The day, heavy with complicated conversations, had come to an end, and a new morning broke.
Another ordinary day passed, and once class was over, Aizawa addressed his students.
"Uh... summer break is getting close, but that doesn’t mean you get a whole month off."
"No way..."
After the students exchanged uncertain glances, Aizawa pressed on.
"We’re holding a summer training camp."
"I knew it! I knew it! Yes!"
"A courage test!"
"Fireworks."
"Eating and sleeping together! I’m so excited!"
Aizawa swiftly doused their enthusiasm with a dose of reality.
"Before that, anyone who doesn’t clear the passing mark on the final exam will be stuck here for remedial hell."
"Let’s all work hard, guys!"
News that attendance wasn’t mandatory only fanned their excitement further.
The students buckled down to study—though whether they were truly ready to pass the final was another matter.
With only one week left before the exam, the classroom still buzzed from Aizawa’s reminder to prepare for both the written and practical tests.
Ashido and Kaminari burst out in exasperation.
"I haven’t studied at all!"
"We had the sports festival, then work experience—and I didn’t get any studying done!"
Ashido’s bright, almost carefree cry hardly sounded like a genuine alarm.
Tokoyami remarked in a bitter tone,
"Sure, there have been one event after another."
"The midterms were manageable—after all, they were right after we joined, so the scope was narrow. The overlapping events didn’t help, but finals... finals are a whole other story."
At Sato’s words, Kirishima tilted his head in thought.
Even now, after class ended, he spent some time tutoring his peers before heading home to review his own training and keep up with his studies.
Though he knew he had a lot on his plate, he wondered if finals were really that different from midterms.
"Hmm. Are they really that different? It’s just more studying. The scope is a bit larger, but we cover it all in class, don’t we?"
English was a free pass for him, courtesy of his natural fluency, and math posed no challenge thanks to perks from his past life—so fairness was never really his concern.
The one subject that truly troubled him was modern literature.
Perhaps his sensibilities as a former American clashed with those of his Japanese classmates; there were quite a few parts he couldn’t wrap his head around.
In the end, he resolved it all by simply memorizing everything.
Thanks to that method, he managed to secure a solid tenth place on the midterms.
Noticing the puzzled look on Kirishima’s face, Midoriya tried to encourage Kaminari, who seemed to have taken a blow to the head.
"A-Ashido, Kaminari! L-let’s work hard! It’s better if we all go to the training camp together, right?"
"Mm! As class rep, I’m expecting everyone to give it their all!"
"Just paying attention in class should keep you from failing."
At Todoroki’s blunt remark, Kaminari clutched his chest and muttered, "Watch your words..."
"You two—if it’s desk study, I might be able to help."
"Yaoyorozu!"
"Though I’d be completely useless when it comes to practical training..."
At Yaoyorozu’s barely audible murmur, Jiro approached.
Holding up her notebook, she asked, "Not as bad as those two, but... could I get some help too? I’m struggling a bit with quadratic function applications."
"Sorry, me too! Yaoyorozu, are you any good with classic literature?"
"Could I ask as well? There are several parts I just don’t understand."
"Please!"
Sero and Ojiro joined in, their expressions pleading.
Yaoyorozu pressed a hand to her mouth in delighted surprise and declared, "Absolutely, everyone!"
"Yay!"
"Then! Let’s hold a study group at my house this weekend!"
At her words, Ashido beamed and cried out, "Really? I’m looking forward to Yaoyorozu’s place!"
"If that’s the case, I should ask my mom to open the hall for us!"
"The hall...?"
Even as the other students looked on in bafflement, she asked with contagious excitement, "Everyone! Do you have a preferred brand of black tea?!"
"A brand of black tea?"
"My family always goes with Harrods or Wedgwood, so if you have a favorite, I’ll make sure to have it ready! And of course, I’ll help with the studying too—I’ll definitely come through for you all!"
"She just casually mentioned our different backgrounds..."
"Somehow, the way she’s bouncing around is so endearing that it doesn’t even matter."
"Then can we have Fortnum & Mason too?"
While the students stood dumbfounded, Kirishima turned to Yaoyorozu.
In the midst of the conversation, he recalled that he might have time to visit Honoka—and since it seemed possible, he decided to ask.
It might seem a bit off-topic, but Kirishima was quite fond of black tea himself.
In his previous life, he’d been a typical kid who loved cola and fast food.
But as he grew older, he vowed that no soda, coffee, or processed food would ever pass his lips while he was a boxer.
Once that decision was made, few drink options remained, and among them, black tea caught his eye.
At first, he tried any brand he could get his hands on, but eventually he settled on Fortnum & Mason.
Although he had become hooked on green tea since coming to Japan, Yaoyorozu’s enthusiastic words stirred a long-forgotten craving for black tea.
Of course, his visit to her house wasn’t solely for the tea.
"Oh! Kirishima too? I thought you’d be studying on your own."
"I’m not worried about failing yet, but there are some parts I don’t get. Besides, this idiot next to me has been poking my waist nonstop since earlier."
"Hahaha! It’s better if we go together! We live right next door anyway, so we might as well move together!"
When Kirishima shot her a glare, Ashido just grinned and carried on.
He let out a dry laugh, as if conceding defeat, and said, "Well, that’s the situation. I can’t call it a substitution, but I’ll definitely help with the practical exam prep."
"Ah! Of course—the more the merrier!"
Glancing at the upbeat group around Yaoyorozu, Shou shifted his attention toward Bakugo.
"Bakugo, do you see it? The difference in popularity?"
"I’m right here, you bastard! Want me to teach you to death?"
Kirishima turned to the two and said, "If that’s the case, why don’t you two join us? That all right with you, Yaoyorozu?"
"I don’t mind, but will Bakugo be okay with this?"
"He’d better be. With that attitude, if he settles for third place thinking it’s enough, he’ll end up a lazy, useless mad dog."
"Who are you calling a mad dog?! Gah!"
"You. If 'mad dog' is too harsh, then just 'dog.' Either way, this is something we should tackle together."
Bakugo grumbled for a while but eventually agreed to join in.
Just like that, the study session took on the air of a full Class A gathering.
After finalizing the schedule, the students headed to the cafeteria.
Sitting down with his tray, Midoriya remarked, "Usually the written subjects are manageable since they stick to what we've covered in class, but the practical exam is so vague it’s downright scary..."
"I don’t think they’ll throw anything absurd at us."
"So the written sections are okay, then..."
As Iida and Uraraka responded, the nearby girls chimed in too.
Hagakure, holding a bowl and floating chopsticks as if by magic, said, "It’s a comprehensive test of everything we’ve done this semester."
"That’s all Aizawa tells us."
"Most of it is basic training—aside from combat and rescue drills."
As Tsuyu and Uraraka echoed her words, Midoriya added with a conflicted expression,
"In the end, even while studying, we need to be in top physical shape... ugh."
"Ah, sorry. My head’s so big I did that without thinking..."
When her elbow connected with Midoriya’s head, Kirishima narrowed his eyes.
Not everyone possessed his level of perception—or the automatic reflexes that One For All afforded. Still, an attack that wasn’t blazing fast or crushingly strong should be avoidable, whether it came from behind or the side.
Glancing at the commotion, he mused, maybe this kid’s been coddled a bit too much... Perhaps I should pick a day and ambush him relentlessly for a week.
While Kirishima entertained these dark thoughts, the others erupted in angry shouts.
"Monoma from Class B! What are you doing?!"
Monoma remained unruffled, a sly smile on his face even though his eyes betrayed no warmth.
"You guys ran into the Hero Killer, didn’t you? Class A just keeps finding new ways to get noticed after the sports festival. But that punch of yours isn’t a sign of ambition—it’s a magnet for trouble. Who knows, the chaos you stir up might one day catch us in the crossfire."
Kirishima let out a quiet laugh. Strangely sharp for a guy like him, he had to admit there was some truth to it.
In truth, it wasn’t Class A drawing trouble—it was Midoriya, forever destined to attract it.
Even as Kirishima watched with interest, Monoma continued his mocking.
"As if you were cursed by a demon... Ahh, so scary!"
"Monoma, that's way past teasing!"
Suddenly, a girl appeared, snatched Monoma’s tray, and struck his neck cleanly before placing a hand on her hip. "Do you even know what happened to Iida?" she asked.
"Kendo!"
"Sorry, Class A. This guy’s personality is just... something else."
She apologized on Monoma’s behalf, then rested a hand on her head and said, "You mentioned earlier that the final practical exam is vague—I heard it’ll be the same robot combat training as the entrance exam."
"Really? How do you know that?"
"I have an acquaintance among the upperclassmen. I asked around. It may be a bit underhanded, but—"
"No, it’s not underhanded. Gathering information in advance is part of the exam, too. I see... we should’ve just asked the seniors!"
At her words, Midoriya drifted into his own world, muttering to himself.
When Kendo shot him a disapproving look, Monoma came to his senses and, in a doleful tone, said, "Are you an idiot, Kendo? You had a precious information advantage! This was our chance to beat that hateful Class A, ngh!"
She paid no mind to Monoma’s rambling.
Without mercy, Kendo struck him in the neck once more, smiled broadly, and dragged the dazed boy away.
"Hateful? My ass."
The other students watched in silent admiration.
She had that big-sister aura over Class B...
After lunch ended—and once the rest caught wind of Kendo’s update—they all erupted in cheers.
"Yes!"
"If it’s robots, that’s a piece of cake!"
"Exactly, exactly!"
At the optimistic bickering of Ashido and Kaminari, Shoji, parting his shifting tentacles into a smirk, remarked, "That’s because if you’re up against a person, you’d probably struggle to control your Quirk."
"Right! With robots, we can just smash them!"
"If I melt them, it’s an easy win!"
"Then all that’s left is to learn from Yaoyorozu—and the finals are as good as won!"
At Sero’s words, Bakugo grumbled in protest.
"Whether it’s a human or a robot, blowing them away is the same deal. What’s so easy about it, idiot!"
"Idiot?! What do you mean, idiot?!"
"Shut up! You can sort it out as you go, can’t you? Right, Deku!"
Midoriya flinched at Bakugo’s harsh tone.
Bakugo bared his teeth and continued, "I don’t care if you’ve mastered your Quirk or not, but stop aggravating me with your pathetic little tricks."
"What are you even talking about, idiot?"
Kirishima stepped in, grabbing Bakugo by the head.
"You’re using exactly what I taught you—so why are you hissing like a cat whose tail just got stepped on?"
"Gah! That’s because you practically forced it on me! It’s different from Deku’s case!"
"Who was it that asked me to teach you in the first place?"
"I said it’s different!"
"Huh? Bakugo asked you to teach him? I can’t imagine that..."
Hearing Uraraka’s small gasp, Bakugo’s face twisted in anger before he shifted his gaze back to Midoriya.
Then, like a predator eyeing its prey, he growled,
"I don’t need some stellar result like the sports festival. When it comes to finals, there’s a clear winner and loser—no matter what! I’m going to widen that gap so much you won’t know what hit you! Todoroki, you tall bastard, you’re next!"
With those explosive words, he stormed out of the classroom.
The door slammed so hard it sounded as if it might break, prompting murmurs among the students.
"That was Bakugo being really serious for once..."
"You call that serious? That was just him throwing a fit. At this point, I’m starting to worry he’ll wear himself out if he doesn’t act like this now and then."
Kirishima clicked his tongue as he looked toward the spot where Bakugo had vanished.
"He’s supposed to be at Yaoyorozu’s house on Sunday anyway—so what’s he gonna do about the embarrassment? If we all study together after that, it’ll be hilarious. I’m definitely dragging him along and giving him another cringe-worthy moment on his personal record."
"Huh?"
"Kirishima..."
Only then did the students realize that Bakugo had, in fact, agreed to join their study session.
And a hint of fear stirred among them at the thought of Kirishima relentlessly dragging Bakugo along.
They had long grown accustomed to Bakugo’s violent outbursts, but Kirishima’s unexpectedly ruthless side—usually hidden beneath his kindness—still felt alien.
Thus, Bakugo’s miserable day was set in motion.
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