Desert Winds Academy for Superheroes

Chapter 3: Preparations

2 Weeks had passed since Yahiro left the hospital, and he had been training himself to prepare for the Desert Winds Trials. Over the 2 weeks, Desert Winds had opened up several cleared places for people to train without fear of being detained by The Warden Peacekeepers. Yahiro and Saito had been training together for most of the 2 weeks.

Once the pair arrived at the training fields, they were met with many new faces they hadn't seen before. Yahiro remarked. "Judging by how intense they are, I can assume they're all Desert Winds students."

Just then, a voice rang from behind the duo. "You'd be right! Each and every one of us all were picked exclusively to attend the greatest school in the world!"

The pair quickly turned and were met by a young man with blonde hair and glasses. The young man grinned and locked eyes with Yahiro. "If I had known that you would have come here, then I would have put on my best training garment, Yahiro Yashmoto."

Yahiro's calm demeanor changed to a more annoyed expression as he also clenched his fists. "How do you know my name?" His tone only further proved that he wasn't in any mood for this.

"Everyone here knows your name, Yahiro. The kid who fought a villain to a stand still and allowed Omega-Man to finish it! You're truly something special, Yahiro." The student continued on, this time much more serious. "And people here hate you for it. They see you as the biggest challenge here and will do anything to one up you, myself included."

"Why are you telling us all of this?" Saito intervened in the pair's conversation, taking note of Yahiro's mood. "Because I know that all eyes will be on him. Yahiro, allow me to give you and your friend a tour of this place. I can assure you it's different than those other places you've probably trained at."

"First, who are you." Yahiro bluntly asked the young man, who returned with a blunt answer. "My name is Toji Takashi, and I have the power to control and manipulate sand at will. I can even become sand if I choose to do so. Now, follow me."

Yahiro and Saito followed Toji, who gave them a grand tour. "This here is the central area where everyone talks and chats with one another. Over there is where we all train alone. A lot of us use that to test our durability and, in many cases, how much stress one can handle. Over there is a food bar. Desert Winds had that installed so we could eat and relax. Here, we call it a sign of weakness to spend too much time there. And finally."

Toji escorted the pair to a clear, flat area and held his arms out. In an instant, protruding from the ground would be 4 large tentacle-like spikes all made of sand. One of which would launch Saito away as he was caught off guard. "This Yahiro Yashmoto is where we all fight! This arena is what makes the difference between superhero and a nobody! The hierarchy is established here, and I sit on top! Now! Face me." With that, the 4 sand tentacles would all be pointed at Yahiro, who was shocked at what he was seeing, but in almost an instant, his shock turned into a grin.

"Toji... I've been waiting to kick your ass since I got here. You really wanna fight me, then let's do it." Toji grinned at this, and 2 of the Four sand spikes lunged at Yahiro, who quickly placed one of his hands on the ground. A wall of rock quickly rose up to block them. However, before the spikes hit the wall, they quickly maneuvered themselves, and both would stab themselves into Yahiro's sides, causing him to cry out in pain, which greatly pleased Toji.

"Stop your crying, Yahiro! This won't kill you." With that, he used his sand tentacles to throw Yahiro away and allowed the tentacles to disappear back into the ground. His smirk quickly turned into an unimpressed frown, and he groaned. "You're truly pathetic. Those villains must have been true weaklings. At least you know now of the hierarchy. Yahi-!"

As Toji approached Yahiro's seemingly unconscious body, a pillar of stone rose from the ground and uppercut Toji, launching him into the air. As Toji hit the ground, he saw Yahiro pull himself up and stare down Toji. "You really thought you had me there? You keep mentioning this hierarchy and how you sit at the top..."