Sakura's head was buzzing with a thousands thoughts as she made her way to Takoba National Stadium. Questions about her past and her current physical appearance plagued her mind. What Kurama said made sense. She didn't remember much before her life as a Hero so maybe she did make herself forget. But what happened that she wanted to forget about it? Sure, she wasn't liked by her teammates from what she could recall but that was all. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind as she focused on the upcoming test. She had to pass this test, it meant she could use her Quirk when need required. Between juggling school life and her apprenticeship at the hospital, having a Provisional Heroes License was a bonus as she could practice whatever she learnt in real life. She had also decided to try and get along with her classmates. Better form good relationships now than never, it might come in handy in the future. She adjusted her weapons' holster. She was dressed in an outfit similar to the one she wore when she woke up in Musutufu. It was a red sleeveless shirt paired with black shorts which ended midthigh and a grey medic skirt with slits at the side which ended a few inches above her shorts. She had wanted her uniform similar to what ANBU wore back in her homeland but that seemed overkill. She would change when her power level increased. She was also wearing black boots which ended just below her knees. All in all, she looked decent and kinda mature if you subtracted her fox head. Her body wasn't all that appealing and she didn't have many options to choose from.

"Excited for the test?" Mina said as she jogged to walk beside her. "I would be lying if I said I'm not excited. But I'm more nervous. It's my first time actually," she told her truthfully. Thank Kami, her voice was normal despite her frenzied nerves. "Well, rest assured. If there ever arises a situation where we have to team up, come find me. We'll make a badass team, I know it!" the pink girl said as she punched the air enthusiastically. "I'll hold you for that," the fox replied with a smile. "You know, I'm still surprised that your face can hold so many emotions. It's not my first time seeing a half-human-half-animal but you're just so expressive especially your eyes. Man, I have the hots for your eyes," she said as she made goggles with her hands over her eyes. "You've already deduced as much?" Sakura asked curiously. "Obviously. I pay a lot of attention to people, especially my friends. We're friends after all," she replied. The rest of the conversation drowned out to Sakura as she thought about her last statement. Friends. They were friends.


They arrived at the exam site uneventfully. Class 1A was huddled together mulling over that their sensei had told them before he had left. "Do your best in these exams. It's a another step further to become a Hero." Sakura was chatting animatedly with Tsuyu, telling her about how she could jump almost as high as her before someone knocked into her, sending her to the ground. She mentally berated herself for losing her gaurd as she stood up, her features contorted in anger at the dimwit who decided to interrupt her. "Excuse me?" she said as she glared at him. The boy was taller than her by at least a head and a half with a light tanned expression. She sensed for his chakra, there was no malicious intent from what she could tell. "Sorry, I was just curious to hear what you were talking about. I didn't mean to knock you over," the boy apologized as he bowed, his head hitting the ground continuously until he bled. She stared at him baffled. How was that even possible? "Eh? It's o-okay," she said as she eyed the injuries on his forehead. "Wait a sec," she said as she brought her hand to his forehead. Healing chakra immediately covered it and the injury disappeared in mere seconds. "Woah," he breathed out in wonder. "How are you able to do that?" he asked as he took her hands and turned them over in inspection. "It's my quirk," she said as she retracted her hands with a nervous chuckle. The boy opened his mouth to speak but a certain blonde beat him to it.

"What the hell are you doing showing a stranger your quirk?!" Katsuki shouted as he stomped over to her. 'Great. Just great,' she thought with an eye roll. The boy's mouth was equivalent to an asshole but for some unspoken reason, she found herself wanting to befriend him. She was clearly annoyed with him but the physical manifestation of her annoyance with him went as far as a slight glare, that was if Kurama hadn't intervened with her emotions. He stopped in front of them, casting a glare at the taller boy. "Who are you?" he spat out. "Inasa Yoarashi," he said with a grin. "Get lost," he ground out as he grabbed Sakura's hand, pulling her away from him. It was only after they were a good distance away from him that she wrenched her hand out of his grasp. "That was rude. Why did you pull me away from him? We were still talking," she said as a frown marred her animalistic features. "Are you fucking stupid? Why do you go off telling a stranger about your abilities in an exam? Are you dumb or what?" he seethed in barely restrained anger. "Why are you so worked up about it? For all I know, you said you don't care about me. If I recall your words properly this morning before we left the dorms: I don't care whether she passes or not, she should just die," she spoke as though she were speaking to a toddler. Katsuki scoffed as he eyed her up and down several times. "Like what you see?" she said as she struck a pose, placing a hand on her hip as she winked at him. "Please, you look like a kid in elementary school. I'm gonna barf," he said as he walked away from her. "And I don't care whether or not you pass this exam!" he added. Her face fell. "You'll get used to it, " Mina said as she put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "He may not seem like it but he cares a lot about everyone in class especially after Izuku, Shoto, Momo, Eijiro and Tenya went to rescue him when the League of Villains kidnapped him," the acid user stated with a comforting smile. Sakura stared in the direction he had walked off. Instead of feeling angry at him, she was feeling kinda sad. "Okay, if you say so. Let's go meet up the others."


The first thing that she noticed about the proctor was that he was a sleep deprived man, almost similar to her teacher Shota Aizawa. "I'm Yokumiru Mera of the Hero Public Safety Commission and I'll be explaining the Provisional Heroes License Exam," he announced to the students who all quietened as he began to speak. "There's 1540 of you but only 100 examinees will get to participate in the actual exam," he told them as he stifled a yawn. A murmur of disapproval went through the crowd. "C'mon, why does the exam have to start by being difficult?" Mina complained with a pout. "This is a very big exam. It's supposed to be no walk in the park," Momo spoke. "The first exam is to determine the 100 examinees who will compete in the Provisional Heroes License Exam ," he said. "The objective is to test speed which is a requirement in Heroics. Every examinee will take three targets and paste them somewhere on their bodies where others can see, except their feet and armpits. Each examinee will be given six balls and use them to hit the targets; the target will light up when it is hit by a ball and once the third target is lit up, that examinee is considered as lost and disqualified. Whoever lights up the third target will be considered as the person who took down the other person," he explained. "The goal of the preliminary round is to take down two examinees using the six balls given and whoever takes down two people will pass the preliminary round and qualify for the Provisional Hero License Exam," he finished. "You will be passed your balls and targets," he said.

Suddenly, the place opened up revealing a huge varied terrain. "This will be your battlefield. The first exam begins now."


"Guys, I think we should work together as class 1A since it will be school against school. We are already aware of each other's strengths and weaknesses, it's easier to pass the first exam this way," Izuku spoke. There was a small murmur as the group of students digested the information. Sakura pondered over this for a moment. It would be better to work together but there were limitations. They wouldn't be able to use their quirks properly. "Shoto, where are you going?" She snapped her head, watching the two-tone haired boy begin walking in another direction. "I'm working alone. I'll be able to use my quirk more effectively and won't become an easy target," he said without turning. Sakura looked at him in contemplation. With her mind set, she followed after him. She quickly caught up to him and the two walked side by side. "I thought I made myself clear when I said I'm working alone," he ground out. "I know but it's just me. We'll be only two. There's no harm in that," she pointed out as she clasped her hands behind her. There was a brief moment of silence. "Don't drag me down," he said as he increased his pace. "You got it Shoto," she said with a grin as she easily matched his pace.


"Over 50 students have passed the exam."

The PA system announced in the arena. "We should act quickly before all the spots are taken," Sakura commented. They were hiding in a steel labyrinth-like area of the arena. The boy nodded in agreement as he glanced at her. He was still mulling over why she chose to go with him where she could have chosen others like Izuku. She seemed pretty close to Mina too. He recalled his fight with her the day before. His jaw still tingled where she had punched him. He thought that Izuku was powerful but she was on another level. And that killing intent, she seemed just about ready to rip him to shreds. But it all disappeared, leaving behind a girl who was one of the most compassionate people he had ever met if her apologies were anything to go by. That's why he had let her tag along. He was going to find out everything about her until there was nothing left.

The two came out of their hiding spot and began walking. Sakura's ears twitched and she pushed the other boy away as a barricade of throwing knives assaulted them. They managed to avoid most of them but she noticed that one of them had nicked Shoto's cheek. "Are you okay?" she said as she watched the boy stand up. He nodded. A group of students dressed in ninja garb revealed themselves. Sakura almost smirked. Her opponents were ninja? This was too easy.

One of them who was dressed in red threw a bolt at Shoto which seemed to increase in size. Sakura eyed it skeptically. It was probably his chakra, or quirk for lack of a better term, that increased the size of that bolt. The icy-hot boy created a shield in which he managed to block the bolt but another barricade of weapons were thrown at him, breaking through his shield. Activating his fire quirk, he sent a large fireball at the weapons in order to melt them but they didn't change state. He was forced to jump away to avoid them. "These weapons are made out of tungsten which is resistant to super high temperatures. Your fire quirk won't work," the red-clad ninja said. "I have to say you're the overconfident type, working alone like that. Your girlfriend here seems pretty useless to me, and ugly too," he added with a smirk in his voice. Sakura spluttered as her ears twitched in embarrassment. "W-We're nothing like that," she stammered. 'And I'm not ugly,' she added in her mind. The thought was a little entertaining. He was handsome, super strong and a tsundere to boot, just perfect for her. For some unknown reason, she found herself attracted to bad boys given her previous relationship with Sasuke. She stopped her line of thought and berated herself for thinking so inappropriately. Shoto sent a fire attack but was countered with two water-based attacks, negating his fire. He summoned a wall of ice. The ninjas began throwing large rocks at the ice wall. 'Their strategy is to try and negate both of his quirks,' she thought as she stood on the sidelines. The ninjas had dismissed her as weak. Well, it worked in her favour.

She noticed that the engagement had filled the entire area with steam and she decided to make her move. She located Shoto's chakra signature and flashed over to him. "These structures probably have real features built into them. I have a plan but I'm gonna need your help," she explained. She didn't need help in all honesty but it was better to work together than alone. The Todoroki eyed her with narrowed eyes. She stared back at him determinedly. He nodded in agreement. "Ok, it's easy. It goes like this..."


Sakura jumped out of their hiding spot and immediately located the four ninjas. Taking out a handful of shuriken, she threw it at them missing intentionally. "What, you are a ninja too?" the red-clad leader mocked. He retaliated with kunai knives. They jumped from different areas as they threw weapons at each other. "Where's your boyfriend? Finally left you after seeing how useless you were?" one of them snickered. They hadn't noticed where they were standing. "Just where he wants you," she said as she punched the ground below, causing the ninja to lose their footing just as Shoto used his fire and ice quirk simultaneously on the tank above the ninjas causing an explosion.

When the explosion died down, the four ninjas were scattered on the shattered ground unconscious. Shoto tagged two of them whilst Sakura tagged the other two. "The 54th and 55th examinees have passed," Yokumiru's voice sounded through the PA system just as the lights on their targets lit up. "I guess that's us," Sakura commented. She turned to find Shoto staring intently at his hands. "Is something wrong?" she asked as she went to stand in front of him. "My usage of fire and ice simultaneously is still sluggish. I need to practice in order to use both my quirks properly," he admitted as he clenched his hands. His eyes shot up to meet hers, surprised at himself for saying that. He never confided in anyone, at all. "I think you're pretty good though. But if you want, I can help you train," she offered with a smile, or what he thought to be a smile on her fox face. It was still a wonder to him how a fox can habour so many emotions, especially the eyes. They looked very genuine. He found himself agreeing before even thinking it through. The joy in her eyes was plausible. "Great, now let's go," she said as she began walking to the waiting room.

He was about to follow but she paused. She turned around to stare at him in an assessing manner, more specifically his face. He squirmed a little under her intense gaze. There was neither awe, pity, fear nor infatuation behind her eyes as he had accustomed to seeing whenever someone looked at him. Instead she looked at him as if he was some kind of science experiment. "You're hurt," she pointed out. A single eyebrow rose in question. She closed the distance between them and put a hand to his injured cheek. Her hand glowed green for a few seconds before she retracted it. "One of the ninja's knives must have nicked you. But it's healed now," she spoke as she created distance between them. The adrenaline must've made him forget the stinging pain coming from his cheek. "Why?" he blurted out. A look of confusion crossed her features before dawning in realization. "I'm a medic so whether I want to or not, I have to heal anyone who's injured," she explained. He mulled over this for a moment. "Did you want to heal me?" he asked. The question prominent in his mind was: did she care? Was she doing it as a duty or genuine concern? It's not that he didn't have people who cared about him but it all felt forced. He wanted to know if she was just like the rest. Was she faking her concern because he's the son of Endeavor or she was doing it because she was concerned about him? "Well, being a duty is part of it but mostly it's because I wanted to heal you," she replied easily. "Then do you care about me?" he asked again. Sakura was taken aback and Shoto moreso because of his boldness. Since when did he become talkative? His longest conversation was with Izuku and that wasn't on friendly terms. "Yes," she replied. The look in her eyes made him believe her.


Done with this chapter. I hope you like it. Sorry for not updating in a long time, I promise quicker updates. I might even write another chapter before I publish this one. Any grammatical errors are mine and I still want your reviews.

Tozoonana

AfricanFire