Chapter 46: "Kids these days."
"Match Six is a Battle that's going to put the arena between a Rock and a Hard Place!"Announced Present Mic. "From the East is the Rock Hard Manly Man himself, Eijiro Kirishima of Class A! And from the West we've got the Manly Man with the Steeliest Resolve, Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu!"
Eijiro watched his opening crack his knuckles with a sharp toothed frown on his face before tilting his head to the left and then the right, causing his neck to let out two loud cracks. It was absolutely…
"Manly!" Declared the redhead with a sharp toothed grin as he mimicked the motions, his knuckles and neck letting out the exact same cracking noises.
He was pretty sure he heard Midnight-Sensei say something to herself about 'Echo Fighters' before speaking up, "Alright boys, I'm sure I don't need to tell two Real Men like yourselves this, but as usual you both are able to go at it as Hard as you like until one of you is knocked out of bounds, rendered unable to battle, or surrenders. Cementoss and I will break things up if they ever seem like someone's going to go too far. Are you ready?"
In perfect sync both boys have Midnight-Sensei a thumbs up. The teacher shook off the large sweat drop forming on her head and raised her whip, "Alright then, if you boys are ready…"
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic as Midnight-Sensei's whip cracked.
The two boys let out battle cries as they charged at each other, Eijiro hardening his fists and feet while Tetsutetsu turned his entire body into metal. Eijiro reared back his right arm and Tetsutetsu did the same, both boys throwing a punch that clashed.
The boys growled, each stepping backwards to throw another punch, but with his lighter body thanks to his Quirk not being completely active, Eijiro managed to move just a little point quicker, his fist slamming into Tetsutetsu's face.
"That… didn't hurt!" But his opponent barely flinched before throwing his own punch.
Eijiro moved fast, hardening his other arm and using it to block his now hardened face. The fist made impact, and he also barely flinched. "That… didn't hurt either!" He growled back before throwing another punch.
The two boys kept going at it. Punching and kicking, even the occasional headbutt. Their Quirks were so similar that neither was able to get an advantage that the other couldn't keep up with.
Eijiro realized quickly enough that this was more than just a clash of Quirks, it was a clash of wills! Of skills! Of their manly spirits! And he wouldn't lose…
"C'mon Horn Buddy! Show that tin head who's the real man here!" Shouted Ashido from the stadium.
Not when the person he admired most was watching him! And it wasn't just her either…
"Go Kirishima!" Midobro…
"We know you can win, ribbit!" Asui…
"You can take my explosions, then you can take whatever this metal head can dish out!" Bakubro…
His friends… they believed in him! They were watching him after seeing him come this far! He had trained for exactly this! He refused to lose, because…
"Take this!" Shouted Tetsutetsu as his fist made contact with Eijiro's chest. Only to widen in surprise when it did… nothing? If anything his hand actually hurt a little.
And… what was that grinding sound!?
"I am Eijiro Kirshima…" Growled out the Class A student as he flexed his fingers, the hardened skin shifting, becoming sharper and even harder, "And I am… Unbreakable!" As he shouted he stomped his foot down, the arena tile beneath his foot cracking under the pressure. He reared his arm back and punched.
Tetsutetsu attempted to block with his arms, but Eijiro didn't let it stop him, he broke straight through the defense and made contact with his opponent's chest. Tetsutetsu let out a cough but Eijiro wasn't done yet as he continued his onslaught. This ability, even if focused solely on his chest and hands, would only last him a few seconds as he was now, so he needed to finish it here and now!
Chest, Face, Shoulders, Eijiro unleashed a flurry of punches, the same way All Might had done against that monster!
Punch! Punch! Punch! Punch! And just as he felt his Quirk was ready to give out, he used his strength to mutter out one final, "Plus Ultra…" Before landing one final devastating punch into his foe's jaw, sending the guy flying backwards.
"That… hurt." Said Tetsutetsu weakly as he fell, landing on his back with a metallic clang.
Eijiro was left breathing heavily as his skin returned to normal.
After observing his downed opponent for a moment, Midnight-Sensei raised her whip towards Eijiro "Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu is unable to proceed, the match goes to Eijiro Kirishima of Class A!"
"HEEELL YEAAAH!" Roared Eijiro victoriously as the crowd erupted into cheers. He then noticed the groaning sounds coming from his fallen opponent on the ground. Taking a deep breath, he mustered up all the manly energy he had left to stagger over to him, extending a hand towards him.
Tetsutetsu stared at the hand, one of his eyes starting to swell shut while the other was wide in surprise.
"That was a good fight, man." He said calmly. After a moment of silence, Tetsutetsu reached out and took Eijiro's hand, allowing him to pull him up to his feet. Once he was up, Eijiro started to stagger a little, exhaustion taking its hold, thankfully is newfound brother in manliness was quick to grab his shoulder, supporting him.
"Ooohohoho, such a passionate display of youth!" Both boys looked towards Midnight-Sensei, slightly confused by her outburst while Cementoss-Sensei simply shook his head before placing a palm on his forehead.
"You boys go head to Recovery Girl, I've got an arena to fix up again." Said the Modern Literature Teacher.
The boys both looked back at the arena, witnessing the damage they'd done to it, and couldn't help but both let out an embarrassed chuckle. "Yes sir." They said simultaneously before aiding each other in limping off the field through the Eastern Entrance.
"HOOORN BUDDYYY!" They didn't get far before a pink blur suddenly came in like a wrecking ball and practically body checked Eijiro into the wall. He and Tetsutetsu each frantically waved their free arm as they were simultaneously brought into a crushing embrace. "You were awesome out there Kirishima!" Said Ashido proudly. "Oh, you were pretty manly too, Iron Squared."
"'Iron-'" Tetsutetsu wanted to complain about the nickname, but it was at that moment he realized he was extremely close to a girl he'd never met before and immediately froze up.
Eijiro gave his new brother in manliness a flat look before unwrapping his arm from his shoulders. "That's enough of that." He grunted, shoving Tetsutetsu out of the embrace.
"Wh- hey!" Exclaimed the Class B student, who stumbled and started to fall backwards, only to stop when he found the back of his head pressed against someone's chest. His head slowly rolled backwards as he looked up to see who that chest belonged to, his eyes widening when he saw a familiar lipless face looking down at him. "Oh. Honenuki."
"You did good out there, Tetsutetsu." Said Class B's other recommendation student, with some of his classmates not far behind him as he continued to let Tetsutetsu lean on him. He then looked to see the students of Class B who were also in the hall, that being Bakugou and Asui.
As Honenuki and Bakugou got into a glaring match, Asui chose to speak up, "I'd rather avoid getting into a fight right now, ribbit. Some of us still have matches coming up."
Shiozaki clasped her hands together as a strange light seemed to shine down on her. "I am in agreement, let us save our conflicts for the battlefield and escort our injured allies to Recovery Girl's office."
Bakugou and Honenuki both scoffed, but broke eye contact and brought an end to their stare down. Honenuki then put Tetsutetsu's arm around his shoulder while Ashido moved to get Eijiro's over hers. The students then started making their way to the school's nurse.
"By the way," Said Honenuki, "Kamakiri said that he would've come to see you too if he wasn't up next and had to prepare."
Tetsutetsu let out a weak chuckle, "That's fair, don't wanna make the man kneecap himself just for worrying about a loser like me."
"Hey, you did better than me at least." Countered Honenuki.
"Yeah, and besides, who cares if ya lost?" Asked Tokage as she wrapped an arm around Tetsutetsu's shoulder from the other side and used a disembodied hand to ruffle his hair. "I'm right there with you as being a Round One loser, so we can be losers together my dude."
Eijiro couldn't help but chuckle at the camaraderie between the students of Class B. He then turned his attention to Bakugou, "I'm surprised that you decided to stop by to see me Bakubro."
Bakugou scoffed. "Yeah well Tsu wouldn't stop staring at me with her big ol' froggy eyes until I agreed. Besides, the next match is against a Hero Course Extra and a C Classe Extra so I doubt I'll be missing much regardless of who wins."
"He asked me to come with him to check on you, ribbit." Said Tsu.
"That sounds about right." Chuckled Eijiro.
"Oh fuck off both of you." Growled Bakugou as he stomped ahead to put a few paces between himself and his classmates, making his friends all chuckle a bit.
"On the East Side, we've got one of the sharpest students of Class B, Togaru Kamakiri!"Announced Present Mic.
"You said that like it was clever." Deadpanned Aizawa.
"And on the West side, we've got the rising star of the General Education Course, Hitoshi Shinso!"
"Heh, 'rising star.'" Chuckled Hitoshi with his hands in his pockets. "Gotta admit, that's actually not half bad to hear."
"Alright boys, you ready?" Asked Midnight. When both boys nodded their heads she said aided her whip into the air.
"Theeen Fiiight!" Declared Present Mic.
As soon as Midnight's whip came down, Kamakiri started growing blades from his arms. He would've rushed Hitoshi, but he instead paused when the Gen Ed. Student raised his hand at him.
"Before you run over and dice me into bits, I've got to ask something." Said Hitoshi, maintaining an excellent poker face.
Kamakiri didn't say anything, simply raising his eyebrow in curiosity.
"Were you born with those ugly ass mandibles or did they come in with your Quirk?" Asked Hitoshi. "Because if it's the former I hope you've made sure to give your mom extra flowers on Mother's Day, that could not have felt good coming out."
The arena became dead silent as both of the present teachers stared at Hitoshi in shock.
Kamakiri was dead silent, looking downwards as a shadow was cast over his eyes making his expression unreadable.
Then he began to tremble.
And then, like a volcano, he erupted.
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAAAY!?" He screeched angrily. More blades began erupting from his skin, but before he could charge Hitoshi and dice him into pieces so small you'd need a magnifying glass to find him, he suddenly froze in place.
The corners of Hitoshi's mouth quirked upwards, "Gotcha." He then raised his finger into the air and did a little spinning motion. "Now, be a good Hero hopeful and walk yourself out of bounds."
Kamakiri said nothing, simply turning around and started walking.
"Wh-what's this!? Kamakiri seemed so riled up a second ago but now he's simply walking away!"
Hitoshi said nothing, simply watching his opponent's back with his hands in his pockets, not taking his eyes off him until he stepped off the aren and onto the grass of the field.
"Togaru Kamakiri has stepped out of bounds, Hitoshi Shinso of Class C moves to Round Two!" Announced Midnight with her whip raised in the air.
Once that announcement was made, Hitoshi turned around and walked through the same entrance he came in. He waited until he was through the Western Gate to deactivate his Quirk, at which point he started jogging in an attempt to put as much distance between himself and the potentially vengeful B Class Student as possible.
Though that jog didn't last more than about a minute before he ran straight into Midoriya, letting out a painful grunt in the process. How the hell was someone so short able to be so freaking dense muscle wise?
"That was impressive, Shinso." Said Izuku, looking at his former teammate with a grin. "Really clever usage of your Quirk and Kamakiri's temper to earn the win."
"Oh, uh… thanks." Said Shinso, looking away and scratching the back of his head. "Right, on that note I should probably get going before that guy hunts me down for sport."
"Don't worry about it." Said Izuku, waving off the Gen Ed. Student's worries. "Kamakiri's too busy sulking in embarrassment to be angry at you, and Kendo seems to be keeping an eye on him just in case."
"Oh… that's good." Said Shinso, squinting his eyes at Izuku. "So why're you here?"
"Well honestly it was pure luck that I ran into you." Admitted Izuku with a shrug. "I was on my way to Recovery Girl's Office to fetch Kacchan and Tsu. They were up next after you but chose to go with Kirishima to the nurse's office for his recovery after his match with Tetsutetsu."
"'Kacchan?'" Parroted back Shinso in confusion.
"Y'know," Said Izuku as he raised his palms at Shinso, "'Boom Boom, Diiie…?'"
"Oh, him." Said Shinso as he recalled 1A's resident Boomer while walking with Izuku. "There a history with you two?"
"Grew up together, our moms were friends and they wanted us to be too. We were friends… then we weren't once his Quirk came in and mine didn't." Admitted Izuku dejectedly as he looked at the ground, "But since then we've kinda mended our bridges and consider each other rivals. He pushes me to be the best and I push him in turn." He held up a fist as he spoke in confidence.
"Is that right? I guess not even kids are safe from Quirkism…" Said Shinso under his breath.
"I mean… he eventually learned better, kids are ignorant, teens less so, but still are in many ways." Admitted Izuku with a shrug. "Oh, we're here." Shinso looked up to see that they had in fact reached Recovery Girl's office. Izuku stepped forward and opened the door.
"-And then I said, 'now that's a katana!'" Said Ashido, letting out a laugh as she finished whatever story she was telling from her spot sitting on Kirishima's bed, earning a hearty laugh from Tokage and a scandalized gasp from Shiozaki.
"Hey there guys, pardon the intrusion." Said Izuku with a wave.
"Oh, hey there Midori, you stop by to visit your hurt heroines?" Asked Ashido, looking at Izuku with a lazy grin.
"Eh?" Said Izuku, looking at her in surprise before reaching up and scratching his cheek with a finger. "Eheh, well I mean I definitely wanted to check in on them…" He then shook his head. "But that's besides the point. Kacchan, Tsu, you're up."
"Hah?" Said Kacchan, raising an eyebrow. "Fuck are you talkin' about, isn't there still a match before we're up?"
"Yeah, there is." Said Izuku before pointing his thumb over his shoulder to Shinso who was standing behind him and giving a lame wave. "It ended already."
Kacchan and Tsu stared at Izuku for a moment, until eventually, "Fuck!" Exclaimed Kacchan as he stood up and booked it for the door.
"Thanks for the heads up Midoriya, ribbit." Said Tsu as she followed closely behind him.
"No problem! Good luck out there guys!" Izuku called to his friend and rival as they quickly made their way to the entrances to the arena.
"Such a vulgar man…" Said Shiozaki under her breath.
"Like Kamakiri is any better." Countered Honenuki from his spot as he massaged Tetsutetsu's shoulders.
"He will be." Said Shiozaki ominously.
"Are all Hero Students this bizarre…?" Wondered Shinso.
"Far as I can tell? I think Ojiro might be our only taste of normalcy." Admitted Izuku.
"So you admit that you're weird?" Deadpanned Shinso.
"Is there anything about me that exactly screams 'normal?'"
"Fair enough…"
"Deku?" The next time Shinso blinked, Izuku wasn't standing in front of him, and was instead at the side of Ochako, who had finally spoken up for the first time since Izuku had entered Recovery Girl's office.
It seems like no one else had seen him move either, going off the way they were looking between where he had been and where he was with similarly confused expressions on their faces.
"Hey there Ochako, how're you feeling?" Said Izuku with a gentle smile on his face as he sat at her bedside.
Ochako returned the smile as she sat up. "I'm alright now that I've gotten to rest a little. Super dehydrated though…"
"Oh, don't worry, I've got you." Said Izuku as he prepared to stand up.
"And I've got you." Cut in Tokage. Izuku looked at her in confusion before noticing a hand holding a water bottle floating towards him.
Izuku smiled as he took the water, "Thanks, Tokage."
"'S all good dude." Said Tokage with a grin. "Green Hair Gang's got each other's backs. Between our classes there's enough to make a club."
Ochako let out a gasp for air after she finished downing the entire bottle of water she'd been given. "That's better…" She said quietly before turning to look at Iida and Sero, both of whom were still asleep in their respective beds. "After Bakugou and Asui fight, we're up next."
"That's right." Said Izuku, looking where their friends were lying right alongside her. He then turned and smiled at Ochako. "After that fight you put up against Mei I'm eager to get into the arena with you myself."
"Oh c'mon Deku, I'm nowhere near strong enough to fight you. I only won against Hatsume because of that support gear."
Izuku scoffed, "You would've figured something out, that's just how you do things."
She looked over at him, "You think so?"
Izuku smiled, "I know so. As long as you give it your all, I know you'll do great."
Ochako was silent for a moment before bringing her hands up and smacking her cheeks. She then turned and hopped off the bed. "Alright, let's get going!" She said confidently.
"Going?" Asked Izuku in confusion.
"To watch Bakugou and Asui fight, duh." Said Ochako like it was the most obvious thing in the world while she made her way to the door, Shinso politely stepping to the side as she did so. "If we hurry we might be able to catch the tail end of the fight."
Izuku stared at her in surprise for a moment before a smile bloomed on his face, "Right!" He then jogged after her.
Hitoshi watched the pair run off before turning back to the Hero Course students. "Are those two… y'know?" He asked gesturing his hand a little bit in the direction they'd gone.
"Surprisingly, and frustratingly, no." Groaned the pink one (Ashido was it?) "I swear those two are so dense I think they'd give Kirishima here a run for his money."
The redhead laughed. "Yeah… wait, what do you mean by that?" He asked, looking at her in confusion, and only getting an eyeroll in response.
Hitoshi let out a curious hum. "Weird, could've sworn he had something going on with the inventor girl."
Everyone turned their attention to where Hitoshi was pointing, noticing Hatsume who'd been lying there quietly the entire time with her eyes closed. It was definitely weird seeing the normally manic girl look calm for once after the show she'd been putting on all day.
"Wait, seriously?" Asked Ashido. "That's weird…"
"Y'don't think broccoli head's doing some kinda two timing do you?" Wondered the B Class Recommended student (Tokage, right?)
"Woah, cheating isn't manly!" Said the hard head and the metal head in perfect sync before looking and pointing at each other with shocked expressions on their face. The guy without lips turned his head to the side and put an arm over his mouth to stifle a laugh.
"Hmph, to think the class representative of Class A would engage in adultery… I must say that quite sours my opinion of the man…" Said the vine girl, her expression taking a turn for the unsettling.
Though that expression didn't last long as her head suddenly lurched forward as her eyes practically bugged out of her face from something hitting her in the back of the head.
Everyone's heads turned to the direction that the thrown item had come from. "You talk shit, you get hit." Said Hatsume, a smile on her face and a glare in her eyes.
"How long have you been awake?" Wondered Ashido.
Hatsume looked at her before clearing her throat and saying, "'Now that's a katana,'" doing her best impression of the Hero Student's voice.
"Oh. So you heard… everything Midori said to Ochako?" Asked Ashido.
"Yeah?" Asked Hatsume with a raised eyebrow.
"And none of that… bothered you? According to… Shinso was it?" Asked Ashido, looking at Hitoshi who simply nodded his head. "According to Shinso you two seemed quite close."
"And we are, at least I think we are." Said Hatsume as she looked at the ceiling, reaching her hand up as if she was trying to grab for something. "He's my partner in my pursuit to become the best Support Engineer there is, my Muse for creating babies." She looked over at Ashido again. "My first friend."
"But then shouldn't him being so close with another girl bother you? Aren't you afraid he'll find a partner in Uraraka instead?"
"Who says Uraraka and I can't both be his partners?" Asked Hatsume, tilting her head as she asked that question like the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Eh?"
"I'm his Partner as a Support Engineer, she's his Partner as a Hero in training, I can tell how much she cares for him, arguably enough to contest how much I care. And I can tell she has her own dreams too, I think we could all work together just fine, if anyone could do it'd be us." Said Hatsume simply.
Everyone simply stared at her, unsure what to say. Hatsume didn't seem willing to wait for a response either as she hopped out of bed in almost the exact same way Uraraka did a moment ago. "Anyways, I've gotta get going. I've got babies to repair and if Izuku's up next I don't want to miss that." She then walked out the door.
Everyone stared at the door. "Manly…" Said Kirishima eventually under his breath.
"Kids these days." Chuckled Recovery Girl from her spot to the side of the office as she shook her head and continued organizing her supplies. She had to be ready for the next reckless fool to come in.
Chapter 47: "You're such a sap."
"'Pologies for the wait listeners." Announced Present Mic. "Match Eight's combatants weren't expecting the previous one to go so fast and wound up a little delayed, but they're ready to go now! On the East side, coming from a pond near you, we've got Class A's amphibious friend, Tsuyu Asui! And on the West side we've got guy who's Bang is even scarier than his Bark, Katsuki Bakugou of Class A!"
Katsuki said nothing as he stepped onto the arena, hands in pockets and his usual flat glare on his face. Across from him he could Tsu, her own neutral expression present as she stared at him, her tongue sticking out slightly.
"Alright kids, you ready?" Asked Midnight as she looked between them.
Without his gaze breaking from Tsuyu's, Katsuki spoke up, "I'm giving you one chance to back out Tsu. I know this kinda battlefield ain't exactly your scene. You could back out now and I wouldn't hold it against you."
Tsu was silent for a moment before responding, "It's sweet that you're concerned Bakuchan, ribbit, but I think we both know that I'm not going to back down."
Despite himself, Katsuki couldn't help but smile at that response as he took his hands out of his pockets and shifted to a fighting stance, "Alright then, you'd better not come whining to me after I blast you out of bounds."
"If I lose I've only got myself to blame for not being strong enough." Replied Tsu as she crouched down, placing her hands on the ground.
"Alright, if you kids are ready…" Said Midnight as she raised her whip into the air.
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic.
BOOM!
Katsuki took the initiative, launching himself with an explosion to close the gap while Tsu leapt forward to do the same. He reared his right arm back to throw a right hook at her jaw.
His eyes widened in surprise when she shifted her body midair to send her knee into his stomach.
But Katsuki was faster than she was, catching her knee with his other hand, preventing contact with his gut. He then fired an explosion that not only singed her knee, but launched himself up and over her head.
He spun midair, preparing to hit her right in the head with another explosion, only to feel something long and wet slither around his ankle.
"RIBBIT!" Said Tsu as she jerked her head to the side, sending Katsuki swinging down towards the ground. Of course he wasn't going to take a move like that lying down as he fired off explosions from his palms.
"Hey guys, we're here, did we miss the fight?" Asked Izuku as he and Ochako entered 1A's booth in the audience.
"Nah, but you probably should've, this isn't exactly looking like it's in Asui's favor." Said Kaminari. "From what I can tell Bakugou gave her an out but she was dead set on facing him head on."
"That sounds about r-" Said Izuku, trailing off when he turned to look at Kaminari. He had to simply stand there and stare for a moment as he tried to process what he was looking at. "What are you doing?"
Three seats were currently occupied by Kaminari, Yaomomo, and Jirou. Now under normal circumstances the three of them would simply be sitting in those seats side by side, but what they were doing instead very comfortably rested outside what one would consider 'normal.'
"Well if nothing else, I think 'comfortable' is sure as heck the perfect word to describe the situation. Girl looks comfortable as hell."
"I don't believe hell is particularly comfortable…"
"Shaddup."
Izuku watched as Yaomomo continued to lay down, the center two arm rests dividing the three seats pulled upwards as Yaomomo's head rested in Jirou's lap while her legs rested on top of Kaminari's. Kaminari was massaging her legs while Jirou was providing food for her to eat.
"Are we sure those three aren't… Y'know?"
'Surprisingly, and frustratingly, no they are not.' Replied Izuku.
"The fourth wall is quaking, I can feel it."
"Then you should stop hitting it!"
BOOM!
Izuku turned his attention from the Momo Trio back to the Arena as he watched Kacchan and Tsu's battle continue.
Her attempt to slam him into the ground using her tongue was prevented when he fired off an explosion that launched himself backwards, dragging Tsu along for the ride thanks to her tongue still being around his ankle.
She let go, hoping to correct her flight path, but that only worked in Kacchan's favor as he backflipped through the air, landing on his feet and aiming his palms at Tsu.
She was barely able to shield her face with her arms, the explosion sending her backwards and into her back. She used the momentum of the fall to roll back onto her feet. Just in time to widen her eyes in mild fear as she saw Kacchan right in front of her face, both his palms glowing brightly.
"If you so much as twitch, this whole arena's gonna smell like deep fried frog." Warned Bakuchan evenly.
Tsuyu's eyes darted around as she searched for a way out. Ultimately she had no choice but to sigh. "I surrender, ribbit." She croaked out, making sure her voice was loud enough for Midnight-Sensei to hear.
"Tsuyu Asui has surrendered, Katsuki Bakugou moves to Round Two!" Announced Midnight with her whip raised high.
"And there you have it folks! Proceeding to the next round are the following combatants! Midoriya versus Uraraka, Shiozaki versus Todoroki, Yaoyorozu versus Kirishima, and Shinso versus Bakugou!" Announced Present Mic.
The large monitor displayed the bracket, showing the eight contestants who would move forward while those who'd come so far only to be defeated in the endgame were grayed out.
"Hope you listeners are excited for the next match, because we'll be getting right into it… After a message from our sponsors! Ahem, Honkai Star Rail-"
"Honestly, what a brute." Heckled Monoma. "Couldn't even hold back against a girl, and had to humiliate her on live Television. If I didn't know better I'd think he's only trying to be a Hero so he has an excuse to whale on poor souls who lost in the lottery of life and were forced down a path of villainy."
Izuku glared in Monoma's direction, opening his mouth to say something, when suddenly…
"Man, screw you!"
"Eh?" Monoma turned to look in the direction of the voice just in time to take a sticky ball to the forehead, courtesy of Mineta. "Wh-what the hell!?" He then made the of grabbing the ball, essentially glueing his hand to his forehead.
Mineta, who was standing on the divider between Class A and Class B's seats, snickered, raising a fist towards Dark Shadow. Dark Shadow looked at his fist, then at him before smiling. She then proceeded to bump his fist a little too hard, punching him right off the divider. Thankfully Shouji was there to catch him, rather than simply letting him fall to the floor.
Shouji raised two of his spare appendages up, allowing for an eyeball and a mouth to peek over the edge and look down upon Monoma, "I would advise speaking like that, especially about things that you know nothing about concerning people you know nothing about."
"That's right!" Said Tooru angrily, waving one of her arms to make sure her presence was known. "Bakugou may be a crude jerk, but he's our crude jerk. He took that fight seriously because he knew Tsu could kick his ass if he let his guard down."
"Be it as a man, a woman, or something that exists beyond the binary," Said Tokoyami solemnly, "we all walk the path of heroism. The idea that a villain would hold back against a girl is foolish at best and a dangerous mindset at worst."
"We're all trying our best to become Heroes." Said Satou with his arms crossed. "It's up to us to push each other to Go Beyond. So take your outdated and overbaked gender roles and stuff 'em where the sun doesn't shine."
"And shine brightly we will, together!" Announced Aoyama dramatically.
Izuku stared in awed silence, unable to do anything other than smile. He was proud to call the members of 1A his friends.
"-thank you Honkai Star Rail for sponsoring this year's Sports Festival. And now, a performance from the cheerleaders brought in from the States!" Said Present Mic.
"Deku, we should probably get going." Said Ochako as she tugged on Izuku's arm.
He looked at her in surprise for a moment before nodding his head. Right, their match. "Let's take a detour on the way there though." He said.
Understanding his meaning, Ochako smiled and nodded her head.
"Alright dear." Said Recovery Girl as she pulled her lips away from Tsu's forehead. "Your injuries were pretty light, but since you won't be competing anymore today I used a light application of my Quirk to help with the bruising and mild burns."
"Thank you Recovery Girl, ribbit." Replied Tsu with a polite nod.
"Tch." Scoffed Katsuki, his hands in his pockets. "Told you you were fine."
"Then why did you insist we come to Recovery Girl's office, ribbit?" Asked Tsu drily as she turned to look at Katsuki.
Katsuki's eyes narrowed as he pointed at the front girl, "Because there's a difference between thinkingsomething's the case and making sure that it's the case, simply saying, 'oh I'm fine, it's no big deal,' is how you risk permanent disability!"
Tsu said nothing, simply giving him a flat look.
"Oh good grief, get a room already!" However Tape Face clearly must've gotten frostbite in the part of his brain that held the self preservation instinct as he chose to be a little shit. "Spare us the Tsundere schtick Bakugou, this is painful to watch dude."
Raccoon Eyes and Kirishima both had the guts to laugh at that shitty comment, so they were second and third on Katsuki's current hit list.
"Sero is right Bakugou, there is nothing wrong with showing concern for a classmate!" Insisted Glasses, earning himself a spot at number four on the list.
"Don't bother guys, Kacchan doesn't know how to be direct with his feelings. Take it from the guy who's known him his whole life." And thus the muttering jackass earns himself the number five spot as Deku and Uraraka enter Recovery Girl's office.
Refusing to dignify the dumbass with a response, he keeps his glare fixed on Tape Face, moving his hand to threateningly point at him, "Don't think being in a hospital bed will save you from getting your ass beat."
Before Tape Face could retort, a shiver suddenly passed through Katsuki's body. He turned to see Recovery Girl standing there, a stern look on her face as she held her cane in both hands. "Listen here boy, I'm UA's nurse, and I do not take kindly to my patients being threatened." Katsuki said nothing, silently staring at the old woman for a couple seconds before scoffing and putting his hand back in his pocket. "Smart boy."
Deku, the little shit, had the audacity to fucking snicker at that, "You did great out there Kacchan. You too Tsu."
"Ribbit, thanks Midoriya. But shouldn't you and Ochako be getting ready for your own match?" Asked Tsu.
"We've got a little bit before it's our turn, they're doing an intermission for commercials and such." Explained Ochako before turning to the other two bed bound members of their class. "Glad to see you guys are awake."
Iida hummed as he adjusted his glasses, "Yes, frankly I'm mildly embarrassed with how long I was out after my fight, I missed the rest of the round despite being one of the participants of the first match."
"To be fair dude, Midoriya punched you pretty darn hard." Chimed in Sero.
"Sorry about that." Apologized Izuku sheepishly.
Iida waved it off, "No no, it would've been worse had you gone easy on me. We clashed with all our might and you proved that you're still ahead of me. I have only myself to blame for not being stronger."
The 1A students, joined by those present from 1B who were visiting Tetsutetsu, continued to talk, exchanging jokes and the like, until eventually a voice came over the speaker.
"Midoriya, Uraraka, please report to the entrances to the arena, your match will be starting in five minutes."
Izuku and Ochako looked at the speaker, then at each other. "Well then, it's showtime." Said Izuku calmly as he made his way to the door.
"Right…" Said Ochako as she followed his lead. When they both reached the door, she said, "I won't hold back."
Izuku grinned at her, "Plus Ultra."
Behind them, an amused scoff could be heard. "Yeah, no way am I missing this." Said Sero as he hopped out of bed.
"You okay to move?" Asked Izuku, a concerned expression on his face.
"Pft, I think I've spend enough time in bed for one day." Replied Sero. "We can just say that moving around will be a good way to help warm me back up or something."
"I agree with Sero." Said Iida as he also got out of his bed. "I've sat through more than enough matches inside of here, if my friends are about to have a match then I should be there to watch them!"
"No way am I gonna miss watching Round Face beat your ass." Said Kacchan as he approached the door too.
"Ribbit." Was all Tsu had to add.
"Good luck out there you two!" Said Ashido with a grin and a thumbs up, an action mirrored by Kirishima.
With a wave to the pair of their classmates remaining in the nurse's office, the upcoming fighters both took off to their respective starting points while the others got moving to the Class A seats.
"-And again, that is 480-HERO-SCAPE for a chance to earn a free delivery. Thank you Hero Scape for sponsoring this year's festival. And now, onto the first match of Round Two!" Said Present Mic as he finished prattling off sponsorships, somehow having managed to do all five of them in a single breath. "From the East, the Class President of 1A, the shooting star of the Hero Course, Izuku Midoriya! And from the West, the girl who outmatched the Iron Maiden of the Support Course, the Wonder Woman of Gravity herself, Ochako Uraraka!"
Izuku smiled awkwardly and waved at the cheering crowd as he walked into the stadium, stepping up onto the Arena. Standing across from him was Ochako, who did her best to keep her poker face up in spite of her nervousness.
"Gotta give the girl credit, it takes guts to be willing to throw down with a guy strong enough to smash building sized robots."
"If she runs from her friend now, how will she ever hope to stand against villains down the line?"
"Alright kids, are you ready to fight?" Asked Midnight as she looked between the pair. Both Izuku and Ochako nodded their heads. Returning with a nod of her own, Midnight raised up her whip. "Alright…"
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic.
Ochako, surprisingly enough, was the one to make the first move, sprinting towards Izuku.
"Uraraka makes the first move! Looks like she intends to set the tempo for this tango!"
Izuku appreciated the boldness. He could also guess what she was trying to do, in a similar vein to what she wanted to do against Mei, she wanted to remove his gravity in order to disorient him. It's hard to punch and kick when you constantly have to worry about the third law of physics sending you flying.
So to avoid that problem, he had to keep her from reaching him. "Detroit Smash: AIR FORCE!" Shouted Izuku as he aimed his arm at Ochako and flicked his fingers, firing a burst of air at her.
Ochako knew this would come though, she'd seen him use it enough times to have the attack memorized.
Ochako squatted down and quickly activated her Quirk on herself before leaping into the air. Flipping through the air, she released her Quirk and fell down towards Deku, sticking out her leg to kick him.
Of course Deku was ready for that, grabbing her foot in the air, he said, "Shield your head." Before whirling around and throwing her down towards the ground.
Ochako took that advice, grabbing the back of her head with her hands, once again removing her gravity to make the impact against the ground less harsh. The drawback however was that she quite literally bounced off the ground and was now flying towards the edge of the arena.
"Ooh! A harsh counter from Midoriya sends Uraraka rocketing towards the edge! Will she recover or is this where she finally comes crashing down to Earth!?"
Rather than return her gravity to slow herself down, she decided to try something a little more creative. She stuck her hands out, her fingertips dragging across the tiles of the arena, until she was able to grip onto the edge of one and slow herself down. "You're not the only one who can use named moves Deku!" She shouted. "Now get a load of the Ura-Rocket!" She then pulled, launching herself through the air right at Deku.
"Woah! In a surprising twist, Uraraka regains her momentum and guns it straight for Midoriya again! This girl's a stubborn one!"
Once she picked up enough momentum, she pressed her fingertips together and shouted, "Release!" With her mass restored she flew straight into Deku, who simply activated his Quirk and tanked the move with his own body.
Ochako let out a cough as she fell to the ground, rolling away before Deku could try to get her again. She then kicked a leg into the air, hoping to catch Deku off guard, but he simply blocked it, so she rolled away and back onto her feet.
"I see your training's paying off." Commented Deku as he shook the arm that took the brunt of the kick. "Your technique is a bit more honed now than it was during the Battle Trial."
"I knew someone recommended by you would have some helpful lessons to give, so I made sure to pay attention." Replied Ochako as she got into a fighting stance.
"Well then," Said Deku as he did the same, "Show me what you've learned!" The two then went at it, exchanging punches and kicks.
Neither of them had the most formal fighting styles, Ochako's training had barely been two weeks long and still required lots of refinement, and when it came to Izuku, all his training when it came to fighting styles was from the vestiges, none of whom had any much formal training in their own right except Sixth, who had some under his belt when it came to taking on foes, but even he still preferred to sneak and outthink his enemies with Smokescreen rather than engage in direct combat.
Plus he also had occasional attempts that she would make at grabbing him to contest with. This wasn't going to be easy.
"You say that, and yet you're grinning ear to ear."
"He's having fun, fighting against a friend in a tournament to reach the top of their year in the school of his dreams, who wouldn't be happy in his shoes?"
Ochako then reared her arm back and threw her fist, seemingly aiming at Izuku's face. Izuku brought his arms up to block. Little did he realize that he'd fallen for her gambit, his own arms obscuring his line of sight as her other hand snaked forth, landing a palm strike into his stomach. A strike that allowed her to use her Quirk on him, sending him floating into the air.
Then, for good measure, she ran forward, jumping and kicking Izuku to send him flying farther even faster.
"And just like that, Uraraka finally gets in the hit she was hoping for, Midoriya's doing up, up, and away folks!"
"Thanks for the fight, Deku…" Said Ochako as she watched Izuku float through the air, pressing her fingers together once he was in the air above the field and out of the arena's bounds. "Now Release!"
Izuku felt gravity's pull reclaim him as he began falling towards the ground. On his way down, he could see Kacchan watching him with his arms crossed expectantly. Unable to resist himself, he gives his rival a grin before aiming his arms, mimicking Kacchan's own arm positions. "SMASH!" He shouted, launching himself through the air by flicking his fingers, landing back on the arena without issue.
"And Midoriya escapes the jaws of defeat once more!"
The crowd cheered as Izuku rolled his shoulders while walking towards his opponent. "Apologies for the disappointment, Ochako, but unfortunately I can't let you win. Fighting you has been a lot of fun though." He said with a smile.
Ochako smiled back. "I had a great time too, Deku."
Izuku then activated One for All, sprinting at Ochako. She attempted to tag him with her Quirk again, but he wasn't going to allow himself to repeat that mistake, ducking under her swiping arm and wrapping his arms around her torso, he kept rubbing while carrying her. Even when she did remove his gravity, he simply used her own body weight to keep him from floating off. He then reached the edge of the arena and tossed Ochako off onto the grassy ground below.
"Uraraka is out of bounds, the match goes to Midoriya!" Announced Midnight. The crowd let out a cheer, and Izuku couldn't help but feel proud of his victory.
Even if he was beginning to float away.
Thankfully Ochako was there to be his Hero like always, quickly standing back up and grabbing his foot to pull him down before he got too high. In spite of her loss, she was smiling proudly. After all, if anyone was going to beat her in a fight, it might as well be Deku.
"Are you feeling alright?" Asked Izuku worriedly as they left through the Eastern Entrance. "Any injuries from getting thrown around?"
"I'm fine." Said Ochako as she waved off his worries. "You were clearly careful to make sure you didn't do anything that would seriously injure me the entire time."
"Oh, you noticed that?" Asked Izuku nervously.
"Given the way you punched Iida's lights out in the previous round, and that you can turn large robots into scrap with a punch, I think it's safe to say you went heavy on the restraint."
"I mean… learning self control is important! It avoids risking injury to myself and others!" He claimed. "Plus I wanted you to have the chance to show off too…"
Ochako let out an amused noise at that as she elbowed him in the side, "You're such a sap."
Izuku couldn't help but giggle at that, something Ochako was unable to resist either as the pair walked side by side to rejoin their classmates, smiles on their faces and pep in their steps as they still got to enjoy their youth together while it would last…
Chapter 48: "Brilliant choice of words."
"You'll never be the Number One Hero, you know that right?" Shoto turned to look at the person talking to him.
"Why's that? Because you're stronger than me, Midoriya?" Asked Shoto unamused.
"No, Shoto." Said Misoriya with a shake of his head. "Not at all. I could be Quirkless and still outperform you."
"What makes you say that?"
"Simple, because All Might isn't the Number One Hero based solely on his strength."
Shoto blinked at that. "What?"
The look Midoriya gave him, it almost felt like the boy was pitying him, or perhaps talking down to him as if he was a child, "Shoto, do you think they determine the Hero Rankings by just having every Hero in Japan meet up and get into a huge brawl until there's only one person left?"
Shoto felt his eye twitch. Was Midoriya mocking him? "Of course not, people vote to determine the Hero rankings. All Might's the best because he's the strongest."
"How can the public be sure? Have All Might and Endeavor ever squared off in a serious fight? Gang Orca could easily match Crust, so why are they ranked tenth and sixth respectively?"
"I…" Shoto trailed off.
"Because the real deciding factor is popularity, Shoto. Being strong just makes you more likely to be popular because you'll be able to take on more high profile villains." Midoriya shook his head. "That's why Endeavor is always going to be Number Two, because in spite of his Quirk his personality is about as warm as an Arctic Blizzard." Midoriya then fixed his gaze onto Shoto. "And as things stand you're going to grow up to be just like him. Assuming you don't get killed like an idiot first because of your chronic need to shoot yourself in the foot."
That last comment was the thing to set Shoto off. "You-!" He said angrily as he reached for Midoriya's collar, only for his green haired classmate to disappear in a cloud of purple smoke.
"Think about what I've said." Came his voice from the fog. "I'll be waiting for you in the Semi-Finals to see if you'll determine what's important by then…"
"Boy meets girl on the battlefield once again folks!" Announced Present Mic. "This time from the East we've got Class B's most prickly student, the Definitely-Not-An-Assassin who'll help you see God at an accelerated rate, Ibara Shiozaki! And from the West we've got the powerhouse son of Endeavor who finished his match faster than anyone else, Shoto Todoroki!"
Both combatants grimaced at the descriptions Present Mic used for them.
Ibara looked across to see her opponent gripping his right arm with his left hand, his breathing slow and methodical.
"Alright kids, are you ready?" Asked Midnight, looking between the two. Shoto was the first to nod, with Shiozaki doing the same soon after. She then raised her whip into the air.
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic.
Shoto stared at her opponent, waiting for her to make the first move. He couldn't use that same large scale attack against her that he used to finish off Sero. The danger of repeating a mistake aside, he knew he was already slowing down on his right side. He knew he needed to conserve strength and use his Quirk tactically if he was going to defeat Midoriya in the next round.
"Todoroki." The sound of Shiozaki's voice pulled him from his thoughts. He watched quietly as the girl clasped her hands together in prayer, a light shining down upon her as she did so. "I sense a great darkness inside of you."
Shoto froze up a little at that. "Anger, hatred, contempt, a sickening miasma of negative emotions are what fuels your fire." Continued Shiozaki as she slowly stepped forward. "For whom it burns, I could not say, I do not know you well enough to hazard a guess. But I can see the self destructive path you are on… but worry not, you need not force yourself any longer."
Shoto's eyes narrowed, "And why is that?"
"You will not be progressing any further in this Sport Festival, I shall be the one to eliminate you and put your burdened soul to rest." Explained the Class B Student. "Accept the lord's love, and be defeated." She then shot out her vines towards Shoto.
Shoto said nothing, simply standing there in silence as the attack rushed towards him. He took a slow deep breath in through his nose, and then glared, sticking out his right arm right before the vines made contact with his body.
Ibara's eyes widened in shock as she saw Todoroki's fingers wrap around a few of her vines, and stop them in place. A decent amount crashed into his left side, ripping through his gym clothes in various places, but it wasn't enough to force him back.
"Woah okay! I thought being made of iron was Tetsutetsu's thing, but Todoroki just grabbed onto Shiozaki's vines with his bare hand without flinching!"
"If you think he did something that reckless then you aren't paying close enough attention."
"Huh?"
Ibara's eyes widened as she saw the vines Todoroki had grabbed slowly begin to freeze and crack.
"Todoroki coated his hand in a layer of ice to protect the skin of his palm and fingers from Shiozaki's thorns before grabbing, and now the consequences of her carelessness are rearing their ugly head." Explained Aizawa.
Fearing what would happen if she allowed the ice to spread even further along her vines, she quickly detached the ones that Todoroki was holding onto.
However he didn't let that slow him down, once the detached vines fell from her head and onto the ground, Todoroki simply continued creating ice, which extended onto the ground before spreading out.
Ibara attempted to shield herself with her Quirk, but the ice simply slammed into her and knocked her right off the arena onto her back.
"Ibara Shiozaki is out of bounds! Shoto Todoroki moved to Round Three!" Announced Midnight.
Ibara groaned as she sat up from her spot on the ground, only to widen her eyes when she noticed Todoroki's form looming over her. She could see Frost encroaching on and consuming his right side, to the point that even his clothes were beginning to freeze. His bangs covered his right eye, making it so only the scarred left one was staring down at her.
"Spare me your arrogant notion that I'm someone who needs to be 'saved.' Much less that you're the one who would be capable of doing so." He said, his voice almost dripping with venom. "I know who I am, what I am, and what I'm after, no matter what you, Midoriya, or anyone else says."
He didn't give Ibara the chance to respond, simply turning on his heel and leaving. The Class B student sat there in silence, left with a bitter taste of a twofold defeat in her mouth.
Soon enough the ice was cleared away once more and the arena was ready for the Third Match of Round Two.
"From the East, the Spear of Justice herself makes her return, its Vice President Momo Yaoyorozu of Class A!" Declared Present Mid proudly. "And her opponent from the West, the Unbreakable Manly Man of the Hero Course, Eijiro Kirishima, also of Class A!"
Eijiro and Yaoyorozu both stepped onto the Arena, staring the other down with confident smiles on their faces.
"You kids ready?" Asked Midnight.
"Yes Sensei!" Replied the students.
With a nod, Midnight raised her whip into the air.
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic.
With a battle cry, Eijiro rushed in, hardening his fists as he prepared to strike Yaoyorozu. The girl responded by planting her feet and holding one of her arms in front of herself protectively before creating a wide shield with a small hole smaller than a fist in the center.
Yaoyorozu let out a strained grunt as Eijiro's fist landed, and then he punched it again and again. "You're clearly not intending to hold back against me, Kirishima." She noted from behind the shield.
Eijiro grinned, "Nah, it'd be pretty unmanly to disrespect you by not taking you seriously."
Yaoyorozu let out an amused chuckle, "Well said, then I'll have to do the same."
Eijiro was barely able to react in time when a blade jutted out of the hole in Yaoyorozu's shield and attempted to pierce him, but his reaction time with his Quirk was fast enough to block it.
However this distraction gave Yaoyorozu the opening to pull back and then slam into his head with the edge of her shield. Even with him hardening his head, the blow still knocked him off balance, allowing her to slam into him and push him even further backwards.
While Eijiro was regaining his balance, Yaoyorozu pulled out something from behind her back. "I would advise you use your Quirk now." She warned him.
"Eh?" He asked before suddenly something metal and oddly ball shaped bounce in the ground in front of his feet. He stared at it for about two seconds before looking up at Yaoyorozu and asking, "Is that a gren-?"
BANG!
"OKAY wow that's an entirely different kind of excessive than what Todoroki pulled in the previous round! Yaoyorozu just threw a grenade at her opponent! Is that even allowed!?" Asked Present Mic.
"Against virtually any other opponent? No."Replied Aizawa. "Against an opponent who can turn his skin to stone, it might be a necessity for her to actually stand a chance. Of course Cementoss will step in if she tries taking things too far."
When the smoke cleared, it revealed Kirishima standing there with his arms crossed over his face, a couple shards stuck to his hardened skin but most were simply on the ground around him. He then charged forward, intending to close the distance to attack again, but Momo was ready as she tossed something else at his feet.
Kirishima's eyes widened as he stepped right on a land mine and got blasted into the air, flying towards Momo. She swung the arm her shield was attached to, bashing Kirishima's head and swatting him to the side. He was able to shield himself with his arms, rolling to the side.
He groaned as he staggered to his feet, only for his eyes to widen as another grenade was tossed in front of him, once again knocking him onto his back.
He groaned from his spot on the ground, the damage he was taking was minor so far, but it was quickly burning through his Quirk, not to mention getting jerked around like this was making his head spin. Breathing heavily, he forced himself to his feet, only to find himself staring at Yaoyorozu aiming a… squirt gun at him?
"This is the part where I advise you to either surrender, or run." She explained calmly.
Eijiro's eyes narrowed as he stared at the gun, then at her. "What's in that thing…?" He asked nervously.
Yaoyorozu answered by pulling the trigger, a strange liquid shooting out onto the ground in front of his feet. Eijiro's eyes widened so much they nearly popped out of his head as he watched acid begin to eat away at the arena. "Ashido allowed me to analyze some of her acid, which I recreated using my Quirk and put into this specially made gun that's resistant to acidity. Now then, I take it you won't surrender?" Asked the heiress calmly.
Eijiro looked back at her, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Well… shoot." He said.
"Brilliant choice of words." Said Yaoyorozu with a smile as she pulled the trigger.
Eijiro yelped as he narrowly ducked under the stream of acid in time.
"I feel like acid might be a step too far."
"Recovery Girl can deal with acid burns, especially when Kirishima's Quirk will protect his skin from most of the damage. Simply refrain from any shots to the head, Yaoyorozu."
What followed was essentially a cartoon chase scene as Eijiro ran around the arena, Yaoyorozu in hot pursuit as she'd continue shooting at him and he'd keep jumping, dodging, and ducking out of the way. Eventually this little run around would end with Eijiro's back against the edge of the arena, Yaoyorozu slowly approaching him with her squirt gun in hand. Eijiro realized that it was so or die now, he hardened his hands and was about to strike, when suddenly something was tossed towards him via an underhanded pitch.
Without thinking, he caught what Yaoyorozu had thrown, staring at confusion as he held the, now empty, squirt gun in his hands. "Why did you…?" He asked uncertainly, only for the response to his answer to be a metal shield being swung into his face with enough force to make him fall backwards, out of bounds onto the grassy ground outside the arena.
"Eijiro Kirishima is out of bounds, the match goes to Momo Yaoyorozu!" Announced Midnight.
Eijiro sighed as he laid there on the ground, feeling defeated and tired. That's when a shadow suddenly became cast over him. Looking up, he saw Yaoyorozu standing over him, a smile on her face as she extended her hand to him. He gladly took it and let her help pull him to his feet. The pair then walked out of the stadium through the Eastern Entrance.
"Folks I hope you've been enjoying watching the Second Round so far, because we're about to close it off with its Fourth and Final Match!"Announced Present Mic. "Coming in from the Eastern Entrance we've got the Dark Horse of this festival, the only General Education Student to make it through not only the Preliminary Round's Obstacle Course, not only through the the Second Round's Cavalry Battle, but now he's even managed to best one of this year's Hero Course Students without even laying a hand on him! Let's hear it for Hitoshi Shinso!"
The crowd cheered as Hitoshi stood there, an actually confident grin on his face that contrasted strongly with the heavy bags under his eyes.
"And from the Western Entrance, Class A's biggest boomer, the student who got more Villain Points than anyone else in the Entrance Exam, he'll blow you to bits with those hot hands of his, It's Katsuki Bakugou!"
Across from Hitoshi was the blond loose cannon who Midoriya apparently had an impossibly high amount of respect for. Sure the guy had shown he was tough and had a real flashy Quirk, fitting for a Hero Hopeful, but was he really all that? He apparently used to be a Quirkist jackass but Midoriya claimed that that was all in the past. Then again people aren't always capable of change…
"Alright, if you boys are ready-" Said Midnight, only to be cut off by Bakugou's voice.
"Oh just get on with it already, woman. We've heard this tune a dozen times by now, yes, I'm ready to fight, and I'm sure Mophead McEyebags is good to go too, right?" Snapped the explosive teen before nodding his head towards Hitoshi.
Hitoshi looked at him for a moment before smirking, bringing a hand up to stroke his chin, "Hmmm… geez, I don't know now, I'm feeling a little parched. I could use a glass of water."
From all the way across the arena he could see Bakugou's eye twitch in annoyance.
"Sheesh, I don't know what that Gen Ed. Student is saying, but it sure seems like he's poking the bear." Said Ashido nervously. "Or, maybe, 'the volatile powder keg' would be more appropriate?"
Izuku let out an amused chuckle as he watched the two combatants interact from afar, "Very clever, Shinso. Setting yourself up for victory before the battle's even begun."
"What's that supposed to mean, Midoriya?" Asked Tooru, twisting her entire body to make it clear she had turned to look at him.
"His Quirk." Said Ojiro, catching on to Midoriya's meaning, groaning as he put a hand on his forehead. "Makes sense the guy would end up going against two guys with short fuses back to back."
"And if I am remembering correctement," Chimed in Aoyama, a sparkle appearing as he mixed in some of his native language to his words, "monsieur Bakugou has yet to actually see Shinso's Quirk in action."
Izuku nodded. "Kacchan had been at the front of the race, and Shinso had been sitting comfortably at the twenty to thirty mark the entire time. Then during the Cavalry Battle his team was too focused on Team Monoma to ever actually attempt going after my team. And then he straight up missed Shinso's 'fight' against Kamakiri, so he's going into this fight completely blind when it comes to his opponent, meanwhile Shinso's been the crafty type who likely knows exactly what to expect from his opponent."
"So, you think Bakuchan is going to lose then, ribbit?" Asked Tsu. Izuku turned to look at her for a moment, a surprised look on his face. Then, to the surprise of everyone, he broke down laughing.
"Uh…?" Said Kirishima nervously.
Izuku wiped tears of amusement from his eyes before looking back at Tsu. "Sorry.. Sorry about that." He said softly. "You just surprised me Tsu, telling such a hilarious joke with such a straight face, what could I do besides laugh?"
"'Joke-?'" Sputtered Ashido. "But after everything you just said isn't it obvious that Bakugou stands no chance!?"
Izuku looked at her with a raised eyebrow, "Ashido, this is Kacchan we're talking about. Do you honestly expect him to lose?"
Ashido raised a finger as she tried to come up with an argument, but then she remembered who she was talking to and lowered her hand with a sigh. "How long have you two been rivals again?" She asked.
Izuku blinked at her in surprise, "Well it was established when we were both nine, so a bit over six years at this point. Why?"
"Right." She said with a roll of her eyes. "I just wanna say that if this rivalry lasts another year, your guys' heterosexuality is going to be brought into serious question."
"PFT!" Going off her body language and the sound that just came from her mouth, Izuku deduced that Tooru found that one very funny.
"Theeen Fiiight!" Shouted Present Mic, pulling everyone's attention back to the arena.
Katsuki flexed his fingers as he stared down Eyebags from across the arena. He was doing his best to find the strategy to deal with this Extra. He had no idea what his Quirk was, but he couldn't be that tough since he was only in Class C, he wasn't a part of the Hero Course. However this guy clearly had more to him than that. Not only had Deku chosen to work with the guy during the Cavalry Battle, but he also managed to beat one of the Extras from Class B, with that match being the second shortest of the first Round.
(It was a tall order to complete a Match faster than Icyhot had.)
"Y'know something, I've gotta wonder." Said Eyebags speaking up for the first time since the match had started, his slow and drawn out tone vexing Katsuki for some reason. "What the hell does Midoriya see in you?"
Hah?
"I mean, the guy acts like you're the coolest thing since sliced bread, but you don't seem all that impressive." Continued the sleepy looking bastard. "Big whoop, you have sparklers for hands. Did that really make you think you were so special that you deserved to pick on people weaker than you like your own childhood friend?"
Oh. Oh that struck a goddamn nerve. "Bastard…" Snarled Katsuki, "Just who the hell do you think you a-!?" His response was cut short as his body freezed, his eyes glazing over as he suddenly became a prisoner inside his own body.
Eyebags let out an amused snort. "Damn, twice in a row, really?" He asked. "Well, I'm not one for looking gift horses in the mouth. Now be a good pomeranian and walk yourself out of bounds, alright?"
Katsuki felt his body begin to move, his legs rotating him a hundred and eighty degrees before they started walking. 'What the hell is this!?' He demanded. 'Is it that bastard's Quirk!? Shit he can brainwash people!? Talk about a cheap trick!' That explained how he got an edge against the bug lookin' extra in the previous round, dude clearly had a temper so it probably just took a little poking to set him off. Something Katsuki had allowed himself to fall victim to as well…
'Dammit… not like this…' He told himself his inner self imagining his fists shaking at his sides. 'There's no way in hell I'm letting this be where I get taken out. I'm going to be the Hero Who Always Wins! I'm not letting some Gen Ed. Extra take me out!' For a moment, a vision of Deku flashed in his mind, that dumbass determined grin on his face. 'Not before… not before I've had the chance… to fight Izuku! You hear that body? We're not going to let this purple haired fuck tell us what to do! The only time you're going to move… IS WHEN I TELL YOU!" He shouted at himself from within his mind as he imagined himself using his Quirk on the sides of his head to jolt himself awake.
And that's when something truly spectacular occurred. Without warning, right as he was about to step out of bounds, both of Katsuki's hands suddenly flew up from his sides and planted themselves against his cheeks before he fired off an explosion from each hand, engulfing his head in smoke and causing himself to stagger back a bit, safely getting himself away from the out of bounds area.
He couldn't hear them over the ringing in his ears, but from their seats nearly the entirety of Class 1A could be heard cheering.
He turned around, smoke still coming off the two singe marks on his face as he saw Eyebags's lips flapping the bastard saying something, probably goading him into falling under his Quirk again.
Taking a deep breath, Katsuki aimed his palms behind himself and fired explosions, propelling himself forward. Eyebags barely had time to widen his eyes and raise his arms as Katsuki closed the distance between them. He raised his right arm and planted a devastating right hook into the guy;s cheek, knocking him backwards, right out of the arena and onto his back.
"Hitoshi Shinso is out of bounds, Katsuki Bakugou moves on to the Semi-Finals!" Declared Midnight.
Hitsoshi laid there in silence, staring upwards. His face hurt like hell, but somehow hearing those words from Midnight stung even more. After all that hard work, this was where he was forced to drop out. He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed…
He blinked in surprise as the shadow of someone unexpected loomed over him. It was Bakugou. "Here to gloat?" He asked drily.
Bakugou said nothing, simply squinting his eyes at him as he stood there. He then crouched down and extended a hand to Hitoshi, much to his surprise. Hitoshi eyed it cautiously. "You're not going to blow my hand off are you?" Bakugou glared at him as he shook his hand in annoyance, making Hitoshi sigh before taking it, while tuning out Present Mic's voice saying something about a surprise showing of sportsmanship.
Hitoshi said nothing as he looked at Bakugou in silence, unsure of what to even say to him. Not that he would respond, the guy seemed set on giving him the silent treatment now. Thankfully there was someone else to speak up.
"You were awesome out there, Shinso!" He turned to see one of his classmates, (Haikei was it?) Calling down to him. It wasn't just him either, his other classmates from 1C were all singing his praises now, even some of the Pros were talking about how shocking it was that he wasn't in the Hero Course.
It was… an odd feeling, he couldn't help but smile.