Ticked Off [Boku No Hero Academia]

26: DEKU VS KACCHAN

This is such a difficult and important event, idk if I did it justice ((':

Discord server, if you're interested: https://discord.gg/DSBF4dP

~

Izuku gazed down at his phone, messaging Toshinori, while everyone else occupied themselves around the living space. Ochako and Tsu were cooing over Kouda's white rabbit; Ashido and Hagakure sat on the largest sofa and Ojirou leaned over the back of it; Momo and Jirou were settled on some square stools, and Kaminari stood next to them with his hands on his hips; Satou and Tokoyami were a little aside, muttering about how exhausting and memorable the exams had been.

"Hey, go out front later," Kacchan growled quietly, walking past Izuku so closely that their shoulders brushed. "Let's have a talk."

The boy strode away down the corridor without another word. Izuku spent another second staring after him with a faintly puzzled expression before returning his focus to his phone and deciding to ask permission to fight at Ground Beta later that night – he wasn't planning on getting grounded for several torturous days once again. As expected, Toshinori enthusiastically agreed, not even questioning the specific request to not intervene the boy added.

Evening drew to a close and gradually the students started to filter off to bed, bidding each other a sleepy farewell. Izuku waited until it was dark and everyone had gone before slinking outside, easily falling into step at Kacchan's side and only receiving a slight sneer before the boy continued broodingly stomping along. Round lamps cast a soft yellow glow over the tarmac path as they silently headed across campus. He kept glancing sideways into the forested area beyond the wooden fence, wary of the shadows and mysterious rustling.

They came to a stop at Ground Beta, and he cast his eyes upwards at the massive, plain buildings, packed together and designed to look like an average street. He looked around him to mentally map the visible vicinity, considering possible manoeuvres while also running over the perfect things to say to reassure his friend that would simultaneously knock his ego down a few pegs without completely destroying their fragile relationship. No big deal.

"Ground Beta," Kacchan muttered, hands in the pockets of his loose trousers as he faced the building. "This is the place where we had our first combat training, where I fought and lost to you."

Izuku remembered how it had gone; he'd refused to use his Quirk under the guise of not wanting to hurt himself, and he'd managed to dance around most of his rival's attacks, biding his time and taking a few hits until Kacchan was ready to fire off his gauntlet. Instead of using One for All like he'd done last time, he darted forwards and grabbed his friend's arm, angling his palm towards the ceiling to direct the explosion upwards, badly singing his face in the process. It was a sloppy fight, but considering he was supposed to be a fresh-faced student and not a hardened hero, it was excusable.