"Good morning, Lock."
By the time the clock neared eight, Ryukyu had already finished setting out breakfast.
"Morning, Aunt Ryukyu."
Lock had just wrapped up his early-morning magic training, though he couldn't focus much. The incident that morning still gnawed at him, leaving him restless and embarrassed.
"Nejire's still asleep," Ryukyu said with a small smile. "Go wake her up for breakfast, will you?"
Lock froze. "Uh… is that really necessary?"
"What's wrong?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She had meant to create an opportunity for them — but after what happened earlier that morning, the idea might've been ill-timed.
Before, Lock wouldn't have minded calling Nejire to wake up.
But now, after the "bathroom accident," the very thought made his ears burn.
Still, with no real way to refuse, he sighed and made his way toward her room.
When something mortifying happens, people generally react in one of two ways.
Either you both pretend nothing happened, tacitly agreeing to never bring it up…
Or you hide under the covers, too embarrassed to face anyone.
Judging from the fact that Nejire hadn't left her room yet, Lock suspected it was probably the second one.
Thinking all this, he reached her door, hesitated for a second, then called out:
"Nejire-senpai, Aunt Ryukyu says it's time for breakfast!"
"…"
No reply.
But he could tell she wasn't asleep. Who could sleep soundly after that?
He turned to leave, deciding it was best to eat quickly and then slip out before things got awkward—
"The door's unlocked," came a faint, melodic voice from inside. "Come in."
Lock froze mid-step.
After a long breath to steady himself, he pushed the door open.
It was clearly a girl's room — neat, cozy, full of small touches: plush toys, books, a small TV. Clearly, Nejire came over often enough to have her own space here.
She was sitting in front of the desk, her back to him, sunlight pouring through the window and glinting off her soft, blue curls.
The morning light turned her hair into strands of liquid sapphire — she looked like something out of a dream, the air around her serene and weightless.
Lock coughed lightly. "Uh… Nejire-senpai, what's up?"
He decided to go with the "pretend nothing happened" approach.
"What happened this morning…" Nejire murmured, biting her lip. She still didn't turn around. "Lock, don't tell anyone, okay?"
"Of course!" he said immediately, a wave of relief washing over him. "Then, uh, I'll go eat first. Come down soon, senpai."
He slipped out quickly, closing the door behind him.
Just before he turned away, he caught a glimpse of her reflection in the window—her fair neck tinted the faintest red.
So she wasn't only pretending to be calm after all. She was just as flustered as he was, choosing somewhere between denial and shy retreat.
Breakfast was quiet.
Ryukyu's spread was a classic Japanese breakfast—steamed rice, miso soup, grilled fish.
Lock had grown up used to different food—fried dough sticks, buns, noodles—but he wasn't about to complain.
The atmosphere at the table, however, was unmistakably awkward.
Lock focused entirely on his food. If he just ate in silence, maybe it would pass.
Ryukyu glanced between the two of them, amusement flickering in her eyes. "Hmm? Did something happen between you two?"
"No!" they both said at once.
Their voices overlapped perfectly. Startled, they looked at each other—then quickly averted their gazes, cheeks pink, and went back to eating.
Ryukyu chuckled softly. "Ah, youth. Getting flustered over the smallest things—it's adorable."
After breakfast, Nejire left first.
It was the weekend, but she still had her internship work as a second-year student at U.A.
Soon after, Lock and Ryukyu headed to the Quirk Administration Bureau, where Ryukyu helped officially register his Quirk, removing his "Quirkless" status.
Once it was done, Lock caught a tram home. On the ride, his phone buzzed with a new email from Ryukyu.
"Lock, the Pro Hero I arranged for your special training has been confirmed.
Go straight to Dagobah Seaside Park."
He raised an eyebrow. "Dagobah Seaside Park… huh. What a coincidence."
Though called a park, the place was nothing like a tourist spot. Years of illegal dumping had turned it into a wasteland—piles of garbage, rusted debris, and the stench of seawater mixed with decay.
In the original story, this was where All Might trained Midoriya Izuku to strengthen his body before inheriting One For All.
Later, after that training, the area was completely restored—cleaned up into a scenic, popular date spot.
"Wonder who my 'special instructor' will be," Lock mused. "It shouldn't be All Might—it's not time for his arc yet."
Still thinking, he boarded another tram and headed straight for Dagobah.
Halfway there, he sent an email to Kyoka Jiro, asking her to submit a ten-day leave request on his behalf.
The provisional license exam was scheduled for the end of September—ten days from now.
The sea breeze was cold and sharp when he arrived. The sound of waves mixed with the groaning of metal junk. Mountains of trash towered nearby, giving off a sour, unpleasant stench.
Lock scanned the area. "Anyone here?"
Ryukyu's message said the trainer would meet him directly on-site, but the park seemed deserted.
Then, a chill raced up his spine. His instincts screamed a warning.
"Not good!"
A blue magic circle flared beneath his feet—Lock leapt backward instinctively.
A flash of steel sliced through the air where he had just stood.
From the shadows, a dark figure emerged—dressed in black, a wooden sword in hand.
And not just one.
Lock's eyes narrowed as more silhouettes slipped out from behind the heaps of garbage—several shadowed figures, surrounding him.
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