Orudera Junior High.
Katsuki Bakugo sat at his desk, his face still mapped with fading bruises, radiating an aura of pure irritation.
His two usual lackeys—the ones who had abandoned him and bolted like frightened rabbits under the shadow of Wu Xuan's violence the previous weekend—didn't dare breathe in his direction. They remained glued to their seats, silent and invisible.
Even after the final bell rang, the seat belonging to Wu Xuan remained empty.
A strange, heavy tension hung over the classroom, making everyone feel as though they were sitting in a room filled with gas, waiting for a spark. Wu Xuan had been suspended as punishment, but he hadn't been expelled. If he played his cards right, the suspension could be lifted within the year.
Had he just given up?
Izuku Midoriya stared at the empty desk, his emotions a tangled mess. To be honest, he knew Wu Xuan hadn't acted out of a heroic desire to "save" him last weekend—it was more like he'd swatted a fly that happened to be bothering him. Still, Midoriya wanted to thank him.
It would be a tragedy if someone with such an overwhelming Quirk threw away their future like this. Midoriya, the Quirkless boy, bit his lip. He felt a swirling cocktail of envy, regret, and a strange sort of resentment on Wu Xuan's behalf.
A week passed. Seven days, and not a single sign of Wu Xuan.
This led Midoriya and Bakugo to the same conclusion: the guy had quit. But neither of them believed for a second that he was staying away out of fear of Bakugo. There had to be another reason.
That same weekend.
Outside a testing hall at U.A. High School.
Present Mic was currently blasting his voice at a group of several dozen students, all of whom had candidate numbers pinned to their chests. "OK! OK! Listen up, listeners! All forty-two recommended candidates are present and accounted for! In a moment, you'll head inside for the written portion, followed by the physical fitness test on the grounds, and finally, the interview!"
Mic held up four fingers, his grin wide. "Pay attention now! Out of all of you, only four will actually earn a spot in the Hero Course!"
"An exam..."
Wu Xuan, wearing the number "42" on his jacket, looked like he was being forced to undergo root canal surgery. His face practically screamed, I hate tests.
Since arriving in this world, he had poured every ounce of his soul into tempering his body and evolving his Stand. He hadn't touched a textbook in years and hated studying even more than he had in his previous life.
Whatever. If I fail, I fail, Wu Xuan thought dangerously. Maybe becoming a Villain would be more fun anyway.
"Excuse me... are you Wu-kun?"
A soft, feminine voice pulled him from his dark ruminations. Wu Xuan looked up and was immediately greeted by a very prominent... presence.
It was the girl with the high ponytail he'd seen the previous week.
"Your name... I remember it was..." Wu Xuan searched his memory. "Eight million?"
"My name is Momo Yaoyorozu. It's a pleasure to see you again."
The girl, who looked like she possessed a maturity far beyond her fifteen years, offered her hand. Wu Xuan took it briefly. Her skin was soft—far more delicate than the girls he'd been with recently.
He released her hand quickly and said with zero shame, "Hey, Yaoyorozu. Let me copy your answers later."
Momo stared at him, her eyes wide with shock. She clearly hadn't expected such a blunt, unethical request. Her expression immediately shifted to one of stern disapproval as she shook her head.
"Wu-kun, how can you even think such a thing? You'll never become an outstanding Hero with that attitude."
"Wow, you're a serious one. Careful, girls like that aren't very popular," Wu Xuan chuckled as he turned toward the classroom. He added a quiet thought to himself: But you're definitely well-endowed.
Momo Yaoyorozu frowned, clearly displeased with his cavalier attitude, but she followed him inside. She was genuinely surprised to see him here. She knew he was strong, but his demeanor was the polar opposite of what she imagined a "Hero-in-training" should be.
The papers were distributed.
Wu Xuan scanned the questions and felt an immediate headache. Most of the subjects were standard: English, Japanese, Math, Physics. Then there were the Hero-specific questions: What is the first step in victim triage? How do you engage an enemy significantly stronger than yourself?
Wu Xuan scribbled his name and recommendation number, then proceeded to "answer" the test:
For every multiple-choice question, he bubbled in 'C'.
For True/False, every single answer was 'False'.
For the short-answer questions, he simply copied the first half of the prompt and added some nonsensical filler to take up space.
He dropped his pen and walked out of the hall in less than fifteen minutes.
"That guy..."
"Is he serious? He finished already?"
"No way. Is his Quirk some kind of hyper-intelligence?"
The other candidates, most of whom hadn't even finished the first page, watched him leave in a daze.
To Wu Xuan's left, a boy with split white-and-red hair and a distinctive burn scar over his eye glanced at Wu Xuan's desk as he passed. The paper was almost entirely blank.
What is he thinking? Shoto Todoroki wondered briefly before turning back to his own flawlessly completed work.
Present Mic, acting as proctor, walked over out of sheer curiosity. When he picked up Wu Xuan's paper, he nearly choked on his own breath. His expression darkened as he stacked the "completed" exam on the podium.
This kid, Mic thought, is a total freak.