Chapter 10 – Interludes

Chapter 10

Shigaraki Tomura

"There has been a Level Three Security breach. All students please evacuate outdoors promptly." The voice was loud enough to be heard easily over the alarm sounding throughout the main building. Standing outside, Tomura grinned as he watched the media people rush towards the front door of the building where Eraser Head and Present Mic were waiting.

It had been so easy to slip in with the reporters and cameramen after he had slagged the barrier. Once inside the gate he found a thicket of bushes behind which he quickly changed into a U.A. uniform. As he pulled on his jacket, he noticed a face in a second-floor window looking out at him. It was a girl with short white hair and tired eyes. She reminded him of himself. He nodded to her. Then he recognized her.

Yanagi something – she had been in the news for the past week. First had been a minor attack by a rich kid in some random mountain village. Tomura had watched it a few times because of the cool blood splatter at the end. In the next level, it had been the kid's father that attacked her in Tokyo. She let the heroes save her rather than facing the boss on her own. Now she was being touted as some sort of poster girl for people being picked on by other people. Boo hoo. Sort of a professional victim.

He'd like to get his hands on her. If she's not willing to play the game right, she shouldn't be in it.

Just as planned, the teachers and students were all busy with the security alert and the press. Tomura was easily able to stroll unimpeded to the Hero teachers' office. When it came out that All Might was teaching at U.A., Sensei had the idea to use the fact that the hero would be in a given place at a given time to stage an attack on him. They just had to know his schedule. A schedule that was sure to be available in this office.

Tomura quickly found the hated hero's desk. He pulled the hacking tool from his pocket. Sensei had provided the device that was supposed to be able to crack through any security. The question was whether it would be able to do so before the U.A. staff came to stop him.

When the villain reached to plug the device into All Might's computer, he noticed a paper dairy next to the keyboard. He grabbed it.

No way it could be this easy, he thought. But it was. The Symbol of Peace had jotted down every class time and a quick note about his plans for that class. A wicked grin spread over the pale boy's wrinkled face when he spotted that Class 1-A was scheduled for a full day's exercise at a remote location in a few weeks.

It was perfect. All Might would be separated from the other staff – no backup. And they would have the students as hostages. It would be so dramatic. A great setting for the final boss fight.

He quickly took several pictures of the dairy then replaced it on the desk. No reason to let them know anyone had been in the office. They might change the plans if they suspected someone knew them. He started drumming a victorious game theme on his thigh. Not a bad little fetch quest.

When he slid the door open, the Yanagi girl was waiting for him in the hall.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

"Ohhh … a surprise encounter!" He grinned and lunged for her. His right hand almost touched her, but she blocked his wrist and spun out of the way.

Suddenly there was something spinning towards him from the opposite side. Fishing line? He reached out and disintegrated it before it could wrap around him.

"She wants to play. Even better." He grinned. He spun, his leg out for a sweep.

She leapt over it, which he had expected. His left-hand follow-up was pushed out of the way without her touching him.

A pair of objects shot towards his chin from a low angle. Hacky sacks? He reached down to disintegrate them. As they crumbled, the girl's jacket wrapped around his torso, locking his arms pointed down.

As he struggled to reach the fabric with his fingers, a coil of monofilament wound around him, further pinning his elbows and upper arms. He was securely bound. Then he found himself floating off the floor.

"Who … you?" the girl stammered. "Teacher came." She sounded like a foreigner who barely spoke the language.

"You aren't just a random encounter," the villain said as he thumbed the signal device on his belt. "You're a surprise mini-boss."

As Kurogiri's Warp Gate opened behind him, Tomura said, "Looking forward to meeting you again."

He felt the bonds holding him offer a token resistance when Nomu reached through the gate, grabbed his collar, and yanked him through.

That was fun.

Kan Sekijirō

" … demonstrates that we will need to review and improve both our physical and information security features." Nezu gave Toshinori a pointed glance. The veteran hero had the grace to look properly chagrined.

The meeting had been going for more than an hour already, with no end in sight. That only made sense given the disaster the day had been. Not one but two major incursions onto the campus.

Then, a panicked riot in the lunchroom – where at least three students sustained injuries. Not a great reaction from the people preparing to be the answer to such crises, rather than the victims. This would require repeated drills and training.

Finally, a first-year student locked in potentially deadly combat with a villain in the corridors of their august institution.

Disaster might be downplaying it.

"If Yanagi-san's report is accurate we are facing an organized group with access to advanced technology and a portal creator. We will need to review future plans that they might now have knowledge of," Nezu continued. "Speaking of Yanagi-san. I have concerns about this new student and would like to get each or your impressions. Keep in mind that there are serious discrepancies regarding her."

He pointed to the wall screen where two videos played side by side. The first was Yanagi's performances in the practical exam. Beside that was her battle exam.

"As you can see, her body language and fighting style is significantly different. In the entrance practical she started out confidently enough, then became hesitant when faced with actual enemies. By the mid-point, she appeared to be mostly avoiding the robots, though she would occasionally force herself to face another. She mostly concentrated on helping the other examinees despite her clear discomfort with the atmosphere of the mock battle. This gave her enough points to be admitted – if only barely."

"In the battle exercise you can clearly see she is more aggressive, more creative, and focused on achieving the specified goal. There is none of the prior hesitation or freezing up." Kan watched the girl perform. The difference was blatant.

"It is possible – though highly unlikely – that she has changed based on training or natural discovery of new uses for her quirk. She has – ostensibly – faced two real combat situations since then, which might have prompted some growth. " The Principal cocked his head to the side, a familiar gesture that told Kan he was offering a position contrary to his own opinion. "Another possibility is the changes stem from her recent head injury."

Recovery Girl spoke up, "My initial examination showed no sign of current cranial injury. There are signs of recent scarring on her scalp. It is possible that Yanagi Hayami's ill-advised use of her Preservation quirk to clean or heal Reiko-chan may have had a non-standard effect on the head injury."

"So, there was a head injury at one time?" Kan asked.

"Most definitely," she affirmed. "And it is possible it could be causing continuing effects – including language difficulties and personality changes. I don't know if that would explain a change in body language or fighting style. But it might."

"Sekijirō. What can you tell us about her?" Nezu inquired.

"She lives by herself in a small flat in Mosuaizuri-cho …" he began, only to be cut off by a storm of murmurs and quiet comments from the other faculty. He raised his voice to be heard and continued. "It was clean and orderly when I inspected it a week ago. She seemed prepared to take care of herself. In class, she is quiet, possibly due to language difficulties. She comes across as shy, but I believe she has serious leadership potential. I have seen her working with a number of the more boisterous students and has quietly guided them towards success.

"She's volunteered to help students who are having trouble with English," Hizashi interrupted. "Maybe even reforming the English Club."

"A good example," Kan agreed. "I have noticed several of the quieter students gravitating towards her. It is early days, but I see the potential."

"Thank you," the Principal offered. "Toshinori, you've spent the next most time with her. What are your impressions?"

"As Sekijirō says I see a lot of potential in her," the big man seemed uncomfortable talking about a student in such a public venue. "She's a multi-dimensional strategic thinker with imaginative usage of her quirk."

"Knowing nothing about her past, how much combat experience would you estimate her to have, based on her battle test performance?" Nezu pressed.

"I wouldn't think she was a novice. It's hard to guess in that sort of contrived circumstance but she fights smart, like she has a fair bit of experience."

"Exactly," Nezu said.

"What are you suspecting?" Shota asked. He looked analytically at the video on the wall. Kan often teased his fellow homeroom teacher that the underground hero was professionally paranoid. It seemed that trait was coming out.

"My suspicion – and it is only a suspicion at this point," stated the Principal in a serious voice. "Is that the Yanagi Reiko we have in class may not be the same person as the Yanagi-chan who took the entrance examination."

"You think there was a substitution?" Shota clarified. "A shapeshifter? Or possibly some form of remote mind control?"

"Possibly," Nezu nodded. "It is unusual for a first year to receive this much media attention prior to the Sports Festival. Or to be in the middle of so many conflicts. Is it possible that the 'conflicts' with Inoue and the intruder might possibly have been staged?"

The faculty looked to each other, but no one answered.

"Here is what I would like to see happen," Nezu concluded. "Chiyo, I want you to conduct more thorough tests. Was she injured in the head? What was the extent of the damage? See if you can get access to her earlier health or DNA records to make a detailed comparison."

The nurse interjected, "The DNA-ID should be in her quirk registration packet, but her physician may be reluctant to share her records due to MIPPA regulations.

"You are her new primary care giver. You should be able to push if needed," Nezu replied.

Recovery Girl nodded and made notes on her tablet.

"Sekijirō and Toshinori – all of you who have her in class, really," he continued. "Keep a particularly close eye on her behavior. Look for evidence she is not who she purports to be. If we have an imposter in the school, we need to know."

Kan nodded. He would follow orders, but it seemed ungrateful to suspect the student who had done the right thing in today's crisis. She had contacted him, floating her phone with a text telling him there was an intruder at the teacher's office. Then put her life at risk defending herself from the intruder's attack. That was somewhat reckless, but in the spirit of Plus Ultra.

Treating her as a potential spy was not going to be fun.

Haya Yuyu

"Everyone, take a seat please," Kan-sensei spoke in his normal polite tone. The class settled quickly. Few people mistook his politeness for him being a pushover. Or at least they didn't more than once. Yuyu – a genki third year girl, athletic, cheerful, with short-cropped dyed red hair – had seen his anger and it was not something she wanted to see again.

"As you may have noticed, we have three guests in the class this afternoon." The teacher gestured to the three students standing beside him. Yuyu smiled at Tamaki-kun, a tall pale-skinned boy with pointed ears and spiky black hair. Despite his being widely seen as one of the best the school had to offer – the shy boy was almost worthless in this sort of purely social situation. She wondered why Kan-sensei had chosen to include him. The other student – Fuwa Mawata, an average girl with shoulder-length light-colored hair and slightly droopy eyes – was unknown to her, though she had heard conflicting reports of the second year. Some said she was a kind, polite student. Others said that was just an act for the teachers. Yuyu supposed she'd be able to make up her own mind soon enough.

"U.A. is a demanding school. Many first years have problems completely unrelated to the rigors of the hero course. Whether it is academic difficulties, social conflicts, or personal problems there are a lot of potential pitfalls in the way of your future success." The big man's tone was surprisingly gentle.

"We teachers are always available to help, but we know sometimes young people hesitate to talk about their problems with adults. That is why this year we are making a group of peer mentors available to you. These three students were all in Class 1-B in their first year. They have all been through what you will be going through, and they have volunteered to be available to talk with you about any problems you may have."

The class examined them carefully.

Yuyu looked around her old classroom and was infused with a warm feeling. Physically it was no different that many of the other rooms in the school, but the fond memories the place brought forward put a smile on her face. She had been surprised when Kan-sensei had asked her to be a part of this pilot, but she owed him too much to refuse.

"I'll ask each of them to introduce themselves and give you an example of an issue they encountered as a first year. Hopefully, you'll see that they know the sorts of things you'll be facing. Amajiki-kun, let's start with you."

Yuyu groaned internally. She wondered what Tamaki-kun had done to get on Kan-sensei's bad side. Public speaking like this, to a group of strangers, was his worst nightmare.

"My name is Amajiki Tamaki. Pleased to meet you. I was very shy," the boy whispered, then turned to face the wall.

"He really is much better now than in first year," Yuyu took over with a smile. "I'm Haya Yuyu. I'm looking forward to working with you. My first year I had a real problem with trying to find time to concentrate on both my hero studies and regular academics. Hero studies were so much more fun, and why I came to U.A. in the first place. I eventually realized the academics were equally important – no one wants a dumb hero. I really wished I'd had someone to guide me towards that realization, before I almost flunked my first end of term exams. Anyways, I'm always happy to help."

Yuyu noticed the odd look Mawata gave her before beginning her own introduction. "My name is Mawata Fuwa. I am very pleased to meet you. I am in class 2-A. Last year I had some difficulties figuring out how to balance things socially. We were always competing against each other in class, so how could I make friends with people who I would face in combat. I finally found a balance that suited me. I can help you in similar ways." She bowed slightly.

"Thank you," Kan-sensei said. "I want the class to move their desks into three groups – there, there, and there." He pointed to different areas of the room. "Once you are settled, the three mentors will rotate to talk with each group for five minutes. Ask them about their backgrounds and get to know them. It is important to know who you can go to with different sorts of problems."

As expected, most of the younger students were a little hesitant about asking details of the third year. A few of the boys struck aggressive attitudes.

"So what's your quirk?" a lizard-faced boy challenged.

"I can shoot halos – energy constructs that can either cause damage or be used to capture targets. I can also fly." Yuyu replied politely.

"Just another useless sniper," the boy scoffed. "Real heroes face their foes up close!"

Several other boys nodded in agreement.

The older girl smiled. "I wonder what Snipe-sensei thinks of that? Or Endeavor, Hawk, Best Jeanist, Electoplant, or … All Might."

"All Might?" the kid asked, confused. "He punches people."

"Only the strongest opponents," If you watch the records, All Might uses ranged attacks almost twice as often as he actually punches people. His California, Detroit, and Texas Smashes never actually touch the villains."

"Yeah," a boy with a checkered bandana chided. "She's got that right."

"Hmmph," the lizard boy turned away.

There were fewer girls in the class but the ones that stood out were the American, with whom Yuyu was comfortable speaking English, and the white-haired girl that had been in the news recently. Her questions were a bit more perceptive than the others, though her difficulty speaking Japanese was more off-putting than the American's, because it did not seem to have as good an excuse.

"I understand that we will be doing internships in our first year," Yanagi-chan asked. "How do you think we should go about picking an agency to intern with? Should we pick a hero that is closest to us in … quirks? In personality? In the type of work they do? Or maybe something else?"

"I would say to use the several work experiences you will have over the next three years to explore different options in types of hero work, size of agency, even location. They will all matter when you get out of school. Experiencing some of the differences firsthand can help you decide what may be best for you. For your first internship, start with the offers and consider from there."

The pale girl offered a tentative smile, which the third year returned in full.

Yuyu turned to the group. "How many of you come from either police, military, or Hero families?"

Two of the students raised their hand's.

"Keep those up. Now add in families with medical professionals, counselors, or government workers." Two more hands went up. "In a group of eight, I am not surprised. That is about average. About half of all Hero course students come from some sort of service or protective tradition. I'm one. My mother is a paramedic."

The students looked at each other.

"This leads to an important question - why do you want to be a hero? Don't tell me. But make sure you can answer that to your own satisfaction. Without the proper motivation – your own and not your families – you'll never make it."

That got the students thinking. Yanagi-chan seemed particularly pensive. Yuyu thought she might like to get to know her better.

Fifteen minutes after they had started, Kan-Sensei called the class back to order. "I noticed some of you expressing doubt that these older students had anything to teach you." He smiled, his fangs making an appearance.

"I think everyone would benefit from seeing what each other can do. So, we're going to have a battle. I have a King of the Hill game set up out in the woods. We are going to play all of Class 1-B versus the three mentors. The mentors have the hill. You just have to take it from them." His voice dropped to a growl on the last sentence. Shivers ran down more than one spine in the room.

The game was more of a challenge than expected. Yuyu thought a lot of the cause for that lay with the white-haired girl.

Once they were on top of the wooded hill, Yuyu had taken the lead.

"Mawata-san, your quirk is Cloth Armor, right?"

"Yes. It lets me manipulate my clothes into what is effectively powered armor. It can boost …" the second year started to offer details.

"Great!" Yuyu said. "That is perfect to anchor our defense. With you guarding this flag, they'll never take it."

The second year girl preened.

"I'll keep their heads down with rapid fire explosive rounds and Tama-kun I want you to take the fight to them. I want you all over that hill, tying up the 1-B forces and feeding them into my meat grinder in bite-sized chunks. Ok?"

"Do you have to make food jokes?" the shy boy complained.

The plan worked like charm. The battle was all but won.

Until Yanagi-chan managed to occupy Tama-kun long enough for four of the 1-B ranged fighters to lay down devastating counter-battery fire.

Then the big-hands girl led a spontaneous charge on the flag, with almost the whole class following. In the madness at the top of the hill, the boastful blond boy used the powers of several classmates to snag the flag from Mawata-san.

Yuyu smiled. That was fun!

Nirengeki Shoda

Shoda smiled when he saw Haya-senpai coming in with Yanagi-san and Pony-chan. They joined Jozu-kun in the front of the club room. There were four large tables with chairs in the center of the room with four reading/activity spaces in the corners. These had beanbag chairs, shelves of books and comics as well as screens on the wall. He could see the school had spared no expense. He assumed that the club room had been around a while, though there had been no official English Club for at least two years.

He looked around and noticed that Present Mic must have spread the word because there were a few students from other first year classes – and not just from the Hero course. There were ten people in the seats. He was not surprised the majority of Class 1-B had not shown up for this first meeting. English was not a particular interest of his. He was there because he was fascinated by Yanagi Reiko.

Shoda's father was an officer in the Defense Forces who worked to find the best ways to integrate the growing number of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines with quirks into the more traditional military doctrine. It seemed like superpowered service members would be great, but most quirks, even those that made great Pro Heroes, did not function well in traditional military units. What did it matter if a soldier could lift a truck if his main job was to drive it? Or what did a sailor working in the engine room need with the ability to cause objects to boomerang.

Because Shoda had grown up on military bases, he had met many veterans of the wars of the Interregnum – before All Might had helped bring in the Era of Peace. Something about Yanagi-san – something in the way she looked at people – reminded him of those veterans. That intrigued him – scared him a little too. Her adventures just made her more interesting.

"Alright everyone," Haya-senpai started in Japanese. "I'm Haya Yuyu, Class 3-B. These are Jozu-kun, Yanagi-chan, and Pony-chan - all from Class 1-B. We wanted to welcome you to the first meeting of the revitalized U.A. English Club!" She waited for the slight applause to die down.

"We are here primarily to help those having trouble with English classes. But, we're also here to have fun improving our English. We have books and movies, comics and games available – all in English." She pointed to the shelves and screens.

"We're going to start by everyone introducing themselves …" Yanagi-san continued when Haya-senpai concluded. She was speaking English – slowly. His classmate looked a touch nervous or chagrined.

"In English!" Pony-chan yelled.

"Tell us why you're interested in practicing English …" Jozu-kun continued.

"In English!" Pony-chan yelled.

"Then we'll split into four groups and start with a few simple board games …" Yanagi-san said

"In English!" Pony-chan yelled. Several others yelled half-heartedly along with her. She grinned so wide you could almost see her ears from the inside. Yanagi-san tried to hide a wince.

"While we play, we'll have background music …" Jozu-kun added.

Everyone yelled along with Pony-chan. "In English!"

The introductions were painful.

"I name is Shoda. I want speak good to people from the world." He knew it was wrong, but could not come up with the right words at the time.

"My name is Yaoyorozu Momo," Shoda knew she came from an important family and had gotten in to U.A. on recommendations. "I like to read scientifics. Many are wrote for English."

"Rikido Sato," said a large boy with big lips, using the personal name first format common in English speaking countries. "I like cookbooks in English."

"I'm Reiko Yanagi," she said. "I like learning English because my mother likes speaking it."

Filial piety, Shoda thought, is a very Japanese virtue.

As he was contemplating the mystery that was Yanagi-san, Shoda missed the rest of the introductions.

When they split into groups, Yaoyorozu-san stopped him on the way to Yanagi-san's game table. "I think my father knows your father," she said.

"I believe so. I've certainly heard of your family."

She lowered her voice and used her hand to hide her mouth. "What is it like to have a class with a … you know?"

He looked at her coldly. "I don't know to what you are referring. Please excuse me, I must join my friend."

He was not surprised when she chose to join a Jozu-kun's game rather than following him to Yanagi-san's.

Shoda hoped his classmate would not hear that he had presumed to call her a friend. He settled in with two other students at Yanagi-san's table.

"This is a game called Clue," she said pulling out a box. "It is good for heroes because you are trying to solve a crime. I want you to read the directions to see how to play the game. You can use your tablets to help translate. But we will play in English."

She motioned for Shoda to step aside with her while the others attacked the rules.

"Thank you for that," she said in Japanese. "That has not happened much since I came to the city."

Shoda could barely contain his anger.

"The Yaoyorozu are an important family and put great value on their history," he said. "Nevertheless, to bring up such an outdated and distasteful subject was outside of acceptable."

After a few seconds of contemplation, Yanagi answered carefully. "Perhaps … their daughter was ignorant and curious … rather than bigoted and spiteful. She may not know she did wrong."

"Perhaps," he conceded. "But I am not certain I am willing to give her the benefit of the doubt to find out."

"Come on," She said, putting a smile on her face. She switched languages. "Let's not think about it. We're here to play games and practice English."

With some reluctance, he set his anger aside and joined in the play.

It turned out to be fun.