Viridian: The Green Guide

Chapter 86: Tightrope

Katsuki had trouble staying present as he sparred with Shinso at the beach after school. The past 48 hours had felt like a fucking whirlwind even before the exercise, but then it got worse when he figured out that not only had Izuku become a vigilante since the last time he saw him, but he'd also fucking trained one of the strongest people in their freaking class! Obviously, Kaminari had never said a word about being trained by Viridian, but Katsuki had spent most of last night watching every single video anyone had ever captured of Izuku fighting and he'd picked up enough to recognize his distinct fighting style. Take away the pipes and slingshot, add a taser, and what was left would look exactly like Kaminari had while fighting Yaoyorozu.

They were probably friends. In fact, Katsuki wouldn't be surprised if Denki was closer to Izuku than he'd ever been and he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that. One the one hand, he was glad that Izuku had found a friend who probably treated him as well as he deserved, but on the other, more selfish hand, Katsuki couldn't help but feel like he'd lost something important. He'd messed up and missed out on what probably could have been an amazing lifelong friendship and even if he somehow managed to somehow mend their relationship now, there was nothing he could really do to get those years back.

Shinso shouted triumphantly as he managed to knock Katsuki off his feet for the first time since they'd started sparring an hour ago. He was still smirking as he helped Katsuki up and offered him a bottle of water.

"Not that I'm complaining about being able to beat you, Bakugo, but what's up with you?" Shinso asked after he chugged the entire bottle in one go. "Your head is someplace else today."

Katsuki glared at him, "None of your business."

All of a sudden, his mind went blank and all the tension released from his body like he was a puppet that had just had its strings cut, "Sit down and breathe slowly."

Despite the fact that he had every intention of cursing Shinso out, Katsuki couldn't stop his body from obeying. Before he knew it, Katsuki found himself relaxing for the first time in weeks. The stress gradually started to melt away with every order Shinso gave him, but from what he could tell, the exact opposite was happening to Shinso. The longer he kept Katsuki under his hold, the more tense and insecure he became.

It was no wonder those extras at his middle school had decided to target him. Katsuki got the feeling that Shinso could ask him to do anything in this state and he'd probably end up doing it whether he wanted to or not and as much as he hated to admit it, but there were plenty of times in his life when he would have been excited to pound someone with a brainwashing quirk to the ground. At the time, he would have seen it as a way of proving that he was stronger than them, but now it was obviously just discrimination, plain and simple. Shinso could be a dangerous villain with that quirk if he chose to be, obviously, but here he was, forcing Katsuki to meditate and proving that he could use his gifts to save people.

It was badass.

When Shinso finally released his quirk, Katsuki felt like he'd been dumped in cold water as reality came rushing back in. He stretched and glanced toward Shinso, who looked like he was expecting to be screamed at. That wasn't gonna fly.

"Careful, Eyebags." Katsuki huffed. "Any longer of that and you were gonna have to explain to my old hag why you had to carry me home snoring. Come on, let's go another round."

Shinso narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "You're not gonna say anything about...you know?"

"What's there to say?" Katsuki shrugged confidently. "You're gonna be a hero with that quirk, so you may as well practice it and I needed the break. Now are you gonna keep me waiting or are you gonna spar with me again now that I'm loose."