Chapter 11 - 10-11

Chapter 10: Here Comes the Cavalry

"So, I guess you'll all be going to other teams, right?"

Uraraka frowned. "What are you talking about, Deku-kun?"

Midoriya shrugged. "I mean, with my ten million points, anyone on my team is going to have a huge target on their backs. You guys are going to have an easier time if you—"

"Stop that, Izuku!" Uraraka looked furious as she poked him in the chest; it did not go unnoticed that she used his real name when she was angry. "I'm not going to abandon you! What kind of friend would I be if I left when things got hard?"

Midoriya tried to hide the tears in his eyes, and failed miserably. His friends smiled at him fondly, but Sero had to break up the moment.

"Sorry, but Midoriya does have a point, kind of." Sero shrugged. "The teams can only have four people at most, which means we'll have to split up."

"He is right," Iida said. "As much I want us all to meet up in the final round, I also want to show my own strength. As such, I will be joining a different team; I hope you can understand, Midoriya."

"I get it," Midoriya said. "Good luck, Iida."

"I'm sorry, but I also want to compete against you, Midoriya," Yaoyorozu said, voice full of remorse. "As much as I care about all of you, this Sports Festival is a chance for me to show what I can do on my own." She worked up a smile. "I still expect all of us to make it to the final round."

"Yeah, I kinda feel the same way," Ashido and Sero said at the same time; the two of them shared a grin.

"Wanna find another team?" Sero asked.

"Sure!" Ashido waved at the others as she and Sero dashed off. "See you guys in the final event!"

As more of his friends split off, Midoriya got increasingly nervous. Asui tapped him on the arm and smiled.

"Don't worry, ribbit; I'll stay with you and Ochako."

Midoriya smiled back. "Thanks, Tsuyu."

Uraraka nodded. "Great! What do you think, Deku-kun? Should we get another person, or will three be enough?"

Midoriya thought about it, but was interrupted by a loud voice in his ear. "Hey, you! Mister Ten Million!"

Midoriya whirled and found the pink-haired girl well within his personal space, her face nearly touching his own.

"Gah!" Midoriya held a hand over his racing heart. "Wh-who are you?"

"Oh, right, I forgot to introduce myself!" The girl grinned and lifted her goggles onto her forehead. Midoriya noticed that her pupils had odd markings that looked like crosshairs, perhaps something to do with her Quirk. "Hatsume Mei, Support Course student and inventor extraordinaire, at your service! I want to join your team! And I need to know who made that watch for you, because I've never seen a Support Item like that before!"

Uraraka put herself between Hatsume and Midoriya protectively. "Why do you want to join the team with the biggest target?"

Undaunted by the other girl's attitude, Hatsume grinned. "Ooh, a discerning customer! Well, I figure that more eyes will be on your team than the others, and that gives me more opportunities to show off my babies! Also, I'm a girl who really appreciates fine craftsmanship, and that watch has got to be one of the best I've ever seen."

"W-well, my watch was made by my cousin in America, but I don't know much about how it works." Midoriya blinked as something Hatsume said registered. "Um, what are you talking about when you say 'babies'?"

"Like this!" Hatsume pointed to a belt around her stomach. "This baby, for example, can fire a high tensile strength wire with grappling pitons to secure your footing, trip up a Villain, or save a civilian! Interested now?"

Midoriya looked at the bewildering array of Support Items Hatsume sported, and then at Uraraka and Asui. A moment later, he smiled; it wasn't his typical unsure smile, but a smile that came with having a really good idea.

"All right," he said slowly, "I think I have a plan."

…

"Okay, now I'm starting to feel bad," Ashido whined. "How are all the teams filled up so fast?"

"Probably because everyone's teaming up with people they know," Sero said. "That means a lot of them were coming up with teams as soon as the event was announced."

"Well, crap; maybe we should have stayed with Midori."

"Hey, guys!" Ashido and Sero turned around and saw Kirishima running towards them. "Have you two joined a team yet?"

"Uh, no," Sero said. "Are you inviting us?"

"Yes, please!" Kirishima put his hands together and bowed his head. "Bakugo and I need some help, and I told him I'd ask around, and—"

"Whoa, hold on a second!" Ashido narrowed her eyes at him. "Bakugo? You teamed up with Bakugo? Kirishima, you're one of the most upstanding guys I've ever met, why would you team up with him!?"

Ashido wasn't stupid; she'd suspected that Bakugo had bullied Midoriya even before she found out why the latter had been nicknamed 'Deku'. It infuriated her that nothing had been done about it beforehand, and that someone like him had been accepted into UA. Even now, he barely toed the line; at least he was smart enough not to cross it, but there was every chance he could get pushed over the edge. Either way, she didn't like him.

Kirishima grimaced. "I know, Bakugo is… well, he's Bakugo. I'm not excusing him, but I did tell him that he'd have to watch his mouth around our teammates, or I'd ditch him, and he'd have nobody for this event. He promised that he would, and he doesn't seem the type to go back on his word. Come on, please?"

Ashido glanced at Sero; the boy had a frighteningly good poker face, his expression neutral and unreadable. He only offered her a brief nod; he was in if she was.

"All right, fine," Ashido huffed. "Let's go."

Kirishima pumped a fist. "Sweet! Thank you so much, you guys won't regret it!" He grabbed them both by the wrist and half-dragged them off. "Bakubro, I told you I'd get a couple extra teammates!"

Bakugo scowled at the nickname, but didn't snap back. Instead, he looked at the two newcomers. "Huh. Two of Deku's friends. What're your Quirks again?"

Sero was still doing his best not to react, but Ashido frowned when Bakugo used Midoriya's nickname. When used by Uraraka, it was cute, but Bakugo made the name sound like a curse.

Still, as much as she hated to admit it—and she really hated to admit it—Bakugo was skilled. Teaming up with him would be the best way to ensure that she and Sero could keep their promise and see their friends in the final event.

"I can make acid, either for mobility or attack," she said through gritted teeth.

When Sero spoke, it was with a far calmer tone than what Ashido knew he was really feeling. "I can make strands of tape; it's pretty strong, strong enough to hold most people."

Bakugo nodded; he brought one hand to his chin and started to pace. "Okay, I think I've got a plan. Kirishima will be the front of the horse, and he'll be carrying me; we can use him like a ram if things get up-close. We're gonna try to keep that from happening; I'll be the air strike, Sticky, you'll pull me back so that I don't hit the ground and get disqualified. Raccoon-Eyes, your job will be to watch our flanks; trip 'em up or make 'em burn, I don't care, just keep the other teams off our asses."

"My name is Ashido Mina; use it, or we're going to have a problem."

Bakugo just raised an eyebrow. "Whatever."

Kirishima intervened before things got heated. "Hey, Bakugo, what's our plan? Are we going after Midoriya's team, or what?"

"Don't be stupid," Bakugo said dismissively. "Of course we're hitting Deku's team. We'll take his ten million points, and then I'll blow away any moron dumb enough to try and steal it from us. Raccoon-Eyes will keep up the defense, and Sticky can trip up people when he's not busy helping me."

Ashido narrowed her eyes in anger, but before she could take more than a step in Bakugo's direction, Sero put a hand on her shoulder.

"Let it go for now," he whispered. "Remember, we're using him as much as he's using us. All we have to do is make it to the next round."

Ashido nodded. I only have to put up with him for a little while. Just remember that Midori had to deal with him for a lot longer. If he can do that, I can do this.

…

"Yaoyorozu-san, Iida-san." The students in question turned and saw Todoroki walking up to them. "Do you two have a team yet?"

Yaoyorozu answered for both of them. "No, we were looking to see if—"

"I want you both on mine." Todoroki jerked his thumb over his shoulder at Tokoyami, who was leaning against a nearby wall. "I've already got Tokoyami-san; my ice and his Dark Shadow should work well with your speed, Iida-san, and your versatility, Yaoyorozu-san."

"You're trying to make as balanced a team as possible," Yaoyorozu observed.

Iida was more accusatory. "You want to be able to react to anything Midoriya may turn into!"

To their surprise, Todoroki shook his head. "No. Everyone else is going to go after his team, and we don't want to get bogged down in that free-for-all. Instead, we're going to go after the teams on the periphery, building up as many points as we can that way." He shrugged. "Of course, if Midoriya messes up, I'll be more than happy to take the ten million points from him."

Iida and Yaoyorozu frowned—not because Todoroki's plan was a bad one, but because they didn't want Midoriya to lose the ten million points. If he did, there was a good chance he and his team wouldn't move on to the next round, and all of them would feel terrible if they broke their promise.

"Very well, Todoroki-san," Yaoyorozu said, "we'll join your team."

Todoroki just nodded and moved back to Tokoyami.

"Well, he was… curt," Yaoyorozu commented.

"But he is one of the most powerful students in our class," Iida said. "And his strategy is sound. Tokoyami is also very strong, and with us added to the team, we have a very good chance of advancing to the next round."

Yaoyorozu glanced back, and saw Midoriya speaking enthusiastically with Uraraka, Asui, and a pink-haired girl that she didn't recognize. At least he looked less apprehensive than before. That was good; she had worried that he would fall apart if he didn't have all of his friends supporting him.

She shook the thoughts away for now. It's time to stop worrying about Izuku for now; this is about my future.

…

"Come on, guys, I think we should find another person," Kendo Itsuka argued.

"Nah, we've got plenty of manliness as it is," Tetsutetsu said back. "Er, no offense."

"I am not offended," Shiozaki Ibara said calmly. "If it is the will of the heavens that our team grows, then so shall it be."

"I'm glad you feel that way," an unfamiliar voice said. "Do you three mind if I join your team?"

Kendo turned and saw who had spoken. "Who are you?"

The boy smirked. "The name is Shinso Hitoshi, and I think I can be of service."

…

"Okay, anyone have any questions?" Midoriya asked; he wasn't just confident in his plan, he was actually excited to see it happen. Still, he wanted to know if anyone found a flaw he'd overlooked

"Do you think this will actually work?" Uraraka asked. She was nervous, but the idea of Midoriya's insane plan working was hilarious.

"I do," Midoriya said with a grin. "As long as Hatsume-san's, uh, 'babies' work with your Quirk."

Hatsume looked up from the pair of high-tech boots she was adjusting. "Oh, I guarantee they will! Well, maybe I can't give a one-hundred-percent guarantee, but that's just because I don't want to get charged with false advertising."

Asui just shrugged. "We won't know for sure until we try, ribbit, so let's do it."

"All right, competitors!" Present Mic shouted. "It's time for the riders to mount their trusty steeds! Just remember, each rider will receive a number of headbands, each representing the points of one person on their team. You can wear them on your heads, or around your necks, but nowhere else!"

A small robot trundled over to Midoriya's team and handed out the appropriate headbands. Midoriya gulped when he saw the big prize, the ten million points, before he wrapped it around his head. That was covered by Asui's one hundred and thirty points, Uraraka's hundred and fifteen, and then Hatsume's ten. He figured that if someone actually did manage to get through their defenses and steal a headband, they were more likely to only get the outer three first.

Once the headbands were secure on his head, he was lifted up onto the shoulders of Asui and Uraraka; he noticed that the former winced, and he looked down in concern. He almost fell backwards, but Hatsume propped him up with one hand against his back.

"Tsu, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, ribbit," Asui croaked. "I have to match Ochako's height, and my body isn't meant to stand up straight for too long."

"Hopefully, you won't have to," Midoriya said. He looked at the teams scattered around the stadium; many of them were staring right back at him. "We're going to have to do this quickly. Everyone ready?"

Uraraka smiled up at him. "Definitely!"

"I can't wait for my babies to shine!"

"Ribbit."

Despite the tension, or maybe because of it, Midoriya laughed as he cycled through the Ultimatrix until he found the alien he needed. "I'll take that as a yes, Tsu."

"And… START!"

Without a second to lose, Midoriya slammed his hand down on the dial. When the green light faded, he had become a tall, yellow-skinned creature. He was muscular, and had bat-like ears, but his most striking feature was his eyes. He had many over his bare torso and arms, but none on his face; some were as small as a human eye, while others were much larger. Each eye was green, with a black, slit pupil, and they all moved around independently. He wore black pants, but no shoes, and the Ultimatrix dial served as a belt buckle.

"EYE GUY!"

"Surprise, folks! Midoriya has more than just one transformation up his now-nonexistent sleeve! If you wanted a wildcard for today, here it is! Not even I know what he'll turn into next, and I'm one of his teachers!"

"Let's get going!" Eye Guy shouted in his deep, guttural voice. One of the eyes on his shoulder noticed a student from 1-B narrow his own eyes at him and start to lower a hand towards the ground. With barely a thought, the eye that noticed the boy glowed green and fired a bolt of energy that sent him tumbling into the rest of his team. "Yeah, I don't want to know what he was trying. Uraraka, Hatsume, now!"

"Everyone, give me a hand!" Uraraka and Asui were struggling to lift Eye Guy's increased weight, but that changed when everyone gave Uraraka a high-five, and they all became weightless.

"It's my turn!" Hatsume grinned maniacally as she pressed a button on her backpack. "Jet-boosters, activate!"

Before the match had started, Hatsume had handed out a pair of boots to each of the other girls. They were supposed to let the wearer hover an inch or two off the ground, but Hatsume had done a last-second modification, removing the safety limits and turning them into air-powered thrusters. Since the team was now weightless, all four of them rocketed into the air.

"Oh my goodness!" Present Mic shouted, barely heard over the excited screams of the audience. "I can't say I was expecting that! What about you, Eraserhead?"

"Team Midoriya has just turned into a living zeppelin. I don't think anyone was expecting that."

Eye Guy couldn't help but laugh as his team flew over the stunned competitors. "This is incredible! Uraraka, how are you doing?"

An eye on his elbow caught Uraraka looking a little pale. "I'm going to have to cancel and reapply my Quirk every few minutes, or I'm gonna get sick. Still, we should start Phase Two before someone figures out how to get to us."

"Got it!" One of Eye Guy's eyes winked at Asui. "Time for Operation Air Raid!"

"Here we go, ribbit!" Asui wrapped her tongue around his waist and pointed him at the ground. "Bombs away!"

Still grinning, Eye Guy rained down energy bolts onto the arena. He wasn't necessarily trying to hit anyone, just make them decide that going after his team was more trouble than it was worth. From what he could see through the dust kicked up by his makeshift airstrike—and he could see a lot—even Bakugo's team had peeled off in search of easier prey.

One of his eyes glanced at the timer on the big screen. Only twenty-eight minutes to go.

…

Back in the waiting room, the Big Three were in hysterics; even Amajiki wiped away tears from laughing so hard.

"I can't believe it," Togata said as he tried to get his breath back. "That is the funniest thing I've ever seen!"

"It's insane," Amajiki added.

"It's awesome!" Hado pointed at Team Midoriya on the screen. "Okay, we have to try something like that during our turn."

Togata grinned. "Yeah! We can fly around, and Tamaki can use his tentacles to hit any other team that gets close!"

"Then it's decided," Hado said as she pointed to the ceiling. "We shall call it 'Operation Flying Spaghetti Monster'!"

Amajiki rested his head on a desk. "Dammit, Midoriya. Why did you have to inspire them?"

…

"Not cool, Todoroki!" Kaminari shouted as the team in question left him and Jiro frozen up to their waists, and Shoji, who had been carrying them, up to his neck.

"Stop making ice-puns!" Jiro yelled.

Todoroki didn't reply as he snatched the headbands from Kaminari, but Yaoyorozu felt bad that Jiro had been knocked out of the competition.

"Sorry, Jiro-chan!" she called out over her shoulder.

"We need to get to another team," Todoroki decided. "Iida, we need to speed up."

"Understood! My sincerest apologies, Yaomomo!" Iida placed his hands firmly on Yaoyorozu's waist. "Tokoyami-san, make sure we are all secure!"

Tokoyami merely nodded, and Dark Shadow grabbed both his partner and Todoroki.

"Ready!" the Quirk said.

Iida's boosters began to glow. "Here we go! Recipro Burst!"

Team Todoroki suffered collective whiplash as they rocketed towards another team—Ojiro, Hagakure, Sato and Mineta, with Hagakure wearing the headbands. Dark Shadow tilted Todoroki over so that his hand was almost touching the ground; ice rushed out, encasing Sato and Ojiro's feet, and stopping them in their tracks.

"Secret weapon!" Ojiro shouted. "Now!"

With a primal roar, Sato lifted Mineta up and threw him—straight at Yaoyorozu, who went wide-eyed as the small boy flew at her.

"Come to daddy!" Mineta shouted.

Acting on reflex, Yaoyorozu created an oversized flyswatter and slapped Mineta out of the air. The boy bounced off the ground once, and then lay still, knocked unconscious. As Team Todoroki blew past Team Hagakure, Dark Shadow neatly stole the headbands from Hagakure.

"Here you go," Dark Shadow said as he placed the headbands around Todoroki's neck.

"Good work," he said. "Let's pull back until Iida recharges, and we'll do it again."

…

"Goddammit! Fuck, fuck, fuck!"

"Dude, calm down!" Sero shouted over the explosions and cursing. "We've already got over six hundred points!"

"I don't care!" Bakugo shouted back as Sero reeled him in from another bombing run that netted the team two more headbands. "It doesn't matter unless we take first place!"

"Get over it!" Ashido snapped back. "What matters is how you finish, not how you start!"

Bakugo snarled, and then glanced up at the real target of his rage. "I can't believe that moron Deku used the same plan as me! Can't that idiot come up with his own ideas?"

Ashido bit her lip so hard she drew blood; from the scowl on Sero's face, he was in the same boat as her. When Midoriya's team flew out of reach, Bakugo had taken his frustrations out on any other team they could reach. His rampage had netted them plenty of headbands, but the blitz attack was so fast that none of them were sure how many points they actually had.

What also bothered most of Team Bakugo was the behavior of their leader. As skilled as Bakugo was, he was still an absolute asshole, and was even more ruthless than they'd seen before; more than one team they'd blitzed would have to see Recovery Girl when this round was over.

At least Midoriya was doing well, she told herself. His plan was brilliant, and hilarious, with Asui pointing him at clusters of brawling teams and scattering them with his laser-eyes. If his team wore the appropriate costume, they could have starred in an old kaiju movie, with Midoriya as the head of the flying monster. She couldn't help but giggle at the thought.

Bakugo glared back at her. "What's so funny, Raccoon-Eyes?"

And just like that, the humor was gone. "Nothing. Let's go get some more points."

"Smartest thing you've said all day; everyone, go right!"

…

"Guys, I think I'm reaching my limit," Uraraka panted. "I need a few minutes before we can do this again."

Eye Guy spotted the clock. "We only have a few minutes left, anyway! Can you hold us up until the last sixty seconds?"

Uraraka was pale and sweating after using her Quirk so many times, but she nodded. "I… think I can do that."

"Good timing!" Hatsume chirped. "The batteries in my babies are running low. As soon as we land, we'll have to do this the old-fashioned way."

Eye Guy nodded. "Okay, let's start heading back to the ground; Uraraka, release your Quirk when I give the signal. Tsuyu, can your tongue hold me steady without her Quirk?"

"I'm pretty sure, ribbit." Asui glanced at the clock. "At least for most of that last minute."

"If she can't, I'll just reapply my Quirk on you for a few seconds," Uraraka said tiredly.

"Thanks." Eye Guy took stock of the chaos below. More than one team had noticed that they were coming in for a landing. "I'll keep everyone else at a distance as much as I can, but a few might slip past me. Hatsume-san, do you have anything to slow those teams down?"

"I have a net launcher," Hatsume offered. "Ooh, and I can try out my new stun-disks! I just hope I calibrated the voltage correctly."

Eye Guy didn't like how that sounded. "Just… use those on someone really tough, like Kirishima."

"You got it, boss!"

"We're close enough to the ground!" Uraraka waited until Hatsume got a firm grip on her. "Release!"

With gravity suddenly applying to them again, only Hatsume's thrusters kept them from crashing hard into the ground. As Eye Guy suspected, several teams immediately changed course and headed straight at them.

"What's this? Team Midoriya is back on solid ground, and it looks like almost half the other teams are after them!"

"Uraraka must have reached the limits of her Quirk. She's definitely improved, having to hold up her entire team for almost the whole event."

"Hey, Eraserhead, you know you just referenced the weight of three ladies, right?"

"Shut up."

"Eraserhead's faux pas aside, we've got just under a minute left! Can Team Midoriya maintain their lead, or is another team destined for a dramatic upset? Don't look away, this is when things get crazy!"

…

"It all comes down to this," All Might said, unable to stop his leg from bouncing nervously.

"How do you think the other teams will react?" Gran Torino asked Nighteye.

"It depends on the disposition of the team in question." Nighteye brought a hand to his chin. "If the team has a decent number of points, they may try to stay out of the fighting entirely, or go after more teams with small amounts of points. The ones that go after Team Midoriya will either be desperate, or supremely confident in their abilities—like that one."

All Might followed Nighteye's gaze and sighed. "Oh, it's definitely the second option with that boy."

…

"DEKU!"

Eye Guy spotted Bakugo's team hurtling towards him long before his former bully shouted, but it didn't stop him from tensing up. He felt bad that Ashido and Sero were on Bakugo's team—he could imagine the headache their leader was giving them. He also felt bad for what he was about to do.

"Sorry, guys! Team, swing left so that we're facing Bakugo!" As soon as that was done, the eyes on his chest merged together into one very large eye that glowed green. A massive blast of energy fired out, hitting Kirishima directly in the chest. The force of the hit was so great that it sent the whole team skidding back, and if Sero hadn't caught Bakugo with his tape at the last second, he would have hit the ground and been disqualified.

Thankfully, there were still enough eyes elsewhere on his body for Eye Guy to see Todoroki's attack coming. He fired smaller bolts at the ice that crept towards them, but it wasn't enough; Todoroki just sent even more ice, and managed to catch Hatsume's feet.

"We're stuck!" she cried out. "And they're about to hit us!"

Dark Shadow loomed overhead, Yaoyorozu had created a large billhook, and Todoroki's arm was outstretched; all three were inches away from Eye Guy, when the bell sounded.

"IT'S OVER!" Present Mic shouted. "All teams, cut your Quirks and cool your jets, the second round is done!"

Iida had been in the middle of another Recipro Burst, and hadn't been able to cut it in time; startled as they were by the bell, the two teams collided and fell to the ground in a tangle of limbs.

"Ow," Midoriya groaned as he turned back to normal. "Whoever that is, can they get their elbow out of my face?"

"Sorry, Deku-kun," Uraraka said as she wiggled free. "Wait, did we win? Did we keep the ten million points!?"

With trembling hands, Midoriya took the headbands off to double-check; sure enough, all four headbands were secure.

"In first place, with ten million, two hundred and fifty-five points, we have TEAM MIDORIYA! They had an absolutely brilliant defense that nobody saw coming. Way to go, kids!"

"We did it, Deku-kun!" Uraraka dove on top of Midoriya and hugged him. "We won the second event!"

Overwhelmed by emotion, Midoriya hugged her back, and then pulled Asui and Hatsume into the embrace.

"Congratulations, all of you," Yaoyorozu said as everyone got back to their feet.

Uraraka beamed. "Thanks, Yaomomo."

"Y-yeah, th-thanks," Midoriya said, trying and failing to stop the tears from running down his face. "I can't believe it worked."

"Are you all right, Tsuyu?" Iida asked. "You keep rubbing your tongue."

Asui grimaced. "When we all fell, I got dirt all over it, ribbit."

"Do I owe you mouthwash now?"

Asui blinked; Iida had just told a joke. "Just some water is fine, ribbit."

"In second place, with one thousand, two hundred and ten points, it's TEAM TODOROKI! They played smart and went after the teams that were unbalanced by Midoriya's bombing run. Nice job!"

Todoroki nodded, but didn't show any other emotions; as far as he was concerned, nothing mattered until he fought Midoriya in the final event.

Tokoyami was also stoic, but Dark Shadow looked as smug as a sentient mass of shadows could, even accepting a fist-bump from Uraraka.

Iida and Yaoyorozu, on the other hand, were very happy, and accepted hugs and high-fives from their friends.

"And in third place, with one thousand points even, we have TEAM BAKUGO! They were utterly ruthless back there, and totally destroyed anyone who got in their way!"

Midoriya waved excitedly as Ashido, Sero and Kirishima jogged up to the others. "Way to go, guys! We made it into the final event!"

"Heck yeah, we did!" Ashido grinned. "Just watch out for me, or you're gonna get it!"

"And in fourth place, with nine hundred and forty-five points, we have TEAM SHIOZAKI! They managed to snag any points not being targeted by the other three leaders, and it paid off for them! These are our sixteen finalists, folks! Let's give them, and all of our competitors, a big hand!"

The audience had already been cheering as the event came to a close, but it became deafening at Present Mic's urging.

"With our top sixteen chosen, let's take an hour for lunch, and give our brave competitors time to rest! Come on, Eraserhead, let's get something to eat."

"You do that; I'm taking a nap."

As the students began filing out of the arena, Midoriya felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Todoroki staring at him with unnerving intensity.

"We need to talk."

…

"Hey, freshmen!" The Rising Stars all jumped when Togata appeared behind them, along with Hado and Amajiki. "How're you doing?"

"Oh, Mirio!" Iida bowed. "We are all quite pleased with ourselves; eleven of Class 1-A will be advancing to the final round."

"Yeah, we saw it online!" Togata waved his phone for emphasis. "You all did amazing! We might be the Big Three, but we still haven't made it to the last round of a Sports Festival yet."

"Hey, uh, not to be rude, but aren't you three in the third-year event?" Ashido didn't mind seeing the Big Three, but she was still confused. "Why are you here so early?"

Amajiki shrugged; to everyone's amusement, he still couldn't look her in the eye after she flirted with him. "It's quiet in the waiting room, and we wanted to watch the footage of you guys. We're not allowed to actually be in the stands until our event, so this was the best we could do."

Hado hopped from one foot to the other. "Hey, where'd Midoriya-kun go? I figured he'd be with his best friends."

UA's Rising Stars looked around; sure enough, Midoriya had somehow vanished without their notice.

"Maybe he went to the bathroom or something?" Sero wondered. "If we don't run into him after getting some food, we should look for him."

"Good idea," Togata said, clapping Sero on the shoulder. "Hey, why don't we show you a secret? It's more of an upperclassmen thing, but there's actually a small vendor that exclusively serves students, so you won't have to wait in line! Best of all, it's free for competitors!"

Uraraka immediately latched onto the word 'free'. "Okay, let's go! We should get some extra food for Deku-kun, just in case."

Asui frowned. "Still, I hope everything is okay, ribbit."

…

Midoriya was nervous—more than usual, anyway, to the point that Ben stood next to him to offer silent support. On the opposite side of the hallway, Todoroki locked his intense gaze with Midoriya's own.

"What did you want to talk about?" Midoriya asked.

Todoroki finally closed his eyes; he looked like he was trying to find the right words. "I'm only telling you this because, out of everyone in our class, I respect you the most. As such, I feel like you deserve to know why I want to challenge you so badly. I would appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you."

"Okay, this is weird," Ben said, mirroring Todoroki's crossed arms and posture. "He doesn't need to tell you anything. If I had money, I'd bet it all that he's using this as an excuse to get something off his chest."

"I won't say a word," Midoriya promised, while silently agreeing with Ben.

Todoroki held up his right hand and let wisps of cold air flow around it. "You've noticed that I only use the power of my right side—my ice. I never use my left side in battle."

Midoriya nodded.

"It's because of my father." Todoroki's hand tightened into a fist. "He's Endeavor. The number two Hero."

Midoriya's eyes went wide. "Wait, really? I mean, I knew his last name was Todoroki as well, but there's nothing about him having childr—" He stopped when Todoroki's own eyes narrowed. "Sorry, go on."

"Have you ever heard of Quirk marriages?"

Just the use of the term made Midoriya flinch. "I h-have, yes. It was never given much approval, and people who have powerful Quirks who get married have to be evaluated to see if they aren't basically conducting a eugenics experiment—oh my god."

Todoroki nodded. "Yes. My father used his influence to get people to look the other way. He basically bought my mother for her Quirk; he was never able to surpass All Might himself, so he decided to have a child who could do it for him. It took him four tries to get it 'right'.

"My mother… couldn't handle it. After a while, she snapped, and poured boiling water on the left side of my face, because it reminded her of him. She was locked up after that. Everything I suffered—more importantly, everything she suffered—is all because of Endeavor. So I decided that I would surpass him, All Might, and every other Hero out there with just my mother's power. Endeavor can watch as I become the greatest Hero without using his Quirk." By this point, Todoroki had begun to pace, and his voice was starting to crack, but he reigned it in. "I just want you to know where I'm coming from. You may have won the first two events, but those don't matter. When you and I fight in the next event, I'm going to crush you. So go ahead, turn into anything you've got, even the one that beat Nomu—I'm going to prove that I don't need Endeavor."

His piece said, Todoroki walked off. Midoriya stood there in silence as he tried to digest everything he had learned.

"That boy needs therapy," Ben commented. "And I'm pretty sure Endeavor is breaking laws, but nobody can prove it."

"So… what do I do?" Midoriya asked.

"You told me you didn't want advice," Ben reminded him.

"This is different," Midoriya argued. "This goes way beyond a competition."

"You're right." Ben shrugged. "What do you want to do?"

"I want to help him," Midoriya said immediately.

"Good answer." Ben smiled. "I don't know for sure, but the first step to helping him might be to force him to use his fire. Of course, if you do that, you might be making things harder for yourself."

"That doesn't matter," Midoriya said firmly. "I want to be a Hero. Heroes help people, that's all there is to it."

Ben's smile turned to a full-blown grin. "All right, buddy; put some thought into that. For now, though, you should get some food and find out who you're going up against first."

Midoriya nodded. He could worry about classmates with deep-seated issues after getting something to eat.

…

"Deku-kun, there you are!" Uraraka waved him over and handed him a plate of food. "You missed the Big Three earlier, they showed us where to get all this!"

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

Midoriya's friends all frowned at the subdued tone in his voice. He ate almost reluctantly, like eating was the last thing on his mind.

"You all right, Midori?" Ashido asked.

"Not really," Midoriya said. "I was talking to Todoroki-san. It was personal for him, and he asked me to keep it to myself."

His friends all nodded, but none of them liked it. Finally, after finishing his food, Midoriya took a deep breath, and his eyes hardened with resolve.

"Well, I can't worry about it now," he said. "And I can't do anything about it until later. Have they posted the matchups yet?"

Asui shook her head. "They should be up soon, ribbit."

As if on cue, the big screen brought up the list of who was fighting who, followed by brackets that showed the first round.

Todoroki Shoto VS Kendo Itsuka

Asui Tsuyu VS Shinso Hitoshi

Kirishima Eijiro VS Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu

Bakugo Katsuki VS Sero Hanta

Midoriya Izuku VS Shiozaki Ibara

Iida Tenya VS Hatsume Mei

Uraraka Ochako VS Tokoyami Fumikage

Ashido Mina VS Yaoyorozu Momo

As the names were arranged into the brackets, Midoriya swallowed nervously. If he won against Shiozaki—who hadn't shown off her Quirk much during the last event, save for using her vine-like hair to steal some headbands—he was up against either Asui or Shinso, whom he knew nothing about. After that, he would be up against Tokoyami or Uraraka, or Kendo or… Todoroki.

"Well, that kinda sucks," Ashido said morosely. "I really didn't want to go up against one of you guys in my first fight." She then flopped dramatically over Yaoyorozu's lap. "Don't hate me if I win, Yaomomo!"

Yaoyorozu pretended to think about it. "Well, just this once."

"And I'm up against Tokoyami-san," Uraraka said nervously. "Oh, this is gonna be hard."

"You think that's hard?" Sero kept up his smile, but everyone could see the sweat on his brow. "I'm up against Bakugo. Any ideas, Midoriya?"

"A few," Midoriya muttered. "Keep him from pointing his hands directly at you. Also, he usually leads with his right."

"Good to know." Sero gently elbowed him. "Thanks."

"Okay, folks!" Present Mic's voice brought them all to the present. "I hope you got enough to eat, and I hope you went to the bathroom—with all the excitement coming up, you might not be able to hold it in!"

"That's disgusting," Aizawa said. "The first match is starting in two minutes. Shinso Hitoshi and Asui Tsuyu, get down here. Everyone else who isn't about to start a match, go to your assigned sections with your classes."

"Moving on, we should probably remind everyone of the rules. The fight ends when one competitor is unable to fight, surrenders, or is forced out of bounds. Also, the lovely Midnight and our good friend Cementoss will be acting as referee, in case things get out of hand. Just don't do too much damage to each other, or Recovery Girl will let you have it!"

"I guess this is it, ribbit." Asui got up and smiled at her friends. "See you guys later."

"Do your best, Tsu-chan!" Uraraka called after her.

The six of them joined the rest of 1-A, just as Asui entered the arena. On the other side was her opponent—the purple-haired boy who had called out their class.

"From the Hero Course's Class 1-A! She may look cute, but her entire body is a frog-shaped weapon, it's Asui Tsuyu!

"And from General Studies, it's the dark horse who managed to make it to the final event, it's Shinso Hitoshi!"

In the arena, Shinso nodded at Asui, who bowed slightly. Midnight raised her whip high.

"Are both fighters ready?"

"Yes."

"Ribbit. Yes."

Midnight brought the whip down. "Begin!"

Chapter 11: Round One

"Begin!"

Asui crouched, ready to jump, and her tongue extended. She tensed when Shinso held out his hand.

"Before we really start, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, I g—" The words had barely left her mouth when Asui's body went slack.

"Good," Shinso said; he put his hands in his pockets and smirked. "Now, turn around and walk out of bounds."

Asui tried to fight it, but no matter what she did, her body refused to obey her commands. Slowly, almost like she was in a trance, she walked out of the ring.

"Asui has walked out of bounds!" Midnight declared. "The winner is Shinso!"

Asui shook her head as Shinso's Quirk faded and she regained control of herself. She shuddered at the idea that someone could just control her like that. She then felt depressed at how easily she'd lost; Asui didn't let something like pride get in her way, but she'd thought she'd do better than that.

"Well, would you look at that!" Present Mic sounded genuinely surprised. "I wonder what Shinso-san did to make Asui leave the ring like that?"

"It was his Quirk, obviously," Aizawa said calmly.

"Oh? If someone has such a powerful Quirk, how come they're not already in the Hero Course?"

"Simple—it's a Quirk that only works on people. The entrance exam uses robots for the practical portion, which makes Quirks like Shinso's useless. Clearly, we need to revamp how we evaluate Quirks."

"You want to bring it up at the next teachers' meeting, go right ahead. Still, let's give it up for Shinso, the first student to advance to the next round!"

…

"That really sucks," Ashido said. Gone was her good cheer; she was genuinely sad that Asui had lost.

"Shinso-san has a powerful Quirk," Uraraka said nervously. "Deku-kun, if you beat Shiozaki-san, you'll have to go against him!"

"Yeah, I guess," Midoriya mumbled. "I have to beat Shiozaki-san first, and I don't know enough about her Quirk…"

Everyone else smiled fondly as Midoriya rambled, but all of their attention shifted when Asui rejoined them.

"Hey, Tsu," Sero said with an easy smile. "How're you doing?"

Asui sat next to him, slumping more than usual. "I feel like I let you all down, ribbit."

"Nonsense!" Iida waved his hand wildly, and Uraraka had to lean out of the way to avoid getting chopped on the head. "You had no idea what Shinso-san was capable of, and you were still able to make it to the top sixteen in your very first Sports Festival! If anything, this is something to be proud of!"

Asui managed a tiny smile. "Thanks, ribbit."

Yaoyorozu leaned over and hugged her. "Just look at this as a milestone, a hurdle to surpass next year!"

"She's right," Sero said with a grin. "And with those jumping skills, you'll totally get over that hurdle!"

Asui's smile grew; somewhat worryingly, so did Ashido's.

"Subtle way to compliment her on her legs, Sero," she said with a saucy grin.

"Wha—" Sero's composure finally broke, and his face went red. "That's not what I meant!"

Asui blushed almost as badly as Sero did, and looked away. I wouldn't mind if he did.

While the rest of the group either got embarrassed or laughed along with Ashido, their other classmates were keeping an ear out for the next announcement. Thankfully, Shoji was there to tap Uraraka on the shoulder.

"Uraraka-san, your match is going to start in a few minutes," he said through an extra mouth. "Technically, you should have been in a waiting room by now."

"Eep! Thanks, Shoji-san! Sorry, guys, I gotta go!" Uraraka smiled nervously. "See one of you in the finals!"

"Good luck, Uraraka!" Ashido called out as the other girl ran off.

"Hey, Midoriya." Midoriya turned to face Asui, who had mostly regained her composure. "I know that you have to get through your first round, but if you face Shinso-san, there's something you should know, ribbit."

Midoriya nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

"I think his Quirk has something to do with talking to him." She shrugged. "Maybe you have to answer a question before he can control you, ribbit."

"Thanks, Tsuyu." Midoriya smiled. "That helps a lot. And if I do face him, I'll beat him for both of us!"

…

"Let's get started with the next fight! From the Hero Course's Class 1-A, he's the noble warrior with the demon inside, it's Tokoyami Fumikage!"

Excited cheers greeted Tokoyami as he stepped into the ring, though he didn't react to it, and settled for waiting stoically.

"And let's give it up for his opponent! Also from Class 1-A, she's the girl who defies gravity, but doesn't need a broomstick to do it! Let's hear some applause for Uraraka Ochako!"

Unlike her opponent, Uraraka shyly waved at the crowd as she walked. Her adorable nature and friendly response immediately endeared her to many in the crowd.

"Hi, Tokoyami-san," she said. "Congrats on making it to the final event."

Tokoyami inclined his head. "Thank you, Uraraka-san. Congratulations to you as well; your performance during the Cavalry Battle was unexpected, to say the least."

"All right, kids, are you done?" Midnight sounded impatient, but her gentle smile told them that she didn't mind. "Are you both ready?"

"I am," Tokoyami said.

"Yes, Midnight-sensei!"

Midnight raised her whip. "All right… begin!"

"Dark Shadow!"

"I'll get her!" Dark Shadow dashed out of his partner's torso, claws outstretched.

Uraraka took a deep breath, placed her hand against her shoulder to apply her Quirk, and then kicked off at a forward angle. Dark Shadow flew under her, but just close enough that Uraraka was able to twist and kick the living Quirk in the head. The point of the kick wasn't to hurt Dark Shadow—in fact, nobody in her class was quite sure if Dark Shadow could be hurt—but to shift her angle and send her flying towards Tokoyami.

She pressed her fingertips together. "Release!"

With gravity suddenly restored, Uraraka plunged straight towards Tokoyami with one fist drawn back. She tried to punch the boy in the face, but her move was telegraphed, and Tokoyami stepped aside.

"A good try, Uraraka-san," Tokoyami said, "but it was quite obvious."

"And you're wide open!" Dark Shadow added gleefully as he turned and grabbed Uraraka by the leg.

Uraraka had no way of reaching Tokoyami with Dark Shadow grabbing her. That left an option that had no guarantee of working. Acting quickly, she slapped Dark Shadow in the face. Considering that he was a shadow, albeit one with mass, she wasn't sure how Zero-Gravity would work, but she had to try.

Instead of floating harmlessly upwards, the Quirk writhed in place; he couldn't seem to go anywhere. "Hey, what gives? I can't move right!"

Before Uraraka could even feel good about her minor victory, she felt a fist bury itself between her shoulder blades, and she fell to her knees.

"You seem to have forgotten that I am also capable of fighting, though I admit that I am not that skilled," Tokoyami said as he grabbed her wrists. "I will be freeing Dark Shadow now."

Uraraka tried to pull free, but Tokoyami had leverage, and forced her hands together; it was sloppy, but her fingertips still touched, releasing her Quirk. This time, when Dark Shadow grabbed her, he just roared and threw her out of the ring.

"Uraraka is out of bounds!" Midnight shouted. "The winner is Tokoyami!"

"Talk about underestimating both fighters!" Present Mic said. "Uraraka definitely has more fight in her than it seems, and Tokoyami doesn't let Dark Shadow do all the work for him!"

"She kept shifting all of her attention from one target to another," Aizawa added. "If she'd kept both of them in her field of vision, neither of them would have been able to get the jump on her."

"Good point, co-host! Let's give it up for both of our competitors! Only Tokoyami is moving on, but Uraraka put up a good fight!"

As soon as the fight had ended, Tokoyami had walked over to Uraraka and extended a hand. "Are you all right, Uraraka-san? I apologize; Dark Shadow can become somewhat brutal when he is angry."

Uraraka accepted the helping hand. "It's okay, Tokoyami-san; I'm fine. Good luck in your next round."

She was a little proud of herself for holding her head high, and for holding back her tears until she was back inside her waiting room.

I lost. I'm so sorry, Mom, Daddy… I wanted to do better…

…

Midoriya was starting to get worried when Uraraka didn't rejoin them after a few minutes. The next bout had already begun, but it didn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. Kirishima was facing Tetsutetsu, but since both boys had almost identical Quirks, the fight had turned into a—if Midoriya was being honest—kind of boring slugfest. Iida had already left to prepare for his match, and Midoriya had the idea to use something similar as an excuse.

"I think I'll head for my waiting room," he said, standing up. "Can you all cheer on Iida for me?"

"Sure thing, Midori!" Ashido rested her chin in one hand and waved him off with the other. She seemed particularly invested in Kirishima's fight, but she did grin when Midoriya was gone. "He's totally going to check on Uraraka, right?"

Yaoyorozu smiled. "Without a doubt."

"Definitely, ribbit."

Sero grinned. "Dude's totally gonna earn points with her."

"Like you earned with Tsu?" Ashido giggled as Sero and Asui blushed again, and then grinned at Yaoyorozu. "You're next, just so you know."

Yaoyorozu rolled her eyes. "I have no intention of supplying you with ammunition."

"Challenge accepted."

…

It didn't take long for Midoriya to find Uraraka's room, but before he opened the door, he heard a voice. He wasn't one for eavesdropping, but he also didn't want to just barge in on Uraraka's conversation, so he just stood there.

"—I know, Daddy, but I still wish I'd done better; not just for you, but for all my friends. We promised to make it to the final event, but… well, yeah, I guess I kept that promise, but I didn't want to get knocked out during the first match… Okay, thanks. I, uh, I need to go; I want to cheer on my friends… I love you too, bye."

As soon as Uraraka hung up, Midoriya opened the door. "H-hey, Uraraka, can I come in?"

Uraraka yelped and spun around, her phone still in hand; it didn't escape Midoriya's notice that there were tears in her eyes. "Oh, Deku-kun! Sure, come on in! Wait, how long were you outside that door?"

"J-just long enough to hear the end of your call," he admitted. "I'm really sorry, I just wanted to see how you were doing."

Uraraka smiled weakly as she put away her phone. "Well, if you heard my call… it really stinks that I didn't make it past the first match. I mean, I knew Tokoyami was strong, so I didn't expect to win, but I didn't even land a hit on him."

Midoriya frowned and walked closer. "Uraraka, you shouldn't say that you didn't expect to win. You're amazing, and you put Dark Shadow out of commission! You should be proud!"

Uraraka blushed. "Th-thanks, Deku-kun. You know, you can call me by my first name here, right?"

"O-oh, r-right. Sorry, Ochako, I just…" he shrugged helplessly. "A-anyway, I just wanted to see if you were okay."

"I'll be fine," Uraraka promised. "So, uh, how's the match right now?"

"It looks like it'll take a while, and Iida is waiting for his match with Hatsume." Midoriya hesitated, then stood next to her. "I want to cheer for Iida, but he'll understand if I'm checking on you."

"Aw, that's so sweet, Deku-kun." Uraraka leaned against him and smiled. "Seriously, though, I'm just a little bummed out. I'll be cheering for you, and all our friends, I promise."

"Still…" Midoriya swallowed nervously, and then wrapped his arms around her. "You did great today, even if you didn't win."

Uraraka sniffed, but didn't say anything; she just leaned into his embrace. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they heard Present Mic announce that Kirishima's match had ended in a draw, and that there would have to be a lesser contest to determine a winner.

"Iida is gonna be out there soon," Uraraka said, and reluctantly pulled out of Midoriya's arms. "I'll cheer him on for both of us, okay?"

Midoriya nodded. "Sure thing."

Uraraka turned to leave, but then turned back. "Um, Deku-kun?"

"Yeah?"

For a second, Uraraka almost gave in to her urge to kiss him on the cheek. Midoriya was just being so nice, and she almost couldn't help herself. She told herself that it was just a friendly thing, that there would be nothing beyond that… and she almost believed it. However, her nerves failed her, and she stopped herself.

"Thanks again," she said, and then dashed out of the room. "Goodluckinyourmatchbye!"

Midoriya scratched his head as the door closed behind her. "What was that about?"

Ben grinned. "Oh, I have no idea."

…

Uraraka rejoined her friends in the stands just as Kirishima defeated Tetsutetsu in arm-wrestling. "Hey, guys!"

"Good to see you, Ochako," Yaoyorozu said as Uraraka sat between her and Asui. "You didn't bring Midori with you?"

Uraraka blushed a little and shook her head. "No, he's gonna wait until his match is called."

"How are you feeling, Ochako?" Asui asked.

She smiled. "I'm doing okay, Tsu; I still wish I'd won, but Deku-kun got me out of the funk I was falling into."

Ashido turned to her with a wide grin. "And how did he do that?"

Still a little red in the face, Uraraka tried to look dignified. "That's between him and me."

Ashido's smile only grew, but she didn't press. "If you say so. Hey, they announced Iida's fight when we—what the hell is he doing out there!?"

Iida's friends stared as he came striding into the arena, completely decked out in Support Items. When questioned by Midnight, he explained that he and Hatsume had agreed that both of them using her creations was fair.

What followed was a circus of a fight. Iida tried to take it seriously, but Hatsume used every opportunity to just advertise her creations. Also, Iida wasn't completely sure how to use the Support Items Hatsume had provided; that gave her the chance to explain said items in greater detail. She even hacked the sound system of the arena to better broadcast her words. By the time she got through the many Support Items she'd brought, the time had almost run out on the fight. Still, she was satisfied, and deliberately walked out of bounds to give Iida the win.

"I'm so confused," Sero said, though he looked like he was on the verge of laughing.

Yaoyorozu seemed to be in the same boat. "I believe that she used this match as a… commercial?"

Ashido, on the other hand, had to fight through hysterics to speak. "W-well, at least Iida won, right? He's the first one of us to make it to the second match!"

"Yeah, but he'll be going up against either you or Yaomomo, ribbit," Asui reminded her.

Ashido pouted. "Dang it, you're right."

"Speaking of which," Yaoyorozu said, "after Midoriya's match, we should head down to the waiting rooms, Ashido."

"Yeah, good idea." Ashido brightened as Iida returned. "Hey, it's Billboard-san! How does it feel to be a walking advertisement?"

Iida held himself up with as much dignity as he could, despite how his friends grinned at him. "I will admit, I didn't expect my first match to be quite so… silly. However, I am still moving on to the next bout; unfortunately, I will be facing either you or Yaomomo."

Ashido went back to pouting. "Yeah, I was kinda hoping that more of us would make it to at least the second fight. Tsu and Uraraka are out, only Yaomomo or I are moving on, and Sero…"

Sero grimaced. "Yeah, I'm facing Bakugo." He glanced behind him, where his opponent wasn't even deigning to look at anyone else. "I'm not looking forward to that."

"Hey, if you manage to rip his eyebrows off with your tape, I'll pay you," Ashido offered.

"Okay, that would be funny, if it didn't result in my death by explosion."

"Offer is still on the table."

The six of them shared an uneasy chuckle, but then Present Mic's voice caught their attention.

"All right, let's get ready for our next match! In Class 1-B, it's the topiary terror, the foliage fighter, the girl with the green… hair? Give it up for Shiozaki Ibara!"

More than one girl couldn't help but feel a stab of jealousy as the 1-B student arrived. She had a grace and beauty few of them could ever hope to match. Even the thorny vines that replaced her hair had an ethereal quality to them. Shiozaki walked serenely, almost as if she was strolling through a garden, not heading to a fight. However, before the crowd could get too worked up, she raised her hand and looked up at the announcer's booth.

"Excuse me?" she said in a voice that was soft and kind. "Could you please refrain from introducing me with such aggressive titles? That is far from the image I wish to convey."

"Um… okay?" Present Mic cleared his throat and continued. "And her opponent from Class 1-A, it's the boy that should never be underestimated, no matter how plain he looks! He's the wildcard wonder, the transforming titan—let's hear it for Midoriya Izuku!"

Unlike with Shiozaki, who had cut off her own applause at the knees, the crowd went wild for Midoriya. Everyone had been shocked by what he had revealed so far, and the possibility of seeing more got them pumped up.

For his part, Midoriya shyly waved as he walked into the ring, and tried not to feel too embarrassed.

…

"Ooh, this is gonna be awesome!" Hado practically vibrated as she stared intently at the phone. "Go, Midoriya-kun! You can do it!"

"What do you think he'll turn into for this one?" Amajiki asked.

Togata grinned. "Going by his opponent, I think I may know this time."

…

"Greetings, Midoriya-san," Shiozaki said with a polite bow. "I have been surprised by you so far today. Truly, you have shown great talent."

Taken aback by her almost matter-of-fact compliment, Midoriya hastily bowed back. "Um, th-thank you, Shiozaki-san. Good luck, I guess, but I do plan to win."

Shiozaki nodded. "As do I."

"Are both fighters ready?" Midnight asked.

Midoriya took a deep breath, and then held his hand over the Ultimatrix; he had already made his decision, and just needed to slap the dial. "Ready."

Shiozaki clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. "I am ready."

"Begin!"

Shiozaki's vines writhed as they plunged into the ground. At the same time, Midoriya vanished in a flash of green light. The vines shot up from underneath him just as the light faded; before they reached him, the vines burned to a crisp.

"HEATBLAST!"

…

The crowd gasped as they got a good look at Midoriya's latest transformation. Next to All Might, Gran Torino threw up his hands.

"Okay, I give up," he said. "I knew he had a lot of forms, but there is way too much variety. How is that kid not dead from his own Quirk?"

"I believe that Nezu-san mentioned that his watch helps keep him stable," Nighteye said. "Still, this one seems rather dangerous."

"It is," All Might confirmed. "He used that one to defeat Nomu; considering how powerful he was, I'm a little worried for young Shiozaki. I hope young Midoriya knows what he's doing."

…

"Interesting," Shiozaki said calmly. "Your heat can kill my vines before they even reach you."

Heatblast shrugged. "You can just surrender, if you want."

"I appreciate the offer, but for the honor of my class, I must persevere." Shiozaki's expression grew more determined. "And while I cannot hit you with my vines, there are other things I can do."

To Heatblast's surprise, Shiozaki's vines plunged into the ground again. This time, they ripped out a chunk of stone and hurled it at him with the force of a catapult.

How strong are her vines!? He thought as he threw himself to the side, and then sent a column of fire at his opponent. With lightning-fast reflexes, Shiozaki ripped another piece of the ring up to block his fire. Okay, so her Quirk is fast and strong. As long as she can tear up the ground, she can block any direct attacks, and since no one is stopping her, I guess that's allowed.

"I pray that you dodge this as well, Midoriya-san!" Shiozaki's vines split from one concentrated mass into a thorny swarm of serpents. Each vine picked up a smaller stone, and dozens of them were thrown at him from different directions.

"Oh, crap," Heatblast muttered; at the last second, he intensified his own heat, creating a pressure wave that superheated and slowed down the stones, but it didn't stop them. Instinctively, he closed his eyes and raised his arms to shield himself from the impact… but it never came.

When Heatblast opened his eyes, he saw that the rocks, now glowing orange, were hovering mere inches away from him.

"Huh," he said, almost to himself. "Geokinesis. I forgot about that."

"Interesting," Aizawa commented. "It looks like Midoriya can use that form to control things that are affected by his heat. Rocks, at least."

"I guess you could say that his rock playlist is on fire, right?"

"I hate you, and everything you stand for."

Heatblast grinned, and then pushed one hand forward. The stones flew right back at Shiozaki, who quickly turned around and plunged her vines back into the ground; they sprouted back up and formed a massive wall to block the stones. Heatblast used the distraction to burn the rest of the wall to ashes.

Shiozaki was far from finished; splitting her vines into two large bunches, she carved up two huge pieces of stone and brought them around to Heatblast's sides. She slammed them together like a stone sandwich, with Heatblast as the filling. At first, everyone thought that that was it—a few people worried that Shiozaki might have actually killed him—but then the stone glowed, cracked, and exploded outward, leaving Heatblast a little staggered, but otherwise unharmed.

I'm lucky she hasn't tried to throw me out of the ring with a move like that, he thought. Even if I can block the rocks she throws at me, she's just going to keep at it until one of us makes a mistake. Okay, I know about her Quirk now, but what else can I use? Her fighting style? She just sort of stands there, and doesn't… move…

Struck by inspiration, Heatblast shot a look at the ground until he found what he'd been hoping for.

"Hey, Shiozaki-san!" he called out. "One last chance to surrender!"

Shiozaki still had her back to him. "I respectfully decline."

"Then I'm really sorry!"

Shiozaki turned her head so that she could see him with one eye. "For what?"

"This!"

Heatblast pointed both hands at a hole in the ground—the first hole Shiozaki had created—and shot out a wave of fire. The flame traveled down the tunnel, splitting off into the others Shiozaki had made, and going to the origin of each. Heatblast had kept his output low—he didn't want to cause serious injury—but he still flinched when he heard Shiozaki's shriek of pain as the fire engulfed her.

He stopped almost immediately, and started running before Shiozaki finished collapsing to the ground. She was unconscious and covered in burns; none of them looked too serious, but they had to have been painful. Her gym uniform was charred, and her vines had been burned away almost to her scalp.

"Shiozaki is unconscious!" Midnight shouted. "Midoriya wins!"

Midoriya felt sick as he turned back to normal. He wanted to win, sure, but he'd never wanted to hurt a fellow would-be Hero. Instead of waving to the crowd to celebrate his victory, he followed the small robots that placed Shiozaki on a stretcher and carried her out of the arena. He needed to apologize as soon as she woke up.

…

"Look at that sportsmanship, folks! Midoriya clearly has a good heart. Don't worry, everyone, our own Recovery Girl is on standby; Shiozaki will be up and about soon enough! Speaking of 'soon', let's take a short break while Cementoss repairs the ring!"

"Way to go, Deku-kun!" Uraraka shouted over the roar of the crowd. "Did you guys see that? He was awesome!"

"Hell yeah!" Ashido gave the other girl a fist-bump—because of Uraraka's Quirk, high-fives were off the table. "I was seriously worried when he got squished by those big rocks, but then he made them explode, and, and… wow!"

"I do feel bad for his opponent, though," Iida said. "It was difficult to see from here, but I imagine that those burns were unpleasant."

"Hey, he's going with her to Recovery Girl," Sero pointed out. "That was pretty cool of him."

Asui noticed that there were fewer people in the 1-B section than before. "I think he's going to have company soon, ribbit."

…

"I can't say that I'm particularly happy that you caused these injuries," Recovery Girl said. "However, it was kind of you to escort the young lady here."

Midoriya nodded; he might have won the match, but he felt terrible for hurting Shiozaki as badly as he had. "Is she going to be okay?"

Recovery Girl huffed. "Of course, boy; these burns aren't too serious." She leaned over and kissed Shiozaki on the forehead; in seconds, the burns faded, and even the nubs of vine on her head looked more vibrant. "She'll wake up soon; if I'm not here, tell her to rest and drink plenty of fluids. It'll help her skin, and speed up the growth of her vines."

"Yes, ma'am." Midoriya turned back to Shiozaki, only to spin right back around when the door slammed open.

"Recovery Girl, is she okay!?" For a second, Midoriya thought that Kirishima's hair had gone grey, but then he recognized Tetsutetsu for who he was. He also recognized Kendo Itsuka, who was right behind him.

"She'll be fine!" Recovery Girl snapped, and then rolled her eyes. "Young people, always worrying I don't know how to do my job!"

While Recovery Girl fumed, the 1-B students ran over to where Shiozaki was sleeping. Midoriya stood and bowed.

"I'm r-really sorry!" he half-shouted. "I d-didn't mean to hurt her! I mean, I was t-trying to win, but I didn't think I'd do this much damage, and—"

"Hey, it's okay," Kendo said gently, holding out her hand to make him stop. "This kind of thing is why we all signed waivers when we started at UA, right?"

"Uh…" Midoriya's mind went blank, until he remembered that he and his mother had signed just such a form amidst the stack of paperwork that came with attending UA. "Right. Still, I'm so sorry."

"Hey, man, it's cool," Tetsutetsu said. "Shiozaki's tougher than she looks; I bet you anything that, by tomorrow, she'll look like nothing happened. Still, it's really manly of you to go with her to Recovery Girl; between you and Kirishima, your class might not be so bad after all."

"Thanks?" Midoriya just hoped that the good outweighed the bad—also known as Bakugo and Mineta.

"Ugh…" the three students turned to see Shiozaki sitting up, holding a hand to her head. "That was unpleasant." She opened her eyes and saw her visitors. "Oh! Hello, everyone. I assume that I lost my match?"

Kendo sat next to her. "Yeah, looks like I'm the only one from our class who's still in the fight."

"U-um, Shiozaki-san?" Midoriya bowed again. "I'm sorry for hurting you."

Shiozaki smiled kindly. "It is fine, Midoriya-san; as you can see, I am doing better. Might I ask, did Recovery Girl say anything I should know about?"

"Just to rest and drink fluids," Midoriya repeated.

"Wonderful!" Shiozaki accepted the cup of water Tetsutetsu got for her from the water cooler in the corner. "Thank you, Tetsutetsu; water and sunlight will help my vines grow back faster, Midoriya-san, so it might be beneficial to my health if I go back and watch Kendo in her match."

Midoriya nodded, intrigued at that little tidbit about Shiozaki's Quirk. Still, he had done what he'd set out to do, and politely excused himself.

"Oh, Midoriya-san?" Midoriya turned to see that Shiozaki's smile had become a little more sincere. "Thank you for coming here to see me; I appreciate it. And I will be cheering you on, unless you are facing Kendo, but I believe that will only happen if you both make it to the semifinals. Good luck to you."

Midoriya left, but then Kendo was walking next to him in the hallway. "My match is next," she explained. "I don't suppose you've got any tips for facing Todoroki-san?"

Loyalty to his class made him hesitate, but then he thought back to how intense Todoroki had been lately.

"He's strong," he finally said. "If you don't get in the first hit, you're going to lose."

Kendo's eyes widened, and she nervously played with her side-ponytail. "Okay, so he's that strong. Good to know; don't worry, I won't tell anyone that you gave me any kind of advice."

"I'd appreciate that." Midoriya shuddered at what Bakugo might do if he ever found out he'd helped someone 'inferior'.

…

"Deku-kun!" Uraraka practically leapt out of her seat to grab her friend in a hug. "Congratulations, that was awesome!"

With her head tucked under his chin, Uraraka never saw Midoriya's face go red. "Th-thanks, Uraraka."

Ashido reached out and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, you kicked ass out there!"

With her arms around him, Uraraka could feel Midoriya's flinch. "R-right."

Uraraka let go and looked up at him in concern. "Is something wrong, Deku-kun? Is Shiozaki-san okay?"

Midoriya sat down amidst his friends. "She's going to be fine, but I felt terrible about hurting her."

Uraraka felt like slapping herself. Midoriya was one of the kindest people she knew; of course he would be upset by hurting someone who didn't have it coming. She wished she knew what to say to help him.

Fortunately, Yaoyorozu did. "Midoriya, I'm sure that Shiozaki-san would be more upset that you would let this stop you than the fact that she lost. Remember, the Sports Festival is about showing off what we can do; you know better than most that some Heroes have to be particularly… brutal when it comes to defeating powerful Villains. Your match just proves that you are capable of doing so, but that you are also compassionate, even for someone you barely know. That's the kind of thing that shows that you'll be a great Hero."

Midoriya futilely wiped at the tears spilling down his face. "Th-thanks, Yaomomo; I needed to hear that."

Uraraka smiled, but she couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy. Yaoyorozu always seemed to know what to say or do whenever Midoriya had a problem. It made Uraraka feel useless.

Still, as the next match was called, Uraraka was shocked, embarrassed, and a little delighted when Midoriya leaned against her ever-so-slightly, and rested the back of his hand against hers.

Okay, this is nice, she thought. I guess Yaomomo told him what he needed to hear to get out of that funk, but he needs this to keep him grounded.

She almost laughed at the irony, and then turned her attention to the match.

"All right, folks, let's introduce our next combatants! From the Hero Course's Class 1-B, it's the kung fu girl with the heavyweight hands, the ginger grappler—give it up for Kendo Itsuka!"

Kendo waved up at the crowd enthusiastically, even striking a confident pose as she walked. Even without ever speaking to her before, Uraraka found herself liking the girl.

"And her opponent from Class 1-A, he's got ice, he's got fire, but don't expect a song from this stoic student, it's Todoroki Shoto!"

Uraraka cheered for her classmate, but next to her, she felt Midoriya tense up. She remembered how Todoroki had called him out before the Sports Festival began, and how he had pulled Midoriya aside after the second event, and wondered if that had anything to do with it.

She couldn't help but frown. What was it with two of the strongest boys in her class making her friend so upset?

In the ring, Todoroki curtly informed Midnight that he was ready; Kendo was more enthusiastic, but she never took her eyes off her opponent. To Uraraka's inexperienced eye, it seemed that Kendo knew what she was doing.

Midnight raised her whip, and then brought it down. "Begin!"

Almost before the word left Midnight's lips, Todoroki took a step forward with his right foot and turned half of the ring into an ice rink in two seconds. At first, Uraraka thought that the ice would freeze Kendo's feet, but to her surprise, Kendo had jumped just in time. She then began skating across the ice; it wasn't perfect, and she had to expand her hands to nearly the size of her body to act as rudders, but she was able to get into Todoroki's face.

"She's only got one shot," Midoriya muttered. "If she doesn't take him down here, she'll lose."

Uraraka wondered how he knew that; maybe Todoroki had told him that he wouldn't hold back for this part of the Sports Festival. More worryingly, maybe he hadn't, and Midoriya had somehow seen it.

Either way, she would later replay what happened next several times on her phone to figure out the exact order of events.

It started with Kendo bringing her right hand into Todoroki's shoulder, but just before it impacted, a blunt spike of ice sprouted up and hit her wrist. Kendo was surprised for less than half a second, but that was all Todoroki needed to grab her left hand with his right. A thin coat of ice covered Kendo's left side, but the enhanced strength of her enlarged hand started to crack it. Todoroki frowned, and then shifted his foot; in two seconds, an entire glacier was formed around Kendo, with only her head and some of her fingers still exposed.

Uraraka leaned back; not just in shock, but because the ice from the glacier would have hit her if she hadn't. Most of her classmates had either ducked down, or were copying her. It took her a moment to realize that Midoriya had started to lean in front of her, his hand hovering over his watch.

He was trying to protect me, she thought. From the way Midoriya was rapidly blinking and glancing around, he had reacted unconsciously.

"Is… is everyone okay?" Midoriya asked.

Yaoyorozu put a hand on her chest as she tried to get her heartrate under control. "I'm fine."

"So am I, ribbit," Asui said with a shiver.

"Me, too," Ashido said, and then grabbed Yaoyorozu's hand. "Come on, Yaomomo, let's go to our waiting rooms early. It's safer down there."

"I think everyone is well," Iida said, eyes scanning not just the Rising Stars, but also the rest of the class. "Either Todoroki-san has exceptional control over his Quirk, or we are all very lucky."

In Uraraka's opinion, it was probably the latter. Further conversation ended when Midnight stepped off her podium, said something Uraraka couldn't hear, and then waved her whip.

"There you have it, folks!" Present Mic announced. "Kendo has surrendered! It might be too early to say so, but with power like that, I think Todoroki might be a shoe-in for the finals! He might even win the whole thing without breaking a sweat!"

Uraraka couldn't help but agree with him; off the top of her head, she could think of few Heroes could put out the kind of power Todoroki had just exhibited. And Midoriya would have to face him if they both made it to the semifinals.

She glanced at him worriedly; instead of looking nervous, however, he almost looked sad as Todoroki quickly thawed Kendo out of the ice.

What is it you know that the rest of us don't?

…

It took almost twenty minutes for the ice to get cleared away. By the time it was, Bakugo was more than ready for his match; he was just disappointed with who his opponent was.

Out of everyone, I get Sticky for round one, he thought bitterly. I couldn't get Glasses, or Ponytail, or Icy-Hot; shit, I couldn't even get Kirishima!

The only opponent he didn't want for his first fight was Deku; ironically, he wanted the nerd to make it to the finals, just so he could crush him while getting the most attention. He was actually glad that Deku was in the other half of the brackets, because they could only meet in the finals.

Finally, he received the go-ahead to make his way into the arena; after the introductions so far, he was a little curious to see how Present Mic would hype him up.

"From Class 1-A, it's the blonde bomber, the angry artillerist, the grand grenadier—give it up for Bakugo Katsuki!"

"Heh. Not bad," Bakugo admitted quietly to himself as the crowd roared.

"And his opponent, also from Class 1-A—he may have weird elbows, but don't underestimate him, or you'll be in a sticky situation! It's Sero Hanta!"

Across from Bakugo, Sticky stretched out his arms and grimaced. "Yeah, take a shot at the elbows, nothing new there."

Bakugo cracked his neck. "Hey, Sticky, I've got a question."

"Yeah, what's up?"

"You and Deku are tight, yeah?" Bakugo glanced up at the stands and saw Deku watching nervously; the nerd had Frog, Glasses and Round-Face close by, and probably would have had the rest of his babysitters if they weren't getting ready for their match.

"I'd say we're friends," Sticky said ambivalently.

"Good." Bakugo grinned. "I want to see Deku's reaction when I beat the crap out of you."

Sticky's own smile never wavered. "Good luck with that, dude."

"Are you boys ready?" Midnight asked; she was giving Bakugo a warning look, not that he cared. All he had to do was tone it down enough that he didn't cripple or kill his opponent.

"I'm ready," Sticky said.

"Let's do this."

Midnight gave Bakugo one more look, and then nodded. "Begin!"

Bakugo aimed his palms behind him and let out a stream of explosions that sent him rocketing forward. "Blast Rush Turbo!"

Sticky aimed one elbow and fired his tape—not at Bakugo, but the ground under him, and reeled himself forward at impressive speeds. Bakugo reached out with his right hand for a point-blank explosion, only for Sticky to shoot out another strand of tape at the last second and pulled himself to the right.

Bakugo's explosion only sent his opponent staggering, but Sticky recovered and snagged his leg with more tape. With a heave, he yanked Bakugo to the ground, and if he hadn't cushioned the impact with a small explosion, it would have hurt a lot more than it did.

"Hey, look at that," Sticky teased. "You do lead with your right."

How the hell did he know—Deku. Bakugo's eye started to twitch. Of course he'd know something like that and share it with his weakling friends.

Sticky shot out more tape, but Bakugo reached out and incinerated it with another explosion before it could get him.

"Okay, enough of this shit," he snarled, and braced himself. "DIE!"

A huge explosion, bigger than anything he'd shown off at UA before, rocked the arena. It was so powerful that there was literally no way for Sticky to avoid enough of the blast, and when the smoke cleared, he was in a heap against a wall. His uniform was shredded and smoking, he was covered in burns, and he was clearly unconscious.

Bakugo grimaced and rubbed his wrist; using his super-explosions without his gauntlets always hurt, but they were the perfect trump card in a fight like this.

"Sero is unconscious and out of bounds!" Midnight declared. "The winner is Bakugo!"

Unlike with his introduction, there were fewer cheers for his victory. Bakugo just sneered; if they were scared, that was their problem. He was about to leave, but Midnight stopped him.

"I'm giving you a warning now," she said. "If you pull a stunt like that again and put a student's life at risk, not only will I disqualify you, but your future in UA will be reconsidered. Is that understood?"

Bakugo used every ounce of self-control not to scowl at her. "Understood, Midnight-sensei."

What is it with this school? He thought as he walked away. I won, and I proved that I'm strong. Isn't that what being a Hero is all about? That's what All Might does all the time, right?

…

Ashido nervously bounced from one foot to the other. She wasn't just nervous about her match—Yaoyorozu was easily one of the best students in class—but because she'd heard Present Mic going on about how Sero was quickly being taken to the infirmary. As soon as her own match was over, she would head over there and see how he was doing.

Strangely, the idea of going out to fight Yaoyorozu was a bit comforting; it took her mind off of Sero.

"Some of the others will be there with him," she told herself. "Tsu definitely will; Midori and Ochako, too. Tenya will probably stay in the stands to let everyone know how the match goes. Yeah, that sounds like him." She looked up and saw the light signaling her to head out. "Okay, looks like it's my turn. I hope Present Mic rings me in with something cool."

With the biggest smile she could muster, Ashido jogged out into the arena, which had been repaired after Bakugo's short rampage.

"From Class 1-A, it's the girl with acid for blood and horns that make no sense, the pink partier, the acidic ace—give it up for Ashido Mina!"

Ashido waved and blew kisses to the crowd; she loved putting on a show. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Iida in the stands with about half of the class, but the rest of her friends were absent. She giggled when he gave her two thumbs-up.

Yep, called it.

"And her opponent, the Class President of 1-A! She's got looks, she's got smarts, and she's got a Quirk that'll knock your socks off! It's the brainy beauty, the classy creator—give a big hand for Yaoyorozu Momo!"

Ashido grinned as her friend stepped into view. "And I thought I liked showing off. Nice look, Yaomomo."

Yaoyorozu ignored the catcalls from the audience. She had rolled up her sleeves and unzipped her top, revealing a black sports bra. She had also taken a page out of Iida's book and rolled up her pants to just above the knees.

That was enough to tell Ashido that she was serious; with that much skin exposed, Yaoyorozu had plenty of places she could use her Quirk.

"Just know that I respect you enough as an opponent, and as a friend, to take this seriously," Yaoyorozu said, though she didn't hide the small smile.

"Okay, ladies, are you ready?" Midnight asked.

"Yes, Midnight-sensei!" both girls said at once.

"All right… begin!"

Ashido made the first move, skating across the ring and leaving a trail of acid in her wake. Her goal was to get in close, melt anything Yaoyorozu threw at her, and wear her down until she ran out of lipids.

At first, her plan seemed to work. Yaoyorozu created a long pole from her arm and tried to clothesline her; Ashido just coated her arms with acid and melted through it. Yaoyorozu then made a rectangular shield with the same arm and did her best to keep it between her and Ashido.

"Come on, Yaomomo," Ashido taunted, "you can do better than that!"

The only warning Ashido had was a smirk on her opponent's face, and then the shield flew off her arm and rocketed—literally, with four small rockets mounted to the corners—straight at her. Ashido was so surprised that she couldn't react in time; the shield clipped her shoulder and sent her spinning.

"Okay, ow," Ashido whined. "What the heck was that!?"

"Rocket fuel," Yaoyorozu said. "I'm sure you can figure out the rest."

Ashido's jaw dropped. "You can make rocket fuel!?"

"Much more than that!" With her other arm, the one she'd kept hidden with her shield until now, Yaoyorozu hurled a triple-weighted bolas at her.

Ashido flipped gracefully into the air to avoid it, but for a moment, she had no way to maneuver. Yaoyorozu took that moment to aim her palm at Ashido's face, and a long pole extended out. Ashido normally used her acid on her arms and feet, but that didn't mean she couldn't generate it elsewhere—highly corrosive acid dripped from her forehead in a thick bubble, melting the pole before it hit her.

Unfortunately, it was risky to use acid that potent around her face, and as soon as she landed on the ground, she wiped the acid off before it dripped into her eyes.

Okay, so I avoided a concussion, but now I have an acid burn on my forehead. Ouch.

Yaoyorozu wasn't done; she pulled a large, weighted net from her stomach and hurled it at Ashido while she was distracted.

"You haven't learned at all, smart girl," Ashido called out, and swiped her arms downwards and across each other. "Acid X!"

The X-shaped wave of acid splashed against the net, but to Ashido's surprise, it only hissed a little as it fell over her.

"Sorry," Yaoyorozu said. "I've been coating my creations with stronger and stronger bases, trying to counteract your acid. It seems that I figured it out." Ashido frowned and started creating her more corrosive acid, but then Yaoyorozu strode up to her and created a large hammer. "By the time you melt through that, I'll have brought this down on your head. I suggest you surrender; I don't want to give you a concussion."

Ashido considered fighting on; she could call Yaoyorozu's bluff, but the girl had calculated every move to get to this point, and something told her that there were backup plans in case she couldn't force a surrender.

A small, petty part of her wanted to go for it anyway, just to make it harder for Yaoyorozu in the next match. She viciously quashed that part of her; just because she wanted to win didn't mean she was the type of person to sabotage a friend.

"I surrender," she declared.

Midnight raised her whip. "Ashido has forfeited! Yaoyorozu is the winner!"

The crowd cheered, and Yaoyorozu helped get the net off of Ashido, taking care not to touch the acid-coated parts.

"Good match," Yaoyorozu said kindly. "This probably would have ended differently if I hadn't had time to prepare."

"Thanks, Yaomomo." Ashido smiled, even if it was a little forced. "Come on, let's go check in on Sero."

…

When Sero woke up, it took him a minute to figure out what had happened. Oh, right. I fought Bakugo. Kinda figured I'd be in the infirmary, but still… ow.

At least he wasn't alone; as soon as his eyes had opened, his vision was filled with the faces of his friends. He tried to sit up, only for Iida and Midoriya to gently push him back down onto the cot.

"Recovery Girl said not to move," Midoriya explained, but his voice sounded weird, like it was underwater.

"What's…" Sero coughed and winced when the half-healed burns on his face were pulled. "Why does everything sound weird?"

Midoriya flinched, which was a bad sign. "W-well, your eardrums were blown out. Recovery Girl says that you'll be fine in a few hours, but you can't take the bandages off your ears until then. You, um, you also…"

When Midoriya trailed off, Sero turned to Asui for a straight answer. "You're going to have a scar, ribbit."

Sero grimaced. "Is it bad?"

Yaoyorozu created a small mirror from her hand and held it up. "It's on the left side of your jaw."

Sure enough, there was a jagged scar, just in front of his ear, that ran a couple of inches up. It looked like it had happened a few weeks ago, not that day; he had Recovery Girl to thank for that.

"Anything else I need to worry about?" he asked as calmly as he could.

Uraraka shook her head. "You had some fractures, but Recovery Girl healed those. You just need to take it easy for a few days for the burns."

Sero thought about it; considering who he'd been fighting, it could have been a lot worse. "How about you guys? Did I miss anything?"

Ashido raised a hand. "I lost to Yaomomo, so out of the seven of us, only she, Midori and Iida are moving on."

"And Yaomomo and Iida are fighting next round," Sero said—he felt a little better knowing his mind wasn't so rattled that he couldn't remember that. "So only two of us can make it to the semifinals."

Midoriya nodded, but he looked miserable. "Sero, I'm really sorry. I should have told you more about the way Bakugo fights, or ways to avoid his Quirk—"

"Dude, relax," Sero interrupted. "Maybe I could have done better if there had been some terrain for me to use, but we were on a flat, open space. Honestly, I was lucky I got in any hits. Don't blame yourself, man."

Midoriya looked like he was going to argue, but then Uraraka put a hand on his shoulder and gently tugged him away. "Come on, Deku-kun, you need to get ready for your next match."

"R-right…"

Sero managed to hold in his laughter until the two were gone, even though it hurt when he let it out. "Oh, man, that's adorable."

Ashido grinned. "I know, right?"

Asui still looked upset—by her standards, at least. "Sero, are you really okay, ribbit? Not just physically."

"Eh, I can admit that I'm not a pure-combat type like Bakugo, so I was at a disadvantage." Sero smirked. "Besides, somewhere in Bakugo's mind, he knows that he got to this round because of me and Ashido, and that's gonna drive him crazy." He slowly stretched. "Hey, when did Recovery Girl say I could leave?"

"Not for at least an hour," Yaoyorozu said. "So you'll probably miss the next round of fights, but if you're lucky, you should be able to watch the semifinals."

"Cool." Sero settled into the cot and closed his eyes. "I'm just gonna rest, okay? Can you guys let me know how the matches go?" He suddenly winced, and his eyes opened again. "Wait, no, one of the fights is between Yaomomo and Iida. Hang on, I said that already; sorry, I guess I'm still a little out of it. Well, good luck to both of you."

"Thank you, Sero," Iida said, and headed for the door. "Yaomomo, we should prepare for our match."

"Right." Yaoyorozu smiled at them. "We'll do our best, everyone."

Ashido jumped up. "I'll head back to the stands and cheer for Midori. You coming, Tsu?"

Asui hesitated, then shook her head. "I'll stay here with Sero, ribbit. Can you tell me what happens after the fights?"

"Sure, make me run back and forth every ten minutes." Ashido pretended to pout, but only for a second. "No worries, guys; see you later!"

Soon, it was just Asui and Sero in the infirmary; the latter yawned, but then smiled. "Thanks for sticking around, Tsu."

"No problem." Asui waited for Sero to close his eyes, and then leaned in close to whisper in his ear.

"Ribbit."

Sero's eyes snapped open. "DAMMIT!"

…

"Welcome back, everyone!" Present Mic waited for the roaring crowd to calm down before continuing. "I hope you all enjoyed that short break, because we're ready to start our next match!"

"It's about time," Aizawa grumbled.

"First up, let's hear it for our dark horse from General Studies! He may look as tired as Eraserhead, but he's got a Quirk that'll have even Pro Heroes quaking in their boots! Give it up for Shinso Hitoshi!"

The crowd cheered as Shinso walked into the ring; he did a good job of keeping his features neutral, but he failed to completely hide his proud smirk.

"And his opponent, the boy with more surprises than Christmas morning, it's Class 1-A's Midoriya Izuku! He may be the front-runner for the first-year events, but can even Midoriya stand against Shinso's Quirk? Let's find out!"

"Hey," Shinso said as Midoriya approached, "no hard feelings, right?"

While the match hadn't started, Midoriya wasn't about to respond, just in case. Instead, he locked his jaw and nodded, while his hand hovered over the activated Ultimatrix.

"Are both combatants ready?" Midnight waited for both boys to nod. "All right… begin!"