Life in the Alliance Heights dorms was a strange new normal. After the chaos in Kamino, all of us in Class 1-A were now living under one roof. This created a completely different dynamic. In the morning, I would find Iida already warming up in the common room, Bakugo grumbling because someone used his favorite pan for cooking, and Kaminari and Mineta arguing about which female hero was the coolest. In the midst of all that typical teenage commotion, there was a deeper bond among us, a silent understanding of those who had been through hell together.
For me, this was the closest experience to a "normal life" I had ever felt in this world. I had my secret circle of trust—Nejire (who often dropped by our dorm to "visit" her junior friends), Uraraka, and Tsuyu—who would give me knowing glances when we passed each other. I had a strategic partner in Momo, with whom I often spent time discussing theories in the library. And I had my good friend, Toru, whose cheerful presence was a constant reminder of the peace I was fighting for. However, underneath it all, the shadow of the future I knew and the secrets I kept were always there, a constant burden.
A few days after we moved into the dorms, Aizawa-sensei gathered us in the classroom. "Your break is over," he said in his characteristic flat tone. "With All Might's retirement, the criminal world has become bolder. The need for competent heroes is now at an all-time high. Therefore, we will be accelerating your development."
He paused, letting his words sink in. "You will be taking the Provisional Hero License Exam. Passing this exam will grant you a semi-professional status, allowing you to use your Quirks to save lives and fight villains in emergency situations under the supervision of a pro hero."
The whole class was immediately excited. This was a huge step.
"But," Aizawa continued, extinguishing our excitement, "the pass rate for this exam is usually below fifty percent. You must be prepared. From today until the exam, you will spend your hero training sessions in a special facility: Gym Gamma." He smirked slightly. "It's time for all of you to create... Ultimate Moves."
Gym Gamma, or the "Talent Development Kitchen" as Cementoss called it, was an incredible facility. It was a giant artificial cave with a ceiling so high it looked like a cathedral's, with concrete pillars that could be reshaped at will by Cementoss. It was the perfect laboratory for us to push the limits of our Quirks.
I looked around. Everyone immediately got to work with a burning passion. In one corner, I saw Midoriya, whose arms were now healed though still covered in scars, discussing with All Might. He was no longer imitating All Might's moves. He was developing his own style, One For All: Shoot Style, focusing the power in his legs to protect his fragile arms. It was a clever and creative solution.
In another corner, Bakugo was unleashing incredibly powerful concentrated explosions on a thick concrete wall. He was no longer just creating big blasts. He was learning to focus his power into a projectile that could pierce defenses, an AP Shot. His training was brutal and relentless. Todoroki, at his side, was practicing using his ice and fire simultaneously, trying to reduce the lag time between the two elements, his body shrouded in steam and frost.
I myself stood in the middle, feeling a bit lost. An Ultimate Move? What on earth was my ultimate move? "Summoning the armor and hoping I don't pass out from the pain" was not a reliable technique. "Full Manifestation" was too risky and draining. "Partial Manifestation" was a basic technique, not a finisher. I needed something new. Something decisive.
That night, while trying to focus, I had the dream again. This time it was clearer, more real. I was the original Tatsumi, standing on a battlefield littered with corpses. I was holding a familiar red spear, Neuntote. I saw myself moving, not with brute force, but with honed skill. I stabbed, twisted, and slashed with the spear as if it were an extension of my soul. I saw how the Incursio armor was not just a protector, but also the source of the weapon itself.
I woke up with an epiphany. That was the key. All this time I had only been thinking about how to wear this armor. I had never thought about how to use it as a weapon. I remembered my fight against Todoroki, when I instinctively turned my gauntlet into a spearhead. That wasn't a coincidence. It was a clue. My ultimate move shouldn't be about defense. It had to be about offense. I had to learn to create my own weapon.
I spent the next few days in Gym Gamma, but my training was different. While others trained to strengthen their output, I sat cross-legged in a quiet corner, meditating. I tried to reach out to my dragon, not to ask for power, but for understanding. I tried to feel the essence of Neuntote from the dream, trying to understand how Incursio could change its shape.
Momo, who was training to shorten her creation time, noticed me. One day, she approached. "You're not training physically, Tatsumi-san," she said, curiosity evident in her eyes.
"I'm trying a different approach," I replied. I decided to give her a small part of my problem, framing it as a Quirk issue. "My Quirk can form armor. I'm trying to figure out if I can change its shape into something else, like a weapon."
Her eyes lit up at the intellectual challenge. "Material shape-shifting!" she exclaimed quietly. "That requires a deep understanding of molecular structure and material density. You can't just 'will' a sword into existence. You have to imagine every atom of it arranged into a sharp, dense blade. You have to understand how energy binds that material together." She began to give me a brief lecture on material science, about how carbon allotropes could be soft graphite or hard diamond.
Her scientific lecture, which might have been boring to others, was an epiphany for me. She gave me a logical framework for something I had only felt instinctively. I had to understand the weapon, not just want it.
On the last day of training, I decided to try it. I stood in front of a thick armored training robot that Bakugo usually used. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and focused. I didn't just ask for power. I imagined every detail. I imagined the dense bio-organic metal, the reinforced edge, and the perfect balance.
'Not a shield,' I thought. 'Not just armor. Give me your fang. Give me a sword.'
I screamed, not from pain, but from pure effort. I felt a hot energy flow into my right arm. The Incursio gauntlet formed, but this time, it didn't stop there. Under the shocked gazes of a few of my classmates who happened to be watching, the black metal began to twist, lengthen, and harden. It grew past my knuckles, forming a short, thick, jet-black sword blade, about half a meter long, fused to my gauntlet. It wasn't stable, the tip vibrated slightly, and the pain was immense, but it was real. I had created a weapon.
I opened my eyes, my breath heavy. I looked at the short sword on my arm. Then I looked at the training robot. With a roar, I charged forward and swung my weapon. The black blade cut through the robot's steel plate with ease, slicing it into two pieces with a hiss of hot metal.
After that, the sword blade shattered into particles of light, and I fell to my knees, my arm trembling violently from exhaustion. I had only done it for a few seconds, and it had drained almost all my energy. There was still a long way to go before I could create a spear like Neuntote, or even maintain this sword in a fight.
But as I looked at the bisected robot in front of me, I couldn't help but smile. A tired, painful, but triumphant smile. I had finally found a way to fight on my own terms. I had found the fangs for my dragon. And I was ready to show them to the world at the Provisional License Exam.