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…
–Shaaa–
The door to the observation room—where students went after finishing their exams to watch the others on the multiple monitors—slid open, revealing three figures with exhausted and defeated expressions.
"Damn it… We were three. How did we still lose against one guy?"
"For him to pressure all of us like that and not even look tired… He's a formidable opponent."
"... Sorry I couldn't help much."
The trio was Hiryu Rin, Jurota Shishida, and Kojiro Bondo—the only group of three in Class 1-B, and the penultimate team to take the exam.
Their opponent had been Cementoss.
At first, they'd underestimated him. Sure, he was a well-known pro, but he tended to be peaceful and calm whenever he was around, and his Quirk didn't sound all that impressive on paper. Giving the image of a chill professor who couldn't possibly make them lose.
Plus, they were three. That had to count for something, right?
Nope.
They were completely overwhelmed.
Cementoss had caught up to them almost immediately, unleashing relentless waves of concrete on them. Jurota, thanks to the raw physical power of his Beast Quirk, held them off for a while. Hiryu also tried to help, unleashing volley after volley of razor-sharp scales using his Quirk Scales, but they lacked the firepower to stop Cementoss's concrete.
Kojiro, meanwhile, tried supporting from the back with his Quirk Cemedine, spraying sticky glue from afar to pin Cementoss down while his teammates prevented the hard material from reaching them. However, the teacher always dodged, keeping enough distance from the attacks to continue his onslaught against the students unbothered.
So, without being able to stop the teacher, they had no option but to try their best to break through the endless waves of cement pouring on them, in a battle of stamina between themselves and the professor.
But they failed to realize something.
They were in a scenario made to look like a city, a place filled with cement all around.
In a place like that, they never stood a chance.
In the end, their best efforts couldn't save them from being buried under literal tons of concrete, thus marking their defeat.
"Don't beat yourself up, Kojiro." Hiryu gave his quiet teammate a wry smile, patting his shoulder. Then he clenched his fist, a single tear rolling down his cheek. "Vlad-sensei probably just hates us… Pinning us against that guy in such a place…"
"Well, at least it wasn't All Might," Jurota muttered.
"..."
Hiryu fell silent.
Yeah… fair point.
As they walked into the observation room, they were met by the rest of the students who had already finished their matches—most of them looking just as exhausted.
Itsuka, who was seated nearby, sent them a wry smile. "Don't worry. You guys tried your best. Cementoss Sensei was just too powerful."
"Yeah, good luck on the summer camp." Kamakiri laughed faintly, though still sounding faintly exhausted.
"Stay strong, guys," Tetsutetsu pumped them up, voice lower than usual, a rare sign of just how wiped out he was.
No surprise there. He and Setsuna had been the ones to face Nezu.
It was a hellish, nerve-wracking ordeal—but somehow, thanks to Setsuna's aerial mobility and Tetsutetsu's reckless durability, they managed to make their way through the labyrinthine battlefield and escaped from the talking-rodent's clutches.
Though, regardless of their success, that didn't take away the exhaustion that came after such a match. The others in the class were the same.
Although they hadn't been paired against such a sadistic and volatile professor such as Nezu, being paired against real pros really showed them the gap that currently existed between them and their world.
This test had truly shown just how far Class 1-B still had to go.
-Sigh…-
Soon, the trio slumped down into chairs next to the others, eyes slowly drifting to the largest monitor on the wall.
"It's their turn now, right?" Jurota asked, glancing at the screen showing the other massive fake city besides the one they had just visited.
Itsuka, leaning her head on her hand, nodded with a bead of sweat running down her cheek. "Yeah."
Everyone else turned toward the screen too.
This was it.
The final match of the day.
Suzaku and Monoma vs THE All Might.
To say the room wasn't buzzing with anticipation would be a lie.
Everyone wanted to see how this would go down—how the Number One Hero would move, and how their classmates would even attempt to survive, let alone win.
Recovery Girl, sitting at her usual spot in front of the monitors, sighed loudly.
"I'll probably have more patients soon."
Her dry tone made a few students chuckle nervously.
As her words hung in the air, the familiar honk that signaled the beginning of a match rang out, making everyone's gaze focus on the screens.
The monitors flickered, switching to show the current scene from multiple angles, focusing specifically on two figures walking through the realistic cityscape, on a wide one-way street that connected both the entrance and the exit.
One was Monoma, who looked pretty anxious, constantly looking around as if afraid to be caught doing something naughty by his parents.
Some assumed his state was naturally due to being just about to face All Might.
Maybe the guy hadn't managed to copy a good Quirk on time, and now, with a teammate who had a Quirk not worth copying, he was just a normal person about to face the man who could flatten mountains with punches.
Though a few classmates suspected there was something else bothering him, as his face didn't show dejection, but pure worry.
Still, nothing looked out of the ordinary, so what could it be?
Their attention then shifted to the other figure walking by his side.
Suzaku.
Now fully suited up, helmet and all, he was the very image of his faith—A red figure with a blue visor on his helmet and a backpack hanging from his shoulder.
And unlike his teammate, the way he carried himself—calm, confident, completely unfazed—made it clear he saw this as nothing more than a casual stroll. Contrasting greatly with the blonde beside him.
However, what caught the most attention about him wasn't his new suit, though some did nod in appreciation at its appearance.
No, what really gathered everyone's eyes was the huge black bag he had slung over his shoulder.
Some students in the observation room looked ready to question whether bringing something from outside was even allowed. If they had known, they'd have done it too.
But when they remembered who Suzaku and Monoma were fighting, they shut up fast. Facing the number one hero with nothing but their quirks, which weren't exactly the most fit for that task, kind of justified bending the rules a little.
Yeah, let them carry that bag. Whatever was in there, they'd need all the help they could get.
Though, it certainly had an odd shape… It almost looked like—
…
°
°
°
|In the battlefield|
…
"Are you sure we aren't getting expelled because of this?" Monoma glanced nervously at Suzaku, then eyed the bag again with unease.
Suzaku shrugged. His voice slightly muffled by the suit's helmet. "They're pretending to be villains, so I don't see the problem. We're just using their own henchmen against them."
"I think this is a bit too much, though."
"That's loser mentality."
"Ugh… whatever. If we get in trouble, I'm throwing you under the bus."
"Not even a bus could beat me."
With that sort of exchange going on for a few more minutes, the two finally reached the center of the fake city.
As the exit finally came into view, about a few hundred meters or so away, both stopped, glancing at their surroundings.
The silence was almost unnatural. Like a zombie apocalypse had gone down.
No zombies around, of course. But if there were, they'd honestly be the least of their concerns.
Where was All Might?
A few minutes had already gone by, and the guy hadn't even shown his face.
"Did I scare him with my mighty presence?" Suzaku blurted out.
Monoma deadpanned. What was this guy even saying?
But then, suddenly, they both tensed.
Something felt off.
And that bad feeling… it was coming from ahead, in the exit's direction.
As they both squinted, trying to see what was happening there despite being far away—Suzaku even going as far as using his ultimate technique for zooming in—it happened.
—BOOOOOOM!!!—
A massive shockwave suddenly exploded from the exit, moving violently in their direction.
It tore through the street they were walking on. Concrete shattered. Windows exploded. A gust of wind like a giant hurricane slammed into them.
It was like someone had just set off a nuclear explosion—though, fortunately, without the heat and radiation that came with it.
"Aaargh!"
Monoma was sent flying, skidding across the ground every now and then, trying to get a hold of himself again.
-Crack!-
Suzaku, prepared as always, pulled out his staff in one quick movement and slammed it into the pavement, anchoring himself in place and withstanding the force.
By the time the disaster finally finished, the two of them stared in disbelief at the huge destruction that had unfolded. A destruction that, if they weren't wrong, had most likely been caused by a single punch—and one that had been evidently held back, just so they wouldn't die in the shockwave.
'Seriously…' Suzaku thought, still shaken.
He remembered something he once said—that if Pro Heroes were level 100, then All Might had to be level 10,000.
It wasn't even exaggeration. The difference was unreal.
How could the difference between professional heroes be so huge?
"Who gives a damn about destroying everything?"
Suddenly, a deep, booming voice rang out from above.
Both boys looked up fast—but it was unnecessary, as the next instant, All Might dropped down like a meteor.
–BOOM!–
He landed a few meters in front of them. Ground trembling and dust rising like the heralds of his arrival. His smile was wide like usual, but his blue eyes carried something colder and different—a clear intent to intimidate.
"Heroes. Do you think you have what it takes to defeat me?" His voice blew past the two young heroes like thunder.
Monoma was visibly sweating. The pressure rolling off All Might felt like hundreds of tons crushing down his body.
Suzaku wasn't much better. He didn't back down, but his whole back was soaked in cold sweat.
His thoughts, though, were somewhere else.
'If I fought him in my alien form, how would it go?'
The idea popped up naturally. Staring down an overwhelming force like this made him think about his strongest card.
He remembered that speed, that strength—they had all been transcendental.
If he used it… especially near the end of the transformation, when he had the feeling he'd be at the peak of his strength… would All Might be able to survive?
A smirk appeared on Suzaku's face.
'Well, who cares? The real question is—can he survive me right now?'
He turned to Monoma, who flinched a bit but gave him a reluctant nod. Like a silent agreement between the two just went down.
That was enough.
Suzaku dropped the odd-shaped bag at Monoma's feet and started walking toward All Might.
His steps were steady. Confident. Not a shred of fear left in his posture, unlike what may have seemed earlier.
All Might raised an eyebrow.
Suzaku had always been cocky, but not reckless. Not like this. He was approaching with no guard up, no hesitation. No hint of defense or caution.
Was he trying to bluff him? Maybe banking on the idea that All Might wouldn't punch him for real, out of fear of killing him?
If so… that was naive.
Still, All Might had the feeling it wasn't as simple as that.
Sadly, before he was able to figure it out, Suzaku finally stopped in front of him. The visor of his helmet pointed straight up to All Might's towering frame.
"Hero… What makes you so confident to stand before me without fear?" All Might asked, eyeing straight into where Suzaku's eyes should be.
The redhead let out a loud sneer before spreading his arms as if he was welcoming a hit from the number one hero at any time. "That should be my line, No Weakness."
"No Weakness?" All Might raised an eyebrow.
"That's your villain name. Since you're the evil version of All Might, you ought to be No Weakness."
All Might deadpanned. What was this kid even talking about?
Suzaku laughed seeing his confused face. "Well, No Weakness? Are you gonna come at me or are you gonna stand there all day?"
All Might narrowed his eyes. He glanced at Monoma.
Were they baiting him into something? Had they set up a trap?
Was this boldness just bravado, or was it actually planned?
The blond boy was just standing there, eyeing All Might defiantly, evidently nervous as heck… but there was something in his gaze.
Confidence in something.
All Might's smile sharpened.
'Let's find out.'
He drew his fist back. Calculated the right amount of strength—not to kill, but enough to send a painful message to the redhead… that he, the number one hero, wasn't so easily beaten.
No matter the plan or strategy.
And so, without further consideration...he threw the punch.
–Tack!–
—only, instead of the thundering shockwave that usually followed, the only thing that came was a soft sound.
...
That's when it dawned on All Might.
His fist had been completely stopped.
"..."
"..."
Silence reigned for a moment.
All Might blinked in bewilderment.
'Hold on, it was stopped?'
-Swish!-
—BAM!—
His thoughts were abruptly cut short as his fist was batted aside, followed by a direct blow to the ribs. The strike folded him in half, triggering a familiar internal pain—one that only surfaced when he pushed himself too far.
"Shit—!"
With an english curse escaping his lips, he stumbled back, eyes wide in disbelief as he stared at the punk cloaked in red.
"My my, what a language." Suzaku chuckled from inside his suit, retracting his fist slowly.
From the observation room, everyone stared wide-eyed. Even Recovery Girl was stunned.
Suzaku had… stopped All Might's punch?
And not just that—he'd hit him, and it had hurt the giant!
What the hell was going on?!
Back on the battlefield, All Might gradually caught his breath, regaining his composure.
He swept a bit of blood threatening to come out from the corner of his mouth with his forearm.
He had to admit, that punch had caught him off guard.
But now that it had happened, he already had an idea of what had transpired here.
His gaze shifted to Monoma, his eyes squinting faintly as he saw the blonde looking at him with his eyes wide open and unblinking, almost as if set on not looking away from him.
"I see…" he muttered, a slightly proud smirk forming. "You used Aizawa-kun's Quirk to turn this into an even fight… Haha, good preparations, young men."
Suzaku stood with his arms crossed, silently letting All Might speak.
But suddenly, All Might's grin twisted back into his usual wide and confident smile, his eyes brimming with a dangerous light. "I don't know how you convinced him—or if you tricked him and had Young Monoma steal his Quirk without him noticing… But it's already been over three minutes since this exam began. Tell me, Young Suzaku… how much longer do you think young Monoma can keep Erasure active?"
"Well, this guy said his limit was five minutes… so, probably two left?" Suzaku replied casually.
"And you think you'll beat me in just two minutes?"
"I don't know. Maybe?" Suzaku shrugged.
"HAHAHA!" All Might let out a booming laugh, laced with his theatrical villain act. "You must think that without my Quirk, I'm helpless. But while I'll admit I lack in terms of technique like you or Tatsuo-san, becoming the number one hero isn't only achieved through raw strength. Two minutes won't be enough."
"I see…" Suzaku nodded, a note of regret in his voice.
Then he turned to Monoma and gestured toward the bag. "Guess I have no choice but to use my ace in the sleeve."
"...?" All Might's frown deepened.
They had more tricks?
Monoma moved, keeping his eyes on All Might.
Then, with a swift pull, he ripped the bag open.
And inside—
"...!" All Might's eyes widened.
In the observation room, jaws dropped.
They couldn't believe what they were seeing.
Was that even allowed!?
Back on the battlefield, All Might stared at the revelation, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek. His smile twitched. His eyebrow twitched harder.
"Young Suzaku…"
Before he could say more, Suzaku stepped aside like a game show host and dramatically gestured at the contents of the bag.
"What do you think, No Weakness? I present to you… my permanent and portable Erasure buff!"
"..." (All Might)
"..." (Monoma)
"..." (Everyone in the observation room)
There, lying on the floor like a sack of potatoes, was Aizawa himself—tied up with his own capture weapon, his eyes half-lidded like a dead fish, completely immobilized.
'I don't get paid enough for this.'
Aizawa looked completely done with life.
"A-Aizawa-kun… you…" All Might was speechless.
He turned to Suzaku with a baffled and mildly outraged expression, trying to find the right words, but they caught in his throat.
He wanted to say this wasn't allowed. But… there were no rules against it.
After all, what student would ever dare to do something like this?!
Still, he had to say something. Suzaku couldn't just get away with kidnapping a teacher like this.
"Young Suzaku, did you not think this was wrong? Kidnapping and forcing someone against their—"
"I thought you were a villain?" Suzaku interrupted casually, arms on his waist as if feeling insulted. "I just caught one of your evil henchmen, Writting Feet—get it, 'cause of Eraser Head?—and now I'm using him against you. What's so wrong with that?"
"N-no, this isn't roleplay anymore, you can't just—"
Suzaku suddenly pointed at All Might with dramatic flair, voice rising in righteous indignation from inside his helmet. "Despicable villain! You're trying to sway my mind away from justice! Unfortunately for you, that won't happen!"
And before All Might could say another word—
Suzaku jumped him.
All Might moved quickly to block, but even as his forearms caught the punch, the impact was brutal.
'T-this kid…!'
Despite their size difference, Suzaku's strength was enough to crack something in All Might's arm.
Moving sluggishly—not just because he lacked his Quirk, but also due to the heavy bracelets he wore as weights—All Might threw a retaliatory punch.
-Swish!-
Despite his current limitations, the punch was fast… but not fast enough for someone like Suzaku.
The redhead ducked, then launched a counterstrike.
-BAM!-
This time, his fist smashed straight into All Might's face, shattering his usual grin and sending him stumbling back, blood trickling down from his nose.
As All Might forced himself to a stop and recomposed himself, Suzaku remained in place, bouncing lightly with both fists raised, doing a mocking little foot shuffle like a boxer taunting his opponent.
All Might gritted his teeth, wiping the blood from his nose with his forearm. His eyes narrowed.
'So this is what young Midoriya had to face… No wonder he was overwhelmed. Without One For All, it feels hopeless. Tatsuo-san did a splendid job training this kid… Still—'
His eyes shifted to Monoma.
'If I can stop him from using Erasure, or snatch Aizawa-kun away, I'll turn this fight around. And… it seems his eyes are getting dry.'
Monoma looked on the verge of blinking, making All Might's eyes shine with readiness.
That was the moment. He just needed to—
"Don't get so distracted!"
A blur of red appeared in the corner of his vision. All Might turned just in time to see Suzaku launching a high kick his way.
"Ugh!"
All Might ducked the scythe-like leg, but mid-air, Suzaku twisted his body using the leftover momentum and slammed his other leg into All Might's chest.
-CRACK!-
A rib snapped, and All Might was sent skidding even further across the pavement.
Still… if you couldn't handle pain, could you even call yourself a hero?
Clenching his jaw and pushing through the injury, All Might stopped his momentum—and launched himself straight back at Suzaku.
-Tack!-
This time, All Might's fist was blocked instead of dodged.
However, just as he prepared another attack, a swift blow came from his blind spot—right into his gut.
"Uck—!"
Pain shot through him instantly. The hit had landed cleanly, right near his injury.
For a split second, his concentration almost faltered. He nearly deflated—almost revealed his real form.
But he didn't give in; he pushed through the pain back to clarity.
However, before he could recover, another fist was already coming.
Pushing through the dizziness, knowing full well that if he kept letting Suzaku manhandle him like this he'd lose control of his appearance, All Might caught Suzaku's punch with one hand.
It hurt—his wrist throbbed from the force behind Suzaku's strike—but ignoring the pain, he swung a counterattack with his other hand.
Only for that punch to be caught too.
Suzaku was mirroring him mockingly.
Now, both of them stood locked, each holding the other's fist, arms trembling with the pressure of their strength clashing.
The surreal image of someone clashing in terms of strength with All Might shook the students in the observation room. This wasn't a sight you could see every day.
And it lasted for a good while—At least until Monoma's voice suddenly cut through the tension.
"Oi, Suzaku, I'm about to blink—watch out!"
"Oh, that's not good."
Without hesitation, Suzaku kneed toward All Might's solar plexus—another area close to the hero's wound.
Sensing danger, All Might quickly let go and leapt back, narrowly avoiding the strike.
Then his eyes caught sight it: for just a split second, Monoma blinked.
Therefore... His Quirk was back.
'Tsk.'
But right now, All Might didn't have the means to overpower both of them—especially not with the weights still on him and the brief window between blinks. So he made a decision:
Buy time.
BOOOOOM!
With a flick of his fingers—the fastest motion he could muster—All Might blasted the ground beneath him apart, sending up a huge dust cloud that quickly enveloped the entire area.
The battlefield vanished in smoke.
Unfortunately, the dust wouldn't last long—it was already dispersing fast, and wouldn't obscure Monoma's sight for long once it landed on him.
So All Might moved quickly.
"Crap, I lost him!" Monoma cursed, scanning the fog with frantic eyes.
Suzaku scratched the top of his helmet, his voice dry. "This can't be good… Should've slapped those handcuffs on him when I had the chance."
What could he say? Getting to beat up a demi-god without the threat of being bitch-slapped into orbit had been a little intoxicating.
As the battlefield settled into an eerie silence, Suzaku moved closer to Monoma, staying on guard. Both of them scanned the smoke-filled space, watching for any sign of the Symbol of Peace.
Suzaku even pulled out his staff, just in case he needed some extra reach.
But as they searched, they failed to notice a figure blurring past at blinding speed—not toward them, but toward something behind them.
-Swish!-
In less than a millisecond, Aizawa was gone. A gust of wind passed as if indicating what had just happened under their noses.
"Aw, crap." Suzaku was the first to notice.
"What—oh shit." Monoma followed right after, eyes widening in panic.
The dust cleared moments later… and indeed.
All Might was gone—along with Aizawa.
Now, they were alone.
Suzaku immediately turned to Monoma. "Uh, how long until the Quirk runs out?"
"About three minutes… I wasn't constantly touching the teacher."
"Damn," Suzaku sighed.
A short, awkward silence settled over them.
Then they glanced at each other.
"I think we should run."
"Yeah."
Without another word, both turned on their heels and sprinted full speed toward the exit—praying that Erasure would last just long enough to let them escape without being intercepted by All Might.
…
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-To be Continued…-
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(A/N: What did you think of Suzaku's master plan? Sure, it fell apart pretty quickly, but it still managed to put All Might in a tough spot. Honestly, Suzaku could've ended the exam right then and there—but he got a little too caught up in the thrill of punching the number one hero in the country (and probably the world) with no repercussions, so don't hold it against him too much.
That said, All Might also had multiple chances to end things. Like when he first arrived—he could've used his speed to knock them out before they even knew what hit them. Or later, when his Quirk came back and the whole battlefield was covered in dust.
The only reason he didn't go all out is because he's not trying to injure anyone severely—it's just an exam, after all.
So yeah, neither side was really going all out here. Though, the pain All Might went through—or rather, No Weakness went through—was real... So he may be a tad angry at Suzaku.
Hopefully that won't come biting the redhead back in the ass in the next chapter
Right, I'm the author!
Then forget it, it definitely will.)
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