A strand of bck thread lightly brushed against Kaminari's head as he pulled on the robe, only to hear Mitsui Buntais ughing uproariously behind him, apanied by the barely-tained chuckles of Tetsutetsu.

  "This is so embarrassing…" Kaminari muttered, his face flushed.

  Shaking off his hesitation, he reached out and grabbed a er of the suit. Surprisingly, the texture beh his fiips wasn't cold like metal, but soft and smooth, almost like a fine silk fiber.

  "Huh? This doesn't feel like armor at all," he muttered, a hint of surprise c his voice.

  In no time, Kaminari had slipped the suit on. Before he could find a mirror to admire himself in his new bat uniform, a faint tingliion suddenly spread along his arm.

  "DNA rec plete."

  A ral, automated voice spoke directly into his ears.

  "First meeting, partner! Please give me a name."

  "The clothes… spoke?" Kaminari froze for a moment before remembering Dr. Tenma's earlier expnation about the suit's built-in AI system.

  "A name, huh?" Kaminari rubbed his thoughtfully. For some reason, the situation reminded him of the cheesy tropes he'd read about in online novels, where the protagonist always received some kind of system or overpadget.

  "Alright, let's go with… Pikachu."

  "Pikachu—!"

  To his astonishment, the AI instantly responded with a perfect imitation of Pikachu's iic cry, so lifelike it felt like the little yellow Pokémon was right beside him. Kaminari blinked in disbelief.

  "Wait, how is it this accurate?" he asked, dumbfounded.

  Tetsutetsu leaned closer, a skeptical expression on his face. "Uh… are you seriously naming it Pikachu? And how is it supposed to unicate? Just keep saying Pika Pika?"

  Kaminari frowned for a moment before an idea popped into his head. "Hey, Pikachu, you try a humanoid voice?"

  "Uood, Master," the AI chirped, its tone suddenly transf into a high-pitched and cheerful childlike voice. It sounded endearily what Kaminari had in mind.

  "That's not bad," Kaminari admitted. "But hold on… why are you calling me Master? Weren't we partners a moment ago?"

  "Isn't the trainer in Pokémon referred to as 'Master'?" the AI replied in an ione.

  For a moment, Kaminari eechless. Then he sighed and shrugged. "Fair enough. Sure, Master it is. o stand on ceremony with an AI anyway."

  ---

  "Alright, now that the binding process is done, let's move to the phase: the bat test!"

  Dr. Tenma cpped his hands loudly, and almost immediately, the opaque gss wall to their right slid apart, revealing a pristine white arena roughly the size of a basketball court.

  "bat test?" Kaminari repeated, turning to g Tetsutetsu with a sense of déjà vu. The term was all too familiar, and it didn't take long for him to figure out why.

  Shua—

  Three regur openings appeared in the east, south, and north walls of the arena. Moments ter, three dark green robots marched out, their movements deliberate and powerful.

  "Wait a sed… aren't these the same robots we fought during the U.A. entrance exam?!" Tetsutetsu excimed in surprise.

  "Not quite," Mitsui Buntais replied with a chuckle. "The exam robots you saw at U.A. were developed in colboration with Mitsui Group and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. We hahe software; they took care of the hardware."

  Dr. Tenma nodded in agreement. "These, however, are a step above those models. These are actual bat-grade robots designed for live bat sarios. Their weight, speed, and strength are signifitly higher."

  "Incredible…" Kaminari muttered under his breath. For the first time, he felt like he was catg a glimpse of the immense resources top-level glomerates could wield.

  Dr. Tenma pced a hand in the pocket of his b coat and spoke coolly, "Switch your suit to Battle Mode and ehem. Pay close attention to how the suit enhances your abilities during bat."

  "By the way," he added, "these robots are coated with an advanced insuting material. While they're irely immuo your Quirk, it'll take more effort to take them down usiricity alone."

  Kaminari nodded in uanding, then g the suit he was wearing. "If Battle Mode is the seode, then what's the one I'm in now?"

  He had noticed something odd despite no breeze in the room, the robe seemed to sway gently on its own, as if alive.

  "This is what we call Casual Mode," Dr. Tenma expined matter-of-factly. "Though the younger researchers have started calling it Show-Off Mode instead."

  "Show-Off Mode, huh…" Kaminari raised an eyebrow. "What this mode even do?"

  "It's more limited than Battle Mode. Casual Mode includes unicatiow, basic lighting, and music pyback the st one being something you personally requested in your cept design."

  Hearing this, Kaminari's eyes lit up. "It has a music pyback fun? Alright, let's give it a shot! Pikachu, you sync with my phone?"

  "Of course, Master. Please grant me access to your device."

  A notification buzzed on Kaminari's phone. Pulling it out of his pocket, he quickly approved the e request. Moments ter, Pikachu announced, "Synization plete! Ready for use."

  "Alright," Kaminari grinned. "Let's test the unication fun first. Pikachu, call Tetsutetsu."

  Tetsutetsu nodded and pulled out his own phone.

  "eg now."

  To Kaminari's amazement, two pale yellow beams of light shot from his colr, f a translut holographic s in front of him. At the same time, Tetsutetsu's phone began t.

  "This thing has holographic proje?!" Kaminari excimed, staring at the light s in shock.

  "Of course," Dr. Tenma replied, his tone casual. "That's a basic feature."

  "…Right," Kaminari muttered, feeling slightly overwhelmed by the tech. "Pikachu, cel the call. Let's see the lighting fun ."

  In an instant, the suit began glowing brightly, radiating a dazzling golden light that forced everyone in the room to shield their eyes.

  "Kaminari-kun! Adjust the brightness before you blind us!" Dr. Tenma yelled.

  "Got it! Pikachu, to down!"

  "Uood, Master."

  The light dimmed rapidly until it was a soft, warm glow, casting a faint golden aura around Kaminari.

  "This suit might be a bit too over-the-top…" Kaminari muttered, gng at the shimmering fabric. But despite his words, a grin spread across his face. "Not that I'm pining."

  Dr. Tenma cut in with a warning. "Don't leave the lighting fun on for too long. It'll drain the energy ste crystal faster than necessary."

  "Yeah, yeah, I get it," Kaminari replied, quickly deactivating the lighting.

  "Now…" He raised his head, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Let's see what this Battle Mode is all about!"

  Dr. Tenma smirked. "The desigook heavy inspiration from your cept sketches. It's as fshy as Casual Mode, but far more practical for bat."

  "Seriously?!" Kaminari's anticipation shot through the roof. His hands trembled slightly as he issued the and.

  "Pikachu! Activate Battle Mode!"

  "Yes, Master!"

  In the moment, the suit began to transform.