Chapter 219 : Echoes, Egos, and a New Beginning

The morning air in Musutafu was heavy with the heat of a late July summer. In front of the main gate of U.A. High, the students of Class 1-A gathered, their silhouettes sharp under the bright sunlight. The atmosphere among them was a strange mixture of a child's excitement for a school event and the tension of young soldiers about to meet a rival force. They had all heard of Shiketsu High's reputation, the elite hero school from the west whose discipline was as strict as the military and whose standards were as high as U.A.'s.

"I'M GONNA CRUSH THEM ALL!" Bakugo, as usual, was the main source of noise, his fists letting out small explosions. "I'LL SHOW THOSE EXTRAS FROM THE WEST WHO THE REAL NUMBER ONE HERO IS!"

"Bakugo-kun, show some good manners! We are the hosts!" Iida exclaimed, his arms moving in rigid chopping motions. "We must welcome them with a spirit of sportsmanship and cooperation!"

Amidst the commotion, Tatsumi stood slightly apart, observing his friends with a faint smile. After weeks of living in the constant tension between life and death, the drama of inter-school rivalry felt so... normal. Refreshing. He felt lighter than he had in a long time. He was no longer thinking about the stolen data or the time bomb named Esdeath. For now, he was just Tatsumi, a U.A. student, waiting for the arrival of students from another school.

Then, the bus arrived. A luxurious dark-colored tour bus with the elegant Shiketsu logo on its side stopped with a soft hiss in front of the gate. Its hydraulic doors opened. A hush fell over the 1-A students.

Inasa Yoarashi was the first to get off, his excessive energy seeming to explode out of the bus. "GOOD MORNING, U.A.! IT IS AN HONOR TO BE ABLE TO TRAIN WITH A HEATED SPIRIT ALONGSIDE YOU ALL!" he shouted, bowing so low his head hit the asphalt.

Behind him, Camie Utsushimi stepped off gracefully, phone in hand, her trendy style making her look like she had just stepped out of a fashion magazine. A few other serious and disciplined-looking students followed behind her.

And then, she stepped off.

A girl with pink hair tied into two slightly defiant pigtails. Her matching-colored eyes radiated a sharp intelligence and stubbornness. She wore the Shiketsu uniform and hat with clear pride, and in her hand, she dragged a very large and heavy-looking equipment case.

It was then that Tatsumi's world seemed to tilt for a moment.

As the girl's eyes scanned the crowd of U.A. students and finally locked onto his, a strange and powerful sensation coursed through him. It wasn't a memory. It was a feeling, an echo from the other soul residing within him. The echo of the Night Raid Tatsumi's soul, which had been quiet for so long, suddenly reacted. He felt an impossible mixture of emotions: a familiar annoyance like when arguing over trivial things, an affection hidden deep behind sarcasm, and the profound familiarity of a comrade-in-arms who had been through hell with him. His analytical mind immediately screamed a warning—Who is this girl? Why am I feeling this? Is this a trap? A mental Quirk?—but his hero's heart felt warm in a confusing way.

For Mine, the moment felt strange as well. She had come here with one goal: to measure her strength against the legendary champion of the U.A. Sports Festival. She had expected someone big, arrogant, and radiating power. Instead, she saw a calm-looking young man, with a gaze that somehow looked ancient and tired. And the way he looked at her... not with a look of condescension or challenge, but with a strange, complex expression, a mixture of shock and... something else she couldn't identify. Something that made her feel annoyed for no clear reason. She immediately decided: she didn't like that look. She didn't like this young man.

Their silent standoff was broken by Aizawa's voice. "Welcome to U.A.," he said in his flat tone. "Follow me. We'll head straight to the briefing room."

As the two groups of students began to walk in, the first friction was inevitable. Bakugo, annoyed by Mine's sharp gaze, immediately confronted her. "What are you lookin' at, huh, Pink Pigtails?!"

Mine was unfazed. She looked up at Bakugo, her eyes narrowing. "I was just wondering if all U.A. students have anger management issues, or if you're just a special case."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!"

"You heard me, Mad Dog."

Their explosive argument was immediately broken up by Kirishima and one of the calmer Shiketsu students. But the seeds of rivalry had been planted.

Inside the spacious briefing room, Aizawa and the supervising teacher from Shiketsu, a pro hero named Ms. Nagamori, stood before the students who were now seated separately by school, like two armies about to go to war.

"Alright, listen up," Aizawa said. "This Joint Training is not just a tournament. Over the next two weeks, you will face a series of complex simulations designed to test your ability to cooperate, adapt, and think under pressure. You will not only be fighting each other; you will be forced to work together."

Ms. Nagamori stepped forward. "The first simulation will begin tomorrow morning. A 'Hostage Rescue' scenario in the urban training facility, Ground Gamma. Teams will be mixed between U.A. and Shiketsu students. Communication and trust will be your keys to victory. Details on team assignments will be announced tomorrow."

The announcement of mixed teams caused a wave of whispers among the students. They had to work with their rivals. This was going to be much more complicated than they had imagined.

After the briefing was over, the Shiketsu students were escorted to a temporary dorm building that had been prepared for them. As the crowd dispersed, Tatsumi found himself alone for a moment near a vending machine, trying to process the strange feeling still lingering in his mind.

"So you're the one."

A sharp voice called out to him. He turned to see the pink-haired girl, Mine, standing there with her arms crossed, looking at him with a challenging gaze.

"The U.A. Sports Festival champion," she continued, her tone slightly mocking. "You don't look as amazing as people say." She was provoking him, trying to see a reaction, looking for signs of the monstrous power she had heard about.

Tatsumi looked at her. The echo of the soul within him reacted in an unexpected way. Instead of feeling insulted or angry, he felt amused. Genuinely amused. He was reminded of silly arguments, of taunts that were actually a form of affection. A small, sincere, and slightly teasing smile appeared on his face.

"Looks can be deceiving," he replied calmly.

Tatsumi's unexpected reaction left Mine speechless for a moment. She had expected arrogance, anger, or at least a challenging glare. She hadn't expected that calm, amused smile. It made her even more irritated. It felt like she was being underestimated.

"What's so funny?!" she snapped, her face flushing slightly. "Are you looking down on me?!"

"Not at all," Tatsumi said, his smile widening a bit. He was actually enjoying this. "Quite the opposite, in fact. I have a feeling... a fight against you will be the most troublesome of all."

He said it with absolute honesty, an acknowledgment of the strength he instinctively felt from her. But to Mine, whose pride was high, the sentence sounded like a form of subtle arrogance.

Her face hardened. She stepped forward and poked a finger into Tatsumi's chest. "Listen here, whatever-your-name-is. I came here to prove that Shiketsu is the best, and that its students are not to be underestimated. And I'm going to start by utterly defeating you in tomorrow's exercise. Don't you dare look at me with that smug look ever again!"

With that, she turned angrily and walked away, her pigtails swinging with her determined steps.

Tatsumi could only watch her go, his smile now faded, replaced by a complex expression. The strange feeling in his chest—a mixture of nostalgia, annoyance, and warmth—was now even stronger.

Uraraka and Momo, who had seen the interaction from a distance, approached him with worried expressions.

"Is she okay, Tatsumi-kun? She seemed really angry," Uraraka asked.

Tatsumi let out a long sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't know," he said softly, more to himself. "But it seems... I've just made an enemy... or something."

The Joint Training arc hadn't even begun, but for Tatsumi, his first battle had officially started.