[47] Wrong Questions, Right Answers

Yap Yap Bonus Chapter time! 

The afternoon sun beat down on Training Ground Beta as I stood apart from the others, trying to make sense of Azure. Twenty feet away, Yaoyorozu directed our classmates through combat drills.

"Ashido, watch your footwork! Kaminari, stop dropping your guard!"

I closed my eyes, reaching for that same feeling from USJ. The math was there, I knew it was, but every time I got close it slipped away like-

No. No metaphors. Just facts. The equations weren't working.

"Having trouble?" Todo appeared beside me, hands in his pockets.

"Something like that." I opened my eyes. "How's the group training?"

"Boring." He watched as Yaoyorozu corrected Kaminari's stance again. "Though she has good taste in teaching methods."

"You mean because she's strict?"

"I mean because she understands the importance of proper form." Todo clapped his hands together, swapping places with a training dummy. "Unlike some people."

I ignored the jab at Katsumi. "Hey, what do you think about Azure?"

"Your new technique?" He materialized next to me again. "The one that breaks physics?"

"Yeah."

"It's interesting." Todo scratched his chin. "Reminds me of that movie we watched. You know, the one about black holes?"

"Interstellar?"

"That's it!" He snapped his fingers. "When they talked about gravity transcending dimensions. Very elegant concept."

I stared at him. Sometimes I forgot how smart Todo could be under all the... Todo-ness.

"You think Azure works like that?"

"No idea!" He grinned. "But it's fun to think about. Like, what if instead of pushing things apart, you're pulling reality together?"

"That's... actually helpful."

"Of course it is! I'm very wise." He clapped me on the shoulder. "By the way, I heard Ashido's hosting a girls' night."

"And?"

"And your girlfriend's going."

"She's not my-" I stopped at his knowing look. "How did you..."

"Please." Todo rolled his eyes. "I know your type. Smart, fierce, probably could kill you."

Across the field, Katsumi launched Kaminari into a wall.

"Bakugo!" Yaoyorozu shouted. "We agreed on no explosions!"

"He was asking for it!"

Todo nodded sagely. "See? Perfect match."

I sighed. "You're impossible."

"I prefer 'insightful.'" He stretched. "Want to spar? Might help clear your head."

"Pass. I need to figure this out."

"Suit yourself." He started walking away, then paused. "Oh, one more thing?"

"What?"

"Stop thinking so much." He tapped his temple. "The answer's already there. You're just using the wrong equation to solve it."

I watched him rejoin the group, immediately challenging Kirishima to a "manly contest of strength." Maybe he had a point. I'd been approaching Azure like a physics problem, but what if it wasn't about physics at all?

I raised my hand, focusing on a point in space. Instead of calculating vectors and forces, I thought about gravity. About attraction. About pulling things together instead of pushing them apart.

The air shimmered. For a second, I felt it - that same sensation from USJ. Then it vanished.

"Shit."

"Language!" Yaoyorozu called without looking.

I dropped my hand. Progress, sort of. At least now I knew what I was aiming for. Kind of.

The training session wrapped up as the sun started setting. Ashido bounced between the girls, practically vibrating with energy.

"Don't forget! Eight o'clock sharp! And bring snacks!"

"We know," Jiro said. "You've only told us fifty times."

"Because it's important! This is our first official girls' night!"

I caught Katsumi's eye as she walked past. She gave me a tiny nod before Ashido dragged her into the conversation.

"You're coming, right Bakugo?"

"Whatever."

"That's a yes!" Ashido hugged her. "This is gonna be amazing!"

"Get off me before I explode your face."

Todo appeared at my shoulder. "Young love. So beautiful."

"Shut up."

"Never." He grinned. "Want to grab dinner? I know this great place-"

"Can't. Still working on Azure."

His expression turned serious. "You know, sometimes the best way forward is to step back."

"What does that even mean?"

"No idea! But it sounds profound, right?"

I shoved him. "You're the worst."

"You mean the best." He started walking backward. "Think about what I said though! About the wrong equation!"

I watched him go, shaking my head. For all his ridiculousness, Todo usually had a point buried somewhere in his nonsense. The question was figuring out what that point actually was.

The training ground emptied as everyone headed back to the dorms. I stayed behind, still trying to crack Azure's code. The sun sank lower, shadows stretching across the field.

Wrong equation. What did that mean? I'd been treating Azure like an extension of my normal quirk, but maybe that was the problem. Maybe it needed a completely different approach.

I closed my eyes again, thinking about Todo's black hole comparison. Gravity wasn't just about pulling things together - it was about warping space itself. Creating curves in reality where everything naturally flowed toward a single point.

The air shifted. I felt that familiar sensation, stronger this time. When I opened my eyes, a small sphere of compressed space hung in front of me. Blue energy sparked around its edges.

"Finally," I muttered.

The sphere collapsed almost immediately, but it was progress. Real progress. Maybe Todo wasn't completely full of shit after all.

Not that I'd ever tell him that. His ego was big enough already.

I headed back to the dorms. The common room was empty except for Midoriya, who sat in his usual spot muttering into his notebook.

"Still analyzing?"

He jumped. "Nakamura-kun! I was just... um..."

I glanced at his notes. Detailed drawings of Azure covered the page, complete with mathematical formulas and physics equations.

"You've been watching me train."

His face turned red. "Sorry! I didn't mean to spy, it's just... your quirk is fascinating! The way it manipulates space and energy, it's like nothing I've ever seen before! And then there's Azure, which seems to operate on completely different principles, almost like it's working in reverse, and I was thinking maybe if we analyzed the underlying mechanics we could-"

"Midoriya."

"Yes?"

"Breathe."

He took a deep breath. "Sorry. I get excited about quirk analysis."

"I noticed." I sat across from him. "What's your theory?"

His eyes lit up. "Well, your normal quirk works by creating infinite space between points, right? But Azure seems to do the opposite - it compresses space into a single point. It's like... imagine if you could fold reality like paper, bringing distant points together until they overlap!"

I blinked. That... actually made sense.

"But then," he continued, flipping pages, "there's the energy component. Your quirk usually disperses energy outward, but Azure concentrates it. The real question is: what happens to all that compressed space and energy? Does it create a temporary singularity? Or maybe it-"

"Deku!" Katsumi's voice cut through his rambling. "Stop bothering him with your nerd shit."

She stood in the doorway, arms crossed. Behind her, I could hear the other girls heading upstairs for Ashido's party.

"S-sorry, Kacchan!"

"Whatever." She jerked her thumb toward the stairs. "Raccoon Eyes is looking for you. Something about needing your phone charger."

Midoriya scrambled up, gathering his notes. "Right! Thanks, Kacchan!"

He hurried past her. Katsumi waited until he was gone before dropping onto the couch next to me.

"You figured it out yet?"

"Getting closer." I showed her the small sphere of energy I'd managed to create. "Still can't hold it for long though."

She studied the sphere. "Looks unstable."

"It is."

"Good."

I raised an eyebrow. "Good?"

"Means you're actually trying instead of playing it safe." She stood. "I should go before Raccoon Eyes comes looking for me too."

"Have fun at girls' night."

"Fuck off." But she was smiling slightly. "Don't stay up too late being a nerd."

"No promises."

She punched my arm before heading upstairs. I watched her go, then looked back at the sphere floating above my palm. Unstable, yeah. But getting stronger.

Kind of like everything else in my life lately.

I let the sphere dissipate, already planning tomorrow's training. Todo was right - I had been using the wrong equation. Time to try a new approach.

[Mina's Room]

Katsumi Bakugo stood in the doorway of Mina Ashido's room, begrudgingly taking in the sight before her. The space was a riot of color, with posters plastering every available inch of wall and fairy lights strung haphazardly across the ceiling. It looked like a unicorn had vomited glitter everywhere.

"About time you showed up, Bakugo!" Ashido called from her perch on the bed. She was wearing a set of neon pink pajamas covered in little black stars. "We were about to start without you!"

Katsumi rolled her eyes, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. "Whatever. Let's get this over with."

The other girls were scattered around the room in various states of comfort. Asui sat cross-legged on the floor, her frog-patterned green pajamas blending in with the plush rug. Jiro lounged against the wall, looking effortlessly cool in an oversized t-shirt and shorts adorned with musical notes. Yaoyorozu perched primly on the edge of the bed in silk pajamas that probably cost more than Katsumi's entire wardrobe. Hagakure's presence was marked only by a floating set of polka dot pajamas. Uraraka huddled near Asui, her pajamas covered in little cartoon stars and planets. And Hitomi... well, Hitomi looked like she'd rather be anywhere else, her mismatched red and white pajamas standing out starkly against the colorful chaos.

"Nice of you to grace us with your presence," Hitomi muttered as Katsumi plopped down next to her.

"Fuck off, Half-and-Half."

"Now that we're all here," Ashido said, producing a bottle of suspiciously dark liquid from behind her back, "let's get this party started!"

Yaoyorozu eyed the bottle warily. "Ashido-san, is that..."

"Relax, Yaomomo! It's just juice." Ashido winked. "Probably."

Katsumi snorted. Leave it to Raccoon Eyes to smuggle in something questionable.

"Alright, ladies!" Ashido clapped her hands together. "Who's ready for some Never Have I Ever?"

A chorus of groans and half-hearted cheers filled the room. Katsumi rolled her eyes again, but didn't protest as Ashido started pouring drinks.

"I'll go first!" Hagakure's sleeve waved excitedly. "Never have I ever... cheated on a test!"

Ashido took a reluctant sip.

"My turn!" Uraraka piped up. "Never have I ever... skipped class!"

This time, nearly everyone drank. Even Yaoyorozu took a tiny sip, her cheeks flushing red.

The game continued, questions ranging from the mundane ("Never have I ever dyed my hair") to the slightly more daring ("Never have I ever kissed someone of the same gender"). Katsumi found herself relaxing slightly, the warmth of the "juice" spreading through her.

Then Hagakure spoke up again. "Never have I ever had a crush on someone in our class!"

Katsumi froze, her cup halfway to her lips. Shit. She glanced around, seeing nearly everyone else take a drink. Even Half-and-Half knocked one back, though she looked like she'd rather eat glass. Only Asui abstained, ribbiting softly.

Slowly, deliberately casual, Katsumi took a sip.

Ashido's eyes gleamed. "Oho? Spill, Bakugo! Who's the lucky guy?"

"None of your fucking business, Raccoon Eyes."

"Aw, come on! We're all friends here!"

Katsumi's retort was cut off by Ashido's next question. "Never have I ever... made out with someone!"

Fuck. Katsumi tried to take an inconspicuous sip, but apparently she wasn't subtle enough.

"Holy shit!" Ashido screeched. "Bakugo, you've made out with someone? Was it Nakamura?"

Katsumi choked on her drink. "What? No! Why the fuck would you think that?"

But the damage was done. Jiro, Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, and Hitomi were all staring at her with laser-focused intensity.

"You and Nakamura, huh?" Jiro drawled. "Can't say I'm surprised."

"Shut up, Earlobes! It's not like that!"

Asui tilted her head. "But isn't Nakamura-kun with Sakurada-san?"

An uncomfortable silence fell over the room. Katsumi cursed internally. This was exactly why she didn't do "girl talk".

Yaoyorozu cleared her throat. "Perhaps... Nakamura-kun has a different approach to relationships."

Katsumi shot her a grateful look. She knew Ponytail was smart for a reason.

"What, like he's a player?" Ashido gasped. "No way! Yoichi's too nice for that!"

"Not a player," Yaoyorozu said carefully. "More like... open to multiple partners."

The room erupted into chaos. "WHAT!?!?!?!"