Red and White, Black and Blue

Chapter 29: Blue Flames Over Bloodied Ground

The next day, training once again begins bright and early as the day is only barely dawning over the mountains. The five stuck with extra classes are looking even more zombie-like than the rest, as they wobble in place.

Aizawa strides up and addresses the five sharply. "Hey, remedial group. Keep at it." He hooks Kirishima with his scarf and pulls him upright by his forehead.

"Ughhhh. Yes sir!" Kirishima strains against the scarf, but reluctantly complies.

"Sorry. Just... need more beauty rest." Mina says as she also struggles to stay standing.

Kaminari groans. "Those extra lessons yesterday..."

"Until two in the morning..." Sero adds wearily.

"And then we started back up at seven." Sato complains, stumbling.

Aizawa's voice is completely flat and devoid of even the barest hint of sympathy. "I told you this would be tough. Remember, you're not just improving your quirks. You're also working to overcome the many weaknesses I saw in the finals."

Ragdoll hovers nearby, giggling at the state of the five students.

"Sato and Kaminari, reaching your limits is a matter of life and death. To increase that capacity, repeated and extended quirk use is key." Aizawa fixes his harsh gaze on each student in turn. "Sero, in addition to extending your capacity, you need to strengthen your tape and increase its firing speed. Ashido, you need to improve your skin's resistance against your acid during periods of extended use. And finally, Kirishima. Building those muscles and making your body even harder will create a nice synergy effect."

Aizawa pauses to let them each consider his words, before adding in a more intense tone. "Think about why you're more tired than the others before you start whining. You have much to improve here." With that, he tugs on Kirishima's forehead with the scarf one last time, then releases him.

"Yes sir!" The five reply, though they slump forward lazily again as soon as their teacher turns his back.

"Uraraka! Aoyama!" Aizawa calls out to them as they pass through the main part of the clearing. "The same goes for you. You didn't quite manage to fail, but it was a close call. You needed 30 points to pass, and you two got 35. I'd say you passed the proverbial finish line by only a hair."

Ochaco, who's lifting a rock with her power and guiding it slowly across the clearing, eeps at hearing her name and nearly lets the boulder drift away. "Close one!"

Aoyama, bent over in pain, has little to say about Aizawa's words. "How vexing..."

"You're all looking sluggish today. Don't lose focus. Each of you can move faster." Aizawa surveys the students as they get into their training for the day. "Always be conscious of who you are, and who you were before coming to UA. That's the key to improvement. That's why you're out here sweating, why I'm riding you so hard. Keep it in mind always."

Over in the corner of the clearing reserved for Tiger's boot camp, Midoriya taps Ryumi's shoulder. "Uhm, Ryumi?"

She looks his way as she stretches her arms across her chest, one after the other, warming up for the day's fighting. "What is it, Midoriya?"

"Oh, it's just..." Midoriya begins, between doing the same stretches. "That kid, Kota. I went and tried to talk with him last night."

"Went about as well as the first time?" Ryumi jokes - though she imagines she isn't far off the mark. The kid is a lot like Bakugo, and she's seen enough of Midoriya's attempts at being friendly with him to have a decent idea.

Midoriya confirms her suspicion with a sheepish laugh. "Ahaha, yeah..." His expression quickly shifts to a frown, though. "The thing is, I talked to Mandalay about him too. His parents were heroes who were murdered in the line of duty, and he feels like they abandoned him."