Chapter XVIII: The Obstacle Race
The crowd cheered. The very air quivered with the thrill and excitement of thousands of people. This was it: the Sports Festival. Every student, no matter the department or class, glared at the open gate and their hearts pumped fiercely with determination and even desperation. Up in front of the stands, the crowd stared at the large holographic screens, giving them special zoom-ins on the participants.
The race had begun and there was only one thing to do: rush forward! And yet, class 1-A quickly discovered they were facing quite the complication. While the rest of the classes were hurrying towards the open threshold, the class of hero fledglings discovered they couldn't move any more. Worse yet, they soon found out that they were actually sinking. Before they could comprehend what was going on, they found their legs buried in the ground, almost like it had suddenly turned into viscous liquid. Izuku looked around, shocked. What manner of quirk could do that?
"And it seems Class 1-A is already behind the rest!" Present Mic declared.
Indeed, it seemed only the ground beneath class 1-A had liquefied. In fact, everyone else were halfway towards the gate all while the Hero Class found itself trapped. Just what had happened? And why just them?
"See you around 1-A!" An obnoxiously smug blond laughed as he run forward.
"Who hell was that bastard?!" Mineta yelled, buried down to his waist.
"Hey, I know that guy! He's from class 1-B!" Mina exclaimed, all while she panicked.
"That's so unmanly!" Kirishima yelled, waving a manly fist.
"Everyone, stay calm!" Iida shouted. "We can-"
KABOOM. Whatever Iida was going to say, died on his throat. Bakugo shot off into the air, propelled by his explosive-palms, and out of the quicksand-like ground. He didn't spare a glance at his classmates. Instead, he started running away, accelerating with the aid of his exploding palms. Izuku noticed Todoroki swear under his breath, glaring daggers at the explosive teen's back all while trying, and failing, to produce ice.
So there they were, already losing. Of course something had to go wrong. Hanta tried using his tape quirk, to no avail, while Tsuyu discovered the liquid ground couldn't be swam in. Not even Tokoyami's Dark Shadow offered much comfort, clawing at the ground to push his owner out. It seemed that the situation had turned desperate. Defeat and dread started to sink into their hearts within seconds. How could they possibly recover from such a set-back?
"Oh no! What are we-?" Uraraka wondered, pale and horrified, before something wrapped around her waist.
Surprised, Uraraka barely had time to register the fluffy green tail, before she was hoisted into the air, and thrown out of the liquefied ground, alongside other classmates. She landed on solid dirt, and turned back towards her trapped classmates. Sinking further and further, a certain Fox Boy was aiding his friends with his tails with all of his strength.
Izuku growled and thrashed, his body increasingly deeper all while using his tails in a fascinating rendition to the Kraken to get his classmates out. There was, however, a worrying detail. The more classmates he lifted up from the liquid ground, the deeper Izuku sunk.
"Hold on, Midoriya!" Yaoyorozu exclaimed next to Uraraka. It looked like she was preparing to create something with her quirk. "If you continue like this-!"
"Go!" Izuku, buried neck deep, roared. "I'll be right behind you!"
But Class 1-A, on solid ground, couldn't bring themselves to abandon the Fox Boy. The sole exception was Todoroki. While no one was watching, he seemed to debate between staying and going back to the race. In the end, he clenched his fists, gritted his teeth and left his classmates, glaring at the large gate.
"Go! Don't waste time!" Izuku insisted as he got the last members of class 1-A out of the liquid ground. No one moved. "Win this!" He shouted.
Tentatively, his classmates started running away. It took only a few to start rushing away before the rest were following suit. They all did so with the utmost reluctance, one that turned into desperation upon realizing just how far behind they were. The last to leave was Uraraka, who looked conflicted. Seeing Izuku trapped like that made her feel terrible. In the end, she grimaced and started running away. She couldn't allow Izuku's sacrifice go to waste.
Izuku watched as his classmates finally left. It was only then that he saw the entire ground return to its solid state. Much to his chagrin, he had gotten stuck neck deep. Worse, however, was knowing the compromising position he was at. There he was, the last person in perhaps his most important moment to date… buried in the ground.
I am probably the laughing stock of all of Japan right now!Izuku mentally bemoaned. So much has happened, yet I am still such a loser… He quickly shook his head, glaring at the open gate. No! I won't give up! But how can I get out of this?
He blinked, only to groan. With a POOF, he vanished. The crowd stared down at the now empty hole, baffled, only to see a small fox, no bigger than a squirrel, climb out. To their surprise, the fox swelled in size, growing as large as horse, and sprinted onward.
I won't make it! Izuku thought as he raced forward, fear clenching his heart. I am already so far behind! All the sacrifice I've done... all that time struggling with my quirk... I'll lose my seat in class 1-A - no, Aizawa will expel me and-
An image of Rabbit Girl flashed across his mind, and he felt the tell-tale phantom pain on his head. All self-defeating thoughts evaporated after that. He smirked. Rumi would have punched him for holding such an attitude – and rightfully so. He wasn't about to let a little set-back stop or slow him down. If he had learned one thing the past month it sure was that it was high time he stopped pulling himself back with such a pathetic attitude.
I can win this… Izuku mentally growled. No, I WILL win this!
Up in the stands, the crowd was still reacting to what they had witnessed. It hadn't been a full five minutes and things already gotten interesting. After all, it wasn't every year an entire class of the Hero Department was left behind by their peers. Spectating Pro-Heroes, members of Hero Agencies, simple viewers or even family members of the participating students all broke into murmurs across the stands, eager to share their thoughts.
"A softening quirk? It sure looked strong" someone commented.
"A bit underhanded, though" another person remarked.
"You think that's underhanded, wait until the kids start beating each other" a third person scoffed, amused.
"That guy can move his tails around like tentacles… and turn into a fox?" A random spectator wondered. "Two quirks in one?"
There was, however, a very interesting reaction coming from a certain teenager.
"LET ME AT HIM! LET ME AT HIM!" A furious Rabbit Girl spat.
Her desperate siblings held her back, or at least tried to, hugging her legs and impeding her from jumping off the stands. Sadly, Rumi seemed too enraged to care and waved her fists in the air, ready to beat someone. Many eyes of the surroundings people turned towards the three siblings with raised eyebrows.
"Sis, please, you are embarrassing us!" Hana pleaded.
"Look, he is already catching up!" Haku said.
That appeared to calm Rumi… if only a bit. She was still apoplectic. Thankfully, though, she stopped struggling and plopped back on her seat, eyes on the huge screens. Haku and Hana sighed, before returning to their own seats on each side of their sister.
"Oy, whatcha looking at?!" Rumi yelled at the other spectators.
Said people hastily focused back on the race.
"That little shit" muttered Rumi, glaring at a particular screen with a particular blond from class 1-B. "If I ever see that guy I'll scrape the floor with his face!"
A square formed on the boy's image, followed by the blond's name at the top. Rumi squinted at the name, memorizing it.
"Hey look!" Hana excitedly said, pointing with a finger. "They are about to enter the first challenge!"
"Wow, what is that?" Haku wondered, growing excited.
Rumi was surprised by what she saw at the screen. She took a deep breath and smiled. All wasn't lost. Fox Boy could still win this.
Come on, Fox Boy, Rumi mentally pleaded. I know you can win this!
"What an exciting start to the race!" Present Mic said "But don't you worry, there are many obstacles to overcome and anything can happen! First, though, our dear competitors must survive… the SWAMP!"
Hundreds of students were running forward, undaunted by the challenge ahead, squeezed together in a corridor of dry dirt. On each side, white short fences marked the delimiting borders. As each foot stomped on the ground, a faint dirty haze shrouded the way. Desperate and determined, no one slowed down.
Bakugo glared straight ahead, or rather the obnoxious backs of the extras. He couldn't help but derisively look at his competition. They thought just because they were a few dozen meters ahead of him that they could win? His attention, however, was quickly taken by a bright post on his right. On top the fence and attached to a tall metal pole, a bright green hexagon read: "careful with the swamp animals".
Before he could process what that could possibly mean, Bakugo came across another sign. This one was a blood-red and a triangle, and had the words: "Maximum Altitude 12m". If the sign hadn't been clear enough, he then came across a huge white arc.
For all the flying extras, Bakugo realized. He frowned. Alright, what the hell is this swamp obstacle?
Just as he asked himself that, he finally saw it. The obstacle was, much to Bakugo's surprise, an entire expanse the size of a football field filled with water. It was ridden with large stepping stones, floating logs and stone paths one man wide. The paths each snaked over the water from end to end. All across, cheap props failed to give the challenge the feeling that it was a swamp. Plastic reeds, a few faux willows and water lilies, Bakugo could only scoff at the piss-poor attempts on environmental design. Did they have Support Students make them? Oddly enough, Bakugo spotted weird toy animals spread across the water between the props. From toads to pathetic-looking crocodiles, were they supposed to be the oh-so-dangerous swamp animals?
"Supervising the First Obstacle, please give a round of applause to Selkie and his sidekick Sirius!" Present Mic proclaimed.
On a side, waving at the air, Bakugo saw a tall platform where two individuals stood. One was a tall and muscular humanoid-seal hybrid guy and, right next to him, what looked like some kind of sailor girl. Bakugo dismissed the two so-called Pro-Heroes. In his not-so-humble opinion, a hero that needed to pay to appear at the Sports Festival to gain relevance and some semblance of popularity was pathetic in his books.
Then again, Pro-Heroes like Selkie did deal with less than visible villains and criminals. Guys like Selkie, after all, worked side-by-side with the coastal guard, dealing with smugglers, traffickers and even a few pirates. Given how most of his fights happened in the middle of the sea or in the dark of the night at ports, it was almost impossible to garner any media attention, what in turn meant less popularity, less chances to rise in the rankings and, over all, less funds.
In any case, Bakugo had more important things to worry about… like maybe getting ahead of all the extras in his way. Enraged, he created a powerful explosion on each hand and shot forward. The extras started running down the stone paths across the large swamp while a few intrepid losers used the stepping stones or wooden logs to traverse the make-believe swamp. Bakugo used his quirk to fly over the extras' heads and straight onto a large log.
All of a sudden, there was a loud beeping sound. Bakugo snapped his head to a side, where one of the plastic toads was staring at him. With a thunderous splash, something massive shot up from the water. Bakugo's eyes widened as a three meter tall robot burst from the surface, wearing the plastic toad on its head. Humanoid in shape with a cubic head, its glaring red optic zeroed on Bakugo and pointed its two arms at him. Bakugo's eyebrows shot high on his forehead upon realizing that underneath the metallic hands of the robot, there were hose-like cannons. Worse, however, was when he realized his hands were wet.
"Ribbit" the robot droned.
SPLASH!
Missed by an inch, Bakugo dodged a pair of strong water torrents from the droid. Much to Bakugo's amusement, a pair of extras were hit by the attack and sent flying to the water. By the looks of it, the water was deep enough that you couldn't stand on it. However, before he could chuckle at the losers' misfortune, the robot redoubled its efforts.
SPLASH. SPLASH. SPLASH.
Bakugo was forced to move forward, jumping from log to stone and back to stone all while dodging those pesky water cannons. He tried using his quirk, only for him to grit his teeth in pain. Only dark smoke and white steam formed on his sizzling palms instead of explosions.
Shit, Bakugo thought. He conspicuously looked around, making sure no one could have seen his little bout of weakness - no, not weakness. A limitation... yes, that sounded better. Apparently, he had to rely on his raw physical power for this.
To his chagrin, the more he advanced, the more of those plastic animals he came across. Every single one of them had robots beneath that would burst from the water and attack anyone pathetic enough to stay still for too long. It didn't matter if it was a toad or a plastic crocodile, if anyone got too close to any of those so-called swamp animals, one of those robots would burst out and try to drown whoever happened to be nearby. Those water-cannons were nothing to laugh at. They could push anyone off the path - unless said someone had some kind of hardening quirk.
All over the challenge, more than one student found himself soaked wet or thrown into the water. Still, most persisted. They dodged, avoided the paths closest to plastic animals, and kept moving forward. There were, however, skirmishes between students. Given how limited the stone paths or stepping stones were, it was inevitable that more than one student would try to get ahead or push others aside to get a lead. That was to say, it was time to start using the quirks on each other. In other words, the real fun had started.
Halfway through the swamp, Bakugo hopped into a stone path, pushing an unsuspecting extra out of the way, before sprinting forward. Running ahead of him were a pair of extras, one of who quickly spotted him. Panicking, he turned around and took a deep breath. When he exhaled, his mouth morphed into a large square. A massive cloud of steam rushed towards Bakugo, enveloping him in a powerful gust of boiling hot steam, accompanied by the sound of an ancient whistle of old steam trains.
The extra's mouth returned to normal and he smirked, satisfied with his little display of power. He was about to continue running, when Bakugo burst out of the cloud of steam. The extra gave a comical face of shock before Bakugo, grinning like a maniac, grabbed him by the chest and threw him dozens of feet back, right onto the water.
That moron! Bakugo mentally cackled. I can make explosions! A little hot water won't harm me!
His good mood, however, faltered as he went back to running. Trying not to be too obvious, he dried his hands on his pants. Bakugo warily glared at the water. Of all the challenges, he just had to come across one filled with water and against water-robots… with his hands dry, he smirked and pulled them behind him.
The other extra didn't give much of a fight. When he had heard Bakugo's explosions behind him, the extra had panicked and tried to run faster – only to be shoved to a side and straight to the water. To his credit, Bakugo did try not to chuckle. However, he was still rather behind, with dozens of students ahead of him. For example, further ahead on the path he was running across, there were a pair of odd individuals.
What manner of quirk made someone's head into some kind of exclamation mark (like right out of a comic book)? And what about the accompanying giant teenager whose head looked like some kind of basket? Bakugo could only wonder the sort of losers that applied for U.A. but then again Deku had applied, hadn't he?
"Huh? Oy, Bondo, it's that guy from 1-A!" The exclamation-mark-headed short guy exclaimed.
The tall basket-headed guy glanced back, only to look panicky at what he saw. Who could blame them? Bakugo noticed that his head was not a basket. Instead, it was more akin to that of a glue-dispenser with a lappet on top. Big-handed and yellow-skinned, he sure wouldn't make it as a Pro-Hero, being that ugly. Bakugo sometimes had to pity the poor losers who didn't have neither his good looks nor amazing quirk.
"Manga, he's catching up" the guy called Bondo exclaimed.
"Quick! Use your quirk!" The exclamation-mark headed guy ordered.
The big guy stopped running and faced Bakugo. He reared his head back before snapping it forward. Bakugo didn't need to be a genius to know what would ensue and thus jumped out of the way. Some kind of liquid sprouted towards Bakugo, who had landed on a floating log.
"Not so fast!" Exclamation-Mark's head shouted, head becoming some sort of shouting bubble (again, as if from a comic. Really, what the hell was the guy's quirk?) "POW! POW!"
Bakugo did not expect massive words to suddenly materialize and fly his way… not that that changed much. Bakugo dodged them by explosion-jumping to a side, right onto a stepping stone, and accelerated towards the two. The Bondo guy tried to use his liquid attack again, but like before Bakugo was too fast a target and, before they could react, a good kick to the gut sent Bondo flying straight to his weird-headed comrade. That was the last Bakugo saw of Manga and Bondo as they fell into the water, and he rushed forward – two less opponents in front of him.
"Wow, that Bakugo kid is freaking awesome!" Some low-ranking Hero exclaimed with amazement. "Did you see those moves?"
"That's one hell of a Quirk!" Another spectator said in awe.
"That kid is going places" someone else added.
Rumi felt a blood vessel ready to pop on her forehead. She tried not to hear the murmurs and chatter, but it was impossible with her rabbit ears. Haku and Hana stared at the screen, disgruntled, as the teenager they wanted to see defeated easily swept past his competition and garnered positive attention. He was already on the first forty and, by the looks of it, the explosive teenager was nigh unstoppable. The rest of his class weren't doing that bad, but they weren't doing that well either.
Rumi looked across the screens, until she spotted Fox Boy, jumping across wooden logs and dodging water cannons. His name popped on the screen, following the dog-sized green fox.
Come on, Fox Boy, Rumi thought, clenching her fists.
Unbeknownst to her, said Fox Boy had different thoughts crossing his mind.
Holy All Might, look at all the quirks! Izuku thought, trying not to get too distracted. Unfortunately, there were so many amazing quirks all around… it was so hard to control the urge to just stare at them. One thing was certain, it was a criminal act to deny the potential of such quirks!
Izuku run past a guy that had an enhancement quirk that transformed his skin into some kind of thick orange peel. It sure offered one hell of a resistance against water cannons. A pity it didn't help against a girl with some kind of smoothing quirk (pretty amazing how a flick of her hands allowed for an entire surface to become friction-less), who easily made the guy trip over and fall on the water. If the quirks weren't impressive enough, the gear of the Support Students or the way the quirks were being applied made Izuku's inner nerd squeal with glee. If only he had brought his notebooks and-
No, Izuku, head on the game! He berated himself. Come on, Izuku, you can do this!
"Ribbit" A massive robot, with a plastic frog attached to its head, mechanically croaked. Water cannons were aimed towards the green fox.
Izuku's eyes almost popped out of their sockets as he dodged a torrent of water. Jumping onto one of the stone paths, he raced forward.
Come on! I don't want to be beaten by Rabbit Girl for failing, do I? Izuku thought with a smile.
He hastened his pace, running faster and faster. His eyes focused on the other side of the so-called swamp. Students were already making it out of the water, and sprinting across dirt.
I can do this, he told himself, baring his teeth in a grin.
Bakugo was more than relieved to be on normal ground, across the designated path between the white short fences twenty five meters apart. More importantly, he was glad to finally be far from that stupid swamp obstacle and all that water. There were still many ahead of him, and he didn't like that one bit. With no longer any flying restrictions, a pair of fliers went past him: a girl that could transform into a kite and a boy from the Support Course with some sort of helicopter-glider gear. What a bunch of losers...
Suddenly, he was trapped. Something had wrapped around his body and pushed him backwards. He managed to stay on his feet. To his chagrin, he was trapped by some sort of fine red carpet. Following the ten feet long carpet to its origin, Bakugo found himself held back by some tall and broad yet oddly flat teenager, almost like he himself was a carpet like his extended arm.
"Shit" the boy cursed, wincing under Bakugo's scathing glare.
It was too late for the boy, though. One powerful explosion later, and the boy's carpet-arm retracted back to a normal human hand. He cried out in pain, falling to his knees and staring in shock at his burned hand. Bakugo, though, didn't bother sparing another thought on the extra and resumed running.
These fucking losers… Bakugo growled, glaring at the extras in front and on each side.
He was pleased to see the other students giving him a wide berth. He relished on that look of fear in their eyes. That feeling, though, was short-lived as he carried on running. The mere fact so many people with such pathetic quirks truly thought they could compete with him made him scowl.
Do they really think they will do shit as Pros? Bakugo wondered.
The mere thought of any of them ending ahead of him in the final score incensed him. No, not only that: the idea he could lose to just one of any of those extras made his blood boil. With such pathetic quirks... there were all pebbles on his way. He was the number one. It was time for the world to see it!
Faster! Bakugo thought, baring his teeth as he exploded forward. Faster! He repeated, making bigger explosions. FASTER!
"Alright everyone, our awesome students are approaching their next obstacle: the Tunnel!" Present Mic declared. "Everyone, give a huge round of applause to our next obstacle supervisor Pro-Hero Edgeshot!"
Edgeshot? The ninja-wannabe? Right, the guy is all covert-ops and some shit and has been falling in the popularity rankings... but seriously though, a tunnel? Really? Bakugo mentally scoffed.
On a fence, Bakugo spotted one of the signs. As a black pentagon, white words boldly stated: "Do not fear the Dark!"
What in the world is that supposed to mean? Bakugo wondered.
His dismissal, however, died down when he started running down a slope… and straight into a large dark gaping hole on the ground, ridden with only darkness. The threshold was made by cement and it was twenty meters wide swallowing the light into pitch blackness. The unsettling part was the tunnel itself. Bakugo's eyes widened. There were no lights inside and the runners almost appeared to disappear within, followed by the strange clanking sound of metal. It was more than obvious this obstacle would be more than it implied.
Running into the darkness, Bakugo didn't bother stopping. He raised a hand, and allowed a tiny explosion to pop… only to stop running, swearing under his breath. Mere inches from his face was a metal wall. Then, darkness enveloped him. There was a strange yet loud CLANK and Bakugo hastily produced another bright yet small explosion, only to find no wall in front of him.
What shit is this? Bakugo thought, gobsmacked.
The CLANK sound came again, and as Bakugo produced the same spark of an explosion, he was greeted by the same wall.
Oh, I see, Bakugo realized with a smirk. He kept his palm up and produced more explosions. Bakugo didn't like being a human firecracker, but if it meant having some light he was not about to complain, and if it blinded some poor extra... the better. As he expected, it seemed the tunnel was a shifting maze ridden with darkness. On the next loud CLANK Bakugo raced forward, keeping his explosions bursting. As he did, he collided with someone.
The extra in question was startled and fell on his butt. By the looks of it, the extra's quirk was some kind of Headlights-for-eyes kind of thing because beams of light shot off his eye-sockets. It might have blinded Bakugo, were it not the fact his red eyes were prepared for bright lights. Bakugo raised an eyebrow as light flooded in what appeared to be a tiny room. As much as it pained him to admit it, Bakugo had to concede that the extra's quirk was perfect for the obstacle. Bakugo frowned as he glanced around.
"Hey, what's the deal? You are going the wrong way, man" The extra yelled.
But Bakugo ignored the extra and jumped forward on the next loud CLANK. An explosion later, he found himself trapped in yet another room. He squinted at the walls, annoyed by the slow pace of his progress. However, he knew he had to be careful. It seemed that the obstacle didn't just play with your sight: it played with your sense of orientation. For all they knew, the tunnel had multiple dead ends or misled everyone back towards the exit. That and Bakugo was sure more than one extra was soiling him or herself in the dark.
What a stupid obstacle, Bakugo muttered.
CLANK.
Bakugo run forward as fast as he could. He thought he saw three shocked faces, but by the next CLANK, he was back on a dark tiny square room. It didn't help Bakugo felt like he was suffocating already. The darkness and walls were almost constricting. It made Bakugo uncomfortable and Bakugo hated that. There had to be a faster way out. Swearing under his breath, he looked up. The walls rose high to the ceiling, not that the ceiling was that high to begin with.
CLANK. Bakugo run forward. CLANK. He waited, glaring dead ahead. CLANK. A side wall opened, and Bakugo chose to ignore it. CLANK. He sprinted forward… and paused. Under the intermittent flashes of his sparks, Bakugo noticed this room was not just bigger: it was a hexagon.
I am going to kill whoever thought this was a good obstacle!Bakugo hissed. He quickly shook his head. That's what they want, right? For the extras to lose their fucking patience. But not me. I know each challenge plays to the overseer's strength and Edgeshot is some sort of fucking ninja, right? And ninjas are all about patience, timing and all that shit.
A rustling sound. Bakugo's eyes widened. A pair of hands shot from the shadows. With one solid punch, Bakugo spun around and smashed in his would-be attacker's face. The girl in question was literally black as a shadow (probably her quirk), and dropped on the ground, holding her broken nose. Blood pooled on her knees as she hissed in agony.
Serves you right for scaring- I mean, for startling me, Bakugo derisively thought.
CLANK. Bakugo turned forward, only to see that only two walls had opened: to his right and to his left. Without hesitating, he jumped to his right, avoiding a kick from the black girl. CLANK.
"Shihai, is that you?"
Bakugo produced some light with sparks. To his annoyance, he was facing three extras: one with a white bandana holding his spiky black hair, another that looked like some kind of bug with a fluffy green Mohawk and hooked blades jutting out from his cheeks, and a petite silver-haired boy.
What a trio of losers, Bakugo thought.
"Shit!" The bandana guy spluttered, shocked. They all poised to attack, equally surprised.
As the light of Bakugo's sparks died out and blackness enveloped them, Bakugo smirked. Maybe the obstacle wasn't that bad after all…
"He's brutal!"
"So cool!"
"I have to get him in my agency..."
"You kidding? That kid is probably the next All Might!"
Three rabbit people despondently glared at the screens, trying to ignore the annoying commentary all around. Sadly, everyone seemed to have fallen in love with the explosive bastard. Of course they would. He was all they wanted from a hero: strong, flashy and unstoppable. They didn't care he was a jerk.
"I can't believe a guy like that wants to be a hero" Hana muttered. She leaned back, arms folded and looking away from the screens. Thus far, she wasn't enjoying herself that much.
"Can he do that, sis? Can he beat people like that?" Haku asked Rumi. "I thought they were only supposed to use their quirks".
Rumi didn't answer right away, studying the ensuing fight on the screens. She could only grimace at what she saw. Those three students from 1-B were being mercilessly beaten to a pulp. The names Yosetsu Awase, Togaru Kamakiri and Nirengeki Shoda flashed over them on the screens. They weren't anyone Rumi personally knew. Still, she did feel a bit sympathetic towards them. Between the surprise, the blinding flashes of the bastard's explosions and the brutality of it all, the three had been unprepared and had faced an unmatched opponent. When the walls opened, Bakugo hurried out with a smirk of satisfaction, leaving a crumpled mess of students, much to the crowd's glee.
"They can't use quirks to purposely harm other people" Rumi reluctantly conceded. "But nothing stops them from fighting with their fists. How else can they fight back? If your quirk is dangerous, how are you supposed to fend off someone who can use his or her quirk?"
"That's why he isn't using his quirk against them" Haku realized.
"That and I guess people like watching teenagers beat the crap out of each other" Rumi muttered, glaring at the oblivious audience. When she glanced at her siblings, she recoiled at their accusing faces. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"You say that like you don't enjoy watching people beat the crap out of each other" the two chorused.
"That's different…" Rumi grumbled, averting her eyes. "And no cussing..."
She focused on the screen, only to get the distinct feeling she was being stared at. As she glanced towards her siblings, she noticed both of the them still had that accusing face of theirs.
"What? It really is different!" Rumi insisted.
Hana and Haku, though, remained unconvinced.
Class 1-A was catching up, and they were giving quite the show. As Izuku sprinted forward, he saw evidence of his classmates ceaseless advance towards victory. There were a group of students that had been tied up by Hanta Sero's tape and Izuku even spotted the same annoying group of General Studies kids from lunch-break stuck onto the ground by Mineta's balls. Izuku even saw the large boy and the girl that had harassed Ochaco the previous Thursday helplessly floating in the air. Of course, he was not surprised to see competitors literally frozen to the ground either.
Izuku kept running forward, even as he saw Mina fending off some girl with a liquid-emitter quirk, or Toru fighting off an exact replica of herself. He was so tempted to aid them… but the green fox had to concentrate on himself. He had to be selfish and win. He had to. Even if Izuku hated himself with every fiber of his being for just abandoning them...
He came across Aoyoma outrunning a weird guy that had some kind of Gem-based quirk, and a bouncing Mineta, who was trying to avoid getting trapped by some petite girl that produced some kind of hardening paste. All in all, Izuku felt growing confidence as he passed more competitors. He was doing it. He was catching up!
And then he went into the Tunnel and he started to panic. How was he supposed to traverse the strange obstacle? His first instinct was to use his Two-Tailed form. However, the darkness made him thought otherwise. Instead, he jumped into the shadows and disappeared behind a cloud of white smoke. Her three-tailed form would suffice.
I sure I'm lucky to have such diverse quirk, Izuku mused as she patiently waited in one of the obstacle's many obscured rooms. As she waited for the walls to move away, she created Fox-Fire orbs to float around her head. Carefully, she made sure they wouldn't be too bright. She didn't want to accidentally blind anyone but they would be more than enough to keep a good eye on the walls ahead.
Without the urgency to run forward, Izuku found herself losing concentration and pondering on the race.
This obstacle seems weird, Izuku thought as she waited for the next wall to open up. It slows down the race to a standstill and that's bound to bore people. Then again, maybe that's the point. The challenge plays with the desperation to cross the tunnel and take the wrong path forward. Perhaps Principal Nezu wanted more utilitarian quirks to stand a chance.
Keeping her body facing forward, Izuku waited. CLANK. A wall to the side opened. Izuku almost went towards it, but paused. Instead, she rooted herself in place and waited. CLANK. The opened wall closed and the one right in front of her moved aside. She rushed forward… only to trip over someone.
Baffled, she looked down. No, not just one person. On the ground, groaning in pain, Izuku found a pair of wimpy kids. Scrawny and thin, they looked like they wouldn't have lasted another meter running without the added beating they apparently got. There sure seemed to be some very friendly competitors out there. The broken metal pieces and gear as well as their goggles, strapped over their eyes, told Izuku all that she needed to know about them.
"Hey guys, you alright?" Izuku asked, kneeling in front of them.
"Urgh…" was all one of them could groan back.
Maybe this obstacle won't be so boring to witness after all, Izuku grimly realized. People will surely enjoy all the violence and fighting… Warily, Izuku studied the rooms. That must be the point of this too, isn't it?
CLANK. Izuku snapped her head up. She was about to jump forward, only to pause. Should she abandon those guys? Her instincts cried for her to help them, to heal them even. She knew better than to do that, however. Although Izuku had increased her energy reserve, she was well aware she couldn't just waste them on two random people, not if she wanted to win. Still… it felt wrong not to do anything. CLANK. The wall ahead shut closed.
Damn it! Izuku swore, snapping out of her ruminations. Now is not the time to play hero! I must win this! Stop thinking about others!
She stood up and tried to ignore the groaning students by her feet. Her heart went out for them and it was so tempting to just heal them a bit… just alleviate their injuries… that's what was right, wasn't it? To help them?
No! No! You have to win this, remember? Izuku told herself.
CLANK. The door ahead opened and, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth, she run forward, ignoring the poor Support Students behind him… only to be nearly be punched. It was a good thing she was able to lean back in time, because had such a massive fist hit her she would have been knocked unconscious.
"You will not take this chance from me!" Roared what could only be described as a massive straw man. Was it just Izuku or was his head on fire? Yep, it was a big-ass muscular straw-man with a head on fire. Quirks sure could be strange.
"I WILL be a Hero!" Spat the straw-man's opponent.
Surprisingly unnoticed, Izuku studied the other person. She was a tall yet slim girl with pitch black hair that flowed down in waves. For some reason, that tired look of hers and that grumpiness in her demeanor reminded Izuku of Aizawa. Strapped on her chest was some kind of flashlight. Unwilling to intervene, Izuku stood against a wall, wide-eyed, as the pair glared at each other and ignored the newcomer.
"With your quirk you can only be a villain!" The straw-man yelled, running towards the girl.
That incensed the girl. To Izuku's amazement, the white of her eyes turned black. From where he stood, Izuku's eyes widened in awe. An eye-based quirk? They were so rare... and so cool!
No, Izuku, now is not the time to be a fanboy, she chided herself.
The burning-head straw-man screamed and fell on his knees, hands clasping the sides of his head, all while the girl scrunched her face with visible effort. For a moment, Izuku thought she could induce pain, but then she heard the straw-man sobbing.
"Stop it!" The straw-man exclaimed, voice quivering with sorrow.
Izuku blinked, perplexed. Did the girl have some kind of Depression Inducing Quirk or could she control someone's mood? That sounded so cool! Such a quirk could be so useful to capture any kind of villain that-
CLANK. Oh, that was her cue to leave.
"Huh?" The girl commented, finally turning towards Izuku. By then it was too late. The Fox Girl left them behind.
Izuku felt a knot of guilt as the wall closed behind her. Should she had have stayed and helped? But who? The girl with the awesome eye-quirk or the boy with the amazing burning-head straw-man? Both wanted to be heroes, and their quirks really could serve them in such profession. Didn't they deserve the chance to be heroes? As much as it pained her, Izuku dismissed such thoughts. She sighed, shaking her head.
So this challenge isn't just against the darkness or requiring patience… it forces us to fight each other, Izuku pondered. She sullenly looked at the concrete ground, saddened. Is this what the Sports Festival is meant to be? A competition to see children fighting? To use our dreams and desires to watch us go against each other?
Izuku shook her head, trying to fend off such grim thoughts. Now was not the time for that! She had to continue. There was a loud CLANK and her way opened. Izuku sprinted forward. She had to focus on the goal… she had to win!
Of course, first she had to overcome the massive furry beast straight ahead. Izuku swore. Of course she just had to come across the biggest opponents, right? Bigger than a grizzly bear and ten times as ferocious, Izuku froze as said beast snapped his head towards her. Blood-shot murderous eyes filled with untamed rage zeroed on her. Izuku did not miss the claw marks on one of the walls. Did he have some sort of beast quirk?
"A-alright buddy, no need for violence" Izuku uneasily said with a chuckle.
The beast-man, however, had other thoughts. Or rather, he wasn't thinking at all. It simply – well – roared. Then he lunged at Izuku, his dim feral eyes were lacking any sign of reasoning or humanity and instead gleamed with one desire: to kill.
Bakugo was more than happy to make it out of that stupid obstacle. However, almost twenty people were ahead of him still - way too many. As he sprinted forward, ready to take his rightful place at the lead and enjoy the warmth of the sun, he was forced to jump. The ground, once made entirely of dust and dirt, was covered in a thick layer of ice within the blink of an eye.
"Ha, so you made it, Scar-Face" Bakugo mused with a smirk.
On his left, glaring at Bakugo, was Todoroki, and boy did he look pissed.
"I won't let you win" he growled.
"You think you can stop me?" Bakugo said, his smile turning to a feral grin.
Todoroki, though, was done talking. One twist of his right hand, and Bakugo was forced into the air with his explosions to avoid getting turned into an icicle.
"I would really like to stay and beat the shit out of you, Half-Ice, but I've got a Festival to win!" Bakugo laughed, before turning around and exploding ahead.
Todoroki growled and chased after the explosive teen. With his quirk, he created a wall of ice, forcing Bakugo to fly back, only to explode upwards and over the wall. It infuriated the explosive boy, all while Todoroki angrily squinted at his target.
Behind them, panting and looking rather pale, came Hitoshi Shinso. Momentarily blinded by the sun, he wearily glanced back at the tunnel, before shaking his head and gritting his teeth. He didn't run, though. He instead broke into a trot. He really wasn't made for these long races and he sure was shaken by the Tunnel obstacle…
"Oy, what's the deal with that beast-guy?" Haku asked, concerned.
"He looks scary" Hana mumbled, shuddering. Her ears had dropped and she was curled on her seat, staring at the screens with fear.
"He's gone berserk!" Haku added, barely faring any better than his sister.
Rumi couldn't blame them. That furry monster had been chasing after Fox Girl for half the maze already and he sure looked intimidating, to say the least. She looked around, wondering what the audience was thinking. There was nothing fun about seeing someone trying to murder someone else, was there? However, the crowd's mind and attention was elsewhere.
"Go, Bakugo!" Someone shouted, thrilled.
"That guy's quirk really is amazing!" Some Pro-Hero exclaimed.
"Damn, I expected Endeavour's kid to be more impressive... I guess he doesn't take after his old man"
Rumi glared at the stupid crowd before turning towards the screen. Thus far, Fox Girl was successfully dodging the dangerous swipes from the Beast-Guy. Fox Girl kept trying to lose him with the opening and closing of walls, but the Beast-Guy was absolutely relentless. As much as Rumi wanted to see Fox Boy win, at the moment, all she wanted was to see him out of danger.
I hate being stuck watching! Rumi mentally growled, shifting on her seat. I wasn't born to be a spectator, damn it! If only I could be there... come on, Fox Boy!
"Alright, big guy!" Izuku shouted. Panting, she had been backed against a wall. "You wanna fight? Then bring it!"
The beast-guy roared and jumped at her. She held her ground. He reared a nasty clawed-hand, ready to slash the Fox-Girl's throat, only for Fox Girl to disappear behind a cloud of white smoke. The light slowly died down with her and the beast guy blindly slammed straight onto the wall.
"Ha, take that you mutt!" Two-Tailed Izuku laughed, clinging to the walls on each side.
What Izuku did not expect was for the Beast-Guy to suddenly shrink and morph into a teenager in the last hints of light. Then there was only darkness. Izuku's keen ears heard what sounded like the shaking of a head – or at least, that was as far as Izuku could tell from sound alone.
"Wow, just what happened to me?" He wondered, blindly looking around. There was only darkness. "Where did the girl go?"
Unbeknownst to him, two fox-children were clinging to the walls in the darkness. Then came a loud CLANK and they slipped out and away from the dangerous beast-boy. As Izuku turned back into the Three-Tailed form in an empty room, turning her fox-fire back on, she could only hope the Beast-boy wouldn't try attacking anyone else.
Then came the next CLANK, and Izuku saw sunlight.
"What a race! Am I right dear listeners?! Just look at Class 1-A! They sure are fervently gaining ground!" Present Mic called "and just in time for the third obstacle: the Spider-Nest! Everyone, give a huge round of applause to the spider hero: Arachne!"
Uraraka immediately shuddered at that but kept running nonetheless. She shook her head, trying to dismiss the rather improper thoughts. After all, it wasn't right to judge someone by her appearance… even if she was a huge-ass spider-centaur with six eyes and a massive spider lower-body. Just thinking about it made her shiver again.
Arachne wasn't exactly an unknown hero, being one of the most active Pro-Heroes of Hiroshima. However, she was far better known for being at the top of the Villain-looking heroes out there. Even though Ochaco had to admit her human-looking half wasn't that bad looking, Arachne was an entirely creepy-looking hero. Not surprisingly, she didn't enjoy the spotlight like other heroes and needed of the Sports Festival to garner some popularity outside her city.
Concentrate! Uraraka thought.
Ochaco still couldn't believe she was doing so well. She probably was with the first twenty runners. More surprising however was how quickly she had gone through the tunnel. Now that had been rather scary.
A tall blue rectangular sign on a side caught her attention. Written in neon yellow were the words: "Beware the Spiders!" That made Ochaco shudder again, until she saw the next sign. In a red circle, it warned about a fall.
Up ahead, Uraraka nearly tripped over in shock. The Spider-Nest was truly a fitting name. Hanging across a vast rift like some scary bridge was a maze of ropes, wires and cables intertwined. Down below was a large pool of mud and water… definitely not a pleasant fall by the looks of it. Ochaco could see very familiar robots crawling across the Spider-Nest. Why did they have to include those Two-Pointer robots? Worse, they had been modified. They didn't have the stingers from the Entrance Exam, replaced by tiny robot arms near their heads to make them look like they had spider-pincers.
Loud explosions behind her told Ochaco a certain undesirable asshole was approaching, something that made her run faster. She was not about to let Bakugo win. Without hesitation she jumped onto the nearest wire and started to balance herself towards the other end of the Spider-Nest.
Don't look down, don't look down, Ochaco repeated in her head.
A shiver-inducing clicking made her look upwards. There, staring down at her like some kind of ugly spider, was one of those modified Two-Pointer. How had it slipped her notice? Now was not the time to wonder that! The spider-robot raised its pincers, exposing one cannon beneath its head. Ochaco didn't need to see more. She slapped her palm onto her chest and jumped sideways. It was a good thing she did, because otherwise she would have been showered by some kind of white goo.
She floated straight to another wire and, once she had a good grip on it, she deactivated her quirk. And just in time. Ochaco hadn't gotten a hang on using her Zero-Gravity on herself for prolonged periods of time. At least she could handle herself longer without vomiting rainbows. Ochaco looked straight ahead, and made her way forward – only to nearly fall as the wire she was standing on violently shook up and down.
Behind her, Ochaco saw none other than Bakugo almost running the wire and straight towards her.
"Out of the way, Round Face!" A furious Bakugo barked.
Before Ochaco could even think of swiping a hand at the bastard, said jerk raised a hand towards her. The ensuing explosion wasn't loud nor bright. Instead, it washed Ochaco's face with acrid smoke, one that made her retch. She closed her eyes and coughed, only to receive an elbow to the stomach. One moment she was firmly grabbing onto the wires, the next her hold was slipping.
Ochaco fell backwards, and a smirking Bakugo hurried forward. The girl could barely react. It took longer than it should to realize she was falling. Worse, she was still recovering from that disgusting smoke on her face. Her eyes stung and she mouth had a foul taste remaining. However, her attention quickly focused on the increasingly distant Spider-Nest.
No! I can't fall! I can't fail! Ochaco mentally cried.
Her parents would see her fall! She would take time to recover and climb up. Worse, people would think she was clumsy… that she didn't deserve to be in the Hero Course… that she had been lucky with her rescue points… all that desperation swelled in her chest as tears started to form on her face. She was so lost in her fear that she didn't even consider using her quirk on herself again. When she did, she was already halfway towards the pit below…
A shadow rushed over the wires and someone jumped down towards her. It happened so quickly, Ochaco stared, transfixed. Then a clawed hand clasped around her hand. Ochaco, shocked, stared at her savior. Her heart skipped a beat. Of course he had to save her. With nine stretched tails wrapped around wires and cables, Izuku was facing down, his hands grabbing Ochaco's arm with effort. It was clear he was struggling to keep his claws from harming her.
"Hey, Ochaco, how are you hanging in there?" Izuku said with an uneasy smile. With little effort, he retracted his tails and pulled her up back to the wires.
"Izuku!" Ochaco exclaimed, relieved to feel the safety of the wires in her grasp. "You made it!"
"Come on" Izuku said with a grin "let us win this!"
With him, Ochaco felt she could do anything.
Izuku burst into a cloud of white smoke, replaced by the lovable and adorable Two-Tails. Giggling like only mischievous children could, they raced across the wires with practiced ease. Ochaco could only watch with some envy at how easy it was for Izuku to traverse the faux spider-web bridge. However, right now, she had more important things to think about.
"Go Izuku! Win this!" She exclaimed as he got further and further away.
Maybe… just maybe… Izuku could win against Bakugo.
I won't fall behind, Ochaco, with new found determination, told herself.
She scrunched her face with a fierce scowl and rushed forward. A robot came from a side, jumping towards her. She jumped up, activating her quirk on herself, and dodged the robot. Just as it flew past her, Ochaco graced it with the palms of her hand. As Ochaco clung onto the wires, she glanced at the now floating robot - gradually hovering away of the Spider-Nest. It aimlessly floated away, legs moving like a creepy spider would.
I am not done! Ochaco thought with a grin of determination.
"Katsuki Bakugo has taken the lead!" Announced Present Mic. "He has just crossed the Third Obstacle! Now it's the final race – and would you look at that? Todoroki Shoto is right on his heels! And there goes Izuku Midoriya gaining on them! My God, from last to third, he sure is giving his all!"
Across the screens, the cameras showed how Bakugo was able to keep ahead across empty dirt ground, only to be slowed down by Todoroki's ice-walls. Not far from them, a lion-sized One Tailed Midoriya was speeding forward. Flying quickly towards them was a pink-haired girl with some kind of jet-pack.
"Ha, and would you look at that? Mei Hatsume might actually surpass them!" Present Mic added, surprised.
"Huh, would you look at that. He might actually do it" Haku commented, wide-eyed.
"Yahoo!" Hana exclaimed, raising her fists "aren't you excited Sis?"
"Run, damn it! Run Fox Boy! Run as if you life depends on it!" Rumi shouted at the top of her lungs, jumping on her seat.
Haku and Hana sweatdropped at that. Once again, they were the target of many glances.
"That Hatsume girl might win, though" Haku pointed out.
Pink-haired, with goggles and a maniacal grin, the Usagiyama siblings weren't sure what to make out of her. It would be nice to see someone of the Support Course win the race. However, they were currently rooting for Rumi's boyfriend.
Bakugo glanced back, a scowl forming as he saw none other than Izuku gaining ground. He couldn't allow that… if only stupid Scar-Face would get that stick out of his butt and stop attacking him! However, Half-Ice seemed hell-bent on slowing him down. What was his deal anyway? Bakugo knew he had to end this.
He turned towards Todoroki and side-stepped another freezing wall, before exploding towards him. Todoroki stopped running forward and braced himself for the ensuing fight. Right hand ready, he squinted at the accelerating Bakugo. Up ahead, Hatsume was close to flying over them, having gotten past Midoriya.
Just when Bakugo was mere feet away, Todoroki activated his quirk. At that distance, Bakugo would not be able to escape… but in the end, that hadn't been the explosive teen's plan. Frozen within a pillar of ice, it looked like Todoroki had finally pinned down the bastard. He did not expect for an explosion to destroy the ice and send giant chunks of frozen water in every direction – including its creator's head. Up in the air, Hatsume, in a panic, rolled to avoid the flying projectiles. However, just as she thought she had dodged all of the ice, something struck her jet-pack, and an undesired rumble ensued, followed by dark smoke and unexpected shaking of her creation. That wasn't good.
Bakugo laughed in triumph as Todoroki fell backwards, hit by his own ice. Taking his opportunity, Bakugo turned towards the stadium up ahead… only for a shadow to dash past him. His red eyes widened in horror and he froze. It couldn't be... it was impossible! And yet, that tail and fur…
"DEKU!" Bakugo yelled, exploding forward.
But it didn't matter, Midoriya was already ahead and had gained quite the advantage. That didn't stop Bakugo, though. He used his explosions to gradually catch up but at the current pace, it looked like there would already be a winner and it wouldn't be Bakugo.
The audience had fallen awfully quiet, staring at the screens. This was it. With abated breaths, all they could do was wait. The large fox was less than a hundred meters from victory and showed no signs of decelerating. In fact, he was growing both in size and speed with a look of desperate determination all over his animal face. Behind him, the explosive teen was flying faster and faster.
"Come on…" Rumi, clenching her hands, said. "You can do this!"
"Go Fox Boy!" Haku and Hana cheered, leaning on the edge of their seats.
"You can do it, Bakugo!" Someone shouted. That person wasn't alone.
Millions of eyes all across Japan and even other countries watched, transfixed, as the fox was on his way to claim victory. Would he make it? Would the explosion-making teenager fly past him? They were close to the stadium. The final moments... this was it!
Then, it all went wrong. There was an explosion somewhere, and the fox stopped running, snapping his head with worry towards something behind him. Bakugo took the opportunity and shot forward, and past Midoriya.
With a triumphant grin, Bakugo exploded ahead. He didn't bother looking back. He heard Scar-Face yell something, and there was some screaming, but he didn't care. He raced forward. The stadium loomed over him. There was only a wide corridor towards the stadium's interior. There was the finish line and –
The crowd stood up as they cheered, clapping and roaring. Bakugo grinned at his audience, rising his hands. It seemed to only excite the crowd further. The stadium shook with the ovation while the thunder of thousands of voices threatened to deafen everyone. A particular trio of Rabbit-Quirk users could barely withstand so much loudness, enduring immeasurable agony.
"And the Winner of the First Event of the Sports Festival is..." Present Mic's voice resounded across the stadium "Bakugo Katsuki!"
The crowd lost it once again. Rumi, as she kept her hands pressed against her ears and as she fought the pain of the loud crowd, stared at the screens. What had happened to Fox Boy? Why had he stopped? Where was he?
"Coming in Second, Todoroki Shoto!" Present Mic said.
Rumi frowned, confused. She tried to ignore the painfully loud cheering of the crowd as a seething son of Endeavour stomped across the finish line. Bakugo was still with his hands raised, waving at the crowd. Where was Fox Boy?
"Third place, Tenya Iida!"
Rumi was starting to get worried. Why were the screens only showing the finish line or zeroing on the arrivals thus far? She wanted to see what had happened to Fox Boy, damn it!
"Fourth place, Pony Tsunotori!"
A blond wide-eyed horned girl cheerfully trotted into the arena.
"Where is your boyfriend?" Haku asked. He looked at the screens and at the stadium below with a face of utter bewilderment.
"Yeah, he was going to win and then he just stopped!" Hana added, confused.
"…fifth place, Momo Yaoyorozu" Present Mic continued announcing as more students arrived. "Followed in sixth by Mashirao Ojiro".
More and more students crossed the finish line. Infinity Girl made it Ninth, with Hitoshi Shinso coming up eleventh. Everyone else were complete strangers to Rumi. More and more people made it, and Rabbit Girl was growing beyond concerned. It was as she thought that she would have to jump and go find the Fox Boy when, finally, Rumi spotted him.
He wasn't alone. With an arm around his shoulder, Nine-Tailed Midoriya was helping a disoriented-looking pink-haired girl. No, not disoriented. She looked sick, like she had been puking. Her hair had been singed and, by the looks of it, it looked like she had been close to some explosion, with most of her clothes blackened by fire and smoke.
"On eighteenth place, Hatsume Mei, with Midoriya Izuku on nineteenth place" Present Mic declared.
Rumi gritted her teeth, glaring at Midoriya. Why in the world had he gotten the nineteenth place? He had been so close to the first place… just what in the world had happened? Frustrated, Rumi sighed. She would have to wait until the lunch break. Only then she would be able to get a clear answer. And who was that girl, by the way? And why was Fox Boy helping her? She better keep her hands where Rumi could see them!
First, however, they had to wait until all or most students made it and the next event was announced. The First Event might have ended, but there were still two events left. The Sports Festival was far from over.