Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Most normal teenagers say that they spent their day doing homework or listening to music. Fighting off aliens and protecting the public is not what most people expect to hear from said teenagers. Ben Tennyson is not most teenagers. A certain alien device that almost killed him at the age of ten made sure of that. Ben was usually doing his business either walking around or getting out of a store then some explosion occurs that sets him into action. So in other words, this was his normal.

He was grateful though that every attack on the public was not some huge end of the world problem. Sometimes, it was just some lowly thugs trying to harass the good people of the city and he was thankful for that. Not thugs harassing people but it was just some small problem that he could take out quickly. It’s not like he’s new to this or anything, he’s been at it for some time now.

Though usually most aliens that Ben encountered these days were stealing something, maybe money or some prized alien tech but not too many were just disturbing the public nowadays. It didn’t really matter what reason they were doing it for. They needed to be stopped and he put it upon himself to be the person who does just that. Welcome to his life.

Jetray soared through the city chasing after the aliens in their little space cruiser dodging incoming blasts that were fired at him. As he chased after them, the alien’s eyes started to burn ablaze a bright green which soon shot out multiple rays directly at his target. The rays struck the cruiser as planned causing it to lose its course for a moment drifting uncontrollably.

The aliens aboard the cruiser desperately tried to regain control but not before slamming into the buildings around them. Jetray’s eyes widened at the amount of debris falling down to the ground with people underneath. The alien stopped momentarily before swooping down after it, gliding quickly over the building. A glaring light took over the form of Jetray and when it cleared, a new larger alien took its place. Gravvatack.

The bulky, round silicon-based alien fell alongside the debris and focused on each piece before they soon came to a sudden halt. Gravvatack soon turned to the fleeing aliens with a wide smile and spoke.

"Hey, I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation that almost happened! Let me enlighten you!"

With an outstretched arm his hand glowed with a green energy field and with a thought, the ship was wrapped in one as well that inverted their gravity so down was now towards the planet like an alien. In no time at all the ship was dragged over effortlessly as Gravvatack sabotaged the engine of the cruiser and in no time at all the joy riders were in custody and the city of Bellwood safe once again.

Like clockwork he was swarmed by fans and reporters looking for a scoop. Like always, he grinned and bared it even though he STILL wasn't used to the constant media bombardment after two years of his identity being public knowledge. It was moments like this where he wished he tried a bit harder in order to keep his identity a secret, though he supposes that he couldn't fault Jimmy for his excellent journalism. It’s not that he couldn’t handle the media, it was just that it got tiresome especially after two straight years of it.

Ben figured that he would be able to handle the paparazzi easily considering he could handle universe ending threats like it was no one’s business. However, the news reporters, journalists, and paparazzi turned out to be even greater challenges. Nothing annoyed him more than when he’s just trying to enjoy a smoothie from Mr. Smoothy and there's a press standing outside the window.

Ben smiled and answered the press’s questions with the same answers he usually gave. Some clever quip, smile to the camera, and then transform to make a dramatic exit. This time, it was XLR8 and the blur was gone in a blink of an eye leaving behind a powerful gust of wind.

It's always the same stuff, sure it's nice to be appreciated and everything but the constant attention is ridiculous. Yeah I technically have two entire species that would go to war for me but that's not really something I care about. Though I suppose it's a good thing I can personally repair any damages that happen in my fights with regenerative construction material made from my Nanochip sample. Just wish I could get away for a bit...

The speedster alien soon made it to an apartment room and changed back to the brunette, green eyed teen Ben Tennyson. He smiled as he unlocked the door to his apartment and stepped in throwing his jacket on a chair and collapsing on the couch. He actually wasn’t planning on getting an apartment until Grandpa Max suggested Plumber security to make it more secure.

His hand found the remote and turned the tv on to see what was going on. A new Sumo Slammers movie was coming out, some animated shows, commercials, but then the next few channels made him want to turn off the tv. They were just constantly talking about him, his adventures, his love life, which was basically nonexistent at this point.

Good lord, the next channel was just a channel dedicated only to him. He didn’t even know he had a channel! Appreciation is great and all but there’s a limit to it. Ten year old him might’ve found this incredible but this was just too much for him. The bright tv screen turned to black as Ben shut it off setting the remote down.

Ugh I really should get a PR manager or something. People REALLY need to stop using my identity for profit without consulting me first. At least it's not as horrible as that cartoon parody Albedo somehow got up and running from Plumber prison. I can't believe how successful it is. Dealing with Xingo was annoying, I really hope Gwen finally managed to trap him in the tv this time.

He did not wear that as a kid. The only thing they got really correct was his voice. Damn that Tara Strong! Why’d she have to be so good at voice acting?! He couldn’t even do anything about it considering it was labeled a parody so it was protected under fair use. But it was whatever he supposed. Nothing he can do about it.

Ben let out a yawn as he looked forward at the blank tv. He really needed to get away for a bit. Not for a long time or anything. As annoying as the press and media was, he was here to protect them. However, it’d be nice to be a hero where no one knew who he was. Just one more time. But that didn’t seem likely, no one in this universe didn’t know who he was. Wait...

That's it! Not this universe, another one! One without a Ben Tennyson!

Ben fished his phone out of his pocket and dialed Gwendolyn.

"Hey, I don't suppose you could scan a universe like here but where I don't exist? I need a break from everything for a bit!"

A blue flash lit his room moments after a familiar British voice chuckled.

"No need for that Benjamin. I know just the place to take you, you can even come right back a second after you left here. A word of warning though, you'll be deaged to age fifteen upon arrival."

Ben turned around to see a familiar steampunk, lab coat wearing man coming out of a blue portal with a smile. Professor Paradox. Truthfully, he was a bit strange and cryptic but that was a part of his charm. Deaged to fifteen again? Well, it’s not like everything with Paradox was perfect but it’ll do.

Ben grins as he tells Gwen the good news before hanging up.

"You do?! That's amazing! Though I'd hate to go there blind…"

The professor chuckles as he pulls out a wallet and hands it over.

"Yes I thought you might want to get informed. That wallet not only has your ID for the foreseeable future as well as legal documents but an overview of the particulars on the Earth you'll be staying on. It has many Quirks."

Ben took the wallet happily and opened it up to look through it. Well, his ID was definitely professional which was good. He read through it learning about the world and people with “Quirks”.

Roughly 80% of the population had them while the other 20% didn’t. Something that caused him to glare for a second was something called “Quirkless Descrimination.” He let out a sigh before noticing a picture of a kid with green hair. Ben pulled it out showing it to the professor to ask about who he was.

"Seeing as he's in my wallet am I right in thinking he's important in this world?"

The Professor nodded his head with a smile.

"Perceptive as always Benjamin, that is Izuku Midoriya. One of the 20% who are effectively disabled in a Quirk society and discriminated for things beyond his control. You'll be meeting him as soon as you step through the portal there in fact."

Ben nodded as he placed the picture back into the wallet and stretched his body for a moment in order to get ready. This was incredible. A whole new universe where no one knows who he is! Plus, he can stay there for as long as he chooses and come back with only a second passing here! The green eyed teen turned to Paradox smiling as his eyes turned back to the glowing blue portal in front of him.

With zero hesitation he stepped through the portal, his body shrinking slightly and growing scrawnier as his clothes formed to fit him again via smart technology, a side project from the Nanochip construction.

He sighed softly to himself, glad he appeared behind an air conditioning unit on a rooftop out of sight from others. The now deaged Tennyson stood behind the unit realizing there were others on the roof. He kept himself quiet remembering Paradox talking about meeting Izuku Midoriya when he walked through the portal. This was his chance to learn a little more about him.

Izuku’s gaze looked upon his hero’s retreating stature towards the edge of the building as he tightened his fists and closed his eyes. All he ever wanted was to be a hero. Even without a quirk, that’s all he ever wanted. He just needed an answer from the person he looked up to most.

"Wait, not yet! One second! I have to know!... Is it possible to become a hero even if I don't have a Quirk?! I'm a normal kid without any powers, can I ever hope to be someone like you?!"

One second seemed to stretch on forever as Izuku tightly shut his eyes, unable to face the possibility of his hero shutting down his dreams.

The towering man came to a halt before turning his head to the side to address the whimpering green haired boy.

"Without a Quirk…?"

Izuku leaned in despite himself focusing on what his hero would say next slowly opening his eyes in confusion as the long pause only to yelp in surprise as he saw the finishing traces of steam flow off his idol's body.

Needless to say what All Might told Izuku and unbeknownst to him Ben, was a shock to both. A massive internal wound causing him to slowly lose his power over time. Ben waited behind the unit with bated breath as he wondered if the hero would say what he knew to be true, no matter the skill or power one's actions determine if they're a hero or not.

Both boys were disappointed for different reasons. He denounced the possibility of Izuku being a Pro Hero without a Quirk of his own even if he suggested other civil service jobs as substitutes. Ben couldn’t begin to fully understand the hurt that Midoriya was going through in that moment. Though he had to admit he definitely could sympathize with All Might being the Symbol of Peace…after all he was effectively that the universe wide back home and his older self will eventually even be called the Hero of Heroes.

It was sort of similar to when Ben had met that alternate version of himself just not with the preferred message. Powers, gadgets, or quirks don’t make the hero. What makes a hero is being able to help someone in need no matter what. No matter if you have powers or gadgets, if you can go in and help someone just because. That’s what was important.

The doors closed as All Might entered through and left Izuku and Ben alone on the rooftop. Jesus, no kid deserves to have their dream shattered like that. Especially by their number one hero. He had to say something, he had to do something.

Ben coughs as he walks out so Izuku isn't completely startled.

"He's wrong you know. Being a hero isn't about powers, fame, or glory. It's about doing the right thing just because it's right. Anyone who's ever bullied you for being Quirkless can never really call themselves a hero, being heroes don't pick on someone for something they can't control."

Izuku looked at the newly appeared teen in front of him with shocked wide eyes as his eyes squinted with tears threatening to spill at his words. Truthfully, no one has ever told him that and with his favorite hero telling him otherwise he was ready to just quit. The tears spilled down his face as Izuku stared at him.

“Do...Do you really think so?”

Ben just stared at him with a smile as he walked closer to the crying teen while placing a hand on his shoulder. Sometimes, all someone needs is just someone to believe in them as corny as that sounds, it’s the truth.

“I know so dude.”

Ben smiled as he winked at the sniffling Midoriya.

"I'll prove it to you. If I haven't already anyway. I bet me saying that felt amazing right? Sometimes just talking with others is a heroic thing to do."

The two teens smiled at each other before being shocked as a giant explosion happened a few streets away. Izuku didn’t know it then but Ben was going to change the entire course of his life.

Chapter Text

Truthfully, Ben wasn’t expecting to hear that Izuku had gained the same quirk of All Might but if anyone was worthy of One for All, it was him. Izuku had told him that his task was to train his body before he could receive the quirk. Which was to restore the coastline of trash for a large section of the beach. Half the time All Might wasn’t there so Ben was to keep him company.

The green eyed teen sat on an old fridge criss crossed as he watched Izuku struggle to move the large amounts of garbage and metal around. Ben would give him a hand but that would be going against the point of his training. He had to do it all on his own.

“So where do you live Izuku? I’ve been meaning to ask you.”

Midoriya had informed him of where he was staying while struggling to push a washing machine which caused Ben’s eyes to light up at the answer.

“Really?! Huh. I wonder how we've never run into each other considering I moved in next to your apartment."

The young Midoriya stopped suddenly tripping into the sand after hearing what Ben said before getting back up.

“Wait, seriously?! You moved in next door and I never noticed?!”

Ben nods and shrugs.

"Well technically not really? All my stuff was there once I arrived due to a friend of mine but yeah, basically. But regardless I think you’re doing a great job Izuku!"

Ben gave a thumbs up to the teen from on top of the fridge and Izuku smiled and nodded before grabbing the straps of the washing machine and continuing.

That’s how it was for the majority of the days really. Ben would sit down in the background and cheer Izuku on as he moved the rest of the items. Ben was especially proud when he saw that Izuku was going at a faster pace. Sure, not by much but progress is progress.

As he did so he'd do training of his own to get back the muscle mass he lost from deaging when walking through the portal. After all the stronger his human self was the stronger his aliens.

He even spent a bit of time practicing magic too if only to somewhat get to the level of his Ultimate future self was, he just wished it didn't take years of study to learn it the normal way. At least he could use simple Mana constructs now even when in alien form.

That was always more of Gwen’s area anyway but there was nothing wrong with learning some of it. You never know what can happen or how it can help. The tracking spell he's mostly gotten the hang of has been immensely useful so long as he had a piece belonging to his target anyway.

Ben chuckled to himself as he remembered when he first got his Mana to work a year ago, he should have probably expected it to be as green as his Omnitrix activating, though the natural DNA symbol wrapped around his Mana blasts was definitely a surprise. Though a welcome one since when thrown the orbs grew into quasi drills as the DNA spun wildly giving his blasts more penetrating power than normal.

Though this vacation was proving to be quite efficient. No one knew who he was, there wasn’t constant admiration or news reporters flashing millions of cameras in his face. He even managed to make a new friend. Ben looked up and continued to watch Izuku move the rubble and trash in awe.

“You know, it's really inspiring how dedicated you are to training now. Though I do have to say it is a bit odd how not fit you were given you wanting to be a Pro Hero and all."

“Mph! Yeah, I guess it was just one of those things...when you’re dreaming of something and you don’t really research or prepare for it...All Might saying I’d receive his quirk did throw me for a loop!”

Izuku grunted out as he picked up another heavy piece of machinery and carried it away from the rest of the pile. He was glad that he was getting the training in order to inherit All Might’s quirk but do people seriously not know how to throw away their trash?

“Hey Izuku, I've been wondering, why is all this stuff on a beach anyway? Especially piled up so high. This isn't a landfill after all. You'd think the government would have never let it get this bad."

Ben bravely fought the urge to turn into Lodestar and compact everything into a soda can sized ball, a look of disgust on his face at the clear lack of effort put on by sanitation and tourist workers. A beach would have done something to draw people after all.

“Ugh! Well, due to the currents anything that’s dropped in the water ends up around here...Some...some people have taken advantage of that when it comes to their trash!”

Ben nodded with a twang of anger on his face. Seriously, how hard was it to get rid of your trash normally? Instead of ruining places like this by throwing it into the water. If he didn’t respect Izuku’s training, he would deal with the problem himself.

“Still shouldn't there be massive fines or something? It's making a public property unusable after all."

“You’d...mpf...think so but there’s so much herowork being done that I think everyone is just choosing to ignore it! Doesn’t justify it but it does explain it!”

Ben nodded rubbing his brown hair back and looking back at the beach and realizing it was much more emptier than when Izuku had first started. The sight caused the teen to smile widely.

"Hey, you're almost done Izuku, just a bit more! I'll help you get it to a manageable size once you've cleared everything!"

Izuku smiled as he heard what Ben was saying and nodded giving even more effort in pulling and pushing the amounts of garbage. The task was tough, tiresome, and harsh but he was getting there and he was even almost done!

Ben had dozed off for a moment with his hand on his face to keep him from falling face first into the sand. He didn’t wake up until he heard cheering and someone yelling his name. His eyes twitched before they slowly opened once more.

“Ben! Ben! Wake up, wake up! I did it! All the trash is away from the area! Look at this!”

The tired teen rubbed his eyes yawning before he looked forward clearly at the sight in front of him in awe. Izuku had done it and the beach was gorgeous with all of the trash out of the way. Ben smiled at his friend’s success and got to his feet to help manage the garbage into a manageable pile. He knew just the alien for the job.

He grinned as he stretched.

“Great job Izuku! As promised I'll help with the clean up!"

With a thought and a flash of green in Ben's place was a bee colored metallic being with a floating head and prongs for hands. With an outstretched arm all the junk Izuku moved to the side started the compact together and in no time at all it was reduced to a can sized super dense metallic wad.

Lodestar floated over to Izuku before turning back into a grinning Ben. It was definitely nice to see the look of shocked surprise from someone who didn't know what Ben 10 could do. And based on Izuku’s look of wonder and awe, he was definitely impressed.

“Holy crap that was awesome Ben!”

Ben chuckled at the admiration he was getting from Izuku and shrugged.

“You think that’s cool? Just you wait and see what else I can do!”

Izuku didn't have to wait long at all to see what Ben meant by that. Now that the beach was clear and Izuku's trained his body enough to receive All Might's Quirk, Ben decided to come clean to the only two people he was really close to in this world.

But first he needed to deal with that nasty wound All Might had.

"Hey, Toshinori how long exactly have you had that wound of yours? To the day if possible."

He asked once All Might arrived at the scene of the now clean beach. All Might raised an eyebrow in confusion at Ben before answering giving Ben exactly what he needed to hear. Ben nodded before his body was overtaken by another bright green flash and what remained was a round, yellow robotic form. Clockwork.

“Excellent! Diz won't take long at all, rather it'll take a negative time!"

Before either of them could react Clockwork's head screw spun and a green bean shot out at All Might. The robot's words soon became clear in their meaning as All Might grew visibly younger and his wound that's plagued him for so long rewound as well. As quickly as the beam hit him it was gone, and All Might could feel the spark of his power grow into an inferno he never thought he'd feel again.

Stunned silence was broken by the fwooom of Ben turning back to normal as he turned to Izuku.

“I know you're about to get his Quirk and all but I'd figured I'd let you both know I don't actually have one of my own either."

The two looked at him dazed, especially Izuku who was just completely shocked as he struggled to speak.

“Y-You mean...you’re just like how I was?..”

Ben nodded, which caused Izuku to continue talking.

“T-Then how are you able to do all that cool stuff?! And how have I never heard of you then?!”

“Well it’s all thanks to the neat gadget on my wrist and to answer your second question. I’m not...really from this universe.”

The silence turned absolutely deafening as they stared at him as he shrugged unbothered by it.

"Truth is I'm on vacation from my everyday life back home. Being a universally known superhero is…. rough. Also, no, I'm not exaggerating the universal part. Hell at one point I was actually sued by the entire universe for breaking a law I didn't even know existed at the time after I… nevermind. I think it's best if I don't elaborate on that seeing as both of you look like you're about to pass out from shock."

Which was the right choice to make however stopping at that moment didn’t stop Izuku from actually passing out and collapsing onto the sand. Ben and All Might rushed to the unconscious boy’s side. He’d be fine but it was sort of humorous how shocked he was when he eventually woke up.

Ben coughed awkwardly once he did, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Sorry about that back there. I.. didn't think you'd actually faint. You should have seen All Might though, it was honestly kind of odd seeing him bounce around like a kid on a sugar rush. Though I suppose it's understandable given his circumstances. But I hope this doesn’t change much?"

Ben asked holding out his hand to still dazed Izuku who soon smiled nodding and taking his hand to pull himself up.

“Yeah, that is definitely a shock but if anything that makes you even cooler! You can do all that crazy stuff without a quirk! That’s just so awesome!”

While Izuku was nerding out at Ben’s revelation, All Might coughed into his hand getting the attention of both boys as he soon smiled.

“While that is incredible, Young Midoriya! You have completed the task with nothing but your hard work! Now, for your reward Izuku Midoriya!”

All Might raised a powerful hand into the air and plucked out a single blonde strand of hair holding it majestically. Ben cocked his head in confusion at why he did that.

“Someone told me this once! There’s a difference between being lucky and being deserving! One’s an action and the other, a reward! Never get the two confused! Take that to heart young man! This gift, you’ve earned it with your own valiant efforts!”

Izuku nodded with determination as he tightened his fist and All Might held the strand of hair closer to the teen.

“Eat this!”

The two teens just stared at All Might with two different expressions clear on their face. Izuku’s was one of pure shock while Ben’s was one of snickering.

“Just be glad you don't have to help eat a planet Izuku."

“To inherit my power, you have to swallow some of my DNA! That’s how it works!”

“This isn’t exactly how I imagined it!”

“Come on there’s no time! You’ll be late for the exam! Eat! Eat! EAAAT!!!”

The sounds of the beach were soon drowned out by Izuku screaming and Ben’s loud laughter.

__________

The two teens stopped just outside of the school and stared forward as Izuku tried to catch his breath while clutching onto his backpack straps.

“Looks!..like...like we made it just in time.”

“I mean, we could’ve made it a bit earlier if I transformed. Still not really getting why you declined.”

“Sorry, it’s just that I wanted to see if I felt anything different moving on my own since All Might gave me his quirk!”

“Well?”
Izuku sighed and shook his head. He was sure that it was in there somewhere but he just wasn’t feeling anything at least not yet. He supposed it wasn’t a quirk that kicks in quickly.

"Hmm well hopefully we'll be in the same examination centre for the practical portion. I just hope it isn't too combat oriented since not all powers are suited for that and really, that mentality would just perpetuate a cycle of violence."

Izuku nodded as the two continued to walk forward before hearing someone speak.

“Stupid Deku.”

“Kacchan!”

“Get out of my way before I set you on fire!”

This threat led to Izuku spilling out whatever thought came into his head which included good morning, how are ya, good luck, etc.

Ben frowns at the brash kid as he walks past.

“What the hell is his problem? Also did he just threaten you with severe burns?! Why the hell is someone like that trying to become a superhero?"

“Uh well that’s Kacchan! And...well...it’s...it’s nothing Ben. I’m used to it from hilm. I’m pretty sure he wants to be famous and become the richest hero. Or at least that’s what he told the class a while ago.”

Ben's frown just turned into a grimace, a mentality like that is sure to bring up all sorts of Captain Nemesis knock offs.

"You being used to abuse doesn't make it right. It just makes him a shit person who shouldn't even be here. Has he ever used his Quirk on you?"

Ben makes sure to look Izuku in the eye to catch every twitch his body makes. Even though this 'Kacchan' is long gone there's still plenty of tremors.

“J-Just once when we were younger...ever since then it’s just been threats.”

Izuku finally admitted while trying to stop himself from shivering and twitching. He wasn’t used to anyone really asking him about these sorts of things. They usually just move on and it continues again later.

Ben tried very hard not to glare and show the anger he felt at that as he hugged Izuku with one arm in an effort to distract him and lead the way into the building.

"Well you won't have to worry about that anymore. If he tries anything I won't even have to transform to beat him."

Izuku was shocked at the one armed hug but slowly nodded as they walked into the building. He never had anyone stand up for him before. But it felt...nice.

The two were soon in the auditorium with all the other students. “Kacchan” had taken a seat next to Izuku causing Ben and him to switch seats just so he wouldn’t have to. This gained a glare from the angry looking blonde but Ben just kept looking forward.
Soon enough the school’s DJ “Present Mic” showed up trying his best to get the students amped up and excited but to no avail. If anything, it was just kind of awkward. Midoriya was fanboying over him which simply caused Ben to chuckle.

The voice hero soon started explaining the rules and regulations of the test in his extravagant voice. Everyone looked at their slips of paper causing “Kacchan” to speak.

“I see...they’re splitting us up so we can’t work with any of our friends. Damn...I was really looking forward to crushing you Deku.”

That definitely caused Ben to give him a side eye.

“Did you just call someone you bully a friend? You clearly don't know what friendship is."

The response got an eep out of Izuku to which Bakugo looked at Ben dangerously while sparks of flames appeared at the tips of his fingers.

“You trying to start something pal? I’ll burn that smug look clean off your face!”
That actually got a chuckle out of Ben. It was kinda cute in a sad sort of way knowing he thought himself to be intimidating.

"So that's your Quirk huh? Explosions? No wonder Izuku gets full body shivers whenever you're around. To think you've actually used it on him."

Ben leans forward and glares, one the most heinous of villains back home knew to fear. An angry Ben was something no one wanted to face more than once. Not after what happened to Vilgax the last time they fought. He whispers his next words making sure he never loses eye contact.

"Better people than you have tried, but if you really feel like throwing the first punch I'll be more than happy to end you. People like you make me sick."

The blonde simply glared, baring his teeth and tightened his fist while Izuku was just staring forward trying not to get in the middle of the two arguing.

Soon enough Present Mic explaining the point system and the different amount of robots that would be in their battle stations. Soon one student started asking about the fourth robot and went on about how mistakes like this from UA are disgraceful. Plus, the glasses wearing student pointed to Izuku commenting on his muttering and telling him to knock it off which embarrassed the green haired boy.

Others laughed but Ben placed a hand on his shoulder and whispered to him.

“Ignore them. Don’t let them get to you dude.”

Ben turned around and frowned at the teen.

"Hey if you're going to complain about distractions why're you yelling and pointing out someone's nervous habit? The laughter didn't help anyone concentrate after all."

This shocked the teen who didn’t answer but simply sat back down which led Present Mic to intervene and keep talking. Izuku looked at Ben with a shaky thankful smile to which Ben just gave a thumbs up in response.

“Alright, alright, alright! Thank you for leading me into my next point! The fourth robot is worth zero points! That guy’s just an obstacle we’ll be throwing in your way! There’ll be one in every battle center! Think of it as a hurdle you should try to avoid! Not that it can't be beaten but there’s kind of no point! My advice is to focus on the ones that can actually gain you some points! That’s all I got for you today! I’ll sign off with a little present! A sample of our school motto! A true hero is one who overcomes Life’s misfortunes! You ready?! Good luck! Lets hope you practiced hitting more than books!”

Soon enough the kids were at the location standing outside of a gate. Izuku was shaking in his shoes with a shaky smile. He slapped his hands on his face to calm himself down. He wasn’t going to let all that training with All Might go to waste.

“Izuku!”

Ben suddenly yelling his name got him to snap out of it and he looked at the teen next to him.

“Calm down. You’ve been training and preparing a lot for this! Just take a deep breath and calm yourself. You got this.”

Izuku felt a smile form on his face as he looked at Ben more confidently as he nodded. Right! He wasn’t going to let anything stop him from doing his best! He owed it to All Might and himself. Izuku straightened his look and looked forward with a face that carried no fear...while on the inside he was shaking full of fear.

I will become a hero! Just like I always dreamed! I won’t let myself down!

Chapter Text

Ben noticed the look on Izuku's face and huffed fondly as he ruffled his hair.

"You know being afraid is fine, what matters is pushing past the fear. Just focus on the time!"

Izuku nodded and let out a sigh as he stared at the doors. This was it. There was no turning back this time.

“Let’s do this!”

Ben nods as he faces the door too.

"Just drown out all the what ifs and fear of failure. In moments like this, only one thing should matter. Being a Hero and doing the right thing no matter what. In other words …"

The bell tolls as the doors fling themselves open showing a scaled down city scape.

"... It's Hero Time!"

In a flash of green Ben was once again Lodestar and deep within the city in seconds flat, a trail of robot parts in his wake as they were ripped apart from magnetic forces.

“I’ll try my best Ben! I won’t let anything stop me!”

Izuku ran straight in to find whatever robots he could take down for points. Though it seems that everywhere he went they were all getting ripped apart by someone else and their quirks. That wasn’t the only problem...his feet wouldn’t move! Anytime he saw the radiating red glare from the robots, he just seemed to freeze right up! What is he going to do?!

Ben's words from moments ago echoed through his mind.

Just focus on the time huh…? H- here goes nothing!

In moments Izuku's racing heart actually slowed down some and he could finally do what he did best, analysis! While the robots might look scary their programming wasn't all that sophisticated, more akin to a boss in a game than anything truly alive.

His eyes widened as he finally understood the movements of the 1st and 2nd pointers, even managing to make a few destroy themselves from attacking the others or using the damage they did to the environment to have them maim themselves.

While he was making good progress, he would need more points than that in order to pass and get accepted. Izuku continued to run around looking for more robots but all he managed to find were their busted remains. Crap, this wasn’t good! Time was running out as well!

The teachers and the principles watched their performances through screens in a dark room. Though All Might was glad that Izuku was able to destroy some of them without even using his quirk, he too was getting worried about the amount of points he had.

Come on young Midoriya! You’ve got this!

They talked about what they would need in order to stand up to these robots and win which included a calm mind, speed, information gathering, pure power, and combat ability. The most successful were the ones to use all these tactics. Though their main challenge was yet to come. One of the teacher’s fingers loomed over a button before pressing it. Let’s see how they react.

With the push of that button, electrical wires snapped from their poles as the ground started to shake violently gaining the attention of everyone there. Giant wings of dust appeared as the towering no-pointer had made itself known. Izuku looked up at the colossal robot intimidated as it looked down upon the students. Izuku’s eyes widened and looked at it in shock and terror.

I-Isn’t this a little extreme?!

The enormous robot reared back a fist before slamming it forward causing another giant gust of wind destroying part of the ground underneath the fist. Izuku flinched due to the giant gush of wind and soon saw others running past him as his breathing started to get faster. The rush of fear even got him down on his bottom.

If Lodestar could he'd be blinking in shock.

What type of school lets loose a giant death robot??? Especially one that doesn't seem to care about collateral damage!

Before it could possibly harm any of the fleeing students Lodestar floated in front of the giant mech and outstretched both arms, stopping not only the fist it sent his way but the robot entirely. Though if anyone was looking closely they'd notice it wasn't just stopped. It was actually rising into the air even as it's body crinkled like a beer can from the magnetic waves affecting its body. By the time it was fully up on the air it's entire arm was a deformed mess and the legs were soon following.

Izuku stared at Ben handling the situation like it was no one’s business. He really was amazing. His eyes staggered down as he let out a sad sigh. There was no way to finish the test. With a mediocre amount of points that they’re not going to take into account. Izuku was about to get up to walk with the rest of the students before hearing a yell...a yell for help!

“Help! Please I’m pinned!”

Izuku turned to see a brown haired girl who was pinned underneath some rubble from the robot’s destruction. Izuku stared for a moment as he felt himself start running towards the girl in order to help her. Even if he couldn’t get any other points, he couldn’t just leave her like that.

“Hold on! I’m coming!”

As Izuku ran towards the girl, the robot’s other massive fist reared for a jet-powered punch, only to be rebounded by the magnetic field being held together by Lodestar. Izuku’s eyes widened as the entire rocket-powered colossal arm came rearing straight for the girl as it flew through the air unattached from the main body. He didn’t stop running, he didn’t slow down, hell his speed increased.

He didn’t know what exactly to do but he had to do something. Izuku took the second to get into a jumping position feeling something strange in his legs. Something powerful. He soon shot off incredibly high into the air heading straight for the huge robot fist.

All Might smirked as he saw what was happening.

There are no combat points rewarded for taking on a humongous villain. But there is opportunity! A chance to shine! To show what you’re really made of! So clench your buttcheeks kid! And yell this from the depths of your heart!

SMASH!

Izuku grunted as he could feel this strange paralyzing power reach into his fist as he came even closer to the monumental sized robot fist. He reared his arm back before closing his eyes and landing a solid powerful hit to the colossal arm sending it back in its path while falling apart due to the high-powered punch. Izuku stared back at the retreating dismantling robot arm not even noticing his legs and arms were shattered.

The rest of the class including Lodestar (not that you could really tell) stared back in awe and confusion as the arm hit the ground behind its body causing another huge crash.

“JUST ONE MINUTE LEFT!”

That got Izuku to snap out of his awe ridden daze and realized he was falling considerably quick hurdling to the ground. He panicked as he saw the state of his ruined arm and floppy broken legs. Izuku grunted as he held his shoulder with his one good hand and tears spilled seeing the rapidly approaching pavement.

Ben quickly snapped out of his daze and increased the power he held over the robot collapsing it in on itself until it was a ball as he dove down to catch Izuku in a Mana construct before he could hit the ground. In a green flash Ben was back to normal and walking on green disks of Mana to gently touch Izuku down to the ground. He saw the girl Izuku was trying to save and got her unpinned as well while bringing her over in another Mana construct.

This exam was poorly proctored if people can get this hurt even if they have a miracle healer on staff. Something like this would never fly in Plumber Academy.

Ben grit his teeth as he went about using his Mana to heal both of them from their wounds as he berated himself for not finishing the robot sooner. He glared at Izuku's wounds. All Might will definitely have some questions to answer after this.

By the time the test was officially over and Recovery Girl got to them the girl was fully healed and Izuku's body was well on it's way to stitching itself back together again. Once he was kissed her power interacted with Ben's Mana and got super charged. Not only was Izuku healed but at no cost to himself, the excess Mana joined his own pool and acted as a minor buffer for serious wounds and passively speeding up his healing to boot.

Not that Recovery Girl could tell the last bit as she made sure Ben was unharmed. Izuku at this point didn’t really care that he was healed up. He wasn’t able to score any more points. He slammed his fist on the ground gritting his teeth. He failed.

Ben frowns as he flicks his forehead.

"Hey, none of that. You trying to save her and temporarily destroying your body already shows you're a Hero even if you don't get into some fancy school."

Izuku looked up at Ben in shock before sighing and moving to sit down normally. While the students were down there, the teachers watched in curiosity at the spectacle they had just witnessed.

“That one student Ben Tennyson. He is quite impressive. He was able to rack up the most amount of points in both categories. What did you say his quirk was again?”

“Omniform. Unlimited shapeshifting to preset conditions.”

“Well the kid is able to use it quite efficiently. It’s kind of incredible. But what about the one boy with the scruffier hair? Izuku Midoriya?”

“He was listed as quirkless but this test sure came as a surprise. What he did to that robot’s arm was definitely not something someone without a quirk could do. While he’s fine now it did seem to come at a price. Three of his four limbs were shattered after that jump and that punch. How strange.”

Aizawa frowned as he peered at the brunette, somehow he doubted Ben was anything but green.

"You said his Quirk was shapeshifting? What of that green solid energy he used not only as constructs but to heal others?"

“Now that is something we are uninformed about. It came as a shock to us as well. We’ll have to ask about it when we get the chance.”

Aizawa nods, yes something really isn't matching with the available information. This Ben Tennyson is either the world's most natural superhero or some sort of vigilante that decided to go clean. Though even that didn't sound all that right, something like what was seen here today would have definitely been on the news at some point.

Izuku let out a sigh as he got back up to his feet with a look of disappointment on his face. He was glad that he was able to save that girl and even get some points beforehand but it most likely wouldn’t be enough.

“Hey kid!”

Izuku was shocked out of his thoughts as he turned up and saw the same girl he saved from the giant robot arm. She ran up to him and smiled brightly.

“I just wanted to say thank you for saving me! That was really brave of you!”

Izuku stared at the happy looking girl before breaking out into a small smile of his own. While he didn’t pass the exam, he was glad that he was able to save her from getting greatly harmed. He nodded as his smile got a bit bigger.

“No problem!”

Ben smiles on the sidelines, glad she wasn't overlooking Izuku for him. Soon enough everyone had gone home and Izuku was in the living room thinking about how he failed. His biceps flexed as he lifted the weight while thinking.

All Might. Somehow...someway...you saw potential in me. But I failed. I let both of us down so much. I’m sorry...but I’ll keep trying…

The door slammed open causing him to look to the side as he saw his mom scramble towards him.

“A letter! Izuku they came! Izuku, look you got a letter! They’re here! Your test results! From UA!”

Izuku stared at the letting in her hands with a sadness on his face. He nodded and took the letter respectfully before disappearing to his room to open it. He could hear his mother walking back and forth nervously outside the door as he stared at the letter. Almost like it was mocking him.

He soon took it in his hands and tore it open with a small round device falling out of it onto his desk. It soon started shining as a projection on his wall, shocking the young Midoriya.

“Boo yah! I am here as a projection now! I know it’s been awhile but with great power comes a great amount of paperwork! My apologies, young man! The truth is I didn’t come to this city just to fight villains! You are looking at the newest UA faculty member!”

“Y-You’re seriously going to be working at UA?!”

As All Might smiled forward a person tapped him causing him to go to the screen and ask what’s the matter.

“Oh sorry, I’ll wrap it up but I have to show him something first! Wait, I have to do how many of these things?! Uggh! Right! So moving on! Even though you passed the written test and were able to score some points on the practical exam, you wouldn’t be able to UA...Sorry.”

Izuku looked at the screen with sad eyes biting his lip and looking down at the desk trying not to cry.

I know that. Of course I know! It’s all I’ve thought about! I’m a failure!

“Fortunately, there were other factors! But before we get to that, I have another surprise! Here! Look, a short clip for your viewing pleasure!”

All Might pressed a button on the remote and the tv turned on showing a video of that girl which caused Izuku’s eyes to widen in shock.

“Um do you have a sec? Sorry to interrupt.”

“She showed up after the exam to talk about you young man! What did she have to say?! You'll have to stay tuned to find out!”

“You know that boy with the really messy hair and all the freckles? It’s hard to describe his face. He’s kind of plain looking, uh doesn’t really stand out or anything you know?”

She means me!

“I was wondering...would it be possible to give him some of the points I earned in the exam? I heard him talking about wanting to get some more points in! It’s just not fair you know? How could someone who took down that huge robot and saved me not get into UA? He would’ve had more points if he didn’t stop to help me! He saved me! I have to make it up to him! Please sir! Can’t you just give him my points?!”

Izuku stood up from his chair in shock of what he was hearing and All Might paused the video.

“You have a quirk now, yes! But it’s your actions that inspire others! And that’s why I am here! You see the practical exam was not graded on combat alone!”

“Thanks for showing up to the station with your request. But there’s no reason to give him your points. The kid’s charting well on his own!”

“How could a hero course reject someone who is committed to saving others no matter the consequences to himself?! After all, that is what makes a hero! And that’s why my alma mater is all about! Training those who would risk their lives for greater good! So we have rescue points! A panel of judges watches and they reward points for heroic acts beyond just fighting villains. Izuku Midoriya ! 60 rescue points! You were only outdone by Ben Tennyson who had 75 rescue points and just above Ochaco Uraraka with 45 rescue points! You three passed the exam!”

At this revelation Izuku stared at the projection in awe as his eyes watered and he could barely form words at this great news! All Might turned back to the screen and held his hand out.

“Welcome!..Izuku! You have made it! You are now part of the Hero Academia!”

Izuku continued to try to hold his tears in before letting them go and nodding at the news he was given by All Might. He rubbed his tears away with his jacket sleeves.

It took a lot of help! But my life has changed completely! And now! I’m enrolling in the high school of my dreams! I can’t wait to tell Ben and my mom!

At that moment the doorbell rang, a grinning Ben on the other side wanting to celebrate with Izuku on them both passing.

Once the door opened Ben bowed to Inko and held up a bag of delivery food.

"Sorry for dropping by unannounced but I figured we could celebrate getting into UA!"

Inko smiled and let him in as Ben walked to Izuku’s room and saw the happy teary eyed teen pointing to the projector.

“B-Ben I passed! I passed!”

Ben chuckled as he showed the food.

"Yeah I got my letter just now too and went to get some food to celebrate! I even got your favorite and Inko's too!"

Izuku smiled widely at that before walking over to Ben and giving him a hug to which Ben returned. They soon separated and went to the living room to eat. Izuku wasn’t expecting any of this at all but he sure wasn’t complaining.

Ben grins as he points a chopstick at Izuku after eating a strand of lo mien.

"I told you you'd make it! If you didn't pass it'd just show that school doesn't know a real hero when it sees one."

Izuku nodded and continued to eat as he smiled to himself. He really made it! He really did! And not everyone who was going there was against him. He had All Might, Ben, and maybe even Ochaco on his side. He remembered when everyone would make fun of him for being quirkless. But that didn’t matter now. He had a quirk and he was going to UA!

A month had passed and Izuku had been training with All Might to prepare for his first day. It turns out he had overworked and sped through his training which is why his bones couldn’t handle All Might’s quirk just yet. It was a tough and stressful month but he got through it. He finished zipping up his bags as his mother talked.

“Izuku! You’re all set?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure? You didn’t just pack action figures right?”

“I have everything! Now I gotta go! I don’t want to be late!”

“Izuku!”

“What?!”

He turned to see his mother who was smiling at him happily and proud.

“I’m really proud of you son.”

Izuku gasped at that but soon smiled as he opened the door.

“I’ll see you soon!”

Izuku soon left his home and met Ben in the hallway of his apartment complex.

“Ben! You ready??”

He nods as he lifts his green backpack and hums in thought.

"You know if you really want to get there quick I could just teleport us there."

“Seriously?! Well then yeah!”

He grins before pulling Izuku into his apartment so no one will see them before transforming into his Pugnavore form, a green humanoid alien species that feeds on excitement and drama.

With a showman's voice he grasps Izuku's shoulder and raises his other hand ready to snap.

"And. Away. We. Go!"

In no time at all and hardly any sign of their presence arriving they were instantly in an alleyway close to the school. Another green flash left a smiling Ben behind.

"Ah, which reminds me! The form I was in just now has a pretty wide teleportation range, if you ever want to journey the Galaxy we can do it with him and be back for lunch!"

Izuku’s eyes widened after hearing that. Seriously?! The galaxy?! He’d definitely be up for that some time. But they should probably find their classroom.

“Sure but let’s go find our classroom!”

Ben nods as he checks a map of the school on his phone leading the way to the comically big double doors to their classroom, room 1-A.

“Jeez, are there giants at this school? I wonder who’s in our class.”

Izuku’s mind immediately went to Bakugo and Iida causing him to scare himself and shake his head at the possibility. Hopefully everyone will be nice in the class. Maybe they're not even in the same class.

Ben ruffles his hair and chuckles.

"Hey, no need to be so nervous. I doubt they'd let any bullying go on and if anyone did they'd have to answer to me."

Izuku looked at him before nodding determined and looking at the giant sized doors before opening them. Things were going to be just fine! Izuku opened the doors and thankfully Bakugo wasn't in the class. The two walked in and took their seats looking around the class and their classmates. However lida was, which caused Izuku to get nervous.

Lida noticed Izuku and immediately raised from his desk introducing himself to which Izuku tried to play off so he wouldn’t have to talk to him for long.

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Izuku Midoriya.”

“Midoriya. You realized that there was something more to the practical exam didn’t you? You must be very perceptive. I completely misjudged you! I admit that as a student you are far superior to me!”

I find that hard to believe.

It’s not really the reason Izuku decided to punch that robot, but hey. As long as there’s no problems between the two I’ll take it.

“Hey I recognize that messy hair! Falling boy! I’m glad you got in!”

Izuku turned to see that same brown haired girl he saved from the huge robot fist. It was nice to see her here. Well at least things weren’t looking so bad. His first day might not be so bad after all.

“Make way ya bunch of sidekicks! A real hero is coming through!”

I’m screwed.

Izuku didn’t even bother to turn his head as he knew who was in his class. The same blonde hotheaded bully that could create explosions with his hands. Well, he knew that it was seeming too good to be true.

Bakugo walked in confident as always and noticed Izuku and glared. He shouldn’t be here. He must’ve cheated. He would’ve gone over but soon saw that one brown haired kid next to him. His anger got worse considering Ben had gotten a higher score for both villain and rescue points. He walked over to a seat but not before thinking.

I’m gonna ruin those little shits.

“So what do you think we’re doing today besides orientation? I wonder what our teachers are like! I can’t wait to meet everybody!”

“If you’re just here to make friends, you can pack up your stuff now.”

Ben looked unsurprised at the hobo looking man that rose up from behind the desk having briefly felt the number of minds in the classroom while a Pugnavore. Though he definitely hoped his appearance was deceptive to his teaching methods.

“Welcome to the UA Hero Course. It took eight seconds before you all shut up. That’s not gonna work. Time is precious. Rational students would understand that.”

Who is this guy? If he’s here then he must be some kind of pro. But he looks so worn out. What’s his deal?

“Hello I’m Shoto Aizawa. Your teacher.”

This shocked everyone as the man unzipped himself from his snuggie that he was previously engulfed in. Looks can be deceiving but you’d think that a teacher at UA would present themselves a bit less like...that.

“Alright let’s get to it. Put these on and head outside.”

The teacher said pulling out some uniforms for the class to wear.

“What?! A Quirk Assessment test?!”

“But orientation! We’re gonna miss it!”

“If you really want to make the big leagues, you can’t waste time on pointless ceremonies. Here at UA, we’re not tethered to traditions. That means I get to run my class however I see fit. You’ve been taking standardized tests most of your lives but you never got to use your quirks in physical exams before. The country’s still trying to pretend we’re all created equal by not letting those with the most power excel. It’s not rational. One day the ministry of education will learn. Tennyson, you managed to get the most points on the entrance exam. How far can you throw a softball using your quirk? Show us.”

Ben blinked and grinned as he stepped forward and in a flash of light the dinosaur-like alien Humungousaur was on the field. With a casual throw the ball didn't so much as fly as it rocketed past the atmosphere and the planet entirely. As the stunned silence lasted a while he coughed in embarrassment as he transformed back, the fwooom shattering the spell put over everyone.

The whole class looked in shock, especially Izuku and Bakugo at how far Ben threw the ball. It really was impressive. Aizawa Sensei coughed and walked forward to Ben.

“All of you need to know your maximum capabilities. It’s the most rational way of figuring out your potential as a hero.”

Aizawa Sensei held out a phone showing how far Ben’s ball went. Infinity.

“INFINITY?!”

Infinity?! Ben you are incredible!

“I want to go! That looks like fun!”

“This is what I’m talking about! Using our quirks as much as we want!”

“So this looks fun huh? You have three years here to become a hero. You think it’s all gonna be games and playtime? Idiots. Today you’ll compete in eight physical tests to gauge your potential. Whoever comes in last has none and will be expelled immediately.”

This news shocked the entire class, especially Izuku.

Immediate expulsion?! Eight tests?! Oh crap, this is not good! I can only use One for All at only 0 or 100 percent right now. Sure, my body won’t be as damaged due to Ben’s powers but still. I can’t keep breaking my body over and over again! I don’t have any control yet!

Ben couldn't help the grimace on his face, as much as he hated to admit it, superpowers weren't all fun and games. When lives are on the line it's Hero Time, and the best way to Hero is to know your limits.

"Aizawa Sensei, while I agree superpowers aren't all fun and games, isn't it too harsh to expel someone so soon? A policy like that will only build resentment and self hatred. Not a pretty combination paired with powers and hormones."

“While you are correct Ben, I will be looking out for those who might react negatively or violently to my methods. You have nothing to worry about. Now, I hope you’re all ready to participate in these challenges.”

The day continued to go on as they all made their way through the challenges. Izuku, not wanting to use his quirk, tried his hardest on his own. Which was very admirable but wasn’t very helpful to him considering he came in last for all of them. Now lastly was the softball challenge.

The only other person to get an infinity besides Ben was Uraraka which made sense to be honest. A floating quirk would help a lot with this challenge. But the farthest distance in the sense of not infinity was Bakugou at 705.2 meters.

Izuku soon walked into the field with the softball in hand staring at it slightly panicking in his mind.

Crap crap crap! This is the last challenge! And everyone else has had some crazy huge score already! This is my best chance to use One of All!

“If Midoriya doesn’t shape up soon, he’ll be going home.”

“Huh? Of course he is! He’s a quirkless loser!”

“Eh. He has a quirk! Did you not hear about what he did in the entrance exam?!”

Aizawa Sensei stared at Izuku as Izuku tried to calm himself down and hype himself up in order to use One for All. Izuku shook his head and soon reared back to throw the ball feeling that same feeling he felt when he punched the robot fist.

I won’t let them down!

Izuku let go of the ball only for it to go a few feet forward and bounce to halt pathetically. He stared in shock at this. That couldn’t be right. He felt it right before he let go.

“What gives? I was trying to use it just now.”

“I erased your quirk. The judges for this exam...were not rational enough!”

Izuku turned to his more serious teacher and gasped at his hair flowing and his wraps circling around his body.

“Someone like you should never be allowed to enroll at this school!”

“Wait, you did what to my q-Wait! Those goggles! I know you! You can look at someone and cancel out their powers! The eraser hero...Eraser Head!”

The other students talked amongst themselves but they didn’t realize All Might standing out of sight watching the spectacle.

Aizawa is one of those guys who doesn’t like the media because he thinks they interfere with our work. And he judges celebrity heroes like me because I look good in the spotlight!

“You’re not ready! You don’t have control over your power! Were you planning to break your bones again? Counting on someone else to save your useless body?”

“What? No! That’s not it at al-Ugh!”

Izuku felt Aizawa’s fabric wrap around his body and pull him close to him.

“No matter what your intentions are, you would be nothing more than a liability at battle! You have the same reckless passion as another overzealous hero I know. One who saved a thousand people by himself and became a legend. But even with that drive, you’re worthless if you can only throw a single punch before breaking down! Sorry Midoriya. With your power, there’s no way you can become a hero.”

Despite his whole speech, Izuku didn’t back down and only glared while tightening his fist. He felt the fabric let him go and he was soon back on his feet.

“I returned your impractical quirk. Take your final throw. Hurry, get it over with.”

Aizawa finally finished walking back to his spot as Izuku looked at the ground miffed. He did not break his bones and move all that garbage on the beach to be told what he had been hearing his entire life...again!

I’ve only got one shot at nailing this so what am I gonna do?

Is he going to use his quirk and have to end up in the nurse’s room again like a fool? Or admit defeat and settle into last place. Either way, he doesn’t belong here.

Do I let my arm get ruined again? It might be the only way I get to stay at UA. I have to try something! No matter what the consequences!

A waste of a quirk.

Izuku reared back once more with more force this time and determination on his face. He was not going to fail especially after he’s made it so far just to get here!

Aizawa Sensei was right about one thing. If I can’t control my quirk, there’s no way I’ll ever become a hero! I have to work way harder than everyone else here if I want to succeed! Even if I have a lot to learn, I’ll focus on what I can do right now!

Izuku soon felt that strange power once more but it soon only was focused into one point. He let out a yell as he launched the ball far into the air shocking everyone. Izuku stared forward as he gritted his teeth and watched the ball disappear into the air. His finger was healing and it hurt but not as bad as before!

I-I...I did it!

Aizawa stared at his phone to see the distance being only slightly above Bakugo’s distance with a small smile. 705.3 meters. He soon looked up at the boy who turned to him with an only slightly damaged finger.

“Aizawa Sensei...my arm isn't broken!”

“This kid!“

I was worried about you, young man! But you’re doing a great job! You knew you had to use One for All but not at full power or else you’d be KOed! So you threw the ball and at the last second, focused all that energy into your finger to not only send it launching but save the rest of your arm! What the heck young Midoriya! How did you go and get so cool?!

Ben smiled as he wordlessly began to heal his finger.

"You had me worried for a bit there glad you didn't do anything rash."

“Y-Yeah!”

“Holy crap, he threw it over seven hundred meters!”

“He’s finally showing us his true power!”

“His finger seemed to be destroyed for a moment just like at the exam. How odd.”

While the rest were cheering while Bakugo stared in disbelief at not only how Izuku threw the ball, the fact that it went farther than his, but also how he suddenly had a quirk after years of not having one.

What the hell was that?! If he had a quirk, he would’ve gotten it when we were kids! This is impossible! He’s up to something! I’m getting to the bottom of this!

Bakugo flared his hands up while charging at Izuku with a look of pure hatred and anger apparent on his face.

“HEY! DEKU YOU BASTARD! TELL ME HOW YOU DID THAT OR YOU’RE DEAD!”

Izuku screamed in terror as Bakugo ran at him but soon was shocked as he felt nothing come his way. He opened his eyes to see Bakugo being contained by Aizawa and his fabric. Bakugo turned around struggling to move.

“Why the hell is your damn scarf so strong?!”

“Because it’s a capture weapon made out of carbon fiber and a special metal alloy. Stand down! It would be wise to avoid making me use my quirk so much! It gives me a serious dry eye! You’re wasting my time now. Everyone, let’s move to this part of the field.”

Izuku inched around Bakugo as he made his way back to Ben and the rest of the group. Bakugo tightened his fist as he looked back at Izuku.

Until the exam he was nothing! A little bug I could crush if I wanted to! Just an annoying bug! That I can smash into the ground!

The class soon followed Aizawa Sensei to the part of the field he was mentioning. Izuku was not doing so good in his head. He had come in last for all the other challenges. He was still going home! Crap, what was he supposed to do?!

The person ranked last is gonna be expelled! And the only test I was good at was the softball throw! Can I sneak by just on that score alone? I bombed the rest of the challenges!

Aizawa pressed a button and the scores were shown on a holographic chart. The students looked at their scores and their names. Izuku was in last place.

I’m going home...I failed!

“And I was lying, no one’s going home. That was just a rational deception to make sure you gave it your all for the tests!”

Everyone looked at him shocked and reacted similarly, especially Izuku. It was a relief sure but he felt like he was going to pass out due to the fear of him going home. This teacher was definitely something.

Another student talked about how it was strange the rest of them didn’t figure that out. Well, telling each other that would have probably helped a lot but whatever. The rest were relieved and talked about how nerve wracking the challenges were.

“That’s it. We’re done for the day. Pick up a syllabus in the classroom. Read it over before tomorrow morning.”

Izuku let out a sigh as he rubbed his hair back. Wow, that was mentally exhausting. But on the bright side, he wasn’t going home! Awesome. Though he could’ve done without almost dying to Bakugo.

The school day was soon over and Izuku and Ben said goodbye to lida and Uraraka and the two continued to walk home.

“Well I guess today wasn’t too horrible. I did end up in last but I didn’t get sent home so there’s that.”

"I had a feeling he wouldn't actually send anyone home. That'd be a pretty terrible policy to put in place. Also, that Bakugo guy was pretty lucky Aizawa stopped him before I could. I'm surprised he wasn't out right expelled for it honestly."

“Yeah. I mean when the majority of the population has quirks, they sort of let things like that fly I suppose. No one got hurt so in their eyes it’s excusable.”

Ben frowns at the memory of what could have happened in the exam.

"They did though. That test they had for an entrance exam was ridiculous. If we weren't there Ochaka might have actually died."

“Yeah that robot was a bit extreme. I mean, I get that villains aren’t going to be holding back or giving us chances to try and think but jeez.”

Ben nods as he stretches

"It was also really combat oriented too. Not fair to people with Quirks that can't deal with robots."

Izuku and Ben talked right up until they were at their apartments. Izuku was scared but he couldn’t wait for tomorrow. He wasn’t sure what was in store for him tomorrow but he’d have to be headstrong about it and not let anything get in his way!

Chapter Text

UA’s Hero Course Curriculum wasn’t too different from the other schools considering it had normal core classes such as English, which no one wanted to be in. They had a main cafeteria where they ate lunch which Ben had to admit was much better than the food his school used to serve. Then the afternoon, the class they were all excited for. Hero Basic Training.

“I AM HERE! COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A HERO!”

The class looked and gasped in awe at the fact that All Might himself was here to teach them. Considering he was the number one hero, this wasn’t anything to think lightly of.

“WELCOME TO THE MOST IMPORTANT CLASS AT UA HIGH! THINK OF IT AS HEROING 101! HERE YOU WILL LEARN THE BASICS OF BEING A PRO! AND WHAT IT MEANS TO FIGHT IN THE NAME OF GOOD! LET’S GET INTO IT! TODAY’S LESSON WILL PULL NO PUNCHES”

“Fight training!”

R-Real combat?

“But one of the keys is looking good! These were designed for you based on your quirk registration forms and the requests you sent in before school started! Get yourselves suited up and meet me at training ground beta!”

“YES SIR!”

Ben looked at the costume he was given and found it wanting. Though that was more for the lack of material science this universe had in comparison to his own. It wasn't bad looking or anything, green painted armor made of carbon nanotubes with a general black DNA aesthetic for maximum light weightness and durability. Not that he'd actually ever BE in his costume much at all given how varied his alien transformations are.

He walked up to All Might and asked if he could take his hero costume home to work on it himself. Normally he wouldn't be one for it back home but when in Rome.

“Why of course you can, young man! Though if you prefer not to wear it now, you can just go in your training uniform!”

He smiled and did just that already thinking of how to upgrade his suit… perhaps he can add anti gravity to it by replicating his hoverboard. Seeing as he's decided to go sans uniform he was the first to arrive besides the permanently invisible girl Toru Hagakure anyway.

Combat training huh? Well hopefully this will go a lot more smoother than the practical exam. No giant robots destroying buildings and almost getting people killed. Hopefully at least. Soon enough the rest of the class showed up outside the training ground beta. Ben gazed upon the rest of his classmates and their costumes. He had to admit they looked good in them.

Ben walked up to Izuku and looked him up and down. Not a bad design. Not too shabby at all.

“You look good Izuku.”

“Oh! Yeah, I was going to fill out my form at City Hall so they could make a costume for me but my mom beat me to it with her own and well I just had to wear it. What about you? You don’t seem to be wearing yours.”

“Eh. I figured I’d take mine home and work on it. Though if we’re being completely honest here Izuku, costumes were never really my thing.”

All Might stilled for a moment as he gazed upon Izuku’s costume and noticed the bunny ears and the large smile similar to his own.

Wow, you are so obvious!

“IT’S TIME FOR COMBAT TRAINING!”

“Sir!”

Oh! So that’s Lida under there! He looks so cool!

“This is the fake city from our entrance exam! Does that mean that we’ll be conducting urban battles again?”

“Not quite! I’m going to move you two steps ahead! Most of the villain fights you see on the news take place outside! However, statistically speaking run-ins with the most dastardly evil doers take place indoors! Think about it! Backroom deals, home invasions, secret underground lairs! Truly intelligent villains still hidden in the shadows! For this training exercise, you’ll split into teams of good guys and bad guys! Two on two in door battles!”

“Isn’t this a little advanced?”

“The best training you can get is on the battlefield! But remember you can’t just punch a robot this time! You’re dealing with actual people now!”

This explanation caused a slew of different questions all of which you would expect from this group.

“Sir, will you be the one deciding who wins?”

“How much can we hurt the other team?”

“Do we need to worry about the losers getting expelled like earlier?”

“Will you be splitting us up based on chance or comparative skill?

“Isn’t this cape incredible?”

“Ugh! I wasn’t done talking yet!”

Soon enough All Might explained the situation. Two villains have hidden a nuclear missile somewhere in their hideout while the heroes must try to foil their plans. To do that they either have to catch the criminals or recover the weapon...safely. The bad guys succeed if they capture the heroes or keep their weapon safe. Soon enough, All Might pulled out a box of lots for them to choose teams.

They were all placed in their teams Team A including Izuku and Uraraka, Team B Todorki and Shoji, Team C Ben and Momo, Team D Bakugo and Iida, Team E Ayoama and Ashido, Team F Sato and Koda, Team G Kaminari and Jiro, Team H Tokoyami and Asui, Team I Ojiro and Hakakure, and Team J Kirishima and Sero.

Ben really hoped he'd get a villain role, he had to admit it was pretty fun when he did something similar with the Plumbers' Helpers when he was 15. All Might soon got everyone’s attention and placed his hands into two boxes one for villains and the other for heroes.

“I declare that the first teams to fight will be...these guys! Team A will be the heroes and Team D will be the villains! Everyone else can join me in the monitoring room to watch!”

All Might yelled excitedly as he pulled out the letters D and A putting Izuku and Uraraka against Bakugo and lida. Izuku’s eyes widened slightly as he realized he would have to fight against Bakugo. Izuku turned to see Bakugo glaring at him but he didn’t back down and glared right back.

“Bad guys you can go on in and get set up! And in two minutes the good guys will be let loose and the battle will start! You two, the key to being successful is to emboy villainy! Think from the perspective of an evildoer! If things go too far, I’ll step in!”

Lida walked up to the giant dummy weapon and examined it as Bakugo stared forward. It pained lida to be acting as a villain even if it was just training.

“Hey! Do you really think Deku has a quirk?”

“You saw how he threw that ball. Though I think his power hurts his body. Why is it that you seem to be so angry towards Midoriya?”

Bakugo grunted as he began to think anger clouding his judgement as it usually did.

Was he seriously just tricking me all these years?! I’m gonna roast that damn nerd today!

Back on the ground outside, Izuku and Uraraka were talking about how huge the building was and how difficult it would be to memorize its flooring pattern. She then turned to Izuku who was shivering in slight terror.

“Hey, what’s wrong? You’re sweating through your costume!”

“W-Well...it’s just because we’re up against Kacchan...and lida. We should keep our guard up. Who knows what they’ll pull.”

“Oh right Bakugo. He’s the one who’s always making fun of you.”

“Y-Yeah. As awful as he is, he’s sort of amazing. His quirk is so powerful and tactical, not to mention his confidence added on top of that. They’re all so much greater than mine. But that just means I’ll have to do better. I refuse to lose!”

“Well then let’s take them down as a team!”

Back in the monitoring room, they all looked at the screen as All Might started speaking.

“ALRIGHT! Let’s begin indoor combat training! Teams! Your time starts now! Pay attention kids, think about what you would do!”

Young Midoriya, in this class you’re just another student. I’ll try to keep myself unbiased. I’ll grade as I’d grade anyone else! Without playing favorites!

Ben frowned as he kept a close eye on the fight, he didn't trust Bakugo to not go too far. Once he has he'll intervene himself if All Might doesn't for whatever reason.

Izuku why're you praising someone who's made your life hell? I get you have an inferiority complex due to bullying and I know how hard those are to get over myself but this isn't healthy.

The two entered from a window and were inside the building. They soon started walking down the halls trying to watch their blindspots. The two walked around looking to see if anyone was around in the area they were in.

I still basically have no control over One for All. I can’t risk using it and Ben isn’t here to heal whatever body part I shatter. Besides, I’d probably end up killing someone! We’ll just have to work with Uraraka’s zero gravity and whatever I can do without a quirk. I’ve just got to use my head. I took a lot of notes on fighting in tight and indoor spaces. I can do this!

Izuku soon gasped as he saw Bakugo jumping in the air rearing a charged fist straight at his face. Izuku paused for a moment before grabbing Uraraka and jumping to the side dodging the punch but his mask wasn’t completely unscathed. They looked back and Uraraka noticed his ruined mask.

“Izuku are you ok?!”

“It’s just my mask, I’m fine!”

The dust soon cleared as Bakugo started to speak with the clear ruined and burned part of the wall where his punch connected.

“What’s the matter Deku? Afraid to stand up and fight me?!”

“I knew you’d come at me first! And figured you’d try to catch me by surprise!”

In the room, they all started commenting on what just transpired on the screen.

“A sneak attack? Really? What kind of a man pulls cheap crap like that?!”

“It’s a viable strategy! He’s playing the part! Acting like a true villain would!”

“It didn’t work! Midoriya dodged him!”

“Wait, there he goes!”

Bakugo once again charged towards Izuku with pure anger on his face despite the wide smile.

“I WON’T HURT YOU SO BAD THEY’RE GONNA HAVE TO STOP THE FIGHT! JUST CLOSE!”

Izuku soon slammed into the charging teen almost like a hug which shocked both Bakugo and everyone watching. Soon enough, Izuku changed his footing and threw all of Bakugo’s weight over him slamming him down hard onto the ground.

“Kacchan, you always used a big right hook to start a fight! I know because I’ve watched you for years! I analyzed every amazing hero, even you! I wanted to know everything I could about them! It was all in the notebook you burned and threw away! You can call me Deku but I’m not the same weak, helpless kid anymore! You hear me?! I’ve changed!”

Bakugo slowly got off of the floor strangely silently before getting into a fighting position with a look of pure hatred on his face. He opened his fists to light them up once more. Izuku was still trembling as he stared Bakugo down but he wasn’t backing down. Not this time.

“Deku...you’re shaking in your boots, you’re so scared! But you want to fight me anyway! THAT’S WHY I HATE YOU!”

Ben curled his hands into fists as he looked on at the display, wondering when exactly All Might will step in to stop this. He didn’t seem to be moving in to do anything so Ben continued to watch but this gets any more violent and he’s calling him out on it.

Bakugo tightened his fist and Izuku yelled for Uraraka to run which she did. Bakugo shot off towards Deku trying to land a kick to the skull but only met Izuku’s arm.

“Ballsy move! Think you can take me alone?!”

Izuku didn’t say anything as he tried to wrap the capture tape around Bakugo’s leg. Izuku thought of what Kacchan did and dodged to the left as Bakugo punched the wall once more causing another explosion. The other students marveled at Izuku’s quick thinking and quick reflexes to Bakugo’s attacks.

He kicked first this time! He’s switching things up so I can’t predict his moves! Does that mean he’s worried?”

At the first sight of Bakugo blasting towards him again, Izuku soon ran around the corner so he wouldn’t get an easy target. Bakugo was quickly unsure of where Izuku went due to the maze-like interior of the building. This of course caused him to get frustrated as most things did.

“UGH! DAMN IT! YOU WERE TRICKING ME FOR YEARS BY ACTING WEAK! BET YOU’VE BEEN LAUGHING BEHIND MY BACK HUH?! SO WHERE’S THAT FLASHY POWER OF YOURS NOW?!”

The rest of the class watched commenting on how sort of scary Bakugo was. Incredibly violent too. They continued to show scenes of Izuku hiding and running around corners as Bakugo tried desperately to find him blowing down every door he could find. Bakugo soon found a staircase and walked up it, his anger only growing.

Just another worthless bug for me to smash! I didn’t need your stupid help! I’ve never needed it! Yet you looked at me like I was some kind of weakling! Like you but I’m not you! I’m so much better than you are!

Uraraka turned her head around the large pillar and saw lida standing next to the weapon. Perfect, now all she needed to do was tell Izuku. Iida was too busy talking about how he needed to embody a villain’s mindset. He was sort of like a cartoony villain you’d see on tv. Unfortunately with how goofy it was, Uraraka let her position be known.

“Uraraka is that you?! I knew you would come here alone, the instance Bakugo ran off by himself! Your quirk allows you to float anything you touch but I’ve prepared for that! By hiding everything that could help you away from this room! My dastardly tricks have rendered you helpless! You’ve messed up, hero! MUAHAHA!”

“He...really is playing the part.”

Bakugo grinned viciously as his gauntlet gleamed iron hot red for a brief moment as he stalked closer to Izuku.

"I sweat a nitroglycerin like substance for my Quirk… and my gauntlets collect it. Let's see how much you can handle useless Deku! I'll show you you'll never be better than me!"

Ben's eyes widen in shock as he quickly transforms as Bakugo goes to pull the pin attachment on his right gauntlet and stretch out his arm. As All Might screams for him to stop Ben is already in the building speeding to their location as XLR8. As Bakugo responds that he'd only kill him if he doesn't dodge Ben got in-between them as the explosion was sent out. In another flash of light Heatblast replaced XLR8 as he slid to a halt and the explosion expanded. Upon contact with Heatblast it was absorbed as he glared, the fire around him rising from his anger as he clenched his fists.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

As Heatblast yelled he stalked to the shocked Bakugo as each footfall melted the concrete of the floor.

"You never use deadly force in combat simulations! This is training! I have no idea what All Might was thinking when he didn't step in to stop someone like you, who clearly has no grasp on safe use of force, and frankly I don't care. You want to act like a wild animal?! You better be ready to be treated like one."

Izuku stared at the two in front of him and spoke. It wasn’t that Izuku was angry that Ben was here to help. It was just that he was sick of being saved. He would’ve come up with something.

“Ben! I’m thankful for the help but I had it covered! You don’t need to do this!”

“Were you going to use your quirk against him?”

“I…”

“I thought so. Bakugo here clearly doesn’t understand the difference between an actual fight and training. While I’m sure you would’ve come up with something, this could’ve gotten very deadly very quickly.”

Heatblast growled as he punched the wall closest to him causing it to shatter to pieces.

"Fuck, even if it didn't kill you he'd have given you permanent 3rd degree burns at best. There's no scenario where anything like this is ok to happen in a school. If something isn't done from this I'll make it happen, even if I have to share this fight with the damn news!"

Heatblast closed his eyes as Ben transformed back to normal as he stepped out of a nearby window to walk back to the observation room on Mana platforms to cool his head. Izuku looked in shock as he let out a tired sigh. It was kind of awful considering Bakugo’s blasts would most likely kill him if he didn’t dodge. And even then, if he didn’t die those 3rd degree burns would be more than unpleasant.

All Might watched before sighing and speaking into his earpiece.

“Team A and Team D. I’m going to cut this match short. For what it’s worth, Team D would win considering both played their roles as villains even if one took it too far. Plus there was also Uraraka letting her position be known. Return to the monitoring rooms and we’ll continue with the rest of the groups.”

Izuku gasped but looked down before back at Bakugo. He was pissed as always. He punched the wall as Izuku inched out of the same window Ben stepped out of. Izuku walked up behind him before speaking.

“Ben? Are you ok?”

He looked behind him and sighed as he swept a hand through his hair.

"Yeah, you didn't do anything wrong. This whole situation just makes me angry is all, sure I could have healed you physically from near any wound you could get. Psychologically though? That much physical trauma would get to most anyone even if you no longer had the wounds to match your memories."

Ben chuckled self deprecatingly making sure the radio was off.

"After all I've been aged to dust a few times and sometimes I still freak out a bit whenever I get covered in it thinking it's somehow happening again."

Izuku was about to comment on that but figured it would be best not to bring up bad memories. He rubbed his head as he smiled slightly.

“Well, thank you for stepping in like that. It’s nice to have someone who cares. We should go to the monitoring room and watch the other people go. I’d love to see you as a villain.”

Ben laughs and nods.

"Yeah, I've done that once before back home. It's actually pretty fun. I hope I get a villain team up. Though I'll definitely show them how a real one acts, not that crazed berserker Bakugo was. … Assuming I'm still able to participate anyway given I interrupted your training."

“I’m sure All Might will let you participate. I mean, you are in the right. It’d be pretty unbecoming of a hero to punish someone for doing the right thing even if it was sort of brash.”

Ben frowns and shrugs.

"So far the actions of UA haven't really given me much confidence honestly. If nothing is actually done from what happened just now, it'll pretty much kill my trust in the school in terms of it's priority to keeping students safe."

“Yeah...yeah that’s fair. I really didn’t want to get burned and find out that nothing would happen to Ka-Bakugo. That would make me pretty mad. But let’s go to the others.”

Ben nods as he makes a Mana slide to the ground so they can reach it quicker and soon enough they were back in the observation room with Ben staring at Bakugo with disgust. Bakugo stared back angrily as Izuku just let out a sigh and looked back to the screen. Bakugo wasn’t the only person Ben was pissed off with however.

"I figure I might as well ask this now, why exactly didn't you stop the fight sooner All Might? I get there's a quasi miracle healer on staff but I doubt she'd be able to deal with 3rd degree burns, let alone the psychological damage something like that causes."

Ben asked as he shifted his glare from Bakugo to All Might as he folded his arms in front of him.

“I...I suppose I wanted young Midoriya to figure this one out on his own but I didn’t take into account Bakugo's...intensity. I realize that was my mistake...I’m sorry.”

Ben sighs as he leans back against the wall.

"I trust there will actually be punishments for both Bakugo and yourself, yes? Hell I'll gladly be punished too if the school deems it necessary. Something like this should never happen in any school, let alone one for mastering super powers."

“Truthfully, I’m not entirely sure. But I’ll be sure to inform the school and ask for punishments for myself and Bakugo. It’d be the right thing to do.”

“Punishment for what?! Taking this seriously?! It’s not my fault Deku’s a goddamn weakling! I’ll kick your ass!”

Ben froze as cold fury engulfed him before stalking over to Bakugo and punching him in the face. His glare inadvertently activating his Mana, making them glow an eerie green.

"Did you not pay attention to anything I've said? Get your head out of your ass Katsuki! If I was All Might I'd honestly expell you out right! If I didn't intervene, and Izuku failed to dodge out of the way, the best case scenario you're looking at is whole body 3rd degree burns! You attacked someone with deadly force in a training simulation, and if you can't see what's wrong with that quite frankly you. Shouldn't. Be. Here."

Bakugo simply just glared back at Ben as Izuku rubbed his hair at all the yelling that was going on. Quite frankly, he was never really good when there was yelling. Or at least negative yelling anway. He was just fine whenever All Might was yelling as he usually did. He usually got all shaky and nervous whenever Bakugo yelled or hell even just really looked in his direction. He hated it.

“Look, let’s just forget about it for now and move onto the next people so they don’t miss their chance alright?!”

Izuku exclaimed, shocking everyone in the room before All Might simply nodded. All Might wasn’t the only one to notice how shaky Izuku was.

Ben backed off with a huff and stalked back to his corner with a sigh, determined to ignore Bakugo least he inadvertently triggers Izuku again.

Things were pretty awkward after that. The others had their chances to try and win with some pretty interesting and sort of fun results. Soon enough it was Momo and Ben as villains against Todoroki and Shoji as heroes. A pretty interesting matchup to say the least. Ben was basically a natural while Todoroki was put in on request so he had to be good.

Upon getting the results of his villain status Ben grinned and whooped.

"Alright! Time to show you all how a real villain fights, not like the berserker Bakugo was. So you all better pay attention!"

Ben waves as he exits with Momo to enter the building and guard the fake nuke.

"Seeing that we're up against Todoroki we should probably expect some power from him since he got in on a recommendation like you did right Momo?"

"Power isn't the only factor, but yes we did get in that way."

Ben nodded but that also probably meant that power was a large factor in it. If any of his years of heroing has proven anything it’s that people with power usually think highly of themselves and he can use that to his advantage.

"Seeing as we don't know the extent of his power we should focus on reinforcement of the room. I'll set up a barrier between the various entrances, you can make it as difficult as you can to get to the payload."

With that, Ben crosses his legs as he floats in the air, a thin shell of Mana holding him up as one by one the windows and doorway was sealed as thick as he could make barriers currently. Nowhere near Gwen's in strength but they would hold up against even a tank for prolonged periods.

Once the hero team got the ok to do so the barriers came in handy as they blocked Todoroki's ice from coming inside when he tried to freeze the entire building.

This blocking of the ice would have to force Todorki to enter the building. There were a couple of ways this could go down. Ben could use his mana constructs which were impressive but not as impressive as Gwen’s. He could turn into one of his incredibly quick aliens to take them out efficiently. He could use some of his more mental aliens to get into Todoroki’s head. So many different options.

Ben grinned as he turned into Ghostfreak, the chains on him rattling in a etheral way as his eye moved to his back to look at Momo.

"I'll keep them busy, this shouldn't take too long."

Ghostfreak hissed out a chuckle as he turned into mist.

"It'll be fun to show Todoroki he can't rely on just his power alone for fights. Sometimes no matter what you do, you'll never stand a ghost of a chance."

In no time at all Ghostfreak was peering at his temporary foes through a wall before grinning, making sure to have his voice echo.

"My my, that was a good move you know. But unfortunately for you we delt with the ice. Tell me… have any of you ever seen a ghost?"

As Ghostfreak talked he made sure to rattle his chains and made a show of turning off and on his invisibility to make it look like he was skipping space entirely between movements.

His chest mouth smirked as Ghostfreak went to grab at the seams in his middle.

"Wanna see a dead body?"

Without waiting for a response he ripped himself open revealing his insides and the swarming tentacles therein as a unholy screech filled the building.

The rest of the students watched in horror as they saw the alien’s insides being revealed and tentacles swarming and moving in an uncanny moment. Jesus Christ this was horrifying to watch.

“Well...that’s horrifying.”

“Really really horrifying.”

“A-Are those tentacles?! Did he rip his skin open?!”

“Let’s just be glad that Ben isn’t a villain and on our side.”

“Yeah heheh...but he’s just a little too good at playing villain for my taste…”

Izuku stared at the screen, split between terrified and impressed. He was playing the role of creepy villain well but as others have stated too well for comfort.

Done playing with them Ghostfreak vanished from sight as he turned into mist again before reappearing in front of Todoroki.

"How's that saying go? Ah yes, sticks and stones might break my bones, but ghosts will always haunt me."

With that Ghostfreak possessed Todoroki who gained an equally chilling smirk as both sides of his body activated their Quirks in a steady controlled manner.

"Wouldn't you agree?"

He turns to Shoji as black lines form on his body and quick as can be he was frozen in place.

With that done Ghostfreak let Todoroki go who promptly passed out as Ben transformed back to normal and gave a nearby camera a bow. The rest of the class just looked at the scene terrified, impressed but terrified nonetheless.

“Wow...that was...wow.”

“So, I’m scared of a dude with the middle name Kirby now.”

“Jesus, I sure hope he doesn’t have any other forms that are like that! That was horrifying!”

“Just seeing him control Todoroki like some uncanny puppetmaster ugh! No thank you!”

“Todoroki was admitted here by request as well. How was Ben not? He’s incredible!”

Ben grins as he waits for All Might to give the all clear for passing the simulation while breaking the ice around Shoji.

"Sorry if I scared you badly but I couldn't resist. It's always fun playing the part of a bad guy, ya know?"

“Y-Yeah.”

All Might hesitated for a moment still thinking over Ben’s creepy performance before speaking.

“Alright you guys! Villains win! Good work! Meet us all back here!”

Ben nods and makes a Mana platform to carry Todoroki as the ones upstairs vanish. As he does he adds a bit of Mana to his forehead to wake him up faster, noticing the burned tissue on his face and deciding to ask later if he'd like it healed as an apology for going a tad overboard.

“No. It’s fine.”

Todoroki was always the more stoic type anyway. Besides, it’s not like there was much point in trying anyway.

Izuku smiled at the screen happy that Ben won but it did make him feel like he was cheated out of something. He didn’t know what exactly but it was something. It’s not like he got to finish his round and truthfully he’d rather not go up against Bakugo after that. He wasn’t necessarily mad about it but still.

Soon enough, the class returned to the classroom talking about each of their battles trying not to mention Izuku and Bakugo’s confrontation as the blonde looked just about ready to explode.

"All Might Sensei, I really hope we get to do something like that again. Though if possible I wouldn't mind taking on the entire class if we do. I'm not sure what the objective could be unfortunately. Ah, maybe stopping a assasination attempt? You could be the hypothetical target and they can be the elite team sent in to stop me. I could even restrict myself to 3 forms and distribute profiles for them…"

Ben rubs his chin in thought before shaking his head.

"Though I'd understand if we can't really suggest material in case you have lessons planned in advance."

All Might rubbed his bright hair back liking the idea but he did have lessons in plan and plus he probably wouldn’t be the only one teaching the class anyway. Those consequences he needed to talk to the school board about.

“Young Ben! While the idea is great, I do have other lessons planned! Plus, I don’t think putting the whole group against one person in a match is right! Plus...I’m not really worried for you, you can handle yourself but Bakugo might try something.”

All Might said bending down and whispering the last part into the teen’s ear.

"Oh. Yeah. That makes sense. Speaking of which I think it'd be good if you announced whatever punishment they give you both to the class if you weren't planning to already. Ah and as I said I'd be ok with being punished too if they seem it right."

Ben whispers back mentally berating himself for not factoring Bakugo. All Might nodded. While the others were doing their own runs, All Might had notified the school about their punishments. It was unfortunate but necessary.

“Alright everyone listen up! As of now I will have an assistant at all times before I can teach on my own! And young Bakugo has one more chance but if he messes up he’ll be expelled from UA!”

This instantly caused anger out of the blonde asking why and just straight up complaining.

“Oh come on that’s bullshit!”

“I can assure you it’s not young man! Instead of complaining why not try to look at it more critically? When put in situations like these you can do two things, you can hate it or you can learn from it!”

Ben nods.

"After all I doubt you'd have liked being in Izuku's place if he failed to dodge and I wasn't there. Unless you're saying you'd be fine with a permanently disfigured body from a explosion that should never have been used in school grounds?"

He asks as he quirks an eyebrow and looking at the teen. The teen looked back at Ben before tsking and looking to the side.

“Yeah. Whatever.”

“But for now, the school day is over! Go home and rest up for tomorrow! A new day means new experiences! Take what you learned from this day and use it your advantage! You’re dismissed!”

The students nodded before beginning to file out of the classroom. Izuku let out a small smile before walking up to Ben.

“You want to get something to eat?”

"Sure, anywhere in mind?"

“I know a place, come on!”

The two soon found themselves at a restaurant and sat down eating as they talked. As expected Izuku wanted to know more about Ben’s universe since it wasn’t everyday you get an opportunity like this.

“So what’s your world like?”

"Hmmm well it's a lot more advanced than here since alien and human cohabitation is in full swing. In fact all the forms you've seen me transform into are each a member of a different alien species."

“Really?! So you said you’re popular right? Are there no other heroes in your world? Or is it like here where people have to fight for popularity?”

"Fight for popularity? No no. Being a hero isn't about that where I'm from and shouldn't be anywhere frankly. I'm a member of the Plumbers, who are basically universal police helping to enforce cosmic law. I'm just really popular because I've helped restore two species from the brink of extinction (one of whom wanted to commit galactic Omnicide previously), and… well I have been put on trial by the universe like I said previously. At that point people really can't not know who you are, especially when it was live streamed to everyone around the universe for real time voting on if I was guilty or not."

“Oh! Well it’s just being a hero is a job here and less popularity means less money. It is sort of selfish yeah. I suppose in your world it’s more like a noble thing to do. I was thinking of having a day job for money. Also you keep mentioning that. What happened that you were put on trial?”

Ben laughs and shakes his head.

"It's not that we don't get paid, we do, it's just that the only examples I've seen of people doing it for fame or glory eventually just started staging accidents to solve. As for what I did… I'll let you finish eating first before I tell you. I wouldn't want you to choke after all."

Izuku nodded chuckling and finished before looking at Ben interested to see what got Ben put on trial by the universe itself.

Ben shrugs and scratches his neck self consciously.

"Well… I used one of my forms to recreate the universe after it was destroyed, and apparently that was in violation of the Multiversal Preservation Act, which I didn't even know existed at the time."

“Woah...heavy. So how’d you get out of that? Also one of your forms recreated a whole universe?! Ben! You are way too awesome!”

He smiles and eats a chilli fri before laughing a bit.

"Well I did a trial by combat. I won but still got fined a bit for it. Definitely don't want to do that again."

“Huh. Jeez so end of the world stuff is normal for you huh? So how long does that take before it becomes just another day?”

Ben does a so so motion.

"I wouldn't say it happens too often. Planetary stuff is more frequent than galactic and higher. After all most people aren't insane enough to destroy a galaxy much less the universe or all of reality."

“Huh. Well thank God for that. Honestly, I think the only real dangerous thing I’ve seen besides what almost happened today was when that monster was destroying part of the city...or when I almost got killed by that sludge monster. Yeah. Not a fun time.”

"Ah, right that happened a bit before I arrived here right?"

“Yeah...not a pleasant experience. As it turns out, being suffocated isn’t fun. But hey! Did put a lot of things into perspective so there’s that.”

"Yeah… I've almost been choked to death plenty of times. Definitely not fun. Ah, which reminds me I was wondering if you'd like to be taught Mana manipulation, it's how I create all those energy constructs. I figured if you get good enough at it you can heal yourself in case I'm not available."

“Seriously?! Yeah, I’d love that! You saved me a lot using those!”

"Great! Though I don't know how easy it'd be for you to pick up really. It took me a year and a half to do it and my cousin was teaching me."

“Well practice takes time! Plus it’ll really help me in becoming a more efficient hero! You’d also be teaching me! You’re just the...best Ben.”

Izuku said smiling like an excited kid. Truthfully, anything that came to being a hero made Izuku smile brightly like that. It wasn’t even Ben’s powers that really made him smile so widely. It was just Ben himself. He was a true hero and a great friend..

Ben chuckled and winked playfully as he smirks.

"Keep going on like that and I'll think you're flirting with me with how much you praise me you know."

He shrugs and chuckles as he smiled while Izuku turned the other way for a moment to hide his small blush.

"Besides no need to thank me, anyone decent would have done the things I have and even most indecent people would see the value of having a universe to live in."

“Yeah, so I’ll have to squeeze in time training with you while I train my body to handle One for All. How should we go about it?”

"Oh, I can just let you use my workout equipment in my apartment if you want. I can upload the books I read on Mana Manipulation and Magic into you since I don't have them on hand, at least nothing for beginners anyway. That way you can practice trying to use your Mana whenever you aren't busy with other things."

He hums slightly in thought before shrugging.

"Hell, you can even sleep over if you want to. We do live next door after all."

“I could yeah. Sounds good Ben. By the way, All Might told me why One for All is shattering my body so bad. While it’s true I did train it to hold it, I rushed it and overworked myself. Which I...can’t disagree with. I did find myself collapsing a lot more due to the excess training. I guess that one’s on me.”

Izuku explained chuckling as he looked down at the table. He was so excited at the chance of being a hero and inheriting All Might’s quirk that he overdid the training. So much so that half the time he could barely feel his limbs. He should’ve taken it easy. Izuku mentally berated himself for such a childish mistake.

"I was wondering about that but each time I asked you if you were ok you'd insist you were. Did you cause permanent damage?"

“No no! I mean, I’m fine now! But I probably should’ve told you about those times I had trouble getting up in the morning...Sorry…”

Ben huffs as he sips his smoothie.

"Idiot. What good would a hero be if he was too exhausted to hero? I should know. I used to do 4 all nighters in a row."

Izuku looked down rubbing his head with slight guilt. It’s just he was so used to others having to help make whatever progress he had. He wanted to be a hero? He needed a quirk which All Might provided. He needed to get into UA? Uraraka while not giving her points still influenced something. His body was broken putting a halt into superheroing? Ben came in and healed him. He was grateful for it all but for once he’d just like to get something done himself. Nothing coming in last minute to save him.

Ben frowns at the look on his face and pokes his forehead with a chuckle

"Hey now, I can't help you feel better if you don't tell me what's wrong."

“I don’t know, it’s just...I’d like to do something on my own without anything coming to save my butt at the last second. I’m grateful for all the help I’m getting but it’s kind of self deprecating you know? I mean a hero has to rely on himself at times. I can’t always rely on others because there’s going to be a time when there won’t be others! It’ll just be myself and I can’t just break every bone in my body and hope someone saves the day! I have to be better! I...need to be better.”

It was something that had been bothering him for awhile. Heroes teamed up with others sure but they were usually able to deal with problems on their own. Izuku didn’t want everything to just be him failing but then some random coincidence or chance saves him in the end. Izuku looked at his hand and sighed.

"Really now? Who was it that worked out your body to get where you are? Who spent hours and hours studying and analyzing all things Quirk?"

“...Me…”

Ben nods as he points his straw at him.

"And who was it that tried to save Bakugo even after years of bullying and knowing you didn't have a Quirk? You again. Just because you have people that care about you doesn't mean you're any less of a Hero. Trust me, that way leads to something like the first time I met my future self. He got so obsessed with Heroing by himself so no one else gets hurt and, sure, he singlehandedly stopped all crime on Earth but it was slowly killing him inside. Luckily he seems to have learned his lesson by the time I left and started to have fun again."

Ben moves his hand to point at Izuku with the straw.

"What I'm trying to say is that relying on others doesn't make you less of a hero. Given how long you've had your Quirk it's expected you'd need help. Ah… I just thought of something, are you done with your food? If so we should head back to my place, I'm curious to see something."

Izuku nods as he finishes the last of his food, mulling over what Ben said on the way back to his apartment. As much as he hated to admit it, he really has been playing catch up. Still, all the more reason to try harder than everyone else to catch up!

Once they were both inside Ben vanished in his characteristic green flash and in his place was a vampire looking alien who latched on to a bookcase to hang upside down.

"I do my best thinking in this form upside down… Whampire here can see the life energy of others. If you can, can you please summon up your Quirk like you're going to use it but not actually do so?"

Izuku nodded and looked at his arm once more. He had to try and summon it without using it. Alright. Izuku started to focus and concentrate really hard feeling the strange powerful energy build up in his arm once more. He wasn’t going to expel it out this time...hopefully his arm doesn’t explode.

Whampire lets out an ahhh as he appears in front of Izuku's arm, drool almost escaping his mouth as he stares at the absolutely absurd amount of Mana being channeled through his body.

"I see your problem now, too much Mana in too little fine a point! Try distributing it across your body like so."

As he says so a thin shell of Mana wrapped around Whampire's body. Izuku watched carefully as Whampire did it and tried to replicate it. That was also probably why his body part usually hurt so much along his excess exercise. He was usually focusing all of his power into one point all at once.

Izuku let some of the incredible energy release from his hand and move to the rest of his body. It was slightly uncomfortable but it wasn’t hurting so there was that.

Whampire nods as he licks his lips before transforming back into Ben with a blush as he coughed.

"Sorry, that form is basically a space vampire in case you couldn't tell. The amount of Mana you were emitting was… getting hard to resist to eat. Erm, anyway how much would you say that is in terms of your total power output?"

Ben asked as he got out his hero costume to begin working on it. Izuku didn’t bother to question Ben eating his Mana as Whampire. Something told him he didn’t want to know. It did make him blush though.

“I...seventy percent? I was trying hard to force that power out but I could’ve tried harder.”

Ben blinked.

"Huh? No no! Go lower. As low as you can until it doesn't hurt to draw it out. After that is done practice using it automatically without having to think about it. If I'm right it should boost up every part of your body equally with no harm to you, and getting more fit will allow you to draw in more power later."

Izuku nodded and tried once more. He needed to try and go as low as he could. Izuku took a deep breath before letting out and trying again. The power inside him reawakened and was starting to spread throughout his body once more. He was going as low as he could but it wasn’t hurting! Honestly, he didn’t really feel anything in either way but that was progress right?

"Once you've gotten it as low as you can without it hurting, tell me at what percentage you feel it at. We should give it a name too if only to catagorize your different percentage levels. I have names for all my forms back home actually, I just haven't been using them much here since that'd give away my location whenever I Hero."

“I...I think it’s about thirty now. It’s not hurting so that’s good...Wait all your heroes have names? So like what you’d shout them out whenever you’d transform?”

Izuku asked finding that to be kind of funny honestly.

Ben pouts seeing the laughter in his eyes.

"Well yeah, basically. I use it to strike fear into my enemies because some of my forms coming out mean I'm not playing around. I actually tore apart my arch nemesis Vilgax when he got me too angry at one point. He didn't die or anything but that's more because of how much of a tenatious bastard he is than me trying to spare his life. I can't count the times we've tried to kill each other at this point. Having a universal conquerer after you since you were ten… well it definitely builds up some resentment on both sides."

“Jeez. I can’t imagine going through all that. Well, that’s pretty strong willed of you not to just end it when you have the chance.”

Ben laughs as he shakes his head.

"I can't say I haven't thought about unfreezing him so he'd die from just being most of a torso and a head honestly. But that wouldn't be enough punishment for his crimes. He's destroyed around a dozen planets after all and killed billions upon billions of lives. Hell at one point he even managed to kill an infinite number of lives. But… knowing that he's aware and frozen, brooding on his loss for years… well I can't say it doesn't feel good to think about it."

“Huh. Well regardless of whatever you choose to do in that situation. I could say you’re in the right in both. Sparing him does show your mercy and that you’re a hero not the executioner. But on the other hand, genocider so letting him die probably wouldn’t make anyone mad. But I’m sure you’re right in keeping him frozen.”

Ben scratches his cheek in thought, currently the small fry from like alien Grey Matter.

"I wouldn't really call his situation merciful. That'd be putting him into a induced coma. He is after all aware of every single second while he's frozen. The look of hate he gave me once I told him his former empire joined the Plumbers with open arms was delicious and so satisfying."

As Grey Matter talked he was busy taring apart his microwave, toaster, and a medical syringe and in moments Ben had what he wanted. A DNA sampler that'd work on even his smallest of aliens.

“Well, sure maybe not merciful. But I can’t blame you for that.”

Ben quickly turned into 4 forms in rapid succession before turning back into Grey Matter and picking up the sampler again, now loaded with Nanomech, Gutrot, Upgrade, and Lenopan samples. Hooking it up to his computer he started to run simulations on possible DNA combinations to get a sort of nanochip like goop that can be applied to his suit and instantly outfit it with technology and chemical warfare synched up to his watch and thus master control. If his calculations were right, and they always were, by the time he's synthesized the purpleish goop they'd make his costume much akin to what his Nanomech form could do already paired with Upgrade's ignoring of the square cube law and the Lenopan's nigh unlimited shapeshifting.

Izuku at this point was laying on Ben’s bed throwing a ball up and down as Ben worked. Izuku wasn’t stupid by any means, quite intelligent actually. But different planes here so he’d basically be of no help.

“So who’s your smartest alien?”

"Ah you're looking at it actually. Grey Matter belongs to a race of hyper intelligent aliens. It's no exaggeration that even the dumbest of their species would make the smartest of most any other look like a barely formed fetus in comparison intellect wise. To tell you the truth I'm still not sure how my smart forms even work considering they flat out seem to know things I've never even studied let alone seen before."

The frog shrugged as he transformed back into Ben now that the simulation was on auto and would continue to work until it found the right combination.

Ben laughed as he sat on a nearby chair.

"Sorry if I was ignoring you. It's just Nanomech, the really small alien you saw me turn into briefly, is part of a hivemind and I had to make sure the resulting nano goop I was making didn't suddenly gain sentience since… that'd be bad."

Izuku chuckled at that as he continued to throw the ball up and down.

“No it’s fine! And yeah that does sound bad. Ok how bout this? Personal favorite alien? And considering all the aliens you have now, if you had to limit it to ten. What would be your choices?”

Ben leaned back and huffed as he thought before shaking his head.

"I can't really answer that sorry. I would have said Feedback was my favorite if you asked 11 year old me but now… they all hold equal value to me and are each useful in different situations. As for 10 aliens assuming I'd only ever have those… well you've seen 6 of them today alright. Ghostfreak, Nanomech, Gutrot, Upgrade, Grey Matter, Lenopan. The last 4 would be Clockwork, the Pugnavore form I told you about when I asked if you wanted to tour the Galaxy, Gravvatack, and Echo Echo."

Ben points to the scanner as an explanation.

"See, I'd use Grey Matter to do something like I'm doing now. Combining the DNA of the four I showed you here to create what'd basically amount to a technological singularity due to the inherent adaptability of Nanomech paired with Upgrade's ability to significantly enhance technology. I'd also tinker with the Lenopan sample to add Gutrot's ability to create any chemical on the fly and Nanomech again to create the world's best smart clothes that'd act like a biological version of the previous combination."

Ben blushes and coughs.

"Sorry if I'm boring you but I've had a lot of time to think about that hypothetical myself. The other 4 are for drastic measures. Gravvatack is so powerful he can create a blackhole, Echo Echo can contain a nuke via sound waves and provides me with extra lives via clone spam, the Pugnavore form lets me choose the battlefield or if need be escape, and Clockwork is juuuuuuust in case I need to manipulate time for whatever reason."

“Well those make sense! Let’s say, you’re going up against someone who has all your powers at once! What do you do then?”

Izuku asked laying upside down on the bedside smiling at Ben.

Ben laughs at the question as he leans forward.

"Funny you should ask that, my best friend back home used to go crazy when he absorbed too much energy, and he actually used to have most of my powers at once but only a tenth of their original strength. It was pretty hard to deal with most times, thankfully I had help honestly. Otherwise he'd have drained me dry."

“Dude. Your life just keeps on surprising me. Was the great Ben Tennyson ever good with romance?”

Izuku asked getting back up to make sure he didn’t get dizzy from all the blood rushing to his brain.

Ben shrugged as he looked to the floor and chuckled.

"I mean, not really no. There's multiple people back home who only like one of my forms and my longest term girlfriend was ok for a while but… it rapidly deteriorated once my identity was made public and she started to get upset at me prioritizing saving lives over our hangout time or problems with my unwanted fame I couldn't even control."

Ben chuckled self deprecatingly as he shrugged again.

"Then again I can't really fault her for wanting a normal relationship. After all, not many people would stick around with someone that could be on the other side of the universe the next day brokering peace between warring species or whatever."

He shakes his head and laughs.

"That and I'm honestly so busy back home I barely get days off for weeks at a time, so I'm too busy to even go on a date even if I wanted to."

He blinked as he looked at Izuku in curiosity.

"Why do you ask? I hope you aren't asking to see if I'm available because erm… I'm really 18. I was just deaged once I stepped through the portal to 15. So it'd be pretty awkward to date with how young you are."

“Really? Huh. Well I guess I was just curious.”

Izuku blushed for a moment but shook his head. He felt bad for bringing up bad memories. He got up from Ben’s bed and gave him a hug despite how awkward that was given Ben was sitting and letting go.

“Sorry for bringing up bad memories. You’re doing your best and being a hero isn’t just something you put off. You’re a great hero and an even greater person Ben.”

Ben blinked as he smiled and hugged Izuku back briefly.

"Heh, thanks Izuku. I guess I've been wanting to get that off my chest for a while but you know… too busy and any time spent in a psych appointment might be time when I'm needed to deal with something back home."

Ben pokes his chest with a grin.

"Also I'm not the only great hero here, you're definitely on your way to top hero status."

Izuku smiled at Ben’s words happily. It wasn’t often he heard that so of course it made him giddy. Izuku soon sat back down on Ben’s bed and laid down.

“Yeah. I’ll need to train though.”

Ben hums in thought.

"I'd ask if you'd be interested in doing Vigilante work with me but I wouldn't want you to accidentally maim someone."

Izuku’s eyes widened as he sat up and looked at Ben.

“You’re doing vigilante work?!”

Ben blinked in surprise as he looked at Izuku oddly and shrugged.

"Yeah? I mentioned it a bit ago today. Thought you heard. I'm not about to wait for some piece of paper that says I can use my powers to save lives. Even if I wasn't as experienced as I am now I'd still do it. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if someone died who I could have saved just because society deems it illegal. After all, what's legal isn't always what's right and Heroes do what's right no matter the cost."

Izuku really couldn’t help but agree. Truthfully, if Izuku could control his powers now he’d probably try to do some himself. One because heroes don’t wait to save people and two he’d probably die of boredom of having a quirk and not using it. A bit selfish sure but he’s got the right mentality. Izuku nodded laying back on the bed.

“Uh...yeah I can’t really argue with that. Just be careful alright? I don’t want that to get you into any trouble.”

Ben snickers as he turns into Ghostfreak as he turns into mist.

"With this form? They'd never stand a chance of finding me, let alone finding any evidence of my powers. With XLR8 I can patrol this entire perfector and Ghostfreak makes it easy to stop crimes without anyone noticing."

As he stops talking Ben turns back and sits back down.

"If I was sloppy you'd have heard of me on the news by now. After all, I've been doing Vigilante work since I got here."

“Yeah...yeah that makes sense for you honestly. Well you’re helping people and that’s all that matters...Want to play video games?”

Ben nods and grins.

"Sure, do you have any or do you want to play one of mine?"

“I do have a few but I’d love to try a few of yours...bet you I could beat you!”

Ben laughs as he ruffled his hair and plugs in his gameoctagon loading up a Sumo Slammers beat em up projected from a holoscreen. Two virtual controllers pop into existence in front of it.

"Why fight against each other when we can fight together hm?"

Ben asked as he handed over the virtual controller and explained how to play and All Things Sumo Slammers. Izuku nodded and the two started to play. Izuku was actually pretty good at it. Playing together was a bit more fun than fighting against one another he could admit. The two played up until they needed to sleep for tomorrow.

Chapter Text

They were all piled on a bus heading to learn more about rescue training which included accidents, shipwrecks, natural disasters, and so forth. All Might and Aizawa Sensei had decided to accompany them on this trip.

They were planning on coming either way but Aizawa was put as All Might’s personal assistant for teaching much to his chagrin, it was almost impossible to get sleep in with how boisterous he was… though given the screw up earlier Aizawa supposed that was a good thing.

It'd also help keep an eye on this Ben Tennyson...something about the way he intervened and lectured All Might in front of everyone definitely says he's not only used to being in charge, but far more experienced than any kid his age had a right to be.

During the ride Tsu had made mention of how Izuku’s quirk was similar to All Might’s. Izuku wasn’t good on lying on the spot so he had to blabber his way through it like usual.

“You could do a lot of cool and flashy stuff with a quirk like that. My hardening isn’t really the same.”

"Hm? What do you mean Kirishima? You can do a lot with that especially if you can selectively harden parts of your body. Imagining you with something like Krav Maga is… honestly a bit frightening. Or even the Drunken Fist, if you could selectively harden and sharpen parts of your body you'd basically be able to multiply the amount of force you can bring into a fight."

“Oh you think so? Yeah it is kind of cool and strong but it would make things a lot easier if it was a bit flashier!”

“My naval laser is the perfect combination of style and strength!”

“Yeah but super lame if it gives you stomach aches after using it sweetie!”

“Well I know one thing though. If any of our classmates have pro quirks, it’s Ben, Todorki, and Bakugo.”

“Yeah but Bakugo is always angry so he’ll never be that popular.”

This caused Izuku and Bakugo to get surprised at Tsu’s sudden bluntness.

“What did you say?! I’ll kick your ass!”

“See?”

Ben snickered as he coughed.

"Yeah, being angry all the time just kinda gives away your Quirk doesn't it? I mean obviously the person with explosive outbursts would have a Quirk to match…. It'd actually be a pretty effective psychological warfare tool to be a silent fighter for you. Like an explosive ninja, once they hear you coming it'd be too late."

Bakugo didn’t have anything to say to that but only just covered his mouth looking out the window muttering.

“Plus, it’d probably do you some good to take some anger management classes. You know, reshape your temper and personality to be a little less like...that. It’s sort of like hot fire and garbage...in a volcano.”

“Oh yeah?! I’m gonna make you regret coming to this school!”

“See you’re only proving my point!”

“This conversation is so disgusting.”

“Yeah but it’s kind of funny watching them fight!”

"Hmm out of curiosity how do you all think you'd fight if you had Bakugo's Quirk? I'd probably use some type of triggered heat pads to build up sweat faster for a finishing blow and I'd definitely focus on using the environment as much as I could for smokescreens."

Ben said as he rubbed his chin in thought.

“Honestly I’d be too happy with having exploding hands to come up with good battle strategy at first.”

Ben laughs and shrugs.

"I suppose that's true but flashiness isn't everything. Skill and smarts often triumph over power and experience."

Ben leaned in to whisler to Izuku with a smile.

"I should know. Vilgax was at least 300 years old when I first fought him you know."

“Seriously?! How’d you win then?”

Izuku whispered back, interested in how Ben won against an at least 300 year old being. That’s a lot of experience and combat intelligence considering he was a genocider.

"Simple, I didn't do it alone. Teamwork makes the dream work and all that jazz. You can do most anything with good teamwork."

Izuku smiled and nodded at Ben’s words. It was the truth and the best part was that Izuku has friends! It wasn’t like before, he had people who really cared for him! Aizawa Sensei soon turned to the class on the bus and spoke.

“Hey listen up! We’re about to park and leave the bus. So I don’t want any of you idiots fooling around or setting a bad example. Got it?”

“YES SIR!”

They were soon off the bus and met another hero 13. An astronaut like hero who could create black hole suction from her fingertips. Pretty cool if you asked all of them. They all walked inside and marveled over all the different centers they had for rescue training.

"Wow this place is like an amusement park!"

13 soon gave a speech about how they were going to be using their powers not to hurt or fight anyone but to save others. Quirks can be deadly when not trained in all ways of using them and with proper training, you’ll end up hurting a lot more people than you’re saving. After all, one of the fundamentals of being a hero is saving people and making sure they’re safe. Aizawa Sensei soon spoke.

“Right. Now that we’re here let’s get to it.”

The students were amped up for doing the rescue training but soon the lights started to flicker getting everyone’s attention. Even the teachers were shocked so this wasn't planned. Soon a swirling vortex started to appear at one of the fountains and a bunch of creepy looking villains and thugs started to come out of the vortex. All Might and Aizawa Sensei stiffened as they looked at the people coming through.

“13! Keep the students safe! This is real everyone! Those are villains!”

Ben glared at the obvious attempt to gang up on a class of Heroes as he stiffened. In a flash of light he was gone and in his place was Gravvatck in case they decided to teleport drop villains near them.

"What's the big idea, are you second rate villains so incompetent you need a small army to deal with a class of year 1 Hero students?"

Ben yelled out wanting to bait them into making the first move as he put a Mana barrier construct around 13 and the others in his class, the inherent multi dimensional properties of it making it a great defense for teleporters.

The one with multiple hands all over his body and face stared at the group with that one unnerving eye and simply just laughed. Sort of like a child really. A giddy homicidal child. The group of villains soon started walking towards the group. Their “army” would deal with 13 and the children with the help of Kurogiri when they separate them all. Tomura Shigaraki was after All Might for their one goal...to kill him.

“I’m not here for you children. I’m just here for All Might! Just to kill the Symbol of Peace that’s all!”

They all gasped as they all stared at All Might who only stared forward with that fearless grin. This wasn’t good in theory. If they all came here with that intent, then they must’ve found a way to actually kill him. They would have to be careful about this.

"Hey, 13 aren't there automatic defense systems in this place? Why hasn't an alarm been rung? Also how'd they know we would be here today, an insider maybe?"

Ben asked as he stared at the villains making sure to expand the gravity field naturally formed around Gravvatack to only operate past the boundary of his Mana field. It wouldn't be all that strong but it'd definitely cause the villains to be lighter causing them to adjust to the new normal.

“Yes, one of their quirks must be interfering with the alarms! We do have those put in place! We just need to find out which one!”

Kurogiri let out a startled noise as he attempted to wormhole his way in only for him to exit just outside the strange green barrier. He grunted as he focused on keeping his smoke self together due to the lighter gravity outside it.

"My my. It seems like one of you has a Quirk that can cancel mine out. How frustrating. Still this shouldn't take long to get past."

In a few moments another hole appeared on top of the shield as tons of water fell along with a shipwreck.

Gravvatack grunted as the hole closed and the full weight of the ship bared down on the shield, rapid cracks beginning to form. He clenched his fists as he inverted the ships gravity to send it right at the pale manic with hand coverings as the barrier broke from the strain. With another hand he formed another gravity field on Kurogiri in an effort to take him out of the fight.

Said smoke-like villain grunted in pain as gravity started to compress on the solid part of his body breaking a few ribs even as he opened holes to drop the students in disparate locations except unfortunately for Gravvatack himself who was floating in the air.

Izuku struggled to open his eyes as he saw the blue background around him. He held his breath realizing he was underwater and soon felt something wrap around his torso. It was a giant tongue! He felt himself being pulled up over the water and gasped for air as he turned to see Tsu retracting her length tongue into her mouth.

“T-Thank you Asui.”

“How many times have I told you to call me Tsu? Ribbit.”

“Oh right! S-Sorry!”

Izuku soon turned and noticed 13 pop out of the water as well. Well that was a relief, they weren’t totally without help in this water.

“13! Over here!”

The space suited hero noticed the two kids and swam over admittedly with slight difficulty. She wasn’t that used to being in the water.

“You kids ok?”

“Y-Yeah, we’re fine. What do you think we should do here?”

“Well looking at the villain’s so called army they only seemed to be low level thugs. They most likely underestimated you but that also brings up another question and possibly a bigger problem.”

“Yeah, if their goal was to kill All Might then they probably should’ve brought stronger villains than those common thugs. They must have some trump card that we don’t know about. Let’s get out this water and then we can-Oh no!”

Izuku turned to see a few villains with water based quirks swimming towards them. Shit, what was he going to do?!

As that was happening the ship finally neared the white haired man only for the hulking monstrosity near him to step in to take the brunt of the impact, roaring as it punched a clean hole through the ship so it'd miss him completely even as it landed in a crumbled heap.

"My, it seems at least one of your students isn't afraid to go for the kill. Unfortunately for you All Might, my Nomu here can deal with you as easily as this ship. Nomu, kill them all."

With an almost pleased roar it attempted to do just that rushing towards Aizawa with incredible speed.

Gravvtacked tsked as his plan to end this fight early failed even as he further increased the Gs on the teleporter and wrapped himself in Mana just in case he could use his gates to cut people in half.

"If I increase the gravity any more you'll implode and collapse in on yourself. Considering your stated intention to kill someone I'd be well within my rights to kill you. So, I'll make you a deal. Information for your life. If I stop now you might very well be able to live without a respirator for the rest of your life."

This only caused the smile on Shigaraki’s face to grow even wider although it wasn’t like you could see a lot of it due to the multiple hands on his head.

“Do you really think I’m afraid to die here? If All Might is killed, then my mission is complete. It’d be a shame that I died but it’ll be a success regardless if I make it through or not! And don’t even begin to think I won’t take a couple of you pawns with me to shatter his spirit beforehand!”

"Oh? Well alright then. Without you there's no way any of your crew will escape here once we're done."

Before he could respond Gravvatack did as promised, increasing the gravity so much that space temporarily warped and all at once a huge crater formed in the stone as he imploded, painting the ground red. Without letting himself think about it too much, Ben closed his eyes for a second before seeming to vanish in a flash of green light, a now invisible Ghostfreak charging to attempt to possess Nomu before this got worse.

Aizawa Sensei was not doing incredibly well as Nomu sent powerful quick punches his way. Something was wrong even after Aizawa removed whatever quirk he seemed to have, he was still just as fast, powerful, and unstoppable. He was strong even without whatever quirk he had. He soon saw that he couldn’t dodge another incoming hit in time and took the hit trying his best to block it. The punch to his face dazed him before sending back a great distance.

He struggled to get up with his glasses shattered and blood running down his bruised face. Nomu was terrifying. He didn’t speak, he didn’t look angry, he didn’t seem to have any complex thought, he just was. Those blank eyes stared forward as Nomu continued running towards Aizawa before was put to a halt by All Might though even then it looked like All Might was struggling ever so slightly..

“Enough! I thought your battle was with me! Now then TEXAS SMASH!”

All Might punched the emotionless figure sending it back a few feet while wind whirled around them crazily. Any other villain would be down for the count but Nomu just seemed to absorb the punch. The beaked brawn only stared forward rushing All Might again sending hits that were blocked and given back to him by All Might. The insane amount of pressure and power continued to be sent out as Nomu continued to keep up with All Might despite taking multiple hits by this point. What the hell was this Nomu?!

Ghostfreak finally reached the fight and flew into Nomu only for him to be kicked out with a gasp.

"Senseis Nomu is mindless! I'll try to see if possessing the leader lets me stop him!"

All Might gave a thumbs up with his signature smile as he continued to keep Nomu at bay and blow out hits to the monster who only seemed to absorb every one of hits. All Might was doing better than he would’ve thanks to Ben healing his wound but he couldn’t keep it up forever.

With that Ghostfreak dove into him and tsked in his voice as he failed to register to the Nomu before smiling.

His voice might not register but Ghostfreak would bet the Frankenstein-like monster has been programmed to not hurt him… and given what his Quirk can do…

Using his stolen body to rush the lab experiment it only took one firm grasp on his leg for Nomu to still least harm his master even as the Quirk got to work turning first one leg than his whole bottom half to dust.

Even as Shikaragi viewed in horror at his plan falling apart all around him he seethed in utter rage at what he was forced to do, glaring hatefully at the now visible Ghostfreak even as he lost consciousness. The last thing he saw was Ben turning back to normal as he looked at the crater he had to form, a slight look of regret on his face at having to take another life.

"Seeing as the alarm system has been tampered with and the main threat is gone I could teleport in the staff here to help clean out the villains."

Nomu wasn’t dead surprisingly enough. He was still making use of his upper body jumping and still trying to lay out powerful blows to kill All Might like his objective called for him to do.

Though having his bottom half being permanently destroyed did make things a lot easier for All Might. Though Nomu was still a problem considering any one of those hits would obliterate anyone else so they would need to lock him up or find a way to kill him.

The other students were doing well considering they were only dealing with low level thugs. They messed with the wrong class. Izuku got to one side of the water and nodded over to Tsu and 13 who started to suck up the villains on her side.

Izuku soon started to focus and a mana construction was created slamming the villains into one group on his side. Perfect. Izuku soon formed his hand into a flicking motion and called for One for All in his middle finger and thumb.

A large flash of pressure hit the villains head on causing them great damage, knocking them out. He groaned looking at his broken flapping fingers but decided not to focus on it for now.

“Asui now!”

“I told you to call me Tsu!”

Froppie grabbed Izuku with her hand and wrapped up 13 in her tongue and soon jumped out of the water making them get out of the shipwreck zone. The other students started making good progress but these thugs just didn’t know when to quit.

Unfortunately not every student had a quirk that was good for putting villains out of commissions for longer than a few minutes. They started to get overwhelmed until they soon heard a gunshot go off in the area.

They all turned to see with smiles growing on their faces to see Ben standing with the rest of the pros.

They all smiled, some cried in happiness, as the pros got down and assisted in taking down the thugs more permanently.

At least long enough for them to arrest them. This is why they’re considered pros they supposed.

It’s not that any of them were weak or anything, it’s just that only a few of the students were striking with the intent to kill such as Ben or Bakugo. Sometimes that force is the only thing to keep your enemy down.

As the heroes cleaned house and finally had everyone arrested a police investigation soon started as to the motives of the bunch.

Unfortunately none of the mooks had any info besides their objective. To kill All Might. Try as best they could to get information out of their white haired leader they couldn't get him to crack.

Not that it mattered because it seemed the smoke villain wasn't as dead as Ben and the others thought. Before he could be stopped both vanished into the night a few weeks later.

———————

When he heard the news Ben barged into the teachers lounge in a hurry.

"Where's the blood sample taken from the white haired no name? I can use it to track him and his down."

“While we would love to hand it over, young man, to find this monster, there is no blood sample. All the evidence in the area got destroyed. We’re sorry.”

Ben gritted his teeth.

"Damn it. Do you know how? We can at least see that if you'll take me to wherever it was being kept."

“You can? How?”

“I have a form that can allow me to do basically anything with time. If you show me where it was being kept I can rewind so we can see how it got destroyed.”

The teachers leaned forward in interest and soon nodded. Ben would be late to his class but Izuku would just let him know what they’re doing.

The teachers showed him where the evidence would’ve been if not for the explosion that destroyed it. With a thought Ben transformed a bright green light covering him and left behind a large, tall yellow robot.

As soon as he appeared the gear on his head started spinning counter clockwise and soon a green hue overlaid everything. Holograms of the destroyed evidence stayed that way for a bit before time got rewound faster and faster.

The explosion soon manifested in reverse until they were back to undetonaited bombs. Bombs placed by a figure that made All Might grit his teeth and just barely hold inna gasp of surprise.

There, moments before the bombs detonated, a figure could be seen behind the murky portal. One that struck fear into even All Might. All For One.

The whirling stopped as Clockwork shook himself and held his head.

"Sorry, I rarely use that form to do this. I would suggest time traveling but I'd hate the deal with time paradoxes or worse time loops."

Once he got his bearings Ben transformed back and looked at All Might with a raised brow and folded arms.

"Let me guess, is he your arch nemesis? He definitely gave off that vibe and I don't think anyone else would get that reaction from you."

All Might didn’t say anything at first but simply nodded at the teen.

“Yeah...yeah he is.”

Ben leaned back against a relatively stable wall and sighed.

"Well, fuck. If I had to guess that… Nomu was it? Wasn't the only one of it's kind and now that his first plan was an utter failure he'll definitely bide his time and considering what I did to both of the co leaders of that assassination attempt I wouldn't be surprised if I was number two on his shit list."

Ben trailed a hand through his hair before popping his neck and grinning.

"Seeing as that's likely the case I'll definitely be needing any information you have about him. Especially if he has enough genetic mastery to make something that could give even you pause."

All Might nodded and walked out of the room ushering Ben to follow so they can speak in private. They entered his private room at the school and All Might sat down in a chair and offered one for Ben to sit in.

Ben did so, a pensive look on his face knowing from personal experience that arch nemeses are ever really easy to talk about.

“His name is All for One. He’s incredibly dangerous. He has strength, durability, and speed to rival mine. He’s not only physically strong but he’s got more than enough tricks up his sleeve. He can steal people’s quirks and render them his own. He can even combine stolen quirks to create destructive attacks. He has stolen an obscene amount of quirks since he’s been around.”

All Might started off seriously with no real sense of joy that was usually present on his face.

“He can monitor and observe up to a hundred people at a time, which includes their location and weak points. Another stolen quirk from a pro Ragdoll. He has warping similar to the villain we fought against during the USJ incident. He can make multiple but even they have their limits. He can only warp things depending on his location, his focus, the location of the person, and if he has a close relationship with that person.”

From what was being said this All For One wasn’t sounding like someone to take lightly. Not at all.

“He is also capable of releasing air shockwaves from his arms. This can be combined with other quirks to make it stronger. He can force someone’s quirk to activate regardless of if they’re awake or not. Against their will. Another ability of his is that he can reflect the impact of an attack back at its user. All For One is blind but he can use his infrared ray to sense his surroundings.”

The more Ben heard the more he was sounding like an unholy mix of Kevin's mutations and Vilgax during his stint of power stealing.

"Damn. He definitely sounds dangerous. How old is he anyway? I can't imagine it'd be easy to find a dozen useful Quirks that synergize well let alone the dozens he has."

“When I was eighteen he had to be a least a hundred forty or a hundred sixity. I’m 49 now so he’s got to be nearing two hundred. Besides, I wasn’t finished.”

This caused Ben to look more serious as All Might began to continue All For One’s abilities.

“He can levitate in mid air, has a quirk that can allow him to live for long periods of times basically making him immortal, he can increase his physical prowess which includes the power of his other quirks, can create multiple arms, increase the size of said arms, can create river-like growths on his arms, create drill-like structures on said arms, and to top off his abilities, possession. And that’s not even the worst part about it. He’s terrifyingly intelligent, charamisatic, and manipulative. He knows how to get what he wants and has all the intelligence and power to back it up. To be completely honest with you Young Tennyson, a lot of the time I wonder how I’m still here.”

All Might finally finished leaving the room so empty that it was deafening.

Ben huffed as he leaned back in his chair.

"I know the feeling. My arch nemesis back home was so manipulative we had to build an entire automated prison for him to inhabit alone. Still… seeing as you'll be the one to fight him, and he's so fond of stealing other people's powers, I think it'd be highly ironic if you stole his once you do fight. I don't know how long it'll take me to make it considering my suit upgrades aren't done yet but I could definitely give you something to cut him off from his powers."

All Might nodded but soon rose to his feet writing down a late pass handing it to Ben and placing a hand on his shoulder.

“You be sure to do that but for now get back to class and try not to stress yourself out too much alright?”

Ben nodded as he did so, though he didn't pay much attention to school the rest of the day. On the way back to his apartment with Izuku in tow he was uncharacteristically quiet before pausing and inviting Izuku over to his place instead.

Once they were both inside Ben activated the defense system he built the 2nd week he came here and waited until it was fully powered on and they'd be safe from any prying ears as a faint Mana barrier covered every inch of the apartment.

"You might want to sit down for this Izuku."

Izuku did so and Ben told him everything All Might did about All For One and how it's extremely likely he was the mastermind behind not only the Nomu but the attempted assassination at USJ.

Izuku looked like he was going to pass out. Thankfully he didn’t and only took in all the information he was given and thought it over in his head. All For One was an obvious threat to all the heroes especially since he’s that good for All Might to acknowledge him as such. He needed to be ready.

“So what should we do? Or I guess what should I do to be more specific. I can’t break my body again using All Might’s quirk and hope for the best. Not against him.”

"Hopefully you'll never have to fight him since he'll most definitely know you have his Quirk. In fact I'll give you a beacon you can use for emergencies that'll synch up to my Omnitrix and teleport me to your location. As for what you can do… well we definitely need to train you more since they've already shown to be fine with trying to assassinate others."

“Alright. So should we do that now? I’m ready for more training if you are!”

Ben grins and nods as he activates a system he's been wanting to show Izuku for a while. A miniaturized version of the holographic training sim available to Plumbers.

"Great to hear. You won't be fighting me this time though. I've been analyzing everyone in the class including our teachers. That hologram can mimic everything they can do. Don't worry about dying or anything since it's just hardlight at the end of the day, but it'll definitely hurt if you get hit in a vital place."

As Ben spoke the hologram shifted as if being put on a random character select in a video game. Izuku started at the holographic training sim and nodded.

“So we’ll be focusing more on fighting style as opposed to my quirk for now?”

"Well that and being prepared for sudden changes. The construct won't stay the same person the whole fight and will even start comboing Quirks together at higher difficulties along with adding two more clones."

Ben gestured at his apartment.

"I would be able to do more but the space isn't there for realistic jungles and the like."

“Oh yeah that makes sense. Well, I’ll try my best.”

Izuku knew that he was probably going to end up on the floor more times than not but he’d make good progress soon enough and be able to hold his own. Especially with the sudden changes the construct would be making. He’ll try his hardest!

Chapter Text

2 weeks passed by with Izuku actually managing to clear most of his class in a one on one fight barring the copy of Ben and losing often to Todoroki if he isn't able to dodge the massive sudden ice attacks. During said weeks Ben finally managed to iron out the kinks to his gene splicing nano goop and finally applied it to his costume.

Once applied the costume shrunk itself to form a chain with a DNA strand hanging around his neck that could cover Ben in itself with a thought so he'd never be without it.

The two found themselves on the same beach that Izuku cleaned up and Ben soon transformed into another one of his original aliens. Diamondhead. They were here to try and see if there was anyway Izuku could use One for All without breaking his arm. At least in a certain way. 100% of power in a single body part was still a 100% at the end of day.

They weren’t entirely sure what would necessarily different this time compared to others. Maybe it was the fact that this wasn’t a robot or water but a real person up close as well.

“You ready?”

“Y-Yeah.”

Diamondhead soon stood his ground as Izuku let out a deep breath and nodded. Izuku thought closely on how this was a real person and not some lifeless robot. Plus the fact that he’d actually be punching Ben as opposed to letting the shockwaves push him back.

Izuku shook his head and called for the incredible power to be brought into his first once more. Feeling it he rested back and landed a solid hit to Diamondhead’s stomach area causing a huge surge of energy sending Ben back while Izuku closed his eyes expecting pain. But he didn’t. He opened one eye and noticed his arm looked fine. Woah!

“Oof. Could’ve dialed it down a little you know.”

“Oh I’m sorry! Are you alright?!”

“Dude, I’m fine. Heh. But hey your arm is fine! What do you think changed and do you think you can apply that to your whole body equally?”

“I guess it was because I was sort of holding back? Like when I’m against a robot or anything else I usually go all out. But since it was with a live person, I guess I felt that I didn’t need to punch too hard? I guess? Maybe I can with more practice.”

Diamondhead vanished and Whampire appeared after the former made shading for the vampire to avoid sunlight.

"Try to do what you did again but punch the ground. I have a theory."

Izuku nodded and summoned the powerful energy in his arm once more and soon landed a hit to the ground with the thought of it being alive.

As the ground and the sand went flying everywhere due to the impact, Izuku’s hand stayed intact. He opened his eyes once more to see his hand not broken and the large crater in the sandy ground.

Whampire nods as he ahhhs.

“Just as I thought. It's not breaking your arm since it isn't using you as a method of transfer for the power. What you're subconsciously doing is releasing it at the point of contact while reinforcing your body part."

“Oh. Then how come I can’t do the same for when I flick my fingers or something using One for All?”

“I'd assume you just never got the hang of it."

Whampire shrugs.

“Go ahead and try it now but I'd practice getting a feel for what you're doing now."

In a flash the vampire was gone and in its place was a white miniature alien that somewhat resembled a walking speaker.

“Once you have the hang of it I'll form clones you can practice sending shockwaves at."

Izuku nodded and turned to the ocean to practice sending shockwaves. Izuku got his hand in the finger flicking position and thought of it as when he punched Diamondhead and the ground.

Soon enough he released his finger and a powerful shockwave was sent parting part of the ocean as it moved down it.

He looked down and saw that his fingers weren’t ruined and flapping like they usually were. They still hurt slightly though so he must not have the hang of it just yet.

“Do they hurt? If they do I'd advise you to only do long range sparingly. Try to reinforce your whole body how you did your arm now."

Izuku nodded, going to try again with his other hand. His whole body. Not just his arm, not just his hand, not just his fingers. Short range, don’t forget that either. Izuku let out a breath before summoning the great power and shorting out another incredible shockwave.

It didn’t travel as far but his fingers weren’t hurting this time. Izuku smiled trying again and getting the same result.

Echo Echo grinned as he cloned himself a dozen times over and sent 11 out to swamp Izuku.

“Now for live target practice!"

Izuku put his guard up as he saw the clones come over to swarm him. He got into position and started flicking his powerful shockwaves knocking the clones back.

Izuku noticed them shooting might sound waves his way and covered his ears while dodging to move out of the way.
Izuku soon did something a bit ballsy but it worked. He covered three of his fingers with his thumb and flicked sending out a much larger, more powerful shockwave towards the last of the clones. His fingers felt strained after that.

Not broken but almost like someone yanked them from the sockets. As the shockwave threw the clones they popped and the one still in the shade grinned as he clapped.

"Very good! Think you can use your body reinforcement to increase your speed? I bet that's how All Might moves so fast.”

“I’m not sure. Let’s see.”

Izuku soon got into a sprinting position and tried using his body reinforcement. Once he felt the power once more he took off moving much faster than he usually did.

Everything on the sidelines seemed to disappear as he passed them and Izuku started chuckling, losing focus for a moment before feeling a sharp pain in one of his legs.

He came to a halt bouncing on his good leg and sat down in the sand seeing how far Ben was from where he started.

Guess he needed to stay focused otherwise, the energy output will become unstable. He pulled up his pant legs and saw how bruised it was. Shit.

In an instant XLR8 was at Izuku's location before turning back to Ben who got to healing his bruise with a frown on his face.

"I was worried it would slip if you didn't pay attention enough. It's a good thing you didn't break it or worse tripped at the speed you were going. Ah… actually this would be a good time to practice healing yourself with Mana. I know you just got the hang of basic constructs but what you're doing with your Quirk is basically what you do with Mana too to enhance the body's natural healing."

Ben pulled back as his Mana stopped flowing. Izuku nodded but then a dazed look came on his face as he rubbed the back of his head with a nervous smile.

“So do I need to hurt myself again?”

Ben chuckles and he shakes his head while casually biting into his thumb to make it bleed.

“No need. Try it on me."
Izuku soon got to his feet and summoned the Mana needed in order to heal Ben’s bleeding thumb. Just like what he does with his quirk.

Alright focus and hold onto that focus. Izuku soon got to healing and looked in awe as he saw the wound albeit small start to heal.

He didn’t lose focus however as he wasn’t sure what would happen if he did. But something was telling him it’d be bad.

Ben grinned once his hand was healed.

“See? Nothing to it. Just… make sure you don't lose focus when doing it. If you do, the Mana will expand outward and act like a mini bomb or worse accidentally sever whatever you're trying to heal."

Izuku blinked at that thought and while that did sound horrifying, it did cause something to come into his mind. He actually sort of felt bad for thinking it.

“So...technically speaking I could use it as a weapon...Sorry.”

Izuku said rubbing the back of his head looking to the side feeling guilty.

Ben shrugged and nodded.

“Sure. Assuming you had enough contact to establish a connection. There's even spells that do just that at a distance."
“Good god, I sounded like Kacchan when I said that. Forget I said anything.”

Izuku said a hand on his face shaking his head annoyed. Ben rolled his eyes playfully as he ruffled his hair.

"Nothing wrong in thinking about all the applications of something. After all you did just that with those hero notebooks no?"

“Yeah I guess I did. Plus, as dark as it sounds, heroes can always go bad. You could always need contingencies to subdue them. Guess it doesn’t hurt to think of all the possibilities.”

“Exactly. While murder should never be the first choice in a given confrontation, it should always be an option on the table. Of course you'd need to make sure as few people as possible know about the lethality of your healing. For all we know you might be forced to heal a bad guy who has hostages or something."

“Yeah...and while I really don’t want to have to think of killing a hero or anybody really, sometimes that’s the only option you have left. But on a brighter note, you excited for this tournament?”

"Hmmm. Kind of? But it worries me honestly. Nothing prevents the group we faced before from using it to determine weaknesses for up and coming heroes along with their quirks. I also hope security is good seeing as nothing prevents All For One from dropping in high explosives or something worse."

“You got a point there. I think it’s because the tournament is such a big deal and they’re trying to calm everyone down by keeping it going. A choice that seems to be working but they better have some good security if they want to keep people calm.”

"I would offer to help but I only really have the tracking spell somewhat mastered. If I had more I could definitely put a Mana barrier around the entire school so no one could teleport in…"

Ben sighed as he rested on the sand. Izuku soon sat next to him staring at the ocean.

“Hey don’t worry about it. You’re doing great and trying to help. That’s all that matters.”

Ben frowns and shrugs.

"Well yeah, but I keep thinking about what'd happen if All For One ramps up. I did some research and he's basically a total unknown to the public and that's never a good thing. I have half a mind to let it out that he exists and what he's capable of. I'm sure I could make a memory extractor and put All Might's memories of him in a video format."
Izuku nodded, sitting down and looking at the beach grabbing a seashell. Pro villains were definitely not people to take lightly. Izuku tossed the seashell into the water as he let out a sigh.

“All for One probably isn’t going to be making any public appearances himself though. He’d probably send pawns. Or at least not at first anyway.”

"True true. But one of his greatest strengths is that so few people know he exists. I'll ask All Might about it tomorrow. How about you, are you excited?"

Izuku didn’t say anything as he continued to look out to the ocean before Ben spoke again.

“So want to go commit vigilantism with me?”

This shocked Izuku out of his quiet thinking and his eyes widened as he looked up.

“W-What?!”

“Do you want to go commit vigilantism with me? It’s a simple question Izuku, you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“N-No it just caught me off guard. I mean, I’d like to but I’m not as skilled as you in getting away before anyone notices.”

Ben chuckles and pokes his forehead.

“You'll have me there don't worry. That and I can pretty easily hide your identity."

The DNA symbol on his chain glew green before it formed a tan mask in Ben's hand.

“This is a ID Mask. It creates a hardlight projection around the user. I even added a bit of zero gravity to it so you can effectively fly while wearing it just in case I'm not able to get to you in time."

Ben hands it over with a grin.

“Just think of what you want to look like as you put it on.”

Izuku held the tan mask and placed it on his face before the familiar strong jawed face of All Might appeared with that fearless grin.

“Eat this!”

Izuku burst into laughter as he took the mask off and rubbed his face.

Ben laughs and shakes his head.

"Hey! Identity theft is no laughing matter! I should know, people used to use those things to commit crimes as me."

Izuku finally calmed down for his laughter as he had a look in mind to use so he wouldn’t get caught.

“So what time should we go to break the law to uphold the law?”

“Hmmm I was thinking now if you were up for it?"

“Sure. I’m basically always free.”

Izuku answered as he stood up and stretched to get ready for this. He was technically going to be committing a crime. Sure for the greater good but still a crime.

"You know if you're not up for this you don't have to come. I just figured I'd ask."

“N-No! I want to come! Besides, like you said. Heroes save the day regardless of what’s in their way right?”

Ben nods.

“Great to hear! In that case I'll teleport us to the roof off our apartment building so we can relax a bit and you can try flying until we see a crime in progress."

Izuku smiled as he nodded ready and sort of scared to be doing this but it was exciting! Plus, true heroes don’t wait for pieces of paper before saving people.

In a flash they were on the roof as Ben transformed back into human form, his suit forming over himself and he started floating in the air.

"The key to zero gravity flight is to know your up and down is whatever you want it to be. Once it's on you're in a 8 directional space. Get it?"

“I think so. Let me try.”

Izuku placed the ID Mask over his face and soon felt himself levitating from the ground. Izuku smiled at this as he started moving around as up and down were whatever he wanted.

This was actually kind of fun. Izuku stayed in the air for awhile before descending back to the rooftop.

“Very nice! If you ever want to pick up speed in flight it's best to act as if you're jumping in a specific direction with a fist raised to start."

Ben demonstrates as he does so pointing straight up and shooting past a cloud quickly before descending. Izuku watched and tried doing it as well, getting the same effect. He fell down smiling as he looked over the edge to see if anything was happening. Nothing was.

The two just sat on the rooftop bored for awhile as the city was surprisingly quiet which was strange in this world. So the two just talked while they waited for something to happen. Usually just battle questions.

“Who do you think would win in a fight? Four Arms or All Might?”

“Hmm well Four Arms definitely has the faster reaction time but All Might is probably stronger. If I was going to fight him I wouldn't try to out strength him, though some of my forms definitely could, I'd try to make his power useless. Ghostfreak for example could just go intangible and render his strength useless."

Izuku was about to ask another question before hearing an alarm going off. They both soon rose to their feet and saw a criminal running from a man and a woman. He seemed to have her purse. Izuku looked to Ben who only motioned forward.

“I’ll let you have this one.”

The teen nodded and jumped off the rooftop making use of the zero gravity and making his way to the criminal making his get away.

The mask soon covered up Izuku’s face with the face of some random person. He turned forward before seeing a figure drop in front of him holding his hand out.

Izuku looked forward at the criminal flicking a weaker version of the powerful shockwave at him. He wasn’t trying to kill him of course.

It made impact with the mugger straight in the chest sending him back before finally stopping unconscious.

Izuku walked up and grabbed the purse before returning it to the couple. Before they could ask any questions, Izuku jumped up into the air with a fist raised and seemingly disappeared into the night sky like a classic comic book hero.

The radio in the mask crackled to life as Ben chuckles.

“So, how was your first taste of herodom Izuku?"

“Holy. Crap. That was awesome! I got to help that couple and I landed in front of that mugger so well! Plus, I used my flicking thing! And-Sorry. I’m nerding out here.”

“Hey don't apologise. It's adorable and perfectly understandable. I'm fine with taking you out with me a few times a week if you'd like. Though to minimize people being able to identify you… how do you feel about using weapons? Nothing lethal of course. Something like a paralyzing ray gun?"

“Uh yeah that’d be fine!”

“Actually I'll just make it come out of a gauntlet so it wouldn't be obvious it's tech."

Izuku nodded before finally landing on the rooftop once more next to Ben

Ben grinned as he looked at the mugger getting arrested.

"See that? You just helped those people and didn't need a license to do it."

“Yeah, I can see why you’re doing this. Who needs a piece of paper?”

Izuku asked as he watched the mugger getting arrested and rubbed his green hair back. He just looked adorable the way he watched in excitement about his act of heroism. It was cute.

The next day after school was over Ben did ask All Might if he was comfortable about people viewing his memories of All For One with Izuku there as well since he's the next most likely to be in danger should he strike.

"I understand if you don't but the public as a whole knowing he's out there, and what he last looked like, would definitely help I feel. If only by making it harder for him to operate."

All Might states for a moment before nodding. It made sense and they wouldn’t want to give All For One any advantages.

“Do what you must, Young Tennyson!”

He nods and hums a bit before sighing.

"I hope you don't mind me airing it during the tournament in 4 days. Basically everyone will be watching after all. We just need a way for it not to incite panic…"

“Perhaps, a more calming way of presenting it? Like a PSA of sorts? That’d give them the information and keep them calm.”

"That…could work but there's always a possibility people wouldn't take the PSA seriously. I think the best bet would be for you to preface the memory viewing and say it's from a Quirk. You can even rightfully point to the fact he orchestrated the USJ attack and the destruction of the evidence after. After the tournament is over anyway, I wouldn't want people to be distracted during it."

“That works for me! Let’s just make sure we get it right!”

Ben nods and spends the rest of the four days making a miniature version of the memory viewer that was used on him during his universal trial.

The day of the tournament Ben delivered the orb-like device to All Might, explaining to him all he'd need to do is focus on the memories of All For One and the device would automatically play them on the screen used to broadcast the tournament.

They were all gathered and it was said that Midnight would be their proctor while Aizawa and Present Mic would be the spectators making comments during the tournament. An R-rated superhero?

Well it definitely got looks. Ben being the one who earned the most points on the practical exam was up to make a speech for the rest of the competitors there.

Ben shuffled nervously in front of the crowd, still not entirely used to being the center of attention, before letting out a calming breath.

"I could give a long-winded speech about heroics and trying your best but I won't. All you need to know is that so long as you try your best in saving the day no one can fault you for failing. That's all anyone can ask of you, to do your best. It's not realistic to think you can save everyone, even from themselves. The only things we can control are our own actions."

Ben smiles as he thrusts up his fist.

"So go out there and show the world what you're made of, go Plus Ultra!"

As Ben returned to the rest of the group, Midnight took over on the stand showing off her assets getting everyone’s attention. While Ben was sure she meant well, it did bring up some questions.

“This is where you begin feeling the pain! The first faithful game of the festival! What could it be?”

The screen continued to spin through all the potential options of what it could be as everyone watched in anticipation. It finally landed on an option to which everyone nodded towards.

“Tada!”

“So it’s going to be an obstacle race.”

“All eleven classes will participate in this treacherous contest! They’ll travel four kilometers around the outside of the stadium! I don’t want to restrain anyone at least in this game! As long as you don’t leave the course! You’re free to do whatever your heart desires! Now then, take your places contestants!”

Ben grins as he does so Mana wrapping around him in case he needs the extra protection as he stretches before the race. Once the bell rings he transforms into XLR8 whose heightened perceptions quickly make everything appear frozen in time.

He looks back with a chuckle and decides to mess with everyone before leaving to finish the race.

In no time at all it seems to everyone else Ben was gone and all the other students had their shoelaces tied together in such a way as to trip them up. Many of the students tripped on their tied shoelace as they tried to make a break for it.

Ben himself was chilling casually on the seats past the finish line, a packet of chilli fries and a smoothie next to him as he waved at the camera. Present Mic yelling into his speaker as Aizawa Sensei just stared in curiosity and surprise.

“And Ben Tennyson is the first one to win the race in record time!”

Izuku picked up on this as he bent down to untie his shoelaces and put them back to normal. Others didn’t bother with their shoelaces and made use of their quirk to go forward.

Izuku started springing forward as people such as Todoroki and Bakugo shot forward in front of him. Bakugo was extremely pissed at how Ben was able to blow right by them, especially him.

“DAMN IT! I’M GONNA KILL THAT BASTARD!”

They began to make good progress before seeing more of the giant robots that were in their practical exam.

Todoroki laid waste to a bunch of them, knocking them over as he continued to make his way down the race.

Many made use of their quirks either running straight through, climbing, or flying over them. Izuku didn’t want to use his quirk just yet.

He pushed one of the bots back with a Mana construct knocking a sharp large piece of it out.

His mana was quite hard and thick so it was helpful in situations such as these plus a specific shade of green. How curious. He grabbed the piece quickly before slicing the incoming bot in half.

I’ll keep this and use it as a shield if I need to!

Soon enough they were met with a cavern with multiple ropes and rock formations that could aid them. Some of them were using technology considering they weren’t in the Hero Course and it would level the playing fields a bit.

Todoroki used his ice as he slid over the ropes while Bakugo just flew over. Izuku had strapped the large piece of metal to his back and began to step over the treacherous cavern using his Mana as steps.

Aizawa frowned as he noticed the similarities between Izuku's Mana and the constructs Ben makes but refrains from commenting on it out loud.

Though once this tournament is over it's high time he sits them down for a long overdue chat.

Soon enough Todoroki had stopped as he noticed the massive minefield and began to plan out how he should go about this.

Present Mic soon explained the minefield and how they wouldn’t kill anyone however they would send you far into the air leaving you dazed.

The other students soon made their way and did their best to avoid the mines. Todoroki was still in 2nd place, watching his footing as he made his way across.

“IT’S OVER! BASTARD! YOUR DECLARATION OF WAR WAS TO THE WRONG PERSON!!!”

The double colored hair turned to see Bakugo flying towards him and eventually passing swiping at him to which Todoroki swiftly dodged.

The two continued to run as they began sending blows towards one another. Well, in reality it was Bakugo trying to hurt Todoroki while he reacted.

Soon behind them, a massive explosion that outshone the others appeared shocking everyone including the proctors.

“WHAT’S WITH THAT HUGE EXPLOSION IN THE BACKGROUND?! That one’s way more powerful than it should be!”

The other students shielded their eyes from the bright light and the shockwave that was created from it before noticing something shoot up incredibly far into the sky.

The smoke cleared and it was Izuku holding onto the piece of metal he had broken from the robot. All Might cheered as he saw what was happening.

I knew piling up those multiple bombs would work!

“Whatever the case, Izuku Midoriya is suddenly in hot pursuit of 2nd place! Strike that, the lead is his!”

Yes, it worked! But shit! I didn’t think of how I was going to land!

“DEKU! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

Bakugo exclaimed as he shot after him while Todoroki froze the ground in order to run freely without fear of the mines detonating.

Izuku flinched at Bakugo's yelling before gritting his teeth and sending a pulse of thick Mana backward to slow him down as he wrapped himself in a thin (for him) Mana shell to prepare for the fall past the finish line as he made Mana platforms to break his fall.

Aizawa narrowed his eyes at the sight. He was seriously going to have to have a long conversation with the both of them after this.

Izuku felt himself hit the ground but not too much damage was retained due to the Mana shell he had wrapped himself in.

The shell disappeared as he rose to his feet and heard all the cheering that was being sent his way.

“AND IZUKU MIDORIYA FINISHES THE RACE IN SECOND PLACE!”

Bakugo was pushed back by the thick Mana wall allowing Todoroki to pass him and get past the finish line.

Bakugo gritted his teeth so hard that they might break as he landed multiple charged punches to the Mana breaking it. He soon shot off unbridled anger on his face before crossing the finish line after Todoroki.

I’M GONNA FUCKING KILL THAT DAMN NERD!

Izuku started up at all the cheering sent his way and noticed All Might giving him a smile and a thumbs up which made him tear up.

Soon enough more students started to cross the finish line as well. Izuku felt a slap on his back as he turned to see Ben smiling at him to which he returned.

“Way to use your head Izuku! I thought about destroying the mines when I passed them as XLR8 but I figured it'd be a lot less fun to watch if I did. Want some chilli fries?"

Ben asks as he holds up a fresh container.

“Sure! You think they’ll give us time to eat before our next challenge though?”

Izuku would happily go for something but knowing this school, they probably don’t want them to get too comfortable in this tournament. At least not yet anyway.

Ben shrugs.

“Maybe? You can at least eat a bit before the last person arrives past the finish line.

Izuku looked besides Ben and noticed that there would still be time before everyone crossed the finish line. He shrugged and nodded.

The two took a seat and began to eat as they waited for the last person to make their way past the finish line.

“So how are you liking this tournament? I've got to admit I've never really done this before."

“It’s definitely exciting, I’ll give it that. Never was really the person to perform in front of a lot of people. Though pro heroes are watching so I got to give it my all.”

Ben frowns as he looks at the camera.

“Yeah, that's not the only group watching. I'd bet my left arm that All For One and his group are watching too."

Izuku nodded seriously, letting out a sigh. If All For One was thinking they would let him manipulate them, he was strongly mistaken.

The smart villains were always the ones you had to watch out for especially if they have power to back them up as well.

When the tournament is over they will play All Might’s memory to make the general public aware of his presence.

Once the last person crossed the finish line Midnight snapped her whip to get everyone's attention as a screen was lowered down with a bunch of prompts on a wheel.

“An excellent show everyone! That speed Ben showed really got me going! So without further adu let's see what you lovlies will do next!"

The wheel spun until it landed on the prompt.

“Oh this should be exciting! A 5 v 1 King of the Hill battle Royale! Since Ben got first place he'll have to protect his spot on the hill and each of the lower 5 ranks get to choose any 3 supports from the other racers to help get to claim their throne!"

A diagram showed up on the screen with a chibi Ben sitting on a throne laughing at the people trying to seize his castle, with a chibi Izuku leading a 3 man team to try and take it for himself while fending off four others trying to take it as well.

“Whoever wins gets to choose who, if anyone, they face in the head on tournament in part 3 for the first round! Mmmmh just think of the envy the others would have if you skipped your first match!"

Ok wow that diagram was not doing well for his self esteem nor his confidence. Alright 5 v 1, this was going to be challenging. Especially considering the one was going to be Ben himself.

Izuku spent the most, well he was really the only student here who spent any time with Ben so he was the only one who really got a good idea of just how powerful he was.

Alright think Izuku! You’re gonna need someone you can trust and someone who can help you at least attempt a win for this!

Izuku soon felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Uraraka who simply smirked and nodded which caused him to smile as well.

They both turned and saw the teen with jet engines in his legs that they all knew and loved.

“Lida! You already know what we’re going to suggest! So what do you say?”

Lida looked at the two teens with excited and hopeful expressions on their faces and only let out a small sigh before pushing his glasses back.

“I’m sorry but I’m going to have to decline.”

The look of hopefulness was shattered across their faces as they exclaimed in shock to which lida began to explain.

“Allow me to explain! I still see the both of you as great friends and mean no harm! But I must focus on myself and try to win! Besides, I can’t keep being on the sidelines for you, especially Izuku! So I guess I’m saying we’re rivals!”

looked at his taller friend in shock but only nodded seriously. He understood. Seriously he did! But that did put a halt in his planning.

Iida’s speed would’ve been quite useful in this but now it looked like they would need to find someone else to join their group.

Izuku turned to look at the students. Most of their quirks weren’t what they were looking for added onto the fact, they couldn’t trust a majority of them being from different classes.

Plus, they were already seeming to group up with one another. Bakugo being the most aggressive making sure everyone knew he was going to kick Ben’s ass.

Ben for his part couldn't help but chuckle. This would certainly be interesting. Knowing the school they actually had a building for this exact scenario with a literal throne to protect.

It turns out Ben's hunch was right. The building was filled with cameras and Ben himself was sat in the throne room.
An extra condition was added that made destroying the building an instant failure point for the invaders since there'd be nothing to capture but rubble.

Ben himself was given 10 minutes to set up defenses given prior warning of the 5 different invading factions as the teams sat eagerly outside waiting for the task to start.

Teams consisting of leaders with three other students to aid them in taking the throne. Izuku had gotten Uraraka, Tokoyami, and Tsu as their final group.

Todoroki stoic and serious as ever was with Momo, lida, and Kaminari. Another with Shinso, Shoda, Aoyama, and Ojiro. One more with Monoma, Tsuburaba, Kaibara, and Kuroiro.

Bakugo was pissed as always with Kiroshima, Ashido, and Hanto. All of which he couldn’t bother to remember their names. Kiroshima noticed Bakugo’s intensity and began to speak.

“Remember Bakugo, destroying the building is an automatic failure point! Let’s just take it easy alright?”

“Heh, you got it stupid hair!”

“My name is Kiroshima!”

Ben grins as he sits on his throne, a fake crown on his head to signal he's the king of this hill, just staring at the clock so this game begins.

5 seconds.

4…

3…

2…

1!

A horn blared as the doors opened wide and sentry guns pop out along the ceiling all pointed to the entrance.

They had all rushed in in their groups, all of them with different feelings about the situation.

Izuku was serious as he was well aware how powerful and tactical Ben was, Todoroki was stoic but serious, Bakugo was eager and arrogant, Shinso more bored and ignorant but kept his guard up, and Monoma who was ignorant and arrogant.

“Deku, what’s our best bet against him? What should we do?”

“Well Ben is incredibly smart and skilled. Our best bet would be to catch him off guard at the last moment and take the throne that way.”

Izuku explained quietly not wanting anyone else to hear him. They were all aware of just how incredibly powerful Ben was but none of them knew just how good he could be going all out. And hopefully, they won’t have to.

“His power is a thing of wonder that is true. But we shouldn’t let our guard down.”

“Yeah, Ben may be good but he’s not completely unbeatable. If we can catch him by surprise at the final seconds and steal the throne, we could actually win this. Ribbit.”

Ben's voice rings out from hidden speakers with a tone of voice Albedo would use.

“Well well well, if it isn't some half assed militants trying to take my throne from me. I'll make sure you regret your decision to strike while my army is away. I'll show you the true meaning of kingship. A real king…"

The turrets light up and open fire upon the on rushing groups, each shot of paralyzing plasma sending out shockwaves.

"Is stronger than even his army combined!"

As the turrets open fire pits in the walls open up to unleash debilitating sonic howls courtesy of Echo Echo clones.

Shit! Well he’s seriously going all out! Gotta think!

Izuku covered his group in a large shell of Mana and desperately tried his best to keep it up so they could think. The noise wasn’t as bad in their little shell and Izuku held it up as he spoke.

“You guys got any ideas?!”

“We need to take out the turrets and then take care of the sonic screeches!”

“Well yeah! How do you suggest we do that?!”
“Kiroshima! Can Dark Shadow withstand all this pressure?!”

“Yes, but he’d need to recover afterwards and he could only take out either the turrets or the sound! Which will it be?”

As the point defenses worked Ben went about setting up the final touches of the rest. Now that everyone was inside they'll find out they aren't trapping him but are trapped by him and at his mercy.

Ben sat in the air above his throne as he sent out a pulse of Mana as a form of echo location, a grin on his face as he tapped a button.

Past the main entrance suits of armor sprung to life, each remotely controlled by the nano goop in his suit and just as versatile as the real thing.

“Ugh, take out the sound! It’s doing the most damage to my shell!

Tokoyami nodded and a small opening was made for Dark Shadow to escape. A shadowy figure in the silhouette of a bird screeched into life and went after the speakers the Echo Echos were using making sure to take them out.

It was harmed by the turrets but got the job done and returned back to the shell.

Dark Shadow groaned as it returned back to Tokoyami’s body. Alright, good. Someone else can deal with the turrets but right now they would have to move.

Izuku started walking forward the shell followed them as they made it closer to the throne room.

Bakugo was getting sick of this and started charging up his fists and aimed at the turrets.

“Bakugo are you crazy?! That could bring the whole building down on us!”

“Shut it Racoon Eyes! I’ve got this! Those turrets are seriously pissing me off!”

Bakugo started aiming for the turrets shooting his explosions straight at them destroying them on impact. Aishido frowned at Bakugo’s nickname and started forming acid in her hands.

“My name is Aishido!”

She flung the acid at the turrets with them melting as they made impact. She grinned as they soon dispatched of them all. But they were in for a whole new level of hurt once they entered the throne room.

Once they did 8 sleek robots sprung to life, each forming a different set of weapons and mobility options.

“As a replacement for my gone army I made these toys. Let's see if you lot can survive these hm?"

Without further pause two of the robots let loose a torrent of missiles armed with knock out gas as 3 sprung into the air on metallic wings.

The other 3 seemed to vanish from sight as their XLR8 esque balled feet got them into close quarters.
With a casual tap to Izuku he was flung into a wall as his Mana barrier shattered from the force of the attack.

Izuku grunted slowly, rising to his knees as he opened his eyes. Alright, so Ben wasn’t going to be taking it easy on them. That’s fine. Just fine. Those XLR8 robots and those gas bots would need to go first.

Ok, so I need to plan this out. He’s obviously not going to be pulling any punches with this. I need to find a way to gain solid hits on those quicker robots. But what are we going to do against those gas bo-

“TENNYSON! I’m taking that throne and I’m gonna burn you alive while I’m at it!”

Bakugo’s yelling snapped Izuku out of his thinking as he looked up and saw Bakugo lay a charged fist to one of the flying bots sending it to the ground destroyed.

Izuku shook his head as he felt himself being pushed and punched by one of the quick bots. It soon started to circle him and Izuku stared only getting a brief sight of it. He had to time this right...Now!

Izuku created an especially thick wall of Mana to which the bot crashed into it, stopping it for a moment. Taking his chance Izuku created another thick Mana wall and slammed the robot in between the two crushing it.
“Yes! Augh!”

Izuku was too quick to celebrate as he was slammed once more into a wall by another XLR8 esque bot. He groaned as he looked up.

Ben probably had the smuggest smile on right now. Couldn’t blame him honestly.

Ben's dark chuckle echoed through the area.

“Did you really think my toys would be so easily beat? The more you destroy the harder they'll become to kill.”

The two destroyed robots started to float around each other until they joined together in a green flash.

A chimera of a winged bot and a XLR8 one, encased in a metallic shell as its wings grew arms with each finger able to fire paralyzing shots.

Once fully formed it roared as electricity coarsed through it and the concrete below it cracked. Izuku dodged a paralyzing shot as his mind began to think.

This turn of events of course didn’t stop Bakugo from rushing in and sending blows to crush the different robots.

Come on! There’s gotta be some design flaw! Maybe after they don’t reform again after already reforming once? Well it’s worth a shot!

Todoroki stepped on the ground and froze a good portion of the robots to the ground. Unfortunately that also meant a good amount of people who didn’t see it in time.

Izuku raises his hand once more and shot a thick Mana wall at the reformed bot to which Bakugo jumped in landing multiple punches to its chest while Kiroshima worked on the legs.

“Don’t think this means I got help from you Deku!”

Izuku turned and saw his team doing their best to lay waste to the robots.

Izuku knew that they wouldn’t be able to destroy Ben’s bots completely at least not in the time they had which was approximately five minutes.

Their last bet was to get Ben off the throne and them on it when time ran out. It’d take a lot of planning and shocking but it could work.

Izuku pushes robots to the wall with his Mana constructs, breaking parts of them as he made it to Tsu, Uraraka, and Tokoyami and started whispering.

“Tokoyami, is Dark Shadow ok for another usage?”

“Yes, why?”

“I have a plan to knock Ben off his throne and for one of us to get to hold onto it in the final seconds. But you’re gonna have to follow my lead.”

“Of course ribbit.”

“I trust you.”

“We’re all yours Deku!”

Ben grinned as the final recombinations of the robots happened. 2 of each type as the scrapped flyers were turned into swords for the now giant 3 way combinations.

"Come on, at this rate I won't have to lift a finger to beat you all. I bet you'll be so exhausted that you'll get knocked out by the slightest breeze."

The two giants were far faster than their size indicated as they went to block the doors to the throne room, missile silohs appeared from their shoulders as the swords crackled with electricity.

“Sparkles! You know what to do!”
“My name is Kaminari!”

He soon let his quirk run wild, thankfully Uraraka and Tokoyami were able to dodge it in time as the electricity ran through the floor and shocked the bots while also catching some other students as well.

Uraraka and Tokoyami saw their chance and ran past the stunned bots into the throne room. Bakugo and company would’ve followed but soon the bots were back to guarding and fighting. Uraraka made sure to grab a bunch of parts so her quirk could be used.

“Ben! We’re here for that throne!”

“Give it up!”

Ben slow claps as he relaxes on the throne.
“Oh? How're you going to face me if you're already so beat up from my defenses? Buuut if you're really that eager to lose by all means. Come, face me with everything you have."
He taps the floor with a foot and Mana chains erupt from the floor heading straight to everyone.
"If you do well enough I might just get off this throne and face you myself.”

Tokoyami moved out of the way as Uraraka threw all of the debris into the air before releasing it and letting them all fall to the ground, suddenly smashing the Mana chains.

Tokoyami let out Dark Shadow and the creepy shadow bird screech making it sway to Ben on his throne with no intent of stopping.

Ben laughed as he threw up a Mana barrier and transformed as an Echo Echo took his spot on the throne.

Once the flash died down Four Arms landed on the floor making a crater, a smirk on his face.

"Allow me to congratulate you for making it this far!"

He does a 4 hand thunderclap breaking the barrier he placed and sending air currents to the others.

Tokoyami and Uraraka grunted as they were sent back by the powerful air currents but were not done yet. They only had forty seconds left!

Izuku better come in and continue the plan! Tokoyami continued to use Dark Shadow before colliding into Four Arms, sending him flying back into the wall.

Izuku noticed the barrier was down and dropped down from the vent getting ready to flick before yelling to get Echo Echo’s attention.

“Hey Ben! EAT THIS!”

Izuku let out the three fingered incredible shockwave of power rushing towards Echo Echo sending the alien out of the throne and it flying through the air. They only had a few seconds left!

6…

5…

4…

3…
Soon the frog esque hero fell from the vent as well opening her mouth to let that lengthy wet tongue stretch out.

It wrapped around the throne and sent her straight to it and the time soon went off and the air horns blasted! They...They did it!

“UNBELIEVABLE! IZUKU MIDORIYA AND HIS TEAM HAVE DONE IT! BEN IS OUT AND AWAY FROM THE THRONE AND ASUI IS RIGHT ON IT! THEY WON!”

Present Mic hollered into the mic causing everyone to cheer as Izuku started laughing at the news that they had done it. They really did it!

The rest of his teammates started cheering at their victory as the doors were finally opened by Bakugo who only stared in shock, mouth gaping.

Ben for his part transformed back with a laugh as the robots he made deactivated and turned to spare parts.

“That was great teamwork guys! Sorry if I went a bit overboard with the whole king role. So… Izuku, who are you going to pick to face in the first part of the tournament?"

“Thanks! Huh, I’m not sure. I don’t need to be fighting anyone too strong for my first match. I’ll have to look at my options.”

“And you can do that and more!..After this lunch break! Great job to all of you especially you four! That display of teamworks made me all tingly! Until then, we’re on break before the final part of the tournament!”

"That was pretty fun honestly. Oh, Izuku are your fingers ok?"

Ben asked as he grabbed his hand to check himself. Izuku blushed at the sudden action and simply laughed nervously.

His fingers were fine, they hurt a bit though. He wasn’t really thinking of the consequences then. It was a heat of the moment sort of thing.

“I’m fine don’t worry about it!”
Ben frowned as he poked his forehead after his eyes glowed green for a bit to check himself.
“No need to lie to me Izuku. Besides you can't enter a tournament with anything less than your 100%! It wouldn't be fair to you or your opponent. Though… I'll obviously have to not go all out. I'd hate to flatten the stadium or worse."

Ben laughs as he notices the blush.

"Also no need to feel so flustered around me. Though I suppose it's a pretty easy way to tell if you're lying…"

“Yeah. Sorry about that. I think it’s just strained that’s all. But let’s go get some lunch huh?”

Ben nods happily.

"It's a date! Anything in particular you want? I'm thinking of getting a shake myself..."

Izuku stared forward with a dazed smile before smacking himself back into reality. He was going to focus on something else.

“I think you have an addiction to smoothies Ben, but I’m not gonna judge.”

walked forward to exit the game room so they could go get lunch with a nervous smile on his face.

Perfect deflection!

Ben pouts and sighs.

"Well I can't say you're the first person to say that…"

Aizawa steps from the shadows with his arms crossed.

"I was going to wait until after the tournament but not after that King of the Hill battle. It's time we had a frank discussion, don't you think?"

Izuku was shocked at Aizawa Sensei stepping from out of nowhere. Well looks like lunch wasn’t going to happen. The two followed their teacher into a private room where they soon sat and Aizawa didn’t waste anytime.

“Ben Tennyson…you aren't at all some newbie hero are you? Your Quirk frankly doesn't make sense especially since you're able to teach a part of it to others. It's hard to miss the similarities between your constructs and Izuku's after all."

Ben blinks in surprise before laughing a bit and nodding.

"Yeah you're right. To tell you the truth I'd be surprised if there was a Pro Hero with more experience than me on the planet. You see…"

It took 45 minutes and a calling down of All Might to verify Ben's story leaving Aizawa sitting on a chair across from the other three as he massages his nose bridge.

"Given everything I've learned, why exactly shouldn't I expel you? You not only have fake documentation but you've also been participating in vigilante activity. Don't be so surprised, of course we'd interview the people you caught. That ghost form and that speedy reptile definitely have the powers to do what's been reported."

Ben simply shrugged.

“I mean, technically speaking I’m not doing anything wrong. I’m helping people and saving the day. I’m not waiting around for some piece of paper that tells me I can be a hero. You guys have Good Samaritan laws here right? Sure, I’m technically breaking the law but I’m doing good things while breaking the law. You can expel me if you want but I know that when it all comes down, I’m not doing anything wrong.”

Ben smiles as he rests his watch on the table and points to it.

"Besides it's not like I'm not already a member of a police force, just not in this reality. But seeing as I'm not from here… well it's your call. Of course if you try to detain me and try to stop me from Heroing…"

Ben glares.

“I can assure you I won't let that happen. I was after all fully prepared to fight the person that gave me this watch when he threatened to take it away when the Galaxy was at stake."

Aizawa took in this information and pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. He felt like he was going to regret this but he was doing it anyway.

“Well, it’s apparent that you care about helping people and you’re not going to let anyone get in your way. I suppose I’ll just have to become deaf and mute. Just try not to get Midoriya in here into any trouble alright? Not everyone’s pro level.”

Ben nods seriously.

"Of course I wouldn't! Izuku is still learning after all."

Aizawa nods as he stands up to leave before frowning and looking back at Ben.

"As much as I'll regret this I'm making this a condition to you staying in UA. I'll be the one mentoring you after the tournament. I can't let loose a unqualified vigilante without taking them through their paces after all."

Ben nodded with a smile to which Aizawa groaned, holding his head and leaving the room.

Izuku finally let out the terrified breath he had been holding in since they got into the room.

“Holy crap! That was stressful! But hey on the brightside, neither of us are in trouble or anything. So you said something about wanting another smoothie? I’ll pay!”

Ben nods as he gets up to leave.

"If you're fine with it. What are you gonna eat?"

“I’ll probably just get some rice and chicken. I’m not that hungry and I don’t want to eat too much before my first fight.”

Izuku explained shrugging as Izuku stood up and the two left to where the others were to get lunch. He wasn’t expecting to be doing this well in the tournament but he was pleasantly surprised.

"Hmm that actually sounds really good right now. I'll get special lo mein along with my smoothie. I'm surprised you aren't choosing to skip your first fight honestly."

The two continued to talk before ordering their food and sitting down talking before Izuku could feel two pairs of eyes glaring holes into the back of his head. He turned to Ben sighing.

“They’re staring aren’t they?”

Ben chuckles as he waves at the two staring causing Bakugo to let loose mini bursts and Todoroki to frown and look away.

"Yeah they are but I wouldn't worry. They are probably just wondering who you'll choose to fight, if anyone. If I had won I'd have probably gone to fight Bakugo if only to legally beat him up."

Izuku chuckled at that thought. No doubt, he is interested in what way Ben would beat up Bakugo. Would he drag it out using some of his most powerful forms to show Bakugo they’re nowhere on the same level?

Or would he use one alien and end it quickly to get the same message across just in a more humiliating way? Either way, he’d love to see it.

“Truthfully Ben, I think I’ve got my work cut out for me. But I’m going to choose an easy opponent for my first match. Don’t want to wear myself out too much."

"Hmm well you could always give yourself a free pass to the finals."

“I guess but I still want to compete this way. I’d rather work my way up to the top or at least as far as I can go.”

Ben chuckles as he eats a couple strings of lo mien.

"That's what I like about you, you never take the easy way out. You remind me of me that way you know? We have the same heroic drive. I bet if it came down to it you wouldn't hesitate to kill yourself to save a few more lives right?"

“Ben before we started training I was willing to ruin my arms beyond repair in order to win. Of course, I wouldn’t hesitate to kill myself if it saved more people.”

Izuku saw the obvious flaw in that plan but hey he would’ve done it if it got him to at least a reasonable spot. Though it did say a lot about him actually.

Ben nods as he hums.

"I've actually tried to do just that two years ago. Granted I obviously failed but that was because the watch I was in at the time reset itself before I could die to set free the sentient transformations trapped in the watch."

Ben smiles at the memory as he shakes his head.

"Granted at the time I didn't strictly HAVE to do it since Gwendolyn offered to kill them for me so I wouldn't have to die but… well I think we can agree that wouldn't have been right. I'd gladly trade my life to save others even if the situation was unfair to me."

“You go on the strangest adventures I swear. Though with each one, you just prove just why you’re great. I hope that I can do the same.”

Izuku stared forward and continued to think on who his first opponent should be. Perhaps he could just ask for a random selection.

"Heh I suppose compared to here most of my oddest exploits would definitely sound like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon. Like that time I was sucked into a video game or had to save Christmas during summer vacation. Between you and me that is my personal pick for oddest moment so far."

“I should really stop being surprised. This sort of thing should be expected with you. But anyway, you gonna cheer for me on my first match?”

Izuku asked, smiling and it was so damn adorable that even the worst heartless villain couldn’t say no to him.

"Of course! Why wouldn't I? It'll definitely be interesting to see how well you do with whoever you end up fighting!"

“Heh. Cool.”

Soon enough they were all back in the stadium field and before Izuku could speak. A lot of them were dropping out.

It seemed like they weren’t in control as they talked about how they don’t remember anything from the second round.

That it wouldn’t be right to compete if it’s not them doing it themselves. What really shocked Izuku was Ojiro stepping down.

Who was he with? That guy?

He turned to see a purple haired student who only smirked. He remembered him now, he was the dude who threatened their class after they were told about the festival! Izuku was going to choose randomly but he got a better idea.

“You’re all forfeiting because of that? Let me just say that turns me on!”

Everyone cringed at Midnight’s wording. They all really hoped she was incredibly tone deaf. Otherwise, yikes.

“I would like to choose who I’m going up against now!”

“And who would that be?”

Izuku didn’t say a word but just pointed to Shinso causing multiple looks. He didn’t know what this guy was hiding or what was up with him but it must be something tough.

He wasn’t going to let all of those people forfeit without defeating the cause of their problems. Izuku turned to Ojiro and nodded who only nodded back.

“Alright then! Our first match will be Izuku Midoriya vs Shinsou Hitoshi! Please come stand on the stage!”

Ben claps Izuku's shoulder with a grin.

"Good luck out there!"

Izuku smiled and nodded before making his way into the stage and stared seriously at Shinsou.

Whatever this guy had up his sleeve, it doesn’t matter. He wasn’t going to be beaten! He was going to win this!

Chapter Text

Shinsou Hitoshi smirked while dragging a hand through his spikey purple hair as he stood on his side of the arena.

"Should I feel honored you chose to choose me for your first fight or insulted? I bet you think I'm weak hm or that I deserve to be punished for some perceived wrong doing? I bet you didn't even win against Ben fair and square, from what I've heard you're basically the only person that he considers a friend."

Izuku obviously felt offended at the notion of Shinsou trying to discredit his achievements. Of course he had to say something. Normally you’d always say something but this match wouldn’t exactly be normal.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! I won fair a-“

Izuku felt himself stop talking even though he had plenty more to say to his accusing opponent. He didn’t feel like he was in control of his own body. Like he was the brain and all the nerves were just cut off. Just some person in a powerless suit. What the hell is going on?!

Shinsou grinned even more as he casually stepped to the frozen Izuku.

"I bet you must be pretty scared hm? Wondering what I've done? I'll tell you… after you walk out of bounds. Do it Izuku. Forfeit this match."

Izuku couldn’t do anything but follow what Shinsou told him to do. He turned around and soon began to walk towards the edge of the stage shocking everyone, especially himself. Why couldn’t he stop?!

Ben frowned in the spectator stands having a feeling he knew exactly what was happening.

"Some sort of mind control Quirk…?"

"That's it Izuku. Walk out of the arena. Give me my well deserved win. I can't wait to take the place of one of you Hero course students. Then everyone will see it doesn't matter if you have a villainous Quirk… being typecast by the circumstances of your birth is idiocy. Your choices determine your path in life, and if I have to play dirty to win then so be it."

“WHAT’S THIS?! Izuku Midoriya is walking right to the out of bounds part of the stage!”

Izuku was clearly freaking out. Shinsou obviously had a mind control quirk but now wasn’t the time to marvel at that! He was getting close to walking out of bounds! He did not make it this far to lose in his first match, and not like this either!

Come on! Gotta move! Gotta snap out of it!

Izuku continued to panic as the out of bounds area seemed to get closer. He needed to find a way to snap himself out of this control Shinsou had over him. If only there was a wall or something in front o-wait, that’s it!

Truthfully, he had never tried to make a Mana structure just by using his mind but he had to try. He figured he had a strong enough mind and will for it. Izuku soon started to imagine the construct before hitting his head against something.

This sudden hit snapped him back into control. He stared at the Mana construct in front of him before glaring seriously and turning back to Shinsou.

What caused him to control me like that? All I did was answer him. That must be it!

Izuku glared as the Mana wall disappeared behind him. He wasn’t going to answer him if that was the case. He wouldn’t be controlled again.

Shinsou lets out a tsk as he rushes Izuku determined to get him past the boundary so he can win.

"What's the matter hm, too scared I know the truth of how you won? I bet you two are more than friends huh? I see the way you look at him. It's so adorable it's pathetic."

Izuku didn’t bother to answer as he ran towards Shinsou as well. No he was far too smart for that. It was obvious what he was trying to do. Trying to get a reaction out of him so he can control him again. Well, it wasn’t happening!

When the two were close enough, Izuku grabbed Shinsou by the arm and waist, grasping him tightly. Using all of his strength, he flipped the other teen over him down harshly onto the floor. He wasn’t out of bounds but he wanted to see if Shinsou was actually any good in a fight. He backed up giving him a chance to get up once more.

Instead of doing that Shinsou went for a sweep as he stood on his hand before aiming a kick at Izuku's face.

"So you figured out how my Quirk works huh?"

Izuku took the kick to the face, backing up slightly but not going down by any means. He also wasn’t answering. If this battle meant no talking, then no talking was going to happen.

Granted, Izuku could just push him out of bounds with his constructs but he wanted to test out his own fighting ability. The teen got into a fighting stance ready for Shinsou’s next move.

"How boring. Fine if you really want to brawl it out I'll get my answers from you from your bloody mouth!"

With one large heave he flung his body over Izuku and as his legs past him he recentered his gravity to pull him down, wrapping his legs around Izuku's upper body and using his momentum to fling him into the floor in kind.

He didn't let up as he wailed as much as he could on Izuku's face while pinning him as well as he could with his legs, effectively straddling his chest while doing so.

Izuku grunted as he was going into the ground by Shinsou’s attack. Izuku wasn’t usually one to fight dirty but he has been known to break that fact as well.

Izuku raised his face from the ground before pulling back suddenly slamming his head into Shinsou’s to daze him.

It worked as he felt the pin on his arms lessen and Izuku was able to move up to kick Shinsou away from him. Granted, the kick landed in more...lower places. He was going for the stomach but hey it worked.

Izuku didn’t let his guard down and got straight to his feet ready for whatever Shinsou was going to try next. They had been fighting closer to the bounds so Izuku had a couple of ideas of what to do.

Shinsou eeped as he clutched his manhood and every male in the audience flinched. It hurt so much he even threw up a little as he stood shakily up.

"Fucking hell Midoriya are you wanting to leave me childless too? You fucking bastard."

Izuku would normally apologize but he just kept his mouth shut. Well now Shinsou was starting to get pissed. That gave him an idea.

Izuku just smiled smugly at him, egging him to come forward like he had no care in the world. Like he was just so sure of himself. In other words, he was acting like Shinsou wasn’t shit.

Shinsou grit his teeth as he curled his hands into fists.

"What's with that look on your face, huh!? You think you're better than me, is that it? I'll wipe that smirk off your face!"

With no hesitation Shinsou deliberately aimed a kick to Izuku's privates and smirked as it connected. He didn't give Izuku the chance to recover as he grabbed his hair and raised his knee so he can break his nose over it with a loud crack.

"I'll show you not to underestimate me!"

Izuku grunted at the pain he received and almost let out a yell at the obviously broken nose. Izuku shook his head as he came to a decision in his mind. Fuck it. Pure violence it was.

Izuku stared up at him with a dangerous look in his eye. Izuku grabbed him by his shirt collar pulling him down before head butting harshly directly into his nose.

Izuku didn’t give him the chance to reel back from the attack before rearing back his leg to kick, not really caring where it hit.

Funny enough it was the crotch again. Go figure. Izuku at this point didn’t care, especially considering he could feel the blood run down from his nose to his mouth.

Izuku caught the out of bounds line in his side eye and decided not to waste any more time.

He could already tell the audience was getting kind of uncomfortable by this bloody battle anyway. Plus, he really didn’t want to hit down in the privates again.

This is it!

Izuku grabbed Shinsou by his collar once more and the arm before using all of his strength to flip him over straight onto the ground!

Izuku breathed in and out heavily as he heard the blood from his nose drop down to the ground. It didn’t really matter. Shinsou was past the border. He won.

The last thing he saw before he passed out from the pain of the 2nd hit to the balls was a faintly smiling Izuku.

"There you have it folks, Izuku is the winner for the first match! I would say something erotic but even a hit below the belt hurts like hell for women…"

Since Shinsou was unconscious Izuku could finally speak once more. Thankfully.

“I know you can’t hear me, but don’t ever try to downplay my successes ever again...and don’t talk about Ben and I...That being said...you were a worthy opponent Shinsou.”

Izuku finally finished before the crowd cheered for his victory even though it was clear they were a bit uncomfortable.

Izuku smiled anyway, the pain in his crotch finally going away or at least hurting less. He’d definitely need to see Recovery Girl for this one.

"Well without waiting another second let's see who the next match will be against!"

The screen lit up until it landed on Ben and Bakugo who was practically foaming at the mouth with how angry he was and finally getting a chance to face him.

Ben for his part only chuckled as he waved and stepped out of the spectator section walking leisurely to his spot in the arena.

Once he got there he gave Izuku a fist bump.

"Nice win there! You had me worried for a bit there but I'm glad you pulled through. I'd offer to heal you but… well I doubt you'd want me to touch you there right?"

“Thanks! A-And yeah no! Thanks for the offer though! I hope you have a good fight.”

Ben nods as he waves while both of them were carted off to Recovery Girl and he waited for Bakugo to arrive. He sighs as he stretches out in the air.

Bakugo soon made his way to the stage, the familiar glare present as ever on his face. Bakugo was ready to burn this annoying pest today. He’d beat Ben even with him going all out. Unfortunately for him and his pride, that wasn’t going to happen.

“I just want you to know I’m going to win. Go all out otherwise my victory will be meaningless.”

Ben chuckles as he floats down to land lightly on the floor.

"Really now? You think you'll win? We both know I have forms that can neutralize your Quirk. So… I won't transform at all. I'll beat you just by using my costume and constructs."

Ben smirks as the DNA symbol on his chain glowed green and covered him head to toe in his uniform. His voice echoed as it comes out of a speaker and his eyes narrow.

"Do try to last a little while will you? I've yet to fully test out my costume yet, what you all faced in the castle was a pale imitation of my actual suits capabilities."

He stretches out his right arm as it glowed green for a bit before a hologram solidified over his elbow down forming into a cannon as ethereal wings grew from his back like some sort of angel.

"Ready when you are Katsuki."

Bakugo gritted his teeth as he heard Ben saying he wouldn’t go all out. Plus Ben’s implication that this battle wouldn’t last long.

He didn’t care how good Ben was, he was going to kick his ass! His fist closed as his red eyes shook in Ben’s direction.

He didn’t say anything just fired his explosions in Ben’s general direction to cause smoke and shock him. He quickly moved in the direction of the smoke charging up another punch expecting to hit Ben’s chest.

Ben's chuckle echoed as his fist passed through the hologram as it waved.

"Missed me!"

Up above the arena Ben's cannon arm finished charging as he let it loose right below him with Bakugo dead in the middle of the massive blast.

"Don't worry it won't kill you, it's just a paralyzing beam!"

Bakugo found himself unable to move as he was hit straight in the chest by the massive blast. Damn it! He would not be made a fool of! He wouldn’t lose, especially not like this!

D-Damn it! I have to beat him, I need to beat him!

Ben frowned as he touched down from the sky and poked Bakugo causing him to fall to the floor locked in place and over extended.

"Hey Midnight, do me a favor and don't call this match yet! I was hoping he'd dodge so I can keep testing out my suit. He should be able to move in a few seconds!"

Ben called out pleadingly as he bowed even as the crowd laughed. Bakugo didn’t waste any time the second he was able to move again sending multiple explosions his way. He was seething sure but he wasn’t working with just anger. He knew Ben was skilled, he’d give him that.

But as that failure Deku proved, he wasn’t unbeatable. Bakugo soon started moving in as he began to sweat more meaning his explosions got more destructive.

“I’M NOT GOING TO JUST STAND HERE AS YOU TRY AND MAKE A FOOL OF ME TENNYSON!”

Ben laughed as he took the explosions sans Mana shield and was vindicated when he barely even felt them. Ben casually stepped out of his lunge and Judo threw him to the floor a puzzled look on his face.

"Make a fool of you? That'd be pretty hard considering you've threatened to kill me on live TV for all the world to see. Though I suppose I could try…"

With a pull back from his left arm a Mana construct grew out of the floor thrusting Bakugo upward just in time to meet Ben's fist on it's way down landing right on his nose with a crunch, as a shockwave flew out from the force of the light punch.

Bakugo grunted from the sudden punch, didn't let up as he went to rush Ben once more, throwing several explosions his way. Though this battle was most likely one sided, the people did have to admit. Bakugo didn’t give up easy.

Ben nodded as he tanked the explosions with no trouble, not even moving any as the ground shattered from them due to floating in place.

"You know, that's something I actually like about you. You don't give up even when the situation seems hopeless. This whole fight must really piss you off huh, knowing you can't really do anything against me? Surely you must know I've never even been going all out this entire tournament right?"

Ben cocks his head to the side as his cannon dematerializes and he folds his arms in front of him, a frown on his face. Bakugo only glared at the brown haired teen in front of him.

He knew Ben was holding back. That’s what was irritating him so much. One of these days, he doesn’t know when, he’s gonna burn this fucking loser!

“It doesn’t matter. I’m going to beat you regardless bastard!”

Ben laughs as he raises into the air on his motionless wings before the feathers fan out and spread to the breadth of the area.

Ben points imperiously at Bakugo as he smirks, the motion causing the feathers of the wings to turn into blades.

"Really now? Let's see how well you do against this attack. Shame I haven't thought of a cool name for it…. Oh well."

With that a hailstorm of blades flew around the arena moving through the air as if each had a mind of it's own. Bakugo kept his guard up as he used his quirk against them to shield himself.

He jumped around as well to avoid them. Bakugo was a fiery asshole but he was pretty impressive. Sure, maybe not that much compared to people like Ben but you had to give credit where credit is due.

All in all even if Ben wasn’t going all out, Bakugo was doing a pretty ok job. Granted, that still didn’t change the fact that Ben could use one of his weaker aliens and just push Bakugo out of bounds or even just a construct.

Ben claps as the storm of blades halts and dematerializes as his wings go to normal.

"Very nice Bakugo! Impressive reaction times and body placement memory."

In a flash of light Ben teleported down to face the panting Bakugo with a smile and a come here motion as he gets into a fighting stance.

"I know you've been wanting to punch my face for a while so I'll give you a free shot. How's that sound?"

Ben asked as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Bakugo could just rush in anger fueled as always but his pride just wouldn’t be able to come back if he fucked this up. Bakugo calmed himself as he got into an offensive stance taking a deep breath before running towards Ben.

Bakugo did train hand to hand considering he knew that his quirk wouldn’t save his ass all the time and relying too much on his quirk would just be stupid.

Just try and stay calm. Bakugo didn’t care if he lost, well yes he did, but he just wanted to get one good hit in on Ben.

"Heh, here I thought you'd go in like a berserker like usual. Good to know you aren't as idiotic as you act like."

Ben keeps his word and doesn't try to move as Bakugo goes in for a full strength punch to the face.

The hit did connect and for all intended purposes, it did hurt. Bakugo didn’t try to stop there however.

He tried a simple trick of diversion, using his right fist to make Ben think he was going for another hit to the face, while left charged up using his quirk.

Ben grinned as his head flew back and he teleported behind Bakugo, a palm on his back that quickly discharged paralyzing plasma.

"There. Hopefully you'll stop saying you'll kill me now. Oh and a hit to the face deserves one in kind no?"

Ben casually stepped around the locked in place Bakugo as his cracked faceplate repaired itself and flicked his forehead sending him flying past the arena boundary but was caught before he could hit the wall in a Mana construct.

Bakugo grunted and looked forward in shock as he was past the area boundary. No! The construct disappeared and Bakugo just slammed his fist into the ground multiple times yelling.

Izuku watched this battle with a lazy, big smile on his face. Needless to say, watching Kaachan get his was very therapeutic. That probably wouldn’t stop his shivers and natural defense he had made when it came to him but this helped.

“AND THAT’S IT! BEN TENNYSON WINS THIS ROUND!”

Ben bowed at the applause as his wings demateralized before teleporting back to the viewing room with a grin.

"Sooooo how'd you like the show Izuku?"

“It was definitely exciting. Oh who am I kidding? It was awesome! Though Kaachan this is probably gonna do something bad to his pride. Shinsou and I talked in the recovery room by the way.”

"Oh yeah! I meant to ask about what happened, so what'd you talk about?"

“When he finally woke up from his...injuries he started to talk about Quirk Descrimination. In other words, he had a ‘villainous’ quirk and was seen as wrong or bad in the eyes of others. Though, I did overhear some heroes and people in his class talking good about him and his quirk. Think that definitely made him feel a bit better.”

But it did piss me however. Quirkless Descrimination and Quirk Descrimination? What the hell?!

Ben frowned as he sat down.

"Here I thought superheroes being basically pop stars was bad but people let their preconceived notions about a Quirk make them bully someone? Ugh. This society of yours sure is something Izuku. Hopefully you can change it for the better. Because if things don't change, all any villains springing up will be are self fulfilling prophecies that society could have avoided if it treated others only for their actions. It's no better than racist rhetoric."

Izuku nodded as he leaned his head on his hand sighing.

“Yeah, it definitely needs a change. Though it’s not as bad in theory. I was reading a comic called ‘The Boys’ yesterday.”

“And?”

“You’d have a stroke reading it. The ‘heroes’ are...really REALLY bad.”

“Give me an example.”

“Ok so there was this speedster running and ran straight through this dude’s girlfriend, liquidizing her till she was just hands. The news said she was in the middle of the road when she was on the sidewalk and the speedster ‘apologized’ then joked about it in private. Sucks that the comic probably exists in the multiverse somewhere.”

Ben stills as he clenches his fists in fury, accidentally releasing Mana from them like heavy fog.

"If it does I'll personally give it a visit to clean house and set up a Plumber post there."

“I’m sure they’d be thankful for it. But yeah, it’s really bad. Pretty sure they’re technically government officials so that might be part of it. But power is given to the wrong people, bad things happen. That plane scene was awful. There is a show if you’re interested in watching stuff about corrupt heroes and governments.”

Ben shakes his head after letting out a slow breath to calm himself down, the Mana flow ceasing after he's done so.

"No that's fine. The show would piss me off too much. It reminds me of these heroes back home who staged crimes they could solve. Like setting an apartment building on fire."

“That IS bad. Well, let’s try to talk about something more positive. Congrats on winning your match. Without transforming as well!”

Ben chuckles while ruffling his hair.

"Hey, you're acting like I might have lost! I should thank Bakugo actually, he was pretty useful in testing out my suit. The non-lethal stuff anyway."

Izuku chuckled at that.

“He’ll probably be messed up for awhile but he’ll be back to thinking he’s the best in a couple of days. He always bounces back like that.”

"Yeah I've noticed. His perseverance is one of the few things I actually like about him. I should also thank him for making my suit basically explosion/blunt force proof thanks to the adaptability of the Nanochips."

“He’d probably try to burn you again honestly. Not that it really matters. But I think they’re taking another break again. I’m not hungry but you want to go to the food court and just talk? I’m sure you’re up for another smoothie.”

Ben nodded and laughed as he stood up and offered his hand.

"You know me well Izuku. Want to teleport there?”

Izuku smiled as he took Ben’s hand and stood up.

“Sure.”

In a flash they were at the food court in front of the smoothie and burger joint.

"You sure you aren't hungry?"

“I’m sure. I’ll be at that table.”

Izuku said with a smile as he made his way over to a table and waited for Ben to order.

He sat down 10 minutes later with a smoothie, chicken sandwich, and fries.

"So what're you interested in talking about?"

“Comics, adventures, shows, movies? It doesn’t matter really. Just as long as we can talk.”

Izuku was just bored to be completely honest and he needed something to do in order to pass the time.

Ben hmmmmed as he dipped a fry into his smoothie and ate it.

"Well I could tell you more about Sumo Slammers if you'd like, or this show I used to watch before it was cancelled, all about cryptids and ancient prophecies called Weird World. It turns out the host for it was a super villain Yeti."

Izuku blinked at the description that Ben gave to him.

“Ben, that sounds so stupid and amazing at the same time. Right up my alley!”

Ben laughed as he went on a detailed explanation on Weird World, Argost, Zak Saturday, and the Secret Scientists.

"I still can't believe all the stuff happened while I was without the watch. It definitely explains all those odd news reports though. I wonder if you have Cryptids here…"

“I’m not sure if we do but I feel like you’d find some somehow regardless. You told me you had four different versions of your watch? Which was your favorite?”

"Well technically only 3 actually. The original one which recalibrated after I put it on again at 15, the Ultimatrix, and this one I have now. As for my favorite… well probably this one. It looks like a smart watch and no one gives it a second look."

“Comes in handy for secret identities? I got ya. I remember when I first thought about a secret identity but then I remembered that’s not really how it works around here so it was dropped.”

Izuku explained chuckling as he looked to the side.

“Though, I suppose if you’re a vigilante you could still have the identity a secret.”

Ben does a so so motion as he finishes chewing the last of his burger and swallows.

"Well no, when I got it my identity was public knowledge and what helps me keep my power a secret here is Master Control. With it I never actually have to touch the watch to transform."

“Huh. Your life just keeps getting more and more interesting. Hopefully, mine will be just as exciting. But what were some of your favorite missions?”

"Hmmm well the time I helped eat a planet was pretty memorable since even I don't do that often."

Izuku laughed at the thought of Ben eating a planet. Not gonna lie, the thought did make him smile more than he expected to. He pinched the bridge of his nose to stop laughing. There was only one question he had to ask.

“Did it taste good?”

"I mean not really? The species in question don't really taste anything."

“Well that’s unfortunate. I’m sure there’s some planet eater out who has a preference.”

"Well not an eater exactly but I do know of someone who's a big fan of me that collects planets. He wanted Earth but settled for one of my old shirts."

Izuku chuckled at what Ben said, still getting used to the absurdity of Ben’s adventures. He was going to say something else before feeling a presence behind him. He turned to see the double hair colored teen himself Todoroki.

“I'd like to talk with you two. Without prying ears."

Izuku didn’t say anything at first before letting out a sigh and standing up from the table as Ben shrugged and finished his food before dumping it.

“Sure Todoroki.”

They both say as they follow him into the network of halls in the stadium. Once they arrive Ben folds his arms while leaning against the wall casually, a quirked eyebrow raised.

"Everything ok? You don't usually talk much."

“My apologies but this was something that I needed to get out to the both of you. To you Izuku because I’ve noticed how you’re always around All Might and he seems especially friendly towards you. And to you Ben, considering my father considers you the best. Are you two aware of the hero called Endeavor? Well he’s my father.”

Izuku looked up in shock at this revelation as Ben nods and narrows his eyes, he certainly didn't like where this conversation was going.

“Woah seriously?! He’s the 2nd best hero in the world!”

“Exactly and that’s where the problems begin. What I’m about to share with you is confidential but I want you to know regardless. My father was always obsessed with being the best but with All Might in his way he was never able to surpass number two. Second best. No matter how much he tried, he just couldn’t. So he went with another route. Quirk marriages.”

Ben frowned harder as he stood up straight.

"What? Was it consensual with no bribes involved? Also your father in an idiot, this is part of the problem I was telling you about Izuku. Being number 1 detracts from the actual goal of heroics, saving lives because it's the right thing to do not for fame or glory."

Todoroki nodded at Ben’s small rant about their society and how it worked. Truthfully, he saw the issue with it as well and all the problems that it spawns.

“You are correct Ben, my father is an idiot. One that won’t ever be getting my respect or forgiveness. He only got with my mother in order to have an offspring that would surpass All Might. Me. He wasn’t a friend and he definitely wasn’t a father or at least a good one. He pushed his ideologies onto me, treating me like a soldier as opposed to a son.”

Todoroki clenched his fist in anger at the painful memories of his childhood. Every hit his father gave him every time he did something not to his standard just reinforced exactly why he hated him.

“Needless to say, he wasn’t a good person, especially not to my mother and I. He’s the cause of the reason I even have this damn burn on my face.”

Ben froze as he growled Mana leaking out of his clenched fists.

"Don't tell me he gave you that burn. If he did I'll personally kick his ass and send him to jail myself."

“Physically? No. While I can understand why my mother did it given what my father put her through, it doesn’t excuse it. That being said all he ever cared about was being the best. Since he’s too much of a failure to do it himself, he put it upon me. Due to my hatred for him, I’ve never used my left side which is going to stay the same. I’m going to show him I reject his power and win this tournament without using it. So I’m just here to tell you both, whoever I end up going against, I’m going to win.”

Todoroki finally finished and the two of them stared forward seriously both thinking generally the same thing.

Ben held out a hand so he didn't leave yet.

"Are you saying your father got your mother into a psychotic break and she did it to you, just so I'm clear."

Todoroki turned and stared at Ben nodding seriously.

“Yes you are. I don’t harbor much negative feelings towards my mother but I will forever hate him for what he’s caused.”

Ben let out a slow breath to calm himself as he nodded.

"Right then. Why haven't you aired out his dirty laundry or told someone like All Might? I don't know what the statute of limitations is for something like this but it should be enough to jail him for mass negligence and abuse. Also FUCK your fire side being his power, your Quirk is YOURS and no one else's. I'm not going to pressure you into using it if it's traumatic, but I will suggest you don't deny parts of yourself."

Todoroki was shocked at what Ben had said to him and turned to Izuku who nodded before speaking.

“I can’t say I’m entirely sure on the laws and specifics for it as well but your father by what you’ve told us is a criminal. His abuse shouldn’t be allowed to continue and he DEFINITELY shouldn’t be allowed to continue as a hero. 2nd best hero my ass. It’s your power Todoroki. I’m not gonna say you have to but just think about it.”

Ben holds out his hand as his suit makes a teleportation homing signal.

"Here. Take this. The very second you feel unsafe you press this button and I'll teleport to you. I don't care what time it is or where you're at. You could be on the other side of the Galaxy and it'd still work. I'll deal with him, you don't have to deal with this alone anymore. Just… Fair warning, once pressed the button will start doing a 360° recording for records. It might catch things you'd rather not be seen but the more evidence we have the stronger the case you'll have."

Todoroki took the device, still in shock at all the care they were giving to this and nodded.

“...Thank you. I appreciate it. Whoever I face on that stage, may the best man win.”

The teen said, finally walking off as the two looked at one another.

“Yeah, you’re right. This society does have issues. A lot. Maybe I can help to change it, I don’t know. I’ll try.”

Ben nods as he resists the urge to punch a wall.

"Yeah. I'll be cheering for you. I'm… gonna go take a walk among the clouds for a bit. Want to join me? Don't worry about being late I have my suit tapped into the stadium intercom."

He holds out a hand invitingly, clearly not wanting to be alone with his thoughts right now.

Izuku could tell when people were frustrated even if they were doing their best to hide it. It’d be a mistake to leave Ben alone with only his thoughts. He nodded and took Ben’s hand with a smile.

“Sure. I’d love to.”

Ben smiles gratefully as they were gone in a flash above the stadium as they sat on one of Ben's Mana constructs, one of his hands outstretched as he lays down, his shirt riding up a bit as he sighs.

"Thanks for coming with me. If you didn't I'd probably have gone to kick Endeavor's ass myself and screw the evidence."

“It’s no problem. I wouldn’t have blamed you. He’d deserve every hit regardless.”

Izuku said as he turned to look at the stadium and all the people waiting for the tournament to start up again.

His mother was watching this from their apartment. He hoped he was making her proud.

"True but it'd make his case harder…. Though I suppose his willing cooperation isn't necessary. I could just show everyone his memories of the abuse if it wouldn't be triggering for Todoroki."

“Yeah, hopefully it all works out. He doesn’t deserve any of what’s happened to him.”

Izuku said laying down on the construct with his hands behind his head, his shirt riding up a bit as well. Izuku has become more fit which was clear due to the outline of his six pack. Had to be fit in most cases if you wanted to be a hero.

Ben frowned as he put down his arm.

"I'm worried about what'll happen to him after. The news certainly wouldn't be kind with the shock that'd follow."

“Knowing the media here, I’m not surprised. Whatever may happen, we’ll be there for him.”

Izuku stared at the clouds as he let out a sigh. He wasn’t that much closer to mastering One for All and everything it came with. He’d need more practice. A lot more. Though maybe his fight would help him realize a few things.

Ben grinned all of the sudden as he stood up and pulled Izuku with him.

"I just had an idea! Want to play air soccer?"

Ben asked as he formed a soccer ball from his suit held aloft by Mana as the pane they were on expanded to thrice it's size to form a field with two goals.

Izuku was shocked as he was pulled up by Ben but looked around and smiled. Air soccer huh? Why not? It could be fun.

“Sure, let's do this!”

It turns out Ben's distraction was exactly what they needed to cool down for the rest of the 45 minute break until the next round of matches, whereupon Ben teleported them back to the stadium with soccer ball in hand and a laugh in his voice.

Izuku laughed as well as he rubbed the back of his head. He was going up against Todoroki next. He wasn’t entirely sure how this battle was going to go but he was going to give it his all.

Todoroki made his way through the halls of the stadium before feeling a large presence over him. His eye turned as he saw his father standing there with that same gleaming stare as always.

“What do you want?”

“Isn’t it obvious? I’m here to make sure you don’t lose! I don’t want you to continue to rebel against your destiny! It’s gone on long enough boy. I’ve also heard about you not using your left side. Don’t try to deny yourself. After all, you are half of me. Failure is unacceptable. So don’t lose.”

Todoroki stared at the taller male for a moment before glaring deeper.

“I’m going to do my best out there. Not because of your bullshit ‘destiny’ but because that’s what I want to do. I’m not going to be your puppet and confine into what you want. Not this time. Regardless of whether I use my left side or not, I’m doing this for me. Not for you or your plans for me.”

The teen finished off seriously as he made his way through the stadium as Endeavor simply glared at what he had just heard.

Once Todoroki was at his side of the arena he couldn't help but stare at the spectator seats he was just in, the supposed teleporter device burning a hole in his pocket.

Ben Tennyson… you really are something else. I hope I never have to use this and your words about his fire being my power… I know that's true but the thought of using it on others makes me colder than my ice half. Just the thought of someone getting burned like me…

He shakes his head as he glares to get back his concentration.

"No use in worrying about it now… it's not like I'll give Father the satisfaction."

The crowd cheered as the two were soon on the stage, staring each other down.

“WE’RE BACK WITH ANOTHER ROUND! These two heroes in training have both been front runners in the Sports Festival! IT’S MIDORIYAAAAA!”

He’ll start with an ice attack. I’ve got to be smart about this. While I’ve made good progress with not breaking my body, I can’t use it as much as I want.

“VERSUS...TODOROKIIIIIIII!”

With zero hesitation Todoroki sent out a massive wave of ice in order to win this as quickly as possible. The less he uses his Quirk the less likely he is to suffer from hypothermia.

Izuku immediately flicked forward, sending a powerful shock wave that destroyed the ice on impact. His fingers didn’t hurt. Good. Izuku glared forward as he waited for the next wave of ice.

“WHAT’S THIS?! Izuku Midoriya has destroyed Todoroki’s ice as quickly as he made it! Incredible!”

Shoto narrowed his eyes as he started to skate around the arena while sending spikes of ice from different directions with a foot that'd intermittently touch down to the floor randomly as he did so in an effort to pin Izuku into a corner.

Izuku panicked seeing all the spikes of ice heading towards him that would effectively put him into a corner. He did some quick thinking jumping into the air before feeling his feet land on a construct.

Izuku charged his fingers again before sending off another powerful shockwave towards Todoroki.

“Why don’t you try it again with me like this?!”

This construct should be helpful against his ice attacks. I’m making good progress but even still...Todoroki’s still not using his left side. I can’t go all out if he doesn’t!

Shoto almost smiled as he did something he was sure Izuku wasn't expecting. He jumped from his ice skating line onto the strange construct Ben and Izuku seemed to somehow share, if different colors and thickness.

"Like this?"

Shoto shivered out as he sent a near point blank ice wall to his foe intent on freezing him solid, a cold gleam of victory in his eyes.

Izuku’s eyes widened at the ice that was coming towards him. Come on! Think! Think! Think! Izuku’s eyes snapped forward before he felt himself descend.

The side of the construct he was on disappeared, causing him to fall to the ground. Dodged the ice but he wasn’t stopping there. Izuku didn’t hesistate as he flicked another incredible shockwave underneath Todoroki.

Shoto almost cursed as the construct he was on and the ice he made shattered like so much glass, forcing him up and up as he flew along with them. His eyes widened as he saw himself nearing the edge as he swallowed thickly.

No! I can't lose, not yet! I want to be the best, not for anyone's sake but my own!

He pulled a page from Bakugo's book as he out stretched his left arm to the exit of the boundary before unleashing a torrent of flames to rocket himself back to his previous position and a shocked Izuku.

As he corkscrewed he let out his ice as well, arms now out stretched to aim right at Izuku as a torrent of fire sped him ever forward from his left foot, effectively creating a drill bit of super hot steam with waves of ice and fire heading straight to Izuku.

Shit! What do I do?!

Izuku tried to think of something as he saw the drill of scorching steam with waves of fire and ice head straight towards him.

Should I try to dodge it? A construct wall? Try to power through it with my flicks? I can’t lose no matter what!

The powerful, spinning amalgamation continued to hurdle towards him as he shook his head and sprung into action.

Izuku sent a powerful three fingered shockwave towards the attack before covering himself in a construct. If Todoroki’s attack shoots through his shockwave, he can at least be protected.

Shoto grunted as he put more force behind his flames as he added a stream of ice to keep his body from overheating, effectively creating a cyclone of steam that pushed past the force of the attack as his arms broke. He let out a scream as he powered through it.

This is nothing compared to what I've lived through! Izuku I'm going to win!

With a massive explosion Shoto finally made contact with Izuku, the penetrating power of the attack more than necessary to shatter his armor even as thick as it was letting in super hot steam and ice so cold it burned that was quickly numbed by fire burning his nerves.

As the steam cleared Shoto wasn't doing much better, his arms were bloody masses from taking the brunt of the flick head on as he barely stood up from his attack, blood spilling from his mouth as he grinned at Izuku.

"Had…. enough?"

He asked as he panted barely able to keep standing.

Izuku grunted as the blood ran down his nose and he stared at his body. The hit did do a large number on him. He also was barely able to stand as well.

Izuku called for his Mana once more trying to heal as much as he could. His breathing was a bit better, he could stand a little easier, and the burns were faded but overall not much better.

“No! I’m not done yet! I’m not admitting defeat! Not against Kaachan! Not against you! Not anyone!”

Izuku called for his constructs once more before closing them tightly around Todoroki.

Shoto grunted as they squeezed the bloody things called his arms as he glared.

"Well too bad, I'll make you surrender to me! I haven't come this far to lose!"

With a grunt of effort he let loose a stream of both fire and ice, strong enough to crack it which Shoto capitalized on as he head-butted the construct to break it apart as he smirks.

"You know I've noticed something, whenever anyone breaks one of your constructs it puts a strain on you. I'm surprised you haven't been knocked out yet."

He says as he stumbles forwards and headbutts the dazed Izuku.

The teen grunted as he took the head butted causing him to be more dazed. His vision was blurry but he could see well enough.

“Yeah? Guess I’m stronger than I look!”

Izuku landed a punch to Todoroki’s face. There was a crack as his nose broke and he blacked out momentarily before gritting his teeth and headbutting Izuku as hard as he could while trying to sweep his legs from under him with a trail of ice.

Izuku groaned in pain as Todoroki head butted him once more. Izuku jumped up forward and shot the ice beneath him with another powerful shockwave.

Endeavor watched the battle between the two and groaned in frustration and disappointed.

Damn it Shoto! This is pathetic! Having so much trouble against this boy! He’s nothing! You had better win or losing will be the least of your concerns.

Shoto gritted his teeth as he tackled Izuku while letting out a stream of steam from his legs acting as thrysters.

Even though it hurt he grabbed hold of Izuku so he couldn't escape, planning to throw him past the boundary as they neared it.

Izuku grunted as Todoroki held onto him, flying them to the boundary. He struggled as Todoroki’s grip was iron shut. If he was going down, he was taking Todoroki with him.

As they neared the boundary and he felt his grip on him loosen, he socked Todoroki in the jaw to daze him with a free arm and wrapped them both in a tight construct.

Shoto's eyes widened as it was too late to charge course and they both zoomed past the barrier of the arena ending in the first tie.

“HOLY SHIT! Something that hasn’t happened much in the history of the festival! A tie! What a surprise! Given the two contenders, most would be sure this match would be one sided! Looks like Midoriya ain’t so bad!”

The construct finally released letting the two go, allowing them to separate. Izuku coughed as he got to his knees and sighed. Well...it wasn’t a win but it wasn’t a total loss either.

Ben teleported to heal them a bit as he smiled.

"A great match you two!"

He says as he starts taking care of Shoto's ruined arms. Izuku sat down as he sighed.

“Hey Todoroki?”

“Yeah?”

“That was a good match.”

“...Yeah.”

Endeavor looked at the spectacle below him, pure anger growing on his face. His fist clenched as he gritted his teeth. How could this happen?! His son losing to this...this...nobody!

You have failed Shoto! And against garbage like this?! You won’t go unpunished boy.

Once Shoto's arms were mostly fine Ben pulled him up gently with a construct.

"You should see Recovery Girl for the rest of it while I help heal Izuku. Oh, and don't worry about the button. You could throw a nuke at it and it'd still work just fine."

With that Ben started helping Izuku heal his injuries. Todoroki nodded and made his way back to the stadium entrance to find the Nursing Room they had given to the Recovery Girl.

He went to turn around the corner only to see his father standing there glaring daggers straight into him. Todoroki didn’t back down as he only glared back.

“What? Got something to say?”

He shrugs.

"You should be glad I even used my left side."

With that he walked past him, not letting it show how scared he was of retaliation.

Todoroki felt his father’s arm being placed on his shoulder causing his breath to hitch. His grip was as strong as ever.

He felt himself being pushed back against the wall as he tried desperately to not look bothered by his actions.

“You know I can’t let you walk away without punishment Shoto. I told you to win and you lost to some punk kid who looks like he’d die on the spot if you glared at him hard enough. You’re doing it again with this foolish rebellion from your destiny. I must correct that.”

Shoto frowned at his father.

"In front of everyone? Recovery Girl will definitely wonder how I got burned so badly. In fact, go ahead and teach me my lesson. So I can use it against you and see you thrown in jail for the monster you are."

As Shoto said this both his sides lit up as he braced himself for retaliation, scared out of his mind that he wouldn't be able to reach the button in time.

Endeavor let out a scoff as he raised his hand, ready to ‘discipline’ Shoto as he had done multiple times in the past.

“HEY! Get away from him!”

Endeavor paused to glare at the brunette child.

"This doesn't concern you. Leave."

Ben glares right back, a look on his face that'd make most of his villains back home quake in fear. A pissed off Ben Tennyson is the stuff of criminal nightmares.

"People abusing children IS my business. It's everyone's business. Get away from him unless you want me to knock you out."

Endeavor let out a sneer at the teen. He had guts, he could admit that. He turned away from Shoto and put his full attention on Ben.

“Do you really think you can take me on boy? Do you know who you’re talking to?”

Ben stepped forward as he briefly teleported to Shoto and brought him back as he activated the teleporter recorder. He made sure Shoto was behind him as his costume sprung to life.

"Of course I know who I'm talking to. The number 2 hero and chronic child abuser. As for taking you on, I could obliterate you if I wanted to but I won't. I'll make sure you remain alive to spend the rest of your days in prison.”

Endeavor turned and saw Ben guarding Shoto behind him and scoffed. Who the hell did this child think he was?

The wings and cannon rematerialized as middle pods sprung from his back.

“Out of the way boy. I won’t ask a second time. Shoto has failed to win a fight against a piece of useless garbage. He must be punished for it.”

Ben chuckled as he did a come hither motion.

"Why don't you pull your head out your ass and make me old man. You'll only get to Shoto over my dead body."

To home in his point he caged them in a Mana construct with Shoto safely locked outside of their match.

Endeavor only glared hardly as his flames began to flare up at the defiance that he was being given. He was the 2nd best hero and he would not be talked down to by some teenaged brat.

Endeavor went to make a move to destroy the construct so he could deal with Ben and finally Shoto.

Shoto was his son and he wasn’t going to let anything stop him from making it to his true destiny. Endeavor charged a flaming fist and aimed right at Ben.

The fist went through a hologram who tsked.

"You weren't paying attention to my fights huh? Well I suppose it doesn't matter because I didn't use this particular trick yet."

With that the hologram dispersed in a wave of paralyzing plasma as Ben gave him a upper cut, his form momentarily becoming visible on contact as the full force of the blow sent Endeavor through the ceiling and the multiple stories past that until he was free falling back down.

Ben teleported to meet him a chuckle in his voice as he fell along side him.

"What were you saying about Izuku being useless garbage? He certainly wouldn't have fallen for that. But that's neither here or there. This is about teaching you child abuse is wrong. Though I suppose I should do the proper thing and let you defend yourself. So… any justifications in that hothead of yours?"

Ben asked as he quirked his head to the side and halted their free fall as people rushed outside to see what all the commotion was about.

“What I do to discipline Shoto is none of your business! It is his destiny to surpass all others and become the new number one hero! After all, that was the reason he was born.”

Ben nods.

"Ah yes, your Quirk marriage you mean. Where your treatment of your wife led to her mental breakdown and that 3rd degree burn on Shoto's face. Am I right on all accounts?"

Ben asked as he righted them up so Endeavor wasn't in danger of passing out from blood rushing to his head.

“She shouldn’t have gotten in the way of Shoto’s destiny. The only reason I married her in the first place was for a powerful offspring.”

And that was the last nail in the coffin. There just wasn’t any coming back from that.

Ben grinned viscously as a hologram of Endeavor damning himself was played.

"Music to my ears. Shoto you'll be happy to hear he spilled the beans."

That was the last thing Endeavor heard as Ben sprayed him with sleeping gas and let him drop to the floor 30 feet down as he teleported raising his hands up as other Pro Heroes were in fighting stances sans Aizawa and All Might who were looking at Ben expentently.

In answer Ben just played the full recording the teleporter beacon and his suit recorded.

All Might and Aizawa listened to the recording in shock and stared at Endeavor in anger and shock. They always knew he was a hothead but they never expected that from him.

All Might had looked the most distraught. While there was obviously that rivalry they had with him being number 1 and him being number 2, he hadn’t thought it bothered Endeavor that much. So much that it caused him to do all of...this.

Ben quirks an eyebrow.

"So, where exactly is he going? Also Shoto I'm assuming you want this to be made public yes, or at least used in the upcoming trial?"

“Well considering you have the evidence, which you do, he’ll be transported to a prison where even the 2nd best hero won’t be able to escape. He wants to act like a criminal, he’s going to be treated like one.”

Aizawa said, rubbing the underside of his eyes as All Might nodded at this. Shoto turned to Ben and simply nodded.

“Of course. Anything that keeps him from seeing the light of day again...Thank you.”

Ben shook his head.

"You've nothing to thank me for. Any other Pro would have done the same if they knew I'm sure. But…"

Ben bit his lip as his suit dematerialized.

"What'll happen to Shoto and his family exactly? I can't imagine the news treating this as delicately as it should. I'd offer my place for you to stay but it can only really fit two people and I'm not sure how many siblings you have."

“We can provide them with a new place but we’d need a trustworthy adult to watch over Shoto and the rest of his family. Shoto would be the most mature out of his siblings but that amount of stress and responsibility wouldn’t be good for him.”

Ben nodded.

"Yeah that's fair. I'd offer to help, especially since there's no telling if anyone would retaliate against his family for some twisted revenge against Endeavor, but I doubt that'd be acceptable since I'm only 15 too."

Ben snapped his fingers.

"But just because I'm not there in person doesn't mean I can't secure his safety. I'd just need a few days to make a forcefield for wherever he's staying. After that nothing short of a nuke will get past it once it's raised."

“That sounds like a plan. We just do need a responsible adult to look over him and his family. You have any ideas, Shoto?"

Shoto shakes his head still trying to process that he's finally free from his father.

Ben hums in thought before looking at Aizawa and All Might.

"Um… well I only really know a few adults well enough. You two and Ms. Midoriya but I don't know if she'd be up for it or even able to afford it."

Ben shrugs.

“I’m sure my mom would be up for it. We do have room and we’d be happy to help in anyway we can.”

Izuku said with a smile to the double hair colored teen.

Ben grinned at that as he gave Shoto a one armed hug.

"Excellent! Though how would it work? I'm assuming she'd get government assistance for fostering them until they are adults but what about Endeavor's assets?"

“Endeavor is clearly undeserving of his assets which includes his money. Though he does have a private bank account for their savings and financing. We could remove his name from it as he won’t be using any of it for a long time.”

"Hmm I'm not sure how accurate this is but am I right that they wouldn't have access to it until age 18 with only limited access from Inko to help with whatever costs they need?"

“You would be correct Young Tennyson!”

Ben nods as he looks to Shoto.

"Hey, you doing ok? None of this has to happen immediately you know or at all if you're uncomfortable with it. But if you do decide to go with Inko I have first hand experience with her treating me like a son. She's a great mother."

“Yeah, there’s no one else better. I would know considering how she’s treated me since the beginning! She’s great!”

“No, this is all great. I’m just still taking in the fact that I’m finally free from him. Thank you...both of you.”

Ben grinned before blinking and looking sheepish.

"Oh, this won't interrupt the tournament right? I hope I wasn't kicked out for my bout of quasi vigilantism."

“Actually you are disqualified from the tournament. For your bout of vigilantism and certain other bits of information that you’ve brought to my attention. There was even the threat of expulsion but we’ve already decided against it. You can't get out of everything without a consequence.”

Aizawa said in his tired tone to the teen.

Ben shrugged and nodded an easy-going smile on his face.

"Sure, I wouldn't have it any other way! No one should be above the law after all. Well… since none of us are in the tournament do we have to stay for the rest of the festival? I figured us 3 could use a bit of relaxation, especially Shoto. Oh! We could visit Inko so Shoto can get to know her!"

“It sounds like a good plan to me! I should call her actually.”

Izuku said getting out his phone and dialing her number before her answering wondering frantically if he was alright.

“Mom, I’m ok. Haha. But I have something I need to ask you.”

Izuku went over the details and what had happened to Shoto and his family and how their father was treating them.

As he expected, she was quick to jump on board with the idea. She was always amazing like that. She then whispered into the phone.

“Just remember you’ll always be my favorite Izuku. I love you.”

Izuku smiled at the sentiment and replied.

“I love you too mom.”

Ben grinned as he laid a hand on each shoulder.

"Want to teleport there or do you want to have the time to think from normal travel Shoto?"

Ben asked with a quirked eyebrow, glad to know Inko was on board.

“I...While I would like to meet her greatly...There’s just some things I need to do first. But thank you for the offer.”

"Hmm anything you need us for? If you need some alone time that's ok too. You always have the button in case you need to contact me."

“No, it’s nothing I need you for. Thank you all, especially you two. But this is something I’ve been putting off for awhile and I think I finally need to do it.”

Ben nodded and teleported both Izuku and himself with a cheery wave. The moment they were in Ben's apartment he sighed and the smile slipped off his face as he collapsed on the bed.

"Damn it. I came here to be anonymous while Heroing. I hope they keep my name out of the news as much as possible. Did you see how the other Pros were looking at me? They were in shock that an academy student could topple the number 2 Hero."

“Well I mean, it’s not something you see everyday. Don’t worry though. Aizawa Sensei is usually good with privacy and all that. I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

Izuku said, sitting down on the chair and letting out a sigh.

“Oh I forgot to tell you this but lida was in a rush to leave sometime during the festival. He didn’t get to tell me why but he looked like he was about to breakdown judging by his face.”

Ben sat up a frown on his face as he pushed his worries aside.

"You think we should track him down to see if he's ok?"

“I mean just to ask him what’s up. If he doesn’t want to talk, we should give him his space.”

Izuku answered, standing up stretching.

Ben nods before teleporting back to school and back to get a piece of his costume.

"It'll only take a moment to find him with this. Ah, actually do you have the tracking spell down Izuku? This would be good practice."

“I think so. Let me give it a try.”

Izuku got himself comfortable and started manipulating his Mana in order to locate lida. His eyes glowed in comparison with his constructs and he started to float as well. He soon floated down onto the chair before opening his eyes.

“He’s in Hosu, on his way to a hospital. Someone important to him must’ve gotten hurt.”

Ben grinned as he returned the costume part before taking Izuku to Hosu.

"Any idea where the hospital he's at is?"

“It should be just up ahead and a turn to the right.”

The two walked forward and taking the right before seeing the purple haired individual they were looking for.

“lida! Hey wait up!”

Izuku yelled, running up to him as he turned and smiled a sad smile seeing the two.

“Ah hello you two. What’s up?”

“I think we should be asking you that. Are you ok? You ran in a bit of a hurry and you seemed sad.”

Ben nods.

"Yeah, is everything ok? We thought we'd check up on you since we're both out of the tournament ourselves."

“Truthfully, I’m not sure if everything is alright myself. My...Tensei was attacked earlier today and was left in critical condition.”

Izuku’s eyes widened at this news. lida seemed clearly hurt by telling them this news.

“Your older brother?! Seriously? Do they know who did it?”

“They have a good idea. There’s this man that’s going around killing other heroes he deems...‘unworthy’. I suppose he was distracted otherwise Tensei wouldn’t be alive...Though this isn’t much better. The Hero Killer is what they’ve been calling him.”

lida explained to the both of them tightening his fist at all the emotions of anger, sadness, and hate that was swirling around inside of him.

Ben clenched his fist. He's heard rumors of him himself but he never left any evidence behind for Ben to track, though Ben definitely knew how he looked like thanks to Clockwork.

"Iida what's wrong with your brother and how long has it been since the attack? Did he leave behind any evidence?"

“He’s...He’s cut up pretty badly from his chest down to his legs and it’s about four hours since the attack. The only evidence he had left behind was Tensei’s body and the blood he had spilt from it.”

lida got out as a tear escaped his eye and flowed down the side of his cheek. He couldn’t believe this. His big brother is in critical condition.

"Is he missing any limbs? If he is I have a form that can put them back just fine but if he isn't I can heal him up good as new. I'd just…. Prefer as few people as possible know about the form I'll use since the less people that know the better. It's going to be ok though. Alright?"

Ben asked as he brushed away Iida's tear with a smile as he messed up his hair to distract him.

lida was of course willing to do anything to save his brother.

“...Thank you Ben. He’s not missing any limbs but there’s another problem. They had alerted me on the phone about it. The nerves and tendons in his legs were severed...he won’t be able to walk even after they put him through surgery...Which means he won’t be able to be Ingenium anymore…”

It wasn’t fair. His brother was more than enough to be a hero. He was his hero. He didn’t care if he didn’t match up in the Hero Killer’s stupid judgment, he was wrong. No one was a better hero than his older brother.

Ben shook his head.

"Maybe through surgery they wouldn't be able to do anything but I plan on rewinding his personal time to before he got hurt. 4 hours should be easy to do. Is he alone currently?"

lida couldn’t believe what he was hearing but if there was a chance he had to take it. For his brother’s sake and for his.

“Yes! He’s currently alone in his hospital room. I was just on my way to see him.”

Ben grinned as he motioned to the hospital.

"By all means lead the way. You can even stay to see the process if you like, it won't take long."

“Of course!”

lida led them through the hospital and towards Tensei’s room. Of course he was frantic, his brother was in terrible condition and Ben perhaps had hopes for a cure for him.

Just hang in there big brother. You’re going to be ok!

They soon got to the hospital room and entered in slowly. They all got a good look at lida’s big brother and he wasn’t looking good at all.

They all looked in sadness but especially anger for what the Hero Killer did to him. lida clenched his fist at the sight of Tensei.

I swear on it ‘Hero Killer’...You’re not going to get away with this! I’m going to kill you!

Ben frowned and flicked Iida's forehead.

"No thinking acts of vengeance. While I get the sentiment, he's clearly out of your league if he can do this to your brother. No use in possibly getting yourself killed. Besides…"

In a flash of light Clockwork stood in his mechanical glory, a German accent now in his voice.

"... it's not like he'll be like this much longer."

The screw on Clockwork's head began to spin counter clockwise before a green time ray shot out of his chest and hit Tensei. When it was gone he was as good as new as Ben transformed back.

"There, now Tensei is not only healed but 5 hours younger."

lida looked at his unconscious brother in awe as he couldn’t stop the waterworks from flowing this time. He turned to Ben and gave him a tight hug for what he’s done.

“Thank you...Seriously thank you.”

Ben laughed and shrugged.

"It's no trouble. Anyone else would've done the same if they could. Though if you really want to repay me, don't go after the Hero Killer, let professionals handle it. Understand?"

lida nodded. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to keep the promise, but he’d try. It’d be the smart thing to do.

“I’ll try to stay out of it. But for now...I’d like to be alone with my brother.”

The two teens nodded, saying their goodbyes and exiting the hospital room and soon enough exiting the hospital.

Ben’s been helping a lot of people lately. Heh, he’s like some miracle worker. It does put some things into perspective though. I haven’t been doing much to help people since I’ve taken All Might’s quirk. Well, I’ll just have to try harder and help whenever I can. That’s what a hero would do!

Ben grinned as he saw Izuku staring at him. He winked as he leaned in a bit flirtatiously.

"See something you like?"

The sudden wink and question caused the teen to blush and quickly explain himself.

“H-Huh? Oh-h no! I was just thinking about all the people you’ve helped and how I should be working harder to help others! Nothing like the other stuff! Haha!”

Izuku explained with a nervous laugh as he looked off to the side to try and save himself.

Ben chuckled as he ruffled his hair.

"I figured it was something like that. Though seeing as this Hero Killer seems to be more active I'll definitely be making more of those teleporter beacons I gave Shoto. If anyone in the class ran into him it'd be bad news."

Ben out stretched his hand to give one to Izuku.

"Here, just in case. I've even added a communication system that works with other beacons and my watch. One push and I'm there."

Izuku took the teleported beacon and smiled. Well this would come in handy.

“Thanks Ben. I appreciate it.”

Hopefully I won’t have to use it too much. I’d rather be a hero who can solve things on his own than one who constantly needs to call for others for help. Hopefully, I won’t end up being a hero like that.

Ben sighed and flicked Izuku on the forehead.

"What have I said about relying on others hm? It doesn't make you any less of a hero. Sometimes the smart thing is to call for backup."

Ben pouts.

"If you do it again I might not invite you to my next game marathon."

“Please, like you’d ever do that. I’m a joy to be around.”

Izuku snarked as he looked to the side with a smile.

Ben blinked and laughed as he clapped him on the back.

"Ohoho! I never knew Izuku could snark! Besides you shouldn't test my willpower! I know where your mother lives young man, and she'll definitely agree with back up being appropriate for certain situations!"

Ben poked him in the stomach with a grin.

"So you've been outvoted!"

“Well even still Ben, I’d just like to be a hero who doesn’t need it all the time. That’s all I’m saying. But hey, at least my hand wasn’t broken today. A little strained though.”

Izuku said as he kicked a rock forward as they continued to walk.

"We've been over that too silly. You've already done plenty of things without help."

Ben grinned as he walked backwards for a bit.

"You hungry? There's a ramen stand nearby."

“Sure. And I’m sure I have my poor self esteem ain’t letting me see it so there’s that.”

Izuku joked as they continued to walk towards the ramen stand. Ben nodded as he turned around to walk forwards again with a sigh, hands in his pocket as he looked down.

"Yeah stuff like that is hard to overcome. It took me 6 years to overcome my inferiority complex tied to my flawed view of the watch making me a hero and not my actions."

“Six years?! I don’t have that long! Well I mean I probably do but hey you never know what could happen.”

The green haired teen joked as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.

Ben laughed as he rolled his eyes.

"Why wouldn't you have 6 years? After all, I'll be staying here for a while. It's not like I'd let anything happen to you."

“Jokes don’t always make sense. Sometimes it’s just for the randomness of it."

"Oh. That was a joke? Huh. That wasn't all that clear."

“I was never someone to spill comedy gold so that’s probably why.”

Izuku said as they headed towards the ramen shop and ordered their meals. Izuku rested his head on the table as they waited.

Ben joined him with a laugh, staring into his eyes.

"You ok?"

“I’m fine. You think I did a good job in the tournament? Like anyone will want me as a sidekick?”

"Sure you did. A bit odd how your matches ended up as close quarters slugfests, but if anything it just shows how dedicated you are to your goals. Those hit to the balls must have hurt like hell."

Izuku blushed in embarrassment as Ben reminded him of that.

“I didn’t mean to hit him there. Though the second time, I probably wanted to get him back a bit more than I should have.”

Ben laughed as the food arrived.

"At least both of your rounds were entertaining."

Izuku chuckled at that as their food arrived and they began to eat. Izuku thought about those internships that they would be getting. He wondered about which one he should go to.

Anyone where Kaachan isn’t at is a better option.

"I wonder how training with Aizawa is going to go..."

“He’s probably not going to be pulling any punches. But to be fair, would his quirk even work on you?”

"It shouldn't? It only works on Quirks after all and I have none to use it on. It'll be interesting to see what he has in mind. He'd probably want to see all my forms but that'd take a while. I have more than a million after all and not all of them have actual combat powers, just biological quirks like being slippery."

“Oh you think All Might played his memories for the stadium?”

Ben nods.

"The tournament is wrapping up now actually. I'm pretty curious how this All For One looks and acts like. I could share it with you but I wouldn't want to ruin your lunch. Want me to air it anyway?"

“I mean you’ve told me some stuff about him. He’s super powerful, has multiple quirks, can steal others’ quirks, and he’s extremely manipulative and smart. In other words, a Grade-A villain. Bad news.”

Izuku said as he continued to slurp on his noodles before setting the bowl down.

"Well yeah, but knowing something is different from seeing it. If you want me to turn it off say so."

With that a hologram popped out of All Might handing the first place medal before starting his announcement, a grim look on his face.

“While I would love to end this festival with just smiles and happiness, I am afraid I have news to share with you all. There has been an attack on our students a little while back and while we are not completely sure, we’re sure enough. I’m afraid that the attack is being coordinated and controlled by one mastermind. His name is All For One. An extremely dangerous and diabolical individual. But showing you would be better than my words.”

All Might soon grasped the device Ben had given him and his memories soon began to be playing of the man. He was a rather...horrifying looking individual and the actions they saw the man commit was almost enough to make the two of them sick to their stomach.

As they viewed his memories of All For One it sent a ripple through the crowd as they looked on fearfully at his might and ruthlessness.

“As horrifying as it may be, we found it to be best that you all know than be unaware and shocked and fearful later. Worry not however! While he is an extremely dangerous individual, we are working to figure out his game plan and where he is! We figure if the world knows about his existence, this’ll put a halt or at least a diversion in his plans. That is all. Thank you.”

The hologram ended as Izuku rubbed his green hair back at what he had seen. Ben was right seeing was much different than hearing. All For One was definitely not someone to take lightly but even then it had him thinking. All For One’s name was very simple to One for All. He’d have to talk to All Might about it.

Ben finished his ramen and stood up to stretch after paying for the both of them.

"I dunno about you but I'm exhausted from everything that's happened today. Want to head home?"

Ben asked as he held out his hand ready to teleport them to his apartment.

“Yeah, today’s been a tiring day.”

Izuku said, grabbing hold of Ben’s hand and they were soon in his apartment.

“Well, I’m gonna have a few extra people in my home now. Can’t wait.”

The green haired teen said, sitting down in Ben’s chair next to his desk.

"You sure they can all fit in there? If not anyone is free to share mine too it should be able to fit 3 people comfortably."

“We have room and Shoto can roommate me with me if he wants. Though I’d probably need to take down some of my All Might stuff. It’d save me the embarrassment.”

Izuku sighed as he fell deeper into the chair to be more relaxed and comfortable.

"Hmm I suppose I can help you with that before I head to sleep if you want help."

Ben says as he yawns.

“No, you’ve done enough. Get some rest, I’ve got it. I probably won’t be going to bed anyway.”

Izuku said, standing up from the chair and dusting himself off.

Ben nods as his clothes change to night wear and he topples onto his bed, asleep before his head hit the pillow.

“See ya tomorrow Ben.”

Izuku said before finally leaving his apartment and heading back to his. Though rearranging his room wouldn’t be the only activities that Izuku would partake in tonight. Whatever may happen, he’ll deal with it tomorrow. Time to do something risky.

Chapter Text

Izuku yawned as he rubbed his eyes. He was tired. Very tired actually. Perhaps pulling that all-nighter patrol wasn’t the best idea. He helped a lot of people yesterday though. One good thing about being tired was, you didn’t really register some things.

“What’s with that look on your face Deku?! You trying to start something huh?!”

Izuku opened his eyes to see the fiery blonde himself. Of course not looking so well due to the fact that he lost and didn’t win the festival. His clothing was all rugged up and his hair was more crazy than usual.

“N...Oh who cares anymore...Just lay off it Kaachan.”

Ben frowned as he inserted a Mana barrier between them.

"What's with you Katsuki? If I didn't know any better I'd think you were obsessed with Izuku or something. What, are you secretly in love with him or something? If you are just tell him, only little kids bully their crushes."

Bakugo jerked back at that response and tried to find something to say back but turned in anger before going to his desk, muttering to himself.

Ben blinked in surprise as the barrier vanished.

"Wait, holy shit. Are you? Because if you are, gotta say bullying someone constantly is like the worst thing you can do to get a date. Besides you know killing them anyway."

“No you idiot! I just don’t have it in me to say anything right now!”

Izuku chuckled as his face fell down on the desk once more.

“Yeah take that Kaachan. You’re just a...bitch.”

Izuku muttered to himself quietly, still very clearly tired.

Ben laughed as he heard what Izuku said.

"If you're sure Bakugo. Though if you are… it'd certainly explain some things."

“Shut it Tennyson! If I was gonna have a crush on someone, it’d be someone worth liking! Deku over there doesn’t even come close!”

Whatever Kaachan . It’s not like you liking me matters. I like someone way better than you anyhow.

"Oh? Well out of curiosity do you like anyone? Not that I think anyone should actually be dating now since we're only 15 and in hero school."

“Just shut up Tennyson!”

Izuku groaned at all the yelling going around holding his head in annoyance.

Ben grins.

"Ooooh so you do like someone. In this classroom if that blush is anything to go by. But I'll stop prying. Izuku you shouldn't have pulled an all nighter redecorating your room."

“Who pulls an all nighter decorating a room? I was doing something more important than that.”

Izuku said, turning his head to look at Ben with a sly smile and a wink.

Ben frowned and sighed.

Izuku we'll definitely be having a talk after school.

Bakugo grinned.

"If anyone here is all lovey dovey it's you two. Everyone already knows you like each other, so get it over with already, it's sick watching you two flirt all the time."

Ben chuckled.

"Even if that was true Bakugo, no need to sound so jealous. Izuku has two hands after all, not that I'd think he'd ever want to be with you unless you started to apologize."

“Quit trying to pimp me out Ben! I’ve got better things to be doing than dating anyway.”

Izuku whined with his head still down on the desk.

“Are you idiots done talking or are we just going to continue this all day?”

The three were cut off by the voice of Aizawa who stared annoyed and tired at the class.

Ben chuckled as he shook his head.

"Sorry about that. What're we going to do today?"

“Well if you’re done talking I can tell you. Your results were done by your performances in the festival and you have a few agencies that want you as interns. Ben you already know the drill with you. You should look at each agency carefully and choose one with careful thought. Don’t be lazy.”

The holograms showed up showing their names and how many agencies were looking to take them in as interns. The class looked excited at this and Izuku would look the same, if he wasn’t focusing so hard on staying awake.

Whatever, I’ll pass out sometime during lunch. That should be enough to keep me awake afterwards. I’ll look at all the agencies later.

"Before you head off to your 3 week internship you'll each choose a hero name. Midnight will help you choose it. I'm going back to the teacher's lounge and rest my eyes."

With that Aizawa marched out of the room tiredly as Midnight came in and snapped her whip to silence everyone.

"During your internship you'll only be referred to as your Hero name. I'll give everyone an hour to come up with it, once it's been approved it's practically impossible to change it if it's been stuck in the public mind for a while."

The class passed around papers where they would write down their hero name. Izuku sat up and looked at the blank line for his name. Well he couldn’t put All Might considering he was still in commission but when it came to a name. He was drawing a huge blank.

Ben huffed as he looked at his before grinning and standing up.

"Midnight, I've already chosen my name, can I go first?"

Once he got permission Ben walked to the front of his class and showed off his paper. Written on it was only one word. Omnimatrix.

"It's to symbolize all my forms and the inherent potential of the Quirk Gene."

“What a great name Ben!”

The rest continued to show off their names with Midnight saying yes to some and no to the others. Most notably Bakugo. Finally it was Izuku’s turn.

Izuku was still tired as hell but nonetheless he put his paper up and the class looked at him confused and nervous.

“Jeez Midoriya are you sure?”

“You most likely can’t change it when it’s chosen.”

“Yeah...but I’ll make something good out of it. My hero name is Deku.”

Izuku replied, yawning as Midnight clapped her hands together.

“I think it’s wonderful Midoriya!”

"Nice name! Now all Bakugo will just be calling you by your proper title. Maybe he'll start to actually get creative in his name calling."

“Great job on your names everyone! Off to lunch!”

Izuku went back to his desk and slugged his bag over his back. Well at least he’s got a hero name now. Let’s hope people will start respecting him and look up to him as a hero when he goes pro.

"You should definitely just fall asleep here unless you think you can sleep in the cafeteria."

Izuku thought for a moment before shrugging.

“I’ll sleep in the cafeteria. I’d rather be around people.”

The tired teen said as he followed Ben and the rest of the class out of the room and towards the cafeteria. He set his bag down on the table they usually ate at to sleep and dozed off immediately.

Ben sighed as he got his food.

"Izuku, where'd you learn to do all nighters from?"

“I’ve pulled all nighters before for other things. But for fighting crime? Probably you as you’ve told me you used to do them all the time. Besides what was I supposed to do? Sleep?”

Ben's eye twitches as he just barely stopped himself from hitting him upside the head.

"You went out crime fighting all night right after we learned about the Hero Killer attacking Iida's brother? You idiot. What would you have done if you encountered him? Also YES you're supposed to sleep. You have neither the years of experience I have or a team helping you along if you got yourself in a bind. I do all nighters because some nights I literally can't sleep without waking up from nightmares transformed."

Izuku’s face twinged in a bit of guilt before just sighing.

“I had figured that I’d be fine because judging from the Hero Killer’s pattern he usually kills five heroes in whatever city he’s in. Thankfully, he didn’t kill lida’s older brother so I thought he would most likely attack there once more. I decided to go out just to try and help some people...Sorry alright? I get what you’re saying and it makes reasonable sense. I just...forget it.”

Ben lets out a long tired sigh as he pushes away his food suddenly no longer hungry.

"Great, another thing I'll have nightmares about, you being foolhardy and getting yourself killed. I already have enough nightmare scenarios to go through. You are so lucky I don't have Contego mastered because I have half a mind to use it on you to take away your powers for a bit. If you want to hero tell me so I can at least go with you. I won't interfere if you want to do solo runs but at least I'd be backup if you needed it."

“Alright, I get it! I made an incredible dumb mistake and now you’ll probably have worse nightmares! I’m not trying to get myself killed and I’m not trying to make things worse for you. I’ll think things through next time. I know sorry doesn’t make things better but I am sorry for what little it may be worth.”

Izuku said, raising his voice a bit before just groaning and burying his head back into his bag. He didn’t need this today.

Ben sighed as he rested his head against the cool table.

"I know and it's fine. Everyone messes up sometimes. Want to talk about your night out?"

“Not much happened. Stopped some muggings and an attempted murder. Really glad that I didn’t screw that one up because I don’t need that on my conscience. But overall, I think I did a pretty ok job.”

Izuku answered, his voice muffled by the bag.

"It's a good thing you went out last night than. Did you remember to wear your ID Mask?"

“I did. It was the first thing I grabbed before I left. I’m not completely incompetent Ben.”"

"I never said you were. I was just checking you didn't forget in your excitement. Want to go again tonight?"

Izuku chuckled in his bag and looked at Ben with a smile.

“You already know the answer is yes.”

"Great! It'll be fun to do another joint session."

“I meant to come back to my apartment earlier than I did you know. I just got distracted. But yeah, this should be fun!”

Ben shrugs.

"It happens, don't worry about it."

Izuku nodded as he looked forward. He wasn’t as tired as he was previously which was good. He’d still have to look at the agencies that wanted him as an intern.

"Want the rest of my food?"

“Yeah, that'd be appreciated. I didn’t have much for breakfast.”

Ben chuckles as he nods.

"Yeah. Inko was worried about you this morning you know."

“Yeah I guess I did sort of just leave immediately. I just wanted to get this day over with as quickly as possible.”

"Yeah that happened when I first started to do all nighters too. Hopefully you don't do it enough to get used to it."

“I’m just going to try to not do any. Or at least until the Hero Killer is gone and I can manage myself better. I still clearly need some work.”

Izuku said eating the rest of Ben’s food while staring forward.

"That's a good call. Besides you'll need to focus on your internship."

“Yeah, I wonder which one I should pick.”

Izuku was about to say something else before he felt a familiar presence over him and turned to see All Might in all of his glory.

“Oh hey All Might!”

“Hello you two! Young Midoriya there’s something I need to talk to you about in private!”

Izuku stood up and nodded.

“Oh sure.”

Ben waved goodbye as he decided to get a bit more shut eye before classes started. Izuku followed All Might until they were in his office. Something was wrong.

“Hey All Might, are you alright? You seem...shaky.”

“Oh, it’s nothing!..I just wanted to let you know that a special internship for you has come in!”

“Oh really?! What’s so special about it?”

“Well...the man that wants you to intern you was my teacher!..and one of the only people who know about One for All! S-So, if you want to go and have him teach you, t-then that’d be swell!”

All Might grunted out, nervously slapping his hip to which Izuku looked in shock at this. All Might looking petrified. No way!

Just how scary is this guy?!

"Did he treat you that badly you're still scared of him or something All Might?!"

“Hm? Oh no! It’s just his training isn’t something you can put off to the side! Strict and difficult would be the words to describe it. He doesn’t really give you a chance to think.”

Izuku grins and almost whoops in joy.

"Great! Hopefully he can teach me how to better use my Quirk!"

“Knowing him, you’ll learn a lot during your time interning with him! That’s all I wanted to tell you! You can return to lunch! Here’s his card and his information!”

Izuku took the card with a big smile on his face as he nodded.

“Thanks All Might! I’ll see you later!”

Izuku said, with a bit more pep in his step as he returned back to the cafeteria obviously more giddy.

Ben woke up at the sound of Izuku sitting down.

"Hey, how'd it go?"

“Oh it went fine. All Might gave me the information to his old teacher! He says he wants me to be his intern! He can probably help me use my quirk better!”

Ben grinned as he popped his back with a sigh.

"That's great news! I hope Aizawa has something interesting planned."

“All Might seemed nervous though. So this guy’s training must be incredibly hardcore!”

"I bet if it's anything to give him flashbacks!"

“I’m gonna have to go and see what the fuss is about. This dude must be so skillful and powerful if he’s making All Might shiver. I’m so gonna get my ass kicked and it’s going to help me! But I do wonder what Aizawa has planned for you.”

Said teacher sat down and sighed.

"Well you don't have to wonder anymore. I was just going to take you out to do some vigilantism so I could see how skilled you were, but you beat Endeavor without having to go all out. So you'll be helping me train Shinsou and Shoto. Think of it as leadership training, something every Pro needs."

Izuku and Ben nodded as the teacher sat down and explained what Ben was going to be doing with Aizawa.

Maybe when I finally learn how to control my quirk, I could do some leadership training as well! I’d love to be a leader of a group of heroes!

"Speaking of Shoto, how is he doing? I noticed he wasn't at school today."

Ben asked as he turned to Aizawa a frown on his face.

“His siblings and him are still getting used to staying with Inko. It is a big adjustment for them after all. Once again, it was very noble of the both of you for helping him out.”

“It’s no big deal. Anyone who could would do the same thing.”

Izuku said with a shrug and a smile. Ben laughed and nodded.

"You took the words right out of my mouth Izuku."

“But regardless I hope you two are ready for your internships. It’s not going to be pulling any punches.”

Just what I’m looking for!

Ben nods excitedly.

"Great to hear! Have they both been informed about me tutoring them? If so I'd like to pay Shinsou a visit."

“They have been informed of what they’ll be doing in their internship. And go ahead. I don’t control everything you choose to do or not.”

Ben nodded and stood up before frowning.

"Hey, you wouldn't be making me a teaching assistant just so you can rest more right?"

“While that does sound like me no. You’re skilled and knowledgeable to be doing this. Anything else I choose wouldn’t really be giving you any sort of challenge.”

Ben grinned as he waved.

"I wouldn't have faulted you for it if you had you know, you always look at moments from passing out. It's good to hear though, see you later Izuku!"

In a flash he was gone to find Shinsou.

Shinsou had decided to stay at his classroom to have lunch just to think. Thinking about his quirk, which agency he should go to, that talk he had with Izuku in the nurse’s room when he finally woke up. The way Izuku seemed so sure of himself that Shinsou would be able to be a hero. It truly was something else.

Ben showed up in a flash of light and waved as he sat down after turning a chair over.

"Heya Shinsou! Hope you don't mind me dropping by, I figured we could chat for a bit. I can leave if you'd like to enjoy your lunch in peace."

“Ah no you’re good. What did you want to talk about?”

Shinsou asked as he straightened himself in his chair, ready to conversate.

"Well I figured I could get to know you better. Izuku told me somewhat of your conversation, he said people judged you on what your Quirk can do and not your actions. That must have been rough."

“Uh, yeah. Growing up, people always said my quirk was one a villain would have. So I decided no matter what they thought, I’d become a hero regardless. You should’ve seen Izuku when I joked about the hits below the belt. He apologized so much even though I made it clear there were no hard feelings...Besides, he said some things that really resonated with me.”

Shinsou explained with a smile at the mention of their conversation.

"Heh I bet. It was pretty fun to watch if it's any consolation. But I hope you know the opinions people have about your Quirk are stupid. No power is inherently evil. What matters is what you do with them. Speaking of your Quirk, do you know the extent of it? For example, if you record your voice while trying to use it, would the effect carry over?"

“I’m...actually not sure. I’ve never tried it before but it doesn’t seem out of my ability.”

Ben grinned as he made a recorder before handing it to Shinsou.

"Great, we might as well test it out now! If it works we can assume a number of things from the experiment."

Shinsou just decided to say something random while using his quirk. He pressed the record button and spoke.

“Hello, how are you? Get up and do a backflip.”

Ben grinned and motioned for Shinsou to follow him until they met a random student. Ben waved as he pressed the button to play the recording and as soon as the student started to answer in confusion he got that glassy eyed look on his face as he did a backflip.

"Huh. It seems it is memetic. That definitely has itd uses Shinsou. Now try recording you whispering while using your powers, I'm interested in seeing if it works without people actually being able to physically hear you but still in the range of the sound waves."

Ben said as he waved his hand in front of the glassy eyed student as he handed it back to him, slightly impressed with the standing backflip.

Shinsou whispered quietly a command into the recorder.

“Do the splits.”

When the playback was played, the glassy eyed student didn’t hesitate to perform a perfect split. Shinsou smiled at this as he snapped the person out of the control. Ben cringed at the splits, thankful the student go up prior to being put back in control.

"Your Quirk would be devastating for crowd control Shinsou. Very useful. Hmmm here, use this whenever you Hero, it's a ID Mask, basically think of it as a hardlight construct maker."

Ben handed him his own mask after making it.

"This one is slightly different though, it not only can it change your appearance on the fly but change your voice to anything you want. For example you could look like me and sound like Shoto. It'll even let you throw your voice just fine too and comes with a built in forcefield just in case you get hurt."

Shinsou took the ID Mask with gratitude and nodded.

“Wow. Thanks!”

He really wasn’t expecting this today but he sure wasn’t complaining.

"Try it on and test it out. Once you've done so it'll shapeshift to a pendant of your choice so you never have to take it off and you can freely use it's functions like my suit. Of course the forcefield will only be at full strength if you put the mask on fully so to speak, spreading the hardlight around you.”

Shinsou put on the mask and his face changed to look like Izuku’s and spoke with his voice sounding like Ben’s. It didn’t seem like much but really looking at it, it was the stuff of nightmares.

Ben chuckled as he nodded.

"You know using that would make you pretty devastating to fight especially if you were open to psychological warfare. So long as you're in a group or have the element of surprise. Oh, I forgot to mention the forcefield also has the side effect of making your footfalls perfectly silent too. Combine that with you being able to go invisible at will and well, you get the idea."

Shinsou removed the mask, smiling brightly.

“Heh. You know your stuff Ben. Thank you. I look forward to you being my leader.”

"Leader? What, are we forming a three man team for Aizawa to give tasks to?"

“No, just you leading us in different training exercises that specialize in different goals. Or something like that anyway.”

"Huh. Well I should give Shoto one of those too if only for communication sake."

Shinsou nodded as the mask formed into a speaker pendant before walking off waving. While Ben was gone Izuku had pulled out his laptop from his bag to search more on this Hero Killer.

He had overheard lida talking about interning at Hosu and that brought up some bad thoughts in his head. While he wasn’t entirely sure lida would try anything, it was always a possibility.

While surfing the web he couldn't help but run into news story after story all about Endeavor's fall from grace. They were all filled with what’d you expect. Shock at the news of Endeavor being an abuser but also talk of having better background checks for heroes. After all, if the second hero was that bad, who’s to say the others weren’t?

Izuku smiled at the fact that Endeavor was being called out on his bullshit. Izuku opened another tab and tried to get some more info on the Hero Killer and his victims before feeling another presence behind him. Jeez, he’s been feeling a lot of those nowadays. But it was obviously Ben.

He sat down and raised an eyebrow.

"Should I be concerned you're looking up the Hero Killer?"

“Depends on what reason you think I’m looking him up for.”

Izuku answered, closing the laptop and putting it away.

"Well I hope it's not to hunt him down."

“No, it’s not that. Nowhere near powerful or skilled enough to do that. But any potential information I could learn about him the better.”

Ben nods.

"Very true. Anything interesting of note?"

“No. A lot of corpses that I did not want to see though. Unless you count where the killing strike is interesting.”

"I was hoping for how his Quirk worked myself but enough about him, how's it like having Shoto as a step brother?"

“It’s ok. He’s pretty quiet but otherwise he’s kind and we get along. Though I don’t have much to go off of considering I did rush my way out of the apartment. But I think he likes it. His siblings seem to anyway.”

"Hmmm we should all go somewhere. Or at least I'd suggest that if he wasn't hounded by paparazzi. Ah, I could order a bunch of food and we can eat at your place."

“Sounds like a plan. We probably won’t be able to go patrolling though but that’s alright.”

"It's fine, it can't be helped. Any idea what he likes to eat?"

“I overheard him and mom talking and he mentioned cold soba. We could probably order some of that.”

"Definitely doable, yeah. I'll text his siblings to see what they want so it'll be a surprise for him once we get home."

Ben got out his phone and did just that while setting up a pick up order. Izuku looked forward and smiled at the fact that Todoroki was surrounded by people who actually cared about him. Plus, he wouldn’t have to worry about his dad again.

"Hmm want to go pay your mentor a visit before the internship?"

Ben asked once he had everything sorted. Izuku nodded and figured that was best. When school finally ended, Izuku made his way to where All Might’s old teacher was staying.

At first Izuku had figured he had the wrong house considering how unthreatening the man living there was. There was also the problem of him having a terrible memory and not knowing his name after the many times Izuku reminded him.

But he was the real deal. Izuku was asked to try and use a Smash on him. That was a problem considering all Izuku was good at was his flicks. He couldn’t manage to hit him but his toaster was destroyed in the process. In other words, he got his ass kicked. But at least Izuku knew that he was going to be challenged.

The man told Izuku to walk home and try to think of a way to be able to hit him. That was what was currently on Izuku’s mind as he walked on the sidewalk home.

I wasn’t able to keep up with him and I strained my arm really badly when I landed a hit. It wasn’t even him too. What am I doing wrong?

Izuku shook his head frustrated before stopping at his apartment door. He was sure that Ben, his mom, Todoroki, and his siblings were all there waiting for him. He let out a happy sigh and opened the door.

What greeted him was a strange sight to say the least. Inko was freating nervously as Ben kept trying to unsuccessfully get Shoto to take a group picture. He was frowning before grinning as his suit activated a ID Mask function and all of the sudden there were two Shoto.

"If you really don't want to do one I could just substitute for you… but I can't promise you wouldn't be making a funny face in the photo."

Ben's voice comes out of a smirking Shoto before he pulled a funny face, winking and blowing a raspberry.

Izuku watched the whole spectacle before bursting into a fit of uncontrollable laughter. After getting his ass kicked by an old man who could barely remember who he was, he needed this.

Shoto, the real one, looked mortified as he rushed to close the door so no one else would see him acting that way.

"Fine! You win, I'll take a group picture! Just… please never do that again. It'll give me nightmares."

He shudders though if one paid attention you could see the faintest smile on his face. Something like this would have been unthinkable happening just a few days ago. Sometimes he was sure it was just a dream he'd wake up from sooner or later.

Ben, now himself again, whooped as he told everyone to gather around for a picture. They all got together in a nice group and soon the picture was taken. They all looked at the camera and smiled at the group picture. Well, it wasn’t much but it still brought a big smile to Izuku’s face.

Ben grinned as he made copies of the photo for everyone, fully laminated for safekeeping and stood up to go to the kitchen.

"Now that Izuku is back I'll just start the food's time again so we can eat! I hope you guys worked up an appetite!"

After a brief time ray firing to unfreeze the now piping hot food dinner was served. A party platter of everyone's favorite food paid for by Ben that would easily last a full week after the party.

"To Endeavor being where he belongs and the Todorokis being free to be finally happy!"

Ben cheered as he raised his drink of choice (to no one's surprise it was a smoothie). The rest of them rose their glasses and clinked them together as they began to eat.

Izuku randomly stuffed his face thinking of the training he would be going through in the future three weeks. He really hoped he would learn something new and something that’ll give him an edge in class. While Izuku continued to think, he heard Shoto chuckle which surprised him honestly.

“You want to take the time to chew Izuku or are you just gonna swallow it?”

Izuku hadn’t even realized just how much food he had put into his mouth and shrugged with a silly expression on his face.

Ben snickered as he took a sip.

"Yeah Izuku, it'd be pretty embarrassing if you died from not chewing your food. You aren't Upchuck after all. Shoto how're you doing with all this by the way? I know it must have been hard dealing with paparazzi but now that everyone in your family has a ID Mask they shouldn't be a problem anymore."

“It definitely has been an adjustment and the paparazzi is extremely frustrating. But you all have managed to make it a lot more bearable. So thank you.”

Ben shrugged.

"Hey, it's the least we can do given your situation prior. We also understand if you all want to take a week off from school/work too or longer given everything."

“While that sounds nice, I think I’m ready to return. Besides, I can’t stay home and let Izuku here surpass me.”

“I totally kicked your ass.”

“It was a tie!”

“A tie that I caused.”

"Hmm, given I'd actually be helping train Shoto during my internship I would have actually suggested a rematch but that wouldn't be viable. It'd definitely be interesting to see the outcome with him using both sides instead of his right. It's good you're returning soon though, I'd definitely like to test both you and Shinsou together as a team. After all, a team is only as good as their teamwork no matter how strong the individuals are."

The two nodded and Izuku rubbed the back of his head as he continued to eat. Truthfully, having like five more people in the house wasn’t as difficult to get used to as he would think. Besides, he has more people to talk to.

"Actually Izuku would you be open to joining them at least for tomorrow? We could give them a demonstration of effective teamwork. I've even managed to rig up a remote hardlight projection for the training sim in my room we could use for different scenarios."

Izuku looked up with a sense of excitement pumping him up.

“Oh sure! My mentor said just show up as long as it’s not evening! I’d love to give a demonstration!”

Ben smiled and pulled out a floating orb.

"This is the projection. It's keyed to the sim in my room. To show you what I mean Shoto just put out your hand."

With a touch to the orb it spun fast as green wirelines crisscrossed if for a moment before suddenly stopping. Without warning a stream was flowing from wall to wall over the food.

They looked at the stream flowing from wall to wall in awe. Ben just never ceases to amaze. Izuku smiled, still excited to be giving a demonstration. And don’t tell anyone but he was just happy to be around Ben.

Shoto did as asked and gasped as the water (which definitely felt real and actually reacted to his right side by freezing slightly) actually felt wet. Seeing it everyone else, minus Izuku and Ben, reached a hand in and laughed at the utter wonder of it all.

Ben chuckled as he finished chewing and swallowing while the simulation turned off with a thought from Ben.

"As you can see, it's very life-like. Izuku's actually been using it to train against everyone in class for a while now, which just makes your show all that more impressive Shoto. I think I already have a simulation in mind for our first test, a stealth mission so no one can really rely on their powers overly much."

“Sounds like a plan Ben. It’ll definitely be useful to know what to do in a stealth mission.”

Izuku nodded as he chugged the last of his drink and set it down on the table. He soon stood up with a smile.

“This was great but I’m going to my room to look over some stuff.”

The green haired teen walked into his room that had now been renovated with a big bunk bed as him and Shoto were rooming together. He climbed onto the top bunk and pulled out his laptop. Izuku had been spending his time researching heroes and villains and thinking of gameplans if he were to ever fight them.

You never know what could happen. That wasn’t the only thing he was doing. He had been looking up stuff about Endeavor and how the media was reacting to his arrest. It just made him so happy seeing that monster behind bars.

Good luck trying to be the number one now, you dick.

Shoto entered their shared room with a small smile. While the Midoriya residence was vastly smaller than his previous living arrangements, it was vastly more lived in than the fake pristine nature of his previous house. He let out a happy sigh as he rested on the lower bunk.

"As much as I dislike Bakugo for being brash and violent he's right you know. It's plain to see how you view Ben, you physically get happier when he's around. It's like you can't help yourself."

Izuku froze as he stopped scrolling on his laptop before sighing. Todoroki was a bit brash himself. Who starts a conversation like that?

“Subtlety isn’t your thing huh Shoto?”

"Says the person that has finger flicks that can blow holes in walls. Besides, there's no use in beating around the bush. We both know it's true and I wouldn't be surprised if Ben knew too."

“You’re lucky I’m a calm individual Shoto. Besides, what does it matter anyway? It’s not like anything’s going to happen.”

Izuku said grimly, continuing to type away on his laptop.

Shoto chuckles softly.

"Well not with that attitude. Have you actually talked to him about it?"

“Now you and I both know the answer to that question. I’ll take on the Hero Killer before I say my true feelings.”

"As if he'd let you. He's as dedicated to Heroing as All Might, if not more. I wouldn't be surprised if he practices vigilantism on the side."

“Your assessment is accurate. I go with him sometimes.”

Izuku answered, setting the laptop down and laying back onto the bed to stare at the ceiling as they talked.

Shoto blinked in surprise before shaking his head. No use in being surprised since it's definitely in character for him.

"So what's stopping you from doing it exactly?"

“Fear, fear of rejection, cowardice, embarrassment, awkwardness. The list goes on really.”

Shoto grins as he activated his ID Mask, in the form of a pendant in the shape of a snowflake covered in flames.

Without warning a shirtless Ben is looking at Izuku as he winks, a playful smirk on his face and well defined body on display.

"You could always try it on me Izuku. It's the least I could do right?”

Izuku let out a glass shattering screech as he fell from the top bunk to the ground. He was glad to help Todoroki in any way he could but he had to deal with a whole lot of this now. Izuku grumbled as he got himself up from the ground.

“I hate you.”

Ben shrugged as he stepped lightly to the ground and offered a smirk as he looked at Izuku plainly ogling Ben's body.

"You say that but your eyes tell a different story. Buuut if you really want me to stop I will. I don't think it'll work until I get more of a handle on Ben's personality anyway."

“Yeah, besides my mom could walk in and that is a situation I really don’t want to have to explain.”

Izuku said, climbing back on the top bunk and flopping himself onto the mattress.

“Besides, no offense Shoto but I’m a mess when it comes to this stuff. I’m beyond help.”

Shoto chuckled as he turned back to normal.

"Yeah I guess that would be hard to explain…. Though I bet if I told her we were practicing for your confession she'd be all for it. But I'm here if you ever need to talk to someone. I'm a great listener."

He flipped on to his own bed a grin on his face knowing the ID Mask recorded Izuku's scream and fall. He'd definitely be able to use that whenever he was feeling overwhelmed by everything.

“Thanks and same here. I’d still kick your ass in a fight.”

Izuku said with a grin on his face as he got underneath the covers.

"In your dreams maybe. If I went all out at the start you'd never have had a chance."

“Keep telling yourself that and just to be merciful, I won’t kill you in my dreams.”

Izuku teased with a chuckle.

"Oh? Want to hear my new ringtone? It's great."

Shoto couldn't keep from laughing out loud as a sound bite of Izuku screaming played.

"Good luck killing me in your dreams when you're too busy wondering if I have more where that came from."

Izuku groaned in embarrassment at the playback of him screaming and spoke.

“One of these days you’re gonna go through something embarrassing and I’m gonna milk it dry.”

Shoto grinned as Ben's voice came out of his mouth.

"I bet you want to milk me dry."

Before switching back to his regular voice the next sentence.

"You walked right into that one Izuku."

He really needed a win in one of these talks otherwise he was going to lose it.

“First of all, other way around but I can work with both. Secondly, it was a mistake to give you one of those.”

Shoto let Izuku's words hang in the air as he struggled to not go into hysterical laughter as he responded in Ben's voice.

"I am an expert in sucking smoothies so I'd definitely be up to the task."

“Well that was a given.”

Izuku said finally before the two burst into laughter and the conversation that had transpired between the two of them.

Ben as Ghostfreak phased through the wall from his apartment and grinned, or at least as well as that form could.

"I'm glad to see you two are enjoying yourselves. I was worried when I heard a shriek earlier but decided to help finish cleaning up dinner. What's so funny though?"

The two were silent as Ben appeared as Ghostfreak in the room before Izuku spoke.

“Todoroki likes sucking things.”

“Hey!”

Izuku laughed as he kicked his foot forward at this.

Ghostfreak blinked before shrugging.

"Well so long as he uses protection I can't really tell him otherwise but I'm really surprised he'd share something like that out of the blue…."

“Well on the inside Todoroki’s a big softie. He loves sharing secrets.”

Izuku got out before bursting into laughter again due to Ben’s response.

Todoroki's face heated up in a blush as he stammered.

"W-what?! I am not and no I didn't Izuku! I hope you know this means war."

Shoto said, glaring at Izuku for daring to destroy his carefully cultivated image of aloofness.

“Yeah bring it on softie!”

Izuku said between a fit of giggles as Ben just chuckled at what was happening. Well at least they were having fun.

Shoto looked at Ben briefly opening his mouth before closing it. He rolled his eyes as he got up and folded his arms in front of himself.

"Laugh it up Izuku. We'll see who's laughing in the next few days."

It turns out that when Shoto issues a declaration of war he doesn't pull any punches. Combined with his ID Mask and ability to make steam whenever he wanted he was successfully able to make it look like Ben just got out of a sauna with nothing but a towel to cover himself. Combined with a flirtatious wink was enough to short circuit Izuku for a bit each time as Shoto laughed.

Izuku’s eyes twitched before he slapped himself back to reality who only glared at Shoto with a frustrated blush. This wasn’t over. Far from it actually.

“You better watch yourself.”

Shoto as Ben, still in his towel, turned his head to smirk back at Izuku.

"Why would I do that if you're already memorizing me hm?"

He turns around and flexes slowly, a chuckle escaping as he watches Izuku unable to help himself in staring.

Izuku turned his head annoyed that that’s gonna be in his dreams for awhile and groaned, laying his head on the pillow.

“You’re going down and that’s final.”

Izuku said before covering himself with his covers.

"Oh I bet you'd love to do more than take me down Izuku."

Shoto says as he's suddenly quasi straddling him still in his mostly nude Ben form.

He cocks his head, a teasing smile on his lips as his eyes reflect his mirth.

“Alright that's it!”

Izuku said, pushing Todoroki off the top bunk with a glare on his face. Granted it was all in good fun but still.

“You are going to bleed Shoto. I promise you that. Aw what the hell? Surprise chokehold!”

Izuku said jumping down from the top bunk to place Shoto in one. This was something friends did right? Pretend wrestling? Yeah, he was sure of it.

Shoto's eyes widened as he squirmed at the sudden role reversal enough to disperse the hardlight construct around him. Unwillingly his mind flashed back to the sudden overwhelming violence of his father as his eyes shrunk to prinpicks out of fear and he activated both his Quirks unconsciously.

Izuku had noticed the problem and immediately let go of the chokehold in worry.

“Shoto are you ok?! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean any harm! Ok, just breathe! He’s not here to hurt you. It’s just you and me! He’s not going to hurt you ever again. I’ll make sure he never lands another dirty finger on you. Just breathe buddy.”

Izuku said, calming the frightened teen down holding his hand, rubbing it slightly to try and calm him down. Granted his hand was burning but he supposed he deserved that.

Shoto unfortunately was too lost in his memories to notice as he flinched away from the touch and he huddled in a corner as his Quirk activated sporadically. Thankfully they kept canceling each other out so there was no danger in the apartment being burned down, especially with the defenses springing to life and covering everything in a Mana barrier.

Izuku looked at his scared friend with a look of guilt on his face. He has helped people with panic attacks and traumatic flashbacks before. It’s just seeing that this was on him just made him feel so many levels of shitty.

He let out a saddened sigh before going again to try and help Todoroki. You shouldn’t pressure or try to put any pressure on someone in these situations so he did just the opposite of that.

Ben teleported over ready to fight before he looked at the state Shoto was in and frowned, kneeling down.

"Shit, what happened Izuku?"

“I Uh...I messed up. Shoto and I were messing around and I put him in a fake chokehold and I think I triggered him. I wasn’t thinking and...I just need help to try and calm him down.”

Ben nodded as he turned into Whampire, his eyes letting out hypnotic rings as he locked eyes with Shoto the rings being mirrored in his eyes as he rag dolls his powers short-circuited and back leaning against the wall as he stares blankly into Whampires eyes.

"You are safe here Shoto. Among friends. Your father is in prison and all the Top Heroes have made sure he's staying there. Repeat what I've just said."

“I...I’m safe here. I’m among friends. My f-father is in prison and all the Top Heroes have made sure he’s staying there.”

Todoroki stuttered out as his breathing started to calm and become less quick and uneven.

Whampire nods.

"Yes, that's right. Now that you're calming down I shall give you a trigger word only you can use if you're ever suffering from PTSD like this again. Using it will immediately snap you out of it and make you feel safe and secure. What would you like the word to be, something that won't be in use in everyday conversation?"

“Um...Elephant? I’d like the word to be E-Elaphant.”

He nods.

"So shall it be. Would you like me to send you to sleep now?"

Todoroki didn’t say anything but simply nodded. He just wanted to be asleep.

"Very well. Sleep now and wake up once you're ready."

With that Shoto fell asleep immediately and the defense system shut off as Ben put him on his bed after turning back.

"I was worried something like this would happen. If it wouldn't count as police brutality I'd go where he's in and use Toepick on him for a bit."

Ben sighs as he sits on a chair near the bed looking at the now peacefully sleeping Shoto. Izuku bit his lip while rubbing his elbow. He felt awful. He didn’t mean to trigger Todoroki. Of course he didn’t mean to. But he supposed intent didn’t really matter compared to the result.

“I Uh...I didn’t mean to trigger him. I guess I wasn't thinking…”

Ben frowned as he looked at Izuku shaking his head.

"It's not your fault. I forgot to warn you of the possibility and besides he wouldn't be like this if it wasn't for his sperm donor. Hey… you don't have attacks like this do you?"

“I mean, I’ve had a few in the past but they haven’t been happening lately...They would usually happen whenever Kaachan got close to...burning me.”

Izuku said nervously as he continued to rub his shoulder. He wasn’t worried about himself. He was just worried about Shoto. He hoped that they’d be able to still be friends after this. Izuku just hoped that level of trust wouldn’t be damaged. He promised nothing bad would happen and then this occurred.

Ben froze as he grit his teeth.

"He what? When was the last time this happened? Why was no one notified? Holy fuck, he should have been expelled during the training sim."

“I-It wasn’t anytime that recently! It was just sometimes...a lot of times before we made it to UA.”

Izuku admitted as he looked down to the ground. He couldn’t hide it anymore. He hated Kacchan and all the bullshit he put him through. He hated how he couldn’t stop shaking whenever he was around. A lot of the times all he wanted to do was just rock his shit in. Hell, he still does.

Ben closed his eyes as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Did it ever happen after I arrived?"

Izuku shook his head.

“No, after you arrived it was just verbal threats. Those were nothing so they didn’t bother me much. I still hated it considering he would always bring me up to bring me down even though I had nothing to do with the conversation."

"Be that as it may he can't be unpunished for that. He did it in school no? I'm sure I could get video recordings of it since I bet they keep a backlog of the previous year at least for a while."

“I’m sure you could but I’m not really worried about him. I’m just worried about Shoto. I just don’t want that level of trust we had to be ruined you know?”

"Being worried about it doesn't matter, even in the case of you forgiving him, it doesn't absolve him of his crimes. As for Shoto I'm sure he doesn't blame you any."

Izuku sighed and nodded leaning against the wall.

“Well, I’m sure he doesn’t but I guess we won’t know till he wakes up.”

It’s not that Izuku doesn’t believe the idea that Shoto doesn’t blame him. It’s just his mind making him feel bad and that of course disrupts logic for emotion.

"Hmm want to go visit the moon to take your mind off it?"

“Sure. I’ll talk about anything else if it gets my mind off it.”

Izuku was about to go to the living room before turning back to look at Ben. He had just really heard what Ben had said.

“The moon?”

Ben nods and laughs at his shocked expression.

"Yeah, the moon. You'll have to put your ID Mask on though so the forcefield can protect you from all the dangers of space and provide you with oxygen."

While he was feeling bad about Shoto, the thought of being on the moon did make the child in him smile. He grabbed his ID mask and put it on.

“Sure. Fly me to the moon Ben.”

Ben grinned as he teleported them to it instead. The radio crackled to life as Ben shrugged.

"I figure the less people know someone out there can fly to the moon the better. Like the view?"

Ben asked as they starred at Earth in all its majesty.

Izuku looked at the beautiful looking planet in awe. Ben always knew what he needed in order to calm down.

“It’s incredible Ben...thank you.”

"No problem. I actually used to come here back home whenever things got to be too much with everything. It's incredibly peaceful. Too bad the Extranet found out about it soon after and basically posted a 24/7 monitoring camera on the moon."

Izuku chuckled at that before continuing to look down at Earth in all of its glory. He was right though. It was extremely peaceful and calming. Just what he needed.

"You know, that offer of a galactic travel guide is still up if you're interested. Who knows, we just might run into undeveloped planets from my universe or alien life that's yet to advance much."

“I‘ll be sure to ask one of these days. Right now though, this is enough.”

Izuku said with a happy smile as he looked down at the Earth. He did hope Shoto didn’t blame him but this was doing a good job of calming him down.

"Hmm do you know if your moon Rover is still working? We could give NASA a scare if you're up for it."

“I think it is. Sure, let’s scare NASA!”

Izuku said with an excited tone, his grin wide and alive.

Ben chuckled as he nodded, his form turning into a typical grey alien stereotype as he cocked his head so Izuku could do the same. Once they were changed they found it collecting dust samples.

Ben raised his 4 fingered hand and made a peace sign with it. Izuku made a peace sign as well with his 4 fingered hand smiling widely. Now this was a kind of fun he’d never forget.

Ben waved goodbye as they teleported away and as soon as they arrived back in his apartment he collapsed on his bed in a fit of laughter as he sent out a holographic projection of the pandemonium in NASA at their stunt and the subsequent freakout from the 24/7 live video feed the rover let out for anyone interested in observing it.

Pretty soon the video went viral as people started speculating if aliens were real or if it was just someone with a particularly powerful teleportation Quirk.

Izuku laughed loudly at all the comments, speculations, and theories being said due to their stunt. This was a legitimately good way to get him to calm down. It made him pretty damn happy as well.

“That was too good!”

Ben nodded as he wiped a year from his eye.

"Hell yeah. Want to stir the pot and post ourselves? We could milk this for months of entertainment."

“Yes! Let’s do it!”

Izuku said in between giggles happily.

Ben grinned as he made an account.

"You fools! This is just the tip of the iceberg! Didn't you see the sports festival! That green teleportation effect was exactly like Ben Tennyson's! It's pretty clear his "Quirk" isn't one at all! It makes infinitely more sense that his transformations are just him switching places with another alien species!!!! Quit being sheep!"

Izuku bit his lip at this trying to struggle to hold his laughter in.

“From one out of ten, how annoyed do you think Aizawa is going to be?”

"Because he has an alien freak in his class? IDK I'd expel him tho if it was me since this video clearly points to some cosmic conspiracy! There's even rumors that he has a form that's a literal ghost that can eat your soul!!!"

Izuku smiled as he posted another tweet.

“Y is he even still going there? He’s clearly a part of something big. Smh, he’s obviously from the other side.”

"I haven't heard anything about him being expelled but it WAS super odd how he was disqualified during the sports festival… maybe the Pros know something we don't? I mean if Endeavor could hide his bs what else are they keeping from us?!"

“I bet they’re hiding a lot of stuff from us! They can’t keep their lies! I mean, did you see that green haired kid? He was so weak back then and now he was able to give Todoroki a run for his money! Someone’s lying for real.”

"I have heard he was registered as Quirkless before going to UA… super fishy if you ask me.”

“Smh, this just doesn’t seem right."

Izuku put down his phone and chuckled at how they were basically slandering their own names. Tomorrow was the day he’d have to go back to get his ass kicked again. He hasn’t improved much but he feels like tomorrow, something will change.

Ben put his phone down too as he laughed.

"Now we just wait. After a week or two we can go back and have tea or something on the moon in full sight of the rover. Hell we could even give it a cup of tea so they think we think it's sentient and lonely."

“Sounds like a plan. Hey when do you think Shoto will wake up?”

Izuku asked, as he leaned back into the chair he was sitting in.

"Hmm it might be a few hours or he could be waking up now. It's hard to tell with stuff like hypnosis. Sure I could have told him a specific time to wake up, but he's had enough of people in authority stripping him of his rights."

Ben shrugged.

“You’ve right. I’m just worried I guess.”

Izuku said as he leaned down the chair before he just straight up fell out of it. He was feeling lazy and didn’t want to really do anything.

"You know, I could put you to sleep the same way if you'd like. Especially if you feel you wouldn't be able to due to guilt or something."

Izuku laid on the ground for a moment before nodding.

“Yeah...I’d like that please.”

Ben smiled as he turned into Whampire, the same hypnotic rings in his eyes soon mirrored in Izuku's.

"Go to sleep wherever you'd feel most comfortable. Once you reach there you'll instantly fall asleep and wake up once you're ready. Understand?"

The hypnotized teen nodded before standing up and exiting Ben’s apartment to enter his own to get changed before heading back to Ben's. He soon found himself on his bed and collapsed onto it, immediately falling asleep, arms seemingly looking for a hug.

Ben transformed back to himself and sighed as his clothes shifted to nightware, hopefully he'd get to sleep tonight. He still needs to set up that joint training session after all. Ben looked at Izuku's invitingly open arms, hesitating slightly before shifting Izuku around so Ben could hug him more easily from behind.

He took a deep breath and savored his scent, smiling as he felt himself drift off to sleep. If he knew this was all it took to fall asleep he'd have asked Izuku earlier…

"Sleep well Izuku."

Ben mumbled as he finally succumbed to the Sandman's will.

It was a few hours before Izuku finally felt himself wake up. He had felt someone hugging him and slowly turned to see Ben asleep, spooning him. His face flushed a deep red as he didn’t try to wake him up.

Ben's eyes flung open at the sudden movement his eyes not really seeing anything as he rolled off the bed and transformed mid roll to Four Arms while chaining up the threat in Mana ready to deliver a 4 armed center mass punch before Ben's mind caught up with what he was actually seeing.

A green flush of embarrassment spread over Four Arms as Ben quickly shifted back to human, his entire face beet red.

"Sorry! I… do that sometimes. Get attacked enough times in your sleep and well… That. I didn't hurt you did I?"

Ben asked as the chains vanished still having not registered the position they were in prior. Izuku was definitely shocked at the fact that he almost met God with Ben going to punch him with all four arms but he didn’t blame him.

“N-No, you didn’t harm me! It’s my fault, I moved and that caused the problem! You’re fine!”

Ben sighed in relief as he uncovered his still red face from behind his hands only for his eyes to widen as their position finally registered.

"I didn't mean to spoon you! It's just you fell asleep on my bed and looked like you wanted a hug, spooning is the best way to do that with another person on a bed you know? I… hope I didn't make you feel uncomfortable."

Ben mumbled from behind his hands as he valiantly fought the urge to teleport from this awkward conversation. Truthfully Izuku wanted to just disappear from this conversation as well but he couldn’t unfortunately.

“No, it’s fine! I get it really! You didn’t do anything wrong, trust me!”

Yeah, I’m definitely telling Shoto about this.

Ben nodded.

"Right! Well that's good! I… you know if you're open to it I wouldn't mind you sleeping with me again. I don't know why but I found it really easy to sleep with you there. Which was great, because I was going on my 3rd all nighter."

Izuku blushed at Ben’s wording but nodded.

“I...would be open to it again. If it’ll help you sleep better, then sure! You should be taking less all nighters though. You need sleep!”

Ben shrugged as he waved his right hand through his hair.

"I know but I can't help having constant nightmares keeping me up. Which I'm thankful you didn't see. Those are… pretty bad. The only reason my room is still a room is because all of my stuff is self repairing and the defense system is basically always on high alert when I do fall asleep."

Izuku listened to Ben’s explanation with a solemn face before grabbing Ben’s hand and pulling him back onto the bed. They were back to the spooning position as Izuku spoke.

“You don’t deserve nightmares. You’ve more than earned the right to sleep peacefully. Wrap your hands around me, spoon me, whatever you need to do. Just do it.”

The green haired teen said bluntly and finally with no hesitation.

Shoto opened the door to Ben's bedroom, saw what was happening, took a picture and left with a knowing look as he rolled his eyes texting the picture to the group chat his family (real family now) had going.

Izuku cringed before just chuckling. Well that was perfectly in character for Shoto to do.

“Well, I guess I was sort of asking for that to happen.”

Ben chuckled as he hugged Izuku.

"Yeah, probably. Thanks for that by the way. I promise not to abuse it too much since I know how annoying clinginess can be."

Ben said as their phones chimes in unison, a hologram popping up from Ben's phone to show an exchange of Yen to Shoto as he racked in his winnings.

"It's about time you two got together, I can't wait for school so I can get my winnings there too. So hurry up you love birds!"

Izuku blushed darkly at the hologram before slapping his face. Here he was thinking, he was somewhat subtle about his crush on Ben. Obviously he was wrong considering they had been placing bets.

“I hate and love that jerk.”

Ben laughed as he blushed too, finally getting up albeit reluctantly.

"Well you really weren't subtle about it. Though we should probably clarify we aren't actually together together. At least not yet. I am after all 18. It'd be really odd to hook up with you now."

“Yeah, I see that.”

Izuku said as he rolled off the bed onto his feet, dusting himself off. It was a bit odd but it wasn’t his fault he had caught a crush. Maybe if Ben was less cute and awesome, none of this would’ve happened.

Ben got his phone and chuckled.

"Sorry to disappoint but we aren't actually together. He was just making it a point that if I needed to spoon him to sleep he'd let me. I have pretty bad nightmares."

Izuku stretched and yawned to mask the disappointment he was feeling. He was expecting it but it didn’t make it less disappointing.

Ben sighed as Shoto informed him he already sent the picture to the group text the class had going.

"Well that's going to be annoying to deal with… though you'll be glad our antics on the web have paid off. Quite a few of our class are convinced I actually switch places with another alien species."

Izuku snorted at that. Well that was something to smile about.

“Heh. So I’m gonna be helping you with your stealth thing today right?”

"Yeah, if you have time anyway. Hopefully Shinsou is free too. It's kinda cute he works at a cat Cafe part time."

“He does? That actually is pretty adorable.”

Izuku said with a chuckle and headed towards the exit of Ben’s room.

“I’m gonna go back to my apartment to get ready. I’ll see you at school.”

The teen said before exiting, leaving Ben to his own devices who went about his daily routine and was out waiting for Shoto and Izuku to arrive out in the hall.

“I’m telling you, the old dude is on an entirely different level. He’s just so quick and agile. I just need to find a way to keep up with him.”

“You avoiding the subject isn’t going to stop me from talking about it.”

“And you talking about it, isn’t going to stop me from avoiding it.”

"What subject? Also how're you doing Shoto, sleep well?"

“Oh nothing, just Izuku trying to ignore the fact that I don’t blame him and it wasn’t his fault. His self esteem is blinding him. I slept well, thank you.”

Ben sighs as he grabs hold of a shoulder each before teleporting to school.

"You should really learn to accept apologies Izuku. You wouldn't want the worry to make training go badly right?

“No, I wouldn’t.”

Izuku said as they were suddenly at school. He let out a sigh and stretched. Well show time.

"Though if you really want Shoto to steamroll you I suppose you could."

Shoto chuckled slightly.

"You know, I could literally do that."

“Don’t make me give you the Shinsou treatment Shoto.”

Izuku said as he rubbed his hair back.

Shoto snickered.

"Why do I have a feeling you'd rather enjoy touching me there? At least take me out to dinner before fondling me."

“I’m just gonna stop talking around you. I never win at these sorts of things.”

He said, shaking his head frowning.

Shoto sighed dramatically.

"You're no fun. It's not my fault you keep walking into these things."

He chuckles as he sits in his chair and waits for class to start.

Aizawa had come out and told them all the information they needed to know and taught until the class was over. He had called over Izuku, Ben, Shoto, and Todoroki for the stealth mission Ben had let him know about.

Ben took everyone to an unused building in the same location they did the training sim before throwing the holographic projector into the air.

In no time at all the entirety of the building they were in front of expanded into a full on fortified castle with frozen guards to match.

"The aim of this mission is to infiltrate the castle, steal the doomsday plans hidden in their secure vault, and make it out without anyone noticing anything was wrong. Every guard has a different Quirk of which you're ID Mask HUDs will display in case a fight ensues. Of course, ideally there would be no fights. I've even set it up so no one with intangibility can just phase through everything to get what's needed."

The three of them nodded at their goal. They’d have to be smart about this. So they’d most likely wouldn’t use their quirks as that would get them spotted, especially Shoto and Izuku’s.

"Once we're inside the castle the simulation will start. While lethal strikes won't actually kill you it WILL hurt like hell and obviously count as a fail point. Aizawa here will be able to view the entirety of the simulation via this holographic screen."

Ben gestures to the blank screen in front of them.

"I would tell you the number of guards but where's the fun in that? If everyone's ready we can start now. I'll go first, Shinsou 2nd, Izuku 3rd and Shoto last. I also will be keeping my transformations to a minimum. Bright flashes of light aren't really stealthy after all."

Ben says as his suit forms over him completely. They nodded as Ben entered the castle first to start it off.

Once Ben entered the 200 guards sprung to life as Ben turned invisible moving as silently as a ghost as he passed through the first few guard units, each with a Quirk designed to spot hidden intruders but that were easily bypassed by the homeostasis the forcefield provided making Ben not only invisible to sight but smell and heat tracking too.

The other three followed suit making sure to be extra careful. Even with the noise cancelling force field, it’d be naive and idiotic to not take every step with caution and precision.

Once they passed the main hall they'd enter the main bulk of the castle with winding staircases up and down to different levels.

"Since the vault location is randomized we'll have to split up. Any choice on what the teams will be?"

Ben asked softly seeing what they'd choose. Izuku thought for a moment before speaking.

“Shinsou and you and Todoroki and me?”

Ben makes sure to tone his voice in a carefree manner.

"That's fine with me. Who takes what direction?"

Izuku thought for a moment before motioning Ben and Shinsou to go up while Todoroki and him would go down.

Ben nods as he does so.

"Seeing as this is a duo training mission, let's see how quick on your feet you are, boys. I'll take a back seat and let you all deal with the upcoming enemies."

Ben whispered as he pulled back so Shinsou was in front.

Almost simultaneously both groups came across a duo of guards blocking the path forward, both with different passive defenses that allow only registered members through blocking the door from entry further into the castle.

Izuku thought for a moment before turning to Shoto. His ice would be quieter than his fire or Izuku’s flicks. Shoto stepped forward and allowed his ice to reach over to the guard silently to freeze them. That wouldn’t destroy them but it would stall them.

Luckily the frozen state of the guards disrupted their Quirks like Shinsou found out once he ordered them both to sleep outside their hearing range. They needed to be fully aware of their senses for their barriers to be at full effect. As it was now both sets were as easy to walk through as wet tissue paper.

Past the doors were two VERY vault-like rooms with guards armed to the teeth along with turrets and motion sensors. Each guard had quirks designed to trap people in place in a variety of ways that bypassed durability, strength, and speed.

Needless to say everyone was on high alert as the doors seemingly opened by themselves. Without warning multiple guards let loose fully automatic sprays of bullets to kill whatever's infiltrated their castle.

Izuku reacted quickly by putting a construct up in front of Shoto and him. He continued to focus so he wouldn’t get distracted and cause the construct to be destroyed.

“Any ideas Shoto? It doesn’t really seem like that much of a stealth mission with this.”

Shoto frowned as he nodded and disregarded stealth all together as he sent a massive wave of ice to disable the guards and the beginning to fire turrets. Shinsou panicked slightly as he hid behind the Mana barrier Ben made.

"You know this will still be a success if we clear these people out and get out before an alarm is raised."

“That so? Well that definitely changes things.”

Shinsou got an idea and started to speak so the guards would hear him loud and clear. For reference for any future guard, looking at each other while firing wasn’t a good idea.

"Wow. I wasn't expecting you to actually take them out. Props."

Ben blinked in surprise as the guards bled out and he took out the turrets.

"Now all we have to do is find the document before people start checking out why there were several explosions."

Izuku kept the construct up before getting an idea and turning to Shoto.

“You trust me?”

“You already know the answer to that.”

“Alright, I want you to freeze them first and I’ll handle the rest.”

Shoto nodded and stepped forward, the ice reaching towards the guards freezing them solid. Izuku could’ve dropped the construct and shot his flicks but he had another idea. Izuku pushed the construct towards the frozen guards at alarming speeds before it crushed them harshly into the wall. The two teens ran up to the guards and removed their turrets.

“Not bad Izuku. Not bad.”

“Heh, thanks. Alright, now let’s go see if the documents are in here.”

Unfortunately for both teams the doomsday plans weren't in either vault. In fact both of the ones they were in lead to a 3rd one surrounded by a warp field that acted as a teleportation mechanism to a 3rd room.

One guarded by only one individual.

The king of the castle sat on his throne and frowned, staring each intruder in the eyes before waving his hand shutting off the warp field and trapping them inside.

"If you're so eager to pay my vault a visit then allow me to make it your burial sight. Once I rid the world of you nothing will stop me from destroying the world."

The four kept their guard up, ready for whatever the king was willing to do next. They managed to keep it stealthy for as long as they could. That had to count for something.

"Whatever foolish organization made you do this matters not. Even as I speak my soldiers are being made aware of your actions, even if you defeat me you'll all die here."

With a glare the king seemed to move space itself as an invisible force seemed to delete things in quick succession rushing straight to the four as tons and tons of gold vanished.

Both Izuku and Ben were quick to put up a construct to protect the group. One in front of the other, creating even more protection for them. There were a couple of ways they could go about this, but they weren’t doing anything until they got rid of the invisible force.

“Shinsou, do you think you could try to get him to stop?”

Izuku asked, grunting as he held the construct up.

The king only glared more as the force doubled in power.

"You dare think some peasant can order me around? Such arrogance. I'll enjoy having you all meet the endless singularity that is my Quirk!"

As he says that the force seemed to implode in on itself as it blasted apart both barriers with ease, the vacuum of the gone air would have left the group without any to breath if it wasn't for their barely held together personal force fields.

"You see his body? He might be kingly in status but his body is a rotten tempal! One good hit should kill him dead!"

Ben yelled as he stood up, his suit working overtime to repair the damage from the explosion. Izuku raised a thumbs up as he stood himself, trying to regain his breath. One good hit huh? Well, it would be pointless to go into a battle without using your power at least once.

Shinsou gritted his teeth as he helped hold Ben up, more than aware he wasn't up to the task of defeating this foe. Shoto braced himself against the wall as he bled from a particularly bad throw into a spear made of gold and tipped with diamonds as he got ready to throw everything he had into his next attack.

Ben wasn't kidding when he said this simulation could hurt. Izuku struggled to stay standing as he leaned against a wall. His vision was slightly blurry and he sort of felt like throwing up. He caught a glimpse of the king’s mangly body in his eyes and slowly raised his hand, putting into the flicking position. There was only one thing left to do.

The king laughed as he met the combined forces of both Shoto's and Izuku's Quirks head on with his own, his space warping seeming to hold out until it shattered like so much glass throwing superheated metal his way as he screamed in agony as his body was pasted into his throne. As the king died a hidden room opened up with the plans inside detailing how to make a blackhole generator that magnified his Quirk to WMD status.

The teens, finally able to stand better, walked towards the room and Ben picked up the plans with a smile on his face. Well not bad, not bad at all.

Once the plans were picked up the simulation ended and Ben started to heal everyone's wounds.

"So before Aizawa has a chance to go through everything, what did you all end up noticing in the mission exactly?"

“Well it wasn’t your typical stealth mission where you go in undetected, making as little noise as possible, and being unspotted. We had to fight in order to continue our objective and even though the stealth was left behind, we still got to our objective.”

Shoto answered simply.

Ben nods as he floats in the air.

"Well yes, but I was hoping for more personal observations. Like how prepared they were and how they didn't hesitate to use lethal force on people that might well have been their allies for all they knew. An important lesson to learn from this is that plans rarely ever work out. It's best to work on an outline of a plan and improvise."

The three teens nodded understanding what Ben was saying. Ben soon said something else as well.

“While that is the case, and being able to improvise is an important skill to have. What else is important and true?”

Izuku thought for a moment before answering.

“Oh! Procedure is there for a reason?”

Ben nodded.

“Exactly. In the situation, where things are chaotic, improvise and adapt. But in any other case, planning and procedure is a good thing to follow and keep in mind.”

Ben gestured as he pulled up the scene of the guards firing indiscriminately at them.

"This wasn't a conscious choice but ruthless pragmatism honed by having instructions drilled into their head. They didn't hesitate one bit to open fire. You all acted appropriately to this. Most villains while ruthless don’t just immediately start firing. You were able to adapt even when things turned deadly.”

Aizawa nodded as he finally reached their location.

"He's right. You even responded with the appropriate amount of force. Those who willingly hold back so as not to kill when a potential world ending threat is at stake are fools. Given the scenario you all chose valid tactics. It's ok to be shaken up by that too given the realism of the simulation."

The four boys nodded at their teacher’s assessment. Izuku stretched getting the uncomfortable feeling in his neck out.

“Well, it was a good simulation. You definitely didn’t pull any punches which is quite realistic. Exactly what we need.”."

Ben grinned as he ruffled everyone's hair.

"Of course I wouldn't pull any punches! Otherwise it wouldn't be training. Given the attack on USJ I figured we could implement one of these in every year's main training room so they can be put through their paces in case the League of Villains strikes again."

“Sounds like a good idea. It would get everyone to see that being a hero is serious business.”

Shinsou replies, to which the others nodded in agreement.

“But anyway, I’ve got an old man to see. He’ll probably flip his lid if I get there too late.”

Izuku said, stretching before letting out a sigh.

Ben grinned and he stared at Shoto and Shinsou.

"Now that you have a taste of what lies ahead I can't wait to train you both. It'll be fun!"

Izuku exited the school and soon made his way to his mentor’s home. He knocked on the door and soon heard it unlock. He opened the door and immediately ducked as Gran Torino flew over him. He had gotten used to that.

“Nice kid, have you figured out what you were doing wrong with your quirk?”

Izuku shook his head solemnly as he walked into the apartment.

“No, I just don’t get it! I want to be able to use all the aspects of it at once!”

“A quirk is something that is a part of someone kid. Something that they have to learn to live with throughout their whole body. You get what I’m saying here?”

Throughout their whole body...Wait!

Izuku squat down and called upon One For All once more but this time, not in one specific place but in his entire body. Electricity flared around him as he glowed a certain green shade.

“I think I’ve got it! I’ve been thinking of One for All as something I need to call upon when I should be thinking of it as something a part of me. If I’m going to make this Quirk my own, I’ll have to use it evenly!”

Five percent!

“Ah nice! You’ve seem to finally understand! Now I hope you’re ready because there’s not going to be any rest here boy!”

“I wouldn’t dream of it being any other way!”

"Are you two up for more training sessions?"

Ben asked as Aizawa sat on a chair Ben made with his constructs.

“Depends on what you’ve got for us.”

Shinsou asked, ready for anything else.

"Hmmm we'll do a hide a seek challenge. The same set up as before with the castle, whoever doesn't get found wins."

The two nodded and smirked ready for this new challenge. Yes, it seemed everyone was hard at work in their internships. Though some more than others.

The break for internships approached fast and in no time at all they were well into their 2 week internship.

Izuku sat on a train with Grand Torino on their way to a city to go commit vigilantism. To get more training in of course. He had finally managed to land a smash on him. Go him.

“Ever commit vigilantism kid?”

“Once or twice. You can’t be a hero if you’re letting a lack of a piece of paper stop you.”

The older man nodded as Izuku looked outside the train as they were passing Hosu city.

lida’s probably there patrolling…I really hope he’s not doing anything brash.

Ben smiled as he dodged a joint attack by Shoto and Shinsou, each working on skills they lack in terms of offence. Shoto with a custom made baton that can be infused with his Quirk, and Shinsou using a sonic amplifier that effectively let him use sound as a construct and let him tag multiple people with a command at once upon contact.

"Your teamwork has been improved a lot in only a short week. I'm very impressed. How are you liking your new weapons?"

“I’m liking them quite well!”

Shinsou said as Shoto nodded, joining him in another team based attack towards Ben.

Ben laughed as he jumped back only on his costume.

"I'm glad. Though you two still have plenty of work to do to get great at those weapons."

Ben makes a baton of his own made of Mana and tipped with spiraling DNA strands as he beckons them both to come at him.

The two did come at him with a strategy in mind with Shoto going one direction and Shinsou going the other. They’ve only managed to beat Ben once but he was going all out now.

Ben stuck his baton into the ground and let loose a Mana shockwave that pushed him up above the joint attacks while acting as a temporary buffer. On his way down he swung his right arm which let loose multiple bombs filled with instant solidifying sponge.

The two did their best to avoid the bombs but were inevitably hit by some of them. The sponge started solidifying causing them to become stuck. They really hated this stuff.

Ben touches down softly and he taps both with his staff and the sponge breaks apart.

"I would have figured you'd have a counter to the bombs by now…we haven't even gotten to the live laser tag sessions yet."

The two sighed as they knew that it was only going to get worse from here. Oh well. Guess they’ll have to do better.

Izuku continued to look at Hosu before going to ask Gran Torino something. Though his question never got out considering what happened next.

A Nomu attack to be exact. Multiple of them.

“You stay here kid! Everyone! Keep calm! I’ll deal with this!”

Gran Torino said before tackling the Nomu that had crashed their train out into the city. He should’ve stayed there. It’d be the smart thing to do but he just had to help.

Izuku activated his quirk and spread it throughout his body at five percent. He took a deep breath and jumped on the buildings to find out what the hell was going on.

Nomus! A different one this time as well! I need to help everyone here! Civilians, Gran Torino, lida!

Izuku landed in the street and was about to go to where the chaos was before hearing panicked yells of the Hero Killer. If his hunch was right and it usually was, then he had a good idea of where lida was. Goddamn it.

Izuku pulled out his device and pushed it to notify Ben so he can teleport to his location. He had to be smart about this.

Ben frowned.

"We're done for today unless you two want to practice with each other. I've business to attend to."

Ben waves as he teleports to Izuku's position, armor covering his whole body.

"What's the situation?"

“Multiple Nomu attacks. Plus, pretty sure lida’s gone to take on the Hero Killer himself. Most likely in the same alleyway his brother was attacked in.”

Izuku explained quickly to not waste any time.

Ben sighs as he transforms into his Pugnavore form to find Iida and teleports him to their location before teleporting all the Nomu in the area along with the Hero Killer to a enclosed Mana field so no one could escape.

"Iida once this is over I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't forget. You two STAY PUT. I'll deal with them understand? I won't hesitate to send you all back to UA if I have to."

With that he teleports just outside the barrier even as Stain fights the Nomu himself.

"Are you working with the League of Villains per chance?"

“The League of Villains? Why would I associate with that trash? They’re the same as these “heroes” in the media! Unworthy of their names, so unfocused, so selfish! They deserve to die by my blade all the same!”

Stain said as he fought off the Nomu moving quite expertly and quickly. He clearly wasn’t someone to take lightly.

“lida what were you thinking? Pro Heroes can barely take him on, what made you think you could’ve done anything?”

Izuku whispered disappointed by his friend's actions. Revenge was a hell of a thing that brings out emotion in people. Irrational emotions, thoughts, and decisions.

"Ah yes, what exactly is your problem with heroes exactly? I'd figure I'd ask before detaining you."

“My reasoning are my own boy. They’re in it for the fame, the glory, they don’t deserve the title of hero!”

Stain yelled as he dodged another punch from the Nomu before landing a good hit in its stomach region. Not wasting any time, the murderer dug his blade into the exposed brain of the monstrosity.

"So what, your solution is to kill everyone unworthy? What's step 2? Don't tell me you're only some mindless killer. Besides which, you have it wrong. No one TRULY in it for the fame or money would keep risking their lives. I know, I've seen where that leads. Though I suppose I do agree with you, fame and fortune are lame reasons, especially when just doing a good job will net you both naturally even if you'd rather not be famous."

Ben says as he lazes in the air watching the show, a bag of popcorn in his hand.

Stain dug his bloody sword out of the creature’s brain and looked up at Ben with that horrifying face of his.

“My business is not with either you or that green hair child. It’s just with that idiot who attacked me. If you’re smart, you’ll take your friend and let me out of this bubble, now!”

Ben rolls his yellow eyes as his antennae shake in mock fear.

"Oh nooooo! Please don't threaten me mister Hero Killer Sir! Not my idiot friend! I'll let you free!"

With a snap of his fingers they were in the stratosphere with the killer restrained by Mana chains as Ben dusts off his hands of butter.

"There. I've let you out of the barrier. Still want me to let you go?"

He asks as he wiggled his eyebrows, a smirk on his face as he breaths in the fear from the Hero Killer.

The Hero Killer looked in shock as they were in the stratosphere. What the hell was this kid? He definitely wasn’t an amateur. He glared harshly at the boy as he struggled in his chains.

Ben sighed dramatically as he encased him in a Mana barrier again before snapping once again this time appearing on the moon.

"How bout now hm? Still want me to let you go?"

The Hero Killer didn’t say anything as he simply glared at the boy, pure anger forming on his face.

“Glare all you want. You’re outmatched.”

Ben chuckled as he sat lazily on a chair made of Mana drinking a smoothie.

"If you don't believe we're really on the moon… well this should be more than enough evidence."

In a snap the barrier forming around him shrunk until it fully exposed his right leg which immediately exploded from the differing pressure, his blood floating freely around them both before the barrier sealed in his bleeding stump.

"It's no fun if you won't talk you know. I could do a lot worse than this too. Trap you in a nightmare that never ends, unable to be woken up by anyone but me for example. I could also just scare you into insanity. Also you better not complain about losing a leg since you've taken multiple people's lives."

Stain held his bleeding stump before laughing hysterically. It hurt like a bitch but this was all just so wonderfully fucked up to him. This kid definitely wasn’t afraid of hurting enemies.

“You definitely are something kid.”

"I would take that as a compliment but you're a serial killer so I'd rather not. Tell me everything you know about the League of Villains. I'll know if you're lying since I'm also telepathic. I could rip the information out of you but where's the fun in that?"

The Hero Killer only chuckled and sighed. Well what choice did he have? So he told the teen the truth. There was no point and no honor in lying.

Back on Earth, Izuku and lida were up and had decided to help the other heroes help civilians.

“Seriously lida what were you thinking?”

“I suppose I really wasn’t. All I could think about was how much he had harmed my brother and countless others. I couldn’t just stand by.”

“Ben’s pissed.”

“I’m aware. I only hope he doesn’t take my quirk or dampen it for some time. As much as I messed up, he has no right.”

Izuku sighed as he helped someone to their feet and told them to get to safety. Hopefully this experience opened lida’s eyes.

Ben grinned as Stain told him the location of the League's place of operations.

"You've been plenty of help thanks. Though it's time for us to head back. I hope you've enjoyed the view of Earth since you won't be seeing the outside of a prison for the rest of your life."

With a snap they were back on Earth surrounded by a group of Pro Heroes Ben teleported in as he transformed back, the barrier shrinking to chainsas his weapons were confiscated and Stain's stump cauterized.

Izuku and lida were standing as the heroes took care of the fires and damages caused by the Nomus and Izuku slapped lida upside the head.

“Ow! What was that for?!”

“That was for being an idiot.”

Ben sighed as he rubbed his nose bridge before turning into XLR8 and using his speed to help the recovery efforts before transforming back a second later in real time in front of Iida with a stern look on his face as all the fires were put out and damage was cleared to one side.

"I've already informed your family of your actions and Ingenium is even more pissed than I am. I would say good luck but whatever punishment they give you you'll more than deserve for being reckless. With that being said you no longer have to worry about Stain. He's been dealt with."

Iida was going to comment before deciding against it. He rubbed his hair back as he sighed. He was being reckless and stupid.

“That’s fair.”

Ben let out a sigh as he rubbed his forehead even as his suit went to work mitigating his oncoming headache.

"Just so we're clear, if you do this again I won't put off your punishment to someone else. What you did was borderline scucidally stupid. I'm glad Izuku here didn't run off by himself to join you because if he had and you two would have gotten hurt or worse …"

Ben trails off as his headache grew worse.

"Anyway I'm off to rest. If either of you need me I'll be sleeping off a headache."

Without waiting for a reply Ben teleports back to his room as his security system ramps up and he throws up in his toilet bowl.

I really hate being in that form for so long. Fuck, that species is borderline psychotic in their entertainment feeding. At least their methods are effective. The League of Villains won't know what hit them.

Izuku just sighed as he patted lida on the back. He felt sort of bad but he made his bed, time to lie in it. The green haired teen made his way to the apartment complex and knocked on Ben’s door. Just to make sure he was alright.

The door swung open showing a Ben that has definitely seen better days. It turns out personally dishing out a leg severing in space can really ramp up your PTSD when you're a cosmic superhero. Ben waves as he holds a ice pack to his forehead.

I hate how this isn't even a proper disease. If it was my Plumber grade medicine would destroy it but all of this is just psychological burnout. Ugh I'm not going to be sleeping for the next few days.

"Hey 'zuku what brings you here?"

Ben asks in a whisper as he winces from the bright light from opening the door. Izuku cringed at Ben’s appearance before speaking.

“I’m not even going to ask the question, you’re clearly not doing well. Is there anything I can do to make you feel better? I can do anything, cool, comfort. Whatever you need.”

Ben shakes his head.

"No it's fine. This isn't really something even you sleeping here can help. It's my own fault really. My… Pugnavore form is sorta psychotic in his methods and it brought back memories I'd rather not deal with. I should be fine in a week though. Hopefully."

Ben shivers as his mind briefly goes back to when Vilgax ripped out Max's arm before he grits his teeth and shakes his head.

What sort of hero is this damn broken? I shouldn't be letting an exploded leg do this to me damn it.

“Oh alright...Well I hope you know that you’re still a great hero. Everyone needs time to calm down, everyone’s a little broken...even heroes. I’ll see you later Ben.”

Izuku said with a hopeful smile as he began to walk off hoping Ben would be alright.

Ben nods as he closes the door, falling back and almost hitting the floor as his headache spikes and he almost blacked out. He breathed heavily as he lazily floated himself to his bed angry at himself he couldn't even stand for a couple of minutes without collapsing.

"If only I was just a little broken Izuku. I'm far far worse."

Ben sighed as he mentally activated code green of his defense system which instantly made him be cocooned in metal that'd easily without any amount of damage his forms could dish out while nullifying intangibility. Multiple copies of himself sprung to life courtesy of his simulation ready to spring into action in case he got lost in his madness and PTSD.

Izuku entered his apartment and headed towards his room. He climbed onto the top bunk and laid down sighing.

Poor Ben. I hope he gets better...He’s clearly been through a lot.

By morning it was clear Ben hadn't gotten a bit of sleep and was taking a few days off from his internship and school.

Izuku sighed at the lunch table as he ate his food. Shoto soon sat next to him and spoke.

“He’s gonna be taking the few days off right?”

“Yeah, it’s for the best. He just needs some time to himself.”

Shoto frowned as he ate.

"Know what happened? I've never seen him this bad. It's honestly kind of scary."

“He was dealing with the Hero Killer and he had used a form that takes psychotic delight in hurting others for entertainment. I guess it reminded him of something bad…”

Shoto looked like he wanted to ask something before shaking his head.

"Nevermind, I don't want to know. I just hope he never uses it for training."

Izuku chuckled at that before shaking his head.

“So the tests for the training camp are coming up soon. You ready?”

"Yeah. I just hope they don't put Ben in as an instructor. It's fun and all but he never really treats it as a game. I still have nightmares of the time he did a scenario where he went evil. It's almost suspicious how good he is at the role."

“Oh he put you through that? He told me it was to pretend to be the villain. Well as skilled as Ben is, he’s still a student. So maybe you’ll get lucky and he’ll be training just like the rest of us.”

Izuku said with a smile before stretching. He wasn’t too worried about the written test but he, like everyone else, had no idea what the practical exam was going to be like. That’s what got everyone nervous when the teachers brought it up.

Shoto shrugs.

"Maybe but there's really no specialized training they can really put him through considering all his forms. Most, if not all of them, are Pro Hero material individually much less together. Hell he doesn't even have to transform to be Pro Hero material given how he beat my sperm donor."

“You’ve got a point there. The only real form he said he had trouble using for awhile was Snare-oh.”

“Who?”

“Terrifyingly tall mummy dude.”

“Ah. You would take the time to memorize the names, you dork.”

Izuku snorted as he threw away his trash into the nearby garbage can.

Shoto does the same hoping Ben would get better soon. The rest of the school day passed as it normally did. Nothing really interesting happened and even if it did, all that was on Izuku’s mind was Ben’s condition.

He entered his apartment complex and passed Ben’s apartment sighing before entering his own. He would knock and ask how he’s doing but he felt like that wouldn’t really help him any. He knew how he was doing and his words weren’t enough to help. So he’d give him his space.

A few days off turned into a full week before Ben felt ready to put on his arrogant happy mask and face the world again. He stood outside waiting for the others to finish getting ready for school, bag filled with all his missing work. A smoothie in hand filled with a bit of Amber Ogia to calm his nerves and supplement his lackluster nutrient intake the week prior.

Shoto and Izuku exited the door before seeing Ben outside waiting for them. The two walked up to the teen they hadn’t seen in a week. They all stared at each other before just smiling and making their way to school.

“So testing is tomorrow. You ready Izuku?”

“Yeah, I’m not too worried. I know my stuff. You think you’ll be fine Ben?”

Ben shrugs.

"Yeah. I read the books cover to cover in the first week of school as XLR8, the form I used to win the obstacle course in the tournament. It pays to have an eidetic memory for stuff like this."

The two nodded before the teens found themselves at school and the rest of their teammates were begging Aizawa to know what the practical exam was.

“Come on sir! You can’t just give us your vague answers and leave us hanging!”

“I can and I will. All you need to know is that it’s going to be harder than anything you’ve done before.”

Ben sits down and relaxes into his seat, taking a moment to relish the normalcy of a noisy classroom and no distressing flashback of dying or maiming others.

“Oh you are so lame! Now I’m going to have to spend all night worrying about it!”

“You better get to worrying then.”

The tired teacher said as Izuku took his seat and rested his head before hearing a familiar grating voice.

“Deku! We’re going to be taking our tests tomorrow! Then we’ll see who’s clearly the best out of the two of us! You’re going to see who’s the best! A weakling like you doesn’t deserve to be here! Maybe the practical exam will show you that!”

Izuku didn’t say anything before sighing and going to speak.

“Maybe it will, maybe it won’t. Honestly, I couldn’t care less either way. I’m going to do my best regardless of what you say Kaachan. I got here and I’m staying. That’s final.”

Ben let out a deep soulful sigh as he banged his head against his desk twice before resting it in his folder arms.

This he could definitely have dealt without. Sometimes it sucked being a 18 year old in a class full of 15 year olds.

"If you're going to raise hell Bakugo do it somewhere else. I've had a shit week."

“Shut it Tennyson!”

“Enough! Bakugo calm down! It is way too early in the morning for your personality right now. If you don’t, I will take this into my own hands.”

Aizawa said seriously as Bakugo only grunted before sitting down. Aizawa yawned before speaking once more.

“The tests tomorrow will be deciding whether or not you’ll be going to Hero Camp. It’ll also be the final test of this semester so take it seriously. It’ll be summer but don’t go off thinking you can rest and neglect your training. This camp will be making sure you don’t. That is all.”

Ben gave a grateful smile to Aizawa as he floated over his homework without getting out of his desk absentmindedly sipping his smoothie.

The rest of the class continued with the students trying to get a clear answer out of Aizawa but to no avail. This continued all the way to lunch where they finally gave up and decided to talk about it amongst themselves.

“It’s a shame Aizawa Sensei is so strict and good at not giving answers.”

“Yeah, I’m really worried about the practical exam!”

“WHAT’S THIS?! AM I HEARING DOUBT FROM CLASS A?! WHAT A SURPRISE CONSIDERING YOUR CLASS IS SUPPOSED TO BE SO MUCH BETTER THAN MINE!”

Class A stared awkwardly at the blonde from Class B as he continued to yell before getting knocked out by a ginger who groaned.

“You really are pathetic. Hi, I’m Kendo. Sorry about him, he is extremely full of himself and extremely annoying. You guys are worried about the practical exam right?”

The class nodded.

“Well you didn’t hear it from me but I’m pretty sure that they’ll have us going up against robots again like in the first practical exam.”

“Really? How do you know?”

“A friend of mine who’s in a higher grade made me aware about it. They had overheard the teacher’s planning. Just a tidbit of knowledge for you.”

“Kendo, you fool...Now you gave away our advantage that we had against these idiots!”

Another sharp hit was laid on his neck as she walked away pulling him by the collar.

“They aren’t the idiots!”

“...Jeez.”

While what Kendo said did help to ease the nerves of their classmates that didn’t sit right with Izuku. No that can’t be it, they wouldn’t go with something so simple.

"Unless the robots have gotten significantly more advanced when I wasn't looking I doubt they'd use them for what amounts to a final for this year. If I was them I'd test us on teamwork by pairing all of us with a random classmate to work to some objective, maybe even have one of the staff pose as a villain."

The class groaned because that would be such a difficult test. Though they couldn’t expect anything less from UA.

Ben shrugged.

"Of course they could also want to see what we'd do in a no win scenario."

Izuku laid his head down on the table. A teamwork test with a random classmate? Knowing the school they’d probably pair him up with Kaachan. The green haired boy groaned at that.

Ben frowns and places his ice cold smoothie on top of Izuku's face.

"Why so glum chum?"

“Nothing nothing. It’s just that if your first assessment is correct then they’d probably team me up with Kaachan that’s all.”

Ben laughs as he takes his smoothie to take a sip.

"I said random. If you can think of teaming up with him it wouldn't be. That and I doubt they'd take the risk. Especially since I'm in no mood for his shit. If he tried anything I'd probably end up expelled myself."

Izuku chuckled at that before rubbing his hair back.

“Yeah, though I’d miss out on the opportunity to punch him and frame it as ‘motivation for when he’s ready to give up.’”

"Eh if you really want to motivate him just remind him how I kicked his ass without even having to transform."

Ben shrugs and smirks. Izuku turned to look at Ben before the two just broke into a fit of chuckles. After the sports festival, Kaachan wasn’t doing so well. He did of course get out of it but that was a major blow to his pride. Good.

“Well either way. Whatever they do decide to throw at us tomorrow, all I know is that I’m ready for anything.”

Izuku said as he stretched.

Ben sighed as he pinched his nose.

"You never say that. It's like, number three of the things you should never say. It's just begging the universe to fuck you over for thinking you're a match."

“Well then bring it on.”

Shoto sighed as he bonked the teen over the head.

“It’s like you’ve never seen a bad movie Izuku.”

“First, ow. Secondly, life almost never goes the way you want or expect it to anyway. That’s why you gotta be able to deal with what it throws your way.”

"There's a difference between being prepared and actively bending over so the universe can try to fuck you on the assumption it's too chicken to do so. At least you haven't said the first and second worst things you could say."

Izuku narrowed his eyes before speaking once more.

“I cannot say anything around you two without the conversation having something to do with something being...that word in the ass.”

Ben smirks playfully.

"Why, is it leading your mind into the gutter? I hope it has nothing to do with those ID Mask pranks you two were doing."

Ben chuckled at the mortified looks on their faces.

"What, you didn't think they had a data log? Of course they do. They're even traceable in case one of you somehow loses it."

“See this is the problem with smart people like yourself. You think of everything. Which I suppose it’s good but it’s not going to save me from embarrassment any time soon.”

Izuku grumbled as he rested his head on his hand and Shoto simply coughed.

Ben laughs as he finishes his smoothie.

"Hey, I don't really care what you two get up to in your room or what you use the ID Mask for. So long as both of you are consenting and being safe I'm ok with it. It's not like either of you are the first to use my likeness for… explicit material."

“While we’re not using them for what you’re thinking, it would make sense for Izuku to use it. He’s not my type.”

“Hey!”

Shoto snickered as Izuku scoffed in annoyance before chuckling with him.

Ben chuckled as well as he temporarily used his ID Mask to turn into Izuku, face flush.

"You sure Shoto?"

Ben asked as he blinked wantingly at him with a playful smirk. This sudden action caused Shoto to get tongue tied for a moment and blush in embarrassment.

“Not your type huh?”

Izuku asked, smirking.

Ben turned back to normal with a snicker.

"So what, is this a love triangle or something? Well no I suppose it wouldn't be unless Shoto liked me too. At most a love corner."

Shoto scoffed before closing his eyes.

“Please. I’m too good for either of you.”

Ben smirked as he got up to whisper in his ear.

"So this doesn't excite you hm?"

“Hmph. Not in the slightest you perv. It might excite Izuku however.”

Shoto said with an evil smirk.

Ben smirks back as he whispers in Izuku's ear.

"Is he right, zuku, this excite you?"

Izuku didn’t say anything for a moment before shaking his head with a shakey smile.

“Nope. Not at all.”

Ben chuckles in his ear as he leans in a bit more so his hot breath lands on his neck.

"You sure, you sounded pretty hesitant."

He grins more as he uses his suit to looks like Izuku and pretend to lick Izuku's neck while looking right at Shoto and giving a flirtatious wink.

“Yep. If anything maybe a bit uncomfortable.”

Izuku said lying through his teeth before pushing Ben back. Ben was so lucky Izuku wasn’t good at being flirty or suggestive. Otherwise it’d be over for him.

Shoto just straight up looked horrified at what he was witnessing. It was sort of funny honestly. Well funny to anyone who wasn’t Shoto anyway.

“You guys make me wonder why I bother to come sit here. You especially Ben.”

Ben only laughed as he changed back to normal.

"What're you talking about? I just successfully distracted you both from worrying. If anything you two should be thanking me."

“I’d rather go back to worrying.”

“Seconded.”

The two said quickly as Izuku rubbed the back of his neck letting out a sigh. Thank god it was over. He was just about ready to squeal.

Ben sighed.

"You two are no fun. Aren't teenagers supposed to be hormonal?"

“I’m not even going to humour you with an answer.”

Shoto said with a ghost of a smile on his face.

"Hmm I suppose it is pretty obvious with how Izuku was checking me out when you were teasing him as me."

Ben says with a shrug.

"You know I'd pose for you if you'd ask Izuku. Though only like once, so you'd better take pictures. Actually speaking of ID Masks…are you two free today? I'll go see if Shinsou is free too, I'm curious how good you all would be acting as each other in case you need to do so for a job."

“I was going to study for the test tomorrow but sure. I’m free.”

Izuku said, shrugging. He was studying non stop whenever he got the chance anyway.

Ben sighed and shook his head.

"Nevermind, it's better if everyone studied instead. If you do really well Izuku I'll actually step out of a hot shower with a towel on for you."

Ben says with a snicker. He knew he shouldn't tease so much but Izuku being flustered is honestly pretty hilarious.

Izuku blushed darkly at this before groaning and setting his head on the table.

“I need a new group of friends…”

Ben laughs as he ruffles his hair.

"I'm only teasing. Though I suppose I could actually do it for real. It's not like I haven't tried modeling once or twice."

“I’m sure you’d be great at it.”

Izuku said as he lifted his head from the table. Though Ben probably wouldn’t be interested in it anyway. He did leave his universe to get away from all his fame. Lord only knows what him modeling would do.

"Apparently I'm actually pretty good at it. Though considering everything I've never really had the time or inclination to do it more than once or twice. They take a surprising amount of time. Ah, I know. If you two and Shinsou get above a 90 for the overall test I'll give all 3 of you a custom gift."

“Hell no.”

Hell yes!

“I’m going to do my best because I want to get into this camp Ben. Izuku is probably the same but he’ll count that gift as a bonus.”

Ben raises his hands.

"Hey I never said you wouldn't try your best. Just that I'd give you a reward if you passed with flying colors. Hell I'll even give you 2 each if you pass with a perfect score."

Shoto moved closer to Ben as Izuku only stared forward.

“I think you overloaded him.”

Ben frowned as he waved a hand in front of Izuku's face.

"Hey, you aren't thinking of lewd stuff right? Because I wasn't implying that. Though I suppose I could model for one of the prizes."

“No no. I was thinking about something else. You know about lida and stuff. Just hoping he learned his lesson.”

Izuku said, pushing Ben’s hand out of his face.

"Oh. Yeah. Apparently he got into major trouble at home for his stunt. Ingenium is a real slave driver."

“No surprise there. He did almost get himself killed. It was monumentally stupid.”

"Yuuuuuup. I'd have been even worse if you didn't use your beacon to call me. Especially with those Nomu rampaging."

The green haired boy nodded. The school day droned until it was finally over. Now it was time for nonstop studying.

“By the way Izuku, your mom showed me what your room looked like before you remodeled it.”

“Eep!”

“You really are a fanboy.”

Ben snickers.

"You barely figured that out? His costume is basically All Might cosplay."

“My mom made it…”

Izuku said embarrassed as they walked to the apartment complex.

"I never said it was bad cosplay, it's pretty adorable honestly."

“Yeah I guess. She made it so I just had to wear it.”

Izuku said as they finally entered the complex and made it to their rooms.

Ben waves goodbye as he enters his apartment, his mask slipping as the defenses ramp up. He lets out a bone wary sigh as he gets on his bed, a frown on his face.

"Hopefully I'll be able to sleep today. Amber Ogia might be a super food but going almost 5 days without sleep is bound to fuck even me up."

Izuku didn’t waste any time and got straight to studying. This was one of their most important tests and he couldn’t fail on it. He said hi to his mom, grabbed some food from the fridge and disappeared into his room with Shoto following.

Ben bit his lip before sighing and getting up with effort. The DNA symbol glowed green as a canister formed that was quickly filled with the sleeping dust of his Pesky Dust form. Ben hesitated slightly before shaking his head.

"I'd be close to useless now even if something did happen. Hopefully nothing does."

Without giving himself a chance to hesitate further he grabbed a bit of sleeping dust and threw it on himself as the defenses ramped up to a code green. A hardlight clone of him sealing it as Ben toppled over dead to the world, the dust making sure he'd have a full 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Izuku sighed as he finished reading his first book of notes. He needed to finish the rest, work some more on how much power he could handle, and still manage to get a good amount of sleep. He hoped Ben was able to get some. He was having trouble now.

As Ben slept his defenses encased him in a metallic shell as Mana chains wrapped around it as he dove straight to a fitful rest. Normally he'd never consider using his Pesky Dust form for something like this, all to aware of how addicting something like this could be if he forced himself to have pleasant dreams every night. So he made sure the dust would leave his dreams be, just designed to keep him asleep for 8 hours come hell or high water.

His breath picked up as he dove from one nightmare to the next. The sensation of being aged to dust more real than when it actually happened, a side effect of the sleeping dust. It creates dreams that would put the most skillful of lucid dreamers to shame. .

The green haired boy held his head in frustration and annoyance as he threw the final book down and groaned. He took way too many notes. He slowly stood up to his chair and squatted down, activating his Full Cowl.

Only 5% was the highest he could go without straining or shattering his body. He looked up and slowly increased the pressure to 8%, grunting but standing his ground. He needed to hold it for as long as he could.

Inside the cocoon Ben's form would rapidly shift as his dream self fought battles from ages passed, the cocoon shifting to match and encase them all temporarily making itself bigger on the inside for the cases of the aliens being bigger than his apartment. Outside of it the hardlight copies stood guard in case the containment somehow broke, the AI actually seeming forlorn as it watched. This was going to be a long 6 hours.

Izuku huffed as he finally let Full Cowl release and sighed. He rubbed his hair back before walking over to the top bunk and collapsing into bed. Tomorrow was another big day. Might as well try to get some sleep for it.

Ben's eyes shot open after 8 hours had passed, his body wracked in sweat as he took in a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm his racing heart.

It's ok Ben. You aren't back there. Remember? You took some Pesky dust to sleep. You know exactly how dreams produced by that species works. You've done enough drug ring busts to know.

Once his heart was calm he teleported to the restroom to get started on his bath as the hardlight clones did the daily task of making sure everything looked normal so as not to concern anyone.

Izuku was jolted away by his annoying alarm clock blaring with no end. He glared before getting out of his covers and getting down to shut it off. He sighed as he packed his bag and made his way to the bathroom.

Alright Zuku. You’ve got this. You’ve been studying like crazy in order to know this stuff like you lived through it. Just keep calm and do your best.

Izuku opened the sink and rinsed his face a few times to really get him awake. There was no room for failure today. And the smallest thing could be his downfall so he wasn’t taking any chances.

Ben waited in the hall as he leaned back on the wall, doing his best not to blink too much since each one would bring back things best left forgotten in dreams.

Izuku and Shoto exited their apartment and greeted Ben in the hall. The three soon made their way to school talking just so they wouldn’t get bored.

“So did you manage to get to a new level with your quirk?”

“Yeah I think so. Eight percent doesn’t sound like much but it was a huge difference than my normal five.”

"If you keep going like that soon you'll get to 20% in no time."

The two soon entered the school and just like other schools with testing, they took it quite seriously. Looking back on it, Izuku was glad that he decided to fill up all those notebooks. Everything on it just seemed like common sense.

Ben was the first to turn in the written portion of the test, the answers coming easy from not only experience but his eidetic memory.

Soon enough all the written portions of the tests were turned in and the class was brought outside where Aizawa explained the practical part of the exam. Turns out Ben was right they would be going up against the teachers much to the students’ dismay.

Ben only grinned at that as he gave a smug look to Shoot and Izuku.

“You need to be able to work with someone who wouldn’t be your first choice to cooperate with. This’ll help you to not only improvise but to realize that you’re not always going to be in favorable situations. So you need to be able to get used to them.”

Soon a hologram showed up and listed all of the teams and who they will be going up against. Izuku groaned in dismay as he saw his name with Kaachan’s. Not only that, they were going up against All Might as well.

Ben frowned.

"You really think it's a good idea to pair them up? I don't think Bakugo has changed all that much from earlier."

“While that assessment is most likely accurate, this test is to see how you’ll perform in unfavorable conditions. This won’t be another All Might incident. If the two go too far with one another, we will step in.”

"Well… ok then. Hopefully Bakugo can keep a leash on his temper and actually work with him."

Ben finds his name. Sero Huh? Well this would definitely be interesting.

As each of the matches went on, students would either watch to analyze the fights or talk with their partners to get a battle strategy. Izuku watched the screen as he sighed. He would’ve gone to talk to his partner but knowing Kaachan, that’d be a short conversation.

Ben poked his forehead.

"Don't be so glum. It's not like you can't defend yourself if he hits you. That is if he's stupid enough to do so considering he's perpetually close to being expelled."

Izuku contemplated on that before chuckling.

“Yeah. He has done a lot of stupid things since he’s been here. I shouldn’t worry too much about it.”

"Exactly. All you have to do is make sure he doesn't get under your skin and if teamwork doesn't work you can always just use him as a distraction for the goal."

Ben shrugs before waving to go talk to Sero.

"You doing ok?"

“Yeah, I’m doing fine. I’m just a bit nervous that’s all.”

Ben quirks an eyebrow.

"To fight her or because of her weird erotic undertones?"

“Would you blame me if I said both?”

"Not really no. Though… I do have an idea on how to beat her at her own game."

“Sure lay it on me! What form are you going to take up?”

"Well as it turns out I have a form specifically for shape shifting. It'd be pretty amusing to see how she'd fare with a rule 63 version of herself hitting on her."

“That definitely sounds like it’ll shake her up! What should I do? I can’t let you do all the work. I’m pretty sure they’d consider that failing.”

Ben grinned.

"Well how do you feel about being a prop for the show? Nothing actually risque of course but I bet seeing us almost kiss would knock her out."

“Scandalous. I’m in!”

Sero said with a grin as he fist bumped Ben.

"Excellent to hear. This is going to be amazing."

Izuku continued to watch the matches before soon enough it was Ben and Sero’s turn against the suggestive Midnight. This would definitely be a treat.

Midnight smirked at her charges over a screen.

"This test will be like the rest…. With a few additional rules for dear Benny there. Truthfully I'm well aware you could beat this scenario solo. So to make things interesting you'll only be able to use one form for this test, with the current stipulations of course."

She smirks as she uses her whip to list them out.

"Said form CAN'T use intangibility, super speed, teleportation, or other instant clear powers. This IS after all a test, not a showcase of your Quirk. With that being said… I can't wait to meet you dearies here. Oh I'm getting all excited just thinking about it!"

The two teenagers walked out onto their testing location and were met with the desirable pro hero herself who only smirked. The two looked at each other and simply nodded knowing their game plan.

Ben smirked himself as his signature green flash erupted only to show himself much to Midnight's confusion. That was until he started shape shifting, his body composed of purple sludge until a Rule 63 version of Midnight formed, wearing just as suggestive an outfit as her leaving nothing to the imagination.

Ben's smirk only grew at her look of shock as he winked flirtatiously while ghosting a hand across his firm built chest with classic superhero muscles adorning every inch of him.

"Like what you see teach? I wonder if you're jealous of my chest size?"

“It’s definitely giving hers a good run for her money.”

Sero commented as the spectators only watched with shocked faces at how this entire situation was unfolding. Izuku continued to watch wondering what plan they were exactly thinking of executing here. The green haired boy was going to be thrown for a loop.

Ben frowned and pouted as he let out a disappointed sigh as he gropped his right pec.

"Too sexy to chat huh? I get it. This must be fulfilling a number of your fantasies. Buuuuut I bet this will top the charts."

Ben saunters over to Sero and positively draps himself over him, using his whip to tie up the boy as a chair is formed under him to sit on from excess slime. Ben gives Midnight a wink as he straddles Sero.

The spectators including Midnight went completely silent as this transpired between the two. Izuku’s mouth was left hanging open as Shoto chuckled and patted him on the head.

“Don’t overload yourself Izuku.”

Midnight still stunned by what was happening blushed darkly as Ben smirked down upon Sero and rubbed his head.

“Look at her, she’s practically going to pass out. Why don’t we crank it up a notch?”

Sero grins as he nods, making a show of feeling up every inch of Ben.

Ben looks Midnight straight in the eye as he goes in for a kiss. This display proved to be too much for the pro hero. What a shocker, they were able to do something that she hasn’t seen before. That was impressive.

The pro hero blushed as darkly as she could, swallowing deeply before passing out from the shock of the entire situation.

Ben chuckled as he stood up, the chair and whip going back to his main mass as he winked flirtatiously at the camera, still in his Midnight form.

Sero goes to capture her to make it official as Ben strikes a pose.

"The power of sex prevails again! Remember kids, always use protection!"

Ben used his whip to punctuate his speech before he burst out laughing causing him to lose his form and show off the true pink sludge of his Lenopan form.

“Sero and Ben pass their test!”

The group stared at the scene in a daze before laughing it off. They definitely weren’t expecting that plan from these two. But it worked and that’s really all that mattered. Izuku snapped out of his daze and smiled. It was a good strategy.

Ben fist bumped Sero on their victory before teleporting back to Izuku and Shoto.

"You know, I have you two to thank for that plan. That ID Mask prank was pretty inspiring. I didn't overload you with sexy right Izuku?"

Ben said as he ruffled his hair playfully.

“N-”

“Yes you did. You need to be a bit more careful of that. Who knows? He could become brain dead depending on how far you take it.”

Ben snickered.

"What, was he drooling or something?"

“Surprisingly enough, no. I’m actually quite proud of him for that. He just had his mouth wide open.”

Shoto said chuckling as Izuku pouted at their teasing.

"Heh better than the time he fell off his bed right?"

“Definitely. At least he didn’t pass out or anything. That would’ve been embarrassing.”

"True true. Speaking of passing out, I hope Midnight isn't too mad about our tactic… or too turned on."

“Well, I know it’s something that she won’t forget. Truthfully, I think she respects that you found something that she couldn’t handle.”

"Well yeah. I'd absolutely respect someone who showed me something I couldn't handle either."

Ben nods sagely as he poked Izuku's forehead.

"Hey, you aren't actively thinking of you in Sero's place right?"

“What? No! I’m thinking of my battle with All Might. I’m not a perv.”

Izuku said as he stretched, knowing that the battle ahead of him would be incredibly physically demanding.

“Uh huh. Sure.”

Shoto said, calling his bluff as Izuku just groaned in annoyance.

"Hmmmm. Well the only way you'd fail is if Bakugo doesn't actually team up with you. That or you do something stupid like punch him in the face anyway.”

“Yeah...Well we’re just going to have to see what happens.”

Izuku said, rubbing his hair back and letting out a sigh. This definitely wasn’t going to be easy but that was the point of the test.

"Well if it's worth any Shot and I would definitely mess Bakugo up if he started shit."

Izuku beamed at that.

“Well, that was obvious. Thanks though. I really appreciate that you guys have my back.”

"Of course we do. Though full disclosure if you start shit, while understandable, I'll still absolutely make sure Inko knows about it if the teachers don't call her themselves anyway."

“Fair. I won’t start anything. Wish me luck.”

Izuku said as he soon made his way to his testing grounds and stood besides Bakugo who only glared, angry that he would have to work with him.

“Look Kaachan, we won’t be able to beat him in a full on fight. Our best bet would be to evade him and run towards the exit.”

“Shut up! I’m not going to run away like a coward Deku!”

Ben sighed as he rolled his eyes.

"Thinking like that will only get him killed, or worse others."

Soon the horn was rang and the two walked throughout the large city area of their testing grounds. Izuku was still trying to get Bakugo to listen to reason.

“Seriously! We’re nowhere near his level! We can’t just dive in trying to fight like we’ll be able to win! That’s not a good strategy!”

“You would think like that, you damn weakling! Maybe you’ll run away from this like you do with everything else but I’m not anything like you!”

Ben sighed as he closed his eyes before snapping them open again as a memory came flooding back. This only made his incoming headache worse as he stared at Bakugo in annoyance. Bakugo’s pride and arrogance would be his downfall and the fact that he was making no real effort to change annoyed him greatly.

“Look, you just need t-”

“I’m not arguing this with you anymore, you weakling!”

“Will you shut up for a moment and listen?!”

“HAHA! WHAT’S THIS?! Fighting each other when I’m your real opponent? This will be quite fun!”

The two were shocked out of their argument before taking on a large shockwave of power and wind that almost sent the two flying back. The buildings around them started to crumble at the sheer power being sent their way.

Ben sighed as he sipped a smoothie made from Amber Ogia in the hopes to stop the headache that was forming. Bakugo is starting to get too much.

"All Might show them what terrible teamwork does please. Someone, before I do it. I've had a shit week and this isn't making me feel better."

Ben mumbled around the straw as the super nutrients in the smoothie went to work on up keeping his body's lackluster nutrient intake for the better part of a month.

All Might stood in front of the two boys, towering over them with that unnerving smile of his. It was actually kind of creepy. They could understand why criminals were so intimidated by him in this moment.

“Kaachan, we should focus on distracting him and getting away!”

Izuku said reaching for Bakugo’s hand only for him to slap it away.

“Fuck that! Run away if you want Deku!”

Bakugo didn’t waste any time and blasted off towards the goliath of a man but his pride may have blinded him on just who exactly he was dealing with.

Ben had to consciously stop himself from reflexively teleporting in and teaching Bakugo yet another lesson as he closed his eyes at the slap.

"Bakugo can't seriously think he can take him on by himself. He'd have a better chance at wooing Izuku."

“Even that’s pushing it.”

Shoto replied simply.

Bakugo felt himself being stopped as All Might’s massive hand caught his face, stopping him in his tracks. Instead of reaching to remove himself like most people, Bakugo just aimed at All Might attacking him instead. It did throw All Might for a loop considering most people would focus on getting themselves free.

That didn’t stop All Might from slamming Bakugo into the ground causing a huge crater and a large powerful gust of wind. Izuku went to go in and help before feeling All Might’s presence behind him.

“DON’T THINK I FORGOT ABOUT YOU!”

"Hopefully that hit knocked some sense into him and he sees the value of teamwork. If this was a real fight he'd already be dead."

“Not being able to make a decision in dangerous situations can be lethal you know!”

Izuku activated his Full Cowl and jumped backwards into the air before hearing Bakugo yelling at him to get out of the way. The two collided into one another ruining whatever short game plan either of them had.

The two rose to their feet with Bakugo walking forward and Izuku still trying to get him to listen.

“Look Kaachan, we’re gonna have to come up with a plan to win. We’re too weak to beat him, so we’ll have to evade him!”

"Come on, listen to reason you hotheaded idiot. You'd already be dead if All Might was an actual villain. Just because you don't like someone doesn't mean you can't work together. Oh, and Shoto, are you hungry? I have more smoothies if you're interested."

Ben said after rolling his eyes, giving Shoto an inquisitive look. He simply shook his head and stared back at the screen.

“Not really. Besides, I wouldn’t want to separate you two. This is sort of humorous in how idiotic Bakugo is being.”

Izuku continued to try and convince Bakugo to listen to reason only for the two to notice All Might wasn’t where he was previously.

“Here’s a gift to those who want to run away!”

All Might yelled with part of the metallic fence on his feet, trapping Izuku to the ground as he landed on him. The Number 1 Hero didn’t waste any time as he ran straight to Bakugo and laid a swift punch to Bakugo’s gut, causing him to go flying in the air.

Ben shrugged as he took another sip.

"Suit yourself and… yeah I guess it would be kinda funny if this was a tv show, but seeing it in real life is more annoying than anything. Especially when Bakugo is usually good at fighting. If he can't get over this he honestly has no place in the hero business, or anything involving teamwork."

Shoto nodded.

“It’s a real shame. He’s got spunk. If only he could get his head out of his ass.”

Bakugo grunted as he got to his feet, struggling to keep standing. All Might walked forwards before stopping to stare down at the struggling blonde.

“If I had to get help from that scum, then I’d rather lose!”

All Might simply stared as Izuku glared fiercely in the direction of the blonde, activating his Full Cowl. All Might raised his hand ready to strike the boy down.

“Very well!”

"You know, I'm honestly surprised Izuku hasn't hit Bakugo. Or at least trapped him in a Mana bubble. I'd have just done my own thing after he said he'd rather lose than work with me since that's clearly a lost cause. Unless you have super therapy anyway."

Honestly given everything that’s happened up until this point, Izuku was done with trying to reason with Bakugo. If he didn’t want to get his head out of his ass, so be it. He’d rather lose than work with him? Fine.

“Have fun losing.”

Izuku said before breaking free of the temporary prison he was placed in and heading straight towards All Might who was bringing his hand down to attack Bakugo. Izuku landed a powerful five percent punch to the towering man before creating a Mana cage and sprinting away quickly using Full Cowl.

Izuku was fully aware that it wouldn’t take long for All Might to beat Bakugo or to break through that but it would give him some time. Let Bakugo wail on All Might for a short time before he eventually goes after him.

Ben chuckled as he swallowed.

"This is hilarious. I see he was paying attention in Hosu. Still if he's going to do what I think he is the repeated shocks of having his barriers break is going to wreck hell on his mobility, if it doesn't knock him unconscious."

Shoto nodded at Ben’s assessment.

“You make a valid point. Though it was kind of...awesome to see Izuku just land a punch on All Might and leave Bakugo to fight by himself.”

Izuku didn’t bother wasting time on thinking as he had only one thing on his mind. The finish line. He knew that his mobility was going to be out of whack when All Might shattered those chains, but he’d have to power through it.

All Might of course didn’t take long to break out of them, causing large discomfort in Izuku as he continued to sprint to his destination. Bakugo gritted his teeth at how Izuku just left him to fight on his own. He was going to kill that bastard.

Ben laughed as he nodded.

"Honestly, Bakugo can't even be mad he left. He straight up said he'd rather lose than work with Izuku. All he's doing is granting his wish."

Bakugo did put up something of a fight for someone who took a straight hit to the gut from All Might but spunk can only get you so far with the Number 1 Hero. All Might grabbed Bakugo and slammed him straight down harshly into the ground once more.

“It would appear you’re getting what you asked for! At least you’ll lose rather than getting help from your teammate!”

All Might didn’t waste another moment on Bakugo before making his way after Izuku to stop him from passing the finish line and passing.

Ben snickered at the look of angered shock on Bakugo's face that slowly faded as he went unconscious.

"Maybe this will teach him to think before speaking. I hope he enjoys summer school."

Izuku continued to run as he was aware that All Might was on his trail at this point. But he couldn’t let that stop him from passing this test. All Might was no doubt a beast in his own right but Izuku would not lose today.

"Come on Izuku, you're almost there. Just 50 more feet."

Ben said as he leaned in, even as All Might ate up the distance between them in seconds, the barriers Izuku placed behind him were barely even able to be considered inconveniences. Ben frowned as he bit the straw as blood started leaking from Izuku's nose at the repeated breaks.

Izuku panted, ignoring his bleeding nose as he continued to sprint towards the finish line. It was right there, so close. The same could be said for All Might however as he broke through Izuku’s constructs like nothing. Alright, one more.

Izuku soon placed a large construct behind him and it soon pushed him forward at alarming speeds straight past the finish line. He had won. The construct disappeared as Izuku struggled to not pass out as his nose continued to bleed. He’d celebrate when he woke up. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. That was the last thought he had before he finally collapsed.

Ben teleported to catch Izuku before he fell, getting to work to stop the blood flow and helping to speed up his healing.

"So…. That was something. Can't believe Bakugo still hasn't changed much even after 6 months."

Izuku simply nodded, tiredly. To be completely honest, he didn’t give a flying shit about Bakugo right now. He was just happy that he won.

“Well that’s his problem, not mine.”

Izuku said with an exhausted smile. Ben nodded as he teleported Bakugo and put both of them in separate Mana bubbles to deliver them to Recovery Girl.

Ben looked around at the devastation and whistled.

"I'd hate to see what the damage repair costs are for UA if this is standard."

“It’s definitely not pretty Young Tennyson! What’d you think of Young Midoriya’s match?”

The muscle bound hero asked the teen, smiling as always.

Ben shrugged.

"It went as well as I thought it would. Still not sure why they were teamed up together honestly, Bakugo has gotten a bit better personality wise but he's nowhere near enough in terms of growth to work with Izuku. He still can't even go a sentence without trying to insult him."

All Might nodded with his hands folded behind his back.

“You are correct unfortunately. Bakugo is just unable to shake this petty grudge he seems to have with Young Midoriya. He’d better shake it fast or it’s going to be his undoing.”

"Yuuuuup. I suppose I should just be glad neither threw a punch at each other, though I'm not happy Bakugo slapped away Izuku's hand. Hopefully whatever extra training they get for failing straightens him out. Of course if it doesn't I'd be more than happy to take them both aside and have them at my tender mercies until they get over whatever this is."

Ben sighed as he looked at Bakugo.

Finally the day was over and Izuku was awake and able to leave to go home. As he walked through the hall and out the entrance, all he could do was smile. He was able to pass the test today and he was able to stick it to Bakugo. All in all, today was a good day.

"So, anywhere you two want to eat now that we've all passed?"

Izuku shrugged, smiling.

“I’m fine with anywhere.”

Ben looked at Shoto who shrugged.

"Hmm well in that case have either of you ever had american BBQ?"

The two shook their heads at Ben’s question, neither having tired it.

Ben grinned as he clasped both their shoulders and they teleported to America, outside a 24/7 Pappas Bar-B-Q.

"You're going to love this. A word of warning though, the portions are pretty big."

And big they were as their food finally came to them and Izuku and Shoto were in total shock at the size of their food.

“Holy crap!”

Izuku said, laughing in disbelief. It was sort of awesome how big the proportions were.

Ben snickered.

"You know what they say about Texas, everything is bigger here. Including the food portions. These ribs are amazing, but I love the fries the most. The seasoning is to die for."

Ben sighed in happiness as he pulled his ribs, the meat falling off the bone with no resistance at all. The two dug into their meals as well, loving the taste of it. The fact that they were so large made it even better. It’s just more food for them to enjoy.

Ben sighed in happiness as he finished his plate of ribs, fries, and ranch beans.

"You know, I'd totally be open to taking you two wherever in the world for special occasions like this, so feel free to make a list of places you'd like to try. Izuku what do you think Inko would like from here?"

“She really likes fries so those are something you should get her.”

Izuku said as he finished his meal, smiling.

Ben nodded.

"What about the rest of your family Shoto? I'll order it. Also don't even think about paying for any of this."

Shoto thought for a moment before giving Ben a description of what they would like to have from a place like this.

Ben nodded and ordered it as he sipped his Arizona raspberry iced tea. Izuku continued to smile before throwing his trash into the garbage can next to him. Well, today was a productive damn day.

Once the food was ready Ben paid for everything and teleported everyone back to his apartment.

"Ah, also I hope Bakugo wasn't being an ass for giving him what he wanted Izuku."

Izuku turned to look at him before shrugging.

“Typical bullshit. Nothing really new.”

Izuku said nonchalantly as he stretched. Regardless, Izuku was happy that he was able to pass.

"Well if it gets worse just tell me so I can tell Aizawa I'll need you both for a training session along with Shoto and Shinsou. I bet getting his ass beat in team work by the latter two will show him the error of his ways. They've actually gotten pretty good at fighting me, they can almost last 30 seconds."

Izuku chuckled at that as he looked around the apartment.

“Well considering how skilled and resourceful you are, that’s definitely an achievement. I’ll be sure to let you know if it gets worse.”

The green haired boy replied, giving a thumbs up.

Ben nods as he ruffled both of their hair as his suit changes to night clothes.

"You two should get some sleep though, you've both had a tiring day."

Izuku nodded as he placed his hands in his pockets, turning to leave.

“Sure. I hope you get some sleep as well. See you tomorrow Ben.”

The teen smiled before exiting Ben’s apartment with Shoto following after him. Shoto just stared at Izuku before he finally sighed and gave in.

“What?”

“You trying to be carefree is so adorable.”

“Yeah you would think so.”

Ben's smile dropped as the door closed and his defense mechanism started. Thankfully his apartment was sound proof and masked his throwing up of the food he just ate as he heaved. A hardlight clone disposing of the mess.

"What have we learned today Sir?"

Ben rolled his eyes weakly as another clone deposits him on the bed.

" Yeah, yeah, no forcing yourself to eat big portions when you've had little to nothing to eat for weeks. I don't remember programming you to be so sassy."

The clone chuckles as it shrugs.

"We both know I'm self adapting. I have half a mind to keep you here indefinitely until you start taking better care of yourself."

Ben manages a full eye roll as he relaxes as best he can into the covers.

"Please, we're both too heroic to do that."

“You are correct about that. However, you want to save as many people as you possibly can, and you can’t do that if you don’t take care of yourself.”

The clone said, quirking an eyebrow at Ben.

Ben frowns as he sighs.

"It's not like I want to have constant nightmares, insomnia from PTSD, or whatever else I have. We both know the only reason I took the dust is because I'd have crashed sooner or later. Better fitful sleep than none at all. So what if the dust makes my dreams hyper realistic, and so what if those are actually night terrors? Better a broken hero than someone unable to save a life. Besides I already took a week off, any more and they'd probably have forced me into psychiatric care."

The clone nodded with a sigh.

“Yeah...I know. I know your problems because I know you. It may get better, it may not. Since life is notorious for the latter, a lot of the time it doesn’t look so good. We gotta do what we gotta do. It sucks but it’s the truth. That’s all I can really say.”

Ben nods as he steels himself, letting out a slow shaky breath.

"Yeah. So dust me already. Maybe my brain will surprise me and give me actually good dreams this time."

The clone hesitates slightly before nodding and sprinkling some Pesky Dust on Ben, instantly knocking him out.

"Well, whatever the case might be, I'll always be here. Sleep hero, you have a mask to secure in place. Maybe our brain will surprise me and give you actually good dreams this time. Let’s hope so, hero.”

The clone brushes a stray lock of hair in place even as Ben once more gets wrapped in a cocoon of metal.

Ben's eyes shot open as his alarm rang before he laughed in startlement.

"Wow. I… actually didn't dream of anything that time. I vastly prefer that. Here's hoping it's the start of a new trend."

Ben got up and stretched, a real smile on his face as he went to bathe. Izuku was already up and was at the table in the dining room, eating cereal.

Truthfully, he wasn’t sure what was going to happen at school today with Bakugo especially after yesterday. But if Bakugo was smart, he’s not going to have anything to worry about.

Ben stood outside in the hallway with his customary smoothie as he waited for the others to arrive. Shoto and Izuku made their way to the hallway and the three talked as they walked to school.

“So what do you think the camp is going to be like Izuku?”

“Hmm. Probably training but to hellish standards. They’d want us to improve with our quirks so we’d probably be pushing them to their limits.”

Ben nods.

"Ah, and just so you all know if we get attacked, I've personally handled the protection around the camp. No one is going out until I want them to and by the time the barriers down the other Pro Heroes should be ready to crush All For One. We've had our eye on their base for a while making sure we've ransacked their databases and located everyone of importance to the League. They shouldn't be a problem much longer."

Ben smiles as his eyes grow temporarily cold before warming up as he ruffled both of their hair.

"So if all goes according to plan we won't have to worry about them going forward."

Shoto chuckled as he gripped his backpack straps.

“You’re definitely good at thinking ahead.”

Izuku chuckled as he continued to walk with a smile on his face.

Ben shrugs and laughs.

"I suppose. Criminal organizations are all the same really, bad ideologies with no actual plan of improvement. Especially ones helmed by people who view themselves as stronger than everyone else. I for one can't wait for them to be thrown in jail especially after having their Quirks locked away. I'm still pissed they decided to target a class of first years."

The two nodded as they soon entered the school. There wasn’t much to report on really. Aizawa let them know that they would meet at school on Saturday to catch a bus that would take them to the camp. He was cryptic and serious about how grueling it was going to be for all of them. Funny enough, even those who failed were still going to be able to go but they’d have to take extra lessons. It wasn’t long before the three found themselves in the lunchroom and were just asking tough questions.

Shoto sat for a moment before a question popped into his head.

“Would you ever kill a villain?”

Izuku sat there thinking for a moment before speaking.

“That depends.”

Ben for his part nodded without hesitation as he shrugged.

"While ideally you wouldn't want to take a life, sometimes it's necessary, even if it's your own. Our objectives as Heroes is to save lives after all, anything that does that is fine. Although I fully acknowledge the fact most people wouldn't go as far as I would in that regard. I've been told I'm suicidally selfless and I can't really argue the point."

Both Shoto and Izuku nodded at this.

“Yeah, it’s all a situational thing. Also depends on the crime. Like I’m probably not going to take the life of a murderer, even with how serious that crime is. However, crimes...above that will have me considering it.”

Ben hums in thought.

"I suppose I can agree with that, so long as the killer only killed one person. A life time in jail wouldn't be an entirely equal exchange but it's close. Truthfully I was pretty close to killing Stain but I worried his death might cause him to be a martyr. Anything above that though, definitely doesn't deserve mercy especially if there's a chance they can escape. Of course, then there are those too durable to kill without needing more esoteric means. At which point making prisons just for them is definitely ideal."

Shoto nodded at their answers.

“All reasonable takes. You got a question Ben?”

Ben hums as he takes a sip of his seemingly endless supply of smoothies.

"What are your biggest gripes with Hero society as it stands here?"

“It’d probably be how it treats people with “villainous” quirks.”

“How it can easily cause hatred and create radicals with its discrimination.”

While compared to other hypotheticals, it definitely wasn’t the worst outcome out there. However, the obvious problems were just that. Obvious. The way they treat people with “villainous” quirks or no quirks at all is not how they should be doing things.

Ben nods.

"Definitely, it doesn't help that it's all propped on a ranking system that has actually caused massive problems as Shoto can well exemplify. A follow up, seeing as both of you are well on your way to being Pro Heroes, how would you two strive to change Hero society?"

“I’d like to stop the discrimination between those with quirks and those without. It’d definitely be a start to helping to create less radicals.”

“The system ranked on popularity isn’t something a system having to do with heroes should have. I feel like a change with that system would be a step in the right direction.”

The two answered honestly as Izuku sipped from his drink.

Ben nods.

"You know, once you have access to Endeavor's funds you could make a really strong case for it and I'm sure Izuku would get flooded with stories if he said he wanted to build a case to strengthen anti discrimination laws. Actually, you two have great odds at making headway into that now if you started."

The two nodded at Ben’s assessment and decided to keep it in their minds. He had a point, they DID have a good odd of making strong cases for it.

"As for what I'd do…. Assuming I'm still here anyway, is jump start the planet's FTL and cosmic society abilities. I would be helping you campaign but you are for more experienced in your area of expertise. Of course I'd like to get a handle on Quirk crimes before that. I'm already almost done with a nanite that targets and shuts down the Quirk gene for example."

Shoto nodded as Izuku threw away his food. They all had ideas of what they would do to change society for the better, Ben more closer to making it a reality but still. Izuku thought for a moment before speaking.

“Oh how’s training going with you guys?”

Ben does a so-so motion before shrugging.

"Given how little we've been training they've made remarkable strides in the ingenuity in how they use their Quirks, and their teamwork is almost scary. They can pretty accurately win against copies of themselves 8/10 times. I can't wait until I mass produce the hardlight tech since it'd massively enhance training for everyone. The Pro Heroes have actually been using it to take on various League of Villains members."

“Cool! I’ve just been training with Gran Torino and by myself. Maybe I should join you guys.”

"I certainly wouldn't mind it. We can even force Bakugo to come to show him the value of teamwork."

Shoto nodded before shrugging.

“Who knows? He might just learn something.”

Izuku chuckled at that as he rubbed his hair back.

"Of course I won't force it if you don't want to."

“...Let him come. Like Shoto said, he might end up surprising us.”

Izuku said after a few seconds of silence.

Ben nods.

"It's a deal. If Aizawa approves anyway."

“Neat. So how difficult do you think the camp is going to be?”

"It shouldn't be difficult even if the League attacks. I've personally set up a defense system that's practically a duplicate from the one in my apartment. Anyone who goes in definitely isn't leaving while it's up even if they can teleport or go intangible."

Izuku nodded before chuckling.

“I mean how difficult the training was going to be Ben. Though it’s good to know you’re thinking ahead. That’ll keep everyone safe, keep villains from escaping like they always do, and make things less harsh for U.A. in the eyes of the public.”

"Yup. I'm actually kind of looking forward to it. I've been wanting to pay All for One a visit myself for a while now. I'm getting very… tired of him ruining what's supposed to be a vacation."

“I hope you kick his ass then.”

Izuku said, knowing that Ben was feeling...stressed was not the right word to really describe the magnitude of the situation, but stressed lately.

Ben chuckles mirthlessly.

"I just hope I don't go overboard…. I hate when I do that."

“We can be there with you if you want? If you’re afraid of going overboard that is.”

Izuku suggested with a small smile. Ben shakes his head.

"No. Absolutely not. I know his type, he wouldn't hesitate to kill you or worse if he thought I'd listen or spare him. The worst thing is that I absolutely would. Without hesitation. I'd even let him kill me if it came down to it. My life isn't more important than any other after all."

“Yeah...Yeah, that’s fair. Sorry if it was a stupid suggestion.”

The green haired teen said.

"It's fine… I just better not find out you tried to break into the Mana barrier I'll put in place because I'll kick your ass for being so stupid."”

Izuku chuckled at that before shaking his head.

“Don’t worry. You won’t have to worry about it. I’m not that dumb.”

Ben chuckles and shrugs.

"Just making sure. Besides I'll be bringing in All Might."

Shoto nodded at this information and shrugged.

“Well it is the smart thing to do. If any villains are foolish enough to show up, they’re going to have a bad time.”

"You can say that again."

Chapter Text

Bakugo Katsuki was generally agreed by everyone who's ever met him to be surprisingly angry though they'd be quick to nod in understanding after seeing his Quirk. Explosives would make anyone explosive in personality they'd think. Such thoughts only made him angrier. He wasn't some 1 dimensional extra, he was the main character destined to be number 1!

Explosive personality was a given. However, it was unfortunate that it wasn’t positive or at the very least positively determined. Bakugo had a bit of a one track mind when it came to winning. Number 1 was all that mattered and it was his for the taking.

He was rather skilled, intelligent enough, and had determination on him like you wouldn’t believe. He wasn’t really used to anyone being better than him. So of course he would react badly when the status quo changed.

He couldn't help but grit his teeth and let loose small explosions from his hands as he thought back to what clearly changed. Weak, useless Deku upstaged him and he would bet his hands that it all had to do with Ben Tennyson.

That bastard didn't seem to take anything seriously unless people's lives were in danger. Hell if Bakugo was one to bet he'd say Ben treated everything like he was on vacation. He never ever seemed to go out 100% even when anyone else would.

Bakugo let out a hiss as he tasted blood from having bit his lip to keep from screaming in frustration, not wanting to wake up his parents as his mind went to the massacre that was their festival fight.

It was like Tennyson was on a whole different tier from everyone else and it only pissed him off even further. The way he took him down with no difficulty at the festival was humiliating on top of other things.

This wasn't even getting into his casual skill. If Bakugo didn't find it so absurd he'd say Tennyson was just plain better than most of the Pro Heroes in Japan if not the world. Not just in power either but drive. Bakugo would never admit it out loud, or even to himself really, but the look of pure focus and anger Ben had shot at him during the training simulation still haunted him. The way those green eyes sharpened and his face morphed into hard angles was like the calm before the storm.

It didn't make it any better that Ben was probably the most potentially lethal in their class. He had no doubt that if Ben wanted to he could kill scores of people with just a little bit less restraint.

His skill and attitude definitely seemed to spread onto others. Stupid, useless Deku was a clear sign of that. Back then, a single glare would send the kid into next level terror but their test definitely had changed things.

Bakugo tightened his fists as he thought more about it. The way he was able to just take off with no regards to him made him feel anger that even he didn’t think was possible. He really didn’t think the little shit had it in him. Everything was changing and he wasn’t able to react to it quick enough.

Even with all that, it wasn’t what annoyed him the most. What annoyed him the most was that he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do now. All he ever had in his mind was to be seen as the best and let everyone know it. Well he surely didn’t do a good job of showing it.

Bakugo let out a sigh that he had been holding for far too long and loosened the grips on his fists. After all, being the best was all he had in his mind so he wasn’t sure what to do when that wasn’t the case.

He licked his still bleeding lip as he quickly put on clothes for a midnight run to clear his head and burn off energy. In moments he was out of the house and running his usual circuit he used to do to train his stamina and endurance.

As much as I hate to admit it, so long as Ben is in our class I'll never be able to catch up and be number 1. The bastard didn't even have to use his Quirk to humiliate me!

Bakugo made his way down the street with his hands in his pockets as he continued to think. All that happened since Ben showed up just made him angrier. He had such a tight grip on life and the second he shows up, it all falls apart.

There wasn’t a day back then when I would think that Deku would finally grow some balls but it would seem that I was proven wrong again. If I didn’t know any better, even he is potentially stronger than me! What the fuck happened in all that time?

Bakugo grit his teeth as he balled up his fists and ran full tilt, small pops going off as his Quirk was unconsciously used.

I'm supposed to be the main character in this story, not useless Deku! All he even did before Ben arrived was act like a useless tryhard going on about his dream of being a hero while showing no effort to improve himself! I can't believe that spineless twig grew so much in so little time! If I didn't know better I'd think Tennyson gave him super steroids or something, I wouldn't put it past his sci fi bullshit.

Bakugo didn’t want to keep thinking about it any longer, which is why he was sort of relieved when he heard someone scream. Not really because someone was in danger but more because he wouldn’t have to think any longer. The fiery teenager got into a battle stance and headed down the dark alley where he heard the scream.

If one were to look at his entrance to said alley from an omnipresent perspective they'd clearly see his battle maniac grin as he stalked into the alley and saw a perfect opportunity to let loose his frustrations in the most relaxing way possible.

"A rapist huh? Good. They won't care if I rough you up more than necessary. Try not to get knocked unconscious so soon ok?"

Before said rapist could even move in to defend himself he found himself knocked into the dirty alley walls like a ping pong ball from a series of quick precise explosions. His cry of alarm was cut short as a fist rammed into his stomach forcing him to throw up all over his blooded legs.

This brutal beatdown and determination clearly present on the blonde’s face did bring up another question. While it was morally correct to rough up the criminal, was he even really doing it because it was the right thing to do or because it would relieve his stress? That brought along the bigger question. Was he interested in stopping criminals and being a hero because of selflessness or because it was exhilarating?

Bakugo’s powerful sharp hits continued for a while as he grunted as each attack landed. He didn’t stop until he figured he was taking it too far and the blood forming on his hands was evident of that. He huffed at the beaten unconscious criminal in front of him before turning to the victim.

Upon being met with his fiery red gaze she flinched back, visibly quaking as she stared at the blood pooling from her would-be rapist and dripping down from the youth's hands, even now popping off with small explosions. Her quaking just got worse as the boy frowned and reached out to her, a move he quickly stopped as she flinched back fully heedless of the wall behind her.

"P- please stay away, don't touch me!"

Bakugo blinked as just for a moment the woman was replaced by a similarly quaking green haired boy, their look of fear the same as their whole body quaked. The phantom vanished as Bakugo in turn flinched as if punched himself, body quickly reporting the incident anonymously, vaguely aware he'd get expelled if he was found in this situation.

Before he knew it he was back in bed and physically cleaned, even if he could still feel phantom blood flowing down his hands no matter how hard he scrubbed. He could only stare at the ceiling as the parallels of that woman and Deku plagued his mind. His hand reached up and was soon on his forehead as he sighed.

“Good God…”

He couldn’t just ignore it now. He couldn’t push it away and look for another distraction to keep him from facing it. It just kept replaying and replaying in his mind and it wasn’t going to stop anytime soon.

It made him sick, knowing the woman was more scared of him than her potential rapist. It made him feel even worse knowing they both had the same look of resigned terror, bodies wanting to move but knowing it's useless. His mind recalled the dozens of times he's seen De- no seen Izuku react that way.

"Some Hero I am. No one wanting to be one would ever see that once and keep doing it. I did, so what does that make me?"

Well he had accepted it. Now what was he going to do about it. He wasn’t entirely sure. Trying to change himself was the obvious answer but that’s not something that happens over night. You have to go through legitimate growth in order to truly change. If you’ve wronged someone, even if you’ve become the best person you can be, they could always still hate you regardless.

Bakugo knew redemption wasn’t based on whether or not someone believed you changed or not but the idea of everyone still looking at him as a terrible person definitely didn’t make him feel too good about himself.

Slow down ‘hero’. You haven’t even made any change yet. All you’ve done is just realized what you’ve been doing and how you’ve been acting is wrong. Don’t go trying to play victim when you’ve done nothing to prove otherwise...yet.

Bakugo nodded at the voice that suspiciously sounded like Ben. He was right. Even if Izuku hated him forever, that was more than fine. He'd deserve it. He… Just has to start small. Baby steps.

Unbidden his mind flashed back to something Ben said in jest.

"Yeah, being angry all the time just kinda gives away your Quirk doesn't it? I mean obviously the person with explosive outbursts would have a Quirk to match…. It'd actually be a pretty effective psychological warfare tool to be a silent fighter for you. Like an explosive ninja, once they hear you coming it'd be too late. Plus, it'd probably do you some good to take some anger management classes. You know, reshape your temper and personality to be a little less like...that."

Anger management huh? That definitely seems to be in order given how she reacted to me trying to see if she was ok….

Worst part is it wouldn’t even just be Izuku he’d need to adjust his attitude towards. Bakugo was a bit of a dick towards… well everyone. The blonde sighed as he continued to stare up at the ceiling.

No real guarantee that I’ll be able to truly make that change but… I never was one to quit.

Before Bakugo could chicken out he sent Aizawa a text to schedule appointments for him with the school counselor which he quickly agreed to before telling him to get some sleep.

For the first time in forever Bakugo felt himself relax slightly, body untensing as he let out a slow breath.

"An explosive ninja huh…? Maybe I'll get there one day."

Chapter Text

Shoto Todoroki was observant, keenly so, not just through natural gifts but as a means of survival. He knows quite well that the common idea of abuse victims walking on eggshells around abusers is true. It's one of the first things he noticed about Izuku, his now step brother.

Even now after weeks in his new home he still couldn't quite believe it. He was free , finally free. No more waking up at 3 am for two hour sessions of work out that was more his sperm donor beating him up than actually training him. No more constant tension and fear of saying/doing the wrong thing or using the wrong tone.

It feels alien in the best way possible. He wasn’t entirely used to the feeling and something told him he'd be feeling that way for a while. Living with Izuku and his family was definitely a positive change for everyone. Izuku’s mother was a godsend in every meaning of the word. He didn’t… hate his mother but there was definitely some bad blood between the two of them.

Izuku’s mom took care of them all, she treated them with respect, and best of all she loved every single one of them. Something they didn’t receive from their sperm donor.

Shoto let out a slow breath as he tried in vain to fall asleep again, having woken up silently from a nightmare he still can't shake. His father, out of whatever hell hole they put him in and dragging Shoto back to their house, as his home, the only one he's really had, burns to the ground with both of his new and old family nothing but charred corpses.

No matter how badly he wanted to move into Izuku's top bunk for a hug he couldn't do it. It wouldn't feel right. He's already been enough of a burden to him as is. So he did what he's always done, use his ice to physically numb himself.

As he did this, he continued to think about Izuku and how he felt like a burden. While Shoto was eternally grateful, he couldn’t help but feel bad for him. Shoto and his siblings did come in and essentially take away a good part of his mother’s attention and care from him. Izuku kept telling him it didn’t bother him but Shoto just couldn’t shake the feeling. After all, when he was aware of what true parental and familial love felt like, he wouldn’t want to just give it away. So of course he felt like he was doing that to Izuku.

In an effort to distract himself from his thoughts he looked to the far wall, which was all that was separating him from the person responsible for everyone's life changing. Ben Tennyson. He could hardly believe such a person existed. He was the embodiment of what a Hero should be even if outwardly he didn't appear to take anything seriously.

Shoto knew in his bones that if it came down to it Ben would kill himself if it meant saving even just one life more. This wasn't a job for him or even a lifestyle, but who he WAS at his core. You could never take away being a Hero from Ben because they were one and the same concept.

Shoto was sure that if he could, Ben would martyr himself and take upon all the evils the universe had to offer himself so no one else would have to feel their burden. Shoto was pretty sure that all that selflessness and responsibility wasn’t too healthy for someone of Ben’s age. Especially considering he has been doing this since he was only ten years old.

He still owes it all to Ben who had been able to do something he wasn’t sure was entirely possible. Stand up against his sperm donor. Call him out on his bullshit. Make sure he knew just how wrong and evil he truly was. Shoto stopped using his ice to numb himself for a minute as he continued to think on the subject.

The memory of Ben manhandling his father effortlessly was one of Shoto's guilty pleasures. The look of shock and rage as the number 2 Hero was laid to waste was art in its truest form. It warmed him even now thinking about it, knowing Ben would never use that power with an ounce of evil intent.

It was sort of humorous to him how this teenager was a much better example of a hero than the fully grown man with more years of experience. But it just felt so good when Ben and Izuku had voiced their concern about what his sperm donor was doing. It might have given him a bit of … hope that things would change. The fact that what kind of person he is was known around the world was also pretty great.

Shoto blinked in surprise as the numbness in his face finally went away to reveal a smile he didn't know he had. It was quickly wiped away into his usual stoic expression as Shoto resisted the urge to grimace and slowly allowed the smile to form again hesitantly.

Showing emotion isn't a weakness anymore! I don't have to keep my guard up any longer, always wary of getting his attention. I'm allowed to be happy, I refuse for him to take away something so basic in human nature.

Shoto hated himself a little as he shivered in fright as his mind unwittingly brought forth the phantom image of his father's scowling face.

That cold, unchanging glare that was always placed upon him. He hated it. He hated that his stare was enough to get him to silence up, to feel true fear. He would never wish it upon anyone else, that’s how horrible it was. He wasn’t even sure if he had ever seen his sperm donor smile in a situation that didn’t benefit him.

He didn’t see him as his son, all he saw was the perfect mold that he could change into the perfect hero that he was too weak to become himself. Shoto gulped for a minute before his mind drifted to his step brother that was asleep above him.

I won’t let him ruin this for me too. I won’t. Ben, my siblings, Izuku’s mom, and Izuku all care for me. I know they do.

Izuku always said that if he ever needed to talk, he’d be there. It didn’t matter what Izuku was dealing with at the moment, he’d always be available. Shoto hesitated for a moment before getting off the bed and climbing to the top bunk.

Izuku's breath hitched as he heard movement before recognizing the footfalls as Shoto. Without a word he scooted over so he could get in under the covers and just barely avoided flinching off the bed entirely as he felt how cold he was.

"You doing ok?"

Shoto thought for a moment before speaking.

“I’m not sure.”

Izuku nodded at his answer before replying.

“Do you need a solution or just someone to listen and be there?”

“The latter.”

Izuku nods as without a further word he brings in Shoto for a hug under the covers.

"You aren't usually this cold, is your Quirk acting up or something?"

".... Or something. I usually do this to try and distract myself from my problems or help me go to sleep."

Izuku lets out a hum, thinking of another person he knew who had trouble sleeping.

"Nightmares again I take it?"

"Yeah."

Shoto was well aware that even placed in this new amazing, welcoming home that his trauma wasn’t going to disappear like it never existed. He knew it but he just hated how his father continued to torment him even when he’s in jail.

"Is this making you feel better?"

Shoto nods, not trusting himself to speak clearly from how effortlessly caring and measured Izuku was. He supposed that there really was merit in the saying broken people know how to heal others of their kind, being intimately familiar with the cracks and jagged edges trauma can leave behind.

He wasn’t used to hugs but the amount that he had received from Izuku slightly overwhelmed him in the best way possible. He knew how to help him and he was ready to do so at any time.

“...Thanks Izuku.”

"No problem. You know, I'm ok with you sleeping in my bed if you want. Apparently I'm very good at helping others go to sleep."

Shoto barely got a nod off before he found himself asleep too. He knew that his trauma would never fully go away but he’d get through it. With these people at his side? Of course he would.

His dream thankfully wasn't more of the same nightmare he's been constantly having. In fact it was more of a series of recollections starting from the results of the UA entrance exam where he saw someone managed to get a perfect score in all fields, a first in UA history. Ben Tennyson.

The news spurred on his father to be particularly vicious during the weeks leading up to the first day of school. They only got worse upon hearing how Ben effortlessly beat him in their urban combat simulation.

Though even Shoto was hesitant to call their fight one at all. It was more like Ben was toying with them and reveling in his part more than anything. Shoto would never admit it out loud but the image of that ghost-like form splitting his sides open plays a part in a number of his nightmares. His sperm donor would suddenly go intangible as impossible as that was before possessing Shoto and using the weapon he raised to burn and ice away anything that made him weak.

Soon all that was left was a world of ice and fire, the bodies of his friends and family unrecognizable. All except for one. Even with his rampage the watch Ben had on was perfectly fine. It was a horrifying thought to say the least. Shoto did have his fair share of fears but this one terrified him the most.

His sperm donor was already the ex Number 2 Hero in the world, 3 if you put Ben in the mix. But the thought of his sperm donor with all that power horrified him to no end. He was a witness first hand to what his father was capable of...him with that amount of power would only end in chaos.

Shoto’s eyes widened for a moment before they fell back to a dull look. He took in a deep breath and slowly let it out as he began to calm down. Thankfully however, someone who was much more deserving than anyone else was in possession of that power.

Shoto let out a soft sigh as Izuku seemed to notice his fear and hugged him tighter even in the throes of sleep.

After a few calming breaths his mind went on the previous track, skittering around how Ben ended his fight for fear of a relapse and going into the other eventful event of that day. Bakugo's attempted murder via negligence and Ben's fury. He unconsciously shivered as he remembered the glare he sent to the explosive boy.

If Shoto was a criminal he'd be certain he would have gone straight just from seeing it second hand, let alone having it trained on him in specific. He didn’t think much of Bakugo, after all he had other things on his mind at the time. But he was a bit shocked that someone of his...personality was so interested in becoming a hero.

Shoto was quite aware that Bakugo seemed like the type to do something rash but attempting to murder Izuku, not even thinking about the repercussions. Someone like that was not fit to be a hero at all. Shoto hugged Izuku a little tighter, as he thought about how he had to go through this for ten years. How Izuku never snapped was beyond him.

Izuku hugged him back tighter, unconsciously calling out Ben's name in his sleep as he snuggled up to Shoto. The boy in question barely withheld a laugh as he let Izuku get comfortable.

It seems Ben is really popular tonight huh? Wasn’t much of a shock however. Ben was the person who was able to show them that the way things are now didn’t have to be the status quo. That just because that’s how things always were didn’t make them right. It’d be an insult not to be thinking about him. Whether it be in admiration, love, or hate from a select few, Ben Tennyson was just a thought that kept on coming.

Unbeknownst to the two boys sleeping on the top bunk the AI, currently split three ways each in a copy of one of Ben's transformations, chuckled as it kept watch over him. It seems some things really are a constant, no matter how hard Ben tries to blend in to the crowd he'll quickly become in/famous despite his best efforts to lay low.

"It seems our vacation won't be much of one in a few months, weeks if certain parties connect certain dots."

The class wasn’t much different in their thinking. In the middle of all the studying and fun they were having, their world was changing around them as they knew it. All thanks to one person as well. It was already a shock just how experienced Ben seemed to be as a hero for someone who is in training like they were but the fact that he was able to defeat Endeavor?! Not even that. Defeat is lowballing what he did to the supposed Number 2 Hero of the world. It was like he was nothing compared to him. In another world, they might have felt bad but after learning the truth, sympathy was not present.

The students of 1A were quickly cottoning on to the fact Ben wasn't who he claimed to be and the villains already knew, the demolishing of Endeavor more than enough precedent. Headlines exposing Ben's actions were impossible to stop despite UAs best efforts and soon enough he wasn't just the talk of two boys on a bunk bed, but the world.

In his sleep Ben shivered as he felt the familiar vulture's eye of the media closing in on his vacation all over again. Ben was always up to help anyone don’t get him wrong there. It wasn’t just his job, it’s who he is. But he’s been dealing with the media for four years and it hasn’t gotten any easier. The fact that this getaway to this universe was supposed to be a vacation only made it worse.

Seeing his shiver the AI let out a soft chuckle as it smoothed over his hair to calm him down.

"You know what they say about good deeds Ben. They never go unpunished. Unfortunately for us the media here seems to be even worse than back home."

Though Ben had made it clear how much it worried and disappointed him, just how media and popularity obsessed this world was. Not to mention, how they treat people with different types of quirks...or lack thereof. Those combined were just a recipe for disaster. Endeavor had proven that greatly and he had a feeling if they didn’t get to Shinsou, they might’ve had a similar problem.

It was why he was glad that Izuku and Shoto had a better understanding of what it means to be a hero. Their goals to change their society makes him rest a little easier. Not by much but something is better than nothing. He had to keep reminding himself of that every now and again. With any luck, the changes to society wouldn't cause too many problems but he'd be there to help move things along.

Chapter Text

The villainous Albino was worrying away at one of the numerous scabs on his body as he looked at the screen in front of him, currently showing the fall out of that damnable Ben Tennyson's fight with Endeavor. The number 2 Hero, ex Hero now, was soundly defeated by a teenager. No, not just defeated, he was absolutely obliterated in the fight.

He bit down hard on his bottom lip, hard enough to make it bleed, as he thought back to the USJ massacre. That boy single handedly ruined a perfect plan to kill All Might. Using his own quirk no less!

There was something that was not right about that boy. He was far too skilled, far too experienced, and far too mature to be some hero in training. The way he didn’t hesitate in almost killing him during the USJ massacre immediately tipped him off.

If he were placed in the same situation with any of the other heroes in training, hell even some Pro-Heroes, they would hesitate to go that far or even attempt it in the first place. Ben Tennyson heard him state that he would never stop and he wasn’t afraid of getting killed on his quest and that was all he needed.

The scratching of his scabs didn’t falter as he continued to analyze the screen in front of him and his mind continued to swirl multiple different thoughts before landing on just one.

Who the hell is this kid?

He looked to the ever present Kurogiri as the thought solidified into a need to find out.

"Hey, remember that stupidly OP NPC we fought in USJ? What do you make of him? He doesn't make any sense to me. It's like he's on a New Game +."

At the mention of the hero in question the smoke around Kurogiri rippled in agitation.

"Yes… Ben Tennyson is quite the mystery. He seemingly has an endless amount of Quirks, and that energy he can manipulate is somehow able to stop my Quirk dead in its tracks. Like the energy doesn't just exist here and now, but past the physical space it occupies."

Shigaraki nodded at this as he looked back at the screen. It just didn’t make any sense whatsoever. If someone this powerful was active, then ‘he’ definitely would’ve known about him and even if he didn’t, someone would have. There was no mention or record of him that they could find that was similar to Tennyson. It’s just like he randomly appeared one day and started being a hero.

The confusion wasn’t the only thing that bothered the villain. The amount of power that he held was infuriating. The way he easily defeated people or outthought them in battle made it seem as if this was no challenge provided to him. Not by a hero, not by a villain, there was nothing that could seem to stop him and that made him seethe.

Shigaraki couldn't stop himself from shuddering once at the horror he felt at losing control of not only his body but Quirk before it was used to disintegrate the Nomu. The sensations were there but he had no control.

"He's definitely cheating somehow, I just know it! His records we found made no mention of his OP powers let alone his skills. They're just…. Clean. Like he was body snatched or something."

It just didn’t make any sense. There was definitely something strange going on with that boy and his abilities. His abilities added on top with his skill and maturity, placed him well above all the super powered individuals in the world!

The villainous Albino wasn’t sure how he was doing it but he would. He would find it out and then take that power for himself. A child cannot, will not, and should not be the biggest threat to his plans. Ben Tennyson was not going to ruin them, no matter how OP he is.

"There is another odd thing actually, besides his power and skill. I've tried repeatedly to attack his home via portals, but it seems he's found a way to wrap his energy around it and several blocks past it too. In fact, it's been increasing in radius. Soon enough it'll even reach the bounds of UA itself."

That made his seething hatred leap enough to where he accidentally activated his quirk as he slammed his fists on the table in front of him, turning it into so much ash.

"He's being proactive?! You're our most mobile asset! If you're neutralized how're we going to function! We need to kill him fast, there's no way to know just how far he can stretch whatever OP energy he has! For all we know he can stretch it around the globe!"

Kurogiri was taken aback for a moment as the table was turned to dust and ash just like that. The shadowy villain regained his composure as he gave that some thought. If Ben Tennyson were to stretch this defense around the globe, his ability would be rendered practically useless. What the hell is this kid?

“If we were to go about it, how would we? He clearly seems to know what he’s doing and people with defenses like this aren’t just leaving themselves open to attack.”

Shigaraki bit back a scream as his gaming system crashed to the floor and the screen cracked, much like his patience and inhibition.

"Isn't it obvious? Since we've faced the final boss so early and we can see his weak little friends … well. If we can't take care of the boss right now we can kill his minions. He's surrounded by noobs after all and they camp away in a stronghold 5 days a week. If we kill enough there we'd hit him where he'd never be able to recover. It's not like he's OP enough to save people from death after all."

He grins as he stomps on his now useless machine, it's guts spilling all over the floor as he imagined the look of horror on Ben's face as his classmates die in front of him.

Kurogiri looked at the Albino villain and went into thought for a moment. While that could be the case for an average hero or hero in training, something told him that Ben would not be quite the same.

Considering how powerful the child was and how quick he was to use such power to protect others, he felt even the attempt of such a thing would be the end of them all. But, he supposed that could also be the case for every other hero they’ve faced. A sigh was released from him before he spoke.

“That is the most logical as even together, we wouldn’t face a chance against the boy as much as I hate to admit it.”

The albino nods.

"Of course if we're to do this we'll need to make sure to kill as many Pro Heroes as possible since they'd swarm like maggots after the initial attack. We can still make use of your Quirk to bomb as many places as possible before going after UA proper."

Kurogiri nodded at what was just said as the idea continued to grow and swirl around in his head. It would definitely make things a bit easier for them. One overpowered superhero taken out due to trauma and several pro heroes and heroes in training taken out permanently for extra measure. Not to mention, it would definitely send a better message to the world than what happened with their last attempt.

Unbeknownst to them they were being watched by a bug created by Ben earlier. Aizawa sighed in irritation as he put more eye drops in his eyes before looking at Nezu.

"I know we should wait until they mobilize but it really rubs me wrong that they're talking about killing my students. Thankfully All Might wasn't here to see this otherwise their base would have been a crater before white haired and murderous finished talking."

The white furred principal nodded in agreement as he continued to ponder on what was just said. Truthfully, this group was getting far too ambitious for anyone’s liking, especially his. Aizawa was right and these individuals were quite lucky that All Might wasn’t listening to this.

“It would make more sense to wait for them to mobilize but to take care of them now would not be a horrible option either. We would have to go over an actual plan of doing so with Mr. Tennyson and All Might as well. You know, after calming him down from the news of what they’re planning. They are a constant and it’s quite clear they are not going to stop until they win. Normally, I would hold doubt for a student having a way to potentially take away someone’s quirk permanently but Mr. Tennyson continues to shatter my doubt with every move he makes. Not to mention, after our unfortunate incident with the former second hero in the world, taking down this ‘League of Villains’ would be a good place to regain some trust from the general public.”

Aizawa nods.

"Still given the level of technology Ben's original reality has, as we've both seen examples of multiple times like that barrier he placed around the Sports Festival in case of attack, it wouldn't surprise me if he already had some idea on how to do it. Though if he ever actually makes it we'd definitely need to keep it under lock and key, there's no telling what the public would do if they find out we can take away Quirks."

Nezu nodded as he interlocked his fingers.

“Considering the knack he has for planning ahead, I wouldn’t doubt it. The last thing we need is a panic regarding the abilities of a majority of the population.”

Aizawa nods before pausing halfway and pinching the bridge of his nose as he sighs.

"Fuck. I think he has this place bugged too."

The screen they were watching the feed from whited out before a hologram of Ben showed up.

"Not quite. Ben doesn't actually view these himself. I'm… well I guess you could call me a digital clone of him he made when he first turned 18 to help deal with things that were piling up at the time. It really helped when he blacked out for a week after turning into a new alien form and being overwhelmed from it's cosmic empathy going haywire. Thankfully he's asleep right now, finally anyway. I keep telling him to not pull all nighters but…"

The hologram sighs as he looks behind him at what appeared to be an enclosed shell with a Mana barrier in place.

"It's to stop him from escaping in his night terrors. As you can imagine, having him transform during one of those wouldn't be good."

They listened intently at what the digital clone had to say and nodded with understanding. Granted, they did have concerns and empathy for what Ben had to deal with. No one at his age should have to deal with such responsibility and trauma but they did suppose that it was inevitable with his line of work.

“Would Ben be interested in having appointments with a therapist? We’re sure that he has one in his own universe but he’s currently not there.”

Aizawa asked, concerned for the boy’s wellbeing especially with what the clone had described to them.

The clone snorted in laughter as he cleared away a digital tear.

"Ben and therapy? You'd have to freeze time for him to even consider that and even then he wouldn't be able to focus on it. His heroic drive is literally the best and worst thing about him. Everyone who's known him and sees his struggle has wanted him to do it or something like it but he's refused."

The clone grimaces as he looks at the shell.

"As much as I hate it, it's pretty much true that Ben will only rest once he's dead. He's only here because I got into contact with Paradox through Gwen after seeing the shit show he had to deal with after transforming back from his week long black out. He was famous before, but going on a week-long 24/7 crusade across the cosmos dealing with suffering and ending several shades of criminal rings would boost anyone's popularity. It certainly didn't help that his cosmic empathy made his night terrors worse.”

Silence fell upon the room as the clone explained the likelihood of Ben ever going to therapy and the true extent of what the boy was going through. Even then, they felt like that was only just scratching the surface. If there was one good thing that could be made out of all that it was Ben really was a true hero for better and for worse.

The clone turns back to the teachers and shrugs.

"As awful as this might sound, this whole thing was supposed to be a vacation for him. Something to distract him from his fame and the crushing weight of expectations back home. It definitely has a lot less crime. But... well as you can probably tell Ben has a hard time staying out of the spotlight. I've done what I can to stem his popularity without out right denying freedom of the press and general information sharing but I'm sure you've seen him pop up on the news and discussion online. Thankfully no one has really caught on to his vigilantism otherwise it'd be impossible to stop the media from hounding him like backhoms, and if that happens too soon it might trigger his PTSD."

The group of heroes thought on the clone’s words for a while. Ben’s situation was definitely becoming more and more unfortunate, the more information was being given to them. On general assumption, this wouldn’t be something that Ben’s current friends would be able to talk to him about. The people who cared about him in his own reality surely have tried and failed already.

The hologram sighs as he shakes his head.

"His mental state aside he'd definitely want to mobilize once he gets caught up with what the League of Villains is planning. Have either of you had a chance to use his teleportation tech yet? He'd definitely want to use it to surround their stronghold once they've gathered all in one place. Once they have a Mana barrier it would be more than enough to make sure it'll be like shooting fish in a barrel."

Aizawa then spoke up about this.

“We haven’t had the chance to test this technology out just yet, but if Ben is confident that it will be more than enough for the League Of Villains, then we will definitely get onto it.”

The rest of the Pro Heroes nodded at this in agreement. Ben Tennyson was certainly something. He seemed to be on top of everything and will go to every length to make sure evil is taken care of. Perhaps they had something to learn from this.

“In any case, the League Of Villains’ leader is nothing to write home about. His specific personality and level of maturity definitely isn’t doing him any favors.”

The hologram shrugs as it sends over a nanoforge set to make teleportation devices.

"Shigaraki was never the person to worry about. All For One was always the mastermind behind everything. Once he's dead and we deal with the power vacuum left behind this world should have a long era of peace. I'd suggest testing out the teleportation since most people get dizzy the first few times. Just pass your hand over the forge and it'll make one keyed to your biosignature and that fits just right."

Nezu nodded at what the clone had said to the two of them. The clone’s plan made sense and it would definitely be for the best of everyone. He was always more of a logical thinker and getting rid of All For One would be the start to fixing a lot of the issues they were currently dealing with.

Even if killing was still an iffy issue for the white rodent, he couldn’t deny that it was for the best.

The hologram nods before flinching slightly as the cocoon shakes and starts to unfurl as Ben wakes up. The last thing either of the adults see is Ben's bare chest as he rubs his eyes. The brunette sighed as he shook his head. It had been a more peaceful night of sleep compared to others he’s had. So he wasn’t so much in the mood for complaining.

He wasn’t sure what his clone had been doing in his sleep but he had no doubt that it was something helpful. After all, it was in basic terms, him.

"I see you had a good night's sleep, without Pesky Dust's help this time. I'm glad and you'll be even more so now that we know what the League is planning."

The hologram plays the clip from the League and holds up a hand to stall Ben's anger.

"It's fine. UA is already taking the necessary steps to get ready and make sure All Might doesn't act on his own. All we need to do is find and kill All For One."

"That's easy enough. I can just use my Lenopan form to find him. Once I have it'd be easy to teleport him into their base and kill them all.”

The clone nodded at Ben’s words as it would be that easy in order to locate them. It would definitely be a sight to see the look on their faces once Ben shows up. Ben was also glad to hear that UA was making sure All Might didn’t act on his own. He understood the anger but it just wasn’t the right choice nor call.

Ben gets up and stretches as his clothes dissolve so he can take a relaxing hot bath for the stress ahead.

"Just make sure none of the students in 1 A get involved. If they do, they could get hurt or worse."

He doesn't stay to hear what his digital clone said as he went into the bathroom for some much needed stress relief. With a thought the water in it acted as if he was in a jacuzzi and he sighed as his body relaxed.

The teen let out a sigh as he enjoyed being in the hot bath. Considering his moral compass and his job as a hero, there weren’t many times where he truly got the chance to relax. Hell, it’d be weeks before deciding to take a day off. And even then, it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for him to forget about said day off and go help out anyway.

He figured he’d need it not just to relieve himself of some stress but to take his mind off of the stress that he’d need to deal with soon.

As Ben sat in his bath his eyes glowed green as he searched for All For One. In an instant his mind brushed through thousands of minds before finally finding his target. He briefly thought about killing him then and there by crushing his mind before thinking better of it. It wouldn't be as effective a morale destroyer if they suddenly found him brain dead…. But that didn't mean Ben couldn't put a trigger into him to make him die once he was at the League.

With a moment's hesitation Ben did just that. Once he realizes he's at the League's base his heart will speed up until it bursts inside his chest as he has the world's worst heart attack.

Considering the nature of the individuals that All For One has manipulated and gathered, seeing their wise and cunning master fail to a heart attack would definitely be morale destroying. Especially considering he seems to be the type to have fall back plans for his fall back plans.

Don’t get Ben wrong. He believed in second chances, he believed in redemption but what he didn’t believe in was the idea that everyone deserved them. At a certain point, your crimes become far too evil and life endangering to warrant the ability to make amends. And All For One was past that point 7 years ago.

Ben sighed as he dived into the minds of every League member All For One knows about, marking them just the same as their leader should they be past redemption. Why stop at one murder when monsters could go free at some point? His time as a cosmic empath has made his views on death dealing far more strict. Some people genuinely didn't deserve a chance to redeem themselves. It's not like this is the first time he's ever killed anyone…. but it does certainly feel different premeditating it instead of it being in the heat of the moment.

Even to the point of manipulation, you lose the chance once it’s clear that you’re not willing to stop what you’re doing. Plus, it’s not like it was mind control or their minds were altered like how Kevin was when he absorbed the Ultimatrix. And even then, Ben was planning on it when it was clear Kevin wasn’t going to stop.

In the end, all they're doing is reaping what they sowed. This way at least no Pro Heroes will have to deal with causing a death. They can put the blame all on his shoulders. He couldn’t be sure that any of them would be able to handle that and he didn’t want to put them in a position where they have to.

Ben couldn't help the chuckle that escaped. He could hear Gwen reprimand him now. She'd definitely tell him he's putting too much on his shoulders again but heroics is all about sacrifice for the greater good. He doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. If he can stop people from feeling unnecessary pain he would.

Ben shakes his head as he closes his eyes to focus. Whenever he gets too into self sacrifice he can hear the cosmic cry of his alien phoenix and the urge to transform into it again. To help ease and stop suffering everywhere.

The hero let out a sigh as his hand rubbed through his hair as he continued to think in the shower. It wasn’t like he necessarily felt bad about it per say. Some people just didn’t deserve that chance and from what All Might’s told him, All For One is one of those people. Not to mention a few in the League Of Villains as well.
With a shake of his head Ben steps out of the bath, having to force himself from the Jacuzzi like water, before phasing the water off him and his clothes forms as he styles his hair.

"Enough stalling Ben. Maybe after you do this you can actually get back to this being a relaxing vacation."

With a green flash he was in the walls of the hideout, intangible as he waited for AFO to arrive to set off the chain reactions. Once he died and the others marked for death do too the heroes will teleport in, keyed to go through the Mana forcefield that's going to be put in place while AFO has his deadly heart attack.

He continued to observe the group of villains in his hiding spot until a figure that caused the others to freeze arrived. Considering Ben’s eighteen years of superheroing, it wasn’t the worst sight he’s ever seen but for anyone else he could definitely see why.

But there was no time for introductions. There was no time for a conversation and there definitely wasn’t any time for planning anything. Not for these individuals.

A word wasn’t even stated before it began. All For One’s large hand came to his chest for a second, symbolizing something was wrong. It didn’t take long for the imposing mastermind to let out a dry yelp of pain before he collapsed onto the ground, much to the surprise of his underlings.

Surprise turned to dread and fear as moments after their boss took his last breath several members of the group likewise toppled to the ground with rasps of pain. They went to flee only for various flashes of light to signal forth the teleportation of Pro Heroes. They only hesitated slightly at the clearly dead bodies as Ben encased the group in another Mana barrier so they wouldn't try anything funny as he became tangible again.

All in all, it was a job well done in the sense that evil was thwarted and no one innocent had to be put in harm’s way. After all, these sinister mastermind types usually have fallback plans for their fallback plans. So, if All Might were to have gone after All For One himself, the villain most definitely would’ve had something to either physically stop All Might or mentally break him.

It was definitely a bit strange to see it happen but it’s not like everyone in the group was killed as there were still several that could still see redemption.

"I hope you brought all the Quirk canceling cuffs. Especially for that teleporter. I hope you all don't hold it against me for doing what I did. The people that died here today would never have stopped until they were dead and they'd have used every chance they had to make other's lives worse."

The Pro Heroes did have the Quirk canceling cuffs in question with them. I mean, they did have Ben go through the difficult part of killing All For One and the members that were too far gone, it’d be idiotic of them to not have. Most of the heroes were not ok with killing even if it did come to sinister criminals but they couldn’t deny that it was for the greater good.

“We don’t kid. You did what was right and that’s all that matters.”

Was the reply from Aizawa as he looked at what was left of the League Of Villains.

Ben sighs in relief as he nods.

"Thanks. I … don't suppose you could keep my name out of the report? I'd really rather not have the fame such a thing would cause. I already have teaching Endeavour a lesson on live tv. That and I wouldn't be surprised if people start trying to attack my class just to get to me."

Ben frowns in distaste, having had to deal with that once already when news broke about his name on Earth thanks to Jimmy exposing his identity in a bid to be helpful.

Aizawa nodded at the teenager’s words before placing a hand on his shoulder.

“We can do that. We don’t want any more unnecessary attention on you, if that's what you wish.”

Aizawa wasn’t a hero that was used to basking in attention nor glory. Given the nature of his quirk he preferred to keep to himself but from what Ben has told him, he’s got enough attention on him as is. The least they could do is try to take some of it off his shoulders.

Ben nods in thanks, checking that everything was in order before waving.

"The barrier will drop once one of you exits it. I'll be heading home. If you need anything don't hesitate to call, yeah?"

A flash later had Ben right back where he was before another lands him on Mars so he can think in peace.

Even if his vacation doesn't calm down he can at least rest easy knowing he's dealt with this place's version of Vilgax at least. He sat down on a rock with his hands on his face and continued to think. Not only did he do that but he took any soul crushing responsibility off Izuku’s back so he didn’t have to take on someone like All For One.

Sure, there were definitely still issues with this world that needed change but as far as things stand right now, it wasn’t too bad in comparison to how it could’ve been. His name will be kept out of the report so he doesn’t have to worry about the public hounding him like they did in his universe. So with all that in mind, there was still a chance for this to work out as a vacation just yet.

As Ben spent the day decompressing on Mars the LOV has been dismantled worldwide and all its members jailed, with the living masterminds given personal jails in Tartarus.

Shikgaraki could only claw at his useless hands, now unable to do anything at all. He didn't know how Ben did it but he was sure he caused it. The sight of someone as powerful as AFO dying of a fucking heart attack of all things wasn't as a morale destroyer for him as it was others. No. It made him SEETH with rage.

At this point the albino no longer cared about All Might. No. He just wanted Ben. Dead. In every sense of the word.

Kurogori didn’t even know what to feel. Something about their master dead on the ground in seconds of a heart attack was doing something to him that he couldn’t even begin to describe. Shikgaraki was muttering and swearing in his own cell while the former teleporter simply just stared forward lost. Why they were spared from that same fate was unknown to him but it did definitely put some things into perspective on what Ben was truly capable of and it was terrifying.

Chapter Text

The whole world was only talking about one thing after the LoVs fell. The leaked video of how it happened. Even though there was no blood in the video it was still the most frightening thing most anyone has ever seen. Before it aired whoever released it helpfully identified every villain on screen and did a playful little slideshow listing their powers and position in said league. The first time it aired, on all public screens in the world, people weren't really sure what they were looking at. Only afterwards was it clear that whoever the leaker was seemingly knew every language on Earth since the slideshow had the native tongue and cultural humor down pat.

At first the people watching it were confused about the slideshow but it became immediately apparent that they were watching the downfall of said villains as All For One grasped his chest in sudden pain before dying right before their eyes and the horror only grew as dozens of others in the crowd of villains fell the exact same way. Heart attack after heart attack. Like someone got a hold of a Death Note and their true names.

It truly did leave an impact on everyone who viewed the video. The villains that have terrorized UA taken out just like that with no real explanation. The video brought up thoughts, theories, everything that could be thought up to try and bring sense to what everyone had witnessed. Others were quiet while others were quite vocal on how the villains perished in said video. Some were against it, others completely for it, and others weren’t a fan of the murder but understood that it was the most logical way to stop them. After all, a group of villains that threatened to harm and kill children led by All For One were definitely not individuals to take lightly.

Ben, the leaker of the video, of course feigned ignorance at the true origin of the video, though he suspected Izuku had a inclingling if where it came from and how he did it. He was a bit worried and the strife he caused in his class and UA as a whole, since perhaps unsurprisingly some students just couldn't bring themselves to accept their deaths as justified even if they knew the villains wouldn't have hesitated to kill them in turn.

But what really interested Ben was the reaction the criminal underworld had to the video. Plenty of them stopped crime immediately since the video was clearly a threat to them. It said loud and clear that should anyone stoop to the level of anyone that died there they'd be next. Around the world criminal organizations lost members like flies to a bug zapper, them not wanting to join the fate of those dead. The idea that a Quirk like that existed in the world turned the criminal underworld on its head. They had a sinking feeling that whoever did that was only showing the tip of their hand in terms of power. A sudden lethal heart attack might be the least of their problems.

Though Ben understood why, it definitely was something that baffled him. Or he supposed the right word was angry. Criminals harming innocents like they have no care in the world but the second a threat was possible to them, they tuck their tails between their legs and run. Cowardly. As infuritarting as it may be, end results still had criminals stopping crime. Though he knew better than anyone that a threat like that wasn’t going to stop everyone. In fact, it might inspire some and he’d get to that bridge when he crosses it.

Ben let out a quiet sigh as he sipped his smoothy as he watched the Earth he currently called home orbit below him, currently trailing after the Moon lazily as he flew through space.

Criminals will never really be understood by him. He knew why crime and such were things, most people went into crime for social problems like being ostracized or the litany of ills things like homelessness and starvation caused. If only people could help each other instead of causing more pain. Of course that would never stop crime wholesale by itself, free will inherently brought on bad actors no matter the cultural situation. Even if everyone had education, universal basic income, universal medical care, and free housing there'd still be crime. People would always want more and justify their actions afterwards.

Sometimes… just sometimes, Ben wondered how the universe would be if he had wiped out the mere possibility of evil with Ascalon. Sure, logically he knew it wouldn't be actual peace, no person forced to be good or evil actually was such, but it sometimes felt to Ben that he was waging a war he'd never win. The worst and best part about that is he knows he’d never stop regardless.

It was times like this where he wished things were more simple. Just a ten year old with an alien device saving the world and stopping the bad guys when they showed up. Though even at that age Ben didn’t see it as a joke or just something he did. His interaction with his younger self at the Forge of Creation was proof of that. A sigh was let out as he continued to sip his smoothie while thinking.

He rolled his eyes at himself. Getting lost in his own thoughts wasn't going to do anyone any good. He was tempted to get in touch with Gwen via his Pugnavore transformation but wasn't entirely sure how that'd work considering no time has technically passed since he's been gone and he'd return a second after he left the same age he was when this whole vacation was over. Not that he needed to actually get in touch with her to know what she'd tell him.

She'd say something to the effect that it doesn't matter in the long run if he can't wipe out evil. They both knew such an action was evil even if done with the best of intentions. That he never went Hero in the first place with the thought of wiping out evil wholesale. He did it to help people and that he's succeeded in doing so time and again. He's the reason why Human and alien interactions were going so seamlessly back home. He's a large part of the reason why both Gwen and Kevin became heroes in the first place. He's why Rook decided to become a Plumber. By his actions he's swelled goodness to new heights. That's what a true hero does. Inspire people. Did he forget that he had a statue of himself in the future when he's 32? That he was called the Hero of Heroes? There's a reason for that. He didn't just save people from danger, he inspired them to stand up to evil in all its forms.

It may never feel like he’s doing enough but make no mistake, good is being done. Whether it be through him saving others, stopping criminals, or inspiring others, good is still being done. Ben smiled for a moment as he looked back down at the Earth he was currently inhabiting.

He let out a soundless breath before teleporting back to Earth. Before killing All For One he rummaged through his mind to find everyone he took Quirks from and was just now finished having his AI copy find all the ones still alive so he can reverse time for them and they can get their Quirks back. He also needs to pay that albino a visit so he can dismantle the programming All For One did on the poor boy.

All in all, he was…busy. As per usual, Ben didn’t think he could take a day off even if he tried. Lord knows he’s had scheduled ones, but the second something was happening he was on the scene first. A smile crept onto his face at the memory of Ben 23 and his Azmuth teleporting into his living room while he was playing video games.

I really should visit him again at some point without the excuse of a holiday. The face he made when I told him he'll be a parent in another few months now that he's almost 16 was priceless. I almost feel sorry for the nagging he did to his Azmuth because of it but it was pretty entertaining.

Ben hummed to himself as he sipped his smoothie and sent a text to the Pro Heroes that he'll need All For One's victims in one place after they've signed a NDA so they can be made whole again. He looked back up from his phone, sipping his smoothie as he thought.

Even with the big bad gone from this world, there were still some things here that kept Ben’s attention. I. E. quirk and quirkless discrimination. It was something that truly did make his blood boil. Though he figured if anyone could bring about change to that, it’d be Izuku. Having first hand knowledge and experience of it would definitely give him the means to bring change.

It had been awhile since Ben, Shoto, and Izuku had really just hung out that wasn’t at their apartment or school. They should do something. It’d be a nice little refresher for all of them.

After he finally finished fixing the damage All For One caused anyway and the whole backlash to the video he leaked finished. Hopefully it ends up stopping the power vacuum that his death caused since the message of the video was pretty clear. Anyone on his level of evil would meet the same fate or worse.

A smile formed on Ben's face as he got the ok from them on their arrival. It's good whatever they told them has them in such a hurry to meet up it seems he'd be able to finish this by today's end.

It still pained him to think of all those who had lost their lives and who he wouldn’t be able to help. Though taking out All For One and those as bad as him along with returning the quirks to those who did survive was good as well. Not to mention, sending a message to the criminal world in this universe was also a great plus at that. Things could be better as for any situation, but all in all, not bad in the slightest.

Well… he technically COULD bring back everyone he's killed. With Alien X it'd literally just take a thought and he could temporarily sacrifice his phoenix transformation to do the same but the last time he turned into it he blacked out for a solid week and went on a empath fueled savoir gauntlet.

If he did that he could kiss anominity goodbye.

Ben frowned in thought.

Did he really have the right to not do so just because it'd inconvenience him? Power not used is wasted. But if he did that it wouldn't just stop there. People would want him to resurrect all of their loved ones. It definitely would make a lot of people happier if their deceased loved ones were brought back.

But then again, did he really have the right to do any of that? He definitely had the power, but he was no god. As much as he would try, he couldn’t solve every problem out there. Lord knows he’s trying to. There were always consequences to actions, even good ones or good hearted ones. There were just a lot of things to consider when this type of situation came up, both about the world and himself.

He bit his lip as he thought further on it. If he was a civilian and he knew someone could bring back someone close to him for a slight inconvenience and didn't do it he'd never be able to forgive them. Having the power to solve something and not doing it is wrong. This wouldn't be an Ascalon situation where he'd stop evil period. He'd just bring back everyone. He couldn't call himself a hero if he didn't do it.

Ben lets out a resigned sigh as he closes his eyes and savors his still held anonymity. He'd definitely miss it but this had to be done. At least when he wakes back up many more problems will be solved than just the people who died too early. His phoenix transformation was even more of a workaholic than he was.

There were still questions that could be asked and put against his decision, but the good was outweighing the questionable. After all, why shouldn’t the people who died get another chance? Another chance to live also while being whole with their quirks? There was no answer against it that sounded good. Not one.

He'd have to make it clear that it was a one time thing though. He wouldn't be there forever to reverse death. He wasn't some deus ex machina for their or any other reality. Of course if word gets out of this universe about what he did he'd have to do it for his own too even if that'd probably violate the Multiversal Preservation Act.

It still really sucked however that it was never as easy as that. That in real life a deus ex machina couldn’t just exist for every reality. It’d save reality from a lot of heartbreak, but it was the truth. No one could do it. He’s one of the most powerful beings in the multiverse and he can’t do it, no matter how much he wants to. Though starting things off small will have to do.

He couldn't help but snort at that. Most people would think it ridiculous that the resurrection of thousands of not millions of people would be anything but small steps.

He let out a slow breath as he enjoyed the last remaining moments of anonymity he had before he went through with his actions. It was an interesting feeling turning into the cosmic Phoenix. It was exhilarating and yet exhausting all at the same time. Being lifted from a different plane of existence in that form felt strange, not at all like how he felt when he would transform into Alien X.

Though he did have to admit, the gigantic, godly presence and look of the green phoenix definitely outdid the presentation of Alien X.

Once the transformation was complete he was bombarded all at once with the totality of the emotional weight of every living thing in the universe. His earlier guess at there being little to no alien life in this universe was correct, Earth stood out as a bright light in a all consuming blackness but the pain and suffering he felt was just as sharp, if not sharper still, knowing this was the only real place of sapient life in the universe. A single green tear fell from his right eye as he spread his wings and flew from Japan and into outer space to grow bigger than the planet itself.

There was no hiding who he was after this. It definitely put an end to a stress free vacation, although his vacation at this point was anything but stress free. It was for the greater good of this reality however, so he’d do it over and over again infinitely. The cosmic bird hovered over the Earth as its wings spread open. Its eyes closed as it soon talked to everyone on the planet telepathically.

"I bid you all no harm. For I feel all. In fact I wish to fix the harm All For One has done to this planet, a lone harbinger of sapient life in a sea of endless darkness. With the sacrifice of this form I shall bring back not only the Quirks he stole and that died with him but the people he's killed too. I do this not only to save those whose lives were cut short unfairly, but to show all the villains that still live, the ultimate fate of their deeds. Their wretchedness will be buried under the sands of time. I am only speeding up the process."

As Ben finishes speaking each one of his tail feathers went up in green flame as he warped reality to undo the harm this world's greatest villain wrought. By the time the transformation ended and Ben began to fall headfirst back to the planet, unconscious, the millions of people affected by All For One's life were made whole once more.

With his suit, the fall from this height wouldn’t be enough to kill him, let alone harm him, but there was still the issue of crashing onto Earth. That’s where his AI self came in. The descending Tennyson slowly began to lose speed as he fell, before his body came to a safe halt.

No one was there to greet him as he softly landed on the roof of his apartment building, far too busy processing not only the giant telepathic bird but its message. The world over was suddenly overcome with the resurrected dead, all the way back to All For One's own brother and original holder of One For All.

Even with the events that were happening explained to them, it was still a shock and a surprise to everyone. A higher power essentially made contact with them and gave them something that they could never hope to pay back for.

All Might was shocked to his core as he had his dear mentor back alive as the original holder of One For All took in clearly how much devastation his brother brought the world. He was not the only one in shock as the villains were practically grasping for things to be the way they used to be. All For One’s legacy and life were all taken away like they were nothing. Everything that he has ever done or has happened as a result of his actions just gone. For some, it was too much to handle.

Such as one Shigaraki. Not only has he been cured of the grooming and brainwashing All For One did to him but seeing his family alive again rebroke his mind, the guilt of his actions too much to bear. Families in joyous shock at the resurrection of their fallen family and friends, just a worldwide array of reactions from Ben’s decision. Some positive, some negative, but there was no doubt that it definitely took the world by storm.

Ben woke up from his coma 2 days later as his suit led him home. What he did as the cosmic phoenix still took the world by storm and people were still reeling from the fact that actually happened. This is reality. All the damage that All For One has done was reversed so not even his legacy could maintain its hold on the world.

His sense of anonymity was gone, but he’s been through far too much to be care about at this point. It helped people and to him that was all that mattered. But honestly? This vacation hasn’t been much of one for a bit. Which is why he found himself entering Shoto and Izuku’s room.

He holds up a hand.

"First of all, yes, that was me. Second of all, while I could theoretically do that multiple times, I can't and won't fix every problem in this universe or my own. All that'd do is stifle people and halt progress. That and it might very well make people careless about the value of their life if they knew someone could just resurrect them."

The two teenage heroes in training looked at Ben before nodding at his explanation as Shoto went back to his book as Izuku laid his head back onto the pillow.

“Makes sense.”

“You did a great thing, Ben. Though Shoto and I were wondering what we should do this weekend? You said this was supposed to be your vacation and honestly from our perspective, this just seems like a lot of work for you.”

Ben couldn't help but laugh a bit at that.

"Honestly I was never one for proper vacations. I can never really put aside my hero complex enough to do it. The anonymity was great while it lasted but it was bound to break eventually. Might as well be on my terms right?"

It was hard to tell for all involved just who he was trying to convince with that line. The three decided to leave it at that for his benefit and continue.

“I mean, there’s a lot of things we could do here. Or if you want, we can do what we did last time and portal somewhere else on the Earth and hang out for a bit. It’s your choice.”

Izuku said as he hung from his bed upside down, looking at the brown haired teenager in front of him.

Ben shakes his head and he lets out a breath.

"Unfortunately I can't really do that. I made this mess and need to make sure it's as not harmful as possible. My Phoenix form can't really do that with reality warping without effectively getting rid of free will so it's up to me to make sure things go over as smoothly as possible."

Izuku thought about what was just said to him and he nodded at that. It made sense and as selfless and heroic Ben was, he wasn’t a God. He knew for a fact that taking away someone’s agency and ability to choose would be the last thing Ben would ever want to do. Shoto’s gaze looked up from his book and spoke.

“Anyway we could possibly assist you in that? We’d be happy to help in any way we can.”

"Besides making sure no one tries to mess with this place no. I'll be in my room, in a quasi coma as I use my bedroom to enhance my telepathy to global levels without having to transform into a Pugnavore. The AI version of me will be busy easing in the creation of legal identities for everyone now living so he won't be able to help either."

The two boys nodded at his explanation.

“We can do that. Maybe a little while after you’re done, we can hang out. You do your thing.”

Izuku said as Shoto and him nodded in sync and agreed to Izuku’s response. It wasn’t that much in the grand scheme of things, but they still wanted to do anything that could help, even if it wasn’t all that big.

Ben couldn't help but wish Gwen was here. She was much better with telepathy than he was. Oh well.

Without hesitation he gets in his bed and it wraps around him completely as he zones out and his eyes glow green. In a seeming instant he was connected to everyone on Earth, tapping into their very Mana.

I know what's happened is shocking and scary but it'll all be alright. No need to panic. I'm already working on helping the used to be dead be legally alive again.

And helping he was. Making sure all their information was in order, informing them of what’s happened since they’ve been killed, and just overall helping them process the fact that they were killed and were back. It was a lot, but he would do it over and over again if he had to. Ben gladly took money from his own personal account to give to them so they'd be able to use it as they acclimate to the shock of no longer being dead, in fact Ben took it one step further and gave them all an equivalent amount of money as if the money they had in their bank account prior to death was just gaining interest. This left some far richer than they've ever been.

Honestly, why shouldn’t they be? Not only were their quirks taken by All For One, but their lives all at the same time. Every interaction they ever had, everything they’ve done, will done, could’ve done, who they were or going to be just stolen in an instant. Now suddenly they were back just as quickly as they were killed. A little help was the least they deserved.

I know there will be inevitable culture shock for everyone involved so a period of adjustment for society at large should be had. If anyone needs help of any kind due to your resurrection or one of someone else's, you can contact me at this number. Do not expect me to raise the dead again. I will not, and can not, be a fix for every problem. I refuse to play a god. I'm as mortal as anyone else.

He wishes he could bring back everyone who’s unfortunately had their life taken away to give them a rightful chance of living. But he knew better than anyone that it just wasn’t possible. Life just had complications that just had to be. It’s an unfortunate state of things, but it’s the one reality is stuck with. So he does the next best thing and tries to save and help everyone he can. His eyes slowly turned from green back to their normal non glowing state as a sigh released from his mouth.

Immediately his phone started blowing up with messages before his AI copy got rid of all the sent malware and repeated spamming from bots while pointing him to various people in actual need of help.

Ben got out of his bed and went to work helping them and others adjust to the new normal as his AI answered various questions from the UN. Kevin would probably have a good laugh at him in this situation. He came here for a vacation and somehow ended up doing just as much hero work. Though he supposed that’s just how things go. He didn’t think he could go on a real break or ignore crimes happening on breaks even if he tried. To think not too long ago he was enjoying Texas sized food with Shoto and Izuku.

He lets out a small sigh as he chuckles at himself. It really would be funny looking from the outside in.

Chapter Text

All Might couldn't believe it. One second everything was normal and the next those who died at the machinations of All For One were back. Thousands of people who died in the long life span of his evil were suddenly alive. In a new age, some quite literally, and foundering in the sea of time that's past them by after their death.

He knew of only one person in the world who would ever have had the power to do so but even he never thought Ben's power reached to such a godly awe inspiring might. Seeing the efforts the boy was putting in to help others was truly just an inspiring sight.

It was a great thing to have done and Ben’s interference in order to help them adjust to this new change was greatly appreciated, but there were still complications with the resurrected. Not that anyone was surprised nor could anyone blame them. After all, they had what made them who they were forcibly taken away and then killed. Now they were back with so much happening since their deaths, of course it was much for them to handle.

Though their rebirth caused a rather…. unique problem. Not only were their Quirks given back to them, it's also caused a rather interesting side effect. There were now 7 users of One For All, each one as strong as it's currently newest user, it apparently having a quantum entanglement with itself. The reality warping nature of their resurrection seemingly accounted for this and has adjusted every user's body to match and perfectly use their powers without causing undo harm, their body memories and skills as using their particular original Quirk, if available, passing to each user in turn making them equally skilled as the original user.

To say that All Might and Izuku was shocked at this newest revelation was an understatement. 7 users of One For All and with essentially none of the issues that Izuku had to deal with when he first received the quirk. Of course the problem didn't stop there. Now that all 7 were quantum entangled that meant that the eventual Quirk Singularity that would have happened eventually with the Quirk was significantly sped up, each given user could if they wished grant their Quirk to another who would than transfer their Quirk and skill in it to the other remaining members, while the former acted as normal with the passage of the Quirk, their powers slowly dwindle until they vanish entirely, leaving only their enhanced body in it's wake.

It was definitely an interesting new development with all of these individuals with One For All, especially considering any one of them could pass it just like All Might did to Izuku. Most just decided to keep the quirk but one did decide to pass it on to someone else. The one who gave the Quirk up was none other than All For One's brother, while he was thankful for a new chance at life, the thought of influencing any of the current generation left a bad taste in his mouth, which led him to finding the new bearer of his Quirk, one Akatani Mikumo.

The boy very well could have been Izuku's twin brother in another reality, black hair instead of green and brown honey eyes that were only enhanced by his Quirk.

A passive one the boy couldn't turn off if he tried to basically filtered people's perception of him to the best possible light, making him effortlessly charming and charismatic. Prior to being the new holder of One For All, he has a near zero chance of making it through the Hero course of UA even if it was his dream to be the Number 1 Hero.

Izuku could sympathize with the boy given the eerily similar situations with wanting to be the Number 1 Hero and life just not working out originally in their favor. Plus, Mikumo was just a nice guy, though whether that was because of his quirk or Izuku just genuinely found him pleasant was up for debate. Regardless, Izuku just simply gave the fellow student a nod of approval and wished him the best with his goal, but not without some friendly acknowledgement of how he wasn’t the only one striving for the top.

The boy smiled at the nod before scratching the back of his neck.

"Hey I don't suppose I could be your friend too? I… don't really know anyone here and seeing as we have you-know-what in common I figured we can be friends? My power makes it very hard to find actual friends you see."

He blinks at Izuku clearly waiting for a response, he perhaps, being the only one to notice that the same passive power was already making Izuku far more popular with everyone as it was no doubt doing the same to the other holders. By the end of the day any of them could kill someone in broad daylight and no one would be able to realize it happened. Still, just because they'd enjoy the same benefits as him doesn't mean they'd be finding out any time soon.

Izuku simply smiled and nodded. After all, even with his quirk of perception altering, there was no real reason for Izuku to say no. As far as he knew, he was just a student that is in a similar boat as him, even more so now. Plus, he wasn’t interested in making enemies, not as a hero or as just a sane individual.

“Of course you can be my friend! You seem like a pretty well rounded guy and you can never have too many friends, am I right?”

The boy nods and smiles brightly.

"Thanks so much Izuku! It's already hard enough actually dealing with the reality of being able to go here haha. I don't suppose you could show me around? I'm still not really used to it all. Oh, and I was wondering if you could tell me about that green energy you use? I don't seem to have access to it myself for whatever reason."

Wanting to help the fellow and newest user of One For All out, Izuku went on to tell him all about mana and how to use it. He was no expert, but from what Ben had told him, even he wasn’t in comparison to his cousin Gwen. However, the green haired student was sure that Mikumo was understanding the basics.

A contemplative look went on his face for a moment before inky black Mana rose up from his hand as he smiled widely at his newfound power.

"That explanation was really good, thanks Izuku! I can't wait to test this out haha it's open up so many avenues for me! You also said there's actual spells right? Do you know any?"

“At the moment? No. I never actually got around to learning any. Although Ben said that he was going to teach me the sensory spell. So if you want to join in on that lesson, you’re more than welcome to!”

He smiles and nods.

"I look forward to it! Oh, since we'll be best friends in no time flat, why don't we exchange numbers so we can keep in contact? Mind if I go visit your house after classes are over today?"

Izuku nodded as he exchanged the information over to his peer with a wide smile on his face.

“I don’t mind! The more company the better! I’m sure Shoto and Ben will love you!”

The boy nods before looking around and seeing that the coast was clear he brought Izuku into a french kiss knowing full well his power would cover for him, leaving only the memory of a regular goodbye while further imprinting on the boy that it was impossible for him to do anything wrong and that they really WOULD be the best of friends soon enough.

Izuku smiled as the boy walked off, not remembering what had just transpired between the two.

‘Man, he’s a good guy. I can’t wait to see him later today.’

That was the final thought Izuku gave about the interaction before he decided to make his way back to his apartment.

Mikumo texts his new friend once out of school to get his address as he thinks of how best to get to Ben or if he should try at all given his power and technology. He contemplates it momentarily before shaking his head. No it'd be best to turn Izuku and Shoto into his unwitting moles before trying anything.

Izuku sent the location to Mikumo with a smile before placing his phone on his bed. He looked down from his bed to the bottom bunk where Shoto was typing on a laptop.

“So are you excited to meet Mikumo?”

Shoto shrugs.

"I guess, from what you told me he's really friendly. I just hope he's not annoying with it, you know?"

“Trust me, he’s great. Just a real friendly and charismatic guy. Though I guess I could just be saying that because of our similarities.”

Izuku said with a chuckle as he laid back down on his bed, waiting for Ben to join them, who was currently using the bathroom.

Ben comes out as he finishes his shower, his clothes forming around him fully before he was out the door.

"Well that's certainly a possibility, or at least it would be if everyone who's ever met him didn't have the same eerie sentiment about him. No one is that likable naturally. I'd be wary about him even if it seems paranoid. Not one person I've looked into has even a single negative thought about him."

Ben frowns in thought as he sits down. It was honestly the strangest thing. Even if you were good incarnate, it would be impossible for everyone to have a good opinion of you. Yet this kid just seemingly has everyone on his side. Even if you were going to give the benefit of the doubt of casual friendliness for those who don’t know him that well, those who did would eventually have something negative.

Izuku opened his mouth to retort before closing it again and nodding. He didn’t really agree which probably should be weird for him as they essentially just met, yet it just didn’t for some reason.

Ben looks up at Izuku with a frown.

"You mind if I look into your memories for a bit? Just to see if he did anything?"

Izuku hesitated at that which probably should concern him more than it did, but nodded. I mean, even if he didn’t feel the same paranoia Ben was feeling, you could never be too sure, right?

Ben used his Pugnavore's telepathy to sift through Izuku's memories of the boy only to come up empty.

"Well I didn't see anything odd. Still he just might have potent memory manipulation as a side effect of his Quirk. Thankfully if he is up to no good it'd be impossible for him to do anything here given my AI self, I should also be immune to it too given the fact my sensory field is far more complicated than anyone here thanks to all the alien powers I have active all the time. If worse comes to worse the watch will defend me too."

Shoto listened in on this and thought to himself. Truthfully, Izuku always had been very trusting, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, but even this seemed a little too caring for him. This guy, charming or as nice as he is, is practically still a stranger. Though with Ben’s explanation and the fact that he would be here, he figured they wouldn’t have much to worry about when he came over.

The doorbell to the apartment range as Mikumo waited patiently for the door to open, already having a course of action should Ben somehow not be available, a friendly smile on his face in case he was being viewed by an unseen camera.

Ben walked up to the door and opened the door with a smile on his face. Even if he was a bit paranoid of the student, he wasn’t going to let that be known until there was something that really stood out to him.

Mikumo smiled as he held out a hand to shake.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Ben! I've heard so much about you!"

Ben shook his hand in automatic kindness, but he still needed to gauge this guy and see exactly what was happening with him. It’s not like Izuku wasn’t distrusting or anything, but when this guy had the abilities that he has, you could never be too sure.

"All good things I hope. Speaking of, I don't think I've ever met anyone with as glowing a reputation as you. It's really incredible, haha." 

Mikumo chuckles and nods while scratching his cheek slightly in embarrassment. 

"Yeah, that's a side effect of my original Quirk. It makes my charisma off the charts. It made growing up really rough haha. As you can imagine my imposter syndrome was through the roof until I decided to live up to the image people have of me. It's why I want to be the best hero ever!"

Ben nodded at his words. Unlike Izuku and well everyone else, Ben wouldn’t be so easily affected by Mikumo’s quirk. He had far too many things that have happened to him that would make him so easily manipulated with a power such as this. However, he was going to be kind as he didn’t want to give anything away.

“It definitely does sound like a hassle. But as heroes, we’re all going to have to go through our own struggles. What matters is that we don’t give up. Come in.”

Mikumo doesn't let the understanding smile slip off his face as he mentally shudders at the fact Ben's personality lever barely moved at all upon contact with him. He moved his perception to the only new person currently here to check if his power was somehow broken only to further mentally recoil at the fact Shoto was just as smitten with him as Izuku initially was upon meeting him. He absently kept up the idle chatter as he tried to figure out why Ben of all people wasn't completely his like everyone else was. 

It was strange to the point of concern. After all, it was already well known who Ben was, but just how powerful he was at that. Still, Mikumo kept up the chatter before it was time for Ben to start teaching.

Ben hummed as he looked at Mikumo with a frown on his face. 

"Honestly it is kind of ridiculous how easily you picked up Mana even when just brute forcing it with the All For One Mana stacking. Still this should be harder for the both of you I bet. Shoto thankfully had a day off to help you two learn this spell, it doesn't really have any verbal component so no need to memorize anything. Instead you'll be tracking his Mana signature through the Mana field, a nigh Omnipresent field of life energy that stretches across the Multiverse. Its vastness is why you need a personal effect from the person you're tracking to make it easier to start out. Once you get the hang of it you'll be able to track things across the entire universe and even other realities just fine."

Ben smiles as he holds up two pencils. 

"These are Shoto's. You'll each get one and try to cut away all the other Mana around you to track him down. Don't worry I didn't teleport him to the moon or something, he's still in the city but I've made sure no camera or person has seen him go from point A to B. As for how you know if you found the right person…. I'll show you how it feels to ping the right Mana signature by demonstrating on a clone of myself." 

Without warning Ben holds out both hands, letting go of the pencils as they floated in the air via Mana, before poking both boys in the forehead and injecting a bit of Mana into their 3rd eye causing the Mana in their bodies to react in kind and temporarily brute force opening their extrasensory perception. 

In an instant both boys' eyes shone with the glory of their own Mana as the solid world of atoms and molecules around them was blown away from their perception. The universe laid bare before them before it focused on two identical blazes of pure power, one right next to them and the other casually swimming on the sun as the clone waved once it noticed their gaze as Ben pulled his hands away to give each a pencil.

Mikumo smiled as he grabbed hold of the pencil. That experience was something that he didn’t think would be topped not by a long shot. Izuku smiled as he received the pencil as well. It wasn’t long before the boy’s started focusing on their mana before exiting the apartment and into the city.

It was still a concern to Mikumo on how unaffected Ben was by his quirk, but it was going to be ok. After all, even if it didn’t work now, it would probably work soon enough right?

Unfortunately for Mikumo, much like mastering the tracking spell, it was quickly becoming apparent that it was a frustratingly slow process. A week has passed since both Izuku and Shoto were wrapped around his finger and Ben's lever has barely moved a single iota. At this rate it's take decades of constant exposure for the most powerful superhero on this planet to fall in line, something Mikumo couldn't wait for since none of the powers One For All granted made him immortal. To top it off he couldn't even capitalize on the fact both boys were his to mine for information since Ben, or one of his clones, was always around.

It was becoming more and more frustrating. It was even worse based on just how difficult tracking Shoto was. His original manipulation with mana came to him so simply and yet this was actually majorly difficult. Though considering he’s usually just had things go easy for him since forever, it wasn’t much of a surprise that he was getting that frustrated over it.

Still he comforted himself with the knowledge of the fact he's virtually sure to live however long he wanted to since the only person on the planet that could willingly kill him was Ben. Of course he'd have to be wary of accidents but so did everyone else. In the meantime his raw Mana abilities offered interesting synergy with his original Quirk. It seems that his Quirk wasn't actually tied to his physical presence but rather imbued within his very Mana, now he no longer needed to do something as crass as making out with a target to get them fully under, injecting microscopic bits of his Mana into others did the trick just fine.

It’s not like the kiss was bad itself, but it was rather uncomfortable for him and it would be for Izuku and everyone else if it were to come out. But he was going to make sure that it didn’t. His goals were far too important to let it all fall apart now. He shook his head as he continued to work on tracking Shoto.

Izuku was currently making his way through the city with the thought of Mikumo on his mind. In his head, he was just surprised at the amount of similarities between the two heroes in training. Not to mention just how well they got along even despite practically just meeting one another. Ben was a bit suspicious however which made him feel a bit confused. Oh well. Shaking his head, he kept his mind on tracking Shoto throughout the city.

Shoto for his part idly looked at the holographic HUD Ben gave him for the exercise as he worked on a task Ben gave him while he waited to better hone his Quirk. He could already somewhat shape his ice and fire, and thanks to pointers from Ben going by his experience with Big Chill and Heatblast, he's been able to help hone in his manipulation abilities. Floating right above his hands were ever more detailed elemental figures modeled after himself, each one made of ice and fire. Of course since he barely started they were little more than odd vaguely humanoid elemental pieces than anything recognizable.

Shoto hummed to himself as he fingered the teleporter on his belt to take him to another location inside the city since Izuku was closing in on him. No reason to make this easy after all.

Izuku sensed that Todoroki’s location was a lot further than it was originally. He chuckled to himself at the new information. He wasn’t going to make it easy huh? Regardless, it wasn’t much of an issue for him, he wants to be the greatest hero out there and that includes adapting to new changes in situations. Yes, due to many years of things not going according to plan, Izuku had quite a bit of experience with adapting…Mikumo on the other hand…

Well, he was already pretty frustrated with Ben barely even registering his quirk’s influence and how much difficult tracking Shoto was, add that onto the fact that he’s never really had to work hard for much and Shoto’s new location, well…he’s just lucky no one was around to witness the swears of frustration.

Or at least that's what he thought. Seeing as Ben's been tracking his every movement while tapping into Ghostfreak's powers and Mana immunity. While cursing at the first sign of trouble wasn't necessarily good, it wasn't damning either. Ben could have sworn he felt microscopic bits of Mikumo's Mana spread through the city but he couldn't quite be sure. If only Gwen was here. She'd definitely know. He thought about temporarily going back in time and freezing it to investigate further but thought better of it. He wouldn't want to be scolded by Paradox or the future time branch of the Plumbers led by Spanner. If worse came to worse he could have Mikumo spill the beans with Whampire if necessary.

Mikumo sighed as he rubbed his hair back and tried to regain his focus and composure. It was fine. If he was going to achieve his goal, he couldn’t allow small stepbacks or issues such as this hold him down. He would just have to try a bit harder and focus on finding Todoroki. He’s used to everything just coming to him easily, but that’s not going to be the case for everything apparently. He steadied his breathing and began to focus on Todoroki’s signature once more.

That's when he felt it. A brief sense of harmonizing with the millions of shards of his Mana integrated with everyone in the city, briefly forming a mental map with Shoto's exact location bright as can be, even getting a glimpse as to the training he was doing before it vanished just as quickly, leaving behind a raging headache as he started to bleed profusely from his nose.

His hands jumped straight to his face as he tried to contain the amount of blood coming from his nose. Alright…not what he was expecting. What the hell was that? All he did was try to focus and for a brief moment, it did work going into details that he wasn’t even looking for. The headache infesting his head was throbbing and the blood was definitely not normal.

Ben frowned as he saw that. That only happens if you strain your Mana too much. A simple tracking spell shouldn't do that unless you were trying to track something across the universe and his range shouldn't even extend past the moon if he was lucky. There's something definitely wrong with this. 

Ben became tangible as he put a hand on Mikumo's right shoulder, his eyes glowing green as he contacted Izuku and Shoto to tell them the training exercise was temporarily suspended due to whatever caused Mikumo's injury. 

Without another word they were on the moon, Ben raising an eyebrow as he idly sent a time ray to him to set his body back prior to the injury. 

"Mind telling me why a simple tracking spell caused you to give yourself brain damage?"

Mikumo let out a sigh as the injuries were removed from his body. However, he wasn’t really sure what to say to answer Ben’s question.

“Well…I don’t know really. I was having a lot of trouble with the tracking spell since let’s be honest, my quirk kind of did make me a bit lazy with how it works. So I got frustrated, calmed down, and tried it again with a calmer mind, you know? I saw his location exactly for like a quick second and then bam! Horrible headache and blood dripping from my nose? Did I do something wrong?”

Ben shrugs as he pulls out a memory viewer. 

"We'll see. What you describe is how the spell works but it shouldn't have done that unless you were tracking too many things or things far beyond the current scope of your Mana reserves." 

Ben points to Mikumo as a reel forms from the device as it shows his memories and thoughts in real time via subtitles. Ben's frown 

turned severe as they both watched the mental map Mikumo briefly saw. 

"I'll only give you one chance to tell me the truth of why there were millions of your Mana signatures in that image all through the city. It's no wonder you almost caused yourself to go brain dead. You were effectively tracking millions of people all at once. It's a miracle your brain wasn't oozing out of your ears."