MHA: Copy and Paste

Wednesday unfolded under the bright sun of yet another unfamiliar city. After their intense morning spar, Mirko had declared, "New day, new hunting ground!" and they'd hopped a train, arriving in a sprawling coastal metropolis, both now clad in their hero costumes.

Before they launched into their patrol from their first rooftop vantage point, Mirko stopped him. "Alright, Axiom Peak," she stated, arms crossed, a critical look in her eye. "New rule for today, and likely for the rest of this internship. Each day, I'm gonna ban one of your main tools. Fire, ice, or that super-strength of yours. Forces you to get creative. For today..." She grinned. "No fire. At all. You wanna keep up, you use those legs or your ice."

Souta processed that. No blue flames meant no Nova Body flight and no thermal attacks. He'd rely on his ice and, for movement, One For All. "Understood."

Mirko took off in a signature powerful leap. "Then try and keep up, intern!"

Souta took a breath, and crackling orange energy flared to life, coursing visibly through the conduits of his hero suit as he activated One For All: Full Cowling at a steady 20%. He crouched low and launched himself across the gap, the energy discharge from his legs powerful but less controlled for this specific type of leaping than his usual flame-assisted flight.

His first landing on the next building was jarring, the reinforced boots of his costume absorbing some shock, but still heavier than intended. The orange energy flared erratically for a moment.

For the first hour, keeping pace was a brutal, awkward struggle. Without the fine control of his flames for aerial adjustment, relying purely on OFA-powered leaps demanded a different kind of precision. His suit protected him from scrapes during less-than-perfect landings on rough concrete, but the movements felt inefficient.

"More core, kid!" Mirko would bark back. "Those fancy conduits are lighting up, but your jumps are all over the place!"

They dealt with a few minor incidents. A snatch-and-grab thief found his escape cut off as Souta, orange energy flaring through his suit, used OFA speed to drop down from an awning, creating a slick patch of ice that sent the thief sprawling.

Later, an attempted daylight robbery of an electronics store saw Souta again rely on his restricted kit. As the robbers tried to flee, he slammed his hands on the ground, sending jagged walls of ice erupting to seal an alleyway exit. The orange energy in his suit pulsed with the exertion. Another sheet of ice under their getaway scooter rendered it useless before Mirko bounded in for the takedowns.

As the patrol continued into its second hour, Souta began to find a rhythm. He focused on channeling the OFA power more precisely into his legs, the orange energy flowing more smoothly through his suit's conduits with each jump.

His landings became more controlled. He started using small, instantaneous ice platforms or ramps, created with a quick touch, to bridge awkward gaps or change his elevation, the ice forming and dissipating rapidly.

The initial frustration with being grounded began to morph. He realized Mirko's restriction was forcing him to develop a different aspect of his OFA application, focusing on explosive ground mobility and precision rather than overwhelming aerial power.

'This isn't just about limiting me', Souta thought, executing a clean OFA-jump to a narrow ledge, the orange energy in his suit dimming as he landed lightly. It's about mastering each component.

Mirko glanced back, a flicker of something almost like approval in her red eyes. "Better, intern! You're not crashing into things as much! Don't get cocky!"

She sprang away, and Souta followed, the orange energy in his suit a steady pulse as he found a new, demanding rhythm across the urban sprawl.

The rest of Wednesday's patrol continued in this new, demanding rhythm. Souta, with fire strictly off-limits for the day, pushed his One For All and ice manipulation to their current synergistic limits.

He found that using small, almost instantaneous ice constructs on existing surfaces – like a slick patch to slide into a turn or a quickly formed ramp at a rooftop edge – combined with the explosive power of Full Cowling in his legs, allowed for a surprising degree of controlled agility. It was, however, far more draining than his usual flame-based flight.

Mirko didn't let up. She led him through complex urban obstacle courses that tested his reaction time and spatial awareness. His ability to chain OFA-powered leaps with precisely timed ice creations on solid surfaces was constantly challenged.

She'd deliberately choose routes with awkward gaps, sharp drops, or narrow ledges, forcing him to adapt on the fly.

"See that water tower, Axiom Peak?" she yelled mid-leap, already a distant figure pointing towards a structure several blocks away. "Bet I can tag it and be back on this roof before you even figure out how to cross the next street without face-planting!"

Souta didn't rise to the verbal bait, but he accepted the silent challenge. He watched her trajectory, the incredible power in her legs as she used a flagpole as a pivot, then launched herself with immense force.

He followed, his mind calculating. He couldn't match her specialized leaping Quirk directly, even if his 20% Full Cowling provided comparable overall strength. Her legs were simply built different.

Instead, he used OFA to sprint to the edge of the current rooftop. He then slammed his hand down, creating a sharp, angled ramp of ice that glittered in the sun.

He launched off it, orange energy flaring visibly through the conduits in his hero suit. The initial burst of speed was tremendous. For the rest of the trajectory across the wide gap, he focused on maintaining his arc and balance with subtle shifts of his body, relying on the power of that initial OFA-enhanced, ice-assisted launch. It was less a single, continuous bound like Mirko's and more a powerful, controlled projection.

He landed on the target rooftop a few seconds after Mirko. She was already there, grinning, not a single bead of sweat visible on her brow.

"Not bad, kid," she conceded. "Getting the hang of thinking with your feet instead of just blasting off with those fancy flames. Still slow, though!"

They encountered another minor villain incident late in the afternoon. A low-level thug, whose Quirk allowed him to briefly make small objects super-bouncy, was causing chaos. Cobblestones and trash cans ricocheted hazardously through a pedestrian area.

Mirko was about to dive in, a blur of motion.

Souta, however, seeing an opportunity to practice his restricted style, called out, "I can handle this one, Mirko-san, if you'll provide oversight."

She raised an eyebrow, then her smirk returned. "Alright. Show me what your ice and hops can do without the fireworks."

Souta leaped into action, orange energy pulsing through his suit. The villain sent a barrage of bouncing debris his way. Using OFA for quick bursts of speed, Souta weaved through the unpredictable projectiles.

He then stomped his foot hard. A wave of ice spread rapidly across the ground around the villain, instantly freezing the bouncing objects in place. The sudden change also made the ground treacherous.

The villain, surprised by the sudden loss of his improvised ammunition and his footing, slipped. Souta closed the distance with another OFA-enhanced leap. A quick, precise ice slide he created directly under the villain's feet sent him sprawling.

Before the thug could recover, Souta had encased his hands and feet in thick cuffs of ice.

"Clean," Mirko commented, hopping down beside him as the local police, who'd been struggling to approach, moved in. "Good use of the environment." She then added, "Still a bit too much raw power on those initial jumps though. You almost cracked the pavement back there when you landed to make that ice slick."

Souta nodded, taking the critique seriously. He was learning that controlling the destructive output of OFA, even at 20%, was just as important as unleashing its power, especially for delicate maneuvers or in civilian-heavy areas.

As the sun began to set, casting long orange and purple hues across the coastal city, they finally started to head back towards the train station. This time, their pace was slightly more sedate.

Souta felt a deep ache in his legs and core, a different kind of exhaustion than he usually experienced after a day of using his flames for flight. It was the satisfying weariness of pushing his body in new and challenging ways.

Mirko, seemingly inexhaustible, stretched lazily, her long ears twitching. "Not a bad day's work, intern," she said, her teasing tone holding a hint of genuine approval. "You didn't break too many things, and you actually managed to keep up without setting anything on fire. There might be hope for you yet."

That incident also marked the end of Wednesday's patrol, though, even then, the follow up training and report for the day would still follow, as soon as they were back at her house.