The Emerald Prince

Chapter 63: Floats like a butterfly

...stings like a bee.

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"WHAT THE HELL??!!!?!?!?!" Bakugou roared it in spite of himself. Fuck the breathing exercises, being angry at the person you care about for walking into the lair of a bunch of murderers and psychopaths had to be perfectly fucking valid.

Izuku winced. Todoroki crossed his arms, whilst Shinsou - the only one pretty much fine with it, tiredly restrained the raging blond.

The bicoloured male actually glared at him, more expressive than any of the three had ever seen him before. "For once I agree with Bakugou. The day after we tell you we're worried about you communicating with the league, you go to their base!"

They were out in the woods to train, as the four had gotten into the habit of doing three or so times a week after Shinsou and Todoroki's upgrades. Not like they could go all out anywhere else.
Izuku had come clean the moment they arrived, though he'd only managed one sentence of explanation before Bakugou's hissy fit began.
Speaking of, a certain phrase leapt out at him, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"You aren't a fucking one man army, Deku!" Hissed Bakugou.
He paused at that, and the atmosphere around him must have changed as Shinsou smiled slightly, asking "Should I stand back?"

Unlike Bakugou and Todoroki, Shinsou hadn't been raised with not only the ambition but the expectation of being number one in everything, and the greatest Hero of all time. He hadn't been the strongest person in the room most of his life like they had, with everyone bowing to their whims whether they wanted that or not.
He had a very very healthy respect for Izuku's quirk, skills and intellect.

His tactful question earned a slight but terse smile from the greenette, whose eyes were burning cold in a way that caused Bakugou to tense up, and Todoroki to subconsciously adjust his footing to a defensive position.
"No need Toshi."
Izuku sighed, running a hand through his hair and tying it back into a messy bun. "I'm not a violent person, so when I demonstrated... I picked a quirk I liked, not one which would show you just how powerful I am. It seems it was the wrong call."

Bakugou felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise, and sparks shot from his palms unbidden as the temperature seemed to drop, and colour drained from the world until the green of Izuku's eyes was the only thing that stood out in the dark cold wood. He and Todoroki felt their powers, their armour against the world, their strength drain from them, and the gravity triple, forcing them both to their knees.
Todoroki's face drained of colour as icy winds tore at his clothes, and vines rose from the ground, twisting around his ankles and wrists trapping them, whilst trees curved inward containing the three teens in a wooden cage and almost blocking out the sky.

Then the pair looked up and saw Izuku. He hovered above them, eyes glowing toxic green, hair wafting. Lightning flickered across his skin, and knives orbited him, before shooting forward at huge speeds, missing them by hair breadths. The gravity doubled again, and the ground seemed to melt away beneath them. They thought they were going to be buried alive.

Just as Bakugou opened his mouth, not sure whether to sob or beg, the figure raised it's right hand and clicked.
Colour flooded back into the scene, gravity eased, vines and trees retracted, lightning ceased , clouds evaporated and warmth and sound returned as did their quirks. It if wasn't for looking at each other's ghostly pale faces, Todoroki and Bakugou would have wondered if what they'd experienced had even been real.

Izuku met their gazes, alighting delicately on the ground with a stern expression, "I know who I'm dealing with, I really do. But they aren't a threat to me. I could cause an apocalypse if I wanted, we're on completely different levels."