Bakugou didn't move. Izuku didn't move. Both were frozen in place. Numbly, Izuku registered All Might's words. His team had won, due to time running out.
Izuku had won.
Izuku flinched as a piece of debris fell from the ceiling some few feet away. Right, he thought, Maybe it's more like Shouji won. Idly, he noted that Bakugou was totally unbothered by the falling rubble, and was still totally unmoving.
Suddenly, Izuku felt a large, extremely warm hand on his shoulder. "Young Midoriya, it is time to hear the results of your exercise. Would you like a blanket to cover up?" Came the soft, yet undeniably firm voice of All Might. It was then that Izuku realized that his costume had been atomized from the waist-up (Midoriya Inko, being the thoughtful mother she was, had prepared for the possibility of explosions in Izuku's chosen line of work and had purchased blast-retardant fabric; unfortunately, the store she purchased from had only so much of the material in the color she wanted).
Izuku suddenly realized he was effectively half-naked in front of All Might himself. He gave a slightly panicked squeak, turned bright red, and shook his head so hard it was a wonder it didn't fall off. With a single fluid motion, a baby blue blanket was draped over Izuku's shoulders. It was ridiculously soft, all things considered.
"Get going, young Midoriya, and please wait with the other students," All Might told Izuku, and as Izuku turned away, he could have sworn All Might had said, "As for you, young Bakugou, there will be consequences for disobeying a direct order and you will be spending-"
Izuku didn't hear any more; he was moving down the hallway and, following his memory, managed to find his way out of the maze-like corridors. Exiting into the light, he made his way to the designated surveillance building, where he was suddenly accosted by a soft body.
"Dekuuuu!" Cried Uraraka, hugging Izuku tightly and nearly cutting off his circulation, "You're alright!"
"Hey, Uraraka!" Kirishima said, "Let the guy breathe!"
"I can't help it! You saw him fighting Bakugou!" Uraraka returned, letting go of Izuku. As Izuku took a deep breath, Uraraka pointed to Kirishima, "Deku deserves all the hugs he can get for putting up with that!"
"That may be, kero, but Midoriya-chan has been through quite the beatdown." Said Asui as she put a finger on her cheek, "If anything, he should at least go to the nurses' office."
"Hey, that's right!" Said a very tall (and, if Izuku was honest, rugged) boy, "Yo, Midoriya, you should really go get your injuries checked out! Bakugou hit you directly in the back with one of those explosions of his!"
"Wh-" Izuku suddenly remembered that no one here knew about his immortality, and were, in fact, genuinely worried about injuries that had surely healed after that ridiculously huge blast and subsequent death. It was a weird feeling, having someone other than his mom worry over his general health. "Guys, I-I think I'm fine, really, my mom got this nice shock-proof fabric-"
"Your mom made your costume?" A punkish girl interrupted, "Cute." Normally, this would have been an insult, but Izuku couldn't detect any real ill-will.
Kouda approached Izuku and tapped the blanket wrapped around Izuku's shoulders. It was the quiet boy's way of asking about why he had the thing on him in the first place. "Oh, the heat from the big explosion ripped up part of my costume," Izuku replied after figuring out what Kouda had meant, "I'm gonna have to send the costume in for repairs, probably get the fabric replaced for something else."
There were a couple more questions in peoples' eyes, but the class fell totally silent, and when Izuku followed their stares and turned around, he understood why.
Bakugou had walked in.
Bakugou gave a sweeping glance around the totally silent class (who returned the glance with mixed looks of distaste and apprehension), before his eyes fell on Izuku. Izuku felt his body tense, and the two stared at each other before Bakugou simply walked past Izuku and leaned against the far wall.
Kirishima walked over to Bakugou and tried to strike up a conversation, but Bakugou was totally unresponsive and kept on staring directly at Izuku. It honestly creeped Izuku out. Suddenly, two very strong arms grabbed Izuku from behind and whirled him around, and Izuku found himself looking into the face of Shouji Mezou.
"Midoriya! Are you hurt? What did that asshole do?!" A sort of strangled noise came from Bakugou's direction, but luckily Shouji seemed to choose to ignore it. "That blast was strong enough to take out the entire fifth floor!"
"We'll find out, Shouji, calm down!" Sero Hanta said, slightly behind Shouji. "Let Midoriya go, though, he's been through enough. Also, he should fix his blanket, it's kinda, uh..." Sero gave a slight pink blush, and Izuku was aware that the sudden movement had displaced the blanket. With a mortified squeak, he realized he was now effectively showing his body to not one, but two handsome boys, and immediately covered up (but not without a wolf-whistle from either Hagakure Tooru or Ashido Mina, and dear gods he wanted to die permanently).
Luckily for Izuku's sanity, All Might returned at that moment and pulled out a remote. Quieting down the class, he pressed a button and began playing various highlights, two of which were Izuku's initial counter against Bakugou's left hook and Bakugou's wide-scale blast. At the sight of the latter, Izuku gave a slight sigh of relief that the cameras had cut off then; he didn't want to explain suddenly reviving from being atomized.
When it was over, All Might turned to the class. "All right!" He intoned, "Considering these points, who here can tell me precisely who I should declare the Most Valuable Player in this first trial of battle?!" After a second's pause, a single hand rose. "Yes, young Yaoyorozu!"
"Sero Hanta, All Might-sensei." Yaoyorozu Momo answered promptly, with no hesitation.
All Might didn't move.
"When you consider Bakugou Katsuki's actions," The way Yaoyozoru said Bakugou's name with a detached sneer was not lost on Midoriya, "It is clear that he made no attempt to even work with his teammate, and instead acted on a personal grudge against Midoriya Izuku to seek him out, completely ignoring the entire purpose of the exercise. Not only that, that wide-scale blast put not only Midoriya at risk, but also Shouji Mezou, Sero Hanta, and the nuclear weapon, and should not have been used in an indoors setting to begin with."
All Might was motionless.
"Midoriya's actions, while noble, were also not without flaws either." Yaoyorozu continued, "He seemed to seek out Bakugou in an attempt to neutralize him and distract him from taking on Shouji. This strategy, while admirable on paper, was too dependent on the target, and likely would never have worked on anyone besides Bakugou. Not only that, he recklessly put himself in harm's way and indirectly caused the aforementioned wide-scale blast." Izuku thought that last part was a bit harsh, but he supposed it was fair.
All Might remained still.
"Compared to the first two, Shouji did not do much. He played a defensive role well, and even attempted to keep the weapon out of harms' way, yet in doing so failed to consider the danger of actually being hit by debris - it was very lucky that Sero's Quirk was what it was, otherwise Shouji would be in the medical ward for a broken spine, or worse." Shouji blushed at the criticism, but said nothing.
A fly landed on All Might's maybe-corpse, decided the poor man was still alive, and flew off.
"Which brings me to Sero Hanta." Yaoyorozu said, not even pausing in her miniature lecture, "Of the four, he did the best independently: he focused on the goal; when his initial attempt failed, he tried an alternative method; and he saved Shouji from injury despite the two being on alternate sides. My only criticism of his overall performance is that he seems to perform better on the defensive, and as such, his strategy seemed to function more on the premise of misdirection." Sero gave an embarrassed chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head.
All Might blinked, the first motion from the man in five minutes. "That- That is absolutely correct..."
"We, as hero students, must not only consider our strategies, but also the ramifications of our actions and how to overcome new, unforeseen obstacles." Yaoyorozu finished, turning to the totally silent class, "This is why we are here: to learn, to grow, and to become excellent heroes!"
It was then that Izuku remembered that Yaoyorozu was a student admitted through special recommendations, and this was likely the reason: Yaoyorozu Momo had the intelligence and decisive thinking of a goddess.
"R-Right..." All Might said from his place next to the lottery boxes, "I-I couldn't have said it better myself... W-Well then, shall we begin the next battle?"
"Ah, All Might-sensei..." Shiozaki raised her hand. "Shouldn't Midoriya-san go to the nurse? He has been through an awful lot, and that kick to the head should have at least given him a concussion..." Shiozaki gave a worried look to Izuku.
"Wha- I-I'm fine, Shiozaki!" Izuku said, smiling in an attempt to appease the Christian, "Besides, I kinda wanna watch the fights, you know? It'll help me see more of everyone's Quirks!" Shiozaki didn't seem happy with that, but she at least dropped the subject, which relieved Izuku somewhat.
"If that is all..." All Might said (and was that a glint of worry in his shadowed eyes, or was Izuku imagining that?), "Then I shall call the next battle!"
Battle #2
Villain Team (E): Shiozaki Ibara and Aoyama Yuuga
Ibara clasped her hands and turned away from the weapon she was supposed to be guarding. With only a bit of willpower, she had her vine-like hair weave into the floor beneath her and emerge around the weapon, encasing it like a cocoon. Detaching the vines, she sighed and turned to admire her handiwork.
Unfortunately, Aoyama Yuuga was standing in the light, and the sparkles coming from the boy's incredibly shiny armor and general presence nearly blinded her. "What do you think..." He said, "Of Midoriya Izuku?"
Ibara blinked. This is sudden. "Midoriya-san is a fine boy. I do wish he would look after himself, though." She replied evenly.
"I see, I see..." Aoyama said, turning away from the window where Ibara belatedly realized he was admiring his reflection in. "I think he has a crush on you."
It was a good thing that Shiozaki's hair wasn't attached to the vines around the weapon, because her hair tensed up at the thought. "Wh-what are you saying, Aoyama-san?!"
"Ufufufu~" Aoyama chuckled, "It's not a bad thing, mademoiselle. After all, he seems to have a crush on half the class anyways. I mean, I expected him to have a crush on me, because, well..." Aoyama bent over backwards in a way that his breastplate really shouldn't have allowed for. "Look at moi~ However, he's obviously the type to not simply choose a single personne~"
"...I don't appreciate you saying such things about Midoriya-san." Ibara replied in a dark tone that surprised herself. "I should give you a lashing for speaking of him as if he is unable to commit to anyone."
"Ufufu~" Aoyama straightened up and shrugged, "It was simply a thought, mademoiselle. In any event, I believe that I shall seek out the enemy, as my Quirk is the absolute best for offense. Au revoir, ma belle~" And with that, All Might called time, and Ibara was alone.
Hero Team (B): Asui Tsuyu and Todoroki Shouto
"Asui..." Shouto said, "Your Quirk gives you the general weaknesses and strengths of an average frog, yes?"
"Kero?" Asui croaked, looking at him, "That's correct, yes."
"I see..." Shouto said, "Then you're vulnerable to the cold?"
"Todoroki-chan," Asui said, visage totally unreadable, "What are you planning?"
"Asui, so that I don't accidentally put you out of commission, could you stand as far back as you like when time is called?" Shouto requested, "I'm going to freeze the building."
"Ah, I see, kero." Asui nodded. "Very well."
"START!" All Might's voice boomed, and immediately, a wave of frost emitted from Shouto's right foot. Asui, true to her word, gave a great leap backwards at the same time. Before the minute was up, the entire building was a citadel of ice.
"I will be right back," Shouto said, and, getting Asui's shivering "K-K-K-Kero..." in response, made his way into the building, past Aoyama Yuuga's shivering and frozen form (were his sparkles frozen in mid-twinkle?), and all the way to the fifth floor bomb room, where he found Shiozaki Ibara with her feet frozen to the floor and a huge ball of vines behind her. Considering he couldn't see the weapon, he supposed it was within the vines. As Shouto walked forward, Shiozaki, shivering profusely, moved her hair into a sort of attacking position.
"That won't do you any good," Shouto said, stopping right next to Shiozaki, "And we both know it. Now then, unless you wish to be frozen further..." It was a surprisingly harsh statement from him, sure, but they were acting. She was a villain, if only for this exercise.
With an incredible shiver, Shiozaki dropped her hair, and Shouto walked up to the vine ball. Touching it with his right hand, he froze the foliage even further, encasing it in an incredible layer of ice, before touching it with his left hand and melting the ice around the entire building. The vines, not able to stand up to the rapid changes in temperature and general erosion, shattered into pieces, and Shouto touched the weapon.
"HERO TEAM WINS!" All Might shouted in their earpieces, and Shouto turned around to see Shiozaki's vines just scant centimeters from his body.
She had been attempting to capture him the whole time. Well-played.
"Todoroki's so powerful..." Izuku whispered.
Bakugou said nothing, and instead, his vacant stare seemed to get even more empty.
Todoroki Shouto got MVP.
Battle #3
Villain Team (D): Satou Rikidou and Hagakure Tooru
"Alright, Satou, I'm going to go on ahead!" Tooru said, holding her fingers out in a peace sign, "You wanna guard the weapon?"
"Huh?" Satou replied, "Hagakure-san, don't you wanna guard the weapon? A great defense is a good offense, after all..."
"Well, yeah!" Tooru said, "That's why I'm going to go ahead! Hello, invisible girl? I can just sneak up on them!"
"But..." Satou sputtered, "You're tiny!"
"Yeah, so?" Tooru said, "Doesn't mean I can't take care of myself! I'm a big girl, I braid my own hair and everything! I got past those entrance robots, didn't I?"
"Oh yeah, I was wondering how you did that..." Satou muttered, putting his hand on his chin in thought.
"What do you mean you wondered?! I pulled you out of the way of that big robot!" Tooru couldn't believe it. Satou didn't remember that vital moment?!
"To be fair, I was pretty out of it..." Satou said sheepishly, "My Quirk kinda makes me stupid when I overuse it..."
"Oh..." Tooru nodded in understanding, "Okay... So, I'm gonna go ahead?"
"Huh? Oh sure..." Satou said, and Tooru began to remove her gloves and shoes. Suddenly, she got a wicked idea.
"Pervert!" She said, pointing (not that Satou could see it), "Don't watch me undress! T-Turn around!"
"Wh- Oh!" Satou blushed and turned around. A second later, he said, "Wait, you're wearing a suit anyways!"
Tooru stuck her tongue out at him and giggled as she skipped out the door.
Hero Team (H): Jirou Kyouka and Ojiro Mashirao
Mashirao watched as Jirou lifted her earlobe and stabbed it into the wall. After a brief second, the pointed upwards. "I'm hearing movement from the floor above us, but it's only one set of footprints. Judging by the footfalls, it's likely to be Hagakure, as she's much smaller than Satou."
"Wow, you got all that from a single listen?" Mashirao said, amazed, "That's really cool..."
"Heh, I guess..." Jirou said, obviously pleased with herself. After a second, she looked over Mashirao's shoulder, "She's behind you, but I can't precisely tell where."
Someone swore behind Mashirao, and he turned around to see no one there. Taking a stance, Mashirao concentrated. "Jirou, I want you to go up and get to the weapon."
"What?!"
"A good defense is a great offense, Jirou!" Mashirao said, "I'm going to protect you as you ascend, but I'll be fending off Hagakure at the same time! It'll have to be you!"
"...R-Right." Jirou said, obviously unsure.
"I'll be right behind you," Mashirao said, looking over his shoulder and giving her a thumbs up, "Don't worry."
Jirou gulped and nodded, before she stabbed her earlobe into the wall and shattered it. Jumping through the hole, she ran down the adjacent hallway.
Mashirao blinked. He didn't know she could do that. But now was not the time to worry about that; Hagakure was coming for him. He took his stance and waited.
And waited.
It was after five minutes and All Might finally shouting "VILLAIN TEAM WINS!" that he realized he'd been had.
Hagakure won MVP.
