Train, Musutafu, 7:07 AM

April 5th, 2149.

The train was just as full as it had been the day before, and once again, I noticed the same blue-haired boy standing way too close to the wall. I was starting to think the boy had a fear of crowds, but that may have just been a projection of my own distaste for larger groups. Tsuyu Asui, also on the train, seemed to be working herself up to something as she stood behind and to the left of me, staring at the back of my head.

Another minute passed before she slipped past the people between us and stopped behind me.

“Good morning, Hisoka.” Tsuyu said clearly, before rumbling her throat.

I turned to face her, pleased at her use of my given name. That would mean that our brief talk yesterday had gone much better than I had expected if she was already willing to use it.

“Good morning, Tsuyu,” I said, smiling, “Are you excited for today?”

“Excited?” Tsuyu said curiously, “I suppose I am; it is our first day of actual classes.”

I nodded in agreement to the statement; there had been several offhanded comments made by All Might yesterday that could have indicated that we would be doing something physical Today.

Standing this close, it was much easier to notice the features that had been affected by her quirk. Her mouth was wider than average, and her eyes were much larger and more rounded than normal. When she spoke, I saw several flashes of a tongue that was much longer than you would expect from a person.

I wondered if she possessed any of the other features of the associated animals. I was assuming her traits were from a frog, given her leaping capabilities and her absurdly long tongue.

“Hisoka?” Tsuyu questioned. “Are you alright?”

I realized I’d been lost in thought.

“Yes, I’m fine,” I said simply, as I realized I’d been completely lost in thought. “Tsuyu, are you capable of absorbing water through your skin, or did you not receive that particular mechanism?”

Tsuyu didn’t say anything for several moments.

“Um.” Tsuyu said awkwardly, “Nobody had ever asked that before.”

There’s no way her quirk doctor hadn’t asked that; she was most likely indicating that none of her peers had asked her before—I realized belatedly that it must have come across as a very strange question to ask someone out of nowhere, and I’d likely made her uncomfortable.

“I can absorb some moisture through my skin, but not anywhere near the level of efficiency needed to stay properly hydrated,” Tsuyu said hesitantly, “So I still have to drink water like everybody else.”

Frogs had a range of temperatures that were acceptable for them, and below a certain temperature, they grew sluggish and would eventually fall into hibernation; below even that, they were unlikely to recover. Likewise, heat over a certain threshold was likely to affect her differently than it might a person with a normal constitution.

“Your body is fascinating, Tsuyu,” I said honestly. “Did you retain warm blood, or has your quirk left you cold-blooded?”

Tsuyu’s throat rumbled nervously for a moment at what I wasn’t sure; I found myself surprisingly interested in the topic—perhaps I’d found something else I was interested in after all this time.

Quirks were so interesting.

“I’m cold-blooded,” Tsuyu said, flustered, “I can’t self-regulate my temperature, so I have to dress carefully for the weather, or I’ll start to be affected by it—particularly when it is cold.”

I should probably stop asking her so many questions, it was considered rude, and she was starting to sound a bit nervous—I paused as a thought struck me.

“Are you able to lay—” I started, before the train stopped, right outside of the U.A Terminal. “Oh, we’re here already.”

Tsuyu swallowed before letting out a weak ribbit.

The morning classes passed in a blur, all things he was already quite familiar with, but once lunch had finished and they once more returned to 1-A, the air was seemingly charged as we waited for the teacher to arrive, but he was already several minutes late.

I glimpsed a man in the empty hallway heading in the direction of our class, head swiveling about and checking for anyone that might be watching. He was emancipated—sickly thin— and wearing an overlarge costume. His hair was a bright yellow, styled in a familiar cut. He clapped his hands together before suddenly expanding in an instant, transforming into a figure that I couldn’t have failed to recognize even if I had wanted to.

Was the man that had stood in their classroom yesterday, smiling brightly and emanating a presence that had been so convincing actually been a fake? Had U.A really hired an actor with an appearance transforming quirk to pretend to be All Might?

I frowned at the door as the man stood outside the door and took a deep breath. He reached out and slid the door open before hanging into the classroom by the frame, his arm spans more than great enough to reach both sides without even straining.

“I have!” Fake Might said cheerfully, “Entered the classroom like a normal person!”

The class broke out in excited muttered as they were once more in the presence of the number one hero. Fake Might strode across the room, laughing brightly before spinning and brandishing a sign. He flipped it around to face them, revealing the words ‘Battle’ in bright red block letters.

“There’s no time to waste, my adorable students!” Fake Might cheered, “Today’s focus will be—Battle Training!”

“Battle training?” Katsuki said gleefully, audible even over the outbursts from the rest of the class.

“Indeed!” Fake Might confirmed loudly before gesturing to the wall opposite the door.

I’d seen a lot of footage of All Might over the years, and I had to give it to whoever this sickly pretender was; he had the act down completely. Perhaps there was more going on here? What if this man was like the teaching equivalent of a stunt double—for when the real All Might was called away by a disaster, or he had to duck out and save somebody nearby that the local heroes couldn’t handle?

“I’m sure you all remember filling out those exhaustively detailed forms upon your enrolment?” Fake Might said, grinning, hand still raised. “If you are going to be undergoing heroic basic training, you are all going to need your—COSTUMES!”

The series of cabinets slid out of the wall at the command, some kind of voice-activated system tied to the word ‘costumes,’ and likely at a specific volume to avoid it opening randomly whenever somebody said the word.

Each cabinet had a numbered case, from one to twenty displayed in large white letters, and the first thought was that it was tied to their seating plan—I searched for and found the case with his seat number,’10.’

“Now, all of you get changed, and head to ground Beta in your current class ranking order!” Fake Might cheered before sliding the door to the classroom open once more. “I will await you there!”

The door slammed shut, and Fake Might slumped against the door for a moment, reducing back to his sickly form. I watched with my sand eye as he strode quickly down the hallway and out of sight once more.

“Out the way, you damn extras!” Katsuki cackled, snatching his case off the rack and heading for the changing room at the back.

“Wait, what’s his class rank again?” Denki said bemused. “Fourth?”

“I guess he did not feel like waiting,” Fumikage said calmly.

Momo took her place at the front of the line, patiently, not at all upset by Katsuki skipping to the front. I took my place behind her, holding my own case loosely, and watched from the corner of the room as Shoto stepped up behind me.

“Momo, did you know that you have met my aunt before?” I said calmly, studying her posture carefully.

Momo’s shoulders lifted slightly at the sudden comment before she turned and raised an eyebrow at me in surprise.

“I have?” Momo said curiously, looking apologetic. “I’m sorry, Hisoka, I seem to have forgotten—when did I..”

“Your mother commissioned several full-body statues and a bust from Hayami Higawara seven years ago,” I said, smiling blandly, “I found out yesterday, Hayami told me she remembered her daughter, who she called ‘little Momo.’”

Momo looked a little embarrassed by the name and placed her hand on the back of her head, smiling.

“The statues in our library! I do remember that!” Momo laughed lightly, “I remember Hayami as well; she was very—uh, energetic?”

“Eccentric,” I corrected easily, not at all offended—I had met the woman after all.

“Um, yes—that’s a more apt description,” Momo admitted. “Wow, I see those every day; I can’t believe I’d forgotten.”

Memory was a funny thing; I certainly wasn’t going to blame her for forgetting a woman she had met only once almost a decade ago—that would have been ludicrous. If anything, I was surprised she remembered as well as she had;.

My plan was to ask for a photo of the statues to surprise my Aunt with; that event would have left a more recent impression on Hayami, Momo, and her parents. The intention being to open a line of communication between Momo’s mother and Hayami.

I would continue with the plan, but I would have to keep an eye out for any opportunities that arose.

“I’m surprised you remembered,” I said honestly, no doubt seeing them every day had left a faint impression. “I was going to ask you for a favor, Momo.”

Asking a favor of someone would help strengthen the friendship he was hoping to build between them, and eventually, she would ask him for one in turn.

“Of course,” Momo said happily.

“My Aunt seemed very nostalgic about those pieces and was upset that she could not show them to me—she’s quite proud of her work, but apparently it was one of the few pieces she hadn’t actually photographed,” I explained calmly, all of its truth, a lucky break on my part, “I was hoping you could ask your mother if we could take some pictures of them? I know its an awkward request from a new classmate—”

“Don’t be silly, Hisoka!” Momo reassured happily, “That’s not awkward at all; I’d be happy to help, really.”

It was almost like clockwork, I thought.

“That’s very kind of you,” I ducked my head in a bow.

“I’ll talk to my mother tonight,” Momo said smiling, “I’m sure she’ll agree, of course—”

The door in front of them slammed open, and Katsuki emerged, looking like a completely different person.

His costume looked dangerous—a red and black undersuit vest adorned with a red cross on his chest—large patterned gauntlets shaped like grenades and a spiky multicolor tie around his head that ringed his eyes in the black cloth.

“Whoa!” Rikido said, impressed, standing tall above most of the class. “That looks awesome.”

Katsuki smirked at the comments, and without responding, left the room. Momo gave me a quick smile before disappearing into the changing room. Shoto remained silently behind me, and I made no effort to speak to him.

Momo returned after a moment, wearing her own costume. Two strips of skintight red material ran down either side of her torso, leaving some of the middle exposed, before vanishing beneath a skirt made from two very thick belts—Her arms and legs were both completely uncovered and without armor.

It wasn’t difficult to realize why she had decided on less coverage—her quirk was more effective the more surface area available to generate items from, especially in the case of larger objects like that scoot that had taken her several minutes to accomplish while fully covered in the gym uniform.

“Wow—Momo!” Mina called astonished, “Looking good!”

There was a lot of whispering from the other students, but Momo didn’t pay them any mind, seemingly completely at ease—I stepped through into the changing room and opened my case. My own costume was a simple thing, nothing as dangerous as Katsuki or as revealing as Momo.

A skintight undershirt with a hood and trousers. It took barely a second to reform inside the clothing and pull the hood down to cover my black hair. I placed the last part of my costume on my face, and the mask locked into place, leaving me entirely the color of my sand. I packed my clothing into the case and left it with the others inside the room before exiting the changing room.

I stepped into the classroom and passed Shoto, who simply walked past without making eye contact.

“Hey!” Eijiro said enthusiastically, “That’s pretty cool, man!”

I nodded at him before leaving the room behind.

Ground Beta turned out to be a massive urban training area—modeled to scale after a real city. I came to a stop outside of the exit to find Fake Might, Momo, and Katsuki all waiting.

I started sending sand out into Ground Beta, setting up points of view all over it to try and get familiar with the new area. The buildings were all very real, with rooms, light fixtures, windows, and everything else—this place must have cost a fortune to build.

The rest of the class started arriving every fifteen seconds or so, and in some cases, as small groups. Fake Might just beamed at them all, waiting patiently for everyone to arrive. Midoriya was the last to appear, in a green costume, with two tall ears, reminiscent of a bunny.

“This appears to be the same field we used in the entrance exam!” Tenya spoke from within the confines of his full body armor. “Will we be hunting down robots once again?”

“It is indeed the same field!” Fake Might said cheerfully, “Today, however, you will not be fighting those disposable robots! You will all be moving onto step two—Indoor Anti-Personnel Battle Training!”

“Indoor?” Shoji muttered.

“Villain battles are most commonly seen outdoors, this is true! However, statistically, the most heinous of crimes—and the villains that commit them—are far more likely to be found indoors.” Fake Might explained, “Murderers, illegal detainment, abductions, trafficking, and the black market—in this society of ours, the most dangerous of villains will not be out in the open.”

Fake All Might or not, he clearly knew the coursework, and he’d hit upon a topic that was very close to my heart. I felt a spark of excitement bleed into me as I realized that I was nowhere, listening to a hero speak about the exact thing I’d been working towards for so long. I’d made many mistakes on the way here, but I’d made it here none the less, and this is exactly where I needed to be.

“Now, you’ll be split into two separate teams of two, a villain team, and a hero team,” Fake Might instructed, “Then you shall face off in two-on-two indoor battles!”

“So we aren’t doing any practice first?” Tsuyu said pointedly.

“Practical experience teachers you the basics!” Fake Might cheered, clenching his fist.

Encouraged by Tsuyu’s own question, the rest of the students released a deluge of their own, and the man was quickly overwhelmed as he tried to answer them all at once.

“Hah!” Fake Might said flustered, “One at a time, please, I’m afraid I do not possess super hearing!”

“Can I just blast everyone into dust?” Katsuki demanded.

“No!” Fake Might said immediately.

“Are you going to expel whoever comes last like before?” Ochako said quickly.

“Uh—absolutely not!” Fake Might answered.

“How fabulous is my cape, All Might?” Yuga said, smiling brightly.

“I love the way it sparkles!” Fake Might cheered.

“What determines victory in this exercise, and what are our objectives?” Momo said thoughtfully.

“You have one goal, to stop the villains, but to do so, you have two choices!” Fake Might said brightly, the first question he could elaborate on. “The villains have a nuclear weapon hidden in their hideout that they must keep out of your hands—you must take possession of it within the time limit! Alternatively, you may capture and restrain all of the opposing team with capture tape! Both of these methods will result in a victory!”

“How do we decide who is placed in each team?” Tenya said seriously.

“You’re battle partners will be decided by drawing lots!” Fake Might revealed, sweeping his cape out of the way to show a box with ‘lots’ written on the side. “Now, come and take a letter. Whoever has a matched letter will be your teammate!”

They formed into two lines without much problem, but none of us remained in class ranking order—I wondered what the reasoning behind asking us to come here in that order had been? Perhaps a subtle way of testing to see who followed direction and who did not?

Once everyone had a letter, Fake Might stuck his hands in two boxes labeled ‘Hero’ & ‘Villain’ before calling them up in a clearly curated order.

“Team A heroes!” Fake Might called “Izuku Midoriya and Ochaco Uraraka!”

Izuku looked nervous as Ochaco patted him on the back happily, and the two stepped to the front.

“Team D villains!” Fake Might announced, “Katsuki Bakugo and Tenya Ida!”

A look of horror flashed across Izuku’s face, while a look of intensity passed over Katsuki’s—there was no way this hadn’t been intentional. They had noticed the disruptions caused in a class by the two clashing at several points. This might have been the teacher’s attempt to have the boys have it out in a controlled environment and reduce the tension before it ended in a scuffle.

“We have our teams! Villains, you will go in first. Follow the LED arrows!” All Might instructed, “The heroes will be sneaking in—and the five-minute timer will start immediately once they have done so!”

Fake Might made sure to address the four participants directly.

“Ida, Bakugo—you boys need to adopt the mindset of a villain,” Fake Might ordered, “This is a practical exercise, true, but you are all expected to give your best—Go all out and don’t hold back!”

Izuku was starting to look very worried.

“Though if any of you go too far, I will stop the exercise.” Fake Might clapped, “Now go!”

Katsuki stomped off after the flashing arrows, looking excited, and Tenya strode after him.

“Team A, when you see the arrow change color, it will be your turn!” Fake Might directed before turning to address the class. “The rest of us will be watching via the cameras that are set up all throughout the building—follow me!”

I watched Izuku as he stared down at the road, looking tense—he was in quite the predicament. Ochako didn’t look quite as worried, but she wasn’t at ease with the situation. If my rationale was correct about Izuku not having the mechanisms to protect himself from the backlash of his quirk, then he was at a severe disadvantage here.

Ochako was the deciding factor here; if she could make contact with either of the boys, she would reduce their threat level substantially—Katsuki would still have most of his mobility actually, given how he was capable of propelling himself through the air. Tenya had showcased a speed that was far above a normal person, and he doubted either of team A could keep up with him, and Katsuki’s offensive capability was obvious even without having seen him fight.

Izuku had managed to pass whatever standardize exam the rest of them had needed to pass, so he must have had more to offer than just his unfortunate quirk—I needed more information.

Fake Might led them to the basement of a building and into a room filled with monitors. There was seating along each side of the room and a small table filled with bottled water.

One of the many monitors showed Katsuki and Ida standing next to a large object that was shaped like a rocket—obviously, the ‘nuclear warhead’ that had been the focal point of the exercise.

“Now, you all have an advantage of seeing how the exercise will play out first before your own attempt, so I expect you to pay close attention to the tactics used!” Fake Might said seriously, brandishing a notepad and pen like a weapon. “Try and learn something from your peers!”

Katsuki abandoned the warhead the very second the exercise began, and the fifteen-minute timer started. He immediately left the room, heading for the stairs. I watched him move through the building, systematically checking every floor on his way down. Tenya looked annoyed that his teammate had abandoned the objective but stayed behind to protect it.

Ochako and Izuku were much more careful about their approach, staying low to the ground and checking corners before advancing—but it cost them time. Katsuki had already searched half of the building, while they had only just entered the second floor. It was obvious that he was going to encounter them both within the minute.

“Oh, damn!” Denki said excitedly, “They are about to run into each other.”

“What do you think’s going to happen?” Jiro said curiously. “Two on one doesn’t look good for Bakugo.”

“Did you see that guy blowing robots up in the exam?” Mina said, surprised, “He had the highest score at the end!”

“You didn’t see what Midoriya did then?” Yuga said, laughing to himself. “He took down one of the zero pointers.”

“What?” Toru said, shocked, “How? Those things were huge!”

I had no idea what a zero-pointer was, and by the look of things, neither did Momo or Shoto. Izuku must have used his quirk in the exam then—interesting.

Katsuki must have heard the two heroes because as he leaped into the air as he rounded the corner they were approaching, hand raised—Izuku was reacting already, tackling Ochako out of the way of the explosion, even as the concrete was shattered by force. The two of them tumbled and rolled to their feet, half of Izuku’s mask too damaged to hold up under the force.

Smoke and dust filled the corridor for a moment, as Katuski swayed back to his feet and placed his gauntlet covered hand to the wall—glaring at the too of them. I regretted not sending sand into the building—I wished I could hear what they were saying.

“That’s low, Bakugo!” Eijiro said passionately, “Sneak attacks are so unmanly!”

“Not at all!” Fake Might denied immediately, “They are a valid strategy; to ignore such a useful advantage would be folly!”

“A-ah!” Eijiro said quickly, “I see.”

“Idiot,” Mina nettled the boy before grinning, “That Midoriya can dodge—see how fast he reacted?”

Katsuki took off towards them, and Izuku—instead of moving to dodge the right overhand—stepped into it, sliding into position before capturing the blonde boy’s arm and dragging him off the ground into a throw.

Katsuki smashed into the ground and rolled into a crouch panting angrily.

“Holy crap!” Mina said, impressed, “Did you see that!?”

It was such a clean counter that I couldn’t believe the nervous boy had managed it—he’d almost started moving before the blonde boy had even thrown the punch. I found myself wondering if I’d misjudged them both.

Perhaps they fought regularly? Sparred often enough that they were used to each other’s moves, and when finally placed in a contest where they had to go all out—It had honestly looked more like Izuku was countering an attack that he was very familiar with than anything else. The fact that Izuku moved away without pressing his advantage—Letting the blonde boy get back up had to be the most arrogant thing I could think of.

Ochako likewise seemed to be in a state of shock and hadn’t moved to join the fight—she had a clear shot at her enemy’s back, as the two boys screamed soundlessly at each other on the monitors. Why wasn’t she doing anything—they were all on a time limit; why were they talking?

Katsuki ripped his earpod out, the transceiver for the teams, and tossed it away.

“Are they stupid?” I mumbled, “I don’t understand what’s happening anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Fumikage said curiously.

I realized I’d spoken far too loud and glanced at the boy for a moment.

“They are in the middle of a situation where civilian lives are at stake—an entire city even, given the potential yield of the warhead—the timer is counting down, and they are talking to each other.” I said, frowning, “Ochako is standing directly behind Katsuki, and he’s completely distracted with whatever they are yelling about—why isn’t she attacking—they aren’t taking this seriously at all.”

“They have clashed several times in class already,” Fumikage said thoughtfully, “They may be using this time as a way to vent the frustrations at each other.”

“At the expense of civilian lives,” Shoto interjected calmly. “This isn’t a game or a therapy session; it’s a training exercise.”

I nodded in agreement, feeling slightly better than someone else shared my viewpoint.

“I agree with you,” Fumikage admitted easily, “I am simply guessing at their motivations.”

“They are really screaming at each other, huh?” Toru said quickly, joining the conversation, “I think I understand how Ochako feels—wouldn’t you feel awkward?”

“They shouldn’t be doing it in the first place,” I said quietly.

Bakugo took a dangerous step forward and clenched his fist.

“Ah, monsieur Bakugo seems like he is sick of talking!” Yuga said charmingly.

Ochako took off suddenly, heading for the stairs before Katsuki let off a charge behind himself. The blond boy shot into the air and then stopped his momentum on a dime with another explosion before using the force to send a kick rocketing towards Izuku’s face.

Somehow, despite the sheer suddenness of the attack, Izuku had once again already prepared a counter. The capture tape, provided by Fake Might as a way to end the fights, grew taunt in the air as Katsuki foot passed through the trap. Izuku dived forward suddenly—abandoning the attempt at capture, just as Katsuki left off an explosion where he had just been.

Did Izuku have some kind of predictive facet to his quirk? He was moving before some of these attacks had even started.

“He’s amazing!” Rikido said, impressed, “Going toe-to-toe without even using his quirk?”

“Against the top-scorer of the entrance exam as well,” Hanta said, amazed. “That’s crazy.”

Izuku suddenly decided to start using his head again and dashed around the corner, out of sight. Katsuki looked angrier than ever, and his hands let off a series of explosions before he took off in chase.

“Uh.” Denki said awkwardly, “Why’s he so angry all the time? Kinda scary, honestly.”

“Maybe his explosions are powered by rage?!” Mina gasped, “The angrier he is, the more explody he becomes?”

I glanced over at her—I hadn’t even considered the thought. Is that really where he drew his power? Where there many quirks that could be improved by the force of your emotions? Should I attempt to incorporate—

“I don’t think that’s right,” Koji said weakly. “I think he’s just an angry kind of guy.”

Oh…

Ochako was quickly making her way to the room that Tenya was guarding and managed, through either luck or design, to enter from the side that his back was facing towards—He suddenly turned towards Ochako’s hiding place, apparently having heard her somehow.

Tenya seemed to be the only one taking the exercise seriously, and he wasn’t moving more than a meter away from the target. The tall boy had removed everything from the room already, his reasoning unknown, and moved the warhead right to the middle, so nobody could sneak up without being noticed.

A standoff began between them—Ochako unwilling to approach Tenya from the front, and Tenya unwilling to move away from the warhead. Katsuki finally caught up to Izuku on another monitor, and they started talking again.

I made a silent promise to myself that the second my opponent started talking to me, I was going to punch them in the face. Katsuki lifted his gauntleted hand up and placed his other hand on the ‘pin’ that I had assumed was simply decorative.

“Bakugo, refrain from using your support item,” Fake Might said over the radio before he suddenly looked worried.

Katsuki had already removed his earpiece earlier, so the order was completely unheeded, and the pin was pulled. The explosion burst forth from the gauntlet, impressively large, filling most of the corridor with fire and force.

Izuku covered his face with his armored hands and was sent crashing backward through the hall, even as the explosion carried on over the top of him and ripped a massive hole in the exterior of the building.

“I thought this was just practice!” Ejiro shouted, horrified, “What the hell was that?!”

Fake Might made no response; instead, he was gripping the desk in front of him tightly. Katsuki’s aim had been above, and to the side of Izuku, he had missed on purpose, but even still, the boy was still damaged.

Ochako took advantage of the shaking and dove into the air, under the effect of her quirk—Tenya skidded to a stop below her, spun and rocketed back towards the warhead—carrying it across the room in a flash.

Katsuki shot off towards Izuku, and once again, the green-haired boy moved to the counter before the attack had even started. This time it didn’t work, as Katsuki let off an explosion in front of him, using the force to spin over the top of his opponent. He unleashed an explosion directly into the back of Izuku, sending him bouncing across the room, most of his armor now entirely gone.

“He’s good,” Shoto said calmly. “He used the first explosion to bait out a counter and maneuver behind him—all in one move. Then he followed up with his actual attack, at a weak point, and when his opponent was completely out of position.”

I nodded.

“He was working under the premise that Izuku would move to counter him in the same manner as he had before—if that hadn’t worked, the exchange might have gone differently,” I added quietly, “They are running out of time, and Izuku has no way to quickly defeat him without hurting himself. He’s stuck—unless he uses his quirk, he’s going to lose.”

“Bakugo doesn’t give the impression of being such a deep thinker on the surface,” Momo said, impressed, speaking up for the first time, “But that was an incredible offensive maneuver.”

“Yeah,” Denki said awkwardly, “This guy is seriously something else—glad I didn’t have to fight him.”

Izuku couldn’t seem to get himself together, and the fight became one-sided after that, ending with a throw that mirrored the one from earlier, only this time it was the green-haired boy who was on the receiving end.

Katsuki said something that none of them could hear, and Izuku stood once more, his costume completely in tatters. The two boys took off towards each other, and I watched as the smoke trailed behind Katsuki’s hand as he prepared to finish the fight. A flicker of light lit up along Izuku’s arm as he drew it back, and even more of his costume disintegrated around the light.

Izuku raised his completely unarmoured arm in a block, and instead of the overhand he’d been telegraphing, it turned into an uppercut that wasn’t even aimed at his opponent. The pressure wave that came from his attack washed the explosions away, tore up through the building, shattering each floor as it went, and sending debris up into the air on the top floor.

Ochako slapped her hand against the shattered pillar and swung it, send a shower of rocks towards her opponent. Tenya lifted his arms to brace himself against the onslaught but Ochako landed on top of the warhead, having followed behind her own attack.

“The Hero team wins!” A pre-recorded message played out through the remains of the buildings speakers.

Izuku and Ochako both collapsed, the former unconscious and the latter throwing up messily on the floor.

A blur of movement caught my eye, and Fake Might vanished in an instant, a wave of wind washing over them, before he appeared on one of the monitors, leaping straight up the floor that Izuku and Katsuki had been fighting on. That meant that it wasn’t an actor pretending to be All Might after all—Fake Might was All Might.

Which begged the question…what exactly was wrong with the number one hero’s body?