Chapter Text
----- MORIOH, JAPAN | THE MORNING AFTER THE U.A SPORTS FESTIVAL -----
Our chapter begins at a café early in the morning. it's not too busy, and not too quiet. The room was filled with the sounds of people from different walks of life buying coffee and pastries before getting started with their morning, with the ocassional ring of the cash register. One of these few people was a waitress prepping drink orders for a table of four as the radio was playing it's broadcast from the inside speakers.
Mori ♫
Mori ♪
♪ Mori
♫ Mori ♪
MORI – MORICHO RADIOOOooooooooo
Radiooooo ♫
We love, Morioh cho…
'Good Morning! You're listening to Moricho Radio! With your host, your neighbor. Kai Harada! It's another beautiful morning here in our peaceful town, and the topic on everyone's minds today was that incredible Sports Festival that everyones talking about. I just want to say that even though quirks have been banned in our town for nearly a decade, I for one am eternally grateful for the hard work our pro-heroes put into keeping the peace of our beautiful country. Let's start the day off with a track based on a personal favorite hero of mine, Majestic. It's Magic Man by the talented group, Heart. Enjoy!'
The classic rock track kicked in just as the waitress set their order down on the table. The four teens thanked her casually, none of them giving away the fact that they were Stand users—quiet protectors of the town of Morioh. The group consisted of Josuke Higashikata, Okuyasu Nijimura, Koichi Hirose, and Yukako Yamagishi.
“Oh—uh, thanks a lot,” said the shortest of the four, Koichi, as he grabbed his drink. Then he turned back to Josuke with a confused expression.
“Okay, so let me get this straight. So Jotaro called you yesterday saying that this Izuku Midoriya kid, the one from the UA Sports Festival is a Stand user-”
“Which he totally is.” Josuke added.
“R-right... So he wants you to find this guy, meet him, and… what? Help him understand his Stand or something? Is that it?”
“Well, no not exactly,” Josuke said, leaning back in his seat, and reached for his cappuccino cup. “It’s more about a favor I owe him. It has to do with my dad... and my adoptive stepsister Shizuka. Or niece or... Honestly, I have no idea what word to use to describe her.”
“W-wait. Shizuka?” Yukako said, brows furrowing. “That name sounds familiar…” Josuke took a sip of his drink, then set the cup down.
“Do you remember back when we were going after that serial killer guy- Yoshikage Kira? Around that time, when my dad first came to Morioh, we found this invisible baby that was abandoned. He ended up taking her into his family. That was Shizuka.”
Yukako’s eyes lit up with recognition. “Oooooh—yeah, I remember her now!”
"Uh, y-yeah. Anyway, I owe a favor to the Speedwagon foundation, and Jotaro can’t do it cause he's swamped with work in America." That when Josuke leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table as the conversation drifted. “Hey, Koichi… do you think you could do me a huge favor?”
Koichi looked up mid-sip, cautious. “Uh… What kind of favor?”
“I know Jotaro asked me to meet this Midoriya kid, but I was thinking you might be a better person for this job. You’ve traveled a bit in the past, and I figured I’d stay here. Y’know… keep watch over Morioh.” The loud one of the bunch, Okuyasu dropped the knife he was using to put jelly on his muffin as he turned toward his best friend.
"Woahwoahwoah, time out. Are you really using that as an excuse not to go?” Josuke didn’t answer his Jobro right away. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet but steady.
“It’s not a reason. It’s a promise.” Okuyasu and Koichi glanced at each other, puzzled. “I already told you all this, but back when my grandpa, Ryohei died, I made a vow. I swore that I’d protect this town in his place. He gave everything to keep Morioh safe, and I wasn’t there to protect him when an enemy stand user took his life." Josuke paused, glancing down. "So I made a promise right then and there, to never abandon this place and keep watch over it.” Even the loud, impulsive Okuyasu went quiet, his eyes drifting to the tea in front of him. Yukako looked down, then back up at the unbreakable diamond.
“Josuke, that’s… admirable,” she said softly. “But would your grandfather really want you to chain yourself here forever? I’m sure he took vacation days now and then.”
Josuke clenched his jaw, conflicted. “Probably, but if something serious were to happen here while I was gone, I’d never forgive myself.”
Okuyasu leaned back in his seat, eyebrows raised. “Josuke, your not the only one watching over the town for enemy stands & troublemakers. There's like, a bunch of other Stand users around Morioh helping to protect it. Rohan, Toshizaku, Yuya, that freaky alien guy ...whatever his name is, ...and us!" He waved at the table towards the two other people sitting at the table. "It’s not like the towns gonna catch on fire and be wiped off the map if you leave for a day or two. Besides, we haven't had any asshole stand users in this town for years. I mean that Oyanagi guy is a bit of a weirdo, but it's not like hes killing people or harassing them too much.”
Josuke shrugged, avoiding eye contact. “Well either way I just, feel like I need to be here. Like it’s my job. Besides, i've never been outside Morioh by myself. The thought of being in a town or city i've never been by myself has always made me uneasy.” Okuyasu leaned in, serious for once.
“Josuke, you’ve been here your whole life, ya need to get out, stretch your legs. You don’t need to carry the whole town on your back." He than switched over to his normal tone. "Besides… if your feeling uneasy about going to a place you’ve never visited before, I'll tag along with you.”
Josuke blinked before he could drink more of his coffee. “Wait, what?”
“Yeah, man, You know your my friend for life." Okuyasu said, bringing an honorable fist to his chest. "You think I’m gonna let you go meet some new stand user from outta town without backup? No way. I’ll be there watching your back. Besides, i’ve always wanted to check out these big cities full of quirk having heroes. It’ll be just like those manga's we read. Who knows, We might get to see that super-hot Mount Lady chick in action. Ha Haaa!”
Josuke let out a short laugh, but his shoulders eased slightly. “Your serious?”
“As serious as I am about ramen,” Okuyasu said, dramatically crossing his arms. “And you know how serious I am about my ramen.” Koichi smiled at his friends comedic banter.
“Well, if you guys are going, then I'll come along to if you'll have me." Yukako eyes shot at her boyfriend as soon as he said that. "This whole thing sounds big. I don't think theirs any pro-heroes out there with a stand, so you might need me to help defuse things if they get serious. Besides, you helped me figure out Echoes, remember? Since this Midoriya's guys stand is an act stand, I could help him with his powers if need be." Just than, Yukako grabbed Koichi's left arm, and reeled his body toward her, bringing his arm into her chest for a loving squeeze.
“Well, if my little Koichi's going with the two of you, than I'm coming along as well.”
“Eh—r-really? Y-you wanna come to Yukako?” The lone lady at the table smiled at her lovers question.
“Of course. I don’t have to work at my job for the rest of this week, so I have plenty of freetime, and what better way to spend it than going on a getaway with you? Besides, You remember that promise you made to me seven years ago after your trip to Italy right?”
“M-My promise?” She looked at her boyfriend like she was not happy at the way he reacted to the "promise."
“Yeah. Don’t tell me you forgot.”
“Uh…I- eh... uh...” Yamagishi gave an annoyed pout at his stammering response. She could tell he totally forgot.
“You told us about that time you went to Italy and that Giorno Giovanna guy took everything you had shortly after you arrived." She recalled, causing Koichi's eyes to open wider at that memory. "When you returned home, you promised me that if you ever traveled out of Morioh again, that you’d take me with you. I’ll make sure no scumbags ever swindle you again. And if they try it, i’ll wrap them up in my Love Deluxe and make them regret it.”
“Yeah,” Okuyasu added with a smirk and a tightened fist. “If I ever see that Giorno guy, I'll give him a few choice words and a couple dozen knuckle sandwiches, courtesy of The Hand for what he did to you.”
“Aha ha… thanks everyone,” Koichi muttered nervously. He didn't think Nijimura's threat was necessary as he felt that Giorno was a decent enough guy, even though his first impression of him was terrible. But he just let them say their words. “Well, yeah i’d love for you to go with me Yukako. Even if it’s just a short trip, lets do it.”
“Great!” Yukako immediately looked up her schedule on her phone to make the necessary plans as Nijimura's smile grew as he finished drinking the last of his tea as he faced his bestest bro.
"So what do ya say Josuke? Ya wanna leave town for a day or two to find this Midoriya kid?"
With his three closest friends on board watching his back, Josuke had an internal problem he kept silent about. While it sounded nice to go with his friends to find a new stand user, his oath to keep the town safe weighed heavy on him. If he was actually gone for a couple of days, how well would the town be protected against a rouge stand user, or an outsider or two with a quirk that snuck into his quirk-free town to run rough-shot on the townsfolk. He had to think about if this town would be in safe hands if he and his friends weren't here.
He knew Rohan Kishibe was in town, and his stand is one of the most powerful in the area. He could make easy work of any rouge forces he came across. He also saw Akira Otoishi the other day at the local comic book shop, then there was the other two users Okuyasu listed earlier, Toshikazu & Yuya. Knowing their stands, & what they can do, he felt they could protect the town as well as they have long since grown out of their devious phases.
All that considered, the town seemed like it would be ok if he were to leave, and based on what Jotaro said, this task would only take a day to complete, perhaps two if need be. Despite that, this seemed like a gamble, but Josuke finally nodded.
"Alright, fine. As long as were not out of Morioh for too long, and you'll all come with me, i'll go."
“HA Haaaaa! That’s what I’m talkin’ about! ” Okuyasu hollered, throwing an arm around Josuke’s shoulders and getting the attention of a quarter of all the people in the cafe with his loudness. “Look at us, the original crew. Back on a mission to hunt down a stand user! Just like old times, but y’know, without the chance of us getting murdered and all.”
Koichi grinned as he looked at at Josuke. As happy as he was being more open to leaving Morioh, there was still one unanswered question about all of this.
"So Josuke, I didn't ask you this earlier, but whats this whole thing about?" Everyone at the table looked at him, even Yukako, who was on her phone planning out her schedule. "I mean, when Jotaro wanted me to go to Italy to find Giorno, it was because he was biologically related to a very bad man he killed over a decade ago, and thought he was going to be a future problem for his family & loved ones. But this Midoriya guy seems to wanna be a pro-hero with his stand, so I doubt he's gonna do anything villainous with his powers...
...Is there something more about this Izuku Midoriya kid other than his stand?"
Yukako and Okuyasu shared glances at each other and both looked at Josuke. That was a good question as he didn't really explain yet what the deal was with Jotoro asking him to do this in the first place. Before he said anything, he brought his cappuccino up to lips, took a gulp and brought the cup back to his saucer.
"Like I said, It's related to my old man and that baby he adopted, Shizuka. It's serious." His three friends at the looked at each other, Koichi and Yukako leaned toward Josuke.
"Well, don't keep us in suspense man, whats going on?" Okuyasu supported as he took a bite of the jelly smeared pastry.
Josuke looked around at his friends going with him on this business trip of sorts and sighed as he told them to get comfortable, letting them know that this was going to take a while...
----- U.A HIGH | ONE DAY LATER -----
After the Sports Festival, classes were back in session at U.A. High. Before the day began, Midoriya entered the school and immediately headed to his locker, cursing himself for forgetting to bring an umbrella. A sudden pocket of rain had ambushed him just minutes before he arrived.
As he wiped away what water he could, his friend Tenya Iida arrived at his own locker nearby, wearing a green rain poncho.
“Uh, h-hey, Iida. How’s it going?” Midoriya asked, still drying himself off.
Iida turned, seeing the familiar face. “Oh, Midoriya. Hello. I’m doing… fine. For the most part.” He looked away and began removing his poncho and organizing his belongings.
Midoriya noticed something strange—his friend’s usual energy was missing. Iida's tone was deadpan, almost emotionless.
“Uh, that’s good. Um… so, hey, about the other day. How’s your—”
“My brother’s okay, Midoriya…” Iida cut in, not meeting his gaze. “Well, as okay as he can be. His injury thankfully wasn't fatal, but… I’m afraid he’s incapable of continuing his duties as a hero. He’s going to retire.”
The words hit Midoriya like a jolt of electricity. Ingenium—the current #32 Pro Hero, beloved across the country for his speed-based Quirk—was going to retire. The news hadn’t been made public yet, but when it was, it would shock the nation.
“Oh no, Iida… I’m so sorry. If there’s anything I can do to—”
“It’s fine, Midoriya. You don’t have to do anything.” Iida cut him off again. He turned to face him, wearing a “just fine” expression that Midoriya wasn’t convinced by. “This is a difficult time for me and my family, but we’ll get through it. You don’t have to worry about me. …We should get to class.”
With that, Iida walked off toward homeroom. Midoriya remained frozen in place, a sinking feeling in his stomach. Iida was not okay—not really. But Midoriya didn’t want to push. Not now. For the time being, he decided to give his friend space… but he’d keep an eye out for any signs that he needed support.
Later, as Midoriya entered his classroom, one of the first people he noticed was Bakugo at his desk, chatting with Kirishima. The last time he saw him, Bakugo was being wheeled out of the tournament by medical robots. He’d undergone another brief surgery to repair post-festival injuries.
According to Recovery Girl, it would take about a week and a half more before she could fully heal him. Thankfully, the damage hadn’t been as severe as Bakugo made it seem. Still, when Bakugo noticed Midoriya enter the room, he squinted and looked away. Part of him was still bitter that he didn’t get the rematch with Deku he wanted. But he knew… that day would come.
As Midoriya sat and unzipped his bag to get his books, he overheard his classmates swapping stories about their recent rise in fame after the Sports Festival.
He heard Kaminari mentioned that he was complimented four times by random girls on his walk to school for the effort he put up against Todoroki, which earned A very jealous overreaction from Mineta. Uraraka told Asui that she spent an extra half hour at the grocery store yesterday, as she was stopped on every aisle by locals from her side of town that congratulated her for her effort in the games. Midoriya was no different. On his train ride to the school before the rain hit, it seemed like half the entire train car was telling him to keep doing his best, and kept asking him questions about his quirk he couldn’t give easy answers to.
It was definitely up there for one of the most socially awkward school commutes he had so far.
A moment later, the door slid open as nearly the entire room was taken aback by who came through the door.
“Morning class.”
Almost everyone in the room gasped at the sight of their old homeroom teacher, Mr. Aizawa.
He had returned to class for the first time since the USJ attack. Even Iida who was going through his internal problems was taken aback by his sensei's appearance. It made sense though. It had been over several weeks since the attack that put him out of work, and with one of the best healers in the country working at the school, his return was inevitable.
His very presence sent a chill up the spine of any students who were not at their desks, causing them to make a beeline for their seats to avoid an intimidating lecture from him. Most of the bandages on him have been removed thanks to recovery girls treatment, however the students took notice that his left arm was almost entirely missing and his shirt sleeve was rolled up, reminding everyone of Aizawa’s near fatal battle.
“Mr. Aizawa! It’s great to see you again. We were all worried about you while you were gone.” said Asui, ending with a soft ribbit.
“Yeah, Recovery girl went a tad overboard on the treatment, but, i guess since i'm here, the extra care was worth it. … Anyway, we have a very important class today, mostly on hero informatics." The class didn't like the sound of that, certain others didn't even know what informatics meant. Was their teacher planning a pop-quiz on the history of the Rhode Island New State Statue? A boring PSA video on the line between self-defense and assault? Everyone feared for what Aizawa had in store for them today.
“…You need codenames. It’s time to pick your hero names.”
A beat of silence hit the room, followed by an eruption of cheers. Class-A was finally getting the chance to get their hero names. Everyone seemed more hyped and excited than that time Mineta found out Midnight would be his substitute teacher. Aizawa saw this reaction as irrational, and activated his quirk, intimidating his class into silence as he continued.
“...I’m aware that Midnight informed you all about the hero draft program since I was out. Now as she likely mentioned, every pro hero and agency had their eyes on you all during the festival, and based on how well you did, most of you got offers to work for certain agencies. Some, more than others.”
Aizawa clicked a button on his remote control. The board behind him displayed the total number of offers each student received. The most noticeable amount came from Todoroki, showing that he had 4,076 offers from the festival. An amount that took most of the class aback, as his offers overwhelmingly towered the others as the student with the second most offers, was surprisingly Bakugo with 877 requests. Midoriya eyes went down the list.
Todoroki... Bakugo... Yaoyorozu... Tokoyami... Iida...
He let out an ecstatic inhale as he saw his name on the board.
“I got 103 offers? That many agencies want me to work for them? No way!” Midoriya thought in his head. He further looked down the list to see how the others did. He saw his close friend Uraraka earned 31 offers, Kaminari received 21, Sero surprisingly got 7 despite being the only one on the list who didn't make it to the finals, and lastly at the bottom of the list was Aoyama, who received just two offers.
"Only two heroes wish to see my sparkle ✰ ? Quelle déception! Certainly there should of been more than that."
"At least you got some Aoyama." Ashido shot back at Aoyama's ungratefulness. "What about the rest of us that didn't get any!?" Aizawa looked at the pink girl with a raised eyebrow.
"Did Midnight not make that clear enough?" Ashido flinched, unsure how to respond as she felt intimidated to give an answer, unaware that he asked a genuine question. No one else seemed to answer him either, until the class vice president broke the silence.
“If I remember correctly, she said all of us would be participating in the internships. Students who received offers from the Sports Festival can only pick from the agencies that reached out to them. Everyone else would have to choose from a list of pre-approved agencies, willing to take in apprentices.”
“Exactly. Thank you, Yaoyorozu.” Aizawa turned back to Mina. “You got that Ashido?”
She nodded, visibly cheered up. “Yes, sir!”
"Good. Anyway, since you'll all be interning, you'll need hero names that you'll be referred to during your apprenticeship."
And right on cue, the classroom door slid open as the classes former substitute teacher, Miss Midnight strutted inside the room, her high heels clacking on the floor, with several of the boys becoming charmed and excited to see her once again.
“That’s right, and if you kids want some advice, you should think carefully as to what your names will be, as what you pick now could be your code name for life. Hello everyone, Hope you all didn’t miss me too much.” Most of the students in the class were happy to see their former substitute teacher again… well. Except for Bakugo, who angrily grinded his teeth at the sight of the R-18 hero.
“What the hell is she doing here?” Bakugo scowled to Aizawa. It was clear that Katsuki still resented Midnight after her decision to withdraw him from the festival after his fight with Todoroki. Even though he didn't say much upon coming to class earlier, the rest of his class felt he had a chip on his shoulder towards her for that. Aizawa was going to hush Bakugo's rude quest before Midnight beat him to it.
“I’m here to make sure you all pick decent codenames, as hero names isn’t really Aizawa’s forte.” The erasure hero groaned at that, remembering his school days of the past. “Also, watch your tone with me young man." She warned, putting Bakugo on the spot in front of the class. "If you're giving me an attitude because of what I did during the sports festival, I didn't do it in bad faith. You were in no shape to continue in that tournament, and you know it. If you went up against that girl in the finals, I'm willing to bet my life that she would have sent you right back to the hospital even worse than the last time you went" Bakugo glsred at her, not saying a word, and internally doubting that some girl that can break herself apart into pieces could beat him.
"...I understand your upset about what I did, I get that, and i'm sorry I took your opportunity away. But don’t forget that you're a talented young man with a great quirk that placed first in the entrance exams. You & everyone else here have only been students for roughly a month, you have time to blossom into an amazing hero. For now though, take it easy til Recovery girl can fix your ribs, then come back stronger than before. Ok?”
Bakugo scowled at Midnight's words and looked away while angrily muttering. “Fine. Whatever.”
Midnight squinted her eyes at the boys rude response. She wasn't wrong at an earlier time when she told Aizawa that she had a history of dealing with short tempered boys with attitude problems, but she was starting to think Bakugo might be a special case. Regardless, she chose to not further push this as she began to give a brief explanation on the importance of hero names, all while Aizawa took a nap in his signature yellow sleeping bag.
After a brief explanation of the importance of hero names, the female pro handed out a set of whiteboard & markers to the students as everyone started brainstorming their code names. An assignment that took the class roughly 25 minutes to complete. It would of been sooner had Bakugo not come up with 5 names that were all turned down by Midnight for being too edgy, which only soured his already bad feelings he had towards the female pro. During this time, Midoriya was also in a pickle with his name choice.
When he was younger, he brainstormed hero names for his future self that were mostly play-off names of All-Might like Mighty Man or All Might Jr, but thinking about it now, he was his own hero, with his own power that was drastically different from the kind of quirk All-Might possessed. He had to be his own hero, with his own identity. At first, he thought he should do what Jiro did and have his hero name be the same as his 'quirk', in other words. The Pro Hero, Personal Jesus.
…But Midoriya didn’t think that name felt right. He was stumped for 20 minutes, eventually becoming one of the last few students to pick a name alongside Bakugo & Iida. Nothing he thought of felt right. he thought about some of this classmates for a recommendation. Maybe Kirishima, or Mineta? ...ok maybe not Mineta. Surly Uraraka could give him a good name. Before he verbally said something, he thought for a moment that there WAS a moment in the past where Uraraka recommended a hero name for him earlier around the start of the school year... What was it again...?
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"...you know Deku doesn’t sound that bad to me. I think it would make for a great hero name plus I think it sounds kind of cute.”
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Midoriya cheeks flushed red as he remembered that compliment he got from his friend. But than he thought about that word. “…Deku.”
He thought about that name for a few moments, along with everything that’s happened to him since the start of the year. And…despite him hating that word, something in him changed that, and said to him that this had to be his name. He then wrote the word down on the whiteboard and presented his choice of a hero name. Deku. Several of his classmates like Jiro & Kirishima asked if he was sure that he wanted that as his name, especially since Jiro remembered Midoriya telling her that Bakugo called him that word to berate him. But he was positive that this was what his name had to be.
He would be known as the worlds first Stand-using hero. Deku.
Later, Aizawa woke up from his brief slumber as the class period neared its conclusion.
“Alright everyone, almost all of you have your codenames and your lists of agencies that want to take you on." His eyes went to the right, looking toward a certain student. "Bakugo, I understand you still haven't come up with an acceptable hero name yet." The boy in question looked away from his teacher. He put out eight different hero names that were some variation of the original hero name he wanted. 'King Explosion Murder.' All of them had unsurprisingly been shut down by Midnight for being, in her words, 'a PR nightmare waiting to happen.'
Aizawa gave him a pointed look. “I expect a name that isn’t liable to get you banned from every news network by the end of the day.” Bakugo didn’t respond. His scowl deepened.
“As for the rest of you, you have two days to research the agencies that reached out, and to pick one that'll suits your strengths. I suggest you all start now. Class is dismissed.”
“Ahem." The homeroom teacher looked to Midnight clearing her throat to get his attention. "Aizawa, I think you're forgetting something.” Aizawa raised an eyebrow, confused as to what the R18 hero was talking about, until she pointed in a specific direction, He turned his head to where his vision spotted our protagonist.
“Oh, right. Midoriya, would you mind coming with us for a second? We have some things we need to talk about.” Izuku was confused for a second as to what both Midnight and Aizawa wanted. He was worried he was going to choke him out with his scarf like he did during the first day of school, or perhaps he broke a rule? Or perhaps this is about what happened with Tokoyami? Or that general studies guy Shinso?! Either way, he had no choice but to quickly pack his bag, and follow the teachers and hear what they had to say, hoping he wouldn’t get a scolding.
The halls that the two teachers and student walked into were mostly quiet, but slowly started filling up with students of various grades and classes over the course of several minutes. The teachers didn't say anything at first, leaving Midoriya to say the first words.
“S-So uh... what’s going on, Aizawa? Is everything okay? I’m not in trouble or anything, right?”
“Oh no, not at all Midoriya,” Midnight said with a light tone. “We just wanted to talk with you privately.”
“Really?” The boy blinked as Aizawa took over.
“Yeah. Firstly…well. I don't normally do this but I wanted to apologize to you. The last time you and I spoke face to face, I may have gotten a little too heated with you over your power. If I remember, it was because of you having an unregistered quirk when I believed you to be quirkless. Don't get eme wrong, I don't regret upset about you not registering your quirk, just that I went a tad overboard in my reaction.”
“Speaking of your quirk,” Midnight chimed in, shifting the conversation, “I gotta say, you put on quite the performance during the Festival, young man. Getting third place is not an easy feat to accomplish.”
"Yeah, Although it feels like my whole personal life has changed." Midnight raised an eyebrow at the students response. "Ever since that day, it feels like everyone around me knows who I am. The other day I went to this store not far from my house to get some trading cards and some All-Might merchandise. I was stopped on my way to the counter by three people as I was paying for my stuff, and then fifteen people recognized me on my walk back and all congratulated me. All that attention was... kind of overwhelming." Midnight let out a chuckle, as that level of attention was nothing compared to what she had to deal with back in her U.A days.
"Well, get used to it kiddo. If you keep giving it your all at these yearly festivals and doing hero work, by the time you graduate, there won't be anyone in this country that won't know who you are." Midoriya didn't like the sound of that. It sounded like a warning for the future that he was gonna have to kiss his future privacy goodbye if he was going to be a top-ranking hero like All-Might.
Anyway," Aizawa continued. "I thought we'd let you know that it's not just heroes and random civilians that are interested in you. Nezu told me earlier that yesterday, a group of businessmen visited U.A., and met with him for a 'personal business request' .” Midoriya tilted his head.
“Business request? So, like, the kind that the U.A. business course forms a partnership with?"
"Surprisingly, no. According to Nezu, It was you they were interested in." Midoriya looked at his sensei with a look of surprise, feeling a small sense of foreboding. “He told me that the men represented an organization called The Speedwagon Foundation.” Midoriya blinked, giving a parroted response.
“The. Speedwagon. Foundation?”
”I take it you've never heard of them?" Izuku was silent for a moment as he contemplated the name with a thumb to his chin.
"...Doesn't ring a bell, no."
"Not surprising." Aizawa replied. "Neither me or Midnight have heard of um either, not even The Principal, and he has more connections than anyone in this entire school. So I did some research into them. Turns out there not even a hero agency." Izuku raised a curious eyebrow at that bit of information, letting out a faint "huh?" in response. "They’re an international group focused on environmental conservation, medical tech, and research. They have no pro heroes who work for their company, or any documented history of hero activity. There a totally separate industry.”
"I dunno Aizawa. I always believed medical researchers are unsung heroes in their own right." Midnight let out a light giggle as Aizawa gave his friend an annoyed look at that smartass-like response.
"So, if this Speedwagon group isn't a hero agency, than what did they want with me?" Izuku asked.
“They claimed there's a high-ranking member of their organization who wanted to meet you. Saying they could ‘help with your quirk.’ ” Midoriya’s eyebrows shot up.
“Help with my quirk...? But-, they’re not a hero agency. Would I even be allowed to accept an internship from them?”
“I'm afraid not kiddo." The female hero shot down. "U.A. Hero course students can only intern with licensed pro-heroes & certified hero agencies."
"Yeah, I heard they tried to dispute that, but Nezu made it clear how strict UA is with that rule." Eraser continued. "Besides, you have over 100 agencies that reached out to you that are more than capable of doing just that. You have no reason to consider working for them. ...Unless you’re secretly thinking of changing your career path to a park ranger or research scientist?” Midoriya quickly shook his head at that assumption.
"Wha- of course not! I mean, those are decent, meaningful jobs, but I want to be a hero. I sacrificed too much to give up on that dream now."
"I thought so." Aizawa said. "I'd forget about them Midoriya. For now, just think about which hero you want to intern with. You gotta decent amount of offers, so pick a good agency who’ll help you improve yourself.”
“Right, yes sir.”
“Good. ...Alright, we're almost there.”
“...Huh? Almost there? Almost there for what?” Midoriya asked as he appeared confused. He looked down the hall to find anything that stuck out to what he was referring to, while Midnight smirked at the green haired teen, as she knew the boy was gonna love what she had to say.
“We got a surprise for you young man. Aizawa received a notice that your hero costume you is ready." Izuku's eyes widened as his head spun to face the woman of the group. "It's waiting to be picked up by you in the support course workshop up the hall.”
“My Hero costume? No way!”
“Yep. Can't intern at a hero agency without a costume young man.”
Up until now, Midoriya was the only student in all of Class 1-A who did not have an official licensed hero costume. He had a costume in the earlier weeks of school, the one that his mother had provided for him, but Bakugo had destroyed it beyond repair. Because it was a family-provided costume, and not one on file with an official costume company, Midoriya could not put in a request for a free replacement in the event of severe damage.
However, when he registered his quirk following his first day at school, he was required to submit official schematics and details on the suit he wanted. The costume would take several weeks to be created as there was a backup queue of students from numerous hero schools who requested costume replacements & touchups ahead of time. Until it was ready, he had been using his UA gym outfit for all of his hero training exercises...
...But now, it was finally time for him to get his own costume.
He picked up the pace into a jog, heading up the hallway toward the U.A. Development Studio just ahead. He could barely keep himself from sprinting full-speed. Aizawa sighed, then shook his head.
“I should tell him not to run in the halls...”
“Awwww, don't ruin his moment.” Midnight grinned. “He’s acting like a kid who just found out he’s going to Universal Studios. Let him enjoy that youthful energy while's he's got it Shota.”
Midoriya was already halfway up the hall, the teachers not far behind as he stopped right in front of the workshop, gazing up at the large metal door.
“I can't believe I completely forgot about my costume. I hope I didn’t go too overboard with everything. I gotta take a picture of my outfit and send it to my mo-“
*BOOOOOOOOOOOM!*
A large explosion blew through the door of the support course workshop as Midoriya was blasted to the ground, becoming lost in a dark smoke. The blast almost scared Midnight out of her skin, as she and Aizawa fell back onto their behinds. Their path was shrouded in a smokescreen. Aizawa's eyes shot wide at what he saw. His student was in this mess, potentially hurt.
"MIDORIYA! You gotta be kidding me!"
"Hold on Shota, i got this!"
Midnight got to her feet and flipped open a pair of wind fans hidden in her costume. With practiced grace, she whipped them forward, sending gusts of wind that cut through the smoke with each swipe. As the thick haze slowly began to thin out, and the smoke from the workshop cleared out, Midnight and Aizawa were able to find Midoriya's body.
“Midoriya, are you-”
The R-18 Heroines question was cut off as she let out a light gasp what she saw. She hid her grinning mouth behind one of her fans to hide her ecstatic reaction, while Aizawa had a look of disgust. On the ground they spotted Midoriya lying on his back with the support courses Mei Hatsume lying face down on top of him. Her body positioned in a way to where her breasts were unintentionally pressed against Izuku's face.
The girl in question shook her head as he composed herself from the blast, leaning her body up and looking down at the face she was smothering. (unintentionally)
“Oh, hey there. Where did you come from?” Midoriya didn't say a word. He face was as red as a beet. His brain was like a blue-screened computer as his body twitched. He realized what was happening and had no idea what to do, or why this girl was acting so casual over this situation. All the while Midnight had a wide smirk, like she was resisting the urge to laugh.
"Soooo naughty. So-"
"NEMURI." Aizawa's eyes glowed red in disapproval of her reaction. Aizawa forced her to get rational and rushed over to help Hatsume up before any nearby students investigating this got any wrong ideas.
"Alright young lady. Break it up, We don't need anyone to see this now, common." She demanded, grabbing the girl by her arm as she got up and dusted herself off. Aizawa meanwhile checked on his student.
"Midoriya, are you alright?"
' Of course I'm not!!!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT JUST HAPPENED TO ME TEN SECONDS AGO!?!?!! I COULD BARLEY BREATHE...
...IN THE SMOKE!!!! '
"I-, eh-, her-, b-b- b- b- b-" He could barley form a word as steam puffed out from his nose with his every breath, feeling like he was gonna pass out from embarrassment. Midoriya was able to get to his feet, so Aizawa assumed he was fine and was just overreacting to what this girl accidentally did to him.
“Aha, sorry about the explosion. Engineering can get pretty wild when you do a little experimenting.” Mei said to Midnight as she gazed over at Izuku. “Oh hey, I remember you. You're that kid from the sports festival with the quirk my classmates were talking about. Uh… I think your name was… Mortimer... or something ...right?” Midoriya kept his gaze away as he could barley form a proper answer.
“Its uh-, I-, uh-, y-your-, I-”
“HATSUME!”
Mei felt her heart drop as her name rang through the hallway like a thunderclap. From inside the workshop, a short irate man covered in soot & what looked like chunks of a yellow bulldozer stepped outside to confront the girl responsible for messing up his studio. This man was the engineering pro hero: Power Loader.
“Seriously!? Look at the mess you made! This is the second time this month you almost blew up my workshop! I told you to follow my instructions! I don’t have a problem with you doing personal experiments, but I made it clear that you have to follow the safety guidelines!”
“Sorry Mr. Power loader sir, just testing out what works and what doesn’t. Technological progress can’t be made unless you know what will & won’t explode when you snip a wire or two.” Power loader, shook his head at that comment as he noticed the small crowd in front of him that witnessed the property damage.
“Sorry you all had to see this. I'm trying to get this one to follow basic safety instructions, but it's a... work in progress, I guess." He looked over at the green-haired student looking away, trying to recompose himself. "Oh hey. Midoriya, it's you. I was hoping to meet you today.” Izuku's eyes went onto the engineering hero, his vision also picked up Hatsume as he looked away once more to try and compose an answer as best as she could.
“Uh-, o-oh, yes sir- hello. I-, I was-, I was told-, that-, my- hero costume-, was-.” Midnight came up beside the stuttering teen. Tapping his shoulder as a signal to let her take it from here.
"What Midoriya is trying to say is that he heard from Aizawa that his costume is ready to be picked up. He's just here to-" Hatsume let out a gasp-like sound that was loud enough to cut Midnight off.
“Wait, THATS what your name was, Midoriya! Sorry it was on the tip of my tongue-" Mei paused as she let out an audible gasp as if she remembered something. "Wait, Midoriya! I remember something! Your costume! I was suppose to show you your hero outfit if you came by today!" The girl got right up in Midoriya's face. As he glanced away, his cheeks still red. "Aha, sorry that explosion probably did something to my head. Should probably get that looked at. But, YEAH! C’mon, lets get you suited up! I'll even show you my babies and let you try them out to see if you wanna add um to your costume!” With strength and confidence far exceeding your average engineer, Hatsume grabbed Midoriya by the hand and brought him into the workshop.
"Wha- waitwaitwait- Time out! wh-, wha-, what do you mean you'll show me your babies!? WAIT!!!"
Once they were gone and inside, Midnight and Aizawa shared a glance. The 1-A teacher exhaled and pinched the bridge of his nose, while Midnight let out a light burst of laughter.
“Well... I can’t tell if Midoriya just got incredibly lucky, or deeply unlucky.” Midnight joked.
"Do. Not. Tell anyone, what you saw. No one needs to know."
"Know what? What are you two talking about, the explosion?" Asked Power Loader. Midnight wanted to tell him what she saw, but Aizawa gave her a silent, serious look that told her not to.
"...It's nothing Majima. Don't worry about it..." The woman conceded.
Once inside, Hatsume let go of Midoriya's hand as she told him she'd right back as she'd fetched his hero costume. As she went her way, Midoriya calmed down as he looked around at the U.A Development Studio for the first time, and...
...wow. This place was amazing.
Aside from the workbench near the entrance that had a very noticeable explosion soot mark that Hatsume caused, the room looked like some kind of laboratory mixed with a highly advanced automated plant. In one part of the space, Support course students were working on what appeared to be pieces of a giant robot and various suits of armor with blasters and other weapons. On the otherside of the room were desks and mannequins that were dawned in prototype costumes with students drawing out adjustments for various attire, and for some reason in one corner of the room, there was a huge pile of what looked like old, broken support gear. A scrap pile perhaps?
'This is sooooo cool.'
While Midoriya checked out the giant robots being worked on, Hatsume walked over to one of the filing cabinets in the room, fiddled with what was inside, and grabbed a metal briefcase, returning back to the green-haired boy as he was still in awe at the giant robots. Hatsume was quick to notice his interest in one of the robots being working on.
"I see Busuta's work has caught your attention."
"Busuta?" Midoriya questioned as he turned his head to the girl in possession of his costume.
"Yeah, he's a second year that specializes in robotics & rocket propulsion." The mentioned boy stopped working as he turned his head to the sound of his name being called. The pink haired girl gave him a thumbs up, as he shrugged his shoulders at the gesture and got back to work. "He's working on a new project. A prototype of a brand new training robot to be used on UA students during the entrance exams. One that flies."
"A flying practice robot?" Midoriya repeated, eyes lighting up as his analytical mind went into overdrive. "That could actually be useful. The robots used in our practice exams were all ground-based. A flying target would present a better training challenge for students with aerial quirks. Especially since during the sports festival, several students flew right over the robots we had to fight during that one obstacle."
"Yeah, his babies aren't bad, but MY babies are totally superior." Two support course students including Busuta were listening in on her conversation, and all rolled their eyes at that comment. Midoriya also noticed Mei used that word 'baby' once more. That's when he corrected his internal guess that she was referring to her inventions as 'babies.' and not any real, flesh-and-blood ones.
"After your done trying out your costume, I've got some babies in need of a test subject to see if their working at peak efficiency. You interested?"
His eyes sparkled with a mix of excitement and curiosity, like a kid who was handed the keys to a candy store.
“Wait, hold on—you have gadgets I could try out? Really? Do you have any suits of armor? Maybe a blaster? Or—" He paused mid-thought, suddenly struck by a concerning memory. "...Wait. Your inventions won't explode, will they?”
“Only if they’re supposed to.” she replied, with an ear-to-ear grin.
' "Only if their supposed to?" What the heck were you working on a couple minutes ago that blasted you through the front door!?'
"...I see." He offered a small, hesitant nod, clearly trying to stay polite. "Well, as long as they don't do that, I suppose I could try out your, uh... babies." Mei's eyes sparkled like twin stars. She had just found her next test subject.
“SWEET! Buuuuuuut before that, here you are! One hero costume made to your specifications." She handed Midoriya her briefcase, She than pointed to a corner of the room where the outfit planning desks were, telling the greenette that the Development studio has changing rooms around the corner for trying on hero costumes. Midoriya thanked the girl for the directions and walked off with his briefcase that he held with both hands. He looked at it like it was a limited edition All-Might action figure he got at a generous discount. He couldn't wait to try it on. As Izuku rounded the corner, Power Loader returned inside as he approached Hatsume.
"I take it you gave Midoriya his costume?" The girl nodded her head at the question. "Good. Now, while hes getting changed, you can begin cleaning up the mess you caused.”
“W- wait, whaaaa?”
“You know the rules Hatsume. You break it, you fix it." His eyes squinted like he meant business. "And if that’s a problem, maybe I should look into revoking your workshop privileges." Her heart skipped a beat, and went pale at the thought. If she no longer had this workshop, she would have to rely on her grandmothers garage back home, and she didn't even wanna think about how she'd bring her work to school and back considering where her grandma lived.
"...Fine, fine. Geez." She grumbled as she trudged off to grab the cleaning supplies, muttering under her breath.
After about four minutes of trying everything out, Midoriya stepped out of the changing curtain and back out into the studio.
“Alright, this is it. My new hero costume!” Midoriya's hero outfit was a Dark green Jacket with a pair of white stripes that went down to the bottom with a golden yellow trim along the edges. The pants were a standard pair of forest green cotton pants one would wear during karate and self-defense classes. From the left side of his leg down, was a line of red alien-like symbols that represented the symbols ingrained into this stand. He also had a utility belt that he could use to store healing ointments, and other items for helping distressed civilians. The belt also included a holding mechanism on the side to keep his phone as his pants didn't have pockets. The shoes he wore were red running shoes meant to mimic his everyday shoes. The last noticeable thing he had was a pair of fingerless gloves that contained weights on the knuckles to use for hand to hand, if the need for fisticuffs were to arise. His school attire was folded away into the suitcase for now.
“Heeeey not bad." Mei said as he put a thumb to her chin, checking out Midoriya's new look. "Hope you like the gloves and Jacket. I made some slight modifications to both for better comfort. Not sure what the deal is with the red symbols on your pants, but overall it's not bad.”
“Everything feel good Midoriya? Nothing too tight or baggy?” Power Loader asked.
“Nope, Everything feels great. Thank you, mister Power Loader sir, …and you as well Hatsume. It feels great.”
"Thaaaat’s niiiiice," Mei chimed, rocking back on her heels. "Now, about earlier…" She leaned in conspiratorially, lowering her voice with excitement. "...You said you’d be down to test out some of my babies." Power Loader froze in his tracks, slowly turning toward the troublemaker with growing suspicion for the the green-haired one. "Well, I just so happen to have a baby I whipped up last week after I adjusted the actuators and reprogrammed it's sensors. I call it, Baby Number-"
"Wait."
Hatsume stopped as she and Deku looked at Power Loader's direction. "Before you show your new friend anything, put back the vacuum and power washer where they were." Mei looked at her sensei and gave an annoyed pout. After a sigh, she grabbed the washer and vacuum and walked off to the cleaning closet on the other side of the room, all the while Power Loader approached Midoriya.
"Kid, you should get out of here now before she comes back with her gadgets." Midoriya blinked in confusion.
“Uh… wait, what?”
"Let me guess. She convinced you to try out her equipment for some personal tests?" Midoriya gave a slow nod as an answer, wondering where he was going with this.
"Midoriya, trust me. Take your suitcase and leave. Don't get the wrong idea. Hatsume's a prodigy in the making, but the last kid she convinced to be her test subject had to see a chiropractor four times after her battle suit malfunctioned and nearly snapped his spine in half." A look of fear took over Midoriya, like he narrowly dodged a bullet. "Yeah. Unless you wanna risk your internships coming up, get out now while you can."
Fight or flight took over Midoriya as he brought his briefcase to his waist and gave a thankful bow to the Pro-hero.
"Eeeeh, Yes sir! Power Loader sir! THANK YOU!!!!" He turned around and bolted out the blown-open front door with his costume still on. A moment later, Hatsume returned with a small chest full of gadgets, along with a silver power-armor suit she rolled out on a hand cart. Her eyes looked around for a boy with a green head of hair, confused where he went.
"His homeroom teacher was calling him back for something." The Pro lied to the girl. "Sorry Hatsume, you'll have to find another sucker elsewhere." She pouted as she really hoped to show him her latest combat suit built for self-defense. But she shrugged it off as she wheeled the suit back to her side of the studio with a mischievous-looking grin.
"Eh, he'll be back..."
--------- MUSUTAFU GRAND TRAIN STATION | FOUR DAYS LATER -------
Izuku and his class were at the train station listening to last second instructions from their homeroom teacher about they're internships. After he collected his hero costume, he spent hours poring over the list of pro heroes that had reached out to him. Some names stood out immediately. He recognized the Sand Hero: Snatch, and even Eel Boy, a long-standing pro that Uraraka once told him about. She’d seen Eel Boy in action as a child, and he’d left a strong impression on her. He also noticed that nearly half of the heroes on his list were lesser known heroes he either had no knowledge of, or had names that sounded familiar from the past years he watched the sports festival with his mom.
But after going through over a hundred names, Midoriya made the choice to intern with the Pro-Hero Kamui Woods. It wasn't his first choice, and Woods likely couldn’t help in teaching Midoriya any new techniques with his power, but he had hoped to learn something from a pro hero who was rising quick within the hero billboard charts.
As Aizawa said farewell, and the students dispersed to their respective platforms, a low hum settled in Midoriya’s chest. He stood with Uraraka near the edge of the crowd, watching their classmates peel away in pairs or alone. But despite the excitement, something had been gnawing at the back of his mind for days. Iida.
He hadn't been the same since the incident with his brother. His smiles were thinner, shorter. His words more clipped. He hadn’t asked for help, Tenya Iida never did, but it was obvious to both Midoriya and Uraraka that something still weighed heavy on his heart.
“Uh, hey—Iida! Wait up!” Midoriya called out, taking a few quick steps forward.
Tenya stopped mid-stride, his suitcase swinging gently at his side. He turned only slightly, not quite facing them.
“I, uh… we…” Midoriya faltered for a moment, then steadied his voice. “We noticed you’ve been really quiet these past few days. and well-..." Midoriya once more faltered, but quickly bounced back. "I know you keep telling us everything’s fine with your older brother but…" I just… If you ever want to talk about anything—anything at all—you can reach out to us.”
Uraraka stepped forward beside him, nodding softly.
“We’re your friends,” Midoriya continued, “and we care about you.”
There was a moment of silence. The station noise faded to the background, drowned out by the weight of those words. For a full three seconds, Iida didn’t move.
Then, slowly, he turned to face them. His expression was guarded—but there, just at the edge of his mouth, was a faint smirk. A flicker of the old Iida, the one who recited school rules with precision and passion.
“I appreciate that, Midoriya,” he said simply. “Thank you.”
And just like that, he turned again and walked toward his platform, his figure gradually swallowed by the morning crowd. Midoriya watched him go, unease twisting in his gut. There was something behind that smile—something Iida wasn’t saying. He didn’t need his Stand to sense it. There was a pressure just under the surface, something unspoken that clung to their friend’s every movement.
“He’s still not okay.” Uraraka said quietly beside him, her arms folded tightly across her chest.
Midoriya nodded slowly, eyes still on the departing figure of Iida.
Behind Midoriya, Yaoyorozu stood a distance away to where she could eavesdrop on his talk with Iida. As the vice president of class 1-A, she also noticed the change in Tenya's behavior leading up to today. Her expression mirroring the same unspoken worry they both shared, as she wondered how she could help her friend at this time.
They didn’t know what Iida was planning, or how deep the pain was he kept to himself. But whatever it was, it would cast a long shadow over Midoriya for the days to come. And before long, that shadow would reach the rest of his class in a way he was not ready for.
After a 25-minute train ride to his location, Midoriya was enroute to the location of Kamui Wood’s hero agency, however he wasn’t alone. During the ride, Izuku spotted his good friend Jiro on the ride as well. She told him at lunch the other day that she was interning with the pro-hero Death Arms, whose agency just so happened to be a minute long walk away from where Midoriya was heading. This knowledge was Because of this, Jiro & Midoriya decided to walk together to their destinations.
“So… you excited about these internships?” Jiro asked, tugging one of her earphone jacks out of her ear. “Can’t lie, I’m kinda nervous.”
“Yeah, I’m super excited,” Midoriya replied with a bright grin. “Finally, a chance to work with real pros! I can’t wait!”
Jiro chuckled, smirking at the boy’s enthusiasm. He was always like this when it came to heroes—it was kind of charming.
“So, Kamui Woods, huh? That’s a pretty rocking choice. Isn’t he ranked, like, #11 right now?”
“Y-Yeah,” Izuku nodded. “I’m hoping to pick up some techniques from him. It was actually hard narrowing down my list. I managed to get it down to four, and spent half the day deciding between them. I originally chose Majestic as my top pick, but… well, I heard that Monoma from Class B snatched the only internship spot. So I ended up with Kamui Woods.”
“Monoma?” Jiro scowled slightly. “Ugh. I hate that guy. Well, Kamui’s still a solid pick. I'm sure you’ll learn something from him.”
She shoved her hands in her pockets as she added, “I went with Death Arms. Big guy, lotta power. Specializes in rescue and hostage situations.”
“Oh, yeah! I know all about him,” Midoriya said. “He’s great with crowd control and fast response situations.”
“Yup. Exactly the kind of hero I want to be,” she said confidently. “Helping people, pulling them out of disasters, defusing hostage situations. Also, after our combat training- and, y’know, the villain attack at school a few weeks back, I realized I needed to work on my skills in close-combat if things get rough. Can’t rely on Yaomomo making me a machete every time things get rough.”
“Aha, Yeah, We’d be’d be a great choice for you. Hope you have a good time.” Izuku looked forward as Jiro noticed his smile faded from his face, she could tell that something was on his mind. She glanced sideways at him, unware that they were walking by a small cafe with a table that seated a quartet of certain stand users. With the shortest one of the four alerting a certain Unbreakable Diamond of who was walking by them.
“So… everything else good with you? You’ve been kinda quiet lately. Bakugo isn’t still being a jerk is he? Seriously, I don’t get how he’s in the hero course with the way he acts most of the time.”
“O-Oh, no. He’s been fine. For the most part.” Izuku hesitated. “It’s just… well… it’s about Iida.” Jiro’s expression softened.
“Oh. Yeah. His brother…” Jiro and the rest of class-A read the news headline from a couple days back that confirmed the retirement of Ingenium.
“Yeah,” Midoriya said quietly. “You’ve seen it too, right? The way he’s been lately. He says he’s fine, but i'm worried that he's-”
“Oi! Izuku Midoriya. Is that you?”
The pair stopped and turned toward the voice. A tall man sat up from his table with three other people stationed just off the crosswalk behind the UA students. The man stood at least ten inches taller than Midoriya and gave them a cool, slightly intense look. It was Josuke Higashikita. What immediately caught their attention was his towering pompadour hairstyle.
“Whoa.” Jiro muttered under her breath. “That guy’s hair is so punk rock.”
“U-Uh, y-yeah, that’s me,” Midoriya replied cautiously. He thought the guy might’ve been another fan that recognized him from the Sports Festival, and likely wanted an autograph. But considering where he was and how important this day was, he wanted to decline as politely as he could.
“Sorry,” Jiro said, talking before Midoriya could. “but we’re kinda running late for our internships, so if this is about autographs or whatever-”
“Nah, nothing like that,” Josuke said as he took a few steps forward. “I get that you’ve got places to be, but I need to talk to your green-haired friend." His eyes went to the boy. "We’ve actually been trying to find you for a few days now Midoriya. I’ve got some important stuff to talk to you about… concerning your power.”
Midoriya blinked. “W-What? You… what do you mean by that?”
"Like I said, I just wanna talk about your Power. Ya know, the green bug with the shield that has the red symbols on it that you can call out. The one you call Personal Jesus Act II?"
Something about this guy sent a chill down Jiro's spine as she was suddenly on edge. A stranger just appeared from out of nowhere, walked up on her friend, saying that he's been looking for him for several days? This seemed very sketchy. She tapped her friends shoulder and spoke in a voice that was quiet enough for Josuke to not pick up on her.
"Midoriya, this guy is weirding me out. We should get out of here. Now." Jiro took two steps away, but stopped as she saw Midoriya remained where he stood. She asked out loud what he was doing, but didn't receive an answer.
He was frozen, and his breath was caught. He wondered if he had heard that correctly. Up until now, everyone treated his power like it was as easy to see as Hagakure's face. But this stranger that knew his name had just described his "quirk?" And was able to describe it in such detail? That shouldn't be possible.
"What did you say?" Midoriya marveled.
He had to make sure if this guy was legit or not, and so he summoned Personal Jesus by his side to notice any reactions from this man. In response, Josuke's eyes widen as he got into a defensive posture. Koichi and Yukako turned their bodies toward Midoriya with a tense look, ready to spring into action, and Okuyasu shot up from his seat like a rocket.
“JOSUKE! LOOK OUT! HE’S GOT HIS STAND OUT!”
“I know! I see it Okuyasu!” Josuke yelled with fire in his voice. Midoriya flinched, along with his stand . Midoriya stared blankly at the man for about 3 seconds as his mind processed what the man just said.
“No way… h-hold on,” Midoriya whispered, “you can actually see my quirk?”
“The green bug-looking thing by your side?" Josuke questioned, pointed at Personal Jesus. "Yeah I see it. Also, that thing you got isn’t a quirk. It's called a stand.”
A- a stand? …wha?” Midoriya voice trembled. Jiro beside him looked between the two guys, unsure of what to make of any of this.
“Also you should be careful with what you do with your stand next Midoriya. Like I said, I just wanna talk. I’m not here to fight you, or mug you."
A flicker of magenta colored light radiated from Josuke. His fists tightened as his face changed to a more serious look.
"...But if you push me…”
With a sudden pulse, A tall, pink, humanoid figure materialized behind him, Its fists clenched like coiled springs. Gazing at the much smaller stand in front of him.
“...You are not gonna have a very good day.”
“W-W-WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!” Midoriya yelped, stumbling back as he instinctively braced himself. Act II floated in front of Midoriya. The stand was ready to defend it's user from this potential threat if need be. Meanwhile Jiro was unable to see what was happening, but knew this was the start of something potentially bad.
“Midoriya, what’s going on?! Who is this guy?!” Jiro shouted, earbuds twitching from her hair. Josuke took an extra two steps toward Midoriya, and she instinctively stepped fourth.
“H-Hey, back off! I don't know what your deal is, but you’re seriously freaking us out right now! I swear, i'll yell out for a pro-hero to come and stop you. I will.”
“I promise, that's not necessary." Josuke defused, holding out a hand to calm the Earphone girl down. "I already mentioned I'm not here to fight. Anyway, Midoriya. You can see my Crazy Diamond can’t you?” The man asked, aiming the thumb of his hand at the pink humanoid behind him. He noticed where his eyes were focused. “Your looking right at it, I can tell. Guess that means Jotaro and my old man were right about you. Your a stand user like I am.”
“A… Stand User?” “Wha… what is that?” Midoriya was nearly in shock. Too much was happening too fast as he was unsure of what to make of this. Josuke sighed, letting Crazy Diamond fade back into his body.
“I understand you have quite a few questions. Lets just start simple. My name is Josuke Higashikata. I’m here because I owed my nephew in the Speedwagon Foundation a favor. He asked me to find you and explain some things to you. You and your friend look like you've got somewhere important to be, so we won’t take up too much of your time. But it IS important that we talk. About your powers, what you are, and why i'm here telling you this.”
“The Speedwagon Foundation?" Midoriya thought as he tried piecing everything together. "Those were the guys Aizawa & Midnight told me about a few days ago. The group that wanted to help me with my quirk. This guy says he’s with them, and he can somehow see my Personal Jesus!? And it looks like he’s got a power that's just like mine...
...What the heck is going on!?”