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My Hero Academia: Aura Farming

Reader mode
Maybe theyll think it has a deeper meaning. (Also him naming himself after his power is wild when he benefits from anonymity, but I think the decision fits his character).
Aurum means gold, os could be seen as shortening of ous meaning full of.
 
Jacobs lash said:
Maybe theyll think it has a deeper meaning. (Also him naming himself after his power is wild when he benefits from anonymity, but I think the decision fits his character).
Aurum means gold, os could be seen as shortening of ous meaning full of.
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I mean "I get power from aura farming" is such an unfathomably stupid premise in-universe that I can't imagine anyone getting that from "auros". Even if "aura" in Japanese is just... "ora", so phonetically it is the same.

Anyone except for Nezu, who seems to know for sure after the concert. That's fine, he's based.
 
Segue said:
I mean "I get power from aura farming" is such an unfathomably stupid premise in-universe that I can't imagine anyone getting that from "auros". Even if "aura" in Japanese is just... "ora", so phonetically it is the same.

Anyone except for Nezu, who seems to know for sure after the concert. That's fine, he's based.
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tbf the idea that fame or rather recognition have a metaphysical weight isn't so farfetched in MHA due to how some quirk works, for example La Brava's quirk which gives a powerboost to a person she loves
 
K5P26 said:
tbf the idea that fame or rather recognition have a metaphysical weight isn't so farfetched in MHA due to how some quirk works, for example La Brava's quirk which gives a powerboost to a person she loves
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That's fair, but the mechanisms are at least somewhat consistent. Like Star and Stripe "projects rules into the physical world" in a way that is derived from her will, metaphysically. La Brava does the same thing by emitting strength to the people she cares about. Just like gangster lie detector man and Shinso affect mind control based on their desire, and strength stealing gangster man sucks up power from his enemies.

Farming willpower/attention/interest from everyone else though? It's like a weird, parasitic, completely undirected version of that. The fact that he never has to interact with those people in person is particularly odd in setting. Otherwise, if he actively drew something meaningful from people to empower himself he'd be AOE AFO, able to steal from everyone around him.
 
Segue said:
That's fair, but the mechanisms are at least somewhat consistent. Like Star and Stripe "projects rules into the physical world" in a way that is derived from her will, metaphysically. La Brava does the same thing by emitting strength to the people she cares about. Just like gangster lie detector man and Shinso affect mind control based on their desire, and strength stealing gangster man sucks up power from his enemies.

Farming willpower/attention/interest from everyone else though? It's like a weird, parasitic, completely undirected version of that. The fact that he never has to interact with those people in person is particularly odd in setting. Otherwise, if he actively drew something meaningful from people to empower himself he'd be AOE AFO, able to steal from everyone around him.
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I don't think he's particularly stealing shit like AFO, its more like he latched himself to the collective consciousness of humanity, and I think that the collective belief of people gives him the energy to supercharge his quirk, like belief freely given is what fuels his quirk, if people don't recognize him as cool or worthy of admiration then they don't give him more of this energy.
 
Hmm not bad.
Id have suggested something like Sky or a word near it
Simple, majestic and part of the skies the limit meaning there isnt one
 
BInged this fic. Love it.

To that one person who compleined about 'lack of stakes'

You don't need Scion hanging overhead to make entertaining story. 'Stakes' needent be a harder person to fight. While i know we more or less follow mha plot, which does limit stuff here, 'stakes' can be event, can be personal challenge, can be completly diffrent thing, can be natural dizaster, can be something else.

For example - what if he suddenly started loosing aura? (Unexplored part of fic, mc became badass)

So anyway, this is peak i need more yesterday
 
Brah, you've been here the whole time??? I've been reading this in sb and webnovel and ur been here the whole time??? The non-NSFW creative section is literally crouching tigers and hidden dragons lmao
 
I have officially caught up to this story and my good sir, I have one thing to say to you.

Goddamn is this surprisingly well-written. Like genuinely well-done. I honestly hope to kinda see Taka maybe lean more into displaying more of his emotions openly.

As much as I love all the Aura Farming, I do like moments when the cool character drops the demeanor a bit. Personally makes them acting cool again later all the more meaningful.

Eh but that's what I think. Keep it up my man.
 
DracoStar12 said:
I have officially caught up to this story and my good sir, I have one thing to say to you.

Goddamn is this surprisingly well-written. Like genuinely well-done. I honestly hope to kinda see Taka maybe lean more into displaying more of his emotions openly.

As much as I love all the Aura Farming, I do like moments when the cool character drops the demeanor a bit. Personally makes them acting cool again later all the more meaningful.

Eh but that's what I think. Keep it up my man.
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A proper aurafarmer knows to let the soil rest for a brand new harvest
 
Raxtuss1 said:
BInged this fic. Love it.

To that one person who compleined about 'lack of stakes'

You don't need Scion hanging overhead to make entertaining story. 'Stakes' needent be a harder person to fight. While i know we more or less follow mha plot, which does limit stuff here, 'stakes' can be event, can be personal challenge, can be completly diffrent thing, can be natural dizaster, can be something else.

For example - what if he suddenly started loosing aura? (Unexplored part of fic, mc became badass)

So anyway, this is peak i need more yesterday
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Click to shrink...

Honestly, if AFO figures out how Taka's power correlates directly to his popularity, he's gonna fund the most expensive spander campaign there is.
 
Chapter 89 New
(A/N: Guess whose classes are finally over.

Mine.

WHOOOO!

—At least for the next two weeks. Then the semester starts again. But eh, I always welcome a rest.)

────────────────────────
[Ultra Trio]
────────────────────────

...

"Auros?" Midnight repeated, half questioning it, half weighing how it sounded.

Taka nodded silently.

After a bit, Midnight nodded as well, half-convinced. "It doesn't sound bad, and it feels powerful. But what meaning does it have? I don't know any word like that."

"I thought of aurum, the periodic name for gold, when creating it. Beyond that, the word is very similar to the word for mountain in Latin, which is what I seek to represent... The highest point in the world."

Midnight shivered for a moment, before nodding fervently at the explanation, looking thoroughly convinced, and muttering something under her breath. "As expected… very youthful."

But then she turned to him, looking slightly puzzled.

"But why gold?"

"..."

Taka closed his eyes for a second, silent.

Then, he opened his eyes again, staring at her with a solemn expression.

"… It's the element of... the winners." He answered, barely hiding his uncertainty over his own statement at the end.

Midnight looked faintly surprised, her mouth forming a small O.

Then she nodded vigorously.

"I see, I see. A name that commands power, confidence, and ambition all at once. What a marvelous code name!"

Surprisingly, his classmates nodded along, looking genuinely impressed by the name.

Even Jiro—the usual sharp-tongued skeptic—was wearing the same awed expression as the rest.

… Bakugo, of course, was not included in that. If anything, the name seemed to infuriate him.

But leaving him aside, it truly seemed he'd managed to fool all of them.

'Well, I didn't lie at all, did I? I just hid the fact that I picked it a minute ago in sheer panic.'

Taka smirked inwardly at the sight, pumping up an imaginary fist.

After that, he gave Midnight a curt nod and walked back down from the podium, carrying the pad with his name written on it along with him.

Upon sitting down, he let out a satisfied huff through his nose.

-Bzz-

Just then, his phone buzzed.

He picked it up and checked the new message.

{Jiro: That was a good name and all, but why gold if there's literally crimson around you every time you use your powers?}

Taka's eyes lifted from the phone to find Jiro watching him with a questioning look from her seat rows ahead.

In response, he shrugged nonchalantly.

"…"

Her face twitched in disbelief, a wry smile surfacing.

'Is this guy serious?'

...

°

°

°

| Minutes later… |

...

After Taka opened the code name presentations by impressing everyone with his last-second choice, it quickly became everyone else's turn.

One by one, they stepped up to the podium and showed off what their creativity had produced.

Through all of it, Taka just watched with a calm look—relaxed now that the risk of walking out with an embarrassing name was behind him, and it was his classmates' turn to run that gauntlet.

Like that, minutes passed with one student after another stepping up—some getting Midnight's thumbs-up, others being sent back to revise.

… Like Bakugo.

For some reason, it seemed he also wanted to compete with Taka on something as petty as the hero's name, and went with something even more outrageous than he had in the show.

"God of Cataclysmic Explosion Ultra Murder." The guy announced, sporting the straightest face imaginable as he slammed the pad with the name onto the podium.

"No."

He was, of course, immediately shut down and sent back to think of something better.

Minutes later, he eventually settled on merely "Cataclysmic God of Murder".

Sadly, that was also shut down. So the matter of his name was postponed, since he clearly wasn't going to arrive at something appropriate during class time.

As for the rest of the class, their thinking didn't diverge much from how their counterparts had done in the show, so most ended up landing on the same names they would have in another timeline.

Ojiro though, surprisingly enough, was the exception. Instead of going with the show's hero name Tailman, he chose something else.

Lash.

Which in a way, was also playing around his tail. But in Taka's opinion, much nicer.

And luckily for him, Midnight accepted eagerly when he showed it off to the class.

Taka gave a faint nod when that happened, silently approving of the greater creativity the guy had developed for some unknown reason.

The name Tailman… it wasn't the worst, considering Japan and its different naming culture than in USA. But if the guy didn't want to be forgettable, he needed something better than that.

Luckily, he did.

'They are growing splendidly.' Taka thought as he wiped a nonexistent tear from the corner of his eye.

After that, the last few classmates who hadn't yet gone stepped up one by one.

By near the end of the hour, everyone had presented and walked away with a new name to wear with pride—everyone except Bakugo, but he didn't count.

After that, Aizawa finally stepped up, making his way to the podium and tapping a stack of papers against it to straighten them.

"Now that you've all settled on your hero names, we'll move on to the matter of internships."

He scanned the room to confirm everyone was paying attention.

"They will last one week. As for where you'll be placed—" he flicked through the papers in his hand, "—those who received offers will be given their own lists to choose from at their own discretion. Those who didn't will receive a list of forty agencies affiliated with the school that will be accepting interns during the coming week."

His eyes swept over specific faces with a faint squint.

"They cover different areas and specialties. Don't just chase fame—focus on what will actually help you grow as heroes."

Following that, the lists began being distributed across the class.

-Thud!-

Taka, to his genuine disbelief, was handed a stack of papers thick enough to make his desk groan under the weight of it.

'… Couldn't they have just sent a digital file or something?' He wondered, flipping through the pages one-handed with a wry look.

"You have until the weekend to submit your choice." Aizawa announced.

That was two days.

Then he picked up his things and left alongside Midnight.

The moment the door closed, everyone immediately went to check their lists, chatting with whoever was nearest about options, swapping advice, or simply looking over each other's shoulders out of curiosity.

While that went on, Kirishima appeared at Taka's side, waving enthusiastically.

"Yo, Taka, who are you thinking of interning un—… Never mind, I'll leave you to it."

He reversed course immediately the moment the stack of papers came into view.

Even Tokoyami, sitting right beside Taka, couldn't keep his composure at the sight—sweatdropping faintly.

"So this is the price of fame…" He muttered, shaking his head with a mournful look. "I suppose if one flies too close to the sun, their wings will eventually burn."

Taka ignored his weird musing, too focused on figuring out how he was supposed to get through all the papers before him in under two days.

"You've got it rough, huh?"

He glanced to the side to see Jiro approaching, looking at him with mild pity.

His expression didn't shift much. He closed his eyes serenely and set the stack down. "Being too popular is a heavy burden."

Her eyebrow twitched.

"Well, Mr. Popular, is there any hero in particular you'd want to intern under—whether they're in that pile or not?"

Taka hummed, giving it genuine thought.

"Maybe All Might?"

She stared at him. "You really don't aim low, do you?"

He shrugged.

Not that All Might would be offering him anything. The man was a teacher now, and could barely maintain his muscular form for more than a few hours.

So forget about internships.

Though, the topic reminded him of what he thought today when traveling to school.

The All Might situation, and whether his current amount of Aura would be enough to bring the hero back to his prime.

—But that could come later, after classes.

For now, he had "this" to deal with.

He put a hand over the stack of papers, letting out a sigh mixed with a groan.

At his vocal distaste, Jiro let out a short laugh before jerking a thumb toward their usual group, already gathering by the door.

"Well, before you dive headfirst into the consequences of your own fame—let's go eat."

Taka looked away from the stack, looked at her, and gave a faint huff.

"Sure."

...

°

°

°

| Ten minutes later… |

...

The group settled into an empty table, setting down their trays.

Taka had gone with spicy chicken wings and rice. He needed his favorite kind of food if he wanted to forget about all the homework Aizawa had left for him with a straight face.

"So, any idea who you guys are going to pick?" Kaminari asked, glancing around the table.

"It's only been a few minutes, chill." Sero smirked. "I haven't even checked who sent offers to me. There weren't as many as in Takahashi's case, but I'm curious eitherway."

"It's like being scouted by celebrities, isn't it? I'm super nervous!" Mina exclaimed, grinning.

Jiro smirked and nodded toward Taka. "Takahashi isn't exactly thrilled, though."

Playing with his food, Taka gave her a bored look. "… I'll probably go to Nezu and ask if I can get a digital copy to filter through it more easily."

"You sure are casual with the principal, calling him Nezu like that."

'Whoops, slipped there.' Taka winced inwardly, but kept eating without acknowledging it.

"Anyway, setting All Might aside—is there any hero you'd actually want an offer from?" Jiro asked, looking at him curiously.

It was genuinely hard to picture Takahashi needing coaching in anything—since, well, he was the one who coached all of them before the festival.

—Save for Kaminari.

But regardless, his great capability made it difficult to guess who he might actually pick to learn under—if he even had anything to learn at this point.

Their classmate was nearly a fully formed hero. Or at least, he seemed so.

"Is it Endeavor?" Sero ventured.

If not the number one, then it had to be the number two, right? Taka looked like he might be one to follow that kind of logic.

Surprisingly, however—

"He and I don't really get along." Taka replied curtly, raising many eyebrows.

Jiro blinked. "What? You've met him?"

Taka nodded. The table immediately leaned in, hungry for gossip.

"We had kind of a face-off after you guys went all cheesy and I had to evacuate. He said some things I didn't like, so I said back some things he clearly didn't like. So yeah, he should be pretty pissed."

"You went and pissed off the number two hero? Don't stop there!" Sero prodded.

"Are you sure that won't cause you problems? Being on bad terms with someone like Endeavor could seriously hurt your career." Kirishima looked genuinely worried.

"It won't be an issue." Was all Taka said, not looking even the slightest bit worried.

Everyone smiled wryly.

Even against the kind of pressure the number two hero could apply to someone's career, Taka remained unbothered.

Admirable.

"Still, what could you have possibly said to have—"

"So you're him!"

A loud, cheerful, and impressed voice came from beside the table, cutting Sero off mid-sentence.

Everyone turned, confused.

Taka did too. He was indeed him—though that clearly wasn't what whoever had spoken meant.

Upon turning, he saw that, standing right beside their table was a girl with light blue hair that spiraled at the ends, a wide carefree smile, and curious eyes fixed entirely on him, and two big—

[Get a grip, host]

'I'm trying, man.'

With the help of the nowadays silent system—and a particular sharp gaze he felt settled on him from the side all of a sudden—he shook his head and brought himself back on track.

He looked the person over and recognized her almost immediately.

One of the three top students of U.A.

Nejire… something. The surname wasn't coming to him.

'But why is she here…?' He wondered, brows threatening to frown in confusion.

Before he could ask anything, though, she immediately leaned closer, entirely unaware of or unconcerned by social conventions around personal space.

"Hey, what's your Quirk? I watched your fights again and again and I couldn't settle on anything specific. Every time I thought I'd figured it out, you did something completely unexpected that didn't fit my theory! You can fly, have super speed and strength, manipulate things from a distance, and seem pretty resistant to whatever the other first years threw at you! Is it something like telekinesis? It seems like the most obvious answer but I don't think it's quite right. By the way, how did you make that skeleton of flames? That's honestly the most confusing part. I just can't figure out how to fit that into any theory? Also, why is the aura around you crimson? Can you control that, or was it always that color? Oh, oh, and why did you moonwalk during the last stretch of the first event? It didn't seem necessary in the—"

She was pulled back by the shoulders, finally giving Taka some space.

"Sorry about that. Nejire's just a very curious person." The one who'd pulled her said, laughing wryly.

The person who stepped in was a blonde guy, noticeably muscular for his apparent age. A miniature All Might, were it not for the simpler and almost cartoonish face.

Also someone Taka recognized immediately.

The two had already met, in a sense—though he doubted the blonde knew that. The day he'd taken Eri out of the Hassaikai, this guy had been there alongside Nighteye, watching him leave without the police or the heroes intervening.

Mirio—something. The surname was eluding him, same as Nejire.

"I'm Mirio Togata, nice to meet you!" He extended a hand to Taka, which Taka took.

'Yeah, I was just about to say that.' Taka thought, lying to himself.

With Mirio confirmed, Taka remembered there was a third member to this group and leaned slightly to see past them—and as expected, there he was.

The guy.

The man.

The myth.

"…"

He was starting to feel genuinely bad about this, but the name wasn't coming to him.

Amakiji?

"Hmm?" Mirio caught his gaze and glanced back. "Oh, that's Tamaki Amajiki. Don't mind him, he just prefers to stare from afar."

'So I wasn't even close on the surname.' Taka thought, mildly annoyed at himself.

Nejire went and tried pulling the boy closer, but all she accomplished was making him turn around, now giving them his back.

Seeing that, the entire table could only stare somewhat baffled at the scene.

"We are third-years, so you can call us seniors if you want! We were curious to get a look at the first year who managed to impress the whole country the other day." Mirio scratched his cheek with a wide grin. "Imagine our surprise when we finished our own section of the Sports Festival and found out that most of the attention still ended up on the first-year section! Man, you really did something amazing back then."

'I see.'

That explained it.

Taka gave a faint nod. It made sense these three were stepping up now rather than at the much later point they were supposed to appear. He'd simply made that big of an impression and brought the trio to him ahead of time.

As expected of him.

"I have to say—you're one scary freshman." Mirio continued, laughing openly. "In all honesty, from what I saw, you're absurdly powerful. I'm not sure I could take you, even going all out. In a way, you're almost like All Might… and I wasn't the only one who noticed."

He suddenly shoved a hand into his pocket, and took out a small card before holding it out to him.

Taka picked it, and looked it over, eyebrows rising.

A name he hadn't expected was written on it.

Nighteye Agency.

Mirio laughed merrily, massaging his neck. "Sir watched your performance at the festival, and asked me to personally pass along an invitation to intern under him for the week. You should have gotten the standard offer through the common channel too, though."

"Nighteye?!" Kirishima leaned forward, staring at the card.

"You're seriously getting a personal invite from All Might's old sidekick?!" Kaminari's eyes darted between Taka and the card.

"Apparently." Taka answered calmly, eyes still scanning the card.

"Of course you're not even a little impressed." Jiro clicked her tongue.

He glanced at her, then went back to the card.

Truth be told, he was—or at least, startled.

He hadn't expected a personal offer to arrive this way, and even less from someone like Nighteye, who struck him as someone all-business and not the type to be moved by a flashy festival performance.

Something about this felt like it had a specific reason behind it.

Still—

"I'll consider it. I still need to see what else I've got." He said, sliding the card into his pocket.

"No pressure at all." Mirio waved him off easily.

"Can I ask him questions now?" Nejire appeared at Mirio's side, already leaning forward eagerly.

Mirio turned to Taka with a smile that was at least partly apologetic.

"…"

Taka's gaze moved between the two for a moment before he let out a sigh.

"Sure. Why not."

...

°

°

°

| Minutes later… |

...

That turned out to be a bad idea.

If his classmates' interrogation at the festival had been troublesome, Nejire was that times two.

She might seem scatterbrained, but she clearly knew her stuff, and she had a sharp eye for inconsistencies—picking up on the faintest gap in any explanation he gave almost immediately.

It was no wonder she was part of the power trio, or whatever their team name was.

She was cute, he had to admit—but she gave his head a workout. The bad kind.

From now on, he'd keep her at arm's length… or more, if she still asked questions.

His brain had to run 4D chess to get through all her questions without giving away his real powers.

And even having managed it, he was starting to wonder if it was worth continuing to hold back. The strain had just been too much in those minutes he spent with the blue-haired girl launching question after question.

The only reason he hadn't just laid everything out regarding his true abilities was that he was waiting for the right moment.

That, and keeping his cards hidden from the villains. He shared a classroom with a mole, after all. Whatever his classmates knew, All For One's people would too.

Speaking of Aoyama—he honestly still wasn't sure what to do about him.

The guy was All For One's agent, and another pair of eyes to be constantly aware of.

But he was also in a genuinely bad position—working under All For One with his family effectively held as leverage.

Outing him without a plan for the fallout would only make things worse for him.

But leaving him to keep reporting to All For One for too long wasn't good either. The longer it continued, the worse the consequences would be for the kid once he was finally free.

And Aoyama would be free. Because Taka was going to take down All For One. That much he was sure of.

Or All Might would, if the cure worked.

'Well—I'll figure it out. It'll take some serious planning either way.'

Huffing, he refocused on where he was actually heading.

The principal's office.

Not only to ask about a digital copy of the offer list, but for the other matter as well.

All Might's treatment.

Even though not to his classmates, today he'd be revealing another part of his powers.

All for the sake of bringing All Might back to his prime for one last time.

'I wonder if my current Aura pool will be enough, though.' Taka mused, lifting a hand, and seeing his crimson aura seeping through it in the form of fierce flames.

However, a second later, he shook his head and lowered his hand.

There was no moment for doubting here.

And with such resolution, he at last arrived before Nezu's office.

So, without further ado, he called at the door.

...

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-To Be Continued...-

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Join my Patreon to get access to more chapters, and you'll help me make ends meet while doing so.

pḁtreon.com/TheSynonym (Change the a)

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(A/N: And so, Taka meets the golden trio of U.A. Besides Mirio, I honestly don't quite know what to do with them and how they might fit in everything that I've planned. But they had to show up at least a bit, given their reputation on the school and what Taka had accomplished.)
 
Need to see the reaction to the full aura dynamics.
Also, he needs to be careful now. His name is sick but if he fumbles now, he'll be stuck with the status of "jobber" or "fraud" - or worse, the dreaded "Potential Man."

Give me liberty, give me fire. Give me UA students or I retire…

-> Lock in and fight with your Quirk? No
-> Stand around and make vague declarations while "holding back" - Yes.

If and When but never Is…
 
I love this concept. I feel like the whole system and Aura thing gives the main character more motivation than to just "live good"
 
Chapter 90 New
────────────────────────
[Reveal]
────────────────────────

| Nezu's office… |

…

Nezu sat at his desk, calmly dealing with some paperwork with one hand, while the other seemed to be messaging different people continuously on his computer.

-Knock, knock, knock-

Suddenly, someone called at the door, making Nezu stop what he was doing, and face the door with a smile.

"Come on in!"

The door opened and Taka stepped through, closing it behind him.

"Ah, the star student! Takahashi, what do I owe this visit? Has the mystery of my pristine fur finally prompted you to come ask me about it?"

Taka gave him a flat look.

'Does he like his fur that much?'

The principal sure had a habit of assuming everyone was staring at it.

That, or it was his way of breaking the ice.

"I received my offers today."

Nezu nodded as if this answered a great deal. "Ah yes, the rewards for your unprecedented performance at the festival. Quite an impressive number, wasn't it? You must be feeling very proud."

"Can you give me a digital copy of my offer list?" Taka asked, not entertaining the principal's antics. "I don't think I can get through eight thousand offers in just two days like that."

"Two days? Oh dear. No wonder you came here. There was never a chance you'd be able to check all of them. I wonder who thought it would be a good idea to hand them out in that format."

Taka lifted an eyebrow.

Was he genuinely wondering, or was Nezu implying with that passive-aggressive tone that this had all been part of a plan to get him here?

'No, that's almost certainly what he's implying.' He corrected himself, watching Nezu with a flat look.

"Did you… want me to come see you on purpose?" He tested the theory.

"Oh my, why would you think that? I'd never manipulate my students like that—but since you are here…"

He produced a sheet of paper from under his desk, as if it had been sitting there waiting.

He placed it before Taka and slid it forward.

"I'd like you to consider a specific hero for your internship. Of course, if you already have someone in mind, you don't need to follow my suggestion."

'How am I supposed to have anyone in mind when you handed me that absurd stack of papers?' Taka grumbled internally, picking up the paper and checking its contents.

Only to pause and stare, mildly surprised, as a familiar face came up again.

"Nighteye?" He looked back at Nezu.

The rat nodded. "Indeed. All Might's old sidekick—a very well-regarded hero, even if he isn't in the spotlight. His reputation runs deep… What do you think, Takahashi?"

"…" Taka mulled it over, brow creasing slightly.

Why was the Nighteye angle being pushed so hard all of a sudden?

He didn't have any particular problem with the man. His death in the show had actually pulled a tear or two from his otherworldly self.

But he wanted to understand why interning under him was being pushed onto him twice in one day—first through Mirio, now through Nezu. It was too deliberate to be a coincidence.

So why would—

'Oh.'

Taka blinked as his eyes landed on Nezu's patient expression.

"It's because of my precognition, isn't it?" He asked.

Nezu's smile stretched slightly.

"I see you noticed. Yes, Takahashi." He jumped down from his chair, walked to the window, and gave Taka his back as he gazed at the lake on the horizon. "There are several reasons I'm pointing you toward Nighteye. Most I can't disclose yet—privacy and secrecy considerations. But in broad terms, let's say I want to see how your two Quirks interact with each other."

"Interact?" Taka raised an eyebrow.

"You claimed to have seen a future in which Midoriya was the one to fight Overhaul and rescue Eri-chan." He murmured, before turning, his smile curling into something more sly. "… Yet it was you who did it instead. The girl is safe, and Midoriya's most dangerous fight so far has been with his own classmates—a future you saw, and then changed with apparent ease."

"…" Taka's brow twitched as he saw where this was heading.

"Nighteye's Quirk, on the other hand, is in stark contrast to yours in that regard. He too can see the future—but unlike you, he has never been able to change the outcome, no matter what he tried."

Nezu spread both arms wide.

"So I hope you don't blame me for being curious as to which future sight prevails. Will Nighteye see the future you changed—and thus remain an unalterable fate even to you? Or will you break the pattern that has never once been broken in his case, and shatter what has seemed to be an unbendable fate?"

"You're getting a bit too into this, aren't you?" Taka sweatdropped.

The rat was trying to farm aura right in front of him.

Pfft.

It was working a little.

Sighing, Taka scratched his hair.

"Well, I don't mind finding out—I'm curious myself. But…" His gaze went flat, brows drawing together. "Wouldn't that also mean Nighteye would figure out my identity as Rockinesis? The dots would be pretty easy to connect once I show him what I can actually do."

"Yes."

Taka nearly stumbled at the sheer simplicity of that answer, mouth twitching.

'Yes? You're just calmly accepting that my vigilante identity with a criminal record gets outed to a pro hero?!'

Before he could put that into actual words, Nezu cut him off, climbing onto the desk and patting his shoulder once he had the height for it.

"But don't worry. There are reasons I believe Nighteye won't move to arrest you once he learns about your other persona… at least not immediately."

"What do you mean, not immediately…?"

"Well, if you go down, I go down with you. So you're not facing it alone, my dear student."

"You can go down by yourself!" Taka exclaimed, losing his cool.

Nezu laughed merrily.

Then jumped back down from the desk.

"I'm joking. The probability of Nighteye actually reporting you once he sees what you're capable of is 3% at most. There are… larger stakes at play that will very likely lead him to cooperate with us instead."

"That sounds like blackmail." Taka commented, still not fully convinced.

"Unfortunately, the matter is too delicate for me to share more details right now."

In the end, Taka sighed.

It didn't seem like there was much of another option.

And there wasn't really any other hero he was particularly interested in interning under. At his current level, he was fairly confident about holding his own against anyone.

'I might be getting ahead of myself, but—I think I could even fight All Might as I am now.' He thought, barely keeping a smug expression from surfacing.

In the end, the clones weren't the only ones prone to arrogance.

Whether he was right or in for a rude awakening, he brought himself back to the matter at hand and settled on accepting Nighteye's offer.

'Hold on, offer?'

He turned to Nezu, eyes narrowing.

"… He already sent me an offer through the standard channel, and even had Mirio Togata hand me one personally… you didn't happen to have already told him about my abilities, did you?"

Nezu laughed innocently.

"I merely recommended you—and may have mentioned that you'd be one particularly interesting intern for the week. One he really shouldn't miss."

"…"

The two held each other's gaze for quite a few seconds, tense.

Then, Taka sighed.

'Well, what's done is done.'

It wasn't that serious in the end. Nighteye was a good man, and even if it came to it, Taka could simply go further down the vigilante path and farm aura even more relentlessly.

He might have trouble going home and spending time with Eri, though.

'Yeah, let's just make sure he doesn't start talking if he gets any ideas.'

With that dark and pragmatic resolution, Taka nodded and accepted his now-scheduled internship.

Which also, conveniently, saved him from having to wade through the paper stack that had been dropped on his desk earlier.

With everything settled, he let out a quiet breath and began to turn for the door.

"I'll let Aizawa-sensei know with a heads up—ah, right. I also came here for something else, didn't I?"

He stopped and turned back to Nezu.

"There's something I need to see All Might about."

Nezu tilted his head, looking curious. "And what might that be? He's currently… indisposed, so I wouldn't be able to bring him right now even if I wanted to."

"He's injured, isn't he?"

Nezu's smile dropped. A quiet fell over the office.

Only after a few seconds did he speak again.

"Well… that I didn't expect. You really are full of surprises, Takahashi. All Might's condition is a closely guarded secret, known only to the most senior members of society and those personally close to him… for you to know about it…"

Taka smiled faintly and tapped his temple twice.

"I saw it in a vision, of course."

Nezu smiled faintly too.

"What specific visions you have."

"Right?"

Watching Taka so easily sweep the revelation under the rug of visions like it was nothing, it was Nezu's turn to sigh.

"Well—is there a specific reason you want to see him, Takahashi?"

Taka raised a hand, and aura began seeping from his palm like a slow flame.

Nezu watched it curiously for a moment, unsure of what the display was meant to mean.

Then the flames changed.

Crimson, until that moment—they shifted to green.

"My Quirk has awakened another property."

The context of their conversation and the symbolism of the green flames were enough for Nezu to arrive at it immediately.

"Healing."

Taka nodded.

"The energy required is significant, and scales with the severity and location of the damage—but my pool has been growing considerably lately… so perhaps…"

"You could cure All Might." Nezu finished quietly, his smile gone, replaced by pure focused interest. "Truly, you become more and more difficult to predict the longer you're in this school, Takahashi."

A quiet snicker.

"All Might is currently resting after his morning classes. I could call him now, but first I'd like you to demonstrate the ability for me—and explain as much as you can about how it works—alongside Recovery Girl. She's exceptionally knowledgeable in this area and may help clarify things further."

"We sure are introducing my secrets to a lot of people today." Taka muttered, dry.

Nezu shook his head with a small smile. "All Might's condition is… considerable. He won't die given proper medical care, but the damage isn't reversible—at least, that's been the conclusion of every doctor who's seen him. Recovery Girl will be able to tell us whether your Quirk falls into that same category, or whether you might genuinely be offering something unprecedented."

"I'm not entirely sure myself at this point." Taka admitted, smiling wryly. "Or whether my current pool is even enough."

Nezu smiled softly and reached up to pat his thigh.

"You've been an unpredictable variable this entire time. Why would that change now?"

Taka snorted.

An unpredictable variable, huh?

He liked that.

"I'll inform your teachers that you'll be absent for the rest of today's classes."

He liked that even more.

...

°

°

°

| Hours later… |

...

All Might lay on the couch in the teachers' lounge, forearm resting over his eyes, a long exhale leaving him.

Who knew two hours of teaching in a day could be this draining?

Perhaps he'd overestimated himself taking this job. After passing One For All to Midoriya, he was destined to slowly lose the Quirk—to weaken, step by step, until he became an ordinary person. Or perhaps even less than that, given the scale of the injury he carried.

And yet, here he was, pushing his limits so he could lead the next generation toward a brighter future.

'I must endure.' He steeled himself.

It wasn't only Midoriya who depended on him. The students did. Society did.

He couldn't crumble just yet.

He still had much left to give.

And a certain someone to find.

"…" All Might's sunken eyes narrowed beneath his forearm as the thought of the Nomu surfaced. The creature with multiple Quirks that young Takahashi had taken down during the villain attack.

A creature with several Quirks.

A villain group capable of infiltrating U.A. and planning a thoroughly prepared strike.

With an apparent objective of killing him.

Although nothing was certain—the possibility existed now that that man had survived somehow.

And if that was the case—then it was his obligation to be here. To protect the students, Midoriya, and to finish what he'd started years ago.

—Cough, cough!—

Blood left his throat in a violent fit.

'… Although, that's looking less and less likely with each day that passes.'

He clenched his fist, feeling his strength thin out beneath his grip.

How much longer—would the symbol of peace hold out?

-Knock, knock, knock-

All Might was pulled out of his inner monologue as a knock came at the door.

Most teachers knew about his situation, so he didn't bother shifting back into his muscular form.

"Come in!"

Straightening up on the couch, he sat properly to receive whoever it was.

The door opened, and a familiar figure stepped through.

All Might blinked, offering a tired smile. "Recovery Girl. What is it?"

The old woman walked closer, tapping her cane against his knee. "You might want to come with me, Toshinori. Something's come up—and it turns out it may be rather important for you."

"Important for me?"

She sighed.

"That student of yours, Takahashi… he's quite the multitalent, isn't he?"

All Might tilted his head.

"I suppose so…?"

...

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-To Be Continued...-

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Sorry about the wait, this and another chapter incoming)
 
Chapter 91 New
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[I AM—]
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...

All Might, now in his muscular form, walked through the school hallway with Recovery Girl alongside him, expression deep in thought as the two advanced in silence.

After dragging him out of the teachers' lounge, Recovery Girl had offered nothing further in the way of an explanation—saying it was better for him to see it himself rather than hear it hurriedly from her.

And so All Might had been forced to leave his rest and follow, knowing only that something had come up, but having no idea what.

Her tone, when she'd said as much, hadn't been one of worry but of sheer bafflement—which at least let him rule out the possibility that something had happened to one of his students.

And from the way she'd worded it, it seemed Taka actually had something in store for him. Something significant.

But what?

All Might had to sit with that question through the two minutes it took them to reach the infirmary.

Once they stepped inside, he was surprised to find it wasn't only Taka waiting there—sitting on a bed with a bored expression.

Nezu was there too, standing calmly beside him, watching both of them approach with a quiet, knowing smile.

Instantly, the weight of the situation scaled several levels. The principal's presence here wasn't something that happened over small matters.

After all, Nezu wasn't merely his current boss. He was one of the few people aware of what had transpired during his fight with that man, and everything that had followed. He was the one who had volunteered to help find a successor, and who was practically aware of all the behind-the-scenes details.

For him to be here, alongside Recovery Girl…

"…"

All Might looked at Taka with a puzzled face.

'Just what is going on with young Takahashi?'

"Sorry to interrupt your break, All Might." Nezu's voice pulled him out of his daze, nudging him to finally step inside rather than linger at the entrance.

Recovery Girl made her way to the chair beside her desk. All Might took a seat on the bed across from the principal and the student, looking between them with quiet seriousness.

"Recovery Girl said something important came up—something involving young Takahashi?"

"Precisely. To be honest, I'm quite surprised myself. The news came so suddenly we barely had time to process it."

"News?"

"Young Takahashi has awakened a new ability." Nezu said.

"Awakened?"

A deep frown settled across All Might's hollowed face for a moment.

He understood what awakening meant. It was the point at which a Quirk underwent a kind of evolution—gaining power or capabilities previously thought impossible given the Quirk's known nature. But for something like that to occur, it was said the person had to experience tremendous stress—the kind only reached when staring death in the face, and even then, it was just a slim possibility.

If young Takahashi had truly awakened—what could have possibly happe—?

"It seems I may have prompted unnecessary concern." Nezu interrupted his train of thought, gesturing calmly for him to settle down, then turning to Taka. "Let me first give you the context around Takahashi's Quirk, and how the two of us came to have an agreement… if he's alright with that, of course."

The teenager gave him a look, followed by a small huff and a silent nod.

Nezu turned back to All Might. "Splendid. Tell me—do you recall the incident involving that giant heteromorph near the lake, toward the end of last year?"

All Might cast his mind back, looking pensive.

After a moment, he nodded. "I remember it. The incident drew a lot of attention because of the villain's sheer power—it was talked about for weeks afterward, given how much destructive capability he demonstrated, and how he'd apparently been moving through the city completely undetected up until that point. If that man, Rockinesis, hadn't intervened when he did and kept him airborne long enough to reach the lake, it could have ended in a disaster."

"Precisely. That's also the day Takahashi and I first met. He came home beaten up from the fight, and I almost burst out laughing when his face contorted for a split second upon finding me sitting in his living room."

"My face did what?" Taka muttered, looking at him with a baffled expression.

"Hold on, principal." All Might raised a palm, looking confused. "What do you mean he came home beaten up from the fight?"

"Well, he tried to hide it—but by paying surgical attention to his behavior and body language, I noticed he'd come back with a broken arm. I didn't say anything at the time, but I did let out a small snicker once I finally left."

"You did…?" Taka muttered again, the flat look deepening.

All Might waved his hands in opposite directions. "No, no—I mean, what fight are you referring to?"

"With the villain, of course."

"The villain?" All Might struggled to reconcile what was being implied with what he couldn't quite believe. "Which villain?"

Nezu smiled innocently.

"The giant heteromorph."

"…" All Might went quiet, blinking, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to process whether he was understanding correctly before committing to a response.

Ultimately he found no other way to read the rat's words.

"Y-you're saying young Takahashi is…?"

Nezu's smile stretched with quiet satisfaction.

"The vigilante, Rockinesis. Yes."

"…!"

All Might's mouth fell open, and his head turned slowly—like a rusted hinge—toward Taka, who offered a faint smile as the attention landed on him.

"Don't arrest me, please."

"…!"

Everything resurfaced at once. No longer the actions of some distant, mysterious vigilante—but of a student of his. A teenager.

A kid the same age as his successor.

The dozens, if not hundreds of villains apprehended. The concert crashed and turned into one of the vigilante's song debuts. The heteromorph incident they'd just been discussing. The Yakuza raid. And most recently, the capture of the Hero Killer and the saving of Ingenium.

It all landed on him now as the acts of a student under his care. A mere teenager going to U.A.

The most wanted vigilante of recent years was one of his students?!

And it was Takahashi?!

A chain of detonations went off inside All Might's head.

His eyes darted between Nezu and Taka. "B-but—if that were true, his Quirk wouldn't be Telekinesis anymore!"

The original concept of Muscle to Mind—which supposedly granted Taka greater telekinetic output proportional to his physical strength—fell apart quickly once you stacked everything else on top. Abilities with no apparent connection to telekinesis whatsoever.

Clones, energy rays, flames, electricity, cutting force.

What Takahashi had shown until now was already strange enough—but now?

Now there was no way this was just Telekinesis!

And if the premise of strength feeding the telekinesis was a cover story, then Taka's superhuman physical abilities counted as yet another power with an unexplained origin.

Just what kind of Quirk could hold so many abilities? He had never heard of such a thing!

"That's precisely why I reached out to Takahashi months before the school year began." Nezu replied. "Through his actions as Rockinesis, he had demonstrated multiple abilities with no obvious connection to one another—all from a single Quirk that didn't quite match the description in the official documents. When I discovered it, I couldn't help but want to see that talent properly channeled. So I eventually roped him into our dear school."

All Might nodded. It made sense, and it was the right call—especially since he had seen the gap between Takahashi and every other student in his year.

Every student, actually.

That said, it didn't make the shock any easier to absorb.

Nezu walked up and patted him on the thigh, then drifted toward the window, watching the sun begin its descent, quietly marking the end of the school day.

"The truth is—according to Takahashi's own account, and my analysis—it appears his Quirk continues to evolve even now. Whether in raw output or entirely new capabilities." He said, still facing the glass.

All Might swallowed, taking in that information with difficulty.

A Quirk in constant growth. Unbelievable.

"And that brings us to the reason we called you here." Nezu's words drew him back. "… One of those new capabilities—one Takahashi reported today—is healing."

Taka extended a hand, green aura flames seeping from the palm as if in demonstration.

Seeing that, and piecing together why he'd been summoned, All Might turned to Nezu with a stunned look.

"You mean to say he can…?" He hesitated at the last word, out of habit around the secrecy of his condition.

But Nezu continued regardless.

"We tested the ability as thoroughly as we could. Given the extent of the damage in your case—and the track record of every doctor and hero with healing-adjacent Quirks who's examined you before—we were cautious about drawing conclusions. The results, however, were not what we expected."

Recovery Girl spoke up from her desk, setting a sheet of paper down.

"My Quirk works by accelerating the body's own natural healing, drawing on the patient's energy to fuel it. Which is also why it has limits—the body can only regenerate what it hasn't already given up on. Scar tissue is the body's way of declaring a wound closed. It doesn't reverse that decision on its own."

She folded her hands.

"What the kid's healing energy does is entirely different. Rather than working alongside the body's healing response, it overrides it. The energy appears to instruct cells directly—signaling damaged or scarred tissue to break down, while simultaneously prompting the surrounding healthy cells to multiply and rebuild what was lost. It doesn't accelerate healing so much as it reverses the injury… In a way, it's almost like a sentient healing—one that knows exactly what is damaged and how it should be restored, even when the body itself no longer does."

She handed him the sheet.

"The cost comes entirely from the kid, not the patient. And it scales depending on several factors—the age of the injury, the size of the affected area, and the structural complexity of what needs to rebuild. In your case, the first and last of those are the significant ones."

All Might nodded, frown deepening as he absorbed the data in the paper alongside his limited medical knowledge.

"Does this mean… he knows?" He asked, eyes lifting from the sheet and moving across the three faces in the room—settling on Taka's unsurprised expression in particular.

The two teachers nodded.

Taka didn't look surprised by the question.

"I see…"

At that, All Might let out a long breath—and his body deflated all at once, the steam leaving him in one long release.

When it cleared, he had become his gaunt self. Gone was the towering figure of the greatest hero and the ever-present smile—in their place, a thin man with hollow eyes and a quiet, heavy expression.

Seeing him finally lower his guard, Nezu smiled softly and continued.

"According to what we've understood so far, the way this healing works should be able to address the kind of damage your body sustained—Takahashi's healing energy will act as both a guide and energy source, directing your cells to revert the injury to its previous uninjured state, regardless of whether the body believes it's possible or knows how to do it on its own. The only concern is…"

"Whether I'll have enough energy." Taka finished. "Like Recovery Girl explained, the cost scales with several factors. For all I know, I might not be able to heal it fully—or I might not even break a sweat."

All Might nodded in silence, his expression not changing much despite the apparent good news.

That was because he hadn't let himself expect much the moment his injury came up.

Despite the hope the two teachers clearly carried, too many treatments had failed before—regardless of the expertise, the Quirk, or the approach. The best anyone had ever managed was preventing him from dying of it.

And however exceptional young Takahashi was—however far beyond any expectation he'd already proven himself—he couldn't quite bring himself to believe the kid would also be able to pull off a miracle like this.

Even as the two teachers walked him through the logic of why it should work, he had quietly resigned himself to the idea that it probably wouldn't.

But who was he to deny them the try?

Before that, though…

"You mentioned the energy comes directly from you, young Takahashi?"

Taka nodded.

All Might looked at him directly, serious. "What happens if you run out of energy and it isn't enough? No matter how much I'd like to be healed—I won't risk a student for it."

There was a brief pause before Taka let out a soft snort, mildly amused.

"It's not my direct life force or anything like that. Think of it more as a secondary energy that fuels all my other abilities. If I exhaust it, I go back to normal human capabilities until it recharges on its own."

All Might blinked in surprise, nodding slowly.

He hadn't expected to come away from this conversation with new details about the boy's actual Quirk.

But regardless—if healing him truly carried no grave risk to Takahashi… then perhaps it was worth a try after all.

His fist tightened.

"Then, young Takahashi—I'll be in your care." He said, his tone somewhere between resignation and faint hope.

Taka smiled—freely, confidently, in a way All Might wasn't used to seeing from the usually composed student.

"Don't worry. This will be easy peasy."

All Might noted that he even spoke differently in this moment. Less… dramatically, if he had to put it into words.

He really did seem like a normal teenager right now.

...

°

°

°

| Minutes later… |

...

Soon after, the room was prepared as thoroughly as the circumstances allowed.

Which mostly meant giving All Might's bed more space, and connecting a few monitoring devices to track his condition once the healing started, so nothing would go unnoticed.

Once everything was in place and All Might's vitals along with many other details were under watch, Taka approached the bed.

"Uhm, young Takahashi—does this hurt?" All Might asked, glancing nervously at the approaching Taka, whose face was faintly illuminated by the green flames in his hand.

"For minor things like cuts or muscle pain, not really. But I honestly don't know about rebuilding a stomach and fixing a respiratory system from scratch."

"I see…"

"You can bite down on this leather belt, though."

"Why do you have that?!"

"I borrowed it from Recovery Girl's supply cabinet."

All Might gave Taka a baffled look.

Then, without a word, he put it between his teeth and bit down.

"Very well—let's begin, Takahashi." Nezu said, seeing that everything was ready.

Taka nodded silently, and the flames in his hand intensified in the same motion.

Then he placed his engulfed hand over All Might's scar.

From it, the flames spread and washed over All Might entirely.

"It doesn't burn?" The hero murmured through the belt, staring at the green fire now covering him.

Taka smiled wryly. "The energy itself is actually invisible. I'm only giving it a color for dramatic effect."

As he said that, the flames shifted to an orange-red—looking for all the world like actual fire.

Yet All Might felt not the slightest heat.

He gave Taka a baffled look.

'Dramatic effect, seriously?'

Taka shrugged.

Since he was already outed, he might as well be a little honest.

"Well—enough about me. Bite down hard."

"Ye—"

His agreement was cut off as a sudden rush of warmth flooded through him.

Like a heatstroke arriving all at once—instantly hot, then cold, leaving him drenched in sweat before he could process it.

It didn't hurt, but it was deeply uncomfortable.

And uncomfortable would have been perfectly fine, because what came next was far worse.

"Hngh!" A groan tore from him as heat began building in his innards. His lungs, his ribs, his muscles—all of it burning.

It was as if an inferno had ignited directly inside his chest.

Taka's brow furrowed at the sight of All Might's face contorting in pain.

But before he could even consider whether the healing was having adverse effects, Nezu's voice cut through.

"All Might's cells have gone into overdrive—thousands of new cells per second across the tissue"

"Don't worry kid. The pain he is feeling is all the heat of his own body repairing." Recovery Girl added, her eyes moving rapidly between All Might and the monitor, where cell division was happening at blinding speed. "Mitosis at that volume and speed releases an enormous amount of thermal energy. Your energy itself may be heatless—but the conversion into cellular activity is generating the heat from within. All Might's body can't thermoregulate fast enough to compensate. However, conversely, even though it's burning him, it's also healing him even faster."

They didn't even need the screen to verify it. The jagged purple scar stretching from All Might's left ribcage across his chest was visibly fading—and in its place, steam was rising from his skin in steady waves.

"You alright, All Might?" Nezu asked.

All Might gave a rapid nod.

He had endured considerably worse. This hurt, but it was bearable.

So instead of focusing on himself, his eyes drifted to Takahashi—standing beside him with eyes closed and hand still pressed over him, channeling the energy.

There was a frown on the kid's face.

And no wonder.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

[STATUS PAGE]

▸ Strength: 183

▸ Defense: 366

▸ Aura Projection: 124,343 → 112,223

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Total Aura: 124,526 → 112,223 (90%)

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

Just a few seconds in, and he'd already burned through nearly 10% of his total aura.

He checked the monitor. Aside from some superficial damage having cleared up, the deeper injuries—the respiratory system, the missing stomach—remained untouched.

'H-how is it costing this much already?!' He questioned, outraged.

Fortunately, Recovery Girl's voice cut in before his panic could go anywhere, apparently having taken note of Taka's less than ideal expression.

"Is the energy flow too high, kid?" She said, watching the monitor closely. "Well, I suppose it's to be expected somewhat. All Might's body spent years compensating for the missing tissue—surrounding organs shifted, the musculature restructured, everything rearranged to accommodate the absence. Before it can accept a new stomach, the body first has to undo all of that—reverting itself to its original pre-injury configuration. That's essentially two healing processes for the price of one. So it ought to be pretty taxing."

'Of course.' Taka groaned internally, but held the output steady.

Before hosting a proper respiratory system and a stomach again, the body had to roll back everything it had quietly changed over the years to cope without them.

Muscles, tendons, bones, arteries—the whole internal architecture was being remodeled back to what it once was.

And with it, the aura kept draining.

By the one-minute mark, 70% remained.

"The body has finished reverting." Recovery Girl announced the moment it reached that number.

However, following that, the rate of drain suddenly accelerated enormously, making the two spectators, Nezu and Recovery Girl, stare harder at the screen.

60%

But in turn to the preoccupying boost in energy being spent, the tears and damage along the lungs and diaphragm began closing, rebuilding into perfectly functioning tissue.

50%

The cracks and missing sections of the ribcage grew back, filling in solid.

40%

The scar on the left side of his chest faded entirely.

30%

And then came the last part.

The void in his body—the space that had formed as everything rearranged itself around the absence—suddenly stopped being empty.

A small mass of living muscle appeared where there had been nothing.

It grew. It sent tendrils out into the surrounding tissue, finding its connections.

20%

Soon it had integrated. Then the overall shape continued expanding, growing into its proper size.

Until—

10%

At last—

5%

It was done.

A new stomach was born. One that was connected to All Might so seamlessly, it appeared to have always been there.

And with it—the healing process was over.

—Tsssssss…!—

The moment the treatment ended, All Might's body expelled vapor as if he were a machine venting steam—the heat radiating off him palpable from several steps away. The room had become a sauna.

Taka stepped back, pulling in a deep breath.

His eyes moved to his status screen, wincing at the sight.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

[STATUS PAGE]

▸ Strength: 183

▸ Defense: 366

▸ Aura Projection: 124,343 → 5,380

─────────────

Total Aura: 124,526 → 5,380 (4%)

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

96% aura, used in just a matter of minutes.

He'd never burned through that much in such a short window. It left him dizzy.

Slowly, he pulled his gaze from the screen and looked at the room around him—thick with vapor, the far wall barely visible through it.

'Did it work?'

With what aura he had left, he opened the curtains, then the window, and siphoned the vapor outward in a steady stream.

Until, at last, the room cleared—now lit softly by the last of the setting sun.

-Screech-

As soon as sight was returned to everyone, the bed of the patient groaned as the figure lying in it began to move—slowly at first, then with increasing certainty.

-Tap-

The figure sat up. Then stood, his wet feet echoing in the silent room as the figure rose tall, letting the light fall over it.

There stood All Might.

Not in his muscular form. No.

But he wasn't a skeleton anymore.

It was a healthy-looking All Might, staring at his own open hands and stomach with wide, stunned eyes.

Then he looked up.

And the smile of the symbol of hope returned.

"I AM—Cured."

...

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-To Be Continued...-

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(A/N: Pretty epic, if I say so myself.)
 
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