I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.
As one would expect from voicing a suspicion, not everyone in 1A bought it. There was not enough evidence to suggest that the test might not be what 1B said it was. And so, things proceeded with a relatively care free attitude amongst the laid back members. However, the more serious of 1A took the warning to heart. And while they still don't know what to expect…
They mentally prepared as best as they could.
A whole week of intense studying and training has now passed. The end of term written test was now upon them in all of its monstrous glory. Each hour was a different subject, battering the examinee with questions that exercised their memory, applicative ability, and common sense. Honestly, Mineta found it to be a little easier than expected.
And judging from how Mina and Kaminari acted after each part, the overall written test must've not been too brutal. Though he shouldn't let this lull him into a false sense of security…
Until the whole thing is over, he couldn't even hope to relax.
The practical came the next day and 1A had to change into their Hero costumes. And on their way to the test site, they had the chance to converse and consolidate their feelings.
"I can already see the fireworks! The curry! The dares!" Mina cheered as she skipped along.
"That'll only happen if you pass. So don't get careless." Todoroki said as he stretched his arms.
"Are you still worried about what Mineta's worried about? You got to lighten up. UA wouldn't spring a devious trap on us last minute." Kaminari said as he put one arm around his dual colored classmate.
"But Aizawa-sensei literally did that day one. If he hadn't been joking around about expelling someone, I wouldn't be here." Midoriya argued as he hastened his steps to walk next to the electric blonde. That seemed to kick some of their more relaxed classmates into a serious state. That memory of their dream almost being destroyed woke them up to the possible dangers ahead.
"Oh don't remind me… I still have nightmares about that…" Mineta groaned, rubbing his temples.
"Well whatever the case is, let's do our best everyone. I want to make this the best summer ever!" Uraraka said optimistically.
"Hey look, our teachers are all… Here?" Hagakure commented as the group stopped before UA's staff. From Aizawa and Present Mic to Cementoss and Power Loader, they stood there proud and ready. Ready for what exactly? Mineta couldn't say. But it probably had something to do with his weeklong suspicion. If there was a time to spring a trap on them, it would be now.
"We'll be starting the exam shortly. Note that you can also fail this part of the exam, so don't make any sort of painful errors. I also take it you've tried to learn what you could about the practical?" Aizawa began, stepping forward.
"Yes. But some of us suspect that it might not be what it seems…" Iida answered before Kaminari and Mina said something silly.
"And you would be absolutely correct! For several reasons, we're changing the contents of the practical starting now!" Principal Nezu shouted, popping out of Aizawa's bundled binding scarf. While the tension increased over the small mammal's words, it was somewhat diminished by the ridiculousness of the Principal's surprise entrance. Mineta had to do his best not to laugh as Principal Nezu began to climb down Aizawa like he was a mountain.
"Um, what do you mean by that Mr. Principal?" Yaoyorozu asked as Mina and Kaminari's fear came back
"Well do remember what Ms. Fenghuang said to you all those weeks back? After you had that short bout with her? 'Sometimes to find ourselves, we must leave the comfort and conformity of our lives'. So taking her lesson to heart, we've decided to challenge your way of thinking and face you ourselves." Nezu said, enflaming the battle spirit of the UA's teachers. The immense pressure of their presence caused Mineta to break out into a cold sweat. There was also the fact that they had to fight and win against Pro Heroes to pass this exam.
Something they couldn't do even when it was 16 on 1.
"Dude, your master's a jerk!" Kaminari cried as he picked up and shook Mineta.
"She's not a jerk! Shifu always does these things to HELP her students! It's better to suffer now than later!" The shorter boy shouted, resisting the electric blonde.
"And even if Fenghuang hadn't inspired us, we would've come up with something of equal difficulty. Regardless, here we all are. Now, calm down and listen up, we're explaining how this works." Aizawa said as 1A settled their nerves.
"Now, what we're testing today will be your Quirk, skill level, combat instincts, overall academics, and cooperative ability. To do that, you'll be facing one of us with a partner. Who you'll be facing and teaming up with has been predetermined based on your performance throughout the term. For instance… Todoroki and Yaoyorozu, you're against me." Aizawa explained before looking at the students in question.
While the former didn't look particularly perturbed, Yaoyorozu seemed to be unnerved by this. And Mineta couldn't really blame the girl for feeling that way. His former master was quite ruthless whenever he got 'hands on' with his lesson. Combined with his Quirk erasing eyes, both of 1A's recommendation students were going to have it rough.
From there, another one of the teachers announced the pair they were going to face.
Principal Nezu was up against Mina and Kaminari.
Thirteen chose Aoyama and Uraraka.
Cementoss was facing off with Satou and Kirishima.
Power Loader picked to fight Tsuyu and Ojiro.
Snipe had Shouji and Jirou to contend with.
Midnight was dealing with Sero and Hagakure.
Present Mic had Kouda and Iida to look after.
Ectoplasm needed to best Midoriya and Tokoyami.
Wait… If all those were the current pairs, then that just left two without partners. And that would be Mineta and… The shorter boy stopped as he realized who the other person was. He slowly turned to said person, only to find him looking back at him as well. Round dark eyes met sharp red ones as an appropriate response came out of their mouths.
"Fuck." Bakugou said.
"Ah shit." Mineta replied.
"As for the person you'll be fighting…" Aizawa began before a booming laugh pierced the air. From behind the group of teachers came the Symbol of Peace. And like the Titan he was, he loomed over Mineta and Bakugou in all of his glory. So this is what villains feel like when they're up against a living legend.
"That will be me. I'm in your care, Wonder Duo!" All Might said with a spirited tone. But Mineta was feeling anything but motivated to take on the Number One Hero. Sure he joked to Midoriya about being able to fight All Might way back when… But now that this was actually happening, he'd just want to run and hide under a rock, grades be damned.
Worse of all, he's got to do this with Bakugou. And the human grenade looked completely ecstatic for having a chance to challenge All Might.
"With the ten teams divided, we'll depart by bus to our respective testing stages in 5 minutes. Once we're there, we'll explain the general rules of the test and start at the same time. Are there any questions?" Aizawa explained.
"What are we supposed to do with these extra 5 minutes?" Iida asked.
"Oh I don't know… You could always pool your brains together and formulate plans with each other." Nezu suggested in a tone that was almost taunting.
"But that's nearly not enough time to come up with a plan for all of us." Midoriya said, almost bowing his head as if to plead for extra time.
"Listen kids, do you remember the entrance exam? It started without any warning, which is how most conflicts go for a Hero. The fact you're getting ANY time is us being lenient on you." Midnight said as the teachers began walking towards the ten parked buses.
"So make the most of it while it lasts students! You'll need every second." Present Mic shouted. The shock of the announcements quickly wore off as 1A huddled together to try and break through this predicament. Bakugou was about to walk off until Kirishima dragged him back. And after a few words from the red haired boy, the human grenade begrudgingly joined the group.
"Instead of coming up with plans, let's figure out why we're paired up the way we are. Any suggestions?" Jirou asked quickly, eyes darting between her classmates.
"We have to think of all of the factors of the examiner and the examinee. Let's simply go down the list, first is Aizawa-sensei against Todoroki-kun and Yaoyorozu-san. I think he chose you due to the nature of your Quirks. If he sees you, neither of you would be able to fight back. And because your close quarter skills aren't as good as his, he'll easily overwhelm you." Midoriya replied, pointing to the pair in question.
"So he'll try to ambush us huh? I think we could work around that. Right Yaoyorozu?" Todoroki asked as he looked to his partner. The elegant girl nervously gave a nod that Mineta didn't find reassuring. But there wasn't any time to address that, they had other pairs to go through.
"What about me and Kaminari? I don't think the Principal could win in a fist fight against of us…" Mina asked. Anyone could see that the pink girl was imagining how their unknown mammal principal would look beaten up. And before anyone could say 'animal abuse', Bakugou cut right to the chase.
"He doesn't need to. The bastard will use his brain to out think you morons. You've got a shitty puzzle boss to deal with."
Mina and Kaminari's faces were blank as they started at their classmates. It was then that they've fallen despondent and became zombies. They proceeded to drag their feet towards the bus Principal Nezu was waiting in. And it took Uraraka and Mineta everything they've got to prevent them from going over the edge of madness.
"Dude! Keep it together! Think of the hot springs!" Mineta shouted, grabbing one of the electric blonde's arms. He really had to dig his heels in to stop Kaminari from advancing any further.
"Don't give up Mina-chan! We'll make it to the lodge! The fireworks are waiting for us!" Uraraka yelled, hugging her friend.
"And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
and the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted – nevermore…"
Kaminari muttered as he stared at his shadow on the pavement.
"Ah yes 'The Raven', an appropriate piece for our current predicament." Tokoyami said with a satisfied nod.
"Not helping!" Mineta shouted as Midoriya rushed in to help him.
"I can see it… The youth that passed me by…" Mina said as she seemed to have aged several decades.
"Let's go to the next pair! Aoyama-kun and Uraraka-san! Ideas!?" Midoriya yelled, trying to distract Mina and Kaminari's mind. From there, 1A broke down the exam composition. And as the most logical conclusion behind each pair was reached, Mineta could see the pairs forming their own plans. Even Kaminari and Mina were starting to plot something against Principal Nezu. However, there was no telling if any of these will actually work until it's too late. They just have to hope for the best…
And with their 5 minutes ticking down to its last moments, 1A arrived to their last pair.
"They've definitely got you two together because you mix like baking soda and vinegar." Jirou said, gesturing between Mineta and Bakugou.
"Well jokes on them, we can actually work together now." Bakugou boasted with a smirk.
"I don't think that level of cooperation will do anything against All Might." Sero replied.
"If I fight and Rat Bitch doesn't fuck up, we'll win one way or another! End of story!" Bakugou shouted, folding his arms.
"We don't know all the rules yet, so there still might be a chance we could pass another way. But the explosive turd's right. As long as we don't get in each other's way, we'll be fine." Mineta said, doing his best to keep his bowels in check. It wasn't going to be easy, but there has to be a way to overcome the Number One Hero. After all, what was the point of a test if they were going to fail no matter what?
"Damn right I'm right! And don't call me a turd you piece of shit!"
"… Are they really going to be okay?" Tsuyu asked after a long pause, turning to Midoriya.
"They'll have to be if we're going to the lodge together." He answered before wiping the noticeable beads of sweat on his brow. A chime played around Class 1A before an automated message began playing. It informed them that their 5 minutes are up and that they should depart immediately. They looked to one another with various levels of resolve burning in their eyes.
"The next time we meet, the test will be over. The odds are definitely against us. But I know we have the potential to overcome this, just as we did during our other ordeals. So hold your heads up high my friends, for we'll be going to the Forest Lodge undivided. Good luck everyone, and go beyond…" Iida said, putting a hand over his heart.
"Plus Ultra!"
And that has been Chapter 56.
Here we are, the battle against the UA teachers. And this time, Mineta and Bakugou have to deal with the titan known as the Symbol of Peace. So, what did you think of this shake up? Because the pairs were deliberately selected by the teachers, they all face their natural counters. In canon, these reasons varied and were so well thought out that I couldn't really change much.
And that's all I got. There's really no other news I have... So I wish you all a Happy Valentines Day and, to my Asian readers, Happy Lunar New Year. As for the next update, we get to see just how our worst duo fairs against All Might. It'll be the first of two parts, so look forward to how all this play out.
So with that said...
Until Next Time. T1.
