It was a rather nice day out in Japan. Blue skies. Birds chirping. A very peaceful setting. That was just what Fujino liked as she listened to the class lecture.
A week had passed since Fujino had started attending U.A. She was still not officially a student yet, and wouldn't be until the next semester. But that didn't mean she couldn't learn a thing or two by listening and taking notes. Since she had nowhere to stay, the school had set her up in the same apartment building that they had put Yamagori in. Cheap and a little run down, but still miles better than her room at Paradise's facility so Fujino had no complaints. Yamagori brought her to and from school every day. Fujino had also been provided with a simple cell phone for the sake of convenience.
The midday bell rang throughout U.A's halls, signalling that it was time for lunch. Yamagori took the lesson plans on her desk and organized them neatly. "Alright, that's it for class." she said. "And I doubt I need to remind you all, but there's only a week left before final exams. Make sure you're all studying. I don't want to hear any excuses afterwards."
Final exams. It was something on everyone's minds. It would be their biggest examination since midterms a couple months ago. But these would undoubtedly be much harder.
"There won't just be a written examination this time. There's also a practical portion as well." the teacher added. "So you better train your minds and bodies." Yamagori looked to the back of the room. "And Hatsu, meet me in the faculty office once afternoon classes are done."
"Yes Ms. Yamagori." Fujino said.
With that, Yamagori walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. And that left all of Class C to voice their minds about the upcoming finals.
"I'm so screwed!" Shiro (Midterm:20th/20) exclaimed. "I haven't studied at all…"
"Eh, don't sweat it." Jill (Midterm:19th/20) said. "We just gotta do some last minute cramming."
"We have pretty much had one event after another." Daiki (Midterm:9th/20) admitted. "Between the sports festival and internships, we haven't gotten a whole lot of free time."
Sarah (Midterm:3rd/20) shrugged her shoulders. "It's not like it's that hard to fail. All you have to do is pay attention in class."
"Midterms didn't really cover a whole lot." Hikari (Midterm:12th/20) admitted. "So finals are probably going to be a lot harder."
"Easy for you to say!" Shiro yelled. "I suck at this kind of stuff!"
"Heh, well it must be hard to get a top score for someone like you." Hyde (Midterm:8th/20) smirked. "After all, you've got someone as amazing as me to compete with."
"I still can't believe you scored as well as you did on midterms, even if they were easy." Nene (Midterm:7th/20) told him.
"Heh, the star of the show usually gets underestimated." Hyde retorted.
"Even if we have been busy, you should have done at least some studying by now." Marcus (Midterm:4th/20) said.
"Ohhh, I'm so nervous!" Vivi (Midterm:13th/20) said frantically. "Written exams are one thing, but there's going to be a practical portion too this time! I'm going to mess up, I just know it!"
"Geez, get a grip." Fujino said, resting her head on her hand. "You guys are supposed to be training to become heroes and a simple test has you this panicked?"
"Oui. Mademoiselle Fujino's words sound like they come from the heavens themselves." Merci (Midterm:18th/20) stated. "I for one am not worried in the slightest."
Dan (Midterm:5th/20) and Alicia (Midterm:6th/20) narrowed their eyes at Merci. "Uhh… I think you might want to worry a little, Merci." Alicia said.
"What exactly are you implying?" Merci retorted.
"I have an idea." Sakura (Midterm:2nd/20) suggested. "If you all want, we can do a big study session together."
"Seriously?! That'd be great!" Jill said with a wide grin.
"You really mean it?!" Shiro asked.
"Of course. As class rep, it's my job to help my fellow classmates." Sakura told them.
"Woohoo!" the bottom two midterm finishers cheered.
"I wouldn't mind joining, if that's alright." Fiona (Midterm:17th/20) said.
"Me as well." Melody (Midterm:16th/20) chimed in.
"With the power of our friendship, we'll pass for sure." Rekka (Midterm:14th/20) grinned.
Lilina (Midterm:10th/20) walked up to the group as well. "I'd like to join too if you don't mind." Lilina added. "I can help with math no problem, but I've had a few issues with some of the other subjects."
Shinobu (Midterm:1st/20) got up from his seat and walked to the door. "Do me a favor and don't come asking me for help. I don't have time to waste making up for your foolishness."
Everyone watched as Shinobu walked out of the classroom and closed the door behind him. Satoshi (Midterm:11th/20) let out a sigh. "Well he's as friendly as ever."
"In the end though, he does have a point." Kenji (Midterm:15th/20) admitted. "While there is no shame in helping others, we must focus on ourselves first and foremost."
Jill waved over to Fujino. "Hey Fujino, you should totally join our study session!"
"Huh? Why?" Fujino asked. "I don't have to take finals like you guys."
"Cause it'll be fun!"
"You did get thrown right into class in the middle of the semester. It wouldn't be surprising if you were having trouble with some of the material." Sakura mentioned. "I'd be happy to help if you want."
Fujino couldn't fully deny Sakura's point. She had gotten a semi-basic education from time to time at Paradise's facility, but it was far below the standards of what most kids her age would learn, so her academic skills were a little sub par compared to the rest of the class. She had been getting help in her free time from Sakura and some of the others to try and catch up with where they were at in lessons. But she still wasn't entirely sure about joining so many people for a study session for an exam she wasn't even taking.
"It's fine. You guys can have your little gabfest." Fujino told them.
"I'll bring some of those chocolate candies you like~" Jill told her in an alluring tone.
Just like that, Fujino found her stomach turning against her, urging her to accept the invitation. She groaned and gave in. "Fine. If you really want me there, I guess I could go."
Jill let out a giggle. She knew just what to use to incentivize Fujino.
Lunch Rush's cooking was as good as always. Fujino had come to especially enjoy lunchtime each day due to how amazing the meals she got to eat at U.A were. The main topic of conversation at the table today was the upcoming finals.
"The written exam shouldn't be too bad." Dan said as he ate. "It's just stuff we've learned in class. But I have no idea what to expect with the practical."
"Yeah. It could end up being any number of things." Marcus said. "It's a little concerning having to be prepared for so many different scenarios."
"All Ms. Yamagori would tell us is that it's a comprehensive test based on everything from the first semester." Alicia noted. "Something that vague is kinda hard to work with."
"We've done combat and rescue training mostly." Sarah said. "We'll have to stay in good physical condition too if we want to-"
"Oh, my, my, look who it is."
The heads of Class C turned as Monoma of Class B walked up to them with his deranged grin. "If it isn't the detestable Class C who thought they were too good to work with us at the sports festival."
'Oh great. This clown.' Sarah thought to herself.
"Seeing you all squirm and worry about the final exam brings such joy to my eyes." Monoma said. "But we of Class B already know what the practical exam will be! That's right! We've pulled ahead of you all!"
Fujino narrowed her eyes at Monoma. "Who the heck is this guy?"
"Hm? Ah, you must be the new student I heard about." Monoma said. "It's a shame you got stuck with the pathetic losers of Class C. Because in the end, it will be Class B that shows you all how worthless you all are!"
Fujino was quickly growing to dislike Monoma, not that anyone could blame her. "Can I blow this idiot up?"
"No! No blowing people up!" Nene said as she quickly covered Fujino's mouth. "Ahaha… she's kidding of course."
"That's enough, Monoma." Kendo said, delivering a swift chop to the back of her classmate's neck. "I just had to step in with you and Class A. Give me a break." She grabbed Monoma by the back collar of his shirt before he could collapse. "Sorry about him. His head's not really screwed on right if you know what I mean."
"Just keep him in check." Fujino said.
"I'll do my best." Kendo said. "Anyway, I hope you're settling in well. Your name's… Fujino, right?"
Fujino nodded her head. "Yes, that's correct."
"Good. Well I hope we can get along." she said. "Don't worry. Not everyone in Class B is like this sad sack."
Fujino looked closely at Kendo. She seemed honest enough. Despite her psycho of a classmate, perhaps Kendo was alright. "Sure, whatever."
"Oh, and about the practical exam." Kendo added. "An upperclassman friend of mine let me know what it would be. Looks like it'll be combat against robots, like it was for the entrance exam."
"Seriously?" Alicia said. "Thanks, that info helps a lot."
"Consider it an apology for this one." Kendo said, lifting Monoma up as she began to drag him away. "Good luck."
After Kendo left with Monoma, the students of Class C quickly spread the word to each other. The knowledge that the practical exam would be fighting robots was a huge relief to many of them. Even for those that weren't completely confident in their combat strength against robots, simply knowing what to prepare for was a huge relief.
Once afternoon classes were over, everyone headed home for the day. Fujino however stayed at the school. She had a special training session with Yamagori and Aizawa scheduled for after school. They brought her to the training field where she had been doing her special lessons since coming to U.A.
Despite having several lessons, Fujino's control was still subpar at best. And she still found her Quirk activating on its own in the heat of battle due to the stress it put on her mind. Her accuracy had gotten a bit better, but outside of that she had improved very little.
"Alright Hatsu, today's lesson is going to be a bit different from usual." Yamagori told her.
"What do you mean?" Fujino asked.
"I'll be frank. Your accuracy and overall concentration have improved, but your control is still crap." she said. "Without full control over your Quirk, you'll only end up a liability in a fight rather than an asset. Heck, you could end up being a danger just walking around in general."
"I know. I'm trying." Fujino said.
"Well your "trying" hasn't accomplished a whole hell of a lot." Yamagori said. "I was hoping not to have to do this, but it seems it's going to become necessary for the time being. We're going to create an inhibitor for you."
"An inhibitor?"
"Basically, we're going to add a mental condition for activating your Quirk." Yamagori explained. "Think of it like a switch inside your mind. When you press the button on that switch, you create an explosion. And the way you press it will be saying a special keyword verbally."
"What's the keyword?"
"It can be whatever you want it to be. What's important though is that you need to subconsciously believe that your Quirk will not activate unless you say that keyword."
"And you think this will work?"
"It's a technique I used when I was still learning to fully control my Quirk." Yamagori explained. "Sometimes I'd look at a person and simply thinking about the fact that I could paralyze them by making eye contact would trigger my Quirk. Sound familiar?"
"So then… as long as I have this mental rule on myself, I can avoid my Quirk going off on its own." Fujino realized.
"Exactly. Of course, it's not practical to stay this way forever. Adding a condition for Quirk activation means you can't use it as freely as you normally would be able to. The goal here will be for you to have this mental rule placed on yourself while you're learning to fully control your Quirk. Then after your control improves enough where you feel it's safe, we'll work to remove it."
"I think I understand." Fujino said. "But I've used my Quirk my whole life without this mental rule. Suddenly being asked to subconsciously believe it won't go off unless I say some magic word doesn't seem practical."
"It won't be able to be done right away. It's going to take a lot of repetition and mental exercises. And I mean a lot." Yamagori told her. "We'll be doing this for the next few training sessions, got it?"
"Yes Ms. Yamagori." Fujino nodded.
"Good. Now I want you to look straight ahead, focus on a target. And when you say the keyword you come up with, activate your Quirk right there and then."
Fujino did as she was told. She took a deep breath and began to focus. She aimed her target to be the center of the training field, where there would be the least amount of risk of damaging the building. She thought carefully about the word she wanted and finally spoke it.
"Burst!"
As the words escaped her mouth, the space around where she was aiming distortion for a brief second before a large explosion occurred.
"Good." Yamagori said. "Again."
Fujino obeyed the teacher's command. "Burst!" Once again, an explosion went off.
"Again."
"Burst!" Yet another explosion.
"Again."
"Burst!"
The repetitive exercise went on for another few minutes. But eventually, Fujino's stamina gave out and she fell to her knees to catch her breath.
"Once you've recovered for strength, we'll keep at it." Yamagori told her. "This will be your training for the rest of the week. It may not be exciting, but grin and bear it."
"Yes ma'am." Fujino said. Frankly, she didn't care how tiring and repetitive this exercise was. If it allowed her to gain control over her Quirk rather than being controlled by it, she'd do this day after day for a year if she had to.
Another hour of the training exercise went on for Fujino before Yamagori finally decided to call it a day. The teacher could only hope the training would work for Fujino the same way it had worked for her when she was younger. But in the end, only time would tell.
As Fujino went back to the lockers to change out of her jersey and into her school uniform, Yamagori and Aizawa were left to talk alone. "I noticed you didn't tell her the news we received." Aizawa spoke.
"What do you think I am? Heartless?" Yamagori asked him. "Right now, it's important she keeps a clear head while she grasps this form of training. Besides… do you want to be the one to tell her either?"
"Fair point." Aizawa admitted.
It had been earlier today that U.A had received an update on the investigation for Paradise. Based on the police's investigation and the information they had gotten from Fujino, a full investigation was finally able to be done on Paradise. They stormed the organization's main headquarters in Japan, as well as the facility Fujino had been kept in. Unfortunately, not only was the facility completely empty, the president of Paradise was nowhere to be found at the company's headquarters. There were hundreds of workers there that were caught off guard by the police's presence, and after extensive questioning none of the people there seemed to have been aware of what was going on behind the scenes.
Paradise's president Genjiro Mastsuhari, as well as a select number of other high ranking Paradise employees, were nowhere to be found. They had escaped before the police could get to them.
After digging some more into the company's files, several other secret facilities worldwide were discovered within documents. But it seemed to only be a portion of the facilities. The documents containing the rest had been deleted before the police arrived. Police agencies in several countries were informed of the situation and went to investigate Paradise's various branches in each of their countries. However, just like in Japan, the only ones left were those that had been completely unaware of what was going on.
But that wasn't the worst part.
Fujino's mother was supposed to be working at Paradise's main European branch, located in Germany. When the local authorities arrived, they were met with the same scene of everyone there being those completely ignorant to Paradise's underground work. They had expected to find Fujino's mother among them and let her know the status of her daughter.
But she was nowhere to be found. Like Genjiro Mastsuhari and the rest, she had vanished without a trace. Which meant she had likely been taken by them against her will.
Fujino had no knowledge of her mother's status right now. All she knew was what was on the news, which had been covering the massive scandal for the past few days ever since the police raided the company's headquarters. The teachers had simply been telling her that they hadn't heard word back from the investigation going on in Europe right now. But they did now. And they were dreading when it would finally be time to tell Fujino the news.
"When are you going to tell her?" Aizawa asked. "She has the right to know her mother is missing."
"I'm going to wait until after finals. Hopefully that mental rule will be engraved into her head by then. Otherwise, she's bound to lose control from the mental pain that knowledge is going to cause." Yamagori said. "What I'm more concerned about though is what she'll do with that information."
"You think she might try and hunt Paradise down?"
"She's a teenager. And an emotional one at that." Yamagori reminded him. "I just pray she makes the right call."
As finals drew closer one day at a time, Class C found themselves preparing more and more for what would likely be their biggest challenge yet. It wasn't easy, considering they had to train both body and mind for what they would be facing. But for many, Sakura's group study session helped a lot with the academics. Although Fujino was exempt from finals this time around, the extra studying helped her with catching up to where the rest of the class was at.
Finally, the day came for finals to begin. First came the three days of written exams. It was easy for some like Shinobu and Sakura, who excelled at academics. As for others like Jill and Shiro, they found what they learned during the study sessions coming in handy. Fujino spent the three days doing a mix of mock tests in the library to see where she was at, and continuing her Quirk training. It had taken a few days, but the repetitive exercises Yamagori had her doing were finally working. Even when she tried to use her Quirk on command, she found it rather difficult to do so without saying her keyword. She had been saying it with each use hundreds of times over, so she was glad it hadn't all been for nothing.
Finally, the three days of written exams were finished. The next day, it was time for the practical exam. Like the written test before, Fujino was exempt from this exam due to not being an official student yet. However, she was granted permission to observe the exam with everyone else.
All of the students gathered together in the Central Plaza. Yamagori was there along with several other teachers from various classes. Even Principal Nezu was present. The students couldn't help but feel odd about how many of them there were.
"Alright, it's time for the practical exam." Yamagori told her class. "And yes, failing this is possible, so don't do anything stupid if you want to avoid summer school hell." She looked at her students. "I'm assuming at least some of you used your heads and tried to dig up some information beforehand and got an idea on what the exam would be."
"We're fighting robots, right?" Shiro said with a grin. "Bring 'em on. I'll turn all of them into scrap metal."
"Yes, the practical exam in past years has involved fighting robots." Yamagori confirmed. She soon grew a devious smirk. "Too bad for you guys though. Cause the practical is going to be different starting this year."
"... What?" Jill said with a deadpan look in her eyes.
"From now on, we want to focus on person-to-person combat and hero work." Nezu explained as he stepped forward. "So we'll have you all fight in teams of two against one teacher."
Class C all gasped in shock. "Wait, so we're fighting all of you?!" Nene exclaimed.
"And don't think about trying to plan who you'll work well with ahead of time." Yamagori told them. "The teams and pairings have already been decided upon ahead of time. They were all my decision, so you can thank me for the hell you're all about to experience."
'I've got a bad feeling about this.' Alicia thought to herself.
"First up, Hiryo and Majo are on a team." Yamagori told them. "You'll be against Cementoss."
Dan and Rekka glanced at each other. They had never really fought together yet so their teamwork was shaky at best. On top of that, they'd be up against an opponent with frightening defensive power. It wasn't going to be easy.
"Next up, Shinobunta and Boqu." the teacher stated, looking at Merci and Kenji. "You're up against Midnight."
"Oh lucky me." Midnight said as she licked her lips with a smirk.
Yamagori next looked at Marcus and Fiona with a devilish grin. "Cersy and Mizune, congratulations. You get to be my prey."
Marcus and Fiona both widened their eyes. The two of them were both close range fighters. Going up against someone who could paralyze them by just making eye contact would be a serious challenge.
"Akabane, and Avalon, you're fighting Power Loader." Yamagori said as she went on. "Tsuki and Yoake, you get to go against Ectoplasm. Suzuki and Cryki, the principal is all yours. Izumi and Shinito, you'll be fighting Thirteen."
"Hang on a sec." Hyde interrupted. "Teams of two means there'll be ten matches. And so far, I only count nine of you."
"Zip it Gekido, I'm getting there." Yamagori told him. "Radcliffe and Fukasa, you fight Snipe. Fukuyame and Pixi, you're opponent will be Present Mic." She then looked at the final two students in class. "And finally, Gekido and Reikon. You get the most special fight of all."
"That would be me!" a loud booming voice said as he came crashing down near the teachers. Both Hyde and Shinobu gasped in shock as they looked at who they would be fighting.
All Might.
"You've got to be kidding me…" Hyde muttered in disbelief.
"The time limit for each team is thirty minutes. During that time, you need to accomplish one of two things." Nezu explained as he brought out a pair of handcuffs. "Either put these handcuffs on a teacher, or have one of you escape from the stage."
"Wait, we're really allowed to just run away?" Fiona asked.
"Of course. But don't forget, you'll all be up against someone waaaaaaaayy better than you." Present Mic told them.
"You need to think of us as villains." Snipe said. "If you come across an enemy and think you can beat them, then fine."
"But reality is not always so kind. You'll find times where you'll encounter an enemy where the difference in ability is too great to overcome on your own." Yamagori reminded them. "In that situation, the smart thing would be to run and get help."
"Your decision-making skills will be put to the test here!" All Might said. "Of course, normally you wouldn't stand a chance against opponents like us at your level and would always opt to run away. So we're giving you all a handicap."
"What kind of handicap?" Marcus asked.
All Might reached into his pocket and brought out a metal band. "The support course created these for us! Ultra compressed weights! We'll be putting on about half our body weight. They'll make it hard for us to move and eat up stamina."
"With those on, some of us might actually stand a chance in a fight." Sarah noted to herself quietly.
"Now then, each team will take the exam in order and go to the stage prepared for them. Those waiting their turn can either watch the fights as they happen or go somewhere to discuss strategy." Yamagori said. "Bad luck for you, Hiryo and Majo. You two are first."
'In other words, we get the least amount of time to prepare.' Dan realized.
"Please meet me at the city field in ten minutes." Cementoss said as he walked away.
The final exam was finally starting. And with no previous experience working together and barely any time to come up with a plan, Dan and Rekka were not off to a lucky start.
A/N: Time to start the final exams. Who will pass and who will fail? Stay tuned readers.
