Capítulo 16: Class Elections + Alarm!

The next day….

"What's it like having All Might as a teacher at U.A.?" A reporter asked, shoving a microphone in my face.

I looked at the cameras and the reporters for a moment and realized they were trying interview me. The news that All Might had come to teach at U.A. started spreading around the country, stirring the nation up into a frenzy. The media had been in an uproar that had been going on for a few days.

"He is… an inspiration." I replied, smiling while remembering the moments our class had with the beefy man as well as the pearls of wisdom he occasionally dropped. "Learning under him reminds me why I wanted to be a hero in the first place!"

"Has he been a good teacher?"

"What does he look like in front of the class?"

"Is there anything you dislike about having All Might as a teacher?"

They continued asking and swarming me with questions. It was getting annoying, so I told them I was running late.

Going through the front gates of which they were denied entry, I mused to myself that having to deal with the press was something I better start getting used to if I wanted to become a pro-hero. I wonder how pro-heroes always looked so remarkably poised and collected in front of all those cameras and microphones. Maybe the news outlets edited out the not so flattering shots?

I got to class on time and settled into my seat.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Izuku nervously looking at Bakugo who seemed to have recovered from his melancholy overnight and was currently glaring at Midoriya with the usual ferocity. Those two seriously had a weird ass, toxic friendship. But it wasn't my problem so I ignored it.

Denki and Eijiro, the ever friendly and easy going duo, came to my table, "Man, it's only the first week of school but they are already starting to bury with us with homework!" Denki whined.

Kirishima agreed, sighing, "I feel you man. Who knew the Hero Academy would spend more time on our studies than in middle-school? I thought I was here to learn to be a hero, not calculus!"

I nodded, "Yeah, it sucks. But there's nothing we can do, right? Hero training is only one part of our education here. If we don't do well on written exams, we won't be allowed to graduate no matter how well we do on practical exams."

Denki's eyes widened and grabbed his head, "Huh, are you for real!? I didn't know that!"

"How could you not have known that? Did you not do your research before coming here?" Momo chided from behind me, clearly having been listening to us. She continued, "Most Hero Academies are like that. Maybe only a few have a pure Hero Course syllabus, but those typically don't have great reputations."

The Electrification quirk user looked to have fallen deeper into despair, "Seriously? We have to study for the next three years…? I thought I left it behind when I came to U.A…. Calculus, Literature, English… My nemeses!"

I turned to Momo, "You seem to have no problem with the homework. Well, you do seem like the studious type after all."

"A top-hero is someone who has both brains and brawns. Only a holistic education that combines both the practical aspect of heroics and a well-rounded schooling can help us become top-heroes." She shot back seriously.

Wow, she certainly has the dedication to chase her dreams. Seeing that, even I couldn't find room to tease her about it.

"Why did you want to become a hero in the first place, Momo?" I asked, genuinely curious. With a quirk like hers, there were many options available to her. For one, money would never be an issue as she could just continuously create precious minerals and sell them for profit. And if it was fame Momo was seeking, there were certainly better ways for a girl with her beauty to achieve it aside from the dangerous path of being a pro-hero.

She blinked, not seeming to have been expecting such a question, but answered without hesitation.

"Why wouldn't I?" Momo replied with confidence. "My quirk, Creation, has the potential to do so much good for the world. I was born into a famous hero family and was fortunate enough to grow up in a privileged environment. A good quirk and a good family, how could I not give back to society by becoming a pro-hero?"

So she wants to contribute to society huh? An unsurprisingly mature answer from a mature girl, I mused. But I suppose many of us in the Hero Course of the top Hero Academy in Japan came here for a similar reason, myself included.

"What about you, Yasuo. Why do you want to be a hero?" She asked, resting her chin on her palm.

I gave a bitter smile, and once more, images of manbearpig crushing that man while I could only look on helplessly crossed my mind, "…It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you another time."

(Momo POV)

Yasuo looked back at me although his eyes, while looking in my direction, seemed to have been lost in his own thoughts. The bitter smile on his face seemed to be hiding a secret, as well as painful memories.

"…It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you another time." He stated, looking as if it wasn't so much a long story as it was an unpleasant one.

The boy who was always eager to chat with me turned away, no longer interested in continuing the conversation. I was surprised, and worried that I might have inadvertently offended him or caused him to remember painful memories.

I wanted to say something, but I didn't know how or what to even say. Years of private tuition and all the resources money could buy, yet none of that helped me think of something to say to him.

As I watched his back, a firm and broad one that seemed incongruous to his pretty face, I couldn't help but think back to the last few days since I got to know Kurogami Yasuo.

Yasuo was a person I found myself watching on more than one occasion. Initially, I didn't think of him as anyone special. He was just another classmate, one that sat in front of me in class, but no one unique. He looked at me and my body just like how any other teenage boy would. Their wandering gazes, clenched lips and hints of desire were something I was already used to experiencing.

So when Yasuo's eyes flitted to my chest and legs the moment I entered the classroom on the first day of school, I had already written off as just another boy. And when he had a slight altercation with Bakugo, I dismissed him as just another competitive, immature boy who had to prove to everyone he was the alpha.

Then he showed off his quirk. Psychokinesis. A bizarrely powerful variety that seemed to transcend on every level when compared to others with similar quirks. I had never before witnessed such a powerful quirk except in ranks of the highest ranked-heroes. And even then, Yasuo was in no way lacking.

The scene where he blasted the softball into the air; the flurry of wind and sheer overwhelming power was… unbelievable. Yet, I had to believe it as my very own eyes witnessed such a sight.

I then awkwardly cracked a joke after that jaw-dropping display, largely to reassure myself and regain my confidence, as well as to show Yasuo that… well, she didn't know what she wanted to prove to him. That I wasn't intimidated, that I wouldn't be affected? How utterly transparent. He must have seen through her very bad acting from the very beginning!

But Yasuo didn't laugh at her poor acting skills. He just pretended like he couldn't see through my façade and awkwardly laughed off my bad attempt at a joke. That for one was something I was grateful for at the very least.

And unlike the other boys in class, it was very quickly apparent that his head wasn't filled with the usual mindless, toxic masculinity like the other boys. He was smart, sociable and mature. But unlike the overtly-serious and gloomy Todoroki who also seemed too mature for his age, Yasuo did not shy away from mixing around with his classmates.

Objectively speaking, he was probably also considered to be the popular kid in class, always surrounded by their classmates and speaking amicably to anyone.

During lessons, he was actually one of the few guys who would diligently listen and take notes during lessons as well. Which showed her that he took his studies seriously and was not too proud of his powerful quirk to listen and learn from people who knew more than him.

Then they were paired up for the battle training. Again, unlike most of the other boys who either stared at her admittedly revealing costume lecherously or blushed and looked away in embarrassment, Yasuo accurately realized that the outfit was designed solely for the practicality of quirk usage.

Although I did notice that his eyes would occasionally linger on certain parts of my body, he wasn't disrespectful about it. I think I'd be more concerned if he was completely disinterested in the opposite gender. I remembered our health class teacher had told us that at our age, it wasn't odd for boys our age to start developing an interest in girls and our bodies. And similarly, we would also start to develop an interest in them.

When it came time for our team battle training, he also attentively listened when I told him my plan. With his ability, Yasuo could probably have finished the entire thing on his own. But contrary to expectations, he instead listened and agreed to my plan to hide instead of fight.

A small part of me had suggested that plan because I wanted to show to All Might and the class that I wasn't going to be a burden to Yasuo; that even though my quirk could not compare to his, my mind was still a powerful tool that was just as impressive as my partner's quirk.

Did he notice my insecurity, I wondered. Was that why he agreed to my plan? As a way to comfort my pathetic insecurities and lack of confidence in myself? I couldn't tell. Just like how I could not be sure how I would feel about that, if it was true. Touched that he would let me be in the spotlight while taking a step back, or annoyed that he would presume to patronize me?

I had still been unsure about how I would feel until after training when class was over, and I saw him go over to comfort Midoriya. He reassured the shorter boy that he too lacked control when he first awakened his quirk, expressing a hopeful optimism that the other would similarly be able to control his quirk in the future.

Then I realized that if he did indeed see through my insecurities before and willingly took a step back to share the spotlight, it would not have been because he pitied me or was being condescending. No, Kurogami Yasuo was just a kind boy who would have done the same for anybody else.

A kind boy that was at the same time smart, friendly, fiercely capable yet at the same time mature enough to not desire to become a hero to drown himself in fame and fortune. It was a conclusion that I had come to after finding myself strangely attracted to watching him. Analysing, observing and taking mental notes. Was this what the health class teacher meant when she said girls my age would begin developing an interest in the opposite gender?

And as I pointed out to him my observation of his character, he had teased me that I was trying to flirt with him like Mina had been suggesting. I honestly didn't know if what I had said could be construed as flirting, but I rather enjoyed talking to Yasuo. And if others would see it as flirting, then so be it. I liked flirting with Yasuo.

(Yasuo POV)

Soon after, Homeroom started, and I shook myself out of my funk when Aizawa-sensei entered the classroom.

"Good work with yesterday's battle training. I've looked over your grades and evaluations." Aizawa began as he put down a stack of paper on the teacher's podium.

"Bakugo." He called out, looking at the delinquent, "Grow up already. Stop wasting your talent."

…That was it? Bakugo had attempted a move that could have seriously injured, maimed, crippled or even killed Izuku. Just because he had talent didn't mean he could be let off with just a slap on the wrist for doing something so dangerous. If the only chastisement he would receive after that embarrassing display was 'grow up already', then I was deeply disappointed in U.A.

But contrary to my expectations, Aizawa moved on, "And it seems Midoriya ended yet another day with a broken arm. Learn to control your quirk because just trying isn't going to cut it. I hate repeating myself. But you do have potential, assuming you can overcome this. Work hard, Midoriya."

"Okay!" He replied with vigour.

I could see Izuku, who was seated in front of me, trembling at the lecture even despite his determined response. I found it unfair, that Izuku who at least tried his best was being scolded with more words than that irresponsible gangster. I got that Aizawa was just trying to motivate Izuku, but still…

He then turned his eyes towards me, and for a moment I thought he was going to say something, but he didn't. Good. Because I might have just rebuked him right away about the way he handled, or rather, didn't handle Bakugo if he did.

"Now, on to Homeroom business. Sorry for the sudden announcement, but… you will have to pick a class president." He stated blankly.

"Such a normal school-like thing!" The class exaggeratedly exclaimed. But they still clamoured to volunteer themselves to be the class president.

In normal schools, the position would only entail mundane tasks, so nobody really wanted to do it. But in the Hero Course at U.A., it was a position that symbolized leading the future generations of pro-heroes. So needless to say, everyone here who was aiming to become the top-hero in the future wanted to showcase their leadership abilities.

As for myself, I was not unfamiliar with being in a leadership position since I had been the captain of my middle school soccer team. And managing those hot-headed, competitive guys was no easy feat. In terms of proving myself as being capable of leading the future generation of pro-heroes, however… of course I too wanted the symbolic meaning of such a position attached to myself.

"Quiet down, everyone!" Iida yelled, getting everyone's attention. "Leading the many is a task of heavy responsibility… but ambition does not equate to ability! The sacred office demands the trust of its constituents. If this is to be a democracy, then I put forward the motion that our leader must be chosen by election!"

Constituents? Democracy? Election? I wanted to point out that this was just an election of a class president, not the election of Japan's president, but seeing how fired up Iida was, I chose not to comment.

"But Iida, we haven't known each other long enough to build any trust." Tsuyu pointed out.

"And everyone'll just vote for themselves!" Eijiro added.

Iida gestured with his arms, "That's precisely why anyone who manages to earn multiple votes will be the best suited for the job!"

"And we could just make it so that we are not allowed to vote for ourselves. Being required to write down your name when voting for someone would solve that problem." I suggested, looking to support my friend.

"Ah, that is a good idea, Yasuo. Will you allow this, sensei?" Iida asked the half asleep Aizawa, having already wrapped himself in the admittedly comfortable looking sleeping bag, who absentmindedly agreed.

I telekinetically tore out a few empty pages from my notebook and neatly divided them into twenty slips of paper. I then distributed them to my classmates, "We can vote for the person we want as the class president with these and then tally them up. Whoever gets the second most votes will be the deputy president, how about that?"

My classmates all agreed, and we started writing down the names of those we thought should be the class president. Myself, I voted for Iida since I genuinely thought he would be a suitable class president. I was tempted to vote for Momo as well for some brownie points, but something like that was not in line with my character.

After everyone was done, I telekinetically handed gathered the slips of paper to Aizawa who began tallying them. Of course, I did check out who Momo voted for with my Psychic Sense – just out of curiosity. To my joy and some guilt, she voted for me.

The tallied results were listed up on the blackboard, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the results.

Kurogami Yasuo – 7 votes

Yaoyorozu Momo – 5 votes

Tenya Iida – 3 votes

Todoroki Shoto – 2 votes

Midoriya Izuku – 1 vote

Asui Tsuyu – 1 vote

Jiro Kyoka – 1 vote

"I got zero votes!?" Bakugo yelled out in disbelief before glaring at the rest of the class, "And who the hell voted for Deku and that damned Ink-hair!?"

Hanta rolled his eyes, "Who would vote for you with an attitude like that?"

Bakugo growled out, but with Aizawa standing right there, he didn't try anything.

Iida looked a little disappointed, but not that upset over receiving three votes. "Three votes, huh? Not bad but it seems I still have much to learn…"

"As expected, Yasuo is popular." Izuku observed as he approached me.

Flattered, I honestly remarked, "Ah, I really didn't expect to get so many votes. Did you vote for me, Izuku?"

"Yeah! I thought you would be the person most suitable to be class president, Yasuo! Your quirk is powerful and you are also a really nice person." He answered, "Though I wonder who voted for me…"

I smiled when out of the corner of my eye I saw Ochaco conspicuously looking away while whistling. How cute.

Mezo came up to me as well, and the end of one of his arm-tentacles formed a mouth, "I think you will do a great job, Yasuo. Ah, of course I voted for you as well."

"Haha! I voted for you, Yasuo! Don't forget to show me some favouritism when you're class president!" Eijiro declared.

I chuckled, "Of course, I will make sure to put your name first if we have any jobs that need to be done."

His grin fell, "Wait, that's not what I meant!"

I glanced at Momo, who was talking to a few of the other girls. It seemed that she should have received most of the girls' votes, with the except of Uraraka. Momo had on a confident look, like the result was something she had expected.

Aizawa-sensei then asked Momo and I to step up to the front of the class, "So your class president is Kurogami and your deputy president will be Yaoyorozu. Give them an applause or whatever."

I cleared my throat, "Um, for those of you who have voted for me, I am grateful for your confidence. For those who did not, you are dead to me… I'm kidding of course. I will do my best to earn your confidence. Please take care of me." I finished with a deep bow after receiving a few laughs and cheers from the class.

----------

During lunchtime, our exclusively guys table had expanded. Momo and I, after some discussion, convinced the two separate groups that our class should sit together for lunch. Thankfully, it did not take much convincing on our parts because after the battle training the guys and girls had already begun talking to each other after partnering up.

There were still a few stubborn hold outs, like Todoroki and Bakugo who preferred to eat alone, but generally it could be considered a success.

As the class was chatting amicably, the sudden loud cry of an alarm echoed throughout the building.

"An alarm!?" Izuku exclaimed, and so did a few others who stood up and looked around curiously.

A mechanical voice announced from the speakers, "Security level 3 has been broken. All students, please evacuate in an orderly fashion."

Upon hearing that most of the gathered students in the cafeteria started panicking and so did my own classmates.

Somewhat alarmed, I released my Psychic Sense to see just what in the world was going and on managed to infiltrate U.A. But I did not need to search long as my senses quickly picked up a throng of reporters who were rushing into U.A.'s main entrance.

"Everyone, calm down! It's just reporters!" I yelled out amidst the chaos and panic, trying to calm down my classmates and the other students who were currently pushing and shoving each other while rushing to the exit.

However, my voice in the sea of panicked yelling could hardly be heard. Just as I was contemplating whether or not I should slam some tables against the ceiling to get everyone's attention, Momo tugged at my sleeve.

She had been sitting next to me when we were eating lunch, but now she suddenly pulled her shirt all the way up to the bottom of her bra. I recoiled slightly at the sudden sight of her dark purple underwear before her navel glowed.

Momo created a white plastic megaphone and handed it to me, "Use this!"

I nodded in gratitude and flew up in to the air before shouting loudly into the megaphone, "EVERYONE CALM DOWN! DO NOT PANIC! IT'S JUST THE PRESS! EVERYTHING IS FINE!"

Hearing my loud voice from the megaphone, everyone stopped moving and looked towards the source of the announcement – me who was floating in mid-air.

"H-how do you know that?" One of the gathered students asked, someone I didn't recognize.

I pointed to the window which revealed Aizawa and Present Mic who were dealing with the crowd of reporters, "See for yourself, it's just reporters. So everyone, please calm down. Everything is under control!"

The students who had previously been panicked wiped off their nervous sweat and went back to their tables. I even received a few praises and thank yous from some of them.

I floated back down to where my class was at.

"Amazing, class president! You took control of the situation just like that!" Eijiro praised, "How manly!"

As a few others joined him in the sudden outpour of praise, I embarrassedly held my hand up, "Please, Momo helped me as well. If I didn't have the megaphone, it would have been difficult."

Iida shook his head, "Such calm and collectedness! As expected of the superior candidate! I have to learn from how you how to remain level-headed during moments of panic!"

Denki flashed a thumbs up, "Yeah! You were like a beacon pointing to the window, 'see for yourself!', it was super cool! Momo was cool too though!"

"Guys, please. It wasn't that big a deal. Anyone would have done it as well if they had seen the reporters like I did." I humbly deflected, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't just the slightest bit pleased at all the attention.

"Hey, Yasuo!" I heard someone shouting my name from another table. I turned and saw that it was Itsuka with her Class B cohorts.

She grinned at me, "That was pretty cool, what you did. Though it seems like you just love calling out for attention, huh? Or do you just have a habit of wanting to save everyone or something?"

I chuckled and was about to reply, but one of her classmates shouted out instead, "You 1A people think you're hot shit huh? We didn't need someone like you to save us, you busybody who just wants attention."

Itsuka looked affronted and was about to retort but Momo who was sitting next to me stood up and cleared her throat to interrupt, "Ahem. Excuse me, Yasuo was doing what he thought was most appropriate for the situation. I'm sure he wasn't trying to get people's attention if that is what you are insinuating. And who are you in the first place?"

Ah, is she trying to stand up for me? That's sweet but…

The rude guy continued, "Hmph, such arrogance from Class 1A. As expected of you who think you're superior to us.

Itsuka blushed at Momo's sudden defensiveness then glared at her classmate, "Ah, wait, I was just joking. And Monoma, why are you trying to make things worse!" She enlarged her hand and chopped the offending boy in the head.

The boy, Monoma, grasped his head in pain and fell to the ground.

"Please, don't mind him. He's just an idiot. I'm Itsuka Kendo, class president of 1B. I just came here to greet my friend, Yasuo." She explained, glancing at me for help.

I stepped in between them, catching the brunt of Momo's stern gaze, "Ah it's true. We met during the entrance exam. She's not a bad person. Although I can't same the say for her classmate…"

Monoma tried getting up, "You 1A prick, I-" before getting cracked in the head again by Itsuka and falling again.

Momo looked at Itsuka appraisingly before nodding, "I see. I apologize for the misunderstanding. I am 1A's deputy class president."

Not even introducing her name? I looked at Momo strangely due to her odd hostility. Could this be the rumoured jealousy of a woman!? …Of course not, I am not that deluded to think so.

Itsuka scratcher her cheek awkwardly, "Uh, nice to meet you."

I turned to her and smiled, "So, class president huh? Congrats!"

The orange-haired girl looked back at me grinning, "Ah hahah, yeah. Somehow it just happened."

"Yeah, same. I was also somehow voted in as class president."

"Eh? You too? Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Seeing how you dealt with that situation earlier… the position of class president, it suits you." She offered.

"That was only with the help of Momo here." I gestured to my deputy president who was still silently evaluating Itsuka.

Momo then held my arm, "I think we should start getting back to class, Yasuo. Lunch break is almost over."

I blinked before agreeing, "Oh, yeah sure. See you later, Itsuka. Or should I say, Madam President?" I quipped before waving goodbye and leaving with Momo.

However, there was still something on my mind. It could be that my mind was playing tricks on me, but when I used my Psychic Sense just awhile ago… I noticed some kind of black mist-like figure at the edge of my senses. It was only for a short instant since I was focused on the reporters at the entrance, so I could've been wrong. But it definitely was strange.