The intercom in the preparation area crackled with All Might's thundering voice.
"HERO TEAM! YOU HAVE FIFTEEN MINUTES TO INFILTRATE THE BUILDING AND SECURE THE BOMB! THE VILLAIN TEAM IS IN A DEFENSIVE POSITION! BEGIN WHEN YOU HEAR THE START SIGNAL!"
Ren took a deep breath, centering himself.
"So the plan is this: we'll enter by floating to prevent Jiro-san from detecting us through floor vibrations. We'll use your natural vertical mobility and my telekinesis to move quickly through unconventional routes. Once we're near the bomb, we'll coordinate a simultaneous attack using your speed and range combined with my ability to create distractions with floating objects."
"Sounds solid, ribbit. Although we should be prepared for Yaoyorozu-san to create some kind of elaborate trap. She is extremely intelligent and has likely anticipated several conventional approaches," Tsuyu replied.
"I know." Ren smiled with genuine anticipation. "That's why it's going to be fun to outsmart her."
The signal sounded. A sharp electronic beep resonated throughout the Ground Beta training complex.
"Let's go," Ren said, extending his arm toward Tsuyu. "Hold onto my arm firmly. It's going to feel strange at first when we take off."
Tsuyu obeyed without hesitation or nervousness; her hand wrapped around Ren's forearm with a secure grip. And then, he activated his telekinesis.
It was considerably different from moving inanimate objects. Lifting a living person required continuous adjustments and instant corrections to maintain stability, compensating for every small, involuntary movement. Ren felt his mind stretch, encompassing both his own body weight and Tsuyu's simultaneously. Their feet slowly lifted off the concrete floor.
"Whoa," Tsuyu murmured, her eyes widening slightly in surprise. "This feels strange, ribbit."
"Are you dizzy? Do you need me to slow down?"
"No, I'm fine. It's just different from what I expected. I can adapt, ribbit."
They began to move forward, gliding through the air about five feet above the ground. Ren maintained a moderate speed, aware that moving too fast would require more mental concentration than he could sustainably keep up for a full fifteen minutes.
They entered the training building through the open main doors. The lobby was spacious and empty, designed to look like a generic office building entrance. There were doors leading to stairs at both ends of the space.
"Use the stairs on the left side," Tsuyu suggested in a barely audible voice. "According to the building map I saw on the screen before we started, they lead directly to the central area of the fifth floor where the bomb is likely located."
Ren nodded and adjusted his flight path, turning smoothly in mid-air. They floated toward the left staircase and began to ascend the steps without ever touching them. The silence was absolute, except for the sound of their breathing. No vibrations. No footsteps. They would be invisible to Jiro's earphone jack Quirk as long as they remained airborne.
It was on the second floor when the "accident" happened.
Ren was focused on keeping the telekinetic field stable when he felt an unexpected fluctuation in the weight distribution. Perhaps it was a genuine moment of distraction as he briefly thought about Aoyama again. Perhaps it was a miscalculation in the ascent angle. Or perhaps it was completely intentional, though Ren would never admit it out loud.
His control slipped for a fraction of a second. Tsuyu's body rotated unexpectedly while the telekinetic field readjusted clumsily to compensate. Suddenly, Tsuyu was pressed directly against Ren's chest, their bodies floating together in the air with their faces barely inches apart.
"I'm sorry!" Ren exclaimed immediately, though his tone didn't sound particularly regretful. "My control slipped for a second. My concentration wavered momentarily. Are you okay? Did I hurt you?"
Tsuyu looked at him. If she was uncomfortable with the sudden physical proximity, she didn't show it in her neutral expression.
"I'm fine, ribbit. These things happen when you use a Quirk in a way you aren't used to. It's not a problem."
But she didn't pull away immediately on her own initiative. This was mainly because Ren "needed" a moment to "properly reset the telekinetic field with the correct adjustments." Which definitely had nothing to do with the fact that he could feel Tsuyu's softness pressed against him through the layers of the hero suit.
Focus, you idiot, he ordered himself with internal firmness. Everyone is watching you on the observation screens in real-time. Don't be an obvious pervert right now.
He readjusted his telekinesis with deliberate care, creating an appropriate and professional space between their bodies as they continued floating up toward the higher floors.
"Sorry about that," he repeated, this time with a genuine apology in his voice. "I'm still a novice at this."
"Don't worry, Hayashi-kun, ribbit," Tsuyu replied. "Errors happen during training. Now let's keep moving before we lose too much time."
They reached the third floor without any further embarrassing incidents. Ren was sweating slightly from the mental effort, but he still had plenty of energy and concentration to continue.
"Jiro-chan is probably using her Quirk," Tsuyu whispered as they ascended. "We need to be extra quiet from now on, even in the air. Any loud noise could alert them."
Ren nodded in silence. He reduced their ascent speed even further, making their progress slow but completely noiseless, except for the inevitable sound of their controlled breathing.
Fourth floor. Nothing visible. Just empty hallways with closed doors. Fifth floor. This was where things would get genuinely interesting and dangerous. They emerged from the stairwell into a long, well-lit corridor. At the end of the hall, they could clearly see a large room with metal double doors: the room containing the fake bomb.
And between them and the objective, there was an obvious problem. The floor was strategically covered in clever traps. Ren identified them immediately with his enhanced vision: thin wires stretched between structural pillars at different heights, connected to empty cans filled with nuts, bolts, and small metal objects. Classic sound traps designed specifically to alert the defenders of any approaching intruder.
"Yaoyorozu-san is considerably smarter than I anticipated," Ren whispered with admiration.
"The traps won't work if we keep floating without touching any surfaces, ribbit," Tsuyu pointed out with simple logic.
"True. But look up there," Ren indicated with a subtle nod toward the ceiling. "Small mirrors positioned in the corners. They can see the entire hallway reflected from the bomb room without needing to expose themselves directly. They'll see us approaching from any angle."
"Then they'll detect us visually anyway, regardless of our silence, ribbit."
"Unless I create a convincing distraction to split their attention," Ren smiled with growing tactical excitement. "How fast can you move if I use my telekinesis to launch you directly at the bomb like a living projectile?"
Tsuyu considered it seriously for several seconds.
"Very fast if you use enough force, ribbit. But you would need to distract them both for at least five full seconds for the plan to work effectively. Yaoyorozu-san has fast reflexes and has likely created defensive countermeasures."
"I can handle it. Trust me completely."
Ren extended his telekinesis forward like invisible tentacles, searching for and locating loose objects he could manipulate. He found construction debris stored in a side room: practice bricks, pieces of metal pipe, and large scraps of plywood.
"When I count to three," Ren instructed in a low but clear voice, "I'm going to launch all that debris toward the bomb room from the right side of the hallway. That will force Yaoyorozu-san and Jiro-san to look instinctively in that direction to assess the threat. In that moment of distraction, you enter from the left side at maximum speed. I'll give you the powerful initial telekinetic boost, and then you use your tongue for the precise final push toward the bomb. Understood?"
"Understood perfectly, ribbit."
"One..."
Ren concentrated intensely on all the debris simultaneously, preparing himself mentally for the coordinated multiple launch.
"Two..."
He carefully repositioned his mental power over Tsuyu as well, calculating exactly how much force he would need to apply to propel her as an effective projectile without hurting her.
"THREE!"
Everything happened in a chaotic explosion of simultaneous movement. The debris went flying from the side room across the air toward the bomb room. The noise was instant, chaotic, and deliberately overwhelming: metal clashing violently against metal, wood splintering with sharp cracks, and multiple objects crashing against walls with resonating impacts.
In that precise instant of distraction, Ren completely released his levitation over Tsuyu and pushed her mentally with all the concentrated force he dared to use. Tsuyu shot forward like an aerodynamic green bullet, her body perfectly positioned to cut through the air as she flew low down the corridor at impressive speed. Her eyes remained completely focused on the target.
From inside the room, Ren heard simultaneous shouts of surprise and alarm.
"They're attacking from the east!" Jiro's sharp voice rang out.
"Wait, that was just a tactical distraction!" Momo had analyzed the trick almost immediately with her superior intelligence. "The real threat is coming from the opposite side...!"
But her warning came a fraction of a second too late to make a difference. Tsuyu's tongue shot forward, extending to an impossibly long length. The sticky, precise tip found the metal surface of the simulated bomb and adhered firmly with a characteristic wet sound.
The training system alarm sounded immediately with its victorious electronic beep.
"THE HERO TEAM WINS THE EXERCISE!"
Ren descended gently from his floating position, his feet finally touching the solid floor of the fifth level. He walked calmly toward the bomb room where Tsuyu was already standing, elegantly retracting her tongue while Momo and Jiro visibly processed their unexpected defeat.
The room showed clear signs of intense defensive preparation. Momo had impressively created several tools in the limited time: a large net of strong fiber, several smoke canisters that remained unactivated, and what looked like a professional ballistic shield. Jiro still had her earphone jacks physically connected to multiple strategic points on the floor.
"You floated through the whole building," Jiro said with a deep sigh of accepted defeat. "You literally floated to completely avoid my auditory detection. That was completely unexpected."
"It absolutely was," Momo agreed without apparent bitterness, though she was clearly frustrated with herself. "You used each other's complementary abilities in perfect sync. Asui-san's aerial mobility combined with Hayashi-kun's constant telekinetic support created a tactical combination that we simply didn't anticipate in our defensive planning."
Despite her words of frustration, Momo didn't look devastated. Her expression showed analytical determination rather than emotional defeat. Ren walked directly toward her and extended his hand in a gesture of sporting respect.
"It was a genuinely excellent battle, Yaoyorozu-san. Your sound traps almost worked perfectly. If we had chosen to touch the ground at any point during our infiltration, you would have had the tactical advantage and likely would have won."
Momo looked at his extended hand for a long moment. Then, a smile gradually formed on her normally serious face. She took his hand firmly and stood up.
"The creative way you used your telekinesis was absolutely incredible, Hayashi-kun. Honestly, I never considered you could apply it effectively to living people. And that coordinated distraction with the debris while simultaneously launching Asui-san was tactically perfect in its execution."
"You created a complete and functional defensive system in less than five minutes with zero preparation," Ren responded with absolute honesty. "That requires an extraordinary level of instant tactical planning. If we had to face you in direct, prolonged combat instead of using speed and surprise, it would have been exponentially harder and perhaps impossible."
Momo blushed visibly at the specific and detailed compliment.
"Thank you sincerely, Hayashi-kun. I really appreciate that you recognize the mental effort and knowledge I put into the strategy."
"Of course," Ren declared. "You're brilliant strategically, Yaoyorozu-san. This was a memorable and challenging battle. You forced me to use my brain."
Momo's smile widened. There was no trace of the devastating insecurity Ren remembered from the canon. Here, she had lost, but it was an honorable defeat against a clever strategy rather than a unilateral demonstration of power that made her question her worth.
"Next time we will definitely win," Momo promised with cheerful determination. "Now I know your preferred tactics. You won't be able to surprise me exactly the same way twice."
"That sounds like a direct challenge."
"It is," Tsuyu intervened in her characteristic neutral tone. "But first we should return to the observation room. All Might-sensei probably wants to give his tactical analysis."
The four students left the bomb room together. As they walked through the corridors, Ren found himself naturally walking beside Momo while Tsuyu and Jiro talked ahead of them.
"Hey," Ren said in a voice low enough for privacy. "I wanted to tell you something important. It really was an excellent and tactically sophisticated battle. I'm not just saying that to be polite. You fought with real strategic brilliance."
Momo looked at him curiously out of the corner of her eye.
"Why do I intuitively feel like there's something more you want to add?"
"There's nothing else specifically," Ren smiled at her honestly. "I just wanted to make absolutely sure you knew that losing today doesn't mean anything negative about your value as a future hero. We all lose battles eventually. What matters is what we learn from those defeats and how we improve afterward."
Momo stopped completely in the hallway, turning to look at him directly with a surprised expression.
"Hayashi-kun... thank you. I really needed to hear exactly those words."
"Did you really?"
"Yes, absolutely. My family has extremely high expectations and expects constant excellence. Losing, even in a simple training exercise, always feels emotionally like I'm fundamentally failing their expectations of me."
"There is absolutely nothing wrong with losing as long as you honestly give your best effort. And you definitely gave your best today."
"Do you really believe that?"
"I know it for a certainty."
Momo studied him intensely for a long, evaluative moment. Then she nodded slowly.
"Thank you, Hayashi-kun. You are considerably more emotionally perceptive than people probably give you credit for based on your appearance."
"Is that technically a compliment?"
"It's an observable fact," Momo replied with a small smile before continuing toward the observation room.
They finally reached where All Might and the rest of the class were waiting. The room immediately erupted in enthusiastic applause.
"THAT WAS ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!" Kaminari shouted. "You floated through the whole building!"
All Might cleared his throat with a resonant sound.
"ATTENTION, YOUNG STUDENTS! It is time for the professional tactical analysis!"
The room silenced immediately.
"The hero team demonstrated excellent coordination and superior creative tactical thinking! They correctly identified the specific strengths of the villain team and created a strategy specifically designed to neutralize those advantages!"
All Might pointed dramatically to a replay screen showing the moment of the debris distraction.
"Young Ren! Your extremely creative use of telekinesis was tactically outstanding!"
Then he turned toward Tsuyu with equal enthusiasm.
"And Young Asui! Your execution speed and precision with your tongue were absolutely perfect! Without your unique biological reach, the tactical plan would not have worked effectively!"
Finally, he looked directly at Momo and Jiro.
"The villain team also deserves significant recognition! Young Yaoyorozu, your complex defensive system was extremely well thought out and professionally executed! If the hero team had adopted any predictable conventional approach, they would have fallen directly into your traps!"
Momo nodded with satisfaction, clearly pleased by the specific recognition.
"And Young Jiro! Your intelligent use of your Quirk for surveillance was the right strategic choice! The fundamental problem was not your strategy; it was simply that the opposing team found a creative and unexpected countermeasure!"
All Might gave a resounding clap.
"The undisputed MVP of this exercise is Young Hayashi for superior tactical thinking and extraordinary creativity in Quirk application!"
Additional applause filled the room. Ren accepted the recognition with a modest nod. His gaze slid discreetly toward where Aoyama was sitting. The dramatic blonde boy was clapping mechanically, but his distant eyes passed over Ren with complete indifference before focusing intensely on where Recovery Girl was tending to Inko on a portable stretcher.
Perfect, Ren confirmed internally. I still have to make the actual mental adjustment, but I can see clearly that Aoyama already considers me naturally unimportant. That will greatly facilitate the manipulation when the proper time comes.
"TEAM C, GET READY!" All Might announced. "Your battle begins in five minutes!"
Ren returned to his seat next to Toru.
"Good job, Ren-kun," her voice whispered near his ear. "Although that specific moment where Tsuyu-chan ended up accidentally stuck against you looked extremely suspicious."
"It was a genuine accident of control," Ren lied with zero conviction.
"Of course it was," Toru's mocking tone said clearly that she didn't believe him for a second.
****
Author's Note: The person who commissioned this requested that the chapter play out this way to set the stage for the next one, which will be a bit "spicier." I'm still deciding on the details—maybe it'll involve telekinesis and Tsuyu, or perhaps Mina? Who knows! The point is, things are about to get a little NSFW.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have a wonderful night!
**
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