Yoshihara woke up to the sound of snoring in her left ear, but at first didn't question it. She was too groggy to care, and she was comfortable. It was only when her eyes slowly began to open, and when the light from the morning invaded her vision, that she was forced to fully open her eyes, and recognize the hard, tough feeling thing under her head.
Slowly but surely, Yoshihara sat up, yawning as she did. Her hair was an absolute mess—a serious care of bedhead she'd have to fix. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she glanced down, still groggy and tired, and noticed a third arm. It took her a moment to realize that it wasn't her own arm, and the moment that happened, she started frantically looking around the room.
It was only when she looked behind her that she had noticed Izuku Midoriya was passed out, sleeping in her bed, and the moment that realization dawned over her, her face flushed a deep, scarlet red. "What is he doing in my bed?!"
Various scenarios played out in her mind as to how that could've happened. The last thing she remembered doing was reading Manga with him before passing out. Unless there was something she was forgetting, it wasn't as if anything like that had happened.
So why was he in her bed?
The red in her face slowly went away, as she processed the situation. It wasn't like she was mad or anything like that. She was just extremely confused. Knowing Izuku, though, it was most likely an accident. There was a good chance that he had passed out around the same time, and gravity took its course.
The door to her bedroom slowly creaked open, which prompted Yoshihara to look over in that direction. Kayama-san was peeking in through the crack, and upon being noticed, she fully opened the door and smiled. "Just checking to see if you were awake, Yoshi-chan. It's 9:30 am, you know?"
"It's 9:30?" Yoshihara muttered, looking over to the calendar. It was the weekend, so she wasn't entirely upset. Just a little annoyed. She looked back to Kayama-san, who had a small grin on her face. "Why are you smiling."
"You guys looked so cute last night~! I was going to wake Izuku up to take the guest room, but I couldn't with how cuddly you two looked!" Kayama-san practically squealed as Yoshihara furrowed her eyebrows.
"So you had something to do with this?" Yoshihara accused, shifting herself away from Izuku and began to stand up. Kayama-san for her part waved dismissively, that smile on her face fading slightly.
"Nope. That was all you two. I only checked on you two just to make sure you guys weren't doing anything stupid. Don't get me wrong, I trust you two, but I know how teenagers can be, so—"
"Finish that sentence, and I erase you," Yoshihara hissed, her words tainted with raw annoyance and frustration. Kayama-san chuckled nervously, muttering an apology rapidly, waving her hands defensively as Yoshiahra sighed. It was times like these that Yoshihara wished that she could punch Kayama-san for the sake of doing so.
As that interaction took place, Izuku slowly began to wake up, following similar steps as to how he woke up. At first, he was confused, then, he noticed Yoshihara standing next to the bed, and finally, the realization dawned on him which jolted him awake. "AH! Kira—I-I mean, Y-Yoshihara?! Huh!? Wha—"
"Good morning, Izuku," Yoshihara breathed out, looking over at him with a neutral, tired gaze. "Would you kindly get out of my room so I can get changed?"
Without saying anything, Izuku scrambled out of the bedroom, confusion still ripe on his face as Kayama-san followed him out. Once they exited the room, Yoshihara closed the door behind them, and when it closed, Izuku deflated.
"Aw, don't be sad, Midoriya-kun. She wasn't mad at you," Kayama-san said as Izuku looked over his shoulder at her.
"B-But… I slept in her bed without permission… I shouldn't have done that. She was just… sleeping on my shoulder and I-I didn't want to be rude and wake her up, a-and I—"
"Midoriya-kun, if she was genuinely upset with you for any reason, she probably would've slapped you, berated you, and thrown you out of her room. Besides, I'm pretty sure she's more happy than she is angry," Kayama-san replied, before walking to her bedroom, letting Izuku figure out what she meant as he tilted his head.
He didn't ponder on it very long, waving away Kayama-san's words. Just before he walked down the stairs, Kayama-san spoke up again. "If you want anything for breakfast, be my guest. We've got cereal, toast, and ingredients for Miso Soup if you're at all interested! I have to head out on patrol, so I gave the receptionist an okay on your mother coming up here to pick you up, and she'll be here around noon!" Kayama-san called out as Izuku looked over to the closed door that he assumed was Kayama-san's bedroom.
"Thank you, Kayama-san!" And with that, Izuku made his way down to the main living area of the suite, keeping light on his feet just to not be rude. He was still uncertain and also very annoyed at himself for pulling a stunt like that. But, at the same time, if Yoshihara wasn't actually mad at him for sleeping in her bed, then maybe he didn't need to beat himself up about it.
That being said, that didn't stop him from going to apologize once she was done getting changed. He would also need to have a shower when he got home. He had worn this all evening and slept in it. Now doubt he smelt like body order and sweat.
He glanced at the kitchen, thinking about getting himself something to eat. He was about to miss breakfast, but, at the same time, he didn't want to be a burden anymore than He more than likely already had been.
As Kayama-san came down the stairs, dressed in her hero costume, he spoke. "Are you sure I'm okay to take whatever I want from the kitchen? I don't want to be a burden…." Izuku said as Kayama-san raised an eyebrow—or, would it be more appropriate to call her Midnight since she was in costume? He honestly didn't know.
"Midoriya-kun, I said you could. That usually means you're free to take whatever. Have you never been to another person's house before?" Midnight asked as Izuku chuckled nervously.
"Uh…"
"I'll take that as a "no" then… jeez, kid. Was Yoshi-chan your first friend?" Midnight questioned, standing at the bottom of the stairs, curiosity in her voice as Izuku rubbed the back of his neck.
"W-Well… there was Kacchan, but… we've sorta drifted apart, I guess. I haven't been over to his place in a long time, but recently, I g-guess that Y-Yoshihara would be my first friend in a while…." Izuku replied as Midnight hummed.
"Interesting. Anyway, yes, Midoriya-kun, you're free to take whatever you want from the kitchen. Now, I have to go on patrol. Have a good day!" Midnight said, rushing to the elevator and entering it as the doors automatically closed behind her.
Izuku glanced back at the kitchenette, and pursed his lips in contemplation for a split second, before caving and walking over to grab a bowl of cereal. When he opened the cupboard to see what they had, he was shocked to find the chocolate version of All Might-O's. It was a rather niche cereal, all things considered, and he didn't take Kayama-san to be the kind of person to eat that kind of stuff.
"Is this Yoshihara's?" Izuku thought, raising an eyebrow. He thought about it for a split second, and, out of impulse, he grabbed the box and smiled. As he made the bowl of cereal, he glanced over his shoulder and noticed that the gift he had brought for Yoshihara was still on the coffee table.
"Maybe I should bring that up to her room?" Izuku thought, looking up to the upper section of the suite, and noticed that Yoshihara's door was open, and he could hear the water running in the bathroom. "Ah, she's taking a shower then. I can probably slip into her room and put this next to her door then."
Putting his bowl of cereal down—which he had finished making and had already taken a few bites out of—he quickly ran up the stairs, put the gift in her room, then ran back downstairs and finished his breakfast. When he was done, he walked over to one of the couches, sat down, grabbed the TV remote on the coffee table and turned it on.
He unconsciously flipped through the channels. He was still reeling from the whole "sleeping in the bed of a girl" and even though he knew it didn't make her mad, it didn't make it any less embarrassing.
As he flipped through the channels, skipping past re-runs of various anime, dramas, and sports channels, he eventually stopped on the news. Namely because of what the newslady was saying, as it had not only caught his interest, it made him stop because of how upsetting the news had been.
"Hospitals have been filling up recently due to an outbreak of mass shootings in the streets, carried out by strange hood and mask-wearing individuals. Death tolls have also been skyrocketing, as those who have been shot seem to contract some sort of illness never once seen before in the records of mankind. Speculation about the diseases these bullets spread being manmade is not off of the table just yet.We have a special interview with a lead scientist who is working full-time with a team of trained professionals on trying to figure out what this disease is. We'll pass it off to you, Doctor Tsubasa," A reporter spoke as the screen cut to a man wearing a strange set of gear-like glasses, a thick mustache, and a small stature. He wore a white lab coat, and underneath it was a black shirt.
The doctor looked familiar, but he didn't know why. At least, not until he squinted his eyes, which was when it clicked. "That's the guy who diagnosed me as Quirkless! I didn't know he had much prevalence outside of being a Quirk doctor!"
"Why thank you, ma'am. Now, despite all the research I have done, I could not find a single suggestion that this disease, which is most likely a viral strain, seems manmade. But, even so, that does not mean it is from this world. I believe that this disease comes from outer space, simply due to its chemical compound. That, and it almost acts like a, for lack of a better term, super cancer. It mutates the human genome even moreso than what it already has due to Quirks. But, because of this rapid mutation happening so quickly, the likelihood of mortality is nearly guaranteed, causing the mortality rating of this disease to easily sit anywhere between 95% to 97%.
"Although, I will note, keep in mind with that five to three percent margin for survival. It's there that the results become a lot more… interesting. See, while this disease seems to destroy the Quirk factor within the person who survives, they claim to feel better than they ever have. While this doesn't get rid of a person's mutation if they have one, it does get rid of whatever Quirk was tied to it. Say, for example, they have a lizard tail. They'll still keep their lizard tail, but they won't be able to, say, shoot the scales from that tail. It simply remains a regular tail.
"Furthermore, from what we can understand, the surviving individual skin seems to become tougher than regular skin. By that, I mean that their skin cannot even be pierced by, albeit dull, knives. They also seem to be physically stronger than most Quirkless humans, and more resilient to physical trauma. They also have heightened reaction time, and seem to be able to run slightly faster than Quirkless humans.
"While they lose whatever Quirk they used to have, they seem to gain an overall physical upgrade. However, that is not all. Unfortunately, because of a Non-Disclosure Agreement, I signed with the team of scientists given to me by the group of researchers who patterned with me, I cannot say anything that wouldn't risk my medical license being revoked. What I will say, though, is that this disease, despite being extremely dangerous, comes with some kind of evolutionary quality that attempts to rapidly evolve whoever it infects.
"That, however, does not mean you should actively seek it out. It is still extremely dangerous and should be avoided at all costs! It is not a guarantee that you will gain anything from this disease, and in fact, you have a higher chance of passing away than you do gaining anything of use. That is all I have to say on the matter. Thank you for having me Ms. Fukuro."
The screen cut back to the reporter, who stacked a few pieces of paper in front of her, a smile on her face. "In other news—" and then Izuku switched the channel, not all interested in whatever else was happening. Hospital's filling up? 95 to 97% mortality rate? Missing Quirks? Gaining something from losing something?
If it wasn't for his pre-existing knowledge of them, he wouldn't have known better. But, he had that knowledge, and it was pretty obvious to him that this was the result of The Stand Bullets that Kujo and Sakunami had shown to himself, Yoshihara, and his mother.
"Damn, that's rough," A casual voice spoke behind him, causing Izuku to jolt, and look over his shoulder. He shouldn't have been shocked, but it was Yoshihara. Judging by her slightly wet hair, she had just gotten out of the shower. She was dressed in an off-white, no sleeve, slightly torn at the ends crop top which exposed her belly and waist region, showing off the muscle that was there, along with the healing scars from that fight with the villain that had apparently been threatening his life.
To compliment that outfit, she was dressed in a pair of torn jeans and a black leather belt with a golden buckle. She also had elbow-length white and pink striped puffy gloves with exposed fingers, and her hair was done up in a small ponytail. He hadn't realized he had been staring until Yoshihara had tapped him on the forehead, a small smile on her face.
"So? Do you like my outfit or is it something else? Considering you're staring intently at me, I'd have to assume it's one or the other," Yoshihara quipped, making Izuku sputter.
"I-I'm sorry! I-I was l-lost in thought a-and—"
"I'm just teasing you, Izuku. Jeez, learn to take a joke, will ya?" Yoshihara said, leaning over the edge of the couch, their faces just a few inches apart. "So, I take it you sleeping in my bed was an accident?"
"W-Well, y-you were asleep o-on m-my shoulder and I-I didn't w-want to wake you up! S-So I kinda just, w-well, y-you know… passed out…" Izuku replied, his face slowly turning beat red. Why did she have to be so close to him? Was it a way to unnerve him?
She studied his face for a good long while, before bopping him on the nose, pulling back, and turning away. "Alright, I'll believe you. But don't do that again, okay?"
"O-Okay…" Izuku murmured. "Not that I plan to do that again, anyway!" Izuku thought, a relieved sigh brushing escaping him as he felt his shoulders relax. He hadn't known he had been so tensed up, though who would blame him? Having a cute girl all up in his face like that… it was definitely something tension-worthy.
"Wait a second…. Cute?" Izuku paused, the cogs in his brain turning. "Why… did I apply that term to Yoshihara?" He pushed the thought away. Whatever, it wasn't important. He looked back to the TV and noticed that a different channel was playing. It was the channel for baseball. He wasn't a big fan of the sport, unlike Kujo.
Apparently, Kujo used to be Aldera's star baseball player in his first and second year at the school. It was only in the third year that he dropped out of it, and decided to take the last year at Aldera to relax. It was something his Father was apparently hoping he'd major in rather than becoming a hero at U.A.
Izuku could respect that. After all, before heroism, Japan had a major thing for baseball. It was one of their most popular sports! He was pretty sure that U.A., or at least the place where U.A. was built, used to be an academy for baseball in the pre-Quirk era. But, still, why Baseball? It wasn't nearly as popular as, say, being a Hero.
Though, considering what family Kujo was related to, being a niche sport rather than the limelight might've been better off. The Kujo family was, from what he knew, one of the families—though considering the other families were offshoots of the Kujo family, it was, in reality, one big family—that had what some had dubbed a curse, and said curse had a name.
The Curse of the Star Birthmark.
It was a legend, dating back to the early 1900s. It was said that should you be born with a star-shaped birthmark on the underside of the left shoulder, close to the nape of the neck, you were handpicked by destiny itself. Whether that was seen as a good thing or a bad thing, was left up to the interpreter.
But, for most people born with The Star Birthmark, it usually amounted to them being pushed through great adversity and hardship. Sometimes, it led to premature deaths, like the very first in the family to have been plagued by that curse—Jonathon Joestar, who died at the ripe age of 22.
His son, George Joestar II, died at 19 during the lead-up to World War 2 from what was assumed to be an assassination. Luckily, before he died, he was able to reproduce, and that birthed the oldest living Joestar, Joseph Joestar. Joseph died at the ripe age of 97, having a daughter named Holly Joestar, who married a man by the name of Sadao Kujo.
That was what caused the family name to be changed from "Joestar" to "Kujo." From what Izuku knew, the family mostly kept to itself in Japan and America, but one of the late Senator Jolyne Cujoh's sons had caused a massive scandal within the family.
The only other person who had caused a scandal in the Joestar family was, ironically, Joseph, who had cheated on his wife and had a child with a woman by the name of Tomoko Higashikata, birthing the current chief of police in Morioh, Josuke Higashikata, who despite being 98 years old, was still insanely healthy, nimble, and didn't look a day over 60, and acted like he was still in his prime.
It was also around this time that the family of the Former Mob Boss of Passione had revealed that their prior patriarch, Giorno Giovanna, who had passed away from a heart attack suddenly and without warning, had the same Birhtmark where it was supposed to be according to the legend.
At first, the family assumed that it was another one of Joseph's illegitimate children, due to Josuke and Giorno having been around the same age when Giorno had died. But, after looking into Giorno's DNA, it was found that, somehow, his cells had DNA matches for three individuals. A woman by the name of Sadako Shiobana, Jonathon Joestar, and an individual of similar age, Dio Brando. The latter of two had supposedly died around the same age, 22, and had been born in 1898 and died in 1919, just after World War 1.
Assuming the timeline added up, for Giorno Giovanna to be related to the Joestar Family tree—which he was, there was no denying it—that would then therefore mean that, somehow, he would've been considered an Uncle to Joesph Joestar, who was born in 1938, a Grand Uncle to Holly Joestar/Kujo, who was born in 1963, the Great Grand Uncle to her son Jotaro, who was born in 1990, who then had his daughter, Jolyne Cujoh when he was 27 with a woman by the name of Susan Woodings, making it so that she was born in 2017, making Giorno her Great Great Grand Uncle.
Around the same time that Jotaro turned 11, Joseph would go on to have his affair with Tomoko Higashikata, resulting in, at the time of his discovery, 16-year-old Josuke Higashikata to be born, whom Jotaro met when he was 27, around the same time that his daughter had been born in America. Assuming Giorno and Josuke were born at the same time, or even a week or two, possibly even a month apart, that would make them cousins.
Which would mean, that if all of this was correct, and Izuku wasn't fudging the numbers, Giorno Giovanna, who was the same age as Morioh Police Chief Josuke Higashikata prior to his death, and who somehow had the DNA of two old, dead British people swimming within his bloodstream, was technically speaking the oldest Joestar to have been born, lineage wise.
It should've been impossible for the DNA of Jonathon Joestar and Dio Brando to impregnate a woman who had been born in 1977, of whom that same woman had Giorno in her 30s, and yet, that was what happened. It was undeniable. So, in that case, just how would she have gotten that DNA in the first place? Some people claimed it to be a divine conception, others proclaimed it was a hoax to stir up the media.
But, if it was a hoax, then how was it factually, biologically, and scientifically proven that Giorno Giovanna's corpse contained all three sets of DNA? It couldn't have been a hoax, that much was for sure.
Whatever the case was, it was still rather interesting, and definitely concerning. Just how did that woman, Ms. Shiobana, get pregnant with two dead people's child? Was it some kind of lab experiment, or something more supernatural? Given the existence of Stands, Izuku believed that it was the latter rather than the former.
Anyway, that aside, the last child of Jolyne Cujoh, which she had when she was 40 in 2062, whose name was apparently Jouta, was the one that caused the second round of controversy. As for what he mostly got up to aside from what was revealed in the newspapers back then, Izuku didn't know. He didn't research the family that far. All that he knew was that when he came back to America at the age of 21 after having gone on a journey across the world, and finally settled down with someone, with whom they bore a child, he contracted lung cancer and made a vow to raise that child to adulthood.
That child grew up to become the current CEO of The Speedwagon Foundation and at 25 had Josefumi Kujo out of wedlock, automatically dubbing him a Kujo rather than his mother's maiden name, which was unknown to the media. However, it was obvious that the woman was Japanese due to Josefumi's split heritage—but that was irrelevant.
It was when Josefumi was born that Jouta had revealed on his deathbed after his battle with lung cancer, that before he had met his wife, he had up to four affairs globally spread out from the time he was 18 to the time he was 21, meaning he more than likely had four other children out there.
To say it sparked a fire underneath the Kujo/Joestar family was an understatement. It resulted in Jolyne Cujoh dying from heartbreak at 61, not being able to handle the news. Her husband, a man by the name of Narcasio, a former convicted Felon of 1st-degree murder, went on to say how he was disappointed in his son, but that nonetheless he still welcomed him home, regardless of whether or not his mother's death had been his fault due to shock.
The Kujo/Joestar family's longtime friends, the Zeppeli's, who had unknowingly become intertwined with the Giovanna family, not aware until recently that they were also a part of the large web that was the Joestar Family Tree, noted how they were shocked to find out what had happened, as was the Higashikata family line, which only consisted of Josuke.
After that news came out, and after a press hearing in Washington, the Speedwagon Foundation was reportedly looking for those long-lost siblings of the current CEO, spearheaded by him out of sheer curiosity and to give recompense to the families for his father's misdeeds.
But that was as far as he had researched. Mostly because he couldn't find any follow-up articles. If there was any information on it, he'd have to admit that he was curious. But, at the same time, it wasn't any of his business.
All of that to say he understood why the CEO of the Speedwagon Foundation wouldn't want his son to be in the limelight. Especially after all of the drama that had surrounded the family. From the Higashikata affair, to the mystery that was Giorno Giovanna, to what Jouta Kujo had done, all entangled in a genetic curse that was said to have branded them with some aspect of Fate? He wouldn't wish that stress on anybody.
"It's a massive, untidy mess, and I'm so glad I'm not a part of it…" Izuku thought, as Yoshihara took a seat next to him, stretching out as she yawned, taking the TV remote from him, which snapped him out of his thoughts.
"You there, Izuku?" Yoshihara asked, a teasing tone to her voice as Izuku sighed.
"Sorry, I was lost in thought about something. What time is it?" Izuku asked in response as Yoshihara glanced over at the oven clock.
"Uh… 10:15. Your mother should be here around 10:30 closer to 11:00."
"Kayama-san said that she'd be here by noon, though?" Izuku questioned, raising an eyebrow. Yoshihara shrugged, pulling out her phone and bringing up her text messages with Izuku's mother, before showing them to Izuku, with the last message having been from his mother saying that she'd be there to pick him up by around 10:30 to 11:00. "Oh…"
"Why? You want to hang out some more? I mean, I wouldn't mind it, but I have to do some receptionist work for Kayama-san since I didn't do any yesterday or Friday," Yoshihara said, flipping through the channels absent-mindedly, not even paying attention as she did. "You excited for the upcoming U.A. Exam?"
Izuku blinked, confused. "Wait… how far away is that?"
"Uh… a week from now? What, weren't you paying attention?" Yoshihara asked, genuinely confused as a bead of sweat trailed down the side of Izuku's head. Yoshihara had to bite back a laugh, covering her mouth with her left hand as Izuku deflated. "C'mon, man, I already passed and I still had that date in mind! Jeez, what had your head all up in the clouds!"
Thankfully, Izuku was saved by the bell, literally, as the elevator doors opened, and Inko came walking out, dressed in a green and yellow striped shirt and a red pair of pants. She looked over at Izuku and smiled. "Izuku! It's time to go, I want to take you to the store to get you a new tracksuit!"
Izuku stood up from the couch, before turning to Yoshihara and bowing politely. "Thank you for having me over, Yoshihara. Please thank Kayama-san when she gets back home from patrol," Izuku said as Yoshihara nodded.
"Will do. Good luck on the Exam for U.A.," Yoshihara said as Izuku smiled before pulling himself up and walking out of the suite with his mother. Yoshihara watched them go, a faint smile on her face.
She sincerely hoped to see him next week at U.A. She believed in him, and she hoped that belief wasn't going to be squandered.
And in the blink of an eye, a week of time slipped through everyone's fingers…
-1 Week Later-
The gates of U.A. High. The most coveted place that anyone Yoshihara's age wanted to be standing in front of. The two, large, golden letters sat center stage on the massive golden arc, and Yoshihara couldn't stop staring at them. Though, unlike most people who would be staring at them after having gotten into the school, rather than a look of excitement on her face, she looked positively bored.
Though, given her typical demeanour, the more appropriate term would be blank. For beyond the gate, Yoshihara was greeted with a large, three-dimensional H-shaped building made entirely out of glass, and the only thing that ran through her head was just how unsafe that building design was. However, she supposed that considering it had survived record earthquake after record earthquake over the last 40 years, she supposed that she couldn't knock the building's design, even if it did look unsafe.
The reason why she was waiting at the gates wasn't because she was nervous, it was because she was waiting for three people, who all texted her to wait at the gates. Those people being Izuku, Sakunami, and Kujo. The reason was obvious—each of them had made it into U.A., and they all wanted to enter the school side by side. Kind of like one of those cheesy "let's begin our adventure together" moments you'd typically see in Shonen Manga.
That being said, each of them had unique tales to tell regarding their exams, and how they went. However, the one she found the most intriguing was, obviously, Izuku's. But before that, there was some context needed. That being what the exam consisted of.
The public exam U.A. held once every year was comprised of two things, the first being a written exam, and the one that changed every year, the physical exam. Last year, it was a widescale free-for-all dodgeball contest, and the top 40 students who won the game got to go into the hero course. This year, it was an all-out battleground where it was examinees versus robots made by last year's third-year support department.
And yet, somehow, despite being Quirkless, Izuku was able to somehow rack up 60 points, when the minimum passing score was 30 and above! Izuku didn't say how he got those points, only that he did, and it allowed him to pass and join the hero course. Considering that the only way that someone was able to get those points was to destroy those robots, it meant that Izuku had been able to destroy enough robots to get into the school's Hero Program.
She never doubted Izuku. Not even once. But that still didn't mean she wasn't shocked that he had been able to score second place in his district for the exam, just behind Bakugo and ahead of some girl named Uraraka, who he had saved from nearly being smushed to death—which brought into the question of just how safe U.A.'s exams really were.
Then, there was Kujo's and Sakunami's story of how their exam ended. He and Sakunami were put in a different district than Izuku and Bakugo, and in his district, he scored first place with 63 points. It wasn't much of a shock, all things considered. After all, he was a Stand user. Sakunami tied for second with 49 points with some girl named Ashido, who was someone she knew online, and it was ironic that they were meeting in person for the first time at the U.A. practical exam.
Which led to now, with Yoshihara standing in front of the gates of U.A. High School, 30 minutes before the bell would ring to begin classes, minding her own business. As per school policy, she was dressed in the school's uniform, which was one of the nicer ones that she had worn—though considering it was between this one and Aldera, there wasn't really much to compare it to.
The uniform consisted of a long-sleeve white button-up shirt, a gray jacket with blue-green stripes, and a red tie. In Yoshihara's case, because she was a female, she had to wear a blue-green skirt that stopped just below her thighs, black stockings that rode up to her knees, and black slip-on shoes.
This wasn't a knock against U.A.'s uniform, but she generally hated skirts. She hated the skirt at Aldera, and U.A.'s wasn't much better. It made her feel exposed, especially considering that U.A., unlike Aldera, didn't allow for students to wear shorts underneath their skirts. It was against the dress code.
Personally, Yoshihara found it stupid. But, it wasn't like she cared that much about it. It was annoying, sure, but it wasn't the end of the world. It wasn't like she didn't openly wear more evocative clothing now anyway after finally being comfortable in her own skin for the first time in a while.
That being said, she was starting to get annoyed at how long Izuku and the others were taking to get here. Thankfully, she didn't have to wait for much longer for Izuku to arrive, as he came jogging down the sidewalk with a smile on his face the whole way down. By the time he got to the gates, she waved him down, which prompted him to stop just a few feet from her.
"Yoshihara! Good morning!" Izuku said, a beaming smile on his face as Yoshihara once again felt that familiar tug at her lips as a tiny, earnest smile took up her expression. She couldn't help herself, Izuku's smile was rather infectious.
"Good morning, Izuku. Congratulations on getting into U.A.'s Hero Course. I knew you could do it," Yoshihara said as Izuku blushed faintly, a nervous chuckle following suit as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"T-Thanks…" Izuku murmured as a car parallel-parked next to them, with Kujo and Sakunami stepping out of the vehicle, Sakunami having been the one in the driver's seat, and Kujo in the passenger seat. Yoshihara had no idea that Sakunami-san had her student driver's license, though considering the connections she had, it made sense. "O-Oh! Kujo-san! Sakunami-san! Good morning!"
"Good morning Midori~!" Sakunami greeted, a large smile on her face. "Mornin' to you too, Kira-chan!" Sakunami said, waving at Yoshihara, who nodded her head politely in greeting.
"Good morning, Kujo-kun, Sakunami-san, how was you two's morning?" Yoshihara asked as Sakunami giggled, elbowing Kujo in the shoulder as he winced.
"This goofball was up most of the night, stressed out of his mind. But I was able to help him out if you catch my drift," Sakunami said as Yoshihara raised an eyebrow, confusion taking up her expression as Sakunami frowned. "Seriously?"
"No, I know what you mean," Yoshihara said, looking both Kujo and Sakunami over. "I just didn't expect you to be… that close."
"Huh? I don't get it," Izuku said as Sakunami was about to say something, only for Kujo to cover her mouth with his free hand, annoying Sakunami as Kujo chuckled.
"Keep it that way," Kujo said, turning his attention to Yoshihara as he took his hand away from Sakunami's mouth. "Do you know what class you're in?"
"Class 1 – A," Yoshihara said as Izuku's eyes widened.
"Same!"
"Huh, I'm also in 1 – A," Kujo said as Sakunami frowned.
"Yeah, and I got shafted to 1 – B. Not fair…" Sakunami grumbled, crossing her arms with a pouty face. Yoshihara couldn't help but smirk, which earned her a huff from Sakunami.
"Well, at least most of us are in the same class. A-And it's not like we can't talk at lunchtime!" Izuku noted as Sakunami sighed.
"Yeah, but it sucks that I can't be in the same class as Jojo…" Sakunami muttered. Just as she did, a Jeep pulled up to the school, catching all four of their attention. The Jeep was silver, and it had a black collapsable roof, much like most Jeeps. The rear-side left passenger door swung open harshly, and as it did, a school bag was thrown out and hit the curb, whilst following it, someone leapt out of the Jeep and onto the sidewalk as graceful as a cat.
When the person landed, bracing their fall when they did, their chin-length dark purple hair covered most of their face, but after they stood up straight from the knelt position that they had been in after landing, which also fixed their hair, their face became visible. Triangular onyx eyes, a pale complexion, and plug-like earphone jacks hanging from her ears which indicated her mutant Quirk. Using one of those jacks, she slammed the door shut, as the jeep drove off.
Picking up their bag, the stranger, who was obviously a girl given that she was wearing the U.A. uniform for females, let out a tired, almost annoyed sigh as she grumbled under her breath. It was only then that she noticed them, prompting her to shoot the group of four a side glance, and when her eyes landed on Kujo, her neutral expression shifted into a frown, and her eyes glimmered in disdain. "Kujo."
"Jirou, long time no see. What's it been, seven years?" Kujo said, his tone suddenly hostile, his eyes narrowing as he crossed his arms, tilting his head up slightly in a show of annoyance. Jirou scoffed, crossing her arms as she sneered.
"Yeah, it has. Your Dad still a shithead drunk?" Jirou spat as Kujo snarled, anger rolling off of him in droves.
"Your Mom still a coke addict? Or, even better, does she still cuck your Dad with other men? I always wondered how that went. Never got to find out, did I?" Kujo spat back as Jirou flinched, recoiling. Before she could say anything, Kujo continued. "Speaking of your Dad, does he still work for the Yakuza? Is he still smuggling illegal drugs across country borders? God only knows why they'd let a Yakuza brat join U.A.," Kujo bit out as Jirou glared at him.
"Asshole! Don't bring my parents into this, you know damn well that my mother's been clean for years! And Dad hasn't been with the Yakuza since I was born!" Jirou all but growled, taking a step toward Kujo, whose Stand Aura flared around him. It only stopped when Yoshihara put an arm between the two of them, halting either of their advances.
"Ladies, you're both ugly, but if you're going to fight, take it elsewhere. Other people have places to be," Yoshihara said, glancing at Jirou, who stared at her with an expectant glare. "Kira Yoshihara, a pleasure to meet you, Jirou," Yoshihara said, lowering her hand as Jirou looked her up and down, sighing.
"Yeah, whatever. Kira was it? I apologize for being rude. If it wasn't obvious, Kujo and I don't exactly get along," Jirou said, looking over Kira's shoulder and spotting Sakunami, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, and it seems like the skank is also here. Wonderful. Don't tell me, Kujo, are your standards so low that you'd date gutter trash like her?"
"What is your problem?! What the hell did I ever do to you?!" Sakunami said, offence in her tone of voice as Jirou scoffed, dismissing her with a glance before turning her back to Sakunami and looking over to Izuku, who flinched.
"Oi, mosshead. What's your name," Jirou said, an expectance in her tone as Izuku yelped, bowing his head in greeting.
"M-Midoriya Izuku! N-Nice to meet you, J-Jirou-san," Izuku stammered as Jirou shrugged, looking back over to Kujo and Yoshihara, who now had a frown on her face. Just what was her problem? Was she trying to make an enemy of herself?
"Well, now I have names, and it's clear you four are a group, so let me make this clear to you now. If any of you are in Class 1 – A, don't talk to me. Don't even look at me. Especially if you're friends with Kujo. I want nothing to do with you. I'm here for myself, and myself alone. Bye," and with that, Jirou walked past the gates, bag in hand as Yoshihara scowled, before looking over at Kujo.
"What's her problem?" Yoshihara asked as Kujo sighed, pinching his forehead.
"That was Kyoka Jirou, and unfortunately, she's my cousin from my mother's side of the family. As you can see, she's a bit of a bitch. Though considering her mother thinks that it's my Dad's fault that my mother is dead, who happened to be Kyoka's mother's sister, I wouldn't be shocked if she poisoned Kyoka's mind with that idea. I know her mother, Mika, hates me and my family, so it makes sense that Kyoka would as well," Kujo explained as Izuku spoke up.
"T-That doesn't give her the right to talk to you like that, though!"
"Yes, I'm aware of that. But, if she wants to start the year off like a total bitch, then that's fine. One way or another, she'll learn that her words come with a price. I doubt she's trained well in combat like I am. There will no doubt be fighting lessons, and if there are, well… she's in for a rude awakening, that's for sure," Kujo said as Yoshihara couldn't help but agree.
Despite trying to be friendly, it was clear that Jirou had already made up her mind about Yoshihara due to her association with Kujo. It would not do her any favours to act untoward her because of that. If given the chance, she planned to correct that behaviour. After all, how can one be a hero-in-training with that kind of attitude?
After another minute of standing around, the group of four finally made their way into the school. As they did, they navigated the halls, looking for their respective classrooms. It didn't take long to find the Class 1 – A door, and when they did, Sakunami spotted her classroom just down the hall.
Kujo and Sakunami exchanged a quick hug, before separating, leaving Izuku, Yoshihara, and himself standing at the large, 13-foot-tall door with 1A plastered on it. "I wonder why that door is so large," Izuku said, scratching the back of his neck as Yoshihara shrugged.
"Giant Quirks exist. It's probably for those people," Yoshihara replied as Kujo huffed, walking up to the door and grabbing the handle.
"Let's just see who we have as classmates. We already know Jirou is in here, so I wonder who else is," Kujo said as Izuku nervously chuckled.
"I hope Kacchan and that blue-haired guy from the exam aren't there… that'd be a 3-for-one bad luck streak…" Izuku said as Kujo opened the door enough to let the three of them inside the room. The moment they stepped in, they were greeted with a very… interesting scene.
A tall, broad-looking blue-haired teen with square-thin framed glasses. His hair was rather short, sitting just above his ears, and he was dressed in the uniform, which should've been obvious. Then, there was Bakugo of all people, because, of course, he was in their class. He wore his uniform sloppily, with no tie in sight, and the buttons were undone, letting his shirt hang open. He didn't even bother to tuck it in.
"Remove your foot from that desk! Such an action is insulting to those who came to U.A. before us as well as the craftsmen who made the desk!" The blue-haired boy exclaimed as several of the other students glanced at him, Jirou included. Yoshihara was able to recognize Yaoyorozu and Todoroki from the Recommendation exam. The rest, not so much.
"Like I care! What Junior High are you from, you extra?" Bakugo mocked, tilting his head back as he looked the boy up and down, as if sizing him up so he could tackle him right then and there. The large boy took a step back, narrowing his eyes as he spoke.
"I-I'm from Somei Private Academy. My name is Ida Tenya," the boy, Ida, answered as Bakugo sat up, finally taking his foot off the desk as he scoffed.
"Somei?! You some stuck-up Elitist then? Maybe I should blow you to bits!" Bakugo barked, laughing as Ida recoiled, clearly offended. Before he said anything, Yoshihara sighed, looking back at Izuku and Kujo, then back to the scene in front of them, only to be jumpscared by Ida standing a foot away from her.
"You!" Ida said, making Yoshihara flinch. "I—"
"I know who you are, I overhead. Ida Tenya, right?" Yoshihara said, looking over her shoulder at Kujo and Izuku. "I don't speak for them, but I apologize for Bakugo over there. He's always been like that. Kira Yoshihara, by the way."
"Kira-san! It is a pleasure to meet you," Ida said, bowing as he did. She got the idea that he was either rich, or was just raised to be overly formal. It kind of reminded her of Yaoyorozu, though not entirely. "I didn't see you in the practical exam. I take it you're from the recommended exam?"
"That would be correct. I was nominated by the R-rated Hero Midnight. I know it's not the most flattering sponsor, but it was the best I could get," Yoshihara answered as Ida adjusted his glasses.
"I will not judge you for the person who sponsored you. In fact, you should be honoured that Midnight sponsored you. I have heard wonderful things about her and her work ethic!" Ida said as Yoshihara felt a bead of sweat fall down the side of her face.
"Yeah, her work ethic. Now imagine living with her…" Yoshihara thought, clearing her throat. "It was nice meeting you Ida, I'm going to wait for class to start now."
"Very well!" And with that, he went to introduce himself to Kujo and Izuku, with Izuku being a little uncomfortable with his bombastic behaviour. She had no idea why, but it probably had something to do with what happened at the practical exam.
As she made her way to one of the desks toward the back, Yoshihara walked past Bakugo who glared at her. At first, she didn't pay him any mind, but when he spoke up, she couldn't help but look in his direction. "Oi, blondie."
"Good morning, Bakugo," Yoshihara glowered, shooting him a scathing glare. "Causing problems already, huh?"
"Fuck that, I want answers. Since when did Deku get a spine, I've known that shitty nerd since we were kids, and never once did he ever try and stand up to me. Now he's all confident and shit. Fucks up with that," Bakugo rumbled, his disdain clear for anyone to see as Yoshihara smirked.
"It's funny you mention that. Though, I suppose it should be obvious, shouldn't it? Treating others with standard human decency usually helps with being confident. Though, you wouldn't know a thing about that, would you?"As Yoshiara said that, she leaned into Bakugo's ear and spoke quietly so only he could hear. "Why else would you pick on a Quirkless kid?"
When she pulled away, Bakugo looked like he was about to blow a gasket with the front door to the classroom fully opened, and a yellow sleeping bag laid sideways in front of it. Inside that sleeping bag, she recognized his face faster than anyone else's. After all, he was at her place a week ago.
Then, of course, there was his dull, always tired voice. One that was recognizable to anyone who had ever met him. "If you're here to socialize, then get out," Aizawa Shouta said getting everyone's attention.
"This is…" Aizawa started before he sucked back a juice box in one go. "The Hero Course," Aizawa continued, standing up without the help of anyone. The sleeping bag unzipped itself and fell off—kinda like a cacoon being shed by a butterfly—as he stood in the doorway.
He was wearing his hero costume, that being the black bodysuit with the massive white scarf around his neck and the tool belt around his waist. However, Yoshihara did notice that there was a small blood stain just underneath where his scarf sat, most likely from his encounter with Taro. She couldn't blame him, blood stains were hard to get out of fabric.
"It took eight seconds for you to quiet down. Time is a precious resource. You lot aren't very rational, are you?" At this point, everyone was looking at Aizawa. Although, out of everyone in the class that she had seen thus far, it was Jirou who was staring at him the most intently. There was a darkness in her eyes, and it even partially freaked Yoshihara out.
"Just what is up with her?" Yoshihara thought as Aizawa spoke up.
"I'm your homeroom teacher, Shouta Aizawa, pleased to meet you." Aizawa drawled on as he fished out a new set of uniforms that looked like gym attire from his sleeping bag. They were blue with a U-shaped pattern around the chest and shoulders area, and an A covering the rest of the tracksuit top. "Quickly now. Change into your gym uniforms and head out to the grounds."
And with that, he left a pile of tracksuits, all fitting one universal size of "teenager" on the floor. Everyone quickly snagged a tracksuit of their own, including the reluctant Yoshihara, and then they proceeded to walk to the changing rooms, wherever those were.
Seriously, she had only been in the school for all of five minutes and he expected them to know where the changing rooms were? Luckily, they weren't that hard to find, considering they were pretty much just down the hall by the classrooms. Even better was that there was a sign pointing to where the "grounds" were.
Once she entered the changing room and quickly got into the tracksuit by changing in one of the stalls, mostly to hide her scars from everyone else. Once she had got changed, she walked outside. If there was one thing that she didn't like about the tracksuit was that it was rather tight in certain areas. Specifically around her shoulders, elbows, and waist. It seemed she was going to need to slim down a little bit to properly fit in them.
Standing outside, she was joined by the rest of the class as she walked out into what could only be explained as an athlete's training haven. There was a 50-meter track to run around in, a long-jump pit, a place to do rudimentary workouts, and a ball pitch.
"Was U.A. a baseball academy before all this hero stuff went down?" Yoshihara thought to herself as she glanced over her shoulder to see Kujo standing behind her. He walked up next to her and smirked. "These things are tight, aren't they?"
"Yeah… it's uncomfortable…" Yoshihara murmured.
"Yeah, tell me about it!" An unknown voice spoke up as Yoshihara looked over to her left. The person in question was a broad-shouldered girl with pink skin and curly pink hair with yellow curled horns sticking out of her head. She was pulling at the collar of the tracksuit, sighing. "And in all the wrong places, too!"
"Ashido, right?" Kujo asked as the identified Ashido smiled.
"Yup! Karera-chan spoke a lot about you on Discord," Ashido said, looking at Yoshihara. "You're Kira, right?"
"How did you know?" Yoshihara asked as Ashido's smile turned into a smirk.
"Karera-chan talked about you, too. Said you were a bit of a downer. I'm gonna change that," Ashido said as Yoshihara frowned.
"We're not friends."
"Yet!" Ashido added, and just before Yoshihara said anything else, everyone else came out of the changing rooms. As they did, Aizawa—who had been leaning against one of the trees—walked over to stand in front of the class, and spoke.
"Alright, you're all here. Not as fast as I would've liked, but some things take time to iron out. Here's how things are going to go. As of right now, we're going to be doing a test of your Quirks."
And with that, a sense of dread washed over most of the class. Josefumi and Yoshihara didn't seem to mind, but one particular person with brown hair in the style of a bob-cut did. "What about the Entrance Ceremony?! Or the Guidance Sessions?!" The brunette called out as Aizawa tilted his head.
"No time to waste on that stuff if you want to become heroes," Aizawa said, lazily looking over his shoulder. "U.A. is known for its 'freestyle' educational system. That applies to us teachers as well." As Aizawa explained this, he turned around to everyone, arms crossed as he gave everyone a teritiary glance.
"Softball throwing. The Standing Long Jump. The 50-meter dash. Endurance running. Grip strength. Side-to-side stepping. Upper-body training. Seated toe touch. You all did these in Junior High, yes? Your standard No-Quirks-Allowed gym tests. This country still insists on prohibiting Quirks when calculating the averages of those records. It's not rational. The Department of Education is just procrastinating," Aizawa stated, eyes landing on Bakugo.
"Bakugo," Aizawa said, catching his attention, his crimson eyes narrowing as Aizawa frowned. "How far could you throw in middle school?" Aizawa asked, prompting Bakugo to answer.
"Sixty-seven meters," Bakugo responded, adjusting his hands in his tracksuit pockets. Aizawa gestured him over to one of the pitcher's stands as Yoshihara watched him with a keen eye. Bakugo stood in the center, adjusting his footwork as Aizawa threw him a softball.
"Great. Now try it with your Quirk. Do whatever you need to. Just don't leave the circle," Aizawa said, bringing out a small device that looked sort of like a walkie-talkie with a screen in the middle. "Give it everything you've got."
Bakugo rolled his throwing arm's shoulder, cracking his neck as he gripped the ball. Yoshihara narrowed her eyes at the boy as he smirked. He reeled back his arm, and with a malicious grin, he threw the ball with a massive explosion following it.
"DIE!"
The ball went flying into the air insanely fast, travelling a fairly large distance, which went to show just how powerful Bakugo's explosions were. After a few seconds, the ball came crashing down, and when it hit the ground, it was almost burned to a crisp. It bounced a few times, before it came to a stop, a trail of smoke coming off of it. Everyone was stunned by the display, although Yoshihara was looking at it from a different angle.
"That… is a lot of power. But, Bakugo's explosive power and Killer Queen's have different purposes. Killer Queen's bombs erase whatever they're attached to unless I reduce the power. Bakugo's explosions are about wanton destruction and reckless detonation. They are also unrefined and far too messy. They're more likely to hit everything else rather than their target. Good for propulsion, but not for long-term combat," Yoshihara noted, crossing her arms.
There was no denying that Bakugo was powerful. But he was the kind of powerful that was sloppy. He had a lot of potential, which was perfect for a school like U.A. "Now, let's see if his ego ruins it."
Aizawa looked down at the device before looking up at Bakugo. "It's important for us to know our limits," Aizawa stated, turning the device to show Bakugo. The screen read – 705.2 meters, an impressive score by any means. "That's the first rational step to figuring out what kind of heroes you'll be."
Just as Aizawa finished speaking, Ashido smiled brightly before exclaiming, "Whoa! This is awesome!" As Ashido said that, someone made an off comment about the distance of how far the ball had travelled thanks to Bakugo. Yoshihara didn't pay attention, so she didn't care all that much. "So we can use our Quirks for real! Man, The Hero Course is the best!" Ashido said as Yoshihara glanced over to Aizawa, who seemed to have an annoyed gleam in his eye.
"Something tells me this isn't going to end well…" Yoshihara said, a singular bead of sweat making its way down her forehead as worry strewed itself over her face.
"…Awesome… you say?" Aizawa's voice was filled with nothing but contempt, and it sent a chill down everyone's spine. The way he said it, the way his body language gave off a menacing vibe, it was checking all of the boxes for some people that something bad was about to happen. No longer did he look like a pro hero, nor did he look like a teacher. He looked like a thug, hands in his pockets, back arched in such a way that it pronounced his glare, and the way the quiet fury suddenly became not-so-silent…. If Yoshihara hadn't known better, Aizawa looked more like a villain than a hero.
"You're hoping to become heroes after three years here… and you think it'll be all fun and games?" Aizawa said, a lump forming in Yoshihara's throat. She did not like the look on his face as he said that. The oppressive air that suddenly sunk around the whole class was suffocating, and that worry that had built up in Yoshihara's body was now making itself known as she reflexively summoned Killer Queen by her side.
"Such nonsense. The one with the lowest score across all eight events will be judged as hopeless and will be expelled." And as Aizawa stood there, his face adorned with a smirk that seemed downright psychotic, he spoke once again. "Your fates are in our hands. Welcome. This is… The Hero Course at U.A. High!"
The collective shock from the entire class of 1-A was enough to overpower even Yoshihara's stone-cold exterior and interior. She had only been in the school for not even ten minutes, and she already had to deal with the threat of being expelled?!
"Kayama-san never warned me that Aizawa was a goddamn psychopath?! What the fuck!" Yoshihara thought, panicked as she stared ahead in abstract fear. While she wasn't worried about herself, she couldn't help but reflexively look over to Izuku, who looked mortified.
She could only imagine what he was thinking, and it probably wasn't anything good. Izuku was Quirkless, and in a test to measure someone's Quirk, he was destined to fail. Essentially, he was screwed. But she believed in him. If he had already got this far, then that meant that he must've had something up his sleeve.
Izuku was a smart kid. She believed in him wholeheartedly. But tricks would only get him so far. That was assuming he was using tricks, of course.
But just when things couldn't get any worse, someone had to open their loudmouth.
"The lowest scorer will be expelled…? It's only the first day! I mean, even if it weren't… That's totally unfair!" the culprit for the one who had called out like a damn idiot was the same girl who asked about the entrance ceremony.
"Something tells me I am not going to like her, am I?" Yoshihara thought, glaring daggers into the back of the girl's head. If looks could kill, the brunette would've been stabbed to death by Yoshihara's eyes alone, something that the girl didn't seem to notice.
Aizawa only seemed to get more annoyed by the brown-haired girl's antics as he shook his head in disappointment. "Natural disasters… highway pileups… rampaging villains… Calamity is always just around the corner, I'd say Japan is full of unfair things." Aizawa let out a tired sigh, fixing his hair so it didn't cover his eyes, allowing the class to see the fiery determination hiding within them. "The heroes are the ones who correct all that unfairness. If you were hoping to spend your evenings hanging out at McDonald's… I'm sorry to tell you, but in these next three years of your life, U.A. is going to run you through the wringer."
Aizawa then gave the class a smirk and gestured his finger as if to say "Come at me," his eyes giving them all the same dull, tired look. "That's Plus Ultra. Use your strength to overcome it all. So bring it."
All Yoshihara could do was stare back at him with a determined gleam in her eyes. If he was issuing a challenge, then so be it. While Yoshihara wasn't one for things like winning, or losing, she wasn't exactly going to give in and do nothing. That would be the cowards' way out.
And so, for the next two and a half hours, the students of the newly formed Class 1 – A were put through test after test, each more taxing than the last.
[EVENT 1 – 50-Meter Dash]
Ida Tenya and a girl who looked like a frog were the first two to be put up against one another, and both of them got interesting scores. Ida got a score of 3.04 seconds, while the frog-like girl, Asui Tsuyu, got a score of 5.58 seconds.
When Yoshihara was called up, she was paired with a guy who had a massive fleshy tail. The boy's name was Ojiro Mashirao from what she heard. Using Killer Queen to shadow over her legs, Yoshihara got a score of 4.39 seconds, while the guy with the tail got 6.73. A pretty good start if she had to say so for herself.
Kujo wound up paired against a boy with what appeared to be six arms, though, in reality, it was more like one massive arm split up with three hands with webbing in between. His name was Shoji Mezou. Between the two of them, Kujo got a score of 4.01 seconds thanks to using his Soft & Wet's bubbles to remove the friction from his shoes and use them like ice skates to glide across the ground. Shoji, however, got 4.88 seconds, proving to be rather fast despite his size.
When it came time for Izuku's turn, he happened to be paired with Bakugo of all people. It felt like a cruel prank, but it wasn't intentional. Besides, Aizawa didn't know their history. It was also the beginning of Yoshihara's worry for Izuku, as he scored 7.02 seconds compared to Bakugo's 4.13 seconds.
[EVENT 2 – Grip Strength]
As expected, Shoji, with his massive arms thanks to his Quirk: Dupli-arms, which gave him a type of super strength, got him a score of 560 kilograms of grip strength. That was enough to break someone's wrist if he tried. It would've been him who scored the most if it wasn't a little accident on Yoshihara's part.
She had Killer Queen's arm ghost over her own, which might've been seen as cheating, but in reality, it wasn't. Even if it wasn't a Quirk, it was a supernatural ability, and she wanted to keep her spot in the hero course. While she was confident in herself and her own strength, she was being cautious. So, with that in mind, at the same time, both herself and Killer Queen squeezed at the same time.
The result was… intense. The moment Killer Queen squeezed its hand, what would've been an okay score of 80 kilograms shot up from 80 to 2,680 kilograms. A boy with spikey red hair saw her score, which caused his jaw to drop. "What the heck?! That's some crazy strength for someone so skinny-looking!"
Kujo looked over at her, showing his score of 400 kilograms, using his Soft & Wet to do the same thing she was doing, but with more control. Yoshihara felt her face flush red in embarrassment. She was still working on controlling how to reign in Killer Queen's strength. "Oops…"
When she found out about Izuku's score clocking in at 56 kilograms. It was easily the worst there, with the lowest score being Jirou's at 60 kilograms. Having back-to-back failing scores didn't paint a pretty picture for Izuku, and it was starting to make Yoshihara worry.
[EVENT 3 – Standing Long Jump]
Yuuga Aoyama was this test's exceeder. His quirk allowed him to fire out a laser from his stomach. Because of this, he was able to propel himself across the entire pit in a single jump, though his stomach hurt afterward.
Yoshihara sighed, shadowing Killer Queen's hands over the top of her own. She raised her feet and placed two bubbles on her shoes. From a distance, Josefumi had watched and raised an eyebrow at seeing her use bubbles—almost like his own Stand. She looked at Aizawa, who nodded, and then, when she jumped, the bubbles exploded, propelling her up into the air, covering half of the sandpit.
Bakugo sat back and saw with his own eyes wide. "Someone else with an explosive Quirk? Wait a second, didn't she have a psychic Quirk the last time I saw Blondie's face? That doesn't sound right. Something's going on here…." Bakugo thought, a scowl on his face as he narrowed his eyes.
"Wow! Did you see that? Her Quirk's almost like Bakugo's!" One of the other class members said aloud as another one huffed.
"You think they're related?" Another one questioned as Bakugo's eye twitched. He was going to say something but decided against it. It wasn't worth his damn time or pride.
Izuku didn't get a decent score for his jump, which was saddening. That nervousness from before that Yoshihara was feeling was now inside Izuku as well.
[EVENT 4 – Side Stepping]
No one did exceptionally well on this, not even Yoshihara. Her total score for side steps in a five-minute time limit was 58, and that was with the help of Killer Queen taking some of the pressure off of her legs, so it wasn't like she could've done much better. Though Josefumi was able to get a pretty good score of 87 after removing the feeling in his legs so they wouldn't be sore after the fact—an ingenious move on his part.
Once again, Izuku got a poor score, only getting 23 consecutive side steps. That was the only other score she cared about, and it was another dud. The other person whose score even came remotely close was a guy named Sero Hanta, whose score was 30. That was seven points more than his.
"Damnit, Izuku! I know you're better than this! I swear to god if you get expelled today I'm going to lecture you until the cows come home!" Yoshihara thought as she sent a concerned look at him, though he seemed to be off in his little world of stress.
[EVENT 5 – Softball Throwing]
The brunette, Uraraka Ochako as Yoshihara came to find out, got a score of infinite, something that no one was expecting. No one had expected that coming from such a short and sweet-looking girl. Her Quirk was Zero Gravity, so it only made sense for her to get a high score, but not infinite.
"Great, not only is she bubbly and annoying, but she has a stupidly overpowered Quirk as well. Like that helps matters. Actually, I'm kind of glad that she's here and didn't become a villain. That would be downright terrifying if she had." Yoshihara shuttered at the thought of a villain having a Gravity-related power.
Gravity, in general, was just something humanity was never supposed to fuck with. It was a law of nature, and laws of nature were things that just couldn't be, nor shouldn't be messed with. For someone like Uraraka to have such a deadly Quirk was a good thing, because she was using it for good and nothing else. But if someone used it as a villain, or worse, a Stand User…. She'd rather not think of that.
Yoshihara was up next, and when she stepped up to the plate and took the ball, she had Killer Queen shadow over her hand and placed several small bubbles on the back end of the ball. She threw it up into the air, then, after quickly turning her hand into the mimicry of a hand detonator, she pressed her thumb down and the ball went soaring afterward.
The ball eventually hit the ground, but in the process, it fell apart at the seams and disintegrated into nothing. Aizawa's machine read a score of 785.9 meters, causing a smirk to appear on her face, sending a quick glare over to Bakugo, who sent another one back at her. She got back in line, and the next one up was…
"Midoriya Izuku." Aizawa's cold voice spoke out, and as Izuku took the ball, he stood in the circle for a moment, deep in thought.
"Midoriya isn't doing very well…." Ida said as Bakugo piped up.
"Duh! He's a Quirkless runt! What the hell is that dumbass gonna do?" Bakugo snapped, earning a raised eyebrow from Ida.
"Quirkless? Haven't you heard about his feats in the entrance exam?!" Ida said, confused, all the while making a chopping motion, earning an annoyed 'huh' from Bakugo. It also got a confused look from Yoshihara.
"What is he on about?" Yoshihara thought, before looking over at Izuku. "What does Ida mean by that…?"
Izuku's eyes closed, and when they opened up again, his eyes were filled with determination. And then, much to Yoshihara's, Josefumi's, and Bakugo's shock, Izuku's veins began to glow red.
"What the hell?!" Bakugo thought, a rush of emotions clouding his mind.
"Huh… Izuku, did you lie to me about being Quirkless?" Yoshihara thought, feeling a bit of her heartbreak as a result. There was no way… why would Izuku lie to her? "Unless… there's something else going on here."
"Was Kira-san wrong about him being Quirkless?" Josefumi thought, confusion shuffling through his head as he stared in awe.
Just as Izuku was about to throw the ball, the glow disappeared, and when it did, Izuku stopped. He didn't even throw the ball, it just stayed in his hand. His head turned, glancing over to Aizawa.
Aizawa, for his part, narrowed his now glowing red eyes. "Is something the matter, Midoriya? Why haven't you thrown the ball?" Aizawa asked as Izuku smirked. It wasn't a cocky smirk, but one someone would flash at a friend.
"I knew something was familiar about you, Sensei," Izuku spoke, a bit of confidence gleaming in his eyes and voice. "You're that guy Kayama-san is friends with. While I didn't get to personally meet you, my Mom did, and she described you to me when I asked." As he said that, he rolled his shoulder.
"Considering you're friends with Kayama-san, Yoshihara's guardian, who's a Pro Hero, It was only right to assume that her friends were also Pro Heroes. Lo-and-behold, the person my Mom described being at Kayama-san's place is here, and now, I know exactly who you are," Izuku said, taking Aizawa aback a little bit.
"You're the Pro Hero Eraserhead, aren't you, Aizawa-Sensei," Izuku began. "I'm a bit of a hero nerd, so I research even the most obscure heroes. That includes you, Aizawa-Sensei. You're Quirk lets you erase other people's Quirks just by looking at them. You erased my Quirk the moment I was about to throw the ball, which I expected to happen with how I was doing. You were going to try and teach me a lesson, weren't you?"
Yoshihara was shocked. She knew he had grown a bit of a spine over the course of the last few weeks, but she hadn't expected him to go on a monologue to Aizawa. Which, she could tell, was getting to him. His left eye was twitching, and it was clear that he was starting to get annoyed.
"I'll be honest, I know that my Quirk isn't exactly the best. It damages me, and I can't control it all that well. I just got it, after all, being a late bloomer and all. I wanted to pursue my dream the moment I got it, knowing full well that with U.A.'s practical exam coming up, it would've been my only chance. I was so desperate that I signed up even without a Quirk.
"I know it's irrational, but I refuse to have my dream crushed. That was why I saved this part of the exam to use my Quirk. I know that I'm a liability at the moment. But, if you give me a chance, Aizawa-sensei… if you can give me a single shot to prove to you that I can, at the very least, somewhat control my Quirk and not shatter my arm… then I know I have potential. But, if my arm is shattered after this throw, I'll accept my expulsion without argument. I mean, I know it wouldn't be a choice regardless of whether I argued or not, but, you know, it's the thought that counts," Izuku finished explaining as Aizawa hummed in thought.
"This kid. He's got nerves of steel to talk to me like that, and with scores as low as his, his bravado doesn't sway me in the slightest. But if he's confident that he can pull himself ahead, then fine, I'll give him a shot," Aizawa thought, huffing. "Alright then, kid, let's see if you can only talk the talk, or both talk and walk at the same time. In the entrance exam, you shattered your entire body. Let's see how much you've improved in a week."
Aizawa's eyes lost the sharp red colour, and his hair was let back down—A side effect of his Quirk was that his hair stood up on end—and crossed his arms. Izuku turned back around, clenching his hand around the ball, then, proceeded to do the same thing, only this time, the power seemed more concentrated into one spot than last time, specifically, his middle finger.
The ball went soaring in the air, and when it landed, he got a score of 702.6. His middle finger was broken, but all things considered, it was leagues better than it was before.
It hurt, it hurt a lot, but it was better than having his entire arm broken. At least, that was how Midoriya rationalized it. "It took a lot to focus all of my power on my finger, but it was enough so that I didn't look like a complete idiot. What the hell was I doing, talking back to my teacher like that? I could've been expelled just by doing that! I like all this new confidence, but I have to use it more wisely, otherwise, I'll get in trouble!" Izuku thought, letting out a shaky sigh.
"See… Sensei? I can still… move…." Izuku said, his middle finger throbbing as he bit his lower lip.
"This kid…!" Aizawa thought as Yoshihara stared at her friend with wide eyes. She was happy for him, or, well, as happy as a sociopath could be for another person, but why? Why didn't he tell her? Did he want to surprise her? If that was what it was, then yeah, she could understand… but still…
"He only got his Quirk at least a week ago if he used it at the practical exam, and sure, he didn't tell me, but why? Why didn't he tell me? Was he worried that I would've thought that he lied to me about being Quirkless?" Yoshihara thought. If that was the case, then they'd have to talk about it. Maybe not today, but later.
However, no one else's reaction to Izuku's explosive new Quirk was as bad as Bakugo Katsuki's. He wasn't just shocked, he wasn't just surprised. He was fucking pissed off.
"It's impossible… What the…! Quirks never manifest past age four! But it really happened!" Bakugo thought, his face contorted into one of anger, and confusion. But then, it shifted straight into anger as he took off dashing toward Izuku.
"DEEEEEKKKKUUUUU! YOU SHITTY BASTARD! WHAT THE HELL WAS—" But before he could continue his charge, Aizawa bound the kid up in his binding cloth, whilst activating Erasure.
"What the… this cloth is so… stiff?" Bakugo grunted, gnashing his teeth together as he tried to push through it. However, the more he struggled, the worse the stiffness got. That was because the more he moved, the more Aizawa tugged against the cloth, restraining him further.
"That's enough out of you, Bakugo. Stop using your Quirk and get back in line. This "cloth" is a Capture Weapon. It's made of carbon fibres and a special alloy wire. If you don't stop using your Quirk, Bakugo, I'm going to expel you. Now get back in line!" Aizawa snapped, causing Bakugo to relax, and for the cloth to go back to Aizawa as he sighed. "What a waste of time. Prepare for the next event…." Aizawa said, walking back to the front of the class as Bakugo returned to his spot in the line-up.
As he did, though, he couldn't help but mull over everything. It was an outrage! For the last 11 years of their lives, Izuku had been nothing more than a worthless, shitty, defective little pebble in Bakugo's path. He was never meant to amount to anything.
Yet, here he was. Here at U.A., with a Quirk that randomly showed up on the day of the exam, and now he was acting like he was tough shit? Just who did he think he was, showing up Bakugo, looking down on him like the shitty nerd he was!
A part of him wondered if he did take his "advice" and this was the result. Something broke his fall and because he survived he got a Quirk.
Not that he wanted him to do that—if he did, he really was a fucking moron—but if he actually got a Quirk from it, then… "Stupid fucking Deku! How dare you get in my way! I'll make you regret you ever got that shitty Quirk of yours!"
The rest of the events came and went. Due to the pain in Izuku's finger, he became distracted by it and as a result, his scores dwindled. Yoshihara's scores remained in the ballpark of "alright" all things considered. The seated toe touch was fairly self-explanatory. Her flexibility gave her the ability to easily pass that one, and the upper body training, aka doing five pull-ups, was also pathetically easy. She scored decently in those two events, which topped up her final score.
And when everyone had finished the upper-body training exercise, which some people did poorly on due to how long the events had been and how tiring they were, when everyone lined up in front of Aizawa, he gave everyone another once over and sighed.
"…Moving along. Time for the results. Your total scores are simply based on your performance in these events. Explaining the process would be a waste of time, so all you get are the final rankings." As Aizawa explained this, a digital board came out from one of the miniature droids that had been recording the scores.
Yoshihara searched for her name, and it was smack dab in the middle, tenth place, wedged between a kid by the name of Rikido Sato, and Josefumi Kujo. However, as she scanned for Izuku's name, she found him at the bottom ranking twentieth, just below a guy by the name of Koji Koda.
"Oh no… Izuku…" Yoshihara thought, giving Izuku a sympathetic stare. As for his part, Izuku looked down at the floor, nearing tears, when suddenly….
"Also, I was lying about expelling someone. "
Silence. Absolute, pure, silence.
And then, Aizawa grew the biggest shit-eating grin that showed that not only was he not lying, but he also showed no sympathy towards the fact that he had lied either.
"That was a rational deception... meant to bring out the best in all of you."
It was that day going forward that Kira Yoshihara firmly planted the idea in her head that she was not going to like Aizawa as a teacher for the next year of her life. She closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and tried her damndest not to have a migraine.
"By the way, that's all for today. I'll pass out your curriculum for the year then you guys can leave for the day. Oh, and Midoriya, get to Recovery Girl, she's the school's nurse, get your finger fixed up." And after that, once he finished handing out the papers, he left the grounds. Kira went to get changed back into her school uniform, then she headed for home.
For as much as she wanted to smack the piss out of Izuku for trying to hide something like that from her, she decided that all it would do was make the situation worse. Instead, she'd just bitch him out over the phone and then Hate Watch SAO again. She always found herself getting her pissed off.
[XXX]
When Kyoka returned home, she ignored her parents as she had been doing for the last two weeks now, and locked herself in her room. When she did, she stood with her back turned to the door, and after letting out a calming exhale, she immediately slammed her right fist into the wall so hard, it left a dent.
"Kujo… You piece of shit!" To say that she wasn't happy about seeing him at U.A. was an understatement. That little rat bastard… he was part of the reason why her life was awful. It was no secret that their parents didn't get along, so it made sense that neither of them got along either.
She had always hated the part of her that was even remotely related to the Joestar Family. Thankfully, it was hidden from the world, but they never reached out to help. They never showed any support. They pretended as if her family didn't exist. To make matters worse, when her mother's sister died, she was cremated without the family's consent and that drunken old fuck refused to give over any of her possessions.
He was a selfish, entitled, prick who pretended to be nice. Who pretended to be a good person. But that man… he was nothing but the opposite. He and his whole family were awful, and she prayed that they'd eventually get what they deserved.
So, needless to say, she fucking hated them. She hated everything they stood for, and she wanted nothing more than to see their empire topple over. Just once. Just once she'd love to see the look on his face when everything came crumbling apart. The Speedwagon Foundation, the Joestar Fortune… all of it. Gone. That was what she wanted.
But, because of how powerful the Speedwagon Foundation was, and because of how it had its fingers in absolutely everything, its collapse was never going to happen. Not unless the world ended or the global market crashed. That was how secure The Speedwagon Foundation was.
She breathed out a calming sigh, lowering her fist from the wall and narrowed her eyes. Kujo and her shared a class. That meant that, to some degree, she'd have to put her differences aside and work with him. She supposed it was alright. But that didn't mean that she would forgive them for never stepping in when they asked for help.
While she was open to putting aside what happened today at the gates, she didn't know if Kujo would. If he was just as spiteful as his Dad, the chances of that happening were slim to none.
And if he refused to work with her…
A small smirk came to her face, as a borderline evil gleam took up residence within. A swirling, maddening thing. The type you'd attribute to a vagrant who planned to rob you blind or sell all your valuables on the black market.
Then she'd just have to ruin him.
-To Be Continued-