Chapter 9 : The New Skills

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Warning: quick mention of bullying (suicide baiting), smocking.

Evolving is important, even if you must change your principles to do so.
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Izuku used to go straight back home after school to do his homework. Mom usually returned from work around 6 p.m., which meant he had three hours during which she would not know what he would do. It never mattered, since he used to do his homework during that time. The said homework never took too much time — training his memory abilities had helped — so he took the habit to hang out in the streets, hoping to notice heroes fight.

   He was still hanging out in the streets, and kept making notes on the heroes he came across, except that he had much more different motives. He didn't want to be like them anymore, he was now considering them like ennemies, and knowing ennemies was crucial to secure the win.

   Izuku made a quick detour at home to drop his bag and take his Karma disguise instead: the usual hoodie and mask, a headband to hide his green hair, the pocket knife that he had sharpened thanks to Stain's advices, and the small notebooks he had bought after his discussion with Hai. When he was sure his identity was correctly hidden, he got out of the apartment and left the building by the emergency exit door (knowing that no one would be here). He had promised he would meet Hai after school. They just wanted to spend time with Izuku who also needed to just relax and chill with a friend, so he had not been able to refuse.

   They were supposed to meet in an alleyway near Dabi's apartment. As usual, when Izuku had to join someone in the streets, they were here before him.

"Hey dude!" Hai said, waving at Izuku. In addition to his usual clothes, he had a black backpack and a dark panama hat — that had to belong to Mister — to hide his face a little.
"Hey, sorry for the wait..."
"Don't worry, it's okay. C'mon, we shouldn't stay here for too long."

   Hai gently took Izuku by the arm, making sure to not hurt him, and started walking in the streets, Izuku simply followed, not having a single idea of where they were going.

"Anyways, how was your day?" They asked, trying to start the small talk.
"Nothing really interesting, just a usual day of school."

   Katsuki had been quite 'nice' today, meaning he had not done much outside of the usual name-calling, the shoulder bump when Izuku was walking too close from him, without forgetting the flower on the desk but Izuku was pretty sure they were disposed by other students.

" 'Pa made me study literature today, 't was so boring, you have no idea." Hail said with an exaggerated sigh, which made Izuku giggle.

   They passed several alleyways, pretending to not see the drunk men they passed by. Izuku had been ready to grab his knife multiple times but the men had luckily never tried anything. They eventually got closer to a building, a rusty ladder was attached to the brick wall.

"Climb. It's quieter on the rooftops." Hai told Izuku.

   He did not have any choice but to do as he was told. He had never tried to hang out on the rooftops, even to watch a hero fight, he felt better on the ground, but if Hai thought they would be better on the rooftops, then they probably would. Climbing was easy, since he was now stronger, thanks to the training. Izuku quickly got to the top of the ladder, directly jumping on the roof to land on his feet.

"Wow, that's was so cool, dude!" Hai said as they finally got to the top of the ladder.
"Thanks, I've been doing a bit of parkour."
"Honestly, I'm pretty sure you work more than any pro-hero."
"I don't think so, counting the patrols, the paperwork, the interviews and everything else, I'm far from working as much as they do. For example, it's only rumors, but some people think that Hawks work for more than 75% of the day."
"Hm, that would explain how he got in the top 5 so quickly. Plus the fact that he's pretty." They exchanged a glance. "Oh c'mon, he's not really my type but I can recognize when someone's pretty! Anyway, follow me."

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