"What is that?!"

  Shoji, standing behind Todoroki, suddenly felt a sharp pain in his copied ears, his vision blinded by an intense golden light. For a brief moment, he couldn't see anything at all.

  *Crack!!*

  The light, faster than sound, illumihe room before the harsh, electric buzz reached his ears. But that wasn't what ed Shoji. He had been hit by electricity.

  "Ah!!"

  Shoji's scream sted only a moment, the golden light and sound vanishing almost as quickly as they had appeared. When the light dimmed and the sound faded, Todoroki gnced around. His ice wall, cracked but still standing, had protected him but something was missing.

  "He's gone!"

  Todoroki frowned as he sed the area, realizing that Shoji had disappeared.

  To be ho, he didn't fully uand what had just happened. After unleashing his ice attack, all he had heard was the rapid crag of electricity, followed by the blinding fsh of golden light. His instincts had kicked in just in time, allowing him to freeze the area around him, f a protective wall of ice.

  But now, Shoji was o be seen.

  From outside, Kaminari's voice echoed, though his tone carried a mischievous edge. "Hey! Hero, how about saying goodbye to your partner?"

  All Might, atg from a nearby rooftop, stared at Kaminari in mild disbelief. "What's with these kids today? First Iida, and now Kaminari... why are they so eager to py 'vilin'?"

  In the trol room, the other students exged gnces. Yaoyorozu, suppressing a smile, suddenly chuckled. "He's... rather charming when he's like this."

  Ashido Mina nodded enthusiastically. "He's like the evil prince from a movie!"

  "Well, he's still a little behind me in style, but... yes, I see it," Aoyama Yuga added with a dramatic flick of his shining cape.

  On the s, Todoroki silently emerged from the building, log eyes with Kaminari, who stood waiting outside. Poor Shoji was slumped against a nearby telephone pole, pletely paralyzed, watg helplessly.

  "I became a prisoner... within a minute..." Shoji sighed to himself, feeling a mixture of frustration and disbelief.

  "How did you break through my ice?" Todoroki asked coldly, his voice betraying a hint of fusion.

  "You want to know?" Kaminari shrugged, a sly grin spreading across his face. "I did it with a 100-yen ."

  He flicked a small metal into the air. It caught the sunlight, fshing brightly before he caught it again with a smooth, practiced motion.

  "Stop joking around," Todoroki muttered, frowning deeply. He didn't believe Kaminari's expnation for a sed.

  "A joke? Maybe," Kaminari said nontly. Then, cutting off whatever Todoroki was about to say, he gestured toward Shoji. "You should be more worried about your partner, don't you think?"

  Todoroki g Shoji before calmly replying, "Rest there for now. I'll get you out soon."

  As he spoke, Todoroki's right side began to emanate cold air. It was clear he reparing for a serious fight. But Kaminari wasn't done pyi. He raised his hand and pointed back at the building behind him.

  "But hero, the nuclear bomb inside is about to go off. Ready to abandon your partner?"

  Todoroki's expression froze.

  All Might, the only one who could hear their versation from his rooftop vantage point, was stunned by Kaminari's words. "This boy... he's far too ving as a 'vilin.'"

  Kaminari's voice took on a taunting edge as he tio press Todoroki, adding a cruel psychological pressure to the young hero's already heavy burden.

  "We don't have much time left. Make your choice, hero!" Kaminari's grin widened. "It's simple, really. Give up your partner and stop the bomb... ht me and watch the bomb explode, taking the whole city with it."

  "If I were you, I'd fet about the partner. You're a herht? The mission es first. That's rofessional Heroes do, isn't it?"

  Todoroki's face darkened. He khis was just an exercise, a training sario. But the point of the exercise was to act like real, professional Heroes. That meant making decisions as a pro Hero would in a real-world situation.

  And Kaminari's words were tearing at him.

  "The mission... or the partner?"

  This wasn't just about the training anymore. It felt personal. Kaminari's words echoed the difficult choices Todoroki would fa his future as a hero.

  "The mission or the partner."

  This was the same question Kakashi, from another, harsher world, had faced long ago. Back then, Kakashi had chosen the missiohe lives of his rades. Now, Kaminari watched with i, w what Todoroki's answer would be.

  All Might, still from his rooftop, felt a chill down his spine. "Young Kaminari... just how did you e up with something like this? Pying with someone's heart to this extent... it's terrifying."

  He decided then and there that, after this session ended, he would have to speak with Principal Nezu. Kaminari's potential o be watched closely, this boy had the ingness of a vilin, and if he ever strayed too far into the darkness...

  The timer tio tick down, but Todoroki remained silent, lost in thought. His iurmoil was evident to everyog the ss ba the trol room, though they couldn't hear the versation.

  In Todoroki's mind, two voices argued bad forth.

  "The bomb is the bigger threat. If it explodes, it won't matter if I save Shoji. Everyone will die."

  "But if I give up on my partner now, what will I do the ime? And the time after that? Will I give up again? Faster each time?"

  "If I choose the mission over and ain, will I still be myself?"

  "Will I bee... like him?"

  Todoroki's thoughts drifted to his father, Endeavor. His father's cold, relentless pursuit of strength, his emotionless gaze... it all weighed on Todoroki's mind, suffog him.

  "No. I'm not like him. I'm not the same."

  "I'm not the same!!"

  Suddenly, Todoroki raised his head, and Kaminari could see a fierce determination burning in his eyes. Ice began to rapidly form at Todoroki's feet, surging forward to attack.

  "You've chosen your partner, huh..." Kaminari smirked, impressed. "Good choice. But..."

  "BEEP— Time's up! Vilins win!"

  Kaminari grinned as he g the timer. "You hesitated too long, Todoroki."