U.A. High School Aspirants
"Ah, Bakugo's aiming for U.A. High School, right?"
"U.A.? You mean that national school?"
"They said the deviation score was 79 this year?! And the acceptance rate is insane!"
In one of the classrooms at Orudera Middle School, as soon as our homeroom teacher let those words slip, pretty much everyone in the class widened their eyes and turned to stare at Bakugo, whispering among themselves.
It was a perfectly natural reaction. U.A. High School gets around 10,000 applicants every year, but only 40 make it in that's the top 0.4%. It's notorious for its brutally competitive entrance exam. And no one from Orudera Middle School had ever gotten in.
Yet here was Bakugo from our class, declaring his intent to go to U.A.
And as the other students looked at him, they were probably thinking something like, 'That's so Bakugo' or 'Only Bakugo could pull that off.'
I already acknowledged that side of him too.
The guy—
"That's why you extras are just mook mobs, chirping away like that."
—knew he had no choice but to become a hero. Or rather, he knew he could become one.
"I got an A rating on the mock exam, I'm the only one in this school with grades good enough for U.A. I'll surpass even All Might and become the top hero, etching my name in the high taxpayer rankings for sure!!!"
Bakugo Katsuki had always been like that. His words and actions oozed arrogance and self-importance. He didn't give a damn about anyone else, just himself.
But he had the qualifications to back it up.
His grades put him in the school-wide top 10, and he was upper ranks in physical fitness tests. Plus, his Quirk:Explosion. It might seem simple, but I'd seen him use it briefly during PE once, and the power was no joke. It even looked like he could control the intensity himself, which meant his Quirk control was top-notch too.
He pulled off things others couldn't with this effortless attitude. So yeah, getting into U.A. might just be a given for him.
On the other hand—
"Oh yeah, Midoriya's aiming for U.A. too, right?"
...Midoriya Izuku. No hope for that guy.
"Pfft—!"
"Hahaha! Midoriya?! No way, that's impossible!"
"Good grades alone won't get you into the Hero Course!"
The whole class burst out laughing at Midoriya after the teacher's comment. Another perfectly natural reaction.
Midoriya Izuku was quirkless. His grades weren't bad, but in a Quirk society, lacking one, which was basically essential, meant he was as good as rejected from U.A. already.
And yet, Midoriya would still apply to U.A. High School.
"Th-there's no rule against it anymore! There just hasn't been precedent..."
That guy... honestly, even I didn't get it. He wasn't particularly good at anything, and he had no special merits to make up for his lack of a Quirk. Aiming for U.A. was absurd to begin with, but a quirkless kid dreaming of being a hero? That was straight-up nonsense.
Still, Midoriya had always idolized heroes. Becoming one was his goal.
And there was one guy who found that Midoriya intensely irritating.
BOOM—!
"Hey, Deku!"
"Eek—?!"
"A worthless quirkless extra like you thinks you can stand on the same stage as me?!"
"N-no! Wait, Kacchan?! That's not, I never meant I'd compete with you or anything! It's just... it's the dream I've had since I was a kid. And, y'know, you don't know until you try..."
"'Don't know until you try' my ass! You think this is some commemorative exam?! What the hell do you even think you can do!!!"
Midoriya and Bakugo used to get along as kids, but at some point, things soured between them. Or more precisely... Bakugo started treating Midoriya like a total outcast, bullying him into a clear superior-inferior dynamic.
Bakugo had always crushed Midoriya with violence and verbal abuse, shredding his hero dreams to pieces. Since Midoriya was quirkless, Bakugo probably saw him as something to toy with at his leisure, worthless, contemptible, disposable.
And in reality, Midoriya couldn't do a damn thing about it. All he could manage was pathetic flailing, getting one-sidedly wrecked by Bakugo every time.
So when that powerless Midoriya declared he was aiming for U.A., it must've been a thorn in Bakugo's side.
But there was one more person aiming for U.A. despite being quirkless.
"Oh— and one more. A U.A. High School aspirant. Sakatsuki-kun."
At the teacher's words, everyone in the class turned to look at me.
And then—
"...Who's that guy?"
"Dunno. Probably same as Midoriya."
"This is hilarious. The quirkless duo heading to the U.A. exam site. It's not like U.A.'s a field trip—"
The mockery and disdain came my way.
Bakugo—
"...Tch, quit staring, you're ruining my mood."
—scrunched his brow like he'd seen something he shouldn't have and dismissed me.
And Midoriya—
"M-Mitchan..."
—trailed off and hung his head.
This was all perfectly natural too.
Sakatsuki Michito. Top of the school in grades, but I'd never gotten close to anyone.
I'd always ignored Midoriya.
I'd nearly killed Bakugo once.
And I didn't trust a single soul.
My name is Sakatsuki Michito.
I'm just a bystander.