Scumbag Hero Academia Chapter 21

The meeting to outline the parameters of the final exams has been going on for quite some time. Clarifying who would be facing who, what shortcomings the students would be proving they have overcome.

“Saisei and Midoriya?” All Might asks. “Are you sure about that?” The number one hero can tell from a glance at Midnight that he isn’t the only one with misgivings.

“Midoriya should be obvious,” Nezu answers first, “She looks up to you a great deal, All Might. To the point it might have a deleterious effect on her growth as a hero in her own right. She sees you as the ideal, as the pinnacle of being a hero. She does her best to emulate you and in doing so she confines herself, defines her path as being one that leads to being just like you. When really you should be someone to surpass as she becomes her own hero, whatever that may turn out to be.”

“As for Saisei,” Aizawa took over for the principal, “Kid’s had an arrogant streak in him a mile wide since long before he came to this school. He doesn’t see you as an ideal. He sees you as a brick wall, same as he sees the other powerful student in his class. He sees people he can’t beat and loses motivation to even try. His little speech on winning the sports festival told us that much. Getting a little inspiration in the moment didn’t hammer the lesson home though. He needs to show that even if a situation looks impossible he’ll fight through it anyway.”

Midnight shook her head. “That’s all well and good, but Midoriya and Saisei were romantically involved only a week ago. You really think they’ll be able to work together despite that? It seems unfair to force them to cooperate when they probably have some pretty bad friction right now.”

Aizawa gave his colleague a flat look. “What, you think we should switch someone else in, undermine the whole point of this because some kids had a bad breakup? That’s not rational.” He shook his head. “No. They sink or swim, that’s just how it is in our profession. And if they can’t hack it for being too busy dealing with a lovers’ spat? Well then they’ll learn a whole different lesson, won’t they?”

-(-)-

The atmosphere in the mock-downtown training zone can be best described as charged. For the exam taking place, for the stress the students are under, for the anticipation of who they’re about to face... And for the friction between them that unfortunately hasn’t gone away for the duration of the exam.

“So how do you want to handle this, Izuku?” Saiki asks. Difficult as it might be, they have to figure a way through this together.

“That should be obvious, Evo.”

Hero names. It’s... Not inappropriate, but he knows there’s more to it than just wanting to play along with the spirit of the exam. “Alright,” he sighs. The plan is pretty obvious. They don’t have many options. “I’ll hold him off for as long as I can.”

He expects that will be the end of it. What he doesn’t expect is for her to whirl on him and look at him like he’s lost his mind. “Are you crazy?! It’s All Might! I nearly knocked you out and I’m not even a tenth as strong as he is!”

“Then I’ll do my best to not get hit.”

“Listen, I don’t care what your ego is telling you to do, you can’t beat him! He’ll crush you in an instant! Our best chance is to both run for it, avoid him for as long as we can until–”

“Until?” The booming voice sends a chill of fear down both teens’ backs. Feel the presence of the looming shape behind them. “Well? Go on. I’m all ears.”

Izuku freezes like a deer caught in headlights. Her entire life she had been safe in the knowledge that All Might was a hero. That even as much of a force of nature as he was, she would never come to harm at his hands. All Might only punished the bad guys. And now in this moment, as she stares up at the towering figure, that hope-giving smile is no longer a comfort. It’s a threat. A promise of what’s to come. This is why villains fear him so much, she realises. Because on seeing that smile, she knows it’s already over.

Saiki on the other hand cares not at all for any of that. Because his hero internship had focused on one thing above all else. Once you’re in the shit, no matter how bad the odds are the only way out is to fight your way out. He doesn’t have the adoration for All Might that Izuku does even if he understands the fear. But at the same time, his training demands he put that fear aside and act.

A rain of body blows. Fast, compact, yet powerful. Enough to make several men named Jo nod in approval. But even that is only enough to make the towering hero flinch and take a single step back. He doesn’t bother to guard. Just shows exactly how futile Saiki’s efforts are.

But that isn’t what Saiki takes away from it.

He flinched.

And he stepped back.

That’s all the encouragement he needs. The gap between him and the number one hero is enormous, but it isn’t insurmountable. He keeps going, fist after fist striking home until All Might decides he’s had enough, makes a grab for the boy. Saiki barely slips around it. Jumps to avoid a knee but realises his mistake far too late. His leg swings out to make one final strike before the inevitable. One kick to the hero’s chiselled jaw is all he manages before he gets grabbed out of the air in one meaty fist.

“Well now, I’ll give you a little credit, hero. I almost felt a couple of those!” the hero sneered, playing the villain. “BUT NOT ENOUGH!” His grip adjusts to palm the back of his student’s head before slamming him face first into the pavement hard enough to make a small crater, then dig a furrow through the asphalt using Saiki as a human sledgehammer. “RrrrrRAH!” The hulking hero teacher uses the momentum of his run as the lead-in to throwing the boy as far away from the escape gate as he can. But the boy doesn’t fly. He doesn’t go anywhere. “Hmm? Is that tenacity or desperation?” the teacher asks as he sees his blue-haired student clinging desperately onto his arm.

Bloodied, bruised, chunks of cement embedded in his face. “Run, Izuku–!” Saiki trise to shout, interrupted as the arm he’s clinging to slams into the ground. “Guah!” His arms come loose from All Might’s. His body goes limp.

“Saiki!” Izuku whispers, her few fearful steps turn into a terrified, quirk-assisted sprint as she realises she’s next.

But he’s already on her. “Oh right! This one wanted to run and hide, didn’t she?” She yelps as he pulls her along in the direction she’s already going to slam her into a lamp post. “Can’t have that.” Tearing the metal pole from out of the concrete, he bends and warps the metal to coil it around her until she can’t move.

“Alright!” the villainous hero grunts, dusting off his hands as he turns around walking back to where he left the other one. “Back to busine–. Huh.” No longer there. “Quick little guy when he wants to be. Quiet too.” He can see the smear of blood from where he smashed the kid into the asphalt. A short trail, and then nothing. “Hrrm, well, that’s a problem. Kid’s regeneration must be something else! I thought it was supposed to be slow! Well, at least I have young Midoriya to use as–” He turns around, walks back around the corner to see Izuku is gone too. “... How did he even do that? Oh well. I don’t know where they are but I at least know where they’re going.”

Inside a nearby building, Saiki carries Izuku still wrapped up in a bent lamp post as he ascends to higher and higher floors. “You’re the All Might expert,” he spoke softly, “Does he have super hearing or anything?”

“Not really,” she answered just as quietly, “Better than most maybe but not like Kyoka or anything.”

He thinks it over for a moment, looks around before deciding to move to the centre of this floor of the building. “This’ll have to do for now,” he continues to speak quietly as he gets to work uncoiling the metal pole. What All Might could do in seconds is a much more drawn out process for Saiki. “Once you’re back on your feet, we can get back to doing what we should’ve done in the first place.”

“What’s wrong with you?”

“A lot of things probably. You’d know better than most,” he spoke, wincing as the pole creaks loudly. “So the plan. I fight him to keep him distracted and you never get in his sights until after you already win this for us.”

“Why do you want to fight him so badly?!” she demands, her voice raising enough that he covers her mouth. Something that only earns him a glare. “He’ll just beat you again. It’s pointless.”

“I’ll fight him because you won’t,” he answers simply. “You’re terrified of him. I mean I get why, but I also don’t. Whatever the reason is it doesn’t matter.” He looks away, feeling a little too vulnerable and not in a physical sense. It’s a feeling he avoided for nearly his whole life. “You inspired me once. More than anyone ever has. So it’s time for me to return the favour. My turn to be your hero.”

“I don’t want you to be my hero!” she retorts sharply. She isn’t sure how much is from not wanting a hero, not wanting it to be him, and how much is for how much she can see has been done to him just for pursuing that goal. Much as she wishes she wouldn’t care about him, it still hurts her to see him so beat to hell.

He sniffs, regretfully. “Yeah... I know,” he admits. Right now there’s nothing she wants from him. If she had the choice she’d be here with literally anyone else. But, “I can’t really help that part. The only way around me being your hero is to stop being the kind of person who needs one.”

With a final tug, the metal pole unwinds enough that Izuku can kick the rest off. Once free, she follows Saiki to the windows as he peers out of them.

“Looks like we lost him,” he observes with a grimace. “So he went to the one place he knew we’d have to go.” He sighs. “Okay. You better keep up, Deku. You might not get a second chance if you take too long.” He takes off in a sprint.

“Saiki!”

“See you on the other side,” he waves back at her before diving out of a window in the direction of the escape gate.

As he hops from building to building, there isn’t any part of him that believes this attempt will go any better than the first. He isn’t on All Might’s level yet. He isn’t supposed to be. And really, as a hero he won’t always have the option of staying away from fights he can’t handle, but he’ll have to handle them anyway. He can’t stop training, can’t stop seeking strength. If he keeps going, he’ll be able to live the satisfying life he dreamed of. Fame and success will give him the finer things in life. He won’t be the dirt of Japan anymore, a cast-off of a wastrel and a runaway.  That won’t matter. He’ll be an icon. Someone to inspire–

... No.

The usual speech to hype himself up doesn’t seem to work this time. It rings hollow even to himself. He wants to be more than what he was, to have more than what the world believes he deserves. But in this moment as his eyes land on All Might for the fraction of a second he’s in view between jumps. In this moment it barely feels like it’s about himself at all. More than anything, he hopes that Izuku is behind him. Because if he’s being honest with himself. Really, truly honest?

...

All Might waits patiently around fifty feet away from the escape gate. The area around him is the corner of two city blocks. He can wait here and guarantee to catch his students before they can get through the gate. It’s all a matter of waiting for them to come to him, or to fail by the time limit.

He doesn’t have to wait long. He raises an arm and braces as Saiki comes down on him with one leg outstretched in a multi-story axe kick. “Ngh! Young Saisei! Welcome back to your exam! Did you have a nice rest?” He looks up past his student to where Saiki must have come from. “Nice aim by the way! Twenty foot jump from,” he blocks the other leg aiming for his head with his other arm, shoving his student away to land. “From the fourth floor I’m guessing? Not bad. Takes practice. But I think we both know that kick hurt you about as much as it hurt me.”

Saiki doesn’t respond. There’s no point. If Izuku followed him she’ll be looking for an opening. Standing around talking won’t give her one. He charges the much larger man, only to slide between his legs to aim fists at the kidneys of the number one hero. He gets in two punches before All Might’s leg comes up in a back-kick that knocks Saiki into the arena wall.

“Whoops!” the big man shouts, leaping from his position guarding the gate to Saiki, grabs the dazed boy and leaps right back to where he started. “You see young Saisei, I can tell what you’re hoping for. But if I know what you’re doing you can’t do it. All I have to do is stand right here, keep an eye out for young Midoriya to make sure she can’t sneak past and that’s the end of it. Being this obvious? Not a smart plan.” The only response he gets from Saiki is another attempt at a punch to his face, even while being held. The hero sighs. “This is starting to get a little sad. Well, since you’re so determined to be a nuisance..” He grabs the teenager by the legs and–

Slam!

“I have to wonder-”

Slam!

“Just how many-”

Slam!

“Of these it will take!”

Slam!

“But I’m sure we can-”

Slam!

“Have fun figuring it out together!” He looks down at the limp, broken form of his student hanging in his hand. “Five, huh? More than I thought. I’ll be honest, probably took a little more satisfaction from that than I should as your teacher. Oh well! Time to get you out of the way!” He rears back his arm as though to pitch the boy down the road and far away from the exit.

Rapid, staccato steps. The only warning before- “Smaaaaaash!”

“Ngh!” The same damn arm as Saisei hit, right in the same spot, while he wasn’t tensing for it! His grip loosens early, sending the boy tumbling down the road in the exact wrong direction. “Young Midoriya! Was wondering when you would pop back up!” he says, trying not to let it show that her blow actually kind of smarted a bit.

“I’m not going to let you do as you like anymore, All Might!” she exclaims with determination, standing between him and the badly beaten boy. “I’m stopping you right here!”

“Is that so?” he asks with humour, that same terrifying grin appearing once more. “Well, come on then.”

She knows he’s stronger than her. Faster than her. More durable than her. More skilled. More experienced. The greatest to ever live. None of that matters right now. Because right now he’s the one standing in her way. She can’t fight him head on. So... She steps. And again. Ten feet with one. Fifteen the next. Dart in, feint, dart out, five, five, five to circle behind him, duck under the arm, move again, dodge the leg, keep circling, there! His limbs are out of place and she’s in an awkward position for him to hit! This is her moment! “Detroit...!”

Unseen from her low position at his side, she can’t see the beaming smile on his face. She studied him maybe more than any other hero, the little fangirl. Trust her to have picked out a weakness. Or at least... What she thinks is a weakness. “Detroit...!”

From that position?! Deku panics, but it’s too late now! Her fist swings forward aiming for her idol’s face, “SMASH!”

And then his head, his body, both are out of her field of view as his fist comes down to meet hers, “SMASH!”

“Gyagh!” she yelps in pain as she feels the bones in her hand, her arm, break all at once, just like when she first started using One for All. She spins as the extra force All Might brought to bear drives her to the ground.

“Hah, hah, a valiant attempt, young Midoriya,” he squats down in front of her as she squints her eyes to clear her vision. “Feel like trying again?” His proud smile turns to a slight frown as he realises she’s smiling too.

And also... Not looking at him. Looking past him.

The hero curses himself. Him again. All Might can’t help but feel he should have seen this coming. The boy had pulled the same stunt earlier in the exam. Sure enough, as he looks behind him, he sees Saisei crawling for the escape gate. He has to admit, Midoriya successfully distracted him for a while. But he can’t just let them win.

“Excuse me while I go deal with something,” the hero requests as he does a quick about face, lunging away to chase down the fleeing student still not well enough to do more than crawl.

No! Izuku kicks off the ground herself to chase down her mentor before he can go after Saiki again. It feels strange that she’s keeping pace with him until she feels the pain in her legs building up. In the moment, she can’t bring herself to care about that! She won’t let him hurt her–!

She won’t let him–!

It doesn’t matter! She’ll stop him!

“Sorry about this young Saisei! Carolina...!”

“Wyoming...!”

“Oh, shit,” the hero mutters as he sees the shadow of his successor.

“SMAAAAAASH!” Izuku brings both fists down on the back of her airborne mentor’s head, driving him solidly back down to the ground and arresting his momentum. “GO SAIKI!”

Bleeding, exhausted, with multiple broken bones, the boy manages to cross the escape line by his head and shoulders.

A horn blares to signal the end of the exam.

“Saiki!” Izuku frets, running over to him and rolling him over onto his back. “Are you okay?!”

“Heh, heheh!” he coughs while laughing. “Can’t really... Inspire the warm fuzzies like you can,” he slurs, “But I sure know how spite can get people motivated! Heh... Heh... I’m just gonna sleep for a bit...”