Chapter Twenty-Nine: Sports Festival: Round One
The man formerly known as Chizome Akaguro was taking a moment to observe the city of Hosu from the top of the building where he was currently perched. He had arrived in Hosu only recently after having hit his quota in yet another city. So far he had managed to purge seventeen of the unworthy and had maimed another twenty-two badly enough that they would never again stain the title of Hero.
This was his usual approach when entering a new area: Observe. Identify. Eliminate.
He had…deviated…from this formula somewhat upon his initial entry into Hosu. In his defense, it was a situation that had never occurred before. He had disguised himself and stowed away on a train, skipping over a few stops on the way in order to throw off those who were doubtlessly tracking him. If he was being honest, there had been more than one close call.
This time had been different, however. This time a Hero had coincidentally been patrolling the station at the exact moment that he had disembarked. The Hero had not recognized him for who he was, else he would never have decided to amateurishly trail him all the way into the alley where he promptly met his demise.
The mistake that had been made lay in the fact that this alley was actually a popular shortcut to get from one main road to another. This fact had aligned with plain-old bad luck to form the situation in which a civilian had witnessed the slaying. Civilians were not targets, so he had been forced to flee. This had led to the local authorities knowing of his presence far, far sooner than he had intended.
So here he was: attempting to cobble together a mental map of the city which included kill points, hiding spots, emergency exits and observation points, a process which he usually spent at least two or three days on, in slightly less than one.
It occurred to him, as it sometimes did during his musings, that few men bore as many names as he had in the comparatively short time that he had been active. Chizome Akaguro. Vigilante. Stendhal. Stain. Villain. Hero-Killer.
He had thought that he was doing some real good during his time as Stendhal. That was what he had always wanted: to do good. He truly admired Heroes and believed with all his heart that they were exactly what society needed. Unfortunately, due to the nature of his Quirk and the manner of combat that it necessitated, the man called Chizome was never able to become a Hero.
Still, the desire to do good had never left him, so he honed his skills and took to the streets as the Vigilante, Stendhal. It was a known fact that Pro Heroes could not be in all places at all times, so low-profile and/or spontaneous acts of Villainy often went unpunished simply because the Heroes and police didn't know about them. Worse still, some Villains had wised up and used status or money to render themselves nigh-untouchable by the traditional authorities.
The solution, then, was simple: Stendhal took it upon himself to patrol the out-of-the-way places frequented by low-profile Villains and he dealt with them swiftly and decisively. After all, those who simply wielded their power without conviction and sought only to benefit themselves at the expense of others were automatically sinners deserving of whatever judgement the righteous saw fit to bestow upon them.
Some of the Villains had lived, but most had not. After all, he was not the sort of exceptional man who could afford to hold back when his life was on the line. There was no concern in regards to breaking the law, since he was already doing that anyway by operating without a Hero License. Similarly, there was no fear of dragging the title of Hero through the mud, as he was not one. It had been difficult to accept, at first, since his life's ambition up until that point had still been to become a Hero. However, Stendhal had understood that there were certain advantages to not being subjected to the rules, regulations and red tape that Pro Heroes had to deal with.
In spite of operating outside of the law, Stendhal had been quite pleasantly surprised to find that he still had allies. One in particular, The Crawler, was a young man who, in spite of being a Vigilante like himself, still held that spark of selflessness, bravery and desire to do good that was present in all true Heroes. He had gained a local reputation for being a kind, helpful, humble soul who considered no task to be below him whether said task was picking up litter, giving directions, calling a cab or helping an old lady cross the street.
So, when Stendhal had come across The Crawler while he was in the midst of combat with a powerful, drug-enhanced Villain, he had immediately come to his aid. The Villain, like most of his ilk, had lacked conviction and fled as soon as he realized that Stendhal was more than a match for him. In spite of his prodigious size and durability, he had been naught but a coward. Before Stendhal had left, the young man had stopped him.
"I just wanted to say 'thanks.' You really saved me back there. Who are you?"
"I'm Stendhal. Just a guy who likes to stick his nose where it doesn't belong, same as you."
Before Stendhal had fled the scene to avoid the police, he had glimpsed a look of wonder and admiration on The Crawler's face. It was the sort of look that people gave to Heroes. The sort of look that Stendhal had accepted that he would likely never receive.
It had warmed his heart and strengthened his resolve. The Villain had died the next day.
Still, in retrospect, he had erred. The reason he was after said Villain in the first place was because he had been tipped off by another Villain. The girl had hidden nothing about the nature of her intentions, but had earned herself a stay of execution by giving him information on various criminals in the area. She had even provided him with blood samples for a particularly entrenched group of yakuza in order to facilitate the use of his Quirk.
He had allowed his creed to become diverted based on merit. Greed, to put it in simple terms. He had rationalized it by saying that the girl would get her comeuppance at some point when she stopped being useful, but at that point his convictions had already become weakened.
This came to a head when he was about to land the killing blow on yet another target, but was interrupted by The Crawler.
"Stendhal-san and…Souga?!"
Well, that was interesting. Apparently, The Crawler and this Villain were acquainted. Most likely he was yet another foe that had given his fellow Vigilante trouble in the past. Good. He could help him again. Maybe he would get to see that expression of gratitude one more time?
"Step aside, Crawler. I will lay this Villain low."
"Well, I admit he's a punk…and I guess that in actuality he's pretty much a Villain…but before we resort to violence, let's try talking things out, alright?"
Stendhal had not waited. There was no point in giving the Villain a chance that he did not deserve. The Crawler was a gentle soul, but in this he was mistaken.
His legs suddenly came out from under him as The Crawler shot across the ground and intercepted his charge with unexpected speed. As he recovered, the young man took the Villain onto his shoulders and began retreating.
Stendhal could not allow this. He threw one of his small knives and it embedded itself in one of The Crawler's calves, effectively reducing his mobility.
"Don't get in my way, Crawler. There is no value in saving that man. He deserves naught but to die a dog's death alone and in darkness."
The Crawler looked at him, an apologetic smile on his face.
"Yeah…you may be right…in fact, you're most likely right…even so-!"
The Crawler had bought enough time to position himself to effectively use his Quirk to begin retreating in earnest. Stendhal had no choice but to use Bloodcurdle to stop his movements.
It was a tragedy, truly, but even if it was by a simple act of innate goodness, those who sided with evil must be considered evil themselves. He had moved to strike down both the Villain and The Crawler.
"It is unfortunate, but you are now sinners. There is no longer anyone to save you, worry about you, care for you, or even take notice of you."
"That's where you're wrong," a quick side-step was all that prevented a flying, booted kick from taking Stendhal's head off. His assailant quickly landed and did an about-face, revealing himself to be Knuckleduster, a rather infamous Vigilante in his own right, "'Cus I'm here!"
"The Vigilante of Naruhata, Knuckleduster. I have neither reason nor intention to fight you. Forging the path of righteousness in this crooked society…we both share the same ambition."
"Me? The same as you? Don't make me laugh. I'm a badass champion of justice and you're nothin' but an insane street murderer!"
Knuckleduster had given Stendhal a chance to leave. He had even drawn a line on the ground, stating that the moment Stendhal crossed it, he would drive his fist into his face. Stendhal had charged, counting on his overwhelming speed to take Knuckleduster by surprise.
His actions had led to him having a fist driven so powerfully into his face that his mask was shattered along with his nose. It was then that Knuckleduster had uttered the words that had changed his outlook on life.
"Hmm…a mask-wearing megalomaniac, huh? You come across guys like that from time to time. They put on a mask or some sort of disguise and become convinced that they're a completely different person from their normal self. They especially tend to believe that they're invincible superhumans. They can be a real pain to deal with, because they'll come at you with a complete disregard for common sense and their own safety. Conversely, if you step into their territory, they become quite fragile. 'I'm just flesh and blood. I'm Human.' At the end of the day, people who have forgotten that fact…well, they simply lack resolve."
Then it had all clicked. There were indeed those whose sins were even greater than those of Villains: the pretentious False Heroes who lacked even a shred of true resolve!
Stendhal had escaped using his inhuman speed and agility and returned to the run-down house that he had been using as his base of operations.
Power. Speed. Arms. Tactics. There were many things that he had lacked. There was one thing that outweighed all of those, however:
Resolve.
So he had removed that which allowed him to pass as a normal person under the light of day and left the chunk of cartilage red and bloody in the sink.
He no longer had a mask. There could be no deception, no straying from his path.
He had become a faceless ideology: one with no existence who would take appropriate action.
He was the color that would dye the world. He would prove his significance by means of the blood that he drew.
"Wherever I travel, tracks are left behind…Guiding bloodstains…that cannot be wiped away…"
On that day, he had become Stain.
On that day, he had become the Hero-Killer.
On that day, he had embraced the darkness and become a Villain that would purge those who were unworthy of calling themselves Heroes one at a time.
When he was finished and only the worthy remained, then his work would be finished.
…And there was so very much to do.
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Izuku Midoriya was kind of a mess. Oh, there was nothing wrong with him, at least, he didn't think so. It was just that the things that were occupying his mind varied so wildly that it gave him some form of mental and emotional whiplash.
It was for this reason that he had decided to sit cross-legged on his bed after he had gotten home on Monday, the day before the Sports Festival, in order to perform a bit of internal compartmentalization. He would then deal with each thing individually in its own time.
The most immediate and pressing subject was the Sports Festival. Homeroom had been spent going over the basic procedure that they were to follow for the day including where and when they would meet, what they were and were not allowed to bring, what they were expected to do when the starting signal was given and, accompanied by Aizawa's trademark glare, a re-iteration of the importance of this event along with the fact that it would be broadcasted across the entire country so they had all better give it their all and be on their best behavior.
Izuku was, naturally, nervous about this. He may have gotten used to performing for his teachers and classmates, but the idea of being in front of not only the massive number of spectators, a large portion of which would bePRO HEROES, but also a large chunk of the country up to and including his mom (Izuku wasn't quite sure which of these prospects unnerved him more and decided to go with a 60-40 split, since his mom would be proud of him no matter what he did) made him really feel the pressure.
Then, as if that wasn't enough, there was his previous talk with All Might to consider. This was his chance to leave a real impression on the public for the day when he started working for real. He could build a foundation of support and send the message that he was there and that, along with the rest of the next generation of Heroes, he would uphold the pillars of justice that were currently supported by All Might and the current generation.
Some prominent members of the next generation had already made names for themselves. Kamui Woods and Mount Lady were two shining examples of powerful, capable Heroes who had made their debut in the past few years. Ingenium was on the older end of the spectrum, having turned thirty the previous year, though he was still doubtlessly in his prime.
Izuku and his classmates were by no means leading the charge. In some ways, this was good, but in other ways, it meant that they had a lot to live up to.
Izuku, being the type to overthink things well past the recommended stopping point for his mental health, was freaking out about this. He knew he was overreacting. He knew that students did this every year and that he would have two more chances if this one didn't work out.
But he didn't want to wait. He didn't want to coast along. He knew that All Might's time was limited and so it was absolutely critical that he made a strong showing this time, not next time or the time after that, this time.
Then there was the fact that Kacchan would never let him hear the end of it if he didn't even make it to the final round. Plus, in typical male fashion, he wanted to look cool for his new girlfriend.
Speaking of mental and emotional whiplash, it was now Day Two of Ochako Uraraka officially being his girlfriend and Izuku still couldn't believe that it was true. He suspected that a small part of him would always wonder how he had worked whatever sorcery had been required to accomplish this feat.
In all honesty, when he had opened his eyes the previous morning and realized that, no, everything had not been a dream, he had been absolutely terrified that she would feel that she had made some sort of mistake. Saturday night they had both been tired from a long day of travelling, emotions were high from their argument and the atmosphere had seemingly been tailor-made for such a situation.
What made it worse was that Izuku had meant every single thing that he had said and done. He stood by the fact that Ochako deserved to be a Hero and she was, without a doubt, the most incredible girl that he had ever met. He would say it until he was blue in the face if that was what it took for her to get the message and stop doubting herself so much.
Pot, kettle.
Then she had woken up and, after taking a moment to reboot her brain, snuggled closer into his side and given him a peck on the cheek, instantly dispelling his previously earth-shattering worries.
She was a little bit too good at that, he decided, though maybe it stemmed from the fact that she had practice? It had been how they had first met, after all, with her smoothing out his anxiety and re-directing his attention to something more productive. That first time, this had entailed finding the examination room in order to meet up with Kacchan. More recently, it had involved just enjoying a few moments of bliss and comfort before he had to force himself to drag his carcass out of the super-bag and start breaking camp.
On the way back, during their conversations, she had thrown him a bit of a curveball.
"Deku-kun, you don't have to keep calling me 'Uraraka' you know? It seems kinda formal now that we're…closer." that had caused the pair of them to blush and go silent for a few moments, "A-anyway, you can call me by my first name, you know?"
"O-Ochako-san." that had earned him a strange look.
"That just sounds weird. Either use -chan or drop the honorific altogether."
"I…that might take a bit of practice, but I'll try."
"Oh! If…if it's too hard, then you don't have to!" she backed off immediately, "I'm sorry, I just kind of spoke without thinking!"
Now he felt bad.
"No! That's not…" he took a steadying breath and restarted, "If we're going to do…this," he indicated the pair of them, "then we need to be able to talk openly and honestly to each other. Don't get me wrong, we kind of already do that, but I think it should be more of a rule now, you know?"
"That makes sense." she agreed, "I still don't want to make you do something if it's inconvenient for you, though. It's honestly not that big of a deal. You can call me whatever you want."
"Ochako," he stopped in his tracks and turned to face her, "I might not have any idea what I'm doing, but I do at least know that relationships of any kind can't be one-sided. It's give-and-take, whether you're family, friends or…more than that, so if there's something that you'd like me to do, don't be afraid to ask. If I have a problem with it, I promise I'll tell you, just like you should do the same with me, okay?"
She had simply nodded and remained silent for a few moments after that, apparently deep in thought.
"Did you come up with that or did you get it from somewhere?"
"Oh, well, I actually got it from my mom. Kacchan's always been really strong-willed and sometimes he would want to do something that I wasn't comfortable with when we were kids, so…my mom sat the two of us down and basically said the same thing that I just said to you. As we've gotten to know each other better and gotten used to it, we don't really overstep with each other anymore, but early on we were able to solve a lot of problems just by talking them out."
"Bakugo-kun to the rescue yet again, huh?" she laughed and he joined in.
"Yeah, it sure seems like I have a lot to thank him for, huh?"
"I'd say that we both do."
"You can call me by my first name too, if you want."
"Hmm…Izuku. I-zu-ku. Izuku-kun? Izu-kun? No, that sounds more like something Mina-chan would do…" she experimented with different ways of saying his name before shrugging, "I guess 'Izuku' is just the best way to go. I still like 'Deku-kun' though."
That provided him with a nice segue into something else he had been meaning to talk about.
"Well, I was actually hoping that you'd be okay with…kind of…keeping our relationship private…for a little bit…" she did not immediately respond, so he continued, "It's just that this is all so new and I'm probably going to need a bit of time to…adjust. Plus, there's the Sports Festival to worry about and I think we need to be able to focus on that which would probably be easier if we kept this to ourselves for now."
"Yeah, I can understand that." she nodded, "I'd be lying if I said this wasn't all new to me too, so this is probably the smart way of doing things, even if there are a couple people I'd like to tell right away. Tsuyu-chan would keep it a secret if I asked her to, but Mina-chan…well, she'd try but…"
"She's a naturally open person and it's not in her nature to keep non-vital secrets?"
"Yeah. Isn't it going to be hard for you not to tell Bakugo-kun?"
Izuku wished that he could say "yes" to that question, but the fact of the matter was that he had been keeping a couple of much, much bigger secrets from not just Kacchan, but everyone for quite some time now. He had, much to his repeated chagrin, gotten rather good at it.
"As long as we don't give him any reason to suspect anything, I think we should be able to keep it a secret for a little while…probably. He's got really good instincts though, so there might be no helping it."
"For how long?"
"I can't honestly answer that right now. At least until after the Sports Festival is over. Then we can talk about it and figure out who would be safe to tell."
"Okay. I can accept that. I guess that means we'll only be using first names while we're alone?"
"Just for now."
"Can I at least tell my parents?"
"I'm pretty sure my mom is going to figure out that something is up and wring the info out of me one way or another so yeah, sure."
Suffice it to say that Inko had indeed detected that something was going on. She had, however, backed off when he cited the need to focus on the upcoming Sports Festival, with the promise that he would tell her everything afterwards.
Then, finally, there was the third major topic that was taking up Izuku's mental space, which was also the one that he was the most uncertain about.
Namely, the little voice in his head that he had taken to calling "Other Izuku."
You called?
At first, Izuku had been under the assumption that he had developed Other Izuku as a sort of mental sounding board to help him think through things or at the very least a mental construct developed from his decision to be unfailingly honest about everything. If he was to liken him to an image, it would be that of the little angel on one's shoulder.
Aw, that's nice.
The thing was, he had become rather…outspoken…lately. He had even occasionally pointed out things that would never normally occur to Izuku, which implied that he had his own independent thought processes, which implied that he was his own person, which implied that Izuku was steadily going insane.
That's a lot of implications.
As if that wasn't enough, there were even times when Izuku acted in a manner contrary to his usual self. One instance had been towards the end of his fight with Kacchan during the Battle Trials and another, much more recent one had been his sudden nerves of steel on Saturday with Ochako. Sure, it could have just been testosterone, but if that was the case then shouldn't he be noticing changes in his overall behavior, not just isolated incidents?
Did you ever do anything during these so-called "incidents" that you didn't want to do?
The voice in his head had a point and wasn't that exactly how these sorts of things always started?
Look, if you start acting crazy, I'll let you know. Besides, don't all great Heroes have a few screws loose anyway? The way I see it, you're just ahead of the curve.
…And unless Izuku was very much mistaken, the voice in his head had just called him crazy.
Fan-fucking-tastic. He would have to give this situation some more thought. Not now, though. Later. He could focus on his supposed mental state after he dealt with his most pressing concern.
Namely, the Sports Festival. Which was tomorrow. And it was already eleven o'clock.
You should probably get some sleep.
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It was the big day. Namely, Tuesday. Namely the day of the Sports Festival.
Denki Kaminari, like the rest of Class 1-A, was in their designated waiting room. Some of them were huddled at tables talking strategy, some were making small-talk in an effort to calm their nerves, some were standing quietly off to the side and mentally preparing in their own way.
As for Denki, he was doing his presidential duty and making the rounds in order to make sure that everyone was ready to go. They were all dressed in their sports uniforms, Hero Costumes having been outlawed in the interest of fairness.
This also gave him something to do in order to suppress his nerves. Hey, he was in the same boat as everyone else, after all.
"Alright, alright, alRIGHT!" he clapped his hands, getting everyone's attention, "It's almost showtime, people! Everyone ready? Got your uniforms? Hair looking good? Undies on straight? Todoroki's looking a bit uncomfortable over there, that's why I ask."
As he had intended, this got a few laughs from his classmates and lightened the mood of the room a little bit. To be fair, Todoroki was looking a bit more sour-faced than usual right up until he abruptly got off the wall he had been leaning against and made a beeline straight for an unsuspecting Midoriya, who was in the middle of a conversation with the group that Denki had mentally dubbed "the Bakusquad" given that Bakugo was more or less the leader.
Oh, boy. He looked like he meant business.
"Midoriya." it really said something about Todoroki that he could shut the entire room up just by saying someone's name. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that it was Midoriya in particular?
"Ah, Todoroki-san. What is it?" Midoriya was clearly surprised and with good reason: Todoroki rarely initiated a conversation with anybody.
"Objectively speaking, between you and me, who would you say is stronger?"
"What the hell kind of question is that?" Bakugo responded for his friend.
"The kind with two possible answers." Denki had to give props to Todoroki for having nerves as cold as the ice he produced. He wasn't even looking at Bakugo.
"Oi, listen here, Half-and-Half-"
"Kacchan, it's fine." Midoriya cut in with a glance towards Bakugo before he returned his attention to Todoroki, "If we're talking combat effectiveness, I'd have to say that you're stronger than me, Todoroki-san. Heck, you're probably stronger than most people in that regard. I don't think this is news to anybody." he looked around at the class to see more than a few heads nodding in agreement, some more enthusiastically than others.
"What about as a Hero?" that caused Midoriya to hesitate for a moment and Todoroki continued, "I'm asking for two main reasons. The first is that you've managed to get All Might's attention for some reason. I'm not here to pry into that or anything, but don't think that I haven't noticed. The second…" here, Todoroki gave an uncharacteristic pause, a look of conflict passing over his normally stoic face.
"The second reason is because of what happened at USJ. I could have done more, but I hesitated while you didn't. That has to mean something. It showed me that I still have a ways to go, so I'm going to come after you with everything I've got. I will beat you."
"Whoa, time out!" Kirishima stood up from the table, arranging his hands into a "T" shape, "I get that you're tense, but there's no reason to be so aggressive about this right before the first event!"
"Todo, this isn't like you." Hagakure added, having broken away from where she had been speaking with Ashido, "Why are you doing this?"
"Let's get one thing straight." Todoroki responded, looking from Kirishima to Hagakure, "I'm not here to play nice and make friends and I'm not doing this for some petty reason like wanting to prove that I'm better than everyone else either." he directed his attention to Midoriya, "I'm doing this because I have to; both to prove something to myself and to apologize to you for hesitating back then."
Okay. This was officially weird.
"If you're going to say all that, then I guess I don't really have much of a choice but to accept your challenge, huh?" Midoriya stood up and gave Todoroki a small smile, "For what it's worth, I've never blamed you or anyone else for what happened back at USJ. Heck, if it hadn't been for you then we wouldn't have made it in time to rescue Aizawa-sensei and I heard about what you did for me after I got hurt too. If anything, I should be thanking you."
Then Midoriya got serious.
"However, me being grateful to you and me allowing you to beat me are two entirely separate matters. We're all here because we have hopes and dreams and the Sports Festival is a really great way to help make those dreams a reality not just for us, but for all of the other U.A. students who are participating as well, Hero Department or otherwise. I'm afraid that I can't just allow myself to be beaten; you'll have to earn it just like the rest of us: by going for it with all of your might!"
"Damn right!" Denki loudly concurred, "Let's all take a leaf out of the Vice-Prez's book and go for it like we mean it! Plus Ultra!"
"PLUS ULTRA!" the class responded to his rallying cry with great enthusiasm.
They almost didn't hear the announcement calling them out to the field.
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"That's right, all you Listeners both here and at home: it's the Freshman Stage! The students are making their entrance now! Let's hear it for each and every one of them!"
The sound of Present Mic's announcements combined with the roar of the crowd echoed through the entrance tunnel as Class 1-A made it's way through, making the air itself vibrate as they passed underneath the stands.
"The U.A. Sports Festival! Where the young eggs of the Hero world aim for each other's throats in order to claw their way to the top! It's our grand yearly melee and unless I'm much mistaken, more than a few of you are here specifically to see the freshly-formed miracle stars that shrugged off a mass Villain assault with wills of steel! Heroics Department, Freshman Class: Class 1-A!"
Izuku had thought that he was prepared for the audience. Maybe he had been. Once Present Mic was finished hyping them up though, he felt like it was last night all over again.
"Ah, I see." Iida said from close by as they entered the massive sports arena, "The ability to perform with all eyes upon you is also crucial for a Hero. This is yet another facet of U.A.'s Hero Training."
"Geez, they're really singing our praises up there!" Kirishima sweated, "I'm getting a bit nervous now, I've gotta admit. What about you, Bakubro?"
"Heh. No way. All this is doing is adding more fuel to the fire; you'll see."
Once all the classes had been announced and gathered in front of the small raised platform at one end of the field, yet another announcement was made in a very different, female voice.
"Now everyone welcome the Chief Referee for the Freshman stage this year! It's U.A.'s very own super-sexy Modern Hero Art History teacher, the R-rated Hero: Midnight!" the woman in question hopped up onto the stage and struck a provocative pose in all of her BDSM-themed glory, "Everyone play fair, or I'll have to punish you~"
"If she's R-rated, then is it really okay for her to be at a high school?" one of the students wondered.
"Hey!" Midnight snapped the flogger-style whip that she carried, "I'll have you know that my teaching position here is completely on the level! Now, Freshman Representative Katsuki Bakugo, get up here!"
That was right; Kacchan was the Freshman Representative because he had placed first in the entrance exam. He was also expected to make a short speech. He had mentioned it off-handedly to Izuku the previous day. Izuku watched as he took the stage, unsure of what he was going to say.
"Right." Kacchan began, "None of us are here to listen to me talk, so I'll make this quick. I'm standing up here because I'm Number One. As a friend of mine pointed out, we're all here because we have goals that we want to achieve, but at the end of the day, I'm up here and you're not. If anyone has any issues with that, then today's the day to prove me wrong. Come at me with everything you have and I'll return the favor by crushing you with everything that I have. Now let's get to the good part. Plus Ultra."
Well, if Kacchan had been trying to get everyone fired up, Izuku mused, he had certainly succeeded. He appreciated the shout-out too, no matter how backhanded it might have been.
"Alright, with that let's get straight into the first event!" Midnight enthusiastically announced as she indicated the large screen that overlooked the arena, "What could it be? Who knows?! Well, I do, but still WHO KNOWS?!"
*DING*
"That's right, everyone! The preliminary round, which is designed to eliminate the vast majority of the competition, is this: OBSTACLE RACE!"
One section of wall opened to reveal a long passageway that led outside of the arena.
"You always hear U.A. talking about our free-form methods, right? Well this right here is where they're on full display! You can do anything you want as long as you remain within the confines of the obstacle course!"
As soon as he heard the words "obstacle race," Izuku's mind went into overdrive. This was exactly the sort of thing that he had predicted might happen, since the preliminaries were generally free-for-alls designed to wipe students off the proverbial map. He had been in the midst of discussing how to take advantage of this fact with his group when Todoroki had spoken to him earlier.
"Let's get started! On your marks…"
Izuku had no time. He forced his way over to where Kacchan was.
"Kacchan, I have a plan."
"…get set…"
"Gotcha. I'll get half, you get half."
"GO!"
The mass of bodies all made for the passageway, which they quickly discovered was far too narrow for them to all squeeze through at once. The race had only just begun and already they had reached the first filter.
Izuku used his enhanced jumps to clear the crowd and scanned frantically for the rest of his group members. He spotted Shoji at once, who was in the process of using his prodigious size to muscle his way through the crush of students. He kicked off a wall to maintain his momentum and shot towards his large friend, who saw him coming at once and caught him on his shoulders.
This was all part of the plan. Shoji would use his wide field of vision to monitor the situation and if there was a plan, it was priority number one to ensure that he knew.
"Midoriya-san."
"Shoji-san, we need to get everyone together once we get through this passage. Kacchan already knows."
"Understood. Uraraka-san should be easy enough to locate as long as she follows the pla-ah. Yes, there she is. On your five."
Izuku turned in the indicated direction and, sure enough, Ochako was floating in the air, searching the crowd. Izuku used Shoji's back as a springboard and shot towards her, arm outstretched.
"Uraraka-san!" she heard him and reacted immediately, turning him weightless and hanging on for dear life as he ricocheted off the wall with another jump, taking them backwards into the main arena.
"Oh, what's this? Midoriya and Uraraka of Class 1-A have exited the passage and are back at the starting point! Did they get turned around? What do you think, my loyal co-host?"
"I think I wouldn't be here if you hadn't forced me to be here." Aizawa's tired and irritated voice responded, "Having said that, it's nearly impossible to lose track of a straight line, so my guess would be they have a- yep. There they go."
After a hasty explanation of the situation, Izuku had Ochako re-apply her Quirk to both of them and he had leapt straight back into the passage, easily sailing over the heads of the other participants and ending up ahead of the lion's share of the pack. As they flew, he noticed that a large portion of the ground had been iced over along with a significant number of students' feet.
"Must be Todoroki-san's handiwork. He's really not holding anything back. Ah, Uraraka-san, land please."
"Release!"
They landed within a few feet of a very surprised Kirishima.
"Hey! Nice of you two to drop in. Bakubro found me already. What's the plan?"
"We still need to find Iida-san. Shoji-san has been updated and should be meeting us when he gets the chance."
"OH! Watch out, Listeners, it's already time for the first obstacle! ROBO INFERNO!"
"I still think that's a really bad name."
There was no need to wonder what that name was meant to imply, because the students in the lead were suddenly assailed by a large number of robots identical to those from the entrance exam, including several Zeros looming over all of them, forming a very intimidating blockade.
…Then they were frozen.
"Sweet! Looks like Todoroki's plan backfired! He just made it easier for all of us!" Kirishima enthusiastically ran forward, "Hey, there's Iida! YO, IIDA!"
"Kirishima-san, no!" Izuku frantically shouted, but it was too late.
*KROOOM*
The Zeros had apparently been frozen in precarious positions, which had caused them to fall over. Iida, who had been near the head of the pack courtesy of his speed, had been able to avoid getting squashed along with the majority of the other leaders, but Kirishima, who had been distracted, had not.
"Holy shit I think someone's under there!"
"What?! No way!"
"Is he…dead? Can you die in this thing?"
The frozen surface of the Zero exploded outwards as a fully-hardened Kirishima exploded outwards like some sort of spiky-headed chestburster.
"LIKE HELL I'D DIE!"
"Oh my! It appears that 1-A's Kirishima was crushed underneath one of the robots! Thanks to his Quirk, Hardening, he's just fine! He's like the ultimate shield AND the ultimate spear!"
"Jesus Christ, Todoroki! What would you have done if it had been someone other than me?! Someone could've died!"
"What the hell, Class 1-A?!" another section of the same robot exploded and another young man emerged from the wreckage, this one had sharp teeth and spiky hair of a slightly different style than Kirishima's, along with his body having a metallic sheen to it, "What would you have done if it had been someone other than me?! Someone could've died!"
"Oh my! It appears that 1-B's Tetsutetsu was crushed underneath one of the robots! Thanks to his Quirk, Steel, he's just fine! He's like the ultimate shield AND the ultimate spear!"
"Damnit! I'm having a hard enough time standing out as it is! GET BACK HERE, IIDA!" Kirishima charged off towards Iida, leaving the confused Tetsutetsu to haul himself out of the robot and continue the race.
With the majority of the Zeros taken care of, all that remained was the smaller robots. Izuku noticed an immediate difference as he charged through, dodging or disabling whatever was in his path.
Was it this easy the first time? No, it was different. Are these really the same robots?
Of course they are, you've just gotten better at using your Quirk. In fact, you all have.
Sure enough, a quick scan of the area around him revealed that every member of Class 1-A was running through the obstacle like the robots weren't even there. Sero had used his tape to shoot up and over one of the Zeroes, accompanied by Tokoyami who had taken advantage of Dark Shadow. Kaminari was using calculated electrical discharges to disable the mechanical Villains while Jiro blasted them with sound waves and Yaoyorozu…produced a cannon and blew a hole through one of the Zeros.
Where was Kacchan?
"Is it just me or are the 1-A students taking a nearly-unanimous lead here? What gives?"
"It's experience. They've seen and felt firsthand what real combat is like. Compared to those stakes and that fear…well, this is nothing at all. Just a bunch of scrap-metal pretending to be Villains."
Oh. So that's what it was.
"Oi, Deku!" Kacchan fell into step beside Izuku, "I finally caught up with Iida. I swear that guy's way too earnest for his own good, even though he knew about the plan! You got Shoji and Uraraka?"
"Yeah, they know to group up after we get past the robots."
"Good thing too. You'll never believe what they did for the second obstacle."
"If you think the first obstacle was too easy, then how about THIS?! You fall, you're out! If you don't like that idea, then maybe you can crawl instead! It's THE FALL!"
Dozens of stone pillars of various sizes were connected by ropes that loomed over an incredibly deep pit. If the first obstacle was one of combat, then the second was one of mobility.
That suited Izuku's plan just fine.
He and Kacchan caught up with Iida, who apologized for getting too far ahead. As they waited for Kirishima, Uraraka and Shoji, they watched as Asui got on all fours and used her large hands and feet in conjunction with her frog-like ability to climb on nearly any surface to easily crawl her way across, losing hardly any speed. There was also a boisterous girl from the Support Department who, upon revealing that Support students were allowed to use any piece of equipment as long as they had created it themselves, used a combination of a pair of retractable, pointed grappling hooks and hover-boots to leap over the pit with complete abandon and shoot up the sides of the pillars.
"What's this? It appears that just under a third of 1-A's students have stopped in their tracks! Bakugo, Iida, Midoriya, Kirishima, Uraraka and now Shoji as well! Have they given up? Do they have a plan? What could this all mean?! If they don't hurry up, then they'll get left in the dust!"
"They had a plan the first time. Probably a safe bet that they have one this time too."
"…You have absolutely no flair for the dramatic, do you, Shota?"
"If by 'dramatic' you mean 'screaming my head off like an idiot' then no, I can safely say that I do not."
"Alright, everybody clear on the plan? This could go very badly if we screw it up, so we'll only have one shot."
Izuku had just finished explaining the details to the assembled group and they were reacting in various ways. Kacchan was grinning like a maniac, Shoji was nodding thoughtfully, Kirishima was looking sheepish, Ochako was giving him a knowing smile, having picked up on exactly where this plan came from and Iida was…having some misgivings about it.
"Midoriya-san, you are aware that this is incredibly dangerous, yes?"
"He just said as much, Iida." Kacchan barked, "Besides, we've spent long enough getting it all figured out that I'd say at this point it's our only chance if we want to come in first and I'm not accepting anything less!"
Iida was forced to concede the point and so they were ready to complete Phase One: Takeoff.
Shoji was positioned horizontally across the shoulders of Iida, Izuku and Kirishima, arms pinned together and spread to either side while also having been rendered weightless. Kacchan and Ochako were on his back, primed for action. They had also had the foresight to back several dozen feet away from the edge of the pit.
"Alright, let's do this!" Kacchan laughed.
At this command, Kirishima, Iida and Izuku all charged forwards. Ochako sprang into action, making Kacchan, Kirishima and Izuku weightless. The only things keeping them tethered to the ground were the weight coming from herself and Iida who, upon having built up some initial momentum with the aid of Izuku and Kirishima, poured on the gas and sent them hurtling towards the edge.
"One…" Izuku began to count down, building up strength in his legs, "Two…" the had nearly reached the edge when Iida suddenly decided to alter the plan.
"Three! Recipro Burst!"
Izuku reflexively slammed his feet into the ground as the output from Iida's engines increased dramatically as if he had given them a shot of nitro. They went screaming off the edge as Shoji spread his arms apart, stretching the webbing taut and providing them with lift and Ochako made Iida and herself weightless.
Then they were airborne. Shoji was streaking through the air like the worlds most bizarre paper airplane, with Kacchan using controlled explosions to steer and maintain their velocity. Izuku, Iida and Kirishima had tucked their legs to reduce air drag as much as possible, Izuku having learned a thing or two from trying this during his and Ochako's hike.
"OH MY GOD! Listeners, are you seeing what I'm seeing?! Those six students from 1-A have taken flight and are rapidly gaining on the frontrunners! This could easily become the most bizarre upset that I have ever seen!"
"I admit, I didn't see this coming."
"WOO-HOO! FUCK YEAH!" Kacchan was having the time of his life as they came around the final curve, revealing the final obstacle, which turned out to be a minefield that they were about to render completely irrelevant, "SUCK ON IT, HALF-AND-HALF!" he screamed at a thoroughly surprised Todoroki as they flew over his head, prompting him to freeze the latter half of the minefield solid as he generated even more ice to propel himself forward.
"There's the starting passage again! Deploy landing gear!" Bakugo ordered as they completed their circuit, "We're coming in hot!"
"I'm not getting any respect after this, am I?" Kirishima, aka the landing gear, griped as he extended his legs forward and hardened his body while Kacchan rapidly fired explosions at a downward angle to burn off their momentum, which proved surprisingly effective.
"Shoji! Brake!" Shoji flared his makeshift wings and grunted as he made full use of his powerful musculature. Moments later, Kirishima collided with the ground, rigid legs carving a trench several feet long before he couldn't remain in position anymore and let go, rolling across the dirt as Ochako released her Quirk.
"Alright, every man for himself!" Kacchan announced as he leapt clear of Shoji, followed close behind by Izuku who, a fraction of a second after he kicked off with all his strength, felt a hand on his back followed by a sensation of weightlessness.
"BLAST RUSH TURBO!"
"SMAAAAASH!"
"ONE, TWO, THREEFOURFIVE, SIIIIX! Ladies and gentlemen, we have our first finishers! In first place, BY THE SKIN OF HIS TEETH, IZUKUUU MIDORIYAAA! Second place, Katsuki Bakugo! Following them, in what is at first glance a three-way tie for third place, we have Tenya Iida, Mezo Shoji and Ochako Uraraka! In Sixth place, we have Eijiro Kirishima! They'd better make some room though, because here comes the rest!"
It had indeed been close. Izuku had ended up winning by the tips of his fingers as he dove through the opening to the arena and skidded to a stop once Ochako released her Quirk. He immediately sat her down and started rubbing her back when he saw that she had grown rather pale. In his opinion, it really should have been her in first place, since the whole plan effectively hinged on her Quirk, but there was nothing he could do about that now except try and help her feel better.
"You were incredible, Ochako." he whispered to her as Present Mic announced the rest of the semifinalists, "I'm sorry that my plan pushed you so hard. I'm sorry that I cut and ran when we landed. I should've realized…"
"Don't…don't worry about it." she responded through her long, slow breathing, clearly doing her best not to retch, "I just did what I could. There's no way I'd have done this well if it wasn't for your plan, Izuku."
"What good's a plan without people to carry it out?"
"What good are those people without a plan?"
"Pardon me," Shoji interjected via one of his extended tentamouths, "but I believe that, if Uraraka-san is feeling up to it, they are about to announce the second event."
As Izuku raised his head to respond, he noticed that Shoji's head was partially turned towards them with what Izuku could only describe as a mischievous glint in his regular eye that was visible from beneath his hair. As if to acknowledge Izuku's observation, he raised a tentaclear and wiggled it at him.
Izuku gave him a pleading look and Shoji held up a single finger to his concealed mouth, still looking incredibly amused by his standards.
"Would you like assistance, Uraraka-san?" he asked.
"Thank you, Shoji-kun. I should be better in a bit but…yes, please."
Izuku took one of her arms over his shoulders while Shoji, whose height made this impossible, simply held out a forearm for her to grasp. Together, they rejoined the throng of students, ready to hear what the second event would entail.
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