[1-A]
"Everyone! Morning homeroom's about to start! Get back to your seat!" Iida shouted.
Silence...
"You're the only one standing," I responded. Yeah, all of them were still coping with the recent events, and no one was really that excited as usual, but they'll probably be back by the end of the day.
Just then, Aizawa walked into the class, with a cast.
"Alright, listen up," he said, rubbing his temple with his good hand. "Yesterday was a disaster, and I don't feel like dealing with more of that today. So sit down and shut up."
I leaned back in my chair, exchanging a look with Kaminari, who just shrugged.
"Sensei," Iida said, his hand shooting up. "If you are injured, should you not be resting?"
Aizawa gave him a deadpan look. "Should you not be minding your own business?"
That shut Iida up real quick.
"Anyway," Aizawa continued, "we've got some announcements." He glanced at a paper in his hand.
"U.A.'s sports festival is fast approaching."
The class instantly erupted into chatter.
"The Sports Festival?" Mina gasped.
Kirishima grinned, cracking his knuckles. "I've been waiting for this!"
"Yeah, me too, bro! What about you, Kaito?" Kaminari asked me.
"No."
...
"Yeah, well, that was expected."\
Kirishima nodded.
Aizawa, who had been letting the class talk amongst themselves, finally spoke again. "Kaito, whether you like it or not, you're in this. The Sports Festival isn't optional. It's an important stepping stone for future heroes. And after yesterday, the world is watching."
"Plus, you're my star student. Wouldn't want me to lose my reputation, would you?"
I blinked. "Your what now?"
Aizawa sighed, rubbing his temple again. "You heard me. Now stop being difficult."
The class collectively turned to stare at me.
"Damn, bro," Kaminari whispered. "My bad, I couldn't understand your game."
Toru grinned. "Yeah, I don't think I've ever heard him compliment anyone like that before."
"Shut up."
"Kaito~" Toru called.
She wants to tease me, huh?
"Toru, any reason why you're looking so hot today? I look at you and I just wanna... bite you."
The room went silent.
Toru froze.
"H-Huh?!" she stammered, her hands flying to cover her face. "W-Wait, wait, wait—what do you mean by that?!"
I smirked. "I mean exactly what I said."
She pouted, still flustered, but before she could say anything else, Aizawa cleared his throat loudly.
"Enough," he said, his patience clearly wearing thin. "This is homeroom, not a dating show. Now, back to the Sports Festival."
Toru shot me a glare, still red-faced, but I just leaned back in my chair, satisfied.
I grinned at her, looking smug as she lit up in anger.
[U.A: Conference Room]
"The one named Shigaraki, he can disintegrate everything he touchs. We've been through the list of men in their twenties and thirties in the quirk registry," A man in a black suit started.
"With no luck. Same for the 'warp gate' user, Kurogiri. Their quirks aren't on record, making them a member of the underworld. Neither is registered, and both are using aliases."
"So you're saying we know next to nothing? I reckon we oughta learn fast or Shigaraki will be back." Snipe added.
Nezu, the principal of U.A., sat at the head of the table, his tiny paws folded together as he listened to the discussion.
"Indeed," he said, his sharp eyes glinting with intelligence. "Shigaraki Tomura and his associate, Kurogiri, are dangerous individuals. Their attack on U.S.J. was bold, reckless even. But it revealed something important—Shigaraki lacks patience. He's impulsive, emotional. That is both a weakness and a threat."
The other teachers nodded in agreement.
"He's got no discipline," Midnight added. "If he had waited, planned things out better, it could've been much worse."
"But that begs the question," Vlad King turned. "who is really in charge?"
Everyone turned to look at him.
"What do you mean?" Present Mic asked.
"Shigaraki may have led the attack, but he didn't seem like the mastermind behind it. His strategy was all over the place. He treated it like a game, like he expected to win without effort. And when things didn't go his way, he threw a tantrum."
"Yeah, he was like a spoiled brat," Snipe agreed. "But a dangerous one."
Nezu nodded. "Which means someone else may be pulling the strings from the shadows. We need to figure out who. And fast."
The room fell into heavy silence.
After a moment, Vlad King crossed his arms. "The best way to prepare is to strengthen our students. The Sports Festival is coming up. We should use this as an opportunity to push them even further."
Nezu smiled. "Exactly. If the world is watching, then so are the villains. Let's show them that the U.A. is not to be underestimated."
[Back to 1-A]
After school...
I groaned. "Sounds like a headache."
Toru poked me. "C'mon, Kaito! It could be fun! Plus, you'll get to show off in front of everyone."
"No," I responded.
"Yes."
"F*** no."
"We're giving a two-week preparation holiday as told by Prin, as the sports festival is key in selecting your internship, you are supposed to be prepared for the sports festival and be in your best shape, alright?" Aizawa announced as he walked in.
"Oh, that's unexpected," I muttered.
I stood up, heading toward the door, but before I could leave, Toru stepped in front of me, hands on her hips.
"So… what's the plan?" she asked, tilting her head.
I raised a brow. "For what?"
"The Sports Festival."
"I don't wanna tell you," I told her bluntly.
"What? Why? You are going to win, right?"
"Don't irritate me, Toru."
As I was about to leave the classroom, I looked outside... damn, that's a lot of people. I winced. F***.
Kaminari whistled. "Look at this..."
Mina peeked through the window. "We're, like, celebrities now!"
Bakugo clicked his tongue. "Tch. Bunch of extras with nothing to do except for look at others, not caring about their own damn growth."
I sighed. "You think if we just ignore them, they'll go away?"
"Unlikely," Iida said, adjusting his glasses. "After what happened at the U.S.J., our class has gained considerable attention. Many are curious about the students who faced real villains and came out on top."
Kirishima grinned, slapping my back. "Especially you, Kaito! People are saying you took down that Nomu on your own!"
"But... how do they know?"
Kaminari scratched his head. "Yeah, now that you mention it… it's kinda weird. I mean, I get that people would talk about 1-A in general, but how'd they get details like that?"
"Alright," I muttered, adjusting my bag. "I'm just gonna walk out like a normal person and hope nobody bothers me."
"Yeah, good luck with that," Kaminari snickered.
Before I could respond, the classroom door slid open, and standing there with a smug grin was none other than Monoma from Class 1-B.
"Ah, Class 1-A," he said, his tone dripping with mockery. "Must be nice, getting all this attention just for surviving an attack. Guess that's all it takes to be famous these days."
I sighed. "Wonderful,"
Monoma continued, dramatically placing a hand over his chest. "It must be so hard being you, Kaito! The world watching, expectations rising, people fawning over your left and right—"
"Sad that you can't be me? That the 'world' isn't after your ass. I'm sorry, I don't care."
Monoma opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, clearly searching for a comeback.
Tetsutetsu, standing behind him, sighed. "Dude, just let it go."
Monoma scoffed. "Whatever! Enjoy your little spotlight while it lasts. Because at the Sports Festival, Class 1-B will prove that we're the real stars!"
"Star? My ass..." I muttered quietly.
With that, he dramatically spun around and stormed off.
Kirishima chuckled. "Man, now I'm pumped! The Sports Festival is gonna be a battlefield!"
"I may not be able to beat Kaito but I will beat everyone else!"
Toru leaned closer to me, whispering, "Kaito, you are gonna win, right?"
"Toru... I beg you, leave this topic. Forget that the sports festival is there. It's just a bunch of bullshit. It is useful for nothing."
I stepped out of the classroom. "HEY!" I shouted. All of the students froze up.
"Get out of the way, why are you blocking the entire hallway?" I told them.
As the hallway fell silent, I took a slow breath, glancing at the crowd in front of me. It was exhausting.
"You're about to be heroes in three years, but no one has an ounce of shame," I muttered, shaking my head.
The students hesitated before finally stepping aside, clearing a path. I walked forward without another word.
Kaminari and Kirishima followed behind me, whispering to each other, clearly amused.
I sighed, rubbing my temples. Their excitement only made my irritation worse. I wasn't angry at them, not really. But everything—the attention, the expectations, the pressure—was starting to pile up.
"Could you please leave me alone for a minute?" I asked, my voice calmer but noticeably tired.
Kirishima raised a brow. "What happened? You were fine a second ago."
I closed my eyes, exhaling. "Just… stop following me for a bit, okay? I'm tired, for some reason."
"...Yeah, sure, man. Take your time."
I saw Toru try to come after me. "Oi!" She froze.
I continued walking to the exit.
I exhaled slowly.
I wasn't the type to care about things like proving myself, but after everything that happened at USJ… things were different. People were watching. Expecting something from me.
I didn't like it. Not a bit.
I heard footsteps behind me. "I thought I told you to leave me alone," I muttered.
Toru's voice came from my side. "You did, but when have I ever listened to you?"
I sighed, shaking my head. "Toru—"
She grabbed my wrist. "Kaito, are you okay?"
I glanced at her—well, at where her voice was coming from. "I'm fine."
"Liar," she said flatly.
I pulled my hand away, shoving it in my pocket. "Drop it, Toru. It's nothing."
She didn't say anything for a moment. Then, her voice was softer. "You don't like the attention, do you?"
I scoffed. "Gold star for that."
"I mean… you're amazing. People are gonna notice. You can't avoid it forever."
"I can try."
She sighed. "Kaito…"
I turned to face her. "What do you want me to say? That I want to win the Sports Festival?" I shook my head. "I don't care about any of that. I only need my hero license and I'm done, okay?"
She was quiet. Then, she said, "But you care about us, right?"
I frowned. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"If you don't compete, people will think 1-A is weak. They'll think what happened at USJ was just a fluke."
"And?"
"And that means they won't take us seriously! What happens if another attack happens? What if—what if they think we're easy targets?"
"Let them, why do we need to prove anything? Listen, Toru, if we keep thinking of what 'they' think, our life is going down in the mud, alright?"
"Let them think that we're easy, that gives us the element of surprise when we're much stronger than they think. We... don't need to win all the time."
Toru was silent for a moment. Then, she huffed. "Geez, Kaito, you make things so complicated."
I smirked slightly. "I thought you liked that about me."
She groaned. "You're impossible."
She didn't respond right away. Instead, I felt her shift beside me, her presence lingering even though I couldn't see her.
Then, quietly, she said, "I just don't want you to regret it later."
I blinked.
"One day, you might look back and wish you had done things differently. The Sports Festival… yeah, maybe it's just some dumb event to you. But it's a chance. A chance to show that what happened at USJ wasn't luck. A chance to show that 1-A is strong. That you're strong."
"I heard about All Might since I was a kid, right? He always said that being a hero meant saving people, not proving strength. You wanna say he's wrong?"
"And my life is too strong to have regrets, okay? The foundation is rock-hard."
"And yes, I like showing off, to some people."
Toru huffed. "You're so frustrating sometimes, you know that?"
"Well, shit happens, right?"
"Why do you want me to win the sports festival that hard?" I asked her.
...
...
...
"I wanted to win the festival when I was a kid, okay? But then, I turned... invisible. Then, naturally, I realized that I had no chance."
"So, I want you to win it for me."
...
...
...
"You should've started with that."
Toru scoffed. "Oh, I'm sorry, should I have prepared a whole speech?"
"Would've saved time."
She groaned. "Kaito, I swear—"
"Fine."
She stopped mid-rant. "...Huh?"
I turned slightly, stuffing my hands in my pockets. "I'll win the damn thing. Happy?"
Silence. Then—
"Wait. Seriously?"
"You just guilt-tripped me with your childhood dreams, Toru. If I say no now, I'm basically a villain. And th—"
She gasped dramatically. "Oh my god, you do have a heart!"
"... Platinum Star."
Toru giggled, and I could tell she was grinning. "Okay, deal. But you better win. No half-assing it."
I sighed. "No promises."
"KAITO!"
"Okay! I promise. Jeez, have some gratitude, will you?" I told her.
After my little conversation with Toru, I figured I could finally get a moment of peace. I walked to the gates, only to be immediately ambushed.
"Kaito!"
I barely had time to react before Mina swung an arm around my shoulder, grinning.
"I heard the whole thing," she teased. "Didn't know you had a soft spot for childhood dreams~"
I clicked my tongue. "I don't."
"Then why'd you agree?" Kaminari smirked, leaning on his desk. "Dude, she totally played you."
"Shut up, Kaminari," I muttered.
"You know, Kaito," Sero chimed in from across the room, "it kinda sounded like you just admitted you actually care about us."
I narrowed my eyes. "You're pushing it."
Toru giggled beside me. "He does, he just doesn't know how to say it."
Momo, who had been quietly listening, tilted her head. "It's admirable, though. The Sports Festival is important for all of us. Even if you don't care about the fame, it's a chance to show your skills to pro heroes."
"Yeah!" Kirishima grinned. "And you're the strongest in the class, Kaito. It'd be a waste if you didn't go all out!" he whispered that part to me. Probably didn't wanna hurt anyone, he's a good guy.
I sighed, rubbing my temples. "Why is everyone suddenly invested in this?"
"You really need to ask?" Jiro raised a brow. "After what happened at USJ, people look up to you, whether you like it or not."
I glanced around, noticing how everyone was watching me. Some were smirking, some were nodding in agreement, and others—like Bakugo—were just glaring.
"You better not get in my way," he growled.
"You should be worried about the other way around, and you hate me so much, right? Why're you here?" I shot back.
Bakugo clicked his tongue.
Shoto, who had been quiet, finally spoke. "Are you aiming to win?"
I hesitated. Then, I sighed. "Yeah, I guess."
Shoto studied me for a moment before nodding. "Then I'll see you in the finals."
"Whoa, confident much?" Kaminari laughed.
"It's not confidence," Shoto replied simply. "It's a fact."
"Shut up! Half-half bitch! The first place is mine!" Bakugo shouted.
"Swearing doesn't make you cool."