Shouta watched over his students as they trained relentlessly, clearly remembering how much he himself had suffered in his first year at UA. Ah well, they better get used to this, it's not like their training is going to get any easier from here on out. Normally he wasn't one to observe when he didn't have to but he had some free time on his hands since Vlad King was taking care of the extra classes today. That and he had some concerns regarding his most problematic student...
Midoriya was currently sparring with Uraraka while both of them had to hold up as many objects as they could. The air above their part of the training ground was littered with flying rocks and debris as they went at each other. The side effects of the strain of their quirks were more unique though. While Uraraka became physically unwell, Midoriya got migraines. Both were enough to lose focus so it wasn't all that surprising to see stones falling down every now and then.
No, the training in itself was going well, that wasn't what Shouta was worried about. It had more to do with a certain hero than a student at this point... His eyes drifted over to All Might, who was also watching the match between Midoriya and Uraraka, unsurprisingly. It seemed that after the practical exams his interest in the green head grew exponentially. Something that could potentially be very dangerous...
Aizawa didn't know exactly what happened during that practical either... One moment they were fighting, the other moment All Might simply let them walk out. Sure, he broke Midoriya's arm, but that's not the most gruesome injury someone has gotten in a UA exam. It was only one bone, maybe two, that's nothing compared to what's in their records! And definitely nothing compared to what All Might has done to others before!
So that meant something must've happened, something that they weren't able to catch on camera footage. A feeling, maybe? Instinct? Had Midoriya accidentally slipped up and allowed All Might to sense his power? No matter who asked, All Might always seemed to dodge the question or come up with excuses as to why he simply let them walk away. Some teachers argued that they didn't deserve to pass, but they officially completed the criteria of the exam so their complaints were negated.
"Don't you need to help the students with their strength training?" Aizawa asked, startling the number one hero.
"Ah, Eraserhead, I-"
"If you're not going to be productive, you should've stayed home" he remarked, not even looking at the man anymore.
"What's so entertaining about watching those two fight anyway? It seems to me like they're about to collapse any minute now"
"Yes, well, he's stronger than meets the eye" All Might sighed.
"Are you talking about Midoriya? I thought I told you to let that go-" Aizawa frowned, not wanting any unnecessary pressure on the problem child. He was having enough trouble as is hiding his true power, no need to add to that list.
"I know, I know, but I'm certain Eraser" All Might stated, even more confident about this than at the start of the year.
"I'll prove it to you one way or another, but for now all I can do is keep a close eye on him. I promise I won't try anything else! But he is simply too dangerous to let out of my sight!"
Shouta huffed, not believing him for one second. Yet he knew he wouldn't be able to pull something during camp while everyone was watching so that was something.
That didn't take away all his concern though... If he'd be watching Midoriya like he said he would, the kid might break.
"There is nothing wrong with watching him, right?" All Might added with a smile. Oh this man knew what he was doing and Aizawa was getting more pissed off by the second.
"Of course not, as long as you keep your distance. Wouldn't want to report to Nezu you broke our restraining order, now would we?"
"Of course!" All Might smiled. He knew Eraser was protective of his students so he didn't want to push the issue too far. He'd been teaching at UA for far longer than he had so if it came to a serious dispute, the principal would turn against the number one hero. Worst case scenario he'd be fired. That would definitely damage his image... Besides, he still needed to find a suitable successor he could pass his quirk onto!
And so the day of training continued, with All Might watching Midoriya and Aizawa watching All Might. Some students noticed, but if they did they didn't comment on it. Not until they could ask Midoriya about it during dinner preparations.
"All Might was looking at us all day long, I felt so pressured!" Uraraka whined.
"Do you think it's part of our training? I didn't see him stare at others though..."
'If you already feel pressured, imagine how I feel' Izuku thought grumpily as he chopped up the potatoes. He ignored Iida's comment about how she didn't even have to notice All Might looking if she was focussed on training and that she needed to put in more effort. As if Izuku hadn't caught the class rep glancing at them as he rushed past them while he trained his recypro boost...
"Oi, those potatoes killed your fucking family or what?"
Izuku blinked up at Kacchan before looking back down at the complete mess he made.
"A-ah, I'm so sorry!"
"Tch, you're fucking useless. Let me handle this, you go help hopeless over there" Katsuki grunted, pointing at Todoroki over his shoulder.
"He can't peel a carrot to save his life"
Izuku chuckled a bit at that. Kacchan always knew how to relieve some of his tension! Guess that was partly due to the fact they've known each other their whole lives, always staying close friends throughout the years.
"Thanks Kacchan, I owe you one" Izuku smiled as he handed the knife over to the blonde.
"Shut up nerd, don't make a big deal out of this" Katsuki scoffed, pushing him away in the direction of the struggling Todoroki.
...
"Tonight we're holding a little competition between class 1-A and 1-B"
Those words were enough to bring the excitement back after a long day of training. It would be a test of courage of some sorts, one class trying to scare the other as they walked through the forest. The students who didn't pass the practical exam couldn't participate due to their extra classes, which was kind of a bummer but not enough to bring down their spirits. And since 1-A was uneven, Shinsou got paired up with Izuku for the first part of the 'test'.
"You know, I thought UA training would be more intense... Hisashi has put me through more than this just to prepare me for the hero course" Hitoshi said as they talked while walking along the path.
"Dad takes his job very seriously, Shinsou-kun, you should know that" Izuku smiled, glad to be away from All Might for a moment.
"My training at home has always been harder than my training at UA, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, right?"
"Well, your circumstances aren't exactly the same as mine" Hitoshi pointed out. No, he couldn't possibly compare his situation and quirk with Izuku's. That kid is overpowered as fuck, of course UA would be easy for him!
"That's not true at all! Everyone here is trying to become a hero, you know? Sure, we've got different motivations and quirks, but we've all got the same goal! That has to count for something, right?" Izuku smiled, making Shinsou roll his eyes. This guy...
"Hmm, I wonder when they're going to try to scare us. We've been walking for a while now" Hitoshi muttered after a few minutes. Izuku hummed, suddenly coming to an abrupt stop while Shinsou still walked a few steps further.
"What's the matter, Midoriya? Something wrong?" he frowned as he turned around, only to be taken aback by the look Izuku was giving him.
His face had gone pale and his eyes were wide open, as if he'd just seen a ghost or something.
"Shinsou. Run" he choked out, not moving from his position. This couldn't be happening... Not here, not now, no, please... Tears welled up in his eyes as he activated his quirk once again. There was no doubt, he could sense them... 1-B must've been taken by surprise, he could tell most of them were already lying unconscious on the ground.
"What's going on? Are we in danger?" Shinsou asked, knowing it wasn't like Izuku to act like this unless it was something serious. He must've picked up on something with his quirk when he asked where the others were or something, it was the only explanation. Izuku's eyes got even bigger and he quickly grabbed Hitoshi's arm, pulling him away as a Nomu fell down from the trees. That monster would've crushed them...
"It's an ambush..." Izuku breathed, quickly pulling Shinsou with him as he stumbled back, pushing the purple haired boy behind him as the Nomu let out an angry roar.
"Run! Go get the teachers! We need to get out of here!"
Shinsou didn't know what was happening, he'd never been in a situation like this before, but he trusted Midoriya. So he ran.
Izuku tried knocking the thing unconscious before following Shinsou, but he only managed to push the Nomu back a few feet. Absorption quirk, basically a living punching bag. But also a strength quirk and a regeneration one. Izuku didn't need to know the details to know that, fuck, this thing was strong. They needed to evacuate the camp, let the pros deal with these things. Maybe All Might's presence could be useful for something after all... If anyone could beat these things up, it was the number one hero, right?
"Shinsou-kun? Midoriya-kun? What are you-?" Asui asked as they ran up to her and Uraraka.
"No time to explain! Run! There is a monster after us!" Izuku shouted.
"A monster?! Are you sure it's not a trick to scare-" Uraraka yelped, trying to stay brave up until the Nomu burst out from the trees, making the girls scream. Before they could get any further though, another Nomu rushed out in front of them, blocking the path.
Speed quirk, Izuku noted. Combined with an agility type and some kind of fire quirk. His quick analysis was confirmed to be true when the new Nomu opened its mouth and spit fire at them. Izuku and Tsuyu were able to pull the others down to the ground in time so as not to get hit, although some hairs did get scorched off.
"Fuck" Shinsou whispered as the flames disappeared.
"We need to go off the path, we're way too easy targets out in the open" Izuku muttered.
"Are you crazy? Those things could ambush us twice as fast in the forest!" Uraraka hissed.
"She's right" Asui nodded as they all scrambled back to their feet.
"But it's not like we've got much of a choice. At least they'll have to move through the forest too"
"Let's just go before that thing crushes us!" Shinsou yelled, pulling Uraraka with him as the stronger Nomu charged at them. Izuku was able to buy them some time by blocking the attack, his arm turning grey in the process. Not that any of his friends had time to really question the abnormal strength. No, they just had to get the hell out of there!
Izuku was using his detection quirk to guide them around but they were getting surrounded with no way to fight back. They couldn't take on all those Nomu with just the four of them! And he knew back up wasn't coming since others were busy with these things too!
"You've got a plan?" Shinsou asked, panting as they came to a standstill. Izuku glanced around, really not wanting to have to do this, but there were very few options left and he knew he was being a danger to his friends just by being there with them.
Those things were here for him, after all...
"I need you guys to trust me" he breathed, sensing the Nomu getting closer by the second.
"Of course we trust you, Deku-kun. What's-" Uraraka started, only to cough up black goop. Hitoshi's eyes widened as he felt the slime rise up his throat, staring at Izuku in shock.
"Don't fight it, please" he begged.
"Please don't be alarmed, I'll bring you somewhere safe, I promise"
"M-Midoriya-" Shinsou choked out.
"I'm sorry" the green head whispered, tears welling up in his eyes. Shinsou could see a Nomu approaching from behind his friend, wanting to warn him but not being able to say anything. Only a second later, his vision was blocked. The next thing he saw was the main camp building, where Aizawa sensei came rushing out.
He'd just received a mental message from Mandalay about the Nomu, but he didn't expect three students to appear in front of him like that. This could only mean that-
"It's Midoriya" Hitoshi coughed up. That's all the teacher needed to know.
A/N *insert evil laughter here* Oh yes, we're in it now boys