Rule #21: The key point is to be flexible where the target is concerned

The hallow grounds of UA, the only school with the best hero training course in the world, the place every kid wants to go.

Once changed into varying pieces of sportswear, the candidates had split up and divided themselves up between the six battles centres; where they waited in front of the entrance, ready to begin. Wearing everything from school tracksuits to karate gis to spandex suits.

Sure, there are similar programmes out there but they don't hold a candle to UA's. It's why it's almost impossible to get in.

In Toru's case, she had dressed in the updated version of Class 3-E's PE uniform. The matching grey cargo hoodie and shorts sat comfortably on her figure and the black tights and kneepads helped to give her a little extra padding & warmth should she need it.

The school's alumni list is a whose who of idols:

All Might, the most famous pro there is.

Endeavour, the legendary fiery peacekeeper with the most wins under his belt.

Best Jeanist, the denim-clad award-winning marvel

This is it. Toru thought, staring up at the ginormous wooden gates that marked the entrance to battle centre D, Time to put my training to the test and give it my all. I won't let them down! Let's do this!

Graduating from UA is basically a requirement if you wanna be a great hero. This is it, the first step in becoming a pro.

Mutters rang through the crowd gathered as they waited for the gates to open. Toru rocked back and forth on her heels as she glanced around at her peers. She didn't really recognise the faces around her; maybe one here or there that she had seen on the way in this morning, but none she could put a name to.

There was the scantily-clad girl with dark hair off to her left, then there was the black-haired boy who looks like he had plastic joints on his elbows. Momentarily, she thought she spotted Shiro off to the side as he chatted with two short blondes, (who could easily pass for twins) all of them dressed in similarly coloured tracksuits.

Her musings were soon cut however, from the sudden apparition of Present Mic atop one of the watchtowers that bordered the very large door. "RIGHT! LET'S START! GET MOVING! THERE ARE NO COUNTDOWNS IN REAL BATTLES! RUN! RUN! RUN! YOU'RE WASTING AIRTIME HERE!"

At those words, the large doors behind them slid open in one slick motion, as if they weren't just large slabs of wood. As one, the group of candidates spun on their heels and raced inside, ready to face whatever was thrown at them.

Once inside, Toru could see that the arena had been set up to look like a typical city with the buildings practically piled one on top of the other. There were broken buildings and rubble already strewn around the place as if another battle had already occurred here.

Reaching the square at the end of the street, all of the candidates split up, intent in their search for the robots. While some chose to head straight for the robots, others took to higher vantage points, gathering information before they attacked. In Toru's case, she scaled a nearby lamppost like a monkey.

Once seated atop the head of the lamppost with her ankles locked together as she straddled it, she then turned her attention to the street below, waiting for a robot to pass by underneath her. In the end, she didn't have to wait long. Whilst her fellow peers ran amok beneath her like a swarm of ants, she focused her attention on the hoard of robots headed her way.

The stocky build of a couple of two-pointers and three-pointers rolled into the area, their scanners searching for any signs of life. Down below a few figures were making a beeline for the approaching robots.

Oh no you don't! Toru thought as she felt her hands and forearms heat up with the building power of her Quirk. The familiar heat of the solar lights lit up her skin like a Christmas tree as she poised her hands into claw-like shapes; each one aimed towards the robots down below.

Her Quirk, Prism, was an odd one. Along with the invisibility that she typically wore around her like a safety net, she could also manipulate the oxygen within her body and turn it into solar lights which she could in turn use to fight. Theoretically speaking of course, she could also leech the light off of external sources, but that was something she had yet to put into practise.

BREATHE IN.

She pointed her clawed fingers towards the incoming robots, the solar light almost blinding beneath her skin.

BREATHE OUT.

Double check that her targets were line like a sniper in its nest.

FIRE!

Two concentrated beams of blinding light shot from her fingertips, headed straight towards the incoming enemy. Flying over the heads of her peers, the lights hit their marks with surprising accuracy, piercing straight through the metallic armour like it was made of butter.

5 points.

Sweeping her hands out in front of her, the lights following her actions as they sliced through everything in their paths. Nothing was safe.

25 points.

With sweat on her brow, Toru released her hold on her lights, letting the Quirk fade back beneath her skin as she caught her breath. With the current hoard now decimated, she knew she would have to move on if she wanted to better her chances of passing the exam. And fast, time was not on her side.


Meanwhile, tucked away in a secure location the faculty of UA Highs sat gathered around the many screens where they viewed the current exam taking place. Varying images of carnage and destruction where displayed on the large screen, the different cameras covering every candidate within the battle grounds.

"Clearly the examinees have no idea how many villains are present or their locations. They have limited time, must cover a vast area and hunt down every last target. Some use information gathering abilities to plan out strategies" Chirped Principal Nezu, his attention turning to the window where Shoji Mezo stood with his bat-like limbs spread out as he searched.

His gaze then floated over to the two windows showing Iida Tenya and Lee Yuna as they raced around the respective battle grounds. "While others rely on speed to pull ahead of their peers"

Next was Aoyama Yuga who appeared calm and collected despite the beam of light firing from his stomach. "Of course remaining calm under pressure can be a huge advantage"

Then there was Bakugo Katsuki who stood panting amidst a pile of robots reduced to rubble and broken parts. "As can pure power and combat ability. The most successful students use a combination of all these tactics, they're the ones who rack up the highest scores"

"Mm, I'd say this year's group looks promising" Midnight mused as her gaze swept over the different feeds displayed before them.

"There's still plenty of time before it's over. The real test is yet to come" Replied Vlad King, pressing the switch for the final combatants as the time ticked down.


Suddenly a large rumble and crash rocked the battle ground as the 0 pointer finally made its appearance. "Holy shit!" Toru breathed staring up at the monstrous robot. All around her, the other examinees were sporting the varying levels of the same expression as she.

They could only watch on as the creature rose to its full height, easily overtaking the large skyscrapers that it was sandwiched between. A large mechanical arm swung up and outwards into the building on its right.

The shockwave that was released blew back not only those standing closest to it, but everyone as far back as the adjacent street on the other side of the square. It wasn't long before terror-filled screams rang throughout the air as crowds turned tail and ran.

Toru was just about to follow the masses when Shiro (who had been standing next to her) called out. "TAMAKI!" Snapping around, Toru followed his line of sight to see one of the blondes she had seen with him earlier, except now she was on the receiving end of a large mechanical fist that was bearing down her with all the grace of a bull in a china shop.

It appeared she possessed some sort of teleportation Quirk, but had mistimed her landing which ended up with her free falling right in the line of fire. "Something's wrong" Shiro breathed watching his friend in peril.

"What? What is it?" Toru asked.

"Tamaki's a teleporter but she's not moving!"

"Maybe we could throw something to knock her out of the way?"

"And what would we use? We could hurt Tamaki if we're not careful" Toru could almost feel the waves of panic rolling off of Shiro from where she stood. Not that she could blame him, it was bloody terrifying.

By now, the mechanical arm was merely a hair's breadth from the girl and it was not looking good. Suddenly an idea popped into her head. A stupid, idiotic idea.

"Throw me" Toru breathed.

"What?" Shiro snapped towards her.

"Dammit man! Throw me!"

That was all the encouragement that Shiro needed as he latched onto her wrists as he activated his Quirk. As Toru was spun around once, twice she could feel Shiro's Quirk envelop her like a warm hug. On the third rotation, Shiro let her fly. And boy did she fly.

Tears were ripped from her eyes as she flew towards the unresponsive blonde. With arm outstretched, Toru all but tackled Tamaki from the air then the two were headed straight for the crumpled building adjacent to them.

Somehow Toru was able to flip them around in the air, leaving her to take the brunt of the impact when they landed. When the pair were barely grazing the broken glass panes, they were suddenly yanked backwards towards the ground. It was only once Toru's feet had reached the ground that she realised that it was Shiro who had brought the two gently to the ground.

No sooner had they touched the ground had the bell rung signalling the two minute mark had come and gone. The exam was over, they'd done it.


ONE WEEK LATER

"I'm home!" Toru called, walking into the apartment with her arms laden with a paper bag full of groceries and a pile of letters and circulars in one hand.

"Welcome back, dearie" Grandmother greeted, moving forward to relieve her granddaughter of the groceries she had purchased.

"Got the mail too" Toru shifted through the pile in her hands, pulling out the heavy pensioner letters addressed to her grandparents, before shifting through the rest (mostly bills and circulars) until she reached the letter addressed to her. Flipping it over, she saw the wax seal contained the logo for UA. This was it, this would tell her whether she got in or not.

Seating herself at the kotatsu, Toru tore open the letter and let the contents within fall out onto the table in front of her. Absentmindedly, she noticed that her Grandfather had turned down the TV and had turned to face her. Behind them, her grandmother had stopped all movements within the kitchen. The whole apartment seemed to hold their breath as the hologram disk (which had been within the envelope) lit up, a loud boisterous voice dominating the room.

"BOOYAH! I AM HERE AS A PROJECTION!" All Might decreed, his bright yellow pinstriped suit almost as loud as his voice.

"What? Is that All Might?" Her grandfather croaked.

"B-but this is from UA…" Toru trailed off as the projection continued.

"I KNOW IT'S BEEN AWHILE, BUT WITH GREAT POWER COMES A GREAT AMOUNT OF PAPERWORK! AHMM! YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE NEWEST FACULTY MEMBER OF UA!"

"Well, aren't you a lucky duck?" Grandfather ruffled her hair, as she tried to dodge the attack.

"DESPITE PASSING THE WRITTEN EXAM, YOU DID NOT ACQUIRE MANY COMBATANT POINTS, HOWEVER HOW COULD A HERO COURSE REJECT SOMEONE WHO IS COMMITTED TO SAVING OTHERS, NO MATTER THE CONSEQUENCE?" All Might began pacing back and forth with the frame as he continued.

"AFTER ALL, THAT IS WHAT A HERO IS! AND THAT IS WHAT OUR ALMA MATER IS ALL ABOUT! WHICH IS WHY WE HAVE RESCUE POINTS! A PANEL OF JUDGES WATCHES AND THEY AWARD POINTS FOR HEROIC ACTS JUST BEYOND COMBATANT POINTS"

Here, a recording of Toru and Shiro working together to rescue Tamaki, played out through the projection as All Might's voiceover continued to narrate. "HAGAKURE TORU: 45 RESCUE POINTS! URARAKA SHIRO: 35 RESCUE POINTS!" The image switched back to All Might who stood with both of his hands raised in a thumbs-up pose. "YOU BOTH THE EXAM! WELCOME TORU TO UA HIGH!"