I'm back! A New Pencil returns to the desk!
"Underline" is when a character is speaking Japanese, and a lack of one is when the character is speaking English.
I do not own Kingdom Hearts, My Hero Academia, OMORI, or any of its characters.
Chapter 9: Back to School
(Play Final Fantasy 7 Remake OST: Aerith's Theme - Home Again)
Sora stood in front of his home, after waving goodbye as Izuku walked into his own. Sighing, he knocked on the door. It opened, revealing Shimizu in her blue shirt and white dress. She saw Sora's tired face, and ushered him to come in.
"I made us lunch." she said, "Don't worry, it's still warm."
"Thanks, Mom." he smiled tiredly, before taking his fill.
"How'd it go?" she asked him as they took a bite out of their rice dish.
"Well…" Sora admitted, "I don't think I got in."
She looked at him worriedly, "Did you get distracted?"
"Kinda." Sora replied, "I think I made it through the written exam, but the practical exam had us fight robots. Given different point values. It should've been easy, but…"
"Let me guess…" she sighed, "Those Heartless bugs came along?"
"Yep." he sighed alongside her, "Showed up at the worst possible time. Had to take 'em out before they attacked the other contestants."
"Ugh." Shimizu grumbled, "Honestly, can't they just leave you alone for one day?"
"That's not how it works," Sora replied, "I'm just glad nobody got hurt."
Shimizu hummed, before taking another bite out of her food. Sora asked her, "You're not mad?"
"Not at all." she said as her mouth became empty, "You did the right thing by saving the other examinees, Sora. That's better than passing some old exam."
"Thanks Mom." Sora said, "Though… we're gonna have to look for another Hero school now, since U.A.'s out of the question."
"You never know. They might throw a curveball at you at the last minute." Shimizu said with hope. Sora grinned and sighed. Maybe they will.
"Let's not jinx it, okay?" Sora asked his mother.
"Too late~" she teased.
And so the wait began. Sora simply relaxed on the couch after taking a warm shower while Shimizu washed the dishes from their lunch. He was still wearing the attire from his second journey, which was still kind of dirty.
"So…" she asked Sora, "Make any new friends?"
"One." Sora replied, "Her name's Pony. She's from America."
"The United States?" she perked up, "So she speaks English."
"Yep." Sora smiled, "She helped me out of the battle center after I took down a giant robot possessed by a Heartless."
She nearly dropped the plate she was washing into the sink when she heard that, before sighing, "Should've known… it explains why you looked so tired and dirty."
"Mom, I know… it's crazy, but it's true," Sora replied.
"I believe you. It's just…" she groaned, "I wasn't expecting my long lost son to be a defender of other worlds, and that fighting evil monsters was like an ordinary Tuesday for him."
"I'm... sorry…?"
"Don't worry. I still love you." Shimizu giggled, "And I'm proud of you for what you did, back then and today. My own son's a superhero in body. heart, and mind; what's there not to brag about?"
"Mom…" Sora groaned embarrassed as she laughed at his expense.
"Even so… You know I'm here for you if you have any problems, right?" Shimizu turned to look at him, "I may not fully understand what you went through… but I'm willing to listen if you want to talk about anything that's bothering you. Underneath all that world-hopping and key sword stuff, you're still my son, and I want to help you in any way I can. Don't forget that, okay?"
Sora looked at her, his heart jumping to his throat again. 5 seconds later he found it within him again to speak, "Th-thanks, Mom. I'll let you know if something goes wrong."
"No problem, sweetie."
(Silence)
1 hour later, as Sora was examining his Keyblade, there was a knock at the door. Sora instantly dispelled it as Shimizu went to the door. 5 seconds later, he heard her scampering back towards the living room.
"What's wrong?" Sora asked alarmed, summoning his Keyblade again.
"It's here!" she shouted as she burst through the door, and Sora turned around, seeing her standing and panting with a hand on one knee and holding up a letter, "Your results from U.A. They're here!"
"Whoa… that fast? Great! Let's see how I did." Sora said, dismissing his weapon and taking the envelope from Shimizu, before staring at the letter hesitantly.
"Take your time…" Shimizu assured him as they sat together on the couch, and Sora took a deep breath, before opening the letter. In it he found a rolled up paper and… a disk-like device.
"What's this?" Sora wondered, before it suddenly hummed to life in front of him. Startled, Sora let it drop on the table in front of him, where it opened up a projection of a… well... Sora was instantly reminded of a white-furred, realistic King Mickey.
(Play KH Re:Coded OST - Wonder of Electron)
"Greetings, Sora Nakajima." the rat began in English, "If you're seeing this recording, then that means your results are complete, and are ready for you to receive. You were actually one of the first ones we decided to examine."
"That's good. Thank you," Sora replied, despite knowing it to be a recording.
"Before that, I believe I should introduce myself first. I am Nezu, the principal of our very well-known U.A. Academy." the rat named Nezu bowed, "Here are your results. You were barely able to pass the written examination by just two points. But don't worry. That doesn't mean you've failed,"
Sora looked at his mother. He was clearly making it seem like he passed, but turned his attention to Nezu as he continued, "And then there's the practical exam, where it truly became interesting for everyone. At first, you were focused on the exam itself, getting as many points as possible, but then…" he showed Sora a clip of him looking down an alleyway, before running into it, "Your attention was diverted to something we could not see at first. But when we reviewed the footage, we were able to figure out exactly what had troubled you."
Sora and Shimizu looked at recordings of Sora fighting the Heartless with lightning-quick reflexes, before it showed him facing the 0-Pointer Bot that was possessed, fighting it and defeating it in a grand display of power.
"These creatures were not part of the examination, Sora. Yet despite that, you took responsibility for them and ensured that these things wouldn't harm the students in any way, shape or form, even if it did cause you to get injured. I was very impressed, to give my honest opinion."
Sora smiled as Nezu complimented him, but knew there was more.
"You see… we did not just tally points just for destroying robots, Sora," Nezu revealed, "A Hero school isn't known for just that. We also added Rescue Points for any heroic act done to protect other students."
At that, Sora saw his overall score: 28 Villain points, and 15 Rescue points. That left a total of 43 total points. Strange. Shouldn't he have gotten more rescue points for what he did?
"To put it simply, you were just under a passing score on the practical, Sora Nakajima." Nezu explained, "Your selfless acts of heroism during the practical would have given you many more rescue points if I wished it, however I chose not to due to my lack of knowledge on these creatures. Not to mention that had the timer not run out while you were protecting that group of students from the 0-Pointer, you would have gotten a lot more valid rescue points to surpass the total points of our top contestant. However, this was not the case."
That made sense. The timer had run out just before he blocked the 0-Pointer's attack, so those rescue points weren't tallied.
So he failed. Oh well. He felt a comforting hand on his shoulder, and turned to his mom with a thankful smile. Sora waited for Nezu to conclude his speech, but was surprised by what came next.
"That is why I'm going to need you to come meet me at my office at U.A. as soon as possible, as well as anybody else who is watching this with you, be it your parent or legal guardian. I am certain that they either know the situation you are in, or have just discovered this and desire an explanation from you."
Sora and Shimizu glanced at one another, before looking back at the projection of Nezu again. "You can explain these creatures to me and whoever else that is listening to this message there. And don't worry, I was informed by a trusted source that you possess a secret that you would rather keep unsaid. You can trust that I will keep it that way, for I have also kept other secrets that carry the same weight as yours. That is all for now. I hope to see you again soon, Sora."
(Silence)
The recording came to a close, as Sora looked at his mother, "You think we can trust him?"
"He is the principal of U.A. for a reason," Shimizu replied, "I know this is tough for you, but he at least deserves to know, Sora."
"...Alright." Sora said, "Let's go."
(Play: KH 2.5 Remix OST - Reviving Hollow Bastion)
Sora and Shimizu went on the train over to U.A. once again, both were a bit tired, but otherwise energized enough to talk to Nezu. They found themselves back at the school, and they walked up to the office of the principal, with the door closed. Sora hesitated, before his mother smiled at him, giving him strength to knock on the door.
"You may come in," Nezu's voice rang out. Sora came in, followed by his mother.
"I see." the principal looked at them, speaking in English, "I'm glad to see you've received and agreed to my request, Sora. And I assume that you are his mother, ma'am?"
"Yes. Shimizu Nakajima, Mr. Nezu." she bowed.
"I appreciate the formalities, Ms. Shimizu, but there's no need for that." Nezu assured her, "It is a pleasure to meet both of you."
"Likewise, Mr. Nezu." Sora smiled politely.
"Please, take a seat," Nezu gestured to the seats in front of his desk, which Sora and Shimizu sat in. "We do have matters to discuss, Sora, if I'm not mistaken?"
"Yeah. What do you want to talk about?" Sora asked.
"From what I've been told by our friend, it would be right to start with your true identity, and what you do."
Sora knew he had been in touch with Naomasa, just by addressing their trusted source as a friend. So it was likely he knew about the Heartless as well, but just wanted Sora himself to say this to him in person. So, taking a deep breath, Sora began to speak.
(Play KH 358/2 Days OST - Mystic Moon)
"Alright. My name is Sora Nakajima. I am one of the Seven Guardians of Light, and I wield my weapon, known as the Keyblade, to fight off the forces of darkness and prevent them from consuming other worlds. And to answer your question, yes. I am from another world, and it's not so different from this one, aside from all these people having superpowers."
"I see… so you're a Hero… just not from this world." Nezu put a hand to his chin, "And I would assume these creatures that showed up during the exam were part of the legions of darkness you fight against?"
"Correct." Sora nodded, "They are called Heartless. Creatures that are born from the darkness within a person. They act like wild animals, and come in many different shapes and forms, but their most defining features are their dark bodies and glowing yellow eyes."
"I see. Are there any other creatures I should be aware of?"
"There are three others, though two of which I am not sure if they will show up here." Sora admitted, before listing them off, "There's Nobodies, which are the empty shells a person with a strong heart leaves behind when they lose their heart; Unversed, which are creatures that feed off of negativity; and Nightmares, which only appear in a world of sleep. Last I checked, it seems very unlikely that they would appear in any way. The ones in control of two of these types of creatures are gone, while the other only appears in a world of sleep, which I know for a fact this world isn't one."
"When you say a 'world of sleep' do you mean that the world is in a state of limbo?"
"I… think so."
"And I assume your mother has been informed of this?"
"Three months ago, sir," Sora admitted, "She didn't know about the worlds until then. She got stranded here for 2 years before I showed up. Even then, she had no idea what had happened when she was cast out of our world by the Heartless."
"I see…" Nezu looked at the two of them, seeing no falsehood between them, "Are there other ways to identify them?"
"Uh-huh. Each one has a sort of emblem on their bodies." Sora pulled out his Gummiphone, "Most Heartless have this sigil. Nobodies have this one; Unversed have this, and Nightmares have this one."
Nezu examined each one, before copying it all down on paper. Sora held onto his Gummiphone afterwards, Shimizu watching politely.
"Interesting, though there is one question I have regarding the Nobodies," Nezu told Sora, "You said that if the person has a strong heart, and should they lose it and become a Heartless, their bodies will be left behind and become a new entity, right?"
"Yes," Sora said.
"So it is safe to assume that these Nobodies might also appear some time in the future as well, considering we've seen the, um, Heartless here?"
"Yes." Sora nodded in understanding, "And I'm guessing you're wondering if they'll be a threat here too?"
Nezu nodded and gestured for him to continue, and Sora did, "Well, that depends on who the person with the strong heart was. Nobodies mainly act on memories they had as their original selves, when they still had a heart. Without it, they can't really feel anything. No sadness, no joy. Nothing. But since they'll still have memories, they may act as they were when they were human."
"Will these Nobodies look like us, or do they look similar to the Heartless?"
"It's actually both." Sora said, "But a humanoid Nobody is rare, and they only take a human form if their heart is super strong. They're the ones that can control lesser Nobodies, which are more different in shape. Even if that's the case, I wouldn't engage with a humanoid Nobody unless we can be absolutely sure they aren't friendly."
Nezu wrote this down on a paper, and Sora looked to his mother. She only smiled to ease his worry.
"Now, I have two more questions." Nezu declared after finishing writing, "Why do you wish to become a Hero, Nakajima?"
Sora knew this answer, "To better understand this world, become a Hero legally, and take out the Heartless and any other darkness before it consumes this world,"
"You are familiar with our laws, then?"
"I can thank Faraway Library for that."
Nezu hummed, before asking his last question, "Do you have any proof that what you say is the truth? Your words alone and a single encounter can't be enough to convince me of this."
Sora smiled confidently, before giving Nezu his Gummiphone, "The answer is right in there, sir. Just read through the journal entries and check my history. It should give you the information and proof you need."
(Silence)
Nezu looked at the phone's information, while Sora and Shimizu watched and waited, Sora being the more nervous of the two. Nezu scrolled through the entries Sora had shown, and also went as far as to check the call history and memory files that displayed Sora's point of view.
After twenty minutes, Nezu delivered the Gummiphone back to Sora.
(Play: Kingdom Hearts Concert - First Breath - Hand in Hand)
"I must say… this story and all this talk of other worlds sounds very far-fetched, but given that you have concrete proof through your phone and its wealth of information, I have no reason to deny that what you say is the truth, Sora," Nezu smiled at him, "I am glad you were able to back up your claim. I was concerned when your case showed up in my office, that it was all an elaborate set-up for you to come to this academy, but after hearing the information and testimonies of Detective Naomasa and Chief Kenji, as well as another anonymous source, my doubts were lessened. But regardless, I needed to hear this from you in person, to prove you are who you say, and I must admit, I'm glad, even honored, to say that you are more than welcome here as a student here at U.A. Academy, Sora."
Sora jumped from his seat in joy, "WOO-HOO! Thank you Principal Nezu, sir. I'm so grateful for what you've done! You won't be disappointed!"
"You're welcome, Sora. I should be the one who is grateful, having someone like you here at our school." Nezu smiled, before looking at Shimizu, "I trust you are surprised with this information?"
"I am. I'm glad that you've accepted my son here, though I am worried on how you'll make it so that he doesn't interrupt any existing classes." Shimizu admitted, "I wouldn't want to kick someone out of their class just to get Sora in,"
"I can understand that. The classes were already set up in case Sora's story wasn't valid, but I can add him in as an extra student. No other changes necessary,"
"Thank you Mr. Nezu." Sora smiled, pumping his chest, "All those students there earned their place at U.A.'s Hero Course, and now I have to prove I belong there too."
"I'm glad to see that you're seeing this in a positive light," Nezu smiled back at Sora, "Now, I shall get the necessary paperwork for you to be an official member of our school as soon as I can. You both are free to leave and rest. You both appear tired,"
"Yeah. It's not everyday you crash into an empty building while fighting a giant robot," Sora jokes, making them all chuckle at the attempt at humor.
"Now go on, Sora. Get ready… and welcome to your Hero Academia."
"Thank you, sir." both Nakajimas bowed down in respect before leaving the office.
(Silence)
Nezu smiled as they left, before picking up his phone and dialing a number.
"...Hello, there!"
…
"Yes. I just spoke with him. I confirmed that he was who you said he is. He's going to be an extra student here at U.A."
…
…
"I'm glad you're both considering the offer. Thank you for that."
…
"Indeed. I'll see you within this week. Have a safe flight."
…
"Sure… I'll consider setting a place up. Your friend can work from there."
…
"It's no problem. Goodbye."
When Sora and Shimizu returned home, it was dark. Sora looked to his mother, "That was surprising,"
"It was. Aren't you excited?" Shimizu said, eyes sparkling, "You're going to U.A.!"
"Yeah, though I would be jumping for joy if it wasn't nighttime," Sora smiled back.
"Hee hee… oops." Shimizu's face turned slightly red from embarrassment. She hadn't even noticed that she did that. "Sorry about that. For acting out of tune, at least."
"It's alright. All's forgiven. Let's hope our neighbors down below can say the same." Sora smiled, before looking back at the couch. "For now, I would love to take a long nap."
"Not until you change into something comfortable, young man. Your clothes are still super dirty."
"Got it."
And Sora did, changing out of his outfit from his second journey and putting on his pajamas, before plopping onto the couch.
"Good night, Sora." Shimizu called out from her room.
"Good night, Mom," Sora answered back, before hearing his Gummiphone ring. He looked at it, and found that Pony was calling him.
"Hello?" Sora asked, as Pony's face came up on his screen.
"I got in!" she look extremely excited as she said that, "I got accepted into U.A.!"
"Really? That's great!" Sora grinned, "Knew you'd pass that ratty test."
"I know, right?" Pony paused, before asking, "How about you?"
"Hmmm…" Sora thought, before smirking, and pretending to sigh in defeat, "I'll… tell you later."
"What?! Aww…" he heard her groan in frustration, making him chuckle, "Well, I hope you do make it. I guess I'll see you later?"
"Yeah. It's late, and I need rest. Don't forget that I crashed into a building and fell from a long distance today," Sora replied, making her chuckle from the other line, "Have fun at U.A., Pony," Sora smiled, before adding, "See you soon."
…
"...Hey! Wait a darn min-!" Pony said in realization before Sora cut the connection, snickering to himself. He'll probably get an earful from her later, but decided to have this moment for himself. He went to sleep with a smile on his face.
Thanks for the idea, Donald, he thought.
(Play MHA OST: Bright and Cheerful)
The next day, Sora stood, still a bit drowsy, as he looked at himself in the mirror. He was wearing the proper school uniform for U.A. He smiled as he examined it, seeing that it was a perfect fit. However, he also had added a couple of his own things. For one, he was wearing his crown necklace over the suit in place of his red tie; Kairi's lucky charm hung out of his right pocket, with Donald and Goofy's Heartbinder inside the right pocket; Roxas and Ventus's charms were on his left, and the remaining 3 of his Heartbinders were inside his backpack. He wasn't gonna miss the chance to bring his friends with him to this grand new adventure. He could just hide it under the uniform if he was asked to put it away from view.
The uniform itself wasn't all that bad. Sora saw it slightly similar to the uniform back at his old middle school, except for the color schemes and the additional gray jacket.
His backpack that came along with his Super Groupies outfit was filled with the minimum requirement for his classes: a pencil box that contained a few pencils, pens, erasers and notecards (courtesy of his mother), several notebooks, regular and composition, and a water bottle filled with water in case Sora got tired, which would likely not be the case unless he had to fight yet another giant robot.
But then he looked over to his outfit that he had worn during his recent journey. The one that had protected him from the powerful darkness that dwelled in the Realm of Darkness. He had not worn that since after his battle with the Demon Tide, and it had caught up a small bit of dust.
"Something wrong, Sora?" Shimizu emerged from her room in work attire.
"My outfit," Sora pointed to it, "I'm taking that with me to U.A."
"You sure?"
"Yep. I'm gonna go check something," Sora explained, as he walked up to it, touched it, and saw it disappear into his magical inventory. Still didn't know how that worked, but it would help cover for his so-called Quirk, Summon.
"I guess you'll use that as your costume?" Shimizu assumed.
"That'll have to wait and see." Sora replied.
(Silence)
Sora got on his shoes from Super Groupies, before both he and Shimizu headed out the door. She looked at him with pride, pride Sora hadn't seen in a good long while.
"Time to start a new adventure," Sora declared.
(Play: MHA OST - U.A. Corridors)
Sora and Shimizu saw that Izuku was at the bus stop early, and Sora was surprised to see him in the same outfit he was wearing.
"Whoa! Izuku, you passed?" Sora said surprised.
"Wait… you did too?" Izuku gawked with equal surprise.
"Wow!" Sora whooped, "Who'd have thought!"
"Y-Yeah. I got 60 rescue points for beating a 0-Pointer and saving that nice girl that talked to me!" Izuku explained.
"Lucky…" Sora puffed his cheeks.
"How about you?"
"Barely passed by the skin of my teeth."
"O-Oh! Which class?"
"1-A. You?"
"I got 1-A too!" Izuku said excitedly.
"Really? That's great! All without a Quirk, too!" Sora smiled.
Izuku froze, which didn't go unnoticed by Shimizu. He looked down before stuttering, "A-a-actually… I just got my Quirk. During the Entrance Exam… it came to me."
A moment of silence.
"Whaaaa?" Sora said shocked, "How the heck did that happen?!"
"U-Uh, I-I guess I'm a rare case! I didn't expect it to come out during the Exam, and it felt great! I w-was super surprised!" Izuku stammered.
"Izuku… that's AWESOME!" Sora's eyes sparkled.
"I'm surprised, too, and I'm happy for you. I bet your mother is as well." Shimizu smiled, "I've heard of rare cases where a person gets their Quirk later in life, but I've never believed them. Yet here you are. What is it?"
"U-Uh… power type, I think. I'm calling it Super Power for now."
"Wonderful! You'll be a bit like your idol, All Might, then." Shimizu clapped her hands together.
"Th-Thanks, Ms. Shimizu-san,"
"It's no problem. Oh! Look at that," Shimizu glanced over to the right, "Our ride's here."
Sure enough, the bus was right there in front of him. The three of them walked into the bus, ready to start the day.
When Sora and Izuku arrived at U.A., they waved goodbye to Sora's mother before looking up at the entrance.
"Here goes, Izuku. Let's do this." Sora smiled proudly.
"Yeah!" Izuku smiled with determination, taking his first steps into the school of his dreams, with Sora following close behind. They passed through the cafeteria, the offices, even other classes, before finding themselves at the door to 1-A itself.
And boy, was it large. Sora whistled.
"Man, this thing is huge! Are there giants here?" Izuku thought aloud.
"Wouldn't put it past them. We do have a Hero with a giant superpower," Sora said.
"Here we go. The most promising students in the country are waiting behind this very door." Izuku replied.
"Then let's go say hello," Sora smiled, before adding, "And just because I'm here doesn't mean you can't make other friends. I'm not planning to keep my number of friends stationary for long."
"Oh. A-Alright," Izuku said half-heartedly. He felt a little down when Sora said that, but knew that he had a point. He hoped silently that two other certain people weren't in this class as well.
(Silence)
As the door opened, with Izuku in the lead, they were encountered by shouting.
"Take your feet off that desk now!"
"Huh?"
Sora peeked from behind Izuku, and saw a tall young man pointing robotically towards another student who seemed to not hear the words from the first. Sora recognized the tall one as the person who had spoken up about the papers and the words of the DJ being wrong.
"It's the first day, and you're already disrespecting this academy by scuffing school property, cretin!" the tall student exclaimed.
"You're kidding me, right?" the other replied, "Your old school put a stick up your ass, or were you born with it?"
Izuku looked very scared, and when Sora got a look at the other student that had a potty-mouth, he could see why. Sitting on that desk was someone who Sora presumed to be "Kacchan.", Izuku's so-called friend and a person he admired. He learned from Inko that his actual name was Katsuki Bakugo. One look and Sora definitely could tell he was full of himself.
(Play: MHA OST - Among Kosei)
Izuku stood still, but with an encouraging smile from Sora, he walked forward. Sora could see the inside of the class now in full view, and they all stared at the duo that entered. All of the students had already taken their seats. By the looks of it, only a few remained empty, including a seat on the very end all by its lonesome. Probably belonged to him. There was no sign of Pony, though.
Wait… isn't that…?
"Let's start over," the tall fellow with glasses regained composure, causing Sora to look back as the fellow stated, "I am Tenya Iida, from Soumei Private Academy."
"Soumei huh?" Katsuki questioned, the look on his face unchanging, "So you think you must be better than me. I'm definitely gonna have fun tearing you a new one."
Sora sighed with disappointment. He was beginning to dislike Katsuki even more now. Just how big was that superiority complex of his? And why exactly did Izuku admire this guy so much? There were clearly missing pieces of the puzzle that is the friendship of Izuku and Katsuki, and Sora was planning to figure it out.
But not now. School and friendships took priority.
"You'd threaten me?" Tenya looked flabbergasted, "Your own classmate? Are you sure you're in the right place?"
Izuku stared at both of them looking quite ready to melt to the floor, but with another encouraging smile from Sora, he cleared his throat, grabbing both of their attention. Sora decided to sidestep away so he could be visible.
"Uh… hi?" Izuku said nervously, and Sora gave him a proud look and a thumbs up. Baby step, looks like it. Better than nothing.
"Good morning!" Tenya responded, rushing over to them with stiff movements imitating a running man before bowing to introduce himself, "I'm Tenya Iida, from-"
"Soumei, right?" Sora responded kindly in Japanese, before clarifying, "We overheard you introducing yourself to our friendly neighborhood carnivore over there."
"THE FUCK DID YOU CALL ME?!" Bakugo snarled as he quickly rose up, a hand sparking like he was about to threaten him with fireworks.
"Hey, hey! Save your claws for the field, okay? I only said you were a top predator," Sora raised his arms up politely with a small smile on his face, "We're still in class, and we wouldn't wanna mess the place up over something I said."
"Like I give two shits!" Bakugo growled, but sat down regardless with a humph.
Izuku looked surprised, but Sora wasn't paying attention. His eyes were on the person slouching on the desk, and Sora sighing while maintaining his grin.
Yep. Definitely got a potty-mouth and a short temper to boot. Great start, Sora, The Key Bearer thought sarcastically. He ignored him and turned back towards Tenya and Izuku.
"Y-Yeah. A-Anyways, I'm Izuku Midoriya, it's super nice to meet you." Izuku said politely to Tenya, while inwardly screaming since he was talking to one of the scary dudes he wished weren't in the same class as he was.
"Midoriya-san," Tenya began, "You realized there was something more to the practical exam, didn't you?"
"Huh?"
"You must be very perceptive," Iida praised him, much to the green-haired kid's surprise, "And I completely misjudged you. I admit, as a student, you are far superior to me." He bowed, surprising Izuku more. Sora didn't mind, and grinned anyways.
"Hey! I recognize that messed up hair." a new feminine voice appeared behind Sora and Izuku, "Falling boy!"
Both of them turned around to see a new face Sora hadn't seen before. She had a round face, rosy cheeks, and brown short hair that puffed out more than Kairi's. A more unseen detail Sora noticed was the pads on her fingertips. He hadn't seen those on anyone else before. Perhaps that was part of her Quirk. Izuku immediately turned red, and that alone told Sora that this was the nice girl Izuku was talking about.
The girl began speaking about how awesome Izuku was during the practical, talking about how he had managed to pass, imitating something about punching a robot, while poor Midoriya stammered and tried to thank her for doing something regarding talking to the teacher. Sora simply laughed heartily as Izuku explained how he knew about it to the girl.
"See, Izuku? It's not so hard." Sora chuckled, "You made two new friends in just under a minute! Good job!"
The girl then looked to Sora, "Oh yeah, you're that Hype-Up Boy from the written exam!"
Sora laughed at the nickname and pumped his chest, "The one and only!"
"Oh, goodness! I almost forgot about you. My sincere apologies." Tenya bowed to Sora, "It's a pleasure to meet you as well. What is your name?"
"My name?" Sora asked, before grinning, "Sora Nakajima. But you can call me Sora," He extended his hand out, "Really hope we can be good friends in the future."
Iida smiled and grasped Sora's hand in response, "Indeed. Let's work hard and become great friends."
"If you're here to just make friends, you can leave and go somewhere else,"
(Play: MHA OST - Professor Aizawa)
The voice from below caused the four of them to turn around to its source. Izuku gulped as he spotted him first. It was a man in a sleeping bag, and he looked rather tired.
"Welcome to U.A.'s Hero Course," the man said, before pulling out a juice pack and proceeding to drink from it. Izuku, the nice girl, and Tenya all had the same thought running through their heads.
What is that thing? they thought in fear.
What's he doing in a sleeping bag? Sora cocked his head in curiosity. Is he okay?
The man simply moved out from his sleeping bag while saying, "It took you all 8 seconds to simmer down and shut up. That's not gonna work." He continued on, "Timing is precious for everyone, including the best of the Heroes. Rational students would understand that."
The four of them looked at him, and Sora could deduce that this was definitely not a student. Based on the… different clothing he was wearing, this had to be an instructor. He got his answer five seconds later.
"Hello. I'm Shota Aizawa," he began, "Your teacher."
Sora knew that standing around wouldn't bode well for the four of them, but before he could suggest heading to their seats, Aizawa's voice stopped them. "No need to look for your seats," the teacher then pulled out a set of blue and white clothing, "Put these on and head outside."
This is definitely different than middle school, Sora thought.
(Silence)
As the members of Class 1-A went to their locker rooms, they all got changed into the new outfits given to them by Aizawa, and Sora noticed that some of the boys, including Izuku, were staring at him when he undressed, but decided to ignore them politely as he put on his crown necklace over his gym top. But when they all left and were at a field, Sora wondered if there was anything wrong.
That's when he remembered.
His body had scars. Scars and terrible reminders of all the hard battles he fought in the past. He had noticed this many times after he showered, but didn't think too much about it. Heck, his mother even made a comment on that and playfully nicknamed him "Soldier-Boy" on one occasion, despite how surprised she was when seeing it the first time. The sight of all the scars on his body likely made his classmates uncomfortable. He'll have to take note of that next time they are in the locker room.
Right now, he had to focus.
"HUH?" he heard the class shout in surprise, "A Quirk Apprehension Test?!"
"B-But what about orientation?" the round-faced girl asked, "A-And the Entrance Ceremony? We're going to miss it."
"If you want to make it to the big leagues, you can't waste your time with pointless ceremonies," Aizawa explained sternly, "At U.A. we are not bound by traditions. Meaning I get to run my class however I see fit."
A few murmurs were heard, and Sora simply saw it as this: the teacher makes the rules. Seems simple enough.
"Excuse me, sir. I have a question," Tenya raised his hand, "I've noticed that there are twenty-one of us instead of the normal twenty. Why is that the case?"
Sora saw Aizawa look at him, "Don't know. Don't care. All I know is that this one's an extra student. Go and ask Principal Nezu himself, and he'll just laugh at you. It's a waste of time to ask such a question, and it won't make a difference whether we have an extra student or not. He's here, and he will have to prove that he belongs here, just like all of you."
At once, twenty pairs of eyes stared at him, some of them shocked, others uncaring, and Sora chuckled while scratching his cheek with his finger, his cheeks going slightly red. "Heh heh… Hi there…"
"So this idiot really is an extra." Katsuki smirked, "Figures. He looks pretty wimpy like Deku."
Some students glared at him for the comment, while Sora sighed. This guy was making even 15 year old Riku look tame with his insults. Aizawa's voice causes them to look back to him. "You've been taking standardized tests for most of your lives, is that correct?"
The students nod, including Sora. He remembered doing them in the past at his old school. He wondered if that was going to apply here as well.
"But…" Aizawa added, "You never got to use your Quirks in these exams. The country's still trying to pretend we're all equal by not letting the ones with the most power excel. It's irrational. One day the ministry of education will get the message and learn,"
Sora cocked his head. So they could use their Quirks in tandem with their physical attributes for these physical tests? Weird, but made sense. It did make him wonder to what extent their Quirks could be used to.
Aizawa then turned towards Katsuki. "You've got the most points in the Entrance Exam. What was the farthest distance you've thrown with a softball when you were in junior high?"
"67 meters, I think," Katsuki frowned, as Aizawa stated, while placing a softball in the boy's hand, "Now do it with your Quirk."
(Play: MHA OST - Runaway Battle)
Bakugo smiled, a very wicked smile that could've been mistaken for an evil one, if Sora thought about it, but probably presumed it was due to the thrill of showing off.
"Anything will do, just stay in the circle," Aizawa instructed, "Go. You're wasting time."
Bakugo stood ready, his face reverting to a surprisingly calm one. "Alright, teach. You asked for it."
He reared his hand back, a maniacal expression that creeped Sora out, before he threw it, yelling, "NOW DIIIEE!". To Sora's surprise, an explosion released from Katsuki's palm, which sent the ball flying into the air.
So it looks like Bakugo's power involved making explosions. Considering his personality, it fit him.
Izuku looked like the world was ending, and after a nudge from Sora, he managed to snap out of it.
The ball reached the ground seconds later, and Aizawa looked at his phone, before saying, "First off, we need to know the maximum of your capabilities." He showed the distance the ball had traveled. 705.2 meters.
Sora whistled. He heard others sound excited, wondering how they were going to use their Quirks and have fun while doing it.
"So it's fun for you, isn't it?" Aizawa glared at them, disappointed, "You've got three years to become a Hero. You think it's all fun and games? Happy and joyful all the way?"
That shut everybody up, but Sora was already silent, as their instructor continued with a smirk, "Idiots. All of you. Today you'll compete in eight physical tests to gauge your potential. The person that comes in last will be deemed as the one with no potential, and will be expelled."
The students were stunned, Sora most of all. This was… pushing it. Then he remembered Aubrey and Kel's words:
"We're not sure yet. Definitely not U.A., though." Aubrey replied, "It's pretty strict from what I've heard. An entire class got expelled that year, didja hear?'
"What?!"
"Yeah. Apparently they all had 'no potential', according to their teacher," Kel said, "That spooked us all out, so yeah, we're not risking anything there."
Sora then looked at the teacher in front of him. This had to have been the one who expelled his entire class due to their lack of potential. General Shang was the same when he told Mulan to hit the road when she wasn't showing the proper potential as a soldier. Good thing she proved him wrong the very next day with that arrow test. Something in his gut told him this was going to be a wild school year.
Even Iida looked stricken. "What? It fixes your '21 students problem,' Iida," Aizawa smirked, "You can't deny that."
"Though it does… I didn't expect… I never said it was…!" Tenya stammered, but stopped as the teacher continued.
"And one other thing," Aizawa then turned his gaze to Sora once again, this time with his hair standing up and eyes glowing red. Sora gulped.
"Anybody who holds back, for whatever reason, will also be expelled, no matter the position you appear in at the end." he glared, "I said it before, I decide how the class runs. If you have a problem with that, the exit is right there."
(Silence)
Sora looked at him uneasily. This guy definitely saw him use his power against the Heartless, and wanted him to use his full strength here whether he liked it or not. Sora grimaced at the thought. If he wanted to nuke the school he would. He had the power, but that would be him acting like a smart-alec. So nuking the school was out of the question.
"What?! You can't just send one of us home!" The round-faced girl spoke up, "We just got here… and even if it wasn't the first day… that isn't fair!"
(Play: MHA OST - My Hero Academia)
"Oh… and you think natural disasters are?" Aizawa retorted with an edge to his voice, "Or power hungry villains? Catastrophic accidents that wipe out entire cities? No. The world is full of unfairness, and a Hero's job is to combat that."
As much as he hated it, Sora knew his instructor had a point. Heck, the destruction of Destiny Islands could be one such example. It was unexpected, unfair, and changed his life forever, as well as the lives of his friends. And Sora was forced to rise up and fight regardless of that event. Even though the Destiny Islands had been restored after his fight with Ansem, what happened that day couldn't be undone, no matter what he did. Not his Keyblade. Not Riku's darkness. Not Kairi's powers. Nothing.
Just like the time when they failed…
"If you wish to be a pro, then you'll have to push yourselves to the brink," Aizawa continued, causing Sora to look at him again, "For the next three years, U.A. will throw one hardship after another at all of you. So go beyond. Plus Ultra style. Show me it's no mistake you're here."
"Oh we will," Sora declared firmly, causing everyone to look at him in surprise, "We'll all show you that we have what it takes to be Heroes. Even the person in last place will blow you away. Mark my words."
The rest of 1-A, including Izuku, was surprised that Sora had this much nerve to speak up to the teacher with such conviction. In a way, Sora was encouraging them to do their best as well. He wanted them to succeed. However, only a few of them got that deeper message.
"Is that right?" Shota smirked at him, "Then show me with action, not words."
"With pleasure,"
(Play: MHA OST - U.A. Session)
And the games began. First up was the 50 meter dash. Sora watched them all one by one. Tenya used his legs, which seemed to have engines at the calves, to give him a boost and run very fast with a record of 3.04 seconds. The green-haired girl Sora had rescued in the first minutes of the Entrance exam got 5.58 seconds by taking great leaps.
The round-faced girl tapped her feet and her body with her hands to make herself lighter, and managed to run to the finish line at 7.15 seconds, bested only by a guy with a tail, with 5.49 seconds. A literal twinkling fellow used a laser from his stomach to propel himself through the race, but tumbled and lost to a pink-skinned girl.
Then, a raven-haired girl Sora recognized as Momo came in with a literal motorcycle to outpace a small kid with weird hair. Though Sora would've considered it cheating, Aizawa did mention that Quirks were allowed, and Sora recalled that Momo could pull things out of thin air, so it likely counted. But how did she pull a motorbike out?
Then came Katsuki and Izuku, and Bakugo figuratively and literally blew Izuku away with his time. Finally, Sora was called to the field. Aizawa stared at him, and he stared back. The message in his instructor's eyes was clear: Don't. Hold. Back.
"Ready?" the bot at the finish line asked.
Sora closed his eyes, got into a running stance, and summoned the Flowmotion energy and covered it round his body, engulfing him in a visible blue, misty aura.
"G-!"
WHOOSH!
In a burst of what could've only been milliseconds, Sora blitzed the whole way using his Flowmotion, and skidded at least 5 feet past the finish line once he was done, leaving an imprint on the floor.
How's that? Sora thought as he looked at Aizawa, and he saw his result.
0.77 seconds.
So he beat Tenya. By a lot, apparently. Even in a weakened state, Sora was fast by even this world's standards. He saw the entire class stare at him in shock. Katsuki looked like he'd been slapped in the face.
"Holy crap…" he heard a classmate say with awe, "Is this guy insane?"
No, Sora thought as he glanced at Aizawa. Sora had been told, loud and clear, not to pull his punches, and he wasn't planning to get expelled on his first day unless absolutely necessary. He had to go all out, whether he liked it or not. And he said that to his classmates.
"I don't want to prove a point." Sora admitted to the blonde-haired boy that complimented his outfit, "Nor do I want to show off. I still want you guys to stay here. You've all earned your place here by passing the exam. I need to earn mine and prove I belong here too. I am the extra student, after all, so I've got to give it my all. If he wants to expel us, then we'll have to just prove him wrong and show him we all have potential."
"I understand, man. But I didn't expect you to be this fast!" the blonde said.
"Me neither." Sora said, and he was being honest. He never really had chances like this where he could properly calculate his power. This was the first time for him.
Next up was the grip strength. It wasn't all that troublesome. Sora had been lifting, hitting, and throwing objects big and small in his time as a Keyblade wielder, and had a grip strength of at least 507.1 kg of force.
"Dude, you got that much?" a spiky red-head asked him, "But you don't look like you have much muscle!"
"Looks can be deceiving, I guess." Sora chuckled uneasily.
"Even so, that's very manly,"
"Is that a compliment?"
"Yes it is!"
"Then thank you. You did pretty great yourself!"
Third up was the standing long jump. Sora didn't need to use Flowmotion this time. He jumped up, called upon the power of the wind, and dashed in the air to gain more distance, landing way out of the sandbox. He noticed Izuku was unable to do the same, and he worried for him.
Next up was the side-steps. Sora didn't know how much he did until he stopped, and saw he did 202 side steps in the time he was given. Others did considerably better, like the weird purple-haired dude and the pink-skinned girl.
Fourth was the ball throw, and Izuku was second to last to throw, as Sora had claimed the last spot. Until then, it was the round-faced girl's turn, and she used her Quirk to throw it high into the sky.
"That's gonna go on for a while." Sora muttered in English as he examined it fly into the distance towards outer space. Hopefully a passing Gummi Ship would be spared of that ball's wrath.
"It sure will."
Sora turned to find himself face to face with Momo once again. She had used her Quirk to pull out a CANNON and launch the ball into the sky, though it wasn't as far as Katsuki's throw, it was very creative.
"Hey Momo," Sora smiled, "Surprised to see you here. I didn't see you at all during the Entrance Exam."
"Oh! I forgot to tell you, didn't I? I was taking the examination meant for recommended students with Todoroki," Momo elaborated, glancing at a kid with red and white hair and a burn scar on his left eye. Sora cocked his head. "Recommended?"
"It's meant for exceptional students who have high references from other parties," Momo explained, "I don't know how different it was on your end."
"Well…" Sora chuckled and said, "You missed all these giant robots that tried to kill us all."
"I... beg your pardon?" Momo asked with a strained smile.
"I know what I said," Sora grinned mischievously, putting his hands behind his head.
Momo sighed, before looking at the spiky haired islander. Last time she saw the boy, he had calmly allowed himself to be arrested by police officers after combatting those mysterious black creatures he called the Heartless. Now he was here, talking to her like nothing happened. Sora has managed to get into U.A., which probably meant he was able to convince the officials not to put him in prison. She wondered how he had done that. Not to mention where in the world was he staying. Was it still back at his island?
But now wasn't the time. She saw Aizawa show the round-faced girl's results: Infinity.
"Infinity?!" The class gawked.
"Wow! That's awesome!" Sora gushed, looking at the girl with… were those stars in his eyes? Momo shook her head. She must have been seeing things.
"Alright. Midoriya. You're up." Aizawa said unenthusiastically. Nervous, but determined, Izuku took the softball.
Come on, Izuku, Sora thought mentally. He didn't want to cheer yet, cause that would only make things worse on both ends.
(Play: MHA OST - You Say Run)
He winded up, getting himself ready. Sora could see veins protruding from Izuku's arm as the kid braced himself for what he thought was a world full of hurt, and threw.
(Play: Wa wa wa waa~ Sound Effect)
46 meters. That was the distance. Sora looked surprised. Didn't Izuku say he had a power-type Quirk? The boy in question looked confused as well, muttering to himself about what exactly went wrong.
(Silence)
"I erased your Quirk." Aizawa explained, and Sora saw his eyes glow red, hair standing up like he did when he glared at Sora, but this time his scarf began to float as well. "The judges for the exam weren't rational enough. Accepting a kid like you? Don't make me laugh."
Sora felt his blood boil at that, but he took a deep breath to calm himself down. Control… control…
(Play MHA OST - Threat Incoming)
"Wait… what did you do?" he stopped and looked at Aizawa, "Those goggles… I know you. You can erase other people's Quirks by looking at them. You're the Erasure Hero… Eraserhead!"
At that, Sora realized why Aizawa was glaring at him. He was trying to see if he could erase his Quirk. Sora would have to act like he did if it happened in the future. Still, he was a bit aggravated by Aizawa belittling Izuku. He hadn't seen the effort he had put in to even make it this far. If he did, he would be singing a different tune to the green-haired kid.
"You're not ready," Aizawa scolded, "You have no control over your power."
No control? Over his Quirk? Sora thought for a bit. What had Izuku done during the Entrance Exam that was causing Aizawa to act like this? He got his answer a second later.
"Were you planning to break your bones again? Counting on somebody else to save your useless body?" Aizawa asked Izuku with a coldness that could rival that of Saix. Coldness aside, whatever Izuku did during the exam, he must have broken a bone or two in doing so. That's not good. It would leave Izuku at a disadvantage in a real fight.
"T-That's not my intention-" Izuku stammered, before Aizawa's scarf reeled him in and he found himself face-to-face with his teacher.
"No matter your intentions, you'd be a liability in battle." Aizawa lectured in the same cold tone, "Your passion reminds me of another hero who saved hundreds and became a living legend. But without the power and endurance, passion is worthless if you can't throw a punch without blowing yourself to pieces." Izuku looked fearful as Aizawa concluded, "Izuku Midoriya. I'm sorry, but with that power, there's no way you can be a Hero."
(Silence)
The air suddenly grew colder,, as some of the students felt it and turned to find its source. It was Sora, and though his face remained neutral, one could've sworn that he was emanating an unusually cold aura as he glared at Aizawa.
"Got something to say, Nakajima?" Aizawa asked him, and the coldness disappeared.
"No, sir. Nothing at all." Sora's face remained passive, but deep down he was seething. There was actually much he wanted to say to that jerk of a teacher, but he decided to keep his mouth shut. He wasn't planning on insulting him now.
And he hated to admit it, but Aizawa had made multiple points, if what he said was true. It was reality, but saying it in this way was a bit much, even for a kid like Izuku. Sora knew Izuku probably didn't have what it took right now, but he had the potential, and the heart to boot, but it was like Aizawa said, passion without strength in battle would make you the first to fall. He learned that more than once on his first journey to find his lost friends.
Sora knew he himself could handle what Aizawa could possibly throw at him, but Izuku wasn't like him. As far as he could tell, none of his classmates could. They were all regular people, minus their Quirks. They didn't have to fight a war. They didn't have to shoulder the fate of many many worlds.
They didn't have to watch their friends die…
"I've returned your Quirk, Midoriya," Aizawa said dully, snapping Sora out of his thoughts, "Go and take your throw. We'll finish things off later."
(Play: MHA OST - You Say Run)
Sora heard Izuku doubting himself, and that caused something within him to snap. He wanted to see Izuku succeed and prosper as a Hero, and he felt the same for everybody else. They had all earned the right to be here, and Sora didn't care anymore about what Aizawa said. He took a deep breath, and yelled out in English.
"COME ON, IZUKU!" he shouted with all his might, startling everybody and even making many of them jump, "YOU CAN DO IT! GO ON AND SHOW MR. AIZAWA HE'S WRONG! OPEN HIS EYES AND PROVE TO HIM YOU DESERVE TO BE HERE JUST LIKE THE REST OF US!"
He didn't care if all eyes were on him. He wanted Izuku to have confidence in himself, and Sora had said what he needed to say. He returned the glare Aizawa had given him, and then watched Izuku, who seemed to have more determination than he did before.
He winded his arm up, this time Sora could see veins protruding from his finger. But what happened next was more surprising. It wasn't how Izuku threw the ball. It was what Izuku had screamed OUT when he threw it.
"SMAAASH!"
With a powerful but familiar gust of wind, Izuku threw the ball with all his might, sending it soaring a great distance, much to everybody's surprise. Sora himself was stunned. That power… he had only seen it once before.
A power just like the Number One Hero.
Aizawa looked at his phone and showed the results: 705.3 meters. Just 0.1 meters ahead of Katsuki. Midoriya looked at Aizawa with restored confidence while gritting his teeth in pain. Sora saw that his finger was purple.
So it was true of what his mom implied: Izuku's Quirk was very similar to All Might's mysterious superpower, but Aizawa was also correct in the fact that the Quirk was a double-edged sword. It was powerful, no doubt about it, but it required a strong body to withstand its full strength, one Izuku currently lacked. But that mattered little, as it seemed Izuku found a way to reduce the damage to his body.
"Aizawa-sensei…" he grinned, "I can still move!"
Sora was surprised to see Aizawa actually smile, "This kid."
(Silence)
Sora pumped his fist in the air, happy that Izuku had proved his worth, while others critiqued Midoriya's throw. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Katsuki look stunned at Izuku surpassing his score by a hair.
Wait…
Uh-oh.
"HEY!" Katsuki screamed while he charged at Izuku, hands sparkling with murderous intent, "DEKU YOU DAMN BASTARD! HOW THE HELL DID YOU DO THAT?! TELL ME OR YOU'RE DE-!"
Bakugo was cut off when somebody gripped his arm firmly, pulling him back.
"Whoa, there! Cool off!" Sora's voice called out as he gripped Katsuki's left arm in his right, a look of worry on his face, "What's the big deal? He just threw a ball."
"Keep outta this, extra! It's none of your damn business!" Bakugo snarled, as he tried to pull away, "Let go or you'll be as dead as he is!"
"...No. I don't think I will." Sora said sternly, his face morphing from concern to seriousness in seconds at the threat. In response, Bakugo was about to turn his Quirk onto Sora, but he was suddenly stopped by Aizawa's scarf, and was halted in place. Sora let go of his hand, rubbing the soreness off of it.
"Why… why the hell is that damn scarf… so strong?" Katsuki struggled as he was still trying to get to Sora.
"Because it's a capture weapon made out of carbon fiber and a special metal alloy," Aizawa explained as he looked from Bakugo to Sora, "Both of you stand down. It'd be wise to avoid making me use my Quirk so much… I get serious dry eye."
"Loud and clear, Aizawa-sensei," Sora replied, "But not until our resident demolitions expert calms down as well."
That got a chuckle from some of his classmates, while the others in Class A sighed in relief, but marveled at the scarf their teacher possessed. Finally, after a couple of seconds, Bakugo backed down, and Aizawa released his hold.
"Alright, Nakajima, you're up." he said bluntly.
"Got it, sir." Sora nodded, catching the ball Aizawa threw at him with his left hand and heading to the center of the circle. He and Aizawa shared another look, before Sora took a deep breath, summoning his Keyblade.
He heard whispers among the students as he summoned it, but he focused on his test.
(Play: Super Smash Brothers Brawl OST - Home Run Contest)
Taking the ball in his left hand, Sora tossed it up once to test how fast it would fall, tossed it two more times to double check, before giving it one final toss which sent it high into the air, and he winded his Keyblade up like a bat. When the ball fell, Sora yelled out "BATTER UP!" and whacked the ball with the Keyblade with all his might.
…Were those stars coming out from that impact? Izuku thought dumbly, as the ball suddenly went sailing. When it landed, Aizawa showed his results.
701.3 meters. A home run.
He heard murmurs from his classmates, who for the most part looked impressed as he looked to Aizawa.
"See that, sensei?" Sora grinned, planting the blade of his weapon over his shoulder, "I didn't hold back."
"Glad to hear that," Aizawa smirked at the challenge, "Let's see if you can keep that up."
(Play: KH OST - Blast Away! - Gummi Ship I)
Next test that came was the sit-ups. Sora's couldn't be calculated, given his insane endurance, and he was stopped after 500. So Aizawa just marked it then and there. Sora watched Izuku do his own while grimacing from the pain of his broken finger. He wanted to help, but Sora didn't remember how the Cure Spell worked.
Next up was the seated toe touch. Sora managed this with his natural strength and agility as well, though he didn't do as well as others did.
Finally, endurance running. This one was a win for Sora, followed closely behind by Momo, who drove the same motorbike across the track. Sora had been running from place to place in nearly every world, from the plains of the Pride Lands to the deserts of Agrabah, from the frozen peaks of Arendelle to the ruins of Hollow Bastion, so in all honesty, this flat track was a cakewalk for the otherworldly hero. Sora playfully accused Momo of cheating when they were the last two standing, but she responded back with the fact that the bike came from her Quirk, so Sora backed off, saying he was only joking. He only won when her bike eventually ran out of fuel and her own stamina ran out. He had collapsed on his back once all was said and done endurance wise.
And at long last, after several hours of blood, sweat, and broken bones, the tests were over.
(Play: KH BBS OST - Hau'oli, Hau'oli)
"Alright, time to give you the results," Aizawa replied with a sigh, "I've ranked you from best to worst. You probably should now have a good idea of where you now stand. I'll just pull up the list."
He did so, and the results showed up briefly.
Momo Yaoyorozu, 1st.
Shoto Todoroki, 2nd.
Sora Nakajima, 3rd.
Katsuki Bakugo, 4th.
Tenya Iida, 5th.
Fumikage Tokoyami, 6th.
Mezo Shoji, 7th.
Mashirao Ojiro, 8th.
Eijiro Kirishima, 9th.
Mina Ashido, 10th.
Ochaco Uraraka, 11th.
Koji Koda, 12th.
Rikido Sato, 13th.
Tsuyu Asui, 14th.
Yuga Aoyama, 15th.
Hanta Sero, 16th.
Denki Kaminari, 17th.
Kyoka Jiro, 18th.
Toru Hagakure, 19th.
Minoru Mineta, 20th.
Izuku Midoriya, 21st.
(Play KH OST - Villains of a Sort)
Izuku had expected this, but it was a blow nonetheless. He knew he was going to be expelled. He waited for the blow to come.
"So…" Aizawa began.
"I want to take Izuku's place."
Sora's voice rang out loud and clear for everybody to hear, and everybody stared at him like he grew a second head. Aizawa stopped, and stared at him with a surprised and angry expression.
"Come again, Nakajima?" Aizawa asked threateningly.
Sora walked up to him and stared at him with a firm but calm expression, repeating what he said, "I want to take Izuku's place. Expel me, but not him."
The whole class was silent, some had their hands over their mouth, but Izuku was running up to Sora to try and dissuade him, but Aizawa stopped him with his scarf, muffling him to prevent him from speaking.
"Nakajima, let me get this straight," Aizawa questioned him, "You'd willingly throw your only chance at being a Hero away, for somebody with no potential whatsoever?" He activated his Quirk, but Sora remained unfazed.
"Everyone here has a lot of potential. Especially Izuku. No offense, Aizawa-sensei, but you just have not seen it yet," Sora countered as Aizawa glared at him, "Or did you forget how he pretty much made your judgment kaput in the softball throw?"
That was what caused the air around them to grow even tenser, before Tenya called Sora out on his behavior.
"What are you thinking?! Are you insane?!" Iida shouted, "You not only offered to take a student's place in expulsion, but you also dared to insult our teacher's methods? That will end both your career and social life! Stop this act before you cause more trouble for yourself and for others!"
"I. Don't. Care." Sora growled in English, having just about enough. Enough of this test, enough of this so-called no potential crap, enough of this superiority complex from Bakugo. That was it. He was done hiding behind a smile today after today's events, "A hero shouldn't have to step over their allies and comrades to reach their goals and get what they want."
That quickly shut Tenya down, as well as everyone else. They all stared worriedly as their teacher stepped forward until he was right in front of him and looking down on him. His Quirk was making his hair and scarf rise, but it was clear Sora wasn't backing down, as his own fists clenched up. The two of them had a staredown that would've wetted anybody's pants if they were in Sora's shoes, but the fact he had the nerve and drive to prove his point made some of the students have a little respect for him. Just a little.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Aizawa closed his eyes, a smirk on his face.
(Silence)
"Look, kid… if you hadn't interrupted me before…" Aizawa began, "I was going to say I lied about the whole expulsion thing. Nobody's going home."
Everybody was silent, but Sora was still staring at him. Aizawa's face morphed into a very odd-looking smile, as if it was some kind of joke. "That was just a rational deception to make sure you gave it your all during the test."
One second…
Two seconds…
Three seconds…
If one could listen in the distance, an alarm clock was ringing. Almost in realization.
(Play: MHA OST - Professor Aizawa)
"WHAAAAT?"
That was the collective yell of the entirety of Class 1-A. Sora reared back in total shock; Tenya looked betrayed as his glasses cracked; the round-faced girl Sora assumed was Ochaco looked shocked and relieved; and poor Izuku looked like the Pumpkin King himself had graced him with his presence.
Surprisingly, only Momo and Todoroki seemed unaffected by the revelation, the latter of which appeared not to care whatsoever. "Of course it was a lie. It should've been obvious if you thought it through." Momo said in Japanese, putting a hand on her hip.
Sora turned on her, saying in English, "Wait a sec… you knew he was lying?!"
"I'm surprised the rest of you didn't figure it out." Momo replied back in English, before saying, "I'm sorry, I guess I should've said something."
You should have! Most of the students thought.
"Aw man…" Sora sighed, "That's another heart attack for the books..."
"Yes, it was necessary. But Nakajima," Aizawa's voice carried over, and Sora looked him in the eye, "When you offered to take Midoriya's place, I decided to test you to see if you'd back down. Any sign of it, and you'd be expelled."
"Good thing I stood my ground then," Sora smirked, earning a snort from his teacher. This kid… funny feeling he's even more reckless than Midoriya.
"Dude, what the hell?" The blonde said shocked, "Why did you even think of doing that in the first place?"
"Yeah, what'd be the point?" The pink-skinned girl added. Sora simply smiled.
"Because it's the right thing to do." he answered, "I always follow what my heart tells me to do, and I don't regret doing this for a second. I'd do it again for any of you in a heartbeat. I meant what I said back there. You all deserve to be here."
Damn. He is more reckless than the problem child. Aizawa grumbled, At least he's got the power to back it up, but even so…
Did… did he just make a pun about hearts? The class thought, but Sora seemed unaware of what he just said. Regardless, the class felt a little warm at Sora's comment, especially since Sora was considered an extra student and had already shown he was really capable, so words like that coming from him felt… good. Well, for most of the class, save for a brooding multi-color haired boy and a short-tempered porcupine.
"That's it. We're done for the day," Aizawa said, "Pick up a syllabus at the classroom, and read it before tomorrow morning." He walked over to Izuku, "Midoriya, go and have the old lady fix you up. Take this with you as well. It's not going to be as easy as it was today later on. Be prepared."
The others nodded, and when Sora went to follow them, Aizawa stopped him.
"Sora," he said in English, getting his attention, "You were trying to encourage your classmates to do their best back there. That I don't care much about, but I won't tolerate any amount of disrespect like what you pulled back there. Next time that happens, my lie will become truth." He stared at the kid in front of him, "Remember that here, I'm in charge. Got it?"
"Got it, Mr. Aizawa," Sora said in kind, before adding with a smile, "You saw the potential they had from the start, didn't you?"
"It was a rational deception, Nakajima. I told you that."
"Sorry. Just curious," Sora flashed a grin at him before leaving to get changed, but not before adding one last comment, "Gotta say, you're quite the teacher."
(Play: KH BBS OST - Innocent Times)
While Midoriya was getting his finger fixed, Sora got changed into his school outfit, moving the charms back to their proper places, before going over to the classroom to grab a syllabus for both himself and Izuku. When he returned, Sora kept an eye out for him, as he looked clearly exhausted.
Eventually, the first day ended. Sora waved goodbye to some of his classmates, who either didn't see him or ignored him. Maybe they were just uncomfortable around him after the stunt he just pulled.
"Hey, Izuku." Sora told him as he handed the green-haired student a copy of the syllabus, "Go on to the station without me. I need to stay awhile to make sure of something,"
"Oh, um... Okay. I'll wait for you, though!" he responded, before walking out the door.
"Sora! A moment of your time?" He hears a familiar voice, and turns around, seeing Momo walk up to him.
"Hey, Momo. What's up?" he asked as she stopped to catch her breath.
"When you went to face the He- *ahem* I mean, creatures 3 months before, I noticed something fell from your back pocket," Momo said as she glanced around, making sure no one was in earshot, "I was thinking you'd be worried if it went missing, so I held on to it in case I bumped into you again. I assumed it was something important to you."
"Well, good thing I didn't bump into you when we met today. Otherwise we'd have more flying boxes," Sora joked, "So what exactly fell out of my back pocket?"
"This," Momo asked as she presented said item from her backpack, "Is this familiar to you, by any chance?"
Sora didn't say anything as he examined it. It was another keychain. This time, it was shaped into a small, glittering shooting star. Slowly, his face morphed into a small smile.
He knew what this was.
"Yeah," Sora answered her, "Thanks for holding on to it, Momo. I was wondering where this had been."
"You're welcome. I'm glad it's back in your hands again," Momo smiled politely as Sora took it from her hand. Then, to her surprise, the small shooting star charm disappeared from Sora's hand into sparkles of light.
"Oh?" she looked surprised, "Where did it go?"
"Heh heh heh! Secret!" Sora grinned mischievously, before asking her, "By the way, do you know where the Support Course room is? I want to ask their professor something about my Hero Costume."
"Just right down there. Go down that hallway past Class 1-C. Should be the metal door on your left," Momo directed him.
"Thanks again! You're a lifesaver!" Sora wiped off comical sweat.
"My pleasure."
Sora waved goodbye, before walking over to said metal door. He made sure his outfit was still in his magical inventory, before sighing in relief. His hand reached out to open the door…
Before a massive explosion blew it off its hinges.
(Play, MHA OST - Bright and Cheerful)
Izuku walked out nervously from the entrance of U.A. thinking about what transpired. He was very surprised at Sora's behavior today. Though it wasn't unusual given what little he knew about the spiky haired boy, he was still caught off guard by how far he'd go for any of them. To be fair, none of them expected that.
It was unexpected, but not unwelcome.
A hand was placed on his shoulder, and he turned around to find Iida looking at him.
"Ah! H-Hey there, Iida-kun," Midoriya stuttered.
"How's the broken finger?" Tenya asked him politely, a complete 180 from the diligent self Izuku had seen.
"O-oh. It's doing fine thanks to Recovery Girl," Midoriya replied, calming down. The two of them began walking as Iida continued with what he wanted to say.
"I was a bit concerned by Aizawa-sensei's approach." he began, "But I trust U.A.'s judgment. It's a top program, but even if that's the case, that lie was downright immoral."
Izuku sighed in relief. Iida wasn't all bad; he was just a very serious person.
"Heeey! Wait up you two! Are you going to the station? Wait for me!" he heard another familiar voice. Both boys turned to see the nice girl Izuku had talked to running towards them.
"U-Uraraka-san?" Izuku stammered out. She finally caught up, stopping and panting for a few seconds.
"You're the infinity girl, aren't you?" Iida asked as she caught her breath.
"Y-Yeah. I'm Ochaco Uraraka!" She introduced herself, "Let's see… you're Tenya Iida and… Deku Midoriya, right?"
"D-Deku?!" Izuku looked mortified.
"Uh, yeah? Wasn't that what that boy named Bakugo called you during the fitness test?"
"Well, uh…" Midoriya stammered, his face turning slightly red, "M-My real name's actually I-Izuku… but Deku is what Kacchan calls me to make fun of me…"
"An insult, huh?" Iida thought with a hand on his chin.
"Oh, was that it? I'm sorry!" Uraraka apologized, putting her hand behind her head and rubbing it, "But if you think about it, 'Deku' sounds like the kanji for 'You can do it!'. Plus, I think it's kinda cute-"
"Deku it is, then!" Izuku blurted out automatically, before turning a brilliant shade of pink.
"M-Midoriya-kun?!" Iida looked at him appalled, "How could you just accept it just like that? Didn't you just say it was an insult?" Midoriya apparently wasn't listening, as his face was getting hotter and hotter, and he began to cover it out of embarrassment. "It's like the Copernican Revolution…"
"Co-pe?" Ochaco looked confused.
BOOM!
An muffled explosion from inside U.A. caused the ground beneath them to shake. Alarmed, all three of them turned around.
"What was that?!" Tenya said, alarmed.
"I dunno. Did something happen?" Ochaco asked worriedly.
"Wait… that was just where Sora-kun was heading!" Izuku realized.
"Sora-kun? Wait, the Hype-Up Boy?"
"We should go check it out! He might be injured!" Iida declared. The other two nod and head back in the other direction. When they arrived inside, they found Sora talking to somebody inside, waving to them, before walking away from what used to be a metal door.
"Sora-kun! Are you alright?" Midoriya called out.
"Oh, hey Izuku! I'm fine," Sora said good-naturedly. His entire front side, including his face, was covered in soot. His back side, on the other hand, looked perfectly unharmed.
"What happened back there?" Ochaco asked him.
"Nothing special. Somebody back there got a bit too excited," the Key Bearer chuckled, "Your name's Ochaco, right?"
"Hai! And your Nakajima-kun, right?"
"Uh-huh, but you can call me Sora." Sora smiled.
"Glad to see you're still in good health, Sora-kun," Iida said, "But we should clean that soot off of you,"
Sora's smile grew wider, "You know what? That doesn't sound like a bad idea. Mom would kill me if she saw me like this on the first day."
"What were you even doing there?"
"Had to ask a question about my costume. It's fine now." Sora reassured him, "So what are we waiting for? This soot isn't gonna clean itself."
With a collective laugh, the four of them got to work in cleaning Sora up. As crazy a first day as it was, Sora had to admit it was way better than he thought.
He couldn't wait to tell everyone.
(Silence)
And that's a wrap for Chapter 9. It's Sora's first day back at school in like, a year, and what a wild first day it was. Short-tempered students, a teacher like General Shang, and heart attacks galore.
UGH! Longest chapter ever, in my opinion.
And yeah, how Sora getting into U.A. is similar to that of May Your Heart Go Beyond, if not the same. However uncreative it may be, I did say this story is inspired by OC's own, so expect some similarities here and there the first time around.
And before any of you complain on the placements of the Quirk Apprehension Tests, while I agree that in a physical sense, Sora and Izuku would've placed higher, remember that this is a QUIRK Test, too. It's a test to see how your natural strength and Quirk work hand in hand to get past these mock trials, and the possibilities depending on your Quirk's nature is endless, which is why I assumed Momo place 1st, and Shoto 2nd in canon and in this story. That's also why Izuku placed last in canon, because he only used his Quirk ONCE, and it injured him in the process too (having broken bones isn't much help in any situation), so that's sure to make Aizawa dock some points off. On the topic of Sora, he might wipe the floor in the test if he actually tried, but though he's a bit of a showoff, I don't see him as a type of guy to want to hog all of the spotlight. That's just me, though.
And just to clarify, Aizawa can't erase Sora's power, as evidenced in Sora's comment after identifying Aizawa's power as erasing Quirks.
Onto Reviews!
Gamelover41592: Glad to see I caught you by surprise then!
erickh120124: I'm glad to see that you're happy with Hero's Origin being in this story. Though... I didn't say it was the second keychain Sora had. Recall that Sora found that keychain underneath the Trinity Heartbinder. There's still that other keychain that was with Sora in Chapter 2 before apparently losing it as mentioned in Chapter 7. That other keychain has yet to be revealed. Or maybe it already has...
KingNice92: Thanks! And a good guess to who that person Sora saved from the Possessor before it took over the 0 Pointer was.
CallofRanger13: I agree. Class B would be an interesting path to take, and there are so few stories that take advantage of that and give it a shot. I can understand why there are so few stories of Class B (Not much characterization from most of its crew). Unfortunately I decided not to go that route, Ranger. Though don't count Class B out just yet. I have... something else in mind.
Guest: That is one way to make it different from May Your Heart Go Beyond. But it isn't the only way, of course. I've already got a plan for 1-B to have more scenes, but I appreciate your suggestion.
Guest: Thank you! Yeah, it is similar to OC Maniac's version of events, since this is inspired by their story. Expect some similarities between this story and their own, but also expect some new surprises, as well. I'll try my best to make it NOT a full copy of OC Maniac's story. And yes, Sora didn't faint in OC's version, but the Sora in this one used an Attraction instead of Second Form to beat the 0-Pointer, and given how that power is in KH3 ONLY, I'd assume that those attractions take a lot out of Sora since it's a brand-new ability that comes out rarely.
Shadow Tiger24: Thank you! No worries about the nightmare. It's not gonna be super important... right?
The OC Maniac: Okay... it was one thing to say that my story has the potential to surpass yours and Sora Sentry's... but to act as inspiration for others is another thing entirely. Though I feel like you're giving me a bit too much credit, I appreciate the praise, OC! Take your time with May Your Heart Go Beyond, though I feel like you already know that, and I hope we can cross paths again when one of us uploads again.
ShootingKill: Like I said with another review, I have plans for Class B, though for how... it'll come as a surprise. But yeah, thanks for that, and for Sora's strength... I'd say think of it as a Level 20-25 Sora, since he still has most of his basic magic. For The OC Maniac, it was a full loss of power, while in Sora Sentry's case, he only loses his items (Keychains, Gummiphone, Heartbinders, etc.), and not the raw power. I wanted to try and go for something in-between. A Sora that is pretty strong, but is still a far cry from what he was before.
What did you think about this chapter? I don't mind if you like it or didn't. If it's the latter though, I'm sorry I didn't meet expectations.
And to finish it off, here's a cheesy/cringy bonus ending I made while crafting this particular chapter. Hope you enjoy it, or cringe. Whichever you see fit.
Thanks for reading this chapter, and until our paths cross again!
"Here." Aizawa plopped a large white sandbag with eyes and a blush in front of Sora, "Hit it as hard as you can."
"Uhhh… yes sir," Sora said confused, summoning his Keyblade.
(Play: Super Smash Brothers Brawl OST - Home Run Contest)
Sora then whacked it with all he had, but it didn't budge. Confused, Sora hit it again, and again; and again. When it didn't budge at the fourth hit, Sora threw caution to the wind and launching Ars Arcanum at it, before finishing with a wide horizontal swing while it was in the air.
"YOU'RE THROUGH!" Sora shouted as he slammed his blade into the sandbag with all his might. The result was surprising, as the sandbag suddenly went flying. Sora could've sworn he heard a voice call out in response as the sandbag was sent to the heavens.
"UUUUUUHHHH! LATER BITCHES!" the fading voice screamed as the sandbag went off into the distance.
It disappeared over the horizon, before Sora and Class A heard a quiet thud, indicating that it had crashed into the ground. Aizawa looked at his meter tracker before showing the results.
1313 meters.
A grand slam.
"1313?!" the students shouted in surprise.
"What is it with me and the number 13?" Sora muttered.
