Kyandi: See? We told you we'd be back.
Halyn: She's really gotten into writing this story.
Kyandi: A little too much, I'm afraid. I would love some reviews telling me what you guys think of the story so far.
Halyn: She's feeling a little insecure.
Kyandi: Only a little. Oh! Before I forget, I now have an email set up for all of you lovelies who would love to shoot me an email. I promise to answer all emails within a day of arrival. The email address is on my bio page.
Halyn: She's trying to give you all multiple ways to contact her if you want to.
Kyandi: Right. So with that said, everyone enjoy and review.
Halyn: Kyandi-sama does not own My Hero Academia.
Chapter 6 Sports Festival Begins
"Gather round, mass media! It's time once again to see the high schoolers you know and love revel in their youth. It's UA's Sports Festival. Everybody...are you ready?!"
Today was the day.
As Present Mic's voice rang out over the arena, Halyn could practically feel her fur standing on end in anticipation. She was currently gathered in the prep room with the rest of her class, waiting for their call to enter the stadium. She was sure that her excitement and anticipation was going to make her start bouncing about the room, she was ready to get moving.
Instead, she settled for running her fingers through the fur on her tail.
It always worked wonders for calming her.
"Is everyone good and ready?! The event's about to begin!" Ida called in warning.
"Wish I coulda worn my costume." Mina remarked.
"They're not allowed, in the interest of fairness." Ojiro replied.
"Especially Ha-chan's. Now that's a deadly costume, for more reasons than one." Mina said, looking over at Halyn. "Though the way she wears her gym clothes isn't any better."
Halyn, blinking in innocent confusion, looked up. Like everyone else in their class, she was wearing the gym uniform. Unlike everyone else, Halyn had the pants legs folded up to mid thigh and she wore the jersey half way unzipped to show off the sports bra-like top she wore under it. A top that was surely a size or two too small for her chest for it looked like she was about to spill out of it. To top it off, she had added a pair of black, calf-high, toeless and heelless boots that molded to her calf like a second skin.
Mineta had been staring and drooling since she had entered the room.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Halyn asked.
"Only that you show way too much skin." Mina replied.
"Yeah, well...if I explain, yet again, how it's kind of necessary given the nature of my quirk, you're all just going to question me, again, on what my quirk is and I'm not telling." Halyn replied.
With that, Halyn turned away from her friend, her tail curling in amusement when Mina replied with, "Stingy!" to her remark. Halyn wasn't about to give up her biggest advantage in this festival.
"Midoriya." Todoroki suddenly calling out to Midoriya, had everyone turning to watch.
"Todoroki...what is it?" Midoriya asked.
"Objectively speaking, I'm stronger than you. More capable." Todoroki said.
"Oh, yes, because that's such a good way to start a conversation." Halyn muttered lowly to Uraraka and Asui, who nodded in agreement with her.
"All Might's got his eye on you, doesn't he. Now I'm not about to pry into why that is, but I will beat you." Todoroki announced.
"Ooh! A declaration of war from the strongest in the class?!" Kaminari remarked.
"Hey, man, why pick a fight now?! We're about to go on." Kirishima said, laying a hand on Todoroki's shoulder.
Todoroki shrugged his hand off, his attention focused solely on Midoriya.
"I really don't care. I'm not pretending to be anyone's friend here." Todoroki replied.
"Todoroki. I'm not sure why you felt the need to tell me you'll beat me. You're clearly stronger and I can't measure up to most of the others here in skill. Objectively speaking, even..." Midoriya trailed off.
"Don't be so negative, Midoriya. no need-"
"But!" Midoriya cut Kirishima off to continue. "Everyone...even the kids from the other courses are aiming for the top. And I'm...well, lemme say this. I'm not gonna fall behind. I'm going for it too. With everything I've got!"
It made for a tense opening to the Sports Festival, but Halyn liked the feeling. It made her feel even more ramped up for the festival. With the declaration of war out of the way, they made their way to where they would enter the stadium.
"The first year stage. The students are coming out! It's UA's Sports Festival! The one time each year when our fledgling heroes compete in a ruthless grand battle! First up...you know who I'm talkin' about! The miraculous rising stars who brushed off a villain attack with their steely willpower! The first years of the hero course! It's Class A!"
When Present Mic called their class, Halyn entered the stadium at the head of her class with Midoriya on one side and Ida on the other. Once she was out in the sunlight, Halyn's eyes scanned the mass amount of people in the stands, watching them.
So this was what it felt like being on the other end of the TV screen.
Halyn was sure her heart would jump right out of her chest, it was thumping so hard.
"What a crowd." Midoriya said, shaking in his shoes.
"And we're expected to put on the best performance we can in front of so many spectators! I suppose this is merely one more necessary skill if we hope to become heroes." Ida remarked.
"They're really giving us too much credit...but we won't let it shake us, right, Bakugo?" Kirishima asked.
"Nope. Just gets me pumped up." Bakugo replied.
Halyn wasn't quite sure she agreed. She wasn't usually one for the lime light, but here, right then, if she hoped to go anywhere in the hero world, than she was just going to have to deal with it.
The rest of the classes were introduced before the ref for the first years was announced to be Midnight. Halyn took one look at Midnight's costume and really couldn't see why some people complained about her costume. Midnight looked half naked, even if she wasn't really. At least Halyn's looked somewhat decent.
"Now for the Athlete's Oath!" Midnight called.
"So that's the R-Rated Hero, Midnight." Halyn remarked.
"R-Rated? Should she really be in a high school?" Tokoyami asked.
"Shut it. Pipe down! Your student representative is from Class 1-A, Bakugo Katsuki!" Midnight announced.
Halyn had a really bad feeling that Bakugo was going to do something that would turn every one of the students around her and her classmates, against them. Sure enough, only one thing left Bakugo's mouth and it did exactly what Halyn feared it would.
"The Athlete's Oath...make no mistake about it. I'm gonna take first place!" Bakugo announced.
Halyn heaved a sigh as several of the other students started yelling at Bakugo, lumping the rest of Class 1-A in with him.
"Why must you show contempt for the dignity of this event!?" Ida demanded of Bakugo.
"Because he wouldn't be Bakugo if he didn't." Halyn replied. "Besides...I think, in his own way, he's pushing himself too."
Midoriya turned a surprised look on Halyn. He was surprised she had picked up on that. Then again, Halyn seemed like the kind of person that wanted to see the good in those around her.
"Now, without any delay, let's get the first event started." Midnight called out.
"Everything at UA's always without delay." Uraraka remarked.
"Of course it is. Heroes don't have the luxury of taking their time." Halyn replied.
"Huh...you got a point." Uraraka conceded.
Giving Uraraka a smile, Halyn turned back to watch the board behind Midnight as a virtual slot was sent spinning.
"These are the qualifiers! It's in this stage that so many are sent home crying every year!" Midnight called out. "And the fateful first event this year is...this!"
Midnight gestured to the screen behind her as the slot spun to a stop, landing on "Obstacle Course Race". Halyn let out a low, "huh". It wasn't a bad noise, just one of intrigue. Yeah, she was sure she could pass this with little issue.
"It's a race between every member of all eleven classes! The course is a four-kilometer lap around the stadium itself! Our school preaches freedom in all things! Heh heh heh...so as long as you don't go off the course, anything is fair game!" Midnight announced. "Racers to your positions."
Halyn made sure she ended up on the outside of the group. For her and her intents, it was better to be caught between a wall and people, than several people elbowing her from all sides. Midoriya, on the other hand, ended up in the thick of it. When the light hit green and the start buzzer rang, everyone surged forward as one. It didn't take Midoriya long to realize that the starting gate was narrow so that it would act as the first filter.
Something Todoroki took full advantage of.
The moment he cleared the gate, he froze the ground, catching several off guard. He didn't however, catch everyone. Several, mostly his own classmates, made it past his ice, one way or another. But even kids from other classes made it past.
"I expected it from our class, but more made it past than I thought would." Todoroki remarked to himself.
"Good thinking, staying two steps behind Todoroki. Now it's my turn!" Mineta called, using his balls to avoid touching the ice. "How about a taste of my killer-"
Mineta was cut off when the next obstacle made an appearance, knocking Mineta off to the side. Standing before the students, was the robot villains from the entrance exam. There were even several of the zero-pointers. They blocked the way to the rest of the course.
"So these are the faux villains they used for everyone else's test?" Todoroki asked.
"Where'd they find the money for these?" Yaoyorozu demanded.
Todoroki had to admit that they were big, but he kind of wished the teachers had prepared something a little more threatening. It was a little disappointing. Dropping to one knee, he touched the ground, the temperature of the air around him, dropping.
"Especially because dear old dad is watching." Todoroki remarked to himself.
With an up swing of his hand, he froze the robots in place before quickly dashing between their legs to continue on.
"He stopped 'em! We can get through that gap!" someone called to the others.
"Bad idea. I froze them in pretty unstable positions." Todoroki called back. "So they'd fall."
"1-A's Todoroki! Busting through and sabotaging the others in one move! This guy's cold!" Present Mic called out over the stadium.
Unknown to Todoroki, Halyn had already slipped past the robots, unseen to everyone.
The next people to get past the robots was Bakugo, followed by Sero and Tokoyami. Several others, mostly from Class 1-A, followed behind them, finding one way or another past the robots.
"The current leaders of the pack are overwhelmingly from Class A!" Present Mic called.
"Class A knows there's no time to hesitate. They've been exposed to the outside world, up close and personal. They've had that fear planted in them and they've endured it. Each has grown from that experience and forgotten how to hesitate." Aizawa added in.
Down in the course, Midoriya was dodging attacks from the robots when he spotted an armor plate that had been knocked free of one of the robots Todoroki froze. Thinking he could make use of it, Midoriya grabbed it. Using it as a weapon so he wouldn't have to use his quirk so early on, Midoriya took down one of the robots. Sure that he could keep this up, Midoriya worked his way through. The next obstacle, though, was a little more difficult.
"So the first barrier was a piece of cake?! How about the second?! Fall and you're out! You gotta crawl across if you wanna make it! This is The Fall!" Present Mic announced.
Before the students stretched a wide ravine with pillars spread throughout. Each of the pillars were connected by ropes. For some, like Asui, it was an easy enough task. For others, like Todoroki and Ida, it was all a matter of balance.
And then there was Bakugo, who flew over the whole thing with the use of his quirk.
Uraraka and Mina stood there for a moment, watching. Hearing fast approaching footsteps behind them, the two turned, only for a gust of wind to hit them. They didn't see anyone or anything that could have caused it, only footprints in the sand that came to a stop just short of them.
"What was that?" Mina asked.
"No idea." Uraraka replied.
The two turned back to the challenge at hand, refusing to be left behind.
"The leads keep breaking ahead, while the rest of the pack is bunched up! Our racers don't know how many will get to move on, so all they can do is aim for first place! And our leader has reached the final barrier! That is to say, this minefield! It's a deadly afghan carpet! A quick glance is enough to reveal the mines' locations! So keep both eyes open and watch your step! I should mention...our mines don't pack a deadly punch, but they're loud and flashy enough that you might need a change of underwear when it's all over." Present Mic announced.
While Todoroki and Bakugo had begun to pick their way through the minefield, Midoriya was only half way through the the second obstacle, the armor plate from the robot, weighting him down.
"They've already made it that far? Quickly! Gotta keep moving!" Midoriya said, encouraging himself as he tried to move himself down across the ropes of the second barrier.
Up ahead of him, Todoroki was trying to pick his way across the mine field, trying to set off as few of the mines as he possibly could. It didn't take much for him to figure out that the ones in the lead were the ones most at a disadvantage. He would have to take it slow. He had no sooner thought this when a familiar voice reached his ears, making him look back.
"Haha, this crap can't slow me down!" With this yell, Bakugo flew past Todoroki. "You. Your declaration of war was to the wrong person."
It became a fight for first from there, Bakugo and Todoroki fighting to keep the lead. As they fought to take the lead from the other, Midoriya was reaching the beginning of the mine field, the piece of the robot's armor, still under one arm.
Midoriya's eyes flew around the field, working quickly to try to figure out a way to get past the mine field and up to the front. It was then that an idea hit him. On their own, the mines were little more than an annoyance meant to knock the students off balance, but if one put several of them together, the explosion would become bigger and flashier.
So that's what Midoriya did.
The explosion that rocked the mine field, had everyone turning to see what had caused it only to find Midoriya, riding the robot armor piece, flying through the air, rushing towards the finish line. In just a moment, Midoriya flew past Bakugo and Todoroki, quickly approaching the ground. Both Bakugo and Todoroki increased their efforts to take back first. Todoroki knew it would create a path that the other students could then use, but he used his ice to coat the ground anyway.
Just as Midoriya was starting to approach the ground, Todoroki and Bakugo started to pass them, but Midoriya wasn't done. Twisting his body while grabbing a hand full of cables that were sticking out of the armor piece, he swung with all his might, banging the armor piece against the ground and setting off more mines.
The resulting explosion blew Todoroki and Bakugo off to the side while sending Midoriya rocketing forward. Midoriya hit the ground in a roll and popped back to his feet, sprinting off to take first place. Behind him, Todoroki and Bakugo continued to fight for second. They were just nearing the opening of the tunnel that would lead back into the arena when the smoke behind them suddenly split to make way for the last person they expected to see.
A foot landed on each of their shoulders. As if in slow motion, the two boys looked up, only catching a glimpse of something blue before whoever it was jumped, using them as a spring board to launch them forward. Hands tapped the ground, flipping the person over as they twisted their body in mid air, allowing them to land on their feet, now running backwards. Todoroki and Bakugo stared, wide eyed, as they were confronted with who had just up-staged them.
Grinning back at them, her hair flying around her as she kicked off the ground to launch herself backwards and closer to the finish line, was Halyn.
Up until that very moment, they had both completely forgotten about Halyn and her agility and speed. But how had she caught up with them? Neither had seen hide or hair of her since the race had started, but, then again, they hadn't really been looking for her. For all they knew, she could have been just steps behind them the whole time, laying low and buying time.
When Halyn knew she had both of their attention, her grin grew and she gave them a wink. Kicking off the ground once more, she twisted again until she was now facing forward. As she landed on her feet once more, she bent her knees further and, with a single shake of her tail, rocketed forward, gaining speed enough to pull ahead of them. Given their shock and her sudden burst of speed, as well as the short amount of distance between her and the finish line, they weren't going to catch up to her. Not in time to pull ahead of her.
Todoroki had to admit...she had chosen the perfect time to revel herself and pull ahead.
Halyn gave a little bounce and a cheer of glee when she passed the finish line in second place, her smile bright and her tail flicking happily. Cheers erupted from the crowd as Halyn gave another bounce of glee.
"Coming out of nowhere in a surprise upheaval, second place is taken by Leander Halyn of class 1-A! How's that for one sly kitty!?" Present Mic announced. "I didn't see her at all through the whole race."
"Leander's strong point in her slyness and speed. If she wants to go unnoticed, she generally does." Aizawa added.
Down below, Bakugo and Todoroki crossed the finish line, more students spilling in after them. Todoroki glanced over at Halyn as he paused to catch his breath. Instead of looking winded like the rest of them, Halyn looked refreshed, like the race had given her a little extra pep in her step. Todoroki really couldn't help but wonder how she had escaped his notice the whole race, how she had escaped everyone's notice.
As if feeling his eyes on her, Halyn turned, blinking her big eyes at him in questioning before she smiled at him and gave him a little wave. It it wasn't for the genuine smile on her face, he might have said she was mocking him, but that just wasn't Halyn.
"Racers cross the finish line one after the other! We'll go over the standings later, so catch your breath for now!" Present Mic called.
"Deku!" Midoriya looked up as Uraraka ran towards him, calling him. "That was awesome!"
Behind her, Ida was lamenting over the fact that he, with his quirk, had actually lost a race. He just couldn't seem to wrap his head around it and came to the conclusion that he still had progress he needed to make.
"First place, though! Man, I'm jealous!" Uraraka told Midoriya.
In embarrassment, Midoriya twisted his arms around himself, half burying his face in one bicep. While he had managed to take first, he knew it was all luck. He knew that from there on out was where real skill would take over.
Skill...and slyness, like Halyn's.
Midoriya turned to look at Halyn as she stretched her body in order to avoid it cramping up on her. She had a big smile on her face as she hummed to herself. He had passed several people in all of the classes on his way to the front of the pack but he didn't remember seeing Halyn even once. Past the initial rush out of the gate at the start, he had lost sight of her.
Had it been her quirk at work?
Before Midoriya could work himself up into a muttering fit again, Midnight came out to announce the standings. On the screen appeared their ranks. Of course, in first place, was Midoriya, followed by Halyn, Todoroki, Bakugo, Shiozaki from Class B, Honenuki from Class B, Ida, Tokoyami, Sero, and Kirishima finished out the top ten. In total, only forty-two students passed to the next round of the festival.
"The top forty-two from this qualifying round will move on!" Midnight announced. "But for those who placed lower, don't worry! We've got another way for you to show your stuff! And now the main selection really begins! The press corp's going to be jumping out of their seats, so give it all you've got! Now, on to the second event! I already know what it is, of course...dying in suspense?! Next up is...this!"
The screen behind Midnight displayed the next event as...Cavalry Battle.
"So we're teaming up, but how exactly?" Asui asked.
"Participants will, on their own, form teams of two to four members each and get into a horse-and-rider formation!" Midnight announced.
"Oh, so kind of like playing Chicken in a pool." Halyn remarked to herself from where she stood between Mina and Toru.
"Kind of." Mina replied.
While the idea was intriguing, Halyn figured there had to be a lot of problems that could arise from this, the forefront being that there would be more than just one opposing team to concern herself with.
"The rules are fundamentally the same as those of an ordinary cavalry battle, snag your opponents' headbands while guarding your own, but with one exception...each of you has been assigned a point value based on your ranking in the last event!" Midnight explained.
"We'll earn points like in the entrance exam? Sounds simple." Sato remarked.
"So the point value of each team depends on its members!" Toru added.
"Which means that all teams will be gunning for those who have more of the higher ranked participants composing it." Halyn added thoughtfully.
"I'm about to explain it, so just shut up already!" Midnight snapped at them. "Anyway, yes! And your individual point values start at five, at the bottom! So the student who took forty-second place is worth five point, forty-first is worth ten...get it? But our first place participant is worth...ten million points!"
All eyes turned to Midoriya who was now sweating in nervousness. Halyn was kind of glad she hadn't taken first. She wasn't sure she could have stood being thrust so completely into the spot light like that.
"The higher ranked students are the ones to aim for! This survival game is a chance for a comeback. It's anyone's game! There's more suffering ahead for those at the top. As you must have heard countless times since enrolling at UA, this is Plus Ultra!" Midnight told them. "After taking first place in the qualifiers, Midoriya Izuku has got ten million points!"
While, in second place, Halyn was also a high target, she was nothing in comparison to Midoriya. All a team had to do was take his headband and keep it in order to win. It was a challenging position to be in and one with lots of pressure. But, on the other hand, if Midoriya managed to hold on to his headband, then it would be an automatic win for him. It got Halyn to thinking.
"The match will last fifteen minutes. Each team's points are determined by its members. The rider will wear a headband displaying the total number of points! Until the match ends, you'll all compete to grab each other's points and maintain the ones you have. Any headbands you grab must be worn around the neck or higher. But the more headbands you've got, the harder they'll be to manage! Most importantly, even if your headband is taken, and even if your horse formation is broken, it's not over 'til it's over!" Midnight explained.
"With forty-two contestants, there'll be ten to twelve teams on the field the whole time?" Sato asked.
"How tiresome." Aoyama remarked.
"Perhaps, but also challenging." Halyn piped in.
"So there's no need to panic if your points are temporarily stolen, yeah?" Mina asked.
"But you can't really tell if you're not paying attention to the minute-by-minute point breakdown, Mina." Asui pointed out.
"By doing that, you put yourself and your team's points at risk and lose precious time." Halyn added, Asui nodding in agreement.
It would be a game that would test their ability to protect and fight at the same time while remaining hyper-vigilant at all times. A challenge for those among them who didn't do so well with prolong fights.
"Quirks are allowed, so it'll be a brutal battle! However, it's still a cavalry battle! Maliciously attacking another team with the intent of making them fall will get you a red card! And that means you're out of the game! You've got fifteen minutes! Time to form your teams!" Midnight called.
Mina instantly turned to ask Halyn to team with her, but just as she had vanished during the first round, Halyn was gone once more. Groaning in disappointment, Mina went on to her second choice while other students begun pairing off. Several of the other students from Class A went to Bakugo, hoping to team up with him. Midoriya found out, quick enough, that no one really wanted to team up with him for a couple of reasons. The foremost being his insane amount of points. He was starting to get so upset that when Uraraka approached him and asked to be on his team, he actually broke into tears.
"Y-you mean it?! Everyone's probably gonna come after me for my ten million." Midoriya said.
"Yeah, but you'll win if you can just run away." Uraraka told him.
"I-I think you're overestimating me, Uraraka."
"That's fine! Who cares? Teaming up with a friend just seems right!" Uraraka declaring, smiling brightly.
Midoriya was so grateful to have a friend like her. It made his chest grow tight and also put a weird look on his face that had Uraraka questioning why his face suddenly went all ugly looking.
"I actually wanted to team up with you too, so thanks! Partnering with someone you get along with is definitely the best option! Now that we've got your quirk, Uraraka, we just need him. I've got the perfect plan!" Midoriya said.
The two went in search of Ida then, to recruit him to their team, only to find that he had already agreed to join Todoroki's team. The conversation ended with Ida also challenging Midoriya as Todoroki already had.
"Now what?" Uraraka asked.
"Hey, Midoriya."
Midoriya turned on the spt, looking around for who had called him. He caught sight of Halyn waving to him to come over. She was partly hiding behind an already formed group, as if she was trying to escape notice of those who hadn't yet found their team. Midoriya shared at look with Uraraka before the two hurried over to Halyn.
"Let me join your team."
The simple sentence was the first thing out of her mouth. Midoriya was so shocked that, for a moment, he just stared at her. He quickly snapped himself out of it when she raised an eyebrow at him.
"You sure?" he asked.
"Yeah, I am. I can't tell you what my quirk is, because I'm trying to keep it a secret for a reason, but I can assure you that I can get you out of a few tough places if you need it. I'm your friend and friends support each other through thick and thin." Halyn told him.
Midoriya thought for a moment. Despite not knowing that Halyn's quirk was, he knew for sure that she was fast, flexible, and good at fending off others with cleverness. He knew she wouldn't drag him down and he really could use someone with her slyness. He looked up at Halyn, seeing the serious and determined look on her face.
"Alright." he agreed.
Halyn smiled, her tail curling happily behind her. While losing Ida was bad, he now had Uraraka and Halyn.
"Just one more now..." Midoriya mused.
He turned to scan those who still hadn't joined a team, Uraraka and Halyn standing at his side. Many were already gathered with their teams, planning ahead. It was then that Midoriya's eyes landed on the perfect final member of their team. Halyn and Uraraka called out to him in questioning when Midoriya suddenly walked away from them. By passing several others, he approached Tokoyami, asking him to join their team.
Thankfully, he did, coming back to Uraraka and Halyn with Midoriya in order for the four of them to plan out their approach to the game. Midoriya quickly went about explaining his plan to them.
"Right! Just focus on defending! There's no need for you to attack." Midoriya told Tokoyami.
"Hmm...interesting. The darker it is, the more ferocious my quirk attacks. But then the beast is hard to control. In daylight he's easier to manage but not much help in a fight. It's not like you knew, but picking me and my quirk for pure defense...not a bad choice at all, I say." Tokoyami replied. "Use me as best you can. I trust you, Midoriya."
"A weakness to light," Halyn mused lowly. "Sounds about right for a quirk like your's."
"And you? What of your quirk?" Tokoyami asked.
"I'm still not telling. Believe me, not knowing is to your benefit, as well. If you don't know what's coming, then the others can never guess. And keeping it a secret makes it easier for me to help us as a team." Halyn reasoned.
After all, they didn't know what quirks the other students had.
"Your fifteen minutes are up. Time to get started." Midnight suddenly called out.
Each team was handed the headband with their combined score on it. Midoriya took their's since he would be the horse, and secured it around his head. Once secure, they formed their horse, Midoriya acting as the horse while Uraraka and Halyn took the back flanks and Tokoyami took the front.
"Uraraka!" Midoriya called, silently asking if she was ready.
"Yep!" Uraraka answered.
"Leander!"
"Ready when you are." Halyn replied.
"Tokoyami!"
"Yeah." Tokoyami replied.
"Let's do this!" Midoriya called.
All of them braced themselves for the upcoming battle. They were pretty sure that once the battle started, most teams would be gunning for them and their over ten million points.
"Formed your teams? Made your plans? Too bad if you haven't! Here we go! The countdown to this brutal royal! Three! Two! One! START!"
With Present Mic's call to start the battle, several teams, just as Halyn had thought, came right for her team.
"Incoming attacks right off the bat...there are two teams." Tokoyami called back. "The fate of those who are pursued...make your choice, Midoriya!"
"Run away, of course!" Midoriya replied.
Halyn, Uraraka, and Tokoyami, trying to move together, turned to carry Midoriya away but found their feet sinking in quicksand, gluing them to the spot. Try as they might to free their feet, they wouldn't budge.
"We're sinking! Guess that's his quirk!" Midoriya said.
"Ugh, how do we get free?!" Uraraka demanded.
Halyn's head whipped from side to side, trying to find an out. Finally, she clicked her tongue.
"Midoriya, shift your weight off my left arm!" she called. Midoriya shifted forward, bracing his hands on Tokoyami's shoulders. He felt Halyn's arm that was supporting him as a seat, vanish. "Ochaco, get ready to float us!"
Halyn shifted downward, plunging her left hand into the sand. Midoriya, Tokoyami, and Uraraka didn't see what Halyn did, but in the next second, they were being rocketed into the sky. The two approaching teams stared up at them as they flew up into the air. Jiro tried to attack with her earphones, but Dark Shadow fended her off.
"Well done, Dark Shadow. Be sure to cover our blind spots." Tokoyami told his quirk.
"Gotcha!" Dark Shadow replied. "Wow, that was awesome! Just the defensive power we were lacking, but now we're covered at mid-range from every direction! Good going, Tokoyami!" Midoriya praised.
"You're the one who chose me." Tokoyami replied.
"But, Leander, what did you do?" Midoriya asked, looking back at her.
"Don't worry about it too much. I told you I could get us in the air." Halyn replied, bracing her arm under him once more so he could take his weight off Tokoyami's shoulders.
"We're landing! Ha-chan, brace yourself." Uraraka called.
Shifting so that all the weight would land on Halyn and Uraraka first, they touched down, both girls bending their knees to land on their feet. Uraraka released her quirk on Tokoyami last, so that he touched down after them. Midoriya was impressed with the pair the two girls made. While Uraraka was working her quirk on everything but herself and their clothes, Halyn was acting like a directional system, getting them in the air and coordinating with Uraraka in order to change their direction. Add in the mid-range defenses of Tokoyami and the close range defense from Halyn, who was flexible enough to work her way around Uraraka and Tokoyami, and they were doing great.
As Tetsutetsu's team came at them from the right, Dark Shadow fighting them off, Shoji came charging in from the right.
"Huh?! Shoji's alone?! But this is a cavalry battle!" Midoriya exclaimed. "We must keep our distance! Fighting multiple foes is a bad idea!"
"Then we need to move. Ochaco, this way." Halyn called, moving to one side.
She didn't get far before Uraraka pulled them up short. Halyn twisted to look at the other girl in questioning.
"Ochaco?" she asked.
"I'm stuck!" Uraraka replied, looking down to where her shoe was stuck to the ground with one of Mineta's balls.
"That's Mineta's! But where is he?" Midoriya asked, looking around.
"In here, Midoriya." Mineta called from where he was hiding under the protective barrier that Shoji's was creating with his tentacles.
"Whoa! Is that legal!?" Midoriya asked.
Halyn didn't have time to care. She was forced to compensate for balance when Midoriya had to duck to dodge Asui's tongue as it shot out of Mineta's hiding space as well. With Midoriya's quick response, the tongue flew past him and nearly smacked Tetsutetsu in the face.
"Asui too! How many you got in there, Shoji?!" Midoriya questioned.
"Worry about that later. We need to focus on retreating." Halyn told him.
"Right!" Midoriya agreed.
"Ochaco, sorry, but you're going to have to lose a shoe." Halyn added.
In a feat of great balance, Halyn managed to balance her weight and the part of Midoriya's weight she was bearing, on one foot. With the other foot, she reached out, stepping on the back of Uraraka's shoe so that her foot could pop right out. Once it was free, she shifted again. Once again, her teammates weren't able to see what she did, but in the next moment, they were launched into the air once again.
"Sorry about your shoe, Ochaco." Halyn told her friend.
"Don't worry about it. We managed to get away and that's what matters." Uraraka assured her.
Their escape, though, wasn't as clean as they thought. Midoriya and Halyn were the first to spot him as Bakugo came flying at them, using his quirk to propel him through the air.
"Getting pretty full of yourself, huh, you bastard!" Bakugo yelled, a huge grin on his face.
"Tokoyami!" Midoriya called.
Dark Shadow reacted quickly, acting as a barrier between Bakugo and their team. Blocked, Bakugo was left to fall back toward the ground, Sero using his quirk to pull Bakugo back to them.
All of the crowd was fixed on the students of Class A, watching as they both attacked and defended. But, despite having real experience fighting villains, it wasn't Class A that was dominating the point board, but the students of Class B. Several teams had already lost their headbands. Even Bakugo's team had already lost their's. It turned out that Class B, from the very start, had gone into the festival with the plan to throw the qualifier in order to make a big impact in the following rounds.
They had played the long game.
A good strategy, but not one that worked for everyone. It also meant that they wouldn't be aiming for Midoriya. That was good since it meant less opponents for them to have to worry about.
"Guys. I think it won't be too hard to evade-" Midoriya cut off as another team cut off their path. "Or maybe...it won't be quite that easy."
Before them...was Todoroki's team.
"Well, hello barrier." Halyn muttered lowly. "Midoriya, what do we do?"
"Looks like this won't end without a fight. They're really gunning for you, Midoriya." Tokoyami added.
"We're halfway through, so we've gotta keep moving! But there're multiple teams incoming!" Midoriya warned.
Halyn had to shield her eyes as the approaching teams, that were coming in on Todoroki's back, were taken down by Kaminari's electricity, Dark Shadow defending her teams from damage. To follow up Kaminari's attack, Todoroki took a pole produced by Yaoyorozu, using it to run his ice into the ground, freezing in place those teams effected by Kaminari's attack.
After so many people had managed to make it past his ice during the obstacle course, Halyn wasn't surprised to see he had adjusted the attack by using Kaminari's quirk first. It was a clever plan. Especially since Todoroki was then able to snatch a couple of headbands.
"Leander!" Midoriya called back to her.
Halyn shifted in order to get them off the ground, going to move her right foot, only to find it frozen to the ground. When in the world had Todoroki managed that!?
"My foot! It's frozen!" she called. "I can get it free, but not before they reach us!"
Midoriya looked down at Halyn in surprise. The ice was nearly completely coating her foot. How had she not felt the coldness of it on her foot?
"They're too strong! We'll never get away!" Uraraka exclaimed, helping to support Midoriya weight as Halyn bent to quickly start chopping away at the ice around her foot.
"I'll create a diversion! Leander, hurry!" Tokoyami called.
"Right!"
Halyn didn't need to be told twice. She quickly went to work on the ice while Dark Shadow tried to fend off Todoroki's team, only to be stopped by Yaoyorozu.
"Her creation quirk! What a pain!" Midoriya remarked.
"No...Kaminari's the real problem. His sunlight attack would have wrecked my armor." Tokoyami replied, referring back to Dark Shadow's weakness.
"Right! Kaminari's electricity." Midoriya said.
"As long as he keeps that up, I don't have a shot. This little guy's so fickle." Tokoyami said.
"So you have less offensive power now, but they don't know that, right?" Midoriya asked.
"Probably. The only one I ever told about my weakness is Kuchida, back at the USJ. But he doesn't talk much." Tokoyami answered.
"As long as they don't know we can fake them out! We'll be fine! And the ten million points will stay with us! Leander, how are you doing?" Midoriya asked.
"I'm free!" Halyn replied, but it wasn't going to do much to help them.
Todoroki had them completely surrounded by ice. And with only a minute left on the clock. It was a bad position to be in, but they managed to, for the most part, avoid Todoroki's team. To top it off, they got to show off the flexibility of Halyn. Dodging Todoroki's team so that it put Yaoyorozu face-to-face with Halyn, Yaoyorozu got a shock when she moved to try to attack and make an opening for Todoroki. She had no sooner created a weapon when Halyn gave a hop, calling to Uraraka to support Midoriya.
Using Tokoyami's shoulder as support, Halyn swung her body out, kicking aside the weapon. No sooner as Halyn's foot touched the ground, she twisted her body, reversing the kick to force Yaoyorozu back away from her team. Another kick off the ground and Halyn swung herself back into position.
"That was awesome, Ha-chan!" Uraraka praised.
"I was only able to achieve it because of you and Tokoyami." Halyn told her honestly. "But right now, we need to focus."
Keeping to Midoriya's strategy, they stuck to Todoroki's left, moving that way whenever they moved towards them. They were doing well, that is...until Ida revealed his secret technique. The burst of speed was so great that even Halyn's eyes had a hard time trying to keep up. All she knew was one moment, they were in front of her team and the next, a gust of wind almost knocked her off her feet. In that burst of speed, Todoroki was finally able to snatch the headband from Midoriya's head.
"Ida! What was that just now?" Todoroki asked, as he secured the headband around his neck.
"I elevated my torque and R.P.M to an explosive degree. The kickback stalls my engines temporarily, though. It's a secret technique that I haven't shown anyone yet." Ida replied, fixing his eyes on Midoriya. "As I said earlier, Midoriya, I'm challenging you!"
"Midoriya, time's running out!" Halyn reminded a stunned Midoriya.
"R-right! Charge them!" Midoriya ordered.
"I can't attack as long as Kaminari's there! Going after someone else's points is our best bet." Tokoyami warned.
"No good! Can't you see the difference in points?! This is our only option!" Midoriya replied.
"Then let's go for it already!" Halyn said, already supporting Midoriya, Uraraka agreeing with her.
"We're getting it back, Deku! No doubt! Ha-chan!"
The two surged forward and shoved Tokoyami into movement, determined looks set on their faces. Catching on to their pace, Tokoyami sped up, setting his resolve. Midoriya looked down at them in surprise. In his head, each of their words played over in his head. Uraraka as she told him why she wanted to be a hero, Tokoyami's as he put his trust in Midoriya, and Halyn's as she told him she would support him as a friend through thick and thin.
Watching them put their all into following him, he realized that winning wouldn't just be for him. It would be for him and for those who had put their faith in him. With that reinforcing his drive, he took the speed his teammates offered and lunged for Todoroki. Halyn was pretty sure that she, having looked up to catch sight of the two's faces, was the only one outside the two that saw and felt what came over the two. Midoriya's drive, his determination was only second to All Might's and that had Todoroki reacting out of instinct, his left arm coming up, flames already springing forth.
Midoriya, not wanting to hit Todoroki, used the power of his quirk to create a slice of wind that sent Todoroki's left arm flying off to the side, opening a way for Midoriya directly to Todoroki's headbands. Todoroki, in that moment, realized what he had done, using his left side after he said he wouldn't. Stunned, he didn't block Midoriya. Midoriya grabbed one as they flew past.
"I got it! I really got it!" Midoriya cheered.
It was then that Halyn's eyes landed on the amount of points on the headband.
"Midoriya! It's the wrong one!" she called.
Midoriya looked down at the headband, finding it was a seventy point headband instead of the ten million they had been aiming for.
"We switched the headbands around just in case! To naive, Midoriya!" Yaoyorozu called back.
With ten seconds left, Midoriya ordered their team to charge once more, but they weren't the only ones. Bakugo came flying into the scene, but before any of them could reach their marks, time's up was called and the game was called to an end. Halyn and Uraraka helped a depressed Midoriya down.
"Let's see who the top four teams are right now! In first place, Team Todoroki! In second, Team Bakugo! In third, Team Tetsu...huh?! Whoa! Team Shinso?! Who saw that turnaround coming? Who even saw it happen?!" Present Mic announced.
Midoriya was so depressed that he was all slumped over. Halyn hated to see him that way. After sharing a look with Uraraka, the two smiled.
"Deku." Uraraka called.
"Um...I'm so sorry...really..." Midoriya told them.
He stared at the two girls as Uraraka and Halyn shared another look, the two grinning. Moving at the same time, they pointed past themselves and towards Tokoyami, confusing Midoriya for a moment.
"Todoroki was clearly shaken by your first attack. I did my best to nab the ten million, but...I came up short. But I got another one." Tokoyami said, jabbing a thumb towards Dark Shadow who had a headband worth six hundred and fifteen points caught in his mouth. "I managed to get another one when he dropped his guard. Midoriya. The last-ditch effort of yours left Todoroki open."
With tears in his eyes, Midoriya fell to his knees as the last team to pass the second round, was called.
"In fourth, Team Midoriya! These four teams will proceed to the final event!"
Halyn laughed as she watched Midoriya sob his heart out. It had been a close call, a very close one, but, in the end, it had turned out for the best.
Now she had to prepare herself for what came next.
END
Kyandi: God, what I would of given to see Todoroki's and Bakugo's faces when you literally stepped on them.
Halyn: I don't think they were too happy.
Kyandi: Of course they weren't. Would you be if someone suddenly upstaged you?
Halyn: ...I don't care. I don't like being center stage.
Kyandi: Ah, right. Forgot about that for a second.
Halyn: And next is the one-on-one matches.
Kyandi: You'll be fine. Just kick some butt!
Halyn: Uh-huh.
Kyandi: Anyway, everyone enjoy and review.
Halyn: We'll be back as soon as possible.
Kyandi: Bye-bye!