Catching a Captain: AOT [OC x Levi x OC]

5

~time skip to next morning, where the 104th Scout Regiment is called to show up in woods~

Hiiro stood before the cadets, showing no signs of a hangover or giving any indication of recollection of last night. If anything, he looked serious. "I'm here to further train you with your 3DMG. First, a question. How many of you feel that this is a waste of your time and you'd rather just start out on a mission right away? Be honest."

Jean waited a second before raising his hand along with a few others, including Eren and in turn Mikasa, as well as Yuki and Armin.

Hiiro just nodded, his expression unchanging. "All right. I'll give you the option. If you'd like to do a mission today, step off to this side. I'll accompany you, and the rest of you can practice here within the walls."

The few that raised their hands go to the side, talking amongst themselves.

Hiiro, meanwhile, merely nodded, saying nothing, and led them outside of the walls.

Almost immediately, a few titans approached and Hiiro watched as the cadets dealt with them.

"This is easy!" Eren shouted, cutting one down.

Jean nodded his head curtly, slicing through the air. "Piece of cake!"

"I could do this in my sleep-"

Eren cut off as a group of titans approached, coming too fast for the cadets to handle despite their self-proclaimed sufficient skills.

Hiiro quickly reached into his jacket and pulled out a few parts, using both hands to fit them together before pulling something in his teeth and throwing his creation, triggering a large explosion to buy them time. "Retreat!"

For the most part, the cadets surged back in a panic, only leaving the few hesitant cadets behind to momentarily be eaten for not being fast enough.

Once everyone had regrouped within the walls, Hiiro took a step forward, his expression the same as earlier that day. "Some of you are wondering why I risked your lives when I clearly knew that you weren't ready."

Both Eren and Jean were quiet, one out of shock, the other still trying to understand, but Hiiro wasn't finished.

"Cadets often become arrogant, thinking that they've mastered all that there is and that they can kill any titan they see, but outside the walls, the situation is out of our hands. I can't always provide you with the perfect angle. I can't promise that there will always be enough gas in your gear to get you home safely. I can't tell you that there will always be a tree in the perfect place for you to rebound off of, or that there will be the right number of titans so you aren't overwhelmed, or that your whole squad with be there to assist you. The outside world doesn't play by your training rules. That's why I brought you out there now, so you could understand reality before you go out on an actual mission. Some people can't handle the pressure and they break, right there on the field, which leaves their entire regiment at risk. If you don't think that you can handle what you've all just seen...then this is your chance to leave now, because you'll only become a hindrance and a danger to your squad if you stay."

A few cadet stared at Hiiro, wide-eyed, while others just watched in fear. While Jean chose to remain silent, Eren gritted his teeth.

Hiiro smiled grimly, correctly reading the fear, anger, and shock that spread across the ranks in thick waves of growing dissension. "And now I can assume that some of you hate my guts for letting several of your friends die out there in what must seem like a pointless trial, but I'd rather have five kids die now that have twice as many or more die when the stakes are a hell of a lot higher. Now, let me ask you the same question from earlier. Who out of you thinks that you are suitable to go on a mission as you currently are, right at this very moment?"