[My Hero Academia] Rise of the New Generation!

The drinks were brought to the table, the barista placing each one in front of the respective person who ordered. After she left, Inori looked up to those surrounding her. Friends? Perhaps starting off as allies would be best, in her mind. This was also to say that all of them passed the exam. After today, the ext week or so would be rather stressful, as they went over everyone's results and made the final decisions as to who would become students at the prestigious school.

"..Who do you think the teachers are? After most of the one's from when Deku was there have long since retired. do you think any of the students became teachers?" she asked the group, hopefully sparking a debate. "I'm kind of hoping to see Red Riot as a teacher. He's really good with people; I think he has the right mindset to teach."

---00oo*oo00---

"My name is Mozi! My quirk isn't really anything special; I can do things that all types of moths can do, and then some!" she smiles cheerily, clapping her hands together and tilting her head to the side. "It's really a pleasure to meet you! Perhaps we can be friends?" 

The charismatic moth girl turned her attention to the boy with the tarot cards, eager to see his quirk in action. In fact, she looked at everyone else, wondering what their quirks were as well. She could see a couple of them being used... and it made her happy. Mozi loved seeing people comfortable with using their quirks so freely. 

"So??? What do the cards say???" she asked rather excitedly.

---00oo*oo00---

"I uh... I want to do both, but with my quirk, I don't really know where I fit in. It's one of those quirks that can be really dangerous, ya know?" Moon sounded a bit disheartened as he spoke, staring at his hands. "Honestly, It makes me wounder if I'm even able to become a hero with a quirk like this...." he starts fiddling with his hands, anxiety settling in.

---00oo*oo00---

The dragon girl turns to the small group, frowning. "This everyone? Then follow me." She leads them down the road to another facility. "The recommendation exam will take place in about twenty minutes. You should use that time to prepare yourselves for whatever they throw at us; we know it will be harder than the regular exams. I am Shikaku, assigned temporary leader. If you have questions, I'll answer them." she states, turning to the facility and opening the doors. 

Inside, theres various environments set up, similar to the USJ, only smaller.

Tirinus coughs a little, rubbing the back of his head as his iced coffee comes over to him. “On the first thing I can agree on. But working together? No offense to all of you but I just don’t feel comfortable working with others. My quirk is wild and can be difficult to control sometimes. Sure I have plenty of control on it now but....I’ve burned many people before with it. Let’s just stick with the friends bit okay?” He takes a drink of his iced coffee, hoping he didn’t make the tension in the room thicken with his words.


The freckled boy takes three cards off of the top of the deck and sets the rest into his side pouch, picking up the first one and looking at it. He grins at it, showing it to the girl next to Mozi. “The Stars Card. It means good fortune is coming your way. Usually it’s expressed in an item of some kind but it can be random sometimes in my readings. Let’s see....” He picks up the next one and looks at it. “Hmm....Interesting. It’s a Joker. Usually this one means any number of things. You should expect the unexpected. Cryptic I know.” He picks up the last card and his eyes widen a little. He then offers it to Mozi. “I um....I think this one might be for you. It’s not giving me the same vibe as her cards. And considering there’s only one other person here, my only guess is that it’s yours. This is an odd card too. I’ve only ever gotten it one other time and it got burned a little shortly afterwards. Maybe that means something too?” The card reads ‘Lovers’ when it’s shown to Mozi and then the other girl. He puts the cards away and grins at them. “Anyways, my name’s Jack! I’m from a place in the US called New York! What’re your names?”


Chrono only flexes his skeletal arm, looking out over the different areas and fields. He was ready for anything this place would throw at him. His quirk made him look and seem evil. But he was out to prove them wrong....all of them.

Reiko swiftly puts her knuckles to her palm and lightly dips her head to the barista before taking her latte into her hands.  "I definitely want to be in the same class as you guys!  Whether its A or B, if I work with people I actually recognize, I'll feel better about doing my best."

Inori then brought up another good question, making Reiko's heart skip a beat.  She wondered if anyone from that legendary Class 1-A would come to teach, or  perhaps they'd be too busy working on their careers to teach for a year or so.  They had other lives too, even though the Geode girl sometimes fantasized about meeting some of them and being trained by her seniors.

"Since I was just a kid when I saw that way cool Sports Festival, I'd be super excited if any of those badasses taught here!  Especially if they were my favorite heroes!" she said with a grin and a gleam in her gemstone eye.  "Heck, anyone from Class B is more than welcome, too!  Have you guys even seen Battle Fist and Real Steel totally wreck the villains in Fukushima?!  It's such a cool tag team!  And to think... they were probably just like us, once..."

She pauses, confused by Tirinus' comment.  If he didn't want to be buddies, then why did he come along?  Could he maybe theoretically warm up to them, or will he continue to let his powers get in the way of friendship?  Reiko frowned a little after he said that, going back to her coffee.

-

Her name rang through Tatako's head.  Mozi.  A peculiar name for a peculiar girl.  Her first instinct was to ignore the card game and to ask more about the girl and this friendship she sought out, as she was always so hungry for information.  However, she was also curious how her results turned out.

"An item?  That could legitimately mean anything from a leaf from a tree, to a piece of rubble on the street... to a gift from another being..." Tatako murmured the possibilities of her turn out, her lips moving, but hardly any noise coming out of them - like she'd been turned on mute.  She then became louder, continuing, "...however, if the second card offers an extension to the first, any item that I expect will be unexpected, so it might not be a typical item I'm used to receiving, but something completely unique... Ah.  You've given me a new outlook on things, Jack-san.  My name is Atsumi Tatako.  Thank you for your strange prediction."

He received a super light smile in thanks from the big-eyed mumbler.  She then looked again at Mozi.  "You may also call me Atsumi Tatako," sharing another tiny smile.

-

Shouma nodded sympathetically to Moon's sadness, his eyelids drooping a bit.  "I know that feeling, too.  I can break some serious body parts if I'm not careful, and honestly, I've thought long and hard about maybe not even becoming a hero, but a permanent sidekick..."

He slumped over, his elbows on his knees and his hands holding up his head.  "But I mean, if I keep low-balling myself, the hero industry is only gonna see me as what I present.  Yeah, I can be a self-loathing loser with a wheely Quirk, but do I want to be?  Not really.  So if I get here, maybe that'll motivate me to work super hard and stay out of the bottom of the barrel.  Right, bro?"

He picks his head up and smiles lightly at his worried comrade.  "Hey, what happens today, happens.  If you're in a pinch out on the practical course, just look for me and I'll get to you faster than our foes!"

-

Kioshi Hana waved goodbye to his hyperactive new friend, relieved that not only did he not hurt the boy, but that he knew someone strong enough to make it in through recommendations!  There were so many things about other people's Quirks that he had yet to learn, so he was really happy he got this chance to hang out with someone other than his family.

He continued to patiently wait for the start of the practical, but with a renewed smile on his face and a lot less fear.

-

The ponytailed loner whipped her head around, stunned she heard that grouchy voice come back to try and reconcile with her.  Her pout was still present on her face, but after seeing the others split off into groups like that, maybe it would be wise to create alliances with the others.  Especially if she could use them...

"It's just the anticipation of the test getting a hold of everyone," she explained, giving off an apologetic vibe.  "I saw what your Quirk could do over there, Monkichi Yuya.  It's a fascinating one, something I've never seen in person before.  I am Miyara Okimi."

She stares at the other students being escorted to the special course by the dragon girl.  "Obnoxious, isn't it?  It's like we're already working in the hero industry.  The ones with all the money and fame already get fast-tracked to join.  If they put us on even playing fields, none of them would survive a day in our shoes."

Daizo couldn't help but sigh at Tirinus' response. While he was disappointed, he kinda understood. His cousin, Ranmaru, has a Quirk that can cause a lot of destruction if he isn't careful, too, after all. "Well, who knows? Maybe one day, that fire of yours won't be so shy? Till then, I won't push ya, Tanuki.

He had to think a bit on his answer for Inori's question, though..."I'd say, ideally, I'd want somebody really smart as our teacher! I hear Deku himself was a genius at analyzing his classmates and opponents! I bet having someone brainy but strong like that teaching us would be so cool! All Might taught at UA for a while, why not Deku?!"

As the group of students continued their chat, one of the baristas calmly watches them through closed eyes, a smile on his face. He had deep, burgundy hair that spread out messily on his head at medium length, and his features seemed rather sly, almost like a weasel or fox. As he moves to clear one of the nearby tables, one of the waitresses calls to him "Heeey! Juzo-kun! Can you go mop up in the bathrooms quick?"

The barista rises, speaking politely and brightly. "Sure thing, senpai!"

As the Barista, now named Juzo, walks into the bathroom, he pauses and pulls out a cell phone, opening it as he texts the only contact in the phone, a single group thread chat.

"I've got visual on two of them. Matsumoto, and Kyoto. Will keep you posted. -A"

Moments later, he receives a reply from one of the chat members.

"Understood. Proceed, but do not engage yet. Observe, until preparations are made. -R"

Moments later, a second reply arrives.

"Acquire DNA Samples if you can. Even if they fail the entrance exams, their quirks may be useful. This goes for any others that may seem useful. -D"

Juzo nods, his face deadpan and serious as he opens his eyes, revealing them to be hazel and blank of emotion. "Right...back to work, then."


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Gaolang smirks, rolling his shoulders as a small spark dances across his whiskers. "So what will we be doing?! Fighting some type of giant robot or captured monster villain?! Or maybe sparring against heroes?! Either way, I'm pumped!"

The tall Englishman in the back reaches up and rubs his own arm nervously. Though he was brought in on recommendation, Wilk was still not very confident in his Quirk's control...However, he was ready to try his best. The dragon girl appeared really confident...perhaps he should take a note from her attitude and try being more confident?


xxxxxxxxx


Monkichi narrows his eyes. "I wouldn't be so sure...I got to talk to one of them. Chrono, his name was. Guy seems tough as they come. Honestly, if I get in, I'd want to keep someone like that close. Might be handy in the future to have an ally like that..." He glances over to her. "You come off as the logical type. You use your head a lot, like me. My quirk isn't the best for solo work, even if its good enough to keep me out of the Support category. Someone like me, I'd need allies in the Pro world to be effective to the maximum. I get the feeling you might be in the same boat. Listen...you and I may not be people-people, but we'll be a lot better off watching each others backs instead of watching OVER our shoulders...Plus, if we can find others like us, we might have a chance to stick it to the ones you were talking about before, who got the fast track and didn't deserve it. All we gotta do...is survive the practical and get in." He gives her a slight smirk. "One step at a time, right?"

Although it was for different reasons, Paula could understand where Tirinus was coming from with his statement. Hurting others by mistake was no stranger to her. She ate a salt packet before voicing her thoughts. "We don't necessarily need to be fighting side-by-side on the front lines. I think what Daizo means -- and correct me if I'm wrong -- is that we'd all just have a bit of a sense of security knowing someone's out there watching our backs. Like the actual Pros -- they work together by dividing tasks for those among them who are best at handling it. Your Quirk might be as strong as you say Tirinus, but not even Deku can do everything by himself, right?"

She takes a sip of her drink as she considers Inori's prompt for discussion. "Mmm... I don't know about Red Riot. Don't get me wrong, his ideals are solid and his abilities are top-notch, but I think someone like Creati would be better? She was consistently at the top of her class, and her Quirk would help her form more personalized teaching lessons for her students, I think."

Inori frowned into her coffee as Tirinus spoke. While she could understand his viewpoint, perhaps he could have worded his sentence a little better. While her own quirk wasn't as flashy as everyone elses, it was easily just as dangerous. Alas, allies were almost a necessity on the battlefield these days. As villains teamed up, heroes needed to as well so they could even the field as best as possible.

Instead of responding to him, Inori coughed a bit and turned to Paula. "I see what you're getting at. Intelligence wise, I feel like Shouto Todoroki would also make a good teacher. They both got in on Recommendations when they went to UA, right?"

The techspeaker nodded to herself, going through the graduation roster of UA from back when those heroes were enrolled on her tablet. "If his attitude were a little better, Katsuki Bakugou also had a genius IQ..."

---***0***---

"Atsumi-tan? What a wonderful name!" Mozi smiles sweetly and claps her hands together, a little bit of sparkly dust puffing out. When the card is held out to her, she hesitantly takes it. "Oh, I don't think I'll have the time to think about a relationship like your card suggests... I want to be the top of the top, so I need to do lots of studying and training!!"

---***0***---

"Yeah, you're right." Moon holds out a hand. "Say...Shouma, right? What do you say about aiming for a decent spot with the better heroes with me? I don't quite think I have what it takes to reach the very top, but I know if we hang together, we can make it good!"

---***0***---

Peple available to speak with:

A red haired female wearing a sort of steampunk coat, and a male with pale green skin and gold eyes and hair. There are others, but these seem to be the ones closest.

Tirinus shivers at the mention of Bakugo. “I won’t tell you that you’re wrong about that. But he has the hottest temper out of any man I’ve ever seen. I hesitate to think that he has the patience or the right attitude to teach. In fact, I think I would be quite afraid if he were to teach us. Growing up for me, he was an example as to how I shouldn’t be with my quirk. Everyone always stereotypes fire with rage and hatred and I feel like that’s a terrible way to look at something like fire. Think about it;” He opens his palm and produces a small flame, letting it burn there as it pleases. “Fire is every bit a living thing as we are. It breathes, it requires food and needs room to grow. If you deny it any of those things, you sniff it out. It comes in so many colors, shapes and sizes and it is even a powerful tool for healing or creating other things if tempered and used properly. It is a wondrous thing and deserves to be treated with our utmost respect and humility.” He explains, sounding a bit more passionate than usual about the small flame in the palm of his hand. He closes his hand, snuffing the fire out.

He takes a swig of his drink and continues. “I feel like I would learn much more if I respected the person who was teaching us. Perhaps someone like Deku or even Shouto Todoroki would be better suited in that regard.”


——————-


Jack scratches the back of his head awkwardly. “I’m not saying to go and look for your true love actively or anything silly like that. My cards only show what could be and what is possibly in your future. And anyway, I think focusing on your studies is a great idea! Better than me who is only doing his best to make friends. I didn’t have too many of those in America.....ehehehe....”

Reiko listened to the other participants carefully, not really looking at them.  She felt put off by some of the comments made, especially regarding the candidates for their teachers.  The differences between each of the teens had become increasingly obvious.  They all wanted someone different, particularly in favor to their skills.  They sought someone relatable to them.

Although the Geode girl wanted nothing more than to be taught by her favorites, she knew she wouldn't be so lucky.  It was just how things worked out that she would get a teacher that wouldn't understand her, or maybe even be put into a different class than everyone here.

"Mom, did anyone cool come into the restaurant today?!" she recalled asking often as a child.

"Everyone who comes into my restaurant is cool!  They support me, my family and my passion.  That's what makes them cool, Rei-Rei~" Mrs. Yamashita told her, smiling widely.

"Ahhhh, nooo, that's not what I meant!" little Reiko complained.  "I meeeean, like any super cool Pro heroes!!  You should introduce me to them!!  Please?!?!"

A male figure came up from behind and lifted up the young girl into his arms.  "Oho, but you know the very best Pro hero of them all!  The Igneous Hero, Basultan!  Hahaha!"

"Dad!  Heehee!  You're so silly!" she laughed, hugging her father tightly.

Remembering all this made her feel a little homesick.  She loved her parents so much, wanting nothing more than to make them proud by coming home to them in the summer and being able to show them how much she'd grown.  To have a teacher that could help change her mind, challenge her and make her feel like something more than just a rock... that's what she needed.  Her wants would have to be on hold once more.

She was still sitting in silence, lost in thought with her coffee consumed.

---

Tatako understood what Jack meant.  She didn't have friends either.  It was just her and her very busy brother for now.  Even as a Relativity Bender, she never felt like she had enough time to gain the trust of others, to understand and look into their problems or concerns, and to care for them in their time of need.  Instead of making friends, she researched them, theorized what it would be like to have them, and to observe others.  It was all... a science to her.

"Mozi-san, Jack-san," she uttered to them.  "Your Quirks... do they relate to your emotions?  Your personality?  Do they feed off of your mind and sense of reality, like mine?"

She appeared to want to be friends with them, but she was really awkward about it.  It could be a little creepy, how analytical she was behaving.  It wasn't necessarily her fault thought; it was how she was always taught to rationalize things.

---

Shouma's eyes light up as his hair stands up on end; excited about the new partnership he just made, he knew he had to make this downer kid believe in himself more.  He had to keep him afloat.  Granted, Shouma's personal coping methods with rejection and losing were 'unique'... but he had to try and be there for this guy!

"I thought you'd never ask!" he yelled, smashing his hand against Moon's and shaking it wildly.  "Let's ace this practical and do so moderately well that we somehow miraculously end up at the top!  Hahahahaha!!"

He finally let go of Moon and ran his fingers through his floof of hair.  "We should totally establish some kind of signal or something.  Like, if you or I need help in a jiffy, let's come up with something that we know means business!  What do you think?"

---

Okimi side-eyed Monkichi, glancing from the top of his gray-blond mop to the base of his collarbone.  He may have been a kid like her, but both of them knew society wasn't always kind to up and coming heroes.  She could tell just by looking at him that he was from a jaded family.  Perhaps he would understand her situation, too, if she hung around him long enough to communicate as if they were friends.  As of now, he appeared... useful.

"Chrono, huh?" she mused, a little levity in her voice.  "What you say makes sense, Monkichi-san.  If we take down the fakes from the inside, the threat of being cast aside or even worse - being forced to drop out - we might be able to have a say in how the world sees its heroes.  Two functioning minds are better than one trying to outdo the other."

She rose to her feet and dusted off her outfit.  "All this negativity is making me hungry.  I'm going inside to get a donut," she told him, gesturing to the coffee shop, half of her lips formed into a smile.  "Want one?"

As everyone continued to talk, Daizo couldn't help but notice Reiko's silence. The way she was starting to look sadder and sadder, he could only guess what was wrong; homesickness. Besides the first time he had met her at this coffee shop, he and Reiko had met only one other time, when Reiko was buying school supplies and Daizo was goofing off at the mall to avoid going back to Okinawa to his Grandfather.

During that encounter, they even helped with thwarting three lesser Villains, and had grown sligthly closer as friends. He could at least understand where she was coming from. He then smiles at her, speaking calmly. "Hey, Reiko, isn't your dad a famous Hero, too? I remember you telling me about him a while ago, plus I've seen a few videos of him taking on various Villains! I hear he stopped the American Terrorist, Arsonic, a few weeks back in Shinjuku when he was trying to poison the town's water supply! He seems soooo cool! If anything, you really remind me of him!~"


xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Gaoloang hopped back and forth on his feet, eager to begin the Recommended Exams. He had been training for weeks with his father, who's profession back in his home city was to help train heroes in hand-to-hand combat. Eraser Head, Real Steel, Red Riot, even Ingenium and Deku had both sparred with him before, training in his Muay Thai hall. His father was none other than the famous fighter Yaoshan Paingsawat, or as he was called back home, "The Beast of Bangkok", and he wanted to show the world what his training was capable of. He looks around, finally seeing the girl with red hair and the steampunk-style coat, and smirks. He walks up to her, jabbing the air lightly but keeping a decent distance so as to not accidentally punch her. "HEY!~ So, you're a Recommended Entrant, too?! I'm Gaolang! Do you like martial arts?! If so, wanna spar a bit!?"

As for Wilk, all he could do was stand around, looking around awkwardly as he rehearsed his broken Japanese in his head. Anyone who looked at him could tell, the lanky Englishman was stressed out.


xxxxxxxxxxxxxx


Monkichi smirks, rising up and walking up beside Okimi while keeping her in his own side-eye. "I'd love one, actually. My sweet tooth is making a racket, and I need to shut it up. Also..." He offers her a fist bump. "Call me Yuya. After all, if we're gonna be partners in crime, we might as well be on a first-name basis. You get the donuts, I'll get the coffee, deal?"

He walks with her into the coffee shop. Upon entering, he notices the group of five from earlier sitting at their table and talking. "Oh great...its the five from earlier. Hey, Okimi, lets-" as he's about to speak, he notices the jellyfish-girl with them and his words stop in his throat. She definitely wasn't Japanese. If anything, she looked like your typical Westerner. But, the way she sat there, almost as if she was trying to avoid attention, for some reason she looked really cute to him. He blinks a bit, surprised by his own reaction. "On second thought, I'm actually okay with this place. Although, I don't think I want to try starting up a convo with the Wonder Squad over there...at least not yet. Who knows..." He glances over to her. "Maybe, if they pass, they might be useful to us, even if its not as allies but as rivals?"

Inori smiled as Daizo gushed about Reikos dad being a pro hero. While her own dad was one as well, he was lesser known. Whether that was because he came onto the scene in the shadow of those like Present Mic and Eraser Head was almost beyond her. On her tablet, her searches began changing. She looked up each member on both sides of her own family, save her mother and father. Inori knew her own family lineage, and it made her sick. Both sides of her family were villains. Her mom wasn't one due to being quirkless, and her dad was the first to break the chain officially. Even her own brother had went and become one.

Inori drank her coffee in silence and she turned off her tablet and stowed it away in her bag, looking up as Okimi and Monkichi entered. She smiled and simply waved to them, before turning back to the group to listen to their conversation a bit more.

~~~°•°~~~

Mozi claps again, excited. "Then please, allow me to be your friend, Jack-tan! You too, Atsumi-tan!!" The glimmer in her compound eyes that were partially hidden under her fuzzy bangs were full of life and eagerness, eclipsed by her innocence. As Atsumi asked about their quirks, she tilted her head to the side. 

"If i get scared, my quirk sometimes acts involuntarily... does that count?" 

~~~°•°~~~

Moon smiled and nodded, agreeing to the idea. "Like a birdcall or a secret code or something? Maybe we could have a key phrase like 'you can't stop the rock' or 'Alonsy!' Maybe even something like a really bad joke like 'Don't make me Shouma secret move!' " he felt a lot better about this test the more he spoke to shouma, thankful that there was someone else here on his level... Whatever that may be.

~~~°•°~~~

The girl in the coat turned around, revealing green eyes under the neatly kept waves of red hair. Her shirt was a beige and her skirt, legging and boots were all different shades of brown trimmed with gold, gears adorning each piece. She had a pocketwatch in her hand as she turned. 

"Ah, hello there." She started. "Unfortunately I'm more of a mid range fighter, so I'm not very good up close. Unless I change the environment to my needs." The female held out a hand, seemingly more out of politeness than friendliness. "Penguin Roades. And you?"


The pale green male approached Wilk, awkwardly standing with him. He attempted to speak several times, but words seemed to refuse to come out. Eventually he managed to crack out a simple hello, doing his best to not cry.

"Your dad is a Pro Hero, Reiko?" Paula blinks, setting down the next packet of salt that she was about to eat. That was certainly interesting, though not necessarily unusual. A lineage of Heroes from a single family wasn't anything new, but not something Paula had expected to encounter so early. Although... with the world the way that it was, perhaps she shouldn't have been so surprised at that? "Do you, erm... Do you feel any pressure about that?"

Admittedly, Paula fully expected her question to be shut down. She'd only just met Reiko, after all, and the question itself was fairly personal. And if it was something Reiko hadn't been thinking of before, she might have been concerned about it now. But Paula couldn't say for sure -- maybe Reiko was the type who wouldn't mind such things?

The sudden attention to the Yamashita family made Reiko blush brightly, alerting her and making her black hair stand on end.  She squinted her eye tightly, still blushing, trying to pretend everyone's eyes weren't on her.  She almost knocked over her empty coffee cup while fanning herself wildly.  Did it get hotter in here, or was it just her burning embarrassment?!

"HAHAHAHAHAhahahaha~!  B-B-Basultan, the Igneous Hero!  H-He is my dad, but he's not even in the top 25 Pros of Japan!  H-He's not that cool!  He's pretty silly and really likes to make jokes!  My mom always said to marry a guy with a great sense of humor, 'cause that's what she did!" Reiko awkwardly told everyone, hoping to distract the group from her father's fame and reputation.

In reality, Basultan was a powerful Pro, reaching ranks as high as 29 back in his debut.  Currently, he rested at a comfortable 37 and performed primarily in rural and suburban areas.  He was famous for his Igneous Obliteration attacks, as his inherited and mutated Geode ability had not altered his exterior image.  Instead, he appeared like an athlete and was fairly marketable for his fatherly attitude, jokes, and familial priorities.  He made a decent living, but his wife was the real breadwinner of the family, as she ran a small restaurant near their residence.

All of this information was readily available online, so anyone with internet or a wifi connection would have no trouble looking it up.  Addresses and true identities, however, were omitted for safety purposes.

Although she was flustered, Reiko didn't mind answering Paula's questions, even if she had to answer clumsily.  She stopped fanning her face and rested her palm on her round cheek.  "I kind of do!  I mean, well, he's not like, pushing me to join UA or anything!  He just wanted me to be able to live in a world where I can do anything I can set my mind to!  That's true freedom, right?  Is, um... that how they say it abroad?" she asked, pausing to put that same hand from her cheek to her chest.  She really had to stop her heart from beating so quickly like this!  All this social interaction!

"My Grandma, though, she's the one with the pushy-shovey attitude.  She used to be a hero too, but she doesn't like to talk about those times.  'You gotta try it first,' she tells me.  'If you don't like it after you try it, then you can do something else.'  That's when I sent an application in.  I hated to admit it, but she had a point, and so... ta-dah!"  Reiko grins, gives Paula a stoney thumbs up and a silly giggle.  She just hoped that clump of random information was enough for the curious girl.

---

Tatako nodded to Mozi.  "Fear is a powerful emotion.  It controls many things, whether we want it to or not.  All my research has told me that there are a few alternatives to fear, but nothing positive stems from taking those routes.  Unless you are very skillful in predicting outcomes and calculating paths... no one can truly escape the clutches of fear."

She glanced at Jack when she said that, curious if he was able to do those things with his cards.

---

Shouma laughed harder with each suggestion, loving each one more than the last.  "I think they're all great, Moon!  We might as well use all of them, since it will confuse and annoy the enemy while we make these strange quips!  I mean, if we're even fighting actual people," Shouma speculated, rubbing his chin exaggeratedly in thought.

"Have you heard anything regarding the practical?  Or maybe you're the kind of guy to like surprises?" he asked him, raising an eyebrow and smirking.

---

Okimi hesitates a moment, observing the shape and size of his hand.  With a coy smile, she returns the fist bump.  "Yuya.  Done deal."

The brooding girl looked past her new ally and saw the Jellyfish girl, Paula.  She was colorful, sure, but her saturation... there was something different about her compared to the other four.  She chuckled softly, recognizing Yuya had good taste, before going up to the counter and ordering the donuts.  Choosing two flavors and two plains, she pays for them and starts to wipe off a table across from the five friends.  She pulled out a seat for Yuya, especially chosen so he had the best view of the American girl.  She dropped her own bag into another chair, marking that seat as hers.  Okimi was still very curious about the girl with the green hair and glasses, but didn't want to make her interest obvious...

"Hey, get me a coffee with more cream than sugar; pale in color," she told Monkichi, passing him to pick up their donuts.  "We'll linger here for a while to see what these horrendously bright amateurs are talking about... if anything, we can use their tactics against them."

Jack shakes his head to Atsumi’s question about his quirk. “Sorry no. My quirk doesn’t act any differently depending on my emotional state. My cards do the heavy lifting of my quirk for me. Actually....” He grins. “Let me show you!” He takes out a deck of cards before pulling one out. He raises it above his head after putting the others away. “The Knight!” In a bright flash of light, Jack suddenly dons a full suit of steel armor and a shiny iron Lance and huge shield appear in his hands. He hoists the lance onto his shoulders and grins. “See? The effect is different with each card. This is what the Knight does! I become a knight in shining armor with a lance and shield to boot! Pretty cool huh?” He laughs a little. “Sure I can tell fortunes but I can’t really predict anything on the fly during any combat or anything.”


Tirinus chuckles at the centered attention onto Reiko, sitting back and enjoying his drink. He was happy that attention wasn’t being centered on him for once. True, he played music and that attracted just about as much attention as his quirk did. But he genuinely liked quiet and not being the center of attention.

~XXXXXX~

Daizo couldn't help but smile as Reiko gushed on and on. He didn't know why, but listening to her get excited and hearing her speak happily like this...it put him at ease. It made him forget all his troubles currently going on. As she talked about her grandmother supporting her endeavors to become a Hero, Daizo couldn't help but think of his own grandparent...

"You really think Pro Heroes can change how humans are? You're so dense..."

Daizo glared the shadowed figure of the massive old man that sat before him down. "The one who's dense is you! Just because I want to be something you don't want to be, you're gonna just shit all over my hopes and dreams like that, just like you did with Jun?! What kind of shitty-ass old man does that to his own grandsons?!"

Then, the old man's voice cut Daizo off before he could say another word. "YOU DISRESPECTFUL LITTLE SHIT!" The next thing Daizo remembered, he was outside and his head was killing him, his grandfather's form blocking the doorway and his knuckle steaming from the massive punch he hand just laid into Daizo's head. "GET OUT AND NEVER COME BACK! JUST LIKE YOUR SHITHEEL BROTHER, YOU ARE NOT ONE OF US, DAIZO! I CURSE THE DAYS YOU IDIOT BROTHERS WERE BORN!"

Daizo could feel that his face was visibly becoming harder, so he blinks quickly and puts on a happy face. Hopefully, nobody noticed....

As the group of five continue their conversation, Yuya nods to Okimi and walks up to the coffee counter, ordering a large coffee with extra cream and an iced coffee with mocha sprinkles. After a few minutes, he brings the drinks over to the table and takes his seat at the spot Okimi picked out for him. As he goes to bite into his plain donut, he glances over at the group, noticing the fact that they all seemed to flow well together. "They have a good dynamic from what I can see. If we're going by appearances, Techy-girl is the brains...The walking fur muffler with the flute and the cute jellyfish probably have special abilities, making them more wildcards than anything. Lastly, we got the jet arms and the happy-looking pet rock. If we look at this by video game standards, they have their bases covered. The Atomic Pebble and her Jet-powered sidekick are probably Tanks. Princess Jellyfish and PETA's posterboy are most likely DPS. Lastly, four eyes is the Support/Party Leader. Now, looking at us...we have you and me. I'm a Support, by far. You...I have no idea what you can do. What we need is a good tanker...But, we also need one other thing...I doubt any of the Friendship Five have healing abilities. If we can find someone with a quirk that can heal, we'll have a distinct advantage. With a Tanker and a Healer, my Quirk can really shine. See, I'm weak physically...but I'm quick with my hands, and my mom is kind of a nut for building things. Using my quirk, if I can make the parts for something, building it is no problem. I can even assemble firearms, if I need to. This means I can help our damage by making useful items for us to use on the fly, so long as I can do something about my metabolism."


~XXXXXXX~

Gaolang smiles, noticing that the girl was being very polite, but not very enthusiastic. He simmers down slightly and takes her hand, shaking it curtly. "Gaolang. Gaolang Paingsawat. I'm from Bangkok, Thailand. How about you, Penguin-chan? Are you from Japan, or are you from abroad?~"

Wilk notices the green-skinned boy and nervously nods to him, electing to try his speech a bit. "H-Hello...My...name...is Solomon Wilk...Nice...to meet...you..."

Inori chuckled and drained her cup checking the time. They still had a few minutes before they had to start heading back, but she decided to start cleaning up the trash from their table. He phone on the table began ringing, a 16 bit version of 'Lovers Again' by the Music Hero; Pop☆Siren plays on a low tone. The tech speaker scrambles for her phone, checking the 
I.D before ignoring it. She didn't have time to deal with distractions like that. 

When she took her seat again, Inori pulled out her tablet once more and started editing some files and what looked like a slew of emails she had to answer. Strangely, paperwork and the like soothed her nerves, the repetitive motions easing her thoughts and making it easier to prepare for the exam.

Finally, an alarm she had set goes off. The screen on the phone lights up for everyone at the table to see. The only words aside from the ringing clock symbol were two words.

"It's Showtime."


------------------


Mozi remained silent for a few minutes, reflecting on what Atsumi has said about her hears and emotions. The little moth girl looks up, her compound eyes now filled with determination. 

"I can hurt people if my quirk activates out of fear... Atsumi-tan, I'll do my best to not be afraid! I promise that I'll be able to become the number one hero and make sure no one has to be scared! Not you, not Jack-tan, no one!!!" she puffed out her cheeks, her fists resting in front of her chest in a determined position. "I'll become the Calming Hero!"

-------------------

Moon nodded. "Actually, I heard it's going to be something along the lines of a protect and rescue! Kinda like the licensing exams, but not as brutal. They won't use pro heroes, but they'll probably throw robots at us. Do... you wanna stick together? Maybe we could boost each other's score and get in! Maybe we can make it into like 1-B or something!"

-------------------

 "I'm... Gabriel..." he responds quietly to Wilk, the two of them as awkward as humanely possible. "What quirk do.... you have?" he looked over at the other boy. 


Penguin smiled, releasing him from the handshake. "I'm from Ireland, actually. It's quite the experience being here. Honestly, I never thought i'd see the day where I got the chance to enroll in UA! It's a bit overwhelming... Do you have any idea what the exam might be?"


Shikaku roars out over the chattering testers. "5 MINUTES UNTIL EXAM START!"

Tirinus sees the alert on the phone and nods, starting to get up. “Showtime huh? Guess that means we should head back to the school and get ready for our exams. I’m glad that we could have some time to speak with each other beforehand though. It was nice. Perhaps after our exams we could go back out and get some ice cream for jobs well done?” He suggests, standing up next to the table to show he was ready to go once the rest of them were.

Jack here’s exam announcement and raises the lance in his hand. “Aww yeah! This is gonna be great!” He looks down at Mozi, grinning. “Good luck Mozi, Atsumi! I’ll see you guys on the other side!” He smacks his lance handle onto his shield, the effects of his Knight card vanishing in a flash of light particles. He dusted off the remaining particles and gives a lazy salute. “Off I go then! See ya later!” He waves to his new friends and leaves, ready for the exams to start.


Chrono flexes his arms, adjusting the cloth over his skeletal arm so that it was out of view. He looks around at the others, calmly sizing up his competition. If they all had indeed gotten in on recommendations like he did, this separate exam might turn out to be tough. He would have to give this as much as he could to make sure he placed in the top 5. Nothing else would satisfy him.

"Sorry if I put you on the spot!" She knits her brows together, seeing how flustered Reiko had been with her response. "Goodness... It sounds like your grandmother is an intelligent woman -- nothing tried, nothing gained, or something like that... Anyway, despite being from a family of Pros, your time in U.A. will be your path alone to walk, so I don't think you'd need to worry too much about feeling pressure."

Unsure if she phrased her words correctly, she pauses in thought to reconsider how else to approach her intended meaning. Absentmindedly, Paula turns her gaze away from Reiko and for a brief moment, she could have sworn she'd seen Daizo staring at the aforementioned Rock girl, but... perhaps she had imagined it. Then again, the other four had known each other before today, so maybe those two...

"It's Showtime."

Though a tad surprised, Paula couldn't stifle the giggle that escaped her mouth as the sudden alert had popped up -- the message itself wasn't inherently humorous, but overall presentation of the alarm was. Showtime... a strange sort of levity comforted the Jellyfish girl as she removed herself from where she'd been sitting. Though she hadn't been sure earlier, being here with people she hoped could call friends... had truly calmed her nerves quite a bit. Now, all that remained was a fiery passion to blow past the competition!! Setting her empty mug and garbage in the appropriate drop-off locations, Paula Bloom gave the others a wide grin. "Well, this has been fun...! Good luck, you guys -- Hope to see you all on the other side!"

Reiko was enjoying her flattering conversation with Paula, even as she was simmering down from all the nervous laughter she mustered up.  It felt nice to be acknowledged, even if it was through her family lineage.  This girl was very kind and reassuring, Reiko mused to herself, broadening her smile at the tentacled girl.  Quickly glancing around the table, she could have sworn she heard Pop☆Siren's hit song come from somewhere on Inori's person, about to share her excitement for the eventual new album to be released, when--

"It's Showtime."

Reiko's empty coffee cup crumpled into a tight mess of paper and plastic as instantaneously as her eye locked on the message.  Although her nerves had just been calmed by the reassurance of everyone there, she brayed out a nasally noise - half laugh and half groan.  It took one message for her to lose her cool again.  How... becoming of a hero...

"WELL, LOOKS LIKE WE GOTTA GET GOING!" the Geode girl screamed, rocketting up from her seat, almost toppling over the table.  Scooting around the others, yelling, "NICE TO MEET EVERYONE HERE AGAIN, SEE YOU LATER MAYBE!" Reiko Yamashita quickly ran from the coffee shop in a hurry, taking her garbage with her and dropping it aggressively in the bin beside the door.  Within a minute, she was gone from all sights.

Even though she had walked past Okimi and Yuya, Reiko didn't notice them.  The girl with the braided hair looked confused; her brows furrowed and her lips tightened.  She continued to chug her beverage, which was made perfectly to order to her pleasant surprise, all whilst listening to Yuya's analysis.  He appeared to be incredibly good at this sort of thing!  Surely he'd done it before even if it was through a video game, from all the clever names he'd given everyone and the class typings he could visibly observe.  Okimi nodded along with his list, eating her pastry and keeping an eye on the others.

"If what you say is true, then I can already see plenty of openings to take down these low ranks," she murmured to him, focusing her attention back on her bushy-haired ally.  "All we need to do is set up the right kind of trap for everyone and we can easily decimate the competition."

She inhaled the rest of her hot coffee and stuffed the remaining chunk of donut in her mouth, aggressively.  "I don't want to rely on anyone that isn't useful," she gurgled at Yuya, swallowing before continuing.  "I am best suited to the damaging type.  No one is faster with a pen on paper than my fingers in midair.  I can create red metal weapons from my own blood - what I draw is my attack.  But if you make a canon, and I draw the fuse and cannonball... we have a big attack right there...  Though you're right about the healing thing..."

She looked down at her thin skinned fingers.  If she used too much blood she could pass out and need to be sent off to the ER.  Having someone act as a shield to duck under or consistently bandage up wounds would be useful... or even to produce food, in Yuya's case!  Time was running out.  Hopefully, once they made it to the other side, they would find who or what they were looking for...

---

Tatako Atsumi nodded to Jack, then to Mozi.  "Indeed.  Your predictions are a 'focused' move.  Your use of cards is a more 'fast attack' than anything.  I see.  That's an important distinction I will have to remember," she said to him, eyeing his Knight's card.  Now more than ever, she wanted to see this guy in action.

Looking at the little bug-eyed girl, calling herself the 'Calming Hero' couldn't be more fitting.  Being the first person to talk to Tatako and not be intimidated by her inquisitiveness and bluntness, Mozi could very well be the best selection the judges could choose for a hero in training.  Tatako then whispered to herself, "You already are."

---

Shouma's bright orange eyes lit up once he heard Moon say 'protect and rescue.'  That's why he wanted to be a hero in the first place!  It was perfect!  Robots or not, all his worries faded away and quickly became replaced with excitement beyond compare!

"I am so down with this!  Yo, let's be the B-Team, man!" Shouma grinned, readying a hi-five for his new partner.

---

Kioshi flipped open his old-fashioned phone and got to his feet.  "It's Showtime?  Is Present Mic hosting or something?"

Quickly the boy opened up his text messages and found two from his sisters.  He opened two of them and looked at each of them carefully, small tears forming in his eyes.

"Good luck, big brother!  I hope you come home with a big smile today!" - Manami

"Little brother, no matter how you come home today, I just want you to be alright." - Ayane

He closed his phone, deeply inhaled and exhaled the love he felt from his sisters, and turned the corner to walk into the school.  Hopefully he would make both of them happy by today's end.

As the signal that the exams were about to start blares on Inori's phone, Daizo's breath catches in his throat. This was it! As everybody got up, Paula giving her best wishes while Tirinus and get ready to leave, Daizo couldn't help but notice Reiko's nervousness. Hopefully, she would be okay in the exams...If they were put in the same fighting block, he should definitely seek her out and try to support her. The more friends he had in school, if he got in, the better. He smiles to everyone and gives them a strong nod and smirk, smacking his forearm as he flexes his muscle a bit. "Alright! Lets give 'em hell, guys!"

He then points at Tirinus with a cocky, joking smile. "I'm holding you to that ice cream offer, Tanuki! So don't you dare flunk this!~" He then places his trash into the designated trash bin and goes to leave, looking back at Tirinus and Inori. "Good luck, you guys! It was really great to see you all again!"

As the group of five begins leaving, Yuya narrows his gaze at the group. "I'm with you there...but we also got one more factor in mind...Hero Judges. If we go with too many underhanded tactics, or make it too obvious that we're viewing the others as competition instead of fellow Heroes, they may cast us in a poorer light, equating us to anti-heroes or even villains. If we're gonna win this...we need to do it conservatively and with the thought in mind that we are being watched and graded on our behavior as well as our combat skills. Since finding a flat-out healer that will willingly work with us might be difficult, or finding a Tank at this time might be difficult, we may need to just rely on the two of our powers meshing well together. But...if what you said about your powers is true, then that cannon combo is just the tip of the iceberg!~ Plus, the fact that two students who, by our background information have never met before, are able to suddenly work well together, will look good on both our parts. Heroes need to work together, and that kind of versatility is priceless in this day and age!" He chugs down his coffee and scarfs both donuts down with relative ease, letting out a deep breath after inhaling his food. "You just watch my back, and I'll be sure to watch yours. Now, we should get going, too. I don't want the Funtime Five getting ahead of us."


XXXXX


Gaolang lets out a hearty laugh as Shikaku yells out the time remaining until the exam starts, giving Penguin a thumbs up. "Looks like that answers your question! Still, we'll have to talk more when the exams are over! Best of luck, Penguin-chan!" He waves to her as he goes to follow the rest of the students as they milled towards the building.

Meanwhile, Wilk and Gabriel continue their awkwardness as Wilk shyly pokes his fingers together. "Its...kinda complicated....But....the gist is...." A tentacles comes out from his sleeve, wriggling as if it was waving at Gabriel politely. "I...can summon these...from puddles...and my body...what...about you?...."

((Color-Coding Pro Heroes for Easier Reading. As a side not, each area looks to be a smaller scale of the USJ, seemingly built for this kind of exam. For the recommendation exams, it is as stated; a similar course to the US Festival, just scaled down. I tried to divide everyone up as evenly as possible that way everyone had at least two groups to play in. 'Cept DD, cuz he's "Too Cool" and "Hip" and "Happening" <3 Just kidding. Not Really))

Everyone cleaned up what trash they had and followed the anxious Rock girl to the prestigious school. As they entered and checked in, each of them were handed a small card with information about them on it; their name, age, quirk, and arena number, as well as an ID photo and number.

All participants were lead into an auditorium where they were assigned seating as they waited for the speaker and introductions to begin. Once all starry-eyed heroes were seated, the lights went dim, and someone stepped out onto the stage to the podium that faced everyone. 

The lights fade in, revealing the pro-hero that would be MCing their trial.

Denki Kaminari, also known as Chargebolt; The Stun Gun Hero.

"Heyyy, Everyone! Good to see that there's plenty of fresh faces, ready and willing to take their first steps to becoming a Pro hero!" He began, completely disregarding the teleprompters, the notecards, and the ear piece with someone telling him what to say. "Instead of the typical 'Oh, ya gotta fight robots or whatever', you all are gonna take a different approach than the past years! What we have set up for you, is 'Protect and Rescue'!" He steps back and points to the projector, sending a spark through it, bringing it to life. He then turns his attention to the wall, where theres bright photos of whats to come.

"If you look at your ID cards, you're gonna see that theres a number, and one of three letters. This represents which arena you're gonna be going to to perform your exam. But, lets focus on what you're gonna be really doing! Throughout each arena, we have 'civilians' in danger! Your job is to find them, protect them, and make sure the rescue goes off without a hitch! But of course, what's a heroic act without a villainous one?" He grins, motioning for three people to step out onto the stage.

Hanata Sero; Cellophane, the Taping Hero.

Itsuka Kendo; Battle Fist.

Koji Koda; Anima, the Petting Hero

Kaminari continued speaking as hushed whispers swept over the auditorium. "Now, Your goal is to protect the civilians until time runs out! While doing so, each area is gonna have to deal with one of these three and their minions, trying to disrupt the mission!" He goes on to explain the basic rules, such as no attacking other examees, don't injure the civillians, etc.

Anxious minutes passed ans he went on about the exam, what it would mean to get accepted, and the makings of a hero.

"Without further ado.... If you would all please look at your IDs, and go to the door that matches your arena letter!"

Arena A:

Arena B:

Arena C:

--------------------

Penguin smiled as she went back to focusing on the exam ahead of her, breathing in and out, before finally pulling out a small notebook covered in weird symbols. She stared at it's pages intently, flipping through them with a shaking finger. She needed to be as ready as possible.

"M-Me?? Oh, I can uh... make things super....easy to break..." his voice trails off as he thinks about how dumb his quirk sounded. "But It uh... makes me super breakable too..." Gabriel added quietly, staring at the floor.

It was time to begin the Recommendation Exam. At least, that what Momo Yayorozu said as the 'Everything Hero' stood on the stage and called out. "Good afternoon, aspiring Heroes. I shall be your proctor for the Recommendation Exams that you will be facing shortly. "Your task, will be a race that is similar to the U.A Sport's festival in design. The rules are simple; cross the finish line. It will not matter where you finish in the race, but how you finish it. You will be graded on quirk usage, rescue, combat, and teamwork. Yes; I said rescue. Throughout the race, there will be some events that take place. These events are purely optional, however stopping to help even for a few moments will help your overall grade. There are a few rules to go along with this; Do not hurt and civilians that may be in the events, and do not hurt you're fellow examees. Failure to do so can and will result in Disqualification. Now, when you're ready, please head out the doors to your left to the start line of the track. Best of luck to you all!"

Having pushed herself ahead of the other student-hopefuls, Reiko eventually wound up in the auditorium with everyone else.  She randomly had chosen a seat beside other curious and excited participants.  Her crystal eye just barely stood out from the mass of dimly lit wanna-be's, Reiko not really having much control over its dull luminescent color.  It had been with her since she was born, after all!

While she was stoked over the idea there were a few Class 1-A and B alumni representing, Reiko felt her nerves beginning to choke her from the inside.  She couldn't speak, let alone breathe easily.  She held her neck with a shaking hand, her other holding her ID card.  She saw what section she was in, but her intense discomfort and subtle pain distracted her from thinking about what all of it meant.


Shouma felt the electric energy when Chargebolt stepped onto the stage.  His grin widened even more so when Cellophane came out!  Two of his favorites on the same stage?!  Way cool!  He pumped his fists up and down, but close to his chest, ready to start screaming as if he were at a concert.

"This is so friggen awesome!!  Those guys rock!!" he whispered enthusiastically to Moon.  He then started to pay close attention to what the MC was saying.

Looking around his ID card, Shouma found that he was in Arena A, immediately showing it off to Moon.  "Hey, which one are you in?!"


Okimi and Yuya sat together, the finger-painter keeping in mind what her ally had told her.  She really had come from a villain, thinking so dastardly like that.  However, she was here to change all that.

It was unique that all of the heroes chosen to help in this practical had both non-flashy and flashy Quirks.  It reminded her that this is a career for anyone who wanted to try it.  She just had to work hard to be just like them.  There was no way around it.

"Oh, they put me in Arena B.  That's fine, I guess.  What about you?" she asked Yuya, looking at her card and ID picture.  Now that she really looked at it, she didn't have any heroic charms about her.  There was hardly a hint of life to her captured image.  She wasn't even smiling...


Tatako followed Mozi inside and quickly flickered into a seat way ahead of some of the other students-hopefuls.  She plopped down her bag and book onto the seat next to her and told anyone who tried to sit there, "Excuse me, this seat has been taken by my friend Mozi-san.  Please find another."

She received strange looks, some dirty, others just shrugged it off.  Tatako then weakly signalled for Mozi to come over and sit beside her, only moving her things when Mozi got within range.

"I hope you are able to see clearly here.  This seating arrangement is far superior to several other outcomes we could have chosen," she explained, ready to absorb the information Chargebolt was about to relay.  Once he told everyone to check their cards, Tatako blinked at hers.  "Arena C.  I will rescue everyone in Arena C."


Kioshi found his seat near the top of the auditorium, towards the edge.  His body type didn't fit too well in these seats, so he squirmed quite a bit as he listened to the MC and tried to remain focused.  As one of the few kids that didn't know too much about these particular alumni, Kioshi still took their words and appearances very seriously.  Wiggling around in his seat yet again to reach for his card, he wondered what kinds of villainous things they might do to halt this mission?  Would they try to actually hurt everyone, or would they just pretend to hurt the 'victims' of the rescue?  How intense would this actually become?

"Arena C.  I take it that's the furthest one away from here?" he muttered to himself, now more glad that he'd gotten to sit near the edge.  He wanted to get there as quickly as possible!

Paula could hardly believe her ears. This test was really going to throw them into the thick of it -- fighting robots would have been simple and easy. But instead, they'd have the dual-pronged mission of evacuating civilians AND possibly fighting Pros? Her tentacles nestled close to her face as she felt a shiver trickle down her spine. How could she move someone without accidentally hurting them in the process? She didn't have confidence in her ability to not hurt others, and she tried to ponder over Chargebolt's words to find a work-around.

Thoughts began to form in her mind, slowly coalescing into a semblance of a plan. Obviously some factors were out of her control, but the specific words had been to "protect" the civilians. If she stayed at a safe distance, then maybe... Maybe she had a shot at passing this test! Paula allowed herself a small smile, managing to muster confidence within herself as she glanced down at her card.

Arena B.

The jellyfish girl lowered her card, steeling herself as she turned her focus towards the doors to the Arena she'd be heading to. She had to rely on her own strength, and overcome her fears. It wouldn't be easy... But she still wanted to try!

As Daizo entered the arena alongside the other hero-hopefuls, taking his exam card and seating himself among the others, he couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder. There they were, real Pro Heroes! Charge Bolt, Cellophane, Battle Fist, and Anima! All of them were Heroes he had seen on the news and admired! Days of him as a young boy, watching the news with his older brother and staring in awe as the Pros saved the day time and again flashed once more before the young Sumo Wrestler's eyes and a smile forms slightly on his face. This was it, this was what he had been waiting this whole time for!

"So, looks like I'm in Arena A..." He muses, looking to his card and the list on the screen. "Oh wow, Reiko's in my Arena, too! At least I got a friendly face with me..." He smirks, looking around to see if he could spot Reiko at all. When he sees the Rock-girl sitting alone, nervously, in the crowd, he looks both was and quietly rises up, moving silently through the crowded seats. Thank Kannon-sama they were at least in the same row. He takes the seat next to her, nudging her slightly with his elbow to get her attention. "Yo, Reiko! Looks like we're gonna be working together on this exam after all! Lets give it our best!~" He gives her a confident smile, hoping to try and help ease the worries clearly painting her face.


Meanwhile, Yuya seemed utterly annoyed by the sight of his Arena List. "Oh joy...The Moth, her pet book worm, and this softy I saw talking to an overly-hyper Thai cat...Well, there goes all our careful planning! But...I think I might be able to make this work. Hopefully..." He looks to Okimi's card and her list. A flash of red crosses his cheeks upon seeing Paula's name among them, his eyes widening slightly. "Ah, looks like you're with Princess Jellyfish, Four-eyes, and the Over-Hyped D&D character...." His mouth twists slightly. "Lucky...you got a really good team. But, I'm not counting myself out, yet!"


XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


A smile spreads wide on the face of Gaolang as he starts bouncing on the balls of his feet, a small spark flowing through his whiskers. "A race?! Oh boy, I love races!" Looking at the other examinees, he couldn't help but feel like he might have the advantage here! His quirk increased his speed, after all!


As the two awkwardly fidgeted, Wilk listens to Gabriel explain his quirk and nods. It sounded like a very useful power, even if the backlash was a bit on the harsh side. "T-Thats...a pretty cool...quirk...Um...." He hears Creati explain the rules of the exam, he can't help but sigh nervously. "W-Well....its a race?....Good thing...I played Rugby...back home in England..."

Tirinus looks down at his card only after hearing the announcement by the hero Chargebolt, having wanted to pay attention to whatever game they had decided to give them. So it was a search and rescue event with a pro hero acting like a villain. “So it’s like a combination of the events at the USJ and at the sports festival from years ago....Hmmm....” The Fox-like hero hopeful mumbles to himself, deep in thought. He was in arena B....with Inori, Paula and....Okimi? Well at least he knew a couple of them. That would help with the teamwork aspect. Although, he had no idea how useful a quirk like Inori’s would be, he starts walking towards the arena he was designated for, thinking about which pro hero they would be fighting and what environment they would be in. Water or burning buildings would be very disadvantageous to him due to how his quirk worked. But water would be great for Paula who had a jellyfish quirk. In fact, depending on who the villain was, she might be the most useful person on their entire squad.

When he gets up to the Arena, he sits up against the wall, putting his card away as he awaits the arrival of his two friends and whoever this ‘Okimi’ person was. They had to make a strategy quickly when they got to see who they were defending the rescuee against and what environment they would be in. If it was anything cold, he would be able to fight very well and keep the villain distracted.


Jack’s eyes sparkle when he sees Chargebolt and hears that they’d be fighting against other Pro Heroes. He was going to be meeting some of the coolest people in Japan like EVER!! He looks down at his card, eager to figure out where he would going and who he’d be taking his practical exams with. Daizo....Shouma....Moon....And Reiko? He sighs at his rotten luck. They were nobody he knew. Nevertheless, he puts his card away and heads straight for the arena that was designated to him. Even though he had no idea who the people he was being paired with were, he was still excited! He was going to get to work with the widest assortment of quirks out of all of the Arena’s!


Chrono immediately and quietly heads towards the doors on everyone’s left after he finishes listening to the announcement. A race.... he sighs. Of course it was something he was bad at. But the rescuing bit would be the thing that helped him the most. With how flexible his quirk was, he would be able to quickly complete multiple rescues if he was given the chance. He flexes his bone arm, his fingers growing spikes and degenerating them reflexively as he walked up to the starting line. Anyone who was eyeing him could see some sharp, long protrusions coming from underneath the tattered cloak covering his right arm, the protrusions shrinking away and disappearing as he practiced calmly and efficiently growing and degenerating the bones on that arm. If he was going to do fast rescues along the way to boost his score, he would have to make quick and efficient use of his quirk. However scary it may look to normal civilians and other students, he had to remain calm. He was studying to be a pro hero, not a villain. He had to remember that, no matter what anybody else said to him.

With all of the aspiring Heroes in line for their trials, everything was finally set. The gates opened, letting the masses of students enter their respective arenas and spread out.

"GOOD LUCK, EVERYONE!" Chargebolt shouted before going silent.


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Arena A


This area was akin to a busy city that had just been attacked. There was smoke and fire everywhere, including a lot of debris and cries of the injured. Several students began formulating rescue plans, sharing their quirks, and designating areas to be evac and medic zones. Moon looked to some of the others in the arena aside from Shouma and nodded.

"My quirk right now is Psychokinesis; I can lift objects and people as long as the weight doesn't exceed 150lbs, It's a lot of strain on my head, so I'm prone to nosebleeds when using it excessively. What about all of you?" He seemed to be asking Daizo, Jack, and Reiko.

Amongst the wreckage, civilians cried out for help; Women, Men, and Children. (Y'all can play out your rescues whoever you like, as long as they're city based.)

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Arena B


The setting of arena B seemed to simulate a cruise liner that was already half sunk and on fire. The students here seemed to be a little more perplexed, and the only rescue boats that could take them over to the wreckage looked to be completely busted. Out on the boat, they could see Civilians screaming and flagging for help, some even jumping into the water in an attempt to save themselves. Like in Arena A, students that knew they couldn't make it across, or couldn't swim, created designated safe areas for the recovered civilians.

Inori assessed the situation before her eyes finally set on the broken down motorboat. There were two of them, though one looked to be much worse off than the other. The Techspeaker looked to the closest students (being Paula, Tirinus, and Okimi) and nodded to them. 

"I have an idea" she started, pointing to the boats. "I can get one, MAYBE both of those up and running, but until then, I'll need someone watching my back; we don't know when the villains will strike. If you're able to get across and assist with those jumping into the water, do that; I think they'd be in the most danger."

(Y'all can play out your rescues whoever you like, as long as they're sinking cruise liner based.)

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Arena C


This Arena was the worst of the three; Natural Disasters had struck, and it seems there were several. Dead ahead were the remains of a Tornado, to the right was a small village in a mudslide, and the left was a raging wildfire. Immediately designated safe zones were being set up by other students, while some tried to take charge, panic in their voices. All around them, over the sounds of the fire and the destruction of the mudslide, they could her the cries of help from the civilians.

Mozi looked at all of the students who were slowly but surely starting to panic, and called out. "We need a plan! Can we divide into groups who's quirks best fit each disaster?" Unfortunately, her voice wasn't heard over the noise around her. The moth girl looked at the ground and shook, disheartened that she couldn't be heard.

(Y'all can play out your rescues whoever you like, as long as they're either Wildfire, Tornado, or Mudslide based.)

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The gates to start the race opened, revealing the massive track... and immediately the first obstacle. A large lake was laid out in front of them, random chunks of ice freezing and melting. The ice did make a path, but the ice melted much too quickly for people to cross in one go.

Shikakku grinned and flexed her arms, growing out her wings. With several powerful flaps, she was well on her way to cross the lake with ease. about half way through, she lost control of her quirk and she plummeted toward the icy water below her. "Come on... COME ON!" she roared, her wings spreading once more. Cold water sprayed up onto her face and body causing her to falter slightly.

Penguin assessed the field before her before pulling two vials from her side bag and pouting them onto the bottoms of her boots. The hard plastic soles on her boots became a lightweight steel blade; ice skates. She grinned to Gaolang and threw down a vial which shattered on impact with the ground, causing it to freeze over. As she moved back before getting a running start, she spoke. "See you at the finish line!" With that, the alchemist began to skate her way across, using momentum from each frozen path to move herself forward.

Gabriel immediately slipped on the ice Penguin had thrown down, landing on his ass. "Dammit... How the hell am I supposed to get across?"

"H-Help!" the participants could hear coming from far out into the lake, where a sole Ice platform sat, slowly shrinking. A couple kids were huddled together, calling for help. 

"Save us!"

"We can't swim!"

"HELP!!!"