Chapter 2: Volume 1, pt 2 Evaluation
Izuku pulled open the door to his new homeroom: 1-A, a bit tentatively. He had no doubt all of those within would be exemplary examples of noble heroes in training, but he still had a few worries. What if Kacchan was in his class again? Or that business and pomp guy with the engine legs? They were kinda scary, all things being equal. But, hey, what were the chances of both of them in one class? It was like one in four. Sure, he might get one of them, but there was no way he'd get both. Hopefully the nice girl with the floating quirk was there too. It would be convenient for scheduling practice, if she said yes. He wasn't sure if he wanted her to agree or not. If she did, he'd be able to learn from a master of a similar power, and get to talk to a girl fairly often; but that would also mean… talking to a girl, and spending time with her for long periods of time. His face felt warm just from the thought.
As the classroom came into view, Izuku's worst fears were quickly confirmed, as both Kacchan and the engine boy were within; fighting actually. He tried to slip in silently, avoiding them if at all possible, but was noticed immediately, and halted in indecision. Kacchan, rather uncharacteristically, said nothing; merely turning aside and huffing. He was a little down that his old friend couldn't at least accept that he'd accomplished his goal, even if he wasn't able to be happy for him. Meanwhile, the engine boy approached him with a most-official looking gait, promptly introducing himself as Iida Tenya. Izuku shakily attempted to return the sentiment, only for another voice to interrupt his thoughts even more adamantly.
"The floating boy?"
It was the nice girl, and she was standing right behind him. She started to praise him about his actions, and to query him about various aspects of the test and himself, to which he was barely able to respond with a few muttered and incoherent words. While Izuku tried to fumble between two conversations and also get inside the class, he noticed a strange object slowly slumping up the hall towards them. By the time he was able to extricate his eyes to look again, it was simply lying prone on the floor behind the nice girl. Then, it spoke.
"If you're here to socialize, then get out. This is the Hero Course."
The small cluster at the door froze up and stared at the yellow lump, which they only barely recognized as a person, curled up in a sleeping bag. Then, it slurped a small calorie pack, and stood. From within the brightly colored sleepwear, the most worn-out hero Izuku had ever seen emerged. He stepped free and began to pack it up, before turning back to the group and the class within the room. He removed an object from within, which turned out to be a tracksuit. Izuku didn't want to know why he had been sleeping with such a thing in his bag.
"Quickly now. Change into your gym clothes and head out to the grounds." He grumbled, nodding at the wall, which began to open and expand with various numbered cases.
"Changing rooms are on the first floor, you can figure out the rest on your own."
With that, he began to wander towards the stairway. While he had a definite course, and clearly knew the way; his slumping, wobbly gait could only be called a wander. It was far too slow to be anything else.
Izuku looked between the other members of the que about the door, shrugged, and went to drop off his bag. He needed to get a number and his suit. The other members of the class quickly followed suit. Some grabbed the whole case, while others opened it at their desks and removed the clothes they would need, but in only a few moments, the entire mass of new 1-A students were headed for the stairway. Some of them chatted as they walked, but thanks to their instructor's opening reprimand, most simply walked in silence. In the interim, Izuku lost track of both the scary and nice people he'd already met.
When the class finally emerged and lined up outside, Aizawa was already waiting for them. He was still immensely tired looking, but now had a look of impatience as well. Several members of the class shuddered, Izuku noticed, his own spine not so much chilled as well refrigerated. They all remained silent for a few moments, until Aizawa spoke.
"Welcome to UA. Now that the pleasantries are over, let's get to work."
He revealed a holographic screen, which listed several physical activities. Izuku recognized them as the official physical examination that was often offered to students at various grades to assess their health.
"Our nation, like most, still uses this test with quirks removed from consideration. Such thinking is backwards and incorrect, which means we'll be throwing out that rule today. Bakugo? Throw this ball for me."
He tossed a strange softball to Kacchan, and nodded his head backwards at the ring of chalk on the field.
"You can do whatever you want, so long as you don't leave the circle."
The grin that spread on Kacchan's face was terrifying, and the ear-breaking shockwave from his toss, even more-so. Aizawa seemed unaffected, and merely turned his smart-device around to reveal the toss distance: 705.2m. The level of admiration for him grew in the class, and excited tones began to rise as they spoke.
"Since you all like the idea so much, I might as well tell you everything. UA is a competitive program, and only accepts the best. As such, you will be graded for your performance and given points based on your score. The student with the lowest score at the end will be ejected."
The shock and horror that swept through the group was palpable. Izuku glanced around and felt his heart drop. Everyone else seemed to have excellent powers, and could likely outperform him many times over with their quirks. His wasn't good for much yet, especially not in any of these events. Maybe in the jumps? But then he wouldn't be able to get down, and that would cost him… If only he could pick the direction, and float forwards or back. He'd be able to use it on the runs. Or if he could moderate it, and float only a little, or ease it off when he was done, he could do pull-ups, push-ups, and even the jumps with absolute ease. As it was, he doubted he could do much more than become a lost balloon at this point…
Not willing to accept defeat, Izuku looked around again and used the keen detail-oriented view he used on pro heroes, rather than the pessimistic view he used to observe his equals. True, many of them had great quirks, but not all of them could be helpful in each event. The Invisible girl, for one, didn't seem to have a powerful or athletic frame. Perhaps he could do well enough by being a good all-rounder? Hadn't his plan always been to enter UA quirkless? Well, now he had the musculature from All Might's training to challenge anyone here to a quirkless one-on-one; and that meant he could prove to Kacchan, once and for all, that even without a quirk, he was worthy to be here.
As the challenges began, Izuku warmed up the way his mentor had taught him, bouncing on his feet and stretching slightly to prepare. He needed to keep his mind clear and focused on the test, not on things that couldn't be helped. The first test was the 50-meter, which wouldn't be too much of an issue. He'd done quick running for quite a while during his training, and on varied terrain too. He was more than ready to get a new PR on-
Izuku felt his stomach drop when he saw the first few quirk-powered runs devastate times that would have made a lot of professional athletes proud. He swallowed and gave his face a couple slaps to clear his head. He knew he wouldn't be in the top 15 of the class, he knew that from the beginning of his plan. He knew it. He couldn't let them get in his head. Himself, most especially. He took his position, and eyed a point just past the finish line. He got the go-ahead and sprinted for all he was worth. The explosions from Kacchan beside him blinded him for a brief moment, but he wasn't looking to his sides, and he didn't need to see to run. He got in a hair's breadth under seven seconds, so narrow that most official schools would probably consider it a rounding error. But Aizawa let him keep it. He nodded at the man in thanks, and went to await the next test.
Following was a check on grip strength, which he felt he performed moderately at. Not many people seemed to do well in it, aside from one student with three arms and another who was more muscular than seemed healthy. The following test was much worse, however. Many of the group cleared the entire distance with ease, either through augmented jumps, launches, or even simple flight. Side-steps too showed a smattering of unattainably great and average, while he landed somewhere just above the latter. Izuku only made it slightly further than a Quirkless average. His faith in his plan fluctuated slightly, but he hoped it would hold to the end.
The ball toss was a real eye-opener, seeing the nice girl send the object to a supposedly infinite distance. His own toss was the best of the launches not aided by quirks, but still fell below the three quarter line. It was also the end of his worrying. The distance run came as a blessing, as Izuku watched only a few students able to last so long with their quirks before falling behind. Some glided along with ease, certainly, but he managed to snag the sixth place, rather than the bottom rung. He'd run that distance for fun during the months of training, and now he could finally show off what he was made of. He wasn't the most limber of students, and didn't out-score a single girl in the toe-touch, but he led the boys. And when sit-ups rolled around, he was feeling motivated to out-do everyone. He didn't hit the top spot, but he grabbed another low number at 7th.
Everyone was at least winded by the time the final reveal rolled around, and Izuku was feeling confident. However, he felt his heart drop when the board again appeared, and his name wasn't present. Only 19 names were shown, with a blank spot in the 14th slot. The entire class turned to him, and then to Aizawa.
"These are the final rankings. Everyone but Midoriya passes."
A cheer went up from some, but most simply looked confused and a little scared. The nice girl put her hand up.
"Mr. Aizawa, sir? Why doesn't he pass? And why is the empty spot not at the bottom?"
"Simple, this is where he would have scored. But he's been disqualified."
"D-disqualified?!" He asked, alarmed
"This was an examination of your quirk, not your physical prowess. You didn't even try to use yours once. You therefore didn't complete the test."
Mutters went through the group as they checked the board and then looked to Izuku.
"…didn't use his quirk? …trying to show us up… no way he's that good… serves him right…"
"That doesn't seem fair!"
"If you want fairness, you should have worked at a DMV."
"I have to agree with Uraraka." Came a voice.
Everyone looked over at the two recommendation students, the female of which seemed to have bravery that matched her physical characteristics.
"Being able to complete the examination against quirk-using opponents and come out above the 3/4th line is admirable. I request he be allowed to at least explain why he didn't feel it necessary to attain a higher ranking."
Aizawa rolled his eyes, but didn't object.
Izuku looked at his feet, and then up at the class.
"I- my quirk is… a bad match for these. It lets me… float. I just move upwards, and I can't slow myself down very well."
"So you're saying that it would be a hindrance to all of these tests?" She asked him, making sure she understood it completely.
He nodded in response. The formal-speaking girl, rather than turn back to Aizawa, looked at the floating clothes that Izuku had to assume covered someone with an invisibility quirk.
"Did you use your quirk for any of the tests?"
From what little posture they could see, she seemed rather taken-aback at being confronted.
"N-no, I… It's just kind of always on."
The proper girl turned back to their teacher.
"Is she disqualified?"
Aizawa sighed and shook his head.
"I'm too tired for this… Fine, you pass Midoriya. But I expect you not to rely on such excuses going forward, or I will have you ejected."
Izuku felt his chest lighten considerably, but felt a little bad about whoever Mineta was, who was now on the bottom. From the wails of disbelief and devastation that came from the shortest member of the class, Izuku guessed it was him.
"As for who's going home." Aizawa's face split into a wild and terrifying grin. "It was a lie! No one's getting kicked out."
The wails increased to confused choking, and the prim-proper girl made a small comment about it being a logical deception. Izuku was just glad not to have failed on his first day.
The class returned to the room, picking up the various forms and curriculum before being shunted between various teachers for their first day's scheduling. It was mostly a blur, meeting various top heroes who were acting quite casual as professors of more standard subjects. Had Izuku been writing down the events or recording them, they would have been too muddled to be included in an entry. Probably not even worth a single panel, had he been a mangaka.
Luckily, he was headed home soon, mentally and physically exhausted. Izuku wandered off campus, headed for the nearby station and hoping Kacchan wouldn't bother him.
"Midoriya!"
Izuku spun in fright, and relaxed only slightly when he saw it was the bespectacled and proper Iida.
"A most excellent lesson, no? Aizawa sensei truly shattered my expectations!"
Iida went on to outline how he'd been so easily tricked, unintentionally displaying his intensely serious personality.
"You two! Headed to the station? Wait up!" Came a voice.
Izuku blushed and turned to see Uraraka running up to him and Iida, immediately tensing up.
"Ah, Infinity Girl."
"I'm Ochaco Uraraka! Um, you're Tenya Iida and Midoriya… um… Deku! Right?"
"D-Deku?"
"Mhm. That's what that angry, loud guy kept screaming at you, right?"
Blushing further, he looked down and tried to explain with his hands as well as his voice.
"W-well, no, that's just… Kacchan being a bully. My real name's Izuku…"
"Oh, that's too bad. Deku just kind of sounded like a "you can do it!" sorta name."
Before he could think, the words: "Deku it is!" slipped from his mouth.
"Midoriya?!" Iida questioned, confused and alarmed.
While his new friends chattered, Izuku thought about his day and the changes that had happened in the short time of the school hours. It had been like a Copernican Revolution. He'd been able to prove himself against quirks and do relatively well, had his often derogatory nickname become some kind of term of endearment between him and a girl, and made it through his first day at U. A..
A thought struck him as they neared the station, and Deku tried to muddle through his difficulty speaking to Uraraka to ask her.
"Ura-ura-raka-san?"
"Yes, Deku?"
"Can you, um…" he trailed off and mumbled a little.
"What?" She asked, confused by his speaking and worried about his red face and timid demeanor.
"S-sorry, I just meant to ask… about your quirk."
"Sure, what about it?"
"Can you… float yourself? Kinda like I do?"
"Sometimes, but I don't very often. I get queasy really easy, and it's kinda rough on my body. Plus, if I did it outside it's kinda dangerous."
"Can't you slow yourself down?"
"Not really. You can't either, huh?"
Deku shook his head, trying to work in some way to explain his inexpertise with his quirk.
"Well, since mine's not the greatest right now, I just wondered if you had any tips, or… maybe you would know of some way we could train them together…"
He blushed frantically and looked away, missing Uraraka's similar red tinted face.
"Oh, I-"
"That sounds like an excellent idea, Midoriya!" Iida interjected. "But tell me, why do you need to train it outside of our classes? Surely the school will help us draw out the finer aspects of our abilities."
"Well, it's just that… I'm kinda not- it's not my- you see-" He babbled, trying to coalesce his thoughts. "I'm quirkless, but got a quirk just last week." He finally blurted.
"Quirkless?" Uraraka and Iida asked, their voices willed with confusion.
"O-or at least everyone thought I was!" He rectified quickly, hoping he hadn't ruined everything. "I never showed any signs of it until very recently, last week like I said! It was a big shock, and I was expecting to try getting into U.A. as the first quirkless student, but then it turned up like a miracle and now I'm kinda trying not to freak out because I need to learn to use it or Aizawa-sensei will kick me out and-"
Iida brought his arm slicing down through the air to almost literally cut through Deku's words, his palm halting just before his mouth.
"Midoriya. This is a most troubling development. I can see why you were hesitant and unable to properly word your problem. Please, forgive us for prying."
"N-no, it's okay. I'm the one who's babbling and… been useless for a lot of years."
"Just because you didn't have a quirk didn't make you useless, Deku! It just makes it even cooler that you could get in almost without powers!" Uraraka insisted.
"Uraraka is correct."
"That's nice of you to say." Deku mumbled, glancing up at them and smiling sadly.
His new friends watched him, their own smiles faltering as they saw how lowly he thought of himself. Iida began to put together the causes, though Uraraka remained oblivious.
"I guess it makes sense to train floating myself." Uraraka mused, tapping her chin. "We should ask to use the indoor gym after school some days, and figure out how, huh?"
Perking back up, Deku nodded and pulled out a fresh, pink notebook, revealing it was full of data on heroes that had flight or floatation as part of their characters. It was rather limited.
"Yeah! I've been reading up on similar quirks, and I think that there are some equipment options we can include, once we get our outfits."
Iida nodded slightly, and remained silent. He could have contributed to the conversation, but his new friend needed the lift of his fascination, and from the brief interaction: he also needed to become more comfortable around girls, specifically the one who he would need to spend time with.
As Deku and Uraraka began to discuss a training schedule and equipment they could requisition, and the two began to relax, Iida felt a hint of his internal logic spiral up. He kept it inside, but he wondered at Deku's opening up to Uraraka and the obvious connection they'd begun to form. He'd never been much of a shipper, but… well, sometimes things in life fit like puzzle pieces. Maybe some people did too.
Chapter 3: Volume 2, pt 1 The Return
The day after their evaluation, Izuku was in constant anticipation. He hadn't seen All Might since the entrance exam, and he wasn't really sure how his mentor felt about his new quirk. What if he'd heard about how Aisawa's test had gone and wasn't impressed with his student's failure? Izuku didn't know how to feel about it himself.
He tensed unconsciously when Uraraka and Iida tapped his shoulder at lunch, and said almost nothing both in and out of class. He was excited as anything to learn under pro heroes like Mic and even the lesser-known Lunch Rush, but with his worry hanging over him, it felt a little sullied.
His anxiety grew when All Might came in with his usual flare, like nothing was wrong. He barely registered that they'd be performing a mock-battle until the uniforms began to emerge from the wall. That's when his embarrassment kicked in.
His costume had been created by his mother, and while he loved her to bits, she'd done two things he really wished she hadn't. She'd added a pair of fairly thick "bunny ears" which were obvious homages to All Might's hair; additions he'd been planning to make more subtle and a little less effective as handholds for enemies. She'd also installed a parachute on the back, which was amazing, but he had no idea how to use or re-pack after using it.
Compared to the other costumes his classmates had, he felt significantly underprepared. Uraraka and Iida had amazing arrays of armor and cushion, which would make them all kinds of deadly. Even Bakugo had a deadly-looking pair of gauntlets. All Might's surreptitious cough was enough to measure his opinion on his outfit. It made Izuku feel very small.
"Ahem," coughed All Might, adjusting his stance, "The cleverest villains out there lurk indoors! You'll now be split into teams of two for our Two-onTwo indoor battles!"
The frog girl raised her hand and leaned forward, evidently with a question.
"So, no basic training?"
"Practical experience teaches you creativity and ingenuity!" All Might explained, "The major difference today is that rather than destroying robots, you'll be fighting one another."
A flurry of questions immediately arose in response to his announcements, and All Might was oddly slow to answer, pleading that his quirk was not super quickly did his best to summarize the test.
"The White Team will be the Invaders, and the Black Team the Defenders. Oftentimes, Heroes have to defend various objects or people from Villains on the hunt. This will be the task of the defenders. However, oftentimes Villains will play the quiet game, keeping their deadly weapons and personnel under lock and key, forcing the Heroes to go in after them. This will be the task of the invaders."
The students grew even more excited as All Might presented them with their lottery balls and explained the rules. Izuku accepted his white A-ball silently, barely noticing he'd been paired with Uraraka. That was, until she poked his shoulder and he jumped in abject terror.
"O-oh, sorry. What?"
Uraraka smiled, and his blush came back anyways.
"It looks like the gravity pair are together again!" she cheered, gesturing for him to follow her, "Come on, we're against team D, and we need to plan."
Leaning over her shoulder, she smiled at Iida and Bakugo, giving them a thumbs up alongside sticking her tongue at them. Iida returned the thumbs up, and Kacchan did the same for her insult. Izuku just looked at his shoes.
"So, what's our plan Mr. Mastermind?" she asked, sitting down outside the building as they prepared to assault it.
Izuku pulled out his notepad and considered. He looked back and forth between the blueprints and his datasheet on Bakugo. Uraraka evidently noticed his expression, and moved to kneel into the edge of his vision.
"Hey, you alive in there?"
Izuku sighed and nodded.
"Yeah, I just… I'm not sure how we're gonna win this one. I think I can beat Kacchan, maybe, but Iida's too powerful. Not to mention… I'm not really helpful in combat yet."
Uraraka pumped her fists in excitement.
"Of course you're helpful! You know all this cool stuff, and they don't know any of our secret moves!"
"Secret moves?" he asked, a bit confused.
"Yeah! You're gonna make us one!"
Izuku considered, before smiling and attaching his mask.
"Yeah. I think I've got just the thing."
Edging along the wall, Izuku felt the air change and dived forward, covering Uraraka as Bakugo launched around the corner: blasting the wall where they'd just been standing. Grinning grimly, Izuku stood and stared down his old friend. He trusted Uraraka to stick to the plan, and kept his back to her and his front to Kacchan.
"You always favored a strong opener!" he screamed, grabbing the gauntleted arm the next time it extended towards him.
He pulled and twisted, throwing his opponent over and down to the floor.
"But you were always predictable!"
Stepping back, he straightened and spoke as calmly as he could, but keeping the conviction in his voice.
"Opener right hook, quick burst to close the distance if they evade, and then you get desperate and start to panic. Heavy blasts, improvisation, and sometimes you'll even risk your own health. You're a berserker at heart, and berserkers always miss against faster opponents."
Bakugo took the bait, leaping and firing two blasts to get behind Izuku. The capture tape wasn't much, but it was enough to get his attention, nearly around his leg. The insults and the rules of the test overrid Bakugo's bloodlust, and he retreated, completely missing Uraraka and Izuku's separate retreats. He ran for the nearest window outlet, using stealth when he could; not to lose Bakugo, but to make him think he was trying to lose him.
Nearing the way to the open air, Izuku paused, waiting for his rival to catch up. He had to buy Uraraka time, but he also needed to pull off a quick escape. It was time to really piss him off, and that was never a safe option.
"There you are, you useless Deku!"
"You've called me that name for a long time," he whispered, counting down his estimated time in his head, "It's always meant I was your useless punching bag. But someone heard that name, and they didn't think it meant that. They said it meant "you can do it!" That's what my Deku means now."
Rounding on him, Deku placed his hand over his heart.
"My Deku means someone who does his best! No matter how strong you get, you'll never take that from me!"
The gambit worked, and Kacchan leveled his arm. But he didn't unleash his top blast. Instead, he pulled a pin hidden in his gauntlet's top. Deku sized up the device in an instant, and realized his plan would work even better this way, even if it meant he wouldn't do so with very much of himself left.
"Dodge right!" he screamed into his earpiece to Uraraka.
Deku leapt at his opponent, a sudden gust of wind propelling him as he tapped into something more than just adrenaline. He grabbed the arm, the hand directly in his face, and pushed it straight up. Kacchan's other arm swung to impact his now exposed form, only to catch fabric.
Pulling the string as he leapt, Deku had managed to extend the whole of his parachute without it having the air pressure to open, swinging the limp bundle into Kacchan's face in time to dodge. The blast which emerged from his gauntlet shook the entire building, ripping the parachute up through the now cratered center of the building, and yanking Deku along with it. The force bruised his body, and he let out a scream of pain as both the pull of the item and the heat of the explosion ravaged his body.
Grabbing his harness, Deku ripped it open and felt himself become weightless. He activated his quirk instinctively, praying to just stay in place. For a single instant, he stood in midair, a figure of demonic form shrouded in smoke, glaring at Iida. The armored warrior was frozen in shock for an instant too long, and by the time he managed to twist his body around to run: Uraraka had bounced off the safety of the far wall and impacted the mock-bomb.
Iida's over-acted "Noooo!" was lost as Deku plummeted, his control too weak to keep him suspended. His parachute was expended, and his ability failing him, he reached out for an exposed piece of rebar. He managed to catch the piece, but quickly released it as his weight and the heated metal sent a shock of new pain across his arm. However, the motion did manage to send him tumbling into other floors more slowly.
By the time he reached the floor above Kacchan, he'd slown enough to avoid killing himself, and stared down at the pissed and disbelieving face of his bully.
"I-I didn't think you could blast that hard…" he gasped out, catching the other's attention.
"I just… I just wanted to get to the floor above you and tangle you up for a second. But you got me all the way up. You really are amazing Kacchan."
The Bully seemed to become even more confused and infuriated at that."
"But I knew I had to try anyway. I can't control my quirk. I've never had the powers you do. That's why I'm here. That's why… why I had to beat you. I had to prove I'm worth it."
He didn't have any more words, or any longer before the blunt force took away his consciousness.
Deku managed to wake up and prove he was alive enough to receive grading, though All Might insisted he go directly to the Nurse afterwards. Uraraka and Iida were fawning over him, wondering how he was alive and praising his maneuver, but he simply smiled and shook his head.
"It was a move of desperation. It really wouldn't have worked if I didn't know how he thinks so well," he explained.
"Indeed!" All Might agreed, "In any other scenario, this plan would have ended in failure. In fact, the VIP of this scenario was, in fact: Iida here."
A few questions were raised about why, but the clever student who'd stood up for Izuku in the other exam jumped in.
"While everyone was watching Midoriya outwit Bakugo's brutish attacks, Iida was preparing as a good hero should. He carefully removed all possible methods for Uraraka to defeat him, and never left his target unguarded. While Midoriya manipulated his opponent at every turn, that was no feat. Uraraka relied almost entirely on his guidance, and had Bakugo not destroyed the entire path to the top: she would have been defeated long before Izuku could have joined her."
The entire class stood stunned. All Might coughed and continued on, praising her momentarily before moving on. However, while the rest of the class watched the next group begin, Izuku considered her words. He could have come up with a better plan, if he'd been less focused on proving himself to All Might and Kacchan.
Uraraka meanwhile seemed even more defeated. She thought back, and realized she was little more than a pawn. Anyone could have done what she did. Even one of the medical robots.
Without thinking, she followed Izuku in the stretcher, half-listening to the mobile television mounted for Izuku to continue watching as he healed up. By the time they reached Recovery Girl's office, they'd already reached the third match.
Sitting outside while he was treated, Uraraka wondered how she truly measured up to the others. Did she even belong at U.A.?
"Uraraka?" came a soft voice.
She looked up, noticing Izuku stumble out of the room, a series of bandages along the arms where he'd blocked the outer edge of the explosion. He sat next to her, wincing a little.
"You all better?" she asked, trying to sound casual.
"Yeah. A little tired though."
She smiled and prepared to leave.
"You know Yaoyorozu was wrong, right?'
"Huh?"
"You weren't just a puppet or anything dumb like that," he explained, "You held off Iida by yourself, despite him being ready for you. Bakugo couldn't do that, and he won the entrance exam. Sometimes the best skill is being able to rely on someone who has a better skill than you. I knew you could get in when I needed you and stay in the game long enough to win, and that let me focus on my part. You're really awesome. Thanks."
He bowed a little, and Uraraka blushed.
"Th-thank you, Deku. You're pretty great yourself."
The two headed back towards the main class, when Izuku paused in their discussion of how she'd fended off Iida.
"Wait a minute, did you need to get healed too?!"
"No, why?"
"W-well, why were you at Recovery girl's office then?"
Uraraka looked away and whistled casually.