MHA: GAMER PATH

Chapter 140: Parent's Day Arc (1)

~Third POV~

[3 Days Later, UA Highschool, Mock City, Japan]

It happened in an instant. No sooner had the villain in the black cape and mask released the lighter into the pit than a roaring blaze exploded forth, as if from the very gates of hell. Buffeted by the blast of hot air, the students of Class 1-A despite themselves.

They stood frozen in place, eyes locked desperately on the flames forced to bear the screams from the cage. The cage that held their parents. Izuku Midoriya's eyes always held a certain strength he was hoping to become a hero, after all, and now that strength burned even brighter, fanned by the flames.

"Izuku!"

"Mom!"

The boy's mother shouted for help, extending her hand from within the cage, and Midoriya reached out instinctively. But between them was a field of fire, sturdy iron bars, and a villain. It had all begun 3 days earlier…

/////

[Earlier 3 Days, UA Highschool, USJ, Japan]

"Next Midoriya."

Aizawa's unconcerned voice echoed across the ruined cityscape. Seemingly without a care in the world, Class 1-A's homeroom teacher peered up through his long unkempt hair at a group of his students.

The kids perched on the third floor of a building that was on the verge of collapsing. Then came a nervous reply from Izuku Midoriya, a freckled boy with an unruly mop of hair and distinctly plain features, "Okay…"

Ochaco's face poked out from within the line of girls behind Midoriya, "Good luck, Izuku!"

At his friend's smile and cheery encouragement, he stepped into a tube leading to the ground below. The emergency chute warped under Midoriya's weight as he slid down; the perfect tool for evacuating tall buildings was as simple as any playground slide.

This was UA High School, and Class 1-A of the school's Hero Course was amid Basic Hero Training. Their sprawling campus was home to several facilities including a stadium that could seat tens of thousands and even the Unforeseen Simulation Joint (USJ) which provided heroes in training with simulations of myriad natural disasters.

With the League of Villains' actions on the rise, they were busy doing rescue training as they drilled in a derelict urban zone, also on school grounds. After a moment of near-free fall, Izuku popped out of the evacuation chute, "Hup!"

Getting out, Aizawa spoke up, directing to the girl's turn as he stooped, "Great, boys are done. Girls next. Come on down, Yaoyorozu."

Izuku grinned having done and doing Hero training as Bakugo yelled out loud, "Wipe that dumb grin off your sorry excuse for a face, Deku."

Katsuki Bakugo, who now glared at him from a few paces away. Midoriya was plenty used to verbal abuse and more from his childhood friend, but things had gotten better since high school started, as Bakugo found himself surrounded by classmates less willing to put up with his eternal bad attitude Bakugo said with a light growl, "Evac training is just the pits, is all."

It was when Ren Yuki scolded Bakugo, shaking his head helplessly as he spoke carelessly, "How can you say that? Any hero worth his salt must be ready to prioritize the rescue at any time. Learning how to utilize lifesaving tools such as this one is key in the future."

Bakugo merely scoffs at his words as he states the obvious, giving Ren a murderous gaze, "Like I care. We all have our strengths, y'know? Let someone else handle the rescues while I kick some villain's ass."

Ren sighed at Bakugo's words as Shoto Todoroki, a boy with an old burn covering a swath of his stony face, said, "He's not wrong about people having different strengths. I just mean it's hard to picture Bakugo saving anyone."

He only nodded, agreeing to their words as Denki, with a sly grin, causing Bakugo to freeze yelling at him only for Denki to add in, "No doubt! He'd probably hurt'em even worse!"

Bakugo shot back as a small explosion burst from the palm of his hand, angrily saying, "How about I make you my first 'rescue' then!"

The last of the girls had popped out of the chute. Some stared at the squabbling boys, shocked and dismissive, while others moved in to stop the fighting.

In the end, it was their teacher's composed voice that did it as he said, "Have you all forgotten why you're here?"

The students of Class 1-A snapped to attention at the sound of Aizawa's gravelly reprimand. Their teacher believed in rationality above all else, and the past few months had made them wary of this side of him.

Aizawa's typically listless eyes opened wide in a flash of red, activating his Quirk [Erasure] as the kids popped down, and the energy left Aizawa's eyes as he said stoically, "Different strengths or not, excuses like that won't cut it once you're on the scene. Proheroes willingly do whatever they can to help. When the police and rescue teams can't make it in time, it's up to you to point evacuees toward safety."

However, Toru Hagakure raised her hand, asking in a confused tone on the subject, "Isn't it faster to save them for real instead of just guiding them or whatever?"

But Momo asked curiously as she questioned Aizawa's example, "I believe Sensei is referring to mass evacuations?"

Aizawa confirmed Yaoyorozu's suspicion with a curt nod and went on explaining to the class in a serious tone, "Exactly. Saving one or two people is one thing, but these rescue tools are invaluable when dealing with a larger group. You don't want to find yourselves lacking the knowledge to use them when the time comes, which is why their basic application is part of our curriculum. Understood Bakugo?"

Singled out by his name, Bakugo uttered 'sure' a huge concession for him. Nearby, Midoriya gave a small gasp and began muttering to himself.

Aiming to be a pro, Midoriya was a die-hard hero fanboy who never stopped taking notes, mental or otherwise. At first, his classmates had been horrified when he would fall into a trance and start thinking out loud, but by now everyone had come to accept his odd habit, Bakugo aside.

Having been given their lesson Aizawa said, "Anyhow, next up is…"

But Aizawa was cut off by a roar from above as his dumbfounded students watched a helicopter descend on their position. A massive figure leaped from the door, nearly blotting out the sun as he fell, "I am here… from the sky!"

"All Might, is that you?!"

The number one hero's rippling muscles hit the ground and shook the earth. The pair of forelocks shooting straight from his brow swayed gently in the helicopter's wake. A broad grin exposed his gleaming white teeth as he said proudly, "So sorry I'm late everyone! I was on my way when wouldn't you know it? A pesky villain turned up, just begging to be dealt with!"

Aizawa, on the other hand, rolled his eyes as he bluntly stated to the number 1 hero, "Unbelievable. This was supposed to be your class to teach. Sigh… come on, class, we wouldn't want to keep the chopper waiting, would we?"

Shinso blinked with clear confusion as he asked the obvious gazing at the chopper landing near them, "The helicopter? You mean it wasn't just bringing you here…?"

Gesturing to All Might he shook his head as he explained in a loud tone waving his finger at the students, "There's no emergency, kid. And I'd never use it just to make a grand entrance. No, the helicopter is part of your rescue training! Prepare yourselves!"

Everyone nodded as they boarded the chopper. They continued their rescue hero practice as usual…

/////

[Later, UA Highschool, Class 1-A, Japan]

After a bit of rescue training on a snowcapped mountain and then by the waterfront, the students returned to the classroom. As they entered, Denki muttered to himself, recalling the rescue exercise, "If I ever drown, I wanna get CPR from a chick… hot, heavy, and deep. Enough to take my breath away!"

Ren, entering the class next to him, raised an eyebrow as he asked, confused, "Wouldn't that defeat the point?"

As Ren and Kaminari chatted, the class eventually returned to class, taking their seats. Aizawa entered the classroom, and everyone straightened in their seats as he announced to everyone, "Good work today. Moving right along, we'll be having Parents' Day next 3 days ahead."

The students clamored at Aizawa's announcement as Kirishima yelped in surprise, "Even the Hero Course has gotta do stuff like that?"

Aizawa ignored the groans and grumbles as he spoke in a calm tone, addressing the class, "Yes. With the rise of villains as of late, it'll be the best way to show the parents how their children are protected within UA. Not only that, it helps resolve some issues or others missing their parents."

Everyone paused, hearing that since they started their dorms, not everyone had gotten the chance to say hello to their folks. Aizawa then continued his explanation, "During the class, you will each read your letters aloud to your parents."

It dawned on the students just how serious their teacher was, and they couldn't conceal their discomfort. However, Aizawa spoke up shutting them up in a calm tone said, "As aspiring heroes, you're all bound to receive thanks and appreciation from those you save. Which is why it's essential to consider just what that entails. Well, not that you all becoming pros is necessarily set in stone."

Everyone gulped from Aizawa's words, understanding that their parents would be coming. If only they knew what was really in store for them as Ren thought curiously, 'Now that's just a dick move Aizawa-Sensei. You know for a fact that isn't what it's going to happen.'

Ren could only mentally sigh about what's gonna happen and his role to play. But for now, he had to keep that fact to himself.

//////

[After School, UA Highschool, Class 1-A, Japan]

Walking out of the school, Ren muttered out loud, looking seemingly annoyed as he said, "Parent's Day, huh? And what do we do about these letters?"

Todoroki also looked confused as he told the troubled Ren, "No choice but to write them…"

Ida was also walking with the two boys, voiced his thoughts calmly, "I had my doubts at first, but now it seems like a fantastic idea. Naturally, we feel grateful to our families for all they do, but we rarely get to express that in words. I wonder if there's a page limit? It's too short, and I'm afraid I won't be able to fit all my feelings into the letter."

The three boys were walking home, still in their uniform, and Ren couldn't help but reply to Ida's words curiously, "Wow, Ida. Do you think you'll be writing that much…? I can't even imagine how to start."

A helpless chuckle escaped Ren's mouth, knowing for a fact who he was because of his status as Ida responded, "Is that so? I find myself writing thank you cards now and again."

Listening, Izuku couldn't help but ask curiously, "For what?"

Hearing his question, Ida tossed the idea as he explained stoically, answering his friend's question, "When I help senior citizens cross the street, for instance, they sometimes send me gifts in the mail. My parents raised me to always reply with a thank you card on such occasions."

They nodded in understanding as Ren spoke up getting something from his [Sub-Space] casually saying, "Oh right I almost forgot about this."

The boy's eyes were raised as Ren pulled out an envelope out of his [Sub-Space] he explained with a calm expression, "I received these theme park tickets from Native for the three of us. The hero who was on the scene when I fought Stain. He sent me a ticket to invite 3 of my friends to an amusement park."

They nodded as Todoroki couldn't help but ask in a confused tone, "Why four?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Ren explained bluntly unsure himself, "Because most of the rides at theme parks are two-seaters? I guess Native was trying to be considerate."

The boys nodded to his guesses at first and agreed to join. But when Ren explained that the tickets would be good for next week during the weekdays they immediately declined the offer when they had important things to do during those days.

Understanding this, Ren nodded as he thought to himself curiously, holding the tickets in a disappointed tone, 'Sigh… well, there goes my usual boys' day out. Wonder if anyone else is interested in joining… oh right, I'd better do some grocery shopping later for the dormitory. I could ask who to join since I've been given permission…'