Chapter 3: Shooting Dragon Style
Time passed within the Kendo Dojo, with Izuku making up for all the lost time he had spent wishing he had a quirk and hoping that things would just work out.
To say that Mr. Kendo was a wellspring of information regarding martial arts would have been an understatement. The man lived up to his reputation and had a level of passion for the art of combat in the same vein as Izuku himself when it came to heroes. Mr. Kendo seemed to know just about every martial art form in existence, both those still used today as well as those that hadn't really been practiced since the pyramids had been built! The man even had notebooks on some of the unique fighting styles of some of the major pro heroes, detailing their strengths and weaknesses. Not just notes, but also drawings of the stances for those heroes' finishing or signature moves! The biggest difference between their notebooks was that Mr. Kendo's writing was like a work of art compared to Izuku's hastily written notes.
That passion, as Izuku quickly learned, turned out to be a double-edged sword. During Izuku's time training at the dojo, he witnessed a significant number of new students who were brought there, some seeming to be dragged, by their parents. Often, those kids looked on fearfully of everything around them as if they were unsure if this was the place for them. That or they held expressions that said they would rather be anywhere but here. As for the parents, well, they were going on and on about how they wanted Mr. Kendo to 'toughen them up' or to just 'get them away from their computer games' before they even made it to the back room. Those students never lasted long, doing everything in their power to get out. There were a few students, however, that stayed on longer as they became interested. Though half of those teens left as they grew annoyed at the advice Mr. Kendo gave when he suggested other forms of martial arts that they might be more interested in.
An issue that Izuku no longer had.
One by one, the father and daughter duo showed Izuku every martial art they knew and let him get a feel of each. The green-haired teen learned about the basics of Kenpo and karate while also experiencing being thrown with a judo technique. He experienced the rhythm of Capoeira before moving on to Kung Fu followed by things like Gunhead martial arts.
In the end, Izuku discovered that the kicks he learned in Muay Thai and Taekwondo felt more natural to him. He could more easily flow into the stances of these moves and use them more effectively than what he had been trying prior. What's more, they just felt right. More so than any of the other times he tried to emulate All Might's Smashes. The more he learned about these styles, the more he practiced with them, the more influenced he became to make something that was his own. To use what he was learning as the foundation of his own style.
But that was not the only thing that he was picking up on. Mr. Kendo and Itsuka were teaching him how to read his opponent. What a shift in their stance meant, how to tell what direction the attack was coming from, and so forth. This was something Izuku was able to pick up on fairly easily thanks to all the time he spent watching various heroes, learning to spot when they would be using their signature moves and other aspects of their quirks. Now those skills had been taken up from ten to twenty!
While this was going on, his training with Mrs. Kendo was slowly producing impressive results. Bit by bit, she moved him up in his parkour routine, pushing him further and further. She showed the green-haired teen, along with the rest of the class, how to jump from one corner wall to the next in order to scale it and how to use the same trick when descending. He learned how to shift his momentum around when he fell from a high area, going into a roll so that he would sustain fewer injuries. He began to leap from building to building and, in time, went from a scrawny kid who could barely run five minutes before feeling like he was about to die to a well-toned, well-muscled athlete who stayed with the class even when everyone else dropped out.
As for school, things had certainly changed since the day Izuku awakened Divine Dividing. The story of how Midoriya, of all people, had managed to overpower Bakugo and knock him into the desks had passed around the school so many times that it might as well have become a local legend. What's more, many of his classmates began to take notice of Izuku's ever-improving build. It was during gym glass where they were playing a game of basketball with shirts versus skins, Izuku being skins, that all his hard work with the Kendo's had been put on display for everyone to see to which many of his classmates complimented him. He even noticed that some of the girls, the same ones who had snickered at him and left him to the 'mercy' of Bakugo prior, were now blushing at him!
Meanwhile, with Bakugo, as days turned into weeks and weeks into months, the teen became more and more irritated. Whenever even the slightest bit of praise was given to Izuku in his presence, the explosive blond would shoot death glares at the one who spoke before turning his anger on the holder of the Divine Dividing. As soon as Izuku began to perform better in P.E. or show a marked improvement in his grades, Bakugo's fist would soon slam into a desk or locker while letting out a shout of rage. As for Midoriya's quirk, Izuku repeated the same story he was telling everyone in order to avoid confusion. Nearly all of his classmates, when they heard this, just nodded while looking thoughtful and saying that it 'made sense' to them. Bakugo, on the other than...
"You have to be kidding me!" he screamed when he had heard the reason, viens appearing on his neck as he did so. "That damned nerd knew about his quirk this entire time! That Deku! He was mocking me, looking down on me!"
Eventually, it reached the point where Bakugo blew up his own deck in a fit of rage before letting out a savage scream that promised bloody murder while eyeing his former childhood friend. It probably would have escalated further into a full-blown fight had not their homeroom teacher, as well as several others who heard the noise, rushed in at that moment. Needless to say, the teen was punished but only with a stern warning from the principal as he did not wish to ruin the future of such a promising student over one incident of misconduct. However, it was quickly made clear that, should anything like this happen again, the school would have to take more drastic actions. This was only enough to keep Bakugo somewhat at bay, gripping his pencil so tightly that he had to buy them in large packs daily or clawing at his new desk in order to keep himself from doing anything explosive in class. But, in those times outside of the class, Katsuki Bakugo would vent by putting the green-haired teen down with his words.
"It doesn't matter what shitty quirk you now have," Bakugo had said while practically being dragged away by his closest 'friends'. "You'll never be able to reach my level no matter how hard you try. And you'll still never get into U.A. So quit looking down on me!"
And so, eventually, the day of the entrance exam loomed ever so close on the horizon…
"Begin!" As soon as the single was given by Mr. Kendo, both Izuku and Itsuka, both of whom were in their fighting stances, closed the distance between each other within the dojo. Sweat rolled down their faces from the several prolonged matches the pair had gone through already, caressing the slight bruises they both carried as they did. But, despite this, both teens just grinned in anticipation as their last bout of the night began.
Izuku, having analyzed her fighting style for some time now, knew that she was more than likely going to start off with a powerful right hook aimed for his chest before going in with a flurry of punches. And, after staring into her eyes, knew that this time would be no different. Rather than blocking it, Izuku leaned back to allow the first blow to sail over him while at the same time kicking upwards. As he expected, Itsuka moved back to avoid the blow which nearly grazed her chin. However, Izuku wasn't done. Landing on the ground with his hands hitting the mat first, he used the rebound in order to launch himself forward with his leg extended ready to connect with the orange-haired girl's gut.
Unfortunately for Izuku, Itsuka saw this coming and was able to move back just in time to avoid an attack that would have knocked the air right out of her. Once Izuku realized that his attack wouldn't connect he managed to spin his body around rapidly before landing on his feet. But he didn't come to a complete stop, still using the momentum he had generated to move into a spin kick while moving forward. Itsuka blocked the attack with her arms, grunting from the impact yet smiling all the same.
This, after months of hard work, was the final evolution of all of Izuku's training: the Shooting Dragon style. This style, named in honor of Albion, used the extensive leg work and training he had gained in Muay Thai, Taekwondo, parkour, and various other martial arts he had learned and brought together with the help of Mr. Kendo in order to deliver powerful kicks on his own as well as using his surrounding in various ways. As for his hands and arms, for right now they were going to be used to block or deflect enemy attacks when he couldn't dodge. Though he hoped that, when he would be able to practice more with Divine Dividing, he would also include using his dividing ability when blocking. It wasn't perfect, not by a long shot. But it was something Izuku was taking pride in.
For the next several minutes, the match continued as Itsuka sent punch after punch toward her forest-haired training partner while Izuku did his best to dodge them and counter with his own kicks. Sweat continued to roll down their bodies, sprinkling onto the mat yet neither teen paid it any mind as they pushed their bodies further. In the end, it was thanks to the years of experience she had over Izuku that Itsuka managed to deliver a blow powerful enough to knock him down.
"That's match. Good job, both of you!" declared Mr. Kendo with a hearty laugh filled with pride in his two students.
As he did, Ituska walked over to Izuku and extended her hand to him as she panted heavily with a big grin on her face. For a moment, Izuku just looked at the friendly gesture. When he had first started taking these lessons, the gesture was practically foreign causing him to flinch. But now, after ten months, such gestures were common as Izuku finally had a friend after so many years. Itsuka was pretty easygoing, willing to talk to Izuku on just about anything when they were having their breaks or when they happened to meet up in public. She was just herself and Izuku felt like he could just let down his guard whenever she was around. The two had even started hanging out on days when they weren't training to just have some fun together. How that happened, Izuku hadn't the foggiest. One moment they were talking over the phone and the next moment he was in Itsuka's room, which surprisingly had a bit of a motorcycle theme to it, where the girl posed to help Izuku practice his drawing of her for when he included the young Kendo into his hero notebooks. He was honestly surprised he hadn't passed out in shock as he sat there, sitting on a girl's bed. After that, it just became a regular thing for them to simply hang out.
Soon enough Izuku took the offered hand, though he did blush as he was helped to his feet noticing that Itsuka's gi had opened slightly to show off a bit more of her skin. Nothing too perverted, but coming a little close. So the teen did the only thing he could think of and adverted his eyes.
"Good job Midoriya," said Itsuka, slightly panting as she spoke. "I can't believe you're the same scrawny kid that came here almost a year ago! Are you sure you're quirk isn't some super specific learning quirk? Like you can learn and master martial arts faster?"
"Thanks, but I don't think so," equally panting Izuku, feeling the sweat rolling down his face and back as he spoke. Still he managed to let out a laugh, feeling a little bit embarrassed as he kept his gaze slightly downward. "Besides, even if I did, it would be no match for all the hard work you've put into your training."
Izuku managed to look his sparring partner in the eye to see her beaming at him with pride, her smile nearly blinding him, just in time as Mr. Kendo approached the pair to further congratulate the pair. That, as well as instructing them to rest their bodies for the next couple of days so they would be in tip-top shape for the U. A. entrance exam. After all, it was only a few days away.
-x-
On the day of the entrance exam, Izuku was making his way toward the entrance of the famous hero school. The teen's body trembled with each step he took as his nervousness began to get the better of him.
'Oh man! Did I study enough for the written exam?'thought Izuku, knowingly muttering to himself as panic set in. 'Did I study the right things? I-I know I did really well in the mock exams, but is that enough to pass? What about the practical exam? I know I'm just going to mess everything up!'
'Relax partner,' rumbled Albion's voice in Izuku's head.
'Easy for you to say!' thought Izuku. 'You're not the one taking the exam! If I fail, then all of my hard work will have been for nothing! I'll let Mr. Kendo down. I'll let Itsuka down! They'll think that everything they've helped me with has been a waste of time!'
'…do you really believe that?' asked Albion in a serious tone.
'I…' Izuku's thoughts trailed off as he stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, looking down at the ground as people began to pass him by. He tried to imagine their faces, looking down upon him with the same level of disgust and anger that Bakugo would shoot at him. Only, it looked so alien to him. So unnatural.
'I understand what you are going through,' spoke the great white dragon within him after a moment or two of silence. 'You are not the first human I have been sealed within to let your fears and nerves get to you. Now, take a breath and relax.'
At first, Izuku wanted to argue with Albion but decided to trust him on this. After all, the ancient dragon hadn't led him astray yet. Slowly, Izuku took a breath before exhaling with equal slowness. As he did so, he could feel the trembling lessen as Albion continued to speak.
'Good, good. Now that you are relaxed then perhaps you will listen to reason: failure is not even a possibility! Not when you have the power of the Divine Dividing within you! Whatever challenges these fools place in front of you, they shall be overcome by using their own power against them! And what is it your teacher taught you? You have everything you need to succeed. You just need to figure it out.'
Slowly, Izuku smiled as he remembered the words that Mr. Kendo had told him. Albion was right. He had all the tools he needed. All that was left was to see the problem before him and figure it out. Except…
'Ok, that'll help me with the practical,' thought Izuku. 'But what about the written portion? I'm still a little nervous about that.'
Albion snorted.
'You have studied for this exam more than most of my previous partners have studied in their entire lives!' Albion replied with a snort. 'I highly doubt that there will be anything on it that you wouldn't know. And, should that happen, you need only ask me for assistance!'
Izuku jumped at that, scaring the people around him with the sudden act. Unable to help himself, the green-haired teen began looking around as if fearful that someone heard that.
'Ah, wouldn't that be cheating?' asked Izuku in a timid tone.
'Ha! I am a part of you!' roared the dragon in amusement. 'Our very souls are connected! It would be more akin to say you were conversing with yourself! Besides, how would they know?'
'That, ah, might be true,' admitted Izuku. 'But it still feels wrong somehow.'
Now he could practically feel Albion rolling his eyes as he spoke next. 'Bah. Fine, have it your way.'
Lightly chuckling at Albion's antics, Izuku decided that he had wasted enough time just standing around and continued along his way. Yet, he did not get far as he heard a girl's voice speaking in broken Japanese, sometimes slipping English words into her sentences. Curious, Izuku began to scan the crowd before noticing a girl with large horns sticking out of her long, blonde hair. Her blue eyes glistened, her voice in a panic as she moved from person to person and shoved a piece of paper in front of them to which she then pointed to something on it. Most of the people there, all of whom looked like students from various schools, either ignored her completely or just laughed as they kept on walking. He then watched as she approached another student, a tall boy with dark blue hair and glasses, who seemed to just glare at her with annoyance. She once again spoke, but as soon as she held up the paper, the blue-haired teen cut in.
"Unacceptable!" bellowed the bespectacled teen loudly, catching the attention of everyone in the area while making a chopping motion with one arm. "If you cannot take this seriously then I suggest you just go home!"
With that, the boy stiffly turned on his heel and stormed off leaving the girl to tremble in a way similar to how Izuku had been not too long ago. Just standing there, trembling as she clenched the paper in her hands while looking like she would burst into tears at any moment.
Seeing someone in distress, Izuku did the only thing he could think of.
He reached out to her.
"Excuse me, can I help you?" Izuku's words, spoken in slightly strained English, caused the girl's ears to perk as she turned her attention onto the Divine Divider. He could see hope in her eyes as she quickly approached him. As she did, Izuku heard the clip-clop sounds of hooves. Very quickly he noticed that the sound was coming from this girl how, indeed, had hooves.
"Y-You speak English?" asked the girl in a shaky voice.
"Enough to hold a decent conversation," explained Izuku with a nod. "My dad works in the States so I thought it would be a good idea to learn it as a second language in Middle School."
"Oh thank God." As the girl said this, she jumped into the air happily before showing Izuku the paper in her hand. Looking down, the first thing that caught Izuku's attention was the U.A. logo in bright blue at the top. As he began to skim the document, quickly translating as much of the English into Japanese as he could, it dawned on him that he had received this exact same letter! The letter informing him about when and where the entrance exam was going to be!
"I'm really sorry," said the blond horned girl. "I was a little nervous this morning about taking the exam so I decided to stop at one of your manga cafes. I always wanted to visit one and I thought it would be a good way to calm my nerves. You know, relaxing with a good manga to take my mind off things. Then I guess I, ah, sort of lost track of time."
As she said that last part, the blonde looked away guiltily making Izuku wonder just how long she stayed there.
"Anyways, I-I trying to find this school," she continued after a moment. "But my Japanese isn't that good yet and no one seems to be very helpful. Guess they all must be busy too. I would have used my phone to get directions, but I left it at my hotel. The last thing I wanted was it going off in the middle of the exam or getting damaged during the practical."
Izuku bit his lower lip before glancing around, again noticing the students wearing uniforms from various schools. He had a feeling he knew where they were all heading: to the U.A. entrance exam. For a moment, the teen wondered why no one was willing to help. After all, they were all trying to become heroes so why not do something heroic, even if it was nothing more than a small act of kindness, and help her?
The answer he got, however, made him sick to his stomach.
'They're not helping her because they don't want her to show up,' Izuku realized with a hint of anger. 'There are only thirty-six spots available for the first-year hero course and everyone is fighting for them. If she doesn't show then that will be one less person they have to compete against! And if she's late, the result will be the same since the school will turn her away if she's even a second late! But this isn't right! This isn't how heroes are supposed to act!'
As a righteous fury began to bubble within Izuku's body, Albion spoke up. 'This is nothing new. Humans will, naturally, often prioritize their own desires and happiness over that of others. It is understandable.'
'That doesn't make what they are doing right or heroic!' snapped Izuku.
'I never said it was either of those. Just that it was understandable,' was Albion's reply.
Sighing, Izuku looked back at the girl who stood there looking at him with those big, blue eyes of hers. As he looked at her, Izuku thought's became more focused. He knew he couldn't control what others thought or did, but he had full control over his own actions. And he was going to do what a hero should always strive to do: help someone else even at the cost of oneself. Even if helping her meant that he meant that there would be more competition for him later, something that might even end up costing him entrance into the school of his dreams, it would be worth the risk just to help her.
"Well, I can show you the way if you want," he said, smiling warmly.
"Really? You don't mind?" asked the girl, her blue eyes brightening considerably while her smile grew. "I'm not going to make you late for anything, am I?"
Izuku just shook his head. "To be honest, I'm actually heading there myself so it's no problem. Oh, right. I have introduced myself. My name is Izuku Midoriya."
"And I'm Pony Tsunotori!" said the American girl with a bit of a peppy jump. "And thank you so much. I really hope we both get in. It would be great to have a classmate that can speak English and is nice!"
Izuku grinned, voicing his agreement as the two headed off toward the famous school. What neither of them knew was that the whole thing had been caught on a hidden camera. One of the hundreds placed around the area surrounding the U.A. It would also come as no surprise that they also didn't know at a certain principal had watched and listened to the entire exchange, smiling into his teacup as he wrote down a series notes.
Eventually, Izuku and Pony made it onto the ground of U.A. where Itsuka was waiting for them. When Izuku first spotted his orange haired friend, she was leaning against the gate as she looked down at her watch. It was hard to miss her worried expression, biting her lower lip the entire time. No doubt she spotted him out of the corner of her eye as, when they began approaching the Big Fist girl, Itsuka looked up in both relief and annoyance. Then her face morphed into confusion when she noticed Pony standing next to Izuku instead of moving with the rest of the crowd. After a brief explanation of why he had been a little late and introducing Pony, the three went into the building to take the written portion of the test.
Needless to say, the written exam's difficulty lived up to the school's reputation. It seemed like none of the questions were straightforward as nearly every single one of them was written in a way that was meant to trip or misdirect the students into answering it incorrectly. Even Albion, who looked down at the test through Izuku's eyes, found himself struggling to answer the questions. Thankfully, Izuku did not rush himself, reading and then rereading the questions as many times as he felt necessary before fully understanding what they were asking and then writing in his answer. As he worked, his attention was drawn away from his paper several times thanks to a few people who were overconfident in their 'cunning' as they believed that they were smart enough to cheat and get away with it. Such thoughts were swiftly proven false as the teachers who patrolled the auditorium would silently rush over to these less-than-honorable students to catch them in the act and instantly remove them from the premises. A more disheartening sight were those who sat there, looking down at their test papers in abject horror before just getting up on their own and leaving.
When the exam was over, Izuku spotted Itsuka who gave him a grin along with a big thumbs up which he returned. He then looked around to see that Pony also seemed to be in high spirits.
After a little bit of a wait, Present Mic entered the scene to explain to them the practical portion of the exam. According to the DJ hero, they would be fighting a large number of robotic villains within mock cities. There were three different types of villains, each one with a numerical value based on their level of difficulty with one being the weakest while three being the strongest. Basically, you got points equal to the villains you defeated. It seemed simple enough. But Izuku did have a nagging feeling in the back of his head that they weren't telling them everything.
Then, as that blue-haired student began asking about the fourth robot on the sheet that they were all given, Izuku decided to get Albion's opinion while doing his best to pay attention to what was being said in the real world.
'What do you think Albion?' asked Izuku after conveying his opinion on the matter.
'I believe that your suspicions have merit,' agreed Albion, Izuku imagining the great dragon nodding as he spoke. 'Given how the written test was presented, it would be foolish not to expect some sort of surprise. For example, if there was a way to gain points then perhaps there is also a method by which points are lost.'
Izuku nodded, barely even noticing that the blue-haired teen had chastised him in front of everyone as it looked to all the world that he was lost in his own little world while mumbling to himself.
"Sorry, just thinking," said Izuku quickly. That seemed to barely pacify the other teen whose attention returned to Present Mic as soon as he began to talk once more. And as he did, Izuku went back to his conversation with Albion.
'Right,' thought Izuku as he did his best to keep his muttering low. 'We should keep our eyes open. However, I am a little worried that we're facing robots. I've never taken the energy from something that wasn't alive before. I-Is it possible for Divine Dividing to work on a robot?'
'Hmm,' replied Albion, the ancient dragon pondering the question for several long moments. 'In the past, Divine Dividing has been able to absorb the energy from angels, devils, fallen angels, dragons, magical attacks, and so forth. I see no reason why you shouldn't be able to do the same thing with robots. However…'
Albion's words trailed off as the students around them began to rise from their seats, heading toward their assigned battle zones. Patiently the dragon waited, hoping that Izuku could figure out what he was about to say. Thankfully, he didn't need to wait long.
'The drain might not affect them the same way!'Izuku realized, his worry quickly returning. 'I mean, can a machine's strength be cut in half? Its speed? I-I've seen machines slow down when their power is really, really low. But this? I-I might need to use Divide a couple of times to get them to that point! C-Can my body handle it? Oh no. No, no, no! I knew I should have tested Divine Dividing more.'
Izuku was now moving towards the locker rooms, a hand on his chin as he continued to be deep in thought.
'Ok Izuku. P-Panicking like this won't get you anywhere,' the teen thought. 'Just need to focus. I'm a lot stronger than I was back when I first used Divine Dividing so I should be able to handle the transfer better. If I continue to use that energy to its max potential, then maybe I can burn through it quick enough to use the Divide on the same robot a couple of times. Maybe three? That will be thirty seconds so I should be able to dodge their attacks. Perhaps I could try looking for any structural weak points while I'm dodging.'
And so, Izuku's mind continued to try and work out the problem as he headed towards the test that would determine his fate.
Chapter 4: Earning His Wings
Izuku Midoriya had hoped that there would be at least one familiar face within the group heading to his testing site. Someone like Itsuka so that they could stretch together or Tsunotori so that they could have a chat. Stuff that might help ease his nerves. But, alas, the universe was not too kind to the boy as the only familiar face he saw was the blue-haired teen that had scolded Tsunotori.
As Izuku began to stretch his legs he momentarily considered approaching the taller teen. To simply explain what had happened this morning and perhaps then he could help arrange a proper apology from him. However, upon looking at the stony and harsh expression the boy was giving off the teen decided against it. This teen had already shown that he was easily triggered into thinking the worst about others around him. Odds were that if Izuku did walk up to him the other teen would loudly chastise him.
Maybe after the exams when everyone wasn't as stressed he'd…wait a moment! The bespectacled teen's legs had exhaust vents in them! Seeing them brought Izuku's mind to the Ida family and the Turbo Hero: Ingenium! Was this guy related to them or something?
As the young Midoriya's mind began to spiral into his analysis mode on the possible Ida boy's quirk, the door to the testing area opened. For a moment, no one made a move as they all just stared at the empty city within.
"Come on! Come on! What are you all standing around for?" yelled Present Mic from up above. Almost as one, the students turned their attention upwards to find the man looking down at them just to the side of the gate with a manic smile on his face. "There are no countdowns in real life! The test's already begun!"
With that, everyone began to run right into the city at top speed. Some like the maybe-Ida boy shot past the rest with amazing speed leaving the rest of the group far behind. Then there were people like Izuku who, thanks to his intense workout regimen, managed to stay in front of the pack without feeling winded.
It didn't take long before the first robotic villain was spotted. A one-pointer robot came out of a nearby alley up ahead, looking like it was ready to take down all the students by itself. Upon seeing it, there was a moment when Izuku felt fear touch his heart. After all, this was a machine built to test them. To fight them. But the holder of the Divine Dividing pushed down that fear the same way he did when he was jumping from rooftop to rooftop with Mrs. Kendo.
As the teens behind him began screaming dibs on the metal foe, Izuku sped up to his max running speed. Though he did not immediately activate Divine Dividing, Midoriya's eyes began to scan his target to find its weakness. While fighting a robot without one's quirk might be considered very foolish the green-haired teen knew he needed to do this. Needed to confirm that, in case Divine Dividing didn't work on machines, he still stood a chance in this exam. That as well as something a bit more personal. A part of him needed to know that if he had entered into this exam without any real power, be it a quirk or a Sacred Gear, that he still stood a chance at being a hero.
By the time Izuku was right in front of his foe, the green-haired teen had settled on his target. With all his honed reflexes, the teen bent his knees before leaping up into the air and curled himself into a ball as he began to spin around. Quickly gravity called him back to earth, the teen sticking out a leg as fell and slammed it right into the neck of the machine. Upon contact, a cracking noise filled the air before the robot hit the ground with its lights dimming into nothingness. It was down. Izuku Midoriya had received his first point.
However, there was no time to celebrate his victory. He had won nothing more than a single battle while the war raged all around him. The other students knew that as they were already moving deeper into the city as they looked for more robots to fight. So Izuku wasted no more time as he began to look for another robot to defeat.
He didn't have to search for very long as the tank-like three-pointer robot came crashing through a wall right in front of Izuku. Acting on instinct, the green-haired youth leaped back just as the machine turned to face him while firing several rubber bullets from its back. While Midoriya managed to avoid the majority of the attack, one of the projectiles grazed his leg with enough force that it ripped right through his pant leg while leaving a deep red mark across his skin. Letting out a hiss of pain, Izuku lunged over to the side to avoid getting hit again as his eyes scanned the machine. Sad thing was that this one didn't have such an obvious weakness as the first and its body looked like it was made of much thicker metal. Perhaps with time, he could uncover the hidden weak spot. But time was the one thing he did not have in abundance at the moment.
'Guess now is as good a time as any to see if this works.' With that thought, Izuku activated Divine Dividing. Instantly he felt the power in his left hand begin to pool, the blue gem forming for all the world to see. But then it vanished! No, wait! It moved! That power shot through his arm, into his shoulder, and then settled into his back. For a moment, Izuku was confused as to what was happening to him. Then from his back sprouted two white wings, each one holding four 'feathers' made of bluish energy for a grand total of eight. Unable to help himself, Izuku stood there as he marveled at the change.
"What…What is this?" asked a bewildered Izuku.
The three-pointer responded by firing at its target once more. Again, Izuku leaped to the side only to see that both his speed and leap had increased. Almost like he was flying. Well, he did have wings now.
'Congratulations partner!' came Albion's voice within Izuku's head. 'It seems like all your training has paid off, your body is now capable of handling the first stage of Divine Dividing. Now you can make full use of your new abilities!'
'New abilities?' asked Izuku internally, shooting forward towards the three-pointer to quickly make contact with it.
"Divide!" cried the green-haired boy aloud.
Midoriya once more felt a surge similar to when he used Divine Dividing on Bakugo nearly a year ago. He could feel the power coursing through his being, the machine's strength and speed being added to his own. Only this time it didn't feel as fleeting as that first time. With wide eyes and a rush moving through his systems, Izuku jumped onto the machine's back where he then sent a downward kick right into the back of the three-pointer's head. As Midoriya had expected, this one was a bit tougher as it needed a second kick before the head would break off from the rest of the body. And while this was going on, Albion spoke.
'Yes,' was Alibion's reply with Izuku somehow getting the sense that the dragon was nodding. 'Since you are a little preoccupied I'll keep this simple. The wings on your back aren't just for show. Nay. The energy that you have stolen from your foes shall be spread throughout the feathers and any access energy will be released from the tips. Just think of it as storage that you can use to keep yourself stronger longer with a built-in run-off system. But be warned, if you drain too much energy with no way to release it then you shall have to endure the strain that comes with it. These wings will also grant you flight.'
'G-Good to know,' thought Izuku.
Glancing around, Izuku found that he was alone. The streets seemed utterly devoid of any of the foe villains. However, he could hear the sounds of crashes and explosions off in the distance. No doubt the others were racking up a good deal of points. If Izuku wanted to pass this exam, then he would need to hurry up.
Bending his knees, the teen prepared to take off into the sky at full speed without really thinking about it. This, sadly, proved to be a mistake as Midoriya became nothing more than a green and blue blur rocketing through the air while screaming like a madman. His hands thrashed in front of him while the world rushed past him, the buildings he passed blending together. He felt himself going up, down, twirling in the air so fast that he could vomit at any moment, and so much more. New fear swiftly came to life knowing that if he didn't get control of this soon then he might meet his end by crashing into the street or into one of the mock buildings.
Finally, with a herculean effort, Izuku put all his focus into stopping. And it worked! The teen stopped instantly with no whiplash. He hovered in the sky, panting while doing his best not to look down.
"That…was…a…stupid…idea." As Izuku panted each and every word, he realized that before he could do anything else he would need to get the hang of flying. Not just so that he could continue the exam, but also so that he would not become a splat upon the ground. Since time was a factor Midoriya knew he had to make this both quick as well as effective. After taking a breath, the teen leaned to the left to see what would happen. Thankfully he did move in that direction. So Izuku decided to experiment a bit more as he leaned right, forward, and backward finding himself moving in that direction. Ok! He could work with this.
Now that Izuku had the basics down, the teen began to move downward toward the faux city below. Albeit a bit slower this time, his speed was more akin to a sprint than the super speed he had been going mere minutes ago. Yes, Midoriya knew that he was running out of time. However, he also knew that if he did anything like that again then all he would accomplish would be wasting more time! Later he would begin to practice more with his wings, learning how to fly and how to fight with them. But for now, he had to focus on the test right in front of him.
It didn't take long for Izuku to find more robots. Three of them: two one-pointers and a single two-pointer. Still in the sky, none of the metallic foes had noticed him. A factor that Izuku would capitalize on. Wasting not a single second, Izuku shot down towards the ground while looking like he was doing a flying kick. One aimed right for the center of the two-pointer. The blow landed, the machine's parts flying all around before either of the other two machines could even turn around. Swiftly Izuku shot toward one of the one-pointers to make contact.
"Divide!" yelled Izuku.
A smile appeared on the teen's face as his Divine Dividing took effect once more, the robot slowly turning to look at him. Or, rather, where he had been as Izuku was already above the two machines. An axe kick was sent down into the arm of the drained one-pointer robot, severing it completely as the green-haired youth then spun around in the air so that his opposite heel would connect with the robot's neck. Crack went the neck of his robotic enemy, its body slumping to the ground as Izuku managed to just barely grab hold of the severed limb before it hit the ground. The last one-pointer charged forward with its arm pulled back yet Midoriya was faster. Gripping the metal arm with both hands he swung it right into the midsection of the faux villain. A loud clang echoed through the air as metal embedded into metal while sparks began to fly. Not another second was wasted as Izuku kicked the makeshift weapon in deeper, the robot powering down and earning the teen another point.
Upon realizing that all of his foes were down for the count, Izuku took off to look for more villains.
Then, after a few more minutes, the ground began to shake.
'What's going on here?' That thought echoed through the young Midoriya's mind as he took to the sky, the ground shaking at an alarming rate. Then there were the students whose screams of horror occurred mere moments before the teen spotted them racing through the streets. It looked like they were scrambling to get away from something.
Theories of what was going on flowed through Izuku's mind as easily as a river. Was it an earthquake or some other natural disaster? Or was there a gas line underneath the city that ignited after one of the students used their quirks to destroy a robot? Maybe even someone's quirk going out of control? Whatever the case, the airborne teen flew out into the middle of the street and looked at what the others were running from.
What he saw caused his eyes to widen while a feeling of utter insignificance overtook him! It was the zero-pointer! The sight of it boggled the mind, nearly causing Midoriya's mind to crash and reboot! It was larger than life as it peered down at the fleeing students from above the buildings with its giant metal head. Giant metal claws crashed into the buildings around it, breaking them apart with no effort at all as pieces fell to the earth below. How thick did the school have to make its metal frame in order to keep it from falling apart?
Instincts told the teen to flee, that he stood no chance against such a foe. The rational part of his mind agreed as it began to lay out a plan: while everyone else was running for their lives he could take advantage of the situation to find more points. Turning, Izuku was about to do just that had it not been for the sound that his ear barely caught.
Turning his head, Izuku saw rubble moving on the street and…was that a person underneath? From where he was, he couldn't properly identify who it was. But he could make out the figure of something that was clearly human. A human life that, if someone didn't do something soon, would be snuffed out by the approaching zero-pointer.
Clenching his fists, Izuku's mind began to race faster than ever before in his life. He had to do something. If All Might was here, he could have solved this easily. The mighty symbol of peace would have appeared in front of that person in an instant, throwing off the rubble before punching the giant tin can. But could Izuku do any of that? He could try flying down there and saving whoever it was, but what would happen if he or she was pinned down with something or if the rubble was too heavy to move? What if that thing began to fire some sort of projectile that knocked him out as well? What if the zero-pointer began to speed up and crushed the two of them before making its way to the rest of the students? Could he take the robot on with Divine Dividing? So far, the other robots hadn't given his Sacred Gear too much trouble. But something told him that a machine like that would have a lot more power. If he did use Divine Dividing and he couldn't handle it then that would be it. And even if he could, he doubted that he could destroy that thing with a punch like All Might! Even if he punched it over and over again a million times all he would get would be bloody knuckles and broken hands. So what could he…
Just then, the words of Mr. Kendo cut through his panicked thoughts. He remembered how the man had told him about his greatest handicap: himself. For, at that moment, he had allowed his fears to get to him. Had allowed himself to start thinking like the old Izuku Midoriya who wanted to be so very much like All Might. But…he wasn't that person anymore. Now, he had his own wings to soar through the air. Literally. He had all the tools he needed to succeed. He just needed to figure it out.
So, after taking a breath, Izuku flew through the air a bit faster than before towards the head of the giant robot. Once he got close enough, the teen spun in the air and sent his heel right into one of the eight red eyes of the zero-pointer. Upon impact, the lens cracked in a spider web formation. Taking half a second to admire his handiwork the green-haired teen moved back before beginning to circle around its massive head like an annoying fly. From time to time he would deliver a kick here and there against its metallic shell knowing it wouldn't damage it. But the point of this wasn't to damage it.
The Divine Divider knew he was taking a risk with this plan, hoping that this machine was programmed to attack the nearest student or the one who proved to be more threatening. But as long as he got it to focus on him then the rest of his quickly-made plan would, in theory, work.
After the third pass around its head, the zero-pointer's arms moved as if to swat the teen. Something that the teen easily dodged, zipping to the side as he saw the metal limb coming a mile away. A second arm tried capturing him within its clutches only to be met with the same result. Briefly, Izuku wondered if this was what it would be like to fight someone with a Gigantification quirk.
With the zero-pointer's focus now on him, Izuku got it to turn its back on the helpless victim on the ground as well as the other students taking the test. Slowly it followed the green-haired teen with the glowing wings who dodged each of its arms with ease until they were far enough away. Then came the more dangerous part of Izuku's plan. After dodging one last swipe the Divine Divider landed on the attacking arm before looking up at its head while trying, and failing, to smile smugly. Well, it didn't take long for the shadow of a metallic claw to surround the teen. A moment later, it came crashing down creating a scrapping noise that could be heard all over the testing area! All in the effort to eliminate the annoying 'fly'. Only its effort was in vain as Izuku easily flew out of the area of impact. But the zero-pointer didn't let up as it slid its clawed hand down the arm toward where Izuku was.
The Divine Divided waited till the last moment before flying up and over the mass of metal to see the damage the machine had done to itself. That's when he saw it. While the armor plating on the giant was thick and no doubt strong, the force it had used was enough to dent and break off parts of the shell on its arm. Heart pumping faster the teen spotted several holes that looked big enough for him to enter! And, much like how a virus enters the human body through a cut, Izuku flew into the inner workings of the zero-pointer. There, he began to break everything he saw with ease as it seemed like the people who made this never considered the possibility that someone could get inside. Explosions both large and small erupted all around him as the teen made his way deeper inside. It was only when he noticed that everything was powering down that he exited the now-still machine.
For a moment, he stood there gazing at his work. His accomplishment using his own skills. A laugh escaped his lips as he felt the same pride he had when defeating the one-pointer. A part of him felt like celebrating the fact that he had defeated the foe that so many others had run from. More importantly, he had saved the life of that person.
Speaking of which, Izuku turned his head to see that whoever was in that rubble was still there as there had been no one else around to help. Without really thinking about it, the green-haired teen flew down to where the person lay finding a pretty girl with short brown hair whose face broke into a smile the moment she saw him land. But as he began to lift the debris off of her Present Mic announced that the exam was over.
A couple of hours later, a cleaned-up Izuku Midoriya was walking away from the school with Itsuka Kendo next to him. As they made their way to the train station the two talked about how they did in their exams, Itsuka explaining how she grabbed robot after robot with her large hands before either crushing them or simply throwing them at other robots. A smile appeared on Izuku's lips as he listened to her words intently, while his eyes watched as her face lit up with fiery excitement. A passionate flame whose color he believed matched the color of her hair. He was almost ashamed to admit that he hadn't done nearly as well as she had, barely scraping up a dozen or so points before the zero-pointer showed up. Then…
"Oh my God Izuku! You took down that giant?!?" exclaimed Itsuka, her eyes shining with amazement. "I didn't even think that was possible when I saw it!"
That caused the young Midoriya to chuckle at that, scratching the back of his head.
"To be honest, I don't think I would have been able to do it if it hadn't been for what your father told me back when I started," he admitted. "And I don't think I would have been able to get as far into the exam as I did without the trying the both of you gave me." The boy paused, looking at his orange-haired friend with a slight blush on his face. "Remember what you asked me back when I first started at your family's dojo? About hating myself? I guess I really did back then. I just thought I had to be something completely different to save people and bring smiles to their faces. That how I was had nothing to offer. But now, because of you and what happened today, I can say that I don't feel like that anymore. Because I was able to save that girl with my own skills and I made her smile. All I really needed was the confidence."
Itsuka smiled back at Izuku, a slight blush on her face from the praise.
"Thanks, but I really didn't do all that much," she said before her face turned more serious and worried. "But…what are you going to do now?"
"I'm going to keep trying to become a hero," Izuku said instantly as he had already thought about this while he had been changing. "U.A. isn't the only hero school out there. So I'll keep working hard so that I can get into a good one. Then, maybe I'll see if I can transfer so that I can join you at U.A."
Again, Itsuka smiled at that while moving a bit closer to the boy who had become a close friend.
"Say, we still have some time before our train arrives," she said. "How about we take a moment to celebrate? I saw this little coffee shop near the train station this morning that looked nice. So let's go there and give a toast to a job well done!"
Smiling, Izuku nodded.
A few weeks later, Izuku was in his room holding an envelope from U.A. No doubt holding his test scores as well as his rejection letter. A part of him didn't even want to open it, instead wanting to focus on the exams for Shiketsu, Ketsubutsu, and Isamu. After all, what was the point of reading something when you already knew what it said? Then again, he was curious to know how he did on the written exam so maybe it was worth opening. Perhaps he could see where he needed to focus his studies for the other hero schools.
Taking a deep breath, Izuku opened the envelope to find not a sheet of paper but a disk that landed on the ground with a clang. Then, as the teen blinked in surprise, the device lit up and projected the image of All Might himself.
"I AM HERE! AS A HOLOGRAPHIC PROJECTION!" declared the projection.
Izuku stumbled back at the declaration of the number one hero dressed in a pin-stripped suit. What was going on? Why was All Might doing this?
"Now, Izuku Midoriya, I shall be giving you your test results," continued All Might without giving a single answer to the questions going on inside Izuku's head. "For the written portion of the exam, you scored fairly high."
Izuku watched as All Might stepped to the side as a screen appeared next to him. On it was a picture of the broccoli-haired teen along with his name. Below that were his scores on the various subjects of the exam. As he looked over them, a smile appeared on his face. All Might was right, he had scored high. Sure, none of them were perfect but they were close. And at the bottom of the exam, it showed that he had placed fourth in this portion of the exam.
"You should be very proud of this young man," spoke All Might again after a moment. "But, we both know that it's the practical that you are really interested in. For that, you scored a total of eight villain points."
A soft sigh escaped Midoriya's lips, his shoulders slumping slightly. Only eight points. That was slightly worse than what he thought he had gotten. Figuring that there was really no point in hearing anything else, the teen got up to turn off the projector only to stop when he heard what the number one hero said next.
"Frankly, it's not a very impressive score when compared to the other examinees," the tall man said. "But fear not for there were other factors involved with this exam! Behold as I show you a video!"
Izuku froze as All Might pulled out a remote from nowhere, the image of his test scores being replaced with something else. It took the teen a moment before he recognized the scene: it was of him and Tsunotori right before the exam. When he had helped the American girl find the way to the school. But, what did that have to do with anything?
"The truth, Young Midoriya, is that the exam started before you even reached the main gates of the school," explained All Might. "Cameras were placed throughout the city, watching to see what our new potential students were like when they thought we weren't watching. What you did for this girl, who was a stranger in our country, showed us just who you really were. A person who is willing to help another, even if it does not benefit you in any meaningful way. Even if it might hurt you in the long run. That is true heroism. And for this small act, you were rewarded eight rescue points by our principal!"
The screen then changed again, showing Izuku leading the zero-pointer robot away from the injured girl.
"You then stood up to a foe much greater than yourself during the actual exam," explained All Might, his voice brimming with pride as he spoke. "Even though you were low on points, you still chose to help another. This act of self-sacrifice was witnessed by a panel of judges who decided to award you with the maximum of sixty rescue points. Thus giving you a grand total of sixty-eight rescue points. That, combined with the eight villain points, gives you a total score of seventy-six points for the practical."
Tears filled Midoriya's eyes as he fell to his knees, looking up at the scoreboard that now appeared before him. There he was, scoring right below Bakugo.
"Welcome Young Midoriya, to your Hero Academia."