Chapter 12: Exam Prep
Ideals are a funny thing.
Everyone in the world lives by a certain number of ideals; morals; principles. Some countries will have ideals that will differ from those of their neighbouring countries, but within their own borders, they generally hold the same ideals.
Everyone has ideals, some have the same as others and are inconsequential to the order of the world. Some other ideals may differ by a small amount to those of the masses but they aren't paid much attention.
Then there are ideals that differ so greatly and in such a distorted manner to those around them that the mere expression of those opinions turn society on its heels.
Stain knew this when he set out on his mission; his ideals would not be accepted by society and he would be hunted for his actions. However, even after his capture by Yuuei's most promising new hero student, his ideals lived on.
You see, ideals, no matter what they are, spread like flames through a field. Stain's ideals reached every corner of Japan – courtesy of the news – and every criminal, lowlife, thug, and outcast heard his words. While society celebrated their youngest heroes, the underground pulled back to think on their next actions.
Crime rates dropped slightly across Japan as the country's darker side bided their time… For now.
U.A High School, Start of Next Week
"This has to be a gift from the Gods!" Sero exclaimed as he laughed, bellowing so hard that he fell to his knees while holding his stomach. "I can't! It's too much!"
Similarly, Kirishima was also laughing his ass off, falling on top of his friend when his knees began to fail him. "Hahaha! D-dude, my abs hurt!" Pulling out his phone, the redhead began to take pictures of what caused such a joyous mood.
And what could have them so happy on a Monday of all days, you might ask; that's simple.
Bakugou's hair.
"Shup up…" The blonde in question was huffing in and out as though it was the only thing keeping from going insane.
It was.
"What the hell happened to your hair, man?" Sero wheezed out, trying to use Kirishima to stand up, only to fail and topple onto the ground. "It hurts!"
Unamused by his… Classmates' actions, Bakugou tried once more to keep himself calm. "It… Won't… Go… Back." A deep breath in and out followed each of the blonde's words and it seemed to be holding in rage in check, if only just.
"We can see that, Bakubro!" But that was immediately thrown out the window as soon as Kirishima took another photo before typing away on his phone. "That's totally going on the group chat."
"That's it!" The blonde's rage somehow managed to throw his hair back up into its usual spiky chaos and his hands began to spark. "You're both dead!"
However, his threats fell on deaf ears as his targets both fell down on the floor again. "It's back to normal now!" Their laughter did make it harder for them to run away though.
Behind the soon to be crime scene, Jirou, Momo, and Tsu all talked about the adventures of their own internships. Though, judging by the former two, 'adventure' wouldn't be the most accurate word.
"I didn't even end up doing any espionage or reconnaissance; I didn't get a single fight!" Jirou complained, throwing her hands up in the air and twirling her hair. "All Death Arms had me doing was help out other solo hero's sidekicks with evacuation and logistical support." A fact she was clearly not happy with. "What about you two?"
Fortunately, Momo seemed to share the purple-haired teen's sadness as she hung her head. "The internship was an absolute farce; I was more a model than I was a hero for the past week." She crossed her arms and let out a huff. "Choosing Uwabami was a mistake I intend to rectify on our second round of internships; perhaps a hero in a rougher part of the commoner's land…"
"I feel you, kero." Tsu said with a nod, seeming to have shared experience with her friends. "Most of what I did was just training and upkeeping the ship I was on." The smiles and nods the frog girl received from the others made what she was about to say even funnier to herself. "Though, we did catch end up catching a couple groups of villains trying to smuggle drugs and weapons in and out of the borders, kero."
"What?!"
Around Shoto's desk, Fumikage, Kaminari, and Iida all stood together. "I still can't believe that you guys faced the Hero Killer!" The blonde exclaimed, constantly checking all of their injuries as though they might grow. "I mean, 'killer' is literally in the name! You guys could've died!" Tears could be seen building up in his eyes.
An action that Sato copied as he walked up to them. "Yeah, how did you guys even survive all that?" He stood behind Kaminari as he asked and they both looked like they were on the verge of sobbing.
Smiling at his classmates concern for them, Iida rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "To be frank with you two, the extent of the danger we were in was… Greatlyexaggerated."
"That's the news for you." Shoto said, shrugging as if to say, 'it is what it is.' "Always getting it wrong."
"Despite the large scar Midoriya now has on his chest." Fumikage started. "He quite easily handled that madman without so much as a second thought; we just happened to be present when that happened."
Kaminari's tears disappeared and he raised his eyebrow. "Really?"
Fumikage, Shoto, and Iida all nodded at the same time. "Really."
On the other side of the classroom, Mina sat on the aforementioned greenette's desk, waiting for him to walk through the door. 'That stupid, handsome, idiot!' She was torn between being angry with him and thanking the Gods he was alive. 'I can't believe he'd do something so stupid!'
Behind her, Akira had similar thoughts. 'That complete, utter, fucking imbecile!' Though, his might have been a tad bit more aggressive. 'I'm gonna slap him.' Luckily for his target, there was a fix to this; Ochako's lap. 'I'm still gonna slap him… After school.' And down his head goes to the mochi pillow below.
Just as Izuku walked in as well. "Good morning, everyone!" He exclaimed with a smile, walking towards his desk. "How's it-" Only to stop when he saw Mina staring at him with a puffed-out face from atop his desk. "Oh, good morning, Min-"
"No." The pink girl in question stopped the greenette's greeting before he could get it out. "Not a good morning." Before letting her face fall directly into Izuku's chest and wrapping her arms around him. "You! Could! Have! Died!" With every word, she clung tighter and tighter to the other teen as if making sure he was still there. "You didn't answer any of my calls, no one else told me what was going on, by the time they covered your injury in the news I thought… That I was gonna…"
"Mina…" Izuku could feel a slight dampness on his chest and suddenly realised the pink girl squeezing the life out of him was crying. "I'm…" So, he did the one thing he knew would always work; hugs. "I'm sorry, I'll try be more careful next time."
Violently untrue.
However, it seemed to be enough for the pink girl as she lifted her head from Izuku's chest and wiped away her tears. "Good." Before smiling sheepishly at him. "Uh… Sorry about your shirt."
A smile that Izuku returned. "No problem, I can just-"
"Shit! Sensei incoming! And he's walking fast! Running!" Jirou cut off everyone's conversations with a shout and flipped over to her desk.
What followed was a fun scene of everyone flipping or sliding over everyone else, some even using their quirks, to get to their desks before their teacher could walk through the door; all having one thought motivating them. 'He's running! Why?!'
Luckily for the class, Aizawa only managed to burst through the door with a kick a second after they had all gotten into their seats. 'Damn, I'll get them next time.' A fact the black-haired man wasn't happy with. "Good morning, problem children." He greeted dryly, moving his eyes to a certain number of individuals around the room. "I hope you all had a good… Experience at your internships."
Izuku, Fumikage, Shoto, and Iida all lowered themselves slightly at this. 'Haha….'
"I only have one important notice for you all today; All Might will be running your practical in the afternoon at Ground Gamma." Aizawa watched smiles grow on his students' faces and let them stay for a moment before turning on a hologram. "For now, though, we're going to go over hero informatics." He silenced the usual groans with his quirk and once more turned to four specific individuals. "More specifically, we're going to go over the level of a hero deemed fit enough to engage an S-Class villain."
Everyone knew he was talking to; the man wasn't being subtle in the slightest.
'This is fair.'
But none of them complained.
Ground Gamma Observation Platform, Fourth Period
"Hahaha! We are here… At Ground Gamma!" All Might bellowed as he landed in front of the class, striking a bouncer's pose. "Get ready for mobility and parkour training, newbies, because this place will work you to the bone!" Today, the large man had opted for crimson red suit pants and a form-fitting, tight black button-up shirt with – of course – his sleeves rolled up.
'Haha! Yes, this is the perfect place for me to shine!' Sero thought with a smile as he rolled his arms. 'Mobility is my whole thing!'
Next to him, Ojiro shared similar thoughts to him. 'My monkey tail means I can swing anywhere; this place is too perfect!'
Continuing, All Might held his arms out in a dramatic fashion. "This training ground is used for both for training you in your mobility and widespread team battles; knowing how to navigate difficult areas puts you a step ahead of any opponent you find in an area such as this." The man then not-so discreetly looked to a certain blonde-haired student of his. "And please try your best to keep the property damage to a minimum!"
"The fuck?" And Bakugou caught his gaze with a confused look. "What about Peppermint Buttler and Killer Queen?" Before throwing a thumb at Shoto and Momo. "And don't even get me started on Izuku and Akira."
Honestly, the guy had a point.
No one seemed to care though as they all just looked around the training ground with stars in their eyes. "Dang, this place is totally tricked out with factory machines and everything!" Almost literally in Mina's case, that's what Izuku thought anyway. 'I wonder if I could skate on these; it shouldn't be too hard.'
"Yes, I quite agree." Momo said with a nod. "This is all very 'cool.'" Her attempt at what she had dubbed 'commoner-lingo' brought a smile onto her face and no one decided to comment on it. 'Where in the world does Yuuei get the money for this, is it the World's Hero Association? If they are funding it, and Daddy works there, how much of this can I get away with exploding-'
"Onto your training objective for the day!" Unintentionally cutting off his student's less than legal thoughts with a clap, All Might got the class's attention. "This time you're splitting off into groups of five; you shall all be separated an equal distance from where I will set off a distress beacon." The class nodded and he grabbed five students at random onto his shoulder for the best piggyback of their lives. "Let's see here… Young Sero, Iida, Midoriya, Ashido, and Ojiro! Are you all ready?"
The five all giggled and threw their hands up in the air with a smile. "Yeah!"
A smile that the large blonde copied before squatting. "Then away we go!" And jumping out of sight with what sounded like an eagle's cry sending him off.
Minutes Later
The left behind students watched with interest as a group of holograms suddenly popped up around them and they watched All Might land in another part of the training grounds with a thud.
"-esting! Testing!" The P.A system crackled to life and the man smiled as he heard his own voice. "Alright, do you all have your tracking devices?" Before looking at his own holograms to see all his students nod.
"Yes, sir!" Each student had taken up their own stances and had their quirks activated, only waiting for their teaching to give them the go.
"Now, remember…" All Might, however, needed to get one thing straight first. "Don't just look at your tracking device the whole time, otherwise you might fall!" Okay, done. "Ready?"
"Who do you think is gonna win this one?" Kirishima asked his classmates as he plopped down on the floor next to Bakugou. "My money is on Midori-bro."
Jirou thought it over in her head as Momo made them a stool to sit on before nodding. "Yeah, green bean's got this in the bag." She agreed, getting a nod from the onyx-haired heiress next to her.
"I actually reckon Sero might pull in a win here." Kaminari started, plopping down on the ground and leaning against Jirou's legs. "His quirk's flexibility in places like this puts him at an advantage."
"…Holy shit he just said something smart."
The blonde's statement elicited this response from many of his classmates; they weren't aware he was capable of commenting something of reasonable intelligence.
"Hey! You all said that out loud!"
Ignoring the electric blonde – as they always did – Shoji threw a pair of eyes on each screen. "While you have a good point with Sero, you could also go and say the same thing for Ojiro."
"Yeah, the guy can extend his tail and wrap it around the pipes just like Sero with his tape." Sato replied with a nod, doing push ups with Kirishima sitting on top of him. "He's not as fast but Ojiro's definitely stronger and surprisingly flexible."
Hagakure nodded as well, lighting up like a Christmas tree. "Absolutely! Ojiro's crazy strong!" Before pointing to Mina's screen. "But I'm supporting my girl, Mina!"
Next to her, Ochako and Tsu threw their hands up in the air. "Yeah! Go, Mina!/Mina! Kero."
A laugh cut them off and Akira came in behind his girlfriend to wrap her in a hug. "Ochi, it's nice to have faith in Ashido…" He started before pointing to Izuku's screen. "But, if he's in the mood, Izuku's gonna steamroll everyone else."
His statement, while true, did nothing but receive a mini glare from Ochako. "Hey, don't be like that." She pinched his cheek while scolding him. "At least try to be supportive of one of the others."
"Alright, alright." Hands up in mock surrender, Akira looked at Iida's screen. "Iida might win, he's fast as hell." That got a smile from the brown-haired girl.
'Alright, Katsuki.' Bakugou was eyeing one specific screen carefully. 'You already know he's gonna win, just count to see how fast he does it.' It took a lot out of him, but he could almost admit that there was a small gap between Izuku and himself.
"Yo, Bakubro!" And Kirishima could obviously tell as he back rolled over into the blonde's legs before looking right up at him. "Who do you think is winning?"
"Izuku, no contest." The lack of hesitation in Bakugou's response surprised everyone around him, Akira especially, but no one commented on it.
Meanwhile, at the back of the class, Fumikage and Dark Shadow both hid their smiles behind the former's cloak. 'Time to show them, Midoriya./Rock 'em, green bean!'
With All Might
"Begin!" All Might slammed down his hand on the distress beacon to activate it and watched on with a smile as his students shot off towards him. 'Aha! Such speed! Improvements from their last mobility test in the forest!'
Sero and Ojiro were – to no one's surprise – doing incredibly well in the course. Sero was smoothly swinging around and zipping above the pipelines with his tape while Ojiro slid in between pipe gaps without missing a beat.
Mina was sliding through her path with practiced ease and even threw in a couple of flips just for the sake of flash. 'Maybe I can go rollerblading with Izuku; would he be good at that?'
Iida, despite his injuries, was keeping up with everyone and actually excelled in the factory area with a large smile on his face. 'Rolling around at the speed of sound! Got places to-'
And Izuku…
"Hold on…" All Might suddenly lost his smile as he realised he couldn't see his protégé on any of the screens across the entire training ground. "Where in the world did he go-"
"Damn, they're doing really well."
"SHIT!" Swearing – again, in English – All Might turned around to see his green-haired successor standing right next to him, watching the screens with a smile. "Young Midoriya, where did you-"
"Ah, ah, ah." Izuku cut off his mentor with a wagging finger before putting it to his mouth. "Hawks Agency Secret, All Might, only known to the heroes who pass Hawks' Leap of FaithTM."
"…Alright then." Shrugging – because, let's be honest, what else could the guy do – All Might slammed his hand on the big red button in front of him, putting the P.A system back on. "Winner! Young Midoriya!"
The echoes of his message quickly reached all of his students' ears and there were a range of different reactions.
"What?!" Sero froze mid swing and ended up smacking himself into a pipe.
"What?!" Ojiro slipped on a pipe and fell to the floor.
"Yeah, sounds about right." Mina just shrugged and continued skating.
"Expected." And Iida kept on running. 'Run, run, run, run, runaway, baby! Before I get my-'
Ground Gamma Observation Platform
Back with the rest of 1A, the reactions were more or less the same; either not phased in the slightest at Izuku's speed, or incredibly flabbergasted beyond belief.
"Called it!" Jirou and Kirishima exclaimed before fist bumping each other, smiling widely at the others.
Momo smiled at the screens before happily collecting money from Sato and Kaminari. "It was just as how Hikaru described it; steamrolled." And the two teens couldn't even be mad since she looked like a proud puppy at being able to speak like them.
"How?" Though, Kaminari still wanted to complain about something. "I get that the guy's fast but that is absolute, complete, horse shi-"
"I couldn't even see him." Once more cutting off and ignoring their resident lightning user, Shoji started scratching his head with his hands. "I had an eye on his screen the entire time and all the others, he got past all of them."
Sighing, Bakugou nodded in acceptance before looking at Fumikage. "Oi, bird boy." Getting the raven teen's attention, the blonde pointed to the screens. "You know how Izuku got there so fast?"
"…Yes." Deciding to ignore Bakugou's insult after a moment of thought, Fumikage nodded. "I am indeed aware of how he beat everyone else."
….
….
"So, are you gonna tell us?" And after a small space of silence, Kirishima popped the real question. "And can you do it too?"
A question that was met by more silence.
With All Might
Because of their stop, - absolutely aided it, the both of them – neither Sero nor Ojiro came in second; that title went to Iida. The blue-haired teen had spent the last few days of his internship learning to run specifically in the alleyways of Hosu and had gotten used to the tight spaces.
Mina was next, a slight heaviness in her breath but overall fine. Though, upon seeing Izuku smile at her and compliment her on how well she did, her breaths got a lot heavier.
Finally, the pink girl was followed up by a defeated looking Ojiro and a hilariously distraught Sero.
"You've all shown incredible improvements since the start of the year!" Despite that though, All Might praised the group with a large smile on his face. "But do remember, keep an open mind on the field, don't let anything surprise you and you shall not falter." Sero and Ojiro both nodded sheepishly at this but the man just laughed. "Keep this up and you all will be able to pass your final exams with flying colours!"
"Sir!" The five exclaimed with a salute, despite two of their tears.
Tears that All Might expertly ignored before plastering a smile on his face and throwing all of his students over his shoulder and onto his back. "Alright, kiddos, hold on tightly! It is time to get the next group." He hit a squat and then was gone. "All Might! Away!"
Boy's Changing Rooms, End of the Lesson
"Man, I seriously gotta start working more on my mobility." Kirishima said with a sigh as he took off his shoulder guards. "Even though my quirk gives me a bit of strength boost, it also just weighs me down, so I could barely use it!"
Sato nodded as he put on his uniform patterns. "I hear ya on that one, Kirishima." He said with a laugh. "I always end up stumbling once my quirk runs out of juice and it really effects my movements."
"At least you didn't stumble so bad that you smacked face first into a pipe." Sero complained, head downcast as he put on his blazer.
"That would not have been a problem had you kept your head." Fumikage said as Dark Shadow did up his tie for him.
Akira laughed as he tied up his shoes. "Yeah, that's easy for you and Izuku to say." He ignored his green-haired friend's deadpan look. "You both ran the entire course before anyone else even made it a quarter of the way through."
Ojiro buttoned up his shirt as hummed in agreement. "You have to tell us how you got there so fast."
"Hm…" Izuku and Fumikage actually looked like they were considering it before simultaneously shaking their heads with small smiles. "Trade secret."
Groaning, the others decided to just finish getting changed and dropped their questions.
"Oh, hold up! Yo, look at this!" Which moved Kaminari's attention onto a poster he was looking at. "Guys, guys, guys! Check it out!" Everyone spared the blonde a confused glance and a raised eyebrow. "It's a peephole into the girl's changing rooms!" Which quickly turned into disappointed looks and sighs.
"Seriously, Kaminari?" Kirishima crossed his arms at his friend and shook his head. "Have some respect, man; that's not cool."
Iida nodded passionately and chopped the air in front of him. "Indeed, Kaminari, such perverted actions are unbecoming of a hero and a man."
Kaminari's shoulders sunk but he tried to double down. "Come on, guys. Can you seriously look me in the eyes and tell me you wouldn't want a peek?" That was a mistake as everyone looked at him with flat eyes and just shook their heads. "Seriously? Being horny is completely healthy and normal!"
"Yeah, it is." Akira said as he walked up to the hole. "But peeping on people when they change is just perverted." Before knocking on the wall, hard. "Yaoyorozu! There's a whole in the wall! Plug it up until we can get Cementoss on it!"
"Already done!" Momo yelled from the other side, putting on her shirt as quickly as she could. "Also, Kaminari?" Hearing an affirmative grunt from the blonde, she let out her anger. "Try anything like this again to anyone and I will find where you live, buy it, and make you rent it out!"
…. Damn.
"Damn." Throwing his bag over his shoulder, Kaminari began to walk out of the changing rooms. "Alright then, I won't try it again."
However, he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. "Good on you for dropping it, Kaminari." And following it to the face, the blonde saw Izuku leaning towards his ear. "Because believe me when I say you would've been slammed into the roof if you looked through there."
'Oh….' With the fear of God put into him, Kaminari simply stood still in the exit to the changing rooms as Izuku – eventually followed by the rest of the class – walked by him to class.
"Come on, sparky." And if it wasn't for Jirou grabbing his hand and leading him away, he probably would've been there for the whole day. "Let's get to class."
Class 1A, The Next Day
"And that it is all for hero informatics today, class, thank you." Aizawa finished off as he heard the bell ring. "Try your best to start remembering all of this; your final exams are in just over a month at the start of July." A number of groans arose and he silenced them with a glare. "Study hard for this and you will get to attend the training camp, if you don't then you'll spend your summer here with Nezu and his study strategies."
All the students shivered at that. 'Summer school with Principal Nezu…'
Aware but uncaring of his students' fears, Aizawa looked to a few specific students. "You're all doing well and are projected to pass your practical portion without problem, so don't worry on that and worry about the theory exam." Before grabbing his sleeping bag and coffee mug and walking out the door. "Good luck."
Three…
Two…
One…
Alright, he's gone, time to panic.
"I HAVEN'T STUDIED AT ALL!"
"No, no, no, no!" Kaminari rocked back and forth in a corner, holding his head. "I totally forgot about studying because of the Sports Festival and Internships; I didn't have the time!" [Midterm: 20th].
"Eh, I didn't really forget about it, I just got distracted." Mina admitted with an embarrassed face as she tried not to look at Izuku. [Midterm: 19th].
Fumikage brought out Dark Shadow and had his quirk fan away his sweat. "It is true that there have been many events that have impeded out studies." He looked at his notebooks and panicked even more at the lack of legible writing in them. 'No….' [Midterm: 14th].
"Our midterms weren't too bad since we had just started school and we were fine with our studying." Sato started as he pet Kaminari on his shoulders. "But these finals…" [Midterm: 12th].
Shoji nodded in affirmative. "They will most certainly be different and much more challenging." He currently had a book in each hand and an eye on each of them, hoping to absorb the knowledge all at once. [Midterm: 10th].
"I barely speak our own language." Koda started with a whisper, head down in embarrassment. "English is like hell for me." [Midterm: 11th].
Coming up behind him, Aoyama pet the animal boy on the shoulder. "Worry not, friend, we both already know two languages, another shall not dim our sparkle." [Midterm: 18th].
"I'm fine with mostly everything, kero." Tsu started, holding up a history book like it was poison. "But history is where I struggle the most; it's like one big confusing story! Kero!" [Midterm: 7th].
"You just have to pay attention in class and write down everything Sensei tells us to." Shoto said with a shrug. "After that, everything more or less begins to blend together." [Midterm: 5th].
Iida nodded furiously at that and chopped the air in front of him. "Indeed! Paying attention in class, reviewing your notes at the end of the day, and maintaining a solid study schedule is all that is needed!" [Midterm: 3rd].
Kaminari looked at the two in envy from his corner. "That's what works for you two because you're both geniuses!"
"Todoroki, Iida, you can't just tell them to pay attention." Luckily for the blonde, Izuku agreed with him and was coming to his rescue. "Kaminari is right, studying and paying attention works for you two because you're brains are wired that way; everyone else's might prioritise of hyper fixate on other things, so telling them to pay attention does nothing but make them feel bad." [Midterm: 2nd].
By the end of the greenette's explanation, he had a crying Kaminari on his shoulder, hugging him like a koala. "Thank you, Midoriya!" Before having his face grabbed and squished together by said blonde. "You're too good for this world!"
"N-not really, Kaminari." Izuku laughed awkwardly at the action and tried his best to wave the electric blonde off. "I just know that everyone's strengths and weaknesses differ; I don't study in the conventional way either so…"
'Nah, Kaminari's absolutely right.' Mina thought to herself as she looked at Izuku with dreamy eyes. 'Way too good for this world.' Before looking way in embarrassment as the greenette caught her stare and smiled back.
Luckily for the pink girl, Momo was there to pull the attention off her. "Worry not, Kaminari! I can assist you in catching up if you would like!" And she did so by picking Kaminari off Izuku and hoisting him up. "What do you say?" [Midterm: 1st].
"Really?!" And despite the position he was in, Kaminari felt no embarrassment whatsoever and instead looked at his possible new tutor with hope in his eyes. "Thank you so much, Yaomomo!"
Jirou walked up to the two after hearing that – making sure to take a few pictures of Kaminari while she was at it – before looking at the heiress with hopeful eyes. "Uh, could I get some help as well, Momo? Math is really bugging me out." [Midterm: 8th].
"Ooh, me too, please!" Sero also walked up and even bowed before the onyx-haired girl. "Classical Japanese is seriously killing me right now!" [Midterm: 17th].
Ojiro walked over and grabbed Kaminari out of the air with his tail, knowing his fellow blonde liked to hug his tails when he was sad. "Could I get some tutoring as well, Yaomomo? There's just a few things I want to be sure on before walking into the exam hall." [Midterm: 9th].
'Oh my God! Oh my God! It's happening!' Meanwhile, inwardly, Momo was freaking out. 'I finally get to have friends and invite them over to my house!' And, sad as that thought was, she was smiling widely and stood on top of a desk. "I, Momo Yaoyorozu, shall hold a study session at my residence over the weekend!"
Her declaration got the reaction she thought it would and most of the class stood up in applause. "Yeah, Yaomomo!"
"Yo! We get to see her fancy digs, y'all!" Hagakure exclaimed as she hung off Ojiro's tail, now in the form of a giant fox's. "She's gotta have like a small mansion or something if she's inviting all of us over." [Midterm:16th].
"I shall call Mother and see if she can arrange to have the great hall made to be a classroom for us." Well, at least Hagakure got the mansion part right. "It shall be the perfect spot for tutoring!"
'She has a great hall?!' The class, obviously, was taken off guard by her enthusiasm and unintentional bragging.
"And I must find out all of your favourite drinks and study foods; we shall be stocked to last for hours!"
Though, none of them wanted to look the gift horse in the mouth and just decided to roll with it. 'Thank you, God, for Yaomomo.'
"Do you think we should join her?" Kirishima asked Bakugou, smiling widely at the onyx-haired girl as she went around with a notepad to get everyone's favourite foods. "It sounds like it'll be fun." [Midterm: 15th].
"Ha!" Bakugou did not think like the redhead next to him though. "Please, Kiri, I'll be more than enough to get you a top score." [Midterm: 4th].
Next to them, Ochako and Akira had a similar conversation. "Can we join her, Akira?" The former asked, puffing out her cheeks and doing her best puppy eyes. "Please?" [Midterm: 13th].
However, she didn't need to, as Akira just shook his head with a knowing smile. "You just want to see Yaomomo's big, fancy house, don't you?" His question had the gravity girl looking away sheepishly and he laughed. "Alright, it's decided then, we're going." [Midterm: 6th].
Cafeteria
"Alright, we have a total of six classes." Izuku started as he sat down at a table with everyone else and put down his seven plates. "Classical Japanese, English, Math, Science, History, and Hero Informatics; given that we have a bit over a month, that's one subject a day for the next five weeks while resting on the Sunday to let my brain process the week."
Akira nodded at the greenette's proposal and sculled down a large bowl of ramen that took up his side of the table. "That's good for theory, but you also have to remember the practical as well." He finished his bowl off before grabbing some mochi from Ochako. "We still don't know what that'll be."
Iida downed his orange juice in a single swing before slamming his cup down. "I doubt that we would receive a terribly hard practical." He started before second guessing himself. "Then again, a prestigious school such as ours would want to push its students to the highest degree and-"
"We are partaking in a comprehensive test about everything we have learnt this year." Momo quickly cut in after finishing her mini buffet, unenthusiastic about another passionate drawl from her blue-haired classmate. "That is all we know about it."
"Kero, it's the only thing that Aizawa-Sensei or any of the other teachers are willing to tell us." Tsu croaked, happily eating a large cup of jelly. "I think that we'll be fine though, kero."
"We still need to try and be prepared." Izuku added, finishing his fourth bowl of Katsudon. "Even if we're confident, it's best not to-" Danger Sense rung in the greenette's head and his arm shot out before he could tell it to, catching someone's elbow and throwing them away from him.
"Ah, shit." And upon looking to the person responsible, they saw a blonde they were sure was in 1B. "Figures he'd be able to throw me off." Said blonde was scowling and was sorting out his food – which was now on the floor – before standing up and dusting himself off. "I saw on the news that you four ran into the Hero Killer." Fumikage, Shoto, and Iida immediately gave the blonde their attention. "Even saw the footage; I'd say good job, but I can only really say it to one of you."
The 1A students at the table – and the surrounding tables – all internally groaned. 'Shit, here we go.'
"You know that people don't like you because you're good heroes, right? Because, let's be honest, you could be doing a lot better." The blonde's words had a few quirks prematurely activating and several glares sent his way. "You only get their attention because you're always in the spotlight, they'd give anyone under that light the attention you're getting."
Fumikage sent the blonde his own glare and held down Dark Shadow's head. 'Not yet, brother.' Though, he would admit, the more the blonde spoke, the less he was trying.
"Honestly, it's a shame that the Hero Killer only got in a few scrapes and stabs." Alright, he's no longer trying. "A bit more damage might have let reality kick in and show you that you're nothing but-"
A symphony of quirks activating cut the blonde off and he soon found himself held in place before receiving a well-placed – but non-fatal – palm to the nose.
No one had seen them move.
Fumikage, Shoto, and Iida were all behind the blonde, holding his right arm, left arm, and neck respectively, a cold but burning fury in each of their eyes.
Momo was on the blonde's left side, her arm transformed into a canon at aimed at his face with Bakugou on the other side holding the same stance; both of their arms twitched to activate.
And Akira…
"I will fix your nose and then break it again a thousand times over if you ever speak to my Brother or any of my friends that way again." The black-haired teen's palm was already stretched out and had been the one to break the blonde's nose; he spoke in a whisper.
Around them, all the other 1A students stood in a circle, quirks activated and snarls on all of their faces, unflinching at the brutality their class president was suggesting.
There was a single exception to this though. "Stop." And that single word, spoken so softly yet followed by a blindingly powerful presence washed away all the others' anger. "All of you." Izuku was looking at them with glowing green eyes while peacefully eating his food. "Now." Speaking with a tone made it clear that there would be no argument.
And there wasn't.
Reluctantly, the students of Class 1A pulled back from their fellow first year and sat down without a word. Momo and Bakugou took another second to sigh in disappointment before following their classmates, though, and Fumikage, Shoto, and Iida kept their hands on the blonde's neck for almost a minute before sitting down themselves.
And after they did, Izuku's eyes dimmed their glow and the powerful presence pressuring the cafeteria was gone.
That was when a new person decided to make themselves known. "Hi there, Class 1A." The person in question was a rather tall orange-haired girl with an embarrassed look on her face and sweat covering her form. "I am so sorry about Monoma." She was bowing as well. "He can be a real ass sometimes."
"We can tell." Iida said as he pushed up his glasses.
"And that's an understatement." Shoto was letting his right side activate as he tried to cool himself down.
Akira was doing the same as he let his quirk calm him down. "I remember you from the president meetings, Itsuka Kendo, correct?" The orange-haired girl nodded and he stood up. "Given how you spoke, I expected that you'd have more control over your class… I'm sad to say I was mistaken."
Kendo got up from her bow but kept her gaze to the floor, embarrassed to show her red face. "I-I promise to try and keep Monoma in line!" Her hands grew to a gigantic size and she picked up said blonde like he was a doll. "I-I'll even let you all in on a secret that one of the third years told us about the exam."
That got Monoma up and out of his daze. "Are you insane, Kendo! Don't even think about it." He whisper shouted, knocking on her hands with his own. "You'll take away our entire advantage on them! This was supposed to be 1B's chance to-"
The orange-haired girl tightened her grip on her classmate, silencing him immediately. "Shut up, you idiot, you're lucky that your nose is the only thing broken right now." Looking back to the 1A table, she smiled. "We were told that the first-year hero course students for this year are going through the same thing, a variety of robots like the ones at our entrance exam, just stronger."
A mix of surprised and relieved looks spread around the 1A table at that. "Are you sure that is the case?" Iida asked, the first to voice his confusion. "That seems like a rather simple exam for such a prestigious school as Yuuei to pro-"
"What he means is that there's no way it's that easy." Izuku cut in, saving them all from another Iida-RantTM. "With what we've all faced already, robots seem like a step down to test us on."
Kendo shrugged. "Well, that's what I heard from the third-years, a bunch of second-years even nodded when they said it, so I'm inclined to believe them." As she spoke, she was slowly moving backwards while keeping a grip on Monoma. "And being fair to us in 1B, what you've been through is leagues above what we have so… Bye!" And then she was gone, her yelling the only thing left of her. "How could you do something like that? You've just embarrassed me in front of all the presidents in the school! Just wait until the end of the day; I will-"
Class 1A, End of the Day
Mina and Kaminari were both vibrating in their seats and waiter for Aizawa to leave the classroom before jumping up in excitement. "Let's go!" They both were pumping their fists in the air, clearly happy with the reveal of their practical exam.
"I don't have to worry about the practical anymore; I can spend the entire week studying!" The electric blonde beamed; not something he'd ever think he'd be excited about though. "And if I absorb the knowledge well enough, this whole thing will be an absolute cinch!"
"Whoop! Whoop!" Mina cheered as she started breakdancing. "Robots are nothing in the face of my acid, I get to study without worry now!" Again, not something they'd expect to be excited about but, hey, here we are.
And everyone else seemed fine with it as well. "At least you're both passionate about studying this time around." Akira said, a small smile on his place.
"Ha! Come on, Akira, don't praise the bare minimum." Bakugou, however, scoffed at the two before throwing both his bag and Kirishima over his shoulder. "You two morons have fun celebrating an easy pass instead of trying to improve yourselves, we'll be off being productive." He kicked open the door and flipped everyone off as he left.
An action that Kirishima slapped down as soon as he saw it before smiling at everyone. "See you guys tomorrow! I hope your studying and training goes well!"
And as the rest of the class filed out to go do their usual shenanigans, Mina waited by the door before pulling Izuku aside and slamming them both into a dimly lit janitor's closet.
"Mina!" This, obviously, had the greenette's heartbeat in overdrive and his face was flushed red. "What are we doing in the-"
Mina pushed Izuku against the wall and ignored how her heart skipped a beat when his hands automatically went to her waist. "S-sorry, Izuku, but I didn't want to ask this in front of everyone else." Her cheeks were also completely overtaken by a blush but she pushed through it.
"What d-did you want to ask?" Izuku mentally kicked himself for his stutter and compensated by pulling on Mina's waist, putting them flush against each other. 'Aaaaah!'
'Aaaaah!' An action that took Mina completely off guard. 'No! Stay focused!' Before looking to the floor and closing her eyes. "I want you to tutor me!"
….
Oh.
'Oh.' Izuku's grip on the pink girl's waist loosened a small bit and he tried to lower himself to look at her eyes. "Yeah, of course, Mina, I've got no problem helping you." He heard a sniff and tilted his head. "You didn't need to pull me into the janitor's closet to ask me that-"
A single tear dropped to the floor.
'Damnit, no crying!' Against Mina's wishes.
This time, Izuku's grip on the girl's waist tightened and he lifted the girl's chin with a hand. "Hey, hey, hey, what's wrong?"
Mina looked at Izuku in the eyes for a moment, her own glowing like stars in the dimly lit room, before speaking. "I… I need a lot of help, okay? I'm not that smart and every time I try to read something the letters sometimes move and the numbers jumble together and it's really struggling!" She tried to look down but the greenette firmly – yet softly – kept her looking at him. 'God, this is so embarrassing to ask; I look stupid!' But despite her fear, she once more pushed through. "Please help me, Izuku."
"Mina…" The greenette in question was saddened that Mina felt so embarrassed and lost about this that he held her tighter against him. "There's no need to be embarrassed about this, everyone's brains work different, remember?"
The pink girl nodded meekly at that and decided to throw her arms around the greenette's neck since they were close. "Yeah, I remember."
"Look, we have over a month before finals." Izuku started. "I promise to help you every day to study and find a way to get you to pass these tests, alright?" Before holding up his pinkie finger with a smile.
An action that Mina chuckled at before moving to hold the greenette's pinkie with her own. "Alright, Izuku."
And with that sorted, they were both now free to realise that they were two lovestruck teenagers alone in a janitor's closet flushed against each other.
'AAAAH!' Causing both their faces to set on fire again.
'God, why did I choose the janitor's closet?!' Mina kept her eyes on Izuku's and tried her best to keep the blush in her face down. 'Stupid subconscious!'
'Stars, she looks so beautiful right now!' Meanwhile, the greenette was also hoping the dim lighting obscured the redness in his own face.
However, despite the raging chaos in both of their minds, they stayed calm. Their holds on each other tightened just a small bit and they leaned their faces in, brushing their noses against each other. The action was quickly repeated again and again as they became lost in the euphoria of feeling the other's breath on their lips.
Then their eyes met one last time before moving to the other's lips. An obvious question was there and they both leaned in one more time.
Closer…
Closer…
And closer…
Click!
And that is when the janitor walked in.
"AAAH!"
Principal Nezu's Office, Late Afternoon
Nezu's ears twitched and he watched with surprise as Aizawa entered his office. "Aizawa, I can't exactly say I was expecting you." Words he did not say lightly. "Is there an issue?"
"Well, there's multiple I could go into." Aizawa started as he sat down across from the chimera. "The biggest of which is that two of my students were found almost making out in the janitor's closet…" Before putting down a handful of third year profiles on the desk. "But I'll talk instead about how three third years blabbed the final exam to 1A and 1B."
"Oh, they've been told already?" Nezu asked with a raised eyebrow. "I thought that the third years would have been able to hold out another week before deciding to tell."
"… Excuse me?" The black-haired man looked at his employer warily and with a raised eyebrow. "You knew that the third years were going to tell the first years?"
Nezu nodded with his own raised eyebrow. "I feel as though you have been underestimating the scope of my knowledge recently, Aizawa." Before grabbing a teapot and pouring himself a cup. "Anyhow, I am much aware that the third years give up the exam to their Kouhai each year, and so each year I tell them a fake exam."
'Oh, that makes more sense.' Aizawa nodded at the logic behind the ruse and took the files back. "In the case of this year's third years, what did you tell them?"
"Simple; that their Kouhai shall be facing robots similar to those they fought at the entrance exam." Nezu positively beamed behind his cup of tea when he saw the confusion on Aizawa's face.
'Huh?' The black-haired man himself was trying his best to remember the meeting on which they discussed the exam. "Nezu, that's the real test." Though, given the smile he was receiving from the principal, his memory may be a bit foggy. "That's what we had discussed at our meeting; a simple rerun of the entrance exam with harder robots."
"Oh, yes, of course, of course, they will still be fighting robots." The chimera said quickly, waving off his employee's worry. "However." Never mind, worry back. "That is not the whole story."
A terrified and genuinely worried Aizawa looked at Nezu as though he might roll back into his old tendencies. "Sir, what exactly are you planning to do with my students?"
It was well placed worry; all Nezu did was smile and sip his tea while reciting the two words the school was known for. "Plus ultra."
And at that moment, all 1A and 1B students simultaneously felt a chill go down their spine.
Cafeteria, End of Next Month
The entirety of 1A sat together in the cafeteria, having taken one of the bigger tables that the third years would usually occupy. However, since it was close to their practicals – for all courses – everyone was either in their studios, offices, or training rooms.
"If I have to pick up a pen again, it'll be too soon." Hagakure started, laying back in her seat with a sigh. "My brain feels like it's on fire."
Shoto gave a hoarse laugh to that as he held an ice-covered hand to his forehead. "I wonder how that feels."
"Even I must admit, those theoretical tests were quite daunting." Iida admitted, taking off his glasses. "To have questions not just be answered by the theory in our books, but the moral of our character, and creativity of our minds, Yuuei is-"
"Truly a great school." 1A drawled, collectively slamming their heads on the table as they finished the blue-haired teen's rant for him, having heard it several dozen times in the past month while studying.
"Izuku…" Mina rolled her head before leaning on Izuku and looking right at him. "Feed me."
Not a question Izuku was expecting. "What?!" Then again, not a question, more like a demand. "What do you mean feed you?" The pink girl simply gave him her best pair of puppy eyes before puffing out her cheeks. 'Damnit.' Also known as, Izuku's greatest weakness. "Mina, just because you feel brain dead doesn't meant that I'm going to-"
"Please." The pink girl leaned into the greenette and nuzzled her nose against his ear, an action she knew he loved.
And it worked. "Fine."
'Good Lord, just fucking date already!' Much to Akira's immense satisfaction as he downed his usual large bowl of ramen. "So how do you guys think you did on the tests?" However, he decided to leave that for now and talk to everyone else.
Tsu grabbed a spoonful of jelly. "Alas, there were still a bunch of history questions that I didn't understand, kero." She smiled as the sweetness of the jelly hit her just right. "But, other than that, I think I did fairly well. Kero."
Sato happily accepted the frog girl's offer of jelly. "Honestly, I'd like to think I did great on those tests aside from a few hero informatics questions."
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I got hero classification, villain classes, and quirk tier levels messed up now that I'm thinking back on it." Shoji said with a sigh; one that was quickly wiped away as Tsu shared her jelly with him as well. "Thanks, Tsu."
Akira nodded at the three before looking back to Izuku. 'Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh.' With a straight face hiding pure joy. "So, Ashido, how was studying with Izuku?"
Any 'tiredness' the pink girl may have had immediately dissipated and she hugged Izuku's chest tight. "Izuku was really patient with me; it was great." There was clear, sincere gratefulness and a little something more on her tone that had Akira raise his eyebrow. "Even though we had to go over math, like… Eight times."
Izuku pet Mina's head as she looked down in embarrassment at the last statement. "And I would've done it a hundred more if it gave you a better chance at passing."
The blush that overtook both of their faces at the end of that statement had part of the class smiling, another gagging, and another rolling their eyes at the cheesiness.
Though, they all couldn't not admit; they were very cute.
However, as most of the moments with the two went, the bell rung at snapped everyone back into reality.
"Alright, you two can continue flirting with each other later." Bakugou's statement turned Izuku and Mina into stuttering messes and he let out a single, hard laugh. "Come on, we've got to get class."
Class 1A
The students of 1A all sat patiently for their teacher with confused faces; he usually waited for them at the end of day announcements and he wasn't here.
Luckily for the black-haired man, he walked in before any of his students could report a kidnapping. "Good evening, class." Though, he did just scare them with the rare emotion they could hear in his voice. "I have news."
'No….' And that was a sentence that 1A had come to dread.
Aizawa not internally laughing at their worry was the second red flag. "It's about your exams."
'No….' And red flag number three.
"For starters, I'd like to congratulate you all on finishing your theory tests." The usually tired man praised – ? – while standing… Straight? "And as for your practical… You are no longer being permitted to use your hero costumes during the exam."
"What?!" Aizawa didn't even bother to silence them and let them ask their questions before they silenced themselves; red flag number lost count.
"You're going to be wearing your P.E uniforms for the exam and that is final." The man's tone banished any argument before it could start and he nodded. "And Nezu will give you the last piece of news when you get back here after the weekend."
That had the students on edge. 'A surprise from Principal Nezu…'
"Neither myself nor any of your other teachers know what's happened to your exam, so don't bother asking." Aizawa admitted, getting a collective groan from the class. "Enjoy your weekend, class, and try not to do anything too strenuous; I'll see you on Monday for your exam."
And as the man left their classroom as the bell rang, the students of 1A – and 1B – all shared one collective thought.
'We're so screwed.'