Chapter 1: The Toddler's All-Nighter
Izuku didn't mean to stay up all night. He knew he wasn't allowed to access the computer without his mommy but he just couldn't sleep and thought he could just watch a few All Might videos until he got sleepy. Unfortunately, that didn't happen and before he knew it, his mother was calling him for breakfast.
While he had been successful in sneaking past her to his room, Inko still noticed the bags under his eyes and the odd face he was making as he ate his tasteless breakfast.
"Izuku, are you feeling alright? You look exhausted."
Izuku looked up at her and gulped. "I-I, uh, didn't sleep well last night."
She kissed his forehead. "Poor thing. Your father's side of the family has a history of insomnia, but I didn't think you'd be affected so soon. Would you like to stay home today?"
Izuku quickly shook his head. "No, mom! I can still go to daycare! I-I wanna see Kacchan."
Inko smiled at that. Katsuki took after his mother and he and Izuku would prove to be a good influence on each other like she and Mitsuki were. She was sure of it.
"Ok, sweetie," she said. "Finish eating and get your uniform on. We need to leave soon."
At daycare, Izuku met up with Kacchan, who immediately noticed his friend's bloodshot eyes.
"Damn, Deku! You look like shit," Katsuki elegantly pointed out.
Izuku sighed. "I couldn't sleep so I ended up watching All Might videos all night."
Katsuki clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Dammit, nerd! You need to sleep! How do you expect to be a hero if you're too tired to fight any villains!?"
"B-but I'm not tired," Izuku stuttered out before beginning to mumble, much to his friend's annoyance. "Not really. In fact, I can't really feel anything or even taste or smell anything. It's weird it's not like when your legs go numb from sitting criss-cross too long but like when the dentist used his quirk to make my mouth numb to take out that tooth but like all over my bod-"
"DAMMIT, KNOCK IT OFF, DEKU!" Katsuki yelled, slapping izuku on the back.
However, in doing so, he activated his quirk for the first time and the explosion not only knocked Izuku forward several feet, but also burned a large hole in the back of his shirt. As the teacher ran to check on the two, Katsuki looked from his still smoking hand to the now exposed skin on Izuku's back, which wasn't damaged or burned like his uniform.
Izuku turned and the two were just staring at each other in shock.
"WHAT THE HELL!?" They both shouted.
"Well, first of all, congratulations are in order," Dr. Tsubasa said. After confirming both boys were ok, the director of the daycare called their parents to take them to their local quirk specialist. After several hours of tests, the Bakugou's were called back first but Mitsuki insisted on having the boys' results revealed together.
"Both boys have been quite blessed with powerful quirks! However, while Bakugou's quirk is about what was to be expected, little Midoriya's is a rather rare case," Tsubasa said, turning to the Bakugou's first. "Little Katsuki has inherited a mixture of both of your quirks, being able to ignite a nitroglycerin-like substance he sweats from his palms. However, Izuku's seems to be different from either yours or your husband's, Mrs. Midoriya."
"What do you mean," asked Inko, worriedly looking at Izuku, who was watching starry-eyed as Katsuki made small explosions in his hands.
"Well, given what you've told me of the quirks on your husband's side of the family, he seems to have inherited a recessive durability quirk linked to his insomnia. You see, it seems the longer he's awake, the tougher and stronger he becomes! Even his hair became tougher," he explained, showing them a pair of chipped scissors. "However, his quirk seems to reset when he sleeps as we learned after an hour long nap and he began losing his senses of touch, taste and smell again after around a half hour of being awake."
The adults' eyes widened.
"So, theoretically, if he stays up long enough-," Masaru started.
"Little Izuku could end up stronger than All Might!?" Mitsuki exclaimed, making the other adults jump and getting the attention of both boys.
"Wait, what!?" Katsuki angrily exclaimed while Izuku gaped in amazement.
"Theoretically, yes," the doctor nodded. "While it seems he already needs less sleep than most children his age, he will require even less sleep as he grows and may be able to stay awake for days, possibly weeks, without succumbing to sleep deprivation! Now, I've made a list of various exercises and tests you can each perform at home, but first," he turned to the two boys, one looking slightly more annoyed and the other quite dumbfounded. "Have you boys given any thought to what you'd like to name your quirks?"
"EXPLOSION!" Katsuki yelled, as if determined to be the first to name his quirk. After writing it down, Tsubasa turned to Izuku, who was thinking hard about something.
"And you, my boy?"
"Hmm…" Izuku hummed, thumb and forefinger on his chin. He turned to his mom. "Mommy, what did you say daddy's family had? Inso…insom-mania?"
"Insomnia, honey," Inko corrected. Izuku beamed.
"Insomnia Strength!" he shouted triumphantly.
As their parents were exchanging goodbyes, Katsuki looked at Izuku with a steely gaze.
"Listen, Deku, just cause you got a strong quirk doesn't mean I'll let you be stronger than me! I'm gonna train so hard that I'll be able to make explosions big enough that even your numb ass will feel them! Got that!?"
Izuku nervously smiled and nodded at the declaration. So long as they were both heroes, he didn't care who was stronger.
As the blonde stamped away after his parents, Izuku barely noticed his mom had taken his hand and the two started walking. He figured the numbing effect of his quirk was going to take a while to get used to.
"So, Izuku, how about katsudon for dinner to celebrate? I'll even invite your favorite uncle! Lord knows that man needs to eat more than those disgusting jelly pouches."
While Izuku smiled at the thought of katsudon but then frowned since he remembered he wouldn't be able to taste it. However, at the mention of his uncle joining them, Izuku immediately perked up again!
"Can we really invite uncle Sho!? He could help me figure out so many theories I have about my quirk! Like, will erasing my quirk have the same effect as napping? Can my quirk even be erased? What if he-," Izuku suddenly stopped mumbling when he heard his mother giggling.
"Yes, sweetie, I'll invite him right after we tell your father of the good news. I'm sure he'll have his own questions and theories you two nerds can bond over."
Izuku blushed and grumbled "I'm not a nerd," making Inko laugh again and ruffle his bushy hair, noting how it now felt more like steel wool despite looking as fluffy as always.
While not the quirk she or Hisashi were expecting their son to have, Inko was right that her husband was beyond excited when she and Izuku FaceTimed him and explained his quirk, immediately becoming wide awake despite the timezone he was in. While her two nerds were discussing the various tests the doctor gave him and ones they can perform on their own, Inko snuck off to call her disheveled looking brother-in-law.
In a near barren room, a three pawed battle scarred cat was sleeping on a yellow cocoon until said cocoon started ringing and vibrating, making the cat jump. With a groan, the cocoon turned over to show a tired, scruffy face with long, shaggy black hair covering his eyes. He opened one eye to check his phone and then sighed as he answered the call.
"Hey, sis. What's up," he tiredly answered.
"Hello, Shouta," Inko answered, far too excitedly. "Guess what? Izuku got his quirk!"
"Good for him. Can I go back to sleep now?" he deadpanned.
"Actually, I wan- I mean, Izuku wanted to invite you to dinner tonight to celebrate. We're having katsudon and he wanted to ask his favorite uncle some questions since it's a quirk different from either mine or Hisashi's."
Aizawa groaned. "Do I really have a choice?"
"Only whether or not you want me spamming your inbox with pictures of a disappointed Izuku."
"Fine," Aizawa sighed. "Mind if I invite my dumbass roommates? They've been begging me to introduce them to the adorable stalk of broccoli."
"Sure! I'm sure Izuku would love to meet a couple of up-and-coming heroes! Well, I have to go! We'll be having dinner at 6:30. Bye, Sho!"
Aizawa grunted in acknowledgement before hanging up. Sighing as he got up from his sleeping bag, he next texted Hizashi and Nemuri, who immediately texted back confirmations with far too many smiley face emojis.
Chapter 2: A Tasteless Dinner
"Izuku, dinner's almost ready! Are you sure you don't want to try taking a nap so you can taste it," Inko asked.
Izuku shook his head. "No, mom! I wanna see what'll happen if uncle Sho erases my quirk! I mean, it might not do anything but I'm not sure if my quirk could be considered a mutation and if it isn't, I wanna know how long-"
"Ok, ok, Izuku," Inko giggled.
There was a knock at the door and Izuku jumped from the couch to answer it. However, in his excitement he jumped with enough force to bang his head against the ceiling and when he got to the door, accidentally crushed the doorknob.
"UNCLE SHO!" Izuku happily exclaimed looking up at the tired looking man wearing black sweats and a long, gray scarf.
"Hey, ki-OOF!" Aizawa started and was abruptly cut off as Izuku jumped up and hugged him so tightly he lost his breath and was fairly sure he heard a few of his ribs crack. 'So this is what Inko was talking about,' he thought as he brushed some white powder from his nephew's hair and examined the crushed doorknob.
"I-Izu-," Shouta struggled to say, tired eyes bulging and hand tapping the greenette's head trying to get his attention, "c-can't breathe."
"Izuku, be careful!" Inko called. "You need to control your strength!"
At this Izuku let Shota go, looking embarrassed as his uncle began desperately gasping for air.
"S-sorry, uncle," Izuku apologized.
"It's…it's alright, kid," Sho said, still catching his breath. "Just something you need to work on. So, a strength quirk, huh? That's unexpected."
Izuku perked up at that. "Yeah! The doctor said it was a recess quirk from daddy! I get stronger the longer I'm awake and I don't get sleepy and could probably be stronger than All Might! Oh, and look!" Izuku said, running into another room to grab something.
Shouta started thinking about how this was possible. He and Hisashi shared a mother and remembered her telling him about her grandfather who had a quirk that allowed him to stay awake for prolonged periods of time but the strength aspect was new. Before he could continue his train of thought, Izuku returned carrying a…
"...Izuku, why do you have a hammer?"
Instead of answering, Izuku smiled and slammed the hammer into his forehead. When Sho ran to check on him, he was surprised to not see a single mark on the still beaming boy.
"Isn't that cool!? I didn't even feel that!"
"...Inko, please explain," Sho sighed as he collapsed onto the couch and looked up to see the dent in the ceiling Izuku made. 'That explains the dust in his hair.'
As Inko began to better explain Izuku's quirk, there was another knock at the door. Running over, Izuku was about to grab the doorknob but stopped at the last second and instead gently turned the already crushed piece of metal.
The door opened to a man and woman smiling down at him. The man had blonde hair tied into a bun and wearing a light purple hoodie, tight jeans and yellow sunglasses while the woman was wearing red framed glasses and a pink sweater and purple skirt with her dark purple hair also tied back but into a ponytail.
"Hello, sweetie," the woman greeted, crouching down to greet him at eye level. "You must be Izuku. My name is Kayama Nemuri and this is Yamada Hizashi."
"We're friends of your grumpy uncle, li'l listener," the man, Yamada said, shooting the kid finger guns. Hearing the nickname and recognizing the pose, something clicked into place in the young boy's head and he started vibrating excitedly as he pointed between the two of them.
"Y-you're the R-Rated Hero: Midnight a-and the Voice Hero: Present Mic!" he exclaimed to both adults' surprise. While they had been gaining popularity lately, especially with Mic starting his radio show and the controversy surrounding Midnight's first costume, they were still fairly low in the rankings. How did this kid recognize them in civies!? Did Sho tell him they were coming?
"Don't look so surprised," Shouta greeted his friends. "Kid's such a hero nerd he could probably pick All Might out of a crowd based solely on his hair color if he had a transformation quirk that made him look like a skeleton when he's off duty."
"I'm not a hero nerd," Izuku huffed.
At that, Present Mic smiled and held out a hand. "Well, put 'er there, li'l listen-ERR!" Mic's hand was suddenly crushed in a death grip as the toddler once again forgot his new quirk in his excitement and violently started shaking the voice hero to Nemuri's surprise and Shouta's amusement.
"Honey, remember your quirk," Inko worriedly reminded him. Once again, Izuku turned red and looked away from the hero as he let go of Mic's hand and apologized.
"Heheh! It's ok, li'l buddy! No harm done," Hizashi reassured him, shaking the feeling back into his hand and rolling his shoulder. "Accidents happen when you're getting used to your quirk. When I was born, my crying made my parents' and doctors' ears bleed!"
Izuku's eyes widened and, once again unknowingly using his quirk, sped to his room to grab his notebook to ask his mom to write down that piece of trivia and hopefully get the two heroes' autographs.
After being introduced to Inko, the adults sat down at the table, waiting for Izuku to return, and Inko explained his quirk to the two newcomers.
"So, enhanced strength, speed, and invulnerability as long as he's awake, eh," Nemuri inquiried. "Given what Sho's told us about his handsome half brother, I was expecting a variation of Dragon Breath or your mild telekinesis." She then cocked an eyebrow and gave a mischievous smirk as she leaned toward Inko. "You haven't been unfaithful while your hubby's been overseas, have you?"
Inko blushed and violently shook her head. "Of course not! I would never do that to Hisashi! I swear!"
Sho rolled his eyes. "Quit teasing, Nem. Hisashi's only been overseas for the past two years and Izuku has his messy hair and freckles. Trust me, he's Izuku's father. Our great grandfather had a similar quirk but it seems to have mutated through the generations."
"Either way, it'll be quite handy for heroics," said Hizashi, turning back to Inko. "Not to make an ass outta you and me, but he is planning on becoming a hero, right?"
Inko giggled. "Since he could understand what a hero was, he and his friend, Katsuki, promised to be the strongest heroes."
When Izuku returned and asked his mom to write down what Hizashi said on a specific page, he then handed the book over to the two heroes and nervously asked for their autographs, starting with Mic on the same page. Both heroes cooed at seeing the crayon drawing of Present Mic in his hero costume and notes next to it with words like "super lowd" and "cool hare," with his little tidbit about his birth underneath it written by Inko.
After signing the page, Hizashi passed it to Nemuri. After flipping through several pages, mostly dedicated to All Might, she laughed at Sho's page and the grumpy looking drawing Izuku made along with what might be Eraserhead's first and only autograph.
Finally ending up on her page, Nemuri blushed slightly at the crayon drawing of her first costume and quickly signed it before Inko saw. Once the child was hugging the notebook to his chest, Inko began serving their guests.
Before eating, Izuku asked Aizawa to use his quirk on him. As he did, Izuku took a bite, then frowned.
"It didn't work," Izuku sighed to his mom as she wrote something down on a new page of his notebook. After she was done, everyone else began eating and complimenting Inko on her cooking, making her blush. Once they were done, Hizashi picked up the notebook again.
"Gotta say, you're quite the li'l artist, li'l listener," Hizashi complimented the blushing child as he and Nemuri skimmed through the rest of the notebook. Nemuri nodded in agreement and smiled.
"You know, I'm a bit of an artist myself. I'd be happy to give you some tips, if you'd like," she said, making Izuku beam.
"R-really!?" He looked at his mom. "Can Miss Midnight teach me to draw, mommy? Please?"
Inko smiled. "If she's willing, I don't see why not."
Izuku raised a fist and jumped in excitement, once again forgetting his strength and accidentally punching a hole in the ceiling.
"...we should also find somewhere to work on controlling your quirk," Aizawa sighed, again brushing the dust from his nephew's curly hair and shoulders while Nem and Hizashi shared a smile.
"Funny you should mention that," Nemuri said. "You see, Nezu will be taking over as principal of UA next year and asked me and Hizashi about becoming Heroic Arts and English teachers."
"And wouldn't ya know, he's also looking for a replacement homeroom teacher for 1-A," Hizashi added with a shit-eating grin.
"...no," was Shouta's deadpan reply.
"Oh, come on, Sho," Hizashi whined. "At least consider it!"
"Alright…no."
"But family of staff are allowed to use UA facilities," Nemuri argued. "It'd be perfect to help little Izuku-"
"No!" Shouta shouted, activating his quirk. "I barely have time to sleep, let alone look after a bunch of entitled brats! I'm not a teacher and-"
"Uncle Sho," Izuku quietly interrupted him, making Sho flinch and deactivate his quirk before looking down at his disappointed looking nephew. "D-does that mean you won't help me?"
Sho's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "Why do you want my help specifically, kid? My quirk doesn't even work on you."
"Cause you're so cool," Izuku said with stars in his eyes. "You're not a hero for money or fame! You're a hero cause you wanna help people and that's the coolest thing! You're like the underground version of All Might! Besides, it's not just my quirk I want help with. If I'm gonna be a better hero than All Might, I need to learn a lot more than how to punch things!"
While Aizawa winced at being compared to All Might, he was impressed his nephew already knew he'd need more skills than just using his quirk to hit things really, really hard. Also, he couldn't say no to those eyes, no matter how slightly bloodshot they looked.
"Fine," Aizawa sighed in defeat. "I'll talk to Nezu on Monday, but no promises I'll take the jo-" once again, he was cut off by his nephew hugging him, though this time much more carefully. As he hugged the ball of sunshine, he heard clicks and looked to see his friends and sister-in-law taking pictures to his annoyance. Before he could do more than glare at them, Izuku looked up at him.
"Oh! Can you also help train Kacchan!? His quirk makes him make explosions from his hands!"
"It's nice of you to ask despite knowing I can't say no to you," Aizawa deadpanned, making everyone laugh and Aizawa's lips curled into a tired smile behind his scarf.
Chapter 3: A Meeting of Mentors
'What the hell am I doing here,' Shouta thought, shuffling down the hallway of his alma mater to the principal's office. He wasn't a teacher and had never considered becoming one…but dammit, his nephew's eyes were his biggest weakness, with cats and good coffee following closely behind.
Izuku and his friend both had strong, dangerous quirks and needed a safe place to practice and experiment with them. With the perk of family members of UA staff having access to the facilities after hours and on weekends, it was too good an offer to not at least consider. He'd meet with Nezu, ask about requirements and perks of the job, and if he didn't like what the rat offered, he'd leave. Simple as that.
When he arrived at the door, he drew his arm back to knock, only for the door to swing open on its own. Despite what Nezu will tell people, Aizawa definitely did not jump in surprise at that. However, his eyes widened upon seeing not one, but two people waiting for him behind a large, mahogany desk.
The first was the soon to be principal and current 1-A homeroom teacher, Nezu, who had on his usual smile.
"Hello, Aizawa," the unknown mammal cheerfully greeted. "Am I a mouse, a bear or a dog? The answer is, I'm the PRINCIPAL…or I will be, starting next year!"
The second, who was giving him a fanged smirk, was a tall, green man with large, pointy ears and a white turban covering his antennae. He was wearing a dark purple suit and red tie as well as a white cape with large shoulder pads. This was Ma Piccolo II, aka the Dragon Warrior: Big Green, and the current principal. However, he was also Shouta's former homeroom teacher and mentor. Sho gulped and bowed, uttering a "sensei" in greeting.
The large man let out a chuckle. "Long time no see, Scruffy."
Aizawa quietly groaned at the old nickname. He was thinking about dressing up a little for the interview but ultimately decided his hero costume was good enough. At least it was clean. He then put on a mask of indifference and took the seat in front of the two.
"Nezu didn't mention you'd be joining us, Ma-sensei," Aizawa said, narrowing his eyes at said rodent, who wasn't fazed in the slightest.
Piccolo scoffed. "You didn't think I'd make sure the rat's replacement was up to snuff? Didn't I teach you anything, Scruffy?"
Shota could admit, in hindsight, he should've seen this coming. Both teachers loved messing with their students, especially him. This was gonna be a loooong interview.
Nezu cleared his throat and pulled out a stack of forms. "In any case, we are here to talk about you possibly joining our staff. You have come highly recommended by Miss Kayama and Mr. Yamada, as well as myself. You are indeed a dedicated hero and no doubt have much you can teach our students. However, I must say I am surprised you'd be interested in a teaching position."
Aizawa sighed. "Honestly, I'm here for my nephew. He and his friend have powerful quirks that'll need to be trained and they'd benefit more from using your facilities than some random quirk gym."
As Nezu typed something on his computer, Ma crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, making the hairs on Shouta's neck rise.
"If you're planning on taking advantage of the perks without putting in the work, then you can forget it. Teaching isn't as easy as just telling a bunch of brats what to do before fucking off to go nap. If you wanna be a teacher, you'll be expected to give all of your effort into learning to do it right. Got it?"
Shouta's mask of indifference slipped and he found himself frantically nodding in understanding.
Meanwhile, Nezu was grinning as he read Izuku Midoriya's file. Insomnia Strength was truly an interesting and powerful quirk. He'd need to add him to the list of potential successors he was making for when Yagi decided to "reveal" the "secret" of his quirk to him. He then turned back to the slightly sweating Aizawa.
"Well, as Ma-san said, you will need to undergo a series of online classes and teaching seminars as well as gain some experience as a teacher's assistant before being officially hired. Both boys will still have access to Gym Gamma during this process under Cementoss's supervision. However, I would like to meet both boys before further discussions of training them. I'm up to date on young Midoriya, but what is his friend's name?"
"Uh, Bakugou. Bakugou Katsuki," Aizawa said, not even surprised he knew Izuku was his nephew. Once again, Nezu was typing away and as Aizawa cleared his dry throat, Nezu slid a cup of tea his way.
"Ah, here we are. Hmm, not the most creative name for a quirk but certainly powerful. Oh, I can't wait to meet them!"
Aizawa looked between the two, Ma's arms still crossed but looking slightly more relaxed.
"So…do I get the job?"
"Well, that depends," Ma shrugged. "Are you willing to put in the effort or do you plan on napping while others pick up your slack?"
Aizawa's eyes narrowed. "For my nephew, I'd burn my favorite sleeping bag."
Ma gave a fanged grin as Nezu clapped excitedly.
"Excellent," Nezu cheered, passing Aizawa a contract. "Here is your contract. I'm sure you will find the terms more than fair. Not only will you have quite a bit of freedom in how you teach, but the salary is more than fair and the job comes with access to on-campus housing. Any questions?"
"Which teacher will I be shadowing," Aizawa asked before sighing. "As if it wasn't obvious."
Ma smirked. "That's right, Scruffy. Next year, I'm back as 1-A's homeroom teacher."
"Wonderful." Aizawa deadpanned. "One more thing," he said, pulling a notebook out of his scarf, "...will you sign this for my nephew?"
After reading and signing the contract, Piccolo decided to walk Aizawa out, much to the latter's discomfort.
"So, uh, why're you retiring," Aizawa asked, the silence being too awkward even for him. "You've only been principal for two years."
"For one, I'm sick of being forced to wear this damn suit," Ma said, loosening his tie. "If you're ever offered a position of power, make sure there isn't a dress code tied to it."
"Noted."
"Second, I'm needed in the field. There's a case involving my late father and I can't properly divide my time between it and my more administrative duties. It wouldn't be fair to the students."
Aizawa scoffed. "Life's not fair. Better for them to learn that now rather tha-" *SMACK*
Aizawa was cut off by a slap to the back of his head. Looking up he saw Piccolo narrowing his eyes down on him, making him feel like a child who needed his mouth washed out with soap.
"Believe me, plenty of them already know just how unfair life is. As I recall, you were one of them. Would you rather I'd have reminded you of that fact without doing anything to help you overcome that unfairness?"
At this Aizawa looked away, embarrassed. Piccolo then sighed and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Look, kid, you learned and overcame a lot on your own, but some people need a little more help than others to achieve their full potential. As a homeroom teacher, you are your students' third parent and they need to know they can come to you for help with anything from quirk control to an abusive parent. Do you understand?"
After a moment of silence, Aizawa nodded and the two continued their walk to the gate in silence. When they got there, Aizawa paused as if about to say something. Instead, he simply waved goodbye to his mentor before continuing his walk home. Being a teacher was going to be harder than he thought and he had some habits he'd need to break, but he'd go plus ultra for his nephew's sake.
Even if it meant going to…therapy.
Chapter 4: The Brat Meets the Hobo
Taking out his phone to text Tweedle34E and Tweedledumbass the "sad" news that he would be moving out, Shouta was surprised by the time. Despite how long it felt, the meeting with Nezu and Ma only lasted about an hour. Sho was planning on heading home and catching an afternoon nap when his phone rang.
"What is it, Inko?"
"Hello to you too, Sho," Inko joked. "So, how'd it go? Did you get the job? I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"
Aizawa sighed. "No, I just left. Technically, yes, I got the job."
"Technically," Inko questioned.
"I have to attend a bunch of online classes and seminars and spend some time as Ma-sensei's TA before I can become an official teacher."
"Well, that's to be expected," she mused. "They don't just let anyone be a teacher at the most prestigious school in the country without some proper training. Anyway, congratulations! Izuku's going to be thrilled! Speaking of, would you mind picking him up from the playground? No big deal if you can't!"
Aizawa sighed again. "No, no, I don't mind. It's on the way to my place, anyway. How's he been?"
"Well, aside from looking more like you by the day, he's adjusting well. We haven't had to replace the doorknob since last time, so he's quickly learning restraint. He's also been spending his nights studying, though I think he's starting to show signs of sleep deprivation. However, what I'm most worried about is his relationship with Katsuki."
"Bakugou? Why?" he asked. He knew the brat had a strong quirk and heard he had a temper like his mom, but Izuku shouldn't be affected by it, especially if he's been awake since last week.
"You see, Katsuki has always been competitive and he hasn't been…adjusting well to Izuku having a "more heroic" quirk than him. He's tried attacking Izuku every morning this week. He seems to have paid attention to what Dr. Tsubasa said about his quirk resetting after he sleeps."
Shouta scowled. "What about the daycare or his parents? Shouldn't they have been notified their son was using his quirk on another child?"
"I tried talking to Mitsuki, but she doesn't see a problem! Izuku hasn't gotten hurt yet and she thinks it'll be good for Katsuki to learn he can't win everything through force. And the daycare keeps giving him warnings since he's not physically harming Izuku and they keep labeling his attacks as 'accidents!'"
Aizawa's eyes narrowed at that. If Bakugou was a little older, he'd understand the school not wanting to jeopardize his chances of getting into a hero school with a record, but this was daycare. The kids didn't have records and it was illogical to not take this kid's attacks seriously. No, something wasn't right.
"I'll see if I can talk to him after taking Izuku home," Aizawa replied. "I have to talk to them both, anyway. Nezu agreed to let them both train while I'm a TA, but he wants to meet them first to get a better idea how to train them."
"Thank you, Sho," Inko sighed in relief. If Shouta couldn't scare Katsuki straight, she'd have to step in herself and didn't like that idea. Katsuki shouldn't fear having his teeth pulled out every time he sees her.
Katsuki was pissed. Well, more pissed than usual. This past week should've been one of the best of his life, discovering his quirk and establishing himself as the strongest future hero, but nooooo! Deku had to ruin it by forgetting his place!
He hated the nerd, but he was also his closest friend and Katsuki can admit the nerd was smarter than the rest of the extras. They did everything together and shared the dream of becoming heroes together. However, even at such a young age, he knew there could only be one number one hero, which he was sure would be him while Deku would be the Sir Nighteye to his All Might. So how the hell did Deku end up with a stronger quirk!?
What pissed him off more was that unlike his own badass quirk, Deku's had nothing to do with either of his parents' quirks. What made Deku so damn special? Nothing, that's what, and Katsuki wanted to make sure Deku remembered that! He had been paying attention to when Dr. Eggman said Deku's quirk shut off for a half-hour after he slept and even then, it'd take hours for him to get as tough as he was when he tanked Katsuki's first explosion.
The next morning, as Deku stupidly walked up to him, Katsuki unleashed an even bigger explosion than the other day right in his face. That'd teach the nerd to underestimate his strength! However, as the smoke cleared, Katsuki's vicious smile turned into a furious scowl as Deku just stared at him confusedly with slightly red eyes.
"Kacchan, what're you doing," Deku asked, as if it wasn't obvious.
Katsuki just grunted and stormed away. So, the nerd hadn't slept yet? No matter! He looked even worse, so surely he'd sleep that night and Katsuki would get him the next day.
However, the same thing happened and continued happening every day that week. No matter how big the explosion, no matter what angle he took, Katsuki couldn't damage Deku and the nerd wouldn't fight back, like he was beneath him! And then, as if all this wasn't bad enough, he had the nerve to ask if he needed help after slipping on that stupid fucking log like he was some fucking weakling! How fucking dare he!
Now, here Deku was again, getting in his way of teaching another useless extra a lesson. Fingers and Wings had run away when the nerd showed up, but no matter. He didn't need any help from those cowards!
"Kacchan, what're you doing," Izuku drawled, sounding tired with his lids half open. Even though he looked like he was about to pass out due to exhaustion, Izuku stood firmly between Katsuki and a boy crying on the ground.
"Back off, Deku," Katsuki scowled, explosions popping in his palms. "That stupid extra needs to be reminded of his place!"
At this, Deku lazily blinked. "Oh? And where's that, Kacchan?"
"THE SAME PLACE YOU SHOULD BE, YOU WORTHLESS DEKU," Katsuki shouted as he launched himself at Izuku. However, his vicious smile disappeared as suddenly as his explosions and something wrapped itself around him.
As Katsuki struggled against his bindings, he turned to curse out the villain who did this but suddenly froze. He looked up to see a man dressed in black glaring down at him with glowing red eyes and saw the man's hair dancing like black flames.
"What," the man growled as he yanked the boy to eye level, "did you just call my nephew?"
Katsuki's jaw dropped.
Shota's unblinking glare shifted to Izuku, who was waving at him, and another kid who was on the ground and looking at him nervously.
"Hey, unca Sho," Izuku slurred, still waving.
'Damn, Inko wasn't kidding,' he thought.
Aizawa blinked and looked at the other kid, who flinched. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Hero license.
"You ok, kid," he asked, showing his ID while still keeping Katsuki wrapped up tightly. The child quickly nodded and ran away after thanking Izuku. Hearing Izuku's name seemed to snap Bakugou out of his daze.
"W-what the fuck, Deku!? Since when do you have a villain for an uncle," he yelled, trying to blow his way out of the scarf but soon stopped once Aizawa activated his quirk again and showed Katsuki his Hero license.
"I'm not a villain, you little delinquent. I'm a Pro Hero," he said. Katsuki stared in disbelief at the license before narrowing his eyes back to Aizawa.
"Never heard of you, 'Eraserhead,'" Katsuki said, skeptically.
"That's the point of being an Underground hero," Aizawa replied, putting his license away. "C'mon, Izuku. I'm taking you boys home."
"'Kay," Izuku replied, shuffling over as Aizawa started walking, releasing Bakugou and roughly dropping him. Bakugou got up and glared at them both before following.
"By the way, Izuku, Nezu liked your notes," Aizawa said, pulling the notebook out. That woke Izuku up. As he went to grab the notebook, Aizawa pulled it out of reach.
"I'll only give you this back if you promise to sleep tonight." he said. Before Izuku could argue, he continued, "I know you've been up for the past week and it's catching up with you. Your slurred speech is a clear sign of sleep deprivation."
Izuku pouted but agreed. "I wanted to see how long I c'n go."
"We'll have plenty of time to experiment as you grow," Sho said.
Once Shouta gave him back his notebook, Izuku flipped through it to Nezu's page and beamed at the autograph but his eyes widened as he continued until he got to Ma-sensei's page.
"You even got to meet Big Green!?" Izuku excitedly asked as Bakugou continued stamping behind them. Aizawa nodded.
"He was my sensei at UA. I'm going to be his assistant while I'm earning my teacher's license," he said, smirking when he heard both boys exclaim in surprise. While Izuku was happy at the news, Bakugou refused to believe it.
"BULLSHIT," Katsuki yelled and stopped in his tracks. "I can buy you being a nobody hero but no way would anyone hire your homeless ass as a teacher, let alone All Might's school!"
"I share an apartment with two other heroes and All Might doesn't own UA," Aizawa deadpanned. Katsuki was starting to turn red with a mixture of rage and embarrassment while Izuku held back his laughter. As they continued walking, Izuku started asking him questions about UA and what Nezu and Big Green were like until they got to Izuku's apartment. As Katsuki started stomping home on his own, Shota wrapped his binding cloth around his arm.
"Wait here," he said, Katsuki glaring at him. When Sho didn't react, Katsuki folded his arms and sat on the steps of the complex with a scowl. Sho then walked Izuku up to his mother and explained their deal and how he'd tell her more about his arrangement with Nezu after getting Katsuki home.
The walk to the Bakugous' was less pleasant without his nephew. Katsuki seemed to be stomping as fast as he could to try losing the Hero, but was grabbed by that damn scarf every time he tried taking a detour.
"Dammit, knock it off, Hobo!" Katsuki finally snapped. "I know my own way home!"
"Yeah, so do I," Aizawa said. "But I wanted to have a talk before we got there."
"Tt. What could you possibly wanna talk to me about?"
"Well, for starters, how about telling me why you've been trying to hurt my nephew since your quirks came in," Shouta said, noticing the boy's fists clench.
"None of your business," Katsuki tried, but Aizawa wasn't impressed by the answer.
"Actually, it is. As a hero, it's my job to keep an eye out for any possible villainous behavior."
"I AIN'T A FUCKIN VILLAIN," Katsuki snarled, turning to face Shota with explosions lacing his palms.
"Really," Aizawa asked, narrowing his eyes. "So, you weren't using your quirk to attack someone unprovoked? Because that's what villains do." Sho eyed the explosions. "They also use their quirks in public without a permit."
Katsuki's eyes widened before narrowing and clenching his fists to turn off the explosions. "...he was looking down on me," Katsuki snarled.
"How so?"
"By rubbing his quirk in my face!" Katsuki snapped. "It's not fair! I was supposed to be the next All Might, not him! I've always been stronger, faster, and smarter than everyone else and Deku ruined everything! I just wanted things to go back to normal by reminding him of his place!"
Aizawa's first instinct was to bluntly state life isn't fair and tell the boy to get over himself, but stopped himself. He could see angry tears forming in the corner of Bakugou's eyes as he glared at the ground and sighed. He had to remember this kid was the same age as his nephew. He needed guidance and Aizawa needed to practice giving it. He kneeled in front of him.
"Look, kid, I get being frustrated by things not going your way, believe me, but that doesn't give you the right to attack other people," Aizawa said, trying to think of an example that the brat would listen to.
'Well, he respects All Might, so let's work that angle.'
"You don't see All Might picking fights with Endeavor or any other hero trying their best to be the next Number One, do you?"
Katsuki angrily wiped his eyes before reluctantly shaking his head.
"Being strong is only part of why All Might is the Number One Hero," Aizawa continued, getting a confused look from the brat. "I may not be his biggest fan, but I do respect him and get his appeal. Unlike Endeavor, All Might is kind, photogenic, and always puts others' needs above his own. Hell, his debut was a rescue mission, not some big villain fight. If you don't wanna become the Endeavor to Izuku's All Might, you need to get a handle on that anger and remember that real heroes do more than just beat up villains. Understand?"
After a long pause, Katsuki gave a grunt and the two continued walking at a much more even pace, Katsuki obviously stewing over what was said.
When they got to the Bakugous', Sho was relieved to see Masaru instead of his more bombastic wife.
"Hello, Aizawa," Masaru greeted with a bow. "Inko told me you'd be coming. She said something about training Katsuki."
Aizawa nodded and followed the father and son to the living room. "I'm going to be working at UA and Nezu wanted to meet both boys to get a better idea how to go about that."
Both Bakugou's eyes widened.
"W-wow, that's…thank you, Aizawa! I-I'll let Mitsuki know as soon as she gets home! She has a shoot today, you see."
"Of course," Shota said, pulling out the card with Nedzu's number. "You can call this number to schedule the meeting. However, I was wondering if I could talk to you alone."
"Of course," Masaru said, looking down at his son who just huffed before going upstairs to his room. Once he heard the door loudly shut, Sho sighed.
"I think it'd be best for UA's councilor, Hound Dog, to speak to Katsuki, too," he said. "When I went to pick up Izuku, I saw him and two others picking on another boy before Izuku stepped between them. I had a talk with him, but I'd still like a professional to help him with his anger. Also, I'm no expert, but he seems to be developing both a superiority and inferiority complex." Bracing himself for the response, Sho was surprised when Masaru sighed and nodded.
"I agree," he said. "Look, I know Mitsuki doesn't see the problem, but I'm worried about the lack of consequences from his daycare leading him to believe he can get away with using his quirk on others so long as someone covers for him. I don't want my son to become a bully with a hero license. I'll let my wife know this is non-negotiable."
Aizawa sighed in relief. "Good. I'll let Nezu know and talk to Hound Dog about both boys so Katsuki doesn't feel singled out."
Masaru bowed again and thanked Aizawa for looking out for his son. As he left through the front gate, Aizawa looked up to see Katsuki looking down at him from his window. As he waved goodbye, Katsuki gave a one-fingered salute back. Sho smirked and began walking back home, two words popping into his head that perfectly described the Bakugou brat.
'...problem child.'
Chapter 5: First Time at UA
"Dammit, Deku, will you knock it off," Katsuki murmured as both boys followed Aizawa through the front gate of UA. It had been another week since Aizawa had his meeting with Ma-sensei and Nezu and it was time for the boys to meet the rat. Inko had just dropped them both off and Izuku, whose eyes seemed to have permanently developed dark circles under them no matter how much sleep he got, was bouncing with excitement.
"Sorry, Kacchan, but I can't help it!" Izuku said. "We're at UA, the greatest hero school in the world! The same place All Might went! And we're about to meet Nezu, a real pro hero! How are you not excited!?"
Katsuki clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Just cause I'm not bouncing around like a goddamn lunatic doesn't mean I'm not excited. You're acting like you haven't already met two other pros."
"Yeah, but Nezu is so cool!" Izuku said, as Katsuki rolled his eyes.
"Every hero is cool to you, Deku," Katsuki said.
"Yeah, but Nezu is especially cool! He's the only quirked animal with a hero license! Not to mention his quirk makes him one of the smartest beings in the country!"
Aizawa just shook his head as Izuku continued listing off facts about his future boss while he could practically hear Katsuki's teeth grinding in annoyance. The brat was already making progress since their talk. He was surprised when Inko told him Katsuki had ceased his morning attacks and actually apologized, in his own way, to Izuku. Still, he thinks Hound Dog will be able to make sure he doesn't regress.
Once they entered the main building, Izuku stopped talking and both boys' eyes widened in wonder. This was UA High. The same hero school All Might went to. The hero school they would eventually go to as students. As both boys stood gaping in awe in the doorway, Aizawa snapped his fingers to get their attention.
"Hey, you're letting the cold air out," Aizawa tiredly said. "Come on, Nezu isn't someone you wanna keep waiting."
As the boys caught up to him, Aizawa prepared himself mentally for his own meeting. While the boys were with Nezu and Hound Dog, he'd be going over his duties as a TA with Ma-sensei and he had a feeling Ma wouldn't let him doze off.
Once they were at the door to the principal's office, Aizawa looked back at the boys.
"Either of you wanna do the honors," he asked, to which Izuku began jumping up and down with his hand in the air. But Katsuki pushed past him and was about to knock when, as expected, the door suddenly opened. Both boys jumped and fell backward at that, but Katsuki was the first to recover and scowled up at Aizawa, who was smirking. As both boys' eyes wandered around the office, Izuku's eyes widened as they landed on the smiling creature behind the desk.
"N–NE-NEZU," Izuku excitedly pointed, making the rat laugh.
"Yes, it is I, Nezu! Am I a mouse? A bear? Or maybe a dog?"
Izuku's brows furrowed and he started mumbling. "Technically, you're a chimera but share many traits with animals from the Mustelid family including weasels, ferrets, and stoats as well as otters which would explain your tail and paws..."
Aizawa shuddered as Nezu's eyes and smile widened.
"Very good, Mr. Midoriya," Nezu cheered, cutting off Izuku's mumbling. "I am indeed a Mustelid chimera! How did you guess?"
Katsuki rolled his eyes as his friend suddenly clammed up.
"He's a huge nerd and likes spending his sleepless nights learning useless shit," Katsuki said, getting a glare from Aizawa and a chuckle from Nezu.
"Well, I must say I'm impressed! Now, Aizawa, why don't you take young Mr. Bakugou to Hound Dog and we'll switch in about, let's say, an hour?" Nezu said, to which Aizawa nodded and led a grumpy looking Katsuki out of the room.
Once the door closed, Izuku looked back at Nezu, who suddenly had a tray with a teapot and two cups and a plate of cookies on his desk.
"No need to be nervous, Mr. Midoriya," Nezu said, hopping down from his chair and carrying the tray to a small table between the two black couches in the middle of the room. "Please, join me for some tea."
Izuku gulped and nervously walked over to the opposite couch. He knew it was, as his uncle would say, illogical to be afraid of Nezu, but Izuku was never good with social interactions and there was something intimidating about the creature that Izuku couldn't quite describe.
"Would you like some sugar or cream," Nezu asked as he began to pour them each a cup. Izuku shook his head.
"N-no thank you, sir," Izuku managed to say as he picked up his cup with a shaky hand. "I-I wouldn't be able to t-taste it, anyway."
Nezu gasped and gave a small bow, surprising Izuku and almost making him spill his tea. "My apologies, young man! I'm so used to conducting business in this way that that aspect of your quirk completely slipped my mind! Would you perhaps like something different to drink?"
"I-it's fine, s-sir," Izuku stuttered, taking a sip of the piping hot beverage without blowing. "M-my mom is s-still getting used to t-that part of my q-quirk, too." He then eyed the plate of cookies. "B-but, could I please have some c-cookies to take home?"
"Of course, my boy," Nezu chuckled, pulling out his phone. "I'll text Lunch Rush to box up another batch for you."
"L-Lunch Rush made these!?" Izuku asked, eyes wide at the cookies like they were more valuable than gold.
"Of course! He handles all the meals at UA!"
As Izuku drooled at the idea of tasting Lunch Rush's katsudon, Nezu placed a box next to the tray. Izuku looked inside to see some papers as well as what looked like puzzles and blocks of various shapes and sizes.
"I was hoping to get to know you a little better by playing a few games. Would that be alright," Nezu asked, kindly.
Izuku nodded excitedly.
"Wonderful," Nezu smiled. "We'll begin with a worksheet. Since you are still learning to read and write, I'll ask you the questions and you answer them as best you can. Sound fun?"
With another nod, Nezu began testing Izuku and was not disappointed with the results.
Meanwhile, with Hound Dog:
"This is bullshit," Katsuki murmured, arms crossed with a scowl on his face. He'd been sitting there for almost ten minutes and the mutt hasn't asked him a single question yet! Not that Katsuki would've answered, but still!
"You're telling me," Hound Dog huffed while writing something down. "I've got half a million other things I'd rather be doing on my day off than helping a four year old brat with anger issues."
"I don't have any issues!" Katsuki yelled, explosions popping in his hands. Hound Dog smirked under his muzzle.
"Yeah, sure," he nodded, writing something else down as Katsuki continued scowling.
"I don't need your help," Katsuki growled as he balled his fists to cut off the explosions. "I'm not a villain and I don't need fixing!"
"Of course you're not a villain," Hound Dog shrugged. "And I'm not trying to "fix you," whatever the hell that means. I just wanna know more about you. Now, do you wanna get started or are we just gonna sit here in awkward silence for the next fifty minutes?"
After a few moments, Katsuki huffed and sat back down.
"Let's get this over with, mutt," Katsuki grumbled.
"Alright, then," Hound Dog grinned. "Let's start with your relationship with Midoriya."
While Nezu was giggling to himself as Izuku solved another puzzle in record time and Hound Dog was being treated to a rant about how basic kindness equated to looking down on someone, Aizawa was reading the files of this upcoming school year's class 1-A. As he started to doze off while reading about a boy with a spider mutation, a coffee mug slamming on the table in front of him woke him up. He looked up to see Ma offering him a cup, which he gratefully took.
"How's it coming, Scruffy," Ma asked as Aizawa gulped down his coffee.
"Eight down, twelve to go," Aizawa answered, pinching his eyes. "I get the need to know about their quirks, but why do we need to read the whole file? If anything, some of these comments from past teachers can end up creating a bias. Wouldn't it be more logical to go in without any previous knowledge skewing our views?"
The way Ma looked at him, Aizawa felt like he just said something incredibly stupid.
"...I can't tell whether you actually believe that or if you're just trying to be lazy," Ma said, narrowing his eyes at a suddenly sweating Aizawa. "By your logic, I would've just assumed you were a lazy punk who stayed up all night playing video games rather than a hard worker with insomnia. No, you need to know more about your students than just their quirks. That'll just lead to you forming biases of your own before even getting to know them."
Before Aizawa could question what he meant, Ma continued. "Medical history, learning disabilities, quirk triggers; all necessary. As for the teacher's comments, you're right that we should take them all with a grain of salt. Take the kid you're reading about, Yamashiro Takuya. Several of his teachers paint him as a class clown who they believe shouldn't be a hero while his grades and behavior during the practical exam paints a very different picture."
Aizawa agreed the student he had been reading about didn't match the student he observed the other day. He was allowed to watch the Heroics practical exam and was impressed by Yamashiro. He clearly had a good handle on his quirk and scored several rescue points at the cost of hero points. Hell, he even got permission to use some support equipment he made that let him shoot web-like metal wiring from all six of his wrists like that old Marvel hero. The kid was a genius but his teachers seemed against him. Was it because he was a mutant?
"Before you ask, Nezu's looking into his junior high," Ma said, smiling as he sipped his coffee. Aizawa shuddered and continued reading.
Later, as Ma was going over how to prepare lesson plans, a timer on Aizawa's phone went off and he sighed in relief.
"Welp, that's two hours," Aizawa said, stretching as he stood up. "Time for the real tests. You coming?"
Ma shrugged. "Why not? I've got nothing better to do. I'll get the old lady and we'll meet you there."
This was the best day of Izuku's life! He was at UA with his best friend, he got to play games with Nezu, he talked to Hound Dog and got his autograph, and now he and Kacchan were wearing official UA gym uniforms and following his uncle outside for a surprise! Even Kacchan looked excited!
"So, where are you taking us, Ho- um, Mr. Aizawa," Katsuki asked, remembering what Hound Dog said about earning respect by showing it.
"You can call me Hobo if you want, kid," Aizawa shrugged. "It honestly doesn't matter to me. But to answer your question, we're going to UA's PE grounds for a series of tests."
Both boys' eyes widened at that as they realized what kinds of tests they could be. While Bakugou's smile grew feral, Izuku started bouncing excitedly again.
Outside a brown building, Big Green was standing with his eyes closed and arms crossed in his hero costume, his white turban and cape over a purple Gi with a blue sash and round belt buckle with the kanji for demon on it and brown shoes. In front of him was a small, old lady wearing a white coat and leaning on a cane that looked like a comically large syringe. As the three boys approached, the one with messy green hair and freckles excitedly pointed at Ma.
"AHH! IT'S BIG GREEN," he excitedly shouted, making Ma's closed eyes tighten slightly at the volume. Sometimes he wished his hearing wasn't so good. "And you're Recovery Girl," Izuku excitedly said, pointing at the old lady who was now chuckling.
"I wasn't expecting someone so young to recognize me," she said as the boy ran up to her with a pen and notebook. As she signed his book and was giggling at the drawing of herself, Bakugou was looking up in awe at Big Green.
All Might may have been Deku and his favorite hero, but they both agreed Big Green deserved to be the Number Two Hero more than Endeavor. He and All Might have teamed up multiple times and even took down Big Green's villain father, the Green Demon, together! However, for reasons Katsuki couldn't understand, Big Green has said multiple times that he doesn't care about the rankings and refused to take part in the system, threatening to quit if they tried giving him a spot higher than two hundred. Kami, he was so cool and Katsuki found himself flinching as Ma's eyes shot open, looking down at him intensely.
Aizawa cleared his throat, getting both boys attention. He was now holding a ball with a strange metal band around it.
"As I said, we'll be performing a series of physical tests but you'll be using your quirks," Aizawa said. "Normally, these tests are introduced in middle school and you'd perform them without using your quirks. However, I believe this is the best way to gauge not only the strength of your quirks, but your creativity in how you use them."
Aizawa tossed the ball to Katsuki and pointed to a patch of dirt with a white circle and lines drawn in it. "Bakugou, go stand in that circle and see if you can use your quirk to throw the ball."
Katsuki nodded and headed over to the circle, already knowing how he was gonna launch the ball into space. He then drew back his arm and, from the bottom of his heart, yelled "DIE" as he threw the ball with the biggest explosion he could muster. As the ball disappeared into the distance, he looked over at the adults and Deku.
The hobo was on his phone, Deku was staring in awe, Big Green was pulling his fingers out of his ears with narrowed eyes, and the old lady was nodding in approval.
Hearing a beep, Aizawa nodded at his phone.
"98.7 meters. Not bad, kid," Aizawa said. Katsuki's chest puffed up with pride as he made his way back over to the group. However, his good mood soured as Deku started patronizing him.
"Wow, Kacchan, that was so cool! Your quirk is so amazing! Did you make your palm extra sweaty for that explosion? Can you control how much sweat you can create? OOH! OOH! What if you stored some of it for later and-"
"Alright, Izuku, it's your turn," the hobo cut Deku off. "How long have you been awake again?"
"Huh? Oh, uh…," Izuku said, looking down at his hands as he started counting on his fingers. "Since 8:00 yesterday," he said, Recovery Girl gasping. The hobo then typed something into his phone.
"We should probably order you a watch that keeps track of how long you've been awake," he said, handing Deku another ball. "Alright, kid, same deal. Don't hold back."
Izuku excitedly nodded and ran to the circle. He then took a pitcher's stance like he'd seen on TV and yelled "SMASH" as he threw the ball, making a small boom as it was thrown.
'What is it with these damn kids and shouting everything,' Ma wondered, rubbing one of his ears.
As Izuku waited for his uncle to announce his score, he looked over at Kacchan with an excited grin. However, his smile faded as he noticed Bakugou's scowl. He must have noticed it was taking longer for his throw to be calculated than Kacchan's. Just then, the familiar beep chimed and Aizawa nodded.
"249.8 meters," he tiredly said, shrugging. "It's a start."
"WHAT!?" Katsuki angrily questioned. "No way! I wanna do-over!"
"No," Aizawa answered dryly, walking away to a track with a robot on a tripod towards the end of it. As the others followed him, Izuku looked back to see Katsuki taking a few deep breaths before catching up to them. He also thought he heard the blonde muttering something, but decided not to bring attention to it.
"Up next, the 50-meter dash," Aizawa tiredly announced. As both boys took their places, Katsuki was looking smug as he positioned his arms behind himself and Aizawa and Ma shared a look. 'It's a good thing RG is here,' Aizawa thought, knowing how badly such an idea can go on a first try. Yup, this was gonna be painful.
As the robot gave the signal, Bakugou activated his quirk to propel himself forward. However, this did not work the way he thought it would. While he had a good start, he hadn't considered how to properly balance himself to stay in the air and quickly lost control as he started firing explosions of various sizes and twisting and turning until he crashed and found himself tumbling over the finish line one second ahead of Izuku.
"H-ha! B-beat you Dek-OW," Katsuki tried to gloat from his place on the ground, but found it difficult as he was trying to deal with the pain of a case of full body roadrash. He heard a tongue clicking and looked up to see Recovery Girl shaking her head in exasperation.
"That kind of trick will take you years to master, young man," she said, bending down. "Consider yourself lucky you didn't break your neck." She then planted a kiss on his forehead.
"Hey, what the he-," Katsuki started to protest but stopped as he found the pain suddenly fading and the scrapes and cuts disappearing. In less than five seconds, he was completely healed and Deku was running over to check on him.
"Now, I don't want you trying that move again until you learn some proper control and when you do, I want to be present. Understand?" she asked, cane raised threateningly. At his reluctant nod, she handed the boy a few gummy bears. As she walked away, Deku approached with a worried look.
"A-are you ok, Kacchan," he asked, holding out a hand to help him up.
Katsuki's eyes narrowed at the offered hand. His first instinct was to swat it away and yell at Deku for thinking he was weak. However, he remembered what the mutt said after telling him about the log incident and how he took the gesture the wrong way. He sighed and took the nerd's hand.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Katsuki said as he munched on the gummies. "...thanks."
He instantly regretted that last part as he saw Deku's big, tired eyes fill with tears and a crooked smile plastered on his dumb face. He rolled his eyes.
"C'mon, you crybaby. I've got more tests to kick your butt in," Katsuki said with a challenging smile and his hand up for a high five. Deku wiped his eyes and tried returning his smile as both boys clapped their hands together with an explosion and followed the adults as they went inside the building for the next test.
Thankfully, the rest of the tests proceeded without further injury. While Izuku managed to beat Katsuki in the grip strength test, pull ups, and sit ups, Katsuki was successful in using his quirk to clear the sandbox in the standard long jump and beat Izuku in repeated side steps. All that was left was an endurance run. Unfortunately, neither boy wanted to admit defeat and kept pushing themselves to the point Aizawa had to call Midnight to use her quirk.
"Hey, boys, does the air smell funny to you," she said as the boys ran by her with her quirk active. Katsuki had the desired effect and passed out on the spot. However, Izuku just kept running as he waved at Midnight to the heroes' confusion.
"Izuku, stop," Aizawa said and Izuku stumbled to a stop, panting heavily. As Midnight approached with more skin showing and her quirk on full blast, they were stunned as Midnight's quirk still had no effect on him. Once the gas had fully dissipated, Aizawa scooped Bakugou up and everyone went to the infirmary.
"Well, it seems we found another aspect to Izuku's quirk," Aizawa sighed. The adults had gathered in a conference room with Nezu while Midnight was entertaining the children in the teachers lounge.
"Indeed," Recovery Girl nodded. "My best guess would be due to his quirk shutting down his nerves, his neurotransmitters and ion channel proteins seem to be unalterable, making him immune to anesthesia and other knockout agents and though I was unable to get a blood sample, we can assume his immune system has made it all but impossible for him to get sick. Honestly, we're lucky he wants to be a hero. In time, I honestly believe even All Might won't be able to hold a candle to him."
Nezu hummed at that. "We should probably keep that little tidbit out of his file. We don't want the wrong people taking an interest in him so soon. Now, I think we should discuss the boys' training. Hound Dog has agreed to continue working with Bakugo and he will most definitely need help with his quirk."
"I'll help the brat with his quirk," Piccolo said from his corner of the room. "He has potential and between me and Inui, we'll make sure he doesn't become the next Endeavor. One flaming asshole is already one too many."
"Excellent," Nezu said. "And while Aizawa continues both boys' physical training, I'd like to take young Izuku under my wing. While both boys scored quite highly in the intelligence tests, Izuku's score was nearly off the charts! I believe he would greatly benefit from my teachings."
While Aizawa was uneasy about Nezu poisoning his sweet nephew's mind, he agreed to the plan. After physical training with him, Bakugou would train his quirk with Ma-sensei and Izuku would have lessons with Nezu. And that's how it was for four years, until Aizawa found a personal student of his own soon after the Aldera investigation.