Q.T.E

I went soaring through the air, my right and left eyes parallel with the ground and sky, respectively. I was moving fast, but I was at peace regardless of that. I felt like I was laying on a bed of beautiful flowers, smiling and laughing with me, myself, and I until I felt my back and head slam into the trunk of an unsuspecting tree.

I heard them snap, pop, and crack as the air was forced out of my lungs. Before I could even start descending, my ankle was grasped by a hand cloaked in flames and I was swung in an entire circle before my chest was slammed into the same tree at a different angle.

The hand let go of my ankle and gravity took a fierce hold of me, pulling me back down to the ground with a thud.

I groaned as the sensations of my broken spine, ribs, and jaw faded.

Goddamn, that really hurt.

"So, before I was so rudely interrupted before being casually slammed into a tree, what do you know about martial arts?" I asked Dabi as I desperately gasped for air.

We've spent the last hour and a half doing nothing but talking and―well, I guess I wasn't doing this―beating me up. Physical Damage Reduction was leveling up at a fine pace, gaining three levels after Dabi knocked the sense into me several times.

Dabi shrugged.

The powerful man wasn't some heartless monster, but he certainly didn't do much talking if it wasn't prompted by another party―in this case, me. In talking to him, I learned that he had some topics he was fine with talking about and some he didn't. If you stumbled upon a topic he didn't care for, you got the stuffing smacked out of you.

That was probably just me though, I did ask for his help in beating me senseless after all.

I stuck to Yakuza Hero for a while, but I learned that he was massively out of date when it actually came to the game series. That also applied to general gaming at all though. Still, he didn't really seem to mind talking about them. He wasn't stoked or excited in any way, shape, or form, but he understood them, so I took what I was given.

Basic things like favorite movies, foods, and colors all received basic shrugs from Dabi, but he never really allowed conversation to be built from them. It seemed like he didn't care about them at all, so I just dropped the topics regarding them swiftly.

There were certainly plenty of topics that he didn't enjoy though.

They included, but were not limited to, his family, his past, any mentor figures, heroes, and his scars. Even though he didn't want to talk about those topics specifically, they didn't receive much more punishment compared to the topics that he was fine with conversing over.

More than anything though, I learned he was a man of relaxed words, who was firmly confident in his abilities, but even more confident in others' perception of him.

Well, out of all our topics, upon bringing up the Azure Dragon techniques, Dabi expressed some knowledge of martial arts, so I decided to expand on that.

I took Dabi's extended hand before healing myself.

"About as much as you can learn as you're beaten senseless by them," Dabi groaned. "I'm overexaggerating, but still, I know more than the average man, but probably less than you. After all, absorbing the information of ancient texts is pretty broken."

"True, but why were you being beaten by martial arts?" I questioned, glancing over to my HP before looking back towards Dabi.

"My…. Someone I know prefers to use them over her Quirk. She's mentioned the Four Kings of the Dark Ages before. Why do you care?" Dabi asked, his words intriguing despite his lackluster way of delivering them.

Four Kings of the Dark Ages? If I can get more of those martial arts….

"Well, beyond the admittedly new information of the Four Kings even existing, I've realized that I probably won't be able to use some of these skills in public. Some of them, I will be able to, but I won't be able to rely on them after our mission alone. It's difficult to imagine what I'll do after everything is said and done," This time, I shrugged.

"Hmm, have you thought about using a sword?" Dabi questioned, causing my eyebrows to raise up high.

"Why would I? They seem like fairly fatal weapons."

"True, but you should also remember that they don't need to be used as such. And… you have a skill that can heal people at incredible rates. Even if you did force a villain to the brink of death, just healing them would solve any of your problems," Dabi spoke passively. "Beyond that, remember that Seiryu spent years working on his skills, yet you've had them for a few days at most. You can keep working on it and figure the small things out later. You ready?"

I glanced at my now full HP bar and nodded. A moment later, his dress shoe slammed into my gut, lifting me off the ground. His other leg came up and slammed into my jaw before he grabbed both of my wrists with flame-cloaked hands and proceeded to lift me over his head and into the ground. I tried to take a breath but regretted it as Dabi kicked me into the air, just to slam both of his conjoined fists into my chest, sending right back into the dirt.

He then grabbed me by my ankles and tossed me through the air, allowing me to soar freely before the terrifying grip of gravity took me down. I slammed into a few branches on my way down but smiled as a notification filled my vision.

[Physical Damage Reduction has now leveled up.]

"Ay, I got another one," I informed my partner, who responded by lightly kicking me in the side. Not enough to hurt, but enough to take half a hundred HP away.

"What's that, three now?" Dabi absentmindedly counted away at his fingers before shrugging and offering me a hand, which I gladly took.

"Four actually," I corrected as I took a deep breath, feeling the pain begin to fade away.

Dabi grunted, "Back to the basics then?"

I nodded.

Beyond just letting Dabi beat me senseless, we also trained in fighting one another from time to time. Well, trained was very subjective.

More accurately, I tried to beat Dabi, and he dodged my attacks with shocking ease. Still, every time we fought, I grew, so it wasn't rewardless.

I Flew towards him, a fist soaring towards his face. He leaned backward with irritating―but expected―nonchalance, dodging my blow. I didn't try to stop my blow, taking it far over Dabi before using the momentum to spin and attempting to slam my heel into the side of his skull.

He dodged just as he dodged my first attack, allowing my attack to glide over his head without a bit of worry. I spun once before landing on the ground and leaping towards Dabi again. I threw a few quick jabs towards his chest, but he jumped back to avoid them.

That was the moment I was waiting for.

I closed the distance once more, but as I got close, I attempted to slam my fist into Dabi's jaw. With some help from Electricity Manipulation, I brought my fist―with a positive charge―to Dabi's jawbone―with a negative charge. The two connected mid-flight and I relished in the victory, burying my feet into the ground as I lifted Dabi up with my fist.

He flew a few feet into the air before landing with an expression of slight shock and surprise. He grabbed his jaw, fiddling with it slightly. He spat out some blood, wiping away any that got on his lips.

"Good punch, but even more impressive skill. What was it?" Dabi asked, approaching me before I healed him.

"A unique use of an electricity-based Quirk," I weighed my options before continuing. "Not too powerful but could be useful against someone who isn't expecting it."

"Yeah. It wasn't strong enough to pull my whole body, but it allowed you to pull me in an odd position," Dabi shrugged once again.

I looked up to the sky, noticing that it'd be noon soon. I'd lost all track of time in all my training, but it should've been around noon. Manami would be hopefully arriving soon again. I thought about topics I'd mention with friends, but a lot of those went out of the window quickly. I settled on one that'd sufficiently interested me.

"Dabi, new question," I changed the subject, causing muted curiosity to flash within his eyes.

Dabi looked at me with his normal blank expression, which I had to assume was an invitation to continue, so I did so.

"You mentioned that you didn't like heroes, but never said you hated them either. Why?" I mused aloud.

After a moment or two of no response, I assumed he would throw me as a way of saying that he wasn't responding. I braced myself for an attack but relaxed as Dabi fought fire with fire.

"Why do you ask?" He questioned.

"Honestly, because of boredom and curiosity. Manami is taking her time before getting here, so I decided talking would be better than silence. And I wanna be a hero after everything is said and done, some extra criticism probably couldn't hurt," Well, it wouldn't hurt if he didn't decide to send me flying afterwards.

Just as I finished, he grunted, slamming me over his head and into the ground.

Well, that certainly hurt.

A few minutes of throwing me around later, Dabi spoke up.

"Do you think I could return to a normal desk job at any point in my life looking like this?" Dabi questioned as I slowly rose from my spot.

I was still catching my breath, so I just shook my head.

"Because I look like a villain."

I nodded, "Because you look like a villain."

"Beyond what some would think, that's not villains' or heroes' fault. It's about the mind of the people, of a society. The problem with heroes is that they're not very willing to question that society. If I walked around in public, and did something that a civilian deemed as suspicious, I could be locked up for nothing more than looking suspicious. Ignoring my situation, that same ignorance applies to people affected by Quirks, scars, and skin color. And yet―even though they're praised by society―heroes will do nothing to question the immoral situation."

It didn't sound like Dabi was finished so I let out a low hum.

"Often times, people will say that it's not a hero's job to do that, but I disagree. villains won't change it, the judgement system benefits from it, and civilians don't notice it. And suddenly trying to defend what a lot of people see as villains doesn't help many people out in the long run, so most who do notice it wouldn't bring it up anyways. Heroes, with impressionable kids watching them, are responsible for speaking out about problems like that, but they won't either. The chance of losing fans, money, or fame is what they fear."

"But I'm not stupid either; it's hard to defend someone who's too afraid to come out, especially against people who are waiting for you to mess up. Sometimes it's easier to not mention it, but that doesn't make it right. And more than that, it doesn't make it easier on those who have to suffer."

I could feel the guilt rise in me. Even I had thought Dabi looked like a villain. I wasn't any better than who he was talking about.

"If you're worried about it, don't be. Choosing to step beyond that ignorant mindset already set you leagues above 99% of society. After all, you asked me for help, regardless of my appearance. Still, people need to stop being so ignorant in regard to such things."

I let his words sink in for a long moment before I realized he actually attempted to reassure me, causing me to grin and laugh.

"I'll keep it in mind for when I'm the number one hero. Climbing to the top and changing everything for the little guys seem like a good way to pay off my debt to you. Besides, you've given me enough punishment to make up for everything I've done in my life several times over."

"Eh, that's debatable. I don't know if it counts since you literally asked for it," Dabi joked before cracking his neck. "I'm bored. I'm gonna go back to punching you."

I nodded, and Dabi's fist slammed into my jawbone fast enough to make me dizzy. I was only more disoriented as his other fist came crashing into the opposing side of my face. He then hit me with a swift uppercut, before grabbing my face within one hand and slamming me into the ground.

Dabi offered me a hand as soon as the pain faded, so I took it. Dabi proceeded to punch me five times within a second just to flex his speed and was about to jab me across the face before we were cut off by a scream.

"The hell are you guys doing?!" Manami's voice sounded bizarrely fierce, but because this was Dabi and Manami's first time meeting, I tried to talk first.

I failed, a result of Dabi finishing his halted jab.

"I'm punching him in his face, at his request," Dabi's voice was apathetic, so I'm sure Manami couldn't read him any better than I could. I decided to step in before things could devolve.

"Manami, this is Dabi. Dabi, this is Manami. You'll be working together for this mission," I groaned as the pain faded away.

I didn't know how they'd work together, but after a few exceedingly long moments of silence, Manami nodded.

"He seems strong. Good choice, Minoru."

"She seems useful. I'll work with her."

Nevermind, they got along a lot faster than I thought they would've.

"I needed some help with one of my skills and Dabi was willing to help. It's unimportant now. Did you get the locations?" I asked her, receiving a small nod from her.

"Yes, I sent the locations to your phone. I'd say to beware of the larger energy locations though. I also have nine computers running checks over what you planned in Plan A. It's not… exciting, but it's far more effective than the exciting things would've been anyways. I assume you two are going to go kill some monsters?" Manami asked, receiving a nod from me and a confused look from Dabi.

"Ah, I'll explain it when we get over there. For some context though, I met Manami as she was running away from some skeletons."

"Like… straight out of video games?"

"Yeah," I counted that as enough pretense, and I turned my attention back to Manami.

"Since those computers are running stuff in the background, you wanna try and―" I cut myself off mid-sentence.

I was going to finish the thought with, "level up with us," but even I knew that other people couldn't level up with you. That's what made my ability special. It only applied to me.

It allowed me to level up so quickly and grow at incredible rates.

But… what if…?

"What is it?" Manami asked me, noticing my sudden silence.

I didn't answer her as I closed my eyes and pinched my nose. When I found the right words, I uttered them.

"Invite Dabi to party. Invite Manami Aiba to party," As I uttered the words, two blue screens appeared in front of my two allies.

"What the…." Dabi's words fell loosely from his mouth, but it didn't take Manami very long to accept the party, with Dabi following after her.

"A party system? I didn't expect your ability to have something like that," Manami nodded. "Still, is there a point in sending me a request?"

"Possibly. It just depends. Do either of you have Inventories and can you pull up Maps?" The two recited the words after me, but after a moment, shook their heads.

"Then… what about this?" I tossed Azure Dragon's Scales at Manami. "Can you learn a skill from that?"

"Hmm, compared to how you said it appears, I don't think so."

I felt an odd flash of relief at her words.

The mission would be easier for sure if I could get Dabi some disguising books and let him do most of the work, but I definitely wasn't excited to possibly give away one of the only things that made me special.

"Hmm… it doesn't seem like it does a lot. What about…." I activated Observe on Dabi, but the screen wasn't giving me any really new information, so I shrugged. "It may just lie in experience points."

Dabi grunted, "That would make sense. Your ability isn't suddenly changing our entire bodies like some of your skills do, it's just supplying us the ability to grow numerically."

Manami looked over to him, blinking a few times before slowly nodding in agreement. "Yeah, exactly."

"Can you guys bring up your status screens?" This time when they repeated me, there was a reaction. Two screens appeared before them, filled with the information I had grown to get used to.

"Whoa…! You really see the world like this?" Manami asked, and I nodded.

"Most of the time, yeah."

"Even my Quirk is here, with a name I've always thought, but never wrote down. Odd," Dabi grunted, raising a fairly interesting point.

I didn't know how a lot of my Quirk functioned, but the ability to gain so much small information about people I didn't know was formidable. I had to wonder just how it got the information in the first place.

However, I sensed I wasn't going to gain the information anytime soon, so I tucked the questions into the back of my mind for later, whenever that'd be.

"Minoru, I don't think there's much point in me joining your party still. I'm not a fighter in the slightest, and this only proves that. I'm meant to work behind the scenes, so I can't say this is useful to us. What if the experience gets split in thirds instead of in halves? That would make training far less efficient for us all."

"You make a solid point but…. Manami, if you could get up to level 25 in the next week, you'll have 20 points to use. If you put them all into Intelligence, you'll be the smartest person I know, and I have an odd feeling that your Quirk may grow because of that massive milestone. Even if you didn't put them all into Intelligence, Vitality and Dexterity are fantastic options too, even in a practical sense. 20 points in any stat will make a difference, so I urge you to stay and train with us."

"Besides," I could feel a grin rising, "I plan on us riding on Dabi's bus, since he's a much higher level than we are."

"Hey, when did I agree to that?" Dabi sounded disinterested, but even I could tell that he didn't have much of a problem with it. He probably would've interrupted my spiel if he didn't care about any of this.

"Oh okay, fine! So where are we going first?"

"First… let's try over here," I pointed towards the edge of the city. "It should be around a ten-minute walk from here and Dabi should be able to use his flames without attracting too much attention. There are also no hero agencies, so we may be able to try some flashier stuff. Oh and…."

I checked the party menu again, scrolling to the intriguing options and ignoring all the juicy content for the "Equal Distribution" setting. I set it to on, but it only set to Manami.

I checked why it didn't go to Dabi, receiving a notification as to why it didn't.

[Equal Distribution will not work with someone who is ten levels higher or lower than you.]

"Mmm."

"What is it?" Dabi questioned me.

"Nothing much. It just looks like I'll be doing more work than I wanted to," I sighed dramatically before shaking my head.

I looked over to Dabi, then Manami. Certainly, two odd people to be working together with, even odder if you consider that they were working with me.

I nodded though. They would be good teammates.

"Let's go."