Chapter 83
[Silence]
The days went by fast, and before they knew it, the day for the exams had arrived. Class 1-A was now standing outside Takoba National Stadium. Most of the class looked confident in their abilities, but some weren't as confident as others. "Uuuugh. I'm getting kind of nervous." Kyouka muttered.
"I wonder what they're gonna make us do." Minoru was restless. "Ugh. What if I can't get my license?"
Aizawa got to the boy's eye level. "Mineta, don't ask if you can. Say that you will."
"R-Right! Sure! I've so got this!" Minoru said to himself, whether it was genuine or not, Sora was unsure, but the Keyblade wielder smiled at his classmate trying to pump himself up, as well as his teacher encouraging that.
The 1-A teacher then stood up and addressed the entire class. "If you can pass this test and get your provisional licenses, then you novice 'eggs' will hatch into 'chicks'. You'll be Semi-Pros. I expect your best."
"Alright! I can't wait to be a heroic chicken!" Denki said, failing to notice Jiro's very slight lip twitch at how funny that sounded coming from him.
"Let's call out the usual you guys!" Ejiro spoke up. "On my mark!"
Sora was about to join in, until suddenly, someone he didn't recognize just slid into the crowd of 1-A students, and caught him off guard. "Wha?...Who?"
"Go PLUS..." Kirishima continued, not noticing the new guy in the crowd approach him from behind.
"ULTRA!" Both the stranger and Ejiro cheered at once.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Shiketsu and U.A.]
At this point, everyone noticed the stranger, along with a few others. One thing that they all had in common, was that they were all wearing a dark blue and orange colored hat, with a gold metal S in the center of the hat. They also wore dark blue pants, or in the girl's case, a skirt, and had white collared shirts on. This was very clearly a group of students from another school, that some students in 1-A seemed to recognize, via looking at the hat. The purple haired student from this group spoke to their classmate who joined in on the U.A. student's huddle. "You know, it's pretty rude to barge into other people's huddles, Inasa."
"What?! Pardon me!" The student known as Inasa exclaimed, though he didn't lose his smile. "I AM SO..." He stood in attention. "...VERY..." He bowed to the group, but was so extreme about it that he bowed down so low that he hit his head on the ground. "...EXTREMELY SORRYYYY!"
This rightfully caught every student in U.A. off guard, as this was very over to top. "Who is this guy?! I do not trust his enthusiasm!" Denki spoke up. However, Aizawa seemed to know who Inasa was, and had a slightly surprised look on his face.
"Hey look at their uniforms." Jiro pointed out.
"They're from that famous school on the other side of Japan." Hanta realized.
"U.A. in East..." Katsuki spoke up next. "...Shiketsu in the West."
Sora briefly remembered reading about them, way back before he even enrolled into U.A. He was curious about other Hero courses and had briefly looked into other academies, but Shiketsu was the only other major academy that had a track record that was equal to U.A. in terms of the Heroes and Support Item Developers it produced. To be able to see the students of this school, who looked about the same age as the U.A. students, made the Keyblade wielder slightly smirk. He was excited to see what these guys could do. If they're as good as records of that academy say, then they'll be the most difficult to compete against, that was, until he caught sight of the girl with fawn colored hair, who for some reason, felt off to Sora.
Inasa then spoke up once again, "I wanted to say it just once! PLUS ULTRA! See, I really love U.A. High School! I AM EXTREMELY HONORED TO COMPETE AGAINST INCREDIBLE STUDENTS! I'M SO LOOKING FORWARD TO IT!" His head then began to bleed.
"Whoa, blood." The girl with fawn colored hair noticed.
"Let's go." The purple haired boy began to walk away, making his classmates follow.
"Inasa Yoarashi." Aizawa said out loud.
"Do you know that guy, Mr. Aizawa?" Toru wondered.
"Indeed. He's strong." The homeroom teacher explained. "He's the same year as you all, and received the top scores through students admitted through recommendations. But for some unknown reason, he turned down his acceptance to U.A. Went to Shiketsu instead." That actually caught Sora by surprise and made him realize something. Shoto and Momo were also accepted from Recommendations, but if Inasa had the top scores, then that means that he was even better than the both of them. That made Sora a little more excited to see what they can do.
[Silence]
"Great to meet you U.A. students! Please excuse me!" Inasa spoke up before he followed his classmates.
"Hold on. Is anyone else confused here?" Sero questioned. "This guy says that he loves our school but...he turned down his chance to enroll when it was offered?"
"Yeah." Mina agreed with that. "What a weirdo."
"Maybe, but he's the real deal." Aizawa reiterated his warning. "Keep an eye on him."
"Eraser!?" A female voice was heard, and Aizawa seemed to recognize it, and he actually looked scared. "I'd know that scowl anywhere!"
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Dogimagi]
The woman approached and she had teal hair, was wearing an orange bandana on her head, and was in a costume that looked kind of funny looking, especially with the smiley face emojis pinned around her waist. She also had a bright smile on her face. It was the complete opposite of Aizawa. "I saw you on TV and at the Sports Festival, but it's been a while since we were this close in person." The 1-A Homeroom teacher seemed to dread this woman who was approaching him, as evident by the look on his face, and the slight eye twitching.
"She looks familiar..." Izuku noticed her appearance.
The woman got up to their teacher's face. "Let's get married."
"No." He immediately replied. Though Ashido had a bright look on her face when she heard that very quick exchange, like she was shipping those two.
The woman let out a hearty laugh. "You're a real laugh riot, buddy!"
As she kept laughing really loudly, Aizawa replied to her comment. "As usual, you're impossible. Joke."
Midoriya's face brightened as he knew who this was now. "Oh! That's Ms. Joke, The Smile Hero! Her quirk is Outburst! She forces people around her to laugh, which affects their ability to think and keeps them from being able to move! Her fights against villains are always full of insanity!"
"Well that explains why Aizawa looks more annoyed than usual." Sora commented.
"C'mon imagine it." Ms. Joke tried again. "If I was your wife, you'd have a future full of constant laughter!"
"That sounds like an actual nightmare." Aizawa replied, making her burst into laughter again.
"It seems like you two are close." Asui noticed their banter.
"Our agencies were near each other." Ms. Joke explained. "As young Heroes, striving to make a difference in the world, a mutual love bloomed!"
"No it didn't!" Aizawa immediately replied.
"I do miss your quick retorts!" Ms. Joke spoke back to him. "You're my favorite person to tease, future husband!"
[Silence]
The 1-A homeroom teacher decided to change the subject. "So, Joke. If you're here, then that must mean..."
"That's right!" She knew what he was gonna say and confirmed his unfinished statement. She then motioned for some students that seemed to look a year older than the U.A. kids to approach the group. "Over here, everyone! This is U.A.!"
"Oh whoa. It really is Class 1-A." A student who looked similar to Izuku in appearance, but had black hair said.
"Wow! It's so amazing!" A female student with blonde spiky hair, and a bang seemed excited to meet them too. "I've seen them on TV before!"
"Second years, from Ketsubutsu Academy." Ms. Joke introduced her students. "Class 2. They're my students."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Among Kosei]
The boy that looked like Izuku, approached said student and introduced himself. "Hey, I'm Yo Shindo. Seems like U.A.'s been having alot of trouble this year. Must have been tough for you."
"Uh...yeah." Midoriya replied.
Yo then quickly began shaking a few other students' hands, as he continued to speak to them. "But even so, you're all still aiming to become Pro Heroes, despite those hardships. It's wonderful. Hearts full of fortitude! I believe that's what every Hero in the world needs to have." Most of the class were all thinking that this guy was acting a little too nice. "And Sora and Bakugo. It must have been hard for you two, what with that whole kidnapping incident."
That got both boys in question to look at him a little more seriously. "Huh?" Katsuki replied.
"You both have especially strong wills, don't you?" Shindo said to them, offering a hand to Bakugo. "Today, I'm gonna do my best to learn from the two of you. I really hope you don't mind."
Katsuki swatted his hand away from him. "Stop pretending. What you say doesn't match the look in your eyes." Sora saw the look too, and could tell that this was most likely an attempt to get them to lower their guard around him, which would make it easier for him to eliminate them.
Others didn't see it though. "Hey, Bakugo! Don't be so rude!" Ejiro spoke up. "Sorry, he's just like that."
"It's fine." Yo responded. "It proves how tough his heart is."
"Well, you're not wrong there." Sora did have to agree with him on that. He then offered his hand to Shindo. "Feel free to learn all you want. Just remember to keep your guard up."
While Shindo shook the Keyblade wielder's hands, subtly getting the message, the girl with spiky hair and a bang approached Shoto. "Whoa, Todoroki! Can I have your autograph? You were so cool at the sports festival."
"Uh..." Shoto didn't really know how to respond to this.
"Seriously?" Another male student with long black hair and a rather small face spoke up. "Stop fangirling."
"I'd be happy to sign something for ya." Minoru pounced on the opportunity, but was ignored by the girl.
[Silence]
"Hey." Aizawa spoke up to his class. "Get your costumes and head to orientation. There's no time to waste."
"Yes, sir!" Class 1-A responded in unison.
"It's weird." Kyouka commented. "I always forget we're famous to other schools."
"Oh yeah. We're basically celebrities when it comes to Hero Course students." Denki replied. "No pictures please!"
Ms. Joke heard that and then looked a little concerned. "Wait, hold on. Did you not warn your kids, Eraser?" Aizawa didn't answer and kept walking, which made Ms. Joke drop her smile and look a little worried for the U.A. students.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST U.A. Corridors]
As 1-A was beginning to make their way to the stadium, Sora noticed another group of students. But for some reason the uniform they were wearing seemed to remind him of something. He was next to Tsuyu while the group was walking and decided to ask her. "Hey, Tsu. Is it just me, or do those uniforms those guys are wearing look familiar?"
Asui looked at the group in question and also seemed to recognize the uniform. " Yeah, Ribbit. They kind of do...wait a second." She pulled out her phone and scrolled through some pictures until she found what she was looking for. "Aha. That's why."
"What is it?" The Keyblade wielder was curious.
Tsuyu showed Sora a picture of her snake headed friend, Mongoose in that very same uniform. "It's the uniform that Habuko wears."
"Oh! So that's a class from Isamu." Sora realized. "You think that's Habuko's class?"
"I don't see her in the crowd, or any of the other three from before." Asui noted. "They also look a little older."
"Ah. So more second years then." The Keyblade wielder noted. He took another brief look at the Isamu students, and two of them seemed to catch his attention.
There was one person, who Sora couldn't really tell if it was a guy or a girl at first glance. The person had very light brown hair, and pointy ears that were pierced and had ear rings near the base of them. There also seemed to be triangle shaped tattoos of some sort on the back of his hands.
The other student that caught his attention was a boy with short brown hair, and white feathered wings that came from his back. It made the boy look kind of like the Pro Hero, Hawks but with white feathers, instead of red.
The two of them then noticed Sora looking at them, while the pointy eared student just looked away, seeming not to care, the student with wings gave a small little wave, to which the Keyblade wielder responded with a friendly wave of his own. "I wonder if those guys will give us a challenge too." Sora said out loud.
"We'll just have to wait and see, Ribbit." Tsuyu replied.
[Silence]
The class entered Takoba National Stadium and entered locker rooms to change into their Hero costumes. After that, they, along with the hundreds of other Hero Course students gathered around in a massive room, with a large screen that would be used to describe how the exam would go, and a podium in front of it with a few men in suits standing there, turning on the mic.
"Look at this crowd." Midoriya said.
"There are so many." Ochako commented.
The man in the middle of the podium groaned before speaking into the mic. "Okay then. Let's do this exam thing. I'm from...uh...the Heroes Public Safety Commission. Name's Mera. My Circadian Rhythm is so screwed up." He seemed to be nodding off in between that statement. "Ah man...I've been swamped lately and haven't gotten much rest. We're too short staffed. I'm so tired." He stopped sulking to get on with business. "With that confession, I'll begin orientation." While most students felt a little bad for him, they were listening to what he had to say. "So, about the content of this license thing. Basically 1,541 examinees compete in a free for all exercise, or whatever we're calling it this year."
"Seriously?" Hanta commented. "That's not a lot of info."
"See, we've got a lot of pros around." Mera continued. "And since Stain was arrested, many people have expressed doubts about the status of Heroes in society."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Threat Incoming]
Sora, and a few other students around him figured that he was talking about how Stain's convictions pointed out how most Pros are more or less after money and affection, rather than to actually help people. Whether that be true or false, the fact remained that The Hero Killer's influence was still affecting society, and not just Villains, but the populace too. Mera kept talking. "But, when you really think about it, getting paid makes sense. If you're going to risk your life to save someone, why shouldn't you ask for a reward, huh? That's just the way the world works. God, I could use a coffee. Anyway, whether they're in it for compensation, or out of a sense of duty, we've got too many Heroes working together in the streets these days to keep Villains at bay. Honestly, the time between when an incident begins and when it ends is ridiculously short. You are all here trying to receive your provisional licenses, so you'll be swept up in this entire mess yourselves pretty soon. Those of you who don't have the speed, frankly just won't cut it. Which is why that's what you'll be tested on."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Runaway Battle]
The screen showed the words 'Number to Pass 1st Test 100 People' as Mera finalized his speech. "The first hundred students to fulfill this requirement will pass today."
That got every student in the room to look worried. Momo realized something. "There are over 1,500 people taking this test. I thought they said that about half of us would be passing."
"This means...that actually less than one percent will actually get a license." Asui did the math.
"Oh man, I'm getting way more nervous!" Jiro said.
"That's crazy!" Sora was not very pleased to see that so few people here would actually pass this exam.
"Well the world can be pretty crappy." Mera said on the mic. "I suppose I should say something about luck." He didn't and moved on, grabbing a ball and a target device in his hands. "So, here are the basic rules. The examinee will put three of these targets on his or her body. They can go anywhere you want, as long as it's an exposed area, so no soles of the feet or armpits. Each of you will also have six of these balls. The targets are programmed to light up whenever they've been touched by the ball. If all three targets light up, you're out. Oh, and the person who lights up your third target will get credit for your defeat. You get through this round, by taking down two people. Got it? Good."
The U.A. kids realized how this was similar to the entrance exam, but instead of facing against robots, it was against other students, some of which had an extra year of experience over them. It was honestly harsher than the entrance exam, due to the fact that there is no room for error, or else you will either get eliminated, or you won't get your eliminations before other people could either take them from you, or fill up the spots before you can secure yours.
"What else? Uhh..." Mera seemed to have covered everything at this point. "I guess we'll start passing out the targets and balls. Then you'll have a few minutes to get situated after we open."
"Open?" Shoto repeated, before the room completely opened up around the students and revealed that they were already in the arena.
"I'm sure each of you have different terrains that you like, or want to avoid." Mera commented. "Use your quirks well and do your best. Or not, whatever." Most students thought that this was a bit extra. "Yes, I know. It makes for a great reveal, doesn't it. And for what? So much sleep lost for this. Hopefully some of these kids are fast and we can get this over with. Until then, I'm gonna rest my eyes."
[Silence]
Up in the stands, Ms. Joke and Aizawa were sitting together, to Aizawa's discretion. "Hey Eraser...your fly is down." Ms. Joke covered her mouth while laughing before regaining her composure. "I'm surprised that you have 21 students in your class. That's a whole one student higher than normal. It's unusual for you not to have expelled someone. You must actually like your class this time."
"Not really." Aizawa said, which made Ms. Joke laugh again.
"Don't be embarrassed! That's so like you!" She replied. "Please date me."
"Shut up." The U.A. teacher responded, making the Ketsubutsu teacher laugh again, before she once again regained composure.
"But really. You know what's about to happen down there." She pointed out. "And yet, you didn't mention a thing to your class."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Go Seize It!]
Sora had received his targets and balls. He placed one on the center of his chest, another on the back of his right shoulder, and another on the shin of his left leg. As most of the classes dispersed, the U.A. kids were currently together at the moment. Izuku then spoke up as everyone was already ready to go. "Everyone! Stay close together! We'll fight them as a group!"
Uraraka nodded to that while Tenya spoke up. "Got it!"
"Yeah right!" Bakugo wasn't about to do that, and he began to run off. "This isn't a field trip!"
"Idiot." Kirishima commented. "Wait up!"
"Kacchan." Midoriya shouldn't have been surprised.
"Kirishima!" Iida called out, but knew that his classmate couldn't be stopped.
"I'm going on my own too." Shoto spoke up as he split from the group as well. "It's hard for me to use my powers safely when a big group is around."
"Todoroki." Izuku was a bit concerned.
"Midoriya, there's no time! Let's go!" Mineta snapped the One For All user out of his concern. The group then moved together towards the spiraling mountain area.
"I don't think it's a good idea for them to go off on their own though." Midoriya reiterated.
"How come?" Minoru asked.
"Think about it." Izuku responded. "Everyone already knows what powers we have."
"They did research?" Ochako questioned.
"I see. The Sports Festival!" Tenya realized what he meant.
Back on the stands, Ms. Joke spoke to Aizawa again. "Every year, the test is different, but one thing is always the same. Most of the students who compete in the exam have pretty equal footing, except for one school. U.A. comes in at a severe disadvantage. Because the top school's is broadcast across the country. Showing off not just your student's quirks, but their weaknesses and fighting styles too. Kind of funny, isn't it?"
Back with the U.A. kids, Midoriya continued to speak to his class as they were reaching the mountain. "The other schools have probably figured out the same way to win as I have. This is going to end up being a battle between schools. With that in mind, it's likely that they'll gang up against quirks they know!" The rest of the class knew what he meant.
"Does that mean...?" Mina began.
"Don't tell me..." Kyouka didn't want to finish that.
"We're gonna be the first and biggest targets in this exam." Sora finished for the two.
[Silence]
An alarm then went off and a voice spoke up on the speaker. "The first test will now begin."
"If you liked your class this year, you should have warned your students about all this." Ms. Joke pointed out. "We've seen it time and time again in this exam. U.A. is immediately crushed."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Iron Battle]
Not even ten seconds after the test began, Class 1-A was engaged by the Ketsubutsu Second Years in a surprise frontal assault, with Yo leading the charge. He looked at Izuku and shouted out to him. "I saw you on TV! That power of yours also destroys your body! WELL...!" He and the entire class threw a ball towards the group. "...I can't say I'm above taking advantage of that!"
Midoriya, who was ready to prove that claim wrong, charged forward, towards the many projectiles, activated full cowling, jumped into the air and kicked away one ball with his leg, while the shockwave from the kick blew the other balls away from him and the group. Back on the stands, Aizawa decided to humor Ms. Joke. "So you'll think we'll be taken out? I don't really see a reason why I should have warned them. I doubt anything would have changed if I had. They're still going to have to overcome this either way." As the U.A. Homeroom Teacher spoke, his students took action to defend themselves. Fumikage activated Dark Shadow and had the quirk defend him, Catching and holding onto multiple balls coming towards the group. Uraraka used her quirk to float above the incoming volley. Hanta used his tape to catch many of them. Ashido melted any that came towards her. Momo created a few shields that she, Toru and Tsuyu used to protect themselves. Iida ran and avoided every ball that came in his general direction, moving much faster than he did at the Sports Festival. Mineta stuck many of his pop off balls together to form a long strip and used it to block any balls that were coming towards him. And Sora summoned Two Become One, and casted Aero to blow away the balls coming towards him. As the Ketsubutsu students noticed that the U.A. kids were a far cry from what they were before, Aizawa kept talking. "REAL Heroes could turn this situation around. Besides, if they become Pros, they'll face Villains who already know their quirks. Perhaps at U.A., we look a little further ahead than other schools."
As the U.A. students stuck close together and covered each other's backs, Izuku spoke up. "We've got this you guys! Show them what U.A. can do!"
"YEAH!" the rest of Class 1-A said in unison.
[Silence]
As Ms. Joke understood Aizawa's statement, she decided to switch the topic. "Hey Eraser. I'm guessing that a lot of our kids will think it's important to finish fast, like the first ones to pass will be ranked as the top. So they'll want to attack immediately."
"Yes, but teamwork is the key." Aizawa pointed out. "The wise ones will cooperate and gather information together. But if they're seduced by the urge to win and rush to get points, they'll end up exposing themselves. And then it's all over."
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Shiketsu and U.A.]
"None of our attacks are landing." A Ketsubutsu student with blue skin noted.
"I guess we shouldn't be surprised that U.A. won't go down without a fight." Shindo commented.
"Maybe not, but we have a plan." The blue skinned boy said, while messing with some of the balls in his hands and hardening them. Most likely his quirk could be the ability to stiffen objects. He tossed them to the short faced black haired kid from before. "All done!"
"I'll take it from here." The short faced boy caught the stiffened balls with precision, and began to charge up the balls. "Just try not to be jealous when I end up finishing ahead of the rest of our class. But I'm sure you won't mind, since I'll be reducing enemy numbers with this elegant attack." He reared his arms back. "Target! Lock on!" He then threw them and they went into the ground, tunneling through it. "Boomerang. Crescent Moon Trajectory. My aim is always true, and since these projectiles are coming at them from underground, no one will have time to dodge."
"Where are they gonna pop out?" Midoriya wondered.
"Get back. I'll handle this!" Jiro took the lead and inserted her earphone jacks into the speakers she had on her gloves. "Sound Amplification. Amplifier Jack." She then slammed the back of her hands on the ground and then let out a powerful pulse from her quirk through the speakers, shattering the ground in between the U.A. kids and the Ketsubutsu student that had that boomerang quirk. "Heartbeat Distortion!"
"She's breaking the ground apart!" He realized, but the stiffened balls came out and still went towards the group. "It won't help!"
"They're coming straight for me!" Minoru realized.
Ashido had his back though. "Maximum strength and viscosity!" She secreted the most potent amount of acid she could and completely destroyed the projectiles "Protect this perv! ACID VEIL!"
"Wow, thanks! That's such a great move." Mineta complimented her.
"It's my defensive special that creates a melty wall." Mina took the compliment.
[Silence]
Ms. Joke noticed the fruits of their training. "So, they've been working on ultimate moves, already."
"Yes. Of course they have." Aizawa confirmed.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Vanguard Action Squad -All Out Attack-]
As the Ketsubutsu students were now caught off guard, it was U.A.'s turn to strike. Tokoyami went first, making Dark Shadow cloak him. "Black Abyss." He used one of the balls he caught and in Dark Shadow's hands he gave his command. "Now, Dark Shadow. Piercing Twilight Claws!"
He aimed for the ash blond girl with spiky hair and a bang. "Nonononono!" She was quick and somehow pulled the upper half of her body into her lower half, like a turtle would retreat into a shell, which looked pretty creepy, especially when her head popped out first, then the rest came back out slowly after. "Whew. That was close."
"Interesting. This isn't the Class 1-A from the Sports Festival." Yo saw the development in front of him. "It's obvious that their training is making them better fighters."
An announcement went off with Mera speaking. "Looks like all the students are still in a stalemate. Not a single one has passed yet. Oh, and don't worry, students. I'll keep you updated with an announcement, every time students move on to the next round."
While practically everyone knew that nobody was going all out at the start and studying the enemies in front of them, everyone had the same plan. Figure out how to break the others' defenses, while maintaining your own, whether it be in a group or alone, outnumbered or not, the plan was still the same for everyone.
Ms. Joke then spoke to Aizawa once more. "At U.A. you look further ahead than other schools." She scoffed. "That's a pretty condescending thing to say, Eraser. Do you have any idea how many kids in this world want to be Heroes? Strength of will is far more important than going to a famous school, or having renown. When you think you're the stars and look down on others, you reveal your weaknesses. That's how you fail."
Shindo then popped his knuckles before preparing to make a move. "Alright." He placed his hands on the ground. "Out of the way! Their defenses are too strong, right now! I'll fix that." As some students had an idea of what was about to happen it was too late to warn anybody. "MAXIMUM FORCE! TREMORING EARTH!"
The entire ground below everyone of the U.A. kids suddenly shattered and erupted violently. "Not good! Everybody run!" Iida yelled out.
"What the heck is this!?" Mina exclaimed.
"His power is insane!" Mineta screamed.
Small groups of the students were forcibly scattered from where they were, but some were split off and one their own, such as Izuku, who was split from Uraraka. "Deku!" She called out, seeing him get separated from her.
Another that was forcibly separated was Sora, who was almost buried under a huge amount of rocks, but used his flowmotion to just barely escape the attack. "What the heck kind of move was that?" He then noticed a female figure, wearing black by herself running from the city area and making her way towards the aftermath of that attack.
"Heh." Yo smirked at his handy work. "We've got ultimate moves too. You didn't think you were the only ones, did ya?"
[Silence]
Over in the power plant area, Shoto felt the effect of the attack. "Tremors. An earthquake? No. Probably someone's quirk."
Meanwhile, in the city area, multiple other students from at least seven different classes that were in the city zone had stopped their fighting. "Who has that kind of power?" One of them wondered.
"And which school are they from?" Another added.
"Don't lose focus!" Another student pointed out. "There are enemies everywhere." Unbeknownst to them however, a student wearing the Shiketsu hat was standing atop a building, with air flowing around him.
Mera yawned into the mic before speaking again. "Come on. There should be at least one or two who passed by now. Stop biding your time and get this over with."
A student then noticed something. "This breeze." Air then seemed to flow around near the center of the city area, and it soon began to pick up violently, which took the ball from her hand and the others she had, as well as all of the balls that every other student in the outdoor parts of the city area had.
"Hey! No fair!" Another student called out.
"Why are just the balls getting sucked up?!" Another wondered.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Inasa Yoarashi]
The perpetrator of this action was shown to be the Shiketsu student on top of the building, who was controlling the wind and using it to suck up all the balls he could. "I BELIEVE IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR HEROES TO HAVE PASSION. AND ALL OF YOU ARE FIGHTING WITH IT. THANK YOU! THAT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS ON EARTH TO SEE!"
"It's one guy from Shiketsu High?!" One of the students realized.
"What did he say?! It's hard to hear!" Another one questioned.
"Wait! What's he gonna do, now that he's got our balls?!" Another student pointed out.
"PLEASE LET ME JOIN YOUR FIGHT, AND LET ME SHOW YOU MY OWN PASSION!" Inasa screamed out as he then had the wind direct the hundreds upon hundreds of balls back towards the students. "I'M SO LOOKING FORWARDS TO IT!"
None of the students in the outdoor parts of the city area could prepare themselves for the literal storm that rained down upon them. The only things that could be heard were the screams of those caught in the storm, and the consecutive beeps as the targets of those unfortunate people were all struck.
When it was over, Mera had received a notification and announced it. "It's about time somebody perked up and passed AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! WHAT!? There are 120 people taken down! A single person managed to do that with one attack!?"
Yoarashi looked proud of his work. "That's the stuff. I won!"
"That actually surprised me so much that I'm awake." Mera said, sounding very much awake. "I assume we'll see a lot of people passing from now on. Everyone, let's get this out of the way, so I can take a break. Good? Good."
Back in the destroyed section of the mountain, Izuku got himself out of the rocks that he was under, and then quickly realized that he was alone right now. He began to slowly walk forward, looking around to make sure that he wasn't being targeted, but he was also lost in his own thoughts, thinking about how other schools here had more time to work with each other and prepare. He thought about Inasa and Yo, seeing these strong students from all over the country come here to prove themselves, and it got him a little excited.
[Silence]
That excitement was cut short, when he was suddenly ambushed by the female Shiketsu student with fawn hair. She quickly tagged a target he had on his right shoulder, before using some impressive acrobatics to maneuver over and behind him. "Tag. You're it." She playfully called out.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Tartarus]
Midoriya faced her, as she kept talking to him. "Not smart, staring off into space. But, what's really weird is that you're in trouble yet...still smiling. Haha! You couldn't be cooler." She stood up to face him. While Izuku, though nervous, kept a smile on his face as he prepared to engage her.
[Silence]
Elsewhere in the destroyed mountain area, Ochako was recovering from the aftermath of the tremors, looking a little banged up and missing her head piece. She was currently alone, but as she stood up, she noticed a familiar Keyblade wielder running towards somewhere. Instead of calling to him however, she just decided to follow him. If she called out to him, then she'd risk the both of them getting seen by other schools and become targets. She had to be quiet for now.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Villain]
Back with Izuku, his opponent kept talking to him. "In fights where a lot of one on one combat is expected, most people tend to go after opponents they've already got a lot of intel on, since it's safest. That's why I tracked you down, because there's a good possibility that U.A.'s students would be ganged up on. See, I don't want to miss the chance to interact with such a prestigious school, and I've taken quite an interest in a few of you."
"Heh. You sure like to talk." Midoriya commented, staying alert. He then activated full cowling, and in that moment, she threw a rock at him, he focused on that and dodged it, but right after that, a ball came towards him. He then leapt to avoid that. He landed, but saw that the girl was gone.
"All I have to do is tape you with the ball, and that makes two!" The girl was right next to him and going for the target on his left hip. He barely dodged that and prepared to counter, but she was already gone. Like she vanished. "Aw. You think my quirk lets me disappear?" She said right behind him, before she pushed him down and pinned him to the ground. "That's not it. I was just hiding."
"It wasn't your power at work?" Izuku questioned.
"No. That's just a technique. I make my opponents' eyes and ears deaf to my presence." She explained. "To do that, I hold my breath, clear my mind, and disappear. It's simple. The hardest part is not thinking, to be honest."
"Wait. You learned a technique that impressive at Shiketsu?" Midoriya asked.
"The trick is to not view your training as some kind of chore." The girl said, before giggling and having her face uncomfortably close to his. "I'm glad we're learning about each other. Now my question. Why exactly do you want to become a Hero? For honor? Pride? Or is it for someone else's sake? I want to know your deepest desires and what scares you."
[Silence]
Izuku activated full cowling, but just as he was about to retaliate, he heard the girl grunt, and felt her get knocked off of him. He barely saw a blue sparkle above him as he just noticed that it was Sora who got her off, via a flowmotion powered dropkick. "Get up." The Keyblade wielder told him. The girl quickly recovered and landed on her feet.
As Sora, Izuku and the girl were about to engage, the floor below them trembled, before the three jumped away and avoided a projectile coming out from under the ground. The three landed on their feet and looked to see the short faced Ketsubutsu student with the Boomerang quirk, along with at least half of his class with him. "Man. Shiketsu is trying to take them down too?"
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST I'm Seriously Going to Crush You]
The fawn haired Shiketsu girl looked annoyed, while Sora and Midoriya realized that they were now in a crossfire. "Not good." Izuku said out loud.
"Get ready!" The Keyblade wielder said, as more projectiles underground were incoming.
The Ketsubutsu students focused on Sora and Midoriya, so the projectiles went under their feet. The pair quickly dodged an underground spider web attack, before being forced to dodge, or in Sora's case, deflect balls coming from above as well. Then both of them being forced to dodge more spider web attacks, along with massive metal pincers from another quirk. As the two of them did their best to stay on the move, they heard Ochako's voice. "Are you two okay?!"
Both of them were surprised to see her, looking unscathed. "Uraraka!" Midoriya called out.
"Over here! Hurry!" Ochako extended her hand out.
As Sora and Izuku both dodged more attacks and balls coming towards them, a few of the Ketsubutsu students went after her. "Don't let them escape!" One of them shot a burst of water at her that she dodged.
"Hey! Watch where you're shootinaaah!" Uraraka tripped after avoiding the water attack and fell off the rocky platform she was on.
"I'll take her down fast!" Another Ketsubutsu student said before launching his hand over towards her while she fell.
Both U.A. boys noticed her in danger, and sprang into action. Midoriya used full cowling to propel himself over to her, while Sora charged his focus energy to the max, and his clothes changed to the wisdom form design, as he executed Wisdom Barrage to cover his partner's rescue. Izuku had managed to reach Ochako and catch her, he landed on the ground safely, while Sora slid over to the pair as he finished his barrage.
"No you don't!" Another Ketsubutsu student threw a ball towards them, but Sora deflected it back towards him, while Midoriya skidded his foot on the ground and then kicked some rocks towards the area that the Ketsubutsu students were at, breaking apart the footholds that they were on and giving him time to run while carrying Uraraka. The Keyblade wielder followed suit, casting three fire spells towards the Ketsubutsu students to make sure that they'd get off their backs, while he followed the One For All user.
[Silence]
Mera then spoke up with another announcement. "Well we've finally had a 30th person pass. Still a pretty long way to go though. Can't you kids speed this along, for me?"
The Ketsubutsu students regained their bearings and then talked amongst themselves. "Where's those U.A. brats run off to?"
"Are they gone? Or just hiding?"
"They gotta be close. Anyway, this isn't working. There must be a better way to tag them."
As they were doing that, Izuku, Sora and Ochako were far enough away for Midoriya to put Uraraka down. He poked his head out to see if anyone had followed them, while the Keyblade wielder was behind him, and their female classmate behind her. "Thanks. Sorry." She apologized. "I really messed up back there, huh?"
"No. That's not true." Midoriya replied, still on watch. "You were outnumbered."
"Yeah. Don't sweat it." Sora agreed, not looking at her at the moment. Ochako smiled at the two, looking happy to see them like this, as she had a ball in her hand and very slowly went for Sora's target on his shoulder.
The Keyblade wielder grabbed her wrist with his right hand and looked back at her. "Nice try, faker."
Izuku grabbed the ball from her hand. "Let me guess. You're someone from Shiketsu."
"I'm what?" 'Ochako' replied.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Three Secrets]
"Uraraka has been working on her quirk, training hard" Midoriya told her. "She can even ignore its side effects for a short period of time and use it to make herself float without getting sick. But you. You didn't even try to use it at all, even though you were in danger."
"You also exposed yourself to the enemy without a plan, which is very out of character for Ochako." Sora spoke up next, having Two Become One in his left hand, ready to strike her if she tried anything.
"So who are you?" Both boys demanded to know.
"Hm." She had a creepy smile that for some reason was familiar to Sora and made him feel very uncomfortable. "If you two saved me, even though you knew I was a fake." Her body began to melt as the voice began to change. "Does that mean you were trying to use me somehow?"
Upon reflex, the Keyblade wielder let go and backed up with Izuku, both of them creeped out seeing this. The One For All user answered her question though. "No! I didn't have time to think that far ahead."
"But we'd do it again in a heartbeat." Sora said, as both boys got ready to fight this shapeshifter. "If you didn't have her power, you would have gotten hurt, being unable to float."
"Oh? I see now. So you're both just that nice, huh?" The face reformed and it was the fawn haired girl from Shiketsu speaking to them, with a similarly creepy smile and tone in her voice. "Please tell me more about yourselves. Everything." The substance she was covered with drooped off of her as she continued to speak to the two. "Does that mean you'll save anybody? Is there no boundary? Where do you draw the line?"
[Silence]
The pair then realized that she was missing some things from before. "Holy wha!? What happened to your clothes?!" Midoriya questioned.
"Why are you naked?!" The Keyblade wielder wanted to look away to respect her privacy, but he could not, because she was an enemy that was a threat at the moment.
[Play Boku no Hero Academia OST Iron Battle]
"I'll get dressed when my mission is complete!" She said before charging at the two and swiped at them with her nail. They both backed away, but Izuku got his cheek scratched. Before he could regain his balance, the girl pressed her attack and went for another swipe.
She was then blocked by multiple streaks of tape. "What"
The source of them came from a classmate that the two boys recognized. "Hanta!" The Keyblade wielder called out.
"Sora, Midoriya!" Sero called back. "What's this enviable situation you're in?!"
"Sero!" Izuku was also glad to see him.
"Uraraka!" Hanta called out, and on cue, the real Ochako jumped over him and floated above the fawn haired girl.
"Release!" Uraraka yelled as she dropped and attempted to stomp the Shiketsu student only for her to quickly dodge and backflip away towards the top of some rubble and sit on it seductively.
"And here things were just getting good." The fawn haired girl complained, her mood seeming to be ruined as she looked at Sora and Midoriya. "Too bad. I really...really~...wanted to talk to you two some more. But not with so many people around. What a bummer." She directed her attention to the girl she pretended to be earlier. "Ochako Uraraka. They really trust you a lot, you know." She then looked back at the Keyblade wielder, before blowing a kiss to him, then standing up and running off.
As Sora felt a chill and shivered at that action, Hanta called out to her. "Come back, naked girl!"
"Don't follow her!" Izuku stopped his classmate.
"Doh man! Why not!?" Sero questioned.
"It might have just been her quirk, but it doesn't look like she was wearing her clothes, or her targets." Midoriya pointed out. "There's still a chance she might come after us. But think about it. We don't have much time left. And it would be hard to get a point off of her." He then looked a little skeptical. "Also...you two are actually you, right?"
Both of them were confused and Hanta asked "What do you mean?"
[Silence]
Sora then answered for his classmate. "That girl earlier turned into Ochako, face, clothes, gear and all."
"So that hottie's quirk is to transform into other people." Sero realized. "Weird."
"We think so, at least." Midoriya replied.
"We can't underestimate how much those other schools have learned about us." Hanta said. "They even know that You two and Uraraka are really good friends."
"Probably because we were on the same Cavalry Battle Team at the Sports Festival, or because of how Sora rushed to Uraraka immediately after her match with Kacchan." Izuku guessed.
"Yeah. That must be why." Ochako understood that claim.
"Anyway, how'd you three find me, it was perfect timing?" Midoriya asked.
"I saw that girl running towards where we were attacked and figured that she was going to try and pick some of us off. Since you were pinned down by her when I found you, I guess I was right about that." Sora said.
"I saw Sora and decided to follow him and hopefully catch up, since I knew it would be best to stick together." Uraraka explained.
"I just saw a fight and rushed over here. She and I ran into each other along the way." The tape user told them.
"I'm just glad we got to help." The gravity girl said.
"Yeah. Me too." Izuku was glad to have allies with him again.
"So we're a squad of four, for now. What next?" Ochako looked ready to fight.
"I wish we could meet up with the rest of our class. We're way safer in numbers." Hanta said.
"That's true, but 30 people have already passed this test so far." The One For All user pointed out. "We have to hurry. If we're gonna pass, we've gotta earn some points."
"Then let's get moving." Sora said. "We'll stick together and help each other pass."
As the four of them exited their cover, Mera's voice came up on another announcement. "Let's see. Where are we at now? Things are moving a lot more quickly. Looks like 52...make that 53, have passed. And looking on the other side of things, it looks like 230 examinees have failed. Less than half the spots are open. Now's the time to move. Don't dilly dally kids"
[Play KH3 OST Flags of Fury -Leviathan Awakened-]
"Gah!" As if somehow on cue, A metal clamp that was attached to a chain had struck and clasped onto Sora's throat, before he was quickly pulled away from the group. "Huh!?"
"What the?!" Uraraka saw him get pulled away.
"Sora!" Midoriya reached for him, but was too slow.
"Dang it!" Sero shot tape out, but the Keyblade wielder was pulled away much faster than the tape could move to reach him.
As Sora was quickly and rather harshly dragged across the ground, he could barely make out who it was that just snatched him. He saw the boy with brown hair and white wings, who was now wearing attire that made him look like he was from Olympus, carrying the pointy eared boy with triangle tattoos on his hands, who was now wearing a green tunic and hat, and geared up with a bow, shield, sword, and a hookshot that was being used to drag him at the moment.
The Keyblade wielder soon regained his bearing and managed to kick himself up to his feet, holding the chain with one hand, while he summoned Two Become One and Shattered the chain, to free himself. The two opponents noticed this and the winged one dropped his partner, before pulling out two blades and putting them together to make a bow with a hard light string at the tips of the blades. He plucked a feather and then shot it at the Keyblade wielder with his bow, which Sora deflected away, before the winged boy joined his friend on the ground, ready to face off against the Warrior of Light.
And now the first half of the first round of License Exam has been finished. With less than half of the spots available now, the crew is gonna need to hurry, to secure their spots. I already know what some of you are going to say, so I'm just going to say this now. No, I did not plan to have Sora face off against these two new individuals originally, but after certain real world video game developments had happened, and also some minor Inspiration from A New Pencil, I decided to add this, and make this scenario happen. I also decided to make these two from Isamu, as a way of bringing that school back into the fray via a class from there, and to further connect the world of MHA (As the only three schools mentionedduring this ark are U.A. Shiketsu, and Ketsubutsu.) Sora already knows that something is off about Camie, and yes, I know I didn't actually name drop her, or the other Ketsubutsu students, aside from Shindo, but that's becausethey never actually introduced themselves, so we can only go by descriptions until they say their names. But back to the point, he feels uncomfortable around her, especially when she flirts. I wonder why? Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and until I decide to upload again. ;)