Test of Courage

15

Midoriya's POV
I lay awake in the bed I shared with Iida. We agreed I stay in Iida's room since Kayama already asked some of us to share because of room. I could hear Iida's soft breathing next to me and I could see the moon in the sky, through the window in our room. I didn't want to deal with All for One tonight. Anyway, my mind wouldn't shut off. I couldn't stop myself from worrying. The sword hadn't attracted any monsters yet and I was afraid one would show up soon. I had no idea when Todoroki would be in good enough condition to travel again.

I sat up quietly and got out of bed. I changed into travel clothes and pulled my backpack onto my back. If I left now I wouldn't have to worry about anyone else getting hurt. I wrote a quick note so no one would worry and I snuck out into the cool night air. The stars and moon lit the way and I weaved my way through the town. It was quiet. There weren't many crickets in the mountains like in the forest or grasslands. I followed the roads out of the ravine and set off towards Mt. Shimura.

I hadn't gotten far from the village when I heard my name. I turned to see Iida behind me. I stopped letting him catch up. I knew what he was going to say and I tried to mentally prepare my argument.

"Midoriya, strongly advice against you leaving by yourself. It's dangerous, our journey has already proven that," He said.

"I don't want anyone else getting hurt like Todoroki. I feel like the sword has been in one place too long. Please let me go," I say. I saw the determined look in his eyes and I knew it wouldn't be that easy.

"I know you are worried about us and Todoroki, but what do you think his Highness would do if he woke up and you were gone? He cares for you enough to come this far. I'm afraid he'd go after you regardless of his condition," He insisted. I wanted to argue but I knew he was right. I contemplated my choices, trying to find a way to get my way but I came up short. I let a sigh. Then there was a deafening roar and something collided with my back, sending me to the the ground.

"Midoriya!" Iida yelled and I momentarily saw stars. I sat up with a groan and barely ducked in time as a giant furred paw swiped at me. I got up drawing my sword. Iida already had his out and he was in a fighting stance. In front of us was a monstrous bear. It was several times bigger than an average grizzly bear. It's fur was dark and matted and it's face was scarred. I knew it's name was Titana Ursa, but it was commonly know as titan bear. No one's seen one for decades.

It roared and I nearly dropped my sword just to cover my ears. I ran forward, swung my sword at it. I hit it on the shoulder and barely got away in time before it tried to slice me open. Then I realized my sword did nothing to it's hide.

"My attack didn't even affect it!" I cried. I could tell Iida was trying to think of a plan. We continued to block it or try to find a weak spot with our swords. After a while we made no progress. The both of us were running out of energy and we both had wounds from when we couldn't dodge in time.

"We can't keep doing this," Iida panted, "We need a plan."

"Like what?" I asked as I narrowly avoided a swipe at the head. Iida scanned the bear quickly, looking for a plan. I swung my sword but it did nothing to the titan bear. I heard Iida gasp.

"I have an idea!" He exclaimed, "Distract it for a moment." I nodded and swung my sword at it's face. I hit it in the forehead and it roared with anger. It charged at me and I rolled out of the way. Instead it ran into the rocky mountain side behind me. I got away from it as Iida ran over to me. In his hand he held one of the bear's broken claws as long as my forearm.

"We might not be able to pierce the titan bear's skin but maybe this can," He said holding up the claw and the bear faced us.

"That might work," I smile. I took it from him and then I could feel the switch. All for One was in control and I watched myself surge forward with the claw in one hand and my sword in the other. I could tell the bear was ready to attack me so I wasted no time in driving the claw into the titan bear's neck. It roared, standing on it's hind legs. It's front paw hit me in the chest and I was sent to the ground, the breath was knocked from my lungs. Then it ran off with blood trailing from it's neck. All for one let go and Iida helped me stand.

"Thanks, Iida," I said, "If it wasn't for your plan I don't think we could have defeated it."

"More reason for us to come with you," He insisted. Once again he was right. Without the others I wouldn't have made it this far. We walked quietly until we got to the edge of town. The sun was just peaking out behind the horizon. I put a hand on Iida's shoulder, stopping the both of us.

"I know this journey hasn't been easy and your right. I'm so thankful for all of you helping me get this far. I-I don't know if I could have gotten this far by myself," I began to tear up and I quickly wiped my eyes on my sleeve. Iida gave me a gentle smile.

"That's what friends are for," He said. I smiled too and we returned to the inn. We were quiet so no one else would wake up. In our room we took care of any injures we got. Luckily none of them were bad, just some cuts and scratches. We changed into our night cloths again and both of us fell into a dreamless sleep.