Episode 05 - A Certain Pair of New Trainees
In a Flash Back, we see a young Kuroko training together with some new Judgement recruits. Uiharu is next to her, and struggling. They talk afterwards, and Uiharu is impressed to learn that Kuroko has already been with Judgement for a year. Uiharu worries that she'll never be good enough, but Kuroko tells her to have faith in herself.
In the present day, the two are installing surveillance cameras around a school when they hear a car alarm. Rushing over, they find a man trying to steal a car. Uiharu says they should wait for backup in case he has accomplices, but Kuroko just scoffs and charges in. However, he does indeed have a partner, who manages to take Kuroko by surprise and knock her down. The two thieves run off; Uiharu tries to block their escape, but they zap her with a taser and disappear.
Once she determines that Uiharu is all right, Kuroko scolds her for taking risks, saying she'd be better off staying in the office like usual. Uiharu retorts that she warned Kuroko to wait for backup, and asks what will happen to their promise if she keeps on being reckless. Kuroko doesn't know what promise she means, which causes Uiharu to get angry and storm off.
A bit later, Saten comes by the Judgement Branch 177 office to visit Uiharu. However, Uiharu is brooding and upset, not even reacting when Saten flips her skirt up. Konori, who is also there, says that Uiharu had an argument with Kuroko. Saten wonders if they'll be able to patch things up, but Konori thinks they'll be OK. She offers to tell Saten about how the two first became friends.
At the Tokiwadai dorm, Kuroko is distracted and restless. Mikoto wonders she became partners with Uiharu in the first place, seeing as how they're so different. In response, Kuroko starts reminiscing about the past...
Back in Flash Back time, the younger Kuroko is accompanying Konori on some routine Judgement errands. She complains about not having any responsibilities, but Konori replies that she must first learn to rely on other people more. They go into a postal bank so Konori can withdraw some cash. Uiharu happens to come in and greets Kuroko. She says she's investigating junior high schools, and asks if Kuroko has chosen one yet. Kuroko says she'll be going to Tokiwadai, which greatly impresses Uiharu. They mention that a Level 5 esper, Railgun, is already attending that school, but Kuroko dismissively says that she's probably a stuck-up harpy. Elsewhere, Mikoto abruptly sneezes while walking along the street.
In the bank, Konori notices a man acting suspiciously. She uses her ability to see through the man's coat, and sees that he is holding a concealed gun. She tells Kuroko to be ready to evacuate bystanders while she goes to notify the bank staff. However, as soon as she reaches the counter, the man pulls his gun out and fires it into the ceiling.
Kuroko, who is standing close to the man, charges in and tackles him, successfully knocking the gun away and pinning him to the ground. However, just as she is congratulating herself on the takedown, another man — an accomplice of the first — pulls out a knife and grabs Uiharu.
One of the bank staff sounds an alarm, and the bank's security shutters come down. A security robot appears and attacks Uiharu's captor. Kuroko tries to rush in behind it, but Konori grabs her just as the second bank robber blasts the robot with something, destroying it. Konori is hit by shrapnel and collapses, bleeding.
The knife-wielding man turns on Kuroko and knocks her to the floor. Kuroko thinks that even though she isn't powerful enough to teleport herself, she can still save Uiharu. She manages to reach over and grab Uiharu's ankle, teleporting her outside the bank. Out on the street, Uiharu screams for someone to help her friend and the other people in the bank. A girl in a Tokiwadai uniform (and a Gekota strap) happens to be nearby, and notices Uiharu's cries.
Back inside, the bank robber pulls out a steel marble and tosses it at the door; it blasts a hole right through the security shutter. The man brags that his ability, Equal Speed, can create an unstoppable projectile. Then he orders Kuroko to use her teleport power to steal cash from the bank machines for him. Kuroko figures that she's fast enough to deal with one projectile and refuses, saying that she will never stray from the path of justice she has chosen. Uiharu, still outside, overhears Kuroko's words through the hole in the shutters.
The man laughs and says he isn't limited to a single projectile. He pulls out a large number of his steel marbles and fires them all at Kuroko. Before they can hit her, a flash of electricity comes seemingly out of nowhere, blasting the projectiles aside. While the man gapes in shock, Kuroko tackles him and pins him to the ground. Watching through the hole from outside, the girl in the Tokiwadai uniform lowers her arm, smiles, and walks away.
As Kuroko and Konori are being treated for their injuries, Uiharu comes up to Kuroko and makes a promise: that she will always do what is right, never losing heart, until she becomes as good a Judgement officer as Kuroko. Kuroko smiles and replies that she will make the same promise in return, so that some day they can become full-fledged officers together.
Back in the present, Kuroko finishes recounting the story and realizes that was the promise Uiharu was talking about. As she wonders how to apologize, she gets a phone call from Konori, telling her that Uiharu has tracked down the car thieves from earlier and has gone after them.
As Uiharu runs along the street, Kuroko appears and starts running alongside her. She tells Uiharu not to dawdle, or they'll never be able to become full-fledged officers together. After a moment's surprise, Uiharu smiles happily and runs after her.
Tropes
- Artistic Age: In the flashbacks, Kuroko and Uiharu look several years younger than they do in the present day. However, those events seem to have been somewhere between six and eighteen months ago. Somewhat justified in that young girls that age can and do grow quite rapidly.
- Breather Episode: This episode focuses on Character Development and has no real connection to the current story arc.
- Continuity Nod: Volume 8 of A Certain Magical Index mentions that Kuroko had saved Uiharu during her very first mission. Here we learn the details.
- The Faceless: Mikoto's face is never seen during the flashbacks, although she appears from behind or via Unreveal Angle a couple of times. This is presumably because the flashback is otherwise from Kuroko and Uiharu's points of view, and they didn't know about Mikoto's (peripheral) involvement.
- Innocently Insensitive: After Uiharu gets hurt, Kuroko rather patronizingly tells her she should stay in the office where it's safe. Then she makes things worse by not knowing what Uiharu is talking about when the latter brings up their 'promise'. That last one is what really makes Uiharu angry.
- Never My Fault: After Uiharu is hurt as a result of Kuroko charging in recklessly, Kuroko's immediate response is to scold Uiharu for it. To be fair, Kuroko is probably just trying to act protective, and Uiharu should have known better than to try and block the thieves' escape by simply standing in front of them. All the same, it makes Kuroko sound as if she's pinning the blame on Uiharu, and Uiharu certainly interprets it that way.
- Sneeze Cut: Right after young Kuroko tells Uiharu that Railgun is probably an arrogant snob, there's a cut to Mikoto (seen only from behind) sneezing while walking along the street.
