a/n: This is from the 987reverse!au, but it's pulling Torino backstory from @/thisauthorisscreaming's Anachronism fic. What can I say. Torino is not in the market for healthy parental figures.
//
Training was probably the one activity that Sorahiko genuinely looked forward to now that he and Nana were enrolled in U.A.ās famous heroics program. He liked to run, he liked using Jet in creative obstacle courses, and best of all, Sorahiko liked being able to fight back.
What he wasnāt a fan of was when All Might joined the fray.
Nana could laugh and shout about a āspringtime of youthā all she wanted. The rest of them suffered a huge morale crush when the Number One Hero of All Time stepped into the gym and flexed his stupid muscles. Some days, they fought him as a whole class. Other times, in groups or pairs.
On the really challenging days, All Might took them on, one-on-one. He called it a tutoring session. Sorahiko considered it hell, especially because the rest of the students had to spar in tight quarters on the other half of the gym.
After Shimura, Suzuki. From Suzuki, Torino.
Sorahiko eyed the way Suzuki, cursing, slunk back to the mats. Keeping pace beside him and cheerfully lecturing all the while, All Might chattered Suzukiās ear off with advice. āYoung Suzuki, your flexibility needs quite a bit of work! Didnāt I tell you last time that villains wonāt always be neatly taken out with a long-range attack?ā
A towel dropped over his head. Sorahiko let it shut out the world for a split second before he scrubbed the sweat on his neck and whipped it off, just in time to see Nana drop to a cross-legged seat next to him.Ā
āYou ready?ā she asked.
āEh,ā he said, noncommittal. The answer was obviously no. Even if Sorahiko landed a punch or a kick on All Might--well, one, All Might was nigh-invulnerable to impact damage. And two, Sorahikoās specialty was momentum, and trying to compensate for a lack of power with momentum.
āAh, youāve got it.ā
āI donāt know where you got all my confidence.ā He grinned when Nana laughed. Then Suzuki was promptly dropped off at a mat with Fujita, and All Might swanned over to theirs. The rictus of a smile eased into a genuine beam, which was the only reasonable reaction to have when a happy Nana was in hearing and seeing range.
āYoung Torino! Youāre up!ā
Sorahiko checked the bandages wrapped around his wrists and ankles. It was the most support heād get for his joints outside of hero exercises; gear was strictly limited for āworkā, and no amount of complaining persuaded All Might that bare-knuckle brawling was untenable for twenty fifteen to sixteen year olds.
āGo, Sorahiko!ā Nana cheered, pumping her fist into the air. āYouāll get him this time!ā
āYeah,ā he muttered. He got to his feet and stared balefully up at All Might. The same damn quiver in his stomach rattled back to life. And it got stronger and stronger the further they walked away from the class to the empty side of the gym.
They faced each other. All Might had not tried to talk to him, but instead considered him with a look that made Sorahikoās skin crawl.Ā
āAre you alright?ā
āFine,ā Sorahiko bit out. He imagined violently smothering the ingrained terror, and he shifted his feet, readying a boxing stance.
āYou might find better progress if we talked about your strategy,ā All Might said, using as much delicacy as he was capable of. āYour speed--ā isnāt good enough yet. Get on the track, boy. I know you can go faster--
He said, āCall it!ā, and when All Might responded with a startled, āGo!ā, Sorahiko lunged forward with a right hook and used the force of his spin to follow that with a kick, and it was a flurry of blows from there.
No point in trying to set up for a ricochet run. The last time Sorahiko went with that, All Might gave chase, and the visual of (frankly) a large looming figure honing in on Sorahiko made him witless with fear. Heād given up all attempts at a fight and went flat-out retreat mode.Ā
Sorahiko knew there wasnāt a point in trying to shove All Might. The jackass was literally famous for being a Pillar of Society or whatever, and Sorahiko was just sixteen. But as Sorahikoās limbs started to ache and All Might showed no signs of being affected, Sorahiko let out a breathless cry, ducked closer to All Mightās core, planted both feet on the gym tile and Jetted.Ā
All Mightās hand grasped at Sorahikoās shirt. Sorahiko was bodily lifted before he could cut the Jet. He flailed like a goddamned child as All Might slid his foot backwards and nearly let Sorahiko Jet himself into a wall. As it was, Sorahikoās attempted Jet shot him against his own shirt, and he choked out a curse word.
āEasy there!ā All Might chided.
Because Sorahiko was taking lessons from Nanaās school of āNever Give Up!ā, he scrabbled for a new footing. (He was a child again, being grabbed by the collar and prevented from escaping.) He said, stupidly, āTake me seriously, you shitty old geezer!ā, and lashed out with an elbow, a fist, all five nails clawing for a grip.
With casual ease, All Might tossed him to the side. āYoung Torino, you really have to talk to someone,ā he scolded. āYouāre lucky young Shimura thinks you have the fighting tactics of a spooked cat. Sheād be quite worried if she knew you were fighting through a panic attack every time you went up against me.ā
Sorahiko rolled to his feet. āIām not,ā he snapped. He flinched back when All Might readied a punch, but he tried to rally anyways. Never give up and all. āAnybody would be scared shitless if you cocked a fist at āem! Youāre known for smashing people to pulp!ā
āI havenāt even thrown a student hard enough to break a brick wall,ā All Might protested. He pinwheeled an arm, popping the joint. Sorahiko loathed the evidence that he hadnāt hit All Might hard enough to induce any sound at all.Ā
Before All Might gestured for a restart, Sorahiko went for his neck.
For the 987 ageswap au. I can totally see old man quirkless Izuku be completely unfazed by Sorahiko's fury, while of course, Toshinori is actually intimidated by the high schooler. I can also see Old Man Bakugo and Sorahiko get along like a house on fire. But I can also all three of the next gens be confused by Old Man Bakugo and Old Man Izuku's friendly rivalry that still sounds utterly nuclear to anyone outside it.
oh man... yeah, okay, for both Toshinori and Nana, they're baffled by Izuku's cutesy nickname for Bakugou and him being unbothered by the outbursts. Sorahiko... I don't think he'd GET ALONG with Old Man Bakugou (tbh, I think Bakugou, being slightly bitter about Toshinori only seeming to have fair weather friends, is suspicious about this ride-or-die kid attached to The Granddaughter), but I do think he'd find Old Man Bakugou funny
(baku-jiji = old man bakugou (derogatory), midoriya-jiisan = old man midoriya (respectful))
I saw your ageswap au from a few days ago with nana and sorahiko as students and bakugou and midoriya as old ppl, but Iām just wondering how toshi fits into all of this? Is he the same age as he is normally? Is he like a toddler? Iām curious lol
Toshinori unfortunately doesnāt get the joy of being ageswapped. Heās been locked into dadmight. The issue is that Nana (Iām improv-ing, by the way) has perfectly normal parents, and itās actually Sorahiko who lacks a decent male role model.
REVERSE AU deku teaching toshi toshi teaching nana and gran Torino gran Torino still scares toshi
AH YES. A GOOD GOOD CONCEPT IVE BOUNCED WITH @thisauthorisscreaming
things iāve been entertaining on my lonesomeā¦
1. Chiyo is of Nana and Sorahikoās generation; her position is replaced by that kid in the second BNHA movie (Katsuma), but because her Quirk is shiny and new and not as conditional, Chiyoās already in training to take his place
2. Nana catches Toshinoriās attention in two ways. One, she asked him if U.A. would accept partner applications straight off the bat. (āHeās not a boyfriend,ā she says, annoyed.Ā āItās just ā I ā I promised myself Iād help him out of a situationĀ [home life. bad. ; -;)], and this is the best way to do it.ā). Two, she definitely dove into a villain situation to try and save Sorahiko, and he saw her smile in the face of fear.
3. Nana is just as tall as Sorahiko, and stronger, but heās speedier and quicker to adjust mid-air.
4. Nana hero-worships All Might, and she takes her color cues from his costumes (not the styles, though).
