After the Sports Festival concluded, UA High wasted no time in resuming its regular classes. The quick return to normalcy was because the academy had already given students plenty of holidays during the events for the second and third years.

  Classes resumed as usual, but with a noticeable shift in focus towards theoretical subjects. This was necessary as the syllabus had fallen behind due to the heavy emphasis on practical training earlier in the year. Events like the USJ incident and the Sports Festival had taken up significant time, making it essential for the academy to ensure students met the required academic standards alongside their hero training.

  On a particular day after classes resumed, Shin was sitting beside Momo in the classroom, happily chatting and flirting with her. The two seemed lost in their own world, completely ignoring the noisy discussions happening among their classmates in the background.

  Well, it wasn’t exactly a conversation, as Shin was mostly the one talking, describing the events of the Sports Festival in detail while adding in bits of flirtation. Momo listened patiently, having missed the festival since she only returned to class the day before. However, according to her, she didn’t feel like she had missed out on much since she wouldn’t have received an internship opportunity from the place she aspired to, even if she had won.

  During her leave of absence, Momo had been deeply exploring the role of a battlefield supporter, a profession, their teacher Aizawa, had recommended based on her quirk's potential. She spent her time at home being tutored by accomplished support course graduates and renowned creators. This opportunity was only possible due to the vast resources of her family, as she was the heir to the prestigious Yaoyorozu lineage. For most people, such tailored training would have been entirely out of reach.

  With her determination and hard work, combined with her family’s support, Momo even managed to secure an internship at her dream organisation after dedicating herself to the path of a creator. It was not a hero agency, which she previously aspired to join; but a hub where to world class creators gather to innovate. It was a place famously known as the I-Island.

  The I-Island was a floating city on the ocean, known worldwide as the top place for scientific research and innovation. It was where the best minds came together to create new technologies, analyse quirks, and develop support items for heroes. The island had advanced labs, high-tech workshops, and even special areas for hero training. For Momo, it was the perfect place to focus on her role as a battlefield supporter, surrounded by the best creators and endless opportunities to learn and improve.

  Shin was genuinely astonished when he first heard about this from Momo. Even he dreamed of one day going to I-Island to learn from the bright minds there. Despite some people being aware of his quirk and strength, he didn’t have any formal qualifications in research on paper, so he couldn’t enter. But now, with Momo’s connection, he saw a chance to bridge that gap and gain entry in the future. Momo, with her usual warmth, happily agreed to help him when the time came, once she had the privileges that came with her new path.

  Anyway, after Shin had mostly finished recounting the details of the Sports Festival, Aizawa entered the class and announced the various proposals that had been offered to the students. Todoroki had received the highest number of offers, followed by Bakugo. Izuku also got quite a few offers. However, the most surprising was Shin’s total—only 12 offers in total.

  When the students got genuinely upset on his behalf and asked about it, Aizawa explained, "Even though the quantity is fewer, the quality of the offers is outstanding. The performance he gave during the quirk assessment event left a strong impression. Plus, he clearly stated what kind of internship he was interested in, so many heroes and agencies who didn’t fit his criteria didn’t extend offers."

  Aizawa paused a bit before continuing and his tone turned serious, "Before I proceed with the details of the internships, there’s one important matter to address." he said. This statement caused an immediate shift in the atmosphere of the room, and everyone began to speculate on what it might be with a sense of dread. He continued, “It is to decide your hero names.”

  This declaration immediately eased the tension in the room. The students had been expecting Aizawa to announce something huge, like the USJ or the Sports Festival, but the task of choosing names was much simpler. Still, it didn’t take away from its importance—everyone knew that picking a hero name was a big deal, even if it wasn’t as daunting as what they had feared.

  “Do not take this lightly because the hero names that you select now would stay with you until the end of your careers. There would be no opportunities to change them, since your all your important paperwork’s would contain this name, starting from the internship certificates itself.” Aizawa with his monotonous voice continued, “For that reason, I have called a teacher who will be helping you in this task, since this is a her sort of thing.” Once he said this, Aizawa took his sleeping bag, and entered it, demanding them to wake him up after they have finalised all their names.

  After a minute or two of awkward silence, the classroom door opened up, and the R18 hero Midnight entered sporting her signature costume. She wore a skin-toned bodysuit, which hugged her figure closely and was highlighted by black and purple details. Her dark, wavy hair fell neatly over her shoulders, and her amethyst eye mask stood out against her fair skin.

  She observed each and every student first and giggled, ““Hi class, how are you all doing?”

  “Great,” everyone replied, their voices a mix of enthusiasm and uncertainty.

  “That’s a lovely response,” Midnight nodded with a smile, placing a stack of whiteboards on her desk with a flair. “I am distributing whiteboards where you will think and write a name that you find suitable. Then you have to come forward and present it to the class. I will give you my opinion on the name, though I won't give you any suggestions. But your classmates can suggest a name, which you can consider to accept or reject. Understand?”

  “Yes!” the class responded in unison, though the mood was far from uniform. After a while of brainstorming, Midnight looked up from her desk and addressed the class, “Alright, who’s ready to present their hero name?”

  Mina sprang to her feet with a grin and skipped to the front, her whiteboard in hand. She held it up proudly, revealing the name ‘Alien Queen.’ Midnight tilted her head, her expression softening into one of amused disapproval. “Mina, I like the enthusiasm, but I’m afraid I’ll have to reject that one. It references a pretty infamous comic villain, and I doubt you want to be associated with that kind of image.”

  Mina’s face fell slightly, and Midnight smiled comfortingly. “Don’t worry; the class can help you come up with something better. Suggestions, anyone?”

  “Pinky,” Jiro chimed in with a smirk, causing Mina to roll her eyes playfully.

  “PH Hero: Acidic,” Midoriya offered earnestly, already analysing the practicality of the name in his head.

  Midnight nodded approvingly. “Good names, both of you. What do you think, Mina?”

  Mina frowned thoughtfully, tapping her marker against her chin. “I think I’ll combine them, maybe PH Hero: Pinky, but I’m not sure yet.”

  From his seat, Shin let out a sigh, shaking his head in visible disappointment. His hand reached up to cover his face in a melodramatic facepalm, causing a few chuckles from his nearby classmates. Internally, he was cringing at the lack of creativity, though he knew he wasn’t exactly the best at naming things either. Still, couldn’t they come up with something a bit more... exciting?

  Midnight noticed his reaction and raised an eyebrow. “Shin, do you not like the name?” He looked up with a nonchalant shrug. “Not really, but it’s her choice anyway.”

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  Midnight though wasn’t about to let him off that easily. “Still, can’t you at least give her some suggestions? I know this isn’t your favourite kind of activity, but you could show a bit more enthusiasm.” Her words were echoed by his classmates, who chimed in with teasing encouragement, making Shin groan inwardly.

  “Sigh… okay,” he relented, fixing Mina with a half-serious, half-annoyed look. After a pause, he said, “Uh... Pink Hero: Toxicity?” Mina’s eyes instantly lit up at the suggestion, and she broke out into a wide grin. “I like it! I’ll use it as my hero name!”

  The class burst into chatter, some applauding the choice and others throwing in playful comments, while Shin leaned back in his chair with a small, satisfied smirk.

  “Great suggestion, Shin,” Midnight complimented with a smile.

  Then, one by one, more students went up to present their hero names. Shin refrained from offering suggestions most of the time, as he felt their choices were decent enough and didn’t warrant his input. When Todoroki presented his name as simply "Shoto," Shin raised an eyebrow and suggested he add something to make it more descriptive. After some thought, it became ‘Iceflame Hero: Shoto.’

  Setsuna stepped up next and confidently declared her hero name as "Lizardry." Hearing this, Shin visibly flinched, the name sounding too jarry, “That name sounds... off,” he said frankly, his tone full of disapproval. “You should think of something else”

  Setsuna, taken aback by his tone, hesitated before accepting a suggestion from her classmates, ultimately going with ‘Split Hero: Lizardite.’ Midnight gave her an approving nod, while Shin sat back in his chair, relieved that she hadn’t stuck with the first name.

  When it was Bakugo’s turn, he confidently announced, ‘Explosion Hero: Destructo.’ After a pause, he turned to Shin and asked directly, “What do you think? You’ve been sitting there judging everyone’s names, so let’s hear it.”

  “How about ‘Destruction Hero: Dynamite’?” Shin offered after a moment’s thought. Bakugo crossed his arms, considering it seriously before giving a sharp nod of approval. “I’ll take it,” he said, a faint smirk appearing on his face.

  As the process continued, some students presented names that were on the silly side, but none as grating as "Lizardry." While Shin didn’t erupt in frustration, his slightest reactions were enough to let everyone know when a name didn’t sit well with him.

  Then, it was Momo's turn. She stood up and confidently announced her hero name: ‘Creation Hero: Genesis.’ Shin’s ears perked up at the name—it was the first one he actually liked from all the suggestions so far. It was clever and a match for her. Of course, he might have been a bit biased since he liked Momo, but still, it sounded solid.

  When she returned to her seat beside him, Shin leaned slightly closer and whispered, "That's a good name, really suits you." Momo’s face turned a light shade of red, a shy smile spreading across her face as she thanked him.

  At the end, Midnight called Shin to present his hero name. He walked up to the podium with a casual air and said, “People have already started calling me by a title, so I decided to integrate it into my hero name. The final name I have thus chosen is ‘High Guardian: Equinox.’ The reason I chose ‘Equinox’ is because it represents balance, the equilibrium between the push and pull forces of my quirk.”

  Midnight nodded in approval, and the rest of the class seemed to agree, complimenting him on the name. After all, it was a clean and professional name, fitting for his abilities.

  Once that was done, they all turned to Aizawa, who had been peacefully sleeping throughout the proceedings. The class reluctantly woke him up to share their selected hero names. As Aizawa sleepily reviewed them, he handed out the papers containing the internship offers to the students who had received them. For those who didn’t get an offer, he distributed a single page with a list of agencies still open to internships. The air was filled with a mixture of excitement and anticipation as the students read through the offers.

  “The internship period was for one week before this year, which has been changed to one month because of a certain someone,” Aizawa said, looking towards Shin. His classmates however didn’t get the reference at all. “So, make sure you think about the offers very carefully as you wouldn’t be able to change for the month. And you only have time till today evening to submit your decisions after applying for them,”

  The students began reading through their internship offers carefully. Even Shin, who usually wasn’t too bothered about such things, found himself curious to see what opportunities had come his way. Some of the offers caught his attention, like roles in managing an agency, criminal investigation, and rescue operations. But there were two offers that really piqued his interest.

  One was an internship in quirk research with Dr. Okumura Yoshiaki, a highly respected researcher with the Hero Association, known as one of the best in the world. The other was an internship under Hawks, the number 3 Hero, focusing on spying, infiltration, and espionage.

  The espionage role surprised Shin—he never imagined he would be offered an internship teaching those kinds of practical skills. However, after some thought, he realized that with his own abilities, he could handle the dangers involved, lowering the risks. It seemed like an excellent chance to learn from one of the top heroes in terms of tactics and intelligence. After weighing his options, Shin decided he would take the internship with Hawks, leaving the research opportunity with Dr. Okumura for the next semester. It felt like a balanced approach to his future learning.

  …

  After a long week of waiting,

  Shin had finally arrived at Fukuoka situated in the Kyushu islands for his internship with ‘The Hawks agencies’. He had located the building and was standing right in front of it. Shin took a deep breath and entered the building; The first thing he saw was wide hall with many people moving about in it. Some were dressed in professional suits while others in their hero costumes, showcasing the wide variety of people who were working in the agency.

  Shin walked towards the place, he felt was the reception. Siting inside there was brown haired middle-aged woman, rigorously noting down something on a big register. He suddenly spoke to her startling her a little. However, she instantly calmed down after looking up at him. He continued speaking and informed her the fact that he had come for his internship. She, after confirming his identity and details immediately led him towards a room. Upon entering, he saw Hawks sitting at his table, peaceful sipping tea while reading a newspaper.

  “Oh, Shin. You’re here,” Hawks said with a smile, setting down his cup. “You’re a bit earlier than I expected.”

  “I didn’t want to waste any time, so I thought I’d come early in case there were any necessary procedures,” Shin replied politely, shaking his head.

  “Well, UA High has already handled all of that for you, but since you’re here already, let me ask you something.” Hawks raised an eyebrow, fixing his gaze on Shin. “Why aren’t you interested in combat-focused internships?”

  “Oh, that’s because I’m powerful—far more than any of my classmates,” Shin said with a nonchalant shrug. “So, when I looked at the areas I needed to improve, combat proficiency ranked pretty low. My quirk is highly versatile, so by coming up with more ways to utilize it, I naturally become stronger. And if there’s one thing I excel at, it’s out-of-the-box thinking and creativity, which helps me create these methods. I’ve already got a few ideas I’m working on.”

  “Then why are you interested in this internship?” Hawks asked, his intrigue growing. He found Shin’s reasoning sound—so much so that he wondered if even he would be able to take him on in a fight.

  “As I mentioned earlier, my top priorities are enhancing my strategic skills, deepening my understanding of quirks, and expanding my research capabilities,” Shin explained. “During the USJ incident, I learned something about myself—I can be a little pretentious, even if it’s unintentional. Sure, the villains knew about me, but I could have approached the situation in a stealthier manner. Doing so might have allowed me to capture at least one of the major villains who escaped. So, when I noticed espionage as part of this internship, I took the opportunity immediately.”

  “You are a bit showy,” Hawks said, smirking as he nodded in agreement. “But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. All Might is pretty similar in that regard.”

  “Yeah, but All Might knows how to balance it,” Shin replied, rolling his eyes. “He can be stealthy enough not to hinder operations like that. It’s not that I lack the ability to be subtle, but beyond the basics, I’m inexperienced. I learned some stealth techniques during a lesson with the organization SUBLIME.”

  This wasn’t entirely true. Shin’s knowledge of stealth didn’t come from SUBLIME but from his experiences in his original world. Back then, when he was weaker, he had relied heavily on stealth techniques. While some of those methods could potentially be adapted to his current abilities, he wasn’t sure if it was worth the effort, with the skill splitting problem and all.

  “Oh, I see,” Hawks said, recalling the name SUBLIME. Recent investigations suggested that the League of Villains had destroyed that organization. Still, Hawks couldn’t help but feel suspicious. Shin had left SUBLIME shortly before its destruction, and with his immense power, Hawks wondered: Could Shin have played a role in what happened there?

  Though his instincts nagged at him, Hawks knew better than to act on baseless suspicions. Instead, he resolved to keep an eye on Shin during the internship and carefully evaluate him.

  “So, what exactly are you hoping to gain here?” Hawks asked, keeping his tone neutral.

  “Practical experience,” Shin said. “I want to learn how to control my body language so I don’t give anything away during conversations. I also want to train in espionage techniques that don’t rely on quirks—like surveillance, counter-surveillance, cryptography, interrogation methods, extracting information subtly, manipulation, and so on.”

  “Why do you want to learn all that?” Hawks asked, his wariness deepening. These weren’t common skills, and in the wrong hands, they could be dangerous.