MHA Universe, Earth, Japan, Musutafu.
*Vroom~~~~~!*
As soon as the signal to begin was given, Akatsuki activated [Sneak] before hopping on Tenya's back. A moment later, the [Engines] in Tenya's calves roared to life, and he sped into Building A, beginning to search for the bomb.
As the two raced through the building, they both noticed that most of every corridor they ran past was almost completely covered in shadows. And the shadows covered much more of the passage ways than they reasonably should.
"Sakura's already started." Akatsuki said just loud enough for Tenya to hear. "Be careful, if you step on any of those shadows, she'll know exactly where you are."
"Understood." Tenya replied with a firm nod.
However, before Akatsuki could continue, tendrils began rising from the shadows on the floors and walls. Those tendrils then started to fiercely lash at Tenya.
In an astonishing show of both speed and agility, Tenya came to a complete and sudden stop to avoid a tendril from his left. Then, as soon as that tendril swung past him, he once again ignited his [Engines] and shot forward, narrowly avoiding a tendril that attempted to wrap around his right leg.
*Swish!* *Swish!*
After Tenya ran only a few steps, two tendrils, each growing from the walls, lashed towards both his head and legs.
"Look out!" Akatsuki cried out, ready to jump from Tenya's back to cut through the tendril aimed at Tenya's head.
"Don't worry, I got it." Tenya said calmly. "Just hold on tight."
As soon as Tenya's words ended, he felt Akatsuki's grip tighten. Then, while jumping off one foot, he oriented himself horizontally, soaring between the two tendrils headfirst. However, it did not take long for Tenya to notice that if he continued in the same position, the top tendril would clip Akatsuki, more than likely causing her to fall off his back. So...
*Vroom~~~~~~~!*
He once again revved the engine on his left leg. As a result, his body began to corkscrew. And because of that, his spun just enough that the tendril missed his right shoulder.
"Nice move." Akatsuki said excitedly.
Smiling in response under his helmet, Tenya completed his spin, righted his posture, and hit the ground running once again.
Meanwhile, in the monitoring room...
"Whoa! That was sick!" Denki shouted excitedly.
"Manly!" Eijiro shouted simultaneously.
Though Eijiro and Denki were the loudest, no one watching Tenya's move could honestly say they were not impressed. Though, there were a few people, namely Katsuki and Shoto, who did not show it.
Back in Building A, Tenya continued to run. And with his speed, he was able to search the entire first floor quickly. However, neither he nor Akatsuki saw even a hint of the bomb.
"Looks like it's not on this floor." Akatsuki said.
"Yes." Tenya replied. "I'll head up to the next floor."
With that, Tenya ran towards the previously identified stairwell. However, as soon as he stepped on the third step, his eyes widened as his left foot slipped out from under him.
"Hanekura-San, jump!" Tenya shouted just before he fell.
'Damn it, I was so fixated on adhesives.' Akatsuki thought to herself in the split-second it took her to prepare to jump. 'I never even considered she would have Yaoyorozu-San use something to make the floor slippery. Sticking him to the floor isn't the only way to make Ida-Kun stop.'
Following Tenya's order, Akatsuki jumped off Tenya's back. However, just like Tenya, her eyes opened wide in surprise a moment later. And the reason for that was Momo, who was standing on the landing where the stairs turned halfway up the staircase.
Even worse than Momo's presence was the fact that she was holding what looked like a bazooka on her right shoulder was a much greater threat.
*Boom!*
With a determined glint in her eyes, Momo pulled the bazooka's trigger. Unfortunately, because [Sneak] was still active, she was unable to pinpoint Akatsuki's position.
Because of that, the projectile fired from the bazooka flew under Akatsuki. Unfortunately, that was not an issue for Momo, as she never intended to attack Akatsuki in the first place.
*Swoosh!*
As soon as the projectile flew past Akatsuki, the front of the shell opened. When it did, a net, tall and wide enough to cover the entire stairwell, expanded.
"Not good." Akatsuki hissed as she flipped around in the air.
An instant later, Akatsuki's feet made contact with the stairwell's wall. Then, she pushed off powerfully, jumping towards the net while drawing the dagger strapped across her lower back.
*Shing!*
Then, with one slash, Akatsuki bisected the net from top to bottom. As a result, it passed by Tenya, who was just about to stand up after falling, without even touching him.
At the same time, Akatsuki's left foot touched one of the stairs. And as soon as it did, tendrils shot up from the steps in front of and behind her.
"She already knew I was using Ida-Kun to keep from touching her shadows." Akatsuki grumbled. "This was just a plan to find out exactly where I was."
Proving Akatsuki right, by the time Akatsuki was able to look back at the landing where Momo stood, Momo had disappeared. Meanwhile, Akatsuki, showing off her own speed and agility, was forced to bounce back and forth between the walls, evading the tendrils narrowly.
Once again on his feet, Tenya was met with the sight of Akatsuki bouncing from wall to wall to avoid the tendrils that were trying to either knock her out of the air or wrap around her. Yet, instead of immediately moving to help her, Tenya stepped back, leaving the stairwell. Then, he dropped into a runner's stance with one hand on the floor.
"[Engine Boost]." Tenya muttered while tracking Akatsuki's movements closely.
*Vroom~~~~~~~~~!*
With that, Tenya's [Engines] revved higher than they had at any point prior. Then, with one explosive step, he shot towards the stairwell. Then, just before he reached the first step, he kicked off the floor, shooting up the stairs at an astonishing speed, plucking Akatsuki out of the air, and reaching the landing where Momo once stood. He then raised his right foot, pressed it against the wall, and kicked off again, shooting up the rest of the stairs in one go.
"*Huff* *Huff*" Tenya breathed roughly as he took a few steps out of the stairwell.
Tenya then put Akatsuki down on the floor as he doubled over with his hands on his knees to catch his breath.
"Hey, are you okay?" Akatsuki asked while keeping an eye out for either Sakura, her shadows, or Momo. "Can you keep going?"
"Yes. *Huff* *Huff*" Tenya replied. "I can keep going. I just need a mo--- Mmph!"
"Damn it." Akatsuki growled as she turned around.
Upon turning around, the thing that made Akatsuki curse was seeing Tenya, his mouth covered, and his arms pinned behind his back being dragged down into the shadows by a smiling Sakura.
"See you later, Akatsuki-San." Sakura said just before she disappeared with Tenya into the shadows.
Seeing all this transpire in the monitoring room, the students were amazed.
"Did Matou-San calculate everything from the start?" Izuku asked while leaning towards the monitor showing Akatsuki's current position.
"Nope." Tatsuo replied casually. "But because her shadows were scattered all over the building, she was able to keep track of everything in real time."
"I see." Izuku said in a contemplative tone while leaning back. "So, once she noticed that Ida-Kun was exhausted from over using his [Quirk], she moved in to subdue him."
"Exactly." Tatsuo replied. "Don't just look at the fact that Sakura is usually rather gentle. When she's in a fight, she can be as decisive as anyone."
"I suppose that makes sense." Izuku said with a nod.
"But since when could Matou-San teleport?" Kyoka, who had made her way over to stand next to Tatsuo after the teams were decided, asked curiously.
After Kyoka pointed it out, everyone realized that they had no idea that Sakura could teleport. To their knowledge, Tatsuo was the only one in the class with that ability thanks to his [Space Manipulation Quirk].
"Now that you mention it, I didn't know about that either." Izuku muttered. "And we spent a lot of time training together over the last year."
"Well, that doesn't surprise me.' Tatsuo said with a smile. "Sakura doesn't like to use that ability. She has to hold her breath the whole time she's submerged in her shadows. So, it's not really a pleasant experience moving through them."
"Is that why she covered Ida-Kun's nose and mouth before pulling him in?" Ochaco asked while tilting her head in curiosity.
"Basically." Tatsuo replied. "She probably used her shadows to wrap him in the capture tape while transporting him, too. Yup! There it is."
As he spoke the last line, Tatsuo pointed to another monitor. On that monitor, Sakura was just rising from a shadow, Momo was already in the room. Along with Sakura, Tenya, who had been captured, was wrapped with the capture tape just as Tatsuo expected.
"With a two on one, this fight looks like it's over." Mezo said calmly.
"Don't count Akatsuki out yet." Tatsuo said as he turned back to the monitor showing Akatsuki.
Meanwhile, Akatsuki, after calming her emotions, activated her [Sneak Quirk]. As a result, she disappeared from all the monitors. And just like Tatsuo said, she had no intention of giving up. On top of that, now that she was moving alone, the only way for either Sakura or Momo to detect her would be for her to either come in contact with Sakura's shadows or for Momo to find her with some sort of technological device.
That would be easier said than done, though. Akatsuki, as an assassin character in Elder Tales was quite adept at avoiding detection. Now, the only issue would be either taking down Sakura and Momo or finding the bomb and touching it before time ran out. Both of which would be tough.
After activating her [Quirk], instead of running on the ground, Akatsuki immediately leapt up to the ceiling. Just before reaching the ceiling, she flexed her hands. As a result, small spikes slid out from the tips of her gloves. She then jammed those spikes into the ceiling, allowing herself to stick to it.
Then, using both her hands and feet, Akatsuki ran across the ceiling like a spider, checking every room she passed as she quickly traversed the second floor of the building.
Meanwhile, Sakura and Momo were discussing their next moves on the third floor where they relocated the bomb with Sakura's [Shadow Space] during the preparation period.
"Momo-San, could you put foam on the ceiling?" Sakura asked politely. "There's no way that Akatsuki-San will travel on the floor in this situation."
"You seem to know her quite well." Momo said as she placed her right hand on her exposed abdomen.
A moment later, as Momo pulled her hand away from her abdomen, she gripped the handle of a fire extinguisher as she pulled the rest out of her body. She then pointed the fire extinguisher at the ceiling of the room they were in and began spraying foam onto the ceiling.
"Well, she is my best friend." Sakura replied with a smile. "So, I have some idea how she thinks. But that goes both ways. She knows how I think, as well. So, if we're going to win, I'll be counting on you to mess up her calculations, Momo-San."
Feeling the pressure of Sakura's expectation, Momo's hands froze for a moment. But after that moment passed, her expression firmed and she continued her task.
"I'll do my best, Sakura-San." Momo said in a determined tone.
Meanwhile, Sakura watched the changes in Momo's expression. And when she saw how tense Momo got when she said she would be counting on her, she could not help but reflect on her attitude even further than she already had.
"*Sigh* I actually showed hostility to this girl?' Sakura thought to herself. 'Although it's clear she's drawn to Tatsuo-Kun, she probably wants to be close to him because he's not interested in using her or her family like most people. On top of that, judging by the way she reacted to what I said, she wants to prove herself and receive recognition. But she's definitely got self-esteem issues. *Sigh* Just what was I doing?'
Due to her time in the Matou Residence back in the TYPE-MOON Universe, Sakura had to learn how to analyze people based on their body language in the fear of upsetting her adopted family. So, seeing through Momo, who, despite being trained to keep her thoughts to herself, was child's play.
While Sakura was lost in her thoughts, she never stopped paying attention to her [Shadow Space]. Even so, she was unable to find Akatsuki, who was avoiding all the shadows she came across. However, because she was already multi-tasking, she missed the moment when Momo finished spraying the ceiling and produced another item with her [Quirk].
"Sakura-San, please put these in your ears." Momo said, snapping Sakura out of her thoughts, while holding a pair of ear plugs in her right hand. "I think I know how to incapacitate Hanekura-San when she eventually arrives in this room."
Blinking in surprise, Sakura absent-mindedly accepted the earplugs from Momo. She then looked around the room and ceiling to see Momo's progress. And to her surprise, not only the ceiling, but even the walls were covered in fire extinguisher foam. Meanwhile, nearly the entire floor was covered by her shadows.
"You work fast, Momo-San." Sakura said as she put one of the earplugs in her right ear.
"Do I?" Momo asked while looking at her work. "It felt like it took too long, though."
'She doesn't even realize how talented she is.' Sakura thought to herself.
However, before Sakura could think any further, her head snapped in a particular direction.
"She's here." Sakura said with a slight frown on her face. "But it should be impossible for Akatsuki-San to step on my shadows like that."
"I'll go check." Momo said in a solemn tone as she produced an iron shield and an iron quarter staff.
"She should be in the corridor to the right." Sakura said, not arguing with Momo. "My shadows will be on standby. Still, you should be careful."
Nodding in response, Momo carefully made her way out of the room where the bomb was located. She then made her way down the hall taking slow, careful, steps.
Eventually, Momo reached the corridor Sakura mentioned. However, instead of charging in recklessly, Momo placed her back against the corner of the wall. Then, she carefully peeked down the corridor.
"What?" Momo exclaimed in confusion.
The thing that gave Momo such a sense of confusion was the pair of boots standing upright in the middle of the corridor, right in the middle of a patch of shadow.
"Sakura-San." Momo said into her transceiver. "Can you still sense Hanekura-San standing on your shadow?"
{"I can."} Sakura replied with a hint of confusion in her tone. {"But ever since you arrived at the corner, she has stopped moving."}
"We've been--- Kya!" Momo began to say before her words were interrupted by her own yelp of surprise.
"Sorry, Yaoyorozu-San." Akatsuki, who had been sticking to the ceiling only a moment ago, said after dropping behind Momo and quickly wrapping her with the capture tape. "But I can't face both you and Sakura at the same time."
When Akatsuki detained Momo, her [Sneak] was deactivated upon coming in contact with her. Also, as soon as she touched the floor, which was covered by Sakura's [Shadow Space], Sakura realized there was something wrong. So, tendrils began to rise from the floor, as well.
Yet, before she could be captured, Akatsuki once again activated [Sneak] before leaping up to the ceiling to avoid Sakura's retaliation. She even managed to bring Momo with her, securing the black-haired girl to the ceiling before leaving the area.
"She's gone again." Sakura muttered to herself. "She's hidden Momo-San, as well. *Sigh* I knew this wouldn't be easy. But I didn't expect to lose a teammate."
Sakura then stopped for a moment to look around the room where she and the bomb were. Her eyes eventually fell on a certain corner.
In that corner, the shadows were thicker than the other places her shadows covered. And if one were to look close enough, you would be able to see Tenya, wrapped up in shadow tendrils, sitting there.
"Now, the only question is, will she go after me, Ida-San, or the bomb?" Sakura asked herself quietly. "The only saving grace is that there isn't much time left. So, she won't be able to go for more than one. And if she's looking to win, she'll probably go after me or the bomb. Still, I'm not sure which."
Without much time to think, Sakura made a snap decision, backing up to place her back against the bomb while raising several shadow tendrils around her defensively.
*Swish!*
Unfortunately, that just created an opening for Akatsuki, who had made her way to the door by crawling along the walls near the ceiling. And just as Sakura raised the tendrils, the sound of cutting air could be heard. At the same time, Akatsuki's [Sneak] was deactivated, letting Sakura see the other purple hair girl flying directly at her with her dagger drawn.
"I must say, I wasn't expecting a frontal attack." Sakura said as she began manipulating her shadow tendrils.
"You didn't leave me much of a choice." Akatsuki shot back.
*Shing!* *Shing!* *Shing!* *Shing!* *Clang!*
As Akatsuki spoke, Sakura controlled her tendrils to attack. And despite the fact that she did not have any way to brace herself, Akatsuki swung her dagger skillfully, cutting through quite a few of Sakura's tendrils.
Unfortunately, there were simply too many tendrils. As a result, Akatsuki's dagger was eventually knocked away, and Akatsuki was wrapped up by Sakura's tendrils and strung up a couple of feet off the ground.
"Looks like I win, Akatsuki-San." Sakura said with a relieved smile after capturing Akatsuki.
"Are you sure?" Akatsuki asked playfully.
That question gave Sakura an uneasy feeling. However, before she could figure out what Akatsuki was talking about, an unexpected voice made her whip her head around in disbelief.
"[Engine Boost]."
*Vroom~~~~~~~~~!*
Turning around to look in the direction where she heard Tenya's voice, the only thing Sakura saw was a dagger sticking out of the wall and a stretch of severed capture tape.
{"The trial is over."} All Might said over all the transceivers. {"Team E wins."}
After hearing that, Sakura snapped her head towards the bomb, only to see Tenya, no longer bound, standing in front of it with his left hand resting against it gently while his [Engines] were still humming from the output. She then turned to look at Akatsuki, who was still being held up by her shadows and smiling brightly.
"*Sigh* I lost." Sakura muttered as she deactivated [Shadow Space], releasing Akatsuki in the process. "I can't believe you threw away your weapon. Even more surprising was how convincingly you made it look like it was knocked out of your hand."