Before the Entrance Exam

Over the following months, Yuto repeatedly trained with the Gura Gura no Mi and gradually pushed its mastery to fifty percent.

He also unlocked skills such as Tremor: Tidal Wave and Tremor Blade: Shatter.

At the same time, Ochaco kept sticking close to him for training, which left him a little overwhelmed.

Meanwhile, All Might also began passing down One For All and put Izuku Midoriya through hellish training.

To All Might, Yuto's Quirk was powerful. One For All would be an unnecessary addition for him.

Yuto already had a powerful Quirk. One For All might not suit him nearly as well as his own power did.

Because of that, All Might felt at ease passing One For All to Izuku Midoriya.

During this time, Yuto had quietly become famous. The video of him defeating the sludge villain had already gone viral online.

Of course, All Might had kept Yuto's identity mostly out of the public footage. Most public versions of the video only showed the boy's rough outline and did not clearly show his face.

After all, Yuto was still a student with extraordinary potential. If villains discovered him, they would try to kill him.

Even so, viewers still latched onto his silhouette, his presence, and what little they could make out of his face.

He still gained a group of passionate fans.

"Hmm, the video is a little blurry, but that guy is seriously handsome. He's my husband now!"

"Strength and looks together? Amazing! That punch was so cool. He sent that monster flying with one hit!"

"The other Sludge Villain was defeated by the No. 1 Hero, All Might, and this guy one-shot Type-A. Is this a passing of the torch?"

"This has to be a passing of the torch! Even through the blur, you can tell he's something special. He looks like he's only in his teens. In a few years, he'll be famous around the world!"

Because of this, some fans jokingly started calling Yuto the Pioneer of Peace.

The nickname reflected what some people hoped Yuto might become.

The days passed quickly. The uproar had not settled, but the U.A. High School entrance exam was about to begin.

As Japan's top hero school, U.A. High School was the dream of countless students.

In front of the U.A. High School exam site, countless students had gathered. They were talented applicants with powerful Quirks.

Yuto and Ochaco also arrived. She stood beside him and looked a little nervous.

Her cheeks were faintly flushed as she took deep breaths to calm herself.

Yuto gently patted her head. "Relax. You'll pass."

"Mm." Ochaco smiled and nodded slightly. "I want to be in the same class as Yuu-kun!"

"Okay," Yuto replied softly.

In the crowd, he quickly found several familiar figures, people he remembered from the story.

Katsuki Bakugo, Tenya Iida, Izuku Midoriya...

Following the signs, Yuto and Ochaco arrived at the exam briefing site.

It was a huge classroom filled with students. On the platform stood a teacher with bright blond hair swept straight up.

This was U.A.'s English teacher, Present Mic. His Quirk, Voice, had terrifying volume and range. It was said that his cry at birth made the doctor and his parents' eardrums bleed.

Present Mic stood on the platform with unusual excitement and explained, "Welcome, listeners, to my live show today! Everybody say hey!"

"Listeners, I'm going to explain the practical test quickly and clearly."

"Are you ready?!"

The whole room was silent. No one answered.

Present Mic answered himself with a forced, "Yeah!"

Below the platform, Izuku Midoriya looked excited. "That's the Voice Hero, Present Mic! Amazing. I listen to every one of his radio shows.

"He's incredible. His show is incredible. Every U.A. teacher really is a Pro Hero..."

Izuku Midoriya slipped into his usual nervous muttering.

Yuto shook his head, and Ochaco looked embarrassed.

Present Mic continued, "As written in the exam instructions, after this, you listeners will participate in a ten-minute mock city exercise. You may bring any items you want.

"After I finish explaining, you will head to your assigned exercise sites.

"The exercise grounds contain mock villain robots divided into three types. Each type has a point value based on its difficulty: one, two, and three.

"Your goal is to use your Quirks to defeat the mock villains and earn points."

Present Mic paused, then added, "One more thing. Each exercise site also has one zero-pointer.

"Defeating it gives you no points, so protect yourselves and avoid it if you can."

"Finally, I will send you off with our school's motto. The great hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said that true heroes are strong enough to overcome life's misfortunes and rise above them.

"Now go beyond. Plus Ultra!"

Yuto yawned and muttered, just loud enough to carry, "Bonaparte never said that."

Present Mic's gaze swept across the room, and he laughed. "I've got some news for everyone. The person who defeated that sludge villain is also here in this exam hall..."

As soon as those words came out, the quiet exam hall instantly erupted.

x

x

x

If you're enjoying the story so far, consider supporting me on Patreon ❤️
You'll get weekly early access to chapters, along with some exclusive content:

https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheDevotedReader