Izuku dropped heavily into his chair the next morning, and immediately buried his face in his arms. He could not believe he'd just done that.

He'd taken the train to school, as he does every morning, but as he approached the front gate for U.A's campus, there had been a crowd of people standing in front of it. Izuku had stared at them for a long moment, wondering what to do, and in that time, someone spotted him.

"Hey, he's a U.A student!" somebody shouted, and soon, they were swarming Izuku. Several people shoved microphones and cameras in his face- reporters? What were reporters doing in front of U.A? There was no way the school would've allowed something like this. Then he tried actually listening to what they were asking, and-

"What's it like, having All Might as a teacher!?"

Okay, yeah, he could see why they were here now. It wasn't every day the country found out that the Number One Hero was going to become a teacher, and any student lucky enough to be under his tutelage was bound to turn out to be someone amazing, they probably thought, unaware that All Might actually wasn't that great of a teacher. Also, it's All Might- of course the press was going to be all over every single little move he made.

But that didn't mean Izuku had to like it, or that he knew what to do in this situation. He never expected to find himself in this situation. Sure, he'd fantasized becoming a Pro-Hero for years, sometimes even being the Number One, but none of those daydreams included handling the press. They were all about fighting powerful Villains and rescuing countless people. So, it wasn't much of a surprise that his mind blanked at that moment.

And when the mind was no longer in control, instinct took over.

[Bloodlust] activated.

The reporters froze, several of them visibly shivering. Izuku was also frozen, though it was more in mortification than fear.

"E-Excuse me," he mumbled, and quickly pushed his way through the crowd (well, more like they made space for him, unable to even look him in the eyes) and walked past the gate. A short walk later, and he found himself here in 1-A's classroom, feigning sleep whilst internally panicking.

I can't believe I just did that! I used a Skill on civilians! That's basically the same thing as unlicensed Quirk usage, right? Right!? Oh, god, am I gonna get arrested now? Is Aizawa-sensei gonna apprehend me as a Villain when he gets to class?

Okay, now he was being ridiculous. There probably wouldn't be consequences besides a few complaints, and that was if those reporters realized that Izuku had actually done something to them. Maybe they'd chalk up to his height? He was quite tall now- about the same height, or maybe even taller than (he wasn't sure, since they hadn't stood right next to each other), his one classmate with six arms. Tall people were intimidating, with the way they loomed over you; Izuku knew that from experience as a result of once being the runt of his class.

Aside from his little island of gloom, though, Homeroom was filled with a pleasant serenity as his classmates chatted with one another enthusiastically. It seemed they had bonded over the training exercise yesterday, watching their peers show off their Quirks and technical skills. Those who worked together also seemed to have bonded a bit, for the most part.

The one exception was, obviously, Izuku. Todoroki was quietly talking with Yaoyorozu, who seemed somewhat familiar with him, indicating that they were acquainted before U.A. Even Bakugou was part of a group, despite how reluctant he seemed. Kirishima, Kaminari, Ashido, and Sero were doing their best to include him in their conversation, laughing off his harsh insults. He would have to watch out for them- no doubt Bakugou would turn them against him as soon as he could. A few words about what a freak he was, or his past as a Quirkless reject, and they'd be sneering at him like he was trash, too.

Izuku didn't dare try to interject in one of the many newborn cliques surrounding him. He could sense that his classmates didn't quite know what to make of him, but their opinions were definitely leaning more towards negative. That much had been made obvious yesterday, when they'd hesitated to declare him the MVP. There was no arguing with it, but it seemed to him like they'd wished there was. He sighed; begrudging respect was probably the best he'd get out of them. He wasn't naive enough to even hope for friendship.

Eventually, the bell rang, and everyone sat down before Aizawa-sensei could come in and scold them for being rowdy. The room fell silent when their teacher stepped in. He cast a blank stare over them, before nodding approvingly.

"Good. You're in your seats. I've reviewed the footage of the combat exercise, and most of you did pretty well. I've only got a few complaints at the moment. Midoriya, Bakugou, Todoroki- there's a reason we put you on teams. Learning to work with others is an essential skill for Heroes. Nobody can do everything on their own."

The only response he got was an aggravated "Tch!" from Bakugou, as the blond was reminded of his complete and absolute failure. Aizawa remained unperturbed, though, and continued on.

"Now, onto business. I probably should've had you do this yesterday, but I had other things to attend to. Today, you'll decide on who's going to be your Class Representative and your Vice-Rep. I don't care how, just get it done before homeroom is over." Aizawa took a second to glare at everyone, activating his Quirk for good measure, the red eyes conveying a clear threat. "And do not wake me up." With that ominous warning, the man climbed into his garish yellow sleeping bag, rolled into a corner, and promptly passed out.

Aizawa-sensei's words were forgotten about five seconds later, when the class erupted into noise, people clamoring to be chosen. Unlike in junior high, where the class rep position just meant tedious work, at U.A, it was the chance to gain some leadership experience before hitting the Pro Hero scene. It would be good practice for those who would go on to be in charge of their own Hero Agencies.

Iida made a speech about how democracy was the best approach, and most people agreed, so a vote was cast. Izuku, not knowing anything about any of his classmates, simply wrote down Yaoyorozu's name. She seemed pretty put together yesterday, so maybe she'd do alright. She was also a Recommendation student, according to some chatter he'd heard, and she'd done fairly well on the Quirk Assessment the other way, he didn't particularly care.

The ballots were collected and tallied, then names were written on the board, along with how many votes each person got (as expected, Izuku's name wasn't even put up- as if anyone would vote for him). Yaoyorozu was in first, with 3 votes, while Iida got 2 votes, making them the class representatives. Izuku tuned out their obligatory thank-you speeches and promises to do their best.

Alarms sounded during lunch, but it was just because the press had gotten onto campus unauthorized. Which, really stupid; those guys were definitely gonna get arrested. It didn't seem like that big of a deal, so Izuku just ignored the situation, since it had nothing to do with him specifically.

For Foundational Hero Studies today, they were in Gym Gamma.

"Yesterday, you got a taste of actual combat with your Quirks," Aizawa-sensei announced once everyone had gotten changed into their costumes. "Today, you'll be practicing combat without them." Many students groaned, but shut up quickly when Aizawa leveled them with a fierce glare. "I don't want to hear any complaints. You won't always be in a situation where you'll be able to use your Quirks to properly aid you in a fight. For example, what if you're fighting someone with an ability like my Erasure, leaving you unable to use your own Quirk?"

Nobody had an answer for that. Aizawa-sensei nodded, satisfied that they understood him. "Now, I'm gonna pair you up randomly and let you spar for around 10 minutes, just to see what I'm working with. Then, in the second round, I'll make the matches more even."

Izuku ended up paired with his six-armed classmate. His name was Shoji, he was perhaps a millimeter shorter than Izuku, if that, and his Quirk was called Dupli-Arms. The ends of his arms could turn into either hands or an assortment of sensory organs. His capabilities for parallel processing and information gathering must be incredible.

Aizawa called for the matches to begin, and Shoji made the first move, rushing towards Izuku. With a few powerful bounds, the masked teen was on Izuku, raining down blows with his numerous arms. Normally, you'd expect someone with six arms to have an advantage against someone with only two, if neither were using Quirks (Shoji's extra arms seemed to be a passive Mutation, rather than something he consciously formed). Yet, for all the attacks being launched his way, it was a walk in the park for Izuku to deflect them due his high Sense and Agility.

Izuku made a few aborted moves to retaliate, but hesitated and ultimately did not hit his classmate. He'd never fought another human before- he wasn't actually confident in his ability to control his strength in a fight. What if he hit too hard? Sure, it wasn't as if he broke everything he laid his hands on like a mindless juggernaut, but fighting required a certain level of uncontrolled control, if that made sense.

After a minute of a sustained barrage, Shoji finally backed off, breathing a bit heavier, while Izuku looked and felt fresh as a daisy. They kept up like that until Aizawa-sensei finally called the class back together, and he paired them off with people closer to their skill level. Towards the end, though, he hesitated. Izuku, along with Todoroki and Yaoyorozu, were the last ones left. The latter two, due to their families, had gotten formal training through the years. As a result, their unarmed skills were a cut above the majority of the class.

"Sensei, shouldn't there be an even amount of people in our class? I believe we have 20 students, no?" Yaoyorozu asked, eying Izuku warily. She probably didn't want to be partnered up with him.

"That's my fault," Todoroki said. "I accidentally gave Uraraka a bloody nose." He pointed off towards the sideline, where Uraraka was indeed standing, a red-stained tissue held up to her face. Izuku quickly averted his eyes.

Izuku blinked. He wondered if he should say that that would be completely unnecessary, considering his experience in the dungeons, but kept his mouth shut. Movement in his shadow made him look down, into the glowing emerald eyes of his most powerful soldier.

"Igris?" It was a bit comical, how only the knight's head poked out, as if the rest of his body was buried. His red ponytail was halfway submerged, making it look shorter than it actually was. For a few moments, Igris simply stared up at his liege, trying to communicate something with just his solid-colored eyes. It took a while for Izuku to understand what he was trying to say without being able to speak. "Oh! Sensei, could I spar with him?" he asked, pointing at the head on the ground.

Aizawa-sensei balked at the sight. "...That's one of your summons, right? The ones you used in the Entrance Exam?"

Izuku nodded, and refrained from mentioning that Igris hadn't really done much during the practical than play janken with the others. Aizawa-sensei probably didn't care about all that.

The man glanced between Izuku, his Shadow, and Shoji for a few moments, deep in thought. He was clearly wondering what to do with Shoji, since he wouldn't have a sparring partner. His problem was solved for him a moment later, when one of the other students cried out sharply.

Spinning towards the noise, Izuku saw Gravity Girl- wait, her name was Uraraka- covering her face with her hands. In front of her, Todoroki stood awkwardly, fist still outstretched from his last attack.

"Uraraka, can you continue?" Aizawa-sensei asked, walking closer to them to examine the injury. Gently, Uraraka removed her hands, revealing that she was mostly fine, save for the trickle of blood streaming out of her nose and down her lips. Izuku shivered at the sight and averted his eyes. "Nevermind. Go clean up in the bathroom. Do you need to go to Recovery Girl?"

Uraraka prodded her nose carefully. "I don't think it's broken," she said, somewhat nasally. "I should be fine."

Sensei nodded. "Alright. Shoji, take her place. Uraraka, you'll rejoin the class once the bleeding stops." The students he addressed nodded, Uraraka scampering off towards the bathrooms in the corner of the gym, while Shoji took her place in front of Todoroki.

With them taken care of, Aizawa-sensei turned back to Izuku, and stared up at Igris for a moment. The knight had risen completely from the shadows, towering above everyone in the room at over 2 meters tall- he might even be taller than All Might.

"I saw that one come out during the Entrance Exam, but it didn't seem to be doing much," Aizawa-sensei noted. Maybe he was doubting Igris' ability to be a decent sparring partner for Izuku?

Izuku shrugged. "I guess he didn't really feel like it."

Sensei quirked an eyebrow at that. "They have free will?"

"Yeah?" That should've been obvious, right? Igris had come out of his own volition, after all. Izuku tilted his head in consideration. "I think the stronger Shadows have more personality, though." Not that his basic Infantry were a bunch of puppets- those chuckleheads messed around too much to be mindless.

Sensei nodded slowly at the information. "Well, get started, then."

Izuku faced Igris, and noticed the blade the Shadow was holding. "I think we're supposed to be practicing hand-to-hand," he said. Igris glanced down at his sword, then stabbed it into the concrete floor next to him. He reached up and unclasped his cloak, the billowing pseudo-fabric evaporating back into the darkness.

It was like the Job Change Dungeon all over again, down to the way Igris flexed his clawed gauntlets, and Izuku grinned ferociously. Igris took a step forward, and Izuku matched him. Both drew back their fists, ready to kick it off, when they were interrupted once more.

"Ah! It's you!" Uraraka shouted, jogging over to point at Igris, making both him and Izuku straighten up out of their combat stances. "I was wondering why I didn't see you after the Entrance Exam, even when school started! Thanks for saving me back then!" Then she turned to Izuku. "Ah, but he's one of your shadow guys, right? I guess I should be thanking you, then?"

Izuku furrowed his brow. "No…? I didn't even know he helped you." He turned back to his Shadow to see if he could parse some sort of explanation, just in time to catch a vicious cross to the face.

The thunderous crack! echoed through the gym, making the other students pause in their matches to stare at the cause. Their initial confusion slowly transformed into horror as Igris began a relentless assault on his master.

Dazed from the strength behind the blow, and completely taken by surprise, Izuku was thoroughly on the backfoot. He attempted to raise a guard, but it was dismantled with ease, Igris knocking his arms aside. The knight then snatched Izuku by the face, and slammed the back of his head into the floor, creating a sizable crater. His plated hand moved down to wrap around Izuku's neck, while his free hand delivered a few lightning-quick strikes to the teen's gut, like a sledgehammer, knocking all the wind out of him and causing his diaphragm to seize momentarily.

Izuku kicked out, slamming his feet into Igris' armored chest, but the Shadow took the hits without relaxing his grip in the slightest. The sudden lack of oxygen was making it hard for Izuku to use his strength. Raising an arm, Igris' massive broadsword ripped out of the concrete it had been impaled in and flew into his hand.

At the same time, Aizawa-sensei's capture scarf wrapped around the same hand. Yet, the knight ignored it, bringing his blade down to rest against Izuku's neck, the kiss of shadowy metal against his skin making him shiver. Igris stared down at him with his indecipherable solid eyes, and something clicked in Izuku's head.

"Y-You… Win…" Izuku choked out, tapping the arm wrapped around his throat. After another moment of staring, Igris finally released him, standing up. Izuku inhaled so fast he choked, coughing a bit which aggravated his sore esophagus. A moment later, thanks to his high Vitality, the pain more or less disappeared as his regeneration kicked in.

Izuku pushed himself to his feet, prodding his face carefully. That first hit felt like it had fractured, or outright broken, his jaw. It certainly sounded like it.

"Midoriya!" Aizawa-sensei called, getting his attention. The man looked like he was gearing up for a fight, Quirk activated and capture scarf still wrapped around Igris' arm. "What was that?"

"Nothing, it's fine," Izuku said with a wave of his hand. "You're surprisingly petty, you know?" he told Igris. The Shadow shrugged.

"That didn't look like nothing." There was an edge to Sensei's voice. He probably wouldn't let this go until he got a proper answer.

Izuku sighed. "Last time we… Sparred, I won because I fought a little dirty. I guess he was holding a grudge," he explained. There was a hint of amusement in his tone. Although he didn't necessarily like being hit that hard, especially in the face, the situation was a bit humorous. Also, he certainly hadn't expected that from his first and most loyal Shadow.

Is he… Above me?

It was a humbling thought that one of his subordinates would grow faster than him. It was clear, the first time they fought, who was superior. Yet now, it seemed the tables had been turned. Were he to fight Igris head-on, without any underhanded tricks, would Izuku be able to win? Maybe. Maybe not.

Izuku hummed thoughtfully. "I've been too lax, huh?" he said to Igris, who shrugged once more. That was as good as outright confirmation. It made him wonder, if the gap between him and Igris were to grow wide enough, would his Shadows lose their faith in him? Would they rebel, detesting Izuku for being a weak leader?

If he lost the loyalty of his army… Did he have their loyalty to begin with, though? The thought made him freeze. They were here because he killed them, then used Shadow Extraction to resurrect them, placing them under his command. He twisted their souls, subjugating them. They didn't join him of their own volition, he didn't recruit them- he enslaved them.

Izuku glanced at Igris, who was staring at him impassively.

Do you resent me? He wanted to ask, but held his tongue. Could he handle the answer to that question?

He vaguely registered Aizawa-sensei telling him he was done, to sit out for the rest of the exercise. He was much more focused on watching the knight slowly sinking into the darkness, making eye contact the entire time.

A warning.

Become stronger, or I will topple your throne.