"WAAAH!!!"
Izuku Midoriya clutched his head and crouched down in fear.
"Pfft—Izuku like this is actually kind of cute."
"…What kind of cloth is this? It's so strong…"
Izuku carefully looked up—
And saw Katsuki Bakugo restrained by the cloth wrapped around Shouta Aizawa's neck.
"This is a capture weapon—made from special alloy wire woven into carbon fiber."
Aizawa spoke flatly.
"I told you not to use your Quirk recklessly."
"My eyes are dry!!!"
Aizawa glared at Bakugo, his hair standing slightly from irritation.
Such a powerful Quirk… wasted like this…
"Alright. Next—prepare."
Seeing Izuku had retreated to a safe distance, Aizawa released his Quirk.
"…Damn it…"
Bakugo stood there, his expression darkening.
Not long ago… he was nothing… just a pebble…
Just a useless pebble…!!
"Next—long-distance running test. First group…"
Five minutes later—
Izuku quickly removed the iron weights hidden inside his shoes.
"Midoriya, we're up next—why are you still—?"
Tenya Iida stopped mid-sentence as he saw Izuku pulling the weight out of his second shoe.
"…Ah! We're already up? I'll be right there!"
Izuku hurriedly finished, put his shoes back on, and ran over.
Iida followed behind him, thinking seriously.
As expected of someone who got into U.A…
Not only is he disciplined—he's incredibly strict with himself…
I need to learn from him!
(Please don't learn that kind of self-harm!!)
"Third group: Tsuyu Asui, Tenya Iida, Izuku Midoriya, Katsuki Bakugo."
All four stood at the starting line.
"3000-meter run—start!"
Iida and Bakugo shot forward immediately.
Izuku followed right behind them.
Tsuyu Asui trailed calmly in last.
This pace feels good…
My Quirk… I can use it here…
Izuku's eyes sharpened.
"…Then here I go!"
His speed surged.
"Twenty kilometers—full sprint!!"
In an instant—
He overtook both Iida and Bakugo.
"…So you're serious now?! Then I won't lose either!"
Iida's engines roared from his calves.
"DEKU!! Don't run ahead of me!!!"
Bakugo blasted forward, pushing his Quirk harder.
The three of them raced side by side.
"…They're fast."
Tsuyu watched calmly, moving on all fours.
"Midoriya is amazing!!" Ochaco Uraraka cheered.
From a hidden corner—
All Might watched in shock.
"…That speed… he didn't use One For All…"
"…He reached that level on his own…?"
Meanwhile—
Izuku pushed forward relentlessly.
Faster… faster…
Break past 30 kilometers…
Suddenly—
He found it.
That same sensation from before.
"…This is it!"
"Thirty kilometers—hurricane!!!"
His speed exploded again—
Surging past Iida and Bakugo completely.
A powerful gust followed behind him.
"…I'm at my limit…"
Iida slowed first.
"WAIT, DEKU!!!"
Bakugo pushed harder—
But still couldn't catch up.
"…This feeling—again!!!"
Izuku added a bit of One For All to his legs.
Green lightning flickered around his feet.
"Forty kilometers—BURST!!! MOVE!!! I CAN'T STOP!!!"
He lost control.
"Run this way! Then jump!!"
Uraraka pointed toward the sandpit used for long jump tests.
"OUT OF THE WAY!!!"
Izuku leapt—
"BOOM!!!"
He landed hard—
Sending a massive wave of sand flying nearly two meters high.
"…Cough—cough… is anyone hurt?"
Izuku spat out sand and opened one eye.
Thankfully—
Everyone had already moved away.
No one was injured.
"Midoriya, are you alright?!"
Iida ran over, having just finished the race.
"I'm okay… my legs just feel weak…"
"…Why are you rubbing your eyes like that?"
"Sand got in… it won't come out…"
"Don't rub! Someone should blow it out instead."
"…Deku."
Bakugo walked over, hands in his pockets.
"I won't lose to you next time."
"…Huh? What did you say, Kacchan?"
"I didn't hear you…"
"Idiot…"
"Midoriya! Stop rubbing! You'll damage your eyes!"
"What do I do… it hurts…"
"…Tch."
Bakugo grabbed Izuku's wrist—
And leaned in—
Blowing gently into his eye.
"—!"
Click!
Uraraka snapped a photo.
"…This is amazing… I love it…!"
She blushed at the picture.
"Hey—can you send me that later?"
A completely invisible girl tapped her shoulder.
"Ah! Who are you?!"
"I'm Toru Hagakure! Send it to me later, okay?"
"Sure!"
They exchanged contact info.
Aizawa stepped forward.
"Alright. Time to announce results."
Please… don't let me be last… I don't want to be expelled…
Izuku clenched his injured hand.
"…By the way—expulsion was a lie."
"…WHAT?!"
"It was a rational deception to push you to your limits."
Aizawa smirked faintly.
"Haahhh?!"
Izuku practically collapsed.
"…Wasn't it obvious?" said Momo Yaoyorozu calmly.
"Oh… you figured it out, Yaoyorozu…" Uraraka muttered.
"Textbooks are in the classroom. Class dismissed."
"…Midoriya."
"Yes!"
Aizawa handed him a slip.
"Go to the infirmary. See the nurse."
"Starting tomorrow—things get harder."
"…Yes…"
After school—
Izuku walked out, completely drained.
"…I'm exhausted…"
"Midoriya! Are your fingers okay now?"
Iida placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah… thanks to Recovery Girl, they're fine now."
"That's good. Your performance today was impressive."
"…Not really…"
"I only did well in running…"
"And I hurt myself throwing the ball…"
"Hey! You two heading to the station? Wait for me!"
Uraraka ran up to them.
"Oh—it's the gravity girl. Hello."
Iida greeted politely.
"It's Ochaco Uraraka! And you're Iida… and Midoriya—"
"DEKU, right?!"
"…Deku?"
"That's what Bakugo called you during the exam!"
"…No, no—that's not…"
"My real name is Izuku…"
"Kacchan just uses that to mock me…"
"…So it's an insult…" Iida said thoughtfully.
"…But 'Deku' sounds kind of like 'you can do it!'"
Uraraka smiled brightly.
"I like it!"
"…It's… Deku…"
Izuku's face turned bright red.
"I-I don't mind… if you say it like that…"