Struggle

Nothing was the same anymore. That's the thought that kept going through Chris's head. Chris picked up a flat pebble and skipped it across the pond. Kirishima had driven him, Momo, Shoto, and Mina out. For once, Jason wasn't invited. Kirishima picked up a flat pebble and skipped it, getting further than Chris. "So Jason has a quirk." Chris nodded, searching for another small stone. "Even now, it's hard to believe." Shoto was laying down in the grass, playing with a tiny ball of fire in her left hand. "You know what that means, right?" Mina and Momo looked over. Shoto put out her fire. "He's been holding back ever since he got to UA." Mina sighed. "He really is amazing." Momo nodded. "Fearless too." Kirishima sat down in the grass next to Mina. "Guys… I don't think I can do this…" Chris threw his rock before turning around. "Do what?" "...I don't think I can be a hero…" Everyone looked over in shock. Mina grabbed his arm, worried for her best friend. "What do you mean? You have an amazing quirk!" He just looked down at the ground. "...Jason proved that it has nothing to do with your quirk… and entirely to do with your mind and spirit…" Chris picked up another rock. "I get what you mean. Jason never seems to hesitate. Remember the USJ attack?" Mina and Momo looked at their friends with confusion. "What did Jason do at the USJ?" Kirishima sighed and recounted the story. "Aizawa was brutally injured. I got knocked aside like a ragdoll. Chris was down. Jason still rushed in and fought both Shigaraki and the Nomu." Chris nodded. "When All Might went down, he rushed Shigraki, trying to buy us time to escape." Mina was flabbergasted. "...He fought Shigaraki by himself…" Shoto nodded. "Then there was the fight with Stain." Momo looked up. "The Hero Killer?!" Kirishima looked up at Shoto. "Jason fought Stain?!" Chris threw another rock across the pond. That rock had gone the farthest so far. "The three of us were there: Me, Shoto, and Jason. We beat him. But then when Stain cut through his restraints…" Shoto sighed as she sat up. "...Several cops and pro heroes were there… even Gran Torino and Endeavor… but not a single person was ready to fight the Hero Killer…" Chris threw another rock, not bothering to try and skip it. "Except for Jason. He was the only one ready for round two, putting himself between us and Stain." Mina just had her mind blown. "...He wasn't scared of Stain…" Chris powered up One for All in his arm and chucked a rock as hard as he could. It sailed over the water and obliterated a tree on the far side. "And we all remember last week." The group shuddered collectively as they remembered All Might and Jason both nearly dying to stop All for One. The group stopped talking. They all got up and got back in Kirishima's truck.

Jason shattered a rock target with his quirk. He was sick of pretending to be happy. He was sick of all the crap he had to endure. Jason powered up Inner Strength in his finger and let out a powerful flick, mimicking Chris's technique. The resulting shockwave easily shattered a ranged target. Jason was about to continue, but a shout stopped him. "Jason!" Jason turned and saw All Might standing there. The retired hero approached him. "I've seen you train hard before, but your movements are too rigid and forceful." Jason looked away. "I'm having a bad day." All Might put a hand on Jason's shoulder. "I haven't been as good of a teacher as I should have. I have only focused on training Chris since he's my successor. However, in doing so, I've neglected everyone else. I feel the worst about ignoring you specifically." Jason looked at All Might out of the corner of his eye as the former Number One Hero continued talking. "When I used up what remained of One for All and saw All for One get back up, I thought I was done for. But then you rushed in and saved me. I was shocked by your bravery. However, after having a talk with Aizawa, I now know that it is just your nature to do what is right." Jason shrugged All Might's hand off of his shoulder. "And look where it got me. Sure, I saved you, stopped the bad guy, and can now publicly use my quirk. But I lost everything else." All Might looked confused. "You're upset that you didn't get the credit for stopping All for One?" Jason scoffed. "It was my idea to let everyone think you beat him, remember? No, I lost my friends." All Might was shocked, but remained silent. "The only person who talks to me anymore is Shoto." All Might took a seat on a nearby bench. "Please go on." Jason ran a hand through his black hair. "They're angry at me for keeping my quirk a secret. And for not telling them about my living arrangements. And for not telling them about shit in general." Jason sighed as he sat down next to All Might. "I really don't think it was any of their business." All Might thought for a minute. "...Momo, Kirishima, Shoto, and Mina all see you as a friend. Probably one of their closest friends. But not Chris." Jason looked up at the retired hero in confusion. "Chris sees you as family. Families don't keep giant secrets like this." Jason stared down at the tile floor. All Might put a hand on his shoulder. "This is something that you can't do alone. You need your brother." "...Thanks, All Might…"

The day was slow. Almost everyone in 1A was heading to their rooms. Jason was finishing up the dishes when Chris approached him. "Jason." "What's up, Chris?" "When you're done, let's take a walk." Jason set the towel down. "Dude, it's late. Let's walk tomorrow." "Not happening. I'll see you in a few minutes." Jason was perplexed by Chris's behavior. Once the dishes were done, they stepped outside and walked.

They found themselves inside one of the main training areas. Jason let out a low whistle. "These buildings are creepy at night." Chris stretched his arms. "Just us out here." Jason turned around, facing his old friend. "So what's up man?" Chris glared at Jason. "We're going to fight." Jason laughed. "Yea, very funny." He began to turn away. "Let's just-" He instinctively ducked, and just in time. Chris flew over him, One for All powering through his body. Jason rolled as Chris turned around. Jason was pissed. "What the hell, Chris!" His friend just raised his hand, powering up a flick. Jason barely dodged the attack. "Not funny!" Chris fired off several shockwaves in a row. Jason dodged every single one. Chris ran in close with 10% of One for All. Jason sidestepped and tripped the hero in training. Chris fell and rolled a few feet. Jason stood up straight. "You need to knock it the fuck off." Chris laughed a little as he got back up. "Or what? You'll tell me to run away?" Jason sighed. "...I guess we're doing this now." He got into a combat stance. "We might as well get some training in while you throw your hissy fit."

Chris leaped forward. Jason stepped to the side. For once, Chris saw it coming. Instead of continuing with the left hook, he spun and kicked Jason squarely in the stomach. The young man was sent flying. Chris jumped on the opportunity and charged forward. "Detroit Smash!" Jason raised his guard and got slammed by 12% of One for All. He flew into a building. Jason fell from the rubble and landed on his feet, holding his arm. Thanks to his strength training, his arm wasn't shattered. That being said, Jason was fed up. Chris charged forward. Jason rolled again, but underneath Chris this time. Then he stood up and caught Chris's ankle, slamming him into the pavement. Chris tried to get up, but received a powerful kick to the face, sending him rolling. "Chris, are you trying to get me to kill you?!" Chris wiped some blood away from his nose as he slowly rose to his feet. "...Fuck you…" Jason stopped. "...What…?" Chris took a deep breath as he faced Jason. "You're a piece of shit, Jason…" Jason had no idea what to say, so Chris continued. "Friendship isn't just a goddamn word… it's a two way street…" One for All coursed through him. "You lie to your friends… you always shut them out… you run in to fight the bad guy because you need to feel superior to everyone around you…" Chris jumped forward again. "I can't believe I looked up to you!"

Chris fell to the ground, blood spilling from his face. The bully picked him up by the shirt collar. "Goddamn eighth graders! Next time we tell you to hand your money over, you shut up and do it, got it?!" Chris kicked the high schooler in the ribs, forcing the bully to drop him. Chris raised his guard just in time to block a punch to the face. The bully grabbed Chris and threw him against the school wall. "I'm going to break your-" Jason tackled the guy and began beating his face in. The bully never had a chance. Jason only stopped when he saw the bully covering his face. Jason got up and checked on Chris. "You alright?" "Am I alright?! Look at yourself!" Jason was covered in bruises and blood. He laughed a little. "This is nothing. Sorry it took me so long to finish up my fight." Chris looked down at the ground. "I could've handled it myself…" Jason nodded. "Sure you could've. Is it alright if I clean up at your place?" Chris nodded. The bully ran to his fallen friends. The two middle schoolers picked up their bags and started walking to Chris's house.

Jason dodged Chris's punch as it shattered the building behind him. Jason slammed his fist into Chris's side, knocking the wind out of him. Chris wasn't getting anywhere with this. Jason completely knew his move set and had better reaction time. Chris rolled away just as Jason brought his foot down where he had just been. Chris got back up to catch his breath. "I don't get it. Even after I obtained One for All, you're still leagues ahead of me." Jason still kept his guard up. Chris powered up even more. "I've gotten used to walking around at 5% power. I normally use 11%. I use 15% against you when we spar." Chris clenched his fist as his green electricity sparked around him. "Let's see how you handle 20%, Endgame." Jason raised his guard. "Bring it on, Impact."

Aizawa got a notification on his computer. UA's security robots gave a report. "Eraser Head. Chris Harper and Jason Miller are fighting in Training Area B." Aizawa swore as he dropped the papers he was grading. He quickly grabbed his scarves and ran out of the teachers' dorm. "I swear I will-" He stopped. All Might was standing there. "Move, Toshinori." "You can't stop them, Aizawa." "Watch me." Aizawa was once again stopped by All Might. "Please, Aizawa. They need this." Aizawa seemed dumbfounded. "I'm sorry. They need to beat the crap out of each other?" "Yes." "...You have exactly one minute to explain yourself." All Might began explaining the events leading up to this violent clash. "Jason and Chris are the best of friends. But there are flaws in their relationship. Chris just learned that Jason hasn't been truthful to him about many things: his life, his quirk, his thoughts, etcetera. He thinks Jason sees him as a burden: someone to be protected and not a fellow hero in training. Jason's problem is that he doesn't know how to behave. He is so used to protecting Chris that it comes naturally. He doesn't see that he's not only hurting Chris's progress as a hero, but his own growth as a person. If they don't get this out of their system now, their negativity will fester and prevent their growth, or even worse, shatter their friendship." The former Number One Hero lowered his arms. "They're destined to become the greatest heroes the world has ever seen, but they need to do this." Aizawa sighed as he put his scarves over his shoulder. "If either of them are hospitalized, I'm holding you personally accountable." All Might nodded.

Jason narrowly dodged Chris's kick. There wasn't any time to counter attack. Jason was completely on the defensive as a result of Chris's sudden increase of speed. All Might's replacement wasn't holding back at all. Jason rolled backwards and jumped away. "...This guy is trying to kill me…" Chris jumped forward and landed several powerful punches on Jason. He barely managed to block Chris's attacks, but they still did some damage. Jason landed on his feet and immediately rolled again. Chris was too fast. There was no chance to counter attack. Chris grabbed Jason's arm and threw him into a nearby wall, cracking the concrete. Jason fell to his knees. Chris leaped up and brought his arm down. Chris was suddenly slammed in the gut with force he only felt during the fight with All Might. Chris landed on the ground, holding his stomach. He slowly rose up to his feet and looked over at Jason. The man's right arm was covered in flowing red energy. Jason stood upright. "Alright, Chris. You wanted this fight so badly. Just as a fair warning, though…" Jason's other arm also became covered in red energy. "...From here on out, I'll be taking this seriously."

Chris charged forward. Jason brought his fist forward. The two collided punches, creating a shockwave that shattered the ground and nearest buildings. Chris went for another punch, but Jason stepped back and slammed his other fist into Chris. Chris was sent flying. He wasn't used to being hit this hard. Chris slowly stood up to see Jason slowly walking up to him, the red energy still covering both arms. Chris had improved a lot over these last few months, improving his control of One for All. If he had fought Jason a few weeks ago, he would've won. But now that Jason was using his quirk, Inner Strength, Chris realized it: Jason was still leagues ahead. Jason was now standing in front of Chris. "Stop this fight while you can." Chris raised his fist and received a powerful uppercut. This was no longer a fight. Chris threw a final punch. Jason stepped to the side and slammed him in the side. Jason continued throwing punches at Chris until he fell to his knees. Jason stopped his punch just short of his friend's face. It was over.

Jason powered down Inner Strength. "...Chris… I'm so sorry…" Chris just stared down at the ground, blood dripping from his face. "...Why do you look down on me…" Jason didn't answer. Chris began to cry. "...What did I do to you to deserve this…?" Jason fell to his knees and held his friend. Chris temporarily stopped sobbing. "...I'm sorry, Chris… I… I…" Jason's tears began to flow. "...I'm a shitty friend… I thought that keeping my problems to myself would make everyone else's lives easier… but now I see that I was just hurting you more by not letting you in…" Chris choked on his tears as he listened to Jason. "...I need to be more open with you… I need to let go of my own insecurities… I don't want to hurt you anymore…" Jason let go and leaned back to look at his friend. "...I'm done hurting my brother…" Chris cried more as he wrapped his arms around Jason. As like most humans, both Jason and Chris were creatures of habit. It would take time for them to adjust and change. It would take even longer for them to be used to treating each other differently. But now they were on the right path.

Chris and Jason. Impact and Endgame. The team was together again.