Sorry for the delay; a minor family issue kept me occupied for most of the day.

We are back with another chapter. As I've planned these out in advance, there was little I had to change. Still, while writing out the first draft, I noticed that I used the same characters during the battle trial as I had in Path of Waves: Tetsutetsu and Kuroiro. I went through a last-minute chance to keep things as unique as possible.

Another thing I wanted to say was two things. The first is that I won't be uploading anything next week because I'm working on another story that needs a set upload date, but I will try to upload it when I can. The second thing is that I managed to put through Grammarly Premium for the first time in nearly a year! It took a long time to organise a means of paying, but I finally got something done.

Chapter 15: Hero Class

After spending the evening brainstorming ways to create a suitable exercise plan for Shinso, he retired for the night as he had been eager to start the next day. That day was their first taste of what most days at U.A. were like as they went through their classes like normal. As he expected, just because he was in the hero course meant they slacked off on the other subjects. Like any high school, the U.A. was required to ensure that its students performed at a certain level in pre-selected subjects like Mathematics, English, Japanese, World and Japanese History, Sciences like physics, biology and chemistry, Arts and geography.

U.A. went a step further in that by an edict by the principal some 5 years back, all courses were also required to have classes in ethics, quirk morality and political science. This ensures that anyone who walks out the gates with the diploma has the education to better understand and interact with the world in a fashion that doesn't needlessly harm another. Midoriya could say that he approved of that mindset as if more people were willing to engage in comfortable topics or see past quirk status…. he wouldn't be there now, would he? Not as a disciple to the master, anyway.

It was weird to have all their teachers be pros, both active and retired, but it made for unique classes as they approached their courses in ways that kept students guessing. Present Mic, for example, had fully expected that the man would treat English like his radio show. Still, he was calm, collected and professional. Only breaking out that Mic charm sparingly made it all the more fun even if he preferred to study Spanish or Portuguese as he dreamed of travelling through central and South America, perhaps trying his hand at foreign hero work there rather than the more popular U.S.

Ectoplasm as a Math teacher was a godsent. While the least jarring as he carried himself how they expected, his quirk made it so that he could spawn clones who could focus on individuals, which Izuku badly needed after he missed months of school. Still, if this was a taste of what math would be like, his grades would make a comeback! Literature was a different story as Cementoss wasn't the issue; the man was passionate about his subject and was an avid reader, but Midoriya wasn't the type that particularly enjoyed just reading.

Even when relaxing, he would instead do something proactive like gardening, training, or working in a sand garden, a byproduct of how active his life had been for years. Still, he understood the first two chapters of Kitch by Banana Yoshimoto, one of the 3 books they were meant to cover for the semester. Arts wasn't as bad as Izuku had thought it would be, as while Midnight brought that same flirtatious, sexy energy to teaching as she did her hero work, Izuku was able to focus on what she was teaching over the way she moved or the clear double meaning in her statements by remembering he was a taken man and that he won't break!

If Kodai said he sat as still as a stone throughout the class, he'd firmly confirm that. Science class, specifically chemistry, was where he paid the most attention as while not an egg-head, he needed to study more about chemistry and compounds for his plants to be as powerful and versatile as they could be, as he had to have some level of understanding of what he was doing with them, which was why at the moment he only used wood, which was comparatively easier to manipulate and grow then say, flowers.

When lunch came around, he was a happy camper as his table had all his new friends, sans Shinso, who had opted to eat with his classmates. Kodai thought he was merely avoiding them as he knew what Midoriya was planning for them. The best part was that despite the gourmet options the kitchens offered the students, all of it was affordable. He indulged in more food than expected, filling his plate with greens, beans and fish. Enough that he got Shiozaki to take some of his as they had hero class after this, and they'll need their strength. "I hope you will enjoy your food. It was made with love!"

"You can tell."

"You served a lot; aren't you worried about getting bloated?"

"Part of training requires you to have a rich diet," "Trust me, I train so hard that I could pig out and still stay in shape."

"Moderation."

"That's what I'm doing, Kodai."

But as fun, if mentally draining, as their morning classes were, it was nothing compared to the raw excitement they felt after lunch as it would soon be their time. Their chance to do what they all had applied to the U.A. for in the first place: Hero training.

However, while he was more pumped for the activity, his classmates were focused more on the teacher handling it: All Might, the number one hero and Symbol of Peace.

A hypocrite.

He let out a deep breath and couldn't feel the same excitement as his classmates. But he also didn't feel the same anger from that day when he met All Might. After Izuku had time to cool off, to really think about it over the last few months, he found that he didn't hate him because he had accepted that he was merely another pro, another person obsessed with what your quirk could do. Did it hurt that he presented himself differently to someone like Endeavour, who had made no secret of what he felt about quirks and their compatibility in hero work? Yes. But that was part of life. His master always told him that disappointments and failures were as natural as night and day, and if you didn't have them, you weren't living in reality.

So he focused more on what All Might could bring as a teacher; those they had in the morning were all clearly skilled in their craft, with the training and experience to be as effective teachers as they were heroes. Was All Might the same? He would think so, as the man has been declining for years, and he couldn't imagine that the U.A. would just let All Might teach without ensuring he could actually teach. If nothing else, he could stomach his displeasure over being taught by All Might and take the positive that a man with over 30 years of hero work could bring to the table.

His wish would be half answered when the door but instead of being the number one hero, it was Vlad. "Afternoon students, I hope you're ready for your first hero class."

Vlad hadn't expected them to sing his praises, but he had thought they'd be pumped for their first hero class as their group of first years had been. Yet what he saw when he walked in and announced himself was a collective disappointment as students groaned as if he had just given them a pop quiz. "Dammit, it's just Vlad." Tetsutetsu's head hit his desk, and Vlad felt his brow twitch.

"And pray tell," His voice made some gulp as they could tell he wasn't pleased. "Is wrong with that."

Lucky for them, Honenuki was there to save their asses as he raised his hand. "Sir, wasn't All Might meant to be taking this?" Vlad felt that made sense and left them in the wrong spot as he had to be the bearer of bad news.

"That was the plan, but something came up which the principal needed his assistance with." He kept it short, though the truth was that All Might used up too much time stopping an incident on his way to school and then handling class A. By the time he finished with them, he was running on fumes and resting in the principal's office.

His gruff explanation flew with most of them, as teachers got pulled for other stuff back in middle school. However, Monoma asked a question as he found it fishy that he was pulled. "Was he pulled before or after he taught class A?"

Vlad didn't miss a beat, having suspected such as he figured they had heard that class A had gone with All Might earlier. "After, but don't let that discourage you. In fact, I would argue you can use it as fuel to grow. So, what if you missed out on All Might today? You'll still grow to become exceptional heroes, and I expect each of you to carve that into your hearts." Vlad kept his words and tone strong. He had taught here for years and saw some exceptional students go through his class. He took pride in that and, unlike his fellow homeroom teacher, made sure they could take pride in that.

As the class collectively replied, this had the desired effect of any lingering disappointment or resentment over missing a chance to be with All Might. "Yes, sir!" Midoriya was one of them because he wasn't that invested in All Might and because Vlad knew how to pick up a room. There was also a tiny part of him that wanted to keep proving himself better than his naysayers believed, and what better way to do that than showing up to the apparent favourite class, even if he suspected that All Might had just used up too much of his time and was resting.

"Now, you first years will be placed into foundational hero studies, an introductory course where we'll learn about and perfect your knowledge and skills in all the basics." Vlad pulled out a bright, flashy card with the word 'Battle' printed in bold English for all to see. "With the first class being battle."

"Battle?" Kamakiri smiled.

"We get to fight?" Tetsutetsu was with him, eager to show what he could do.

"Oh yeah, bring it on!" Tsunotori was the third as Vlad nodded, happy with the enthusiasm.

"Before that, let's start our journey to being the superior hero class the right way." Vlad pulled out a remote and pressed one button, and from the walls, shelves appeared, each carrying 5 thick-looking briefcases with a number on them. "Your costumes are made to order as per your specifications. The only changes made were to impractical designs or against regulations." He started as the students looked at them in awe before getting up to retrieve them.

They figured out that the numbers marked out seat numbers. Because they were the closest ones to them, it was up to Bondo and Midoriya to distribute them to the intended recipient as Vlad approached the door, opened it, and turned to them again.

"Once you've changed into them, we'll meet on Grand Beta. Don't be late!" He ordered them, leaving them to follow through with that.

Midoriya found himself in the dining hall of the sanctuary a week before school started. He had already celebrated his entry into U.A. with a massive dinner where he got a boatload of congratulations and well wishes from the rest of the residents, both permanent and those staying till the final touches could be done on the new and improved community centre in Raxus. But that left him with an issue that he had yet to solve as, along with the acceptance letter, had been the forms he needed to fill out.

It was the usual stuff, like school rules, that he would need to read and then sign that he did so and accepted, same with his parent or guardian, so he was going to ask the master to sign it for him. He also provided contact information for emergencies and other school events, which, again, he'll put in Kenmikoto-sensei's contact details as he was sure she wouldn't mind. But along with that and forms about his size information for the uniforms, there was stuff he had to fill in for his hero costume as the school worked with support companies to produce them for the students, but they were given a set price to work with so they couldn't ask for something too expensive, along with rules on what a costume could and could not have in its design.

He wondered about that but then recalled the uproar that broke out when Midnight made her debut; so many angry parents demanded that they make changes so she didn't 'corrupt the youth' or something along those lines. He had yet to pay much attention to it, but it helped explain why U.A and other schools presumable had to overall their rules regarding costumes. Still, he can remember when Midnight came out with a second costume that fit within the rules and how both he and Kyūfune had spat out their drinks when they saw it, as it was pretty damn clear she chose a colour as close to her natural skin tone as possible which combined with how thin the fabric was made it looked arguable more revealing and risqué than her last one.

Once he had calmed his blush down, he couldn't help but salute the proverbial 'fuck you' she threw at the regulators as it was everything she wanted, but within their new rules so they could complain all they wanted, but they couldn't do anything about it.

But that just left him confused about what he should submit, as he had spent so much time preparing his body and mind for hero work that he forgot to design his costume, something he was sure everyone else would have in mind. So, he had spent the last 3 hours trying to create something, researching current and former heroes' costumes for inspiration and even looking towards nature thanks to the fact he controlled wood. Unlike others, he didn't need to worry about a quirk, so his costume didn't need to have anything special about it. It could be simpler, though he still wished to give off the appearance of a quirk, with cats being the animal he was studying, so he looked up the Wild Wild Pussycats.

It was another 3 hours, close to dinner time, when he would finally finish something he was happy to wish for.

Waiting for the students, Vlad grunted when he saw them approaching through the tunnel entrance, as they had made it here in less than 10 minutes. As each stepped into the light, he could appraise each costume and saw that they offered a wide array of ideas, colours, and styles, perfect for heroes, as they needed to be visible and easily identifiable. "As far as costumes go, you'll all understood the assignment; well done. From here on out, when you wear your gear, I want you to do so with pride and honour." He told them that Midoriya was the last one out.

His costume included a black slim-fitting jumpsuit, grey-furred lined shin-length boots, and a pair of dark green fur-lined forearm-length gloves. Over this, he wore a dark green leopard print baggy pair of knee-length shorts held up by a thick grey belt with a large belt buckle with the kanji for 'leaf' etched. On his top half, he wore a dark green leopard print sleeve crop jacket with a collar lined. Finishing the look, he had pouches held in place by his belt to carry supplies and a thick grey snow leopard-like tail that shifted and moved like the real thing.

Seeing this had some of the girls calling it out. "I got it. Your quirk has something to do with a snow leopard!" Komori called out as he giggled.

"Nope. Try again." She pouted as he moved past her, joined by Kodai and Kuroiro.

"Really, then why go with the design?" The black-skinned boy who had opted for a much simpler and equally colourless attire asked, to which Midoriya merely shrugged.

"It felt right." He replied as Vlad clapped his hands to get their attention.

"You can discuss your costumes later; right now, we have a class to start," Vlad stated as Kaibara raised his hand.

"Vlad-sensei, this is the same grounds as the entrance exam. Will this be another urban battle?" He asked the man, who shook his head.

"No, this will be a scenario that takes place indoors. While you've undoubtedly seen plenty of villain incidents in the streets, the numbers support the theory that most villains handle their business indoors. Over 60% of them occur in places like abandoned areas, buildings, backroom deals, bars, clubs and any other place that can keep them away from the light of day." He explained as Midoriya thought back to the incident with Mt. Lady and Kamui Woods, then to the Raxus fire, which took place somewhere people liked to ignore.

"In a world with so many heroes patrolling the streets, it's the smart and dangerous villains that do their best to operate in the shadows, so for this, we're going to simulate a raid on a villain's hideout. You'll be split randomly into teams of 2 and take turns with one team acting as the heroes, the other as villains." Vlad continued, seeing that they were following along with what he was trying to say.

"Shouldn't we get some basic training first?" Yanagi asked as it seemed like they were rushing.

"No better teacher than experience. But remember that this isn't the exam, and you're not fighting robots, so I expect restraint. If you go overboard, I'll disqualify your team, which I'll go on your record." Vlad replied, eyeing them down to clarify that he wouldn't hesitate to do that as he might not expel his students as liberally as Eraser, but that didn't mean he didn't run a tight ship.

"Why randomly split us up? Wouldn't it work best if we could work with people whose quirks complement one another?" Fukidashi asked, and this time, Midoriya answered for Vlad.

"It's real to life, you know. Pros gotta be able to work with whoever happens to be on the scene. It won't always be your partner or sidekick." Vlad nodded at him.

"Correct. The exercise itself is pretty simple. The villain team will be charged with defending a bomb for 10 minutes, while the hero team needs to either defeat the villains or secure the bomb by touching it. A defeat doesn't need to be a knock-out as all four will be given capture tape; even if you wrap it around their finger, it will be a knock-out, and that person will need to leave." The pro gave a simple breakdown of the objectives for the two teams before he held out a box for them.

"And with that done, let's draw lots!" They went up one at a time and pulled out a slip of paper with a letter, with the box having 20 slips in 10 pairs. Once that was done, the class found itself split into teams that were made up of Team A, which was Midoriya and Kodai; Team B, which was Tokage and Rin; Team C, which was Tsunotori and Kamakiri; Team D was Monoma and Shiozaki; team E was Awase and Honenuki; team F was Shishida and Yanagi; team G was Tsuburaba and Komori; team G was Tetsutetsu and Shoda; team H was Bondo and Fukidashi and team I was Kaibara and Kuroiro.

"And with that done, the first group will be these two!" Vlad called out as he pulled out two other boxes, one black and marked as 'villain' and the other white and marked as 'hero'. From the former, he pulled out team A. From the latter, team D. The four students in question turned to face one another, with Monoma having a strange look when he looked towards Midoriya, who returned with a raised eyebrow.

"Everyone else, to the monitor room," Vlad instructed as the rest of the class walked off, Kuroiro giving the three a nod of good luck as he went by. Soon, it was just the five of them as Vlad led them towards a building that, at least on its exterior, was a regular 5-storey office complex, one of thousands to be found in any large city in Japan.

Turning, he opened the door for the villain team to enter but stopped them before they walked in. "Listen up, you have 5 minutes to enter the building and do as you please to prepare. Heroes, here is the floor plan of the place; study it well, as you don't know what the villains could prepare." He addressed the second bit towards the heroes as Monoma and Shiozaki nodded. However, the blonde looked strange when he turned his gaze to Midoriya.

Taking out another box of supplies, which made them wonder where Vlad was even keeping them, he handed them all an earpiece and a bland roll of tape. "Before you leave, here is your capture tape and earpieces. Remember, I'll listen to everything you say, so keep it professional." All nodded, with Midoriya and Kodai suspecting that he might have heard something he didn't want during one of these exercises in the past.

Putting in the air piece, Midoriya did a quick head shake to make sure it wasn't loose before he turned to his teammate with a thumbs up. "Let's go, Kodai. Let's show them what we are made of!" His tail seemed to share in his excitement as it flicked side to side.

"Sure," Kodai replied, her face and tone still as passive as the two walked into the building.

"I get that it's just training, but I don't like that we drew the short straw and have to play the villains," Midoriya noted as he walked towards the bomb, having inspected the room and found it bare as the rest of the building. U.A. wasn't willing to burn cash on furniture when they had to spend millions designing and building fake cities.

"It pays to know how a villain would think," Kodai replied, inspecting the sole window and finding it locked. Even better, it wasn't overlooking the street, so the heroes couldn't have looked up and seen them.

"Maybe, but I wonder if we would even know that? Vlad-sensei, the villains that do this kind of stuff, are normally the crafty ones. Could we even replicate that?" Midoriya frowned, as villains like that were vile, cruel and merciless. They would start a fire in a crowded building with no regard for the lives that would be endangered. He hoped he never had to understand such a horrible mindset.

Approaching the bomb, Kodai tapped it and found it remarkably light for its size. A quirk shook, and then she found it weighed as much as her desk. "Bomb's made of paper mâché." She stated.

"Makes sense; it keeps it light, but it does have a weird design, actually…we can use this." Midoriya was waving that off before an idea popped into his head. Tapping his foot as he thought about it, he could put the pieces together and realise that they had the perfect chance to win this.

"What do you mean?" Kodai asked him as he approached the bomb, placing a hand on it.

"You can shrink the bomb, right?" He asked, to which the girl nodded, but while she could see what he was thinking, there was a big flaw.

"Monoma and Shiozaki know I can do that. They'll suspect that as soon as they enter." She replied, which he agreed with, but that was where he came in.

"Correct, but what if we replace the bomb with something else and act like it's the real deal. After all, we get the chance to go first, meaning they don't know what the bomb even looks like." This could only be done in the first round, as he didn't see Vlad hand them a picture of the bomb, so they would look for whatever seemed like it.

Kodai thought about it for a moment before replying. "That makes sense, but can we even make something like that?" They had some basic supplies lying around, but nothing that could pass for a 'bomb' as Midoriya pulled out a seed from his pouch, clenching his fist, he poured his tenet into it till before his teammate's shocked eyes, he opened his hand to reveal a wooden dog doll.

"I can. It won't take long. In the meantime, you shrink the bomb and hide it somewhere Momoma and Shiozaki aren't going to find." He tossed the small doll into the corner, out of sight and out of mind, as he pulled out another seed to use. Kodai agreed with the plan, touching the bomb as he watched it shrink to the point where it could be held in her hand like it was a toy. As she went to find a spot to hide it, Midoriya got to work; he clenched his hand again and went through the same process, only this time he didn't stop and shaped the wooden construct as it grew, getting so big that he placed the bomb on the floor but kept making it grow till it was large enough for what they needed.

Looking at it, he smiled at his work. While only half the size of the bomb it was replacing, it had the same basic shape. "And done, it's crude, but a cloth thrown over it should help to sell the idea." Luckily, there was a large cloth for them to use as he tossed it over the device and moved some other stuff around it, acting like it was meant to serve as a disguise/deterrent. That was when Kodai came back, her hands empty.

"I placed the bomb in a vent; they won't find it there," She pointed towards the air vent in question, one close to the doorway, which meant they'd be less likely to even notice it was there. "Why does Monoma look at you funny?" He looked at her, wondering where that question came from.

"You picked up on too? No clue. It's not like I knew him before yesterday. Maybe he's salty that I scored so high on the entrance and quirk assessment." Even though he said that he didn't completely buy it as while…eccentric and proud, Monoma didn't come off as the type to stew in his dissatisfaction.

"He comes off as loud and arrogant." He snorted, having to mask his laugh at how Kodai could be.

"Trust me, he's a breath of fresh air compared to what I'm used to dealing with." His mind flashed to another arrogant blonde who seemed to believe he was God's gift to the world and would fight anyone who said otherwise. He hadn't had the misfortune of running into him yet, but he figured it was only a matter of time.

And I'll end things here. There was meant to be more, but as my day was taken up by something unexpected, I couldn't put in those final touches, so this chapter came out a bit shorter than average. Next chapter will be out March 1st.

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