Ayano heard the slamming of metal pieces onto the work station beside her. Paying it no mind, she continued her work as if she had heard nothing at all.
The boy, clearly perturbed by her behavior, tried fake coughing to get her attention. "Ahem!" This time, Ayano genuinely did not hear it, having gone into one of her normal zones. The boy's eye twitched in annoyance. He coughed once more, much louder than the last and nearly hurting his throat. "AHEM!"
Ayano had heard him, but chose not to turn her head. Most of her focus was still on her bionic arm cannon in front of her, as she opted to only glance at him in her peripheral vision. "...Can I help you?" She asked, giving him the bare minimum of her attention.
Though she had only glanced at him, she noticed his incredibly slanted and ferocious eyes. She vaguely recognized him to be the boy from the entrance exam. He was the one who made a scene and shouted at Present Mic along with that boy who wore glasses.
Still irked by her attitude, the boy spoke. "I'm Fujiyoshi Yuudai." "Sasaki Ayano." She quickly responded, clearly indicating that she had no intentions of continuing the conversation further. She had only given her name in response because it would be impolite to do otherwise.
Yuudai frowned, pretending to work on his invention while talking. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you and Junk Master speaking earlier. So, you're quirkless?" Ayano found no point in answering a question he already knew the answer to. She preferred to use her brain power on her work.
His frown deepened at her silence, quickly disappearing into a seemingly amiable smile once more. He picked up a piece of scrap metal and held it up to the light, pretending to inspect it to give off a sense of nonchalance. "That's pretty amazing, getting into U.A. without a quirk. You must be pretty good at making weapons then." His tone was very strange. It wasn't quite condescending and it wasn't quite mocking, but it also didn't seem like a genuine question. It most certainly didn't sound like a compliment either.
Assuming he wouldn't leave her alone, Ayano decided to humor him. "That would depend on what your definition of 'good' is. Regardless, there is always room for improvement." Yuudai's eye twitched in annoyance again.
It was a rather common phrase, one that many believed in. Yet, the way she said it, coupled with her impassive attitude, seemed to irritate him. "Well, you must be since you passed the entrance exam with flying colors. Your weapons must be top-quality. Those Hero Course kids will be lucky to have weapons made by you."
Ayano nearly slammed the screwdriver onto the table, unable to concentrate with his constant intrusion. She finally tore her eyes away from her invention and turned to look at him with her neutral face. "What exactly do you want?" It was less of a question than it was a demand.
Yuudai just blinked in confusion, not understanding what he had done to provoke her so. "I just wanted to get to know you, the person who seems to be at the top of the Support Course of us first-years."
There was a slight downwards tilt of Ayano's lips, though the frown only lasted for barely a second. So, that was his play, trying to cozy up to the people he thought would benefit him. It was no wonder his tone had agitated her so much.
"Maybe we could become partners and make weapons together." He continued. "I would prefer it if you would stop using that word." He blinked in confusion again. "What word?" "Weapons."
Yuudai chuckled. "But isn't that what us support students make?" Ayano now openly frowned. "I am a Support Course student, yes. As such, I make support items. Items to help heroes. It just so happens that weapons can also fall into that category. Making weapons is not my intention or my priority like you are suggesting."
Finally breaking his smile in front of her, Yuudai met her gaze head-on. "Items to help heroes, you say?" He scoffed. "As if they really need much help with their amazing quirks. Don't they all just want more weapons? Something more to help them fight villains? Our job is to make weapons. There's really no difference if we make them for heroes or villains or even normal people, is there? It all ends up the same way, being used to create violence and chaos."
Ayano glared at him. "I do not make weapons for the purpose of destruction. I make support items to aid those in need."
Yuudai rolled his eyes. "Please! As if you're really doing this because you think you can help people. It's all for the money, isn't it?" He picked up a piece of scrap metal and lit up a flame on his finger, using it like a soldering torch. "This job is easy enough. Even if you make something the great heroes don't like, you still get paid for trying or you just make more modifications. You'll basically never be out of work because there isn't enough of us, and even if there is..." He smirked at her. "I bet some villains would pay a pretty hefty price for some quality weapons."
Ayano scowled at him. "I do not see why you chose to attend U.A. then. For a place that produces some of the top heroes, you seem to not care much for them or for which side you belong."
"Heroes have it all, don't they? They get the spotlight while people like us stand on the sidelines, forgotten. Most of us don't have quirks suited for combat, so becoming a hero is impossible for us. So, what does it matter if we help ourselves in any way we can? Heroes...villains...they're pretty much the same, don't you think? Either one could be a client. I'm just looking for which one could be the biggest." He smirked, bearing his teeth.
Ayano stared at him for a couple moments, discerning whether or not he was serious. "If that is really how you feel, then so be it. You have your own opinions and objectives. I have mine." She turned back to her work, deciding not to entertain him any further. "It appears that our views do not coincide. I would appreciate it if you do not bother me any further. I do not have the time for it and neither should you."
Yuudai was about to offer a retort when Junk Master's booming voice indicated their remaining time for the assignment, as if to prove Ayano's last statement. The boy gave a small growl, picked up his belongings, and marched away.
Ayano's hands still moved, but she turned her head slightly so that her eyes could follow his movements. She noted the irony in his name: Yuudai, meaning 'great hero.' He certainly didn't hold any desire or fondness for the occupation.
There wasn't anything particularly wrong with most of what he said. In fact, many people thought the same way. In a world dominated by heroes, it was more difficult to make a name for yourself and to live more comfortably. It wasn't uncommon for people to think of ways to make extra money on the side.
Even so, his words didn't exactly leave the impression of practicality. They held a bit more...resentment.
Ayano felt that this wouldn't be the last of their confrontations.
She went about her work and successfully modified her bionic arm cannon to her liking. Finishing her first day with little to no problem, she shared her experiences with Midoriya the next day on their walk to school.
"Uwaaah! Your homeroom teacher was intense on the first day too? U.A. really is something else..." Midoriya shivered at the thought. He had a worrisome enough first day with his own homeroom teacher and his quirk apprehension testing, but hearing of Ayano's teacher just reignited the anxiety.
"It's great that you passed though!" He smiled, though it disappeared in the next second. "D-Did anybody get expelled!??" She shook her head, causing the green-haired boy to release a sigh of relief.
He smiled at her. "Even though it seems like it'll be tough from here on out, I'm hoping things will go well for the both of us! We've both gotten through the first hurdle, right?" Ayano nodded and returned his smile.
She hummed in thought. "Junk Master said he had something more fun in store for today's lesson. Though, I am unsure if that means more fun for us or more fun for him." Midoriya shivered, growing worried for his friend.
"Good luck, Aya-chan!" He shouted as he walked into his classroom. The first half of the day was spent like any other general education school. It was the second half that he was really looking forward to.
Thinking that the class would be thrust into hero training, the boy was surprised to see Aizawa enter with Junk Master, Ayano's homeroom teacher.
The rest of the class was also surprised, waiting with bated breath. "There is no hero training today. Instead, it will be a joint lesson with students of the Support Course." Aizawa explained. Midoriya heard some sighs of disappointment and an annoyed click of the tongue from Bakugou.
Aizawa turned to Junk Master, allowing him to take over. He zipped himself up in his large, yellow sleeping bag.
"Alright, kiddos! Listen up!" Junk Master shouted. "All of you remember that you submitted your quirk registry and bodily specifications to the uniform subsidy for costume making, right?" His question was answered with excited nods and glimmers of hopeful eyes.
"Well, we have some pretty interesting first-years this year, so we decided to try something new. Rather than getting our support company to make your costumes like usual, we're letting the Support Course students do it!" As if on cue, a bunch of students entered the room to stand at the front behind him. Among them, Midoriya noticed Ayano with her normally impassive nature.
He gave a big smile, growing excited. So, this is what Junk Master meant when he said he had something more fun planned!
"As class 1-A, you kids have some of the highest scores on the entrance exam and have some of the highest potential in becoming great heroes." He spread out his arms, like he was giving an exhibit of the students. "So, I've gathered some of the highest scorers on the Support Course entrance exam to make your costumes."
"Earlier today, each of them got copies of all of your individual requests and have reviewed them. Based on that, they're going to choose who they want to work with. We'll start with the top scorer, Sasaki Ayano." Midoriya beamed. He knew Ayano was amazing, but to be the top scorer? He grew excited at the chance to work with her.
Junk Master turned to her and asked, "Who do you choose, Sasaki?" Midoriya smiled when she turned to him, but he didn't know that she was actually looking in front of him.
"Bakugou Katsuki"