"What's wrong, Etsuha?"
Tsuyu Asui glanced at him curiously from beside him.
"It just feels like this place is a bit familiar…" Shina Etsuha replied with a faint smile, offering no further explanation.
Telling everyone about the League of Villains' impending attack now might cause them to abandon their plans—and explaining how he knew would be even more troublesome. Besides, for Etsuha, their attacks weren't entirely a bad thing. Every time they made a move, his reputation spread further, feeding back into his strength. In a way, the enemy alliance had unknowingly been helping him grow.
"I see…"
Tsuyu blinked but didn't dwell on it.
Denki Kaminari, however, looked visibly uneasy at the mention of "rescue."
"Rescue training sounds… kind of awful this time…"
His quirk allowed him to release up to 1.3 million volts in a single burst—but it was indiscriminate. Using it in a rescue scenario could easily harm the very people he was trying to save. Worse still, overuse would leave him temporarily brain-fried, which only added to his anxiety.
"What are you scared of? Rescue is a hero's job—I'm fired up!"
Eijiro Kirishima clenched his fist, brimming with enthusiasm.
"If there's flooding, that'll be my specialty," Tsuyu added calmly.
At that moment, Shota Aizawa spoke again, his tone flat but authoritative:
"Hey, I'm not done yet. This time, you can choose your outfits freely. Some gear might restrict your movement depending on the situation."
He used a remote to activate the mechanical wardrobe embedded in the wall. Rows of compartments slid open, each labeled with a student's name and containing their gear.
"Oh! We can pick our outfits ourselves!"
The class buzzed with excitement.
"This training site is a bit far. We'll be taking a bus," Aizawa continued. "Get ready."
In truth, there weren't many options—just their gym uniforms or combat suits. Etsuha chose his combat suit without hesitation. At the same time, he pulled a small pocket manga from his bag, flipped through it briefly, and slipped it into his pocket.
These pocket-sized comics were designed for portability. For Etsuha, this USJ training was anything but ordinary. If things escalated beyond expectations, he could extract a new ability from the manga as a last resort—a hidden trump card he always kept prepared.
"Etsuha!"
Momo Yaoyorozu called out softly as she hurried over. "The manga I've been working on—it's much more detailed now!"
"Really?" Etsuha raised a brow in surprise. Her progress had exceeded his expectations.
"Yeah!" She nodded, handing him a draft copy of Naruto. "I made this myself… though the storyboarding still needs work."
As his assistant, Yaoyorozu already had access to the outline. Etsuha flipped through the pages—and was genuinely impressed. The art style closely mirrored his own, and even the dialogue flowed naturally.
"This is incredible. You've come a long way," he said.
"That's thanks to your guidance…" she replied, blushing faintly.
"What's this? Are you two hiding something?" Kaminari squeezed in, peering over Etsuha's shoulder. His eyes widened. "Wait—isn't this Naruto? And this looks like unreleased content… Are you a fan or something?"
Etsuha rarely spent time at school, so while many knew he drew manga, few knew what he worked on.
"This is the original manuscript," Etsuha said with a smile. "I'm the author. Momo handles a lot of the work now."
"Eh?!"
Kaminari froze, staring at him in disbelief.
"You mean… the Naruto that's blowing up online… was made by you? And you're in my class?!"
For someone like Kaminari, this was like discovering his idol had been sitting next to him all along.
"Wait…"
A realization struck him. His expression shifted.
"There's an ability in Naruto called the Sharingan… red eyes, special patterns…" He swallowed. "Didn't you use something like that during the boss fight?"
Etsuha raised an eyebrow.
"And the ice powers… they match too!" Kaminari's voice trembled slightly. "Etsuha… could it be that your manga is based on your own abilities?"
Etsuha hadn't expected that leap of logic. He paused for a moment, then nodded lightly.
"…Something like that."
Even if people figured it out, it didn't matter much anymore. He was strong enough to protect himself.
"I knew it!" Kaminari slapped his thigh triumphantly, wearing an expression of complete satisfaction.
"Everyone, line up and board the bus!"
Tenya Iida called out, organizing the class.
Although Izuku Midoriya had initially been voted class representative, he quickly realized the role didn't suit him and handed the responsibility over to Iida.