Chapter 3 - Working Hard
By One Above All
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"EVERYONE SAY HEY"
To any that understand what disappointment is in a sensible account. Disappointment is exactly what the four former villains were feeling right then and there as their eyes met the presence of the Voice Hero, Present Mic. they each had mixed feelings of this rambunchist loudass annoyance. The only merit that could give him is the fact that he somehow became a hero.
The sight of him alone had already foreshadowed to Victor von Doom that the people of this school will make each day for him an absolute torture. 'Oh, how the educational system in this country has fallen', thought the Latverian.
Eddie Brock could already see future hero training sessions with this guy being filled with nothing but pain for him. 'Great. A guy with a vocal quirk that could give me the biggest headache ever… awesome', sarcastically thought the American.
Erik Lesher had given up on being surprised by anything this second life has to offer. Instead of giving his own discouraging critique on the blonde Japanese man standing on the podium, he just decided to name any hero or villain he could think of that has vocal based powers. 'Black Bolt… Mockingbird… Banshee… damn there was someone else. Some woman that dated Carnage I think', thought the German.
Victor Creed didn't really pay attention to Present Mic as he was mainly putting most of his disappointment towards Izuku who sat to his right. He looked disappointed as Izuku just mumbled on how he listens to Present Mic on the radio each day. 'Seriously Izuku. You are such a pussy ass fanboy, aren't ya', thought the Canadian.
"Oh my god, it's the voice hero, Present Mic. I listen to his radio show everyday of the week. It's so crazy how all the teachers here are all pro-heroes", mumbled Izuku giddly.
Upon hearing that, Creed just covered his face with his right hand with a mix of grief and annoyance. 'Is this seriously the guy that I'm going to be stuck with for the next three years', thought Creed. His thoughts then ended when Present Mic finally decided to explain how the entrance exam will go.
"Alright you rockin boys and girls, you'll be conducting in ten minute long mock battles in super realistic fake urban settings. After I drop the mic here, you'll be heading to your specific battle centers as said in your cards. Sounds good… OKAY", bellied Present Mic.
In almost perfect unison, Izuku, Katsuki, and the four former villains looked at their respected cards to see where they'll be at.
"I see, they're splitting us up so we can't work with any of our friends", speculated Katsuki.
'A predictable but efficient tactic to weed out the worst from the best. Maybe there is hope for this school yet', thought Doom.
"Hey you right, our examinee numbers are one after another but they have us in different battle centers", examined Izuku.
"Get your eyes off my card. Damn, I was really looking forward to crushing you", muttered Katsuki intimidatingly.
Izuku slightly shuddered at hearing that, but shifted to curiosity when Creed gave him a view of his card.
"Forget about Firecracker over there, Izuku. You and I got lucky enough to be placed into the same battle center. Right on, am I right?", said a smirking Creed.
This surprised Izuku for just how coincidental it was. Him and Creed will both be in battle center B. Trying his best to see the cards of the other three foreigners that were squadmates with Creed, he could just make out what letters they were assigned to. The one named Eddie had C, Erik had D, and Doom had E. His attention then switched back to Present Mic who was explaining about the three different mock villains and how they played out in the objective of gaining points to pass.
"But remember folks, you got to keep things heroic. Attacking other examinees is a no go, okay?", warned Present Mic.
"Damn", the former villains thought in annoyance.
It was then that a navy blue-haired spectacle wearing student had risen up with his hand raised.
"Excuse me, may I ask a question", he asked.
"Go ahead", Granted Present Mic.
"On the hand-out, there are clearly four types of villains! Such an error would be the height of embarrassment for a top-tier national academy of yuuei's caliber. The reason we are here today is because we seek guidance on the path to becoming model heroes", he proclaimed.
He then pointed to Izuku and this peeked Creed.
"Additionally, you there with the unkempt hair. You've been muttering this entire time. Stop that. If you can't take this seriously, then just leave. You're distracting the rest of us", he said sternly.
As snickers could be heard, Izuku was about to mumble an apology. However, Creed wasn't going to let him. He stood up and bellowed his blunt opinion.
"You want to know what else is fucking distracting? Four-eyed dicks with sticks up their asses who won't shut the fuck up. So do us a favor and SIT BACK DOWN", aggravated Creed.
This aggression stunned the other examinees, especially the glasses wearing student. None have expected this type of foreigner to appear in the yuuei's entrance exam. One so angry and brash couldn't have come this far from his home country just to get into Yuuei. Izuku himself was also stunned by Creed involvement. Although his Canadian friend was hostile in his statement, it was still nice of Creed to defend him. Doom, Erik, and Eddie were slightly surprised by this. It was the first time Creed actually defended someone that wasn't Logan.
Before things could have been more heated, Present Mic regained all attention on him.
"Alright Alright, let's all cool down. For that error you mention, Examinee 7111. The fourth type of villain you'll encounter is worth zero points. They're pretty much just obstacles to slow you down. Kind of like in those video games", explained Present Mic.
"I see. Thank you very much! I apologized for being rude!", apologized glasses.
"Whatever", muttered Creed as he sat back down.
After some more explanation of the points system and an odd quote from some Napoleon hero that the former villains didn't much care for, the orientation ended and the four had been separated to their respected battle center. As they were informed, the battle centers actually are fake cities constructed for quirks to be tested in urban settings. The four weren't impressed though, for they know what they have to do here. Put up a good show and pass like the rest of these amateurs. With their powers and skills, this was going to be easy. However, one of them had the unfortunate fate of helping out a certain green-haired fanboy.
"Izuku, will you stop shaking man. Honestly, you're going to make yourself look even more weak to these assholes" said Creed who wore combat boots, cargos, tanktop, and fingerless gloves.
"Creed-san, how are you not nervous about this? We're going to be competing for points and I still haven't gained control over my quirk yet", said a worried Izuku.
"First off, I'm never nervous. Second, it isn't going to help you to just lose every ounce of confidence in yourself every damn minute. Yeah, you still haven't gotten used to your power yet, but at this point you don't really have a choice right now. You only got ten minute to get more than fifty, get that and you're in yuuei", explained Creed.
"That easier said than done, Creed-san. What if I really don't pass this? What then?", asked Izuku.
"Look, it's either you pass or you don't. You're either going to get into yuuei or we'll just have to ship you off to SHIELD, and knowing you it's probably best to keep you home. Right?", said Creed.
"Right", answered Izuku.
"Good, now relax. Honestly, you're making me look bad. Plus, you're not the only one who has to get points. Although a friend in SHIELD had secured spots in the hero course for me and the guys, we need to make it look like we earned our way in. it all comes down to the five of us getting into the hero course and helping you get better with your new powers", said Creed.
"Okay, I understand. I just have to remember that this is where All-Might graduated from, so I have to get in and graduate like he did", said Izuku.
"Finally, there's that confidence. Even if it is small. Look, there's the babe from the entrance, why not boost the ego while you're at it, tiger. See if you have a chance", said a smirking Creed.
"Do you have to be so crude right now, Creed-san? It's not like that at all, we barely know each other. But… I guess I should thank her for earlier", said Izuku, who got nervous.
As he walked towards the brown-haired girl, the glasses wearing student noticed him and decided to confront him.
"I see what you're up to. You're planning to measure that girl's power of concentration. Who exactly are you, my friend? You didn't come to obstruct your fellow test takers, did you?", he asked sternly as he had a grip on Izuku's left shoulder.
"W-who?! Me?! I just-", Izuku was then cut off when Creed gripped his right shoulder and glared at glasses.
"So that's how you feel, uh four-eyes? Well, how about this? What if he doesn't give a shit what you think? For all we know, you're probably an asshole who's in for himself", said Creed who was getting real tired of this glasses wearing punk.
They both glared at each other as Izuku could feel their grips on him tighten. Anxiety began to well up inside him, until…
"BEGIN", announced Present Mic.
And just like that, every examinee in battle center B took off running into the simulated city to battle their mock villains. Izuku felt a hard tug from the back of his sweatjacket's collar as he was dragged into the city by Creed.
"Alright, Izuku. This is it, time to pass. Just remember what I told you and don't fuck it up by being a scared little bitch", ordered Creed as Izuku was able to start running on his own.
"B-but Creed-san", said Izuku
"JUST DO YOUR BEST, DAMN IT", yelled Creed as he ran to a stop sign and used it as a means of jumping off it to gain a higher distance up a wall. Once making contact with the concrete, his nails dug deep and he began climbing. As he made it to the rooftop, he then jumped to each building top to gain more ground. Izuku just stood there slacked jawed at Creed's athleticism. He then remembered why he was there and took off running to gain his points. Unfortunately, the rest of his time in the exam would be considered by most as a pathetic display of humanity's mental invulnerability. Unknown to him and definitely known to Creed, three other boys were having a far better progress in their exam.
… meanwhile in the other battle centers …
On the entrance of battle center C, Eddie Brock looked at the massive doors as he munched on a Crunch bar. He was really lucky that Jimmy had gotten imported Crunch bars delivered to his apartment from the States. For his battle clothes, he wore black boots, black cargos, black tank top, and his sleeveless white hoodie. He had already decided to not use his full Venom form. Instead, he'll form the symbiote biomass to his arms and legs to fight the robots of the exam. After eating his candy bar, he then rolled his shoulders and thought back to the last nine months in this Asian country. His vigilante runs had given him the training he needed for this exam and it was more than useful in giving me the lay of the land. Having full mastery of his symbiote abilities once again, this whole exam would be more than easy to pass. Sure, he was a SHIELD agent. It was his mission to keep an eye on this Izuku kid and graduate yuuei in three years. But what about after that? Yeah, a SHIELD agent gets paid better, but with a pro-hero license he could have some means of a normal life. The life of a villain was now a dead organ to him, the life of a hero was going to be his true gamble, and the life of a normal man… well, that was thrown away when the memory of losing Dylan came back to him. Not to mention there was that diet of his, as well as the cannibalistic tendencies he forces down. Even though it wasn't going to be possible to be just a normal guy and just live a regular human life, it wasn't like he doesn't dream of it. Then again, in the current earth he now lives on, normal doesn't seem to be the norm. Almost everyone has powers in this world. He should feel like he fits in, but truly he doesn't. Even in the body of a teenage boy version of himself, he still feels like a man in his thirties. It definitely didn't help that he was probably the only American in this group of Japanese highschoolers.
Eddie Brock then decides to just walk past the other examinees and put himself in front of the crowd. He thought that this might give a quicker edge to get his points faster and get this whole thing done with, but he soon regrets this as he could feel the eyes of the other applicants staring at him. With the Japanese lessons he got from Jimmy, he could understand the murmuring and with his quirk Emotion Sonar he could pretty much feel what they thought of him.
"That's one tall gaijin"
"He's kinda scary"
"Hey, wasn't he with that one really rude foreigner"
"Look at how this bastard carries himself, he's going to be trouble"
Eddie closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. He could really go without the commentary right now. Seriously, the announcer couldn't just say GO already. The only bright side to this exam thing is that he could let loose on the robots. He wasn't really excited, just tired. The anxiety, nervousness, and excitement that was emitting from the other applicants was really starting to get to him. Then again, he was surrounded by other teenagers. It was way more peaceful back at his apartment. Honestly, where was the calm?
That's when he felt it. A calmness that came out of nowhere. It was coming from someone. But… who?
"You seem really tired. Is that why you have that constant scowl?", it was a girl.
Opening his eyes, he turned to his face to see the source of the calmness and saw nothing except for a bob of dark green hair in the lower corner of his eye. Lowering his gaze, His face then turned from a slight scowl to slight surprise as his blues eye locked with two big black eyes. Standing to his right, a girl that is smaller than him by a foot had her head tilted and tongue sticking out. The two different worlds just stood and stared at each other as if time stood still. It broke when the girl spoke.
"You okay?", she asked.
Eddie blinked and realized what the current reality was. "Frog" was all that was in his mind. Thankfully, he wasn't saying it out loud.
"Yeah, I'm good. I'm just tired", Eddie answered as his heart finally started beating again.
This girl was something else when the New Yorker had glanced her way. His quirk was telling him that she was so calming. Almost as if she knew that all that was behind the huge metal doors was an oasis. Maybe he was overthinking it. What was truly off was just how she came out of nowhere within the radius of his quirk. It was probably because he focused too much on the negative emotions around. So much so that the peacefulness that this frog girl was giving out was just so bizzare to him. Right now, he needs to focus on the exam.
"You're far from home, aren't you? What part of the world are you from?", the frog girl spoke again.
Eddie's mind paused once again as that voice hit his ears. This caused him to speak back involuntarily.
"America. Specifically Queens, New York", he answered back.
"That is far, how long have you been in Japan?", she asked.
"Nine months now, I've been living in an apartment during that time. So far, it has been good. This place has so many surprises", he answered.
"Happy to hear it", she said.
Eddie's mind had come back to him and realized what he just did. 'The hell?! Did I just talk?! It didn't even came to me that I did', he thought to himself. Steeling himself once again for the exam. However, his mouth then did something he didn't expect.
"I'm Eddie Brock, nice to meet you", said Eddie.
'What am I doing?!', he thought.
"I'm Tsuyu Asui, but just call me Tsuyu. It's nice to meet you too", the girl named Tsuyu said.
'Tsuyu, that's her name', Eddie thought.
"Let's do our best, Okay", she said.
"Yeah, let's do that", said Eddie.
With his back straight and his mind regaining its focus, Eddie Brock looked straight at the doors and inhaled some air. Filling his lungs with oxygen, the black symbiote biomass had started crawling from his shoulders and belt line to cover his limbs. This display caught the eye of everyone around him, even Tsuyu. It was then that the announcer finally spoke.
"BEGIN"
As soon as the light peered out of the metal doors, Eddie Brock then shot out two lines of webbing from the white patches on the back of his hands. The two web lines made contact with the doors to which he pulled hard to launch himself into the fake city at great speed. Not caring for whoever was behind him at that moment, he just kept pulling harder and harder with every web swing to be ahead of them all. He then stopped web swinging and began to run on the walls horizontally when he spotted a group of mock villains. Shooting out a web at the nearest one, he pulled it towards him as he was mid-air. He had then performed a strong left hook that tore the robot's head off. Attaching a web to the ruined robot, he would swing it to any of the other robots and cause a chain explosion.
Once Eddie landed on the ground, the last surviving robot of the group emerged from the smoke and tried to hit the American with its only arm. However, Eddie caught it in time and tore the arm off. He then threw it back at the robot which exploded upon impact. Being done with his first group of robots, he then moved on to the next group and so on. He would leave trails of dismembered robot parts with predatorial-like efficiency and incredible acrobatics. Many of the examinees in battle center C were bewildered by how powerful and fast the American was. Some were even a bit discouraged because this foreigner had destroyed most of the robots before they could. Fortunately, a certain Frog girl was able to gain enough points to pass during her part in the exam she had sometimes witnessed to impressive displays of her recent American acquaintance. It was safe to say that she was astonished even if her face didn't show it.
Coming up to his fiftieth robot, Eddie freefalled towards it while turning his hands into blades. With a spin and battle cry, he had become a rotating saw of sharp black biomass that diced the mock villain into two separate pieces vertically. Straightening his back and inhaling air, Eddie didn't really much notice the robot exploding next to him. Dusting the debris off his shoulder, he exhaled in satisfaction that he had gained just enough points to get into yuuei. His thoughts were then interrupted by what could be heard as loud metallic stomps.
… meanwhile in battle Center D …
Erik Lesher could feel boredom rising ever so slowly in his core. He didn't have the patience nor the expense to chat with any of the other applicants. Dressing his lower body, he wore SHIELD regulated navy-blue cargos and SHIELD stealth boots. Dressing his upper body, he wore a black sleeveless baggy top that revealed sides of his chest. His hands were covered in fingerless gloves. Getting out a hair-band, he then pulls back his long white hair and makes it into a ponytail. After this, he began stretching his arms and cracking his neck. He figured there wouldn't be any need to run the whole way considering flying would give him the advantage. As Creed would say, "it's not showing off if it helps you". A saying that he would blatantly use, but nevertheless will serve as Erik's way being more promising among the blite that was around him.
Erik would then walk through the crowd and ignore the looks he got his way. He wondered if the guys had the same reaction from their group as well. Through small glances, he could show that the people around him show some familiarity with their powers and have gear to support them. Maybe one day, if young Charles wished to pursue a career in education and recreate his past life's Xavier institute, then would it be much like the current hero schools on this Earth? Now with Cain and Xavier at their side, Erik had felt some clarity blessed his mind. An opportunity to make amends with his old friend was something he wouldn't dare refuse in this second life. He will have plenty of time to watch him grow up once Hydra is dead.
As he thought of what his future might hold, Erik was brought out of his thoughts when he heard an odd murmur from one of the female applicants. With the Japanese lessons from Jimmy Woo, he was able to understand what she said.
"Hey, look at that foreign boy at the front. He kinda looks like one of those European punk rock boys.", she said.
Looking down at his attire, he didn't think that he would appear in such a way. He just wore what would be comfortable for the exam. Thinking back now, he does recall certain aspects of himself that were very comparable to his former-self. The new style. The attraction to a hobby in cooking. As well as the side research into a scholarship for a child psychology degree. These peculiar contrasts in his being were definite. He's amazed that it took him this long to notice. For now though, he has other things to focus on. The mission is to get into yuuei and graduate. This Izuku Midoriya will just have to get his support from Doom and Creed. For this Master of Magnetism has his mind set on completely terminating Hydra from existence.
"BEGIN"
The announcer bellowed and Erik Lesher used his manipulation over electromagnetic fields to burst himself from the crowd like a projectile from a railgun. The force and speed he projected upon himself left a sonic boom that froze the other applicants in their place. They were stunned by the kinetic force and all felt the shock in their bones.
"What the hell was that?!", an applicant shouted.
"Man, what quirk does that guy have?!"
"Oh crap, with speed like that, he's probably going to get all the mock villains"
They all rushed into the fake city and were in disbelief for the piles of destroyed robots that were everywhere. It took awhile, but some were able to gain points by finding mock villains that actually fled from the white-haired foreigner. Almost as if they were reprogrammed to seek the other applicants before they get destroyed. Noticing the odd behavior of these machines, Erik came to the realization the staff had signaled a new protocol into the robots. He could only guess that the Principal of yuuei is one of the judges and had installed countermeasures to ensure that there would be a fair exam rating due to his magnetic powers. Which means the meeting that the principal and JimmyWoo had was taken into consideration.
'Fair enough. With someone like myself in the exam, it wouldn't be fair for the other examinees. It doesn't matter now. I've already gained 68 villain points in the first six of this little test. I might as well…', thought Erik until he was caught off by the sight of a stray robot appearing out of a building.
With great speed, Erik flew straight at the robot and dismembered it with a magnetic blast from his palm.
'Scratch that. 69 villain points', he thought.
"HEY, WHAT THE HELL YOU BASTARD"
Hearing a loud voice to his left, Erik turns his head to see an angry metallic skin Japanese teen with ridiculously big eyelashes. A part of Erik had even humored that this might be Colossus's other universe counterpart.
"It's bad enough you took most of the mock villains, but are you really going to steal other people's points", said the steel skinned teen. His complaining was then halted when he felt a weightless sensation around his body. He finds himself floating in the air. He looks back at the foreigner who currently has his hand out. Said foreigner then twirled his index finger which caused the metallic teen to spin around.
"What the hell?! Wait, you're doing this? Just what the hell is your quirk anyway?", the metallic teen demanded to know.
'Ah yes, that cover story we all agreed on to where our real powers would be considered as quirk. That's going to be annoying to remember', Erik remembered.
"My quirk is ferromagnetism manipulation. From what I'm sensing from your skin, you're covered in a layer of steel, a well known iron-based metal. Let this experience be branded into your mind that for when the time comes for the possibility of you and I locked in battle. You will absolutely lose", Erik said as he dropped the metal skinned teen on his bottom. Said teen looked back up to see Erik floating away.
"Oh, and my name is Erik Lesher. If you were wondering", he said as he flew from the area.
With two minutes remaining, the master of magnetism had decided to spend the remainder of his time observing the other applicants from the top of the fake city's tallest building. From his view, it seemed some of the applicants were able to get enough to pass the exam. Everything has seemed to be resoluting as the exam reaches its conclusion. Until loud stomping could be heard.
… Meanwhile in Battle Center E …
Disappointment. That very feeling is what filled Victor von Doom currently. The degenerates that were around him were just embarrassing and pathetic. They spoke of excitement and dreams when clearly they haven't met the true cruelty of reality. The life of a so called hero isn't flights of fancy. It's torture. Having to keep the status quo of a society that depends on your existence to battle those corruption and bloodthirst. If these hormone filled adolescents do wish to prove themselves to be the next generation of heroes, then they'll just have to prove that they could gain more points than him.
Placing on a pair of customized glasses, Doom flicked a hair trigger on the rim which activated the hidden vision enhancement hud on the lens. The glasses themselves had the biomatrix software installed into them. With it, he can now identify the quirks of the Japanese teenagers that are with him. The variety in front of him was very lackluster. The ones that seem to hold any form of potential are the two individuals in the front of the crowd. A mister Shishida and a miss Toru. A beast-like quirk and an involuntary invisibility quirk. The former is close to being another earth counterpart to Henry McCoy and the latter is much too far from being a counterpart to a certain blonde he knows dearly.
'Damn you, Richards', Doom thought to himself.
Putting past grudges aside, Doom checks over his attire for the exam. It wore a more modified version of his quirk enhancing uniform that he trained with and wore during their missions in Italy. This version maintains the microfibers that wireless connects to the biomatrix software. Added features will allow the outfit to interlock with the now finished armor. Unlike the previous version's 70 percent, this outfit will now grant him the use of 75 percent of his quirk's power. A minor improvement, but improvement nevertheless.
Refusing to be the last one to enter the false city, Doom made his way to the front of the crowd. As he did, he had gained the attention of a shaven-headed teen who was clearly compensating for something due to them participating without a shirt. The teens over confident personality was showing as he got closer to the Latverian in an attempt to size him up with muscular arms.
Doom noticed a musclebound moron coming his way, but remained focused on the large metal gates with his arms crossed. As if fate wanted him to return to his villainous ways, the annoying teen was now standing next to him was cockyness eminating from his body.
"Say, gaijin, that's some nice threads you got. Do you think looking nice will make you a hero? Because from what I'm seeing, you're a bit scrawny to be a part of this sort of thing", the moron proclaimed with boast.
Doom remained silent and kept his eyes to the metal door.
"What? Can't say anything to me? You probably can't even speak Japanese, can you?", asked the moron.
Doom again remained silent. This irked the muscular teen and made him grab the Latverian's sleeve. This in turn made Doom move his pupils toward the fool that dared to touch him.
"Now you look at me, you damn gaijin. You think you're hot shit just because you're from some other dirt ritten part of the world"
That… was the last straw.
With quick reflexives, Doom captured the fool's offending hand in a vice grip with his left as his right held the neck. The annoying teen gasped for air as he felt a strong pressure being pushed into his Adam's apple. He then felt his neck being lowered slowly to meet eye to eye with the Latverian teen. His Japanese eyes meeting a green glowing, death-filled glare.
"I ignore you, because of the fact that I am just better than you. Remember this, a hero doesn't antagonize their problems for the sake of boast. A hero would grip their problems by the neck and demonstrates just how wide the gap is between their powers, until the opposition realizes that they simply don't stand a chance. This is why I'm going to be a hero and you… well… they could always use more recruitment in the local police", declared Doom in fluent Japanese.
Making his point, Doom pushed the fool to his bottom and walked further to the front of the crowd. The display of skill that was demonstrated was seen by most of the other participants. Some had even backed away to make space for Doom to walk through. The big oaf got back up and was pissed. He tried to confront Doom who knew he might do that, but a hairy teen in glasses had got between them.
"Zuji, that's enough. The exam could start and the last thing you would want is to get caught messing around with a foreign student", the tall teen said.
With that, the one named Zuji backed off and returned back to his original place. Now with the conflict settled, the hairy teen sighed in relief and adjusted his glasses. Unknown to him, the Latverian behind him had been studying his actions.
"This is the boy that the biomatrix scanned from before. Jurota Shishida. The possible Henry McCoy counterpart. The scans display that he's a well-mannered individual with the ability to become a beast of sheer strength and durability. At least now I know there are some with a hold on common sense", Doom thought.
Hoping for no more distractions, Doom brought his focus back to the metal doors and crossed his arms. Slowly taking in some deep breaths, his mind had then entered a sort of mental preparation trans. This mental technique is commonly used by him to think of many equations and possible variables to the present situation. In just a few milliseconds, he had predicted over two hundred ways of how he was going to pass the exam. Of course, the physical, quirk, and combat training provided by his fellow reincarnates in SHIELD. Honestly, just the thought of it. Him, a SHIELD operative. An organization that he has fought against for years. Now, he is one of their elite agents. Truly, his past life and this one was cursed with irony.
"Excuse me"
'Oh for the love of', Doom thought in annoyance. Turning his head to the right, he was met by a bowing Shishida.
"I wished to apologize to you for not preventing the confrontation and for not introducing myself earlier", said the young Shishida.
"To be honest, it doesn't matter to me now. I've known long ago that every country has its own ilk that barely knows their place in this world. And for introduction, you can start anytime you know", explained Doom.
Standing straight up, Shishida offered his hand.
"Very well, I am Jurota Shishida. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance", greeted Jurota.
"Victor von Doom. Latverian", greeted back Doom.
"Latverian. So you're European then"
"Yes, I am. It should be no surprise why I would migrate from my country and enter a Japanese hero school"
"Indeed, I apologize for any losses you may have experienced. I keep up with recent events via the news media. If it means anything, the civil wars that plague the continent are just heartbreaking"
"Yes. it has been for most of my youth and for the last thirty years for everyone else"
The two teens then entered a state of silence as they waited for the exam to begin. Doom hoped that the silence would continue because he didn't want to talk about the events in Europe. His home country was always in his mind during those rainy days. Latveria was never meant to face such hardship, yet it still struggles whether he's on it or not. Here he was participating in some lutecrus exam for some position in a hero course, while his people are suffering in the hands of Hydra. The damn filth dared to step foot on his home and ruin his life to the point where he had to relive the death of his parents. That damn dictator is once again alive. His mother's soul is once again in the clutches of Mephisto. And the only change is that his father didn't died from frostbite, it was murder. He would make them all pay. First, that murderous Baron Zero. Then, the fool tyrant. Next, Hydra. And some day, he will face Mephisto himself.
"But there is hope", said Jurota
Doom was taken out of his thoughts and turned to the hairy teen.
"France and Switzerland have been advocates of world peace for the last thirty years. Last year, Italy had declared that their civil war was over and started rebuilding their communities with the aid of that SHIELD organization. And recently, Finland had finally ended their civil war and established a new form of democracy that runs on a council. With all that, maybe there is hope for your home and the other countries", proclaimed Jurota.
Taking in those words, Doom was reminded of their transactions against Hydra. Northern and southern Italy was liberated by his squad and the ThunderBolts. It is also true that Finland was liberated recently. No doubt thanks to Punisher and his lethal methods. His report confirmed that he and Percy had been locked in a three way battle between their Finland resistance, Hydra loyalists, and a militia of the genetically altered members of the Sons of Da Vinci. The three factions fighting for not just the territory, but for the second Zodiac relic. The Hydra forces were disemated and the Sons fled back into hiding.
'We've been winning and our enemies show weakness, but like roaches they keep coming back. There will be hope for Latveria and it will arrive through my hands alone', thought Doom. With this promise, he turns to Jurota.
"Thank you for your words. Shall we do our best then?", said Doom.
"You're welcome. Let's hope to pass and become heroes", responded Jurota.
"BEGIN"
The exam had begun and Doom unleashed a powerful propulsion of green condense energy from his hands. This action had resulted in him being much ahead of the rest of the crowd as he soared past building to building with his quirk giving levitation and great propelling speed. As he sped through the streets, he spotted a worthy enough group of mock villains to destroy. Landing in the center of the group, he spreads his arms to release a mighty eruption that tore the robots apart. Any that remain functioning crawled pathetically towards him. The survivors were then dismembered by a green blast of condensed particles from Doom's hands.
Once the robots were ruined, Doom examined the conditions of his hands. Green fluorescent veins appeared in his fingers and palms. This was the usual symptom for when he uses 40 percent of his power. Deciding it would be best to quicken his progress to gather points, he goes forward and uses up to 50 percent for the rest of the exam. With ferocity and power, he destroys more and more robots of one area of the fake city til it was time to move to another sector. He would leave ruined machines in his wake and leave a iry green misty trail as he flew.
Doom then arrived at a sight where groups of robots had outnumbered several applicants. Descending to the scene, he summoned a vibrant green mist spiral of condensed particles that levitated all the mock villains and sent hurtling into buildings where upon impact caused a chain of explosions. Some were relieved to finally have breathing space from all the robots, but most were upset that their points were taken.
"Hey you jerk, those were our points."
"Seriously, what a stupid foreigner. He just cost me the exam."
"Damn it. I'm still under twenty points. Way to screw me over, you damn gaijin"
As they bellowed their aggravation towards the Latverian, Doom just couldn't believe this is the generation that he was placed with. In his eyes, they were all simply a bunch of imcompatent children living a fool's dream if truly believed they would amount to anything.
"BE SILENT", roared Doom who used his quirk to augment his voice.
This had all opposition to shut up and jolt back in surprise.
"It doesn't matter me whether any of you pass or not. The fact that all of you had been put into a corner by these pathetic machines is proof enough that none of you should even be allowed to breathe the same air that I do", declared Doom as he flew away.
'The nerve of these rejects. Do I really have to spend the next three years of my life with these annoyances when I should be freeing my homeland. Honestly, is this Izuku Midoriya truly worth it?', Doom furiously argued in his mind until he felt a stinging sensation in his leg.
Landing on a rooftop and slumping to his knees, Doom pulled up his uniform's leggings to see that corrosion had begun to eat away at his legs. Clearing his mind and taking deep breaths, he focused on deactivating his quirk which reversed symptoms and rescinded the Corrosion. As new skin replaced the rusted flakes, he stood back up to perform his mental preparation technique to quickly restore stability to his quirk. Realizing this occurrences, he curses under his breath upon such a simple mistake. Doom doesn't make mistakes.
'Damn it. How could I forget that my emotions play a factor into my quirk. Intense and violent emotions increases the percentage of my quirk while it's active', thought Doom.
Remembering the number of robots he destroyed, Doom estimated that he currently has enough to possibly reach second in the rankings. It had already been decided among the four former villains that if they wanted to not attract too much attention then they would need to be below first place. Of course, Creed had suggested that they might as well show off along the way.
'If my older self had heard of such a plan, then he wouldn't believe what came out of my mouth and demanded for nothing less than total victory', Doom chuckled to himself.
He was then taken out of his thoughts when loud stomping could be heard in the distance.
… Somewhere in a dark room that was lit by monitors …
"Quite the turnout this exam had gotten. Plenty of potential for this year's hero courses", examined Ectoplasm.
"There isn't any doubt about that. We got a member from the Iida Family joining us. Endeavor's own son is on our recommendations list. And from what Nezo has informed us, this partnership that we now have with SHIELD has given four of their best kids from their youth department", said Power Loader.
"But is that a good thing though? The benefits we gain from this partnership is great, but there has to be some risks to be taken account for. Not by some suspicion towards these kids, but to their superiors. SHIELD is a very unpredictable bunch. It's a bit coincidental that they have started a partnership upon the rumors of All-Might being a teacher", said Cementoss.
"On that Cementoss, we agree. I really don't trust SHIELD, no matter the way or form they are involved in. They are a group that hold too many secrets and they just expect us to trust them by giving us benefits that will probably cost us", said Aizawa.
"Still though, it wouldn't hurt to try. We shouldn't really make assumptions when we haven't seen the results yet. These boys they sent us are showing some impressive progress at reaching the rankings", said Midnight.
"It's Ironic that you said that Nemuri, because those four boys already took up the second, third, fourth, and fifth place in the first few minutes of the exam", said Snipe.
The sound of a door opening had brought their discussion to a hold as Principal Nezo and Toshinori Yagi entered the room.
"Sorry that Yagi and I are late, but we had some business to settle with a guest of ours that has come to see the exam with us", said Nezo.
As he said this, Toshinori silently went to his seat and looked through the monitors to find Midoriya. Aizawa was the first to this unusual silence from the number one hero. The sunken eyes and dead-like complection would have a sense of calm and readiness. There was something obviously in his mind to have placed this sudden uneasiness.
"Now then, I'm sure you're all aware that Yuuei Academy has complied to a mutual beneficial partnership with SHIELD and their youth department. Although Vlad King isn't here with us at the moment, I'm sure all of you have heard from Aizawa that we will be having not four but eight of their finest members of their youth department. Four for this year's class 1-A and four four class 1-B", explained Nezo.
"If that's the case, then why are the four that Aizawa is assigned to are participating in the exam? Shouldn't they just be at the recommendation center below us?", asked Ectoplasm
Before Nezo could answer, a new voice had stepped in.
"That could be because we find it best to demonstrate their abilities to give a taste of what is to come in this partnership of ours", said the new voice.
All except Nezo and Toshinori turned to the door and were surprised to see a SHIELD operative entering the room. Aizawa narrowed his eyes as he recognized who it was.
"Greetings to all of you. I am Agent Woo, head director of SHIELD's Japanese division. But please, call me Jimmy", introduced Jimmy Woo.
"I was hoping to never see you again. Just what are you doing here, Woo?", interrogated Aizawa.
"It's nice to see you too, Eraserhead. You're looking tired as usual", said Jimmy.
Aizawa remained silent as he felt his limit with this SHIELD agent had already been reached.
"Where was I? Oh yes, to tell you the truth, we were just here to discuss personal matters regarding All-Might over there. When we heard that our four boys had just started their exam, we just couldn't resist and decided to join you all in watching how the whole thing was going", explained Jimmy.
"You said we. Is there someone else that's visiting us right now?", asked Midnight.
"Oh, right. Would you like to introduce yourself, boss?", said Jimmy as a new figure stepped into the room.
All eyes went wide and hearts stopped beating. Everyone in the room except Nezo and Toshinori tensed up iemencing as standing in between the principal and Jimmy Woo was the main head of SHIELD herself, Director Margaret Carter.
"Good evening everyone. I hope there isn't a problem with me monitoring your future students?", said Carter.
None of them answered her as they were still uncomfortable with such a major political figure among them. Principal Nezo stepped forward to answer her.
"Not at all, Director. Feel free to stay with us for the rest of the exam. From the look of the time and how crowded the battle centers are, we were just about unleashed our zero pointer mock villains", informed Nezo.
"Ah yes, I've heard of the gigantic brute models you would use for these annual exams. A part of me wonders how you and your staff could get away such dangerous obstacles", wondered Carter.
"Good grades and lovely festive events", answered Nezo.
Nezo then walked to his seat to the right of Toshinori as Carter and Jimmy moved to his left. Carter and Toshinori eyed each other, not with caution, but with judgement. Reasoning for such gestures was due to the meeting they had earlier.
… an hour earlier …
"Let us hurry Toshinori, the entrance exam will soon begin and I do wish to see this successor of yours. I do hope he has some control of your quirk so that he may demonstrate his potential", said Nezo as he adjusted his tie. Toshinori sat on the couch opposite of him and drank his usual green tea. Thinking back to the nine months worth of training he and young Midoriya had accomplished, he still worries for the fanboy due to the last minute inheritance of his power. It all comes down to only two factors for Izuku to pass the entrance exam. Pure dumb luck or his outrageous tatical observation. A part of him hopes it will be the former.
"To tell you the truth, sir. We have been through alot in the past year, but all we've accomplished was turning his body into a perfect vessel. We haven't really trained how to use my power with whatever control he might have.", said Toshinori honestly.
"I see. Oh well, let's pray to dumb luck that your successor pass and comes to Yuuei Academy", said a still chipper Nezo. Yagi mentally sweatdropped at that comment.
They then heard knocking at the door. Looking at each other, Nezo shrugged his shoulders signaling Toshinori that he wasn't expecting anyone at this time.
"Just who could that be" Nezo wondered as he walked to the door. Opening the door, he and Toshinori were caught off guard by the appearance of two SHIELD operatives. Unfortunately, these weren't your typical SHIELD operatives. Entering the room was Director Carter and Agent Woo.
"Greetings, you two. Not to take up too much of your time, we were wondering if the four of us could have a talk about something rather personal to a certain number one hero that stands before us", announced Carter.
The two Yuuei staff members knew that eventually they would run into this lot, but to meet them this early. Toshinori was already informed that Midoriya's neighbor is a SHIELD. This Victor Creed and three other operatives from the youth department were going to be watching him during their time in Yuuei as students. All that he really wants to know is why SHIELD would suddenly be interested in him and young Midoriya. His thoughts were broken when Nezo sighed and walked back to his couch.
"I really should have expected further confrontation with you people, but to appear during the entrance exam is quite inconvenient", said Nezo.
"Our arrival is needed if we are to continue this partnership of ours. Mister Yagi, is it safe to assume that your chosen successor has told you of our youth department's involvement in his personal life?", asked Jimmy.
"He has. Midoriya has told me that a Victor Creed fellow had confessed to him of your observation of the two of us. I'm not too surprised to hear that SHIELD has knowledge of how my quirk works or of the fact that it's inheritable. What I do find surprising is that it took this for you people to finally come talk to me about it. Not to say that it isn't, but is it really that important to SHIELD that I have chosen a successor for my power?", said Yagi.
Jimmy looked to Carter for the answer to that question. Carter contemplated on what they should say, but decided that the blunt response would be enough.
"Just to put any suspicion aside, Mister Yagi. Do you believe we have means of wanting to exploit this discovery for our own interests?", said Carter as Jimmy raised an eyebrow to such a bold question.
Toshinori looked at his hand and wondered about that himself. SHIELD agents and pro-heroes had been at each other's necks for a while now. He of all people should know the complications of mixing heroics with politics. SHIELD aren't really corrupt people. They are the good guys, even if their methods are questionable. The pro-heroes of the world had divided beliefs to whether operatives of the organization could be cooperative or even trusted. The heroes of the North American continent are trusting of SHIELD, but don't usually prefer to work with them due to the unneeded policies. The heroes of Europe don't have much of a choice due to the current events. The heroes of the Asian countries want nothing to do with them. Japan was their first breakthrough into establishing a stable relationship. His fellow heroes, Shota Aizawa and Enji Todoroki, have sheer distrust of the organization for reasons of either personal issues or political ideals. For him however, he just wants to leave politics out of his work.
"I won't lie when I say that you people are a suspicious bunch. Throughout the years, you have secured safety for many countries and aided a few agencies. However, if you're going to earn my trust and make me that you truly wish for what's best for Midoriya. Then I want nothing but the truth. Otherwise, you don't have any business in his path to becoming a great hero one day. As his mentor, I know what's best for him and what's best is to allow him to experience his progression at the pace he's at. So tell me, why be involved in our lives? Why try to be involved with Yuuei Academy?", asked Yagi.
Processing how she's going to go through with it, Carter pulls out her communicator and places it on the table between them. Several holographic screens appeared and each revealed images not familiar with the two Yuuei staff members. Using her finger, she moved four of the screens directly to Toshinori. The images in front of him displayed four foreign teenagers.
"Do these four seem familiar to you, All-Might?", asked Carter.
"Not in the slightest, No", he said simply.
"What about you, Mister Nezo?", asked Jimmy.
"That's Principal Nezo to you, Agent Woo. And yes, I recognize these four boys. They are the very same boys who we had that discussion last year. Victor Von Doom. Erik Lesher. Eddie Brock. Victor Creed. As we speak, they are just about to participate in the mock villain trial of the entrance exam.", said Nezo as he pointed out the boys to help Yagi identify them.
"In that discussion, we had made the agreement that they will be granted positions as a way for them to keep a close eye on Izuku Midoriya. In a way, these four shall be positioned in this academy as his security should the time come when some unsavory people wish to put their hands on him. The one in the far right is Victor Creed, the one who found out about your secret identity and has been living next to Midoriya for the past nine months. He's currently watching over him, even during this exam. Don't worry, he knows the rule and isn't helping Izuku gain any points. The other three shall aid in Izuku's progress in controlling his quirk, should it be required from you. Think of them as your assistants for your unique brand of coaching", explained Carter.
Contemplating on the four youths he was seeing, Toshinori eyed the image of the young Canadian. Reading a file on him given by Nezo, Toshinori read a part that explained this lad having enhanced senses and a skilled tracker. Putting two and two together, he could see why this Creed kid had found connections to him and young Midoriya. If he had enhanced smell, then he could have picked up his scent on Izuku and focused on recon work after that.
"Not that I don't mind the added protection for young Midoriya, but it might be a bit too much for him. Privacy and all that", said Yagi.
"This isn't their first day. They know their boundaries. We can safely assume that they have already discussed this with him and have earned his trust", confirmed Carter.
"If you need more proof, then here's a report from Doom that confirmed that Creed broke protocol and whistle blew the whole op to Izuku. So now, we have no choice but to be honest to you and your successor", added Jimmy.
Reading through the report, Toshinori could see the similarities between it and Izuku's story. They really are being honest. However, something still lingered in his mind.
"Everything you gathered has proven that you people know everything about me and have more than enough to earn both mine and young Midoriya's trust. However, there is still something you need to explain. Why does Izuku need protection and just what or who are your boys trying to protect him from?", inqueried Yagi.
The SHIELD director and her best agent had a moment of silence for within their mind they would hope what comes next doesn't trigger the number one hero. Then again, they were blunt before. So why break the streak now?
"First All-Might, answer a very important question for us. How exactly did you get such an injury on your left side? And before you ask, no, we didn't hear that from Izuku", inqueried Carter.
At that moment, Toshinori's eyes narrowed slightly as his right hand instinctively went for his left side. Shifting his eyes to the carpeted floor, he wondered if he should tell them about that terrible day or everything at that matter. About his training with Grand Torino. About that grueling battle. Or even about her… his master. No, just about the scar. Everything else is just too heavy to relive.
"Fine, I tell you. A couple of years ago as I had cemented crime to all time low, an old enemy of mine had appeared himself to me to finish what he had started long. I won't tell why he did what he did, but Just know that he is an evil that can never be forgiven. It took everything I had to beat me and I had finally ended him, but at a cost. Our battle was too much for me and he had damaged my stomach and respiratory system. The scar has given me a limit that I will need to monitor each day. Events last year had now lowered me to only operating an hour. Not really enough time to teach a class." explained Yagi as Carter took in his story.
He remained silent and then sighed to what he was about to say.
"I could only guess that the true reason why you wish for me to bring this up is because you have evidence that he's still", said Yagi as Carter moved five new holographic images in front of him.
"Unfortunately, yes. All for One is currently alive and we have not the slightest clue where he is. All that we do know is that he is active only through a few accomplices that hold loyalty to him. Their identities are also not known yet. These circumstances are troubling to us for the fact that we don't usually have this lack of awareness of where our targets are. This could only mean that your long time foe is acquainted with some rather powerful people to be hidden from society." explained Carter.