Ok! Time to crush the competition! Avatar the Last Airbender and Boku No Hero Academia are not mine and never will be. Hope ya'll enjoy!
The Entrance Exam
Big.
Gigantic. Utterly enormous. The words didn't serve the place justice. Toph had been told how big U.A. High was and she was even given a scale model to feel, but damn. She spent a moment admiring the architecture from outside the car. 'At least I won't have to wear shoes thanks to that permission form' she thought. She was currently dressed in a standard girls' school uniform. She already despised it, from the knee-high skirt to the buttoned long-sleeved shirt with the fuzzy jacket. She wore leggings and bottomless shoes, which weren't the most comfortable things in the world, but they'll do. She had a simple black hairband holding her large bun together, but let her bangs hang in front of her eyes. Her mother had attempted numerous times to fix it during the car ride, but she had set it back every single time. Eventually she decided to pick her battles. Speaking of her mother…
"You have your schedule? In braille?
"Yes, Mother."
"Is your watch working? You know how to use it?"
"Yep. Watch." She joked as she pressed the side button. "It is 8:43 in the morning."
"Ok, are you sure you want your hair like that?"
"I'm sure."
"Do you have your schedule?"
"You asked that already."
"Ah, I suppose I did." This particularly hard for her mother. All Toph's life, they had always known exactly where she was and who she was with; and they were rarely far away. But now she was taking an exam with hundreds of kids, and she was applying to be a Hero. Alone! Lao couldn't see her off because of a business meeting, but Poppy was glad they had made peace with each other. Now she just had to…
Say…goodbye…
She started crying again.
"Mom!" Toph exclaimed. 'Honestly, this is the 18th time today.' She thought to herself. "It's going to be ok; I'll be right here when I'm done."
"I-I know" she said through tears "It's j-just happing so hic very fast and I'm hic sad and happy and-"
"Mom" Toph interrupted. "I know. It's gonna be ok." She pressed her watch again. "It is 8:49 in the morning." "Ok, I have to go now ok?"
Poppy took a deep, shaky breath. "Ok, you'll do great honey. I love you." The two shared a hug. "I love you too, drink some water ok? Replace those fluids." Poppy laughed at that. She kept watching as Toph walked towards campus. She could feel the tears welling up again.
'Toph though. Toph isn't afraid, so I shouldn't be either, right?'
xXx
'Holycrapholycrapholycrapholycrap' was the skipping track in Toph's head. She was afraid, sure. But she was also exhilarated. She was here. At U.A. Without her parents! She extended her senses and quirk about the area. Lots of unfamiliar people of different weights, sizes, and shapes. She focused her attention on a particularly jittery weight, about 10 meters ahead. 'Maybe I'll say hello.' She started towards him.
And felt him trip on his own foot.
She was too surprised to react immediately. Surely that's bad luck or something right? She nearly called out, but then something stranger happened.
He disappeared. Completely. Toph was highly confused until she heard him exclaim in surprise. She then noticed the lighter weight next to him, female. "Sorry I used my quirk on you! But I figured it would be bad luck if you fell." The girl said.
'That's what I thought! Wait, it was a quirk? Toph felt him touch the ground, though extremely light. The girl placed her hands together and just like that that, his weight returned. 'Is his heart beating? I think so, but I'm not completely sure. Why isn't he saying anything?'
"Anyway, I guess I'll see you later! Bye!" With that, she trotted away, towards the building ahead.
He seemed frozen in place. 'Is he ok? Should I-OH MY GOD!'
"AHHHHAHAHAHA! HAAAAHAHAHA!"
'Nope.' She kept walking. 'Not even touching that. Nu-uh.'
She walked past the crazy boy, keeping an "eye" on him from behind herself. He eventually shook himself off, and half-ran in.
She continued in and-
Nothing.
'Shit!' She started to freak out a bit. 'Carpet!'
She quickly grabbed and de-collapsed her new cane. 'Didn't think I would need this so soon. I hope not everywhere is carpet! If I can't even get to class, how can I possibly become a hero! Ok, Toph. Relax. Just keep walking. Follow the crowd, use your ears.'
She was so focused on not losing her cool, it wasn't long till she bumped into someone. Two someones, in fact.
"Hey! Can't you watch where you're going?"
"No." she deadpanned. 'A guy. Was he…buzzing?'
"Yeah, yeah, just be careful next-wait what?"
"No. I can't." She held up her cane.
"Oh! Uhh, wait I'm confused."
"I think she's blind dude."
"How can you tell?"
"She has a cane, man!"
"Oh! I guess that makes sense. Where're you headed?"
"General and Hero Written Exam, then the practical" she responded.
"Awesome! We're going for the Hero Course too! Wait, how? If you're…uuuhhhh…"
"Blind?"
"Yeah, that!" he said. "If you're really blind, then how are you applying for the Hero Course?"
"Good question actually." The other boy said.
"None of your business." 'Crap, that was kinda harsh.' "Can I follow you guys? If you know the way that is."
"Uh…yeah sure! I'm Kaminari and this is Sero! And you are…"
"Beifong."
"Nice to meet you, Beifong! Let's go!" "This whole thing, huh?" Sero commented. "Kinda nerve-racking right?"
"Ugh, don't remind me." Kaminari whined. She felt her hand shaking. Shaking the nerves out a bit, she put her other hand on his shoulder.
"Yeeeouch!"
"Omygosh, are you ok?"
"What was that?"
"Sorry, it's my quirk." She distinctly heard sparks upon contact. "I can electrify my body. I usually can control it, but my nerves are getting to me. You ok? Why'd you grab me?"
"Yeah," She felt her hand. No burn, but it still hurt a bit. "I'm fine, but I need a guide."
"Oh, right! No problem!" He took her hand, no sparks this time, and guided her to the testing area.
She didn't get electrified this time, but she could feel the telltale buzz of his quirk under his skin. 'If I could see, I could find him anywhere' she mused.
They found themselves in the exam area, where a staff member was able to take her off the boy's hands. She was seated at an exam table with several paper packets in front of her. When she heard "Begin", she immediately opened it to find Braille writing.
'Nezu, my man!' she thought with a grin.
With that, the written exam had started.
xXx
'Well that was easy.' She followed the crowd to the auditorium. 'The toughest questions weren't even real school questions. Saving either a child or an elderly man from a burning building? Why not save them both and be done with it? Give me a break.'
She was seated in the nosebleed section, with a small summary detailing the trial to come. She mostly ignored the DJ hero and the loud stick in the mud below her. She had a job to do.
'So, destroying robots. The bigger they are, the more points I earn. Except the biggest one, which is worth zero points and is meant to be avoided.' The task seemed simple enough to her.
'Now, let's find our way out of here.'
xXx
Toph could've kissed the solid concrete beneath her when she got outside. She was now dressed comfortably, with gym shorts, a sports bra and shirt, and no shoes. She also removed her headband, letting her long, fluffy hair fall about her face, for fear of losing it. She received some funny looks, but nothing more. 'Time to show the judges what's what.'
As she left the bus to the exam area, she decided to do some recon. Cracking her knuckles, she slammed her fingers into the ground, extending her quirk throughout the entire fake city.
'How did they afford so many robots? They get these things every year? Maybe Sugar Queens' folks have got stock in them.' She searched a bit more. It didn't take too long to find the Zero-pointer. It was hidden (to the seeing people anyway) within a large fake building. 'So the building is made to collapse as soon as the Zero activates, catching everyone by surprise. But why wait? There's ten minutes to smash as many robots as superhumanly possible. Why bother waiting or even disguising it? And I hate to sound like my Dad here, but won't the falling debris be dangerous?'
"Hey! Beifong!"
"Eeep!" She fell backwards from her squat. 'Dammit! How did he get the drop on me?' She jumped up. "What's up, Sparky?" She could get a good look at him now, so to speak. She could probably pick him out a mile away but the buzz. "You ready to rack up some points?"
"You bet I am! It's just like a video game! Just gotta make sure I don't overdo it or anything." He rubbed his head sheepishly.
"Why not?"
"Ha, funny story really. You see-"
"AAAAAAND LET'S GOOOO!"
Everyone there stared at the source of the sound.
"WHAT? CLOCKS TICKING KIDDIES!" Present Mic blared. "A HERO WAITS FOR NOTHING!"
'OH! Crap!' Toph felt the gates open as soon as she heard Mic. With a quick stomp, she launched herself through the gate with a pillar and plunged into the ground. Rather than digging, she rose a moving mound of earth to propel herself forward, putting her ahead of the confused crowd.
"Oh shit! Let's go!" One guy said.
"Yeah, catch that small-fry!"
"MOVE, YOU BASTARDS! OUT OF MY WAY, EXTRAS!"
She did her best to ignore the others. They were competition, after all. Instead, she focused on first target: a 2-pointer by the feel of it. She rushed the robot with her Rolling Hill and bounced off at the last second, burying it. She was then surrounded by 2 1-ponters and a 3-pointer. Hearing rockets from the big one, she erected a rock tent to defend. The two small ones were skewered by earthen spires and she sent her shield flying at the big one, disabling it.
'Ok, that's about seven points so far. I can do this!'
"8 MINUTES LEFT!"
'Shit! Can't get comfortable!' she thought as she ripped another 3-pointer apart. 'Gotta fight and move!'
With that, she formed her stone slab, having dubbed it the Rock Slider, and raceed through the mock city; ripping apart as many robots as quickly as she could.
Toph went on like this for a while. Ride past a bot, dodge if necessary, impale it from below as she passed, and move on. Occasionally, she stopped to scan for more targets and check on the Zero-pointer, which was still yet to move.
'Ok, I've got about 48 points now. 2 minutes on the clock.' Frankly, she was running out of robots. The others were freaking out, dashing in every direction or fighting over robo-kills. She skidded to a stop to scan for more targets.
BOOOOOOOM
"Took it long enough!" she yelled aloud. As she predicted, the fake building fell apart, revealing the gargantuan Zero-pointer. She turned to find more robots, but froze.
'Sparky?'
She felt him; right in front of the behemoth. 'He's not trapped, so why isn't he moving? Get out of the way, idiot!'
With no time to deliberate, she Rock-Slid as fast as she could. He's wasn't buzzing as much as before. 'Is something wrong with him?'
She rushed to him and punched his shoulder, hard. "YO, DIMWIT! DO YOU NOT SEE THE GIANT-ASS ROBOT RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU? LET'S GO!"
"yaaaaaaaayy…"
If she could see, she would've stared. 'Is he brain dead or something?' The Zero-pointer was advancing with no sign of halting. She felt its balance shift, it was reaching down! Right at them!
Assuming her horse stance, she stamped her foot and thrust her arms up. Immediately, a platform of earth twice as wide as its arm raised both her and Kaminari up about waist height to the robot. Having missed, the Zero-pointer stopped to relocate its targets. Using that gap in time, she quicksanded the ground beneath it to stop it from driving forward and slid the platform away from the robot, chucking some projectiles back towards it for good measure. "wheeeeeeeeeeeee…" Kaminari mumbled.
'He was talking about overdoing his quirk. Is that what he was talking about?' There'd be time for questions later. Suddenly, she heard a loud boom come from another mock city. 'Was that their zero?'
But she was focused on the wrong Zero-pointer. Her robot, realizing it couldn't move, began its long-ranged programming. Toph never saw the rockets coming.
But Denki did.
In his delirium, he couldn't speak very well or respond to things quickly. But he knew he had just enough juice to knock out those rockets. "Gemodewhey…" "What?" "Gemodedewhey!"
Hearing the approaching fire, she prepared to erect a wall, but Kaminari had other ideas.
"Hey! What're you doAAAAAAAHHH!" Kaminari had shoved her off the platform! As she blindly hit the ground below, he heard Kaminari yell with effort, as arcs of electricity hit in every direction; including the spot she was just in. After a rather large explosion and a crack of lightning, she couldn't sense him anywhere. Until he hit the ground a few feet back that is.
"SPARKY!" She tried to run towards him, but leg was hurt in the fall. She limped to him and checked his pulse.
'Ok…he's ok…' she sat next to him, nursing her leg. Whatever state he was in before, he was definitely worse off now. The only sounds he gave were his heartbeat, breath, and the occasional giggle. 'He really fried his brain there. So weird.'
"TIMES UUUUUUUUPPPP!"
She looked up. She exam was over? She placed a hand on the ground. Robot remains were scattered everywhere, with examinees standing awkwardly around. With 48 points under her belt, she wasn't sure if she had passed or not. She sure as hell tore up the mock city, doing far more damage to the streets than the robots ever could. 'Hope that doesn't count against me' she winced.
She sat with Kaminari for a bit, trying to figure out how to snap him out of it. 'If he knows this is a problem, maybe it just temporary?'
"Excellent work everyone! Excellent!" She heard a small old lady approach after a while. "Hello dearie. That's quite a nasty cut."
"Oh?" She touched her forehead and felt blood. "Is it bad?"
"Not for very long, dearie. Any other injuries?"
"Yeah, my leg feels messed up, but-"
smmmmmooch
"Gah! What the…heck…" She felt better already! Even her leg was better! "How did you-"
"Oh, come now. Do you think they could hold such reckless exams without a healer? Tsk tsk. Gummy?" she offered.
"Uh, sure." She was feeling tired, after all. "But my friend here…"
"Will be perfectly fine. Just your standard quirk exhaustion, quite common among electric types like this buffoon."
"Wheeeeeeeeeyy…" he seemed to protest.
"However, you might find it easier to fight with your hair tied back. Wouldn't want to fight blind after all."
"Actually, that's the plan, ma'am." She lifted her hair to reveal her gray eyes.
The granny looked closer. "Ah… my my, you're a brave one, aren't you child?"
"So I'm told."
"Well, if you're feeling up to it dearie, you should head to the entrance with the others. Can you find your way back?"
"Yes, ma'am. What about my results? Did I-"
"Sorry, child. You'll just have to wait like everybody else. Tah tah."
Toph pouted a bit. 'I guess that's fair. Shouldn't be too long right?'
xXx
One week.
An entire week.
Toph picked at her food wordlessly during dinner at the Beifongs. Lao hadn't seen her so subdued in a long while now.
He hadn't told her, but 48 points wasn't likely to be enough given what the other examinees were capable of. Though Toph was capable, he had heard through Teo that one student actually demolished the giant obstacle in his exam with a single strike. Most of the time, there was only a bit of damage or rewiring to fix. But this one was crumpled like a fallen paper-mâché. Toph had halted hers, but still ended up in danger like he had feared.
'I should find that boy that saved her. I doubt his name is actually "Sparky", but he shouldn't too hard to find. He deserves a thank you.'
Toph kept playing with her food. 'What if I wasn't good enough? I wasted time on that electric bozo when I should've been racking up points! What was I thinking?' She continued to fret.
"Sweetie," her mother tried to comfort, "don't lose hope yet ok? We still haven't gotten the results, right? Anything could happen."
She blew the hair out of her face briefly. "Maybe, maybe not." She responded dully.
Her mother frowned. She wasn't sure what else to say. Luckily for them all, there was no need to comfort her for much longer.
"Mr. Beifong." The head butler addressed.
"Yes?"
"Among the mail was this letter. With the U.A. seal."
Toph shot up. Any signs of dejection were gone from her face. "Let me see that!" She snatched from the man, ready to rea-
'Oh wait.'
"Uhh…" She gave the butler a sheepish expression. "Could you read it for me?"
"Certainly, madam." The butler deadpanned. He was far too used to her by now. He opened to find a letter and a small metal disk. "It says to activate the disk first." He stated as he handed her the disk.
She took it and felt around it. It didn't seem like anything special.
Lao recognized it instantly. "Place it on the table, Toph. That way up."
She did so. It took a moment, but sure enough…
"HELLO THERE! I AM HERE AS A PROJECTION!"
"GAH!" she jumped. 'Was that, it couldn't be...'
"YES, YOUNG BEIFONG, IT IS I, ALL MIGHT! YOU MIGHT BE WONDERING WHAT I AM DOING ON A U.A. ACCEPTANCE LETTER, BUT I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I AM HERE ON THE PAYROLL! THAT'S RIGHT! AS OF THIS YEAR, I WILL BE TEACHING THE NEW GENERATION OF HEROES!"
'This can't be!' "Wait," she said aloud to her shell-shocked parents "did he just say what I think he just said?"
"Wait, what? What do you mean I- I said it too early? Shoot. ANYWAY! THAT'S RIGHT, TOPH BEIFONG, YOU HAVE ULTIMATELY PASSED THE EXAM WITH A 97% ON THE WRITTEN AREA AND WITH 48 VILLIAN POINTS!"
She was grinning from ear to ear. This was real!
"HOWEVER, THAT'S NOT THE ENTIRE STORY. THE TRUTH IS THAT JUDGING THE VALUES OF HEROISM CAN BE FOUND IN MORE AREAS THAN SMASHING ROBOTS. THAT'S WHY WE HAVE RESCUE POINTS!"
Toph couldn't see the screen, but her parents clearly saw the camera footage of Toph facing off against the Zero-pointer. How she rushed to a blond boy's side to help him escape and ultimately kept him from being ran over. How that boy himself, though clearly out of it, shoved her out of the way so he could destroy the long-range attack from the robot without harming her.
"HOW COULD BE POSSIBLY FAIL ANY STUDENT WILLING TO RISK IT ALL FOR ANOTHER'S WELLBEING? THE ANSWER IS: WE DON'T! AHHAHAHA-HAAA! FOR TOPH BEIFONG: 30 RESCUE POINTS! FOR DENKI KAMINARI: 25 RESCUE POINTS! CONGRADULATIONS YOUNG BEIFONG! WELCOME, TO YOUR HERO ACADEMIA!
Toph couldn't believe what she was hearing. "So…I passed? Because I saved someone?" She didn't expect that, and neither did her parents. No one was complaining.
"Right then, I believe that was the last one, right? Ok, let's-gah! Principal Nezu! Good to see you sir!"
"Likewise, All Might. If you don't mind, I'd like to congratulate our top scorer."
"Of course, sir! GOOD LUCK, YOUNG BEIFONG!" And with that, he was gone.
"Top scorer too?" Poppy repeated.
Toph couldn't believe it either. Sure, she talked big, but it was still something to behold.
"Hello, Toph-san! Like I said before, congratulations for scoring top of your class! I hope the wait wasn't too stressful for you." Toph dropped sweat at that. "Nevertheless, I wanted to address some things with you personally. First, I commend you on navigating through the buildings as well as you did, though on carpet. Carpet, which we both know, you cannot see on."
She furrowed her brow. 'You were watching, huh?'
"That simply will not do for your foreseeable future here at U.A. High, so we are replacing the floors with tile for you to navigate on. Fret not, for it is one of the minimal tasks we would do for any of our students at U.A. That said, you must learn to adapt to various situations as a hero. For you, this will be environmental in nature. You will not always have your choice of flooring as a Pro. Additionally, you will be taught over time how to subdue villains without completely shredding the infrastructure. It wasn't counted against you, as it is just an exam and you didn't put anyone in danger."
She frowned further at his words. He was right, but she had already passed, so it wasn't discouragement.
"Fortunately, your homeroom teacher is the best of the best, and will work with you so you can accomplish any task a hero can. But it will not be easy. But you knew that already, so good luck to you! And remember, Go Beyond, Plus Ultra!" And with that, the recording shut off.
Toph picked up the disk, her hands shaking. "Mom…Dad…I passed." Real tears were streaming down her face. No held back tears, no hidden emotions, real genuine tears.
Lao looked to his butler. "Anything else, Yu?"
"Nothing of import."
"Good, order a cake please. Or is it too late at night?"
"We'll make it work, sir. What flavor would the young lady care for?"
Toph was in a tight hug with her mom, but managed to choke out "razzberry, please."
xXx
One week ago…
"The top scorers are the ones who be able to take advantage of all those traits, including speed, reconnaissance, confidence, and power." Nezu listed in the observation room. There were many promising candidates today: students who had speed and power, and others who used their wits to gain the advantage. One powerhouse in particular was one Katsuki Bakugo.
"Even when the Zero-pointer started to cause trouble, he stayed focused and collected the most villain points and was one point away from top scorer." A teacher with a gas mask noted. "That kid is tough."
"On the other hand," Nemuri pointed out, "the 8th place scorer didn't earn any villain points at all."
"Indeed, students have challenged the Zero-pointer before," rather gravelly voice continued "But I've never seen it taken out in one punch. Simply outstanding."
"But at what cost? His body was shattered by the backlash of his own attack." Gas-mask countered. "My moneys on the girl with the wild hair. What was her name again?"
"Toph Beifong." A rather muffled voice answered. "High class family, could've easily joined through recommendation. Lots of potential, she didn't earn top score for nothing, but with a handicap."
"Blind, eh? Still, that's mighty impressive for someone who's disabled like that. Think she'll make it?" a sickly thin man asked.
"All heros have their weaknesses." Nezu answered. "Hers just isn't as subtle. I'm sure she'll be a wonderful hero one day with the right hands guiding her, along with the rest of our new students."
In the back of the room stood a scruffy man with a frown on his face. He glanced to the image of the green-haired boy, sprawled on the ground with his limbs bent unnaturally. He then glanced to the messy-haired girl, who was turned the wrong way with rockets clearly coming towards her.
He sighed tiredly. 'Guess I'll be cleaning house right off the bat.'
xXx
Present day…plus a couple weeks…
Toph only had one good thing to say about here new school uniform, and it was the absence of an otherwise important piece. Since U.A. trained their hero students to make full use of their quirks, it was easy to apply for permission to not wear shoes with the rest of her outfit. Not only that, but they even made specialized black knee-high socks that cut off just above her ankles to allow for the change while maintaining her modesty. Other than that addition, there weren't any other changes she could do within the rules. She had on a knee length skirt, a button-down shirt, a fit jacket, and a tie. A useless tie. The most individuality she had displayed (other than her bare feet) was her trademark green hairband she wore on her bun. It was a little disappointing. After all, how could she be a rebel with regulated deviations from the standard?! With that, she loosened her tie, flicked her bangs in front of her face, and stepped onto campus.
The building before her was the main schoolhouse, while the building she was in last time was auditorium for examinees, events, and other occasions. The building she was walking through now though? This was the real deal.
She didn't know where "Class 1-A" was, nor would she recognize it if she was standing right in front of it. So, she did the next best thing.
"Hey, Sugar Queen!" She would recognize those footsteps anywhere. Momo turned at the nickname. It was Toph, in all her messy glory.
"Hello, Toph-san! What happened to your uniform? Shouldn't the tie be tighter?"
"Yeah, I roughed it up a bit once I got out of their sight."
"Toph! Well, at least you have the tie on, but you need to at least tuck in the back!"
Momo fussed for a bit, showing her own "Mom-ishness" as she made small adjustments to Tophs ensemble. Toph rolled her eyes. "Fine, but the tie stays as is. You headed to class, right?"
"Yes, Class 1-A, right?"
When the two called each other to break the news, they had discovered they were put in the same class, which was music to their ears.
"Right. Do you know where it is?"
"Roughly so, come on!" They walked briskly to the 2nd floor. "Apparently the doors were made with gigantification in mind, so they are quite tall." When they arrived to the door, Momo noticed something odd.
"Toph-san?"
"Just Toph, Yaomomo."
"Right. Toph, can you sense the door?"
"Yeah, it's got some weird shapes and holes in it. Why?"
"Those are letters. 'One' and 'A'."
"Ah. Well at least I know what it looks like now, let's make a good first impression."
"Toph, wait-"
Toph, using just a bit of her quirk, slammed the door open with her bare foot.
"GOOD MORNING, BITCHES!"
It might have had more impact if there more than two people in the room. But Toph didn't care. She was here, and here to stay.
"Excuse me!" It was that guy from the auditorium, Mr. Stick-in-the-mud. "Pay your respect the that door! That is U.A. property!" he shouted from his desk, now standing.
"Oh, my bad. One moment." Toph then gave Momo a sardonic smile, then bowed deeply to the opened door. "Oh gracious door of U.A. Academy, please forgive my excessive use of force upon your person and doory-ness."
The boy stiffened from the clear sarcasm and marched over, chopping the air with his hands. "You, young lady, clearly do not appreciate the prestige of U.A. Academy. Furthermore, you're in blatant violation of the set dress code from Article 423-47C, detailing the proper footwear for regular class time…"
Momo wanted to interrupt, let him know she has permission for that and why, but Toph stopped her. "Give him a minute." She half-whispered. "I curious how long he's willing to dig before he notices." The "young lady" comment struck a nerve, after all.
That turned out to be a few minutes. Luckily, they were all early. "-and furthermore, why is your hair in front of your eyes like that? Do you even care for how you appear to your future classmates and fellow heroes?"
"Nope."
A vein on his forehead bulged. "Why not?" he demanded.
"Because I'm blind."
Iida froze, chalk white. 'Blind? She couldn't be…' It was then he noticed the small collapsible cane sticking out of her skirt pocket. Not that she really needs it, but you never know when you have to navigate on carpet again.
Revenge was sweet. "My deepest apologies! I had no idea! Are you at the right class?"
"Yep, my quirk helps me get around. Your concern is sweet though." She said as she punched his arm.
Rubbing his arm a bit, he continued. "Still, I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. My name is Tenya Iida from Somei Academy, and you are?"
"Beifong. Toph Beifong. This is my friend Momo Yaoyorozu." Momo waved, giggling a bit.
"A pleasure. The seats are assigned, do you need help finding it?"
"Nope, I got this." Toph walked straight for the desk in the back and settled into a seat. To her credit, she was only one seat off.
"Toph, that's my seat. You're right next to me."
"Ah. Gotcha. Well I'm not helpless you know."
"I know." Momo said, rolling her eyes at the smaller girl's antics.
The four of them were the most early, including the quiet boy on the other side of Yaomomo, with more people starting to file in over time. Sero and Kaminari recognized her immediately.
"Yo, Beifong! Glad you made it!"
"Thanks! You too, Sparky."
"Come on, you can't call me that forever."
"Mmmm, yeah I can. Hi Sero."
"What's up?" he responded cheerfully.
'Looks like his brain-deadiness did wear off over time.'
As more people filed in, she heard Iida find another classmate to bother. From the sound of it, he bit off more than he could chew.
"Piss off!"
"Get your feet of off that desk you cretin!"
"Hah?"
"It's U.A. property! You're disrespecting out upperclassmen who used these desks!"
"You're kidding me, right? Did somebody put that stick up your ass? Or were you born with it?"
Momo looked away while Toph cackled. She grabbed some water as she put her own foot on the floor.
'Eighteen in the room, with two more outside the-hey! It's those two!'
Apparently, his name was Izuku Midoriya. Iida marched over to him to apologize for his previous rudeness and to recognize his superiority as a student. Midoriya quickly refuted that, and Toph agreed.
'And there's the other girl.' "Thank you for saving me back in the exam, that punch was amazing!" she gushed.
"Quite," Iida agreed as Midoriya shook with embarrassment. "I didn't think anyone could handle that Zero-pointer, much less destroy it."
Toph spat out her water, a small crack appearing under her foot. 'WHAT!?' The rest of the class had similar reactions.
"This guy…"
"But he's so plain?"
"Weird."
"That's manly as hell!"
"That's a load of bullshit. The damn nerd can't do anything, four-eyes."
"But at the exam-"
"If you're all done chatting already, get to your seats. Unless you want to just pack up and leave now."
Toph turned her attention to the doorway and 'is that guy laying on the floor? In a bag? Should I get my feet checked?'
"Welcome to U.A." the prone man dully said, slurping his juice packet.
He got up, shedding the bag. "If any of you had any real sense, you wouldn't waste time chit-chatting. This is the Hero Course." He pulled some sort of fabric out of his bag. "Hello, I'm Shota Aizawa, your homeroom teacher. No time to waste, put these on and get outside. You have 10 minutes."
Everyone got up and started for the door. "Yaomomo."
"Yes, Toph-san?"
"What am I putting on?"
"Gym uniform. The light weight one." The two had rehearsed what to call things Toph might not immediately recognize, including clothes.
"Oh, the comfy one."
"Right. Let's go."
Aizawa watched the interaction. 'So, she's rational enough to come prepared. That's a bit promising, but only time will tell. She can't always rely on friends either, she needs to prove that's she can be somewhat independent.'
Luckily for Toph, that won't be a problem.
And that's it for Chapter Three! Aizawa has similar issues with Toph as does with Midoriya, so she'll have to overcome his doubts if she wants to stay. Good luck with those "rational deceptions" bud.
If Eraserhead's got a problem with Midoriya, then it wouldn't be any different for Toph until she proves herself. Aizawa happens to be one of my favorite characters from the series. He's highly relatable and cares relentlessly for his students, making him better than today's Department of Education in every way.
I love Midoriya, but come on man. Manically laughing after (not) talking to a girl for the first time? Get a grip dude. Imagine if that was Toph instead of Uraraka who caught him. You might have been slam dunked into the ground.
If you guys remember how Toph's hair looked at the beginning of "Tales of Ba Sing Se", just add a gym outfit and that's more-or-less how she looked while she ripped and tore through the exam. Maybe a bit more down to cover her eyes and a bit longer, but you get the picture.
Her relationship to Bakugo will be…interesting to say the least. They're practically destined to clash due to their slightly similar attitudes about self-worth. Bakugo's just a throbbing dick about it. Couple that with her drive to prove she deserves respect and his drive to be number one, well, I'll leave it to ya'll's imagination.
And now for the reviews:
To Sebbeca
Denial is a powerful force, you know lol. I was a bit worried his eventual acceptance was too rushed/out of character for the amount of time given. Poppy working with Toph early on definitely helped with that. I'm glad it was well received.
As much as I want to punt Mineta out of U.A, there are just so many possibilities when it comes to Toph's friendship with Yaoyorozu. I'll think of something, don't worry.
Iroh and Nezu would probably talk for several days if given the opportunity, let's be real :P.
To Agurra of the Darkness
Thanks for the feedback. Martial Arts is definitely something I should incorporate into the story, maybe through Ojiro or even Aizawa.
Her parents weren't completely in the know about Toph's true abilities at first, as in canon. Don't worry, she'll be knocking heads earthbending style in no time.
To AnimeLuver1492
There will be more Avatar references to come, promise. Toph is the only main character from ATLA put into the story directly, so some references are necessary. With how much Nezu loves tea, it was just too perfect not to write the moment it popped into my head. Just think of all the Philippine shenanigans they're probably getting into. (Potential Side-Story?) Too bad no one's noticed the other side character in the last chapter. Oh, well.
Running from home would have complicated things if she was trying to go to U.A. If she was setting out to join an underground fighting ring, then it would make more sense.
I literally never noticed before, but Toph is abnormally short for a 12-year-old in canon, like 4-foot-small number. And considering Mineta's size, abnormal shortness wasn't too far-fetched (I checked the size chart, she's just barely shorter than Tsu). I gave her a tad more height as she is older in this fic than in canon.
Nezu is a little troll, and I live for it. I'm going to try and give all the character more screen time if I can help it/know enough about them. I can safely guess that Ectoplasm got some backlash his agency/public for continuing hero work without his legs, but kept going anyway. Toph can relate to that and may find some inspiration from that fact.
To D3lph0xL0v3r:
Thank you, I really appreciate it! Also, too late! LOL :P
I'm glad to see you're excited! There is a lot to go over in the next few chapters (hell, the whole thing really) and I'll try not to get stuck. What do you think of her exam score? I hope it makes sense. For internships, I want someone who can match her blow for blow in a fight and in a sass-off. I have a couple of ideas, so you'll see!
To SebjectCrimsonStorm:
Sparky #2 definitely has merit, but Bakugo also has "Blasty" going for him. Maybe she'll switch between the two? Or maybe just go for Sparky Sparky Boom Man? Potential Hero Name? Let me know what ya'll think.
Thank you for the reviews and follows, till next time!