The hours seemed to slip by, but Ryu kept his focus, blocking out the noise of the clock ticking in the background. He didn't feel as overwhelmed as he had before.
—
As the test neared its end, Ryu's mind was starting to tire, but he pushed forward, checking over his work and ensuring that everything was filled out to the best of his ability. Glancing up, he caught Hinata's eye. She gave him a quick nod, as if reassuring him that they were in this together. Sugino and Nagisa were similarly focused, though Nagisa's slight smile suggested that he felt confident in his answers.
The invigilator called out, "Five minutes remaining."
Ryu took one last look over his answers and made sure he hadn't missed anything important. He felt a sense of accomplishment, despite the intensity of the test. He couldn't say for sure if he had aced it, but he knew he had done his best. And that was all that mattered.
—
As the test papers were collected, the tension in the room lifted, and the students slowly relaxed. Ryu leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms overhead. The relief was almost overwhelming. He had survived.
Nagisa turned to him with a smirk. "Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?"
Ryu smiled back. "We'll see when the results come in. But honestly, I feel like we did as well as we could."
Sugino let out a low whistle. "That was brutal. But hey, I think we're all in this together now. No more Class E jokes after this, right?"
Hinata nodded. "Yeah, let's show them what we're really capable of."
As the class packed up, Ryu felt a renewed sense of camaraderie. This wasn't just about passing a test—it was about proving that Class 3-E had what it took to stand alongside everyone else. Together, they had fought through it, and that was more important than any grade.
—
The morning after the midterms, the tension in Class 3-E was palpable. The results had been posted, and the students were dreading the moment they would look at their scores. Everyone had studied hard—some had even pulled all-nighters—but it hadn't been enough. The range of the questions had changed dramatically, and none of the students had anticipated the shift in focus.
The usual pride of having studied and worked together felt hollow as they gathered around to see the results. The once energetic room now felt heavy, with each student silently dreading their name on the list.
Ryu stepped up to the wall, eyes scanning for his score, but his heart sank when he saw the numbers. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't nearly as high as he had hoped. He had prepared, studied with Hinata, Nagisa, and the rest, but the test felt like an entirely different beast. The questions were so different from what they had practiced, and the range of topics was broader than expected. He had hit a wall.
Hinata was next to him, nervously scanning her score. She had been one of the top performers throughout the year, but today, she wasn't even close to her usual level. It was a shock to her, too, and she stood there in stunned silence, gripping her test paper tightly.
Nagisa, usually the most optimistic, looked over at the others, his face pale with frustration. "It's like we were studying for the wrong exam," he muttered under his breath.
"Don't worry," Tomohito said, trying to smile, but it was obvious he was struggling too. "We all did our best, right?"
The mood in the room was one of quiet disappointment. No one could say it aloud, but they all felt the sting of failure. Despite all the effort, despite the countless hours of studying together, none of them had truly succeeded. They had hit a wall.
---
As the class sat in silence, the door to the classroom slid open with its usual dramatic flair, and Koro-Sensei floated in. His trademark smile greeted them, but it faltered when he saw their faces. The once lively group was now subdued, and it was clear they were all struggling with the results.
"What's this?" Koro-Sensei asked, his voice full of concern. "Did I miss something?"
Nagisa sighed and stood up. "The midterm results came out, and… well, they're not what we expected. The questions were totally different from what we studied. A lot of us barely passed, and some didn't even do that well."
Koro-Sensei's expression softened, and he floated closer to the group, looking each of them in the eyes.
"Class 3-E," he said gently, "I know you've been working incredibly hard. I've seen how much effort each of you has put into these studies. So, to see you so disappointed breaks my heart a little. But you know what?"
The class turned to look at him, unsure of what to expect.
"You've all done your best," Koro-Sensei continued. "It's true that the range of questions changed—Principal Asano made sure to throw in a curveball, didn't he? But what matters isn't the score you see on that piece of paper. What matters is how much you've grown in the process."
Ryu's brow furrowed. "But we all hit a wall. We studied so much, and it still wasn't enough…"
Koro-Sensei floated closer to Ryu, a reassuring smile on his face. "You didn't fail. You just encountered a challenge that none of you could have foreseen. There will always be obstacles, and there will always be times when things don't go as planned. But the fact that you didn't give up, that you kept pushing forward—this is what I want you to focus on."
He gestured to the group. "You all put your heart and soul into this, and you didn't back down when things got tough. That is something to be extremely proud of. Do you know how many students would have given up at the first sign of difficulty? But you didn't. You faced it head-on, together. That's what makes you stronger."
Hinata, who had been standing near the back, finally spoke up. "But… we didn't get the grades we were hoping for."
Koro-Sensei smiled warmly. "Grades are just a number, Hinata. They don't measure your worth. They don't measure the lessons you've learned or the growth you've experienced. The most important thing you can do right now is pick yourselves up and keep moving forward. You've learned how to work as a team. You've learned how to persevere under pressure. And that—my dear students—is something no score can ever define."
The room was silent for a moment as Koro-Sensei's words sank in. The weight of their disappointment hadn't disappeared, but there was a shift in the air—a subtle understanding that perhaps they hadn't truly failed after all.
Nagisa looked around at his classmates, who were now nodding along to Koro-Sensei's words. "I guess… we've come a long way, huh?"
Ryu chuckled softly, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah, we have. We may not have aced the test, but we've definitely come out stronger. And next time, we'll be ready for whatever curveballs they throw at us."
"Exactly!" Koro-Sensei exclaimed, floating to the front of the room. "And next time, we'll study together—no more curveballs!"
The class chuckled, the tension in the room beginning to melt away. Though the results were not what they had hoped for, the journey had taught them something far more valuable than grades.