At Testing Center B, Arturia sprinted towards Uraraka. No, sprinted was too mundane a verb to use in this situation. Arturia practically flew towards her pinned rival, desperately trying to beat out the Executor's grip. Her stomach growled as it burned the fuel she needed. Her breathing stayed sharp as her toes kicked off with every step. Her arms swung in rhythm to keep her speed. She ignored everything bothering her; her hunger, her muscles, and the phantom grip on her bicep, trying to hold her back.
This was the day she had been waiting for. The day where she wouldn't be held back from danger.
She wasn't alone in her urgency. Midoriya had caught up right behind her, electrifying the air as he kept pace. Arturia only allowed a small part of her to be stunned at this development. Neither Shirou nor Miyu had known anything about Midoriya's Quirk, so Arturia assumed it was some niche ability. Not an ability that would have scared off those thugs if he had used it. Not a power that could keep up with her.
...Not a Quirk that was giving her a strange sense of familiarity.
The Executor was upon Uraraka, there was no more time to worry about these things. Arturia put everything she could into her next next step, practically throwing herself in front of the Executor's hand. Her left arm slammed into the metal machine's palm, crumpling it so it couldn't deploy the Fulton system. Arturia planted her feet right next to the rubble heap covering Uraraka, continuing to hold it at bay.
The gravity girl gasped, but Arturia couldn't afford to stop and give her a comforting smile. This giant needed to be stopped. Arturia pulled slightly back and threw her arms to block the fingers that tried to grasp her. The Executor tried to tighten its grip, its metallic fingers groaning. Arturia growled back, before she flipped her arms and grabbed the phalanges of the faux villain before her. She twisted them clockwise, snapping the hand of the Executor off. The machine giant howled, as the shoulder mounted weapons activated to open fire.
"Midoriya!" Arturia called out, readying the torn hand to be used as a shield. She had planned to tell him to grab the rubble off of Uraraka then retreat with her, while she would cover their escape. But then the green bolt slid next to her, crouched low to the ground, like a coiled spring.
Arturia's and Midoriya's eyes locked for a brief second, before Midoriya kicked off, leaping up, up, and away. A bolt of red power trailed after, and as his right arm rocked back, his sleeve tore to reveal that power racing through his body.
Midoriya roared out, not in pain, not in panic, but in power. Arturia froze, as she watched the green bullet shoot forward. She had seen that stance before. Several times. On video and in person. During demonstrations and in the field. Arturia recalled who it was that called her father to save Miyu and Midoriya, and it all clicked. All-Might...
How many times has a child watched their parent to emulate them? How many times has that child tried to be like that parent, only to fall and hurt themselves? How many times does that child get back up, chasing after the image of their parent in their own mind?
You are breaking yourself to follow your father...
Just like I am with my mother.
I know I shouldn't even be here.
Shirou knew the weight of the sins he bore. They began when he failed to follow through on using Miyu as a sacrifice. Then he had let Sakura sacrifice herself, just so he could tear through the Holy Grail War. He then used the Holy Grail to send Miyu away, condemning every single man, woman, and child to die in the old world. Julian had been right. Shirou was a villain.
Izuku knew that he was worthless. Ever since his diagnosis, ever since he heard that doctor tell him that getting a Quirk was never going to happen, he was aware of his frail body. He was aware that he would never have the talent or ability to become a hero. All-Might wasn't lying when he said that without a Quirk, he couldn't be a hero. Kacchan was right. Izuku was worthless.
I know I shouldn't be trying to fight this thing.
Shirou swung Naegling over his shoulder. The two parries he had just done had already overwhelmed the Noble Phantasm. That was to be expected, he had rushed out the Projection, so it was sloppier than it should have been. He had to draw Miyu's power to make it in time. Shirou had only one shot to take out this thing.
Izuku flew up into the air. His mind only barely recognized that he had broken his legs leaping into the air, and his arm was going to be next. The body he had spent months in All-Might's hell for wasn't strong enough to bear the weight of One for All. Izuku had only one shot to take down this thing.
When I saw her in need, though, I had to act.
Shirou knew this wasn't the Holy Grail War. He knew this wasn't Sakura. He knew this was fake. But when he saw that snake-haired girl getting ripped back by that grappling hook, it was too familiar. It was too damn similar. He wasn't going to stand by again, simulation be damned. Shirou Emiya had to defeat his past.
Izuku knew this was a simulation. This wasn't like the Slime Villain nor the Trigger Gang. Miss Uraraka would ultimately be safe no matter what he did. U.A. wouldn't let her come to harm. Yet, when he saw the panic in her eyes, the same panic that was in Kacchan's and Miyu's eyes on those days, he wasn't going to stay still. Not this time. Izuku Midoriya had to defeat his past.
I won't hold back any more!
Shirou fired up every single magic circuit he had, pouring everything he had into Reinforcing his body, then pouring the magical energy into his Noble Phantasm, "Naegling..." he began, the words dripping from his mouth. The red veins in the hunk of metal began to glow, the battle lust of the sword of Beowulf growing. "Iron Hammer Snake..." Shirou Emiya continued, shifting his foot forward, readying his aim at the Executor.
Izuku took the accumulated power of One for All, and channeled it through his nerves and muscles to his right arm. "Houston..." He winced as stars burst across his vision, his head throbbing at the heat and pain. There was no time to consider anything else. "Texas..." Izuku Midoriya growled as his flight arrived right before the Executor's faceplate.
I'm going to go beyond!
Shirou thought of everyone who had sacrificed for him to be here. Kiritsugu, Sakura, Miyu, Midoriya, Aozaki, Gawain, Lance, Kay, and Arturia. If he was given this new chance, then he would make sure their efforts weren't in vain. Shirou Emiya would ensure that their efforts meant something.
Izuku thought of everyone who he wanted to stand alongside. All-Might, his mom, his dad, Emiya, Yaoyorozu, Miss Pendragon, Miss Uraraka, even Iida and Kacchan. He had been incredibly lucky to even be here alongside them. Izuku Midoriya wasn't going to let them down.
I'm going to be a hero of justice!
Shirou Emiya growled out as he threw the Broken Phantasm. It sailed through the air, twisting through the air and carved right into the chest cavity of the Executor. Naegling detonated, causing metal to shriek, and smoke to billow out.
Izuku Midoriya howled as he threw his punch, the impact caving in the head of the Executor. It slammed back, then busted off, careening behind the Executor's body.
"SMASH!"
Nezu leapt to his feet, cheering at the display. It showed both Shirou Emiya's and Izuku Midoriya's destruction of their respective Executors. He threw his hands up into the air, releasing a cry of excitement. His celebration echoed alone around the stunned room, as the rest of his faculty stood stunned at the display. Even Young Toshinori was stunned, clearly expecting Young Midoriya's efforts, but not Young Emiya's.
Nezu didn't blame them. After all, the Executors was on loan from the Hero Public Safety Commission, purchased by the national government from I-Island for special use cases like villain outbreaks and disaster relief. There were about 5% of the defence budget a piece... and these two applicants had obliterated them without a second thought.
How Nezu loved seeing his future students surpass expectations. And in sync, too! It was interesting that both Izuku Midoriya and Shirou Emiya had operated in the same manner. Nezu had expected such a showing from the new wielder of One for All, but for this dark horse to show the same kind of grit and passion for heroics... Nezu had to learn more.
Finally, one of the staff finally spoke up. It was Aizawa, here to bring the mood down, as his role was, "I would hold off on any celebrations yet, Principal Nezu. There's the gravity of the situation."
Oh, that was a fun pun. Gravity, like the fact that Young Midoriya was about to fall splat to the ground and the Executor of Testing Center C was about to keel over onto the three applicants that stood against it. Nezu would have to remember this for later.
Aizawa started to call in the Steel Legion, a division of faux hero bots that acted as an emergency response team. Made in collaboration between Stark Industries and Krypton Inc., their role was to remain on standby in case someone would actually get hurt. Nezu appreciated their efforts where needed, but he shut down Aizawa's attempt. The Erasure Hero snapped a look back to the principal.
Nezu simply took a sip from his tea, "Let's not rob the other students of their moment to shine," he smiled as the possibilities flashed through his mind, "The surprises aren't over."
At Testing Center B, Arturia stared as the Executor leaned backwards, ready to topple over. Then she snapped her head up to where Midoriya was, high up in the sky. Midoriya's body had rotated with his punch, and now he started to plummet back towards the earth. Someone needed to catch him, now.
Arturia ripped the debris off of Uraraka, a desperate plan coming to mind. "Are you alright?" Arturia skipped the pleasantries, time being of the essence. Uraraka seemed to be on the same page, as her response was not of her condition.
"Midoriya!" Uraraka called out, clearly worried for their fellow applicant. She scrambled up, then stopped as Arturia grabbed each of Uraraka's biceps. The gravity girl looked the blond lioness in the eye, and Arturia mustered all of her confidence in that singular moment.
"Catch him." With those two words, Arturia swung Uraraka around, firing Atmo Burst up at full power. Arturia would only be able to do three more big surges. That's fine, that's all she needed.
For the first surge, Arturia glanced behind her shoulder, locked onto where Midoriya was falling, calculated the distance, then threw Uraraka like a fast ball. Uraraka was quick to catch on, slapping her hands onto her head to make herself weightless. She then hurtled through the air after the falling green hero.
Arturia continued her spin, landing into a sprinter's crouch. She took a deep breath, and shoved her hunger down. She poured all of the power she could into her two legs, as if she was about to race Tenya and Tensei again.
Up, up, and away.
With those simple words, she took off with her second surge of power. Racing against time, her efforts had her falling into the sky. Chasing after the gravity girl and the green bolt in the sky.
At Testing Center C, Fumikage could only let loose a low squawk at the sight before him. He had planned to make one final stand against the Executor alongside the snake-haired woman, only for that redhead archer to swoop in front of them and absolutely devastate the massive faux villain nearly on his own. Dark Shadow was also in shock, having hyper-fixated on that weapon he had used. That giant sword that acted like a club.
The metallic husk let loose a low groan, and suddenly Fumikage realized they had a problem. The Executor had taken the blow straight into the chest, but while it was a killing blow... it wasn't a piercing blow. The redhead archer hadn't used enough power to knock the Executor back...
...So it was going to fall forwards. Onto everyone here. A group that was already worn out from fighting the faux villains since the start of the test, then this misadventure had happened. The redhead archer slumped to the ground, holding the arm that had thrown the giant-slaying projectile. Gold sparks flew off of the arm, and Fumikage belatedly noted that the arm had more tan on it than it did before.
"Cover!" Fumikage called out, as he rushed over to the fallen redhead. The shadow falling over the group felt good to Fumikage and Dark Shadow, but it wouldn't be enough. The group didn't have the energy to escape the falling titan, but if they got Dark Shadow to peak condition...
The snake-haired woman threw a spiked chain at the broken finger and jerked over to the group, holding it over Fumikage and the redhead. With this much darkness, it might be enough. Fumikage pulled his red choker off his neck, and just before the Executor crashed down, he belted out two words to save the group.
"DARK SHADOW!"
High in the sky, Izuku felt surprisingly numb, at least physically. Then again, his legs were busted from chasing after Miss Pendragon, then leaping up to smash the Executor's face off. That action had also broken his arm in at least three different places. His spine still emitted that strange heat from One for All, but it had tapered off thankfully. But other than that heat and the chill of the rushing wind, he physically felt nothing.
Which is why his full brain was devoted to sheer panic. He was falling multiple stories in the air. He only had his left arm left, and there was no plan he could come up with to stop the fall without hurting himself further. Izuku was facing the possibility of not only failing this test, failing All-Might, but letting his entire body completely shatter from using this power wrong.
You may have molded your body into a proper vessel, but you did it in a hurry, so be careful. The physical backlash can be... intense.
All-Might's warning rang true for Izuku, but there was nothing he could do now about it. One for All failed to respond until that moment, when Miss Pendragon was passing him, in which it overwhelmed his body. One for All seemed to have activated with the same instinct that had caused Izuku to rush for Kacchan almost a year ago, or to race Miyu away from those thugs. That power had allowed him to rush forward and help save Miss Uraraka, but he wasn't a Pro Hero yet. He was barely a sidekick!
Izuku grimaced, then decided to pull his left arm back anyways. There's no shot of Izuku getting any points in this exam anyways. Right now, he needs to save his own body. Not for himself, but so he could give One for All back to All-Might. Let the Number 1 hero find someone who could actually handle this power. Someone like Emiya, Miss Pendragon, or...
Smack
Izuku's face suddenly stung, as it jerked back from a slap that came out of nowhere. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Miss Uraraka there, flying right past him. She must have used her Zero Gravity Quirk to somehow catch up to him. She was reaching out for him still, even as she started to speed away the other direction. She tried to catch him again, but Izuku was out of her reach...
...Until he shot his own hand forward, catching her hand. Izuku got pulled into her direction, as they tumbled through the air, gravity releasing its hold on them. Green and Pink twirled through the air, floating up to the heavens.
Miss Uraraka pulled Izuku closer to her as they continued to spiral, "Easy there, I gotcha!" She called out, putting on a cheerful grimace. Her face was flushed, and she sounded nauseous, but she still kept pushing forward. She really is an angel.
"You, you got me!" Izuku replied, tears stinging his eyes as he felt woozy from the spinning, "Wait, who's got you!?" Miss Uraraka's hesitant chuckle did little to assuage Izuku of his fears. He really didn't want Miss Uraraka to hurt herself trying to save him.
Miss Uraraka suddenly gasped, as she kept turning her head to look back where they had been. "There!" she called out, just as Izuku spotted what she had found. It was Miss Pendragon, racing up the side of the building that had been beside where Miss Uraraka had been trapped. Izuku was stunned, seeing her sprint into the sky.
She has full control of her power... so cool.
Right before the last story of the building, Miss Pendragon spun in mid air, landing on top of the destroyed roof. She sprung off of it, flying right towards Miss Uraraka and Izuku. She held her hands out, and the two realized what she needed them to do, right now.
Izuku pushed off of Miss Uraraka, his left hand against her right hand, as they used the air resistance to slow down their spinning. They managed to stop just as Miss Pendragon flew past them, catching Izuku with her left hand and Miss Uraraka with her right.
"Hang on," Miss Pendragon called out, as Izuku and Miss Uraraka were weighed down by the lioness' attachment to gravity. They coasted down to the ground, Miss Pendragon occasionally kicking to orient their free fall. Izuku suddenly realized that he could hear Present Mic scream out some numbers, but he struggled to put together the meaning.
Once they landed on the ground, Miss Uraraka tapped her fingers together, and the two had gravity again. She slipped out of Miss Pendragon's hands, and immediately vomited. Izuku also escaped Miss Pendragon's hands, though she tried to catch him as he fell to the earth as a heap of bones and flesh.
It's fine, he still had his left arm, Izuku could try and quickly destroy some faux villains for some points. He could still make it! He could still pass this test, and enter U.A., and live up to what All-Might and the others had believed in him! He could do it! All he needed was...
"AND THAT'S IT, TIME'S UP! THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING!" Present Mic belted out at the top of his lungs. He continued to give more directions, but Izuku stopped dead in his tracks. Zero points. He hadn't defeated a single faux villain across the board. Just the Executor, the one that wasn't worth anything.
Just like him. Just like useless, worthless Deku.
Overwhelmed by the stress and the adrenaline leaving his body, Izuku let a low whimper out, then passed out.
Shirou grimaced as his arm flared up in pain again, but that was just a reminder that he was, somehow, alive. The nearby environment was completely enshrouded in darkness, and he couldn't even tell who or what was around him.
"Is everyone alright?" Two yellow eyes peered out suddenly, sweeping the environment until it locked gazes with Shirou. The Faker nodded, slowly, trying to understand what kind of abyss was staring back at him. The two eyes bopped, imitating a nod, then turned to look another way.
"The redhead archer guy is safe, how about you, snake-haired woman?" Shirou turned to look in the same direction, and found the violet-haired woman. She was illuminating her own corner with the glowing ruby eyes of the snakes she made with the strands of her own hair. Now that Shirou's head was a bit more clear, the snake-hair obviously evoked a certain myth he had fought before.
"I'm fine, and don't call me snake-haired woman," the violet-haired woman growled out, as she pulled her cracked sunglasses off, smashed them, then pulled another set from the inside of her hoodie. Shirou raised an eyebrow. Sunglasses in the dark was an odd choice, but very clearly a deliberate one.
"Apologies, Dark Shadow isn't known for her tact," a dark, brooding voice called out. One that Shirou recognized, from earlier in the day. He turned to see that it was the guy with the crow-like head, bathed in the red light of the snake eyes. Shirou had seen him when the other two had paired up. Funny how things worked out. The Faker was drawn from his musing when the crow guy introduced himself, "I am Fumikage Tokoyami."
"Shirou Emiya," the redhead introduced himself, "I'm guessing that we aren't pancakes because of you and Dark Shadow?" Tokoyami turned to him, slightly startled, then nodded. Dark Shadow's eyes went up and down again, making affirmative noises. Shirou nodded, "Thank you for that."
The violet-haired woman took a deep breath, her snakes melting back into a shorter haircut, then responded as well, "Thank you as well, for having my back during that last stretch of the exam, Tokoyami." She then turned to Shirou, "I'm... I'm appreciative of your efforts as well, Emiya. Truly, if the rescue was done in good faith, then I must thank you for saving us." Her expression was softer than when she had chewed the redhead out for staring at her. That surprised the redhead.
Shirou rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, before he replied, a hint of snark slipping out. "It was done because I am a reckless idiot who overreacts," the ex-villain then softened his tone, "Still, don't thank me for saving anyone yet. We're still here in the... are we under the Executor?"
"Technically, we're in the cavity you blew out," Tokoyami chimed in, "Once Dark Shadow was able to drink in the darkness, she was able to shield us and move us into the safest position." Dark Shadow's eyes took on a vaguely smug shape in the darkness, before Tokoyami continued, "Dark Shadow, let's see if we can finish the hole Emiya so kindly started for us."
"Sure thing!" Dark Shadow called out, then raced to the top of the cavity. She started ripping things aside, dropping a few scraps down below her. Shirou and the violet haired woman hugged to the cover they were under, giving each other concerned looks. Tokoyami seemed more confident in his spectral companion, as he stood more casually underneath the developing cave in.
Ironically, it was Dark Shadow who would end up regretting the reckless way she was carving out the Executor. The second she broke through to the open sky, she immediately hissed as sunlight washed over her, "AH, THE HIDEOUS LIGHT OF THE DAY STAR!" Dark Shadow immediately retreated back to Tokoyami, who then moved back into a shaded spot to perch. Shirou and the violet-haired woman shared a glance. Curious.
Shirou then decided to step forward, looking up to see if it would be safe to climb up across the layers of sparking circuitry. After a minute, the violet haired woman moved to stand beside him to examine the new skylight herself. "I don't suppose you could make us a grappling hook?" she remarked, giving Shirou a side eye glance, "I'm kind of out of hair to use."
She wasn't wrong. Where before, her hair had been long, past her waist, it now struggled to reach her shoulders. Though, this hair style still rang a bell of familiarity for Shirou, but it wasn't of Sakura anymore. No... Shirou had far distant memories of a woman spinning keys around and asking why he didn't smile. Was this violet-haired woman an analog of someone he knew back in Fuyuki? Or was she triggering EMIYA's recollections?
Shirou turned his focus back up to the path upwards, assessing the situation, "I can try to get a grappling hook up to the top so we can climb out, but I'm worried about all of that sparking." He grimaced, "I don't want any of us to get shocked and fall all the way back down here, but I don't think I have anything in stock to insulate us."
"Hmm, so there are limits to what you can make," The violet haired woman mused, "Guess you don't have any good books you can make while we wait?"
Shirou shook his head, chuckling, "No, unfortunately for this case, I'm a library of blades, not of literature. If you need something stabbed or slashed, I'm your guy," he started to turn around, looking for any more clues to this situation, "I'm even handy in fixing some stuff, but this is... a bit more complicated than my usual fixes."
The violet-haired woman nodded, "Welp, I guess we're stuck here unless we want to risk getting electrocuted." As if a switch was flipped, the sparking stopped. The three teens stopped to look at each other, confirming that no one had done anything. Shirou decided to put his hand on the wreckage, moving it deeper in to find a solid spot. Once he found a spot on the moving frame, he cast Structural Analysis to figure out the situation.
Shirou's hand was still numb from his magic circuits connecting to EMIYA's Reality Marble, and the jolt of using Od was sharper than usual. Even so, he got the info that he needed, "Well, that's convenient," Shirou let out a breath laced with a wince as he turned back to the group, "My Quirk can read the history of weapons, so I managed to get a diagnostic report. These guys begin their shutdown processes at the end of the test. This thing just finished, so we should be good to start climbing."
Tokoyami, Dark Shadow, and the violet-haired woman weren't as thrilled as Shirou had expected them. They stared at him with wide eyes, the violet-haired woman covering her nose with her hand. Tokoyami was the first to recover, "Did you just... burn your hand to read that history?"
Shirou stared back at the bird-like boy in confusion, before he glanced down at his own palm. It was raw-red and slightly blistering. A first degree burn. He hadn't noticed because of the nerve issue. Shirou would need to get that checked out.
"I'm fine, it doesn't matter anyways. If we're going to get out, I need to make the grappling hook." Shirou stepped forward, but suddenly Dark Shadow moved right into his face.
"Dude, we could hear you sizzling your hand from here, didn't you feel that?" the spectral being interrogated, causing Shirou to step back, blinking in surprise. Dark Shadow blinked back, "Wait, hold on, you actually didn't?" she asked, grabbing at Shirou's hand to look it over.
"I... can lose feeling in my nerves if I go overboard with my Projections. I'll be fine, at most it'll be a few days of recovery," Shirou replied testily, jerking his hand back, "I'll go ahead and..."
"No, that's not happening," The violet-haired woman retorted, "Nerve damage isn't something to mess around with, especially if you couldn't tell that your hand was becoming burnt meat." Tokoyami nodded in agreement, as Dark Shadow returned to perching over his shoulder.
The violet-haired woman wrinkled her nose, shaking her head further, "If you've already hurt yourself this bad, we can figure out another way to get out of here." She turned her gaze toward Tokoyami and, more specifically, Dark Shadow, "Can you carry us out of here?"
"I would LOVE to, but the Sun is my mortal enemy," Dark Shadow replied, crossing her arms, "I used up as much juice as Fumi would let me to get everyone to the cavity. If I tried to carry everyone up now, I'd end up dissipating back into Fumi's shadow, dropping all of you to your deaths."
"More likely just some broken bones," Tokoyami mused, shooting Dark Shadow a Look before returning his gaze to Shirou and the violet-haired woman, "But the point remains. We're stuck down here until we get help."
"Who knows if anyone is going to come help?" Shirou snapped back, "What, do you really expect someone to just pop their head in and ask if we need help getting out of there?" The group glanced at each other, trying to figure out if anyone had a better option. But between Tokoyami's sunlight issues, the unnamed woman's short hair, and Shirou's own nerve damage, it didn't seem likely that they could get out now.
"HEY GUYS! DO YOU NEED HELP GETTING OUT OF THERE!?" A voice called down them from above. Shirou frowned, as the group looked up to see a young man with sharp teeth and long black hair waving to them. He wore a red shirt, and was waving to them, "I DIDN'T THINK ANYONE COULD SURVIVE GETTING ONE OF THESE THINGS DROPPED ON THEM EXCEPT ME! YOU GUYS ARE PRETTY MANLY!"
Tokoyami and the violet-haired woman stared triumphantly at Shirou, who sighed and shrugged. At least they had a way out of here. Shirou tilted his head back and shouted out, "WE COULD USE SOME HELP. THE FULTON EXTRACTION SYSTEM HAS BEEN SHATTERED. FIND THE GRAPPLING SPOOL IN THE RIGHT HAND, IT'S STILL INTACT!" The shark-tooth youth yelled back an affirmative and took off running.
Shirou ignored the smug looks from the others, focusing instead on taking a mental inventory of his own body. It was utterly frustrating that Tracing Dyrnwyn the night before and Naegling now had done this much damage to his own body. He couldn't even blame the exam, as it had been much, much less stressful than the Holy Grail War had been. Yet he could only manage two Noble Phantasms, that weren't Bakuya and Kanshou, before he couldn't Trace anything.
...But that's what he got for Tracing directly from EMIYA's Unlimited Blade Works. Dynwyrn had been slow and deliberate, intentional in every step, so the effects were decently limited. It was just like doing a highly intense dead lift at the gym. Straining, but not damaging.
Naegling, on the other hand, had been fast and sloppy, completely done on instinct to protect the others. Without the Class Card to serve as a modicum of a filter, Shirou continued to risk EMIYA's invasion within his own nerves and magic circuits, turning him closer and closer to the Counter-Guardian. That could be bad. Really, really bad.
The shark-tooth youth arrived with the grappling hook, tearing Shirou out of his thoughts. "HERE YOU ARE!" the youth called out as he tossed the hook down. It landed with a thunk, and as the group stared at it, the youth continued, "I GOT SOME MANLY STRENGTH, SO I CAN PULL YOU OUT ONE AT A TIME! DOES THAT WORK!?"
"IT SHOULD, THANKS!" Shirou turned to call back up, then turned to the other two, "Ladies first?" he asked, glancing between the violet-haired woman and the bird duo. Fumikage and Dark Shadow nodded, retreating back into the shade of the wreckage.
"Agreed, we could use the rest in the shadows for a bit," Tokoyami intoned, "Dark Shadow can serve as a cushion in case something does go wrong."
After a second, the violet-haired woman agreed, then stepped onto the hook. The shark-tooth youth started to pull the violet-haired woman, while Shirou took a seat across from Tokoyami. They were silent for a moment, before Dark Shadow curled up onto Tokoyami's shoulders.
"So, you said earlier that you are a library of swords, right, Mister Emiya?" Dark Shadow asked, strangely polite after the brash way she had been speaking earlier. Shirou stared at her for a second, then nodded. Dark Shadow continued, "So, if you don't mind me asking, how does that all work?"
Shirou shrugged, "My Quirk allows me to add stuff to an arsenal that I can pull out Projections of when I need. Most of the stuff fades away, but I can keep swords and the like around indefinitely." That was the official story regarding his Quirk, and he didn't mind sharing it here. Though, Kiritsugu would have been aghast at Shirou revealing his own abilities. Oh well.
"So, how many swords are we talking about here?" Dark Shadow twirled her hand around, Tokoyami staring at his spectral companion in confusion. "Because Fumi here adores swords too, so I had to satiate his curiosity." At being outed like this, Tokoyami clamped his hand around Dark Shadow's beak, before making a grimace.
"I apologize, I don't think that question was appropriate to ask."
Shirou shook his head, "No, it's more than fine. I have... a lot of swords," Unlimited in fact, "So if you name a type, I probably got a few or so. I'm more than willing to make them another day for you to spar with, as long as you promise to be careful."
Tokoyami seemed taken aback by this, letting go of Dark Shadow's beak, "I... see. That's very kind of you. Maybe if we end up in U.A. together, I could take you up on that during some training periods."
The grappling hook landed back down on the ground, indicating that the violet-haired woman made it to the top. Shirou stood up, brushing the dust and debris from his pants before stepping over to it. "If that's what makes you feel comfortable, but I wouldn't mind meeting up outside of class to spar with my swords," Shirou remarked, "I have a friend who would love having a new sparring partner."
"I'll... consider that," Fumikage replied, the uncertainty in his voice laced with something. Wistfulness? Regardless, Shirou didn't have time to consider it further, as he was pulled up to the top of the Executor's corpse. It only took a few minutes, before the shark-toothed youth was able to reach his hand out to Shirou's and pull him out.
"Here you are, now one more to go," the youth cast the grappling hook back down into the hole, peering over it to ensure that Tokoyami could get onto the hook carefully, "The name's Eijiro Kirishima!"
"Shirou Emiya," the redhead introduced himself, before glancing over to the violet-haired woman who still stood around, waiting for something. Come to think of it, she hadn't introduced her name before, but maybe it slipped her mind.
Before Shirou could deliberate if he should ask the violet-haired woman for her name, the moment vanished. As he started pulling Tokoyami up, Kirishima started some small talk, "So, Mister Emiya, I've heard that you were the one who took out this Zero-Pointer, eh? That's pretty manly, if you ask me."
Shirou grunted in response, "It was reckless more than anything. I overreacted and dropped this monster right on top of us. If it wasn't for Tokoyami, we'd have been crushed into paste." Kirishima winced at that expression.
"Oh man, it's a good thing you had this Tokoyami guy with you then," Kirishima took a second to adjust his grip, before continuing to pull up the last member of their impromptu group. "So... Why did you do it, if you thought it was so reckless?"
Shirou stood silent for a second, internally debating how to answer that loaded question. Before he could, however, the violet-haired woman spoke up, "He was setting things right." Kirishima glanced over to her, still slowly pulling up Tokoyami.
The violet-haired woman continued, "Emiya had... unintentionally offended me, but he apologized, and I believe I understand him a bit better now. Besides, he not only helped Tokoyami and I with taking down the Executor, he also gave us cover fire during that last stretch." She turned to meet Shirou's questioning gaze, her eyes still shielded by her pair of dark violet-tinted sunglasses, "If we can let the past rest, I'm sure we can get along in the future."
Shirou snorted, picking up on her meaning, "I'm not sure I can let the past go as easily as that, but..." Shirou bowed his head, "I'll be sure to keep it from interfering in our interactions in the future."
"I can understand that. It's an acceptable compromise," the violet-haired woman gave a small smirk, "Well, then, I suppose we should have a new start then. I am... Ayako Mitsuzuri. Let's try to get along, Mister Emiya."
"Of course, Miss Mitsuzuri," Shirou replied, those distant memories once again trying to rise to the top of his mind. He shunted them down. Shirou had promised that he wouldn't let the past interfere here, neither his nor EMIYA's. Shirou did, however, allow himself to use his usual social approach, "If you need anything, you can ask."
"Hmm, well, if I need my bow restrung, I might take you up on that," Mitsuzuri remarked, before pivoting to head down the Executor's corpse, "I'll be leaving now, I got to meet up with my friend for lunch."
"Farewell," Shirou remarked as Mitsuzuri took off. The redhead turned to see Tokoyami, Dark Shadow, and Kirishima giving questioning looks. Shirou frowned, "What?"
Kirishima just shook his head, chuckling, "Man, she blew me off when I asked her name earlier." Kirishima gave a thumbs up, "Whatever you did to get her to open up like that, I need to take some notes from you on how to be manly."
Shirou shook his head, "Trust me... I'm not a really good role model. Besides, you did us a favor here by pulling us all up." Shirou gave a once over on Kirishima, realizing he needed to ask, "Are you alright? Pulling us up so soon after the exam must have taken a lot out of you."
"Oh yeah, totally! I'm a pretty tough guy," Kirishima raised his arm up, flexing his bicep... and turning into rock. Shirou blinked in curiosity, setting Kirishima's pun aside. A Reinforcement-type Quirk? That's interesting. Kirishima continued in that cheerful attitude of his, "So pulling up all of you was a nice end to this exam."
Then Kirishima's stomach started to growl, causing the shark-tooth youth to chuckle and rub the back of his head, "I am starving though, so I'm going to follow her example and meet up with a friend for lunch. Later!" Kirishima jumped off the metal scrap pile, leaving just Shirou and Tokoyami. As well as Dark Shadow, of course.
Shirou took a deep breath, "Yeah, food sounds good, as well as getting this checked out," he glanced back down at his burnt hand, grimacing. He then turned to the crow-like youth beside him, "Do you have any friends you were planning on having lunch with?"
Tokoyami shrugged, "Not particularly, Dark Shadow and I are accustomed to having lunch by ourselves." Dark Shadow perched over her corporal companion, giving a what can you do sort of gesture.
Shirou cracked his neck, rolling an idea around in his head. He then spoke up, "Well, if you would like, you could join my group," Tokoyami blinked at Shirou's offer, but the redhead continued, "I'll warn you now it's probably going to be a big group, knowing Arturia, but if you want a seat at the table, it's yours."
Tokoyami and Dark Shadow gave each other silent looks, clearly communicating, before Tokoyami turned back to face Shirou, "I think we'll take you up on that offer, Mister Emiya." Shirou nodded at that, and the two headed out to the lockers to wash up and change before lunch. All the while there, they talked about a wide variety of swords and blades.
Tenya Iida turned around another corner, struggling to keep himself upright, then ran forward, keeping his eyes searching. Thankfully, he finally found his intended target, so after a few more strides, the youngest son of the Iida family threw himself into a slide to stop right beside his kneeling blonde friend. "Miss Arturia, are you and everyone else alright?" Tenya asked, trying to mimic how his older brother Tensei would ask such a question.
"Oh, hey Tenya," Arturia responded, "I'm alright. Miss Uraraka is currently dry heaving over there," she pointed a few paces away, where Tenya could see the floating girl from before emptying her stomach into the remnants of a scrapped Imperial. Arturia turned back to the other candidate, who she was checking the vital signs of, "And Mister Midoriya here broke three of his limbs."
Tenya blinked. Midoriya. This was the plain green boy Tenya had saved earlier, before chewing him out for messing around. Tenya hadn't thought much of the boy when they had gone their separate ways, thinking that the green-haired boy was just some hero fanboy who had gotten in over his head.
That expectation had been smashed to smithereens alongside the Executor. Tenya had chosen to... make a tactical retreat, not seeing the value of trying to engage with such an overwhelming force over an important test. It was the smart thing to do... At least, that's how he rationalized it to himself.
But when he had felt Miss Arturia pull on the full power of her Atmo Burst, he had turned to see what had happened. Both Miss Arturia and this young man had risked everything to save that girl...
...If this wasn't a test, then of course... of course I would have helped!
Tenya decided to shove his guilt aside, focusing on the problem ahead, "Miss Arturia, I would like to know your expertise on the subject. Mister Midoriya's Quirk seems to be similar to yours. Have you ever ended up in a case like this before?" Tenya asked, tilting his head. Arturia sighed as she stood up and cracked her neck.
"When I was a kid, yeah. I'd hyperextend my arms or legs and snap them. That was awful," Arturia released a breath of exasperation, clearly remembering times when her various limbs were in casts. Arturia turned to Tenya, "Probably no different from when you ran face first into walls when you were younger."
Tenya pursed his lips. Arturia wasn't wrong, per se, but now wasn't the time for bringing up the past for teasing, "I see. Then what do you think caused Midoriya here to break his limbs? Shouldn't he have had full control of his power if he was going to participate in this exam?"
Arturia frowned, then glanced at Miss Uraraka, who was laying down next to the fallen Imperial, groaning. Then Arturia grabbed Tenya and pulled him around so that neither of them were facing the other two. Tenya yelped, but didn't fight against the movement, "What is it, Miss Arturia?" he asked, keeping his voice low.
Arturia clenched her left bicep with her right hand and covered her mouth with her left, "I... have a crazy theory. What do you remember about the Emiyas?"
Tenya frowned at the non-sequitor, "The two siblings staying with your family? Weren't they attacked at Takoba Beach before they were saved by your father, alongside Hawks and..." Tenya froze, as he saw where Arturia was taking her theory, "Wait, are you really saying that..."
"I think Midoriya is All-Might's secret love child? Yeah, I am," Arturia replied, lightly gesturing with her left hand, "Midoriya was actually the one who saved Miyu. He took Miyu off to safety while Shirou fought off the thugs. Next thing we know, All-Might puts out an emergency bulletin to call out for every hero in the area, like my dad and Hawks."
Tenya couldn't lie, that call was suspicious. Arturia started nodding along with her theory, "Combine that with the fact Midoriya didn't use his Quirk at the park, but did so here, at the entrance exam to All-Might's own Alma Mater..." Arturia left her speculation hanging in the air, confident in her deduction.
Tenya couldn't be as sure as she was, however, "Even if Midoriya was intentionally hiding that his Quirk was reminiscent of All-Might's, which it admittedly is... that doesn't answer why he broke all of his limbs in taking down that Executor. Wouldn't the Number 1 Pro Hero have taught his son how to use his Quirk?"
Arturia grimaced, "Yeah, I'm still working that out. My current theory is that All-Might only learned about Midoriya recently, and has been trying to catch up his training," Arturia shook her head, "I'm not sure if you saw it, Tenya, but Midoriya moved like All-Might when he smashed the Executor's head off. The same way you run like Tensei sometimes and I..."
Tenya recognized why Arturia cut herself off. He chose to pick up the conversation, "Maybe you are right. It's certainly possible that All-Might has had a secret love child within the last few years, despite what he claims in interviews." The Number 1 Pro Hero always claimed that he never had much luck in the romance department. The collective hero society called bullshit on that.
Tenya continued, refocusing their conversation, "Either way, right now we have something more important to deal with." Arturia nodded, then turned back to the crumpled heap that was Midoriya.
"We need to get him to Recovery Girl, otherwise the bots will tag him as being disqualified from the exam," Arturia stated grimly. She gave a deep sigh, "The thing is, if we carry him, we could end up causing more damage with all of his broken bones. I don't want to cause him to develop a compound fracture or a burst vein."
Tenya frowned at that predicament. Everything Arturia said was true. Midoriya's injuries were out of their depth. The part of him that valued rules and standards argued to just leave him here. The instructors would have seen Midoriya's heroism, it was possible that they would recognize the extraneous circumstances and allow him entry. Tenya and Arturia should follow the crowd back to the locker rooms and cafeteria for lunch. They didn't need to worry about Midoriya.
...It's not very heroic to abandon a teammate, little brother.
Tenya was startled out of his thoughts by another groan from Miss Uraraka, and both he and Arturia turned to see the floating girl wipe her mouth with the back of her hand. Arturia was the first to call out, "Hey, are you feeling better, Miss Uraraka?"
"Barely, I really need some water," the floating girl's voice was raspy, clearly dehydrated. Miss Uraraka's stomach then rumbled, and she put her hand to her stomach, her face blushing, "...And some food."
"Alright, let's get you checked out by the medics and then get some..." Arturia replied, cutting herself off when she saw Tenya chopping his hand forward, "What is it, Tenya?"
Tenya turned his hand over in a pleading gesture to the floating girl, a plan in mind, "Actually, Miss Uraraka, if you are feeling up to it, would you be willing to use your Quirk to lift Mister Midoriya up? Then either myself or Miss Arturia can carry him over to Recovery Girl."
Miss Uraraka immediately nodded, "Absolutely, I can do that." Her face was determined, far more than Tenya had expected. Miss Uraraka's bright brown eyes burned like logs on a campfire. Comfortable, yet dangerous, "Midoriya was willing to throw everything into saving me. The least I can do is get him to the medical staff."
Tenya shared a look with Arturia. His blonde friend had pursed her lips when Tenya had made his request, clearly worried about her newfound friend overexerting herself. But when met with such determination, Tenya knew Arturia would go along with it.
"Very well then, use your Quirk to float Midoriya. Then Tenya will carry him and I will carry you," Arturia made her declaration with all of the pride of a knight. That pride was undercut when her stomach rumbled as well, "That way we can get food much more quickly. Hunger is the enemy."
Miss Uraraka nodded, "I can agree to that." The floating heroine bent down and touched Midoriya's back with all five fingers. The green haired youth started to float up, just as Miss Uraraka started to sway. Arturia was quick to grab Miss Uraraka and carry her in a piggy back position. Miss Uraraka leaned her head on Arturia's shoulder, "Thanks."
"Of course, just rest now," Arturia murmured, checking in with Tenya. The youngest son of the Iida family had grabbed Midoriya's left arm and wrapped it around his neck. Midoriya floated behind him, looking somewhat between a float and a cape. As long as Tenya was careful about his acceleration and deceleration, Midoriya would be alright.
Just as Tenya was making sure Midoriya was alright, he was startled to hear Midoriya groaning. Tenya turned slightly to face the injured young man, "Are you alright?"
"...Oh... Iida... thanks for... picking me up..." Midoriya muttered in gasps, drifting between consciousness and sleep, "Sorry... for being... a burden... to you..." Then the green-haired young man passed out again.
Tenya paused, comprehending what Midoriya had just said. Then he shifted Midoriya into a proper carry on his back. "He's secure," Tenya grunted to Arturia, "Let's get these two out of here." Arturia nodded, and then the two teens took off in a steady run, making sure to be both quick and stable for their two injured friends.
"Well now, everyone is out of the testing centers. That certainly took long enough," Nezu stretched, letting out a sigh, "But the practical portion of the entrance exam is complete." The room filled with the sound of polite clapping from the instructors attending. Nezu continued with a smile, "Let's go on to lunch, and then we can finish business afterwards. The interview section should be quite the breeze after all of this."
As he saw all of the instructors chatting as they packed up their stuff, Nezu gave a small chuckle. Whether it was Miss Kayama trying to get Mister Aizawa to cheer up, or Toshinori politely chatting with Mister Ishiyama, Nezu basked in the atmosphere. He loved it when he could feel humans collaborating and chatting peacefully.
Once the group had filtered out, Nezu got out of his own chair. Normally he would have hitched a ride with Mister Aizawa, as his scarf was very comfy to huddle into. However, Nezu wanted to print out the technical readout from the Executors to write out some notes. As well as get a fresh cup of tea, of course.
So he waddled over, grabbing the kettle to pour the last batch into his own cup. Gold Tips Imperial was a very popular brand this time of year, and Nezu took pride in knowing exactly the right amount to make for his fellow teachers. Nezu took a small sip of the brew.
Delightful. Utterly delightful. It was days like today, filled with exciting breakthroughs for his students and quiet moments of self reflection, that truly made life worth living.
As Nezu was getting the papers from the printer underneath the tea stand, a notification played from his tablet. A very basic tune, played in an ultrasonic frequency, inaudible to humans. Nezu frowned, then headed back to his seat where the tablet was. He unlocked it, first by typing in his password into the resistive touch screen, then by injecting it with his od, accessing the hidden network via his own spiritron hacking methods.
The notification came from a message Nezu had just received, which he opened to read. It was a response to an inquiry Nezu had made, regarding a particular news story from a week ago. A murder most foul, where an entire family was killed. Only the bodies of the parents could be found, the son was still missing. The details of the case forced Nezu to reach out to a particular den of snakes he hated to deal with, and this was what he got in reply:
[This tragedy caught our institution off-guard as well. We deny any foreknowledge of this event, and disavow any of our members who may have contributed to this senseless attack. We are looking into the matter with the utmost seriousness. If you would like to meet in the near future and exchange any intel you may have found, we would be happy to arrange a meeting.]
Nezu closed the tablet and took a sip of his tea, which had now become lukewarm. He drank it anyway, stewing in the political staleness of that message. The U.A. principal would get back to them, when he felt like it. He actually did have a solid reason to leave them in silence, as Nezu needed to focus on his duties at U.A. The entrance exam would not run itself.
Still, Nezu found himself opening his tablet once more to stare at the photo of the murdered family. A small, shining family. Nezu knew they held secrets, he wasn't blind to their connection to the underworld. Yet, Nezu had enjoyed talking with them, and had hoped to leverage them to his own side.
That would never happen now. Their light had been snuffed out just like how the warmth of his tea had ebbed away. As he sipped the last cold drops, he couldn't help but snort.
"It's intriguing, isn't it?" he mused to himself, spitting out the rest of his thoughts with pure malice, "It's just so odd that I find myself completely unable to believe you, magus."