He’d trained for Total Victory. Not necessarily for what comes after.

[itmeanstruth]

Those that ventured out to Minoru’s world to watch this year’s American Ninja Warrior Finals live and in person, knew exactly why the resident hospital orderly had been on freerunning across Cloud 9 since he got back. Those who couldn’t make it out there might have caught an interdimensional replay on TV. The twins had already seen it playing on one of the many screens in The Angel’s Retreat.

To those who hadn’t, though, Minoru’s question was entirely hypothetical, an innocuous kind of thing lots of people chatted about after a long week at work. And perhaps that was for the best.

“Okay, so… if you suddenly had a million dollars, what would you do with it?”

Comments

[stark_ravingmad]

"Save it and then before you know it you'll have one billion dollars."

Tony believed in holding onto the first million and then building on that to grow that profit into something bigger. Hey, a million dollars was a starting point, right? Or, depending on your circumstances, it could be a ton load of money for someone who's not used to money.

"Mind if I ask how you got a million dollars, kid?"

Wasn't this Ziggy's cuddle boyfriend?

[melove_cookies]

Cookie knows how to count! Only up to ten though so a million dollars might be beyond his fuzzy brain. Minoru though! Cookie's friend.

"A mee-lion dollars? Dat a lot? Cookie can't count more dan ten so----ummmm.....Min-oru got lots of moneys?"

The blue monster now staring.

"Me buys de biggest COOKIE IN DEH WORLD!"

Of course.

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru laughed. Oh, why was he not surprised!

“Biggest cookie in the world? That’s be one giant cookie for a million dollars. Or be made of edible gold or something.”

Of course, the other question made him feel a little self-conscious. He scratched his head, trying to think of a good way to explain it to his furry friend.

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru’s eyes widened. A million dollars was already outrageous. But a billion? He couldn’t even fathom it. But inventors and entrepreneurs like Tony Stark must live by different numbers.

“Oh! Nothing bad, Mr. Stark.” He assured, respectfully. “It’s the prize money for American Ninja Warrior. I did it. I made it through all four stages. I won!”

His expression was a mix of excitement and embarrassment. The feeling of standing on top of Mount Midoriyama was priceless. So much so, that he’d forgotten it even had a price until the announcers said it out loud. He’d trained for years, but never once thought about what to do with those kind of winnings.

[delphicbooksandbaubles]

Aal coughs half bemused half wry in the way of..a wee bit surprised by the sudden question but also like..You want a list friend?

She coughs again at the thought in lieu of a full chuckle. "Well, besides taking care of some immediate things, invest some in several things and places, and fund a few pet projects." Not just her own either.

[itmeanstruth]

He’d love a list, actually.

“What sort of projects? And things and places?” He asked, laying down backwards over a plaza bench.

[erivryoneslilsis]

"I don't know...that's a lot." There is a little girl near you Minoru, twiddling her fingers as she thinks very deeply about the question. "I guess, give it to the school I live at? They always give me everything I need, so...they should get money to better help the students and heroes who work there."

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru looked down with an almost sympathetic nod. It was definitely a lot. A million of anything was an overwhelming amount.

“I bet any school would really appreciate that kind of gift, wouldn’t they.” He cracked a soft smile. “They could probably help a lot of kids with that.”

[erivryoneslilsis]

Eri nods, humming before looking back up at the man. "M-maybe I'd spend some on apples and candy apples. Though I gotta be careful because that's a lot of sugar."

She tilts her head. "Did you win a million dollars, Mister?"

[itmeanstruth]

“You could definitely buy enough apples to share with your classmates.” He smiled.

Minoru was actually a little embarrassed to answer her next question. While his family always had enough to go around, this kind of money felt kind of obscene. He was used to a hospital orderly’s salary and the stipend Isamu got via his research grants at IRIS.

“Yeah… I actually did.” He explained a bit sheepishly. “I won a big athletic competition back in my world called American Ninja Warrior. It’s a crazy super-hard obstacle course. It was a dream of mine for a long tome to even get to compete. I qualified for the finals the last three years, and this year, I actually made it through the whole thing!!“

Needless to say, it came with prize money.

[erivryoneslilsis]

"Oh! I could!...though the students and me aren't classmates yet. I just live there because it's safe for me there." Eri's...not got a good grasp on secrets yet. What she shouldn't talk about and what she should, that kind of thing.

"I've seen that! Well, the reruns from when it was in Japan! Shota-san says that a lot of the school's training courses have a lot of similarities." Still she holds up her hands, welcoming him to give her a high five if he wants whiles she speaks. "Congratulations! Keep up the good work, mister!"

[stark_ravingmad]

"You're starting to sound like Parker. Nothing bad, Mr. Stark. It's cute. American Ninja Warrior, huh? Those challenges are damn tough and I've watched a couple of episodes now and then. You won? That's cool, kid. Really cool. No mean feat to put yourself through that."

Tony was genuinely pleased and surprised that Minoru made it all the way through the gruelling course. How many had won it? He had no idea. Was Minoru part spider? Hence the agility.

"I bet Ziggy is pleased you won---not to mention your twin bro. Oh, just so I don't forget----I am still wanting to get back to Isamu over that call. The one he spoke to me over at the workshop via FRIDAY. I've just been tied up with work, you know the deal. He sounded excited to come visit so yeah---tell him he's more than welcome to come on over."

Tony was a workaholic and he knew it.

[itmeanstruth]

He returned the high five with a grin. “That’s so cool that your school has courses like that!”

Minoru was stuck perfecting his crazy tricks on basic playground equipment. And literally anything else he could climb on.

“I used to watch it back when it was in Japan too.” He laughed. He wasn’t sure whether it was reruns or actual episodes. He was a kid back then, visiting his family during summer vacations. “Watched the American episodes for years before I finally got the courage to audition. Okay, before Isamu sent in my audition tape as a surprise.”

[itmeanstruth]

Tony wasn’t wrong. Total Victory on American Ninja Warrior was rare. Every season had a “Last Ninja Standing,” but they didn’t always even make it all the way to the fourth stage. Making it to Mount Midoriyama and then hitting that final buzzer… that was a feat that only three people had done so far.

Minoru, the Fan Man, was the fourth.

“Being out there, running the course under the lights. Man, it’s such a rush!! I don’t know anything that even comes close to it!” He exclaimed. Though, an Avenger known for flying around in a super suit might be able to relate. “They were all there on the sidelines. Even got a pass for Damien this year. Jack’s second, does security for Ziggy’s tour sometimes, you’ve probably met him. He’s my coach!”

He nodded to the reminder.

“I’ll make sure to let him know. Knowing Isamu, he probably wants to pick your brain about something way over my head.”

[delphicbooksandbaubles]

Aal chuckles warmly at the enthusiasm.

"Well a haha, ahem for starters." She murmurs and looks thoughtful before scooting closer with her own chair to chill with her friend. At least for the moment whilst she had one or two to spare.

"Mayhaps..a spot for healers like we had back in the day.."She muses half wistful. "A ranch might be nice.. A Nest egg for the kidlings when they're older." She murmurs with a wee sigh as she glances toward the clouds for a few moments.

"Hmm, and well we've been looking for a stable way tween the realms of our new erm spot and home one for a long time now." Her eyes soften. "Coummuaction is more spotty than I like." Even if others had mixed feelings about various things.

She knew the new world Dark Curses keep transporting them between was not a permanent place leastwise for her and her pack..Even if the others didn't wish to see or feel it yet. And also all those memories spells and curses could not be good for everyone in the long run. She shudders a little at the thought. Everything had a price, espically Magic.

[erivryoneslilsis]

"Mm! I don't get to see it a whole lot, but the big kids use them to train to be Heroes when they aren't using the really big stuff." Yay! High five! She giggles and nods. "That take a lot of gust! Um! Guts! So many people try so many times, including grandmas and grandpas...Hardly anybody makes it, and if they do it's not more than once."

Quirks make it hard for shows like that to exist anymore. If Deku were around he'd probably say that the closest thing is UA's sports festival, and that is so exclusive it's not really funny. "You've been making sure to keep up on your electrolytes and stuff? I read that they're important when I was helping Shota-san grade the students papers."

[tielle_mortevus]

She pondered the question for a moment before giving a slight shrug.

"Truth be told, I've always been pretty well off... Perhaps I'd use it to travel. I've always enjoyed learning about people, how they think, cultural views and the like. Either that or maybe I'd buy a nice place out in the woods here in the Nexus, something a little more like back home..."

She sighed, giving him a smile.

"I hope you weren't expecting something a bit more exciting from this old bat."

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru knew nothing of the cost of magic. (He never really gave much thought to the portals that went between his world and the Nexus, either. He just used them.)

But he could understand the desire to set aside something for the kids. And picturing them all at a homey little ranch made him smile.

“Plenty of space to run around.” He chuckled. “Spot for healers? Like, a hospital?”

[itmeanstruth]

“The first time I made it all the way to the Finals, I fell in Stage 3. Last year, I got hurt in Stage 2, but still managed to finish in time to make an attempt at Stage 3.”

Said attempt didn’t get very far. Not when he couldn’t put any weight on that ankle. (Thankfully, it turned out to just be sprained, not broken. But they didn’t know it at the time.)

“This year was the first time I ever made it all the way to Stage 4. And my coach, Damien, was there. He said I had my best rope climbing time ever!”

He’d trained hard over the last three years, and the improvement was evident in his technique and the obstacles he was able to clear. The way he grinned when he talked about his time on the show, it was evident that he was in it for the sheer fun of it, not the potential prize money. Especially when he excitedly remarked, “Woah, the kids at your school train on even bigger stuff?!”

[itmeanstruth]

Minoru snickered. “Hey, going new places can be pretty exciting! You don’t know what’s ahead of you.”

And when Minoru went running, it involved using just about every possible surface as some sort of springboard, so not knowing what came next really could be extremely exciting.

[tielle_mortevus]

"After living for so many years, one needs a little unpredictability to keep things from getting dull, that's certainly for sure. It's honestly part of why I keep coming back here, there's always something new to see and experience, good or bad."

She thought for a moment, giving him a bit of a knowing look.

"...you wouldn't happen to be fishing for ideas on what to do with some unexpected windfall would you?"

[itmeanstruth]

“Uh… kind of? I mean, I guess it wasn’t completely unexpected.” He shrugged.

Minoru hopped up on the back of a bench, before plopping himself down on the actual seat portion.

“I’d been training specifically for American Ninja Warrior since I first qualified. This was my third year to have a shot at the Finals. And I did it! I actually won!!” He explained, the excitement of Total Victory was evident in both his body and his tone. But then that excitement faltered a little. “I really thought about the prize money that came with that. I just wanted to beat the clock and climb Mount Midoriyama. But… now I have it. And I don’t really know what to do next.”

He grew up in a solidly middle class family that emphasized hard work and always living within your means. Isamu collected degrees and student loan debt while Minoru collected a regular paycheck working nights as a hospital orderly, a job he still had here in the Nexus. He saw how often people took advantage of Ziggy, to use him for money or fame. He may have been dating the rock star, but that lifestyle was still like another world entirely.

[tielle_mortevus]

She smiled giving him a nod. She had almost forgot that's what he had been training for, though he was pretty skilled when they had that friendly race a while back.

"Well there's no need to rush. For now just enjoy the moment, celebrate, and let the rest fall into place with due time. Just make sure to keep your priorities straight and take care of what's important."

[delphicbooksandbaubles]

Aal nods warmly, "Aye and horses and such." She murmurs with a half-dreamy wee smile.

Before clearing her throat. "Ah, something like that.." She murmurs.

[itmeanstruth]

His head cocked slightly to the side as he asked, “you don’t have those kind of things in your world?”