Monsters are People Too (HxH/BNHA Crossover Fic)

10

That... that was incredibly underwhelming.

Gon trailed behind the three teens chattering excitedly in front of him. There was a drag in his step and his gaze remained fixed to the ground. His fists tightened at his sides, sun-kissed skin pulling taught and turning white at the knuckles, while they made their way toward the waiting area for the second portion of the test. An unsettling ache nestled deep into the boy's bones as he recalled only a minute before when they had captured their last targets.

After the two boys had separated from Ochako and Sero, they had taken to destroying boulders to arouse the attention of nearby students. They were caught up in a game of chase until their trap was put into action and the crowd pursuing them had become restrained by strips of tape and large rocks. At the moment, Gon felt like he could do nothing more but follow along and claimed his last target with the rest, but he wasn't satisfied in the slightest.

As he watched the group of students pinned to the ground, begging for another chance, to be let go, something twisted in his stomach. A lump had crawled up his chest and settled at the base of his throat, fingers twitching at his sides with the adrenaline still pulsing through the entirety of his system. He'd wanted a fair one-on-one fight, and seeing how he hadn't quite expected his classmates to set that sort of trap, it left a hollow feeling of disappointment in the pit of his chest.

It was too easy and, in a way, a bit underhanded. Although, he supposed the method didn't matter much in the exam as long as they claimed their targets... but still. The thrill of the chase and facing off against an opponent was a familiar pleasure to him, and he felt a bit robbed of it in this situation. It wasn't as fun as he had initially thought it would be.

"Hey, look! Some of our classmates!" A familiar voice called out from behind them. Turning around, he was met with the faces of Denki, Kirishima, and Bakugo.

The group of friends gathered and cheered for the success of their class and Gon moved to stand next to Izuku, who stood off to the side, and they watched the scene unfold. At the sight of the four rejoicing, the younger boy's earlier frustration faded slightly and a small smile tugged at his lips. Bakugo had not chosen to participate in the cheers and was instead stalking in their direction.

"So you passed. How'd you manage that Deku." He growled, voice tinged with hostility. Although his countenance had appeared threatening, Gon could clearly sense no true ire from the teen and so remained quiet, opting to observe the interaction.

"Kacchan! H-hey!" Izuku sputtered in response, fiddling nervously with his hands, head slightly downcast as if expecting to be yelled at.

"Guess I shouldn't be surprised with that quirk you've got." The explosive blonde passed by without sparing the other teen a single glance. At the words, Izuku's features twisted into a look of bewilderment and he stared, mouth agape, at his back as the blonde stalked away from them.

"Well, he was a lot less meaner than the last time I saw you guys talk." Gon spoke up then.

Izuku blinked. "Yeah I... I guess. I'm a bit surprised though."

His brow furrowed at the response, amber eyes glinting in the light. "You guys are confusing." Gon stated, earning a shocked look from the other. "It's obvious you guys want to be friends, but you're both acting all weird about it. Especially him."

"A-ah... that's not- we're not really... that's... uh..." Izuku blubbered and stuttered while frantically waving his hands about in a poor attempt at a nonsensical explanation.

"Hey! You guys ready to go inside?" Ochako asked, interrupting their quiet conversation. Gon replied with a cheerful 'mhm' while Izuku nodded.

Just as Gon was about to follow after his classmates, he paused outside the doorway as a burning sensation prickled at his back, something he'd felt many times before. Turning to face the source of the feeling, he caught sight of Aizawa seated in the stands and watching over them with a neutral expression. The woman from earlier with the bright clothing was next to him and seemed to be chattering about something.