Chapter 15: HERO COSTUMES
In no time, a week had passed. With all his time filled up with a mix of training and class activities, days seemed to mesh together as they quickly flew by. Maru had gotten accustomed to his jam-packed training schedule and was no longer dead tired by midday compared to when he started. He knew it would be a short-lived victory considering how Abe-sensei designed the hero map to increase in intensity with every small milestone reached, but the results were there as well. With how frequently they were allowed to use their quirks in school, he could see a tangible improvement in his finesse in wielding it. He already had great control for his age, capable of shaping it and moving it with but a thought but if one looked closer, the form was always rough. Sometimes sharp and jagged, other times blunt and formless. The simplest test for this was forming an ice ball in 5 seconds. Before, the general shape could be called a circle it had lots of bumps, tiny spikes and small cracks on its surface making it just barely functional. Now, the bumps and cracks were still there but the number was visibly less than before. The biggest surprise for him was the increased density, something he would have missed if not for his father's keen observation. It wasn't a great difference, but it was there. In just a week, there was already such a substantial change in his ability. What would it be like by the time he was a 3rd year. The thought sent a rush of excitement through him that often had him unable to lift his limbs from overdoing it.
He wasn't the only one. The confidence boost from their improved abilities was reflected in 1As daily high school life. The finger pointing had disappeared entirely. There were a few whispers but things were already mostly back to normal. Conversations with his classmates involved them more frequently even though both Youta and himself weren't particularly talkative. The one happiest with this change was surprisingly Jid. The social butterfly was like a fish in water, having already collected all their classmates' numbers and created a chat group. He would randomly dash short distances bragging about how difficult it was to improve your speed by a single second but he was already half way there. Not even Abe-sensei's repeated hazing about little kids still running down corridors could put a dent on his enthusiasm.
It was funny to watch when by lunch, he had to be partially carried around by Youta and himself. Somehow, he'd still manage to run to the train station at the end of the day. The clear evidence of improvement had 1A hyped even when it took all the wind out of their sails. It was a free day. Rest was important so any activity was low intensity leaving an overly active group of teens ready for whatever hero school had in store for them that evening.
"Battle Training?!"
"Heck Yeah!!"
Most of the lessons held so far were introductory hence theory based. It was the same for heroics, but some lessons were easier seen and understood in hind sight. Experience still won teacher of the year every year. Abe pressed a button and a set of sealed cases started to come out from the wall at the back of class. It had smoke pouring out of it as silver cases were lined up along the wall making the class gape at the theatrics.
"Your hero costumes. Meet me at Ground Beta in 15 minutes," he said.
It was good UA classes had decent sound insulation cause 1A would have interrupted every class on their floor with their cheers. Abe-sensei had left right after informing them what they were and they quickly found their cases the same way they did their P.E uniforms based on their admission numbers. There was a mad dash to the changing rooms with everyone eager to get into their hero costumes.
In 10 minutes, 1A had gathered at ground beta, every single one of them grinning madly. The new look had transformed the juvenile semi-childish gang into something greater. Grander. This was reflected in the overflowing confidence leaking from the teens. Even their posture changed. A unique yet mildly comical swagger in their strut. Yes, it was a strut. A semi-cosplay fashion show of epic proportions. They quickly gathered in their friend groups giving a closer look at their fellow classmates.
One particular student drew almost every person's gaze. It was like all she had on was a belt, covering only essential parts. The only fully covered part of her was her feet with thigh high boots. It barely left anything to the imagination. She had a coat covering her but it didn't help much, making the outfit seem even more scandalous. It was quite a daring outfit. A few of the guys gulped audibly with most trying to look anywhere but at her. Most of the girls frowned at her appearance. Raion was an exception, sticking close to her vivacious friend. It was Nemuri Kayama a bold and expressive girl he had met at lunch with Raion. The two were the only others they were familiar with in the class who didn't have any weird reaction to Maru and Youta after the apprehension tests and so they ended up having meals together. On the 2nd floor of the cafeteria. That's UA for you.
She had her arms crossed staring everyone down as though daring anyone to try anything with a grin on her face. Everyone was too distracted by her outfit to notice her steaming ears. Maru had noticed her red ears peeking through her hair as she struck a superman pose staring them down. How brave, Maru thought. There was no way it was easy for any teenage girl aiming to be a hero to dress so thinly in public. He knew it was for the sake of easily using her quirk. Clothes really slowed down how fast she could use it. In her words, it was ten times slower than usual. Well, not much he could do about that. Any comment would mean he was looking. He wasn't about to test her opinion on what was classified as perverted vs friendly appreciation. As far as he knew, friendly appreciation and male species were never connected in the female mind. They moved to her corner and subtly shielded her from some of the more intense prying eyes. Abe-sensei's sharp glare did the rest with their focus quickly shifting to each other's wildly ostentatious hero costumes.
Jid was happily striking different poses as he highlighted all the aspects of his hero costume to them. He had his gold tinted dreadlocks held back with a simple golden band with golden goggles with a black border on his forehead. What looked like a mouth guard was hanging around his neck as he posed to show the unique color scheme. The costume was skin tight in a black and yellow gradient changing from his black shirt to yellow below his waist. The gradient change was marked with lightning sparks around his waist. He had white and yellow fitting knee high boots with a thick black out sole at the bottom for greater traction. The shoe also had similar lightning gradient change from the black outsole to the mostly white covering over his feet. A yellow belt wrapped around his waist with two larger pockets strapped to it.
"Similar to a cyclist's outfit," Youta commented.
"Yeah. I mean, it's easier to run with something fitting. Makes me look good too. The soles are pretty thick for traction and to avoid it wearing out too fast. I mean, I have to run and stop fast. My mom's been buying me something similar from a support company cause of how fast my shoes wear out."
"What's in the pouches?" Maru inquired.
"Water," Jid replied while awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. Maru and Youta laughed. Jid had been given a huge 4-gallon water bottle used on a dispenser by Lunch Rush for how often he would go to collect a water bottle at the counter. The frequency at which he drank water at the start of the week had drastically increased since he started training using his hero map.
"Aren't they too small?" Maru said, doubtfully looking at the small bottles.
" Well, it's not really just water. The instructions that came with my costume said they had electrolyte capsules I can add to it to help my body absorb the water faster. It's supposed to reduce the amount of water I need to drink since I sweat so much of it off," he explained while illustrating it to Maru and Youta.
"It was either that or they add something that turns my sweat back to water," he concluded with a shiver, "I'd rather just buy more."
Jid trembled at the idea before looking to Maru and commenting, "Well, I've got you as a sorta backup ice man."
He did a once over of their costumes impressed at their new looks. Without accessories, their outfits would be way too simple. Like him, most of the class went for a showy outfit that fit their personality or quirk. These two however, did a lot more with less. He just wasn't sure if it was intentional or coincidental show of their lack of interest in attention.
"The only major difference between your costumes is the color scheme," Jid jokingly said to the two as he waited for them to explain more. While Youta's outfit was a mix of a flat black with red highlights, Maru's was a mix of flat white with blue highlights. For Youta, his costume had a black skin tight sleeveless inner armour that rose up to his neck with a black sleeveless coat covering it. The coat had red pockets strapped around it leading to loose black pants tied at the knee and ankles with red bands. Black combat boots with red outsoles wrapped up his outfit. The outfit was simple with minimal highlights but worn on Youta, it looked powerful contrasting well with his looks and showing off his arm muscles. As a person, Youta usually gave of a dependable feel. Maru could see several people quickly becoming fans of this 'dad' hero.
For accessories, they were minimal. A pair of grey fingerless gloves and a retractable helmet to partially cover his appearance and protect his head was all. As for Maru, his outfit was very similar to Youta with a few things being opposite. Instead of a sleeveless under armor, his was long sleeved, going all the way to his wrist covered by a white sleeveless coat with a blue zipper. The coat had two large blue pockets with a high neck similar to a winter coat. He had shorts instead of full-length pants with white leggings beneath. Other than his shorts and coat, everything else was fitting offering no semblance of warmth. When asked why he told them it was he was cold resistant. He was the only person in his friend group that could still wear shorts in winter and cool himself down in the summer. Boy, did he rub it in their faces. They had retaliated by forcefully dressing him in a fully padded wool winter outfit, electric socks and underwear included. He sweated a little at the memory. His costume ended in white combat boots with a sky-blue outsole. For accessories, his were a lot more than Youta's. Large blue tinted snowboarding goggles with a black border hang around his neck while his hands were covered fully in white gloves. He leaned on a silver true twin shaped snowboard with a blue snowflake he drew located on its lower left edge.
A winter themed summer outfit was Jid's simplified explanation on his costume. He felt good in it. Like an actual hero. He'd have to learn more about what that meant though. After giving the students a few minutes to catch up, Abe called the class to order to explain the training exercise they would be having. Heros vs Villains. The heroes' task was to capture the villains using the tape handed out to them or touch the faux model missile the villains planned to detonate. The villains were to either capture the heroes or protect the missile within the given time limit. The students would be paired up in teams of two each based on a lottery pick. The only set back was the limitation on using any tracking gear. It made sense. Their hero costumes were not just decorations or it really would just be something like a cosplay. Even All Might's costume had a purpose. Imagine a hulk of a man, maybe twice your size, covered from head to toe in all black, jumping in to an alley claiming he was there to save you. Would you believe him? Take his hand and say 'finally, a true hero'? Would you? Even color had a purpose.
This may not be true for every student but despite their varied and stylized appearance, most head gear that covered the eyes probably had some sort of tracking feature. So why remove them. It defeated the whole find and capture aspect of the exercise. If they wanted them to have a two-on-two brawl they could have just done that. Maru could have easily tracked any opponent using the heat sensing feature in his goggles. The teams were organized quickly after they picked a small slip of paper from a box Abe-sensei held. As for the teams….
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Sorry for missing last weeks chapter. A lot happened in life. Also spent quite a bit of time fleshing out how I want the story to go. It ain't perfect, probably never will be but I hope y'all enjoy the story. Thanks for reading
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