✯𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 ✯ ᵏᵃᵗˢᵘᵏⁱ ᵇᵃᵏᵘᵍᵒ

𝟓✰

                                 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟓

"This is it, kid," Present Mic says, walking up to the door and grabbing the handle. He opens it, nodding for me to go in. I step into a small white room, my heart pounding in my chest.

"This is as far as I can take you, Nakamura," he says, a small frown on his face. "Good luck." His smile looks almost sad—like he's worried. If he's worried, this test must be even harder than I thought.

I set my watch on a timer—30 minutes. I can't believe I only get 30 minutes.

I stand in the middle of the room when a voice booms from a speaker in the corner.

"Hello, Ms. Nakamura," Nezu's voice echoes. "The exam will start in five seconds." His tone is eerily calm.

"Five." I'm not ready.
"Four." I can't do this.
"Three." I run my hands over my face.
"Two." You have to do this, Y/N.
"One."

The walls around me drop, revealing a fake city street. Smoke rises from fake fires, and a large robot in the distance smashes through buildings like they're made of paper. Before I can fully take it in, a small bot—about the same height as me—rushes forward.

Annoyed, I summon thorny vines from the ground, wrapping them around the bot. The thorns dig into its joints, immobilizing it instantly. One down.

I sprint through the street, searching for a medium bot—something that'll give me more points. But then—

"Help! Someone, please!"

I whip my head around. A girl is trapped under a fallen streetlight.

My chest tightens. Do I stop?  She's just an actor. The test is about points and she's worth the least.

But before I can debate, my feet are already moving. I reach her side, pulling the pole off with my vines.

"Are you hurt? Can you walk?"

She nods, and I quickly point her toward the exit before sprinting off again.

A glance at my watch. 25 minutes left.

The next 15 minutes blur together—three small bots, two civilians saved, and no sign of any big targets.

I'm so screwed.

Then, I round a corner and come face-to-face with a giant bot. Its foot hovers over a crushed car—with a person still inside.

Without thinking, I shoot rope-like vines from my palms, wrapping them around its metal ankle. I pull hard. The bot barely shifts, but I do stop it from crushing the car.

"RUN!" I yell.

The man scrambles out of the passenger door and bolts. I release the vines, collapsing backwards. The bot turns its glowing eyes on me.

Shit, shit, shit—

I force myself up and sprint into an alley, hiding behind a dumpster.

My hands are shaking. I'm hiding. Why am I hiding?

I check my watch. Less than 10 minutes left. I only have 15 points. The big bot is worth 50—if I take it down and rescue one more person, I can hit 80.

But how?
Just then, the bot stomps right past the alley, not noticing me. I take a closer look at its back. The entire thing is encased in thick metal—except... a few exposed wires on the back of its neck.

A light bulb practically goes off in my head. I've got my plan.

I run up to the roof of the tallest building. The bot is right below me, just a few feet away—it still hasn't noticed me.