Chapter 38: Himiko Plays Tag/2-A and 2-B
As it turns out, the Support Challenge is much like a cooking show. All the Support students get their own workstation and tools. Their challenge is to complete an unfinished Support Item. All sixty Support students have the same starting point: a round metal shell with internal mechanisms. Izuku doesn't know what those mechanisms are until about ten minutes into their thirty-minute time limit. At the very least the shell comes with an engine, and Izuku suspects there are axles as well.
Power Loader himself seems to be a temporary commentator. He's got his own camera—broadcasting to the holographic screens for the crowd to see— and he walks around discussing their projects with the competitors. Izuku expects that with an engine and axles, they'd all design cars. To his surprise, there's a significant amount of variation within their build. Someone's making a backpack that scales buildings for you. There's a fascinating Support Item for wind Quirks, using the axles as four different fans.
When Power Loader gets to her, Melissa just smiles and says, "It's a surprise!"
The time limit runs its course, and Present Mic calls out for the Support students to put their tools down. Power Loader goes around again seeing each build in action. They're all impressive. Izuku's grinning ear to ear only a few students in. They're impressive, and the Support industry is lucky to have them.
Then Power Loader reaches Melissa.
For a moment, Izuku thinks she has the same idea as the Wind Fan. The shell has four propellers affixed to the axles. With a grin, she powers the machine on, and it takes to the sky. She's created a flying drone. Izuku pulls out his phone and sends a quick text to his sister.
Izuku: You realize of course that Hatsume is gonna go nuts over this in the support club
Himi: w(ﾟДﾟ)w (＃°Д°) (⊙ˍ⊙)
Himi: oh no
He laughs and slides his phone back into his pocket.
There's a noticeable decrease in energy from the students presenting after Melissa. And that's not too surprising. While the variations on the theme are all excellent and well executed, enough that even a novice like Izuku can appreciate the nuance, Melissa made a flying drone. There's really no competing with that, and they all know it. A shame. Izuku hopes this doesn't discourage any of them.
Once everyone's presented, Power Loader politely pretends to deliberate over the winner before declaring Melissa's contraption the winner of the contest. It's probably bad for ratings that the outcome was a foregone conclusion from the moment she presented, but at the very least the build time was entertaining to watch. Maybe Izuku should learn more about Support Items like Himiko? Could be useful to know.
Izuku sends another text. It doesn't look like there'll be time to do it in person.
Izuku: Good luck out there himi! Kick their asses!
Himi: ヾ(≧∇≦)ゞ (づ￣ ³￣)づ
"With that nail-biting contest over, we're moving on to the next main event! I know you're all dying to see it! Let's give a hand to the Second-Years!"
The crowd goes wild once again. The Second-Year students pour out onto the field from the tunnels. Izuku himself cheers when he sees Himiko, and several of his friends join in.
Once they've taken their places on the field and Present Mic hypes the crowd up for each class, Midnight calls out their Player Representative. Izuku isn't surprised that it's Inazuma.
"That's the girl you want Kaminari to meet, right?" Jiro asks. "Do you know her?" Izuku nods.
"Yeah, she was in Class Z. Class Rep, too." Izuku lightly scratches at his cheek. "In a way, she's kind of the Yaoyorozu of the Class Z kids." Yaoyorozu starts at that.
"What do you mean? And please, Momo is fine. My surname is a mouthful."
"How do you keep getting first name basis, man?" Kaminari says. Yao—Momo turns bright red and Izuku sputters, flailing his arms.
"I—I meant that for everyone," Momo says. Kaminari laughs.
"I know, I'm sorry, I had to."
"Back on topic," Jiro says. Izuku nods.
"Well, Inazuma's the responsible one. She helps keep the class focused and improving."
"Ah, the mom friend," Joyato says.
Down on the pitch, Inazuma makes her way up onto the platform and turns to the microphone, facing the audience. She takes a deep breath and begins.
"I was told all my life that I would be an amazing Hero," she starts. Izuku swallows. He knows where this is going, but he didn't expect it. "The problem, is that the people who told me that were part of the Meta Liberation Army."
Izuku sucks in air through his teeth. The rest of Class 1-A are in much worse states of shock. They had no idea this was coming. And many of them aren't exactly fond of the MLA.
"How deplorable," continues Inazuma. "Raising a child as a Hero just to further your own ends." Todoroki starts coughing very hard, earning several worried glances, but he recovers quickly. "How dare they? How dare they steal my childhood? The childhoods of so many? But I'm here now at UA. And I can confidently say that anyone can be a Hero! We are not defined by our Quirks! We may be in different courses now, but Class Z is living proof of that! Plus Ultra!"
"Plus Ultra!"
"Such bold words," Midnight purrs. "I like it! Alright! Come get your targets!"
As the Second-Years on the pitch shuffle around to their designated places, Ochaco turns to Izuku.
"Who do you think will win?" she asks.
"If anyone knows, it's captain," adds Shinsou. Izuku sighs at the continued use of the nickname, but he can't hide his smile.
"Himiko," he says confidently.
"You have such faith in your family, mon amie," Aoyama says.
"This game is practically made for her," says Izuku. "I don't know if she'll have what she needs to use her Quirk, but she's fast, agile, and specializes in close quarters. Of class 2-A, only Wani, Miburui, and Utsuwa can really stop her once she's close. Ido's Quirk makes him hard to fight, but he'll get taken down by Inazuma. Ekitai will have the same trouble Lemillion had: their Quirk isn't compatible with the target." Izuku places his thumb next to his lip. "Inazuma, Fumen, and Shiazu have the range advantage, but Fumen's Quirk is conditional, and he'll struggle to use it without his gear and Shiazu's attacks can be dodged."
"Inazuma has the electric Quirk, yeah?" says Kaminari. "I can see why she'd be tough to take down. Why don't you think she'll win?"
"Numbers," says Izuku. "Her Quirk is strong, and she's good with it, but she needs to direct it with her arms. Once they reach the late game, she won't be able to defend herself as well. That being said, she stands a good chance at lasting the whole game."
"What about 2-B?" Shinsou says. Izuku shrugs, a little sheepish.
"I don't actually know much about them. And if the Third-Years are anything to go by, there's probably going to be other people who last the whole game. But I'm confident Himiko will come out on top."
Himiko takes a deep breath. This is it. Her first Sports Festival. She can do this. She's going to absolutely rock this game. Mom and Izuku are watching. She fastens her target to her chest.
Himiko keeps her eyes trained on Midnight. Any second now, she'll announce the minute to scatter, and it's going to be chaos from there. Energy races down her spine. She hasn't had the chance to do any work with 2-B yet. Their abilities are a total unknown.
"Alright kiddos! You have sixty seconds to scatter! Go!" Midnight yells, cracking her whip for emphasis. Himiko takes off running. There's only so much space, and she'll need open areas for her usual gymnastic trickery.
"Oh no you don't!" she hears to the side as Utsuwa uses his summoned knives to scale a concrete cube after Wani. She grins. Even now those two are competing.
Eventually Himiko stops around the far side of a smaller concrete block, about a meter taller than her. She presses her back to it and silences her breathing.
"Your head start is up! Begin the match!" Midnight says.
The tension in the air immediately transforms into hostility. Quirks fire off in every direction. Himiko keeps her breath steady and silent.
"Would you look at that! Vector just sent Flare running for the hills with her own attack!" Present Mic cheers. Huh, she expected Shiazu to know better. Did Ido intercept?
It's hard to hear over the carnage, but Himiko makes out footsteps approaching. She shifts into a combat stance and waits.
"Hey Carmilla," Miburui says, sliding around the block. She relaxes slightly.
Miburui Myakudo is one of her friends from Class Z who transferred to 2-A with her. He's just taller than her, with a narrow but fit build. His curly orange hair brushes against his shoulders.
"Nightquake!" she giggles. "Not exactly your game, huh?" That isn't technically accurate. Miburui's Quirk, Tuning, lets him sense vibrations through the ground. As long as you aren't in the air, he knows where you are. But Miburui isn't what Himiko would call the competitive type. He's also not overly fond of fighting.
"Yeah," he shuffles awkwardly. "Want to top off?" He holds out his arm. "My blood in exchange for immunity?" Himiko gulps. She's still not used to drinking blood directly. She's spoken with Hound Dog about it, but she still hasn't tried it since the first day she lived with her new family.
"I…" she says. "I might panic. Like, bad." She says. "If I start freaking out, can you promise not to let the cameras see?" Miburui shrugs.
"Okay."
She can do this. Izuku believes in her. Mom believes in her. An anesthetic effect to her Quirk. She's not the same starving girl barely keeping a mask together that she was in middle school. She's the Hero in training, The Vampire Hero: Carmilla. She won't let her Quirk scare her anymore.
Gingerly, she takes his arm. Breath in for four, wait for four, out for four. Before she can let her worries get the best of her, she bites down on his arm.
She feels the blood pool in her mouth. She opens her jaw, pulling her fangs out of her friend's limb, and swallows. Warmth floods her body, and her Quirk tingles inside her.
"You're trembling," Miburui says. Himiko nods slowly. But she's still here. She's not… locked in her past.
"I'm…" her wet voice wavers, "I'm fine. I'm fine. I did it!"
"Neat," says Miburui.
Himiko lets her Quirk take over, and a wave of her comforting slime washes over her, reshaping around her into her classmate. As the information floods her brain, she grimaces, stumbling. Miburui clicks his tongue.
"Forgot to mention how disorienting that is. Thank God we don't have Mr. Aizawa all the time. That turning on and off would drive me crazy."
"I'm alright," Himiko says in his voice.
"Is this a magic trick?" yells Present Mic. "Over there, I see two Nightquakes!"
"One of them is Carmilla, obviously," drawls Mr. Aizawa.
"I know that, I'm being dramatic!"
"Well, there goes that secrecy advantage," she says, physically feeling the attention that announcement raised through her copied Quirk.
"I'm getting out while the getting's good," Miburui says. She nods, and they split in different directions.
"It's like a shell game! Which one is the realNightquake?" Present Mic echoes over the arena.
"Meanwhile, Wanigator and Saber haven't stopped their own little fight since the start of the game," says Mr. Aizawa. Himiko suppresses a snort. Of course Wani and Utsuwa are still fighting. "Vector is repelling a pretty sizable number of competitors. Oh, I spoke too soon. Stormwatch just fried him."
"Phantasm's Quirk might not dance well with our tag targets, but they're doing a heck of a job ignoring Fantasia's attacks!"
Himiko already knows all this, thanks to Tuning, but it's good to hear everyone else's attention get dragged elsewhere. She runs at a trio of distracted students, tagging all three of them as she goes by.
"What? Hey!"
Oh, now they're chasing her. That'll keep things interesting.
Through Tuning, she feels Shiazu stretch an arm directly at her from her perch above her on a concrete cube. Another one of her 2-A classmates, Shiazu Irori's Quirk doesn't produce much fire, but it can impact pretty hard. Himiko throws herself down, rolling forwards as the fire blasts her three pursuers.
"Better luck next time, Flare!" she calls.
"So that is you, Carmilla!" Shiazu responds. Himiko grins, running up the wall and pulling herself up to Shiazu's level.
As Himiko lands in front of Shiazu, the girl's gray eyes widening in surprise, she grins.
"Oh, that looks weird on Nightquake," Shiazu shudders. And that's Himiko's opening. She sweeps Shiazu's legs, tagging the target on her chest as the girl catches herself.
"And Flare is out! But was it Nightquake or Carmillathat made the kill?"
"Whoever it is, they're about to be in trouble," says Eraserhead, but she already knows. Like everyone in 2-A, Utsuwa and Wani know both their fighting styles well enough to know she isn't Miburui. And they've decided to put their personal grudge match on hold to tango with Himiko.
Utsuwa arrives first. He's gotten even better at his trick of summoning shields beneath his feet to jump from since their first Quirk Apprehension Test, and he easily closes the distance from his cube to Himiko's. He drops from above, throwing daggers down to limit her movements. Annoyingly, weapons made from his Weapon Manifestation Quirk only last a few seconds, meaning she can't even steal them.
"Saber specializes in close range combat," says Eraserhead. "Not that that's a surprise. However, being forced to defend his own tag target has severely limited his abilities today. Not that it's easy to tell."
Eraserhead's right. Utsuwa is just that good. She's still not beaten him in an armed spar. But this is the Sports Festival, which means she has a few advantages she doesn't usually.
Utsuwa jabs at her with a spear, and she quickly sidesteps. He turns and sweeps with the spear, but Himiko leaps over it.
"I hope you didn't forget about me!" Wani says, pulling herself up and charging the two. As the spear fades, Utsuwa quickly throws up a shield to stop Wani.
Like the fact that Utsuwa has to contend with the other players.
A blast of fire slams into Utsuwa's exposed chest and knocks him back.
"It's a real party up there with Saber, Wanigator, Flare, and Carmilla!" says Present Mic.
"Oh now you know who it is," comments Eraserhead.
"Saber's down but not out until he's tagged!"
Wani flicks her eyes between the recovering Utsuwa and Himiko. Since Shiazu's out, there's only so much Wani can do to remove her from the fight. She chooses Himiko. A clawed hand rakes past her head. Himiko jabs Wani in the side. As Wani doubles over, Himiko reaches for her target.
A burst of air forces her back. That wasn't Wani's Quirk! She staggers, keeping her arms in a defensive position. Tuning tells her someone is in front of her.
"When did Bolt arrive?" yells out Present Mic. Bolt, huh? Must be 2-B. Himiko's never seen the tall girl before. Bolt moves a strand of her wavy azure hair out of the way of her midnight eyes. Her hair stands out against her dark skin.
Bolt's tall, lean, and built. And apparently, fast.
"If you'd been paying attention, Mic, you'd know she made a running leap from a higher platform to reach them," says Eraserhead.
"Damn," Wani says with a lazy grin, looking down at her now red target. "You got me good."
"Hey. Bolt, right?" says Utsuwa, on his feet again. "You just took my prey."
Bolt opens her mouth to respond but before she can utter a word, Utsuwa launches about a dozen daggers at her. Instinctively, Himiko jumps out of the way.
Bolt vanishes.
No, not vanishes. Himiko felt every movement with Tuning. Bolt ran, nothing more. But Himiko can't seeher.
Wani shifts, leaping forward to a spot behind Himiko, where Himiko feels Bolt stop.
Himiko whirls in time to see Bolt desperately warding off Wani's attacks, her back to the edge of the block. Why isn't she using her speed against Wani? Maybe she can't. Izuku would probably know.
"Revenge is mine!" Wani cheers as she taps Bolt's target.
"And Wanigator avenges herself!" Present Mic says as the crowd goes wild.
"I'll let it slide this time. Better put up a real challenge tomorrow, Wanigator," Utsuwa calls.
"So. Hunting party?" says Shiazu. Himiko suddenly remembers that she and Utsuwa are the only ones still in on this cube. The panicked glance he shoots her confirms he realized the same thing.
Bolt vanishes again, but this time, Himiko's ready. She jumps back out of her rapidly melting disguise. The other girl slips on the running slime and hits the ground. She's sacrificed her copy of Tuning, but she's also still in the game.
"Wow! You're so much fun!" Himiko giggles. "We should do this again sometime!"
"It's a nice change of pace," Utsuwa admits, "But maybe you should focus a little more on the game, Carmilla?"
"You Class A guys really are crazy," Bolt says, getting back to her feet with a smile.
"And proud of it!" says Wani.
Eliminated players can still tag people out. In other words, there's no way to remove an opponent from combat unless both are tagged, or one is sent to Recovery Girl. Himiko is not particularly interested in maiming her classmates. Which leaves her with only a few options to deal with her pursuers.
Himiko chooses the easiest option. She jumps off the cube.
"Carmilla's not only shed her disguise, but now she's jumped down into the fray below! What is she thinking?" Present Mic says.
"She made a rational choice," says Eraserhead. "The more people there are, the harder it is to gang up on an individual without risking collateral damage and friendly fire."
Himiko hits the ground with a roll. The fifteen or so competitors around her stop to gawk. Well, Himiko's never been one to look a gift horse in the mouth. She dances between them, tapping every blue target she passes.
"And right at the twenty-minute mark, Carmilla eliminates another four competitors! For those keeping score, she's taken down eight people on her own!" calls out Present Mic. "We've got forty minutes to go, and only a little over half the players are still in!"
Shuichi really doesn't care about the Sports Festival. It's just a bunch of brats fighting over who got luckiest at birth. And then the brutes there at UA get their licenses and get free reign to use their Quirks out on the street. Just what he needs. Another kid with a silver spoon calling him a villain for being born with scales.
And because he doesn't care about the Sports Festival, he only happens to see it on a TV screen inside a bar as he walks past. But there, on the screen, is a girl who looks just like him. No, her Quirk is even more heteromorphic than his. She has a tail!
Shuichi stops there in the middle of the sidewalk, starstruck.
The text crawl calls the girl Wanigator.
Shuichi thinks there might be some good Heroes out there after all.
Most of the Tag Game is a blur. Weave through a crowd of students here, duel someone there. The occasional wall run or flip over someone's head to avoid being tagged. At some point, Himiko deliberately leads a group of pursuers directly to Inazuma, who despite her best efforts, gets tagged.
She learned Inazuma's weakness after their Class Representative death battle.
As Himiko moves around the field, she sees less and less blue targets. She spots a tagged Utsuwa at some point and hopes he won't hold a grudge.
(He will. She knows.)
Himiko leaps over a shorter student who's covered her entire body in spikes, avoiding a burst of water. Someone tagged spike girl? Impressive.
"And Carmilla escapes both Needlepoint and Riverbank! Class 2-B just cannot stop her!" cheers Present Mic.
"Carmilla, like many of our Hero Students, works best in close quarters. This is a major weakness of hers, and she's worked hard to compensate for that with her mobility skills," Eraserhead comments.
"And she's put those skills to good use! Carmilla is in the final five!"
"Don't let her impressive display distract you from other students. Barrier is still in as well. And many of our eliminated players performed excellently." Barrier? Must be another 2-B student. "I'm curious which of our last two Hero Course participants will outlast the other."
So that leaves three Gen-Ed students. Probably all used to be Class Z; Nedzu trained them all pretty thoroughly. Himiko smiles at the memory.
"And we're down to the last five minutes!" Present Mic announces.
Oh wow, time flies when you're being chased by a ravenous pack of feral UA students. Himiko laughs. She's having a blast!
"Uh oh, looks like Barrier's been found!" says Present Mic.
"His Quirk is an excellent defensive tool, and his force fields are difficult to break. Especially in a contest like this compared to real combat. That being said, it'll be interesting to see if he struggles keeping his target safe from so many at once."
Suddenly, all of Himiko's hairs stand on end. She freezes instinctively. Then the boom sounds as an electric bolt streaks past her, scorching the concrete cube to her left. The smell of ozone is thick in the air.
Inazuma.
"Class Rep! Hey!" Himiko waves. "Having fun?"
"I cannot believe you fed me to a swarm like that!" Inazuma calls, but she's smiling. She's in between two large cubes, about ten meters or so away.
"Love and war, Stormwatch!"
Inazuma shoots another lightning bolt at Himiko, but they haven't been in the same class for so long for nothing. It was about two months into Class Z that Himiko finally realized that while she couldn't dodge the lightning, all she has to do is not be where Inazuma is pointing when she fires. It goes just past her, the crackling air making her hair stand on end.
The crowd that's been chasing Himiko recovers from its stupor. Himiko expects them to rush her, but instead they back away. Ah. They're leaving me to fight her alone. That's fair. She can't promise she wouldn't use them as human shields. It's not like Inazuma uses harmful amounts of electricity. A little tasing never hurt anyone!
Now, there is something most people wouldn't think of when facing Inazuma. But most people didn't take Support classes with her. And so Himiko knows that Inazuma is not immune to electricity. So, without her Support Items, there is exactly one opening Himiko can exploit. If she's too close, Inazuma risks frying herself too.
Himiko rushes Inazuma. The tan girl thrusts her hand forward, and Himiko shoves off to the side just in time to avoid another lightning strike. The window on doing that is small, and Himiko knows Inazuma only needs to get lucky once. Another bolt passes by. All the hair not secured in her braid fritzes out.
She closes the distance, aiming a punch directly at Inazuma's stomach. Inazuma blocks, and Himiko takes the opportunity to land a hard kick to the back of her knee. Inazuma staggers, her short turquoise curls flying everywhere. Himiko grabs Inazuma's arm and shoves her to the ground, pinning her.
"You really are going Plus Ultra today Carmilla," Inazuma says.
"Of course! Izu's watching!"
Unfortunately, so is the horde of other competitors. And now they don't have to worry about Inazuma's lightning either. Hm.
Himiko's getting ready to throw Inazuma at the oncoming students reaching for her target when the buzzer saves her.
"And that's time!" he says. "Check your scoreboards, folks! This round was a nail-biter!"
"Huh," drawls Eraserhead. "It seems that we had an upset there at the end."
"Whoa, would you look at that!"
What? What happened? Himiko glances down, but her target is still glowing blue.
"Carmilla is the only survivor of the Second-Year tag game!"
Oh.
There's her codename up on the scoreboard with 3600 points.
She won.
"Good game, Carmilla!" Inazuma says, as Himiko lets her up.
"Thanks, Stormwatch," she pants. "I think I'm going to sleep now."
"Wait until we're in the stands, the cameras are watching."
Izuku feels his phone buzz as soon as everyone walks off the pitch. He massages his throat. He mayhave cheered a little too loud at the end. Oh well. He pulls his phone out and sees a new message from his sister.
Himi: This is Inazuma.
Himi: Your sister seems to have crashed after her victory.
Himi: She is taking a nap here in the stands.
Himi: We'll be sure to wake her for lunch.
Izuku chuckles.
Himi: I know we'll be doing the same, but could you record the Second-Year Support Challenge?
Himi: She'll be sad she missed Hari and Haguruma.
You: Of course
Izuku pockets his phone. Jiro places a hand on his shoulder, and he looks up at her.
"You called it, alright," she says.
"She barely used her Quirk," Sero says.
"I'd hope she knows how to fight Quirkless, given I'm her brother," says Izuku, standing. That gets a laugh out of his friends. "Apparently, she fell asleep as soon as she got off the field. I'm going to go check on her. Momo, can you record the Support Challenge? Two of her friends are in it."
"Of course, Midoriya," says his vice Representative.
This is it. After the Support Challenge is lunch, and then Izuku's going to go out there and compete.
He smiles.
Chapter 39: Over the Top/First Round's Conclusion
Izuku smiles as he debates which picture of a napping Himiko he wants to send to mom. He eventually decides on the one where they've draped a spare uniform over her as a blanket. The rest of the once-Class Z students—minus Hari and Haguruma, currently on the field for the Support Challenge—are visible in the background in silly poses. Izuku hits send and follows it up with a message reading: 'Our Champion.'
He pockets his phone as he slips back into the Class 1-A booth.
"Hey guys, did I miss anything?" he says.
"Not at all, kero." Tsuyu says. "It looks like they're using the same starting point as the Third-Years."
"I wonder where they got them all," Izuku says as he sits down. "Do you think Mr. Maijima made them, or were they bought in bulk from somewhere?"
"Who would sell unfinished Support Items?" Momo wonders.
The Second-Year inventions are interesting, but far less diverse than the Third-Years. Several are variations of things the Third-Years already made. There are a handful of cars. Someone tries to recreate Melissa's drone. Theirs, unfortunately, explodes. Izuku isn't totally sure how that happened, but it earns mad cackling from the 1-H booth.
Haguruma manages to build working legs, letting her egg-shell-thing walk around. Hari built a catapult. Izuku doesn't know how it will help Heroes, but it iscool to watch in action.
Haguruma is crowned the winner, and Present Mic announces that they'll break for a one-hour lunch.
It's just after lunch, and Class 1-A are all together in their designated waiting room. There's a tension in the air. Their upperclassmen have set the bar. Now it's time for the First-Year performance.
The waiting room is nothing special. Lockers line one of the walls. There's a set of vending machines in the corner. Otherwise, there's no furniture except the folding table and chairs set up so they don't have to stand the whole time they're waiting.
"Has everyone completed their preparations?" Yaoyorozu asks. Ah, yeah. Class Rep and all that. Izuku clears his throat and stands up.
"There's only a few minutes left until we go out there. We're going to be representing UA to all of Japan today," he says. "Take a deep breath and focus. This is our first Sports Festival! Let's show everyone what we're made of!"
Todoroki glances up from where he's leaning against the wall. He looks at Izuku with an unreadable expression, his piercing eyes seemingly dissecting him. Izuku returns his gaze, his eyes burning with determination.
Todoroki looks away first.
Izuku feels it first. A deep rumbling from every corner of the stadium. The hallway leading out onto the field trembles. He can feel it in his bones.
He hears it next. The rumbling is not some random shaking, not some movement of the earth. It's the cheering of the crowd. Screaming, yelling, whistling, hollering. There's a fire in the air.
Sunlight streams down the tunnel, practically blinding. It's almost a pure white at the end of the tunnel. He steps out onto the pitch as Present Mic cheers.
"And from the Heroics Course! They may not have the training of their upperclassmen, but keep an eye on the raw talent here! Freshman class! Give it up for Class 1-A!"
The crowd roars as the twenty students step out into the sunlight, taking their place in the crowd in front of Mrs. Kay—Midnight. This is an official event. She's Midnight right now.
"There's so many people," Izuku says, scanning over the crowd in the stands. "It's different down here than up there." That's an understatement, and he knows it. There is an ocean of people, holding signs, standing, yelling, jeering. It's complete chaos up there. Izuku's glad the students get their own seats to watch from. He's not sure he'd survive a mass that hyped up.
"So many eyes from every direction… can we draw out our best performances like this?" Iida ponders, mostly to himself. "Perhaps it would be best to get swept up in their fervor, use it as energy."
"They aren't the only Freshman Class from our Heroics department! Their skill and passion are undeniable! Give it up for Class 1-B!"
Izuku turns his head so he can see the other class emerge from their own tunnel. He's not really interacted with them, outside of Kendo during the assault. And that's hardly a friendship there. It's certainly an interesting bunch, but he could say much the same about Class 1-A. Except, somethings not right. He looks over all the 1-B students again. A third time. He counts them. 20.
Why isn't Bakugou with them?
"Following our outstanding Heroics department, our freshman General Educational courses! You may be tempted to overlook them for not being in one of our specialized departments, but I assure you they're some of the best and brightest of the next generation!"
There are students in Gen-Ed with everything to prove and nothing to lose. Izuku won't let himself underestimate them. Izuku keeps a careful eye on the newcomers as they emerge from the tunnel. He won't be blindsided by—
Holy shit.
Bakugou is in Gen-Ed?
Was he demoted after the Ground Omega attack? No, Nedzu wouldn't punish him for pretending to be a villain under those circumstances. So then, why?
Izuku's eyes widen.
Did he… not pass the entrance exam?
Did Bakugou…
Lose?
"Next, it's our genius tinkerers, our mechanical savants! Give it up for the freshman Support Course!" Present Mic calls out, startling Izuku out of his thoughts. Right. He can find out more later. He has a Sports Festival to focus on right now.
Izuku remembers what Himiko told him about that one First-Year Support student who's working with her and Melissa at the Support Club. He wonders if she has anything planned for this Festival. Almost certainly.
"Alright, everyone!" Midnight yells, cracking her whip. "You've heard from the Player Representative of the Third and Second years, it's time for your First-Year Player Rep!" She dramatically flings her arm forward to gesture into the crowd of students. It looks like she's pointing at—
Oh.
Shit.
"Valiant of Class 1-A!"
Izuku swallows and steels his nerves. This is it. His first big moment in the spotlight. He makes his way to the front of the crowd, ignoring the intense looks from the Gen-Ed course. Especially Bakugou.
Izuku climbs the stairs and onto the stage. Midnight moves so he can stand in front of the microphone. Izuku takes a deep breath. Okay. Improvise a quick speech. Fair enough.
"I worked hard to be here," he starts, his voice echoing throughout the stadium, "just like everybody else here. We put our blood, sweat, and tears into achieving our dreams. So, here we are. We are the next generation! Not just of Heroes. Not just of Support designers and engineers. Not just of Hero Managers. We are the future of Japan. Your leaders, your giants. This is our Sports Festival. If you count us out before seeing what we can do, we'll make you regret it. You all better give it everything you have, because I will. And I won't lose to anything less than your best. So, Japan, today? Watch us." Izuku raises his fist in the air and shouts. "Plus Ultra!"
"Plus Ultra!" comes the response from the crowd and the students. The Gen-Ed section looks dumbstruck, like they never expected acknowledgement. They probably didn't. The Support students look particularly enthusiastic. He's excited to see what they'll make, but that comes later. Now, they're returning to the stands with the Management course.
As Izuku returns to his place in the group, Midnight takes the reins again, handing out the tag targets. Izuku fastens his to his chest.
"Alright you little scamps," purrs Midnight, "your sixty second head start begins… now!"
The horde of a hundred students descend upon the field. Most notably Bakugou, whose explosions propel him in an almost flight. Iida blurs past Izuku as he scales a concrete cube. Without any handholds, he can't directly parkour his way up the taller blocks, but he can use the other, smaller blocks as a starting point if he jumps. Izuku just barely pulls himself up to the top of the tallest block when the timer buzzes. The game is on.
And the arena freezes.
Todoroki stands across from Izuku on top of the tall block, his hand pressed to the ground. His ice covers every surface, trapping the competition's legs in place. Shouts of indignation echo from around the arena.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What's this! Himura's frozen over the entire field! Our Sports Festival Stadium just turned into a winter wonderland!" Present Mic says.
"Himura has quite a lot of control over his ice," says Eraserhead. "And prefers using overwhelming force to end a fight as soon as possible. Unfortunately for him, his classmates in 1-A aren't so easily stopped, and I bet 1-B is the same."
He's proven right only a moment later, when the sound of shattering ice carries through the air. Izuku grits his teeth. Without his gear, he's going to have a much harder time getting free. He also worries about Tsuyu. Hopefully she has a way to stay warm.
Then he hears the explosions.
Bakugou soars up from the far side of the block. His eye narrow in on Todoroki, and with another set of explosions, he charges him.
"Not only that, but King Explosion from 1-C is undeniably powerful. Himura would do well to not underestimate his opposition," Eraserhead continues.
Todoroki waves his arm and a wall of ice shoots out of the ground in front of him, but Bakugou simply blasts through it. Bakugou spins in midair, putting all of his momentum into a punch to Todoroki's jaw. The boy goes flying, bouncing and sliding along the ice.
Izuku pries at the ice around his legs.
"C'mon sun! melt the stupid ice already!" he mutters.
"Need some help?"
Izuku whirls as best he can with his legs trapped. Behind him is Kendo. Her hands rapidly enlarge to roughly the size of her body and she pries the ice off of him.
"Thanks?" Izuku says.
"You saved my life," says Kendo. "And then when you got hurt…" she trails off.
"You don't need to repay me," Izuku sputters. Kendo laughs.
"I know! But I want to. Thank you," she says sincerely. "Good luck!" Kendo drops down from the block, using her hand to quickly scale down the ice sheets covering the sides of the concrete block.
"And Battle Fist goes out of her way to help Valiant! Such camaraderie!"
Another wave of ice gets blown to pieces by Bakugou, and the entire cube trembles. Izuku had hoped no one else would want the central block so early, but he underestimated Bakugou and Todoroki. Well. He'll leave them to it. For now.
"This is probably our fastest round of eliminations," says Eraserhead. "While most of our Heroics students had no difficulty escaping the ice, the Gen-Ed kids are not so fortunate. They're easy pickings and our competitors know it."
"And what's with the crazy attacks we're seeing there in the center?"
"Himura's going all out against King Explosion. Which is interesting because I'm not certain that's true the other way around," Eraserhead says. "It looks more like he's just seeing how Himura reacts. If I had to guess, King Explosion is making sure he doesn't push himself too far on day one while still learning more about an opponent he considers a threat."
Izuku slips back down the side of the cube, the jutting out shards of ice making for excellent handholds. Making sure to stay out of reach of the trapped students, Izuku picks a direction and runs.
It's only moments later that Class 1-B descend on him.
A wave of thorned vines surges up from under the ice, shattering the ground as it reaches for him. Izuku leaps to the side, only to be pushed back again by sharp green scales embedding themselves in the ice, barely keeping his footing on the slippery terrain. Another wave of vines springs from the ground. Izuku grabs the nearest scale and cleaves through the wall of foliage.
"You're more clever than I thought for being 1-A trash," a voice sounds from above as another student lands behind him. Izuku whirls but not fast enough to stop the boy from shoving him. Staggering, Izuku quickly rights himself and faces his assailant, a blonde boy staring at his own hand with curiosity.
"Your Quirk didn't work?" Izuku guesses. "What is it?"
"Copy," the boy says with narrow eyes.
"Ah, you duplicate someone's Quirk? That's really cool! Can you do mutant—" the boy's eyes narrow further and Izuku realizes he's off topic. "Oh! Sorry. Anyway, I'm Quirkless. Nothing to copy." The blonde's eyes shoot wide for a moment before he schools his features again. He whistles.
"I got a lot of flack for being functionally Quirkless without anyone to copy," he says with a manic grin. "You might be 1-A, but do me a favor and prove bastards like that wrong, huh?"
"Always the plan," Izuku says. He lunges, catching the other boy by surprise and quickly pins him. Before he can tag him, the other boy's hands enlarge and Izuku shoves himself back.
"Look at that! A joint offensive! Phantom Thief, Dragon Shroud and Vine have all joined forces to take on Valiant!"
Izuku flicks his eyes between his assailants.
"So that's it," Izuku says. "All of Class 1-B is in an alliance, I presume?"
There's not as much room to maneuver as he'd like, but those scales are going to be tricky to aim at a moving target without risking hitting a teammate. Or worse, one of the competitors still trapped in place from the start of the round. They're sharp. Dragon Shroud could seriously hurt someone if he's not careful.
"The more of us succeed, the better the chances of a 1-B student taking the podium," Phantom Thief says. "But you 1-A guys didn't think of that at all, did you?"
"Not really," Izuku says with a shrug. "But are you really sure all of you can take me?"
Izuku slowly shifts how he's holding the scale. It's sharp on every edge, so he could easily cut himself if he isn't careful with it.
Phantom Thief charges Izuku with his hands still enlarged. At the same time, Izuku sees the budding vines underneath his feet. Vine is trying to pin him again. Wow her name is on the nose. As Phantom Thief rears back a punch, Izuku quickly sidesteps, tripping the boy into Vine's rapidly expanding foliage prison. The blonde yelps in surprise before being totally restrained. Vine covers her mouth with her hands and releases him, but not before Izuku manages to tag him.
While Phantom Thief gets back to his feet, Izuku charges Vine. Apparently still stunned by her accidental friendly fire, the vines spring out around him instead of underneath, and he has ample time to dodge forwards before they close around him. Dragon Shroud sprouts reptilian scales over his arms—so damn cool—and charges Izuku.
"Vine!" he calls. "Be ready!"
Ah, so that's his plan. Interesting. Perhaps it's time to utilize some of his lessons from Nedzu?
"Don't hit your teammate again!" Izuku says. "I don't want this win to be too easy!" he quickly glances over his shoulder. Phantom Thief's hands have returned to normal. He's standing back, just watching. Okay then.
Dragon Shroud moves in, trying to grapple him. An obvious strategy. Izuku's been evading, so Dragon Shroud wants to pin him so Vine can restrain him more easily. There is, however, a flaw in that plan. Two actually. First, Vine is still distraught from hitting her ally. Especially with Izuku's taunt just now. She's hesitating.
Dragon Shroud swipes at Izuku. Izuku steps around his guard and slams a fist into the other boy's exposed stomach.
Second, Dragon Shroud is not as good at hand-to-hand as Izuku.
Before Izuku can tag the target, Dragon Shroud blindly swipes at him again. Izuku grabs him around the arm and sweeps his leg. Dragon Shroud lands on his back, coughing up spittle, the wind knocked out of him. Izuku tags him without issue.
Vines sprout around Izuku, but he cuts through them with the scale. He thinks he might've cut his hand, but he isn't focusing on that right now. He still has someone left to tag—
A massive mountain of ice erupts out behind Vine. Tall enough to peak through the top of the stadium, large enough to brush the stands.
"Holy shi—Eraserhead just what are you teaching your students? How many people got caught in that?" Present Mic says.
Izuku and Vine whirl to stare at Todoroki, who stands alone on the central cement block. No, not alone. Bakugou is partially encased at the front of the glacier. All of that and almost the whole thing went behind him? Excessive much?
Todoroki reaches for Bakugou's target, and Bakugou explodes. The loud crack of the ice reverberates long after the initial boom.
"It looks like King Explosion's weakened the internal structure of the ice. I don't see anyone inside that's trapped, luckily. Himura could've gotten disqualified for excessive force there," Eraserhead drawls.
"What the hell, man!" yells out a guy made of steel, breaking free of the ice. "You coulda killed somebody!"
"Hey Himura! Attacks like that aren't very manly!" Kirishima yells, forcing his way out of the glacier next to the steel student. Both of them stop and stare at each other for a moment. Then the internal damage they did to the glacier catches up to the massive ice creation. Giant spiderweb cracks shoot out from within and soon the entire thing collapses into the ground, releasing a wall of frosty mist. Vine quickly creates a plant shield large enough to keep the mist off of everyone nearby.
Izuku waves ice crystals and dust out of his face.
"Vine! Are you alright?"
"I am safe," comes the reply, though he still can't see her. "I was shielded. What of our compatriots?" Izuku looks around the nearby area.
"I think everyone's alright," he says. "You were amazing!"
"I merely—" she stops to cough. "Apologies, just the dust. I merely did my duty."
"Do you see the two who were in that thing?" there's a moment's pause before Vine replies.
"Yes! They are both… not unharmed, but it appears they are merely stunned," she says. Izuku sags in relief. Trying to tag Vine again now seems in poor taste, so Izuku takes his leave.
Minutes pass as Izuku keeps moving around the arena. By now, most of the students trapped by Todoroki's opening attack have been tagged by passing players. Despite his encounter with Kendo, most of 1-B travels in groups, which Izuku avoids. Bakugou's explosions still echo out across the arena, followed by the sounds of shattering ice. So that's still happening. Izuku wonders what Todoroki thinks of his biggest opponent being in Gen-Ed.
"What the fu—fantastic Quirk technique!" Present Mic manages to quickly salvage. Izuku looks around to see what could've broken Present Mic's composure like that. Then he sees the faint shadows on the ground and looks up.
Holy shit.
Suspended in the air above the stadium is hundreds, maybe thousands of shards of ice. That's not how Todoroki's Quirk works. So where did it all—
Oh.
Izuku smiles.
"Oh, you finally noticed Uravity's strategy then?" drawls Eraserhead from the booth. "She's made clever use of her environment."
So. Izuku needs cover and he needs it fast.
He bets Momo doesn't have this problem. But then again, Momo is practically a god, so… Izuku scans the area for any usable shelter. There really isn't any. But maybe he can use someone else's Quirk as a shield.
Izuku runs. He could simply move to the outer edge of the field and hope the ice doesn't reach him out there. But he also wants to win. To show his class that they'll have to be smarter and stronger. And that means he needs to beat Todoroki. If this goes how he expects, this is probably his best opening.
He doesn't hear Ochaco release the ice, but he certainly sees it.
"It's incredible! Uravity has made her own meteor shower out of Himura's ice!" cheers Present Mic. "First Himura now this! We haven't seen anythingthis intense all day!"
"Personally, I'm more impressed that she managed to fight Polaris while keeping all of that ice suspended."
Izuku grins. Joyato fights well. Ochaco must've really taken those lessons with Mr. Aizawa seriously.
Then the sky explodes.
Or, more accurately, Bakugou raises his hands and blasts away Ochaco's attack.
At least, that was the theory.
Izuku hasn't been watching, so he doesn't know for certain where she got her ice, but he assumes Ochaco used the debris from Todoroki's massive glacier. And that left a lot of debris.
And that means that while Bakugou manages to obliterate a not inconsiderable amount of ice, most of the meteor shower (as Present Mic put it) is still intact.
And his explosion only propels some of it harder.
The rubble rains down on anyone unfortunate enough to be under it. Yelps and cries sound out from across the entire arena. Students across the field yell as they're overwhelmed by the assault. Crashes and bangs sound out from across the field.
"In a single move, Uravity has decimated her competition!" cheers Present Mic. "King Explosion's blast has excellently shielded the central block, but it doesn't look like many people are still active after that!"
"Technically, if they aren't tagged…"
"Silence, Eraserhead!"
"But then how can I point out Uravity and Valiant have reached the central platform?"
Izuku looks across the platform. Just as Eraserhead said, Ochaco is pulling herself up too. Their eyes meet, and Ochaco nods.
"And look at that! Uravity and Valiant are teaming up to take down the titans King Explosion and Himura!" Present mic yells as Izuku charges forwards towards Todoroki.
The other boy is undeniably a powerhouse, but he's spent the past hour duking it out with Bakugou. They're both at their limit, but Izuku isn't. And Izuku has a plan. From what he's seen, Todoroki only ever uses his right arm. Maybe his Quirk doesn't make ice from the left? It's either a bait or a weakness, and Izuku's doubts Todoroki would keep up an act like that for a whole month amongst classmates.
He rushes Todoroki from the left. The other boy notices him at the last second and shoots a thin spear of ice at him. Izuku sidesteps, staying on Todoroki's left and moves in again. Todoroki grits his teeth, but Izuku just smiles. As long as the other boy only uses his right arm, he'll struggle to get a good angle on Izuku on his left.
Todoroki tries again to turn so he can aim properly at Izuku, but Izuku dives low, getting close. He reaches for Todoroki's target again, but Todoroki bats his arm away with his right hand. Izuku grabs the arm and drags, staggering Todoroki. Once more, he reaches for the target on the center of Todoroki's chest. Just as his fingers are about to brush it, a wave of heat rolls over Izuku's body. He blinks, just missing the target.
Izuku braces himself to defend, but Todoroki is just staring at his own right arm as though it's personally offended him. The most emotion he's seen from Todoroki so far.
Izuku sees an opportunity and takes it.
"Incredible! Valiant's come out of nowhere and done what King Explosion couldn't the whole game! He's eliminated Himura!" Present Mic hollers.
"He waited until an opportune moment. Valiant fights smarter, not harder," says Eraserhead.
"But King Explosion is having his own problems!"
Izuku leaves Todoroki to his internal crisis. He wants to watch Ochaco kick Bakugou's ass.
Bakugou's swings are fast and brutal. Targeted and deliberate. He's a prodigy. But Ochaco's been training with Mr. Aizawa in preparation for the Sports Festival. And her training was, if anything, more brutal than Izuku's own. Bakugou's strikes go wide as Ochaco ducks around his movements.
Every time he misses, Ochaco makes a move for his target, forcing Bakugou to blast himself backwards out of reach. And a moment later, she's close to him again. The two of them are locked in a stalemate. Whoever screws up first loses.
Bakugou's blasts loosen chunks of ice from the ground. As she passes, Ochaco grabs one in each hand and hurls them at Bakugou. He deflects them both easily, but in that moment, Ochaco moves in at his target.
Bakugou explodes.
Ochaco and Bakugou fly off in opposite directions. Ochaco tumbles and slides across the ice. Bakugou drops off the side.
"A double knock-out? Are they alright?" calls out Present Mic. Izuku is already moving. He drops to his knees at Ochaco's side.
"Och—Uravity! Are you alright?" he says. She lets out a groan and pushes herself off the ground.
"That hurt more than I expected," she smiles weakly. "I'll be okay! Besides, I got him!"
Izuku blinks, processing. The second he realizes what she's saying, he starts laughing.
"Oh, he's gonna be furious," Izuku manages.
Fortunately, Bakugou never gets the chance to recover.
The buzzer sounds.
"And that's time!" Present Mic yells. "Uravity's last-minute tagging of King Explosion leaves us with… am I reading this right?"
"It would seem that sixteen students survived the entire round," says Eraserhead. "Quite a few from Class 1-B, who organized a level of cooperation through the event."
Wait, what? Sixteen? Izuku looks up at the scoreboard. There, clear as day, are sixteen competitors with matching scores of 3600 tied for first.
Battle FistChargeboltCreatiEarphone JackIgnitionInvisible GirlLizardyPlamoRockettiRuleShemageTentacoleTsukuyomiUravityValiantVine"Wow! After our Third-Years and Second-Years cut it so tight, I'd have thought our First-Years would, too!" says Present Mic.
"As I said, Class B's cooperation resulted in many of them surviving when they would not have on their own. Additionally, multiple players were downed by Uravity's meteor shower, but never tagged. The larger number of players in first is a testament to the First-Years inexperience, if anything. Hopefully, they'll learn from this."
As they all make their way off the field, Izuku can't help but smile. It's just about the end of the first day of the Sports Festival. He's exhausted, but at the same time, he can't wait for what tomorrow will bring.
"Mi…dori…ya," a voice rasps. Izuku turns and sees Todoroki staring at him. "Can we… talk?"
Chapter 40: Boy with Everything/Boy with Nothing
Something about Todoroki is familiar to Izuku. Not in the sense he thinks they've met before UA; he knows they haven't. No, it's that he recognizes something in Todoroki. A painfully familiar loneliness. Izuku bites his lip. That's probably a bad sign.
"Alright," Izuku says. Let's talk."
"Privately," rasps Todoroki. Izuku's never heard Todoroki talk at school. From how disused his voice sounds, he might not be speaking at all. He nods.
"Lead the way."
Todoroki takes him to one of the tunnels leading in and out of the stadium. With everyone currently seated, there's little chance of them being interrupted. Especially since they're so late in the day. No one's in a rush to catch the final Support Challenge in person.
Todoroki stares at Izuku intensely with his heterochromatic eyes. The other boy massages his throat but remains silent.
"You wanted to talk," Midoriya says. Izuku resists the urge to rub his arms. He can feel his hair standing on end, and bumps forming on his skin. The air is cold, but it's not from Todoroki's ice.
"…Blindsided," Todoroki says at last. "Twice today. That… King Explosion came from nowhere. Then you came… used my left side against me… made me break my own pledge… even for a moment."
Izuku thinks of everything he knows about Todoroki. He's a recommendation student, like Momo, presumably because of his father, Endeavor. He's aloof. He doesn't speak, or didn't before now. He only ever uses his right side of his body when he uses his Quirk. Then there's the even split in his hair color—
When he reached for Todoroki's target, for a moment he'd felt a wave of heat. Could it be…?
"You have another aspect to your Quirk beyond your ice," Izuku says. "But you don't use it."
"Won't." Despite how hoarse his voice is, Todoroki emphasizes that word as much as he can. Izuku bites the corner of his lip. Todoroki brings up his left hand, boring into it with his gaze like he's contemplating the meaning of existence. "It's… strange. Not Kirishima and Jiro. Not… King Explosion. It was… you, the Quirkless student… only you pressured me enough…" Todoroki raises his eyes to meet Izuku's. There's something behind them, some need to understand. "And… you're familiar with Mr. Aizawa… and the other teachers. You say your sister goes here… but that doesn't explain how much you seem to know."
"Are you alright?" Izuku asks. "Do you need water or something?"
"It won't help," Todoroki says, voice dry. "Tell me… are you a Hero's kid?"
Izuku blinks, processing for a moment.
"No," he shakes his head. "Unless my dad's business abroad is very different to what I've been told it is."
"…I see," Todoroki says. "but there is a connection… isn't there?" There's no real point to denying it. It's not like it's secret, Izuku just doesn't want people think it's all that relevant.
"A little over a year ago, I was in a villain attack," says Izuku. "All Might saved me. I had one of my analysis notebooks with me, and he took a quick look at it. Apparently, even then he was already talking to Nedzu about teaching this year, so he asked Nedzu to meet with me. Nedzu agreed to tutor me while Mr. Aizawa handled my physical training."
"That's how you knew… about the expelled class."
"Then, well, my school got shut down. So Nedzu took me on as a student full-time until the Entrance Exam."
"It's so different here from how I was trained," says Todoroki. The boy takes a deep breath. "You know about… my father, Endeavor, right?" Well, yeah. Obviously. Izuku's a massive Hero nerd, after all.
"The current Number 2 Hero, yeah. Despite Hawk's quick rise through the ranks and Best Jeanist's consistent track record, it's projected that he's still far above them thanks to his high capture rate."
"That gap… between Second and Third… there's an even larger one between First and Second. Despite his success, Father could never surpass All Might. Even now, with All Might… focusing his efforts here at UA, he still won't beat him at the next Billboard. So he… devised a new plan." Izuku feels energy race down his spine.
"What are you saying…?"
"Have you ever… heard of Quirk Marriages?"
Izuku's blood runs cold.
Of course Izuku has heard of them. Quirk Marriages are taught in history class, or at least Nedzu's history classes. They started after the chaos from the Quirk boom died down and Quirks became the new normal. They were made illegal decades ago.
"He— please tell me he didn't traffic your mother," Izuku covers his mouth with his hands.
"That… depends. He paid her family well… for the privilege of marrying their daughter. But they all knew… what it really was."
"Todoroki…"
"If he couldn't beat All Might… then he'd sire an heir that could. But I'll never be a tool… for that bastard." Todoroki pauses to breathe. "In my memories… my mom is always crying." He raises a hand to cover the scar on his face. "She told me that my left side reminded her of him. And she dumped boiling water on my face. She's been in a mental hospital ever since."
"Did he…" Izuku swallows, trying to find the words while his mind whirls with the horrifying implications. "Your voice, your throat, did he…?"
"It was… after the battle in Deika City. After he was discharged, he upped my training. He didn't want me to… lose as embarrassingly as he did. During this training… he scorched my throat." Izuku flinches.
Oh fuck.
"Are you…?" Alright? Safe? What does he even want to ask? Todoroki shuffles.
"I will… heal. Completely. But I couldn't speak for a while. Even now, it's still hoarse," Todoroki says, massaging his throat. "Habit, I suppose. The rumors say… he's sleeping in his office. That he's trying to surpass All Might by throwing himself even more into his work. The truth… is that he's running from his shame. From me. After all, his training killed my oldest brother." Todoroki looks away, towards the stands. "He didn't even come to watch me today. His masterpiece."
"That's awful." Izuku cringes internally. Now there'san understatement.
"You understand, right? My whole reason for existing… is to become the Number 1 Hero. And I'll do it. But I won't… use his Quirk to do it. I'm disavowing him."
Izuku stands there in stunned silence for several seconds. What do you say to that? He doesn't even know where to begin.
"You should tell someone," Izuku says, fiddling his thumbs.
"Endeavor has too much power," says Todoroki. "No investigation… would last against him. It would be thrown out as libel. We're at the dorms now. It's fine." Todoroki turns to walk away, but Izuku isn't done yet.
"And yet Nedzu took down the Meta Liberation Army." Todoroki halts, and Izuku sees the gears turning in his head.
"You said your Junior High was shut down," he says. "Nedzu investigated Aldera. That's how… he found out about the MLA."
"I thought that was how the whole world worked," says Izuku. He clenches his fists, memories of his time at Aldera come unprompted. "And it took him about a week to shut down the school. Another week after that was the Deika City battle."
Todoroki looks at Izuku with a mixture of surprise, confusion, and awe. Then he averts his gaze. "I'll keep it in mind," he says, and walks away.
Katsuki doesn't know why he followed the nerd and Ice King. Maybe because it was Deku. Maybe because Ice King put up a really good fight and he wants to know more about him. Maybe the mutt is right and he's feeling guilt. Katsuki doesn't know.
And now he's learned something he never thought he'd hear. The Number 2 Hero is a domestic abuser. And apparently responsible for one of his kids' dying. What the fuck? And Ice King only fought with half his strength? He expects to be a Hero by half-assing it?
Katsuki runs a hand through his hair. Is this how hewas acting? When he put Deku in his place?
If Katsuki ended up as the forever Number 2, would he do the same thing? He lets out a low breath. He's going to have to talk to the mutt about this too, isn't he?
Oh.
Fuck, shit!
Can he talk to the mutt about this? Ice King's right, he can't just accuse Endeavor of shit without getting laughed out of court.
Katsuki shoves his hands into his pockets ands stalks off back to the 1-C section of the stands. Damn. He needs to explode something.
Izuku has trouble focusing on the First-Year Support challenge. That Hatsume girl Himiko told him about ends up winning with a set of tether arrows and jets, turning her shell into a mobility item. Compared to the lineup of almost exclusively cars, it wasn't exactly a hard-fought victory.
But all Izuku can think about is his talk with Todoroki.
"Désolé pour le désagrément," Aoyama says, returning from the concessions area with an armful of soft drinks. "The vending machine did not have the flavors everyone asked for." Those who wanted drinks quickly grab one. Izuku doesn't really notice.
On one hand, Endeavor can't get away with this.
On the other, if he goes to someone, he betrays Todoroki's trust in him.
Izuku sighs. He needs advice.
He doesn't remember the walk back to the Class 1-A Dorms, he's too deep in thought. It's not until Mr. Aizawa gets everyone's attention in the common room that he's pulled out of his own head.
"You all did well today," he says. "But we have another two days left to go. I suggest you rest. Any hypothetical progress you make from training today will not be worth the exhaustion you feel tomorrow. Lunch Rush is making dinner tonight. Take it easy for the rest of the day."
Mr. Aizawa takes his leave, and the class settles down to relax.
"That was an impressive move with the ice, Uraraka," Tsuyu says. "I didn't know you could float the much at once, kero."
"Oh!" Ochaco blushes, waving a hand in front of her face. "It was nothing!"
"You made a meteor shower," says Tsuyu. "You turned the battlefield into your weapon. You're very strong, kero." Ochaco covers her face with her hands, accidentally activating her Quirk in the process and floating out of her seat.
"You can't just say things like that!" Ochaco cries.
"Why not?" says Shinsou. "It's not like we're talking about the entrance exams, when Tsuyu swept you up in her arms and spirited you to safety." Ochaco makes a noise like a malfunctioning vacuum cleaner.
"Shinsou!"
"Oh, does Raka have a crush?" Ashido says with the smuggest expression Izuku has ever seen. And he grew up with Bakugou. Kirishima laughs.
"Still trying to find romance in every pair you can, huh?" he says, nudging Ashido with his elbow. She giggles.
"I'm not the one who she gave a Hero name to, kero," Tsuyu says, the traitor, and Izuku turns bright red.
Ochaco whines out, "Stop!"
"Let's stop distressing Uraraka," Momo says, pulling the floating girl back down from the ceiling. Ashido pretends to pout.
"You guys think we've got popcorn in here?" Kaminari says. "I'd kill for a movie night with popcorn."
While his friends go rooting around the kitchen for popcorn, Izuku tells Momo that he's going out for a bit and takes his leave.
As usual, Nedzu opens the door to his office the moment Izuku raises his hand to knock. Izuku smiles at the sight of his mammalian mentor.
"Ah, Midoriya! I've been expecting you for a while. Come in! I have tea!" Nedzu says, gesturing to where he has indeed set out a cup for Izuku.
"Thank you, sir. I've been meaning to take you up on that invitation to play Go, but I've been busy…"
"I quite understand! Yes, it's been an eventful semester so far, hasn't it?"
Izuku sits down and takes a sip of his tea as Nedzu sets up the Go board. As he sets the bowls down, Nedzu raises his head to make eye contact.
"You've come to talk about Todoroki, yes?" Izuku almost chokes on his tea. Of course he knows. "A security precaution, I keep recording devices all over campus. Even the dorms, though not the dorm rooms if you're concerned for your privacy. I don't usually listen in, but Todoroki's behavior so far has been… concerning. I happened to notice him pulling you aside and thought it might be best to check in."
"I didn't want to say anything," Izuku admits. "It feels like a violation of his trust. I'd planned on asking for advice without naming names." Nedzu nods, placing a black stone on the board.
"Seeking counsel on such a complicated situation is wise. Had I not listened in, I don't know what I would tell you. But I did, so I have some knowledge of the situation." Nedzu sighs.
"He's right, isn't he?" Izuku says, placing his white stone. "About the libel charges? He sounds like he has personal experience."
"I looked into it. He was very young the last time a charge was leveled against Endeavor. His eldest brother was still alive. One of Endeavor's sidekicks apparently paid enough attention to our course on the signs of abuse. The accusation was thrown out of court, and the libel lawsuit ruined their career."
"You have the recording. Will that help?"
"No. Neither of you consented to being recorded ahead of time. It wouldn't be acceptable in court. We could use it as evidence, but only if we presented something else to make our case viable."
"He said… his oldest brother died," Izuku says. "He has other siblings, right? Can we do anything for them?" Nedzu shakes his head.
"Yes and no. One is currently in college and living in the dorms. The other has her own job. She's unlikely to move out on her own salary. However, if the need arises, they can both run as far as possible without the risk of legal retribution. I would be willing to lend a paw, of course."
"So what do we do?" Izuku asks, staring into his tea. "We'd have to tarnish his image to the point that any charges against him have to be taken seriously."
"You focus on your studies and the Sports Festival. Be someone Todoroki can lean on. I will devise a means of ruining Endeavor's career. And if that fails, I will perform an unpleasantness. Todoroki is now one of my students, and therefore under my protection." Nedzu grins in a way that reminds Izuku that the principal is far more of a predator than he lets others perceive him to be. Izuku is glad the principal chose the side of the Heroes even after everything done to him. They're alike in that sense.
"There is one more thing," Izuku says as he places another stone on the board.
"Oh?"
"Do you know where I can get a good quality Go set of my own?"
In what was a fairly typical night at the Class 2-A dorms, ten students from other classes have come over to visit. It makes the most sense, seeing as half of the once Class Z already stays at the 2-A building. Going anywhere else would mean an even larger crowd as they take space from the residing class. The ten members of Class 2-A who hadn't been in Class Z have long since been pulled into their sphere of friendships.
What was unusual about this particular Class Z reunion is that they aren't just hanging out and/or studying. This is a celebration of one of their own.
"A toast to Carmilla!" Wani cheers, lifting a bottle of soda. "Class Z represent!" All thirty students go wild, applauding and whistling. Himiko turns bright red, and she can practically feel the Midoriya tears about to form.
"I hope I'm not late!" Izuku calls, slipping into the building.
"Ah, the other Midoriya!" Utsuwa says, raising his own soda bottle.
"You're right on time," says Kikushiso. Izuku smiles at him before seemingly realizing something.
"Ah, can you not…?" he taps his forehead. Kikushiso nods. Ah. Izuku must've heard something he doesn't want to get out. Kikushiso's mind reading ability can't exactly be turned off, but his lessons with Nedzu last year helped him at least focus it.
"And speaking of timing," says Kikushiso, "The other Management Students are very impressed with your last-minute total victory. It would've been better if you'd tagged the last survivors yourself, but there was quite a lot of interest in Stormwatch, so your fight at the end there earned you their attention."
"Himiko's gonna get merchandise!" Ekitai says, sending the group into another round of laughter.
"I didn't get the chance earlier," says Izuku, "so I'm saying it now." He pulls Himiko into a tight hug. "Congrats on coming first today, Himi!" She wraps her arms around Izuku.
"You tied for first in your round," she says. He shrugs.
"Yeah, but Todoroki froze basically everyone right at the start. Who knows what would've happened if he didn't?"
"You'd have kicked all their asses, immobilized or no," says Wani, taking a drink from her soda. Izuku laughs as the siblings unwrap.
"Ah, I actually checked in with the First-Year Management course," Kakubyoga says, snapping their fingers. "They're all super excited to market a Quirkless Hero."
"I'm not surprised," Kikushiso says. "There's never been one before. They're going to have to invent new Heroics Management techniques for you. I'm excited and I'm not even assigned to your year." Izuku turns bright red. He rubs the back of his neck.
"It's still weird, being so… accepted by everyone. I'm used to it with the staff," Izuku whispers to Himiko. She gently squeezes his hand.
"So, what's our analyst think of today's game?" Wani asks with a toothy grin. Izuku groans.
"I was so busy running around I barely had time to analyze anyone's Quirks! Phantom Thief has a touch-based copying Quirk, which is super cool, but I know almost nothing about it. Dragon Shroud grows scales! And he can fire them like projectiles! Where do they come from? I know Quirks play fast and loose with conservation of mass and energy, but they still have to come from somewhere! And does Vine have to use her Quirk by burrowing her vines, or is that just easier? That one guy turned himself to steel! Can he do other metals? And that telekinetic—"
Wani lets out a low whistle.
"That's the Midoriya I know!"