After the Hero Basic Training class—where I, naturally, left a legendary, elegant, and top-tier record—it was time to head to the changing rooms.
As we were getting changed, Mina, currently half-dressed, struck up a conversation. Looking at her like this... Mina's actually got a pretty spicy body.
"You're looking sexy, Mina."
"Where did that come from?! I mean, if we're talking about sex appeal, you're the one who's got it in spades, Niko."
Hearing that, I took a look at my own half-naked self.
Hmm. Aside from the scars earned during the brutal training sessions of the Hero Course, my skin is smooth and youthful. While I'm not quite on Momo's level, my bust is plenty generous. The shape is excellent, too. My waist is nice and tight, and my butt is just the right size—not too big, not too small.
Yup. Even if I do say so myself, this is a perfect physique to be proud of.
"Well, what can I say? Sorry for being so hot!"
"Ugh, not even a shred of modesty!"
"Why would I be modest about perfection?!"
As I declared that with total confidence, Ochaco gave a wry smile.
"That's so like you, Niko. But you really are beautiful. You're tall and have a great figure; you could probably be a model."
"A model, huh...? I don't think I'd be bad at it, but I'd hate it."
When I gave my honest answer after a moment of thought, Ochaco looked surprised.
"Really? You seem like the type who'd love it. You were so into it during the Sports Festival."
"I see exactly what you think of me, Ochaco. Honestly."
"Ehh? Ehehe."
I grabbed the laughing Ochaco and gave her a thorough explanation. That was a festival, so it was fine. Being photographed and appearing on TV then felt like an unavoidable side effect.
But for a professional model, being photographed is the entire goal. You have to spend all your time on it. Striking poses, changing clothes, fixing makeup, moving locations... and you have to do all of it because some old guy with a camera or a sponsor tells you to.
What a pain. I couldn't do it. That kind of thing should be left to the people who would literally die if they weren't the center of attention. I'll pass, thanks. When I finished my passionate rant, Ochaco looked unconvinced.
"Modeling sounds like hard work, too..."
"It is! It's a nightmare!"
"Wha—?! Wait! Momo, what are you doing?!"
For some reason, an "awakened" Momo had grabbed Ochaco and started lecturing her. It looked like a conversation that would be a total drag to get involved in, so I decided to gracefully leave them to it. I thought I heard a voice crying for help, but it was probably just my imagination.
I looked away from Ochaco and made eye contact with Tsuyu, who looked like she wanted to say something.
"...What's up?"
"Ribbit. I was wondering if you had experience with it, Niko? You sounded like you knew what you were talking about."
"I guess you could say that. Back in elementary school, I did some child modeling for a friend of Kacchan's dad. It was a total slog."
"Really? That's impressive."
"Not really. I was just in a tiny little corner of a bargain flyer."
That was a rough day. Seriously. It was supposed to be one photo and done, but the cameraman got way too into it. He made me change outfits a dozen times and strike a mountain of poses. And after all that, the only photo they used was the very first one. I was just like, Are you kidding me?
...Wait. Now that I think about it, what happened to that cameraman after the shoot?
I seem to recall Mitsuki and Mr. Bakugo arriving to pick me up, and they both grabbed the guy by the shoulders and led him to a corner of the room... hmm, I can't quite remember. All I remember is being treated to expensive sushi on the way home. The sweetness of the sea urchin and the fatty tuna is the only thing that stuck.
God, that was delicious.
"But still! Being in a flyer is amazing! I've never done anything like that!" Mina exclaimed.
"Yeah! I'm so jealous! Since I'm invisible, photos are a lost cause for me! It's just a picture of floating clothes! It's basically a horror movie!" Toru added.
"...Oof, Toru. That's a hard one to joke about!"
"Aha! My bad!"
As Tsuyu and I watched Mina and Toru's impromptu comedy routine, Kyoka called out to us. Her voice was a bit stiff, so everyone stopped what they were doing to look at her.
"Guys, the boys next door... or rather, Mineta is up to something."
Mineta.
The name alone sent a wave of tension through the room.
"Kyoka, what's going on?"
"What is he doing? Ribbit."
In response to Ochaco and Tsuyu, Kyoka put a finger to her lips, signaling for us to be quiet. She had her Earphone Jacks pressed against the wall, listening to the boys on the other side.
"A hole? Guys, is there a hole in this wall somewhere?"
Following her lead, we all started searching, and it didn't take long to find it. There was a tiny, solitary hole in the wall.
"Kyoka, what about it?"
Toru tried to peek through the hole, but Kyoka put a hand to her forehead.
"Think about what's on the other side. It's a peephole."
"W-Whaaat?! My naked body is going to be seen!"
"You basically go through life naked in that hero suit; you've got a lot of nerve saying that now," I remarked.
"Aha! You got me there!"
Toru really does enjoy life, doesn't she? Still, this was unforgivable. Trying to see us naked for free?
"We should start charging for it."
"Don't encourage the peeking! And besides, how would we collect that money, and who would even use it?!" Kyoka snapped.
"I'll make Kacchan collect it. Then we can all go to karaoke."
"We can just go to karaoke normally! No way. I'm not trading my dignity for a karaoke session. My body is worth more than that."
Fair point. I don't think it's a fair trade either.
"So, what should we do? Should I wait for him to look and then blast some fire through?"
"He might be in the wrong, but let's not permanently blind the guy."
"I could use my Quirk to pull just his eyes into the hole..."
"That's terrifying! And don't do anything reckless, just let Momo handle it—wait, wha—?!"
Suddenly, Kyoka jammed her Earphone Jack directly into the hole. A muffled scream echoed from the other side.
"Did you get him?"
"Uh, yeah. ...I guess I did."
It seemed she'd successfully dealt with the idiot voyeur. No one asked who it was. We only knew two people who would be that stupid.
"You poked him?"
"I... I poked him."
"Did you use the sonic blast?"
"I... I gave him the full blast."
I see. I see. In that case...
"Don't sweat it."
"Hey! Why the 'I've given up' face?! It really hurts when you look at me like that, Niko!"
"What was that?!"
The nerve of Kyoka! What did she mean by that?! I was just trying to be kind!!
"The role of 'the person who messed up' is usually yours, Niko!"
"Oh? Kyoka, you've got some nerve. I'll take that challenge at the lowest possible price!"
"Reflect on your daily behavior before you say that!"
Just as the atmosphere was turning into a "clash of the titans," Momo stepped between us to break it up.
"That's enough! There's no point in you two fighting. Let's just hurry up and block this hole. Understood?!"
Momo was acting strangely like a leader today. It's been a busy day for her. Getting depressed, having a sudden awakening, taking charge... she's all over the place emotionally. Seriously, what happened to her?
We all nodded at Momo's command. As she set to work fixing the wall, I headed over to Ochaco, who had presumably been told the full story by Momo.
According to a very exhausted-sounding Ochaco, not only had she failed to do anything remotely "heroic" during her internship, but she had also ended up appearing in a TV commercial against her will. She'd been beating herself up about her total loss to Shoto during the Sports Festival, so the fact that she hadn't produced any results during the internship was clearly weighing on her. Even though it was just bad luck with the agency she chose, it was a rough break.
While I was watching Momo fix the hole with a sympathetic eye, Kyoka spoke up.
"Hey. Sorry about earlier. I went too far. But... can I ask you something? Do you think... I'm not very feminine?"
That was incredibly sudden. Talk about a lack of context. But I could tell from her expression that there was a reason she was asking.
"Wait, never mind! Forget I said anything!"
"I'm not going to forget... ever."
"Niko, does anyone ever tell you that you should think more about other people's feelings?"
"Never. If anything, I'm too good of a girl. My mom is actually worried that I'm too nice for this world. She's worried about my future."
"I can guarantee she doesn't mean it the way you think she does."
I have no idea what she's talking about. Anyway, back to Kyoka's femininity.
"I think you're great, honestly."
"'Honestly'? Is that a good review? Well, thanks anyway."
As Kyoka gave a troubled smile, Ochaco and the others jumped in. The girls took turns heaping praise on her. Some of it sounded a bit forced, and by the end, it was just a chorus of "You're so cute!", but Kyoka seemed genuinely happy about it. "You really think so?" she asked with a grin.
I'm sure everyone can forgive me for taking the opportunity to ask for a photoshoot and making her promise to let me touch her earlobes. It was all in good fun.
Once the "Kyoka Appreciation Festival" was over, we finished changing and left the locker rooms. In the hallway, we discovered Mineta, who was scorched and frozen to the wall with ice.
Having pieced together the entire situation, we reported everything to Mr. Aizawa and headed back to the classroom.
Kaminari was innocent... this time.
***
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