Chapter 183: Springtime Snowy Mountain Camping (1)
~Third POV~
[Spring Break, Snowy Mountain, Japan]
A sparkling, silvery snowscape spread as far as the eye could see, punctuated only by a towering, snow-covered mountain that threatened to pierce the blue sky above. In the snowy mountain was a group of Class 1-A boy students, Ren said in an excited tone, his eyes glistening as the snow fell, "Would you look at that!"
Following from behind, Denki Kaminari grinned as he added excitedly, "For real! Couldn't ask for better weather for camping, either!"
Joining the two boys were Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugo, Shoto Todoroki, Tenya Ida, Eijiro Kirishima, and Hanta Sero, all decked out in winter-weather gear and massive backpacks. The events that had led these eight boys to this wintry wonderland had begun a few days earlier.
/////
[Flashback, Days Earlier, UA Highschool, Heights Alliance, Japan]
It was just before dinner, and class A's resident spark plug was slouched on a sofa in the communal space of the dorm as he moaned in a bored tone, "Getting cabin fever over here!"
Beside him, Sero stopped fidgeting with his phone and laughed saying, "Hah! Where would we even go?"
Pouting Denki replied sarcastically as he said in an annoyed tone, "Dunno! But c'mon—we're talking spring break here."
Denki turned to spot Bakugo, Midoriya, Todoroki, Ren and Kirishima, who had just returned from their respective work studies as he said, "Oh? Look who it is!"
Students had the option of lodging at their work-study agencies, but that involved filling out extra paperwork and navigating red tape. Besides, the dorm was the best place to be to shift focus back to their usual studies.
Hearing Denki's comment Bakugo yelled at him with a usual glare, "Yeah, we're back. Got a problem?"
Kirishima, on the other hand, greeted the two in a friendly tone waving his hand, "Good to be home!"
Midoriya gazed at the two as he deactivated his Hero Costume 'Armor Deku' helmet and casually said to them, "What were you two just talking about?"
Ren raised an eyebrow hearing them out as Sato explained pointing at Denki, "Kaminari was saying how it's spring break, so he's got the urge to blow this place and have some fun."
Ida, who'd already returned from his work-study and was passing through the common area scolded Denki, "What kind of thinking is that, Kaminari? A student's duty is to their studies, and we are now residents of this dorm. Where would you even presume to run off to at a moment's notice? Ah, welcome back, classmates!"
Before the newcomers could so much as say 'Hi' to Ida, Kaminari groaned as he said, "They call it spring break, though. Breaks are for relaxing. Unwinding. Chilling out!"
Ren, understanding where Denki was coming from, nodded his head as he said calmly, with Midoriya nodding his head, agreeing, "I admit this doesn't feel much like spring break, given the intense work studies."
Denki smirked pointing at the two in a happy tone, "This guy gets it!"
But Midoriya wasn't fully on the party bus just yet as Ren explained in a neutral tone, "Still, being at the agency is so much fun since we're learning new things every day! Thanks again for inviting us to come along, Todoroki!"
Todoroki with simple response, but his expression softened a bit said, "Uh-huh. It wasn't easy convincing my old man."
Ren laughed nervously recalling how he sent a clone to Endeavor's agency. And how he was informed of his dead son Dabi as he thought nervously, 'Yeah… if it wasn't because he informed how his dead son is with the League of Villains and proof he would've told me to fuck off. He keeps me around to see if I can find Dabi again with my [Search] Quirk.'
Keeping the real reason to himself Kaminari observed the exchange and pouted as he said in an annoyed tone, "Yeah, yeah, I get that! But spring break is a blink-and-you-miss-it window! Way shorter than summer and winter breaks, so it's much more valuable!"
It was when Kirishima suggested his idea in earnest and asked, "Hey why don't we have a fall break, anyway?"
Hearing Kirishima's suggestion Sato paused pondering out loud his idea honestly said murmuring, "They must think we can power through fall after taking it easy over the summer."
Kirishima replied shrugging his shoulders, "Makes sense to me."
Kaminari, who was getting fed up with the tangents shouted in a loud outburst, "You're losing the point, guys! I'm saying we gotta make the most of this chance! It doesn't gotta be a full-blown trip! Just somewhere we can go to hang out and chill!"
But suddenly, a new voice entered the conversation as he said in a low voice from behind, "Hoping to go somewhere, Kaminari?"
All eyes widened recognizing the voice as the students exclaimed, "Sensei!"
At the appearance of their homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa, the boys' backs stiffened straight as ramrods as his icy stare convinced them they were in for talking to. They knew that Aizawa's austere nature came from a loving place, but that didn't make him any less intimidating.
As they waited for the hammer of judgment to fall, the boys prayed they'd get away with only a three-page essay reflecting on the error of their ways; they could never have expected the words that actually came out of Aizawa's mouth, "How about mountain camping?"
They were too stunned to respond, so Aizawa continued while glancing at some sort of schedule in his hand as he explained, "One of the school's training facilities simulates a full-blown wintry mountain. There's the mountain itself, plus a forest and even a lake for fishing. Looks to me like you all have some overlapping days off coming up, so you could head out there for a night's stay."
This bolt from the blue seemed too good to be true, so the slack-jawed boys could only stare and blink as Ren pinched himself, flinching as he muttered, "… this can't be real. Is this a dream? Ouch! Nope, this is reality, alright."
Aizawa glared at Ren's comment but asked the boys in a neutral tone, "What? Nobody's forcing you. You're welcome to go nowhere at all instead."
Being presented with the offer, Denki's eyes widened as he agreed immediately, "Wait, no—yes, sign us up! But who came up with this awesome idea?"
Listening to Denki's response, Aizawa explained to his students in a stoic tone, holding the schedule in his hands, "At the faculty meeting, we discussed opening up some of the school's facilities to students for spring break. The change of pace should leave you feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the duties ahead more efficiently. Well? How does that sound?"
The boys agreed instantly and unanimously, and with that, the mountain camping plan was put in motion.
/////
[Present, Spring Break, Snowy Mountain, Japan]
Returning to the present, the eight boys continued hiking as Kirishima shouted, surveying the sprawling snowfields in an amazed tone, surveying the sprawling snowfields, "S'like we're at the edge of the world! If I got blindfolded and dropped off here, I'd have no clue this was still part of the school!"
Climbing up Sero grinned as he added, "U.A.'s got property up the wazoo!"
Kaminari, who was fidgeting with excitement, tossed aside his bag and dove on top of the snow as he shouted in excitement, "Woo-hoo! Real snow! Chilly! But awesome! Hey, who's up for a snowball fight?"
*Thud*
Kaminari's excitement was cut short when his bulky bag was tossed back on top of him as he yelled, "Oof! What gives?"
Bakugo, who tossed the bulky bag, was somehow glaring with even more intensity than usual as he said in an angry tone, "You're in for a world of pain if you make light of the mountain."
The guys all muttered, "Huh?"
Unlike Bakugo's angry outburst, Bakugo's calm, steady tone rattled the other boys as he said, staring at them, "Listen, dweebs. There ain't some cozy cabin waiting for us. We're out here on our own, and there ain't a second to spare for fun and games when it comes to survivalist camping."
Ren, thinking a bit, immediately understood where Bakugo was coming from as he thought in a startled tone, 'Ew… for once I understood what Bakugo means. If this experience is better, let him be in charge.'
Ren nodded but the rest looked confused as Kaminari asked in a confused tone, "Survivalist? C'mon, man. We're out here for one measly night. Why all the doom and gloom?"
Bakugo sternly says as Ren began unpacking following the explosive boy's command, "Cuz from now until tomorrow at noon, we're locked up in this place.'
This reminded the boys of what Aizawa had said after they'd agreed to sign on the proverbial dotted line as they thought, 'Once you're in there, the entrance is locked for the next twenty-four hours, come what may. Keep in mind that your phones won't work either. Still sure about this?'
*Wooosh*
The ominous warning and caveats hadn't scared the eight boys off. They might've even had a ninth member if Hitoshi Shinso had returned to the dorm when Kaminari and Sero had (all three were doing work studies at the same agency), but at that moment, he was busy being Eraser Head's sidekick trainer, under the guise of what he called "training."
Kaminari, with a snort, dismissed Bakugo's concerns as he playfully said, "Pfft, what's the big deal?"
Bakugo narrowed his eyes and clucked his tongue, saying in a serious tone, "You try sleeping out in this cold without proper prep? You're dead. So, if turning into a frozen corpse is your thing, be my freakin' guest."
Midoriya's eyes glinted with joy over the knowledge nugget he was about to share in an amused tone, "Kacchan's big hobby is actually mountain climbing, we should trust him when he says a snowy mountain can be dangerous."
Ida blinked, listening to Midoriya's explanation as he said in a confident tone, trusting Bakugo, "Ah! How fortuitous for us, then! I have basic knowledge of the topic from books but little confidence when putting it all into practice. Care to take command of this operation, Bakugo?"
Bakugo scowled at Ida's suggestion, pointing at himself, "Me?"
Ren nodded his head, ultimately agreeing with his arms crossed as he said calmly, "Yup! I'm sure an experienced mountaineer such as yourself knows much that we do not. You're the right man for the job! So, what you say, boss?"
Bakugo paused before clucking his tongue again and consenting with a smug grin, "Tch! You'd all be lost without me, so fine. But the first one to start whining gets a snowy grave, courtesy of me."
Both Ren and Kaminari saluted as he said in a kind tone, "You got it, boss!"
Bakugo grinned with a smug expression as the other boys paused, listening and witnessing the scene as they all thought startled, 'Never would I ever hear the day our Class Rep would follow Bakugo. Hell must have frozen over if that ever happened…'