Toru Hagakure POV
Takeru Kurogane—first place in the entrance exam—moved with surprising ease despite his imposing build. Even seated in the back row, he looked like he barely fit the desk, his frame almost too large for the classroom. Toru felt a small, warm flutter that had nothing to do with nerves and everything to do with the boy who had lifted her out of a stampede as if she weighed nothing.
People usually bumped into her without realizing it; being invisible meant being forgotten unless she spoke up. That moment during the exam—being knocked down and feeling dozens of panicked footsteps thundering closer—had been terrifying. When Takeru swooped in and carried her out of the chaos, she had felt safe in a way she wasn't used to. Remembering it now made her chest feel light and fluttery.
"Hi, Toru-chan," he said as he passed her seat, his voice deep and unexpectedly gentle.
Her invisible cheeks burned. "H-Hello, Takeru-kun. You look—um—you look good i ... meant It's good to see you."
Takeru chuckled. "It's good to see you healthy, Toru-chan. I can't see you, but you smell amazing."
Toru nearly melted. It must be the vanilla perfume, she thought, mortified and delighted at once.
Mina Ashido spun around in her seat ahead of him, flashing a grin. "Kurogane-kun! Looking good back there," she teased.
Her tone made Toru sit a little straighter.
"Thank you again for saving me in the exam!" Toru added quickly, though her voice came out softer than she meant.
Mineta, seated to her left, threw his hand up eagerly. "And me! I got so many extra points because of you! You're incredible!"
Takeru gave Mineta a light pat on the head. "Your approach was clever. You used your quirk efficiently."
Mineta beamed, chest puffed with pride.
Before Toru could say anything else, a tall boy with glasses approached their row and introduced himself with a formal bow.
"I am Tenya Iida from Somei Academy. It is an honor to join Class 1-A."
"Takeru Kurogane," Takeru replied politely. "Iida—are you related to Ingenium? He is an admirable hero. I look forward to studying with you."
Iida froze, then bowed repeatedly in gratitude. "He is my brother.Th-thank you! I shall work tirelessly to prove worthy of this opportunity!"
Mina stifled a laugh. Toru covered her invisible mouth, shoulders shaking.
The atmosphere shifted abruptly when the door slammed open.
A blond boy with explosive energy in his posture stormed inside—Katsuki Bakugo. He moved like he expected the world to part for him, reached a desk, and dropped into it with a glare sharp enough to cut metal. Sparks crackled in his palms the moment his eyes locked onto Takeru.
Iida gasped in outrage. He pointed sharply. "That conduct is unacceptable! Remove your feet from the desk immediately!"
Bakugo turned his head slowly, sparks flaring. "What was that, extra?"
Before Iida could escalate the situation, Takeru stood and placed a calm hand on his shoulder.
"It's fine, Iida-kun."
He turned to Bakugo with a relaxed grin.
"Hanabi-chan, congratulations on placing second in the exam. You must feel proud."
The classroom fell silent.
Bakugo's face contorted with fury, veins tightening along his temples. "Don't talk down to me, you point-stealing meathead! I'll be Number One! I'll crush every extra in this room!"
Mina leaned toward Toru and whispered, "Yep, he's definitely worse than I remember."
Toru tried not to laugh, though she felt a burst of admiration for Takeru's calm confidence.
Two more students slipped in—a nervous green-haired boy and a cheerful brown-haired girl—drawing Bakugo's immediate hostility. The tension spiked.
Then a yellow sleeping bag rose from the corner of the room.
"Enough."
Shota Aizawa pushed himself upright, hair messy and eyes half-lidded. He looked as though he regretted waking up.
"If you're here to make friends, leave. If you're here to become heroes, change into your P.E. uniforms and head to Ground Beta. You have ten minutes."
Takeru bowed with composed respect. "Looking forward to being under your instruction, Aizawa-sensei."
Aizawa blinked in mild surprise, then gave a short nod.
The class erupted into motion.
Toru grabbed her uniform, excitement buzzing through her. Between Takeru's presence, Bakugo's explosive attitude, and the chaos of the morning, one thing was already clear.
Class 1-A was going to be unbelievable.
She turned once more toward the tall, confident boy in the back row and felt her heart flutter all over again.
Takeru POV
The boys filed into the locker room together, the air buzzing with excitement and nerves for their first real test as U.A. students. Takeru made a point of greeting everyone he passed. With a physique that looked carved from stone and a height that dwarfed the entire class, he knew he could come off as intimidating. Better to soften that impression from the start. Besides, he genuinely enjoyed the attention, even if part of him understood that projecting charm was simply good P.R.
The moment he peeled off his shirt, a sharp gasp came from his right.
"Dude—Takeru-kun—you're insanely manly!" Kirishima said, eyes sparkling with admiration. "How much do you bench?"
Takeru chuckled. "Some of it is my quirk, but I do train. A lot."
"Bro, even your muscles have muscles," Sero added, pointing at Takeru's back .
Takeru only smiled; he could feel several other glances directed his way as well. Todoroki's especially stood out—quiet, assessing, and edged with suspicion. The son of Endeavor observed him like someone trying to determine whether he was a rival.
Takeru turned, intending to move toward a bench, and accidentally bumped into a shorter boy with messy green hair. The collision knocked the kid backward, sending his bag sliding across the floor.
"S-s-sorry!" the boy stammered, rushing to gather his things.
"No, that was on me," Takeru said, kneeling down to help. "I'm Takeru Kurogane. Just call me Takeru."
"M-Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku," the boy said, cheeks flushed.
As they collected the fallen notebooks, one caught Takeru's attention. The edges were singed, pages thick with dense handwriting and diagrams. He picked it up carefully and skimmed a few lines.
These weren't doodles. They were detailed quirk analyses—mechanics, limitations, applications. Observations on heroes that read like professional reports.
"These are very good, Midoriya-kun," Takeru said genuinely. "You're sharp."
Midoriya's face went scarlet. "N-no, not really! I just… write things down! A-anyone could—"
"No," Takeru said with a light laugh, "not everyone could do this."
He handed the notebook back and gave Midoriya a reassuring pat on the back before heading out.
"Good luck on the assessment," he added over his shoulder.
Midoriya squeaked out a thanks.
The class assembled on the training grounds wearing their matching blue-and-white P.E. uniforms. Aizawa waited at the front, hair swaying lazily in the breeze as he fixed his tired eyes on the group. When his gaze settled on Takeru, his expression barely shifted, but something sharpened behind his eyelids.
"Kurogane," Aizawa said, "you placed first in the practical exam. Step forward. You'll perform the ball throw first. Use your quirk."
A low, irritated hiss sounded from Bakugo somewhere behind Takeru, but Aizawa ignored it completely.
Takeru walked to the marked circle. "Aizawa-sensei, I was homeschooled," he replied when asked about his previous record.
"Fine," Aizawa said. "Throw. Do not hold back."
Takeru glanced toward his classmates and raised his voice just enough. "Cover your ears."
He made a special point of meeting Jiro's eyes when he said it, and she instinctively covered her earlobes. Most of the class followed suit.
Takeru inhaled, shifted his weight, and flicked his wrist.
The ball launched with a thunderous crack, the sound barrier shattering around it. The shockwave burst outward, rattling windows in the nearby building and sending a gust of wind across the field. Students staggered back, eyes wide.
The ball was gone—vanished into the sky.
Aizawa checked the meter, then turned the screen so everyone could see. The display showed a single symbol glowing on the monitor:
∞
The class erupted in shocked chatter.
"Holy crap—!"
"It's gone! Like actually gone!"
"That went to space !"
Even Bakugo's glare flickered into stunned disbelief before twisting back into fury.
Mina bounced excitedly. "That was amazing! I can't wait to try mine next!"
Aizawa's voice cut through the chatter like a blade. "Excited, are you? Good. Because whoever finishes last in this assessment… will be expelled."
Groans exploded from the class.
"That's so unfair!"
"You can't be serious!"
"Sensei, that's—!"
Aizawa tugged his scarf tighter around his neck. "Life is unfair. Get used to it."
Takeru restrained a knowing sigh. He doubted many of the students realized how serious Aizawa was, but Takeru did. He had read Shun's file on him. Aizawa had expelled an entire class last year without hesitation.
This assessment was not a game.
And as Takeru watched the shocked, nervous faces around him, he wondered—silently, carefully—how many of his classmates were prepared for the reality of hero work.
Takeru smashed through every test without breaking a sweat. Takeru did not think it was possible for him to sweat as he hand never sweated in this life time. He showered and brushed his teeth and bathed but out of habit rather than necessity his skin and teeth had no bacteria as his immune system was so efficient he smelled neutral unless he was wearing cologne which he usually was. The downside was that he could never get drunk, have a cigarette or do drugs as he felt nothing the toxins were simply moved from his system as soon as they entered.
Takeru watched his classmates trying to asses their quirks and their file descriptions with their performances. Hanabi chan was very talented he scored at near the top on every test. But Momo quirk was the most versatile able to create anything she could imagine. She could create nuke and blow everybody up if she so desired and she had a genius level IQ if her file was to be belived. Looks, quirk and loads of family money yet she seemed like the most insecure person here. Todoroki was another mystery why was he not using his fire side. Takeru had tried to introduce himself but the boy had met him with cold indifference. The final test was the long distance run. Takeru simply flew in circles until every one dropped out save momo on her scooter. Takeru would not lose no matter how boring it got his pride was on the line. Takeru out of the corner of his eye could see a blonde tufts sticking out is that Takeru almost stumbled when he recognized who it was . ALL MIGHT what is he doing here spying on the students.
It must be me Takeru thought All Might was here checking out my performance. Takeru was hoping he could talk to the guy hopefully train with him and get a spar. No one could ever put up with his strenght but he knew all might definitely could. A fight with him would reveal areas for takeru to improve as training only goes so far.
The final test wrapped up with the twenty students collecting themselves in uneven clusters across the field. Aizawa tapped the tablet in his hands, his expression as unreadable as always. His voice carried across the training grounds with a calm sharpness that pulled everyone's attention toward him.
"With that," he said, "all tests are concluded. I will now display the rankings."
A quiet murmur swept through the class as the scoreboard appeared on the holographic screen behind him. Predictably, Takeru's name shone at the very top by an overwhelming margin, followed by Momo and then Bakugo in third place and Todoroki at fourth . The rest of the placements spread downward in a mix of relief, disappointment, and surprise.
At the very bottom, trembling in last place, was Midoriya Izuku.
Takeru glanced toward the green-haired boy, noticing the way Midoriya swallowed and folded his hands into tight fists at his sides. There was effort and heart in the boy's every movement, but absolutely no control. His tests were a disaster not because of laziness, but because his quirk seemed to damage him more than it helped.
Takeru's mind began to work. Midoriya had an instinct for reading quirks—his notebook in the locker room revealed an analytical gift rare for anyone their age. For someone quirkless until recently, his observational skills bordered on professional.
If UA wouldnt recogonize him Takeru thought, the HPSC could put that mind to work. Analysts were rare, especially those who understood field conditions. Maybe this kid didn't need to be a front-line hero. Maybe he simply needed the right place.
Takeru caught Bakugo staring at him with a look of pure loathing. Takeru smiled at him and gave him a thumbs up "good job! Hannabi chan you went from number 2 to number 3 ". The veins in Bakugo head buldged Takeru thought Bakugo might go super saiyan " THIS DOESNT COUNT MUSCLE...."
Aizawa's voice cut through "silence".
Bakugo stood there seething while Takeru gave him an innocent smile.
"As promised," he said, "the one who ranked last will be expelled."
Midoriya's breath hitched loudly enough for several students to hear. Uraraka gasped and stepped forward as if she might argue on his behalf. Even Iida's usually disciplined posture faltered.
Before the tension could wind any tighter, Momo Yaoyorozu raised her hand and spoke, her calm tone cutting through the unease. "Aizawa-sensei, was this not a logical ruse? There was no pedagogical merit in expelling a student so early. You meant to motivate us."
Aizawa glanced at her, unimpressed. "Correct. It was a logical deception. Some of you are sharp enough to notice; others are not."
Several students exhaled in relief. A few even laughed nervously. Midoriya nearly collapsed.
Takeru, however, lifted a brow.
"You shouldn't relax too quickly," he said, glancing around the group. "Aizawa-sensei expelled his entire class last year. Every single one. If he says he'll do something, he usually means it."
The collective relief instantly evaporated. Uraraka stiffened; Kaminari nearly dropped to his knees; Mineta squeaked like a frightened mouse. Even Bakugo paused mid-scowl, as if recalculating the probabilities of Aizawa turning on him.
Aizawa gave Takeru a flat look—half annoyance, half reluctant acknowledgment. "Kurogane is correct about last year. I do not tolerate complacency. If any of you think today's results guarantee anything, you're mistaken."
Takeru met the underground hero's gaze calmly. "Strength has its place, Sensei, but there's more to heroics than raw power. A rescue, a judgment call, a moment of insight—every student here deserves a chance to show more than just physical metrics."
Aizawa didn't so much as blink. "Perhaps. But the real world doesn't grade on sentiment." He turned sharply. "Class dismissed. Be in top condition tomorrow. The real training begins then."
The students scattered, some energized, some shaken. Midoriya lingered at the edge of the field, still processing the fact that he was not, in fact, expelled.
Takeru approached him slowly, careful not to overwhelm him with his size. "Midoriya-kun," he said in a quieter tone, "you worked hard today. Don't lose heart."
Midoriya looked up, startled. "I—I'll try not to!"
Midoriya blinked rapidly, caught between gratitude and confusion. "Takeru-kun… thank you."
Takeru nodded once and walked back toward the gates, knowing two things with certainty:
Midoriya would try again tomorrow with everything he had.
And Takeru would keep an eye on him—not out of pity, but because talent like his didn't deserve to be discarded by a world that misunderstood it. Not everyone was meant to be a Hero. A quirk awakens at age fifteen and his body does not seem adapted to it. There was only one person who could give and take quirks Takeru had heard about him from Shun-san . Even the HSPC he was spoken of like he was Cthulhu some eldritch underworld monster more rumor than real. Takeru had to investigate if it is possible that All For One was behind that green haired boy.