My Heroic Sins Academia

by MajorCrazy39

Izuku Midoriya was just a normal kid with a normal dream waiting for his quirk to appear so he could become a hero and save people. But when his wait finally comes to an end, so does everything about his life as he's dragged into a conflict as old as the sins themselves. Rated M for mature themes and swearing (looking at you, Bakugo.) Slight Nanatsu No Taizai crossover.

10. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I'm too lazy to find another cute way of saying I don't own MHA.

Chapter 9: The Battle Trials

Izuku POV

I swerved to the side as I narrowly avoided flying right into a bird on my way to school. I've been distracted all morning thinking about the dream I had last night. I barely even remember it, but I know it was a good dream. All I can clearly recall is that me and Ocha were back at the mall where we were attacked, only we weren't attacked this time. Instead, we were just talking about something and I woke up smiling and feeling really good. I've been racking my brain all morning trying to figure out what that something was, and why it made me so happy, but for the life of me I haven't been able to. I stumbled through my morning routine without even really paying attention.

And then there was the issue of my former best friend now being an overly aggressive egomaniac. I hadn't had the chance to talk to Kacchan after school, but hopefully I'd have my chance sometime today. It's pretty obvious that he doesn't remember me or the promise I made to him all those years ago, which I can't really blame him for. Hell, I only remembered him ten months ago when Dad and I saved him from the slime villain, but ever since then I've been determined to get my friend back. I'm hoping that if I can just talk to him and make him remember both who I am and who he was then I'll have my old friend back, but knowing my luck it won't be quite that simple. But for now, I need to sideline that thought and get back to the matter at hand.

As usual, Dad was already gone for the morning getting an hour of patrol in before school, so I was left to do my own thing. I thought about texting Ocha and seeing if she knew what might be up with that day, maybe if she remembered something a bit more clearly than me, but I realized that would sound stupid. So instead, here I am, somehow already halfway to my only stop before heading to our first real day of high school. With only about five minutes left before getting to her house, I decided to try and clear my head of that dream before getting to Ocha's house. Alright, what can we talk about that will be anything aside from that dream. It's the first day of actual classes, that should keep the topics dry enough to avoid awkwardness.

As I got to my destination, I swooped down, following the landing lights that are a staple of the house at this point. Ocha was waiting for me at the end of the driveway, leaned against her aunt's car.

"Morning Kai, sleep well?" She asked as I landed. So much for staying off sleep.

"Yeah, for once I actually slept pretty well, you?" I asked in return.

"I slept a lot better than I thought I would before our first real day at UA, but yesterday was pretty exhausting." She said.

"Fear of expulsion does that to you." I said.

"You've got a point. Even if we knew he didn't mean it, I thought Gumpzawa's creepy grin would haunt my dreams for sure. Surprisingly, I actually had a really good dream last night." She said with a weird face.

"Oh, what was it about?" I asked, curious now.

"What?! Oh, nothing! So, uh, you have any interesting dreams last night?" She said abruptly. I could've swore she was blushing, but right now I was trying to hide my own.

"Oh, nah, nothing too interesting. You ready to go?" I asked, eager to change topics.

"Yeah sure. You want me to hold your bag today or do you have it?"

"I've got it, we'd better get going if we don't want to be late. I doubt Unczawa would be very forgiving if we were." I said as I took my bag off of my back and put it on my arm before turning around dropping to a kneel so she could get on. As soon as she was on my back, we took off into the air. It was a few minutes before either of us spoke.

"So, you nervous for our first day of actual classes?" I eventually asked.

"Definitely. Like I said before the exams, UA is supposed to be a tough school, both for academics and heroics. I would ask if you're nervous, but I already know you've never been challenged in school." She replied.

"Hey now, I'll have you know it was a huge challenge to not snore through Mr. Tanaka's class." I said. She just laughed a little in response. "But in all seriousness, I get the feeling that UA will be more difficult than our other schools, especially if our other teachers are even half as intense as Unczawa or Principal Nezu." I said, shuddering a little at the thought of him teaching a class.

"You've got a point. I know I asked before, but what exactly has Mr. Aizawa told you about our other teachers?" She asked.

"Not much, he's been pretty coy about anything UA-related ever since he found out I wanted to attend, but I know we'll have Present Mic and Midnight as teachers. They've all been friends since they were in UA together, so I've met them both. In Aizawa's own words, Mic is pretty much always loud and annoying, but he's a good hero and friend all the same. Midnight is pretty flirty most of the time and doesn't seem to care about any kind of long term relationship, though she is the one that convinced him to go on date with Auntzawa. From what Dad said, he'll be teaching most of the actual heroics, so that'll definitely be an interesting class." I said.

"Yeah, knowing your dad I'd say it will be. I'm still surprised he agreed to do this. Has he ever done any actual teaching before?" She asked.

"Not even a tutoring job. But, he's been going over the materials that Nezu set him home with pretty often, so it'll probably be ok. Apparently Nezu's been trying to get him to teach there for years, and with the two of us attending he finally decided to accept the offer." I said. Along with him needing to find a new successor for One for All before he runs out of time, I thought to myself. At Dad's request I had kept Ocha in the dark about his failing health. Of course with her being around so much she figured something was up, but she respected that the number one hero couldn't be transparent about everything, so she didn't really ask once she realized I couldn't tell her.

We spent the rest of the trip to school speculating a bit more about our other classes, and who our other two teachers were going to be. Between all the nerves and excitement we were sharing, we were there in seemingly no time. We landed just shy of the wall around the school, so flying over wouldn't trip the alarms or anything like that. We were both pretty early, so there were very few people around, aside from a certain blue-haired classmate of ours that was walking by. He stopped and waited for us to land before going off.

"Yagi? What exactly do you think you're doing using your quirk in public like this? Just because we're UA students does not give us the right to use our quirks however we want!" He exclaimed.

"Well good morning to you too, Iida. I did wonder if I would have to explain my situation to anyone today." I said as I shrank back down to my base form. "You can relax about the legality of my quirk usage, I have a transportation license." I said before pulling out my wallet and showing him said document.

"I see, I've heard about those but I've never actually seen one in person. They're supposed to be incredibly difficult to get. Do forgive my rude accusation." He said as he bowed in apology.

"It's fine, like you said they're kind of rare. The only reason I have one is because my dad pulled a few strings and pushed my request through the system." I said as I pulled the top half of my school uniform out of my bag and started getting dressed.

"Your father must have some very high up connections to pull something like that off. He must be close to some high-ranked pro heroes or somebody else of that nature." He said inquisitively.

"We'll go with 'or somebody'." I said.

"Kai, you might as well tell him. The class will ask eventually anyway." Ocha said. Well I knew I'd have to lie about this eventually, might as well start now.

"You have a point." I said to her before turning back to Iida. "I don't exactly spread this information to anyone that'll listen, but since you've already figured out part of it I guess I'll go ahead and tell you. My dad isn't just a secretary at some hero's agency. He's an executive at All Might's agency." I said calmly. To his credit, Iida's eyes didn't bulge out enough to knock his glasses off, but they did come close.

"Remarkable! So that's how you two know Mr. Aizawa. I'd say your father has met some of the biggest heroes in Japan! I can certainly understand why you don't spread this information lightly, and I'm honored that you would share it with me. Though I wonder, have you two met the man himself?" He asked.

"He's come to our house a few times, though as I'm sure you know the symbol of peace is very private about his life outside of hero work. We were both sworn to secrecy years ago, I hope you understand." I said. I hated lying to our new friend, but like Nezu said, it was necessary for now.

"Of course, I understand completely. My brother has actually done some work with All Might in the past, even though he's based out of Hosu. There's actually a chance that he met your father a few years ago when he was doing some work in Tokyo." Iida said.

"Wait, who's your brother?" I asked as I finished tightening my tie. Surprisingly, a look of realization appeared on his face.

"Ah, well I admittedly meant to wait a little while before disclosing this information, but seeing as you've already shared this with me, I'll go ahead and tell you. I come from a long line of heroes, spanning multiple generations of the Iida Family, the most recent of which is my older brother, Tensei, better known as the Turbo Hero, Ingenium!" He said with an amount of pride in his family that was plain to see, even without sin sight.

"That's why your quirk was so familiar to me! I've heard all kinds of things about your brother. Doesn't he have like sixty sidekicks under him?" I said, excited as I realized the connection. Dad had talked about working with Ingenium before, calling him a hero after his own heart, so I had looked into him a little bit. I remember thinking that his costume looked really cool, like a futuristic knight or something. I wonder if Iida's will be the same way?

"Indeed he does. My brother leads his agency with pride as the eldest son of the Iida family. One day I hope to be a hero just like him." He said.

"Well boys, I hate to cut this little bonding moment short, but we should probably head inside. We don't want to be late." Ocha interjected.

"Quite right, Uraraka. Let us begin our first day of classes!" He said with a weird hand motion. Does he ever lighten up? I thought as we began walking to the gate.

On our way to homeroom, we continued talking quietly about some of the heroes we've met over the years. Apparently with his family being part of a respected hero lineage, he had met just as many as I had. He had actually met the number two hero, Endeavour, though he wasn't a big fan of him either. Since he's had a rivalry with Dad for as long as I've been alive, I've never had the chance to meet the flame hero, nor did I ever really want to. Ocha would pipe up a little, but the conversation was mostly between Iida and I, which I appreciated. I've never been great at making friends, namely just Ocha and a few other acquaintances over the years, so it was kind of nice to talk to the son of another hero who had a similar childhood.

Eventually we made it to the room with a few minutes to spare. As we sat down in our little corner of the room, we decided to stop talking and be ready for Mr. Aizawa's announcements. I thought about walking over to Kacchana and trying to get that talk in, but something like that should be done when we're both alone. Maybe I can catch him after school, I thought to myself.

As we waited and the last of our classmates arrived, I noticed a few other cliques already forming, while other students were keeping to themselves. Kirishima was still over by Kacchan's desk while the latter looked like he was trying to ignore him. The electric guy, Kaminari, was trying to talk to the blue-haired girl next to him, Jiro, but that didn't look to be going very far either. Ojiro and Shoji seemed to be getting along, as well as Sato and Sero. Koda, Tokoyami, were all sitting quietly, with Koda looking around kind of scared while the other two looked like they were brooding. I think Tokoyami was saying something under his breath, maybe talking to that living shadow of his while it was still inside of him, while Todoroki was just glaring into space. Mineta was still ogling every girl in class with a small amount of drool coming out of his mouth. Fortunately, he kept it at just looking. Hopefully he'll gain a few more social skills in the near future and dial down the perviness.

Eventually Unczawa rose up from his place on the floor and quieted us down. He explained to all of how our days would go for this year. We would all meet up in homeroom every morning, then go to our four core classes before heading to lunch. The afternoon would be dedicated solely to basic heroism, though he left us all in the dark about who would be teaching that, as technically the school hadn't officially announced that Dad would be teaching here yet. Of course Ocha and I knew, but aside from that everyone else was clueless. As soon as he had everything explained, he sent us on to our first class of the day.

Across the next few hours, we went to English with Present Mic, Modern Literature with Cementoss, Modern Hero Art History with Midnight, and Math with Ectoplasm. They all seemed like good teachers with a difficult curriculum in store for us, though Ms. Midnight's gaze left me kind of uncomfortable. It seemed like the classes for this year would actually challenge me, something that I was kind of looking forward to. Eventually we made it to lunch where the pro hero, Lunch Rush, was working to make sure everyone got enough to eat before the real day begins. Iida, Ocha, and I were all sitting at a table together.

"Whew, those classes look like they could be tough this year. I'd say you're looking forward to that, Kai." Ocha said.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. You know as well as I do that I haven't had to try very hard academically in a very long time." I responded.

"Indeed, it looks like this year may be a challenge for all of us. Of all the classes to offer, I'm surprised UA prioritized Modern Hero Art History over something a bit more traditional." Iida said.

"It's probably so the people like us that did well in school before UA would have something that we wouldn't be too knowledgeable about before classes even started. There are plenty of smart people that fall off of the curve once they get to higher education because they haven't had to study in a long time." I said. That was something that I had always tried to avoid, even if I wasn't challenged in school. Ever since I was seven years old, I've tried to do what Dad and Unczawa told me and exercise my brain, always taking in as many details as I could, even if just subconsciously.

"I suppose it makes sense. The brain is a muscle, as the old saying goes." He replied.

"Now you're starting to sound like Mr. Aizawa." Ocha said, earning a light chuckle from us both. She wasn't far off, though. I'm pretty sure I've heard him say that exact phrase at least once in the last seven years.

"If I'm sounding like a hero good enough to teach at UA after only one day, then it appears I'm getting closer to my goal already." He said with a light smile. "That reminds me, since we had that conversation this morning, I've been meaning to ask you two about something. As I told you before, my goal as a hero is to become the same kind of person that my brother is. What exactly are yours?" He asked. We both sat there for a moment, not giving a reply to the sudden question.

"Wowza, Iida, that's a really heavy question. I don't really know what to say." Ocha said.

"I do hope I haven't been too forward, I'm only asking because if we are to be friends, I would like to know what's driving you so I might be able to help push you later on." He said.

"Well, that's very thoughtful of you, Iida. It is kinda soon, but I guess I can go ahead and tell you why I want to be a hero." I said as I considered my answer. I like Iida, but I definitely wasn't willing to open up about my first incident yet. "Like Ocha told you during the test yesterday, I've been bullied over my quirk for a long time. Mine wasn't like all the other kids, mine was dangerous and ugly, getting me branded as a monster by people that didn't even know me. My goal as a hero is to put this quirk of mine to use, to save people and make others feel safe, and to keep anyone else from ever feeling like they can't be a hero, just because of how others see them." I said finally. As well as to atone for the harm that I caused.

"Well, Yagi, that's an admirable goal indeed. I know my brother would definitely approve of you and your goals." He said before turning to Ocha. "And what about you, Uraraka?" He asked. She didn't reply. I had a feeling this would happen.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, though I've told you a thousand times it's nothing to be ashamed of." I said to her.

"I know, but it's just kind of embarrassing, especially after hearing you two talk about your reasons." She said with a light huff.

"I'm afraid I don't understand. Is this a bit of a sore subject for you? If so, then I don't wish to pressure you into it." Iida said apologetically.

"It's not that, it's just …." she trailed off before looking at me, "Do you mind explaining?" She asked me.

"Of course, just stop me if you don't want me to say anything." I replied before turning back to Iida. "Ocha here has always been kind of embarrassed for wanting to be a hero for what she considers a less than noble reason." I said as I looked at her. She just nodded, signalling me to continue. "You see, Iida, Ocha's family owns a construction company that just barely allows them to get by. After seeing her parents work so hard just to make due, she decided very early on that eventually she would be a big hero and make enough money to give her parents an easier life." I finished. I looked over at her again, but she would barely meet my eyes.

"I see, well I certainly see no fault in becoming a hero for monetary gain, especially if it is to help someone else as well. Wanting comfort for yourself and others isn't a crime, you know." Iida said.

"Did you know that the early heroes when quirks first appeared didn't even get paid to do it? They all did it out of the goodness of their hearts while also providing for their families." She replied in a small voice.

"Yes, and like I've said every other time you've brought that up, their hero and civilian lives both often suffered as a result. The reason that heroes get paid is so they can prioritize their service to the world, while also maintaining their happiness. Like All Might always says, the essence of being a hero is helping someone else. Just because the way you're choosing to do this is by getting money doesn't make your reason any less heroic." I said. We've had this exact argument a few dozen times over the years, but she's never thought any better of it. She wouldn't even let me talk to Dad about it, which I begrudgingly accepted.

"Yagi's right, you know. There is nothing wrong with becoming a hero just to help your family, it just means that you're connected to the ones you're saving more than other heroes." Iida said.

"Look, can we just talk about something else now?" She said quietly.

Seeing that she was done talking on the subject, we slowly turned the topic of discussion back to our classes. We talked a little more about our teachers and which classes were going to be the hardest, with all three of us agreeing that none of them seemed as intense as Aizawa. We all talked some more about our previous schools and how we did, which classes we hated, which ones we liked, and a few other similar topics. Iida was curious why Ocha and I knew as much English as we do, so we told him that my dad was fluent and had taught us a lot.

Not long before we were supposed to return to class, I felt the familiar call of nature and decided to run to the restroom. After politely excusing myself, I got up and left Ocha and Iida and walked out of the cafeteria. Thanks to the blueprint I had looked at prior to the start of term, I knew exactly where I was going. One of the perks of UA being so selective with its students is that there weren't many students in any building at once, so the bathroom was practically empty when I got there. Once I had finished doing what I had to, I went over to wash my hands, but as I did a familiar classmate walked out of one of the stalls.

"Oh, hi Bakugo." I said as my former friend walked over to me.

"Yagi." He growled in response. "I've actually been meaning to talk to you."

"What about?" I asked. I've actually wanted to talk to you too, Kacchan. Though I didn't imagine a school bathroom would be the place, I guess it'll work. I looked around to make sure we were actually alone, which we were.

"That thing that you said yesterday, right after I punched you in your smug face, you were the winged freak that tried to help me before All Might stepped in. Why the hell did you do that anyway?" He asked in a surprisingly calm voice.

"Oh, well that's easy. I saw how hard you were fighting while all the pros were standing around waiting for someone with a better quirk to show up while you were dying in there. I've actually wanted to talk to you about that day as well." I said before taking a deep breath in preparation for what I was about to say. I've never been as good as dad at communicating, but here goes. "Part of the reason I jumped in like I did was because I recognized you. I don't know if you remember, but ..."

"Bullshit." He interrupted.

"Excuse me?" I asked, genuinely confused. I was just about to get into my attempt to get him to remember me, but ...

"Bullshit. I wasn't dying in there. I was building up an explosion that would've blasted that sorry slimy bastard to Hell! If you two hadn't gotten in the way, I could've torn that villain to pieces for trying to make me his meat suit!" He yelled. Seriously? He's mad that we saved him?

"Gotten in the way? Last I checked your explosions weren't making it through his body until I distracted him. And besides, if you were so sure that you were about to 'blast him to Hell' then why did you smell like you'd just wet yourself?" I said with a hint of irritation in my voice. Dad and I saved the cocky prick and yet he's standing here saying he had it covered?

"Must've been the villain's from when he realized that he was about to be ash. Or maybe that nose is just as lousy as your brain if you think I needed help from you!" He yelled. Alright, that's enough. At this point he's just going to bait you into something rash. There'll be some other time when he's less worked up to try to have a rational conversation. I thought to myself, though I was beginning to wonder if the Kacchan was even in there.

"Whatever you say, my nose works just fine, and it seems my brain works better than yours. Now if you'll excuse me, class is starting soon." I said as I turned to walk away. Suddenly he blasted forwarded with his quirk before turning and staring me down.

"Don't turn your back on me, you damn Lizard! Now let me get one thing clear, I am going to be the number one hero as soon as I get out of this school, just so you and all the other extras can finally learn your place, at my feet! I saw you fly away with All Might that day, so I assume you know the guy. Be a good lizard and let him know that I'm coming for his spot." He said as he walked away with his hand crackling with small explosions. I didn't move for a minute as I processed that last statement.

Let Dad know he's coming for him? Who the hell does he think he is saying that as a first year with an attitude problem? With a head that big, they'll have to resize the doors before he leaves. This seems kind of redundant, but let's take a peek at him with Sin Sight, I thought before activating said ability.

Just like I thought, his aura was glowing just as brightly as Mineta's had, only his was a vibrant purple. The word "Pride" was floating above his head in big bold letters, with "Weakness" being written just under it as the object of his wrath. I couldn't very well run up and touch him to get a better look at his pridefulness, but I had a feeling it had a lot to do with his quirk. The other kids in our class used to praise him all the time for how great his quirk was, as well as the teachers. Even as a kid I knew that much praise was bad for him, so I tried to act like a reality check for him, but I guess when I moved away and forgot about my best friend, his ego grew into the roaring inferno it is today. There's only one thing left to do.

I have to help him. If I don't then that pride of his is going to get him and maybe a few others killed. His quirk is strong, but if he walks into every fight thinking he's invulnerable, then he's going to meet his own All For One someday, and there might not be anyone there to save him from himself. If I offer him the sin of Pride, that should help him manage it, theoretically. The sins shouldn't have a problem with Kacchan, plus Pride did ask me to make sure his host was strong and Kacchan definitely fits that description.

The only thing, in his current mindset I doubt he'll even be willing to talk, let alone accept something from me. I've got to find a way to knock him down a peg before even trying to talk him into something like this. But I've got to try. I made a promise to my best friend years ago and it's time I keep it, I thought as I made up my mind. I will save you, Kacchan, whether you want me to or not.

With this new goal in mind, I walked back to homeroom behind my childhood friend, careful to keep my distance for now. Setting that conversation aside, I was curious to find out everyone's reactions to Dad benign our Foundational Heroics teacher, especially Kacchan since he had a message for him. When Ocha and I were walking to Iida about our other classes, we both carefully stepped around the subject of this afternoon's class, so aside from the two of us nobody knew who would be teaching.

Before long we both made our separate ways to our desks. Apparently our little talk had taken longer than I thought, because we were the last two to return from lunch. Once I sat down, my two friends welcomed me back, with Ocha playfully saying that I took forever. I'll tell her about that whole situation later, I thought. The bell rang not long after I returned, with that sound effectively silencing the majority of the class. We were told to return to homeroom for our foundational hero studies, but Mr. Aizawa was nowhere to be found. After a minute of waiting, the conversation picked back up again.

"So like, where's our teacher?" Ashido asked the room.

"Better question, who's our teacher? Mr. Aizawa never told us who'd be teaching us this class, unless it's him. He isn't asleep under his desk, is he?" Kaminari said.

"Nope, I checked before I sat down. Besides, with my quirk I'd be able to hear him snoring." Jiro said.

"Then I wonder who our teacher is, maybe it'll be of our other teachers. Mr. Ectoplasm seemed interested earlier, it could be him. Ribbit." Asui said.

"Or maybe Present Mic. He's definitely got the enthusiasm of a hero!" Kirishima said with a weird pose.

"Or maybe Ms. Midnight." A certain purple perv said from the back.

"Mr. Aizawa would be the most likely choice of our teachers, since we're his homeroom and he was so interested in gauging our potential yesterday." Yaoyorozu chimed in.

"You'd think if he was teaching the class then he would've told us earlier." Said Sero.

They're all gonna be so surprised when Dad shows up. I bet he's out there right now deciding on what kind of entrance to make. I thought as I was imagining him coming through the door with a big smile, or dropping through the ceiling, or even bursting through the wall with a faux villain, though I doubt that last one. No matter what, I knew exactly what the first three words he would say.

"Who do you think it will be, Yagi?" Yaoyorozu asked as I realized I was wearing a slight smirk, which quickly disappeared.

"Oh, yeah, if anyone would know who's teaching us, it'd be the teacher's dear pal Yagi. He must've told you who it is." Sato said from the other side of the room. Oh crap.

"So, who is it?" "Is Mr. Aizawa gonna be teaching us?" "Will it be someone else?" Everyone seemed to be asking me. Oh boy, with this many people asking it'll be hard to say anything, truth or otherwise. Besides, I don't want to lie outright unless I have to.

"Well, you see, the thing is ..." I trailed off as I tried to find the right answer. Fortunately, before I could flounder too much, Dad swooped in to save the day.

"I am here, entering through the door like a hero!" He said as he burst in like nobody else could get away with without looking dorky. Dad does love a grand entrance.

"ALL MIGHT?" Pretty much everyone yelled in shock. Ocha and I did our best to put on a shocked look as well, though i don't think anyone was paying attention to us anymore.

"Haha, yes, it is I! I will be the one teaching you the basics of how to be a hero!" He said with his signature smile. Huh, he's wearing his silver age costume. He probably forgot to do laundry. "Sorry for being late, I had some important business come up just before class." Definitely the laundry.

"So you're the one teaching our afternoon class?" Asui asked.

"That's right! You can think of this class as Heroing 101, where you will learn to fight in the name of all that is good and save civilians. I hope you all are ready, because despite it being the first day, today's lesson will pull no punches!" He said as he held up a weird sign that said battle trials on it.

"Alright, actual combat training on the first day!" Kacchan said with a scary grin.

"Well, someone's eager to learn! We'll be heading down to Ground Beta in just a moment, but first thing's first. In order to learn to be a hero, you have to look the part!" He said as he pointed to the wall opposite to us, which was opening up to reveal numbered suitcases.

"Is that what I think it is?" Someone said, mirroring what we were all thinking.

"That's right, these are your costumes. We had them created as per your requests and designs prior to the start of term. Now, get changed into them and meet me at the grounds so we can truly begin your hero training!" He said as he ran back out of the door.

With his instructions in mind, we all walked over in a calm but clearly excited manner towards the now opened wall. The briefcases were numbered with our seating chart, so it was fairly easy to tell whose was whose. Before long, we all had our briefcases in hand and were making our way back to the locker rooms. After a quick suit up, we all made our way out to Ground Beta, which I fortunately remembered seeing on the map of campus so we got there in no time. As we came out of the tunnel to meet Dad, I couldn't help but admire some of my classmates' suits.

Iida's was very similar to his brother's, as it was a white suit of armor, but with the exhaust ports on his calves instead of his elbows. The suit itself looked like it would cut down wind resistance and allow him to go even faster than he already can, so it was practical as well as badass. Sero's looked like a weird tape dispenser, but that does kind of match his quirk. Aoyama's followed the same principle as Iida's, as it looked like a suit of armor, though his seemed a bit more decorative than functional. Mineta's was, well, a diaper. A body suit and a diaper, but I suppose if he's trying to be a rescue hero then looking silly for the victims might not be terrible. It seemed everyone's suits seemed nicely made, even if some were a bit plain and others were a bit revealing.

Then I got to Ocha's costume. I had helped her design hers so it would push on her pressure points and keep her from getting so nauseous, but looking back we probably should've mentioned that it shouldn't be skin tight. Her costume consisted of a pink jumpsuit, some knee pads to help with a few landings, and a helmet that would also help with her quirk's backlash. All in all the costume looked like it would work very well, though it left little to the imagination in terms of her figure. Without even realizing it, I had started blushing just as much as she normally does when she sees me shirtless.

"Hey, Kai. You like the costume?" She asked as she walked over, while I turned my head to try and hide my blush.

"Oh, yeah. It looks really good, Ocha. And if they followed the instructions we wrote out then it should help you out a lot." I said.

"Yeah, I like how it turned out, even if it is kinda snug." She said. Kinda? "But, I was actually talking about yours. It's been a while since I've seen that design." She said as she punched my arm lightly.

"I've definitely missed it, that's for sure." I said as I looked down at my costume.

The design itself was based on my old one that Dad had made for me on my 7th birthday all those years ago, though there were some improvements. The main part was the emerald green jumpsuit covering everything but my head, hands, and feet. There were the same intricate fiery lines running up and down my arms and legs that converged on the diamond-shaped hole where my sin gem popped up, though instead of red the lines were now just a darker shade of green. The hood I had before was kind of dorky and unnecessary, so it was replaced with an upper face mask that covered my eyes with a thin plastic screen that allowed me to see more clearly while flying. The mask itself was black and covered most of my forehead, stopping just shy of where my horns grow, and it was attached to a thin but durable band going around the back of my head.

My gloves and boots were practically the same as they were before, with both still being white and having ways for my claws to grow. The gloves, like the rest of my costume, felt loose enough to accommodate for my transformation but tight enough that they were still comfortable and in no danger of falling off. The boots had changed a bit, as instead of having a button to open up for my claws, they just had tiny openings where my claws could grow out. They weren't exactly watertight, but in a real fight I might not have the chance to reach down and hit a button before transforming. I had also added a utility belt, of sorts. It was the same white as my gloves and boots, but it had a number of small pockets going all the way around my waist with a few things that I thought might be useful at some point, with most of them being empty until I decide what should go in them. At the moment, all that I had in them was a pair of karambit knives in my frontmost pocket that were made from two of my claws. And lastly, under the cuff of my right glove, I had a small but powerful distress signal in the form of a bracelet just like the one in my necklace that Unczawa and Auntsuma gave me, though this one could signal more than just those two and Dad. If I ever needed backup I could always flip the switch on it and any nearby heroes and police, as well as the three aforementioned people, would be notified.

I had certainly missed this costume since I had outgrown my old one years ago. Dad always told me that he'd have a new one made once I was ready to begin my real hero training, so as soon as I got my acceptance letter he sent word to David Shield on I-Island with the new specifications that I wanted. This was the first time I had actually seen or worn the new suit, though. I definitely wasn't disappointed. I'll have to call him and thank him for the suit.

"Well, well, they say that clothes make the pros, and ladies and gentlemen, you are the proof! If your costumes are any reflection of the heroes you will become, then I'm sure you will all be great pros some day." Dad said in his booming voice, effectively getting our attention. "Now I know you would all like more time to familiarize yourselves with your new outfits, but it's time to begin the lesson. As I'm sure you've noticed, Ground Beta is meant to resemble an urban environment, which is where most crimes occur. Today, we will be conducting a series of 2-on-2 battles trials in which one group will be acting as the heroes, and the other shall be acting as the villains." He started before Asui spoke up.

"Isn't this a little advanced for the first day, All Might? No offense, it's just that we're all still really new to all of this." She said,

"None taken, Ms. Asui. I am aware that you are all very new, most having next to no fighting experience, but I have always found that the best training is the kind you get from being in combat. I understand that this may seem a little faster than you all were expecting to go, but as I believe Eraserhead told you yesterday, this school is meant to throw as many hardships and disasters at you as you can handle. As such, we cannot afford to spend time teaching standard techniques and fighting styles when you'll all eventually have to create your own anyway. You've had these quirks of yours all your lives, if anyone can figure out how to use them, it's you. You would all do well to start thinking through this now, so with that in mind, we'll be starting the exercise at once." He said. Asui merely nodded in response.

"Now, back to the lesson. You'll all be sorted into teams of two and assigned to be either heroes or villains for today. The scenario is as follows: A team of villains have acquired a devastating weapon that could destroy the city. They are currently hiding with the device inside this building. Their objective is to either defeat the heroes OR protect the bomb until it can go off. The heroes team will be aiming to either defeat both villains and wrap them in capture tape OR locate and capture the device by touching it before time runs out. Both teams will have five minutes to discuss strategy before the heroes run in. Any questions?" He said.

"Will we have to find our own partners or will you be selecting them for us?" Iida asked.

"Neither, we will be drawing names at random to decide the teams, as well as which part each team will play." He said.

"Are you sure that's wise, All Might sir? The class hasn't really had the chance to learn much about each other yet, let alone how we fight. Wouldn't it be better to have us pair up with someone we at least partially know?" He asked. Before Dad could reply, I piped up.

"It makes perfect sense, Iida." I said before he turned to face me. "As pros, there will be plenty of times where we have to team up with the nearest heroes, whether we know them or not." I said.

"Well said, Yagi, wasn't it?" Dad said. It was weird hearing him of all people call me by my last name, but we have to keep up appearances.

"Yes, sir." I said.

"Well, what you said was absolutely correct. There have been many times over my career where I knew little more than someone's name, let alone their quirk and techniques, but together we had to save the lives of innocent bystanders."

"I see. So this aspect of the exercise is just another part of the future that UA is already preparing us for. I'll be sure not to question your judgement again, sir." Iida said with a very formal bow.

"Alright then, if there are no more questions, let's get you all sorted!" He said as he walked over to a machine that he had our names entered into. As soon as he set the parameters into it, it began shuffling the names into ten groups, with each being labeled either Hero or Villain.

Team A: Heroes. Izuku Yagi and Ochako Uraraka.

Team B: Heroes. Shoto Todoroki and Mezo Shoji

Team C: Villains. Momo Yoayorozu and Minoru Mineta

Team D: Villains. Katsuki Bakugo and Tenya Iida

Team E: Heroes. Yugo Aoyama and Mina Ashido

Team F: Villains. Rikido Sato and Koji Koda

Team G: Heroes. Denki Kaminari and Kyoka Jiro

Team H: Villains. Fumikage Tokoyami and Tsuyu Asui

Team I: Villains. Mashirao Ojiro and Tooru Hagakure

Team J: Heroes. Eijiro Kirishima and Hanta Sero

"There's just one problem here." I said, already sort of regretting what I was about to say. "I was paired with Ocha. As much as I would love to be paired with my best friend of the last 8 years, that wouldn't be very fair." I finished as I looked at Ocha. She didn't look surprised, though she did seem a little bummed.

"Yeah, same for me. As much as I would like to be on Kai's team for this, it wouldn't be very fair to everyone else. Plus, it's like Kai you both said, this lesson is about learning to work on the fly, so working with someone we already know really well would hurt us both." Ocha said.

"You have a point. Very well, I'll have the machine select another name and you can switch with them, Ms Uraraka." He said as he hit a few more buttons on the machine before proclaiming another name. "Eijiro Kirishima, if you wouldn't mind trading partners." Dad said.

"Not at all, sir. Sero was probably just planning on taping me up and throwing me through a wall or something anyway." He joked lightly as he made his way over to me.

"Good luck, Kai." Ocha said and she made her way back to her new partner.

"With that we have our teams settled. Let's see which teams will be facing off against each other." He said as he once again typed into the machine.

Team A vs Team D

Team H vs Team J

Team G vs Team C

Team E vs Team F

Team B vs Team I

I gulped slightly as I realized that I would be going against Kacchan. I looked over to the opponent in question, who was glaring at me with a wicked smile. His costume looked less like a hero's and more like a villain's with the orange and black color scheme and those huge gauntlets that were giving me a weird feeling of dread. I knew right then that he had no plans of waiting around for us to look for him, he was gonna find me and challenge me to prove his strength.

"Team D, make your way into the building with the device. You may set it up anywhere you want. Team A, group up at the entrance to the building. The rest of us will be heading to the observation room where we can watch and review your performance. At the end, you will come back and we will determine the MPV of the round. Oh, and take these." Dad said as he handed us two pairs of a sort of earpiece, one for each participant. "These will allow you to communicate with your teammate, as well as letting us hear you. Oh, and this is your capture tape. Wrap it around an opponent and they will be eliminated from the trial." He said before handing us the tape and taking the remaining 16 students up to the observation room in the next building. I put my tape in one of the other pockets of my belt for safe keeping. Kirishima and I made our way to the entrance as Kacchan and Iida brought the paper mache bomb inside.

"Alright, we should probably start by giving each other a rundown of each other's abilities." I said.

"Sounds good. My quirk is called hardening, it lets me harden my whole body into solid stone. I can hold it longer if I just use it on my arms, but you won't have to worry about me softening up unless the fight goes on for a while." He said.

"That'll definitely come in handy. My quirk is called Draconic Enhancement. It lets me transform into either of those two forms you saw me in yesterday. It's a pretty basic strength and speed increase, plus I get wings that let me fly if I go into my bigger form that I did for the ball throw. But for this fight, I won't be holding back at all." I said with determination.

"So, you got a plan for those two? I know you and Iida have been talking a little." My teammate asked me.

"Iida will probably try to make a plan, but I'd say Bakugo will ignore it and go after me. He thinks since I got a higher score than him at the entrance exam that he needs to beat me to prove himself. With him doing that, I'd say Iida will stay with the bomb." I said

"Alright, I knew you were smart! And yeah, Bakugo hasn't talked to me much, but he has said that he's gonna 'put Yagi in his place' or whatever. You guys have some kind of history?"

"Something like that. It's complicated. With them splitting up, I suggest that we do the same. We can cover more ground that way." I said.

"But if Bakugo's gonna be gunning for you, wouldn't it make sense for us to stay together?" He asked.

"With my enhanced hearing, he won't be able to sneak up on me easily. Besides, I need to fight him on my own." I said solemnly.

"A one on one between two bros? I can respect that. You leave finding that bomb to me."

"Your five minutes are up! Begin!" We heard through our earpieces. Without another word, I transformed up to phase one and we ran into the building and promptly split up.

The building had five floors, so Kirishima and I divided them up accordingly. I would check the first three, he'd check the fourth and fifth. With my enhanced speed, I managed to run through the first two floors before my partner called in.

"Yagi, I just got done checking the fourth floor. No sign of the bomb. Anything on your side?" He asked.

"Nothing, just a bunch of empty rooms on the first and second floors. I was heading up to the third now." I said as I climbed the stairs. I knew I would either be facing Bakugo or Iida on this floor, so I went ahead and transformed up to phase two as a precaution. Thankfully, my new costume grew with me very easily and allowed my wings to pop out with little resistance.

"You already checked two floors in the time it took me to check one?" I heard over the earpiece.

"Enhanced speed and senses will do that. Plus you had more stairs. Either way, unless I was wrong about Bakugo splitting off, which I highly doubt, one of us will probably be running into him while the other finds the bomb on these last two floors. If it's you that finds the bomb, wait for me before you go in there. Iida is smart and with his speed he could ..." I trailed off as I heard something loud at the other side of this floor. "Gotta go, I think I hear our explosive friend on this floor. I'm gonna ditch my earpiece so the explosions on my end don't deafen you."

"Ok, sounds good. If he's down there then the bomb's probably up here, I'll let you know when I find it." Was all I heard before I took my earpiece out and tossed it to the side. I had a plan for when Kacchan found me, and I didn't want the rest of the class to hear. With that, I walked through the door from the stairway and headed towards the sounds.

I was hearing the same noise every few seconds, the sounds of a single explosion over and over. He's probably standing by a window waiting for me to come to him. The cocky bastard isn't even trying to hide. I was pretty close to it now, but something felt off. Something about the noise itself seemed weird, but I couldn't quite place it.

I was very close now, coming up on the last door on the right, and the sound of the explosion sounded like it was right on the other side of the door. Okay, the basic strategy should be just to make him mad and fill my aggression up so I can end this quickly. He doesn't know about that ability, but I also don't know how strong his explosions will be against my scales, so I should just… My thoughts trailed off as I heard something approaching me, fast.

I barely dodged out of the way as Kacchan launched himself at me with his explosions, from the opposite room behind me. As I dodged he went too far forward and tumbled into the room where I heard the sound to begin with.

"Damn, for a pebble you've got good reflexes, I'll give you that!They won't stop me from crushing you, though." He said with a wicked grin as he got up from the remains of the door.. Before I could respond, I heard the sound yet again. What the ... oh, clever.

"Oh, I see what's going on here. I'm actually impressed, you set a trap for me by

recording one of your explosions and playing it back on loop. And here I thought you were just being a cocky bastard as usual." I said. I could see the phone that was playing the sound next to him, along with his earpiece that got knocked out in his crash.. My guess is he had it sitting above the doorway

"Yeah, Four Eyes wouldn't stop bitching until I gave him a plan for a decent trap. He also mentioned your senses are enhanced, so I threw this together and waited for your slow ass to make it up here. Now die!" He yelled as he suddenly burst from the ground and launched at me very quickly. I tried to dodge again but this time he was faster than before so he managed to land a solid right hook on my shoulder, sending me back into the hallway and towards the outside wall.

"Wow, smarter and faster than I thought. This fight might be interesting after all." I said as I got back up. He was looking at me the same way a predator does its prey.

He launched at me again, but this time I was ready for his speed, so I managed to avoid him and send him into the wall behind me, shattering the window from the impact. I took the chance to throw a punch, but he swerved left so my fist hit the wall and broke a small hole in it. While I was rearing my hand back to try again, he put his hands out and fired an explosion right at my chest, sending me skidding backwards a few feet. It did hurt, but not badly enough to really slow me down. I looked down at my chest, my costume was scorched a little but I could tell it wasn't anything bad. Remember, stick to the plan, make him mad.

"Damn, I almost felt that one through my scales. Maybe you'll actually leave a scratch eventually." I taunted.

"Oh, I'll be leaving more than a scratch. I'm not even warmed up yet! You'll be lucky if I even leave a corpse!" He replied as he sent some aggression my way before launching at me again. I was ready to block him, but to my surprise before he reached me he switched directions and went around me, before launching another explosion at my back. I couldn't even react as he sent me flying back at the same wall again, this time leaving a few cracks in it as well. He can change directions like that? He must have used another explosion and propelled himself in midair, but that would take insane control and precision. Kacchan, you've definitely haven't been slacking on your training all these years, I thought as I grew excited. I finally get to go all out on something that isn't a dummy or robot.

"Scared yet, Lizard?" He taunted as I got ready for his next attack

"You wish, Piss Boy." I replied with a smile. His smirk instantly changed to a look of pure anger.

"I told you that was the villain! Now Die!" He said as he launched at me yet again. Gotcha! I thought as he did exactly what I thought he would. I had my stance spread out more to account for his directional change, so if he went to the left or right I would be able to catch him. Since he pulled that acrobatic stunt, I knew he was pretty smart when it came to combat, even if he didn't seem like he thought much through, so I knew he would catch onto my stance and plan accordingly. But since my left and right were covered and the wall was directly to my back, there was only one place to go, over.

He did exactly as I expected, propelling himself at me like he did last time, only this time he aimed an explosion at the ground and tried to get an angle at my face with the other hand, but before he could fire the attack off I leaned forward and threw an uppercut right aimed right for him. He barely had time to register what was happening, let alone counter it, so the blow sent him through the ceiling and onto the next floor. I flew up through the new hole in the floor and stood over him.

"Ready to admit defeat?" I asked.

"Never!" He growled back as he fired an explosion towards the ground and sent him away from me. As soon as he was safe distance away, he fired another one to get himself upright. Before he could come at me again, I began talking.

"Let's make this a little more interesting, shall we? I propose a wager. If you win this battle, I'll admit to the entire class that you're better than me. But if I win, you have to listen to a proposition I wanted to ask you about, you can still say yes or no, I just want you to hear me out." I said.

"Why would I want to hear some dumb idea of yours? Besides, the whole class will know I'm better when I blast you to ash!" He said as he put his hands back to launch again.

"Does that mean you're afraid you'll lose, Piss Boy?" I jeered.

"Argh! Of course it doesn't! You're on Lizard! I hope you're ready to tell the whole class the truth, because I've got one more ace up my sleeve!" He yelled before bringing his hands forward again. "These grenade gauntlets of mine aren't just for show, they're functional too! My quirk lets me sweat nitroglycerin and ignite it, but I never use it all. These babies store up all the excess and collect it for one devastating attack! I hope the other lizards like you, because I'm blasting your ass back to the stone age!" He shouted as a pin popped out of the side.

Oh crap, those things will definitely pack a bigger punch if he's telling the truth. And if what we were doing earlier was putting cracks in the building, something like that will send me through the wall, I thought before an idea hit me. Wait, that's it! Through the wall! Since this building is part of a mock city, the walls aren't reinforced. I even punched through one when I was aiming for him before. That means …

"DIE!" He shouted as he pulled the pin. No time to think this through, I hope it works! I thought as I immediately turned and ran at the wall. As soon as I got to the hole, I jumped and started flying. Instead of going down into the hole, I flew over it and zoomed to the wall at top speed.

Once I hit it at top speeds, I broke right through it just before the giant explosion could. I wanted to stop and celebrate, but it was time to follow through on the second part of my plan. I flew out of sight so he wouldn't catch on, and then made my way around the building as fast as I could. As soon as I made sure I was at the right wall, I flew straight at it and broke through it just as I did the other.

I found Bakugo walking towards the now demolished hole in the building that he just created, barely even having time to react before I crashed through the other wall, grabbed him, and flew back out the other side.

He was fighting against me from the start, but I made sure wrap one or my arms around his elbows so the only thing he could aim his hands at was himself, meanwhile I had the other arm around him neck in a sleeper hold that Unczawa taught me years ago in the event that someone ever attacked me. I continued this until I was sure he was asleep, and then flew us back into the building. As soon as we landed I grabbed the tape from my belt and wrapped the unconscious Bakugo up, effectively eliminating him. As soon as I was done with that, Kirishima came running at both of us from the stairs.

"What was that huge explosion? I tried talking to you on the ear things, but you didn't answer." He asked once he got to us.

"Yeah, during our fight we both lost ours. As for what happened, Bakugo got a little excited and wanted to show me his new toys, but he's taken care of." I replied as I motioned to the sleeping team. "Now c'mon, there can't be much time left, did you find the bomb?"

"Yeah, Iida's on the fifth floor with it. They must've known how we'd search so they picked the farthest one from the entrance." He said. The farthest one? That gives me an idea.

"Wait, so he's got the bomb on the farthest room on the left?" I asked.

"Yeah, bomb's right in the middle of the room, I guess so he could grab it and run if he needs." he said.

"I have a plan. I need you to go back up there and distract him. I've got a crazy idea that just might work, but I'll need you to keep him talking for it to work. Wait for my signal and then we go in for the bomb." I said.

"Sure thing, but do you mind filling me in on the plan? And what's the signal?" He asked.

"Trust me, you'll know the signal when you see it. And as for the plan, let's just say it doesn't involve either of us going through a wall." I said. I could see when he picked up my message by the grin that appeared on his face.

"Man, you really are smart. Or crazy, but right now I'll go with either." He said before going back to the stairs. I closed my eyes and focused everything I could on listening. Once I heard his footsteps above me, I followed them to the best of my ability until I was in the room directly underneath. I flew up with my wings as quietly as I could before pressing my ear to the ceiling, or more accurately to their floor.

"One minute remaining!" I heard through an unseen speaker. It's now or never!

I could just barely hear their conversation, but it was enough. Kirishima kept Iida talking, or at least monologuing in some strange villainous persona, meanwhile I was below them trying to figure out exactly where everything was. As soon as I found the exact spot I was looking for, I moved my new plan into action.

I was hovering right below where Iida was talking about his love of evil in the most cliche villain voice ever. Laughing aside, I reared my clawed fist back and punched straight through the floor and grabbed what I was looking for: Iida's foot.

"Now, Kirishima!" I yelled through the hole as I held on tight to my surprised opponent's weapon of choice. I could feel him struggling, but from this side I had more leverage, meaning he was all but powerless to move as my teammate jumped over him and grabbed the bomb.

"Heroes Win!" Dad said over the speakers. "Just in the nick of time, with only 20 seconds remaining, the hero team managed to deactivate the bomb, making them the victors of this exercise! If you will all report back to the observation room, we'll go over your scores. Oh, and Mr. Yagi, please take Mr. Bakugo to the nurse's office before you come back. You should get checked out as well."

Celebrating internally over my first real victory in UA, I flew back down and grabbed Kacchan. Though I was happy we won, I was even happier that I would get a chance to help my friend, assuming he upheld his end of our wager. Before our fight, I was pretty sure that Kacchan's pride would be his downfall some day, but after fighting him myself, I'm certain of it. I have to convince him to take the power of Pride in order to save himself.

I carried my former friend down the stairs to the first floor, where I was congratulated by Kirishima and Iida. I shared their sentiments and told them both they did very well before excusing myself and heading towards Recovery Girl's office. I powered down before walking through the main building; it made it harder to carry Kacchan but I still wasn't in the mood to have everyone stare at me right now. Apparently this was a pretty regular sight, because no one even questioned me walking around with an unconscious student in a costume on my shoulder. Eventually I made it to my destination, where Doctor Shuzenji was waiting for us.

She asked me what had happened, which I replied honestly to. After laying him on the bed and letting her examine him, she concluded that there was nothing serious, just some bruises and cuts from debris, plus one fractured bone from when I knocked him through the ceiling. Ever insistent, Doctor Shuzenji made me sit down so she could examine me as well. Since I spent the whole exercise in my transformation, my scales took the brunt of everything. I still had a few bruises as well as some minor damage to my ears, which she healed very easily, but other than that I was still in peak condition.

"Thank you, Doctor Shuzenji." I said as I bowed to the small woman.

"Any time, dear. Unless All Might has changed significantly since he started teaching, I get the feeling I'll be seeing you and your classmates in here quite often this year." She said with a light smile. I could only laugh in agreement.

She left the room to go talk to Principal Nezu about something, leaving me alone with Kacchan. I took the opportunity to write a note for him while he was still asleep. The note told him that since I had won that little wager of ours, in which he said he would to listen to my proposition if I won, I wanted him to meet me after school tomorrow on the roof so we could talk freely there, and if he didn't then I would inform the class about what happened the day of the slime villain incident. I didn't like threatening him, but I had to be sure that he kept his word and showed up. I left the note in the pocket of his costume so he could find it when he woke up, and I left to rejoin my class at Ground Beta to watch the rest of the battle trials. I walked in just in time to see a replay of Todoroki winning his battle single handedly by freezing the entire building and sticking his opponents to the floor. Everyone was so engrossed in his performance that my arrival went virtually unnoticed until Dad turned around and saw me.

"Ah, Yagi, you've returned. I take it Bakugo is still asleep in Recovery Girl's office?"Dad asked me.

"Yeah, she patched us both up with no problem. The worst thing either of us had was a fractured bone, but it's all taken care of. What did I miss?" I said.

He and the rest of the class walked me through what had happened. I missed about half of the trials, including Ocha's unfortunately. As they gave me a brief play by play of what had happened, I was impressed by what my classmates had accomplished. It sounded like Yaoyorozu had pretty much had to carry her match as Mineta stood around ogling her, though a few of those weird sticky balls of his had come in handy apparently for trapping. Ocha had managed to win hers by letting Sero take care of Asui and floating over and dropping onto Tokoyami. She managed to touch Dark Shadow and remove his and Tokoyami's gravity, which meant that Dark Shadow's momentum was pulling them both around. They were disoriented enough that they couldn't stop her from getting to the bomb.

"Wow, I wish I could've been there to see it. It sounds like you did a great job, Ocha." I said, of course making her blush.

"I agree, negating mine and Dark Shadow's gravity was a wise play, Uraraka. Truthfully I didn't know if that would work, but it seems you were confident enough to try it. And that's why we all agreed to give you MVP of the round."

"Well, I couldn't have done it without Sero distracting Asui. If she had been able to use that tongue of hers, I would've never been able to get to you. And if you want to talk about a good job, then we should mention how awesome you looked when you were fighting Bakugo, Kai!" She said.

"Yeah, man. I saw the replay of your fight with him, and I gotta say, the way you fly through that wall was so manly! I just wish we could've heard what you two were talking about." Kirishima said.

"Yeah, I wanted to know about that too." Ocha said.

"Oh, just usual fight banter. I was trying to make him mad so he'd make mistakes, he was telling me that he was gonna crush me like a bug. Nothing else, really." I lied.

"Well, it looks like you succeeded, that huge explosion was nuts. All Might even said if he could've heard you two that he would've told Bakugo to stop before it ever got that far. But still, you looked so cool flying around the building and grabbing Bakugo like that, and then just punching through the floor under Iida to let Kirishima get to the bomb." Ocha said.

"Yes, it was very well done. It's clear that you have just as sharp a mind on the battlefield as you do in the classroom. But don't think I haven't learned from this fight, the next time we face off I won't be dispensed so easily. All the same, it was incontestable that you were the MVP of our match." Iida said.

"Wait, I got MVP? I was sure you or Kirishima would since Bakugo and I got so tunnel-visioned on each other and kind of disregarded the damage to the building." I said.

"You have a valid point, but you were also the one who came up with the majority of the plan and enacted it as well as facing a powerful opponent head to head. Plus in the grand scheme of things, Bakugo destroyed more of his own base than you did with those gauntlets of his. After you four left the whole corner of that building collapsed above the wall that he destroyed. Against a villain like him, collateral damage is nearly unavoidable, and while you did knock out a large section of the floor and a few other minor things, I've deemed them to be reasonable. So yes, you were deemed MVP for your actions, something that no one argued with. Take the win, Mr Yagi. I'm sure it's the first of many to come." Dad said with a hint of pride on that last note.

"Yes sir." I responded, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice.

"Good, now let's move on. Team E, Team F, you're up." He said, prompting those four to go to their building.

The last match went off pretty smoothly. Aoyama and Ashido both had range on their side, while Sato and Koda were both close. Well, I assume Koda is close range. I've yet to see his quirk in action and he was too panicky during class yesterday to tell us, so I still have no clue. His head is shaped kinda weird, and he seems stocky, but it's hard to tell if his quirk is the cause of that or if that's just how he's built. His costume isn't really offering any clues either. The material's pretty plain-looking, so I doubt it's a transformation quirk. I was hoping he'd use it during the match, but unfortunately he only tried to fight hand to hand like Sato did, but he didn't seem to have any strength or speed enhancers. I'll figure it out eventually. Ashido was given the title of MVP for her match after her and Aoyama won, with her getting more credit for taking charge early on.

Once the last battle was over, Dad sent us walking back to class. I could tell he was wearing kind of thin because there was a faint trail of steam coming off of him, hence why he didn't follow us back. As a class we stopped at the locker rooms to change back into our normal clothes and put the briefcases back where we got them. Bakugo's was still missing, so I guess he was still out cold in Recovery Girl's office.

As we were sitting back down, I noticed I had a weird pain behind my eyes, which thanks to that week of training with my new abilities I knew meant that Sin Sight was trying to pop back up for whatever reason. I started wrestling with it internally to keep it down, but for whatever reason it was being difficult. Nonetheless, I sat down and tried talking to Iida and Ocha a bit more. Admittedly, I was only half in the conversation because of the growing pain behind my eyes as I fought off the ability.

"Are you ok, Kai? You seem distracted." Ocha asked me, snatching my focus away for a second.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine, just another headache is all." I replied. Normally I would just let the ability come out for a minute or two, but if I do that then these two will see my eyes change and I won't have a good explanation.

"That's perfectly understandable, you were fighting against Bakugo for an extended period earlier. Hearing that many close-range explosions is bound to leave your ears ringing." Iida said.

"Yeah, Recovery Girl said there was some minor damage to my ears, which she fixed, maybe this is just the after effect." I said. Alright, that's it, I've got to let this go for a minute or two. "I'm actually going to run to the restroom again really quick." I said as I got up to go to the bathroom to let this power off. Curiously enough, the closer I got to my destination seemed to make my headache lessen. Eventually I made it to the nearest bathroom, which was thankfully empty so I could just stand in front of the mirror.

By the time I could get there, the pressure was almost gone, but I decided to activate the ability anyway. As I felt my eyes change to black and the world dip into this unusual perspective, the pain vanished completely. What is up with these eyes of mine? I know I used the power earlier, but I've been fine since then. Weird ability. After a minute, I decided I should be fine and deactivated it. No headache, no pressure, nothing. I was fine now, so I began walking back to class.

I got back right in time for the bell to go off, prompting me and everyone else to grab their bags and head outside. Thankfully Iida and Ocha were waiting on me to get my stuff before leaving As we walked out together, we began talking again.

"Well, you seem a bit better now. You splash some cold water on your face or something while you were in the bathroom?" Ocha asked me.

"Yeah, that trip did help my headache a lot." I said, which apparently jinxed it because I felt a small throb return. It was pretty manageable right now, so hopefully it'll stay that way.

"That's good. Migraines are often overlooked by uninformed people, but for some they can be life threatening if not taken care of." Iida said. His very tone and stance made both of us chuckle a little.

"I appreciate the worry, Iida, but I'm fine. Just a little headache. I can still feel it behind my eyes, but it's a lot better now." I said, though it was actually growing again already. Hopefully getting into the air will help. If nothing else, with Ocha on my back she won't see my eyes if I turn it on. We made it outside to the gate before my headache jumped up dramatically.

"Ahh!" I said as I felt my head begin splitting.

"Yagi, are you alright?" Iida asked.

"Kai! What's wrong?" Ocha asked.

"My headache just jumped up a lot for a second. It's fine though, just an aftershock or something. It's dying back down, so hopefully that means it's going away." I said as my headache did indeed dull back down. "Come on, let's get going. I'm sure getting into the air will help." They both still looked wairy, but they did eventually start walking again.

"So, what did you guys think of our first heroics class?" I asked to lighten the mood.

"Definitely unorthodox, but that seems to be a theme with UA as a whole. I certainly wouldn't have guessed we would be doing battle trials before receiving any proper training, but I do see his point. Certain weaknesses have already been highlighted on just day one, as well as a few strengths." Iida said.

"Yeah, it was definitely a weird experience, but it was nice to see everyone's skills be put to use for more than just physical tests. Plus we got to sharpen our battle reflexes a little. I had no idea that removing Dark Shadow's gravity would take Tokoyami's as well, it was just an in the moment idea that worked out surprisingly well." Ocha said.

"Yeah, and even though All Might doesn't really have any teaching experience that I know of, he gave pretty good commentary on our performances." I said.

"Indeed. I actually meant to ask you two, but you knew that All Might was going to be our teacher, didn't you?" Iida asked us with an intense glare.

"I'm not gonna lie to you, Iida. We did know, but we both promised my dad when he told us that we would keep it a secret so the media wouldn't find out. That hasn't stopped them from finding out through rumors anyway, but the school was trying to hold off the paparazzi storm for as long as they could." I said. I didn't lie, Dad did tell us that All Might was going to be teaching here, I just omitted the fact that he is All Might.

"That's fair enough, I suppose, though it seems a bit unprofessional to go blabbing something like that to your child. Especially for someone working somewhere as prestigious as All Might's Agency." He said.

"He only told me because All Might offered me a teacher's recommendation to UA, and even though I politely declined he still filled me in on the rest of the situation. And I only told Ocha because, well, she's Ocha. I can't keep a secret from her." I said. Not more than one anyway, and that's just because Wrath would flip if I did. Iida looked shocked to say the least. Ocha, on the other hand, was frowning for some reason.

"Wait just a moment, the number one hero offered you a recommendation slot? And you turned it down?!" Iida exclaimed.

"Yeah, it wasn't a tough choice honestly. I was honored, obviously, but I declined because I didn't want any special treatment just because I have a connection to All Might; that wouldn't be fair to everyone else. So I decided that if I was going to get into UA, it would be by my own merit." I stated. Iida still looked shocked while Ocha was silently resigned. I had already told her my reasons, but she wasn't very surprised even then.

"That's a very noble conclusion to come to, Yagi. And to turn down an opportunity like that, I'm not sure I would've been able to do so. I commend you for your conviction." He said with another comically low bow.

"You've really got to stop with the 90 degree angle bows. That definitely can't be good for your back." I joked, causing Ocha to laugh and Iida to go into a fit telling us both that his bow is perfectly fine for one's posture, making us laugh even more. Eventually Iida had to part ways with us as the car picking him up neared.

Once me and Ocha were alone again, we were getting ready to go to our usual take off point when she started talking again.

"Kai, did you really mean what you said when you told Iida that you couldn't keep a secret from me?" Ocha asked all of the sudden.

"Well yeah, you're my best friend, Ocha. My only friend for a long time. I couldn't keep a secret from you even if I wanted to." I said as I slung my bag off of my shoulders with a slight wince from my still present headache. It killed me to lie, but I truly didn't want to keep the secret of the sins from her. Eventually I will get Wrath to sign off on me telling her, I just hope she doesn't hate me for keeping it from her. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason, I just thought it was sweet of you to say. And for the record, I wouldn't want to keep any secrets from you either." She said. Strangely, she wouldn't meet my eyes, but I wasn't complaining because right now my headache was coming back in full throttle. Despite it reaching migraine levels, I tried to push through it. The air will help.

"Ready to go?" I asked her as I put my shirt in my bag.

"Yeah." Was all she said as I used my power and transformed up to grow my wings.

"Alright, climb ab- AHH!" I exclaimed as the ability struggling to come out gave one more giant push. I thought the headache would've been enough, but this one felt like a sharp hot pain exploding from the back of my eyes. I had no choice but to activate Sin Sight as I dropped to my knees just from the pain.

"Kai!" I heard Ocha say as she raced around to place a hand on my shoulder. Once I felt her hand touch me, I felt the final part of my ability kick in as I unwittingly went to witness the defining moment of Ocha's sin. At least with someone as pure as her the sin can't be that bad, I thought.

Just like when I saw Dad's moment, I was floating over everything as the scene began to form. Surprisingly, the version of Ocha that I was seeing was quite young, around the same age that we were when we met. The surroundings were slow to come into focus, but what I could see was her huddled in some kind of corner of a dark room putting something shiny in the bag she used to carry around. A few shiny somethings, actually. I could see a stack of gold-colored circles on the ground next to her. No, not gold-colored, just gold, and those things were medals based on the ribbons attached to them. Where would she …? Wait a second, I recognize this room. Ocha, please tell me I'm misreading this situation, I thought.

The reason I know the room is because we used to play in there all the time. It was the storage room in my basement, the room where Dad kept all of his trophies and mementos he had gotten over the years as a hero. He even has a box down there filled with medals and pins that people had awarded him with, several of which were real gold. The very same box that this Young Ocha was taking medals from. I didn't want to believe what I was seeing, that maybe she was just taking them home to clean of something, or maybe I had asked her to bring a few up to play with, but Sin Sight also let me hear the thoughts and intents of someone while I was viewing their moment, and right now I could tell exactly what she was doing.

Ocha was stealing from us, plain and simple. Just like I knew that Dad was relishing in his victory when I saw his moment, I knew that Ocha was planning on taking those medals and not giving them back. I could even feel that slight bit of Pride that she felt for being smart enough to only take a few and none from the top so we would never notice. And she was right, I don't think Dad noticed until almost two years later after he was injured and looking through some of his old things. Not that he was particularly worried,"They're just keepsakes" as he said, but still. All this time later I find out that Ocha had stolen them? I didn't know what to think.

"Ochako, it's almost time for us to leave. Don't you want to tell All Might and Izuku goodbye?" I heard Mrs. Takahashi call from upstairs.

"Yeah, I'll be right up Aunt Hana." She replied as she zipped up her back pack. I vaguely remember this day, actually. I had noticed she was struggling with her bag, so I helped her carry the heavy thing out of the house and put it in their car.

What's more, there are more medals that have gone missing since then than the ones I just watched her take. She had done this more than once. Is she still stealing from us? I briefly wondered. No, I have to believe this was just a childhood thing. There's no way Ocha can have been stealing from us for this long. There's no way she would.

I was suddenly jarred from the memory I was seeing as I felt her hand leave my shoulder. The headache I was wrestling with before was all but gone now, and I could feel it shrinking even further down. I deactivated the ability as I was powering down, but before it could shut off I got a glimpse of my best friend, which unfortunately confirmed my suspicions. Ocha was covered in a bright yellow aura, not quite as big as Kacchan's or Mineta's, but it was definitely visible.

"Kai? Oh finally, you're awake. I've been shaking you for the last few minutes. You cried out like you were in pain and then went comatose. Wait here and I'll call your dad to come get us." She said.

"No, it's fine, Ocha. Really, it was just the last kick from that migraine. I can already feel it disappearing." I said quietly, which was the truth.

"You said that last time, and yet here we are. Are you sure you're alright?" She asked with her voice full of concern. I think that's real concern, anyway. I thought bitterly.

"Positive. Must've just been the last of those explosions working their way out of my ears or something. I could still feel a dull throb earlier, but it's completely gone now, promise." I said.

"Ok, well if you're sure. But there's no way you're flying right now. We're walking until I'm convinced you're okay to get us both home." She said.

"Yes ma'am." I replied quietly.

The rest of the trip home was awkward to say the least. She kept trying to get me out of my own head, as she put it, and get the conversation restarted, but I was still too distracted by what I had seen to give more than a few words for each answer. The pain had finally stopped, anyway. Apparently seeing that vision had appeased whatever made my sin sight go haywire. Eventually after we had walked for a while she was convinced that I was alright to fly, because she gave me the all clear to take us home the fast way.

She had apparently realized that I wasn't in the mood to talk anymore, because we both spent the entire flight home in silence. I dropped her off like usual, and thankfully her aunt and uncle both stayed inside so I got away with giving a slight wave. Was Mrs. Takahashi in on that too? Was she the one that had Ocha steal those medals?

I got back home and immediately smelled something delicious. I walked in to see Dad taking what looked and smelled like pasta out of the oven.

"Ah, Izuku, there you are. Just in time for dinner. I was wondering where you were." He said in his usual upbeat voice.

"Hey Dad. Sorry I'm late, I got a little held up on the way home." I said.

"I figured as much. Well, as you can see, I just finished cooking some pasta for us. Go ahead upstairs and get washed up so we can eat." He said.

"Ok." Was all I said before going up to my room to do just that. A few minutes later I came down in a more casual shirt and pair of shorts, as opposed to my school uniform. Dad already had my place at the table set.

I sat down and we both quietly began to tuck into dinner. It was pretty good, I had to say, but my current mood kept me from enjoying it too much, so I mostly just picked at it. After a few failed attempts of getting a conversation going, I guess Dad picked up on my mood.

"Izuku, are you feeling alright? You've barely touched your food, and you're much less talkative tonight than usual. You seemed fine at the end of class today, is it something to do with what had you held up?" Dad asked me.

"No, it's nothing to do with that. The only reason I was late is because Ocha insisted that we walk for a little while. It's all just kind of confusing." I said. "Can I actually talk to you about something?" I asked.

"Oh, haha, I can see what's going on now. She decided to walk with you and you two were talking and now you're not sure about your feelings anymore. Well, I'm not exactly an expert on these things but I'll ..." He said before I cut him off.

"What no, nothing like that. Well, a little like that. I definitely don't know what to feel, but not for that reason." I said. Normally I'd be blushing at even the suggestion of anything like that, but right now I was too busy thinking about everything else for that. "My powers activated earlier without me calling on them, my sin sight powers." I said.

"Oh, did Ocha see your eyes change and ask you about them then?" He questioned.

"No, thankfully she didn't. It's about what I saw." I said. I explained to him what happened on the way home with her, and about what I saw her doing in my vision. By the end of it, Dad's face had soured from his usual smile to a stoic frown. "I don't know what to believe anymore. She stole from us right at the start. I don't know if these past 7 years have all been an act, or if she started off that way and just had a change of heart, I just don't know. I can't even ask her about it because then I'll have to explain how I found out to begin with. I just don't know what to do!" I said, nearly on the verge of tears at this point.

"I see, this is a very serious conundrum. While I'm not exactly happy that she stole from us, those medals were just sitting in a box collecting dust. Though we both know the actual theft isn't the issue here, it's the betrayal." He said solemnly.

"Have you ever had to doubt someone's intentions like this, even after you thought you could trust them?" I asked.

"More times than I care to count. Sadly it's part of the territory that comes with fame and fortune. I've had many friends and allies over the years that I found to be less than virtuous in their intentions." He said with a grimace.

"How do you find out whether or not they were really on your side then? Especially when you find out they've done something like she has?" I asked him.

"Well son, that's where your heart usually comes in. It makes sense logically to suspect that she may have been playing us this whole time, but do you truly believe her to be nothing more than a cold-blooded thief?" He asked.

"Honestly? No, I really don't. I know she wants to be a hero who helps people, starting with her parents." I said.

"See, you already had your answer, you just had to dig for it. Truth be told, I was thinking the same. I've spent too many years watching her make you happy, and the same has been true in reverse. She's your friend, Izuku, she always has been, no matter what else has happened." He said as he placed his hand on my shoulder. "And correct me if I'm wrong, hasn't she always been self-conscious of her reasoning to become a hero?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, why?" I asked. He merely kept his eyebrow raised. What is he expecting me to … OH! "Wait a minute, you think she's always been like that because she regrets what she's done? That makes sense! No wonder she's never thought of her reasons as good enough, she relates them back to her own sins! Yet she's still kept her dream in spite of that because she wants to make up for it!" I said as the picture finally clicked.

"You know, she almost reminds me of this one 6 year-old I met once who wanted to be a hero so he could attone for the damage he had caused a few years prior. And if that's the case, then I think you know what you need to do. Help her." He said.

"You're right. Ochako Uraraka is my friend, she always has been and she always will be. And right now, she needs my help. And I have just the idea to do it." I said before standing up and hugging my father. "Thanks Dad, I could've never gotten this far without your advice."

"Anytime, my son. That's what fathers are for. Now, why don't you finish up your dinner so you can get some early shut eye? After all, it looks like tomorrow could be a busy day for you." He said with a light smile.

I did as he said and devoured the rest of my pasta, which suddenly was a lot more enjoyable, before going back upstairs to my room. I didn't realize how late it was getting, but it was close to bedtime anyway. I ran through my nightly routine and got ready to go to bed, but there was one more thing to do before I could. I took out my phone and brought up the number of my best friend.

Begin Text Conversation:

I: "Hey, you still up?"

O: "Yeah, it's not that late yet. You feeling any better? You seemed kinda down earlier."

I: "Yeah, a lot better. I just had a lot on my mind earlier, sorry if I wasn't very good company on the trip home."

O: "No problem, as long as you're feeling better. Wanna talk about it?"

I: "Actually, yeah. But not right now. Do you mind if I pick you up early tomorrow so we can talk about it before school. I'd rather not over the phone. It's kinda personal."

O: "Uhm, yeah sure. You're acting kinda weird, Kai. You sure you're alright?"

I: "Yeah, I'm sure. I've finally gotten some clarity to something that's been bothering me, if that makes any sense."

O: "I know what you mean. See you bright and early tomorrow morning, I guess. Goodnight, Kai."

I: "Night Ocha, see you then."

End Text Conversation.

I put my phone away after I sent that message. Her wording on that last text was a little weird, I thought as I laid down. Alright Izuku, concentrate. You've never actually gone here without being summoned, but you're the sin bearer. Surely you can go to the throne room without being invited. Just think about it hard enough, imagine your conscious mind going there, and ...

Author's Notes

Whew, that was a long one. I kinda had a feeling this one might drag on, but 16.5k words is a little much even by my standards. Sorry for the even longer wait than usual, my schedule has been stupidly busy for the last few weeks with coworkers getting quarantined left and right. How I haven't been yet is a mystery, but my paycheck hasn't exactly been complaining

I hope you all are doing alright in this crazy world we're living in right now. I've been working pretty much nonstop, and between that and trying to keep some semblance of a social life, I haven't had too many opportunities to write. It's looking like things will be calming down soon, so (fingers crossed) I should have the next chapter out before too long.

Speaking of, as of now I'm thinking that the next chapter might be a bit shorter in preparation for the beginning of the USJ Arc. Plus, I've got a few more sins to write in, tee hee. Though, fair warning, it might be a few chapters before we add in any more just so we can get used to the ones we have.

As for one particular review I saw, my only response is All Hail King Hybrid. May he lead the ship to prosperous seas so we, the crew, might one day see a day of laughs and memes once more. (If any of you get this reference, I'm so sorry you're bound to us. And for those that don't you will one day, either by joining us on the forbidden app or by hearing that most of us have been arrested. Honestly, both are pretty likely.)

That's pretty much all I have to say, except as always I appreciate the love and support that this story has gotten so far. I've had fun writing it so far and I look forward to keeping it going.

Now, it is time for me to make my dramatic exit! *Whooshes cape as I run towards the door, only to slam face first into the wall.