"Congrats to all of you! You all did very well. You especially Young Sero. Here are the overall scores for our first two groups!"

On the monitors of the observatory, Izuku watched a detailed breakdown of all who had gone. Standing well above all the others were Iida and Sero. On the other end of the spectrum were Ashido and Aoyama.

"Everyone did excellent! Whether you finished first or last, stand tall in the knowledge that you finished at all. This was a grueling test and only those with determination had any hope of finishing it. However, the two students I feel did the best were Young Iida and Young Sero. Now for the second half of this exercise! What did these fine heroes do right, and where could they have improved?"

The room was silent for a few seconds as everyone was either hesitant to critique their classmates or they were tired from just chasing down the doom cart.

"Bakugo could have avoided destruction all together by..." Yaoyorozu began.

"EH!? You got a problem with me? I did better than you, didn't I?"

"You did, but you could have done better." She cooly admonished. "With an average blast radius of three meters, had you gone a mere two meters higher, you could have unleashed an ever more powerful blast without damaging any property."

"Oh yeah? And what about all your wasted springs, huh? You left crap all over the city!"

"T-Todoroki could have used the force of his creations to clear gaps." Izuku spoke up in an attempt to move the focus elsewhere. He'd seen the sparks on Kacchan's hand and had no desire for another scene.

"What do you mean?"

Izuku blinked at hearing the stoic boy actually speak. Seeing the others in the room focus on him, he huddled in on himself and focused on his hands, imagining he was speaking to a notebook instead of the room.

"Y-your creations. There is an audible crack when you form your ice and I felt a blast of air. That means that your ice doesn't just form, it actually expands and grows fast enough that there is a cold snap from the air being rapidly super cooled. If you were to create the ice beneath your feet, you could use that to propel yourself further without having to leave any overhangs. Using the cold snap, you could also generate enough of a blow back to give you some maneuverability in the air. Not as much as Kacchan, but better than a free fall. Also, Yaoyorozu, you can seemingly create anything, so why create springs when you could have made a grappling hook? Leaving a few dangling ropes didn't affect Sero as much as your springs did, so you could have saved a lot of points. And..."

"No one cares about your geekgasm, Deku! Besides, you should have just stayed on the ground like the fucking pebble you are. You don't have a quick way back to the ground and wasted time getting back down. And you!" Kacchan spun to face the still panting Ashido. "Why were you melting the entire bloody place?"

"Huh?" The pink girl recoiled from the sudden shift in attention. "I tried! I can make it weaker, but it's still acid you know."

"Not that, you useless extra! Why skate down the road? You could have stuck to the edge of the sidewalk."

"I wondered the same thing." Yaoyorozu asked. "Is the ph value of your acid that low? Actually, what exactly is the chemical make up of your acid?"

"Uh..."

Before the poor girl could even begin to answer, Izuku was piling on more.

"Does it depend on your diet? Can you neutralize it with a prepared base in case of friendly fire? Are you immune to your own acid? Are you able to create different degrees of acid at the same time in order to cause a reaction?"

Yaoyorozu picked up.

"That would be brilliant. A merger of two very different ph levels could create a more caustic reaction. Not to mention the fumes that would be produced." Izuku continued without missing a beat making everyone's head swivel back and forth between the two.

"Exactly! Not to mention, a controlled substance could easily react to many things in the environment."

"Like the sand or water. In a city type setting it would even be possible to..."

"Wait! Wait! Wait!" Ashido cut the pair off while waving her arms back and forth. "I don't know! I don't know! Geeze, I'm a dancer not a chemist." She huffed.

"Fine then what about you Twinkle Toes? What was that pitiful performance?" Kacchan asked, inadvertently bringing the three-pronged inquisition down on the Frenchman.

"Moi? How was my performance anything but dazzling? I believe I shone the brightest out there!" Aoyama easily deflected.

"You just ran around waving your cape!" Kacchan roared.

"Ah ah ah! I was strutting, not running." Aoyama primly corrected with a dazzling wink.

Before Kacchan could tackle the smug-looking boy a single question redirected his rage.

"What about your quirk Midoriya?" Kaminari called out. "I thought we were thunder buddies, but I didn't see any lightning blasts or nothing."

Despite the entire class looking at him in curiosity, he keenly felt two pairs of eyes. One a pair of crystalline blue wondering how he'd answer. The other a molten red begging him to open his mouth and answer the question. When it was obvious All Might wasn't gonna change the topic to save him, he stammered out the lie that'd become a truth.

"M-M-My quirk is Stockpile. I can store and release energy. I just usually use the energy to make myself stronger or faster." He didn't dare look at either All Might or Kacchan.

"That's why you got hurt! You used all your energy on that robot, right?"

Izuku blinked and turned to see Uraraka looking elated at finally figuring it out.

"Y-yeah. Blasts like that take too much." He turned back to Kaminari. "So that's why there were no lightning blasts. Can't use those too much."

Instead of disappointment, Kaminari seemed overjoyed to the point of tears. He flung an arm around Izuku and pulled him close.

"We are thunder buddies! I can't use my quirk too much either! Though, I just shock myself senseless, not half to death."

"Enough about Deku!" Despite his fists being clamped shut, Izuku could see the explosions crackling within as Kacchan tried to turn the conversation elsewhere. "Who's left? You! Tail Kwon Do, why didn't you do anything?"

Ojiro didn't flinch at the abrasive question.

"The city just isn't good for me. I can't really use my tail to grab onto many things or I'd break them. Even then, it's not like my tail could help me jump from building to building. This was just a bad setting for me."

"Not true." Izuku again cut in. "I saw you use your tail during the grip strength assessment. It's way stronger than your arms or legs. You could have used it to push yourself further and faster than just running. Or, since it's got so much weight, use it as a ballast to balance as you jump or run on the electrical wires."

That caught the boy off guard and he seemed to mull it over for a minute before nodding.

"That would actually work. My tail does give me a lot more balance. I didn't think of the wires."

"These are all great points and questions, things you should all keep in mind as you continue to grow. Don't think of these as weaknesses. Think of them as new paths of growth to explore. However, you all missed the first part of this. What did they do right? Remember, it's not a truly beneficial critique if you don't also point out their strengths. A hero always brings cheer and puts a smile on people's faces!"

"Iida and Sero were the most manly of everyone! Iida totally owned this event." Kirishima was quick to yell while Kacchan was just as quick to stalk away. Positive reinforcement was not his forte.

"And you gotta give props to Asui, Ojiro, and Ashido. That looked like a lot of running." Kaminari added.

"It was!" Ashido huffed. "That city is way too huge!"

"I looked dazzling!"

"Yeah! And Deku and Kacchan looked awesome running across the roofs!" Uraraka cheered with a grin.

"What. Did. You. Call me?"

The room froze at the murder in Kacchan's voice as he glared at Uraraka.

Izuku was quick to jump between the two and motion at All Might.

"S-s-s-s-so who's next?" He pleaded. If there was one person Kacchan would listen to, it was All Might.

"R-right! We'll do the next two groups, a final assessment, and then we'll be done for the day. Next up we have Kirishima, Mineta, Sato, Shoji, and Uraraka."

Uraraka practically fled from the observatory.

Kacchan seemed to put the incident from his mind as he slouched against the wall.

"While they are making their way down to the field, Young Midoriya, Young Yaoyorozu, Young Bakugo do you have any guesses as to who will win the next bout?"

Izuku and Yaoyorozu and shared a glance before she raised her hand.

"Sir, why single us out?"

"An excellent question!" All Might responded as he spun, launched the flare, and then tossed the doom cart controller to the girl with long earlobes. "Young Jiro, let's see your adaptability. Keep that cart away from the kids for, oh, ten minutes should suffice. Think of it as extra credit." He ignored her panicked face and spoke to the rest of the class. "You three showed great analytical skills. That is a skill I would like to see grow. Everyone has their strengths and their weaknesses. Our job as teachers is to foster those strengths. And don't worry if it isn't your strength, it isn't my strength either. I spent years working with the likes of Nighteye and David Shield and left the vast majority of analysis and planning to them because they could do it better than me, faster than me. I'm much like Young Kirishima here and would rather let my fist do the talking. So, what do you three think?"

"I don't think anything of these buttmunches. They'd all lose to me."

"We also don't know their quirks." Yaoyorozu, pointed out. "However, based purely off the quirk apprehension test I'd say either Kirishima or Sato are most likely to win."

"Actually, we know a bit about Mineta and Shoji. Mineta can make something that's both very sticky and very bouncy. He could use that to either bounce from rooftop to rooftop or just bounce down the road. And Shoji was able to grow extra arms for the grip strength test. If he could grow a large number, then he could use them to swing around or climb. I'd say maybe Mineta will win."

"Pft. The Purple Punk wouldn't use his quirk like that. Probably too busy staring at Round Face's costume."

Kacchan might not care, but he'd never pass up a chance to prove Izuku wrong.

And wrong Izuku was.

Mineta didn't use his hair.

Shoji only used his quirk to grow some extra ears in search of the cart.

And...that was it. None of the others used their quirks at all. Where was the bouncing? Where was the swinging? Where was the power? Hell, he'd seen more impressive races in middle school. His eyes were so busy scanning the screens in search of any quirk usage that he didn't even notice who came in what order.

The next bunch was much the same. Aside from Jiro using her earjacks to quickly locate the cart, none of the others did anything. They ran. That was it.

Why? Why were they acting like this? Why were they acting...quirkless? He didn't know if it was because Nighteye hated wasted potential or because he was watching these people with powerful quirks do nothing, but Izuku was quickly growing irritated. No. He was well past irritated. This was just flat pissing him off. Here were people with fantastic quirks acting like their quirks were an inconvenience. What nonsense was this?! Just yesterday Aizawa had told them how utterly illogical it was to not use their quirks in everything they did. So what was this? He was practically gnashing his teeth by the time All Might called the final scores.

"Congrats! to all of you! You all did very well." For the first time in his life, Izuku completely agreed with Kacchan's scoff. All Might ignored the scoff and Izuku's scowl. "Here is the final score for our second group of future heroes! Now, what did these fine heroes do right, and where could they have improved?"

Before All Might had even finished speaking, Izuku's hand was in the air.

"Why? Why didn't any of you use your quirks?" It was the only time he could ever remember having to keep a growl out of his voice.

"Ah come on man, not all of us have super cool quirks like you, Bakugo, or Todoroki." Kaminari whined.

"No?" Izuku pointed at the quietest boy in the class. Also the only boy he'd had to observe after class to figure out his quirk. "Koda, what is your quirk?"

Koda, the tallest yet most easily forgotten boy shrunk in on himself. He stammered a few times before finally muttering into his chest. "Anivoice, I talk to animals."

"See!" Izuku gestured only to get blank looks. "Really? He can talk to animals? Not just birds and big animals. Animals! Like all the insects or mice that live in the city. He could have found out where the cart was in a second and probably beaten me to it."

"Oh yeah, what about me?" Kirishima stepped forward. He seemed irritated at Izuku calling them out. "My quirk is hardening. It makes me harder. How would that have helped?"

"It makes you harder and stronger." Izuku quickly pointed out. "You aced the strength part of the quirk test. That means you're just like me. You could have strengthened and hardened the lower half of your body to boost your speed and left the top half alone to keep your flexibility and not use so much of your stamina."

"Well since you're giving quirk advice now," Hagakure bounced in front of Izuku. "What about me?"

Unlike before, when he'd been taken back by her being a girl, Izuku was in hard analysis mode and was quick to rattle off an answer.

"You're invisible. All Might needs to see you to keep the cart away from you. If you took off your clothes, you could have maneuvered yourself so he drove the cart towards you."

"Deku!" Uraraka called in a scandalized cry. "Did you just tell her to undress?"

That snapped Izuku out of his funk. He saw that all the girls in the class were giving him suspicious looks while backing away and covering themselves.

"No no no no no no no no!"

"Oh-ho, Midoriya, I didn't know we were kindred spirits!" Mineta cried while hugging Izuku's leg.

"No! We're not! I mean, I didn't!" He kicked the shorter boy off and dropped to as deep a bow as he could. "I didn't mean it! I'm sorry!"

Oddly Hagakure was the only one who didn't seem offended. She was too busy laughing.

"Oh, oh you guys are priceless. What's wrong with what he said? That's the whole reason I had my costume designed like this."

Apparently, Kaminari and Mineta's interested looks weren't well hidden as Iida dropped a hand on each of them.

"Enough! That is enough debauchery from the three of you." Iida ignored Izuku's mumblings of innocence and turned back to All Might. "We apologize for the interruption of your class!"

All Might simply laughed and waved it aside. Though, the wave seemed to be a bit more forceful than necessary. Almost as if he were blowing away smoke...

"Nonsense. It's good to have some camaraderie between classmates. Anyways, you should all head off and get changed. I'm sure Aizawa has a few words before you're dismissed for the day." The prime hero tried to shoo them all out. Both by walking towards the door as well as by gently pushing those closest to him to hurry along. "Best hurry along! Never a good idea to keep that one waiting."

That was all the motivation needed as the students who hadn't gotten the hint picked up the pace and scurried out of the classroom. At least, all but one. Izuku waited till the last second and then jumped back through the door before it shut. He immediately heard a puff of smoke behind him. He turned to see All Might in his shrunken state wiping blood from his mouth.

"Young Midoriya?"

"H-hey All Might. Are you alright?"

"Oh yes, I'm fine. Just reached my limit for the day."

"B-but class was only an hour and a half."

All Might hacked up another mouthful of blood in shock at being caught so easily.

"Heh, well I did do some hero work this morning"

"Really!?" Izuku's worry immediately vanished in the face of his hero-worship. "I didn't see anything on the news? What did you do? Was it a fight? A rescue? Couldn't be a negotiation or it would have used all your time. So it was probably..."

All Might lightly dropped a fist on Izuku's head to pull the boy from his thoughts.

"It was just a few basic thugs and car thefts. Nothing all that grand. I promise you Young Midoriya, the largest part of a hero's work is the part the media doesn't talk about. Now, you hurry along or you'll be late."

"Ah, ok. See ya All Might, take care!" Izuku called over his shoulder as he ran without looking back to see the thoughtful frown on All Might's face.

"Welcome back, you all look like you had a fun day." Aizawa grumbled from his spot on the floor behind the lectern.

"It was totally awesome! We..." Kaminari started, totally missing the sarcasm in his teacher's voice.

"I saw. Sit down."

The lightning boy sulked back to his desk.

"I had a live feed of everything. Three things before you're dismissed. First, Midoriya and Yaoyorozu, you did excellent in your analysis. However, you both get lost in your thoughts. You should be applying that skill to yourselves before you try to correct others. It also prevents you from reacting quickly. You also need to look past the math and the possibilities to consider the logistics and personalities of each person. In that regard, Bakugo you did excellent."

The blonde puffed up and opened his mouth only for Aizawa to steam roll over his bragging.

"However, that is about the only thing you did right. No one else caused half the destruction you did. Even Ashido's haphazard spraying of acid was nowhere near as destructive or potentially fatal as your recklessness. On top of that, you showed no teamwork or desire to see the others do better. Everyone else contributed on ways that others could improve or things they overlooked. Your sole objective was to degrade, derogate, or deride your fellow classmates. That is not an attitude to be proud of."

Kacchan sunk down into the desk and smoldered. Whether he actually listened to what was said or was just mad he'd been called out was anyone's guess.

"Second order of business, Midoriya."

Izuku swallowed nervously.

"When and how others use their quirks is none of your business. Considering you just recently got any sort of control of yours, I'd worry more about yourself than the rest of the class. Do you understand?"

"Y-yes sir."

"Good. Now our last order of business. I need someone to go and collect your student rule books as well as the orientation guides. They're finally printed. Midoriya will be one, who will help him?"

"Oh, I'll go! My quirk makes carrying things easy!" Uraraka volunteered. She flashed Izuku a grin and a thumbs-up.

He attempted to smile back but felt like it'd come out as more of a grimace than anything.

"Doesn't matter. You'll find them outside the teacher's office, room 407. When everyone's got a copy, you're free to go. Now keep it down." He mumbled as he crawled back into his yellow cocoon/sleeping bag.

"Come on Deku!"

"Y-yeah." Izuku was certain this girl was going to be the death of him.

Still, all he had to do was walk beside her. He could do that. It was easy to walk. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot.

"So...I take it I shouldn't have called him Kacchan?" She teased as an ice breaker that nearly sent him to the floor.

Izuku recovered and laughed at the understatement.

"No, d-definitely not." He felt proud for only stuttering once.

"Why does he let you do it?"

He tossed the question around for a moment before shrugging.

"I guess, since he's always mad at me, a little nickname isn't gonna do much."

"I don't know. He seems plenty capable of becoming even angrier."

"That's just how Kacchan is."

"Really? Even when he was trying to maul you before Aizawa stopped him?"

Huh, so the sweet girl did hold a grudge. Interesting.

"Well, that's a special situation. We have... wait, isn't this the fourth floor?"

Uraraka blinked and looked around.

"Uh, yeah?"

"Then why do the numbers only go from 410 to 420? We've walked this hall twice."

"Maybe our teacher's office is in another tower."

Izuku owlishly turned to look at her. Uraraka was too wrapped up in considering the door numbers to notice. When she saw his face, she flushed a brighter pink than usual.

"Was that a video game..."

"No! Nope. Not at all. Not in the least. And look! That sign says the teachers' office is across the skywalk." She resolutely marched forward.

Izuku scrambled to catch up and before he could work up the courage to ask about her faux pas, the office door opened and out walked The Blood Hero: Vlad King. Izuku was quick to jump into fan-mode and pull out his notebook. In a flash, he was standing before the hero and gawking at the hero's height. He wasn't quite as tall as All Might, but he was still a mass of muscle. It was odd to see him in plain clothes.

"E-e-excuse me! Mr. Blood King, sir. Can I maybe possibly get your autograph?"

"Hmmm? Oh, you're the kid Shota said gushes over every new hero you see." He seemed bemused by Izuku's fanboy nature and nodded. "Sure, sure. Where should I sign?"

"Yes! Oh, um, right here Mr. Blood King sir!" Izuku quickly flipped to the first page dedicated to the blood hero. He was just about to get a pen when Vlad simply pricked a finger with one of his lower canines and scrawled a neat signature on the bottom of the page. A lick of the finger and the wound sealed itself shut. When Izuku took the book back he was staring at it in a state of absolute reverence, gently cradling it in his palms.

Vlad laughed and shook his head as he walked off.

"You two hurry up and grab what you need. School will be closing soon."

"Yes sir! Vlad King sir!" Izuku snapped in a salute.

A barely stifled giggle beside him reminded him that he'd had an audience for the entire ordeal. Uraraka had a hand clasped over her mouth to keep from laughing. Izuku felt his face heat up in embarrassment.

"W-w-well, let's get the books!"

The books were easy to find and grab. Two sizable stacks were resting on a table with their class number written taped to the topmost book. Before he could try to carry as many as possible, Uraraka tapped both piles. A pink twinkle of light, and the books floated off the desk.

"Tada!" She pushed the smaller pile over to him. "See, no problem?"

"Yeah, that's so useful!"

Uraraka scratched the back of her head sheepishly with a free hand as they started walking back to the class.

"I guess, I still wish I could use it better. Like you said, I can't really use it all that much."

Izuku flinched at that. All Might and Aizawa had been right. He'd gotten too caught up in his own thoughts. He probably ought to apologize to the class.

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"Oh no, you were right. I just wish I thought like you. Like, what would you do if you had my quirk?"

"Uh, well can you use it on yourself or are you immune?"

"I can use it on myself but..." She trailed off and looked away before mumbling the rest. "I get all dizzy and swirly-headed and vomit."

"O-oh. Well then..." Izuku stopped to think about it for a minute. Though, Uraraka took it differently.

"I-it's okay. You don't have to think of something now! It's my quirk. I should be doing it myself."

"No no no, I was just thinking about what you're quirk actually is."

"Huh?"

"Well, I learned how to analyze quirks from a teacher. He said the first part of improving any quirk is to first determine exactly what they do. Like, Kacchan. He makes explosions, right?"

"Yeah?"

"But how?"

Uraraka put a finger to her chin in thought.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he isn't just blowing up his hands or he'd have burns."

"Oh! So then, he doesn't make explosions he makes something that explodes!"

"Yeah! He actually produces a nitroglycerin sweat from his palms. Usually, it is in an inactive state that won't explode. But he can control the chemical makeup of it so that when he wants an explosion he secretes a tiny amount that is actually reactive. That ignites the rest of it. So, he could theoretically coat a rock in his sweat and then throw it. The impact would make it detonate like a grenade. But none of that would be possible without knowing exactly what his quirk does."

"Whoa! That's neat! How do you know so much?"

Now it was Izuku's turn to look away sheepishly. He really needed to stop nerding out.

"W-w-well we went to middle and elementary school together. I've had a lot of time to observe and think about his quirk." No reason to tell her he'd also been on the receiving end of the quirk enough times to have a very intimate knowledge of it.

Luckily, he didn't need to explain as they'd finally returned. Unluckily, he didn't have much time to think about anything else or talk to anyone else.

The moment the classroom door was open, his backpack was flung into his face.

"Get your ass in gear and let's go Deku." Kacchan growled as he grabbed Izuku by the back of his shirt. He was just about to drag the boy off when a voice stopped them

"Bakugo..." Aizawa warned.

"We live in the same neighborhood. I'm making sure my dear Midoriya doesn't miss his train like any kind, loving, true friend would."

There was enough acid in those last three words to make Ashido jealous. Still, Aizawa had no grounds to stop him and could only watch as the blonde dragged Izuku off.

They made it just past the school gate before Kacchan stopped dragging him and instead threw him against the stone wall.

"K-k-kacchan? Wha? Why?

"Shut up." It was more of a snarl than a roar. There wasn't any yelling or exploding.

Izuku swallowed the rest of his rant and nodded. It was almost scarier seeing Kacchan quiet.

For a few minutes the two just stood in the shadow of U.A. The tension had just about gotten to him when Kacchan finally spoke.

"Why did you lie to me?" It was half snarl and half choked down sob. And it was the most painful thing Izuku had ever seen.

Kacchan, the invincible, unshakable, indomitable paragon of perseverance and determination was on the verge of breaking. That was wrong. Kacchan wasn't allowed to break or cry. He was strength and victory personified.

"I didn't. "

"Then what the fuck is going on!?" There was the rage. "You just leap up buildings now? You spark lightning out your ass? The entire class thinks you have some god-given gift while I'm nothing! Hell, even boob for brains did better than me. I'm just the angry guy. Ever since you came to U.A. nothing has been right! So if you didn't lie then tell me what the fuck is going on?"

"My quirk..."

"Bullshit." Kacchan snapped at him. "You lie to me again and I'll deck you. We grew up together since our mom's were so freakin buddy-buddy. I've seen your fugly feet. You don't have a quirk. Or... you didn't. So you either tell me what's going on or I'll beat it out of you."

Kacchan was the only person who the lie wouldn't work on. His mom and Kacchan. They were the only people who knew him well enough to know with absolute certainty that he hadn't had a quirk for most of his life. His mom had been one thing. They'd just told her. But Kacchan? He couldn't just tell him, could he? But then what should he say? A lie wasn't going to work. Loud, violent, and brash as Kacchan was, he wasn't an idiot. Maybe another little half truth? Another little white lie?

"You're right." His mind was spinning in an attempt to piece together something close enough to the truth Kacchan would believe it, but also wouldn't give away the secret. "I... I didn't have a quirk. B-but I met someone! He... he had a really special quirk that gives people, quirkless people, the potential to evolve and grow a quirk. H-he saw me, after the slime incident, and said I'd be his last student. The ninth. So, so now I do have a quirk! He may have given me the potential, but I worked for it and trained to use it! Through blood, sweat, and tears I made it mine." He brought a hand up and cupped his palm as verdant green lightning and power crackled in his palm. "This is my quirk, Stockpile."

Izuku could feel the truth in that statement as he held his power. It wasn't even a fraction of his full power, barely even one percent, and it'd taken a month of brutal training to even hold this much power. But no matter what anyone said, it was his power.

He was pulled from his thoughts when a fist slammed into his chest and laid him flat out on the concrete.

"Lies!" Kacchan raved. His eyes were wide and wild. He reached down and snatched up Izuku's left foot. The first and only time Izuku tried to resist, Kacchan stomped on his chest, driving the wind from his lungs. "Lies! It can't be! No one would give a useless little pebble like you a quirk! You're nobody!" He wrenched off Izuku's boot as he continued ranting and reached for the sock. "You can't have a quirk! You can't! You're..." The anger and rage drained away as did the color from Kacchan's face.

There, plain for both boys to see, was Izuku's feet. In the afternoon sun, it was clear to see. Izuku's foot had changed in the most minor of ways. Unless you knew what you were looking for, were purposely looking for it, or had the eyes of a hawk you'd never notice it. Izuku's tiny little pinky toe no longer held the extra joint he'd hated and loathed for so long.

Kacchan dropped Izuku's foot and fell back on his rear, scooting backwards till his back hit the wall. He made not a sound and seemed to be trying to comprehend what he'd seen.

Izuku himself sat up to examine his toe. He'd seen it everyday, but never actually looked at it. It was just a part of his foot. Throw a sock and shoe on it, and it was out of sight for ninety percent of the day. He was so wrapped up in marveling at his new discovery that he barely paid any attention to Kacchan scrambling back to his feet and taking off down the street.

By the time Izuku had put his sock and shoe back on, Kacchan was long gone.

That might be problematic tomorrow.

Or... not at all. When Izuku had walked into class the next day, he'd expected the blonde to be ranting about the unfairness or telling everyone else what a faker or cheater he was. But Kacchan barely even acknowledged him. The only sign he even registered Izuku's presence was the aversion of his eyes. As if the mere sight of Izuku was an insult.

Still, even if it might come back to bite him later, Izuku would take the quiet over more explosions. He also didn't have time to really mull things over as Aizawa was quick to get class started.

"I apologize for the suddenness, but today you all need to make a decision that will determine your fates for the next three years."

An audible creak as everyone tensed in their seats. It'd barely been a week, and already they knew Aizawa didn't mince words.

"Today... you need to decide on class presidents."

Or not. That was wonderfully normal!

"Being the president isn't a game or easy. You'll be responsible for the entire class, need to attend additional meetings, need to ensure classroom duties are followed, and also need to communicate with the other classes. However, being the class presidents is a great way to get extra recognition. Hero agencies see class presidents as those who are responsible and are natural-born leaders. So, who is it?"

The class erupted into chaos. Everyone, literally everyone, was shouting out numerous reasons why they'd make the best class president. A deafening blast silenced most as Kacchan stood with one foot on his desk.

"Back off! I'm the best and none of you extras deserve to lead my class."

"Actually, Aizawa said the class president needs to communicate. Can you do that?" Asui asked only enraging the blonde further.

"Enough!" Iida shouted in the moment of silence. "This disorganized mess is no proper way to make a decision. As students of this prestigious academy we should conduct ourselves accordingly with a vote."

"Eh? A vote?" Mineta whined. "But everyone is just gonna vote for themselves."

"I like it!" Ashido countered. "Ooh ooh! We can totally make it like an idol contest! Everyone who wants to be class president, gets a chance to speak. Then we all vote. That way we know they can speak and it's someone we all like."

Aizawa shrugged and curled up in the corner.

"Don't care. Decide by the end of class." And with that nugget of wisdom, he was out.

Idol contest it was. Impressively the idea seemed to have some merit. Certain people, like Koda, Tokoyami, Jiro, Shoji, and even Izuku himself, immediately dropped out of the running due to their reluctance to speak. Others, such as Kacchan or Mineta were eliminated because of their reasons for wanting to be the class president. Apparently "cause I'm the best" or "to score with hot women" weren't acceptable reasons. Everyone else gave at least decent reasons why they ought to be elected.

However, the results were still shocking. Only two people had more than one vote.

Izuku Midoriya: 4 Class President

Momo Yaoyorozu: 3 Vice President

"...huh?" Izuku could only stare numbly at the class as he and Yaoyorozu stood at the front of the class. She was at least standing straight and calmly accepted it. Izuku was struggling to stay upright under the unexpected pressure. "W-wait! Why me? I didn't even speak?"

"Yeah! Which one of you lame-brain idiots voted for Deku?"

Four hands went up. Iida, Koda, Uraraka, and even Yaoyorozu herself.

"Y-y-yaoyorozu?"

"You had a great analysis of everyone's quirks. While I might have a better grasp on the mechanics of things, I felt like you would be a better help to everyone."

"I concur." Iida was quick to continue. "You have demonstrated not only great physical prowess in maintaining a high ranking so far, but you have also shown a keen mind and a focus on improvement. I feel as class president you will hold us all to a higher standard."

Izuku practically recoiled from the praise and expectations. He hadn't done anything special. Just his usual mumbling. Why was it so different here? Maybe this was how Kacchan felt. Like everything was different. No wonder the boy was struggling to cope. It was nearly nauseating trying to keep up with all the expectations and differences. He couldn't trust his gut anymore. His gut reaction was to turn it down. Give someone else the spotlight. But, that wouldn't be what All Might would do. He had to be a hero like All Might. Right?

"W-well then I g-guess I'll do my best."

"Good." Aizawa's rasp came from behind the two students. Izuku leapt away with a yelp. "Since you settled that so quickly, I've another announcement. Tomorrow we will be holding a special Foundational Hero Studies class. To save time and make things more efficient, when you come to class tomorrow, immediately grab your hero costume and meet at the buses. Understood?"

"Yes sir!"

"Now, let's start today with a more detailed review of yesterday's discussion of Hero ethics."

Izuku was attempting to find the answers to life. In his mashed potatoes. Class president? Him?

"You ok over there Deku?" Uraraka asked from her spot across the table.

"Y-yeah. Just trying to wrap my head about being the class president. I didn't even get up to speak."

"Would you like me to explain myself further? I have several points I could..."

"N-no no no, that's ok. I guess I just wasn't expecting it." He turned his eyes to Uraraka "But, why did you vote for me Uraraka?"

She froze with her chopsticks in her mouth and resolutely avoided looking at Izuku.

"Cause you're cool." She mumbled out.

"Huh?"

"Cause you're cool!" She shouted before huffing and crossing her arms. "You saved me during the entrance exam. You did awesome during the quirk assessment and All Might's class. Plus you have, like, so many neat ideas. So... there. That's why."

By the end of her rant, a blush had crawled clear across Izuku's face till both of his ears were glowing pink. Uraraka was in a similar state as her cheeks had nearly darkened from their usual pink to a deep red.

"Midoriya, I feel the same way!" Iida added

Izuku and Uraraka both looked askance at him. Seeing their looks, he frowned.

"What? I feel like Midoriya is a strong individual with great characteristics. Isn't that what you meant?"

While Izuku stammered for an appropriate answer, Uraraka took the out.

"Yeah! That's exactly right!" Her eyes flickered to Izuku for a second as she blushed.

They were saved by any further questioning by the school alarm blaring to life.

"Attention Students: There has been a level 3 security breach. All students please evacuate outside promptly." A controlled voice droned over the P.A. system.

Iida was quick to turn to the nearest table.

"Excuse me! What is a level 3?"

The student paused just long enough to explain.

"It means someone got on campus." With that he was quick to make a dash for the door.

"Let's go!" Uraraka said as she got up and started to rush out.

Izuku and Iida were quickly behind her. They caught up so quickly, partially, because the entire hallway was packed. Every student in the academy seemed to have had the same idea of mindlessly scrambling for the exit. The end result was no one could move an inch in any direction. It was actually growing difficult to even breathe. Izuku couldn't worry about Iida or Uraraka. Amidst the many senior students and other bodies, he was doing his best just to avoid being trampled. At least, he was till he heard a very distinctive popping sound. Even in a life or death situation, that would always be one sound he could pick out.

A second later and the bodies behind him pressed up against him in an attempt to get away from the explosion at the back of the line. Sure enough, Kacchan launched himself over everyone and stood defiantly on the doorframe, with one hand reaching back to keep him in place as he leaned out and jeered at the entire student body.

"Shut up!" He roared as he unleashed another blast that had everyone freezing in place. Whether in fear of his temper, shock at his bravery, or stupefaction at the fact he dared do it at all. "The PA bitch said promptly, not like a bunch of sniveling toddlers too stupid to walk in a straight line. Get your act together and get a move on!" His rant finished he flipped down into the crowd. They were quick to part and quicker still to follow. This time, they moved as a unit.

Within seconds Izuku was outside and had located Uraraka and Iida. The taller boy was in a mood and was scanning the crowd for Bakugo.

"I cannot believe Bakugo had the audacity to speak in such a manner to the collective student body. That reflects most poorly on our class. Someone ought to train him on how to address an audience."

"Now now, it's not like anyone knows who is in what class." Uraraka tried to placate the clearly worked up boy while staying clear of his chopping hands. "It's only the first week after all."

Iida huffed before nodding.

"Yes. Yes, you are correct. Still, I will bring it up with Aizawa. I also want to know what happened."

Izuku didn't pay them any attention. He was focused on where he had last heard the crackling coming from.

After lunch, Izuku found himself once more standing in front of the classroom. Beside him Yaoyorozu was waiting for him to start the class. But, he couldn't. This wasn't him. Standing and speaking about rules, regulations, and telling people what to do. He didn't tell people what to do. He helped people.

"A-a-a-actually, before we start I'd like to say something." He struggled to speak around the lump. No way. Not possible. There was no way he could meet everyone's eyes. Instead, he spoke to the lectern. "I-I'm happy that you all elected me. But I can't. I-I don't lead. I help. S-s-s-so if you really actually want my opinion I'm happy to tell you. But I don't think I'm right for this job." He swallowed his nerves and looked up at the one person he really wanted to talk to. "T-that's why I'd like to nominate Kacch... I mean, Bakugo as class president."

"What!?"

"Him?"

"Nice joke!"

"Problem child, are you sure?"

"Yes, yes I'm sure! Listen," Izuku still hadn't looked away from Bakugo. "Bakugo is loud, mean, and abrasive."

"Then why would we want him as class president?"

"Because no one is going to push this class further and harder than him!" That got the class to quiet down. "Bakugo is all those things because there is no one who wants to win and be the best more than he does. Yaoyorozu knows the math. I might have a few ideas about your quirks. But Bakugo knows how to win. So, if you want to be the best class we can then you should choose him." As his speech trailed off so too did his courage. "B-b-but that's just my idea. Either way I can't do this. I'm sorry!" He gave a final bow and nearly bashed his head on the teacher's desk before scuttling off to his desk behind Kacchan.

Aizawa actually didn't seem too upset by the speech and simply shrugged.

"Well then, I suggest you all find a new class president."

Izuku tuned out the class's discussion and laid his head on his desk. That was most certainly not a job for him. Just that speech had taken all the confidence he had.

"What are you doing, Deku?" Kacchan growled as he looked back at Izuku. His hands were already crackling and Izuku knew that if he didn't a good reason, then expulsion or not, Kacchan would attack him. "If you're looking down on me..."

"I'm not." Izuku cut in. Seems the only time he could speak clearly was when he spoke from his heart. "I just felt what you did. Like things haven't been right since we got here." Bakugo's explosions slowed and then stopped at Izuku's words. "I don't do speeches. I'm still gonna be a great hero, but I'm a different hero than you."

"I would like to change my vote from Midoriya to Bakugo." Yaoyorozu declared, still standing at the front of the class.

"Eh? But if you just voted for yourself you'd be the president." Sero questioned. He obviously was only looking at the title, not at the deeper meanings being discussed.

"I would, but like Midoriya said I would not be ideal for the role."

"I oppose it! Completely!" Iida actually stood up to join the discussion. "As class president Bakugo would represent our entire class when speaking with others or even with teachers. He has no manners, no sensibilities, or common decency when addressing the public. I would rather vote for myself. What of you Uraraka?"

"Eh? Oh, well I'd have to vote for myself as well. I mean, I could do it as well!" While she started out a bit hesitant she was quick to gather her courage.

Iida twitched at not getting her vote, but pressed on and looked towards the quiet boy in the back.

"What of you Koda? You were the other one to vote for Midoriya?"

The shy boy gave a yelp and ducked down behind his desk. After a moment when he saw that everyone was still looking at him he pulled a mini-whiteboard from his backpack and hid behind his desk. A second later the whiteboard emerged with the name 'Bakugo' scrawled across it.

"What? Why?" Iida demanded. Now turning slightly red in the face at the class's apparent approval of the rough boy.

The white board once more vanished behind the desk. Rapid squeaky sounds came from behind the desk before it reemerged. 'Midoriya seems to have good ideas. I voted for him so I'll follow his lead.'

"Fine." Iida growled. "Still that makes three. Same as Yaoyorozu."

"Au contraire mon frere. He has my vote as well."

"Hah? Why would you vote for me, you glittering prick?"

"Because aside from myself, you have the most dazzle. Of course, at the moment you're more of a razzle than a dazzle, but you seem the type to meet the occasion. A diamond in the rough!"

Kacchan seemed torn between dismissing the vote out of principle or accepting it for the win. But, true to Kacchan, he took it.

"Whatever. Either way I win." He paused as he seemed to realize that meant he was now the actual class president. A second was all he needed to recover and start counting heads. "Everyone here? Good. You better all be here or I'll chase you down. Now sit down, shut up, and let's start."

Yaoyorozu sighed, but nodded and passed the attendance folder to Aizawa.

Izuku could only feel proud, both of Kacchan and of himself. He'd done what was right and Kacchan seemed like it was a solid footing to get his bearings in this new world they were both adapting to.

"Now that that is all settled. Remember to meet by the buses tomorrow. Now, let's continue with our readings of Andile Sithole."

"I am here!" All Might landed in front of the bus right as the students started to filter out of the bus. Behind All Might stood a truly massive dome of steel. It was easily double the size of U.A. And the sheer width of it was staggering. It looked like several regular size middle schools could comfortably fit inside it. "Welcome to the Unforeseen Simulation Joint facility!" Having seen All Might most everyday of the week, the shock of seeing him had finally begun to wear off. However, when a smaller figure stepped out from behind the number one hero, Uraraka pushed her way to the front.

"Thirteen!" In a flash, Uraraka was in front of the hero and bouncing on her heels.

"Welcome, welcome." The hero Thirteen greeted. Thirteen wore what looked like a giant space suit type jacket that enveloped her entire body. Her face was obscured by a black helmet that only revealed a pair of luminous white eyes. "You have been training with All Might to use your quirks for mobility and combat. However, a good part of hero work is actually rescuing those in danger. That's what we're working on today. You see, your quirks are all very powerful and it is easy to forget that those quirks can be a danger to others. Take my quirk for example," Thirteen held out a finger and the tip popped open. Immediately all the students felt themselves pulled forwards as a vortex sprung out from the glove. "I can disintegrate virtually anything with my quirk." She closed the cap on her glove and all the students took a quick step back. "Exactly. This is why quirks are so regulated. You should always keep in mind the effects your quirks can have on others."

"That is not to say your quirks cannot help others."

"Exactly, and that is what you are here to practice today. Hopefully by the end of the day, you will have at least an idea of ways you can use your quirk to help others. Now, let's get started!" Thirteen and All Might each grabbed one of the doors and pushed it open to reveal the inside of the facility. The students rushed in, eager to see their newest training zone.

It was a grand speech. A brilliant introduction. And the sight within was just as awesome. If anything, the inside was bigger than the outside looked. There was a massive lake. A region covered in rocky mountain sized craigs of earth that nearly reached the ceiling. A veritable city on the other side of the facility and seemed to be caught in some sort of localized rainstorm. Within a smaller dome appeared to be a perpetually burning apocalypse setting. There was even a jungle zone.

However, the presentation and stunning view were marred by the massive crowd of individuals standing in the center of the facility.

And so begins the infamous USJ incident. I've been following rather close to canon so far. However, the changes I've made to Izuku as well as a few others start to really impact things from here on out.

Questions, comments, or concerns? Leave a review or feel free to message me!

~The Immortal Lion