One by One

Unseen Issues

Back to Aizawa, back to problem solving, so... Nothing too sad or angsty but... That won't last

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Aizawa figured that with Midoriya distracted by Aka, he would get a moment to catch his breath. I'm Class 1A was naturally problematic, of course, but Aizawa believed that without their chaos ring leader, they would settle down.

Boy, was he wrong.

It wasn't apparently clear, but there was a shift in Heights Alliance. What was a fun break from UA classes became a prolonged period of doing trivial business. A few students put the thoughts away in order to train, and Aizawa saw that the others were developing healthy hobbies to past the time. Midoriya was calling in everyone for the hero training of Aka, allowing the girl to learn all sorts of fighting styles. Sato was giving baking lessons, with the girls making up a large percentage of his audience. Hizashi and Jiro were teaching some of the students instruments, claiming to be a psuedo marching band, a term Hizashi used from America. Iida was assisting students in formulating proper eating and training plans. Mei was a frequent visitor, bringing support gear the students could try, even if they hadn't requested anything. Even the Big Three were offering wisdom that only came with age and experience.

Everyone seemed happy, but Aizawa had a strong distrust of the atmosphere. His suspicions were proven warranted when he stumbled upon the training session of Toru Hagakure. The invisible girl was beating a punching bag, her baby blue gloves smacking against the bright red. She seemed focused, but Aizawa was going off sound and smell alone to deduct that information. Aizawa waited as she was about to deliver the final punch, but he saw her freeze up, her aura completely deflating.

"What's the point?" Hagakure whispered, turning away from the bag. She made a strangled noise upon seeing Aizawa, her gloved hand flashing side to side like she was waving. Her attitude took a happy front, but the depths were still burdened and depressing.

"Why'd you stop? It's illogical to quit or walk away when you're clearly not finished. Hurry now, back into form," Aizawa said, clapping his hand as he grabbed the arm strap of Hagakure's tank top to drag her towards the punching bag. Normally, he'd grab his student's ear, but he couldn't see that with Hagakure so he improvised.

Hagakure did as she was told, her muscles springing into place, ready to build up pressure that could be released. She threw in a few punches for good measure before delivering the final blow, a solid punch that made the bag swing slightly. Aizawa told het to do it again, and the cycle repeated, the punches spiking in strength before falling back down with fatigue. While fair punches that would hurt, nothing she did seemed to compare to the destructive capabilities of her classmates. Even Mineta, the boy she despised, could do more damage with his quirk.

"What's the point, Aizawa-sensei?" Hagakure repeated, feeling defeated yet again. She normally had such an upbeat personality, but she couldn't bring herself to be proud of the results. Something nagged at her, a quiet whispering that only sounded recently when she-

"Hagakure, a single blow can make or break a fight. A strategic well placed hit can dwindle at your opponents health easily," Aizawa informed her, interrupting her bitter thoughts. What he said only made Hagakure frustrated, however, because he showed no sign of understanding what she meant.

"Sensei, I meant... What am I supposed to do? I'm invisible. How is that supposed to help me in a fight? All I can do is sneak up on someone, but what if they know I'm there? W-what do I d-do? How do I face opponents that are bl-blind? That can see heat instead of light? That r-read auras, like you? What a-am I even g-good for?" Hagakure said, her voice hitching and breaking several times over. She decided it was best to confront her feelings head on instead of beat around the bush, maybe Aizawa had answers.

"You train, Hagakure, just like what we've been doing. You learn to defend yourself. Use your strengths to your advantage, and counteract your weaknesses. Never let anyone count you out. A true hero, as I know you are, can make the best of any situation, no matter how... underhanded some ploys can be in the long run," Aizawa reassured her, shaking his head. It wasn't the first time, and probably not the last, that he would wonder how much emotional baggage his kids kept from him. Screw trying to be a teacher, he was their father, and he wanted to help them. "What brought on these feelings?"

"... He believed in me. I don't talk to Midoriya often, but he still believed in me. In his letter, he told me that he knew I could be a powerful hero, that I was beautiful even if I couldn't be seen. He encouraged me to follow my dream, even when he was giving up on his. I didn't want to disappoint Midoriya now that he's awake, but I can't help but feel as if I'm not good enough. I know he'd never admit that I am, but I don't want Midoriya to be ashamed of the trust he placed in me," Hagakure said softly, her voice as fragile as a breeze. It was a voice of pure admiration and idol love.

Aizawa internally sighed. Why did everything come back to that piece of sentient broccoli?

"Hagakure, Midoriya will always be proud of his classmates. He is a total fanboy that would cause a riot over any of you once you're all pro heroes, even if he's number one," Aizawa said, meaning every word with 100% honesty. Aizawa was a witness to the sheer force of Midoriya when he was geeking out about something. "I'm also proud of you. If you continue to work this hard, you will he a foe to reckon with. And I'll always be proud of you, even when you lose, even if you give up. I'm not letting you give up, however, so get back into form and let's try again."