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Shota isn't sure why he decided to stay in his class' dorm building tonight, but he's starting to regret it.
It started with distant noises, and not knowing what they were, he ignored them. Random noises weren't too uncommon with his class, especially with some of his students' sleep schedules. (Particularly Tokoyami and Dark Shadow being partially nocturnal, as well as Shinso who sleeps a total of five hours per week.)
The Noises started getting louder at some point in the night, becoming more distinct and sounding like voices. Shota, being an insomniac as well, was up grading papers he put off - because he hadn't wanted to deal with them, and still doesn't - but had started to get annoyed at the students being recklessly loud downstairs.
It took about 15 more minutes before he got so irritated, being distracted from the grading he was finally doing, that he left his room. Getting to the common room, the pro is greeted with a sight he was not expecting.
A majority of his students - Ida, Ojiro, Koda, and Bakugo still in their dorm rooms - were sitting around the television; definitely not what he had expected. Hearing what sounded like yelling, he thought his students had gotten into an argument and started fighting. He wasn't entirely wrong, they are arguing, however it was not for the reason Shota thought.
Currently, Midoriya, Shoji, Jiro, Ashido, and Shinso were playing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on the television in the common room.
Yeah. Not what the man thought he would walk in on at 2:27 in the morning. On a school night. So much for being worried about his kids angry at his students.
The loudest kids, the ones he heard from his room, were Ashido and Kaminari, likely egging each other on (read; insulting each other, like best friends). The rest of the students, save maybe 4, were chattering rather loudly too.
Shota immediately decides to stay quiet, see how long it took for someone to notice him. Spacial awareness training. Not just an excuse to scare them. He swears.
Surprisingly, it only took about 3 minutes for two students to sense him: Todoroki and Midoriya. The former stayed quiet, simply glancing at him, doing a double take before simply nodding at him. The latter, not wanting to lose this round, glanced at him and continued to ignore his existence.
Shota can't blame the kid, all five students are evenly tied for number of lives left, though Midoriya is, marginally, in the lead. If he had processed seeing his teacher watching them, up past curfew, he would have freaked out and his character would have died.
It took another 10 minutes for anyone to notice. The round had ended, Jiro having won, and Todoroki turned to him from his spot in the corner of the couch.
"Sensei, do you want to play?"
As he had expected, Kaminari and Ashido (the blond had been laughing at his friend for dying first) started screaming. He glares at them, instantly silencing them, then looks back at his other students.
They're all staring at him, most with horrified or scared looks on their faces. Todoroki's face is naturally blank, as is, surprisingly, Midoriya's.
Until, that is, someone mutters, "He couldn't play this game, he's too old."
Shota thinks it was Hagakure who said it, likely well-meaning. Of course, it makes Shota smile.
Not a 'good' smile, like he does with his cats or when one of his kids makes him proud, instead it's his sadistic teacher-smile. The one that makes most of the teens looking at him pale and shiver.
Midoriya grins too though, shocking him for a second before he remembers the boy had started taking "private lessons" with Nezu a few weeks ago. Maybe he should fear this powerhouse of a teenager (more than he currently does. Not that he would ever admit that out loud.)
The boy turns to Hagakure (or, more accurately, the floating pajamas) and suggests, smile replaced with his normal Innocent Cinnamon Roll look, "Maybe we could teach him?" Like the good hero student he is.
"Uh..."
"I'm not teaching him."
"Yeah, no."
"If you want to teach him, Midoriya, then you can."
His students clearly don't want to have an "old man" playing a video game with them. Or likely any game in general, he is their teacher. Midoriya seems to be the only one smart enough to understand that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was originally released in 2018. Long before anyone currently alive was even thought of. Shota played this game when he was their age. He knows how to play.
"So, do you want to play?"
The question brings him out of his mental laughter at his students.
"I would like you all to be in bed, it is past curfew. However, I doubt I'll be able to convince you that easily, so I'll make you all a deal." That catches everyone's attention. "If I win, against whomever has won the most rounds, then you all go to your rooms, no complaining."
The heroes-to-be all look at each other. Most of them seem to think this is a good deal, some of them are suspicious as to why their 30-some year old teacher would make a deal involving a video game, but still seeming to think it's a good idea. Midoriya stays purposefully quiet.
It takes about 5 minutes and a poorly whispered conversation later for them to agree with their teacher's deal.
Their mistake.
Shota sits on a newly opened spot on the couch, a student having moved to the floor, and takes one of the controllers. His students are playing on a Nintendo Switch, same as he used to. It takes a noticeable amount of effort to keep his smile from showing.
He, Jiro, Midoriya, Asui, and Shinso all hold controllers, ready for their game. The students had decided that Asui and Shinso should play as well, being tied for the second-most wins, thinking more opponents would overwhelm him. Or something like that.
He's not too surprised by any of them having the most wins. Shinso, maybe a little, though mostly because he's half asleep on the floor.
Shota pretends to fumble for a couple minutes, losing one of his three lives as Sonic before he actually starts to play. Midoriya, playing Yoshi, had been trying not to laugh at how badly the man seemed to be doing, the rest of the class wasn't so valiente in their efforts. If they made any.
They all cease laughing when their teacher knocks Jiro, as Diddy Kong, out of the arena, dropping them to two lives. Shota stops trying to hide his smile. He can feel the students who aren't playing shiver at the sight. Out of the corner of his eye, the hero can see a few teens whispering to each other.
Asui and Jiro seem just as surprised as their classmates at the teacher's sudden improvement. Shinso just yawns, either unimpressed or just too tired to care. Midoriya, the chaotic problem child, remains shocked like the rest of the class. His face does at least, his eyes betray his delight at the mayhem.
Over the next five minutes of hitting each other and trying not to fall off the map, they each lost a life, leaving Jiro and Shota at one and the other three at two lives. The green terror then got the Smash Ball, an odd name in Shota's opinion, and knocked Jiro out of the map and the game.
There was a round of sighs and random assurances that she did a good job (it just reminded Shota of the Sports Festival when everyone told Sero he did a "good job" despite losing immediately). The student in question gave a sigh, muttered something under their breath, and got up to get food from the kitchen. She didn't seem that upset so Shota isn't all that worried about her leaving. (Plus, the kitchen isn't really separate from the common space since there's no wall)
Less than a minute later Asui and Shinso were on their last life as well. Shota also figured out that the whispering from earlier was his students placing bets on how long it took their teacher to lose. So far, most of the class had lost their bet and placed something on the coffee table. Currently there was some money, jewelry, pieces of paper with "iou" or "homework pass" on them, and a credit card. Shota is decently sure that Todoroki placed that down, and he is decently sure that credit card is Endeavor's. The only students who haven't placed something down, other than his opponents, are Kirishima, Aoyama, Yaoyorozu, and Kaminari (who laughed at Ashido when she had to put a pair of earrings and a necklace on the table, dramatically pretending to crying while she did).
Shinso manages to knock Asui out of the ring using the hammer, and Shota gets Midoriya down to his last life using the Super Mushroom. Some of his students had left the common room at some point, a few went to get food and the others had finally decided to go to their rooms. With three characters left alive on the screen, Sonic, Yoshi, and Kirby, all the students still in the common room are leaned forward in anticipation.
It takes another five minutes before Kirby gets hit too far over the ledge of the arena, leaving two players left.
Sonic versus Yoshi.
Shota and Midoriya's fight goes on for 14 more minutes, the other students' whispers grew somewhat over the time, as did their pile of things on the coffee table.
The match ends with Sonic using his power move (Super Sonic) to shove Yoshi, who was about to pick up an item, out of bounds.
The students are quite, until Kaminari (yet to put anything in the pile) exclaims, "I told you guys he would win!" It starts an uproar amongst the other 12 students still downstairs.
"Come on! What!?"
"How..."
"There's no way."
"Huh, that's uhm... unexpected."
The teacher's devilish smile returns full-force hearing his students talk over each other, confused at his win. It's amazing. (The small, quiet giggles coming from the gremlin to his left are decidedly ignored for the time being. He can have a breakdown over his boss' corruption of his student later.)
He clears his throat, reveling at the immediate silence, "I believe the deal was that you would all go to your rooms now." Groans sound throughout the room.
The pro stands and walks into the kitchen to get water, leaning against the wall as he watched his students slowly make their way to their dorm rooms. Tokoyami and Todoroki are the first ones to leave, no audible or visible upset from them. Ashido stays at her place on the couch for a few minutes, "arguing" with Kaminari and Kirishima about the former "stealing her jewelry" while the latter tries to get her to go upstairs.
He ends up staying in the kitchen another 12 minutes while his students leave. (Midoriya looks at him with his gremlin-grin, involuntarily the hero shudders at the uncanny resemblance to Nezu.)
Shota regrets nothing of this night-turned-early-morning. He might in the future, his students will likely try to challenge him again. Their mistake.
Aizawa Shota knows how to play Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and is quite amazing at it.