"We're here. Would ya look at that."
The train stopped, and the two of them got off. It was just a short walk from there to UA, with its grand glass towers shimmering in the morning daylight.
Haruto almost walked past it.
"Namikaze-kun, where are you going ?"
"Huh?" He turned sharply, nearly tripping over himself, and immediately began walking up the steps. "I was just going to do my best in the UA entrance exam, like yourself. At UA. Yep, this is the place. I definitely knew that, and was definitely walking this direction the whole time."
Hagakure laughed again. "Did you actually not know what UA looked like? You didn't look at pictures or anything?"
"My parents don't let me use the Internet." Easily interpretable as a joke, right? Yes. Good. She was still laughing. "Did you abuse your privileges or something?" She asked in a teasing way.
"Yes. I overloaded the hard drive with Russian car crash videos. Oh, and porn. Lots of it."
"What the FUCK are you two talking about? Also, get out of the way!" A blonde boy broke through in between them, hitting both of them in the shoulder. He kept storming up the steps, hands closed into fists.
"Owww…" Hagakure rubbed her shoulder.
"You good?" Haruto raised an eyebrow. That kid had been solid, like there was a lot of muscle going on under that uniform. Something about him seemed familiar, though…
"Yeah, I'll be fine. What an asshole though, huh."
"They do indeed exist. No worries, jerks like that can't get into hero school. Nice guys only beyond this point."
"Hehe… yeah you're probably right. We won't see him again."
They did, however, hear him again. Inside the big presentation room, he and some guy named "Deku" were arguing about something a few rows behind them.
"Excuse me," whispered a boy nearby, tall with blue hair so dark it was nearly black, and glasses impeccably placed on the bridge of his nose. "Could the two of you quiet down? They are about to start the presentation."
Haruto turned to look at him. "Heya bud, there's some much louder idiots behind you. Why don't you bother them instead? Are we just much less intimidating?"
"Yes," said Hagakure plainly. "You are, at least." Haruto made a show of pouting.
Glasses person was taken aback by this. "I do apologise for bothering you, it was not my intention. I would like you to quiet down, though, if you'd be so kind." He sat in his seat, suddenly appearing put out.
Haruto's smile faltered. "Hey man, I was just kidding around. Haven't you heard a joke befo—"
Hagakure tugged on his sleeve. "Butt in the seat, Comrade Namikaze! Present Mic's about to get this show on the road!"
"Who?" Haruto sat down, confused.
Oh. Apparently it was that guy.
"WELCOME TO THE UA ENTRANCE EXAMS! LEMME HEAR YA SAY HEEYYYY!" The guy with the absurd blonde hair and booming voice threw a hand out toward the crowd.
No one replied. It's too early for this shit bruh.
What followed was an explanation of the practical exam. They would be fighting robots in an arena. Small robots worth a point, medium sized ones worth two, big bois worth three. From the visuals, Haruto judged that he would not be able to teleport any of them in their entirety. They were all too large.
Then there was some stuff about a zero point robot the size of an office building, complete with another cameo from Glasses. He also called out some kid with green hair who had apparently been mumbling the whole time, although Haruto had not heard a thing. Green haired kid was sitting next to the angry boy from the steps, the one that seemed so familiar. "Deku has been spotted," he murmured absurdly.
"Huh?" asked Hagakure.
"Nothing."
They received their arena assignments. Toru and Haruto were in different ones.
"It's probably to keep people from the same middle school from being able to strategize and tag team the robots," she explained. "So we'll both be surrounded by people with unfamiliar Quirks."
Haruto frowned. "That's dumb. What's wrong with teamwork?"
"Aww, you're so wholesome. Anyway, I'm going now. See you after." She left with a wave.
Then they were off to take the normal test, which took at least a minute. Several hours, to be precise. Haruto thought he did pretty well on it. He had always kept up decent grades, more out of fear than any desire to succeed, but it seemed that the recent cramming had really paid off.
Now it was time to fuck up some robots.
Haruto stood outside the gates of the battleground with the others. Beyond the big walls appeared to be a cityscape, as he could see skyscrapers poking over the top. He didn't see Glasses, or the blonde haired guy that he swore he knew from somewhere, or "Deku" anywhere. There was a boy with white hair and jet black skin, a girl with pink skin and horns, some person with a speech bubble for a head… definitely some Quirky people. Heh.
Haruto cracked his knuckles, and then his neck on either side. He flexed his legs for a second. Adrenaline had started to course through him, as the examinees stood ready. He could feel the yellow energy stirring inside.
"START!" Present Mic shouted, and Haruto warped forwards with a yellow flash.
Teleporting was different than most people probably assumed, at least in his case. Each warp required him to sort of take a half-step forwards, and then will himself the rest of the way. It was all in the legs, alternating between left and right. One warp was like the equivalent of taking one running stride, expending about the same amount of energy. Only his "strides" were ten meters, and before he knew it he was near the front of the pack, only behind a couple of people with powerful speed Quirks. He continued warping forward in rhythm. Left, right, left right. At a junction, he turned down the side street, and found some robots.
Two one-pointers and one two-pointer. A mouthful, that is. He held out his hands, and a yellow light emerged from his palms. The same light enveloped the head of the one-pointer as it came toward him. Haruto clenched his teeth together, and pulled with his hands.
The head warped off, crashing to the ground some eight meters away. The robot fell, disabled.
Haruto turned to the two pointer, which had a considerably larger body. No individual piece seemed light enough… so Haruto opted to shred it instead. He flicked his hands in rapid succession, sending off yellow flashes. Bits and scraps of metal teleported off to the sides of the robot, exposing its innards. Haruto warped his body sideways to avoid the robot's swipe at him, and then he used his powers to pull out some vital-looking wires. The two-pointer made a sad noise and seemed to deactivate.
He turned to the other one-pointer, just as some shadowy bird monster thing came crashing through, destroying it instantly. "TOO SLOW!" It shouted at him, as a boy with a bird's head came running from behind it. They were tethered together.
Haruto opened his mouth to say something, but birdboy and his shadowy friend were already gone. I need to go faster.Three points won't be enough at all!
Using his warps, he moved himself quickly through alleys and side streets, taking out more one and two-pointers with the same methods as before. The three-pointers were too big for a Quirk of his caliber, and he avoided them. But otherwise, he managed to get into something of a rhythm, although occasionally another examinee would come along and steal his kill. Thirty-two. Thirty-four. Thirty-five.
Suddenly a three-pointer came bearing down on him, and he was pinned in an alleyway. Haruto had never quite had the courage to try and teleport through solids, even if there was empty space on the other side. He was always worried he might cut himself in half. So the only option was to destroy this thing.
Haruto looked to his left and saw a dumpster. His arms were already aching from all the heavy lifting (teleporting something was like lifting it for that amount of time, in regards to weight) but he had to try anyhow. With great effort, he slowly brought his arms up, closing them into fists up against his chest. The dumpster glowed yellow. Light coursed through his arms. The robot beared down upon him.
With a cry of effort, Haruto warped the dumpster up into the air, and it crashed down on top of the robot, crushing its head in and sending sparks flying. The robot shuddered, and began to sway.
Frantically, he tried to squeeze past it, in the small space against the alleyway wall. It was too thin to attempt a warp. He managed to squeeze through, but he'd taken too long. The robot fell… on top of his leg.
"ARGH!" The pain was immediate and intense, even through all the adrenaline. He was now pinned under a bunch of heavy metal.
He weakly tried warping the robot off of him, but that was no use even if his arms hadn't been worn out from the dumpster move. And he needed both his legs free to warp himself out. It was his left leg that was pinned and broken, but if he just used his right to warp, then he might end up amputating himself by accident. And that would be worse than a break.
So that's it then. I'm stuck here for the rest of the test, with thirty-eight points. Would that be enough? It didn't seem like it. And now he'd have to go to the hospital as well. Fear struck at his heart as he remembered his mother's words from that morning. No… no! He hit his head with his hand. Stupid, stupid! How could I have let this happen!
"Oh no, are you okay?" a voice called out from the alleyway entrance.
Haruto turned as much as he could. It was the pink skinned girl with the horns. She is pretty cute, isn't she?
"Does it look like I'm okay?" he asked dryly.
"No. Lose the attitude, idiot. I'm going to help you." And then she was walking towards him.
Haruto waved a hand. "Hey, don't waste time with me. This robot's already destroyed. You should go get some more points while you can."
"Don't be silly! Heroes are supposed to help those in need, right?" She leaned over him, smiling with her eyes closed. Her grin was dazzling.
"Uhh… errrr." He briefly lost the ability to speak. Incredibly rare.
She reached out and touched the robot with her pink hands. Immediately, Haruto felt heat, and steam began to rise from the metal.
"My Quirk is Acid," she explained in an excited tone. "I've been making quick work of these bucketheads. What about you?"
"Ah yes, my Quirk is Chick Magnet, it allows pretty girls to come to rescue my useless ass." She giggled; her cheeks flushed purple. Purple, huh? "Nah, but seriously I'm a teleporter. Ridiculous, right? I got myself trapped under a robot when I could literally move in an instant. "
"Hang on, you're a teleporter? Why am I even helping you then! Just get yourself out of there!"
"You're not clear on the finer rules. I'd rather not accidentally cut my own leg off, thanks."
"Oh, is that how it is? In that case…" she traced her acid-emitting hands in a line around where his leg was pinned, and he felt the heat intensify. "Get ready to scramble backward fast. I might be the one who ends up cutting your leg off."
When the robot piece fell away, the heat briefly exploded tenfold, and then Haruto was scrambling away like she said, dragging his broken leg with him. "Goddess, that's some strong stuff you got," he said as she backed away from the robot wreckage. "My name's Namikaze Haruto. What's yours?"
"Mina Ashido." She offered him a hand up. "I'll support you if you like. This doesn't mean we're dating, though." She had the fiery light of teasing in her strange black eyes.
"I appreciate it," he answered, his energy sapped by the wound he'd sustained. She put an arm over his shoulder, and helped him walk. "I guess this means I won't be getting any more points th… WATCH OUT!" At the exit of the alleyway, another three-pointer was bearing down on them. Mina let out a yelp.
He gave her a shove as the shadow of the thing covered them. She stumbled out into the clear, safe, as he fell, having lost his support.
Mina turned, confused, and her alien eyes widened as she saw the shadow cover him. "Namikaze-san…"
He willed himself to hold onto his broken leg, and warped with his right foot. The robot came crashing down on empty space, and he reappeared next to Mina in a yellow flash.
"Arm. Shoulder. Now." he said, pained.
Mina started as if surprised to see him next to her, and then supported him again. The three-pointer must have fallen on them from quite a height, because it had been destroyed, no longer moving. Sparks flew from it.
"Someone operating from the rooftops, maybe?" Haruto mused.
"You saved me," mumbled Mina. "You pushed me out of the way. Hey, why didn't you just teleport us both?"
"I can't teleport other people. Only myself and inanimate objects. I tried a lizard once, and cut its tail off. Those grow back though. Friends tried to convince me to warp a cat. I'm not a monster, though. Who knows what would have happened. Plus, even if I'd tried to take you with me, I might have left your clothes behind, and then you'd be naked right now. Yup, that's right, every time I warp I have to put a small percentage of energy toward bringing my clothes with me. Exhausting, right? I'm so exhausted."
"Goodness, haha." Mina put her other hand on his chest to keep him from stumbling as they walked down the street. "You're chatty, aren't you? I'm pretty chatty too, most of the time. I seem to be out of my game today, though." She frowned. "This is intense stuff."
They were surrounded by destroyed robots and ruined buildings. In the distance, they could hear the sounds of battle.
Then, an alarm blared. "TIME'S UP!" Present Mic's voice shouted at them. "ALL EXAMINEES, CEASE ACTION IMMEDIATELY. IF YOU HAVE INJURIES, PLEASE STAND BY AND WAIT FOR RECOVERY GIRL. IF NOT, EXIT THE ARENA. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME."
"Who's Recovery Girl?"
Mina raised an eyebrow at him. "Do broken legs make you delirious?"
"No, but overusing my Quirk kinda does. Sometimes. Other times I just throw up."
"Recovery Girl is a healer. She kisses people and magically fixes their injuries."
"Ah. A hero, huh? Does that mean I don't have to go to the hospital?"
"I don't know, if I was in charge I'd probably check you into the insane ward." She was smiling, though.
They found a central area near the front where many injured students had conglomerated. There was general chatter all over the place. Mina helped Haruto sit down on a slab of concrete, and then sat down next to him, legs swinging playfully.
"You can leave if you want. Magic kiss lady is coming for me."
"Show some respect and use her name. And no, I'm staying to make sure you're good. You saved me too, remember?"
"Exactly, so we're even. You saved me first."
She stuck her tongue out at him, and then they lapsed into a comfortable silence, waiting.
"Say," she said, "how many points did you get?"
"Thirty-eight. I'm mega screwed, I think."
Mina opened her mouth in surprise. "I only got thirty-one!"
"Oh… in that case, I'm not screwed. You're way too awesome to not get in, and I did better than you, so…"
She laughed musically, blushing lilac again. "Oh look, there's Recovery Girl!"
Haruto blinked, baffled. "She's a senior citizen."
"Shut up and show some respect, like I said before."
The pint-sized old lady came hobbling over. "Oh dear, a broken leg, huh?"
"Very possibly. A large robot fell on me, you see," Haruto explained.
"Yeah, yeah." She kissed him, and suddenly he felt the bones repair, felt the yellow course through him again. It was like he'd been born anew. "Wow, that's amazing! Thank you, ma'am!"
"All in a day's work. What about you, missy? What's wrong with you?"
"Huh?" Mina blushed again, startled. "Nothing, I was just waiting… with him…"
Recovery Girl laughed. "Oh, so that's what it is. I can't heal that, I'm afraid. Good-bye for now." She hobbled away.
"Strange woman. Was she implying that she can't fix stupid, like the old saying? Was she implying that you're stupid? Rude. I'm sorry she said that. Anyway, I'm feeling good as new, so I'll be off." He stood up and stretched.
"Haha… I guess." Mina was somewhat flustered, and her brain was moving kinda fast. "Wait, you're leaving?"
Namikaze nodded. "Yep. They told us to go, after all. And I promised a friend that I'd meet her afterward."
Oh… he has a girlfriend… I see. "Well… bye. It was nice meeting you. Hopefully we'll see each other at school!"
"Hopefully." He gave her a two-fingered wave, and walked off. She waited for another minute before following, in the same direction.
Silly Mina, she thought. You got distracted by some hot guy and didn't keep your eyes on the prize. He didn't even seem confident about his own score, and mine was even lower. What the hell am I supposed to do now?