Kunoichi amongst Heroes (mha x naruto) (naruto crossvoer) (bnha)

Thanking Hitoshi for his study sessions was not something Sakura did even though she contemplated it until she remembered he had tricked her into studying with him. The written exams only lasted three days, but tension could be felt around the whole school until they ended. She had forgotten about that tension, the need to be academically inclined but it wasn't this intense at the academy even though students were taught more advanced levels on certain topics due to the limited time they would be attending. It must have been the age. When you're ten, who would stress about academics to the same degree as a high school student?

Even Shikamaru, who had the highest IQ in their group slacked in his academics. It was mostly their practicals that gave them the right to graduate anyway. It had been Sakura's only strength at the time, so she thrived in her academics, but now she was less than thrilled to return to them in this manner.

While her classmates shared in her relief to be done with the exams, they still had the practical but because they had heard from a class b student that they would likely be fighting robots again, no one was nervous. More excited to see how much they had improved from the last time they faced off against the mechanical monsters.

Unfortunately, when they arrived at the Center Plaza where the practicals were taking place, all suited in hero costumes, they were met with a very stunning development from their teachers.

Almost all of their teachers were present when Principal Nezu gave the announcement, "For various reasons the exams will be different. We want to focus on person-to-person combat and hero work, and stress teaching that is closer to actual combat. So we'll have you form two teams and fight against the teachers!"

The years before, had all been the same type of exam, fighting robots to reduce damage and injury to persons. But the League of villains had an impact on the new system that was coming into play now. Unfortunately, no one had warned them, so some student's who weren't well versed in controlling their quirks like Mina and Denki were particularly disappointed.

"The pairs for this exam have already been decided," Shouta told them. His students were stunned at the idea. They were divided based on various factors regarding not only their fighting styles and quirks but interpersonal relationships that would affect the state of combatant ability.

When Shouta announced the teams, Sakura could deduce the reason behind them. Izuku and Katsuki were up against All Might. That had a lot of inter-relationship conflicts. Eijirou and Sato were going against Cementos, to combat their physical quirks and so on. Shouto and Momo were going against Shouta, someone who could cancel out the quirks of one person that relied too much on his raw power and another who risked a power shift just from losing focus.

Then Shouta announced her partner and their opponent, "Haruno and Jirou, you'll be up against Present Mic,"

'Great,' Sakura sighed, Hizashi was able to emit sound as a weapon and probably from great distances. That would put them at a disadvantage because Kyoka was sensitive to noises and they were hoping Sakura wouldn't be able to get in close to attack because she had shown to be at the most a close to mid-range fighter.

Nezu held up a pair of handcuffs to the class, "The time limit for the exam is thirty minutes! Your objective is either to put these handcuffs on the teacher or to have one of you escape the stage."

"But it'll be different from combat training!" exclaimed Hizashi, "You'll be up against someone waaaaay better than you,"

'He had to stress that?'

Kyoka stared blankly at him, "Better? I can't really imagine it though."

"Hey, girl! Watch your mouth you heaaaaar!?"

"Underestimating your opponent is the first reason you lose a fight before it starts," Sakura told her calmly. She wasn't intimidated at the idea of facing Hizashi in battle, but he was going to prove difficult for them to face directly if he could use his quirk to keep them at a distance. The further the more of a disadvantage they would be at.

It was Izuku and Katsuki who had the hardest opponent, in terms of strength and speed, Toshinori was on another level from the other teachers. They were told to think of their teachers as villains to simulate a real battle and if they were unable to defeat them, then they had the option to run. It was their only leeway to passing. That and the compressed weights they would be wearing during the battle would make up half their body weight to slow them down and eat up stamina.

'Like that's going to do much if you're trained,' Lee would wear weights that were more than double his body mass and he was still blinding and strong.

They were going to have to fight to win or run to win. 'These are already better than what Kakashi gave to us,'

There were no weights or handicaps, she, Sasuke, and Naruto had to fight someone who leaped ahead of them, didn't care to pull his punches if he thought they were worth the effort and had no trouble using deceit to weaken them beforehand, like saying they shouldn't eat breakfast. As well as hiding the truth about the intention of his test, but at least this exam gave clear goals to pass. Shinobi exams and tests typically had hidden goals behind them that the student wasn't made aware of. Like the chuunin written exams, or the bell test.

'If I could survive that,' Sakura smiled. What was there to fear in a test that wouldn't put your life on the line, but if she had to think of her teacher as villains then that meant they were the enemy and Kakashi always taught her one thing about going against an enemy.

'Fight like you want to kill,'

"Alright, each team will take the practical exam in order on the prepared stage. Those waiting can watch the exams or think of strategies as a team," Shouta told them before heading inside the plaza with the rest of the faculty.

Kyoka turned to Sakura, "So do you have any ideas?"

Tapping her chin, Sakura went inside, "I need water,"

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Kyoka looked frustrated, following Sakura into the screening room where monitors were set to observe the different exam areas. Chiyo was seated to observe the applicants so she could move when someone needed treatment. Izuku and Ochaco were there as well, being unable to strategize with their partners.

"You guys are watching matches too?" Ochaco asked, "Thought you'd be taking this time to plan,"

"I thought so too," Kyoka said glancing at Sakura, who remained indifferent.

"That's why we're here, to see what the teacher's strategy is for dealing with us,"

"But we're facing different teachers with different abilities," Argued Kyoka.

"Yes but even so I'm sure there's a rubric the teachers will follow and rules they have to abide by to prevent harm. They'll fight us as villains sure, but it's not like they'd have free range to kill us,"

Ochaco shivered, "You said that so naturally,"

Chiyo frowned, "The teacher's already said they will do everything in their power to prevent you from succeeding,"

"But when you're pinning amateurs up against professionals you have to give some leeway and those cuffs alone aren't gonna cut it,"

Kyoka decided to step in, "Then why aren't we trying to come up with a plan? Didn't you say we shouldn't underestimate our opponents?"

"Real-world principles can unravel any plan, no matter how perfect in theory. It's how you react to the unexpected that determines if you succeed in reality. You don't even know what kind of environment we're going into, planning ahead can create stress if things don't fall within expectations. The two of us cover short to long-range attacks, but Present Mic becomes our weakness because of his long-range attacks that utilize sound. You can't deflect it and I can't hit it."

Kyoka gasped, "Does that mean our only option is to escape through the gate?"

"That's possible only if he doesn't decide to guard the exit," Although if she was Hizashi, that's what she would do to minimize their chances of escaping or defeating him. The gate was one factor that was a constant in every test, so he could use his voice as a means of offense and defense at the same time. They were going to have to find a way to trip him up to succeed in any route, but it would be the distance that his voice could reach that would determine their actions. And until Sakura saw just how determined the teachers were, she wouldn't make assumptions or plans.

The first match that took place was Rikido and Eijiro against Ken Ishiyama, also known as the hero Cementoss. It ended quickly, with Cementoss taking an overwhelming victory. His ability as his name implied, to control cement, while in an urban setting did not bode well for Rikido and Eijiro who were trying to keep up against his attacks. When he brought up concrete slabs in the road, the two would just attempt to bulldoze through with their strength, but in terms of attrition, they were outmatched and lost due to their stamina.

"Aw man, and they were looking forward to the training camp," Izuku looked at the screen with a down expression. And it gave him a pang of dread because he would have to face Toshinori, his mentor and the number one hero. The exam was already showing to be harder than they anticipated, even with handicaps, teachers were slowed down that much.

'They are pros,'

"It was this one-sided?" Ochaco gasped.

Sakura glanced at the three and back at the screen as Chiyo left to tend to the wounded students. "If you're going against an opponent that outmatches you in power, speed, strength, and experience, then you have to find a way to outwit them,"

"How do we do that?" asked Ochaco.

"When it comes to power differentiations the best way to overcome is to let your opponent underestimate you completely, make them drop their guard around you, and strike at that moment. Even if you have to pretend to be down. It's like coming at someone with a knife in your hands, you drop the knife, and then when they are watching it fall, take out your second."

It was a technique Sakura utilized many times, along with Sasuke and Naruto when they were gennin If her opponents were faster than her, she would draw them in close to deliver the killing blow.

"Get them on your ground in a fight. Distraction and misdirection are going to be key in succeeding in these exams because of the escape and capture factors. An opponent's arrogance can also be used against them, it can even be their biggest downfall. Don't be afraid to attack first but you have to look for weaknesses in those encounters and then use it against them,"

Sakura already knew that in a direct conflict with their teachers her classmates would be less likely to pass their exams. Because the prospect of defeating a pro hero, what they regarded as the graduating point of their studies, was a psychological weight enough to crush their fighting spirit. If you already thought you were going to lose, then you would sabotage yourself already without the work of your enemy.

"The teachers are already confident you won't be able to defeat them, but because this is an exam, I have no doubt they're going to leave a way for us to pass. They will stick to one strategy or fighting style and keep to it instead of shifting because they have to give you a chance."

Ochaco let out a sigh, "Well that's something. I'm not sure how I would go about fighting Thirteen,"

The kunoichi explained to Ochaco that while Thirteen was a pro hero, she was focused on dealing with natural disasters rather than the battle aspect, which would mean less combat experience. "Thirteen has a powerful quirk, but because of its ability, I doubt you would be in any danger if you confronted it head-on due to the circumstances. Even if they are playing villains don't become engulfed with fear and remember that they aren't able to do any real damage to you. That's where your advantage is. Remember that this is just an exam, not real life,"

Izuku shivered, "I'm going against All Might though, what can I do against him? Even if he has weights, he can lift an entire building,"

Izuku's head whipped back when Sakura flicked his forward, "Your problem is right there! You're acting like these exams are unfairly set as if it's reality when that isn't the case at all. We're the ones with more advantages if you can just look past your fear at the aspect of fighting a pro. You've gone against villains that wanted to kill you."

Kyoka, Izuku, and Ochaco looked away, "Our numbers are also an advantage, it's great for misdirection and distraction. If you use those factors properly. Only one person has to make it through the gate to escape or put the cuffs on your opponent to pass. Stop trying to play this like it's a harmless exam and take advantage of the fact that they want you to pretend it's a real fight while they are the ones who have to hold back,"

Izuku, Ochaco, and Kyoka seemed thoughtful of what Sakura had said to them, considering her advice in great detail. From the perspective of the best fighter in their class, Sakura was unafraid of the idea of facing her teacher. A pro hero with years more experience than they had. And yet when they thought of her advice, it was calming because, in truth, they were putting a lot of pressure on themselves as the prospects of an exam like this were determining the course of their lives. Everyone was taught to study hard when in the hero course and look for ways to get ahead to compete, but that was affecting their psyche.

"So teamwork is a key component to passing," Muttered Izuku.

"That's where you're at a disadvantage, to be honest," She didn't have to be a ninja to be able to see that their relation to one another was messed up to the point where Izuku's mere presence was a hindrance not only to Katsuki's temperament but also his ego. Katsuki wasn't able to maintain himself when he was with Izuku. What warranted that kind of hatred, Sakura couldn't understand but she could see it easily enough. Naruto and Sasuke were quite hateful of one another, yet despite this, they could still work together as a team when it mattered most.

She didn't know if Katsuki and Izuku could do the same, because she was certain this relationship was not parallel to Sasuke and Naruto's. This wasn't a rivalry. It was a case where only one saw superiority over the other. An unbalanced cycle mixed with hatred.

"If you want to have a chance of passing, you'll have to find a way to work with him," Izuku winced because he was sure that Katsuki had no intention of letting that happen and it would be hard for him to communicate properly with the blonde.

"I don't know if I can do that…." Izuku looked down.

"Just manipulate him," Sakura shrugged and Izuku's head shot back up, his face scrunched with disbelief.

"Huh!?"

"Katsuki might not want to work with you, but he is relentless in his goal to be number one, to win. I saw it at the Sports Festival. He doesn't want to lose anyone. So use that to your advantage. The teachers aren't the only ones you can use your wit on."

Ochaco croaked, "That's deceitful,"

"But if it's a means to win, then you shouldn't hesitate to take the chance,"

"You don't seem to care if you pass and fail though," Kyoka pointed out.

Sakura smiled, "One day you'll realize that it isn't the person with the best grades, sparkling personality, smarts, or power that get's ahead of the pack,"

Izuku frowned, "Then who is it?" Because all those factors sounded like the fair trade of the hero's characteristics. All Might fit in most of those categories.

"It's the one who is determined to never give up, no matter what. The person who makes that their way of life, will be the one who gets ahead," Somehow Izuku could sense a strong sense of promise in Sakura's tone when she made that statement that could've been argued as subjective, but at that moment, he just couldn't say that.

When Izuku thought back to where he had started, he remembered. He was quirkless, born without any special ability like the rest of the world. No one believed he could become a hero, even his mother, but he was the one who never stopped believing he could do it one day. That's why he was so diligent in his studies of heroes, not only because they fascinated him but because he wanted to learn everything he could about being them.

He always linked his opportunity and his enrollment to U.A's hero course as a lucky strike because the number one hero All Might had taken an interest in him for his bravery and just happened to have a quirk that could be passed to another. Yet Izuku never once considered that it was him, that had been the cause and effect for this.

He didn't want to give up on his dream, and he was the one who didn't turn away from Katsuki when he was attacked by that sludge villain. He made All Might and everyone see him, even if he wasn't meaning to.

Izuku looked at his gloved hand with his battered fingers, 'Never give up,'

For days, all Sakura could do was try not to drown. She had lost the only lead she had and wanted to deny the toll it was taking on her mind and body but there was no doubt she was sinking. It was ironic that a trained medic would deny her own prognosis but she was also stubborn in denying her limits.

'For now, there is nothing, but that doesn't mean things will stay the same,' The reminder of Naruto's resolve and knucklehead behavior was like a healing hand soothing her.

So far, her placements as a student haven't amounted to anything useful, but perhaps it was time to step things up a notch.

The matches continued, and Sakura was deciphering the teacher's fighting patterns. Most were keeping to the escape gate rather than directly fighting, eliminating the problem of having to track down students who might decide to split up to divert their attention. But nobody considered doing that. The teams stayed together and tried to work closely together instead of using a division tactic.

'Well, they aren't that experienced,' They were also probably overwhelmed at the idea of having to face a teacher by themselves and wanted to use each other not just for battle support but emotional as well. Even in Sakura's unit, it was reassuring having her teammates with her. It also showed her how severely she was lacking when they were both taken out of commission and she was left to protect and fight. She was fortunate that there were other allies to help her at the time or they all would've lost their lives.

Despite having their obvious weaknesses exposed, the teachers were leaving way for her classmates to pass even if it wasn't obvious to all of them and her classmates were also using tactics that relied on taking their opponent by surprise and causing them to drop their guard. There were moments Sakura saw they could've easily countered certain attacks or strategies just based on the way they were operating. Many of them had passed, Fumikage and Tsuyu, Shouto and Momo, Tenya and Mashirao.

The automatic doors opened to Tsuyu, Momo, Tenya, and Shouto entered, as Ochaco left waving to them.

"Hey guys, those were great matches," Izuku smiled.

"Thank you, Midoriya. I nearly thought we were done in," Tenya said. His match had been especially entertaining.

"Same here," Momo admitted, breathing softly. Shouta had not made it easy on them and even scared her quite a bit that she had lost her focus for a while. "The teachers are not going easy,"

"You did seem to be panicked at first," Sakura said. Momo was usually calm and preserved, it was advantageous because of the nature of her quirk. It also meant if she wasn't able to focus, then she wouldn't be able to activate her power.

Momo rubbed the back of her neck, "Truly, I was but thanks to Todoroki I was able to regain my barrings,"

Shouto looked at Sakura, "When are you going?"

"After this match," Everyone looked to the screen to see Ochaco and Yuga entering the USJ to go against Thirteen and it wouldn't be long before she and Jiro would be on a bus heading to their destination for this exam.

Ochaco had been worried about her exams for this semester. She wasn't the best student academically, but she managed and it was doubtful that her written exams were going to be the reason she missed out on the training camp. It was a curveball to have to fight against the teachers, but it wasn't impossible to win at least based on her classmate's results.

'Don't try to fight, and don't let Thirteen catch you both,' She remembered Sakura's words. Yuga was difficult to communicate with but at least he seemed to understand that their approach was going to be to sneak passed Thirteen and make it to the gate.

They were at the USJ so it was familiar territory. Everything seemed to be going well at first, but they hadn't counted on Thirteen's keen perception and it wasn't long before they were caught in the clutches of black hole. They had to hold onto the bars to keep from being dragged toward the hero.

"How could we be caught so quickly!?" Ochaco exclaimed.

Yuga attempted to use his navel lazer, with his costume it could emit the laser to certain parts of his body including his knees. He tried to aim at Thirteen to create an opening but the black hole quirk could suck in light as well.

"I won't let you get away," Thirteen said, drawing closer to them. The hero was going to make sure that they had no way of escape and Ochaco was certain that this was going to be the end. She was going to miss the training camp and fall further behind her classmates.

"This bites, I totally flunked that last machine. Invisibility doesn't help deal with dodging," Toru whined, complaining about bruises no one would be able to see but she would be able to feel for at least a week.

"I understand what you're saying. I've fallen behind compared to the first day during the quirk assessment test."

"You did place first then, kero," said Tsuyu.

"But Haruno wasn't there though," She muttered, glancing at the pink-haired girl changing at her locker. "I think she would've been first otherwise,"

"You can't say that for certain since I wasn't there, but I appreciate the confidence Momo," Sakura chuckled, throwing off her short kimono.

It was a tough session, especially for the girls. Most of their quirks weren't suited for the training they did and their physical abilities fell behind the boys. By the last machine test, they were exhausted, with Sakura the only one who could go strong. She had frightened them with how she had gone on the punching machine. They were certain she was going to destroy it but somehow reframed from using her quirk.

Ochaco glanced at Sakura, her back faced to the locker she always kept a tank top but even then Ochaco could see how frail her back looked. Her strength was comparable to some of the best heroes, but she looked like that. Petite form, like a dancer, and lacking in muscle, but she was so powerful that she could lift something a hundred times her weight and still toss it far. She stood on top of the class and Ochaco could see how the boys were scampering to keep up with her.

Sakura might not have noticed it, but Ochaco had. They always watched her closely during their hero training, maybe trying to find ways to catch up to her or discover the secrets to her ability. Because Sakura was more than just her strength, she was all well-rounded and hadn't been taken back by anyone yet.

Izuku really admired her too. He was always watching and writing something new about her in his notebooks about her, anytime he found out something. Izuku had finished his examination of his other classmates, but he was still writing about her.

It seemed that he always found a way to talk about her at least once in a day. He told her about how Sakura had come all the way to help them face Stain and how she wasn't afraid to jump into the fray. That was all Tenya and Izuku mentioned about the incident, but it looked like they wanted to move past that, but Ochaco could see that even Tenya had developed a new respect for Sakura, so Ochaco wished she knew the details of what happened that night.

Katsuki looked at her fiercely, despite how well rounded he was himself it was clear that Sakura was always in his line of sight.

To have that kind of admiration and envy, Ochaco didn't understand it. Even though they were still in school, Ochaco was a hundred percent certain that Sakura would become a top hero even if she was taken into the field today. That's how certain, the pink-haired girl had made herself.

Ochaco still had doubts about herself, but she wanted to become a hero so that she could financially support her parents and relieve that burden. But even that determination was trumped by the certainty that Sakura Haruno would become a hero. While Ochaco was trying to figure out how to pass the next semester.

It was admirable and frustrating because Ochaco wanted to catch up and she didn't know how.

'It's just an exam,' She remembered Sakura telling her that the teachers were more restricted than they made themselves out to be. If this was true then even this hold Thirteen had on them could be undone.

But it was going to require a risky move. If she didn't take this chance, then they were going to fail anyway.

'It's just a test, it's just a test,' Taking a breath of courage, Ochaco uncurled her fingers quickly from the bar and was drawn in towards Thirteen. The teacher, as she had hoped, taken aback by the bold move quickly closed access to black hole but by then Ochaco and Yuga were able to pin down their examiner and place the cuffs.

'So she calmed down and remembered this was just an exam,' It was easy to tell the ins and outs of this exam, based on everything that was learned through the semester, and what Sakura knew as a solid fact was a teacher wouldn't ever put a student at death's door. In fact, they would do everything in their power to keep that from happening and that was what they should be taking advantage of in the exam. Especially those who had advanced power, like All Might.

"Nice judgment Uraraka!" Izuku gushed. "I can't believe she thought to get in close like that,"

"It was a risky move, but effective," Sakura said.

Kyoka swallowed softly, feeling her throat become dry. "It's our turn now."

"Yes,"