Test of Heroism (Part 3)

Kirishima threw a punch at his opponent. The rival student easily backed away and slammed his arm into Kirishima's side. "You'll now feel the effects of my quirk. I can paralyze anyone that my hairs stick into. Soon, you'll collapse and I'll finish off your friend. UA will not be passing this year. I'll make sure of that my-" Kirishima punched him, unaffected by the man's quirk. The man slowly got back up, surprised. "How are you still standing?!" Kirishima smirked. "My quirk allows me to harden my skin. Your puny hairs never had a chance." The man growled and charged again. Mina jumped in and tackled him, tearing off his flag from his waist. "Got it!" "No fair! I did the work!" Mina smiled at her friend as she attached her new flag to her belt. "You snooze, you lose." The damage Mina and Kirishima had inflicted to their opponent caused his quirk to wear off on the other students. The others all started getting up. Kirishima hardened himself again. "Looks like we have a fight on our hands." Mina smiled. "Easy points."

Chris sprinted across the landscape, trying to find his friends. He could hear Kirishima and Mina somewhere in the city district, and he assumed Jason was fighting Katsuki, but he couldn't locate Momo or Shoto. "How am I expected to replace All Might if I can't even locate- oh, there she is." Chris came to a stop next to Momo. She was startled by his sudden entrance. "Chris! Stop scaring me!" "No. How's the fight going?" "Well, Jason appears to be winning. Do you know that kid?" "Yea. Katsuki Bakugou. He has explosive sweat. He seems to have gotten a lot better at controlling it." Momo ducked down to avoid ash and debris as Katsuki unleashed a massive explosion. She looked up at Chris. "He doesn't seem to like Jason." "And for good reason too. During the last week of high school, Katsuki attacked Jason in class. He got suspended and was no longer eligible to enter UA." Momo looked back at the two students fighting. "...Wow…" Chris nodded. "Still, I'm curious as to why he's here. With the exception of our class, everyone here should be second year students." Momo thought about it for a second. "...Maybe he was good enough to take the test this year." "I doubt it."

Jason and Katsuki were locked in combat, just like they had been for their four years of high school together. Jason rolled backwards to avoid a powerful point blank explosion. "New clothes, new gear, same predictable tactics." Katsuki roared and charged. Jason smirked and took several steps backwards. "You've definitely improved the control of your quirk, but you haven't improved your fighting skills whatsoever." Jason stepped to the left. "Right swing. Two left jabs. Large explosion." Jason smacked Katsuki's hand away before he had the chance to aim the explosion. The blonde angrily threw another punch, but Jason jabbed him in the ribs before using his quirk to punch Katsuki in the jaw. Katsuki fell to the dirt, coughing. Jason reached out for the blonde's flag, but didn't. Chris and Momo were confused by Jason's hesitance. Katsuki looked up at Jason. "...What are you waiting for…?" Jason sighed and stood up straight. "I ruined your dream once. I won't do it again. Go get four more flags. Become a hero." Jason turned away. "Maybe take up kickboxing while you're at it." Katsuki just stared at Jason as the hero in training walked away. Katsuki managed to pick himself up and stumble away, holding his side. Chris smiled and elbowed his friend. "You're getting all soft." Jason just smiled. He was going to say something snarky, but the announcer cut him off. "25 students have come through the gate! Only 75 spots left!" Chris, Jason, and Momo took off in a sprint to find more flags.

Shoto was sitting in the waiting room with Fumikage and Ojiro. They had been the first three students in 1A to obtain all of their flags and pass through the gate. A tall student wearing the Shiketsu Academy hat walked up to them with a very large smile. "Excuse me. You all are from UA, correct?" Ojiro stood up and smiled. "Yes we are." The man eagerly shook Ojiro's hand. "I'm Inasa Yoarashi! It's an honor to meet you all!" Ojiro and Fumikage shook hands with Inasa. Shoto stood up and reached her hand out to shake. Inasa glared down at Shoto, losing his smile. Shoto was taken off guard. It looked like he wanted to kill her. Then someone covered in hair from top to bottom came up and slapped him in the back of the head. "Inasa!" He smiled back at his upperclassman. "Sorry sir!" They left. Shoto was still startled by the man. Then the announcer interrupted her thoughts. "90 contestants have passed through the gate with their flags! 10 spots remaining!" Shoto began to panic. Most of 1A had made it through, but she didn't see her main group of friends anywhere. Then she saw them. Chris, Mina, Kirishima, Jason, and Momo all walked in as part of the batch that had just entered the waiting room. Shoto ran up to Jason and wrapped her arms around his neck. Jason laughed a little and hugged her. "Of course you made it in before us." "I thought you weren't going to make it." Jason just shrugged.

Chris smiled at his friends. With their entry, all of 1A had just passed the first round. Momo smiled up at him. "Ready for round two?" "Always ready, babe." Momo froze in place. "...What?" Chris tensed up. "...I said that out loud, didn't I…?" Momo just stared straight ahead, her face blushing. Chris stood next to her in awkward silence. After a few seconds, Momo gently wrapped her hand around his. Chris didn't bother questioning it as he gently held her hand and waited for the second round to start.