(Kata POV – Sports Grounds)
I watch in silence as my classmates protest the unfairness of Aizawa's declaration. Their frustration is expected, but Aizawa remains unfazed, his tone as flat as ever.
"Natural disasters, unjust villains, random accidents—life is unfair," he states matter-of-factly. "Heroes are the ones who correct that."
The class falls silent as his words sink in.
"For the next three years, U.A. will push you past your limits. That's Plus Ultra."
His voice carries more energy in that single statement than it has this entire time. A challenge. A warning.
"Use your strength to overcome it all," he finishes. "So bring it."
I glance around, noting the shift in my classmates. Nervous expressions harden into steely determination. It's impressive how easily he turned the mood around. Then again, I have no doubt Aizawa would actually expel someone if they didn't meet his standards.
First Test: 50-Meter Dash
Just like in the original timeline, Ida finishes first with 3.04 seconds.
When my turn arrives, I step onto the starting line, debating whether I should simply run normally. 'I'm sure I'd be faster than most of them without using my Quirk, but… I might as well experiment a little.'
A grin tugs at my lips. 'Nothing major. Just a slight push forward and some wind resistance reduction.'
The moment Aizawa signals the start, I sprint forward. I focus on creating a thin barrier in front of me to block air resistance while simultaneously applying a subtle force behind me to propel myself forward.
The finish line arrives faster than expected.
3.81 seconds.
Second place. Not bad.
Second Test: Grip Strength
'This is too easy.'
With minimal effort, I apply my Quirk to the grip strength device while squeezing it in my hand. A loud snap echoes across the field as the machine gives out, the screen freezing at around three tons of force before breaking entirely.
Silence.
Shoji, the runner-up, gets 540 kg, but no one seems to be paying attention to his score.
'…Maybe I overdid it a little.'
Third Test: Standing Long Jump
I crouch slightly, preparing to jump. Instead of relying solely on my legs, I push off the ground with my Quirk, adding extra force through a small timed burst of telekinetic energy to help me along.
I land near the edge of the sandbox, just short of clearing it entirely.
'Not quite there yet.'
I mentally note the flaw—while I can launch objects, controlling my own movement still needs work. Maybe I should start practicing controlling my own body with my power, not just external objects.
Aoyama and Bakugo completely clear the sandbox, prompting smug grins from them and one irritated glance toward me. Bakugo's gaze lingers, as if daring me to react.
I don't.
Which seems to annoy him even more.
Fourth Test: Side-Stepping
This one's annoying. Without finer control, my Quirk won't help much. Resigning myself to pure physical effort, I rely on speed and endurance, securing fourth place.
Ahead of me:
Ida, unsurprising considering his quirk.
Asui, her frog-like agility is insane.
Sero, who used his tape to yank himself side to side.
Not a bad result, all things considered.
Fifth Test: Ball Throw
I don't have to participate in this one since I had done it earlier.
Uraraka easily claims first with her infinite score.
Midoriya places third, with Bakugo coming in fourth by a 0.1 meters. That fact alone is enough to send Bakugo into a fit of rage.
His palm sparks violently as he lunges toward Midoriya.
"DIE, DEKU!"
'Here we go…'
Before he can follow through, Aizawa intervenes in a split second, his scarf wrapping around Bakugo and locking him in place. His Quirk shuts down instantly.
"Violence isn't tolerated here," Aizawa says, voice sharp and final.
Bakugo grits his teeth, but says nothing.
'Well… at least Midoriya's still alive.'
The next three tests flew by, and while I won't go into detail, my scores all placed me in the upper percentile of the class.
Finally, Aizawa stepped forward with the results.
"Moving on. Time for the rankings."
He clicked a button on his device, and a holographic leaderboard flickered to life in front of us.
"Oh, and one more thing—" He added nonchalantly.
"I was lying about expelling someone."
Silence. Then—
"WHAT?!"
Shouts erupted from the class, a mix of outrage and disbelief. I barely blinked, though.
Aizawa sighed, his voice carrying a hint of amusement. "That was a rational deception meant to bring out the best in all of you."
A dry chuckle followed, as if he found the whole thing funny. I barely resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
Momo, arms crossed, huffed confidently. "I knew it was a bluff."
I glanced at the rankings and found myself at the top of the leaderboard.
1. Kata Okada
2. Momo Yaoyorozu
3. Shoto Todoroki
Midoriya, predictably, was at the bottom. Aizawa handed him a letter to meet Recovery Girl while the rest of us were sent back to class to collect our curriculum and schedules.
Later That Day…
The rest of the school day passed in a blur. Regular classes were… well, boring as hell. History, mathematics, and literature were necessary, sure, but compared to the Quirk assessment, it all felt like a chore. I kept my head down, did what was required, and waited for the final bell.
Finally, as soon as class ended, I packed up my things and got ready to leave.
Then—
"Yo, Okada! You heading home, man?"
I paused and glanced over my shoulder. Kirishima, Kaminari, and Sero were approaching me, all grinning like they were up to something.
I simply nodded.
Kirishima laughed. "Not much of a talker, huh? Anyway—me, Kaminari, and Sero are gonna hang out for a bit. You in?"
Sero leaned forward. "C'mon, dude. First day of U.A., we gotta celebrate somehow."
Kaminari smirked. "Yeah, unless you're too cool to hang with us."
I eyed them for a moment. What did they even want from me? Still, I had to admit—after a long day, the idea of unwinding didn't sound too bad.
"…Where exactly are we going?" I finally asked.
Kirishima grinned. "Now that's the spirit!"
Sero followed up, "Nothing crazy. We'll hit up an arcade, play some games, then maybe go bowling."
I thought it over and nodded. "Alright."
"Great! Let's go!" Kaminari grinned as the four of us walked out of class, talking and laughing—or rather, they talked and laughed while I mostly just listened, occasionally chiming in when necessary.
That is, until a question was directed at me.
"Okada, what do you usually do in your free time? You seemed like you were in a hurry to leave earlier," Kaminari asked suddenly.
The question caught me off guard. I took a moment to think.
"I train," I replied simply, realizing just how few hobbies I actually had. It made sense, though—things were only going to get more dangerous in the future.
"Come on, what else?" Kaminari pressed.
I shook my head. "I don't really have any other hobbies."
Did I just make things awkward?
I braced for some weird silence, but—
"That's so cool! It's probably why you're so strong! And your muscles are rad! Super manly!" Kirishima gave me a huge grin and a thumbs-up, while Sero and Kaminari nodded in agreement.
Hmm… Kirishima doesn't seem like the type to lie, so maybe he really means it…
I just nodded, slightly embarrassed.
We continued toward the arcade, and along the way, I found myself learning things about them that I never would have known just from reading the manga. A small smile crept onto my lips.
Instantly, they noticed.
"Whoa! Okada's smiling!" Kirishima practically shouted, his grin widening. Sero and Kaminari exchanged looks before grinning too, like they'd just accomplished some grand mission.
My smile vanished just as quickly, my brows furrowing slightly. I was smiling? Huh. It's not a bad thing… but how'd it slip out? I didn't even realize.
"Come on, it's not a bad thing," Sero reassured me. "We're just glad you're having fun. We kinda thought we were bothering you or something."
"Yeah! And it'll only get better from here!" Kirishima said, throwing his arms up as we arrived at the arcade.
I gave a small nod to acknowledge them, but my face remained neutral.
Once inside, we got some tokens and started playing.
At first, I was terrible. I'd never played video games before, so I lost every match embarrassingly fast. But after a while, I started getting the hang of it—and soon enough, I was winning most of the games.
I found myself smiling again, and this time, I didn't stop it. The more I played, the more comfortable I became talking with them.
After another round, Kirishima groaned, slumping his head in defeat.
"Damn, man, you're a natural at this," he said, glaring at the screen as 'Perfect K.O.' flashed across it.
I smirked. "Maybe you just need more practice, since you lost to a noob."
Kirishima's head snapped up. "What kinda noob plays like that?! How the hell did you even manage to keep linking combos like that?!"
Sero and Kaminari nodded in agreement, looking equally frustrated.
I just shrugged. "Guess I'm a fast learner."
Kirishima groaned louder, while Sero and Kaminari laughed.
For the first time in a while, I actually felt normal.
We wrapped up the evening with a round of bowling—another activity I had never tried before. But unlike gaming, I picked it up quickly, since it was mostly physical. The thrill of landing a strike, the tension of trying to hit that last pin for a spare, and the friendly competition made it surprisingly fun.
Sadly, I didn't win, but I came close—a few points behind Kirishima.
"Congratulations," I said genuinely, offering a small smile.
Kirishima, clearly excited, threw an arm around my neck—though he struggled a bit due to the height difference. I expected myself to feel awkward, but instead, something unexpected happened.
For the first time in my life, I let out a real, genuine laugh.
Kirishima's grin faltered slightly, turning sheepish. He rubbed the back of his head, clearly embarrassed, but that only made me laugh more.
It was around 7:30 p.m. when we finished and parted ways. As I walked home, I replayed the day's events in my mind, and a lingering warmth settled in my chest.
A small smile stayed on my face the entire way back.
When I got home, I realized something—the silence in the house no longer bothered me.
But then, I thought about what's coming. About the future.
And just like that, my neutral expression returned.
'Having fun once in a while is fine, but I can't afford to slack off.'
With that thought, I changed out of my uniform and into some comfortable sportswear. Without hesitation, I started my physical training, pushing myself for the next hour.
Once I was done with my usual routine, I moved on to my quirk. Checking the time—8:50 p.m.—I figured I had a few hours before I needed to sleep.
'The most urgent thing is defense, followed by speed and mobility. Finally, I'll need to work on my sensing ability.'
With that in mind, I entered one of the empty rooms I had set aside for training.
Closing my eyes, I focused. A second later, a forcefield shimmered into existence around me—invisible to others, but I could feel it there.
'Now I just need to keep it active while focusing on other things.'
For the next hour, I worked to maintain the shield without fully concentrating on it. I read. I meditated. I did homework. The shield flickered and faded multiple times, and when it didn't, it weakened. But gradually, I adapted. By the end of the hour, I could keep it up—even while slightly distracted.
'Good. Now, let's see if I can use telekinesis while maintaining it.'
To put it lightly, I failed spectacularly.
The moment I channeled my quirk into anything else, the forcefield collapsed. Again and again, I tried. Every attempt ended in failure. After an hour of frustration, I finally managed to lift a small pebble for a few seconds… but the shield instantly weakened before vanishing completely.
I sighed, glancing at the clock. 11 p.m.
I decided to call it a night.
Still, I kept the forcefield active as I lay in bed. I knew it would fade the moment I fell asleep.
But one day… it won't.