Boom! With a resounding crash, the door burst open and in strode a massive, muscular hero who looked as though he had stepped straight out of an American comic book: All Might. His trademark smile, with gleaming white teeth, lit up the entire classroom.
"Oooooooh!! It's All Might!!"
"That’s the Silver Age costume! How classic!"
The students erupted into cheers. All Might struck one of his signature exaggerated poses as he took his place at the podium.
"Now! Students! For our very first Hero Basic Training session, we’re doing... this!"
He whipped out a card.
[BATTLE]
"Combat Training!!! This is the very essence of what it means to be a hero! And don’t forget these!"
As All Might pointed toward the wall, a panel beside the blackboard slid open like a storage closet, revealing numbered metal cases.
"These are your costumes, produced according to the profiles and request forms you submitted before admittance!"
"Oooooooooh!!"
"So cool!!"
The excited students quickly grabbed the cases marked with their numbers and headed for the locker rooms. Putting on their own costumes marked the moment when their dreams of becoming heroes felt vividly real.
A short while later, at Ground Beta.
The Class 1-A students gathered at the simulated urban training ground, each donning a strikingly different costume.
Bakugo sported a menacing outfit armed with grenade-shaped gauntlets, Iida wore armor reminiscent of a powerful engine, and Uraraka flaunted a sleek, form-fitting suit that resembled a space uniform. Every design was both flashy and functional, each reflecting its wearer’s unique abilities.
And among them, Tori Marumine ambled forward.
"...?"
The moment the students saw him, their eyes grew wide.
His costume... was entirely different.
Flashy? Functional? There wasn’t the slightest hint of either.
A black tailcoat.
But it wasn’t a formal ensemble for a gala. The sleeves were casually rolled up, a few shirt buttons were undone, and his tie was nowhere to be seen. Perched crookedly atop his head was a slightly rumpled top hat. Notably, his left hand was clad in a white glove while his right was bare.
He looked every bit like a third-rate magician who had been booted off a street performance for being too tipsy.
"Is that... a costume?"
"Isn't it just a tuxedo?"
"Maybe it’s a magician theme… but it looks incredibly sloppy..."
A murmur rippled through the crowd. Bakugo snorted in disbelief.
"Ha! Look at that getup. You’ve got to be kidding."
Tori didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he tilted his top hat slightly and replied with a cheeky grin.
"Well? Don’t I look sharp?"
"He’s completely out of his mind..."
"Whoa! Todoroki! I didn’t know you could dish out quips like that?!"
"........."
At Kaminari’s question, Todoroki merely turned away, seemingly fighting back a smirk.
Watching the banter, Marumine thought to himself,
'Excellent. The stage is set.'
The pressure from the principal’s office, the eyes of every classmate, Bakugo’s barely contained fury—it was all building toward a perfect show designed to overcome these trying circumstances.
Of course, the aim of the show wasn’t to secure a dazzling victory, but rather to incur a defeat so perfectly mediocre that it would invite complete disregard.
"Now! Is everyone here? Ahem, you all look magnificent, aspiring heroes! Today, you truly resemble heroes in the making!"
All Might nodded in satisfaction.
"Today’s session is 'Indoor Combat Training'! You will be divided into Villain and Hero teams for 2-on-2 indoor battles! The Villain team is responsible for defending a nuclear device, while the Hero team must either retrieve it or capture the villains before time runs out!"
As All Might continued his explanation, the students exchanged glances—some eagerly hoping to team up with powerhouses like Yaoyorozu or Todoroki, while others anxiously hoped to avoid the inevitably explosive Bakugo.
And in between, sympathetic eyes were cast toward Tori Marumine, the one partner no one desired.
"I will now draw two balls from this box, and the students with the matching numbers will form a team!"
The team assignments would be determined by sheer luck, not by skill.
In effect, the lottery had transformed into a game of 'Avoid Marumine.'
Those whose numbers were called early—barring outliers like Yaoyorozu or Todoroki—breathed a sigh of relief, having narrowly avoided being paired with him.
Meanwhile, those whose names had yet to be called languished in dread.
They knew that if they ended up with Marumine, they’d be forced to battle essentially a one-person team.
Marumine’s name was still nowhere to be heard—until the cruel verdict was finally announced.
"Final team, Team J! Ms. Jiro Kyoka and...!"
All Might produced the last ball. Every eye was glued to him, though the outcome had long been sealed.
Jiro Kyoka absentmindedly fiddled with her earphone jack.
Until this moment, her hope had been modest.
She had only one wish.
'Please, let me be paired with someone normal.'
She wasn’t asking for an ace like Todoroki or Yaoyorozu—merely someone with whom she could communicate and cooperate, someone with even a modicum of determination.
But the world—especially U.A.—was rarely so kind.
The predetermined outcome was announced with ruthless clarity.
"It’s Tori Marumine!"
All Might brandished the ball labeled J and declared jovially.
"..."
Jiro’s fingers froze. Her breath caught as a wave of despair washed over her.
Soft murmurs of sympathy began to rise from those around her.
"Oh, poor Jiro..."
"That’s the same kid who came in last yesterday."
"Look at his costume. Is he seriously trying to put on a magic show?"
"Sigh..."
A deep, despairing sigh escaped Jiro’s lips as if the very ground were giving way beneath her. She lowered her head and pressed a hand to her forehead, her thoughts going blank. The worst-case scenario had become real.
Her partner was the one student in the class regarded as pure dead weight: Tori Marumine. Zero motivation, questionable—if not downright disastrous—skills, and a deplorable attitude. He was a perfect storm of calamity.
While she stewed in despair, Tori nonchalantly ambled over to her side. Rolling up the loose sleeves of his shirt, he let out a massive yawn.
"Glad to be partnering with you~," he drawled.
His voice was so light and casual that it not only grated on Jiro’s nerves—it felt as though it might snap them entirely. She glared at him with eyes sharp enough to cut glass.
"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"You... you do plan on fighting, right?"
There was a cutting edge to Jiro’s voice.
"I seriously think it’s the worst fate that you’re my partner. Just don’t hold me back—I really can’t afford to lose any more points."
Her words were blunt and unfiltered, a desperate plea not to be burdened any further.
Yet Tori’s response took her completely by surprise.
"Exactly."
Tori replied in a deadpan tone.
"I also think it’s the absolute worst being teamed up with you."
"What...?!"
Jiro’s face twisted in disbelief. There was not the faintest hint of remorse in his expression; rather, he looked as if he were complaining about having been saddled with an extra burden.
"You really are...!"
Before Jiro could retort, Tori continued.
"So when it’s our turn..."
He lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper.
"You go on and fight well on your own. I’m going to find a safe corner and catch some sleep. That way, I won’t be holding you back. See? Isn’t that the smart way to do it?"
He flashed a grin—a smile steeped in pure, unadulterated laziness.
Jiro’s mouth fell open. She was less angry now and more utterly baffled. Was this really what an aspiring hero on his second day was going to say? That he’d hide out and sleep during a match?
"You... have you truly lost it? The teacher is watching the whole time..."
"Weren’t you the one who said it couldn’t get any worse? Isn’t this better than me just hanging around and becoming a hostage?"
"Really, do you even hear yourself...!"
Jiro’s voice trembled. Rage and disbelief blurred her thoughts.
"Do you have any idea what this is? Hero Training! If we lose here...!"
"Lose? So what—just a few points down. It’s not as if our lives depend on it. Why are you taking it so seriously?"
Tori yawned as he replied.
"If you’re that desperate to win, go ask that Muscle-man teacher over there to switch partners with you. I really don’t care."
He turned back and leaned against the wall, as if the conversation wasn’t even worth continuing.
Jiro bit her lip in frustration, her fists trembling. A tiny spark crackled from the end of her earphone jack as an overwhelming urge to punch him surged within her.
But with the teacher watching, she couldn’t let her anger show. Swallowing her rage, she muttered, "Just you wait, you jerk..." under her breath and backed away from him.
At that moment, the matchups were revealed.
Team J’s opponent...
[HERO]: TEAM B (Shoji Mezo & Todoroki Shoto)
VS
[VILLAIN]: TEAM J (Jiro Kyoka & Marumine Tori)
The instant Jiro saw the names, the color drained from her face.
"...This is the absolute worst."
Another heavy sigh escaped her lips. Their opponents were Team B—a team that included Shoto Todoroki, widely regarded as the strongest among the freshmen. Paired with Shoji, whose keen reconnaissance skills bolstered both offense and defense, it was a near-perfect combination.
And her own team? A lone girl partnered with a boy whose motivation was at rock bottom and whose combat prowess was decidedly questionable. This wasn’t going to be a battle—it was headed for nothing short of a massacre.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the room someone was practically exploding with rage at the matchup.
"Dammit! It was my job to knock that Deku-like bastard out!"
Katsuki Bakugo roared as he pounded his fist against the wall.
"Why must he be paired with that half-and-half loser?! I should’ve been the one crushing him into oblivion!"
He shot a glare at Tori, who was still standing there blankly while yawning. The sight only fanned Bakugo’s fury further.
"A half-and-half guy isn’t going to put up any real fight against a loser like that... What a total bore, dammit!"
Bakugo fumed—not only because he wasn’t the one to deliver the knockout blow, but because with Todoroki now facing Tori, the outcome was almost certain. Street tricks weren’t going to work against Todoroki’s ice.
Monitor Room.
After the first bout—marked by Bakugo’s rampage and Uraraka’s fierce struggle—a few more matches came and went. The students cheered and analyzed the intense battles unfolding on the monitors, the atmosphere growing ever more charged.
And finally.
"Now! Next match! Villain Team, Team J! Head inside and defend the nuclear device! In five minutes, Hero Team, Team B, will enter!"
Following All Might’s orders, Tori and Jiro stepped into the designated building.
The interior was dim and reeked of concrete. In the central hall on the fifth floor, a paper decoration meant to represent a nuclear weapon sat forlornly.
As soon as she entered, Jiro began pacing anxiously around the device.
"What are we going to do... Todoroki uses ice, and Shoji can move silently... For now, I’m plugging my earphone jack into the wall to monitor every sound in the building. Maybe if I can pinpoint where the enemy’s coming from, we stand a chance."
She plugged in her jack and concentrated, her eyes burning with determination even in what seemed like an unwinnable fight.
But Tori...
"Yaaaawn..."
He had curled up in a corner beside the nuclear device, casually pulling a deck of cards from his pocket and shuffling them.
"What are you doing...?"
Jiro asked, incredulous.
"Can’t you tell? I’m playing cards. It’s the perfect way to pass the time."
"Really...! Aren’t we supposed to be strategizing?! Do you even know who our opponent is? Todoroki! One of the top recommended students!"
"I know, I know. That’s why we’re 'lucky.' I hear he’s unbelievably strong. There’s no point in even trying to outwork monsters like that."
Even if it hadn’t been Marumine on her team, unless she was paired with an ace like Bakugo or Yaoyorozu, there was simply no chance.
Todoroki’s overall combat capability was rated number one in Class 1-A.
Sure, the dynamics might change in an unlimited survival or all-out brawl scenario—but that wasn’t the case here.
Tori fanned the cards out before shuffling them once more, his nimble fingers displaying an impressive dexterity.
"No matter what we do, we won’t stand a chance. Especially with Todoroki—he could freeze the entire building in one blast. Even if we build barricades or set traps, one shot of ice and it’s all over. So..."
He dropped the cards onto the floor and sprawled back.
"Let’s just relax. We’re bound to lose anyway, so why waste your energy?"
"You... You really are something else!!"
Jiro couldn’t hold back any longer and screamed.
"I’m going to fight on my own then! I’m not a coward like you! You just sit there playing cards—I'll go out there and stop them!"
She yanked her jack from the wall and huffed as she prepared to head out.
"Jiro Kyoka."
That would have been the end of it, if not for Marumine calling her name.
"What now, you jerk...!"
As Tori lay there, he continued.
"Go on, get out if you must—but your feet are bound to get cold."
Jiro romance route inbound