I finally looked up from the screen, slipping the phone into my pocket. My mother, Aki, was frozen in the entryway, her hands pressed against her cheeks. She simply stood there for a moment, her eyes shimmering with tears of pure, unadulterated pride. Then, she let out a cry of joy and pulled me into a hug that felt more grounding than any Quirk could ever be.
"First place, Takeru!" she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. "Minotu, did you hear? Our boy is at the top of the list!"
My father, Minotu Takeru, walked over and placed a steady, heavy hand on my shoulder. The look in his eyes—a mixture of deep respect and fatherly love—was enough.
"The top of U.A.," Minotu said, his voice low and steady. "You've honored the Takeru name, son. We aren't staying in tonight. Grab your coats—we're going to Yoshidaya."
The celebration at the yakiniku restaurant was everything a homecoming should be. Over plates of marbled wagyu and steaming bowls of rice, the conversation didn't revolve around Hero rankings or agency business. It was just a mother and father celebrating their son's hard work. Aki spent the night beaming at me, making sure my plate was never empty, while Minotu shared stories of his own experiences, giving me advice.
When we returned home, the house was quiet, but the adrenaline was still humming in my veins. I sat at my desk and pulled out my leather-bound notebook. I needed to document the current state of my quirk before the first day of school.
[Aether Pulse: Technical Manual - Entry #15]
Current Capacity: The "Flask" has expanded significantly. The 0-Pointer encounter forced a structural evolution of my internal pathways. My storage density is at an all-time high.
Existing Move Pool:
Aether Accumulation (Passive/Active):
The Foundation: My body acts as a kinetic sponge. I constantly draw in vibrations from the air and ground, converting them into blue Aether.
Efficiency: I can reach 95% capacity just by sitting in a crowded train station for thirty minutes.
Side Effect: Over-drawing causes "Internal Static," causing a faint electric-blue hum in my ears.
Aether Burst (Directional Release):
The Engine: Releasing stored Aether through specific points like heels or palms.
Usage: "Flash-Step" for speed, or "Impact Forging" to add explosive force to physical strikes.
Visual: Accompanied by sharp, neon-blue light trails and a distinct pulsing sound.
Aether Refraction: The Mirror:
The Counter: My primary defense. I catch a vector—a punch, a bullet, a blast—and flip its direction 180 degrees instantly.
Physics: Requires "Aether-Sync" with the incoming force. My skin shimmers with a crystalline blue light upon contact.
Aether Refraction: Total Mirror (The Double-Back):
The Finisher: Capturing a vector and injecting my own reserves to double its amplitude and velocity.
Visual: A massive, blinding sapphire-blue shockwave.
Penalty: Drains >50% of the Flask. Leaves my cells feeling "brittle." I call this state "Aether-Drought."
Combat Maneuvers & Attack Moves:
Aether Blades: High-frequency energy edges shaped around limbs. Bypasses standard armor through molecular vibration.
Aether Bind: Concentrated strands of blue energy to snare targets. Kinetic pulses keep the binding taut.
Aether Pulse: A concentrated shockwave sent directly into a target. It is designed to propagate through matter, damaging the internal structure and organs rather than just the exterior surface.
Aether Smash: A high-output strike where Aether is concentrated at a single point of impact, creating a devastating blue shockwave upon contact.
Theoretical Development (U.A. Training Goals):
Aether Cloak: A constant, 2cm field of refraction. A "Passive Defense" that makes me look like I'm wrapped in a thin, shifting blue flame.
Blue Zone (Domain): Flooding the immediate area with a thin mist of Aether. Anything that moves within the zone provides me with instant kinetic data, making it impossible to surprise me.
Pulse Echolocation: By emitting a low-frequency Aether ping, I can "read" the vibrations bouncing off surfaces to see in total darkness or detect invisible enemies
This is all I can think of right now or my brain is going to get fried.
The future development of the three will be really hard, I have worked on this for so long but can't create a blue domain.
Maybe after my capacity and output increases with training i would get an idea to get this going but right now I am going to focus on full mastering every move I have now(which is a lot)
Monday arrived with a clarity that felt sharpened by expectation. The walk to the station was a familiar routine, but the weight of our new uniforms changed the atmosphere.
We boarded the train as a unit—the rubber boy, the tactical eyes, and the battery—but as we stepped onto the U.A. campus, the path finally branched.
"1-B is the east " Daichi said, stopping at the main plaza. He adjusted his glasses. "Don't let the 1-A hype get to your heads. I'll be watching from the other side."
"See you at lunch, Daichi!" Hiroki shouted, his arm stretching several feet into the air to wave as he walked away.
I watched Daichi disappear into the eastern corridor. After Daichi split off for the 1-B wing, Hiroki and I navigated the massive hallways toward 1-A.
"First day of the rest of our lives, man," Hiroki said, bouncing on his heels.
"Hey, 1-A?"
A voice came from behind us. We turned to see a girl with short purple hair and long, dangling earphone jacks. She looked a bit reserved, but her gaze was sharp.
"Yes, 1-A," I answered.
"Cool, same here. I'm Kyoka Jiro," she said, nodding at us.
"I'm Hiroki, and this is Takeru Kazama!" Hiroki chirped. As we walked together, the small talk was easy. We talked about the scale of the school and the intensity of the Exam until Jiro eventually asked, "So, how did you guys do? What ranks did you place?"
Hiroki didn't even wait for her to finish the sentence. "Rank 8!" he said, smiling so wide it looked like his face might stretch on its own.
I was about to answer, but Hiroki beat me to it again, throwing an arm around my shoulder. "And this guy? He's Rank 1. He's always been 'Mr. Top of the Class.' I'm just the muscle".
Jiro stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening as she looked me up and down. Her earphone jacks twitched in surprise. "Rank 1? Seriously?" She sounded genuinely shocked, her initial cool demeanor replaced by a flash of excitement. "Is that true?"
I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling the heat in my face. "My friends tend to exaggerate things, Jiro. Don't mind him."
"Exaggerate? The scoreboard doesn't lie!" Hiroki laughed as we reached the towering door of 1-A.
-------_--------_--------_--------_------------_----------
A/N
I have got no response or comments from anyone yet.
Is the story not good?
I have decided to write until chapter 10 and wait.
But if you do like the story write some comments and reviews and hand over those powerstones.