Toji and the others walked away from the urban area, heading back to the observation room. Bakugo had been taken to the infirmary as he still hadn't woken up after his fight with Toji. As they moved, Toji glanced at Midoriya, who seemed in good spirits despite limping slightly. His legs were still functioning, something that caught Toji's attention.
"Didn't you notice?" Toji suddenly asked, breaking the silence. Izuku looked at him in confusion, not understanding what he meant. Toji vaguely gestured toward the boy's legs. "They didn't break."
Izuku lowered his gaze to his own legs, surprised. It was true. Though they hurt, he didn't feel the unbearable pain he was used to. "H-how...? I'm not injured!" he exclaimed, still processing what he had just heard.
Toji smirked, his expression both mocking and relaxed. "Threatening you keeps you from exploding? If you want, I can do it more often..." he said nonchalantly. Izuku let out a nervous laugh, unsure if he was joking or not. Still, he couldn't help but wonder how that had happened. His mind started racing with thoughts and theories until Toji interrupted him.
"Don't overthink it; it's simpler than you think," he said calmly. "From what I saw, you used very little energy from your Quirk. Barely more than 3%, compared to what you used against that giant robot."
Izuku stared at him, absorbing every word. In the short time he'd known Toji, he had noticed how incredibly observant and analytical he was. "How can you tell that?" he asked, genuinely curious.
Toji let out a brief chuckle. "It's just a theory. After all, you should know better than anyone how your Quirk works, right?" he concluded, leaving the subject in the air.
Izuku nodded slowly, deep in thought, as they continued walking toward the observation room. Though Toji's words gave him a clue, they also left him with many more questions.
Once they reached the observation area, the other students practically swarmed them, showering them with admiration, though most of the attention was focused on Toji.
"That was amazing, dude! What are you, some kind of superhuman? You've got to teach me your secret," Kirishima said excitedly, grinning widely.
All Might approached with his trademark broad smile, radiating confidence and motivation. "Young Toji, I must say, your performance was impressive!" he began enthusiastically, drawing everyone's attention.
Toji raised an eyebrow as if he didn't care much, but he didn't interrupt.
"What really stands out," All Might continued, crossing his arms and adopting a more reflective tone, "is how you managed to face both young Bakugo and young Iida. Both are formidable forces, in every sense. With young Bakugo, his attitude and Quirk can be quite a challenge, and not only did you withstand his fury, but you turned it to your advantage. And with young Iida, well, his speed and precision make him a tough opponent, yet you found a way to counter him. It wasn't just strength; it was pure strategy!"
Toji shrugged, clearly uninterested in receiving praise, which prompted a soft laugh from All Might.
"Moreover," All Might continued, pointing at him, "I can't overlook how you provoked them to bring out their best, even if your methods aren't the most... orthodox. A hero must know how to adapt, and you did so perfectly. Not only did you win, but you also taught them something valuable in the process."
Toji barely stifled a mocking laugh. "Bring out their best? Sure, distracting them and making them lose their heads makes them show their best, then yeah." The thought made him smile slightly as All Might continued his speech.
With his characteristic energy, All Might clapped him on the shoulder. "Young Toji, today you proved you have the makings of a hero, even with your provocative style!"
Toji let out a low chuckle, this time not holding back much, as if the whole matter was nothing but a game to him. "Thanks," he replied, his indifferent tone highlighting the contrast between his attitude and All Might's enthusiasm. But the spark in his eyes made it clear that, while he pretended not to care, he enjoyed the recognition, even if it wasn't for the reasons All Might thought.
When things calmed down, he approached Momo, who had been watching him throughout the match, clearly impressed. "Hey, your magic weapon had a few hiccups," Toji said bluntly.
Momo, who had been smiling at him, was taken aback and blinked rapidly. "What? Let me see," she replied, holding out her hand.
Toji handed her the bracelet, and Momo quickly examined it, her analytical gaze evaluating every detail. After a few seconds, she sighed. "Oh, it seems some circuits burned out," she commented sadly.
Toji let out a brief laugh. "Wasn't it supposed to be practically indestructible?"
Momo puffed her cheeks in an adorable gesture of frustration. "It's cutting-edge technology, okay? This type of nanomaterial was considered a failure by the scientific community, but I solved some problems using... another method. However, when you forced several structural changes during that boy's explosions... I guess that's when it became vulnerable," she explained, crossing her arms.
Toji blinked, absorbing the information. "What's it made of exactly?" he asked with a hint of curiosity. Until now, he hadn't paid much attention to the technical details, but this piqued his interest.
Momo looked at him with a mix of surprise and slight offense. "Now you're interested in my work?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Toji simply rolled his eyes. "Come on, don't play coy."
She huffed, still feigning offense, but couldn't hide a small glimmer in her eyes. "It's complicated to explain, but the base is a Metamorphic Nanomaterial. If you really want to understand the theory and composition, I can send you my research... though it's encrypted because my mom insisted on protecting my experiments," she added with a touch of pride.
Toji observed her for a moment before shrugging. "I'd rather come to your place and have you explain it there."
Momo's eyes sparkled with excitement, something she tried to hide without much success. She had been wanting to share her projects with someone, but she had never told Toji because she thought he wouldn't be interested.
"Fine, but be prepared because I'm giving you a full lesson," she said, smiling widely as excitement replaced any trace of insecurity.
While the others continued their tests, each team stood out in different ways. Toji watched the matches with a superficial analysis, not delving too deeply into the details. However, something caught his attention: the match involving the half-ice, half-fire boy. Although his strategy was effective, Toji found it disappointing that he simply froze the building to win. "He didn't think much about it," he murmured to himself, before focusing on the next test.
It was Momo's turn, whose partner turned out to be Mineta, the boy with adhesive balls on his head. From the start, Toji noticed how Momo tried to interact with him, probably looking to coordinate better. However, Mineta was more occupied staring at her bust than paying attention to what she was saying. Toji sighed in annoyance, got up, and walked toward them.
Momo raised an eyebrow, noticing his presence, but Mineta didn't even realize until a towering shadow loomed over him. "Hey," Toji said firmly, making Mineta freeze in place, visibly trembling. Slowly, he looked up and found himself face-to-face with Toji's massive figure, whose eyes seemed to pierce through him.
"She's talking to you," Toji pointed out, referring to Momo. "At least have the decency to respond."
Mineta nodded quickly, mumbling something incomprehensible before Toji returned to his seat. Momo shot him a grateful look, something he barely acknowledged as he settled in to watch the screen.
Momo and Mineta's fight wasn't particularly impressive. Toji had to admit she put in much more effort, forming a plan that showcased her ingenuity. In contrast, Mineta limited himself to crawling through the building's ducts to locate the bomb, leaving Momo to face most of the obstacles.
The opposing team consisted of the stone boy and the one who used adhesive tape from his elbows. When Momo stealthily entered the room where the bomb was located, she found it entirely covered in tape, limiting her movements. Kirishima approached her confidently and began to speak.
"If you surrender now, I promise to be lenient. I don't hit damsels."
Toji couldn't help but smile when Momo interrupted him with a direct hammer blow to the head. Though it had been a clever move, she soon found herself overwhelmed by her two opponents. Even so, her tenacity was admirable. He watched as she clasped her palms together, and suddenly, a gray liquid emerged, taking on a sharp form she attempted to use to cut through the tape surrounding her.
However, the material quickly lost its shape due to Momo's exhaustion. Toji narrowed his eyes, curious. That was familiar. "I could swear it's the same material she told me her bracelet is made of," he thought.
In the end, although Momo didn't emerge victorious, her performance left a good impression on Toji. "She did her best, but for hand-to-hand combat, she's utterly useless," he thought, crossing his arms. "Maybe if I remember, I'll teach her a thing or two about defending herself."
The students began to leave the area, some exhausted, others still riding the adrenaline rush. In the distance, the sound of their conversations faded as the testing grounds fell silent.
The monitoring room was completely silent, except for the soft hum of the electronic equipment replaying the test recording. All the students had left, leaving behind only All Might, in his emaciated form, and Principal Nezu, who watched attentively. The screen displayed the collaboration between Izuku Midoriya and Toji Fushiguro. However, both were solely focused on the movements of the dark-haired youth.
"So, do you think All for One has something to do with this?" Nezu asked in a measured tone, though his gaze reflected the gravity of the situation.
All Might didn't respond immediately. His face showed concern, even more than usual. Finally, he inclined his head, as if admitting his thoughts was a heavy burden. "I don't want to think so… but there's no other plausible explanation for the anomaly that is young Fushiguro."
Nezu tilted his head slightly, waiting for him to continue.
"All the tests show the same thing," he went on. "He's an unevolved human. He lacks the physical structure that accompanies the emergence of Quirks. That shouldn't be possible."
"And nothing came up when you dug into his lineage?" the principal asked, taking a small sip of his tea.
All Might shook his head. "Nothing remarkable. A common lineage—great-grandparents and grandparents with no history of powerful or unusual Quirks. His grandmother and mother were Quirkless, and the father… we still don't know. There's nothing… except him."
"Then," said Nezu, delicately setting his cup on the table, "what do you suggest?"
All Might sighed deeply, an action that seemed to drain even more energy from his already frail frame. "I suggest we keep an eye on him. So far, he's shown himself to be a good kid. His record doesn't show anything alarming, just mundane things. A few street fights, but nothing unusual for someone his age. But we can't ignore him."
The principal nodded slightly, his eyes glinting with a spark of contemplation. "Agreed. We'll keep an eye on him… though I have an idea."
All Might looked up, intrigued by his response. "What would that be?"
Nezu smiled—a playful expression that often confused those who didn't know him well. "What if we simply ask him what he thinks is going on?"
The blond blinked, surprised. "Talk to him? Just like that?"
"Precisely." Nezu leaned back in his chair, crossing his small paws. "Sometimes, the simplest approaches are the most effective. Fushiguro-san doesn't seem like someone who hides much. If he has any suspicions about his own condition, he might be willing to share them."
All Might reflected silently. Finally, a slight smile appeared on his face. "You might be right. Besides, this could help us earn his trust. But… there's something about him I can't quite figure out."
Nezu looked at the screen, where the image of Toji was frozen at the moment he clashed with Iida. "He's a mystery, certainly. But not all mysteries are dangerous. Sometimes, they just need a little light to be understood."
All Might nodded slowly, though doubts still weighed on his heart.