The second half of the semester seemed to fly by. With the excitement of the sports festival, internships and moving into dorms behind them the days should have been monotonous, but UA's fast-paced curriculum kept them plenty busy. Topics from their normal classes piled one on top of the other as heroics class got steadily more challenging, and before Izuku knew what was happening the class's determination to spend as much time training as possible was giving way to increased time spent studying as everyone started cramming for finals.
"I'm surprised no one's asked you to help them study," Shouto told Izuku, once they had escaped the cafeteria one afternoon and were making their way to their usual tree to eat.
"Yaoyorozu and Iida are doing big study groups with the people who need a lot of help," Izuku said, recalling how Yaoyorozu had been quick to comfort Ashido and Kaminari when they were panicking about finals. "Ever since Hitoshi brought up their private schools they seem really determined to help everyone."
"At least they're using their privilege for good," Hitoshi decided as they rounded the corner and the tree came into view, Hatsume already waiting for them.
"Not that it will help anyone much on the practical," Izuku sighed. "Since we don't know what we're going to be doing, there's no good way to prepare for that."
"I figured they'd want your help with the practical too," Shouto said, looking up at the sky as though in contemplation. "With all the instruction we've had, you've probably designed the best training regimen to keep up with all the skills we've learned."
"I think Izuku's given them all the help he can about training," Hitoshi pointed out. "He's given pretty much everyone some kind of edge. It would take a miracle for him to be able to help the class any more."
"Besides," Izuku went on, feeling a little shy about giving it voice, "I think they all figured that, since we all train together every day, the three of us would be studying together too."
"Not a bad assumption," Shouto said, and Izuku thought he might have detected a hint of smugness to his tone.
"I'm certainly not complaining," Hitoshi said, giving Izuku a sly smile. Izuku's cheeks burned.
"You two are-" ridiculous, he was about to say, but Hatsume began waving enthusiastically as soon as they were close enough to hear her shout.
"Hey green bean!" Hatsume called, and Izuku started walking a little faster. "Lavender!
Peppermint! I've got something exciting to tell you!"
"Peppermint?" Shouto repeated as the three of them reached the tree and began arranging themselves in a circle.
"Because of your hair," Hitoshi explained.
"And your refreshing sense of humor!" Hatsume added gleefully. "But boy do I have some big news for you three!"
"Did you finished the laughing gas bombs?" Hitoshi asked interestedly, situating himself on the grass and picking up his bowl of rice.
"Not yet!" Hatsume told him. "I've gotta put that aside for now, because the support course is having a contest!"
"A contest?" Izuku repeated curiously with a bite of katsudon halfway to his mouth. "What's the prize?"
"If I win, which I will, I don't have to take the final!" Hatsume informed them excitedly. "But that's not the important thing! What's important is what we're going to be designing!"
"What are you designing?" Shouto asked after swallowing a mouthful of noodles. "Is it something special for some important Pro?"
"Nope!" Hatsume grinned, gleaming and maniacal. "We're designing a handicap! Some kind of tech that a Pro can wear that will put them at a moderate disadvantage against a weaker opponent!"
"I'm not sure what you're getting at," Hitoshi admitted with his mouth full.
Izuku, however, had stopped eating. "You said the prize was getting out of the final, right?" he asked. "So that must mean the contest ends before then."
"Now you're getting it," Hatsume encouraged, her grin splitting her face even wider.
"A handicap for a Pro fighting a weaker opponent," Izuku muttered, tugging on his lower lip. "Could it be this is . . ."
"Wait," Hitoshi said, looking a little pale, "you're not saying . . . they're not seriously going to . . ."
"You mean . . ." Shouto looked over at Izuku, eyes wide.
"The final practical!" Izuku exclaimed, then quickly looked around. Thankfully there was no one around to hear, so he continued at a more secretive volume. "We're going to be fighting Pros for the practical exam, and they're going to be wearing a handicap designed by the support course!"
"By me!" Hatsume corrected. That gave Izuku an idea.
"What are you thinking of building?" Izuku asked as Hitoshi set down his rice to hide his face in his hands and Shouto continued to look shocked.
"Ultra compressed weights!" Hatsume crowed. "The average wrist weight is two pounds with the maximum sold commercially being ten pouds. If my calculations are right, I should be able to fit at least thirty-five pounds into the same amount of space! With one on each wrist and ankle, that's
half the bodyweight of your average Pro Hero!" "Damn," said Hitoshi, impressed.
"That'll win for sure," Shouto agreed.
Hatsume cackled.
"Can you add something else onto it?" Izuku asked. "Some other handicap, like something that gives them a little jolt of electricity?"
"I could," Hatsume admitted, "but I don't wanna break the parameters of the test. It's only supposed to be a moderate handicap."
"So tell Power Loader about the weights but not the shock," Izuku said, mind racing ahead of him. "If you make the weights give the shock when a button on a remote control is pressed, and make a maximum radius on the signal, someone with a remote should be able to catch only the teacher they're fighting. Then if you make enough buttons for all of Class 1A, that'll give us a distinct advantage."
Hatsume looked thoughtful. "Sensei did say we were supposed to make enough for ten people, with one set being double strong, so I don't think he's going to be doing too much tinkering with the design himself. I could probably sneak something like that in."
"Everyone in class is really nervous about the final practical," Shouto assured her.
"They'd all be really grateful if you could give them an edge," Hitoshi pressed. "Grateful enough that they'd trust you to design all their gear when they're Pros."
Hatsume's eyes lit up with excitement. "Deal!" *
The idea that they were going to be fighting Pro Heroes -- probably the teachers -- for the final practical had Hitoshi pretty freaked out.
Most of the students that Hitoshi knew were well aware that the teachers wildly outclassed them. There were a few, like Jirou and Kaminari, that didn't think the gap could possibly be that wide, but overall the class had a pretty realistic estimation of how strong their teachers were. However, Hitoshi was the only one who routinely sparred against a teacher in his regular training with Aizawa, so he felt uniquely qualified to comment on how screwed the class was if they were going to have to fight the teachers and win to pass the practical exam.
Hitoshi was almost certain he would be fighting Aizawa. Even if all of the teachers would be participating, Aizawa would surely want to test Hitoshi's skills himself. If that were the case, he didn't stand a chance. In all the times he'd fought Aizawa he'd never won once, and most times he didn't even land a solid hit. He'd never managed to catch his own mentor in his quirk, and every match had shown him exactly how much better Aizawa was at hand to hand fighting. Eraserhead never held back on anyone.
Izuku's sneaky strategy might be the only way to win.
If the teachers didn't call it cheating.
Izuku was positive Nezu wouldn't call it cheating, and would consider it a valid preparation
strategy to gather information ahead of time and lay traps they could use later. Hitoshi wasn't so sure, but then again Izuku had more experience of Nezu than he did. The Principal seemed to be a reasonable person, if the fact that he was willing to help them take down the Number Two Hero was any indication, but he was still a teacher. Teachers made their own rules, more often than not.
Shouto didn't seem overly worried about it, and in the end there wasn't much Hitoshi could do but follow Izuku's lead, so he resolved to put it out of his mind for now. All they could do was prepare and hope for the best. He had almost calmed down about it by the time they were about to start after school training, but then Yaoyorozu came bursting through the door.
"Hey!" Izuku called, waving as she ran across the gym to meet him. "Did you want to train with staffs today? I don't remember making a plan, but I've got plenty of-"
"No," Yaoyorozu shook her head as she reached them, eyes sparkling with excitement. "I mean, yes, I'd like to train with staffs, but more importantly I have news!"
"Yeah I've got news for you too," Izuku said, suddenly equally excited. "I was going to tell the whole class tomorrow, but since you're the Class Rep it makes sense to tell you and then you can tell everyone else."
"Right," Yaoyorozu nodded, "but my news first. I was eating lunch with Iida and the others when Monoma from Class B started being a pain, but to make up for it Kendo was nice enough to tell us what's coming on the final practical!"
Izuku blinked in confusion, which Hitoshi was inclined to agree with. "Really?"
"Yes!" Yaoyorozu squealed. "She's friends with an upperclassman, and they filled her in. It's going to be combat against robots, like the entrance exam, isn't that great!"
"But," Shouto said suddenly, "we just found out we're going to be fighting the teachers." "What?" Yaoyorozu asked, suddenly looking just as confused as Izuku had.
"Maybe it was combat against robots in previous years," Izuku said gently, "but they're changing things this year. They're holding a contest for the support course to design a handicap for a stronger Pro fighting a weaker opponent, and the deadline is before finals. That's probably so that it'll be a fair fight."
Yaoyorozu looked shocked. "Can they really do that? I mean, would they?"
"It's likely because of the villain attacks," Shouto speculated. "They want to amp up our training so we'll be ready if another ones occurs."
"But Kendo was so sure," Yaoyorozu said despairingly. "What are we going to do now? How do we prepare to fight against actual Pros?"
"It's OK," Hitoshi said, before he had made the conscious decision to speak. Yaoyorozu looked at him hopefully, and he felt the deep urge to comfort her. "Izuku has a plan."
"I do!" Izuku said hurriedly when Yaoyorozu turned back to him. "Our friend from the support course, Hatsume, is going to give her all to win the competition, and she's going to build a second, secret handicap into her design. She's going to make weights for the teachers to wear, but she'll add a mechanism that gives them an electric shock when a button is pressed, and she's making buttons for all of Class 1A."
"Oh thank goodness!" Yaoyorozu sighed, putting a hand to her forehead. "You're always one step ahead Midoriya!"
"Not that often," Izuku said, blushing.
"Although," Yaoyorozu suddenly looked troubled. "Kendo from Class 1B was kind enough to tell us what she thought was on the exam. Should we make buttons for the 1B students too?"
"Good point," Izuku said, tugging on his lip cutely. "It wouldn't really be fair if we have an advantage and they don't. It'll be a tall order for Hatsume to make 40 buttons without being noticed though."
"She only needs to make one," Yaoyorozu said hurriedly. "I can study it and make copies. I'll make enough for everyone."
"Great!" Izuku said brightly. "Now how do we get them to the Class 1B students?"
"I'll arrange to meet with Kendo outside school," Yaoyorozu said. "Maybe under the guise of a Class President talk. You three should come with me, since it's your plan, and maybe she can bring a few students from her class. We'll explain things and give them the buttons."
"I'm sure she'll be grateful," said Hitoshi, who was sure of no such thing.
"Uh, speaking of meetings," Yaoyorozu said, suddenly a bit pink, "Shinsou can I talk to you?"
Hitoshi blinked a few times, not sure what she could possibly want with him or why it should make her blush. "Sure?"
Yaoyorozu quickly took him by the arm and dragged him into the hallway leading to the weight room and the supply closets. As soon as she was sure they were out of earshot she turned to him, a radiant smile of pure excitement lighting up her face.
"I asked Jirou out!" she said.
"And?" Hitoshi demanded, confusion vanishing.
"She said yes!" Yaoyorozu gave a little hop, throwing her arms up into the air. Then suddenly she deflated, looking nervous. "Except, I have no idea where to take her!"
"A concert's probably a good bet with her," Hitoshi suggested immediately.
Yaoyorozu looked surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah," Hitoshi assured her. "She loves music. She plays a bunch of instruments doesn't she?"
Yaoyorzu looked delighted. "Oh good," she said happily, "Mother always gets the best tickets to concerts. Do you think Jirou would like Tchaikovsky?"
Hitoshi blinked a few times, then sighed deeply. "OK, let's back up a little." *
Hizashi was of the general opinion that Shouta's scheme of the students fighting the teachers for the practical exams was a bit unfair.
Actually, he was of the opinion that it was very unfair, and that Shouta was letting his own issues
get in the way of clearheaded decision-making as a teacher. Calling Shouta irrational was a one way ticket to getting shut out though, so Hizashi did his best to hide that particular opinion. Instead he kept his cool and raised practical concerns: the ease with which the teachers would obviously win, the speed of the matches which wouldn't allow for proper evaluation, the difficulty of assigning grades on too little information.
Shouta took all of his concerns on board and decided they weren't enough to change his mind, which was an outcome that Hizashi was sadly familiar with. Neither of them were alone at the table, and Hizashi was grateful that Nemuri took his side, but when Nezu spoke up in favor of Shouta's position that swayed the others easily. Even with the students in teams of two, and with the teachers at a disadvantage, Hizashi didn't feel good about this. He was overruled.
Then it came time to decide which teachers the students would be fighting.
"First, Todoroki," Shouta began, and Hizashi wondered if he was beginning with Hitoshi's friends. "He's doing quite well generally speaking, but relies too much on brute force. And Yaoyorozu is an all-arounder, but lacks the ability to make spur-of-the-moment decision and apply them."
Hizashi thought they made a particularly odd team, both of them being recommendation students and relatively strong. Surely it would make more sense to pair students with complimentary skillsets, rather than those that shared particular strengths?
"Therefore, I'll erase their quirks, and take advantage of their weaknesses," Shouta concluded, and at that Hizashi was too surprised not to speak.
"You don't want to handle Shinsou's exam yourself?" he questioned, uncaring of the way some of the others were staring at him.
Shouta gave him a bored look over the tops of the papers in his hands. "Shinsou doesn't have a physical quirk to fall back on," he said simply. "Erasing his quirk would give me minimal advantage, so it would be illogical for me to be his opponent."
Hizashi wondered whether that meant that Shouta thought Hitoshi couldn't win against him or that he didn't trust himself not to go easy on his student, but didn't give his thoughts voice.
"As for Shinsou, I'm pairing him with Midoriya," Shouta went on, shuffling his papers around. "They're the underdogs, and they'll need to be able to cope with a situation where they have no partners with physical quirks to rely on. I want to test their skills against a heavy-hitter, so there won't be any doubt that they can handle a strong opponent in the future."
"I'll take them," Hizashi suggested immediately. "My quirk is-"
"Strong," Shouta finished for him, "but weak against Hitoshi's. Besides, I don't trust you not to go easy on Midoriya. You'd be a terrible match for both of them."
"Who then?" Nemuri asked, more to cover the way Hizashi recoiled than anything. "I already have someone in mind," Shouta assured her.
After the meeting, when all the students had been assigned their partners and opponents, Hizashi left the conference room in a daze. It wasn't that he wasn't used to this kind of treatment -- an occupational hazard of using a rabidly kid-friendly gimmick was that people sometimes found it difficult to take him seriously -- but it was particularly galling to be brushed aside when he'd been trying to do things Shouta's way. It was already late, so when he went to the office to cool off he found it empty, and no one followed immediately after him. He didn't turn the lights on, instead
sitting in the quiet darkness until the racing of his own heart began to slow.
It was nearly five minutes before the light clicked on, and Hizashi looked up to see Shouta standing in the doorway.
"Now who's the one sitting around in the dark," he said. His words were playful, but his tone didn't match.
"I just need a minute," Hizashi said, mustering a smile with significant effort.
"You seemed upset in there," Shouta remarked, apparently not content to leave the matter. "I was just trying to do what was best for the students."
"I know Shouta," Hizashi said tiredly.
"You don't agree though," Shouta surmised.
Hizashi sighed, searching for the words to explain. "I want them to trust me," he said carefully. "Izuku in particular needs to feel like I've got his back. Part of this exercise is testing their judgement of when they need help, but how can we expect them to turn to us if we keep throwing curveballs at them?"
"We're here to prepare them to be heroes," Shouta reminded him. "They're going to have to deal with these kinds of challenges in the future."
"Challenges no other class has been asked to overcome?" Hizashi shot back.
"This class is different," Shouta argued. "They're facing a growing threat from villains-"
"So we're making it their problem to solve?" Hizashi snapped, standing up in agitation. "We're a school! Our priority shouldn't be making children as young as fifteen fend for themselves! It should be protecting them so they can learn without fear!"
Shouta was silent, face half hidden in his scarf. He was on the defensive. Hizashi took a deep breath and reigned in his temper.
"I for one have been trying to teach my students, particularly those that rely on me more directly, that their safety is a priority," Hizashi explained patiently. "It makes that agenda hard when you talk about them needing to be ready for life-threatening situations right away. I mean, do you even think I'm a good influence on Izuku?"
"You may be the best influence in his life right now," Shouta said.
Hizashi blinked, not sure what to make of that statement. "I mean, I'm no All Might, and I'm not the kid's dad or anything-"
"His father's a deadbeat," Shouta interrupted. When Hizashi didn't reply he went on. "Izuku ran some experiments on Hitoshi's quirk, to see what he could make a person under his control tell him if he phrased his questions right. When Hitoshi was explaining this to me he told me what information Izuku used to test his theories, and it included some revelations about his family. His mother's lying to him about it, says his father works overseas, but Izuku is convinced the man is
no longer in the picture."
Hizashi wasn't sure what to say to that. Izuku had certainly seemed to him a child who was missing something, even from the beginning. It had been easy to assume it was just a quirk, a power to give
him an edge and set him apart. That was information Izuku was willing to volunteer, even to let himself be proud of, in the end. Missing a quirk was one thing. Missing an entire parent was another.
"Do you think he sees me as a substitute?" Hizashi asked, then suddenly cursed himself. That was arrogance if ever he'd heard it.
Shouta, however, let the corner of his mouth twitch upward. "I think you're doing a fine job of giving him something he needs. So to answer your question, yes I think you're a good influence."
Hizashi bowed his head, feeling suddenly small and petty. "Thank you."
"The students need a teacher who's going to push them," Shouta insisted, making Hizashi look up, "but they also need a teacher they can rely on. They need your approach as well as mine."
Hizashi smiled, genuine this time. "Right."
Neito didn't agree with Kendo's decision to tell Class A about what was coming in the practical exam.
Neito didn't agree with a lot of the decisions Kendo made, but she was Class Rep, not him.
Still, she was his Class Rep, the leader of his class, so if there was going to be some kind of confrontation between the Class A representative Yaoyorozu and Kendo at a location off campus, Neito was going to back her up.
"You don't have to come," Kendo insisted exasperatedly when Neito showed up directly behind her to request a pass to go off campus the same day as her and Tetsutetsu.
"It would probably be better if you didn't come to be honest," Tetsutetsu added with arms crossed over his chest.
"If you're going to have some kind of war counsel with Class A, I'm going to be there," Neito insisted.
"It's not a war counsel!" Kendo huffed. "You're so dramatic! Yaoyorozu just wanted to talk about the final practical. She probably wants to know if I know anything else."
"And what will she do if she doesn't get the information she wants?" Neito wondered. "Say 'thank you' and move on with her life?" Kendo speculated dully.
"Then why are you bringing Tetsutetsu with you?" Neito didn't let up his questioning. "You expect trouble, or at least you're prepared for the possibility!"
"I'm only bringing him because the teachers prefer us to leave campus in groups!" Kendo said heatedly. "Yaoyorozu's bringing Midoriya, Shinsou and Todoroki, so I figured I wouldn't go alone either!"
"Safety in number right?" Neito said with a raised eyebrow. "Then bigger numbers mean more safety. You should be happy I want to come too."
Kendo made a frustrated noise but didn't argue any further.
The day of the meeting Yaoyorozu's directions led them to a cafe. It was a little more upscale than the type that students preferred, but Neito knew Yaoyorozu was rich. Typical of a 1A snob to insist they meet somewhere expensive. She would probably pay for her classmates and stick the 1B students with their own bills. When they entered Yaoyorozu was already there, waving at them from a table near the back with Shinsou on her left and Todoroki on her right. As they ordered their drinks Neito examined the table. There were only three of them, even though Yaoyorozu had said there would be four, and Yaoyorozu had a plastic box sitting in front of her on the table. It was opaque white, he couldn't see into it, but it looked like the type of box used for storing craft supplies, with a bunch of smaller compartments inside.
"Are we waiting for Midoriya?" Kendo asked as the three of them took their seats on the opposite side of the table from the Class A students. Tetsutetsu immediately took the seat opposite Todoroki, so Neito ended up on Kendo's right, opposite Shinsou.
"He decided not to come," Yaoyorozu told them. "It was his plan, so I wanted him here to explain it, but he said he didn't want to draw too much attention to us if someone recognized him from the Hosu Incident."
"Just like the sports festival, class 1A isn't happy unless they're the center of atten-" Neito was cut off by Kendo elbowing him in the stomach.
"She just said he wanted to avoid the attention, idiot!" Kendo hissed, then turned her attention back to Yaoyorozu. "Sorry about him. You said you had some kind of plan?"
"Yes," Yaoyorozu said, shifting her gaze from Neito to Kendo. "You see, you were kind enough to tell us the information you'd gathered about the practical exam, so we figured we'd return the favor."
"You found out something else?" Tetsutetsu blinked at Yaoyorozu, looking nonplussed. "We know we're fighting robots, but is there some kind of twist?"
"You see, the thing is . . ." Yaoyorozu hesitated, looking around the cafe anxiously. Then she leaned forward. "We don't think it's robots. We think we're going to be fighting the teachers."
Immediately Neito was suspicious. Kendo knew her information was good; her upperclassman friend wouldn't lie to her, the exam had been robots in previous years. It would be a pretty big deal for the teachers to change the exam now, without any kind of warning. They were expected to just believe this? On Yaoyorozu's word alone? Neito looked at Kendo, about to protest the obvious trick, but Kendo looked dubious as well.
"What makes you think that?" she asked carefully. "Did one of the teachers tell you something?"
Yaoyorozu looked nervous for a second, like she hadn't been expecting Kendo to doubt her, then glanced at Shinsou as though for help. Shinsou, who had been leaning his head on his hand with his elbow propped on the table, sighed and sat up straight.
"We have a friend in the support course," Shinsou explained. "Hatsume, who made it to the final round of the sports festival, remember?"
Neito certainly remembered wondering how she had gotten into the tournament round when not a single student from Class B had managed to, but he held his tongue on that. It was a mistake to discount support workers, the people who did the behind the scenes work that made hero work possible. They were valuable members of the team, and Hatsume would surely be an asset to whoever she worked with.
"She told us the support course is having a contest," Shinsou went on, "to design a device that will work as a handicap for a stronger Pro fighting a weaker opponent. Not a particularly logical order, since Pros always want to fight with the advantage."
Kendo and Tetsutetsu gave little noises of surprise. Neito was inclined to agree, but he kept his expression carefully neutral. If his classmates were just going to believe this, then he would have to be the skeptic.
"The support course students were also told to make enough handicap devices for ten people," Todoroki continued. "If each teacher fights two students from each class, either simultaneously or sequentially, then ten would be just enough."
"That's pretty compelling evidence," Kendo admitted, looking down at the table. "Fighting the teachers though? How are we supposed to do that?"
"That's where Midoriya's strategy comes in," Yaoyorozu said, placing one hand on the box in front of her. "Hatsume is sure she can win the contest, so Midoriya asked her to build a second, secret handicap into the design. The teachers will be wearing weights, but when a button on a remote control is pressed the weights will give them a small electric shock. We've already distributed them to Class A, and here-" she pushed to box a few inches towards Kendo, "-is enough for everyone in Class B."
"Thank you!" Kendo said brightly, reaching for the box, but Neito put out a hand to stop her from touching it.
"You really expect us to believe that?" he demanded, glaring at Yaoyorozu's stunned expression. "Give me a break! How do we know this isn't some plan of Class A to get us in trouble, or give us a disadvantage on our exams so that your class looks better by comparison?"
"You can believe whatever you want," Todoroki said immediately, his face as stoic as ever. "It's the truth."
"We're trying to help!" Yaoyorozu said earnestly. "To say thank you for what you tried to do for us! It's the only way to be fair!"
Neito scoffed. "I don't suppose you have any proof of these outlandish claims?"
Kendo and Tetsutetsu both made frustrated noises, Kendo trying to pull Neito's hand away, but Neito held his ground. Yaoyorozu looked from Kendo to Nieto and back again, like she wasn't sure who she should be talking to. Todoroki watched Yaoyorozu, waiting for her to indicate what he should do next, and Neito wondered if he were spoiling for a fight.
Then Shinsou spoke, loudly but sounding tired and more than a little fed up.
"I don't know what your problem is with Class A," he said, fixing Neito with a hard glare, "but it predates me so let me assure you I don't give a damn. We came to give you these because it was the right thing to do. The heroic thing to do. Even if Kendo hadn't told us what she thought was on the exam, both classes having the same advantage is the only way to make the exam fair on everyone. Taking an unfair advantage isn't a very heroic way to behave, but neither is pushing other people down to build yourself up."
Neito paused, staring at him for a moment. Shinsou had been the surprise winner of the sports festival, the Gen Ed student who had beaten all the young heroes in the making at their own games. He had the look of someone tired of the way things were, someone who was used to
dealing with people at their worst. There was something in that look that Neito recognized, so his voice was softer than it might have been when he replied.
"Interesting words coming from someone who knocked another student out of the hero course to earn his spot," he pointed out.
Shinsou smiled sardonically. "I didn't get Mineta transferred because he was in my way," he said simply. "I just refused to allow a pervert who torments his female classmates to get a hero license that'd make it even harder to hold him accountable."
Neito considered that for a moment, then sat back down. "Fine," he said, "but if you're screwing us over, know that I won't forget it."
"Thank you for your consideration," Kendo said, taking the box from Yaoyorozu. "I'll make sure Class B doesn't forget your help."
"Thanks a lot," Tetsutetsu said, bowing his head politely.
Kendo elbowed Neito in the ribs again, making him wheeze. "Say 'thank you' Monoma," she instructed harshly.
Neito sighed but bowed his head as well. "Thank you very much." Yaoyorozu smiled, shaky but pleased. "No problem!"
The written exams weren't that hard, in Izuku's opinion. He knew his opinion wasn't worth much on that front, given that he was one of the top three students in class, but he definitely thought the questions could have been harder. Some topics were covered more broadly than in the detail he had studied them, and he hoped that Yaoyorozu and Iida's study sessions had predicted the depth of understanding required better than he had. He was certain they knew what they were doing though, and Kaminari and Ashido both thanked Yaoyorozu as the tests were passed back in, so he assumed the study session had been helpful.
Then it was time for the practical exam.
"Now then, let's begin the last test," Aizawa said when the students were all gathered in front of the building where they had been instructed to meet. "Remember, it's possible to fail this final. If you want to go to camp don't make any stupid mistakes."
The class was silent. As predicted, far more teachers than necessary were gathered for the exam. Izuku studied each Pro, wondering which one he would be expected to fight. Depending on the parameters his opponent had been chosen by, it could honestly be any of them. Around him his classmates shifted, fidgeting with their costumes and gear. They were likely all wondering the same thing as him.
"I expect many of you have gathered information and believe you have some idea of what you'll be faced with today," Aizawa went on, sweeping his piercing gaze across the class.
Again no one spoke. No one wanted to give away that they had known in advance what the exam would be, and risk their secret weapon being sussed out too soon. Hatsume had won the contest, obviously, so now it was a matter of how best to use their advantage. Aizawa looked surprised when no one said anything, but continued on anyway.
"In previous years we had students fight robots like the entrance exams, however-"
"This year's tests will be completely different!" cried Principal Nezu, popped out from amidst the folds of Aizawa's capture weapon.
"You're changing things?" Yaoyorozu asked as though in surprise.
"The tests now have a new focus!" Nezu explained, using a loose end to rappel down to the ground. "There will be hero work of course, but also teamwork and combat between actual people!"
Teamwork? That was news. So they would be fighting the teachers in teams of two, judging by the number of teachers compared to the number of students. Izuku glanced around at the class wondering who his partner would be.
"So what does that mean for you?" Nezu asked cheerfully, pointing to the class with one paw. "You students will be working together in pairs and your opponents will be one of our esteemed UA teachers! Isn't that fabulous?"
There were a few noises of anxiety from the crowd of students, but once again no one spoke. Izuku noticed Aizawa looking around curiously and wondered if he ought to say something, but eventually Aizawa went on.
"Additionally, your partners and your opponents have already been chosen," he explained. "They were determined at my discretion based on various factors including fighting style, grades and interpersonal relationships. First, Yaoyorozu and Todoroki are a team-"
Aizawa grinned, and Izuku gulped. "Against me."
Izuku glanced at Shouto, to see him facing Aizawa without a hint of fear. Despite his stoic expression though, Izuku could tell he was nervous. He was a strong combatant on every level, but his fighting style was based heavily around his quirk. Switching seamlessly between quirk-based and quirkless combat would be a trick, especially with a partner in the mix.
"Then we have Midoriya paired with Shinsou," Aizawa continued, and for a moment Izuku was actually starting to feel better until he finished, "and their opponent is . . ." before trailing off.
Before Izuku could wonder what that meant, there was a great rush of wind from above. He looked up, and for a second a flying object blotted out the sun. Then it came down in front of them, revealing itself to be the Number One Hero.
"I am here!" All Might declared, standing up and clenching a fist in front of himself. "To fight!"
Izuku and Hitoshi gasped at the same time, and chorused the only thing either of them could think to say.
"We're up against All Might?!"