Red Shoes: an MHA Tale

Chapter 4: Red Sphere

The sewer drains led out of the city to a water treatment plant just off the coast. It was here that chunks of a sandy material started to flow out of the drain and on to the sloped concrete that pointed to the plant's opening.

It was late in the afternoon, days after Deku took out the Purity Alliance's secret hideout.

As the last of it dripped from the pipes on the ground, including a large red sphere the size of a baseball, a team of men appeared armed with shovels and began to scoop up the chunks. Immediately, they dumped the puddles into one spot on level ground.

Once the scoops had been dumped into one pile, one man with an eyepatch held out his arm.

"Just give it a second! He's fine." One of the men directed.

They watched as the puddle of sand and wet dust began to grow and fuse together.

Some of the men grimaced as they watched the pile start to shape back up, growing in size and sprouting limbs. The red ball disappeared in the mass as it formed into a man.

"Deku...." He suddenly sputtered.

"Get him a towel." The older man in the eyepatch ordered.

One man ran over and wrapped a towel around the newly reformed man's nude form and helped him to stand and reorient himself.

"Akira Hokori, they got the women and children." The eyepatch man said.

"Hoshi?" The dust-Quirk user asked.

"He and Botan were arrested. As we speak they are being questioned."

"Get me back. I need to-"

"Don't let your personal feelings get in the way, Hokori. You'll get your chance to save them. And the assets." The eyepatch man explained sternly. He turned to the man helping Hokori to stand. "Get him inside the truck."

With a nod of obedience, the man guided the dust-Quirk man away.

"It's more than that." Hokori stopped them to speak. "I want Deku's head. I knew he'd be the biggest obstacle for us and-"

"Save it, Hokori! You'll get yer chance!" The man shouted. "Take him away!"

The men escorted him off the premises of the water treatment plant, as the man in the eyepatch looked on toward the ocean and the near-setting sun.

"One hero? Not even an army can stop us." He said. "I swear on my brother's grave."

~~~~~~~~

Katsuma waited at the station for his train to take him to his grandmother's home not far from the UA grounds.

There, he noticed Kota pass by with his aunt, waiting for theirs to arrive as well.

"Excuse me, young boy from the entrance exam? The fanboy?"

He turned to see Mandalay waving to him, with her left hand on Kota's shoulder firmly.

"I saw what you did back there. Kota may not have, and he may not be very appreciative." Her grip tightened on his tense shoulder as he bared his teeth. "But I saw it. And the judges did too." She smiled.

Katsuma smiled back. "Thank you." He gave a small bow.

Their train arrived, and they boarded and left in a hurry.

For a moment he was alone again, until he heard Eri's voice.

"Hey! Shimano, right?" She called.

Katsuma turned around to see the girl with her horn having since shrunk down on her forehead, wearing an oversized sweater with letters spelling out "LEMILLION". And still wearing the red shoes, same as he.

"Uh, yeah. Hey again!" He waved.

"Did Kota say thank you?" Before Katsuma could answer, she snorted and answered herself. "I assume not. He hates being upstaged."

"I feel like he hates anything I do." Katsuma sighed.

"He sometimes forgets that he's not the only one with issues." Eri pouted.

Katsuma sighed. "Forgive me, but what are you doing here?"

"Daddy and me are taking the train home. We always do." She said.

Sure enough, standing behind her then, apparently blocking the sun from Katsuma, was Shota Aizawa.

"I have to admit, I was impressed with your decision-making skills today." He said with his typical deadpanned expression.

Katsuma raised his eyebrow. "Really?"

"But you hesitated a lot. I won't go into detail complimenting or criticizing you now. You'll get a letter from UA in a couple days telling you that." Shota explained.

Katsuma rubbed his head. "Heh, right."

"So what's your story?" Eri asked.

He jumped, hearing her ask such a straight-forward question. "M-My story?"

Aizawa took a few steps away to wait for the train and give them just a little more privacy.

"W-Well... Ever since I saw Edgeshot on TV, I wanted to become a hero just like him. But it wasn't until Deku and his friends came to my hometown and protected me that I really saw what being a hero means." The tall boy explained.

"I remember that. Deku was out of town for a while and it was winter." Eri added. "So... What's your Quirk?"

"Eri." Aizawa simply said.

"If it's not too personal a question to ask. I saw what you did earlier anyway." She said.

Katsuma smiled. "I don't mind it."

They both glanced away in the short silence that followed, small blushes on their cheeks. Aizawa stared at them through his peripheral vision.

"R-Right. Well, My Quirk is Cell Activation. Basically I can make my body's cells work double time. I can heal myself faster, enhance my stamina and strength, and even heal and do the same to others." He said.

"Seems like you overworked yourself a little today helping Kota. Are you alright now?"

"Yeah. The old nurse lady helped me out afterward." Katsuma brushed off.

Eri smiled. "That is an amazing Quirk. But I'm sorry, I totally forgot your name. You just have such a plain looking face. But that reminds me of Deku so you're doing something right!"

Katsuma chuckled. "My name is Katsuma Shimano."

"And I'm Eri Aizawa, just to remind you." She smiled and quickly shook his hand.

Before Katsuma could ask her anything more, another train pulled in.

"Oh sorry, this is our train! I hope we can talk again soon!" She said with a big warm smile.

Something about her smile seemed so contagious and welcoming.

"I-I hope to talk to you soon as well!" He called as she ran off with her father.

He turned to the boy and glared at him. "If you are accepted into UA, you haven't seen the last of me."

"Daddy!" Eri yelled and tugged at his arm.

As the train closed its doors and blasted away, Katsuma had an epiphany. "She reminds me of the Hero, Neijire Chan."

He took a moment to rest against a pillar waiting for his next train when his phone received a message from an unknown number.

"Hey! Hope this doesn't come across as creepy but I'm glad to see that you're in town for the entrance exam! I was there for a portion of it but I had some business to tend to. Anyway, come by this address once you get your letter from UA!"

"Sincerely, Mr. Deku." At the bottom of the message wrote the address to an apartment not far from his grandma. Just around the same block.

Katsuma's eyes grew big and he jumped into the air cheering loudly and scaring the other commuters nearby.