Chapter Eight

I opened the suitcase and looked inside...

Oh... OH!

They actually provided them.

I smirked and grabbed the pants. sliding them on. Followed by the combat boots and finally, the long-sleeved cut resistance muscle shirt.

I hummed slightly, securing two Knives to my waist, one on the right and one on the left, and finally, one right below the tailbone.

Grabbing the waist cloth, I secured it around my waist, covering my backups backup knife, and finally, the newly provided flashbang grenades. This was going to be fun!

Reaching down and grabbing my gloves, I strapped them on, clenching and unclenching my fingers to make sure that they got the size right.

Nodding in appreciation at the comfortable feeling, I grabbed my forearm guards and strapped them on, moving my palm around to make sure that they didn't get in the way.

Grabbing my mask, I tilted my head at the different design and grabbed the note that was on it. They were instructions and an apology since the design didn't work, so they either had to ditch the rebreather part or make it bulkier in the front.

The front of the mask, where my nose and mouth were supposed to be was open, making me wonder where the "Mask" part of the mask went, but I nevertheless put it on by placing my chin at the designated area and clicking the two parts behind my head.

Looking at the instructions for a few seconds, I reached up and pressed a button that was below my jaw and the two halves of the mask that was hidden in my cheeks came together, and I figured out the whole thing.

Considering there was space between the mask and my mouth, this is where the filtered air was supposed to be coming in, and the sides of my head and even some of the back of the whole thing were where the air got filtered.

Reading down a bit more on the paper, I confirmed my suspicions.

"Dude! You look so manly!"

I blinked and looked at Kirishima for a moment... He was basically naked.

"... you emulating Crimson Riot?"

Seriously, couldn't you be more original? Paying Omage was one thing, but considering how he was now, he might as well name himself Crimson Riot Jr.

"Man! Do you know him? Thats awesome! He's my favorite hero!"

... Damn it.

___

I was fiddling around with my waistcloth as I walked down the hall with Kirishima, heading to the testing ground where we would have our lesson.

"What do you think we are going to learn today?"

I let out a thoughtful Hum and finally stopped awkwardly trying to look busy.

"Most likely securing an objective."

Kirishima tilted his head curiously and I sighed, shoving my hands in my pockets.

"It might be securing hostages, recovering important files, securing a bomb, that kind of thing."

The redhead let out a sound of realization just as the light trickled in from the exit of the tunnel.

"Are you sure we shouldn't have waited for the others? It just doesn't seem manly."

... And I thought I had my priorities messed up.

"What's more manly, Kirishima? Arriving on the scene as fast as possible to save a few more civilians, or waiting for your team to get ready?"

His eyes widened and a few seconds later, he clenched his fist in front of his chest and looked at the exit with a determined gaze...

Oi, oi, oi, what are you? The main character? That's me, get back into your side character role! Stop having character development while I'm having an early life crisis and figuring out how to deal with this sudden change of lifestyle!

"Thank you, bro! I shall remember this lesson!"

I have been promoted to a bro...

"Looking sharp you two! Impressive Designs! The first thing a hero must do when arriving on a scene is calm down the civilians, with costumes like yours, you are sure to stand out on the field!"

We both looked over at the hulking man that was giving us a thumbs up. Kirishima seemed inspired and I just blinked at him. I wasn't dressing like this to stand out, it was efficient.

Moving to stand in front of All Might, we waited for the others to finish changing and finally reach where we were.

To pass the time, I took out one of my knives, getting a raised eyebrow from All Might and a side glance from Kirishima. Ignoring the two, I started playing with the very dangerous stabby stick in my hand.

"Young Midoriya, that's dangerous."

You don't say? Throwing the knife in the air, I bought it with the butt of the handle and sheathed it back inside the sheath.

"Young man, why do you have knives? With On-your quirk, I imagine using them would be inconvenient."

I glanced at the blonde, making sure that he noticed my opinions about his acting, and answered honestly...

"While my quirk makes me extremely strong, it's also flashy, if I ever need to quietly rescue hostages, I can't rely on my quirk to rip apart the bindings if there are any. And besides, I can use them as footholds."

Okay, not that honestly.

All Might nodded, putting a hand in the air with his index finger pointed to the sky like he was spewing some divine wisdom.

"Good thinking, young man, prioritizing civilians is an excellent trait of any hero! And using them as footholds is clever thinking! I approve!"

... Bold of you to assume that I need your approval. But sure, whatever helps you sleep at night.

"..."

"..."

"So! Bro! What's your workout routine?"

Kirishima, your attitude is like an anti-awkward silence device, please, stop, awkward silences are useful for information.

"I train muscles for use, not for display, so It involves a lot of moving around. But considering your quirk, I would train to get bulkier, I doubt you can turn muscle into rock since that would damage your organs if they got jagged enough. If I were to estimate, once you harden to your limits, you won't be able to move due to your joints locking up. In your place, I would do both upper and lower body exercises while also paying attention to balance."

"..."

"Man, I never thought about it that much. I just thought of it as Simple hardening."

While All Might was just looking on with a smile plastered on his face, and sweat dripping down his jaw, Kirishima was looking at his hardened hand with wonder.

"It is a simple quirk, but that's why you can take it far. Take Bakugo for example. He sweats Nitro-Glycerin-"

"What?"

"His sweat makes the explosions..."

"Oh."

"Because of that, he has to worry about de-hydration, making sure that his quirk is available to him in cold environments, and the headaches that come with it are sure to be a pain."

"..."

I could see All Might start to sweat more profusely and wondered what was that about.

"You just figured it out just by knowing him for two days?"

...Ah, right, that asshole came in before Kirishima... that or this guy is just really forgetful.

"Unfortunately, I've known that asshole since I was two."

The old man coughed into his fist.

"Language."

"I'm fifteen, not five."