? Benevolence ?

In mere seconds, Bakugou takes off towards the cage with the help of Uraraka's quirk while Todoroki freezes the villain's feet to the ground.

Following their lead, I pop into the cage and address the hostages. "It's g-gonna be okay. Everyone needs t-to hold onto me di-directly please...!"

Once I'm certain all the parents are in contact, I glance to the class and teleport us down. A wave of exhaustion hits me and I stumble before righting myself.

A sudden explosion comes from the cage and I spin around to see it rocking dangerously, the support swaying. My blood runs cold at the sight of my peers still inside.

I don't hesitate, teleporting back into the cage. Bakugou's angry voice greets me. "-at'd you do, dammit?"

"Like I said, the gates of hell await us all."

Something rolls from the villain's hand but I drop to my knees, reaching for everyone left in the cage. The villain turns to me as I snatch his shoulder, teleporting us back down just in time to see the cage collapse into the fire.

The man stands and turns to the class.

"Congratulations. The exercise is over."

"What does that mean...?"

"Somebody grab him. We gotta contact the school."

I fall back onto my back, a sharp headache forming from my quirk or the fumes- I'm not sure. I take a few deep breaths before pushing myself to my feet and speaking up. "We gotta find Aizawa sensei..."

"Me? I'm right here."

I'm confused to see him emerging from the nearby rubble, not a scratch on him. He saunters over, as if the previous events didn't just happen, and addresses the parents.

"Excellent work, everyone. Quite the convincing performance."

The parents break out into light conversation. He then turns to us. At our baffled expressions, he sighs.

"Still don't get it? Let me spell it out: this was all a setup."

"Huh?!"

"The villain, too...?"

"Yes... We hired an actor from a theatre troupe."

"A what, now...? Oh, indeed. Apologies for menacing you kids the way I did!"

The black clad man cocks his head almost sheepishly.

"Now wait just a minute! Wasn't this a bit much...? One wrong move, and somebody could've gotten hurt, or worse!" Yaoyorozu protests and I find myself almost agreeing.

Aizawa's response is completely tame in comparison. "We were prepared for the worst, so no, it was not 'a bit much.' Besides, pros are no strangers to danger, so an exercise with lower stakes wouldn't do you much good."

"I suppose that's true..."

Aizawa watches her for a moment before continuing. "Were you scared? Scared for your mother?"

"Yes. Quite."

"Words alone can't express your love for your families. When faced with losing them, however... This provided an invaluable experience."

He scans the class as he continues. "A proper rescue demands strength, skill, knowledge, and decisiveness, but emotion can easily cloud judgement. Anyone hoping to become a hero can't very well be flustered by a family member in danger. This exercise, under the guise of 'Parents' Day' was meant to teach you all just that."