The train doors slid open with a soft beep, and Neito Monoma stepped onto the platform.
He stopped for a second, taking in the familiar sight. Same buildings, same voices in the distance, same smell of the city. It had been a whole year since he stood here, but nothing had changed.
Except him.
He carried a duffel bag over his shoulder, walking out of the station with a calm look on his face. The weather was just right—sunny, with a gentle breeze brushing his hair. He took a deep breath.
"I'm back," he said quietly. "I should probably meet with Nezu first and give him an update. Let's go to U.A."
The walk to U.A. felt peaceful. The city was busy as usual, but Neito moved at his own pace. A year overseas had changed him a lot, helped him settle down a bit.
When he reached the U.A. gates, everything looked exactly the same. Most students weren't back yet, so the campus felt quiet. He walked through the gates, his footsteps echoing in the clean halls.
He stopped outside the principal's office and knocked.
"Come in," said a familiar voice.
Neito stepped inside. Principal Nezu was sitting behind his desk, a cup of tea steaming next to him. His eyes lit up.
"Ah, Neito! Welcome back."
"Hey, Principal Nezu. Good to see you," Neito said, smiling.
"Please, have a seat," Nezu offered.
Neito sat down and placed his bag on the floor. "I just got back today. My internship in America is finally over."
"Ah yes, with Star and Stripe. How was it?"
"Hard," Neito said with a small laugh. "She fights entirely on instinct. Nearly broke my hand one day. But I also learned a lot—fought real villains, got some serious experience."
"Haha, All Might fights like that too. She's known for being intense," Nezu said with a chuckle. "I'm glad you learned something."
Neito nodded, then smirked and pointed towards himself with his thumb. "More than that—my quirk awakened while I was there."
Nezu's ears perked up. "Awakened?"
"Yeah," Neito said with pride. "I can copy quirks permanently now."
Nezu blinked in surprise. "Permanently? That's a huge upgrade. How did it happen?"
Neito smiled a bit. "I'm not sure, honestly. Maybe Star pushed me too far one day. I was training hard, and suddenly it just… happened."
His smile faded into a more thoughtful look.
"At first, I was excited. I thought, 'Great, now I can copy everything and keep it forever!' So I did. I started copying every quirk I came across. But after a few weeks… it didn't feel right."
"What do you mean?" Nezu asked with some concern.
Neito glanced down, thinking. "I was picking up useless quirks. One made my hands slightly cold. Another gave me better night vision. Not bad, but not helpful either. They just started piling up."
He looked back up. "It felt like I was carrying junk in my own body."
Nezu nodded thoughtfully. "So you were collecting without a stop. Just hoarding quirks."
"Exactly," Neito said. "I started feeling like my quirk was getting messy. Too many things at once. It was like having a room full of broken furniture."
"Interesting," Nezu said. "So what did you decide to do?"
"I thought about it a lot," Neito said. "Now, I want to build a proper set of quirks. One strong quirk for each type—movement, defense, attack, support. Only the best ones."
"That's a good strategy," Nezu agreed, then brought up an obvious issue. "But aren't you worried you might throw away something useful?"
"I thought about that too," Neito said. "But having too many quirks feels like having too many tabs open in my head. It's confusing. I'd rather have a clean list I can count on."
Nezu nodded again. "So instead of chasing every new quirk you see, you're turning your quirk into an organized system with the best quirks. That actually makes a lot of sense."
"Honestly, this is just how I feel instinctively," Neito said with a small smile. "The awakened version of my quirk feels like it wants me to collect quality quirks instead of hoarding quantity."
"If that's what your instincts tell you, then go for it. So, what quirks do you have right now?" Nezu asked.
Neito shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I'm getting rid of most of them. I'll build a better set. From scratch."
Nezu shrugged. "Just don't throw out every quirk. Sometimes the quirks that seem useless end up saving lives."
"I'll keep that in mind," Neito said, standing up and grabbing his bag. "Anyway, I'll come back on entrance exam day."
"Of course," Nezu said. "You've been gone for a whole year. Go spend time with your family. Your little brother is growing fast."
Neito smiled. "Yeah. I really want to see him."
His neighborhood was quiet when he got home. Small trees lined the sidewalk, and birds chirped somewhere in the distance. As he reached the front steps, the door opened.
"Neito!" his mom said with a big smile, pulling him into a hug.
"Hi, Mom," he laughed. "I missed you too."
His dad came over with a grin. "Look at you—taller and stronger. Good to have you back, son."
Inside, the house felt warm and cozy. Same furniture, same decorations. But something new caught his ear—a soft baby sound from the living room.
Neito peeked inside. A tiny baby was lying in a colorful playpen, babbling and kicking his legs.
"That's Haruto," his mom said. "Your baby brother. He's almost five months now."
Neito walked over and crouched beside the playpen. Haruto had soft hair and big, curious eyes. He grabbed a stuffed All Might toy and giggled.
"Hey, little guy," Neito whispered.
Haruto looked at him and reached out, grabbing Neito's finger with surprising strength.
"Strong grip," Neito said with a smile.
"He's grown a lot," his dad said proudly.
"And he's loud too," his mom added, laughing. "But we love him."
That evening was quiet and full of comfort. They made Neito's favorite food. He told a few fun stories from his internship—left out the scary stuff—and enjoyed hearing his parents laugh.
Later that night, Neito sat on the couch, holding Haruto as he slept peacefully in his arms.
'This feels nice,' Neito thought. 'He doesn't even have a quirk yet. I wonder what it'll be. I hope it's something good.'
Time passed.
Weeks turned into months. Neito trained in the mornings, helped around the house, and played with Haruto every day. The baby liked to grab his hair and laugh when Neito made funny faces.
His parents didn't ask much about his plans. They knew he was going back to U.A.—he had a contract. For now, they just enjoyed having him home.
Entrance Exam Day.
Neito stood at the gates of U.A. again, hands in his pockets.
The place was crowded with students. Some looked nervous, others excited. A few of them glanced at him and whispered.
"Is that Monoma? The guy who trained overseas?"
Neito just smiled. He didn't say anything.
He stretched his arms and walked towards the gate.
"Let's do this," he said quietly.
A/N
Had a new idea for this story stuck in my mind, hopefully I can pump out some more chapters this time before I get bored of it again.