The Hero Course Welcomes You

"I..." After being cut off, Tenya Iida said, "I'm Tenya Iida, a graduate of Private Smart Middle School."

"Smart!?" Bakugo Katsuki seemed to have heard something amusing. Grinning, he said, "Those damn elites? Sounds like they're worth taking out!"

"Worth taking out!?" Tenya Iida jumped in fright. Why did this classmate seem a little unhinged? "You're too violent! Are you really someone aspiring to become a hero?"

"Tch." Bakugo Katsuki did not want to answer. His gaze drifted elsewhere, and at that moment, both he and Tenya Iida spotted Izuku standing at the door.

"You are..." Tenya Iida remembered this classmate. He had made quite an impression on him back then.

"Um..." Izuku was a little awkward.

"Good morning. I graduated from Private Smart Middle School..."

"I heard you say that just now," Izuku interrupted him. "Um, I'm Izuku. Nice to meet you, Iida."

"Izuku, you noticed the scoring structure of that practical exam beforehand, didn't you?" Tenya Iida said regretfully. "But I failed to notice it. I underestimated you."

"Though I hate to admit it, it seems you had the upper hand." Tenya Iida spread his hands.

Izuku broke out in a cold sweat. He had not noticed it at all.

Chiffon watched with great interest from the back row. These classmates were just too adorable. Soon after, Ochaco Uraraka arrived and happily started chatting with Izuku.

Meanwhile, Bakugo Katsuki had one leg propped on his desk as he looked at Izuku in the doorway, lost in thought.

"I never imagined our school would produce two students who got into U.A. High School. Especially Izuku—it's a miracle among miracles." Remembering what the teacher had said made Bakugo Katsuki's mouth twist bitterly.

"What dirty trick did you use to get in? Since the school was founded, I was supposed to be the first and only student admitted to U.A. My future plans were completely ruined by you the moment they began!" Bakugo Katsuki grabbed Izuku and roared furiously, "I told you to go to some other school!"

But Izuku refused to back down. He grabbed Bakugo Katsuki's wrist and said, "Kacchan, s-someone told me... told me that I could definitely become a hero. They said I earned it myself, so... I'm absolutely going to U.A.!"

"He actually dared to resist. There has to be something going on." Bakugo Katsuki's thoughts returned to the present as he looked up at the ceiling.

"If you want to play at making friends, go somewhere else."

Just as Izuku and Ochaco Uraraka were getting along famously, a cold voice sounded from the hallway.

Izuku immediately saw someone lying at the doorway, wrapped in a yellow sleeping bag with only his head exposed.

His face looked weathered, his stubble was not even properly shaved, and his eyes seemed bloodshot.

"This is the Hero Course." After saying that, Shota Aizawa pulled open his sleeping bag a little and took a long gulp from something in his hand—juice or milk, perhaps. Glug, glug.

"Th-there's something weird here!" The three of them were startled.

Chiffon knew Shota Aizawa had arrived. With a little grooming, this teacher would be incredibly handsome, but perhaps he had simply grown accustomed to being lazy—or perhaps something had happened to him—because he looked rather dispirited.

It seemed he had long since become used to living this way, which was why he looked so sloppy every day.

"A teacher?"

"So that person is a Professional Hero too?"

"But I've never seen him before. Someone so listless..." people murmured quietly.

Shota Aizawa took a few steps forward and calmly addressed the class. "I'm your homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa. Nice to meet you."

Homeroom teacher!?

"Let's not waste time. Put these on and meet me at the field." Shota Aizawa somehow produced a set of clothes.

Chiffon thought, Finally, this part. He did not need to stand out too much. As long as he surpassed Bakugo Katsuki, that would be enough. That guy was sometimes far too arrogant. He needed to take him down a notch.

At the field.

A Quirk assessment test!?

All the students on the field looked at one another in confusion.

"What about the entrance ceremony? The campus orientation?" Ochaco Uraraka asked doubtfully.

With his back to everyone, Shota Aizawa said, "If you aspire to become heroes, you don't have time for leisurely activities like that."

"One of U.A.'s selling points is its free-spirited school culture, and that applies to the teachers as well." Shota Aizawa turned his head, revealing half his face.

Chiffon's gaze swept over these adorable classmates. When his sight was blocked by something firm and prominent, he knew who it was. Momo Yaoyorozu was listening intently.

Even in that outfit, her perfect figure was obvious. It was hard to believe a high school student could develop like that.

Yao-yorozu held her hands before her, looking a little reserved, with the unique air of a young girl.

Come to think of it, most of these classmates were still kids. What could fifteen- or sixteen-year-olds possibly understand? Chiffon, on the other hand, had been in his early thirties back then, naturally full of vigor.

Still, it was better to keep a low profile at first, lest the class label him a beast in gentleman's clothing.

Shota Aizawa explained the Quirk-enabled physical fitness test, then swept his gaze over the crowd and said, "Bakugo got first place in the practical exam, right?"

Bakugo lifted his head slightly. Shota Aizawa asked, "How far could you throw a softball in middle school?"

"Sixty-seven meters," Bakugo Katsuki answered truthfully.

"Then throw it again with your Quirk."

After Bakugo Katsuki stepped into the designated area, Shota Aizawa said, "As long as you don't step outside that circle, you can do whatever you want. Hurry up and give it everything you've got."

"Then... I'll add Explosion airflow to the ball's force!" Bakugo Katsuki loosened up his limbs, then grinned and shouted, "Die!"

A deafening blast erupted from his palm. Propelled by explosive flames, the softball shot into the sky and vanished beyond normal sight in the blink of an eye.

"First, you need to understand where your limits lie. That is a reasonable means of building the foundation of a hero." Shota Aizawa raised his phone. The measurement displayed 705.2—Bakugo Katsuki's result.

"Seven hundred and five meters? You've got to be kidding," Denki Kaminari said in disbelief.

"What is this? It looks so fun." Mina Ashido clapped her hands.

"We can use our Quirks as much as we want. As expected of the Hero Course." Hanta Sero clenched his fists, visibly excited.

Chiffon rubbed his forehead. These guys spoke without considering the consequences at all. This was not a place to play around.

But it was already too late. Shota Aizawa said, "You think this looks fun?"

Everyone froze. Shota Aizawa continued, "Do you all intend to spend the three years meant for becoming heroes with that kind of attitude?"

"Fine, then I'll deem whoever ranks last in the combined scores of the eight events to have no potential and expel them." Shota Aizawa said with a faintly malicious smile, though his expression was serious.

"Whaaaat???" Everyone was utterly shocked. If they were expelled for coming in last, would not all their previous efforts have been for nothing? They had not expected Teacher Aizawa to say something like that at a time like this.

"Relax. Just do your best, and you won't be expelled." Chiffon suddenly said. Everyone immediately looked at him, making Chiffon feel awkward instead. "Why are you all staring at me?"

After staring at Chiffon for several seconds, Shota Aizawa slowly looked away. Then, rubbing his forehead, he laughed. "What we do with students is up to us teachers. Welcome. This is U.A. High School's Hero Course!"