Happy New Year, everyone! Here's to a hopefully more pleasant 2022 for every one of us! Welcome to the first chapter of the New Year! I have no intention of stopping this work, and I'm hoping you'll all continue to enjoy it as it continues on from here. I have plenty of big plans for the future of this story, including a brand new wholly original story arc or two for you all to sink your teeth into. When those times roll around, hopefully you'll all be kind enough to finally voice your feelings of the story with reviews. I realize that working so closely with the manga's canon for the last few story arcs may have made the act of reviewing seem redundant, but I can hope that won't apply to these wholly original events I have in store for you all.

I'm also hoping to get plenty more artwork for this story made and put up on my DA account, 'ubasnaga.' When that time comes, hopefully you'll all be kind enough to pay that a visit as well.

My Hero Academia is the property of Kouhei Horikoshi and Shonen Jump. I only own my original characters, the original events surrounding them, and the alterations of established events that occur as a result of their existence.

A/N: [[]] indicates characters are contextually speaking Russian.

Chapter 58

Conflict

(Конфликт)

In an Unknown Location, July 18th

Inside a dimly lit and grungy concrete and steel room that could have passed for any kind of industrial basement or storage room, the walls were adorned with a multitude of different papers and maps of varying scope, all displaying several different locations of the Russian Federation, and the information of numerous different government officials of all kinds of departments. To anyone unfamiliar with exactly where this place was, and who it belonged to, one would have been forgiven for thinking it belonged either to some foreign conspiracy theorist, or the head of some kind of underground militia.

Such an impression was only aided by the look and demeanor of the sole man occupying this hidden room: a tall, middle-aged yet broadly built man of clearly European origin, with a head of closely cut graying black hair with a sizeable cleft of it cut clear along the length of his scalp, as though from a bullet graze. His face reflected far more age than he actually was, with a number of smaller scars adorning it from one place to the next, and with patchy gray five o'clock shadow covering his rigid-looking jaw line. His eyes were a faded shade of orange; and reflected as much exhaustion as a conscious man could visibly display.

Underneath the visibly tattered Lieutenant General coat of the Russian Federation Armed Forces that was draped over his shoulders, this man was also wearing a similarly worn down charcoal-colored suit jacket and dress pants with scuffed leather boots to round it all out. He almost looked like a bizarre cross between a seasoned military man and a long-since failed business man. The fact he was continuously pacing across this room, taking several shaky puffs of the outright shitty cigarette he'd rolled himself in order to try and ease his nerves, only seemed to add to the overall disheveled and uneasy body language he was communicating from head to toe.

Tap, tap, tap

A sudden light rapping at the heavy steel door to his office snapped the pacing man to full attention, taking another heavy drag before putting the cigarette out in an abysmally full ashtray. Surprisingly, this intrusion actually seemed to lower his anxiety some, as he knew there was only one person that could possibly be knocking at his door now of all times. [[Come in, Alyosha Stepanovich.]]

With an especially piercing metallic groan, the door hastily opened; revealing another middle-aged man of Slavic descent, only this one was of a much skinnier build in a dingy lab coat and tan slacks and brown loafers. This man had an especially skinny-looking face, like a man who hadn't willingly eaten in who-knew how long, with a small tuft of icy blue hair atop his head, and instead of a pair of bespectacled eyes, he had what looked like a pair of opposable microscope stocks and lenses for eyes.

This man, Alyosha Stepanovich Mikhalkov, was essentially the one constant friend and confidante of the broader militarily dressed man before him: Pietro Dobrynich Granin. Despite the latter trying to keep his shakes restrained, the fact that Alyosha could smell the collect stench of cheap tobacco smoke pretty much told him everything he needed to know about Pietro's current state of mind. [[You haven't even slept since they left, have you, Pietro Dobrynich?]]

With a gravelly sigh, Pietro sat himself at the solitary desk at the end of the room, fetching out a rusted tin of tobacco and rolling papers, inching them forward to his impromptu visitor. [[What was your first clue? We all knew this was going to happen. It's not only their very first field mission; but the first time they've actually set foot on Russian soil in well over ten years.]]

Gratefully taking the offer and nervously rolling his own cigarette, Alyosha's eyes shifted up to the extensive Russian map hanging over Pietro's head. [[I know, and that's why I can't stop worrying whether or not they'll be able to accomplish every perimeter of their mission. This isn't the kind of scenario where we can afford to have them half-ass things.]]

Pietro quickly rose up from his seat, anxiously smacking himself in the face to try and get himself back into the proper mindset. [[Look at us; worrying over the very same kids we've been training for all this time precisely for a situation like this! Of course they'll be able to pull it off; after neither of us pulled any stops in getting them good and ready for whatever may come of this, I would be ashamed of myself if they couldn't! Besides, they have a true veteran of Quirk-related combat watching their backs. They'll be okay in the end, I can just feel it.]]

Knock, knock, knock

Both men visibly flinched at the sudden sound of another resonating knock at the door. However, that surprise was just as quickly replaced with immense relief as Pietro quickly got himself back to his towering posture. [[Come in.]]

As the door opened, the two men were quickly greeted by a group of six individuals; with one having a black-tinted glass dome completely encapsulating their head, while the other five were in matching black masks completely covering their faces with only a red scope symbol on their foreheads; and matching military fatigues colored so as to perfectly blend in with the dark. One was especially tall and burly compared to the rest of their compatriots, while three were of average height, with two clearly having more female figures, and another one being a note shorter than the others with a more stocky build. From the onset, they either looked like militant burglars, or militaristic cultists. However, that didn't remove the deeply relieved smile from Pietro's face. [[Oh my God, it's so good to see you're all back in one piece! I never doubted your capabilities, but diving into the very edges of the belly of the beast, you can't necessarily blame me for worrying. Were you all able to do it?]]

As though to answer his question in a single gesture, the tallest of the bunch removed his mask; revealing a thick-necked young man with white hair almost completely shaved down, nearly luminescent purple eyes, and an especially cocky grin on his square-jawed face, despite the notable third-degree burn scar running up the left side of his neck and up to an especially malformed-looking left ear. [[It's all been taken care of, sir! The Anti-Quirk Mobilization and Armament Bureau's Kamchatka R&D lab is nothing but a smoldering ruin, and so are all their fancy new toys.]]

Following their taller and more boastful comrade's example, one of the female figures likewise stepped forward and removed her mask; revealing a young woman barely into her twenties with long braided hair in differentiating locks of fiery red and shimmering gold, pink eyes with X-shaped pupils, and freckles running down her cheeks in two straight lines from her eyes. [[Not only that, but we even managed to confirm the existence of and secure one of those Quirk-erasing bullets we'd notified you about during the infiltration period. It wasn't easy, but by God, we did it.]]

As she pulled the small plastic bag with the elusive bullet from the pocket of her military poncho, Alyosha eagerly stepped forward; his microscope eyes inching forward to already start getting as close a look at it as possible. [[Incredible. To think that something so tiny could be able to potentially do so much damage in the wrong hands. Thank goodness you destroyed the rest of these and everything else those bastards were working on. Excellent work, Grenadier, Petto. Were you able to perhaps figure out who or where they got the shipment of these things from?]]

At this, however, the red-and-gold-haired girl known only as 'Petto' let out a regretful sigh. [[Unfortunately, no. It was hard for me to get the soldier I was controlling into certain parts of the lab without rousing suspicion. On top of that, virtually nobody was talking about it. I don't know if they were just practicing extreme secrecy, or if they themselves didn't actually know who sold these things to them. All I could gleam from what few forms were on the crate they had been shipped in was that they weren't from any Russian or former Soviet Bloc source, that's for sure.]]

As she handed the bagged bullet to Alyosha, Pietro turned his attention to the still-smirking brute known as 'Grenadier.' [[Did you all make sure you left no feasible means for those people to possibly replicate any of these bullets? If they were to make them a permanent addition to their arsenal, it could prove disastrous for every one of us here.]]

At this, Grenadier simply raised a clenched fist, and with a resounding click, let his hand dislodge from his wrist, revealing a huge cannon barrel where the stump for his wrist should have been. [[Not to worry, sir. I didn't leave a single brick of that shithole standing. Full on scorched earth, just like those assholes deserved.]]

[[We also made sure that when we destroyed all the hardware they were transporting, we didn't leave any witnesses, too.]] This announcement came from the one regular-sized masked male among the bunch, who spoke with an especially suave or sophisticated tone that easily could have rubbed anybody who didn't know him the wrong way. However, this wasn't the case for anyone else in this room, as Pietro let out another heavily relieved sigh.

[[It was ultimately a necessary evil, Blackout. You all did what you had to if we were ever going to really call this a successful start to our campaign.]] As Pietro explained this, his eyes shifted to the other masked female of the bunch. He'd become more than accustomed to being able to tell when they were looking him in the eye with the masks he assigned them. As such, he could tell she had her eyes set somewhere else. The fact she was slowly clutching at her sleeves also said far too much.

With a weary sigh, he began approaching his six soldiers. [[I know none of this is truly easy for most of you. No matter what happened to us over all those years since the Siberian Flash, these are still ultimately our countrymen; people who have simply lost their way in the wake of so much incalculable loss and anger. It's a tale as old as modern history itself.

[[However, you all need to understand that this is what war is when you strip away everything else. If you all hadn't acted, the people you all had to eliminate would not have hesitated a moment to use those grotesque new gadgets of theirs to capture or kill every one of you, just like they wouldn't hesitate to do to every last one of us if they knew just where our commune was and we didn't have the protection we have.

[[All that hatred this new government has poisoned Russia's people with for those possessing Quirks, festering and manifesting even all across the entire Soviet Bloc over the years… a confrontation like this was the inevitable end result of that. I'm not asking any of you to enjoy what we will have to continue doing from now on…but just don't forget that this war we're preparing to fight, is a war for our very right to exist on this planet.]]

As Pietro saw the gravity and hard-hitting realism of his words take root in the minds and hearts of his trusted soldiers, he only barely turned to address Alyosha from over his shoulder. [[Alyosha… with the resources you have alongside your Analyzing Quirk, do you think you'll be able to find a way we can use these bullets to our advantage?]]

The lenses of Alyosha's microscope eyes seemed to widen once it became clear just what his old friend was asking of him. [[Are you suggesting… actually reverse-engineering the effects of this bullet?]]

Another heavy sigh and a single solemn nod. [[Yes. Whoever sold these bullets clearly has the means and resources to make and sell more en masse. If they know they now have a loyal customer in the Russian Anti-Quirk government, then there's no doubt in my mind they'll give them more to prepare themselves, especially after the success of this mission. We need to be equally prepared for the fights to come.]]

Alyosha was clutching the bagged bullet in his hand in a white-knuckled grip; almost trembling with anticipation from head to toe. Taking in a sharp inhale through his nose, he gave his fellows a solemn and understanding nod, and was soon on his way out the door to his personal lab, now leaving Pietro with his soldiers in an especially heavy silence.

[[Do you have our next mission planned already, sir? Truth be told, it felt really damn good to finally get out into the field and stick it to those assholes! It's been way too long a time coming!]] The shorter member of the masked soldiers suddenly proclaimed with notable gusto, quickly mirrored by the normal-sized male soldier and Grenadier. Pietro let out a heavy sigh; having expected at least a few of these people to already get this excited after succeeding at their first mission in what was to be an especially long and demanding campaign.

[[Your enthusiasm is understandable, Scythe, but we can't afford to get cocky now of all times. The truth is that this mission marks the first major strike that's been dealt against any institution of that damn government since its inception. There's no doubt that they'll have their eyes dead set on every coastline and border in the entire former Bloc, let alone all of the Russian landmass.

[[No matter how you look at it, we've ultimately drawn first blood in this war, and now's the time for us to shore up our resources, and that includes building up our ranks.]] This particular detail caused the one remaining masked female and the dome-headed individual to perk their heads up in surprise.

[[Pietro, the only reason these kids were able to handle themselves and use their Quirks so effectively in combat was precisely because we had the time to give them the proper training. With this action, time is now no longer a luxury we have in nearly such abundance. Do you really think we'd be able to train that much bigger of an army in enough time?]]

Despite dome-head's skepticism, Pietro still stood steadfast; a veritable beacon for this small ragtag bunch under his command. [[You're right; time for that kind of thorough training isn't something we have much of anymore, but that's why we need to focus on recruiting the people from the commune with the right kind of attitude and willingness to go through the training we can all provide them. Surely there's no shortage of hot-blooded and frustrated folk who are tired of whiling away their lives out here. You all just need to head out there and give them the proper motivation to come to us. We can still manage this.]]

His confidence was downright infectious, as one after another, his soldiers lost any semblance of unease or uncertainty, instead now only further fired up with the confidence of a successful mission, and the momentum to make themselves even more powerful. Seeing this psychological change in them, Pietro's enthusiastic expression became only slightly more furrowed in his brow.

[[That all being said, though, we need to do whatever we can to avoid drawing any unnecessary attention to ourselves from the Japanese government. The last thing we need is for any Pro Heroes to come snooping around these parts before we're ready to mobilize. Understand?]]

[[Yes, sir!]] Every single one of his masked followers answered in unison, practically echoing off the walls, and leaving Pietro Dobrynich Granin feeling especially fired up. Finally, after years and years of having been kicked to the curb because of the actions of their once greatest Hero, they were finally ready to take the fight back to those that had destroyed what lives they had left, and take back what was rightfully theirs.

Takoba National Stadium, September 1st

With the sudden arrival of Gang Orca and his nearly two dozen armed thugs on the scene of the rescue exam, the air across all of the stadium had drastically changed. Everything had been considerably tense as it was, with the 100 examinees simply focusing on trying to rescue every civilian they could find. However, now that Yokumiru Mera had made the announcement that they were to be contending with the intrusion of numerous Villains at the same time, that tension reached a veritable fever pitch. Even from the distant high perch upon which he observed the unfolding of the test, he could see this change in the examinees clear as day.

If only those kids had understood just how much of a drastic change from the norm this sudden development was, as far as the Provisional Hero License exam was concerned. Truth be told, he hadn't been able to stop thinking about it ever since his superiors in the Hero Public Safety Commission had ultimately made the decision three weeks ago.

As much as they were all in agreement that, after the insanity of the elimination round, and the natural stress of the rescue exam, throwing a mass Villain attack into the mix would prove to be even a bit too much for the examinees, regardless whether most of them were already second years in their respective schools; they were also in agreement that their society may never see another Hero of the kind of awe-inspiring charisma and power of All Might ever again, and that until such a miraculous day would ever potentially come, they would need to switch gears and start truly emphasizing Heroes that valued unity and cooperation above all else.

To further emphasize this, Mera couldn't help but momentarily glance towards the numerous seats encircling the stadium, whereupon stood a scattered total of 100 men in matching black suits and sunglasses, watching the events of the exam with silent intent, only every now and then speaking to each other or their superiors through hidden earpieces.

Of course none of the examinees had been informed of this; the pressure of knowing the elderly and children of the Help Us Company were judging their rescue maneuvers and affecting their allotted scores was bad enough. Simply focusing on their own performances, the effectiveness of their rescue operations and the proper usage of their Quirks, would allow these 100 agents of the Hero Public Safety Commission to be able to observe each of their solely selected examinees performing as naturally as possible, and therefore be able to properly calculate their overall scores once the exam was finished. Anyone who fell below the 50 point threshold would automatically fail, and it could take hardly anything at all for someone's score to plummet well beyond that point if they weren't careful and considerate enough of everything around them.

With that in mind, Mera returned his attention to the ever-evolving test itself, silently encouraging all the youngsters down there to continue doing their very best, and showing exactly what they were all made of when the chips were down.

The moment the announcement had echoed across the testing grounds that the examinees were now to try and keep the newly arrived army of Villains from converging upon the rescue station where all the civilians had thus far been gathered after being healed, a whole new air of focus and intense purpose had overtaken a great deal of them.

Hence, the moment they all saw Gang Orca and his goons start to advance, Nikolay, Shoto and Inasa were all simultaneously on the move; the latter barely even paying notice to his two fellows as he went airborne, while the two Yuuei boys practically flew across the ground from the city first-aid station, leaving Mina and the other examinees to look after the civilians that were still being treated here.

'Todoroki-san's Quirk and mine are both really effective at dealing with enemy groups…combined, we might be able to help keep the whole lot of them from reaching the rescue station!' As Nikolay thought this with pronounced urgency with every step, he soon spied the distant forms of Izuku and the black-haired green-clad earthquake boy from Ketsubutsu Academy, Yo Shindo, just a little ways aside from the rescue station themselves. If they were able to provide support as well, that only made Nikolay's confidence in their being able to handle this situation that much stronger.

Having likewise realized what was happening, and upon seeing the goons start advancing toward the rescue station, Yo quickly took off into a mad dash, leaving a surprised Izuku with the injured old man on his back he had just managed to rescue. "Shindo-san?!"

"Evacuate everybody, Midoriya-san! Move them further into the interior, towards the city first-aid station! We've got to create as much distance between the civilians and the Villains as we can!" The moment Yo gave this order, his eyes focused on the frontline of Villain goons approaching the line he was running down. With a confident smirk, he already began channeling an immense seismic charge into his left hand. "I'll greet them with some one-second interval quakes!"

With not a wasted moment, he quickly slammed his palm to the ground; instantly resulting in a multitude of devastating cracks to start splitting across the ground between himself and the goons, unsettling the ground beneath their feet and stopping them dead in their tracks with surprise. 'Yeah, you guys aren't getting an inch closer if I can help it!'

No sooner than he finished thinking this to himself, did Yo suddenly find himself being overshadowed by an imposing bipedal killer whale visage; Gang Orca towering over the black-haired boy and staring him down with a terrifying blood red eye. "Weak."

Before Yo could even think of attacking or putting more distance between himself and the leader of this Villain team, a piercing sound wave seemed to emit from out of Gang Orca's head as a whole; producing a frequency so encompassing and high that, without any chance to even process how it was possible, Yo suddenly found himself completely incapable of moving. It wasn't even out of terror-induced shock from Gang Orca's imposing presence.

No, it was literally as though his muscles refused to move, no matter how much he was mentally willing himself to. With Gang Orca's signature Ultrasonic Wave move, Yo Shindo had been rendered completely paralyzed, and Izuku had witnessed the whole thing on his way back to the first-aid station; his own heart racing with building pressure.

"With this gap in our abilities, you think you can hold me off alone? You're underestimating me—!"

Before Gang Orca could even finish his gloating, he could just sense the sudden approaching drop in temperature rapidly approaching from his left. The sound of ice tearing through solid earth didn't even register, as his reflexes instantly kicked in, and he drove a deflecting fist straight into the oncoming face of the massive iceberg Shoto had sent speeding his way; shattering the face of the ice with a devastating crunch.

However, in the moment that Gang Orca had spent deflecting this initial Ice attack, Shoto was already once again mounting another offensive, throwing up a collected cold front into the air over his head with an upward swing of his right hand, only for Nikolay to spring himself up into the air behind it and hit the sparkling mist with a resounding Thunderous Clap. This sent the collected build-up of frigid cold mist flying even faster towards the Killer Whale 'Villain' below than he could deflect in time, forcing him to brings his arms up and crossed over each other to keep the main damage of the attack from hitting his center mass; digging his heels in to keep from getting blown back.

Izuku could hear the connected sounds of Shoto's Ice and Nikolay's Kinetics the moment he reached the first-aid station; momentarily looking back to see his two classmates managing to at least momentarily stop Gang Orca's approach. From where he was standing, it would take only a second for him to catch up and join in if it seemed they wouldn't be able to maintain the defense.

"Midoriya-san!" The green-haired boy was momentarily snapped out of his staring, to find himself being hastily reunited with an urgent-looking Mashirao, Mina and Fumikage, all looking like they'd run half the testing grounds to get here, with the blonde tail-bearing boy taking the lead: "If you need any help with further evacuations, we're here now!"

However, Izuku's visible relief at the extra helping hands didn't stop him from voicing his confusion: "Wait, Ashido-san, weren't you already here? I could've sworn I saw you just before the attack started."

Somehow, Mina's resulting confusion was just as palpable as those of her two teammates. "No, I was with Ojiro-kun, Tsu-chan and Tokoyami-kun for the last several minutes after Todoroki-kun went off to help that hairy Shiketsu kid."

Thankfully, Mashirao's head was still quick to get back in the game as he hurriedly explained to Izuku: "It's true; we've all been by the waterfront nearby. Everyone else headed in the direction of town, so there wasn't really enough help where we were, but we saw all the Villains around here and came to support. Asui-san and the others are still over there continuing the rescue operations. They were discussing heading to the woodlands area for further civilian searching once everyone was rescued from the waterfront."

While Mashirao explained all of this to Izuku; Mina's eyes instinctively went back to the spot they had all seen the Villains start approaching from, and she instantly spotted the unmistakable forms of Nikolay and Shoto side-by-side, facing off against Gang Orca and his goons as the one line of defense between them and the rescue station.

While her very first initial reaction was an expression of astonishment at just how fast Shoto clearly was in his approach and attack; she was also instantly hit with an overwhelming sensation of worry. Seeing the young Russian standing with only a single ally at his side, even if it was a similar powerhouse like Shoto Todoroki, filled the pink young girl with an instinctive desire to rush in and fight right alongside him.

However, even as her fists clenched and her right foot began to step forward, she began to hear that old woman's voice echoing loud and clear in her head: "There's nothing wrong about feeling the way you do for your partner. But as a Hero, you need to be able to mentally detach yourself from those personal feelings you have for them when in a situation involving rescuing people or battling Villains. Being able to remain objective and recognize what you need to most immediately act upon in the heat of the moment can make all the difference."

Mina hated that she couldn't bring herself to finish taking that first step forward to help Nikolay and Shoto. However, that didn't stop her from realizing that right now, she had her own set of responsibilities she needed to follow through on, and right now, it wasn't to her two distant classmates. It was to the people still trapped and seeking help all around here. It's exactly like that woman had said. Heroes need to do everything in their power to keep people safe before anything else, and this was the time for that lesson to really take root in Mina Ashido's head and heart, no matter how much it hurt a big part of herself to do so.

With the few seconds that had been bought with Nikolay propelling Shoto's cold front to momentarily stop Gang Orca, the two boys were once again thinking on the same level, as Shoto took in the sheer number of their opponents' goons who were still advancing toward the rescue station.

"Steam Wall!" With just those two words, both sides of his body flared up with their respective power, and Shoto instantly brought his flat hands together palm first at the moment of firing both sides at once; resulting in a blindingly fast and quickly expanding wall of pure steam erupting from the ends of his arms, engulfing Gang Orca and the whole section directly behind him.

Fortunately, Nikolay was just as quick to realize what Shoto was thinking, as he once again sprung himself up into the air, nearly diving overheard from his partner's right to his left, aiming his open hands forward and firing one blast after another from the entirety of his hands, thus sending the continuous blanket of steam all across the entire area in front of them, blinding and stunning the rest of the goons that hadn't gotten caught in the initial blast from Shoto himself.

"FLY AWAAAAAAY!"

The moment Nikolay landed back on his feet, he and Shoto were both quickly made aware of a rapidly growing wind current billowing from behind them, quickly announced by the booming echo of Inasa Yoarashi's voice from above. By the time the Shiketsu boy came descending from the sky, his Wind had grown into a mighty vortex that picked up several of the nearest goons right off the ground and sent them flying and tumbling back; thus buying the three examinees, and more importantly everyone still evacuating from the rescue center that much more time.

"VILLAIN INTRUDERS, EH?! WELL AIN'T THAT QUITE THE HOT DEVELOPMENT?!" Inasa's booming voice spoke with all the confidence in the world and more, almost to the point one could have foolishly argued it contested that of All Might himself. However, while Nikolay was initially grateful that his previous impromptu rescue partner hadn't just gone and left him and Shoto to fight on their own; that relief was very quickly washed away when he realized the two boys were now silently glaring at each other with unmistakable intensity, and animosity on Inasa's part. "Just my luck. You're here, too."

Nikolay didn't even need to guess just who Inasa was referring to, and as such, there was only one thing he could think in this moment: 'Oh, no… please don't let this pan out like I think it is…'

All the while, as this kept unfolding, the government officials were all still carefully observing the actions of every examinee on the grounds, while the three that had specifically been selected to observe Shoto, Nikolay and Inasa were taking in their respective actions in relation to those of everyone else.

"This is good. The first-aid area in the city section where the majority of the injured are gathered for treatment… or rather, in this circumstance, the so-called center of rescue operations; prioritizing it as the fall back point in order to buy more distance between the civilians and the source of danger is a wise decision on the examinees' part. Even better, still, the fact that Todoroki, Yoarashi and Bezpalov; all examinees with Quirks well suited for wide area suppression; are all taking on the role of protectors in order to allow for their partners' fallback maneuvers. Very fitting, indeed! Good job, all of you!"

Due to Inasa's sudden intervention blowing away their previously built cloud of steam, Nikolay and Shoto had to quickly follow up with another wide dispersal, with Shoto continuously firing out his hands from both his sides, while Nikolay was quickly firing one palm blast after another, giving neither Gang Orca nor his goons a chance to regain their bearings.

"This isn't going to hold them forever. Bezpalov, if I could use my sides in an alternating pattern, and you could propel them forward, we could be able to better incapacitate them. Rapid changes in temperature can lead to early onset fatigue. For a Hero like Gang Orca, I can't imagine the effect wouldn't somehow be the same."

As Shoto explained this, Nikolay could feel the same anticipation building in his chest, clenching his fists in preparation. "Okay, let's do it, Todoroki-san!"

Having already been preparing for those words, the flames at Shoto's left side began to build in intensity before he quickly threw his arm forward, sending a snaking plume of fire straight into the thick steam. Nikolay already had his own left hand reeled back and fully built up with a kinetic charge ready to drive Shoto's flames that much faster and farther.

Until, at nearly the same second, another huge Whirlwind came ripping through the air from above their heads, sending the flames dispersing harmlessly every but their intended course, and ultimately sending the two boys' built up steam cover away with it, once again granting Gang Orca and his goons their sight back.

Just before either Nikolay or Shoto could ask Inasa just what on earth he thought he was doing, they both suddenly realized something: nearly half of Gang Orca's goons that had been there before were now nowhere to be seen. Nikolay knew they couldn't afford any more time than this to take in the reality of their situation, instead now choosing to try and buy them even a few more seconds to think as he drew out his two large tuning forks, sent as powerful a charge as he could into both, and struck them hard against the already devastated ground.

This produced a rippling shockwave that sent multiple large fragments of broken earth into the air, and sent several more of the goons flying back, while Gang Orca once again drove his fists into the chunks that he could tell were coming directly for him, reducing them to harmless gravel in seconds.

In the few spare moments this tactic had bought them, Nikolay quickly turned back to Shoto and Inasa from over his shoulder: "Most of our class wasn't at the first-aid station when the attack started; that must mean they're still rescuing people across the stadium! He might've sent some of the other Villains after them while we're busy up here!"

Shoto instantly recalled just where he had previously been assisting his classmates and the other examinees before this had happened: the waterfront area, and they had even been talking about heading into the woodlands for further searching once everyone there had been rescued. It made perfect sense for Gang Orca to send a team around the field of battle to deal with the examinees who already had their hands full. However, he knew his Russian classmate wouldn't last long holding this many opponents off on his own. As such, he quickly turned his attention back to Inasa overhead. "You, how about you go help with the evacuation to the first-aid area, or the rescue operations at the waterfront? Your Quirk is probably well-suited for it. We'll take care of things over here."

Shoto never paid any mind to how Inasa's already beady pupils retracted even further at the perceived tone in the red-white-haired boy's tone when speaking to him. Instead, Shoto was simply focused on the fact that, since he understood how his classmate's Quirk functioned in relation to his own, he actually knew how to work with him, and therefore, how to make this defense tactic actually work.

Not wasting another moment, Shoto once again ignited his fire to full intensity and shot another fiery plume from his hand, only for yet another Whirlwind to just as quickly blow it away. This time, both boys' confusion was now quickly turning into frustration.

However, this time, Inasa was the one to speak up with explosive intensity of his own: "WHY ARE YOU USING YOUR FLAMES?! WITH HEAT, WIND BECOMES UNSTABLE!"

Nikolay was starting to clench his grips on his tuning forks to the point they were trembling, while Shoto as actually starting to grit his teeth; never taking his eyes off Gang Orca, just waiting for either him or his henchmen to make the first move. "It's because he deflected my Ice earlier. Didn't you come here to assist? If anything, my flames are being blown off by your Wind! Bezpalov's Quirk isn't the same as wind, so it remains just as stable the whole way when interacting with my Fire. We had a whole plan, and you've made it so we haven't acted on it yet."

Despite his own frustration with Inasa's continuous interference, Nikolay was still somehow trying to keep his own tome as peaceful as possible. "Guys, please, this isn't the time or place for this."

However, Inasa wasn't paying any heed to the Slavic boy's words; his eyes staring daggers into Shoto's back. "YOU'RE JUST DOING THIS SO YOU CAN ATTAIN ALL THE CREDIT, AREN'T YOU?! AND YOU'RE ENABLING THIS BEHAVIOR OF HIS! AS LONG AS YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE DOES THIS, HE'LL NEVER CHANGE!"

"Huh?! Who would even do such a thing as that?!"

"Yoarashi-san, we already talked about all this!" As Shoto, Nikolay and Inasa were continuously arguing back and forth; the only reason Gang Orca and his goons hadn't already laid the three boys flat to the ground, was simply out of pure confusion as to the fact such a childish argument was playing out now of all times.

"You want to know who would do such a thing, huh?! YOU WOULD! And WE didn't talk about anything; YOU talked about this, Bezpalov-san; but all I know is what I see with my own eyes, and right now I'm just seeing what I always believed playing out, and that's Todoroki being just as selfish as I'd expected! It's only natural for him; being his—Endeavor's son!"

Nikolay could feel his heart drop just as fast as the air itself did as Inasa's spiteful words echoed down to them. At the same time, the Shiketsu boy could see the coldness reflected in Shoto's right eye glaring up at him, downright fitting for the eye of his Ice side. "What…did you… just… you… what is your problem? My father has nothing to do with any of this!"

"LOOK OUT!" Nikolay's shouting accented voice pierced through Shoto's bristling anger; forcing him to turn back to the immediate threat ahead, only to find a flying glob of a thick grey liquid flying right at him.

BWOOM!

A quick kinetic shot from Nikolay's right hand the moment he saw the projectile liquid, managed to disperse half the mass of it, sending it scattering everywhere else, and thus preventing it from hitting Shoto in his center mass. However, the rest of it managed to directly connect with Shoto's right side, and within seconds, he was finding it growing more and more difficult to actually move the right side of his body. It was almost like he'd been hit with some kind of instant-drying cement, doubtless from the bulky weapons Gang Orca's goons were all carrying, among others.

Nikolay's body was practically flying on autopilot the moment he realized they were officially under attack, as he immediately followed up the shot from his right hand with a precise charged up throw of the large tuning fork in his left hand, sending it slamming and dispersing its collected vibration into the same goon that had managed to hit Shoto, sending him flying back. At the same time, Nikolay had managed to grab onto the end of the other tuning fork, since the two weapons had still been tied to each other with his capture cord, thus allowing him to yank the other back towards himself, and leaving him still with two weapons at his disposal.

That was when an intense humming sound began to emanate from the air, and before Nikolay even knew what was really happening, he found himself getting pulled forward off his feet, by the very tuning forks in his hands in fact, towards a single goon with a much larger weapon in his hands that resembled some kind of electromagnet.

THOOM!

The instant Nikolay came to a sudden mid-air stop, the goon's electromagnet let out a billowing burst of sound, and Nikolay was sent flying like a round from a slingshot backwards, right past the airborne Inasa, and just over the heads of every examinee and civilian still in the rescue station area, before his body slammed straight through the face of a barely still-standing street sign with a devastating crash.

Back in the fallback first-aid station, Mina nearly wanted to scream when she saw Nikolay get so thoroughly manhandled after Shoto had gotten immobilized. Her gut instinct was practically commanding her to run to the two and try to help them, it didn't matter how. And yet, every time she tried, those same words of advice were still pounding in her head as powerfully as they ever were. She was torn between her acknowledgment of her responsibility to the civilians, and her desire to attend to her friends, even if it meant risking her chance at her own Provisional Hero License, and with it the chance to become a real Hero alongside all her friends in the process.

Of course, even with all those things currently at war with each other in her head, there was one other acknowledgment that was giving a very painful pang in her heart, as she hurriedly turned back to address Mashirao and Fumikage. "You guys heard Kolya-kun up there too, right? If several of those Villains aren't there anymore, they could be going after the others where we left them! We've gotta help!"

While Fumikage's expression was as deathly serious as it always was, Mashirao reflected no less serious acknowledgment of this possibility than Mina did, hence how resolutely he clenched his fist as he met his pink classmate's imploring gaze. "Don't worry, we will help them, Ashido-san… but you should stay here for now."

Mina looked like the tailed boy was stabbing her in the back by sidelining her like this, before Fumikage lifted his head just barely to speak: "He's right, Ashido-san. Your Acid Shot and Acid Veil could provide a good defense for the civilians being collected here. They'll need all the protection from the Villains as possible; not to mention the healing properties of that salve of yours once the rest get rescued and delivered over, or if any of the other examinees get hurt in the process. Ojiro-san and I will see to protecting the rest of the class while they continue the rescue maneuvers."

Mine kept switching her gaze back and forth between the two boys and the multitude of other examinees and civilians; nearly running in place and pumping her fists in conflicted frustration. However, this time, instead of the old woman's words of advice, she was instead now reflecting on what Momo had explained to her and the others earlier in the exam; primarily how Heroes needed to be able to accept their singular roles in the execution of a bigger plan in order for it to succeed. Right now, that's exactly what this role was for her.

It was with that heavy acceptance, that she finally gave Mashirao and Fumikage a resolved nod, and quickly went running down to the perimeter of the first-aid station; leaving the tailed and crow-headed boys to hurry over to the waterfront area where they had last left the majority of their classmates.

All the while, Inasa was keeping himself airborne, flying out of the way of similar cement attacks from the goons down below, but that wasn't what his full focus was upon.

No, right now all he could keep thinking about was the sheer anger he felt when hearing the complete disregard in Shoto's last words: "My father has nothing to do with any of this!" After just what had fueled Inasa's anger towards Shoto and his father for so long, to hear it all get thrown right back in his face was an insult like he couldn't believe. There was no earthly way he couldn't say something to such brazen ignorance. "HE HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THIS!

"You just don't get it! Of course you don't! To me, Heroes are all the hotness! Their hot spirits inspire hope and move people around them! That's why… when I met your old man that day, all those years ago… I was so shocked." Inasa honestly couldn't describe what honestly drove him to explain all this to the boy he hated so much. He had no right to know; he knew that already.

All the same, the more Inasa thought about it, the more he vividly pictured that fateful moment; that devastating image of the once bright-eyed little boy sitting helplessly in the overwhelming figure of Endeavor's wake; unable to stop the sensation of his blood freezing as he looked into the icy cold eyes of the very same Flame Hero he once idolized like crazy… the sensation of complete and total fundamental betrayal.

And those frigid, hate-filled words Endeavor spat in the presence of that same little boy: "You're in the way. DON'T GET IN MY WAY."

Thinking back on it and all the events afterward left Inasa gritting his teeth with a rage born of all kinds of simultaneous emotions. "Those eyes of his… it wasn't just that they always seemed to be looking at something so far away that nobody else could see… all I could see in them were coldness and rage. And then, when I saw you at the Yuuei Entrance Exam, I already knew exactly who you were. At any rate…"

Thinking back still, Inasa could once again feel that icy dagger of ideological betrayal in his chest when he thought back to that moment outside of Yuuei, how Shoto managed to look so different from Endeavor in body…but in manners of speaking, and especially in the look in the eyes: "… you had the exact same eyes as him. It really bothered me, but I thought for sure that if I'd made the effort to try and befriend you after the fact, and we became classmates, your eyes wouldn't bother me anymore.

"And yet, even when I went to the effort of praising your obvious skills after the exam, all I get from you is apathy and that same frigid coldness as I got from him. In the end, you're no different from Endeavor himself."

The implication of such words hit Shoto far harder than he had expected they would…harder than he had hoped, as well. It left him with a burning sensation in the pit of his chest, quickly spreading through his veins; only made worse as he continued to struggle futilely against the cement encasing the right side of his body. All the while, the words he answered Inasa with came all of their own accord: "'The same as him,' you say? Don't mess around with me. I am not the same as him. I'm nothing like him!"

No matter how many times he said this out loud, though, Shoto could already start seeing a plume of fire starting to emerge in the depths of his mind; a fire that only served to fuel his growing inner anger more and more with each passing second. The sight of it sent his conflicted mind into a total frenzy. 'Just stop it already! Don't associate me with the likes of him! This guy… he's just another one of those Anti-Endeavor people! I can't let him get to me like this! I need to focus on the exam! Don't lose your composure! You've already made peace with both sides of your Quirk; gotten over the whole thing with your father, just like they both suggested you should.'

Despite this train of thought, however, the fire growing in his mind's eyes was already beginning to take an agonizingly familiar shape: that of an imposing and blood-curdling eye mask; the sight of which brought Shoto's blood to a boiling point; the kind he had hoped to never feel again, after having managed to go a number of months now without. The fact this mental image was provoking such a response from him on an instinctive level, had Shoto ultimately acquiesce to the reality of what was really happening to him right now: "No… my hate towards him is still there… I didn't want to acknowledge its presence. I wanted to convince myself otherwise for this long already… but I know it's still there."

Nikolay's head was ringing something awful as his vision finally started to clear. The last thing he could clearly recall was getting yanked off his feet and then getting fired through the air as though from a cannon. Then there was an unforgiving impact to his back, and then everything went dark for who-knew how long.

When his vision was finally cleared, Nikolay could instantly tell two things: he was somehow remaining upside down, and he couldn't feel a surface against his back. However, instead of the sensation of weightlessness such a state should have been accompanied by, like from Ochako's touch, he could instead feel the blood rushing to his head.

Straining to try and get his bearings again, Nikolay looked upwards, in this case down his body, and he could quickly see that his body was dangling thanks to one of the larger tuning forks still strapped to the sheaths at his hips, still connected by the capture cord to the other one, which was currently snagged on one of the corners of a large hole that had been blasted through the face of a tilted street sign; a hole that looked about as big as Nikolay himself was.

The sight of that one detail finally reminded Nikolay fully of exactly what had happened to land him in this undignified and disadvantageous position, and the circumstances he had just been dealing with that led him here to begin with. With the realization that neither Shoto nor Inasa were anywhere nearby to be seen, he could only hope the two hadn't devolved into the fight he'd feared was brewing now that he was gone.

"Kolya-kun!" Without fail, and to his immense relief, Nikolay could already hear Mina's voice rapidly approaching from down the road, specifically in the direction he had flown away from. If his memory was serving him right, she had to have been coming from the first-aid station everyone was falling back to.

Without hesitation, the moment she came to a stop, Mina hurriedly threw a single hand's worth of acid up to the cord that was keeping Nikolay hanging so helplessly, causing him to finally hit the ground once the cord had finally melted through. As he tried to ride out the soreness in his upper back after having landed squarely on it, Nikolay struggled back up to his feet, only to be met with the sight of Mina smiling as she returned his second tuning for to him, which he gratefully took and slipped back into its sheath at his left hip. "I'm so glad you're still conscious after all that, Kolya-kun. Are you okay? I mean, really okay?"

Nikolay was already busily searching the pouches of his belt for any remaining cords he could tie his tuning forks back together with. Such an impromptu variation had been proving unexpectedly useful, so there might have still been a chance for them to prove useful further still before this exam was through. That didn't keep him from picking up on the concern in Mina's voice, all the same, though. "Yeah, I'm okay. My head is gonna be sore for a little while, but it shouldn't be anything too bad for now. Right now, though, I need to get back to Todoroki-san and Yoarashi-san! With the latter's attitude, I don't think they can't be left alone with each other!"

He was already starting to make a starting run straight for where he'd last seen his two allies before getting slingshot away, but he immediately felt Mina grabbing onto the sleeve of his costume in protest. "Kolya-kun, you need to think about this! You just took one heck of a hit back there, remember? I mean, look, you're already bleeding more!"

Looking down, he quickly saw that, indeed, she was right, as the small tears in his sleeves were once again growing a darker shade of red than that of the fabric itself. In fact, he could even now start to feel the slightest warm trickle start slowly running down the back of his neck; no doubt a result of the massive force with which he'd been thrown right through a damn street sign.

However, with the adrenaline still rushing through his system, he hurriedly shook his head, looking Mina in the eyes as he answered her clear concerns: "Mina, we all have to do our part right now! It's not just Todoroki-san and Yoarashi-san we need to worry about! Surely you must've seen several of the Villain goons had disappeared once the steam got cleared away! They must be looking to attack any other examinees still conducting rescue maneuvers all over the place! They need all our help right now, and the best way to do that which I can think of, is by helping those two defeat Gang Orca so they don't have a leader coordinating their movements! Then we can focus on saving everyone that's left!"

Once again, he was already turning on his heels to go rushing back into the fight, only for Mina to call out after him: "Kolya-kun, if you rush into that fight again, how do you know you're not going to get hurt even worse? You're already in bad enough shape as it is. You won't be able to get as good at saving everyone as Midoriya-kun if you get yourself all beaten up."

Nikolay came to a near screeching halt as he took her words into consideration. She did raise a good enough point: with the clear strength and power of Gang Orca himself, on top of the armaments of his goons, and the fact that Shoto and Inasa were far from working in true cohesion with each other; how could he possibly have had any idea on how they could possibly defeat such a powerful opponent, let alone save any of the other examinees and civilians from attack by those that had been sent out across the exam grounds? The more he tried to think of some way to address those problems, the more his frustration grew, as he found himself at an increasingly insurmountable impasse as to what the truly smartest course of action really was in the end.

With the admittance of his still ever-present hate for Endeavor having finally been admitted out loud, even in the heat of a still-ongoing battle, Shoto couldn't stop himself from elaborating further, regardless of who else might have overheard him. If anything, this was just as much a necessary admission of his own shortcomings for himself as it was for Inasa or anyone else.

"My hatred for that man… I know it's still there… but I've been trying the hardest I could to move past it, just like Bezpalov did for his father. After what he had ultimately done, if that kid could still be able to forgive him, then I should've been able to one day forgive my own, or at least put it behind me. That and making peace with the use of both sides of my Quirk; those are the things he and Midoriya said I must do more than anything else; and if those two things are what it would take to become the kind of Hero I want to be, a kind completely separate from Endeavor, then I'd see it done."

Shoto wasn't aware of it, but by his mentioning Nikolay's past animosity towards his father, he had stricken a cord of genuine surprise in Inasa's head. During his previous discussion with the Russian boy just mere minutes ago, in context of just what had brought that talk on to begin with, an especially cynical part of him had started convincing himself that Nikolay had simply stated his past emotional issues as a way to try and somehow deflect or defend Shoto's perceived attitude with excuses. However, now that he was hearing virtually the same exact story from Shoto himself, and with such an unexpectedly soft and non-defensive tone, it was leaving the burning hot Shiketsu High boy considerably caught off guard.

All the while, Gang Orca's momentary confusion at this unprofessional display from the two most promising examinees had finally faded, and was now replaced with a rapidly growing impatience. "Honestly, what do you two boys think you're doing in front of an active enemy?"

In the midst of all this, between the now once more active threat, and his own emotional outpouring, the fires brewing from Shoto's left hand began to intensify once again, even as his heart and mind were completely split. At the same time, Inasa's own anger had reached its boiling point, as his Whirlwinds were beginning to grow to near hurricane levels of strength, spurred on by finally expressing the reasons for his resentment, and his own growing mental and emotional conflict with all the information he was now getting, and being unable to properly process it all: "I WILL NEVER RECOGNIZE YOU TWO AS REAL HOT HEROES; NOT AS HEROES AT ALL! THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THAT!"

However, by now Shoto was once again trying to stamp down his own emotional upheaval and focus on the task at hand, already in the process of firing another fiery plume to try and force Gang Orca and his goons back for just a few seconds more at most. At the same time, Inasa instinctively acted the same way, sending forth another powerful Whirlwind for the exact same purpose, only to just as quickly realize that his wind and Shoto's fire had collided into each other, disrupting both and leaving their opponents virtually unharmed. This only served to fire up his anger that much further: "SERIOUSLY, AGAIN?! YOU-!"

This time, though, Shoto wasn't paying attention to the incoming verbal tirade Inasa was preparing to send his way. Now his attention was on something unforeseen and far more serious: "The wind!"

The moment he heard Shoto say this, Inasa instantly followed the course his wind had made the boys' flames go, and he instantly felt his anger diffuse and become replaced with a frozen sensation of shock.

His Whirlwind had inadvertently steered Shoto's Fire on a collision course right for the still-immobilized Yo Shindo mere feet away. The defenseless boy was going to be completely incinerated in a matter of seconds, and even if Shoto weren't frozen in place, they were both just that few precious feet too far to be able to rush in and get him out of the way.

All within the span of a single second, so much occurred, that even young Heroics students as sharp-eyed as Shoto Todoroki and Inasa Yoarashi found themselves struggling to take it all in:

Just before the fires reached Yo Shindo's body, the sparking green blur that could only have been Izuku Midoriya utilizing his Full Cowl ability came zipping through the air and plucked Yo off the ground and out of the way of danger.

At the exact same time, with a resonating BWOOM rumbling across the ground and through the air, an olive-and-red blur similarly came dashing across the ground for the spot just before where Yo had been laid out, and the moment it and Shoto's fire were about to collide, another deafening BWOOM sounded out, dispersing the flames into a blooming flower of heat, quickly extinguishing in the air.

As the flames cleared, Shoto and Inasa were both met with the sight of a visibly bleeding and now especially singed-looking Nikolay splayed out on the ground as though he'd baseball-slid across to try and stop the fire from reaching Yo Shindo, having been so blinded in his attempt to try and save him his own way, that he hadn't even realized Izuku had managed to do just that at the very same exact moment of his intervention.

As Izuku came to an instantaneous stop to set the still paralyzed Yo on the ground, Shoto and Inasa both felt a powerful wave of immense regret hit them both square in the gut, taking in the scale of just what their conflict had nearly resulted in for one of their fellow examinees.

Taking in the very same thing, alongside the sheer helpless state Yo was still in, and then looking back to see Nikolay struggling to get back to his feet while several parts of his costume were visibly burned and smoking; Izuku felt himself quickly become overwhelmed with a spike of pure anger, looking back to Shoto and Inasa themselves, and saying the one thing that felt completely natural in completely avoidable circumstances like this: "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

At the same time, smelling the scent of burning fabric atop his head, Nikolay fought through the numerous spots of burning pain up and down his sides and arms, as he hurriedly pulled his smoking cap from his head and threw it aside; now looking at Shoto and Inasa with similar frustration: "DO YOU TWO HAVE NO SENSE AT ALL?! CAN'T YOU LISTEN WHEN PEOPLE TRY TO TALK TO YOU?! I WOULD'VE THOUGHT YOU, AT LEAST, WOULD'VE BEEN BETTER THAN THIS, TODOROKI-SAN! I thought you were finally letting all that old hurt go! Was I wrong?! Were we both wrong?!"

The respective shouting reprimands from both boys finally brought Shoto and Inasa's constant bickering to a dead halt; both of them still looking downright mortified at the reality of the consequences of their respective selfish actions. They had both gotten so wrapped up in themselves, they had completely neglected just how the sheer scope of their respective powers could adversely affect the same people they were supposed to work alongside, not to mention those that still needed both their protection.

With this realization, and having finally seen Inasa's specific power full-on with his own eyes, a jolt suddenly sprang to life in Shoto's brain, leaving his eyes wide with painful remembrance; painful for many different reasons: 'A Quirk that utilizes wind… that's right… so that's what was bothering me all day today! Now that I think about it, that is really him! Why wasn't I able to remember until now?! Especially a guy like him, who's so damn loud!

'Back at the entrance exam…I guess I wasn't even looking at him even from that very start! Because back then… all I could ever see was the steps I felt I had to take in order to deny Endeavor and everything he represented and was to me. Yoarashi… I'd honestly forgotten all about you. Was that a good thing, or bad?

'After fighting both Midoriya and Bezpalov, I thought I'd finally figured out how to really become the Hero I truly wanted to be. I thought that detaching my father's role in the left side of my Quirk, and making the effort to move on from the past by reconciling with my mother, would be enough for me to finally start living while looking at the future, instead of dwelling in the past. To be honest, I'd actually found myself starting to admire Bezpalov for his fortitude in forgiving his own father for doing something that was ultimately so much worse. Surely if he'd been able to do so, then so could I, and I could finally start moving only forward…but clearly that isn't the case. I continued to live my life while my heart and mind were still hazy and undecided, no matter how much I tried to convince myself otherwise. And now, of all times, Yoarashi, you come back into the picture?'

Shoto slowly bowed his head; the anger mixed with the shock on his face now reflecting a crestfallen sense of self-disappointment that Nikolay was only able to see by virtue of being directly in front of him, while Izuku could see the tension slowly leave his body. 'It looks like old hate for our fathers isn't the only thing we have in common after all, Bezpalov. No matter how much we try to move on from it, the past just keeps coming back to haunt us, doesn't it? For you, it was your father's old foe coming after you both… and for me… my past… and my blood… no matter how much I forced myself to forget them… or at least I tried to…Yoarashi brought it right back with him. I clearly can't keep going on like this.'

"I'm sorry, Midoriya, Bezpalov." Shoto stated this simple apology especially quietly, but it still hit both boys and Inasa especially hard, the undeniable weight and authenticity with which he said it, as though he were apologizing for countless things at once by simply giving this one apology. From where the once-enraged Shiketsu boy was currently standing, he couldn't even recognize the boy he'd so thoroughly despised for this long right now.

"First of all…" Before the whole ill-timed conversation could go a word further, the menacing rumble of Gang Orca's voice forced all boys present back to full attention, with remembrance of just what a colossal threat they were supposed to be fighting against. Nikolay, being the one currently the most at the forefront, could feel his blood go frigid when he felt the Killer Whale Hero's menacing red eyes burning right into him. "… there's too many nuisances here at once!"

Just like that, Nikolay could suddenly feel the tuning forks at his sides getting pulled backward with exceptional strength, yanking the Russian boy right back off his feet. 'Dammit, it's that electromagnet weapon again! Not this time!'

BWOOM!

Momentarily thanking his lucky stars that the goon attacking him had decided to act while Nikolay's back was to him, he quickly aimed his hands and feet directly forward and fired from all four at once, propelling himself right for the goon much faster than the man had been expecting; unable to dodge in time before Nikolay's whole bodily mass slammed straight into his own, putting him flat on the ground.

The impact sent Nikolay flipping backwards through the air, but upon realizing he'd managed to actually knock this enemy down, and he was no longer being manipulated by their electromagnet, Nikolay hurriedly aimed his left hand backwards up to the sky, and fired just hard enough to send himself slamming down onto the goon, planting a ready right palm straight onto their helmeted face, and firing a full dose point blank into that; the sheer G-forces rattling their brain into complete blackout.

With this most troublesome goon now taken out of the picture, Nikolay's pulse was pounding as he quickly drew both his tied together tuning forks from their respective sheaths; using their connection to his advantage by swinging the large metal objects around, desperate to try and take at least one more down and buying Inasa and Izuku a fighting chance, since Shoto still couldn't move.

BWOOSH!

However, the goons already had Nikolay well spotted, as just before he could even finish a second full assaulting spin, his tuning forks were both splattered with multiple blasts from their cement guns; quick-drying the two tuning forks together and rendering them much heavier and practically useless. This was only made worse when Nikolay quickly found both his forearms likewise fused together with a heavy coating of quick-dry cement as well.

Just as he was about to try firing the collected kinetic energy from out his sleeves and breaking himself free; his ears were suddenly hit with a deeply penetrating high pitched ring the likes of which couldn't possibly have been made by human origin. After having seen what had happened to Yo Shindo minutes ago, however, it didn't take long for Nikolay to realize with immense dread what he'd just now likewise fallen victim to; only confirmed when Gang Orca himself suddenly grabbed the paralyzed young Slav by his head, plucking him right off the ground.

Unable to try and fight his way out, Nikolay was completely helpless as Gang Orca suddenly dashed straight for Shoto, Inasa and Izuku, holding Nikolay forward like a frozen human shield, preventing any of the boys from trying to stop his charge.

At the last moment before collision, Gang Orca suddenly planted a heavy foot straight into the ground, and used his built up momentum to fling Nikolay like a ragdoll high into the air, far above all the present boys' heads, with only a terrified cry echoing down as Nikolay realized he couldn't get himself out of this situation at all.

Inasa's instinctive reaction was to propel himself straight back into the air, preparing another powerful Whirlwind from his gauntlet to try and catch Nikolay in his freefall…just before he suddenly felt a heavy and thick splash of unmistakable liquid slam into his left side the moment he left the ground; immediately weighing him down far too much. All the while, Gang Orca watched the once promising Shiketsu High powerhouse with a discerning eye. "That wind of yours is a pain in the ass, too, so you've gotta go."

"Dammit! I'm losing control!" Inasa grunted angrily to himself, and just as his upward momentum came to a stop, and he could feel gravity begin to pull him back down, his piercing eyes hurriedly shot back up to Nikolay's freefalling form up above. Knowing this was the only shot he had left, he quickly focused the aim of the whirlwind building in his gauntlet and fired, sending a small but thankfully contained whirlwind right for the boy himself. Inasa came crashing down to the ground before he could see for himself, but he could only hope that this last whirlwind of his would be enough to break Nikolay's fall enough, and hopefully get him somewhere farther from the fight and out of harm's way. 'I'm sorry, Bezpalov-san… Midoriya-san… I let my own personal hang-ups blind me from who my real responsibilities are to…not like a real burning hot Hero at all. I should've just gotten over myself and listened to you. Instead, I ended up becoming the one thing I hated most!'

At the same time as this, despite already having been immobilized thanks to the cement, Shoto quickly found himself getting grabbed by Gang Orca as well, being stared down upon like an insect. "You get what you deserve!"

With that declaration, Shoto found his head suddenly ringing with the very same piercing Ultrasonic Wave attack that had immobilized Yo and Nikolay already. To his growing frustration, he too now found he couldn't move his body worth a damn. As Gang Orca released his grip upon him, Shoto collapsed helplessly to his knees; his face twisted with anger and regret. 'Forgive me… both of you. I tried to move forward like you both suggested… and it's all because I was too damn stubborn to follow through with it that we're in this mess. Somehow… I've got to turn this around and take back what I've done!'

With the three most prominent obstacles to their attack finally having been neutralized, the goons all quickly turned back to each other. "Hey, now that those three aren't an issue anymore, what do you say we finally get out there and start meddling with the evacuations, huh?"

"Yeah! The others are circling around to deal with the other rescue teams, why should they get all the fun?"

At the same time as this, Izuku had witnessed the disintegration of his fellow examinees' defensive line front and center. The only reason he hadn't activated Full Cowl to try and save Nikolay once he'd gotten paralyzed and thrown was because he knew he couldn't afford to leave Yo Shindo in the same state all on his own again. Despite his growing frustration, he was still stricken with gratitude when Inasa had managed to intercept with that last lucky whirlwind. However, now that he had overheard the intentions of Gang Orca's goons, he knew he couldn't afford to stay here anymore. He needed to intercept and buy the civilians and the other examinees more time. Somehow, someway, he knew he had to do it.

Likewise, at the same time down at the first-aid station and now civilian holdout spot, Mina and the other examinees had likewise been quick to realize that the Villains were finally starting to advance on their position unimpeded. With her nervous heart pounding at her chest, not just for having once again seen Nikolay get launched through the air helplessly, but for now knowing the time was here to really prove their worth as protectors of the public, she and nearly a dozen other examinees quickly formed another defensive line between the goons and the civilians, ready to give everything of themselves, just like real Heroes were supposed to.

Setting Yo back down, Izuku's eyes were anxiously taking in the battleground ahead as it stood. "At the pace the Villains are moving, they'll be on the others in seconds! I need to intercept—"

"GET OUT OF THE WAY!"

The moment Izuku flinched at the sudden boom of Yo's voice from his side, the green-clad black-haired boy had his left palm planted flat to the ground, instantly followed by an insanely fast and powerful, yet thankfully contained, earthquake that dislodged and obliterated the ground from underneath the goons' feet, sending over a dozen of them tumbling back away from the first-aid station.

However, less than a handful had managed to have already crossed enough distance before this sudden interception, that they hadn't gotten caught in the quake, and were instead already firing their cement weapons at the examinees standing guard before them. Fortunately, though, Mina and the others were already more than prepared, as several managed to either disperse the cement harmlessly with the help of theirs and each others' Quirks, while others like Mina used their Quirks to protect each other from the other cement streams, all of them together managing to keep the civilians safe.

As worried as she still was about wherever Nikolay had to have ended up, she wasn't about to leave everyone else here to fend for themselves and the civilians. They needed her just as much as they needed everyone else, and if she wanted to become the kind of cool, inspiring and all-loving Hero she wanted to be, then she was going to be here for them no matter what. She just needed to hang onto her deep sense of faith in her now-absent foreign bestie out there. He'd always found the strength to get back into the fight before, and there was no reason for her to believe he wouldn't somehow manage to do the same now. She believed in Nikolay just as much as she believed in the rest of her classmates, and right now she needed to prove that they all had reason to believe in her capabilities just as much.

Izuku's relief at the sight of the examinees working together so effectively was quickly superseded by his original sense of surprise at the fact that Yo had somehow managed to provide a miraculous save for the others. "Shindo-san! I thought you couldn't move after taking Orca's Ultrasonic Waves head-on like that!"

Unfortunately, despite what he had just accomplished, and despite the pained-yet-confident smirk on his face, Yo was still barely moving, other than his whole body barely trembling from the recoil of using his Quirk. "Well, I'm still numb from my fingers to my toes, that's for sure. Sound waves and vibrations… due to recoil from our Quirks, our brains get shaken up every day. I'm sure your foreign classmate can relay the same to you. However, with all the training I've put into using mine, you could say I've developed a bit more of a resistance to it. Better yet, I was planning on rolling with that, and then hitting 'em with a surprise attack, you know? But then those dumb little first-years and the foreigner had to go and-!"

The further Yo spoke, the more and more his initially sociable demeanor slipped, revealing someone much more focused and driven, and much more temperamental as a result. Where Izuku was standing, it was genuinely off-putting. Fortunately, though, Yo was quick to catch himself, barely managing to move his eyes so that he could look Izuku dead on. "Either way, I've managed to stop their movements! It's up to you to completely put them out of commission!"

To his surprise, and deeply hidden approval, Yo couldn't even finish in time before Izuku was already bolting forward like a green lightning bolt, heading right for the goons that were still trying to lay down an assault on the first-aid station. As he rushed in, Izuku already had his eyes carefully scanning the environment for the best place to kick off from so he could start his counter-attack, while also taking that precious spare moment to address the examinees defending the first-aid station.

"Everyone! The goons split into groups to attack the other rescue teams across the grounds! Those of that are better suited to mobile action than stationary defense, split up to assist in stopping them and rescuing the rest of the civilians, ASAP!" The moment Izuku's advice had echoed down to the examinees at the forefront, several of them perked up with realization of just what he was suggesting they do; especially Mina.

He was actually recommending them to leave the line and use their Quirks where they knew they would be most useful, and right now, for Mina, that was to be heading out and dealing with whatever goons were still out there going after the others. All at once did she finally remember, based on where she was and where she had seen Nikolay get flung before, that he was essentially heading in the same direction that the majority of Class 1-A still was, over at the waterfront/woodland section. With any luck, she could be able to help both out if she could get there fast enough.

As this was all happening, Gang Orca was still towering over the mutually helpless bodies of Shoto and Inasa, watching his goons at work, and more importantly, how the examinees were reorganizing themselves to continue the rescue maneuvers, and protecting the civilians they already had managed to save. "Well, then, with you, the Wind-user and the Kinetics boy all out of the picture, I suppose it's about time to head over and back the rest of my men up."

Even though his body couldn't move, Shoto's mind was still frantically racing, even if it was still weighed down with the same growing guilt over how badly the situation had been destabilized because of himself and Inasa. 'I picked a pointless fight with him… our compatibility is terrible, and we have absolutely no ability to cooperate. How could we possibly match up with a Top Hero with such terrible odds stacked up against us?'

This question was one of the most terrible to keep asking himself, but that didn't make it any more prominent. If anything, each passing second only added to its prominence. Just when it seemed like there was no possible means of rectifying this situation, though… Shoto began to recall one of the more throwaway things Inasa had yelled at him over the course of their childish squabble… about heat and wind together.

As the realization of those words hit him hard, Shoto's left side began to ignite once again, quickly growing into an increasingly powerful self-sized inferno. 'However… if there was any chance… that you're thinking the same thing, Yoarashi… then… there may still be a way!'

Thankfully, Shoto didn't have to wonder what Inasa may have been thinking for long, because as soon as his Fire had started to really grow, he likewise soon began to feel a growing wind current emanating from his right, specifically from the prone form of Inasa Yoarashi himself. Even if he couldn't move, and even if he was too far for his Whirlwind to directly affect Gang Orca in any meaningful way, he was still trying to do something; the timing of it showing he was clearly spurred on by seeing Shoto trying to take some kind of decisive action.

Indeed, Inasa was thinking the same thing his hated fellow examinee was… among other things. Every time he'd kept thinking to his previous conversation with Nikolay in regards to Shoto as a person as he was now, he just kept feeling the same pang of guilt for having not taken the words of a fellow future Hero into consideration; in favor of his own personal hate.

It was a black mark on his own personal record as an aspiring Hero he would have to live with for a long time, he already knew this. However, if this was a chance for him to start making up for it, then he would gladly go for it and reclaim his right to be called a Burning Hot Hero again, even if it meant finally having to accept the reality of what he'd seen and heard from Shoto himself in regards to his classmates, and finally put his hatred of him aside for the sake of the greater good.

'With heat, wind becomes unstable. So you did listen after all, eh, Todoroki? I understand what you want to do… okay! You provide the flame… and I'LL SCOOP IT UP FROM THE BOTTOM!'

"I can barely move my body… I can only squeeze out an ounce of power as I am… but who gives give a damn?! I gotta do this! We gotta do this!" Inasa's statement of defiance managed to pry Gang Orca's attention away from the battlefield ahead to his two frozen former opponents.

By then, though, it was already too late, as the piercing and determined eyes of Inasa Yoarashi and Shoto Todoroki together burned right through him, just at the very same moment their respective Quirks finally met with each other once again; their minds miraculously echoing the exact same sentiments: 'With Fire and Wind together… WE'LL SHUT YOU DOWN FOR GOOD!'

As though that were the magical trigger, Whirlwind and Fire together coalesced into an unstable but undeniably powerful flaming vortex of obliterating air, flying straight into Gang Orca himself; the temporary 'Villain' barely managing to bring his arms up to defend himself before being completely engulfed in the raging windy inferno.

Despite the intense ringing in his head after the especially rough landing he'd still managed to suffer, despite the combined best efforts of Inasa and himself after that serendipitous whirlwind had ultimately dissipated, Nikolay was amazed he hadn't somehow lost consciousness somewhere along the way, let alone after the landing.

After having been sent flying by Gang Orca, and then having his otherwise fatal freefall intercepted by Inasa, Nikolay had tried to time several blasts from his feet to try and slow his falling speed further, but in the end he still now found himself sitting amid the ruins of a destroy wooden shed somewhere in the woodland section near the waterfront, with several splinters sticking into his back, sides, legs, arms and face to show for it all.

What made his position that much worse was the fact that, even after going through that much punishment, he still wasn't able to move thanks to being hit by Gang Orca's damned Ultrasonic Wave attack. Since he'd been able to fire from his feet regardless to try and break his fall, Nikolay knew if he were to focus enough, he could have still potentially been able to fire the energy collected from the sleeves of his costume, and his arms themselves, in order to break out of the cement still encasing his forearms; but afterward, what would he possibly be able to do?

The only thing he could think of in the moment was potentially restoring flexibility to his muscles the one way he could theorize how: focusing and channeling the slightest continuous vibration frequency from all across his body at once. It was a trick he hadn't given nearly enough practice toward in order to surely judge if it would have any effect at all besides adding to his building physical exhaustion, but it was better right now to try than to just lie here and hope for the best that someone would find him.

His focus on building up a vibration to span as many of his muscles at once as possible was so deep, he didn't pick up the approaching sound of footsteps and snapping twigs coming from around the corner of the destroyed shed he now lay in. At least until…

"Kolya-kun! Oh, thank God I found you!"

Nikolay's focus was now broken, but just as quickly replaced with relief at the ever-present sound of Mina's voice, as he looked with just his eyes to find his pink classmate looking him over; primarily the sorry state he was currently in.

Thankfully it didn't take long for her to realize the boy couldn't actually move, and was thusly quick to react as she hurriedly knelt beside him and ran an acid-coated finger along the length of the cement encasing his arms, splitting the whole thing in half and finally freeing his hands and the capture cord he'd still been clutching beforehand, with his still cement-coated tuning forks hanging from it.

She then began gently rubbing her thumb tips against specific muscles along his arms. "I wasn't sure if you'd gotten hit by the same move that got Todoroki-kun or not, but I guess this answers that. Just try to relax, Kolya-kun. This'll take a little bit, but you should hopefully be able to start moving again before long."

She certainly wasn't kidding about it both working, but also taking some time. It had to have already been nearly five whole minutes by the time Nikolay could actually feel like he could just move his arms a little bit each way again. After she had done the same continuous circular finger-massaging technique on the hinges of his jaw, he could even start to feel motion in his facial muscles again.

He could only hope he wasn't going to sound incomprehensible if he tried speaking while still in the process of recovering from this effect, as the next time he and Mina made eye contact, he finally tried to speak up: "W-why… why… why aren't you w-with… with the r-rest of the examinees at t-the… the f-first-aid s-s-station, M-Mina?"

Despite that being the first words he could think to say to her after what she'd been doing to try and help him, Mina never lost her focus, as she kept working on getting the flexibility back into his leg muscles. "All the examinees with more defense-focused Quirks are protecting that place while the rest of us are going to try and help with the rest of the rescue maneuvers. I just wanted to make sure you were okay along the way. Now try and hold still, this is probably gonna hurt, Kolya-kun."

Without hesitation, once she was finished with working on his legs, Mina quickly got back to his eye level and got to work plucking several of the splinters sticking out from all over his face and out of his hair; several of them having gotten deep enough to leave a few of the tiniest droplets of blood dotting his otherwise fair face.

As she continued the same process with the rest of the splinters protruding from his center mass; having already taken care of the ones sticking in his arms and legs while massaging his muscles, Nikolay was thankfully able to start regaining more of the feeling in his mouth as he answered her: "Y-you shouldn't… you shouldn't have l-left the civ-civilians back th-there, Mina! W-what if you get y-your points docked? Y-you m-might n-not pass the exam for it!"

Removing the last splinter from his left shoulder, Mina's focused stare now reflected total surprise as she got back up to her feet. "Kolya-kun, how can you be worrying about me when you're laid up here as hurt as you are?"

Her surprise was even greater at just how quickly and passionately Nikolay answered: "Isn't that o-obvious? We're all s-supposed to be l-learning to become H-Heroes! If w-we can't a-advance and become P-Pro Heroes all together… it j-just w-wouldn't be r-right!"

Mina looked to really be trying to process the sheer weight behind his words, but Nikolay was simply in too emotional a state to really note how unusual that was for someone as emotionally in-tune as she was. "Is that why you've been trying so hard to get Todoroki-kun and that Yoarashi kid to stop fighting?"

"Of course it is. No m-matter how you l-look at it, w-we're all trying to b-become Heroes f-for the same reason: to h-help people in trouble, and p-protect them even if they're n-not. W-when I saw them both fighting; and saw j-just how stubbornly they w-were hanging o-onto a b-bunch of old r-resentment… it j-just r-reminded me so m-much of how I u-used to be. I-I w-want to be b-better than that… a-and if I can p-possibly be better… t-then I know they can be, too. I don't want any of them to risk l-losing their chance at that… j-just for the sake of being petty or s-stubborn."

Before either he or Mina could say another word, however, the Russian boy flinched when his ears picked up the unmistakable sound of a distant scream echoing across the nearby water. By now, he felt he could at least move his limbs enough to lumber over relatively quick, and so with Mina hesitantly pulling him back to his feet, Nikolay began shambling through the brush of the woodlands as best he could without tripping himself up.

Within seconds of reaching the edge of the woodland, Nikolay was able to spot the source of the cries for help: another partially destroyed house, this time being a two story log cabin. "I still can't move as flexibly as normal, Mina; I need your help if we're gonna pull this off."

"Kolya-kun, you shouldn't keep pushing yourself like this! You're just going to make your wounds worse!" Despite Mina's warning, Nikolay was lumbering like he was on stilts towards the destroyed portion of the cabin, since that was where the cries were more clearly coming from. With every step taken, he could even start to make out that it was a child calling out from under all that rubble.

Upon reaching the edge of the rubble, Nikolay had to carefully manage his posture as he squatted down to try and get visual confirmation of however many civilians were potentially trapped under the wreckage. "There's no need to worry; we're going to get you all out of here and to safety! Is anyone in there hurt?"

Nikolay was at least grateful his ability to speak seemed to have finally gotten back to normal. However, that gratitude was almost instantly gone once he was able to more clearly make out that underneath the rubble was a wailing little kid being held underneath their similarly trembling grandmother, as though she were trying to shield the child from the caved in ceiling rubble.

All at once, he was starting to see that horrible familiar darkness all around him again, and smell that nauseating mixture of blood and suffocating smoke filling his nostrils again. The lingering numbness still in his body made it impossible for him to tell if he was starting to shake all over again from the memories this sight brought him, or if his body had simply gone entirely numb like it was mere minutes ago.

"Kolya-kun, what's wrong?" It was such a simple question, but in Nikolay's head, it felt like Mina was asking from a thousand miles away. In fact, everything was like it was emanating from the depths of the echo chamber that was his own head; for no matter how much Nikolay wanted to try and fight his way out of it, alongside the ever-present numbness in his body, he couldn't make the memories and the effects they had on his senses go away. It was like he was spiraling down into a bottomless pit of his worst memories again, and this time he couldn't get out. 'Goddammit… no! Why now?! Why is it coming back to me this bad now?! These people…they need me! Why can't I help them?!'

"Please… help us!"

In the moment he would have least expected it, Nikolay heard the pleading cry for help from the child inside the wreckage crystal clear… to the point that it actually managed to bring his involuntary trembling to a complete stop, as he slowly lifted his head from his squatting position to where his eyes could meet those of the two trapped civilians.

He and the small girl inside locked eyes for a single resonating moment, and she could feel that emotional connection as well, as she had picked that moment to speak out once again, stifling her frightened sobs for just that moment: "Please… please, Mr. Hero, please help us!"

Like a bolt of lightning, those simple but universal words struck Nikolay straight in his soul, as his body became overcome with a reinvigoration even he could scarcely believe, to the point he could actually feel his muscles actively straining to drive away what numbness was still there, especially as he finally reached back and withdrew his connected and still cement-coated tuning forks from the one loop in his belt that he'd since then hung the attaching capture cord from just a minute ago.

'What are you doing, letting yourself get bogged down, Nikolay Olegovich?! Don't you get it, this is the chance you had been waiting for! That little girl in there might as well be you! You wanted to be a Hero so no one would ever have to go through what you did, and this is the time for you to save her and her grandmother from that fate! Now get on your feet and do it, already! It's time for you both to become their Heroes!'

Channeling a growing charge of kinetic energy into his right hand managed to help deal away with the rest of the numbness just in time before Nikolay slammed his firing palm against the cement casing; shattering it and finally freeing his two tuning forks. The moment that was done, he turned his attention back to the two civilians. "Are either of you able to move at all? Can you tell me if you can feel your legs still?"

As soon as granddaughter and grandmother alike confirmed in the positive, Nikolay let out a sigh of relief as he began observing the actual setup of the roof wreckage. As soon as he could make out which wooden beam would be able to lift up the most of it, he began maneuvering one of his tuning forks to the right angle where it could give the right kind of leverage for him to give the civilians enough wiggle room. "Everything is going to be okay, you two. I'm going to get this stuff off of you, and my partner can help you both out from there. Can you tell me if there's anyone else trapped any further in the building as well?"

He was already proceeding to wedge the tuning fork underneath the beam and start applying his weight to it at the right angle in order to start lifting the rubble off of the two civilians, while Mina was simply observing the extra physical work he was putting his battered body through. "Kolya-kun, why don't you just use your Quirk to clear the wreckage away? Wouldn't that be so much easier on you right now?"

Nikolay didn't dare take his focus off the task at hand, even as he answered her: "It's too much of a risk, we don't know if there's any parts of this rubble that's weight bearing for the rest, but I at least know I can move this one so you can get them out, without us risking destabilizing the rest of the building. Besides, we don't know if there are any other examinees or civilians wandering the woods behind this house. I don't want to risk hitting any of them by just blowing away the wreckage haphazardly like that."

As Nikolay kept pressing his weight down on the tuning fork he'd turned into a makeshift wedge, he let out an especially pained hiss, as the strain and pressure he'd started putting his body through in order to serve as the counterweight was leading to a warm wetness staring to form in a few tiny parts across his midsection, front and back alike. Unfortunately, Mina was very quick to notice this: "See, didn't I warn you, Kolya-kun?! You're gonna keep opening your wounds back up if you keep pushing your luck like this! Aren't Heroes supposed to not let people see them bleed?!"

Nikolay knew she had a solid point, but knowing the circumstances they now found themselves in, and the ever-present fact that right now there were people here that needed help, and he was one of the only ones that could provide it, he didn't let up in his effort to keep trying to lift enough of the rubble so the civilians could start to crawl out. "You're right, Mina… any other time, we should be trying to keep people from seeing us in that kind of state… but, in a strange way… wouldn't it actually inspire that much more hope in people… if they saw that, no matter how hurt Heroes may end up getting, it won't stop them from doing everything… to save them and everyone else?!"

Nikolay, in that moment, was simply too single-minded in his immediate goal to see just how much the sheer conviction with which he had made this declaration of intent had stricken Mina to her core, having not expected him to speak with such a passionate selflessness; let alone those of the two civilians he was trying so hard to save. Indeed, for them especially, it was unexpectedly inspiring to hear him say such a thing.

Just as it felt like Nikolay was about to reach the limit of the arc with which he could lift the rubble with this makeshift wedge, he suddenly felt that very tuning fork completely give from underneath him, nearly making him faceplanet in the dirt; only that wasn't what was immediately on his mind. No, right now he could only feel instant horror that the rubble was about to come collapsing right back down on the civilians.

As he scrambled to get back up and try to weigh the wedge back down, though, he was instead met with the unexpected sight of the rubble actually continuing to rise up, effectively freeing the civilians from any risk of being crushed. In a momentary state of disbelief, Nikolay's eyes lifted to be met with the sight of the whole collapsed roof being pried open by a multitude of hands attached to just as many elongated arms; all ultimately connecting to the blessed sight of Mezo Shouji anchoring himself to a couple of trees with his tentacles, and producing several others to hold up the roof.

"Kolya-san! Mina-chan!" Just as quickly were they then greeted by the notably relieved voice of Ochako Uraraka, floating down from above with an ever-observant sharpness to her eyes as she took in the scene, quickly propelling herself and planting her hands on some of the large wooden beams among the rubble; removing their gravity and thus lightening the load Mezo had to keep a hold on.

Quickly acting on the opportunity his two newly returned classmates had bought him, Nikolay got his head back in the game and hurriedly approached the two once-trapped civilians, reaching out to them. "Are either of you still able to stand or walk? Regardless, you're both going to be okay now. We're going to get you both to safety."

As soon as they had both reached out to take his hands and he put his all into helping them out of the wreckage of their home and back on their feet, Nikolay let out another pained hiss from the strain, drawing the attention of both, with the little girl immediately chiming in: "You should be more careful about your wounds right now. If you keep pushing yourself so hard, you're not gonna be nearly prepared enough to help other civilians in need later."

Despite the clear-as-day concern in her voice, mirrored by the similarly worried looks on Mina and Ochako's faces and in Mezo's one visible eye, Nikolay had to really make an effort to hide the pain on his face. "I understand that… but with as many allies here as there are now… I'm at least in good enough condition. Now is there anybody else in the house before we get you both evacuated?"

The moment he'd remembered the most urgent question he hadn't yet gotten his answer for, the old woman quickly drew her gaze up to the second floor of the portion of the cabin that was somehow still standing. "Yes, my husband is still stuck up there."

Before Nikolay even thought of saying anything, Ochako was already on the move, floating in and checking through the window. Immediately after, she got to work floating up and above the roof; while still taking care to address her classmates of all details: "The roof's partially caved in, but he seems to be okay, it didn't happen anywhere near him! It's going to be okay, sir! We're here to help! We have your wife and granddaughter safe and sound."

The next several moments that passed once Ochako vanished from the sight of those on the ground felt like they passed at a snail's pace; hence why it was such a relief when she finally came floating back into their field of view, with a whimpering elderly man floating peacefully right beside her, being guided along by the hand the entire way as she descended to the ground. The moment her feet touched the ground, and the old man was on the same level as her, she gently brought her fingertips together, and the old man let out a sigh of relief; especially since she'd still taken care to have an arm around his sides as support beforehand. Afterwards, he quickly made his way to reunite with his family; all of them the picture of relief, and thankfully none the worse for wear, other than the odd little scuff mark or two, but grandmother and granddaughter alike had both been quick to confirm they were all right when asked by Nikolay and Ochako.

"All right, if this is everyone, let's get you folks to the first-aid station." Mezo immediately suggested, already squatting down to allow the civilians to climb onto his back in order to save them the difficulty of the trip.

Following his lead, Nikolay hurriedly began taking in their surroundings, specifically their spot at the edge of the waterfront in relation to where he knew the battle site with Gang Orca had been, and as such, where that was I relation to where he knew all the civilians were now being gathered. From where they themselves were now positioned in the exam grounds, he suddenly extended his right arm, painting to his northeast, towards another portion of the semi-distant city section. "Okay; the battle is no doubt still ongoing in the direction across the water directly ahead of us. If we want to avoid getting caught in the middle of it, then our best bet would be to head this way and head for the first-aid station from the opposite direction."

The three civilians upon Mezo's back were all silently nodding with professional approval at the students' collective proactive approach of all the facts as they knew them. As soon as he was sure nobody else had any objections, Nikolay turned to address Ochako. "Uraraka-san, I'm assuming you were with the rest of the class handling things at the waterfront. If you and Shouji-san are here, should we assume that means all the civilians in that section were already rescued?"

"Yes, Yaomomo and Tsu had gotten the last civilians out just a couple minutes ago, so Shouji-san and I decided to check the other side, and that's when we found you guys. A lot of the other examinees had been helping around the whole waterfront, too. I can't possibly imagine there are too many more civilians across the grounds still needing to be rescued." The confidence in the other examinees' capabilities with which Ochako spoke seemed to be good enough for the others, as without further hesitation, Nikolay and Mina motioned for Ochako and Mezo to follow their lead, as they began running down the edge of the waterfront to their right, heading for the towering ruins of the city section ahead.

As soon as they began to exit the natural verdant setting, and start stepping into the beginning of the metropolitan; a thought suddenly occurred to Nikolay he felt like a fool for not asking earlier: "It's been a good few minutes since the Villain attack even started. Were you guys already able to handle the goon counterattack beforehand? That had to be why several of them vanished from out of nowhere."

Nikolay didn't want to take his eyes off the path ahead; hence why he didn't see the momentarily concerned glimmers in Ochako and Mezo's eyes. "We knew about the Villain attack, Kolya-san, but none of them ever showed up at our area before we went to you and Mina-chan."

BWOOSH! BWOOSH!

A sudden distant thumping sound, followed by the noise of something flying fast through the air sent a jolt of alertness through all four young Heroes, especially as it sounded to be coming from their blind spot in that moment, from their left.

Just as they began to turn, Mezo felt a heavy impact against both his legs, binding them together once he reactively fell to one knee. His immediate reaction then was to bring all the tentacles on his left side up, forming a defensive wall for the three civilians on his back just in time, as the next glob of quick-drying cement slammed straight into the webbed defensive line, now effectively freezing half his tentacles in place.

The lingering traces of numbness still in Nikolay's joints prevented him from turning and rushing to his masked classmate and the civilians as fast as normal, but thankfully Mina and Ochako were able to react quick enough for him, especially as the rosy-cheeked girl quickly brought a hand against his back to take his gravity, and then took advantage by carrying him by the collar of his costume so they could all get behind Mezo, who was continuing to use his larger stature to serve as a shield for the others.

Ochako and Nikolay briefly peeked over the edge of Mezo's cemented tentacles to get a gauge of the threat, and were met by the sight of a handful of the same masked goons from before. Of course, they could only expose themselves for that split second before being forced to duck back down to avoid the next several blobs of cement that got fired their way.

"They must be moving in a wider circle around the grounds in groups. My guess would be to either attack any more rescue teams that aren't at the first-aid station, or to eventually attack that place itself from the other side. If Gang Orca and his men are attacking from one side, that's probably where most of the examinees still there are going to be focusing on." As Mezo explained this, honestly, rock solid theory of his, Ochako was quick to try and mount up a diversion, if for no other reason than to stop their advance so the others could come up with a plan.

Acting quick, she hurriedly touch her hands to several of the large pieces of debris around them, and with a silent yet communicative nod, she quickly pulled Nikolay up into the air with her and her new projectiles, and without hesitation, he aimed his hands their way and fired, sending all the weightless rubble flying their way at full speed, with Ochako hurriedly bringing them both back down to the ground and bringing her fingers together, restoring everything's gravity, and thus adding that much more power to their diversion in just the nick of time.

Unfortunately, though, the goons were already more than prepared for this, as they simply hosed down all the incoming debris with their cement guns, freezing everything in place to the ground and rendering them completely harmless. "You kids are gonna have to try a lot harder than that, you know!"

Mentally cursing their lack of options, Nikolay knew they couldn't risk exposing themselves into the open again; those men were simply waiting for them. With a sigh, he turned back to their still-immobilized classmate and the three civilians who had by now descending off his back and were staying in cover with their intended rescuers. "Are you all okay? How about you, Shouji-san?"

Despite being visibly shaken, the three quickly confirmed they would be all right, all of them grateful for the tentacled boy's quick thinking in saving them from the sneak attack. Mezo, meanwhile, had no more or less intense a look in his eye than he normally did. "I'm fine. I can break myself out of this cement at any moment, but for now, I can at least form a defense for you all to come up with a plan."

"We should just try to take the fight right to them. That's surely what they'd least expect." Mina suddenly suggested with an unnaturally sharp edge in her tone, snapping all three of her classmates to attention, with Ochako looking downright incredulous.

"Mina-chan, if we rush them like that, they'd freeze us in no time, and these civilians would be left defenseless! You know that!"

At this, Nikolay nodded with similar noted apprehension. "Uraraka-san's right, Mina. We need to focus on getting these people to the first-aid station before anything else. Shouji-san can still use his tentacles on his right side. If we were to make a run down this street and make a left turn to circle around and get there from the other side, he can still manage to make more of a defensive wall behind us."

Even with the implication of what such a desperate plan would entail, Mezo gave no sign of disagreeing. Hell, with his raw physical strength, this quick-drying cement of theirs was hardly more than just a mild nuisance. If they had no other choice, he would gladly serve such a purpose to buy them that chance.

However, Mina's eyes didn't lose that sudden intensity, either, as she looked Nikolay dead in the eye. "Kolya-kun, if you want to become the kind of Hero that can save everyone, then doesn't that mean saving your partners, too? If so, then that means not backing down from a fight, you know that!"

Nikolay, Ochako and Mezo both looked especially surprised right now; none of them had ever heard Mina talk like this. After all this time, it didn't seem possible for her to sound this purely aggressive, especially in a circumstance involving defenseless civilians like this.

The unnatural air of it all finally forced Nikolay to speak up: "What's gotten into you all of a sudden, Mina? First you're constantly telling me to not push myself, when you know this whole exam is about us doing everything we can to save people, and then all of a sudden you're telling me we should just rush headlong into a fight when we're at a total disadvantage, and risk leaving these people defenseless? This makes no sense! We all know you'd never normally even think of something like that!"

Nikolay's growing anxiety was only worsened when he could already hear the hushed mutterings of the three civilians at their side: "This girl is so inconsistent at a time when team unity is paramount in importance. That's hardly the kind of synergy that inspires confidence in civilians. That's gonna be a serious number of points knocked off, that's for sure."

All of these things together, made Nikolay nearly freeze when he saw the unnatural sharpness in Mina's black gold eyes when she looked him dead on; a determined balled up fist shaking at her side. "It's only because I wanna see you become a truly strong Hero, Kolya-kun, just like Midoriya-kun… but you won't get there by running away when challenged, we all know that!"

As intimidated as Nikolay was genuinely beginning to feel by this out-of-nowhere change in demeanor from his closest friend, there was a single spark of thought in the back of his head that gave him momentary pause: 'Wait… since when did Mina start calling him "Midoriya" and not "Midori-kun"? That sounds completely backwards for her.'

"LIGHT REFRACTION! SAY CHEESE!" In that split moment, the air around them suddenly became blinding with a flash of pure light, with Mezo's position serving as inadvertent protection for his partners and the civilians. Of course, their split second of surprise quickly turned to overjoyed realization once they recognized the bubbly energy that could have only been Tooru Hagakure just before this sudden blinding flash.

"GRAPE RUSH!" Before the glare of light that had stunned all of the goons had even started to dissipate, several of them already began to give out surprised grunts shortly after Minoru Mineta's screeching voice followed suit. "W-what the hell? Why can't I move my feet?!"

"RECIPRO BURST!" Capping it all off was the all-powerful boom of Tenya Iida's voice, followed by the piercing roar of his Engines, as his helmet gave him the protection from Tooru's Light Refraction, and thus allowed him to see exactly where all of the goons ahead were positioned, and thankfully stuck thanks to Minoru hurriedly throwing his hairballs at their feet the instant their invisible classmate had decided to act.

In less than two seconds, all six of the goons were sufficiently knocked unconscious by a blinding series of expertly precise kicks from Tenya as he dashed through all of them, with plenty of time in his newly strengthened special move to spare before he finally let that boost die down. As soon as he, Minoru and Tooru were all certain the threat had been neutralized, they just as quickly turned their attention back to the half-encased Mezo, and the classmates and civilians they all knew to be behind him. "Are you guys all right?"

Mezo quickly put his strength to use and sufficiently broke his way out of the cement encasing nearly his whole left side and both his legs, while Ochako was aglow with relief, giving Tooru an equally enthusiastic high-five, while Nikolay and Mina were both getting back up and helping the three civilians back to their feet.

"You guys got here just in time; thank you. We're on our way to get these civilians to the first-aid station from the other side, since most of the fighting is likely still happening at the entrance to the city section." As Nikolay hurriedly gave their three new allies the rundown of their original plan, he was already in the process of helping the little girl and her grandparents onto Mezo's back.

This allowed Tenya, Tooru and Minoru to spot the several splotches of dark red dotting his costume, and thus prompted the class president to urgently step forward. "Bezpalov-san, you need to stop and let us evaluate your condition before we go much further! You're hardly in any shape to get into another potentially large fight."

"That's right, Kolya-kun, at least let Mina-chan take care of it with her salve before anything else. We can help Ochako-chan and Shouji-kun get the civilians to safety." Despite the respectively serious and emotional pleadings of his classmates, Nikolay was still trying to maintain as ready a posture as he could, even with the pain that was really starting to make itself known all over his body from the punishment he'd been taking all throughout today.

"I'm well enough right now, really. Like you said, Iida-san, there's no telling how many more goons could be between here and the first-aid station the way we're going, but it's the best bet we have in order to avoid the main battle going on right now. Who knows, you might end up needing our help just like we needed yours. I can still do at least that much."

The mask of Tenya's costume made it hard for Nikolay to tell just what he was thinking in the face of such hardheadedness on the Russian's part, while Tooru's gloved hands were obviously clenching into frustrated fists that he was insisting on pushing himself despite clearly being hurt in several places. All the while, Minoru was keeping his head on a terrified swivel, just looking for the first sign of trouble.

"You've already helped us, though, Mr. Hero…all of you Heroes have. More than you know." This sudden intervention from the little girl on Mezo's back brought all the building tension among the examinees to a complete halt, especially for Nikolay when he saw she was looking him in the eye specifically.

Without missing a beat, the grandmother suddenly proceeded to speak up as well: "None of us had really thought about it before, but we all agree that there's considerable merit to what you said when you were helping us out of the cabin. It's good for people to think of Heroes as unbreakable symbols that will always be there to save them no matter what… but in a really weird way, in a serious situation like how you found us in, there's a whole other kind of hope you made us feel when we saw that, even despite how hurt you were, you weren't going to give up in trying to help save us. If anything, that just makes people's faith in Heroes that much stronger, knowing that, despite the risks to themselves, they actively make that choice to risk everything for us. You have all our gratitude for reminding us of that…just as you all have our gratitude for everything you're doing even now to help."

This sudden encouragement and show of gratitude from the three civilians really seemed to help ease the overall tension among the examinees, as Nikolay and Tenya alike instinctively took a deep, steadying breath to take in just how much the genuine gratitude of the people they all as Heroes were supposed to be protecting truly meant to them, while Tooru and Ochako were both already starting to wipe equally grateful tears from their eyes, and Minoru couldn't help but smile proudly to himself, even despite the fear still in his eyes.

"We're forgetting ourselves; we need to focus on getting these civilians to safety before anything else. Bezpalov-san's right that circling around and approaching the first-aid station from the other side will help us avoid bringing them into the middle of another battle. If you have a good idea of the route we need to take; then just point the way. Uraraka-san and I can scout ahead to make sure there aren't any potential traps or obstacles in the way."

Nikolay's tension thankfully was now replaced with a deeply grateful smile, even despite his physical pain and the final fading traces of numbness, as the whole lot of examinees finally proceeded on their way around the right border of the city section, keeping all their eyes peeled for any further signs of trouble, with Tenya speeding ahead, and Ochako taking to the air to provide a bird's eye view.

Despite having the reactionary reflexes to defend himself from the initial damage, Gang Orca was nevertheless astounded at the speed, intensity and all-around thoroughness of the fiery tornado he now found himself completely encased in, all thanks to Shoto and Inasa's combined efforts. 'Incredible; a raging tempest of fire and wind, and all without even being able to move their bodies! Their power and precision are certainly reduced, but the paralysis effect was not enough after all! They somehow managed to still control their Quirks! Despite being completely immobilized, Todoroki-kun was able to add his flames and combine powers with Yoarashi-kun…and while that doesn't simply erase the debacle that occurred a moment ago…this is…not bad at all.

'After all, with adversity comes strength. To recognize one's own faults and try to recover from them… that kind of struggling; I can't say I hate it! That's the very essence of what makes a Hero when it counts the most!' Even with the imposing and threatening demeanor Gang Orca still embodied, especially as his blood red eyes bored into the still-frozen Shoto and Inasa; inside, he was positively aglow with a Hero's approval of their combined strength after getting past all the childish bickering.

At the same time as this, the goons that had been thrown back by Yo Shindo's latest earthquake found themselves looking back to find the towering flaming twister where their leader had last been standing. "Hey, the boss is in trouble! He's super-weak against dryness! We gotta help him out somehow!"

Already they were starting to rush over the uneven, destroyed ground in order to try and intercept, but just before they could finally close the distance between themselves and the two boys, they found themselves once more being tossed away by the sudden eruption of a large iceberg bursting forth from the ground behind Shoto's right side. Glancing back all the while, Shoto couldn't afford losing focus on keeping his fire going with the luxury of speaking out loud, but he already knew his emergency countermeasure had paid off. 'My movements when using both my sides are still too sluggish for my liking. The only reason my Steam Wall's an exception is because it's simply firing both sides at once close together. But even if I can't move…it ultimately doesn't matter. I just have to keep the rest of them away from us and work on wearing Gang Orca down!'

All the while, on the other side of the shattered gouge of earth, closest to the frontline of the first-aid station that had now been relegated to the rescue station, the handful of goons that had been laying down the assault likewise couldn't help but look back to the towering inferno behind them, and how their comrades were being kept from intervening. "Hey, the others are in a tough spot, and the boss is even worse off! Should we go and help?"

"Are you nuts; our job is to keep interfering with the rescue maneuvers and keep the Heroes from getting the rest of the civilians. That's why he sent the others out in teams; that's why we're here to keep the ones here from helping! Now come on, if we keep up the assault, we're sure to wear some of them down!"

However, those few seconds of distraction proved to be the beginning of the goons' undoing, as with their eyes now taken off the fight, they failed to notice the sparking green blur swerving in from behind them, as Izuku sprang at last into action with but a single driving objective: SUPPRESS THE VILLAINS!

With a lightning fast and resounding SMASH; Izuku sprang up from the ground behind the first three goons and delivered a steel-soled heel kick across all three of their heads in one perfect sweep, leaving their heads ringing just before they went unconscious to the ground. His eyes were the picture of focus, determination and sheer will towards the task at hand, but Izuku still couldn't stop thinking to himself: 'I hope the others still performing rescue maneuvers are all right, wherever they might be! I just hope they also figured in the possibility for a Villain counterattack!'

Unfortunately, the goons' compatriots were far quicker witted, as they already were getting their cement guns centered on Izuku in the final seconds of his attack, pulling the triggers the moment both his feet reunited with the ground.

"Lemme borrow this!" Another young boy's voice suddenly proclaimed courageously, just before the goon in the front found his aiming forearm getting wrapped around by a massive flesh-colored and blonde tufted tail, just before his arm got yanked off course the moment he pulled the trigger, causing him to spray his two partners with a full helping of quick-dry cement, just before his arm got yanked up and over his shoulder, causing his whole body to flip and hit the ground hard while the wielder of said tail drove his knee into the solar plexus of a fourth, knocking the wind right out of them.

Within less than three seconds, Mashirao Ojiro had managed to return to the scene of the fight, and save Izuku with perfect martial precision, earning him a genuinely shocked reaction from the freckled boy once he realized what a close call he'd just had.

"It sounded like the evacuation of the injured at the waterfront was close to finished by the time I decided to head back here to support, and I've been hearing more of the same coming from around the rest of the exam grounds! We should be getting reinforcements soon!"

Back up in his observing perch, Yokumiru Mera was observing how, one after another, the rest of the examinees that weren't currently holding off the Villain attack at the newly decided rescue station and finish line, were not only managing to handle themselves against the teams of Villains that had been sent after them, but they were all finally starting to converge on the end point with multitudes of new civilians in tow.

'Let's see, counting the number of HUC members that these examinees have officially saved and are now bringing into the rescue station… that just leaves three more that need to be brought into its perimeter, and then the whole Provisional Hero License exam will be over.' With his having access to eyes all over the stadium grounds, it was easy for Mera to spot those exact three last civilians that needed to be brought into the cordoned off section before he could declare the exam complete: a family of three with about a handful of the examinees from Yuuei Academy, if he was keeping track correctly. He was nearly certain he was, and was convinced it was simply his sleep deprivation that was the reason why he was seeing two of the exact same examinee in two completely different sections of the grounds at once.

'Geez, it's even worse than I thought. C'mon, don't stumble on these last steps, everyone. The sooner they can finish this, the sooner I can finally get some sleep.'

"MIDORIYA-SAN! OJIRO-SAN!"

The moment Mashirao had spent filling Izuku in on progress had allowed another trio of goons a fair distance away to get another bead on them, but the sudden booming of Fumikage's voice drew both boy's attention, just in time to realize the opening they'd accidentally left for themselves.

"WE'RE HERE TO HELP!"

The polar opposite joyous ring of Mina's voice instantly followed in kind, and the moment the goons instinctively turned to see just what was heading their way, they were met by a side-by-side interception of acid globs and a massive shadowy clawed hand; melting away their weapons and knocking them silly through the air respectively, while the crow-headed boy and pink smiling girl came practically flying past and sliding across the ground to meet Izuku and Mashirao.

At the same time, more and more examinees were starting to pour in from all around the perimeter of the now-rescue station, depositing their civilians to be attended by those capable of first-aid, and then immediately rushing into the fray to deal with the goons.

"This is unbelievable, they just keep coming one after another! Don't panic, you idiots! Let's get 'em all in one shot!"

The largest group of goons among the madness quickly got themselves into position amid all the flying projectiles from the countless examinees' Quirks to hose several of them down with cement. However, what none of them realized was the presence of a large pair of black eyes watching them, hidden in broad daylight amid the rubble behind them.

With expert precision and speed, the ready goons suddenly found themselves getting tripped up and whipped around from an unexpected prehensile tongue emanating from out of the ground, knocking out their formation, and thus allowing the other examinees around to neutralize them instead.

The suddenness with which this happened left Izuku wide-eyed with relieved surprise as he looked into the rubble, only to find the image of Tsuyu Asui, coming into sight like a chameleon deactivating its camouflage. "Asu—I-I man, Tsuyu-san! When did you get here?!"

Realizing there was at least enough breathing room to give Izuku the explanation he frankly deserved, Tsuyu nonchalantly lifted the brim of the frog-eyed hat part of her costume from her brow. "I've been working on a more froggy-like technique so that I could finally reach combat level. 'Camouflage' is what I'm calling it-kero."

Izuku couldn't help but look amazed at such a thoroughly useful move, while Mashirao had just then finished delivering a finishing roundhouse kick to another especially cocky goon that tried getting the drop on him. "Asui-san! I'm sorry, I left to help here just before I could confirm: how are the rescue efforts at the waterfront going? Are they done already?"

"Mostly, yes. Momo and Kyouka should be here with the last civilians from there soon. After Mina met up with us and told us about Kolya-san getting thrown across the water, Ochako and Shouji-san volunteered to go and find him so Mina could help with the evacuations. Tenya-san, Tooru and Mineta also volunteered to look for any other civilians nearby while we all got the last ones at the waterfront. As long as nothing gets in their way, they should all be able to get back here okay-kero."

While Tsuyu was giving Mashirao and Izuku the rundown of how the waterfront rescue maneuvers were wrapping up, back within the rescue station, Mina was in the middle of helping Rikido and Kouji with transporting the last of the civilians from that section. As the other examinees were quick to step in and assist with the first-aid so the more mobile examinees could get back to carrying out the rest of the rescues, Mina once again found herself anxious scanning her surroundings for some kind of sign of Ochako or Mezo. As soon as she'd see a sign of them, then surely Nikolay wouldn't be far behind.

She didn't like the idea of not knowing exactly where her friends were in situations like this, or if they even had help if they landed in trouble. Of course she was similarly worried about Eijirou and Denki as well, but at least they had Bakugo on their side all the same. As far as she knew, Nikolay was all alone and potentially really badly hurt, wherever he was.

Her original plan of rushing over to where she could only assume he'd ultimately land had proven ill-planned, as the moment she had returned to the waterfront where the majority of Class 1-A still was, it quickly became clear that she couldn't in good conscience leave them and the civilians they were trying to help without an assisting hand; hence why she had relayed her original intentions to Ochako and Mezo once they had gotten everyone back onto dry land.

It hurt to know that she couldn't follow through the way she'd wanted to, but if there was anybody from their class in that moment whom she knew would be capable enough to help Nikolay, wherever he was, it would be them. The fact that Tenya, Tooru and Minoru all volunteered to help as well only helped ease her anxiety that much more. Still, only when she'd see for herself that he was okay would she really be able to relax.

In the end, in keeping with all the advice she'd been given over the course of this exam, Mina knew she had ultimately made the most responsible choice she could have, utilizing the positions and abilities of her classmates the best way she could think of, in a way that wouldn't ultimately leave even a single civilian unattended, while also seeing to it that her classmates were being looked after as well. In its own way, that knowledge gave her a warm feeling of genuine accomplishment in the pit of her chest. She could now only hope that it would ultimately pay off like she really wanted it to.

With the influx of civilians visibly starting to slow, Mina returned her attention to the ever-ongoing fight in the front, and with a deep breath to ease her nervousness, she broke into another speedy acid slide, ready to get back into it and help put an end to the threat like only she could if possible. All the while, she could only keep hoping in the back of her mind that, wherever Nikolay was, that he wasn't too badly hurt, if at all.

The more she'd been forced to really think about the possibility today, and especially when thinking back on that revelation of a conversation back in the dorms with the other girls in relation, the more Mina found that the already-distressing thought of Nikolay getting hurt without her there to prevent or take care of it, was somehow managing to become nearly murderously painful in the core of her heart, to the point it essentially brought the beginnings of tears on command like nothing else ever had before.

Just as painful, in fact, as the infuriating uncertainty in her head as to just what she was supposed to make of that sudden fundamental emotional change in herself at a mere thought.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay, Kolya-kun? You looked like you were moving kind of weird earlier." Tooru pointed out shortly after they had started making their way down the easternmost road of the city section, with Tenya and Ochako both still scouting ahead, while Nikolay was boosting himself with every other step at half his kinetic power, and Mina was still sliding right alongside him, and Minoru was riding atop Mezo's back with Tooru and the civilians.

"I'm sore, but I'll be okay for however much longer this exam could go, which I can't imagine could be much longer. Right now I'm just glad I can move and talk again at all." Having not seen what had happened before he'd gotten flown in to this part of the grounds, and knowing they were still ultimately racing against the clock, Tooru knew better than to keep pressing him for details right now. Besides, the fact he even thought to mention being able to move as though he hadn't been at one point pretty much answered her question for her.

However, now Tooru's attention was on Mina beside him. "It's amazing how fast you got back here, Mina-chan. It hasn't even been two minutes since you let us know about Kolya-kun getting thrown all the way out here. Besides, I thought you were helping everyone get the last of the civilians to the rescue station by the time I left with Iida-kun and Mineta."

Despite not taking his eyes off the road ahead, Nikolay heard everything loud and clear, and all of a sudden did his confusion from before come right back. Yes, Mina was fast on her feet naturally, even more so when especially determined, but with the size of these testing grounds and with everything going on all at once, there was no way that even she could have gotten to the waterfront with the rest of the class, told them everything, gone back to deliver the civilians, and then come all the way over to where he'd crash landed in the span of less than two minutes. This was seriously not adding up, and it was leaving him with a worse and worse feeling in his stomach of just how much something was wrong with this overall picture.

Not helping was the sheer casualness with which Mina actually answered their invisible classmate: "Oh, well a lot of the civilians had already been rescued and were on their way to the station by then, so it took no time at all for me to get the ones we still had over there, and then come back. I just got lucky, really."

Even the way Mina was talking didn't sound right, there was none of the childlike energy or laid back wording she typically used, like so many of their classmates typically used. There was no way Nikolay could just shrug this off, he needed to make sure he wasn't simply going crazy right now. And so, the single most sensible idea finally came to mind: "I have to admit, inconsistent priorities under pressure aside, you've otherwise been on top of your game all throughout this exam, Ochi Chyornye."

Just as Mezo and Minoru both similarly perked their heads up with confusion as to what the heck their foreign classmate had just said, while Tooru was both surprised and delighted to finally hear the once mysterious nickname she remembered Mina dwelling on back at the training camp; Mina all the while instead seemed to just light right up. "Ooh, that's a new one, Kolya-kun! Sounds so exotic! Does it mean something special?"

However, in contrast, Nikolay's already serious expression lowered even further; being the only one among his peers now who knew the truth of his supposed pink best friend at his side right now, with Tooru quickly following suit once she knew she hadn't misheard Mina's response.

All at once did Nikolay finally remember the story Izuku had told before this specific exam had started; about running into Ochako before, only for her to act completely different from normal, and why that was. Glancing back to Mina over his shoulder as they continued on their way, he could see the light in her black gold eyes dim with realization once she saw the intensity in his gaze. She knew exactly what he was thinking directly to her in that moment: 'Got you.'

The moment he began to open his mouth to call 'Mina' out, though, the air around them suddenly seemed to shake with the eruption of a monstrous roar that shook the very ground beneath their feet, bringing the examinees to a complete stop in a crossroads as they tried to cover their ears and keep their heads from ringing. Even the makeshift ear buds in Nikolay's ears were downright useless to block out something so powerful. He could scarcely imagine even he could have been able to produce such a wave of pure sound even if he'd had his whole life to practice and hone his enhanced shout.

"Oh my God, what the hell was that?! Did they bring a damn kaiju into the exam just to test us that way, too?!" Minoru exclaimed, shaking like a leaf at the very thought, with Tooru's gloves and boots showing she was actually having the same reaction. Before Nikolay or Mezo could say otherwise, Tenya came racing back to them, with Ochako quickly descending down from above to do the same.

Even with his mask hiding his expression, his naturally robotic body language was frantic enough for everyone to tell that Tenya was now especially on edge. "Everyone…that was Gang Orca just now, I couldn't possibly mistake it! If he's doing something like this, I'm afraid he's gearing up to get especially serious! I'm not sure all the examinees together will be able to stop whatever he's planning to do next! If we can get these civilians to the safety of the rescue station as soon as possible, we can end the exam before he hurts anyone any further!"

Nikolay and the others could all feel their hearts racing with anxiety at the thought. However, having kept a constant mental note of the layout of these testing grounds, and where they now were in relation to that, and where he knew the current rescue station to be, Nikolay actually felt a pang of relief. "Then we're in luck. If we just head down this street to our left and turn left at the first major intersection, we have a straight shot to the rescue station!"

"Um…actually, Kolya-san…" Nikolay could feel the mood drop the moment he heard the regret in Ochako's voice. After having served as their eyes in the sky, of course she had to have known of any potential obstacles long before the rest of them did. He was pretty much gearing up to be faced with an entire army of Gang Orca's goons to stand in their way.

Instead, for better or for worse, they found themselves staring down a veritable mountain of debris blocking the entire road, the result of two especially tall skyscrapers practically imploding in on themselves. They were facing one giant final literal roadblock between here and victory for everyone.

"We can't simply turn back. It would take far too long, and we'd end up right in the middle of the battle, assuming there aren't more goons looking to intercept us along the way." Tenya theorized.

"I would suggest Uraraka-san simply remove my gravity so I could fly the civilians over it, like when I tried to chase the Villains at the training camp with Midoriya-san and Todoroki-san, but without Asui-san to help provide my gliding momentum, I wouldn't be able to get high enough." Mezo likewise pointed out, to his own visible regret.

"Yeah, plus simply climbing over that rubble would take way too long, and we have no way of knowing what would be on the other side. We could be looking at a sheer drop, assuming us climbing wouldn't end up unsettling the entire thing from under our feet." Nikolay finished, growing visibly as frustrated as Minoru and Tooru at this considerable final obstacle.

Until Ochako suddenly snapped her fingers and perked up with remembrance, right before running up to Nikolay. "Kolya-san, I have an idea! Remember the maneuver we did at the end of our very first rescue practice at the start of the year? Remember what we did to cross all that distance and get the last civilians across the finish line before time ran out? We could do that again here and cross all that distance in less than half the time!"

The way Nikolay's eyes widened with similar remembrance under his cracked goggles seemed to inspire similar optimism in Mezo, Tooru and Minoru, while Tenya's firm posture showed he clearly wasn't as thoroughly convinced. "Uraraka-san, Bezpalov-san's injuries are too extensive to risk a tactic you've only really practiced once before, and without actual flesh-and-blood civilians to boot. We need to consider their conditions and fortitude even more."

"Actually, we confirmed with these young'uns earlier, before you and your group arrived to help us. We actually got off rather lucky as far as injuries are concerned," the grandfather upon Mezo's back suddenly chimed in for the first time, rendering everyone else silent. If these folks were actually speaking out in defense of this last-second plan of Ochako's, and if it had the ability for them to end this exam before the battle got even more intense than it sounded, than they had every obligation to try. Even Tenya couldn't deny this now that even the civilians themselves were essentially volunteering for it.

"You said it yourself, Iida; there's no telling what could happen to the others if we just waste time out here. For all we know, these folks could be the last civilians that need to reach the rescue station! With that in mind, it's worth every shot!" Minoru suddenly speaking up with approval was one of the biggest surprises to come out of this little delay, but yet it still managed to serve as the final deciding voice, as Tenya finally stood tall and gave a firm nod of approval. "Very well…if the civilians have no objections, and if you both truly believe this can help save them and all the civilians out there and our comrades…then I can only wish you the best of luck, Uraraka-san, Bezpalov-san."

Already, Nikolay was proceeding to untie his last capture chord from his two tuning forks, and was instead now fashioning it into an especially lengthy lasso, fastening it around both grandparents and their granddaughter, before tying the rest of it to his own waist, and then tying the last of it around Ochako's right forearm, effectively linking them all together. Once she finished placing her hands upon herself, Nikolay and the three civilians, she had her eyes now set on the air above the rubble pile. "Kolya-san, just like last time."

"Understood loud and clear, Uraraka-san." Nikolay couldn't hide the hopeful smile on his face as he was already more than ready to imitate this now-nostalgic trick of theirs; putting his back flush against Ochako's, and the two of them linking their arms together so that his hands were once again aiming forward, while the three civilians were floating connected to him, hanging a good several feet over his head so he wouldn't run the risk of firing his kinetic blasts right in their faces.

"We'll make sure we don't go too fast for you all, okay?" Ochako confirmed, keeping her fingers poised just an inch from each other in preparation for when they would need to finally get back on solid ground and hopefully bring the exam to an end.

"We've been through much rougher than this, young lady; you all seem to have thought out how best to resolve this situation, so now it's time for you to follow through, young Heroes," the grandmother declared with surprising bravado; whether it was out of impatience for how long the exam had been going, or genuine enthusiasm for seeing these examinees actually brainstorm together and work out a genuine rescue plan, nobody knew.

With no further time to waste with them now already being airborne, Nikolay proceeded to fire a launching blast from his hands and feet at three-quarters of his peak power, sending himself, Ochako and the civilians soaring across the air, at an angle that the others could already tell would be more than enough to get them over the rubble mountain ahead.

"Do you really think they can pull through on this, Iida-san? No matter how you look at it, this is still a big gamble they're taking." Minoru finally asked, while Tenya didn't take his eyes off the shrinking sight of his two classmates, feeling a warmth of pride in his chest at their adaptability towards working together.

However, just as he was about to answer—"Wait a second, what happened to Ashido-san?!"

Mezo's confused voice came with a great deal of alarm, and as soon as everyone looked back, they were met with nothing but air where Mina had been standing mere seconds ago. Minoru was already looking frantically up and down all the visible streets around them for any sign of their now-vanished pink classmate. "What the hell? Where did she go? When did she go? How could she have disappeared without any of us noticing?!"

"It had to have been when we all were trying to cover our ears from Gang Orca's roar earlier. But…you guys…I don't think that was really Mina-chan." Tooru suddenly spoke up, drawing deeply confused and troubled glances from her classmates, all of them clearly needing her to explain herself.

Mere seconds ago…

The continuous strain of relentlessly using their Quirks in conjunction with each other for the sake of immobilizing Gang Orca was starting to really take its toll on Shoto and Inasa. Neither of them was willing to admit it, but they couldn't honestly tell how much longer they could keep themselves going; by now starting to silently hope that they had just that one second more of fortitude than their opponent before he would be officially incapacitated.

"A prison made from fire and wind…a nice idea. If I were the average Villain, I might give up…or cry…or even beg for forgiveness." As soon as they could both hear the Killer Whale 'Villain's' voice emanating from the flaming twister, they could barely make out the image of him within the flames, actually proceeding to douse himself from a bottle of water he had to have been keeping hidden on his person the entire time; leaving both boys wide-eyed with shock.

"However, what if that wasn't the case? The moment you attacked me, I had already worked out my next move."

Before either Shoto or Inasa could even react, they were suddenly being met with a devastating ring of pure noise beyond the scope of audio. It produced an explosion of air so immense, it immediately overpowered Inasa's whirlwind and Shoto's fire alike, and left them and the entire stadium with their ears ringing something truly terrible.

Trying to ride out the ringing in their skulls, Shoto and Inasa both struggled to lift their heads, only to find Gang Orca standing as tall and powerful before them as ever before, his terrifying red eyes burning as he stared them down; his maw open to reveal numerous sharp and rending teeth, looking like he was about ready to devour both boys entirely. "WELL? WHAT DO YOU BOYS HAVE PLANNED NEXT?!"

Gritting his teeth in the face of this harsh reality, Shoto couldn't think of anything else, nor could Inasa. It wasn't even the terror of this image of their opponent that caused it. It was simply the realization on both their parts, that even if they could bring their Quirks together and put aside their differences, they were still so, so far from being ready to truly face against truly powerful Villains and call themselves Heroes.

And that, by far, was the most painful part of it all.

As Shoto began to lift his head to finally admit that he had nothing else up his sleeve, his left eye managed to catch the edge of a dark green blur suddenly shooting through the sky, spinning right toward the back of Gang Orca's head; instantly able to recognize just what it was with surprise.

"GET AWAY FROM THEM!"

With a furious battle cry, Izuku came dashing in like a glowing green lightning bolt, driving a Full Cowl Shoot Style spinning kick straight into Gang Orca…only for the 'Villain' to swiftly and precisely bring a deflecting bracer-clad arm up in defense, absorbing the full brunt of his desperate attack, forcing the freckled boy to kick himself back off and onto the ground, already running a million potential strategies through his head in order to try and break his enemy's defense.

All the while, both Shoto and Inasa could only watch the swiftness and vicious aggression with which Izuku had just thrown himself right into the fray, just for the sake of keeping Gang Orca from potentially finishing them both off. The Shiketsu High boy couldn't even begin to imagine what had to be driving this kid to go into battle like this all by himself after no doubt seeing how valiantly he and Shoto together had tried to hold the 'Villain' off.

Shoto, on the other hand, couldn't have been less surprised by such an impulsive act on Izuku's part if he'd tried. 'Midoriya…even out of a select few among us…you always…to the bitter end…'

Izuku looked like he was coiling back in preparation to launch himself fot first straight into Gang Orca's face if need be, no matter how prepared the behemoth before him looked to be. At the last possible moment as he was ready to fire all the tension building in the muscles in his legs into an all-powerful leap—"Erm…if I could have your attention please, everyone."

The sudden electric chiming from all across the stadium suddenly sounded out, bringing all the action to an instantaneous halt, as all the examinees and civilians alike looked around for some kind of confirmation as to just what this announcement could potentially be about.

"All stationed members of the HUC have been rescued from the crisis area. This may be considerably selfish of me, but with that I must bring these Provisional Hero License Examinations…TO A CLOSE!"

The entire station erupted with a buzz of surprised exclamations and joyous cheers from all the examinees, with a scattered few looking back for some kind of sign of whoever may have been the lucky ones to have finally brought the madness to an end with their return. Amid the throngs of Quirked humanity within the area of the rescue station, those of Class 1-A, and those that had carefully studied said class in preparation beforehand, were quick to notice the recently absent forms of a visibly battered, bruised and bloodied Nikolay Bezpalov and a dizzy-looking Ochako Uraraka, both nearly sprawled on the floor after the extent to which they'd pushed themselves within just the last few seconds, while the three civilians they had brought back were already being attended to by other examinees, only to be just as quickly reminded that the exam was now officially over.

The cheering amid the examinees only seemed to grow louder with each one's realization that it was finally over; while Tenya, Tooru, Mezo and Minoru had likewise finally returned to the scene; the class president and tentacled boy quick to bring the gravity girl and Russian boy back to their feet. Tenya's rigid enthusiasm nearly brought him to slam an approving flat hand to Nikolay's back, only for a last-second synapse sparking in his brain to remind him of the boy's condition. "You both did splendidly! You've really helped save everyone with your plan, Uraraka-san!"

Ochako, even despite the very slight nausea she was trying to swallow down, was still able to smile bashfully that she was being called the savior of the day, but before she or anyone else could say anything, Minoru was already hopping up and down ecstatically, especially as more and more of their fellow classmates were already converging on them upon spotting them in the crowd in the wake of long-awaited victory. "HELL YES! CLASS 1-A COMES OUT ON TOP!"

"That's not the thing to take away from all of this, though, Mineta-san." Momo suddenly pointed out while she was already in the process of creating a bottle of water and a cloth to help Ochako with her nausea, and to help Nikolay regain just a little bit more energy.

As the rest of the present 1-A students looked to their vice president, she similarly looked back take in the sight of the numerous different examinees they stood among. "The whole point of an exam like this was to see how well we could work together in saving people, even among others we're not nearly as familiar with. We started off competing against each other in the elimination round… and yet despite that, when people were in danger, we put those differences aside and fought alongside each other for the greater good."

The wave of realization that hit several of her classmates could have been utterly palpable, yet the point was still completely hammered home when Tenya found the chance to interject, removing his helmet and once again chopping his arm through the air for emphasis as always. "That's absolutely right! True Heroes don't concern themselves with petty things like getting one over on one another for recognition or glory! To be a Hero is to put such things aside and recognize just who our responsibilities are beholden to before anything else: these people here! These people for whom we represent the sustaining of peace, justice and hope! We all together represent the one and only defensive line between them and the danger presented by Villains, and the sooner we all accept our part in that, the more effective Heroes we all can be! You would all be very wise to keep that thought close to your hearts!"

While the lesson was indeed taking route, it certainly didn't stop some of the 1-A students from instinctively laughing at how unnecessarily intense their class president always felt the need to be; while at the same time, the nearest civilians who couldn't help but overhear the unnecessarily loud bespectacled boy, were all smiling in silent approval that more and more of these young future Heroes really did seem to be understanding exactly what this exam was all about.

"Oh, Mina-chan! Over here!" Tooru suddenly started exclaiming excitedly once she could spot the head of frizzy pink hair and yellow horns trying to work her way through the crowd. As soon as Nikolay and Ochako both turned around, she seemed to positively ignite with a bright and relieved smile, as she started trying to make her way through her fellow examinees that much faster, and all the while trying to hold back the tears to see the young Slav was still in one piece after what she'd last seen happen.

Of course, as soon as she reached the clearing made by her classmates, she quickly saw just how beaten up he looked, and nearly dug her heels in to keep from throwing herself onto him in a hug and potentially making it worse. "Oh my god, Kolya-kun, what happened?! I saw you get thrown all the way, and I was so worried! I wanted to go out and find you, but I needed to help everyone here with rescuing the civilians first! Are you okay?"

Acting on what she could now clearly see on Nikolay and hear from Mina, Momo was already starting to step in, creating a roll of gauze from her elbow, while Nikolay was about to start telling Mina it looked worse than it felt (which at this point he knew was close to becoming a lie), just as the electronic chimes kicked in again, slowly bringing the cheering to a stop.

"After we tally the scores, I will present the results of the examination to all of you here. Those who have suffered injuries, please direct yourselves to the medical offices. The rest of you, please change back into your normal clothes and await further instructions. Thank you."

The moment the message was over, Nikolay already felt an unmistakable pair of warm arms wrap around his left, as firmly as necessary, but as gently as possible, while Mina gave him an assuring and supportive smile. "You might have managed to get through the test without me, but you can't get rid of me that easily, Kolya-kun. Let me at least help you get there. Maybe they might even let me help after that. Healing hands and all, y'know?"

The moment she had secured her hold on him, they had both once again felt that same electrical jolt as they had from the end of the previous exam… a realization that replaced Nikolay's previous apprehension from the bizarre interactions from minutes before, with a genuinely touched and grateful smile that just seemed to make hers all the brighter. "You couldn't pay me enough to say 'no' to that right now, Mina. Seriously, everything hurts right now."

As Mina helped Nikolay along to the nearest of the medical offices alongside the rest of the injured examinees, the rest of the 1-A students couldn't help but watch on approvingly, while still basking in the relief that the exam was finally over. They'd all given everything they had to prove themselves in one of the toughest scenarios they'd faced yet in their training, and now all they could do was sit back and wait to see if it was genuinely considered good enough by the real decision makers of the day.

Of course, that didn't stop the likes of Tooru from once again running her mouth to the rest of the girls, and any other classmates close enough to overhear her, about the bizarre instance of the theorized 'fake' Mina that had tagged along with their group mere minutes before, with Minoru anxiously following suit alongside her; bringing to the minds of some the similar story Izuku had shared from the previous exam. It didn't take long after for the green-haired boy himself to soon enough reunite with his classmates and, after numerous congratulations and thanks had been given and shared among them all, proceed to be treated to the exact same story; to his personal shock.

All the while, as he simply stood and observed the systematic filing out and lingering congratulations among the one-hundred examinees below, Gang Orca could soon pick up the approaching footsteps that could have only been the men assigned to be his theoretical goons for the exam. "We're really sorry, boss. We all failed to do our jobs."

Grateful he could finally shed the 'Villain' character, the Killer Whale Hero let out a wistful sigh. "No, you all did as you were told and fought your hardest. Nobody could ask you to do more, not even me. Besides, it's not exactly like any of us had the capabilities to really fight with our all, anyway."

To emphasize the point to the numerous men behind him, he raised but a single arm, displaying the same bracer he had managed to deflect Izuku's kick with. "It's rather hard for me to move around with these things on. I'm used to being much more flexible in a fight."

While this explanation, and his reassurances, seemed to put his former goons' minds at ease, Gang Orca was now looking at the pronounced dent that had been left in that same bracer, silently contemplating the strength that Midoriya boy had managed to hit it with so unexpectedly. 'No… even if I didn't have this protector on… that fire prison was still very impressive. With all the damage I sustained from the dryness, and with Midoriya-kun's surprise attack, if this exam had dragged on a little while longer…'

Of course, now that the exam was over, he knew there was no point in dwelling on hypotheticals. No, if anything deserved his focus and approval, it was the four most standout examinees from his personal witness.

Bezpalov, for just how intensely Todoroki and Yoarashi were going at it with each other, and despite even getting directly caught in the crossfire of it, never once stopped trying to get between them and steer them both in the right direction again. That kind of fortitude of will and loyalty towards his allies was commendable. Not to mention the fact he had the kind of discerning eye to realize so quickly just what Gang Orca was aiming for when several of his goons had suddenly disappeared.

Todoroki and Yoarashi themselves, for how ill-advised their bickering was, still ultimately found the wherewithal and synergy to actually immobilize him through combining their Quirks. If they could just put their personal differences aside, they had the potential to be a truly unstoppable Hero team.

And finally, Midoriya; simply for the sheer inspiring gusto he displayed in order to throw himself straight into the fray for the sake of protecting others. There were many, even in the Pro Hero field, that would call such an attitude stupid and reckless, but there was still something deeply inspiring about someone so young showing such an old-school heart for Heroics, almost on a primal level.

It unfortunately hadn't been long after they had reached the edge of the exam grounds, before the staff were quick to usher the injured examinees from the non-injured, thus forcing Nikolay and Mina to part ways, at least until she mentioned the healing salve aspect of her Quirk alongside her willingness to help. Afterward she was accepted to come in once she was finished changing back into her school uniform. From there, it was a straight shot for Nikolay to reach the nearest unoccupied medical office, wherein the physician on hand instructed him to get out of his costume while they fetched a few extra pieces of medical supplies from down the hall.

The pain pricking at numerous parts of his body made it more than a little awkward for Nikolay to start trying to inch his way out of his chakha and the underlying turtleneck of his costume, but by some miracle, he'd ultimately managed to do it, just at the moment he'd heard the door to the office creak open from behind. He was just about to open his mouth and ask the physician what they were thinking of treating on him first, before his ears were instead greeted with: "I was hoping I'd be able to find you here, Kolya-kun."

The sound of Mina's voice, which normally should've filled him with relief and god-only-knew what else, instead gave him an uneasy chill. After what had happened during the exam, and what he'd finally brought himself to remember, his ears were now much more attuned to the missing inflection of joy and warmhearted kindness that Mina always naturally carried when she spoke. The person behind him may have looked exactly like her all this time, and may have even sounded like her… but now he knew far better.

Glancing back over his shoulder to see 'Mina' still in her Hero costume in the doorway, he decided to try and ease into it as best he could: "Didn't the staff just tell all the uninjured students to change back into their uniforms? Why are you already back here?"

Whoever this 'Mina' really was (even though Nikolay was starting to get a good idea the more he thought about it), she was certainly committed to the part, as she didn't even miss a beat before answering: "Well, after I saw how hurt you got all throughout that exam, I just couldn't take not being here to try and make you feel even a little better, Kolya-kun. Is that really such a bad thing for you?"

To hear this girl talk so unnaturally with Mina's voice got under Nikolay's skin like even he couldn't believe, as he finally turned to face her, and didn't even try to hide the accusatory look in his green eyes. "All right, you can go ahead and drop the act already. I know for a fact you're not really Ashido Mina."

'Mina' came to a stop, and a very curious, and perhaps even a touch devious, smile slowly began creeping across her face; again, a downright wrong sight to see on the face of his closest friend. "Oh? Well now you've got me curious, Kolya-kun. What makes you so certain I'm not who I say I am?"

Nikolay was already having a white-knuckled grip on the side of the medical bed. "First of all, don't call me that! You're not her, so you don't have the right to! If you really want to talk to me, I'd prefer it without the lies! And if you really wanna know what gave you away? Three things:

"One: You inconsistently going from telling me not to push myself when trying to save people, and then going on about how we should rush headlong into a fight when we have civilians looking for us to protect them. The real Mina would never even think of doing something that reckless and dangerous, and especially with civilians around.

"Two: Not once since I've known her, have I ever heard Mina call Midoriya-san by his full family name. She comes up with nicknames for her friends more naturally than anybody. Honestly, that should've been the biggest giveaway right out the gate.

"But the one that really sealed the deal: when I called you 'Ochi Chyornye,' you acted like it was the very first time I'd ever called you that… despite the fact that I'd given it to her long before, and she already knew what it meant, because it was one of the only times that we had even the slightest wedge put between us.

"All of those things at least confirmed for me that you weren't the real Mina… but the more I've been thinking about it since that moment, I think I now have a good idea who you really are underneath. You see, before the exam started, Midoriya-san had told a few of us about how one of the other examinees actually disguised themselves as our classmate, Uraraka Ochako-san, in order to get the drop on him, and how they revealed themselves to him when he called them out on it.

"He said that it was the one girl among the students from Shiketsu High that came here… the same one that the really hairy boy among them had said went missing a good ways into the rescue exam, in fact… I think he said her name was… Utsushimi Camie-san."

The medical office lay silent for a good couple of seconds that felt like they lasted forever, as Nikolay and 'Mina' never took their eyes off each other.

Suddenly, she let out a deeply amused chuckle, forming a wry smirk… just before her pink skin began to start running in rivulets like liquid before Nikolay's very eyes. "Oh, well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised you Yuuei kids are this sharp. With a kid like Midoriya-kun among you, I guess it's just to be expected. You seemed like a really observant one from the beginning, anyway."

Nikolay tried to maintain his steadfast composure, but there was no denying in his head how disturbing it looked for Mina's visage to be genuinely melting to the ground before him, even if the real girl behind the disguise was still giggling to herself. "It's kind of funny in a symbolic way, isn't it: watching the disguise of a girl with an Acid Quirk actually melt like this?"

By now, the pink skin, black gold eyes and pink hair had started to give way to long golden brown hair, those same big dark brown eyes, and smiling face with full glossy lips. The fact she was already still trying to give Nikolay that flirtatious smile, this time, didn't get to him… but the fact he was starting to see more and more of her naked skin as her disguise kept melting away did; as his eyes soon went wide as dinner plates, and he instinctively grabbed his discarded chakha and tossed it to her upon remembering that last awkward little detail of Izuku's earlier testimony about her and her Quirk.

Thankfully for both of them, Camie was quick to catch what was being tossed to her, and none too soon, as the last bit of her disguise covering her chest and other unmentionables was just about to fall away by the time she had. To his discomfort, though, this didn't stop her from giggling once again. "Oh, Kolya-kun, you're actually letting me hang on to your clothes? I can't imagine what Mina-chan would think if she were to come in here and see that right now, especially with me looking like this."

This, of course, got the exact reaction she'd been looking for, as Nikolay's whole face was now glowing red, just before he practically flew for a nearby rack of full-sized towels, yanked one off and tossed that to Camie instead, while she at least had the decency to unfold it over her front upon catching it, and then just as quickly tossing his chakha back to him. "Oh, you're just so adorable when your face gets all red like that, Kolya-kun. It's such a good color for you."

Nikolay immediately turned his back to her so she couldn't keep making fun of him, but he still tried to maintain as much strength in his voice as he could. "You seriously shouldn't be here right now, especially not in that condition. Get some clothes back on somewhere else, please. If nothing else, I'll look for you when they have us all gather to announce who passed and who didn't. I've got quite a few questions for you after that bizarre stunt of yours."

Since he was keeping his back turned towards her, he never noticed how Camie never bothered taking a single step closer towards him; her eyes constantly glancing towards the small security cameras in the corners to her left and right. Still, a mischievous smile spread across her lips. "Well, in that case, we have a lot in common, Kolya-kun. You see, I like to learn a lot about people I'm interested in.

"I was really hoping to learn a lot more about you, Midoriya-kun and all your other Yuuei classmates during the last exam, but obviously circumstances forced me to try learning everything I was curious about regarding you the way I did just now instead." Camie's explanation made it clear that she thought what she did was as obvious as could be, and that just made the apprehension Nikolay was feeling in her presence that much worse.

"But that's just it, though: why? If you wanted to ask me questions about myself, why the whole deception with disguising yourself as Mina? What was the point of that in a rescue exam?" Once again, her instinct was to giggle at just how intense his voice was getting.

"I've come to find that you'll learn so, so much more about a person when you catch them under pressure. If I want to learn what makes Kolya-kun tick, and just why it is he really wants to become a Hero, then there's no better time and place to do that than when under pressure, and presented with a face they already trust. I have to say, you really did not disappoint. Your persistence in trying to help people despite your own injuries and your own classmates' attempts to get you to slow down gave me a great picture of just exactly what kind of Hero you are. You and Midoriya-kun are definitely a very interesting pair."

Nikolay was silent for a few precious seconds, for she had inadvertently already answered the question he deemed to be the most important: why. His nervous body language made it clear that he wanted very much to turn around so he could look Camie in the eyes as they spoke, but he was still simply too flustered to follow through on it. He may have been notably brave when in the heat of the moment, but outside, he was still just as awkward and girl-shy as any other teenage boy; a realization that made her laugh again with great amusement.

Keeping in mind the potential timing of anyone else nearby coming here, Camie already began backing her way out the door into the hall, visibly getting ready to sprint away before anyone saw her like this. "I can imagine you, Midoriya-kun and a lot of your classmates have a lot of your own questions about me… but I wouldn't worry about that. I can just feel it in my heart: we're all going to be seeing a lot more of each other from now on. So try not to lose track of whatever you want to know for the next time we meet, Kolya-kun."

With that, just as soon as Nikolay finally worked up the courage to turn around, Camie was already gone just as quickly as she had arrived, finally leaving the panting Russian boy all by himself again; just as soon as the same physician from before, and the real Mina herself finally returned; the latter finally dressed back in her regular Yuuei uniform, with his own hanging from a coat hanger in her hand; courtesy of Eijirou Kirishima once he'd learned of their Russian friend's condition.

For the next several minutes, they both got to work treating each of the bruises, punctures and lacerations all over Nikolay's midsection and all along his arms and legs. The physician's strict professionalism helped keep Mina's focus on the task at hand, since anyone whose Quirk could assist in first-aid needed to be able to handle any number of potential conditions of their patients without losing concentration.

However, that still didn't make it any less awkward for her and Nikolay both, since the extent of his injuries forced him to just sit there with no shirt and his pants rolled all the way up. The two teens certainly couldn't make eye contact at any point during all this, otherwise they would have both seen just how red the other's face was. The sight of the several scars lining the insides of his arms, alongside the claw marks along his left side and the bullet scar just above his heart did not help, either, albeit for very different reasons.

Nikolay honestly couldn't help but feel embarrassed. In spite of all the training he'd been putting himself through, his physique was still not like that of Izuku and Bakugo, and certainly nothing like Eijirou, Rikido and Mezo when it came to outright sculpted musculature. He was definitely not as utterly skinny as he was at the start, he could definitely at least be described as 'toned', but not much further than that. The only really notable difference was that his shoulders looked a little broader now.

Every now and again, when Mina had her eyes focused elsewhere, Nikolay actually worked up the split second courage to chance a glance her way, and when he saw the deeply emotional look in her golden irises at the sight of every single injury blighting his otherwise fair skin, he swore he could feel his heart skip a beat each and every time.

Yes, Mina had always gotten emotional when she saw her friends get hurt, but there was something very different about her expressing of it this time. This time, she looked like every single tiny wound she saw was being inflicted right back on herself a hundredfold, and he had no idea at all how to address it, or what to even think about it. All things considered, these were ultimately some of the lightest injuries he'd received so far this year.

After several agonizingly long minutes of this process, with Mina being verbally led by the hand by the physician along the way as how to properly attend to and treat every potential kind of wound for future reference, Nikolay was finally given a clean bill of health and instructed to change back into his uniform, which he was more than happy to do in order to try and alleviate the awkwardness that was still hanging heavy in the air. After seeing that he had been injured all over from the onset, why he and Mina hadn't thought about such a situation once she'd volunteered to help with the first-aid, he couldn't possibly fathom, and neither could she, honestly.

Once they were out of the medical office and headed for the meeting ground all the examinees had been instructed to go to for their results, however, Nikolay could already feel the weight lifting off his shoulders, as he just let out a relieved sigh that the whole experience was now over. "Thank you so much for all the help back there, Mina. I think you just might have a real good backup plan as a Support-based Hero going for you if you get that much more medical training at this point."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind, Kolya-kun. How are you feeling right now?" Mina asked, thankfully trying just as hard to let the previous awkwardness wash off as possible, even if her mind was still racing with all her old lingering worries from today, and she was trying so hard to figure out just how to bring it up, any of it.

"Well, I don't have any of that numbness left over from that Ultrasonic Wave that Gang Orca hit me with, so that's a start. I don't hurt all over as much as I'm now just sore, but I'm sure that'll be all gone by tomorrow. All things considered, I think we both know I've definitely been worse."

The two teens started chuckling in remembrance, but it didn't last, as now just thinking about those past instances had Mina bowing her head in deep thought to herself, trying to keep her expression from sinking into the sadness those images now brought her. "You have no idea how much I wanted to just rush on over and watch your back for the rest of the exam when I saw you get flung like that, Kolya-kun. The fact you just kept trying to get between Todoroki-kun and that Yoarashi guy when they were fighting, even knowing how powerful they both are… I don't know whether to call that awesomely brave and totally what a Hero would do… or to call it just plain reckless."

Nikolay had pretty much expected the conversation to take this turn. How could it not? Had it been anyone else doing what he did; and he'd been watching from the outside; that's exactly what he would have been telling them, too. Frankly, seeing how much his being hurt was now upsetting his pink best friend today, if she wanted to scold him for doing something that thoughtless and getting hurt so much for it, he couldn't argue that he'd definitely earned it.

However, when Mina lifted her head up again, instead of the pained tears he was expecting, there was now instead a glow of understanding reflected in her eyes, and in the shaky but ever-present sense of determination on her face. "So much of me wanted to go after you when that happened… but there was a part of me that wanted to stay back and keep protecting all the civilians we'd all managed to rescue already… and a part of me that wanted to help the others rescue more. I mean, I know that's what Heroes are supposed to do more than anything else, but even though I was worried like crazy about you… I still didn't want to abandon my responsibility with everyone else."

Nikolay's own expression was looking similarly impressed as much as her own was focused. This was a surprisingly mature turn for someone like her, and she was realizing it right alongside him. "I still thought there was a chance you might have needed some kind of help wherever you were, just in case, so that's why I asked Urara-chan and Shouji-san to keep an eye out for you… but another reason I didn't end up going after you, even if it weren't for the whole rescue exam thing… is because I know just how much stronger you've gotten, Kolya-kun."

Finally, Mina turned to look him in the eye, and the affectionate glimmer in her black gold eyes nearly made Nikolay's heart stop. Had he only known just how hard her own was beating at that moment; and only intensifying with every other word: "I don't just mean physically, either. I mean, you've definitely gotten a lot better at taking hits and hitting back, but I mean, like, in mind and heart, too.

"I know you've been training so hard in order to get to that point, just like we all have, but I know that in a way, it's been even harder for you. I… I didn't want you to think or feel like you're weak, o-or think that I think you're weak by me always rushing to your side every single time you get even a little hurt. I-I mean, I don't want my friends to ever get hurt at all, that's not what I mean I-I just know you really want to try your best to become a Hero, and I do too, but I sometimes worry that you might think I treat you like a baby cause I always want to be there to help you, but I do want to always be there in case you do need help, and I… I… God, I don't know what I'm trying to say!"

The poor girl looked like she was just about to fall apart with frustrated tears, having had even a smidgeon of confidence in her words, only for it all to turn to dust in her mouth the further she went. Right now, all she wanted was to just rewind time so this whole conversation never even happened, and they could just keep moving forward without any further awkwardness between them.

Suddenly, she felt another powerful jolt shoot all through her body when she felt Nikolay's left hand gently grab onto her right, forcing her to finally look him in the eye again. The Slavic boy looked no less nervous than she imagined she clearly had to be, but just like her, he was trying his hardest to keep it together as he finally answered her. "You don't have to keep forcing yourself to say any more, Mina. Believe it or not… I do get it. Everybody's got some kind of pride that always risks getting hurt when people step in to help them all the time. Hell, we go to class with the poster child of that fact, remember?"

This thankfully already managed to be a good choice of words on Nikolay's part, as it actually got Mina to start giggling amusedly to herself at the reminder. Taking that as a good enough sign, he continued: "I won't insult you by lying; there probably would be a part of me that would be beating myself up every time you went out of your way to step in and help me along every step of the way… but at the same time, I don't want to let that part tell me what to think, because the truth is that I'm more and more grateful to have a friend like you and everyone else every time you all do just that. It always helps remind me that one of the most important things about being a Hero is learning to let your friends and allies help you carry the responsibility on your shoulders, just like you do for them at the same time. That's the whole reason so many Heroes are coming together to try and fill the gap now that All Might's gone; why my Dad's working so hard to be able to help do his part in that, too, you know?"

Mina was thankfully quick to realize the sentiment Nikolay was trying to express in order to try and help ease her worries about how he potentially felt about the actions she always chose to take for him when things got tough. He could likewise see that she was starting to get it, too, as he decided to clarify his point as best he could: "While I appreciate you trying to take my pride as a fellow Hero-in-training into consideration, if you're ever that worried about me again, Mina, please don't hesitate to come in and help me however you see fit in the future… unless there are civilians that need your help first, of course. I don't want to contradict the whole point of this exam, after all."

Again, a little levity in the mood went quite far, as now they could both chuckle at the realization of how his words could have unintentionally been taken. To his relief, Mina looked to be slowly but surely feeling better, as reflected by her smile alongside the sparkle that had returned to her eyes. "Don't worry, I'm not that dense all the time, Kolya-kun; I get what you're trying to say… and I appreciate it a lot. I can't say it'll be easy for me not to worry about you if I think you're in trouble, though… after the training camp, I don't know if it'll ever be easy."

Once more, the mood over their heads had begun to dim at the reminder of one of the worst moments in both their lives. Just thinking about how much it had tortured her to see him in that condition, Nikolay didn't dare to insult them both by asking why that moment would make it impossible for her not to worry about his safety.

At the same time, though; not even just thinking about that moment, but every time she'd seen Nikolay get hurt since the start of their school lives together, and how much more those memories pained her heart nowadays than they already did back then; Mina couldn't possibly bring herself to tell the Russian boy whose hand she had by now taken to holding in return, the full truth about why she found herself so much more worried for him now.

After all, it kept bringing her back, once again, to that whole conversation with the rest of the girls in the dorms two weeks ago. Only two weeks, but with how many times Mina had now found herself going back to it whenever thinking about Nikolay, one would have thought it had been years and years. So much time, regardless, and yet even now she found herself no more or less sure about just what the full extent of these emotions Nikolay was making her start to experience really was.

Despite the uncertainty in her head, though, Mina couldn't deny that, throughout today, being near him was making her heartbeat feel especially more intense than it normally was. The fact that, since that conversation, today was really the first time they'd gotten to spend any extensive amount of time together outside of constant training, helped make that self-realization much easier for her, too.

And all the while, she never realized just how identical the situation going on in Nikolay's head and heart at that moment was to hers. Again, he wasn't remotely surprised to hear Mina admit how emotionally tied she was to him that she would never be able to not fully worry about him in dangerous situations. That was the way she was with all her friends and allies, after all. But there was such an emotional edge to the way she was speaking to him now, to the light in her eyes, and even down to the tenderness with which she was now holding his hand as they walked, that had Nikolay's heart racing so much more than she normally got it to.

And in his head, Nikolay was likewise once again going right back to that talk with Eijirou weeks ago. So much time had passed since then, and yet after all the thinking he'd gone through, trying to make sense of everything, he still felt no closer to any kind of certainty of whether his feelings towards Mina really went all the way across the emotional spectrum like his red-haired friend was certain they did, or not.

Right now, he could only figure, though, that the fact she was making his heart race and heat up so much right now, especially in comparison to the beginning of their real friendship months ago, had to be a good sign of it. Not that he was about to just summon up the courage to say so now of all times.

No, right now, the best thing was for them to just clear up everything between them and focus on their results for the exam, especially as they were finally about to reach the meeting spot, due to the numerous students and the rest of their classmates they could spot ahead within the crowd.

With an affirming breath through his nose, Nikolay tightened his hold on Mina's hand to get her attention, as he looked at her as reassuringly as he could in these circumstances. "I'm not asking you to make not worrying about me or anyone else easy, Mina. It never could be for you; your heart's just too big for it, and that's one of the many reasons why I know you'll ultimately make it as a great Pro Hero."

Suddenly, Mina felt like she was right back in Nikolay's living room, the night after their internships had ended, with those same affirming and admiring words they had expressed to each other echoing right back to her in a whole new light; a light that left her whole chest feeling even warmer, with her smile visually expressing so. "Thank you, Kolya-kun. I know it's not the first time you or anyone else has told me so, but that doesn't make it any less sweet for you to say. I know you'll be able to make it in the end as a Hero, too, without a doubt. Yeah, you may not have ridiculous muscles like Kiri, or even like Midori-kun, but I know you're just as strong as both of them in all the places that count the most."

Nikolay couldn't possibly hide the bashful bloom of red on his cheeks, least of all from the sheer affection Mina was unknowingly directing towards him with that glowing smile of appreciation and confidence. No, if anything right now, after thinking back on the fact that Camie had implied he wasn't a strong Hero in the midst of the exam; to hear the real Mina confirm to him just how strong she really believed him to be, in ways beyond just physical strength, was exactly the kind of reassurance and affirmation he hadn't previously realized he'd been needing in the wake of everything else that had happened.

Like Eijirou had told him so long ago: Mina wasn't the kind of person to just tell people what they wanted to hear if she didn't fully mean it, herself. The fact she hadn't even hesitated to say these words to him now was all the proof he needed of just how far he truly had to have come at this point.

The conversation couldn't go any further, for now they had finally reunited with the rest of their class amid the throng of fellow examinees, all anxiously awaiting the announcement of their final scores, and to see if they had finally proven themselves worthy of gaining their Provisional Licenses; the biggest step yet in their universal journeys towards becoming Heroes.

As the minutes passed, the tension only seemed to grow everywhere one looked. Among the students of 1-A, everyone was considerably nervous, but out of all of them, the ones that were easily the most nervous and unsure of their chances were Nikolay, Izuku, Mina, Kyouka, Ochako, Minoru, Eijirou and Denki. The latter two had been especially verbal about how scared they were for their chances, as they regailed anyone and everyone who would listen about what a dismal experience the rescue exam had been when teamed up with Bakugo, whose attitude had apparently been even shittier than normal ("Seriously, half the time I thought he was gonna blow up the civilians as soon as save them!" "Yeah, good thing we were both there. I think he just really wanted to fight the Villains more than anything else. You'd think he would've just stayed put and waited for it, if that were the case. We didn't even end up fighting anybody in the end").

Before too much longer, the crowd quieted down, as at long last, the familiar lethargic image of Yokumiru Mera finally stepped out into the open, approaching the podium that stood before the massive screen; the final judge and jury of this crowd of 100 hopeful future Heroes.

"Hello, everybody, and thank you all for waiting so patiently. You have all worked hard. I will now begin by presenting the results of the examination… but before that, I have just a few words." The crowd was now silent, save for the scattered nervous mutterings of the odd examinee here and there, either from the anxiety of having to wait for their results that much longer, or from curiosity of just what the government official could possibly have to say after everything that had happened today.

"In terms of how we went about evaluating you all, between us members of the Hero Public Safety Commission and our colleagues from the HUC, we had two systems of point deduction that were combined to evaluate your performance. In short, we were evaluating both the quality and nature of your conduct in situations of crisis. The names of those who passed the examination will be displayed here in alphabetical order. With all that in mind, please go ahead and review the results yourself."

Before Nikolay could even have time to feel the apprehension in the pit of his stomach at the news that the civilians weren't the only ones watching and scoring his overall performance after all, the screen flared to life, and now everyone was faced with a large scoreboard of names, all running down in alphabetical order by family name first, as expected.

From the onset he could see that there were a total of 89 examinees who had actually passed, which was certainly more than he was expecting after experiencing just how difficult the rescue exam had been. At the moment he started to wonder to himself either if anyone from 1-A actually hadn't managed to make the cut, or if his name was going to be placed on there by first name first, since he was a foreigner among this whole crowd—

"OH MY GOD! I'M UP THERE! I'M UP THERE! I ACTUALLY DID IT! I PASSED!" Mina's voice was louder than any of her classmates had ever heard from her before, as the pink young girl was doing in-place back flips and front flips of excitement and unparalleled joy; tears of pure emotion sparkling in the sunlight as they flew from her beaming smiling face.

She was on an absolute role of celebration that was quickly being echoed by more and more examinees once they spotted their own names on the list; to the point that she soon started blindly throwing her arms around every one of her classmates she could find around her and nearly lifting them up off the ground with joyous laughter; which was thankfully met in kind by Ochako, Eijirou, Kyouka and Momo. By the time Nikolay had spotted her name on the scoreboard, he nearly felt her arms wrap around his band-aid covered sides like a vice and hoist him up off the ground in celebration. His surprise and happiness for her helped keep him from being jolted too hard this time by her touch.

Once she had finally set him back down on the ground so she could find more of their class to hug in her excitement, or be greeted as such in return by the other girls once they started spotting their names on the board as well; Nikolay was now feeling especially fired up, eagerly running his eyes down the board from her name… only to find his family name, Bezpalov, situated right underneath hers in plain black-and-white.

Two world-shaking realizations sparked in his brain in that single moment.

One: to his and everyone else's disbelief, Bakugo actually hadn't passed, and the entire crowd was made more than aware of it by the boy's infuriated howls of bloodthirsty rage once he realized it himself.

Two: Nikolay had actually done it. He had gone through hell all throughout both of these exams in order to even have a chance in having proved himself… but by God, the proof of it was right there; all the frustration, pain and training had been worth it. He had officially done it, just like so much of his class and the other Hero students around him.

Nikolay Olegovich Bezpalov had passed the Provisional Hero License Exam.

However, amid the mounting cries of joy and celebration, there were two who looked solemnly upon the board, not just for the fact that they hadn't managed to pass… but for the fact that they had pretty much expected such a result after what had happened.

Among a crowd of winners who would go on to take the biggest step yet towards becoming Pro Heroes, Shoto Todoroki and Inasa Yoarashi were two of the odd men out… a disappointing fact that they regrettably, yet readily, accepted.

It didn't take long once the initial euphoria wore off, for the 1-A students to suddenly realize that Bakugo and Shoto weren't on the list with the rest of them, with many looking to the stoic latter boy with worried and sympathetic looks on their faces; primarily from Izuku, Nikolay, Momo and Mina. They couldn't figure out if the lack of a reactionary expression on his face was simply more of Shoto being himself even in the face of defeat, or if he was simply keeping his real reactions bottled in for when he was finally by himself.

Either way, many of his classmates mutually felt like they couldn't simply just say something; at the very least express condolences for his efforts ultimately not working out, even if many of them now had a pretty good idea why it turned out this way.

"TODOROKI!"

All of a sudden, the booming voice of Inasa broke the uncomfortable silence, drawing all eyes to the towering Shiketsu High student, as he made a direct beeline for Shoto, eyes burning right into him. Already, Nikolay and Izuku could feel themselves tensing up in preparation to intervene in another confrontation between the two, with Nikolay already opening his mouth to try and play the peacekeeper again: "Yoarashi-san, please don't do-!"

However, Inasa just barreled right past the Slav, and instead stood just beside Shoto; staring right into his multicolored eyes once the hot-and-cold boy finally turned to acknowledge his presence. The air between them became downright unreadable, with Izuku and Nikolay still not letting their tension go, in case this was about to go off in the worst possible way.

"I'M SORRY!" With that booming declaration, just like he had in front of the stadium hours ago, Inasa suddenly reared his whole upper body back and hammered his forehead straight into the ground at Shoto's feet, leaving all his Yuuei classmates in shock, albeit this time for different reasons.

"YOU FAILING TO PASS… IT WAS ALL MY FAULT! MY LACK OF HEART IS ENTIRELY TO BLAME! FORGIVE ME!"

Needless to say, this sudden face-turn on Inasa's part was unprecedented, but even more so was Shoto's ultimate response: "From the very beginning, this was the result of the seeds I myself had sown… so cut that out. I thought I had figured out how to proceed forward with my journey towards becoming a Hero without thinking of myself only as Endeavor's son after the Sports Festival. But you gave it to me straight back there. Just like Midoriya and Bezpalov then; now thanks to you, I came to realize some things about myself I was a fool not to consider before.

"It's not enough to simply detach my father's role from my power, and try to reconcile with him by using it all, in order to focus on the future. I need to also consider the effects my own past actions have had on those around me, and make amends with them by being better than I was, and that includes you. So for helping me to recognize the need to make this change in myself, Yoarashi… you have my thanks."

As sympathetic as many of the students watching were for one of their most powerful classmates not managing to pass, there was no denying that seeing Shoto display such humility to the kid who had shown him such animosity before, was downright inspiring. It genuinely felt like, in this singular moment between them, where there had once been hate, a strange kind of bond of mutual understanding had been formed, as Inasa never lifted himself up from his apologetic bowing posture, nor did he say anything. That rigid and intense face of his had only the slightest visible trace of genuine consideration in his piercing eyes instead.

With the tension seeming to have finally faded for good, Nikolay, Izuku, Momo, Hanta and Mina were all finally starting to follow through with their original intentions of approaching Shoto to express their mutual sympathies, while Minoru looked to be stepping up for the sake of gloating, just by the look on his face, only for Tenya to efficiently step in and turn him right around, not wanting the grape-haired boy to spoil the mood.

Before anyone could actually say anything, though, the microphone on the podium suddenly turned back on, drawing all the examinees attention to find that Mera was now accompanied by a hundred serious-looking men and women in matching black suits and sunglasses; every single one clutching a single sheet of paper. "*Ahem*. Everyone, have you all had a chance to confirm the exam results? Moving right along, we will now distribute some handouts to you all. The specifics of your scoring are described in there in great detail, so please do look over them carefully."

With that, the new faces began quickly making their way into the crowd of confused teens, each one handing that same sheet of paper to one specific examinee before retreating back. As they did so, Mera continued: "The cutoff line was 50 points. We utilized a point deduction system to determine your scores. You can read over the various actions and behaviors which resulted in a deduction of your points, followed by how many points were deducted for each one."

By that point, two of the suited strangers suddenly approached Nikolay and Mina together, before swiftly holding out their respective scores. With the news of a cutoff line and performance commentary to look forward to, even despite their having passed, the two were considerably nervous as they accepted their papers. As soon as their presenters took their leave; that nervousness turned into matching anxiousness, as they were now unable to take their eyes off theirs and each others' scores.

"Oh wow, I actually got 76 points! After I'd rushed melting down the debris to save my first civilian without checking to see if it was load bearing, and then let myself get… er, sidetracked at the first-aid station in the neighborhood section, I was so scared it was gonna be way lower than that!" Mina stated with a sigh of weary relief; personally confident that her natural aptitude for calming and assuring the children had to be her saving grace.

Nikolay, on the other hand, looked as if he'd just survived a near brush with death as he looked at the meager score of 51 on his report. The moment Mina saw it herself, her hair nearly stood on end as her eyes went wide with shock. "YOU BARELY MADE IT BY A HAIR?! KOLYA-KUN, WHAT THE HECK COULD YOU HAVE DONE TO GET SUCH A HARSH GRADE?! I MEAN, YEAH, YOU PASSED, BUT HOLY CRAP!"

Nikolay's mouth felt like a veritable desert as he read the comments lined at the lower section. "The examinee started out abysmally, as he not only froze after finding his first batch of civilians to rescue, but even descended into a momentary panic attack, requiring the intervention of another examinee, thus pulling valuable manpower from rescue efforts in order to get his head back on track."

The boy's hands were positively shaking, clutching the report like it was his one and only lifeline to the land of the living, as he struggled to breathe; ultimately forcing Mina to gently pull his fingers away and take the report for herself so she could read him the rest. "Despite this initial significant error, however, the examinee went on to vastly improve by accepting his mistakes and making sure not to repeat them, and proving exceptionally adept at realizing the importance of ensuring the physical, mental and emotional states of all civilians he encountered before anything else. He also exercised extreme caution alongside any and all fellow examinees he went on to work with, utilizing all their Quirks together in order to make sure all civilians were evacuated as efficiently as possible.

"Furthermore, he proved to have an unexpectedly promising skill for reassuring people, for even though he suffered numerous injuries while trying to save civilians, he refused to let it stop him, and thus helped remind a few civilians of how equally inspiring a Hero can be when they show themselves to still be capable of being hurt, and yet still actively make the choice to protect others."

The further Mina read, the more Nikolay's nervous trembling finally seemed to stop, and his actual anxiety gave way to a deeply emotional sense of relief and gratitude for the specific civilians who had to have given those closing notes, if it wasn't the people in the suits writing these based on their observations.

As soon as Mina saw that Nikolay's spirits were lifting, she just knew he would want to read the last part especially, and thus gave his report sheet back to him, which he accepted gratefully. From where the previous comment had ended, he took a deep breath and concluded: "In this time without All Might to serve as our Symbol of Peace, alongside the admirable examples of many of the other examinees, a Hero who can manage to exude an air of reassurance, confidence and inspiration in even the direst of times can prove to be just as invaluable to society as the physically strongest, fastest or most versatile Hero in the field of battle."

The emotional sniffle Nikolay gave as he clutched that grade sheet tight managed to hit Mina just as hard, as the knowledge that, even despite their errors and shortcomings, they had both still managed to finally cross the biggest hurdle filled her with a pride in both of them that couldn't be described with words. As the joyful tears started to form in his green eyes, she silently stepped in and pulled Nikolay into the single warmest hug, expressing every bit of her pride and happiness for him in this moment without having to say a word, both of them this time simply too absorbed in the emotion of it all to even acknowledge that regular electrical jolt between them.

Just then, the microphone once more kicked in, regaining everyone's rapt attention towards Mera, as he took in the all-around happy expressions on their faces, with a scattered handful expressing disappointment, and one expressing seething rage. "To all of the participants who passed, from now on, depending on the nature of the emergency, your new position will grant you the authority to exercise privileges equal to that of Pro Heroes. That is to say, combat against Villains, conducting disaster and accident relief and the like, even without orders from Pro Heroes, you are now able to act at your own discretion."

Every word of this confirmation was like an electrical surge through every single one of the examinees present, with a good half of Class 1-A trying so hard to fight back tears of happiness.

"However, with that power comes an even greater responsibility to society, which, with every individual action you take, will grow ever larger! You'd all do well to remember that. As all of you are surely aware, the Hero who was the pinnacle of greatness known as All Might exhausted all of his power. His very existence was one which was so great that, in and of itself, it suppressed crimes and controlled evildoers. From now on, now that the proverbial brakes weighing on their hearts have vanished, impudent Villains will appear without fail, and their crimes will grow all the more severe. With the collapsing of the delicate balance which was upheld, our world is in the midst of great change! Sooner rather than later, all of you young aspiring Heroes will grow to become the very core upholding our society."

From sheer emotion, the mood among the crowd had just as quickly shifted to pure inspiration, as many, especially the 1-A students, were all already thinking back to All Might's world-shaking final words to the world at large, to every last one of them and every other aspiring future Hero across the globe: "YOU'RE NEXT."

"In the not-so distant future, you all, as Pro Heroes, will set the new standard. You, too, will become a pivotal existence which can inhibit and curtail evil. You must not forget, however, that as things stand now, you merely hold Provisional Hero activity Licenses. Think of it as not being even half of a full-fledged Hero. Therefore, we wish for you to resume your studies at each of your schools with even further zeal and diligence!

"And lastly, erm… to those who were not fortunate enough to pass…" Nikolay and many others could already feel their skin start to rise in nervous goosebumps; many half-expecting Bakugo to start screaming out another far-too colorful tirade while demanding for a point counting do-over on his behalf. Miraculously, such an outburst didn't come before Mera continued.

"You do not have the luxury of allowing yourselves to become dejected over losing too many points. There is still a chance remaining for you all! After first attending a special training course in March, if you produce strong results on your individual tests, we intend to issue all of you Provisional Licenses as well!"

Once more, the mood among the entire crowd physically changed, as every one of the examinees who had failed all visibly perked up with disbelief at this miraculous boon that was being given to them in what had to be, for many of them, their lowest point.

"In order to cope with the 'from now on situation' I just mentioned earlier, above all else, we desire 'high quality' Heroes, and 'as many of them as possible.' Although this was a 'dropping exam', so to speak, we simply wish to nurture the growth of the 100 who we selected to the greatest extent possible. And for that very reason, we observed you all until the very end. And by no means did the results you demonstrated to us show no promise. On the contrary, if you but rectify the points which you lost on this exam, without exception, you have all proven to be candidates whose abilities exceed even those who've passed!

"I do believe you'll be quite busy while having to balance the special training with your current schoolwork, but… I personally have no objections to you all attempting to re-challenge the exam in April."

This bold exclamation brought the crowd to a real buzz of excited chatter, as Nikolay took it all in, while Mina was glancing back to Shoto and Bakugo a little further away. "That's so cool they're not just dropping off the people who failed. Todoroki-kun's too tough to just get let go from the Hero course like that."

Many of their classmates who overheard her, couldn't help but voice their agreement, while Nikolay was now similarly glancing Bakugo's way. "Yeah, I'm happy Todoroki-san's being given another chance… but with the way that guy up there explained the credit they're going to get if they pass, being even more qualified than all of us… I can't be the only one worried that Bakugo's ego will get even worse, can I?"

While Eijirou was visibly hesitant to say yes or no, once more a lot of the other 1-A students didn't even try to hide their own similar concern about that very plausible outcome, especially judging by the sheer driven bloodlust in Bakugo's eyes at the news he wasn't through just yet.

Of course, that apprehension went right out the window once Izuku and Tenya finally stepped forward once the announcements were finished, personally congratulating Shoto on being given another chance; thus spurring the rest of the class, minus Bakugo, to do the same. As soon as everyone had stepped in to voice their relief for his benefit, the otherwise stalwart young man finally took a contemplative breath, and when he looked each of his classmates in the eye… for the first time they could all recall, not only were his normally distant eyes actually softer in their look, but he actually had the visible signs of a smile, however faint, upon his face. "Everyone… I'll catch up… real soon."

In the warm glow of the early evening sun, on the walkway leading out from the entrance of Takoba National Stadium, the departing students of Yuuei Academy's Class 1-A were all enraptured in their own respective outpourings of numerous emotions, as they all gazed upon in wonder, the matching laminated cards that were now clutched religiously in all of their hands, emblazoned with the simple yet spirit-igniting word 'HERO' on the back, while facing them all, were their respective identification photos, and all of the officiated information of their Quirks and Hero names.

They had finally reached the miraculous moment where they actually had their long-coveted Provisional Hero Licenses in their bare hands, and while there were some who were practically abound through the air with jumping and celebratory dancing like Tooru, Mina and Denki, there were others like Izuku, Nikolay and Eijirou who were exceptionally emotional as they gazed upon these little cards in their hands that felt like they carried the weight of the world itself.

For Nikolay, it didn't even matter if his ID picture had been taken at the one moment he was halfway through blinking, this thing was pretty much his holy grail, and he was going to treasure it as such, no matter what anybody else said. Right beside him, having come to a stop just to admire his own, Izuku was visibly on the verge of bawling with joy at any given second, his eyes were so full of tears.

"Deku-kun, Kolya-san, are you guys crying?" Ochako suddenly asked just from nearby, snapping both boys to attention, and making Nikolay realize that he'd become so enraptured in the moment, he hadn't even been aware of just how blurry his own eyes had become with his tears, although there was no hiding it from Mina and Eijirou. "Aww, there's no reason to be embarrassed, you guys! If there was ever a time any of us had the right to cry happy tears, it's right now!" "Damn right! We've all just proven our manliness in the best way possible, so feel free and let it all out, man!"

While Mina, Kyouka and Denki couldn't help but teasingly laugh at Eijirou's outlandish display of trying to espouse his usual ultra-manly bravado even as his tears were running like rivers down his grinning face; Nikolay and Izuku couldn't hide the grateful smiles on their own, even while still trying to wipe their own tears away. "Thank you all for saying so, really. I just can't help it. It's such a surreal feeling, almost like one of those lucid dreams you hear so much about. If I'm being completely honest, I kind of want to pinch myself to make sure I'm not actually dreaming, but I can't stop worrying that if I do, I actually will be."

Izuku's smile mirrored Nikolay's, as he couldn't help but somewhat feel the same as his Russian friend described. "I agree. I mean, I know it's real, just as much for me as it is for all of us. I'm still just trying to process it. I can't stop thinking that… well; I've been helped by so many different people along the way, and also caused trouble for even more people in order to finally get here. So that's why… how should I put this… this is my proof that I'm actually growing and improving! You know? And thinking about that, I just felt so happy."

Listening to the pure sentiment behind every word Izuku said, filled all his nearby classmates with that similar warmth; the warmth of genuine accomplishment one could only feel when knowing they had been the ones to obtain it through their own raw skill and effort, alone and together alike.

In fact, this particular feeling intensified so much in Nikolay's chest, he didn't even try to stop his tears as he couldn't help but speak up while gazing upon his own license, as well as those of all his classmates that he could see. "Midoriya-san is absolutely right. But these licenses… t-they prove that, not only was all the help we were given by all the people who helped carry and lift us up along the way not in vain… but they also prove that every… *sniffle* every last ounce of pain we've gone through… physically, mentally… e-emotionally… every last bit of it, in the end, was completely worth it. All those experiences ultimately helped give us all the fortitude to push ourselves to this point, and that… *sniffle* that was something I used to think couldn't be possible, least of all for myself… and I… for all the fortitude everything I've gone through before could have possibly given me, I know I ultimately have the silent, spoken and given support of every last one of you here to thank for making this all possible."

Nikolay, even for the encouraging words of Mina and Eijirou before, still couldn't help but blush with embarrassment at what a scene he was making of himself as more and more of his classmates couldn't help but be drawn in at such a grandiose series of statements he and Izuku were both making in the wake of this monumental moment in their development as Heroes.

However, that didn't make the deeply touched and supportive smiles from Mina, Ochako, Eijirou and virtually all of the 1-A students any less genuine, as they all began to express their agreement in sheer sentiment, not just to the two boys in question, but to each other as well. In the end, they ultimately had each other to thank for ultimately making this moment at all possible for them.

"So does anyone have any idea what they're gonna do with their licenses once we get back to Yuuei? I'm honestly thinking of getting a frame for mine for whenever we're not out in the field or training." Denki suggested once he was semi-confident the emotional waterworks were finally starting to have run their course.

With that question now out in the open, Izuku's eyes fell back to his license with that familiar nervous anxiety he tended to have at the least opportune casual moments. "I wanna go show this to Mom, All Might and Tunguska-sensei right away!"

Ochako at first couldn't help but grin happily for his enthusiasm, but at the same time that the reminder had occurred to her, Eijirou practically lit up with remembrance; nearly sprinting over to pull Nikolay and Izuku in with his arms over their shoulders. "OH, DUDE, I CAN'T BELIEVE I ALMOST FORGOT! You guys know what we should all totally do?! We should all send photos or videos of us with our new Licenses to not just our families, but to all the Pros we interned under! Can you guys imagine how happy they'd be for us?!"

While some like Tsuyu, Fumikage, Tenya and Momo could at least appreciate the sentiment behind it, they were still just as quick to point out how impractical that would be, especially in the case of catching said Pros in the middle of a situation. On the other hand, Mina, Kyouka, Ochako, Tooru and Denki couldn't have agreed more enthusiastically, especially as Mina and Tooru were already eagerly trying to pull their classmates along, as if trying to get everyone together for the mother of all group photos. "THAT'S THE PERFECT IDEA RIGHT NOW! Our intern teachers deserve to know how far we've all managed to get after all, don't they?"

In the end, even the former naysayers couldn't further justify ruining the mood of this moment, as soon everyone, even some begrudgingly, were proceeding to take their phones out in order to take pictures of themselves with their new licenses.

As it all unfolded around him, Nikolay likewise couldn't deny that the idea of sending his and Mina's license pictures over to Willow Light and the rest of the Kamuron Agency Heroes was increasingly appealing. He'd honestly been silently growing to miss them all as much as Mina was.

However, before the first one among the class could finally be taken, a thought suddenly occurred to Nikolay that forced him to step forward and draw the classes' attention. "Actually, far be it for me to tell any of you what to do yourselves, but like Midoriya-san said about his mother, I'd actually much rather wait to show my license to Da—I mean, Tunguska-sensei in person. As one of our teachers and as my dad, it just seems like the proper thing to do, you know?"

To his surprise, this idea actually seemed to be visibly resonating with more and more of his classmates by the second, until Mina likewise finally stepped forward. "He's actually got a good point. Can you guys imagine how moved Tunguska-sensei'd be if we all actually showed him our licenses face-to-face? I mean, again, if you guys don't want to, that's fine; our parents deserve that even more… but I know some of us here have gotten really close with him so far this year. Would you really wanna just shoot him a picture and leave it at that?"

"HELL NO! FROM ONE MANLY HERO TO ANOTHER, IN-PERSON IS THE ONLY WAY OF DOING THIS RIGHT!" Eijirou exclaimed with the expected over-enthusiasm, while Ochako likewise stepped out, clutching her license in her hand with exceptional fire in her eyes.

"You're all right. Tunguska-sensei was one of the first people since this year started to assure me I could still become a Hero when I thought I'd gotten as far as I could possibly go. I can't possibly show him this proof of his words any other way."

In the end, the whole class, surprisingly, came into agreement that their school teachers would all be granted the respect of being shown their students' Provisional Licenses in person if at all possible, and from there proceeded to start taking photos and emailing their originally planned photos to their respective families and internship mentors.

Amid it all, even though Nikolay had originally expected only himself and Mina to send their photos to Willow Light and the Kamuron Heroes, it ultimately ended with Ochako, Tooru, Denki and Minoru joining in as well. After they had all gotten involved in the whole Vukodlak confrontation back then, it simply wouldn't have been right for them not to be included in this all-around perfect moment with Nikolay and Mina, and he understood that without a shred of doubt. If only Setsuna had been here just so the whole recap for his and Mina's former mentor could've been truly complete.

Once it was all said and done, they all began to make their way for their bus once more, thankfully not being rushed by Aizawa, as he was currently in the middle of being chatted up again by Ms. Joke while her Ketsubutsu students were likewise departing.

"HEEEY! HEEEY!" All of a sudden, the once more booming voice of Inasa Yoarashi suddenly came bounding up from behind the Yuuei students, with many looking back, including Nikolay, with a quickly building nervousness that the Shiketsu High boy had decided to once again act on his anger and come for Shoto to get one last swing, or at least the last word in their apparent rivalry. The Russian boy was especially apprehensive, as at this very moment, Shoto happened to be just next to him as Inasa came rushing to them.

Digging his heels in to stop from bowling the two over, Inasa still had the same overly intense glare, but he also now had that over-excited smile stretching from ear to ear again as he looked upon Shoto with intent. "TODOROKI! I'LL SEEYA AGAIN AT SPECIAL TRAINING, YA HEAR?! BUT! HONESTLY, I STILL KINDA DON'T LIKE YOU! SO I JUST WANTED TO APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE! SORRY!"

Needless to say, the intention was respectable, but the means in which he expressed it left more than a few of the students incredulous as to just what kind of excuse for an apology Inasa thought that was. However, Shoto was, thankfully, unperturbed, as though he completely understood his real intentions behind it, as he simply answered: "I'll use discretion as well."

This answer, for as simple as it was, seemed to fill Inasa with anticipation; his chest almost swelling with it as he breathed deep, already more than prepared for that day. Nikolay, all the while, let out a shaky sigh, grateful the two weren't coming to blows again. "After you both pass, hopefully we'll all be able to see each other out on the field in the future, Yoarashi-san. We'll all be wishing you the best of luck until then."

Nikolay was certain the conversation was already more than over, as he already began to turn around to continue the rest of the way to the bus. "Actually, Bezpalov-san, you wait, too!"

He nearly doubled over forward now that he was being called out by Inasa; completely clueless what he could possibly want to say to him, of all people, after everything that had happened. He had hoped he hadn't given the Whirlwind-user a reason to hold animosity towards him, despite his scolding him and Shoto for their fighting before.

Instead, however, as intense as Inasa's eyes still were, that over-eager smile had shrunken considerably, as though he were trying to think of exactly how to say what was now on his mind. "I'm sorry for bringing this up, but I've always been a curious kind of guy. You and Todoroki both mentioned something about you once having similar problems with your father like he and I have with Endeavor. After you used that to try and speak in Todoroki's defense, I just can't simply not ask at this point: what exactly is it that happened on your part? I apologize; you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

The look on Shoto's face as he looked to his Russian classmate essentially said the same thing, in a way that only he could convey. Even if Nikolay had made the progress he now knew he hadn't, that couldn't possibly make sharing his story any easier.

However, Nikolay, with his eyes sunken to the ground, let out a heavy sigh. "Well, I was the one to bring it up in the first place. We worked well enough together, and I doubt I even would've said something so personal in the first place if I didn't have enough respect for you to do so, Yoarashi-san. I feel you deserve to know the truth."

And so, with an exceptionally heavy but resolved heart, Nikolay proceeded to fill Inasa Yoarashi in on everything there was to know: Tunguska, The New Bogatyrs, The Siberian Flash, the death of his mother, the removal of all Quirk-bearing citizens in the wake of the disaster and the rise of the new government, the following twelve years he and his father had spent in hiding…and the painful and arduous journey Nikolay had ultimately made, not just towards becoming a Hero, but embracing the Quirk and inherent responsibility he once viewed as a curse.

In the end, even if his piercing eyes didn't change, there was an unmistakable shimmer of complete astonishment in Inasa's gaze, rendering him completely speechless for a good several seconds. Nikolay and Shoto could both only imagine just how difficult this whole helping of hard-hitting truth was for him to fully take in and process. Hell, even thinking back on it now, even for Nikolay it still felt like he was trying to do the same thing.

"Incredible. Seeing how well you tried to carry yourself all throughout the Sports Festival, I never would've guessed you'd dealt with so much before. For you to have lost all of that, and yet somehow rediscover it in yourself to actually want to become a Hero again… that's got to be one of the hottest burning Heroic things I've seen and heard yet. I'd say you've definitely earned your passing here today, Bezpalov-san. And… if what you've told me now hasn't made me realize anything else than this… it's that I really was a fool."

Nikolay and Shoto both looked on in visible confusion, as Inasa removed his beret and looked them both in the eye to demonstrate how genuine he was being right now: "You were right. If, after all of that and living with so much of that sadness and anger for so long, you could still make that drastic of a change in yourself for the sake of becoming a better person and a real burning Hero… then I really don't have a justifiable reason to think that Todoroki couldn't possibly do the same. I apologize for having so heavily doubted you and your convictions."

With a thankfully less extreme bow of apology towards Shoto, the red-white-haired boy once again brought up a reassuring hand to get Inasa to stand back up. "You were right to doubt me, Yoarashi. Like I said, you forced me to look inward and realize that I still had a great deal to discover about myself that I need to work upon in order to become the kind of Hero I really want to be. I thought I'd had it figured out before, but now I finally know I have. In the end, I now have you, Midoriya and Bezpalov to thank for helping steer me back in the right direction. So with that, no more apologies, please."

After another round of well-meaning farewells and expressed intentions for Shoto and Inasa to see each other again when the Special Training course would finally come around, they were once again on their way, before Nikolay picked up the sound of another pair of footsteps starting to approach, this time from his left; turning around to find a contemplative Izuku now joining him while Shoto went on ahead. "Something on your mind, Midoriya-san?"

"Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt you and Todoroki-san before. I just wanted to clarify something I overheard from some of the others regarding what happened with you during the rescue exam." Nikolay came to a stop, visibly curious while Izuku momentarily looked around them to make sure no unfamiliar faces were potentially listening in on them. "Hagakure-san, Iida-san and Mineta-san all said that when they ran into you after you'd gotten thrown by Gang Orca, you were with Ashido-san at the time. But I know that she was actually helping to defend the rescue station for a good majority of the exam after the Villain attack started."

Instead of the expression of total surprise he had been expecting from his Slavic classmate, Nikolay's green eyes actually reflected a grim familiarity. "Yeah… I'd come to realize it right before we had to make the last dash in order to end the exam. I'd noticed there were several things in her attitude and what she was saying that didn't match up with how she normally is. I'd started suspecting it for a little bit by then, but when I called her by the personal nickname I'd picked back at the training camp, and she acted like she'd never heard it before, that was how I knew. What's more than that: she actually came to me after the exam was over, back at the medical office. I called her out on everything, and it turned out to be that same Shiketsu High girl you said went after you before."

Izuku's brow furrowed, clearly troubled by the sheer enigmatic behavior of their now-mutual bizarre acquaintance, both of them completely clueless as to just what exactly it was that she was looking for out of either of them. Explaining to each other that she'd expressed an identical desire to simply get to know them and their classmates more, and to see just what kind of Heroes they both were; had left both boys with more questions than answers.

Before they could speculate any further, though, by some fortunate circumstance, Izuku soon spotted the now uniform-clad hairy Shiketsu High boy from before the rescue exam, and soon he and Nikolay both were bounding over; more than certain that if they could get insight on Camie Utsushimi, it would have to be from him.

Of course, for Izuku, it was more than simply that, as the moment he'd gotten the hairy boy's attention, he already had his trusty notebook out and ready. "I-I'm sorry for rushing in like this, but I just have to ask: exactly what kind of training did you Shiketsu students do in order to be able to completely erase your presence like that?!"

Izuku's enthusiasm was contagious, as even Nikolay couldn't help but come on a little strong right alongside him: "Yeah, I've never once heard of a Quirk that could not only completely hide a person's appearance and disguise their voice, but even imitate the Quirk of whoever they were disguising themselves as!"

However, the hairy boy looked at his two sudden interviewers with a bemused single eye. "Well, you both have the right to ask as you will, but the truth is we haven't done any training of that sort."

The chilling wind that blew across where the three boys stood was the perfect harbinger for the immense confusion Nikolay and Izuku both felt at this specific answer. Nikolay then glanced Izuku's way. "Well, maybe it isn't specifically a trick Shiketsu teaches its students all around, Midoriya-san. I mean, you said before the rescue exam that what that Utsushimi girl did had to be a part of her Quirk, so maybe it just applies to her alone."

Izuku looked to really be considering that possibility, before the hairy boy before them spoke up again; a now-confused look in his one visible eye: "Camie-san? Camouflage isn't her Quirk at all."

Now both boys looked utterly dumbfounded. Now something about all this was seriously not adding up, and Izuku simply couldn't leave it be at this: "T-there must be some kind of explanation she'd be able to give us. I mean, she came after both of us during the two exams using that very trick, and it sounded like she had a lot more she wanted to talk to us about, so I was hoping we'd be able to perhaps speak to her again."

At this, the Shiketsu boy's shoulders visibly dropped. "Well, unfortunately, I don't think that's going to be possible now. She said she wasn't feeling very well once the whole exam was over and everyone had come back from the medical offices, so she decided to take a taxi back to the station ahead of us."

At this, Nikolay now had a visibly troubled look in his eyes. "That doesn't make sense, though. She actually came to me still in her disguise when the injured were getting checked up, and she seemed perfectly fine to me after she'd shed her disguise. Why would she make something like that up if she really wanted to ask us more questions?"

Izuku looked just as confused, and by this point, even the hairy Shiketsu student couldn't hide his own confusion. "You know, now that you both mention it, Camie-san actually has been acting… strangely different from how she usually is for the past three days. The fact she actually went directly for you after the exam was over, only to then leave after everything was finished without mingling with everyone from the other schools is really unlike her. I mean, she'd honestly been dying to meet all you Yuuei kids ever since the Sports Festival; especially the two of you, as a matter of fact, Midoriya-san, Bezpalov-san. I should know; she wouldn't let up with saying how… ugh, how 'cute' she thought you both were for weeks after the fact."

This time, the knowledge that a girl like Camie considered Nikolay and Izuku cute actually didn't send the two boys into red-faced stuttering messes. The inconsistency of the girl from what they'd witnessed, to how the hairy boy was describing her usual attitude and behavior, was simply growing wider and wider.

"In fact, just the way you two described the way she talked to you both times doesn't sound a thing like the Camie-san I know. It sounded way too… well, comprehensible. Trust me, once you get to know her for as long as we all have, you couldn't mistake her way of speaking for anyone else's." Now this news in particular had Nikolay and Izuku going wide-eyed with even greater confusion, to the point the Russian boy in particular went for the most sensible explanation he could think of, even if he knew it was an especially desperate one.

"Well… if what you said about her wanting to meet us both because she thought we're cute is true, do you think it's possible she's just the kind of person who gets a lot more eloquent when meeting people she might… well, potentially like, like?" Izuku similarly looked like he couldn't argue with that possibility, but that was when the hairy Shiketsu student just laughed to himself.

"Yeah, you two really don't know Camie-san at all. Even when she just talks about people she potentially likes, her way of speaking somehow gets even more nonsensical; borderline gibberish. I don't even want to imagine what she would sound like if she was feeling like herself and meeting you two right now. Now, I'm sorry to cut this meeting short, but my class and I do need to get going. It was a pleasure finally getting to meet and work alongside you all, Yuuei Academy. Best of luck in your own Hero studies from now on."

As he and the rest of the present Shiketsu High students in the distance finally took their leave for their bus, Nikolay and Izuku both looked to each other with mutually confused, nervous expressions on their faces. Neither of them could shake the feeling that something seriously sketchy was going on here to explain these huge inconsistencies surrounding the girl known as Camie Utsushimi, but for the both their lives, they could not possibly begin to think of an explanation for it, other than the frankly nonsensical explanation that she simply wasn't feeling well. It was just about the only thing resembling an answer they had.

Meanwhile…

On a dimly lit back street of a more distant city away from Takoba National Stadium, Camie Utsushimi was walking casually by herself, avoiding the wandering gazes of every street corner security camera or more-than-a-little curious bystander that would be out at this hour of the approaching night. The moment she knew for a fact she was officially alone, with no risk of wandering eyes catching sight of her, she quickly ducked aside into a tiny nearly pitch black back alley.

Within the depths of said alley, nobody ever noticed how, as she continued to walk forward and rummage the silently vibrating cellphone from her uniform pocket, her very skin began to droop away from her form, almost as though she were melting like a candle before a raging flame. Eyes once brown and wide became narrow and piercing yellow. Hair once long and with a golden brown sheen now became short, messy and blonde.

And a sensuous smile accented by full glossy lips gave way to a much wider, much more sinister grin punctuated by four especially sharp vampire-like fangs; all by the time she'd finally hit the answer button to her phone.

"I finally got through to you! Where were you, and what the hell have you been doing this whole time, Toga?!"

Indeed, where once there had stood the enigmatic and especially lovely Camie Utsushimi, there now stood the long sought-after, devilishly grinning figure of the one and only Himiko Toga in her Shiketsu High uniform; her contracted pupils intently watching every corner around herself as she traversed the seedy back alleyways; her alertness betraying her dreamy, amused fanged smile.

She couldn't help but feel so uplifted; just as she'd known it would, even to her compatriots' notable doubts, her Metamorphosis Quirk had worked like a charm, and even in multiple layers to boot, more than once! None of those young Heroes-to-be back there suspected a thing, and she'd even gotten to have a little bit of that which she'd been desiring the most ever since the last time she'd gotten up close and personal with any of the Yuuei kids well over a month ago now.

"Dammit, Toga, would you speak up when I ask you a serious question?!" For as unnatural as it sounded for someone like Mr. Compress to be so on edge only added to the overall air of amusement this day had managed to give Himiko.

"Oh, just relax, Compress. I was off playing some delightful games, just like Tomura asked me and Vukodlak to. That's why we're the only two members that have been able to meet up face-to-face for these last couple of weeks until now; remember? If you'd kept that little tidbit in mind, maybe you wouldn't be so stressed." Her sarcastic bit of advice, however, did not go appreciated on the other end, as she could clearly tell from the tension still in Mr. Compress' voice.

"I know Shigaraki-san asked you two to go out and do this, but at least Vukodlak-san has the professionalism to keep in regular contact with us once a day, like we all agreed when he filled us in on this plan! You, on the other hand; what the hell are you thinking, going a whole three days without contacting us and letting us know you're all right? If just one of us gets caught, then that puts the entire League in danger!"

Himiko began ruffling through the other pocket in her uniform's skirt as she answered: "Don't worry, that's not a problem. I've been living all this time without being found, after all. And what's more, my little excursion for my half of the mission was quite fruitful. I can only imagine Vukodlak managed to pull his end off all awesome-like already, too. Did he? Did he already tell you guys so or what?"

A harsh-sounding groan erupted from the other end of the phone, clearly the sound of Mr. Compress expressing annoyance with Himiko and her scatterbrained ways that always came up at the least opportune times. 'For God's sakes, stop prattling on like the fangirl you are for that guy and just tell us how it went, would you? The sooner we know, the sooner we can have Kurogiri-san get you back to the meeting point; and then back to safety once Vukodlak-san reports his success as well."

The reminder that she was actually supposed to stop at a very specific spot, based on the coordinates that had been agreed upon, brought Himiko to a stop, and then quickly taking five steps backward. "Like I said, I won big time with my mission. The Doc and Tomura'll be so happy! Why, you ask?"

Finally finding what she'd been seeking within the folds of her pocket, Himiko smiled even more lasciviously as she pulled out two tiny glass vials; one containing a single drop of blood, and the other containing a couple especially bloody splinters; the sight making her squinting eyes go all dreamy again.

"Because I've managed to get Izuku-kun and Kolya-kun's blood."

And there you all have it, everybody: the newest chapter and officially the one year anniversary of My Hero Academia: Son of Justice, and the first chapter of a hopefully better year of 2022!

I hope you all liked this chapter. If so, if you could please be so kind as to leave a review, it would be more appreciated than you know.

Here's wishing you all immense thanks for all your support throughout the previous year, hoping that you'll all continue to do so through this year, and here's wishing you all a Happy New Year, and well wishes for the next twelve months to come.

I will see you all with the next chapter on 01/08!