Inhale.
The excited chatter of Izuku’s classmates was a low buzz in the background, blurring together as he attempted to center himself.
Exhale.
Waiting just outside the door were thousands of people-Pro Heroes and civilians alike-eager to watch teenagers compete in an arbitrary competition for their amusement.
Inhale.
Millions of people watched the U.A. Sports Festival, and the chance that none of the people chasing him wouldn’t see it were so miniscule it wasn’t even funny.
Exhale.
He didn’t have a believable excuse to get out of it, and quite frankly, he couldn’t afford any more scrutiny.
Inhale.
His best option at this point was just to quietly fail the first or second round. That way no one would be too suspicious.
Exha-
“Midoriya.”
Izuku’s bubble of calm popped.
Slowly, he opened his eyes and raised his head to meet heterochromatic eyes and an unreasonably pretty face set into a scowl.
“Yes?”
Todoroki squared his shoulders. “Objectively, I think I’m stronger than you.”
Izuku gave a slow blink. Uhhhhhhhh.
“Know that I am going to beat you on every level in this festival.”
Kirishima attempted to intervene. “Why do you have to pick a fight now? We’re about to go on, man.”
Todoroki glared. “I’m not here to make friends. We’re all going to be competitors when we step outside. I’m just making sure Midoriya knows I’ll be coming after him.”
He should probably respond or something. “Yeah, kay cool. Have fun with that.”
Anger flashed in blue and grey eyes. “Are you mocking me?” He demanded.
“Kinda.” Izuku shrugged, taking a bite out of his newly acquired apple. “I mean it’s just a festival. It’s highly publicized plus a good way to get internships, but all in all a loss doesn’t mean that much. The only thing that happens is you can’t participate any longer. Nobody dies.”
There is an angry growl, and absolutely no one was surprised that it came from Bakugou. “You’re challenging the wrong person Half n’ half. I’ll beat both of you into the ground.”
Izuku was beginning to sense some hostility.
“I’m going to be number one, and don’t you extras forget it!” Bakugou snarled.
Midoriya smiled and summoned that layer of cold that was always just beneath the surface. He’d been doing his best to avoid Bakugou out of fear that he might remember something he shouldn’t, and the other boy seemed just as happy to leave him alone until now. It was clear that his obsession with being the best had only grown.
“Let’s all have fun.”
He payed no mind to the way Mineta flinched on the side.
Before anyone could respond, they were called to the pitch.
“Welcome to the U.A. Sports Festival! Entering the stadium is the class who survived a villain attack-Class 1A!” Present Mic’s voice boomed over the crowed.
“Coming after them is the hero course class 1B!” Another group of teens came out slightly behind them.
“Now here are classes C, D, and E from the general department. Following them we have classes F, G, and H of the support department, and finally classes I and J of the management department!”
Wow they’re not even trying to hide the bias.
Midnight stood on the podium, decked out in her Hero Costume. “Now we’ll hear the Athlete’s Pledge from the student representative-Katsuki Bakugou!”
The blond stomped to the stage, posture slouched. He took one good look and the crowd and announced, “I pledge to win.” Before stalking back to his place.
Nobody was impressed.
Students and the crowd booed, and several of their own classmates were shouting.
Izuku understood it was a challenge, Bakugou's own twisted way of saying he was taking this seriously, but it excused nothing.
Arrogance will get you nothing but an early grave.
…
All things considered, the first round was pretty fun.
He did not enjoy being smooshed by his fellow students in the narrow entryway, but he’d managed to push himself up and had simply ran on top of them until he was in the clear.
There had been quite a few people who hadn’t appreciated that.
He personally hadn’t appreciated Todoroki’s ice show, but it was simple enough to dodge.
The robots from the entrance exam were a surprise, but mindless destruction with little consequence is always fun. Considering how well his classmates were doing, it would be suspicious if he didn’t make it to the second round, so Izuku made sure he was near the front of the pack. Nowhere close enough to be first, but like, thirteenth.
When the large chasm came into view, he deactivated his Speed Quirks and put all his focus on Balance as he very carefully made his way across the ropes. Just as he approached the final obstacle, he saw Yaoyorozu.
“You need some help with your tag along?” He asked.
She startled, wariness flashing over her expression before nodding vigorously once she understood what he was asking. “Please.”
The tag-on in question let out a squeak of alarm. “Now wait just a second-”
Izuku did in fact not wait a second and proceeded to grab Mineta’s neck from behind and squeezed just enough to be a threat.
“You can either let go or you can pass out with the same result.” He informed him.
Mineta hesitated, clearly unsure if Izuku would really follow through with his threat.
He applied more pressure.
“Alright, alright!” Mineta conceded and released his Quirk. “Fucking psycho.”
How was the psychotic? He hadn’t even-
“Shouto Todoroki is the first one to finish!” Mic boomed. “Quickly followed by Katsuki Bakugou.”
Oh right, he should probably focus on that.
Yaoyorozu had already begun making her way across the field along with several other students, and if he didn’t get a move on, he might not pass.
Grasping Speed once more, Izuku took off keeping one eye on the ground below him an another on his fellow competitors. It was the last stretch of the course and those falling behind may get desperate.
“In twentieth place is Izuku Midoriya!”
He should probably feel some semblance of pride, accomplishment-anything really. Yet as he surveyed the cheering crowd, he felt nothing.
Midnight stood on the podium once more. “The first forty-two competitors to make it through the obstacle course continue onto the next round! Everyone who didn’t, please make your way out of the stadium using the entrance on your right."
Shinsou sidled up next to him. “Nice to see you made it.”
Izuku looked at him out of the corner of his eye. “You’re gracing me with your presence? After that king carry you made those poor kids do?”
Shinsou grinned. “What can I say? I was feeling lazy.”
Izuku allowed him to rest his chin on his head as Midnight got to explaining the second round. A human cavalry battle sounded interesting-even more so when the Heroine revealed that first place was worth one million points. First the minefield and now this. They really wanted to make this difficult for the front runners didn’t they.
“Teammates?” He questioned his roommate.
Shinsou rolled his eyes. “Obviously.”
Finding another two people was easier than he thought. Uraraka was more than happy to join them, and although Iida declined-something about wanting to prove himself-they were very quickly approached by someone else.
“Greenie!”
A pink haired girl with a mildly manic essentially lunged for him, and Izuku’s instincts kicked in.
She didn’t look at all put off by the fact that she was now facedown in the dirt. “Let me on your team! I wanna show off my babies!”
Uraraka stared at her incredulously. “Babies…?”
The unknown girl grinned and seemingly began pulling gadget out of thin air, explaining them with bright-eyed fervor.
Support Department, huh? I can work with that.
…
“Alright! Everyone has formed their teams. The cavalry battle begins in 3…2…1…start!” The voice Hero screamed.
Ochako braced herself as Midoriya climbed on top of them. He was heavier than expected despite his lean frame, but if they wanted their plan to work, he would need to be on top.
“It’s fairly simple, really.” Midoriya explained. “Almost everyone’s going to be going after the one million points, so there won’t be much attention on us. We already have a decent one between the four of us, so it shouldn’t be too hard to get enough to make it to the third round.”
Mei frowned. “That won’t get much attention for my babies.”
There was a slight pause.
"How about this? Our main plan of attack is going to be getting me in range of the other teams and using my telekinesis to take their headbands while using your gadgets to escape and having Uraraka float us if necessary. If we have a clear shot at the one million points, I’ll take it.”
Shinsou draped his arm over Midoriya’s shoulders. “What really matters is getting to the third round. Those are probably going to be one on one matches and then everyone’s attention will be on you and you’ll be able to show your inventions much better.”
Mei’s eyes lit up.
As expected, everyone almost immediately rushed Todoroki’s team, including several groups from class 1A and 1B. She was glad all of her classmates had made it, not only because she wanted them to succeed, but also because she knew more about them and it was easier to plan around their Quirks.
Ochako licked her lips.
Let’s do this.
…
As much as he played up his enthusiastic demeanor for the public, Hizashi was actually very excited for the Sports Festival. He loved seeing how each new generation would take it, which was why he always did the announcements for the first years.
“Todoroki is not giving an inch! Ladies and gentlemen, with only two minutes left on the clock it is possible that he may hold onto it for the entire time!” Hizashi briefly muted the mic. “Still watching him?”
Shota made a vaguely affirmative grunt.
“You know he might just be holding back so that people underestimate him in the third round.” Hizashi pointed out. “Not to mention that lack of life threatening elements may have lowered the amount of adrenaline he’s getting now, making him less powerful.”
Shota pursed his lips. “You didn’t see him at the U.S.J..” he said eventually. “I was half conscious somewhere in the middle, and the kid fought like the devil. Considering the statements the other students gave and his lies during the interview, the smartest thing to do would be to catalogue everything he does and make sure he isn’t a threat.”
There was a sudden explosion of movement.
“And what’s this? Team Midoriya has snatched the one million band in a stunning upset! Will team Todoroki be able to reclaim it?”
Shota gave him a look.
“Yeah, yeah, you know your kids.”
“They’re not my kids.”
“Keep telling yourself that.”
…
Iida’s light was increasing in intensity.
Izuku knew that Todoroki wouldn’t take the theft of the one million points lying down, so it made sense that he would do anything to get it back. Without it, his team barely qualified for the third round.
“They’re going to come for us.” He said softly. “Iida is most likely going to be faster than we expect, so make sure you watch for him. Uraraka, I want you to grab anyone you can get a hold of. Mei, a pepper bomb if you please.” She handed one over. “Shinsou, avoid using your Quirk unless absolutely necessary.”
Iida’s light was reaching its peak.
“Now!” Todoroki ordered, and the opposing team came at them faster than the eyes could follow.
It was fortunate that Izuku had never been all that reliant on his eyes.
His left forearm connected with Todoroki’s, blocking his attempt at snatching the band off his neck.
Their eyes met and he smiled.
Todoroki’s left side lit up in a spurt of flames, and Izuku activated Heat resistance. It wasn’t strong enough to completely negate the heat, but it would make the burn less severe.
“3…”
Uraraka grabbed Kaminari’s arm and he began to float, forcing Yaoyorozu to grab him and the rest of the team to retreat.
“2…”
Bakugou lunged from behind and Izuku activated Auto aim as he tossed the pepper bomb behind him.
“1…”
It connected and sent Bakugou sputtering, but unfortunately didn’t make him touch the ground.
“AAAANNNNND THAT’S IT FOR THE SECOND ROUND! The four teams that will move onto the third are Team Midoriya, Team Bakugou, Team Monoma, and Team Todoroki! There will be a lunch break for our competitors and then the one on one matches will begin!”
“Will you ever stop yelling?” Aizawa’s exasperated voice chimed in.
“It’s filled with my passion!”
“I’m gonna take a nap.”
…
Tensei clutched his bleeding arm as the dark figure loomed above him, one of his many weapons drawn.
“You are going to die here, you fake.” The Hero killer smiled. “You are not a true hero.”
Tensei slowly drifted his uninjured hand towards his SOS button. Just a few more inches…
Stain licked Tensei’s blood of his blade.
Every muscle in his body locked.
There was no way out, nothing he could do to stop this. He was going to die here, alone in an alleyway, away from his family and friends. Gutted by a man with ridiculous delusions of grandeur.
Stain raised his weapon above Tensei’s head.
Tenya…Mom…Dad…I love you…
He didn’t look away, choosing to meet the Hero Killer’s eyes as the blade swung down.
…remember to smile, okay?
A wall of blue flames erupted between them.
Comments (0)
See all