Momo and I were walking side by side, heading towards the cafeteria with the rest of the class. Mina was up ahead with some of the other girls, giggling about something I couldn't hear. Kirishima was walking next to Bakugo.
That was an interesting pair. As of recently, Kirishima and I haven't been training together much. I've seen Bakugo training at the gym a lot, so I suppose they might be training partners.
We had just rounded the corner when a familiar voice exploded through the hallway.
"HA HA HA! Young Henshin and Young Yaoyorozu… are HERE!"
All Might stood there, gleaming like a beacon of sunshine, his smile as bright and intense as ever.
"What's up, All Might?" I gave him a two finger salute.
Meanwhile, Momo straightened instantly. "Good afternoon, All Might-sensei."
"Would you two mind stepping aside with me for a moment?" he asked us. "There's something I'd like to discuss."
Momo glanced at me, then nodded. "Of course."
Three minutes of walking later, we were sitting on a green couch in All Might's office. He took the chair opposite us, hands folded over one knee. Despite the exaggerated proportions of the man, he somehow managed to look composed rather than ridiculous.
"Thank you both for meeting me during your lunch break," he began, voice lower than his usual booming tone but undeniably warm. "I wanted to talk to you about the next Foundational Heroics class in a few days."
I tilted my head. "Is it about what happened at the USJ?"
"Sharp as ever, Young Henshin." He gave me a thumbs up, but his smile faltered slightly. "What occurred at the USJ was a real-world crisis, and Class 1A's ability to support each other was invaluable. It's become even more important for you all to develop teamwork and adaptability under pressure. So for this next session, we'll be doing something new: a full-scale class battle."
"Class battle?" I repeated.
"Yes! Ten versus ten," he declared. "The entire class split into two teams. Until now, most of your training has been in small groups—one-on-ones, pairs, the occasional trio. Now it's time to see how you all manage large-scale chaos."
Momo raised an eyebrow. "That's quite the leap in scope, All Might-sensei. Are you sure it won't be too overwhelming?"
"HA HA! That's the point!" He replied, his grin returning. "Chaos forces communication, awareness, leadership. And speaking of leadership—since you're the class representative and vice-representative, I'll be assigning you both as team captains."
He leaned forward slightly.
"I'd like for the two of you to pick your teams now, rather than during the session. That way, we can get right into it when the time comes."
"How are we doing this?" I asked. "Just name who we want?"
"Correct. You'll alternate choices until both teams are full. Think of it like building your own Hero Squad."
I turned to Momo and gave a small shrug. "Go ahead, you can have the first pick."
She didn't hesitate. "Todoroki."
No surprise there. Todoroki was one of the strongest in the class, and Momo's smart enough to start strong. I started going over the mental list in my head. The obvious move was Bakugo, he's got high firepower, but my mind was pulling in a different direction.
Shoji and Jiro. Information and support. I might lose out on sheer power since Momo can get Bakugo, but I will have a serious edge on battlefield awareness. In a large chaotic battle, that would have more value than raw power.
"Shoji."
Momo paused for a while, taking the time to consider my pick. "Jiro."
Seriously? Looks like that plan went down the drain. I guess she saw right through me.
"Bakugo."
We continued, picking students one after the other. I focused on balance, aiming for people like Kirishima, Ojiro, and Asui. They're all rounders who's strengths I could work with. Then I had Kaminari for crowd control, and Toru for stealth. Shame I missed out on Tokoyami and Iida though.
One decision I made deliberately, though, was skipping Midoriya. He wasn't one of Momo's top choices so I had ample opportunities to pick him for my team. It wasn't that he was weak or anything. It's just that recently, I've been leaning hard on absorbing One For All to power up my other quirks, and I don't want to be too reliant on it. Plus, the last thing I needed was Bakugo getting set off and dragging the whole team down with him.
"All right!" All Might boomed once we were finished. "To recap, in the order that you've picked. Young Yaoyorozu's team is Todoroki, Jiro, Tokoyami, Iida, Sato, Midoriya, Uraraka, Sero, and Aoyama."
Momo gave a polite nod. "That's correct."
"And Young Henshin's team is Shoji, Bakugo, Kirishima, Ashido, Ojiro, Asui, Hagakure, Kaminari, and Mineta."
"Yeah," I gave a thumbs up. "That's right."
"Excellent." He clasped his hands. "This training will happen next Friday at Ground Delta. I'll leave it to you two to lead your classmates there when it's time for your Foundational Heroics class."
Momo raised her hand slightly. "Should we let them know ahead of time?"
All Might shook his head. "I'd prefer it if you didn't. I want this to be an authentic exercise. The less time they have to plan, the better. Until then, keep it to yourselves."
"Sounds good."
"Understood."