This work contains spoilers for the Hideout Raid, Joint Training, and Paranormal Liberation War Arcs of the manga as well as major spoilers for the School Days Arc of the Vigilantes spin-off manga. It includes a few of my own predictions/theories in places that canon has not provided a definitive answer.

Aizawa hated this particular UA tradition more than anything. It was too personal. More importantly, it served little to no practical purpose for his students. They don't need to hear the personal thoughts of everyone else in their class. Nonetheless, Aizawa refused to be the weak link in the custom. He stood in front of the twenty very loud members of class 3-A.

"Alright. I'm supposed to replay for you those videos you recorded twice each year about why you want to be a hero. Having something to fight for gives you purpose, so don't dismiss the value of these videos."

Aizawa suspected that the next hour would be more trying for this particular class of heroes-in-training than any of the years prior.

He just wished he didn't have to so directly be a part of it.

Most of Aoyama's video was overly-flowery French that the rest of the class was clueless to the meaning of.

In Ashido's video, she spoke passionately about her hatred of bullies and how that translated to wanting to take down any villains who might want to harm innocent people.

Tsu explained that she just wanted to help people and had a good quirk for rescue missions.

Things started to go downhill during the class representative's video.

'Start of 1st year-Tenya Iida,' the words at the bottom of the video said.

"Why do you want to be a hero?" Someone asked off-camera. A grinning Iida spoke into the camera.

"I want to be a hero like the other members of the Iida family. I hope to one day be as great as my brother, the pro hero Ingenium."

'End of 1st year-Tenya Iida,' brought with it a far more serious student. Regret swam in Iida's eyes, and it took him a moment to answer after the question was asked.

"I don't just want to be a hero. I want to be a hero worthy of the name Ingenium. Someone who people can look up to as a model of strong ethics. Someone who… doesn't act out of revenge, but out of a desire to protect others."

With each of the following videos, Iida grew more and more confident in the words he was saying. It was obvious to the entirety of class 3-A that it took Iida a long time before he started to actually believe that what he was saying—the traits that he valued—applied to himself.

'Start of 1st year-Ochako Uraraka.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?"

"Oh, um… it's kinda embarrassing," Uraraka said, her ears turning red under her costume's helmet. "Do I really have to film it?"

"Mr. Aizawa said everyone has to. I can ask him to change it, I guess, but do you think he will? Probably not since there's a reason he wants us to do it in the first place. Plus, he's kind of scary, so I don't really want to ask him. But! I can if you really want—"

"It's fine, Deku," She interrupted the stream of mumbling from behind the camera. "I want to be a hero for the money, I guess. My family doesn't have a ton of money, and I wanted to help them out… but that's kind of selfish, isn't it?"

The video cut to 'End of 1st year-Ochako Uraraka' before anything else could be said. Uraraka's explanation was mostly the same, only spoken with more confidence this time. She had a goal, and she wasn't afraid of it anymore. This was similar to her words in their second year as well.

'Start of 3rd year-Ochako Uraraka.'

"I want to be a hero to give back to everyone who helped me get to where I am now, especially my family. I want to help rescue the citizens who supported me, but I want to be able to help my family live a good life more than anything!"

The video ended with a huge smile from Uraraka.

The next two videos were full of just as much enthusiasm.

Ojiro had always been interested in martial arts and wanted to do something that he could take pride in.

Kaminari talked about how awesome it was that heroes protect people.

'Start of 1st year-Eijiro Kirishima.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?"

"'Cuz it's super manly! Crimson Riot's like, the manliest guy ever, so I'm naming myself after him!" Kirishima said, admiration evident in his features. Like many of the students before him, 'End of 1st year-Eijiro Kirishima' brought with it a more serious tone.

"I still wanna be a hero 'cuz it's manly. I don't think that's gonna change. But like, I didn't think I'd be able to do it for the longest time, and now I'm here. Still, dunno if I can keep up with you guys as pros. I guess I'll just have to work harder!"

'Start of 2nd year-Hitoshi Shinso,' displayed Shinso with a bitter expression.

"Why do you want to be a hero?" Kaminari asked off-camera.

"Everyone thinks I'm going to be a villain because of my quirk. But I'm going to be the best hero to come from this class. Everyone here's been blessed with strong quirks, but if you think that you can always win because of that, you're wrong."

'End of 2nd year-Hitoshi Shinso.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?"

"To prove to everyone that it's effort and intention, not a quirk, that makes a hero." This time, Shinso spoke proudly and even offered the camera the smallest of smiles.

Sato didn't want anybody to feel weak or helpless.

Shoji wanted to become someone that people could look at and feel safe, rather than be afraid of him because of his arms. In his 'End of 3rd year-Mezo Shoji' section, he even pulled the mask off his face and grinned.

Despite answering "I don't really know" in her first segment, eventually Jiro admitted that she wanted to bring joy to people by taking down villains and creating her music.

Sero was happy that he could help people by doing something that he enjoyed.

'Start of 1st year-Fumikage Tokoyami.'

"I want to vanquish the darkness that resides within villainous souls."

'End of 1st year-Fumikage Tokoyami.'

"There's always a motivation behind villainy. Is it not our duty as heroes to help prevent people from becoming villains in the first place? I wish to become a hero to assist those in need. Doing something wrong… doesn't instantly make you evil. Hawks put his faith in me, and I'd like to do something worthwhile with that faith."

'Start of 1st year-Shoto Todoroki.'

"Oh, you're a recommendation student, right? So, why do you want to be a hero, Todoroki?" Tsu said from offscreen.

"Does it really matter?" Todoroki said, staring blankly at the screen.

As the words 'End of 1st year-Shoto Todoroki' flashed across the screen, the screen displayed a slightly more relaxed version of the hero-in-training.

"To save people. What's the purpose of this?"

Hagakure said that she had a great quirk for undercover missions, and was more than happy to help people in need.

As soon as 'Start of 1st year-Katsuki Bakugo' flashed on the screen, several students covered their ears in anticipation.

"Why do you wanna be a hero?" Kirishima asked.

"I'm not just going to be some random-ass hero, I'm going to be number fucking one, got it?"

'End of 1st year-Katsuki Bakugo' was just as loud but gave a significantly different answer than before.

"I've got a strong-as-shit quirk. I might as well use it to blast those villain bastards to kingdom come. You can still bet your asses I'm going to be number one, though, so you better be fighting at your best, Deku. I don't want a win by default."

"Almost sounds like you care about his career, Baku-bro," Kirishima laughed.

"Shut it, Shitty Hair!" Bakugo yelled, explosions crackling in his palms.

'Start of 1st year-Izuku Midoriya' grinned brightly into the camera.

"I want to be an awesome hero like All Might!" The video cut to a Midoriya whose smile hadn't drooped in the slightest. However, it would be impossible not to notice that the hero-worship and naivety previously found on his face was replaced with endless determination.

'End of 1st year-Izuku Midoriya.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?"

"I want to be a hero that always saves people with a smile. So many people have helped me get to where I am, and I want to be as great as they are. I think… I think that if I work hard enough, I can be the number one hero, and then… I can tell the world that 'I am here.'"

'End of 3rd year-Izuku Midoriya.'

"Why do you want to be a hero, Deku?" Uraraka asked with a giggle.

"I want to save everyone, no matter the cost. That's why I'm going to become the new Symbol of Peace," Midoriya said confidently.

'Start of 1st year-Mirio Togata.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?" Tamaki mumbled off-camera.

"I want to save people, of course! I guess I'd kinda be a bad hero if I didn't, though, huh?" Mirio said. After a moment of silence from Tamaki, Mirio continued. "I'm just hoping I can get better at using my quirk. At this rate, I'm going to be expelled before the end of the year."

'Start of 3rd year-Mirio Togata.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?" Tamaki asked, barely more confident than in the first clip.

"Because I want to save a million people! That's where I got the name Lemillion, anyway. I just want to be the best hero that I can be. Thanks to Sir, I think I finally have a chance, huh?" The video cut to the next clip without pausing.

The words 'End of 3rd year-Mirio Togata' caused a few small noises of sympathy from the back of the classroom. They were quickly shushed by Iida.

"I know you're not graduating with us, Mirio, but… I still want to record this. Why do you want to be a hero?" Tamaki choked out off-screen.

"Honestly, I don't know if I can," Mirio said, smiling nonetheless. "Aw c'mon, Tamaki, I don't regret what happened at all. I'm just glad that Eri's okay. I'd do the same thing again in a heartbeat. Saving a million people starts with saving one, right? And I know for sure that I'll keep training. Maybe one day, I'll still get my hero license!"

'Start of 3rd year-Mirio Togata.'

"Um… didn't you already record one of these for your third year?" Midoriya asked, slightly nervous.

"Yep! But now that I'm in class 3-A with you guys, I gotta record one like the rest of you!" Mirio said brightly.

"Okay. Why do you want to be a hero?"

"To save a million people, of course! Now that Eri's managed to rewind me back to when I had a quirk, I have a lot of catching up to do!"

As Yaoyorozu finished explaining how heroics inspired confidence in her and how she wanted to spread it to others, a few students began to stand up.

The video wasn't over.

'Start of 2nd year-Shota Aizawa' brought with it various surprised murmurs from the students of class 3-A.

"So, why do you want to be a hero, Eraser?" Age did nothing to disguise the dramatic voice of Present Mic.

"I don't even think I can," a much younger version of Aizawa said. "My quirk's not useful and I can't fight."

'End of 2nd year-Shota Aizawa' was filmed shakily and in poor quality.

"Record me again and I'll break the camera for real this time," Aizawa hissed.

"Shota, I know you don't want to, but—" Present Mic tried to reason. Aizawa was having none of it.

"Why record it if I'm dropping out?"

"Shota," Present Mic began, more fiercely this time. "Why do you want to be a hero?"

"I don't! I couldn't save Sushi or those kids. Oboro's the real hero, but I let him die, Hizashi," Aizawa's hands shook as his fingers curled around the clear goggles around his neck. "What kind of shitty hero can't save anyone?"

"You took down that villain. You're not—"

"Stop recording."

The video cut away almost instantly.

'Start of 3rd year-Shota Aizawa.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?" Present Mic asked a noticeably exhausted Aizawa.

"It's a rational choice. I'm in the hero course."

'End of 3rd year-Shota Aizawa.'

"Why do you want to be a hero?"

"I've had enough of being useless. I'm not going to let any of this happen again."

"I think they want you to explain why you're not joining a hero agency as well."

"It's not rational." Aizawa gave his signature grin.

The video clicked off.