Angel: We made it to 600 reviews, which is INSANE. Thank you to every single person who has reviewed thus far, even to the bad comments that I don't care about. I will upload 2 chapters on Monday to celebrate! As for if Izuka shuts up Bakugo, I mean...she's snapped at him before. But she does call him out in this chapter specifically. Also I keep getting messages worrying about Izuka being Quirkless in the future. Right now, that's in the same vein as Dark Callista that I haven't thought about that. Her losing her Quirk is also not a storyline in anything I've written for the story so far. Considering what happened to Izuku in the Final War, that's something I'm putting a pin on for the time being. My primary thoughts are on the third movie, so when I get closer to the second half of season 6, I should have my thoughts together on whether or not Izuka would be Quirkless or if Dark Callista will appear. But like I said last time, please no one spam me in the comments on either of these things. That would get uncomfortable and annoying really fast, I never said either of those things are happening, just that they're in limbo in my mind. Thanks to the people who are that invested to worry about it this much to say this though ^^'

Will Izuka be in the Overhaul arc? Hmm...if you mean the same amount of time Izuku and Mirio get, maybe, maybe not.

The one in red held up a bolt. "Don't be cocky! We're prepared!" He then threw the bolt, which grew in size after heading towards Shoto. He flinched in alarm, but used his ice to stop it. Some ice chunks flew off from the impact.

'Looks like a Quirk that makes things bigger.'

The student in red then prepared another throw. He threw more objects that grew in size. Shoto kept his ice wall up to block them, though. "That's not all I brought with me!"

The student attacking him had thrown a bunch of objects and the ice broke because of them breaking through. Another bolt headed for Shoto, but he used his fire to try and stop it. It didn't work, and he had to jump out of the way to avoid getting hit.

'Even if I couldn't melt it, I should have at least made a mark!'

The student threw some pins onto the ice to break himself free. "Your fire won't work against any of my tools," He mocked to Shoto, holding up some bolts. "Tungsten has a super-high melting point!" He then threw the pins to set his classmates free. Shoto landed on one of the giant bolts. "I'm afraid I told you so, Todoroki. Even if you're a top UA student, if you think you can pass this exam alone...well then, your pride will be your downfall!"

Shoto narrowed his eyes towards them.

He held up his arm to attack. "You fools," He deemed before igniting his arm on fire.

"Do it!" The one in red cried out to his classmates.

"Right!" Two of them jumped above him, holding out their arms. They fired earth and water attacks at the fire to negate the attack completely. Shoto slid to a stop and jumped backwards. Once he landed, he put up an ice wall to block the incoming bolts. The one in red threw even more of his tools while in mid-air.

"Keep attacking. Don't let up!" He ordered as one in yellow grabbed a pipe.

"Got it!" Another classmate in yellow joined him as they ripped off the pipes together. They started throwing them towards the ice. Shoto jumped out of the way, creating more ice to fend them off. However, the last one was too close for comfort. He gritted his teeth a little as they had watched him carefully from the Sports Festival to be this prepared.

Water for my flames and physical attacks for my ice. They've worked out a way to counter everything I have. He narrowed his eyes a little and sent another fire attack. The two students with water and earth Quirks counteracted it again.

"It's useless to resist!"

Suddenly smoke appeared from the three attacks, creating a smokescreen. The one in red looked around rapidly, but couldn't see anything. "Where'd he go?"

He was running away to give himself some distance from them. The Heroes Public Safety Commission must have constructed this factory to be as realistic as possible. No wonder they told us to choose a terrain that would suit our style.

He held up a flame from his left hand so that he could get the attention of his attackers. "There he is! Surround him!" The one in red jumped off of the structure he was standing on.

In that case, I'm guessing that this tank is full of the real thing. He touched the ground with his ice, expanding it large enough to puncture a water tank. The attackers all ran towards him, stopping short in shock as they saw that the flame...wasn't actually from Shoto. It was actually from a sign being on fire.

"He got us!"

Shoto was actually standing on a pipe not too far behind them. He lit his hand on fire again and sent out a powerful fire attack. He hit the water tank that was still being held by ice to create an explosion. The students all screamed as they were sent flying into the air. Shoto himself hid behind an ice wall so he wasn't swept away.

"To pull such a move...he's crazy!" The one in red looked up in disbelief. He then saw that he was once again trapped in ice, aside from his upper body. And it was the same thing for his classmates.

"Well," Shoto walked up to them from the smoke. "It looks like the commission kept the force of the explosion from being too damaging," He murmured, though he had a feeling the commission would make it so that no one got seriously hurt.

"You bastard," The leader snarled towards him.

"Apologies," Shoto came to a stop. "But I simply cannot afford to fail," He then held up one of his balls.

Once he passed, he was walking down a pathway. If I could only use both sides at the same time He looked at both of his hands. Switching slows me down. I need to practice more.

"Comet..." Izuka recoiled back her flaming hand as it formed into a comet. "Burst!" She threw it right at the rock debris, causing them to burn up and turn into ash.

Izuka clenched her hands into fists. "Let me...GO!" She threw her arms as huge blasts of fire and ice came from her hands.

'That's right, one of Mido's abilities involves fire and ice. Maybe I should ask her for advice.'

His three targets beeped, getting his attention. "Students who have passed the exam should congregate in the anteroom. Chop, chop," A voice instructed from the objects.

These high-tech targets keep track of who passes and fails. With so many examinees, it's the only way that makes sense. The targets can also determine who is responsible each time one of them is hit, based on a student's location, movements, and various other factors being recorded! Oh, and once mounted, they can only be removed with a special magnetic key. It's all very fancy!

As examinees walked around outside, a tea party was going on in one of the buildings from the city area.

"Miss Sai?" Someone asked the one having tea. "We'll soon have company," She took a small bow. "I've confirmed four UA students have entered the building."

"Let's have a look at the video," The periwinkle-haired girl implored from her seat.

"Certainly." The pink-haired girl opened up an eye to show an infrared projection. The four were Tsuyu, Momo, Kyoka, and Mezo.

"Arm duplication. A sound-wave manipulator. The frog. And a Quirk that allows you to make things..." She eyed Momo specifically with interest. She closed her eyes as a bunch of formulas flew around her. They disappeared a few seconds later and she gave a small hum. The girl then got onto her feet. "It seems that our prey has been decided. Please gather the other ladies."

"Yes, Miss Sai," The periwinkle-haired girl bowed to her again.

The white-haired girl then looked away with a smirk. The formula for my success is flawless. What an excellent day for an exam. She let out a chuckle to herself.

Shoto made it to the anteroom, and found that he was the only one from his class there. He did see about 50 other people inside, though. So they've all passed?

The doors closed behind him once he stepped in. "Seriously? I'm a huge fan of Stampman!" Shoto heard a familiar voice. He glanced to the side to see Inasa taking to another person that passed. And he looked a bit put off by Inasa's behavior. "I love a hero who's super passionate!"

"Who is this guy...?"

Shoto took a seat, eyeing Inasa carefully. If he applied through recommendations, I should've seen him at the entrance exam.

"I wanna be like..." Inasa paused and then looked towards Shoto. Once he saw him, he gave an intense glare towards the UA student. He then turned back to the other student, as if nothing had happened just now. "Wait, what were we talkin' about?"

"I dunno...you just came up and started talking!"

Shoto stared at Inasa, wondering what that was all about...with the way that Inasa was looking at him suggested that they had interacted before. He gave a small grunt, as he didn't know whether or not he should be wondering about it...

"So far, 56 people have passed," Mera reported to everyone still in the arena. "Don't panic, but do consider that your time is almost up. Good luck."

Mezo was on lookout with his limbs from one of the floors. "Having any luck, Shoji?" Tsuyu wondered while Kyoka was using the wall to listen for anyone coming. Momo was thinking up a plan.

"It's no use," He informed the frog-like girl. "I can't see anyone from our class," He reported back in dismay.

"Maybe they're in another area," She suggested in a bit of concern, although she knew that they could hold their own for as long as they needed to.

"Most likely. Yaoyorozu," He glanced over his shoulder as she was still lost in thought. "You heard that, right? Less than half of the spots remain."

"We should probably give up on finding everyone else," Tsuyu suggested to the group in thought, a finger on her chin. "We need to fight for ourselves and make sure we pass."

"Yes," Momo looked away, frowning a little. "That would be wisest." She was still worried, but she also knew that tracking all of them down before time was up would be impossible. And the chances were slim that the rest of their classmates were doing the same thing right now.

"Shh!" Kyoka called out to them. "I hear four people climbing the stairs. 10 floors below," She then looked away anxiously. "They're headed up here."

"Are they planning to attack us?" Mezo wondered, though something was bothering Momo.

"I don't understand why there are only four of them coming if that's the case...all the other schools we've observed have moved in much larger groups than that," She murmured, recalling the attack from Ketsubutsu. There was triple the number of students out there before they got separated, after all. Using the same tactic here would guarantee the win.

"Maybe their companions were defeated, and they're running away to hide in here," Tsuyu pointed out to her.

"No. That's not what this sounds like," Kyoka explained to the group; she could distinguish the intent behind people from the sound of their movements. She then glanced over her shoulder. "They're not stopping on the other floors."

"Are there more of them hiding somewhere?" Momo mused, rubbing her chin, narrowing her eyes in worry. Is this a distraction? Or worse?

Someone turned on an amp, and it played a loud guitar strum. Kyoka let out a painful scream, covering her ears.

"Jiro!" Momo cried out to her friend.

"Are you okay?" Tsuyu asked before Mezo pressed a duplicate ear to the wall.

"There's music playing! It's not too bad for me," He stated while Kyoka was shaking on the ground, holding her head. "But hearing it suddenly must've been a huge shock for Jiro."

They all looked towards him in realization. "So they must know Kyoka's Quirk and were targeting her on purpose!" Tsuyu frowned a little. Kyoka's hearing was also much more profound than Mezo's, since her Quirk was focused on her hearing compared to his.

"It's a coordinated attack," He realized as five girls wearing the same uniform walked down a hallway.

"This isn't good," Momo grunted a little, standing up. Now we can't tell where anyone is.

The five girls stood inside of the elevator. Their leader turned around with a small smirk. "Phase one's officially complete. Let's begin phase two," She smirked, holding up a finger. "Shouldn't keep our guests waiting."

As soon as the elevator doors closed, a window on the floor the UA students were in cracked. Momo and Mezo flinched in alarm. The same thing happened to another window as Momo turned to Tsuyu and Kyoka.

"Everyone hide!" She ordered and Kyoka rushed over to hide behind a trash can.

"Attacks from the outside?!" She yelped as Tsuyu kneeled to protect herself.

"What's their plan?" The green-haired girl called out while Mezo hid behind a pillar.

"They're trying to keep me from using my eyes," He guessed correctly as the attacks were coming from a girl outside. She was aiming right at the windows using a slingshot, as ordered by the leader. She fired again to break more windows.

Momo watched the breaking windows closely, as she deduced that this wasn't for no reason. The first thing they did was counteract Jiro and Shoji's Quirks, which are perfectly suited for detecting enemy locations. She glanced away nervously, knowing they wouldn't do that for just any student...it was because they knew exactly what their Quirks were. Our opponents know exactly who we are. And importantly, what we can do.

"Yaoyorozu," Mezo got her attention from across the room. "What could their next move be?"

"I'm not positive," She informed with a bit of hesitation. "But it seems likely that they're trying to trap us here."

"And then they'll surround us and move in to attack as a group," Tsuyu said just as nervously.

"Yes." The elevator opened to reveal the same five girls. Two more classmates were waiting for them. "We should assume they're already close by, waiting for the right moment to strike." One of them turned around to the leader, giving a small nod as the two girls were on guard. Two double doors were not too far from them, as they were waiting for the right moment to make a move.

Kyoka gritted her teeth. "In that case, we have to fight!" She then rushed out of her hiding spot.

"Wait, don't be reckless!" Momo warned, but was too late.

"Heartbeat Dist-" An attack out of nowhere hit her gear over her hands, breaking it completely. A second attack came in soon after.

The student from outside stood up. "Phase 2 is complete, ma'am."

"Jiro!" Mezo yelled in concern for her, as she had gone back to her hiding spot.

"Are you injured?" Momo looked around the corner.

"They got my amp," Kyoka gritted her teeth in pain. Her left earphone jack was also wounded. "And my left ear!"

Momo gasped a little while looking away in thought. The only time Kyoka had done that move in the exam was before they got separated. She had used it to protect her classmates from one of Yo's attacks. They knew what she'd do? If they were able to predict our actions so accurately after seeing only one attack in the beginning of the exam, then their plan is well thought out. She then frowned knowingly; it had to take someone who was a big thinker to be able to execute something like this. There must be someone extremely intelligent among our opponents. A student with an eye for strategy.

"Does it feel colder to you?" Mezo once again broke her train of thought as she gasped.

"Actually, now that you mention it, yes," She rubbed her arms as they looked around. She let out another sharper gasp as she could see a bunch of cold air coming from the ceiling vents. "It's coming from the vents!"

One of their opponents was freezing the AC for the room. "Phase 3 is underway." She then pressed a button as suddenly, the window covers activated to further trap them.

"They've shut us in?" Mezo wondered in disbelief. And not only that, it was getting colder and colder inside.

"The temperature is steadily decreasing," Momo informed as Kyoka joined her side, hugging herself.

"This place is turning into a freezer!"

Tsuyu out of the most of them wasn't doing so well as she wobbled around. "Ri...ribbit..." She fell onto her knees.

"Asui! What's wrong?" Mezo was the first to notice her state. She fell onto her side and they all rushed over to her in worry.

"Oh, crap!" Kyoka muttered and knew why as well. "Since the temperature dropped all of a sudden, her body's going into hibernation!" Tsuyu was fast asleep, and wouldn't be waking up any time soon.

"Ribbit..." She murmured in her sleep.

"We need fire! Make a lighter or matches!" Mezo looked up at Momo.

"No, I can't," Momo looked up at the ceiling. "We'll set the sprinklers off. That's only going to make her even colder," She furrowed her eyebrows in thought while trying to think of something to get them out of this.

"An electric heater or something?" Kyoka questioned her in a bit of a panic.

"Our opponents have control over the air conditioner. They've probably turned off the electricity as well," She theorized while using her back to make a blanket. "Here's a blanket for now."

"Alright."

One of the doors was starting to be welded shut from the outside. "What are they doing to the door?" Kyoka looked back while gritting her teeth.

"Welding it shut. Trapping us further," Momo was once again correct.

Mezo held Tsuyu in his arms as she was wrapped up in the blanket. "Are they trying to freeze us solid?" He wondered to the two girls.

"Those doors over there're the only ones we have left," Kyoka looked over to the double doors, since they couldn't hear any welding coming from there.

"We could break through," Mezo suggested while getting onto his feet.

"Our opponents are definitely waiting on the other side," Momo informed the two of them. "It's dangerous."

"How did they manage to outthink us so quickly?" Mezo stared at the doors; if they opened them, they'd be ambushed. And they had no idea how many people were waiting for them in the state that they were in.

"What are we supposed to do?" Kyoka squeezed her eyes shut, rubbing at her arms.

"If we stay holed up in this room, we'll have to do something about the cold," Mezo stared down at Tsuyu. "Otherwise, we'll be done for." She was sleeping peacefully, though if it got even colder, she wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Yao-momo," Kyoka turned to her friend. "What if you made a bomb? We could blow the door to the emergency exit."

"We'd run the risk of causing a phreatic explosion," She shook her head slowly. "And they likely knew we'd think about that. Which is why they sealed the observation room and lowered the temperature."

"Then what?!" Kyoka replied urgently, since they were stuck. They couldn't just open the door and fail, though...

Think, Momo. You have to. Figure out a solution to this situation. She turned to Kyoka first, eyeing her injured left ear. With one ear injured, Jiro can't use her sound attacks to their fullest capacity. So what? Should we smash the wall to escape? She then narrowed her eyes a little. No. That's a simple move, and our enemies will have expected something so obvious. She then looked towards Momo and Tsuyu. For now, we need to do something about the air conditioning. She bit her lip while looking at the ceiling. I could make some clay to seal off the vents. It looks like there are eight of them in the room. That will end up using a lot of my Quirk, but right now...it's all I can do. Her eyes shook as she couldn't think of anything else to do without risking their lives or their results from the test.

"Miss Sai," One of the female students from outside spoke up. "Phase 3 has been completed."

"Lovely," Miss Sai smiled a little while sitting and drinking tea. "Now we just give them time."

"Yes, ma'am," The one with pink hair bowed to her.

She then closed her eyes with a confident smile. The biggest problem facing these UA students is the frigid air being pumped into the room. In order to fix that, the one named Yaoyorozu must utilize her power. Her Quirk uses the lipids inside her body to create solid matter.

Momo bit her lip at the situation that they were in.

In other words, there's a finite limit to how much she can create. Miss Sai had formulas flying around her again. We'll make her exhaust her abilities. Then all four of their Quirks will be rendered quite useless. This is my strategic design. My equation for success. She then opened her eyes with a sly smile.

Seiai Academy. Saiko Intelli, 2nd year. Her Quirk: IQ. After she drinks tea and closes her eyes, her IQ multiplies. It's already 150 to begin with, so after a few sips, she becomes a real genius! By the way, different brands of tea have different effects on her Quirk!

Saiko laughed gleefully while waiting for the results. The other students gushed towards her. "Now," She gave a smirk, as this was their moment. "Use your Quirk, Yaoyorozu~ It will be the beginning of the end for you and your friends."

Momo moved away her top to start creating things, though she was still hesitant to do so. She then stopped a few seconds later, closing her eyes.

"Hey, why aren't you making anything?" Kyoka questioned as they could tell she wasn't too keen on using her Quirk right now.

"Is there something wrong?" Mezo wondered and she looked up.

"No matter how many different ways I look at this situation...I get the same answer," She turned around to them. "The enemies want me to use my Quirk."

Mezo and Kyoka gave a look of realization. "Until you can't create anything else..." Mezo stated, knowing now that if she did so, they'd fail.

"Right. My Quirk has many applications. They can't account for all the things that I might make. Which is why they're doing this. At first, I thought the manipulation of the air conditioning was to take Asui off the board. But I believe their true intention was to force my hand and exhaust me," She explained to the two.

"Very clever. And once you're powerless, they'll march in. No doubt they could easily hit our targets."

"Yes. So I can't use it," Momo told them, hugging herself. "We'd just be playing right into their hands. We wait for the need to arise, when there's no other option," She glanced over her shoulder to the doors.

"But if we stay hiding in here, there's no possible way we'll pass the licensing exam!" Kyoka reminded her classmate. "We should just charge out that door and attack them head on."

"I'm sure that such a smart enemy has predicted that we might do that," Mezo pointed out to the freezing girl.

"Okay fine, then what do we do?!" Kyoka cried out, rubbing her arms. She wanted to do something, but every option they had wasn't a guarantee all four would pass.

Momo furrowed her eyebrows in frustration. Come on, think! How would Todoroki act in a time like this? Or Ida? Or Midoriya? Or Mido?

"...I know I'm hurt," Izuku muttered quietly to the four. "But if I can still move at all...then I can't just sit still. I have to reach out and do something," He then looked up at Tenya pleadingly. "Cause all I can think about is saving them. And I know...that my sister doesn't want me to go through with it deep down. But I can't just pretend like she's not in danger..." His eyes shook a little.

Momo let out a sharp gasp, as this was just like that situation...just like with Izuka back then, she couldn't just sit and do nothing. Because she cared about her classmates' safety. She clenched a fist tightly. That's right. I have to save them. She looked towards her three classmates. Shoji, Jiro, and Asui! Forget about my provisional exam. Focus on these three. That's what really matters. She then eyed Kyoka's right ear, the girl shaking from the cold. In order to do that...in order to get my friends out of here... She opened up a book that she always kept with her costume. She flipped through the pages and then found what she needed.

"Everyone, please, endure these conditions for a few more minutes!" She instructed, both Kyoka and Mezo yelping in shock. Mezo quickly turned around so he wouldn't look because Momo was using her power.

"Hey, are you crazy?!" Kyoka jumped up while waving her arms.

"Just bear with me!" Momo then created four pairs of headphones and they fell to the floor.

"Huh? Why headphones?" Kyoka wondered while picking one up.

"Please, put them on," Momo then kneeled, using Creation once again. Kyoka looked up with a gasp. It's the first time I've made this device, but its structure isn't all that complicated. I'll just save enough lipids so I can still move. Something big was coming from her back as Kyoka watched. And make it as big as possible. Almost there.

Kyoka blinked in shock at what her friend was making. "Wait! Is that...?"

Saiko put down her tea cup with a small satisfied smile. It's been almost ten minutes since they were trapped in the room. It's probably about time. She then looked up, licking her lip delightfully at the successful plan. "Prepare to take them, ladies!"

"Yes, ma'am!" The Seiai students all prepared their Quirks. Saiko stood up with a sadistic look on her face.

Oh! How utterly delightful. I wonder what we'll find inside.

A high-pitched noise suddenly came from inside, alarming her. She placed a hand on the side of her head. "No!" She watched her classmates fall to the ground. "Is this..." She held her head in pain from the noise. "A sonic attack?"

The noise continued as Kyoka had put her earphone jack to a large amp, using Heartbeat Distortion into it. "The headphones help, but the force is rattling my body!" She reported to Momo, unsure of how long she could handle it.

"Ribbit," Tsuyu slowly opened her eyes, looking a bit weak.

"Asui, are you alright?" Mezo asked while covering his ears with his hands. His back was supporting Tsuyu with duplicate arms, like how he carried Izuku at camp.

"Please, everyone," Momo called out, holding her head. "Seven more seconds...and it'll be over! Six...Five..." The Seiai students from the heating room and outside the emergency exit were knocked out as well. "Four...three...two..." Saiko's tea cup fell to the ground and smashed. "One!" Kyoka and Mezo opened the door, seeing the unconscious students.

"Alright! We rocked this!" Kyoka smiled, giving a thumbs up to Momo. She panted, giving a relieved look.

"Now, hit their targets."

"You got it. Can you move?" Mezo bent down to Tsuyu, who got onto her feet.

"Yeah. Ribbit..." She was a bit woozy, but otherwise okay. "I'll be okay..."

"Oh, thank goodness," Momo took a few steps forward, not realizing there was still one person around. Mom then let out a yelp, Kyoka turning around as the doors closed.

"No!" Kyoka cried out in concern.

The door was then locked with a key, revealing that it was Saiko who was responsible. Momo was on the ground, glancing over her shoulder as she gritted her teeth. "You used your Quirk to attack, not defend," She then turned around furiously. "It was a high-risk move. I can't believe a UA student would choose such a method," She then slowly approached Momo, who didn't have enough lipids to get out of the situation. If she used them now, she'd reach her limit. "But because of that, you can't fight now, can you? I may not pass..." She held up one of her balls. "But I'll make sure you don't either!"

I can't give up now. Think of all the intensive training we've done at camp and school. Saiko headed straight for her, about to take her out. Momo then started to create something from her wrist, even though she knew it would render her useless after. It's time to show off those results. She moved her arm to grab Saiko's as handcuffs were revealed between the two of them. Saiko angrily growled at this.

"You're struggling in vain!" She reached out her other arm.

Kyoka and Mezo barged their way in as Tsuyu jumped up. "Ribbit!" She extended her tongue to grab the arm before Saiko could take out Momo. The two girls looked up in shock.

"You guys!" Momo said in relief.

"But why did you come back?" Saiko questioned the group in confusion. "Surely you assumed that I'd already hit all three of her triggers? We're in the middle of the licensing exam. You should be thinking of yourselves, not your other classmates!" She didn't do the same when they were knocked out, so it was baffling her that they came back, even though they had no idea how many slots were left.

"That might be how you roll, but not us," Kyoka narrowed her eyes a little. "We're obviously different."

"She's our friend," Tsuyu spoke up bravely, crouching. "Which means we'd never leave her behind."

"And we don't give up," Mezo finished in determination, remembering what Izuku said.

"I don't want to choose one or the other. I'm going to save them all!" Izuku declared from Mezo's back.

"They hurt my brother," Izuka gave a death glare towards the villain they captured. "I'll have plenty of time to express my anger once we're out of this."

Izuka then didn't look towards the group, having argued with Katsuki. "I'm not running, it's called being realistic. We don't know what other villains or Quirks we'll come across. And guess what, even you couldn't stop that guy because he used the environment to his advantage."

It's just like Midoriya and Mido said.

Saiko looked at them in utter shock, since this was foreign to her with her mindset. "It's how Class 1-A is," Momo got onto her feet. Saiko then turned to her with a growl. "We look out for each other!" She looked up at her opponent fiercely, who turned away in dismay.

"You've defeated me completely...UA doesn't disappoint..." Her ball fell to the ground.

A ball rolled towards a heap of skin and hair.

"Hey, Kaminari. Why'd you follow us?" Eijiro wondered as he, Katsuki, Izuka, and Denki were climbing up a ladder.

"I dunno. Cause you guys started running. I didn't wanna end up alone," He told the three and Izuka glanced away. He made it sound like she had a choice in the matter... "Where're we going?"

"Shut up!" Katsuki retorted back, and he made sure Izuka climbed first so she didn't try escaping.

"Really?" Izuka sighed to herself at this.

"Why you always gotta sound so mad?" Denki called out from down below.

"I told you to chill out, Bakugo," Eijiro warned from underneath. "Looks like there's a lot of people up there, so the four of us should work together."

Katsuki was storming off while dragging Izuka along, and it was getting on her nerves. Although being confronted by that Shiketsu girl certainly didn't help matters either. And she would focus on that, but right now, Katsuki was the more concerning student because of how he was acting. All over a boy that she wasn't even going out with.

"Go die!"

"Come on, man," Eijiro groaned a little at his behavior.

"Okay, can you please let me go?" Izuka looked at the back of Katsuki's head pleadingly, hoping that she'd finally get an answer out of him, though debatable. He didn't seem to want to listen to anyone right now. "Slow down, what is going on with you?"

"That extra's your new friend, why don't you ask him?" He snarled back at the girl as they came to a stop. She blinked in disbelief, staring at him in confusion.

Where's he getting that idea from?

"He's not!" She defended back with a small glare. "And I don't get why you wanna be so rude to him!"

"None of your business," Katsuki retorted and she gave an exasperated look. Denki stared at the two of them, as he always found them a bit weird. Especially today, something about Izuka was just bringing out this side of Katsuki. When in reality, he wouldn't have even dragged her along with them back when they started classes. He could also just chalk it up to them having grown up together, but that didn't have anything to do with what was going on now.

Does he...like Mido? He blinked incredibly, since Minoru was always getting attacked. And now Katsuki was being like this over a guy asking her out. Even though the words 'will you go out with me' never came up. He didn't technically ask her out, but to him, it definitely counts. She never even said yes.

"I think you're just being a bit over the top here, Katsuki," Izuka rubbed a temple, as she still didn't understand the root of Katsuki's problem.

"The hell I'm not," The blond glanced over his shoulder while clicking his tongue. He then turned back around to look straight ahead. "I just don't think you can trust him."

"Are you ever gonna start explaining to me what's your problem with that guy?" She demanded while Eijiro and Denki could only watch awkwardly. "Maybe I can help you!" This wasn't just out of concern, it was also so he could focus on the exam. Yo asking her the question was not something they needed to be talking about.

Tell me she's not serious. He then turned around fully and she froze in place as he gritted his teeth. "I don't need a damn thing from you on this, Izuka. This is between me and him." He finally released her and then stormed off, to her bewilderment. She could just be unnecessarily pushing the issue, but her curiosity was growing the more this went on. Plus, she hadn't forgotten her offer to him to talk to her if he needed, but he had apparently.

"Katsuki..." She sighed in frustration and then ran up to him. She stopped right in front of him and he glared down at her. "I can't settle this without you giving me something, you know. Dragging me around for no reason like a rag doll isn't going to work either," She narrowed her eyes back at him, running a hand through the top of her head. "Look, I realize we have our differences a-and I'm sure that you don't wanna hear me out right now, I get that. But I have a feeling we might actually finally work this thing out if we didn't have to fight about it ever since we started being...different with each other. Just like my brother said during the practical, you know?"

"In fact, I bet that if you just really got to understand each other, you'd see that you and your Quirks can work really well together!"

He simply clicked his teeth and looked away from her. "No, you don't get it, and you never will. So just drop it."

You can't ask her to do that if it involves her Eijiro sweat dropped a little. He knew that Izuka wouldn't let it go because she just felt inclined to sort things out with Katsuki usually. She used to just not address it their first semester if things were really bad.

She then pinched her nose in exasperation. It was like talking to a brick wall that fought back. Why is he even insisting on this even though I already addressed it? Is he really just that stubborn? "You punched Monoma-San when he insulted me, you got mad at Todoroki repeatedly when he did nothing wrong. Now you're all mad because of someone who doesn't even go to our school. And you're also taking it out on your friends too," She gestured to Eijiro and Denki. "What is the matter? Can we just figure this out for a minute or two?"

"No!" He shouted down at her and she gave a 'really' look. She already knew that if they didn't properly talk about it, it was going to get worse. That was mainly experience talking, and she would rather not go through it again over someone she didn't even know. Izuka then crossed her arms, giving a small sigh to calm herself down and take a breather.

"Bakugo, come on," Eijiro sighed, gesturing to the girl. "She's being really patient right now."

"You can't expect her to not ask you about what's up, and it's getting us kinda curious too, not gonna lie," Denki spoke up from behind.

"Shut up!" Katsuki screamed at them.

"Ugh," Izuka groaned towards him, crossing her arms. "Why is this so important, anyway? There's not a high chance I'd even see Shindo-San again after this test." Their schools weren't near each other, and she had only spoken to him once. And she'd imagine that he'd be a local hero, so he'd have no reason to be in their area once he became a pro. Something about him just didn't sit right with her, hence why she even said no. She didn't know what it was, but despite Yo's charms and compliments, she couldn't really see herself going to that light painting exhibit with him.

"He's just a fake-ass extra, so you shouldn't talk to him. End of story," Katsuki placed his hands on his hips. He knows exactly what he was doing by asking her in front of me, the bastard. And he knew right away after a few minutes she likes art. He wasn't doing it because he wanted to—he was trying to distract her. The thought of those two getting along pisses me off...

"Can't I decide that for myself?!" She stomped a foot, clenching her fists in frustration, since all her attempts weren't working. And he wasn't listening to her. "Look, I don't need you to try and protect me!"

He then flinched as those words sunk in and she gasped, covering her mouth as she realized what she just said. Did I really just say that to him...?

"Oh no," Eijiro winced towards the two as they were completely silent.

"Maybe we should leave you two alone?" Denki rubbed the back of his neck.

Izuka removed her hands slowly; she didn't mean to say it so harshly. "Katsuki, wait, I-"

"Save it," He interrupted angrily and walked past her. "I know what you meant," And he shouldered her as she walked past, the girl closing her eyes. That alone right there was enough to tell her that she screwed up, badly. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt him since both of them had been through a lot...

Eijiro flinched as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He lunged while pushing Katsuki out of the way. "Look out!" He got hit with something, and was sent flying.

"Kirishima!" Denki called out as Katsuki and Izuka looked up wide-eyed. Whatever had captured Eijiro was moving him around wildly and it wrapped around his body.

"Damn it!" He growled as he couldn't break free. Izuka gave a nervous look as she tried to aim, but couldn't get a good shot. Not when he was all over the place, and she might hurt him anyway. "What's going on?!" He formed into an object out of skin, eyes, and hair. It landed into the hand of a student, and the sight of Eijiro made Denki wanna vomit.

"What the crap? Did that really just happen?" He yelped as Izuka narrowed her eyes. She flinched as she saw other skin blobs on the ground.

"That examinee...did he did this to others too...?" She then looked up and gasped as she recognized him. "He's from Shiketsu...!"

"All I know is that bastard looks like he's to blame," Katsuki growled as he looked up ahead. He then gave a wicked smirk. "So I'll kill him!"

Izuka turned to him in alarm, biting her lip while glancing at the student. She could already tell that getting to hit his targets wasn't going to be easy.

"More examinees have passed," Mera reported to the remaining examinees. "We're at 60 people now. That means there are 41 spots left."

"We're running out of time," Hanta whispered to Ochaco and Izuku. They hadn't made a move as they were trying to figure out what they were going to do. "This is bad. What do we do?"

"Yeah. I knew we'd be in trouble if we got split," Izuku murmured in thought. "But at least we can probably do something about the group that's near us, and maybe even make a few points."

Hanta flinched in surprise at this. "Really? What are you thinkin'?"

"...Earlier, someone tried to outpace his classmates," He narrowed his eyes a little.

"I'll take her down fast!" One of the examinees held out a hand.

"No, wait!" His classmate warned as the examinee shot off his hand.

The green-haired boy gave a small frown. "He was panicking that he wouldn't get enough points in. Since his class attacked as a group, they'd definitely end up fighting over their targets."

"Oh, so..." Ochaco realized what he was saying. "As people get worried, they'll break away from their classmates, and then they'll be at a big disadvantage."

"Wait," Hanta turned to Izuku in confusion. "Then why were you saying we should all stick together? We'd be in the same boat."

"Well, to begin with, we were told to hit weak points with balls," He hit his fist against his palm. "So it's easy to think of this as target practice. And without knowing our opponents' Quirks, we're basically going in blind. But it's not easy or efficient to go after moving targets, cause after all, they'll be protected. Think about it," He then looked up at him while explaining his earlier strategy. "I wanted to first make sure that we trapped enough people for everyone in our class to pass. Then we'd use our balls only after they couldn't move anymore. Our class has a lot of people who excel in restraining groups. So I kinda thought it wouldn't be any trouble."

"I see...it's true that if we were just doing target practice, they'd only be able to tell whether or not we were good shots," Hanta murmured in thought, since a good chunk of their class based their Quirks to do long-distance attacks. "There's more to this test than I originally realized."

"Shh!" Ochaco warned while looking up. "Listen, you guys." Tatami, Yo, and a few other students were starting to move around. "Does it sound like they're getting closer?"

The two boys flinched in alarm. "What should we do?" Hanta whispered to his friends.

"I'll go after them," Izuku immediately offered to his team.

"Huh?!" Hanta whipped around to him in disbelief.

"I'll be a decoy so you can move. Be on the lookout for openings that'll let you immobilize people to get some points. Your Quirks are better at that than mine." Considering how the faceoff with that Shiketsu girl went, he knew that detecting people wasn't his strong suit. Maybe if they had someone like Kyoka or Mezo, but they didn't. Hanta and Ochaco were at least aware of their surroundings on some level. "I'm more of a fighter."

"A decoy. There's three of us, so...we'd need six people."

Ochaco narrowed her eyes in determination. "Roger." Hanta gasped at her in disbelief as she stood up. "Sero. Let's do it!" She gave an eager smile, pumping her fists. She already knew to trust Izuku's plan, and wasn't doubting him for a second.

He groaned, rubbing the back of his neck. "Okay, fine!"

Ochaco looked to Izuku, who nodded sharply. He then turned around to keep an eye out. I trust Deku. He's pulled through enough times that I believe in him. Same goes for Mido, she's my best friend and I could never question her judgment.

"Now. Move," Izuku informed the two, all of them ready.

"I'm from Shiketsu," The boy who attacked Eijiro explained with a glare. "Please notice, my school keeps our hats on when we're working. Why's that? Because...each and every one of our movements is crowned by the legacy and honor of our school." The three just stared at him in silence. Izuka glared as she eyed the skin blob that was Eijiro, watching as the student dropped him. "This is a demonstration. Proof of the difference in level between my peers and your vulgar class."

"Uh!" Izuka flinched at that word, clenching a fist. I get why Monoma-San hates us, but we haven't met Shiketsu until today. They're like us, just in a different region. Why is he so condescending when he's seen the Sports Festival...?

"We value obligation and dignity—things that appear to be sorely lacking among you."

Katsuki gave him a small smirk. "I really hate your type."

Denki himself looked a little lost. "He's hard to follow. Makes me feel kind of dumb."

"He said his beady eyes are full of tears, so he can't see how strong his opponents are," Katsuki translated and Izuka turned towards him in disbelief.

"That's not what he said-"

"I don't wanna hear another word from you," He growled out and she flinched, biting her lip. She blamed herself for making him be like this right now... If I hadn't gotten so caught up in his issues, he wouldn't be like this. But it's clearly taking a toll on him, I couldn't ignore it either...

"My eyes are dry and handsome, thank you!" The Shiketsu student yelled with furious eyes.

I don't know about that. Dry, certainly. Handsome...more like creepy Izuka blinked rapidly towards him.

"Hey," Denki gave a nervous look, as the Shiketsu student felt a little like Katsuki, just more dignified and proper. "Maybe don't provoke this guy? Look what he did to Kirishima!"

"Tch," Katsuki scoffed at the reminder, glaring a little.

"UA High," The Shiketsu student started off again. "I have respect for your school. I take pride in the fact that our institutions are treated as equals."

"And yet, that didn't stop you from what you did to those people," Izuka narrowed her eyes at him, baffling Denki and Katsuki. "You say you can respect us, and yet you turn around and do this? What's your goal here?"

"Your class is shameful!" He gritted his teeth, a light glow coming from his back. "You act in ways that disgrace heroes." Five blobs came from him, turning into fingers.

"He's attacking again!" Denki panicked from behind both Izuka and Katsuki. "I don't wanna be gross!"

"Shut up!" Katsuki growled at his classmate, turning back to their opponent. "Obligation? Dignity? You just like to hear yourself talk. I don't see any proof. Show us with your actions, not your cheap words! If you can."

Izuka closed her eyes, gritting her teeth at this. He's provoking this guy into attacking. After what I said to him, he probably wants something to take it out on.

Their opponent gritted his teeth at Katsuki. "Beast. You're worst of all, Bakugo!" He then fired the fingers at Katsuki, who immediately ran in and extended his hand. Izuka bit her lip, sweat dripping down her face.

Not good...his emotions are getting the best of him, and what am I supposed to do? Do I help him or do I focus on passing?

A few explosions occurred in the mountain area, Izuku running while dodging the balls. Draw the opponents in as close as possible. Make them gather in one place. Two examinees jumped up out of hiding, causing him to gasp sharply.

Ms. Joke held out a pack of gum to Mr. Aizawa. "Want some gum?"

"It's really a finger trap, isn't it?" The man guessed correctly and she moved it away. "I hate this. It's frustrating that we can't tell who passes and fails in real time."

She put some gum into her mouth. "And our Shindo only made it worse by splitting the ground open. Now it's hard to see anything," She muffled from her gum. "Mm?!" She then flinched as she turned to him in disbelief. "Wait. Eraser! Are you actually worried?"

"There's something I've realized after watching my students. In school and in the field. They might not have realized it themselves. But in Class 1-A, there are three people whose spirits have a big impact." Izuku jumped up from the various examinees focused on him. "They're not leaders, or the most popular." Izuku narrowly missed some balls from behind. "And while two are twins, the last one doesn't get along with them at all." Katsuki and Izuka watched the fingers heading towards them. "Sometimes they seem like polar opposites." Katsuki grinned while preparing his gauntlet. Izuka readied her hands, keeping her eyes focused. "However, before I knew it, their passion had spread to the rest of their peers." Hanta swung in while Ochaco ran. Izuku glanced back as Hanta captured some opponents with his tape. Ochaco made others float with her gravity. A trap came up from the ground. "It's strange." Izuku kicked it to pieces. "But every time there's some kind of major event, one of them is at the center of it." Katsuki fired little explosion shots while Izuka fired off her Mercury Blast, just on a smaller scale. Together, both of them destroyed the fingers, causing the Shiketsu student to fall backwards. Katsuki and Izuka slowly looked up, wondering if that stopped him. "I'm not worried, Joke. It's the opposite, actually. I can't wait to see what they'll do." Izuku kept running while Momo, Kyoka, Mezo, and Tsuyu walked out victorious. "Even if those three aren't physically with the others, their presence raises the standard for the entire class."

Ms. Joke blew a bubble from her gum. "You've fallen for them hard. It's kinda gross."

"I'm honored to have them as students...even if one of them is a big troublemaker in my class." And of course, he was talking about Izuku, Izuka, and Katsuki that had inspired their class. Which he was proud of. "My Class 1-A."