Narrator Pov:
It had been around a week after the I-Island incident. By now, the news about everything that happened had calmed down, though there was still the occasional mention of the "unknown individual that leaves an S with their victims".
The class of 1-A was currently at a shopping mall. They were there to buy things that they would need or want for the upcoming summer training camp. A couple days ago, they were told by Aizawa that everyone in the Hero Course would be going, including Class 1-B. The class had planned to meet together to get everything they needed.
Izuku, in his disguise as Hotaru, agreed to come along. He had recovered from his battle with Wolfram in the past week, as did the others. Izuku didn't know this until after everything happened, but the reason why Touya looked so much more beat up was because he had to fight Midoriya by himself after Kurogiri and Tomura went to help Izuku.
Touya had taken off his gauntlets and got into a fistfight with Midoriya when they were in the plane. He ended up having to beat him to death because Midoriya would keep trying to fight. Touya couldn't use his fire and he didn't want to risk getting injured and letting Midoriya go.
The class had just split up to get the things that they needed. Izuku had gone to browse around with Hitoshi and Izumi. Izuku observed how they interacted with each other. To him, it seemed that they were starting to get along better.
Izuku Pov:
I walked with my hands in the pockets of my big hoodie. I also wore a scarf and black jeans as well as my sun and moon earrings. I had my hair down since I was feeling particularly cold this morning.
"Shigaraki," Shinso eyed the clothes I was wearing, "It's the summer and you're wearing that?"
"I-I get cold easily, remember?" I responded.
"Yeah, I know, but... that cold?" he questioned.
"Yes," I said matter-of-factly.
"Alright..." he sighed.
"Guys, what do you plan on getting?" Izumi got our attention.
Shinso and I both took a second to respond.
"I think I'll probably just get new clothes," Shinso shrugged, "And maybe some sunscreen? I'm not sure."
"I'll just get some stuff to help me train," Izumi nodded.
After that, they both looked to me, probably expecting me to share. I actually wasn't sure if I needed anything, but then, I remembered.
"O-Oh yeah-- I need some new workout clothes that can keep me warm. I have old ones, but they don't fit as well anymore."
They both seemed to accept the answer. Izumi separated from Shinso and I and went to another place to get what she needed. We went to one of the many clothes shops around.
There weren't too many people inside of the store, which I was somewhat thankful for. I would rather not have to walk through a crowd of people. We stepped in and started looking around. We walked past a couple different sections.
As we walked I saw a t-shirt with the kanji for shirt on it. There was another one that said "Polo Shirt". To be completely honest, I probably would've been wearing something like that now had it not been for Kurogiri's wisdom on fashion.
I went to the exercise section and Shinso went to another section of the store. My eyes skimmed through the racks that held clothes. The clothes that I grabbed were dark-colored, tight, big, and warm. I was quick to bring them all to the counter.
The cashier gave me a strange look-- probably because of what I was wearing-- and took the clothes that I had chosen. As he was scanning them, I turned my head to look for Shinso. From where I was, I could see him eyeing a cat hoodie.
The reason why I needed new workout clothes was because I usually just wore my costume's jumpsuit to train. I didn't think it would be a great idea to just wear my villain/vigilante costume to a hero training camp.
I payed the cashier with some money that Kurogiri had given me beforehand. I got my new clothes in a bag and went towards Shinso.
"I-I've got my clothes," I acted a stutter, "I'll j-just walk around."
He responded with a nod. Shortly after, I left the store.
I walked past clumps of people. The sound of conversation and footsteps filled my ears. Occasionally, I could feel someone's eyes on me.
'Maybe some people recognize me or something.'
Even if they did recognize me, I didn't care. In my opinion, the only useful thing that a hero's fame could be useful for is lowering crime rates. Then again, a hero's fame could also cause the making of a villain.
I walked, looking around at the various shops.
'Now that I think about it, Izumi looked a little tired,' I thought, 'It was a little hard to notice, but there were dark circles under her eyes, though they weren't too bad.'
It was slightly concerning considering that I've never seen her have circles under her eyes. She also seemed to keep to herself a little more than usual, so it wouldn't be illogical to assume that something was going on.
As I was walking, I noticed something. I saw some kids looking at some masks. The weird part was that the masks were of Chizumo.
'Why are there masks of him?' I wondered.
I took a moment to think. Then, I remembered that Touya showed me a video once. It was a video of Chizumo resisting arrest. It took place after Kurogiri had taken me away from the fight in Hosu. In the video, Chizumo had activated Fear Inducement and he had given a speech about his ideals. It was very cool.
After that, Chizumo had gained popularity. There were talks about him on online forums and other websites. There were people that agreed with his views and some that rejected it. The Hero Commission hasn't said anything about it yet, so I guess businesses are just taking advantage of Chizumo's popularity by selling products made of him.
Curious, I walked into the store. There weren't that many people in it, and there were actually some people that were obviously avoiding it. I stepped through the store's racks. They were all filled with various merchandise. If I were younger, I might've freaked out seeing all of this.
Eventually, I made it to the back of the store. What I saw there... it hurt me. There was no way that what I saw here didn't permanently damage my soul. My eyes were beheld to these products, made of cloth and printed with various individuals on their surfaces.
I came face to face with body pillows!
Not only that, but right in front of my eyes was a body pillow of a person that I had looked up to as a parent figure for the past three years. There was a body pillow of Chizumo... One with him fully clothed in some sort of... bashful position???
There was another one as well! This one had a print of Chizumo in almost no clothing at all. He was in... no...
'Why does this exist.'
He was in some sort of... submissive position... with a... a strange expression on his face.
'I can't look,' I thought as I turned my head away from the monstrosity that I just witnessed.
That was when one of the store's employees came up to me.
"Oh? You interested?" he said with a smirk on his face.
'Ok Izuku,' I said internally, 'Keep your act up.'
"Ew no," I said bluntly.
'Dang it.'
Immediately after I said that, the employee looked at me in a shocked expression and then in an angry one. Then, I realized that I what I said sounded somewhat homophobic.
"Ah, sorry," I spoke, "I didn't mean it that way. I just-- um-- not into people that old, you know?"
His expression changed in an instant back into a smile.
"I understand," he nodded, "If you'd like me to guide you to some of our other products that fit your tastes, then just ask."
Shortly after, he left me alone.
I stood in silence for a moment...
Then, I realized something.
'I just called Chizumo old!' I gasped internally, 'Wait, I've already called him old before...'
I let out an audible sigh and started making my way out of the store. As I walked, I passed a lizard-looking man with a hood over his head. He looked around with this look in his eyes. The way his eyes gleamed with a sort of determination reminded me of... the determination that I used to have towards becoming a hero. I lost that, but now, I have another goal.
I then made my way towards where we, the class, had decided to meet back up when we were finished with our shopping. I sat down on a bench and placed my bag of clothes next to me. Next to me, was a girl that seemed to be of similar age to me.
I gave her a side glance. She had long black hair that was tied up as well as gold eyes. She had this aura around her that I couldn't quite pinpoint. She had her own shopping items with her. She also didn't seem to notice me yet.
I just sat there and shut my eyes, snuggling up into my scarf. I could feel looks on me as I sat. I couldn't tell why people were giving me looks, but it was most likely because of my clothes again.
"Hey Shigaraki!" Shinso's voice called out to me.
I opened my eyes and saw him coming up to my position.
"Oh," I said, "Hi Shinso-san."
"Shigaraki, you have to stop resting your eyes in public," Shinso rubbed his forehead, "It's dangerous for someone that..."
In that moment, his face flushed a slight shade of red as he stopped what he was saying.
"What is it?" I asked, actually not understanding why he was acting this way.
Shinso shook his head, "It's nothing... just don't be so vulnerable in public."
"I-I'm fine," I said, "Even if I was approached, I would've been fine."
"Did you bring your capture weapon again or something?" Shinso asked in an exasperated tone.
"N-No, since Aizawa-sensei said that heroes had the right to confiscate certain support items," I told him before whispering the next part, "But, I do have a knife in my shoe."
Shinso just gave me a deadpan look. I let out a small giggle in response.
Sakiri Pov:
'That's Shigaraki Hotaru, right?' I thought.
The boy next to me had gotten up and started talking to whom I assumed to be his friend. He looked like the boy that I had seen a couple weeks ago and his friend called out to him with the name "Shigaraki".
'Could he be related to Scourge, somehow?' I wondered, 'It's really unlikely, though. I can't make a judgement just from surnames.'
I watched as the two talked to each other. Shigaraki Hotaru's voice sounded sort of like Scourge's, but his voice held so much emotion. When I heard Scourge speak, his voice didn't hold much emotion. Even though he was smiling, he spoke in a monotonous tone.
I had previously been getting stuff that Mom wanted me to buy for her. Now, I was just resting my legs before I went home.
As they were talking, I noticed that Shigaraki took a glance at me. His eyes held a sense of familiarity even though we've never met before.
'Unless... no, he can't be...' I told myself.
I hadn't seen Scourge's eyes either, so it made so sense why this person's eyes would see familiar to me. I've seen him before-- yes-- but it just didn't make sense.
'Maybe it's just the feeling that Scourge had around him,' I told myself, 'When I was by him, he had this feeling around him. I got that same feeling now... when I'm right next to Shigaraki Hotaru.'
I panicked internally for a second. Could Scourge really be related to this hero course student? If my theory about Scourge's age was correct, then that would mean that these two would be of a similar age. Maybe they were twins? Or maybe they were the same person? Then again, why would Scourge pretend to be in the hero course? Then again, I understand very little about Scourge, so maybe there's an underlying reason...
I was so deep in thought that I hadn't even noticed that Shigaraki Hotaru and his friend had already left.
Izuku Pov:
I was walking back to the bar. After I had met up with the rest of the class, they were going to hang out with each other some more. I had told them that I had something that I had to do, so I left.
I carried my bag over my shoulder. Eventually, I made it to the outside of the bar. There wasn't anyone around, so I just opened the door and walked in.
Right as I entered, a sword was pointed directly at my eyes.
"Stop right there!" "What are you doing here? You're welcomed here any time!"
'Why do I feel like this has happened before?'
Word Count{not including this}: 2229
AN: Thanks for 40k reads! I'm just going to say this for absolutely no reason, but I'm honestly not proud of some of the first chapters of this. I didn't start editing my chapters until a couple chapters ago, so before that probably isn't great. Also, I have no idea what I was thinking when I wrote some of the past stuff.
Just felt like saying this. I'm wondering if I should start writing a Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild fanfiction, another BNHA/MHA fanfiction, or a Minecraft fanfiction. I know that last one sounds kinda weird, but when I say that, I mean like with ocs and stuff.
Anyway, thanks for reading this chapter! I hope you enjoyed and I hope you have a good rest of your day or night!