Chapter 25: THE ONLY REASON
next up was Iida and Ojiro versus Power Loader and he was already using his quirk to make all sorts of traps for Iida and Ojiro so that they couldn't fight back but they also couldn't escape either.
"wow, how are either of them going to get past this!" Kirishima then looked at Izumi expecting to see her with concern on her face but was surprised that she was actually smiling confidently.
"they'll be fine! I know a way they can get out of this and I'm pretty sure Iida will figure it out!" then Kirishima looked back to the screen, it looked like an Idea had just popped into Iida's head.
"ha, see! he just got it!" then Ojiro climbed onto Iida's back, Iida then stood proud and ready while it was clear that Ojiro was very embarrassed. wow, they look ridiculous... Kirishima thought this while clearly displaying his emotions, Izumi thought the same thing but was trying to hide it while still smiling. Iida then used his Recepro burst to thrust himself and Ojiro into the air past Power Loader's traps then Ojiro quickly wrapped his tail around Iida's leg while Iida used Recepro extend. the two spun like crazy and then midway Ojiro let go and was able to get past Power Loader and through the exit gate.
"YEAAAH! I KNEW HE'D DO IT!" Kirishima was glad they passed as well but noticed that Izumi was acting unusually happy, she was talking about how challenging this exam was going to be earlier and now she seems to be optimistic. this wasn't how Izumi would normally be she would be worried for everyone and fearful of the slightest possibility they would lose. Kirishima could tell something wasn't right with how she was acting.
the next fight came up quickly with Todoroki and Yaoyorozu versus Aizawa, immediately it seemed that Todoroki took charge and ran for the exit gate, Yaoyorozu followed him while making Russian nesting dolls. Kirishima, Uraraka, and Izumi were staring intensely at the screen like they were watching a horror movie with Yaoyorozu and Todoroki being the victims and Aizawa being the killer. Aizawa with his skills and quirk he could strick at any time and the two of them would be mostly or completely defenseless. Uraraka and Kirishima were both standing still in anticipation while secretly hoping that Aizawa wouldn't find them but Kirishima looked to Izumi and saw how she was shaking and wearing a broken smile.
"Why are they stopping?!" Kirishima then looked back to the screen and saw how Todoroki and Yaoyorozu were just standing there and talking to each other.
"what?! don't stop guys keep going!"
"can you please stop shouting? it's not like they can hear you anyways." just when Recovery Girl told them to be quiet they all screamed when Aizawa showed up and disabled Todoroki and tied him to a post and left him hanging there with spikes on the ground. Yaoyorozu managed to get away but it was clear that Aizawa would catch up to her eventually.
"aw crap, how is she supposed to defend against him!"
"she can make a shield or a cloak to cover herself!"
"it's ok! it's ok! she'll find a way she will!" Kirishima saw how Izumi was not smiling anymore and starting to sweat nervously, he then frowned in disappointment and activated his quirk in his arm and then lightly hit her head.
"ow!"
"ok, that's enough! what is with you? why are you acting like this?"
"I... I'm sorry I'm actually thinking about several different ways they can fail the exam. but I don't want any of them to come true so I'm just trying to act positive and hope they will win."
"you really think acting like an optimistic on the brink of insanity is going to help your classmates pass?" they all then looked to Recovery Girl.
"telling yourself they will succeed over and over won't give then an advantage and neither will being positive, Aizawa may be a pro hero but that doesn't make them helpless. they may get hurt and hope may seem lost but all the staff have made sure to give the children a small chance to pass the exam. I was only exaggerating what I said earlier it's not like this exam will be impossible, or at least it won't be if they take advantage and adapt to their situation. like so." Recovery Girl then used her cane to point at the screen, showing that Yaoyorozu had been caught by Aizawa but she managed to use her quirk to free herself and run away again.
"you lot really need to have more faith in your classmates, stop worrying so much about then, and for heaven's sake, STOP SCREAMING!" Recovery Girl then frowned at the three of them and displayed her aura of rage which caused Kirishima and Uraraka to start shaking nervously but Izumi didn't notice instead she just looked at the screen and was smiling truthfully this time.
"ok, no more panicking and no more evaluating, I'm just going to watch how this turns out."
"heh, good answer... hm... uh hey Izumi, when is Recovery Girl going to stop glaring at us?" Izumi then looked back at Recovery Girl and saw how she was still glaring at them with her aura of rage.
"I don't know she's normally not mad for this long, let's just try to ignore her and continue to watch the exam." on the screen Yaoyorozu managed to get Todoroki on the ground and then as Aizawa was about to attack then she released her dolls and revealed that they had flashbangs inside them. while he was blinded Todoroki then made a massive wall of ice shielding them from Aizawa's line of sight. after some time of waiting the two ran out of the ice dome while wearing cloaks when Aizawa used his scarf to restrain one of them, it was reviled that under the cloak was a mannequin and Yaoyorozu was holding it while operating a catapult. it was delayed a little but she shot the catapult and when it launched a replica of Aizawa's scarf, then Todoroki blasted his fire at said scarf which caused the fabric to revert into a ball which imprisoned Aizawa allowing Todoroki and Yaoyorozu to pass. afterward it seemed that Aizawa was having a small conversation with Yaoyorozu and Todoroki, Izumi, Kirishima, and Uraraka watched in confusion since they couldn't hear what they were saying but were then in shock when Yaoyorozu started crying.
"wah! Aizawa made Yaoyorozu cry!"
"that bastard! why does he like watching us suffer so much?!"
"perhaps you three should take a closer look before judging the book your reading." Recovery Girl pulled out a remote and used it so that the camera for the screen would zoom in on Yaoyorozu's face. she was trying to cover her mouth but from an angle, you could see she was smiling; she was crying tears of joy.
"he may not look it but that Eraserhead really does care for you all. I guess he's just a big softy on the inside." Kirishima and Uraraka were quite surprised by this and started to feel bad for calling him out, Izumi, on the other hand, found it quite unbelievable especially given their little history together.
the next exam went by pretty quickly Sato and Aoyama were holding onto the rails in order to keep themselves from being pulled into No. 13's black hole quirk. after some time Sato's sugar rush started to run out he let go due to his sudden sleepiness, however, out of panic No. 13 stopped using their quirk. Aoyama quickly used his navel cannon to zoom toward No 13 and quickly handcuff then and therefore passing. just before the next exam started Asui, Iida, and Yaoyorozu entered the monitor room.
"hey! Froppy, Ingenium, and Creati! congratulations on passing you guys! but hey where's Tsukuyomi?"
"I like being called my hero name but you're allowed to call me Tsu-Chan Izumi, anyways Tokoyami decided to take a break from the exam and left, he did say that he would come back for the final fight though."
"is that so, well he deserves a break. we all do especially since me all managed to win the exam against pro hero! and still, nobody has failed!"
"yeah! I'm super confident were all going to the camp now! so who's next on the exam?!"
"oh, it's Ashido and Kirishima verses Principal Nezu." Izumi was enthusiastic at first but then immediately slumped into a ball on the ground while emitting an aura of depression.
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
"IZUMI?! WHAT HAPPENED TO BEING SUPER CONFIDENT?!"
"my you are all loud, anyways Izumi is right to be concerned Nezu may not have super strength, flashy lasers, or deadly explosions, but the way he uses his quirk makes all those types of quirks look simple and weak." everyone then looked at the screen in confusion and saw how Ashido and Kaminari were slowly strolling through the zone trying to find the exit gate but then a large pipe nearly fell on them then some gravel, then more pipes, until eventually an avalanche of rubble and pipes were falling onto them and they were forced to run for their lives.
"holy crap, is that Principal Nezu's quirk? he can cause disasters, I thought it had something to do with his weird animal-like body."
"oh, there's nothing abnormal about his body he actually is an animal."
"eh?"
"you see Nezu was once a normal... rat? or is he a dog? either way, he was a simple and peaceful animal but then us bad humans did awful experiments on him to see if animals could get quirks too and it turned out to be a success. Nezu ended up getting a quirk that makes him smarter than even human scientists. however, due to his harsh upbringings, he tends to get sadistic when he gets the chance to torment humans, like now for example." Recovery Girl then used her remote to change to a camera showing Principal Nezu who operating a wrecking ball and drinking tea while laughing like a villain, the sight filled them all with fear.
Kaminari's quirk couldn't help then since he didn't know where the principal was, therefore, didn't know where to strike while Ashido was trying to use her acid to destroy the falling debris and go quickly into buildings for cover but it didn't prove to do much. in the end, they both were forced to surrender and didn't pass.
"crap... they didn't even stand a chance."
"no they did." the students couldn't help but jump in shock when they heard principal Nezu's voice coming from the screen, Recovery Girl then used the remote to change back to the camera showing the Principal and he was smiling happily to the camera.
"Hello children, no I can't hear you but I can make a pretty accurate guess of what you're saying or thinking right about now."
"Wow, he really is smarter than a scientist."
"I suppose you could say that but enough about me, the point is that Kaminari and Ashido had a way to reach the exit, I made it seem like I was trying to destroy their only way there but I was actually just trying to make it more difficult to get to. it wouldn't be fair to cut it off completely, after all, we do need you all to pass the exam so that you all can become great heroes after graduation. so although we are making an effort to stop you from passing were also making sure to leave just enough openings so that you can pass if your willing to give it you're all. although I'm sure that Recovery Girl did explain at least half of that too you but the reason you weren't told all of this from the beginning was because we needed you all to believe that the staff was giving you almost no chance to pass. its ok to tell you this now since everyone in the monitor room has passed." everyone then looked to Uraraka in concern given that she was the only one their that hasn't gone yet.
"oh, it's fine that Uraraka hears this after all her troubles won't come from her opponent but from her ally."
the next two matches didn't last long the one with Koda and Jiro versus Present Mic started off as a standstill with Present Mic's screech holding them both back and Jiro's earphone jack just barely keeping his screeches at bay. but then Koda quickly tried to get over his fear of bugs and told them to attack Present Mic so that they could escape to the exit.
"oh, so Koda's quirk is that he can talk to animals?"
"wha-! Izumi! your just know figuring this out?!"
"I never got the chance to ask him."
the next fight also started with a standstill with Snipe's gunshots forcing Shoji and Hagakure at bay but then Hagakure took off her hero costume and snuck past his shots to cuff him but his shock caused him to accidentally hit her breasts, which lead her to yell at him in anger. then it was finally Sero and Mineta's match which started in almost a flash, Mineta and Sero were just running toward the exit while keeping guard of Midnight but she then ambushed them and Sero quickly used his tape to get Mineta out but also accidentally headbutted Mightnights breasts. now Mineta is running for cover while Sero was unconscious due to Midnight's quirk and she laid him on her lap.
"AAAAAH! HOW COULD THIS BE HAPPENING!" Mineta's screams were loud enough for the distant cameras to pick up his voice.
"my he is louder than all of you."
"haha yeah that's Mineta he tends to crack easily under pressure, we and Tsu-chan saw it back at the USJ incident. he wants to be a hero but I guess he really doesn't like the danger that comes with it."
"yeah, he's more of a coward so he'll probably try to get to the exit by himself."
"WHY! WHY! WHY ISN'T THAT ME?!" Mineta's shouting no longer seemed to make sense which caused everyone in the room to go "Eh?"
"WHY DID THAT BASTARD HAVE TO GET ME OUT OF DANGER! IF HE HADN'T DONE THAT THEN I WOULD BE RESTING ON HER PERFECT LAP! NOT HIM!"
"What?! that's what he's crying about?!"
"holy shit he's crying blood! he's really that jealous?!" Recovery Girl then hit her cane hard on the floor which signalled everyone to stop yelling and silently watch the screen. Mineta was hiding behind a rock while continuing to cry but now they were normal tears.
"ugh... come on Mineta, I know you tend to be perverted but this is a new kind of low."
"I can't believe he actually wanted to be captured just so he could sleep on Midnight's lap."
"How is he going to even get past her?"
"he won't, he'll just give up and surrender to Midnight."
"you really don't like Mineta, do you, Tsu?"
"oh that's enough all of you!" everyone then turned to Recovery Girl as she finally stopped displaying her aura of anger but was still frowning in disappointment at them all.
"Mineta must have a good reason to have enrolled into U.A. and don't forget the entrance exam where most of you had to fight giant robots, he fought them too and beat enough to get into U.A. he has the drive to become a great hero just like the rest of you, so long as he focuses on that he should be able to find the strength needed to pass." they all then looked back to the screen to see that Mineta was still panicking and complaining about not being in Sero's position.
"I just hope it's a noble one because he's acting like the only reason he's doing this is so that he can touch girls."
"THE ONLY REASON I'M DOING THIS IS SO I CAN TOUCH GIRLS!" Izumi was only making a joke but Mineta immediately conformed it to be fact.
"... oh my god, he actually said it."
"I just want a hero's license so that girl will think I'm cool and won't complain when I try to groped them!" everyone was now looking at the screen in either disgust or disappointment even Recovery Girl.
"... perhaps I gave him too much credit."
"GOD DAMN IT! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO ACHIEVE MY DREAM OF GROPING HOT GIRLS IF I CAN'T PASS THIS EXAM!" somehow everyone thought even less of Mineta.
"I'M SO SCARED JUST LIKE AT... just like at the USJ... Izumi was scared to but... a true hero always risks themselves to save others... IZUMI! IM SUPER SCARED AND JEALOUS OF THAT SERO BASTARD! BUT I'M GONNA LIVE BY YOUR EXAMPLE AND PASS THIS EXAM!" Izumi's eyes then sparkled and she actually felt a sense of pride for Mineta so she then raised her fist and cheered Mineta on!
"AND THEN I'LL THANK YOU BY COMPLEMENTING YOUR PERFECT BOOBIES MORE OFTEN!" Izumi's pride then died in an instant and she looked to the ground in disappointment while regretting all the past times she complimented or praised him. then Mintea grabbed the tape from Sero and wrapped it around his mouth and he managed to do it just in time for Midnight was now trying to hunt him down while surrounding herself in a cloud of sleeping pheromones. Mineta then threw his sticky balls at her like crazy with some hitting her whip and when she struck her whip got stuck to the ground and Mineta managed to grab Sero and rush to the exit gate therefore passing. no one in the monitor room was cheering for two reasons one, because Mineta was now one step closer to being the ultimate perverted hero and two, it was now time for Uraraka to join with Bakugo to fight All Might. she was shaking in true fear and wasn't trying to hide it with a smile.
"well... I guess it's time for me to go."
"uh do you want me to go with you, so I can try to ask Bakugo to-"
"no Midoriya, I know you won't try to break the rules and join them in their fight but you have already passed theirfore you must either stay here or leave for the day."
"but I-"
"its ok Deku, I'll be... alright." no one believed that not even Uraraka as she left for her exam, everyone then looked back to the screen to wait for the match to start. some were without hope while others were filled with dread but one thing was for sure, the final match not going to be a pretty sight.