Chapter 6: Battles - Rock, Paper, Scissors!
"Fuck! Really, this guy? All Might-sensei, can we switch teams?"
"Speak for yourself, you... you cur! Don't despoil this esteemed class with your whining!
All Might sighed, handing out the exercise's earpieces to the bickering green-haired mantis boy and his blonde-haired partner. Kamakiri and Monoma honestly reminded him of Endeavour in his off-camera dealings with those below the top ten; brash yet brittle. Except where Endeavour's temper was tempered by experience and professionalism, these two were… not.
"The pairs for this exercise were randomized for a reason, Young Kamakiri, Young Monoma. Sometimes in the field you will have to work with whatever compatriots are nearby, even if you… don't exactly get along."
That was more true than anyone in the classroom realized. Always wearing a smile, always grinning for the camera, always positive… Toshinori was only human. And any human could tire of any other, especially when lives were on the line daily, risked by incompetence and immaturity. But he could voice nothing; it wouldn't be fair. The Symbol of Peace chastising practically any hero would spell the end of their career, and unfortunately those heroes who grated him so still saved lives and performed community service daily. Still, a man could fume in private, and fume he often did.
Uwabami, sitting around filming commercials, her initial days as a rescue hero long past now that she'd climbed the ivory tower. Slugger, Backdraft, Death Arms, even the respectable Kamui Woods, all of whom had stood by and watched like idiots as Midoriya'd bravely ran towards a villain he couldn't possibly hope to defeat just to save Bakugou. Endeavour, though professional and competent, simply rubbed him the wrong way. Nighteye… Toshinori did not want to think about Nighteye right now.
He sighed internally, a small shock of pain racing through his wound at the quiet breath. He was used to it, and showed no outward reaction. In a way, it was a little disappointing. Most in the class showed promise. These two showed promise too, but their arrogant bickering was a symptom of this new era he'd brought about. Reminiscing on his own days at UA, back when All for One ruled the underground and people checked their windows were locked at night, when heroics was twice as dangerous and paid a fourth of what it did now, arrogance was much rarer in the hero course. His own classmates had been confused by his optimism, most of their attitudes more akin to the grim determination of soldiers or the duty-bound stolidity of police officers. Perhaps being a little harsher, like Torino used to, would be helpful here.
All Might cleared his throat powerfully, the two going silent as they looked back at him. "How about this then, you Zygotes! You two don't have to work together. Instead, you can separately run laps around Ground Beta until everyone else here is done. And I will send Aizawa to watch to ensure there's no slacking off. So, what'll it be?"
They both paled at that, Kakakiri mumbling under his breath before they sulked off without a word towards the simulation building. A much more genuine grin grew on the number one's face.
'Is this how Torino felt when he kicked me so hard I puked? That was… fun. Quite like when I sat on Midoriya's back as he ran laps on the beach until he collapsed. Teaching is fun!'
"So…" Kamakiri awkwardly scratched his arm, glancing at Monoma. He said nothing. Monoma glanced back. He continued to say nothing. Monoma scoffed.
"Honestly, you can't even make conversation yourself." Kamakiri rolled his eyes, letting out an annoyed "Fuck you." Undeterred, Monoma crossed his arms and continued on. "Clearly you are not a person of tactical mind, so I'll take the lead of this team and prove we're deserving of this course, hm?"
The snooty blonde boy stood tall, back straight and chin raised, wearing a smart white shirt and black vest with a spotted blue tie. His black vest split off into a tailcoat, light blue patterning the inside, and he wore a pair of smart white dress shoes beneath his black trousers. Overall, he was the picture of gentlemanly grace - the exact opposite of his teammate, who wore a black mask beneath his lush green fluffy hair, shaved at the sides, a ripped and tattered black cloak covering his upper half, tied together near the ripped deep v-neck with crisscrossing string, his pale green arms poking out from either side. Beneath, the boy was adorned with simple baggy black pants and combat boots.
Kamakiri snorted in response. "And what the hell can you do that gave you a spot in the top ten?" Monoma frowned.
"Copy. I copy quirks. I can copy a quirk for up to ten minutes if I touch somebody, for up to three quirks. Unfortunately, due to this confounded ten-minute wait time, I couldn't stock up on quirks before coming here, which makes our victory… less assured than it would be otherwise."
Receiving a deadpan look from the mantis-faced boy, Monoma huffed impetuously and sneered. "Oh, and enlighten me as to your plan?"
Kamakiri nodded. "So, I was thinking we bust in and cut 'em up."
Really, the idea spoke for itself, but Monoma was not one to leave words unsaid. He let the statement hang in the air for a moment, before twirling his hand in a 'go on' gesture. Kamakiri stared at it like it was some sort of insect. He slowly tilted his head to look back up at the blonde. "You deaf?"
"That's not a plan!" Monoma protested. "It's-it's a sentence! Bust in? Bust in how!? Cut them up? You've forgotten about the bomb, the main objective! What kind of hero are you?!?"
"Better one than you." Kamakiri grumbled under his breath. "I could win this whole damn thing on my own without you on my back like a fuckin' potato sack."
Monoma dragged a hand slowly across his face, stretching it before his hand fell off, limp. "...You, you, you … you ingrate. Let's just move past this. Look, loathe as I am to admit it, I need to copy your quirk for this exercise." Monoma huffed. "Though you may feel apprehensive about it, I assure you my use of it will-"
"Done."
The haughty boy stopped in his tracks. "What?"
"Done."
"Just… like that?"
Kamakiri played with his hand in an act of nonchalance. "Figured since you're running on empty you'd need my quirk. Go ahead, copy it. It's fucking sick, and when we win it'll be because of my badass quirk, Sounds good to me."
Monoma blinked, momentarily taken aback, before regaining his usual composure. "I… I see. Well, it'll be because of my quirk too!"
"Yeah, cuz your quirk lets you copy mine." Kamakiri nodded, satisfied. "So, unless you wanna argue, clock's tickin'. Plan or no, mister planner?"
Monoma scoffed. "I've always got a plan. First off, our opponents: Hatsume, from what I gather, plans to be a support hero, and her quirk is non-physical. Koda can control animals with his voice."
Kamakiri stilled, apprehensive. "He can… control animals?"
Monoma nodded. "Yes, that's what I said." The green-haired boy stared at him like he'd missed the most obvious thing in the world.
"Monoma-kun, my quirk makes blades."
"Yes, I know. What of it?"
"I kinda don't wanna be cutting up little baby animals, man."
Monoma stomped the ground. "Dammit! What can we do then? We can't just stroll in and start-start butchering Koda's animals left and right for an exercise! He'll be able to attack undeterred, and walk all over us! We could kill them even just by accident!"
"Wait." Kamakiri held up a finger and Monoma stopped his pacing, turning attentively. "If we can fuckin' kill the animals even by accident, then it's on rock-boy to make sure the animals don't get too close. That would mean it's not our damn fault."
His blonde partner snapped his fingers excitedly "And if we keep our quirks activated, they may not even be able to get close! Koda-kun won't send his animals into a meatgrinder!"
Kamakiri sharpened his blades. "So we just gotta keep our knives out when he's close or when we see animals, we can look him in the eye and pull out a sword and walk right towards him without a fuckin' scratch on the both of us. And I was near him at dinner - he's a damn softy. He'll blink first."
Monoma nodded. "As for Hatsume, I doubt she can do much given her reliance on support items. We'll be able to destroy or disable anything that does give us trouble with your quirk."
"He's kinda a dick!" Manami exclaimed, Josei tilting her head nearly 90 degrees downwards to catch the pigtailed redhead in her line of sight. The little woman sighed, crossing her arms. "It's all quirks, quirks, quirks with this guy! Well, what if I can't use my damn quirk, huh?"
The teal-furred blonde frowned sympathetically, carefully kneeling down after checking her surroundings so as not to hurt anyone. She patted a large, soft hand on the girl's shoulder, or at least the corner of it. "I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually?"
"...I guess." She griped out. "All I've got is my Tommy gun and I'm not even cleared to use it yet. Gotta sign up with Snipe for special lessons to do that."
"You're haunted by your quirks too?" A gloomy voice drawled from behind them, the silver-haired Yanagi approaching the two. "I cannot say my own powers are comparable, but I was nonetheless spooked by everyone's performance in Aizawa-sensei's quirk test. He may be dread incarnate, for his presence darkens a room like one truly cursed. I came in quite low during the entrance exam as well."
"Say that to the girl who took dead last " Manami laughed self-deprecatingly, pointing at her chest. "What about you, Josei-san?"
"Ah… I, um… I came in eighth." Josei nervously squeaked out, Yanagi's sole visible eye widening as Manami gaped at her.
"EIGHTH?" They simultaneously shouted.
"I-I mostly just punched and kicked my way through." Josei explained. "I-I got a couple of hero points too, but not that many." She turned to the side and saw Juzo listening in on their discussion, and eagerly redirected the attention. "A-and you, Honenuki-kun? How did you do in the exam?"
The skull-faced boy chuckled. "Ah, I actually got in on recommendation!"
"Jesus. I'm surrounded by powerhouses. Can't somebody bail me out here?" Manami groaned in desperation and turned to see a crotch. She gave it an annoyed glare and looked up at its owner. Todoroki's eyes peered out from behind two-toned bangs back at her.
"Goddamnit!"
Mei tinkered with her goggles, handy pocket screwdriver coming in clutch once again. The crosshairs on them were sorta flimsy, but they were purely decorational anyhow! Really, the things were just for keeping the wind out of her eyes. Styled with brass trimmings on a red base, the goggles sat atop her pink dreadlocks, tied back into a messy ponytail - she wore a chunky neck guard and an armoured breastplate, similarly steampunk-inspired, atop a full-body red and gold jumpsuit. Various satchels and pockets were haphazardly strapped onto various limbs, and on both her arms and her legs sat brass-coloured chunky pieces of equipment - the wrist pieces contained smoke grenade launchers and a net gun each, as well as a collapsible tazer baton hidden inside a compartment in one. The leg pieces were bulky things, rockets attached to the bottom with airjets for stabilization on the side. Finally, her goggles gave a live diagnostics feed of every uber-cute baby in the whole entourage!
Mei was wearing perhaps the highest-tech, highest-production suit in the entire class, and she knew it. No two-bit support designer would skimp on their own equipment, after all!
She glanced over to her partner. Koda's costume by contrast… Mei's eyes contracted, trying to direct her telescopic vision as far as possible from the boy's getup, an evolutionary defense that would have to suffice as she couldn't just flee the building to escape its sight. He wore a red spandex shirt, interspersed with yellow patches that also made up his shorts, leading down to a pair of tough yellow combat boots. In the centre of his torso lay a logo depicting an open set of teeth, and his face was hidden by an orange muzzle and a yellow eyemask. Every colour was bright and garish, and it rubbed Mei's every design sensibility so roughly the wrong way that they came away raw.
"So, Animals-kun!" she yelled, clapping her hands to get his attention. Some would say it was startling, but it always got their attention, didn't it? She popped out a business card and a rolled-up form emblazoned with a golden letter H stylized like a wrench. "I have a question for you! Are you… satisfied with your hero suit? Are you happy with its design? Is there enough armour, enough padding, does it chafe or stretch or itch? And if it does, do you know the solution?" She grinned eagerly.
The boy made a couple of hand signals. Mei furrowed her brow. Was this sign language? She'd never learned it. Hey, who needs to learn sign when you don't leave the lab or talk to anyone else anyway? This hero business was tiring, but dreams are dreams, and a hero using her babies Hatsume will be!
"Yeah, I don't know sign." The rock-headed boy sighed dejectedly, arms flopping to his sides. Mei rolled her eyes. "A temporary roadblock on the path to success! You give up already at a hurdle this low?" She flipped the business proposal over to its blank side, and popped a pen out of a satchel. "Viola! Now, your costume?"
Koda scribbled for a bit, pausing as he seemed to reassess himself. He tried to hand the paper back for her to properly read, but she stopped him with an upturned palm, instead gesturing to and zooming in with her crosshair eyes.
"[Now that I'm looking at you, I feel a bit underprepared. I don't know costume design so I told the company to do whatever. I sorta regret that. The colors aren't great and it's a bit tight. I'm not sure why my knees aren't protected. The muzzle feels demeaning.]"
Mei scoffed. "Feh! The primitive antics of inferior designers! Not to worry, I have a brilliant idea in mind for you, and all it requires is signing a little form so I can be your exclusive support tech. I'll make all the babies you'll ever need!" Holding out her hands to form a frame around the boy and sticking out her tongue, she visualized: "Imagine a wraparound antler crown, no muzzle muffling your quirk's power, no piss-yellow spandex, a fur cloak, steel kneecaps, compression shirt - kevlar, maybe! Can you see it?!" He nodded. "No you can't! It hasn't been made - but it might in the future! Who's to say - Hatsume Industries is a first-come-first-serve business, so do you want to get your foot in the door today or your foot in those poorly-padded boots tomorrow?"
She smirked, passing the pen over as Koda gingerly unclasped the muzzle and tossed it unceremoniously to the ground. He signed the other side of the document and she stowed it back into a pocket.
"Enough talking shop then! Let's talk game. What can you do with your quirk, Animals-kun?"
With the technician girl handing out another crisp sheet of paper, Koda retook the pen. "[Call me Koda. My quirk, Anivoice, lets me talk to animals and have them follow my orders. I can also understand animals and receive information from them. During the entrance exam, I used it to blind robots and stuff like that with birds and bugs. I don't like using bugs though, they're creepy. Also, I'm a bit more durable than average.]" Separating that with a line, he continued to write beneath. "[We should put the bomb on the second floor. Anything higher and my voice won't reach lots of animals.]"
Mei rubbed her chin. "Works for me! My quirk's zoom, so I guess I can see them coming. I've got my ultra-cute babies though! My smoke grenades can blind 'em, my taser can stun em', and my net gun can subdue 'em! As a support tech, I'm prepared for any eventuality! So, Animals-kun - send out some of your animals or something - we need security cams!"
Koda nodded, pursing his lips and letting out a complex series of warbling chirps and high-pitched squeaks. A few rats and squirrels ran past the duo, and Mei heard the flapping of wings outside the building. Sitting down, she dug open a pocket and pulled out a few pieces of metal. "While we're waiting, I'm giving you something to attack them with. I wish I had my Mei Hatsume's Mini Mobile Workshop - patent pending! - baby on me, but this'll have to do! Field Improv Baby 4!"
Grunting, she pressed the solid steel strip between her hands, carefully bending it into a rectangular shape and testing it atop her own gloves. Satisfied, she wiped off her brow and handed it to her teammate. "Knuckle dusters!" she chirped. "Now we're even! I mean, my gloves are reinforced too, but you're probably stronger - maybe I should put my tasers into my gloves? Ah, thoughts for after field testing!"
A bird landed on Koda's hand, chirping at him as his face scrunched up in increasing worry. He put pen to paper again, holding up his note. "[My birds say they saw sharp metal coming from Kamakiri-kun's arm, and Monoma had it as well. I think I remember Monoma mentioning copying quirks.]"
Mei beamed. "Wow, the baby possibilities! Thanks, animals-kun, I kinda forgot who we were fighting. Oh, Knives-kun and Copy-kun, huh? Hmm… I'm not really a strategist if it's not about babies. But I figure we should probably stop 'em early, huh?"
Koda shivered, curling in on himself despite his stocky, tall frame. Timidity, dismissed to the back of his mind in the excitement of the exercise, reared its ever-present head again. "[We need to keep my animals away from them!]" Mei waved dismissively. "Bah, we'll be fine. Just clock 'em in the face or something, you look strong enough and that copy boy looked kinda frail at least. I'll take care of Blades-kun." Koda wasn't convinced. "[My animals can't just be replaced like your babies, you know…]" Hatsume winced. "Ah, that. Hell of a design flaw, but can't be helped, I guess! Welp. Only one solution for that!"
Whipping out a thick, ribbed bronze baton with a rubber grip that sparked with electricity, she let her usual chipper business grin unfurl into a more natural, unhinged one. She pulled her goggles down to cover her eyes, the lenses adjusting.
"What kind of technician would I be if I didn't get my hands dirty?"
"She's finna give em' a beatdown for real. Got that mad lit aura." Camie commented, the others around her taking a moment to parse the statement that had left her mouth.
"I… agree, Utsushimi-san." Kuroiro spoke. "The darkness that surrounds her has an oppressive air, even filtered through this synthetic depiction."
"Dunno." Mawata noted. "Like… she's got her gear, but couldn't Monoma just cut her gear up?" She gave a tired shrug. "Her quirk isn't really good for fighting too."
"Raw power isn't everything." Jirou interrupted, walking over with Mina and Momo. "My quirk specializes in recon. It's still pretty strong one-on-one if I've got a speaker on me, but I'd rather have the element of surprise every time."
"Can't block a hit you didn't see coming!" Mina agreed.
"Or a trick you don't conceive of." Kuroiro said, the pitch-black-skinned boy nodding in agreement. "If you don't have good footwork, you can't dance in the dark."
"Like at a club!" Mina exclaimed. Kuroiro looked at her, baffled.
"No, I meant to say that one's vision is instrumental to the understanding of the enemy's plans. The blade shrouded in the darkness is the one that must be feared the most."
"Like me!" Mina and Manami screamed and jumped in the air at that, Jirou doubling over and cackling with unrestrained delight. They turned to see Hagakure, or her outfit, a seemingly-floating prismatic bodysuit. The invisible girl giggled as well. "Rahh! Fear me!" She echoed Kuriro's words, the dark boy simply glaring at her; he'd been startled too.
"Oh, my…" Yaoyorozu murmured as the planning time wound down. "What is Hatsume-san doing in the breaker room?"
The buzzer sounded, All Might's announcement to start the match barely finishing when Kamakiri rushed forwards towards the door of the simulation building. "Wait up, you fool!" Monoma chastised, having to grab the mantis boy's collar, yanking his back. "Tag me first! I need to top up your quirk or we're going in at half our strength!" Kamakiri sighed in annoyance, holding out a palm which Monoma slapped. "I'm back to ten minutes!"
"Good. Let's head in then, all that waiting got me antsy!" Kamakiri extended to long, rectangular blades from his wrists, facing outwards from his palms like extensions of his hands. "I'm taking front! If you wanna argue, come back when you've used my fuckin' sick quirk for more than five minutes practice!" He rushed forward again, this time with the blonde boy on his heels, and slammed against the door, meeting resistance.
" Oh, for -" he grunted, shoving a blade between the door and running it upwards, catching a piece of metal with a hard clink. Pushing again and making no headway, he retracted his blades, repositioning his leg against the door and pushing a knife through his foot, piercing the bottom of his boot, before plunging it down to crack the door open. Monoma approached, bending on one knee and picking up the split remains of a bent piece of brass, inspecting it. "A rudimentary lock. Congratulations, Kamakiri-kun, you've beaten your first opponent."
"Fuck off" Was the greenette's measured and heroic response, and he trudged forward into the building proper. Every single light was off, shrouding the place in darkness. "The fuck? How'd the turn the lights off? They don't have switches or anything!" Kamakiri glanced about to confirm his suspicions. Warm afternoon light filtered in from the door, giving the two some visibility, but the corridors in front of them were dark and cold, a few rooms off of the middle hall emitting some pale light due to being connected to halls near side windows.
"The technician girl, that's how. And I'd bet anything her goggles have night vision." Monoma gritted out. "Be on guard, we're in unfamiliar territory."
"I've got a better idea." His partner curtly responded. "HEY, COME ON OUT! FUCKING COWARDS! FIGHT ME!" He drew in another breath before Monoma slapped a hand over his mandibles, wincing at the shallow cut he received in response.
" Are you suicidal?!? Did the knives on your face grow into your brain?!?" He whisper-shouted.
"I'm drawing them down." Kamakiri justified, closing his eyes and folding his arms. "It's, uh, good practice for fighting villains on our terms."
"What it is is moronic , I can hear scampering above us. You've alerted the villain team."
"And what have you done so fa- do you hear something?" Monoma squinted into the dark, slowly becoming aware of the sound of fluttering, air rushing through the halls. His eyes widened and he braced himself as a swarm of black birds rushed out, engulfing the two and pecking incessantly at them. Monoma's suit quickly found itself disheveled, the black birds pulling his pockets out and pecking tiny holes into his suit, ripping stitches and leaving marks. His collar popped out and his tie was torn off. Kamakiri, too, was assaulted by the swarm, though seeing as his costume had a tattered style to it anyway his look was unmarred.
"Okay, that's it!" The blonde covered his eyes with his arm, watering from the feathers and dust kicked up and being whacked by a stray wing. "I'm pulling out swords, and whatever happens, happens! Three! Two! One!"
Solid steel erupted from his forearms and shoulders, as well as the middle of his back, forking short, razor-edged blades that glinted in the light of the open door. The swarm backed away, clearly having been instructed by Koda to keep well away from anything sharp. A moment later, Kamakiri mimicked his teammate, his blades noticeably longer and more numerous, with two protruding from the backs of his elbows so far.
Popping his collar back into place with his thumb, wary of the short blades coming from his hands, Monoma gave his hair a once-over and marched forwards. The sea of birds parted before him, watching warily but none making sudden movements or attempts to approach, warded off by the promise of dismemberment or worse. A few split off, flying in formation towards the stairwell, Kamakiri making pursuit. "Hahaha, yes! Yes!" Monoma hurried after him again, contrite at the boy's hunger for a fight. "Take me to your boss, sky rats! Mush!"
He dashed up, skipping three steps in his haste, skidding to a stop when the birds were no longer in sight; they'd outpaced him by flying straight up from the centre of the stairwell. A moment later, the hard sound of Monoma's fancy shoes hitting the concrete below graced his ears. "Where the fuck do you think they went, plan boy? I'm thinking fifth floor."
"Do I want to hear your reasoning?" Monoma griped, his tired tone spectacularly failing to imprint its message upon the mantis boy. Or maybe he just didn't give a shit.
"See, if I was a villain, I'd put my nuclear bomb on the very top floor, because that would be cool as hell, and you gotta put it there or it's boring as fuck."
"He's kinda spittin' fax." Camie noted. Intelli slapped her forehead.
He does make a point. A marveleux performance is a must!" Aoyama agreed, twinkles floating like dust motes in the air as he flipped his blonde locks. "An acteur , the hero profession is, non ? I am simply a better acteur than most."
"Seems like a waste of time to me." Shinsou asserted. "But I guess we can't all have a quirk as flashy as yours. Thought this job was about saving lives. Then again, what do I know?"
" Tres peu !" Aoyama responded, pointing his nose upwards. "The art in drawing attention, it is useful in hostage situations! The art of acting, in infiltration!"
Shinsou snorted. "I'd like to see you try infiltrating a villain base. They'd probably notice something's up when all their conditioner gets used up."
"My brother in the darkness is correct. You do not appear the type to blend into the darkest parts of society." Tokoyami nodded, Dark Shadow mirroring it with a much more enthusiastic one.
"I thought the other guy was your brother on darkness." Shinsou tilted his head, hair shifting slightly. Tokoyami shook his head. "No, you are mistaken. He, and Yanagi-san, are my rivals in darkness."
"Then what makes me your brother in darkness?"
Tokoyami closed his eyes, holding up a hand from beneath his cloak. "Your being is scarred, a fact reflected in your constitution - your soul aches from exhaustion, your posture a dull resignation, your pallour pale. Only in your eyes does the last light of determination shine, a hope that we must pray will never be snuffed."
"He means you look tired 'cuz you're slouching and have eyebags!" Dark Shadow cheerily agreed, Tokoyami turning to look at her in horror as the little devil continued. "You should get those checked out, they look unhealthy! Your skin too, it's all pasty! And have you- urk !"
Tokyami silenced the grinning fiend, gripping its neck with prejudice, and shoved it back into the shadows of his cloak. "She does not speak for me."
"Ok yes I do~!"
"No you don't!"
"Maybe you should consider an exorcism." Shinsou joked, but faltered as a dark look entered Tokoyami's eyes. "People have tried."
"It wouldn't work. I've been praying for you all since your conversation started, but the lord has not heeded my call." Shiozaki mumbled.
Tokoyami's glare intensified as it focused itself on her. "Oh, you have prayed for me? Prayed to separate me from my other hal f?! To remove my curse ?!" He spat the last word out like a curse of its own, the religious girl's eyes widening as she stammered, backpedaling as quickly as she could.
"N-no! Not at all! I have been praying for her as well!"
Tokoyami's glare weakened as his feathers, flared up in anger, relaxed. "Perhaps you can pray she learns to keep her beak shut now and again."
Shiozaki smiled wryly. "The lord works miracles, but I believe that is beyond his power." The bird boy quietly chuckled in response, and she let out her remaining tension with a breath, joining his subdued amusement.
Monoma was still digesting Kamakiri's statement about the nuclear bomb. "You're so much more of an imbecile than I gathered from before this." Monoma sighed, face in his hands, blades retracting to allow him to do so.
"Gotta have a good fight. What about you then, if you're so smart?"
Monoma sighed again, this time more prolonged than the last, and pulled out two blades, walking right past the pale green swordsman and down a hall. "What about taking notice of the abundance of hair and feathers leading down this hall and past the corner?"
Dawdling after him, Kamakiri checked the side rooms as Monoma plodded on, irritated beyond belief. "I don't like this quiet. Actually, I do like it from you. But I don't like it from them. And I would much prefer having some light in here." Dark hall after dark hall passed, the two brushing against the walls as their visibility gradually lessened.
Kamakiri had just turned past a corner and squinted in when, out of nowhere, a net slammed into him, pulling him to the ground with a set of weights that then automatically magnetized themselves together into a large bundle. Monoma spun on his heel at the sound, running towards his partner.
"They're through that door!" Kamakiri yelled, blades extruding around himself to make a veritable porcupine, the net briefly putting up some resistance before falling into shreds.
"Drat! He's strong enough to cut through my net baby! That's wire-reinforced rope!" Hatsume announced, voice echoing off the walls. With a ka-chunk, another nigh-invisible net flew through the air, Monoma releasing two blades from his forearm and wrist to neatly slice it in two as it hit him, falling to the ground with a harmless clatter. "Show yourself, you insolent villain!" The blonde yelled out, taking a low stance as he readied his blades. "Filth like you could only survive under the cover of the dark, for shame! Are you cowards!?"
"At least animal boy can't see in the dark." Kamakiri grumbled.
"You so sure about that?" Hatsume cockily replied. Squinting in the darkness, Monoma could just barely make out the rock-headed boy taking a boxer's stance fists held up and knees squared, something large and dark on his shoulder and a glint of light around his eyes in the shape of circles. Catching onto his recognition, Hatsume launched into yet another spiel. "My goggle babies, patent pending! You think I can't see in the dark on my own? Pah! I have night vision too!"
"Well, his birds still can't see in the dark!" Kamakiri countered. The large dark thing on Koda's shoulder shuffled, two pairs of deep yellow eyes turning around smoothly to meet the two.
"How the hell did you manage to get an owl?!?" Monoma raged, rushing forwards with his blades. Hatsume snorted, dodging backwards. Kamakiri took that as cue to rush towards Koda, who backed away, no way of countering the boy's blades with only his fists.
Engaging Hatsume, Monoma swung low, the girl dodging back again before whipping a gauntlet towards his face in a killer left hook. Monoma ducked swiftly under it, feeling his hair swish in the air at the closeness of the blow, before pirouetting around to slash her right arm. Hatsume's arms slammed together, Monoma's blade colliding with a harsh clang. He brought it down, an attempt to break her guard, but the support girl's brass-coloured gauntlets held strong, his blade only succeeding in scratching shallow cuts of silver onto its surface with a hideous screeching noise. Seizing the opportunity with the girl's hands locked, Monoma lunged his open palm forward and slapped the dreadlocked girl in the face, blinking heavily as his eyes became crosshairs.
Monoma leaped backwards, adjusting to the new environment. The room was now tinged in a dull yellow and orange, with a fully-decked-out Hatsume in front of him. To the side, Koda was dodging and weaving around Kamakiri, who was chasing him in the dark. Looking around, he noticed the room they were in was tall, long, and empty save for a door on the far end, and completely enclosed without a window in sight. He squinted at the door, eyes zooming in all the way and contracting with a funny feeling, as if rotating sideways in their sockets, and blinked as his view returned to normal.
Taking his momentary disorientation as an opportunity, Hatsume yelled "Hey, Animals-kun! Tag out!" She ran over surprisingly quickly in her massive greaves, likely owing to her thick and toned legs from a lifetime of lifting heavy equipment, thudding to a stop next to him. Koda nodded before sprinting towards Monoma with his brass knuckles held high, throwing a heavy punch at the blonde.
"Not so goddamn fast!" Kamakiri yelled, throwing himself forwards before he was intercepted by Hatsume with a roundhouse kick to the snout, flying backwards. Air jets puffed as Hatsume's foot planted itself firmly back on the ground. Monoma momentarily gaped at the sight, before deciding to commit to fighting Koda.
"You want your fight, you have it!" Monoma yelled over his shoulder. "See if you can win this entire thing by yourself!" The bug boy sneered back at him, pushing off the ground and sweeping a kick at Hatsume's legs, the support girl thrown off balance as the air ducts on her greaves puffed rapidly.
Monoma turned to Koda, who held a defensive stance. Arms held up and body held low, imposing height towering over him, he was the picture of a mountain.
"Well now. Come at me!" The rock boy stood still. Monoma rolled his eyes, noisily extruding a blade from his kunckles. "No? Too scared? Shame." He paced slowly, walking to the boy's right. Koda turned on his feet as well, and the two circled each other. "If you won't bother fighting me, if you're that arrogant, then…"
He leapt towards Hatsume unexpectedly, bladed out. "I'll go for her instead!" For a frozen moment in time, he was almost convinced his opponent would let him, before a stocky arm curled around his chest and slammed him into the ground, kicking up dust. Idly, he watched as Hatsume shot nets at Kamakiri, all of which were shredded. The boy was closing in. Dusting himself off, in a flurry of movement he simultaneously threw himself upright and grappled Koda, pushing him against the ground. He couldn't keep him pinned, ducking and rolling as the owl swooped in again, talons glinting in what little light they had.
The two stood up, trading blows. Kamakiri may have been able to sustain an armoury of much longer blades, but the Monoma hadn't had the time to explore the quirk's intricacies, to practice with it, and train to full potential. For his own part, he could only comfortably fight with two blades, half the length, and as such Koda's height made his comparatively meagre knuckledusters a real threat to contend with - suddenly, Hatsume's logic of switching matchups became frustratingly clear. A high swipe forced him to duck, swishing a blade at his exposed knees and cutting a shallow red line. Koda rewarded him for that with another punch, Monoma dodging again, thrown off balance as he overextended, another, another, another, and contact! Monoma staggered back, preparing to engage again when he heard a low chuckle to his side.
He turned to look in horror as Hatsume whipped out a metal tube that extended out from a rubber grip, sparking with electricity and lighting the room up in a dim yellow - to Monoma, who'd copied her enhanced eyesight, white. Kamakiri's eyes widened as he made the connection, but to no avail. She slammed it down on his blades before they could retract, energy running up the metal and into his contracting, convulsin g body with crackles, thrumming as he gasped and grunted.
Then, if by a miracle, he managed to retract his blades, sweating horribly and smelling like a burnt-out-lightbulb. "You… you-huff-can't fuck-fuckin' beat me with a dirty-ass trick like that…!" He stumbled to his feet and held up his fists, clenching his hands painfully, skin still prickling.
Hatsume tilted her head curiously. "Dirty trick? It's just applied physics!" She slammed her baton forward again, this time into his mandibles - his metallic mandibles. The end of the baton under his snout was the last thing Kamakiri saw before his eyes rolled into his skull and he passed out.
"Young Kamakiri is unable to continue!"
Hatsume smugly turned, not deigning to restrict the passed-out boy with her capture tape. Koda was fighting Monoma, but as his partner had been distracted with subduing Kamakiri, the copy quirked-boy had been allowed to run unaccounted. "Ha! You call this a fight? This is barely a spar!" Monoma mocked, rushing forward with his blades once again.
Koda's solitary owl made occasional passes at the blonde, its master by now realizing Monoma could only use so many blades at once, exploiting every opening it was given to run its razor-sharp talons across his back, tearing his suit and tearing shallow wounds into his skin. Monoma braved the pain, backing Koda into the wall. One knife slammed next to his head, embedding itself into the concrete. Another's wide edge pressed against Koda's hands, pinning them to his chest. Before the stronger boy could push the blonde off, the blade near his head pulled itself out of the wall and pressed lightly against his neck.
" Surrender."
The mute boy nodded, Monoma raising an eyebrow as he pushed the blade away without any real strength and signed his surrender. Monoma touched his earpiece. "All Might, Koda-kun surrenders. He used sign, but I'm sure you can see with the cameras."
"I can confirm we all saw it. In that case, Young Koda surrenders! Please leave the building and take Young Kamakiri with you, my boy."
"Then it's just you and me, support girl." Monoma tapped Koda, copying his Anivoice, before flicking Zoom back on with a blink to reorient himself against Hatsume. She pointed her gauntlet at him. "Call me Hatsume! I'm the CEO of Hatsume Industries, after all, so you'd best not forget it!, Copy-kun!"
Monoma gritted his teeth. "Call me Monoma . Are you going to use your useless nets again? You're better off surrendering, I have three quirks now, including yours, and all you have is a fancy set of armour."
He could see he struck a nerve with the girl's quirk. "So what if you have my quirk? I don't need it! All I need is my babies, and they're better than any two-bit quirks you have! Don't call them useless !" Her vicious frown evened out, before the corners of her mouth forced themselves up into a grin-grimace. "And who says I only shoot nets?"
Hatsume pulled a trigger within her gauntlet and with a ka-chunk, a metal canister fired out of her gauntlet and pounded straight into Monoma's gut, the boy doubling over in pain. He felt like puking, the cylinder falling down and rolling across the floor as smoke started pouring out of it.
With a sudden start, he pulled himself up and threw himself to the side as a second canister narrowly missed where his head was, bouncing off the ground with a ping and filling the doorway with even more smoke. Monoma advanced towards Hatsume, ignoring the rapidly-darkening bruise on his stomach that painfully chafed against his torn shirt. The pinkette retreated backward, her brass greaves thrumming with the power of engines.
Monoma weakly glanced up to her, dodging to the left as another net fired out, a weight clipping his thigh and forming another inflamed welt. He formed two more knives, before meeting her gleeful eyes.
"I didn't introduce you to all of my babies, did I?" Hatsume laughed. "I never once used these boots, you know? Wonder what they do? Wonder no more!" The room lit up in a brilliant orange, the darkness Monoma had surrendered himself to in pulling out Kamakiri's blades being lit up in warm hues, air rushing and the smoke clearing as Hatsume lifted into the air and close to the roof, well out of any blade's range. "Now, will you surrender, or will you let me get some more field testing of my smoke grenades? I've already gotta make notes on their use as concussive projectiles, y'know!"
Monoma's face dropped in dismay, paling as his mind ran at a mile a minute, trying to figure out anything he could do against the support girl. He had no idea how much fuel was held in the boots. For all he knew, she could stay in the air and stall him until the rest of the time ran out. Every moment of indecision was his loss and her victory. He needed to act now and win in this room, or the bomb - which was almost certainly behind the far door Hatsume now hovered before - could never be caught in time. He racked his mind. Zoom was a no-go, and she'd rendered Razor Sharp useless. That left…
Monoma smirked, holding his hands up as the blades retracted to cup his mouth. " {EVERY SINGLE INSECT, ATTACK THE FLYING PINK-HAIRED GIRL!}"
Hatsume paled. To her, the sound was nothing but chittering and chirping with the occasional click, but she could tell it was Koda's quirk. She fired another smoke canister, Monoma rolling away as it clunked harmlessly against the ground, the smoke rendered useless by the thrust generated by her boots. Making a dissatisfied noise, she pulled out her taser baton and made to close the distance between herself and her opponent when she heard scuttling.
The light tapping, skittering, scuttling sounds of tens upon thousands of insects barely reached her ears over the din of her rocket boots, still keeping her high in the air, but she was not blind to how the ground darkened at the swarm. Ants, centipedes, millipedes, crickets, beetles of every shape and variety. The swarm congregated beneath her, fanning out to cover the entire floor, respectfully leaving an untouched circle around where Monoma was. She would've bragged at the ineffectiveness of the move had she not been a smarter woman, and meeting Monoma's smug eyes she knew he knew what was coming as well.
"To be taken down by bugs…" Hatsume lamented, voice growing weaker, "is a technician's greatest shame…"
Helpless to do anything but watch and listen, and too stubborn to surrender to the cocky boy who'd badmouthed her babies, Hatsume stayed floating in the air as a tremendous buzzing sound grew deafening. A colourful swarm of dragonflies, flies, mosquitoes, flying cockroaches, bees, wasps, hornets, and all other manner of insects flung themselves at their target, stingers unable to penetrate her bodyseat or armour, but the sheer volume weighing her down, crawling all over in itchy and uncomfortable ways.
Small cuts and welts appeared on her neck and face as they crawled within her suit, the technician flailing to remove them to no avail. The bugs, too unintelligent to be beyond sacrificing, crawled into air ducts and vents, made their way between the brass panels, burned themselves by the thousands until their charred corpses clogged up the rocket thrusters of her boots.
First her gauntlets shut down, then tufts of black smoke emerged from her greaves, thrusters and air jets, the machinery in her armour shuttering and puffing before Hatsume fell out of the sky into the awaiting mass below her. The last thing she saw was Monoma's face, but she had no clue what that expression on it meant.
"YOUNG HATSUME IS ELIMINATED! HERO TEAM WINS!"
Every student who'd congregated around an enlarged viewing screen showing Monoma and Mei's final confrontation cringed as they watched her writhe in agony, completely blanketed in slowly-retreating insects that Monoma was dispelling, a dour expression on his face speaking to severe concern.
Midoriya frowned, letting out a disappointed sigh as the tension left his shoulders. Shinsou noticed, walking up to him. "You were really rooting for her, huh?"
Midoriya shrugged. "Yeah, it's… dumb. Some of the things she said reminded me of me before I got my quirk. I was kinda hoping she'd win and prove she didn't need her quirk at all."
"I'm disliking what Mei said about her [quirk] though." Pony chipped in. "To me, at least, it was sounding like she really hated it!"
"She did seem angry when Monoma insinuated her quirk gave him an advantage, kero." Tsuyu added. "Perhaps because it's a non-offensive quirk?"
"That does not sound like her." Iida joined. "She obviously holds her support items in high regard. It is natural she'd be disappointed when she lost the match."
Shinsou nodded. "I guess she was all talk, though. Midoriya, Uraraka. She approached you two to offer her services, right?"
"Sounds naughty~" Toga giggled, Komori shoving her in the side as the two tittered over the innuendo, before groaning as Iida approached the two to reprimand them on uncouth behaviour in social spaces.
"Is that why you rooted for her, Midoriya-kun?" Shouji grinned under his mask, invisible yet fully broadcast to the rest of them. "Find her pretty?"
Midoriya bluish full-facedly. "U-u-uh-I'm not-well- I'm not answering that!" He shouted, exasperated, turning to his so-called friends for support. Shinsou had a wry smile, and just as he'd given up even bothering to take stock of the others, Uraraka jumped in to his defense.
"S-so what? There's nothing wrong with finding Hatsume-san pretty! You were thinking it too!"
"No." Shouji responded calmly.
"Haven't seen her!" Pony chirped.
"She was kinda cute but we weren't actively looking at the time!" Toga pitched in for herself and Komori.
"I certainly did not." from Iida.
"Gay." Shinsou drawled.
"And so what if I am!? " Uraraka demanded, stepping towards the lilac-haired boy, who took a defensive step back.
"I meant me, so, uh. Happy for you or something."
"A-ah ." The gravity girl faltered, cheeks going supernova. "I-I-like men too !"
"Didn't ask but cool too I guess." Shinsou responded, dispassionate as always.
"I think what Uraraka meant to say is; it's okay if Midoriya-kun's eyes lingered because hers did too." Tsuyu summarised with a slight amused smirk, earning a betrayed glare from the pair.
"M-my eyes didn't linger!" Midoriya protested, but nobody was hearing any of it. "A-and I was rooting for her because I think she was cool! And inspiring! Support items are an incredibly underappreciated aspect of the heroics industry so it's exciting to see someone trying to become a support hero!"
"So you're gonna keep her as a technician?" Toga asked, rejoining the main group with Komori and Iida in tow. "Good! Her gear was super-cute! "
"Actually, she said she was really interested in being your technician too, Toga-san." Midoriya reminisced. "She was curious about your support gear."
Toga giggled. "Nah, I'm spoken for."
Shouji and Komori shared a look. "I suppose that makes sense." The many-armed boy spoke. "You do have the most professional costume out of all of us, after all."
"Invigorating as this discussion is, we must wrap it up." Iida commanded, chopping an arm as the others looked towards him. "It is nearly time for the post-match discussion. We should congregate with the others."
The battered Monoma dragged Mei's unconscious body, made all the more heavy by her armour, back through the door of the simulation room and plopped it into the waiting stretcher of a pair of medical bots, which promptly turned and left for Recovery Girl's office. He made his way to Koda's side.
"Young Monoma? Wouldn't you like to see Recovery Girl?"
Monoma waved the All Might off despite the concern on the seasoned pro's face. "I'll go when class is over. It's just some bruises. Who's the MVP?"
All Might studied the boy, dark eyes analyzing him carefully before apparently deciding he was fit to wait. "Very well. Feel free to leave for Recovery Girl's at any time if the discomfort worsens. Now then, who is the MVP?"
Shouji raised a webbed arm, All Might pointing at him and gesturing to speak. A mouth appeared on his raised arm. "I believe the MVP was Monoma-kun. He did an admirable job at wrangling Kamakiri-kun, who wasn't a good teammate, and utilized three quirks effectively to put Hatsume-san on the backfoot. Ultimately, he took out both Koda-kun and Hatsume-san and carried his team to victory despite stacked odds."
"Well, hang on now." Kendo interjected. "I'm not really sure about that. I mean, Monoma started the match by completely dismissing Hatsume's danger when she was arguably the strongest of her team. She was the one who disabled the lights which slowed down and severely limited Monoma before fighting him toe-to-toe without an offensive quirk of her own, and she tagged out for Koda in order to properly take out Kamakiri before that. Plus, she had a disadvantage when she was fighting 'cuz she doesn't know sign." She turned to the rest of the class. "Frankly, the only way Monoma was able to beat her at all was by using a move that barely any of us could've countered. Right?" She was met with nods all around.
"Right. Speaking of, why didn't you use that to start with, Koda?" she inquired, turning back to the rock-headed boy with a questioning look. "You probably could've won the whole round right there, y'know. You would've been MVP for sure!"
Koda signed at her, and she sighed. "You're scared of bugs?" A nod. "I guess that's fair, but you gotta get over that to be a great hero, right?" She offered him a kind smile he nervously reciprocated.
"Typical. I suppose it would've had to be me to use your quirk to its full potential, seeing as you refused." Monoma huffed. Koda shot him a surprisingly angry glare, one shared by Pony, Komori, and quite a few others around him.
All Might frowned, a rare sight. "Watch your tone. However, Kendo-san is correct. As heroes, you all must use every tool on your arsenal to save lives, even if it's personally uncomfortable to you. I've seen many a young hero fall because they refused to use effective moves that looked bad on camera. Gang Orca is an excellent hero, yet many call him 'creepy' - but they all thank him the same when he saves their lives."
"Exactly! Who gives a shit what those extras think?" Bakugou snarled, though Midoriya couldn't help but notice a delighted undercurrent at the number one hero voicing his thoughts. "I'm gonna be the best goddamn hero there is, even if their stupid asses whine about me being loud or whatever the fuck!
"I've got an objection to make to what Kendo-san said though." Shouji continued, Kendo turning to him curiously. "Monoma-kun, in my opinion, showed good tactical ingenuity by figuring out Koda's quirk could be used on insects. He figured he couldn't just sacrifice animals like birds or rats to fulfill the exercise, but bugs were both plentiful enough to utilize, versatile enough to reach her, and simple enough to be potentially risked without any moral implications. And he did take out both Koda-kun and Hatsume-san. The only student to take out two opponents thus far was Kaminari-kun, but he had to spend all of his power and knocked himself out in the process."
Kendo ruminated on that for a moment, before deferring to the teacher in the room. "I suppose that makes sense, but the final verdict's on you then, right Might-sensei?"
All Might crossed his arms. "Alright then. In my opinion, the MVP was Young Monoma, though it was a very close match. Despite misgivings with his teammate, he was able to quickly deduce the uses of several quirks he'd never used before to efficiently complete his team's goals - quirks that, besides Young Kamakiri's, are quite technical and without plainly obvious combat applications."
A smattering of polite applause was given for the Monoma, Monoma, who'd turned away and frowned. "I shall leave to change out of this suit." he announced, trudging away slowly in the direction of the lockers. He'd won the round. He'd even won the MVP! He'd shown up Kamakiri, who'd done nothing but hold him back. Why didn't it feel like a victory…?
A few faces flashed in his mind. Koda, glaring at him with his large, innocent eyes. The boy he'd intimidated into surrender. Kamakiri, grumbling under his breath as he turned away, eyes narrowing. The teammate he'd essentially abandoned at the first opportunity. Hatsume, yelling that she didn't need her babies, conviction colouring her crosshair eyes. Unconscious on the concrete floor, covered in bites and scratches…
The last thing he heard as he leftwas All Might's announcement. "And now it is time for our next contestants! Round four will consist of… Yaoyorozu Momo and Josei Ippan as the hero team versus Kodai Yui and Kojiro Bondo as the villains!"
Mei woke with a start to the smell of saline and hand sanitizer. Phantom pains wracked her body, all tiny and itchy, and she sat up against the tough pillow on her bed to survey her surroundings. Idly, her crosshair eyes adjusted themselves to the harsh lighting emanating from the curtain before her. Pushing it aside, she idly noted Blades-kun getting a kiss from some lady who looked like a very short nurse in a hero nurse costume. The green mantis boy stirred but did not awaken, and the nurse pulled his curtain back, turning around and flinching at Hatsume's gaze, clearly not expecting her to be awake.
"Tell me when you're awake next time! The youth… Anyhow, you're clear to leave. You came to me in quite the condition you know, it was like you'd been stuck inside an anthill. You're lucky it's much easier for me to heal lots of little cuts."
"...Need to go back." Mei croaked out, sipping an offered cup of water. "...I need to go back. Need to see more footage. Babies to make… quirks to counter."
Recovery Girl clicked her tongue. "Honestly, you support students may be worse than the hero students. Map's on your phone, figure out the way if you want to leave so badly. Take a pouch of gummies before you do. If you need me call me, but I have third-years to tend to."
Wordlessly, Hatsume slid off of the medical bed and departed without grabbing a gummy pouch. She remembered the way to the observation room; it was one of the places closest to the support labs. Her mind cast itself back to her match.
It was her big chance to show off her babies… And she'd failed. If she was lucky, nobody would change their minds about her being their support tech. But still… she'd lost! It had been support items against quirks, and she'd lost-! She gripped her bicep furiously, glaring at the floor as she walked. Luckily, everyone was in their classrooms, and the halls were almost empty. She'd bragged about not needing any quirk and was taken down by someone whose power wasn't just a quirk, but quirks themselves..! Her crosshairs contracted and expanded habitually, eyes flicking back and forth as she marinated on the defeat.
'I swore I'd be a hero with only my babies, without my quirk… but am I really cut out for it? Maybe it would've been easier just choosing support…'
She shook her head, clearing out the traitorous intrusive thoughts. The future CEO of Hatsume Industries had no time to doubts or whining! Since when does THE Hatsume Mei give up? You miss every shot you don't take. Failure was simply a stepping stone on the road to success! Calmed by her familiar mantras, the support girl resolved to put in plus ultra effort to win back her customers. A few nights and meals were a small price to pay!