After lunch, we come back to class for the afternoon lessons. Auxi had already gone ahead, so she's already sitting in the back but looks focused on something.
I think about what we just heard from Sicuto's friends about the practical. Battling robots seriously seems too easy, but I can't think of anything in between. If all we know is that it's hero work, it could be rescues or some kind of catastrophe reaction test. But it also feels like Janju wasn't telling us something.
"Do you think they're right?" Tojuta asks.
"Who? Lax and Janju?" I confirm.
"Yeah, about with the practical and everything."
"Could be. I'm trying to think of other methods that wouldn't be too crazy for high schoolers."
"You guys got word of what the practical would be, too?" Uraraka walks up to our group.
"Yep. Luna let us in on some info, and then some other students agreed to it," Tojuta answers. It's then I notice we're turning a few heads toward our group. Kaminari and Ashido seem the most interested. "How about you?"
"Another student from 1-B let us in on the material. It started off unsettling, but I'm super relieved about the news. I just wonder if there will at least be some changes..."
"I'm looking forward to it!" Samae cheers and throws his fist in the air. "It was so easy last time, so it'll be awesome to have this kind of fun all over again!"
Kaminari and Ashido suddenly groan rather loudly and rush over to us with their hands pressed together as if to beg.
"Please! You're killing us!" Kaminari exclaims. "If you've got good news about the practical, stop being selfish and tell us what's up already!"
"Yeah, it's bad enough we were the ones with the lowest scores on the midterm, so just spit it out!"
"Woah, sorry, guys," Tojuta nervously chuckles and leans back from them, uncomfortable of the scene they're putting up. "I didn't realize you hadn't heard of it. I just figured since Uraraka walked up and joined in on the same subject, the news was already common knowledge."
"Shut up!" Kaminari whines. "Just cuz you placed seventh out of the twenty-four of us in the midterm, doesn't mean you can walk all over us!"
"Uh! I-I-I-I didn't mean anything like that!!" He frantically waves his hands around before taking a breath. "Anyway, some students in 1-B dropped some information for us, saying the big test will be just the robots from the entrance exam."
"Alright!!" The twos' moods almost instantly change at the news and relax a great deal.
"This'll be super easy if it's just robots!" Kaminari comments.
Ashido exhales with him. "Such awesome news!"
Shoji's mouth appendage stretches to us as he himself walks closer in. "Why do you sound so happy? You both have a hard time controlling your quirks."
"Yeah. But I can let loose with robots!" Kaminari corrects.
"And melting them will be a cinch for me!" Mina cheers.
"Now you just need Yaoyarozu to help you study and you'll be all set for finals!" Sero encourages, hyping the two up more.
"We'll definitely be able to go to the training camp now!"
"Even so, if the training camp is for hardcore training, wouldn't it make more sense to let those who failed go as well?" Tojuta clarifies.
"Probably," I reply. "I just don't think those who failed would get to participate in any fun activities."
"Well, no," Samae corrects. "Aizawa had said instead of training camp, failures attend summer school." He clutches his fist. "And you can bet you won't find me there, not with a reward like this!"
"It shouldn't matter if it was robots or actual people," a gruff voice interrupts us. Bakugo walks by us with his bag slung over his shoulder, ready to leave, and cuts his eyes over at our group. "Why are you morons so excited?"
Kaminari points at Bakugo, ticked by his comment. "Hey! Who are you calling a mor-?!"
"SHUT UP!" he roars, provoking the two to back down. "You need to learn how to control your quirk! Ya got it?!" Done with Kaminari and Ashido, he turns to glare at the side of the room. "Hey. Deku." The entire room seems to tense up as the blonde addresses his rival. "I don't know what's going on with your power. But I saw the way you're using it, and I want you to know it's seriously ticking me off."
"'The way he's using it??'" Tojuta whispers. "What the heck?"
Uraraka seems to realize something. "Uh-oh. He must mean how Deku was flying around like him the other day."
"Oh, yeah. Totally," Ashido replies, but Samae scoffs and brings his hands behind his head.
"He's mad about that? So what? It's not like he owns the moves or anything like that."
"I won't have another half-worth win like the festival," Bakugo continues. "We'll be getting individual scores in the upcoming finals. New rankings." He aggressively raises a finger at him. "So we'll all know exactly where we're standing! I'll show you how much better I am." He pauses as to let Midoriya soak in it before glaring behind him at Todoroki. "And Todoroki. I'll kill you, too."
With all said and done, Bakugo storms off through the door and slams it shut, leaving us in a bit of shock.
Tojuta glances around at us. "What just happened?"
Kirishima just scratches the back of his head. "It's been a while since I've seen him that worked up."
"Think it's impatience?" Tokoyami confirms. "Or hatred?"
I shrug as I start back to my desk. "Whatever it is, I'm sure it'll be the death of him." Tojuta and Samae follow to grab their own stuff.
I swing my bag over my shoulder as Tojuta speaks up to us, bringing Auxi out of her own thoughts and letting her in on the conversation. "Hey, you guys wanna study together, or do you have plans?"
Samae shrugs. "I was actually first thinking to join Ya-Momo's intense study bus, but I guess that'll work too."
"Heheh! Yeah!" Auxi comments. "You can use to bump up that fifteenth place of yours."
"You are not one to talk! You're down there with those two in twenty-second place!"
She shrugs. "Eh. Like I'm worried about it."
"You should be!"
"Either way, Tojuta, I'd be down, too."
"Great. Yurei, how about you? That is, unless you feel okay with eleventh."
"Sure. Where we meeting?"
"Let's do Tojuta's again!" Auxi suggests. "I got a score to settle with Samae in air hockey!"
"You wanna go, straps?" Samae challenges.
"About that," Tojuta interrupts. "I think my place is a no go. My mom's starting a sleep schedule for my younger siblings and that would over lap with whenever I'm free to study. Plus, if air hockey is all you can think about, I still don't think my place is a smart idea."
"So what do we do?" asks Samae. "Meet up at someone else's?"
"I think we should find a cafe or something," I offer. "Hosting something is not my strength, I recall Samae saying something at Tojuta's about the same thing, and finally, I'm almost scared to see what happens at Auxoriya's."
"Hey!"
"Alright," Tojuta agrees. "I think I know a place. I'll text you guys the address. About what we'll study to make sure we're all good: who else is having problems with algebra?"
Samae groans. "Ugh, that's definitely killing me."
Auxi shrugs. "I think I need help on everything. Mostly Classical Japanese."
I shrug. "I'm just about good on math, but I can stand a few tips in hero informatics."
"Okay, we'll meet up later on with our material. Sound good?"
We all agree with Tojuta's plan and leave the classroom one by one.
—————————————————————————————————————
Tick... tick... tick...
That's the most amplified sound happening in the classroom. Pens and pencils scribble on paper all around me. This scene is really getting tiring after three days.
Tick... tick... tick...
The written exams are really pulling no punches. I'm thankful I reviewed with the guys, otherwise, I don't think I would've remembered at least half of all this I'm being tested on. Our breaks aren't very interactive either, probably due to everyone worrying about the subject we just did or the subject that's yet to come.
Tick... tick... tick...
We're given about two to three hours on each each test, but there are still eighty-something thousand questions! That may be exaggerated, but it's still all incredibly stressful. Especially considering the fact that this particular school day is the same schedule for three days straight.
Tick... tick... tick...
And this clock is certainly not helping!
I fill in my final bubble just as Mr. Aizawa raises a tired hand. "Alright, put your pencils down." Oh, thank God! "Last person in each row, bring the answer sheets to me."
The guys and I stand and collect our classmates' papers as we bring up our own.
"Thanks so much for all your help!" Ashido practically cries to Yaoyarozu, provoking Kaminari to give a hearty thumbs-up to their tutor as well.
"I didn't leave anything blank at least!"
We bring the final papers to the front and return to our desks. Tojuta slumps in his and slams his head on his desk, relieved the whole thing is over. Through his sigh, he lifts a fist to me to offer a fist bump.
I quickly accept. "Good job, man."
"Yeah, you too."
Thus ended the written exams. Next up, the practical.
—————————————————————————————————————
The bus comes to a stop at the Central Plaza, and we all board off. All us 1-A students are in our hero costumes, ready to take down some robots.
Samae eyes around the building. "I don't see a model city or anything around here. Are we in the right place?"
"Strange," I add, following his gaze. "The place does seem a little cramped for massive robots."
"Uh, guys? The teachers," Tojuta interrupts and points to the entry of the building where most of the school's pros are standing, waiting for us to settle down. All the fighting-based teachers stand there in a mischievous formation, even Vlad King and Carver are here as well.
"Now then," Mr. Aizawa calls for our attention. "Let's begin the last test. Remember, it's possible to fail this final. If you want to go to camp, don't make any stupid mistakes."
Jiro scans over the crowd before us, looking as confused as we are. "Uh, why are all the teachers here?"
Our home room teacher continues. "I expect many of you have gathered information and believe you have some idea of what you'll be facing with today."
Kaminari and Ashido celebrate. "We're fighting those big ol' metal robots!"
"Fireworks! S'mores! Here we come!"
As if expecting a cue, a bulge seems to form and wiggle in Mr. Aizawa's scarf, talking as well. "Actually, this year's tests," Principal Nezu pops out of his burrow, raising his paw and pushing the pro's head to the side to give himself room. "Will be completely different for various reasons!"
Well that was unexpected and slightly disturbing.
"Principal Nezu!" most of us exclaim as all the color drains from Kaminari's and Ashido faces.
"You're changing things?" Yaoyarozu confirms while our principal scales down from Mr. Aizawa's shoulder with one end of his scarf like a mountain.
"The tests now have a new focus. There will be hero work, of course, but also teamwork and combat between actual people."
I don't think I like where this is going.
"So what does that mean for you? You students will be working together in pairs, and your opponents will be one of our esteemed UA teachers! Isn't that fabulous?"
We all swallow hard, and Uraraka speaks up among us. "We're.. fighting the teachers?!"
Well squat. I was not expecting this at all. Sure, we talked about it with Sicuto's gang, but that was just a joke!
Mr. Aizawa continues as the image of our teachers seems to look more sinister. "Additionally, your partners and your opponents have already been chosen. They were determined at my discretion based on various factors including fighting style, grades, and interpersonal relationships." He smiles grimly and clutches his scarf. "First, Yaoyarozu and Todoroki are a team... against me." He looks back over the other side of our gathering. "Then we have Midoriya paired with Bakugo."
The two gasp and stare at each other. Well this surely can't go well. Can it get worse?
"And their opponent is..."
As if to finish his statement, a muscly figure leaps from the building's roof, and All Might lands in front of the boys. He stands back up, showing his iconic smile and clutching a fist. "I am here. To fight! You'll have to work together, boys, if you want to win."
It got worse. Thank God I'm not in their shoes.
"Uh-huh, sucks to be them," Samae rudely moves along. "Who are the rest of us fighting?"
"We're coming to that, young man," Nezu corrects and raises his paw again. "In fact, we will now announce the teams and teachers they'll be fighting in order."
1. Sato and Kirishima VS. Cementoss
2. Asui and Tokoyami VS. Ectoplasm
3. Auxoriya and Samae VS. Vlad King
4. Iida and Ojiro VS. Powerloader
5. Seshin and Tojuta VS. Carver
6. Yaoyarozu and Todoroki VS. Mr. Aizawa
7. Aoyama and Uraraka VS. Thirteen
8. Ashido and Kaminari VS. Principal Nezu
9. Koda and Jiro VS. Present Mic
10. Hagakure and Shoji VS. Snipe
11. Sero and Mineta VS. Midnight
12. Midoriya and Bakugo VS. All Might
Carver. So that's who I'm up against along side Tojuta that is.
Principal Nezu carries on to explain the rules of the test. "To complete the exam, you'll have thirty minutes." He holds up a pair of handcuffs. "In order to win, your objective is to put these handcuffs on your teacher, or you can win if one of you manages to escape from the combat stage."
Kaminari thinks to himself. "So we've either gotta capture the teacher or run away. It's basically like the combat training."
"Yeah, but is if really okay to just jet?" Ashido raises her hand, prompting a thumbs-up from Nezu.
"Yep."
"It's gonna be much different than that combat training ya'll went through earlier," Present Mic corrects and poses dramatically. "After all, you're up against people waaay better than you!"
"Better really?" Jiro stares blankly at the DJ while Koda tries to tame her out of throwing smack to no avail. "Wait, aren't you just the announcer?"
"HEY! WATCH YO MOUTH, GIRL! HAVE SOME RESPECT!"
Ignoring Mic's fit, the other teachers give a quick briefing on the test.
"This time, your exam will be very similar to a real battle," Thirteen states. "As strange as it is, please think of us as villains."
Snipe takes over and lowers his mask's gaze. "Assuming you come across your enemy, if you think you can win against them, then fight. However..."
"In instances where you are outmatched, it would be smarter to run away and find help," Mr. Aizawa finishes. "Todoroki, Iida, Midoriya, Seshin, I'm sure the four of you understand."
I gaze down at the ground, recalling the mess I got myself into at Hosu by coming across Plague, but like I needed to be reminded of it.
I look up at Iida next to me as I guess what he's thinking. He stares at his arm but doesn't look at me.
"I won't make that mistake again," he assures and clutches his fist. "I will pass this test and prove that I'm a hero."
I return my attention to the teachers before us as Midoriya summarizes our objectives. "So we fight to win or run to win."
"That's right!" All Might affirms. "It's a test of your decision-making skills!"
Strategy? Hey, I'm good at that.
"But with these rules, you're probably thinking your only real choice is to flee." All Might observes, shaking a finger and reaching behind him to retrieve something. "That's why the Support course made these super clever accessories for us!" He dramatically brings out a large, thick bracelet embedded with heavy metal.
"Behold!" Present Mic announces. "Ultra compressed weights!!"
The teachers all either show that they've been wearing them or pull them out to put them on. All Might himself begins to slide on a few bracelets and adjusts them to stay fitted as he continues.
"These babies will add about half our body weight to our physics. It's not much, but they will eat up our stamina and make it harder for us to move around." Upon finishing his adjustments, his wrist suddenly drops a bit from the weight. "Oh, shoot. These are heavier than I thought." He stands back up. "We had a contest to come up with these designs, and young Hatsume ended up winning it!"
Whoever that is... Wait, Janju was in a contest for this. She must've known all along!
"You think we need a handicap to win against you?" Bakugo growls at his opponent. "Well think again."
All Might laughs heartily before showing his Sans eye at the young challenger. "This will be fun."
"Let's begin," Mr. Aizawa takes over. "The teams will take the practical exam in the order you were called. We have a stage prepared for you. Sato, Kirishima, you're up."
"Yes, sir!" The two respond as the other teachers turn toward the building and march in.
"Those waiting their turn to fight can either watch the exams or try to strategize together as a team; it's your choice. That's all." With that, the Erasure Hero follows his coworkers.
Tojuta looks at me. "Yurei, you're the strategist here. You wanna come up with something together while we're waiting?"
"Yeah, sure. Carver's gonna be difficult, so I think I need to review our options for either fight or flight."
"We got this in the bag, guys!" Auxi buts in, pumping her fist in the air. "Watch each other's matches when we can?"
"Sure, I'm looking forward to seeing how you do!" Tojuta agrees, and I simply nod.
"Awesome! Look forward to a good show then! Right, Samae?!" She looks over her shoulder, expecting to see her partner but only stares off into the distance. She glances around before spotting Samae trudging into the building by himself. "Hey! Wait up!" she calls and jogs to follow him in.
—————————————————————————————————————
Tojuta and I step into the a waiting room in the building. Thankfully, there's a whiteboard I can work with. I find a dry erase marker while my partner pulls up a chair to sit down.
"Alright," I begin while making two categories on either side of the board: options for fight or flight. "So, we gotta ask ourselves, what exactly are Carver's quirk, styles, and weaknesses." I draw a simple stick figure in the middle with a large hammer and another figure made of blocks. "Help me out, buddy."
"Okay," he nods and raises his visit to his forehead. "So Carver's quirk involves a statue of himself that is basically indestructible. The mineral it's made of cannot be classified and cannot be damaged at all. There can only be one situation with these figures: one as Carver's movable body and the other as a lifeless effigy that can't be moved on its own. The two can trade forms no matter the their position whenever he wants."
"How about his styles, or do you not any clue?"
"I know a bit. Carver's a tanky type of person, so he usually charges into the scene, ready to attack with his hammer."
"But then he's leaving his statue behind, right? So he has easy escape route whenever he needs to."
"Correct."
"So here's an idea: what if we make this like the fight training and split up. One of us can occupy Carver himself while the other can cuff the statue."
"I see what you're saying! That way, either we can cut off his escape route or trap the sitting duck. Whatever it counts toward."
"It'll probably count as Carver losing as soon as his statue's cuffed. It makes sense since his statue is defined as his quirk."
"He loses either way, though, right?"
"Just about. We'll go with that. I'm gonna give you the cuffs then." I write down the option under fight. "Now how about flight? If only one of us needs to make it to the escape gate, I could just phase and rush through,"
"True, but keep in mind we're set at a disadvantage, so Carver might have a way to put out your flames with ease."
"Noted."
A loud buzzer sounds, getting our attention. "Sato and Kirishima have been knocked out. Exam over."
"Wait, already?!" my friend gasps.
I'm incredibly surprised myself. We're given thirty minutes in the exam, but that felt more like five! I'm disappointed as we probably won't have as much time to prepare as I thought.
"Do you know what teams are next?" I ask my partner.
"Asui and Tokoyami, I think. Then it's Auxi's and Samae's match." He looks back at the door. "I feel like we should head down to the observation room now. We promised Auxi we would watch their test."
I sigh and put down the marker. "Fine. We'll do the cuffing-the-statue plan, alright?"
"Sure! We can do it!"
With that, we leave the room and head for the monitoring chamber. Tokoyami and Asui are surely in the midst of their test, so we'll definitely make it at least in time for the third match.