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If one thing was for sure, it was that Kendo cared for her class. Not just as classmates or as potential future colleagues, but simply put, as friends. She doubted that was something unique. It’s not like Class 1-B was the only class at UA, let alone in Japan. But she found that there was very little that she wouldn’t do for them.
Alongside their bonds, their strength had grown in equal amounts. They all had improved significantly when compared to the beginning of the year, and if Monoma wasn’t the one constantly singing praises about their successes, it was their teacher. Together, they were well-trained in all things heroics.
Well-trained, unfortunately, did not always mean well-behaved.
“Please don’t tell me you’re being serious,” Shoda half-laughed.
“I’m just speaking facts here!” insisted Tokage from behind Kendo, leaning on top of and over the seat in front of her, much to Kendo’s own chagrin. “And those facts state that Saiko Intelli is lesbianism incarnate.”
Two seats further up, Kaibara banged his head against the window. “One trip. I was hoping we could get through one school trip without one of us saying something stupid.”
Unfortunately, their teacher wasn’t on the bus with them to potentially calm down any nonsense. Kan had already gone off to the facility where they were supposed to conduct today’s training. He had said that it was to sort things out with both the facilitators, as well as the teacher of whatever class would be attending from the school that happened to be partaking in activities there at the same time as them.
Said school turned out to be Seiai Academy.
The prospect of engaging in a joint training exercise with another school, let alone a class of seniors, had excited Class 1-B to a degree. Considering their victory at the Provisional Licence Exam a week or two ago, she thought they were justified in being a little hyped up. Looking back, however, maybe it had excited them all a little too much. It was only now that other reasons for why were starting to become clear.
Playing along for once, Kendo gently pushed Tokage face away and asked, “And you know this how?”
Tokage replied, matter-of-factly, “How can you not know about how her class is head over heels for her?”
Kendo’s knowledge on the school that would be joining them today was there, though admittedly limited. Seiai was another hero school, girls only, small but academically prestigious. She knew that her classmates were much more informed about the various hero schools scattered around Japan, and she often relied on this information more than she’d like to, but more often than not - depending on the source - the intel seemed… skewed.
This was one example of many before, and yet her classmates still found ways to leave her struck.
“Her entire class? I’m calling bullshit,” scoffed Awase, crudely voicing Kendo’s thoughts.
To Kendo’s surprise, it was Yanagi, who had been relatively silent on the bus ride until now, who spoke up. “Unfortunately, no. Tokage may just be speaking the truth.”
Awase turned to her, incredulous. “Wait. You’re being serious?”
“Indeed,” she confirmed. “Some of you may recall me stating some time ago that I had two older siblings. A simple icebreaker detail.”
Kendo nodded, briefly recalling the time she’d visited the Yanagi residency. While she had been introduced to her parents and eldest sister, she’d been informed that her other sibling was busy elsewhere. What Yanagi was getting at began to click even before she continued to speak.
“What I failed to bring up is that our second eldest is currently enrolled at Seiai Academy.” Yanagi carried on, “Due to the academy also being a boarding school, my ability to keep in contact with her has been rather limited, but at the few times we have been able to interact with her, there has been one notable change. Specifically, it’s how she refers to one specific classmate of hers. I assume you can guess who I am referring to.”
“Is that not normal for her?” asked Tsunotori, completely riveted.
In response, Yanagi shook her head. “While my sister has otherwise been relatively… sane, whenever this specific classmate of hers was ever made relevant in any conversations we happened to have, she would always descend into obsessed fawning. As if hexed. I have only ever seen such obsession in her whenever she attempts to delve into the secrets of the universe and humanity’s insignificance. Or when she finds a well-constructed multi-layered inside joke on Reddit or something.”
Rin cleared his throat. “Save for the, erm, delving into the secrets of the universe part… is the rest of her class like that?”
“I can’t say for certain. But I will say this: we consume mentally and spiritually haunting media on a daily basis. If a seemingly normal young woman can bewitch her to the level in which I have witnessed, then one can only imagine the power of this woman if she can accomplish such a feat of instant obsession in such a short period of time, let alone so effectively.”
“So, what?” said Kaibara, skeptically, “She has a seduction quirk or something?”
“I’m afraid not,” replied Monoma. “Miss Intelli lives up to her name. Her quirk appears to be one of intelligence enhancement. A powerful quirk in the right hands, but not exactly a lover’s quirk. So these rumors stem from more than just that.”
Kendo blinked, temporarily pushing away the urge to ask Monoma about the implications of someone getting into a hero school with a purely logistical quirk. “Wait. You did research on them?”
“Almost all of Japan is aware of what our class can do, Kendo,” Monoma replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “It’s only fair that we get to know our fellow participants to a similar degree, just in case we are required to eventually challenge each other. Besides, it’s not as if I dug too deep. I found nothing but what comes up when you look up their school.”
“Challenge them?” Awase said. “But isn’t it that we just happened to be doing the same training exercise at the same time as them? Like, we aren’t exactly told that we’d 100% be working with them, let alone against them.”
“But they will likely expect us to interact,” noted Honenuki, not exactly appearing for or against the discussion. “It’ll be for the sake of basic decency, or the competition would provide a good challenge. Unless Seiai’s students are actually rather stingy and would rather not interact at all.”
“That’s genuinely a possibility though,” mumbled Kuroiro, “Sounds like a rich kid school to me.”
“We’re technically also a rich kid school,” pointed out Tsuburaba from next to him.
Monoma waved his hand lazily, attempting to pull back the conversation. “Now listen. I couldn’t care less about the preferences of this individual, or that of her peers. But if she appears to be a true threat to the hearts and minds of any of my dear classmates, then I personally feel that it wouldn’t be too ridiculous to take some precautions.”
Kendo let out an exasperated sigh. “You’re all treating this like it’s fact when I think it’s pretty clear it’s not.”
Tokage gestured to nothing in particular. “But it could be .”
“We’ve got proof!” Komori agreed, pointing to Yanagi and Monoma.
“Your proof is rumors and outsider observations?” questioned Shoda.
“Okay then! How about this?” voiced Tsuburaba before the argument could escalate, standing up in his seat, “We go to the training exercise. We do what we gotta do. But while we’re doing it, we have a team of brave individuals who have one true goal: finding out the truth behind the intel lady!”
Honenuki started, “There really is no need-”
“That’s the smartest thing I’ve heard you say all day!” Tokage clapped loudly, also getting up. “Perfect! Outstanding! Spectacular! You and me, man, we’ve got it! We’re ONTO it. Any other valiant volunteers here to uncover the truth and protect Kendo?”
“Oh! Me! I’ll go!” exclaimed Tsunotori, throwing her hand up, as Kendo suddenly choked on air.
“Whoa whoa whoa,” she sputtered, “What are you-”
She felt a light slap on her back, and Tokage interrupted, “As if we’d let our beloved Big Sis get thrown into danger! We care about you! Last thing we need is you potentially getting enthralled and ruining everything, not to mention losing you to her harem!”
Kendo made a noise that vaguely resembled the likes of a dying whale.
Kaibara grunted. “This is absolutely going to fuck up. Might go wrong.”
“Who cares if it my-co wrong?” said Komori, waving her arms and accidentally slapping Kuroiro in the face. “Better safe than sorry, I say! I volunteer!”
Tsuburaba turned to Yanagi. “Do we have your services? You’ve got direct connections with the school, after all. You’re a valuable asset to the team!”
They got a shrug in return. “And my axe, or whatever.”
“Then it’s settled!” declared Tokage. “I hereby swear to live by the ideals of the Right Hand Coalition, and to - JUST THIS ONCE - be undeterred by the likes of the likely very attractive!”
Defeated, Kendo groaned. “As long as you all aren’t getting in the way of everyone else…”
But as the newly-founded Right Hand Coalition exploded into frenzied prattling, she doubted they were even listening.
Kendo didn’t entirely know what she expected out of Intelli, and the rest of her school. She didn’t want to make assumptions, but admittedly found her curiosity piqued. She did mostly take her classmates’ rather outlandish claims and accounts with more than a pinch of salt, convinced they were just poking fun as always.
In truth, they actually… weren’t too far off.
Now, she could believe and accept that the general descriptions that her peers provided were true to some extent, as a collective whole. Their claims were outrageous, but most of them were in regards to Intelli herself. And she could believe that the details about Seiai as a school were true to a degree, as those details seemed much less outlandish. She expected such details about Intelli to have been equally melodramatic.
That seemed, however, to not be the case.
When they initially stepped off the bus at their final destination, it allowed them two notice two things. The first of which was the actual location itself. They’d been dropped off at a location that bore a striking resemblance to the various expansive training grounds at UA, but instead of metal structures or large forests, they were met with towering cliff faces, spread out in all directions, with a gap in the middle that revealed a twisting ravine. It was as if they’d cut out a part of a canyon somewhere and placed it on this stretch of land. Noticeable on the cliffs closer to them were various apparatus, mechanical additions, and ropes, as well as targets and robotic dummies.
The other thing was the fact that they weren’t the first to arrive. Already, there were others at what Kendo assumed were various stations around the training grounds. Seiai students.
Vlad King’s briefing was - well - brief. Their task today was to learn how to thrive in a less conventional environment; while cities and forests were the most common places they’d find themselves working in, it was important that they were prepared for any terrain that they could potentially find themselves in. The aptly-named “Cliffhanger” facility was able to provide that for them, expanding on challenges and concepts learned from the USJ.
This was not a simple teach-and-follow class. They were expected to make their way through the various stations within the facility at their own pace, with whoever they chose.
As for Seiai Academy’s presence?
“ Convenient booking times,” Kan had said, not so subtly glancing over at the teacher representing Seiai, supervising a couple of students at an abseiling station. “We expect both classes to train alongside each other without any issues. So no squabbling, you understand?”
The class responded accordingly, but Kendo suspected not all of them could make any promises.
Especially not with two Seiai students already approaching them.
And the panicked looks from certain members of the Right Hand Coalition did not help at all.
The Seiai class representative extended her hand, smiling slightly. “My name is Saiko Intelli. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
“Itsuka Kendo,” the redhead responded, reaching out, “Nice to-”
“-meet you! Kosei Tsuburaba, at your service, glad to be working with ya!” exclaimed Tsuburaba, taking Intelli’s hand and shaking it with earnest.
“Ah. Likewise,” replied Intelli. Her smile remained, though Kendo could tell it had quickly become somewhat sour. “I hope that our classes can get along.”
“Absolutely!” Tsuburaba nodded, his own grin a bit too animated.
She would’ve been up for resuming talk with Intelli, if not for two certain hands on her shoulders, casually pushing her to the side.
“Hi, the name’s Tokage, and it was awesome meeting you but I’ve gotta ask my one hundred percent obviously completely straight unseducable friend here for some help with climbing that cool wall over there, bye have a wonderful day!”
And before either Kendo or Intelli could respond, the redhead found herself being whisked away. Behind her, she could hear Tsuburaba bursting into vigorous blather about the joy of mathematics and “based work stuff.”
“God, that was the biggest falsehood I have ever uttered,” grumbled Tokage, the moment they were out of earshot, “Don’t make me lie about you like that again, thanks!”
Kendo asked, “What are you doing?”
“What are you doing, Kendo?” responded Tokage, “We can’t protect you if the first thing you’re gonna do is immediately make contact with the subject!”
She shook her head. Her hopes of Tokage and her team just joking were further slipping away. “I’m sorry, the subject ?”
Tokage picked up the pace, shifting her position to have her arm around Kendo’s shoulders, rather than outright pushing her. “We can’t risk it! She might be able to exert her influence through physical contact!”
“She’s wearing gloves.”
It was like Tokage hadn’t heard her, as she waved her free hand around. “Or she might be the fruitier version of Shinso! Lures you in with her facts and logic the moment she opens her mouth!”
“But you just spoke to her.”
“Better me than you. Besides, I do much better when faced with attractive women than you do.”
Kendo scoffed. “Okay hang on-”
They abruptly stopped walking, and Tokage took on a sudden seriousness, catching Kendo off guard. “Hey, I promise you, we’ve got this handled, okay? It’s not like we’re going to be declaring war on them. We’ll focus on the tasks we gotta get through, and what we’re going here isn’t gonna directly hurt everyone else’s progress. All I ask is that you keep out of her range for, like, a couple hours tops. We’re menaces, but come on, we’ve done worse. We cool?”
The way Tokage spoke to her almost made it not seem like she had unnecessarily formed a gaydar group to investigate an oblivious young woman.
Kendo cursed herself for having gotten soft.
“As long as you promise you guys aren’t going to make a mess.”
In an instant, Tokage’s classic grin was back. “I swear on an arm and leg. No one’s gonna cross the line on my watch!”
Kamakiri was a bunch of things.
A stupid investigator was not one of them.
“Yeah, no,” he had curtly said when Tokage approached him.
“Wha- hey, I haven’t even said anything yet!” she replied, sounding dumbfounded, if not for the knowing grin she always wore whenever she was up to something.
Kamakiri waved her off, already turning away to leave. “Heard it all on the damn bus. Everyone did. Don’t drag me into your stupid antics.”
He was swiftly intercepted by the top half of Tokage’s body, floating aimlessly. “Oh, come on . It’s for the greater good! We need all the help we can get!”
“You can get it elsewhere. I ain’t doing jack shit,” grunted Kamakiri, attempting to brush aside her torso.
Still Tokage pressed on. “We’re friends, aren’t we?”
“But you know I don’t do talkin’.”
“Who cares? You’ll be distracting someone. That’s one less of Intelli’s girlfriends to interfere with our plans! Like, you don’t even have to do anything that much. You just gotta approach one person. Just one! Easy!”
Kamakiri made a sound halfway between a sigh and a growl. “ Just one?”
“Then we’ll leave you the fuck alone, as agreed! I’ll make it even easier, I’ll pick for you. Ask...” Tokage trailed off, taking a brief glance of the area around them, before pointing at a Seiai student with short blue hair, “...her! Why not? What’s the worst that could happen?”
“...you want a real answer?”
“Not at all. Cya, dude!” Tokage punched him in the shoulder, and before he could reply, hovered away at top speed, her legs tripping over themselves in pursuit. Komori and Fukidashi were waiting for her, incredibly animated and seemingly equally insane. Considering them, he had groaned inwardly.
So here he was. He’d followed Tetsutetsu and some other students with him for about two minutes, before slipping away. And now he was approaching quite literally some random person from the other school. Though it was more like stalking, in his case. Not what he was intending, but the Seiai kid Tokage had pointed to had been making a point of breezing past or through training stations, either rushing or outright ignoring them. Restless, almost. Not many opportunities to cut into a conversation, or at least any he could start confidently. Didn’t help that he wasn’t really that great at talking in the first place, either.
Thankfully, he didn’t have to start it. It - quite literally - started pointedly.
“Give it up,” snapped the girl, pointing conjured spikes at him through the side of her hand. Despite being much shorter than him, she had elevated herself so that she could reach his neck. In fact, Kamakiri recognized the technique.
To the threat, he barely reacted. “Talkin’ to me?” he asked, sardonically.
The girl scoffed. “Who else, dumbass? Quit following me around.”
That caught him more off guard than being held at spike-point. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
“You’ve been tailing me from station to station doing nothing but staring. Doing an awful job of hiding it, too. If you’ve got anything worthwhile to say, which I honestly doubt, you better spit it out.”
He spoke the first thing that came to mind. “Nice quirk.”
She raised an eyebrow. “That’s it? You’ve been tailing me just to throw a pathetic compliment? What an awful way to be spending your time.”
“Eh. Don’t really care,” He shrugged. Tired of being talked down (up?), he brought forth a small blade from his backhand and swatted aside the spikes. It felt like striking calcite. “Not like I need it.”
At the gesture, the girl’s eye twitched, expressing something Kamakiri couldn’t place. He settled with disgust. “How arrogant of you,” she scowled, but backed off from him.
“Thanks. But that’s not why I’m here.”
She’d already started walking away. He’d followed her to one of the highest points of the facility’s steep mountains and cliffaces; they might as well have been at the peak of Mount Whatever.
“Well, hurry it up, then,” the girl said. “You’re a nuisance.”
This was now his second opportunity to ask the question Tokage wanted him to ask, and get over this scenario in the first place. To his own surprise, instead, he pressed forth an observation. “You’re pretty harsh, for someone from a school of stiffs and snobs.”
She huffed. “Coming from someone who somehow made it into UA. As far as I can tell, you’ve all been nothing but disappointing, considering your school’s prestigious status.”
Even Kamakiri didn’t miss the sour expression on her face. “You jealous or something?”
“Hah. As if I’d want to be in a school of fools like yourself.”
“Or are you just way too attached to your class rep to be anywhere else?”
Ignoring the stabbing attempt, she had mostly seemed like she was trying to just get rid of him, being dismissive of his attempts to confront her, until this moment. She snapped to attention and faced him, as if Kamakiri had approached a stray cat. “What did you just say?”
He waved her off. “Yeah. Look, I’m gonna be honest, I’m only really here to get info on that smart girl in your class or whatever. You wanted to know why I’m being an annoyance? That’s it.”
It was like she hadn’t heard him. “Oh. I see what this is. You’re all just so high and mighty that you just have to get the step up over all of us. Can’t stand to see someone above your level like Miss Sai that you have to learn her weaknesses. As if you haven’t surpassed enough. Your school’s already beaten us once before!”
Kamakiris’ brow furrowed, confused. “The fuck? I don’t give a shit about any of that. None of us do. I’m literally only here because half of my classmates are being dumb for shits and giggles and dragged me into it.”
“Excuse me?”
“They wanna prove that your missy is a literal lesbian magnet. They think you lot are convinced she’s a goddess or something.”
“She i -” started the girl, only for her to pull back and clear her throat. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Kamakiri rolled his eyes. “Amen to that. I honest to god couldn’t give a damn.”
“Then why are you here, if you couldn’t care less?”
“Better here than aimlessly climbing up and down walls for the next few hours,” He kicked at a couple of loose stones on the ground, watching them scatter, then returned his focus to the girl. “So just spill some stuff. Or don’t. Either works, I guess. We could make this fun, honestly.”
“What?”
Kamakiri smirked, forcing a blade through his left forearm. “Fight me. Right here, now. I win, you tell me everything about your favorite smartass. You win, I’ll leave you the hell alone.”
She laughed at that. But the laugh was dripping with cynicism and impatience. “You just want an excuse for a fight.”
“No shit.”
“What’s your name, again?”
“Kamakiri,” he stated.
“Teisho,” the girl replied. “Well, Kamakiri, you really are pathetic.”
“As if you haven’t wanted to stab my guts for the past half hour. But if you want to be all goody-two-shoes for Your Royal Highness, then be my guest.”
There was that eye twitch again. “ Don’t call her that.”
He only stepped forwards. “Am I wrong? I dunno, maybe I’ll just keep calling her names until you get off your high horse and stop sucking up to Little Miss Perfect-”
Teisho moved, too fast, and Kamakiri heard something whizz past his left side, followed by the sounds of light objects striking solid material. Allowing himself a brief glance behind him, he caught a glimpse of three silver spines, one of which having pierced into the dirt and stone ground.
“I’m no suck up,” she growled, arms up and spikes already regenerating. More had made an appearance across her shoulders and back.
Kamakiri let himself shift into a proper stance, feeling entertained for the first time all day. “Then shut me up!”
Tetsutetsu tugged at the kernmantle rope he was holding steady. “I think she’s planning something!”
“Tetsutetsu, not you too,” groaned Rin, double checking the carabiners attached to his harness.
“Keep your hands damn still!” called out Awase from thirty feet on the ground below Tetsutetsu, who had to duck to avoid getting struck by flying rope. “And for god’s sake, no she’s not- ”
“She is! Intelli’s been eyeing up Kendo the moment we stepped off the bus!”
Shishida pulled himself up over the edge onto solid ground, hoisting three more training dummies over his shoulder and preparing to descend again. “Maybe that is because some of us failed to let her properly introduce herself. It seemed like she had plenty more to say.”
“What, we need introducing?! Shouldn’t someone like her know who we are anyway? The Sports Festival exists, remember?” Tetsutetsu insisted. “Also, Shishida, dude, I’m 99% sure you just killed those three citizens.”
“It was mostly Class 1-A who dominated the minds of those watching it,” pointed out Yanagi, as Shishida jumped back over the edge, already in beast form once again. “Also, Tetsu, you killed a person five minutes ago by neglecting to check their harness was on.”
Rin tried to reign them all in. “Can we conspire later? It’s literally all downhill here.”
“To be frank, where we stand at present appears to be less of a hill, and more of a precipice. Falling would cause oneself and their very soul to plummet straight into the abyss, rather than roll or tumble,” said one of the Seiai students with them, busy lowering a training dummy down the cliff with one of her arms. The other arm was busy undoing and retying itself into an intricate knot.
Tetsutetsu exclaimed, “Okay, wait, can we just clear this up? Do we just call you Yanagi and Yanagi 2 or...”
“First names are fine. Mieko, Reiko. Neither of us are plagued by the crushing need to stick to formalities,” Yanagi- Reiko said.
Mieko’s free hand flexed back into normalcy. “On the contrary-”
The telekinetic sighed as she released her quirk’s effects on another dummy. “Sister, I beg of you. This once. It has been almost half a year since we last saw each other, can we not make this tedious?”
“Well, I apologise, but I personally feel that the need to convey a sense of erudition is essential, especially regarding both of our positions, do you not agree?”
“Translation: I think one-upping my own younger sibling in the art of using long and tedious language is important!” said the maroon-haired Seiai student, who had introduced herself to them as Kitae. She’d encased her palms in some metal alloy to reduce rope burn. “Come on, you two.”
Rin shook his head, addressing the Seiai students working alongside them. “On the behalf of most of us, I’m sorry for how our class is acting. We’re not... usually like this.”
That last bit was a complete lie, of course, but the ones who would usually admit it as a joke were busy “investigating.”
“It’s alright, really,” chuckled Kitae, “We don’t always get to do work alongside other schools. Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
“Most schools probably don’t get up in arms about specific members of a class though.”
“Well, UA certainly has a number of famous faces to… get into a frenzy over,” mused Atsuko, the other Seiai student at the clifftop; she paused only briefly to retract the massive hammers protruding out of her back inwards again - hammers she had been using to keep herself steady.
“Yeah, but most of those faces are in Class 1-A,” said Rin. “Not to mention the things that we’ve heard about your class rep have been. A bit ludicrous, really,”
“In what way?”
“In a, um, ‘has turned the entire class gay for her’ sort of way.”
Kitae suddenly let the rope she was holding slip. They heard a faint thump, and a distant cursing Awase one second later. She looked like she wanted to turn into dust and perish.
“Are those… well-known rumors?” asked Atsuko, carefully.
Reiko replied, “No idea. A certain lizard brought it up on the way here and plenty of us ate it up.”
“What’d she say?!” inquired Kitae, not so carefully.
“To simplify things down?” Rin said, “Inteli has the biggest brain in the galaxy, and she can seduce any girl with her existence alone. She’s allegedly, and I QUOTE, ‘lesbianism incarnate.’”
The torrent of sound that followed from Mieko was almost definitely not human, or at least too fast to physically comprehend, and Kitae began scrambling for another rope as Reiko attempted to reign her sister in. Atsuko pinched the bridge of her nose, seemingly the least flustered.
“We… do respect Miss Sai quite a lot. Though I will admit that it definitely does almost reach the point of obsession, sometimes,” Atsuko admitted, pointedly glancing at Mieko, who was now talking about the second coming of the goddess. “As for how almost all of us appreciate her more than just as a classmate, I just think it’s sheer coincidence. A happy accident.”
“Is it legit adoration? Genuine love? Cause that’s AWESOME regardless!” Tetsutetsu blurted out. “How many of you actually swung towards girls before coming to Seiai? Do you all have a system or something, did you-”
Rin looked ready to cut him off, if not for the sudden, ear-piercing crack that beat him to it, and the start of tremors that almost immediately followed, across not only this specific section of crags they’d found themselves on, but across all the artificial ravine. In the distance, at the highest point in the facility, Rin saw a brown cloud of dust starting to kick up.
“GET DOWN!” exclaimed Kitae, snapping out of her initial panic, iron shields already formed across and over her forearms.
“WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO UP THERE?!” came Awase’s voice, barely audible over the pandemonium of real and fake rock shifting, and whatever the hell else had decided to be a nuisance now.
“WE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING!” shouted Tetsutetsu. He’d steeled his entire body up now, rather than just his limbs.
“THEN WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!”
“We need to get off this cliff. Go!” called out Atsuko, already backing away from the edge of the cliff.
“Um, guys?” whimpered Bondo, who hadn’t spoken until now. “Where did Kamakiri go?”
Kendo wasn’t sure what exactly caused the sudden mass landslide. Though if one thing was for certain, she definitely had her suspicions on which school was responsible.
Her first instinct upon feeling the tremors, and the following shifting of the terrain, was to knock whoever had approached from behind her out of the way of danger. She’d been able to mostly shield them both from falling debris, and kept them in a safe position until the chaos stopped.
She hadn’t expected Saiko Intelli to be that “whoever.”
The two of them had found themselves rather far from the other groups of students, Kendo having gone this far in search of Kamakiri. Based on their position and the layout of the facility, it hadn’t taken her or Intelli too long to surmise that they’d have to scale up some of the debris that now blocked most of their paths back.
Traversing up both the new and old cliff faces was thankfully not much of a challenge in itself. Accommodating for the strategist also proved to be easier than expected. While Intelli lacked in physical ability, she knew the best places to grab, the safest ledges to balance on, the quickest path up, even when accounting for damages.
“My apologies,” said Intelli, her voice strained from exhaustion, “For what I admit is a lack of physical aptitude.”
“Hey, no worries,” replied Kendo, pulling her up yet again, “It’s not like that’s a bad thing.”
“I know that. But it is rather unfortunate that you’re quite literally the one doing most of the heavy lifting.”
“Well, that can’t be helped, I guess. Different skills and powersets and all that,” she made sure her next step wasn’t going to crumble away before her. “But you’re helping a lot, too. I’d probably have taken a much less stable path up, if I’m being honest. The effort’s shared.”
Intelli sighed. “That is actually what I was hoping to discuss with you. These past few hours, as a matter of fact.”
Kendo paused in her tracks. “With me?”
“Admittedly, not you specifically. Rather, I was hoping to speak with one of your peers in your counterpart class. I assume you are familiar with the girl with the creation quirk?”
“Yaoyorozu?”
“Yes, her. I must confess, when I heard that it would be your class that would be joining us today, and not her own, I was somewhat disappointed. I mean no offence.”
If anything, she was just glad a certain blonde wasn’t here to hear that. “None taken.”
“I was hoping to voice my inquiries to her directly, you see. However, I had also reasoned that you were at the very least acquainted with each other, as evidenced by your promotional advertisements with Uwabami.”
The redhead groaned, a lighthearted reaction. “You saw those?”
“Yes, and the agonized expressions on your faces. Straw-clutching as it is, I supposed that you’d be able to provide a similar or equal answer to my concerns, in Yaoyorozu’s place. Would you be alright with that?”
Kendo had not been expecting this. Intelli, who had been regarded as an individual of unending knowledge, was asking her for advice. “Go ahead.”
“Weeks ago, the Provisional License Exam was hosted. At this examination, in spite of only being first year students, both your class and Yaoyorozu’s class were able to not only qualify for the exam, but also pass it almost flawlessly. Meanwhile, our entire class experienced total defeat. At the hands of Yaoyorozu herself, and three of her classmates.”
Class 1-A and Class 1-B had done their exams at different locations and times, and had honestly not learned much about how the other class had gone. She hadn’t doubted Yaoyorozu or her classmates’ ability to pass, but the specifics interested her.
Intelli continued. “It was shameful, really. A perfect plan, undermined by the efforts of four juniors. However, something that her peers told me during our confrontation has stuck with me. They said that they would never leave each other behind, that they’d always be there for each other. And that perplexed me. It took me a day before I could rationalize their reasoning. It was their bond with each other that enabled them to take illogical risks and pull through. What I truly wonder is how such bonds are formed. That’s what I was going to ask her. What makes her class’s bond so powerful?
On that day, I felt something different within them. And today, I also felt it in you, and your own peers. In spite of differing goals and, erm, personality quirks, I felt it. That same bond. It’s as if all students of UA have it. So tell me, Kendo. What makes the UA bond so strong?”
Kendo blinked. She had barely known Intelli for a day, only ever having heard of her this morning, and yet here Kendo was, listening to the girl her classmates revered and feared as a mastermind confide in her for advice, for something that couldn’t be answered so easily.
“Huh,” she said, giving herself time to think. “Well, it’s a lot of things, really. Caring for each other. Being able to put aside our differences. I think the most important thing, really, is mutual respect. Oh, and a couple of life-or-death experiences tend to help, too.”
She added the last point as a joke, but Intelli only appeared confused.
“My classmates respect me. I respect them in turn. What exactly am I missing here?”
“No kidding. From what I’ve heard, they seem to adore you. But maybe you should consider why . Why do you respect them?”
To Kendo’s surprise, this actually seemed to stump Intelli. “They are all reasonably skilled. Many of their quirks are useful and versatile, even if only a handful are combat-focused. They can hold their own and do not require coddling, both on the field and in class. They have done enough to enter Seiai Academy, or are in positions of prestige or wealth, which naturally suggest an advantageous position. Ultimately, all of my classmates serve as excellent allies to refer to in the future.”
Ah.
Kendo hummed. “Yeah, I think I see the problem.”
“Which is?”
“You don’t really see your classmates as people. Not really. You see them more like variables. LIke things you need to evaluate. Come on, what do you know about them? Individually, I mean.”
The Seiai student’s brow furrowed. “I have done extensive assessments on their abilities, strengths, weaknesses-”
“But what about them as people? You know what they can do, but what about them ?” Kendo didn’t even need to think hard about it as she continued. “Tokage has a soft spot for dinosaurs. Komori constantly surpasses her emotional limits in the hopes of eventually becoming an idol hero. Tsunotori visits the same steakhouse takeout place every weekend because it reminds her of home. Now I’m not telling you to go unearth every single trait and secret your classmates have. I’m saying you should get to know them not just as allies, but as people you’re close with. You know, as friends!”
“Friends?” said Intelli. She said the word as if it were part of an alien language.
“Yeah. Or just at the very least, actually try to get to know them. That’s a start.” She could have stopped there, but Kendo felt like she had to say more. “Oh, and another thing? It has to be shared. Can’t just be you. If you want it to be genuine, they need to understand you, too.”
Intelli suddenly appeared wounded, and guiltily, it almost made Kendo laugh. “But they-”
“Already love you? Honestly, to some degree, I don’t doubt that. But do they really know you? Or just an ideal version of yourself that you always show?”
Intelli opened her mouth, a retort likely on the tip of her tongue, only to close it. She tried again, but instead looked away. Kendo almost felt sorry for her.
“Look. I know nothing about who you are as a person. I can’t judge you or make direct assumptions. But opening yourself up more isn’t a bad idea.”
“What about you, then? How do your peers see you?”
“Me? Well, I’ve got quite a few things of my own. Dreams, demons, you know. My classmates don’t know what every single one actually is, but I do trust them enough to know a bunch of them. And they’re always there for me regardless of whether or not they do know. And I’m always the same for them. I may be class rep, but it’s mutual towards all of us. I’d even call us family, in a funny, functionally dysfunctional way. And I know that Yaoyorozu is in the same boat with Class 1-A, maybe even moreso.”
Kendo stopped, giving some time for her words to sink in for Intelli, whose mind could almost quite literally be seen chugging away. But in a way, also for herself. She found it funny, really. How she’d grown so close to the rest of her class over the year so far. Even the more difficult members of her class, from the more abrasive types like Kamakiri and Kuroiro, to the quieter ones like Kodai and Bondo, had all come to appreciate everyone else’s company. She knew it wasn't a feeling exclusive to UA, but at the same time this wasn’t always the norm in most other schools. Still, it almost felt wrong to imagine Class 1-B as anything but close.
“It seems I’m going to need the richest brew of tea imaginable after this,” Intelli finally said, her mind elsewhere.
“That wouldn’t be too bad. Could use a coffee myself,” agreed Kendo, “Thankfully, I think we’re almost there. Just a bit longer.”
She could already hear the distant sounds of familiar commotion. They were probably near the entrance of the artificial chasm. She pulled herself up over a couple of fallen chunks of false rock, catching sight of Honenuki’s orange suit and Bondo’s large form in the distance, and faced Intelli, again offering her hand. “You coming?”
Intelli hesitated, seemingly still crunching numbers, still assessing. But eventually, she took it. “Thank you.”
The day had ended with a number of things to take note of, most of which could only be formally relayed to everyone else after all the confusion had settled down.
Both schools were able to apply what (little, in some cases) they had learned and worked together to get everyone back to the rendezvous point without too much trouble. The landslide itself had been caused by a failed attempt at subduing a brawl that had startled between a UA and Seiai student. One of the mechanisms used to simulate landslide events had been smashed to bits.
In a totally unrelated incident, Kamakiri and another Seiai student both returned with various stab and slash wounds from (according to the former) “ravine thugs trying to mug them.” The two of them were currently talking about bugs and sea life and lethal force ethics by the first aid station, decked out in bandages.
As for the Right Hand coalition and their associates, their investigation had returned inconclusive. While there was strong evidence Intelli had the capacity to influence on a mass scale, counterarguments of equal validity were put forth, citing Intelli to be misunderstood. It’s said that the coalition spent more time arguing than investigating. Kendo knew what side of the Great Debate she stood on, but chose not to make that public.
In spite of certain mishaps, the overall consensus was that the trip was 100% worth it.
Monoma huffed. “Now that was. Certainly a day.”
“Wow, that’s it. Great conclusion, congrats. Gold star!” grumbled Kuroiro.
“PLEASE tell me at least one of us learned something today,” said an exasperated Rin.
“Yeah,” replied Awase, “I learned the fact that we’re all insane.”
“You only learned that now?!”
Thankfully, Kendo and Intelli had split off to meet their respective classes before any of the Right Hand Coalition could notice. And as exasperated as she was with quite a few of them, she was just relieved they had all made it out okay. Scolding would come later. After checking in on Kamakiri’s injuries and surveying everyone else’s statuses, she just let herself bathe in the chaotic ruckus from most of them for a solid few minutes. She had only just started to lay on the reprimands on certain individuals when she heard someone clear her throat behind her.
Kendo gave said individuals a death stare before turning to address the newcomer. “Oh, hey again, Intelli.”
“ Again?! ” came Tokage’s horrified voice, but was promptly ignored.
The Seiai class representative already looked much less dishevelled than she did when the landslide occurred. “Yes, hello. To you and to the rest of your classmates. I assure you, I am not here to, erm, seduce your class representative, or anyone else.”
The energy in Class 1-B had shifted significantly with Intelli’s arrival, but thankfully no one freaked out or screamed or did anything drastic.
“Oh, for crying out loud, she’s your senior ,” chided Kendo.
“No, no, I understand these misgivings. I’m afraid I have no one else to blame but myself for that,” Intelli acknowledged some of the pointed looks in her direction, then returned her attention to Kendo, “But that aside, I just wanted to give you my thanks. You have certainly given me a lot to mull over.”
“Aw, it’s nothing,” Kendo shrugged. “Well, you’re the thinker, I hear. You’ll figure things out quickly.”
Intelli laughed lightly. “Logically, strategically, yes. But I still have much to learn on the emotional end of things. I must humble myself further and admit that, well, it might be more than just me.”
She glanced over at her own class, and Kendo’s gaze followed. While both Yanagis were caught in an engaged discussion, most of the students were either tending to themselves or making casual, not-so-subtle looks over at Intelli. Kendo wondered how they saw Intelli, truly. She tried not to look too curious.
“I guess if anyone can make things work amongst you girls, it’s you,” Kendo asserted.
“I do hope so,” said Intelli. Something resembling wishfulness appeared and quickly vanished from her expression. “If you wouldn’t mind, I have one more favor to ask of you.”
“Hm? Ah, I don’t mind at all, go ahead.”
Intelli paused, as if expecting something. When whatever it was didn’t come, she hastily reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a single business card. She handed it to Kendo, and said, “Would you be able to deliver this to Yaoyorozu herself? I am afraid there is still much left unsaid that I would prefer to tell her in person.”
Kendo examined the card - refined and professional, much like Intelli herself - and nodded. “Of course! I’m sure she’d be happy to talk with you.”
“I appreciate the sentiment,” said Intelli, almost seeming sheepish. “Well, I best be off. It seems like you have… quite a handful to deal with.”
“Well, good thing I’ve got the quirk for it,” joked Kendo, before giving her a wave. “I wish you luck.”
“Likewise.”
And with that, she watched Intelli turn about face and return to her class. Already, the pink-haired girl from earlier was approaching her with papers in hand, the other girls turning to attention. They still carried themselves with that same professionalism from earlier, but now Kendo could see more behind their calculating expressions that she didn’t notice before. Something genuine and meaningful, something familiar. Something more than formal.
It seemed the feeling wasn’t only exclusive to UA after all.
Kendo chuckled. “You know, Intelli isn’t that bad. Wouldn’t mind chatting with her again.”
Unfortunately, saying this proved to be the biggest mistake she’d made all day.
Tokage immediately collapsed. “WE HAVE FAILED YOU!”
“-ed, we’ll get ‘em next time!”
“SHE GAVE KENDO HER NUMBER-”
“-vacuate! Evacuate the premises!”
“Shiozaki, holy water, NOW!”
“As if I would carry such-”
“-no time, Shiozaki’s tears will have to do, where’s the blasphemy?!”
“WE ARE BLASPHEMY!”
Yet even as her classmates panicked and utterly embarrassed them in front of their seniors, Kendo could only smile.
Because in spite of it all, she wouldn’t have it any other way.