[3] Barrier to Entry
A group of kids with various animal features passed by, laughing about something. I caught fragments about a new hero ranking update. Normal conversation in 2224. Still weird.
My phone showed 15% battery. Great. I pulled up the map app again, squinting at the tiny street names. According to this, I was somewhere in... I zoomed out. Way out.
"How the fuck did I end up in Hosu?"
The screen went black. I pressed the power button. Nothing.
"You've got to be kidding me."
I pocketed the useless phone and looked around. Tall buildings blocked most of the view, but I caught glimpses of unfamiliar hero agency logos. Different district, different pros patrolling. A few people gave me odd looks as they passed - probably wondering why someone was standing around looking lost.
"Excuse me," I said to an old lady walking her dog (or what I hoped was a dog - might've been a quirk mutation). "Which way to the train station?"
She rattled off directions in rapid-fire. I caught maybe one word in three.
"Thanks," I said, walking in what I hoped was the right direction. The lotus pattern in my eyes spun faster, like it was laughing at me.
"Shut up," I told it. "Not like you're helping."
A hero zipped by - some guy in with engines on his legs. Must be nice, having powers that actually got you places. Meanwhile, I had infinite space manipulation and couldn't find my way home.
My stomach growled. The convenience store cash in my wallet wouldn't cover both food and a train ticket. Another thing the other me hadn't planned for - being broke in the future sucked just as much as being broke in the past.
I passed a TV store showing hero news. The anchor was talking about some incident with a giant villain and the debut of Mt Lady. I watched the footage, my eyes drawn to Mt. Lady's victory pose. The camera lingered as she shrank back to normal size, her costume leaving little to the imagination.
"Girl knows her angles," I said, appreciating both the tactical and aesthetic aspects of her performance. The costume probably cost a fortune in smart materials to grow and shrink with her, but the ROI had to be insane. One debut fight and she was already trending.
A couple of high school girls giggled as they passed, probably thinking I was just another fanboy drooling over the new hero. But I was seeing dollar signs. This was exactly the kind of thing I needed to study - how to turn power into profit, style into substance.
The station, when I finally found it, was packed. Rush hour crowds pushed toward the turnstiles. I checked my wallet again - barely enough for a ticket. No margin for error.
The ticket machine's English option was buried in submenus. I jabbed at the screen, trying to find Musutafu in the destination list.
"Need help?"
A girl about my age stood nearby. Purple hair, earphone jacks dangling from her earlobes. She looked amused.
"I got it," I said.
"You've been staring at the welcome screen for two minutes."
I glanced back at the machine. She was right.
"...maybe I could use some help."
She stepped over. "Where to?"
"Musutafu."
"Ah." She tapped through the menus. "You're applying to UA?"
I nodded.
"Same." She stepped back as the ticket printed. "I'm Jirou."
"Nakamura." I grabbed the ticket. "Thanks for the help."
"No problem. Try not to get lost on the train."
I watched her disappear into the crowd. First actual conversation I'd had all day that felt... normal. Well, as normal as anything could be when talking to someone with audio jacks growing from their head.
The train was crowded but cool. I found a spot to lean against the door, watching the city blur past. The lotus pattern in my eyes had settled into a lazy spin, like it was tired from all the walking too.
My dead phone weighed heavy in my pocket. Nakamura's mom - my mom now, I guess - had probably been trying to call. Another thing to deal with when I got home. Assuming I could find my way from the station.
The train announcer called out stops in Japanese and English. I counted them down, trying to remember the route from this morning. Three more to go. Two. One.
Tatooin Station looked different in the evening light. I picked a direction and walked. Fifty-fifty chance of being right, which meant I was definitely going the wrong way. The lotus pattern spun lazily, like it was half-asleep.
The streets near Tatooin Station looked different than I remembered from this morning. Had I passed that ramen shop before? The old guy sweeping out front gave me a friendly nod. I nodded back, stomach rumbling at the smell of broth.
My feet hurt. These shoes weren't made for walking half of Tokyo. I stopped at a vending machine, counting my remaining coins. Not even enough for the cheapest drink.
"Should've asked that Jirou girl for directions while I had the chance," I muttered. A salaryman giving me side-eye quickened his pace. Right, talking to myself in public. Real smooth.
I turned down a side street lined with small shops closing for the day. An old woman was bringing in her produce display, muttering about her back. I stepped forward to help, then stopped. Getting involved would just get me more lost.
The lotus pattern pulsed once, sharply.
A deep boom shook the ground. The old woman's apples went rolling. Down the street, a plume of smoke rose above the buildings.
More explosions followed, rapid-fire like firecrackers but deeper. The ground trembled. Car alarms joined the chaos.
People ran past me, away from the smoke. A mother dragged two crying kids. A teenager with dragonfly wings took off straight up, phone out to record.
I should have run too. That would have been the smart play. But my feet were already moving toward the smoke.
"Young man!" the old woman called. "The heroes will handle it!"
They probably would. But I was already jogging, then running. The lotus pattern spun faster, matching my pulse.
I sprinted through winding streets, following the smoke and screams. The lotus pattern in my eyes spun faster with each step, like a compass pointing toward trouble.
When I rounded the final corner, I almost ran straight into the crowd of onlookers. They packed the sidewalks three deep, phones raised high to capture the scene.
"Holy shit," someone whispered. "Is that thing made of slime?"
It was. A massive green blob monster filled the street, its body rippling and flowing like toxic jello. Two huge yellow eyes rolled wildly above what might have been a mouth. And trapped inside its body...
"Let me go, you fucking piece of shit!" A girl with ash blonde hair thrashed in the slime, small explosions popping from her palms. Each blast tore holes in the villain's body that instantly closed.
Mt. Lady crouched at the far end of the street, clearly too big to maneuver here. Death Arms paced nearby, fists clenched. Kamui Woods had his wooden limbs ready but seemed hesitant to engage. Backdraft focused on containing fires from the girl's explosions.
"Why aren't they doing anything?" a woman next to me demanded, still filming.
A short kid with wild green hair burst from the crowd, sprinting straight at the villain. He hurled his backpack with surprising accuracy, nailing one of the yellow eyes. The villain roared, its grip on the blonde girl loosening for a moment.
The kid clawed at the slime, trying to pull her free. Brave. Stupid, but brave.
"Fuck," I muttered. The lotus pattern pulsed.
I vaulted the barrier and ran forward. The slime villain's attention snapped to me, a tendril whipping toward my face. It splattered against an invisible wall inches from my skin.
"Get her out!" I yelled to the green-haired kid. "I'll keep it busy!"
He nodded, still digging. The blonde girl's eyes were starting to flutter closed.
The villain sent more attacks my way, each one hitting the barrier around me. "Interesting quirk," it gurgled. "But you can't attack through your shield either, can you?"
I grinned. "Watch me."
I thrust my hand forward. The barrier extended like a battering ram, punching through the villain's body. The green-haired kid finally got a grip on the girl's arm and pulled. She came free with a wet pop, both of them tumbling backward.
The villain howled and surged toward them. I jumped between, barrier expanding into a dome over all three of us.
"Deku, you fucking... idiot..." the blonde girl gasped between coughs.
"I'm sorry Kacchan, I just..." The green-haired kid - Deku? - wrung his hands.
"Both of you shut up and stay behind me," I said. The villain slammed against my barrier again and again, trying to find a weak point.
"Who the fuck are you?" the girl demanded.
"Nakamura. You're welcome, by the way."
She tried to stand but stumbled. "I didn't ask for-"
"Save it," I cut her off. "Can you still use your quirk?"
She sparked a few weak explosions. "Not enough to fight."
The villain was getting frustrated, its attacks growing wilder. "I'll crush all three of you!"
"You really won't," I said. The lotus pattern spun faster as I pushed my barrier out, forcing the villain back. Each pulse carved chunks from its body that it struggled to regenerate.
"Young man!" Death Arms called. "Fall back and let the pros handle this!"
I glanced back. "Like you were handling it before?"
I tensed as the villain's tendril shot toward us, but before it could hit my barrier, a massive figure appeared in front of me. The impact created a shockwave that made my ears pop.
"I really am pathetic, huh?" All Might's voice carried a weariness I'd never heard in the videos. His signature smile looked strained as he held back the villain's attack with one arm. "To think these young ones had to step up because I wasn't here..."
The sludge villain recoiled. "All Might? But I thought I'd escaped you!"
"Indeed you did!" All Might's voice boomed with his usual theatricality, but I caught something else in his tone - anger, maybe even disappointment in himself. "And while I wasted time berating myself for letting you slip away, these students risked their lives to save another. That, young listeners, is the mark of a true hero!"
I kept my barrier up, watching as All Might squared off against the villain. The lotus pattern in my eyes spun wildly, almost like it was trying to analyze the legendary hero's presence.
"You know," All Might continued, his massive form tensing for action, "professionals are always risking their lives. That's the true test of a hero!"
The sludge villain launched a desperate barrage of attacks. "Stay back! I'll kill them all!"
"You will do no such thing," All Might declared. He drew back his fist, and I felt the air pressure change. The lotus pattern went crazy, like it was trying to warn me about what was coming. "DETROIT..."
"Everyone down!" I shouted, reinforcing my barrier and bracing myself. The green-haired kid - Deku - was staring at All Might with an expression of pure awe. The blonde girl grabbed his collar and yanked him down.
"SMASH!"
The punch connected with the villain's core. The shockwave that followed made my earlier barrier impacts feel like love taps. Windows rattled in their frames. The very air seemed to compress and then explode outward. My barrier strained against the force, and for a moment I worried it might shatter.
The sludge villain didn't just get hit - it disintegrated. Chunks of slime scattered in every direction, losing cohesion as they flew. The force of the punch continued upward, literally punching a hole through the clouds above.
And then it started raining.
I stared up at the sky, letting the drops hit my face. The lotus pattern had settled into a gentle spin, like it was as awed as I was by the display of power.
"Holy shit," I breathed. I'd seen the videos, of course. Everyone had. But being this close to one of All Might's signature moves was something else entirely. The sheer scale of power required to affect the weather with a single punch...
I let my barrier drop, suddenly exhausted. The lotus pattern settled into a lazy spin.
"That was amazing!" the green-haired kid squeaked. "The way your barrier-"
"Shut up, Deku," the blonde girl snapped.
I steadied her arm. "Hospital?"
"Fuck off, I'm fine."
"Right. Because almost being suffocated by slime is no big deal."
She yanked her arm away but didn't move. "...Bakugo."
"What?"
"My name. Bakugo Katsumi." She glared at me. "Since you're so fucking interested."
I was going to respond, but All Might's shadow fell over us.
"YOUNG ONES!" His voice could really use a volume control. "THAT WAS QUITE RECKLESS!"
The green-haired kid - still hadn't caught his actual name - looked ready to faint from either joy or terror.
"HOWEVER!" All Might continued. "Your quick thinking and teamwork saved young Bakugo's life! Well done!"
He posed for the crowd, then turned back to us. Was it my imagination, or did he seem... thinner for a moment?
"Now then! The paramedics should-"
"I don't need-" Bakugo started, then stumbled again.
"The paramedics," I repeated firmly, "should definitely check you out."
She flipped me off but let the EMTs lead her to an ambulance. The green-haired kid must have left at some point because I couldn't find him.
I tried to slip away in the chaos, but a wooden tendril blocked my path.
"And where do you think you're going?" Kamui Woods asked. "There's paperwork for vigilante actions, even justified ones."
I sighed. My phone was still dead, I was still lost, and now I had forms to fill out.
"Can I at least call my mom first?"
==========
[Next time on "My Hero Academia: Limitless"]
"Social media's wild," I said, slouching in front of the camera. "Turns out people love watching a kid with weird eyes save an angry blonde from suffocating. Who knew?"
"Focus!" someone hissed off-screen. "The disciplinary hearing—"
"Oh right, apparently using your quirk without a license is illegal." I shrugged. "Even if you're saving someone's life. Bureaucracy, am I right?"
"The preview—"
"Yeah, yeah." I spun in my chair. "Next time: watch me get chewed out by pros while trying to remember which form goes where. Maybe that explosion girl will show up to yell about how she totally had it under control—"
A crash echoed from somewhere behind the camera.
"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU CALLING 'EXPLOSION GIRL', YOU SILVER-EYED BASTARD?"
"Speaking of..."
"I DIDN'T NEED YOUR HELP!" She stormed into frame, palms sparking. "And don't act like we're friends now, Lotus Boy!"
"Lotus Boy?" I raised an eyebrow. "That's actually pretty good."
"Shut up! Next episode, I'm gonna show everyone how a real hero handles—"
"Are those burn marks on your skirt?"
Her face turned red. "That's not—"
"And is that All Might's signature?"
"NEXT TIME ON MY HERO ACADEMIA: LIMITLESS!" she screamed over me. "WATCH ME MURDER THIS SMUG LOTUS ASSHOLE!"
"Wow, you really want that name to stick."
"I'LL KILL YOU!"