Chapter 7: Classmates and Tests
Eri
Aizawa Eri got out of a bed full of plushies and stuffed animals and looked around at her dorm room. She had posters of all of Class 1-A and The Big Three on her walls, she was glad she could fit them all; a bookshelf near the door that was full of funny manga she read with Rukia and some action figures of her Heroes, as well as a set of weights and a jump rope. Eri changed into her exercise clothes, bright red jacket and matching sweatpants and sneakers, and started jumping rope for five minutes as a warmup. After her warmup she spent fifteen minutes stretching, just like Aizawa Tou-san had showed her.
Once she finished stretching, Eri lifted the 10 kg weights headed to the in-dorm gym, she had seen it before during her visits to the older Class 1-A. Joey and Jougo were already in the gym, doing sit-ups together and passing a heavy medicine ball between them, the only other person there was a small boy, maybe five feet tall at most, with bright orange spiky hair and glowing red eyes who wore a black karate gi, he was punching and kicking a heavy punching bag. "Hey, Eri," Joey and Jougo said at the same time. "Hey guys," Eri greeted as she passed her friends and started lifting her weights for a while, working her shoulders, arms, forearms, core, and finally her legs, while Joey and Jougo went through their calisthenics routine.
Eri finished lifting her weights and started doing her shadow-boxing routine, practicing various fast but simple techniques that her adopted father had shown her. "You got some good form," the orange-haired boy said. "Thanks, my Dad taught me," Eri said as she continued kicking and punching the air, imagining she was fighting Villains. "Cool, what style is that?" the orange-haired boy asked. He got closer, and Eri thought she recognized him. "Have we met before?" she asked him. "I don't think so," the orange-haired boy said.
Joey finished his calisthenics routine and had some water before saying, "Aizawa Eri, meet one of the toughest guys in Japanese Karate, Kasai Ken. We've fought each other in the National Tournaments." Eri's eyes widened, "OOOOOHHHHHHH, now I recognize you! You're one of the only guys I've ever seen beat Joey head on. Nice to meet you, Kasai-san." Eri bowed to Kasai Ken, and the boy bowed back, "Nice to meet you, Aizawa-san. Would you like to spar for a minute? I love making new partners." Joey piped up then, "He'll beat you, Eri, just to let you know. He's fast as lightning, and hits just as hard."
"It's only sparring, I'll hold back, first to three points," Kasai assured Eri. "Alright," Eri said, and they walked over to a sparring ring in the gym. Both of them got into their fighting stances. Joey lifted his hand and yelled, "BEGIN!" Kasai shot forward and Eri barely dodged his kick and tried to counter with one of her own, but he blocked it with his kicking leg and then landed a kick to her head, enough to knock her down but not hurt, much. "POINT!" Joey declared. Eri shook her head and stood up and resumed her stance again and Kasai took his stance. Joey lifted his hand and said, "BEGIN!"
Eri made the first move this time, a punch that Kasai dodged by moving his head, and then she went for a kick to the stomach that he blocked, before he grabbed her leg and threw her to the ground. "POINT!" Joey yelled. "Man, you are good," Eri said as she got up again. Kasai lifted up his belt and Eri saw five bright red stripes on the belt, "I am a Fifth-rank black belt in the Tora-ken style of Karate. My Mom is the 38th Grandmaster of it, and she made sure I knew how to use what she taught me. You still want to finish this?" Eri took a deep breath and said, "Hit me with everything you got this time." Kasai smiled and nodded, "I like folks that don't give up."
"BEGIN!" Joey yelled, and immediately Kasai was in front of Eri and his fist hammered into her stomach like a cannonball. Eri felt like she was about to die as she started to fall, but Kasai kept her up and helped her to the wall. "Lift up your arms, and breathe," he told her, and Eri managed a deep breath, feeling like a diver that just reached air after nearly drowning. "You're one tough cookie, Aizawa-san," Kasai said after letting her catch her breath. "Not as tough as you," Eri told him. "Your hands were too high, your elbows weren't protecting your body," Kasai told her, "And you were too focused on defense. You got some good form otherwise. Plus, I trained my body to be as fast and strong as possible, you're well-built, but you haven't been training as intensely as me.
"If you ever want to train or spar again, just ask. Good luck, Aizawa-san," Kasai turned to leave, but then looked to Joey and said, "Tomorrow, Freeman-kun, we're having a rematch. Let's see if you've gotten better since last time." Joey smiled and nodded, "Sure thing, Kasai-kun."
Eri watched him leave and tried to walk over to the exercise bike to finish her workout, but her legs gave out. "ERI!" Joey and Jougo yelled in shock. Joey picked her up and quickly took her to the Nurses' office. As he carried her, Eri looked up at him and blushed. When they had first met in Yohda Elementary, he had been a scared little boy, but now he was a strong, capable hero-in-training, rushing her through the halls. Her face was turning red as these thoughts went through her head as they reached the Nurses' office.
Recovery Girl had sadly passed away the year before, her old age had caught up with her. U.A. had to hire three nurses to replace her; none of them were Heroes but they were experienced medics. "Eri-chan was sparring with Kasai-kun," Joey explained to the nurses as he set her down on a bed, "She told him to go all out, and he did. Knocked the air out of her, but then a few minutes later she couldn't walk." The three nurses were triplets who looked exactly alike, all women in their thirties with bright violet eyes and maroon hair. They unzipped Eri's jacket and looked at the large bruise that was already darkening her stomach. "It seems that Kasai bruised the skin, the muscles, and even her stomach," one of the Nurses said. "One punch…that Kasai is immensely strong," another Nurse said, "Alright sisters, let's do this."
All of the Nurses put their hands on Eri's stomach, and a purple light filled the room as they concentrated their Quirks. One could heal muscle damage, one skin damage, and the other internal damage, for this they would all be needed. Eri sighed as she felt her stomach being healed, and ten seconds later she was all better. "Thanks," Eri said as she sat up. "Take care," one of the Nurses said. "And next time, don't tell someone to hit you as hard as they can," another Nurse said." Eri nodded, and left the Nurses' office together. Eri felt her cheeks getting warm as they walked together, remembering the feel of Joey's quite large muscles, and trying not to look at him.
"You alright, Eri?" Joey asked, "Your face is red."
"I-I'm just embarrassed, that's all, I mean, Kasai made me look like a wimp," she stammered. Joey shrugged, "He'd make anyone look like a wimp. I guess we need to get ready for class, see you later." Joey and Eri separated to the girl's side and the boy's side of the dorms. Eri quickly got to the girls' showers and washed off her sweat before getting dressed in her uniform. As she walked the halls, one of her dorm neighbors, Mine Sakkie, strutted up to her.
"You looked awfully cozy with Freeman-kun, Eri-chan," the taller girl said. She had a wide smile as Eri blushed and said, "I-I was sparring with Kasai-kun, and he hit me too hard. J-Joey was taking me to the Nurses, that's all." Mine-san's green eyes seemed to light up as she nodded and said, "If you say so. Though you gotta admit, he is one smoking hot hunk. If I have the chance, I might just snap him up." Mine-san licked her red lips and walked off, swinging her hips as they left the Dorms and headed for the Main Campus.
Joey
Joey, Eri, Rukia, and Jougo arrived first at Class 1-A and took the first four front seats. Joey watched as the other students entered and saw that they were an eclectic bunch, some were mutants, others had colorful hair or eyes, or skin; and still others looked completely normal, impossible to tell what their Quirks might be. Joey made note of the Portal Boy from the Entrance Exam as he walked in, it was hard to forget a guy that could make a portal large enough to slice a giant robot in half. That's the guy that might be the top student here, Joey thought as everyone filed in and took their seats. Two minutes after the students were seated, their teacher arrived.
He stood around 5'10" and had indigo hair and purple eyes. He had pale skin and dark bags under his eyes and an expression of bored contempt on his face, while his outfit looked like a dark purple ninja outfit except for his white boots and the binding cloth around his neck like Aizawa-sensei's. "Hello," their teacher said, "My name is Shinso Hitoshi, you may know me by my Hero Name, Mindbender. I'm going to be your homeroom teacher."
Shinso-sensei looked everyone in the room up and down, and Joey was sure he was analyzing them. "Now that you know me, I want you all to stand up and introduce yourselves to me and everyone else. You don't need to share your life story, just your name, your Quirk, and what it does. Let's start with you, big guy, since you're up front," Shinso-sensei told Joey. Joey nodded and stood up in front of the class. "My name is Joseph Jerome Freeman Jr. I actually have two Quirks," Joey said, and then focused and his body glowed blue, "This is my mother's Quirk, Soothing Touch. When I'm in the right state of mind, I can calm people down by touching them." Joey then took his shoes off and transformed into his wolfman form, "And this is my father's Quirk, Wolfman. In this form I am eight times stronger, have fangs and claws, and my hearing and smell is greatly enhanced as well."
Joey turned back into his normal form and took his seat, and Eri stood up then. "My name is Aizawa Eri, my Quirk is called Rewind," she said, then indicated the horn on her head, "When my horn is long like this I can rewind any living thing to a previous state. But if I overuse my Quirk I get sick, and my horn shrinks down so I can't use it." Rukia was next in line, and she stood up in front of the class. "My name is Yamato Rukia, my Quirk is called Clay. Basically my body is made of clay, and I can change my shape however I want, as long as I don't exceed my body's mass. Plus, too much water isn't good for me." Rukia took her seat, and Jougo stood up. "My name is Higashikata Jougo, and my Quirk is Shining Knight," Jougo unbuttoned his jacket and lifted his shirt, and Shining Knight appeared, "He's a pure energy construct that comes from me. As long as I concentrate I can control him, but, he can't go past two meters away from me."
Jougo redid his shirt and the next person stood up. She looked like a small girl with green hair tied in two ponytails that looked familiar to Joey. The girl said in a slightly croaking voice, "My name is Asui Satsuki and my Quirk is Poison Dart Frog. I can jump up to thirty meters, my tongue stretches 10 meters, I can stick to walls, camouflage myself, and I can make my skin secrete a neurotoxin that can paralyze people." Joey then realized that Asui Satsuki was Asui Tsuyu's little sister, they had met twice before, years ago. No wonder she smelled familiar.
The next person to stand up was the Portal Boy. His dark eyes looked tired as he said, "I'm Kurosawa Toshiro, and my Quirk is called Portal Master." Kurosawa Toshiro proved that by creating two small black and red portals two meters away from each other and stuck his hand through it to demonstrate. "I can make portals anywhere I can see, or anywhere I've been. I'm working on making them appear further away." Kurosawa-kun sat down and a total bombshell of a girl stood up. She was at least 5'9" tall with long, LONG legs, a perfect hourglass figure, large breasts that she made bounce with every step, topped off with a stunning face with full ruby red lips, emerald green eyes, and lustrous black hair. The air filled with teenage hormones as she strutted up to the front of the class.
"My name is Mine Sakkie," the bombshell girl said, "And my Quirk is Succubus. Basically I can brainwash anyone that's attracted to me, and I have another power that I'm saving for a special occasion." Mine-san smiled at everyone and bounced back to her desk. The next student to stand was big, equal in height to Joey and seemed even broader, with a bald head and drooping earlobes. He basically looked like a Fat Buddha and had blue eyes that he opened as he said, "Blessings upon you all. My name is Daiji Bankei, and my Quirk is Telekinesis, I can lift anything with my mind that I could lift with my physical body." Daiji-kun demonstrated by lifting up his desk and making it float around the room before returning it to his place and sitting down on it.
Next up was Joey's dorm neighbor; a boy with black hair and a spiderlike body, he had six legs and two arms and eight black eyes, were it not for his face most would assume he was a three foot tall spider. "Hi, my name is Jorogumo Yuto, and my Quirk is Spider-person. Basically I can walk on walls, jump high, and can spin webs like a spider." Jorogumo-kun took his desk back and the pink skinned girl Joey, Jougo, Rukia, and Eri had rescued during the Entrance Exam walked up. She said in an Italian accent, "My name is Sakura Pellegrini, and yes, I am half-Italian. My Quirk is Hypertrophy, basically I can make my muscles grow much larger, and I grow a hundred times stronger too." Signora Pellegrini went back to her desk, and another girl stood up, she was roughly five feet four inches tall and had black hair in a ponytail, but the most remarkable thing about her was her girth, if she was even slightly under 230 pounds then Joey would be shocked. The large girl bowed and said, "Hello. My name is Gomu Keiko, and my Quirk is Rubberball. I can bounce off of anything, and my body is quite tough."
After Gomu-chan sat down, a girl with all black skin and neon green hair stood up. Her features were hard to make out, almost like a shadow, but her eyes were the same neon green as her hair. The shadow-girl said, "My name is Hikari Aoi, and my Quirk is Laser Hands. My body absorbs light and I can convert it into lasers to blast through my hands." Hikari-chan sat down and then the blue boy from the Entrance Exam walked up. "My name is Awata Kenji, and my Quirk is called Strong Bubbles. Basically, I can make bubbles from my skin, they can be as tough as a regular bubble or hard as steel depending on what I want."
Awata-kun sat down and Kasai Ken stood up then with a large grin. "The name's Kasai Ken, and my Quirk is Fiery Weapons, I can make any weapon out of fire!" Shinso-sensei said, "Don't demonstrate that here, you'll set off the smoke alarms." Kasai sighed and sat back down, and a tall girl with eight purple tentacles instead of hair walked up. "My name is Takota Chiaki, and my Quirk, as you can see, is Tentacles. I can control my tentacles and do a lot with them, and if they get damaged, they'll grow back within 48 hours," Takota-chan then used her tentacles to walk back to her seat.
The next girl to stand up looked like a ghost, her skin was deathly pail and her long black hair hung down her shoulders to her waist and obstructed her eyes. The pale girl said, "My name is Kuroda Sadako. My Quirk is Ghost Stories, when I tell the tales of the dead, their spirits return from the afterlife to smite my enemies!" Kuroda laughed and several students screamed. "GOT YA!"
Everyone stopped and stared as Kuroda-chan swung back her hair to reveal a very cute face with deep brown eyes, "I don't really summon the dead, I just make solid light projections of the stories I tell. You guys are such dorks!" Kuroda-chan laughed back to her desk, and a boy with bright orange hair and a matching tail walked up. He had bright blue cat-like eyes and a fang stuck out from his lips as he spoke, "I'm Nekoto Goro, and my Quirk is Cat-person. I can do anything a cat can do, it makes me really flexible and fast, plus I have claws when I need them."
A boy that looked completely normal except for his eyes, his pupils looked like arrows, walked up. "I'm Toyota Akira, and my Quirk is Wheeled feet. I got wheels on the bottom of my feet that let me skate at speed of up to 240 kilometers an hour," Toyota-kun smiled and went back to his desk, and Kota stood in front of the class. "My name is Izumi Kota and my Quirk is Water Hose. I can spray water out of my body, but it's easiest through my hands and feet," Kota explained, and then sat down, leaving the last student to come up. This boy was tall, almost as tall as Joey, and very thin. He had brown skin and red hair and said, "Hello. I am Mori Haru, and my Quirk is Plant Control. Pretty self-explanatory, as long as there's some king of flora around, I can make it move and do things."
Shinso-sensei nodded once all the students had stood up and said, "Alright everyone, head to the lockers and get into your school exercise uniforms. We're going to test out your Quirks outside, meet back here and I'll guide you to where you need to go." Everyone went to their appropriate locker rooms and got dressed in the blue and white exercise uniforms that were waiting for them in their assigned lockers. "Man, this will be tough," Jougo groaned as they headed back to the classroom. "Cheer up man," Joey assured his friend, "We work out all the time, we got this." Jougo smiled, "I guess. Though, I'm interested in that half-Italian girl, Pellegrini-san. Wonder what she looks like when she uses her Quirk."
"You and your muscle girl kink," Joey shrugged. It was true, Jougo's type was indeed muscular women, and he had posters of Nana Shimura, Mirko, Marie, Stars and Stripe, and other muscular Heroines decorating his room proving it. Jougo laughed and said, "Sorry I got good taste in women."
They quit talking as they approached the classroom, and Shinso-sensei led them all to the Gym, where they performed numerous tests of strength, speed, stamina, and many others, pushing their bodies to the limits of their Quirks, using them as best they could. It was easy for Joey since his Quirk naturally enhanced his body, but his friends had to be more creative, and Eri, unfortunately, couldn't use hers in this situation to get better than any other fit girl her age. Still, seeing Kurosawa use his portals in the long jump, fifty meter dash, and the ball throwing test and getting the highest scores possible was a real eye opener for Joey. Once they were all done, Joey and Kasai were the only ones not breathing really heavily.
Kurosawa was leaning on the Succubus girl, Mine-chan, and she helped him get back to the classroom. "What's with you?" Joey asked. Kurosawa was quiet, but Mine-chan said, "His Quirk takes a lot out of him." Kurosawa grunted, "Don't say anymore, Sakkie," and then stood on his own to get to his desk. "Proud guy, isn't he?" Joey muttered. "He was the top student in our schools since third grade," Mine-chan said with a smile. "Huh," Joey said as he took his seat. Shinso-sensei stood in front of them and tapped a few buttons on his cellphone and a holographic image appeared showing everyone's ranks.
"This is your overall rankings for the Quirk Apprehension Tests. Those in the bottom need to work harder if they want to graduate from the school," Shinso-sensei said. Everyone looked at their ranks.
Number 20: Aizawa Eri
Number 19: Gomu Keiko
Number 18: Kuroda Sakado
Number 17: Higashikata Jougo
Number 16: Awata Kenji
Number 15: Mine Sakkie
Number 14: Takota Chiaki
Number 13: Mori Haru
Number 12: Izumi Kota
Number 11: Toyota Akira
Number 10: Nekoto Goro
Number 9: Yamato Rukia
Number 8: Asui Satsuki
Number 7: Hikari Aoi
Number 6: Jorogumo Yuto
Number 5: Daiji Bankei
Number 4: Sakura Pellegrini
Number 3: Joey Freeman
Number 2: Kasai Ken
Number 1: Kurosawa Toshiro
Joey looked over as Kurosawa when he saw the results, and the black eyed boy smirked at him. What are you so cocky about? Joey wondered as the bell rang, and they headed to the showers/lockers to get ready for the next class. Joey had a feeling that this would be a long year.