Chapter 61: Hagakure vs. Midoriya
"Midoriya, I reject my humanity!"
Hearing Toru Hagakure shout that line, Kira, who was standing below the stage, silently covered his face.
Before the match, Hagakure had found Kira and asked him if he knew any super cool lines that would make everyone notice her.
Kira had glanced at her. "All you have to do is take your clothes off during the match. That'll be plenty noticeable."
Hagakure had sidled up to him, massaging his shoulders ingratiatingly. "If I just strip without any context, people will think I'm some kind of exhibitionist weirdo. But if I say something really profound first and then take my clothes off, people will see me as a heroine with strong convictions! I might even get some admirers!"
"Is that so? So even you want to get noticed in this competition..." Kira was surprised. Is everyone except me actually putting in effort for this Sports Festival?
"What do you mean, 'even me'!?" Hagakure suddenly smacked Kira on the shoulder, annoyed. "I'm dying to get noticed, okay!? It would be even better if I could become a pop idol!"
"...I see," Kira had said, standing up. "Alright then. I'll teach you a super cool line, spoken by a great villain."
"...I reject my humanity!" Hagakure had shouted in the waiting room, looking at Kira with an expression that begged for praise. "How was it? How was it? Was it cool?"
"Something feels... off... Ah, right." Kira had placed one hand in front of him, wrapped the other around his neck, kicked his right leg up, and leaned his upper body back, striking the classic Dio pose.
"You have to add this pose to the line to achieve maximum shock value," Kira had said seriously.
"Hmm, is that so?" Seeing a set of clothes strike that pose was a little absurd, but she had nodded anyway.
"Remember, the most important thing is the aura."
Back in the present, Kira covered his face. Even without using Sheer Heart Attack as an infrared sensor, he knew that Hagakure was currently standing in the middle of the ring, striking Dio's classic pose.
He'd forgotten one thing. The moment Hagakure took off her clothes, she became completely invisible, just like Shizuka Joestar. Even if she struck a pose, no one would see it.
Midoriya took two steps back in shock, warily scanning his surroundings. "Hagakure-san!" he called out. "Even if I can't see you, I'll be able to sense it the moment you attack me! I don't want to use my Quirk on you!"
"I don't need you to go easy on me, Midoriya! I'm feeling great right now! This pose is amazing!"
There!
A dark red pattern appeared on one of Midoriya's fingers. He flicked it in the direction of the voice, and an instant later, a gale-force shockwave blasted the spot where Hagakure had been.
"Gah! Midoriya, you tricked me!" A thud was heard, and a human-shaped impression appeared on the ground for a moment. Hagakure reacted quickly, dusting herself off and vanishing back into thin air.
It didn't work. Midoriya's heart sank as he clutched his now-bruised finger. Now that his first surprise attack had failed, Hagakure would be on her guard and wouldn't reveal her position so easily again.
"Hagakure-san, I think a match like this is meaningless, don't you?" Midoriya said, walking toward the spot where she had just appeared. "You don't have a way to defeat me in an instant, and I can't find your location. As the opening match, this isn't a very good look, is it?"
Midoriya was always observing the people around him and had picked up some of Kira's verbal sparring tactics. He was now trying to use his words to probe for his opponent's weakness.
Hagakure didn't speak. The roar of the crowd was too loud, preventing Midoriya from hearing any footsteps. He had no way of determining her position.
The seconds ticked by into minutes. After ten minutes, sweat was pouring down Midoriya's face. He had been trying to bait Hagakure into talking the whole time, but she hadn't responded or attempted an attack.
The audience was growing impatient and had started to grumble. Many of them began to boo loudly, expressing their dissatisfaction.
"Where's the moss-head's opponent!? Why isn't she showing up!?"
"We didn't come here to waste our time!"
"Can't the opening match be a little more exciting!?"
Even Present Mic was starting to sweat. He wiped his brow with a handkerchief and tried to explain, "EVERYONE, PLEASE CALM DOWN! IT'S CLEAR THAT MIDORIYA HAS MADE THE MOST LOGICAL DECISION, WHICH IS TO SURVEY HIS SURROUNDINGS AND PREVENT HAGAKURE FROM GETTING CLOSE! HAGAKURE IS ALSO PLAYING IT SMART, WAITING FOR MIDORIYA TO EXPEND HIS STAMINA..."
His explanation was irrefutable, and anyone could see that. But the crowd was still unhappy. A Pro Hero stood up and shouted at Mic, "So when are they going to decide a winner!? It's already been fifteen minutes!"
Shota Aizawa narrowed his eyes. "If nothing unexpected happens, the winner will be decided—"
"Now."
Midoriya felt his head grow dizzy under the hot sun. He felt like Hagakure could attack him from anywhere at any moment. He was starting to regret his decision. He should have been more decisive and not given her any chance to react.
He was standing not far from the boundary line. He had already searched the entire ring, but to no avail; he couldn't find a trace of her. He had been on high alert for ten minutes straight, and his nerves were frayed.
Just a little rest... just a second... Midoriya told himself.
The moment Midoriya closed his eyes, he heard a scraping sound behind him. Not good, he thought, and tried to spin around, but it was too late.
"I was waiting for this moment, Midoriya!" Hagakure's foot kicked him in the lower back, forcing him to stumble a few steps toward the boundary line.
Where is she!? Midoriya spun around, holding his finger in front of him. This time, he wouldn't hold back. The moment he saw her move, he would flick without hesitation.
There was no movement in front of him, but Midoriya didn't let his guard down. However—
"You fell for it again, Midoriya!" Hagakure had appeared behind him again. She jabbed him in the back with her elbow, grabbed one of his arms, and executed a shoulder throw.
Midoriya's arm was caught by an invisible force, and his body was lifted into the air. His mind was blank. Am I going to be eliminated just like this? In the very first match? Am I going to fail All Might's expectations?
As his body reached the apex of the arc, the look in Midoriya's eyes changed, becoming firm and resolute again.
I have to announce to the world that I am here!
With a sickening crunch, Midoriya's wrist twisted at an unnatural angle. He pressed his fingers together and... flicked.
Hagakure, who had been sure of her victory and was already imagining herself in the national spotlight, suddenly felt a massive force slam into her back, as if she had been hit by a sledgehammer. The repulsive force was so strong that she was forced to let go of Midoriya's arm. Her body shot past the white boundary line, which was only a meter away, and flew straight toward the audience.
"HEEEELP!" Hagakure's scream let everyone know the outcome of the match. Midoriya, after being launched several meters into the air, began to fall. Without a moment's hesitation, Cementoss made his move.
A massive hand made of concrete shot out from the ring, growing larger like a breaching whale as it rose into the air and caught Midoriya.
The entire audience was stunned. Just moments ago, they had been complaining that the match was boring, but it had ended in a flash. They had thought the aggressor, Hagakure, would win, but in the blink of an eye, the invisible girl had been blown out of the ring, and Midoriya had been launched into the sky, only to be saved by the referee...
A tug on his sleeve from Aizawa snapped Present Mic back to his senses. He grabbed the microphone and hit the buzzer. "THE MATCH IS OVER! THE WINNER IS IZUKU MIDORIYA! HE WILL BE THE FIRST TO ADVANCE TO THE SECOND ROUND!"
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