It was the second day of the hero agency internship week.
"Good morning, Sir!" Izuku came into the hero's office and set down his costume case, "Do you have anything for me to work on today?"
"Go patrol, and keep an eye out for any suspicious activity," Nighteye took a sip from his cup of coffee with his usual annoyed expression.
"Am I patrolling on my own?"
"Nah! I'll be going with you!" Another voice suddenly exploded from behind Izuku, making him jump.
"Togata!" Izuku beamed at the sight of the third-year student.
Togata was wearing his hero costume, with his signature red cape and "1000000" stamped across his chest. His blond hair and bright blue eyes shined in the late morning sunlight that was pouring through the office windows.
"You know me?" Togata raised his eyebrows, "Holy pretzel, I must be famous!"
Izuku tried to hide his panic.
Seriously, Izuku? Yelling the name of someone you haven't met yet?
"Uh...Yeah!" Izuku racked his brain for an excuse, "I've seen you from the sports festival! And you're one of the big three, right? I've heard a lot of stories about you!"
"Well, buckle up, my friend," Togata winked, "Cause you're gonna experience all the awesomeness in person now!"
The third-year student burst into laughter, and Izuku smiled along, glad that Togata was so energetic, and will continue to be even when times get dark.
"I'm just joking," Togata put a hand on Izuku's shoulder, "I'm actually really excited to work with you, sports festival winner."
"Mirio, take Midoriya with you for the morning patrol," Sir Nighteye ordered.
"Yes, Sir!"
After changing into his hero costume, Izuku followed Togata outside the building and onto their patrol route.
As Izuku traveled on the sidewalks, he paid close attention to any alleyway, storefront, or street corner that villains, especially Overhaul, may be lurking in. When they passed the street where they met Eri in his last life, Izuku couldn't help but stop in his tracks.
"Is something wrong?" Togata looked back.
"No," Izuku stared into the darkness of the alley, then looked away. "Nothing's wrong."
He must've sounded grim because Togata immediately put on his joking face.
"Hey Midoriya, what's your hero name?"
"Deku."
"Deku. Hmm, that's an interesting name. But anyway, Deku, do you want to hear a tip about being a hero?"
Izuku knew it would probably be a silly joke, seeing the look on Togata's face, "Sure."
"You wanna know how heroes keep their cool?"
"How?"
"They have a lot of fans!"
Right when Izuku was about to facepalm he heard the voice of a teenage boy yell, "Dude! Is that the U.A. guy?"
"Wait, that's right!" A girl's shrill voice responded, "It's the first-year sports festival winner!"
Izuku glanced to his right and realized that he and Togata were passing the entrance of a local high school, where students were trickling in for the weekday morning. A group of teenagers his age was looking right at him in awe.
"Smile and wave," Togata slapped Izuku on the back.
As Izuku stiffly followed Togata's orders, one of the girls came over and asked if Izuku -- and Togata, who they recognized as the "U.A. stripper" -- could take a selfie with the group. The two hero interns agreed. Of course, Togata had to emphasize that he was not, in fact, a stripper.
"I don't know how I'm going to deal with this part of the job," Izuku sighed in relief as they left the school's vicinity and continued their patrol, "it's overwhelming."
"I'm sure you'll get used to it," Togata laughed, "and speaking of the sports festival, what happened with that super duper long delay before your final round?"
Izuku didn't see a problem in telling Togata the half-truth.
"My quirk strengthens my body, and my semifinal round was the first time that I tried strengthening my senses. However, just like how high levels of power can destroy my body, I used too much power on my senses, and basically...almost fried my brain."
"That's so cool! I mean, not the brain-frying part. That's not cool. The idea of strengthening your senses."
"Thanks," Izuku chuckled, "And to be honest, maybe I was inspired by you a little, too."
"Really?"
"Doesn't your quirk have a bunch of downsides, too? But you still became the strongest hero student I've ever heard of. That's super impressive."
"I'm glad that you thought that. I'm gonna get even more powerful so I can become a better hero," Togata sighed, his voice turning solemn, "Y'know, it's heartbreaking to think that every single moment, there's someone crying for help. That's why I chose the hero name Lemillion. I'm going to become someone who can save a million people."
Izuku nodded. "I know you will."
•••
When they arrived back at the Nighteye agency, Bubble Girl informed the interns that Nighteye had left with Centipeder for an investigation.
"So, Nighteye wants you, Lemillion, to train Midoriya," the sidekick said.
"Oh no," Izuku waved his hands, "that really won't be necessary."
The memory of Togata's punch in the gut almost made Izuku double up again.
"Come on, it'll be great!" Togata said with an innocent smile.
Izuku sighed. He knew it would be unpleasant, but deep down, of course, he wanted to try. With his extra experience... He was dying to know whether or not he had closed the distance.
Soon, the two made it to an underground room that looked like a large dance studio without mirrors. Izuku had never been in this room before.
"I've been training here ever since I started studying under Sir," Togata walked to the other end of the room and stretched, "now show me what you've got."
Izuku started his attack with a kick, but Togata immediately sunk into the ground and reappeared behind him. Izuku narrowly dodged a punch, then countered with swift attacks.
In order to attack, Togata would need to solidify, whether that be a fist or a knee or whatever. So the only way to land a blow, Izuku figured, was to predict where Togata could be attacking from, and directly counter that.
"Ok," Togata smirked, "I see what you're doing. You're on the right track, but definitely not enough."
Togata barely needed to move to dodge or parry, and most of Izuku's kicks just slipped through Togata's body like air.
"My turn," Togata vanished into the ground and burst back to the surface with a powerful punch. Izuku managed to block that, but Togata continued to attack from weird angles, warping from place to place. As a result, Izuku only blocked a few more punches before he simply became a punching bag.
"POWER!" Togata yelled as he delivered the final blow -- a punch to Izuku's gut.
Izuku crumpled face-first into the ground and groaned in pain, "Was... that necessary?"
Togata just laughed, "You put up a pretty good fight, first-year. Though I'm sure you have a lot more tricks up your sleeve, with a body-destroying and brain-frying quirk like yours."
"I just..." Izuku struggled to his feet, "... Wish I could improve my combat skills so I'm not always depending on my quirk."
"You're absolutely on the right track," Togata said encouragingly, "Still weak, yeah, but a lot stronger than I expected. Have you trained with Sir yet?"
"Not yet."
"Well, he'll already be real proud of you! That's some prediction skills right there."
"But as you said, it's not enough. I need to get faster."
"Hmm... No, you have enough speed. What you need is precision. You need to recognize instantly, what's the opponent gonna do, and what's the most effective way to defeat 'em."
"I can't think that fast."
"Don't worry, it comes with experience."
Izuku nodded, then raised his fists. "Again."