Chapter 16 - A Mildly Troubled Sword
When Shirou arrived at the apartment complex, he was tired.
Not physically – he admittedly hadn't given his all to the indoor training exercise – but just a tad bit mentally exhausted.
Once the class had ended, everyone was sent back to their respective classes. On the way, Monoma Neito lamented the fact that he couldn't use more of his potential – namely using two quirks in an alternating fashion.
If Monoma had been in a battle with people with stronger quirks, then he'd be an insurmountable threat that needed to be addressed.
However, that aspect of Monoma wasn't what Shirou thought of as 'a threat'.
It was the fact that Monoma could have proven right then and there that his 'quirk' was not a quirk. The fact that he was ignored by the pale blond, in favor of his admittedly more physically threatening allies, was a welcome relief.
However, as Shirou had sat down and listened to Kirishima retelling the prior-to-battle discussion he had with his team to their classmates. He learned that the copy-cat's decision stemmed from Yaoyorozu, who explained that their 'quirks' were similar enough that it would be detrimental to copy it.
He was technically in Yaoyorozu's debt. Shirou had dodged a bullet in more ways than one during that exercise.
Although it didn't stop the subtle anxiety he felt whenever he was near the copy quirk user. He just needed to avoid touching him as usual, which would be easy considering they were in different classes.
After that, nothing else notable happened… save for Yaoyorozu asking to be taught in close quarter combat– specifically with weaponry.
Honestly, Shirou didn't mind the idea. If it helped his classmate get better in combat – to help her survive any future battle that their future occupation could bring them into – then it was a worthy investment that even Saber would agree with.
The insistent teasing he got from his small circle of friends was somewhat irksome though, in spite of that he didn't regret that particular choice.
He had chosen to walk home alone this time, mostly because everyone else had been too busy. Jiro deciding to hang out with the other female classmates and Sato having to help his family bakery.
He didn't know what Kodai was doing, but he didn't really want to bother her with anything. He shouldn't bother anyone with anything.
Shirou grabbed a spare key Yu had given him and opened the door to Yu's apartment–
"Shirou!"
It took a second to realize that the voice came from behind him.
Yu?
Shirou blinked and turned to face the sudden appearance of his adoptive mother, sweating and panting.
Did she run up the flight of stairs? The building had an elevator, why would she even… Shirou shrugged the thought process and simply gazed at her in concern.
"Yu? Are you alright?" Shirou asked.
Yu panted for just a short second longer before nodding. "Yeah, all good! Just a little winded that's all!"
Shirou sighed with a small smile and turned the knob. "Get in and take a bath," He basically ordered, ignoring the fact that he was the one adopted, "You're sweating so it'll ruin the smell of dinner. Why did you even run in the first place? There's an elevator."
"I used the elevator," Yu informed,
She did?
"I'm just tired from running all the way here, that's all."
Shirou narrowed his eyes as he stepped inside, "Why would you be running? A taxi would be more efficient if you were far away."
Yu wasn't wearing her costume either so that meant he could cross out 'work' as a reason for her exhaustion.
"I just… lost track of time," Yu admitted as she entered and took off her shoes. "I was supposed to be home earlier and cook us up some grub, but I guess that's not an option now is it?"
Shirou gave her a wry smile. "I'll prepare something quick so don't take too long in the bath."
Yu gave a nod paired with a rough pinch of his cheek, much to his chagrin.
"Look at you, getting all bossy~"
"Someone has to," Shirou pointed out, "Otherwise you'd probably change into a shirt and lay down on the sofa."
This was true, during the months that he had been adopted, Yu had – on countless occasions – rested on the sofa after a hard day's work. It annoyed him to clean the sofa every time she did it.
Half an hour later, Yu stepped out of her room fully clothed and took a gingerly seat on the dining table.
Although, she had a somewhat saddened expression on her face. "I really wanted to cook us dinner today…"
"You should have come home earlier then," Shirou reminded as he set the plates down.
He had cooked a light and quick dinner consisting of mashed potatoes mixed with grated cheese, standard quick and easy rice, and a quick meatloaf made from Yu's beef leftovers from yesterday.
Yu's leftovers, not Shirou's. Meaning what she cooked. Salted far too much so it tasted wrong.
Luckily time had diluted it so grinding the beef with a store bought meat grinder didn't take Shirou much time. Adding a bit of pepper before frying it with butter for savoriness was a quick and easy addition.
Yu pondered his reminder and nodded somewhat. "Yeah that's true, but then Shinji would have been lonely without me there…"
Shirou momentarily had his thoughts recalling a certain purple-seaweed haired Matou. He reminded himself that he was in a different world entirely and that Sakura's sibling was not who Yu was referring to.
Yu saw his confusion. "Oh right, you don't know his real name. When I said Shinji, I meant Kamui Woods. Remember the wood guy from the newbie meet months ago? Yeah, that's him."
Shirou could certainly recall the man from before. He had mainly worn a blue bodysuit with a wooden helmet and other wooden armaments that he could create.
"I remember him," Shirou replied, before sending Yu a quick glare "But wasn't he the one you 'falsely' apologized to?"
Yu nervously chuckled at that. "It's in the past! We're good friends now, we even talked for a while!"
Shirou took a gamble with his next words. "So you talked for so long that you had to run home late?"
Yu coughed awkwardly and looked away. "O-Of course not! I'm a professional, I wouldn't lose track of time like that!"
"I highly doubt that."
"Enough talk! It's time to eat!"
Shirou let himself chuckle as Yu started to chow down. Shirou took a portion and tasted. He could have used some more spices to counter the remaining excess saltiness, but it seemed that Yu didn't care and ate it anyway.
He didn't like to think about it, but the way Yu ate reminded Shirou of his guardian, Fujimura Taiga. They shared a similar demeanor, being loud and lazy adults. That alone was enough to remind Shirou of what he was leaving behind when he chose to stay in this world.
He had not once forgotten about them, his loved ones on the other side. How was Sakura fairing in the archery club? Was Taiga worrying about him?
… How was Rin?
Returning to his old world was something he wanted to do truthfully, but in doing so he would have endangered them. One of the few things that his adoptive father warned him about was the mages association.
If they had learned that he came back from a world with people who literally ignore some rules of magic, then he didn't even want to think about what a rogue magi would do to get here.
"Shirou?"
Shirou blinked away his thoughts.
"You okay there? You've been quiet for a while now."
He sent a small smile to Yu, "I'm fine, Yu. I was just reminiscing…"
"… about your past?"
Shirou's smile faded into a small frown as he realized his blunder. He had still yet to form a concrete way to explain his origins to her. That was an impossible venture though, so he shouldn't even try. He didn't want to be thrown into an asylum.
"I know that it hasn't been that long since I adopted you," Yu muttered softly, "but you know that you can trust me, right?"
Shirou let his small frown disappear and sighed wearily. "I know that Yu… It's just hard to bring up."
–Or think of a worthwhile explanation with no loopholes whatsoever.
"Whenever you're ready to tell Shirou, I'll listen. I promise I won't think of you differently." Yu comforted with a small smile.
Shirou hated the fact that somewhere within him, he doubted it.
Shirou yawned as he walked his way to school.
He had fallen asleep after the slight awkward event at dinner. It was partly Yu's decision and partly his, both of them were tired and had just wanted a good night's sleep.
Yu's slumber was deeper than his though, which meant he had awakened first and prepared breakfast for himself. He left some for her on the dining table wrapped in plastic for when she woke up, whenever that would be.
You'd think that a professional hero like Yu would wake up early to get a head start on all the villains, but she was still a person and was prone to fatigue. Rest was without a doubt needed.
Shirou's thoughts halted as he caught a glance of a familiar face.
Was that Monoma Neito?
He seemed to be walking stiffly on the sidewalk as he held his school bag tightly in his grasp. His eyes were downcast as he continually muttered something under his breath.
For some reason, Shirou felt that was an odd sight.
From what he knew of the Class-B student, he was snobbish and condescending with little restraint on bragging of his class– mainly by calling his own class names.
Shirou got the same feeling he got from the early Matou Shinji when they were still friends. It seemed like he had a lot to prove even though he was considered an honor student with grades reaching the nineties.
Shirou frowned slightly. He didn't forget what the Matou did to their shared classmates when he had the Rider servant under his control. It was a heinous act that Shirou condemned…
Yet, Shirou could not help but think that somehow, if he had noticed how he was acting or what struggles he was going through, could all of that have been avoided?
He didn't see what the Matou was struggling through before, he didn't want to make the same mistake twice.
Shirou steeled himself up and hastened his pace until he was standing closer to the copy-quirk user.
He should start with a greeting.
"Good morning, Monoma-san," Shirou called.
"What–!?"
It seemed that his greetings startled Monoma as he stumbled in his steps ever so slightly. He sent Shirou a glance and instantly frowned.
Shirou remembered Shinji doing something similar when they first met.
"Oh, it's just you." He muttered in slight disdain, "Come to gloat about your victory? I'll have you know that it was Kodai that beat me, not you."
There was that 'complex' of his again.
One day, Shirou would learn what that was all about.
"That wasn't my intention Monoma-san," Shirou defended himself, "You seemed a bit down so I wanted to see if you were alright."
He narrowed his eyes and took a step away. "Why should you care? We barely know each other."
Shirou simply blinked. "Is it wrong to want to help others?"
Monoma opened his mouth to reply but fell silent at Shirou's words. He turned away from him and hastily walked away.
"Just focus on your studies or something," Monoma replied as he turned away Shirou's supposed help. "We're in the most prestigious Hero Course this side of Japan, we don't have time to be focusing on other things."
He took further strides away from Shirou which made replying a nigh-impossible task. Although, when he left, Shirou did hear him muttering some words.
"… No wonder he's in Class-A…"
Shirou pondered on what that meant but for the life of him he couldn't figure it out.
"Don't stress over it, Emiya Shirou."
Shirou blinked and turned to face the student who suddenly appeared next to him. "Shinso-san?" Shirou muttered in mild surprise.
He didn't even hear his footsteps. Stealth was truly under Shinso's specialties.
Shirou then remembered that he replied to his words. He was glad that his circuits didn't rage out to expel the foreign presence again, which meant he hadn't used his quirk.
"Good morning, Emiya Shirou," Shinso replied. "Don't worry about him. Monoma is just going through some tough times right about now."
So was Shinji,
Shirou held his instinctive reply and simply nodded.
"He was right, though," Shinso continued, "You truly belong in Class-A."
There it was again.
Shirou frowned as he walked side by side with Shinso, "What do you mean by that?" He asked.
Shinso blinked in surprise, which was an odd sight in and of itself.
"You don't know?" He muttered, "That's surprising. I thought everyone knew about it."
Shirou rubbed the back of his head nervously, "I wasn't an outdoor kid."
"I suppose that's understandable…" Shinso muttered in consideration. "What Monoma meant by that, was that almost all the students who are in Class-A couldn't help but throw themselves in other people's business."
"Is that a bad thing?" Shirou asked.
If it was, he couldn't see it.
"It's not an inherently bad trait to have," Shinso continued, "But because of that trait, students from U.A's Class-A have often found themselves with a strong media presence. That means a lot for our shared future profession, right?"
Shirou frowned but nodded. He knew what increased media attention entailed.
Unlike the heroes that Shirou grew up watching, the professional heroes of today had their income solely generated by ratings and government endorsement. If they had media attention then becoming Heroes was almost an assured venture.
Not that Shirou cared about it, he was becoming a hero to save people. That's it.
"Can I ask you a question?" Shinso suddenly prompted.
"Yeah, go ahead Shinso-san."
"What was it like when you fought a villain?"
Shirou wanted to sigh. Shinso did mention that Uwabami told him about it. "Don't you already know?" Shirou asked.
"I have one side of the story but not the other. I like to have the full picture before giving out my judgment." Shinso replied. Given his quirk, he would probably always have the full picture. "So, how was it like?"
Shirou pondered for a bit before answering. "It's not an experience I want anyone to have."
Shinso narrowed his eyes, "Why?"
–He felt Bakuya slice into his side, Kanshou stabbed into his chest, and fragments of blades embedded into his body…
… and the nut shot.
"… It was a painful experience." Shirou admitted. "He was strong. If I had taken another direct hit then I could have died. He was also fast, it made dodging hard so I had to predict his movements instead. I was only saved from the help of Uwabami-san and the other Professional Heroes."
Yes… he would have died if it weren't for Yu. It was a debt he still felt that he needed to pay back even after all this time.
"Do you regret it then? Do you regret fighting the beast?"
Shirou shook his head, musing slightly from hearing Avenger's epithet. "If I did, then I would be regretting the act of saving Uwabami-san."
He wasn't Archer. He wouldn't regret saving others even on his deathbed.
Shinso smiled, genuinely so from the way his eyes closed. "Then I have to thank you, for saving Uwabami-sama."
"I don't really see the need to thank me," Shirou said, "It's what anyone else would have done." They were in a society of superheroes after all.
"… Somehow I doubt that." Shinso muttered. "Every passing second I can see why Uwabami-sama wanted to recommend you to U.A."
"Since we're asking questions so much," Shirou started, "Why do you refer to Uwabami-san like that? As 'Uwabami-sama'?"
Shinso fell silent but answered anyway. "You do know that with my quirk, it's impossible to get into U.A. normally?" True, it was hard to destroy robots with a mind control quirk, "Uwabami-sama gave me that chance, to prove that my quirk can be used to save lives."
He closed his eyes as he walked in pace.
"Do you know how we met? Uwabami-sama found me at night, using my quirk to make a mugger turn himself to the nearest police station." Shinso continued, surprising Shirou somewhat as it reminded him of how he first arrived in this world.
"No violence, nothing bad happened and nobody was hurt. The mugger was safely jailed. I got scolded for using my quirk but that's normal. She asked me to walk with her, saying it was a heroes duty to walk home a bystander… but that wasn't what she wanted to talk about."
"She asked me about what I wanted to be." He continued, "When I answered to become a hero, she gave me the recommendation instantly. I'm not sure if it was her best idea, but even so, I'm thankful for it. Because of that, I'm one step closer to my dream."
Shirou wanted to say something more, but it was sort of hard to do that after he poured his heart out. So he chose the middle ground and stayed silent.
The silence was only broken by the sudden appearance of a flashing camera.
"Hey, you two! What are your opinions on All Might's classes!?"
Surprisingly, both Shinso and Shirou sighed.
Shirou could see why Aizawa hated media attention.
He then realized he was in Class-A, which as Shinso had said, always had some sort of media attention.
He let out one more sigh.
"Good work on yesterday's combat training." Aizawa started from his desk in front of the students, "However, there were still things you all had to improve on."
Shirou sighed ever so slightly from his seat at the back. After he and Shinso had somehow evaded the whole brigade of media outlets, they managed to arrive in their respective classes without much issue.
Aizawa sent a glance to a certain pale blond student. "Bakugo, you're talented so don't act like a kid."
Another glance to a certain student. "… And Midoriya, you settled it by breaking your arm again…? You can't keep saying that you can't help it because you can't control your quirk."
Shirou couldn't see Midoriya from his seat but imagined the nervous kid to be somewhat frustrated. "I don't like saying the same thing over and over again. As long as you fix the control issue, there's a lot you'll be able to do. Feel a sense of urgency, Midoriya."
"Yes, sir!"
"Don't think I forgot about you, brat." Shirou stiffened ever so slightly at being called out. "I remember your asinine decision to try to deflect bullets. You're lucky that those weren't real bullets otherwise you'd be severely injured by now."
Shirou was vaguely reminded of the encounter. When compared to the King of Heroes' barrage of Noble Phantasms, it was supremely easier. However, after ignoring the fact that none of the bullets had even remotely hit his vitals, he could still see Aizawa's point.
He'll need to focus on tracing shields in his downtime in order to avoid that situation again.
"I understand that it was a split second decision, but it was still suicidal. Don't make the same mistake twice." Aizawa berated.
There was a lot for him to improve on – Shirou knew that – but he had time to improve. He had three years to improve his skills, plenty of time to learn.
Who knows? Maybe he could get some training from Archer if he was desperate enough.
"Now let's get down to homeroom business." Aizawa continued, "Sorry about the late notice, but today I'll have you all… decide on a class representative."
Again, Shirou felt like he missed some collective thought.
"We're already running late on this, Class-B have already chosen their representatives yesterday. Let's do this quickly and logically."
"I want to be class rep! Pick me!" Kirishima cried out.
"Me too!" Cried out a student, Kaminari Denki if Shirou remembered correctly–
"I want to do it, too!" Jiro declared.
"It's a job made for m–!"
"I'll be the leader!"
"My manifesto is for all girls' skirts to be thirty centimeters above the knee!"
There were just too many people crying out for Shirou to accurately declare what was going on. Actually, in general he just didn't know what was going on with his classmates.
"Let me do it! ME!"
Even Bakugo was screaming out. Shirou felt like there was something vital he was missing here.
Wasn't the class representative role about collecting everyone's assignments, getting everyone to stand and greet the teacher, and generally organizing the class for events?
Seriously, Shirou was missing something here.
"Silence please!"
Like a broken guitar chord, the rest of the class fell in line and focused on the speaker, Iida Tenya.
"It is a job with the serious responsibility of leading others. It is not a job for just anyone who wants to do it."
Shirou somewhat sighed in relief when the chaos around him disappeared. Finally, a voice of reason.
"It is a calling that requires the trust of those around you. If we want to use democracy to decide on a true leader, then we should hold an election to choose one."
Shirou considered the idea to be a fair one. If he was voting, then he already found someone to vote for. The class fell in line rather quickly, the choice was obvious.
He also reminded Shirou of Issei, who was a student council president. If there were parallels drawn in the sand then who was he to go against the flow?
After that, the class descended into a discussion– or rather a debate on if they should go through with the idea. The irony of it, was that nobody noticed how they all fell in line naturally to his voice.
Aizawa of course, didn't care and just hid himself away in his sleeping bag. This led everyone to go through with the voting idea.
All students tore out a piece of paper and wrote the name of who they wanted to vote for. Since there were twenty one students in the class, there was no way for there to be a draw in votes unless there were three people who were voted seven times.
It seems that everyone voted for themselves. The top two scores were Midoriya at three votes, and Yaoyorozu at two votes.
Shirou just realized that he was the only one who voted for him, even when it was the clear choice. Iida didn't even vote for himself.
"I got three points!?" Midoriya cried out in surprise.
"Why Deku!? Who voted for him!?"
"Well, it's better than voting for you." Sero replied.
"What did you say!? I'll break your spine!"
"… One person voted for me…?" Iida muttered in surprise. "That's honestly surprising. I swore I'd have zero votes…"
"You voted for someone else, didn't you?" Yaoyorozu declared from her seat in front of Shirou.
Aizawa sighed as he shuffled his sleeping bag into a sitting position. "The, the class rep is Midoriya and the deputy class rep will be Yaoyorozu."
Midoriya, stood in front of the class jittering in nervousness while Yaoyorozu simply sighed at the act. Shirou could see why, her job will be much harder if Midoriya didn't pull himself together.
Shirou was truly wondering if their class was going to be alright here?
Their class had ended and lunch break arrived.
Shirou stared at the restroom mirror as he remembered what happened immediately after class ended.
Yaoyorozu, who sat in front of him, asked him if he was still okay with the training idea. He replied that he was okay with the idea, which sent relief through her.
As it turns out, Yaoyorozu had managed to put in a reservation on one of the many gyms in U.A. The fifth gym, in particular, was on the way to their class, which meant that they spent less time on detours.
This all now meant that he had to think of a way to train Yaoyorozu, which he had no experience in. The only training he ever took part in was with Saber, and she would just smack him around until he improved.
Better save those thoughts for later.
Shirou walked out of the restroom and proceeded to walk his way into the cafeteria. Admittedly he had forgotten to make himself a lunch box, this meant that he now had to enter the cafeteria and grab some lunch.
He wasn't really a fan of modern cafeteria food. Back in Japan, most of it was cooked by the home economy club so he was at least guaranteed some delicacies.
Here though? He was sure that they hired a professional hero named Lunch Rush to do all the cooking – Shirou didn't know how that worked at all – but he was admittedly looking forward to the experience.
Perhaps he could learn some recipes? It's been a while since he learned anything new.
This was his first time entering the cafeteria, and it didn't really disappoint whatsoever. There were several rows and lines of chairs arranged in an orderly fashion, enough to fit a couple hundred students.
The kitchen was in plain view so the student body could see the dishes being cooked by the staff, directed by Lunch Rush. Above the kitchen were several more seats.
There were also labels that dictated what kinds of food each section of the kitchen was selling.
Yes, selling. Considering the number of students that the school had, it was a nice and easy way to make a sizable profit. The variety of dishes consisting of curry, katsudon, salmon, and surprisingly nearly everything you can find in a local Izakaya, which was an extreme luxury that U.A. afforded.
Shirou wouldn't be surprised to find U.A. playing host to some cafe's, he knew that some colleges did that. They'd get a share of the profit from the spending of the general, hero, support, and management courses.
"Hey, Emiya! Get your butt over here!"
That was Jiro's voice, she was standing in line with Sato and what appears to be Kaminari Denki. There was also Koda Koji, the one whose body was heavily changed much like Mezo Shoji, but those changes didn't seem to be related to his quirk. Perhaps it was hereditary?
"We saved you a spot!" Sato shouted in tandem, which caused some subtle grumbles to echo out from behind them.
He really did not want to be a nuisance to the once further back in the line, but at the same time, it was rude to decline.
Shirou sighed to himself and walked up to them, bowing in apology to those he passed by.
"Do you know what you want to order?" Kaminari asked, "Oh wait, we weren't introduced yet. I'm Kaminari Denki!"
Shirou already knew but returned the greeting. "Hello, I'm Emiya Shirou. It's nice to meet you."
"This is Koda Koji," Sato introduced, "He's a bit shy so I'm greeting for him."
"Hello," Shirou greeted. He didn't say his name because Koda had no doubt already heard.
"So, what're you ordering?" Kaminari asked again.
"I'll just have some katsudon," Shirou admitted.
"Me too!" Kaminari cheered, "Why is it that everyone else seems to want curry…?"
"Because curry tastes great, nothing like your bowl of turd." Jiro blurted out.
"Hey! At least it looks good, not like your brown paste."
Shirou watched the two banter back and forth with Sato trying to play peacekeeper, a smile on all of their faces.
It was peaceful, the atmosphere of their class. When Shirou was in Homurahara, he only had a few friends that he confided in. Here though? Since they all shared the aspiration of becoming heroes, he felt that he had more reason to share.
Once they had gotten their orders, they shuffled their way to a nearby table above the kitchen.
It was somewhat bare with almost nobody there, which made sense seeing as most of the students were at the center of the cafeteria where they saw free seats.
There was only one table lined up against the railings, it could easily fit all of them and then some.
"By the way Emiya," Jiro said as she interrupted Kaminari's tirade. "How did you do that bullet deflecting thing? I know Aizawa-sensei said that it was dumb but it looked cool!"
"Looks like we agree on one thing, finally!" Kaminari declared as he sat down, "It was wicked man! You got hit a few times but damn it was cool!"
"It wasn't really," Shirou denied, "Aizawa said it best, I could have approached that situation better. There were alternatives I didn't take. I still have much to improve on."
"'Aizawa' eh?" Jiro muttered, "You told me that you knew Aizawa-sensei before, but should you be referring to your sensei like that? The disciplinary committee might come after you for that."
"This school has a disciplinary committee!?"
"Of course they do! All schools have them, fuzz-brain!"
"I doubt they'd react to a small offense like that," Shirou interrupted them before they began to argue again. "Well, as long as I didn't do anything too bad, then it'll be fine." Shirou fell silent and then added something, "We're also in the hero course, so I'm pretty sure that if we commit an offense then we're out."
"Being late to classes has never been scarier…" Kaminari lamented.
Shirou was sure that Jiro was about to say something in a berating manner, but she was interrupted when a familiar voice cut through the atmosphere.
"Hey, Yui! Some seats are empty up here!" A voice called, dragging everyone's attention to the stairway behind them.
Shirou recognized a few of them. Kodai was there alongside Kendo Itsuka. In addition, there seemed to be Shinso trailing behind them with Monoma at his side, they seemed to be engaged in a vivid conversation.
That all ended when they took a seat in the only available spot. Directly adjacent to them.
To be fair, it ended the moment Monoma sent a condescending glare to the majority of their side of the seat.
Due to the fact that Shirou was sat next to Kodai, he heard her mumble about how stupid their current situation was. Shirou was in agreement.
"Um… should we leave?" Kendo asked with slight hesitation, "We seem to be bothering you guys."
Shirou shook his head, "No, it's fine. There aren't any more free seats anyway." A simple glance down at the cafeteria told him that.
"I-I see," Kendo replied somewhat awkwardly. She grew her hand out and smacked Monoma when he started to snicker at her.
"Since we're all in the hero course, I think we should introduce each other right?" Kendo suggested, "I doubt you guys remembered our names from the training exercise from yesterday."
"I'll start," She continued, "I'm Kendo Itsuka, the class representative of Class-B, nice to meet you."
"Kodai Yui, Class-B."
Seeing as no one was continuing, Shirou took the chance so that it wouldn't devolve into an awkward situation. "I'm Emiya Shirou from Class-A, nice to meet you."
Shinso sighed and nodded to himself, "Very well then. My name is Hitoshi Shinso from Class-B, it is nice to meet you all."
"Why're you introducing yourself to them, Shinso?" Monoma said with a hint of annoyance, "It's not like they care about us."
"It is the start of the year, Monoma." He berated, "They have done nothing. We are all aspiring heroes on a level playing field, we should learn to cooperate so that there will be no issues in the future."
"Why do you have to be so logical," Monoma muttered in disdain, "Fine. I'm Monoma Neito from Class-B, but don't approach me thinking we're friends, got it?"
Kendo smacked him in the head again.
"Isn't he a bundle of sunshine…?" Jiro muttered.
As Jiro was about to introduce her name, something more important took hold.
An alarm bell had just echoed throughout the building.
Kaminari panicked, "I didn't trip the fire alarm again I swear!"
"Quiet Kaminari!" Jiro berated, "This isn't the fire alarm… what is this?"
"I… don't know…" Kendo muttered.
"There has been a level 3 security breach. All students please evacuate outdoors promptly. I repeat–"
"Security breach?" Sato muttered, "That sounds serious."
"Probably because it is," Shinso mused in relative calm. He stood and stood over the railings, taking in a view of the entire cafeteria. "Serious enough that all of our 'senpais' are all panicking down there."
Shirou, curious about Shinso's words, stood from his seat and stared over the railings…
It was chaos.
Not to the extent that their homeroom was in earlier, but to a far more extreme extent. Students were pushing and shoving each other out of the way to reach the exits. Some of them stood in utter confusion as the chaos ensued around them. There were even a few panicking in hysteria.
This was… This was bad.
"This isn't good man…" Kaminari muttered. "It's like a war zone down there."
"They're running around like headless cockroaches." Monoma mused, "What's the use of panicking? Idiots, all they're doing is making the situation worse."
"While I feel the same, seeing as it is human nature to panic, it cannot be helped." Shinso berated, "If we were down there with them, then we'd panic too, following crowd mentality. We should carefully consider what to do next."
"Should we evacuate like everyone else?" Kendo asked.
"Wouldn't it be safer if we stayed up here?" Sato mused.
"If there's an intruder, which is what a security breach suggests, then we should make our way out." Shinso concluded, "What do you think… Emiya?"
Shinso looked around and discovered that the redhead was missing.
Jiro turned to Koda, "Koda, did you see where Emiya went?"
Koda nodded his head and pointed to the chaotic war zone, to a lone figure running against the current and grabbing students in the middle of the torrent.
"… There he is." Kodai muttered.
It was Shirou.
Everyone was panicking.
There was no order, the hero teachers had all made their way out to combat the intruding threats. Unfortunately, that left the students to panic in disorder.
The students that remained standing in confusion, panic, and hysteria, were helpless against the torrent of students.
Shirou's impulse to save acted up, he had run down the stairs and towards the torrent of students.
He grabbed those who stood still and dragged them to the sidelines where the flooding mob didn't reach so they could sit still and gather themselves. Some thanked him, but he didn't stay long enough and focused on grabbing more idle students out of the mob.
There were a few that were cradling their head in pain from falling over, several more that were rubbing their arms from bruises.
Shirou idly noticed a few other students seeing what he was doing and copying. One, in particular, seemed to be naked as he flew across the mob easily, but Shirou didn't really want to focus on that enigma.
At this rate, much more people were going to be hurt, but what could he do? Shouting for them to stop would be impossible, in fact, it would spur them on to move in a panic.
Shirou could not do anything to stop this mob. Taking the time to do so would take time away from saving those who tripped and were in pain.
He felt… annoyed, immensely so, at the situation.
Damn it–!
"Engine Boost!"
Shirou's head craned to the shout coming from above them, only to find a floating Iida. His leg engines ignited as he spun unstably over the crowd, drawing eyes from the panicking students due to the odd sight.
Eventually, his act of oddity confused everyone long enough to stay slow down, allowing Shirou to drag a girl onto her feet so she can get out of the mob before it moves again.
Iida slammed into the wall and as soon as he did, he screamed out at the top of his lungs.
"EVERYONE! EVERYTHING IS FINE!"
The scream finally shut down the screams of the students to form a tranquil silence. His voice, being the one and the only offender of that tranquility.
"It is just the media! There is nothing to panic about! Everything is fine!" He craned his head to gaze at everyone, "This is U.A! Let us act in a way befitting the best of the best!"
There was no intruder…? It was just the media.
At that, a slow sigh of relief escaped the crowd.
Relief.
Peace and order were restored just as quickly as it had been destroyed. Everyone was laughing at the situation they had found themselves in before and hastily calmed down.
Shirou sent a glance to the people who he dragged to the sidelines and sighed in relief. They had calmed down but a few needed some minor medical attention.
If Iida hadn't screamed out loud above everyone, then the situation would have been unsalvagable.
"Good job, Iida," Shirou muttered as he walked away back to his cafeteria seat, which was what everyone else seemed to be doing. Some even picked up a few bottles and cans that were dropped in the panic.
"Hey Emiya," Jiro called once he was back at their table. "You really threw yourself out there didn't you?"
"Kaminari and those two other Class-B dudes joined you," Sato informed, but pointed down to the cafeteria, "… but that there seems to be stuck comforting some of the more hysteric general course students with Kirishima."
"We also helped, kinda." Jiro muttered, "A lot of the dudes you grabbed were panicking a hell lot. We calmed them down a bit, but I don't think you saw."
"It was hard work but at least no one was seriously injured, right?" Kendo sighed out in relief, "What do you think, Yui?"
"You should have at least told us before going." She muttered,
Shirou could have, but he didn't. He was far too preoccupied with the people that were still in the mob.
"Sorry, Kodai-san."
She didn't really look like she accepted his apology, but nonetheless sighed with a nod.
"Hey Emiya, Kaminari looks kinda dumb down there don't you think?" Jiro joked.
Shirou stepped up the railings and looked down at the scene. The scene of students happily returning to their lunch with glee, not a hint of worry in their eyes. Kaminari, alongside Kirishima, Shinso, and Monoma, talking and calming one of the general course students.
"No, I think he – they all – look fine."
And Shirou knew who to thank for it.
Shirou stared at the class representatives stepped up tot he front.
However, he wasn't focusing on that scene very well. What he was thinking about was that he couldn't actually do anything earlier.
Why?
It was what he'd ask himself every few seconds. Iida discovered a way to help everyone out and it worked. Why didn't Shirou think of it?
He knew the reason. Shirou, like everyone else, panicked. However, unlike everyone else, his hysteria came in the form of rushing to the nearest person and helping them.
He knew how to help out others and that was the first instinct he had. Although, if Shirou had been calm and rational like Iida was during the entire thing, would he have done the same thing?
"Come on class rep, start." Yaoyorozu prompted Midoriya.
He still stood as nervous as ever in front of the class, even with her encouragement.
"N-Now, let us decide on the other class officers…" He stuttered out. He soon fell silent and more confident as he spoke the next words. "But first, can I say something?"
Yaoyorozu seemed confused at that, as was most of the class.
"I think… That Iida Tenya should be the class rep after all!" He shouted. He gathered his confidence and continued. "He was able to get everyone's attention in such a cool way. I think it would be best for Iida to do it."
"I'm good with that, too!" Kirishima added, "Midoriya's saying it, and it's true that Iida was a big help at the cafeteria today, right?"
Kaminari chuckled at that, "Yeah! He kind of looked like the person on the emergency exit signs, didn't he?"
"You're wasting time." Aizawa berated from his corner of the classroom. "I don't care what you do, just hurry up and do it."
After a short while, Iida stood from his seat.
"If the class rep has nominated me, then it cannot be helped." He rose his hand up in declaration, "From this day forth, I – Iida Tenya – promise to do my best to carry out the duties of the class representative."
Kirishima gave a thumbs up, "We're counting on you, Emergency Exit!"
"Emergency Exit Iida!"
"Do your best!"
Iida without a doubt deserved it. Shirou was sure of that. He knew he was suited for the role since the start of the day. It certainly took a while for the others to realize.
"Is that okay with you, Emiya Shirou."
Shirou blinked and faced the only student sat diagonally to him. "What do you mean by that, Todoroki-san?"
"I saw you, running around and helping others during that incident." Todoroki recalled, "It's admirable. Wouldn't you want to be the class representative too?"
Shirou didn't even consider the idea as he shook his head. "Like everyone else, I panicked. I just expressed it in a different way."
Todoroki narrowed his eyes somewhat, "If you say so…"
As Iida continued his tirade and elected members to specific roles, Yaoyorozu sent Shirou a hardened glance. It was a simple glance but the meaning was easy to tell.
Looks like Yaoyorozu didn't change her mind.
Training it is.
"It was a success!"
Angra Mainyu sighed slightly from his seat near the bar at Shigaraki's tirade. He had been cheering and chuckling creepily with glee for a while now and Angra Mainyu was starting to get annoyed at it.
He liked the guy, he really did, but sometimes it just got a little too weird.
"We know that already man, just give us some news that's useful." Angra Mainyu berated.
He was also probably the only other person that could berate Shigaraki like that and not get severely injured. Kinda like Kurogiri, somewhat, mostly because of the body he has.
Shigaraki was a man-child, so not even Angra Mainyu was sure he was a hundred percent safe, but he liked pushing boundaries.
"Tch, fine." Shigaraki muttered, "We obtained their schedule, we now know that tomorrow is when they'll be traveling to a place called USJ."
"We strike there, right?" Angra Mainyu asked.
He received a nod from Shigaraki, "Yeah. The next part of our plan is gathering some party members. Kurogiri already broke some of them out from prison a few days ago, but we're gonna need a hell lot more."
"That's one heck of an understatement man," Angra Mainyu muttered, "You do realize we're up against the number one hero, right? Who in their right mind would want to join a suicide mission against him?"
"It's not a suicide mission, Angra." Shigaraki berated, shortening his name for convenience. "Sensei said it himself, he's gotten weaker. We should get him while he's weak."
"That still doesn't change the fact that there is no one who would willingly join up." Angra Mainyu muttered.
"Then convince them." Shigaraki ordered, "Luckily there's a slum with low-level trash in the next town over. Angra, go with Kurogiri and gather as many party members as you can, got it?"
Angra Mainyu just sighed, "Do I really have to? Kurogiri can go by himself, right? Wait, why don't you go! You're the dang leader here!"
Shigaraki was going to argue but the television screen behind them flashed to light.
"He's right. Tomura, go with Kurogiri."
Shigaraki sighed and nodded. He acted big, but one sentence from the actual big boss sent him walking.
Angra Mainyu didn't know what those two shared other than a master and disciple relationship, but it was amusing to see every time.
Although, back to the topic at hand.
"What do want, boss man?" Angra Mainyu asked, noticing the screen was still turned on. "Go with them or nah?"
"I want to ask you some questions." He said, "Your name, do you realize the significance of it?"
Angra Mainyu snorted and answered. "Yeah, every day I do. This name is just who I am."
"… So you are saying that you are the omnimalevolent deity figure of Zoroastrianism?"
"That's the question… isn't it?" Angra Mainyu mused playfully.
"You know, in some circles, your name means 'all of the world's evils." He started, "Would you be claiming to be that?"
"I don't know~" Angra Mainyu taunted, "What do you think makes me qualify for the title?"
"I can easily render you mindless like the other Nomu, Angra Mainyu."
Yeah, the boogieman of the criminal underworld could definitely do that, especially since his current body essentially belonged to the guy.
"Fine~" Angra Mainyu slurred, he was still slightly drunk from a night out at the club. In hindsight, he shouldn't have tested if his new body had an alcohol limit. "Think of it this way big guy, have you stared humanity in the eye and saw the evil they could commit?"
"A redundant question, but yes."
"Then you should know that one day, some assholes thought it would be a good idea to grab a random kid in a village and call him the source of all the worlds evils. The reason for why they stole, for why they killed, for why they raped."
The screen gave no reply so Angra Mainyu continued.
"Eventually, the boy decided to believe that he was the source of it all. He took torture and starvation from others because he believed it was his sole reason for living." Angra Mainyu continued, "At the sweet release of death, his existence had already been corrupted. That village boy doesn't exist anymore, only the one who bares all of Humanities Evils."
"… I don't even know why I took your delusions seriously."
Angra Mainyu chuckled, "Who knows? This world has quirks that can defy logic – you of all people know that – so is my existence any weirder? I can give you a taste of what I can do, tomorrow at USJ."
"If you were not lying earlier then I will hold you up to that, Ahriman."
Angra Mainyu laughed out loud. "Don't sound so gloomy man! You got something to drink on the other side of that screen of yours?"
In hindsight, Angra Mainyu was playing with the devil.
In hindsight of the hindsight, they were both technically the devil.
Angra Mainyu sent a glance at a sheet of paper on the bar, one detailing all the students of the Hero course of U.A. that would be appearing in USJ.
One name in particular.
"We both need to have fun you know? I know I'm certainly going to!"
Shirou was admittedly nervous.
Once classes had ended, Shirou had changed into his U.A Physical Education uniform – as they could only use the gym if they wore the uniform or their hero costumes – and walked until he sat at the center of Gym-Five.
The gym was actually quite ordinary, which was a stark contrast to all the other facilities used by the hero course students.
Apparently, the gym was used most by the general course students later in the year during the cultural festival. However, seeing as it was just the start of the year, the monopoly had yet to be set.
Honestly, it reminded Shirou of his dojo at home, albeit larger with much more room.
Shirou idly thought about what kind of equipment they would need, but then reminded himself that Yaoyorozu could just create whatever they'd need.
He was still completely lost on how exactly he was going to train her.
Footsteps behind him dragged his attention. A quick swivel of his head let him see that Yaoyorozu had arrived, five minutes before the actual agreed time.
"Hello, Emiya-san," Yaoyorozu greeted, wearing the same prescribed uniform, "Shall we get started?"
Shirou stood on his feet, "Yeah, that would be a good idea."
A moment of silence passed as they both stood awkwardly, Yaoyorozu rubbing her forearm as Shirou rubbed the back of his head.
"…You didn't plan this out, did you?" Yaoyorozu accused.
Shirou admittedly nodded, "I don't have much experience in training others. The way I was trained isn't really a good reference either," Namely, being battered around by Saber.
"Then why don't we do that and see if that method works?" Yaoyorozu suggested, "How were you trained, Emiya-san?"
"I was beaten around with a shinai until I couldn't move."
Yaoyorozu winced, "I see… on second thought, let's not do that."
"We could still try it," Shirou contemplated, "However, I'd need to hold back and not hit you as hard. We're training for close quarters combat, right? We can train you for muscle memory, to make dodging attacks an instinct."
Yaoyorozu rubbed her chin in contemplation. After a while, she nodded to herself with a smile.
"Let's go with that idea," She agreed as she conjured up a copy of the same polearm she used yesterday, "I'm ready whenever you are, Emiya-san!"
Shirou traced Torashinai and started their 'training'.
Aizawa sighed from his desk in the faculty room.
Yesterday, he had gone out with Yamada Hizashi, or Present Mic as he was more popularly known by, and his other co-workers like Kan Sekijiro, or Blood King, for a drink.
Yamada had the most absurd idea of going to a cafe at nine pm at night. Luckily, the cafe he had in mind was closed so they had to go to a local Izakaya.
Yamada and Kan drank in moderation, but his damn friend managed to convince him to drink several pints of cold beer.
He had a migraine in the morning so he kept asleep throughout the day, leaving his students to sort themselves out. He taught some classes too, but only passively so he could rest his head.
The situation earlier today didn't help his growing migraine.
He was recovered now, which meant he could focus on his job now. Which meant grading the assignments his students had written up.
Joy.
"Yo Eraser," Yamada called from his desk, "You got an eraser?"
"I'm going to gut you, Yamada."
Yamada laughed out loud, "Okay but seriously, are you ready to head to USJ?"
"The documents were signed so yes, my class is ready," Aizawa answered.
"Bringing Class-B with you or nah?" He asked.
Aizawa sighed at the question. His friend had a valid point, though. Since Class-A and Class-B collaborated for their first lesson, it would be fair to assume that the same would be true for future classes, right?
No, not really.
"No," Aizawa answered, "Kan has his timetable and I have mine. The USJ trip doesn't overlap so we're not doing that, it would be irrational."
"Okay then…" Yamada sighed.
Aizawa knew that Yamada was a chatterbox. He took joy in small talk, which meant that it was likely that his age-old friend would continue the conversation in a short bit. Their chemistry as friends was odd for that reason.
Although, Aizawa did wonder what was causing him to remain silent for so long, nearly a minute had passed. For anyone else, it would have been normal, but on the professional hero whose quirk relied on him using his vocal chords – it was very odd.
"Hey, Eraser," Yamada called once more, proving to Aizawa that he would talk again, "What do you think about the incident today?"
… So that was what he was thinking about.
Aizawa halted in his work and narrowed his eyes. "It was planned. The wall is hard to destroy without superior firepower. I know that the media isn't able to break through it– especially with the quirks they have at their disposal," Heroes had full access to the quirk registry, which allowed them to check which one of the intruders could have pulled it off.
None of them had a quirk suited to it, which meant they had outside help.
"Somebody helped them, but if they broke through it with brute force then we'd notice," Aizawa continued, "This means that whoever broke the gate could have a disintegrating power, already terrifying to think about."
"So a villain then…" Yamada concluded, "Which villain do you think it was?"
"I have a few ideas…" Aizawa mused, he looked at one photo in particular, of the remains of the chains that kept a certain criminal in place. "However, I'm hoping to be wrong."
Yamada sent him a glance and frowned once he saw what photo Aizawa was focusing on.
"The Beast, right?" Yamada muttered, "You think that it was his doing?"
"If it was, the motive is there," Aizawa answered. "Most villains are petty, so he'd probably want revenge against the brat."
And by the word brat, Yamada instantly knew Aizawa was talking about a certain sword-wielding student.
"It doesn't fit the Modus Operandi." Yamada countered, "The beast, or at least what the media reports said, attacks in dark alleys out of sight. This is in broad daylight, absolutely two different methods."
"That is exactly why I'm hoping that I'm wrong," Aizawa concluded. "Enough about this. Focus on your papers, Yamada."
"Fine, fine!" Yamada replied. He then took a glance at his watch, "Damn, I have to go to my agency now. I don't know why I decided to become a teacher. The doubled paperwork is killing me man."
Aizawa chuckled once as his friend stacked his papers on his desk and left, "It's because you like teaching, Yamada." Aizawa muttered, knowing that Yamada heard him anyway.
If his friend hadn't been a professional hero, then Yamada would have been a teacher, without a doubt.
Aizawa spared one more glance at the photo and frowned.
… He truly hoped he was wrong.
"Aizawa-kun, can we chat for a bit?" Called a recognizable voice.
Aizawa knew that voice well. He sighed and shoved the pictures in a drawer. Knowing the number one hero, he would be out and about trying to find the villain if one of his precious students could be in danger.
All Might needed to conserve his power – or at least what remained of it – Aizawa knew that.
"What is it, All Might-san?" Aizawa asked.
He sent a glance towards the small and decrepit form of the number one hero. No reason to keep secrets here, the entirety of the U.A. hero course teaching staff knew about All Might's current predicament and why he appeared in the school.
A successor, that was what he was looking for. Aizawa didn't know who, but he had inkling suspicions that it was a certain nervous wreck.
"I'd like to talk to you about one of our students," All Might told him, "His name is Emiya Shirou, I believe,"
What did the brat do this time?
"Yes, seat number twenty-one," Aizawa confirmed, "Has he done anything to earn your concern?"
"Well…" All Might started, "It's about his indoor mock battle results from yesterday."
Aizawa nearly had a migraine at remembering that event.
"If you are talking about his asinine decision then do not worry," Aizawa replied, "I've already scolded him for it."
"No, it's not that exactly," All Might said a little hastily, "I was just a little bit interested in him, that's all."
"For what reason?"
"A person shouldn't have even considered running against bullets with just a pair of swords."
Aizawa frowned, "So it is about his asinine decision,"
"No, not completely," All Might admitted, "Other than young Midoriya, I do not see why young Emiya would choose to do something like that."
"Midoriya, huh…?" Aizawa muttered, "You are referring to his indoor battle results, the relationship that Midoriya and Bakugo have for each other, correct?"
"W-well… yes," All Might admitted, "Young Midoriya had something to prove to both himself and young Bakugo when he performed his own 'asinine decision'. I was wondering if young Emiya had something of his own to prove."
"Nope," Aizawa retorted, "The brat is just an idiot. I don't know what went through his head but it won't happen again. If there was something he wanted to prove then I wouldn't know it. You'd better ask Mount Lady if you want to know more."
All Might widened his eyes in realization.
"Oh, that's right! She was the rookie that adopted a kid." He closed his eyes in contemplation, "Could he be trying to meet her expectations…?"
"No chance in hell."
"Well, if you say so Aizawa-kun." He turned to walk away, "I guess there's nothing to worry about. Young Emiya won't try something like that again, right? Then everything's fine."
Yes, as long as the brat didn't do anything stupid tomorrow, then it was all fine.
"I'll see you at USJ tomorrow, Aizawa-kun!"
"Take care, All Might-san."
Yes… everything was going to be fine.
It was just a training exercise. Even if the brat pulled something stupid like he did during the entrance exam, Aizawa would be there to stop anything from getting too bad.
Yes, everything was going to be just fine.
The spar didn't even last a minute.
Shirou had knocked her guard away without help from reinforcement and managed to land a clean blow to her side.
Following that were multiple attempts of Yaoyorozu trying to block various attacks, most of which succeeded, but failed on the following attacks almost all of the time.
This continued on for nearly thirty minutes until her body gave out to exhaustion. However, she was getting better. Some attacks that were meant to hit her head had to be redirected to her side and vice-versa on the second attack.
Although, it wasn't that much of a notable improvement. She truly was unsuited to close combat.
"Are you okay, Yaoyorozu-san?" Shirou asked as he knelt down.
She was currently sprawled out on the gym floor with her polearm held loosely in her left palm. She was also panting slightly from exertion
Then again, Shirou was also pretty bad at it before he started training. He only started
"Y-yes, Emiya-san!" She struggled to breathe out, "I'll just need a minute to rest."
"Then let's do that," Shirou said, "Should we go over what you did wrong?"
"That'd be a wonderful idea." She admitted.
"Where to start…" Shirou mused, "First of all, your blocking wasn't that good. There were openings everywhere, but that's a minor mistake that can be improved upon later."
"R-right…"
"However, the biggest mistake you had…" Shirou muttered, "I think it's better to demonstrate. You can still stand up, right?"
Yaoyorozu nodded and stood up with some effort.
"Try to block my attacks, Yaoyorozu-san,"
Yaoyorozu nodded and grabbed her polearm. She held it firm with both hands as Shirou threw Torashinai forward with surprising speed. Her stance in blocking wasn't much better than yesterday, but there was an improvement in the leg department.
The defense didn't mean anything as the second attack had hit her anyway.
"I couldn't block you, Emiya-san." Yaoyorozu muttered, "However, I knew that was going to happen already. What was the point of that?"
"Now try to block me again, but look at my eyes."
Yaoyorozu blinked at the order but followed it. She focused on his amber-colored eyes as they tilted down ever so slightly.
She didn't know what happened next, but she found the sound of his shinai hitting her polearm to be satisfying.
She kept in mind to focus on his eyes and noticed them twitch slightly as if focusing on her midsection. Yaoyorozu flipped her polearm and parried the thrust meant for her midsection.
She… she had blocked the second attack!
Her inner celebration was cut short as the shinai tapped her head somewhat roughly.
"You lost focus near the end there, but did you see what you were doing wrong earlier?" Shirou asked.
Yaoyorozu stared at the polearm in her hands and nodded, "I see what you were getting at Emiya-san."
"You have okay reaction speed, but it's lowered when you only look at the weapon." Shirou explained, "If you look at the attacker's expression and gauge his intent instead, you'll be able to block attacks sooner and better…"
She continued to stare at her polearm and then focused on Shirou. "… but I still need to get better, right?"
Shirou nodded with a smile, "Yes, this is one of the better ways to block an attack, but there's also another thing to keep in mind."
"Which is?"
"Try to block me again."
Yaoyorozu stiffened and focused on Shirou once more. He was aiming for her left side, so she raised her polearm to block it.
She succeeded in the endeavor, although her arms strained against the force somewhat. She needed to focus again on where he wanted to hit next! Yaoyorozu took a glance at his eyes to see it–
The right shoulder!
Even as she rose her polearm to block it, she was unable to stop the next hit from hitting her shoulder.
Her left shoulder.
"Did you see it?" Shirou asked, "How this method could backfire?"
Yaoyorozu nodded, "I blocked too early, which made it an opening. You used a feint, am I correct?"
"Correct," Shirou confirmed, "That's one of the other things you need to be wary about in close combat."
"There are certainly a lot of things to keep an eye on during battle," Yaoyorozu sighed and held her polearm to her side loosely, "You said that this was similar to how you trained, am I correct?"
Shirou nodded with a tad sheepish smile, "A little similar, there wasn't a lot of explanation compared to this session but it was still very enlightening,"
"In what way?"
How easy it was for him to have died.
"How easy it is for someone who knows what they're doing to defeat me," Shirou told her. "Someone with experience usually triumphs against those with power and versatility alone."
The King of Heroes had both power and versatility in abundance, yet Shirou managed to triumph over him in battle. It was a close match, one that could have likely ended with Shirou's own demise.
However, Gilgamesh's own arrogance had dragged him to his downfall. If the king had even the slightest knowledge of how to use those noble phantasms in a fair battle instead of as bullets…
… then it was equally likely that Shirou would have likely died.
She frowned at the statement and sent her gaze just a little downcast, "Like I was yesterday, I suppose."
Shirou frowned awkwardly at his unintentional jab, "My apologies, Yaoyorozu-san. I didn't mean it like that."
"No, it was a good wake-up call for me." Yaoyorozu admitted, "I could have learned that lesson sometime in the future, but sooner rather than later I suppose."
"We have three years in the hero course to improve, Yaoyorozu-san." Shirou reiterated for her, "There's really no need to get better quicker."
… Although, the intruder detection alert from earlier today was something to be wary about. Perhaps he should up his own training?
"I suppose you are right, Emiya-san," Yaoyorozu sighed out, "Are you truly sure that you aren't one of the recommended students? You seem like someone who'd make it in quite easily through that method."
"Well… I certainly could have been," He admitted, "–but then Shinso Hitoshi wouldn't have made it to the Hero course, so I'm happy with how that turned out."
"I-I see?" She awkwardly muttered.
Yaoyorozu sent a glance to the side where a digital clock was embedded into the wall. It was a luxury that U.A. could afford for even their most average of gymnasiums.
"It looks like our gym reservation is going to end soon, I only booked for thirty minutes." Yaoyorozu muttered, "That's unfortunate. Shall we continue this again tomorrow?"
Shirou nodded, "That sounds like a good idea, I still have homework to do."
Not that he'd struggle much, most of the material he had already learned a few years ago in Fuyuki. He didn't have that much of a hard time remembering once he had a refresher.
"Well then, I'll see you in class tomorrow. Goodbye, Emiya-san."
Shirou spared a polite smile as she left. "Goodbye, Yaoyorozu-san."
As she left, Shirou was left to his own thoughts.
Well… for the first session of training, it went pretty well. He managed to impart some knowledge to Yaoyorozu so it was apparent that the session was not going to be in vain.
In honesty, Shirou wanted to continue and spar further with Saber's training method. It seemed to be doing the trick better than anything that Shirou was focusing on.
Maybe they'd work on her polearm stances tomorrow? Shirou considered the idea and nodded to himself. It was a good idea, so it was what he was going to do.
After all, they had three years of their hero course to go through.
There was no reason to rush, no reason at all.