Beginning of the Practical


"Alright, we know where the mutt and birdie live, can we go now?" When the other didn't respond, they opted for elbowing them in the ribs.

"Kage! Can we leave?!" She whisper shouted, the bush shaking a bit. Kage turned his head towards his companion.

"Elbow me again and nobody will find your remains." He hissed, nursing the spot. He returned his gaze to the small house, peering through the bright green bush.

He leaned forward and pushed some of the leaves and branches out of his face to get a better view.

He stared into the front window, the light emanating from the inside made it easy to see the two people inside. He could see Yamiyo hunched over and talking to… her brother.

"Kage, seriously, we should go before any of the neighbors see us." She ordered, already whipping out her phone to get warped back to base.

Kage gripped her wrists, and stared at her.

"Nariko, get me a piece of paper and a pen when you get back, I want to leave a little…. Note for the pup." A sly smile spread across her face, her snow white teeth gleamed in the setting sunlight.

"Will do." Just as she said that, a familiar purple, cloudy portal appeared before them, small enough to not be seen, but big enough for them to crawl through.

Nariko disappeared behind the veil of dark purple. It wasn't long after the sun had set that she stuck her upper body through and waved a piece of roughed-up lined paper and a badly chewed pen.

Kage snatched the objects and layed the paper on his thigh, scribbling out a message that was only a short paragraph. He couldn't hold back a maniacal giggle as he held the paper to the sky like it was the most beautiful thing. He lightly kissed it and activated his quirk, his body engulfing into a black smoke, almost invisible in the night.

Faster than the eye could see, he zoomed over the front door, dropping the piece of paper, and flew back to the bush without batting an eye.

"What didja write?" Nariko asked curiously, peering at the front door like she will know what they said just by gazing at the folded paper.

Kage's body reformed and he grinned.

"A warning." She leaned forward slightly, a small shadow casting over her face.

"What do you mean?" She demanded. He raised his hands defensively and crawled over to the warp portal.

"I just want her to know that I won't give up easily the next time we meet… because the next time we do… I won't let her be taken away from me." He giggled. His giggles turned into a chuckle. His chuckle turned into a laugh. And his laughter turned into ones of a physco.

"Not again.." He looked longingly at the door, "we won't ever be parted… just wait Yami… we'll be together again… and you will love me… and you will finally be free!" He cackled as he sunk into the warp, purple obscuring his sight of the house.


"Alright, that's it for class." The bell chimed in the background, indicating that class was over. "There's only a week left before your final exams begin. And I'm sure your all studying constantly, right? Don't forget to keep training, the written exam is only one element. There's also the practical portion to worry about.. Good luck."

Yamiyo leaned forward in her seat, gazing at the desk in front of her as the rest of her classmates began to get into their usual groups and start chatting amongst themselves.

Hey, cheer up! 12th on the midterms isn't that bad! There's always room for improvement, but at least you didn't do as bad as most of your classmates!

That's not it… because of that note, I haven't been able to focus during classes.

it's not right to keep that from the teachers. It's a threat to your safety and a threat to Tokoyami's safety as well. You don't want him getting hurt… right?

Of course not! I just… just…

You just what?

I just don't want to draw attention to this when we can handle it. The heroes already have enough problems on their hands with the villains and tests… I would feel awful to divert their attention from helping other rising heroes just for them to look into a petty note.

You do realize what it said, right? 'Soon… soon you'll see the filth you involved yourself with. Were coming soon to help you, don't worry! We will get rid of anyone who comes in our way! We will be together again!' That could put you and Tokoyami in danger! Whoever it is has ill intentions towards you, and possibly your brother! It would be better for the heroes to help you!

What's the worst that can happen?! It's just a note!

You and Tokoyami could be hurt! What if it was from a villain? That means they know where you live! It's not safe!

But-

She jumped when a hand was placed on her shoulder. She looked up and turned to her right, she immediately knew who it was when she saw the red and white hair.

"Are you going to lunch?" She looked around the classroom, and sure enough everyone was gone except for Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka who were waiting by the door.

"Yeah. Sorry, I spaced out." She stood and walked over with Todoroki behind her towards her right.

Seriously, this is something you can't pretend is nothing… this could be extremely bad-

We'll talk about this after lunch.

But-

After lunch!

"Yamiyo?" Uraraka waved a hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her daze.

"Sorry.." She mumbled, a light blush caking her cheeks out of embarrassment.

"Awww!I don't think I've seen you blush before!" Uraraka cooed. Yamiyo started moving quickly, hands balled into fists and the back of her hands pointing upwards. Her shoulders were hunched, trying to hide her face.

"Can we just go to lunch, please?!" She demanded as she sped walked down the hall, the group following her, all with some sort of smile on their face.


"They wouldn't give us something too extreme, right? I mean, some of us are still healing, and it won't do us any good to injure us further and set back our recovery." Yamiyo commented.

"Yeah… but if Aizawa taught us anything, it was that villains don't wait for you to heal properly…" Iida pointed out. Yamiyo set her chopsticks into her bowl and leaned in her chair in thought.

"True… but this is the teachers were talking about. Who knows? It might just be a quick run through of everything we learned like combat training and rescue. Possibly a few more things as well." Yamiyo counted her fingers. Midoriya leaned forward a bit, hand on his chin.

"We can't expect it to be that simple… they may expect us to keep our physical build in check in case anything happens- ack!" Yamiyo growled, peering past Todoroki and at a blondie with gray eyes.

"Sorry, your heads to big it's sorry to miss."

"And your arrogance is so overwhelming… it's… suffocating… me." Yamiyo put her hands to her throat for dramatic effect and started making choking sounds and throwing her head around. She could've sworn she heard a very faint chuckle from her left, and she could see the girls in front of her stifling their laughter.

She turned back to him with her tongue sticking out. She smirked when she saw his eyebrow twitch, out of irritation she assumed. She placed her arms on the table, each beside her bowl. She picked up her chopsticks and resumed eating her lunch.

"I see you've gotten more aggravating than the last time we met." He snarled, ".. but that's not important." He turned to Midoriya. "I heard you guys had a run-in with the hero killer." Yamiyo froze, anger bubbling up inside of her. She glared at the 1-B student.

"I guess it's just like at the Sports Festival, class 1-A isn't happy unless they're the center of attention. But you do realize that your not the center of attention because people think your good heroes, right?" Yamiyo's chopsticks snapped in her fingers, sending small splinters across the table.

"It's just that you keep getting into so much trouble." A smug smile spread across his face, giving him a psycho look, "Here's food for thought, someday most of us might get caught up in your mess, and we'll all become unwitting victims as well." Without being noticed, Yamiyo slipped away from the table.

"What type of villains will you send upon us? What dem- gah!" He buckled over, nearling dropping his lunch tray. Yamiyo grabbed it and set in on the table, and dropped her leg, unbending it and letting Monoma fall to his knees, bent over and trembling.

From the students point of view, Yamiyo had snuck around and kneed him in the… well… you know.

"Someday you might get hurt with that crap filled mouth of yours." Yamiyo snarled. She bent down to his level and harshly grabbed his chin, lifting it up so he was looking at her.

"Your antics are really starting to piss me off! So I'd stop harassing my classmates if I were you. The only one here that wants to be the center of attention is YOU!" She dropped his chin and stood up walking back to her seat, and letting a red-haired girl deal with him.

She plopped down in her seat, glaring at her bowl.

"Ok… remind me to never piss you off." Hagakure stated shakily. Yamiyo looked up and smiled.

"Noted."


Yamiyo stood close to Fumikage. They were in front of large buildings, along with the staff of UA in front of them.

"Now then, let's begin the last test. Remember, it's possible to fail this final and not go to the Training Camp, so don't make any stupid mistakes." Yamiyo's tail twitched and she scooted closer to Fumikage.

"Why are all the teachers here?" Jiro mumbled.

"I suspect that many of you have gathered information and believe you have an idea about what the practical is going to be like." Kaminari and Mina started celebrating.

"Were fighting those big old metal robots!" Kaminari leaned back and held his hands in front of him. Mina jumped up, equally happy.

"Fireworks, smores, here we come camp!" Aizawa's scarf started to rustle and move, Yamiyo stared at him, confused and curious.

"Actually, this years test will be completely different for various reasons!" Principal Nezu popped out from Aizawa's scarf.

"Principal Nezu?!" Many people spoke aloud, confused.

"Your changing things?!" Yaoyorozu asked, a hint of fear laced her voice. Yamiyo couldn't lie, she felt the same thing.

"The tests now have a new focus!" Nezu grabbed onto the end of Aizawa's scarf and grabbed onto it like a rope, slowly sliding down until his feet touched solid ground, "There will be hero work of course, but also teamwork and combat against actual people." He leaned forward, a small shadow falling over his face, "So what does that mean for you? You students will be working in pairs and going up against one of our Staff! Isn't that exciting?" Yamiyo couldn't lie, but at that moment, she was way more scared of the principal than she ever thought she would be.

She chewed her lip and wrapped her arms around her stomach.

"Were… fighting the teachers?!" Uraraka seemed scared. Well… everyone did! The teachers were well trained and experienced pros, and the first years were going up against them!

"Additionally, your partners and your opponents have already been chosen. They were determined at my discretion on various factors including fighting style, grades, and interpersonal relationships. First, Yaoyorozu and Todoroki are a team, against me." A creepy smile spread across her face and she felt a shiver run up her spine.

"Then we have Midoriya paired with Bakugo and Yamiyo." The trio looked at each other in shock, "... and their opponent is.." She looked up when she heard something falling, and her stomach dropped down to the bottom of her feet. She clutched her stomach, her eyes becoming small pinpricks as they widened.

"I am here..." All Might rose and held a fist up, ".. to fight!" Yamiyo clamped a hand over her mouth, her tail lowered closer to her legs.

"Were up against All Might?!" They shouted simultaneously.

"Your going to have to work together boys and girl… if you want to win." She shrunk back and half hid behind Fumikage, who looked at her worryingly.

How did this happen?!


-=(+)=- Few Days Prior -=(+)=-

"With the connection between the Hero Killer; Stain and the League Of Villains, it's possible that villains everywhere will become more bolder." Nezu spoke.

"It'd be best if we could start preparing for that before it happens, as a school we should be takin' every precaution." Snipe reasoned, "If fights against villains are going to intensify in the future, then having the kids train against robots ain't practical. Originally we used them to avoid complaints about people getting injured in the entrance exams... but their just not challenging enough." He pointed out.

"We can ignore the complaints, let people say whatever they want." Aizawa stated through his shaggy hair.

"This sounds like it could be problematic." Midnight commentented.

"I understand why you want to change the exam, but having students fight us? Even if their in teams of two, is that a good idea?" Cementoss questioned.

"Yeah.. I think it's a bit unfair." Thirteen jumped in.

"If we went too easily we won't be able to give them actual grades, yo." Present Mic stated.

"Of course we could take that into consideration and give the students an advantage." Snipe spoke.

Aizawa turned his head towards, Nezu. Keeping his arms crossed.

"Principal, what are you thinking?"

"I believe I agree. We need to change the Practical Exam to reflect the current times. How do we ensure that the students arnet put in life threatening situations? The answer is simple; we must push them. We make sure that they are as strong as possible." Nezu concluded.

Silence filled the meeting room for a moment.

"That makes sense." Midnight stated.

"I agree." Thirteen jumped in. Aizawa picked up a small stack of papers.

"Right, then let's talk about the teams. First: Todoroki. He's doing quite well generally speaking, but relies too much on brute force. And Yaoyorozu is an all-arounder, but lacks the ability to make spur-of-the-moment decisions and apply them. Therefore, I'll erase their quirks, and take advantage of their weaknesses." Aizawa strategized.

"Sounds good!" The teachers called out.

"Next for Midoriya, Bakugo, and Yamiyo. I'm leaving them to you All Might." All Might looked surprised and a little shocked too.

"In this case, I didn't pair the three of them up based on their abilities, or classwork… I went with relationships. I know you've got a soft spot for Midoriya, please ensure that they learn something."

"Hold on!" All Might rose a hand quickly, "I get why Midoriya and Bakugo are paired up, but what about young Yamiyo? Wouldn't it make sense to pair her up with Tokoyami since their siblings?" Aizawa narrowed his eyes.

"That's the problem. Since their siblings, they know each other's weaknesses and limits. If they are paired together, it would make it easy for them to win. But, from what I can see, Yamiyo knew Midoriya and Bakugo since they were kids, but I did a little background research and she must've haven't seen them for years until classes started here. But that's only a small part of the reason." All Might looked confused.

"What do you mean?" Aizawa leaned back in his chair.

"You watched her progress, and you watched how her entrance exam went… I think that just based off of that, most of us can agree that she will do anything to protect the people she thinks needs it. Even if it causes her physical harm." All Might pieced it together.

"So you mean…" Aizawa nodded.

"If she's paired with two close friends… then she will give it her all to protect them. And I have a feeling that she might do it, whatever the cost… even if it's her own life at risk." Aizawa leaned forward and propped his elbows on the table. "I want you to try and knock some sense into her, try to show her that there will be times when she can't protect people." All Might turned his gaze to the table.

"... Alright."


"And now, lets announce the teams and the teachers they will be fighting in order!" Nezu rose a paw into the air.

1st Match: Cementos VS. Sato & Kirishima

2nd Match: Ectoplasm VS. Asui & Tokoyami

3rd Match: Powerloader VS. Iida & Ojiro

4th Match: Eraserhead VS. Yaoyorozu & Todoroki

5th Match: Thirteen VS. Aoyama & Uraraka

6th Match: Principal Nezu VS. Mina & Kaminari

7th Match: Present Mic VS. Jiro & Koda

8th Match: Snipe VS. Hagakure & Shoji

9th Match: Midnight VS. Mineta & Sero

10th Match: All Might VS. Bakugo & Midoriya & Yamiyo

"To complete the exam, you'll have Thirty minutes, in order to win, your objective is to put thee handcuffs onto your teacher, or you escape if at least one of you can make it out of the combat area." The cuffs Nezu was holding up seemed to be some sort of yellow color with black lining on the inside.

"Ok.. so it's basically like the combat training." Akminari put his hand to his chin in thought.

"Yeah.. but is it really ok to just jet?" Mina raised a hand.

"Yep!" In return, Nezu gave her a thumbs up.

"It's going to be much different than that combat training y'all went through after all… you're all going up against people who are way better than you!" Present Mic brought his hands up closer to his head and started moving them like how a Dj would during a party.

"Better? Really? Hey wait, aren't you just the announcer?" Jiro pointed out.

"HEY WATCH YO MOUTH GIRL, HAVE SOME RESPECT!" Present Mic scolded.

"This time, your exam will be very similar to a real battle. I know it's odd, but please think of us as the villains." Thirteen stated.

Yamiyo took a few deep breaths and strained her ears to listen.

"Assuming you come across your enemy, if you think you can win against them, then fight. However…" Snipe started.

"In instances where your outmatched, it would be smarter to run away and find help. Todoroki, Iida, Midoriya, Yamiyo.. I'm sure the four of you understand." Yamiyo was hit with another wave of anxiety when she got a few questioning or confused glances.

I guess they didn't see my battle. It makes sense… the Hero Killer story was all over the news for the next few days after I fought… I think there was only one or two channels that covered that.

"I won't make that mistake again. I will pass this test, and prove that I'm a hero!" She turned her head to Iida, who was holding his hand in front of him.

"So we fight to win, or we run to win." Midoriya summarized. All Might opened his arms wide.

"That's right! It's a test of your decision making skills! But with these rules you're probably thinking your only real choice is to flee! That's why… the support course made these nice accessories for us!" All might pulled his hand out, revealing a metal cuff. It had thick black lines that stuck out slightly, and seemed to have padding lining the edges.

"Behold! Superultra compressed weights!" Present Mic shouted.

"These babies will add about half our body weight to our physiques! It's not much, but they will eat up our stamina, and make it harder for us to move around!" All Mights arm dropped slightly after he secured the last weight on, "Oh shoot! These are heavier than I thought!' He mumbled to himself.

"We had a contest to come up with these designs, and Young Hatsume ended up winning it!" Yamiyo smiled slightly.

Even though the girl is a bit bonkers, she's still an amazing student. No doubt she will go far!

"Do you think we need a handicap to beat you? Well, think again." Bakugo seemed angry about the handicap. But, All Might only laughed.

"This will be fun.." A shiver ran down her spine.

"Let's begin. The teams will take the Practical Exam in the order that you were called. We have a stage prepared for you. Sato, Kirishima, your up."

"Yes sir!" The boys said in sync.

"Those of you who are waiting for their fight can either watch the exams or come up with a strategy as a team. It's your choice." Aizawa turned around and followed the rest of the staff into the buildings.

Yamiyo took a long shaky breath and turned to Fumikage.

"Good luck.." He nodded.

"You too, don't push yourself too hard.." Worry laced his words.

"I won't.. I promise." He hesitated before nodding. She saw Tsu walking up and gave them a little wave before walking off.

Though… she didn't go look for Midoriya or Bakugo… she wandered inside.

Yamiyo barely made any sound while walking through the halls. She let the tips of her fingers drag along the concrete as she tried to find a secluded place.

When she got to a corner, she sat herself down and brought her knees to her chest, preparing for the conversation about to ensue-

No

W- I didn't even ask anything yet!

You don't need to! I can tell what your going to ask, and no! Yami can't be trusted! Especially not during the test!

Oh come on! She's always been better at fighting!

Even though that's true, she's more violent and less merciful! Even if she can't she'll find a way to hurt All Might or someone else if you can't keep her in check! And she might push your body too far!

But what if she can help us ace the test?!

SHE CAN SERIOUSLY INJURE YOU! She could push your body too far and cause you to suffocate on the black goo! I won't allow her to endanger you!

That's not your decision! This isn't your body! And if I want to pass the Practical, I need Yami's help! I can keep her in check!

You don't know that! She's unpredictable and unstable! She could easily break from your hold!

Has she before?!

Exactly! Listen… I know what I'm doing… and I know the risks. But I'm willing to take them. Isn't that what a hero does, take risks?

Yes.. but not ones this extreme-

Yes they do! They risk their lives everyday! Why is this any different?!

Just… let me talk to her at least…?

Fine. But if things go too far, I'm blocking her again.

Alright.

For a moment, it felt like Yamiyo was floating. Then everything came crashing down.

HOW DARE YOU LOCK ME AWAY?! YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS, I SWEAR!

Yami! I just want to talk!

TALK? TALK?! YOU COULD'VE TALKED TO ME, BUT NOOOO! YOU LOCKED ME AWAY, BLOCKED ME OUT!

I know your mad! But I have a deal in mind that you may like!

SCREW YOUR DEAL! IF YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST THROW ME AWAY LIKE GARBAGE THEN BRING ME BACK AND THINK I'LL LISTEN TO YOU, THEN YOUR DEAD WRONG!

You can take control and let off some steam!

A heavy silence filled her mind.

continue

I'm going up against All Might alongside Midoriya and Bakugo. I won't be able to take All Might on by myself… so I need your help.

What kind of help?

If I can't move or I'm too injured to do anything… then I want you to take control-

How long are we talking?

When I give you the signal, you can stay in control until the time runs out, we somehow capture All Might, or someone escapes.

Do we have a deal?

Deal. Now… what's the plan?


"Team Midoriya, Bakugo and Yamiyo. Practical Exam, ready? Go!" Almost immediately, Bakugo started walking off, Midoriya jogged to catch up with him. Yamiyo hung back, keeping and eye out for All Might.

"Kacchan, listen. For this exam the teachers the villain and were the heroes so we need a solid plan! Normally, I'd suggest that we analyze the villains combat ability and choose to fight them or run away based on that. But in this case the villain is All Might so we don't need to think about it because combat is out of the question, it would be impossible to beat him in a fight." Bakugo quickened his pace and left Midoriya behind him once again.

Yamiyo nervously tugged at the black choker secured around her neck.

Where is All Might?! Why hasn't he attacked yet?!

Midoriya ran up to his side once again. "It's a really bad idea Kacchan-"

"Stop following me!" Bakugo snapped. Yamiyo gave the boys her undivided attention, narrowing her eyes slightly.

"All Might is probably waiting for us on this main road, we should take another route!" Midoriya kept pace with Bakugo.

"I'm not going to run away from this fight! It'll look better if we blow that smile off his face!" Midoriya sighed in frustration.

"No, we should avoid fighting him no matter what it takes!"

"I'm going to toy with him until time is up them I'm going to knock him unconscious for real!" Bakugo moved forward while Midoriya paused.

What happened between them while I was gone..? They used to love playing and hanging out… but…

"Think about this! You know what All Might can do! Even with those handicap weights, it would be impossible for you to win in a fight against him-"

SMACK

Yamiyo froze in shock when she saw Midoriya fly back, a hand on the left side of his face. Bakugou's upper body was twisted to look back and his arm was outstretched behind him. Anger like nothing she'd felt before bubbled up inside of her, and she couldn't stop her legs from moving.

"I don't want to hear another word- gack!" He wheezed and coughed, clutching his neck. Yamiyo was standing in front of him, her hand in a fist, and the most terrifying glare she could muster on her face.

"What… the hell… IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" She screamed. Veins popped in her neck as she took a challenging step forward.

"HE'S TRYING TO COME UP WITH A PLAN SO WE CAN WIN! IF YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED, ALL MIGHT IS THE NUMBER ONE HERO! HE COULD DESTROY THIS ENTIRE AREA WITHOUT BREAKING A SWEAT! YOUR NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO FACE HIM HEAD ON GET THAT THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULL!" She roared. Bakugo glared at her.

"Are you looking down on me?! If you can't believe that I can beat the old bastard, then stand back and let me handle it! And I don't need Deku's stupid plan!" She clutched her hands into fists.

"WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN YOU TWO?! I'M GONE FOR YEARS AND YOUR AT EACH OTHER'S THROATS WHEN I COME BACK!" She pointed to Midoriya, who was shaking on the ground.

"You don't know anything! It's been hell-"

"YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT HELL?! TRY BEING IN A FENCED IN ARENA FOR FIVE YEARS AND BEING YELLED AT TO KILL SO YOU WOULD HAVE ONE MEAL FOR AN ENTIRE MONTH!" She flexed her claws and started moving towards Bakugo, intending to yell and scold him more, but feeling the ground rumble beneath her feet, she stopped and looked to her right, only to see a large cloud of dust and wind barreling towards them.

"BRACE YOURSELVES!" She shouted as she crossed her arms in an 'X' just as the wind slammed into her and flung her backwards, along with Bakugo and Midoriya.

She soared through the air and slammed into the concrete. She rolled a few feet before coming to a stop. She groaned as she got onto her knees and elbows.

Her rest was short, however, when a large hand clamped down onto the back of her suit. She was jerked into the air and slammed into the ground a second time.

She cried out in pain. The next second she was in the air once again, suspended by the large hand.

"Yamiyo!" The next moment, she was thrown with such force that she slammed through a concrete wall and the back wall of the small room, ending up in a back alleyway. She was covered in dust and broken pieces of concrete lay on top of her body.

She wheezed, blinking away the millions of stars that flashed in her eyes. She propped her arms and started pushing off the concrete that lay across her chest. She glared through the holes of the building at the large, bulky man. She strained her ears, trying to listen in and ignore the ringing in her ears.

"... a villain now. Remember that heroes. So you better come at me with all you've got!" His voice boomed. She shuddered.

How seriously is he taking this?!

Very

Her arms trembled as they pushed the piece of cement off, allowing her to breathe. She shakily got onto her knees and watched Bakugo attack All Might, including watching him get slammed into the ground.

A deep growl rose from her chest and the shadows around her moved and morphed to swirl around her.

Is it time?

Yamiyo took a staggering step forward, clutching the broken wall to keep her balance.

She put a foot behind her and her legs tensed, ready to spring forward.

Not yet. But judging by where we are right now… I can tell that when you do… I don't want you to hold back.

Gladly.


I'm really happy! I didn't expect this chapter to be out for another few days, but today was a snowday and, well… here we are!

I have some plans for the next chapter, but I need to figure out how it will all plan out while also adding in Midoriya and Bakugo fighting.

Until next time!