"Tsumiki, today's the day I start saving you." Megumi said as he left the hospital room.
...
The U.A. building looked like something off a movie.
Massive.
People stopped underneath it like tourists. Phones out. Posing. Saying stuff like, "This is the start of my legend" or "I'll be the next Number One." A bunch of nervous energy pretending to be confidence.
Megumi walked straight through the middle of it.
The acceptance paper was folded in his hand.
Class 1-A.
That was what mattered. Top hero course. Highest rate of licensed pros. The only place where, at least on paper, power was supposed to come with responsibility and oversight instead of backroom deals.
He had looked all of that up. Track records. Staff. Incidents swept under headlines. U.A. had its share of problems, but it was still the strongest route to a license and training good enough that he would climb to the top pretty quick.
If he was going to spend the next three years anywhere, it should be the best school in the country.
The classroom door for 1-A was taller than necessary. He slid it open.
Noise hit first.
"Remove your foot from that desk!" the tall boy at the front was scolding, chopping the air like he was giving a speech. "Such an action is insulting to those who came to U.A. before us as well as the craftsmen who made the desk!!"
The blond with the sharp eyes and sharper teeth didn't even glance at him. Still leaning back, foot on the desk. "Like I care," he said. "What middle school are you from, you extra?"
"I-I'm from Somei Private Academy. My name is Tenya Ida," glasses added, like a business card.
"A stuck-up elitist, then?" the blond sneered. "I should blow you to bits."
"You're awful," Ida gasped, hand over his chest. "Do you really wish to become a hero?!"
Ignoring the argument between his two new classmates, already sensing the amount of times he'd end up getting annoyed by them. He kept looking around.
Pink-skinned girl laughed like this was the best show she had ever seen. A boy with a tail rotated his shoulders. A kid with purple balls on his head was absolutely not subtle about his staring at the girls. There was a floating uniform and skirt with no visible body.
Near the back, by the window, he saw him.
Half-white hair, half-red. Posture straight and quiet. Eyes steady instead of nervous. The kind of presence that said, he wouldn't bother him with small talk.
There was an empty desk next to him.
Megumi cut through the middle rows and took it.
Chair legs scraped once. The half-and-half kid turned, looking at him out of the corner of his eye, not unfriendly, not overly curious either. Just… noticing.
Megumi looked back.
The other boy seemed to accept whatever he saw and turned toward the front again.
Silence between them felt easy, like sitting down in a quiet cafe.
The peace lasted about three seconds.
The door opened again. The green-haired kid stood there, looking nervous.
Ida immediately marched toward him.
"My name is Tenya Ida," he announced, hand extended stiffly. "I'm from Somei Private Academy."
"I heard you before! Ah... I'm Izuku Midoriya. Pleased to meet you Ida..." the boy stammered.
"Midoriya... you... perceived the true nature of that practical exam," Iida said, his expression grave. "While I did not...!! I misjudged you!! I hate to admit it, but you were the superior candidate!"
Just then, a girl appeared behind Midoriya.
"Ah! That curly hair!!" she exclaimed.
She beamed at him. "You got in! Just like Present Mic said!! Makes sense though!! That punch was awesome!!"
"No! I mean...!" Midoriya flustered, covering his face. "I have to thank you for speaking on my behalf... I... well..."
The whole room got louder around that point. Voices blending. Names flying past.
Megumi let it all blur.
Then something behind the the door moved.
A yellow sleeping bag twitched.
"If you're here to socialize, then get out. This is... The Hero Course."
His eyes dropped, just in time to see it sit upright like some depressed caterpillar.
Half the class screamed.
The zipper peeled down. A man in a black outfit and long scarf dragged himself out of it, hair a mess, unshaven, eyes half-open. He looked less like a teacher and more like a hobo who had lost a long argument with coffee.
He stared at them for a few seconds.
"It took you eight seconds to quiet down," he said. "Times is a precious resource. You lot aren't very rational, are you?"
The room snapped silent.
"I am your homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa. Pleased to meet you" he added, like it barely mattered.
Megumi blinked once.
'Really? This is the guy?' he thought, expression blank.
He had spent the last week reading articles on U.A., seeing how they housed some of the best teachers in the country and the rumor about a Top 10 Hero joining U.A.'s staff. Now known as All Might through his acceptance hologram.
And he got this man. In a sleeping bag.
He didn't frown. He didn't sigh. But his deadpan stare slipped half a degree flatter.
'So much for the impressive first-day introduction.'
It wasn't disappointment in the teacher exactly, more in the mental image he had unintentionally built up of what a "U.A. homeroom teacher" might look like.
He crossed his arms loosely, the corner of his mouth almost twitching downward.
Aizawa held up a blue uniform. "Quickly now. Change into your gym clothes and head out to the grounds."
"A test? Already?" someone whispered.
Aizawa ignored it and walked out.
Megumi stood, leaving his bag on his desk.
The training ground was open sky and packed dirt.
Blue uniforms spread out, clumping instinctively. Loud ones in the center, quiet ones at the edges. Humans really did organize themselves the same way wherever you put them.
Megumi gave his sleeves a small tug and ended up slightly behind the front row.
He let his eyes drift.
Engines on Ida's calves. Frog-like features on the long-haired girl near the middle. Tape dispensers at the elbows of a lanky boy. A bird-shaped shadow peeking over the shoulder of the kid with the beak. Even with quirks inactive, most people could not help letting others know what they were.
He felt his own shadow under his feet, heavy and familiar.
Aizawa stood in front of them with a softball.
"A test... of our quirks?!" the round-faced girl asked, looking anxious.
"What about the entrance ceremony? Or guidance sessions?!"
Aizawa didn't even look back at her. "No time to waste on that stuff if you want to become heroes."
He turned to face the class. "U.A. is known for its 'freestyle' educational system. That applies to us teachers as well."
Megumi had to look away for a second to hide the small curve pulling at his mouth.
'At least, he's getting to straight into it.'
"Softball throwing. The standing long jump. The 50-meter dash. Endurance running. Grip strength. Upper-body training. Seated toe touch. Side steps."
"You did all these in Middle School, Yes? Your standard no-quirks allowed gym tests."
Aizawa let the ball roll from one hand to the other.
"The country still insists on prohibiting quirks when calculating the averages of those records. It's not rational. The Department of Education is just procrastinating."
He caught the ball.
"Bakugo." Aizawa looked at the blond. "How far could you throw in middle school?"
"Sixty-seven meters," Bakugo answered.
"Great. Now try it with your quirk," Aizawa said, tossing him the ball. "Do whatever you need to. Just don't leave the circle."
"Give it all you've got."
Megumi shifted his weight, giving himself a clear line of sight.
'He's trying to test our limits, giving him and everybody a look of what everybody's quirk can do.'
Bakugo stepped into the circle, rolling his shoulder. Getting into a pitcher's position
"DIE!!"
He hurled the ball and blasted it with his palm at the same time. The explosion sent a hot shockwave across the field. The ball shot off like a tiny comet, whistling through the air.
Pink girl gasped. Someone swore.
The ball finally dropped somewhere far beyond the school.
Aizawa showed the measuring device to the class. "705.2m."
"It's important for us to know our limits. That's the first rational step to figuring out what kind of heroes you'll be."
'Katsuki Bakugo... 2nd place in the entrance exam with only villain points attained. Makes sense with that kind of quirk.'
Conversations exploded again.
"Whoa!! This is awesome!"
"705 meters? Seriously?"
"So we can use our quirks for real!!" another student shouted. "Man, the hero course is great!!
Aizawa waited until the noise hit its peak.
"Awesome... you say?"
The chatter dropped off almost immediately.
"You're hoping to become heroes after three years here... and you think it'll be all fun and games?"
His gaze passed over the line of uniforms.
"Right. The one with the lowest score across all eight events will be judged hopeless... and will be expelled."
"Your fates are in our hands. Welcome, this is..."
"The Hero Course at U.A. High!"
'He's... right. If you can't keep up here at U.A., then there's no need for a hero like that. This what I came to U.A. for, to push me beyond my limits.' Megumi thought as he clenched his fists.
A wave of reactions this time.
"Eeeeh?!"
"The lowest scorer will be expelled...?" the round-faced girl cried. "It's only the first day! I mean, even if it weren't... That's totally unfair!!"
Aizawa pushed his hair back from his face.
"Natural disasters... Highway pileups... Rampaging villains... Calamity is always right around the corner."
He stared at them with tired, serious eyes. "I'd say Japan is full of unfair things."
"Heroes are the ones... who correct all that unfairness."
Megumi felt his back straighten up.
"If you were hoping to spend your evenings hanging out at McDonald's... I'm sorry to tell you... that for the next three years... U.A. will run you through the wringer."
Aizawa smiled, a sharp, challenging expression.
"That's Plus Ultra. Use your strength to overcome it all."
He beckoned them forward.
"So bring it."
'This why I'm here.'
'To save people.'