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"Forming a Team"
Watching the crowd scatter away from her as if she were the center of a blast, Konata Izumi stared up at the sky in silence.
Sure, she had the highest points right now. But that also meant she was the number one target for everyone.
Teaming up with her basically meant declaring war on every other group here. No one with a working brain would volunteer for that. Instead of defending her ten million points and making enemies of everyone, most people would rather join the others to take her points away.
"…But I guess you can't participate solo, huh? So, at the very least, I need to find one teammate." She started counting on her fingers. "Forty-two people total, teams of two to four… which means—"
Slacking off was impossible. Absolutely impossible. This lifetime, she'd have to—painfully—take things seriously.
As Konata lowered her head and counted with exaggerated seriousness, a hesitant voice spoke up behind her.
"Uh… do you want to team up with us?"
"Mm?"
She turned around to see Izuku Midoriya and Ochaco Uraraka standing there, though she had no idea when they'd approached.
When Konata looked at her, Ochaco's eyes lit up. "Konata! Let's team up!"
"I'll be the head!" Konata immediately declared, raising her hand.
Midoriya: "…"
For some reason, he suddenly felt very… conflicted.
"Since we're three, we'll still need one more," Midoriya said.
In one corner of the field, the newly formed trio huddled together.
"With Konata's ten million points, we don't need to actively steal from others," Midoriya reasoned, counting on his fingers. "Our main goal is to keep those points safe. That means our strategy should focus on defense and evasion."
"I know exactly who to ask," Konata said, eyes narrowing in determination. She turned and walked toward Shoto Todoroki.
"…He's definitely not going to want to team with us," Midoriya muttered—just before Ochaco dragged Konata back by the collar, wearing an apologetic smile.
"Uh… then maybe Katsuki Bakugo? Offense is the best defense, right? …But if it's him, I don't think I can handle it…" Konata said, glancing toward Bakugo with visible hesitation.
"…And there's no way he'd let me ride on top of him, you know."
Midoriya: "…"
Ochaco: "…"
Fifteen minutes later, as the countdown on the big screen hit zero, forty-two contestants had formed thirteen teams—some full four-person squads, others with only two.
Konata stuffed all four headbands—each representing their team's points—around her neck, kicked off her shoes, and mounted their "horse" with an overly solemn expression.
"Tokoyami Fumikage, are you prepared? As the first place team, being surrounded is inevitable. This is fate—an inescapable destiny. Have you truly steeled yourself to face it head-on?"
Their fourth teammate was none other than Tokoyami Fumikage, whose Quirk, Dark Shadow, made him an offense-and-defense powerhouse. Midoriya had found him, explained their lineup, and Tokoyami had agreed without hesitation.
Dark Shadow, the dark flame beast residing inside him, would serve as the front legs.
Ochaco's Quirk, Zero Gravity, could make anything she touched weightless. As the rear legs, she was—according to Konata—Newton's mortal enemy.
The rider was, of course, Midoriya. No way was Konata letting him put her in the rider's seat.
Dark Shadow loomed before Tokoyami, his crow-like face full of fervor. "Fate exists to be broken. Let us shatter its chains together!"
"…," Midoriya and Ochaco exchanged a long look, silently thankful that at least one person in their group was still sane.
"Alright, the moment is here! Let's count down to the start of this brutal free-for-all!" Present Mic's booming voice rang out as all thirteen teams took their positions.
Meanwhile, Shota Aizawa quietly slipped out of the commentator's booth, unable to tolerate not getting a single line.
"Three… two… one… Begin!"
The moment Present Mic's words fell, the once-quiet arena erupted into chaos. And yet, it was chaos with a single focus—every other team was charging straight at Konata's group.
"Whoa, seriously?! Everyone's coming for us?!" Konata's jaw dropped. She'd expected a messy free-for-all at the start, not… this.
"Tokoyami!" Midoriya called urgently.
"Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami reacted instantly, summoning his partner to block most ranged attacks before turning to flee, Dark Shadow wincing in pain as he shielded them.
With the rules limiting their options, there was no way four people could take on thirty-eight. All they had to do was keep their points. Evasion was the best plan.
"Don't think you can run!"
One nearby team was closing in fast. Their front legs' Quirk turned the ground beneath Midoriya's team into a swamp, slowing them drastically.
"Duck your heads," Konata instructed, glancing at Ochaco and Midoriya before turning around, blue-white sparks crackling in her palm.
Without aiming, she hurled a Lightning Sword behind them.
The ten-meter fan-shaped blast area silenced all enemies inside for 1.5 seconds and slowed them by 60%.
It was her strongest crowd-control move. Whether it hit directly or not didn't matter—anyone within range suffered the effects.
The swamp vanished under their feet, and with their pursuers slowed, it was easy to put some distance between them.
"Area silence—1.5 seconds. Slow—60%," Konata reported matter-of-factly, before making a quick hand gesture. "Cooldown—eight seconds."
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"Same ability as Aizawa-sensei"
After hearing Konata Izumi's explanation, Izuku Midoriya looked utterly shocked.
He had once fought alongside her and thought he had a vague understanding of her Quirk. But judging from the abilities she had just displayed, what he knew before was only the tip of the iceberg.
"Aizawa-sensei's Quirk cancels Quirks. Mine is Silence. Totally different, okay?"
Pouting, Konata answered.
"The Sword of Lightning doesn't nullify the opponent's Quirk—it only silences them temporarily for 1.5 seconds. For example, if Minoru Mineta throws his sticky balls and I touch them, I'd still get stuck. Your good buddy's long-range fire attacks? Same thing—I can't nullify them. Unless I silence him before he can launch his move, I'll still get hit. By the way, shouldn't you be focusing on the group-wide 60% slow instead?"
"So… it's like a mage's silence skill not affecting a warrior?"
After Konata's explanation, Midoriya quickly grasped the essence of her ability.
"Since that person earlier had a sustained Quirk, after getting silenced for 1.5 seconds, his binding on us was gone. If it's silence and not nullification, pure physical-enhancement types won't be much affected."
"I told you—the real kicker is the forced 60% slow! Why is your focus always so weird—ah crap, they're coming again! Tokoyami!"
Noticing other teams converging on them again, Konata quickly called out to Fumikage Tokoyami.
"Got it."
Responding calmly, Tokoyami stopped in his tracks, facing the nearest enemy team.
"Go, Dark Shadow!"
"Unique Skill—Dark Feast!"
Midoriya: "…"
Ochaco Uraraka: "…"
It looked like the two of them were having way too much fun.
"What do you think? Should we engage?"
Shoto Todoroki's team also had four members—besides Todoroki, there were Denki Kaminari, Momo Yaoyorozu, and Tenya Iida. The question came from Iida, acting as the vanguard.
After watching Konata's group for a few moments, Todoroki exhaled warm breath and shook his head.
"No. The top two teams are both in that group, and with Tokoyami's Dark Shadow providing both offense and defense, we're not confident we could take them. I imagine Katsuki Bakugo feels the sa—"
"Die!"
Before Todoroki could finish, Bakugo's team charged straight past them, heading right for Konata's group.
Todoroki: "…"
With Bakugo's arrival, the situation instantly became chaotic. If you ranked all the teams by power, Bakugo's and Todoroki's groups would be at the top. Two powerhouses clashing would only let weaker teams reap the benefits—something neither of them wanted.
After seeing Konata's team display overwhelming strength, Todoroki had already decided not to fight them in the elimination round. He thought Bakugo would feel the same—but reality slapped him fast.
"Deku, you dumb broad—just sit there and die!"
Grinning maniacally, Bakugo leapt off his teammate's back and rocketed toward Konata.
"Whoa—Deku, if that's your pet name, fine. But why am I the 'dumb broad' here?!"
Clearly not expecting Bakugo's sudden aerial assault, Konata's team was momentarily thrown into disarray. Dark Shadow was defending the front, leaving the air above open—and Bakugo had chosen the perfect moment to strike, just as Konata's skill was on cooldown.
Who would've thought Bakugo would literally jump in from above?
At that moment, Konata muttered a snarky remark, then did something neither dignified nor necessarily within the spirit of the rules—she ducked her head and hugged it like an ostrich.
What else could she do? She couldn't exactly waste her only coin firing a Railgun at him. The rules didn't say she couldn't turtle up, right? That's called "making optimal use of the rules."
Bakugo froze mid-attack, clearly thrown off by her reaction. Looking down at the "ostrich," he suddenly felt like a hedgehog trying to bite a turtle—no clear opening. Well… maybe he could grab that red ribbon she used to tie her hair.
Just then, Tokoyami's Dark Shadow rushed back to defend. Seeing Bakugo about to be eliminated, his teammate Hanta Sero shot a strip of tape from his wrist, yanking Bakugo back.
"Midnight-sensei! Bakugo—uh, Kacchan—uh, Durian-head—he's breaking the rules!"
Pointing straight at Bakugo, Konata shouted without hesitation.
"Durian-head?!"
Hearing her nickname for him, Bakugo's rage flared even hotter.
"You're just a dumb broad! Who gave you the guts to talk like that?!"
"See, see? He's got someone secretly giving him a Berserk buff! And since when can cavalry battle contestants fly?!"
Completely ignoring him, Konata pointed at the now Super Saiyan-like Bakugo and complained to Midnight.
"This is the Sports Festival! Can you two please take it seriously? You look like kids playing house."
Midnight rubbed her forehead in exasperation, cracking her whip.
"Bakugo's move was a coordinated Quirk combo. Not against the rules."
"Oh? Then does that mean I can fly too?"
Konata's eyes lit up.
"Oh, you can't."
Konata: "…"
The whole world is against me.
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"How about it, Bakugo? You still confident?"
Acting as the vanguard, Eijiro Kirishima had probably grown used to Katsuki Bakugo's explosive temper. Seeing Fumikage Tokoyami and the others up ahead on guard, he turned to Bakugo and asked.
"Tch… the cooldown is about eight seconds, range is roughly eight to twelve meters. As long as we can keep that distance, we won't get caught in her ability."
Bakugo clenched his fists, his face as black as the bottom of a burnt pot.
"That bastard dared call me that? That ten million points is mine!"
…You're the one who gave her a nickname first, you know.
The moment Bakugo said that, the rest of his squad fell silent with collective black lines across their faces, thinking the same exact thing.
Still, since they'd figured out the weakness of the opponent's Quirk, taking that ten million might not be such an impossible task.
"They seem to have realized the effective range of our ability," Tokoyami said gravely after a few failed attempts to slow them down with his Thunder Blade and shake off their pursuit.
"If you watch carefully, it's not hard to figure out this ability's weakness. Kacchan could definitely do it," Izuku Midoriya replied, frowning as he glanced back at Bakugo, who was ten meters behind and relentlessly chasing them.
"We have a window of about seven seconds. If Kacchan manages to catch us in that time—"
"Then I'll just curl up and defend," Konata Izumi answered seriously, raising her hand.
Midoriya's lips twitched. Turning to Tokoyami, he said, "Tokoyami, Bakugo's explosions are too effective against Dark Shadow. From now on, try not to use it to block him. Kacchan will figure out its weakness after only a few tests."
"Understood," Tokoyami said solemnly, his crow-like face serious.
"Dark Shadow grows stronger in darkness, but weaker in bright light. Bakugo's blasts are already making it hesitate."
"In that case, leave everything to me. From now on, Dark Shadow doesn't engage with Kacchan's attacks," Midoriya said, taking a deep breath before turning to Ochaco Uraraka.
"Ochaco, I'm counting on you."
"Got it," Ochako replied with equal seriousness.
And then… a deep, mysterious voice echoed in their ears.
"What Uraraka doesn't realize is that by accepting Midoriya's request, her life will change forever. Perhaps from that moment, everything will be different, and the future will become uncertain—why are you all looking at me like that?"
Facing the indescribable stares from Midoriya and Uraraka, Konata Izumi placed her hands on her hips and declared without batting an eye, "Think of me as the narrator, here to provide commentary."
"…Whatever makes you happy," Midoriya muttered.
Meanwhile, in Bakugo's squad, Kirishima noticed that the ten-million-points team ahead suddenly sped up.
It was worth noting that Konata's team was so tricky to deal with—slowing enemies' movement speed by 60% out of nowhere—that many teams targeting the ten million points had simply given up in frustration. Now, there were barely any still pursuing them.
As Kirishima was about to speed up to close the gap, the ten-million-points holder turned toward them and raised her hand. Brilliant arcs of lightning began gathering in her palm.
"That move again…" Kirishima stopped instantly, bracing himself.
"Darker than dusk, redder than blood, purer than truth—pierce through the laws of nature!" Konata's deep, solemn tone carried clearly to their ears, her expression shifting unpredictably under the crackling light.
"A big move, huh?" Kirishima hardened his body instantly, ready for impact.
"Release! The dream that's engraved in my heart, leave even the future behind
This limitless, yet meaningless power
Sparkles with light, with my feelings at the distance, preceding it~♪"
Bakugo's team froze, dumbstruck.
"…Oops. Guess I started singing without realizing it," Konata said casually, lowering her hand and turning to Midoriya's group with an exasperated look.
"Why are you just standing there? Run!"
"…The first half wasn't bad. Do you have more?" Tokoyami asked after a pause.
"This is not the time for that! Kacchan's team is about to catch up!" Midoriya practically exploded.
"…Uh."
Feeling a little guilty, Konata glanced back at Bakugo's enraged, almost feral expression and immediately curled up into a defensive crouch.
Midoriya: "…"
He was starting to feel a little hopeless.
"Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami summoned his Quirk to guard them.
Even though Bakugo's blasts countered it, at this point Dark Shadow was the only thing that could buy them a few seconds. Less than a minute remained in the match, and if Konata hadn't provoked Bakugo's entire squad into going berserk, things wouldn't be this dangerous.
In that final minute, Bakugo managed to snatch the red hair tie Konata used to tie her hair.
"…And what the hell am I supposed to do with this?" Bakugo stared at the item in his hand, questioning his life choices.
"Well, our points are still the highest," Konata said as the match ended. She looked up at the big screen, saw their score far in the lead, and pumped her fist proudly.
"Everyone, we've shattered destiny!"
"…" came the silent response.
By the end, everyone except Konata was utterly exhausted, Tokoyami included. No one had the energy to respond—and even if they did, they wouldn't know what to say.
One thought was unanimous among them:
Next time, never be on Konata's team again.
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You ever reread something you wrote and get hit with that "Oh no… I really thought this was cool" feeling? Yeah, that was me with those chuuni lines. I swear I could hear my past self cackling in the background—full-on "MUAHAHAHAHA!"—while my present self just wanted to curl up and uninstall my own brain.
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