"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN—WELCOME BACK!!"
Present Mic's voice blasted through the stadium speakers before the crowd even finished settling. "THE FIRST MATCH MIGHT'VE BEEN SHORT, AND TRAUMATIZING FOR SOME, BUT HEY! WE SURVIVED!"
A wave of laughter rolled across the stands.
Down on the competitors' platform, Midnight flicked her whip with a sharp crack, calling everyone to attention.
"Finalists for Match Two—step forward!"
Fire spurted from the edges of the ring.
"NOW LET'S GET MOVING. FROM CLASS 1B'S HERO COURSE, HERE TO SHOW THAT EVEN PRETTY FLOWERS HAVE THORNS, IBARA SHIOZAKI!"
Shiozaki stepped forward.
"VERSUS, THE HERO COURSE'S SPARKY KILLER, DENKI KAMINARI!"
Kaminari bounced lightly on his heels.
Midnight raised her hand.
"Contestants… ready?"
Kaminari rolled his neck once, sparks prickling across his fingers.
"Let's make this quick, Shiozaki. How about after I win, we go on—uh—a date? Maybe? If you want?"
Shiozaki blinked at him. "A date? Why?"
He let out a light grin.
"Because this match will probably be over in a second."
Above them, Midnight raised her whip.
"BEGIN!"
Kaminari instantly planted his feet, sparks exploding across his frame.
"Hope you don't hate me for this!"
Indiscriminate Discharge.
A blinding burst of electricity erupted from him—1.3 million volts flooding the arena in a tidal wave of lightning.
The audience gasped.
Dust swirled.
And—
Shiozaki simply turned around.
Her vines speared downward like roots seeking soil—piercing deep into the ground. She lifted her arm.
The earth trembled.
A massive dome of intertwined vines erupted upward, shielding her completely as Kaminari's attack crashed into it like a storm hitting a cliff.
WHOOOOOM—!!
The lightning scattered harmlessly across the curved wall, dancing along the vines before grounding out into the earth.
Present Mic's jaw dropped.
"UH—WAIT, HOLD ON—"
The smoke cleared.
Behind the vine wall, Shiozaki still had her back turned.
Still praying.
Meanwhile, Kaminari…
"Uhhhhh… hurrrhhh…"
Fully brain-dead drooling idiot mode.
Vines burst from beneath the arena floor, looping around his limbs and torso, lifting him gently into the air like a captured fish.
Shiozaki finally turned.
"I apologize, Kaminari-san. But I cannot condone reckless violence. Please reflect upon your actions."
"Uh… hehehe… friendo…" Kaminari responded by blowing a snot bubble.
Present Mic threw his arms out wide.
"AND THAT'S—ANOTHER!!—INSTANT!! WIN!! SHIOZAKI ADVANCES TO ROUND THREE, AND CLASS 1-A LOSES THEIR SECOND FINALIST!!"
The Class 1-B section ERUPTED.
"YEEEES!! THAT'S HOW IT'S DONE!!" Tetsutetsu roared.
Pony waved both hands. "Go Ibaraaaa!"
Kose wiped away dramatic tears. "Our beautiful angel wins again!"
Monoma jumped onto the railing.
"HAHA—DID EVERYONE HEAR KAMINARI SAY HE'D END THE MATCH IN A SECOND? AND HE DID—HE JUST HAPPENED TO BE THE ONE WHO DIDN'T LAST A SECOND—"
THWACK.
A single karate-chop from Kendo folded him like a lawn chair. He collapsed sideways, and she grabbed him before he could fall off.
Kendo bowed apologetically to Class 1-A.
"Sorry! He's… enthusiastic. And loud."
The applause continued as Shiozaki bowed gracefully and exited the stage, her vines carrying Kaminari off gently.
Yuta, exhaled slowly.
'Well… that went exactly as expected.'
It was practically the same thing he remembered from the anime.
Yuta glanced up toward the board displaying the next matches.
MATCH 3: SHOTO TODOROKI vs. HANTA SERO
MATCH 4: TENYA IIDA vs. MEI HATSUME
Todoroki vs. Sero? A massacre.
Hatsume vs. Iida? A walking advertisement.
He could already picture it:
• Sero frozen solid in twelve seconds.
• Iida spending ten minutes being used as free marketing for baby carriers and rocket boots.
'So, I have nothing to do for the next ten to twenty minutes. Tch.'
The irritated click left his lips.
"Hey Yuta. Earth to Yuta?"
A hand waved in front of his face
"Huh?"
"Did something happen?" Hana asked. "Your focus isn't really on the battles. You seem to have something on your mind."
'Huh. When'd she start reading me this well?'
Yuta glanced back at her, then at the arena where Cementoss was repairing the stage.
"Just... waiting for something," he said finally.
"Waiting for what?"
"To see if a plan worked out."
Hana tilted her head. "What plan?"
Yuta's lips quirked slightly. "Can't say. Not yet."
His eyes focused back on the stage. Twenty seconds later, his gaze wandered again.
Yuta sighed, turning toward the exit. "Yeah, I'm not sitting through those."
He turned away from the arena and headed deeper into the hallway.
"Yuta, where are you going?"
"Bored."
"Bored? But the fight's about to get good. The ice guy from the Hero Course is up next. Aren't you going to see what he can do? You'll have to fight him if you win the next round," Tanaka said.
"Well, I already know what he can do." Yuta shrugged.
Several matches before his turn. Might as well use the time for something useful.
The noise of the stadium dulling behind him with every stride.
'Well, no rushing memories means it's still alive.'
That could be good, or bad—depending on how he looked at it.
The sounds of the arena faded completely as he rounded the corner.
His footsteps echoed in the empty corridor.
For a moment, everything was quiet.
Then—
__
HOSU, JAPAN.
Strike the vagus nerve cluster just right, and the body's own wiring does the rest.
Blood pressure drops and heart rate plummets. Mirage had fallen just as Yuta expected.
The Sharingan made it easy to accomplish.
What he hadn't expected was how quickly she'd start waking up.
A head tilting five degrees. Weight shifting off-center. Pressure easing where it once was would lead to the difference between ten minutes of unconsciousness and five.
Mirage lay where he'd left her, propped against the ventilation unit.
Below, the city hummed. Traffic. Distant voices. Present Mic's commentary echoing from a storefront TV.
Four minutes.
Her eyelid twitched.
Five minutes.
Her eyes opened.
Blue sky. Too bright.
'Rooftop...?'
The alley. The masked man—the strike—
Her hand shot to her neck. Tender.
'Bastard got me.'
She sat up fast. Dizziness hit, but she pushed through.
Her hand went to her ear.
Empty.
"Shit."
He either wanted her silent, or he was using her voice right now.
She stood, bracing against the ventilation unit.
'Need to find someone. Now.'
She vaulted to the next building. Her head throbbed, but she kept moving.
Two blocks over—there. Red and white costume. Torque.
"Torque!" She landed beside him.
He spun, reaching for his baton—then stopped.
"Miss Mirage?"
"My comm's been stolen. Alert everyone. Now."
"What?"
__
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