U.A. High School Entrance- Musutafu, Tokyo- February 26th, 201X
Ochako Uraraka was having an alright morning.
Woke up, had a minuscule breakfast, showered in not-quite-hot-not-quite-cold water, and almost got incredibly lost while attempting to find the right line, but that didn't matter.
What did matter, however, was that she was finally there.
U.A. High School.
The most prestigious hero's academy in the nation, if not the world, known for producing some of the best pro heroes in the industry.
The place where, if she could manage to graduate, she could finally begin paying back her debt.
Though before she could even begin to think about that, she had to pass the entrance exam.
I made it this far, I can't stop now.
So, with that thought in mind, she took her first step past the entryway and was greeted with her first strange sight at such a reputable institution.
"Kacchan! Wait up!"
"Fuck off and leave me be, ya damned freak!"
A green-haired boy with a ponytail bounded after another boy with ashen hair, who seemed to be doing all he could to escape his pursuer without full-on sprinting.
They both wore the same uniform, and they clearly knew each other if they spoke to each other like that.
"So mean! And after you've been avoiding me for so long."
"And you still haven't caught the hint!"
"That's right!"
The ashen-haired one growled and kept walking, somehow even more briskly than before and gaining quite a bit of distance as well.
The greenette made to continue his pursuit, but an uneven inch of ground seemed to impede that effort, and the boy began to pitch forward violently, arms moving forward to hopefully break his fall.
Ochako rushed forward, reaching out to touch the young man's back before he could fall-
SMACK!
"Whoa!"
Only to blush a pretty pink as her open hand hit a little harder and a little lower than she'd anticipated.
The green-haired boy ceased his flailing as he noticed that he was now at least a few inches off of the ground.
He looked around before noticing the flushed brunette to his side.
He raised an eyebrow and asked, "So I'm guessing this is your doing?"
He seemed rather calm for someone suspended in mid-air.
Ochako nodded slowly, before realizing the person she was nodding at was still parallel to the ground.
She helped him float upright before pulling him down and releasing the effect of her quirk.
"Sorry about that. Using my quirk on you, I mean."
Not even mentioning the other bit before that.
If a transgression occurred but nobody acknowledged it, did it ever really occur at all.
The green-haired boy, freckle-faced as he could now see up close, gave her a cheeky grin and waved off her apology.
"Eh, it's no biggie. I'd rather not break my nose just before the exam, so... ookini."
The last word gave her cause for pause. It wasn't anything too strange, just unexpected.
Kansai-ben?
Up until that one word, the boy had been speaking exclusively using Kanto-ben, even when he was suspended in mid-air.
So why at the end, did he say 'ookini' instead of 'arigatou'?
She didn't usually think so hard about a 'thank you', but it was kinda just a weird thing to hear a boy from Tokyo just switch between Kanto-ben and Kansai-ben on the fly like that.
She opened her mouth to voice her observation, but to her amazement, the boy had disappeared.
She blinked. He was still gone.
And so, within the span of a mere 90 seconds, Ochako Uraraka's morning went from 'alright' to 'downright perplexing'.
90 Minutes Later...
"-EVERYBODY SAY 'HEY!'" The exuberant man at the front called out to the many rows of schoolchildren before him.
"Hey!"
Only one called back.
"[E-Excellent]! That's what I'm talking about!"
It didn't seem to bother him too much. In fact, it seemed to bolster him, as his already showy gestures became even more exaggerated.
"Right! Now I'll quickly present to you the rundown on the practical exam! Are you ready?"
"Hell yeah!"
Once again, one response.
Red eyes rolled in their sockets, "Shut the hell up, Deku."
"Ah lighten up, Kacchan. This is pretty hype. 'Specially after that written exam. I mean, that's Present Mic down there."
The green-haired pup was promptly ignored.
Pouting slightly, he turned his attention back to the explanation being given at the front.
"After the presentation, you'll head to your assigned battle center, okay?"
Complete silence.
"So in other words, they don't want people from the same school teaming up with one another."
The young Midoriya looked down at his exam ticket:
Examinee No.: 2234
Test Location: Battle Center B
His eyes shifted over to his classmate's ticket:
Examinee No.: 2233
Test Location: Battle Center A
"Huh, look at that. You're right. I'm right after you but in the next Battle Center over."
The slip of paper was quickly snatched from his sight.
"Don't look. I'll kill you."
I feel like there's 'b-baka' missing from that statement.
The ashen-haired teen tsked, "Damn, now I can't crush you."
"That's a cute way of saying you'll miss me."
Aside from a quiet growl, the greenette jackass's comment went ignored.
"-ur goal, dear listeners, is to use your quirks to earn points by immobilizing the faux villains. Of course, attacking other examinees and any other unheroic actions are prohibited!"
Makes sense, wouldn't want a buncha hormonally imbalanced psycho teens setting each other on fire on school grounds… or anywhere, I guess.
A voice called out from a few rows in front of him, addressing the hero explaining the exam.
"May I ask a question?"
Present Mic didn't skip a beat, "[Okay]."
As the blonde hero pointed into the seats, a spotlight illuminated the examinee.
There was a student in glasses wearing a tan uniform that Izuku didn't recognize, standing tall and proud with his hand raised to the high heavens(or at least the high ceiling).
Lowering his hand, the bespectacled lad, presented the handout that everyone had been given upon entering the auditorium.
He proceeded to go off about some error or another, which Izuku decided to tune out in favor of daydreaming on account of not giving two wet shits.
"-cause we wish to be molded into exemplary heroes. In addition," at this he turned and pointed directly at our slightly checked out protagonist, "You there, with the ponytail-"
That snapped Izuku out of his daydream, as he turned his attention to the stranger who was quite obviously verbally accosting him.
He looked around him, before turning back to the accusatory finger being aimed at him.
Cocking his head slightly to the side, he pointed at himself and said, "Moi?"
"Yes, you! You've been calling out and whispering back there this whole time."
"Have I?"
"You have. It's distracting. If you're here to play around, I suggest you leave immediately."
Most normal people would be a bit sheepish, having been so blatantly and aggressively called out in public. They might even apologize for their behavior.
Unfortunately for the bespectacled young man, the stranger he had chosen to accost that day… was not a normal person.
Yes, unfortunately for him, the person who had just landed himself on the shit list of…
Was Izuku Midoriya.
"Ah, I see. Well, I would kindly suggest that you [kiss my ass]."
Izuku could hear Present Mic choke on his own spit at the front.
The stern glasses-wearing examinee looked confused, "Apologies, but what was it that you just said?"
"I said I would suggest that we listen to what Present Mic has to say, he didn't seem to be finished with his explanation."
The young stickler accepted the answer and turned back toward the front, allowing the pro to recover from his near death experience with his own saliva.
"Ahem. Right, so as I was going to say Examinee Number 7111-"
Izuku tuned out once more.
The handout had most of the information they needed anyway, Present Mic might've been able to elaborate a bit more, but the test seemed pretty straightforward.
"Junk the bots, don't get junked. For every bot you junk, you get one, two, or three points, depending on the type."
He played video games, it wasn't that hard a concept to grasp.
He didn't have enough time to start daydreaming, as Present Mic finished up his explanation.
"Finally, I'll give you listeners a present- our school motto! The hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said: 'A true hero is someone who overcomes life's misfortunes.'"
The hero was always smiling, but it seemed to grow just a bit wider as he looked out among the many young students who stared back at him in silent anticipation.
"Go beyond. Plus Ultra!"
Izuku smiled.
I like it.
"Now, everyone, good luck suffering!"
Ten Minutes Later…
U.A. Practical Exam- Gate to Battle Center B
Today's the day. Ten years and ten months, all leadin' up to this. Hope you're watchin', Toshi-sensei.
He'd changed out of his warm gakuran, his mom had given him one of his dad's old tracksuits.
Light blue and slightly baggy on his frame, it made him realize that his dad was kind of built when he was his age. He would have loved to have used his own, but laundry day came at an unfortunate time, so it couldn't be helped.
The air buzzed with nervous anticipation. Izuku could feel how tense everyone around him was, even if they didn't show it.
There was even a bit of unease bubbling in his stomach.
Ignoring that, he took stock of his fellow test-takers. They didn't look all that impressive to him, all things considered. Sure, they had equipment to go with their quirks and the like, but that didn't mean they were anything too special.
Though maybe his perception of impressiveness was a bit skewed, considering his company for the past ten months.
Speakin' of, I should ask Kaito-san how that 'Captain Cop' gig is coming along when I see him next.
It'd been too long since he'd dropped by Yagami's office, especially since he was busy with exam prep and the detective was busy with trial proceedings.
I hope he's eating right at least, I'll drop in and pop a few plates in his fridge when I've got the time.
He scanned the crowd of students before coming across a familiar face.
Oh hey, it's that girl.
She'd changed into her own tracksuit, a sleek black number with a bit of white and pink to accent.
She had her back to him, but he'd recognize that brunette bob anywhere.
After all, there were no two people in the world who had the same haircut and hair color.
[?] Let it be known, Izuku has never met twins in his life before.
He was kind of rude to her earlier, running off the way he did after she helped him. But Kacchan was getting away fast, he needed to be faster.
I should go wish her luck. Least I could do.
He'd barely taken two steps toward her before he felt someone grasp his shoulder.
"If you like your hand fully fingered, I suggest you get it off my shoulder."
"How uncouth! Do you really think you should be here with such a vulgar attitude?"
Oh fuck, it's you.
He hadn't seen the four-eyed wonder who attempted to shame him at the Exam Orientation, so he thought he was safe.
Apparently, though, he was cursed, so safety was a lie.
He turned his head to look back at the serial accoster with his least strained smile.
"I thought it was my best feature, honestly."
"Hmph, and I suppose you wish to apply that 'best feature' in throwing off that girl while she's trying to concentrate?"
Do you have nothing better to do than harass me?
"Wouldn't dream of it, pal."
"Then what are you doing here? Are you just taking this exam for fun? Or maybe just to interfere with everyone by distracting them with your tomfoolery?"
If I just slug him right here, will I get in trouble? Probably, most likely, yes.
He listened to the whispers around him:
"Isn't that the guy that almost tripped outside the school?"
"Yeah, the one that got called out at orientation."
"You think he's just here to dick around?"
"If he is, that means we've got one rival to worry about."
His eyebrow twitched.
But would I enjoy it? Probably, most likely, yes.
Unfortunately, his plans for violence were stopped dead in their tracks upon the sound of Present Mic's voice ringing out and saying, "Okay, start!"
And Izuku took off like a bat out of hell.
Years of training taught him one thing and one thing only:
Never hesitate.
A six-year-old Izuku ran as fast as his little legs could take him.
"Run Izuku, RUN!"
"Jiji, you're scaring me!"
"You think a villain's gonna stop because you're scared?! RUN!"
A nine-year-old Izuku stood panting on the sands of Morning Glory Beach.
"Kiryu-san, please. Can we please stop?"
CHK-CHK!
"You think a villain's going to stop just because you ask nicely? Fat chance."
"KIRYU-SAN, PLE-"
BAM!
A twelve-year-old Izuku followed his boss to the stairs that lead up to the roof of the Yoshida Batting Center.
"So, Chief, what's on the docket today?"
"You're gonna be training with a friend today. Called in a few favors and he promised to give you a lesson in small arms fire. So why don't you head on up? I wanna have a smoke real quick, and Saigo's not a fan."
The boy shrugged and headed up like his boss asked, looking around once he reached the top.
Empty, not a sign of life.
He turned his head to ask Akiyama if his friend was either invisible or a ghost, when suddenly-
RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAtATATATATATATATAT!
He dived out of the way as a hail of bullets flew past his previous position.
A man with an obvious wig appeared out of nowhere, toting a submachine gun.
"Hm. Good reflexes, but your spatial awareness and reconnoitering could use some work. Not to worry though, we've got time."
"What. The. Fu-"
RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAtATATATATATATATAT!
It occurred to him that maybe the male role models in his left a little something to be desired when it came regard for his immediate safety and mental health.
But that was a problem he'd need to deal with at a later date because, at that moment, a more immediate problem made itself manifest.
Bot Squad
Just as he rounded a corner, he came face-to-face with what had to be a one-pointer.
It wasn't too imposing, maybe the size of a pickup with a big red 'eye' on the nose of its narrow head.
Target acquired.
It rushed him and was upon him in an instant.
"DIE!" It cried, its voice so obviously processed.
He felt his blood burn.
Could see the blue flame licking corners of his vision.
His muscles tensed, he gritted his teeth behind his lips.
He was in his stance already; arm in front of his chest, knees bent slightly, fist clenched tightly on his other arm while it hung loosely at his side.
The bot got closer, he cocked that arm back…
And quickly brought it forward, straight into its eye.
SHATTER!
He broke it, his arm invaded the bot's head up to the elbow.
And the bot itself just stopped moving.
Well, guess that's one point for me.
He pulled his arm out of the downed automaton's eye socket and shook it slightly.
He was bleeding, that glass had scraped up his hand pretty badly.
Got the sleeve pretty bad too, dammit.
He tore a bit of the fabric from his savaged sleeve and wrapped it around his cuts.
Okay, hafta use somethin' other than my hands to bring these things down.
He had a support item, of course, courtesy of his personal pink-haired support gremlin.
But I wanna save that for later. Even if we stress-tested it, I'd rather not risk blowin' myself up right at the start of the test.
So that left one option:
Improvise.
He was in a vast city environment, lots of loose odds & ends just begging to be thrown around, and he had just the style to capitalize on that.
He heard footsteps coming up from behind him, the other examinees most likely.
To his front, more robots, and a lot of things to throw.
He grinned.
Let's get wild!
Nemuri Kayama had been a teacher at U.A. High School for quite a while. Around a decade, she'd say.
She'd seen a number of entrance exams, none of them ever exactly the same.
But this was the first one where she'd been told beforehand to look out for a particular student.
And by the most unlikely person as well...
Earlier that day…
She awoke to a half-empty bed and the smell of coffee spreading through her apartment.
She didn't open her eyes, but she knew that once she deigned to do so, her eyes would be assaulted by the glare of the morning sun aggressively beaming through her windows.
So she waited. Not long, mind you. But long enough.
Just until she heard the door to her bedroom open, and footsteps rounded the bed, stopping exactly where the glare would shine through.
And a voice, A man's spoke, "Time to wake up, Miss Midnight."
Her eyes fluttered open, and she was greeted with a steaming cup of coffee followed by a soft smile.
"Hey."
She smiled back, sitting up and taking the cup gingerly between her fingers.
"Hey, yourself."
"And here I thought you weren't a morning person. Half expected a pillow to the face."
"I'm not. But there's a magically prepared cup of coffee sitting in my hands right now, so I feel like I could take on the world right now. Or at the very least stomach a conversation with my boyfriend."
"Riiight. So I've gotta get to work soon, but I had something to tell you before I left."
"Oh? What's that?"
Siiip!
"It's about that entrance exam today. You're going, right?"
"Yeah, I'm one of the judges this year. Why?"
"Well, I've got a word of advice."
Well, this was certainly different. He hated talking about U.A.
The Entrance Exam especially.
So her interest was piqued. She took another sip of coffee and gestured for him to go on.
"Green hair, green eyes, freckles. Keep an eye out for a kid that looks like that."
Hm?
"Oh right, and his name is-"
"Izuku Midoriya, what is it about you that's got Mikumo so interested?"
"Hm? You say something, Midnight?"
To her side, she noticed her tired coworker glance at her through his messy hair.
"Nothing, Shota. Say, you got your eye on any students in particular?"
Eraserhead sighed, whether it was due to the use of his actual name or the fact that his question was very obviously avoided.
Despite that, he still indulged her, "Examinee Number 2234." He moved his head in the direction of one of the many monitors.
On it was the image of a green-haired student swinging a mailbox into a Venator bot(a three-pointer) with a savage grin on his face.
Green hair, green eyes, freckles… that's-
"Izuku Midoriya, right?"
Eraserhead nodded, "According to his file, he's coming from Aldera. Great grades, but a history of butting heads with one Katsuki Bakugo, Examinee Number 2233."
He brought her attention to another monitor, this one showed an ashen-haired student blasting away two Imperial bots(two points) with an explosion from his palm.
"Just like Midoriya, he's an excellent student, but he can't seem to stop scrapping with the former. Apparently, it's never escalated fully to violence though."
I see, but what's got Mikumo so invested in this kid?
"Mind handing me that file?"
The disheveled hero raised an eyebrow, but surrendered the folder to her regardless.
"Thanks." She flipped it open and began to read.
Name: Izuku Midoriya
D.O.B: 07-15-200X
All standard stuff, she skipped past that and flipped to the copy of his Quirk Registration Form.
Name of Quirk: Heat
Known Effects: Increases activity in the Hypothalamus, triggering the release of massive amounts of adrenaline, effectively super-powering the subject for as long the effect lasts.
Doctor's Note: Subject was thought to be capable of activating and deactivating the quirk, though recent tests have shown that it remains always active to some extent.
There was more, but she'd read enough.
The kid's quirk was rather interesting, but that still didn't explain exactly how and why Mikumo knew he'd be taking this particular exam.
And not only, but the way the kid moved. It was… oddly familiar, though she couldn't quite place where she'd seen it last.
"I dunno, I kinda like the kid, Shota!"
"That's just because he's willing to enable you, Mic."
She ignored her co-workers and focused on the freckled boy as he pulled another out the path of a rampaging Victory(One-pointer).
Well, Izuku Midoriya. I hope you pass, someone seems to have high hopes for you.
KRRRRNCH!
The two-pointer's hard metal shell caved as Izuku slammed the stop sign that he'd acquired into it.
All right, that's about fifty for me. But these guys need to watch out, this is the third guy who almost got conked over the head by one of these things.
He turned to the student who he had pulled out of the way, "Hey, you alright?"
The blonde, who was clutching his stomach and sparkling, gave him a weak smile and a 'Oui' with a quick word of thanks.
"Don't mention it, just be a bit more careful."
He left the sign lodged in the two-pointer, it had served its purpose well… and it was stuck quite deeply into the machine anyhow, so...
He ran to the end of the street and saw a few familiar faces.
The ass-slapping brunette from earlier ran past several bots, touching them as she did. They floated up into the air until she brought the tips of her fingers together and said, "Release!"
He noticed that she seemed to be strained while she did it, he made a mental note of that.
"That's twenty-eight points…!"
Izuku whistled.
Okay, Ass-Slapper's puttin' in work.
He left her to her business and moved on.
A little further onward, he saw Mr. Stick-In-The-Mud destroy a two-pointer with a divekick.
"Forty-five points!"
Forty-five? Damn, much as I'd hate to admit it, four-eyes got moves.
It was popping off, but time was running short and at the rate things were going, there would be barely any students with enough points to pass, assuming that they were going off a regular grading point system.
So what's the play?
CRASH!
His answer came crashing through like a bull in a china shop.
A huge robot, one that dwarfed the buildings around them, had appeared out of nowhere.
Oh.
Nemuri was intrigued.
The Executor(Zero-pointer) was a little more than just an obstacle. It was a signal.
The signal of the true test that began when it came down to the wire.
To present the students who would show grace under fire and those who would crumble under the pressure.
Most students would run away, find smaller villain bots to pick off.
Others, they'd freeze in their tracks and end up failing usually.
But Izuku Midoriya, what was he doing?
He was running towards the Executor.
He had less than two minutes left, and he was wasting time on a gimmick, an obstacle.
Wait, no… that's not true.
There was someone there!
Stuck with her leg trapped under the rubble there was a girl. Examinee Number 8457, Ochako Uraraka.
The Executor was closing, but Midoriya had reached her.
They were exchanging words, but there was no sound accompanying it.
When they were done, he lifted up the rubble that trapped her leg and helped her to her feet.
More words exchanged, the Executor got even closer.
All of the sudden, the green-haired boy grabbed the brunette's hand and pressed it to his chest.
She blinked, and the next thing she knew, he was in the air and floating with-
"Is- is that a fish in his hand?"
Okay Izuku, stay calm. Mei told me how to use this thing and she promised me it was safe, so I just have to aim the eye and I'm free.
Izuku was on the verge of shitting his pants.
He was used to heights. He flew back and forth between Tokyo and Okinawa enough to get used to it. However, on those flights, he never really had to worry about the lack of matter between him and the cold, uncaring earth beneath him.
Ass-Slapper assured him that he wouldn't fall, but they'd just met and she sexually harassed him upon their first, so forgive his skepticism.
And as he fumbled with his and Mei's newest baby, 'Mortar Marlin' as they'd taken to calling it, he remembered all the other times that his best friend had assured him that her inventions were safe.
"Don't worry, this baby'll help ya get through that manga waaaaay faster."
His beloved first volume of Stardust Crusaders was torn to shreds and scorched after Mei's 'Reader Buddy' baby, overloaded and exploded.
The big bastard was getting closer.
Okay, Marlin. You and me, buddy. Please don't blow up.
He held it under his arm, took aim right at the big red target in the middle of the bot's 'face', and pulled the trigger-
BOOOM!
He felt his body cut through the air, but he saw a big, scorched hole where its 'eye' had been while it fell fast and away from him.
Huh, well look at that Mei, it worked.
In the back of his mind, he could almost hear her say, "And you didn't even blow up."
He felt the Marlin begin to slip from his fingers, while he sat suspended in the air. Apparently, his hair-tie had come loose at some point too. His luscious locks were hanging loose, not that he really cared.
And all he could think was, Now… How do I get down from here?
"Shouta, you saw that right?"
"Yeah, Mic. I saw that."
What- what even?
It wasn't every day that you saw a zero-pointer taken down by a Fish Cannon.
But after seeing all of that, Nemuri had come to a realization.
That strange style of fighting, that movement, she'd seen it before. Months ago and only once, but it was impressive enough to leave a lasting impression.
Nemuri Kayama was now fully invested in Izuku Midoriya.
One Week Later…
I'm not nervous at all.
"You shouldn't lie to yourself, Izuku."
Since when was Mirei-baba a mind reader?
"She's not, hun."
Since when was mom a mind reader?
"Neither of us are, you're thinking out loud."
Oh, right. Sorry auntie.
"Mhm."
His letter hadn't arrived yet and he was nervous about what would happen when it did.
He knew he'd scored pretty well on the written test, but was unsure about the practical.
He'd gotten fifty villain points, but wasted the last of his time suspended in the air after taking down the zero-pointer.
He didn't know what that meant for him going forward.
Luckily the other students had banded together to bring him down close to the ground before Ass-Slapper (he'd never gotten her name) released the effect of her quirk on him.
After that a healing kiss and some gummies from U.A.'s lovely nurse, Recovery Girl, and he was sent on his way.
He came home early that day and fell dead to sleep as soon as his head hit his pillow.
He hadn't heard from Toshi-sensei in days. That made him a bit nervous, as the old hero made a habit of keeping in contact.
He's probably just busy, it'll be fine.
And then his brain decided to flip him the big finger and say, 'But what if it's not?'
And it all spiraled down from there.
At one point, his mother had decided to step out for a moment.
SLAM!
"Izuku! It's here! It's here! It's here!It's here!It's here!It's here!It's here!"
And when she frantically returned, it was with an envelope decorated with the U.A. emblem upon it.
She handed it to him, he took a breath.
RIIIP!
Clatter!
"I AM HERE! As a projection…"
Within minutes, sounds of celebration could be heard all around the neighborhood, originating from the Midoriya Residence.
So I'm back again.
Thank you guys for putting up with me and my lies, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
By the way, is it weird to wake up some mornings and wonder 'Is the story popular enough for fan art yet?"
Just wondering.