A/N: Edit finished 16 August 2018. Beta provided by Kylekatarn77.

Chapter 6

"And don't forget to make friends," Izuku's mother said, straightening his tie. "I know you've had difficulties at previous schools, but U.A. is a fresh start for you, even if you share a class with that Bakugou boy. Maybe U.A. will even allow the two of you to become friends like you were before his quirk appeared."

"Thanks, mom," Izuku said. "You don't need to worry so much. There's a couple people I met during the practical and if they're in my class, I'll should have a quick friend or two in them." He pulled down on the light grey blazer that was part of U.A. High's uniform, a little guilty he hadn't told his mother any specifics about the Exam. In the week since he received his acceptance, no moment had made entering his dream school not feel like a dream compared to this moment, about to head to his first day, dressed his new school uniform. Toshinori hadn't contacted him since the Exam, so the multitude of questions he had about the school were forced to wait.

Until now, he hoped. I hope we don't have to wait several weeks before we have our first class with him.

The train from his home station to U.A. took forty minutes. His U.A. uniform surprised the few former classmates he encountered. While rumors had spread around after his confrontation with Katsuki, the fact neither were willing to reveal what had happened after school that day had silenced those in their year. I wonder how they'd react if they saw us in the same class. Of course, that's assuming we are in the same class. When he finally found the door for Class 1-A – a five-meter monstrosity that made him wonder about what quirks had come through the class – he opened to find at least one burgeoning conflict amongst his new classmates.

"Take your feet off that desk!" Tenya shouted. The boy appeared to be as uptight and strict as he had the day of the Entrance Exam. Izuku followed the argument and sighed at the sight of Katsuki leaning back, his shoes resting on his desk. "Your actions are insulting not only to those who have come before us but also to the excellent craftsmen who made that desk."

Katsuki snorted. "Shut it, B-list. What fancy private school did you go to where they stuck that massive stick up your ass?"

"I-I went to Somei Academy," the bespectacled boy said. "My name is Iida Tenya. I am not a B-lister."

"Somei?" Katsuki said, ignoring the second outburst. His feet fell from their perch and he leaned forward, thoroughly amused. Why am I tempted to stop their argument? Izuku thought. He entered the room and started towards his seat. "Get out of my face, you stuck-up elitist. I suggest you not get in my way during exercises, B-list."

"You dare threaten a fellow student? You know that is grounds for expulsion, yes?"

Katsuki snorted. His eyes drifted from Tenya and Izuku sighed as they fell on him. "So you're here too, Deku."

"Uh, yeah…Kacchan." Curious eyes watched them and Izuku felt his face turning pink. "I see you-you've met Iida…"

"So you do remember me, Midoriya," Tenya said. "I did speak with you, especially after you destroyed the gimmick in our testing area. I tried looking for your score from the Entrance Exam, but I couldn't find anything that suggested you had taken it." Izuku flushed, and looked away, hoping he didn't appear guilty. Iida continued, not noticing his awkwardness "Then I found out you were the one whose answers best matched All Might on the HRLT. I was quite surprised by that, especially since I vaguely remember rumors about that person being quirkless, but that must've been wrong."

If it weren't for the door opening again, Izuku knew he would've been bombarded with questions, and there could've been a slight chance of Katsuki using his explosion quirk to draw attention away from him. Instead, the girl he saved during the Exam entered and stopped at the threshold, flush from the attention suddenly turning to her.

"Oh, uh, hello," Uraraka said, a hesitant smile on her face. "I, uh…"

"If you aren't going to say anything, please sit down," a voice said from behind Uraraka. "They should've included your seating assignment with the documents you were given while picking up your uniform." Izuku peered around her and sighed at the form of Aizawa, on the floor, in a yellow sleeping bag. If he hadn't confirmed it for me, I never would've believed that was a graduation present from Present Mic. That and the two are best friends. "You are all in the hero course, not the general or support courses." He rose and the bag slid away. He wore his standard black shirt and pants with the carbon scarf hiding his goggles.

The class watched as he entered the room. Izuku slipped away from the front and sat down next to a short boy whose hair was a line of purple balls. "You've wasted three seconds of class just staring at a girl. Not very logical, wasting time in such a manner. You'd be surprised what many villains can do with three seconds to act." I thought I finally got away from his talk about logic and rationality, Izuku thought, keeping his face impassive. As long as he doesn't single me out, I should be fine. "I'm your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shouta. If any of you have heard of my pro hero persona, keep it to yourself. You'll all know within the first week anyways, so no need to give it away. Pleased to meet you, assuming you're better than the class I was given last year."

He reached into his sleeping bag and drew out a navy blue and white uniform with the letters 'U' and 'A' imprinted in blocky forms. "I hope you all packed your gym clothes. Change and head out to the grounds. I'll meet you there."

Aizawa watched his new class awkwardly surround him on the track. Their profiles had been interesting, but he had been most surprised by Midoriya's score, before Nedzu had it deleted and added the boy to the list of those who entered on recommendations. I knew he was strong, but 119? Last person to score over a hundred was Best Jeanist several years ago, and Midoriya wasn't the only one to get a score like that this year. "U.A. prides itself on its 'Freestyle Education' system," he began, watching his students fidget. "This system allows us teachers to instruct you on becoming heroes how we see fit and keeps us from being beholden to a set curriculum like your former schools. Instead of wasting our time with the Entrance Ceremony, I thought it best to go straight to a quirk test. Your files may include what your quirk is and how you did on the Entrance Exam, but I don't think it's enough." He smiled at the confused looks. "You all remember the standard gym tests you took in middle school? You'll be doing them today, but with your quirks this time."

The students grinned and a few bragged to each other about their quirks. "The Department of Education continues to insist upon the prohibition of quirks when calculating averages for the eight standard tests: softball throw, standing long jump, 50 meter dash, endurance running, grip strength, side-to-side steps, upper body strength, and the seated toe touch. I think it's irrational and doesn't help us at U.A. and the other heroic schools teach and train future heroes. It's one of those weird systems that have persisted since quirks began to emerge in a significant portion of the population.

"Bakugou?" Aizawa asked, singling out the rowdy blond Midoriya had fought on one of the boy's off days. "How far could you throw in middle school?"

Katsuki clicked his tongue, almost sneering. "Sixty-seven meters, sir."

Aizawa nodded. "Great, but don't call me sir. Stand in the circle." Once the blond was in position, he tossed Katsuki the softball he had been holding. "Throw this using your quirk. Do whatever you need, just remain inside the circle." Bakugou stretched and Aizawa added, "Give it all you've got. Hold back and I'll have you expelled."

"Excellent," Katsuki said with a vicious smile. "You're easily the best teacher I've ever had." He cocked back and sent the softball rocketing, bolstered by his explosive quirk and his shout of, "Fuck off." A fiery tail trailed the ball as it created multiple shockwaves, distorting the clouds. His vernacular will prevent him from growing to his full potential as a hero in the eyes of the public, but it'll be a few years before he becomes a hero and there are a few pros talented at cleaning up the images of the most rowdy students.

The counter in Aizawa's hand beeped as the ball came to a stop far in the distance. He glanced at it and smiled. "It's important to know your limits, or else you'll never be able to exceed them." He held the counter towards his students and they gasped at the number: 705.2 meters. "That's the first rational step to figuring out what of heroes you'll be."

"That was amazing!"

"Man, finally getting to use quirks is the best!"

"The heroic course is the best!"

Aizawa snorted at the student's excitement. "Don't get too excited. You're expected to become heroes after three years here, and it won't be all fun and games. Just so you know, whoever has the lowest score across all eight tests will be considered hopeless and expelled. And as I told Bakugou, if you hold back at all, you'll be expelled."

Whatever positivity the students had towards him burnt away in an instant. "Your fates are in my hands!" Aizawa shouted over their outrage. "Consider this your welcome to U.A. High's heroic course!"

Izuku stood off to the side as the first two students, Yuuga Aoyama and Mina Ashido, lined up for the 50-meter dash. Can Aizawa really expel one of us? I've always wondered why he had so much time to work with me. If he does expel students, that would explain a lot. Like the rest of his class, he had been caught off guard by Aizawa's announcement. When they had complained, he had spoken about the difficulties of being a hero and when he uttered the famous phrase, "Plus Ultra," he noticed everyone's fear and concern melt away into confidence and will. I shouldn't be surprised. He ended up doing a lot of the teaching that helped me reach where I am.

"That was an interesting quirk," Tenya said, standing near him. Although they were participating based on class number, there hadn't been any lining up like his middle school had expected. As such, they had all bunched up based – at least he thought – together by practical exam groups.

"You mean Aoyama's? We saw it during our exam," Izuku said. He frowned at the Naval Laser quirk user. Although he seemed nice, there was an obvious air of superiority. I can't tell if he's actually French, or just pretending.

"True, but still, that was a creative application." Before Izuku could respond, Tenya went up, joined by Asui Tsuyu. Mutant-type quirk, related to frogs. She'll have any easy time becoming a popular rescue hero with children. There appears to be a lot of potential in our class and not just based on quirks.

He smiled when Tenya clocked in at 3.04 seconds. They grinned and Izuku commented, "Impressive, though it didn't look like you reached your top speed."

"50 meters is too short for anything past third gear," Tenya grumbled, glancing at Aizawa. Their conversation fell to little more than small comments about other quirks until Izuku's turn. He walked up to the startling line and wasn't sure whether to sigh or grin as Katsuki lined up beside him.

"Don't even think about beating me, Deku," Katsuki hissed. They crouched and rose into a sprinting form. On Aizawa's mark, Izuku drove the entirety of the quarter strength he could control into his right leg. The sprinting blocks cracked and he crossed the first ten meters in a blink. He ignored Katsuki's ravenous shout of "DEKU!" as he spread One for All evenly across his legs, hoping the concentration in his right leg didn't accidentally injure the limb. With each step, the ground gave way to his feet, and in ten strides he passed the finish line and the recording device.

"1.02 seconds," it said as he skidded to a stop, the ground fracturing as he dug in his heels. I need more training in quick stops. Hero pay is docked whenever they cause too much collateral damage. Soon enough, Katsuki exploded past with a "4.13 seconds" trailing him. Izuku walked away, not wanting to catch Katsuki's enraged eyes. The last two – Minoru Mineta, the boy with purple balls, and Momo Yaoyorozu – finished their 50-meter dash. Aizawa led the class to the second test. Izuku noted Mineta followed behind Momo and purposefully stared at her. It might be for the best if I don't befriend him. His green eyes then turned to Momo. She's one of the other students accepted based on a recommendation this year. Toshinori didn't tell me about their quirks, so I guess I'll need to wait for now. She didn't show anything off other than strong athleticism.

The grip test brought unwanted attention upon Izuku. He had watched as Minoru and Hanta Sero crowed around the six-armed Mezou Shouji. Hearing the other boy's results – 540 kg – led him to tighten his grip around the device. It soon began smoking and a couple boys near him displayed shocked grins when he dropped his broken, sparking device. He ignored the curious stares and ducked his head when Sero and Mineta walked away from Shouji and crowded him. The six-armed boy nodded at him. I might just have to ask a favor in exchange for getting them out of his hair.

The third and four tests went well for Izuku. For the standing long jump, he was able to match Yuuga's beam distance and Katsuki's explosive drive combined. Only Tsuyu, with the quirk she called, "Frog Form," leapt further. After that, a couple other boys joined him in conversation. Sero asked a dozen questions about his quirk while Eijirou Kirishima complained about how much better Izuku's quirk was compared to his. That quickly turned into a conversation about the versatility of basic quirks and revealed that Kirishima idolized Crimson Riot. With the side-to-side stepping, he was forced to hold back his output when he begun to dig a trench that ended up being as deep as his hand. Denki Kaminari joined Sero and Kirishima in joking with Izuku about the destruction he had caused.

The class then returned to where they had started for the fifth test: softball throw. Uraraka shocked the class when her throw was given a distance of infinite. What type of quirk does she have to do something like that? Maybe a gravity quirk? She did touch her clothes and shoes before a few events. After Shouto Todoroki threw an ice-covered ball, reducing its friction, Izuku almost stepped out of turn. While he had been aware that Katsuki wouldn't be expected to throw again, he had forgotten about Tooru Hagakure until he collided with the floating clothes that revealed where she was. He quickly turned into a red, flustered mess when she giggled at his mistake and then took her turn. Mineta rejoined the group of guys slowly forming around him, which seemed to have dragged Katsuki in. Rikidou Satou had introduced himself during the brief walk between the fourth and fifth tests.

"You're up, Midoriya," Aizawa called as Hagakure pouted, her uniform all they had to perceiver her emotions. At least One for All isn't like her quirk. I don't want to think about how things would've been if I couldn't turn my quirk off.

He stepped into the circle, softball in hand. He raised both arms, channeling One for All throughout his body. Soon enough, Izuku retained the quirk's power in his torso and right arm and drew back, twisting. His body twisted back around and as his shoulders returned to being parallel with his hips, his right arm flicked forward like a catapult. Izuku nearly lost his footing as the softball flew from his hand.

The class watched as Izuku's throw disappeared in a cloud shattering blast. One cloud that had been in the way had a perfect circle in it.

Izuku turned to Aizawa, who was watching the beeping counter. With each beep, he felt his face turn pinker and pinker until he was certain Ashido was shades lighter than him.

"1.39 kilometers," Aizawa said, dispassionate. "Oh, it went back to 1.38. You hit the campus fence, Midoriya. At least it didn't set off the defenses" The class whispered as Izuku rejoined them, shocked. That was the quarter of my present strength I can control, and Recovery Girl speculates I'll grow even stronger than my current potential.

The rest of the tests went by in a whirlwind. The seated toe touch had gone poorly for Izuku compared to his other results, finding himself in the middle of the pack. Aizawa used his quirk on him during the upper body strength test, stating that replacing equipment required more paperwork than he wanted to handle on the first day. His identity as Eraserhead sent ripples through the class, for Aizawa was one of the largest street-level heroes that primarily fought small crime. The hazy look Uraraka – no, Ochako he decided – sent his way afterwards drove Izuku to distraction during the endurance test. Said test turned into a race between Tenya's Engine quirk and Todoroki's Half-Cold Half-Hot quirk. It's more All Cold No Hot, Izuku reflected as they stood around, waiting on the results. The boy turned frosty when someone commented on his relationship to number two hero, Endeavor.

The nervousness the original announcement of the person in last place being expelled washed over them anew. "Time for the results," Aizawa said, bored. "Lowest score gets expelled, so someone is going home. Your scores reflect your combined performance from each test. I won't waste time explaining how the results were decided, so here they are.

"Oh, and I lied. Nobody is going home." Aizawa grinned as the class was stunned. "It was a deception to get your best performances. I have expelled a couple students after a quirk test, but they usually had attitude problems or failed to take my instructions seriously."

A few of the simpler members of the class got into an argument with Momo after she let slip she had figured Aizawa had lied to them. Izuku watched with baited breath as the results came up. When he found "Midoriya Izuku" beside number one, he grinned and accepted the congratulations with only a hint of embarrassment. Yet in that moment, a revelation hit him. I got first today. I probably got first on the Entrance Exam before they removed my results. I got first on the HRLT. Is this what All Might experiences every day? There's a weird pressure to being number one. How will it be once we all become heroes? He paused, and then his wandering eyes spotted Toshinori standing behind a tree with a proud smile. This is what I want. I have to be number one if I'm going to become the Symbol of Peace. He turned away from his mentor and scanned his classmates. But I won't be alone. I have everyone here to help me on my road, and to help maintain the peace All Might and the other heroes fight everyday to uphold.

#

It was two days later when Class 1-A was scheduled for their first Basic Hero Training Class. While many had complained about having to wait, Izuku found he didn't mind. They had gone through several more tests and sessions working on their quirks and revealing their current abilities and future potential. He found time to speak with everyone in his class, even if for a few moments. Kaminari introduced him to Kyouka Jirou, a quiet girl whose most notable feature was her quirk: Earphone Jack. Fumikage Tokoyami had surprised the class when he recited an old and classic American poem, "The Raven," from memory, using his quirk to dramatize the poem. Present Mic, who would begin instructing them in English once the regular classes begun, had been so proud that their class ended twenty minutes early. Izuku discovered that Mashirao Ojiro practiced martial arts, which he was surprised to learn was only practiced by a minority of pro heroes due to how many relied upon their quirks. Even quiet Kouji Kouda had spoken a few words, even if it was only to see if his ability to speak with animals translated to Tokoyami's bird-like appearance.

When the time for Basic Hero Training arrived, the door was flung open and a tall figure in tights and cape entered the classroom. "I HAVE COME THROUGH THE DOOR, LIKE NORMAL!" Izuku grinned at his mentor's boisterous entrance. The class chattered, excited, as All Might strutted to the front of the room. He turned to them, grinning and standing in one of his best-known heroic poses. "Basic Hero Training! This class will put you through scenarios many heroes face during their careers so we can forge each and every one of you into a great hero! Today I have a special treat:

"BATTLE TRAINING!"

The chattering grew more excited as All Might pressed a button. Four lockers opened on the wall, each containing five numbered boxes. "Battle training requires these: your costumes! They were created in accordance with the United Nations Quirk Registry Guidelines and the Costume Request Forms you filled as part of your applications last November!" Everyone stood as All Might finished. "Once you have changed, we will meet at Ground Beta. Some of you may recognize it, for it was used for the Entrance Exam."

As they all took their costume containers and left, All Might shouted one last comment. "Remember that looking good is very important! Because as of today…

"YOU'RE ALL HEROES!"