Chapter 189

(A/N: This chapter is brought to you be Emmet.)

...

..

.

"You know, this might sound too good to be true, but once you join my Party, there's a decent probability you'll have a Perk that can alter your appearance among the options," said Izuku. "You already transform with your Quirk, so something like mimicry isn't out of the question."

Shaking his head, Kamakiri replied, "It's fine. I accepted who I was long ago. If the girl I like can't accept me for who I am, I doubt we'd be happy together."

Nodding in approval, Izuku noted, "That's a very mature way of looking at things. But if you 'do' have the option of picking up a form of mimicry, you should consider picking it, regardless. The ability to alter your appearance is remarkably useful for infiltration or simply blending in with a crowd."

"I'll keep that in mind..." replied Kamakiri. Then, since they were on the subject, he asked, "What's my Bond Level at?"

"Seventy-four," replied Izuku, meeting the gazes of Tetsutetsu, Awase, and Monoma in turn as he added, "As for everyone else, Tetsu is at 72, but it fluctuates up and down. Awase is at 77, and Monoma is at 53. Not great, but a lot better than the 38 he started with."

"Lucky me..." muttered Monoma, his Bond Level promptly dropping to 50, ostensibly out of spite.

"Think we might be able to raise mine over the threshold by discussing Perks?" asked Awase, crossing his arms.

"Hmmm...it's difficult to imagine how your Weld Quirk can evolve beyond its current point, but if we're talking about expanding its utility, I expect it will be something like remote decoupling?" speculated Izuku. "Or maybe the ability to spread your power through a surface and cause everything touching it to become welded? That would be busted..."

"Super busted," affirmed Awase, his Bond Level increasing to 78 as the possibility fascinated him.

"Do me next...!" exclaimed Tetsutetsu, excited by what Izuku might come up with to make his Quirk even more powerful.

Resisting the urge to compare him to Kaminari, Izuku crossed his arms, leaned back slightly, and took a moment to deliberate before responding, "I'm guessing you'll be able to absorb carbon or even magical elements to make your steel even stronger? Either that, or you could gain the ability to shape your limbs into various tools, like hammers, maces, or blades. That would increase your combat potential considerably."

"That would be totally awesome...!" exclaimed Tetsutetsu, striking a guts pose while still holding the 100kg dumbells. He occasionally felt that his Quirk was a bit mundane. The ability to change his shape or become even harder would shake things up and make it easier for him to leave a lasting impression on his future fans.

"Let me guess, my Perk would allow me to copy and store more Quirks or use several at once...?" chimed Monoma.

Shrugging, Izuku replied, "Or you could copy them from afar, saving you the trouble of getting close. That would be amazingly broken."

"..."

Feeling annoyed by how smoothly Izuku could respond and keep up his cordial act, Monoma rose to his feet and said, "I'm heading out for some fresh air. The stench of your bodies is starting to give me a headache..."

"Come on, Monoma. Why do you gotta be such a jerk all the time?" asked Tetsutetsu, but Monoma ignored him, turned, and walked away with his right hand raised, expressing, "See you when I see you..." in an impassive droll.

Waiting until Monoma was gone, Izuku lightened the mood by pointing out, "We have been here for a solid minute. Let's rack our weights and hit the springs. After that, I'm gonna see what the others are up to. Rin was teaching me the fundamentals of internal energy and how to better utilize my Qigong Strike."

"Sounds good," replied Awase.

"Agreed," said Kamakiri.

"I'm feeling annoyed right now, so I'm gonna hang back and keep going for a bit," appended Tetsutetsu. However, as there were rules about using the gym equipment alone, everyone decided to stay for another half hour, giving Monoma ample time to finish his own bath before they headed over in higher spirits...

...

..

.

[November 5th, 2149]

"Come out, Midorya! I know you're here somewhere...!" bellowed Bakugo, arriving at the compound alongside Kirishima, Tokoyami, and a much more confident-looking Kaminari. More notably, they each looked like they had just stepped out of an RPG. Bakugo sported teal pants, a long-sleeved half-vest, muted metal greaves, a tattered red cape, and a belt lined with fur resembling an explosion. Kirishima wore a pale grey vest that barely covered more than his ribs, a red-and-black tiger-striped bandana scarf, off-white pants, grey, knee-high boots, a red cloth around his waist, and a belt. Tokoyami barely looked different, but his usual black cloak was much more tattered, sported tassels on the shoulders, and had a hood. And last but not least, Kaminari looked straight-up like a bard, wearing a feathered hat, a frilled white undershirt beneath a sleeveless leather tunic, loose red pants, dark brown riding boots, matching gloves, and bearing a lute on his back.

"What are you making a fuss for?" asked Izuku, arriving not too long after Bakugo's shout, accompanied by Kaibara, Honenuki, and Rin. Others from 1-B and even a handful of teachers came to see what was up, but Bakugo ignored what he viewed as the peanut gallery, raising his left hand over his head and generating a sizeable explosion that promptly dispersed to reveal a large, single-edged greatsword with a red handle. Then, pointing it at Izuku, he exclaimed, "If you're not a coward, then accept this King's challenge...!"

------------------------

Name: [Katsuki Bakugo]

Title: Explosive Hero, Big Ego(Vitality+100)

Quirk: Explosion

Bond Level: 88

Current Level: 70->90

Effective Level: 128->193

[Attributes]

Strength: 108->139

Agility: 95->125

Vitality: 509->720

Intelligence: 129->162

Dexterity: 132->165

Luck: 514->624

Free Attributes: 0

[Perks]

[Healthy Body], [Hyperhidrosis], [Remote Detonation]

[Skills]

[Taunt], [Homerun Swing], [Grand Smasher], [Meteoric Blow]

------------------------

"Wow, you've really been busting your ass, haven't you...?" asked Izuku, genuinely surprised to see that Bakugo had gone from Level 70 to 90 in a single week. However, as even his group had averaged 1-2 Levels per day when they began taking on higher-ranked breaches, it wasn't altogether unexpected. Now that he had reached 90, he would need roughly a week for each Level, a reality Izuku was all too familiar with.

Snorting through his nose, Bakugo rested his oversized sword on his left shoulder, appearing much calmer as he asked, "So, how about it? Are you accepting my challenge or not?"

Shrugging, Izuku responded, "I'm not a part of the official Class Rankings, but sure, I accept your challenge. But are you planning to use that sword? It doesn't exactly scream non-lethal."

"It's fine," said Bakugo, waving the oversized sword as if it weighed less than a feather as he assured, "I don't plan on hitting you directly. If I do, even by accident, we'll call it your win by default."

"Sure, sounds good," said Izuku. However, before he and Bakugo could make their way to the arena, Aizawa interjected to state, "Wait. Before you begin, Ishiyama-sensei will reinforce the arena while someone else goes to retrieve Chiyo-sensei. I don't trust either of you when it comes to self-control..."

Clicking his tongue, Bakugo shouldered his sword and said, "Whatever..." before passing his gaze over the boys from 1-B. He was tempted to insult them and tell them to get their shit together, but he lost the chance when Kirishima stepped forward, bumping fists with Tetsutetsu and effortlessly lightening the mood with his ever-friendly nature...

...

..

.

With some time to kill before Chiyo-sensei arrived, Kirishima, Tokoyami, and Kaminari agreed to demonstrate the power of their Arefacts at the suggestion of Kan. Kirishima's took the form of a silver, scaled, fur-lined vambrace that allowed him to materialize various weapons that shared his power of Hardening. As for his outfit, it was just a stylistic change since wearing his original Hero Costume for extended periods was difficult due to the shoulder and face attachments.

Following Kirishima, who showed off everything from daggers to swords and spears, Tokoyami revealed that his cloak allowed him to sink into and move through shadows, annoying Kuroiro quite a bit as it was remarkably similar to his Quirk. More notably, it also allowed him to empower his Dark Shadow by 'charging' it within the cloak, providing it greater resistance to flames and light sources.

Since obtaining the [Shadow Master] Perk, Tokoyami no longer feared his Dark Shadow going out of control. It was now a true extension of his body or, as Tokoyami put it, his soul. Because of this, his Artefact permitted him to create a new Ultimate Move inspired by his Title, Abyss Lord. Its actual name was Dark Shadow: Lord of the Abyss, Shadow Colossus, but as that was way too long, everyone just called it Abyss Lord or Shadow Colossus. As for what it did, it used the darkness energy Tokoyami stockpiled across multiple days to create a fifty-meter-tall version of his Dark Shadow in its Berserk Form. It was largely stationary, but as it had outstanding defense and could extend its arms several times the length of its body, that wasn't much of a weakness.

"Dang it...I really should have gone first or second..." grumbled Kaminari, looking somewhat lifeless as he dragged his feet up to the arena-turned-stage after Tokoyami's performance. Like Kirishima, his outfit was just for show as his Artefact was the elaborate, gold-trimmed, Rennaisance-style wooden lute in his hands. As for its effect...

Closing his eyes, Kaminari took a deep breath before playing a slow and harmonious tune, contrasting his usually 'electric' personality. It was very pleasant, but since everyone was expecting something with more oomph, an awkward atmosphere began to permeate the area.

"Is it just an ordinary lute...?" asked Tetsutetsu, directed at Kirishima in a low voice, but virtually everyone heard him.

"You idiot," said Bakugo, standing with his arms crossed and sporting a disparaging look as he explained, "It might sound like an ordinary tune, but if you close your eyes and pay attention, you'll feel a warm, electrical sensation flowing through your body. Thanks to that, my group hasn't had to sleep or rest except to take a breather and eat."

"For real?" asked Tetsutetsu, staring up at Kaminari with intrigue for a few seconds before abruptly shouting, "Hey! Who are you calling an idiot...!?" Bakugo heard him but, much like Monoma, pretended not to as he picked his ear with his pinky. This caused Tetsutetsu to grind his sharp teeth and ball his hands into fists, but as much as he wanted to punch Bakugo in his smug face, he knew it wasn't the right thing to do. Fortunately, Awase and Kirishima were there to help him calm down, the latter justifying Bakugo's behavior as him trying to stay pumped for the fight to come...

Clicking his tongue, Bakugo decided to forgo his prior refusal to show off his Artefact, leaping into the arena and telling Kaminari to piss off before brandishing his oversized sword and shouting, "Pay attention, you bunch of second-rate deadbeats! This is the kind of power that awaits you once you stop fooling around and get your shit together...!"

Punctuating his shout, Bakugo unleashed an earth-quaking explosion from his sword that extended tens of meters into the air and at least fifteen wide. Ishiyama(Cementoss) hurriedly created six angled walls encircling him to prevent the shockwave and aftershock from rupturing anyone's eardrums, but even he was shaken to his core by the power of Bakugo's explosion. Even on the low end, it was comparable to 3,000kgs of TNT, so if he had aimed it at the ground or directed it at the crowd, all but a few of the students present would have ended up dead or seriously injured...

Generating a smaller explosion to destroy one of Ishiyama's barriers, Bakugo's gaze met Izuku's with a dispassioned stare. He knew he had gone overboard, but seeing Izuku with a relaxed smile, Bakugo felt more determined than ever to demonstrate he wasn't going to sit back and play second fiddle to anyone. Izuku's power might be vital to saving the world, but that didn't mean he would be the one to cut a path for them into the future. The world needed a dedicated Hero who could inspire them and strike fear into the hearts of Villains. If their fate was left in the hands of some former nerd that spent more time fooling around than fighting or training, they were all fucked...

...

..

.

(A/N: I feel called out...)