The second round finally began.
I currently had 48 points, and thanks to the perk given to the top sixteen teams, all of us received an extra ten. So now everyone on my team sat at 58 points.
Meanwhile Kacchan and Shoto…
Yeah.
Those two monsters were already sitting above 100.
To challenge Shoto in the finals, I had to stay in the top sixteen no matter what.
If I remember right, canon me won this round using that insane landmine-jump strategy…
I flexed my fingers.
Maybe I don't need to do that this time. I can use 40% without issues now. And with Danger Sense, landmines can't touch me anyway.
"Now—Round Two begins!" Present Mic roared.
Everyone shot forward immediately.
"Full Cowl—40%," I whispered, lunging ahead.
Let's win this shit.
I sprinted beside Kacchan.
"TEME, you think you can beat me?!" Bakugo roared, explosions blasting behind him like angry fireworks.
"Sorry, Kacchan. You got a head start last round… my turn."
I blurred ahead, closing the distance with Shoto.
"On your left," I called.
"Look down," Shoto replied calmly.
I glanced—an ice spike trap.
This bastard. He actually set traps. I thought it was regular landmines..But he doesn't know about Danger Sense.
"You were saying something?" I smirked at him dodging the ice shards at the ground..
Before Shoto could answer, Bakugo blasted in from the opposite side.
"You BASTARDS—don't think you can surpass me!!"
From the back, Itsuka watched us with wide eyes.
I thought he was just all brains and no brawn… but we're the ones holding him back, she realized.
Class 1-A… is filled with monsters on completely different levels…
We neared the end. The finish line was in sight.
They're closing the gap… damn. Guess I'll use THAT strategy after all.
I timed it perfectly—stepped on a landmine using Shoto's ice shard as a foothold—
—and launched myself upward.
"Air Force!"
A controlled blast sent me rocketing forward, past Bakugo and Shoto.
"YEAH!!" I yelled, crossing the finish line first.
Izuku wins.
Shoto placed second.
Bakugo third.
Top Sixteen Results
After a while, the standings were posted.
I earned 160 points from this round, added to my previous 58 for a total of 218.
Kacchan got 140, added to his 108 for 248.
Shoto, meanwhile, was sitting at 251.
Top 16 Final List:
Shoto – 251
Bakugo – 248
Izuku – 218
Iida – 200
Momo – 178
Kaminari – 160
Itsuka – 158
Uraraka – 148
Sero – 120
Kirishima – 116
Shinso – 109
Tokoyami – 97
Monoma – 79
Tetsutetsu – 76
Hatsume Mei – 69
Ojiro – 65
I qualified. I'm in the top three—yeah!
This is… fun. Winning feels good. Honestly, my high school life has never been this fun. Back in my old school—prestigious as it was—there was no sports festival. I thought I'd join the soccer club once… but those dreams got crushed. This… this feels good.
"The third round begins in one hour! Prepare yourselves!" Present Mic announced.
---
One Hour Later – Individual Battles Begin
I was placed in Block A alongside Shoto.
Kacchan was in Block B.
Brace yourself, Shoto. I'm giving you your character development early—way before canon anime timing.
My first opponent was—
"…Shinso? Wait, who is that again?"
The match began.
Izuku vs. Shinso
"I'm going to defeat you," Shinso said, eyes sharp. "And prove I can become a hero too."
Oh right—mind control dude. The one who vanished into the void after this fight and didn't matter for like six seasons.
"Sorry buddy. But I've got another fight to settle today. I can't let you become protagonist now."
I charged in at 5%.
Shinso's lips parted.
"What a shame… gotcha."
Suddenly—
My body froze.
"What the hell—? I can't move… How did canon me break out of this again??"
"Walk out of the arena," Shinso ordered.
My body moved against my will.
Shit—!
"Stop, Izuku-kun. Wake up," Nana's voice echoed behind me.
My consciousness snapped back.
"Huh? Why did he stop?" Shinso muttered, startled.
"Sorry buddy," I exhaled. "But I'm the worst possible matchup for you."
With multiple One For All vestiges helping my mind, his quirk couldn't hold me.
"Air Force—just enough!"
A gentle blast sent Shinso flying out of bounds.
He fell to his knees.
"…So this is it. I thought I could become a hero too… but if people like him can resist mind control, what chance do I have?"
I walked over and extended a hand.
"You have an amazing quirk, Shinso Hitoshi. You'll be an awesome hero. I'm sure of it."
Shinso stared… then his eyes regained a spark he'd lost.
"…Yeah. Do your best in the next round too, Midoriya."
Other Matches
Hatsume Mei vs Itsuka Kendo
An incredibly close fight. Neither had flashy quirks, but both fought with everything they had.
Hatsume won by a hair.
Seeing them, my inner nerd activated automatically—I began analyzing their combat styles.
Next—
Iida vs Sero
Iida won.
Monoma vs Shoto
Monoma… the Phantom Thief. He played a huge role in the Final War. His copy quirk is crazy OP.
The fight began.
Monoma copied both fire and ice effortlessly.
"Oh? I didn't know you had two quirks," Monoma said smugly.
"What are you talking about?" Shoto frowned.
"This."
Monoma attacked with fire.
Shoto blocked with ice, shocked.
The battle became intense—Monoma switching powers every 10 seconds, Shoto stubbornly using only ice.
After nearly ten minutes, right before time ran out, Shoto finally cornered Monoma and forced a submission.
Meanwhile, in Block B,
Momo, Kirishima, Tetsutetsu, and Bakugo all secured victories.
Second Round Matchups
Block A
Izuku vs Hatsume
Shoto vs Iida
Block B
Momo vs Tetsutetsu
Bakugo vs Kirishima