Chapter 9: Prelude to U.A. High School
Time passed quickly.
Before Akio Tatsuma realized it, the day before the U.A. High School entrance exam had arrived.
Over the past seven or eight months, Akio had trained relentlessly while continuing to help people whenever the opportunity appeared.
Because of that, his Rescue Points had steadily increased.
He was now approaching 1,000 points.
However, Akio had deliberately avoided spending them.
Not because he forgot—
But because he had discovered something interesting inside the Rescue System.
There was a shop.
The shop offered various items: food, equipment, medicine, clothing, and more.
Two items in particular caught Akio's attention.
A specialized spear weapon.
And a multi-functional combat outfit.
Together, they cost 1,000 Rescue Points.
So Akio had been saving every point carefully.
During these months, Sakura Inoue had been making lunch for him almost every day.
At first, Akio's reason for working part-time at the convenience store had indeed been influenced by her.
But that had gradually changed.
Now he genuinely treated Sakura like family.
When he looked at her, he could see the sincere care in her eyes.
It wasn't the way someone looked at a coworker.
It was closer to the way someone cared for a younger sibling.
Because of that, Akio treated her with equal sincerity.
Every month, he used part of his earnings to buy cakes for her.
Sakura loved them.
Whenever he had free time, Akio often visited Takoba Municipal Beach Park.
Not to train.
But to observe someone.
Izuku Midoriya.
All Might was usually there supervising him.
Because of that, Akio never approached too closely.
Powerful people had sharp instincts.
Even from a distance, Akio could clearly see Midoriya's determination.
Every day was filled with sweat.
Every day was filled with effort.
Akio remembered the words that had ignited Midoriya's heart.
"You may be Quirkless… but you're more heroic than anyone here."
Those words had given Midoriya the recognition he desperately wanted.
From that moment forward, Midoriya trained harder than anyone else.
If ordinary people trained ten times—
Midoriya trained a hundred.
Or a thousand.
Watching him work so relentlessly moved Akio more than once.
Because of that, Akio also began training every morning on the rooftop of his apartment building.
The first time he went there, however, he noticed something strange.
A large stain of dried blood.
He never discovered who it belonged to.
Later, he heard rumors about someone dying nearby.
But the details were suppressed.
In this world, people died every day.
And every day, new lives were born.
Akio couldn't control everything.
All he wanted was to live well, continue training, and protect the small circle of people around him.
The next morning.
Sakura Inoue carefully packed Akio's bag.
"Today is important," she said seriously. "You can't be careless."
Akio nodded.
Sakura continued,
"I failed the U.A. entrance exam when I was younger. That regret never disappeared."
She looked at him with determined eyes.
"So this time, you'll succeed."
Before she could react, Akio suddenly gave her a quick hug.
Then he ran out the door.
"Hey—!"
Sakura blinked.
By the time she recovered, he was already far down the street.
"That kid…"
She laughed quietly.
But she looked happy.
U.A. High School was located in a relatively remote area.
Almost the entire surrounding district belonged to the academy.
As Akio approached, he noticed the massive crowd.
There were far more students than he expected.
Every year, the U.A. entrance exam attracted enormous competition.
Looking at the massive front gate, Akio felt a surge of excitement.
The building stood like a mountain.
Solid.
Immovable.
In his previous life, he had never seen anything this grand.
Students crowded near the entrance.
When the gates opened, everyone rushed inside.
Akio simply walked in calmly.
There was no reason to hurry.
After all, they still had to listen to Present Mic's opening speech.
"Akio?"
A familiar voice called out.
Akio turned around.
Standing nearby was Tsuyu Asui, smiling.
"Oh, Tsuyu," Akio said with a grin. "Right on time."
He walked over and gently patted her head.
Tsuyu looked slightly embarrassed.
"Let's go in," she said. "We both need to do our best today."
"I'm sure you'll pass," Akio replied.
They entered the school building together.
Nearly a thousand students had arrived for the exam.
And that didn't even include applicants taking the test in other cities.
In such a massive crowd, it was impossible to spot everyone clearly.
Akio could only see endless rows of heads as people filled the classrooms to listen to instructions.
Suddenly—
Something soft brushed against his arm.
Akio turned his head.
And froze.
Momo Yaoyorozu.
The girl he had admired since seeing the anime.
And just now—
His arm had accidentally bumped into her chest.
Akio's mind went completely blank.
Yaoyorozu frowned slightly, clearly feeling something unusual.
But the crowd was so packed that it was impossible to tell who caused it.
People kept shifting positions.
Akio silently thanked his luck.
Still—
A chill ran down his spine.
He didn't dare look back again.
If Yaoyorozu discovered what had happened, the situation would become extremely awkward.
At best, she would ignore him forever.
At worst…
He didn't even want to imagine it.
Then—
Akio noticed Tsuyu watching him quietly.
His heart sank.
She saw that.
Akio silently prayed she wouldn't say anything.
At that moment—
A loud voice echoed across the room.
"HELLOOOO, LISTENERS!"
"WELCOME TO MY LIVE SHOW TODAY!"
Present Mic stood at the front of the room, striking a dramatic pose.
"Everybody say—HEY!"
He cupped his ear dramatically.
A few seconds passed.
No one responded.
Present Mic sighed.
"…Man, you guys are boring."
Akio couldn't help smiling.
Present Mic was exactly the same as in the anime.
Some people might have shouted back just to stand out.
But Akio had no intention of doing that.
Strength mattered more than attention.
As the saying went—
Small wisdom hides in the countryside.
Great wisdom hides in the city.
For now, Akio preferred to remain unnoticed.
Present Mic continued explaining the exam rules.
Akio only listened halfway.
He already knew most of it.
Looking around the room, he spotted several familiar faces.
Eijiro Kirishima.
Denki Kaminari.
Mashirao Ojiro.
Mezo Shoji.
And even Toru Hagakure—though technically she was invisible.
Seeing these characters in reality was surprisingly interesting.
Everyone looked incredibly polished.
Their skin was either very fair or deeply tanned, but completely smooth.
They almost looked like living anime characters.
Then someone suddenly stood up.
A serious voice spoke.
"Excuse me, I have a question."
It was Tenya Iida.
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