Quirks and magic

Chapter 7: Bakugo's Scrutiny

Katsuki Bakugo believed in two things above all else: that might made right and the concept of destiny.

These beliefs were spurred on by the very heroes he'd spent idolizing in his childhood, especially the greatest among them—All Might. No matter where he went, no matter who he faced, no matter what odds seemed stacked against him, All Might always emerged victorious because he was the strongest! That kind of power—the kind that always resulted in a hero's victory and a villain's defeat—made him destined to be the Number One Hero.

It all made perfect sense to Bakugo! Those with power were destined to rise to the top as the best of the best, and he would be the greatest among them all.

And why wouldn't he? Didn't he have an objectively superior Quirk? The power to make explosions with your bare hands. His entire life since he got his Quirk, he'd been lauded by family, friends, teachers, and strangers alike with how amazing his Quirk was, how he was destined to grow up and become a hero, how he'd be the greatest.

Those with power were destined to rise...

And those without power were destined to get in the way.

Such was Bakugo's perspective of...well, nearly everyone around him. His fellow classmates at Aldera Junior High—so-called 'friends'—were the worst. He tolerated them because they stood behind him rather than in his way, but their constant and incessant praise of his powers began to come off as brown-nosing. After so many years of nonstop praise, he didn't need a bunch of nameless, forgettable nobodies telling him he was destined for greatness—he already knew that.

They simply weren't respectable in his eyes. He had long since recognized them as sycophants, neglecting their own Quirks entirely in favor of exalting his own to the point of irritation. It was pathetic, really.

But at least they weren't so pathetic as to forget their place.

At least they weren't Deku.

Deku... Bakugo can't help but grit his teeth in frustration at the mere mention or thought of that green-haired nerd.

Deku also followed him around constantly like some of his other classmates—had since they were little kids, too. Deku also heaped mounds of praise and adoration on him because of the strength of his Quirk, just like all the others.

But Deku forgets his place in the back, where all the others are content to stay and watch as Bakugo progresses closer and closer to becoming a hero. Deku always has to go too far.

Why? Why won't he give up his ridiculous dream of becoming a hero!?

Deku is not content to just merely sit back like all the other pebbles and watch him become the greatest hero; no, he doesn't even need to look back anymore to tell, he just knows that with each step he takes, Deku is right there behind him, practically nipping at his heels with how goddamn persistent he is.

He might've respected Deku for it...if he had a useful Quirk to justify holding onto such a lofty dream. Or if he had any Quirk at all! And that was what made Deku so infuriating to deal with! How could a Quirkless loser not just get it? How could Quirkless Deku keep thinking he had what it took to be a hero!?

Bakugo took each heroic declaration from Quirkless Deku as a personal affront.

Why? Is he really just that stupid? Bakugo seethed, though he knew Deku's grades were nearly as high as his. Was there some kind of hidden malice in his words instead? Was Deku somehow looking down on him all this time? Is he...mocking me?

The more he thought about the conundrum that was Deku, the more he struggled to understand him. The more he struggled, the angrier he got. And the angrier he got, the more determined he became to stamp this fantasy of a dream that Deku held onto so dearly into the dust.