This chapter is pathetic, you guys, I'm so sorry. I struggled so hard with Inasa's pov, and I thought about skipping the Shiketsu exam altogether. I managed to stop myself, but this wimpy chapter is all I have to show for it. Hopefully the Shouto pov chapter coming up next will be enough to earn your forgiveness.
Shiketsu's entrance exam was…
EXHILERATING!
Yoarashi Inasa felt his grin widen as he used his quirk to knock an entire wave of the human sized robots off their feet and several yards back. This was so much more fun than the recommended exam at Yuuei.
Ah, now he was mad. He was scowling and everything.
He shook his head to clear it of the horrid memory, focusing on the here and now. The Shiketsu entrance exam consisted of three phases: written, combat, and stealth. The written exam had been a bit on the hard side, but that was to be expected of one of the top schools in Japan. This combat exam was actually pretty fun! The applicants had been divided into teams of five and assigned to defend different areas from wave after wave of robots. Inasa had immediately volunteered to protect the perimeter, eager to put his quirk to use.
To his delight, the robots proved a little hardier than they appeared, with several of them taking more than one attack before going down. Of course, they weren't so tough that they challenged him. Not really. He itched to chase the robots down to their source and just wipe them out, maybe take down a giant mother robot while he was at it. That would be so awesome!
But no! He had to protect the small, bunker like building his teammates were in. They were counting on him!
With a smile, he whipped his wind forward, launching several of the metal fiends back into—
A wall of fire!?
He watched in awe as the robots he plunged into it melted into glistening puddles of metal, burning the concrete beneath it with an audible sizzle.
"Eh, how strange."
He turned in shock to look at the speaker. She was one of his teammates, if he remembered correctly. Super short and mousy, he hadn't really paid much attention to her beyond noting her Endeavor merchandise with a sneer. Now, with a head of flames not at all dissimilar to the Flame Hero, himself, he realized there was probably a reason for it.
"Are these robots made from a different metal than the ones at Yuuei? That could be why they melt so easily. Or is it because they're smaller so it's easier to heat them uniformly? That would make sense. Or, could it be…?"
She was mumbling, her chin grasped in one of her tiny hands as she glared thoughtfully at the steaming puddles that were once their opponents. Wait, had she said—?
"You tried at Yuuei?" He asked excitedly. "What was it like? Did they use robots, too?"
Maybe he should have taken the normal exam. Maybe then he wouldn't have met him.
The girl looked up at him, her green eyes sparkling with the light of her flames. "Eh? O-h, yeah, th-they did."
He stepped forward, his excitement getting the better of him. "What was it like? Were there more? How big were they? Did they have teams? What—?"
!
He flung his arm out, using his wind to throw the oncoming robot back. Only, instead of flying away like all the others, this one erupted into flames, the heat of them scorching the hair on his arms as he raised them in defense.
"Oh! I'm so sorry!"
The flames were gone in an instant, as if they'd never been. The robots were, too.
"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have just used my quirk like that," the girl was saying, the flames in her hair also extinguished, revealing bouncy green curls. She looked up at him with watery green eyes as she spoke, her words running together faster than Inasa could hear, though he did catch a few things like 'quirk compatibility' and a million apologies.
"That was amazing," he said, grasping her hands in his mostly in excitement but also partly to stop her from wringing them. "My wind fueled your flames and created a passionate maelstrom no robot could hope to escape! This is so exciting!"
Inasa turned to look at the oncoming wave of robots, grinning so wide it hurt. "Do you think we could take all of them out, together?"
She looked up at him with green eyes, surprise written clearly on her face. "E-eh? What do you mean?"
Inasa pumped his fist. "With our quirks combined, it should be easy to form a solid perimeter and keep all the robots away. Think about it! We could totally be a hero team!"
He was already imagining their pro careers. With quirks like theirs, they would soar to the top of the charts in no time! They could easily defeat Endeavor and his no good son in any ranking contest! That would show them.
"A-ah! Watch out!"
A metal fist connected with his back, sending him stumbling forward. The heat of flames rose up behind him, and he whirled to face a robot reaching through the fires toward him. This one was clearly made of tougher stuff than its fallen comrades, merely glowing where they had melted. His partner squared her stance.
"Ne, how much control do you have over that wind?"
Inasa grinned. "How much do you need?"