Join my Patreon to get access to more chapters, and you'll help me make ends meet while doing so.
patreon.com/TheSynonym
────────────────────────
[Wrapping Things Up]
────────────────────────
| Minutes earlier, All Might's POV: |
…
My heart pounded against my chest, sharp pain tearing through my body as I dashed toward the USJ at full speed.
I was overexerting myself. The three standard hours I could maintain this form had long since been spent earlier in the day, after going out of my way to help civilians in distress. Now, I was pushing my body well past its limit.
But I didn't care.
I forced myself forward, ignoring the burning pain in my stomach and further down as the facility in the distance rapidly drew closer.
I couldn't allow the students to be harmed. Not when it was my fault I hadn't been there from the beginning.
This pain was my punishment for being irresponsible—and I wouldn't let anyone but me pay the price.
—BAM!—
Seconds later, I crashed through the facility gate, sending it flying aside so I wouldn't waste even a single moment.
I braced myself for the worst. For the consequences of my delay to have already taken their toll on my students.
But instead—
"All Might?"
"You're here!"
"Thank God!"
"Hmm?"
All of the students were present and safe. Along with my fellow teachers, Aizawa-kun and Thirteen.
I froze for a brief moment, taking in the sight, relief washing over me before I winced at Aizawa-kun's condition. His injuries were severe. A battle had clearly taken place.
And yet… he was sitting calmly on the ground.
How so?
Young Iida described the situation as one incredibly dire, with several villains taking over this place and with the plan of killing me—which, if they were smart, meant they weren't relying solely on numbers, but on power that should contend with me as well.
Despite this, Aizawa-kun looked nowhere near worried.
Was my assumption wrong? Were the villains that easily taken care of, despite their confidence?
—BOOOM!—
My thoughts were cut off as a distant shockwave of tremendous force echoed through the facility, drawing everyone's attention.
My alert spiked back, although still mixed with the confusion as to why my usually serious coworker was so calm in this situation.
I moved quickly toward the stairs, scanning the battlefield below.
And that's when I saw him and realized one student had been missing.
"T-that's…!"
Young Takahashi.
He was currently buried in a pile of rubble and water, clearly having just crashed into the central fountain, dust still lingering from his recent crash.
And not far from him, an enormous mutant with bulging muscles stood imposingly, arms and legs mangled, but not diminishing his terrifying frame in the slightest.
If anything, it only made him even more eerie.
Was he the reason the villains were so confident to attack U.A. so brazenly? I felt danger oozing just from the mere sight of him.
Perhaps it was his nonchalance despite the massive damage across his legs and arms.
Perhaps it was his terrifying appearance and frame.
Or perhaps, it was the fact that he had defeated young Takahashi, a youth with amazing power already stronger than many Pros.
Eitherway, it didn't matter.
I was here now.
'Don't worry, young Takahashi, I'm comi—hmm?'
For a moment, I almost rushed to help young Takahashi, not about to watch one of my students be finished off in front of my eyes.
But before I had the chance to, young Takahashi moved.
He stood, looking barely fazed by his injuries or any pain of the sort. He simply brushed the dust off his clothes with all the calm of the world, and then looked at the villain.
—BOOOM!—
Only to shoot a surge of energy toward him before I could even process it, and send the villain flying away until he crashed into the landslide zone, embedding him into the mountains and causing a small explosion of dust and rock.
My eyes widened at the sight.
That much force… it was unbelievable. Far beyond anything he had shown during the combat exercises.
And yet, as if nothing had happened, he calmly turned away from the direction he had sent his opponent, retrieved the clothes he had apparently left on the ground not too far away, and calmly walked toward the base of the stairs.
And that's when he saw me.
Our eyes met. I was too stunned to say something, so for a moment, only silence passed between us.
And then, just for a moment, I saw it.
Challenge.
Combined with the dozens of unconscious villains scattered behind him, the destruction across the facility, what I had just witnessed, and the faint crimson wisps of energy still clinging to him, a wry laugh escaped my mouth.
"I see… So that's why the principal mentioned him."
After our first class, I had assumed the principal's reason for mentioning him was only due to young Takahashi's Quirk.
With power like that, it would've made sense. It was a one-in-a-million Quirk.
No, maybe even more.
But now, I realized I had missed the larger picture entirely.
This boy… was truly strong. Not just in terms of his Quirk.
Even without witnessing the full battle, his battered yet steady stance, the blood staining him, the sheer number of defeated villains, and the level of power he had just wielded, they all told me everything I had to know.
This wasn't mere strength. It was experience, combat instincts, courage—and from what I just saw in his eyes, ambition, too.
And he was only fifteen.
My gaze briefly shifted to young Midoriya, who watched him with unmistakable awe, and a bit of apprehension too.
Compared to him, young Midoriya was clearly lacking. The ten months we spent training were in no way enough to reach the boy's level.
It'd be a long, long time before that happened.
And what now worried me most, with competition like that, the goal I had given young Midoriya of succeeding me would only crush him with someone like that constantly by his side.
... Although perhaps it wasn't that bad a thing.
If the two pushed each other forward, maybe they'd reach levels even I never reached.
Although for that, a lot of pain awaited.
'It seems my student's path is full of hardship ahead.' I thought wryly.
Once again, I turned to young Takahashi, who was now climbing the stairs with a composed and steady pace, his eyes deadset on the top.
Whether the top of the stairs… or me, I don't know.
Maybe even both.
He sure is one scary boy.
…
°
°
°
| Third Person POV: |
…
While Taka climbed the stairs at a deliberate pace, several figures entered through the facility gate.
"...!"
Hearing them arrive, everyone already there turned, quickly recognizing the arrivals as U.A.'s teachers, already geared up and ready for combat.
Midnight, Cementoss, Snipe. Power Loader, Present Mic, and several others who were, of course, very relevant to the show.
And, Nezu.
Along with them stood Iida, chest puffed out slightly, pride clear on his face at having successfully brought reinforcements.
"I HAVE RETURNED WITH… help?" His enthusiasm died as he sensed the somewhat calm air around.
"Hm?" Present Mic raised an eyebrow as he spotted the Number One Hero standing calmly at the top of the stairs. "All Might already got here."
"Did he already deal with the threat then?" Cementoss asked, noting how the students were unharmed—and how both Thirteen and Aizawa remained behind him, relatively composed.
The air felt far too calm for a battlefield that had just been invaded by what their student had described as hundreds of villains.
Naturally, everyone assumed that calm came from All Might's presence.
—Step—
At least, until someone finished climbing the stairs.
A figure stepped into view.
And several teachers flinched.
"…!"
Bloody clothes. Disheveled hair. A torn, ragged costume. Eyes fixed forward with a dead seriousness that made more than one flinch.
For a brief moment, some of the staff mistook him for a villain, making their postures shift to one of readiness for combat. The pressure around him made it hard to think otherwise.
But before anyone could act rashly, Nezu raised a paw.
"Calm down, everyone," the principal said calmly. Then he smiled with a hint of self-mockery. "It seems we are already too late,"
"Principal?" Snipe asked, squinting. "What do you mean?"
The rat gestured toward the figure, smiling softly.
"I mean, our student seems to have already taken care of everything."
""Student?!""
The reaction was immediate.
Teachers turned, reassessing the newcomer—and the pieces began to fall into place.
His battered appearance, Nezu's words, All Might's lack of action, and nearly a hundred villains sprawled unconscious across the facility.
It soon clicked for them.
The one who had stopped the attack hadn't been the Symbol of Peace.
It had been a student… a very villain-looking one.
Allegedly, the blood added the most villainous part. The edginess just complemented it.
'A student was the one who dealt with all this?!' Many teachers thought, eyes widening in shock.
Ignoring the stares, Taka walked forward until he stood before All Might.
"Young Takahashi…" All Might hesitated, clearly at a loss about what to say regarding what happened. Part of him wanted to ask what had happened, to comment on his strength, to pat his shoulder for protecting his classmates and teachers.
But in the end, there was one matter that took priority over all those.
"Are you alright? Were you injured?" He asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Given the amount of blood on him, the concern was more than justified.
Taka, however, just shot him a dismissive glance.
"Just some scratches. These guys were too weak to achieve more than that."
All Might genuinely didn't know how to respond to that.
"I suggest you go secure them," Taka added calmly, loud enough for the other teachers to hear as well, jerking a thumb toward the unconscious villains. "Before they wake up."
The teachers followed his gesture, then, after seemingly thinking it over for a second, they nodded to one another and moved out without argument.
Meanwhile, Taka walked past All Might and toward his classmates.
As he did, the blood and dust coating his clothes faded away, vanishing as if he were a game character, and blood textures reached their time limit of existence.
What remained after that was a torn—but spotless—uniform.
The class watched him approach in stunned silence.
Then—
"I'm back," he said flatly, as he'd just returned from an errand.
The collective thought was unanimous.
'What the hell is wrong with this guy?'
…
°
°
°
| Minutes later… |
…
Soon after, the police arrived, and the villains were loaded onto prison transport buses.
Questions were inevitable after an incident of this scale.
Naturally, more than a few eyebrows rose when it came out that Taka had held the villains off on his own. Still, after All Might's pleas, the students were allowed to leave—on the condition they would be questioned properly at a later date.
So, after a handful of procedures and statements handled by both police and teachers, Class 1-A began boarding the bus.
Taka and Yaoyorozu led the line as class representatives.
As they stepped inside, several gazes landed on Taka—his vice-rep's included—making the atmosphere noticeably awkward.
'I guess this is the price of aura farming,' Taka thought, shaking his head faintly. This was something he'd have to get used to.
He was, afterall, a student, not Batman. Although he would love to just disappear after looking cool to add some mystery and skip awkward moments like this, he simply couldn't.
'At least, not without making it a hundred times more awkward when I inevitably have to return.'
Having such thoughts to distract himself from the constant gazes, eventually, everyone was on board, so both class reps followed.
And sadly for him, the first thing he noticed was that the back seats were already taken.
The only seat remaining was...
"I saved you a spot, Taka!" Kirishima waved enthusiastically from the front rows, two lines of seats facing each other for extra awkwardness.
Taka paused at the entrance, expression flat.
'Is the world punishing me for something?'
"…Thanks."
Grumbling internally but not about to refuse, Taka made his way over and sat beside Kirishima.
Once there, he closed his eyes, crossed his arms, and leaned back—appearing to rest.
That way, if his classmates were sensible, they would know not to bother him. He had, after all, just fought dozens of villains and beaten up a guy able to fight All Might.
And it seemed he was right, while they waited for the bus to get on its way, no one said a thing save for some small whispers every now and then across the bus.
But even if they didn't say anything—
'I can feel their gazes piercing my skull.' Taka thought wryly.
He could feel it.
Their curiosity. They wanted to ask. Midoriya, in particular, probably wanted to give one of his commentaries.
'This wouldn't be happening in the back,' Taka thought grimly. 'I miss you, Tokoyami. You and your blessed silence.'
"Man… you're really strong," Kirishima's voice suddenly cut through the tense air.
"...?" Taka cracked one eye open and glanced at his seat neighbor.
"The difference between you and us is insane," Kirishima continued, fist clenching. "Today, we couldn't do anything. Honestly… I think I even made things worse. Thirteen couldn't defend properly because we were in the way. If you hadn't been there, everything would've gone exactly how the villains planned."
"Come on, man," Sato spoke up from further down the bus. "Don't say it like that."
"It's true!" Kirishima shot back. "Bakugo and I both just made things worse!"
A sharp click of a tongue echoed somewhere on the bus.
But even he didn't refute the words.
Silence stretched. No one could say a thing because Kirishima was right about their earlier screw-up. Anything they said would just be empty words of comfort.
At least, until Taka's voice cut through the tension, his voice unbothered by the heavy tone of the conversation.
"Then do better next time."
Kirishima blinked in surprise, turning toward him.
Taka hadn't moved, still sitting in the same meditative posture.
"If you messed up, learn from it," he continued. "That's it."
"But—it wasn't just a mistake," Kirishima protested, his voice rising. "This was real danger. What we did was—"
"Do you think I'm weak?" Taka interrupted.
That alone threw Kirishima off.
"N-no?"
"Then what danger are you talking about?" Taka asked again, eyes still closed.
"What?"
"You think it was dangerous, but it was never so. Do you know why?"
"Uh..."
"Because I'm strong," Taka answered for him, eyes glinting red slightly. "And therefore, so long as I'm here, no screw-up will be fatal, and no situation dangerous,"
Then, Taka closed his eyes again, relaxing in his seat. "So learn and improve. Rely on that for now."
Then, after a pause, he opened one eye once more.
"Then maybe one day, you'll be the one backing me up when I make a mistake."
Kirishima's eyes widened.
He looked at his clenched fist, opened it, and re-clenched it once more. This time, without frustration, but with determination
"Alright… I'm fired up already!"
"The fight is already over, though, Kirishima-kun," Asui pointed out calmly.
"No, I mean fired up for tomorrow. And the day after that. Not, like, right now. Although I am fired up right now too—just, you know—"
"Motivation fades," Kaminari said with a grin. "You sure you'll still feel like that tomorrow?"
"It would be unnmanly to not do so!" Kirishima shot back without hesitation.
As the conversation around the bus lightened, Taka huffed quietly through his nose.
'So much resistance built up against edginess, yet corny stuff still makes me want to curl up and die,' his inner self groaned, mentally slamming its head against a mental wall after that little speech.
Still, it worked. Kirishima looked better already, and as much as Taka wanted to disappear into a corner, he had to admit it.
'Guess this is just part of the job when you live in a shonen anime,' he thought, letting out a quiet sigh. 'Being a cornball.'
As he thought so, the bus suddenly started humming, the driver's cabin closing not long after.
Soon after, the bus began departing, back to U.A., while everyone chatted and Taka calmly rested in his seat.
But as the bus departed, Taka's eyes opened.
Leaning back, he turned his gaze to the window behind him, looking out at the massive USJ facility as it faded into the distance.
Far near the entrance, he spotted the Nomu being transported in heavy restraints toward a vehicle clearly designed for something much larger than a normal criminal.
He recalled their fight.
Today, he was able to once again get a proper grasp of where he stood in the food chain of this world.
Unlike with Gigantomachia, here he was not overwhelmed. Although he didn't dominate outright, he wouldn't call it a fierce fight either.
He ignored many obvious weaknesses of the Nomu throughout their fight, such as what would probably happen if he damaged the exposed brain, cut its head off, or just went for the kill rather than submission, as he did by solely cutting the guy's legs and arms off.
Which was pretty gruesome, he had to admit. He could still feel some gazes around, probably bothered by that.
Fortunately, its regeneration had lessened the shock, even if slightly. So they hadn't outright brought it up.
Though the police would certainly do.
'So much trouble just for not outright evaporating him with a blast of aura.' Taka sighed.
Considering all the consequences coming for his ass later, Taka almost felt this hadn't been worth it.
The watchers at that time had only been his classmates and teachers, after all. The effort-aura gain ratio wasn't very balanced.
But there's a reason he only almost felt it hadn't been worth it.
His eyes drifted upward—to the top of the USJ dome.
There, a figure stood with its cape flowing, arms crossed as the sunlight hit it head-on.
"…What the hell is he doing?" Taka deadpanned.
The figure turned.
And then, it took something out of its robes, flashing it to Taka, along with a thumbs up.
A camera.
For once, a full smile spread across Taka's face.
The reason he hadn't outright cheesed the Nomu, why he hadn't held him in the air, attacked the brain, or tried to kill him in general... was because of that.
The incident would go viral in the media after this, that was for sure. And when a literal footage of him fighting the villains went out...
"Heh." He let out a quiet laugh.
The food chain hierarchy would be moving once again.
…
────────────────────────
-To Be Continued...-
────────────────────────
(A/N: Sorry for the extra-long wait, I was a tad busy these days and couldn't find much time to write. But I'm now back in my abode, and should be a lot more comfortable while writting, and have plenty of free time ahead from now on to do so, so I'll try to pick up the pace like in ancient times.)