"You've still got all twenty, huh? It's a rare year when you don't fail anyone," Fukukado pointed down at Class-1A. "I guess you must be fond of this class."
"Not really," Aizawa replied.
"Huh? Are you blushing? So lame haha makes me wanna date you!"
Down in the arena, all the students observed the different landscapes that surrounded them. Buildings, trees, a glacier, a construction site, and more.
Sasuke checked out the other students, 'Just take out two people and don't get hit three times? Does my quirk count as cheating? It's impossible to get hit.'
Midoriya turned back to his class, "Guys, we should try to move together as a group! People won't be fighting their own schoolmates. The best way to win is by teaming up."
Bakugo walked off, "Not interested in a class picnic."
Kirishima yelled, "Get back here, you dummy!"
Bakugo waved, "Oh shut up. I'll be close by."
Todoroki jogged away, "I'm leaving too. The best way to use my quirk is when we're not bunched up."
Midoriya frowned, "Todoroki!"
Sasuke made sure the targets on his chest, arm, and leg were fine. "They'll be fine, they're more than skilled enough."
"Probably... it's just that they know our moves."
"Not all of them; they aren't strong enough to capitalize on what they know anyway." Sasuke peered at everyone and saw the side eyes the other classes were giving them. 'So that's how it is?'
Sasuke turned to Iida, "As soon as the exam starts, everyone is gonna target us. Pass it on to the others to be ready."
Up in the stands, Fukukado stopped smiling, "The format might be a bit different every year, but the tradition never does. UA always loses the advantage of having their quirks and weaknesses known. If you like this class so much, you should have told them!"
"It's not like I didn't tell them for any particular reason. The odds they have to overcome won't change either way. Besides, when they're out there as pro heroes everyone is gonna know their quirk. No offense, but compared to the rest of you, we're looking towards the future."
"3, 2, 1, START!"
In an instant, every other class attempted to take out Class 1-A, but they saw it coming and easily blocked all the balls.
"THIS IS THE FIRST ELIMINATION ROUND OF THE PROVISIONAL LICENSE EXAM! IT'S BALL-CHUCKING MAYHEM ON THIS MULTIFACETED FIELD! YOU EACH GET SIX BALLS! IF ALL THREE TARGETS ON YOUR BODY ARE HIT, YOU'RE OUT! THE FIRST ONE HUNDRED TO TAKE OUT TWO PEOPLE GET TO MOVE ON!"
The raven-haired glazer from earlier and a couple of his classmates faced off with Class 1-A. "They're repelling most of them."
"Yup, this alone won't be enough to take down the UA kids."
"But now that we've seen what they're made of..." He used his quirk to turn the balls into stones and handed some to his classmate.
"My turn indeed." He raised his arms, ready to use his quirk. "Apologies in ad"-
-Three kunai attached to balls hit his targets faster than he could react, knocking him out of the exam. Sasuke played with a ball, "Putting all three of your targets right next to each other isn't very smart."
"THAT'S THE FIRST EXAMINEE OUT!"
They were all caught off guard and he dropped the balls. Shindo slammed both of his hands on the ground, "Both their offense and defense are too good! Gotta separate them! Maximum force!"
The ground beneath them split apart with the force of an Earthquake. Ochaco called out, "Deku!"
Sasuke's eyes darted to as many of his classmates as he could before the rocks blocked his line of sight; after evaluating them all, he outstretched Susanoo arms to grab them all.
After the Earthquake ended, he released them and rubbed sweat off his brow. "Great thinking, Sasuke!" Iida stated.
"Is it over yet?" Mineta clung to Asui's thigh and she used her tongue to throw him into a rock sticking up.
Sasuke observed the class. 'Aoyama, Iida, Momo, Jiro, Asui, Shoji, tail guy, Hagakure, Koda, Mina, and Tokoyami are here... why is Mineta here? I didn't even grab him. Whatever the case, everyone not here should be fine on their own.'
In the distance, what sounded like a tornado sent gusts of wind toward them, "ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY EXAMINEES ARE OUT! ALL TAKE OUT BY A SINGLE FIGHTER!"
'Was that the Inasa guy? Well whatever the case, I can hold off on getting someone else out for a minute.'
A couple of other examinees tried to catch them off guard, but Mina and Shoji each took them out. Momo spoke up, "Everyone, I have a plan."
She waved for them to come closer and the class huddled up. Tokoyami spread Dark Shadow's arms like a blanket to cover them from balls coming their way. Aoyama asked, "What's the idea?"
Ojiro asked, "Yeah, how are we supposed to get out of here?"
"I'll make it quick. Sasuke, Tokoyami, and, to a lesser degree, Asui and Mineta can all bind people in place. If they do that, then everyone can score off that to move on."
Tokoyami nodded, "Good plan."
Mina raised her fist, "Let's gooo!"
"Wait!"
All eyes turned to Koda. Hagakure whispered, "He can talk?"
Koda sweated and played with his hands, "I can... help capture people. They won't be able to dodge if they can't see it coming."
Sasuke nodded, "Alright, let's see what you got."
Tokoyami lowered Dark Shadow, and the plan commenced as a flock of birds flew down from above.
Up in the stands, Fukukado dug something out of her pocket, "Want some gum?"
Aizawa kept his arms crossed, "The kind that traps your fingers? No thanks."
She stuck her tongue out, "It's actually the kind that shocks you! Kidding, it's normal."
She picked out some gum and Aizawa grunted, "So frustrating that we can't see who's passed and who's failed."
"And Shindo made it even worse. Hmmm... are you worried about your class?"
"... No. When it comes to watching Class-1A, one thing becomes obvious after watching them long enough. They don't fully get it yet, but the class revolves around three of them. They don't bring everyone together, or serve as pillars or anything like that. Two of the three don't get along at all. But at some point, they infected the rest of the class with their passion and fervor. It's odd, but at least one of them is guaranteed to be at the heart of every storm. I have nothing to worry about, I expect big things. Just these three being around raises the bar for everyone else."
She blew a bubble, "If you love them so much, why don't you marry them? Bleh."
Tokoyami threw a ball at the last target. prompting everyone to release all the students they knocked out. Mina strolled by, "We did it! I think we all passed."
They caught up with the rest of the group and proceeded to the exit. Sasuke replied, "Yeah... the others should have no issue passing."
Sero called out, "Oh, there you guys are! I knew you'd all pass!"
They turned their heads to see Sero, Midoriya, and Ochaco. Iida gestured, "It was quite easy, thanks to Momo's plan."
Momo blushed, "It was a simple plan; anyone could have come up with it."
While conversing, Mina noticed Uraraka staring deeply at Midoriya. It reminded her of Her conversation with her and the other girls a week earlier.
Kaminari spoke up behind them, "Hey! Everyone's here! We really all passed!"
Asui stated, "We haven't seen Todoroki yet."
Kirishima waved her off, "As if Todoroki is somehow gonna be the one guy that doesn't pass. He's definitely inside the room already."
Most of the class cheered. Bakugo walked by Midoriya and stopped, "Of course you passed... stupid Deku."
Midoriya's hands waved awkwardly, "Uh yeah... Kaachan, I did."
He turned to keep walking, "No wonder. You must have really made that borrowed power your own."
Sasuke looked at Midoriya out of the corner of his eye, 'Did he tell Bakugo?'
Shindo and other Ketsubetsu students followed Class-1A not far behind into the room.
"IT'S OVER! ONE HUNDRED HAVE SUCCESSFULLY PASSED! WE'RE DONE! ON A LESS UPLIFTING NOTE, COULD ALL THOSE WHO FAILED PROCEED TO THE EXIT?"
After every passing student made it into the room, the TV screen lit up, showing them the field they all had just fought on. "Will everyone look at the screen please?"
Everyone did so, and most of the landscape blew up. Many of the buildings and rock formations collapsed; they could feel the vibrations of the buildings collapsing inside the room. After some initial shock, the announcer continued, "Round two is the last one. You students will venture into the ruins as bystanders, and prove your worth by saving innocent victims. You will not act as ordinary citizens but as those who have hypothetically earned their provisional hero licenses. You're being tested on how well you react in rescue situations."
Shoji pointed out, "Look, there are some people."
The screen highlighted a bunch of old people and kids. Some students murmured. "Everyone there is highly trained professional rescuees. Please welcome the good people of Help Us Company. Or H.U.C. for short."
Sero asked, "Who would have thought that was a job?"
Jiro replied, "Makes sense with how popular hero work is."
"The members of H.U.C. will be feigning injuries all across the field; it is your job. It's your task to rescue them. You'll be scored on how you perform these rescues, and those who obtain the required amount of points by the end of the test will pass. We'll be starting in ten minutes, so do what you have to do before then."
Mina nudged Sasuke's side, "Wanna work for H.U.C. when you're older? You already have a lot of experience getting saved."
Sasuke smirked and rolled his eyes, "Oh shut up."
Midoriya said, "This reminds me of Kamino."
Iida replied, "Yes, but at that time villains were trying to stop us, and people died."
Kirishima said, "Well no risk of death this time! Besides, our whole class has a lot of rescue experience; let's breeze through this!"
Midoriya nodded, "Yeah, we can do this!"
Far off in a café, Hawks swirled the straw around in his drink. 'Shouldn't have expected anything less from Madam President. She really made herself untraceable,' he thought back to what Nagant told him. 'I think I'm gonna have to find that kid. Wonder if I should buy some candy...'
He froze and facepalmed, 'Haha man... that sounds horrible out of context.'
Back in the waiting room, Uraraka put her hand on her chest and looked at Midoriya, 'I don't like it... why do I feel so... out of it?'
"You sure stare at him a lot lately."
"Ah!" Uraraka jumped, seeing Mina with a long smile and hands behind her back. "M-Mina!"
"I knew it! It couldn't be anyone else!"
Uraraka blushed hard, "N-no! It's not..." Uraraka sighed, "I don't know..."
"Hmmm, I think you do. Come on!" Mina looks around before dragging Uraraka to the public bathroom.
"Mina... please..."
"I won't tease you... much..., I promise! I just really wanna know. Come on, you can't just hold stuff in forever." Mina had a cheesy grin.
Uraraka looked down, "Fine... you promise not to tell anyone else?"
Mina crossed her hand on her heart, "Hope to die."
She sighed, "It's not love it's just... I see him giving it his all for his dream. He's never holding back. It's so... so..."
"Cool?" Her smile softened.
Uraraka rubbed the back of her head, "Yeah. It makes me feel... inspired. Like I should..."
"Like you wanna try as hard as him?"
"Yeah!" Uraraka played with her hands, "You've been training a lot harder lately too... do you feel the same way towards... Sasuke?"
She twirled strands of her hair, "Yeah... more or less."
"Did you plan on doing anything?"
"I uh... well, it's complicated."
"I think it would work out, he doesn't treat you how he treats anyone else."
Mina waved her off, "That's not true..."
Uraraka raised an eyebrow, and Mina giggled, "Ok, yeah, it's true. It's just that... I'm afraid it wouldn't work right now, with how things are."
Something clicked in Uraraka's mind. "Yeah..."
A buzz caught everyone in the building by surprise, "Terrorists have launched a massive attack! There's wide-scale destruction throughout the city! Buildings are collapsing and people are hurt. Rescue and relief squads are having a hard time reaching them due to the roads being destroyed! Until they arrive, it's up to you heroes to rescue the civilians. Save every life you can!"
The main building walls folded outwards, and everyone ran to the destruction. Uraraka thought, 'It wouldn't work out right now... maybe I should just suppress these feelings for a little while.'
Sasuke and Iida arrived at the scene ahead of everyone else. He thought, 'We're more than likely getting scored based on the quality of the rescue rather than the number. I can take my time.'
"Ahhhh!" He spotted a crying child and landed in front of him, crouching down. The child had fake blood pouring from his head and was dirty. "Help! My mom's getting crushed over there!"
Sasuke helped him stand and slowly turned to the woman. "Alright, I'll save h"—
—"Points deducted!"
He stared back at him with a scrunched brow, "Huh?"
"You have to check if the victim can walk! And you didn't even notice or comment on the blood pouring from my head! Someone with a license would know that!"
"I didn't have to comment on it. The blood leaking from your head is superficial and nothing life-threatening. Also, you're not even wobbling; you can clearly walk fine," he pointed at his feet.
The victim reeled and Sasuke finished, "Now take care of yourself. Your mom is in more imminent danger." He jumped away.
The victim thought, 'I was wrong... it wasn't ignorance, he just deduced it without even asking me... that shows high levels of efficiency. I'm not sure how he learned that so fast, but I take back my deduction.'
Sasuke got closer to the woman, 'Edgeshot's lessons should get me placed high. They fit a fast-paced rescue pretty well,' he landed next to the woman and assessed the situation.
"Do you hear me?"
She groaned and Sasuke slowly lifted the rubble off her, picking her up. "Tell me if it hurts anywhere."
He carried her to safety at a good pace and met a nurse. "I'll take her from here."
He handed her off, and the victim said, "Overall, good handling and care, but I'm deducting points. You provided no emotional comfort, and your tone of voice is harsh."
Sasuke's brow scrunched, "Are you serious?"
"Very, now go!"
Inside a collapsed building, Mina jogged down the halls, "Hello? Anyone in trouble?"
She bumped into Shoji, "Ow! Oh hey! What's up?"
Another controlled explosion happened outside the building. In all the walls the vibrations could be felt. Far away, they heard the echoes of a blood-curdling scream. They tensed up and Shoji said, "We should check that out."
"Yeah... that sounded a little too real."
They both ran to the non-stop cries; they passed by an empty liquor bottle and eventually turned a corner to see a man with his lower body crushed by a piece of concrete. Mina yelled, "Hold on!"
Shoji lifted the concrete off him and threw it to the side. The sight of the man's leg and stomach punctured deeply with blood pouring out made them gasp. Mina covered her mouth. 'T-this looks way too real. This can't be acting!'
The man looked at them with a tense face and desperate eyes, "Please kids, do something! Cover the wound! I'm not acting!"
Shoji ripped off a piece of his shirt and supported his leg with his lower arms while trying to tie a tourniquet around his legs, "Calm down sir! I have you."
Mina ripped off a piece of cloth from her leg; she tried to apply pressure to the wound as the man cursed and breathed heavily, "It's ok sir!" 'It's not ok! The blood is just seeping through! It's too much!'
The man went pale and looked like his eyes were seeing stars. Sweat poured down Shoji's face, "He's losing too much blood... we can't stop the bleeding in time..."
They felt the viscous maroon fluid drench their pants as it poured down the man's side. The sudden cold of the liquid sent a chill up Mina's spine as her eyes went wide, 'This man really might die... no. No, I can do something! I'm not incompetent anymore!'
She held her hand over his wound and breathed heavily out of her mouth. "Shoji... did his leg stop bleeding?"
"Yes... what are you gonna do?"
"... I'm gonna try to cauterize the wound. Can you hold him?"
"Yeah." He nodded and used his six arms to restrain him.
Mina took a deep breath and adjusted her acid, 'Not enough to burn through... but enough to burn... you can do this Mina!'
She placed her hand on the wound and it steamed as she burned the wound shut. The man jerked back to life and screamed enough to make their ears ring, but Shoji kept him held down. "Calm down sir! We're helping you!" After a few more seconds, Mina raised her hand. Both she and Shoji looked at the burned-up wound with wide eyes. "That was amazing. Have you done that before?"
She shook her head and answered with a shaky voice, "No... hopefully I don't have to do that again either. We should get him to professional care. I hope the doctors and nurses out there weren't actors."
"Right." Shoji gently picked up the man and they both got out of the building as fast as possible. They ran across the field and spotted Gang Orca inside a flaming tornado while his black-suited goons were fighting students. A couple spotted them and aimed their cement guns at them.
Mina yelled, "Don't shoot! He's really injured!"
"Not falling for that one again!" He shot anyway and Mina blocked it with an acid veil.
She gritted her teeth, "You idiot!"
"We're villains dear! What do you expect?" He and another guy started shooting at her, and she tried her best to protect the man with acid veils as they got closer to the medical personnel.
However, one cement blast went right through the weakening acid and toward the man, 'My acid!' "NO!"
Shoji turned away to cover the man, but before it could make contact, Sasuke slapped away the cement with a Susanoo hand.
Mina smiled, "Sasuke!"
"Go!"
"Thanks!" She ran with Shoji the rest of the way to the medics.
Sasuke turned to the men in black and blitzed past their blast to knock them out with a punch and a kick, 'Mina wouldn't lie about something like that. What happened to that guy?'
He heard a roar and a clash and turned to see Midoriya land a kick on Gang Orca's arm. 'Whatever, bigger problems now.'
He braced himself to run over, but the announcer stated, "AHEM. At present, every H.U.C. member has been saved from danger. Therefore, I declare that the test is over! The results will be announced once all scores are tallied. Those with injuries, please go to the medical area. Everyone else can get changed and get ready for instruction."
Sasuke straightened up and stretched, jogging over to the medical area. It didn't take long to arrive, and when he did he saw Mina and Shoji talking to a nurse, "It's a good thing you two found him right away. With wounds this big he would have died if he bled even another minute. You two really are heroes!"
Mina smiled, "So he'll live... yay!" She bounced up and held up her hands, "Come on Shoji! Give me ten!" She counted his hands, "Or uh... thirty in your case, hehe."
Shoji laughed and held up all his arms, Mina clapped each one and they exited the camp, meeting Sasuke. "Oh hey, what's up? Thanks for the save earlier! You were a literal lifesaver."
"No problem, I just came to see if he was really injured. I guess all the blood is his? How did that happen?"
Shoji answered, "I think that whatever that explosion was outside caused more of the building to collapse; we found him under some concrete, bleeding a lot."
"I see, I didn't think anyone would go in those buildings specifically because of something like that."
Mina looked back at the medics, "Now that you mention it, that is weird, but either way I'm just glad he'll be ok."
They all began to walk to the changing area. Shoji said, "After something like that, Mina will probably get first place. Cauterizing a real victim has gotta count towards something."
Sasuke glanced at her, "Yeah, nice work."
Mina put her hands on her hips and stuck her chin up, "Hehe, you guys can praise me more if you want; I have nothing against it."
The two guys rolled their eyes and they continued to the changing room.
After a while, everyone came out looking fresh for the final announcement. He went over how the score was based on everyone starting with a hundred points, and getting reductions from there based on what they did. In the end, he finally showed the results. Among the students of note, Bakugo, Todoroki, and Inasa failed.
Hagakure asked, "Even Todoroki failed?"
Sero said, "Looks like only Sasuke passed among our top guys."
Kaminari nudged Bakugo, "Looks like you gotta clean up that potty mouth, huh? Words matter."
Bakugo seethed, "Shaddup if you don't wanna die!"
Mineta hit one of his hands, "Two of our top guys down. Now we just need Sasuke to fail for the old hierarchy to collapse."
The announcer stated, "Next we'll be handing out score sheets. Read over them well."
Agents handed sheets to everyone and Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Mina pranced over to Sasuke holding her sheet up to her face, "What did you get?"
"A 90. Cause of a lack of comfort and talking."
Mina giggled, "Very fitting. Can you guess what I got?"
"What?"
"A 99! Shoji got 99 too!" Her huge smile gleamed and she showed the paper to Sasuke.
His expression lightened up, "They might as well have just given you 100."
"Yeah, but it's still way more than I expected. It does tick me off though... we could have handled transporting the victim better? Well, maybe those idiots shouldn't have shot at us! Hmph!" She crossed her arms.
Sasuke smiled and she sighed, "Once again, thanks for the save!" She pulled him into a hug, but before he could react she had pulled away, "I'm gonna compare scores with some of the others. Talk later!" She waved.
Sasuke awkwardly waved back, "Yeah... talk later." He put his hands in his pockets, 'Mina...' He looked off in the direction of Musutafu, "I'll be seeing you soon, Sensei."