I wiped the sweat off my brow, dropping into a steady squat, feeling my legs burn after the past ten minutes of warm ups. It was just me and the sound of my breathing. Naturally, there were other people in the gym. However, I tuned them all out, focusing on my workout.
A soft tap landed on my shoulder.
"Well well, look at Mr. Hero over here. What're you training for? Trying to get even more ahead of the rest of us?" Despite the sharp words, the voice wasn't resentful. It even had a flicker of amusement.
I let out a short breath as I turned around. "You're way too good at sneaking up on people, Toru. Someone should put a bell on you. Though isn't improving the entire point of being here?"
"Touche." Her gym uniform floated a few steps in front of me. I wasn't sure if she was deliberately masking the sound of her movement, but I still hadn't noticed her until she spoke.
"Actually, I was wondering…" She shifted her weight, the faint shuffle of her shoes giving her away. "Do you have time to help me out? With some training."
"Sure," I said, wiping my hands on my towel. "What do you want to work on?"
"I dunno," she replied, her voice unsure but hopeful. "Maybe some sparring? Just… whatever would help me get better at actually fighting."
I nodded. "Let's do it."
"Really? Thanks!"
We moved to one of the open sparring mats. I rolled my shoulders and dropped into a defensive stance. "Let's keep it simple for now. I'll just be on defense so I can understand how you fight."
She didn't hesitate. I watched for movement, the small tugs in the fabric of her gym uniform.
I kept my eyes on her clothes as she closed the distance, almost landing a solid palm strike to my chest. I twisted just enough to lessen the hit. Her strikes weren't particularly strong.
She took a few steps back before coming in from my left side, from the angle of her sleeves I could guess she was going for a grapple. I stepped forward, extending an arm. My fingers brushed fabric and caught hold of her uniform.
"Alright, stop there." I relaxed my stance.
Toru let out a soft breath. "Man…"
"You're good at moving quietly, but your follow-up was too weak. You landed a hit on me earlier, then pulled back."
"Yeah," she muttered. "That's what's really been annoying me. I can sneak in, but I don't hit hard enough to make it count. I train like everyone else, I'm not lazy. But it feels like I never get anywhere."
"I get it." I crossed my arms. "You don't have the raw power that people like Sato or Midoriya do. But that's fine. You don't need it. What you've got is stealth, and if you build everything around that, you can be a nightmare to deal with."
"How?"
"Think about getting your costume changed. Something made out of your hair, something that would be completely invisible. No more floating gloves or clothes. Right now, I was looking at your clothes to try to guess where your next move was going to be. Then you can start training yourself to target weak spots—joints, pressure points, soft tissue. Make every move count."
She was quiet for a moment. "That makes sense, but I don't know where all those points are?"
"Give me your hand."
There was a small surprised noise, almost a squeak, but she offered her hand. I took it gently and guided her fingers to the center of my torso. "Solar plexus. Hit here hard enough and you knock the wind out of someone. You might even end a fight before it starts."
I moved her hand to my lower back, just off to the side. "Kidneys. Extremely painful. No one fights well after taking a hit here."
Then I brought her hand up to the crook of my arm. "Inner elbow. A quick strike here might cause a temporary dead arm. It'll disrupt their ability to grab or block."
Finally, I bent slightly and placed her hand behind my knee. "Back of the knee. Hit here, and their balance goes. They fall, you finish."
I let her hand go. "It doesn't matter how strong you are if you hit the right places."
A brief pause.
"Can we go again?" she asked, more focused this time.
"Alright, if that's what you want."
Toru began stripping out of her blue U.A. gym uniform. She stood in her sports bra and panties, but then tugged those off too. There was no indication of where her body might be once she was completely stripped of all clothing.
Without saying a word, I turned around and paced forward a few steps, facing a different direction so she could feel less seen. Even without visible form or features, I didn't want her worrying that I was judging her.
"Thanks, I'm ready now." she said quietly.
I turned back toward the mat, and lifted my fists into a guarding stance, bracing for an invisible threat.
Toru advanced silently. I couldn't see her coming at all, no longer being able to rely on her clothes as an indicator for where she was.
A sharp strike landed just beneath my chest, knocking the wind right out of me. I staggered, coughing hard, instinctively doubling over. "Shit…" I gasped, rubbing the sore spot. That hurts like a bitch; she hit my solar plexus dead-on. I was astonished at how accurate it had been.
Miraculously, there was a moment of stillness. As I straightened back up, nothing else followed. No second blow, no stealthy retreat. Just that one hit.
I swallowed, steadying myself. "Okay, good hit."
From somewhere behind me I heard her small intake of breath, nervous or relieved that she'd landed it. I turned slowly to face the empty space where she stood.
"Thank you." Toru's voice came, soft yet earnest. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." I managed a grin, pressing a hand to my side. "You hit hard, fast, without warning. That's exactly what I meant. Well done."
As I spoke, I crouched and touched the rubber flooring of the gym. My skin shifted, turning into a dull gray as I absorbed its properties—my muscles softening slightly, gaining elasticity. My entire body now made of rubber.
She sounded curious. "You're using your Quirk?"
"Yeah, it looks like I'll need it if I want to keep up. If you keep targeting the points I showed you, your hits would sting way too much. And since you're going fully invisible, I don't want to just stand there like a sitting duck. With this rubber form, I can resist your attack. Meanwhile, it's not so durable that you'd end up hurting yourself trying to hit me."
I paused for a moment before delivering my next point. "However, you're still hesitating," I said, being more serious now. "You're a kind person, Toru, that's good. But if you freeze up when it matters, someone else could get hurt."
"You think I don't know that?" she whispered, the tremble in her voice not from anger, but something closer to guilt.
I waited for her to continue.
Her voice quivered slightly, but I recognized the weight in her words. "At the USJ… I was useless. I was invisible, but that didn't matter—I still got caught. I couldn't help Uraraka. I was a burden! If you hadn't gotten there to save us when you did, I don't know what would've happened."
That hit me hard. Not because I doubted her, but because I actually cared this time. I carried my own weight of guilt from my inaction back then.
"Toru, you're right. You could have done better—you should have done better." Maybe those words were directed more towards myself than her. "But you weren't ready for that kind of encounter back then. It wasn't your fault. If you want to make a difference next time, you're going to have to fight for it."
She inhaled sharply. "I want to be strong enough that people notice me, even when they can't see me." The determination in her tone made the air feel charged.
"That's a good goal," I said, nodding. "Let's get back to it. This time, make sure you follow up after a hit. Don't hold back; you don't need to worry about me. I'll take the next hit with no problem."
"Okay, I'll do my best."
"Ready?"
"Ready!"
We resumed our spar.
This time around, Toru moved with purpose. No more random taps or hesitant strikes. Her moves were sharper now too. She'd land a hit on me, shift positions, then hit again. Instead of lunging in headfirst, she circled around, tested my reactions, and forced me to take her seriously. She wasn't just using her invisibility as a passive edge anymore. Now it was an active weapon. She would mislead me with sound, baiting me with subtle noises, only to strike from another direction.
That being said, it wasn't perfect. I was still holding back a little to allow her to improve her movements in real time.
Eventually, I caught her. A quick sidestep and a swipe of my arm let me grab her wrist again.
"That was great, Toru." I was breathing a little heavier now. "You're getting more strategic, less predictable."
She let out a faint breath, her body slumping against mine just a bit. "Thanks."
My skin became normal as I released my quirk.
We grabbed water bottles and sat by the wall, both of us sweating from the exertion. She stretched out her legs, the blue gym uniform reappearing around her as she started slipping it back on.
"You know," I said between sips, "you've come far in one session. But…" I set my bottle down, turning to her general direction. "You might want to talk to Aizawa-sensei about helping you refine your moves. He's not a brute force fighter either, and his quirk doesn't boost his physical strength. Meanwhile, I tend to fight in close-range, but my quirk covers what I lack in technique. He should be better at teaching you how to fight effectively with your invisibility."
Toru turned toward me, lifting her bottle slightly in a lazy toast. "I thought about that, but I decided on not going since I felt a little scared of asking him for help. He has that scary vibe, you know? But with your help today, I think I'll be fine. Thanks, Kyūta. Seriously."
I gave her a small nod.
She stood back up. "And hey, don't go easy on me next time, alright?"
"Wouldn't dream of it."
As she walked off, I watched the floating uniform vanish again, gym doors swinging shut behind her.
Now that I think about it, she's actually kind of cool.
That desperate will to matter without power being handed to her, there's something inherently admirable about that.