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(Bakugo POV – Class 1-A)

"Why stop at the peak of someone else's mountain... when I can build my own and rise beyond it?"

'That bastard!'

My jaw tightens, teeth grinding as molten fury burns through my veins. My fingers dig into the desk, the wood groaning under the pressure. Every instinct in my body screams at me to move—to do something, anything—to shut him up. But the room is still and silent.

I glance around, expecting someone to call him out or show anger and disapproval. But all I see are wide eyes, stunned faces… and worst of all, understanding.

My gut twists. 'Don't they get it?! He's not just talking about himself. He's looking down on all of us!'

He's mocking everything I've worked for. Spitting on my ambition like it's nothing.

All my life, I've had one goal—to surpass All Might. His raw power, his absolute strength... that's what a hero should be.

'And yet, this bastard doesn't even see that as a challenge? Doesn't even consider it worth his effort?!'

My eyes move to two people.

Deku...that damn nerd, busy muttering to himself again, knuckles white from how hard he's clenching his fists. 'Good. At least he gets it. He knows what this bastard's doing.'

Then, Todoroki.

'He's… smiling?'

My breath catches.

For a second, I forget my anger. I forget the crackling heat in my palms as smoke rises from the cracks between my fingers.

Where's the frustration? The defiance? The determination he showed at the Sports Festival?

He's just accepting it?

'Bullshit.'

My nails bite into my palm as I force myself to look away, heart pounding.

The Sports Festival flashes through my mind. That fight. That loss. That gap...

That overwhelming, crushing gap.

I want to reject it—to call it a fluke, an accident, a mistake—but I can't.

'Because it wasn't.'

And that pisses me off more than anything.

'He never once took me seriously. Even though I gave it my all.'

My fists shake as I glare at him. Kata. Standing there, as calm as ever, like what he just said was already a fact. A foregone conclusion.

'We'll see about that.'

I feel the corner of my lip twitch.

A small smirk begins to form. One born of anger so profound, I knew no other way to express.

I don't care how strong he is. I don't care if he's already beaten me. That just means I have to hit harder. Train harder... And get much stronger.

I don't need the class to stand with me.

'I don't need extras.'

I'll tear down that mountain of his, blow it to dust, and bury him under it.

'No one looks down on me!' Small sparks play in my palms.

'Because I won't just climb higher.' My smirk widens dangerously.

"I'll drag him down and make him watch as I surpass him.'

(Izuku POV – Class 1-A)

"Why stop at the peak of someone else's mountain… when I can build my own and rise beyond it?"

The words settle over me like a weighted blanket. Heavy and suffocating.

I can't ignore them.

I glance at Kata. His expression is calm and steady. Like what he said wasn't some bold proclamation, but simple fact.

'Is this what makes us different?'

Kata speaks with unwavering certainty. No hesitation, no doubts. He doesn't wonder if he'll be the strongest—he's already decided that he will be.

'I… I want to believe in myself like that.'

My fingers curl into fists.

Painful memories flash through my mind. Every time I've ever used One for All... and all the broken limbs and fingers that followed. Countless injuries piling up with each reckless step forward.

Kata has only grown stronger. His control, his understanding and his mastery over his quirk... it's all evolving.

And me?

'I've just been surviving.'

Holding on through sheer willpower. Relying on luck, reckless sacrifice, and hoping for the best.

My stomach sinks.

I remember the Battle Trials. Kata wasn't untouchable back then. He had weaknesses. He could lose.

But now?

Those weaknesses are gone. He feels invincible now.

And mine… Mine are still here. Painfully obvious to everyone who's seen me.

I swallow, my throat dry. I lift my gaze again. Across the room to where Kata stands with his hero name still on display.

He's steady, like none of this is a struggle to him. Like it all comes so effortlessly.

A quiet, dejected chuckle slips past my lips. 'He's always been like that, hasn't he?'

All my life, I've idolized All Might. Defined him as the ideal of what it means to be a hero.

'The hero who saves everyone with a smile.'

He trusted me. Entrusted One For All to me.

And what have I done with it?

'Struggled to control it. Hesitated to use it. And failed to win even when I did...'

I thought if I just endured enough pain—if I just pushed through everything—I'd get there. 'Aizawa and Recovery Girl warned me. But I never listened.'

And I've been so focused on keeping up with everyone, so desperate not to fall behind... so desperate to prove to myself and All Might that he was right to choose me, that I never stopped to ask—

'Is this the kind of hero I want to be?'

A cold realization seeps into my bones.

I can't be the hero who saves everyone with a smile, if I'm broken and unable to stand.

I can't be the hero who brings hope if I'm too hurt to save anyone.

I meet Kata's gaze again, and something settles in my chest.

'No more reckless sacrifices. No more relying on luck. It's time I truly learned to control One For All. Not just wield it, but master it.'

Because I want to be a hero like All Might. To stand strong and save people with a smile no matter how tough things get!

'Kata... Kacchan... I'll catch up to you both!'

(Todoroki POV – Class 1-A)

"Why stop at the peak of someone else's mountain... when I can build my own and rise beyond it?"

Kata's words ripple through the air like a silent storm, unseen but undeniable.

I watch him. Analyze him.

He speaks with such conviction. So much so, that is seems less of an aspiration and more of an inevitable outcome.

Once, I might have scoffed and called it arrogance. Maybe even taken offense, thinking he was looking down on me.

'But now... I know better.'

Kata doesn't make claims he can't back up.

'And I know he will reach his Zenith.'

There's no doubt in my mind. But that's not what holds my attention.

I exhale slowly as memories of the Sports Festival resurface.

'You're no different from your father.' Those were his exact words.

His voice was sharp, cutting deeper than I ever thought possible. He saw what no one else did—not just my hatred for Endeavor, but the way it consumed me. The way it dictated my every action.

And he was right.

I thought rejecting my flames made me different from my father. But in doing so, I let him shape me in a different way.

Kata saw that when no one else did. He forced me to see it too.

While others envied my quirk. When they scorned me as arrogant for refusing to use my fire. Where they saw Endeavour's son... Not Shoto Todoroki... He's the only one who saw through all that.

He forced me to see that my rejection of my flames wasn't defiance—it was self-sabotage.

'That in trying so hard not to be like my father… I was becoming him.'

A calm smile tugs at my lips. 'I don't just respect Kata for that. I owe him.'

Not just for the words, but for the impact they had. He could've ignored me. Left me to my self-destruction. But he didn't.

And now, as I look at him, I wonder—

'Who was there for him?'

My brows furrow slightly.

Kata presents himself as unshakable. Cold, pragmatic, and always in control. But that day at the festival, for just a moment—

I saw a crack.

A flicker of vulnerability that disappeared after just a moment.

He spoke of suffering, of people who had endured worse than me… and his fist clenched. His head shook, as if trying to dispel thoughts that haunted him.

It wasn't just empathy.

It was recognition.

'I recognise that look. I've seen it in the mirror before.'

Buried wounds and even deeper scars. A burden he's carried and endured alone because he had no one to help him.

'And a past that still haunts him.'

I've spent my whole life pretending I wasn't hurt. That I was above it. That I didn't need help. I channeled all my pain and frustration into anger and hatred.

'I know that mask. It's the same mask of a different design.'

A mask tells us more than a face and I know how much it costs to wear one.

My gaze lingers on him. On the way his presence looms larger than life, the way his words command attention, the way everyone listens.

'But how many of them really see him?'

I exhale softly.

He hides everything behind a mask of indifference. 'It hides how deeply he cares.'

Otherwise, he wouldn't help us as much as he does. Not just me, but the whole class. They just haven't realised it yet.

He aims to be strong. 'There's something he's trying to overcome. Something that once made him helpless.'

I could keep analysing him, but I doubt I'll figure him out. 'And that's only from the little I've managed to see.'

Kata saved me from walking down the same road as my father. Gave me clarity, direction... freedom.

Now, I want to understand him.

'I don't need to compete with him.'

But I won't be left behind, either.

If he's building his own mountain—

'Then I'll make sure I stand at the peak alongside him.'

(Midnight POV – Class 1-A)

"Why stop at the peak of someone else's mountain… when I can build my own and rise beyond it?"

'Oh my.'

Now that was a statement.

I scan the room. The stunned silence. The flickers of uncertainty. Some students look inspired. Others intimidated.

And then there's him.

Kata.

Standing there, as calm as ever. Not arrogant. Not boastful. Just a man who knows what he wants—and is certain he'll get it.

'It's rare to see someone so young carry themselves like that. So focused... so determined...'

'And so deliciously bold!'

A slow smirk tugs at my lips. That kind of confidence is dangerous. The kind that shakes the world, dragging others along.

'And I love it!'

I can already see students adopting his mentality.

I bite my lip just slightly. 'If he were older… or if I were younger…' I don't let the thought continue. It's dangerous and he's my student.

A quiet amused chuckle escapes me. "Fufu… youth is so thrilling."

A few students glance at me warily. Mostly the girls. I ignore them. I'm used to that kind of reaction.

"This is exactly what I love about teaching!"

Watching these kids chase their dreams, struggle, fight, grow.

And Kata?

He's different.

Bakugo is an erupting volcano. Todoroki is an icy tundra. Midoriya is a relentless storm.

But Kata… Kata is something else entirely.

Like a star, shining bright against the cold void of space. Distant. Untouchable. And yet, somehow, impossible to ignore.

The closer you get, the more you feel his heat. But if you get too close…

You'll burn.

I exhale lightly, my gaze lingering on him.

'I haven't forgotten the Sports Festival.'

The little brat teased me. Played along with my charm when most boys his age would have been stammering messes.

A rare thing indeed.

I should be annoyed.

Instead, I feel a tinge of amusement.

'Just moments ago he was watching me in a daze.' I lick my lips recalling the scene.

I suppress a smirk and sigh. 'He's still just a kid after all.'

But Nezu's words echo in my mind.

'Keep an eye on Kata.'

Nezu wouldn't say that for no reason. Kata's definitely worth keeping my eye on, but there has to be more at play here.

'Something doesn't quite add up.'

I tap a finger against my chin. The mystery tempts me.

'Too much about him tempts me.'

I let the thought slip away as my gaze drifts back to him.

I lick my lips.

"Oh, Kata… I can't wait to see just how far you'll go."