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Chapter Text

Prologue

The Jedi Temple had been in Rome for well over 2000 years. It is said the City was founded in 753 BCE but even before then, the Jedi were here.

Tales of Jedi bravery, victory, and defeat persisted from the earliest days of recorded history. In ancient Egypt. In Ancient Greece. In the Far East. Across the Roman Empire. Throughout Europe and Africa. And even into the New World once it was ‘discovered.’

They avoided picking sides and tried to stop wars before they started. They always fought when they had to. Their battle prowess was impeccable and their skills with their blades was unmatched. No one knew where the Jedi came from or how they had existed for so long, but they did. And Earth was better for it.

When Quirks arose, some thought the Jedi Order was obsolete. Heroes and vigilantes started keeping the peace while using abilities that could sometimes outshine the Jedi. But the Jedi kept doing what they had done since the founding of their order. They served.

The Jedi Temple itself had changed over the years. Its Wikipedia page stated, with certainty, that it is the longest-occupied space with the same purpose in the world. There had been fires and collapses, it was destroyed in the sacking of Rome by the barbarians in 410 CE. The Sith even launched a successful attack against the Temple near the end of the dark ages, damaging large portions of it. But The Temple was always here, and the Jedi were always here.

Much like the order, which itself it’s been almost ground out of existence more than once, it persisted. It was a sacred space. There had been discussions of moving it over the years, but the hundreds of generations of Jedi who had lived and worked there infused the very ground with a potency and a deep connection to the Force. It became a thin place, where even those not trained in feeling the Force could tell.

The Temple stood on the Palatine Hill, which is the centermost hill of the Seven Hills of Rome. The oldest. It overlooked the Roman Forum and used to be surrounded by more than just ruins. Now, it is the only active building on the hill, surrounded by the old palaces and other architectural wonders of Ancient Rome.

The Jedi Temple stood above all the surrounding buildings. It was a large building, but not huge, it stood less than a dozen stories tall, with large gardens surrounding it. It was walled off to prevent over-eager tourists bumbling into sacred Jedi spaces.

The top floor of the Temple was reserved for the Jedi Council, the highest authority of the Jedi Order. Overlooking the Roman Forum, it had a magnificent view.

Jedi Padawan Izuku Midoriya and his master, Inko Akatani, sat in a waiting room outside the Council Chambers waiting for their summons. At first glance, the Padawan and his Master could have been mistaken for mother and child, but that was a genetic coincidence.

The two green-haired Jedi sat on the padded light brown carpet and meditated. The room was spartan but comfortable. It was old and many earthen colors decorated the walls. The furniture, several sofas, and chairs, were in good condition and fit perfectly with walls and carpet. The finest feature of the room was the wall of windows, which allowed in the light of the setting sun, washing the whole space in reds, yellows, and oranges.

Izuku had been training as a Jedi since he was an infant. He grew up in Rome at the Temple like all Jedi Initiates and was taken as a Padawan when he was 7 by Master Inko. Jedi training didn’t focus solely on combat prowess but also on the Force, knowledge, and self-discipline. Education was also a very important facet of being Jedi, for a Jedi never stopped learning.

While waiting for their audience with the Jedi Council, Izuku meditated. The Force flowed through him as he slowed his breathing and felt the peace, harmony, and serenity that could only flow over him when he was meditating. Everything was easier when meditating, all his anxiety gone, just Izuku knowing he was part of something larger than himself. Comforting him. Every time he meditated he was swimming in the Force, he could smell it, hear it, taste it.

The hustle and bustle of the City and tourists around him was muted from his awareness. He could feel all the thousands of people visiting nearby ruins but it was at the edge of his mind, unnoticed. He was focused inwards on calming himself.

Izuku had always been prone to worrying. It was the largest issue he and his Master had to work on in regards to his personality. He was just anxious by nature. He occasionally mumbled when he was nervous. And so when the Jedi Council called him and his Master for a meeting, he overthought it.

So he sat meditating next to the calm and comforting presence of his Master. She was a beacon of light, which he basked in. Time had no meaning as he meditated. Time was an unnecessary distraction which meant nothing at the moment as the calming waves of the Force washed over him.

They could have sat there for a few minutes or a few hours. But however long it was, Izuku was feeling more relaxed than when their summons arrived. The door to the Council chambers opened and they were ushered inside by a Padawan.

The room which housed the Jedi Council was very ornate. There were five chairs in a semi-circle and windows with the same view as the waiting room. This room had seen politicians, monsters, and angels. Every President of the United States since Truman had visited. Hitler even visited once to make demands of the Jedi (which were promptly ignored.) History had been made in this room over and over again.

The Jedi Council was made up of five members, only four of which were currently present. The Grandmaster of the Order was named Gloria Angevin. She sat in the center seat and spoke first, “Welcome my friends.”

Izuku and Master Inko bowed low to the council. Master Inko said, “Summoned, we have come, Masters.”

The Grandmaster smiled. She looked to be in her early 70s, fair white skin wrinkling slightly, but she was tall, thin, and athletic. Izuku thought she could be described as handsome but quickly pushed his extraneous thoughts to the side to focus on the moment.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice. I hope you are both recovered from your last mission to South Africa. It ended more violently than we would have expected.”

“We are, Master. While the mission was not what we expected, both my Padawan and I were… able to handle the situation.”

Izuku felt like wincing because that was a bit of an overstatement on his Master’s part. Granted, the mission was not a failure, but Izuku had disobeyed his Master’s orders after violence had broken out. She told him to flee, but he did not. Rather he hid with a rebel group and organized the successful completion of the mission and also rescuing his Master from a prison camp.

Master Inko had been livid with Izuku when he showed up at her cell door with her lightsaber and three rebels. But alls well that ends well… Well, after his sanction was completed.

He had just finished three months of penance, no missions or anything fun. Just studying and training. And more training. It had been boring but also very fulfilling, as his skills had improved significantly, especially his telekinesis. His Master had been adamant that his telekinesis skill be top-notch, and Izuku didn’t know why.

Master Angevin looked at Izuku. “And you, young Padawan, if I recall your last mission led to some… interesting circumstances?”

Izuku took a moment to compose himself, stopping a blush, and replied, “Yes, Master. I have learned much since then.”

“And you feel you’ve learned from your mistakes?”

“Yes, Master.”

The Grandmaster smiled. “Very good, and if you’ve learned from your mistakes, you’ll not repeat them?”

“Of course not, Master.” There was a pause while Izuku debated adding something else, and his tongue got the best of him, “Unless I have to.”

The grandmaster laughed and Izuku felt amusement from most of the rest of the council, as well as slight annoyance from his Master. He tried to will his body not to flush as the Master Angevin looked at Master Inko with a small smile. “This is truly your student, my dear old Padawan.”

Izuku’s Master looked up with a small smile and said, “I only am able to pass on what I learned from my own, very old Master, Master.”

Master Gloria Angevin looked at Inko with the same sort of fondness that Inko looked at him sometimes. It was not easy to forget that his own Master’s Master was Master Angevin.

“Let’s get a move on,” said Master Torq after clearing his throat. He was a dark-skinned African Council Member said. “We don’t have all day to socialize.”

Izuku could have sworn he saw Master Angevin roll her eyes as her face turned serious. “Indeed. We have a mission for you and your Padawan, Knight Inko Akatani.” The Grandmaster looked at Izuku, “How is your Japanese, Padawan?”

Izuku blinked at the seeming non-sequitur. “It is very good. I am Japanese by birth and to honor my ancestors I made the point of learning it as well as I could.”

“Very good, we were hoping that your file was correct on this matter. This would have been much more difficult if you were not familiar with Japanese. For this mission, you will be the key, young Izuku. It could be long term, and could be constituted as your trials, depending on how long it goes, what happens, and how you do.”

Izuku felt proud of himself that his jaw did not hit the floor. “My trials? But I’m only 15?”

“This mission could last you three years. Or longer. What do you know of Hero Culture in Japan, Padawan?”

Izuku blinked at the question. He did enjoy learning about heroes and quirks. Jedi didn’t have quirks, for some reason, only those without quirks could access the Force in the ways of the Jedi. The Force itself was present in all people, in all things, it bound everything and everyone together. But only those with the proper sensitivity could access the Force.

“Well, heroes are very prevalent in Japan. More so than in most other counties. Some of the strongest heroes in the world call it home. All Might is probably the single strongest hero of all time and he is very prolific in his hero work, though judging from news stories, he is slowing down. Some rumors suggest he may retire in the next few years. But heroes, in general, have a huge part to play in the culture of modern Japan. From high schools for potential heroes to huge and coordinated villain attacks. There was an interesting study in Foreign Affairs two months ago about the prevalence of heroes sometimes bringing forth more villains than in other areas. In the US for example, the police are highly armed and thus heroes are needed far less than in Japan and villains tend to turn up dead before they get S-Class statuses. Quirks are also highly regulated in Japan and—“

Master Inko coughed and Izuku realized he had been rambling a little. In the Jedi Council Chambers. He glanced at his Master who he could tell was trying to keep a straight face.

“So it seems you know a fair bit, Padawan. That’s very good. Your mission will be to move to Musutafu, Japan and attend UA High School. The Augurs of the Order have seen that Japanese hero society will soon be somehow involved in Sith machinations. They are not sure how or why, but they know All Might is somehow involved. The Order has learned that All Might will be teaching at UA in the next school year, and thus we will send you there to be a hero and to get close to him.”

Izuku blinked. This sounded really like a really cool mission. “But why would a Jedi attend a Japanese hero school?”

Master Angevin smiled, “Well, one would not, of course. That’s why you won’t be a Jedi at UA. Rather you will be a student with a powerful telekinetic quirk. We have an identity for you and Inko, thankfully you look alike enough to pass as mother and son so you will be moving to Japan from America to fulfill your dream of becoming a hero like All Might.”

Izuku was glad his American accent was one of his better ones. (His British sounded like he was making fun of the king or something.) He looked at his Master, “Is this why we were practicing my telekinesis so much these past few months?”

“Yes, this mission has been in the works for a while now, Padawan. Your identities have been made and we will be moving to Japan now so you can practice your spoken Japanese and kanji before the entrance exam in a few months. Inko will be homeschooling you until then, and she will be assigned to missions around South East Asia as her schedule permits.” The Grandmaster paused, “This will be a very difficult mission. You can not give away that you are a Jedi except under the direst of circumstances. Your lightsaber should always be on your person, but you can never use it until the Sith make their move. Knowing a Jedi is at UA will make the Sith more cautious or perhaps, less so. It needs to play out as well as it can without the enemy knowing of our presence.”

Izuku paused. This was going to be a difficult mission. “I will try my best, Masters. But may I ask why you chose me? I’m sure there are other Padawans who would be able to do as good, if not a better job.”

Master Angevin’s smile faded slightly. “Do or do not, there is no try. And you should have more faith in yourself, young Padawan. Your background plus your expertise in the necessary languages made you far and away the best candidate.” The Grandmaster paused, “Further, some of your struggles with your emotions make you more believable as an average teenager than many other Padawans. Your master will be with you for some of the mission but you’ll be alone for even more of it. it will be a test for you. And why it may count as your part or all of your trials.”

Master Inko looked at Izuku, “I believe that you will be successful in this mission, Izuku. The Force will be with you, and so will I.”

Hearing that his master had faith in him was the push he needed, “I’ll do my best and I thank the council for the faith you have in me.”

The Grandmaster smiled. “Very well then, you will leave tomorrow. Full details of your mission will be made available to you. Remember, no matter what happens or what you face, the Force will be with you, always.”

Inko and Izuku bowed to the council and left the room. They had a mission to prepare for.

Chapter Text

Izuku decided he liked Japan.

Izuku and his Master had only arrived a few days before, but it already felt comfortable for him. There were so many people and it felt so alive. The Force sang in Musutafu, in a way it didn’t in Rome. Maybe that was because people around him called it home, whereas in the part of Rome he spent most of his life there were so many tourists all the time. These were just regular people doing their regular daily things. Plus a lot of heroes everywhere, and Izuku did love heroes.

The location of the house the Order had procured for Master Inko and him was a 20-minute walk to the school campus. It was in a very nice neighborhood, residential and quiet. Upper middle class. The house was western-styled, it seemed to be relatively new and had all the comforts of home. Tatami made up the flooring of two of the rooms, but the rest just had regular hardwood floors. There was a small yard in the back which had a rock garden, where he and Master Inko did much of his training. It was walled off from the neighbors and allowed a lot of privacy. They had a large empty windowless room in the house where they practiced their lightsaber combat and forms.

The identities that the Jedi Order procured for them both were ironclad. Due to the fact the Order worked with various intelligence agencies around the world, it was easy for them to get fake identities that stood up to all the scrutiny thrown at them. Their current identities, Inko and Izuku Midoriya, were American citizens from California. They both had passports, social security numbers, birth certificates, and everything else they needed to prove American citizenship. The Jedi’s liaison with the government had also set up social media accounts and seeded some fake newspaper and blog articles about both of them, including the obituary of Inko’s husband and Izuku’s father, the fictitious Hisashi.

There was a little over a month until the entrance exam at UA. His application had been submitted already and he was notified via email that he was eligible to take the exam. UA, like many schools, enjoyed having foreign exchange students, so assuming that Izuku did well on the entrance exam, he’d probably get in. There was an additional interview he had to go through that non-foreign students did not need, just to make sure that his spoken Japanese was as good as what was tested for in the written exam.

Izuku wasn’t worried about the test, per se. He figured he had more training and experience than most other 15-year-olds out there. But it was still a bit stressful for him. He was a little bit worried about what would happen to his mission if he didn't make it in. If he failed the exam would he go back to the Jedi Temple and be punished?

His overthinking and anxiety was acting up again. While meditating one day, Master Inko told him not to worry. “Normal 15-year-olds applying to high schools in Japan generally are not veterans of several foreign wars, Pada—Izuku. You’ll do fine. Probably better than fine, but try not to stand out too much if you can help it.”

“You’re right, mom.” Both Izuku and Master Inko decided to stop calling each other by their Jedi titles. They needed to prepare for the mission to begin in earnest. “I wish there was more information on the exam online. It’s like there’s a gag order or something! No one writes any details, just general information such as how it is easier for more physical quirks to shine as opposed to subtler ones. I assume that means it is combat-oriented, so those without combat specific quirks are less likely to pull ahead. It seems shortsighted to me, but I don’t even know if what little information on the internet is accurate so it could be something completely different but—“

“Izuku, you will be fine. Focus on the here and now. Let’s finish our morning meditation and then we can work on your training for the rest of the day. Plus you’ll need to study some more before the end of the day to keep up.” Time passed in quiet meditation and after a while, he was adrift in the Force, and his anxiety levels had gone down like they always do when he meditates. “Well done, Padawan. Your skill in meditation continues to impress me. Most your age fidget and complain when their masters make them meditate. I know I did.”

“I just find it so relaxing, mom. All my anxiety washes away into the Force. I feel less burdened.”

Master Inko smiles at Izuku, “You’ll be a fine Jedi Knight one say, Padawan. I may not be able to say that much in the next few years, but know it is true,” Izuku nodded at her, maintaining eye contact. “Now we need to work on your training. Telekinesis is almost where I want it to be. And we focused on hand to hand combat enough on our mission to Ecuador that a slight review should be all we need.”

Izuku winced. The mission to Ecuador had been brutal. Their lightsabers had been confiscated by the local, well-armed, warlord/governor and they completed the rescue mission unarmed. It had been difficult but not impossible. And his unarmed combat skills were greatly improved. Izuku never voiced his thoughts, that Master Inko allowed their lightsabers to be taken so they had to work on hand to hand combat, but he figured it was the kind of logical ruse that Jedi Masters like to use on unsuspecting Padawans.

The training wasn’t bad, it was just a lot. He thought his grasp of telekinesis was pretty good before they arrived in Japan. Not a master’s level, but pretty good for a 15-year-old. Master Inko, Izuku had a hard time calling her mom in his head still, was ferocious in the training. But he was getting a lot better.

Yesterday he has been able to freely manipulate five mid-sized stones in their back garden independently of each other. Much like patting your head and rubbing your stomach, having the control to move two different objects in different ways was hard enough, let alone five. He was mindful of each rock but focused on the whole as well as each individual rock. That was how he was able to control so many moving pieces. That and the fact that practicing one skill for six hours a day tended to make you somewhat decent at it.

He made his way towards the back yard when Master Inko stopped him. “Your fine control at a good place. We’re going to have to work on the size of objects you lift. Come.”

They put their shoes on and left the house, heading for the nearby train station. The Jedi did purchase a wonderfully located house for them, it was pretty much close to everything in town. They boarded an eastbound train and got off at the stop labeled Dagobah Municipal Beach Park, it was also the end of the line. Izuku had never been to this part of town before, so he was curious as to what was going on.

It was made clear quickly that Dagobah Beach was a dump. Literally. It was covered in trash. Not just garbage, but junk too. Old appliances, furniture, cabinetry, shelving. It was a mess. It was the kind of sight he’d seen before in very poor areas of various countries they’d visited during his training. But as Izuku looked around he saw it was not a poor neighborhood, just a regular middle class one. Izuku wondered what could cause the people here to have so thoroughly trashed their beach.

“We didn’t have big enough rocks in our garden at home to practice with.”

Izuku looked at his Master confused, “I thought public ‘quirk’ use was illegal in Japan?”

“Oh, it is. But we’ll be a ways down the beach far from anyone. And it’s not like many people come here for the view.”

Izuku felt that was a fair point. They moved down the beach and found a spot that was somewhat out of sight to practice.

This became the standard way they spent their afternoons. His Master assured him that the size of an object didn’t matter and that it was only a problem inside his head, but Izuku still struggled. How could something larger be as easy to pick up with the Force as a pebble?

His Master said, “The Force is everywhere, Izuku. In everything. Connected. It’s in the grains of sand and the largest of the junk on this beach. The size honestly doesn’t matter. You must unlearn what your eyes tell you is impossible and what your eyes show you at all. When you do that, you can truly move mountains with the Force.”

As the weeks passed, Izuku’s control improved. The larger objects were being moved around as easily as the small rocks in the garden had been. Master Inko had him practice with them and using them to smash other items. It was a great form of stress relief to pick up a refrigerator with the Force and smash it into a giant pile of trash as hard as he could. And good practice for the entrance exam.

Two weeks before the said exam, Izuku had his meeting with the UA staff to make sure he was capable enough to take the entrance exam. He and Master Inko had been working on getting him over a small block, where he didn’t want to use the Force for frivolous reasons. To a Jedi, using the Force to summon an apple to him or pick up something he dropped was anathema. The height of laziness.

But a 15-year-old with a telekinetic quirk would use it for everything he could. It was a bit of a mental stumbling block for the young Jedi, and his Master was sympathetic, and they worked hard to beat the ingrained behavior out of him.

He enjoyed his short walk to the UA campus and entered through the main gate. The school building was huge and modern. He walked inside.

Izuku was unsure of where to go, and there was no one around, the halls were empty. Classes were not being held that day so he closed his eyes briefly and reached out to the Force for prompting.

He walked the direction that the Force suggested and just enjoyed exploring a little. He turned the corner too quickly and ran right into a boy with white and half red hair and a scar near his left eye.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Izuku said. “I took the turn too quickly and I didn’t see you. Obviously. I mean if I saw you I wouldn’t have run into you. Are you hurt? Do you need the nurse or anything? I think I saw the sign for that a while bac—“

“I’m fine.” He paused, “Are you a recommendation student?”

“Ah, no. I am supposed to be meeting Present Mic about the entrance exam. I’m Izuku Midoriya, it’s nice to meet you.” He held out his hand to the other boy.

The boy looked at Izuku’s hand as if contemplating what to do and after a moment reached out to shake it, face not changing from a mask of indifference. Izuku could feel pain and coldness coming off the boy. But deep down there was fiery passion too. “I’m Shoto Todoroki. I imagine you need to head back towards the entrance for your meeting.“

“That makes sense. I was a bit early. Maybe that’s why no one was there to meet me. I thought I’d wander around a bit to see if I could find anyone… So you are a recommendation student? That’s really cool, you must be super strong to be able to get in like that!”

Shoto grunted but didn’t say anything. There was a slightly awkward pause and Izuku was about to say something else when he was interrupted by a voice calling, “Shoto, there you are. Why are you wasting your time here? It’s about to start. Who’s this?”

“Oh, hello, Sir! I’m Izuku Midoriya. I’m afraid I got a bit turned around.”

“You shouldn’t wander around like this. It is a secure building and you could get in trouble. Return to the entrance until someone comes to accompany you.” The not-so-friendly man said. Izuku suddenly realized that he was the hero Endeavor. Maybe Shoto was his son? It would explain how he was powerful enough to get into a competitive school like UA on a recommendation.

As the large man walked away, Izuku saw him shake his head and heard him mumble under his breath, “Foreigners.”

“It was nice to meet you, Shoto! I hope to see you in April!” Izuku turned around and started to walk away before he could see the look of mild shock on the other boy’s face. He felt it in the Force and winced when he realized how informal he’d been. He wasn’t used to the Japanese formal naming culture just yet. He turned to apologize but the other boy was already entering a room.

Izuku tried to settle his mind as he made his way back to the entrance. He knew he should have probably waited there in the first place, but when he asked the Force for guidance it promoted him to go that way. He was glad it did because he got to meet one of his potential new classmates. Even if he didn’t make the best first impression, what with running into him, rambling at him, and calling him by his first name. Ah well, he’d apologize in April.

Arriving back at the front entrance there was a girl about his age with cloven hoofs and horns. There was also a tall man with blond hair spiked up higher than any haircut Izuku had ever before seen in person.

The blond turned to him and said, in English, “Are you Izuku Midoriya?”

Izuku smiled and replied in English, “That’s me! Sorry, I got a little turned around. Are you Present Mic?”

“That I am, little listener!” He seemed louder than the average human. “You two are the only native English speakers applying this year so let’s go to a classroom to talk.”

The three of them made their way to one of the nearby gigantic doors and ushered them inside. “I am going to switch to Japanese now if you don’t mind. And if you do, you might want to consider going to a different school!” The man smiled widely and paused but neither of the two students reacted. Switching to Japanese he said, “Okay since you are both native English speakers, we just need to have a brief conversation with you to make sure you’re ready to Plus Ultra! The entrance exam is completely in Japanese. English is a required subject for all students here. Though since most of you are fluent, if you pass the entrance exam, you’ll probably take supplemental Japanese courses in their place. This is an opportunity for the UA staff to hear your spoken Japanese. We’ll see how your reading and writing are during the exam, but for now, let’s have a conversation! Pony, ladies first!”

For the next few minutes Present Mic and the girl, Pony apparently, spoke in Japanese. She seemed pretty confident in the language and Izuku only noticed a few times where she was a little awkward in her sentence structure.

“Well done little listener! That’s all we need from you so you’re free to go if you’d like.”

She nodded and smiled at both of them and left.

“Just us now, Midoriya. How are you today?”

In Japanese, he replied, “I’m well, thank you. How are you, Present Mic-Sensi?”

“I’m doing great! Your accent seems a little strange. Why is that?”

“I’m fluent in several languages besides English and Japanese, but my accents are messed up in all of them. Too many languages in my brain are what my Ma-mother says.” Izuku replied, catching himself before calling Inko his Master instead of his mother. He needed to keep working on that.

“Ha, could be. I love languages. I teach English here at UA. What other languages do you speak besides Japanese and English?”

“Oh, I am fluent in Italian, French, Russian and Chinese. I can converse in Arabic, Spanish, and German. I know the basics of a few more and I can read Latin.”

Present Mic’s mouth fell open slightly and he stared at Izuku, unspeaking. After a moment he composed himself he said, “Well that’s impressive. Do you like languages?”

“I do! They’re so fun and you can learn so much about a culture from knowing the language. My mom travels a lot for work so I’ve been all over and I learned a bunch of the languages while living in various places. Not the Latin though, that was just for fun. After you get French and Italian down, Latin comes pretty easily. And opens up so many interesting texts to read! When mom and I were living in Italy, I found a copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in Latin and really wanted to read it. Worth it!”

Present Mic laughed happily at Izuku’s excitement. “I’m sure. Your Japanese seems very good too, which is why we asked you here. How comfortable are you speaking it full time?”

“Very. My mom and I have been doing so since we got Japan last month.”

“Good, good. Keep it up, yeah?” Izuku nodded. “Are there any questions you have while I’m here?”

“I do have one. I am looking forward to the entrance exam. But can you give me any hints on what I should be prepared to do?”

“Ha! It’s a closely guarded secret. We try to keep it under wraps so that everyone is on the same page.”

“That makes sense. I’ll keep studying and practicing my quirk and hope for the best. Thank you for meeting with me today!”

“It was my pleasure, little listener. Your Japanese is quite good, and I look forward to having you as a student if you pass the entrance exam.”

Izuku bowed to the teacher and left. He thought that went well. Two more weeks until the entrance exam.

Chapter Text

The day of UA’s Entrance Exam was upon him.

The two weeks following Izuku’s meeting at UA with Present Mic were spent training. Master Inko felt his telekinesis was where he needed it to be, but there were other facets of Force use he needed to work on. The most important of these was stealth.

Not stealth as in evading enemies and hiding but rather hiding his use of the Force from other Force users. It wouldn’t do for his undercover status to be ruined before he was ready. He needed to use his abilities but not have it look or feel like he was using the Force.

And it was pretty tricky. Force Concealment was a skill that all Jedi utilized at some point in their careers. There were many different methods of hiding in the Force. One Jedi teacher Izuku had at the Temple could shrink his presence to such a small size, none of the initiates were able to sense him, even though he was standing right in front of them. This was not what Izuku needed, thankfully, that skill took years to master.

Rather, Izuku needed to hide that he was using the Force at all. Whenever a Jedi, or Sith, used the Force there were metaphorical ripples in it. Like tossing a rock into a lake. From a distance, you couldn’t tell it happened, but from up close there was a larger disturbance. The goal was to minimize the disruption and thus eliminate the ripples.
Since this was an undercover operation, Izuku would need to mask his presence in the Force at almost all times. Because of this, the training strategy had been to keep it up all the time. So, for the last two weeks, he had kept up the Force Stealth every waking moment. At first, it was difficult for him, but as he became more familiar with the feeling of keeping up the stealth screen became almost second nature.

Another change for Izuku was carrying his lightsaber concealed on his person. Generally, a Jedi would just wear their lightsaber on their belt, as is tradition. Before the advent of the lightsaber, swords were sheathed on the back or hip. But Jedi almost always show their weapons.

With his Master’s help, Izuku made some subtle modifications to his blade. It could be taken apart into three pieces which could each be concealed in different places in his bag or pockets. Each piece just seemed like some scarp, just a hunk of metal. He had several explanations as to why he would be carrying them in his head. To assemble the lightsaber, all he needed was about five seconds. Less if he used the Force’s help to do it.

He felt naked knowing that his saber wasn’t on his hip or readily available. It had been there almost constantly since he built it in the Grotta Su Marmuri in Sardinia, where Jedi find their lightsaber crystals. But Izuku figured he didn’t need his lightsaber in an emergency on this mission, at least not right away. How likely was a villain and Sith attack early in the school year? He’d adapt.

Finally, it was time to leave for the exam and his Master met him at the door. “I would say good luck but I know you don’t need it. Remember, try not to stand out. The Force will be with you, Padawan.”

“Thank you, Master. It is a testament to your teaching that the Council thought I was capable of successfully completing this mission.” Izuku bowed low.

His Master smiled at him and ruffled his always messy green har and hurried him out the door. The walk to UA was not long and before he knew it, he was in front of the huge building again. Izuku paused for a moment to collect himself with the help of the Force and then continued forward. He wasn’t quite as collected as he needed to be because he immediately tripped over his own feet. He prepared to catch himself with the Force but before he could act he felt a light slap on his shoulder and he… started floating?

“Hi! Sorry I used my quirk on you without asking, but I didn’t want you to fall,” A bright and cheery voice said.

“I appreciate it,” Izuku replied with a smile.

After she released her power, a very cool one in Izuku’s opinion, they both continued into the school for the written portion of the exam. After registering and getting to the classroom for the academic portion of the test, he waited as the room filled.

Exactly on time, the test booklets were handed out and off Izuku went. The test was not easy, but it wasn’t overly difficult for him either. He knew most of the material but there was an added burden of him translating all his answers into Japanese. He certainly aced the English section. He felt comfortable with his work and was done well before the time limit expired.

After everyone was dismissed, they gathered together in a large auditorium. Seating was assigned and he was seated next to a blue-haired boy with a serious demeanor. Izuku nodded to him as he sat down and said hello and the boy nodded back, not saying anything.

Izuku quietly meditated, not deeply, keeping his awareness on the here and now as the room filled. He could feel that almost everyone around him was very nervous but he did not let their feelings affect him.

Present Mic walked in and stood in the center of the stage. He didn’t use a microphone, nor did he need one. He explained the rules of the different robots having different point scores, and it seemed easy enough. They were also given a print out with the information.

“Excuse me, sir, but I have a question!” The blue-haired boy next to him said loudly. Izuku couldn’t help noticing that he was gesturing rather enthusiastically as he spoke.

“Hit me,” Present Mic said.

“On the printout, you’ve listed four types of villains, not three. With all respect, if this is an error on official U.A. material, it is shameful! We are exemplary students, we expect the best from Japan’s most notable school. A mistake such as this won’t do!”

Izuku’s eyes widened a little at the phrasing of the question but assumed the other boy was just nervous.

"Thanks for calling in with your request, Examinee number 7111,” Present Mic gave him a thumbs up. "The fourth villain type is worth zero points. That guy's just an obstacle we'll be throwing in your way," Present Mic explained. "There's one in every battle center. Think of it as a hurdle you should try and avoid. It's not that it can't be beaten, but there's... kinda no point.”

As the boy thanked Present Mic, Izuku felt that the explanation didn’t make much sense. Why would they bother to have a useless robot at this test unless there was an ulterior motive?

He pushed the thoughts aside and decided he’d ignore it, per the instructions, unless the situation called for something different. They were loaded onto buses and moved to various testing facilities. The boy he sat next to in the auditorium was on his bus as well as the girl with the gravity quirk from earlier.

Izuku spent his time meditating and letting go of his anxiety and any fear he had. And to be fair, he did feel a little, but with his training, he knew not to act on it. He could do this. He could do this well. He would do this.

They got off the bus and he stood ready, he was submerged in the Force, waiting for any promptings as Present Mic stood by the entrance and looked at his watch. “Okay, go!” The yellow-haired hero said, and Izuku dashed forward, augmenting his speed with the Force, leaving the other participants in the dust.

The Force prompted him to go left and he found a street swarming in robots. Using the Force, he lifted a one-pointer in front of him and smashed it as hard as he could into the three-pointer behind it destroying both. He dodged the attack of another three-pointer and grabbed it with his telekinesis and smashed into a nearby wall.

More testers had arrived in his area by now and many of the robots were engaged. Izuku moved further away from the crowd searching for more robots when the Force prompted him to look right. He saw a blond boy firing a laser from his…belly button? His back was to Izuku and there was a three-pointer locking on to him from the blond’s right side. The blond didn’t notice the robot so Izuku used the Force and acted.

“Mon Dieu!” The blond yelped as he was hastily, but gently, pulled out of the line of fire of the blast from the three-pointer. Once he regained his senses he blasted the offending robot with his laser and saw that Izuku had saved him he said, “Merci beaucoup, mon ami!”

Izuku wondered why a boy was speaking French during a Japanese high school entrance exam, but just smiled back at him and said, “De rien, mon ami!”

The blond looked delighted that Izuku understood him, bowed and they went their separate ways.

Izuku was at forty-something points by his math. He figured that was about all he needed to do to get in and to not make too many waves. He helped a few other examinees who just needed a little assistance here and there, but none so dramatic as the blond French boy. His Master would be pleased.

Then suddenly the earth shook. At first, Izuku thought it was an earthquake, but he turned and saw a massive robot menacing over the faux-city. That was the zero-pointer? He could see why Present Mic told them to avoid it. Izuku started to make his way back towards the entrance. As he got to the main street, other students were running away from the huge robot in fear. He didn’t blame them, it was a rather frightening sight.

As he started walking away, the Force prodded him to look in a certain direction and he saw the girl who caught him when he tripped earlier. She was directly in the path of the zero-pointer but unable to move due to her leg being stuck under some of the rubble from the zero-pointer’s entrance. He didn’t know why she wasn’t using her quirk on the debris holding her down but guessed she could be out of juice.

Well, Izuku couldn’t just leave her there. He turned and ran towards where she was stuck, passing fleeing participants. When he arrived at the girl's location, the giant robot was getting very close. “Don’t worry,” he said to the girl with more confidence than he honestly felt. “I’ve got this.”

There was rubble all around him. Some pieces smaller than others, he reached out with the Force and picked up several of the largest he could manage, including the piece pinning the girl down. He was straining, but the Force was singing around him. Blood was pounding in his ears.

He pushed one piece of the rubble with all of his telekinetic might, gesticulating with his hands, at the robot’s face. Then another. And another. He picked up another large chunk as he threw one more towards the robot’s head. The face was sparking wildly, dented and deformed. He hurtled two more chunks of rubble at it, aiming slightly lower because there was not much of a face left.

At that point, the zero-pointer reared back and was stumbling, Izuku gave up on the rubble and just pushed the robot with all his telekinetic might and it could no longer maintain its balance. There was a loud crash and the zero-pointer was on its back in an area it had already destroyed. Collateral damage could be a pain and he wanted to avoid it if possible. Its legs were twitching but it was unable to get back up. So much for avoiding the hurdle.

Izuku let out a breath and walked over to the girl from before, offering her a hand up. “Are you hurt?”

She was staring at him with wide eyes as he helped her up. “My ankle, it’s hurt but I think it’s only sprained.”

Izuku nodded. “Let’s get you to where ever the medical people are.”

Not even three seconds after they started moving, Present Mic’s voice came over the loudspeaker and announced that time was up. Izuku helped the girl towards the entrance.

“Thank you for the help, you’ve got an amazing quirk…”

“Thank you. It’s not as flashy as some, but telekinesis gets the job done. I’m Izuku Midoriya.”

“I’m—”

She was cut off from saying anything else as a small older woman walked up to them and asked, “Is anyone here injured?” Uraraka explained her ankle and the woman kissed her and handed them both some candy. “That wasn’t too bad, dear. You may be a little more tired than normal tonight. Make sure to get a full night’s sleep and no running any marathons for a few days.”

Izuku was exhausted. Even after one of his most intense training sessions with his Master, he’d never used the Force so much in such a short period of time. He hoped it was enough.

Waiting had never been a strong point of Izuku’s. He was the kind of person who liked to act. This was a great trait for a Jedi to have, normally. But when waiting a week or two for exam results, it was annoying.

He spent most of the wait training with his Master on lightsaber forms. He was also working on assembling and dissembling his lightsaber as quickly as possible. Muscle memory was very important for that type of thing.

Izuku always enjoyed lightsaber training. He found something very calming about going through katas and feeling the Force flow around him. Intentional movements, it was almost a dance. He was working on his Soresu, Izuku’s preferred form when the mail arrived a week and a half after the exam. He heard the bell ring and the soft sound of a thunk from the front door.

He extinguished his lightsaber and left it in the training room and walked to the door. There was an envelope from UA in the pile. It was kind of misshapen and crumpled. He ignored the rest of the mail. His Master walked into the room and he looked at her and smiled. He opened the envelope and inside was a circular disk. He picked it out of the envelope and carefully placed it on the table in the dining room.

It lit up without promoting and Present Mic’s face was suddenly in front of him. “Bonjour my multi-lingual little listener! You’ve probably been nervously waiting for this letter since the exam haven’t you? Well, have no fear because your results are here! Let’s take a look! First, you scored excellently on the written test. Your Japanese grammar was better than many of the native speakers and your answers were more right than wrong. PASS!”
Izuku smiled at that, he figured he did well on the written exam. He just hoped that he got enough points in the practical. He knew he could have gotten more but didn’t want to stand out. “Before we move on, watch this!”

The scene on the hologram changed to Uraraka talking to Present Mic. “Sir, I wanted to make sure the boy who helped me, Midoriya, had enough points to get in. He saved me from the zero-pointer and I’m sure he could have gotten more points if he didn’t stop to help me.”

Izuku smiled at the girl, maybe they’d be friends if they both got in. “One of the most important parts of being a hero is inspiring others! Heroes can’t save everyone, but we can inspire others to be heroic and even help out! You did this, and while we only told you that the practical exam was based on the points you get from destroying robots, there was a hidden criterion! Rescue points! You received 46 villain points for destroying robots, which on its own would have been enough to get you into UA’s Hero Course comfortably! But because of your heroism in saving not just that girl, but several others as well, we award you 75 rescue points! That brings you to a total of 121 points! That’s the highest score this year, and the higher score anyone has gotten in over 20 years! Well done! Welcome to your hero academia! See you in April! Plus Ultra!”

The hologram went black and Izuku looked at his Master who was smiling at him. “Well done, Padawan.”

Izuku smiled back and said, “I did it!”

“I never doubted you. However, I do need to say, so much for staying under the radar, Mr. Highest-Score-in-20-years.”

Izuku blushed, “They didn’t say anything about rescue points in the instructions. I just saw people who needed help and so I helped them. I didn’t want them to get hurt.”

Master Inko’s smile widened, “I know, Padawan. I’m proud of you. I’ll inform the council of your success and we’ll keep working to get you ready for your first day of school.”

Chapter Text

Time flew by between when Izuku got his acceptance and early April when school was slated to start. Izuku and his Master spent most of their time training and he felt more than ready to attend UA and complete his mission. 

When his first day dawned, Izuku and Master Inko had breakfast together. “Today is the day, Padawan. You’re going to very well, I know it.” 

“Thank you, Master.” 

“I do have some news for you.” “Oh?” 

“I have a mission to Taipei starting on Thursday. I shouldn’t be gone long but now that your intensive training is over and school has started I will begin to be assigned to missions nearby. The council will keep me in this part of the world, and somewhat connected to civilization in case the school calls or anything happens.” 

Izuku nodded and understood. His mission only really needed his focus, his Master was an experienced Jedi who was needed elsewhere. “How long will you be gone?” 

“Oh, only a few days. Diplomatic talks between Taipei and Beijing.” 

“Yuck.” 

Master Inko smiled at him, “Indeed, but boring meetings are better than open conflict. Now,” she paused. “Since I am pretending to be your mother for the next little while, I feel the need to say, ’No wild parties here while I’m gone!’” 

Izuku’s eyes widened. “I wouldn’t! I mean I don’t even know anyone here and why would I have a party?”

“Padawan, I was teasing. Parents, and Jedi Masters, are entitled to it. Now you’d best be off. Don’t want to be late on your first day.”

He made the walk to school in good time and soon stood before the door to his new classroom. 1-A. Like all the other doors, it seemed very large. Larger than needed? Maybe for students with gigantification quirks and the like?

Upon opening the door and entering the room the blue-haired boy he sat next to at the exam was there, yelling and gesturing with his hands awkwardly at another student for having feet on the desk. He glanced around the room and saw that seating was assigned and saw his spot was behind the blond boy who had his feet on the desk. He was still a bit early for class to start so he figured he didn’t need to sit down quite yet and went to drop his bag off at his seat.  

Ask he walked over the girl he helped at the exam walked in, saw him and said, “Midoriya! That was your name, right? I’m Ochaco Uraraka. From the exam.” 

Izuku smiled at her and said, “I remember, but call me Izuku. The last name thing is too formal for my tastes.” 

“Um, okay. You’re American right?” Izuku nodded. “It makes sense if you are less formal.” 

“I am happy to call you whatever you’re comfortable with but you’ll have to excuse me if I slip up from time to time.” 

She smiled at him and said, “Of course, I’m Uraraka.” 

“Pleasure to meet you, Uraraka, and to put a name with your face.” She smiled brightly at him and looked to say but Izuku saw a boy he knew walk in, with half-red and half white hair.  He called out, “Shoto! I mean Todoroki! Err Todoroki-kun?” Izuku stumbled over the name. “Sorry, I mean I want to apologize for being so informal that time we met. I am still not used to the Japanese name rules.” 

Shoto? Todoroki? Blinked at him, as if caught off guard. “It’s fine. I know they are different from other countries.” 

“Great! What should I call you then? I don’t want to annoy or offend you.” 

“I don’t care one way or another.” 

Izuku, missing that the other boy was trying to blow him off said, “Great, I’ll call you Shoto then! I hope we can be friends.” Shoto just stared at Izuku, and Izuku went a little red in the face, “I mean if that’s okay with you!” 

“It's fine. But I’m not here to make friends.” 

That stopped Izuku short. Belatedly realizing their conversation had been held over half the classroom and almost everyone was staring at them. “Um, right, that makes sense. We’re here to learn to be heroes, but if we make some friends along the way, all the better, right?” 

“Well said, man!” A boy with red hair spiked up and shark teeth said. “I’m Kirishima.” 

Izuku turned his attention to the boy and smiled back. “Izuku Midoriya, but call me Izuku.” 

The other boy smiled at him and a blond he recognized walked in and saw Izuku and said, “Mon ami! Merci encore! Parlez-vous français.” 

Izuku was still confused about why a boy was speaking French at UA High School in Japan. But just went with it. “Oui, je parle français. Um but also Japanese if that’s easier? 

“Oui, I speak Japanese too, but it’s so nice to hear my mother tongue spoken so well! Je suis Yuga Aoyama!” 

“Nice to meet you! I’m Izuku Midoriya, but call me Izuku.”

“How do you two know each other?” Uraraka asked from her seat.

“Oh, he saved my life during the exam!”

Izuku blushed, “I’m not sure your life was in danger, but I did pull him out of the way of the blast of a three-pointer.” 

The blue-haired boy had finished scolding and arguing with the blond and introduced himself, “It’s a pleasure to meet the person with the highest exam score. You saw the true purpose of the exam better than any of us! I’m Tenya Iida.” 

“I’m not too sure about that, I had no idea rescue points were a thing. I just helped people when they needed it.” 

Before anyone could respond the door banged open and a yellow sleeping bag was moving slowly across the floor. Izuku thought this might be their teacher. Maybe their quirk was related to a sleeping bag? He moved to his seat just in case. 

“Settle down. Homeroom is starting.” All the students moved quickly to their seats. Izuku felt that the teacher’s eyes were on him for some reason. He seemed very tired and Izuku had no idea what he’d done to make the man suspicious. “It took twelve seconds for you to settle down. That’s wasted time. If you are just here to socialize you can go home. I’m Shota Aizawa your homeroom teacher. Go to the locker room and put these on and meet on the P.E. fields. We’re having a quirk assessment test.” 

“What about orientation and the welcoming ceremony?” One student asked. 

“It’s a waste of time. Move it.” 

After everyone was changed and they found the P.E. fields, happily situated just outside the locker rooms. 

Aizawa had them line up and he said, “Midoriya. You received the highest score in the entrance exam, come here.” The teacher indicated a circle on the ground. “In your physical education classes in middle school, you were not allowed to use your quirks in fitness tests. What was your highest score in the softball throw?”

Izuku paused. He’d never gone to Japanese middle school and this kind of test was not something the Jedi dealt with. “Uh, my middle school didn’t do this kind of test, Aizawa-Sensei. I would guess somewhere between 60 and 70 meters?” 

The tired teacher’s face didn’t change. “Fine, throw this but use your quirk however you feel like to get the most distance.” 

Izuku nodded as he caught the ball that his teacher had thrown at him. He held it in his hands and closed his eyes and let himself feel the ball in the Force. He tossed the ball in the air once, caught it and then tossed it in the air again. It didn’t land this time, it hovered a foot above his palm and began to spin quickly. He moved his hand so it was no longer under the ball. His shoulders moved back as he straightened, he took a deep breath and he pushed with all his telekinetic might. 

The ball shot forward at about a 40-degree angle and he kept focusing on moving the ball. Now and again he pushed it a bit further until it was too far away for him to reach. He looked at Aizawa-Sensei. He held out the ball reader and it said 1,209 meters. Izuku was happy with himself, it seemed like a good score. 

“This is what you can do when you use all your efforts. Now we’ll start with the 50-meter dash.” 

And so they did. Small groups of students raced each other using their speed as much as they could while robots timed everything. Some struggled with it if they didn’t have speed quirks or physical quirks. Izuku felt bad for the short purple boy who had to take two steps for his one. His time was over 10 seconds and his quirk didn’t seem to help him at all. Izuku felt a little less bad for him after he heard the purple boy complain loudly about the tests.

When it was Izuku’s turn he used the Force and sped off for the finish line. He didn’t go as fast as he could because Iida had a specific speed quirk, so being him would be suspicious. Instead, he settled for 4.09 seconds, or 1.05 seconds slower than Iida. 

The grip strength test was an interesting one for Izuku. The boy with several extra arms seemed very strong, and Izuku was impressed by his 540kg score. Quirks were so fascinating. Using the Force Izuku let the grip measurer float above his palm and he used his telekinesis on both sides. He could have gone harder if he wanted to, but there were a lot of tests left and getting 332kg was pretty decent. 

The standing long jump was a bit of a dilemma for Izuku because he was sure he could make short work of it with a Force Jump but he didn’t know if it was worth the risk. He didn’t think his telekinesis could get him that far. So he decided to just take a small Force Jump and he cleared the sandbox by about 7 meters. There were some crazy quirk uses in this event, the French boy, Aoyama, used his belly button laser to propel himself backward in an interesting display of grace and insanity. The angry blond, who fittingly, could make his hands explode, used those explosions to almost fly a decent distance. 

The repeated side steps were something he couldn’t use the Force for directly, so he just used his regular fitness abilities, augmented by the Force so he tired slower and scored near the top. One boy with purple balls on his head went forever just bouncing back and forth between two piles until Aizawa-sensei eventually stopped him. 

Then they got to the ball throw and Izuku thought he’d not have to go, but everyone got two attempts here and so he went again. He figured he’d redo the same method as last time and see if it went further. Uraraka had already blown everyone’s score out of the water with her infinite throw, and wasn’t that impressive? Izuku wondered if it was only infinite if she kept her quirk active or if there was a range where it would just stop being affected. Either way, it was seemingly in orbit so it could go for a very long time. 

Izuku stepped up to the center of the circle again and was lifting the ball when a sudden ominous feeling came over in him the Force. He dropped the ball on instinct, feeling danger. It hit the ground as he looked around, alert. 

He looked over as Aizawa-sensei said, “I’ve erased your quirk.” While speaking, the scarf that the teacher wore around his neck came to life and sprang at Izuku. Instinctively he dodged to the side, but the scarf was very nimble and grabbed him by the midsection and delivered directly in front of the Aizawa. 

Izuku was at a bit of a loss. He could fight his way out if he wanted to, the scarf wouldn’t hold a Jedi for long, but the sight of his homeroom’s teacher’s hair floating and eyes glowing red gave him pause. 
This was Eraserhead. The fact the teacher said that his quirk was erased made more sense now. Izuku was glad the Force warned him and so he dropped the ball when the teacher’s quirk activated. If that didn’t happen, Izuku would have some explaining to do. What were the odds that the one teacher who could tell for certain he didn’t have a quirk to erase? Could he tell that Izuku didn’t have a quirk? He reached out to the Force to calm his panic. It worked. To a certain extent. 

“You are an enigma, Midoriya. And I do not like enigmas. Especially in first-year high school students.” 

“Uhhhh,” Izuku replied, lost. What had given him away. 

“Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, and even Bakugo have exceptional control over their quirks. Their training shines through, but do you know what you have that they don’t?” 

Izuku was still completely lost and just went with, “No sensei?” 

“Experience. The way you fought in the entrance exam. The way you use your quirk in some of these tests. It goes beyond mere training. You have instincts that should not be present in a first-year hero course student. It’s not your quirk. I checked, it is a simple telekinetic quirk. There is no mention of any telepathy or foresight to give you warning. And yet you show no hesitation whatsoever. You have the grace of a seasoned warrior. Why is that?” 

Okay, so his teacher didn’t know exactly what was up, but he knew something was up. This was bad, but not the end of the world. He could salvage this. “I have no idea sensei. I just trust my instincts, I guess.” 

“Your instincts told you the weak spot on the zero-pointer in the entrance exam?” 

“Well, its head had some lights on its face, I figured there was a better than even chance that there were some control systems in the head. I don’t know what to tell you.” 

Aizawa grunted, bored expression unchanged. “Fine. I’m watching you and if any vigilantes with quirks similar to yours appear, you’d best have a rock-solid alibi or three.” 

Oh thank the Force, Izuku thought. He thinks he’s a vigilante. He can work with that. Mostly because he was not one. “I’m not. I mean I haven’t ever done any work as a vigilante here or abroad. If you’d like a list of places I’ve visited and lived around the world, I’d be happy to provide it to you, along with dates. My mom would even be happy to talk to you if you don’t believe me.” 

Izuku didn’t see his teacher’s face change but in the Force, he felt a little bit of doubt enter the man’s presence. Aizawa grunted again and his eyes stopped glowing and his hair fell into his face messily. “Throw the ball.”

Izuku swallowed as the scarf let him down and he walked over to the circle and picked up the ball where it fell. He repeated the process from before, a little distracted from the insane conversation and manhandling. He should have paid more attention because his throw had a bit too much power in it and the ball went 1706 meters, which was about 500 more than it had gone the first time. No one commented, especially after the infinity score from earlier. 

Uraraka approached him while they were walking to where the long-distance run was to start on the track and asked him, “What was that about with Aizawa-sensei?”

“No idea. He wanted to ask about my quirk. Not sure why he didn’t just, you know, ask like a regular person.” 

Uraraka laughed and smiled at him. “I’m glad you’re not in trouble. You don’t have to worry about getting last in the test, so it would be a shame if you got expelled too.” 

Izuku smiled back and thanked her. 

The long-distance run was not difficult for him. He used Force Speed and also augmented his stamina slightly so at the end he came in third, after Iida and a girl who somehow pulled a motorcycle out of her body. That might have been the most insanely cool quirk he’d ever seen. He would try to grill her later on the specifics. 

For some reason, the next test was a seated toe touch. And there were no tricks he had to improve his score on that one, but due to all his training and practice he had decent flexibility and so ended up near the bottom of the top ten on this test. It was interesting, many of the students who had been near the top on all tests thus far did not fare well on this one. 

Finally, there was the situps test. He was quite fit, but there were a few beasts of fitness in his class. So while he could have gone on if he needed to, he bowed out and got fourth place. 

After all the tests, they gathered again near the locker rooms and Aizawa projected their scores. Overall, Izuku gets third, after Yaoyorozu and Todoroki. In Fourth was Bakugo and in last was Mineta. 

The small purple boy was crying and pleading with Aizawa-sensei. The teacher did not seem moved at all. “Well, the numbers don’t lie. Mineta, you’re expelled. Everyone, go get changed and return to the classroom. Mineta, go to the principal’s office.” 

The boy didn’t stop crying and it was kind of harsh, Izuku thought. He didn’t say anything, in an attempt to keep his head down, but a blond boy did. Not the explosive one but the one who seemed to control electricity. 

Aizawa-sensei was unsympathetic. “It's better it happens now on the first day. This way he won’t waste his life pursuing a goal he can never achieve. It may not seem it, but it is kinder this way. The rest of you have potential, but that doesn’t mean I can’t or won’t expel you if the need arises.” 

The whole class was pretty shaken up at their homeroom teacher’s intensity. Even the seemingly unflappable Todoroki was a little wary of Aizawa-sensei. His face was neutral as ever, but Izuku could feel unease come off him in the Force, even amidst the fear and anxiety coming off the rest of the class. 

“What are you waiting for? Get moving,” Aizawa-sensei said. 

With that, they all went to the locker room, sans Mineta who was still crying and begging Aizawa-sensei to change his mind. Aizawa seemed unmoved and uncaring of the situation. Mostly though, tired. 

Izuku thought this whole mission might be a little harder than he anticipated if is homeroom teacher is already suspicious of him. It was a worry for another day. All he could do now was keep trying to be the best hero student he could be. He needed to talk to his Master about how he could throw off the suspicion. 

In the locker room, the boys were talking, Izuku didn’t participate but he did listen. He glanced around observing his classmates and trying to get a better understanding of them. 

“I can’t believe Aizawa-sensei expelled a student on the first day!” That same blond who questioned their teacher earlier said. “It just seems so unfair.” 

The explosive blond let out a derisive sound, “Tch. The little purple bastard deserved it. Did you see the way he was ogling the girls? I’m pretty sure he rubbed up against that gravity girl. Aizawa-sensei probably saw that he was a perv and got rid of him before it got worse.” 

“He wasn’t that bad!” The other blond defended. 

Most of the students seemed to be indifferent, and the explosive blond kid, Bakugo seemed to like arguing with anyone. Izuku was just about finished with changing when he glanced over to a corner of the locker room where Todoroki was quietly changing. He had a large bruise on the side of his chest, it was fresh, dark blue and purple. Izuku winced when he saw it. He picked up his bag and walked quietly towards the other boy. Todoroki looked up as he got closer. Quietly he said, “I saw your bruise. I can help it out if you’ll let me.” 

Shoto looked a little confused as to what Izuku meant but didn’t stop him when Izuku reached his hand out. Izuku touched the bruise lightly and used the Force to send healing energy to the other boy’s left side. The bruise disappeared from view and Izuku knew, logically, he shouldn’t have done that. What kind of telekinetic quirk could heal? But he’d be able to make something up. 

Todoroki’s eyes widened as he looked at the bruise disappear. Izuku smiled at him. “There you go, Shoto. It looked pretty painful. Training accident?” 

Todoroki nodded at him. 

“Yeah, been there. It may still be a little sore, I just excited the cells there to heal a bit faster with my quirk. It can’t do much more than bruises or cuts, but super helpful.” Izuku hoped his explanation made sense…

“Thank you,” Shoto said quietly. 

“My pleasure. See, even though you’re not here to make friends, you still can!” Izuku smiled brightly at him but got the feeling from Shoto that the other boy had no idea how to deal with Izuku. Or maybe it was people in general. Izuku would keep being nice and eventually, the other boy would open up or tell him to get lost. He hoped for the former. 

Most of the class had left the locker room by now, and Izuku sent one more smile at Todoroki and headed back to the classroom for their afternoon classes. Not too much else happened during the day. They met some of their teachers, discussed syllabi, and then the day was over. 

He was going to see if Shoto wanted to walk home with him but the other boy left the classroom quickly after the bell rang. Uraraka came over to him happily and said, “Wanna walk to the train station together?” 

Izuku smiled back at her and said, “Sure. I don’t need to take a train to get home, but where I live is right past the UA station. She beams at him and as they are leaving Iida joined with them. 

“What did you guys think of today?” Izuku asked them both. 

“It was so intense!” Uraraka said. “I was nervous I’d get kicked out. I feel bad for Mineta, but well, honestly not that bad.” 

“Why ever not?” Iida asked. “It seemed an unfair and arbitrary abuse of power on Aizawa-sensei’s part.”

“Honestly, Aizawa is right. If a student has no potential to be a hero, they shouldn’t waste their time. It’s a high-stress job with a high mortality rate. It takes a certain kind of person to want to be a hero, let alone to be a good one. We’re trusting Aizawa-Sensei to train us to be heroes, so we should trust his judgment on this as well.” 

“I agree,” Uraraka said. She paused awkwardly. “He also kind of felt me up during the tests today. It was super creepy.” 

“How terribly inappropriate!” Iida said making large hand motions that almost hit Izuku if he didn’t get out of the way at the last second. 

“Yeah, he didn’t seem the hero type.” They chatted amicably until they got to the train station. Both Iida and Uraraka went towards the trains and Izuku turned towards home. He wasn’t lying when he said the train station was on his way home, but it wasn’t the quickest way to get there. He enjoyed the walk and talking to his classmates, maybe friends. 

Arriving at home, his Master was waiting for him. “Welcome home! How did it go?” 

“We may have a problem, but on the bright side, I think I made some friends.” 

“Good job, but what’s the problem?” 

“My homeroom rather, Aizawa-sensei, felt that I was more experienced than I should be. He doesn’t think I am a Jedi, but rather a vigilante. I guess it’s hard to hide experience in things like the entrance exam because people could have gotten hurt and I could stop it.” 

She smiled at him. “I understand, Padawan. It is in your nature to help others, and it is not something to be ashamed of, especially if you are too good at it. But for this mission, I can see why it might cause problems. What do you think you should do?” 

“I’m not sure. Aizawa will be watching me closely. He’ll probably investigate vigilantes around the world to look for me. But if I don’t go at the same level, he’ll call me out too. He expelled a student for ‘having no potential’ so it’s a delicate balance. I think I need to act the same because I don’t have anything illegal to hide.”

Master Inko nodded at that and said, “I think that is wise Padawan. Changing your cover in the middle of a mission can lead to disaster. Unless he somehow suspects you’re a Jedi you should be fine. Try to see if he is trustworthy though. It would not be amiss to have an ally in the school, but only as a last resort. The more who know a secret, the more likely it is to come out.”

That made sense to Izuku and he said as much. It was a very tiring day and Izuku was pleased that it was over. There was something about high school that just drained him. He had done more on some days, but the high school just seems like it was going to be a chore to get through. At least some of the people seem nice. Izuku napped before he started on his homework. 

Chapter Text

The second day of school for Izuku was more normal than the previous one. The morning started out with classes in core subjects that all high schoolers learn. Math, science, history, Japanese, English. Izuku was fluent in the two languages so they were easy enough, though the Japanese class was more interesting than English because while he could speak fluently, he hadn’t read much Japanese literature so it seemed like it might be a nice diversion. The math and sciences were taught differently than he was used to, but the material was basically the same. He was a higher level in some areas and a lower level in others. The teachers were understanding and helped him out as needed. 

Afternoons though, that was what his classmates were looking forward to the most. He was too, honestly. Hero training. Granted the level of training that Izuku had as a Jedi was more than most, if not all, of the students, but seeing different methods of training would be fascinating. Plus, All Might himself was the teacher for their Foundational Heroics class. 

The Jedi didn’t really spend much time focusing on specific heroes but they all knew All Might was a good one. He was well respected by the Jedi Order and had worked with them several times over the years. All in all, Izuku was excited to see what he could learn from the ’Symbol of Peace.’ 

Making a hero costume was actually a very trying task for Izuku. He was most comfortable in his Jedi robes. They were easy to wear and were what he had always worn. But they would also be a bit of a giveaway to his secret identity. 

After much discussion with his Master, he felt that he wanted to do something with an homage to the Jedi but not directly tied to their regular attire. So he spent time looking through various records on Jedi history for inspiration. 

He learned that Jedi has basically always worn robes. There were outliers and Jedi who decided to buck tradition and wear armor, but that was mostly in the Middle Ages or before. Add to that most of the armor was unwieldy and focused on combat or defense. For most Jedi flexibility was often the key to successful offense and defense, so he didn’t want to wear a full suit of armor. Who would? (Looking around the locker room as they changed into their hero costumes, apparently, Iida would, but he said that was a family tradition.) 

So Izuku settled for a mesh of the two ideas. The color scheme was also different, he used a green that matched his hair as opposed to the usual browns and tans of traditional Jedi robes. Instead of a full suit of armor, Izuku’s costume had his arms, shoulders, legs, and feet covered in protective plating, in shiny white. Accents on this were in the same green as his overtunic and there were designs up and down the armored sections. There was also a small chest guard that would cover the upper part of his chest. Underneath all this, he wore a black skin-tight fire and cold-resistant unitard. It was rather like long underwear, as Kirishima pointed out with a laugh. The tunic was not styled like regular Jedi tunic and was deemed by his Master to be unique enough to not give anything away. Finally, there was a utility belt with small pouches and hooks. There was also a small section on either side where he could hook his lightsaber if need be. It looked like a design accent instead of a useful part of the costume itself. 

As Izuku stretched before the practical portion of their lesson, he found his flexibility was not hindered at all by the costume, which was part of his specification for it. Having a telekinetic “quirk” really didn’t require anything besides shorts and a teeshirt, but he wanted to look like a high school-aged hero, and so had to look ‘cool.’ Flexibility was also important in case he needed to use any hand to hand combat during hero fights or bring out his lightsaber which was safely hidden inside the costume. 

The class was gathered and they were waiting for the arrival of the teacher. Some of the class was a little antsy because they were ready to do something active after being in their desks all day. Honestly, Izuku was ready too. The life of a Jedi was seldom sedentary. 

“Wow, that’s a great costume, Midoriya!”

“Thanks, I like yours too, Uraraka. Though it’s always interesting to me how, uh, form-fitting female costumes can get.”

“Tell me about it! I was expecting more of a spacesuit than a bodysuit!”

They were interrupted from their conversation by the door banging open and All Might bounding in saying, “I am here, walking through the door like a normal person!” 

Izuku blinked. All Might was a lot of things, but a normal person he was not. The Force rolled off him was as if he was more than one person. Larger than life. His form was impressive but his presence was almost overwhelming. Izuku understood how this man could be a symbol, even without using the Force in his presence.

The teacher explained that they would be divided up into pairs randomly and fight each other, as heroes or villains. Heroes either needed to capture the villains or touch the weapon before the time was up. Villains needed to protect the weapon or capture the heroes. All Might also assured them they would not be expelled if they lost. Which was good to know, but Izuku didn’t really expect it, even after the explosion yesterday. If they kept up that rate of expulsion, the hero course would be empty by the end of April.

All Might drew lots and the teams were randomly assigned. Izuku was hoping for one of his friends to be his partner and was happy when it was Shoto. Izuku smiled at the other boy who had the same unimpressed expression that he usually wore. At least he didn’t seem angry at the assignment of partners. Izuku reached out with the Force and felt that Shoto was almost indifferent to the whole situation, which was interesting. They’d be friends by the end of his mission, Izuku would make sure of that. 

He walked over to Shoto and smiled and said, “This will be interesting. I’m glad we can watch the other teams, seeing them use their quirks is fascinating, isn’t it?” 

Izuku wasn’t sure if Shoto was covering a sigh in response but All Might said their team would going first against Bakugo, Iida, and Ashido. 

Because there were 19 people in the class, one team had three people. In this case, the team facing Izuku and Shoto.  They were given a few minutes to prepare. Izuku said to Shoto, “Well we are at a disadvantage here, three against two. But we can still win. Do you have any thoughts on how to do this?” 

Shoto looked calm, “I can freeze the whole building and just walk to the bomb.” 

Izuku paused. “I mean, that could work, but it could also do more harm than good. If the bomb is on the top floor it will take forever to go up all the stairs if they are covered in ice. Plus Bakugo could explode his way out of ice, Ashido could possibly melt it with her acid, and I am not sure how hot Iida’s exhausts get, so he could potentially break out too. I think overwhelming force can  work sometimes, but I suggest something different.” Shoto at least looked mildly interested now. He quirked an eyebrow that Izuku took to mean go on. “Divide and conquer. Bakugo doesn’t seem to be a team player, from his behavior yesterday. He might go off on his own and leave the bomb guarded by the other two, or they may make their own plan. I say we start out stealthily and see if we can spot Bakugo or anyone else alone and capture them and move on. Maybe we can take out two of them that way, but I’m not sure. I doubt Iida would leave the bomb, but at least we’ll be on even footing if we take one of them out early.”

Shoto nodded and said, “Fine. Do you want to take point?” 

“Sure, I have good reaction times and I can work short or long-range and you seem more of a long-range fighter.” 

Their discussions were cut off by All Might announcing that their time was starting now. Izuku went in first, the Force was not warning him of anything and he used his Force Sense to see if anyone was nearby. He felt two people on the fifth floor and one coming down the stairs quickly towards a nearby staircase. Izuku smiled and made a hand motion to Shoto to hide around the corner from the door. Izuku hid in an exposed place that would be covered by the door opening outward. When the person, Bakugo probably, came out, neither he or Shoto would be in sight. 

After a moment the door swung open and Izuku was a little surprised at the force of it but it didn’t bump into his face like he initially thought it might. It did hit his boots, which he was glad he had reinforced. He heard an annoyed grunt that was certainly from Bakugo, probably because he couldn’t see anyone, and as the door started to close, Izuku reached out to the Force and waited. 
The moment the door closed, Izuku could see Bakugo’s back and he used his telekinesis and to pick the other boy up gently by grasping his whole midsection equally to distribute the pressure and not hurt him. He’d seen a video back at the Jedi Temple of a Sith lifting people by choking them. He didn’t ever want to hurt someone like that. His actions caused Bakugo to exclaim, “What the fuck?!” 

Izuku just held him hovering above the ground unable to move and called to Shoto to use the capture tape. Bakugo was struggling against his hold, but it was futile because he couldn’t get any traction on the ground or walls. And even if he did, Izuku’s grip was like iron. He was able to move his arms and legs but that was all, and if need be Izuku could stop that too. Shoto came from around the corner in front of Bakugo with capture tape in his hands. 

“Fuck this shit. Back off of I’ll blow your face off, you Icy Hot bastard!” Shoto doesn’t even slow his approach, but he was still a few meters out. Izuku gave a wry smile at the creativity of the insults coming from the boy suspended in the air unable to move. “You know what, fuck this.” And Bakugo reached for his left hand with his right and pulled a pin and suddenly his gauntlet was flying towards Shoto. 

Izuku reached out for it with the Force and suspended it in the air quickly, careful to not lose his grip on Bakugo or set off the potential explosive as Shoto dodged out of the way. Shoto shot ice at it and completely encased it in a mini-glacier. The resulting explosion didn’t cause any damage or even shatter the very thick ice. This was in part because Izuku used the Force to help contain it and reinforce Shoto’s ice. They heard All Might’s voice over their coms, “Bakugo, that kind of weapon is dangerous to use inside. The building’s structural integrity could become compromised! Do not use the other gauntlet or the hero team will win automatically.”

As Bakugo was yelling about how unfair that was, Izuku looked over to see Shoto standing up and dusting himself off. Izuku brought his capture tape up and wrapped it around Bakagou’s flailing legs from behind. All Might announced that he was out and should return to the control room. Bakugo did not seem pleased at all as Izuku lowered him to the ground. 

“Fucking nerd, I wanted a fight, not this pussy shit.”

“A fight ended without violence is a success, Bakugo. As Gandhi once said, ‘I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary. The evil it does is permanent.’ I will end any fight without violence I can, especially in training like this. I had complete control of your body with my quirk. I could have rammed you into the walls and floor until you were unconscious and bloody. In the end, the results would be no different. But this way you are healthy and my goals were still achieved. Violence and fighting are not always the answer. Now if you’ll excuse us, we have an exercise to continue.”

Izuku turned his back on Bakugo, who was strangely quiet, and walked next to Shoto towards the stairs that the angry boy had come down from. Izuku could still feel their two enemies on the top floor so he said, “I bet they’re on the top floor, let’s start there and work our way down.”

Shoto nodded as they made their way up the flights of stairs. “Do you really believe that?”

Izuku looked at him, “What exactly are you referring to?”

“That stuff you said to Bakugo about violence.”

“Yes, it’s proven true over and over again through history. Conflicts ended without violence often result in longer-lasting peace than those where one side is forced to capitulate. Not to mention the human toll. With a quirk like mine, I could easily kill or hurt someone terribly. I’d rather not do that, even to an enemy if I can help it.”

“But sometimes you have to, against villains and the like.”

“Perhaps some irrational villains. But if you had six heroes ready to fight one low-level villain, do you think the villain would surrender, try to run, or try to fight?” 

“I imagine run or surrender if they’re rational.”

“Exactly. So offering a villain the chance to surrender is something I will do every time I can. I do this because a fight can cause more harm, not just to the villain but to the surrounding area and people too. It’s not always possible, of course, and when we reach the other two upstairs, we’ll try to use the element of surprise. I suggest you go for Ashido and I’ll take care of Iida. Speed won’t help him if I can get him lifted off the ground like I did Bakugo. I want to try something with the capture tape too. Need to work on my fine control.”

Shoto nodded at him as they reached the top floor. Izuku opened the door and looked out. There was no floor at the landing... It looked as if it had been melted away. “Ashido’s acid,” Shoto said. “We could go down a level and try to come up a different way?” 

Izuku thought for a moment. “Do you trust me?” When Shoto nodded Izuku said, “Will you let me lift you over to where the floor starts again?”

Shoto agreed and Izuku gently lifted Shoto up and dropped him where the ground was sturdy. Shoto was ready to reinforce his flooring with ice if need be, but he indicated it was safe so Izuku executed a small Force Jump and landed next to him. They were quiet and Izuku made held a finger in front of his mouth in a shushing motion. Shoto nodded again, not much of a talker to begin with and Izuku led them forward. He knew exactly what room the ‘villains’ were in but couldn’t explain how he knew that so they stopped at every door on the way and checked the rooms quickly. They searched three rooms before they heard voices. 

“—long do you think there is left until we win?”

“I’m not sure, perhaps five minutes? They’ll never make it here to our secret lair with all the traps we put on the fourth floor!”

“You’re really getting into this, aren’t you Iida?”

Izuku smirked at Shoto and pantomimed a plan, namely the same thing they talked about before, and Shoto nodded to and counted down from five on his fingers. 

He used the Force to blow the door right off its hinges and bang into the far wall. This served to startle the two ‘villains’ in the room and Izuku lifted up Iida with his telekinesis before he could even make a move. 

“Ack, heroes! Unhand me, scum!” Iida said. 

“Surrender, and this will be over quickly, villains!” What could Izuku say? Iida’s roleplaying got him into the mood. 

“Never!” Ashido said as Shoto shot off an ice attack which encased her from the waist down in a chunk of ice. She immediately started using her acid to try and melt the ice. 

While Shoto was securing the acid-spitting girl, Izuku used the Force on his capture tape and it sped across the room wrapping around Iida’s legs tightly. All Might announced Iida was captured and Izuku lowered him to the ground pleased that he was able to use the tape so well with his telekinesis. 

While Izuku was doing that, Shoto had walked over to the bomb and touched it. All Might announced that the Heroes won, just as Ashido had melted the ice with her acid and was free. “Awwwww man, that sucks. You guys aren’t allowed to be paired together again! You’re too OP!”

Izuku smiles at her. “Shoto and I may be strong but this whole exercise was much harder for the villain team than the heroes. If Shoto and I were defending, much of what we did would have been ineffective. Though we would have used other strategies, like Shoto covering all the stairs in ice making it hard for you guys to get you here. Or even encasing the bomb in a solid block of ice so you couldn’t reach it. Or I could have used my quirk to lift the bomb high above the roof where you couldn’t reach it or—“

“Midoriya, they get it.”

“Oh, of course. I guess we should get back. Good job, guys! I had a lot of fun, and I hope you did too! And Shoto, call me Izuku.”

Shoto didn’t reply but did glance at him longer than Izuku thought was strictly necessary as they left the building. 

Upon their return to the control room, they were greeted with cheers. The spikey redhead, Kirishima, said “That was insane. You guys worked so well together. Do you like practice together or something? You looked like pros!”

Izuku smiled at his classmates who were excitedly chattering. “We’ve never worked together before but I’ve had a lot of training, and it seems like Shoto has too. It was just good fortune that we worked so well together!” 

“Settle down everyone. It was a good display of heroics indeed,” All Might said. He was looking at Izuku with a speculative gleam in his eyes. Izuku hoped he didn’t have another teacher suspecting him of being anything more than a student. “So zygotes, who do you think was the MVP of that fight?”

A tall black-haired girl that Izuku was pretty sure was named Yaoyorozu raised her hand and All Might called on her. “Well, there were several standout performances but if you don’t take into account the overwhelming strength of Midoriya and Todoroki, I think you have to give it to Ashido. She and Iida worked well together and she had some brilliant ideas for traps that would have slowed down or even stopped other teams. However, it was just the luck of the draw that the heroes had quirks which could counter them easily.”

Izuku wondered if there were more traps that they just missed and asked Ashido. 

“Oh yeah, if you hadn’t been able to cross the gap by the stairs, we set up a ton of traps on the level below. We were planning on you going down there and slog through them.”

Izuku nodded at her and smiled. “It was a good plan and could have stymied other teams really well.” 

She smiled and All Might got everyone’s attention again and said, “Very good, Yaoyorozu. I agree with you that Ashido had a great plan and executed it well, but factors were not in her favor. I know you did not hear any audio, but I have to say after hearing it that young Midoriya is the VIP, especially because we can not discount raw power in a real fight. Nothing in the whole exercise slowed him down or stopped him at all. He made the right calls at every step of the way and had solid reasons backing him up. He worked with his partner, who also did an excellent job, and didn’t disregard his ideas or suggestions when he disagreed with them. A true team player and even giving an inspirational talk to one of the ‘villains!’ But you all did very well and it was a success all around because you all gained some very important experience. Well done you five! Let’s get the next group set up.” 

Izuku enjoyed the rest of the class. Watching the groups go, some successful and some not were fascinating. None of the other fights seemed to go as well as Shoto’s and his battle but all of the students made good use of their quirks and skills. 

After the class was dismissed and they changed and All Might was waiting outside the locker room. “Ah, young Midoriya, do you have a moment to talk?” 

Izuku had no idea what the hero wanted, opened himself to the Force, but it was hard to get a reading off the man who was radiating brightly before him. “Of course, sensei.” 

All Might’s already large smile widened even more and he led Izuku to a small teacher’s lounge. Izuku waved at his friends who were leaving for the day. 

When they were seated in the lounge All Might said, “You did very well today, my boy. Not only was your quirk usage measured and but so was your temperament. You were in complete control of the battlefield the entire time, and it was rather impressive for a freshman in high school, if I do say so myself.” 

Izuku held in a sigh and smiled at the hero. “Thank you, All Might. I appreciate you saying that. I’ve trained hard for UA and the hero course.” 

“It shows. May I ask what kind of training you undertook? Your philosophy, as well as your technique, was very well done.” 

Izuku pulled out one of the prepared answers he and his Master had arranged. “My mother’s quirk is somewhat similar to mine, hers is Attract Small Objects which she trained well and she maximized its effectiveness. She can be pretty intimidating when she goes all out. My quirk is more of a general telekinetic quirk. As to philosophy, I’ve lived all over the world, traveling with mom for her work. I picked up a lot, and we spent about six months in India when I was about 12 and I picked up a lot about nonviolence and Ahimsa. It stuck with me that isn’t it better to end a fight before it begins than to engage in violence, if possible?” 

“Absolutely, young Midoriya. Not many 15-year-olds would think that way though. It’s very mature, and I know some Pro Heroes who have yet to grasp those concepts.” 

Izuku smiled at him, relieved this was where the conversation was going. “Well, not everyone can be a Symbol of Peace, I suppose.” 

All Might let out a large laugh and patted him on the shoulder. “Indeed not.” Then he seemed to sigh, the smile never dropping, “Indeed not,” he repeated. “Thank you for humoring an old man. I’ll let you go before it gets too late.” 

“Any time, All Might.” 

Izuku left the room and headed towards his homeroom to pick up a book he needed for homework which he left there. After picking it up he walked out the main entrance where he saw Shoto sitting on the steps looking at his phone. 

“Shoto! I thought you’d be gone already like everyone else. I was glad we were paired up today, you were a good partner. What’s up?” He sat down next to the heterochromatic boy. 

Shoto looked up and was silent for a moment. “I don’t understand you, Midoriya.” 

“Call me Izuku, and I’m sorry. What do you mean? I’ll try to help.“

“Why are you trying so hard to be my friend?”

“You seem like you could use one.”

“It has nothing to do with my father?”

Izuku paused. Shoto’s father was a hero if Izuku remembered right. “Your dad was that fire guy who I met here a few months ago?” Shoto nodded. “I don’t really know all the Japanese heroes well yet. I mean other than the teachers and All Might. Is your dad a big hero here?” 

Shoto looked at him confused as if he was trying to see if Izuku was lying. “He’s the number two hero in Japan, Endeavor.” 

“Wait, I thought that bird guy was number two, Falcon? No Hawks, right?” 

“Hawks is number three.” 

“Oh. Well regardless, I don’t care who your parents are. I like you and we work well together. So why not be friends?” 

“We’ll be rivals if you go pro.” 

“So? Are you saying heroes aren’t friends with other heroes? That’s crazy.” 

“No, that’s not it. It’s just people usually only want to be my friend because of who my father is.” 

“Well, that’s not me. I just want to be your friend because you seem like someone who would be a good friend.” Shoto didn’t say anything to that but seemed more relaxed. “Can I ask you a question? Feel free to tell me its none of my business but you only use ice, and that only comes from your right side. However, your left side, if your hair is anything to go by is something else. Does your quirk have a second part on your left side?”

“My quirk is Half Hot, Half Cold. My right side controls ice and my left controls fire.” 

“That’s an amazing quirk! And together they regulate your temperature, I’m sure. Why don’t you use your flames more? I didn’t see you use them in the tests yesterday or in training today.”

Shoto was quiet for a moment. “That is rather personal—“ 

“Oh you don’t need to answer, I am just a curious person.” 

Shoto paused and thought for a moment. “It’s fine. My ice comes from my mother and the fire comes from my father. I am trying to prove to him that I don’t need his power to be a hero. I want to be the number one without his power.” 

Izuku made a noise of understanding. “I see what you are saying. But it’s not his power, it’s yours. His power is just fire. You have both fire and ice. It’s one quirk and it’s been yours since you got it.” 

“You don’t understand.”

“I don’t know what kind of things you’ve gone through or why you do what you do but I once knew a man with a bad luck quirk.” Shoto blinked at the seemingly random change of topic. “Everything he did turned out poorly. But he was the happiest man I ever met. Do you know why? Because your focus determines your reality. What is luck, besides things not going your way?” Izuku paused. “So he changed what he wanted. He changed his perspective and looked at life differently and turned a handicap into a benefit. You can do that too, I think.”

“I—“ 

“Shoto,” a tall flaming man said. “Let’s go.” He was about to turn around when he looked closer at Izuku. “You’re that American boy who was distracting Shoto a few months ago, aren’t you?” 

Izuku blinked. This man gave off waves of anger and aggression in the Force. He’s the number two hero? Izuku idly wondered if he was one of the heroes All Might was talking about when he said some pros don’t understand anything other than violence. “I wouldn’t say I was distracting him, I bumped into him though, yes.” 

“Your Japanese is atrocious. I’m surprised they let you into UA.” 

Izuku smiled and laughed at that. Shoto looked at him like he was crazy. “I like to think I can get by. Accents are always hard for me because I know a few other languages besides Japanese and English.”

There was an awkward moment after Izuku said that and the atmosphere was not at all like what it was when it was just Shoto and Izuku talking. 

“This is who you pick for a friend, Shoto. You can do better. Isn’t that Yaoyorozu girl in your class?” 

“She is, however, I worked with Izuku during a training exercise today and we became friends,” Shoto said. Izuku beamed both at the use of his first name as well as the other boy calling them friends. Success! 

“Let’s go, we’ll be late,” Endeavor said. 

“Bye, Shoto! I’ll see you tomorrow. Sit with me at lunch, okay?” Izuku said with a small grin. Endeavor’s lip curled upwards and he turned away not even acknowledging Izuku. “I’ll see if Yaoyorozu wants to join us as well!” 

Shoto had never seen someone act this way around his father. He’d probably pay for it when they were training later, but Shoto sent a small smile and wave at Midoriya. Izuku grinned back. Izuku wondered how could someone so grumpy be a popular hero. 

School the next day started off with Aizawa-sensei giving some feedback about the hero training the day before. “Bakugo, you need to stop and think sometimes. Have you heard the saying only fools rush in? It is not always accurate, but yesterday it was. Taking some time to make a plan and working with your allies is never a bad idea.” 

“Midoriya, your experience continues to shines through,” was all Aizawa said to him. Probably trying to intimidate him or something. Izuku just smiled and thanked his teacher. 

After several other students got some pointers. Everyone would get a written review of their performances. 

“Now you need to pick a class representative.”

This led to the class breaking out into excited murmurs and people nominating themselves for the role. Izuku felt that Iida would be a fine candidate for this position, and decided to vote for him. After all, it was Iida’s idea to have a vote in the first place. 

When the votes were counted Izuku was surprised that he had gotten five votes. Which was made more impressive since he didn’t even vote for himself? Yaoyorozu got second place with three votes. He realized quickly that he had no idea what a class representative did and so he probably was not the best fit for this.

As he was standing in front of the class with Yaoyorozu, during his ‘acceptance speech’ Izuku said, “I appreciate the confidence you showed me, but I’ve never attended Japanese schooling before so I have no idea what this responsibility entails. That said, I suggest that Yaoyorozu be our class representative and I be her deputy. That way I can learn the ropes from someone who knows better than me.” 

He bowed before them and Yaoyorozu looked very pleased and accepted with the support of the class. He switched spots with her and she gave a small speech thanking the class and Izuku for their faith in her. 

After that, the morning classes were normal. Izuku was getting antsy and was glad that lunch was coming quickly. When they were dismissed from English, he walked over to Yaoyorozu and said, “Would you care to sit with Iida, Uraraka, and I at lunch? I think Shoto may join us as well.” 

Yaoyorozu smiled and looked pleased to be asked and said she would. He glanced at Shoto who was standing up, looking over at them. Izuku smiled. The Force told him there was something up with Shoto, he seemed to be favoring his left side more than normal as he walked towards the classroom door. “Shoto, one second!” He turned to Uraraka who was standing with Iida and talking to Yaoyorozu. “You guys go ahead. I need to talk to Shoto for a second.” 

They nodded and left and only Shoto and he were left in the room. Izuku was packing his bag. “Are you okay, Shoto. You seem to be favoring your left side.” 

Shoto stared at him like he was a puzzle that he couldn’t quite solve. “I’m fine.” 

“You’re sure? I can heal small stuff if you need me to.” 

He looked like he was going to continue denying there was anything wrong but just sighed. “I strained some muscles yesterday in training. I can manage though, I wouldn’t want to put you out.” 

“It’s no problem. Here,” Izuku said as he knelt down, his hand reached out to touch the exact spot causing the trouble. Shoto looked confused that Izuku could get to the sore spot without even looking, seeing the bruise, or telling him where he was hurt. But Shoto didn’t say anything. Izuku used the Force and healed the small, but painful injury. “There we go, much better. I’m sorry I didn’t notice yesterday after class.” 

Shoto paused. “It happened at home when I was training with my father.” 

“Oh, okay.” ‘Oh’ indeed. “It takes almost no effort for me to do this for you, so please let me know in the future and I’d really be happy to help you out. Especially if you have any more training accidents at home.” Izuku paused. “And if you ever need to talk, I’m here.“ 

Shoto didn’t say anything for a few moments as they walked towards the entrance. “Thank you. I still am not sure why you’d spend so much time helping me.” 

“Well, putting aside the fact that we’re friends, even if we weren’t I’d help you. I want you to know honestly that I will do this anytime, anyplace, okay?” 

Shoto didn’t respond verbally but nodded at him. They continued the rest of the walk to the cafeteria in companionable silence. Arriving, Shoto pulled out a bento and sat at the table with their friends and Izuku went to go purchase lunch. 

After returning to the table he was happy everyone was getting along well. Shoto seemed quiet, per usual. Uraraka, Iida, and Yaoyorozu were having an animated conversation about the latest hero news and Izuku started contributing as he could. 

Before long there was a lull in the conversation and Izuku said, “Yaoyorozu, can I ask you about your quirk? It is one of the most interesting quirks that I’ve ever seen. Can you make anything? I’ve only seen you make non-biological items so far. What part of your body is used to make things? How much mass can you create with your regular diet? Also, not to be crude, but if you make it from proteins or fats, as I expect, why are you so lithe? Wouldn’t you have more material to use if you were heavier? Not that I’m saying you should gain some weight or anything, I’m just curious. And—“ 

“Izuku!” Uraraka interrupted with a laugh. “Maybe give her a chance to answer some questions before asking her five more?” 

Izuku blushed. “Sorry, Yaoyorozu. I can get carried away sometimes.” 

She smiled at him. “You’re interested in quirks?” 

“Very. They’re fascinating. My mom travels a lot for work and I travel with her a lot of the time. Seeing all the amazing people and quirks all over the world is so interesting.”

“That’s fascinating. I’ve done some traveling but mostly tourist places with my family. It sounds like you’ve been around a bit more than that.”

“Oh yeah. My mom and I have traveled like 90% of my life. We didn’t even have a house before we moved here, we’d just go from place to place.”

“That’s amazing, Izuku! What’s the coolest place you’ve ever been to?” Uraraka asked. 

Everyone was looking at him as he pondered the question. “That’s tough to say, honestly. There’s so many fascinating cultures and people out there.” He pauses again. “I think it was when I was in Brazil. We were way outside of cities and towns. We stayed with a small tribe on the Amazon River. They were experiencing issues with illegal logging and poachers trespassing on tribal lands and so my mom was sent there by her NGO to help sort the situation out. Their culture was so different from anything I’d seen. The way they used and revered their quirks was fascinating. You know a lot of first world countries, there are good quirks, useless quirks, and villainous quirks. But there, no matter the quirk it was a sacred thing for them and their entire village. They honored and venerated their quirks. Even the simplest quirks had amazing impacts on the whole community. They had a Rainspeaker who could not only call rain when they needed it but control the chemical and mineral content of the rain. It doesn’t sound like much but if you can make rainwater with all nutrients your crops need and with nothing that would hurt them, then they will grow really, really well. There was a woman with a quirk to control bugs, one to ward off wild animals, one to attract them. All of their quirks were used for the benefit of the tribe. None of the quirks were spectacular or showy, but they were each so impressive in how they used them.”

Everyone at the table was looking at him, “Um, sorry. I kind of went off there.”

“No, that’s fascinating, Izuku!” Uraraka said. “You must have so many cool stories.” 

Izuku blushed. “Oh, I dunno about that. Most of the time we were in big cities and my mom would be in meetings while I did virtual school.” Another practiced lie. In fact, since he had been taken as a Padawan, life had been almost nonstop missions to various parts of the world. 

“Still, that really is interesting. I look forward to hearing more from you.” She paused. “You asked about my quirk earlier and so I’ll tell you all a bit. I’m able to create any non-living material from my fat cells. As you guessed the more I eat the more—“

Yaoyorozu was interrupted by a shrill alarm and pure pandemonium around them as students panicked and ran every which way trying to evacuate as the alarm was telling them to. Izuku looked around and reached out with the Force. He didn’t feel imminent danger but there was something elusive that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Iida and Uraraka stood up and disappeared into the sea of people but Shoto just looked at him and shrugged. He didn’t seem concerned, and frankly, Izuku wasn’t either. Once the stampede was over he’d evacuate with everyone else. Someone had to be last. Shoto and Yaoyorozu seemed to be thinking the same thing. 

Iida apparently had gotten everyone’s attention and calmed the evacuation stampede down and soon after that, the alarm had stopped. Yaoyorozu, Shoto, and Izuku hadn’t actually left the cafeteria when it was announced that everyone could return to where they were until the next class. 

The rest of the day passed without incident. But as he was walking to the train station with Iida and Uraraka and they passed the gate where the reporters had swarmed in from, and where the gate should have been was covered in police tape. Izuku felt a sense of dread from the Force. The gate seemed to have somehow been disintegrated. 

Izuku wondered what it could possibly mean. 

Chapter Text

The next few days were pretty normal for Izuku and the students at UA. Master Inko had just left for her mission to Taipei so Izuku woke up alone and got ready for school. He arrived with a few minutes to spare and waved at Iida who looked like he’d been in the room for a while. 

After morning classes, Izuku and his friends were walking to lunch together. He had been sitting with Shoto, Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, and Iida. Tsuyu Asui had started to sit with them and she was a very frank individual. Izuku liked her. She was very informal and seemingly the only person who could call him Izuku with a straight face. She even asked him (and everyone else) to call her Tsu. Needless to say, Izuku was enjoying his new friends. 

Thinking of how non-Jedi this mission was, there was almost nothing more different from his life as a Jedi than the casual camaraderie he had with these people his age that he’d only known for a week. Perhaps it was that they were all in a new environment at the same time, but Izuku had never had an easier time making deep connections and friends. 

Sure, he had some old Crechemates from his time as an initiate who he considered friends, but that was different. He barely ever say his Crechemates since becoming a Padawan. They were more like how Izuku imagined he would feel about cousins who lived far away. He could always count on them, but he only really saw them a few times a year. They texted occasionally, but more often than not Jedi missions were not cell phone-friendly. 

But this, with his friends at UA, it was different. Maybe it was because he saw them every day and was with them almost all day, but part of Izuku was sad that this mission was only temporary. He was basing his entire relationship with these people on a lie. They may not want anything to do with him after the mission ends. He didn’t know how much he would even be allowed to stay in touch with them after that. The Jedi were pretty strict about attachments, and Izuku was well aware of the fact that he may be starting to get attached. He made a mental note to talk to his Master about this when she returned from Taipei. 

They had almost reached the cafeteria when he Izuku felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see who it was and saw Bakugo. Izuku smiled at the other boy. “Hey, what’s up?” He asked. 

“I want to talk to you, nerd.” 

“Okay, Bakugo. What about?” 

Shoto noticed that Izuku had stopped and was looking at Bakugo with suspicion. “This isn’t any of your business, Half and Half,” Bakugo said, noticing the other boy looking. “I just need to talk to him for a minute.” 

Shoto looked at Izuku who shrugged and smiled. He had nothing to worry about. It’s not as if Bakugo was going to try to beat him up or anything. With that settled, Bakugo led Izuku to a nearby door outside. They went to a quiet corner of the building away from any students and Bakugo said, “You’re hiding something. I can tell. I want to know what it is. I know Aizawa suspects you. He keeps talking about your ‘experience.’” 

“Well, Aizawa-sensei thinks I am a very covert vigilante, which is, of course, absurd. I have no idea how anyone in this school would have time to be a vigilante with the amount of homework we have.” 

Bakugo looks at Izuku, eyes narrowing. “Tch. You’re too confident. In that fight, you could have taken out all three of us. Hell, you probably could have taken out a couple of teams on your own. You would have been able to take everyone out with no collateral damage.” He paused. “I don’t know if Aizawa is right about you or not, but I know something is up. I’ll be watching you and if you’re working with villains or some other stupid shit, I’ll end you.” 

“Good to know. I mean I’d deny working with villains but that’s what someone working with villains would say. So I will let you believe what you want and warn you not to act on this unless you’re ready to put up a better fight than you did yesterday.” Izuku didn’t like talking this way, but he felt it was the only thing that someone like Bakugo would understand. Bakugo looked a little surprised that Izuku was talking back at all. But it was time to deescalate. “Look, I am not your enemy. I am not a vigilante. I am certainly not a villain. I’m just a 15-year-old student of UA looking to make the most of my time here and to do good. We can even be friends if you want, feel free to sit with my friends and me at lunch.” Bakugo scoffed. “But we don’t have to be. I’ll have your back when the need arises and I hope you’ll have mine. We don’t have to like each other to work together.” 

Bakugo looked at him for a long moment. “Yeah, fucking whatever.” And walked away. 

Izuku shook his head, not sure of why Bakugo confronted him, but maybe the loud boy was more perceptive than Izuku originally thought. He joined his friends in the cafeteria for lunch. They asked what Bakugo wanted and Izuku shrugged and said, “I think he was trying to intimidate me? It was kind of weird. He may have accused me of being a villain but I doubt he really believes that. It seems like he was just being his charming self.” 

“You’re about the least villainous person in our class,” Shoto said. Izuku blushed as the rest of the table agreed. 

“I appreciate that. It’s not a big deal. Bakugo sees the world in a different way than most people. I doubt he meant anything by it.”

The conversation continued for a while but all that Izuku did was make sure no one was going to confront Bakugo to defend his honor or something else from the plot a movie made for teenagers. 

After lunch, Aizawa-sensei sprung a field trip on them. They were going to a different part of the UA campus to undertake some rescue exercises. After he announced this, he had everyone go and put their hero costumes on and they were dismissed to the locker rooms to change. 

Everyone was excited about the practical experience they would get. “I’m glad we will be doing rescue work today. It is a fundamental part of heroics! I wonder what heroes will be teaching us.” Iida said as they changed. Somehow his arms were still making exaggerated movements. 

“Yeah, this is going to awesome!” Kirishima said. 

“Yeah, learning new ways to use our quirks to help people!” Kaminari said. 

“Oui, and how to look fabulous doing it,” Aoyama added. 

Izuku had gotten to know the names of his classmates and had a handle on their personalities. They all seemed to be good people, even Bakugo, who would make good heroes. Some of them would say stupid things or act like idiots, but Master Inko assured him that was just how normal teenagers acted. Having been trained from infancy, Izuku was thankfully not as prone to bouts of teenage idiocy. But he still had his moments. 

They finished changing and met up at a bus near the back of the school. Aizawa-sensei was waiting for them, looking dead on his feet and like he’d rather be elsewhere. Normal for him. And the gaggle of students gathered around the door to the bus, waiting for it to open. Yaoyorozu was trying to organize the class and failing. Everyone was too excited. 
They got on the bus after Aizawa ordered them to. The ride would not be too long, only about 10 minutes, and they were still on the UA’s huge campus. On the ride, everyone was relaxing and talking with each other. Izuku was near most of his friends towards the font of the bus. 

Tsu, who was sitting near him, said, “Izuku, your quirk is very powerful. Do you take after your parents?”

Izuku smiled at her. “A little. Mom my has a similar quirk but can only pull objects to her and my dad could breathe fire. I’ve just trained my quirk very well.” 

“Well, you’re lucky yours is so good. My hardening quirk is kind of basic,” Kirishima said. 

“That’s not true! Your quirk is so versatile. Granted you don’t have much long-range capability, but if you train yourself right you could be an immovable object or an unstoppable force. It’s almost the perfect quirk for offense or defense.” 

Kirishima was blushing, “That was a really manly thing to say, bro.” 

“It was true. You also have a great personality for heroics. I could see you going far, Kirishima,” Izuku said. 

“Say something nice about me now!” Mina chimed in.

Izuku was about to but was interrupted by Bakugo, “You nerds. None of you hold a candle to me. I’m going to be number one.” 

“You do have a great quirk for heroics too, Bakugo,” Izuku replied. 

“But you have the personality of a clogged sewer,” Kaminari said with a grin. 

Bakugo looked like he was going to get up and punch the electric blond in the face but Izuku spoke up. “Well, honestly, a nice personality is somewhat important, but not needed to be a top hero. Look at Endeavor for example. Err, no offense Shoto.” Shoto just shrugged and looked interested in what Izuku was going to say next. “He’s undeniably powerful and good at hero work, but he’s nowhere near as approachable as most of the other top ten heroes. A lot of people are intimidated by him, which could limit his effectiveness. All Might and Hawks always top the online opinion polls from what I can see, but that doesn’t change the effectiveness of a hero’s abilities. I think you’ll be a great hero, Bakugo.” Izuku had learned after a few days of school that he needed to brush up on popular Japanese heroes to understand half of what his classmates talked about. Izuku glanced at Shoto who didn’t seem angry by his judgment of Endeavor and looked thoughtful. 

“Tch, as if I give a flying fuck what you think.” 

“Wow, he can’t even accept a compliment,” Tsu said. 

“I don’t need any of you losers to be the best!” 

“Maybe not right now, but someday you might,” Izuku said. Bakugo stood but before he could respond, the bus came to a stop and the door opened. “We’re here,” Aizawa said before walking off the bus. No one moved for a second, still not totally used to their homeroom teacher, but before long they were all disembarking the bus. 

The bus was parked in front of a massive dome. Aizawa was standing next to another figure in a full-on spacesuit. “It’s the Space Hero, Thirteen! She’s my favorite!” Uraraka said. Izuku knew of her vaguely. Her quirk was very good for rescue work especially after disasters or villain attacks because it could breakdown any material as it was consumed by her. 

“Welcome students!” Thirteen said. “This is my pride and joy, the Unforeseen Simulation Joint or the USJ.” She led the group into the building and it was very impressive. Somehow it seemed larger on the inside than the outside. Izuku thought it might be because it went underground some distance, and as they entered they were near the top of the different areas. Thirteen gave a very impassioned speech about how dangerous quirks could be and the responsible use of them, of which Izuku approved. 

As they walked in Izuku was impressed as he looked around. There seemed to be various areas with different environments for rescue. There was a lake, ruins, a few domes that looked like they could be rain and fire? Plus a few more. It looked like UA spared no expense here. He could certainly see why Thirteen was so proud of the facilities. 

As Izuku was listening to his teachers and taking in the sights, the Force screamed a warning in his head. Danger. Approaching Danger. He looked around and didn’t see anything. But the sense got worse and worse.

He was standing next to Shoto and Izuku’s frantic looking around and tensing up had gotten his friend’s attention. “Sensei,” Izuku said interrupting his teacher talking about the exercises that they were going to do. The teacher stopped and looked at him. “Something’s wrong. Something’s coming.”

Everyone was looking at him and Aizawa seemed to take him at his word, “Thirteen, take then students out of here.”

“But we just got here!” Kaminari said. 

“Is that part of the exercise?” Kirishima asked. Everyone turned to look and suddenly there was black mist all over the USJ’s courtyard. Walking from it was a horde of ominous-looking figures.

“No, it’s not. They’re villains. Thirteen, get them out of here now. I’ll hold them off,” Aizawa said as he jumped down from the landing towards the mass of villains. 

Thirteen was ushering the students to the exit. Izuku hesitated, knowing that his teacher would be at a disadvantage in fighting against so many enemies. Shoto looked back at him with a raised eyebrow. The message he was trying to send was clear. Izuku let a small amused huff at his friend being able to say so much with a simple glance and started to move towards the exit with the rest of the class. 

Unfortunately, they were cut off as black mist appeared in front of them and it eventually formed a nebulous figure. “Greetings children, it is a pleasure to meet you. We are the League of Villains. Our information said All Might would be here, but he seems to be absent. That’s unfortunate.” He seemed to spread out and get larger. “I suppose in the end it doesn’t matter.” 

At this point, Bakugo and Kirishima jumped towards the mist villain and there was a large explosion. As the smoke cleared Kirishima said, “Did you think we were going to just stand around and let you tear this place to shreds?”

The misty voice sounded as the smoke continued to clear. “You live up to your school’s reputation, but you should be more careful, children. Otherwise, someone might get hurt.”

“Get out of the way, right now!” Thirteen said to Bakugo and Kirishima. 

“I’ll separate you across this facility where our minions will proceed to torture you all to death. Farewell.” The black smoke spread around all of them and suddenly the Force promoted Izuku to move and he threw himself at Shoto. The other boy looked surprised for a second but they were outside of the smoke and they heard the sounds of students being buffeted by winds. 

Shoto looked like he was about to say something when the black mist extended from where it was and surrounded the two of them. The last thing Izuku heard was his classmates' screams as the darkness overtook them.

Chapter Text

Izuku hated warp quirks. Especially when he wasn’t prepared to be transported. This was not his first time and teleportation tended to jumble the Force unnaturally. As he felt the teleportation process ending, he was still on top of Shoto, but as soon as the Force rushed back to him he felt they were surrounded by malicious people. Izuku quickly backflipped to standing and as soon as his feet touched the ground, on either side of Shoto, he extended both arms straight out from himself and Force pushed. If the Force was a quirk, this would have been a super move because the push was out in 360 degrees around him, leaving Shoto untouched on the ground. 

The people surrounded them all went flying backward, some as much as 20 meters. Those were the lucky ones. The unlucky ones crashed hard into the nearby walls or dirt piles. Glancing around quickly it looked like they were in a mudslide of some sort. 

Izuku reached down and helped Shoto up. “Are you okay?” Shoto nodded as Izuku continued to scope out the situation. “We’ve got this.” Izuku raised his voice so everyone could hear him, “If anyone wants to surrender, now is your only chance.” There was some laughter from the villains who had surrounded them, as they pulled themselves up. 

“You got lucky, brat,” One of the villains said. 

“Hard way it is then. You take the ones on the right, I’ll take the ones on the left,” Izuku said to Shoto and then moved. 

Shoto shot ice out towards the villains and Izuku lifted a few and tossed them back into a wall again. One villain had a long-range quirk and seemed to be shooting pellets of some sort directly at Izuku and Shoto. Using the Force they hit an invisible wall, landing in a small pile by his feet. Keeping that defense up limited what Izuku could do offensively. 

Izuku glanced for a solution as he was defending from the pellets and saw a bulky villain that appeared to be made of crystal. Izuku lifted him and swung the villain into the line of fire of the other villain. The crystalline villain screamed at the motion but the pellets didn’t seem to affect his thick skin. Izuku tossed the villain made of crystal towards the shooter and they both landed with a crash. The crystal villain started to move like he was getting up but Izuku lifted him off then ground and smashed him back down into it. He did not stir after that. Using his telekinesis he made short work of the villains in his view until all of them were unconscious or incapacitated. 

Izuku felt in the Force that Shoto was fine, but there was an air of worry about him. Izuku looked his way, most of the villains were stuck in mini-glaciers of ice. A few were knocked out from Izuku’s initial attack. The Force assured Izuku that the danger had passed and the villains fighting them were done. All in all the fight took less than a minute and neither he nor Shoto had a scratch on them. 

“Good job. We’re a great team,” Izuku said. 

“Yeah. Let’s see what they know.” Shoto walked over to one of the shivering villains covered in his ice. “Why are you here?” 

“Screw you, kid.”

Izuku rolled his eyes. “You’re going to tell us why you are here.” He may have used the Force a little bit to encourage his compliance. This only worked on weak-minded individuals, but Izuku wasn’t too worried.

“We’re here to kill All Might,” the villain said. 

Shoto let out a derisive snort. You realize the two of us have been in high school for less than a week and we had no trouble taking you all out. What chance do you stand against All Might?”

“Not everyone was fighting Endeavors' spawn. Do you think all your little friends can handle this as well you can? Ha.”

Izuku and Shoto shared a look. The villain was not wrong. Depending on the matchups and which zones their classmates ended up, there could be trouble. Tsu in the fire zone would be terrible. Kaminari in the rain would be bad for everyone. There were a lot of potential issues. 

“There must be a plan though. You all are street thugs. You’d need several really powerful villains working together if you wanted to take down All Might,” Shoto said. 

“Oh, there’s a plan all right. We have a monster which can take on All Might. Or something. I wasn’t paying attention. They said come to see All Might killed and I was sold.”

“Charming,” Izuku said. “Shoto, let’s go to the central plaza. I don’t think Aizawa-sensei will be able to hold his own indefinitely.”

Shoto nodded and Izuku used the Force to find the best path. He started in the right direction and Shoto followed. Every now and again there was another villain but Izuku or Shoto made short work of them. At one point Izuku realized he was going a bit too fast for Shoto to keep up so he moderated his pace. While he was ahead of Shoto, Izuku subtlely assembled his lightsaber and hid it in his sleeve for easy access should the need arise. 

He didn’t feel the presence of a Sith, but there was something dark ahead. As they got closer and closer to the center plaza the darkness in the Force grew and grew. It was suffocating, there was great evil there. He could see the end of the landslide zone now and they continued. 

“Hey Shoto,” Izuku said. I know this is a touchy subject for you, but I need to bring it up. There is a great evil ahead, I can feel it.” Shoto looked like he wanted to ask how Izuku could feel that but Izuku continued. “I’m not sure what’s going to happen but we may need to go all in.”

“I’m ready.”

“I know you’re very strong, but your fire may be needed to win this fight. I want to say this now when I can.”

“I made an oath never to use my father’s fire.”

“First, it’s your power, not his. Second are you prepared to die, let Aizawa-sensei or me die to honor that oath? I don’t know if it will come to that, Shoto, but I want you thinking about it.”

Shoto didn’t say anything for a few minutes as they continued to walk. After a while, he said, “My mother has been on my mind a lot since we had that talk after school the other day. I haven’t seen her since I was a small child. In all my memories of her, she was crying. My father ruined her, I see that now. The last time I saw her she poured boiling water on my face after telling me that my left side looked too much like my father.” He reached up and touched the scar on his left side gently. “Since then, I’ve never used my fire.”

Izuku stopped walking and turned to his friend. He didn’t know what to say. “Can I hug you, Shoto?”

“Why?” Shoto’s confusion made Izuku’s heartache. Pain was rolling off the other boy, which Izuku felt clearly in the Force.

“You seem like you could use one.” Shoto paused then nodded. Izuku hugged Shoto for a few seconds and he could tell it helped because the pain lessened enough that Izuku could feel some awkwardness in the Force. Not to mention that the other boy’s arms stayed at his side. He let go. “Shoto, I can’t know what you’ve gone through, I can’t tell you it will feel better eventually. I can say is that you have friends who care about you, myself included. Cutting off a part of yourself for so long is never a good idea. I promise I will not ask you to use your fire unless it’s the only thing I can think of to save lives and get us out of here in one piece.” Izuku paused. “I think you’re one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. You’ve gone through so much and here you are wanting to be a hero and help others. I’m glad to know you, Shoto. You’ll be an amazing hero.” 

Shoto was quieter than normal after that. When they reached the main plaza, Izuku saw a fountain. Some of the villains seemed to be gathered there, many of them collapsed on the ground in front of their homeroom teacher. Izuku led Shoto to the side where they could sneak closer without being seen. 

As they got closer, they began to pick up on the conversation between Aizawa and some of the villains who didn’t seem to be doing much more than watching. The warp villain was there as well as a scruffy looking man with white hair covered in... hands? 

But the worst was standing next to them, with a dead look in its eyes. It was what was giving off the dark side feelings. It as almost a void, sucking in any light around it. 

“—surprised you could handle so many at once, Eraser Head. Goes to show you how skilled some Pros are. But it won’t be enough.”

“No one had even slowed me down so far.” Even though Aizawa said this, Izuku could tell he had taken some damage from the fight. 

“Let’s you how you do against our Anti-Symbol of Peace. Nomu, kill Eraser Head.” 

In a flash, the black monster, Nomu apparently, sped over to Aizawa readying a punch. Izuku didn’t think, he acted. Before the Nomu could finish its punch it halted all motion. Izuku grabbed the Nomu with the Force and lifted it off the ground. 

“Oh, some new NPCs!” The white-haired villain said. “Come to fight the player, have you?”

“Surrender. You’ve lost, villains.” Izuku said. 

The villain laughed. “Did you hear that, Kurogiri? They think we should surrender. What do you think?”

“I think we still have the upper hand, Tomura Shigaraki.” 

“Isn’t that Nomu heavy, little hero? Your quirk must be getting tired. What will you do when you can’t hold it anymore?”

The Nomu was heavier than Izuku thought. He’d be fine holding it for a while, as the Force didn’t work at all like a quirk. It lacked some of the downsides or kickbacks that many quirks had. But it required focus. There was steel in his voice as Izuku said, “Underestimate us at your peril.”

“You need to get out of here,” Aizawa said. “These are not low-level villains. They are the leaders.” 

“We are the leaders! And since All Might’s not here we need to make a statement somehow. So little telekinetic NPC, release my Nomu and I promise your death will be quick. Or, well maybe not but I don’t care.” 

Some of the villains that Aizawa had already taken out were coming to and grouping up to attack again. Izuku was still lifting the Nomu, keeping it from attacking. 

“Sensei, we’ll take the low-level thugs. You deal with the big threats. Shoto, go left.” 

Shoto nodded and went to the left of the crowd of villains. Izuku sent him that was because his right side would be towards the group. Izuku went right towards the fighting in concert with Shoto. He was doing less than he had before because he was still keeping the Nomu lifted. It required some of his focus, so he was helping herd the villains for Shoto to freeze. A push here, a shove there and before long all the villains were taken care of. He and Shoto did make a pretty good team. 

Turning back, it seemed that Aizawa-sensei was more injured then Izuku thought because the white-haired villain was reaching towards his downed teacher. Izuku had no idea what Shigaraki’s quirk was. The villain was just about to touch his teacher’s arm with five fingers when Izuku grabbed him with the Force and lifted him next to the Nomu. 

“You’re getting very annoying for an NPC, little telekinetic. You’re ruining all my fun.” 

“Your plans are monstrous, as is your Nomu. It seems unnatural, not just a mutant quirk. What is it?”

Shigaraki smiled wide beneath the hand covering his face as he floated gently above the ground. “It is a genetically modified All Might killer. It can do everything the so-called symbol of peace can, but better!” 

“So it’s not an actual person?” 

“No, it’s a genetic machine of destruction. Each hand has enough power to level a building in one punch.”

“Well, that makes this easier,” Izuku said. He might not need his lightsaber after all, but its presence was still comforting in his sleeve.
The thing Izuku learned about telekinesis as he was working to master it was that there is not much that can not be done if you apply enough force. A Jedi could also do a lot with it on a micro-level, stopping a blood vessel in the brain was one example of a technique that a Jedi would not use but was capable of. Another example was asphyxiation.

Using force though, that was something he was able to do easily. Even though the beast was genetically modified, needless killing was not the Jedi way. So instead, Izuku began to pull on the beast’s arms. The Nomu felt like it was not held together very strongly, and it was suddenly t-posing with an inhuman whine coming from it. Everyone was looking at the Nomu as its arms were pulled out of their sockets. This was not a very Jedi-like thing to do, but without using his lightsaber there was not much he could do. It was an abomination of the dark side, not even sentient. Black goo, blood maybe, dripped down as Shigaraki just laughed. 

“Keep using your quirk and soon you won’t have any power left. My Nomu can counter anything you do to it! Shock absorption, super strength, speed, and regeneration. My Nomu has it all.” Shigaraki said. 

Izuku wasn’t sure at first why the villain was laughing until the arms slowly started to regrow. First, they were little stumps but then suddenly they were fully formed again. 

Okay, maybe Izuku would need his lightsaber after all. Would the healing work if it was cauterized? His cover as a Jedi at this school was not worth the lives of any of the students or teachers. It would be a shame that he had not uncovered anything about the Sith, but this creature needed to be stopped. 

“Why don’t you just let us down so we can play? You’re annoying me by keeping me floating here.” 

“I can do this all day,” Izuku replied. 

“Shigaraki, I can warp him away and his grip on the Nomu and you will probably end.” 

While the villains were talking Izuku saw that Tsu and Kaminari were hiding in nearby bushes. He whispered to Shoto, “Go get them and tell them to get Aizawa out of here. I will need your help before the end, but we need to help our teacher. I can handle this for a minute, I’ll distract them.” 

Shoto nodded and Izuku wandered over towards the gather villains. They paused in their conversation and looked at him. He had moved enough so Aizawa was no longer in their line of sight. He felt in the Force but didn’t look at his classmates moving across the plaza towards their teacher. 

“This is getting us nowhere. Why don’t you just leave? You will not win.” 

“You really are an annoying NPC. Maybe you’re a boss after all? I can’t tell. You have power and the will to use it. Why be a hero in this evil system we have now? You don’t even sound like a native Japanese speaker! I almost need the subtitles on to understand you.”

“To serve is the highest calling of humanity. And how could helping others ever be seen as bad? And I am American.” 

“Listen to him, Kurogiri, he sounds so pure, like a Jedi or something!” 

“Yes, Shigaraki. What shall we do with him?” 

“He’s boring me. Send him away.” 

Before the warp villain could make a portal, Izuku jumped to the side, further obscuring the fact that his classmates were helping their teacher to safety. He tossed the Nomu with his telekinesis directly at the warp villain. There was a clang and both monster and villain were sent flying into the lake.” 

“Nomu! Kurogiri! You are a pest!” The still floating villain said to Izuku. “And you moved Eraser Head to safety too? This isn’t fair, you’ve been studying to be a hero for like a week!” 

“You’ll find I’m full of surprises.” Izuku let the villain land on the ground and released his grip. He could use a little time to recover some energy. 

“I was warned this wouldn’t be as easy as Sensei told me it would be,” Shigaraki said. “They said that something was blocking their view. Some reason they couldn’t see the outcome.” 

“Who?” Izuku asked hoping the villain would tell him.

“The Sith. They are so stupid and cryptic.” 

“But the Sith aren’t real, they’re bedtime stories parents use to scare kids into being good.” 

“That’s what the Jedi tell everyone, but they are very real. I should have brought one. They could have handled you. Versatile fighters can do more than just lift and throw people. After we kill All Might…” 

Sadly, the villain’s monologue was interrupted by one of Kurogiri’s portals opening nearby. Water started pouring out and soon the Nomu and warp villain were back in the Plaza. 

Thankfully Shoto had returned to his side and so he was ready. They were standing close so Izuku whispered, “Freeze the Nomu in as thick of a block as you can and then dodge to your left because the portals could be a problem.” Shoto squeezed Izuku’s arm in confirmation. 

“I’m glad you’re back Kurogiri. Nomu, kill the annoying NPC,” said Shigaraki. 

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results,” Izuku said as he lifted the Nomu again so it couldn’t move. Water still covered the floor of the plaza and the Nomu was dripping. “Shoto.” 

And with his name, Shoto stepped forward and put his right foot down hard and a giant block of ice appeared where the Nomu was standing. Shigaraki dodged to the side as the ice got larger and larger and Kurogiri was swallowed in it. 

“Wow,” Izuku said. “That’s impressive, Shoto.” 

Shigaraki looked so done, some of the hands on his body were askew. “You damn kids! I’m going to end you. It was not supposed to be this difficult!” 

Shigaraki charged towards Shoto and Izuku but Izuku used the Force to push the villain back. It would have sent him flying into the lake, but suddenly Shoto’s iceberg shattered and Izuku used the Force to put up a shield and grabbed Shoto to make sure he stayed behind it. The other boy looked confused for a second as to why none of the ice was hitting where they were, but then saw a pile of it in front of them. 

After the explosion passed, the Nomu was free and Izuku took his grip on Shoto and pushed him out of the way as the Nomu appeared right in front of him. He tried to stop the monster but he was just a second too slow and took a pretty hard punch to his gut before he pushed it away, as he did with Shigaraki. That would have been a lot worse if he had been even half a second later. It would leave a bruise but that was all.

Shoto stood up and looked at Izuku as he again lifted the Nomu into the air. “What do we do?” 

“I’m not 100% sure, Shoto. Fire might work, but I don’t even know. It could cauterize it and we may be able to overwhelm the regeneration ability it has. But I don’t know if that will work and I don’t want to ask you to break your oath for no reason.” 

Shoto didn’t say anything for a moment. The villains were talking to each other but Izuku was too focused on Shoto to hear what they were saying.

Suddenly the Force cried out in alarm and Izuku shoved Shoto one way and went another as the warp villain’s blackness appeared where they had been standing. “I hate teleporters,” Izuku said more under his breath than to anyone and he sent a very powerful Force push towards the black misty villain. He again disappeared towards the lake as Shoto stood again. 

“I’ll do it. It’s my power,” Shoto said. 

“Damn right it is,” Izuku replied with s smile as he moved the Nomu to directly in front of Shoto. Suddenly the world was awash in flames. Izuku started to pull the arms off the Nomu again while it was being bathed in fire. It was easier this time as if they were weaker than the beast’s original arms. They plopped off with the same black gooey blood leaking out, but this time before they could regrow, the wounds were burned over and northing but tiny little stumps came out. 

Izuku felt bad for harming the creature, but it was a life or death situation and Shigaraki screamed at them and began to charge when Izuku sent another Force push at the villain. The Nomu seemed to no longer be regenerating but was still giving off the same evil feelings it had been the entire fight, weaker but not dead. 

Izuku looked over at Shoto and can feel he is starting to overheat. “That’s good enough. You’re getting too hot. When you stop, encase it in ice again, but maybe less this time. It’ll also help you cool down a bit, right?” Shoto nodded and stopped the fire and froze the now armless Nomu in place. Shigaraki was screaming about cheats and charged towards Izuku and Shoto. 

Izuku stepped between Shoto and where the villain was charging at them. Izuku pushed him back with the Force and he skid to a halt a dozen meters away as Kurogiri teleported himself back to the plaza, water draining back towards the lake. 

“I am quite finished with these two students, Tomura Shigaraki. Where is Nomu? Kill them.” 

“They burned it and froze it. I think its arms won’t grow back again. They ruined everything! Not even cheaters but exploiters! Hackers! Ban them, Kurogiri!” 

“I will send them far away, maybe to the middle of the ocean? That would be fitting.” 

“I don’t care, get rid of them and then we’ll leave. This is a bust, game over I guess.” 

Izuku again grabbed Shoto and was ready to pull him to the side and out of the warp villains line portals. He was out of tricks at this point and if the Nomu broke free again Izuku wasn’t sure what he could do short of taking out his lightsaber and decapitating the monster. 

“That Sith is going to be so insufferable. He said this wouldn’t work. Damn him and his foresight. Okay, Kurogi—” 

The door to the USJ chose that moment to burst open. 

“It’s alright. Why? Because I am here!” All Might’s voice reassured them and at the same time, several of Izuku’s classmates appeared by his and Shoto’s side. All Might seemed to be in several places at once, bounding from one place to the next, in less than ten seconds incapacitating several clumps of villains. 

“Everyone, get to the main entrance. All Might is here now. He’ll handle this,” Izuku said. 

“Tch. Why should we listen to you?” 

“Because we’ve been here fighting the villains, and actually doing well,” Shoto said.  “And do you really think All Might needs our help?” 

Izuku kept his eye on the warp villain while All Might was confronting Shigaraki and they were talking when the villain screamed, “Nomu!” 

“Shit,” Shoto said at the same time Izuku said, “To me!” As he put up a shield using the Force just in time to prevent ice chunks and shards from hitting them. They were close to where the Nomu had been encased in ice and it could have been bad. 

Bakugo didn’t move closer, but Kirishima did. Thankfully Izuku was still able to make his shield large enough to protect them all. Bakugo looked a little shocked that the ice didn’t hit him, even though he didn’t move closer to Izuku. 

The Nomu emerged looking pretty terrible. Burns covered its entire body and it no longer had arms save for some stubs. All Might looked at it and laughed. “This is your great weapon against me? It seems my students have already taken most of the fight of it.” All Might turned to look at Izuku and his classmates. “Thank you for your help but I will handle it from here.” 

He was a Pro Hero, this is what they did. Izuku nodded. “All Might, it has multiple quirks. Super speed, strength, shock absorption and regeneration at least. We may have overwhelmed the regeneration, but watch out for the shock absorption.” 

All Might nodded his thanks and Izuku started towards the entrance of the USJ without another word. After a second Shoto and Kirishima followed him. Kirishima slowed as he saw Bakugo was not following and he said something to Bakugo who growled and started towards the exit.

Through the Force, Izuku felt another warning and before he knew it, Kurogiri was standing directly in front of them blocking their path. “Do you really think I’m just going to let you go. The two of you have foiled too much of our plan for there to be no revenge. And your little friends can suffer with you. Say goodbye, even if we can not kill All Might, at least we can call it a partial victory with your deaths.” 

“You’ve been trying to stop us since we arrived here and you’ve had no luck. What makes you think this time will be any different?” Izuku said. He didn’t wait for an answer when he used all his might to Force push the misty villain into the staircase. There was a loud clang and an enraged scream from the villain. “Scatter!” Izuku shouted to his classmates. If they separated then there was a chance that the villain couldn’t get them all at once. Even Bakugo understood the reasons and they separated. 

Izuku stayed where he was and reached out to the teleporter. The clang Izuku heard when he pushed him meant there was some physical form to the mostly incorporeal villain. Knowing this, Izuku reached for it in the Force and grabbed the villain. Izuku had only Force pushed him before.  

He looked towards where All Might was fighting the armless Nomu. It was using kicks and head butts, but All Might seemed to be doing fine. Shigaraki was standing off to the side watching the fight and so Izuku thought he would be a good target for the warp villain. Kurogiri went flying in the air and landed on Shigaraki, who hadn’t noticed his partner speeding towards him. 

Izuku’s classmates who were there used the distraction to run for the stairs. Izuku held back and Shoto slowed looking at him. Izuku smiled. “I’m going to keep the warper off you guys.” Shoto looked like he was going to protest. Izuku said, “Make sure Aizawa and Thirteen are alight. Go, I’ll be fine.”

“You better be,” Shoto said as he turned and followed Kirishima and Bakugo up the stairs. 

Izuku turned to face the villains again. Shigaraki and Kurogiri were working to get up and when they did they turned to face him. “You’re so dead. I’m going to find you and everyone you care about and kill them all!” Shigaraki said. “This whole plan was foiled by you. It would have worked if you didn’t damage my Nomu. The world would have been rid of the Symbol of Peace and chaos would have reigned. But no, a cheating high schooler with a stupid OP quirk had to come and ruin everything. You’re dead, you hear me? Dead!” 

“Tomura Shigaraki, we should make our escape. The Nomu in this condition is no match for All Might.” 

And sure enough, All Might was beating the Nomu handily. It seemed like the creature was no longer healing so while many blows were being absorbed, the force of the impacts was slowing the other creature down. Perhaps All Might had overwhelmed that quirk just like the regeneration. All Might continued to hit it over and over again very quickly and before too long the Nomu was flying through the glass ceiling of the USJ. 

All Might stood in a heroic pose staring at Shigaraki and Kurogiri. “You’ve lost, fiends. Surrender and you shall be treated fairly.” 

Izuku noticed that All Might was not moving at all. Not a single muscle. Why wasn’t he going to capture the villains or knock them out? Izuku felt that All Might was weak from the Force? 

“You think you’ve won? This is only the beginning. You’ll die All Might! And society will fall!” Shigaraki charged at All Might who still didn’t move. Izuku, not knowing what else to do Force pushed the villain back the way he came causing the villain to scream in frustration at him. 

“Kurogiri, get us—“

Before he could finish his sentence, gunshots sounded from near the entrance and suddenly Shigaraki was hit by several bullets in his arms and leg. The pro heroes were here. Kurogiri warped away with the injured and screaming Shigaraki. 

Izuku felt All Might’s presence in the Force waiver and rushed to his side. Steam was coming off the hero and Izuku had no idea what to do. “All Might, are you alright?” Suddenly a tall skeletal man was standing where All Might had been, and he collapsed. Izuku caught him as a wall of cement blocked them from view. “Um, is this normal?”

All Might let out a small laugh, but it turned into a violent cough with blood coming up. “I’m fine, it is normal.” 

“That cough doesn’t seem normal,” Izuku said, reaching out with the Force. He was still holding the man, gently guiding him to the ground. Izuku used the Force and sent some healing to his teacher. It didn’t seem to do much, but his presence in the Force brightened a little bit. 

“I’m feeling much better. I will tell you about this when I can but for now, please keep it a secret from everyone. If anyone knew I was this weak there would be panic.” 

“Of course. You have my word, All Might.” 

The aftermath of attacks or missions like this was always annoying. The waiting was terrible. Thankfully no one had been harmed too badly. Some villains needed to stay in the hospital, but only Thirteen needed to be hospitalized from the hero’s side of the fight. Aizawa-sensei was with Recovery Girl and would need to rest for a while but other than that everyone was fine. From what Izuku could hear, the students all handled themselves very well. Most of those warped around the facility had been faced with villains but all came out on top with a few struggles here and there. It appeared as if the villains didn’t know their quirks and so they separated them randomly.  

Izuku was sitting next to Shoto on the ground near the bus. They’d been just sitting around for an hour now as police and more heroes arrived. A detective was working his way down the line of students, asking them for interviews and then leading them away. Finally, the detective got to Shoto and Izuku. 

“You two were together for the entire time, weren’t you?” 

Izuku nodded, “Until the very end after All Might arrived, yes.” 

“Very well then. I’ll talk to you both at the same time if you don’t mind?” Izuku looked at Shoto who nodded. “Very good. My name is Naomasa Tsukauchi and my quirk is called Human Lie Detector. If you lie, I’ll know it so please be as honest as you can be.” 

Shoto and Izuku spent some time telling what happened and the detective listened. He asked them questions that were generally directed to Izuku who was being very careful to be honest without giving too much away. 

“The Sith?” Tsukauchi asked with some urgency. 

“Yes, detective. Shigaraki mentioned them several times,” Izuku said. 
“Did he say anything specific about them?”

“No, just that the Sith said this plan would fail and would be mocking Shigaraki because of it.” 

“Thank you, please continue.” Izuku finished going over the rest of the story, with Shoto adding some additional details here and there. The detective closed his notebook and said, “Well, you two did an amazing job today. A lot of Pros would have been hard-pressed to do what you did. I also wanted you to know that you will not face any disciplinary action for using your quirks without a license. There are obviously extenuating circumstances here. I very much appreciate your time and if you think of anything else you can reach me here.” He handed them both cards with his information on it. 

They both nodded their thanks to the detective, who directed them to Principal Nezu. They walked over to the small mammal who smiled at them when they approached. He was talking to Aizawa-sensei. “Ah, two of the heroes of the day. Well done you two. We just retrieved the video surveillance footage from today and you both did marvelously. UA is in your debt for helping as you did.” 

Aizawa looked tired and said, “Don’t ever do it again, at least not until you are licensed. It’s not your place to die for the staff here.” 

“We weren’t about to let you die, sensei,” Shoto said. 

Aizawa sighed. “Your job is to come to class, do your work, and go home. My job is to protect you and fight for you. Please remember that.” Shoto looked like he was going to argue, but Izuku gently nudged the other boy’s shoulder with his. Shoto glanced at Izuku, sighed, and kept his mouth shut. Their interaction caused Aizawa to quirk his lips into a small almost smile. “Todoroki, your father has been notified and sent a car to take you home. You’re free to go. Midoriya, we can not reach your mother and your other emergency contact is in America. Do you know when your mother will be reachable?” 

“She’s in Taipei for work, sensei. She won’t be back for a few days. I think she’d be in meetings right about now and will be for the foreseeable future.”

“That does create a small problem. We can not release you into your own custody.  Especially with how the villain threatened you personally for your actions.” 

“I’m sure I’ll be fine, Principal Nezu.” 

“Will you? Perhaps. But I’d feel more comfortable if you were in the care of an adult until your mother returns home at the very least.” 

“He can stay with me for a few days,” Aizawa-sensei said, almost too quickly. 

“I wouldn’t want to put you out, sensei.” 

“Don’t worry, you won’t be. I have a spare room. I’m sure we’ll find things to talk about. When will your mother be returning?” 

“She’s scheduled to come back on Monday, and I am not sure if she will be able to get away before that.” 

“Of course. Taking you home until Monday is not an issue. We’ll stop at your place on the way to mine to get some clothes and toiletries for you.” 

Izuku looked towards Shoto who shrugged at him and he sighed. “Okay, sensei, if you’re willing, I am grateful.” 

Izuku was forced to wait until all the students had been picked up from the USJ before he and Aizawa-sensei were able to leave. It was only about an hour longer, but Izuku was rather tired and hungry. They set off from the campus to begin spending the next few days together. They had the day off from school the following day so it was a long weekend. Izuku reminded himself that the Force worked in mysterious ways and that perhaps he could use this time to convince his teacher he was not a vigilante. Or maybe he’d give something away and his teacher would realize he was a Jedi. 

Either way, this was going to be a weekend to remember.

Chapter Text

Aizawa-sensei and Izuku were walking down the road towards the Midoriya house. They had just left school and Izuku was tired. It had been a very long day and coming down off of an adrenaline high always left him tired. He wished his Master was home because spending the weekend with a teacher who was suspicious of him was not how he wanted to end his week. 

It would be fine though. Izuku could manage this weekend. He was kind of curious as to how Aizawa would test him and see if he’s a vigilante. 

When they arrived, Izuku used his key and opened the door and invited his sensei in. They both took their shoes off and Izuku said, “Feel free to look around. I am going to run upstairs and get some clothes and things I need. Then we’ll get some stuff from the kitchen and should be good to go.” 

Izuku was 99% sure that there was nothing incriminating sitting out in the house. No signs of Jedi-ness anywhere an interloper could see. Izuku still didn’t want to dilly dally. 

“You don’t need to bring your own food, kid. I have plenty.” 

“Of course,” Izuku said. “But I have all this fresh produce I wouldn’t want to go bad. Mom would be mad to come home to a house filled with rotten fruit and vegetables.” 

His teacher, who seemed more tired than normal, didn’t even try to hide his sigh. “Fine.” 

“It’s some good stuff, Aizawa-sensei! I Was going to make curry tonight, I should have enough ingredients to make plenty for both of us you’d like. You seem tired.” 

“I’m always tired, and that would be nice, thank you. Just let’s go. I don’t live far from here but it is a twenty-minute walk at least.” 

Izuku nodded and hurried upstairs to get his things, and then into the kitchen. Aizawa was in the same place Izuku left him, but he was pretty sure that the teacher wouldn’t miss the opportunity to snoop a little. He led Aizawa back towards the front of the house and paused when he realized that his teacher was no longer following him. He turned around and saw the door to the dojo was open and Aizawa was looking inside. 

“Nice digs,” the teacher said. 

“Thank you. It’s mostly for my training but my mom uses it too.” 

“What kind of training? Your quirk is mostly mental. You’d tear that room apart.” 

Izuku sighed. He hoped Aizawa would not be questioning him like this for every little thing. “I know some martial arts and do some weapon training. It’s good to have a few tricks up my sleeves just in case. Your quirk is a great example of one which could completely wreck me if I didn’t have a backup plan.” 

“Fair enough. What weapons do you practice with?” 

“Swords mostly.” 

”Useful. What tradition?”

“A little of everything.” 

“I’d be interested in seeing you in action.“ 

Because of course, he would. Did they even have any swords in the house? He had his lightsaber, of course, but that would give away a few things Izuku would rather keep under wraps. “My mom locks the swords up when she’s away, just in case,” Izuku said, lying convincingly, he hoped. “Maybe some other time?” 

“Some other time,” Aizawa agreed. 

They left the house and the teacher led his student down several smaller streets to a larger one then back to a few smaller side streets. True to his word the walk was a little over 20 minutes. Aizawa’s apartment was in a good location for his commute to school, and it was more built-up than the neighborhood that Izuku lived it. It was probably slightly closer to the school building than Izuku’s own house, but further from the train station. 

The apartment building seemed pretty new. It wasn’t fancy, very utilitarian, but there was a security guard in the lobby by the elevators who nodded at Aizawa when they walked in. Izuku noticed that there was a lot of security in the halls and stairwells of the building, and it gave him a feeling of being watched the entire time they were in the halls. It made sense that a pro hero would want a secure building to call home. 

When they entered the apartment, Izuku couldn’t help but notice how spartan it was. It had everything one needed to be comfortable, tables, chairs, sofas. But the furniture didn’t fill the rooms and the walls were mostly bare. It didn’t seem personalized at all. 

“This is a nice building, sensei. Did you recently move in?” 

“No, I’ve lived here for years.” 

“Oh… It barely seems lived in.” 

“Sentimentality in home decorating is illogical. There are better things for me to do with my time. Sleep for one thing.” He paused as if considering naping right there on the spot. “Go put the food away wherever you feel like. I’ll get your room set up.” 

Izuku nodded and put down his suitcase and went towards where Aizawa pointed. After unpacking he moved back to the living room to wait, standing somewhat awkwardly. He noticed that Aizawa left his keys sitting out in the middle of the living room on an otherwise empty table. Izuku wondered if they were there as part of a honeypot scheme to catch him out. Izuku wasn’t going to rise to any bait this weekend. No, he was going to be an angel. 

He pulled out his phone and saw he had unread messages. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Uraraka: did u guys all make it home okay?

Iida: I did! My father came from work and picked me up. 

Uraraka:  good. i left with midnight-sensei because my family lives far away

Iida: The staff of UA really care about their students. It’s inspiring! To think such wonderful heroes are our teachers! 

Me: Yeah, same. I’m with Aizawa because my mom is traveling for work. She’s out of the country until Monday. 

Uraraka: is aizawa okay?  he seemed kind of banged up 

Me: He seems fine but tired… 

Uraraka: The usual, then.

Todoroki: I made it home as well. I will see you all on Monday.

Uraraka: Does that mean you aren’t going to talk to us all weekend? 

“Everything is set up. Your room is right through there,” he pointed. “I’m going to take a nap. Don’t wake me unless it’s an emergency.” 

Izuku nodded and thanked his teacher as he was left alone standing in the middle of the living room. How had his life come to this? He sighed. He looked at the time and it was almost 6 PM, so he decided to make dinner. The recipe that Izuku knew took about an hour and he had brought all the main ingredients he needed. He’d just have to borrow some spices from Aizawa’s kitchen. 

Izuku was only somewhat surprised that his homeless-looking homeroom teacher had all the spices he needed for the curry. Seeing he had everything, Izuku cooked. He played around on his phone while it cooked and then he took a plate and ate. Aizawa said not to wake him up unless it was an emergency so Izuku put the leftovers in the refrigerator for his teacher in case he woke up. 

He scrolled through his phone while eating, texting his friends. Todoroki had not replied to the chat since his last message, so maybe they wouldn’t hear from him until Monday after all. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Me: Aizawa has been sleeping since I got here. 

Uraraka: recovery girl makes u tired. learned that the hard way at the entrance exam. 

Me: Yeah, he seems good though. I’m sad he won’t try my curry when it’s fresh! 

Uraraka: YOU cook?!?

Me: Why is you in all capital letters? Do I not seem the type? 

Uraraka: no no you do i guess, but i was just not expecting it 

Me: My mom’s away a lot so I often cook for myself. 

Uraraka: youre a catch!

He was interrupted from responded by his phone ringing, it was Master Inko calling. He didn’t know if Aizawa had his house bugged or something so was going to stay in character. 

“Hey, mom!” Izuku said as he answered the phone. 

She got the message. “Honey, are you okay? I got out of my meetings with a dozen messages. They said there was an attack?” 

Izuku sighed, “Yeah, some villains got into UA where we were on our field trip. Most of them were just street thugs, but the leaders seemed serious. They had a monster of some kind. It was super-strong and felt really evil.” 

There was a pause, Izuku hoped his master could read between the lines of his statement and see what he was trying to say. He was confident that she could, they’d been together a long time now. “I see. I really can’t get home before Monday. They said you’d be with a teacher if I couldn’t get in touch with them, are you okay?”

“Yeah, Aizawa-sensei took me to our house to pick up some stuff to stay with him.”

“I’m glad I cleaned the house up before I left!” She laughed. Izuku smiled at her double meaning, glad they didn’t leave any lightsabers or Jedi paraphernalia around. 

“Then we came to his house, he doesn’t live too far away from us. Nice place with a guest room.”

“And you’re safe?” 

“Yeah.” 

Izuku hadn’t seen his teacher walk out of his bedroom but waved towards him when he did. “Let me talk to her.” 

“Mom, Aizawa-sensei wants to talk to you.” His mother agreed as Izuku handed the phone over to his teacher. 

“Mrs. Midoriya, I wanted to assure you that everything was fine. Your son was at the center of the activity in the battle and we felt there may be repercussions for the children involved.” 

Izuku could not hear what his Master was saying, but Aizawa never really took his eyes off of him. 

“I see. I’ve seen those negotiations in the news, they are important. I can see why you would not be able to be home before they conclude on Sunday.” 

There was another pause while Aizawa listened. “It’s no problem. He can stay here. I need to go to UA’s campus tomorrow and can bring him. I’m sure he has enough homework to keep himself entertained. If he doesn’t I am right here to give him more.” 

There was another pause, Izuku was pretty sure he heard Master Inko’s laugh from the phone. Traitor. 

“Yes, I’m sure. He may be a little trouble, but it’s not like he’s a vigilante or anything.” Aizawa looked Izuku directly in the eyes when he said this. 

Izuku smiled slightly nervously and heard another laugh from the phone and he wondered what Aizawa was getting from his Master. Did he think she was Izuku’s accomplice? Or had he given up the idea of him being anything other than a simple high school student? 

“Of course.” 

Pause. 

“No problem.” 

Pause. 

“I’ll check before he goes to bed.” 

Pause. 

“Yes, I will let you know.” 

Pause. 

“No, please don’t worry about that.” 

Pause. 

“I’m sure.” 

Pause. 

“Okay, here’s your kid again.”

Aizawa handed the phone back over to Izuku and headed towards the kitchen. “He seems nice,” Master Inko said. 

“He’s a good teacher, but kind of intense.” 

“I heard that,” Aizawa said as he reached in to grab the curry. 

“I’m glad. I’m sorry this happened but we’ll figure it out when I get back into town.” 

“That sounds good. How are your negotiations going?”

“As well as can be expected. Progress is slow as ever, but having the deadline helps.” 

They talked for a few more minutes and then hung up. 

“Your mom seems nice,” Aizawa said, still eating curry. 

“She is, but super busy.” 

“Thanks for making dinner, by the way. I am going to crash and suggest you do the same. We’re visiting UA in the morning. All Might wants to talk to you and I need to see Recovery Girl. Any idea why All Might is looking to talk to you?”

“Um, I gave my word I wouldn’t tell anyone about it…” 

“Is it about his injury?” 

“You know?” Izuku asked. 

“All the staff does. We help cover for him. Good instincts not telling anyone though.” 

“Thanks.”

“Now go to bed, I might sleep tonight, so don’t wake me unless the world is ending.” 

With that Aizawa walked out of the living room and shut his bedroom door. 

Izuku stood and walked back to the kitchen to do the dishes. Wouldn’t do to leave his teacher’s house messy. When he was done he walked to the guest room with his suitcase. 

Arriving in the room, it was nicely done up. Western-style bed, some furniture, a closet. A room like one of the hundreds Izuku had stayed in throughout his life. There was a very tall window with access to the fire escape. 

He dropped his suitcase and went to look at the view. Not too much to see, just an alleyway but Izuku had to hold in a laugh when he saw that there was a thin piece of tape on the window, attached to the frame. A very middle school way to making sure no one sneaks out of the window, Izuku thought. 

Knowing Aizawa and the security of the building, there were probably sensors too, and the tape was just a warning. Part of Izuku wanted to remove the tape but not leave and see what his teacher did, but he was not suicidal. He would be a model guest for the next few days, even if that might confuse his teacher more. 

It was late, but not late enough for bed, so Izuku pulled out a book for his literature class and then meditated in bed until he fell asleep. 

The next morning dawned early with a loud knock on his door. Izuku was a light sleeper, from missions he’d been on and his training, and he was standing up almost before the second knock even hit the door. 

He was shirtless as the door burst open, “Get up. We’re going for a run.” There was a pause, “What the fuck happened to your chest?”

Izuku was surprised and looked down and saw a large colorful bruise. “Oh, I forgot about that. The Nomu hit me a little bit before I got a grip on it at one point in the fight.” 

“And you didn’t tell anyone? You could be more injured than you think.” 

Izuku was not. His body was telling him it was just superficial bruising. “It’s not that bad, just ugly.” 

“That’s not for you to decide.” Aizawa seemed pissed. “Did Recovery Girl look at it least?” 

“No.” 

“One of the first rules of heroics you’ll learn when you get to an agency is that you report every injury. Failure to do so can cost you or your fellow heroes their lives. When we get to UA, Recovery Girl is going to look at it.” 

“It’s not that bad,” Izuku insisted. 

Aizawa sighed. He mumbled something under his breath that Izuku couldn’t make out. It may have been, “Problem Child,” but Izuku was not sure. “Then there’s no reason not to go and see Recovery Girl, is there?”

Izuku knew he wasn’t going to get out of this so he just agreed and his teacher walked out of the room. Izuku looked at the clock beside his bed and saw it was 7 AM. It was nice to sleep in a little, and if Aizawa-sensei wanted to run he must have felt better, which was a good thing. 

They left for the run after a short, healthy breakfast. It was not a long run, and Aizawa was not running very fast, probably due to his injuries. Izuku kept pace and tried to make conversation but his teacher was seemingly not interested in talking. 

He pulled out his phone after showering and getting ready to go to UA. He wondered what All Might would want to talk to him about. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Me: Important note to save you embarrassment: Aizawa-sensei does not like to talk while he runs. He is also not a morning person, unsurprisingly. 

Uraraka: lol did you think otherwise???

Me: Not really, but he was also not a night person from what I saw last night. Maybe he’s an afternoon person 

Uraraka: midnight-sensei is a total night owl. i woke up at 4 and she was still up. i went back to bed. shes still sleeping now. 

Iida: Be respectful of our teachers! Also: I do not think there is any such thing as an afternoon person! Do not gossip either.

Me: Sorry, Iida! Was not trying to be rude. 

Uraraka: speak for urself, im a light sleeper and she was moving around all night.  

Izuku smiled at his friends. He hoped Shoto was alright because he hadn’t responded at all. Izuku decided to text him directly real quick. 

Shoto Todoroki

Me: Hey Shoto, hope you’re well-rested and are planning for some fun this weekend. 

Izuku was surprised at the fast response.

Shoto: You as well. I probably won’t have much fun, my father wants to train with me. He heard I used my fire.

Me: Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to cause issues with your family. 

Shoto: You didn’t. He is proud of me and it pisses me off. I hated using his power. 

Me: Promise me you’ll always remember it’s your power, Shoto. Not his. He shouldn’t force you to do anything you aren’t comfortable with. 

Shoto: That doesn’t stop him. I’ve got to go. 

Me: Bye!

That was a little concerning but Izuku hated texting because it was hard to get emotion out of it. He’d be sure to talk to Shoto on Monday. 

The walk to UA was short and when they arrived, Aizawa-Sensei walked him to the infirmary. Recovery Girl was just as angry, if not more so, at the fact that Izuku didn’t mention his injury yesterday. 

She kissed him saying, “If I ever catch you hiding injuries from me again you’ll be cleaning out bedpans until your children graduate UA.” 

Izuku apologized and bowed low to the Youthful Heroine. His chest did feel better, but it wasn’t that bad before. Aizawa told him where he needed to go to meet All Might while he had his followup treatment with Recovery Girl. 

Izuku walked through the empty hallways of the school, it was always strange being in an empty place that is usually so full. He arrived and knocked on the door. A deep voice said, “Come in,” and Izuku opened the door. The room had a small lounge with a couch, some chairs, and a small table. All Might, in his thinner form, gestured at Izuku to sit down on one of the chairs near him. 

“It’s good to see you well, Young Midoriya. Yesterday was a trying time for your class. For you and Young Todoroki especially. The two of you more than likely saved your teacher’s life. You should be proud.” 

“Thank you, All Might, but I was just doing what a hero is supposed to do.” 

He let out a small laugh, changing to a cough with blood coming up. “A fine answer. In this form, please refer to me as Toshinori. Toshinori Yagi is my given name.” 

“I wondered that. I assumed your parents hadn’t named you All Might.” 

That caused the older hero to laugh again. No blood this time. “Indeed. I wanted to talk to you about my condition. I feel I owe you an explanation as to why I look this way if I am to ask you to keep my secret.” 

“All Mi— Toshinori, you don’t owe me anything. I will gladly keep your secret at no cost.” 

The thin man smiled at him. “You are a fine young man, but please allow me this.” Izuku nodded. “Several years ago, I fought a dangerous villain. Perhaps one of the worst of the era of quirks. He was very strong and he did this to me.” Toshinori lifted his shirt and showed a terrible wound on his left side. “I lost several internal organs and was out of commission for many weeks.” 

“Did you defeat the villain? Who was it? I heard Toxic Chainsaw laid you up for a while?” 

“No, no. It was not Toxic Chainsaw. It was a villain I have done my best to keep hidden from the public. I thought him dead, but recent events lead me to believe he is still alive.” The man paused for a moment. “When quirks were first coming into existence, there lived a man who received a powerful one, the ability to give quirks. He had a younger brother who did not seem to have a quirk, so the older brother used his power and forced one upon the younger. But it turned out the younger brother did have a quirk, a simple and useless quirk on its own. What we call ‘invisible quirks’ today. It was the ability to pass down his quirk. To pass down his power from one generation to the next. The older brother was an incredibly evil man. The younger brother tried to reason with him, tried to bring him to the side of good, but his words did not work and so he took up arms against his brother, with his new quirk. 

The older brother gave the younger a stockpiling quirk. It gave him great strength but it was not enough. A stockpiling quirk is simple enough, but together with his original quirk… That strength could be passed down and grown. Eventually, the older brother killed the younger brother, but not before the power was passed down. Since then it has gone from generation to generation, growing stronger and stronger. A sacred torch passed down from person to person. Gaining in strength with each passing. It is a power called One For All.” 

“Surely the villain would be dead now, right? That was hundreds of years ago.” 

“Alas, no. The quirk he was granted was not just the ability to give but also to take them.” 

Izuku’s eyes widened and said under his breath, “All For One…” Toshinori immediately inflated to full-sized All Might, standing abruptly

“How do you know that name?” He demanded. 

Izuku was a little shocked at his teacher’s sudden transformation. The Force didn’t scream any warnings of danger, but the tenor of the man’s presence changed to the same overwhelming light it had been before. Several generations of a stockpiling quirk powering one man. That’s why his presence felt like it was more than one person. 

Izuku thought quickly while the other man waited, taking a deep breath. He used the Force to calm his nerves down. The Force was telling him to be honest, but Izuku wasn’t sure if that was a good idea. Izuku closed his eyes and reached out for more guidance. It kept pointing him towards the truth. He opened his eyes and nodded. 
“I lied to get into UA, All Might. I do not have a telekinetic quirk, in fact, I am clinically quirkless.” 

“My boy, I’ve seen you fight, you defeated many villains with your power. I’m afraid I don’t understand.” 

The large hero had deflated back down to his smaller size as he looked at Izuku who was reaching into his pockets while the other man was talking. Quietly he assembled the device while All Might watched him curiously. “I have no quirk, as I said.” Izuku ignited his green lightsaber as he stood in front of Toshinori. “I am a Jedi Padawan here on a mission of grave importance to the Jedi Council and the world. We have information that led us to believe that Sith are working with villains here with plans to attack Japan’s hero society, and beyond. I was sent to UA to infiltrate the school and stand ready should there be an attack.” 

He turned his lightsaber off and sat back down. All Might was still standing and he looked flabbergasted. “This was not how I expected today to go,” Toshinori said as he sat back in the couch with his hand over his face. 

“I get that a lot.” 

Toshinori let out another laugh. “I imagine so. I must say I have good taste.” 

“In what way?” 

“I originally asked you here to ask you to be my successor. I was set to pass the sacred torch of One for All down to you. You have all the qualities of the kind of hero I would like to pass it to. But I have worked with enough Jedi in my days to know that while I picked the best candidate, you are also one who won’t take it.” 

Izuku was momentarily overcome with humility that a hero of All Might’s caliber thought so much of him, even barely knowing him. “I am deeply honored to even be considered for this by you.” Izuku paused. “But I can not take your power.” 

“Power for its own sake is anathema to your Order. I do understand, my boy” 

Izuku nodded at the hero. “It is, it would be a temptation for me to use it and there is a reason that all Jedi are quirkless. Quirks and the Force don’t tend to work well together.” 

All Might nodded. “Indeed. Well, all my fretting and careful planning and now I am back to the drawing board. I only hope my second choice will be as good as my first.” Izuku blushed again. “Now, who knows of your Jedi heritage here at UA?”

“Just you for now. Aizawa-sensei thinks I’m a vigilante. I am pretty sure he has cameras in my room at his house making sure I am not doing anything illegal.” 

All Might laughed again, with blood this time. “I have to say, I never once thought you might be a Jedi, young Midoriya. Yes, you seemed skilled, but I assumed your parents trained you or had you trained.” 

“In a way, they did,” Izuku smiled dryly at the hero across from him. 

“Well, you have kept my secret, and I shall keep yours. If there is anything I can do to help you, please let me know.” 

Izuku smiled at the man, glad now that he was honest. “Well, I am concerned about the Sports Festival… I know it is coming up soon, but I’m not sure if I should compete in it or not. My face is not unknown in the wider world. I could be recognized.” Izuku paused. “Plus I do have an unfair advantage over many of the competitors with my training and skill.” 

All Might nodded. “I understand. Have you discussed it with your Master yet?” 

“No, she has been out of town but I will when she gets back. I imagine she will want me to sit it out too. But I would need a reason that will pass Aizawa’s scrutiny as well as that of my classmates.” 

All Might nodded. “Let me think on it, young Jedi. Together we will face whatever comes our way. How does the Jedi saying go? The Force will be with us.” 

Chapter Text

It was Sunday afternoon and it was the last day of Izuku’s stay at Aizawa-sensei’s apartment. Izuku could not wait to get back home and away from his suspicious teacher. Izuku was not stressed out, per se, rather he was just tired of constant scrutiny. It’s one thing on a mission where he could be attacked at any moment, but here in his teacher’s apartment, there was no escape. After Friday and their trip to UA, there seemed to be a new addition to the apartment, hidden cameras. 

Every moment Izuku felt eyes on him. The cameras in the house were constantly watching him. No matter where he went (except the bathroom, thank the Force) he felt the itchy sensation of being watched. Izuku was good at pretending it wasn’t happening but he had an inkling that Aizawa knew he was pretending not to notice. This only served to make the constantly tired teacher more suspicious. Izuku had no idea how to win this battle. 

But Izuku was being good! He had not set one toe out of line. He helped with chores and did everything his teacher asked. He was a model guest and there was no way that anyone could tell him otherwise. By now Izuku thought he knew where most of the cameras were and avoided looking at them. Anyone who reviewed the footage would think that Izuku was an unaware teenager enjoying his time at his teacher’s house. 

But the constant surveillance was getting to him. It was hard for him to quiet his mind and stop overthinking or planning for things that would never happen. Even when Aizawa went out on patrol late each evening, the feeling persisted. That could have been because his teacher never really went far. Izuku could feel him less than a block away. Aizawa’s was a presence Izuku knew very well in the Force after this weekend. He was stationary, seemingly standing on a building’s roof nearby. Probably waiting for Izuku to leave to do vigilante things? Izuku had no idea why the teacher thought he would leave the apartment at any point, even if he was a vigilante. It was a sure-fire way to get caught. No one would be stupid enough to risk that, would they? 

Izuku was bored with watching TV, he wished he could do something more active, but he didn’t want to ask in case it upset Aizawa, so he decided to text his friends. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Me: I think Aizawa-sensei hates me, fyi 

Iida: I doubt that very much! He’s a teacher and likes and respects all his students! 

Uraraka: except bakugo no one likes him 

Uraraka: ur probably right izuku. i can’t imagine living with you is easy 

Me: Wow, thanks, Uraraka. I have been a perfect guest. I even cleaned the bathrooms yesterday to try to get him to warm up to me. 

Uraraka: ur trying too hard 

Iida: I think it is admirable, what you’re doing, Midoriya. Going above and beyond as a house guest! There’s no way Aizawa-sensei could hate you! 

Izuku was about to respond when the door to the apartment slammed open and his teacher walked in looking unhappy. More unhappy than usual. 

Izuku swallowed involuntarily and then smiled at the teacher. “Good evening, sensei. I didn’t think you’d be back from patrol so early tonight. I hope it was successful for you.” 

Aizawa walked into the living room, where Izuku was on the couch and sat in one of the chairs nearby. “It was fine. Anything interesting happen here?”

Izuku thought for a moment. He ran over the question in his head a few times trying to figure out if it was a trick question. “Not really. I was just watching television and texting my friends.” 

Aizawa grunted and they settled into quiet for a few minutes, the drone of the television playing some action movie in the background. 

After a few minutes of quiet, Aizawa said, “You make no sense. I hope you know that, problem child.” 

Problem child, again? Izuku wasn’t sure what he did to deserve that title. “I don’t know what you mean sensei. I apologize for being a problem, it is not my intention. I am trying to be as good of a house guest as I can be.” 

“You’re too good. And it’s not just being a house guest. Teenagers don’t act like you. Hell, most adults don’t act like you. You’re too nice all the time. You don’t snark me even when you’re under considerable pressure. You barely show reactions to things that would send other 15-year-olds screaming. When you do act, you’re far too skilled. It is easy to tell you have real world experience. But there are no signs of you getting it at all. When we were at the USJ, I’ve watched the videos, you didn’t hesitate when you ripped the arms off the Nomu. Twice. You jumped right in and you would have probably won on your own even if All Might didn’t show up. That’s not even mentioning getting Todoroki to use his fire, which is something I’ve talked to him about several times since the recommendation exam. You are a puzzle that I can’t seem to solve, and I hate that more than pretty much anything else. It’s driving me mad.” 

Izuku was a little stunned that his teacher was confronting him like this. He knew it was frustrating for the teacher to not know all the answers, but this was a little much. “Um,” was all Izuku said while he tried to get his thoughts together. He opened himself up to the Force and used its calming reassurance to center himself. “Sensei, I’m sorry I am causing you this trouble. I am who I am. My experiences make me who I am, and I promise I have broken no international or Japanese laws. I have traveled a lot and I learned a lot along the way, and maybe I grew up faster than most kids. Moving a lot meant I didn’t have many friends growing up, and the ones I did were temporary or long-distance. It was hard, but I managed and am happy here. Is there anything I can do to prove myself to you?” 

Aizawa-sensei looked at Izuku long and hard. It was an awkward stare and Izuku turned a little red under it. “You know cameras are watching your every move here, don’t you?” 

Izuku blinked and scratched his neck. “Well, I kind of felt like I was being watched occasionally? I figured it was because the whole building seemed very secure, there are guards and cameras everywhere in the hallways and stairwells.” Izuku paused. “I know you think I am a vigilante or whatever, but I’m not. Even if I was, do you think I’d do anything suspicious while staying in your home?” 

Aizawa sighed. “See, that’s what I mean. You’re a teenager. Teenagers don’t think five minutes ahead of what they’re doing. Teenagers are not poised and confident when being confronted by their sleep-deprived teachers.” 

“Should I be concerned, sensei? Do you need me to call someone for you?” 

Izuku saw Aizawa clench his teeth. Izuku vaguely wondered if his teacher was going to snap or if this was an act to try to get him to confess. Izuku would not buckle, of course. So all he did was reach out with the Force and sent some calming feelings towards his teacher while he looked on, concerned. 

The teacher sighed. “No, it’s fine. I apologize. Confronting you was not rational. I am either seriously underestimating your training and experience or misjudging you. Either way, I was out of line. You are a student in my care and I have not made your time here easy. I am going to turn off the security cameras in the apartment and I hope that after you leave here tomorrow you do not think less of me.” 

Maybe Izuku sent too many calming thoughts towards his teacher. It was a rather dramatic reversal. Unless it was just an act? Was he for real or was he trying to throw Izuku off base? This teacher was too intense. Every day he spent here he thanked the Force that Aizawa-sensei was not his Jedi Master. He wouldn’t survive his Padawan years. 

“Of course I won’t think less of you, Aizawa-sensei. You’re doing your job and I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”

“Great,” Aizawa said lighter than he had been before. Then he turned serious, “But I will still be watching you. If you’re hiding something I will find it.” He paused and stared at Izuku for a few moments longer. “I’m going to sleep. I need to patrol again at 2. School tomorrow, you should sleep.” 

“Of course, sensei. Be safe.” 

Aizawa grunted and left Izuku alone in the living room. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Me: Yeah, I thought Aizawa was going to kill me there for a second but thankfully he just passed out. I am very much looking forward to being home tomorrow. 

Uraraka and Iida are typing… 

School was fine the next day. Not much happened other than the sports festival was officially announced. There was some concern by the students that it was a little soon after the USJ to be having the festival but the school decided to push forward with it anyways. 

He didn’t have much time to talk to his friends except at lunch as training was pretty intense that day. Before he knew it, he was heading back to his own home. He was thankful that he was not going to be staying with Aizawa-sensei again. The man was fine, but he needed to get some good rest and Izuku there was probably not helping his sleep schedule. Izuku could use some peace too, it was always hard for him to sleep when he was being watched. 

The walk home was quick and he got in the door and his Master was in the kitchen. He went to see her and bowed, happy that she was back. “Padawan! Welcome home.” 

“You too, Master. I missed you. Staying with Aizawa-sensei was… interesting.” 

“He seemed nice enough when we spoke on the phone.” 

“He is nice, but he is so convinced I am hiding something. He had hidden cameras on me all weekend, he interrogated me, tried to get me to sneak out and fight crime. Master, he taped the window of the guest room to try to catch me sneaking out.” 

Master Inko laughed. “It sounds more like your weekend was almost worse than the villain attack! Good subterfuge training for you.” 
 
“At least the villain attack at the USJ was over quickly. It was a long weekend, Master,” Izuku groaned.  

She smiled at him. “The council wanted to talk to you about the attack and what you learned.” 

“Oh, that reminds me! I thought they might want to. The Sports Festival is coming up soon at UA. I’m not sure I should participate but I don’t have a good way to get out of it that won’t make Aizawa-sensei even more suspicious.”

“We could plan the trip to see the Council on the same day as the sports festival?”

“But what will I tell UA? I’m off to Rome to report to my not-Masters on the Jedi council?”

“Keep your sass in check please, Padawan,” Master Inko said with a little smile. “I can take care of that, we need to go to Rome to visit my dying mother and you need to come with me. I’m too afraid to leave you alone here in Japan after what happened last time I was gone, plus you want to see your nana before she dies.” 

“Do you think that will work?” 

“I will be a helicopter parent, Padawan. And you can complain about it because you want to be in the festival but I’m so unfair.” 

“How long will we be gone?” 

“Just a few days. I will get you a note for your teacher in a few days.” 

“He may call you or something, he’s always suspicious of me.” 

“I’m sure it will be fine. We are going to Italy, so even if he checks our travel itinerary and with immigration control, he’ll see we are leaving the country to where we said.” 

“He might follow us if we go.” 

“Padawan, if he does that we’ll just tell him the truth. His suspicions of you currently work well for us because who would suspect someone your teacher, a pro hero, thinks is a vigilante is a Jedi? You really couldn’t ask for better cover.” 

 “I know. It’s just hard being undercover when someone is after you to mess up for a completely unrelated reason. It’s hard to stomach the irony, master.” 

Master Inko laughed lightly at the dramatics of her very teenaged Padawan. “The life of a Jedi is seldom easy, Padawan.” She paused. “Did anything interesting happen while I was gone?”

“Um, All Might offered me his quirk. It’s a really interesting one. But I said no and told him I was a Jedi.” 

Master Inko just stared at him for a moment. “He wanted to give you his… quirk?” 

“Yeah, All For One was involved with its creation a long time ago and can be passed on,” Izuku told her the rest of the story as she listened quietly. 

“This is not something we should spread around, Padawan. We will alert the council but no one else. Help All Might find the best successor he can. All For One being involved here does help to clarify matters. A missing piece. The Jedi were never fully convinced that he was defeated by All Might several years ago. There was nobody. His involvement could also tie in to how the Sith are involved.” 

Izuku talked to his Master for a few more minutes and finalized their plans to report directly to the Jedi Council when the sports festival was happening. Part of Izuku was sad to be missing the Sports Festival but it was better for his cover if he was not going to be present. 

At school over the next few days, there was a lot of excitement for the upcoming Sports Festival. Izuku had not yet told anyone at school, save All Might, that he was not competing. He was planning to discuss it with All Might sometime soon. Thus, Izuku acted nervous and excited for the upcoming festival. Even Aizawa thought he was genuine, as Izuku freaked out a little bit when he was told he was the player representative and needed to give a speech due to his entrance exam score. 

In their Foundational Heroics course, they were working on quirkless combat. They had been separated into pairs and were working on hand to hand. All Might knew their approximate skill level so total amateurs were not placed against black belts. Izuku had always held back a little in his hand to hand combat. He was not as skilled without his lightsaber as he was with it, but he was no slouch. Several of the students in the class had very high-level mastery of martial arts, and Izuku had not advertised his skills. Thus he was placed with Shoto, who was very well trained but more on quirk use than on martial arts. 

Izuku was glad to be with his friend. He felt kind of bad for Kirishima who was facing Bakugo. Bakugo seemed to be in a worse mood than normal. Kirishima didn’t seem to mind though. 

Izuku wandered over to Shoto and smiled at him. “So, what kind of experience do you have in quirkless combat?”

“A decent amount. My father made sure I was well trained, but I am not an expert like some of our classmates. Yourself?”

“I have some skills in unarmed combat, but I am more comfortable in armed combat.”

“Oh, do you know how to use a weapon?” 

“Yeah, I have been studying sword fighting since I was a little kid.” 

Shoto nodded at him, accepting that. They moved towards one of the fighting rings and stood across from each other. Shoto made the first move, closing the distance between them quickly. Izuku decided to go on the defensive to gage Shoto’s level of skill. He was not disappointed. 

Izuku felt that Shoto was favoring Judo moves and trying to get a grip on him. Even in quirkless fighting, Izuku saw that Shoto favored his right side. Too many years of focusing on that side of his body for his quirk. 

After a few more attacks from Shoto, Izuku decided to go on the offensive. He was not that skilled in Judo, which was more of a sport than an attack form so he went fell back onto what he knew. 

Teräs Käsi was an ancient martial art that all Jedi learned. Tradition held that it was created to combat Jedi but not many used it anymore. It was esoteric outside the Jedi Order but still practiced by some. Jedi learned it so they knew what to expect if they ran into it and how to counter its moves. It was a martial art that used the full body and incorporated strikes, grappling and throwing into the mix. 

Teräs Käsi attacks helped its practitioners by making fast attacks with a heavy emphasis on predicting what your enemy will do next. When a Jedi practiced Teräs Käsi there was the additional benefit of the Force to help predict what was coming next. A master of Teräs Käsi could often take out a person skilled in swordplay, even unarmed. Izuku as by no means a master, but he knew many of the moves and had an understanding of how to string them together. 

Shoto was on the defensive and seemed to be at a bit of a loss as if he was expecting to get a better understanding of what Izuku would do once he started to attack. Shoto seemed to be unfamiliar with Teräs Käsi which meant Izuku had an edge. Or so he thought. 

It was as if a switch was flipped because Shoto suddenly seemed much more proficient than he had. He wasn’t focusing on just Judo moves any longer, he was incorporating moves from various other martial arts. 

And thus Izuku was on the defensive again, but he was not overwhelmed by Shoto’s onslaught. Shoto was still favoring his right side, which Izuku decided to advantage of with a well-timed kick to his opponent's exposed left side. 

Shoto grunted and took a step back. “You’re leaving your left side too open, Shoto. Focus on covering there more or you’ll leave me additional openings.” 

Shoto nodded, looking a little ticked off. Izuku hoped it wasn’t at him but rather at the fact he was leaving himself open. After a moment Shoto nodded again indicating he was ready to go. This time Izuku was going to make the first move. 

Izuku attempted to do a charging move, where he was going to punch Shoto in the jaw. Shoto managed to block that. However, he was unprepared for the second part of the move which involved a hit with both arms on the opponent's neck. 

Shoto backpedaled right away but composed himself quickly and made a lunge towards Izuku which caught him off balance. On the defensive, Izuku used the momentum from Shoto’s attack which caused Shoto to overextend and stumble. 

Shoto stood up and smiled that small smile of his at Izuku. “You seem to be better at unarmed combat than you let on. I am by no means an expert, but I can tell you outclass me.” 

“You’re really good though! And I think you’ve got a solid grasp and once you get a better feel for my style, you’ll have better luck—“ 

Izuku was interrupted by a sudden attack from Shoto. He was not expecting that but saw a wry smile on his friend's face as he landed on the ground with a thud. Izuku let out a little huff of a laugh as he got back to his feet. “If you wanted me to stop talking, all you had to do was ask.” 

“Where’s the fun in that?” Shoto asked. 

“Fair enough. Good move too.” 

They continued to spar until almost the end of the lesson, giving each other pointers and helping each other out. Izuku was pleased with how it went and felt he had honed his skills and that Shoto had too. 

They were interrupted as they prepared for another spar by a voice, “If you’re are done fooling around with Half-and-Half, I can give you a real fight, nerd.” 

Bakugo. Izuku was not interested in fighting the other boy and looked to All Might who was walking towards the ruckus. He had a concerned look on his face. “If All Might doesn’t mind and Shoto can spar with Kirishima, I don’t have a problem with fighting you Bakugo. But remember, All Might set us partners based on how he perceived our skill levels.” 

“Are you saying you’re better than me? Fuck that. I can take you any day.” 

“Now, now. We barely have time for one more fight, but as young Midoriya said, I assigned the partners with great care based on your skills. I do not think this will be a good fight, young Bakugo.” 

“Screw that. Let’s do it. I’ll show you what a loser you are.” 

Izuku sighed. “If you insist.” 

Todoroki moved to the side near where All Might and Kirishima were standing. It looked like they were going to watch the fight as opposed to fighting each other. Shoto looked vaguely interested and had a small smile on his face. Kirishima seemed a little worried, but Izuku wasn’t sure why.   

“I’m going to destroy you. Without your fancy quirk, you’re nothing. I don’t need a quirk to own you, so prepare to go down.” 

“That reminds me of an old saying I once heard, ‘Twice the pride, double the fall.’” 

Kirishima and Kaminari, who somehow appeared on the edge of the ring, made an odd ‘oh-ing’ noise that Izuku associated with appreciating someone’s trash talk. A few more groups stopped fighting and were gathering to watch the fight. Bakugo stood across from Izuku and they both looked at All Might to count them down. 

Izuku had a few options here. He knew he could take his classmate down very quickly and easily. He could throw the match and let Bakugo win, which was not appealing to Izuku at all. Or he could use the sparring match as a lesson for the other boy to improve his skills and attitude, but that didn’t seem to do much last time. Maybe the best thing to do was show him he was not the biggest fish in the pond. Izuku reached out with the Force and felt at peace with the world around him. 

All Might started the match and almost before he said “Go,” Bakugo was rushing Izuku screaming incoherently. It was not unexpected. Bakugo probably wanted to end the fight quickly and he was a bit of a berserker. Neither of them were at their best, but as a Jedi, Izuku was trained to fight well even while sleep-deprived and exhausted. The other boy seemed to have lost a step due to the long afternoon of fighting Kirishima. 

Bakugo was telegraphing his move, it looked like a right hook was incoming. Izuku stepped slightly to the side and planted his feet firmly. As Bakugo’s punch came towards him, Izuku grabbed the boy’s arm and used his momentum to lift him into the air and flip him. He landed on his back on the padded floor with a loud thud. Before Bakugo could react, Izuku moved one of his feet and placed it lightly over the other boy’s throat, signaling the end of the spar. 

Bakugo was red in the face and steaming mad. “What the fuck, that’s it? One little move and you think we’re done?” Bakugo tried to get up, shoving Izuku’s foot out off of his throat and grabbing on to it, pulling Izuku down. 

Izuku was prepared for this and fell intentionally. When he landed he had pushed Bakugo back down using his entire body’s weight to hold him down. Bakugo was pinned and struggling. 

“Young Bakugo, the match is over. You’re both tired, save your fighting spirit for the Sports Festival! There you will come at each other much fresher!” 

Izuku stood up carefully, both to not hurt Bakugo and to be on guard in case the other boy wouldn’t listen to his teacher. Izuku offered his hand to help the other boy up. Bakugo scowled and didn’t take the proffered hand but rather just stood up on his own and moved a few steps away from Izuku. “You got lucky. All Might’s right, I am going to enjoy taking you down at the Sports Festival in front of all of Japan.” 

“I’ll look forward to our inevitable confrontations, Bakugo,” Izuku said as he bowed. 

The other boy scoffed and stomped towards the locker rooms. 

Shoto walked over to him with that small smile of his on his still on his face. “That was over faster than I thought it would be.” 

“He was tired. I’m sure if he was fresh it would have been a harder fight.” 

“Indeed, young Midoriya! A pro hero must always be cognizant of their condition before entering a fight. I’d like to speak to you after class today if you have the chance.”

Izuku nodded at him and moved with the rest of the class to the locker rooms to change out of their gym clothes. 

He said goodbye to his friends and went to meet All Might in his office. 

All Might, in his small form, looked up when Izuku walked into the room. “Good to see you, my boy. You did well in class today.” Izuku smiled at him. “Have you talked with your Master about the Sports Festival?”

“Yes, the Council wants my Master and me to report to them in person soon. We will plan it for when the Sports Festival is taking place. We’ll be saying my grandmother is ill in Rome and need to visit her before she dies. I’m supposed to be an angsty and disappointed teenager because of this.”

Izuku’s face takes on a fake pout, causing All Might to laugh. “I look forward to seeing that. I have news for you, I talked to … an old mentor of mine. I asked him if he would be willing to take on a student for an internship. He’s very intense but trustworthy. I did not explain your full situation or your status, I leave that to you if you wish it.” 

“That’s great, thank you All Might!” 

“Not a problem, my boy. Even hero students who do not get any internship offers will have an internship. My old mentor, Gran Torino, is who will take you on. He has worked with Jedi in the past, and since you’ll be living with him for a week, having someone who you can trust is important.”

“Tell me about it. Living all weekend with Aizawa was intense. He is so suspicious of me. I thought he was going to have an aneurysm towards the end.” 

All Might let out a loud laugh, worthy of his bigger form. “Indeed. I will try to speak to him again while you’re away to dissuade him from being too overtly suspicious of you. He’s mentioned it at staff meetings several times.” 

Izuku sighed. “I don’t think anything will change his mind, even if he saw me pull my lightsaber out and fight some villains with it, he’d still ask for my license first thing.” 

“I’m sure that’s not true. You should consider telling him.”

“My master and I thought of it, but his suspicion of my vigilante activities provides a nice distraction to my actual status as a Jedi.” 

“Ah, hiding in plain sight. He’ll be very put out with you when the truth does come out.” 

“I know, but it is what it is…” 

All Might and Izuku talked for a few more minutes and then said their goodbye. 

He walked out of the mostly empty school, planning to head straight home. Before he could even leave campus he hears a shout, “Hey nerd!” 

Izuku turned around and saw Bakugo walking towards him. He held in a sigh. “Hello again, Bakugo.” 

“You must think you’re such hot shit. All Might’s favorite. Tch. You keep looking down on me, showing off. You better watch out, you’re going down at the sports festival. None of this quirkless fighting shit. I’m going to win.” 

Izuku paused. The other boy was up in his face. “Bakugo, I apologize if you feel that I am looking down on you. I am not, you are a very strong person and I think you’re going to be a very strong hero.” 

“Fuck yeah I will be.” 

Izuku knew that he didn’t need to say anything more, but maybe the other boy needed to hear some things. Izuku was not one to miss an opportunity to meddle. “I am not saying this to tell you off or anything, it’s just an observation. Being a strong hero is not always the same as being a good hero. Not all good heroes are strong, and not all strong heroes are good. The best heroes, like All Might, are both. I think you have the capability to be both too, but you need to work at it as we all do. That’s why we’re in hero school, right?”

Bakugo was making a noise kind of like growling while baring his teeth. He didn’t seem any angrier than he had been before, and maybe he was listening to what Izuku had said. “I don’t like you. You’re always acting like you’re better than everyone. That you know more. That you’ve done more. And the worst part? I can tell you know your shit. It pisses me off. But I know it will feel even better when I beat your ass at the Sports Festival.” 

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to fighting you too, Bakugo. But don’t think I’ll make it easy for you!” Bakugo grunted and walked away. Izuku felt kind of bad for saying that when he knew he was going to be missing the festival but what else could he do? He hoped they could at least maintain a working relationship with each other. The rest of his trip home was quiet. 

Three days before the sports festival, Izuku was standing in his empty classroom at lunchtime handing a note to Aizawa-Sensei. Izuku tried to look like a good student who was at the same time disappointed about something. He had made sure to be quieter than normal all day today and he was sure his friends had noticed and were concerned. 

“Your grandmother is ill and so you’re missing the Sports Festival?” Aizawa-sensei said, sounding incredulous.

“I guess so,” Izuku said. 

“You realize this is one of the biggest events of the school year? That heroes from all over Japan will be watching, looking for future talent?” 

Izuku took a deep breath before responding, “Yes, Aizawa-sensei.” 

“And there’s no other time you can go visit her?” 

“The doctors think she will be passing away in the next few days.” 

“I am sorry to hear that, Midoriya. And I understand why you need to go. If I can ask, you don’t seem yourself today.” 

Izuku sighed. “My mom and I fought. I didn’t want to miss the Sports Festival and she said I had to go with her. I would have been fine here, but she said it was important to see nana before she dies.” 

“So back to America for a few days?”

“No, my grandmother lives in Rome. She retired there or something.” 

“You get around, don’t you?” 

“Yes, sensei.” 

“Well I won’t say I am not disappointed but that’s life sometimes. Since there’s no school for a few days after the festival, academically it is a good time to miss a few days. And you’ll be able to make a bigger splash next year. When are you leaving?” 

Aizawa-sensei was taking this a lot better than Izuku thought he would. His grandmother is dying, and Aizawa is not heartless. But still, it seemed easier than he expected it to be. 

“Yeah, I will be leaving after school today. I should be back in class on Monday or Tuesday.” 

“Alright, I’ll file this with the office. They may call your mother to confirm this is accurate. Now get to lunch, I’m sure your friends are missing you.” 

“Thanks, sensei.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“You can’t be serious!” 

“But it’s the Sports Festival!” 

“Guys, guys calm down,” Izuku said as his friend group went a little crazy when he told them why he was not acting like himself today. Well, Tsu, Iida, and Uraraka all had. Momo and Shoto were quiet. Tsu, Iida, and Uraraka all talked over each other, almost shouting their distress that he was going to miss the festival. 

“That’s a shame,” Shoto said. “Why are you missing it?” 

Izuku sighed. “I have to go to Italy tonight. My grandmother is not doing well and the doctors think she could pass away any day now. So mom and I are going to see her.” 

“I’m so sorry you have to go through this,” Momo said. Everyone else chimed in with similar sentiments. 

“Thank you, I am too. It’s just bad timing I guess. I’ll watch the livestream. It will be like 2 AM local time, so I should still be able to see you guys kick butt!” 

“It won’t be the same though!” Uraraka said. 

Izuku smirked and sat back in his chair. “Well, on the bright side, without me there you guys have a better chance of winning.” 

That caused a bit of an uproar among his friends and the rest of lunch passed quickly, with friendly banter. 

Coming back to Rome always felt the same to Izuku. Even after a thirteen-hour flight from Tokyo, Rome felt like home. 

Reporting to the council had been easy, but long. They could have done it via a secure phone call honestly, but it was nice to have a good excuse to visit the Temple. Izuku had run into one of his friends at the Temple too and they hung out for a while before she had left on a mission. 

He received a strange text message from All Might saying Aizawa-sensei was still suspicious of him and had confronted All Might about knowing his secret. He said to watch his back. But what did that mean? Aizawa wouldn’t be in Rome or anything. And even if he was, it was a huge city. Right? 

The Sports Festival was going on now. Izuku had decided to stay up until it started since 2 AM was a terrible time to wake up. He wandered out of the Temple and down to the Roman Forum to was streaming the fights. He always loved sunrise over the forum, and he’d probably be sitting there in a few hours as the sports festival didn’t wasn’t over quick.

The time difference was annoying, but he told his friends he’d watch it and has been texting them as he did. His earbuds were in place and he could hear the commentating of Present Mic and, surprisingly, Aizawa-sensei. Izuku had half-expected his teacher to follow him to Rome. Thankfully his full-time job prevented that… 

There had been a race in which Shoto won first place followed up by a team cavalry battle. Each winner of the race was assigned a points value and Shoto had 10 million, which was more than all the rest combined. Shoto successfully defended the headband from Bakugo and the others in the second round, much to Bakugo’s anger. 

The third round was a tournament of one on one fights. It looked like most of his friends had gotten into the third round and Izuku was happy to be cheering them on. The bracket had some very interesting fights on it.

There were a few names Izuku didn’t know. Some seemed to be class 1-B students, but a few were total unknowns to him. Izuku thought that Shoto or Bakugo was probably going to win. He assumed that the teachers might feel the same as they were in different sections of the bracket and would not be able to fight until the finals. 

His friends had some good fights, Tsu and Iida got to the second round,  Yaoyorozu to the third, and Shoto to the finals. Uraraka put up an amazing fight against Bakugo, but he was too strong in the end and survived her sneak attack.  Yaoyorozu and Iida fought each other in the second round, and Yaoyorozu was the victor there. They both fought well. 

The final was… explosive. Bakugo was going very hard, but not able to land many hits on Shoto who could use his fire and ice to great effect. Shoto was keeping his distance, and his abilities were very good for long-range fights. 

It looked like they were talking to each other. Or Shoto was talking and Bakugo was screaming. The audio did not come through his phone and lip reading was too hard with the angles. He’d ask Shoto about it later. 

It looked like Bakugo was going to launch a major attack, but Shoto sent a small burst of flame towards the other boy and caused a premature explosion. Izuku winced as Bakugo was knocked back and on the ground. He looked very angry and burnt but got up quickly to dodge an incoming iceberg. 

Before Bakugo could get his footing, Shoto shot out more ice, trapping the other boy. Bakugo started blowing up the ice with his explosions, and Shoto paused and waited. When Bakugo was bending over to try to break out his feet, Shoto sent more ice encapsulating the other boy. 

It looked like Bakugo was stuck now by his hands and feet in ice. Izuku wasn’t sure if he’d be able to get out of this one. Midnight-sensei shouted over to Bakguo to see if he was able to continue. His sweat was probably having trouble forming at this point due to the cold. Izuku couldn’t hear what Bakugo said, but Shoto was declared the winner of the tournament. 
Izuku changed apps to text his friends. 

Group Chat: Friends! ٩(◕‿◕｡)۶

Me: You guys were so awesome! Congrats Shoto! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧*

Uraraka: i got out in the first round not sure how awesome that was 

Me: Uraraka! Don’t say that. You made it to the top 16 students and lost to the silver medalist of the whole tournament. You’re going to be flooded with internship offers, I’m sure! 

Iida: Indeed. It seems our entire friend group made it to the final round. I was disappointed I did not get further, but Yaoyorozu beat me honorably. 

Momo: You fought well, Iida! Bakugo was a very tough competitor, Uraraka. 

Tsu: I knew I’d have trouble with Todoroki. Ice is not my strong suit. Neither is fire. Kero. 

Me: Where is Shoto? He was amazing. When he made Bakugo’s attack blow up in his face. Perfection. (^ω^)ノﾞ(((((((((●～*

Momo: I saw him speaking to his father after the awards ceremony. 

Me: Oh. Well if you see him, tell him I said congrats! I need to go to bed. 

Uraraka: i forgot there was a time difference

Me: Yeah, it started at 2 AM in Rome. 

Iida: 2 AM! You must not have gotten much sleep! You need to make sure you get plenty of rest! 

Me: I didn’t get any sleep, I just stayed up. Sun is rising now, I am in the Roman Forum. It’s kind of amazing honestly. 

Tsu: How’s your grandmother? 

Me: She passed away last night. We’re going to have a funeral for her in a few days and then be back home. Hoping for Tuesday. 

Izuku put his phone away as he got a few notifications from his friends expressing their condolences. He walked back towards the Jedi Temple. While they were in Rome he and his Master were writing reports and being debriefed by the council and other Masters. They were very curious as to the revelation that All For One was involved worried the council enough to dispatch another Jedi to Japan for backup if it was needed. Sith working with All For One meant trouble. 

The next few days passed quickly and before he knew it, it was time to return to Japan. Izuku felt he would miss the Temple, as he always did, but Japan and UA were starting to feel more like home too. He felt that he’d be very sad when the mission was over.