Shina Etsuha didn't really care about the so-called "event," but he was still a little curious.
"Are all the people here already? Where?"
"They're near the second-year Hero Course building," Aizawa Shouta replied. "The purpose of this event is mainly to let you see the strength of the upperclassmen in advance—so you don't get overwhelmed later."
"Wait… second-years?" Etsuha immediately caught onto something. "What about the first-years?"
After all, they hadn't officially enrolled yet. That meant the current first-years would become second-years in the future, while the current second-years were the same age group as the famous "U.A. Big Three," led by Mirio Togata.
And that senior—Mirio Togata—was undeniably powerful. In the original story, he was even called the closest person to All Might. That alone spoke volumes about how highly others regarded his strength.
"First-years? Oh, if you mean the Hero Course—my class was expelled," Aizawa Shouta said casually.
"All expelled…?"
Etsuha repeated those words in his mind. Now that he thought about it, Aizawa had mentioned something like that before. He had assumed it was a joke… but apparently, it was real.
What a ruthless teacher…
"For students who aren't suited to it, expulsion is the best form of protection," Aizawa Shouta said, as if reading Etsuha's thoughts. "Being a Hero isn't some easy, comfortable path. Even you—if your performance isn't up to standard—I'll expel you without hesitation."
"I see." Etsuha smiled faintly.
Aizawa's reasoning wasn't wrong. Failing to study properly was one thing—but becoming a Hero and making a single mistake could cost lives. In that sense, expelling someone before they reached that point could actually be the right decision.
Their conversation didn't last long. Under Aizawa Shouta's lead, Etsuha soon arrived at the second-year classroom.
There were only a handful of students present. Aside from the two recommended students, the rest were unfamiliar faces—background figures who didn't seem particularly noteworthy.
"The Big Three aren't here?" Etsuha muttered in mild surprise.
But he quickly spotted someone he did recognize and walked over.
Yaoyorozu Momo, seated in the corner.
She noticed him almost immediately and waved enthusiastically.
"Etsuha! Over here!"
Etsuha sat beside her, and the two of them quickly fell into a discussion about manga.
"Can your quirk create comics?" Etsuha asked.
"Can I use my quirk to create comics?" Yaoyorozu Momo echoed thoughtfully.
Hiss—
At first, the nearby students had been quiet. But once they overheard the topic, confusion spread among them, and whispers began circulating.
"What? He's coming to U.A. and still wants to draw comics? I don't get this guy…"
"Shh! That's Shina Etsuha. If he hears you, you're dead."
"Yeah right. No way I'd lose to some kid who hasn't even started first year yet… Well, okay—maybe he could beat me to death with a hockey puck…"
"But still… going to U.A. and drawing manga? That's unheard of. Kind of enviable, though. He must really love it."
"…"
There weren't many second-years left, but they had already formed their own little circles. The three recommended students were subtly being excluded.
Not far away, Gojima Ryōzō sat quietly in the corner, reading a book. Unlike the others, he showed no interest in joining any group.
Etsuha and Yaoyorozu Momo exchanged surprised glances. Even Etsuha hadn't expected their ideas to align so perfectly.
"Um…" Etsuha began.
At the same time, Yaoyorozu Momo also opened her mouth to speak.
They both froze for a moment—then burst into laughter.
"You go first," Etsuha said with a smile.
"Alright." Yaoyorozu Momo nodded. "I wanted to try making manga with my quirk because I realized it might help me improve my control. But the results I got on my own weren't very good… There were a lot of flaws. I was planning to keep working on it myself, but then I happened to see your assistant recruitment post online, so I decided to give it a try. I just didn't expect it to be you."
Hearing her explanation, Etsuha was momentarily stunned.
Her quirk could indeed be used to create manga—but the problem was detail. She could produce rough outlines and basic shapes, but recreating fine details and text was far more difficult.
Still, she had discovered that the more complex the manga she tried to create, the more precisely she had to control her quirk. That was why she chose this method as a form of training.
For Etsuha, her reasoning didn't matter much.
What mattered was that their goals aligned perfectly.
There was no reason to refuse.
"Of course," he said with a nod and a smile. "I look forward to working with you."