Here is the tenth chapter in this series released in keeping with my self-imposed upload schedule for this series. Lunch is over, so are normal classes, which means that for Class A it is finally time for them to start the training they came to U.A. for in the first place. It is time for hero basic training to begin, what could possibly go wrong on their first day of training? That is all the administrative stuff I have and there are no guest reviews that need a response or questions that need answers. Do keep the reviews and PMs coming as I always like hearing how much y'all are enjoying my work. Anyway, that is it for this pre-chapter note which means that it is time to sit back and enjoy the tenth chapter in Black RWBY Academia.
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these three great franchises.
Chapter 10: Hero Basic Training 101
"I am here coming into the classroom like a hero!" All Might said as he threw open the door and leaned into the classroom in full costume though an older one than the usual wore as it featured a red top with yellow forearms, blue pants and cape, yellow belt and white markings on his outfit. "And it's time for your first lesson in Hero Basic Training!"
The students of Class 1-A gasped, well most of them did, and commented on the entrance of the Number 1 hero in Japan, well number 1 normal hero but as the Wizard King and Ozpin didn't get as much attention as the tops of their respective branches, and their positions weren't recognized the same way as All Might's, all the focus was on All Might. As such there was a good few murmurs in the class about All Might as their teacher and how he was wearing his Silver Age costume, the one before his current Golden Age style. It was definitely a retro look that the class appreciated.
Naturally Izuku was one of the fanboys in the room as he smiled at his mentor's arrival but he wasn't the only one as many had looked up to him. Even Asta had stars in his eyes at seeing the Number 1 normal hero for the first time though of course he'd rather meet the Wizard King. Others like Nero and Bakugo were more reserved or unphased by the arrival though as they just waited for the class to start.
Lunch had ended and that meant that it was time for the afternoon class which for the Hero Course meant one thing, it was time to start basic training. This was what they were really here for so naturally they were all eager for it to start as All Might made his way to the center of the classroom to stand at the lectern there.
"Welcome to the most important class that you will have at U.A., think of it as learning to be a hero." All Might said as he addressed the class with a smile on his face. "This is the class where you will learn the basics of being a pro, what it means to fight in the name of good, and how to deal with the multitude of scenarios that you will face as heroes in the field one day. So, let's get into it. Today Class A's lesson will pull no punches…"
"That means fight training." Bakugo said with a grin. "Finally, a chance to put those extras who think they're better than me in their places for everyone to see."
"Alright let's do this." Asta said loudly looking forward to showing off his skills.
"So, it will be real combat then." Izuku said with a gulp. "This might not go well for me."
"Yes today's lesson is with me and will be really combat." All Might said. "Tomorrow is your assigned alternative branch hero studies day for which you will be in the special lecture hall for your first lesson on Grimm Studies with Professor Port but that is Class B's honor today. Of course, a key to being a hero is looking good so that means costumes!"
At that the panels in the wall next to the final column of students slid open and suitcases began to slide out of them with numbers on the cases that corresponded with their seat numbers. These were their costume cases that would contain their first costume designs which would change over time for most of them as they adapted them to fit their styles and added support items if need be but was still what all of them were looking forward to.
In addition to the designs, some of the cases had already support items in them that had either been made by the students if they had the license to do so or had been part of their request and as such were a larger or bulkier than the ones without items in it. The most notable of these were numbers 21 and 22 as they were Ruby and Weiss's cases, so they contained their Huntress weapons.
"These were designed based on your Quirk registration forms and the requests you sent in before school started for those of you who are currently in the normal hero branch or undecided on your future heroic path." All Might said as the class reacted to the costumes. "Those already on the Quirk Knight or Huntress path in this class are slightly different but you will see that soon enough. So, get yourselves suited un and then meet me at Training Ground Beta for your first lesson in Hero Basic Training!"
That was certainly true for Asta and Nero as neither actually had costumes as they grabbed their cases and headed to the changing room with the others in the class. As Quirk Knight students they wouldn't have a set costume, they just what felt good to fight in as the main identifier for the Quirk Knights were the special robes they wore to denote their Squad when they were accepted into said Squad.
One Squad, the Golden Dawn, did have a uniform for members but the others just wore the Squad's robes, which varied in color and style, over it and Asta couldn't wait for his own robe but until then he would wear the same thing that he wore for the entrance exam. The same was true for Nero in fact right down to the lack of shoes but she was considering seeing if she could get a support item that would help there as going barefoot without a way to really protect her feet wasn't the best strategy in the field.
Noelle was going to be slightly different to them as she took her case to the changing room with the other girls and began to get into her white and pink outfit as it was style of House Silva and so had some uniformness to it even if it was still the kinda thing she'd wear casually. It was also practical, and she made sure that the bottle she'd requested was in her case and filled it up for when the time came.
Lastly, Ruby and Weiss as the Huntress candidates were wearing their specialized Huntress garb, clothes that were actually seasonal to some extent that they designed themselves after deciding on their chosen heroic path as a representation of their own personal styles. As such Ruby was in the same outfit she'd worn that day she'd earned her recommendation to U.A. while Weiss was in the same outfit as her entrance exam. Both had their weapons and got questions from the other girls as they strapped them to their holders, but Weiss just ignored it and Ruby just told them to wait to see her sweetheart in action.
It was certainly going to be good and all the kids were eager to dress in their hero attire and see what this lesson was about. Almost as one they headed out to the training ground ready to show All Might and each other what they could do.
"They say that the clothes make the pros and you are now proof of that." All Might said as most of the class began to leave the tunnel that connected the changing rooms to Training Ground Beta were the training would take place. "From this moment on you are now all heroes in training no matter the heroic path you have chosen, and you all look so cool right off the bat."
All Might wasn't wrong, or at least Ruby didn't think so, as she looked around her classmates and noted that all of the ones in the normal heroic paths looked great in their uniforms. Of course, Ruby loved her Huntress outfit as it really suited her and noted that Weiss wore a similar combat skirt style only in white and much more in keeping with her personality as it was more classy than Ruby's, but Ruby did acknowledge that the standard hero costumes were something else.
Some were clearly practical like Yaoyorozu's costume that had to be right at the edge of the revealing skin rule with its lack of leg and arm coverings and the plunging V that went past her navel and really showed off her impressive assets but as Ruby recalled the girl's Quirk required exposed skin. Of course, the one person the exposed skin clearly didn't apply to was Toru Hagakure as her mutant Invisibility Quirk ensured that she couldn't actually be seen, and Ruby was certain that she was completely naked with only gloves and boots but with that Quirk it made total sense to be so as it maximized her stealth capabilities.
Other were much more cosmetic and in keeping with the student's personalities like Aoyama's knight based costume or Bakugo's militaristic one though Ruby doubted that they didn't have a practical side to them as well. A couple even had practical side effects built in like Ida's armor style and though she didn't know it, yet Uraraka's was actually designed to try and mitigate her nausea from overuse.
Lastly there were the strange ones that made no sense to Ruby. The most notable one had to be Minoru Mineta's baby style that Ruby didn't understand other than that the purple top and face covering did go with his Pop Off Quirk so she decided that it was best not to question it. Plus, she got a bad feeling from the tiny boy especially as he was really ogling Yaoyorozu's outfit at the moment though Ruby did acknowledge as that was kinda hard to avoid given how revealing it was and how well-endowed Yaoyorozu happened to be.
"So that's what a Huntress outfit looks like." Ochaco said coming up to Ruby as she waited to see what Deku's outfit was like as he was the only one not present yet. "Pretty cool though why a dress? That seems a little impractical to me."
"It's a combat skirt." Ruby said as smiled and was about to explain why but then she noticed Ochaco's outfit and blinked at the pink and black costume she was wearing. "Um…"
"Yeah I wasn't exactly specific with my request, so they made this bodysuit skin tight." Ochaco said embarrassed a little, she was a naturally modest girl, and this suit really highlighted her curves and ample bust but at least the color scheme was very fitting for her style. "At least the belt, boots and wrist cuffs are what I requested. They're designed to try and help me deal with my Quirk's side effect, so I'll find out their efficiency today."
"Oh cool." Ruby said as she recovered from seeing her new friend in such a skin tight costume and finally got to explain her combat skirt. "Yeah I just prefer the skirt as it allows me more mobility I feel, and my fighting is all about mobility. Besides, Schnee, Nero and Silva are all in dresses or skirts as well so I'm not the only one."
Ruby wasn't wrong as all Ochaco noted that all three girls were in such attire which given that they weren't normal branch students it actually seemed to make sense. Weiss's white outfit and the simple blue dress that Nero wore, without shoes Ochaco noted, were pretty straightforward but Silva's outfit wasn't so much.
That was because Noelle was wearing a long white, backless coat thing that flared out past her waist into two tails on either side with a feather like hem design at the back that fell past her knees. It also had strange sleeves that attached to the shoulders of the jacket and ended in golden cuffs on her mid forearms having started at her neck and going over her shoulders.
To complete the coat, it had a high collar around her neck with a gold band on it that exposed the hollows of her shoulders and upper chest. The whole jacket was closed around her waist by a brown leather belt with a satchel that hung down to her right thigh bulged with something in it that Ochaco presumed was either a support item or first aid supplies.
Under the coat thing the silver haired girl wore a short, backless, pink dress that was high enough to not show any of Noelle's modest cleavage. She completed the look with a pair of simple sandals and white cloth greaves with golden cuffs over her calves leaving her thighs bare.
"This dress was given to me by a dear friend who personally designed it for me." Nero said simply as she and Asta approached Ruby and Ochaco. "I wear it to honor him, but it also gives me a fair bit of freedom in my movements similar to Rose and Schnee's combat skirts."
"That makes sense I guess." Ochaco said. "And you're not wearing shoes because of your Quirk, right?"
"Correct, I can use my feet as well as my hands, so I don't see why not." Nero said. "It's not the best idea but until I can get a support item that works with my Quirk this is the best I've got."
"I just like these clothes." Asta said. "And Quirk Knights don't have uniforms or costumes so this works best for me and as I don't use the costume allowance that money can go elsewhere in my education which is great."
"Huh that is clever." Ochaco said thinking on it as she was also from a low income family, though at least she had a family, so money was often on her mind.
"So, what's with Silva's outfit then?" Ruby asked. "That looks too fancy to be either a costume or normal clothes."
"It's in the style that is currently in fashion for members of House Silva." Nero said as Noelle and Weiss began to chat a bit about the upcoming trial. "House Vermillion also has an internal style to some extent but it's not a costume just stylistic preferences. It's fancy and expensive but also what you'd expect Silva to wear outside of school."
"Huh." Ochaco said as she looked over and noticed the sword at Weiss's hip. "So that's the sword you mentioned Asta."
"Yup though I haven't seen her in action with it, so I haven't learned anything from her style yet." Asta said and then he turned to Ruby. "What about your weapon Rose?"
"She's here." Ruby said pulling out a black and red rectangular looking thing that none of them could really grasp though it gave off the impression that it was a gun of some sorts from a holder on her lower back that her red cape just fell over. "She's in standby mode at the moment as I can't carry her in her full mode so wait until you see her in action."
"Isn't there a danger in the weapons?" Ochaco asked.
"There is so to prevent that we have to have special blades fitted in them, well mine does, or a covering that I am sure Schnee has as a sword isn't something with an interchangeable blade, for when we are training." Ruby said. "They numb on contact with human skin and won't cut it though it will hurt. Those with gun components like mine also have special rubber bullets for human on human combat training but if I'm on a Grimm hunting mission those are replaced with bullets specially enhances with Schnee Dust and real blades."
"That is good to know, I was concerned about Schnee's sword." Ida said coming up to them as Ruby confirmed that her weapon was at least in part a gun though they didn't really know what that meant. "Some heroes do use blades, but it is still odd to see it. I am sure that we will learn more about weapons and why Huntsmen use them in the Grimm studies, right?"
"Presumably so." Ruby said. "I already know how to fight them, but it does make sense that all heroes know how to deal with Grimm even if Huntsmen and Huntresses are the main ones who fight them. Plus, villains carry weapons all the time so training against them will help all of us."
"That it will, and my brother told me of a time when he was in school that he had to call in a Huntsman team to handle some Grimm he'd come across as they were too big to handle with just their Quirks." Ida said. "But for the most part they're not in the cities. That's why heroes don't tend to deal with them."
"We don't know much about them." Ruby said. "So, I can't wait to learn more ways to kill them."
"Same I've actually got to ask the teacher about them." Asta said.
"Why?" Ruby asked curious.
"Well…" Asta said but before he could Midoriya came out in a bright green costume with what looked like rabbit ears and an overbite grill thing causing them to turn to him as he was the last student to join the class. "Oh, wow that's a cool costume."
"Hey Deku, that looks great on you." Ochaco said smiling and waving to her friend as he made his way to them before blushing at her outfit, as well as her compliment, and averting his eyes.
"Hey Uraraka, yours looks good as well but um…" Izuku said as he tried to not look at how great Uraraka looked in that outfit as it really showed off her body.
"Yeah they made it skin tight because I didn't specify not to." Ochaco said embarrassed. "But still…"
"Ok everyone's here so let's begin." All Might said interrupting her and they all headed over to where he was to gather around their teacher.
Before All Might could continue, however, he got a full look at young Midoriya's outfit. It was clearly a tribute to him, made by his mother though only Izuku knew that and was why he was wearing it, and it was really on the head. Still, All Might had to contain himself and he did his best to do so.
"Now that you're all here and ready it's time for combat training." All Might said when he'd recovered from young Midoriya's outfit and homage to him which actually wasn't the only one as it was now clear to All Might that young Kirishima's costume was inspired by the Chivalrous Hero: Crimson Riot. "And so let me explain what…"
"Sir." Ida said raising his hand before All Might could finish and confirming to Izuku who'd been too late to realize that it was him under the armor that was really cool. "This is the fake city, or at least one of them, from our entrance exam so does that mean that we'll be doing urban battles just like back then?"
"Not quite, you've jumped the gun young Ida as I am now going to move you all two steps ahead of that." All Might said holding up two fingers. "Most of the villain fights that you see on the news take place outside however that's only because they're the big visible battles. Statistically speaking, the really serious fights with the worst and most devious of villains take place indoors."
"Why?" Kaminari asked.
"It is safer for villains to get things done in backrooms and underground lairs as they're outside of the watchful eye of society and thus can plot and scheme in ease." All Might explained. "Those criminals who are the most dangerous, the truly intelligent ones, stay hidden in the shadows but it is our duty as heroes to shine the light of justice on them. Therefore, for this exercise you will be split into teams of two to fight bad guys in two on two indoor battles with one pair as the heroes the other as the villains."
"Isn't that a bit advanced?" Asui asked thinking on it as she put a finger on her chin. "Shouldn't we actually learn how to fight first before going straight into combat with each other? Ribbit."
"The best training is what you get on the battlefield for nothing else can compare to learning from real experience." All Might said in response. "And this time it's not robots like most of you faced in the entrance exam but actual people so you will have to fight both smart as your opponents can think and safely as human are in general more fragile than robots."
"Will you be deciding who wins, sit?" Momo asked.
"How much can we hurt the other team?" Bakugo asked with a serious look on his face.
"Do we need to worry about getting expelled again like yesterday?" Ochaco asked worried.
"Will you be splitting us up into teams based on chance, skill, or branch specialty?" Ida asked.
"Isn't this cape très chic?" Aoyama asked pointlessly as he showed off his purple, sparkling, cape. "It's magnifique."
"Wait there are 25 in the class." Weiss said as she realized that the math was off. "So how will that work with two person teams?"
"Hold on I wasn't done but all are good questions so I will answer them now." All Might said holding a hand up to stop the barrage of questions that he was getting. "The winners will be determined not by me but by how the scenario that I will go into in a moment plays out. This is really combat so you can't kill but you don't have to hold back beyond that. The split will be random with two team exceptions that will account for the odd number in the class. Lastly, that cape is very, um, shiny."
"Thank you sir, sorry for my impatience." Momo said as Ida also nodded at that.
"So real combat huh, this is going to be fun." Bakugo said with a grin.
"Oui mon cape sparkles like I do." Aoyama added again pointlessly.
"Anyway, the situation in this exercise is as follows." All Might said pulling out the script he'd prepared for the session much to the surprise of some of the class. "The villains have hidden a nuclear missile somewhere in their hideout, which will change for each battle, and so the heroes must foil these dastardly plans. To do so the heroes either have to catch the evil doers or capture the weapon by touching it. Conversely, the villains win if they protect their payloads for the duration of the unspecified time period that will also change from battle to battle or capture the heroes. I will be providing capture tape to replicate cuffs and once that is around the villains or heroes they are out. Now, time is limited, so all those on the normal track will choose team by drawing lots."
"Wait isn't there a better way to do this?" Ida asked confused. "And why do the Huntress and Quirk Knight students not have to do this?"
"Think of it Ida." Izuku said getting it at once. "Normal pros often have to team up with other heroes from agencies they're not a part off on the spot to handle a situation, especially a time sensitive one like the one presented in this scenario, so we should get used to working with people at random who we may or may not know."
"Also, because of the specialized work that Huntsmen and Huntress heroes do we are often part of a set four person team at one of the agencies that is dedicated to that branch." Weiss added though her tone wasn't helpful and more stating the obvious. "Similarly, Quirk Knights are already divided into Squads that rarely work together as their mandates are different from normal heroes and Huntresses. It makes sense that those of us who aren't on those tracks are random while those of us who are aren't. We still work with heroes from time to time so some random assignments will make sense but for an initial combat exercise to get a baseline to work off this is for the best."
"I see, life is a random series of events for the most part and we have 5 on the other tracks so it works out for the numbers as well." Ida said before bowing to All Might. "That all makes sense to me. Please excuse my rudeness, sir."
"No sweat." All Might said a little taken aback by young Midoriya and young Schnee's direct answers to young Ida's query. "Now let's…"
"Hold on a moment." Weiss said as she hadn't realized until she had said it out loud what this breakdown meant as Ruby also started to worry as she realized it as well, so did Noelle for that matter. "So that means that…"
"That you and young Rose will be on a team regardless as you are the only two in the class on that track." All Might said with a smile. "While young Silva, Swallowtail, and Asta are on the three person team as all have stated that they plan to join the Quirk Knights. To add to it your teams will be facing each other third today as this work isn't often covered by your branches but does need to be learned though you're going to draw to see who are the heroes and who are the villains. You are right though; in other exercises you will be on random teams with the other students but for this test Aizawa wants to see how you 5 work together in combat and against each other at the same time."
"This is for the best Schnee." Ruby said to Weiss. "We should get used to working together so I hope we can do just that."
"Fine." Weiss said looking at her partner. "Just don't be too annoying."
"Good now the rest of you." All Might said as he held up a box. "Draw lots!"
They did and the teams were interesting to say the least. Some were good pairings, some weren't too thrilled with them, and one was extremely pleased with his partner for this training session. They were…
Team A Izuku and Ochaco much to both teens' happiness though Izuku knew that he needed to make a good impression on Uraraka. Team B was Shoto Todoroki and Mezo Shoji. Team C was Yaoyorozu and Mineta much to the latter's extreme pleasure. Team D was Bakugo and Ida which neither were thrilled about. Team E was Ashido and Aoyama just like their race the day before. Team F was Rikki Sato and Koji Koda. Team G was Kyoka Jiro and Denki Kaminari. Team H was Asui and Fumikage Tokoyami. Team I was Hagakure and Mashirao Ojiro. Lastly for the main heroes team J was Kirishima and Hanta Sero.
As the others were talking with their randomly drawn teammates, Ruby and Weiss were assigned Team K while Noelle, Nero and Asta were Team M much to Noelle's frustration, but she was a Quirk Knight candidate so had to deal with it as that was what was required of her for this training session. Still, she didn't have to like it and wouldn't engage them until it was time for their match at which point they'd learn if they were the heroes or villains in their scenario.
"Alright now that the teams are sorted I declare that the first teams up will be…" All Might said as he reached into two boxes, a black one labeled villains and a white labeled heroes and withdrew two balls that he held up to the class showing that once again fate was having fun with Izuku because after pairing him with Uraraka they were now the first hero team up and against Team D as the villains which meant that he'd be facing Kacchan in actual combat. "…these guys."
It was clear who the teams were and after the assessment test the day before it was also clear that there was a lot of history, almost all bad from what they saw, between Midoriya and Bakugo, so this was going to be extra interesting. They were up first, and All Might led them to their assigned building as he gave them the floor plans and the radios they'd need for it while the others made their way to the monitoring room to observe the battle. Izuku was nervous but he set himself and actually met Kacchan's glare with one of his own setting the tone for the match as they headed off to begin the exercise.
-break-
"Villains, you can go in and set up." All Might said into the microphone that broadcast his voice over the cityscape from the monitoring room as the rest of the class watched their classmates on the screens in the room having returned to the monitoring room now that he'd dropped the first team off at their assigned building. "In 5 minutes, the heroes will be free to go in and arrest you or secure the bomb to win. Remember villains that the key to being successful in this challenge is to embody villainy. Think from the perspective of a villain as you face the incoming heroes. If things go too far however, I will step in."
There was a nod from Ida on the screens while Bakugo seemed to just growl at that, but they went in and set up while the others watched. It was clear that Ida didn't like the idea of being a villain but would embrace it for the exercise while Bakugo seemed hell bent on just finding Midoriya, that much was clear to the class even without sound from the video feed. Meanwhile outside Izuku and Ochaco seemed to be preparing as well though the former was clearly nervous.
"So, how do you think this will go?" Noelle asked Weiss and Momo as they were grouped together for the moment as none of them wanted to go to their teammates yet. "Who will win the first match?"
While Weiss and Noelle weren't with their partners for their own more personal reasons, Momo wasn't for an actual legit reason. That was because she could feel her teammate ogling her which made her uncomfortable though she was also a little clueless as to how her costume would be perceived due to her more natural and not sexual view towards nudity that certain classmates didn't share.
"A lot will hinge on Bakugo's attitude and if he's still angry from yesterday." Weiss said simply. "He's got a terrible one for sure and it's clear that he has issues with Midoriya. Likely he'll go right after him as soon as the exercise starts and settle whatever he wanted to settle in the assessment test with him in now simply because he can."
"That does seem to be the most likely course of action." Momo said. "Not the best one though. The villains here have a strong offensive output compared to the heroes, especially with how Midoriya's Quirk seemed to hurt him when he used it yesterday, so they could win with ease if they split up and used Ida's speed to find and catch the heroes while Bakugo stays back to guard the bomb just in case the heroes get past Ida and then he can blow them away with his raw firepower. That would be the ideal strategy here."
"Ideal sure but Bakugo doesn't strike me as the most tactically minded." Noelle said thinking on it as the exercise began. "Especially when he has a grudge on his mind like he seems to have now."
"Well let's watch it and see what happens." Momo said and the others nodded as the class fell silent to observe their classmates in action.
To say that the first battle was interesting would be an understatement. It was, well, a raw, passionate and destructive battle just as what many expected given who was involved and it all started off with the battle going hard right from the start.
Almost as soon as Team A were in the building Bakugo set off to go and find Midoriya as they watched leaving Ida there and showing that he was clearly not listening to his partner. Ida for his part clearly tried to stop Bakugo but Bakugo had his own plans so he just got into the roll as he began to laugh like a cartoon villain making those watching really want to hear what he was saying.
"What is Ida doing?" Kirishima asked as they watched.
"Getting into his role I believe." Momo said. "It's hard to tell as he is wearing a helmet, but I think he's trying to laugh like a villain."
"That may be, but he does have some forethought." Weiss said as All Might listened to the chatter and the students in the trial as he alone had a radio to hear what was going on and there would be a recording for Aizawa as well. "That's what a hero should do when they know a villain's Quirk because the villains know ours and Ida is showing it there."
Weiss was right as Ida showed this by quickly, with the aid of his Engine Quirk, removing all the loose items from the room where the bomb was so that none of the items could be used against him. Clearly he was doing this to counter Uraraka's Quirk right at the start and it would be a good challenge for Uraraka should she face Ida.
The same couldn't be said about Bakugo as he quickly went down and into the strange layout of the lower levels to find Midoriya. For their part Midoriya and Uraraka were being cautious as they moved around looking for the bomb and clearly keeping an eye out for Bakugo and Ida.
"Why aren't they charging in?" Asta asked confused. "That's what I'd do."
"It may be, but you have a Quirk suited for that." Nero said simply while Noelle just scoffed at having to have a teammate like that. "Midoriya lacks the control for it and Uraraka's Quirk isn't directly combative, especially when you factor in the Quirks the villains have and how Uraraka has to touch someone for it to work. It's how I'd do it."
"It is the smart strategy." Momo concurred. "It allows them to be cautious and wait for the villains to make the first move. This isn't always the best of course but in this scenario with Midoriya's understanding of Bakugo's mentality it is the best as he can be ready to avoid and counter."
That was exactly what happened as Momo finished her statement as Midoriya's alertness paid off the moment that Bakugo leapt down the stairs, explosions going off in his hand and attacked Midoriya, but Midoriya was ready and grabbed Uraraka to pull them away though the left half of his mask was destroyed in the process. It all set the tone for what was to come.
"Man, a sneak attack is so unmanly." Kirishima said.
"Bakugo is playing the role of a villain in this exercise though, so it is to be expected." Tokoyami said in his serious tone. "Even if he is a little too good at the role."
"It's not hard for him at all with his personality." Weiss scoffed. "He'll never make a good hero at that rate."
"Midoriya is putting up a good fight though." Asta said. "Now that it's begun at least."
Asta was right because right after Midoriya dodged the opening attack he let Bakugo come at him with a big right hook that he got in and under to catch Bakugo's arm in both of his before pivoting and hip checking Bakugo for a throw that slammed the boy onto his back much to Bakugo's clear surprise. They couldn't hear anything, but it was clear that Midoriya was standing up to Bakugo as he announced something to the explosive boy that brought a smile to Uraraka's face for some reason.
"This doesn't look good." Kirishima said as whatever Midoriya had said really set Bakugo off and he raged on the screen. "What's he doing?"
"He's ignoring his partner." All Might told them as he heard it all. "I gave them radios, both teams with set frequencies so that they could communicate as heroes will have them in the field and villains might as well. it helps with teamwork but not here."
"Shows just how unprofessional he really is then." Weiss said as Bakugo attacked again only this time he changed it up by going for a kick with an explosion from his hand to add speed and power to it.
"Still, he can adapt on the fly." Asta pointed out thinking on the attack that Midoriya just managed to block with his right forearm. "It seems like Bakugo is more than just his anger."
"Yes but tactically speaking Midoriya understands this more." Nero said simply as Midoriya said something to Uraraka who nodded and ran off. "See, he's understood the situation and turned it to his advantage."
That was very true because as soon as Bakugo was alone Midoriya pulled out the capture tape that he'd used the bock to hide and almost capturing Bakugo's legs with it. Unfortunately for him Bakugo saw this and adapted as well by throwing and explosive jab, literally he had an explosion going from his palm as he did, which caused Midoriya to avoid the blow and abort the capture attempt.
"Man, Midoriya's got some moves." Kaminari said as Midoriya avoided the attack. "He's holding his own against Bakugo and hasn't used his Quirk once."
"It is interesting that he's not used it." Momo admitted. "But can he keep it up against the power that Bakugo has."
Only All Might knew that these moves came from Midoriya's analysis of heroes as he was such a fan boy, and it was all paying off now. Midoriya only added to it by showing he could also analyze a situation and knew when he was outmatched as he turned and fled from Bakugo rather than engage him and got Bakugo to follow him. Not only did it allow him to get away, but it also added to Uraraka's head start on finding and securing the bomb while also keeping Bakugo lost in the maze of corridors on the lower levels of the building they were in as his entire attention was on Midoriya only.
"Fleeing? That's not manly." Kirishima said as Midoriya retreated.
"But a prudent strategy." Nero said. "In the hero world knowing when to remove yourself from a situation is as important as knowing when to fight."
"Swallowtail is right." Momo said using Nero's actual name as she'd not been told not to yet. "This is actually really clever on Midoriya's part. He's likely realized that without his Quirk there is only a certain amount he can do against Bakugo so is fleeing."
"I know but still." Kirishima protested.
"Not everything can be solved by hitting it really hard." Weiss said. "Or blowing it up in Bakugo's case. This is how a competent hero acts, retreating when he knows the situation is not on his side and regrouping to either call for the right aid or giving him time to figure out a plan. Here it is a bit of the latter but also Midoriya is using the issues that Bakugo has with him to lure him away and preoccupy the villain's firepower while Uraraka finds the bomb at least. What she does against Ida though I don't know."
"Smart to use his issues then." Ruby said as she watched. "Still, speed does have its place as well."
"Not in this match." Weiss said. "This is going as it should for the moment."
Weiss's point was confirmed on screen as they watched Bakugo roar with rage and charge around to find Midoriya by blasting doors as he hunted for the green clad boy. It was a classic divide and conquer plan that Midoriya was using the issues between him and Bakugo to implement without Bakugo even realizing it.
That was because Bakugo had gone rouge and let his personal issues with Midoriya cloud his judgement which played to their strengths in this battle. As Momo had said before the battle had started, Ida was better suited to search than Bakugo and their combined power was stronger than the heroes' power, but it had fallen apart with their lack of teamwork and Bakugo's issues.
Meanwhile, it was clear that Midoriya was showing trust in Uraraka by letting her go up and find the bomb's location and relay that to him if she could while he either captured Bakugo or at least held him off long enough for Uraraka to come up with a plan to secure the bomb herself. It was hard to watch as it meant that there were two separate battles but the class was focused on it regardless as they watched carefully to see how it played out.
"Uraraka has found the bomb." Asui pointed out and they all looked to see that Uraraka was now on an upper level that wasn't a maze of corridors, the 5th floor apparently, and was hiding behind a pillar in the now barren room that only had Ida and the bomb in it. "But there's not much she can do at the moment."
"True, Ida's prepared well for her and with him guarding it, as one of the villains should because that also prevents Uraraka from radioing it in." Weiss noted. "If she does she'd give up her location and that wouldn't be good as in a situation like this Ida still holds the advantage due to his speed."
"It's a good plan but there is a slight hitch to it." All Might said as suddenly they saw Uraraka laugh on the screen and Ida turned to it likely calling it out for what it is. "Young Ida has gotten so into his roll, which is a good thing as there are villains like that out there, that young Uraraka has been tripped up and given away her position."
"That's not good." Asta said as they watched Uraraka realized she'd messed up and stepped out from behind a pillar and into the central line of the room to face Ida and the bomb behind him to which Ida suddenly got all theatrical. "Um, what's he doing."
"Monologuing as some villains do." All Might said simply.
The class just blinked at that and clearly it confused Uraraka as well who was looking at Ida's villainous roll play as if he'd lost it. Still, it had worked inadvertently in the sense that it had exposed Uraraka and now all she could really do was trust Midoriya to do help her out.
"If she has any sense she'll use her mistake to her advantage." Weiss said as they watched. "She's exposed herself now so no need to be sneaky. She can alert Midoriya to where she is and let him use that information as he sees fit. It doesn't fully make up for her mistake, but it does help alleviate it somewhat."
"That is precisely what she's doing." All Might confirmed. "She's telling young Midoriya where she is in relation to him, but it will be up to him to figure out how to use that."
That reveal would turn out to be the key thing as they were able come up with a plan, well Midoriya did, and it was clearly that he was about to put it in motion when Bakugo found him. That was also when Bakugo revealed the true nature of the stupid grenade shaped gauntlets he wore.
It turned out that they were a support item of sorts that stored his sweat from his palms, not that the class realized that as other than Midoriya they didn't actually know how Bakugo's Quirk worked, and when they were loaded up he could unleash it in a massive blast well beyond what his body could normally handle. It was clear that they were loaded as he cocked back the handle part to reveal a pin under it that he began to slowly pull out as if the thing was a real grenade.
As soon as he saw that All Might ordered Bakugo not to use it but Bakugo snapped back over the radio that it was fine so long as Deku dodged it. The class of course didn't hear this but they did see the subsequent explosion and gasped in shock at the massive blast that dwarfed what Bakugo could do with his Quirk. The sheer force of the blast blew Midoriya back and into a room in the same line but a few floors below Uraraka, which had been where he was going anyway, as well as blasting a hole out of the far wall and gouging a line in the floor. It was overkill, very villainous, and way too much damage.
"What the hell Bakugo?" Kirishima asked.
"That was too much." Tokoyami added.
"Clearly intentional." Weiss said. "He's really acting like a villain."
"In this situation as not even a villain would do that." All Might corrected them as they smoke cleared.
"At least Midoriya isn't dead." Asta said as they saw him in the rubble but still moving as Bakugo walked out of the smoke ready to fight some more.
"Don't forget that there's another battle going on." Nero pointed out. "It might end before those two engage each other again."
That got the class's attention and they turned to one of the other screens in time to see Uraraka use the distraction of Bakugo's massive blast that rocked the building to try and close in on the bomb, even making herself float to fully leap over Ida before she released her Quirk to fall down onto the bomb. However, Ida showed his speed by rushing beneath her to grab the bomb and bring it to the other side of the room causing Uraraka to crash to the ground and roll into the wall from her failure.
"That wasn't bad on Uraraka's part." Momo said watching the match. "She was the one who adapted faster to the change and used the distraction to her advantage."
"True but here speed was key, and Ida has it." Weiss said.
"He can basically play keep away with the bomb until the time runs out." Ruby realized. "There's no way for Uraraka to touch it under these circumstances."
"And Midoriya still has to deal with Bakugo and his gauntlets." Kirishima said. "Bakugo has one more of them."
That was true but after seeing the damage the first one caused All Might quickly banned Bakugo from using his other gauntlet that was still usable in that manner or else he would end the fight with a villain loss as even a villain likely wouldn't do that to their base. It was clearly not what Bakugo wanted but he relented and attack Midoriya who had gotten up by this point and went in for a punch however before he could Bakugo used an explosion to create a smokescreen in front of Midoriya that also shifted his trajectory up and over the green haired boy so that he could blast him in the back with another explosion.
"Huh, and here I thought that Bakugo was just a brute." Todoroki suddenly said speaking for the first time. "But no, he's actually very smart."
"What do you mean?" Kirishima asked confused.
"Look at what he just did." Todoroki said as Bakugo pressed his sudden advantage. "He adapted his strategy from before now that he knows that Midoriya can counter that to do something that he couldn't counter. Bakugo just used an explosion as both a smokescreen to blind Midoriya and to change directions in such a way to get a clean shot off. That's not hard to do."
"To pull something off like that requires precise calculations and a deep understanding of both physics and his Quirk to manage." Momo said as Bakugo landed a right hook on Midoriya's side with his back still turned to Bakugo. "He's clearly very intelligent despite his attitude not showing it."
"It's a bit like how I have to use my Quirk." Ruby said surprising a few people, especially Weiss, as Bakugo grabbed Midoriya's arm and swung him around with explosions from his left hand to boost his speed before he tossed Midoriya hard to the ground in a quick sequence that Midoriya had not defense for. "I need to know exactly how my speed will interact with my surroundings to make the cuts I do when I'm in full burst. I didn't realize until seeing it how much Bakugo needs to understand physics to master his Quirk."
"It does show that he puts a lot of work into it." Kirishima said as Midoriya managed to get away and scramble to the corner. "But this is still hard to watch."
"I would be prudent to end this." Momo admitted but All Might wasn't going to despite agreeing as he knew that he had to give Midoriya the chance so he did that as the boys exchanged more words with each other that only All Might could hear. "Sir, you really should end this."
However, All Might continued to waver as he heard the words being said and knew that he couldn't do it because that would be dishonorable to both boys. Before All Might could give in and call it off the boys suddenly charged at each other for what had to be a final confrontation, made more so by the glowing power now in Midoriya's right arm as he brought it back for a punch while Bakugo's right hand glowed with small explosions in preparation for a massive one.
That was the breaking point and now it was too much and All Might began to give the order when he heard Midoriya yell to his partner and stopped to look at her screen as the class stared at the coming exchange in shocked silence. That was because the moment Midoriya had yelled out directions, Uraraka had moved and was now almost directly above Midoriya and hugging the pillar there. As soon as he saw that it all clicked, and All Might realize what the plan was and how it would work so long as Midoriya survived this exchange, so he let it go and watched amazed at young Midoriya's plan.
The class also stared in amazement as at the last moment Midoriya got his left arm up to block the explosion that Bakugo launched at the side of his head as he punched upwards and at the ceiling using the air pressure that his punch generated to destroy it. It didn't end there though, the sheer amount of power that Midoriya could generate with the punch blasted the air through all the floors above him and out of the roof of the building while shattering all the windows in the process.
The location was key too as the pillar that Uraraka was now holding was completely torn from its holdings by Midoriya's punch. That had been his plan all along and it allowed Uraraka to make it weightless as she fell to the ground and then swung it as if it was a baseball bat at the debris that was still in the air to distract and occupy Ida who was forced to try and block the incoming barrage of projectiles.
She then tossed the pillar to the side as she didn't need it anymore and leapt over the hole Midoriya had made, making herself float as she did and used the distraction to pass Ida as she released her Quirk. This time he was too preoccupied by her attack to move the bomb, so Uraraka landed near the top of the bomb, hugging it for all its worth and winning the exercise for the heroes with less than 30 seconds remaining on the 15 minute timer that had been the unknown amount of that that the heroes had had in this battle.
It was an insanely risky move but one that paid off as the class continued to stare in shock at it. Even with his lack of control and breaking his whole arm Midoriya had defied what Aizawa had said and used that one punch he had to win it by employing what he knew to completely turn the tables on Ida without Ida realizing until it was too late. Regardless it was the winning blow, and All Might announced as much as Midoriya fell to the ground unconscious from the pain he was in as Bakugo's rage ended at the shock of his first ever loss to Midoriya.
"Woah that was something else." Asta said his eyes wide as All Might hurried out to make sure that Midoriya was taken to the nurses office and to try and comfort Bakugo who was now just staring ahead of him clearly unable to process his loss. "I wasn't expecting it to end like that, that was insane. Midoriya's got some serious power, he just needs to learn control."
"I'll say." Ruby said looking at the screen to see Midoriya unconscious on the ground and Uraraka trying to avoid puking as she was on her hands and knees with one hand over her mouth while Ida rubbed her back to help out. "The heroes won but they're both down at the end while the villains barely got a scratch."
"It's as the saying goes." Tokoyami said. "Lose the battle but win the war. That's what happened here, and I am sure that it is something that we will face in the field one day ourselves. Certainly, a strange way to end it but the result is the same."
"This class is intense." Asui said her eyes wide as she processed the ending of the battle.
"It is the Hero Course at U.A., it has to be intense for it to be so well respected." Weiss pointed out. "As it should be though Midoriya was way too reckless at the end. That's not how a hero should act and really ruined his solid start to the battle."
"It's exactly what I'd do." Asta said as they watched the robots appear on the screen and take Midoriya to the nurse's office as All Might looked on. "A hero wins no matter what and they did just that."
"Some do." Nero corrected. "If you have the power and ability to take it then it is a viable strategy and Midoriya does though Mr. Aizawa won't be happy with the results as he broke his arm this time."
"That was something else though." Ruby said as All Might tried to comfort Bakugo but was brushed off so All Might just began to return to the observation room with the others. "Midoriya's going to need some serious healing after that."
The class didn't disagree with her assessment and just devolved into chatted amongst themselves for a moment as they waited and processed what they had seen. It didn't take long for All Might to return with Ida, Bakugo who was now silent, and a still queasy looking Uraraka who kept her hand over her mouth the entire time. Once they were back All Might turned to address the class in the wake of the first battle.
"The heroes may have won that battle but the MVP of it was young Ida." All Might said surprising and pleasing Ida who hadn't expected to be named MVP at all as all participants bar Midoriya were back in the observation room for the quick debrief of their battle while Midoriya got his broken arm and the burns on the other dealt with. "Who can tell me why?"
"It's simple really, he was the only one who took the exercise seriously and professionally." Weiss said right away though Momo had put her hand up as well. "As comical as his villain persona likely was there really are villains like that out there, especially ones that would be megalomaniacal enough to set off a nuke in a city, so he really got into the part as was expected of him. That caused Uraraka to lose her composure and squandered her advantage because she wasn't taking it as seriously as she should. True she and Midoriya had a good plan together that worked and allowed them to win and play off each other showing the foundations of strong teamwork but in a real situation she wouldn't have laughed, and you should treat training as the real thing or else you won't learn."
"That is very true and accurate." All Might said with a nod as he looked at Ochaco. "Remember young Uraraka, villains come in all shapes and sizes so treat exercises like this seriously for that."
"Yes sir." Ochaco said weakly understanding her mistake now and committing it to memory before putting her hand back over her mouth as another round of nausea passed through her.
"What about Bakugo and Midoriya's actions?" All Might asked.
"Bakugo let his personal grudge for Midoriya cloud his judgement and he went off to deal with him alone and without backup when he wasn't the best suited for the role of hunter on the team." Momo said taking over the feedback in an analytical tone. "He almost got caught for that and retaliated with too much damage, something bad for a hero as we have to avoid collateral damage so we should avoid it."
"The same can't be said for Midoriya who did do well at first but again showed his lack of control by breaking his arm against what Mr. Aizawa had said yesterday." Weiss added to play off what Momo had said. "While his move was smart enough to set up Uraraka for the win without hurting Bakugo he caused too much destruction and was far too reckless with his Quirk. That's why of all 4 only Ida took it seriously. He even removed all loose items to prevent Uraraka's Zero Gravity Quirk from being effective when they confronted each other and gave him the space to keep the bomb away from her thus giving him the advantage until Midoriya's actions at the end."
"Correct and to the point." All Might said with a nod at how thorough the two girls had been as he looked at the three participants who'd returned. "Remember that as you go forward and the rest of you should also bear this in mind for your own battles."
"Yes sir." Most of the class said though Bakugo only tsked at it as he was still pissed at Deku.
"Anyway, next up we have…" All Might said as he pulled out the next two balls from the boxes. "Team B as the heroes against Team I as the villains. Come with me."
The teams in question left with All Might as he took them to their assigned building and handed out the necessary tape and radios before heading back to the observation room giving the teams the same 5 minutes to prepare. Ojiro and Hagakure did that as they quickly set up with Ojiro protecting the nuke and Hagakure taking off her gloves and boots to be completely naked and move through the building as the scout. Meanwhile outside Todoroki and Shoji just waited for the go order.
That came 5 minutes after the villains had entered and Shoji and Todoroki walked into the entrance way where Shoji made an ear on the end of one of his Dupli-Arm tentacles to press it against the wall listen for their opponents. He quickly identified that only one was staying put which was likely where the bomb was, he relayed the rough location to Todoroki with mouths on his Dupli-Arms while the other one was on the move around the building.
That told them enough to know that the guard was Ojiro and the rover Hagakure who was likely going to sneak up on them and attack. That didn't matter to Todoroki who simply told Shoji to leave the building for his own safety as they'd already won.
Shoji did that right after Todoroki placed his right hand on the wall and froze the building in a quick manner that prevented the villains from avoiding it. The class watching gasped at the sheer extent of his power with Bakugo internally shaking at what he was seeing as he realized that he wasn't a match for Todoroki at the moment and that hit his already wounded pride hard while All Might told them to note the skill that Todoroki was using.
Naturally Todoroki didn't notice any of this as he froze everything in seconds, including freezing Ojiro and Hagakure to the ground such that they'd rip the skin off their feet if they moved, and simply walked up to the nuke to win it. He was completely calm about it and simply pointed out that he and Ojiro were on different levels at the moment.
It was a quick, clean, and efficient win for Team B in less than a minute and really showed why Todoroki was a recommended student. To add to it he'd only used half of his Quirk as he finished by thawing out the building with his left hand in about as long as it had taken him to freeze it much to Hagakure's pain as now she had to deal with hot water on her naked body.
There wasn't even a need for a debrief after that, Todoroki was the clear MVP and had claimed the victory with ease. They all returned and Ojiro and Hagakure knew that they had to figure out a counter to that in the future.
With the second battle over, it was now time for the special battle. It was time for the Quirk Knight track students to take on the Huntress track ones in a battle of the alternative branches.
Ah a nice little cliffhanger to end the chapter on to really set up what is about to come. Initially I had planned for this to be just one chapter with the main focus on the battle between the new students after their reactions to the only two battles that were shown in the anime but after it started to get long I decided to break it up into this chapter where they get to see how the battles will go and then a dedicated chapter that comes out next week that focuses solely on that battle and that chapter is longer than this one but it will be worth it to see the Quirk Knights go up against the Huntresses in a battle. It works better this way and avoids a 25k long chapter while also preserving plenty of canon from the other battles as the ones the anime showed are important for the growths of several characters. There isn't much more to say about this chapter, so I'll leave it off here. If you like this story please follow, favorite (this story and me) to keep up with it and leave a review or PM, your support is what helps motivate me to keep up this work and any questions posed before the next chapter is uploaded I will try to answer. Until next time.
Stringdog