A week later, the Midoriya apartment had changed. Inko was in the middle of the living room, wearing a tank top and leggings that made her look incredible, trying to maintain her balance in a yoga pose that defied all anatomical logic.
"Izuku, are you sure this is the 'Warrior Pose'? I feel more like a confused flamingo about to fall over."
Izuku, sitting on the sofa checking his phone, smiled without looking up.
"You're tilting your pelvis forward, Mom. You have to align it with your heels. Squeeze your core."
"Squeeze your core," she huffed, wobbling. "That's your answer for everything. Headache? Squeeze your core. Existential crisis? Squeeze your core."
"It works, doesn't it?"
Before Inko could respond, the sound of the mailman in the hallway and the click of the mailbox caught their attention. Both froze, looking at each other; the day had arrived.
Inko abandoned all pretense of yoga and ran toward the door. She returned holding a thick envelope with the red U.A. seal in the center, as if it were a dangerous artifact. She placed it on the coffee table, careful not to press too hard.
"Well," Inko said with a trembling voice, "are you going to open it or should I?"
"Together," Izuku decided, his heart hammering in his throat.
They broke the seal with clumsy fingers. Inside was a small metallic disk. As soon as Izuku touched it, the disk vibrated and projected a three-dimensional image into the air. The voluptuous figure of Midnight, wrapped in her skin-tight and provocative hero costume, materialized in front of them.
"Hello, little one!" Midnight's voice was sensual with a hint of amusement. Her smile was definitely dangerous.
Izuku swallowed audibly. Inko looked at him sideways with a raised eyebrow.
"I'm Midnight, and I have the pleasure of informing you about the results of your entrance exam. On the written test, you achieved an excellent score. Congratulations!"
Izuku held his breath. Inko covered her mouth with her hands.
"But as you well know, the written exam isn't enough to enter the Hero Course. What matters is the practical test. And in that test, young man, you obtained..." she made a dramatic pause, her lips curving into a playful smile, "thirty villain points!"
The air left Izuku's lungs. Thirty points... Would it be enough?
"However..." Midnight continued, and her smile widened, "we observed more than simple destruction. A true hero also saves others from danger. And for that reason, Rescue Points exist."
A screen appeared next to Midnight, showing a grainy recording of the exam. It showed Izuku screaming and then carrying an injured Uraraka.
"For saving another applicant from certain danger and for demonstrating the spirit of teamwork that represents everything U.A. looks for in a hero..." Midnight's voice became warmer despite her sensual appearance, "Izuku Midoriya, you are awarded forty rescue points. Seventy points in total! One of the highest scores this year!"
The screen changed, showing the final result: 40 Rescue Points. 30 Villain Points. Total: 70. Status: Passed.
"Welcome to U.A., Midoriya-kun!" Midnight concluded with a wink. "This is your Hero Academia!"
The projection turned off. The silence lasted for a second. Then, Inko let out a scream of joy, a sound full of pride and relief that made the windows vibrate. She jumped on Izuku, hugging him tightly.
"YOU DID IT! IZUKU, YOU DID IT! YOU'RE IN!"
Laughing, overwhelmed by a wave of happiness that swept away all the tension, Izuku grabbed her by the waist. In a move that would've been unthinkable a year ago, he lifted her off the floor as if she weighed nothing and began to spin with her in the middle of the room. Inko's laughter filled the room, a melody that had been absent for too long. It was a perfect moment, a shared victory.
When he finally set her down, both dizzy and laughing, Izuku dropped onto the sofa with his heart racing a mile a minute. He pulled out his phone, his fingers flying across the screen.
Izuku: Well? Did you make it in? ;)
The reply was almost instantaneous.
Ochako: YESSSSSSSS!! 😭😭😭 IZUKU, I'M IN!! I'M SCREAMING!! MY PARENTS ARE BUILDING AN ALTAR IN MY HONOR (kidding, but barely)!! IT'S THANKS TO YOU!! 💚
Izuku smiled, relief spreading like warmth through his whole body.
Izuku: It was thanks to both of us. Hey, the plan is still on. Tomorrow at the beach. We need to understand what happened.
Ochako: I'll be there, partner! 💪 Ready for secret training!
******
The next morning's sun painted Dagobah Beach with a soft golden color and the sea breeze was fresh. The section Izuku and Inko had cleaned looked like a private training ground. Uraraka was already there, stretching her leg in a clear warm-up exercise.
"Izuku!" she greeted him, her smile as bright as the sun.
"Uraraka. Everything okay?"
"Better than okay! I still can't believe we're in! I feel like I'm going to wake up any second. My parents cried! They really cried!"
"My mom too," he admitted, scratching his cheek. "Well, after she stopped screaming."
They laughed together, but a somewhat awkward moment of silence settled at the end.
"So..." she said, wringing her hands, "secret training?"
"Secret training," he confirmed, getting serious. "We have to replicate what happened. Understand the rules of my Quirk, if they even exist."
He pointed to a rock the size of a soccer ball.
"Let's start with something small. Try to make it float. I'll touch your arm to see if anything happens."
She nodded with a concentrated expression. She approached the rock and reached out her hand. Izuku, with a nervousness he hadn't expected, gently placed his hand on her forearm. The contact of his skin against hers felt strangely intimate. Uraraka touched the rock and it floated a couple of inches into the air. Izuku frowned.
"I don't feel anything. It's like I'm just touching your arm."
She let the rock fall.
"What did we do differently during the exam?"
"Well, for starters, you were hurt and I was carrying you like a sack of potatoes while running for my life," he reflected. "There was panic and full contact." He stayed thoughtful. "Maybe the posture is important."
"Posture?" she repeated, confused.
"Yeah. Stand up straight. Feet shoulder-width apart. Like you're going to take a hit."
She tried it, adopting a somewhat clumsy combat pose. He sighed, frustrated.
"No, not like that. You're too stiff; just relax."
He stepped toward her and, without thinking twice, just as he would've done with his mother during their training sessions, he acted. He moved behind her while Uraraka instantly froze.
"Relax your shoulders..." His voice was a whisper right next to her ear. His hands landed with surprising firmness on the girl's hips. "And align your hips. Your center of gravity is off; you need to feel it here."
He guided her, gently rotating her pelvis until her posture was stable. Uraraka's heart was thumping against her ribs. His hands are on my hips. Oh my god, I'm so embarrassed. The blush that climbed up her neck was so intense she was sure he could see it with the naked eye.
Izuku, for his part, was fighting his own internal battle. One part of his brain was completely focused on the task, while the other was screaming: Okay, perfect waist and hands here. Wait... my hands fit perfectly. Damn it! Focus, Midoriya... but Uraraka feels really nice.
He withdrew his hands after a moment that felt like an eternity. His voice came out a bit huskier than he intended.
"Like that. Stay like that."
He took a step back.
"Now... try it again," Izuku said, trying to make his voice sound normal.
He stepped forward and placed a hand on her right shoulder. The contact was an ignition point.
"Okay," Uraraka whispered.
She touched the same rock as before. And this time, Izuku felt something.
"Whoa!"
He pulled his hand back as if he'd received an electric shock.
"What? What's wrong?" she asked, alarmed.
"I felt it right where I was touching you," he explained, eyes wide. "It was a sensation like an electric current... Did you feel anything from me?"
She shook her head, confused.
"No. Just my Quirk working like usual."
"Then it's one-way," Izuku muttered to himself. "I feel a reverberation of your power, but you don't feel mine. How strange." He rubbed his chin, the excitement of discovery overcoming the tension. "Okay, this is clearly progress. Now let's move on to something heavier."
He pointed to a car engine half-buried in the sand.
"Try that."
Uraraka swallowed hard.
"That's... way too heavy."
"That's the point. I want to see what happens under pressure."
They prepared again. He placed his hand back on her shoulder. She concentrated on the engine and touched it. The metal block trembled and, with a groan of effort, began to rise slowly.
"I've got it... I've got it..." she gasped. But then, her body swayed and she put a hand to her head. "Oh... the nausea... it's stronger."
Izuku closed his eyes, focusing on the sensation in his shoulder. The information came like a real-time diagnosis.
"You're leaning," he said, his voice calm and confident. "You're compensating with your left hip because your injured leg is weaker. Straighten your back, breathe from your diaphragm, find your center! Like I showed you!"
Following his instructions, Uraraka adjusted her posture and took a deep breath, feeling her feet settle into the sand. To her absolute amazement, the wave of nausea receded, becoming manageable.
"It's... it's working," she said, incredulous. "Izuku, it's working!"
He smiled, his eyes still closed.
"I know."
The trust between them grew quickly. Izuku opened his eyes and his gaze fell on his true target: the rusted and mangled chassis of a car.
"Okay, Uraraka. Here comes the ultimate test."
"The car? Izuku, that's impossible! It weighs tons!"
"The 'manual' says your limit is around three tons," he countered, his voice vibrating with excitement. "I just want to make it float an inch. I want to see if I can do more than just feel and diagnose with my Quirk."
"Do what?"
"I don't know," he admitted with brutal honesty. "Give your Quirk a push and overclock it."
He looked at her, and she saw the determination shining in his eyes. She nodded, her own heart beating with a bit of fear.
"Let's do it."
They positioned themselves in front of the car. Izuku placed both hands, one on each shoulder, making sure his grip was firm and steady.
"Get ready," he said in a low voice. "At three. One... two... THREE!"
Uraraka screamed with all her might and slammed both palms against the rusted metal. At the same time, Izuku grit his teeth, tensing every muscle in his body, and concentrated with an intensity he'd never known. He was trying to push his own energy through his hands directly into Uraraka's Quirk.
MORE! BREAK THE LIMIT!
Sweat formed on Uraraka's forehead. Her knuckles were white from the pressure. And then, for one glorious instant, it happened. With a groan of metal, the car chassis rose and hung suspended in the air, defying gravity.
Then, the connection broke. The car fell with a heavy thud that sent sand flying. Both collapsed and fell to their knees, exhausted, their muscles screaming in protest. They stayed like that for a long moment, panting. Finally, they looked up, looked at each other, and an incredulous and euphoric laugh broke out between them.
They were sitting in the sand, their backs against a giant tire, looking at the chassis.
"This is incredible, Izuku," Uraraka finally said in a whisper. "You managed to boost my Quirk... It was like your power and mine merged for a second."
Izuku looked at his hand, flexing his fingers. A slow smile formed on his lips.
"I think... I think my Quirk isn't just about training." He paused. "A 'Booster,' maybe. Or an 'Amplifier.' It helps rewrite the use and evolution of Quirks... At least that's what I think."
"An Amplifier..." Uraraka repeated. "I like it."
They fell into silence again, a comfortable silence full of meaning.
"This..." Izuku began. "We can't keep it a secret just because of my fear anymore."
"No," she agreed, looking at him seriously. "If anyone knew we could do this..."
"We'd be an experiment," he finished. "No one can know. It's our advantage."
"Our secret," she said, and held out her fist.
He bumped his fist against hers. They were a team. As they talked, Izuku couldn't help his gaze from drifting. Uraraka was leaning forward and the collar of her shirt had loosened slightly from the effort.
How big...
He forced himself to look away before she noticed, but a small, mischievous smile played on his lips.
"Izuku?" Uraraka asked, noticing his expression.
"Nothing," he replied quickly. "Just... thinking about the possibilities."
She looked at him suspiciously for a second but then shrugged, smiling.
"Well, we have plenty of time to explore them. We're officially U.A. students, partner."
"Partners," he repeated, and the word had never sounded better.
Later, as Izuku walked back home, his body aching but his mind racing a mile a minute, his main goal came back into clear focus.
With this power, and with Uraraka as my partner, the possibilities are endless. I can help her become an incredible heroine. And she can help me become... whatever I need to be.
The path to the top, once a distant fantasy, now looked like a map spread out at his feet. Magazine covers, rankings, internships... An image of a giant, blonde heroine winking at him filled his mind.
Yes, he told himself with a determined smile. The internships, definitely.
*****
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Release Schedule:I will be posting new chapters exclusively on Mondays and Fridays. You can find advanced chapters at p @ t r e o n.com/itszeroo.