Kuro inhaled.
Not deeply.
Just enough.
The white aura around him remained stable—thin, quiet, efficient.
Then—
He bent down.
Kirishima immediately looked concerned.
"…Hold on, I wasn't ."
Kuro grabbed him by the ankles.
Kirishima's eyes widened.
"…WAIT WAIT WAIT-"
Too late.
Kuro spun.
Not wildly this time.
Controlled.
Measured.
The same movement as before—
but cleaner.
Smaller.
Efficient.
Cementoss watched carefully.
The moment the rotation stabilized—
Kuro stopped.
Released.
BOOM.
Kirishima shot forward.
Not tumbling.
Not chaotic.
Like a fired projectile.
Red.
Hardened.
Fast.
Cementoss calmly raised layered walls.
The first shattered.
Second slowed him.
Third redirected.
Fourth absorbed.
But that was enough.
Because while Kirishima occupied space—
Kuro moved.
White ki flared.
His feet left the ground.
Not true flight—
controlled aerial movement.
Short bursts.
Angle changes.
Constant repositioning.
Cementoss immediately understood.
His eyes narrowed.
So that was the strategy.
Kirishima wasn't being used for damage.
Not primarily.
He was under pressure.
A moving threat.
A forced response.
Every second spent stopping Kirishima—
was a second Kuro closed distance.
And every second spent stopping Kuro—
allowed Kirishima back in.
Simple.
Efficient.
Dangerous.
Another wall emerged.
Kuro twisted around it.
Concrete pillars burst upward.
Kuro touched one briefly—
changed direction—
and kept moving.
Kirishima punched through another.
Cementoss calmly continued shaping the battlefield.
Then spoke.
"…I see."
Another wall formed.
Another.
Another.
His attacks never stopped.
But his voice remained steady.
"Kirishima excels in defence."
Wall.
"His body mass and durability allow him to maintain force."
Pillar.
"However, his speed limits effective engagement."
Road lifted.
"And your mobility compensates."
Another launch.
Kuro grabbed Kirishima.
Spun.
Released.
Rock Drill Shot.
Again.
Cementoss stepped aside.
A quick concrete layer absorbed most of the impact.
He nodded.
"So your answer…"
Kirishima crashed through another barrier.
"…was to remove his weakness."
Kuro flew past.
Quick left jab.
Impact.
Cementoss blocked.
Immediately pushed Kuro away with expanding cement.
Kuro flipped and landed.
The teacher looked directly at him.
"Kurokami Tenshin."
His voice became quieter.
"Your observations indicate something unusual."
Concrete is formed in smaller, more precise patterns now.
"You possess strong physical capability."
Wall.
"Strong martial arts fundamentals."
Barrier.
"A natural tendency toward rescue and support."
Another wave.
"And yet…"
His eyes remained on the white aura.
"Your quirk consumes resources."
Kuro dodged.
Another spike missed.
Cementoss continued.
"This exam was designed partially to exploit that."
More pressure.
More movement.
"Extended engagement."
More terrain control.
"Force inefficiency."
More defence.
"And encourage growth."
He watched Kuro move.
No waste.
No explosive bursts.
No unnecessary offence.
Just enough.
Interesting.
Cementoss raised another wall.
"But."
Kuro landed briefly.
Cementoss looked at him.
"You are already changing."
Kuro blinked.
Another wall came.
He stepped around it.
Cementoss continued.
"Rapid growth is excellent for students."
Pause.
Then—
"Would you explain your process?"
Observation deck.
Several students perked up.
Todoroki nearly climbed over the rail, not out of excitement, no. Because he was 23% sure, if he stayed, a certain teacher would notice the third bowl of soba he had.
Aizawa glanced over.
'Interesting question.'
Back below—
Kuro looked surprised.
Then thought.
Concrete attacks continued.
Kuro casually avoided them.
Thought harder, running the 3 remaining cells to their death.
Then smiled.
"Oh."
He looked genuinely happy.
"I think I get it."
Cementoss blinked.
Kuro pointed at himself.
"My quirk isn't actually draining."
Concrete missed.
Kuro continued.
"It's just…"
Jump.
"…I'm dumb."
Observation deck.
Silence.
Kuro nodded confidently.
"Mei explained it."
Another dodge.
"When I use too much ki…"
Land.
"…I get tired."
Jump.
"So she said…"
He thought hard.
Trying to remember.
Then brightened.
"…stop doing that."
Silence.
Aizawa stared, with the exhausted 'dad' face.
Exactly.
Kuro continued.
"So I tried using less."
Step.
Dodge.
Step.
"And…"
He looked at the white aura.
"…it kinda worked."
Cementoss stared.
Kuro kept talking.
"When I started training…"
Small burst.
"…I thought stronger meant more."
Move.
"But…"
Another small burst.
"…Mei said machines break if they keep running at max."
Step.
"So…"
Smile.
"…I tried not doing that."
Cementoss looked at Kuro.
Then the white aura.
Then understood.
Not evolution.
Not enlightenment.
Not some grand technique.
Just—
resource management.
Kuro scratched his cheek.
"I don't really understand the science."
Concrete shattered as Kirishima burst through again.
"But if using ten makes me tired…"
Kuro caught Kirishima.
Spun.
"…and using one works…"
Release.
"…why not use one?"
Rock Drill Shot.
Cementoss blocked again.
But slower this time.
Because for a brief second—
he smiled.
Simple.
Crude.
But—
good.
His eyes sharpened.
"…Excellent. Oftentimes, we overthink and harshly criticize ourselves to continue doing hard things when the answer is right in front of us. I'm glad you're...simplicity allows you to avoid that."
The city trembled.
Concrete rose.
The pressure increased.
Then—
Cementoss looked directly at them.
"In that case…"
The entire battlefield shifted.
"…show me whether your growth survives adaptation, this is an exam after all."
And suddenly—
the city stopped being a castle.
And became a maze.
...
Cementoss had already made his decision.
The fortress strategy had failed.
Attrition had failed.
Containment had failed.
And now—
He would target the structure of their teamwork itself.
Because that was the weakness.
Not Kuro.
Not Kirishima.
The connection.
Kirishima could not fly.
Kuro's mobility and pressure depended on maintaining range.
Separate them—
and their offence collapsed.
Simple.
Elegant.
Teacher-like.
Observation deck—
Aizawa nodded slightly.
Good adjustment.
He wasn't trying to overpower them.
He was trying to teach.
Back below—
The city changed.
Walls no longer existed to stop movement.
They redirected movement.
Roads folded.
Buildings shifted.
Entire sections of terrain were moved to isolate.
Channels.
Forced routes.
Dead angles.
Then—
impact.
Kuro barely crossed his arms before—
BAM.
A gigantic cement fist slammed directly into his side.
The force launched him sideways through a building façade.
Concrete exploded outward.
Kuro rolled.
Skidded.
Stopped.
White ki flickered.
His nose bled immediately.
Silence.
Then—
Kuro looked up.
Eyes bright.
"Awesome!"
Observation deck.
Aizawa closed his eyes.
Of course.
Cementoss stood atop a moving pillar.
No longer hidden.
No longer defensive.
Multiple enormous cement arms floated around him.
Not fixed.
Flexible.
Changing shape constantly.
The castle had become—
a body.
His slow movement compensated.
His close-range weakness was covered.
He calmly looked down.
"If direct pressure succeeds…"
A cement arm swung.
Kuro dodged.
"…then I will adapt."
Another fist.
Another.
Another.
No wasted movement.
Not aggression.
Pressure.
Cementoss raised a hand.
The ground erupted beneath Kirishima.
A massive wall separated them.
Kirishima punched through—
Only three more walls to emerge.
Another hand intercepted him.
Another redirected him.
Not attacking.
Moving.
Separating.
Kuro immediately noticed.
His eyes widened slightly.
Ah.
That was the target.
Distance.
Kuro narrowly avoided another fist.
"Kirishima!"
A wall rose.
No response.
Another.
Then—
through concrete—
"BRO!"
Kuro blinked.
Kirishima's voice came muffled.
"…I THINK WE'RE IN PHASE TWO!"
Kuro nodded seriously.
"Yeah."
Another fist.
Dodge.
"According to the game wiki…"
Side-step.
"…this is definitely his second form."
Punch.
Dodge.
"We just need to adapt."
Observation deck.
Aizawa stared.
Present Mic leaned forward.
"…Game wiki?"
Cementoss paused.
Then sighed internally.
Kirishima burst through another wall.
Covered in dust.
Pointed dramatically.
"I GOT IT!"
Cementoss prepared himself.
Perhaps a strategy.
Perhaps realization.
Kirishima clenched his fist.
"When the boss enters phase two—"
He pointed at Kuro.
"YOU HIT HARDER!"
Observation deck.
Silence.
Aizawa slowly pinched the bridge of his nose.[1]
All Might laughed loudly.
Bakugo looked offended.
Todoroki quietly nodded.
Reasonable.
Back below—
Kuro looked surprised.
Then—
understanding.
His eyes lit up.
"Oh."
He nodded.
"That makes sense."
Cementoss blinked.
Wait.
Kuro looked excited.
"You distract."
He pointed at himself.
"I attack."
Kirishima pointed back.
"Like before."
Cementoss paused.
That…
That was not adapting.
That was literally the same plan.
Kuro smiled.
"Good idea."
From somewhere beyond this battlefield, you could hear "THAT'S NOT A NEW STRATEGY!" being yelled; sadly, we don't care.
Too late.
Kuro moved.
White ki surged.
Not stronger—
faster.
Controlled.
Kirishima immediately charged.
Not toward Cementoss.
Toward the nearest wall.
He smashed it.
Then another.
Then another.
No concern for direction.
No concern for damage.
Just—
maximum noise.
Maximum presence.
Cementoss immediately reacted.
Concrete hands moved.
One intercepted.
Two restrained.
Three redirected.
Kirishima willingly engaged.
Meanwhile—
Kuro disappeared.
Not literally.
But his movements had changed.
No explosions.
No visible bursts.
Just—
quiet acceleration.
Cementoss immediately realized.
His eyes widened.
Distraction.
Actual distraction.
Kirishima wasn't trying to reach him.
He was occupying processing.
Cementoss smiled faintly.
"…I see."
Simple.
Again.
Very simple.
But functional.
Then—
His senses picked something up.
Above.
He looked.
Kuro.
Floating.
Hands together.
White ki concentrated.
Not massive.
Compressed into his fingers. Heavenly Arrow.
Kuro smiled.
Called downward—
"Teacher!"
Cementoss looked up.
Kuro pointed.
"If this is phase two…"
White light flickered.
"…then bosses usually have a weak spot!"
Cementoss immediately moved.
But—
Kirishima grabbed the nearest cement hand.
Planted his feet and charged right at Cementoss
And yelled—
"!"
Cementoss stared.
Then laughed quietly.
Just once.
Because somehow—
this ridiculous strategy—
actually made sense.
And Kuro dropped.
______________________________________________________________________________________
[Auther: Potential Unleashed was taught to Gohan by a Kai...and you can't have me believe that Zamasu doesn't have it, considering he was literally a candidate. Heavenly Arrow is one of Future Zamasu's moves and is just Vegeta's Ki blast spam, but it doesn't mean instant defeat.
[1] "The Higurama thing? Yeah, just put that for me."