Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.
Betad by Malcolm Tent, Priapus, Marethyu, Old man of the mountain, Beans
The Guild of Gamers: The Tamer
Chapter 11: Momo's Family
– Fubuki (Hellish Blizzard) –
Watching Primeape fight the Slakoth and Munchlax, she gave Mt Lady a searching look.
"They seem impressive, if a little slow," Fubuki praised, making Mt. Lady laugh.
"You aren't wrong, but you should have seen Munchlax before he devolved," Mt. Lady said, giving her monster a look. "Something that big shouldn't move that fast. I sure as fuck can't."
"So, how did you end up with two monsters, especially a former pseudo-Kaiju?" Fubuki asked, making Mt. Lady snort and give her a knowing look.
"Want to know how to get your own, huh?" Mt Lady asked, and Fubuki didn't deny it. "I met him by dumb luck; I was hanging around the school getting looked after by Recovery Girl after Gamaciel messed me up. He healed me and took me along for his dungeon adventure since we're both kaiju-fighting badasses, his words. After the fight was over, he gave me both of them, but he didn't even ask."
"Are you sleeping with him?" Fubuki asked, watching her laugh again.
"Yup, turns out he takes care of his girls. Can't say I mind being 'his girl'," Mt. Lady easily admitted. "He's a good guy, a bit weird sometimes but his pros heavily outweigh the cons."
As she spoke, she looked over to the arena where Kaito was trying to punch Primeape in the face. It became clear quickly that Primeape was strong enough to fight both Slakoth and Munchlax alone, even with them being able to grow, so Kaito had decided to even the odds and jumped in to fight his own monster.
Watching Primeape kick Kaito in the face, she snorted. It wasn't going well. Primeape was a monster, and his powers had grown considerably after two successful Kaiju attacks.
Munchlax bit onto Primeape's arm, making the monkey holler in annoyance. Grabbing Munchlax by the arm, Primeape started to smash it against the ground repeatedly. Kaito took advantage of the moment to simply grab Slakoth by the scruff of its neck and toss it at Primeape; Slakoth rapidly grew as he flew through the air.
Crashing into Primeape, now several times larger, Slakoth started to claw at the increasingly furious Primeape.
Munchlax didn't waste any time, jumping into the air with surprising grace and growing himself as he belly-slammed the downed pair, the room shaking.
Primeape wouldn't stay down for long, pushing them off him and hollering as he jumped to his feet; he hopped from foot to foot, angrily grumbling and hollering at the trio who were facing him down.
"Accept defeat, you stupid monkey," Kaito growled, charging towards his monster, who immediately charged back. Clashing with each other, the pair descended into a flurry of punches and kicks, Kaito clearly coming off worse from the traded blows.
But Kaito wasn't just throwing hands for fun. His body shifted to a blue slime that started to cover Primeape, sticking to him and wrapping around him as Munchlax roared, its eyes glowing.
With Kaito binding Primeape, Primeape couldn't escape the beam that shot from Munchlax's eyes, striking him directly and sending him tumbling back. Kaito lunged forward, sticking Primeape to the floor as he let off a purple powder. Primeape struggled, but it seemed they'd finally taken the seemingly unstoppable monkey down as he fell asleep from whatever powder Kaito was releasing.
Kaito shifted back, giving a victorious grin as Munchlax clapped its hands happily. Sure, it had taken three of them to take down Primeape but-
Her thoughts were interrupted as Primeape's eyes snapped open, a hand grabbing Kaito's leg and swinging hard. Watching Kaito get slammed into the ground, she chuckled to herself. Primeape, much like Kaito, was smarter than he looked. Primeape let out a holler and tossed his master into the wall just as Slakoth pounced and latched onto his body, claws slashing into Primeape, who flailed around angrily.
Munchlax didn't hesitate, sending another beam at Primeape, sending him back once more and seemingly putting him down for good this time. Kaito grunted as he rose to his feet, his wounds and bruises slowly healing as he grinned, some blood running down his face from a seemingly broken nose, which he carelessly snapped back into place.
"Sneaky little bastard," Kaito laughed, nudging Primeape with his foot. Primeape remained still, and Kaito clicked his fingers, making Shaymin appear next to them. Shaymin looked around, before seemingly sighing as she started to glow and encompassed both Kaito and all three monsters in her light.
Primeape rose to his feet, hooting angrily as he looked around, realising he'd lost. Lunging for Kaito once more, roots burst from the ground and bound Primeape in mid-air, Shaymin squeaking cutely as Primeape grumbled but nodded.
"Ha, I won," Kaito taunted, making Primeape squawk in irritation, gesturing at the others. Shaymin gave Kaito a disapproving look, making him sigh. "Yeah, yeah. Good fight, you ugly pig-monkey."
Holding out a fist to bump, Primeape hooted something back, the noise sounding mocking as Kaito grinned. Primeape bumped fists with his master, both laughing as Shaymin sighed and scurried over to them. Looking up at her, the most famous monster in the world tilted her head curiously at the new person.
Fubuki crouched, stroking the soft grass-like fur on Shaymin's back, which made Shaymin squeak adorably.
"Hello, I'm Fubuki. I never got a chance to thank you before, but you saved the lives of many of my men during the Teostra fight," Fubuki said graciously, making Shaymin look away, seemingly embarrassed. Kaito cared for his monsters, and showing that she respected them would only help her case.
"Shaymin does that a lot; she's a little badass," Mt. Lady praised, watching as Shaymin scurried up Fubuki's dress easily and sat on her shoulder. "We wouldn't have beaten Snorlax without her."
She went to speak but was interrupted as Slakoth started to glow, making them all watch carefully as the lazy sloth suddenly grew. Its fur turned white, claws growing longer and pitch black as a tuft of red fur started to grow on its forehead.
Standing on two feet, the newly evolved monster bellowed and beat its chest, seemingly unable to stand still.
"Huh, guess you had a load of energy saved up from the Kaiju fight, eh Vigoroth?" Kaito asked, watching the suddenly hyper-energetic monster rush around the room. "Heh, nice. He's B rank now; that's the same as you, Primeape."
Primeape naturally took that as a challenge, bellowing at Vigoroth who turned and zoomed towards Primeape, the two hyper monsters immediately going for round two as Munchlax ran behind Mt. Lady. Shaymin just sighed.
"Er, Kaito? Something feels weird," Mt. Lady said, making Kaito look away from the fight.
– Kaito –
Yu's Slakoth has evolved into a Vigoroth, the Wild Monkey Pokémon (Rank B)
Yu has gained [Vigoroth - Adrenaline Surge] from Tamer's Might
[Vigoroth - Adrenaline Surge]
Embrace the hyper energy of the Vigoroth for a short time, increasing your heartbeat to ten times its usual heart rate and granting you a major boost to speed. This is exhausting and will cause you to pass out if used too often.
Ah, I did wonder how Tamer's Might would work if I had given the monsters to other people. Well, I don't mind sharing the powers with my girls. Something to keep in mind though, any Tamer's Might skills I want to keep means I have to keep at least one of the monsters in my pack.
"So, you know how I gain powers from my monsters? Well, when I gave you a monster, turns out I shared that power with you as well. That's Vigoroth's Adrenaline Surge; you can use it to give yourself a major boost to speed for a while," I explain, making Yu's eyes widen as she looks over at where Vigoroth is currently getting repeatedly punched in the face by Primeape. Newly evolved or not, Primeape has the edge in experience. "Don't overuse it, or you'll pass out."
I can see they're both shocked, but I don't know why. It makes sense to me; why wouldn't the Tamer's Might power go to the person I granted the monster to?
"Shouldn't you have found this out already?" Fubuki asks, but I shake my head easily.
"Tamer's Might only works on B-rank monsters; Arbok and Eevee are both C-rank. Munchlax is D, so Vigoroth is currently the only B-rank monster that's not under my control," I explain, watching the pair of monkeys throw down. I wanna play too…
Shaymin gives me a knowing look, making me pout slightly at being told not to play fight with two very high-energy physical fighters. Vigoroth grows suddenly, backhanding Primeape away as he lets out a howl.
Yu starts running, seemingly working out how to use her new power she suddenly starts to glow golden slightly as she speeds up considerably, doing laps around the room with incredible speed before she comes to a stop. Panting, she places her hands on her knees as she tries to catch her breath.
"Damn, I'm gonna have to save that in my pocket for emergencies. It's seriously tiring to use, but I feel like my heart was going to explode," Yu says, placing her hand on her chest as she grins. "Man, the first villain who learns I can go super-speed is gonna be in for one shitty surprise."
Having a skyscraper-sized hero charging at them with super-speed should be funny as fuck.
– Fubuki (Hellish Blizzard) –
Mt. Lady just got what was essentially a new quirk just from her monster growing stronger? She knew members of the Blizzard group who had less effective quirks than bursts of super speed, and Mt. Lady got it as a bonus, just a little extra thrown in.
That wasn't even mentioning the sudden boost to Slak- Vigoroth's power, now being able to fight Primeape on almost equal terms. Primeape was obviously winning, but Slakoth was barely able to keep up and suddenly it was fighting Primeape one on one.
Her decision to try and get close to Kaito was proven all the more correct. The sheer power multiplier he and his monsters represented was unbelievable. She was glad her decision to be open with him was the correct one, as Kaito didn't seem to be the type to care for subterfuge or diplomacy. Admitting that she took this position purely to get close to him and get his monsters and quirk upgrading for herself and her group was the right choice.
"So, anything I need to know about Vigoroth?" Mt. Lady asked, making Kaito shrug.
"It's basically the opposite of Slakoth; all that saved energy means it's constantly going wild. Make sure it has a large space to run around in if you want it to burn off its energy and actually rest or send it back into its pocket biosphere at the end of the day," Kaito said, taking Shaymin from her shoulder and petting her. "Vigoroth is basically super-hyper, that feeling you just had? It has that twenty-four/seven. It likes rushing around, it likes fighting, and it hates having to stay still. Talk to Mel; she's working out the dietary plans for all the monsters, and the research nerds are footing the food bill."
"Probably a good thing, given how much this lil guy eats," Mt. Lady joked, patting Munchlax on the head and making it sheepishly kick the ground. "Being a hero doesn't pay that well, even if my sudden popularity has given me some amazing merchandising opportunities. Having my two appearances be Gameciel and Snorlax did damn good for me."
"Heh, I'm probably gonna just hire someone for that shit. I ain't gonna waste my time with that PR bullshit when there's monsters to train," Kaito laughed. She considered offering her own help but decided against it. Nezu had probably already beaten her to the punch since she knew there was already official merchandise for Kaito and his monsters.
The Shaymin plushes had sold out on day one; she wasn't even able to get one herself. The rest weren't much better. Kaito was probably fairly wealthy already, as she didn't see Nezu trying to cheat his new wonder child. Of course, that meant offering money wasn't going to be helpful, but she already expected that.
"Oi, dumbasses, break it up," Kaito suddenly barked, rolling his eyes as the two monkeys broke apart, both covered in bruises and blood. They were both too stubborn to give in, and Shaymin let out another cute sigh as she healed the pair. "Yeah, yeah, you're both badasses. Quit pouting like little baby bitches."
Both hollered at him in response, but Kaito just smirked.
"Fine, you still wanna fight? Oi, Blue, it's your turn. Tire these two idiots out for me," Kaito said, uncapping his bottle at his waist. A blue substance sliding out of it fell to the floor as it rapidly grew.
As they watched the fight start again, Mt. Lady snorted.
"They don't stand a chance, do they?" she asked, Kaito snorting in response.
"They're both completely physical fighters; Blue is immune to physical damage," Kaito replied, watching Blue just stand there, uncaring of the two monkeys trying to bludgeon it. Each blow made the jelly jiggle and sent ripples through the large slime, but Blue barely reacted and just occasionally half-heartedly swiped at them with a thick blue tentacle. "So no, but hopefully, dumb and dumber will tire themselves out so they can actually sleep tonight."
As Mt. Lady and Kaito joked, she watched the fight with a slight smile. It was too soon to try to get a monster for herself, but her plan had already paid off. Just getting close to Kaito was worth more than money could buy; now, all she had to do was attach herself to this rising star and let it soar to the top with her along for the ride.
– Momo Yaoyorozu –
Today was the day, tugging down the short skirt as she waited for Kaito to arrive. She'd decided against the revealing dress; it was too bold for her even if she was used to exposure due to her Quirk requiring exposed skin.
It wasn't the exposed skin that made her change her mind; the dress was simply too formal for a family dinner and tutoring session. Maybe if she was taking Kaito to some fancy restaurant, she'd wear something like that, but she'd finally decided on a shorter skirt and white blouse.
Kaito was dating Mt Lady and Midnight. The confession on SHO had made her heart race, but she hadn't changed her mind. Kaito wasn't going to be tied down to one woman; he was too much of a wild man for that.
Unfortunately, her father was away for work, but it wouldn't just be her, her mom, and Kaito. She loved Carol and Aunt Ferris; she really did, but they could be so… Carol and Ferris. She didn't have the right words to explain the two air-headed family members who had joined them for dinner.
"Kaito!" Momo said, waving at him as he walked up the road. She wasn't surprised he'd been delivered by a fancy car; Japan was taking care of their Symbol of Victory. Several men in black suits seemed to be watching her home's perimeter, and she recognised some as members of the Blizzard group. She'd heard they'd been hired by U.A. to provide extra security, given the risk of people trying to steal the monsters from Kaito.
"Hey, Momo," Kaito said, waving lazily. She was unsurprised to see him wearing a pair of jeans and a sleeveless black vest with a fiery design on the front. As he got closer, she recognised it as some of Endeavor's merchandise. "Ready to torment me with numbers again?"
Before she could answer, a blonde missile leapt from one of the bushes along the path, colliding with Kaito who instantly went on guard, grabbing the attacker and tossing her over his shoulder onto the ground with some force.
Immediately, he pinned the assailant down, one fist raised, ready to beat his attacker, before he paused, blinking at the sight of Carol staring up at him with the same unchanged smile.
"Big-chan! You came!" Carol said, uncaring of the way he'd mounted her, one hand holding her throat and the other ready to pummel her. Damnit, this was exactly what she was worried about. "Why are you sitting on me?"
"What the hell are you doing here?" Kaito asked, blinking as he glared down at her. He got off her and watched Carol rise to her feet in confusion, brushing herself off without a care.
"Ah, I see you've met Carol. She said you helped her during the U.A. exam," Momo said, making him blink at her. "She's my cousin; mother invited them to celebrate us both getting into U.A."
"...wait, she passed?" Kaito asked, poking Carol in the face.
"Yup! I came second!" Carol cheered, clapping to herself as Momo gave a long-suffering sigh.
"But you're weak and stupid," Kaito bluntly replied. "I had to carry your ass through the test when you almost got stepped on; you won't last a day as a hero. Is Nezu on crack?"
"Hm? No, I'll be fine," Carol said, waving off his concerns. Funnily enough, it was her concern as well. Dumb luck was a good power, but it would only get Carol so far.
"Punch me," Kaito demanded, making Carol blink before she got into something that vaguely resembled a combat stance if you squinted. Throwing one hand forwards, Carol's open palm harmlessly struck Kaito's entirely unamused cheek.
"Like that?" Carol asked, tilting her head as Momo sighed.
"Sorry, Kaito, her Quirk is dumb luck. She's used to things going her way," Momo sighed, rubbing her head.
"You're weak, slow and stupid, take this," Kaito said, clicking his fingers as a giant bull with metal horns appeared beside him. "Tauros, this moron is Carol. Keep her dumb ass alive."
"Yay for being weak!" Carol cheered, pushing her face into the fur of the bull which just nodded to Kaito easily. "Thanks, Big-chan! You're a big softie, aren't you?"
"I have a weakness for cute, weak things. Also, you'd be dead on your first dungeon expedition without something to keep you alive," Kaito scoffed, making Carol rush to hug him.
"Yay for being cute and weak!"
Her heart growled at the sight of Carol hugging Kaito, large breasts pressed into his chest as Kaito scoffed.
"Thanks, Big-chan! Have fun with math," Carol cheered, climbing onto the back of her new monster and stroking its furry mane as she rode it off into the distance.
"There's something not right about that girl," Kaito grumbled, making Momo laugh despite the bubbling jealousy.
"Sorry, she's always been like that," Momo admitted, taking his hand and guiding him into the house. "Dinner isn't for a few hours, so I thought we could get our studying session done first."
"Ugh, if we must. I am ready for your torture, algebra demoness," Kaito grumbled, getting a giggle from her. "I'm going to get you a monster, by the way, but Carol is too stupid to be trusted on her own."
She froze at his blunt words, giving him a beaming smile.
"You don't have to do that," Momo said, watching him scoff and ruffle her perfectly done hair.
"Don't have to, want to anyway. You'll take care of whatever I get you; I trust you," Kaito said, his usual bluntness making her blush at his sincerity. "Gonna give your Quirk an upgrade while I'm here as well if that's alright with you."
"Of course, I heard about your new ability. It's all over SHO, but I didn't think you'd offer-"
"Course I would. You're my friend, and I take care of the people I like," Kaito scoffed, stopping as he placed a hand on her chin. "Got a few options; your power is nice and versatile. Best two I can see are the ability to shoot whatever you make out, nice and quick, or the ability to absorb what you have made to get the materials back."
She leaned into his touch, giving him a warm smile, even as she considered his words. Her heart was beating far too fast, but she forcibly calmed herself down.
"Being able to shoot things out would be nice; I normally make a cannon to fire things from," Momo admitted, feeling something inside her change as her entire body tingled. That felt really good. "Thank you, Kaito, truly."
"It ain't that big a deal. Like I said, I take care of my friends," Kaito said, giving her a grin. Leaning up, she kissed his cheek softly, face burning as she led him towards her bedroom. "Now, let's start the torture."
"Now, now, don't be a baby. It's not that bad," Momo teased, getting him to sit on the edge of her bed.
"Huh, is that a Blue beanbag?" Kaito asked, making her giggle.
"I may have made some merchandise after I saw the images on SHO," Momo admitted. She also had one of each of the official merchandise made for Kaito and his monsters, including the pin-up poster of Kaito himself. Thankfully, she'd remembered to take it down. "See, I have a Shaymin plush— err, two Shaymin plushes?"
The second plush looked up, blinking as Momo gasped at the adorable monster.
"How did she-"
"Don't ask; Shaymin is sneaky like that," Kaito laughed, picking up the plush and looking between it and Shaymin. "Nice work, even if mine is cuter."
Giggling, she sat down next to him and reached out, stroking Shaymin, who climbed into her lap with an adorable smile.
– Kaito –
That's it, Shaymin, distract the math demon. Weaponise your cuteness.
Momo giggles as she plays with Shaymin, her war against my mind temporarily delayed. I'm fucking a teacher; I can get away with not knowing algebra. Wait, who teaches maths at U.A?
A quick search shows me that it's some ugly dude called Ectoplasm, and I don't think I can sleep my way through that class. Damnit.
– Kyouko Yaoyorozu –
Watching her daughter come downstairs with the Symbol of Victory by her side, she quietly smiled at the sight of Momo's wide smile.
"Dinner is almost ready, why don't you two head to the table," Kyouko said, getting their attention. "Hello, by the way, I'm Momo's mother, Kyouko," Kyouko introduced, offering her hand which Kaito took into his larger one.
"Heya, Mrs Yaoyorozu," Kaito said. "Thanks for having me over."
Kaito might look like a barbarian or someone who had walked off the cover of a heavy metal album, but he was surprisingly polite.
"Please, call me Kyouko. It's an honour to have the Symbol of Victory over for dinner, and Momo has said so much about-" Kyouko trailed off as Carol walked between them, riding a giant bull. Ferris sitting behind her daughter as they headed for the dining room. "...you.
"Kaito gave Carol a monster because she's weak and stupid," Momo explained with a giggle, making Kyouko go to defend her niece before she paused.
"Thank you, Kaito," Kyouko said instead, admitting that Kaito might be right. She'd had her doubts about letting Carol go to the U.A. hero course, even if her friend was going there. She'd feel more comfortable if her ditzy niece was on the business course, but Carol had insisted, and Ferris allowed her to apply for the Hero course.
She also made a note to have the maids clean the hoof prints that they had left in their wake.
"No worries," Kaito said, waving her off as he sniffed the air.
"Go take a seat, dinner is almost ready," Kyouko said, giving them both a smile. Her chefs were making a meat-heavy buffet for today; maybe she was judging a book by its cover, but she suspected Kaito preferred meaty food. Those muscles didn't come from a low-protein diet.
– Later –
Once more, she was surprised; Kaito, for a wild man, had rather good table manners. He'd stand out at a fancy restaurant but he wasn't just stuffing his face. Even if he'd cleaned off several plates, the help constantly replacing his plate as he devoured countless steaks. Shaymin seemed to like the high-quality fruit salads they'd prepared for the adorable hedgehog.
"So, you'll be at U.A as well, then? People were convinced you'd be leaving to join some anti-Kaiju squad," Kyouko asked, making Kaito grunt.
"Some people are pushing for it, but I don't wanna. I like U.A., and Nezu is making sure I can still explore dungeons and take part in Kaiju fights. If I went with the Kaiju squad plan, I'd probably be locked up 'for my own protection' most of the time," Kaito snorted, a scowl on his face. "I'm sticking with U.A. If anyone doesn't like it, they can kiss my ass."
He wasn't a man to mince words, Momo slapping his chest lightly at his crude words. Her daughter was clearly infatuated with Kaito. It was the first time she'd seen her daughter show any interest in a boy, but then Kaito was all man.
Her eyes briefly glanced at Kaito's impressive muscles, littered with small scars which told a story of his battles, appreciating the view his sleeveless top showed off. It was no wonder he was already so popular with the girls; she'd heard that his official fan club was already reaching a million members.
"Maybe we'll be classmates!" Carol cheered, her Tauros rubbing its head against her as she fed it from her plate. Kaito paused, visibly recoiling at the idea. He didn't seem very good at dealing with people like Carol, but very few people were.
"You'll probably be in another class since you've already got a monster. They'll want to spread the monsters out across the classes," Kaito said, sounding hopeful. Momo's lips twitched at Kaito's attempts to get away from Carol.
"Hm, no. I think I'd be lucky to be in your class," Carol said cheerfully, smiling widely.
The three teens chatted as dinner passed, Kaito eating a truly impressive amount of high-grade meat. What was the point in being filthy rich if she couldn't spoil the man who'd made her daughter so happy, and brought hope to the world?
Kaito thanked her for the meal, making her smile as Momo almost immediately grabbed him by the arm.
"Come on, we don't have long until classes start," Momo said, making Kaito groan. "You can't distract me this time. I know you don't like it, but you need to know this stuff."
"Why don't you spend the night?" Kyouko asked, making Kaito blink and pause.
"I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to get back tonight, but eh, whatever. Yeah, let's get this torture over with. I'll tell the rat I'm staying around. Thanks," Kaito said, pulling out his phone.
"The rat?" Momo asked, making him nod. "Wait, do you mean Principal Nezu? Kaito, you can't speak about him so disrespectfully."
"He doesn't mind. I've called him worse, and if he wants me to be more specific, he should tell me what the hell he actually is," Kaito waved off, typing something on his phone slowly. His phone vibrated almost immediately after. "Nezu says it's fine."
Did he have Principal Nezu's personal number? Unsurprising, Kaito was U.A's most valuable resource right now. The new, most valuable resources in the world were monsters and quirk upgrades, and Kaito was the only source of both. As a business woman, she could see the benefits of keeping a close personal relationship with the man holding such a powerful monopoly.
Momo dragged him away, Carol following afterwards as she watched them go. She knew Ferris was doing the same, stroking the fur of the large bull that was just sitting in the dining room. It was surprisingly peaceful, and extremely gentle and careful not to damage anything.
Sharing a look, the two sisters knew they were thinking the same thing.
— Bonus Scene — Enji Todoroki (Endeavor)
Reading the post again, he let a small smile touch his lips.
Kaito was in the spotlight now; every action had the entire world watching. The picture of a frowning Kaito wearing a tank top with his design on it made him smile and nod. It was a good look, though he wondered where Kaito had gotten it.
Kaito had been jumped by paparazzi looking for a story the moment he left U.A., and while they'd asked him many questions while the Blizzard group warded them off, one stood out for him.
They asked if Kaito thought he should be more severely punished for his recent failures, aiding Teostra and now Pyrodancer's immense fuck up.
'Why the fuck would he be punished for what some other guy did?' was Kaito's response to the question about Pyrodancer. Pyrodancer had been his sidekick for around six months, leaving because he wanted to be a full-time hero despite Enji warning him that he wasn't ready. Lying about clearing a dungeon was a truly terrible crime and he personally recommended that the fools in RedHot should get the maximum sentence for their crimes, but it was not his fault.
As for Teostra and the experts that were claiming that he should have noticed that Teostra was healing and getting stronger from his flames.
'It's easy for some nerds sitting at a computer to say that; you try noticing that shit when a fucking Kaiju is trying to rip your head off. There were hundreds of heroes there, and no one noticed it, but me, and that's just because my Quirk lets me. The fuck was Endeavour supposed to do? Have the strongest hero at the fight let his city be burnt to the ground? You'd all be calling him a coward if he didn't fight. It's a lose-lose; he didn't do anything wrong.'
Other people had said something similar, but having the newest star, the Symbol of Victory come out and defend him had already done wonders for his ailing reputation. Kaito was seen as the expert, and if he said nobody could have noticed then people took note, and suddenly it wasn't his fault. Of course he still had his detractors, but most had gone quiet. It wouldn't get him his spot back, but it had, at the very least, stopped his decline.
Kaito was a wise man for his young age. Crude, blunt and lacking any experience in dealing with the press, but oddly enough they were hesitant to speak badly of the Symbol.
Going over the reports, he raised an eyebrow at the line mentioning that Nezu was building a harem building for Kaito, Kaito's women and future children. The fact that a nursery was already needed made Enji lean back.
Kaito's quirk was essential. He could not be allowed to die when only he could close the dungeons and tame monsters. But it was a known fact that children often inherited their parents' quirks, and that gave him an idea.
He had two daughters, and while Shouko was unlikely to listen to him, Fuyumi might be willing to follow her mother's example and help birth the next generation of monster-taming heroes. Burnin, as well. His sidekick was also already flirting with Kaito and had been asked to join him on a future dungeon run.
Yes, Nezu was onto something. Kaito needed to spread his seed to ensure that they had a replacement should the worst happen. This was not the time for prudishness.