I Can't Lose You Again

Chapter 23: Their Fiery Spirit

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As soon as the three lights on the gate turned green, the first-year students ran for the exit out of the arena, the TVs around the stadium flashing on with the two hero friends in the stands commentating on the first event. Tapping his pencil against the edges of the paper, Izuku slipped the mask back over his freckles, his attention on the TV with an ice wave coming out with the son of Endeavor running out.

"You here for some of your friends?"

The new voice surprised him, though he didn't let it show as Izuku simply blinked. He looked to his left side where he heard the voice. It was a chubby short brown-haired man; specks of gray in his hair, his eyes squinted up and a soft smile on his lips.

"Oh, yes sir..." Izuku nodded respectfully, hoping that that was the man's only question.

"How supportive of you...! Anzen Yawarakai." the man; Anzen, dipped his head to him in return before looking back to the TV above them, Izuku following his gaze and seeing the students running while tall robots loomed over them. He was slowly regaining his focus back on the action until the chubby man spoke again, "You know, not a lot of people sit this close in the stands because of the destruction the students make during the events, so I hope you came prepared...!"

The man bellowed out a laugh, and that got Izuku curious. Sparing a glance over to him, he used his Analysis quirk on the older gentlemen, seeing that he had a rock cover type quirk where he would cover his skin in rocks, creating a personal shield for himself.

'That's a good quirk for defense; explains why he's in the front...' Izuku noted to himself before blinking away the effect, turning back up his jaded eyes to the TV that showed several students scaling over the robots, Todoroki Shoto in first place.

"If you don't mind me asking, who are your friends?" Anzen chirped up again, Izuku's eye twitching slightly.

What about his appearance said he wanted someone to talk to him?

"Oh, Kirishima Eijiro-kun and... Bakugo Katsuki-kun of Class 1-A." Izuku gulped down the childhood nickname as he answered the man's question.

"Ah... The blond kid who did the speech... Who's Kirishima-kun?" Anzen continued on with his questioning, the greenette not sparing the man a glance as he kept his gaze on the TV, Mic announcing how the students were approaching the second obstacle.

"He has red spiky hair." Izuku replied back.

"Why didn't you join the hero course with them?" Anzen asked a simple question, Izuku letting a soft chuckle escape his lips as he turned his gaze off the TVs and down to his bandaged hand, flexing his fingers.

"I don't think I could be a hero... Nor do I want to be one..." Izuku sighed out.

It was the honest truth. If things had been different, though, if he hadn't followed father or Kacchan reacted quicker and stopped him from leaving or anything, maybe he and Kirishima would have met at better conditions. But there was no time for thoughts like that because you can't rewind time.

"I see..." Anzen was quiet, surprising Izuku vaguely as he turned his light green eyes to the not silent man.

Even though Izuku had only known the man for a short few minutes, the appearance of him being quiet was a strange sight. There was a sorrowful expression reflecting in his light blue gaze as if he was in a long lost memory, his eyes glazed over while a small smile formed upon his lips.

"My daughter, too, wished to be a hero..." Anzen breathed out shakingly.

What was he supposed to say to that...? He didn't know what to say in response to something like that. He was a killer, a murder, a monster. Used and abused to show nothing of empathy or sympathy or hesitation. This wasn't what he had expected to hear or know when coming to the sports festival. He couldn't comfort him.