"It's Masata! We meet again!"
Two small tiger-like canine teeth showed as Himiko Toga smiled brightly. Because of her excitement, her cheeks were even slightly flushed.
Masata pretended not to notice her at all. He stared intently at Aizawa-sensei on the podium, as if Aizawa's face contained the secrets of the universe.
Just kidding.
Yaoyorozu was staring at him the entire time. If he responded now, he'd basically be signing his own death warrant.
"…Hm."
Himiko puffed out her cheeks when she didn't get a response. They swelled like two little buns, making her look unexpectedly cute—so cute that someone might want to pinch them.
"Damn it, the new girl is so cute! I'm so jealous!" Mineta muttered from the front row, his eyes practically burning with envy.
"Give it up," Kaminari said mercilessly. "Even if she didn't know Masata, there's no way she'd go for you."
"Why?! Why can't I be loved by girls?! Kaminari, answer me!"
Mineta grabbed Kaminari's shoulders and shook him violently, nearly turning his head into a blur.
Sero, watching from the side, added casually, "Most girls like guys taller than them. That's common sense."
Critical hit.
Mineta froze, then collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
"My life is over!!!"
Lately, that had become his catchphrase. At only 108 centimeters tall, could he really find a girl shorter than himself?
Meanwhile, behind Masata—
"Don't even think about getting close to him."
Yaoyorozu leaned slightly toward Himiko, her eyes sharp like a cat guarding its territory. She still hadn't forgotten the forest incident.
"Hm~"
Himiko didn't seem bothered at all. She simply rested her chin on her desk and stared at Masata's back, her legs swinging idly beneath her chair. She looked like someone waiting to be coaxed.
What is this?!
Yaoyorozu's mood plummeted.
It felt like a green warning flag was waving right above her head.
"Masata~ Masata~"
Himiko reached forward, poking Masata's back repeatedly with her slender fingers. She even scratched lightly at his shirt, sending a strange tingling sensation up his spine.
"My dorm room is right across from yours," she whispered cheerfully. "Come visit me tonight~ I have all kinds of knives in my room!"
What kind of invitation is that?!
The first half sounded tempting. The second half sounded like a murder scene waiting to happen.
Cold sweat formed on Masata's forehead.
What do you do when a slightly unhinged girl fixates on you? Asking for help. Urgent.
Unfortunately, Yaoyorozu had reached her limit.
"Huh? Who do you think you are?"
Her voice grew louder. "Toga… I remember you! You're the one who tied me up!"
A visible anger mark appeared on Yaoyorozu's forehead.
Is that really the main issue here?!
Masata, caught between the two, wisely chose silence. At times like this, saying nothing was the best survival strategy.
"Enough whispering!" Aizawa's voice cut sharply through the classroom. "Put on your combat uniforms and gather at Gamma Training Ground! Toga, you'll participate as well. You've fallen behind."
A dark aura radiated from him, instantly silencing the room.
"Hah… saved."
Masata mentally thanked Aizawa for the timely rescue.
On the way to the training ground, Masata stayed close to Yaoyorozu, constantly reassuring her.
"She's just an overenthusiastic fan."
"My mom already treats you like family."
"You're the only one I care about."
Bit by bit, Yaoyorozu's mood softened. A faint sweetness replaced her earlier anger.
"Family, huh? That sounds like an arranged marriage," she muttered, though the smile she tried to hide betrayed her happiness.
When they reached Gamma Training Ground, Masata stood off to the side, looking slightly uninterested.
Developing an ultimate move?
He already had plenty.
"Great Eruption," "Hellhound," "Lava Burst Fist"—each one was already a top-tier technique that scaled with his strength. "Meteor Volcano" and "Volcanic Eruption" could reshape entire landscapes. And then there was "Flaming Susanoo," capable of sweeping through enemies alone.
Oh—and he'd recently awakened Conqueror's Haki.
Maybe he could refine that further.
However—
"In consideration of your current strength, Igarashi," Aizawa said flatly, "you will serve as a temporary instructor during this training session. Helping your classmates develop their ultimate moves is part of your responsibility as class leader."
Masata blinked.
"Since when did class leader responsibilities include being a substitute teacher?!"
Aizawa ignored him.
Given Masata's destructive capabilities, letting him freely experiment here might level half the facility anyway. This solution was safer.
The training quickly began.
Cementoss constructed specialized terrain for different students.
Ectoplasm created clones to test combat ideas.
Midnight oversaw evaluation and refinement.
And Masata, reluctantly promoted to assistant instructor, walked among his classmates offering suggestions.
Watching everyone throw themselves passionately into training, Masata's lips curved upward.
"This might actually be pretty interesting."