The second day was spent with Luffy and Ace finding the right amount of flames and size of the air bomb to make perfect explosions, out on the field and away from the building. Ace sucked the flames away, so by the end they knew just the right amount and size for three stages. Shock, burn, and kill. A shock released the fire with a bang but not much fire. Burn created large explosions that would burn anyone near and kill completely eradicate the area. Soon, much of the grass was charred dirt. Midnight supervised them while doing this, but once Ace showed he could get rid of the fire, they were left to their own.

They also worked on swirling fire around their bodies as a shield, and asked Midnight to throw things at them to see if it worked. They were commanded to never use that nuclear bomb on campus. Not after what it did to one of the grounds. They had individual supermoves and one together, the shield that only they'd be able to use as it sent heat out and didn't burn Luffy. Never burn Luffy.

The four days passed quickly, and when they were inside on the fourth day, taking a break, a rock almost fell on All Might and they were too far to get it, but Midoriya came and kicked it into pieces.

"Hell yeah! We knew you could do it!" Ace shouted, Luffy "Woohoo!"ing for him. Midoriya grinned brightly and sent them a thumbs up.

"You're a badass, now, too!'" Luffy said excitedly. He and Ace both gave him high fives. "You better take care of your body from now on, got it?" Midoriya nodded, promising he would. Then Kaminari and Krishima came over, showing off their new outfits. "Wow your guys' outfits changed a lot!" Luffy said.

"Your guys' didn't really, huh?" Kaminari asked. Ace pointed out their masks had changed and Luffy could make fire with his gloves. Luffy showed them and then encapsulated it in an air bomb. He could make those on his own now. "Wow, that's super out of the way, nobody would know it's there."

Luffy nodded and said, "I also can't light it on accident easily. Hatsumei is awesome." The other three nodded, all liking their upgrades a lot. They asked why the two got rid of their helmets. "They were sweaty inside and it interfered with seeing and hearing," Luffy said honestly.

Then class 1-B came and demanded they leave. Aizawa got in a tiff with Vlad, the class 1-B teacher. Monoma, they thought his name was, copped an attitude with them, and when he saw Ace and Luffy, he stopped, still seeming affected from the last time the twins gave him a well said scolding.

"How are you guys?" Luffy asked cheerily.

The girls said they were good, but a bit nervous for the test. "Me, too. There's a 50% fail rate, so we have to all do our best. It would be awesome if all of us got accepted and then we'd be nicer to each other. Hopefully. We'd be the best school and outshine all of the others!" he said with conviction.

Aizawa looked unsurprised with Vlad shocked. Everybody from class 1-B had seen Ace's meltdown, but nobody in either class had said a word about it. One girl did ask how Luffy was doing.

"I'm all better, now. Nobody has to worry. No more injuries, they're all gone. And I got a little stronger from it, so that's nice!" he laughed lightheartedly, talking about being tortured like it was no big deal. Ace grinned and shook his head. So did the others around him.

Aizawa told them all that they were the only first years fighting this year, meaning they were up against students who had been practicing longer. "With quirks you don't know about, they've polished up. The contents of the actual exam are unclear, but what is clear is that you'll all have a hard time. It's not good to get hung up on it, but keep that in mind."

Luffy didn't like the tense atmosphere and said, "We've all been up against villains whose power we didn't know. We're ready for anything," with conviction. The other students affirmed this, said they'd give it their all and would all pass, no matter what challenges they faced.

Jiro asked, "How do you do that?"

"What?"

"Make everyone get along and be encouraged!"

Luffy shrugged. "Who cares, it works!" Aizawa and Vlad were looking at Luffy once the other students were all more pumped up. When they switched, and walked past one another, Luffy loudly told everyone to try their hardest and they'd make their school proud, showing "villain attacks don't bring us all down!"

The others loudly agreed, and wished each other luck. "Have a nice practice!" Luffy called one last time and turned around. Ashido said, "You're such an angel, Luffy." Luffy chuckled at that but didn't reply. Aizawa did say something.

"Luffy, don't lose that attitude. You'll make a superb hero if you can keep bringing people together like that," he said in a flat voice.

"Yes, sir! I won't let anything change that. Not even torture," he reponded brightly. Ace smiled proudly, loving his brother so much. He was a bright light that just kept on shining, never to be put out.

Later that night when they were all back at the dorms, Todoroki was helping with the dinner with Ace and Luffy supervising. Momo was cutting up the food to be cooked and Jiro was working with the sauce. Their favorite food had been the one from the first night.

The others were complaining about how tired they were, but Ace and Luffy were pumped and excited. If they didn't pass this time, they had next year. They would pass, but they had a safety net.

After a moment of silence, Jiro asked a question that seemed to be something everyone was thinking. "Luffy… what was it like? When you know, it happened? You don't have to say anything if you don't want to."

Luffy replied, "No, it's fine. It was worse at first, cause Shigaraki was mad that I ruined his dream, and embarrassed him back at USJ. He wanted to break me so I wouldn't have a dream either. There were burns and stabs and cuts at first, broke my fingers and toes, but when they tried to use their quirks on me, my body got coated in this weird metal thing and their quirks wouldn't work on me. That got them angry.

"I didn't let myself sleep cause I knew I'd die if I did. It was terrible, being awake for four days. And hungry and thirsty. I had to keep the stuff up so they couldn't hurt me again. On the fourth day I started to hallucinate, but it was better than what was actually happening. I saw a zoo with Ace there, too.

"I knew I'd be saved, so I knew I just had to keep waiting and stay alive as long as I could."

They were all quiet before Ashido asked, "How are you cheery about it? What made you not break under all that stress?" Luffy looked up at the ceiling.

"Well, I was afraid of what Ace would do if I did die, or if I did come back broken and damaged. I didn't want him to be upset and scared. I mean, I wanted to live too, of course, but I was mostly thinking about Ace. And how bad he had to feel about me getting taken. I wanted to wait as long as I could so I could make him smile again. And if he didn't smile anymore, I would never be happy either.

"So I didn't let them break me," he finished strongly. The room was silent, and some of the girls were sniffling. Kirishima was crying, how Luffy was a true man. Luffy just laughed about it. "I'm not upset about it anymore, so you don't have to beat around the bush. I mean, I do have nightmares sometimes. That's when we're on the couch, after I've had a nightmare."

Ace sighed, and wiped his eyes. "I wish I had been as strong as you. The moment you were gone I had a complete meltdown in front of everyone. They all felt bad for me, even Aizawa was nice. It was hard. But you're back and I try not to think about it much. I'm not you, Lu. Never change." Luffy hugged him, and then everyone went back to talking about lighter things, though there was an air of sadness.

Dinner distracted that, and they all talked about their ultimate moves excitedly. It was a nice night, and Ace and Luffy felt they'd all grown a little bit closer because of Luffy and his attitude and experience. Like another family. A big one, but still. It was nice

-x-

A week later, and they were all standing in front of the building that the exam would take place in. They were all nervous. Luffy said, "Even if one of us fails, we have two more chances. You're not going to not be a hero if you fail this time. Being nervous isn't going to get you anywhere."

"If you can pass this test, you'll get your provisional licenses. Then your novice eggs will become chicks… You'll hatch into semi-pros. Do your best."

Kirishima and Kaminari were getting pumped up before a guy from another school showed up, grinning like Luffy was. He was very excited and barged into their conversation, and then apologized and hit his head on the ground. "What's with this guy trying to get by on his enthusiasm?"

"That's what Luffy does," Tsu pointed out.

"Hey, that uniform is from that rich and powerful school in the west! I heard really talented people come from there," Luffy said cheerily, in a great mood and looking forward to more games and competitions. The excited guy stood back up.

"Hey, you're the happy guy from the U.A. sports festival!" the other enthusiastic guy said. "I loved your speech! I brought everyone together, it was beautiful!" the excited guy exclaimed. Luffy laughed and said the sports festival had been fun.

He said, "I hope today will be fun, too. But we're against you, so you're an enemy! I can tell you're strong, too. We won't let our guard down," Luffy finished sternly.

"Right back at you, happy guy!" he said and ran back, full of enthusiasm. The others sighed, and said they were glad Luffy's enthusiasm wasn't that exhausting. Aizawa said the guy's name, and then that he was strong. Well, Ace and Luffy already knew how strong he was. He might be a challenge. Aizawa told them about him, and the brothers weren't really paying attention, trying to see how many powerful students they were up against. But apparently the guy was stronger than Todoroki. Though Ace and Luffy had been stronger than him. It would test their strength to go up against him.

Luffy whispered, "He looks fun, let's avoid him."

"Roger," Ace said with a grin, getting pumped up along with Luffy, grinning and excited to know what would happen next. They barely caught the guy's name. Yoarashi Inasa.

Then someone called Aizawa's name, looking like a bright person, laughing. Luffy and Ace liked her already, she was making Aizawa irritated just by laughing. And she did ask him to marry her, so that irritated him as well.

Midoriya had his hero-nerdiness come out and explained she made people around her laugh and then defeated them while their senses were dull. "Do you think she can make me laugh?" Luffy asked. Ace put his hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe next time, Lu," Ace said with a smile. He had noticed it. After Luffy's torture, he smiled more. It was obvious. Luffy hadn't come out of that hell broken. He came out of it appreciating his life even more than before. Appreciating being around other people, making them happy with his enthusiasm, letting everyone know he was still himself even if he had been tortured. Being a beacon of strength. After all, if someone can go through torture and come back out like this, why couldn't others come out of their problems?

He was an inspiration and Ace couldn't be more proud to be his brother.

She introduced her students that were coming up behind her, and they all looked happy. Luffy returned the smile. Both he and Ace were having fun meeting all new sorts of people. Luffy waved at them, and once again he was recognized for his attitude at UA.

"You're that happy guy who won every battle!" one said.

Luffy nodded, and said it was really fun, and expressed that he hoped today was fun as well. It seemed Aizawa had given up on trying to get Luffy to know things were serious. He got things done, followed rules and instruction. He just didn't do it with a bad attitude or with fear distracting him. Ace was the same, he just wasn't as outwardly enthusiastic about everything like Luffy was.

Most things, but less than Luffy. The guy walked up to Luffy and gripped his hands, greeting him excitedly. His name was Shindo and he said UA's year so far has been rough after so much trouble. Luffy had no filter. "Don't worry, I got over the torture," he said with a grin. The guy faltered a bit, looking a bit shocked, but then smiled, saying that he liked his attitude. "Hopefully we won't be against each other! I'll try to learn from you."

"Maybe! You seem happy, so maybe I'll learn from you, too. Well, do your best. We'll all be doing ours," Luffy said for the group.

Kirishima said, "Is Luffy our spokesperson or something?"

"Well it makes us look good," Jiro commented. The others nodded. The joke hero poked at Aizawa and asked how he hadn't broken this child's spirit yet. Aizawa said he gave up on it long ago, making the joke hero laugh harder.

The blonde one who hadn't spoken yet walked up to Luffy and asked for an autograph. Luffy was shocked, but agreed, and wrote his first name and "Always be happy!" under it. Ace didn't know if he was trying to do it, but he was charming the enemies as well. Well, maybe making them look good will deter any attacks. Not that that was Luffy's intention at all.

Making people happy and being happy was one of the best feelings. Ace agreed with that, it was the way both of them lived. Luffy just seemed more of a social butterfly as of late. Not just with his own school but with enemy schools. It was another superpower.

"Hey, go get in your costumes and get to orientation," Aizawa ordered. They walked up the steps along with Aizawa, and Luffy asked, "Hey, are they gonna go after us first since they know our quirks and personalities?" Aizawa and the joke hero paused, looking at Luffy strangely. Aizawa asked why he thought that. "Well it would be a good strategy, wouldn't it? I wouldn't do it, but it would be good for others to do," he explained. Ace knew people sometimes forgot that Luffy was smart as well as happy and enthusiastic.

Aizawa settled with, "Keep that in mind, everyone." They all grew nervous, but nodded and went to get changed. Luffy apologized that he might have ruined the mood. But Momo said, "No, we know that that might be a possibility and now we won't be surprised. It was lucky you said something." The others nodded and after they were in their costumes, they went into the orientation room, he and Ace holding hands so they didn't get lost.

They ended up being separated from the others and ended up next to the cheerful guy. "Hey, again!" Luffy greeted him and told him his costume looked awesome. "Mine is kinda plain, but it's helpful for my stuff. Me and Ace have similar ones because we're twins." He was making sure to let nothing slip that would be used against him. Ace waved at the guy with a smile.

"It's nice to see very bright people in other schools. Now we know Luffy's not alone!" Luffy and Yoarashi nodded. He said sometimes everyone got annoyed with him. Luffy said he was glad that didn't happen to him. "You seem like a good guy, let's try to make it to the next round. Don't lose and I won't lose." He gave a fist bump to the guy. Ace shook his head, Luffy being friendly with the enemy.

Then the orientation started. A sleepy looking guy who also sounded sleepy introduced himself. Then he complained about being sleepy and overworked. He said there were 1,540 people and the first test would be a free for all exercise. Both Luffy and his new friend hissed, "Yes!" at the same time.

Ace just smiled, excited for this exercise. A free for all fight? Fighting all of each other? No, that would be more like a battle royale. The sleepy leader said that people were having second thoughts about the hero society after the whole Stain incident. "Well, as a private citizen, no matter what the motivation, to tell someone risking their lives to save others with no reward is…" he didn't complete that sentence and moved to the next.

"It's the ruthless story of these modern times…" he didn't finish it again. "But anyway, whether it's for compensation, or for loyalty and courage, the result of many heroes working hard together to help people and defeat villains is that right now, the time from when an incident begins to when it's resolved is so short that'd make you sick." He said they were all about to get their provisional license and get into those rapids. It was not a pep talk. And people who aren't good at speed will not win. So, he announced the first exam would be of speed.

"Like a race?" Luffy asked.

"I hope so!" the other guy said.

And they learned that the first 100 people to fulfill the requirements would pass. Luffy observed, "That means a lot of people will lose. I hope enthusiastic people will pass. We need happy people as heroes." The other guy was crying.

"Your way of thinking is beautiful!" he said. "I hope to see you pass." Luffy said he hoped that as well, and hoped they'd have some fun while doing it. Ace said it was weird that so many would fail when the pass rate was supposed to be 50%. Luffy nodded, saying it would be maybe 10% who passed. "Poor guys who fail. Well, they have next time. We're gonna pass, but if you don't, you have a safety net."

The happy guy said, "I plan on passing as well. But I agree that it is good everyone has at least one more chance, even if losing sets them back."

The sleepy guy finally said what they'd be doing. The exercise had each person put on three targets somewhere exposed, not hidden out of sight. They each got six balls that they could use to take down two people. So you need to get a ball of six targets, two for each person. If all of your targets are hit, you're out. If you got two targets on someone, anyone who got the third target would be the one to claim the victory.

Luffy raised his hand and Ace started to sweat. The guy was surprised with getting a question. "Yes?"

"Are we allowed to reuse balls, if we find them on the ground, or only those six?" he asked loud enough for him to hear in the front. Others muttered that it was a good question. He said they were allowed to use other balls if they ran out.

Ace said, "Good question, Lu. Don't ask anymore." He said it with a wicked grin, knowing what he meant. The guy hadn't said something important. He didn't say they couldn't guard their targets. In Luffy's case, have air armor on. In Ace's case, vaporize the balls before they get too close.

Suddenly, the ceiling opened up and showed a huge arena. "Wow. Didn't expect that," Yoarashi said. Luffy said it was awesome.

"Well, we'll see you at the end, my fellow happy guy," Luffy said brightly.

"Good luck, also my fellow happy guy," he said cheerfully. Ace and Luffy could read people, and this guy wasn't faking. He truly was this happy, and it was nice. To be around other people who are naturally happy.

Then they got a really good look once the dirt and dust cleared. There were different zones, similar to USJ, and the sleepy guy told them to use their quirks well. Guarding it is, then. This would be easy. But they'd continue to put people out for fun, and try to help their classmates get more people. Maybe they'd take out two for each person, making it easier for them.

Ace would have asked if they could continue to take people out after passing, but there was no rule against or for it. Loopholes were great, weren't they?

Ace and Luffy both put all three targets on their chest, and Luffy put out his air armor, Ace punched it for making sure it worked, and Ace rose his body heat exponentially, melting the ground beneath him.

Midoriya said they should stick together. Ace and Luffy frowned at that. "Can we go win and then come back for you?" Luffy wondered. The others frowned, asking how he was so sure they wouldn't get out.

Ace said, "We didn't just train attacks. We have shields." Luffy banged against his chest, showing there was something protecting the targets. The students worried about them leaving them.

"Well, we all did train for this. We can't only rely on one another," Iida said. Ace and Luffy shared glances. They really wanted to go all out. But they didn't want to leave their class. They'd take their two out at the very start when someone approached them. They wouldn't be on guard with Ace and Luffy like they should be, even if they had seen them work a lot on TV.

It was fun and awesome, so having others know their quirks wasn't a big deal. It was a great memory they'd have for forever. "We'll pass and then help out," Ace said, and Luffy agreed. They were at the front of the group, knowing where people were and that many were coming after them.

"I sense people, be right back," Luffy said with a grin. Ace nodded. Luffy ran up in the air, high above and only a few noticed him before he shot his three balls in quick succession and got one out already. "Got one!" he shouted, leaving the others in shock before he did a few flips and confused them before getting all three on another guy. His targets turned blue.

"Woohoo!" Luffy cheered and slid down an air slide to see Ace. He was being flashy, and letting everyone aim at him first. They exclaimed when the balls vaporized before hitting him, getting so close to the targets.

Ace grinned and shot two down immediately. "We both passed!" they shouted and gave one another high fives. "Let's go help everyone else!" Ace nodded and they went running back. "Got it! Now we can help you guys!"

"Tw-Two people have already passed! We're ten seconds in!" the tired guy's voice said over the speaker. They heard exclamations and both of them grinned.

The class was speechless. "Don't just stand there, there are people coming!" Ace shouted. Both he and Luffy had passed already and could now do what they wanted without worrying. But they had to collect more balls.

When a ton of enemy students came at them, Ace and Luffy jumped into the air, kicked faces, punched into stomach, grabbing them under the armpits and slamming them into the ground. They'd knocked down twelve in a second. "Get them!"

"Wait, they've already passed. Don't waste your balls!"

When they went after Uraraka when she wasn't ready, Luffy jumped in front and caught it, flinging it back at the same guy's target in five seconds. "Ace, competition who gets more targets!"

"Yeah!"

The class was complaining that it wasn't fair they were just having fun now that they'd passed. "I thought you guys wanted our help. If you don't, then we'll be fine going off on our own," Ace said from standing on Luffy's shoulders on the air stairs that Luffy was crouching on.

"No! Don't leave us!" Ashido cried. Ace dropped down and Luffy stayed on his spot.

"Then get to work! We're not gonna do everything for you!" The guy in front of them was the happy one whose friend asked for an autograph. Luffy pouted. "Man, I thought you were genuinely happy!" he complained. The guy was shocked. All of them were.

They said, "Y-You were supposed to be clueless and weak!"

Luffy put his hands on his hips. "So I can't be enthusiastic and strong and smart at the same time? We scored highest in the festival, entrance exam and midterm test against All Might. All while being happy!" Luffy said brightly. "C'mon, they're distracted!"

"Separate them all!" the false-happy guy said, but everyone was already throwing balls, which Ace and Luffy both easily snatched out of the air and into their arms. Now they had extra ammo. Luffy called down to the class that they had extra ammo for them.

But they were repelling them okay. They both sensed harder objects about to be thrown and saw hardened balls flying. Ace said, "Nu-uh!" and blasted out white fire that vaporized them in mid air. The two who'd been responsible for that froze. They weren't taking balls from the air anymore, letting their classmates do their own work.

Luffy shot all of his fifteen balls and took out five. "I got seven!" Ace shouted back he got eight. "I'm not gonna let you top me again!"

Ace grinned. "Just you try, little brother."

"T-These guys are bad news!" the crowd said, many lamenting that they never even got a chance. "I thought you wanted everybody to pass!"

Luffy was still sitting in the air like a sniper, taking everyone out from above. He said, "Well I hoped that happy people would pass. Looks like there's only one enemy I want to pass. And it's not you, you false-happy people. Besides, I care about my fun and my friends more than liars." He said the last part a little darkly. Luffy made a bomb out of the spark glove and his air and leisurely tossed it down at them, blowing them up in the middle so they went flying in different directions.

"I don't like revenge, but I don't like liars either," Luffy said darkly. Then he panicked and planted his hands on the ground, making the earth tremble and throw everyone in different directions as the pillars rose high. "I'm still here. Real heroes are kind, they don't lie." And Luffy threw some of his extra ammo at the guy too rapidly for him to retreat. He was out.

He glared up at Luffy, who looked at him with disappointment.

He dropped down to Ace, who was just melting doorways for himself through the rocks, taking people out. Luffy said he'd gotten twelve. Ace had gotten fourteen. "That's what you get for monologuing," he joked.

Luffy laughed. "Hey, he lied to us! I had to be a little mean! Let's go to another place. They need to take care of themselves. They're strong enough to deal on their own." Ace nodded, and he grabbed onto Luffy while he ran across the sky. "Where do you want to go first?"

"Hmm, let's be pranksters! We never are so lets give it a try. I'll go and melt the mountain area." Luffy nodded and carried them there. Ace let out a blast of fire that Luffy combined with his wind and blasted a melted hole into the mountain. "Now people have a short cut."

Luffy said they should go find the wind guy, sure he'd passed already. They knew he was strong. Ace said sure and then looked for him with their haki before finding him in the city area. Luffy ran there and landed next to him. "Happy guy! Are you still happy or are you a liar, too?"

"Hey! You made it, too!" and they gave high fives. Luffy told him they were the first two to pass. That they wanted to pass quickly so they could have fun. "I'm glad you passed. The other guy I thought was happy was apparently lying. Heroes should be happy to help those around them feel better. Not be fake."

"I agree!"

Ace said, "Hey, do you wanna take part in our competition? We're seeing how many we can each get out." Happy guy put his hands on his waist, saying he'd already gotten 100.

"Noooo, we lose!" Luffy said, but then he changed. "No, we won't give up! There's still a lot of people down. See you later!" he called and he and Ace went jumping from building to building, still having the extra balls. They went around taking out everyone they could until people screamed when they saw them up above. That they were going to fail everyone.

"New rule. Once you pass, you must return inside. Those who do not follow that rule from this moment on will be disqualified."

The two pouted, but ran back to the door and found a handful of people there, including Todoroki. They were sad, their fun over. The ice guy asked, "You were the first ones to pass, right?" They nodded. "And you're the reason for this new rule." They said probably. They walked to the tired guy and asked if they could watch from the bleachers.

"That is fine," he said in a sleepy voice. He should take a nap.

"You seem really tired, can you take a nap and someone take your position?" Luffy asked in worry.

"No, this is my job. I'll sleep later, congratulations on passing." They thanked him and hurried to the stands. They saw Aizawa there with joke hero and she looked shocked. Aizawa said "good job. You make U.A. proud." The twins grinned and went to sit in the highest seats and watch.

"We barely got to use our new moves. I'm disappointed," Luffy said, sagging in his chair. Ace agreed. "Were we really that far above them? I don't understand why people aren't as strong as we are. Many should have been practicing and training longer than we have."

Ace pointed out that nobody else had haki. Luffy said that was true. Luckily, it didn't take long for the hundred to pass, and they hurried down to meet their classmates. And happy guy. "You guys did it! We all passed!" Luffy cheered. Ace nodded and they were all celebrating before the commentator and sleepy leader spoke, putting up a screen that showed the whole place blowing up and turning into a disaster site. That was the point. They knew even before he said it that the next test was rescue training.

They would rescue actors playing injured victims and gain or lose points for how they handled the rescues. If you were at or above the benchmark, you pass. Ace and Luffy immediately asked Ojiro and Sato if they wanted to team up after interning with Thirteen for a week. They agreed.