CHAPTER 143(Stonehearts)

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CHAPTER START---

---6 PM, August 31st...

SHAMBLES

Horizon suddenly warps into principal Nezu's office.

Instead of his usual Hero Costume, he wore a pair of white sweatpants with his logo on the right leg, and a matching jacket. Leaving the muscle groove of his body glove exposed for all to see as the jacket was open.

Walking toward Nezu's chair he sits down, leaning back to get comfortable before spinning around. Looking out at Musutafu.

SCAN!

Everything for 5 miles -8km- in every direction floods his mind.

"Mmm," he shakes his head, feeling some discomfort but quickly casting it aside. "Looks like a boring night, and everyone is done training for the evening..."

He looks to his right, at the wall, but was focusing on all his classmates and the students of 1B in the 1A common room.

"Ok, time to see if you've been slacking," he spins around to face Nezu's computer.

The most intelligent person in the world, a computer that was completely unhackable.

On its own insulated network with billions of dollars of cyber security protecting it.

Yet with a few taps, Horizon logs in.

"Who the hell needs a fifty-digit password..." Horizon mutters as he begins looking for security camera data.

The only thing Nezu couldn't plan for, was someone else simply knowing his password.

And when your Quirk allows you to effectively get a 3D map of every object, person, and movement. Seeing the keys and the order they are hit in are easy enough. Even knowing where to touch on a phone screen to log in.

And with Horizon's perfect memory, there wasn't a passcode in UA that Horizon hasn't accidentally memorized simply because of how often his ROOM is active.

"There we go...and he's getting used to the upgrades," Horizon leans back in Nezu's chair and observes Sero's training over the past 2 weeks.

After a few minutes Horizon takes out his phone to open the Hero Network. Seeing another barrage of team-up requests.

"Jeanist, no.

Mt. Lady, useless clout chaser.

Mirko...another trap to get a rematch.

Mr. Knight, why would I ever work with such a D-lister?

Bamboo man, who the fuck? I've never even heard of this guy, ugh. This country has too many of you damn paper heroes."

Declining every request he sets his phone down and focuses on Sero. Watching the improvement made with his guidance.

The new efficiency, creativity, and power.

In every movement, every action, every Super-Move.

"Damn, I almost feel proud. But we won't know if you're still a pussy until people start shooting at you..."

Twenty minutes of review Sero's progress later, and Nezu finally walks in.

"What are you doing?" Nezu asks, closing the door behind him.

He sees Horizon leaning back in his chair looking at the screen.

"Security footage, Sero's training, just checking in on him."

"And how did you log into my computer?" Nezu asks as he sits opposite Horizon, leaving him in the principal's chair.

"I guessed your password."

"That's impossible."

"I'm just that good, is your meeting done?"

"Finally yes. It actually has much to do with why you're here. Someone who needs a miracle doctor will be coming to UA tomorrow, along with a new transfer student."

"Glad to see you're wasting no time filling those seats. Also, I'm not a free clinic, is this person useful."

"It's regarding a case you'll be asked to lead, the kind of case that will jump-start a career."

"I've had a lot of those lately," Horizon sighs. "But fine, I'll see what I can do, only as long as it's useful."

"You mean because it's the right thing to do?"

"Sure sure, tell the press that, those useless fucks love that hero garbage."

"It's not garbage, some people mean it, All Might does."

"Did, and a lot of good that did for him. No thanks."

"Well, either way, you've done good work these past few weeks. The crime rate is on a steady decline exactly as predicted. If not for you deterring crime in central Tokyo that much things would have been far worse for way longer."

"Finished just in time for you to call me to fix another broken thing you found."

"Well I did find you after all."

Horizon's head snaps over to look at Nezu, "I'll let that go, just because you're the only thing keeping my parents alive."

"Mhm," Nezu nods awkwardly.

Turning back to the screen Horizon reaches behind his neck and his mask folds away into the plate at the back of his neck. Becoming compact to the size of a cellphone.

"So, are these losers ready for the License Exam tomorrow?" Law asks, but notices Nezu just staring at him. "What?"

"Your eyes...why are they glowing?" this was his first time seeing the new blue glow.

"New tricks," Law shrugs. Keeping his ROOM open so the glow persists.

"Right. Well yes, I believe they're ready. But I got word that because of a certain someone constantly running his mouth about how soft society is on the requirements for being a Pro Hero."

Law gives a vicious smile at that, "oh, so what, how strict are we talking?"

"We'll find out tomorrow after the exam," the sound from Sero's training stops and Horizon shuts off the recording. "Well, how was he?"

"Better than expected, still a lot of work to do, but its a start."

"And why only train him?" Nezu raises a hand to his chin, still unable to figure out the thought process behind this. "There are others in the class that would give better results from your training, why not them?"

"A few reasons," Law raises his fingers to start counting them. "Firstly, most of them are intolerable. Then there's the issue of them not being open enough to give me credit. But mostly, they just don't want it enough."

"Midoriya and Bakugo want to be Pro Heroes more than most people that have ever attended UA."

"Yes, but they aren't selfish enough," Law sees Nezu looking a bit confused. "What I mean is, for Sero. It's just him and his dad against the world. They're dirt poor and him going Pro is their hail-mary attempt at getting a better life. He doesn't have any backup plan, he CAN'T quit. So he will die before he fails...something I can relate to."

"And why is wanting to be a Pro Hero to save the civilians any less than that? I'd argue that Midoriya's heroic spirit is among the strongest I've ever seen."

"Yes, but if that so-called 'heroic spirit' ever breaks, strangers die. He may feel bad for a while, but he'll get over it. We're human, its what we do. But when you're fighting for people you really love, then you'll never allow yourself to break. You'll break the world before it breaks you."

"Backs against the wall, I see..."

Law shakes his head, "biggest brain on the planet, but all that logic and math in your head makes it difficult to really understand people. No wonder I always beat you at chess, getting in your opponent's head isn't enough. You also have to read his heart, and to do that, you have to understand your own."

"Are you in any position to lecture me about emotions?"

"Tch," Law scoffed. "I have a heart, and I know it well. It's not made of stone, I feel things..."

"I know. I see it all the time," Nezu gives a warm smile. "You can't help but show it on your face, every time you talk about them. Because regardless of what they did or what they are, you atleast think they were good to you, and your love of them is what makes you who you are."

"Because they're perfect."

"Maybe, but now imagine if you looked at every person with such care, and that strong desire to protect them."

"That's impossible, nobody has that much love to give."

"All Might does..."

Law thinks about it for a moment, and can't argue against it. For better or for worse Yagi did care about everyone, willing to do things that Law would only do for his family, but for random strangers.

"True," Law says. "But he's 1 in ten billion, just like me..."

"Maybe, but you're more similar than you believe."

"That's impossible."

"Mhm, yet you both punish yourself beyond any reasonable bounds when one of the people you love and want to protect gets hurt, for him, he'd work himself to death. Knowing that a million more saved lives could never make up for any one life he failed."

"And me, how exactly am I punishing myself?"

"The loneliness."

"I'm not lonely," Law grits out. "I've got you to annoy me every day."

"That's not the same and you know it," Nezu hops onto the desk and walks up beside Law, looking out at the city behind them, and Law spins in the chair to join him. "You've always had them with you. Always lived in your family home. But now, walking around these big, empty houses. Refusing to even make friends because you feel like you don't deserve them until you fix everything, it's not what they'd want."

"Don't tell me what they'd want!" Law snaps at him, but Nezu doesn't react.

"They want you to live a full life. And from what I understand they wouldn't care which side you fought for, just that you were happy and living the life you want, with people you care about."

"If this is some cheap sales pitch for me to start making friends, you're failing."

Nezu sighs, "no, but I imagine if they knew that their son was here working himself to death, going four days at a time with no sleep. All while having no real friends, for three whole years. Just to save them... that would break their hearts."

Law stops to think about it for a while, sensing all his classmates finally gathered in the common area. "And how would you be so sure?"

"Because all my students and staff are the closest I'll ever have to family...and it would break my heart to think they led such lonely lives."

"And now you expect me to make friends with everyone I meet?"

"No, but maybe don't be as bad, do something nice for them. Public image is a main concern of yours after all and they are the first people the press will call when you're a full Pro Hero."

"Mmm, I guess playing nice may be the right call here. Solve more problems that way, but what do teens even like, normal ones I mean?"

Nezu shrugs, "pizza?"

END CHAPTER---