I hope you're doing okay! Don't forget to eat & drink if you haven't for a while, take your medication on time, and go to sleep if it's late! Enjoy the chapter <33
Discord server, if you're waking up to ash and dust: https://discord.gg/DSBF4dP
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Both of them froze up. Gentle let out a soft sigh, slowly reaching up towards his face to remove his mask and sunglasses. He dropped his cane on the ground, keeping his head dipped enough for the brim of his hat to cast a shadow over his features.
"You're a very perceptive boy," he commented, tucking the glasses in the pocket of his trench coat. "La Brava, start filming. I presume you've known this entire time, correct?"
"I've seen a few of your videos," Izuku confirmed with a one-shouldered shrug. "Please, don't make a move on my school. It wouldn't be very gentlemanly to ruin some kids' excitement."
"La Brava, there's been a change of plan," Gentle said lowly, grabbing a fistful of his coat. "From this moment on, no matter what happens, don't stop the camera!"
"Of course, Gentle!" She agreed, a note of anxiety in her tone as she raised the pink video camera. "But, but! Are you going to fight? Here? Do you think that's a good idea?"
"We don't need to fight. We can settle this with a polite conversation," Izuku suggested, still remaining in a casual stance but not dropping the threatening smile.
La Brava's eyes widened behind her tinted glasses. "Wait, I know you! That's Midoriya Izuku-kun – he broke his bones in the first-year Sports Festival! And then he was compared with All Might by Stain! He's strong and crazy!"
"Ah, I see my reputation precedes me," he said cheerfully.
Gentle glanced him up and down apprehensively. "I would say you don't look like much, but I know that looks can be deceiving. Would it be too hopeful to ask for you to step out of our way so we can continue with our plan?"
"I'm afraid I can't do that, Gentle-san," Izuku denied, letting his arms drop back to his sides.
"It seems we've reached an impasse," the criminal commented, sparing a glance at the camera. "Dear listeners! The grand adventure of a man of extraordinary talent is starting."
He tore off his trench coat, throwing it to the pavement as he tilted into a slight bow, one arm spread out and the other held across his chest. A large circle of air in front of him rippled faintly, and he put on a charming smile.
"Oh, that's a very flattering introduction of me. Thank you!" Izuku beamed, giving soft applause muffled by his gloves.
Gentle's expression twitched irritably, but he continued with his speech. "Don't be so dazzled you look away – I am the gentleman thief who will save the world: Gentle Criminal!" He turned to his short companion, making eye contact with the camera. "In this current predicament, I'll keep it brief. This time..." He dropped onto one knee, framing his chin with his thumb and pointer finger. "I tried going into UA!"
"I have one request, Gentle-san," Izuku spoke up calmly. "I don't want to disturb anyone with our fight. Let's take it away from the town, okay?"
"It would be rude not to honour such a polite request, Midoriya," he responded, getting to his feet and holding himself properly. "I don't like resolving things through violence, but a hero student such as yourself knows no other way of ending conflict, and due to your notoriety, I will not hold back."
Izuku feinted an front-on attack, green lightning flashing over his form. It was enough to spook them into doing as he expected - the ground beneath the criminals' feet wavered, then they both launched into the air. He halted and leapt up after them, landing on the rooftop to watch as they fled.
"I'm sorry, young man!" Gentle exclaimed in a panic. "I will overcome!"
"If you're going to apologise, don't attack my school!" He called back, observing as they bounced between invisible jump-pads before mimicking their trail.
"That is not something I can do!" The criminal answered nervously.
He glanced over his shoulder and twisted around just enough to throw up a large circle of elasticated air, intending to take the boy off-guard, but Izuku merely punched towards the ground and flung himself higher into the sky. The duo hopped along at a faster pace, and Gentle started to produce more circles at random intervals to try and make the sky harder to navigate. It turned into an invisible maze, putting a little more distance between the opponents as Izuku strained to recall each barrier placement. Gentle and La Brava were rapidly advancing towards the small, forested mountain in front of UA, yet they were still wasting time on showmanship by appealing to the camera.
Izuku raised his hand, curving all fingers down to press against his thumb. One for All danced around his form and coiled tighter around his wrist as he charged up the shot. He inhaled slowly, steadied his arm, then flicked all his fingers. His glove supercharged the shots into bullets of air that rocketed across the sky, a few rebounding on invisible barriers and making the air wobble enough for him to reorient himself to avoid them all easily. Wind tore through his curls as he kicked his legs and bounced higher, coming down to land on a horizontal platform and bending his knees before springing off again.
"We're all invested in this!" He yelled to his opponent. "Don't ruin the efforts of so many people for your own selfish desire to prove yourself! Who are you even trying to prove yourself to, huh? Is it really worth it?!"
"All my tasks are worth my time! I'm showing the people the side of things that both the heroes and villains neglect! This entrance into UA will give me the recognition I deserve," Gentle responded, abruptly dropping them onto a air cushion far lower when the boy got too close. "I will definitely make my plan succeed! I have the resolve to do it! A gentleman does not lose his composure."
Izuku flicked one finger, sending a concentrated blast of air into the criminal's back and overbalancing him. "Are you sure about that? 'Cause you look pretty nervous to me. What's the deal with your fixation with UA, anyway? What's your plan?"
Gentle picked himself up with gritted teeth, throwing up barriers to cover him from three sides and advancing in the remaining space. "What's my plan? Please, don't lump me with those people from the League of Villains. I am not trying to kidnap or stab anyone. All I want is to sneak into your school festival. That's all."
The boy glanced down to check on their progress. There were still too many buildings below to be able to tackle the criminal to the ground without causing some property damage or disturbing people. He had to let them get a little further, until they reached the mountain. At the very least, his task was made easier with the knowledge that La Brava would never willingly abandon her partner, so wherever Gentle went, she would follow.
"You know that we're on emergency alert, don't you?" Izuku exclaimed, flipping over another barrier and twisting horizontally to fly between two more. "If someone like you is found, the alarm will sound and the festival will be cancelled."
"It will be fine, I assure you. My partner has devised a way to disable the alarm sensors. It won't be cancelled-"
"You've only accounted for the alarms? What about the patrolling heroes? The increased security? The sheer amount of people who will definitely notice an unfamiliar person in their midst?!" Izuku launched over their heads and dropped down in front of them, acting threatening enough to urge them higher into the air and not bother the citizens in the street below.
Gentle looked down at him, eyes wide in panic as he threw up a large walkway of elasticated air, keeping the boy trapped below. "You underestimate our stealth-"
"You underestimate your carelessness! This festival is the culmination of months of hard work from the entire student body... So many people are looking forward to this, you know? With all these villain attacks, and the retirement of All Might, everyone's so scared! This festival will give them something to be happy about, and you just want to take it away for- for what? You just want a bit of fame? You want attention? Grow up!" He snarled at his opponent, kicking sideways and then hopping up onto the same walkway as they hurried ahead. "If you do things solely for the sake of attention, your intentions aren't pure! You're no gentleman!"
It was taking too much time to herd them forward. There wasn't long before he needed to be back on school campus and get ready for the performance. He would not let Eri down.
They were on edge thanks to his notoriety, but were slowly letting down their guard in the face of his suppressed talents. The moment they were properly lulled into a false sense of security, he would take them down. Gentle scooped her up and continued bouncing between the membranes, and La Brava held the camera over his shoulder to get a good shot of the boy approaching.
A road wound around the mountain, up to UA. There was a single yellow car trundling along, and the criminal suddenly dropped down towards it, only to be punted away mid-fall by a powerful kick from Izuku. The boy stumbled a few steps when his feet touched the ground, wincing as the car honked at him and barely skidded to a halt just a few inches from his leg. He reluctantly tore his gaze away from his quarry to apologise to the driver, only to see Aizawa behind the wheel, with Mirio in the seat behind, and Eri in the far back.
Izuku blanched, waving his hands frantically. "Oh, hey, good to see you guys – I can't stop and chat right now, I'm a little busy, but after the show we can absolutely catch up so I'll see you there, um, yeah, have a safe journey, bye-"
He launched himself back into the sky before Aizawa could get out of the car. La Brava's bright carmen hair acted like a beacon, and he locked onto their position just before they could fall below the canopy. Izuku flashed forwards in a glitter of green, bursting through the leaves and knocking Gentle off-balance with an air bullet, then slapping his hands onto their backs and using his momentum to shove them into the dirt. They went down with heavy thuds, and the camera tumbled across the grass.
"Don't resist," he told them firmly. "Please, just give up."
"I love you," La Brava whispered to her partner.
...that seemed like an odd time to say-
"Thank you, La Brava," Gentle murmured.
Pink smoke bubbled off his body in the shape of hearts. A fizz of pink lightning thrummed over the arm pinned behind his back. The smoke grew more intense, rising up in heady pillars as Gentle trembled, pushing himself up off ground despite Izuku holding him down.
Wait. La Brava's Quirk was-
Ah, fuck.
Static energy made the hairs on his arms prickle, and then-
Izuku was flung off in a rapid spin. He gasped in a breath, twisting to put down his hands and burn off the twirling momentum in an impromptu breakdance move, and not daring to spend a second to recover from the nauseating movement before shifting into a wary crouch with one palm against the grass.
"I don't like using brute force, so I always cut scenes like this," Gentle told him, standing tall with La Brava in one arm and a shroud of pink smoke oozing skyward. "As I expected, no matter how much publicity Stain got for his barbaric methods, his judgement is poor. My caution in fighting you was unneeded. I respect your politeness, Midoriya, but despite your impressive reputation, you're not much of an opponent."
Izuku let out a soft huff of laughter, grinning and slowly raising his head. "You went to UA, didn't you, Gentle-san?"
"...that was a long time ago," he admitted lowly.
"Well, didn't they tell you to never underestimate your opponent?"
A Gently Sandwich slammed down where he had been a second prior, but he was already gone, skidding in behind the duo. Gentle barely turned in time to catch a punch with enhanced enough strength to nullify the hit, only to be taken by surprise when Izuku swiped out a leg and knocked him backwards. He caught himself on an elastic barrier, springing back to his feet and swiftly dodging away with unease in his posture.
Present Mic's voice screeched across the landscape as he announced the start of the festival.
"I've fought against stronger and faster people. You seemed like a decent man and I was hoping to appeal to your morals, but... You're not listening," Izuku sighed, splaying his palms tiredly. "One last chance to surrender, Gentle-san, before I stop holding back."
"I want to fulfill the fleeting dream of my middle years... To leave my name in history! For posterity! This dream is no longer a dream I hold for myself." Gentle slowly put La Brava back on the ground, drawing himself up to his full height, grey hair standing on end in the energy of her Quirk. "It's not so trivial that I can just give it up when someone tells me to!"
Izuku stared at him sympathetically, One for All blazing brighter over his skin as he raised it higher. "Sorry, Gentle-san."
In a flash of green, he was in front of his opponent, feinting for a frontal attack before leaping up behind Gentle. Izuku flicked a finger and sent a brutal air bullet slamming in between the criminal's shoulder blades, knocking the breath from his lungs and sending him toppling forward. There was no use pleading to Gentle's decent morals, and no matter how much Izuku wished the criminal would just surrender, it wasn't worth wasting any more time over.
Gentle rapidly picked himself up, turning to try and retaliate, but Izuku slammed a foot into his gut and sent him crashing back into a tree trunk. The bark quickly turned elastic and allowed him to bounce off and do his best to track Izuku's movements, but the boy was moving too quickly, sprinting and shooting between trees and landing hits on the stationary man.
"You can mock me and say that I'm mentally weak! That's fine!" Gentle growled, backing up into the centre of the small clearing.
Izuku shook his head exasperatedly, dropping down from above. "It takes a strong kind of person to keep going when it seems all hope is lost – but, no matter your dream, you shouldn't step on other people to advance."
Gentle was forced to remain in a frozen defensive stance, attempting to shield himself with his Quirk. It wasn't an option for him to box himself in, since that would just trap him, but the intention was clearly to force Izuku to be limited to attacking from one angle. Izuku skidded to a halt with all his fingers curved, then shot a barrage of air pressure attacks into the clear bunker. Each bullet ricocheted wildly and repeatedly smacked the criminal, giving the boy an opportunity to dart in, snatch him away, then slam him into the ground with enough force to send out a shockwave that rustled the leaves.
La Brava sobbed and hurried over, weakly pounding her fists against Izuku's arm to try and get him to let go. Tears were streaming down her face and her expression was twisted in misery. The boy remained in place, taking deep breaths to try and steady his heartrate and push back the guilt he felt.
"Run... away," Gentle rasped to La Brava, but she just shook her head furiously.
"If you know the importance of dreams, why would you trample of everyone's hopes? How can you steal people's hard work and passion, and the smile of a girl who doesn't know how to smile yet?" Izuku muttered, reaching down to clutch the criminal's shoulder.
"You... why do you want to be a hero?" Gentle asked quietly, nearly limp in his grasp as wisps of pink smoke rose off his body, a whole lot less intense than before.
"I'm the same as you, Gentle-san. My dream isn't just my own anymore. It was a dream I'd given up on from the bottom of my heart, until someone was kind enough to acknowledge me and support me. There are so many people hoping I'll succeed... I want to live up to their expectations," he admitted in a soft voice. "For every person who's sad and hopeless and hurt... I want to become someone who can show them a bright future. That's why I want to become a hero, Gentle-san."
"Let go of him! What 'bright future?!'" La Brava sobbed, eyes squeezed shut as she continued harmlessly hammering her fists on the boy's shoulder. "Gentle is my only light! Don't take my Gentle from me! Don't take him away!"
"I really am sorry, La Brava-san," Izuku murmured with enough deep sincerity that she paused. "But, I promise you... Good actions lead to a good future." He raised his head, hearing a distant rustle in the bushes. "Heroes are on their way..."
La Brava only cried harder. Gentle suddenly tensed under his grasp, a fresh burst of pink energy wreathing around his form as he pushed up, and Izuku didn't resist, letting himself get launched into the sky. A circle of elasticated air appeared underneath him, gently bouncing him a further distance before he dropped below the canopy and landed in a practised crouch. He stood up and hurried towards the sound of voices, hopping over the few bushes and emerging back into the clearing.
Hound Dog was clutching the front of Gentle's top, and he had his hands raised in surrender. The hero glanced over at Izuku with an intense expression. La Brava desperately crawled along the forest floor towards her partner, shakily getting to her feet with her gloved hands outstretched.
"I have committed many crimes up until now, but my greatest crime was to kidnap and brainwash an innocent girl," Gentle confessed in a low tone, and she crept up to grab at his coat-tails, crying.
"What about your injuries? Were you fighting?" Hound Dog snarled over at the boy.
Izuku glanced over the stinging places on his body, noticing scratches. "Oh, sorry, it's okay, these were from the trees and bushes. I realised that Gentle-san was going to play a joke on UA, so we had a small disagreement, but it's fine now."
"Are you sure, Midoriya-kun? Aizawa called us earlier when he saw you go past with this villain," Ectoplasm asked dubiously.
"Aw, he called you because he was worried about me?" Izuku said with big, teary eyes, giving a sniffle and regaining his composure. "He's so nice... But, really, Ectoplasm-san, it's okay."
Hound Dog growled and started leading the criminals away, flanked with several of Ectoplasm's clones. La Brava was furiously wiping at her eyes but going willingly with her partner. Gentle paused and the heroes hesitated with him.
"I'm in no position to say this," he whispered, "but I hope your feelings reach those you want them to reach."
~
"hey xen, if izuku is so powerful why did this fight take so long to finish??" look i could give you the disingenuous in-universe reasons or i could just share the main reason: i,,, really like writing fight scenes, okay. i've said this so many times. don't JUDGE meee