Float With Me

by WhiteRosePlanter

Izuku can't handle the power of One-For-All, so his body reaches deeper and pulls out the next power in the cycle first. How will he learn to use this power, when his only teacher is so very pretty and so very inexperienced herself?

24. Volume 8, pt 1 1-A

Alright everyone. It's time to go all in.

PLUS ULTRA!

---

Aoyama Yuga

So… he was first. Wonderful.

Yuga clenched his fists, staring at the Midoribot.010 and Asui-san. He had to make it to that summer camp, and that meant winning not just here, but in both exams. That was what he had to do, so he would do it.

They'd naturally been allocated to the pool area of the USJ, with his examiner standing on the deck of the ship just across from Yuga himself. They waited for the intercom to announce the beginning, but neither of them were idle.

Asui-san was glancing along the railing, her gaze flicking back to him every so often, as if wary he was coming closer. Yuga wasn't so foolish, nonono. He knew his best course to victory would be to keep his distance and prevent her from getting to the water. He'd positioned himself at the bow of the ship, able to fire at her from any angle she'd jump in. If he was lucky: he'd be able to tag her quickly and stop a drawn out battle. She'd probably be hoping to make him waste shots, so he had to make the opening barrage count.

["Aoyama,"] the intercom crackled to life with Aizawa-sensei's voice, ["Your objective is to save the dummy from the villain. You have thirty minutes. Begin."]

As expected, Asui-san jumped straight into the air, her tongue wrapped around the already crying bot. The machine, for its part, beat at the tongue ineffectually. Yuga didn't hesitate, glancing away from the spot where the camera was watching them and throwing his arms behind his head.

For Maman. For Papa. I will not fail this day.

"Oui, Oui!" he praised, firing a blast from his belt and narrowly missing Asui-san's leg, "Most expected of our most reliable student! But this day you shall feel the wrath of the twinkling, the brilliant, the unmatched light! "

Pulling his arms down, and placing his hands on his hips, he fired four simultaneous blasts from either shoulder and his knees. They were less powerful, but as lasers they were no slower, and exactly what he wanted. The right side managed to catch her tongue, releasing a burning hiss as they made contact and she twisted in pain, while the left smashed into the glass of the boat's cabin.

Asui-san hit the water, dragging the bot under with her. Yuga didn't know if the thing was water-proof, had an underwater timer, or they'd just disqualify him if it stayed under for too long, but he couldn't afford to wait. He leapt off after them, twisting in midair as the glass fell around him. If he timed it just right…

"New Secret Move: Underwater Disco! " he screamed, firing into the cloud of glass shards with all his might.

The light refracted and exploded downward in a magnificent display of blue beams, cutting through the water and diffracting across to the bottom. Asui-san's dark form darted away from the lights, clearly not enjoying the sensations they caused.

Yuga hit the water with a dull impact, feeling his stomach flex in pain as it fought against his poorly adjusted Quirk. The laser cut off, and the glass hit the water with a dull series of splashes.

No! It won't end here! I will win!

Reaching around and silently apologizing to it, Yuga tore the cape from his back as he began to sink into the water. Removing his visor, he packed it inside the fabric and began to wrap them together, even as his armor pulled him down.

" Underwater Disco : Sacrifice Variant!" he shouted desperately, firing into the wad of glittering materials with all his might.

Closing his eyes, he felt the water overtaking his face as the energy built up inside the remains of the cape for a single second, before exploding out and covering the entire area with light. Steam began to come off the water where it was close to the surface and it couldn't diffuse into the surroundings, but the real prize was Asui-san.

Unable to avoid the hits on her already burned and sensitive spots, she'd fled from the water, leaping to the shore. As she reached the top of her curve, Yuga fell below the waterline, firing his shoulder beam with his best guess.

He cut off his power, kicking for all he was worth to try and fight the weight of his costume. Luckily they were relatively close to the shore this time, the boat only just launched, so he was able to get his feet under him after a few seconds of struggle.

The sight which greeted Yuga was all he could hope for.

Asui-san was singed along her entire arm, holding it tenderly and nowhere near the Midoribot.010, which was swimming towards Yuga with all haste, water coming from both its eyes and any areas where it had become waterlogged.

Reaching out, he placed a hand on it and a buzzer sounded through the building.

["Aoyama passes,"] Aizawa-sensei informed them, ["Dummy recovered. Asui also passes. Recovery Girl to the shipwreck zone please."]

Stepping over to his classmate, he offered a hand, posing as best he could.

"Most wonderful display, mademoiselle! " he praised, "Though my armor is now tattered forevermore, I shall forever carry your lessons!"

"Lessons, kero?" she asked, evidently confused, "I just tried to keep away from your lasers. Ouch, by the way, kero kero."

"Non non non! You forced me to destroy my most beloved cape and visor of beautiful light!" he commended, really talking nonsense, "In sacrificing my own happiness, I was able to achieve a great victory! "

"How did you say that out loud…?"

Yuga vaguely heard her ask something as his thoughts ran away with him, eyes no doubt growing distant as he stared at the camera watching them from the far ceiling. He did this periodically, and no one paid him much mind anymore, but this time it was different.

Yuga actually had learned something… or perhaps merely realized it. How strange.

"Hey, hey Aoyama-kun, Kero!" a voice cut into his contemplation.

"Your pardon, Madame Asui, I was caught up in my musings about your most excellent teachings, " he quickly covered.

"Call me Tsuyu-chan," she grumbled, turning around and hopping towards the teacher trotting over, "And I was trying to say we need to get back for our review."

"Even so."

---

Ashido Mina

"Haunted House… yeah, I can do that," Mina mumbled to herself, staring up at the faux-building.

The entirety of the windows had been boarded up and sealed, meaning not one inkling of light was going to be inside. Naturally, that meant that Dark Shadow was having way too much fun inside.

"Come in, my pretty…" the Quirk crooned from just inside the doorway, evidently imitating an evil witch or a sweet old lady (either way she was terrible at it).

["Ashido,"] Aizawa-sensei called over the PA, ["Your task is citizen retrieval. Locate the dummy inside. You have twenty minutes. Begin."]

Inhaling as deeply as she could, she sprinted at the doorway, noticing the light end unnaturally quickly as she passed the frame. It slammed closed behind her, leaving her in pitch darkness.

Mina came to a stop, realizing she'd just made the worst possible choice. The evil cackling all around her confirmed it.

Acting on instinct, she threw a glob of acid as hard as she could at the nearest sound. Nothing happened. She barely even heard the hiss of it hitting the ground.

Okay, she was actually shaking now. Not good. Not good. All the not good!

"I-I-I-I'm not scared of you!" she screamed, throwing acid every which way, "I'm a Hero, and Heroes are fearless!"

"Then why are you terrified little girl?" Dark Shadow whispered, making Mina throw up her hands protectively.

The acid exploded from her hands and feet, sending her sliding back and into a wall, the trail of burning concrete coming into view as she bumped into a window and broke off a board. She curled into the little area of light which represented her safety, clenching her hands into fists and feeling her acid release involuntarily between the fingers, squirting out and hitting both her suit and the ground.

"Gah!" she squealed, waving her hands to get them clean.

She couldn't be burnt by her own acid, but her suit wasn't 100% impervious when she squirted on it.

Dark Shadow moved to the edge of the light, her red eyes glowing evilly as she reached out a clawed hand for Mina's leg.

"No!"

Turning to the window, Mina put her left hand behind her fist and tried to direct her acid squirt into the window. It worked! The last of the boards fell away, the light cutting through and causing Dark Shadow to hiss back.

Glancing around, Mina realized she did have a way to make it through this place. She might be freaked the heck out by haunted houses and dark spooky shiz, but this place didn't have to be either of those things!

Making her fist-hand combo again, she began to fire acid along the walls, tracing out the windows as best she could and trying to get some light in there. Dark Shadow pulled back, clearly preferring her power in the shadows, even though she was more than powerful even in dim light. Once or twice she tried to rush Mina, but with the light on her side: a shot of acid was enough to drive her away.

"There," she sighed, glancing around at the much brighter floor, "Now, where's that-"

["Two minutes left."]

"Oh -k!"

Sprinting for the stairs, Mina started searching for the stupid bot. Dark Shadow was scary, but failing was not in the cards. Each time she saw the movement in the darkness that meant an attack, she fired acid at the walls until she found some way to let light in.

"Whereisitwhereisitwhereisit?!" she squealed, looking everywhere.

["One minute."]

Kicking in the basement door, Mina felt a chill run through her, seeing the massive, crimson eyes of the enemy Quirk glowing at her. In the center of the room sat Midoriya-robot-thing. It was really dumb, come to think of it.

"As you can see… there is no hope, foolish Hero," Dark Shadow decided, "Even this citizen has given up. They can see your fear, and they know you are right to run."

Mina swallowed, staring at the machine quivering.

"I- I'm afraid!" she admitted, shouting it at the room, "And I'm gonna save them anyway!"

"...Then by all means."

Dark Shadow didn't move, but Mina didn't have time to wait. She sprinted for the robot, lunging and sliding at the last second on her knees. She skidded to the thing, clasping the metal body in her arms just as the complete buzzer sounded somewhere up above.

["Bot located. Ashido passes. …barely,"] Aizawa grumbled, ["Tokoyami also passes."]

Looking up, Mina saw the much friendlier golden eyes of Dark Shadow looking at her in concern.

"S-sorry for being so mean," she mumbled, looking very very sorry and pretty sheepish all of the sudden.

Mina let go of the robot and hugged the Quirk without reprieve.

"It's okay. I know it was just a test. We're okay, hon," she whispered.

Dark Shadow hugged back, resting her beak atop Mina's head and ruffling her hair. Tokoyami nodded at her from behind, the movement solemn like always, but with a bit of an apology in it.

As they parted, Mina patted her thighs a bit awkwardly. She needed to do something to get her mind off being scared. What did she do when she wasn't scared? Oh… oh, right.

"Sooooooo, how do you think Tsunotori doin' with her exam?" she asked, putting on some false bravado to help cover her still fast-beating heart.

Fake it 'til you make it, right?

The results were just enough to help her calm down. Tokoyami's plumage fluffed up like he'd been spooked, and Dark Shadow suddenly seemed far more bouncy.

"I bet she's killin' it!" Dark Shadow decided, raising her fist in triumph, "She's the most powerful pegasus in the world!"

Mina smiled at the enthusiastic response, noticing how it made Tokoyami flustered, which meant it was true. That last bit though…

"Pegasus? Isn't she just a horse though? Don't Pegasi fly?"

"She does fly," Tokoyami spoke up, "Her dark pirouettes are unmatched in their aerial elegance. She is a hunter of swift prey."

If Mina could control her smile, she didn't. She didn't want to, so she didn't try.

""Hunter of swift prey," huh?" she teased, leaning forward a little to look up at Tokoyami while they walked out, "Swift as your heart when you see her, or is she only supersonic?"

"I- …I do not have to answer that question."

"~Not answering it means you're guilty~" Mina sang, hopping a little to get sliding.

---

Asui Tsuyu

Tsuyu flexed her fingers, still a little sore from Aoyama's laser. Recovery Girl said they were all fixed, but that didn't mean they didn't hurt. Kirishima on the other hand: smashed his fist into his hand, hardening up and grinning like a rock shark.

"Come at me!" he challenged.

It was an appropriate request. Aizawa-sensei had said this match was just a simple slug fest, after all. The problem was… how?

Tsuyu knew her tongue could break stone if she went all in on a quick shot, but Kirishima was well passed that level of durability. Even if she wailed on him for her full twenty minutes, he'd be no worse for wear. He seemed to know it too. He just stood there, holding a combat stance but not moving so much as a centimeter.

Glancing around, Tsuyu tried to figure out if maybe there was some other way to take him on. They were in a city-scape, so she could gain height or distance, but escape wasn't the goal, and even a leaping strike wasn't a good option.

If I could drop some of these buildings on him, that might make a difference, she thought wryly.

Bouncing around him, just so he didn't get bored and make her job really difficult, Tsuyu tried to figure out a way to make a stationary person run into things. She could probably throw him, if she really pulled and hucked the guy, but did she have the strength to do it consistently? For twenty minutes?

I suppose we have to see how Plus Ultra I can go, kero! she decided, leaping off a wall and landing right behind the red-headed student.

Wrapping him up in her tongue, she leapt back towards a building which looked particularly brittle and tugged. He held firm for a bit, but after a little more effort on her part: the tension snapped and he was flying towards her.

Tsuyu hopped to the side, trying to give him a little more oomph as she threw him into the concrete corner. She didn't do much, but the smashing sound as he turned the gray stone to powder and flew inside was way too satisfying for her not to grin.

Kirishima got up almost immediately, stretching and groaning as he turned around.

"Now that's a tough opener, Man!" he cheered, "Do it again!"

She did.

This time it was into the opposite corner of the building, setting it shaking. Sadly, it fell the wrong way before she could try and get him under it.

"Whoo!" Kirishima called, still unphased, "This is fun! Hit me with a tougher one this time."

Now that was a bit peculiar. Wasn't he supposed to be trying to pass too? She was supposed to be fighting, so what was he supposed to be teaching her?

"C'mon!" he whined, "I can take it! Let's try one of the reinforced buildings. I wanna try my head at rebar!"

"Kero, of course you can handle it!" she croaked back, preparing to throw him again.

Then it clicked. He could handle it. He could handle anything she could physically inflict. She'd never win a slugfest against Kirishima. She had to think outside the box.

Instead of throwing him, Tsuyu began to spin Kirishima. Her tongue started getting tense and straining a little, but she just went faster. As the air started whistling through his solid hair spikes and he started laughing, Tsuyu realized it might not be so simple.

She twirled him faster, reeling in her tongue to give herself more speed. Tsuyu couldn't hurt his skin, so she had to get to the squishy bits inside. His stomach should give out if she could just get him nauseous, and then she could… maybe that would be enough to let her pass?

"Whee…" he managed, sounding a little weak but not sick.

Tsuyu on the other hand: felt a little queasy. She only had so much in her stomach, but what was there…

Letting Kirishima fly into the next building, Tsuyu knelt and retched. Her stomach twisted, and with a final hack, she flipped it out her mouth and let the bile and undigested food spill onto the ground. Her usual venom started washing off the lining, helping to get the rest of the undesirables out.

"Oh… oh, that's-" Kirishima's voice came from the rubble, suddenly sounding much less okay with the events happening around him.

Struck by sudden inspiration, Tsuyu waggled her inverted stomach back and forth a little, dripping some of her toxin over the concrete as she moved away from the first puddle. Kirishima might be able to harden his body, but his nerve clearly didn't extend to something as gross as she was offering.

He turned back to the building, emptying his own guts for a few seconds.

Hopping over to him, Tsuyu snapped her tongue around Kirishima's waist, careful not to get any of his ejection on her taste buds. Before he could react, she tugged him up into the air and then threw him over a beam.

Before he'd finished recovering, poor Kirishima found himself hanging over a pile of things he very much didn't want to fall on. Tsuyu knew it was a dirty trick, but Ochako-chan had taught her well in that regard, and hitting Red Riot over and over wasn't really getting her anywhere.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Tsuyu-chan! This isn't manly!" he panicked, waving his hands around wildly.

He seemed about to punch her tongue to get her to let go, only to realize he couldn't really deflect very well if he fell. The next few seconds were spent with him looking around for a way out, which Tsuyu didn't really want him to find. She dropped him a meter, snapping her tongue taught a lot closer to the puddle.

"I give, I give!" he shouted, instantly giving in.

["Kirishima concedes the battle. Asui passes."] the intercom confirmed less than a moment later.

Tsuyu sighed with relief, before feeling a little guilt build up in her as Kirishima wilted in her grip. All through his fighting, he'd been tense and fighting, his head up and his legs straight as he fought for victory to the bitter end. Now though, he seemed like a puppet with only one string left.

Pulling him back around and to the safety of a clean patch of ground, Tsuyu twiddled her thumbs awkwardly.

"Kirishima-kun, I-" she began.

The red-headed Hero held up a hand, inhaling for a moment before nodding to himself and looking over at her with a forced smile.

"It's okay," he sighed, "You beat me fair and square. I did my best. If it wasn't enough, that's on me."

Reaching over, she patted his shoulder.

"Sorry anyway, kero."

He smiled in thanks, but remained silent.

["Oh, Kirishima: you pass as well,"] Aizawa-sensei clarified, ["Very good job pushing her to that extreme."]

A weight seemed to fall of Kirishima's shoulders, quite literally. He stood up straighter, got back his strong posture, and his grin suddenly brightened and sharpened. Clenching a fist, he seemed to accidentally harden it into his usual bludgeon weapon, striking at the air over his head in victory.

"Yes!" he said between his teeth.

Tsuyu smiled at his silly antics, shaking her head and stepping around the dual pools of vomit to head back to the viewing area. After a few moments, she heard him jogging after her.

"You found a lot of honor in defeat, kero," she noted, glancing up at him, "Did you know what his decision was gonna be?"

Kirishima seemed affronted by the idea.

"No way, man!" he shouted, despite her being right there, "But throwing a fit is so not manly!"

"You say that a lot, kero kero," she noted bluntly, "what does "Manly" even mean? I've seen plenty of grown men come apart over the littlest thing. Like Bakugo."

He actually laughed at that. Odd. He usually thought the world of Bakugo.

"Odd. You usually think the world of Bakugo," Tsuyu told him.

"Don't get me wrong, he's manly in other ways," Kirishima reassured her, "But nobody's 100% manly, even I know that. Bakubro's… he's fightin' some demons, I'll bet. We just don't see 'em all. Just you wait: he's gonna do something so manly sooner or later, it's gonna be awesome…"

"Seems like you've got a bit of a crush on the guy."

"Well sure! Tsundere is a super manly trope! Almost as good as childhood friends!"

"I'm starting to wonder just what isn't manly, kero."

Chuckling, Kirishima swung his arm into a flex, showing off his sharp teeth as he grinned at her.

"You'll pick it up sooner or later, Tsuyu-chan! You're really smart. It's one of the manliest things about you!"

She wasn't really sure how to take that. It was meant as a compliment, no doubt, and she got what he meant, but… it felt weird.

---

Ida Tenya

"Aizawa-sensei!" Tenya complained, his arms idling in anxiety as he stood at the doorway of the viewing room, "I do not see why I must remain here! I have a match with Koda-kun in less than two minutes, and by your request no less!"

Aizawa just continued to stare at the screen before him, currently blank except for a concrete wall and the edge of a window. Tenya felt anxious to get moving, and only barely restrained himself. If his test included testing his patience (and he had little doubt that it could), then rushing out would only make things worse.

Unless… perhaps this is to test my initiative, and I'm failing by waiting for orders?!

"Okay, you can go now," Aizawa said, sitting up as Koda stepped into frame and gave the a-okay sign.

"Thank you Sensei!" Tenya shouted, turning and speed walking to the door, before sprinting out and towards Ground Gamma.

He was careful not to utilize his Recipro-burst, or to go above his distance gears; as either would result in his inducing self-handicaps in the exam he could not afford. Still, he didn't take his time with it either.

Tenya arrived in a little under five minutes, skidding to a stop at the entrance as Aizawa's voice came over the speaker beside the open doorway. Trying to regulate his breathing while he listened, Tenya heard an odd buzzing or humming coming from inside the area. Perhaps the mic was having technical difficulties?

["Ida, your task is simple recovery. Locate and touch the dummy and you win. Begin."]

Bending into a running start, Tenya was about to launch himself in and start his search, only to pause as a pair of little birds fluttered down and chittered at him playfully, standing directly in his path.

"Please move, small birds!" he shouted, re-centering himself and launching off into the maze of pipework and aged steel.

They flew off like normal, but something told Tenya that they were no chance meetings. His assumptions were aided when a small colony of rats started rushing him from the side. They were only so numerous, UA being as clean and as technologically savvy as it was, but they still sent shivers of disgust through him. He leapt up and around them, checking the way they came. If Koda was sending distractions meant to unnerve him, they were probably trying to drive him away.

Thus became his plan. Whenever he saw birds, rabbits, or squirrels: he veered parallel or away from them, while rats, weasels, and voles he had to go over or around to trace back. Sure enough, before long Tenya heard the whimpering of the Midoribot.010, making him grit his teeth in annoyance.

Midoriya was quite fond of pushing himself beyond his limits, and his tear ducts did seem to be… overzealous, but such a public display of shaming or contempt on the staff's part was simply unacceptable. Tenya vowed to do his duty as class representative and have the affront rebuked before the principle as soon as the exams were complete.

Screeching to a halt, Tenya balked at the creature making the sounds of distress, sitting happily on the windowsill of an empty factory shell. It was a bright green parakeet.

As soon as it saw him, his tilted its head.

"Sorry," it said, and then flew off.

He'd- he'd been had!

Dashing back out of the building, Tenya stopped short as the entire mass of all the unpleasant creatures began to rush him in a small wave, filling the entire road they'd chosen to come by. Meanwhile, all of the more pleasant creatures seemed to be running away down a little alley he otherwise might not have noticed.

Of course! he thought belatedly, Koda-kun is not merely my opponent, but my examiner! I must think of how his personality would factor into this battle! He is a most gentle soul, and would not use such trickery except as a rebuke. The woodland beasts he sends are not to dissuade me, but to guide me!

Kicking on his highest safe gear, Tenya sprinted after the birds and squirrels, hearing the monstrous champing and squealing of the rodents behind him. If nothing else, he would not be lacking motivation to keep pace, even without the time limit.

The little critters were quite evasive, dodging in and around various pieces of architecture he would be unable to traverse. He managed to find alternate routes to stay close, but it was always a near thing, with only seconds of time for error where he could lose track of the beasts he was following before they would have become lost to him entirely.

Tenya nearly tripped as the creatures suddenly disbanded, scattering to the four winds as they reached a plain building with an open door.

If it isn't here, I don't have time to search anywhere else…

Stepping into the black maw before him, Tenya narrowed his eyes and glanced around the empty room. At the far end, standing proudly, was Koda. Beside him: the bot was indeed present. What was between them however…

"Is that… Yuwai-chan?" he asked, noticing the little bunny sitting in the center of the floor.

"Y-yes, it is!" Koda called shakily, "F-fear her wrath, Oh- O Hero!"

Tenya didn't know what he was playing at, but Koda didn't usually talk unless it was something worth saying. He had to get into the mindset of his foe. He had to play the role.

"I fear no beast of the land, nor fowl of the air, nor fish which swim in the sea, nor even those things which creep upon the stone!" he called in his most grandiose voice, "I shall now rescue that poor soul whom you've kidnapped, and leave your dreaded pet here with you!"

Ingenium (V) noticed the "villain" flinch a little when he mentioned creeping things, and remembered suddenly that while he could control them, Koda had admitted he was deathly afraid of insects and most other invertebrates.

"I see your fear of me, O Villain!" Ingenium proclaimed, bending down a little, "Your fears are well-justified! Recipro-Burst!"

He sprinted for the robot, preparing to simply go around Yuwai-chan, when a flash of white caught his attention. The little rabbit had jumped right into his path, forcing him to skid to a carefully controlled halt to prevent killing the poor, brave pet.

Turning to crash into his shoulder, Tenya barely caught her in his arms, holding her to his chest so she wouldn't be even scratched. When he finally came to a stop, he glanced down at the shivering animal, clearly terrified.

"Yuwai-chan!" Koda screamed, his own voice matching the emotions of his pet.

The boy rushed Tenya, falling to his knees and holding his beloved Yuwai to his heart and whispering small reassurances in the rabbit-speak. Evidently she'd acted of her own accord.

Tenya realized the bot was unguarded, and while it was a poor act to subvert a friend to achieve a goal, as a Hero: he had to save the civilian at any cost, even his own desire to fight fair. His engines stalled, but he managed to get to his knees and shuffle the rest of the way to the bot, which was wheeling its way towards him.

["Bot located. Ida passes. Koda passes as well. Good Work."]

Sagging a little in relief, Tenya glanced over at Koda, who seemed too engrossed in taking care of Yuwai-chan to notice he'd passed.

"Koda-kun?" he asked, scooting over to his friend, "is she alright?"

Koda nodded, breathing a little more normally as he pet Yuwai-chan's head.

"Sh-she jumped…" he said, "I told her to distract you by screaming or just being cute, but she…"

Tenya put his hand on Koda's shoulder, nodding and grinning beneath his helmet.

"She's very brave, much like her owner."

Koda gave him a shaky smile, and Tenya clapped him on the back, before trying to stand.

"Come on! We must get back to watch the other exams! I'm very pleased we were both able to pass. No doubt it is because your ingenious strategy both kept me struggling for the majority of the time, and allowed me to apply my skill to the problem in a unique way!"

"I-if you say so…"

---

Uraraka Ochako

Ochako gave Deku a shaky thumbs up, seeing his matching nerves breaking through his attempt at a brave smile. He had to test her, and based on whatever guidance he'd been given beforehand… it wasn't good.

["Uraraka,"] Aizawa-sensei's voice echoed across the canyon-like crevasses, ["Your exam is quite simple. You must make Midoriya surrender through violence. You may begin."]

"Through violence?!" Ochako asked, glancing over at the way Deku raised his gloved arms tentatively into his fighting stance.

She couldn't hit Deku! He was her best friend, her… her Deku.

What if I refuse? she wondered, before realizing exactly what would happen.

Aizawa-sensei hated irrational actions and people. If she refused to fight her friend simply because he was her most special connection and she had a massive crush on him… she'd fail and probably be expelled, no questions asked.

"L-let's have a good match, okay Senchan?" Deku called, starting to advance a little.

For my dream, she decided, for Daddy, and Ma, and even for Deku. I will win this.

"Get ready to go down, Deku!" she challenged back, clenching her fists and running as best she could in her landing boots.

Winding up, she threw her toughest punch at Deku's chest. It never reached him.

As her fist moved to an extended position, his hand came from the side and pushed her out of the way, sending her stumbling forward a little. She silently cursed her own sloppiness and spun back to come at him again, this time stopping shy of Deku and throwing a straight to try and get in close.

Deku evaded again, though this time she managed to get in another few swings before she had to reposition. Ochako realized she couldn't box against him, especially since she wasn't trained in it. Then something occurred to her, and she felt a shiver touch her skin.

Dropping into her lower stance, Ochako rushed Deku with her usual "touch-and-float" attack, sweeping her arms around trying to catch up his usually static legs. Her suspicions were confirmed when he hopped over her head, tapping the bob of her hair with a trio of fingers.

Deku wasn't fighting with his Quirk!

"Deku!" she hissed, trying not to catch the cameras or microphones' attention, "What are you doing?!"

"Um… winning?" he asked, his voice coming across as normal volume to Ochako, but he'd shown her his voice-throwing trick he'd perfected with Edgeshot.

"Aizawa-sensei'll know you aren't fighting seriously! At least fly around a little!"

He didn't answer, but he did float up into the air a bit, looking down at her in confusion. At least he listened to her.

Okay. If he's gonna use what he learned at his internship, then I have to do the same!

Switching up her tactics, Ochako pressed her fingers together; careful to connect her pinkies and thumbs so all ten pads touched together. She lifted into the air after him, holding her hands out to either side, fingers splayed apart and palms extended.

Her fingertips acted like open wires, and her body was filled with something Deku identified as "anti-gravity." If she touched something on someone else, the energy flowed out from her fingers until it completely filled the object and took effect. If she held on longer than it took to fill the object: objects connected would fill as well. Complex things like robots and people with clothes on usually just went together with one quick tap.

However, when she touched herself or her own clothes: she didn't float. Only when she inverted her hand positions so her right thumb met her left pinky and vice versa did she herself lose attachment to the earth. Thanks to Kyoka's newly improved jack, they'd figured out why. When her fingers touched together normally: she essentially completed the circuit in her body and allowed all the energy in herself and in things she'd touched to dissipate. However, if she inverted the lines: the energy built up in her body until it had nowhere left to go. Instead of just looping into the reservoir of anti-gravity she already had, as happened when she used five fingers: it overflowed and overcame her natural immunity.

As expected: her sudden mimicry of Deku's muttering made him falter in his next attack, struck by confusion and hopefully a little enamored. As his oncoming metal boot came at her, Ochako grabbed the sole and spun herself around to sit on the back of his waist, even as they continued to careen through the sky.

Wrapping her arms around his leg, she pulled and twisted it, trying to cause him enough pain to concede without hurting him. There were two things wrong with her plan, of course. The first was that it was Deku, and breaking bones didn't really do it for him anymore (not that any amount of pain had ever made him submit before, but…). As for the second: Ochako realized she couldn't bend the steel of his own landing boots, which extended up his leg further than hers did.

Grumbling to herself in frustration, she managed to grab his arm and twist it instead, only to realize she had no traction or leverage from that angle.

"Fight back, will you?" she whispered again, "You're not even struggling!"

"I'm sorry! I don't want to hit you!"

The falling sensation of butterflies in one's stomach was probably impossible while in zero-g, but Ochako's tummy hadn't got the memo.

"Sh-shut up!" Ochako sputtered, her face turning red, "Just- just punch me or something!"

Wrapping her fingers around the back of his neck and kneeling on Deku's back, Ochako tried to force him into one of the nearby buildings. Of course, he no longer flew solely by "up," so he didn't really go anywhere.

Deku threw an arm back, hitting her side and making her wince. He'd held back, and hadn't even used his "full cowl," but it was an elbow into her ribs nonetheless. In response, she wound back her leg and jammed her knee into the back of his.

"Gyah!" he gasped, making Ochako's heart hurt in turn.

"Remember: no one is invincible," Gunhead had said, "Capitalizing on enemy weak-points or vulnerabilities is a key component of fighting."

It might seem mean, but it's necessary, Ochako remembered, even though the thought brought her no comfort.

She continued to try and knee soft spots where he would feel a lot of pain but really be hurt, but Deku was pretty solid. Despite how soft he was to hold and cuddle up to, those muscles were no joke.

No! Bad Ochako! Fight now, daydream later.

Seeing as her legs weren't helping anymore, Ochako wrapped them around his waist and began to beat on his back with her fists, making sure to keep her thumbs in the right position so she wouldn't hurt her fingers. It… didn't really seem to be doing much.

As they fought, or rather as Ochako fought and Deku kind of… took it: they continued to fly higher and higher. Ochako was glad he'd forced her to push her stomach these last couple months, otherwise she'd be giving out well before now. Even so: she wasn't any further to victory than she'd been when they'd started.

Ochako started tugging on Deku's hair and ears, even pulling his cheeks and trying to get them to crash into something by covering his eyes. Nothing did much more than make him grunt in annoyance, occasionally batting her fingers away from blinding him.

Without warning: gravity suddenly came rushing back into them, and Ochako gripped Deku for dear life instead of to try and beat him.

"What happened?!" she screamed over the wind and into his ear, "I haven't released us yet, and you're not just pulling me down!"

"I don't know! It's like Ukiyo just… vanished! It's Aizawa-sensei's Quirk!" he realized, glancing back at her in fear.

As he said it, they began to slow, and Ochako felt her stomach ease a little as her anti-gravity effects ended entirely. Their Quirks were back, but they wouldn't have lost them for no reason. Deku flew them back to the ground as quickly as he could without losing control, Ochako wrapping her arms around his midsection in something that was either apology or self-comfort.

Aizawa-sensei was indeed waiting for them, arms folded and a deep scowl on his face.

"Fourteen minutes over-time," he said, clearly pissed at them, "We've had to delay because you two didn't listen when we called the match. Luckily for you: the next pair are fighting in Ground Lambda, otherwise I'd expel you for being so irrational and damaging someone else's time."

Ochako winced, letting go of Deku and bending her knees a little as she landed. Her boots took most of the fall, but habit made her displace a little into the rest of her body instead of just landing straight-legged. She wilted a little under Aizawa's stern gaze.

"Uraraka," he sighed, clearly not happy with the outcome, despite how they'd annoyed him, "You failed to make Midoriya submit. Even so, the test was more than literal. The intent was to make you face an opponent you had no hope of defeating and hopefully to force you to grow. You fought with passion, but you didn't go all in. You held back from dirty shots that could have gained you victory."

Turning to Deku, he worked his jaw a little, as if chewing on his words.

"Midoriya: your job was to make Uraraka feel inadequate. You were specifically instructed to use all of your… diverse powers to force her into desperation. But you didn't. You held back, you barely fought, and you through your lack of offensive action: you prevented Uraraka from truly showing off her potential. This, of course, results in a failure for you, Midoriya."

"And, as a combination of these reasons: Uraraka fails this exam," he sighed."

The two of them hung their heads, feeling the bitter taste and crushing weight of failure.

"Aizawa-sensei!" Deku protested, "If you have to fail me, please don't blame Senchan! I just… I didn't want to hurt her. She's- she's important to me. She's my best friend. She shouldn't pay for my mistakes."

Aizawa's scowl seemed to relax slightly, and Ochako felt her chest relax slightly. Even in defeat, Deku's affections made things seem a little better.

"I'm afraid that one of the hardest lessons you must learn as a Hero is that your mistakes cost others around you," he said, some old pain in his voice, "If nothing else: learn something from your failure today. And Uraraka: your lesson is less obvious, but just as critical. Your Quirk and your fighting skills are excellent, but they couldn't stop Midoriya, even when he was actively avoiding retaliating. Sometimes everything you have isn't enough. Next time: have a backup plan or be prepared to improvise something new."

Nodding back towards the exit, he sighed and began to stroll towards it.

"Head back to the watching room. Learn from this and be ready to win your next bouts and tomorrow."

Letting him get a little head start, Ochako waited until it was just her and Deku. He didn't seem to be in any rush either, just standing next to her and shuffling his feet a little.

"Deku, I'm-"

"I'm sorry, Senchan," he whispered, "I promised I'd take you seriously during the sports festival. That I'd fight you as a threat. But I… I didn't. And it's my fault you failed."

She waited for him to finish before taking a deep breath and speaking her piece.

"Yeah," she admitted, "You screwed up. I told you to hit me, and you still held back."

Taking another breath, Ochako continued.

"But I screwed up too. I was so focused on fighting you, and on trying to win. I… I didn't think about you like an opponent. I saw you as… as a rival. I was just so angry you weren't fighting back, I-"

Shaking her head, Ochako smirked to herself.

"I tried t' bait 'cha int' fightin' seriously," she said, giving into her accent wholeheartedly.

Deku blushed, and held up his fist.

"Well then: let's be rivals too!" he offered, "Next time we fight: I promise to hit you without holding back! I'll beat you, no matter what!"

Reaching up, she bumped her knuckles against his, but she shook her head.

"Not good enough," she grinned, "Best friends and rivals is pretty awesome, but I think we need to seal this deal, just like last time."

"Seal it?" he asked, confused.

"When we became best friends, you named me Senchan," she explained, smiling brightly, "So now that we're rivals: you have to punch me. Full force, right here."

She touched the side of her cheek with a finger, before beckoning with it.

Deku glanced down at his closed fist, then looked to her, obviously not liking her plan at all.

"Here, I'll go first," she said, making a fist and stepping into a better position.

Taking her stance, she swung and smashed her knuckles into his cheek. Deku stumbled back, reeling at the impact. He held the spot gingerly, before glancing at her with what looked like a mixture of amazement and awe. Ochako tapped her cheek again, making sure to close her jaw so she wouldn't bite her tongue.

He shuffled his feet apart and exhaled, closing is eyes and nodding. Then he swung, and Ochako felt her face explode with pain as she was pushed back a single step, her own stance able to prevent her from being knocked flat on her butt.

Okay… wow, that actually hurt.

Grinning as best she could, and wincing a little at the motion.

"Now we're officially rivals, Deku!" Ochako confirmed, smiling at him as best she could, "Let's go-"

Deku reached forward, cupping the spot he'd hit. There was so much concern in his forest-green eyes, Ochako felt her heart melt a little.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, "But I- I don't like hitting you. I don't think- I don't think I want to be rivals if it means hurting you."

Reaching up herself and cupping his hand against her face, Ochako nodded and leaned into his touch.

"Okay. We don't have to be rivals. I didn't really like hitting you either."

Letting go, she lunged forward and hugged him.

---

Ojiro Mashirao

Mashirao itched at where his hair ended at the back of his neck, a little unsure about all this.

["Okay dearies,"] Recovery Girl's voice came from the comms, ["Aizawa says you two are just gonna fight. Have fun, and try not to hurt each other too bad. Go ahead and start whenever you're ready."]

"Can do!" Kaminari agreed, giving a big thumbs up before taking up a weird stance with both feet pretty wide apart, hands at either side.

Deciding he might as well just roll with it, Mashirao snapped his tail against the ground; feeling the hard stone resist his blow more than concrete would. His feet lifted off the rocky hill a bit, but he didn't jump just yet.

Ground Lambda was very similar to Omega, which Mashirao had visited once or twice before, in that it was open-air and based around a natural landscape. However, rather than a forest theme, Lambda was centered around the idea of a mountain or gravel pit. Ridges, hills, pits, and cliffs were abundant, making dozens of pitfalls and dangerous footholds.

"Come at me, bro!" Kaminari called, not moving at all.

Bending his knees, Mashirao pushed off and whipped his tail around for some extra oomph. He flew up into the air, falling towards Kaminari and spinning to try and get some centrifugal force behind his attack as well.

A crackle of golden lightning was Mashirao's only warning, but it was enough that he was able to re-aim his tail for the rock beside Kaminari instead of hitting his friend head-on. It was a close miss.

Kaminari's Quirk was coating each inch of skin in a layer of electricity, the arcing bolts jumping from spot to spot in hair-rising snaps. Had he fought Kaminari before the study session with Midoriya, Mashirao would have leapt back after landing so close; afraid of being electrocuted. As it was, he hesitated for a moment out of habit.

Mashirao's tail could conduct electricity, but only so long as both feet were on the ground. Had he struck while in the air, the shock would have fried him; the minuscule capacity he could contain alone still too small to hold the entire power of Kaminari. Swinging again, and keeping his shoes planted, he struck at the blonde student, feeling his tail meet a forearm. The yellow charge shot through his body and down into the earth, a small amount remaining in his body but most of it releasing.

"Come on, that one didn't even hurt!"

Stepping back, Mashirao swung around again, a hand stopping his tail shy of Kaminari's face as another surge of lightning race through his body. He didn't give him time to recover, dropping to his knees and swinging his tail up and then down on top of Kaminari's head.

A pair of crossed forearms caught the blow, but they shook with strain under the weight of the impact. Mashirao winced as he pressed down, the two of them settling into a conflict of wills and Quirks.

Kaminari pushed up with her whole body, electricity discharging through Mashirao's body, while he in turn pressed down with the finely chorded muscles of his tail. Neither side would leave unscathed. Kaminari's release was larger than any burst of power Mashirao had ever felt from his friend, starting to numb his skin and send jolts of pain into his fingers and toes.

The electric-user dropped to one knee, muscles tensed by the current of energy they were forced to keep up and nowhere near strong enough to fight against the straightforward and well-honed tail. Unable to keep up, Kaminari shifted the block and let Mashirao push all the way to the ground.

Kaminari let the tail slide down one side, rolling off and down the hill a little more, gasping for air. Mashirao's tail slammed into a stone, causing it to fracture. He winced as his tail twinged painfully. Rocks were painful.

"Ow…" Kaminari wheezed, getting up and pulling free from the gravel pit which had broken the tumble.

As Kaminari's arms came free, a strange phenomena caused the two to blink in surprise. A layer of rock and dust had clung to Kaminari's fists, making them seem coated with rough armor not unlike Kirishima. Mashirao guessed it was the static energy being discharged along the fingers and forearms, no doubt thanks to Midoriya's training.

That's… not good for me.

Jumping to the loose slide of unfixed sediment, Mashirao let gravity take him closer to Kaminari before leaping onto one of the sturdier rocks and taking up a more traditional fighting stance. He brought the tip of his tail around and buried it firmly into the dirt, anchoring himself.

"Alright. One more time?" he asked, beckoning with his left fingers ahead of him, while his right arm formed a fist by his chest.

Kaminari glanced down at the new gauntlets the Quirk had helped create, before looking up and nodding.

"Yeah, man!"

Kaminari charged, pulling an arm back and throwing a sloppy but powerful punch directly at Mashirao's face. He leaned around the blow, pushing the attack out of the way and swinging a fist into Kaminari's ribs.

The punch made Kaminari stumble and cough in pain, but it didn't slow the next few attacks. Each one was over-telegraphed and far too heavy, but they were relentless. Mashirao had to dodge each one, for fear of the impact being a little too tough to handle. Even when deflecting, the ambient electricity still made his teeth twinge and his fingers numb.

At last, Kaminari swung so far that there was a moment between when the fist would strike and after all of Kaminari's weight was on one leg. Mashirao pulled his tail free and twisted his whole body around. With a seamless transition between drawing and swinging, he cracked Kaminari's back with a smack from the fifth appendage and sent his friend sprawling to the ground.

["I think that's enough, boys,"] Recovery Girl said over the intercom, ["I've seen enough. Both of you are very resourceful, and I think you're both very big and strong young men. You both pass."]

Mashirao sighed in relief, reaching down to help up his friend. Kaminari seemed a little less satisfied with the outcome, frowning a little with what looked like confusion. But then the usual grin returned, and Mashirao's hand was accepted.

The gravel luckily fell off with a simple brushing motion, which seemed to relieve Kaminari more than anyone would ever have vocally confirmed.

---

Kaminari Denki

Denki felt… off. He couldn't really place why, but he just felt… off. Like the world was tilted and he'd only just noticed. Yes, he was aware the planet had a tilt, but he'd already learned that last week. Things just seemed… off.

Wow. I'm using all the big words today, he thought sarcastically.

He kept trying to figure out what was wrong, even as uneasiness built up in his stomach. This was his last match, so it was all the more important, but if he couldn't figure out what was throwing him off soon: he might not be able to actually do much.

"Will you not attack, monsieur?" Aoyama asked, rolling his hips and making Denki wince slightly, "Very well; allow me!"

He understood that the (french?) boy had to do so to bring his laser to bear, but it was a bit suggestive and not really what Denki was into. And that aside, he wasn't really sure he liked being called french words.

Either way, Denki rolled to the side, avoiding the blue beam of light that shot from the armored belt and nearly clipped his hair. Evidently they weren't going to be taking this one as slow as Ojiro and he had.

Sprinting for all he was worth, Denki dodged around the oncoming beams, noticing with a little worry that Aoyama wasn't firing erratically. Each blast came at exactly the moment where he was just getting into range of his indiscriminate shock, and forced him to lose distance while the twinkling boy danced away.

Had he not just finished a bout against his tailbuddy, Denki probably would have just kept going until Aoyama's tummy gave out and he could zap him to kingdom come. Problem was: he had just finished a bout with Ojiro. He was kinda tired, and sore, and stiff, and a bit low on lightning. Yeah, he wasn't burning out his brain yet, but his body was learning there was a limit to how much it could fire off without rest.

Unsure what to do, he stopped running and took a second to breathe, glancing around Ground Iota for something to use as a chair or something. It was based around a sort of residential section of a city, with walls and little houses and stuff. Pretty cute; homey. The closest thing to a chair though was a fire hydrant on a nearby corner. Not really comfortable.

"Giving up so soon, monsieur éclair?" Aoyama called, clearly still having fun with this.

"Could ya just… stop calling me that?" Denki asked, breathing heavily.

"Éclair?" Aoyama asked, tilting his head a little, "But monsieur, you are nothing if not a bright bolt of électricité, no?"

"The other thing," he grumbled, leaning on his knees and noticing Aoyama was just shy of a hydrant which might block his naval laser if he could just get a little to his right.

Aoyama clicked his tongue, waving his finger bath and forth with each sound.

"Non, non, non! Monsieur!" he rejected, "you cannot trick me with so simple a ruse! Attempting to make me jabber as the colorful birds will not make me any less vigilant. I will shoot my magnifique laser without any delay in my speaking!"

To demonstrate, he fired a burst mid-sentence, making Denki dodge to the side so he was just shy of the hydrant's line of defense. Without pausing to let his enemy think, Denki charged Aoyama.

The other boy was quick, and fired almost instantly, but Denki's single step to the side was all it took to get his plan in motion. The laser sliced through the metal without issue, grazing Denki's side and making him fall to the ground in pain, clutching his ribs. An explosion of high-pressure water released from the red cylinder, knocking Aoyama off his armored feet and against a wall, his already ruined outfit taking some more dents.

As they got up, Denki felt his heart sink. The blast had dazed the other boy and soaked him, but he probably wasn't really worried about being wet at this point, and it hadn't taken him out. Denki slammed his fist into the puddle beside him, defeat and anger swelling up in his gut.

Hold up…

Glancing along the water still spilling from the hydrant, Denki realized that it was the same puddle that Aoyama was getting up in. Hadn't Yaomomo talked about water and electricity? Yeah… something about it not being conductive, except for when salt or little particles were in it?

Denki sloshed his hand through the water, feeling a bit of the gravel underneath on the road. Those were… kinda little? Maybe it would work!

Revving up what was left of his power, Denki slammed both hands into the water.

"Indiscriminate 1.3 Million Volts!" he roared, finished with this match one way or another.

The lightning raced across the wet pavement, jumping through the melting-salt enriched liquid and into the metal armor of the french examiner. Aoyama tensed and then arched his back, squealing like a stuck pig as his nerves and muscles constricted.

They two of them hit the ground together, but Denki managed to raise his fists to the sky, cupped into thumbs-up.

"W-whey…"

["Kaminari, Aoyama: you both pass. Recovery Girl, could you-? Oh, she's gone."]

The intercom cut out, and Denki continued to sway happily, barely conscious of the fact that she'd won.

After a while, Denki's brain not really registering the passage of time, there was a sudden loss of energy and everything came back into focus.

"Most excellent, Kaminari!" Aoyama cheered, "You recognized my hints and took advantage of my ploy!"

"Oh… did I?" Denki checked, still a little dazed, "Um, I mean: Yeah! I totally picked up on that! No puny weakness like range is gonna beat me!"

Recovery Girl shook her head, tapping along with her cane as she headed out of the zone. Aoyama waddled after her, clearly not nearly as comfortable in his doubly soaked armor as he'd been before the match.

---

Kirishima Eijiro

"Alright! Let's do this!"

Eijiro rushed his opponent, sprinting for the Midoribot.010. Sero didn't even offer a response, simply swinging his arm up and firing off a line of tape to the nearest skyscraper. The other one snagged the robot. He vanished with a tiny "bye."

"Hey! Come back!" he shouted after, shifting his direction to follow along behind.

Sero did not actually come back, even though that would have been a super manly move to turn around and face him. Some people…

Picking up his knees as far as they'd go, Eijiro soon found himself falling behind by longer and longer margins. No matter how hard he pushed his screaming muscles, Sero always remained either just out of reach or way out of reach. Still, he pursued him without fail, hardening his legs but leaving his joints soft, trying to take the strain off his tendons. It helped for a little.

Coming to a stop, Eijiro realized he didn't even know where Sero was anymore. He had to find the guy before the test ran down! With nothing else for it, Eijiro punched a hole in the nearest building and then one above it. He'd seen a guy in a video game do this, so it couldn't be too hard for him.

He began to crawl up the wall, punching handhold after handhold. He started with using the holes as spots to step as well, but they were kinda awkward and kept throwing off his punches, so he just went for it freehand.

"Wait a minute…"

Hardening his foot, Eijiro kicked himself a foothold. Spreading his fingers, he made a claw and hardened that. He usually went for fists, sharp or flat hands, so this was new. But they worked out pretty well.

He began climbing even faster, his curled fingers and digging feet making quick work of the concrete. In what felt like no time at all, he made his way to the roof.

Eijiro jogged over to one of the edges, out of breath and using the ledge to lean on while he looked for Sero. He didn't see anything for a bit, looking between the towers of a seemingly endless cityscape. Then a flicker of white and yellow made him perk up.

He saw it again, the little guy launching himself over and over directly towards the exit, but far enough to the left that if Eijiro was fast: he might, might be able to get there first.

"Okay… yeah, I can do this," he talked himself up, shaking out his arms and loosening his body one last time, "It's just a quick hop. Yeah… Then I'll get right back to running."

Closing his eyes, Red Riot charged the edge, gauging the distance to the lip before bounding up and out with all the force he could manage. As he caught air, he hardened his entire body. He straightened his arms as much as possible, squashing his head between his biceps as he tried to become the thinnest he could when he impacted the concrete below.

Harder, he pressed, harder. Harder! HARDER!

Pushing his Quirk further than he ever had before, Red Riot felt something just out of reach, like a hardening that was more than hardening, but no matter how much he tensed his body: he couldn't reach it. Before he could redouble his efforts, there was a sudden smashing sound all around him.

He didn't feel much pain, but he could feel the sudden crumbling of what felt like particularly sticky gravel. His eyes were still screwed closed, he broke his arms apart and tried to swim up. His hands met solid objects, but there was a curve to it. He clawed his way along, back up the furrow he'd carved on impact.

Spitting out a few pebbles and broken bits of street, Eijiro shook his head and opened up his eyes. He'd survived. That was pretty neat.

Oh crap, the test!

Scrambling out of the crater, Eijiro raced for the exit, hoping there was still time to catch Sero. The gray and white buildings blurred together as he ran, smudging as he pushed his body just as far as he'd just pushed his Quirk.

An air horn sound came from somewhere, and in the momentary distraction: Eijiro tripped, hardening his face on instinct and tumbling across the rough ground for a few meters. His head wasn't hurt, luckily, but he wasn't quick enough with the rest of his body. Numerous scratches and abrasions covered his exposed skin, making him wince as he sat up.

["Kirishima, I'm afraid you fail. Sero, you pass. Please report to the exit if you can, Recovery Girl will see to you. If not: she'll come to you."]

Feeling something in him give, Eijiro's body gave out under him. He fell to the ground, his head cracking the road. He felt… empty. And he hurt… a lot.

His legs and arms burned like they hadn't before, more in protest than they had even when he'd pushed himself to the edge of his ability. His skin felt taught and itchy, like he'd bathed in pollen or something. Without meaning to, he began to curl into a fetal ball, the position a little less uncomfortable.

Eijiro stayed like that for a bit, not even really thinking. He was supposed to win. To prove to everyone that he could make it. But he couldn't. And he didn't. That wasn't… it wasn't what he liked.

Feeling suddenly much more tired, Eijiro felt his muscles loosen up, the pain fading away a little. The tension was still there, but it was a lot lower than before.

"Oh dear. Just how much adrenaline is pumping through you right now?" a voice asked, a bit angered but concerned.

"A-Adrenaline?"

"Yes!" Recovery girl shouted, smacking his leg with a cane and making him flinch away on instinct, "In case you weren't aware: you tore every muscle in your body just now, and probably would have crippled yourself if I hadn't healed you. I haven't seen someone push their body that far and that hard without a Quirk in… decades!"

Eijiro considered; the information barely registering. He nodded along slowly, not really hearing as he waited for his brain to catch up.

"Probably because I jumped off that building," he decided, still mentally numb.

"Which building?" she snapped.

"The big one. I made a crater when I landed. I had to swim out," Eijiro explained conversationally.

Huffing, Recovery Girl stomped away somewhere. Eijiro decided to lay back down for a bit until he felt better. He wasn't really feeling bad, but that wasn't the same as good.

---

Koda Koji

Koji gave a shaky thumbs up, and Shoji spread out his six arm stalks. He seemed to be trying to make himself look as big as possible, not unlike how one would fight a bear. Koji was not scared of bears.

Whistling with all his might, Koji called for the birds. Hopefully they'd dissuade Shoji for a while and not poke him too bad. To his surprise, Shoji didn't move. Well, he moved, but he didn't walk or run. He just bent down and started scooping in the dirt.

Unsure what he was going after, Koji started calling out to the birds.

{"Bat your wings, bare your beaks, but keep your talons to yourselves please!"} he called out in his Quirk, {"My friend and I wish to test our strength, and I don't want him hurt! Please help me to show him I am strong too!"}

The birdsong felt overwhelmingly positive, so he was pretty sure that was good.

Glancing back down, Koji tensed up as Shoji held out one of his cupped hands. Inside were-

Crawling!

Creeping!

Oozing!

Twisting!

Pinching!

Skittering!

Letting out a shriek, Koji sprinted away, his deep-set terror of insects overriding his good judgement. He didn't know why, nor did he care. He just ran.

He was able to stop himself a few trees away, clutching it and spinning around to stare back at Shoji, terrified. The other boy was staring at him in confusion, tilting his head a little.

The birds asked him with curious voices, but their song fell on unhearing ears. Koji was too busy cursing himself. It was such a stupid fear. He could talk to them, for crying out loud! He could make them leave him alone if he wanted, so why was he so terrified of them?!

One of the birds twittered by his ear, making him jump in surprise. They wanted to know if he still needed them.

{"Y-yes,"} he confirmed, {"Please continue as before."}

The birds raced from around him to begin flying around Shoji's head, making sure to knock on his face with their wings as much as they could and tug at his hair. He brought up his other arms and covered his face, rendering their attacks far less effective. And still he held out that handful of-

Koji pulled himself behind the tree, his timid side mixing with his accursed phobia. Shoji didn't make any move to advance.

A sudden inspiration struck Koji as he saw one of the birds land on Shoji's arm and peck up a worm. He could have the birds eat all the bugs! But as the idea came to him, Koji felt shame build up in his stomach.

The insects were living things too. He couldn't just kill them for his own ends. No. He had to be brave about this.

["Koda fails,"] Aizawa-sensei's voice cut in, a full ten minutes early, ["Shoji, you pass."]

Koji's blood ran cold as he heard the words cut in across the forested land.

"B-but-"

["We'll discuss your scores after the exams,"] Aizawa cut him off, ["Learn from your mistakes so you can save yourself tomorrow."]

Hunching his shoulders a little, Koji felt a spark of anger flare up and then die in his chest, feeling like it was unfair that he'd been cut off halfway through his match. But he didn't make a fuss about it. He probably deserved it.

---

Sato Rikido

"So I just… stay here?" Rikido checked, watching Ojiro stretch out a little.

["That's correct, Sato,"] Aizawa-sensei's voice came over the intercom, ["Your task is to defend the dummy, and since it's stuck in cement: you can't exactly leave it alone."]

There was some reason in that, Rikido had to admit to himself.

"Um, okay."

["Go ahead and start then."]

Ojiro didn't give him any time to form up, leaping at him with a spinning whip of his tail. Rikido crossed his arms, the heavy limb knocking him aside easily. He managed to keep his feet, shifting his weight around so he didn't get knocked over. But Ojiro wasn't aiming for him.

The martial artist was jogging towards the dummy-bot, not going too fast but definitely running faster than Rikido could manage without his Quirk. Strangely, he was dragging his tail instead of bouncing it. So, without delay, he pulled out a sugar packet and downed it.

Tensing his back leg, feeling his muscles expand and tense, he rocketed after Tailman. He pulled back a punch, swinging with as much power as he could muster. Ojiro leapt aside easily, whirling around and cracking his tail against Rikido's ribs.

A sudden tensing of his entire right side made Rikido flinch and stumble, letting out a small sound of pain. It felt almost like he'd been shocked. Was he still carrying a residual charge from Kaminari?

Regardless of what had got him, Rikido didn't stop. He cut across between Ojiro and the "Midoribot," taking up a heavy stance and preparing to do whatever it took to separate the two.

Ojiro didn't rush him again. Instead he just swished his tail across the ground, prowling around in a slow circle. Here and there, he'd run in and throw a few punches or kicks, falling back onto his martial arts. Rikido worried about what would happen when he used his tail again.

After a few hits, Rikido felt his muscles start to weaken, and he popped in a few sugar cubes; crunching them as he blocked a few more jabs and hooks. As his jaw worked, he felt a little braver, and took a couple steps forward to try and counterattack. Ojiro finally brought his tail to bear, slapping it along his fists in a light but much faster attack than before.

Again, his arms tensed up, a jolting buzz running up his fingers and into his shoulders. He tried to figure out what Ojiro could possibly be doing to be inflicting such damage, but he couldn't think of even a guess. He had to finish this fight quickly, or else Ojiro might get even more dangerous.

Throwing an extra-heavy punch to make the tailed man skip back, Rikido tore open a pouch for one of his larger sugar packets. He guzzled the powder, feeling his body grow a few centimeters taller, his muscles straining against his skin and his suit.

"Come on!" he roared, lunging after Ojiro.

The martial artist deftly slid around his extended arm, pushing and pressing in just an odd way. Out of the corner of his eye, Rikido saw Ojiro's tail straining as he pushed it against the ground. As his brain registered how hard his fellow student was pushing, his own momentum pulled him away, barely stopping himself from landing face first.

Smashing a fist into the ground, Rikido whirled and tried to catch the annoyingly quick foe. He felt suddenly very tired, but he could not remember why that might be. It didn't matter. He just needed more sugar, and a little more strength.

He didn't have time to check through his pockets for more, however. Ojiro was almost at the robot! He had to get there first!

Rikido pushed himself off the ground, running in a hunched over position, what felt like weighing down on him as exhaustion slowed his strides. He just had to get a little more sugar; a little more strength…

Ojiro hopped into the air, leaping around with what looked like an effortless pirouette. His expression though; it was furious. Had the robot said something offensive? It probably shouldn't have done that.

The dummy robot's head exploded into bits of glass and gear as Ojiro's tail smashed it asunder. That was a problem. Probably. At least, he was pretty sure it was.

["Sato fails,"] a voice came from seemingly nowhere.

As it registered that the voice was the intercom system, Rikido also realized he was still running. He tried to stop, and finally dropped to the ground, slamming into what remained of the robot and feeling it break apart around him.

["Ojiro passes,"] the electronic voice from above added.

Rikido felt like he was missing something, but he was just too tired to think. He just needed to lay down for a little.

…

Sitting up, Rikido realized what was wrong. He'd overdone it with the sugar, and his brain had crashed when his Quirk had failed!

As the realization hit him, his surroundings came into focus, as did his memories. He'd failed, and now he was sitting in Recovery Girl's office. No one else was around, and he wondered why he'd woken now.

At the edge of his hearing, Rikido caught the edge of an angry conversation. Probably just outside the door. He slid out of the bed and inched towards the exit, keeping his ears peeled.

"...had to destroy the thing! We only have two other prototypes!"

That was Aizawa-sensei!

"And if you let me anywhere near them, I'll smash them too," Ojiro's voice growled, more controlled but just as angry, "What made you think those were appropriate? Midoriya doesn't deserve that kind of ridicule, no matter what kind of opinions you have on his style of heroism."

There was an amused but angry sniff.

"If Midoriya can't take criticism: he shouldn't be here. And if you can't control your emotions when he is criticized-"

"Those things aren't criticisms," Ojiro cut him off, "They're blatantly making fun of Midoriya, and even if we could presume they were legitimate criticisms: they don't belong as some kind of new robot. Just imagine what class 1-B will think of him when they realize who that was modeled after? Imagine if the Press saw one."

"And? If you're so worried about his PR: shift over to the General Education and become his speechwriter."

There was a moment of tense silence, then Ojiro's voice came again. It was tense, as if he was barely restraining himself.

"You might not care about what anyone thinks of you, but Midoriya's aiming higher than you and me. How can any other Hero take him seriously during a team-up, if they're introduced to him through those?"

Rikido worried that Aizawa-sensei would expel Ojiro, as he'd threatened to do to all of them before. Then there was a sigh.

"Good. I had to be sure you did it for the right reasons. You're right, Ojiro. That's why I made sure you all knew about them. I wanted to see how you'd act with a civilian you actively despised, and see which of you would dare to destroy them," Aizawa breathed, his voice so quiet that Rikido had to strain to hear it, "These robots weren't a jab at Midoriya as a person, they're a second test for the class I'd like you to keep secret until after the exams end tomorrow. Slander of your fellow Heroes, whether you like them or not, can't be allowed, and I wanted to see which of you would have the balls to stand up to me. You're not in trouble, Ojiro. Go on back to the observation room. Take Sato with you. He started listening in about a minute ago."

Rikido tensed up, realizing he'd somehow been caught.

"If you'd tried being that quiet in the exam, sneaking around and then ambushing Ojiro, you would have won," Aizawa mentioned, almost off-handedly.

Rikido nodded, even though they couldn't see one another.

---

Shoji Mezo

Mezo flexed his fingers, or rather his current fingers. He so often changed out what few from the ends of his six arms, he could never really consider any of them the proper shape. They didn't even always come back the same. Sometimes the eyes he grew were different colors, the ears could have points or long lobes, and often the hands weren't what he'd expected.

His current hands were all uniform, probably because he'd grown all four at the same time. They were strong and thick-boned, with little fat and what felt like excess muscle. Not particularly long or dexterous, but he didn't really think that would be an issue today.

"Foolish Hero!" Ida laughed, tossing his head back, "You will never recover this wretched citizen! Ever-after they will be in my power! MwAhahahahaHA!"

He really didn't care for Ida when he was like this. Yeah, he got the idea they had to get into character, but… overacting much?

Sighing, Mezo cracked his knuckles menacingly, both of them waiting for Aizawa to finish checking on Sato and start their match. It had already been five minutes. Ida had started monologuing around two minutes in, and already he was getting pretty creative, if annoying.

Evidently: Ida's character was a villain named: Road Runner, who would remake the world into a place where all things were fast. And anyone who would slow him; by Quirk, body weight, or simply in his way; it mattered little: he would move so fast they would never move again. There was only one question.

"So "Road Runner,"" Mezo asked, offering up a mouth on his bottom right arm, "If you're so insistent on going fast: why haven't you started running yet?"

That seemed to catch Ida off-guard. His eyes suddenly became uncertain, and he started pulling a Midoriya. He muttered about a dozen or so ideas, the words only barely audible as they echoed out of his helmet. Then he straightened up, the manic fire back in his eyes.

"It is because, O Hero: I have not yet finished provoking you!"

"What?" he asked, shaking his head in confusion, "How does that-"

"FOr YOu SEe!" Ida said, putting way too much emphasis on the words, "I cannot truly run if I am not pursued! Only in flight or need can I truly bring forth the grand movement of true speed I require and desire! So as you chase me: I will attain new heights, and come closer to the majesty of light itself!"

Mezo thought that was just about the dumbest motivation he'd ever heard.

["Very well, you may begin,"] Aizawa's voice echoed over the cityscape.

Thank Kami.

"Andsowebegin!" Ida called, turning and sprinting away with the bot in his arms, the machine starting to cry a little.

As Ida's engines sent him rocketing away, Mezo didn't bother chasing him. He'd seen Kirishima's match, and his task was the same. Just like Kirishima: Mezo wasn't particularly fast or mobile when compared to some of the other Quirks in the class. Clearly, he had to overcome that.

Instead of fruitlessly chasing, he glanced around to try and find the building that Kirishima had climbed. It wasn't far, and he made his way over to it without much fuss. Seeing the crater on the side to his right, he went to the left where the handholds still sat. He was a little taller than Kirishima, so he had to scrunch up his body a little and use his middle arms rather than his upper pair, but he was also able to climb faster, since he didn't have to waste time making the grips.

Once he was atop the skyscraper, Mezo continued to imitate the red-haired boy who'd been there before: staring out towards his foe. He was kicking up quite the cloud behind him, making this very easy.

Instead of leaping to his death however, Mezo leapt into a glide, stretching each of his arms out as far as he could and using the folds of skin between each limb as a sort of squirrel suit. He also didn't aim for where Ida was. Ida was undoubtedly faster than him, even in flight, so he had to catch the racer off-guard.

Mezo launched himself towards the straightest and most narrow lane he could find, intending to catch Ida there when he inevitably used it to get up to his top speed. He just had to hope he could both glide there first and properly predict where Ida would emerge into it. He'd only have a few moments to catch him, when Ida would have to slow down when he turned.

The wind tugged at his uniform, and the slowness which he descended with made him feel anxious. He had to have faith in his plan. If he didn't: it would fail either way.

Landing, Mezo raced up the lane, glancing down each street as he passed, looking and listening with all his might. The instant he caught a hint of the whining exhaust from Ida's engines: he stopped and inched forward more slowly. He had to be certain Ida wouldn't suspect the trap until it was too late.

Extending a tendril with a hand, Mezo held it close to the ground, waiting for the moment he would be able to grab the robot free. For a few more seconds: all was silence. Then the soft buzz of the mufflers came into hearing range.

He snapped his hand up without hesitation, feeling it catch on the robot's arm as Ida raced by. It nearly tore the tendril from his arm, but it slowed Ida enough that Mezo could pull the two of them close. At that range: he was vastly stronger than the class rep., and without much effort: he tore the bot from Ida's arms.

"NOOOOOOOOO-!"

["Ida: shut up now or you fail."]

["Very good,"] Aizawa said, ["Now. Both of you pass. Come on back. Good work.]

Mezo relaxed, dropping the robot without a care and letting out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. It was over. He'd won.

"An excellent trap, Shoji-kun!" Ida praised, "How did you know I would be here?"

Glancing at his friend, Shoji made a grinning mouth and offered it up to speak.

"You played a stereotypical villain. So I picked the most cliche spot for a showdown."

---

Jiro Kyoka

So… this is new.

"You ready?" Ochako asked, bouncing on her landing boots a little and holding up her fists in a fighting stance Kyoka knew was not comparable with the one Itsuka had fought against her with.

"Depends, did Midori kiss you all better yet?" Kyoka called back, trying to throw her off.

She noticed a bruise on Ochako's cheek that hadn't happened during their match, the purple and yellow color not very pleasant on her usually happy-go-lucky face. It remained perfectly distinct, even though her blush was a very controlled one.

"I'll be sure to leave you conscious, so you can enjoy Yaomomo fawning over your broken body," she retaliated, her trash talk no doubt fueled by her anger at failing her first match.

Staring Ochako dead in the eyes, Kyoka took a deep breath and took a step backwards, being sure to let her footfall echo a little before taking another. She hadn't been able to test this in person yet, so she doubted it would work properly, but Uwabami had drilled the timing into her all night yesterday, so it should at least throw her off.

Watching her target's face, Kyoka continued her slow circle around Ochako, keeping a constant and ringing pace. She suppressed a smile as she saw Ochako's irises flicker a little bit. She wanted to glance around, her other senses probably screaming that Kyoka or someone else was behind her, opposite where she actually was. But Ochako had already seen her disappearing trick, so she was forcing herself not to lose track of Kyoka.

Come on… just one look, she silently requested, I promise not to disappear.

Almost as if in answer, Ochako's eyes flicked to her left for a single instant, before returning to Kyoka. In that brief interval of blindness: Kyoka charged. Her jacks fluttered behind her, and she let them stay loose so they'd fall behind her where she could turn them into invisible weapons.

She couldn't close the gap fast enough, however. As she came within striking range, her jacks hissing through the air in imitation of the vipers she's learned the movements from; Ochako turned back to her. Her hands snapped upwards just as fast, and mere centimeters from Ochako's throat: caught Kyoka's jacks.

"Good try," Ochako breathed, bringing up a leg and kicking Kyoka in the gut, "But this is a straight-forward fight. Bisexual temptresses like you have no place here."

Kyoka had to admit, that was a pretty solid pun.

"I-" she coughed, stepping back as her jacks were released, "I can't believe you're straight. 'S no way… with that hair."

Ochako grinned, holding up her fists and beckoning in the American style, fingers above her hand instead of below.

"Maybe I'm not? Doesn't matter either way. Your tricks don't work on me."

"Then let's try something a little more conventional," Kyoka snarled playfully, plugging into her leg speakers and angling them at Ochako.

"Oh crap, I forgot you had those."

Not giving her a chance to dodge, Kyoka unloaded her maximum volume. The heartbeat pulse blasted out, rolling over the ground between them and stirring up the smaller particles of dirt and dust into a whirling array of debris. Ochako pressed her hands over her ears, a slight pink glow coming from her fingers as she erased her own gravity. She was tossed into the air like a leaf, spun about on the wind and her sonic waves.

Cutting off her blast, Kyoka quietly swore as Ochako drifted away, but blinked in surprise. Rather than letting herself gain distance, Ochako had released her Quirk and landed almost immediately; sprinting at her with a familiar low and rushing stance. Then Kyoka realized she had been telling the truth. This match was supposed to be a fight.

Withdrawing her jacks and pulling them behind her back so they wouldn't be caught, Kyoka ran to meet her opponent. She drew back her fist like Itsuka had taught her to and swung her knuckles into Ochako's other cheek. At the same time, Ochako lunged and gripped her other wrist.

Pain lanced into her hand as her punch knocked against Ochako's skull, but the sensation was quickly replaced by alarm. Not even flinching, Ochako lifted her clean off the ground, her gravity removed. Then she let go, and touched her hands together.

"Release!" Ochako screamed, letting Kyoka fall straight to the ground.

The hard pavement hurt as it slammed into her hands and knees, her feet unable to get below her soon enough. But she didn't give herself time to register the pain. If her imagination or her body were allowed to dictate her actions: she'd never get anywhere in this job.

Pushing off the ground, Kyoka slid under Ochako's next grasp and placed another punch into her ribs. Pulling around, she swung her opposite leg into Ochako's knee. The gravity girl flinched, dropping down a few centimeters as the pain overcame her with a desire to avoid damage. But instead of just clutching at the spot: Ochako used her fall to bash her shoulder into Kyoka's waist, knocking her over.

Normally, having a cute girl wrestling with her would have been a bisexual's dream (what kind of dream was up for debate), but when said wrestling was more of Ochako pulling on her hair and kneeing her sides and back without hesitation: Kyoka was more annoyed than enthralled.

Her jacks punctured the bodysuit and Ochako's skin at any point they could reach, sending waves of sonic energy into her enemy's body. But for each puncture she achieved: Ochako dealt her just as many blows in force. She could feel bruises of her own starting to form, and she really didn't feel great. Itsuka had hit hard, but she'd evidently been holding back if the pain from Ochako's punches were anything to go by.

At last, Kyoka managed to wrap her legs around Ochako's waist and flip her around. She slammed her into the ground with all the force she could muster; levering her elbow into her throat.

"Y-yield!" she gasped, pressing down with all the weight of her body.

Ochako slapped her cheek, and her weight vanished, but Kyoka didn't need it to continue pushing her elbow into her opponent's windpipe. The two of them held position, still on the ground, with Kyoka trying to get Ochako to surrender while the other girl tried a few more vain attacks to release her.

["That's enough!"] Aizawa-sensei's voice shouted over the intercom, ["You'll both pass unless you let up now."]

Kyoka withdrew her arm instantly, a bit of worry filling her as Ochako gasped for air. She'd gone a bit far.

Unclasping her legs, Kyoka let herself float away for a bit before Ochako reached up and caught her hand. The pink girl beamed up at her and guided her down, before releasing her Quirk.

"That was… wow," she giggled, "That was a good fight."

"A good fight," Kyoka agreed.

Then Kyoka saw the state she'd left Uravity's suit in. It was almost literally an array of tattered rags. Her boots and wristbands were fine, as was her helmet, even Midnight would probably be a bit eyebrow-raising about how her skin was showing.

Realizing sleezebags like Mineta and Sero were totally watching (as well as Kaminari, but Denki was… different): Kyoka fired her jacks into the cameras with full power, shattering all nearby.

"Aizawa-sensei!" she called, "Please tell me none of them saw her like this!"

["Don't worry, Jiro,"] he reassured her tiredly, ["I made sure the more… easily tempted students weren't around your monitors. Still, thank you for helping prevent investigations as to incriminating footage. Uraraka: Recovery Girl is coming with your gym outfit. Please put it over your costume before heading to the changing rooms."]

Exhaling in relief, Kyoka felt herself finally relax. One down, one to go. This would be a piece of cake.

"You do know you owe me a new suit, right?" Ochako teased, folding her arms and crossing her legs a little in an effort to hide her modesty.

"Oh ^^^t," Kyoka hissed, glancing back and then away with a blush, "S-sorry about that."

"Nah, I needed a redesign anyway," she comforted her, "Plus: I was thinking about getting a piece of integrated support gear, and this'll save them time."

"Um.. you're welcome?"

---

Sero Hanta

"Time to find out if all those training sessions with Bakugo paid off, huh?" Hanta asked Ashido, giving her a pair of thumbs up.

She just smirked at him and filled up her palms with globs of acid; ready to toss. Evidently she wasn't supposed to talk to him. Okay… that was mostly not unnerving.

["Begin,"] Aizawa sighed, clearly getting tired of these matches.

Hanta fired his tape with all the force he could, wanting to secure Ashido before she could get her acid out more than a few globules. But she didn't try to stop his attack. Instead: she placed her hands on her opposite shoulders and dragged them down her body in a seductive swish.

Don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it. Remember the Bro Code!

But her action was already successful. As his tape enraptured her: it melted almost immediately. Her grin was only getting wider. Oh jeez, she wasn't gonna like, smile wider than a human was capable of and go full alien on him, was she?

Acting on instinct, he fired tape at the nearest pipe and pulled himself in the nearest direction that qualified as "away." If he could just get some distance-

"Hi."

"^^^kin'!" Hanta swore, jerking himself around as Ashido slid along the pipe he was leaping over, casual as could be.

He fired another volley of tape, which she melted just as easily, even severing the line holding him to his next target. He managed to make another to save him from falling to his death, but it was a near thing.

Without pausing to think, Hanta raced to find the most defensible spot around. There was a knot of concrete and steel he saw, and it looked like it only had one entrance. He snapped across the field and into the box, turning and arming his Quirk to output enough tape to mummify Ashido whether she melted it or not.

A few moments passed; dead silent. Nothing moved. Nobody came. It was just the wind.

Then something dripped.

Hanta spasmed at the sudden noise, leaping back and slamming his back into one of the nearby pipes as he fired a line on accident. It soared out into the air, landing on a wall and fluttering there aimlessly. He couldn't figure out where the sound had come from which had spooked him though.

The sound came again, and he twisted to try and see it. Hanta's eyes caught a single drop of white fluid, almost like it was suspended in midair for the instant he saw it. Then it dropped down and hissed against his footing.

Glancing up, he saw a hole starting to form in the concrete, and a familiar evil face peering down through it.

"Heeeeey."

Hanta screamed in terror, jumping out and then firing his tape towards the most fragile looking pipe he could, trying to break it open and find an escape. Instead: the segment broke off entirely. The opportunity presented itself, and without wasting another moment: Hanta hurled the metal at Ashido's face.

There was a satisfying clang as something impacted. Ashido fell off her perch and straight towards the distant ground. Hanta watched her fall with trepidation before realizing she was knocked out and gonna land on solid concrete.

"Uh oh."

He fired his tape again, this time trying to catch her for her own good. He aimed for her face, hoping there would be a dry patch he could catch either where he'd hit her or just so she could see.

It almost seemed like he wouldn't catch her for a moment there, but then his grip caught on her shoulders as well and she started swinging instead of falling. Then his tape caught a pipe and she was more firmly secured.

He made his way down cautiously, not sure if she was playing possum or not.

["Sero: get her down from there so Recovery Girl can save her life. She's not faking."]

"How can you be sure though?" he breathed, inching just a little closer.

["Because if she is then she just shook off a concussion that would send most pros reeling. You two pass, but don't ever hit someone like that again."]

"Yes sir."

---

Tokoyami Fumikage

["You may begin,"] Aizawa-sensei yawned.

Without hesitation or pause, Bakugo launched himself from beside the Midoribot.010, arm extended to grab at Fumikage's face.

"Go, Dark Shadow!" he roared, sending out his Quirk to intercept the oncoming attack.

Dark Shadow let out a roar of joy and challenge, her claw raking across the air where Bakugo ought to be. But he'd dodged, blasting around in midair and avoiding her counterattack. Unlike when they'd been in the air: he didn't have to fight gravity constantly to gain ground.

The blast caught Fumikage in the stomach, knocking him back and making Dark Shadow screech in pain. He barely restrained his own pain to a small grunt; followed by a hiss between his teeth as he hit the concrete. Had his teeth been parted to vocalize his injury: he would have bitten his tongue off.

"DIE!" Bakugo screamed, slamming his knee into Fumikage's stomach and bringing his hand towards his face.

Cracking his fingers as they clenched into a fist, Fumikage slammed his knuckles into Bakugo's face as hard as he could manage. The punch was too slow and projected, and as expected: Bakugo caught it with ease. His Quirk crackled along the skin between their hands, burning Fumikage's fingers.

Unable to think of anything else, Fumikage resorted to his avian appearance and pecked at Bakugo's face. The boy was quick alright; leaping back and away before he'd even got close. Still, it meant Fumikage could get back to his feet before Bakugo hit him again.

Almost as if taunting him: Bakugo advanced with his palms covered; clenched into fists. He dodged Fumikage's next jab with ease, and sent his retaliation strike right into his ribs. He bobbed and wove with the grace of a viper and the speed of a hunting stork. Truly: he ruled with an iron fist not only Quirk control but physical ability; his sheer talent a seemingly insurmountable dark monolith.

Trying to use what Hawks had taught him about speed, Fumikage launched Dark Shadow out with blinding movement and accuracy. She managed to force him to defend, deflecting off his gauntlets and managing a scrape along his arm. Then the fingers parted and the crackling drove Dark Shadow back inside.

This time he came from the back. The explosive boy rocketed over and around him, clearly aiming to pummel him without risk of retaliation from his beak. It was just the opportunity Fumikage needed.

Swinging around, Fumikage tried another punch, knowing it wouldn't hit. As expected: Bakugo was already swinging around to grab his arm and place a palm against his back.

"You're roasted, Bird-brain," he growled, crackling his Quirk against Fumikage's spine and making him gasp in pain, "You give?"

"You… you lose…" Fumikage ground out around the wheezing from the lances of red-hot pain, "You were- too blind to even see my darkness."

"The fu-"

["Fumikage Passes,"] Aizawa-sensei's voice came over the intercom, a slight edge to it, ["Dummy recovered. Bakugo: you fail."]

"What?!" Bakugo roared, dropping Fumikage and spinning around.

Extended from Fumikage's stomach and then down between the fork of their legs, using both shadows for cover as she slid past Bakugo's defenses, Dark Shadow had a single wing placed atop the Midoribot's head, a slight creaking coming from the metal as her grip tightened. He could sense her distaste at the device, but restrained her from destroying it for the sake of the exam.

"I didn't try to hit you when you went for my back, foolish one," Fumikage sighed, falling to a knee as his body started to alert him of damage in earnest, "I knew my darkness could not prevail against your blinding flare, nor that you would miss Dark Shadow's crusade elsewhere when she could aid me."

Bakugo was smart enough to figure out the rest on his own. He'd turned them away from the dummy just long enough to get her gambit in, sacrificing himself and his own safety for the chance of victory.

"Tch."

Stepping forward, Fumikage placed a hand on Bakugo's shoulder. Then slammed his fist into the boy's gut. Bakugo winced, bending at the waist a little but not vocally complaining.

"That's for Pony," he growled, drawing back and punching again with Dark Shadow's strength, sending the other sprawling in pain.

---

Todoroki Shoto

Strange. He hadn't expected such an opponent.

"Ya know, this doesn't seem… super fair," Sato noted, glancing around the already ruined buildings the two stood in, "I'm kinda… not even in your league."

Shoto nodded. The statement was quite true.

They were positioned in the center of a ruined street, the Midoribot.010 encased up to its midsection in concrete. Clearly he was supposed to defend the single spot, and not evade.

"You already had to fend off this same examination," Shoto noted, "Do you have any advice?"

"Um… don't get too far from the thing."

Then Sato turned and walked inside the nearest building. Strange. Most strange.

["Begin."]

A sudden crumbling came from where Sato had been, and Shoto flared up his flames, ready to ward off the no-doubt charging boy. His Quirk flickered out as awe shot through him. Sato wasn't charging; he was destroying the supports for the tower, and it was falling directly on top of him and the robot.

Firing up his ice, Shoto managed to catch it with a glacier before it fell too far. Only to tense as the next in the row fell into the ice and sent two pillars of concrete, glass, and steel descending towards him.

Without waiting for the third, Shoto started freezing the entire street, trying to prevent any more from falling on him or the bot.

["H-help…"] the robot squeaked, and Shoto spared a glance back at it.

The machine had started crying, and the ice was starting to freeze the pipes inside, ice trails coming from the photo-receptors that were in the place of eyes. If he wasn't careful: the thing would explode from the inside!

Shoto created some flames on his arm, stepping back and holding them close to the machine so it would remain more regulated. Its tears started flowing again, and nearly put out his fire, making him even less favorable of the insult to his friend it represented.

Sato continued to try and force the buildings lower and lower atop them, even running to the other side to start collapsing them as well. Each time Shoto would make a glacier to hold them off, careful to keep his robot target and himself in the safe zone for temperature.

Soon enough they were covered in an arctic shell, though periodic booms told Shoto he was being buried even as the ice kept them safe. He just had to outlast the timer, but doing so wasn't going to be pretty.

Each time the ice around him cracked or groaned, Shoto reinforced it, but that was only the superficial problem. As the cold seeped in on them, Shoto had to keep his flames up, which were starting to damage the very ice keeping them alive. And for each repair job he did: he had to warm them up more, which just made it break all the sooner.

Here goes nothing…

Readying his ice one final time: Shoto filled the dome with all he could, shrinking the available space until it was just him and the robot a few millimeters apart. He fired his flames out along the ground as best he could, carving air tunnels into the structure so his heat would have somewhere to go; approximating an oven as best he could.

His gamble paid off, and the walls held. The Robot also kept squirming and acting normal, so… it was probably okay.

"Would you like to leave?" a voice asked from near his foot.

Shoto jumped back, preparing to incinerate the new arrival. Only to see it was Cementos, tunneling under to get them.

"You two've made quite the mess," he noted, "Eraser says you both pass, however."

Shoto nodded, feeling some tension leave his body.

"I would like to leave, yes."

"Very good. Leave the bot, it's scrap at this point."

"Oh. Can I destroy it then?"

"...sure kid."

Shoto leveled his hand at the annoying affront to his friend and annoyance in the test, and in a single motion: melted the thing's face.

---

Hagakure Toru

Toru shivered, really not wanting to deal with this matchup.

It's fine. Just… don't get caught.

Glancing around the edge of the tree, Toru felt her blood run cold as she saw what sat between her and the exit gate. Each square meter of ground was covered in purple spheres, and each tree around was similarly decorated. She'd never get passed them without catching her foot or hand on at least one. Even worse: their creator wasn't anywhere in sight.

It probably wouldn't have been as bad if the support company had finished constructing her costume proper. Sadly, because her Quirk only affected her own body: they'd had trouble synthesizing the right materials, even with her hair integration. As it was: she was wearing exactly nothing right then; her boots and gloves neatly set down at her starting point.

No doubt that little gremlin's already found them and done something with them… Note to self: burn Hero Costume. Maybe ask Todoroki?

She didn't have much time left. For all his faults: Mineta had been clever in clustering his attacks here at the exit. It was a bottleneck he'd no doubt prepared with the vigor that only erotic things could pull out of the little perv. Toru had to find a way through, no matter what might happen.

Selecting a few spots where she might be able to get through, Toru took a moment to find a couple pebbles before starting. Her feet were a bit calloused, thanks to her training to act in invisibility, but not nearly enough to avoid making her flinch when she stepped on something irregular. But that wasn't why she needed the rocks.

See, without the ability to see her own toes: Toru couldn't precisely set them down between balls. Sure, she'd learned to balance far better than someone who'd only just become invisible, but there was only so much instinct could provide. So: she clutched a pebble between her big doe and the others in her feet, squeezing them for all she was worth as she tried to tip-toe through the maze of sticky traps.

The first meter or so was easy. There was enough room for her to walk normally, even. But then they got closer together, and made more difficult paths. It looked like he'd built it from the inside out, so he didn't have to leave himself a path when he finished. The last jaunt was almost entirely impassable.

Toru looked up and down the solid layer of balls obscuring her path, trying to find any way around or through. Nothing appeared. She'd have to either give up or try jumping over. If she failed though…

"Hagakure-Chan!" a voice shouted from the forest, "I see you've fallen for my most devious trap!"

She turned around, seeing Mineta himself standing at the edge of the mass, starting to step through them without a care, each one simply jostling aside or bouncing against him. Oh no.

"All I have to do is knock you atop my new move: Bouncy Bed, and your whole body'll be trapped!" he cackled with glee, "and then I'll be able to do whatever I like. No one will be able to see anything."

"...NOPE!" Toru decided, turning and trying a standing long-jump just like she'd done back during the first day of class.

Better to try and fail than to give in willingly. Plus, if she landed on her face, at least her chest would be safe from him.

The extra terror and adrenaline managed to propell her over all but the last row, which caught her calves as she hit the ground hard in a puff of dust.

["Hagakure passes. Mineta also passes."]

Toru turned around to see if he was following, and it took a moment for her brain to catch up with her eyes. Mineta was just sitting there, not having moved from where he'd got to after laughing. He… hadn't attempted anything. He'd just… scared her into making the jump she'd needed to win.

"I owe you nothing," she hissed, absolutely certain he would ask for a favor in return for his "help."

But Mineta surprised her again. He just walked right passed her, not even glancing down at her.

"You're welcome," he sniffed angrily.

But despite his aloof attitude, Toru thought he seemed a bit… sad.

---

Bakugo Katsuki

What were those morons thinking, making him fight a weakling like her? She could barely fight, let alone challenge him. He'd crush her in an instant; annihilate her even.

That was: if she would woman up and actually come out!

"Where are you?!" Katsuki screamed, unable to locate his opponent after ten minutes of searching.

He'd got close, he knew. Every so often there would come a shuffle of feet or a small giggle at his expense, and he'd unload a blast into the general direction it had come from, but to no avail.

"Streaker!" he roared, "Come out and fight me!"

"Fite me!" came a distant shout, followed by poorly restrained snorts and laughter.

Katsuki sprinted towards it, flying up and then diving down with a heavy blast where he saw some dust kick up from the ground. But as his explosion cleared: there wasn't so much as an impression in the dirt from where she'd been.

^^^kin' Hagakure.

"Fine. You don't wanna come out? Then I'll just have to find you and beat you until you wish you'd used your chance to actually fight!" he decided, raising both his hands above his head and cupping them slightly.

He hadn't used this attack before, but he'd managed a little control earlier on, so hopefully this would work. He unleashed his Quirk at full power; directing all the energy into itself in his hands. The blast glowed like a small star, sending out a blast of light and a shockwave directly over his head.

"STUN GRENADE!"

"Ah!" Hagakure squeaked, the afterimage of her outline appearing for a single second between his squinted eyelids as the light caught on either the dust particles or her Quirk or somethin'.

It didn't matter what. He knew where she was now, and she was at least momentarily blinded. Katsuki swung his hands behind him and launched himself at her. There was a patter of feet, and while he was sure he was close: he didn't catch anything in his gloves. Still, he'd proved the concept.

"One more!" Katsuki declared, unleashing a second Stun Grenade blast across the area.

Once more: Hagakure's outline appeared, a hint of her face visible as she glanced back at him. She was right next to a wall. He had her.

"DIE!"

Flying one last time, Katsuki launched across the empty space between them and grabbed hold of her hair. He prepared to blow her away when the intercom cut him off.

["Bakugo, if you attack Hagakure: you will fail. If you let go: you pass."]

Cracking his fingers on their own, Katsuki took a deep breath before letting go.

["Good. Hagakure: you also pass."]

"Thank you," she sighed, the sound of her hand ruffling through her hair (probably to try and soothe her scalp) coming from nearby, "I'm gonna go take a nap now. This day has done murder to my heart."

---

Midoriya Izuku

"I won't hold back this time, Todoroki-kun!" Izuku told his friend, clenching his fist and grinning, "I'm gonna give this everything I've got, so don't let me down!"

Todoroki nodded, then fired a massive glacier at him. Izuku leapt back, Ukiyo lifting him into the air with a familiar ease and sending him out of range in a moment. He'd tried to figure out his percentages again, just so he'd have a frame of reference, and he'd guess he was currently considering his "fast" about 30%. Fitting, he supposed.

The glacier Todoroki had produced was blocking his direct sight to the last Midoribot.010, but Izuku could tell where it was. He charged up his 6% Full Cowl, feeling his skin tingle with a mixture of mild numbness from the electricity and excitement. Angling himself just right; he launched himself down the side of the ice like a blast from a cannon.

Another wall of frozen water started rushing towards Izuku, but he didn't flinch as it neared, forcing him closer to the first. Instead, he shifted his control of Ukiyo from flying to choosing his new "up." The original glacier's side became the floor, and he continued to sprint along it.

Having spent so long with Senchan on ceilings, training his body to consider new axis of direction, it was second nature to have his Quirk cancel out gravity and then apply a new "down" to help him get traction. It meant he didn't get the 30% speed boost from his normal flying, but that opened other doors.

Leaping from his perch as a gout of flame shot at him, Izuku slid sideways for only a moment along the top of the second ice attack before moving forward once more. Todoroki was faster with his Quirks, and far more experienced. He even had the numeric advantage, seeing as Izuku didn't want to risk his Blackwhip except in greatest need. But Izuku had something stronger than sheer power or even skill. He understood himself, and he understood others.

Bending his knees, Izuku leapt off the ice and twisted in midair, arcing over and around Todoroki and the robot in a perfectly freefall arc. Todoroki expected him to fly. Expected him to change course. Expected him to do something other than let his inertia take him away from his target. And in that expectation: he shot flames everywhere but where Izuku actually was.

Clenching his fist, Izuku stopped dead on the ground, using Ukiyo to stop his backwards skid. Then he twisted his perspective one more time, setting the robot before him as "down." He rocketed down towards it, tightening his legs in their impact boots and forcing the full six percent of his safety margin through them.

60% Torino-style "Badlands smash!" Izuku roared, racing towards his target.

Todoroki was quick alright. He managed a new wave of fire, which would have scared Izuku away if he hadn't had an ace in the hole. Tensing his ears, Izuku let Blackwhip emerge from the lobes, directing the tendrils to wrap around his head. It was a pitiful armor, especially at the 4% limitation he could actually control them without hurting himself, but it stopped him from flinching.

The heat passed, and while it hurt the tendrils: they didn't burn, and the pain didn't last.

The crackling, shimmering sound of ice alerted Izuku that Todoroki wasn't going to let him have it so easily. So Izuku went all in, just like he'd said. He let Blackwhip fade away and kicked Ukiyo up to 30% for two seconds, before firing it the opposite direction to make sure he didn't blast whatever was passed the robot. Todoroki was at the side, so there was no danger of killing him, but there might be a building or something.

180% Torino-style "BADLANDS SMASH!" Izuku repeated, screaming the attack as he felt the ice and then the metal crumple and explode against his boots.

He held true to his attack, fueling it with all of his energy and any anger he could muster. In the last microseconds, his eyes caught the green paint of the dummy. The dummy Aizawa had based on him, supposedly.

It was a crying, pitiful, unhappy thing; supposedly representing someone who acted without thinking and would shatter under the simplest pressure. Aside from the tears, only the paint job was even vaguely related to him. Izuku was not an idiot. He was not someone to be watched like a child who wanted to play in traffic. He was a Hero! And if that robot's existence meant someone didn't see that… then the robot had to be removed. Utterly.

The metal of his suit tore asunder, the impact springs and other systems giving out as he overclocked them one final time. His actual legs felt a bit bruised, and he didn't think he'd be able to walk without wincing tomorrow, but they weren't broken. Blackwhip had managed to hold together where his boots had failed, though it didn't feel nearly as strained as the first time he'd used it to reinforce his body, nor even as tight as using it did when he'd trained with Yaomomo.

Opening his eyes, Izuku glanced around. He was hovering in place, still parallel to the ground, but nothing was moving. Todoroki was staring at him in awe, and then back at the spot where his charge had been.

There was nothing where the robot was, its parts disassembled into shredded metal fragments along the ground below him in an explosive cone pattern. And behind it, where the ice was: there was a perfect reflection of the robot's debris but made of ice crystals, almost as fine as snow.

"I think… I think you got 'im," Todoroki said, clearly stunned.

["Midoriya? Can you move?"]

Izuku landed on the ground, being careful to turn off Ukiyo so he could prove it. He checked his arms and squatted a little, wincing but not collapsing. He let the lightning fade and hopped back into the air.

"Yes, sir."

["Fine. You two pass."]

Izuku let out a sigh of relief, and Todoroki held up a thumbs up. He quickly returned the gesture. That'd been tense. He worried he'd end up being the only one to fail two exams. Now only Yaoyorozu could attain such an honor, and… yeah, she'd pass no problem.

"Would you like to go watch the remainder together, Midoriya?" Todoroki asked.

"Yeah! I'll grab Senchan and we can watch Yaoyorozu's matches!"

"Right…"

---

Mineta Minoru

What a prime opportunity… What a mouth-watering, tongue-tying, nerve-wracking, spine-tingling, finger-numbing chance.

["Mineta,"] Aizawa-sensei's voice came over the intercom, ["You have twenty minutes to escort this "villain" to the prison location at the other end of Ground Omega. That is all, begin."]

"You heard him, villain," Minoru smirked, linking together a few balls into a chain and then attaching one end to Yaoyorozu's cuffed hands, "Let's go."

So they walk through the forest. The forest where the cameras don't reach. The forest where no one's around for kilometers.

Keep it together! Think of the onsen!

Clenching his fist on the ball chain, Minoru tried his best not to look at Yaoyorozu. She was temptation, that was all. If he could just block her out for a little bit and deliver her, it would all be fine.

Yaoyorozu started humming, clearly trying to get him to look at her, but he wouldn't do it. He had to be strong! He would just have to hum louder! And out of tune so she could be discouraged!

So he did just that. He placed his lips together and buzzed his throat as loud as it would go.

"MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!"

She continued to hum back, so Minoru hummed louder. They fought for who could hum the loudest as he continued to lead her towards the exit. Unfortunately for her: he had trained his lungs extensively in the hopes of impressing a girlfriend during- well, he could hum for a really long time.

As the exit came into sight, he grinned and began to pull Yaoyorozu more quickly up the hill. She came… oddly easily. Minoru had fought off long enough. Surely at the end he could spare a glance?

He turned back, wondering if she'd started flying or hovering as they went up. He certainly wouldn't say no to seeing her bounce up close.

"-and I'm leading a drone," Minoru sighed, realizing why she'd been making him hum.

No doubt while they'd walked she'd easily broken free of the cuffs and had made a little drone which would float along at wrist-height; the one currently attached to what remained of his ball chain and her restraints. She'd just needed to distract him from the buzz of its propellers.

["Mineta: you fail."]

"^^^n."

["Yaoyorozu: you can come out now. You pass."]

A distant shout of "Pan!" came from the forest. Mineta felt himself die inside a little.

["You can come out of the forest, Yaoyorozu,"] Aizawa sighed.

---

Yaoyorozu Momo

Oh, she couldn't do this. This wasn't fair.

"Oh…" Kyoka said in a seductive voice, lifting her cuffed hands up as far as the chains connected to the table would allow and resting her chin in them, "They sent a Hero to break me. And a pretty one at that."

She winked, and Momo felt her heart start to run through failure drills. Even bruised and beaten after Ochako's exam: Kyoka was still pretty. Strike that, she seemed exceptionally pretty because of her injuries. They spoke to her resolve and strength, and made Momo's mind flit across so many thoughts she was quite certain were improper for a Hero to have about someone they were interrogating.

"There is no use for flattery here, v-villain!"

"Are you… certain?" Kyoka asked, still using that sultry tone.

"Yes!" Momo decided, slamming her hand down on the table, "I am most certain!"

"Pity," Kyoka yawned, "I was just thinking that we could totally make out and then steal the vid from the security cams to rewatch later."

Momo's face felt like it was on fire. She couldn't do this. There was no way she could-

No! she mentally berated herself, I can do this!

"The security tapes are strictly the property of this facility. Theft would be only adding to the trouble you're in, m-missy."

"Missy? Ohohoho! Someone's feeling playful."

Kyoka leaned down on the table a little, waggling her jacks in their little confinement case by her hands.

"Let me out and I'll let you call me Mistress too."

Turning away, Momo made a tiny stress ball shaped like a matryoshka doll; squeezing the Creati-themed item as she tried to relax. She had to stay in control of this.

"I understand you hid the items in question in a safe?" she asked as aloofly as possible, "One with a six-digit combination to open."

Kyoka snorted. An adorable noise that was most certainly not allowed.

"Psh, yeah. But you'll never find it. Now my handcuffs on the other hand. Not these clumsy things, but my fuzzy ones at home-"

"We already have the safe in our possession," Momo informed her, still looking away and squeezing her little item, "We'd have already broken in and sent you off to sentencing if not for the delicate nature of the item. And, of course you no doubt have some secondary defense in mind to prevent damage from allowing entry."

"Of course," Kyoka purred, "Such a smart girl."

Help!

Momo cleared her throat, trying to buy time as she recovered.

"In that case, I'm here to offer you a deal. You give us the code: and I testify at your trial that you aided in the recovery. Your sentence will be lightened."

"Hmmm… nah."

"No?!"

"Nah," Kyoka confirmed, "I'm good."

Because of course it wouldn't be that easy. It wasn't like Kyoka would just let her pass easily because she batted her eyelashes and asked nicely. Then again… she hadn't asked nicely yet, had she?

Turning back around and storing her little plush in her belt, Momo silently apologized to Kyoka. She stepped over to the table, leaning down onto her elbows and intentionally drawing attention to her chest. She saw how Kyoka's eyes shook, nearly flicking down from her face. But only the eyes. Her cheeks remained just as pale and wonderful as always-

No! Focus!

"Miss Jack," Momo asked politely, pouting a little, "Please give me the combination."

Kyoka smirked, leaning forward until she couldn't get any closer. She was about a hand's length away from her nose, but it was already making Momo realize how close they were. How inviting her lips were. How-

"Sorry honey," she whispered, "But I'm not that easy. Thanks for the view though."

"Kyoka!" Momo hissed, unable to contain her own blush, "You're not making this easy!"

"Sorry," she said again, laughing a little, "But I'm having too much fun playing at bad kitty. Maybe offer to trade me a Creati-brand toy or two, if you know what I mean?"

Creati brand…

Momo felt the flicker of an idea pass her mind, and she caught hold of it. It was vague, but she didn't see how it fit her situation. It seemed so polar opposite to her current situation.

Pulling out her little stress ball, Momo glanced at it and then over to Kyoka, still smugly smiling at her, a seductive aura radiating from her body.

Opposite…

Yes. Kyoka was acting opposite to how she usually did. Even when they were alone, the topic of sex and intimacy always made her more flustered than Momo. So then why was she now able to intimate it so freely? Surely even her acting was not so skilled as to let her overcome her embarrassment this easily. There had to be something else. Something she was missing.

Unless Kyoka sees such acts as so improbable and so far off… she can completely separate the thoughts of them and us in her mind. In which case… I need to circumvent her workaround and force her to think of the direct results. What results from such acts?

Momo squeezed her little plush again, smiling to herself. She'd had a copy placed in the front of her book, so even during a patrol break or off on a mission: she could look at it.

Pulling the Yaoyoictionary from her back, Momo slammed it down onto the table with a grin.

"You're not gonna start making me read that, are you?" Kyoka asked with a bit of arrogant worry, before switching back to her other voice, "I might break if you did that."

"No," Momo smiled sweetly, turning to the first page, "I just never showed you this picture."

Emblazoned just passed the cover was a water-paint picture, delicate but crude strokes depicting a child's artistry. Air Jet, Creati, and an unknown Heroine were all present, flying into the sky with one another's help. The colors were bold, the lines thick, and the overall presentation quite amateurish. But it was heartfelt, and even now Momo felt her heart tighten while looking at it.

"Where'd you get this?" Kyoka asked, sounding genuinely surprised and evidently dropping her act.

"This is the masterpiece of one Ito Sakura-chan. She was a little girl I met on my internship who thought I was the coolest and prettiest Hero."

"Well, she was right, wasn't she?"

There it was, but Momo had her counter ready.

"Perhaps," she admitted, "But it made me think… kids are adorable, aren't they?"

"Psh, yeah. Kids are always cute. Most are little ^^^ts though."

"Hm… Still, I think I'd want a daughter," Momo admitted softly.

Kyoka stiffened, her eyes widening.

"Wh- wha-"

"I'm quite certain I can develop some method of transferring my DNA to you or Shiozaki," she said conversationally, her brain in chemistry mode so it didn't trip her up.

She'd learned from Kyoka's method, and while it wasn't very original: it allowed her leapfrog her crush's attack.

"Though, even if I couldn't: I would want to adopt. The idea of having a little girl to take care of and love, alongside those I care about…" Momo placed a hand over her heart, closing it around nothing and sighing longingly.

For a moment, they were silent. Then Kyoka shuffled her hands around, and the handcuffs rattled.

"You'd be a great mom," she mumbled.

"I'd have you be there with me," Momo reassured her, "Presuming we get that far. I might fail, and then you'd never see me again. It would be truly heartbreaking."

Kyoka frowned at her, seemingly wary.

"Y-you know I can't just give you the code. Y-you have to interrogate me."

Smiling, Momo closed her book and put it away. Then she laid across the table, looking up at Kyoka with a disappointed expression.

"That's what I've been doing. You just keep saying "no." It's quite disrespectful, especially after offering to let me call you mistress."

And that was the ticket. Kyoka's face went up in scarlet, panic running through her eyes as she no doubt tried to recover her control. But Momo had sabotaged that route. Each time she tried to disassociate sensual topics from their relationship: images or words regarding a child that they'd taken in together, either by flesh or by paper, would inevitably flicker through and reattach the two subjects.

"Now," Momo smiled, turning so her physical curvature would be on full display, "About that code?"

---

Shota Aizawa

"Okay then, that's everyone," Shota sighed, laying back in his seat and relaxing a little, "Go get cleaned up and then meet in the classroom to receive your reviews. I'll be there in twenty minutes. After that you can go home."

Shutting off the intercom, Shota rubbed at his eyes. He'd been staring at the stupid screen all day, and despite sufficient backlighting to help prevent eye damage: his retina's still stung like he'd been grinding his palms into them or something.

Making me assess them all on my own… This was Nezu's doing, he decided, before shaking his head.

No, he couldn't lay blame. Blame was irrational. It didn't change anything.

Grabbing his review papers, Shota got out of his chair and cracked his back. His age was starting to catch up with his lack of sleep. He'd have to be careful about that.

Thoughts of how he might be able to improve his health continued to bounce around in his head as he made his way out of the observation room and towards the main school. His students should, should get there first, but he'd just pushed them to their limits twice in one day, so he was willing to give them a three-minute delay while he walked.

As expected, when he pulled the door aside, they were all sitting up and properly in their seats, the air of having just shut up and hidden their conversation poses. Good.

"Aoyama," he began without preamble, "You were tested on how far you were willing to go against your own desires to be flashy. Asui: you were supposed to get him to find a way to win when his laser wasn't able to hit a target directly. You both succeeded. Good work."

"Oui oui!"

"Kero."

"Ashido: you were tested on your ability to remain calm in the face of the unknown and on time-management. You nearly failed, but your success in the prior overcame your lack in the latter. Work on it. Tokoyami: you were supposed to force her to think of a way to attack without her Quirk and act without relying on brute force. She did."

"Thanks, Aizawa-sensei!"

"Hm."

"Asui: you were tested on how you would deal with an enemy who you couldn't damage conventionally. You exploited an alternate avenue with little delay after confirming your suspicion, but you also cause major collateral damage. Improve your observational skills. Kirishima: you were told to make her feel weak and her power futile. I see no reason to dispute your success."

"Kero!"

"Manliness always succeeds!"

"Ida: you were tested on your ability to utilize your speed in delicate situations and get inside the head of an opponent who didn't think as straight-forward as you. You nearly guessed wrong. Think before you run next time. Koda: you were supposed to confuse him but ultimately guide him. Be sure to get better control of your rabbit next time. Otherwise: well done."

"Sensei!"

"Mhm…"

"Uraraka…" he sighed, hitting their first failure, "You were tested on how far you could use your actual combat skills. While later on you more than proved you have grown in that area, in your evaluation you held back and failed to impress. I don't doubt it was due to your opponent being someone you don't wish to hurt; and with no easy way to defeat him like you could during the sports festival: you panicked. Learn to think clearly and logically through your emotions."

She nodded, seeming to wilt a little.

"Midoriya: you were supposed to make her feel powerless and beat her senseless to test her ability to keep going when weakened. You refused to even fight back, and while your Quirk did perfectly counter hers: it didn't make her experiment or make her desperate enough to overcome her own mentality. You can't hold back so casually. I know you've got your whole "save everyone" mentality going on, but there will come a day when you have to kill someone if you're going to be a top Hero. Make sure you're ready when that day comes."

Midoriya swallowed, clenching his scarred hand and nodded. Good.

"Uraraka: your exam tomorrow will be conducted by Thirteen. Todoroki will be your sidekick for the exercise."

She glanced to the scarred boy, who nodded in what seemed like assurance. He deliberately left out who Midoriya would be paired with and against, and his glare told Midoriya not to ask. Then he moved on.

"Ojiro: you were tested on fighting someone you couldn't touch directly. …Evidently we picked the wrong partner, but nonetheless you were able to significantly show your growth to all of us. Good work. Kaminari: you were instructed to make him think outside the box. Not only did you do so, but your gravel gauntlets were quite clever on short notice. Keep it up."

"Thank you, sensei."

"Right on!"

"Kaminari: you were tested right after, namely on your ability to deal with distance and when low on power. With only one mistake possible, you acted cleverly and effectively. It will help make up for your written score. Aoyama: you were told to make Kaminari do something crafty while also being frustrating enough to potentially force a slip up. You did so, but a bit obviously. Work on your acting."

"Uh-huh…"

"Mon capacité d'agir est bien…"

"Kirishima: you were tested on your mobility," he said, directing his words to the next failure, "While you showed a profound lack of fear and a level of ingenuity in out-smarting your opponent, you ultimately wasted time and didn't catch him. Power Loader will oversee your exam. Ida will be your sidekick."

"Yes sir…"

"As for you Sero: you were supposed to push him to realizing he couldn't catch you with just his legs. He did eventually figure it out, and his time-wasting wasn't on you. Don't lose focus though."

"Koda: you were tested on overcoming your fears. You've already begun to speak more freely since the beginning of the year, but that wasn't good enough. Your fear of insects also proved too great for you to overcome. If something so simple prevents you from acting: you can't hope to be a Hero. Strengthen your will. Shoji: you were told to make Koda face his fears as well as show him options. You did both, even if he didn't take advantage of them."

"Present Mic will oversee your test tomorrow, Koda. Shoji will be your sidekick this time."

Koda nodded in shame.

"Sato: your test was one of endurance. A test of if you could either overcome your crash or find a way to delay using your Quirk until it was time to use it. You did neither. Your vulnerability cost you the match, and it will cost others far more in the future if you allow it to. Meet with Snipe tomorrow. Ojiro will be your sidekick."

"Uh-huh."

"As for you, Ojiro: your job was to push Sato into self-sacrificing to protect the bot, and you also passed the secret test of aiding an ally by destroying the Midoribot.010. Good work."

"Glad to have lived up to expectations."

"Shoji," Shota continued without addressing the response, "You were tested on mobility like Kirishima. You obviously caught the dummy. Ida: you were told to make each second he wasted increase how hard it would be to catch him. You nearly left the grounds by the time he caught you, and your running pattern was fine, if a bit linear."

The two nodded, and Shota glanced to the next student in line. One of the lesser problem children.

"Jiro: I had Uraraka test your decision-making skills. Ever since Uwabami's internship you've focused more on using her training than your Quirk or normal fighting. Obviously you figured out when to use which. Uraraka: you were told to beat her black and blue and make any tricks of her useless. I think Yaoyorozu can attest to the fact you succeeded."

A few of the girls giggled, but quickly cut off the sound.

"Sero: you were tested on a mixture of subjects, but you only had to overcome two. Among them: your fear of the unknown, your hormones, your reliance on your Quirk, and your ability to adapt to the unexpected. You managed to defeat Ashido, so we assume you at least mostly did that."

"Um.. yeah, sure."

"Ashido-"

"You told me to freak him the ^^^k out," she agreed, "And to make his Quirk toast."

"Indeed," Shota sighed, moving on.

"Tokoyami: you were tested on your ability to act without your Quirk aiding you in combat, as we've noticed your reliance is higher than anyone else's. While Bakugo failed to test you properly, you did show your own skill quite well. I'd still recommend working on it, but you did well, considering."

"My thanks."

"Bakugo…" Shota grumbled, glancing to the fuming boy, "You were told to fight Dark Shadow, and only Dark Shadow. To nullify his Quirk, and that was it. You didn't even see it leave the fight. Pay attention to your job next time. Your arrogance cost you this exam."

Bakugo didn't respond, instead just huffing and looking out the window.

"Your test will be held alongside Midoriya."

"What?!"

"You can't pair me with ^^^kin' Deku!"

Shota's scarves and hair flared up, and the two quickly shut up.

"Unlike the other groups, who all consist of a failure and a sidekick who passed, you two are both failures and so have to face the hardest task of all," Shota growled, "All Might will be examining you two. See that you pass."

There was a moment of silence, no doubt in reverence for the two dead boys.

"Let's see, where was I… Ah yes," he mumbled, finding his spot on the role again.

"Todoroki: you were tested on your ability to put aside your ego. Namely by forcing you to use your ice and fire in ways you otherwise would prefer not to: your ice primarily when you've been wanting to show off your flames, and your fire defensively when you don't trust it yet. You managed to succeed towards the end there, but it was close. Be more proactive next time. Sato: you were told to drop buildings on him and force him to use his biggest moves. He did."

The two blinked at him. It was a rather lack-luster review.

"Hagakure: you were tested on your ability to overcome your physical limitations and lack of defense. You made it out, so that's an automatic pass. Be sure to work on your physical abilities before the camp though. You almost failed. Mineta: you were told to push her to her limits. I think you managed that; despite your… methodology."

"Mhm!"

"Hehehe."

"Bakugo: you were tested on your ability to think clearly when you didn't have a straight-forward opponent to simply engage in battle. While it took you a while, you did eventually find Hagakure. Your final solution was quite clever, but it took you far too long to shift tactics. Your mind has to be more flexible."

"Tch."

"Hagakure: you were told to frustrate Bakugo and avoid fighting him. …You pass. Since you had to engage in back-to-back actions and deal with two problem children, we didn't feel the need to make yours overly complex."

"Thank you, sensei," she said in a small voice.

"Next… Midoriya," Shota grumbled, making the viridet shrink in his chair, "You used all three of your current powers to utterly destroy both the robot and your suit. Todoroki didn't have a scratch on him, and you're currently trying not to wince each time you take a step and hide that you're keeping your weight off your legs. Yes?"

"Yes, sir," Midoriya confirmed, staring back with some decent fear but no remorse or excuses.

Well, at least he's learned that much.

"...Did it feel good to destroy the bot?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. You passed. You were tested to see if you could actually go all out without killing yourself. Todoroki: you were told to have your rematch. Did you have fun?"

"Mhm."

"Good."

And so he moved on.

"Mineta: you were tested on your ability to overcome your lust. You half-succeeded. You didn't do something that would have had you up on assault charges, and you didn't even make a remark which would have had you sent to HR. Again."

"But I still failed," the boy grumbled.

"Yes. You did," Shota agreed, "Because a Hero can't overcome their own problems in the field. If you're fighting yourself while you're trying to fight someone else: you'll always be outnumbered, and nobody runs interference like yourself. Correct, Jiro."

"Oh yeah," the emo girl agreed, a hint of a laugh in her "oh."

"Report to Midnight. Your sidekick will be Jiro."

Shota leveled a pen at the purple boy.

"Don't regress. I won't expel you, but Midnight will not leave you capable of becoming a Hero if you slip up. And if she doesn't kill you: she will."

Mineta's eyes flicked to the right briefly; as if he was about to turn and look at Yaoyorozu behind him, but he restrained himself.

"I'm glad we have an understanding," Shota sighed, before moving on to the end.

"Yaoyorozu: you were tested on your ability to fight mentally in both your place as examiner and examinee. Against Mineta you were quite adept at manipulating him. On your own: you managed to put aside your personal feelings long enough to complete the mission, but also did so without losing sight of your personal strengths which could be utilized. Excellent."

"Thank you, sir," she bowed, smiling gently.

"Lastly: Jiro. You were told to imitate your fellow Uwabami intern and melt Yaoyorozu into a puddle. She managed to maintain her composure, yet you passed. Care to guess why?"

She seemed to consider the question for a moment, as did a few others. Then her eyes flickered with an idea and she nodded.

"Because I made Yaomomo struggle," she decided, "I pushed her exactly as hard as she could take without being unfair. She was able to grow because of the challenge without being overwhelmed and being forced to give up."

"Correct," he sniffed, proud of his student, "In the real world you won't have such opportunities. That's why these tests had to push you right to the edge where we can help you recover. If you can see the danger and the gap: you'll know how far you have to be ready to jump at a moment's notice. One day you'll have to do this on the fly, and then you will be overwhelmed without mercy. Be ready for when that happens."

Yawning, Shota glanced out the window at the changing light.

"Go home. Get some sleep. Everyone report here tomorrow on time. Even if you don't have a match, I want to speak to you all afterwards."

"Yes Sensei!" they all promised, standing and bowing in sync.

These kids aren't so bad. Where's my ^^d^^^n sleeping bag?

---

That's 1-A kids! Failures, successes, and hopefully a few twists and turns nobody but me saw coming (or wanted). As always, your comments are what allow me to keep going, so please ply me with ideas, questions, ship requests (with reasons) and anything else you can think of!

If you've come here recently, please mention how you found this story, since I'm evidently not reaching a lot of people…

Oh! For everyone wondering or wanting to re-read the June arc in chronological order: the actual order of the parts are thus. Yes, I'm aware I edged into July, don't me.

June 3rd (Friday):

Tetsutetsu and Kendo talk about her love life.

Nemuri has her date.

Yu has a new incident.

June 4th (Saturday):

Shoto visits Rei.

Uraraka and Tsu watch a movie.

Ida and Midoriya go for a run.

Mineta watches the news.

June 5th (Sunday):

Ibara meets with her Bishop.

June 11th (Saturday):

Pony's "Girl's Only Night"

June 13th (Monday):

Jiro and Shiozaki study together.

June 16th (Thursday):

The Joint-Study session is held.

Ochako has dinner with Inko.

June 17th (Friday):

Midoriya's Morning.

Jiro & Yaoyorozu's date.

Uwabami's Call.

June 18th (Saturday):

Yaoyorozu and Midoriya train.

Mina chats with the OT3 -1.

June 19th (Sunday):

The geniuses and their girls study together.

Bakugo trains his squad.

Momo plays with her boots.

June 21st (Tuesday):

Aizawa covers final prep for the exams.

June 22nd (Wednesday):

Yaomomo & Shiozaki hang out.

June 27th - July 3rd (Monday-Sunday):

The Joint-Study Groups happen sometime this week.

July 2nd (Saturday):

Mama Inko sees the cuddle bugs.

July 4th - July 7th (Monday-Thursday):

Written Final Exams begin and take up the week.

July 8th (Friday):

Aizawa and Vlad King explain the practical exams.

So… It has been brought to my attention that I need to ask for specific things for you to comment on. So I'll do that. Please tell me if you liked the June Arc, and what you hated about it.

Anyway: love you all, be safe out there, see you in the next one.