It's been a while since I've updated this quickly. For some reason this arc has me excited, I dunno. Anyways, enjoy.
Chapter 43: Dokosquad vs Saiko Intelli
"How does it look, Shoji-chan?"
Shoji's three limb-eyes peered out of the fourth-floor window of the building, sweeping in all directions. "It's no use. I don't see anyone from our class."
Doko was standing further down the hallway, watching and listening for anyone coming their way. He paced back and forth, his heart racing. "Did you guys hear the announcer? Over fifty people have passed. I say we stop trying to regroup with the others and focus on attacking. We're not going to get our licenses by just hiding here."
"I concur, ribbit," said Tsu, turning away from the window and looking at Yaoyorozu, who stood in the center of them, deep in thought.
Momo flipped her ponytail and looked at her three companions. "You're right. We need to get moving, then…"
Shoji gasped.
Doko looked at him. "What? What is it?"
His limb-ears lifted up, pressing against the wall. "People coming," he muttered. "Several of them, climbing up."
"Only several?" Momo frowned. "The other schools should have larger groups than that."
"Maybe it's some of Class A?" Doko suggested, his hopes rising that Mina may have found them.
"It could be anyone who got split off from their main group and came here to hide," said Tsuyu. "In any case, ribbit, we could maybe try and ambush the…" Her ovular frog's eyes nearly popped out of her skull. "DOKKUN, LOOK OUT!"
Doko whirled just in time to see the window behind him shattering into pieces. The shards went flying toward their group, and he swept his right hand up in a slashing motion, warping them away before anyone could get cut.
Suddenly, loud music blared, vibrating the walls. Shoji screamed in pain, pulling his ears away from the walls with a hiss and doubling over.
"Huh? Shoji?" Momo looked around wildly. "We're under attack! They know we're here…"
The rest of the windows began to smash open, in a line from left to right. Doko continued to warp the glass shards away, all while trying to peer out the broken windows. Tsuyu dashed over to Shoji. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked.
He winced, and slowly turned his limbs back into fists. Blood dripped from a few of them. "Yeah…" he mumbled, getting to his feet. "It was the sudden blaring that got me…"
"Where is the music coming from…" Momo wondered aloud, looking around. The walls were still vibrating, but the actual source of the sound was hard to nail down.
Doko looked back at the creation girl, walking slowly toward what she identified as the source of the sound, further down the hallway. Tsuyu and Shoji remained crouched against the wall.
Momo was walking close to the broken windows…much too close.
"Yao-momo, back up!" Doko hissed…too late. Something strange, like a little blue orb, came whistling in as a projectile through the now-open window, right for Momo. Doko instinctively tried to warp to her, and his Quirk died in his legs again.
Momo slid aside, cat-quick, and made a metal shield on her arm that took the blunt of the projectile. It made a strange sound as it struck the metal, letting out a little eruption of blue sparks, and the girl was forced backward from the impact.
"Someone's sniping us with their Quirk from across the way!" she choked out, throwing the shield aside. "Katayama-san, get dow…"
Doko's eyes widened. Too late, he realized the next projectile was coming his way. Its blue light filled his eyes. He couldn't warp. He couldn't move…
At the last second he tried to warp the projectile aside with his hands, but it was made of plasma instead of a solid, and his Quirk didn't work on it.
The blue orb struck him in the shoulder blade, causing a sudden, shocking pain that spread through his body like wildfire. Doko wailed, falling to his knees and clutching his shoulder, scrambling back against the wall to safety. Another projectile came whistling in, and suddenly Momo was there, standing in front of him and absorbing it with her shield.
"Owww…" Doko whispered, rubbing the spot. Smoke was rising up from it. "They could have killed me! What the hell?"
"We've got to get away from the windows!" Shoji hissed.
The two girls led the way, and Doko followed close behind, getting around the corner and toward a pair of double doors.
…
Saiko and her comrades boarded the elevator. Two of them were already upstairs, waiting. Once they grouped up, Momo Yaoyorozu and her friends would be done for.
"Status, Suzu?" Saiko asked through the communication device.
Suzu, who was sniping them with her Quirk from the building across the street, said, "The warper is wounded. Phase two complete."
The elevator doors opened, and Saiko smirked. "Begin phase three!"
…
"Does it feel a little colder to you guys?" Shoji asked, backed up against the wall next to Katayama. The warping boy was half-keeled over, still clutching his shoulder.
Momo rubbed her arms. "Now that you mention it…" her next breath came out as vapor. Across from her on the other side of the doorway, Tsuyu's breath was visible as well.
Katayama's violet eyes flicked up to the ceiling. "There's cold air coming through the vents."
Suddenly, a sequence of clanging sounds went off behind them, and the light level in the hallway dropped.
"They covered the windows!" Shoji rasped. "We're shut in?"
"Aaah…" Momo continued to hug herself, her bare skin cooling fast as the air continued to stream through. "The temperature's dropping too fast!"
"Ri…ribbit…" Tsuyu's eyes rolled back into her head, her tongue lolled out, and she collapsed in the middle of the hallway.
"TSUYU!" they all shouted together, grouping around her.
"She's cold blooded…" Shoji muttered. "She can't survive in here!"
Katayama looked at Momo, grimacing through his pain. "W-we need heat. Make a lighter or something."
Momo blinked at him. "I shouldn't…that would activate the sprinklers on the ceiling. She'd just get colder! And an electric heater won't work, because if they can control the AC, they can control the power." Pink light sparkled out of her back, and a shining rectangle grew and spread, resolving into a soft blanket. "Here's a blanket for now." It landed onto Tsuyu. Shoji quickly wrapped her up in it, and then cradled her in his five arms. She kept murmuring and ribbiting through her heavy breaths.
Katayama looked back at the doors that led out of the hallway. A line of sparks was going around the outer edge.
"They're welding the door shut!" he hissed. "Trapping us in…"
Every breath was now a thick cloud. Momo was shivering. Did she dare make a blanket for herself as well, or save her body fat for something else? "Do they mean to freeze us or something?" she breathed through chattering teeth.
"They've cut off all of Katayama's mobility," said Shoji. "By trapping us in like this and making us physically uncomfortable."
"They know I'm here, then," Katayama mumbled. Then, he laughed harshly. "They don't know that I can't warp myself right now! They're overestimating me!"
"Yaoyorozu, could you make something to blow our way out?" Shoji asked.
"Like a bomb?" Momo felt troubled. She pressed her hand against her neck nervously. "I'm not sure…"
"Forget this," Katayama snarled. "If they think we'll wait around in here for them to waltz in and get our targets, then they're morons." He let go of his shoulder and stood. "They're waiting on the other side of that door, so we'll escape a different way!" He staggered over to the metal-covered windows, his breath coming out in freezing streams.
Momo's eyes widened. "No, Katayama, wait! They will have covered for tha…"
"VOID SHRED!" He punched the window covering, and it warped to pieces, splitting apart and letting daylight stream into the hallway. Immediately, another blue projectile came hurtling through the window, this time striking Doko square in the chest.
"KATAYAMA!" Shoji and Momo shouted together. Katayama was blown back toward them, hitting the ground hard.
…
"Lady Saiko, the warper tried to get them out like you predicted. I struck him again; he is likely incapacitated. Also, by now it is likely that the frog is incapacitated as well."
Saiko took another sip of her tea. Around her, her comrades waited for further instructions. All eyes stayed on the door, which they had just welded.
"Wait a little longer," said Saiko, her monocle glinting. "Just to make sure. I will offer no room for error."
…
Momo was rubbing his chest. He blinked groggily, his entire body thudding with a dull pain. He was cold, so very cold.
"What are you doing?" he mumbled, trying to sit up.
"Applying burn ointment," she hissed under her breath. Momo was trembling from the cold, her arms shaking as she finished treating him. "Stay back, Katayama. Right now, they are operating under the assumption that you can warp yourself. If they find out you can't, they will have even more of an advantage."
Shoji was alert, having created more limbs to use eyes and ears while some of his limbs remained to hold Tsuyu. "And that's only if they can't hear everything we're saying right now. I wouldn't put it past them," he said.
"Dammit," Doko hissed, hugging himself, barely able to stand now. It was cold, so cold. And he'd taken two hard hits. He barely trusted himself to be able to warp objects now, because his hands were shaking. "Sorry," he apologized to the other two. "Because I was reckless, I got myself basically taken out…I just thought that we must be dealing with some kind of mastermind here."
Momo's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"
"This plan…how effective and overwhelming it is…it reminds me of how Principal Nezu fought me and Mina during the final exams. Some of the people in the enemy group have combat Quirks, obviously…but I reckon their leader is more of a sit-back, analytical type of person. Either that or they've got amazing coordination. I thought…I thought the best way to defeat such an opponent…would be to just charge right in. Full tilt, all instinct. Defy all possible trains of thought. But…obviously, I don't know what I'm talking about. This is your area of expertise, Yaoyorozu. Any ideas?"
Shoji looked up at the air vents. "You two will go the same way as Asui if we don't do something about this cold. Yaoyorozu, can't you make something to cover them up?"
Momo opened her costume, her chest glowing pink…and then, it died. The girl was frowning in an uncertain kind of way.
Doko blinked. "What are you doing? Why aren't you creating?"
"I keep coming back to the same thing. Our opponents know our Quirks, don't they?"
"Yes," said Shoji. "It seems as if taking out the two of you would be highest priority. You have the most versatile and dangerous abilities."
"Exactly. They'd want to exploit our weakness. They must have seen Katayama at the Sports Festival and known that they needed to use energy or plasma to take him out, like Todoroki's fire. And they must know that…I have a limit to my Creation. Once I run out of lipids, I am effectively incapacitated. And there are eight vents there. Making something to cover all of them would drain me completely. That's what they want us to do."
"But we c-can't stay here!" Doko hissed harshly, curling up against the wall, trying to conserve what little warmth he had left. "If we keep hiding, we will fail the exam! Who knows how many people have passed by now?!" He knew he was being the aggressive one, but he couldn't help but be a little frantic. If he didn't get his license, he'd be stuck for another year!
"We cannot charge in recklessly, like you thought we should," said Shoji. "But…we cannot wait, either. We have to do both. Attack and be wary."
Momo's gears were turning; they could both see it in her eyes. "They expect us to either wait here, or attack with our own bodies…that's it!" She snapped her fingers, her eyes sparkling. "We send something in to do the attacking for us! What can I make…" she mumbled. "What…"
She pulled the encyclopedia from her belt and flipped through it, her eyes dancing across the pages frantically. "Everyone, bear with the conditions for a little while longer!"
"Ribbit…" Tsuyu mumbled. Shoji changed the orientation of his limbs, carrying her like a backpack the way he'd done Midoriya at the training camp.
Doko looked down in frustration, hugging his arms close. When he looked back up, Momo's costume was WIDE open.
"Modesty!" he hissed, averting his eyes and blushing as the pink light of her Quirk grew and solidified into four items that hit the floor. Pairs of headphones.
"Put them on!" she said, and then got down on all fours, preparing to create something else.
Doko reached down and picked a pair up, covering his ears. He tossed the other two to Shoji, who used his limbs to reach around and place a pair on Tsuyu before putting on some himself.
Meanwhile, Momo was growing a device out of her back. "Hopefully, the range will be enough…" she said. "The headphones are just for precaution." She created a small device, like a remote, and then handed the first thing she'd made to Doko.
It was a little box with an antenna on it.
"What's this?" Doko asked, turning it over in his hands.
"Warp it through the door," Momo told him. "Hurry!" The temperature was now well below freezing, and they were all starting to lose brain function. Momo seemed pale, sickly, exhausted. Shoji was holding up, but even he was starting to shake, having to put all his limbs toward keeping Tsuyu warm.
Doko nodded. His brain was clouded with cold, making it very hard to focus, but he held the device out toward the closed door…and shut his eyes.
A few meters. That's all. Through the door, to our opponents. Focus.
Focus…
…
"It has been six minutes," said one of her girls. "Science says that they should be all but frozen by now. Either that, or Yaoyorozu has used her Quirk, and is eliminated."
Saiko grinned. "Prepare to storm the hallway."
"YES, LADY SAIKO!" they all said in sync, activating their Quirks. One of the girls leaned down, and began to disable the welding she'd put on the door.
Saiko licked her lips; she couldn't help but be a little excited about what they'd find on the other side.
They were UA students, certainly, but there were also only four of them, and three of them at least were now suffering from incapacitations. That left only the boy with multiple arms to worry about, and Saiko had absolute confidence that her seven comrades could handle it. Her part was over, and she'd done it impeccably. No one can withstand my planning, my intellect. She would sit back and enjoy the show.
Suddenly, a purple flash went off on the floor in the center of the girls. They all looked at the appearing object in surprise…
And Momo pressed a button on her remote.
…
A high frequency sonic sound, like Jiro's amplified attacks, reverberated through the building. Momo shouted with victory, and Doko winced, pressing his hands against the headphones to cover his ears more. It was loud and horrible even with the headphones on, which meant surely their opponents inside the same room as the thing would be even worse off.
"Give it a few more seconds…" Momo shouted to the other three, as they all cowered and clutched their headphones. "They will probably figure out how to destroy it, and then…"
The sound suddenly cut off. "NOW!" Momo roared.
Too late, Doko remembered that the door had been welded shut. But when Shoji pushed against it, it gave. The welding is gone! Were they preparing to strike us?
In any case, they entered the warm, well-lit room. Scattered across the floor were female hero students in white uniforms, some unconscious, others murmuring and groaning, clutching their ears.
Tsuyu struggled out of Shoji's grip, warming up and feeling better. "Hurry," she croaked, pulling a ball from her belt. "Get their targets while they're down!"
Shoji and Doko moved to obey that order, but suddenly they heard the door slam behind them.
"Huh?" They whirled. Momo was gone.
…
Momo scrambled backward, away from the crazed girl with the monocle. The girl had blue hair and she was trembling, smiling madly, advancing slowly toward her with ball in hand.
"You outwitted me," said Saiko Intelli, although Momo did not know that was her name. "You. You took out all my comrades. You think you can pass. Even if your friends make it, I'll have you fail, you harlot. You've gone and created too much anyway, despite not covering the vents like I'd planned." The blue-haired girl made a show of pouting. Momo felt her back hit the wall, and she squealed, having nowhere to go.
"And now you can't stand and fight. Such a shame." A sadistic smile spread across the girl's face, and she brought her ball down toward the target…
…
The instant Doko realized Momo was gone, he took action. Warmth had spread back through his body like wildfire, and even though the projectile wounds still hurt, it was like his Quirk had reawakened from the cold all at once, newly invigorated. The purple energy crackled from his knuckles, and he leapt back toward the door, not even bothering to open it.
"VOID SHRED!" he shouted again, blasting the door into a thousand pieces, sending purple light out into the hallway.
"TSUYU, TONGUE!" he roared, ducking and letting the frog girl leap over him. Her tongue wrapped around the blue-haired girl's hand, yanking her back, and sending her ball flying away.
Their monocled opponent gasped, and tried to procure another ball, but Momo grabbed her wrist and created a pair of handcuffs, pulling her to the ground. In a rush, Doko warped the balls away from the girl's hands, far from grabbing distance.
They'd gotten her.
"You came to save her?" the girl was saying in disbelief. "Rather than taking out my opponents? You do know this is an exam, right?"
"We help our friends first, ribbit," Tsuyu said, pulling her tongue back in.
"And we don't give up," Shoji added.
"Besides…" Doko reached up with his arms and stretched them, feeling his spine uncurl with a satisfying pop. He smiled. "...We have enough time to do both, anyway."
There were eight girls scattered around, two for each of them. Perfect.
The four hit their balls against the targets, defeating two each. Tsuyu, Shoji, Momo, and Doko had passed the first round.
…
"Sixty people have passed," said the announcer. "Forty slots remain."
Hanta, Midoriya, and Uraraka crouched together beneath a rocky overhang. Sounds of battle were still going on all around them, but for now, they were safe.
"I think it's safe to say we can no longer afford to waste time finding the others," said Hanta. "But how can we attack with such a small group?"
"No, this is actually better," Midoriya said, his chin cradled in his fingers.
"Huh? How?" asked Uraraka.
"When I was with that imposter girl, and some people attacked us, one of them jumped in early, against their friend's wishes. They were desperate for the points. When you're in a large group going after small groups, not everyone has enough targets to pass."
"Then why did you suggest that we stick together at the start, as a class?" Hanta asked. He couldn't understand Midoriya's logic.
"Well…" the green-haired boy looked up at the sky. "For starters, I was panicking. So there's that."
Uraraka giggled.
"But also, it's easy to assume that this test is about target practice. Landing a ball against someone's target to pass. Simple, right? But with the uncertain element of your opponents' Quirks…it's a much better idea to take out a whole group of them at once, and then after they're incapacitated, just walk up and touch the targets with the balls. Class A has a lot of people that are good at zone control, so I thought we would be able to do that…but I didn't expect the earthquake, obviously."
"Oh, I see."
Uraraka perked up. "Shh! They're getting close!"
Midoriya gasped. "Alright, here's the plan. You two have better Quirks for restraining people, while I'm the flashier target. They're gonna want to come after me. So I'll act as decoy."
Hanta opened his mouth to question this, but Uraraka was nodding. She trusts him a lot, doesn't she? He sighed.
There was a part of Sero deep down that wished he could be trusted, that he'd be the one coming up with the plans and making it all happen. But for now…I'm doomed to a support role.
At least he and Uraraka made a good team. And Midoriya is a good leader. I'm okay with following his back.
"Right then," said Hanta. "Let's do it!"
…
"Want some gum?" Emi offered.
"No thank you. It's the kind that traps your finger."
Ms. Joke smiled foxily and retracted her hand. "So, Eraser, how do you feel about the exam so far?"
Shota leaned forward, half out of concentration and half to get her out of the corner of his eye. He didn't want to see her right now. "I wish there was a way to know who passed and who failed…"
"Yes, my student Shindo made it a bit difficult to see anything with that earthquake of his," said Ms. Joke. "Hey, wait! Eraser, are you worried?" She leaned in, trying to scan his face excitedly.
"No," said Shota. "There's something I've realized about Class A."
Midoriya jumped out from behind the cliff, green lightning erupting from his body, jumping and dodging as all the balls came firing toward him.
"There are a few students in particular…"
Bakugo used his new AP shots to counter the purple-haired boy's meat attack, Jiro's jaw dropped behind him.
"That everything seems to revolve around."
Doko, Momo, Tsuyu, and Shoji limped out of the building, arms around each other for support. They were smiling in victory.
"Whether they're popular, or leaders, or just have some air about them…"
Todoroki sat down in the break room, having safely passed on his own.
"They always seem to be at the center of a major event."
From behind Midoriya, Sero and Uraraka attacked, taking out the people who'd thrown their balls at him with tape and gravity-released boulders.
"They drag the rest of the class up to their level with their enthusiasm, their drive, their tenacity. The whole class is elevated because of these few people. So…no, Emi, I'm not worried at all. I'm excited. Excited to see how they grow."
Aizawa was telling the honest truth, but Kaminari danced at the back of his mind, whispering doubt and fear and guilt.
…
"Seventy people have passed. Thirty slots remain."
Shoto looked around the room for his classmates, wondering. Am I truly the only one? Was the disadvantage of the other schools knowing our Quirks too much in the end? Or is there simply a gap in skill between the years?
Then, he noticed four familiar faces headed his way.
He sighed in relief. "Yaoyorozu."
"Todoroki-kun! You passed!" She rushed over to him excitedly, and then stopped short, something flashing across her eyes.
He blinked. For a moment, it seemed like she'd been about to hug him.
"I knew you'd make it," said Katayama from behind her. He and Tsuyu were both hanging weakly on Shoji, who was holding them with his limbs and shoulders.
Shoto winced. "What happened to you two?"
"Cold, ribbit."
"I was shot with some plasma shit." Katayama put his hand up against his costume, and grimaced. Part of the inkblot design had been torn away, and the wound was still smoking a little.
Shoto's eyes widened. "You need to get that checked out, Katayama-kun. Still, it's good that the four of you made it."
Yaoyorozu was looking around. "Isn't there anyone else?"
Shoto shook his head. "You guys are the first from our class that I've seen."
…
Hanta caught up with Midoriya, running as fast as he could. The guy was impossible to keep up with while his Quirk was activated!
Behind them, at least a dozen people were in pursuit. Balls whistled past, left and right.
"Midoriya!" Hanta roared, hoping beyond hope that this plan would work. See, Uraraka? I can make plans too! We're gonna do this as a team!
Deku looked to his left. "Sero?! I told you to hang back!"
"Pick me up and jump as high as you can!"
"HUH?"
"Just do it!"
That got him. Midoriya grabbed Sero under his arms and leapt, green lightning blasting out.
Hanta felt weird soaring through the air with another dude, but he looked back. Beneath a nearby cliff, Uraraka released the boulders.
All the rocks that she'd floated were attached to tape, tape that now fell down in a web of long lines with the boulders, trapping all of their pursuers in the middle of the rock field.
Midoriya landed. "Tape?!"
Hanta nodded. "I gave Uraraka some of mine and had her set some traps!" One student managed to struggle free, having only their foot stuck, but Hanta lifted his elbow and shot some more, wrapping them up cleanly.
Uraraka ran over to them. "I made sure the boulders themselves wouldn't land on anyone. Had to figure out the timing of them chasing you!"
"Seventy-six people have passed," said the announcer. "Twenty-four slots remain."
Midoriya's eyes flashed, and he looked around at all the people they'd trapped. "Let's get this done with!" he said.
Hanta quickly began hitting a nearby student's targets, touching the ball to them in succession. "Hey, give us a break!" the boy complained. "You're first years, right? You have two more years to get this license! Some of us HAVE to pass this exam this year!"
Hanta looked questioningly at Midoriya. Personally, I feel kinda bad…
Deku's face was set. His mind had been made up a long time ago.
"I have to pass, too," he said.
…
"Eighty-two people have passed. Eighteen slots remain."
Kirishima, Jiro, and Bakugo were walking toward the edge of the arena, where the entrance to the anteroom was.
"Hey!" Kirishima exclaimed, pointing. "There's Sero and them! They passed, woohoo!"
Jiro saw Uraraka, and sighed in relief. "Well done, you three."
Sero and Kirishima waved at each other, and the six of them all met up to head back together.
"Great job, Jiro! At least some of us got through!" Uraraka exclaimed, holding her fists up to her chest.
Jiro scratched the back of her neck sheepishly. "Heh, yeah…Bakugo did most of the work…"
"So, you passed then, Deku…" Bakugo muttered.
Midoriya jumped. "Uhhh, yeah Kacchan, you too! Great job…"
"Of course I fucking passed," he hissed. "And of course you did, too. With your power, it's only natural."
He pushed past Sero and stalked toward the anteroom, breaking away from them.
Uraraka blinked. "Did he just compliment Deku?"
Kirishima grinned. "He's a real softie at heart."
Izuku watched Bakugo's back as the boy strutted away, his head hanging down. He hasn't come at me as much recently…
Something is going on in his head. Something new.
They went in, and found five more people. Katayama, Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, Asui, Shoji. Partially reunited, the class began to chat again.
"Jiro-san, what made you go off with Bakugo and Kirishima?" asked Momo.
"A hunch," the rocker girl muttered.
"Be glad you weren't freezing with us," said Doko. He'd gone and gotten his wound checked out. There was no Recovery Girl here, but they did have top-of-the-line healing robots, which helped.
"Ochaco-chan, the key to take your targets off is in the back. You put them on the shelf with the ball bags, ribbit."
"Thanks, Tsu. I'll do that!"
"That makes eleven," said Todoroki to Midoriya. "Eight left out there."
"And only eighteen slots remaining…" Deku muttered. "C'mon guys…"
Sero went up to Doko, watching the entrance to the anteroom. "Ashido hasn't passed yet, huh?"
Doko shook his head. To tell the truth, he was getting a little bit worried. As much as he wanted to pass and start doing hero work…he wanted to do all that with Mina. If she doesn't make it, then what? I'll move on ahead of her…
He would have to tell her about his faster aging process soon. Once the pressure of the exam had been removed, he would tell her.
But it'll be much easier to drop that bomb on you if you pass, Mina! So please…since I'm selfish! Pass for me, and pass for yourself!
…
"Nine more have just passed at once! Nine spots remain!"
"Crap!" Toru wailed. "What do we do?"
Mina peered out from behind the cliffs. There were a lot of people swarming everywhere…but there were so many. Were they all grouped up? If they jumped out now, would they just be bombarded.
"There's no time to think about it!" hissed Ojiro. "Hagakure…come on!"
The two of them jumped out from behind the rock, not waiting for Mina.
"Huh?" She blinked, and followed them. "Guys, WAIT!"
There must be another way…there has to be…I'm not all instinct! Come on, Mina! Get it together! You CAN think through this!
Three balls hurtled toward her. She did a low split, letting them sail over her head, and when some telekinetic Quirk hurled debris at her, she blasted it apart with acid. The enemies were everywhere; she couldn't see them, only their attacks.
Where had Ojiro and Toru gone? Wait, there they were…running away? From a group of older students?
"Hagakure, go!" Ojiro roared, whirling and throwing one of his own balls back behind him with his tail. One of their pursuers caught the ball, grinned, and threw it back, striking against one of Ojiro's targets and lighting it up.
"GUYS!" Mina shouted, running toward them.
"AAAAAAH!" Toru was screaming. Nine left. Nine left. There's no time! Pass, or fail! Gotta go now! But…
In that crucial moment, she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Two things, actually.
The first thing was that Tokoyami, Sato, and Koda were coming down the hill, Dark Shadow and a swarm of pigeons moving to intercept their opponents. The other thing she saw was a bright blue beam on a hill beyond, shooting far into the sky, like a beacon of hope.
Aoyama's laser.
"GUYS!" she shouted again, getting the attention of all five of her fellow classmates in the area. "THAT WAY!" she pointed toward the beacon, firing away into the sky.
"Go." Koda's voice struck their souls like a deep chord, and the pigeons turned on a dime, hurtling and squawking and flapping their wings in Aoyama's direction.
"C'mon, Toru!" Mina said, gesturing for her friend to follow. Tokoyami and Ojiro bounded ahead, bolstered by Dark Shadow and a tail respectively.
They scrambled up the last hill, revealing a huge crowd of opponents, converging on Aoyama. The pigeons dived into the fray, pecking at them and swarming them.
Toru leapt off the cliff recklessly. "WARP REFRACTION!" she shouted, and a rainbow of light came bursting from her, further blinding all the enemy.
"Black Ankh, Covert Operation Arms!" Tokoyami growled, and Dark Shadow covered him, the creature's claws growing in size and creating two walls of darkness that boxed the opponents in.
Sato and Ojiro leapt quickly after them, knocking several more people to the ground with tail and fists.
Aoyama sat up, confused. "Huh? …Why?"
"Everyone was confused!" Mina told him, landing light on her feet and creating two acid veils to block the barrage of balls coming their way. "We couldn't tell friend from foe, and it was panic! But…then we saw your laser, and we were able to meet up again!" She turned, and gave Aoyama a thumbs-up. "NOW, LET'S PASS THIS THING, CLASS A!"
She leapt over a student with a wolf-mutant Quirk, and as she executed the flip, dropped the ball onto his last target.
"One more has passed!"
"I'm going too!" said Toru.
"And me!" Ojiro added.
"Two more! Three! There's only six slots left now!"
Koda let out a happy squeak as he and his pigeons gathered around the downed students, gathering his two defeats.
"Five slots left!"
"Sorry…" said Tokoyami, as Dark Shadow grasped two opponents and hit their targets.
"I'm not sorry!" said Dark Shadow.
"No one asked your opinion," the bird boy hissed in annoyance.
"Four slots left! UA has made a final blitz at the end here!"
Sato got his targets, nearly collapsing from the sugar crash.
"Three slots le…oh, someone from Shiketsu just passed, so now we've got two slots left!"
Aoyama and Iida rushed toward the last remaining students, and hit their targets.
"THAT'S IT! ALL SLOTS HAVE BEEN FILLED!"
Mina jumped up and down, rejoicing.
Back in the anteroom, Doko sighed in relief, his shoulders slouching. "Everyone made it," he said to Sero, who nodded excitedly.
Tsuyu let out a happy ribbit.
Class A had passed completely through the first round.
…
Up in the stands, Aizawa's eye twitched. "There were that many of you left that needed to pass?" he mumbled. "Goodness…had me nervous there."
"Huh?" Ms. Joke feigned putting her hand up to her ear. "Did I hear that right? Repeat it." A massive toothy smile spread across her face. "Was the great Eraserhead nervous?"
"They should have passed more quickly than that. We'll need to get straight back into training after this to bring them up to standard."
"You're happy," she accused.
"I'm mad."
"Your legs are bouncing with happiness."
"They're not."
…
Next time, the rescue exercises…and possibly our first look at a certain germaphobic yakuza leader, maybe.