A screen appeared, and the amount of people that would pass for the first test...would only be 101. "The first 101 students to fulfill the requirements will pass today. The examinee will put three of these targets on his or her body. They can go anywhere you want as long as it's an exposed area. So no soles of the feet or armpits. Each of you will also have six of these balls. The targets are programmed to light up whenever they've been touched by the balls," The screen demonstrated the ball hitting the target. "If all three targets light up, you're out. Oh, and the person who lights up your third target will get credit for your defeat. You get through this round by taking down two people."
The roof started to split apart. "I'm sure each of you have different terrains that you like or want to avoid. Use your Quirks well and do your best. Or not. Whatever," The room revealed an entire simulated room similar to the one at the USJ, only with less locations."
"Let's see," Mera spoke up while looking at the results. "The 62nd person has passed the exam," He then let out a small sigh. "Another 39, and it'll finally be over..." Yo, Tatami, and some other examinees were hiding. Yo hid behind a rock, looking at the others.
"Alright, guys," He stated with a serious expression. "Let's think about our situation. At the beginning of the test, we focused on attacking UA, splitting them up and putting them in check right off the bat. Now our school's going after them in two groups. But a bunch of other classes took advantage of our work. And we're at the final stage of the test. So everyone's fighting at max levels, and the arena's full of chaos. It's a warzone!"
In the center of the area, lots of examinees were fighting each other just to score their placement. It wouldn't be much longer before they got to 101, so everyone was scrambling to succeed.
"Your attack kinda backfired," Tatami gave him a sheepish smile. "We didn't take out any of those kids."
"I mean, I know I was rushing, but if you really think about it, this is a pretty good place to be in," He informed her and everyone else. "As long as we don't freak out, we can take advantage of the current state of the exam and the desperate players involved," He then gave a small chuckle as he had a plan. "Right now, all anyone can think about is the number of slots left, so they're panicking and no doubt being careless. Burning through stamina. They've got tunnel vision, and are focusing on UA, since they have the most intel on them," He had a creepy look on his face. "Which means that we can lie in wait until the perfect moment to strike. We've basically already passed the test."
"It's about time you stopped pretending to be so nice," Tatami looked a bit frightened, but was glad that he was in her class. "Honestly. You're too sneaky, Yo. Even when you were flirting with that UA girl..."
"Oh, that?" He blinked in realization with a small smile. "That was to distract both her and Bakugo. But I'd prefer to be called tactful," He got onto his feet. "Besides, if we swoop in at the eleventh hour and make it a good show, it'll prove we have an indomitable spirit," He once again had a sly look on his face while glancing over his shoulder. "Everyone taking this exam is struggling to live up to their own ideals."
Two examinees looked up to see the Ketsubutsu students. "I respect that. But unfortunately, I can't go easy on 'em," He smirked a little towards the two targets.
"UA High," Seiji Shishikura spoke to Katsuki, Izuka, and Denki. The latter looked especially grossed out. "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 fired little explosion shots while Izuka fired off her Mercury Blast, just on a small scale.
"AP Shot, Auto-Cannon!"
"Mini Mercury Blast!"
Together, both of them destroyed the fingers, causing the Shiketsu student to fall backwards. "I had to make a weak version so I didn't kill anyone," Katsuki revealed with a devilish smirk, though Denki looked scared of this revelation.
"You know what, this is why everyone's terrified of you—you're way too hardcore!" Denki cried out plain and simple.
"Katsuki, hold on, shouldn't we think about this for a second?" Izuka warned, as she knew that he was taking out his anger on this Shiketsu student deep down. And she certainly didn't want him to hurt anyone just because he was mad at her. Even if the examinee being affected was from a rival school, it would be on her if someone got seriously hurt.
"Shut up! I don't need your stupid advice," He retorted and she groaned, rubbing a temple.
"I don't think he's willing to hear you out right now," Denki whispered to the girl, who gave him a blank look.
I think I got the gist, Kaminari-San.
Dammit Seiji muttered while the blobs went flying back to his arms. I can't believe I fell for that. But I won't again.
Denki recoiled back in disgust. Izuka heaved a little from the sight, a hand in front of her throat so she didn't throw up. "So those nasty finger things just float back to him...?"
"Not exactly what I'd call heroic," Izuka coughed a little to swallow her bile.
He's the type who reacts impulsively to a simple provocation. Or when his female classmate is in danger. This sort of mentality comes from an inflated sense of pride, yet also concern for his friend. He then opened his eyes to stare the trio down. "I see now." He then separated the blobs into tiny pieces. "I'll teach you a lesson by breaking you. This will show you what it means to be dignified and behave like a hero!"
Izuka blinked in alarm at this. "Just like Best Jeanist..." She frowned in disapproval at him. And it wasn't her crush on Katsuki making her biased, it was the fact that Katsuki was being forced to change. Dignified was the last word to describe him, and she doubted anyone would be able to accomplish making him so. Not even she could get him to listen to her right now.
"What is up with this disgusting dude?" Denki cried out in fear.
"He thinks he's better than us," Katsuki glared a little, rushing forward. "But I bet he'll shut up..."
"Hey, wait, don't forget that we're in the middle of a test!" Denki shouted at his classmate.
"Idiot," Izuka growled in annoyance while preparing her bow.
"That's exactly why I'll kill the guy!" Katsuki declared as she moved her hands straight forward.
"Absurd!" Seiji attacked and she quickly fired, which he noticed. Katsuki fired his AP Shot again while Seiji jumped out of the way from Izuka's shooting star. He then fired the blob of skin above Katsuki's head. He looked up and destroyed it with another mini blast.
Denki groaned, tossing something into his shooter. "Ugh, let's just get this fight over with." He fired two objects towards Seiji. "Maybe this'll speed things along."
Seiji slid backwards as the objects hit the fence nearby. "You should work on your aim!" He mocked Denki, who gave a nervous look.
"Ah-aw, crap!"
"Don't worry, we can handle him," Izuka prepared another shooting star arrow.
"And your look," Seiji eyed the two closely. "Maybe I can make the both of you something more appealing."
"Enough talk! Die!" Katsuki fired another version of his AP Shot at the boy. Once the smoke cleared, Seiji revealed to be using a shield of skin. He stared up ahead at a particular person. Izuka blinked in confusion before turning around to see a blob of skin heading for her.
"Ah!" Katsuki whipped around and then lunged forward, pushing her out of the way so he could get caught up in it instead. Izuka slid to the ground safely and then looked up in horror.
"Katsuki, no!" She cried out to him as he struggled.
"Screw you," He chuckled a little towards her and she looked at him with an open mouth. "Are you really that blind and didn't think he was gonna pull that on you?"
"She wasn't paying attention," Seiji spoke up again, narrowing his eyes a little. "I had a piece of flesh sneak beneath us. And I knew that you would push her out of the way. You saw. Earlier with Kirishima. Once I touch you, you're my plaything."
Izuka's eyes shook as Katsuki struggled to break free, but it was taking over his body. And there was nothing he could do to stop it. Damnit...this is my fault...if I had known he'd do that, I could've stopped him!
Denki rushed past her and towards their friend. "Bakugo!"
"Hey! Idiots! Fix this!" Katsuki muffled and tossed them both something. Denki reached up to catch it while Izuka swung her hand to catch it so Seiji didn't see. She got onto her feet as they looked at their hands and then glanced back up.
"Katsuki!" She reached out a hand and Denki held her back. They watched Katsuki's body shrink into being a blob like the others.
"Pathetic. You must be remade from scratch," Seiji mocked, earning an angry growl from Izuka.
Shiketsu High School. 2nd year. Seiji Shishikura. His Quirk: Meatball! He can reshape flesh by massaging it. For someone else's body, he can only knead it and make it a ball. But his own flesh is more versatile! For example, he can cut it off, manipulate it, or make controllable objects. It's as handy as it is horrifying!
Denki looked down at the struggling skin meatball that was Katsuki. "No way!"
"Katsuki..." Izuka whispered in concern for him.
"This is a demonstration," Seiji spoke up, getting their attention. "The test has an unusually low passing rate. At first this seemed counterintuitive given our current world," He had his hands behind his back as if he was giving them a lecture. "When All Might retired, wouldn't it make more sense to flood the streets with heroes? And so, I must assume that their goal is to weed out the riffraff. We can surmise that they're starting to be more selective in order to bring the profession of hero to a higher level. And I agree with this way of thinking. So I decided to thin the herd myself," He then eyed Izuka in a judgmental way. "And you're calling him by his first name? Is that hoodlum really that important to you?"
"None of your business if we're that close, and he's not a hoodlum," She retorted back to him, narrowing her eyes. "That's not even what's important here, you've grossly misunderstood the intentions of this test!"
Denki furrowed his eyebrows a little. "You're ignoring the test because you think you're superior? What are you, a crazy person?"
"That's not it," Izuka spoke up, getting his attention. "In his mind, he's doing what he thinks is the best course of action in the hero world. Even if it isn't his place to do so." She wouldn't even be talking to him like this if he hadn't captured Katsuki and Eijiro.
"I'm simply separating the mediocre and extraordinary," Seiji answered, placing a foot on top of Eijiro. "By the way, your comrades here still feel pain in this form," He wiggled his foot a little. Both of them glared towards him furiously. "Your untamed electricity and her predictable moves will torture your friends if you use them."
Denki groaned a little as Izuka took a deep breath, closing her eyes. "You've been doing nothing but hurling insults at us this entire time. I'm kinda starting to take it personally, ya know," He dug into his pocket.
"Looking down at us as if we're inferior to you. When in reality, you're not saving the world from anything. You're just acting like a jerk," Izuka stated calmly while reaching towards her bracelet.
Seiji flinched and then growled a little at the insults. "Then perhaps you are more self-aware than I thought. I'd take time to reflect on your failure and how you should treat me," He attacked the two again, but Denki tossed something. Izuka did the same, ducking her head just as the skin blob flew over her face.
"How 'bout you reflect on this!" Once they tossed the items, two explosions went off behind Seiji. He let out a grunt, looking behind him. As far as he knew, Denki couldn't make explosions, and Izuka had fire, but couldn't explode things either.
An explosion? But I stopped Bakugo He then gasped as he saw the cause of the explosions, which were little grenades. Denki ducked his head from another attack. Izuka rolled to the side, crouching as they stared up ahead.
"Those ugly-ass gauntlets of his aren't just some kind of fashion statement!" Denki explained to the confused Seiji. "He can use that gear along with his nitro sweat to create simple grenades!"
"For someone who takes into account what he does when I'm involved, it's embarrassing you didn't anticipate this," Izuka gave him a glare.
Seiji's eyes widened in realization and then he narrowed them. "That's it! He tossed them to you!" It was what he threw at the duo when he was being turned into a blob.
Denki then adjusted his sunglasses as Izuka stood up, her fingers sparking. "By the way, big shot." One of his objects he shot glowed, still near Seiji. Denki then pointed his finger right towards it. "You've stumbled into a really killer spot!" He fired from his finger to hit the object, and then it shocked Seiji. He let out a yell as he couldn't stop the shock. The two stared up ahead as Izuka prepared her hands.
"Sharpshooting?" Power Loader wondered as Denki was suggesting his upgrade in the Development Studio.
"I can't really manipulate electricity, so it gets hard to fight with other people around," Denki informed the teacher. "Do you think you could help me with that?"
"I've got a solution to your problem, I think," Power Loader revealed the shooter, Mei smiling next to him. "We're calling it a pointer and shooter."
"It's a genius baby the two of us collaborated on!" Mei revealed to the boy and he put it on. "Fire with the pointer set to Shooter, and the projectile will stick on impact. As long as you're within ten meters of the spot you've tagged, your electricity will be gathered in a single line," He pointed it forward with a small smirk. "If you have multiple targets, then you can use the dial to select them. The attached scope will help you lock on to their exact locations."
"Uh..." He faltered as he realized something. "You mean it requires a lot of thinking?" She giggled with a thumbs up. He then eyed it with a smile. "But if I fight with this, then I won't run the risk of zapping my teammates, will I?"
Seiji fell to the ground, electricity coming off of him. Izuka then moved her hands as ice swirled from them towards the boy. "Uranus Orbit!" She submerged him in ice. He growled towards the two, shaking while also alarmed by Izuka's new power. We understand, Bakugo. You stopped our opponent's attacks using your smaller-ranged new move instead of a big explosion. Not because you were testing it out, but so you wouldn't hit me, Kirishima, or Mido. You actually had us on your mind, even if you and Mido are fighting. At the end of the day, you still risk each other's lives to protect the other.
Denki then narrowed his eyes angrily. "Listen up! Bakugo might seem like a total jerk on the surface...but he's actually trying really hard to be a pro hero."
"He wants to become the number one someday," Izuka spoke up while putting down her hands. "I might not be his favorite person right now, but he trains and works hard to prove himself."
"He threw that grenade at us while being attacked and saving Mido in the process," As Denki continued talking, Katsuki started to reform back to normal. "That was the result of calm judgment, planning...and because he does care about Mido's safety."
Izuka looked at him wide-eyed but then shook her head rapidly to snap out of it. "That's right, so assuming that he does anything other than that...is a gross misunderstanding. He might not show it, but when it comes down to it, he can prove that he's more than people think he is."
"And Kirishima is such a good dude that he rushed into enemy territory for his friends," Denki defended Eijiro, who also started to form back to normal. "Even though it was a totally stupid thing to do."
"I'll never forget that he went out there to Kamino to make sure I was okay," Izuka closed her eyes gratefully. "And he even spent almost his entire allowance without a second thought to help out!"
Blast... Seiji groaned while trying to break free of Izuka's ice. I lost my hold on them for a second.
"You only know bits and pieces of information about these guys," Denki's glasses shined a little, pointing up ahead. "Don't insult what you don't know!" His finger sparked a little electricity.
"I'll teach you to be more aware of your place!" Seiji threatened while using his skin over the ice, squishing it into skin. Izuka blinked in alarm at this as he snarled towards the two. "You degenerates!" Before he could attack them, Eijiro came in and punched him in the gut. Katsuki swooped in and hit him with an explosion, causing him to fly backwards.
"The more damage he takes, the more people get released," Eijiro revealed as Izuka slowly opened her mouth in shock.
"No wonder he was only using long-distance attacks," Katsuki commented while Eijiro turned to his friends.
"Thanks for the save, Kaminari and Mido," He smirked a little.
"You idiots. What took so long?" Katsuki yelled towards the both of them.
"Why are you so mean?!" Denki yelped as Izuka dragged a hand down her face. "No one's ever gonna like you if you act that way! Just ask Mido!"
"Huh?!" She flinched with a light blush on her face. She then pointed up at him. "Kaminari-San, why are you involving me?" The short girl pouted towards him in annoyance. Denki flinched as Katsuki stepped up from behind, which she didn't notice. It wasn't until he placed a hand on top of her head that she did realize this and slowly looked up at him.
"...Thank you," He muttered begrudgingly while looking away, causing her to open her mouth with a slight blush. "Not that I needed your help, mousy."
She frowned at the nickname again. I kind of deserve that, I wasn't very nice to him earlier when I was mad about the whole Shindo debacle.
"Aww," Denki gushed teasingly before she could even address it. "So Bakugo does have a heart."
He flinched while turning towards Denki, a small blush on his face. "Shut the hell up! I oughta kill you right now!" Katsuki screamed and then Denki noticed something. He yelped as he pointed past them.
"Whoa, look behind you!" He warned as the other students captured were waking up. "Those other fleshballs are all waking up."
Katsuki licked his lip with a small chuckle. "We've got targets."
"We're so sorry..." Izuka murmured to the other examinees while reaching for her balls.
In the anteroom, the people who passed were watching the test going on. "Currently 71 people have passed. 30 more and we'll be done," Mera reported in a bit of relief.
Shoto was still alone while sitting down, looking for the rest of Class 1-A. Where are my classmates? Maybe the information everyone had on us did them in. He looked up as he heard footsteps, seeing Momo, Kyoka, Mezo, and Tsuyu.
Momo gasped a little happily to see him as he stood up. "Good, I'm glad to see you passed, Todoroki."
"I didn't doubt you," Tsuyu gave him a small smile.
"Have you seen the others?" Kyoka wondered to the red/white haired boy.
"No. So far we're the only ones here," He reported to the group. "I just arrived."
"We can't count them out," Mezo stated to everyone.
"I thought Midoriya had everyone working together," Shoto frowned a little in worry.
"That was the plan, but someone from Ketsubutsu Academy split us up with his Quirk," Momo informed her classmate. He then looked towards the ground, hoping that everyone else would pass.
"Just 30 spots left."
"I hope everyone in our class passes," Tsuyu stated in a little concern. Inasa was glaring towards the group, but he had his eyes on Shoto in particular.
Something struck the arena, a few explosions going off. Izuku was still running as the decoy. Hanta was being chased by examinees as he caught up with his classmate. "Faster, Sero!"
"Midoriya! Carry me and jump!" Hanta advised, to the green-haired boy's confusion. "Just do it!" Izuku jumped up to the sky, Hanta in his arms. He then looked towards the ground. "You're up, Uraraka!"
"Release!" She looked up as she pressed her fingers together. In the sky were floating rocks attached to tape. They came falling down towards the examinees, who left out a yelp. Once the rocks landed, the tape trapped them in place.
"Tape? Seriously?"
"They stuck boulders on the ends and trapped us!" One of them realized their strategy.
"Not me!" One of them bragged, only to be captured in tape seconds later. "Wh-what?!"
"I gave some tape to Uraraka and had her set some snares for us," Hanta revealed to Izuku.
"Oh, whoa! I said to get as many as possible, but this is nuts!" Izuku looked at the two wide-eyed, though he was still impressed.
"In order to make sure that no one was in a spot where they'd get crushed by the debris," Ochaco walked over with a smile. "I hid and figured out the perfect timing!"
"Looks like 76 people have passed at this point," Mera informed seconds later, getting their attention. "We'll be at capacity soon."
"We don't have much time. And I'm sure others will come for us soon," Hanta reminded the two of them. "Let's take 'em out," They all held up their balls.
"You guys are first years, right?" One of the examinees wondered while tugging at the tape. "Come on, can't you give us a break? We have to earn our provisional hero licenses this time around!"
Izuku paused and then gripped the ball, remembering what Mr. Aizawa told them. He then hit the examinee with the ball. "I'm sorry, but so do I."
"That's 79 people," Mera announced to the rest still rushing to pass. "Everyone's moving at an exhaustive pace now.
"Wow, that was fast," Hanta stated to his team, all of their targets glowing.
"Students who have passed the exam should congregate in the anteroom," Their targets informed the three. "Chop, chop."
Izuku looked up in a bit of concern. Are the others already there?
Mera let out a small sigh. "Hope these kids don't take their youthful energy for granted. The battle royale format is nothing new for the exam." Denki, Katsuki, Izuka, and Eijiro were firing at their targets. Toru, Mina, Mashirao, and Minoru were all running, but hadn't passed yet. "But this time, the patterns are a bit unusual." Rikido, Fumikage, and Koji surrounded each other, and they hadn't passed either. "UA is always heavily targeted from the get go, but so far, all of those students are still on the board." Tenya was running around, though wasn't hurling his balls if he had seen anyone to target. He gasped as he saw a familiar classmate up ahead hiding.
"That's..." He faltered as it was Yuga. He let out a small gasp, shaking as he turned around to see Tenya. "Aoyama!"
"Bonjour," He greeted back a little nervously. "Are you out here alone? What a coincidence. So am I."
"I've been trying to find as many of our classmates as I can," He explained to the boy. "There's a handful of us gathered nearby, but I came to look for stragglers."
Yuga gave a shocked gasp as he looked up. "So you left the group just to come help the others?" Tenya nodded with a small grunt. This earned a laugh from Yuga, shocking him. The blond gave him a small smile. "You're so funny. How do you even think you'll find people out here? And what are you gonna do if everyone left behind passes without you?"
No matter how fast Tenya ran, he wouldn't be able to find everyone and pass. The area was fairly large, and about half of them had split up to other areas. Plus, the remaining spots could go up very quickly, so Yuga couldn't see the point of finding everyone if Tenya didn't even know where to look.
"First of all, I found you, didn't I?" Tenya pointed out, earning a gasp from his classmate. "And if everyone else passes the test, that's a wonderful thing. I'm our class representative. It's my duty to lead the others," He informed in a soft voice. "I wanna see our peers to the best of my abilities. That's what my brother would do. It's through my actions that I'll realize my ultimate dream."
Yuga's mouth wouldn't close staring at him. Your ultimate dream...? He didn't even have one when he applied to UA. He just wanted to sparkle, but...having ambitions was something he had lacked for much of the first semester.
"Obviously, I do wanna get my provisional license," Tenya spoke up again. "And the test will be coming to an end soon. So I'll continue my search while trying to pass," He held out his hand to Yuga, baffling him. "Please, work with me!"
"Oh. Four more one after the other," Mera was a bit surprised by how much faster things were going. "Our total's at 83..."
"Whoa, this entire arena's going insane," Eijiro commented as he, Denki, Izuka, and Katsuki were heading towards the anteroom. They could catch glimpses of the chaos going on. The red-haired boy then noticed Izuka with a small frown on her face. The girl was walking behind them in silence.
"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!"
Katsuki then flinched as those words sunk in and she gasped, covering her mouth as she realized what she just said.
He winced a little from the memory. The boy knew that she was thinking over what she said, and obviously he also knew that she didn't mean to tell Katsuki that. On the other hand, he was technically the one who made her say it because of how he acted... I wish I could say something to both of them, but I don't think it would do them any good. He rubbed the back of his neck; it was a touchy situation, so any attempt to try and cheer up Katsuki wouldn't work. The only way to make things better was if it came from Izuka herself. The two were his friends, of course he hated not being able to help. But he also understood that a simple talk with him, Katsuki, and Izuka wasn't going to solve anything.
I know you've got this, Mido. I'm sure you'll be able to earn his forgiveness and that he'll calm down about that Shindo guy.
Denki then noticed something and pointed to the side. "Hey, look, some of our classmates!" Denki broke the awkward silence. Izuku, Ochaco, and Hanta were on their way to the anteroom as well. "Aw, yeah!" He yelled to get their attention. "Class-A represent!"
"Oh, you know it!" Ochaco smiled, clenching a fist. "Our class is amazing! We did it!"
Hanta, Ochaco, Denki, and Eijiro then started dancing around happily. "Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A, Class 1-A!"
The twins both smiled towards their classmates, though Izuka's was weaker considering her fight with Katsuki earlier. Speaking of, the two blinked as he approached them. "So you passed too," He mainly looked at Izuku. "How'd you manage that, Deku?"
"Kacchan. Hey!" Izuku looked away a bit awkwardly and then gave a nervous giggle. He then sighed as he braced himself for Katsuki to yell, scream, threaten, or tease him. Oh, boy, here it comes. It's been a while though! Ever since Kamino, he hasn't been near as mean to me.
Something tells me that he'll go right back to where he was with Izuku because of what I said. I need to properly apologize, what I said was unnecessary Izuka thought while biting her lip nervously. She then squeezed her eyes shut as she was expecting him to get mad at her too.
"Guess I shouldn't be surprised with that Quirk you got," He simply remarked...while walking past them and not doing a single thing. Both of them gasped sharply, staring at him in bewilderment. He would be threatening to kill them, get ahead of them, or even send an explosion their way. But here...none of that. And they had never seen him pass an opportunity to do any of those.
Wait. Hold on Izuku's mouth twitched as he held up a shaking hand to his mouth. What did he say?
Is...is he really serious? Is he actually complimenting Izuku's power? Izuka stared after the boy in shock.
"It looks like...you've made that borrowed power your own," He stated, shocking the two once again.
Izuku gestured to himself outside of the UA building after combat class. "You'll see. I'll work until I have full control of this borrowed Quirk. And I'll finally beat you with my own power!"
They stared at the usually-angry blond walking away from them in silence. "Kacchan..." Izuku murmured in a little surprise. Izuka gave him a small frown.
I wonder if he really meant it...or deep down, he's upset over what I told him. He didn't even yell like he usually did.
Momo and the others looked up to see their fellow classmates arriving. They had snacks of dumplings. "Oh, hey! What a relief. I was starting to get so worried!" She spoke up with a small smile.
"No need to worry about us, Yao-momo," Denki returned the smile as he gave a wave. "What's up? When did you guys pass? You been here long?"
"We just finished as well. Todoroki beat us," Mezo informed as Izuka approached behind Denki.
Momo gasped sharply seeing Izuka's state, since she hadn't had a chance to clean herself up yet. "Oh my goodness, is that blood on you, Mido?!" Momo dropped the dumplings onto a table as she rushed to check over the girl. Mezo and Kyoka looked at her wide-eyed.
"It's not mine," She stated calmly and Momo blinked at her in shock. "I kinda got into a fight with a girl from Shiketsu because...reasons," She coughed a little, looking towards Izuku. The taller girl blinked while glancing at the boy and then turning back to her. She then came to the conclusion that the girl had involved Izuku in some way, therefore upsetting Izuka.
"I see..." Momo murmured cautiously, sighing a little. "But under those circumstances, the right solution is to stay calm and demand answers. You wouldn't want to fail the exam because of this, would you?"
"No..." Izuka mumbled like a child getting scolded.
"I was kinda shocked Bakugo and Mido weren't here already," Kyoka spoke up to Denki just as Katsuki approached. Izuka flinched at his presence, sweating nervously. "But I get it now. It's because you were with them."
"Oh, come on!" Denki looked at her in annoyance while Izuka gave an awkward laugh at the insult. "Why is everyone dragging me today?"
"Come on, let's get your targets off and then I'll clean you up," Momo gave Izuka a dumpling and then created a first-aid kit. Izuka took the food gratefully and took a bite, humming happily from the taste. She could understand why Momo was upset, but was glad that the girl acted like a big sister towards her.
"Ochaco?" Tsuyu looked towards the brunette having a drink. "The key to take off your targets is in the back. They asked us to return them to the shelf now that we're done."
"Oh, cool. Thank you, Tsu," Ochaco smiled a little. "I'll do that," She looked up and saw Momo escorting Izuka to the back. She gasped sharply as she ran over to the girl in concern. "Mido, what happened to you?! Are you okay?"
"I'm alright," Izuka smiled a little. "It's not my blood. But I'll be back soon and tell you what happened, okay?"
"But why would you have blood on you?!" Izuku yelped as he ran over, to her shock. Shoto joined them as well. "Did you get attacked? Who was it-"
"One thing at a time, please!" She cried out, feeling a bit overwhelmed as Ochaco and Izuku clamped their mouths shut. Shoto kept his same stoic expression. The girl sighed slowly and walked off. "Let's make it quick please, Momo, so I can calm them down."
"I'm sure she's fine," Shoto attempted to assure Ochaco and Izuku as they watched the two leave. "But it looks like only 12 from our class have passed."
Izuku gave a worried look as he realized that with the slots filling up quick, the remaining 9 had to work fast. "So nine more to go..."
A few seconds later, Momo walked up, Izuka following her. "And the announcement said only 17 spots left," She looked just as worried with a small frown. Izuka could immediately tell all her classmates weren't here, so she quickly got the message. She frowned as Momo turned to her and started patching her up.
Izuku shook a little, hoping that things would work out. Come on, guys.
They can do this. They have to! Izuka looked towards the screen, knowing that they didn't come all this way just to have only about 55 percent of the class get through the first test. They all trained really hard for this, after all.
Momo stepped away once she was done with a small smile. "Just take it easy during the next test, and you should be fine, Mido. I'll check up on you after we're finished. And...be careful, okay? What you did was wrong, but I'll let it slide just this once."
"Thank you, Momo," Izuka smiled gently and then noticed Katsuki staring at her. Izuku glanced up towards the two. The blond looked away right after they locked eyes and she blinked. Was he worried about my injuries and that was why he was looking at me? Or was he planning my funeral over our fight? She gave a slightly terrified smile as it might as well be the latter...
Izuku was baffled by the exchange between them, since they weren't like that before the test started. "Um…did something happen with you and Kacchan? He hasn't been this upset at you since final exams..." He spoke up to his sister, getting her attention.
Izuka sighed, a hand on her forehead. "I said something I shouldn't have, which isn't great timing since…" She flinched and then blushed deeply. The girl cleared her throat, looking away. She was about to give away her crush on Katsuki. "You know what, never mind…"
He pouted at this, crossing his arms. "If Kacchan is upset, you should talk to him! He'll listen to you."
"Yeah, that's not an option," She coughed awkwardly since she knew that was the last thing Katsuki wanted.
"What did you even say?" Izuka rubbed her neck after he asked the question and leaned in to whisper. He gasped sharply at her once he heard it. "You said that to Kacchan? Why?"
"I didn't mean it in the way I said it," She pinched her nose, knowing he'd take it seriously. "I wasn't trying to hurt him."
"Izuka," He held her shoulders tightly. "If you don't fix this with Kacchan, then you might not have the courage to tell him how you f—"
She reached out to grip his chin tight so he didn't finish that sentence. Izuku flinched while looking a bit terrified. She had a wide-eyed look while some people were staring at them. The girl quickly released him and laughed nervously, looking up.
"How did you know about that…?"
"It's my sister and Kacchan," He blinked slowly at her. "I just assumed since you two work so great together that you would've realized it on your own. And…well, also, Uraraka told me she thought you were thinking about him before the exam started."
Izuka opened her mouth to retaliate and then paused. Neither of them were technically wrong or right about her and Katsuki. There were times where they could be friendly and then utterly the complete opposite. He could bring out both sides out of her, sometimes in the same day or week. So she could see how either of them came to that conclusion.
"I'm mad, but also impressed at the same time. So I'm just gonna move on and focus on the test," She said simply, deciding to drop it. She knew that they had good intentions even if it was counterproductive to not tell her they sensed something.
"Thanks…?" Izuku was very confused and then snapped out of it. "Izuka, go talk to him! You'll regret it if you don't do it sooner," He stood behind the girl and pushed her towards Katsuki's direction. She looked over her shoulder with a frightened expression. He, Momo, and Ochaco all waved her forward in encouragement, earning a small whine. Izuku was unfortunately right yet again, and something told her that he wouldn't let up until she apologized.
And so, she approached Katsuki cautiously and he didn't look in her direction until she stopped in front of him. He glanced down at the short girl as she was sweating bullets. I know he won't forgive me but I still have to at least try, right? And...I don't want to hurt him anymore than I have.
She took a deep breath, looking up at him. "I...I just wanted to say that I'm really, genuinely sorry for what I said to you. I was just so frustrated with you that it...it just came out of me," She frowned deeply and he didn't say anything. "I shouldn't have told you that in any circumstance, it was wrong, and...and I never meant to upset you. Shindo-San isn't as important to me...as you have been. I'm truly grateful you're so worried, and you have every right to be mad at me," She then squeezed her eyes shut. "So...is there any chance in the future that you'll forgive me, Katsuki?"
He stared at her in silence with an unreadable expression. She was bracing herself to get yelled at like earlier, and she doubted he'd be as calm right now as he was then. Come on, just do it! You can say whatever you want to me, I deserve it.
"Hmm..." He eyed her for about a minute and then walked off. She yelped as she stared at him wide-eyed. Izuku shed a tear out of disappointment for this reaction from Katsuki. Izuka could only look as he walked away from her. She was confused but also upset as she had no idea what to take from that. He didn't even react in a way she could determine whether or not he forgave her—most likely not.
"That...could've gone worse..." Izuku murmured in dismay, sagging his shoulders. I don't even know what just happened...
Meanwhile, outside, explosions were going off and Yuga jumped into the sky. He prepared himself as an examinee jumped above him, a ball ready.
"That target's mine!"
"Oui," He agreed before he was pulled back by the cape by Tenya, not getting hit.
"Aoyama!"
The examinee jumped backwards after landing too close to Tenya. "There are two of us, Ida," Yuga spoke up anxiously. "This has turned into a war. It's going to be tres hard for both of us to survive it! Just leave me here!"
"What are you talking about?" Tenya questioned his classmate, puzzled by his behavior. "Keep fighting! Class 1-A does not give up."
"Non, that's not what I'm doing," Yuga emphasized while they were surrounded by other examinees ready to take them out. An explosion went off and he yelped. Thankfully, the two managed to avoid it as Tenya had grabbed onto him and ran off.
"We're finished if we stay put."
Minoru, Toru, Mashirao, and Mina were all hiding behind a rock. "Ah, balls, almost out of time!" Minoru gave a panicked look.
"So how are we gonna get our points?" Rikido wondered while hiding with Fumikage and Koji.
Ms. Joke and Mr. Aizawa continued to watch in anticipation. "Wow. 8 people just passed at the same time. That leaves only 9 spots open."
Ms. Joke gave a small laugh as she noticed it was her students walking towards the anteroom. "Ha! Those 8 were all from my class! See 'em? They're headed into the anteroom." She then stood up with a wave, proud of them. "Great job there, kiddos!"
9 people left Mr. Aizawa thought to himself as he continued watching the arena.
"Looks like our class..."
"Still has 9 people who haven't passed," Kyoka finished for the concerned Momo. "I hate to say it, but it's not sounding good for us."
Tenya kept running with Yuga, holding onto his wrist. The blond looked back at the chaos, thinking of what Tenya said. "I wanna serve our peers to the best of my abilities. That's what my brother would do. It's through my actions that I'll realize my ultimate dream."
He pressed his lips together as he wanted that too. But running away like this wasn't going to do anything... Your ultimate dream...
"Papa!" A younger Yuga looked up, hugging his stomach with tears in his eyes. "Maman! Why am I so different from everybody else?"
He grabbed his wrist back from Tenya, who looked back with a gasp. And Yuga only had one remaining target, so his next move had to be a careful one. He gave a soft chuckle while leaning back and firing a laser into the sky. The other examinees looked towards the spot in alarm.
"Um. What is that?!"
"Are you out of your mind?" Tenya asked him in surprise, though also confused. "Seriously. What are you doing?"
"I'm standing out," He answered with a small smile.
"Yes! Yes, you are! That's exactly the problem!" He yelped, since everyone could see it, and their location would easily be found out.
"If you try to protect me, you'll fail the test," Yuga stated plain and simple. "I've already got 2 of my triggers hit, and they'll be swarming me soon! You'll have a much better chance without me." His laser then started to leak a little, but he held on for as much as he could. "Please. Let me do this for you." Tenya gasped at him, as he didn't think he had that much of an effect on him... "While I've got the spotlight, you can sneak up on the people who come after me. With your speed, you should be able to hit their targets."
"Where is this even coming from?" Tenya couldn't help but wonder.
"Something you said earlier inspired me," Yuga smiled, showing no regrets on his face. He then remembered when he got his belt as a present. "Your ultimate dream." He looked so happy that...he was just like everyone else when he received it. "I always wanted to be an equal to the amazing people at our school. Just like Mido said once!"
"My hero name...I wanted it to reflect how much I wanna be just like everyone here," She glanced at all of them. "Strong, confident, and powerful. I know that with me not having used my Quirk in years has put me behind...so I hope that someday I'll be like my brother, and be front and center like he has shown already."
Tenya continued to look at him as he could see why the boy could relate to Izuka, and why he would take it to heart. "Our enemies'll be here soon. Get ready!"
Tenya looked up as the other examinees had already started to run towards them. "You can't!" Tenya protested while the other students yelled, about to make a move.
"Now! You have to run!" Yuga urged him, but he felt like he couldn't move. Not when that meant Yuga would fail just to help him...he then looked up as a flock of birds appeared in the area.
"Wait. What are those?!"
The examinees yelped as they got distracted, but for some reason, they weren't affecting Tenya or Yuga. "Damn birds!"
"Where'd they come from?"
"This is..." Tenya recognized it immediately as Koji was controlling them.
"Thank you, birds," He looked up from his spot. "Please continue to swarm this area!"
"Black Abyss!" Fumikage covered his body with Dark Shadow. "Covert Black-Ops Arms!" Dark Shadow's arms grew large in size, sweeping the area to knock the examinees backwards. One of them got their foot stuck in a sticky ball, and couldn't move. Others were in the same trap.
"Crap! I'm stuck!"
"What are these things?!"
Mashirao swooped in while holding a ball, yelling as he spun around to knock them into the ground. This further limited their mobility.
"Damn it!"
"Go, go, go, go, go!" Minoru shouted while throwing tons of his sticky balls, but his head was bleeding. "Get some out while they're distracted!"
Mashirao looked towards Tenya and Yuga. "Ida, what're you doing? Don't just stand there!"
"You came for us!" Tenya smiled happily towards them.
"It's UA!" The ones who weren't trapped recognized them. Toru jumped up, holding out her hands.
"Warp Refraction: Say Cheese!" She then reflected off some light to blind them.
"My eyes! I can't see!"
While they were distracted, Toru tapped the targets of one. "I've got two people out!" She reported, and Mashirao took out his last person as well.
"Same here!"
"That's two more in. 8 spots left," Mera reported as feathers from the birds flew around Yuga. He was baffled by the presence of the others as he had stopped using his laser.
"Wait. Why would they...?"
"Everyone was going nuts and getting desperate in the final minutes," Mina called out while Rikido was pushing a stuck examinee out of the way. "I couldn't see anything!" She then landed nearby, holding out her acid as lots of balls came towards her. "I couldn't tell who was friend or foe! But then we spotted your bellybutton laser," She smiled with a thumbs up towards her classmate. "And we knew we'd be able to meet up with our classmates again! Come on! Let's do this!"
He gasped as he saw his remaining classmates fighting to pass still. Mina got her two targets locked in.
"7 spaces remain!"
"Sorry," Fumikage apologized as he passed as well.
"6 left!"
Minoru shakily approached one, a bit disoriented since he was still bleeding from the head. He then got the examinee out.
"Make that five! The pressure's on now!" Ms. Joke opened her mouth in shock at the teamwork showcased from UA. "In the final minutes, UA came together and pulled off some absolutely insane combos!"
There were that many of you left on the field?
Koji approached an examinee, who had passed out from the birds surrounding him. He tapped the last target.
"4 spots!"
"I did it!" Koji smiled happily while the birds flew around him.
"Now 3!"
"I'm in!" Rikido cheered while pumping his fists.
Someone else got in as well, but it wasn't someone from UA. The student looked unconscious as well. "Ooh! That's one in from Shiketsu High! So only 2 spots remain!" The girl from Shiketsu, Camie, didn't look too happy about her win, though.
Yuga and Tenya ran as fast as they could together, holding their balls. "Aoyama," Tenya spoke up to him. "I don't know who you want to be equal with, because I don't know what you're measuring yourself against." Two examinees yelped to see them coming in hot. "But this was your doing!" The two then got the examinees out, jumping into the sky. "Thank you!"
The sun then shined between the two. "Well..." Yuga started off softly. "I guess this means my twinkling won't have to stop after all."
"No! Keep twinkling. Whatever that means."
An alarm blared, waking up Mera. "The last students passed! Every spot is now filled! 101 students will advance! The end is finally here! Wah-hoo!"
"YEAH!" Denki and Eijiro cheered, pumping up their fists together. Katsuki just sat between them, looking away indifferently.
"Our entire class passed the test, I'm so excited!" Ochaco yelled while pumping her fists.
"Aw man!" Hanta smiled widely at the screen. "I am so proud of us!"
"Ribbit, ribbit," Tsuyu blushed a little in excitement.
Izuku let out a huge sigh of relief. Izuka smiled while clapping next to him. "We really pulled it off, you guys."
"We all made it through!" His sister gave a happy smile.
"Yeah," Mezo gave a small nod, Momo looking pleased as well.
"Unfortunately, those of you who failed will now have to withdraw from the licensing exam," Mera spoke while Mr. Aizawa and Ms. Joke looked up ahead. "Please leave the test area immediately."
"They just had to keep me on the edge of my seat, huh?" Mr. Aizawa grumbled a little, as he was expecting them to pass much sooner than the 11 remaining did. "We're training so hard when we get back."
Ms. Joke let out spit while laughing. "Oh, come on, you're happy, aren't you?"
"Furious," He replied stoically, though he didn't sound like it.
"Then what's that sparkle in your eye?" Ms. Joke teased the man.
"Annoyance," He answered, earning another laugh from her.
"Huh?!" Inasa yelped in shock to hear the news over how his classmates did. "What do you mean Shishikura didn't pass the test?!"
"Tone it down," His classmate with a bunch of hair all over him warned the alarmed boy. "It's because he went ahead of us and fought alone, like he didn't need help. Just like you two," He then looked over to Camie. "Yoarashi at least has the excuse that he's a first year. But not you, Camie!"
"Yeah, yeah," She dismissed while touching her hat.
"Alright. For the 101 of you who passed the first test, please turn your attention to the screen," Mera instructed the group of students. They all looked to see the city part of the arena.
"Huh. It's the test arena," Izuku murmured in a bit of interest.
"What's gonna happen next?" Ochaco asked as Izuka looked up.
"Maybe it'll change again like it did when we started?"
Suddenly, an explosion occurred, affecting every single area. They all looked up in utter shock. "Why?!"
"Wait. Does that mean...?" Izuku didn't get to finish the question.
"There's only one more round to the exam," Mera started to explain to the group. "Your goal is simple: undertake rescue exercises and save the bystanders who are trapped in these disaster sites."
Izuku's eyes shook a little in awe, as that was what he wanted to do as a hero since he was a kid. "A rescue mission..."
"Just like at the USJ..." Izuka murmured in realization since they did something similar in school.