa Shield, daughter of David Shield?"

Peter blinked but shrugged it off. He had gotten used to David being fairly famous in certain circles. Maybe not as renowned as Tony was, but still recognized worldwide. "Yes, Dr. Shield is my guardian."

Momo smiled. "That explains some of it. My parents have stock in some of the I-Expo's sponsors. I overheard them expressing concerns about Dr. Shield and how he was stepping away from his position on the island and instead running some new startup company. I heard Melissa's name come up once."

"Yeah, he's gotten some flak for that," Peter said as he rubbed the side of his head in embarrassment. "Some of our new tech is just getting off the ground, and we haven't been showcasing it to them. So they've been rather pissed."

"Well, that drone at least shows some serious work. I also note you were heading towards the Development Studio?"

"Yeah, we're giving a few of the early models of our M.P.S. to U.A. I'm on my way to set them up for me to showcase them tomorrow after classes."

"M.P.S.?" Momo asked, unfamiliar with what it stood for.

"Manipulative Projection System," Peter said easily. "You're welcome to attend if you want. And while I might need to check with Dr. Shield and the teachers, you might be able to invite your parents as well. If they can get some of the board to stop breathing down his neck about it, it'd be a load off his back."

Momo smiled at that, curious about what this M.P.S. was. The name hinted that it might be related to hologram usage, but that field had been dead for decades. "I'll talk to them about it. They can contact the school about attending."

"Sure thing," Peter smiled back before giving a small bow. "I'll see you tomorrow, Yaoyorozu-san."

"You as well, Parker-san."

Peter watched her walk away as she pulled her phone out and started working with it, most likely contacting one of her parents. Peter turned away and continued his walk towards the Development Studio.

It took him only a short time to reach the doors with the sign. The doors were thick, reinforced steel doors with rivets. Considering some of the shops he had encountered on I-Island, he wasn't surprised by the precautions. He grabbed the handle and slid it open.

Just as Peter walked into the room, his spider-sense tingled. A quick leap backward and to the ceiling allowed him to avoid the bloom of smoke and shock waves from the explosion that occurred. The spider-sense tingled again, and his reaction speed allowed him to lower his hand to catch the figure sailing through the hole before it could impact anything. He snatched them out of the air by grabbing the back of their shirt and letting his hand absorb as much of the momentum as possible. While it would be a little jarring, it was nowhere near what impacting a wall would have done.

Things quickly started calming down as Peter chuckled. While explosions as large as this were uncommon, accidents in Development Studios like this one were not. Hell, he was a chemist; he had gone through his share of explosions when mixing certain chemicals.

Peter lowered himself from the ceiling with one hand attaching himself to it as the figure in his other hand started coughing. He flipped off the ceiling while still holding them up by the back of their shirt.

"What the hell happened here?" A voice yelled from inside the studio before coughing due to the smoke that was trying to settle.

"Owie…," said the figure in Peter's hand. Peter noted it was definitely feminine, and Peter finally got a look at them. The girl was at least ten centimeters shorter than him, had shoulder-length pink hair tied into thick dreadlocks, and wore a black tank top and black coveralls with the top half tied around her waist. She also wore black gloves, though the index finger was gloveless around the P.I.P. joint.

They finally got their legs under them and stood up shakily. That was when Peter got a better look at her as she looked up, and he saw her eye's irises were a green-yellow with crosshairs centering on the pupil. She recovered her wits quickly, stood up straight, and looked at Peter.

Peter gave a smile, glad she was alright. Though, if she was the cause of the explosion, he suspected she was used to such things. He had his hand let go of her shirt now that he was sure she wouldn't collapse again and took a step back. "Hi, I'm Peter."

The girl blinked but didn't respond before promptly ignoring him, turning towards the open doorway, and screaming. "My baby!"

Before Peter could ask her what she meant, she sprinted through and helped cause the cooling smoke to spread out again. As she thrust through it to her workbench, Peter quickly recognized where the explosion occurred. Peter chuckled as she panicked over the destroyed item, cradling it in despair.

Peter saw the other voice waving his hand to get the additional smoke out of his face. It was a short man, especially since he was hunched over and shirtless, showing off his skinny but impressive physique. He had spiky ginger hair that was only visible through the small gaps in his giant yellow metal mask that looked like a rectangular dinosaur. He also had cyan pants and some massive fingerless gloves. The tips of his fingers had metal tips attached to them, which was a sign of the man's quirk.

"Hello, Power Loader-Sensei," Peter greeted the man. Considering the correspondence that David and the school had been in, Peter had been first introduced to the man over the phone.

Maijima Higari, also known as Power Loader, turned towards the entrance to see who had spoken, grinning as he recognized him. "Parker! Glad you're here. Sorry about the mess, but I think I will have to have a sit-down discussion with one of my new students," Higari said as he glared at the girl.

"No problem, Sensei," Peter replied, "I'm used to lab accidents. I've had a few myself. Though this one is just a little larger than most…." Peter looked at the object the pink-haired girl was inspecting, quickly recognizing its purpose. "Then again, I wasn't too partial to jet packs."

Peter walked towards her as she looked over the metal backpack with a large hole in one side. Sniffing the air some, he recognized the chemical mixture she had used. "Why were you using Kerosene?"

"Kerosene!?" Higari yelled as he got closer, "What the hell were you thinking, Hatsume?"

Hatsume Mei didn't bother to look at the two men, instead looking at the hole in her backpack, and spoke softly. "Kerosene will get me more thrust and speed… and we didn't have any of the right hydrogen peroxide mixtures for me to use."

Higari could only palm his face at the girl. She scored the highest on engineering designs for the entrance exam and was only beaten on physics and chemistry by the young man beside them. She was brilliant from what he had observed but also careless at times. He worried that his apparent age would catch up to his real age in just a few months if this continued. Even if this was her first day, he knew the type and the toll they took on their teachers.

"You didn't have the distillation formula for the hydrogen peroxide?" Peter asked, getting the girl's attention as she looked him in the eyes again before shaking her head. Peter sighed, grabbed his bag off his shoulder, and then his notebook and pen. The two others watched Peter rapidly start writing, giving him the few minutes he needed as he wrote it down.

When Peter finished, he tore it off and gave it to Mei, who looked it over, and her eyes opened in glee. "YES!"

"That formula should allow you to achieve a ninety percent purity ratio," Peter said with a smile as the girl read it over. "Be careful with the heat and keep away any catalysts, of course."

Higari reached over her shoulder and plucked it from her fingers, then held it high over his head as she frantically tried to retrieve it. "As punishment for causing the explosion, I will be holding onto this," Higari said as his face formed a malicious smile. Maybe he had just found a way to reign her in. "No explosions in the lab for a week; then you will get this back."

Mei didn't appear to be listening as she frantically tried to crawl up the Pro-Hero's body to get her objective, but he was too strong and used to such actions that she didn't make any progress. After another fifteen seconds, she calmed down after looking into Higari's eyes through his mask. "Fine," she said in a huff and turned back around.

Higari chuckled as he slowly lowered the sheet in case it was a ruse by her to try to snap it back. His caution was warranted as she did try to leap out of her chair, but it was made moot by Peter holding her down by her shoulder and preventing her from getting up. Then, Higari folded it and put it into his pants pocket as the girl moped.

"Thank you, Parker. I'll show you where we plan to have you install the M.P.S. for the presentation tomorrow. The crates are already waiting there," Higari said.

"M.P.S.?" Mei asked, suddenly getting her complete attention again. "Do… do you mean the Stark Industries M.P.S.?"

That took Peter and Higari by surprise, though Peter less so since if you were a serious science nerd like he was, you kept up to date on new technologies. He had seen that look of awe many times after the M.P.S. was first shown off, and people that had heard of it. Peter smirked before turning to Higari as another idea came to mind. "Yep! I'll be installing them today and showing them off tomorrow after class. But I think Power Loader-Sensei only wants well-behaved students attending…."

"I'll be good!" Mei shouted as she exited her seat in a flash and stood stiffly with a military salute. "How can I help?"

Higari chuckled as he led the way toward the back. The room had been nearly emptied, leaving several large crates in the middle of the room, four long sets of collapsed stands along one wall, and lots of exposed cables here and there. A few people were about to remove the remaining items and rewire the floors, walls, and ceiling. Standing on one of the crates was Principal Nezu in the middle of it all as he directed people.

Peter blinked as he got a good look at the tiny man. When they got closer, he smiled as he heard his voice. It was lighter than most men, seeing as he had a smaller body to work with, but it still held a strong baritone. Having heard of him through David and others, Peter was immediately reminded of another furry being he once knew, causing him to smile.

"Ah, Young Parker! Glad you were able to come," Nezu said as the trio approached. "I was worried that the explosion just now would cause a delay. I take it young Hatsume's jetpack exploded? I saw her working on it earlier."

The fact that Mei didn't look embarrassed at all caused Nezu to chuckle. He then noticed Peter's smile, recognizing it as appropriate for a positive experience or memory, not for greeting people. "Remembering something pleasant, Young Parker?"

Peter was embarrassed at being caught, but the more honest smile returned. "Yeah, sorry. You just reminded me of an acquaintance I met a few years ago. He was like you, an animal with a quirk that made him brilliant."

Nezu was surprised. He knew he wasn't the only animal with a quirk, even if it was far rarer than humans with quirks, but he was unaware of any others that gained intelligence. Considering what else he knew, the circumstances might account for it. "Really? What species and what was his name?"

"His name is Rocket, and he's a raccoon," Peter replied, wondering what kind of mischief the two animals could get up to if they ever met.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura walked with Chiyo through the front entrance for the second day of classes. Today was different since microphones and cameras had been shoved in their faces and questions thrown their way. Questions regarding All Might teaching classes.

Sakura was at a loss on how to respond since this was so far out of her normal experiences when dealing with the news. Chiyo helped her cut through the line and eventually to the safety of the grounds.

"Did they really have to be that aggressive?" Sakura asked as she peeked back at the reporters who found a new target to harass.

"Not all news reporters are aggressive," Chiyo said as they walked. "But when something large happens, such as All Might taking a teaching job, it causes people to panic. The public becomes fearful that the shield that has protected them so well for the last thirty years is dwindling. News companies know this, so they try to get information."

Knowing that it was sometimes difficult for Sakura to see things from their perspective, Chiyo thought of another way to explain it to her that fit her background. "Tell me, what would your Villages do when vital information about their safety needed to be acquired? That whoever gets it first is more likely to survive, and those that come second or don't acquire it at all being in a far weaker position and possibly perish?"

Sakura didn't have to think long about it, "They would use almost any tool or trick they had to secure it."

"And what about the ninjas themselves? What might your Village do to them if they fail? Or if they receive false information that ends up endangering them?" Chiyo asked.

"Some, like Konoha, might imprison them at most if it was due to gross incompetence. Some of the other Villages would execute them, even if they did everything they could."

"Think of the news teams as ninja teams and their news organizations as your Villages. Getting the information will increase your organization's survival and your own. Instead of literal death, it would lead to career and social standings ending."

Sakura paused as she absorbed the analogy and then sighed when she understood. "I get it. Different organizations might be more willing to use dishonest or cheap tricks to get ahead, but some would feel compelled to be aggressive or use underhanded methods. These methods can get you a return, but they don't recognize or acknowledge the long-term detrimental effects of this methodology. This just leads to others being aggressive as well because they see it can work."

"Excellent! Well done, Sakura," Chiyo said as her student made the correct logical connection to that analogy. She had grilled Sakura over the last year to truly understand what her home was like. It painted a grim picture but let her make those connections to a more modern era.

"Remember, though, in many ways, they are desperate; they are trying to find any means to survive. Sometimes, they are the ones that should be pitied."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku sat in class, waiting for Aizawa-sensei to wake up. The fact the class knew he was already in the room, but secure in his sleeping bag, had already become old news to them. They all waited as the minute hand was one tick away and the second's hand performed its never-ending laps. When it finished its next lap, the chime rang throughout the school, and they saw their sensei get out of his sleeping bag.

Shota still wore the black shirt and pants, with his dirty white scarf circling his neck. He picked up a few papers on the podium as he addressed the class.

"Good work with yesterday's Battle Training," Shota said as he looked around the class. "I've looked over your grades and evaluations. While many of you had a poor performance, it was not due to irrational behavior, and you learned from the experience. Remember them, and you'll do well in the future."

Shota was happy to see those students nod their heads, already accepting the critique. He then looked at those on the other end of the spectrum. "As for those that did perform well, you all used sound tactics and strategies to come out ahead. Don't drop your guard or let it go to your head."

"Now, onto the home-room business. Sorry for the sudden announcement, but today you'll pick a class president."

Shota wasn't surprised to see the excitement in the students as most of them got out of their seats and exclaimed how they would like to be president. He did notice several students hadn't gotten up, but he didn't care. He ignored it all as he returned to his sleeping bag and crawled inside.

"Quiet down, everyone!"

The students did settle down as they looked at Tenya, who had shouted.

"Leading the many is a task of heavy responsibility. But ambition does not equate to ability!" Tenya said, surprising many of his classmates. "This sacred office demands the trust of its constituents. If this is to be a democracy, then I put forward the motion that our leader must be chosen by an election!"

"But Iida, we haven't known each other long enough to build any trust," Tsuyu said as she turned around to look at him.

"And everyone will just vote for themselves!" Eijiro pointed out.

"That's precisely why anyone who manages to earn multiple votes will be the best-suited individual for the job!" Tenya replied, catching his class by surprise. They quieted down. Tenya turned to their sensei, who was sitting down now and preparing for his nap. "Will you allow this, Sensei?"

"However you do it, just make it quick," Aizawa said as he finished lying down and nodded off.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"This is unacceptable! We are short one vote! Who didn't vote?" Tenya loudly questioned the class.

"What's it matter? Just declare me the class rep already," Bakugo barked angrily.

"Like hell, it would be you! It should be me!" Eijiro yelled at the blonde as he grinned widely, receiving a death glare in response.

"Is it possible we misplaced one?" Momo wondered.

"Maybe they didn't vote 'cause they didn't care?" Kyoka pondered.

"We have a tie!" Iida shouted out, raising one stiff arm into the air, which Ranma noted seemed to be his favored way of speaking. At least he wasn't annoying like Kuno, using flowery speeches or pointing out how perfect he was. He had to listen to his old man for twelve years speaking like that while insulting him constantly, so Tenya's pattern was refreshing. "We must have that vote! It may be the key to breaking the tie between Haruno-san and Saotome-san!"

Ranma nodded along, not in the least bit interested, as he stared off to the side with unfocused eyes. The class could deal with it themselves; no need to add him to the mix–

"Wah?" Ranma finally caught on to one of the names that were said. He then finally looked at what was written on the board. "What the hell?"

He looked at the tally on the board. That couldn't be right; why was he tied with Haruno's three votes to be the Class Representative? Especially since he didn't vote!

The only other person with more than one vote was Yaoyorozu, but he wasn't too surprised. Both girls gave off that energy of caring about the class, so more power to them.

"We must cast another ballot to verify the vote count!" Tenya said. "Everyone, prepare another sheet for a second ro–"

"The missing vote's mine," Ranma said, waving a hand. "Put it down for Sakura."

Iida paused, surprised that it was Saotome that hadn't voted. Especially since if he had voted for himself, he would have easily been Class Representative. But he was a professional, so it didn't matter. "We'll have to double-check that you aren't being fraudulent just for surety's sake, but very well! Haruno-san will be our Class Representative, and Saotome-san the Vice-Class Rep-"

"No thanks!" Ranma roared, interrupting the boy and getting the attention of the rest of the class again. "I don't want it! She can have it!" He said, gesturing at Momo

The class was speechless after that, surprised that anyone would turn it down. Didn't he know what an honor it was to have it? Many stared at him as he calmed down and leaned back in his seat.

It took Tenya a moment to re-orient himself, but he eventually recovered. "We will need to do another round of voting as Saotome has withdrawn their name. I assume everyone else still wishes to run for the position? Please prepare anoth–"

"Leave it," Aizawa said off to the side as he remained lying on the floor. "It's good enough as it is."

Tenya halted as he was interrupted yet again. He recovered more quickly. "Then our Class Representative is Haruno-san, and the Vice-Class Representative is Yaoyorozu-san."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Ranma-kun? Can we sit here?"

Ranma looked up, not surprised to find Izuku and Ochako waiting for him. Though the addition of Toru was a little surprising.

"Sure. Have a seat."

The four ate silently for a bit, enjoying their meal. Ochako decided to break the peace as she asked the question that had bugged all three of them. "Ranma-kun?"

Ranma looked up after just putting his next bite in his mouth. "Hmm?"

"Why did you not want to be Class Representative?" Ochako asked as she tilted her head in curiosity.

Ranma looked at her for a moment before swallowing his food. "Eh, I'm not the type to be interested in leading things like classrooms. Besides, you two already know I have to finish setting up my new Martial Arts club."

"But being Class Representative is useful to have when looking to join or form an Agency!" Izuku added, still lost.

"Like I told you guys yesterday, I'm not interested in being a normal Pro-Hero. Not gonna join or start an Agency."

"You're not?" Toru asked, surprised to hear this from the other boy. "Why wouldn't you? Isn't that why you're attending U.A.?"

Ranma turned to the invisible girl but paused with his mouth open as he remembered she wasn't with them yesterday. "My main goal is to teach Martial Arts. Due to what my Art is capable of, I will most likely teach Pro Heroes, sidekicks, and students who want to become Pro Heroes. So learning what Pro Heroes deal with will help any potential students I may get."

"Next is to show the heroes out there what my Martial Arts is capable of, so being a Pro will make for great advertisement. Lastly, my honor code requires that I protect the weak, with or without a license. Having a license will be less of a hassle in the long run, less running from cops."

Toru blinked a few times, not having expected such an answer. "So you will become a Pro, but you won't care about the leaderboard or anything like that?"

Ranma smirked as he looked at her, "Who said I wouldn't care about the leaderboard?"

Ochako caught on first. "Oh! More advertising!"

"Right," Ranma said with a nod toward him. "After all, if someone whose quirk has almost no impact on what they can do gets high on the leaderboard, how strong does that make my Art?"

"Wait, what do you mean about your quirk?" Toru asked.

"My only quirk is changing into a girl and back," Ranma said easily as he picked up another bite.

Toru's arms flailed dramatically if her clothes were any indication as she immediately called him out on it. "Bullshit!"

Ranma just grinned at her as he explained it.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"So, Haruno-san, what do you think our plans for the class should entail?" Momo asked as she finished another scoop of her rice. Momo had come to respect Sakura's intelligence, finding her stimulatingly clever while focusing on different areas of interest. They still overlapped, but Sakura seemed more interested in biological and medical sciences and less focused on the mechanical and physical sciences. She only had the one experience with her, but tactically, Sakura focused more on how a team would work together while she focused on support items and their uses.

"I've looked over the curriculum, and I've found it rather…lacking in certain areas," Sakura said honestly. She took another bite of her fish, enjoying the flavor the chef was able to give it before she elaborated. "There are two severe areas of training that I think should be adopted by hero schools, but very few schools in the country cover them to even mediocre degrees. They seem to leave it to the students to fill in those gaps, and the students that do are scarce."

Momo was a little defensive, feeling she needed to stand up for her country, but decided to wait to hear more. "What areas are those?"

"Martial Arts and teamwork."

Momo paused, as did many of their classmates that ate with them. She did note the only one that hadn't was Tenya. Martial Arts were practiced by some heroes, but compared to quirk mastery, its usage in combat against even the simplest of quirks wasn't sufficient to warrant the time spent on it.

Teamwork, on the other hand, she could see benefits from it. But they already strived to use teamwork, so it confused her. "What do you mean?"

"I've noticed that Martial Arts is not considered an important skill for Pro-Heroes, and teamwork between heroes tends to be rather abysmal."

"Yes," Momo said as she followed along. "For Martial Arts, from what I understand, you must dedicate much of your time to get minimal benefits. But comparing that to time spent enhancing your quirk or how many quirks make Martial Arts entirely useless, it is understandable why it has fallen to the wayside. As for teamwork, what do you mean by abysmal? Heroes team up regularly."

Sakura sighed as Momo spelled out the flawed thinking she hoped to correct. She paused for a moment as she thought of how to explain it. "I think you and many others have a flawed understanding of what I am referring to. So let's get some groundwork dealt with first," Sakura said and waited for the nod from Momo before she continued. "We'll start with one subject and then cover the other. First, what is Martial Arts?"

"A formal means of teaching hand-to-hand and weapon techniques," Momo answered.

Sakura nodded. "An accurate definition, but what would you say is the common usage?"

"Martial Arts is usually used in conjunction with specific styles such as Karate, Judo, Kendo, or others that became sports."

"The type of Martial Arts I am referring to isn't a sport, but the traditional definition of studying warfare. It is finding and using the most effective means to destroy or incapacitate your opponent. It doesn't matter the tool or the opponent; it is learning how to win those fights."

Momo frowned as Sakura explained her usage. "But how is that different from what we already do with training our quirks?"

"Because that's just one tool." Sakura then blinked. "Your quirk makes this debate a challenge language-wise."

Momo furrowed her brow even further, "I'm not following…."

"Let's try this. You have a sportsman who drills karate moves regularly, building up their muscle memory and refining their movements until they are polished to perfection. Exhibition judges give perfect scores, that sort of thing. Then you have someone that brawls against others, just street fight after bar room brawl after back alley boxing. They've got no specific form or katas to practice, just hard-won experience. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What happens if they fight each other?"

Momo concentrated as she went over her knowledge. "I suppose the sportsman has form and efficiency of movement, built up muscles for his specific movements and attacks. He probably wouldn't be as flexible in an actual fight. The street fighter would be flexible mentally, likely able to adapt to whatever the sportsman would come at him with. They presumably wouldn't have the foundation to set up a quick, smooth finish, but they'd have the advantage if they didn't fall to the first attack.


"A sufficient summation," Sakura said with a nod of approval. "But it doesn't paint the complete picture. The primary problem is a lack of determining efficiency and effectiveness."

"While the sport Karate user might be more efficient in the specific moves they have learned, they have a path that they aren't going to stray from because they're stuck in thinking there's only the one best way to win. There may be moves that are more efficient or more effective in different scenarios, but those aren't 'as good.'" Sakura explained while moving her food around with her chopsticks.

"The street fighter can see the results, the goal, but they may get stuck thinking 'this way is best.' So they encounter a similar negative feedback loop to the Karate user. The street fighters' main advantage is that they are more likely to adapt when proven wrong."

Momo paused as she listened, finding Sakura's explanation logically sound. "Okay, so how does that apply to our training?"

"Pro-heroes are taught more like this is a sport. U.A. and a few other schools do a good job of this, better than others from my research. The culmination of generations, real efficient sports Pro-Heroes. But it's incomplete. After graduating, you're thrown into street fights and must adapt to reality. The only reason this isn't a glaring problem is that most criminals are in similar situations as you. They are mostly just street fighters. But the most dangerous of villains are those that have been street fighting for some time. They will have an effect disproportionate to their quirk."

Momo grimaced. She had read about some of the more dangerous villains Pro-Heroes have faced in the past; some of them had quirks that were unremarkable on paper. It was how they used them that set them apart. She wasn't the only one, as others thought the same thing.

"The other side of that equation is the top heroes in the country. Most heroes get by just on the strength of their quirk, but the ones that push beyond, not just in their quirk but fighting in general, rise to the top. They learn it through harsh reality and push themselves to learn the lessons they should have been taught before graduation."

Sakura sighed, thinking of her own graduation from the academy. "Not everyone will rise to that level, so you must find an appropriate cutoff point, or only a few will pass. But you do not want to train just to the lowest common denominator. My main issue is that, as far as I can see, too much emphasis is left on the trainee to rise to those levels. U.A. just sits at the top of that pile because its criteria and training are better than the others. But it is incomplete. It needs to be pushed in more directions."

The table became quiet, the various listeners absorbing it in different ways. Kyoka broke the silence by asking her question softly. "Is this because of your different upbringing?" It earned her some curious looks from those that hadn't heard about Sakura's past.

"Yes," Sakura replied after a momentary pause. "We were taught from an early age how to fight. Because our environment was different, it was also more lethal."

There were quite a few gasps and cringes. "You mean, like, assassinations and stuff?" Mina asked. It startled some classmates and others to be further confused.

"Partly," Sakura responded. "We have our equivalent of villains, basically rogue fighters. But we also had the threat of open conflict between our neighbors. It always seemed like the smallest events could turn into an all-out war between us. Many battles with those rogue fighters or smaller battles between our neighbors ended with people dying."

"Hero business is no stranger to dealing with lethal intent," Sakura said as she looked around the table, eying the more squeamish listeners as she brought a bit of reality to their situation. "The difference is that the Heroes are more likely to attempt non-lethal methods. Villains are often not limited to that morality. The main reason they may avoid it is attracting too much attention. But if they don't care, they will kill civilians or pro-heroes."

"I am used to dealing with life and death battles. Those with more experience in fighting and those that trained to a higher degree are almost universally more difficult to deal with than those with a stronger quirk. That includes getting training from others as well as teaching yourself. Back home, my team and I… we needed this training against opponents with powerful quirks. And some of the quirks are more dangerous than any other quirk in our class."

"Like what?" Shoto asked. His voice was calm and attentive, but he was effectively detached. "Could you give us some examples? Our class has some powerful quirks; it could be useful to know what could be in our future."

She smirked as she looked at him. "How about a quirk that can trap you in your own mind, where they have total control of your mindscape for three entire days. They can torture you in any way they can imagine, and you're completely at their mercy. Then it ends, and only a second passes in the real world. But you're left with all those experiences on your mind instantly. And all they had to do was look you in the eyes, and you were caught."

Shoto grimaced but gave a small nod to the dangers a quirk like that would represent.

"To defeat quirks like that, you must learn how to fight and bypass your normal limitations. How to fight with all the weapons at your disposal, not just your quirk. That is the kind of training I am talking about."

"So what would that entail?" Momo asked, "How would we change our training?"

"You have to understand, Martial Arts is more than just knowing how to throw a punch. It also teaches you how to move, roll with a blow, fall, or turn situations around in your favor. A baseline requirement would ensure they had the minimum required knowledge on moving through a battle without their quirks. This can be a crucial and lifesaving set of skills."

"Once you have that foundation, then you start building them up based on the needs of the individual. Their size and body shape become important, such as how quickly they can move or take a hit and their unique quirks. You train them in ways already known to work well with what they have. After that, you push them out of their comfort zone and into things where they experiment and find what works best for them."

"Okay, so you have some ideas on that front. How do we start implementing it?" Momo inquired. She understood what Sakura was talking about and agreed with it now. And if the little of her past that had been hinted at was true, she was something of an expert.

"I want to check with Ranma before I start anything," Sakura replied, grabbing another bite of her food with her chopsticks.

"Saotome?" Momo asked as a pause went around the table, "Why?"

"Some of you have had some training," Sakura said as she eyed Momo and Shoto especially, "But most of it is in an incomplete basic form. Ranma, however, has trained very extensively in pure combat. If there was anyone in our class I would be worried about going up against, it would be him."

Momo saw the looks between some of her classmates and decided not to go down that rabbit hole. The discussion was already going longer than she anticipated. "You also said something about abysmal teamwork?"

"Yes," Sakura said after swallowing her latest bite of food. "Teamwork is another area that I see Pro-Heroes lack severely in."

"There are different types of teamwork that also have multiple levels to each of them. I could go into heavy detail explaining them, but I will try to keep it simple for now," Sakura said after looking at the clock in the cafeteria. They only had another fifteen minutes before they would need to return to class. "Leaving aside things such as leadership, logistical support, or information gathering, teamwork can be identified by four behavioral types: basic support and avoiding friendly fire, combination attacks, timing attacks, and synchronicity."

Sakura noted there was some confusion for a few listeners. She had plans to explain it more in-depth when they started training for it. A summary would have to be good enough for now. "These types have many levels of skill and mastery involved with them. It can take years of practice, but if a group of people can master all of those types, they can fight opponents that far exceed their own capabilities. Or at least get a specific or desired effect, a 'win' condition if you will."

Momo paused in thought, working it out in her own mind. "Alright, so–"

"Security Level Three has been broken. All students, please evacuate in an orderly fashion."
Momo and the others halted as the buzzer sounded and the voice spoke.

"Okay, that's unexpected," Momo said as they all got up. That was when the throng of students rushed to the exits. Momo quickly noted it was not in an orderly fashion. "They're panicking!"

"Sakura-kun! We need to calm them down! What should we do?" Iida asked, looking around.

"We need a little information first," Sakura jumped onto one of the small dividing walls between the tables. She looked around and saw them swarming toward the main entrance, forcing people into a squeezed position. "Tenya, get their attention to calm them down and then get them to evacuate safely," Sakura said as she held a hand out toward him.

Tenya grabbed it and was hoisted up next to her. She then grabbed him around the waist and leaped to the entrance, covering the distance and landing on the side of the wall. She set her friend on the mounted exit sign in full view of the mob, letting his hand grab the pipe on the wall as well. "Go on, Tenya. Ensure they get organized; even if it is a false alarm, they must respond accordingly. I'll leave you to it. I need to check on what else is happening."

Tenya nodded before shouting at the students, quickly getting their attention from his position above them. They seemed resistant at first, but after mentioning how prestigious the school was and its staff was filled with Pro-Heroes, they relaxed and continued the evacuation. Sakura had already leaped over near the windows, seeing the media trying to swarm the grounds and some of their teachers intercepting them.

Chiyo's earlier lesson about the desperate lengths some reporters might go to, she couldn't discount a foolish reporter being responsible for the breach. But they also might have only taken advantage of an opening created by another. She couldn't see enough out there to place what was really happening, but an idea came to her. She looked around the room, spotting the person she hoped to find.

"Ranma?" Sakura asked as she landed next to him. He wasn't bothered by the crowd or panicking in any way. But he was frowning as he looked out towards the direction the media had come from. "Did you detect something?"

"Yeah, a surge of anger and killing intent," Ranma said, not bothering to look her way. "They just left the premises."

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "What did they do?"

"I felt them when the alarm went off. They entered the premises, went off the path for a moment, and then left. I don't have much more to say; it's a little far to tell me much more than that.

"Keep an eye out, if you would," Sakura requested as she headed towards the exit where the students were more calmly exiting now. She needed to find Chiyo.

"Sure," Ranma replied casually as his body relaxed a little.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," Chiyo said as they walked toward Class 1-A's room. "I'll be sure to inform the Principal about it. Hopefully, it will give us more details about what happened."

"Certainly, Shuzenji-sama," Sakura responded. "Breaches like that were things we trained for back home. I am just glad Saotome could detect and keep an eye on them. He really is looking promising. I look forward to when we can actually spar."

Chiyo nodded. "Principal Nezu has been intrigued by him much like how he was intrigued by you. I already warned you we may have to come clean to the Principal eventually, but I am curious if there is more to Saotome's situation too."

"They are definitely unusual," Sakura pondered. "But I can't speculate what it is without more details."

"While I may know more, I cannot divulge that," Chiyo answered calmly.

"I know," Sakura sighed. She was still getting used to the oddities of a doctor's Hippocratic Oath, such as strict privacy rights. That concept was alien to her world, but Chiyo, Ai, and Kenji had thoroughly explained it to her, and she could agree tentatively. But when information was needed to make a security assessment, it conflicted with her upbringing. She was too used to having more access to such private information from civilians or other ninjas.

Sakura came out of her musing as they reached the classroom and opened the door for Chiyo. Sakura went to the front of the class, got her classmates' attention, and the next Hero Training session started.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"There you are, Momo!"

Momo turned around and found the person she was waiting for walking up to her with a big smile. She smiled and greeted her in return, "Hello, Mother."

Yaoyorozu Toshiko smiled as she strode up to her daughter. She was a woman in her thirties, several centimeters shorter, with long black hair that reached the middle of her back. Unlike her daughter's hair, hers was fluffy. She also wore half-rimmed rectangular glasses, and her business suit and skirt made her look professional.

"I'm sorry it took me a while to get here, but that incident from lunchtime with the reporters caused a bit of a stir with the school. I had to go through a few more security checks than usual."

"That is fine, Mother. We should go in, though. It will start shortly," Momo said as she led the way into the Development Studio. They followed a few others to the back of the connected rooms.

"Hmm, I do wonder what we will be shown," Toshiko said, "I asked around about this M.P.S., and the few that knew anything was that it could be groundbreaking new technology."

"Not to mention that Parker sounds fascinating, Momo! To know how to properly balance synthesizing Palau'amine, for one so young, is extraordinary!" Toshiko grinned impishly at her daughter. "Is he cute?"

"Mother!" Momo cried out, turning her face to prevent her Mother from seeing how red it was. Not that it helped, as she was giggling like a mad woman. She was glad her Mother had decided to make the situation worse and remained silent as they approached the room.

They walked to the designated section and found several raised benches had been moved into the large room. Four rows of benches on all four room walls were filled with people. Momo noted that most of those present wore U.A. uniforms or were teachers. A few looked like they were outside observers, like her Mother.

"Hmmm, an impressive gathering, considering the room. All classes from all three levels are present. They wouldn't do something like that for an insignificant presentation," Momo's Mother said as she inspected the room.

Momo led the way to some open seats. She noticed that most attendees looked bored or minimally attentive to what was going on. A few seemed to be bouncing in their seats, scrambling over their devices and notebooks, or talking excitedly to others.

The stream of people was finally dying down, and everyone found an appropriate place to sit.
Luckily, they didn't have to wait long as the lights dimmed over the benches, and they saw the Principal walking to the center of the presentation area. The room quieted as they waited for the Principal to speak.

"Thank you all for coming, everyone. Many of you are questioning why we asked you to attend this presentation. I can assure you that it is not the secret of my fur care regimen; I can tell you that you should get good sleep and invest in a quality conditioner. What will be presented to you today is a new tool our school has acquired from a new technology company called Stark Industries," Nezo said as he waited for the room to absorb his information. He noted the majority did not respond, but a few suddenly perked up at the name.

"Our presenter today will be Parker Peter, a new student of ours that is currently a member of Class 1-A." Nezo heard the many voices giving disapproval since it made no sense to them why someone from the Hero Course would do a presentation for the Support Course. Especially a first-year and on the second day of school.

"What many of you do not know is that young Parker has been the ward of Doctor Shield for the past year." Nezo smiled, as that had shut up every dissenter in the room.

"Young Parker could have easily taken the Support Course, but he opted to take the Hero Course as that is something he has a deep desire to do. He proved his worth in the Practical Exam, having the third highest score this year."

That surprised Momo since the other student's grades tended to be kept private. But she figured the reveal was done with his permission as a means of further quieting talk about whether he belonged in either class.

"He also scored one of the highest on mathematics and sciences for the written exam."

Considering what their Math Sensei had said about Parker, it wasn't too surprising for Momo.

"After discussing it with his guardian, Dr. Shield offered their new company to provide us with an early model of a new system they are developing. Only a few of the most advanced support companies globally have even glimpsed it. We are one of the first to acquire a working model. Because young Parker helped develop the system, he offered to present it to all of you," Nezo said as he looked around the room for a few moments before he looked to the side. "I now present to you, Parker Peter."

Peter walked towards the center of the stage, giving the small man a bow, before taking his place in the center. "Thank you, Principle Nezo."

Peter then looked around at the various stands with nervousness. He was rather glad for his previous experience dealing with crowds, even though he wore a mask during those times. He wished he could wear it now, but that wouldn't be very helpful.

"Thank you all for coming," Peter started off. "As Principal Nezo explained, what I will show you is a tool for designing any object your mind can imagine. Whether it is a support item, a new piece of technology, or any other purpose you might have where you need to design or edit something. The technology is called the Manipulative Projection System, or M.P.S. for short. It is only part of a larger toolset we are developing that will hopefully be available later this year."

Peter waited as he heard people murmuring to the sides. "First, before I get started, does anyone here have a blueprint and a support item I can use as an example of the system? Preferably two separate items to show how it can work from either starting point."

"Oh, I do!" A feminine voice spoke up. Momo traced it to the girl with pink dreadlocks, Mei Hatsume. She nearly teleported to the center with a set of blueprints and a vest in her excitement. "Here you go! Two of my latest babies!"

"... Thank you, Hatsume-san," Peter said as he accepted the items after a bit of hesitancy and embarrassment. Momo smiled a little at the interaction while her Mother didn't hold back her giggles. Peter then walked over to a small scanning station off to the side. "This first part will scan the blueprints. You can also set small devices or parts of devices on it to scan them individually. For objects too large to fit on the scanner, we have handheld scanners that can be used on the object."

The audience watched as the scanner lit up and an arm moved across the blueprints as Peter cycled them through. Then he picked up one of the scanners he referred to and swept it over the harness a few times, getting it from all angles. Afterward, he returned the items to an excited Hasume before she rushed to the side.

"Alright, let's get started. Computer? Activate the M.P.S., pull up the recently scanned files, and file them under Hatsume Mei. Let's start with the blueprint first. Please display the blueprints and construct the device as a full 3D model."

The audience watched as the room got a little darker as the presentation floor lost the bright lighting. Then they watched as holograms displayed the 2D images of the blueprints. The holograms were a light blue hue, lacking much else in the way of color. But they watched in amazement as the blueprints seemed to dip away until the page disappeared entirely. Lines denoting the physical parameters of the blueprint were left but quickly started reorganizing themselves for the separate pages until there were three sets of 3D images for the three pages of the blueprint. Many 'oohs' and 'aahs' were given at that display, but they were quickly silenced as the three separate blueprints combined to display a pair of large boots.

The boots were large and bulky, each with two circular sections on the sole and one additional one on the heel that was at a forty-five-degree angle. They would likely come up to the shin or the knee of whoever wore them, with an open front and a belt for securing it. It was massive in size compared to a normal pair of boots.

"Hmmm, hover boots. Not a bad idea or design," Peter said after it finished assembling. "Let's look closer and see what we can find."

The audience remained silent as they watched Peter reach out and pinch the air near the hologram. When he started walking toward the center of the stage, the hologram followed. Peter released it, letting it remain stationary. Momo saw him put his hands together, his palms and fingers touching each other before the hologram. He spread the two hands apart slowly at first, then quickly separated until his hands were spread far enough apart for him to hold a gigantic beach ball. The holographic item matched the speed of Peter's motions, with the invention breaking apart as pieces separated, including individual screws or parts. When he lowered his hands, it was more akin to an engine displaying every individual piece after it had been completely disassembled, but the pieces were flying in the air.

Peter then reached forward and tapped twice on a particular item, which gave it an orange-colored highlight. He tapped it again, and other pieces became colored as well. He then moved his hands and collapsed them until the highlighted items reformed. The item in question was the bottom of the boots with the three large fans and an additional section that looked like it stored the battery.

After dragging the orange hologram away, he swept an arm in a big motion, dismissing the remaining blueprint. After that finished, he released it, and it returned to its previous blue color. He spun the item around, looking at it from different angles. He reached up, grabbed one of the blade housing units with his fingers, then grabbed the section connecting the housing unit with his other hand and pulled them apart, splitting them. He dragged his new part to the side as it showed the fan blade.

"Let's see what we can do with this. Computer, please display an estimated simulation of the device and the specs." He watched as another area nearby displayed the usage with a wireframe person fitted to the boots and then showed how they were supposed to work as the boots lifted off by a few centimeters and pushed the person forward. In addition, a few 2D pages displayed all the noted stats about their estimated performance.

"Hatsume-san, what type of blades have you attempted?" Peter asked without looking away. He waited a few seconds but didn't hear anything from the lively girl, so he looked in her direction. Peter chuckled as he saw her eyes had turned glassy, and drool was coming out of her open mouth as she looked at the system. He repeated her name and still got no response. He tried it one more time, only much louder than before.

Finally shaken out of her spell, she responded, "Ummm, only the basic three-blade steep pitch I had available."

"Well," Peter said as he thought it over, "Let's see if some alternative fans can generate more lift for you. Computer, please substitute the fans for any currently known blade design. Run simulations on all of them without the basic housing, ignoring how the air intake currently functions."

The audience continued to watch as additional simulations ran, showing better contenders quickly cycled through, then added complexities like the current airflow, and he helped redesign the intake system to get the desired effect. He then changed the battery from a Lithium-ion to a solid-state, improving the system's safety.

It took him thirty minutes, but he had completely redesigned the boots to provide the same lift but at a higher efficiency, reduced the power draw, reduced the weight, and redesigned how the boots opened and closed for the wearer to make it easier and safer to get in and out of. The end result was sleeker and less bulky. Once it was done, he had it print the new specs to replace the current one.

Momo and her Mother had been entranced as they watched the entire presentation. They knew they were seeing the start of something momentous. Momo had looked around at the various students and teachers and saw the same glassy-eyed stare and drool running down most of their chins that the pink-haired girl was still sporting. It seemed Peter was going to be very popular.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Come on, Sakura, she went this way!" Mina exclaimed as she tugged Sakura behind her and the rest of the girls in their class as they carried their lunch trays with them. It was their third day of school, and the girls finally decided to confront Ranma.

Sakura rolled her eyes but didn't actually resist. She wasn't the only one that wasn't concerned, but all of them did want to at least hear the answers. She was admittedly curious, especially since Ranma wasn't doing stupid things like posing naked for dirty old men like Naruto would. It was even easier to find their target since she had just sneezed loudly.

Sakura saw Ochako peel off from the gaggle to intercept Izuku. Shortly after, he went toward some other classmates. They found Ranma at her table, just beginning to eat her meal, but looked up as they neared. She had a confused expression for a few moments before it slid into an understanding look. She then sighed in exasperation and fatalism.

"Have a seat," Ranma said as they approached the table and set their trays down. "You're a few days later than I expected."

"So you were expecting us?" Kyoka asked as she organized her tray and drinks. "I take it you've done this before?"

"Yeah," Ranma replied. "At least the girls tend to have valid questions, unlike most guys."

They hardly needed to think about it to imagine what questions some guys would ask, but the thought was still disturbing.

"Okay, so, what's the deal with your quirk changing you into a girl?" Mina asked, getting the interrogation started.

Ranma shrugged as she answered. "Cold water turns me into a girl; hot water turns me into a boy."

"That sounds like an odd quirk," Momo said. "Quirks do not usually function off of an activation like that."

"Usually, no, but my Dad had something similar. He would turn into a giant panda and back when splashed with cold and hot water. I've also been told I look like my Mother when she was my age."

A round of aahs went around the table as the quirk particulars began to make more sense as some form of inherited quirk. Sakura decided to get her own question out there, her medical skills and previous experience with girl hedges at the forefront of her mind. "How complete is the change?"

Ranma grimaced a little. She hadn't been pleased about learning how complete the change was. "It's a total shift. My D.N.A. changes entirely to female and male chromosomes; essentially, I become my own twin. Yes, I can get periods. It's based on accrued time rather than a monthly cycle, so I can't escape them by turning into a guy. It just delays them." The girls noticed her face shift to disgust. "Can make situations really… awkward... if I forget."

"Interesting," Sakura said as she thought of some of the more specific biological changes that could occur from that. "What about hormones and behavioral changes?"

Ranma sighed before her grimace returned. "Hormones shift as well, but it isn't noticeable most of the time. It can be hard if the hormones are unbalanced due to a period or something. I've gotten some help managing it, at least."

Sakura reviewed what little details she had picked up and decided to probe them. "I take it, from how you aren't exactly happy about it, that you had problems with your quirk?"

Ranma rolled her eyes as she answered. "Yeah, I've had trouble with it. Especially growing up."

"What kind of trouble?" Toru asked.

"When I was a toddler, my Dad was training me in Martial Arts. Before I even entered school, my Dad decided to take me on a training journey away from my Mom. He vowed to make me a 'Man among men.'"

The table stilled as every girl looked at Ranma with expressionless faces, some leaving chopsticks full of food hanging in the air. "What?" Kyoka asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah, he made that promise before my quirk manifested. He still tried to keep it, so I grew up and was told to be a 'man' and all that. It wasn't too bad when I was younger, but eventually, it was impossible to not notice the difference. My Mom wasn't too happy about the situation when I finally saw her again. It made the circumstances very uncomfortable. Though she did admit I was rather manly, she was proud enough about that. My Mom and pops are… characters."

"How are your parents now?" Mina asked.

Ranma stared ahead, not answering them for a moment. The girls were worried something was wrong before her expression softened, and she looked defeated. "I don't know. I got separated from them a year ago and haven't been able to find any signs of them. I don't know if they are alive or dead."

Any thought of grilling her about what her parents were like was forgotten after that admission as the girls looked ready to leave their seats to comfort her. Sakura stopped them with a wave and quickly cleared her throat. It didn't prevent Toru and Ochako from touching Ranma's shoulders to console her. While Sakura had deterred them from reacting, it still hit her hard since it matched her own situation, word for word. Sakura knew her problem was more complex since she had journeyed to another world, unlike Ranma.

"What happened? Ribbit," Asui asked softly in lieu of physically comforting her.

Ranma breathed a heavy sigh before answering. "Woke up in the woods with a squirrel, got into a fight, helped some people out, and then got taken in by my guardians. They've been helping me to piece together what to do regarding my quirk."

"How so?" Momo asked.

"They watched many of my mannerisms and how I just kept saying I was a guy, using male speech when I was a girl and more. When they learned how I was raised, they pointed out that the male identity was drilled into my head, and I had been conditioned to take it. They told me it wasn't wrong, per se, just that it was an ingrained reaction. I never made a choice about whether that was what I wanted, so they've been trying to get me to try to be a girl when I am a girl and a boy when I am a boy without my upbringing influencing me. They wanted me to understand what I truly wanted and not what I was told I wanted. They want me to make an informed decision, but to do that, I have to actually know what the choices are."

"How is that going?" Ochako asked.

"Awkward. With the help of my Guardians and my psychologist…," Ranma said with yet another grimace before straightening her face, "they helped me to break down what was what in terms of my behavior, so I could more easily identify what is actually going through my head at times. Quite a few times, I panicked, and the part of my head that was just saying I had to be a guy popped up. But they helped me identify it was my reaction to being seen as feminine, as being feminine as a guy I often would get yelled at, laughed at, or ridiculed."

Several of the girls winced. While none of them had outright experienced it, it was often seen as funny to see men acting feminine or in girl clothes in different stories, like manga, television, or movies. They started understanding how that would affect someone struggling with that genuine problem.

"So what about things like liking girls or guys?" Ochako asked. She was oblivious to a few more socially adept classmates slapping their faces.

Ranma gave her biggest cringe yet. "That was one of the hardest pills to swallow. My psychologist worked hard for it but helped determine that my… preferences… actually shift when I change. Not to a large degree, but it can be noticeable."

Toru's mischievous smirk was hidden by her quirk, though Ranma became instantly nervous when she felt a change in her emotions. "So, have your eyes on any hot guys?"

Ranma sputtered and blushed, making most of the girls giggle at the reaction. Sakura was one of them, though she did have an internal and very malicious smile. Toru's suggestion was an excellent question she would ask Naruto the next time he performed his 'Sexy Jutsu' in front of her.

"Are you switching every day?" Tsuyu asked, getting the discussion onto a better track.

"I was getting used to it where my guardians live, but there aren't many people around. It was suggested that I change back and forth and just let things happen. See how things turn out," Ranma said as she got her blush under control with a much easier topic to discuss.

The girls nodded at that. While her quirk was unusual in some ways, it wasn't so terribly different. "How do you want us to address you?" Momo asked.

This time, Ranma sighed in relief as it appeared the grilling was over. "You can address me however you feel most comfortable, but my preferences, for now, are just to treat me as the gender I am at the time or for the day if I switch temporarily. You can also just call me Ranma."

"I think we can do that," Sakura said with a smile.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

The class was seated again after lunch as the school bells chimed, signaling the start of the next lesson. Aizawa stood at the teacher's podium, waiting for the final bell to finish ringing. He was glad the entire class was seated before the first bell started. Finally, after thirty seconds, the bell stopped.

"Now for today's Basic Hero Training. This time, All Might, myself and one other will supervise." Aizawa paused for a moment, but no one interrupted. "Today, we will be preparing you for disaster relief. Today, it is Rescue Training."

Aizawa finally encountered the expected chatter as the students expressed their excitement. "Hey. I'm not done."

When the class quieted again, he continued. "It's up to each of you whether or not you wear your costumes or gym clothes, as some of them are ill-suited for this kind of activity. The training site is a bit remote, so we'll go by bus. That's all, so get ready."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Sakura-san, should we organize how we get on the bus?" Tenya asked as they made their way.

Sakura looked ahead at the bus, noting it was different from the one from the other day, and thought of Tenya's suggestion before coming to a quick conclusion. "Not a bad idea, Tenya, but let's see how things go first. You don't have to control everything so strictly. Let's just see how it goes. We can implement some order if it looks like it isn't working."

"Understood!" Tenya said, giving a quick military salute. Once the bus started opening for them to get on, they quickly boarded it. It also showed that the class didn't need a heavy hand after all, as the bus had half the seats facing each other, though a few started to bicker about seating in the back. Tenya moved to chew them out, but Sakura put another hand on his shoulder to stop him from getting out of his seat.

"Not yet, Tenya," Sakura said softly. "Give them a little time to resolve it themselves. If you get involved too early, the problem may resurface down the road anyways. Sometimes letting them figure it out themselves is a better long-term solution."

"Right! Thank you, Sakura-san!" Tenya whispered loudly while raising his hand as if giving a high five. They watched as it was resolved, mostly by Peter agreeing to sit next to Bakugo.

Momo had been silent throughout the multiple exchanges but decided to probe their interactions. "I take it you two know each other?"

Sakura smiled after turning to Momo, "Yes. I met him at his brother's hero agency when I was invited."

"Brother's hero agency?" Izuku asked in excitement. "Who is he?"

Tenya smiled as he looked across at the smaller boy, then answered proudly. "My brother is the Turbo Hero, Ingenium!"

"Oh! He runs a Hero agency out of Tokyo and employs sixty-eight sidekicks at his office!" Izuku replied with ease.

"Isn't that the Hero Agency that has been getting a lot of praise lately? Even though none of them are considered very high on the Hero charts, other than Ingenium? In fact, he's shot up significantly in the last six months. I believe he was around the seventies in rank last year, but now he's in the thirties and still going up!" Eijiro said in excitement.

Sakura smiled at that, happy to see Tensei and his team getting more praise and recognition.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Whoa!" Eijiro yelled out in excitement as they entered the grounds. "Is this Universal Studios Japan?"

The class looked around at the site, amazed at what they saw.

"There's the flood zone, landslide zone, conflagration zone, and more," said a feminine voice, one slightly muffled by the large dome mask she wore. "Every disaster and accident you can imagine is simulated here. I built this facility myself. I call it the 'Unforeseen Simulation Joint!'"

The class turned as they saw the new arrival. Their voice was the only clue to their gender as she wore what looked like an astronaut's bulky space suit.

"So it really is U.S.J.!" Denki replied.

"It's the Space Hero, Thirteen!" Izuku said, happy to see another known hero teaching them.

"Ooh, I love Thirteen! She's the hero that does the best work in Rescue Scenarios!" Ochako said, even happier than Izuku.

Aizawa walked up to Thirteen while he searched around. He asked her softly to avoid being overheard by the class as they continued to look around the site. "Thirteen, where's All Might? I thought he was meeting us here."

"About that, Senpai. He just about reached his limit during his morning commute. He's resting in the break room."

Aizawa glared forward as he realized what Thirteen was talking about. "The height of irrationality."

He sighed, getting his emotions back in place as it seemed Toshinori made things more complicated for them again. "So be it; let's get started."

Thirteen nodded as she stepped closer to the class. "Before we get started, I have one or two points… or three… or four…."

The class waited silently, a few rolling their eyes as she kept adding how many points she had to make.

"As many of you know, my quirk is called Black Hole. It can suck in and tear apart anything."

"And you've used it to save people in all sorts of disasters!" Izuku said gleefully as Ochako nodded her head up and down rapidly.

"Indeed," Thirteen said as she paused briefly. "However, my power could easily kill. I've no doubt there are some among you with similar abilities. In our super-powered society, quirks are heavily restricted and monitored. It may seem that this system is stable, but we must never forget that it only takes one wrong move with an uncontrollable quirk for people to die."

The class became silent as they absorbed her lesson. "During Aizawa's physical fitness test, you came to learn of your own hidden potential. Through All Might's battle training, you experienced the danger your respective quirks can pose to others. This class, however, will show you a new perspective! You will learn how to utilize your quirks to save lives!"

She was glad to see smiles across most of their faces as they silently waited. "Your powers are not meant to inflict harm, so I hope you leave here today with the understanding that you're meant to help people."

"That is all. I thank you for listening," Thirteen said before giving a western-style bow, with one arm across her belly and one shooting off behind her.

Several students clapped and cheered on the speech, and most enjoyed it.

Aizawa leaned against the rail before he got the class's attention again. "Great, first off–"

Aizawa paused as he saw Parker suddenly stiffen. He wondered what was happening when he heard an odd noise from below, near the water fountain. He turned, seeing a black swirling cloud forming near it, growing in size. When a hand reached from inside to grab the edge was when his concern grew significantly. It peaked on seeing the face coming through the swirl.

"Huddle up, and don't move!" Aizawa shouted to the students behind him, checking in their direction momentarily before returning to the mass below them. The students looked startled, surprised by their sensei's demanding tone. "Thirteen! Protect the students!"

When he looked back, he saw the first of them had fully exited the swirl, and he got a proper look at them. They had grayish-blue hair that was more unkempt than his own, but the most disturbing part was the severed hand resting on the front of his face, palm and fingers splayed out as it masked his features. As he came through, more severed hands were found, one on the back of his head, two on the back of his neck, two on his shoulders, two under his armpits, and three on each arm. He wore a dark long-sleeved shirt, pants, and red tennis shoes.

Soon, the swirl opened further as more people came through it. Men and women of various sizes, many with obvious mutation quirks that made them look intimidating. Others had bladed or blunt weapons, while some looked like they would have ranged quirks or guns.

When the swirls finally ended, over fifty figures were arrayed below them, all looking up with glee or malice.

The students finally noticed the group below; many didn't know what to think.

"What the heck's that?" Eijiro asked as he observed the group. "More battle robots? Like during the entrance exam?"

Aizawa couldn't fault his ignorance, but he had no time to deal with that as he raised his goggles hidden under his scarf. "Don't Move! Those are Villains!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

A/N - Yeah! I released in Sunday... just, don't look at what time it was posted on Sunday!

Anyways, this chapter ended up being a bit harder since I needed to adjust more of the dialogue. Boldish helped out significantly with that part, as the first several passes were a bit dry.

There was one part of this chapter that Boldish and I had a tough time agreeing on, and that was the part where Chiyo uses the analogy of Villages/Ninjas to News Org/Reporters. He thought it was too forced, not natural enough of a discussion, and the punishment analogy is stretched too far, at least on earlier versions. The media do become important later in the story, so isn't isolated.

So I am checking with others how they feel about that section. If you can, try to explain how/why it feels that way to you.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 9 - U.S.J. Attack​

The man known as Shigaraki Tomura was rather disappointed as he looked at the assembled children and two pro-heroes. Much of it fit what he expected when they entered the grounds. But the most important component was missing.

"Thirteen and… Eraser Head, is it? The staff schedule said All Might was supposed to be here."

Tomura didn't look at his ally that had spoken, a man-like entity made of black billowing clouds. The only visible thing to note him as a person was the yellow eyes. The swirling mass of portals finally closed behind them.

Tomura was not happy to see his primary target was absent. So he decided to ask the gathered heroes in training. His loud voice was gravely and clearly heard, even though it seemed like it should have been muffled due to the severed hand on his face, with a hidden edge to his words that spoke of danger. "Where is he? We've come all this way and brought so many playmates. But where is the Symbol of Peace? Where is All Might? Is he here?"

He watched as the children and two adults were silent. So he decided to push them even further. "I wonder if some dead kids will bring him here?"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura was alerted simultaneously to Aizawa-sensei, even if she didn't show it.. She checked the rest of the class and wasn't surprised to see Ranma reacting as well, though the redhead was as calm as she was. What had surprised her was that Parker had stiffened a few seconds before anything had appeared. His reaction was what set them off in the first place. That was interesting and good to know, as he could detect things before Aizawa, Ranma, or herself.

Ranma and Parker had stepped closer toward the edge of the hill overlooking the fountain on opposite sides of their sensei as the rest of the class only began to notice their appearance. She stood alongside Ranma to confirm her suspicions. "The one from yesterday, are they here?" She asked in a whisper.

Ranma didn't bother to look away, instead focused on the assembled group and getting a grim evaluation of the situation. "Yep. The one with the hands," Ranma said, her volume as low as hers. "Definitely reeking of anger management issues. Enough to kill anyone that gets in his way. But this isn't the only group. There are others out there who popped up just like this one did and are just sitting around waiting."

The fact the villain started asking where All Might was and then threatened to kill some of them confirmed it rather quickly.

Sakura quickly diagnosed the likely scenario. They had a warper that could warp a large group of people and possibly to multiple locations. That meant to divide and conquer, which was a reasonable strategy. Create opportunities for yourself and present dilemmas for your opponent.

"The class needs to stay together, or we're playing into their hands. The warper will try to send some of us to the other groups, likely to create a dilemma for the adults and us while distracting All Might."

"Yeah, keep an eye on them. Teachers will also get targeted to make us easier targets."

Sakura turned her head to raise an eyebrow at her, but she only received a playful smirk.

"If you are going to play with them, be warned; the leader did something that destroyed the gate yesterday. Turned it into dust. Try to get him to use his quirk, preferably at a distance, so we know what we're dealing with. The big guy looks like a bruiser, probably some attempt to counter All Might's physicality."

"Thanks for the heads up!" Ranma said with a nod.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Villains? No way! What villains would be dumb enough to sneak into a school for heroes?" Kaminari asked.

The class stared at the mass of dangerous-looking individuals before them. Some of them were becoming worried, especially those less familiar with the world of heroes. A few noted that Aizawa's hair began to float upwards, especially the strand between his eyes.

"Sensei? Aren't there intruder alarms?" Momo asked, her brain trying to figure out the situation.

"Yes, of course there are…." Thirteen began to reply before she realized the significance of the question. The fact they didn't appear to be going off.

Shoto stood near the front as he looked down at the groups. "Are they only here, or are they also at the main building? Either way, if the sensors aren't working, it may be due to one of their quirks that's interrupting them. This place is far from the campus, and they picked a time when only a few people would be here. They may not be as dumb as they seem."

His classmates nodded, seeing the sense in his analysis.

"Someone is generating a large electromagnetic field elsewhere in the stadium," Peter added as he looked around before he pointed well beyond the fountain to what looked like a distant mountain. "They are over there."

Peter continued looking around, confusing the students with his actions. "They are interfering with the building's communication systems by causing disruptions in the infrared and radio-wave spectrums, throwing off transmissions of traditional forms of E.M. transmissions. They've also sent regular E.M.P. pulses to catch any hardware not protected from E.M.I. interference. Communications through the E.M. spectrum will be almost impossible at this time."

Thirteen sighed; their situation was now more precarious and showed the stronger hand the villains had come in with. "So we have no way of communicating with the outside world."

"I didn't say that," Peter replied, shocking his classmates and teachers. Though Aizawa kept his eyes and quirk on the villains like a professional. "Alright, the message is being transmitted now. All Might, the Principle, and any other pro-hero teacher on campus will be contacted simultaneously in a moment. The police will also be contacted, but expect them to be slower to arrive. The estimated arrival time is three to five minutes for All Might since he is currently with Principal Nezu. Further backup is ten to fifteen minutes out. A data package has been sent with details about what is happening. I will update them continuously as things progress so they know what to prepare for."

"What?" Thirteen asked, astonished that the teen had been able to do that. He spoke of things that should have been impossible, knowledge of things he shouldn't currently know. Especially when he didn't appear to do anything but look around. "How were you able to communicate when we can't?"

"First, my suit is insulated against E.M.I. interference, including E.M.P. pulses," Peter replied. "So it isn't a threat to my suit. Second, I have specialized software running to analyze and counter the E.M. interference, so I can use normal E.M. communications soon, but that will take a few minutes. Lastly, I have a specialized communication system with my suit that doesn't use E.M. frequency communication."

"What– what kind of communication do you use that isn't electromagnetic?" Momo asked, surprise giving way to curiosity.

"A form of communication through a different layer of spacetime," Peter answered. "The most commonly used word to describe the method is Subspace."

"Well done, Parker," Aizawa said, glad the genius had the tools they needed to make the situation far safer. He also wanted to ensure they got their heads back in the game and not sidetracked with a science discussion.

Now they just needed to buy time. There were only two Pro-Heroes here at this time. He didn't want to belittle her, but Thirteen was limited in combat actions. It was left to him to buy them that time. He pulled his scarf even looser, made easier by his quirk that made his scarf float in the air around him to an extent. as he calculated his plan of attack. "Thirteen, evacuate the students. Get them as far away from–

"No," Sakura ordered. Her voice was softer than their sensei's, but it easily cut through his words.

"What?"

"Why?" Mina and Ochako asked. The two girls were just some of the ones confused by the countermand.

Aizawa halted when the pink-haired teenager stopped his orders. He considered getting mad at her but would hear her out if she had additional information. "And why is that, Haruno?"

"First and foremost, we need you to keep that warper shutdown. Due to the behavior of the portals that formed, the man that looks like a billowing, black cloud with a neck brace is most likely the warper. So unless they brought multiple warpers, which is an extremely rare quirk, he could do mass warps in multiple locations. This makes him dangerous if we get separated. This leads to the second important point, this isn't the only group of villains. Saotome and Parker both confirmed it separately."

Aizawa paused at the implications; if this wasn't the only group, the warper was certainly as dangerous as she implied. "Where are they? How many?"

"They are in multiple, large groups that are spread throughout the different zones in the stadium," Peter said, joining the discussion. "Getting an accurate count at the moment is difficult. All of my sensors are going, including E.M. sensors for infrared, x-ray, light amplification, sound, and more. That quirk is interfering somewhat and they are spread out. Confirmed count is thirty-four additional villains besides these ones, but that isn't likely to be accurate. A more realistic count is something over a hundred to a hundred and fifty additional villains. They started appearing at the same time as the one before us."

"Which means their warper may be able to split our party with ease, so it would play into their hands," Todoroki commented.

Aizawa had to give it to them; they reasoned that well and he was proud of them for it. If the information they had was accurate about their numbers and distribution, and they all appeared due to the single warper in front of them, then he was likely the most dangerous one here. And they had come prepared to separate them.

"Third, this is a decently defensible position right next to where reinforcements are most likely to appear. We, and especially you, Sensei, have a clear line of sight for several hundred meters," Sakura said as she continued her logic train.

"So when reinforcements arrive, we'll be within line of sight of the most likely entrance they will come through," Izuku said as he saw her reasoning. "We want them to provide it for the entire group and not have to have them separate and diluted."

"Running invites more risk and more unknowns," Tenya replied as he took up the mantle. He remembered the lessons Sakura had given Team Idaten; he always tried to listen closely. Especially when she tended to prove her points with practical experience. "We don't know if they have set traps elsewhere in the stadium, even the entrance. Staying here, keeping the warper pinned, reduces their numbers and strategic options to what they currently have on hand."

"And we don't know if there are unknowns we can't detect," Mezo added. He learned his lesson well the other day, both his own encounter and some of the other's battles.

"Lastly," Sakura said, getting the class's attention back, "You don't need to go down there. Instead, remaining here ensures you keep the warper safely shut down."

Aizawa glared, only allowing his quirk to shut off briefly so he could blink before reactivating it. Everything else about what they had said was well thought out. But it didn't solve his main dilemma. "Someone needs to at least hold off the villains in front of us."

Sakura nodded. "Agreed. And someone more qualified will do it."

"And who is more qualified?" Aizawa asked coldly. He did not want to throw Thirteen into that pile of Villains.

"Ranma," Sakura replied easily.

"Ranma is a student," Aizawa growled at the suggestion. "She is not fighting them while I am here."

"She outstrips you in combat experience."

That claim certainly raised some eyebrows from the class.

"Besides, she's already down there," Sakura added casually.

Everyone but Aizawa stared at her before they turned to where Ranma had previously been, realizing that she was missing.

"What the hell?" Eijiro exclaimed as he looked around for her, "She was here just a moment ago!"

"I said she's already down there," Sakura repeated, pointing at the mass of villains.

They followed her finger and were startled that they hadn't noticed her presence among them. Ranma was crouching down like she was playing a children's hide-and-seek game. The villains still hadn't even realized she was there.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma grinned as she happily remained squatting down amongst the villains; none of them had bothered to look down. She also noticed that their class and sensei had finally noticed she was down here. It was time to get the show on the road.

She got up out of her crouch, no longer hiding her presence. The effect on the villains was swift as they were alarmed. Some even jumped back in fear after realizing she had been among them.

"What the hell?"

"Gah! How did she get here?"

Others started to take defensive postures before moving to offensive ones. She decided to rub it in even further and ensure her actions' consequences weren't too bad. After all, their Sensei had threatened to expel them for that little test the other day. And then lied about it being a ruse.

She looked up towards Aizawa with a big smile, her eyes closed, and her body totally relaxed. "Hey, Sensei! I just want to make sure– oops, one sec."

She dodged in a blur of motion as several villains leaped to attack her from behind and her sides. She stopped behind some other villain that looked more like a zombie in stitches, and the three villains ended up in a pile of bodies while she snickered. Morons.

"Anyways, Sensei? I'm just– geez, can't you let a girl ask a question?" Ranma asked while the zombie tried to recover from hearing her snicker behind him. She bent her torso out of the way of a fist the zombie threw after he recovered and then a dash to the other side to avoid some sort of barb that shot out of a ranged fighter's arm. She finished with a series of backflips to dodge the rest of the idiots' attacks. "Sensei, I am legally allowed to defe– oh, stop that!"

She ended her last dodging blitz on the head of one huge villain with rocky skin, four arms, and what looked like a full head mask. This caused all the villains in the area to stop at the unusual sight of using some guy's head as a footpad. "I can legally defend myself so long as I don't use my quirk, right?"

The question halted the villains again, even the one being used as a stool. The idea that she would attack them without using her quirk was laughable but so unusual that their brains couldn't comprehend it momentarily.

Since they all took their time processing her question and her Sensei didn't look prone to answer her immediately, she returned to address them. "Okay, you idiots can go back to trying to kill me if you want while I wait for my Sensei to answer."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Someone needs to get her out of there!" Mina yelled while gripping the rails at the top of the entrance platform and looking down at the redhead, continuing to dodge knives and tentacle-like hair.

"How are we supposed to do that without making it worse? Ribbit," Tsuyu responded, even as she looked worried for their classmate.

The class looked on, most gravely concerned for Ranma's safety but knowing they could do nothing. Aizawa was livid with rage but also trying to figure out how to best get her out of there. When she had turned, making her presence known amongst them, their concern was raised significantly. They then watched as Ranma was attacked relentlessly by the large mob.

There were some startled yelps from the class as they watched her avoid the numerous villains. Of their class, only three had any idea as to what was happening. Two of them had observed a similar situation a few days ago; this was just dialed up to eleven. Sakura was smiling due to fond memories from home.

Aizawa wasn't as panicked as before, though he remained furious. He was a skilled enough fighter to realize Ranma was very good at evasion. But the question she had posed to him was confusing. He had requested from Principal Nezu several times for her quirk registry to be updated but had been told the last few times there was no need. If they expected the police and the law to ignore what was obviously a quirk, they would be foolish. But…Nezu was far from a fool. He had a reason, but Aizawa couldn't piece it together and didn't have time to do that.

He watched out of the corner of his eyes as he kept his power trained on who he pegged as the warper, preventing him from making the situation worse than it already was. He couldn't risk using his quirk on the villains surrounding her, as there was the risk of accidentally catching her with his quirk and making her an easy target.

But Ranma was holding her own for now, as she avoided attacks by centimeters, weaving in and out of the throng with a grace Aizawa had never seen before. She insulted them with childish antics like making fun of their looks, skills, parents, or ancestors. The villain's rage at how she belittled them also made them lose all sense of reason.

But there were unaccounted variables. The leader, the warper, and the big guy with the exposed brain had yet to move. They were watching Ranma make a mockery of them. He could tell they were getting pissed off, and there was a good chance they would intervene. He hated being put into situations like this, with the kids' lives on the line.

"Saotome!" Aizawa shouted, getting Ranma's attention as well as others. "Get back up here! Now!"

"Relax, Sensei!" Ranma replied, casually ducking a fist the size of an engine block. "I've literally been in more danger walking down the street or eating dinner at home than what this lot poses. But seriously, don't worry, I only came to U.A. to learn hero-ing. I already know how to fight!"

"Sensei," Sakura said at his side, her voice calm. "I know it isn't what you want, but Ranma can handle herself and is already down there. She is buying us time for reinforcements if she can hold their attention. Giving her permission allows her to defend herself, making it easier to stall for that time. You and Thirteen-sensei are not the only ones capable of fighting here. You are not alone."

Aizawa wished he could look directly at Sakura right then; he felt there was much he'd be able to uncover about her just by looking at that moment. She wasn't scared or nervous, unlike how average teens her age in modern Japan should react. Then again, this was U.A.; they dealt with the extraordinary. Unfortunately, that meant situations like this as well.

"Sensei!" Izuku said from behind Aizawa, "Ranma-san did something similar to this after class on Monday! She fought the various Martial Arts club members similarly and said she was playing with them. She's doing the same thing here! She's in complete control down there!"

"He's right, Sensei!" Uraraka urged in her agreement as she stood beside the mossy-haired boy.

"Dammit," he muttered to himself as he had to agree with the claim. They had yet to even graze her with sneak attacks from behind, and her motions were extremely clean. He came to a decision and then shouted. "So long as you do not use your quirk, you are legally free to defend yourself! If you do something stupid and get yourself hurt, I will punish you! Nothing as simple as expulsion either!"

His student's blur of motion stopped and turned, looking up at them with a big, happy grin and a military salute. "Yes, Sensei! Thank you very much, Sensei! I'll handle these morons now, Sensei!"

The villains, still blinded with rage, turned and attacked once again. But when she disappeared once more, something drastically different happened.

They couldn't track her as her body blurred even faster than before. Only blips of motion appeared next to every villain within ten meters of her at the same time before disappearing again in the center, settling with a crouched Ranma solidifying with her fist in the lower gut of the man with the four arms she had previously used as a footstool. It had happened in under two seconds, most observers needing twice that time to process the event.

Her expression had changed from playful to deadly serious. Then the bodies of the villains dropped or went flying. Most of them lost consciousness before they hit the ground. Those that hadn't, wished they had, as their world was controlled by the agony they experienced.

The battlefield's mood shifted instantly, away from anger and into incredulous fear, as the villains' numbers were immediately devastated. Half of them had gone down so fast they couldn't understand.

The back-alley villains began to retreat, no longer wanting to get involved in that fight. But they all watched as she stood up to her full diminutive height. She then turned her gaze to the trio of villains that had stood to the side before sauntering towards them.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Tomura was getting pissed as he scratched at his neck, glaring daggers at the one mocking the cannon fodder he brought along and the heroes above. He didn't want to reveal his secret weapon just yet, not like this, to some unknown girl.

"We may need to send the Nomu after the girl or Eraser Head," the swirling black mass named Kurogiri said from his side as he evaluated the situation calmly. "He's the only one fast enough to touch her. Especially with Eraser Head not engaging and him blocking my quirk."

Tomura growled, not liking his plan being thrown such a curve ball like this. First, their primary target wasn't even here, the addition of Eraser Head, and then this new girl started making fools of them.

They listened as Eraser Head gave the girl the okay, though why the hell they were talking as if a quirk weren't involved was unusual.

"Yes, we need to break this up. Let's have the Nomu ki–"

Then they saw the girl's explosion of motion, and half of his army on hand went down. Tomura's eyes widened in shock, as that was similar to the kind of power that All Might had. That made her a serious threat.

"This is bad," Kurogiri said, worry seeping into his voice. "We need to disrupt Eraser Head and kill the girl. Now. We don't know when All Might will arrive, and fighting him and the girl simultaneously will be too difficult, especially since I haven't been able to separate the rest of them so they couldn't interfere."

Tomura was evaluating his options, continuing to scratch at his neck with a few fingers as he thought of the best way to handle this. He also watched the girl calmly sauntering towards them before she spoke up.

"So, you three are the leaders? Handsy, Gloomy, and Birdbrain?" the girl asked as she walked towards them, stopping next to a baseball bat before using her toe to flip it into the air, where she casually caught it in one hand.

"Insults? Heroes, you really make me sick! Your first action is always violence and ridicule. Heroes are just hypo–"

Tomura paused in his monologue as he caught the bat that had casually been thrown at him, preventing it from hitting him in the face. It had spun in the air faster than a casual toss would indicate, closing the distance quickly.

"See?" Tomura commented as he lowered the bat away and connected all five fingers to it, causing it to disintegrate quickly. His hand opened, letting the powder fall to the ground around him. "You thrive off violence, Hero!"

"Sure do! I got no problem with violence or name-calling, Mr. Handsy. They've been a part of my life since I could walk and talk." Ranma replied, stopping her advancement. She stood about ten meters away and her hands at her side. "But you guys suck! And your speech is sooo boring. Why not take a nap? I can help!" Ranma tilted her head with a helpful smile and closed her eyes, making her look rather cute… if she hadn't just dropped over a dozen villains a moment ago.

"You're no better than us, yet you heroes get to call us villains!" Tomura shouted, his hands splayed out to his side as he yelled. "Just a tool of the state to keep us down, even though you like to do the same things!"

Ranma snorted, giggling a little at the moron. "Oh! This is your first one of these, isn't it? You gotta monologue your excuses so you can act like the misunderstood victim, right? Here, let me get into character." Ranma proceeded to put on her most innocent cutesy face, her hands clasped together under her chin. "Violence by itself isn't bad, Mr. Handsy! It can be a lot of fun, just like any other physical activity, silly! It's when you use violence against someone that doesn't want it or is harming someone is where it becomes wrong!"

"And yet you tried to commit violence against me," Tomura pointed out, his smile still malicious but mostly hidden by the hand on his face.

Ranma dropped the cutesy act. "Says the idiot who brought a bunch of people ready to threaten and attack us." Ranma replied, a bit of disgust in her voice. "You're full of shit. I've got you pegged, Mr. Handsy. You're just a violent maniac and what you want is to kill people. People you don't like. Probably because they prevent you from doing things you want, but you just like making excuses to others to explain it away. Like the selfish little punk you are."

"Che," Tomura glared at the girl, angered at how his words hadn't unsettled her. He decided to restart the violence. While they didn't know when All Might would arrive, they were prepared for him. They had plenty of time to handle the rest, but it would be better to take this girl out of the fight like Kurogiri had suggested.

"Nomu, attack Eraser Head. Then kill the girl."

In a burst of speed as impressive as the girl's, Nomu disappeared. When he reappeared, it was meters away from Eraser Head and the rest of the class, its fist swinging but hitting nothing but air. That air still responded, throwing out a powerful wave of pressure that threw many of the students back.

But what surprised Tomura was that Nomu wouldn't have tried to do that. Its path had been cut short, its swing still in motion, when the rest of its body halted mid-air due to the redheaded girl kicking it in the gut. She had disappeared as quickly as the Nomu had, hit the stairs in front of the rest of the class if the sudden appearance of cracked concrete was any indicator, and rebounded into the Nomu.

The air pressure still could have hurt some students and even Eraser Head if not for other students' responses, such as the pink-haired girl dragging Eraser Head and a few other students back down, avoiding the swing.

Nomu wasn't hurt. It reached for the girl's leg, but her hand intercepted it and flipped herself over its head, changing the fulcrum and easily flipping in the air and then throwing his living tool into the concrete below.

This intervention would have angered Tomura further if not for the fact that Kurogiri had disappeared into one of his warp gates.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

As they tried to recover from the sudden attack, Kurogiri appeared in a black swirl behind the class. Their backs were turned away as they recovered. He had already prepared to use his warp gates as soon as he could, only needing a second after reforming enough of his body to capture them from this distance.

His plan stalled the instant part of his body had solidified when he saw and felt some kind of gray rope attach itself to his chest and was yanked forward by a boy that was dressed in a bodysuit of red and black. This disrupted his concentration and brought him into the path of two boys. One redheaded boy punched at his torso while the blonde tried to smash his face with an explosion.

Kurogiri flew backward. He had felt that punch and barely avoided the explosion to the face, even with his defensive clouds protecting his real body and having warped part of it away. He crashed and rolled a few times. He was lucky that his landing allowed him to see the incoming ice as it flew across the ground quickly. He warped away before it could catch him or Aizawa could finish turning his gaze onto him.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Aizawa was alarmed at seeing the large, bird-like man, the one their leader called Nomu, move so fast. He appeared in front of his students so quickly that even his trained reflexes failed to respond until the airblast had already hit them.

It hit with enough force to cause him to lose focus and blink, and there was no way to reacquire the warper quickly enough. But that air blast should have done more damage to them, considering how strong it was, impacting and shattering some of the glass for the stadium's shell.

He realized why when he noticed Sakura's arm crossing his body to his opposite shoulder. She had pulled him back several meters out of the path of the brunt of the swing. She had also grabbed Mina in her dive. Izuku, who was trying to help Ochako to her feet, appeared to have done the same thing.

That was also when he heard more loud noises from behind them, specifically something that sounded like a heavy impact and an explosion. He couldn't see from his position; too many students blocking his path. So he quickly got to his knees and found the last remaining bits of a swirling portal closing just before a wave of ice crashed through its previous spot.

He looked at his assembled students, finding Peter with another webline that trailed the warper's previous position. He noticed other weblines sitting at his feet that were still attached to many of the students' backs, even as they tried to stand up.

A few were still standing, either withstanding the shockwave or dodging it enough. He stood up, looking at every student and Thirteen, and found they hadn't suffered anything beyond shock, encountering such a close call as they had.

Aizawa noted the four boys that had responded to the villain recovered their stances as the immediate threat was gone.

"Che," Katsuki grunted. "The bastard got away."

"Unfortunately," Shota agreed, releasing his quirk.

An excited Eijiro turned back to Peter. "That was awesome, man! How'd you know that was gonna happen?"

Peter finally finished standing up from his crouched position, looking around the area and at his classmates, ensuring they were safe.

"What happened?" Aizawa asked. He had a rough idea, but he wanted a clearer picture.

"Peter dove backward, shooting most of his webbing at every one's back before that leader even finished ordering that monster to attack us!" Eijiro recounted for their sensei, giving Peter a fist bump as he approached their sensei to explain. "He pulled us back and away but then shot his webbing behind us towards the warper before that jackass even appeared to blindside us!"

Aizawa turned to the foreign student, giving a solid nod of approval for that act. "Well done, Parker," Aizawa said before turning to the other three boys. "You boys did well in responding to that threat." Finally, he turned to Sakura. "And thank you, Haruno. That was a solid reaction time you showed."

"Heads up, guys," Peter said, gaining their attention as the class finished recovering. "The warper has a real body, but it's mostly covered by the black clouds that act as a barrier. But he can also warp parts of his body in and out. That's why Bakugo's explosion didn't do much damage to him." Peter didn't comment on the grunt from the explosive blonde. "The neck brace is the one part of his body that doesn't seem to do that. If he shows up again, target that."

"Thank you, Parker," Aizawa said as he finished reviewing his students. "Is everyone else okay?"

"Yeah, peachy…"

"That was scary!"

"Ribbit."

"I am unhurt, sir!"

"Way too close a call!"

"Ugh, my cape!"

Aizawa was glad to hear it. That had been too close for his tastes. They had severely underestimated the power of 'Nomu', but they had also underestimated his own students. If Ranma hadn't intercepted the man or Parker and Sakura hadn't responded so quickly, that would have easily been a disaster.

That was when he heard the sounds of more pressure waves going off down below. Nomu was still fighting, most likely Ranma. And the warper was free of his quirk. He turned and looked back down, confirming that Nomu was trying to fight Ranma, but she was easily avoiding its punches as she blurred between his fists. Aizawa failed to spot the warper anywhere nearby. That was bad.

"Everyone!" Aizawa yelled, getting their attention. "Get it together! With their warper free, be prepared for more villains to appear! It's gonna be bad."

How bad was revealed seconds later as gates began to form on the platform they were on. Only a few appeared at first, but more started opening every few seconds, each one near the edge of the platform or in front of the entranceway. Each one started spitting out villains before they charged forward, eager to commit acts of violence.

They were surrounded, their exit from the stadium behind the growing number of portals, their flanks also covered, though not as much of a concern since the platform was narrower. The only path away was down the stairs, into the path of destruction that Nomu was creating as it fought his student.

And still, the warper was missing.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Kurogiri cradled his chest, lucky he could mitigate that attack as much as he had. He didn't bother to return to Tomura's side just yet; otherwise, Eraser Head would just negate his quirk again. He wanted to maximize this chance that they had been given.

He was near one of the other zones; the villains lined up and prepared to attack the students that were supposed to appear. Kurogiri got to his feet, turned to them, and gave new orders.

"Change of plans. I will warp you near the group of students. The other groups will join you. You are to kill some of the students and hold the rest as hostages like we had planned. But make sure you kill Eraser Head."

Kurogiri was indifferent to the malicious grins that formed on their faces.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

As the portals formed and villains streamed out, Sakura knew the situation had shifted to a more dangerous position, at least for her classmates getting out of this unscathed. She wouldn't reveal her full hand to the villains unless she had to, and it was either that or her classmates would have to protect themselves.

Sakura felt a hand on her shoulder, finding Tenya looking at her and giving her a nod. "What do you suggest we do, Class Representative?"

She smiled in response, happy to know he had her back. Guess she would let her classmates do what they could.

"Form up into a semi-circle!" Sakura yelled, getting her classmate's attention quickly as most of them obeyed before they realized they had.

"Parker! You are our warning system against the warper! Help how you can, but stay close since he is your primary target!" Sakura commanded.

"Aye, aye, Captain!" Peter yelled, along with a salute, even as he leaped forward to land on the shoulders of a large, charging villain and then kicked off of him to shove him back to crash into some of his friends like they were pinballs.

"Bakugo! Todoroki! Back him up! Hit the warper hard and hold him in place until Sensei can negate him with his quirk! Otherwise, Bakugo, you are close to medium range! Keep the bulk of them off of us!"

"Don't tell me what to do, Forehead!" Katsuki roared back, even as he leaped near the center, catching a few villains in an explosion, knocking them off course and away.

"Todoroki! Do what you can to freeze one of our flanks! Keep that side under control to reduce the vectors they can fight us from!"

"Understood," the dual-hair colored boy calmly replied before a sheen of ice started making its way to the portals on that side, going up legs and freezing some in place.

Sakura was glad for some of her classmates' quick actions, buying them time so she could give the rest of their class orders before they were swarmed.

"Jiro, Yaoyorozu, Asui, Ashido, Aoyama!" Sakura called out next, causing some of them to stiffen. "Use ranged attacks! Keep them suppressed to reduce the risk of us getting overwhelmed! Aoyama, concentrate on distant targets, the furthest away! Jiro, hit them in packs! Ashido, mild acidic attacks, and anything to make the battle area harder for them, target near the portals especially! Asui, use your tongue to disarm, entangle, and draw them to our classmates! Yaoyorozu, whatever weapon you think you can create appropriate for it! Flash grenades, smoke, or other lobbed weapons to disorient and cause confusion!"

The girls and one fancy boy followed through, quickly creating chaos on the field even as the villain's numbers increased in speed.

"Kirishima, Shoji, Sato, Koda! Defense! Concentrate on body blocking and grappling anyone that tries to get close! Make sure to defend our ranged squad!"

"Yes, sir!" Kiroshima yelled with a big grin, even as the other, larger boys followed through, determined to keep their friends safe.

"Iida, Midoriya, Tokoyami! Act as fast responders to back them up, intercept anyone fast or agile enough to get past them, or get people out of trouble!" The three boys sped forward, doing just that, hitting or intercepting a few villains looking to capitalize on their grappled friends.

"Kaminari," Sakura yelled next, surprising the blond boy. "Any villain that goes down near us that looks like they might get back up, stun them! If it still doesn't work, call for backup! We don't want any surprises in our midst!"

The boy stiffened but gave a reply, "Yes, Ma'am!"

"Uraraka and Hagakure! Stay out of the fight for now; anyone who goes down, help get them out of there! Only fight if they get through to you." Sakura watched as the last of her classmates followed through on her instructions. It was a good thing, too, as the number of incoming villains increased significantly.

"Thirteen-Sensei! Please concentrate on intercepting any dangerous ranged attacks or deterring charging enemies!" Sakura was pleased that Thirteen followed her instructions, moving to one side where a larger group of ranged quirks appeared to be getting ready to attack.

Sakura then turned to their last Sensei, focusing on her even as he scanned the field, trying to find the warper. From what she could tell, he was a mixed bag of emotions, but he was also a thorough professional, not even needing her to tell him what to do. He was scanning the battlefield, hitting dangerous villains in his sight that didn't risk hitting a student. He also did that as he continued to hunt for the warper.

"Sakura?" Ochako asked, even as she fell into the middle of the semi-circle. "What are you going to be doing?"

Sakura turned to her, speaking loud enough for the others to hear. "I'm on healer duty and protecting Sensei. If they get him, their warper has free reign to cause even more chaos. I will help if need be!"

They didn't have time to do much more as the villains attacked en masse.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Missed me, Birdbrain!"

"Nope, I'm not there either."

"Are you actually trying to hit me or just showing off your workout routine?"

"Is your skull exposed just to prove you don't have rocks for brains? 'Cause I don't think it's working."

After Ranma halted the villain's attack on her classmates and returned him to the bottom of the steps, she ensured he kept his attention on her and did not stray to those above. Even as the sound of combat began to grow from above, Ranma felt the increase in the number of targets up there. Their warper had escaped elsewhere. She knew where he was, traveling to the other groups and ordering them through more portals he opened.

She started insulting the much larger man to see if she could knock it off balance with verbal abuse. But it didn't appear the 'Demon Dog Wailing Defeat' was working at all, not even a twitch. Instead, he had become easier and more predictable as the fight wore on. And more boring. It fought like the dullest of street brawlers suffering from brain damage, used to just pummeling opponents into submission. The guy was a pure berserker.

She continued to avoid his attacks without too much trouble, though the surroundings were taking a heavy beating, and the rest of the back-alley villains had scrambled away. She made sure he wouldn't injure any of the villains she had already downed, sometimes by kicking them away… gently, by her standards. Their friends helped them break their fall.

The beast of a man was faster than anything else she had encountered in this weird future as of yet. The one exception was All Might, but she had yet to see him in action other than his arrival for the end of the practical exam. His strength was also extremely high, stronger than herself when in girl form, but manageable. Skill mattered more than strength; she had that in spades over tall, dark, and silent here.

She'd gotten more than enough of a read on this guy; now it was time to capitalize on it. The man had been relentlessly swinging his fists at her as she dodged them, showing him only her sides to offer a lower profile, often by a few centimeters. Then she entered his personal space to lay a few haymakers to his stomach. Considering how fast and strong the brute appeared, it could take a few strong blows.

However, the hits were minimalized when she hit it as the skin was not greatly impacted. While the thing was tough, it didn't feel like the solid wall of muscles had taken it but rather like her blows had been absorbed by something. It was the same oddity when she had stopped its dive for her classmates earlier, but she had rolled with it then.

She narrowed her eyes as she dodged another series of swings, as he got both arms and shoulders into the action as he tried to hit her. Nothing even came close, only causing her hair to fly around from the air pressure while she threw out another wasted insult.

The absorption was an interesting twist, so she decided to see how it worked. She threw another series of blows to multiple spots, targeting limbs and weak points. She had her Ki sense focused on giving her as much detail as it could as she felt her blows landing. Every impact was absorbed, and she could sense the man's quirk activating. Save a few areas she hadn't tried; it looked like it covered the man's whole body.

It was time to test the limits of that ability.

She waited for another, longer opening, creating one by sidestepping slightly so that his two shoulders couldn't work together to attack as in sync as before. She used a chop to push the arm closest to her to the side and then stepped in close and unleashed twenty blows at a singular spot at the same speed as her previous normal blows. She felt the quirk absorb the first few blows, but it quickly fell apart after the fifth, letting her hits impact with significant force.

The man staggered back but otherwise ignored it and prepared himself to move forward again, only to find her inside his guard and hitting the same spot with another twenty blows. If bypassed, his absorption on an individual area required a few moments to fully recharge, as it only took her two blows to circumvent it that time.

He staggered again but otherwise seemed to ignore what she sensed as a rather painful blow. So he was an empty berserker of some sort. No rage or force of will powering him through. The guy was just… empty. She'd consider it rather sad if he wasn't trying to kill them. At least the damage would build up eventu–

Ranma sighed as she sensed the wound heal itself rapidly. He had a healing ability along with everything else. This fight was going to be tougher than she thought. She might have to start getting serious.

She really hoped she wouldn't have to pull out a few of her techniques for this. Especially the ones she had developed for a certain brat.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Oh my god, have you looked in a mirror lately? You should really get that looked at, like you should see about getting some kind of prescription. Really, I'm concerned. Maybe you'll get a doctor's visit as part of being arrested?" Peter yelled as he dodged and flipped through a trio of villains trying to hit him with their fists and weapons, webbing the back foot of the one he had just insulted, a villain with a face like a boar and sporting a few knives so that they tripped and fell to the ground. A follow-up shot of webbing trapped him there. "You know, you could have just booked an appointment, right? Seems like that would have been easier, is all!"

Peter caught the fist of the next punch in an open palm, shocking the woman with gorilla-like arms even as it gave a hefty impact. "That punch is the best you can do with those muscles? I know hundred-year-old men that can hit harder than you!" He swung her around to smash her into her other companion and sent them flying down the colored tiles in a heap of limbs. Another webshot made getting untangled from each other impossible. "And you two should get a room! You should be ashamed of doing that in public! There are children present!"

Peter continued cracking jokes at the villains as he intercepted and stopped them from approaching his classmates. He occasionally shot webbing out to the sides or at farther targets when his tingle warned him, or Karen noted one of them for him. He only went about ten to fifteen meters from his circle of classmates, but enough to intercept and react if the warper tried to make another play.

He heard the constant explosions off to one side as Katsuki was having a field day, blasting away groups of enemies as they tried to get near. His grin was a mixture of pleasure and seriousness, only laughing occasionally as he kept the bulk of the enemy in check in the center. Shoto was also on another side, trapping two dozen enemies and a few warp gates with his ice.

Peter watched as the rest of his classmates intercepted the few that got past them. Izuku, Tenya, and Fumikage rapidly moved to catch and throw off any target making a blitz for them. Eijiro, Koji, Mezo, and Rikido acted as center linemen for their classmates, preventing them from getting to their more vulnerable friends. Denki went around, tapping any downed villain that so much as twitched… which meant repeated zaps, as tasers did tend to cause muscles to twitch for some time.

This left their range squad to go full ham at their opponents as laser shots, blobs of acid, darts, nets, sound blasts, many different types of grenades, and a tongue went to work, dwindling their numbers even more.

Thirteen was near the class, but trying to stay away from most of them. She occasionally popped the tip of her glove open when a barrage of ranged attacks made its way, intercepting them with her quirk. She just had to be careful that it wasn't open for long as it would also catch friendlies with the pull. If a larger group tried to charge a weaker position, she moved between with her quirk, causing them to halt suddenly, allowing the students to hit them.

Ochako and Toru remained near the center, ready to drag a classmate to safety if something happened. Luckily, they weren't needed yet, but they both still fretted at not helping.

Aizawa-sensei sometimes assisted, turning off enemy quirks while he hunted for their warper. They occasionally saw a new swirl appear as more villains popped in and out, boosting their numbers. But the man himself had yet to appear.

And Sakura remained at his side, occasionally pulling Aizawa down when a stray shot came near him that he didn't see himself. She also gave additional orders as the battlefield shifted.

Karen estimated that about ninety-five villains in the stadium had been incapacitated and were out of the fight now, the number climbing rapidly. Peter was worried about another shift happening, one in the villain's favor.

But he needn't have worried on that front, as the next shift was in their favor as an explosion at the stadium entrance occurred, and a large, blond-haired figure stepped through the destroyed doors. His appearance halted the majority of the villains present. Their class and teachers heard the wonderful five words they had been waiting for.

"Fear not! I.. am HERE!" All Might roared as he ripped his necktie off, his face lacking his normal smile and displaying his real emotions instead.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Toshinori was a mass of fury. As was the Principal and everyone else he had seen as he quickly made his way to the stadium.

The Principal had invited him to his office for some tea, talking about ways to improve his teaching method after he had been foolish in his morning commute. While he had been chided since he was shirking his responsibilities to his students, the Principal hadn't been mad. They knew that Toshinori didn't do these things for pleasure or selfish reasons, but when someone was in danger or needed help, he had a hard time saying no, especially after the events from last year.

But they had just sat down and taken a single sip of their tea when both of their phones rang for a moment. They had begun to reach for them when their phones answered by themselves, and they heard the boy genius, Parker, tell them they were attacked by an army of villains at the U.S.J. Stadium! They saw a video that showed what was happening.

Their phones also notified them that they had been sent data packets outlining what most likely had occurred, including signals being jammed. It suggested the possibility of cell towers being disabled and hardlines being cut, but it couldn't confirm. But what truly angered him was that they threatened the students in his care… because they were there for him!

After ripping his tie off, the rest of his dress shirt still strained by his musculature, as he walked forward, All Might checked over the battlefield, seeing his students beset by a mass of Villains. He was pleased to see the class and teachers looked unharmed from here, even as they continued to defend themselves from the few villains that hadn't stopped their assault at his arrival. He did a quick head count and could luckily spot Toru with her gloves and boots on. The only one missing was Ranma. He also knew that two of the known Villains, the warper and the apparent leader, were also not visible.

As he adopted his serious face, his bright blue irises shined in his black sclera as he prepared himself. In a flash of speed even greater than Ranma's, he moved. He rammed the backline of villains, hitting every villain nearby in a zig-zag motion on his path to his students. A few moments later, he arrived next to his students, appearing in the center of their formation. He grinned happily as he heard many of them cheer.

He stepped up to Eraser Head and Sakura, nodding at the two of them before he looked down at the base of the stairs. He found Ranma engaging a large brute in an impressive battle. The beast-like man was attacking non-stop, throwing a hundred punches from his massive fists in the span of seconds. But nothing landed on the redhead as she moved around them like the wind, quickly hitting back and driving the beast back occasionally.

"Is everyone alright, Eraser Head?" All Might asked, though now that he could see Ranma, his worry had lessened. He noted the rest of the class was engaging what villains were left, quickly dwindling their numbers.

"For now," Eraser Head said, as he continued to do what he could with his quirk while hunting for the warper and their leader, who had escaped into another portal just as All Might announced his arrival. "Their warper was able to avoid my gaze for a moment. Parker and some others stopped his attack on us, but he got away and sent reinforcements to swarm us. The leader also just warped away. We don't know where they are at this time."

"And Young Saotome?"

"She's handling that mutant well enough," Eraser Head said, his head and eyes constantly moving, "though the fact it hasn't gone down yet proves it is a tough opponent. We must first neutralize the warper, their leader, and the rest of these villains."

All Might nodded as he finished looking over the battlefield, prepared to move. That was when they heard a loud crack from below, drawing the two Pro-Heroes' attention as suddenly the large, beaked man's wrist was a floppy mess. It still tried to attack, but additional cracking noises had other parts of its limbs hanging loosely.

Aizawa started to smile before the pit in his gut opened up again. He first heard, then saw the tiny black swirl appear only a foot behind All Might. From the darkness, a hand reached out and touched his back.

"NO!"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Ranma was getting anxious as several of her attacks were negated by Birdbrain's regeneration and his ability to shrug off the pain. Internal strikes or attacks that completely destroyed the muscle fibers were quickly recovered. The regeneration was high-speed, only giving her a few moments between attacks to capitalize on the damage done before it recovered.

The 'thing' didn't learn, which was a new kind of annoyance. It was acting like a really dumb animal, or what she used to think a robot would behave like, with no survival instincts. It meant she could repeat the same action without it changing its behavior.

She experimented constantly, testing its physical strength, speed, toughness, absorption quirk, and regeneration. She found quick, efficient ways to bypass the shock absorption and was just working on what parts of its body she could attack that would be harder to regenerate.

She had a plan but wanted to capitalize on it to get the greatest effect. Her classmates were still trying to deal with the swarm of fighters up above, and the two leaders were still nearby. The warper was a decent distance away as they observed the battle. She wanted to move off to take them down quickly but wanted to avoid risking her plan backfiring without someone able to handle Big Bird here if he could recover.

The other leader just remained there, scratching his neck occasionally. "You won't win, Hero. Nomu was genetically modified to take on All Might. You have no hope of fighting it. Your hits amount to nothing; you have no chance of hurting it!"

Ranma snorted. The guy's taunting game sucked. Maybe it would work on some stuck-up heroes, but her old man knew how to find and target a person's weak spots and drive them home. And that was before Nerima.

He also had a limited understanding of what was happening in this fight. He was used to quirks and how they were used to being the deciding factor in battles like this. Ranma considered insulting him back, showing him how it was done, but Mr. Handsy was eating up time. Better to let him use it up than take additional action.

Since she wasn't in a hurry to finish this fight, she decided to experiment. A quick test on one of Nomu's fingers had proved her plan was workable. She was just waiting for a greater shift in the overall battle. And she didn't have to wait long as she heard All Might's arrival.

Ranma grinned. It would normally set her opponents off, but this one was for herself. The grin lessened when she caught sight of a black swirl appearing next to their leader; it seemed they were getting some distance and planning something. She decided to make his day more unpleasant but didn't have enough time to stop him without crippling him, which didn't sound too heroic and she tended to avoid that anyways.

A quick dash to the side of Nomu allowed her to kick a small rock resting there, causing it to spin through the air until it hit the side of the leader's knee just as he was walking through, resulting in him stumbling the rest of the way through.

Smirking at that, she started putting her plan into motion as All Might arrived with the rest of her class, making this the best time to capitalize on it.

She targeted its extended hand, dislocating Nomu's wrist with a loud crack. Moments later, it was the elbow and then the shoulder. The other arm followed after that. She had used her Ki to alter her blows once they landed, not to shatter or damage its body in a way it would regenerate. Instead, it acted as a blunt instrument to allow her to easily dislocate its joints. She used it to bypass its ability to absorb physical blows.

It seemed at a loss, but its intelligence was too low to try to comprehend what had happened, too slow to find other ways to attack. After a second, it finally settled on trying to bite her. She dislocated the thing's jaw, having found it earlier from her experiments and Ki sense. The hips and legs followed immediately afterward.

"NO!"

Even as it fell like a ragdoll, her sensei's panicked scream drew her eyes to her teachers as a fan of blood appeared behind and above All Might. She knew it was partly the warpers doing, so in a burst of speed, she picked up a nearby piece of rubble the size of a baseball and threw it at the villain's current position.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Tomura's rage was growing slowly.

Nomu's interception and Kurogiri's failure had made it spike, but it had calmed down as Kurogiri altered the fight to bring the rest of their playmates to them. It wasn't ideal, but the Heroes were already stronger and more adaptable than originally anticipated.

He grinned as he watched the small redheaded pigtailed girl fail to injure Nomu significantly. She clearly was not as strong as All Might. But she was still fast enough to dodge its blows, but Nomu only needed one solid hit to change the fight in its favor. The taunting the girl threw was pointless, so Tomura rubbed it in a bit. She didn't even know about its regeneration, causing him to grin.

The fight above was getting noisy, but the additional friends needed to make a solid connection. They had so many that some of the heroes would tire before long, making them easier prey.

But it stretched for at least a minute without changing on either front. He was worried both would fail, especially as it gave more time for someone to notice something was wrong. And then All Might announced his arrival.

Tomura growled in anger; the students hadn't been separated and were still up. Eraser Head and the pigtailed girl were still fine. They had too many ways to counter them and prevent their plan from working. It was almost time to cut and run, but he had one more idea that might work. He just needed Kurogiri to open a gate for him.

His grin returned as one opened a moment later, just as he heard All Might join the fray. He walked through it. But just as he stepped through, something hit the side of his knee.

"Argh!" Tomura shouted as he stumbled through, angered at the damage he took. The warp gate closed behind him, letting him see they were on top of a roof in the Collapsed Zone with whole buildings still intact to simulate some ruined urban disaster.

He felt his knee, finding it sore and likely a dark bruise would form, but it hadn't broken. He couldn't run on it easily, but that wasn't needed for now. He turned his attention to his caretaker.

He found Kurogiri standing nearby, watching as he stood up. He noticed he was still holding his chest in apparent pain. Kurogiri had moved them to a spot where they could watch the battle from a safer distance, out of Eraser Head's vision range. It was close to a kilometer away; they could barely see the battlefield over the tip of the roof. Kurogiri handed Tomura a spyglass so they could more easily observe.

"Prepare your warp to appear right behind All Might, Kurogiri. As close as you can," Tomura said as he watched the man join his students. The battle had truly turned against them now, yet again. "I am going to try to tag him from here. We'll wait until he is distracted by something. I'll let you know when."

"Yes, sir."

Tomura watched as they spoke momentarily, trying to catch each other up. Still, their attention was quickly drawn to the fight with Nomu, letting Tomura see the girl was quickly disabling it somehow, its arms hanging uselessly at its side. Its regeneration wasn't fixing them? But that had distracted the Heroes! It was now or never!

"Now!"

Tomura lowered the tool as he shoved his hand through the warp gate with a burst of speed. He grinned as he felt a fingertip touch the hated 'Symbol of Peace,' but it was short-lived, as all sensation in the hand ceased, causing confusion for a brief moment, before an incredible amount of pain replaced the sensation.

He pulled his arm away from the gate as he screamed. Shock dulled it somewhat soon after as he noticed that his hand was missing at the wrist. It had been sliced through like butter and was gushing blood. Maybe not as bad as many of the video games or movies he enjoyed had depicted it, but he was losing blood rapidly as he cradled it, and his knees bent as his body curled up in reaction.

He looked up from his crouch at the shrinking warp gate. It probably saved his life as he found an object flying towards his face. He dodged to the side, his face twisting away, thus causing his ear to be sliced through instead of sinking into an eye.

They heard the object thunk into the concrete behind them as Tomura reached up to feel the additional damage he had received. He felt part of his ear was now missing, soon finding it on the ground just behind him. Half of his earlobe had been sliced off!

Now feeling safer with the warp gate closed, the two villains looked at the object. It was a dagger of some sort, with a circular loop on the end of it. A string attached to it also showed a piece of paper with strange writing on it. They grew concerned when the paper began to catch fire on the bottom, creating a small crackling noise.

Kurogiri pulled on his Warp Gate quirk, prepared to send it away, when an object glanced off the side of his head, breaking his concentration. He had no more time to figure out what had happened before an explosion threw the two villains back.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Sakura was patient even as her classmates fought the horde of opponents. She had called for changes and movement across the battlefield as they fought, her classmates listening to her surprisingly well for being basically untrained.

Tsunade-sensei and others had taught her how to command a battlefield or a hospital through observation and training. You had to voice and command people around you with just the right tone of voice and words to hold their attention, and your actions helped ensure they listened to you.

People who weren't used to you were prone to dismiss you if you were too soft or commanding. Confidence was key, as was clarity. Your words needed to make sense, or they were less likely to act on them. If you didn't show you were right there with them, then the loss of respect would make them unwilling to follow. It was a fine line to balance everything, but proper training, practice, and experience in an actual war made it easy to command her classmates.

She was prepared to burst into action if she was needed. Dozens of plans to deal with their opponents were formed, but she didn't want to tip her hand or abandon their Sensei. Their opponents required neutralizing him to succeed in their objective. So, he was her bait. And prey needed to be unaware of the hunter and its capabilities.

All Might's appearance made things safer but added another primary target, likely bigger than Aizawa-sensei. She had already spotted the warper on one of the destroyed buildings in the distance. She also noticed he had retrieved their leader, so he stood beside them.

When All Might walked beside them, Sakura stepped between both men and waited. She ignored Ranma's fight, trusting the other fighter could hold her own. Instead, she slipped out a kunai with an explosive tag on it while her chakra began to mold for the jutsu she had in mind. She had to be quick in applying it but waited patiently.

She didn't have to wait long as the expected portal opened, smaller than she expected, and a hand popped out to touch All Might's back. Her hand moved, slicing through the wrist in an upward angle and a shower of blood just as it connected a single fingertip with the older man. The hand flew away, her blade designed to cause separation of two cut items to split them apart more quickly, even as All Might flashed forward a meter and spun around from the combined warnings he had received. They watched as the wounded arm retreated through the black mass.

Sakura smiled as she adjusted her grip on the kunai, flipping it so that she gripped the pommel ring with a few fingers. She then rotated it off her fingers and gave it a solid flick of her wrist to send the kunai through the closing portal. She had set it aflame with a touch of chakra before leaving her hand. Then she brought both hands up to form another seal. This one had her index and middle finger pointing up, along with her thumbs, while the other two folded down across each other. Her classmates would have described it more like making a hand sign for a gun pointing up.

"Sakura!"

She turned to Aizawa-sensei, who had just shouted in surprise before she gave him a warm smile. "It's okay, Sensei. Everything is under control." She grinned wider when she saw the explosion in the distance and activated her technique.

Sakura disappeared in a ripple, a little smoke left behind in her previous position. She reappeared above where the explosion occurred, seeing the two villains had been knocked back and down. Because of her timing it so well, she didn't have to worry about the noise or blastwave as she fell towards them.

She pulled two more kunai and an extra tag out of her pouches before tossing one of the kunai at the leader's uninjured and open hand as he lay on his back with his arms spread wide on the ground. The kunai sliced through his palm until the circular pommel almost cracked the bones they hadn't cut through, securing that hand to the roof. Her other hand threw the tag so it flew toward the downed warper. It attached itself to the neck brace due to the seals and her chakra.

She fell the rest of the way towards the leader, landing with one foot on the other arm near the amputated wrist and applying pressure to act as a temporary tourniquet. The other foot landed in the man's gut just hard enough to make him really feel it but not do any permanent damage. She bent the leg until her knee rested, and some of her weight rested on his chest, smashing his back into the roof again. The second kunai came forward and pressed into the screaming man's throat.

It took the man a few moments to realize what was happening, but after the rush of impacts and surges of pain dwindled, he noticed the blade. But instead of becoming frightened, he sneered up at her with hate-filled eyes.

The hate in his eyes was intense, deep, and familiar. It didn't unnerve Sakura at all. She looked back with indifference, his animosity not finding any purchase. He started trying to raise his hands and head but felt the resistance from the two limbs and the sharp kunai that bit into his throat, drawing a little blood. He glanced to his sides, seeing his arms and ally's state.

"Don't move, or your carotid artery will be sliced. If that happens, you will hemorrhage blood at a rate of about one pint in sixty seconds. With your body size, if you lose three pints, you will die. You'll lose consciousness long before then, especially since you've lost the hand. It takes about thirty to fifty seconds, normally. In your case, you could lose it in twenty to forty seconds," Sakura said clinically. Her eyes calmly looked into his own. She then reached down with her currently freed hand and pulled the severed hand away from his face, showing the wrinkles around his eyes, a single scar over his right eye, and severely chapped lips before tossing it to the side. "Do not test me on this."

"Kids these days are monsters. You just tried to kill us right now, didn't you? What kind of a hero is that?" The pale man wheezed.

"If I wanted to kill you, you would be dead," Sakura replied with a deadpan expression. "I've dealt with people like you in the past, people driven to hatred because of a perception that the world is unjust and deserves to be destroyed. I dealt with them much more… harshly... than I have you. This is me being nice. This is me playing with kid gloves. I am a student of U.A., so I can learn how they do things. Don't tempt me to take the gloves off."

The man still grinned with violent intent, but she could tell that her words had unbalanced him somewhat. Her attention was pulled from the fanatic below her to the stirring warper.

As the warper finally recovered enough from the explosion, he looked up to see Sakura turn her gaze to look him in the eyes. Then he looked down at her captive. "The piece of paper attached to the back of your neck brace is the same type as what caused the explosion a moment ago, only three times larger. If I cancel the signal I am currently sending, it will explode. If I see a single attempt of you trying to use your quirk, I will set it off."

The man reflexively reached for it but paused as Sakura raised her hand in another sign, ready to set it off if needed. "Surrender immediately. Only once you are safely in custody, will I remove it."

She then heard a gurgle after feeling the fool below her test her resolve. He had pushed against the blade, probably thinking she wouldn't dare attempt to kill him. He found out the hard way that he was wrong. She looked back into his eyes, tilted her head a little, and raised an eyebrow.

While the hate was still there, it was drowned out by fear as he felt the blood seeping from his neck with nothing to stop it. He also began to choke as the blood seeped into his throat. His fear grew as she didn't seem concerned about his continued existence. Which she wasn't. But she was attending U.A. to learn to do things differently. So she decided to give the villains one more chance.

"Surrender now, and I will prevent him from dying from his… self-inflicted wound."

Kurogiri looked at his Master's apprentice as it became obvious he was beginning to lose consciousness as his eyes dimmed, then the wound, and finally the girl. They had no chance of escaping and fulfilling the young Master's mission. But his primary mission was the survival of his charge, and he needed to be sure she could fulfill that. "How do I know you can even do that?"

Her free hand reached down to Tomura's ear before it glowed green, and the sliced ear healed over and stopped bleeding. Kurogiri's eyes widened. "The League of Villains formally surrenders at this time."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

A/N - There we go! Chapter 9 and the completion of Arc 2 is done! My Birthday present to all of you.

Be sure to thank Boldish42 for all his hard work, he really helps with things like grammar, dialogue, and pointing out illogical things that sneak in or wasn't fully thought out. Iron454 also helped with providing feedback.

As I have tried to make clear, Arc 3 will probably be some time out since I am not far into it beyond concept and some structure. Additionally, the criteria in which I start releasing the chapters will be higher than I had with Arc 2, mostly so my Beta Readers don't feel overworked. I am doubting I'll get it done in one month, maybe two though.

I am looking to get another Beta Reader or two, so if anyone wants to volunteer, let me know. May not have much yet for a bit, but putting the suggestion out there again for now.

 

[CaedesPlerique2]

Chapter 10 - U.S.J. Aftermath​

The trenchcoated Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa watched as more villains were escorted off the premises. One or two dozen were still unaccounted for, but the Pro-Heroes and the police worked to hunt them down. A few might still escape, but the vast majority were already apprehended.

He watched the various groups move about, Pro-Heroes supervising and ensuring the Villains no longer acted up. A few tried but were quickly brought under control. It helped that every Pro-Hero present was a veteran and very good at their jobs. The only one that might have intimidated them enough to remain settled was already being transported back to the school, hiding All Might's weaker form from the Villains, students, and teachers that weren't in the loop already. They had given the excuse that he was helping to hunt down the missing villains.

He glanced again at the Medical personnel as they ensured everyone was properly treated for their wounds before being transferred to their current holding facility. They had already inspected and cleared all the students and teachers involved in the attack, which had relieved teachers and police alike.

Naomasa looked at one particular part of the medical area as Sakura was overseeing the treatment of the leader of this attack. The man had been going in and out of consciousness due to the blood loss, with medical personnel setting up blood bags to get it under control. He knew she could have given him one of her pills to help that along but had felt no desire to see him make a quick recovery. Or reattach his severed body parts. And he couldn't find himself disagreeing with that decision.

Her attack on the leader had been brutal by most standards. Causing a few Pro-Heroes or police to take notice and almost question her about it. But after some quick interviews with some of the students and teachers, he found she had reacted appropriately. They were in a life-or-death battle against overwhelming odds. She had acted like she had because they had tried and might have succeeded in killing All Might with that sneak attack.

He had interacted with Sakura several times in the last year, learning more about her home and upbringing. His colleagues would have paled at some of the methods her world would have used in such a situation. One such method was capture, torture for however long it took, and then execution. If the captured target held any notable secret of genetics, they might be kept alive for breeding or dissected for harvesting blood, organs, or their D.N.A. He had a healthy respect for Sakura and how much she restrained herself, even here.

He watched as the man was finally given the green light to be sent to their holding facility for processing while they tried to figure out what to do. He was joining the other leaders of this raid. The three were going to be heavily watched and separate from the rest of the villains being transported. He sighed as the villain was rolled out, and Sakura moved closer to her classmates, talking to a few of them before glancing back his way with a small smile.

He returned it before looking where a few officers were grilling Parker. They had been astonished when almost all officers on their force received an emergency phone call from the boy. It had caused panic, both for the situation and its details. When it was corroborated with the school, multiple units were deployed to deal with it. Especially when they learned the scale of the attack. Backup from other districts was called for and arrived promptly.

The boy was currently filling them in, giving them details about the information he had gathered. It was a staggering amount in such a little amount of time. Many on the force were questioning how he could do it, but Principal Nezu had provided the details, such as him being a super genius and the ward of the Nobel Prize-winning Dr. David Shield. The boy had explained he had created several contingency programs for many potential occurrences. When grilled about what other types of contingencies he had, he began listing them with such breadth and detail that they had asked him to stop after one or two.

While it disturbed many, they also saw how effective it had been in helping them handle the situation. The boy had done over half of the research and investigations they would need to do, making a few of the detectives joke about kidnapping him for use by the police force. The fact the kid had joked right back about taking half their paychecks for himself set everyone else off for a gut-wrenching laugh. But there was still something else off about the boy, something that made his detective nose itch.

The final wonder of today's attack had gone through a few detective's round of questions, but when he learned it was the one Sansa had been helping over the last year, he made sure the detectives weren't too hard on her. Some tried to chew her out for stepping in when she had, but Sansa had ordered them to stop when he arrived on the scene. He had been dealing with logistical issues for the villains but should be finished shortly. In fact, he was making his way over to the girl now.

Considering the girl's impressive capabilities, if he didn't already know who it was, he would have thought she was the one All Might had given his quirk. The fact her listed quirk only was the transformation would have also been another indicator for him. But All Might's phone call the other day had made him talk to Sansa in more detail about the girl, learning some facts about Ki and what she could do.

"Ah, Detective Tsukauchi. How is the situation proceeding?" His introspection was interrupted by the school principal walking up to him. He turned to the small man, giving him a bow of the head in greeting while ensuring his hat didn't fall off.

"It's going well, I would say. I think it is safe to return your students to the school here shortly. We'll try to get their statements after school or later this week, depending on your evaluations, for when they are ready to talk about it," Naomasa responded.

"Excellent. Again, I want to thank you and the rest of the police force for their assistance," Nezu replied.

"Our pleasure. While the data packet provided by Parker helped point us in the right direction on getting everything rounded up, we'll still want to go over the school and areas of interest with a fine-toothed comb."

"We'll do what we can to assist you, Detective Tsukauchi. You certainly have jurisdiction, and there are still too many unanswered questions. Hopefully, we can get additional answers after you thoroughly interrogate the Villains."

"I'll share anything pertinent to the safety of the school with you as soon as we have it."

"Thank you, Detective."

Naomasa looked up when he saw one of his officers flagging him, giving him the okay signal regarding the students.

"We have the go-ahead for your kids," Naomasa said. "But I want to ask a few more questions of Haruno-san before you leave since she had the most direct contact with their leaders."

"Certainly. I'll give you a few minutes before I have the class escorted to the buses and back to school."

"Thank you."

Naomasa looked for Sakura, finding her near where he had seen her last, but off to the side and alone, calmly looking in his direction.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"How are you doing, Ranma?"

"Gah!" Ranma exclaimed after seeing the face of horror before her. She had gone rigid and did a light jump. It took her a few seconds to recover as she closed her eyes and calmed her nerves, slowly breathing in and out as she regained control. And avoided opening her eyes, at least for now. "Sorry, Sansa."

The cat-headed Sansa chuckled lightly, letting Ranma know he wasn't offended. "You are fine, Ranma. I see you have improved since I last saw you. Excellent!"

Sansa looked to the sides, seeing a few concerned gazes from other officers, teachers, and a few students. He waved down the officers, making sure they knew nothing was wrong. He then turned back to the girl and gave another smile. He wasn't bothered by the twitching of her brow or the rush of adrenaline her body was surely filled with, especially after she tried peeking a few times.

"So I see your first week of school has been memorable. Though, we had not suggested an army of Villains as the likely incident to occur. We all lost our bets on that one."

Ranma rolled her closed eyes as he reminded her of the open betting between her guardians and the few others that knew of her history. "I swear, you guys are doing that just to mess with me."

"Yes, yes we are," Sansa said with a smile and a chuckle.

Her body language shifted, her arms dragging her shoulders downward and her eyes rolling again. "Of course you are. Why did I ever tell you guys about Nabiki's penchant for betting?"

"Oh, you don't get to complain. All of the bets go toward getting you gifts. The winner just gets to decide how it's spent on you," Sasha said. "Besides, if no one won, then it's free money for you!"

"Oh, right!" Ranma said with a smile. It broke a little when she tried peeking again, constantly trying to test herself and get used to his appearance.

"Beyond greeting you, I wanted to ask your reasoning for jumping into the fray?" Sansa asked as his notebook and pen were ready. "Especially since your teacher was prepared to do that."

Ranma sighed; she had already been asked that question multiple times. The officers involved had been outraged at the idea that a teenager should ever do such a thing. She was just glad it was a friend asking her now. "I learned about Sensei's quirk from Izuku. He finally figured out who our Sensei was and talked about him way too much, some of it stuck. A quirk that can turn off most other quirks is really useful. But if he's in the middle of that pile, he wouldn't be as effective at it as he would be from the sides. Especially with that warper being around and who knew what else."

"Yes, I suspected as much and can agree with your reasoning. Was there anything else?" Sansa asked as he wrote it down.

"Parker had said he communicated with the outside. The villains didn't know that. That means they would waste time so long as they didn't know, and the more time I wasted for them, the better. I wanted to get them mad and off balance, then take down enough of them to make it easier to manage. Both sets of reactions would hopefully buy us the time. I hadn't anticipated that one villain to be as fast as he was. And I'm glad I was there instead of Sensei."

"Yes, based on the initial reports, that could have been quite bad. I agree with your assessment of the situation," Sansa said before giving his version of a knowing smirk. "We knew your decision to not list your Ki abilities as a quirk was mostly for not wanting to confuse people about what you can do with your Martial Arts, but you knew a situation like this was a nice side benefit. Being able to escape legal trouble since it wasn't a quirk you used to defend yourself."

"Okay, yes, that too," Ranma said as she looked away, blushing at having been caught.

"Not that most people will believe that, of course. I'll contact the Pussycats to inform them if you need the backup to confirm that your Ki is not a quirk. We'll have your back regarding this."

"Thanks," Ranma said as she sighed before smiling.

"You did good, Ranma. You might get some flak from some of your senseis or some other department heads, but you did evaluate the situation. You are one of the major reasons why this attack failed as well as it did. Your other classmates also did a fantastic job. Any pique your interest?"

"Maybe a few…"

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Hello, Sakura," Naomasa said as he took off his hat and smiled at the girl.

Sakura smiled in return. She had gained a deep respect for the Detective. He was, in many ways, this world's counterpart of Ibiki despite the differences in how they approached things. Where Ibiki could intimidate without even trying, Naomasa purposely put on a smile. Both were extremely intelligent, very observant, and good comrades to have on your side. She had told him about Ibiki once, making the man laugh.

"First off, Sakura, good job out there. If you hadn't been prepared for it, All Might could have been injured, maybe even killed. We don't know exactly how the villain's quirk works yet, other than contact with his hands can disintegrate things, but it likely would have been bad."

"He was the one that destroyed the school's barriers yesterday," Sakura informed him. "Based on what Shuzenji-sama could inform me and what I could observe myself, the material broke down or decayed. His obsession with hands gave me a hint, but when I talked to Saotome after their arrival and realized what she planned to do, I suggested trying to get him to show his quirk. I'm glad I did."

Naomasa narrowed his eyes as he reviewed what he remembered about the destroyed gate. They hadn't completed the analysis yet, but it had disintegrated, turning into dust, like she said. If he was so eager to get close to All Might with that, it likely worked on humans.

"If he is the same one, then you saved his life, depending on how much contact was needed," he said with a heavy sigh before a smile returned as he looked at her. "I will be sure it is in the report if they try to hold your actions against you. The police or the school. But I suspect the school already knows."

Naomasa paused as part of what she had said registered, and he raised his eyebrow. "How did you know it was him, though? You've talked about Chakra sensors but didn't say you were one."

"Saotome. He can sense people like our chakra sensors could, both their emotions and their positions. After the alarms went off yesterday, I remembered him displaying something like that in the Battle Trials the day before. I found him and asked what he was sensing. He said he felt a surge of anger and killing intent but that it also left the premises. I asked him– her," Sakura saw Naomasa smile at that, "if it was the same person from yesterday. It made sense; you scout the area, gain intel, then plan an attack. She confirmed it. So I knew they were willing to kill from the start. It was why the two of us were trying to treat it so seriously when they arrived. They weren't playing around."

Naomasa gave her a serious nod, letting her know her message was received. "Interesting. Saotome is another odd case. I will have to ask Sansa about her and find out more details. It seemed it was handled well enough back then, so I didn't push it. But it has been another long, ongoing case. And other questions have come up in regards to it as well."

Sakura looked toward her class, seeing them beginning to move out. "Looks like I need to go. Thank you, Detective."

"Stay safe out there, Sakura," Naomasa called out to her and waved.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku sat with the others on the bus as they returned. Today had turned sideways in a flash. He wasn't sure what to think and knew he wasn't the only one. Quick glances at the rest of his class showed various stages of dealing with what had happened.

A few were a bit rattled by being attacked by villains. Others were excited to be in a fight like that or how well some of their classmates had performed. Then a few didn't appear to care or were upset that they couldn't do more.

Izuku didn't know how he felt about it. He was relieved that the ordeal had been resolved without injury to his class or teachers. He was excited to see some of his classmates' strengths and feats. But he was also fearful because they were targeting All Might.

The three stars of the class had shined yet again and were grilled by several classmates. Saotome, Haruno, and Parker were something else. What surprised Izuku was how casual they were after the fight. As if it was an everyday thing for them and not a terrifying ordeal like it would be for most people.

One thing it did for him was solidify his resolve to learn what he could from Ranma. He wanted to be the best hero he could be, worthy of the sacrifice that All Might made by giving him his quirk. Giving him his chance. He would do everything he could to make him proud.

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

"Come in," Nezu said after the door had been knocked on as he stared out his window at the setting sun.

He waited as his guest entered, knowing what this conversation would be about. He just hoped he would accept the explanation he had. "Have a seat, Aizawa."

Nezu turned back around, getting the tea out and pouring them both a cup. Once they had relaxed, he decided to get to the heart of the matter. "You're here about the students. Ask your questions."

Shota waited a moment as he formed his question, finally getting a chance to possibly get some answers. "Those three are not ordinary students. What are they?"

Nezo sighed before he truthfully answered. "I don't know." Nezo saw the glare he received for that. "I have suspicions, but nothing I can confirm without asking them directly. And for now, I do not want to do that. But I can say that they are not normal."

"Let's start with Saotome," Shota said as he put his tea down. "She deliberately asked me about not using a quirk. After I gave the confirmation, she proceeded to attack them. I also asked you multiple times to fix her quirk registry. If her physical capabilities are not the byproduct of a quirk, then what is happening?"

"No, the only thing that may be a quirk is their shapeshifting."

Shota's glare intensified, catching the specific wording he had used. "'May be' a quirk?"

"Do you know about the incident Saotome was involved with a year ago?" Nezu asked.

"No. Per your suggestion, I refrained from researching them to not contaminate my opinion about them."

"Thank you for that. Are you at least familiar with the attack on Iyashi no Sato?"

"That was the attack where the Hero Team Water Hose almost lost their lives to the A-class villain Muscular, was it not?" Shota responded after thinking about it for a moment.

"Correct. It was a miracle no one had died, and the hero team survived. The public knows that Endeavor was the one to bring him in. What people do not know is that it was not Endeavor or any other known hero that beat Muscular."

Shota quickly connected the dots, "Saotome?"

"Yes. From what I could discern from the records, Saotome saved their lives and defeated Muscular with just a few blows. Endeavor requested the Wild Wild Pussycats' assistance regarding Saotome because they were an unknown."

"Why them?"

"The Water Hose team are the cousins of Mandalay and were nearby. They also had more experience dealing with children than Endeavor," Nezu said, receiving a rare snort from Shota, one laced with a tiny bit of amusement. "Eventually, they decided to act as official Guardians for Saotome. But one of the first things they did was to get Saotome tested for quirks."

Shota frowned, knowing there had to be something unusual to make it worth mentioning. "What did they find?"

"No quirk. In fact, Saotome was tested twice. They were tested as brother and sister, not as a single person. Both tests were negative for a quirk factor."

Shota sat there, blinking. That made no sense to him. "How… how could a shapeshifting ability not be a quirk? Or their other abilities?"

"The first part, I have no idea. They were later tested again, and the shapeshifting was dismissively labeled a quirk. Their physical strengths, however, do have an explanation outside of it."

"And that is?" Shota asked, now very puzzled about what was going on. He had expected many things, but this was not one of them.

Nezo got up and grabbed a few books before tossing them in front of Shota. The man looked down and became confused as he recognized several manga titles as remakes of old classics. No… these were copies of the original stories, not remakes. He flipped a few open, looking at the publication dates; they were from before or slightly after the appearance of quirks. Others were mythological history books for Japanese and Chinese culture. "What… are these?"

"For hundreds and even thousands of years, there have been myths of Martial Artists of such strength and skill that they would seem like the quirks of today. But all the records try to tout that it was acquired only through training. It was not something you got from birth, but something everyone had the potential for so long as they worked to grow it," Nezu said. He paused for a moment as he let Shota continue shuffling the books. "The Japanese called it Ki, while the Chinese called it Chi. Other cultures had similar mythologies regarding it. About the only thing they could agree on was that practitioners could perform superhuman feats of strength, speed, durability, or perform other miraculous achievements."

"You're saying they achieved this through training alone?"

"Is it so surprising?" Nezu asked, looking the man in the eye. "You, yourself, can perform feats of physical skill beyond what most civilians can achieve. Other heroes have done the same thing. Feats that their quirks should not directly impact. Additionally, some circles of pro-heroes also say that Ki or Chi is real. What I find most interesting is that there has been a tremendous amount of chatter in those circles since last year. From my subtle investigations, that chatter has led to Saotome."

Shota thought about it but was at a loss for words for now. "Can I take these with me?"

"Certainly. I got those copies specifically for that purpose."

"What about Haruno?"

"Haruno is more difficult to identify, but as you know, she is associated with Recovery Girl. In fact, her son and daughter-in-law are her guardians."

Shota frowned at that. He knew Chiyo would not be part of something nefarious or endanger their students.

"What I could find, however, is that she was involved in her own incident. Stopped a villain that had cut up several dozen civilians on his way to escape capture. Sakura intervened and then proceeded to heal the injured, saving at least three people's lives that day from wounds that only Recovery Girl might have saved them from. The villain's jaw has had eight surgeries but will never recover properly."

Shota couldn't really feel sympathy for him.

Nezu finished sipping from his tea before he dropped his next bombshell. "In addition, the Detective for her case was none other than Tsukauchi."

That got Shota's attention rather quickly. While they didn't regularly work together, the man had a reputation and was very good at his job. He also investigated this current situation and talked to Sakura alone.

She was the one Shota was most concerned with. She quickly took command and ordered the students around like an experienced veteran, making even their troublesome students go along.

He didn't notice it at first, but she had babysat him. She had pulled him out of danger while he hunted for the warper and occasionally helped nullify some quirks. She remained near the villain's primary targets: All Might and himself.

When she acted, she was brutally efficient with no hesitancy in her actions. When they arrived at where Sakura had captured the warper and the leader, they found out she had attached what was essentially an explosive to the warper's neck and refused to remove it.

She had also just finished healing the leader's 'self-inflicted wound' from a dagger to the throat and then healed the amputated wrist without the original hand. She would not release him or the explosive tag before proper restraints arrived for both of them.

Chiyo and Naomasa had both been involved and knew the extent of the incident and what Sakura had done. Neither of them seemed concerned about the girl. Two people he would never suspect of allowing a dangerous person near their students had both signed off on the girl.

Shota sighed before rubbing his temples. The last of them was the one he was least concerned with… before he found out how he had contacted his fellow teachers and the police. "And Parker?"

"He also had an altercation, saving a hundred lives from an apartment building that would have collapsed and killed them all if he had not been there. The building had been hit by a stray blast of superheated plasma that melted the support beams. Parker arrived quickly on the scene, cooled the blast zone, and systematically and efficiently evacuated the building. Only two people died in that building collapse, both occurring at the initial blast."

"Impressive," Shota replied dryly. He was being entirely sincere; evacuating a building like that was not an easy task. He certainly could not do it. Some other Pro-Heroes with the right quirks, like All Might, Best Jeanist, or others, could have done something similar. But few could do it alone.

"More than you know," Nezu said as he took a bite of a cracker, nibbling on it briefly before swallowing and looking at the expectant teacher.

"You already know that Parker is strong, fast, and agile. You also got the hint that he has some form of prescience since you said he reacted before they had even started to warp in. You know that his webbing is an incredible bit of chemistry work and that his suit is more advanced than it looks. His suit had proper shielding from an E.M.P. pulse, could communicate over a large distance without using the local communication services, has an advanced mini-drone built into the chest, and an advanced lens system, all remarkable achievements in engineering."

Shota narrowed his eyes, knowing the man was setting up another explosive bit of trivia. "Yes."

"For the incident he was involved with, what is on the official record is that Edgeshot had contacted Parker to assist. Edgeshot had dealt with the villain who had shot the stray blast but could not get away in time to help with the apartment building. Parker was never actually named in the report and was supposedly there testing an advanced super-suit for David Shield."

There was something there that Nezu was hinting at. He noticed Nezu was calmly letting him work it out. Further evidence that there was something hidden in his words. It took him some time to figure out the sequence, but he started asking the first question to confirm. "Dr. Shield didn't know of Parker before the event, did he?"

"No, he did not," Nezu said before taking another bite.

"If Dr. Shield wasn't already involved, why would Edgeshot contact him specifically? His suit and other parts are impressive, but that alone wouldn't lead to Dr. Shield being contacted directly and acting to cover up the situation."

"Correct. Well done, Shota-san." Nezu smiled, glad the man was still so good at inductive reasoning. "As for why, it took a while, but I finally found some video evidence of the end of that event. Someone attempted to purge the video from the internet, and what concerns me greatly is that I don't know who instituted the purge."

Shota narrowed his eyes, realizing something in that video had seriously spooked some powerful people. "What was on it?"

"It showed Young Parker escaping with the last resident as the building collapsed. His suit is the same one he wears right now. But it is what happened as he was falling with the young girl in his arms that was alarming. From the rubble of the building, what looked like four golden, metal spider legs shot out of it and intercepted Parker, flowing into his suit like a liquid, and quickly reformed the legs behind him. It finished halting his fall, and they melted back into his suit. Forming a different suit than what he currently wears."

That… was odd. Shota knew it had a heavy significance, but he didn't understand. "Why is that so important?"

"I am not surprised you don't recognize it. Few people would just from viewing it, as quirks and support gear offer a wide range of similar effects. But considering the reaction of everyone involved, there was only one conclusion I could come to regarding it. Nanotechnology."

Shota had heard of Nanotechnology but didn't know why it was so special.

"Hmmm, I see you aren't familiar with the Grey Goo theory, or else your reaction would have been more severe," Nezu said as he poured more tea. "Nanites are a massive game changer in terms of technology. Enough of one that it would quickly become the most sought-after technology in the world. Technology that some would be willing to start wars over who controlled it."

That raised his eyebrows. Many considered wars a thing of the past, something that happened before quirks appeared. They had enough trouble without starting a new war.

"And that is also not factoring in the other bit of technology that video hinted at." Nezo chuckled at how quickly his head snapped to look him in the eyes. He suspected he might have gotten whiplash from that if he hadn't already been looking in his direction. "You have already seen the technology in action today. It was one of your concerns regarding Parker, was it not?"

Shota figured it out quickly. "The phone calls. The data packets. Parker didn't appear to do much, so how could he contact all of us like that? While his explanation of a protocol he had set up in case of an emergency like this was believable… it didn't smell right to me."

"Indeed. Which is why I told you to leave your electronic equipment in your office before you approached me."

"What is it?"

"A.I."

Shota blinked, thrown for a loop. The school was rather famous for its robots and the A.I. that guided them, feeling almost alive to many. But from what he had learned, while their A.I. was advanced and mimicked human-like behaviors to a large degree, they were still simply robots.

"I do not know how advanced it is, but the A.I. is likely semi-sentient. They are far more advanced and intelligent than our school's robots. Much like Nanotechnology, it is another technology that many countries would start a war over who controls it."

Shota had been greatly concerned about Ranma and Sakura, their strength, skills, and experience made them incredibly dangerous. Parker, he had been the least concerned with. That had flipped on its head now. Parker might be involved in the start of another World War if Shota understood Nezu correctly.

Shota reacted the only way he could on receiving so much distressing information. He leaned forward and rubbed his brows with both hands, not bothering to look at the Principal.

Nezu let him pull himself together, not minding the silence while sipping his tea as the clock ticked onward.

"How much did you know before you spoke to Senjiro and me?" Shota finally asked.

"Very little. What I did find was the most disturbing thing about this entire situation," Nezu said.

Shota stilled at that. He was really beginning to hate how much he had done that in this conversation.

"With Parker, it was difficult to find the incident he was involved in, but it was after looking at the incidents that I noticed an important detail."

"And that was?"

"All three of their incidents occurred on the same day and time."

Shota blinked. That was possibly distressing, but something was missing. "There's more I don't know about, isn't there?"

"Yes. Haruno's was the easiest to verify, as hers was the least impacted by trying to hide the truth. Some people reported her appearing out of a portal or materializing in the air above Hosu. We don't know exactly what it was, but a flash of light occurred, and she was suddenly there. Parker also had a similar appearance but was vastly overshadowed by the apartment. Saotome had no direct observers but woke up in the forest after falling some distance from the air."

"Someone warped them?"

"Yes."

Shota was not enjoying the conclusion he was coming to. "Are you telling me that whoever warped them knew those incidents would occur? Are… are we dealing with someone who knows the future?"

"Not only may we be dealing with someone who knows the future, but someone that could warp them from their places of origin."

"From?" Shota asked before he thought of how strange and different all three of them were. They had also not acted like they knew each other. Ranma and Sakura had started to interact, but it looked to him more like Pros acknowledging another Pro's skills and being interested. Peter had yet to really interact with the two of them.

Their abilities, skills, technology, and quirks made it seem oddly different. But the key to that line of thought was Saotome. Specifically that they had been tested and found to not have a quirk. Sakura's quirk was also highly unusual, but if Saotome didn't have a quirk and was pulled here, then the possibility of Sakura and Peter also not having a quirk…

"Are you suggesting they aren't from our world?" Shota demanded an answer.

Nezu nodded before giving a verbal response. "Or at least our time. I don't know for certain."

"If whoever or whatever warped them here brought them all simultaneously, why send them to different locations?" Shota asked, trying to fit more of the pieces together.

"Several factors must have gone into it. First and foremost, they helped save lives. Lives few others could have saved in those situations. This tells us that whoever is guiding these actions is trying to help. Or at least appear to help us."

Shota could only nod at that, agreeing with the point and glad Nezu wasn't ignoring the possibility of an attempt to fool them.

"The second was that they also were able to find people to help them get settled in and adapt to our world and possibly help them as people in ways that they needed to grow," Nezu said.

"The third factor," Nezu noted, "May have been an easy way to encourage all of them to join U.A. this year."

Shota reviewed who he knew to be their guardians, quickly recognizing they would likely help guide them toward it. They all had connections in one way or another to the school.

"Fourth, and possibly one of the most important, is that their situations allowed them to begin to truly change our world."

"Change our world?" Shota asked, his eyebrow rose.

"Yes. Saotome is the most obvious to start. The idea alone is enough to challenge the world's perception. The idea that those without quirks or extremely weak quirks could become strong enough to resemble All Might in battle?" Nezu said.

Shota blinked as he realized the implications. It meant their societies' focus on quirks, and the power of those quirks could be challenged. Considering how… unhealthy it had gotten, that might be a good thing. As things stood, your worth to society was dictated by luck at birth.

"Sakura's contributions, on the surface, don't seem nearly as important," Nezu said. "We don't know enough of her background or her abilities, but I suspect her contribution is how we, as a society, work together."

"What do you mean?" Shota asked, confused and needing help understanding the significance.

"Beyond her interaction with Recovery Girl and Detective Tsukauchi, there is one other group she has had regular contact with within the last year. Iida Tensei and his Hero Agency."

Shota was at a loss before he recognized the name and then thought of the news he had heard of their recent rise in fame in the past year. They had gone from an Agency run by someone with a rank of seventy-seven, which was respectable, but with far too many sidekicks to justify it. They had been effective, to a degree, but many felt they ate up too much area for a single agency. They felt other agencies, smaller ones, would serve the area better.

But in the last year, that had changed. The team members were becoming very effective, not just because of how strong the sidekicks were suddenly becoming, but by how well they worked together. Their logistical capabilities and information sharing had always been strong for a hero agency of their size. But that combined with their rapid individual improvements and how well they meshed together had quickly turned into a shockingly effective agency. The crime rates had plummeted, and arrest ratios had skyrocketed. Their jurisdiction quickly became one of the nation's top places to live. As a result of that, as well as his improved skill, Iida Tensei had shot up to the mid-thirties after remaining at his previous rank for many years.

The man had always tried to advocate working together with others more, but many agencies dismissed that idea. Shota had agreed with it because it helped the people, not your pocketbook. It was partly why he had been an underground hero; he didn't care about fame or money. And then Sakura arrived, with Tensei's little brother Tenya following her around. It suddenly made sense why the boy was at her side so much. He watched his brother's agency turn into a growing powerhouse due to Sakura's influence.

Shota sighed but smiled internally at the idea. It was one he could definitely agree with. "And Parker, I assume, due to his technology?"

"Yes. But I suspect it won't be limited to things like support items. Dr. Shield has stepped down from his position on I-Island and is instead running a new company that is catching people's attention. One of the pieces of technology they developed was shown by Parker in the Development Studio yesterday, instantly winning everyone over with it."

Shota nodded at that. Considering the boy's intelligence and the supposed technology he already had, it didn't surprise him.

"But during my discussions with Dr. Shield, he was dropping hints of having his daughter, Melissa, attend U.A. soon," Nezu said, taking another sip of tea.

Shota frowned at that. I-Island had one of the best schools in the world for science and technology, especially for support gear. Why would they consider–

"You wouldn't bring this up if she was just looking to join Parker here at U.A.," Shota noted. "Our general and economics courses wouldn't be sufficient either. So she's looking to join the Hero Course? What is her quirk?"

"She's quirkless," Nezu replied easily.

Narrowing his eyes, the other discussions allowed him to not dismiss her out of hand. "They are developing technology to allow her to fight on a Pro-Hero level. But not just low level, but medium to high end?"

"Correct. I don't know how it would be achieved, but I see the groundwork Dr. Shield is laying for that possibility," Nezu said before he adopted his smirk. "I know when I am being buttered up."

Shota snorted at that. The idea of anyone getting one past the man before him seemed impossible. And yet people continued to try. "Okay, I can see how those might change our world somehow. But why?"

Nezu looked at his tea, seemingly reluctant to answer at first. "When I noticed the patterns, I questioned it as well. So I tried to think of what it might fix, and I realized that our Hero society is… flawed. We struggled for a century after the arrival of quirks, always on a tipping point, trying to find a way to balance and keep the peace we all sought. It wasn't until All Might arrived that it began to tip in a direction where peace was possible."

"He was unbreakable," Nezu nearly whispered, "He couldn't be swayed by money or power. He broke apart the organizations and groups that kept us in fear. We finally found a way to be safe. We called him our Symbol of Peace."

Shota jerked up as he made the connection to today's attack. But he waited, letting Nezu finish his explanation.

"As a result of society scrambling to find peace for so long when it finally presented itself… we clung to it so tightly that the mere concept of changing anything became poisonous. We had to hold onto this image of the world, but it is flawed," Nezu said, looking up into Shota's eyes. He noticed they looked rather haunted. "There are different elements of society we are pushing down as we try to repress the chance of villains appearing. We stigmatize anyone that does something wrong as just a villain, something that can be locked up and the key forgotten. We only allow those we feel have a 'strong' quirk to help protect us. We have closed our eyes and stopped ourselves from growing, terrified of losing what peace we've found on the back of one man and a mountain of sacrifices. Those on the fringe, those in-between, are beginning to move though and it is slowly causing our society to fray."

"And those that want a return to those dark times, they see that fraying of society, don't they?"

"Yes. Just look at many of the villains in today's attack. Their histories. Some would naturally lean towards villainy in the first place, but others felt compelled because that was the only way society would treat them."

"And they targeted the Symbol of Peace as the best way to fracture it," Shota reasoned.

"Yes."

"They failed today… but that won't be the end of it, will it?"

"No," Nezu said, looking at his tea in sorrow.

Shota was nearly operating on information overload, but he could still note an important detail about the circumstances. Specifically, why his class. Why did Nezu put all three of them in his class? There was something big he hadn't been told about, that Nezu wouldn't reveal. But he was allowed to figure it out himself. If he understood the Principal well enough, he had all the pieces now.

"You put them all in my class. You didn't know about the coming attack. There was something else in my class that you wanted to protect or influence," Shota said, watching as the tiny man said nothing. "They are after All Might, the 'Symbol of Peace.' We know about All Might's injuries and his reduced capabilities. Someone else might know, but that wouldn't be reason enough to alter the class like that."

Shota paused, thinking it through further after getting confirmation from the silent Principal. "One of my students. You put them there to protect that student. Possibly to do more, but primarily to protect them."

Shota reviewed his list of students, their quirks, capabilities, backgrounds, and history. A few, like Todoroki, came up easily but were quickly dismissed. He was a known quantity in many ways. Then his mind traced to another student, one he thought would be more troublesome than they were. "Midoriya."

Izuku had been noted as quirkless before school started, but it was updated. His quirk gave him tremendous strength, something his body couldn't handle, and he didn't know how to control it. He was being put into his class because of that concern since it was believed Shota would more easily be able to prevent him from hurting himself. He had also been in an incident a year ago, one that had involved All Might…

"There was a fourth incident, wasn't there. That was what disturbed you so much," Shota said.

Nezu chuckled in good humor. "Yes."

"When were their incidents?"

"March 30th, 2146."

"Midoriya's incident was on April 6th. One week after their incidents."

"Well done, my boy," Nezu whispered.

Shota leaned back against the couch he was on as he processed things further. It connected too many dots; it made far too much sense now. He didn't know exactly the relationship between his student and Toshinori, but it was important enough that he wasn't being told what it was. But Nezu had led him to it anyway, knowing he would figure it out.

It made his stomach churn at what it represented. He wasn't sure which was more disturbing to him for now, the thought of someone out there playing them as a fiddle because they knew the future and was setting them up for who knew what, or the idea of what the absence of their assistance would cause.

He hadn't grown up in those turbulent times, but he knew enough that it was not something he would want the world to regress to. But what would their presence cause? Was it any better? Or was it far worse?

Peeking at Nezu showed a similar state of mind of being unsure which avenue was safer for the world. Shota could only sum it up in one way possible. "Shit."

Nezu snorted and laughed as they both took some time to settle down.

"What are you trying to do about it?" Shota inquired, knowing the man would not just leave things to rely on some future-seeing entity.

"I will be hunting to find who or what did this."

Shota nodded at that, glad to have him on that task. "What do you recommend for me?"

"For now, do what you do best," Nezu said as he looked him in the eyes. "Teach. Help them. Do not be afraid of the suggestions the three try to implement. Encourage it, even. I believe the students are here to protect and teach us things. Spread their knowledge to others or anyone else that may be drawn to it. Give them more room on the leash. And be prepared to let that leash go."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Tomura sat in the back of the heavily armed police transport, blood bags still hooked up to stabilize him from his earlier blood loss. Kurogiri and the Nomu were also with him, all heavily bound with no means of escape. Their mouths were gagged, so they couldn't even give orders to the Nomu to free them.

He had always felt a heavy hatred most of his life, ever since…who cares. But the hatred he felt now was more akin to a volcano than the fire pit he had previously had. It had been made far worse by being defeated by children. All Might had barely been involved in the fight, and they had gotten around Eraser Head's quirk several times. But they were stopped, again, by kids.

He had touched him! He had felt All Might and was a hair's breadth from ending the hated Symbol of Peace. Instead, he had lost his hand and been taken out by a girl. He had been made a fool by her.

It angered him, but when he had directed his hatred at the girl… that was when he received a shock he never expected. She had reacted as if she had seen it before and that his hatred amounted to nothing. He had believed she was like all the other weak or wannabe heroes, that her words were just that, words. So when he pressed against the blade to get closer to her, he was shocked to feel it bite into him.

And then she decided to show mercy like an idiot. She saved his life after Kirogiri surrendered. He remembered the panic he had started to go through as it became harder to see and hear. He had been left in a daze, barely recovering on their slow trip to prison.

But his hatred's growth was directed not just at the ones that had thwarted him and made him out to be a fool but at himself. In those moments, he felt a fear he had not felt since childhood. He had feared dying and that it all amounted to nothing. He had been at her mercy. She had made him feel weak!

And a part of him, so deep inside, somewhere he thought didn't or even couldn't exist anymore, had felt thankful for it. He knew he had to snuff it out, to utterly destroy the girl. To eradicate all of them! But the worst part, even though he wanted to deny it and bury it under a pile of corpses, was that he was afraid of facing her again. And the little, pitiful and pathetic voice wanted him to stop.

Tomoru looked at his stump, having been healed by the girl after fixing his throat. She had prevented further blood loss by healing the flesh. He sat there staring at it as they traveled.

He wondered how long it would take for his– there it was. Tomura smirked as he felt something force its way out of his mouth and past the mouth guard, spilling out as a black goo. It happened to Kurogiri and Nomu as well. Soon, they were covered in the goo and reappeared elsewhere, crashing into the ground.

"I see you failed, Tomura."

Tomura gagged a few times, more from his mind thinking the stuff was still in his throat than anything physically being there. He was on his hands and knees, still too weak from blood loss to look at his Master. He noticed they were in a dark warehouse of some sort, there was dirt on the ground and a few lights lighting up the place.

"Do not feel bad. There is a reason All Might is considered this world's Symbol of Peace. One of them is his incredible resilience and tenacity," the man that was his Master said. The man stood there in a dark business suit as he looked down at him. His upper body was not visible with the little light that they had.

"Failure can turn into success, so long as you learn what went wrong," the man said as he straightened and buttoned his sleeves and cuffs. "Do you know what went wrong?"

Reminded of his failure, Tomura stayed there a few moments as he gathered his strength to finally answer. "The interfering brats."

"Ah, yes. Sometimes the young can perform better than expected. They can become a wrench in a well-designed machine or plan, causing everything to fail." His Master then put his hands into his pants pockets as he relaxed further.

"No, Master," Kurogiri said after finally recovering enough. "They stopped the plan outright."

That caught his Master's attention, stepping to his side and further into the light. They could now see the bottom of his giant black iron mask. "What do you mean?"

Kurogiri proceeded to give a quick summary of the day's events. It only took a few minutes, but their Master remained silent as he listened. After he explained why they surrendered, he waited for their Master's decision. They didn't have to wait long as he spoke in a calm voice and a degree of interest he hadn't heard in some time.

"Tell me more."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

Izuku sat down at his desk the next morning, worn out from a sleepless night but eager for the school day to begin and things to return to normal.

After returning to their classroom, they had been excused from their afternoon Japanese lessons and had instead been questioned and consoled by several teachers. They wanted to ensure everyone was physically, mentally, and emotionally okay. After that was dealt with, each of them had been interviewed by policemen and went over their own accounts of what had happened.

He had gone home and hugged his mother, calming her down after explaining what had transpired. He had yet to have an opportunity to talk to All Might, but he would when he got the chance.

The rest of their class looked fine, though Ranma, Sakura, and Peter were all receiving glances as they waited.

Finally, the bell started going off, indicating class would begin as soon as it ended. Their Sensei started getting out of his sleeping bag again. They had already adjusted to his eccentricities.

"It is good to see all of you returned. I was worried some of you would react badly to yesterday's events. But you are all made of sterner stuff it seems. Well done," Shota said with a grin, his red eyes on display. It looked a little creepy.

"I wish circumstances had been different, that none of you would have had to fight yesterday, but you did. Some of you, against my orders and wishes," Aizawa said as he glared at Ranma. The boy just smiled back, though, after a moment, he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. Aizawa's face relaxed soon after, picking up where he had left off. "While I wasn't happy about it, it was the right call in the end."

This got a dramatic reaction from most of the class. Some began to converse, but Aizawa interrupted them. "Quiet. I'm not done."

After they calmed down again, he continued. "My hesitancy in allowing any of you to fight might have gotten some of you seriously injured or killed yesterday. For that, I apologize," Aizawa said as he bowed to the class for a full second before returning to standing up straight. The class remained silent in their shock.

"Parker, excellent job on communicating with the outside. Without reinforcements arriving as quickly as they had, it could have been much worse. That resolved our biggest initial hurdle; we just needed to stall for a time. Excellent job keeping the class safe from Nomu and the warper. The data you collected and shared with the school and the police allowed them to round up almost all of the villains. A few are still being hunted, but we have their trails. Well done."

Peter smiled at the praise, happy to keep his classmates and what friends he had made with them so far safe. He had worried he would have been chewed out by David or Melissa last night for using Karen like that, but they had received the same data packs and video logs; they knew just how dangerous that situation was turning out to be. They would have to be careful, step lightly for the next few weeks or months, but they agreed it had been necessary.

"Kirishima, Bakugo, Todoroki, good job keeping on your toes. You helped suppress the warper from splitting us up, which likely could have led to injuries or deaths among your classmates. You also helped handle the bulk of the villains when they tried to swarm us. Well done."

Eijiro looked bashful, even as he got a few shoulder taps from nearby classmates. Shoto just nodded while Bakugo smirked widely at it.

"The rest of you kept your heads together and protected yourselves and your classmates. You followed Sakura's orders quickly, which allowed us to hold them off until All Might arrived," Aizawa said as he looked around at them. He was proud of how they had responded yesterday, not acting irrationally as many teens tended to do.

"Ururaka and Hagakure, I realize you may have felt like you didn't do much to contribute, but your job was important, and you were the best ones for the job at the time. The fact you didn't have to was a good thing," Aizawa was glad to see Ochako looking happier at the praise. He thought Toru had reacted similarly, but her quirk did make her reactions difficult to read.

"Saotome, you did disobey orders with your actions, even if it was the right call. Please follow my orders in the future while I will keep in mind your capabilities.

"Sure thing, Sensei!" Ranma called out. Izuku heard him mumble something about chances and pigs, causing those closest to him to give him some odd looks.

"Beyond that, excellent job on handling Nomu. Physically, he was the most dangerous of the ones we faced yesterday, but you kept him under control, even taking care that collateral damage didn't injure the downed villains. Well done."

As most of the class expected, Aizawa then turned to the last of them. "Haruno, your evaluation of the situation was appropriate. You handled the class well, helping to make sure everyone knew what to do to keep us all safe. And lastly, your guarding of All Might and myself saved All Might's life or at least prevented debilitating injuries."

That caused an uproar across the room, with students standing up as they tried to process what he had just claimed. "Quiet!" Aizawa shouted, his quirk flaring momentarily as his hair floated above his head, getting their attention quickly. "Sit down!"

It took them a few seconds, but eventually, they did. "Yes, she did save him. Most of you saw what their leader did to the baseball bat earlier. He disintegrated it by touching it. If he was able to do that, it most likely would work on a human. How much contact or for how long is not known at this time, but it would have been bad. Her reaction prevented the contact from working. Her additional actions, while brutal, resulted in the capture of both the warper and the leader, ending the fight."

"It wasn't my first choice, Sensei. After repeated lethal attempts, the multiple times they threatened to injure or kill us and All Might, and then they tried to use a lethal sneak attack; I knew it needed to end as quickly as possible," Sakura explained.

"Agreed. For all of that, Haruno, well done."

Sakura smiled back, giving a nod. She had been worried he would react badly to her actions yesterday, and he had to an extent, but it seemed he was as level-headed and professional as she thought he was. Chiyo and Naomasa's praise of the man went a long way toward strengthening that opinion.

Aizawa looked at the class again, glad to have that all dealt with. "Now, onto other news. You all will need to prepare for the next fight."

"Next fight?" Katsuki asked, a grin forming on his face.

"Don't tell me…" Izuku said.

"The U.A's Sports Festival is fast approaching."

-o-0-o-O-o-0-o-​

[A/N - Splitting Chapter 9 so it accurately reflects my chapters. Should have done it far sooner, but here it is now.]