The locker room buzzed with excitement as the boys of Class 1-A gathered to change into their U.A. gym uniforms for the Quirk Assessment Test. The atmosphere was lighthearted, filled with jokes and chatter as everyone began to shed their school uniforms, revealing a mix of various physiques. Some were lean, others bulky, and a few somewhere in between. Izuku, on the other hand, remained silent as he removed his uniform with his back to the others, methodically putting on his black, long-sleeved shirt underneath the standard U.A. uniform. The shirt was tight, covering the scars that lined his arms and torso—memories of a past he didn't want to relive.
Kirishima, a red-haired, sharp-toothed guy with a broad grin, noticed Izuku's quiet demeanor. His eyes widened when he saw how ripped and muscular Izuku was despite his usual laid-back attitude. He gaped for a moment before shouting with excitement.
"Whoa, dude! You're jacked!" Kirishima exclaimed, slapping Izuku on the back with a loud *smack* that echoed through the room.
The entire locker room paused for a moment, turning to look at Kirishima and then at Izuku, who didn't react immediately. Kirishima, still beaming, continued with his high-energy enthusiasm. "Bro, you've got to share your workout routine with me! Those muscles are manly!"
Izuku's face remained blank, his earphones still hanging around his neck as he gave a nonchalant shrug.
"I work out. That's it," he replied flatly, pulling his gym jacket over his black shirt.
Kirishima leaned in with an incredulous expression, completely missing the lack of enthusiasm.
"No way, bro. You must be pumping iron 24/7! You could totally pull off the 'stone statue hero' look with those gains!"
He flexed his own arms to emphasize his point, but it was clear Izuku wasn't paying him much mind.
While this was happening, Kaminari, standing nearby, nudged Sero with a grin. "Man, I'm not even sure if I should be impressed or worried. Dude looks like he's about to bench-press a building but still acts like he's got all the emotions of a brick wall."
Sero chuckled, adding, "Maybe he's secretly training to become the next Terminator, you know? 'Hasta la vista, baby,' but with even less facial expressions."
Kaminari burst out laughing, slapping his knee. "Imagine him in an action movie. Just... nothing. Total poker face while explosions happen behind him."
From the other side of the room, Mineta's eyes gleamed mischievously.
The pint-sized purple-haired menace was practically vibrating with excitement as he noticed a small gap in the locker room wall.
"Heh, I've found it, the holy grail! A peephole straight to the girls' locker room!" Mineta whispered to himself, a creepy grin spreading across his face as he scurried toward the tiny gap like a mouse to cheese.
As Mineta reached out to peek through, his giggling barely contained, Izuku's sharp senses kicked in. Without even looking, he calmly raised his hand, the earth element in his body stirring.
The ground beneath Mineta's feet shifted slightly, a small crack appearing in the wall. With a quick flick of his wrist, Izuku sealed the gap with a chunk of stone, effectively blocking the peephole.
Mineta blinked in surprise, his hand now resting against the smooth stone instead of the peephole he had been so eager to exploit. "Huh?!" He stared at the wall in confusion, before turning around to see Izuku, who gave him a cold, emotionless glare.
"Don't," Izuku said flatly.
Mineta gulped but wasn't deterred. "Aww, come on, man! We gotta live a little, right? It's just a harmless peek—"
Before Mineta could finish, Izuku raised his hand again, and this time, the earth under Mineta's feet shifted abruptly, creating a pillar that shot up, lifting Mineta off the ground and pinning him to the ceiling like a poorly mounted chandelier.
"Hey! Hey! Put me down!" Mineta squeaked, flailing his arms and legs helplessly. "This is cruel! I didn't even do anything yet!"
The entire locker room erupted into laughter at Mineta's misfortune. Even Bakugou, who normally kept his distance from the group's antics, let out a snort of amusement.
Kaminari was doubled over, tears streaming down his face. "Dude, you're like… the size of a bug up there!"
"That's what you get for being a perv!" Kirishima shouted, still grinning ear to ear. "Izuku's not just manly; he's ruthless!"
Mineta's voice was high-pitched and desperate. "It's not fair! I'm too short to enjoy life as it is!"
"Then stop trying to peek at people!" Sero called out, rolling his eyes.
Kirishima slapped Izuku's shoulder again. "Man, you've got some serious moves with that earth element of yours! Do you multiple quirks or something? You should've seen Mineta's face when he got yeeted into the ceiling! Priceless!"
Izuku didn't respond. Instead, he pulled his earphones back over his ears, tuning out the world again as the laughter in the room continued to echo around him. The song playing in his ears now was
"Another Love"
By Tom Odell, another melancholic track that fit his mood perfectly. He sat down on the bench, resting his elbows on his knees and letting the music drown out the nonsense around him.
Meanwhile, Kaminari, still recovering from his laughing fit, wiped the tears from his eyes. "Man, Izuku's quiet, but he's got some serious comedic timing. He didn't even flinch when he did that!"
Sero shook his head in disbelief. "Honestly, that's way scarier than someone like Bakugou. At least with Bakugou, you know when he's about to explode. This guy? Ice-cold."
Bakugou, who had been sitting off to the side, shot Sero a glare. "Tch, don't compare me to that extra," he muttered, clearly irritated by the attention Izuku was getting.
The banter continued for a while longer, with the boys making all sorts of jokes, mostly at Mineta's expense. Kirishima tried to get Izuku to engage in the conversation multiple times, but Izuku remained largely silent, occasionally offering a grunt or a single word in response. His focus was on the task ahead, though to everyone else, it seemed like he just didn't care.
Eventually, Aoyama, who had been preening in front of the mirror, spoke up in his usual dramatic fashion.
"Ah, mon dieu, my quirk is magnifique, but I must say, even I was not expecting such theatrics in the locker room. Truly, this class is full of surprises!"
Mineta, still dangling from the ceiling, whined, "It's not funny anymore! Somebody get me down!"
Kaminari waved him off. "Nah, you're good up there. Think of it as character development."
Kirishima laughed, crossing his arms. "Or maybe it's training! You'll get used to heights for when we do aerial rescues!"
As the laughter died down and the boys finished changing, they began heading toward the field for the Quirk Assessment. Izuku, as always, was the last to leave the locker room, his movements slow and deliberate. The others might have been cracking jokes, but in his mind, he was already preparing for the test.
As they exited the locker room, Kirishima threw an arm around Izuku's shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. "You may not talk much, bro, but you've got serious style. I like that. Stick with me, and we'll get through this year as the manliest duo around!"
Izuku glanced at him briefly before turning his gaze forward again. "Whatever," he muttered, earning another hearty laugh from Kirishima.
"See, that's the spirit!" Kirishima cheered, completely ignoring Izuku's indifference. "We'll crush this Quirk Assessment Test, just you wait!"
As they headed out onto the field, the sun blaring down on them, Izuku adjusted his earphones, ready to face whatever challenge lay ahead. But deep down, he couldn't help but feel the weight of everyone's eyes on him, even as he pretended not to care.
--------------
As this scene played out, the girls in the next room were having their own conversations. Jiro was adjusting her uniform when she noticed something odd on the wall. A small hole, but it had recently been sealed up by earth.
Her brow furrowed. "Wait, what's this?" she muttered, pointing it out to the other girls. "Was someone trying to peek on us?"
Uraraka gasped. "No way! Who would even—" She paused, thinking. "Actually, I can think of one person."
Mina's eyes narrowed as she cracked her knuckles. "Mineta, right? That little creep is always up to something."
Just as the girls began to fume with anger, Jiro tapped her earlobe, listening closely. "Wait, hold on…" She closed her eyes for a moment, picking up on faint vibrations from the other room. "Midoriya… stopped him," she said, surprised. "He used his quirk to block the hole before Mineta could do anything."
Momo, who had been silent up to this point, sighed in relief. "Well, that's a relief. At least we don't have to deal with Mineta's antics today."
Uraraka smiled softly. "Midoriya, huh? He's quiet, but he's really dependable."
Jiro nodded, still listening to the faint vibrations coming from the boys' locker room. "Yeah, he didn't even make a big deal about it. Just shut Mineta down like it was nothing."
Mina pouted, crossing her arms. "Still, Mineta needs to be taught a lesson! Can't we, like, do something?"
Izumi, who had been quiet in the corner, took a deep breath, her fingers twitching as her quirk, a subtle flame-like aura, flickered around her for a brief moment. She had been moments away from activating her quirk to handle Mineta herself. Hearing that Izuku had stopped him, however, allowed her to relax, her aura slowly fading away as she regained control over her emotions.
She gave a small nod to herself. That guy's always a step ahead, isn't he? she thought, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "No need for that, Mina. The white hair boy already handled it."
Mina tilted her head, still unconvinced. "But still…"
Jiro, always one to be direct, shrugged. "If anyone should be mad, it's probably 'him'. He had to deal with grape juice's nonsense for us."
As the conversation shifted, Izumi stood up and adjusted her uniform. She had to admit, hearing that Izuku had stopped Mineta before she had even noticed made her feel… a little more at ease. She had been on edge ever since that unsettling feeling from earlier in the quirk tests. But knowing that someone like Izuku was around, quietly keeping things in check, was oddly comforting.
"Alright, let's get back out there," she said, brushing off the last remnants of her earlier tension. "We've still got the quirk tests to finish."
As the girls filed out of the locker room, Jiro shot a glance back at the sealed hole. "Mineta better hope he doesn't try that again, or next time… I'm not holding back."
Mina laughed, throwing an arm around Jiro's shoulders. "Yeah! Next time, we'll show him what it means to mess with us girls."
They all laughed as they exited the room, though Uraraka looked back at Izumi. "You alright? You seemed kinda tense for a moment there."
Izumi shook her head, her expression softening. "I'm fine. Just… thinking."
Uraraka smiled warmly. "Well, if you need to talk, we're here for you."
The two girls exchanged a brief, understanding look before heading out, ready to face the next part of the assessment. Meanwhile, in the boys' locker room, Izuku had already finished changing and was waiting by the door, his earbuds still firmly in place.
Shota who stood beside Izumi was pissed but became at ease after hearing Izuku handling the situation.
Izuku didn't know it, but the small gesture of stopping Mineta had not gone unnoticed by the girls. And in his own quiet way, he had once again proven that he was more than just another student at UA. He was someone they could rely on, even if he didn't make a big deal out of it.
As the class prepared to move on to the next phase of the quirk tests, the tensions of the day slowly began to ease, though the threat of expulsion still loomed large in everyone's minds.
For Izuku, it was just another step in the long journey ahead.
Izuku sighed, ''What a drag...''