Up on the third floor…

Uraraka moved quickly but quietly, her footsteps soft against the cold floor. Her eyes locked on the prize—the bomb—standing tall in the center of the room. And in front of it, like an overly dramatic guard in a play, was Iida.

He stood perfectly still, hands behind his back, chin up, his cape fluttering slightly from the wind through a broken window. Every now and then he'd mutter under his breath, clearly rehearsing.

"Foolish heroes… You stand no chance…"

Uraraka had to bite her lip to hold back a laugh. He's seriously practicing his villain lines?

She took a deep breath, her expression shifting to determination.

'OK… if I fail this, I'll starve myself for the next two hours,' she thought grimly.

She exhaled, nodded to herself, and stepped out into view.

Iida's head snapped toward her instantly.

"Aha! The hero dares to approach!" he declared, pointing dramatically. His engines revved with a metallic VRRRRMMMM. "Stop right there, Hero!"

Uraraka didn't stop. She bolted straight for him.

"I will show you how powerful the dark side is!" Iida roared, launching forward in a blur of blue exhaust flames.

Her heart pounded—he was fast, much faster than she expected. The wind from his sprint brushed her cheek as he closed in.

But then—

Crap! She skidded to a stop. A dead end. She'd missed the turn!

Her mind screamed Move!—and instinct took over.

At the last possible second, just as Iida lunged in for the grab, Uraraka sidestepped smoothly.

"Eh?!"

BAM!

Iida slammed straight into the wall, hard enough to rattle the light fixtures. The impact left a faint crack in the plaster as he stumbled back, dazed.

Uraraka's hands shot forward—FWIP! FWIP!—wrapping the capture tape around him before he could recover.

'Got him!' she thought triumphantly.

Without wasting a second, she turned and sprinted for the bomb, her fingertips tapping it in one clean motion.

Immediately, All Might's voice boomed through the building.

"THE HERO TEAM WINS!!!"

Uraraka jumped into the air, pumping her fists in pure joy.

Downstairs, Izuku sat casually atop Katsuki, who was red-faced and thrashing beneath him like an angry wildcat.

"GET OFF ME!" Katsuki roared, sparks popping in his palms.

Izuku glanced down, completely calm, and pulled the ultimate disrespect—leaning forward with a flat, Bugs Bunny-style "NOPE."

Katsuki's eye twitched, steam practically shooting from his ears.

....

[Monitoring Room]

The screens flickered with the final moments of the match as All Might turned to address the rest of the class.

"Well! That's the match! Let's hear your thoughts—what did you think of our Heroes' performance?"

Kirishima was the first to speak, leaning forward in his chair.

"Man, Midoriya was solid! He was reading Bakugo like an open book out there. That's some manly patience right there."

Mina grinned. "Yeah, but did you see Uraraka? She moved in without freaking out, even when Iida went full drama villain on her."

"Hey, his acting was impressive," Kaminari chuckled, pointing at the playback of Iida's over-the-top gestures. "I thought he was auditioning for a movie."

Yaoyorozu tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"Midoriya's strategy was efficient. He played to both his and his partner's strengths, and anticipated the enemy's moves with precision. That kind of analysis takes experience—or a very sharp mind."

Todoroki sat silently, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the screen. "He held back."

The others turned to him. "Huh?"

"He could have ended it immediately," Todoroki continued flatly. "But he didn't. He dragged it out. On purpose."

A murmur spread across the room as that sank in.

Jirō raised a brow. "You're saying he… toyed with Bakugo?"

Todoroki didn't look away from the replay of Izuku dodging effortlessly. "I'm saying he didn't need more than a second to win."

In the corner, Bakugo's glare from the feed—pinned under Izuku with that infuriating "NOPE"—made half the class either smirk or cringe.

Mineta shook his head with a sly grin. "Man, if someone did that to me in front of the whole class, I'd… actually, never mind. No one's pinning me down."

"Sure, buddy," Sero muttered with a smirk.

All Might clapped his hands together. "Good observations, everyone! There's a lot to learn here—not just about raw strength, but about control, adaptability, and teamwork!"

The room buzzed with chatter again, half of it praising Izuku's composure, the other half teasing Uraraka about her coordination with him.

The rest of the class did their tests, and after two hours everyone was done.

"Alright, class, there were no injuries… besides Iida's pride. Seriously, buddy, it's not that big of a deal. You weren't actually a villain," All Might said, looking down blankly at Iida—who was dramatically on his knees like a samurai begging for atonement.

"Yes, but I adopted the mindset of one… which to me is an even bigger loss!" Iida said, gripping his helmet in shame.

The class collectively ignored him, a few exchanging bored looks.

All Might cleared his throat. "You all did very well considering this was your first battle exercise. Now go back to change—you have the rest of the day free. Bye!" he said before rocketing away in a gust of wind, papers scattering around the room.

"We only have two minutes left anyway," Momo noted, checking the wall clock.

"Wonder why he was in such a rush," Mineta mused. "Maybe he has some ero manga ordered—"

"Not everyone is as weird as you, you know," Shouji interrupted flatly.

After getting changed, like planned, the boys went out for some fun time. Izuku had even invited Katsuki and Shouto, who—surprisingly—agreed.

The arcade they went to was alive with flashing neon lights, the chiptune music from multiple machines clashing into an oddly pleasant chaos. The scent of popcorn and fried snacks hung in the air, and the occasional ding! and clack-clack of air hockey filled the background.

Katsuki challenged Izuku more than ten times—racing games, shooting games, even a boxing machine—and lost every single one. Each loss made his explosions slightly bigger, while Izuku barely broke a sweat. Shouto was surprisingly chill

( no pun intended)

Quietly demolishing anyone who dared face him in a strategy game.

Everyone actually got along pretty well for their first hangout, the earlier classroom tensions melting away under flashing lights and laughter.

Izuku eventually sat at the small bar counter inside the arcade, sipping on a cold soda as the carbonation popped pleasantly on his tongue. A small, satisfied smirk played on his lips.

'Yep… this is what it's all about,' he thought, leaning back in his seat as the lights danced across his T-shirt.

That's when he noticed them—three older girls, clearly third-years, walking toward him. The way they carried themselves screamed confidence; one had short dyed hair, another had a mischievous smile, and the last had a cool, almost model-like aura.

Normally, Izuku would've brushed random attention off… but third years? Older, experienced, and clearly checking him out? Yeah—he was into older women. Unsurprisingly.

TO BE CONTINUED