Eichi adjusted his grip on Haru. "If I didn't agnowledge them as teammates, I would've taken care of it on my own. She was the one who proposed to take care of the two with haru while I took care of their heavy hitter."
Moriyama sighed. "That's not the point."
Aiko crossed her arms, her expression growing more exasperated. "You keep saying you followed the plan, but you barely worked with us. You didn't even check if I needed backup. What if I failed?"
Eichi's tone remained flat. "Then you wouldn't be standing here complaining."
Aiko's fingers curled into her sleeves, her irritation barely contained. "Unbelievable," she muttered.
Moriyama exhaled through his nose, his patience thinning. "Eichi, listen. You're not wrong to take the most efficient route, but efficiency alone doesn't build trust. If your squad can't rely on you, then you might as well be fighting alone."
Eichi remained silent for a beat before shifting Haru's weight slightly. "I never expected them to rely on me."
Aiko blinked. For a moment, it almost sounded like an admission—like he wasn't avoiding teamwork out of arrogance, but something else entirely.
Moriyama caught the shift too, but he didn't press. "Go get cleaned up. Your practical exercise is done for now."
Eichi gave a slight nod, then turned and walked off.
Aiko watched him go, her earlier frustration simmering into something more uncertain. She had always assumed he saw himself above everyone, that he didn't care about working with others. But what if... he just didn't think anyone would ever rely on him in the first place?
Kenta sighed. "Yeah. And Haru said Eichi didn't even flinch when he called him out on it. Just stared him down like he didn't care. Then, bam—Haru looked like he'd seen a ghost. I don't know what Eichi did, but it freaked Haru out so bad he wouldn't talk about it after."
Kato whistled low, leaning back in his chair. "Damn. So Eichi's not just strong—he's got some kind of illusion Quirk too? And he's hiding scars? What's his deal?"
Kaina frowned. "If Haru's Quirk lets him see through illusions, and Eichi's got one strong enough to... rattle haru. Most, if not all, illusion Quirks don't work on Haru. Whatever Eichi's doing, it's on another level."
Kenta crossed his arms. "Yeah, and that's not even the worst part. During the test, it was like... he wasn't even trying.
He moved faster than anyone I've ever seen, and when he hit me, it felt like getting hit by a truck. And the way he looked at me—like I was some kind of a dumbass. It was... unsettling."
The table fell silent again. Kaina's gaze drifted to the stairs leading to the first-year dorms. She couldn't help but wonder what it was about Eichi that had Haru—and now Kenta—so rattled.
Kato broke the silence, his tone half-joking. "So, what? We've got some kind of secret ninja in our class? What's next—he starts throwing shurikens and disappearing in puffs of smoke?"
"Maybe," she said quietly.
Kenta leaned forward, his voice low. "You think he's dangerous?"
Kaina hesitated, then shook her head. "I don't know. But—"
Before she could finish, Kato interrupted. His usual laid-back demeanor was gone, replaced by an uncharacteristically serious expression. "Wait, do you remember the incident at District 69 some days ago?"
The table froze. Kenta's eyes narrowed, and Kaina's head snapped toward Kato. "What about it?" she asked, her voice cautious.
Kato leaned in, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "You know, the one where those two red-haired guys showed up out of nowhere and started fighting that group of five? The news said they had crazy Quirks—wind, fire, gravity, all that stuff. And then... one of them blew himself up. The other one got away with a baby."
Kato cut Kaina off as she was about to say something. "Think about it. Eichi shows up out of nowhere, right after that incident.
Yes, he's got black hair now, but it could be dyed, no? He's freakishly strong, moves like a pro, and now we find out he's got scars all over him that he's hiding with some kind of illusion. And Haru's scared of him? Come on, it adds up."
Kaina's pieces of the puzzle stated clicking into place. The timing, Eichi's skills, his scars, his attitude—it all fit. But she wasn't ready to jump to conclusions. "That's a huge leap, Kato. We don't know if Eichi's connected to that. It could just be a coincidence."
Kato shook his head. "Coincidence? Seriously? You think it's a coincidence that a guy like him shows up right after something like that happens? And don't forget—Haru saw through an illusion. What if Eichi's not just hiding scars? What if he's a villain?"
Kenta's fists clenched on the table. "If he's one of those guys from District 69... that means he's dangerous. Those guys leveled a whole block. And if he's the one who got away—"
Kaina held up a hand, cutting him off. "We don't know that. And even if he is connected, we can't just accuse him without proof. For all we know, he's just a guy trying to start over."
Kato raised an eyebrow. "A guy trying to start over doesn't show up with scars he needs to hide and skills that make pros look like amateurs. Face it, Kaina. There's something off about him, and we need to figure out and let the hero's know before it becomes our problem."
"And what if he's not a threat? What if he's just someone who's been through hell and is trying to rebuild his life?! We can't judge him based on rumors and speculation.
If we start treating him like a villain without proof, we're no better than the people who probably made his life miserable in the first place!"
Kenta leaned back in his chair, his expression conflicted. "I get what you're saying, Kaina, but come on. You can't just ignore the signs. He's too strong, too skilled, and way too secretive. If he's not dangerous, then why is he hiding so much?"