week later, I was sat at my desk, holding the envelope that contained my exam results. I wasn't too worried about what I'd find in my results. The written portion was an afterthought and I scored enough on villain points alone to make top 10. The content of this letter wasn't in question. Having said that, the lack of trepidation didn't take away from how momentous of an occasion this was.
Not wanting to drag this out any longer, I tore open the envelope and out came a metal disk. A bright light came out, and a white rat thing popped up as a hologram.
"Hello!" greeted what could only be the unhinged Nezu, "Am I a mouse? Dog? A bear? My real identity is… the Principal! Now, I'm not normally on this end of the camera, but this year warrants an exception."
Three guesses on what it is.
"With a 96 percent grade on the written exam, you pass into the General Education course of U.A. High with flying colors. But, going past that, you recorded a total of 58 villain points, comfortably securing you a spot in our Hero Program, and in the Top 10 Examinees." My math was off? Impossible. "… that is, if that was all there was to it. After all, what is heroism without self-sacrifice? The practical exam also held a hidden component: Rescue Points, awarded by a panel of judges for acts of selflessness. With a total awarded sum of 50 rescue points, and a decades-high grand total of 108 points, Rikido Sato, welcome to the hero course."
The smile that came out of me couldn't be any wider. I made it in. I mean, I knew of course. The old Sato had done the same with a smaller arsenal. It was to be expected that I would get in. But, having said that, with the same ability. I had turned Sato from a non-factor in the grand scheme of things to a real contender for best upcoming young hero.
I was getting ahead of myself; I haven't had my first day of class and already I was giving myself titles. I had to slow my roll.
At least until I win the Sports Festival, then it's full throttle on crowning myself as the next All Might.
See? S.M.A.R.T. Goals. Specific and time-based, I keep my expectations straight.
A leaderboard popped up, showcasing the top 10 scorers for the practical, with me at the very top, with second place being over 30 points away. Hah! I only could remember that in the show, Bakugo topped the exam and Midoriya made Top 10 through Rescue Points alone, meaning the rest of the placements are a mystery. Now, let's see… The rest of the placements… The hardening dude was number 3? How? Oh, Kendo made number 6. Guess I'll congratulate her for backing up her fighting words the next time I see her. Maybe a Chiffon cake would suffice… No, too much. Canelés will do. Not too sweet, simple, satisfactory. *
________________________
2 days before U.A., and I was moving in to my new apartment in Musutafu, about a 10-minute walk from U.A.'s main campus. While not the most luxurious looking place, the apartment complex was located in a good neighbourhood, though with its proximity to U.A. it went without saying, with enough personal space for anyone to be comfortable.
Folding up the last cardboard box and storing it in a shelf, I looked over my new place of residence. Nothing too fancy; a desk, an office chair, a cabinet, a table to eat at, a range oven, a fridge, a microwave, a bathroom, and a metal-framed king-sized bed, because I move around a lot in my sleep and wood frame legs have broken under me before. Not even through the fun way.
Didn't bother bringing gym equipment, as I would have access to the best gyms I had ever seen in a few days, and I wouldn't suddenly atrophy by skipping weighted training in that time frame.
Pretty nice, all things considered.
With unpacking done, I figured I might as well try the Canelés recipe I would eventually gift Kendo. Pulling out a copper canelé mold I brought from home, I got started preparing the dish.
An unexpected knock on the door came an hour later, as I was unmoulding the baked canelés onto a tray. Removing my oven mitt, I opened the door to a green-haired girl around my age. Over a foot shorter than me, I had to tilt my neck down to look her in the eye.
"Hello?" I asked, "Can I help you?"
She grinned, showing off 2 rows of long pointed teeth "Hey there, big guy. I'm Tokage Setsuna, I saw you lugging around big boxes, and wanted to welcome the neighbour my age."
Awfully outgoing of her, but there are worse things to be. If anything, it could benefit me right now.
"Nice to meet you, Rikido Sato. Say, I was wo-"
"-Rikido Sato? Did I hear that right?" Tokage interrupted.
I recoiled at the suddenness, "Uh, yeah. That's me. Hi again."
Setsuna shook her head, "You're the guy who got three digits on the entrance exam, right? Must be you, I'm pulled in by the temptation to bounce grapes off those pecs from all the way over here."
Again, no filter to be had between the brain and the vocal cords. And it wasn't a surprise for people to know how I did, U.A. top applicants' scores were available for viewing for all its students, after all.
"Thanks? Yeah, I was pretty satisfied with my result. Here's to hoping the rest of my tenure at U.A. would be as stellar." I nodded "How about you? How did you do in the exam? I assume you got in too, judging by the fact you live here now and the fact you're comfortable enough to talk about it so casually."
She grinned, making me assume that teeth showing was just her default expression "Eh, took a different exam. A few things happened last year, a family friend saw it and sent a recommendation to the school, a few more things happened, bada bing bada boom, I'm here now."
I raised an eyebrow, "Wow, recommendation. That's pretty cool. Guess you're something pretty special if you managed that."
She leaned in closer, getting me a real good look at the good work her dentist put in "Aw, that's sweet. A girl might get the wrong idea you know."
My lips upturned "Can't call it a wrong idea if we're on the same page."
Her gaze grew more intense at that, "And what exactly are we reading?"
The Kama Sutra. No, I can't say that.
"My mom's recipe."
Her smile cracked, and her stare turned to confusion, "Err, what?"
"I was baking some canelés. You should try some. They're like, rum cake with custard inside. They're fresh out of the oven, and I'd like your opinion on it. They're pretty great, if I do say so myself."
All wind out her sails, Tokage just straightened back up and said "…Fine."
For the record, she enjoyed the canelés and asked to bring half home.
I think I won today.
Kind of a filler chapter. I did want to try out the Lady-killer Baker thing I mentioned before so here we are. Throw them off their rhythm, like Detective J.J. Bittenbinder taught us. For Tokage being the building-mate, I rolled a randomizer so I delegate all responsibility to RNGesus.
Yes, I just watched Your Lie in April, why do you ask? *
Sidenote, I can't seriously be expected to go along with the shitpost poll option, right? Right???
The blare of my phone alarm woke me up, and in my excitement, I shot straight to my feet even before my eyes could fully open. A glance at my phone showed me that it was just 6:30, a whole 2 hours before classes started for the morning. It took about 20 seconds to remember just why I was so eager to wake up so early. Right, I had sweets to make.
As I load the canelés into the oven to bake for the next hour, I considered how I would tackle the upcoming physical tests that were sure to come later today. I scored way too high in a fashion way too loud for Aizawa not to be my handler. Adding to that, the canon me made 1-A as well, solidifying my assumption that I would be under him. Sure, with a physical quirk, I was well-suited to physical tests, but against Mr. Freeze, Combustion Man, and Bob the Builder? I'd need to get creative.
In the hour it took to bake the treats, I took my time in the shower and making sure I didn't forget anything, all the while engineering schemes to blow the competition out the water. I wouldn't beat an infinity on the ball throw but I'll damn sure try.
Moving my gift to a food container, I opened my school bag and rested it on top of the books inside. I slung my satchel over my shoulder and made my way out the complex. As I climbed down the stairs of the building, I spotted Tokage in her U.A. uniform, on her phone leaning on the railing at the bottom.
Hearing my heavy footsteps, she looked up and recognized that I was there. She assumed her usual grin directed at me, "Hey big guy. Way to leave a girl waiting."
I raised my eyebrows, "I wasn't aware we set a meeting time and place for today. I'll have to recheck my calendar. You can go ahead without me."
I usually wasn't one to turn down offers from pretty girls, but I wasn't going to drop trou for just any girl who smiled at me. Professionals have standards, I'll get to know her before I mow her. Besides, I could tell this one enjoyed not having things easy.
I'll eventually take the offers, but as cheesy as it sounds, I genuinely want to know girls before going any further... Doesn't mean I can't think of doing things. Or implying what I thought.
She put on a fake pout, "I've been standing here for over 10 minutes to walk you to school. Is this how you treat a girl who tries to do something nice for you? I'd to find out what'd happen if I tried something naughty then."
"Nobody told you to do that, and you had no real idea on when I'd leave for school." At this point, I knew she wouldn't take no for an answer. Saving myself the trouble, I resigned myself to enjoying her company on the walk to school. Descending down the steps towards her, I retorted "Besides, you wouldn't like it what I'd do to you if you were naughty."
Joining my side as we walked out the complex and to school grounds, she lightly pressed her arm against mine.
"Oh, don't be so sure of that. Elaborate. Maybe I'll surprise you." She retorted with a big dumb smile and half-lidded eyes.
"Equal rights equal fights. These hands are rated E for Everyone." I explained.
Contrary to how the line would usually be received, she threw her head back and started laughing. "Oh, you're fun. You surprised me before, but now I have a general read on you." Her expression shifted to a more predatory gaze. "I'll have fun chasing my prize."
I snorted "Oh spare me oh great apex predator. If anything, you'll be the one on your back being mauled."
"Is that what you prefer to call it? I don't mind the roleplay." Setsuna remarked, bumping her shoulder against my bicep. "I don't mind being the bottom."
"Suddenly, settling for Shiketsu Academy isn't such a big concession to make."
"Ahh, don't be like that. You know you're warming up to me." She slapped my arm, "Besides, if this isn't enough for you, I can think of other ways to warm you up faster."
If any good existed in this world, I wouldn't've changed canon to the point I'm stuck in the same class as her. There was being forward, and faking a fall to grab onto my pants. I wouldn't mind too much personally, but her being with me would throw out any possibility of me coming off as a gentleman.
Thankfully, after about 10 minutes of valiant defence against the ancient evil known as being down bad, we finally made it inside U.A.'s gates. Going up to the bulletin board just past the school entrance, we checked out the class list to find where we were individually. Of course, knowing what I knew, the name Rikido Sato being listed under class 1-A was no surprise. Above the class list was a map of the school to help students find their respective classrooms.
"Ahh, I was really hoping to be in the same class as you." Setsuna complained beside me, "Could've spent all day with you instead of just seeing you at home."
Checking the class list for 1-B, I spotted the name Itsuka Kendo.
"I'm sure you'll find another poor soul in your class to suck life out of, Tokage."
"Nah, you'll be my one and only. I'll be sure to make you remember that."
"Can I get a rain check on that?"
"Nope, but if you wanted to get wet, I have a few suggestions."
"We're in public. You're that bold?"
"People do like showing off their sports cars in the streets. I think I can agree with the mentality."
"And with that, let's get going, Tokage. I need to drop something off at 1-B."
She was getting past my guard too easy. I tried throwing her off rhythm with the switching between playing along and stopping her cold turkey, but she wasn't falling for my feints. I needed to disengage and try again next round.
Laughing, but slightly curious, she followed me up the stairs. Making our way to the third floor, we went to where the map indicated. As we entered back door of 1-B, I kept my eyes open for familiar orange hair. I ignored the looks from unimportant people who were probably thinking I was to be their new classmate. Seeing Kendo on the opposite side of the room nearer what could only be the teacher's desk, I strode to the front of the room.
Kendo, turning her head, looked pleasantly surprised, "Oh, it's you! Rikido Sato, wasn't it? We're classmates? I didn't see your name on the class list."
I shook my head, smiling, "Nah, I'm in A. I'm just here for you."
Her face took a shade of red, and Itsuka pointed to herself, "F-f-for me?"
"Yeah, came to congratulate you on your placement. You made top 10. Backed up your claim."
She calmed down a little, but was still noticeably off-guard, "I'm surprised you remembered that."
"How could anyone forget you?" I teased.
Her mouth opened a little, but words weren't coming out.
"And here I thought we had something special. But no, you move on to the next pretty thing without taking a second look at me." Setsuna pouted from behind me, faking a hurt tone.
"I'm too much for you to handle alone. Thought I'd bring some hands to help out, and she's got pretty big ones." I quipped, not bothering to look back at her, knowing I'd find the same imp grin I'm growing used to. Focusing back to a Kendo that was rebooting, I reached into my bag for the container, and handed it over to her.
Confused once more, she asked "What's this?"
"I baked something for you. Think of it as a congratulations gift from me. Thought I should show what I thought of you making top 10 after calling it out. I respected the move, so here we are,"
A small smile adorned her face, "You didn't have to do that…"
I shrugged, "No real loss to me. I enjoy baking, especially when I get to share it. Have a bite. Tell me what you think."
Setsuna, watching the exchange, spoke up, "Oh, those are really good. Just keep in mind, the baker won't care how they make you feel. Keep that in mind when he moves on to another girl, so make sure to not catch feelings, alright?"
I smiled, going along with it, "Sabotaging my next conquest? That's petty of you."
It wasn't like that, but playing along with her games would be the best way to keep her liking me.
She smirked, "I wouldn't want someone else taking my place on your lap."
"I use big belts. I'm sure it can fit more than a few notches."
"Just make sure I'm the one attached to the front."
I couldn't keep up this act forever. My tendency to switch personalities to suit the girl was coming back to bite my ass on this.
Itsuka, watching the exchange as one would a tennis match, opened the container and grabbed a piece of the canelés. She took an experimental bite, and I watched the familiar sight of people trying my food. The usual signs, widened eyes, sounds of shock and awe, wet panties dropping around the room.
Not really the last one. I haven't seen the last one done literally yet, but I'm holding out hope.
"Wow! These are amazing! You made these?" Itsuka praised.
"Yup, fresh out the over. Well, relatively."
"Wow!" She repeated.
I smiled, "Anyway, glad you like it. Share it with your new classmates if you want. I'll head over to my own class now. See ya later."
Mouth full of cream, and wasn't that a promising sight, she smiled back and said, "I'll see you later! Thanks for this! Kodai, you have to try this."
My job here was complete. I waved her thanks off as I started walking back out the classroom. I ignored the people who started watching me after finding out I wasn't their classmate. Sorry buckos, I don't know you, and you didn't make 1-A, so you don't matter all that much at the moment. I'm sure we'll be best of buddies, later, but for now, you're background characters to me.
Fun fact, not that it was explicitly advertised, but Class A over the years tended to have the higher scorers in the admission test, most likely due to Eraserhead, the ultimate equalizer, being assigned 1-A every three years. So, 1-A tended to house the more powerful students, and as a result, majority of the first-year sports festivals were won by students from the A class. Last year being the obvious exception, with 1-A being void of any students, after all. Shiketsu were pleasantly surprised with 20 promising late applicants that year, I would guess.
That isn't to say that A was the end all be all best. With more training on each side, the second and third year festivals become more diverse with its winners, with B actually edging 2-A out in terms of total wins in the second year, probably due to the desire to make up for the year prior. It was in third year that students were at their very best, and matches of pure power versus ingenious quirk maximization were toss ups at best. A certain Tin Tin came to mind. Mundane quirks were turned to broken superpowers, under the crucible of U.A.'s hero course.
Setsuna couldn't help but call out to my back, "Bye bye big guy. If you find any more girls to bring along, send them over to me and I'll give them the usual orientation."
"Yeah, yeah. See you later. Don't hunt down too many innocent virgins, it'd look bad on your resume." I called out over my shoulder. Once out the door, I made my way down the hall to my own classroom.
I'm surprised the jealous blonde kid from 1-B didn't mouth of at me about me thinking I was better than him for being in 1-A. That wasn't the case. I wasn't better than him because of my class assignment. I was just plain better. Then again, it was the first day and nothing of note has happened yet, so that inferiority complex of his hasn't reared its ugly head in too hard yet.
Stopping in front of the massive door labelled 1-A, I let out a slow breath, and slid the door open to make my way inside. I saw that majority of the class had already arrived, and heads turned to regard the newest entry. I raised a hand in greeting, and got a few waves back.
A blue-haired bespectacled guy marched his way over, and greeted me with a knifehand in my direction, "Good morning! I am from Somei Academy. My name is Iida Tenya"
I greeted back, "Rikido Sato. Good morning."
I didn't have much to say to the guy. His personality would clash with mine, and I wasn't overly concerned with befriending him either.
Checking the seat plan on the teacher's desk in front, I walked over to the back, to the desk next to an expressionless boy with red and white hair. Shoto Todoroki looked up at me as I put down my bag, and I just gave a nod. He stared for a few seconds, before eventually returning the nod and going back to staring at his desk. Fun way to pass the time, I'll have to try it sometime. Up there with counting cracks on the ground and watching golf. I'll put more effort in befriending him once Midoriya does his shonen battle therapy on him.
Noting that I still had 5 minutes before class was set to start, and seeing as how it would probably be like pulling teeth to get Todoroki into a conversation, I looked around for anyone interesting seated near me to talk to. Iida staring at the door, ready to greet the next student to come in, no. Rock head looking read Birdhead being edgy with his eyes closed, pass. Purple-haired midget looking like he won the lottery while not so subtly looking backwards every few seconds, haha die. Seems he was losing his shit over being seated in close proximity to a pretty girl. Understandable, but by God are you in desperate need for horny jail. You might even be cellmates with lizard girl.
Deciding that gorgeous black-haired girl could do better than him for company, I strode over to the desk near the window. When she looked up at me from her people-watching, I smiled and extended a hand to shake, like the gentleman I was pretending to be.
"Good morning. I'm Sato Rikido. I'm your new classmate."
She smiled back politely, and took my hand in her dainty one "Yes, I heard. Good morning. My name is Yaoyorozu Momo. It's a pleasure to meet you."
Bet it is. "Pleasure's all mine. Are you excited for today?"
"Yes, of course. I've been looking forward to this day for the as long as I can remember. I've thoroughly prepared myself for this."
"Looks like it," I said, "seeing as how the bookmarks on the textbooks in your bag are on the last pages." Her bag slung over the back of her chair was wide open and I have good peripheral vision when not knee-deep in my quirk.
She looked sheepish, "I'm surprised you noticed that, that was perceptive of you. Yes, I might have been overzealous in my preparations, but I would think that would be understandable given the circumstances. A hero is ready for anything, after all."
Especially if you can make anything you can think of. Laying it on thick, I responded "Well, I respect your drive to better yourself. I wouldn't be surprised to find you at the top of the class academically halfway through the semester."
I didn't mind conceding that spot. My specialty was combat. Can't punch a written test score higher.
She blushed and averted her eyes a bit, "T-There's no certainty of that. I'm sure many of our compatriots here are intelligent and capable themselves. I hardly have any guaranteed claim on that title."
I shrugged, "Maybe. But I'll put my money on you anyway. You seem the studious type, and with natural intelligence to back it up, nothing this school can throw at you will be able to stop you."
"T-Thank you." Her face got even redder for some reason. I don't know why, it was a rational conclusion to reach, given the variables I stated. It's not like I included fighting in that assessment. Before I could say any more, a long *bang* emitted from the front of the class.
That would be the door, and that pissed-off blonde guy would be Bakugo Katsuki.
"Which one of you fuckers is Rikido Sato?!"
Guess he made it a point to remember the name of the guy who beat him. I'll raise a glass of salty tears in your honour.
Nobody responded, though a few did look in my direction discreetly. I just raised my eyebrows and shook my head. Not the time and place for this.
His eyes roamed the class a few more times before he realized nobody would fess up.
Bakugo sneered, and pocketed his hands, "Scared huh? Feh, should've known that a damn extra wouldn't face me. I wouldn't want to fight me neither."
I wasn't afraid of him, not even slightly, but I was making first impressions here, and my gentleman persona would be at risk if I started a fight here. He wasn't worth it. I'll just make sure to cement my place above him later down the line. Preferably with a suplex.
He took a look at the seat plan, and moved to his desk near the front. Putting his bag down beside the desk, he leaned back and put up his right foot up on top of his table.
Oops. In the eyes of a teacher's pet that's a mortal sin.
Sure enough, Iida marched his way over to a new victim, demanding, "Don't put your feet on the desk!"
Bakugo, outwardly amused, replied, "Huh?"
Iida, with his right hand locked in a chop, and his left pointing to the feet on the desk, stated, "Don't you think that's rude to the U.A. upperclassmen and the people who made the desk?"
Propping himself up, and with a menacing smile, Bakugo answered, "Nope. What junior high did you go to, you side character!?"
Taken aback by the aggression, Iida recoiled, before composing himself and putting a hand on his chest, "I attended Somei Private Academy. My name is Iida Tenya."
"Somei? So you're a damn elite, huh? Looks like I'll have fun crushing you!" the chihuahua barked.
Iida flinched, "'Crushing'? That's cruel. Do you truly aim to be a hero?"
Bakugo just let out a "Feh."
All of a sudden, both students shifted their gaze over to the door. I turned to look and oh, it's Mr. Protag. Hi Mr. Protag. I'm here for your spot as next All Might. Gimme your ring. *
"You're…" Iida breathed out.
As if they were trained to, the rest of the class, who had been watching the debacle, turned their heads in sync.
Izuku Midoriya, seeing everyone now watching him, averted his eyes to the ceiling, and stuttered, "Oh, um…"
Tenya marched his way to Midoriya, greeting "Good morning! I am from Somei Private Academy. My name is- "
"I heard!" Midoriya interrupted, stopping Iida in his tracks. "I'm Midoriya. Nice to meet you, Iida."
"Midoriya, you realized there was something more to that practical exam, didn't you?" Iida assayed "I had no idea… I misjudged you! I hate to admit it, but you are better than me."'
Midoriya muttered his next words, so I couldn't hear it, even over the silence of the other students.
Looking back at Yaoyorozu, who was similarly enraptured by the exchanges happening in front as the rest of the class, I called her attention "Well, this has been a pleasant conversation, with a show to boot. Class is starting soon so I'll get back to my desk. I hope to continue this later."
She looked back at me, and smiled brightly, "Yes, that would be nice."
Just as I sat back down, a yellow caterpillar showed itself from outside the front door. Guess I missed Uraraka's arrival and the rest of that exchange in front. Out came a haggard-looking man in black. Despite the low tone he used, I could hear his words clearly.
"Okay, it took eight seconds before you were quiet. Time is limited. You kids are not rational enough."
The worn-out hero turned to the rest of the class, "I'm your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shoto. Nice to meet you."
Sounds of astonishment rang out, with Midoriya exclaiming "Homeroom teacher?".
Pulling out a PE uniform from his cocoon, Aizawa stated "It's kind of sudden, but put this on and go out onto the field."
Time to establish the pecking order.
I wanted to go all the way until the results of the physical tests, but I figured I might as well see the feedback for this first.
On the discussion of the quirk I'm using: I've spent too many hours on chemistry sites and biology papers, breaking down the molecular geometry and composition of sugar, its many forms, to its effects on the body. At this point, I've given up. I'm just going to establish it: sugar is sugar. Don't think too much about it. I've done enough of it for the both of us. I already spend too much time double-checking the wiki and the anime for the most minute of details to make sure everything is canon-accurate. I'll just simplify it and establish its limits in later chapters, but for now, just know I won't go too deep on the quirk's specifics. It really isn't the point of all this. I just wanna make Bane. The story concept and title were born from that idea, moulded by it.
* Congrats if you understood where "Gimme your ring" comes from. You have good taste*
'Great work as always everyone. The synchronization is seamless. Our class unity is through the roof.', I couldn't help but think to myself all the way from the back.
"What about the entrance ceremony? The orientation?" Yeah, what she said. Where else would I get my free U.A. branded wristwatch and notebooks?
"If you're going to become a hero, you don't have time for such leisurely events." Without even looking at us, our homeroom teacher replied, "U.A.'s selling point is how unrestricted its school traditions are. That's how the teachers run their class."
Ignoring the sounds of astonishment, he continued, "You kids have been doing these since junior high, too, right?"
Pulling out a device, Aizawa flashed the screen to the class. On it, was a bullet list of 8 different physical tests.
"Physical fitness tests where you weren't allowed to use your Quirks. The country still uses averages taken from results from students not using their quirks." Aizawa elaborated, "It's not rational."
I'd think it was to avoid overzealous untrained kids from hurting themselves and other people by pushing their quirks past their limits, and they wouldn't be allowed to use it in public without a license anyway, but what do I know? I'm just a blunt instrument.
"Well, the Ministry of Education is procrastinating.", he pointedly looked over the rest of the class to gaze over at me, "Sato, you finished at the top of the practical exam, right?"
With the rest of the class turning around to stare at me, Bakugo doing so at breakneck speeds, my new homeroom teacher asked, "In junior high, what was your best result for the softball throw?"
I shrugged, "Can't remember exactly. Around 120 metres, I think."
"Impressive". He didn't look very impressed, though my classmates sure did. "Then, try doing it with your quirk."
Moving past my classmates over to the circle Aizawa indicated, I picked up the baseball placed on the ground there.
"You can do whatever you want as long as you stay in the circle." Aizawa explained, "Hurry up. Give it all you've got."
All I got, huh? I didn't bring any needles with me today, not wanting my first impression to be along the lines of druggie. That fun revelation will come later. Instead, I reached into my pocket for my bagged Fructose sugar cubes, each about 10 grams. Because bringing baggies filled with white substance wasn't sus at all.
As much testing as I've done with different types of sugar, there hasn't been major ground-breaking changes between types of sugar that I use. There have been some small changes, with some sugar substitutes making my tunnel-vision less prominent, others mitigating the pain I feel when using Sugar Rush, and some just straight up giving me reasons to be sat on the toilet after quirk use. Plain Fructose was my favourite to use while training, simply because it makes me feel less like shit when my quirk is pushed for longer periods of time. It also let me keep a measure of intelligence when using my quirk. Maybe because of the lessened impact on my blood sugar, I wasn't completely sure to be honest. I'll ask Yaoyorozu later, she was probably well-versed in food science. Though, I did need to have a clear singular objective in mind when activating my quirk using Fructose sugar, otherwise that measure of intelligence didn't stick. This, along with the Lactose I used for the practical exam, which didn't give as big of a strength boost but allowed me more critical thinking and conversing, were my go-to sources of fuel.
I only had 8 cubes with me, as that was all that would feasibly fit in the baggie I had, something that would be resolved if the support department builds my specified equipment like I asked them to. Adding to that, it was useless trying to hit as high a number as possible, given the infinity score I knew was coming. So, I judged popping in 2 cubes would be enough.
Holding the ball in my left hand close to my chest, with knees slightly bent and shoulder width apart, I readied myself to throw. I stretched my right arm out, doing a few windmills to get it loose. Bringing the right hand down, I gripped the ball with my right index, middle finger, and thumb across the seams. After testing out my throwing form aim a few times, I was ready. Turning my torso away from the target, I wound my arm all the way back and around my body. Letting out a huge roar, I took a step towards my target direction, rotated my hips, and released the ball, my entire body following into the throw. A perfect 45-degree pitch. Eat your heart out, Tom Seaver.
A single blast of sound and forced washed over the rest of the class, kicking up dust around me. Whoops. Sorry about that. Though technically, would this count as them eating my dust?
"Know your own maximum first. That is the most rational way to form the foundation of a hero."
Over a quarter-minute later, Aizawa checked his device, then held it up to show the rest my result. Going by the sounds they were making; I could assume I did well. I couldn't see it, but I could always count on the others to call it out for me, the dust not dampening their tendency to call things out.
"1419 meters? Seriously?", called someone from the back.
Huh, guess even my form for the throw improved.
"What's this? It looks fun!"
"We can use our Quirks as much as we want! As expected from the hero course!"
You had to say it.
"'It looks fun,' huh?" Aizawa muttered, "You have three years to become a hero. Will you have an attitude like that the whole time?"
His face adopted a menacing smile as he gave his ultimatum, "All right. Whoever comes in last place in all eight tests will be judged to have no potential and will be punished with expulsion.
"
This time, the outspoken disbelief from the class was warranted.
Seeing his conditions sink in, Aizawa spoke up, "We're free to do what we want about the circumstances of our students." Pushing his hair up out his face, his terrifying expression became much more noticeable, "Welcome to U.A.'s hero course."
"Last place will be expelled? But it's the first day of school! No, even if it wasn't the first day of school, this is too unfair!" Uraraka protested.
"Natural disasters, big accidents, and selfish villains. Calamities whose time or place can't be predicted. Japan is covered with unfairness. Heroes are the ones who reverse those situations. If you wanted to go talk with your friends at Mickey D's after school, too bad. For the next three years, U.A. will do all it can to give you one hardship after another." Aizawa answered, "Go beyond. Plus Ultra."
Beckoning his index finger at the class, he challenged, "Overcome it with all you have got."
Rather than wallow in fear and trepidation, the class in front of me got competitive. Putting on their serious faces, stretching out their limbs, hyping themselves up, pulling out a bottle of what's probably orange juice. As expected of those who got in the U.A. hero course. You didn't make it this far without some measure of confidence and competitiveness. Well, Midoriya looked ready to shit his pants, but he's a special boy. Oh, and Bakugo looked ready to kill me. What was new?
"All right, demonstration's over. The real thing starts now."
________________________
The First Test. Fifty Meter Dash.
Iida Tenya did well, big surprise. 3.04 seconds using his quirk, Engine. Asui Tsuyu, a frog girl, got it in 5.58 seconds. A good round overall.
Uraraka, a 7.15, not great but not as bad as it could be. Overall fitness could use some work. Her running mate, Mashirao Ojiro, some dude with a tail, big whoop, got a 6.91. Compared to the ones right before them, this was a disappointment.
Aoyama Yuga, for all his glitter and gold, couldn't back up his claim of showing everyone how it's done. A second of impressive speeds propelled by his laser belly, before he ate dirt. Though that does raise a question on how a weightless thing like light pushed him backwards. Best not to think to hard about it, quirks were weird like that.
Ashido Mina, overtaking him, recorded a 5.40. Great conditioning and subtle use of her quirk on her feet to reduce friction. Aoyama recovered quick enough to be right behind her at 5.51 seconds.
Bakugo and Midoriya were up next. The moment the starter pistol shot sounded, Bakugo shot down the track, his blasts carrying him forward. 4.13, not bad. Look forward to beating it. Midoriya lagged behind, netting himself a 7.02. If nothing else, at least we knew he was fit.
"So," Yaoyorozu started, sliding up beside me, "You topped the practical exam. That's very impressive."
"Thank you. I was ready for anything, and robots fell under that." I spoke.
She smiled at the call back, but before she could comment, Aizawa called for the next pair of students to go up to the starting line.
"Sato Rikido and Todoroki Shoto."
Setting myself behind the white line, I popped in a sugar cube as I adopted a sprinter start. Out the corner of my eye, I see Todoroki opt for a more upright stance, to help support his ice slide most likely. As I was sizing him up, our eyes met, as he was doing the same to me. An unspoken challenge was agreed upon between the two of us before we looked back to focus on the finish line.
"On your mark…", the robot on a tripod recording the time signalled.
I activate Sugar Rush, feeling the surge of power flow throughout my body. I could also feel the air beside me start chilling at an unnatural rate.
"Get set…" Right hand forward, same leg back.
A gunshot rang out, and I was out of the block fast, with my hand one the ground and my lead foot launching me forward. From there, it was a careful balancing act of leaning my body forward to reduce time wasted in the air so I could push myself forward more, and not falling on my face. As quick as it started, I passed the white line that marked 50 metres.
"2.67 seconds." In short burst, nobody was beating my acceleration. Iida needed a running start he didn't have, and as he was now Bakugo's explosion could only come out so fast.
Though, with Todoroki passing the finish line, maybe it shouldn't be the Explosion user I should be setting myself against. 4.04 seconds. Just a second slower than Iida.
________________________
The Second Test. Grip Strength.
With two cubes down the hatch, I applied as much force into the dynamometer as I could. It didn't take too long before I felt some sharp metal digging into my finger.
"You broke the device!?"
"That's insane!"
"Whoa! That's a lot of damage"
Aizawa only looked at me kind of grumpily before noting my result so I would take that as a win. Though, when Momo came up to him a minute later with the same problem, this time with hers stuck in a clamp, he was decidedly getting annoyed by the property damage.
________________________
The Third Test. Standing Long Jump.
Most people didn't have quirks that really suited this task. Some did, though. Iida and his running start, Bakugo and his explosions, Aoyama and his laser, Yaoyorozu and her pole, Todoroki and his ice, Elbow Tape and his elbow tape.
In my case? One sugar was all it took to overshoot the jump completely. Next.
________________________
The Fourth Test. Repeated Side Steps.
Three vertical lines on the ground, adjusted every round to fit the student's height.
Nothing my quirk could really do to help me out here, so I relied to sheer athleticism and footwork to get me through this. Luckily for me, only one person really had a quirk suited for this type of exercise, and Minoru Mineta wasn't about to take my spot at the top with one good test. Bakugo tried to blast himself from side to side, but that method was unreliable and ended up shooting him too far every time, so he switched to doing it normally midway.
________________________
The Fifth Test. Ball Throw,
Generally, people did well here, with most going for straightforward methods given their quirks, but some having genuine creativity in their throw. Todoroki was doing well throughout these tests, as anyone could have predicted. Bakugo, even after his 705.2 metre throw and subsequent tantrum at being half my score, would easily place top 5 at the end of this. His attitude, as much as it clashes with the ones of those around him, gave him the drive to be among the very best. Add natural talent and instinct and you had a future star. Of course, I would never tell him that to his face, best keep his ego from being inflated even more than it already is. I'm one to talk, but I'm dope, so I can say things like that.
I watched as Uraraka stepped up to the plate, and, as if to throw a stick to a dog, casually shit all over me and the rest of the class when she threw a ball that never came down. Even had the audacity to put a hand over her eyes, as if to block the sun from finding out where her throw went to, taunting me. I knew she meant no disrespect by it, and she probably only wanted to watch the ball go up, but still. She knew damn well it wasn't gonna fall. A score of Infinity.
As Midoriya was up next, I took the chance to glance around at the state of affairs of the others. Many were looking at Midoriya like one would an open casket, probably already counting him out as the one to go. Bakugo for one was switching between sneering at his childhood buddy, and growling at me every few seconds. Only the recommended students were really unaffected by the atmosphere, with Yaoyorozu being confident in her assumption that expulsion was a bluff, and Todoroki being apathetic to anything outside his daddy issues.
"Sato, you don't seem very concerned about Mr. Aizawa's threats. Are you merely confident in your ability to not place last? You are doing extremely well, after all. Or… Do you perhaps think there's more to this than meets the eye?" Momo inquired quietly, a conspicuous tone evident in her voice. She wanted to be validated in her theory of it being a ruse.
"I'm sure I won't place last, yeah. But… last year, there was a story of a whole class being kicked out of U.A.'s hero department." That certainly shocked her. The eavesdropping Todoroki couldn't say the same, no. Emotion hasn't been unlocked on his skill tree yet. "It never became a big story, and most everyone dismissed it as a wild rumour, but now, I'm not so sure. U.A. does give their pro heroes a long leash on how they run things, and Aizawa doesn't seem like the most forgiving of people."
"I-I see. W-well that does poke holes into my theory, now doesn't it. I was under the assumption that all that posturing would be to ensure the best results out of each of us, but if what you say is true, then we might very well be down a classmate soon." Momo's hopeful expression a few moments ago was now a deep-thinking frown. Killed her mojo there, did I?
I reassured her with a big, "Of course, if he were to see how great everyone is, I doubt he'd be willing to let us go so soon."
She looked up at me, with an unsure but amused smile, "H-hopefully. Let us just do our best for the rest of these tests. You're performing exemplary thus far, and I would hope to match that for these last trials."
"Don't worry. You're doing great, Momo. Is it alright if I start calling you that? You can call me Rikido if you want."
She blushed, looking aside, "Y-y-yes that would be fine. Thank you, R-R-Rikido. So forward. I-"
Just then, a sonic boom erupted from the middle of the field. It wasn't as loud as my original throw, and the effects of Midoriya's attempt didn't reach the students, but that didn't matter. Midoriya surprised everyone by revealing just what he was capable of. Even the unflappable Todoroki had his eyes wide at that.
705.3 metres!
Midoriya, with tears in his eyes and a newly broken index, turned back to look at burrito sleeping bag man, and proclaimed, "Mr. Aizawa… I can still move!"
"This kid…!" Aizawa had a manic grin on his face, for the first time looking like he had any hope for the green-haired kid in front of him.
"He got over 700 metres?!"
"Finally, a hero-like record!" Uraraka cheered, throwing her fists up.
"His finger's swollen." Iida noted, "There was the entrance exam too. He has a strange quirk."
"It's not very stylish." Much appreciated input as ever, Aoyama. You're a meaningful and valued member of this class.
Bakugo though, he was frozen in pure disbelief. My Kodak moment of the school year so far.
After his brain shut down, rebooted, blue-screened, and restarted again, small explosions started dancing across the palm of his hand.
"What is the meaning of this?" Bakugo seethed, pure white-hot fury in his eyes. Losing any self-control, he darted towards Midoriya, intent to maim clear "Hey! Tell me what's going on, Deku, you bastard!"
Before he could get too close, Bakugo's momentum was stopped when white cloth wrapped around his chest and forehead from behind, and explosions ceased coming out his hand. Struggling futilely, Bakugo strained his neck to look over what happened, "What the-? These cloths are hard…!"
"They're weapons for capture made of carbon fibre woven together with metal wire made of a special alloy." Aizawa elaborated, with his eyes glowing red and his hair standing up "Jeez… Don't keep making me use my Quirk over and over. I have dry eye."
'It's such a waste, since his Quirk is so amazing!' was a thought majority of 1-A shared unknowingly at that moment.
Seeing Bakugo calm down enough that he wouldn't attack a fellow student then and there, Aizawa retracted his scarf, waving off the class' admiration, "We're wasting time. Whoever's next, get ready."
Midoriya slowly backed away from a still Bakugo, before booking it back towards Uraraka.
I turned back to Yaoyorozu, and told her, "Well, that was something. Anyway, Aizawa looked like he saw something he liked in Midoriya." Not like that weirdos. "I have faith he'll reconsider his stance on expulsion."
Yaoyorozu just looked concerned, "I would hope so. Midoriya would have broken his finger for nothing otherwise."
I turned back to stare at Bakugo, and a snort escaped my nostril. 'I would say it was worth it. Bakugo looking like he swallowed a dick lemon made my day all on its own.'
________________________
The Sixth and Seventh Tests. Sit-Ups and Seated Toe-Touch
For these tests, we moved indoors to a gym with wood flooring, complete with 10 white mats already set up for quick use. Aizawa informed us that we could choose our partners freely, and so Yaoyorozu and I took our place on a mat.
No real standouts for this, and with everyone in class being generally athletic, not much excitement went into this round. The only notable thing to happen would be when Mineta tried to complete his sit-ups by planting a bouncy ball of hair under his back to push him back up after going down, but Aizawa wasn't having it. Not sure why, I thought it was kinda clever. Maybe because his torso wasn't big enough to the point where he would barely go down before the ball bounced him back up. Probably that.
Same goes for the seated toe-touch where nobody except Midoriya had any real problems. Must suck doing that with a broken finger.
________________________
The Eight Test. Long-Distance Run
Popping in one of my last cubes, I made sure to never lag behind anyone other than Iida, who's quirk flourished in a more spacious run. Bakugo and Todoroki tried to overtake me multiple times, but they could only use their quirk for so long and with a longer time frame, they needed to be conservative with their quirk. With Todoroki using thin sheets of ice to slide along and Bakugo using his explosions to boost him along every once in a while, I had to make sure to keep my A-game up, keeping my head straight and focusing solely on my running and on Iida's back.
Making the finish line, I saw Iida give me an impressed nod for keeping it as close as I did. I turned around to an unemotive Todoroki and a disgruntled Bakugo, who was gnashing his teeth at being unable to one-up me at any of these tests. Sorry pal, built different. While waiting for the rest of the class to finish, I decided to focus on some select people. Momo was on, was that a moped? Guess it would be easier to make than a motorcycle. She was solidly in fifth behind us tryhards, coming only a few seconds after Bakugo. Midoriya, despite his excellent fitness, was hampered by the searing amounts of pain he undoubtedly felt, and was thus in the back of the pack alongside Mineta and Hagakure.
Once Midoriya reached the finish and lied down to rest, our homeroom teacher motioned for us to gather for the result. Walking over to him, I offered the tired boy a hand, and lifted him to his feet when he took it.
"T-thank you. I did terrible there, huh."
"No problem. You got unlucky there, could've done a lot better in those last few tests if the ball throw came later."
"A-ah, t-thanks. Y-you did really well though. Sato, right? Probably got number one overall."
"Well, we'll see, we'll see. Chin up, I'm confident you'll be pleasantly surprised."
Walking past Midoriya, I made my way over to Yaoyorozu's side for the ranking reveal. She turned to look at me, saying, "That was nice of you. How is he feeling?"
"Not great, I think he's subconsciously accepted his removal from U.A." I grimaced for show, "I'll hold out hope though. Mr. Aizawa doesn't seem the type to ignore potential."
Some others caught the conversation, and were shooting me questioning looks. We'll see soon enough. I knew what I was doing; leveraging canon to make myself look like a prophet. No real benefit in the long run, but I'll look cool in the moment.
"Okay, I'll quickly tell you the results. The total is simply the marks you got from each test. It's a waste of time to explain verbally, so I'll show you the results all at once." Eraserhead explained.
Sato Rikido
Yaoyorozu Momo
Todoroki Shoto
Bakugo Katsuki
Iida Tenya
Tokoyami Fumikage
Shoji Mezo
Ojiro Mashirao
Kirishima Eijirou
Ashido Mina
Uraraka Ochako
Koda Koji
Asui Tsuyu
Aoyama Yuga
Sero Hanta
Denki Kaminari
Jirou Kyoka
Hagakure Toru
Mineta Minoru
Midoriya Izuku
Midoriya looked like he wanted to die, clutching his swollen hand. Moment of truth.
"By the way, I was lying about the expulsion." The least reassuring smile came onto Aizawa's face "It was a rational deception to draw out the upper limits of your Quirks."
A moment passed, then…
"Whaaaaaat?!" The choir sang.
"It was a lie. What a relief. I had my suspicions by just thinking it through but I decided to keep them close to avoid any chances." Momo sighed out happily. People who heard her were noticeably embarrassed, probably thinking that such a conclusion would be obvious to make, unaware of how close to carrying out the threat Aizawa was. Though, I wondered, if Mineta came in last, would he have been expelled?
"That was a little nerve-wracking, huh?" Sticky Guy, Sero, asked Hard Guy, Kirishima
"I'll take up the challenge anytime!"
Bakugo just looked disappointed Midoriya's dreams weren't crushed right then and there.
"With that, we're done here. There are handouts with the curriculum and such in the classroom so when you get back, look over them." Stopping in front of Izuku, Aizawa handed over a paper, "Midoriya. Have the old lady fix you in the nurse's office. Tomorrow will be packed with even more rigorous tests. Prepare yourself." And with that, Aizawa left the field.
With the class heading back to the locker rooms to change, people started discussing Aizawa's 'fake-out', breaking down the merits of his strategy and considering the effectivity of it. Some classmates praised me on my performance, Kirishima being the most outspoken of them, with him even asking for training tips and joint sessions. Those who had heard my thoughts from earlier complimented me on my insight, but I knew better. Before Midoriya showed that he could use his quirk creatively, Aizawa was ready to toss Midoriya Izuku out a window and leave him on a sidewalk.
Once cleaned up and changed, we were permitted to grab the handouts on the teacher's desk and leave right after. Seems like the entrance ceremony and the orientation were the only agenda for the day. Taking a few minutes to wait in the classroom, I spotted a changed Yaoyorozu entering through the front door to collect her handouts and her bag.
With me hovering near her desk, she spotted me instantly and walked up to me. She greeted, "Hello again, R-Rikido. I must admit, you had me worried there for a while. I'm grateful that we were wrong to assume Mr. Aizawa would be so callous as to give up on us in our first meeting."
I smiled, "I'm glad I was wrong, too. Though, I can't shake the feeling that we just barely avoided impending doom."
"Not for yourself, though.How selfless of you," She commended with a smile, "Congratulations on your first-place finish, as well. You truly showed your ability today."
"You give yourself too little credit. Second-place is nothing to sneeze at." I mean, I would spit if I got it, but it's understandable for others. "You were outstanding, too."
"Thank you." She accepted it gracefully. "Are you waiting for someone else? Or shall we go?"
"Nope, just you. Let's head down."
A light shade of red and a small smile. We headed down to leave, engaging in small talk to get to know each other better. Nearing the gate, Momo turned to me and said "My driver is waiting outside the gate. Thank you for today. I'll see you tomorrow."
I beamed at her, "I had fun today, see you."
Hate to watch her go and love to watch her leave, eh?
...Was that a limo?
...
Now, I'm not saying I'm a gold digger, bu-
Any science majors wanna help me with the food science? You'd be the voice of reason for Yaoyorozu breaking down the quirk. I'll keep it simple but I do want some evidence backing my claims, even if it is pseudo-science and stretches of logic. Just put "quirk" and "adaptive biology" then call it a day. It doesn't need to be airtight, there just has to exist a box to bounce ideas and limitations off.
Also, I want to put up another poll for my next story concept, I can only look up so much on sugar and caffeine substitutes before my brain cavities by proxy. How do I go and do that?
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