Work Text:
"You're going to have some third years talk to you about your hero work studies and exactly what they entail." Aizawa droned, and Ochako was sure, that everyone else held their breaths just as the trio entered. Despite their teacher's unenthusiastic words.
"Well, this is the class that got attacked by the League of Villains? I'm impressed." A deep voice comes from the door, and into view, enters a very familiar young man. One Ochako's seen on TV and heard of, way too many times.
Todoroki Shouto.
The No. 1 Pro Hero's son...he was equally strong, if not stronger, in his own right. With a powerful Quirk, and a cool, level-headed way of thinking, (no pun intended) messing with him was definitely not for the best.
"Todoroki Shouto-senpai? Isn't he a part of U.A's Big Three?" Sero asks, amazed.
"Forget being part of the Big Three itself- this is the same guy who blew up the grounds during last year's Sports Festival!" Kirishima says, sounding amazed.
"And during his first year Sports Festival too! He's really powerful!" Togata adds, eyes sparkling like stars.
"He's impressed by us?" Amajiki asks quietly, eyes wide.
"The Big Three? Sensei bought the Big Three here?!" Ashido yells, mouth ajar.
"Well, Todoroki, it seems like you've already made a good impression on them." Aizawa is heard muttering to Todoroki Shouto, who shrugs gracefully.
"Sensei, you're bringing U.A's Big Three here?" Ochako bursts out, amazed.
Aizawa snorts. "They insisted. Don't let their reputations fool you- they were and are just as foolhardy as you problem children are. The only difference was that they didn't get attacked by the League of Villains."
"I don't understand why you or the HPSC don't let us take care of it. They're just going to become a bigger threat. Instead, the first years get roped into their nonsense." Todoroki says with a disapproving frown, folding his arms, even as Hagakure and Ashido swoon in the back.
Wow, he's blunt. Ochako thinks, blinking in surprise.
Aizawa sighs. "You three haven't graduated yet. Remember that, for heaven's sake."
"Shouto-san, you could bear to lighten up a little. They're just kids, they don't deserve you being this serious so early." A feminine voice says, and then a really pretty girl enters, smiling wryly. The class blushes immediately upon seeing her, Ochako included.
Yaoyorozu Momo.
She had gotten second in last year's Sports Festival, just behind...him. Yaoyorozu was the smartest student in U.A, and her Quirk- the way she utilized it, especially during her last Sports Festival....Yaoyorozu was what every girl in U.A honestly dreamed of being.
"Yaoyorozu-senpai?!"
"Holy cow- I can't believe U.A's Big Three are here!"
"Didn't she make a jetpack to deal with some villain gang once?!"
"Yeah- she had rocket boots on too! Yaoyorozu-senpai is just so super cool!"
Aizawa's drawl interrupts Ochako's thoughts. "Yaoyorozu, have you still not made Todoroki shut up?"
The girl smiles wryly. "Sensei, you and I both know there's only one person that can make Shouto-san shut up, and..."
Todoroki just rolls his eyes haughtily.
"Understood. Everything is the same as it is and I still need a blindfold." Aizawa droned out, while the class blinked in confusion, muttering among themselves in confusion as Ochako stared at them in confusion.
Then last, comes a tall, very tall young man with unruly green hair maintained under a undercut, grinning broadly. "Momo-san, leave Shoucchan to his theatrics. You know he likes them."
Midoriya Izuku.
The strongest student in U.A. He was featured in almost every major villain capturing- always somehow having had a hand with said villain capturing. Ochako used to consider ever seeing him in person a dream, honestly. Midoriya had been spoken highly of by every single teacher, even All Might himself!
Ochako then squawks at the cutesy nickname Midoriya has for Todoroki- she hadn't imagined somebody that intimidating would have such a....cute nickname.
Then again...Ochako eyes the rest of the class, who are eyeing Midoriya and Todoroki with interest (though Bakugou seems strangely pinched for some weird reason) for...obvious reasons.
It was a known fact in U.A that Todoroki Shouto and Midoriya Izuku were dating, after all.
They sure are dating...Ochako thinks dubiously, watching Todoroki quickly stifle a pleased smile, chuckling at Midoriya's entry. Ashido and Hadou in particular, seemed very interested in Todoroki and Midoriya, much to....nobody's surprise.
"You people never let me have any fun." Todoroki then deadpans, before regarding the class with keen eyes, one hand on his hip.
Ochako looks around, wondering if anyone is looking nervous just as she is- Amajiki is regarding them with wide eyes, almost as if he thinks they are cool, and yes, while Ochako agrees, they're also pretty scary. Bakugou is looking ready to be lowered into his grave, and is doing everything he can not to look the three of them in the face. Togata and Hadou regard them challengingly, and Ochako has to admire their nerve.
"Everyone. U.A's Big Three." Aizawa says, sounding ready to be killed any moment.
Todoroki shrugs a shoulder, hand still on his hip. "I'm Todoroki Shouto from Class 3-B."
Ochako's taken aback by his....attitude, to say the least. Though, he doesn't seem like a jerk, just...confident. Arrogantly so, but something tells Ochako he isn't a bad guy, exactly. But people had commented that he wasn't so much of an ice prince as he seemed.
Somebody, Togata maybe, had told her how nice Todoroki was to kids.
But the knowledge of that fact didn't stop Ochako from seeing at how Todoroki was cutting an imposing figure. Ochako would shiver if she could.
Yaoyorozu shakes her head before smiling and bowing. "I'm Yaoyorozu Momo from Class 3-B, everyone. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance!" She says pleasantly, but she holds a confidence and grace that Ochako can only dream of having.
Midoriya bows and grins at them. "I'm Midoriya Izuku, from class 3-A! Nice to meet you guys." He says, smile friendly.
Midoriya-senpai and Todoroki-senpai are in different classes? Wow.
"These three," Aizawa now drones, making Ochako jump in surprise. "Are the top hero candidates in all of Japan. Their powers are on par, if not already having surpassed, that of existing Pro Heroes-"
Whoa. Everybody knew it already, but to hear Aizawa, Eraserhead, acknowledge it though...it wasn't like Ochako hadn't heard of the Big Three's exploits, and watched their Sports Festivals, but it still intimidated everybody, clearly.
Midoriya laughs bashfully, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sensei, you give us too much credit, don't you think?"
Todoroki elbows him, a deadpan expression on his face. However, his eyes are glinting playfully, as Izuku gives him a wounded look.
Yep. Definitely dating.
Somebody lets out a muffled groan, and when Ochako turns to look at who it is, she finds Bakugou holding his head and looking determinedly at the table, albeit in a pinched manner.
Huh. That was weird. But Ochako didn't really have to care what expression Bakugou gave anyway so-
"Izuku, you already beat up that pathetic excuse of a No. 1 Hero, give yourself more credit." Todoroki says, voice the softest Ochako's heard in the few minutes since she's met him.
What.
Ochako then just stares at Todoroki, just as everybody else does. Bakugou seems to let out what is a constipated groan.
Did he just....insult the No. 1 Pro Hero?
Did Midoriya-senpai beat up the No. 1 Pro Hero?!
What's going on here?!
Midoriya's face reddens to a shade distinctly darker than Kirishima's hair. "Shoucchan!"
Todoroki then stared at the class. "Your teacher is right. We could take on a few Pro Heroes if we wanted to."
Ochako's smile dims as Yaoyorozu face-palms, clearly looking used to this.
He's got some nerve!
Aizawa looks ready to drop dead somewhere. "As I was saying before a few problematic children interrupted me-"
"You'd run over to us if we were in danger, Sensei, you don't think we're that problematic." Todoroki deadpans. Midoriya hides an embarrassed laugh behind his palm and Yaoyorozu hides a grin.
Ochako starts to like Todoroki's apparently never-ending sassy nerve. She only wishes she could be that confident, honestly.
Togata snorts loudly, before hurriedly hiding his face at the look on their teacher's face.
Aizawa stares at Todoroki. "I will have somebody gag you right here, Todoroki, without any hesitation."
Ochako notes that Aizawa's stare is significantly less harsh however, and he just sounds very tired, not as annoyed as the words make him out to be. Then his words register in Ochako's brain.
Wow. Ochako thinks, as Todoroki raises an eyebrow.
"Shouto-san just can't be silenced that easily, Aizawa-sensei." Yaoyorozu notes to herself, shaking her head.
"Unfortunately." Aizawa drones, looking very dead inside.
"I've been silenced for fifteen years, Momo." Todoroki says, and it's very hard to guess if he's making a joke or if he's being serious.
Midoriya simply snorts, cheeks flushing red as he smiles at Todoroki in a very cheesy way. It's something fond, bordering on intimate, and Todoroki himself glances at Midoriya with a softer expression on his face.
Wow.
"I'd like it if you could be just as glib talking about what they'd be facing during Hero Work Studies, Todoroki." Aizawa says simply.
Todoroki shrugs before facing the class, any humor he once had now dissipating. The class instinctively straightens up upon being faced with his piercing, inquisitive gaze. "All of you have faced the League of Villains on more than one occasion, yes?"
Ochako swallows, the memory of Toga and the other villains during the training camp is a very grim and sobering reminder. The class falls silent, before nodding.
"And I assume you all received your Provisional Hero Licenses?"
The class nods again; there's something about Todoroki that makes you want to listen to him, something that will make you feel fall flat if you don't. Ochako supposes it's the sense of....authority around him.
"Aizawa-sensei must have told you about what they entail, because he pretty much gave us the same speech when we were in 1-A." Aizawa just exhales as Todoroki continues speaking. "This is a far more formal way of doing your internships, but the difference is that you gain experience."
Ochako listens, surprised at how far more serious Todoroki appears now. And how much sense his words actually make.
"Even if you've faced down a terrorist organization, which you have, we've got the edge on you by virtue of getting time to work on our hero work studies; we got time to strengthen our Quirks, face their drawbacks and weaknesses, and work with other pros on the field. That's what hero work studies help you out with. But it's difficult to explain fully without you having experienced it firsthand." Todoroki explains, the class regarding him with awe, Ochako included.
"So you're basically telling us to see it for ourselves, Todoroki-senpai?" Hadou asks, curious.
Todoroki nods. That's when Yaoyorozu pops in, smiling. Midoriya just face-palms himself. This once again confuses Ochako, but that's when Yaoyorozu explains.
"You're right! That's why..." Yaoyorozu's smile turns mischievous.
Todoroki's eyes glint. "To better understand what we want to say, you'll be facing one of us. All of you, together, against one of U.A's Big Three."
Ochako widens her eyes.
What?!
Midoriya groans. "Guys, I keep telling you this is a bad idea- I can't exactly beat up twenty kids in a crowd, that's kinda overkill, don't you think?"
Ochako blinks.
...Huh?
Yaoyorozu huffs. "Izuku-san, stop selling yourself short. And besides, we already agreed on how that would be the best way to show them, didn't we?"
Todoroki just rolls his eyes as Midoriya sighs.
"We can take one of you on, no problem!"
Ochako turns to look at Togata, whose blue eyes are shining with unmatched confidence. The three upperclassmen regard Togata with varying levels of surprise and interest, causing Ochako to wonder if her classmate just signed their death warrant.
Bakugou stares at Togata. "You're fuckin' insane. Those three could step on you, no problem." He says, slowly.
Togata laughs. "I'd like to see them try!"
"We'll take you on, any day!" Kirishima yells, punching his fist in the air.
A slow smirk cuts across Todoroki's face. It's very foreboding, and Ochako tries not to look at it for far too long.
The class then goes up into cheers, determined looks on their faces. Ochako's wondering if she's the only one who caught Todoroki's rather affectionate remark about Midoriya having beat up Endeavor, (wow, isn't that a weird thing and first of all, is it even true?!) before looking at a very pale faced Iida and Amajiki and a very tired looking Bakugou, sighing in relief that she's not the only one.
Midoriya exhales, before smiling wryly. "Well, I suppose we have no choice then. Well, if everybody insists, I'll face all of you in a fight!" Midoriya then looks at Aizawa with a placating smile. "If that'll be okay with you, Sensei?"
Aizawa actually waves a hand. "This is your demonstration, problem child, go do whatever you want."
Midoriya grins, and it's only just slightly wild. "Well, everyone, let's get going to Gym Gamma!"
Ochako has a bad feeling about this.
"These kids are pretty laughable." Shouto says to Momo, who shakes her head.
"They really don't know they're going up against All Might's protégé, are they?" Momo asks with a sigh, before smiling at the way the first years regarded Izuku challengingly.
Shouto has to commend them for spreading around- Izuku was more of a short range fighter.
But, oh well, that's what Blackwhip's for.
Shouto now snorted. "Izuku didn't want it going around for a reason."
One for All. A stockpiling quirk Izuku had received from All Might as a young child after having saved an old woman from a villain, even though he was all of ten years old. The one Quirk that stood against evil itself.
These kids had no idea they were up against All Might's successor, and Shouto intended to keep it that way- hence him having stopped Momo from warning the first years. If they thought they could handle Izuku, who were Shouto and Momo to dispute that ridiculous joke?
"Izuku's had seven years to master this Quirk. He showed Nighteye, didn't he? These kids are just small fries." Shouto says, off-handedly, before spotting Bakugou standing next to Aizawa with a grim face.
Shouto smirks. "Bakugou decided to sit out of this one."
Momo snorts. "He's the one who watched you and Izuku-san duke it out in your first-year Sports Festival. Of course he knows what Izuku-san is capable of."
Shouto snorts, folding his arms. "And you forget that Izuku is his hero role model. There's no way he's going up against Izuku of all the people."
Momo laughs. "True that, Shouto-san." She then regards the first years with a pitying smile. "They have no idea what they're in for, are they?"
Shouto barks out a laugh as he sees Blackwhip flicker around Izuku. "No. No, they don't."
Izuku's taken the time to look at all twenty of the kids- you had to study up on an adversary......even if you were leagues ahead of them.
(He's pretty amused at the fact Kacchan decided to sit this one out. Then again, he doesn't blame the kid really. Kacchan's been beaten up by him and Shouto more times than the kid's been a loudmouth.)
So he's not surprised when Kirishima Eijirou and Togata Mirio are the first to attack. Permeation and Hardening? Izuku can work with that. Using Blackwhip to catch a charging Kirishima from where he's standing, before floating as he recognizes Togata's disappeared form trying to attack somewhere nearby. The kid's got great speed, Izuku will give him that. Once Kirishima lets out a surprised cry, Izuku flings him into the wall with a swing of Blackwhip, just right into where he knows Togata's aiming to attack.
The two collide into the wall, and Izuku smiles.
Two down for the count.
Yaoyorozu Momo is a very patient woman. But to watch a very in love Todoroki Shouto is a very exhausting ordeal.
Unfortunately, she's more than immune to this.
Shouto's leaning forward on the railing, appearing casual but also clearly very interested as he watches Izuku take down those energetic first years with Blackwhip. Obviously Izuku didn't even need to use One for All, but he was just using it to even the playing field.
Momo sighs as Shouto's face turns faintly flushed. And then he sighs a little.
Here we go again.
A tongue comes to the left, and Izuku smiles wider, before using Blackwhip to get a hold of Asui Tsuyu's Quirk, still floating in mid air. He then launches himself downward to the ground with enough force to weaken Asui, sensing Uraraka Ochako and Tokoyami Fumikage attempt to launch their Quirks at him. With his other hand, he crosses his fingers for a simple Smash, before flicking them, crying out "Smash!" as he does so. A shockwave accompanies the motion, and he lets go of Asui forcefully, causing her to get catapulted to another wall.
Three more down. Five in a total of two minutes. Izuku grins to himself.
"Shouto-san, you better be glad nobody has a mind reading Quirk in here." Momo says placidly. Shouto, whose eyes had been half-lidded as he had watched Izuku take down the first years one by one, blinks rapidly and looks at Momo before giving her an unimpressed look.
"It's not like you do, anyway." Shouto deadpans, and Momo smacks his head with a miniature matryoshka doll. Shouto barely flinches, considering it's their little inside joke now, and Momo barely smacks him hard enough to hurt anyway.
Shouto then shrugs. "Not my fault he looks good."
Momo laughs. "He's beating up a bunch of first years, Shouto-san."
Shouto raises a white eyebrow. "That's not my problem. They're the ones who rose to the challenge."
Momo snickers as Shouto goes back to staring at Izuku shamelessly.
"Oh fuck," she hears Shouto mutter with a heated growl to the words when Izuku grins wildly, sweat running down one side of his exposed, well-muscled neck.
Oh boy, Momo thinks resignedly.
A disturbance in the air above him alerts him, and he somersaults backwards, before landing and grinning at Amajiki Tamaki's octopus tentacles, noting that the other half of his body was replaced by a hawk's wing. That was one heck of a Quirk, and Izuku was surprised the boy had such good control of it honestly. Hadou Nejire is behind Amajiki, eyeing him warily.
How to handle this one...Should he use Shoot Style? Those two, while they hadn't performed exactly well in their Sports Festivals-
Behind you! Izuku's mind hollered in Gran Torino's voice, and Izuku's hand outstretched, before grabbing the hand, resulting in a feminine cry of pain. Huh. Izuku then flung her over to the ground, noting with surprise that it was Ashido Mina and he had just grabbed on to a hand full of acid.
Well, no bother, Izuku thinks, using his healing Quirk on his right hand before the acid can burn his skin off. He lets go, grinning before noting the laser coming from his right. Maneuvering to the right with a backflip, Izuku grinned at Aoyama Yuuga's Quirk, before using Blackwhip to get a hold of him and knock him into the wall unconscious. A tape grabs hold of his left ankle but Izuku moves his ankle quick enough to tear the tape apart, before turning to the left, wiping his chin with the back of his hand as he levels a glance at Sero Hanta.
"Holy shit." Shouto says to himself when he sees a heavily panting Izuku wiping his chin with the back of his hand. How the heck did his boyfriend look so good?
Momo just sighs from behind him.
"All right- Smash!" Izuku yells loudly, flicking two fingers at Sero, causing him and three other approaching students to go down for the count with yet another shockwave. They were giving him a good workout, despite being unskilled as they were, and the thought causes him to grin with exhilaration.
He hears a loud snort from behind, and Izuku turns back to smirk at Shouto, who's rolling his eyes. Izuku winks at him and Shouto rolls his eyes again, even as Hadou releases a shockwave from in front of them. Izuku simply activates Float, before zooming across forward, and activating Shoot Style once he lands on the other wall, feeling the energy course through him. Hadou and Amajiki cry out, but that's when Izuku grins down at them, before using Blackwhip to hold them in place with one outstretch of his hand, arching one leg back.
"St. Louis Smash, Air Force!" Shouto can shut up about it being pretentious, because something about yelling it all gives Izuku a burst of energy, and that's how he feels less bad for roundhouse kicking two tied up first years into forming a crater into the ground.
Getting away from them, he notes that the others are terrified into charging and Izuku, because the adrenaline is getting to him a little, smirks at them all.
Momo stifles the urge to groan when she sees Shouto subtly licking his lips at the smirk on Izuku's face. She supposes Izuku is a sight for Shouto's very sore eyes, but really? There were kids here.
She then shrugs. She's seen worse public displays of affection from these two after all.
"Well? Anyone else want to try?" Izuku asks cheerfully.
The remaining shake their heads, eyes wide.
"...No." Uraraka gasps out weakly, getting up and gaping at him.
Izuku flexes his tired arm, before smiling. "I think we all need to regroup a little...I'm pretty sure you guys are in a bad shape after this-"
"No kidding." Bakugou mutters from where he's standing with Aizawa. Izuku laughs sheepishly.
"What was the whole point of beating us up?" Kaminari Denki whines, nursing a large bump on his forehead.
Izuku laughs, feeling warm as Shouto sidles up next to him, while grinning at the suffering look on Momo's face. Good old Momo.
"More important question is," Asui asks, looking curious. "What is your Quirk, Midoriya-senpai?"
Izuku's more than used to this question by now. He smiles easily at everyone, admiring the curiosity in their faces. "My Quirk is kind of complicated-"
"No kidding." Shinsou Hitoshi says, keen eyes on Izuku.
"-but it's a bunch of Quirks passed on to me by my family." He hears Shouto snort softly next to him and he pinches the other's hip slightly. Shouto indignantly narrows his eyes at him for a moment, but he then just squeezes Izuku's hand in return, making Izuku smile fondly. "If I started explaining about that, you'd have to stay here for another two days." Izuku says apologetically, grinning.
The 1-A kids give him disappointed looks and 'aw's, but they nod at him after that, causing Izuku to stifle his sigh of relief.
"Either way, Kaminari-kun here asked a very interesting question! Contrary to what your senior will have you think-" Izuku slings an arm around his boyfriend's shoulders, making Shouto to just smile at him briefly, before they both sober up.
"This did have a purpose. You see, one of the major reasons I can control my Quirks as well as I could was because of how hard I was pushed by the hero work studies. Because of the missions the pros had me come along with."
The kids' eyes go wide with wonder, even Bakugou's, as they register his words. Izuku smiles slightly.
"Yes, the three of us made a name for ourselves even when we were first years, but you have to understand, we started from the bottom. Shouto-kun as well. Just because he's Endeavor's son didn't mean he didn't work hard." Izuku adds in a sterner tone of voice, when he sees the kids' eyes dart to Shouto. Shouto just lets out a breath of amusement, already used to the disparaging comments.
Shouto may be used to them, but Izuku will make sure people see it if he has to. Shouto didn't train hard just for people to attribute it to being that old man's progeny. Ridiculous, honestly.
"Truth is, I broke my bones every time I used my Quirk." Izuku says with a grimace, flexing his fingers, remembering the mind-numbing pain that still plagued his bones even now. The kids look shocked, and he sees Shinsou open his mouth wide in surprise.
"There's no way-" Kaminari says, looking pale, but Izuku barks out a laugh.
"I'm not exaggerating. You can ask Recovery Girl if you want." Izuku says with a hollow smile, even as Shouto squeezes his hand next to him and even as Momo sends him an understanding look.
Kaminari just looks abashed.
Izuku then continues. "Momo-san here, she wasn't fully aware of the capabilities of her Quirk. Shouto-kun was in danger of getting frostbite or heatstroke every time he overused his Quirk. I don't know how many of you remember or know this, but he got frostbite when fighting against me in our first year Sports Festival." He says grimly, making the kids pale. Shouto lets go of his hand just after Izuku squeezes his, but their fingers touch, just barely. Izuku's glad for the contact, if anything.
"Our Quirks betrayed us every so often. We didn't know how to use them fully in battle. But when you're diligent with your hero studies like the three of us, you'll get better, learn what it means to be out there on the field." Izuku says, and the kids' eyes light up with wonder once more, as they lean in closer with interest. "And it'll let you be confident with your Quirks. Confidence with your Quirk is also important- if you're scared of your Quirk backfiring on you, you can't fight out there. Trust me." He says seriously.
When Izuku lets his eyes scan the crowd to see if any of the kids are holding in any of their questions, he sees a few of the kids looking down uncertainly, a classic response to having a question that you didn't want to let see the light of day.
"If any of you have any questions...you're always welcome to ask the three of us! Personal or otherwise! We're your seniors after all and we'd be happy to answer them for you!" Izuku says, cheerfully.
The kids looks up at him in surprise, and Izuku considers it a victory.
Shouto gives him a deadpan stare but Izuku just laughs, while Momo giggles at the expression on Shouto's face.
"I don't want them to come to me for love advice though." Shouto deadpans in a low voice, and Izuku full-on laughs, while Momo snorts.
"Shouto-san, Izuku-san literally had to kiss you for you to get the point. No one's coming to you for love advice." Momo says innocently, and Shouto playfully glares at her as she grins at him, while Izuku doesn't stop laughing.
"Midoriya-senpai?"
Izuku blinks, looking at...ah, Hadou, dutifully raising her hand. Next to her, Uraraka looks very diffident, uncertain.
"Yes, Hadou-san?" Izuku says, smiling at her.
Hadou stood up fully, for once, looking serious and solemn. "You're dating Todoroki-senpai, aren't you?"
Izuku's face heats up very badly, his arms immediately going up to his face to hide it. Shouto opens his mouth to say something but Momo shushes him, looking pleased.
Seriously? The first question that they wanted to ask him was that?
"U-uh, yeah, but I don't see how that's-"
Hadou shakes her head, now looking curious. "It's got something to do with the question, Midoriya-senpai, the thing is..." She bites on her lip before shrugging and going ahead. "The thing is, isn't it emotionally compromising? As a hero? You'd have to worry about Todoroki-senpai and do hero work. Same for Todoroki-senpai, too. Isn't it more of a...burden, than anything?"
Izuku blinks again, arms going back to standing awkwardly against his sides, as he steals a glance at Shouto, who is wide-eyed.
Isn't it more of a burden than anything?
"No."
Izuku isn't surprised at the vehemence with which it comes out. Shouto being a burden? To him? Logically speaking, Izuku is aware of the reasoning behind Hadou's question, but to even insinuate...
Shouto, who had always been there for him, since they had been kids, who had always given him ice for the bruises the other kids would give him for being Quirkless...who had told him, as a child-
"You don't need a Quirk to be a hero, Izu. You're my hero."
Shouto, who had always been supporting him-
"Come on, Izuku, you can do it!"
"Because that's the hero I know you to be, Izuku!"
"You're not useless. You're the farthest thing from useless. How dare you call yourself useless?"
"You're the greatest hero I've ever met."
"You're kind, Izuku. I think...that's the most important part of being a hero."
"You're good at that- smashing the unsmashable and all that."
"Thank you for listening to me, Izuku."
"You're my friend. My best friend. So will you believe me when I tell you that you've got this?"
"I love you, Izuku."
Shouto, who had whispered at him to stop seeing One for All as All Might's Quirk. As something he had inherited from All Might.
"No."
Izuku blinks, when he sees the alarmed looks on the kids' faces, realizing he all but spat it out, before smiling wryly. "I'm sorry- but...to me..." He chances a glance at Shouto, who's looking up at him with uncertain eyes, before Izuku smiles at him tenderly. Let me handle this, he mouths at Shouto, who just nods, before smiling back at him.
Izuku then faces the kids, smile wry once more.
"Hadou-san. Let me ask you this, what is your reason to be a hero?"
Hadou blinks. "To save people, Midoriya-senpai." Obviously.
Izuku smiles. "That's been a dream of mine for a very long time. Since my Quirk is strange, it took till I was...ten, to get it. Till then, I was thought Quirkless, so I thought I couldn't be a hero without a Quirk."
He then looks at his right hand, the hand he had broken and scarred to save Shouto from himself, before looking at Hadou again. "You see, Shouto is my best friend. He's always been supporting me from the start. It's because of what he had to tell me that I finally got the drive I needed to be a hero today. Your friends support you, don't they?"
Hadou looks uncertain, surprisingly enough. "Yeah, Midoriya-senpai."
Izuku smiles, chuckling. "Well, Shouto did more than that for me. Point is, being a hero doesn't mean you have to focus only on your strengths and weaknesses, Hadou-san. It's more than okay if you let yourself have somebody by your side, somebody important."
He then bites on his lip a little in thought of what he was about to say next, before exhaling. He squeezes Shouto's shoulder absently, making the other look up at him in surprise, before smiling down at him, then facing Hadou with a half-smile on his face.
"And yeah...it does worry me, and it does worry Shouto whenever we're in danger. But...honestly?"
Izuku takes a deep breath.
"Honestly....I think risks are an unavoidable part of the job, no matter how careful you are. That isn't to say you should be foolhardy and rush into battle just because you'll be in danger anyway, but...it's worth it. The risks are worth having somebody by my side....somebody very important to me."
Izuku grins at Shouto again, who's now scratching his left cheek, blushing furiously. Chuckling, he turns back to face Hadou, who's eyeing them with wonder, jaw hinged.
"Of course, you can always choose not to. But...I think it's a risk you should choose for yourselves. Who knows? In my case? I'd say it's worked pretty well." Izuku says easily, grinning toothily at them all.
Izuku just snickers to himself when he hears Aizawa exhale loudly, entwining his fingers with Shouto's in a bold move.
That went better than he had expected, honestly, Izuku thinks even as Momo gives him a dry look from where she's standing next to Shouto, who's trying not to combust.