Part 1
"I aaaam!! Coming through the door like a normal person!"
With that line, All Might sensei made his grand entrance into Class 1-A's classroom.
Amid the classroom's excitement and emotion at the appearance of the No.1 hero... what All Might sensei announced for today's 'Hero Basic Training' was... combat training right from the very first session.
The location was Ground Beta, and we were to change into the 'Costumes' ordered from manufacturers based on the 'Quirk Application' and 'requests' submitted before enrollment, then assemble there.
Combat training in combat gear... feels like they're going a bit too far right from the start.
While I was thinking that... not that he read my mind or anything, but All Might sensei declared, "Starting with your appearance is important too, boys and girls!! Be aware! Starting today, you are... heroes!"
After changing, we headed to Ground Beta... or rather, isn't this the urban-type training ground used during the entrance exam?
Gathered there, All Might sensei explained today's training content to us.
"While villain suppression is mainly seen outdoors, statistically speaking, the appearance rate of violent criminals is higher indoors... From now on, you'll be divided into 'Villain Teams' and 'Hero Teams' to conduct 2-on-2 indoor combat training!"
The scenario was that terrorists had hidden a nuclear weapon in their urban hideout... and the heroes were trying to dispose of it. The setting feels like something from a foreign drama... Did sensei come up with it?
The villain role would enter the building first to prepare, and five minutes later the heroes would begin their operation.
The victory conditions for the hero side were either capturing both enemies or securing the nuclear weapon. For the nuclear weapon, apparently just touching the fake bomb was enough.
For capturing enemies, it would be achieved by either knocking them unconscious, rendering them unable to move, or wrapping the 'Capture Tape' provided beforehand around any part of their body.
On the other hand, the villain side's victory conditions were either capturing both heroes or the 15-minute time limit expiring.
Team pairings and matchups would be decided by lottery... I see.
And the results of that lottery decided... the following pairings:
Midoriya & Uraraka Team VS Iida & Bakugo Team
Todoroki & Shoji Team VS Ojiro & Hagakure Team
Asui & Tokoyami Team VS Yaoyorozu & Fumiko Team
Sato & Koda Team VS Sero & Mineta Team
Jiro & Kaminari Team VS Ashido & Kirishima Team
Hmm... Both the teams and matchups seem to have quite a few interesting combinations.
☆☆☆
The first match, Midoriya & Uraraka Team versus Iida & Bakugo Team, ended with the hero team, Midoriya and others, winning. It was a hard-fought victory with both of them ending up battered.
In contrast, the villain side was almost unharmed... though, Bakugo seemed to be lost in thought or dazed afterward. Until All Might sensei went to the scene and spoke to him, he was breathing heavily and sweating profusely.
I think it was a match with many issues for both teams.
As announced after the battle by All Might sensei... or rather, by Yaoyorozu sensei, Bakugo's fighting had no coordination whatsoever, while Uraraka's situational awareness was poor and she moved around relying too much on it being just training. Midoriya, while his strategy formation was impressive, the process leading up to it was shaky and full of holes.
Especially Midoriya and Bakugo, both of them blew away corridors and walls, punched through buildings vertically... attacks with power that could destroy buildings... If that 'nuclear weapon' had been real, that would have been completely unacceptable.
And so, MVP was Iida... the moment that was announced, he was deeply moved and emotional.
But... Midoriya really is 'good'.
That punch that vertically pierced through the building to the top floor... the energy displayed in that moment was equal to my full power now, no, maybe even more...!
As usual, he broke his arm, so even if it's in an uncontrolled state... that much power, and even more room for growth remaining...
Above all... the spirit that never abandons what's important as a hero no matter how much he's hurt, the intelligence to calmly analyze the situation in that state... and the purity and sense of justice that All Might sensei also praised, that makes him worthy of being a 'hero candidate'...!
I looked into Midoriya a bit. What came up was... the 'Sludge Incident' that apparently happened in some town about a year ago.
Against a villain with a fluid body, with reasons like bad compatibility or poor location, while the heroes on site stood frozen leaving a middle school student taken hostage, a civilian boy rushed out to try and save that hostage. There was even video remaining online.
Incidentally, the one who resolved it was All Might sensei, and that hostage turned out to be Bakugo. Seriously?
In public reports, Bakugo was praised for his mental strength in enduring while being held hostage, but when I asked my sister to investigate a bit behind the scenes, it turned out the one who rushed out was Midoriya.
Naturally, it seems he was harshly scolded by the heroes on site for his reckless action... but among the information my sisters gathered for me, there were testimonies from bystanders who were there. When he rushed out, Midoriya... when Bakugo asked 'Why did you come!?' he apparently answered like this:
'Because you had eyes that were asking for help'...
"...Yeah... good"
"Excuse me? Did you say something, Fumiko-san?"
"Huh? Ah, no, it's nothing, Yaoyorozu. Um... oh, wow, the second match is almost over... I should get ready"