Well, we have our first ten-thousand word chapter. Not sure what else to say except "damn." XD
Review time:
Colinpop5: Thank you! I'm very happy to hear that and hope you continue to do so.
Ezylryb: Thank you! I will do my best. Hopefully this lives up to your expectations.
dspendragon125: Thank you! It makes me happy to hear that.
NPGamer11: Ever since I first saw someone call him that, it has been my head-canon Hero Name for him. I really love it, especially since it reminds me of that Whitest Kids You Know YouTube video.
RandomDude: No worries man, your reviews have always been constructive and I appreciate the honesty and you don't need to worry about discouraging me. I was an Art major so having my work torn apart was par for the course XD
I fully intend for any and all ships to be at least somewhat plot-relevant, especially the main one. I am also glad to know that I succeeded in what I set out to do with Ochako, which was expanding on her character to give her more depth. Rest assured I am far from done with her.
I always felt that Katsuki is a lot more canny then people give him credit for. He's crazy smart canonically, and I think that this version of him would be even better at reading people. The comparison to Eraserhead is interesting.
The part with the costumes did go on for a bit, but it made for a decent writing exercise and it gave me a chance to make extra sure that Izuku finally knew everyone's names and to get his reactions down to them.
No worries about the different nicknames. Hell, I have at least two or three different ways of referring to each character myself. Just look at Izuku/Midoriya/Deku as an example of that.
I do intend to do more with Aoyama than in canon where he's just kind of a side character. He's just fun to write for me.
I feel like Izuku would be defensive of any of his friends if they were getting a grilling or if he thought they were getting stressed out, it just so happens that he's had more occasions to be defensive of Ochako, since Katsuki keeps giving her crap, if that makes sense.
I'm honestly still torn on whether I'll even have a traitor. There's multiple different ways I could work out those things that are attributed to the traitor.
ScarletCatnip: Those were my thoughts on it. It also makes this accessible to people who might not be as familiar with how everyone looks (I know I had to check a few times to make sure I got everything right. I totally forgot that Todoroki's initial costume was white, for example).
I had so much fun last chapter with getting into the spirit of the exercise that there is much more of that here. It really highlights for me that they are still kids, and it feels right to have them get into it a little bit.
Mineta's exit will happen as a result of *SPOILERS.* It is kind of funny now that you point out the contrast between Todoroki and Bakugo, especially compared to canon.
That would be pretty funny. Maybe I'll do something like that.
Hektols: I know right? Poor Momo.
Hopefully this chapter does those fights justice. About three-quarters of it is devoted to match three XD
wildtrance: I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I hope you enjoy these!
I haven't decided entirely how Endeavor's flames will taste yet.
origamishishou: I have not read that. I'm guessing it involves Deku turning Mineta's grapes into raisins?
Amusing visual, but for sure out of character for him.
The 0bservanc3: Thank you. Statements like this fuel me.
I do enjoy writing from Katsuki's POV. Actually...I've yet to find someone who's POV I haven't enjoyed writing. If they don't interest me I just...don't write their POV XD.
I'm glad that the cafeteria scene had that kind of impact. Your assessment is correct.
Ashido's costume legit looks like a psychedelic camouflage...thing. That's totally canon. I got all my costume descriptions from the images hosted by the wiki. I did have fun writing his reactions to the costumes, particularly those three you pointed out. Canon Izuku would for sure have been more flustered. Hell, he could barely look at Ochako in canon at first when he saw her costume.
I agree that the drawing lots section was kind of a mess. I wanted to have it there instead of just jumping to the list to build suspense a bit, but it is a lot to keep track of so I don't think it's just you.
I did roll dice. Took a pair of d20's and rolled for the pairs, re-rolling on duplicates (with the exception of Izuku, Bakugo, and Ochako of course).
Ashido is always fun to work with just because of how...herself...she is. The first part of this chapter we get more Shoto, so hopefully that answers that.
I couldn't justify kicking him out right at the beginning like that, but it won't be much longer.
Maaaybe :P
These match predictions were super interesting to read, and I ended up/will end up incorporating some of the elements of them into the remaining matches (we only get to two of them this chapter). So thank you for those!
I hope you enjoy this!
x-YaoiWolf-x: You are technically correct. The best kind of correct. I am promoting you from rank 36 to rank 35. (Props if you get that reference).
Now, without further ado, on with the Battle Trial and the match that everyone has been looking forward to since the beginning!
Chapter Ten: I Am Here
"Without further ado, let's get to the second match! We shall change locations and then it will be the Hero Team of Jiro and Hagakure versus the Villain Team of Asui and Koda!" All Might's voice boomed out as boisterously as always as he headed for the stairs that led to the exit.
Shoto Todoroki was honestly bored. He had hoped to be pitted against someone that could challenge him at least a little for the Battle Trial, but fate had screwed him over as usual. That match was nothing short of a joke.
That Bakugo, for example. He could probably put up a halfway decent fight until Shoto decided to just freeze him solid. Shoji or Sato could probably break through his ice if they had to and Iida could be challenging to catch in the first place. Hell, even Kirishima would be able to take a beating without keeling over right away.
Then there was Midoriya, the boy Endeavor had asked him to keep tabs on. He hadn't shown anything all that impressive yet in terms of his Quirk. If it hadn't been for the recordings that his father had told him about, he wouldn't have thought twice about him.
One thing he had noticed, however, was the other boy's intelligence and personality. He had obviously studied very hard to get where he was today and he seemed to be a genuinely nice person. If nothing else he played a good foil to Bakugo, who seemed to be an old friend of his, exactly as Endeavor had guessed (damn it).
In fact, he had already found himself the part of a rather high-profile group that consisted of a full half of the top ten scorers from the entrance exam and while Bakugo was undoubtedly the leader, Midoriya seemed to have a good amount of influence himself. Call him a skeptic, but Shoto had a hard time believing that this was the product of mere coincidence. Those types of things just didn't happen.
"Hey, Modoriya?" he may as well try and figure him out a bit more though. Just to kill time.
"Ah, Todoroki-san. What is it?"
"I was just wondering what your take on this next match was. None of them have a straight-forward, simple Quirk so it's hard for me to predict."
There. That sounded alright, didn't it? That was the kind of thing anyone else might have said, wasn't it?
From the way the other boy's eyes lit up underneath his mask, apparently it was exactly the right thing to say.
"I know! Isn't it exciting?! Just think about all of the possibilities!" Shoto had to resist the urge to take a step back as Midoriya started gushing like the fanboy he was, "Group battles are always so much more exciting than one-on-one fights, at least in my opinion. It's the kind of situation where Quirk synergy really comes into play, you know? If two or more Quirks end up being compatible with each other, they can be way more powerful than they would be on their own."
Midoriya took a moment to compose himself so he could properly answer Shoto's question. In that time, Shoto noticed that a fair number of students were paying attention to their conversation, apparently curious as to what the other boy would say.
He's built up a reputation for himself after only one day, huh? That's impressive by itself.
"If we're talking about the matchup here based on Quirks alone, you would think that Jiro-san and Hagakure-san would have the advantage. See, Hagakure-san is invisible, so she's tailor-made for stealth and surprise attacks, but that could also make it difficult for her partner to synergize with her. With Jiro-san though, that's not the case. From what I understand, her Quirk gives her enhanced hearing, so she should be able to keep track of Hagakure-san's movements that way. In fact, just based on Quirk compatibility alone, you might say it's one of the best possible team-ups!"
"…Well damn."
"Talk about thorough."
"Midori, are you, like, a tactician or something?" Ashido's question got a chuckle out of Bakugo.
"It's the one thing he's always been better than me at." he clapped a blushing Midoriya on the back, "I'll tell you guys something good, so clean the crap out of your ears and listen up! If Deku says something to you about Quirk tactics, you sure as shit better listen to him! This guy eats, breathes and shits that stuff!"
"In that case, Midoriya my boy," All Might had apparently been listening too, "why don't you finish your analysis? I believe you had more to say, did you not?" Midoriya straightened up and nodded.
"The team of Asui-san and Koda-san looks like they have a disadvantage at first. It's not because their Quirks don't mesh, it's because of the environment. Asui-san's Frog is the type of Quirk that can be useful in any situation, but Koda-san's Anivoice only works if there are animals around and since this is an urban setting, indoors no less, he's going to have a hard time putting it to good use."
"But," here Midoriya held up a finger to emphasize his point, "Koda's problem also brings us to the final point: the environment. This isn't a flat plane where everyone will be on equal footing the whole time. This is a multi-level building with hallways, stairs, rooms and all kinds of different locations. Add to that the fact that the Villain teams have an inherent advantage and it actually becomes a lot more evenly-matched, at least in theory."
"Dude," Kaminari was the first to speak, "I think you just fried my brain. How can you think of all that stuff so quickly?"
"Seriously. It seemed like you were a Power-Technique type but are you secretly an Intelligence type?" Sero was equally impressed.
"I see. Thank you for the input. You have obviously put a lot of thought into this." Shoto couldn't deny that he was impressed. He had thought of a couple of those points himself, of course, but Midoriya had spouted that entire analysis basically on-command.
It honestly made him interested in seeing how he would deal with his match against Bakugo. First, it was time to see how accurate his predictions were for the second match.
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Kyoka Jiro was ready to tear something up. She understood what All Might had said about Mineta and she even agreed with it to an extent, but it didn't mean she liked it or that she wasn't still pissed.
Good thing it was her match next. She and Hagakure were killing time at the entrance while the Villain Team was setting up. The invisible girl appeared to be fidgeting from what Kyoka could see of her. She had one of her jacks plugged into the wall of the building, trying to pick up some subtle noises that might give her information and she had managed to figure out that their opponents were on one of the higher floors, though she couldn't determine which one.
"Hey, Jiro-san?"
"Hmm?"
"Do you have a plan?"
"Sure. We Rock this and go home." Kyoka wasn't trying to be curt, but she really wasn't in the mood right now.
"Well, would you like to hear mine?" Hagakure's gloved hands were kneading together like she was nervous. Was Kyoka really giving off such Grunge vibes right now? It wasn't Hagakure's fault that she was mad, and it wasn't fair to her partner to shut her down like that. She had to try to calm down a bit.
"Sorry, I'm just tuned a bit too tightly right now. I'd like to hear your idea." This had the desired effect, as Hagakure clapped her hands and the pitch of her voiced went back to normal.
"It's okay, I totally get it! Anyway, if we can figure out roughly where they are, I can scout ahead without being seen. Maybe I could pull off a surprise attack if I can figure out a way to hide the capture tape? And hey, maybe you can listen in on their plans if we get close enough?"
Kyoka thought about this for a few moments. She couldn't really find any problems with this plan apart from the fact that it was probably exactly what the Villains would expect them to do, but what other options did they have? The Oldies existed for a reason, after all.
"Okay," she nodded to her unseen teammate, "let's demo that. I can't think of anything better anyway. If I really got going I could probably bring down part of the building, but we can't risk damaging the pyrotechnics. Er, the bomb."
Hagakure gave her a thumbs-up and then fingered the microtransceiver that was partially visible floating in the space where her ear must have been.
"These little things are useful, but it could give away my position if I'm not careful…I'm probably gonna have to strip down completely for this if I'm gonna do it right." well, that confirmed that the invisible girl really did strut around in the buff as her Hero Costume. This gave Kyoka an idea though.
"Hagakure-san, try taking off your glove and putting your hand over your ear."
The other girl complied and sure enough the transceiver in her ear vanished.
"Did it work?"
"Hell yeah it did. Problem solved! Actually," here she produced one of the rolls of capture tape and held it out to Hagakure, "we may as well abuse the hell out of that trick. Try holding this against your stomach or something and cover it up with your other hand."
"Oh, wow!" when this trick also worked like a charm, Hagakure sounded really Jazzed, "You're so smart, Jiro-chan! I can call you that, can't I? Please?"
"Sure, knock yourself out, Hagakure-chan."
"Yay!" Jiro felt a pair of arms wrap around her for a moment and wondered if she should feel awkward about being hugged by her naked teammate. She decided that since this was technically Hagakure's Hero Costume, it didn't count. She patted the other girl on the back as best she could with her arms pinned to her sides and she let go just as All Might's voice rang out over the intercom.
"That's five minutes! Start!"
"Come on, Hagakure-chan. Lose the shoes and let's get going. I think they're on one of the higher levels!"
The pair made their way to the third floor without incident, with Kyoka stopping every so often to plug into a nearby wall and see if she could hear anything. This finally bore fruit when they were about halfway to the stairs leading to the fourth floor.
"Hold up." Kyoka kept her voice low and raised a hand to make sure her partner got the message. She tapped her ear to signal Hagakure to activate her transceiver.
"What is it, Jiro-chan?" even the faint whisper was picked up loud and clear. These things had some seriously good mics in them. Kyoka followed suit and activated her own, keeping her voice low as well.
"They're on the floor directly above us. I can hear footsteps…probably Koda's from how heavy they sound. I don't hear Asui, but odds are she's up there too. If she was trying to hunt us down, I don't think she'd wait this long to show herself."
"So what do we do?"
"We follow the original plan; you're gonna go ahead of me and make sure they don't know you're there. If this works, we could get the drop on one of them with your capture tape."
"And then they'd be outnumbered! That's a great idea, Jiro-chan!"
"Thank you, but hush!"
"Oops! Sorry~"
They climbed the stairs and Jiro, hearing Hagakure's rough position, started climbing when her partner was already about two-thirds of the way up.
"I'll give you instructions through the transceiver. At this point, you should probably be as quiet as possible, okay?" She received no response, but heard the footsteps stop at the first intersection. She had to give the invisible girl some credit, she was super quiet when she wanted to be. If she hadn't taken the time to lock on to the sound of her footsteps before, she might not have been able to hear her at all.
"Okay, take a right, then it should be the third room on the left. If the door is open, go in. If it's not, then wait until I get it open and dash in there while I distract them."
Moment of truth time. She turned the corner, hugging the wall and sure enough, the door was wide open.
Score! It's almost like they're inviting us in! Heh. They probably didn't think that I'd be able to pinpoint them so easily, but I've got a backstage pass to this concert!
Kyoka made her way silently to the open doorway and glanced inside. She immediately saw a large, papier-mache bomb identical to the one she had seen while watching the first match tucked into a corner. Standing in front of it, actually facing it, was Koda.
He must be keeping an eye on it to make sure Hagakure doesn't snatch it from behind his back. That's smart, but he's leaving himself wide open. Too bad, he seems like a really shy guy, so this'll probably scare him a bit, but he is a Villain right now, after all. Can't be helped.
"Hagakure-chan, in five seconds, get him with the tape."
Kyoka counted down in her head and then burst into the room, eyes darting around to see if she could find Asui just as the roll of capture tape appeared from nowhere and unfurled, poised to wrap around the unsuspecting Koda-
"Koda-san, ribbit!"
Two things happened simultaneously. First, Koda whirled around, arms spread wide before making an exaggerated hugging motion on the space in front of him. The surprised "kyaa!" from the air made it clear that he had captured Hagakure in a bear hug.
Second, a long, slimy, pink thing wrapped itself around her from her neck to her midriff, effectively pinning her Earphone Jacks in place and rendering her immobile.
"Ah! What the hell?!" Kyoka looked up and saw Asui clinging to the section of wall directly above the doorframe. The frog girl gave her a semi-apologetic smile around her tongue that was currently trapping Kyoka.
"Ribbit. I thought you might try something like that, so I used Koda-san as bait. You had the idea stuck in your head that one of us would be out searching for you since that's what happened in the first match, so you and Hagakure-san didn't pay as much attention as you could have. You fell right into my trap, Heroes. Gerorororo."
Daughter of a bastard. They'd been played. That evil laugh was adorable though.
"As both Heroes have been captured, the Villain Team wins!"
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The observation room was abuzz with excitement. All Might was exceptionally pleased with the outcome of this match. Both teams had formulated and executed excellent plans in his opinion and he knew that the use of the microtransceivers would add an additional layer of entertainment to the whole spectacle.
"Did you see that? That went off like clockwork!"
"I never expected that from Koda!"
"I was only paying attention to Jiro-san and Hagakure-san, so I was really shocked at the end!"
He allowed his students to chat amongst themselves while the four participants made their way back to the rest of the class. When they entered, he cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.
"Well, that was well done by both sides, I must say! The Villains won again, but it could have easily gone the other way. I think we will use the same format from the first match, since I like how that got you all thinking before. Let's hear it then! The good and the bad!"
Kaminari was the first to raise his hand this time, bursting out before he was even called on.
"I don't know if this counts, but did anyone else notice that it went almost exactly like Midoriya said it would, with the Quirk synergy and using the environment and everything?"
"Told you." Bakugo was smirking from the crowd.
"Actually, I think that deserves to be addressed." Yaoyorozu chimed in, "Even if it was predicted, it doesn't change the fact that Jiro-san and Hagakure-san worked together seamlessly and took full advantage of their Quirks. Their only shortcoming was, as far as I can tell, that they were so focused on springing their own trap, that they didn't stop to consider that the Villains could do the same thing."
Jiro twirled one of her jacks around her finger with a sheepish look on her face.
"Yeah, we walked right into that. Props to them for having us pegged like that. I even thought I figured out their plan when I saw Koda watching the bomb, but that was all a deception to get Hagakure-chan within hugging distance."
"I'm still kind of embarrassed by that, thank you very much Jiro-chan." from the position of her gloves, it seemed like Hagakure was crossing her arms, "He was really holding me tightly there! I was all pressed up against him and everything!"
Poor Koda meanwhile was covering his face with his hands.
"Oh, it's not like I'm mad at you or anything, Koda-kun. It was just…kind of embarrassing."
Koda was visibly relieved at this and gave her a thumbs-up while tapping himself on the chest as if to say "It's okay, I felt the same way."
Midoriya decided to contribute next.
"I was surprised at Asui-san's plan, honestly. It couldn't have been more perfect. She was able to set a trap for the Heroes while at the same time making sure she was always present to keep an eye on the bomb. Koda-san was a real team player with that too. I get the feeling that even if they had only captured one of the Heroes, it wouldn't have made much of a difference in the end. They were just better prepared. Ah, no offense Jiro-san, Hagakure-san. Your plan was good too, it was just…"
"Their plan was better. I totally get it, Midoriya. No hard feelings. I honestly feel like I've learned a lot from this!" Jiro gave the boy a reassuring smile and Hagakure flashed him the peace sign to show she agreed.
"That is good to hear! After all, that is the point of this exercise!" All Might was indeed very pleased. This was exactly the kind of result he had been hoping for with these matches: everyone had done their best and had come out of it better than when they had gone in. "I wish to re-iterate that you all performed excellently, but there can only be one MVP. That MVP is the one who orchestrated the winning plan and embraced her stronghold completely, Asui! She was able to formulate a plot that made Koda's Quirk disadvantage completely irrelevant in favor of his physical attributes. Adapting to the situation is the name of the game and she has proven herself a highly proficient player!"
There was a moment of polite applause before All Might headed for the stairs to take them to the next location.
"Now, let us proceed! It is time for our third match! The Villain Team of Bakugo and Shoji will be given the customary five minutes once we arrive to properly entrench themselves and then the Hero Team of Midoriya and Uraraka will be allowed to begin their infiltration!"
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Katsuki Bakugo was more excited than he had expected to be. He didn't expect that he'd lose to Deku in a straight-up fight, but it would be interesting to see what kind of plan he came up with. Speaking of which…
"Hey, Tentacles." his tall teammate glanced over at him from where he had placed the bomb and one of his arms turned into an ear, showing that he was giving Katsuki his attention.
"Do you think you could take Uraraka in a fight?" Tentacles blinked at him and another of his arms turned into a mouth.
"As long as I can avoid being hit with her Quirk, it should not be that difficult. I take it you are planning on fighting Midoriya-san then?"
"Damn right I am. I've been looking for the chance to go all-out with him and now that I've got it, you better believe I'm taking it!" Tentacles nodded, seeming to understand. Damn it was tough to read the expression of a guy when all you had to go by was a pair of eyes not covered by his ninja mask and various sensory organs that he swapped out with his hands at will.
"So, your plan is for both of us to charge them from the start?" Katsuki shook his head.
"No. The plan is for you to stay here while I go down to meet them."
"I would like to help you if possible."
"Look, your strength is as a sensor, right? With the ability to have extra eyes and ears you're probably really good at that, right?"
"Yes."
"Then you'd make a better guard than I would. Plus, you can keep an eye on things and radio me if anything comes up." Katsuki let out an exasperated sigh, "Fact of the matter is, Deku's a smart guy and he's really good when it comes to support. I'm gonna try to keep both of them pinned down for as long as possible but there's a good chance that he'll find a way to get Uraraka past me. That's why I need you running surveillance and guarding the bomb, got it?"
"What makes you think he won't be the one who gets to me while Uraraka-san distracts you?"
"He won't."
The two looked at each other for a few moments, saying nothing. Eventually, Tentacles nodded to Katsuki.
"I understand. I will keep in contact with you. Good luck."
"Yeah."
Good thing he hadn't argued too much, because at that moment Katsuki was itching for a fight and God as his witness he was going to get one.
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"Are you okay, Deku-kun?"
Izuku was honestly not sure. He knew he should be nervous, terrified even, but a big part of him was looking forward to this.
"…I think I'll be alright once we actually get going. Right now, this waiting is just…it's doing things to my head." Uraraka nodded sympathetically.
"Yeah, it's like when the doctor counts down from three before giving you a shot."
Well, that was certainly one way of putting it.
"We should talk strategy. That'll help take my mind off of it, I think."
"Okay! What's your plan, then?"
"…Kacchan will probably come straight for me. He's not the type to sit still and let the clock run down. I guarantee that he'll be on us as soon as he knows where we are."
"Makes sense."
"What's more, he knows that I'm a team player, so he'll probably have Shoji-san guarding the bomb in case I manage to get you past him."
"So the plan is for the two of us to take him down together and then go for the bomb?"
It should have been. That really should have been his plan. It was a no-brainer that would have put them at a numbers advantage in both encounters, but…
"No." Izuku shook his head and Uraraka cocked her head at him, clearly puzzled.
"Why?"
One word. Such a simple question, really.
Why was it so hard for him to answer?
"Deku-kun?"
"I could say that it was because there was no guarantee that we'd be able to beat him quickly enough to find the bomb and get it away from Shoji-san. I could say that with his sensory abilities, Shoji-san could always just head over to even the odds when he realized you weren't coming. I could say a whole bunch of things here, but…" he fixed her with his gaze, trying to make her understand, "…the truth is that I just feel like I need to do this. I need to show him that I'm not just his Sidekick anymore. I need to show him what I've become, what I've really become. Does that make sense?"
"Oh!" she smiled like he had just clarified something for her, "So it's like a fated battle between men or something! You could have just said it was guy stuff, Deku-kun; I'd have understood that."
Was that it? Was that really all it was? He didn't think so, but he couldn't think of any better way to say it. Some of this conflict must have shown on his face, because she reached out and patted him on the arm.
"I appreciate you trying to explain it to me, but if it's too hard you don't need to worry that much about it. It's fine, really!"
He appreciated that. He appreciated that more than he had thought he would, honestly. He knew that his reasons for this were selfish and self-serving and unbecoming of a Hero. He knew that his first priority should always be the mission at hand, but just this once…
…Just this once he hoped he could be forgiven for putting his own desires first. Once he had said what he needed to say, he would focus completely on the mission.
…Now if only he could find the words.
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"Hey…what's up with this atmosphere? You could cut the tension with a knife!" Eijiro, like everyone else in the room, found his eyes locked onto the projections that surrounded them.
"I understand what you mean, Kirishima-san." Iida adjusted his glasses, having removed his helmet to get a better look at the proceedings, "Just look at their faces; they look as though they are about to go to war!"
Eijiro considered this, digging deep into his manly instincts to try and find the answer.
"I think…" he eventually hazarded, "…I think this has been a long time coming. I think there's something that Midoriya wants to prove and it's not something Bakugo's willing to accept. Not without a fight." he locked eyes with Iida for a moment, "I feel like we need to watch this. I mean really watch it. This isn't going to just be a match; this is going to be an all-out brawl. A real clash of manly spirits."
"Yes…" All Might half-muttered, still loud enough for everyone to hear, "…I believe this is something that everyone should witness."
There was one student amongst all of the others whose gaze held a sharper, more searching quality than the rest. Mismatched grey and blue eyes looked like they were trying to pierce through the projections and see beyond them to something else entirely.
"Midoriya…" the whisper was so low that not even Jiro heard it, "…show me."
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He had been expecting the call, but he still found himself unprepared when it came.
"Five minutes are up! Heroes, begin your infiltration!"
Izuku smash-leaped up to an open second-story window, having been rendered weightless by Uraraka's Quirk. She was currently on his back but weighed significantly less than him so the jump was easy to make. Once they were in, Uraraka touched her fingertips together and cancelled the effects with a whispered "Release!"
Izuku immediately activated his transceiver and his partner did likewise. They had agreed that they should take no chances, as neither of them knew quite how sharp Shoji's senses were.
"Okay, so far so good. If I know Kacchan as well as I think I do, then he'll have set up shop on the top floor. He knows that I'd think that though, so he's probably on the second-highest floor instead."
"Why not the ground floor?"
"He's dead-set on being Number One. He wouldn't want to be any lower, physically or metaphorically, than he had to be. Plus," he added as an afterthought, "on a higher floor, it would be harder for us to run away from him if things got too hairy."
He felt a couple of fingers press down on his famously-poofy hair that was somehow being contained by his mask.
"Okay, poor choice of words." he glanced at Uraraka and saw her smiling impishly, clearly having gotten the result she wanted. Even in a situation like this, she was still finding ways to make him feel better.
I really am lucky that I got partnered with her, huh?
They had gotten partway through the third floor, when they heard the sound of footsteps from someone who was making no effort to hide them.
"Uraraka-san, make me float, but hold me down so he doesn't get suspicious. You'll know when to release it."
His answer was a hand on his shoulder, pressing down even as he felt his body want to float upwards. As Kacchan rounded the corner and planted himself in their path, he felt the fingers give an involuntary squeeze.
"Yo, Deku." his voice sounded calm…almost distant.
"Kacchan." Izuku was unable to quash the sudden feeling of butterflies in his stomach that he was quite sure had nothing to do with currently being weightless.
"Don't call me 'Kacchan.'"
"Don't call me 'Deku.'"
"Fuck you, I'll call you what I want."
"Fair enough. Same here then."
It was familiar. The same ritual they had gone through a hundred times throughout their history.
This time, it felt different. There was a tension in the air that was difficult to describe. The two of them looked their best friend in the eye and, though they didn't know it, had the same thought:
This is it.
"I don't suppose I could convince you to give up your evil ways and surrender peacefully? We were friends once, Lord Explosion Murder."
"I thought so too, at least until you abandoned me during that fight against Doctor Vertigo!"
"You know I had no choice!" Izuku made a slashing motion with one of his hands, "He was afflicting all of those poor people with motion sickness! I had to save them! There were children for God's sake!"
"SHUT UP!" oh, he was good, "You have no idea what it was like! Up was down, left was right, forward was back! So long…he kept me hooked up to that device for so long, Deku!" his shoulders slumped and trembled as he took a shuddering breath before he began to break out into sinister chuckles, "…But he's not around anymore. There was only one way to stop him…and I took it."
"I see he succeeded in inverting more than just your senses, Kacchan; he inverted your very heart itself! Your sense of justice has become warped so badly that you cannot even recognize good and evil anymore!" not to be outdone, he put the overactive Midoriya tear glands to work, managing to squeeze out a single tear, "You were a brother to me…but I can see that you are truly beyond saving. I shall harden my heart and do what I must."
"You will try."
The pair of them had had their transceivers activated the entire time and, unbeknownst to them, the group in the observation room was currently losing its collective shit.
"You know, Deku," the tension had lessened enough that Izuku could breath normally, but he knew it was just the calm before the storm, "this really is just bad luck on your part, but I have to admit it's as good a way as any to answer a question I've had kicking around in my skull for a while now, so I'll take it."
"Would you believe I feel the same way?"
"Heh. Strangely enough, yeah. Don't forget though, I'm a Villain for now, Deku, so I'm coming at you full force! Let's see how the Sidekick stacks up against the real thing!"
With that, he charged, propelling himself forwards with his Blast Rush Turbo before hauling back with his right arm, preparing for his favorite opening move.
"Uraraka-san, back!"
Izuku didn't wait for her to comply, launching himself towards the wall on his right with a speed that he knew Kacchan wouldn't be expecting, given that he was currently weightless. He kicked off and upwards at an angle, flipping in midair so he ended up on the ceiling with his opposite leg, which he had already been focusing his power into. He kicked off and swung his own right at Kacchan's head, feeling his weight return to him at the last moment.
"SMASH!"
The Explosion user's reflexes were phenomenal, but not enough to avoid the hit completely. The last-second return of Izuku's weight had given him a boost and instead of hitting him in the head, Izuku found his fist buried in Katsuki's gut, swiftly followed by a satisfying impact as he collided with the floor, gasping as the air was forced from his lungs.
"Uraraka-san, run!"
She complied. It was just like they had planned. She gave him one last backward glance before she vanished around the corner and booked it for the stairs.
Izuku stood up and took two steps backwards, waiting for Kacchan to regain his feet. His friend took one deep breath to re-inflate his lungs before kipping up on the spot and fixing Deku with a curious gaze.
"Why didn't you follow up after that? You should know that a surprise attack only works once, Deku. You just blew your shot at helping her."
Izuku found the words.
"Because that's not how I want to win this fight, Kacchan. This is about you and me, so I'm gonna take you down with just my own strength." Izuku adopted a fighting stance, making his intent clear, "I am here, Kacchan, and it's time I made you understand what that means!"
Katsuki flexed his fingers, generating a pair of explosions, preparing a retort. This was lost as Izuku immediately began inhaling, sucking up the fire from said explosions.
"…You bastard."
"You're going to have to finish me quickly or fight without using your Quirk. Otherwise all you're doing is helping me stock up."
Katsuki's mouth widened in his trademark battle grin.
"Is that right? Take however much you want, Deku, but you know what they say…" a sudden flash of movement and he was in Izuku's face, "…it's not the burn that gets you, it's the BANG!" and he unleashed an explosion point-blank into Izuku's face.
Rather, that was what he was aiming for. Izuku was able to evade the brunt of it, though he was still knocked to the side feeling like he had just been punched in the head. It looked like the costume had done its job though, he noted as he took in this latest offering of flames, since his mask was still in one piece after taking that heat.
Kacchan really hadn't been holding back with that last one. Combined with the pair from earlier and the bits and pieces he had been stocking up since the Quirk assessment, Izuku felt like he was somewhere between fifteen and thirty percent.
Okay, so he still wasn't that good at gauging it. It was a work in progress, darn it!
Izuku feinted to one side but Bakugo was not fooled, tracking him with pinpoint precision. This time there was no dodging and he was sent flying backwards from an explosion to the chest. His breath was knocked out of him, but he still used Flame Magnet to make the fire follow him, managing to regain his breath just in time to inhale it and stand back up.
"Was that one good hit all you had in you, Deku? Should I call it quits here and go after Uraraka instead?"
Izuku started walking towards his friend, his movements strangely stiff.
"You know, me and Tentacles up there together could probably waste her in about ten seconds flat. Maybe I should send you flying again and give that a whirl? It'd probably get me MVP status pretty easily, don't you think?"
Suddenly, Izuku took a step that seemed to cover about three times the distance it should have and Katsuki found himself on the receiving end of a knuckle sandwich. He instinctively spun with the impact and bashed Izuku with one of his gauntlets but he felt that the impact was off slightly.
"You're not going anywhere." Deku had taken the hit alright, but in doing so he had captured Bakugo's arm in an iron grip and with a sharp jerk brought him back into face-punching distance just in time for a left hook to send him to the floor, "Not until I'm done with you."
That hit hadn't been a Smash, but it had still been clean and damnably satisfying.
"Until you're done with me?" a foot buried itself in Izuku's gut from out of nowhere, doubling him over just in time to see a glowing palm rapidly approaching his face. One explosion-infused strike later saw him bouncing off of the ceiling and colliding roughly with the floor, dutifully absorbing the fire, "Don't you have that backwards, Deku? I'm the one who decides when this ends and I'm nowhere near done with you yet!"
T – o – r – c – h – b – e – a – r – e – r
Ochako had made it to the fourth floor of the five-story building and just as Deku had predicted, after checking a few doors she found the room that held the bomb…and Shoji.
"Uraraka-san."
"Shoji-san."
"I must ask that you give up now. I would rather not have to hurt you if at all possible. At least, not until this entire city goes up in flames."
Ochako took an involuntary step backwards. Shoji really sold that well. His intimidating stature and inscrutable features made that threat feel all the more credible. She shook her head. Now was the time to get into character.
"I can't do that, Shoji-san. Maybe you should consider giving up instead? If you come along quietly I'm sure I could convince the authorities to go easy on you. After all, you're only Lord Explosion Murder's accomplice, right?" Shoji took a step towards her and spread his arms, fanning out the webbing that connected them and cutting a very impressive silhouette.
"Is that what you think? You know as well as I do that his lust for vengeance against his former friend is all that drives him now. No. He could never have organized an attack of this scale on his own."
Okay, she had to admit this was kind of fun.
"No! You can't mean…"
"That's right. I am, in actuality, the final creation of Doctor Vertigo! I shall carry out his vendetta against this city, even at the cost of my own life! Now, come at me, Infinity Girl!"
"I guess it's time to show you how I got that name!"
With that, she leapt at him using the extra oomph provided by her spring-loaded boots, arms spread wide to maximize the chances of catching him if he tried to dodge. What she was not prepared for was Shoji to seize her by the wrist, spin around, and fling her into the opposite wall. She remembered, rather belatedly, that he had achieved the highest score in grip strength by a factor of about two and, as she now discovered, it was not just his hands that possessed that degree of strength.
"Agh!" the sound of her collision echoed throughout the room and she fell to the floor, unable to breathe for a couple of seconds while Shoji stood in front of the bomb, his expression unreadable but his one set of crossed arms saying everything: I'll beat you with two arms tied behind my back, Hero.
Ochako rose to one knee, pretending to be more damaged than she actually was while subtly bracing one foot against the wall behind her and the other on the floor in front of her.
"Not bad, monster."
"But of course. The late Doctor's genius is incomprehensible to the likes of you. Now stay on the ground where you belong. If you rise again, then I shall not be as merciful as I was the first time. That hit must have taken away at least a third of your strength."
"Heh, and here I thought Vertigo's final creation would at least have some of his brains."
Shoji's eyes narrowed.
"What do you mean, Hero?"
"Didn't he ever teach you basic math?" this was going to suck, but it was her only chance. Ochako touched her fingers together in her release pose, but instead of cancelling her power, she turned it inwards and rocketed towards Shoji with all the strength her legs and springs could muster, "Infinity divided by anything is still infinity!"
Shoji was not prepared for the sudden speed increase and resorted to catching Ochako and diving to the side at the same time, so his now-weightless body and hers collided with a wall instead of the bomb. On the upside, she had succeeded in turning him weightless. On the downside, she was now cocooned in his arms and webbing with no easy way out. She cancelled her Quirk before the nausea could affect her too badly and then quickly reapplied it to him before he had the chance to recover so the only weight holding them down was hers. She was positioned awkwardly against Shoji's abdomen, making it hard for him to stay standing due to the shift in his center of gravity…or lack thereof.
"Deku-kun, I go-"
*BOOOM*
An earth-shaking explosion rocked the entire building at that moment.
"Deku-kun! What was that?! Are you alright?!"
"Bakugo-san! What happened?!"
T – o – r – c – h – b – e – a – r – e – r
Izuku Midoriya was in the process of getting his ass kicked up and down the hallways of the building. He had managed to get in a few good hits here and there, even landing another Smash in the process, but he suffered from the problem of wind-up time, a problem which Bakugo did not have.
He was relentless, not giving Deku an instant to plan anything other than dodge, block, or attack. It was clear that Izuku's earlier speech had struck a nerve and his opponent had abandoned any sense of caution, opting for a full-force offensive.
Desperate for even a short reprieve, Izuku launched a desperate Smash at Katsuki's head but the other boy ducked before springing back up and nailing him in the chin with one of his metallic kneepads, snapping his head back and knocking him into a wall. Izuku tasted blood.
An odd "ding" sounded from one of Katsuki's gauntlets, accompanied by a momentary blink.
"Ah, the first one's loaded. You know, Deku, this might be a good chance to prove my point once and for all."
Izuku knew exactly what was coming. He had gone over Kacchan's costume design notes with him to make sure everything was adequately explained and it had been impossible to miss that little feature.
Katsuki's Quirk worked in two parts: The first was that he could secrete a nitroglycerin-like substance from his palms, while the second was the ability to detonate that substance to create his explosions. There was a limit to the raw amount he could safely secrete at once though, which meant that without running the risk of hurting himself, he could only create explosions up to a certain level of power.
These gauntlets removed that limitation. Their function, apart from doubling as both weapons and armor, was to store up the excess fluid so that he could unleash it all at once in a massive, limit-breaking explosion.
Izuku knew he would make sure that the attack wouldn't kill him. He wasn't worried about that.
What he was worried about was the catastrophic structural damage such an attack was likely to cause.
"Kacchan, you can't use that in here! You'll bring down the building!"
"Don't worry about that, Deku. Did you happen to notice where you are right now?"
Izuku didn't know what he was talking about, and it was hard to focus with the sun streaming in from the win…dow…
Shit.
"Ah, you get it now. Yeah, even if I take out that wall there, it won't bring down the building. It's made of one-hundred percent concrete underneath all this metal plating, you know. All the practice buildings are made like that. Probably because Cementoss works here. That means that there's no shortage of load-bearing walls in this place! We can afford to take out one or two!"
This was not good.
"Now, Deku," Katsuki pulled back on one of the large extensions on his right gauntlet, causing it to snap back an inch or so, allowing a large pin to pop out of the side, "let me show you the kind of power that you'll never be able to match! DIE!"
He pulled the pin.
*BOOOM*
Being expelled from a confined space through a small hole in the gauntlet, the explosion was propelled forwards instead of simply blasting everywhere. It tore up the hallway as it rocketed towards Izuku, who just barely managed to smash-leap to one side in time to avoid taking it head-on. The result was that, instead of being violently expelled from the building, he was sent flying down the hallway, his respirator smashing as it clipped a wall, causing his head to jerk violently to the other side and probably being the only thing that saved him from a broken jaw.
This was the turning point. He couldn't lose his breath again, or the fire he had reflexively latched onto would just be wasted. Using the momentum of his spin, Deku gathered One For All into his limbs as best he could and as soon as he felt himself touch the wall, he pushed.
"SMASH!"
Where one or two limbs might have busted through the wall, four spread the impact enough to merely crack it and send Izuku flying right into the inferno he had summoned to himself. He inhaled desperately, cutting it close enough that he felt the exposed skin around his mouth crisp slightly before he finished absorbing it all.
"Deku-kun! What was that?! Are you alright?!"
That was a lot. He felt like he was at about half capacity right now and as he got to his feet, he heard another telltale "ding."
"Not bad, Deku. Do you think you can handle another one?"
His quads and back muscles hurt from catching himself on the wall, but Izuku forced himself to straighten up and face his opponent. He exhaled slowly and felt a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He chuckled to himself, struck by the absurdity of the situation.
"Hey, Kacchan?"
"What?"
"Don't you think it's kind of funny? You said you were going to hit me with the kind of power I couldn't ever match, but by doing that you gave me the power to match it."
"What are you saying, Deku?" Izuku's grin had long-since passed into "shit-eating" territory. His eyes were glowing orange like coals and he felt a burning inside of him that flooded through his entire being. It felt good. His fear was gone, his fatigue was nonexistent and his injuries didn't matter. He was walking towards Bakugo now, arms raised in a momentary gesture of ceasefire.
"Deku-kun! Say something, please!"
"I'm alright, Uraraka-san. Listen, I need you to give me your rough location upstairs right now."
He spoke softly, barely moving his lips, but she got the message, because she quickly responded.
"From the stairs, two rooms in and one down to the left."
"Good. I'm going to give you a signal and when I do, I need you to make that bomb float, okay? We're only going to have one shot at this."
"Deku-kun, I don't know if-"
He flipped a switch on his transceiver, setting it to send-only mode. He had reached Kacchan by now.
"Well, you see, what I meant was-" he bolted. He tore ass down the hallway with a desperate, manic energy that he had not possessed just moments before, hearing Katsuki swearing and running after him. Two rooms in, then left, then two over, then one more to even the distance.
He stopped and whirled around, right fist cocked back, willing the fire to the surface and into his arm. He didn't have time to be precise here, he needed Kacchan to react without thinking.
"Deku, get your ass ba- OH FUCK!" Katsuki skidded to a stop just short of being level with the first door in this new hallway.
In spite of the fact that he had never seen this technique before, Bakugo had heard it described on multiple occasions and besides that, his instincts were screaming at him. He primed his left gauntlet, finger on the pin, ready to pull at the slightest-
"Now, Uraraka-san!"
The flames burst from Izuku's arm, the costume not being able to withstand the intensity and disintegrating from the hand all the way to the right chest from the force of the emissions.
"NEVADA SMASH!"
"DIE!"
A fist shot forwards at the same time that a pin was pulled and a pillar of fire raged towards a concentrated explosion.
The impact was nothing short of catastrophic. The Nevada Smash was more powerful than the explosion by a significant margin, but the flammable material contained within it combined with the force was enough to direct a large amount of said force upwards and outwards.
Enough force to, say, send the two combatants flying away from each other and blow a sizeable hole in the floor above them, blowing out every window on their floor and above in the process.
That…was a bit more than Izuku had bargained for.
Oh shit.
He used the hand that was currently functional to switch his transceiver back on.
"Uraraka-san! Are you alright?!"
For two heart-wrenching seconds, he thought he might have made a fatal miscalculation. Then his transceiver came to life and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.
"Deku-kun…don't ever do that again."
His adrenaline had left him. He sagged into the section of wall that he had been flung into.
"Are you okay? And Shoji-san?"
"Yeah. Yeah, we're both okay. A bit banged up, and Shoji-san probably isn't too happy with me right now but…you know."
"Thank God…"
"The Heroes have retrieved the bomb! The Hero Team is victorious!" All Might's voice rang out over the intercoms that had not been completely destroyed in the explosion, "You also scared everyone half to death, so thank you very much for that!"
"What?! NO! Deku!" Katsuki was stomping down the hallway towards Izuku, "Why did you do that?! You could've kept going! We weren't done! We can both still move, right?! We could've kept going!"
With the adrenaline and combat high not clouding his mind anymore, Izuku felt a bit sick, but he forced himself to his feet, ignoring the screaming protests of his right arm.
"Don't you think I wanted to?!" he found himself shouting at Katsuki, his throat stinging from the dust and smoke in the air, "For the first time, you really looked at me as a rival and I didn't want that to end! Of course I didn't want it to end, you dumbass!" he was crying now. The impact of what had just happened and what could have happened came crashing down on him all at once, "But…being a Hero isn't about what I want; it's about doing everything I can to help others and stop Villains. I can't let my personal desires get in the way of that…not like I did today."
Izuku fell to his knees, his last dregs of strength having left him. Katsuki stopped in front of him, his expression twisted into a combination of anger, concern and revelation. Eventually, he bent down and threw Izuku's left arm over his shoulders, hauling him to his feet.
"Well, I guess that settles that then."
"K-Kacchan?"
"You're still nowhere close to my level, but I can't really call you a Sidekick anymore after a stunt like that, can I?" he gave Izuku a sidelong glance and a soft smile made its way onto his face, "Message received, Deku: You're here alright."
T – o – r – c – h – b – e – a – r – e – r
All Might was currently recovering from what he suspected may have been a minor heart-attack, and the students were apparently doing the same.
"He's insane. That's the only explanation. Dude is completely out of his gourd."
"Seriously, what the hell was that?!"
"You know," Kaminari said with a thoughtful look on his face, "I don't think the super-strength is actually a part of Midoriya's Quirk; I think it's just a side-effect of carrying around those massive balls."
"This is not the sort of behavior that should be praised, Kaminari-san!" Iida was having none of it. He had almost knocked his glasses off in the flurry of arm-motions he had just experienced and had nearly taken Aoyama's head off with his helmet.
"Merde…there is a limit to the amount of passion you can possess, Midoriya-san! How could you put your mademoiselle in such danger?!" Aoyama was also displeased, though his sharp smirk was present on his face as always. All Might wondered to himself if he was an example of that old wives tale about making a face so much that it got stuck that way?
The Symbol of Peace had nearly sprung into action himself before he realized that, somehow, everything had turned out alright with even Midoriya as the most injured still able to walk. He would reprimand them properly when they returned and he would make damned sure they went to see Recovery Girl when all was said and done.
"Did anyone see how Uraraka got away from Shoji though? I couldn't see through all the dust." Kirishima got the conversation back on track.
"I don't know," Sato supplied, "we should ask them that though; it's bugging me now that I think about it."
After a few moments more, the four combatants made it back to the observatory with Midoriya still being supported by Bakugo. Uraraka was sticking close to the boy's other side, seemingly trying to figure out a way to help without aggravating his injuries. Shoji brought up the rear, walking somewhat strangely.
"I really am sorry, Shoji-san! I just couldn't think of any other way…"
"It is alright, Uraraka-san. You acted in the heat of the moment and it would be a perfectly valid move in a real battle, which is what this was meant to simulate."
"Uraraka-san, Ribbit." Asui piped up to ask the question that was on everyone's mind, "What exactly did you do to break free of Shoji-san's grasp? He had you for sure."
"Well, you see," Uraraka was clearly uncomfortable, "He was trying to find a good way to stand while being weightless and he shifted me a bit lower to the ground and took a wider stance. To be fair, it worked. Then Deku-kun told me I had to be ready when he gave the signal and I couldn't think of anything and…well…"
"She delivered blunt force trauma to my genitals." Shoji took pity on the poor girl, "After that, she got to the bomb and made it float in time to avoid the destruction of the floor. I was still floating as well, so I too was spared most of the damage."
The males of the class winced in sympathetic pain at this description, with All Might being no exception.
"Well, with that mystery solved, let's proceed as normal, even if this match was anything but."
"He's crazy! They're both crazy!" Mineta burst out.
"Between the initial tension, the banter, and the climax, I think I've got whiplash." Jiro added.
"I agree that everyone was very in character, and I also wish to applaud the improvisational skills that were on display, both in combat and out." Iida was next, "However, I simply cannot condone the usage of such destructive powers in a situation where they were supposed to be protecting both the building and the bomb, each for their own reasons."
"That final clash was really manly though." Kirishima debated, "Hell, the whole thing was super-manly!"
"It was kind of the opposite of the first match in that they kept their transceivers active basically the whole time." Sero pointed out, "I'd like to ask how the hell Midoriya and Bakugo managed to keep fighting while Uraraka and Shoji were having their dialogue. That was pure gold."
"Honestly?" Midoriya grimaced, "I was kind of distracted at the time."
"Same here." Bakugo confirmed, "What happened?"
"You can all fill each other in on that when you are inevitably detained by Recovery Girl for at least a half hour." All Might interjected. In spite of his own vested interest in this match, they did have a schedule to keep. He cleared his throat before continuing.
"In my opinion, which many of you seem to share, the match started out very well, but quickly devolved at the end. There was no reason whatsoever to resort to such destructive abilities on the part of Bakugo and Midoriya, especially given the reasons laid out by Iida. Even Uraraka made a near-fatal blunder when she sent herself flying towards both Shoji and the bomb. If Shoji had not had the presence of mind to evade as he did, he would have been forced back into the bomb which would have set it off prematurely. While this would, arguably, have still worked in the Villain's favor, it was not the objective of the assignment, otherwise everyone would simply punch their own bomb and have done. With this in mind, and given that he adapted to his role very well, and succeeded in protecting the bomb from Uraraka until circumstances spiraled out of control, I declare Shoji to be the MVP of round three!"
A smattering of applause later, All Might crossed his arms and looked at the battered and bruised combatants.
"I am strongly considering having you all go directly to Recovery Girl right now, Midoriya in particular."
"Do we have to, All Might-sensei?" Midoriya pleaded, "I really want to see the last two matches, if that's possible. It's not like I'm unconscious or anything, right?"
Concern, pride, exasperation and sympathy all warred within All Might. The correct course of action would be to send the boy straight to the infirmary, his desires be damned. At the same time, he did not wish to deprive him of the remaining potential learning experiences of the day.
No. He had been indulgent enough when he let that match continue on far past what he should have. He should have stopped it the instant Bakugo fired off that weapon and most certainly he should have stopped it when it became obvious what the two of them were going to do after that. He had to put his foot down.
"You do indeed have to, Midoriya my boy. I am sending you as well, Bakugo my boy. You took a significant amount of damage as well and you really should get yourself looked at. I will leave it up to Uraraka and Shoji if they also wish to go now instead of later. Uraraka took a nasty hit during her fight with Shoji and as for Shoji…a trip to the infirmary would probably help to alleviate your…*ahem*… discomfort."
"I shall take you up on that offer, Sensei." Shoji responded with an air of relief.
"Yeah. I should probably go too." Uraraka also accepted after a moment of consideration.
"Very well then. Off you all go. Do you require guidance?"
"No, All Might-sensei," Midoriya responded, "I think I remember the way from when I was there yesterday."
By the gods, the boy had been in there just yesterday, hadn't he?
"Very good, my boy."
With that, the four students exited the building and made their way to the infirmary, where a no-doubt soon-to-be irate Recovery Girl awaited them.
Boom. Sorry if some of those physics don't exactly...physics. Rule of Cool was in effect for that last clash, and hopefully you all thought it was suitably cool.
I also had entirely too much fun with their improv. True to form, that was entirely made-up on the spot. I just needed something of an ice-breaker and the "don't call me Kacchan/Deku" exchange just didn't seem like enough.
I really, really hope I did that match justice as a whole.
Numbers time. I did a quick and dirty bit of math to figure out just how strong Shoji actually is compared to, say, Midoriya. We're gonna use the grip strength numbers and assume his overall strength is comparable to this. He got a score of 540 Kg with three hands, which makes his strength for each hand 180 Kg, or the equivalent of Izuku using about 6.5% of One For All for a 3.25x multiplier. He's pretty strong, in other words. Sato is still stronger than him on a per-limb basis, but since he has three times as many arms, his overall capabilities are higher. If we were to figure out how much of One For All Izuku would need to match Shoji's grip strength score, it would be just over 19%, about a 9.6x multiplier. Damn. In case you're wondering how I got those numbers, you just take whatever your target score in Kg is, and divide it by 56, which is canon Izuku's un-augmented score. The result is the multiplier you'd need, and then you just double that to get the percentage since we've already clarified that one percent is a 0.5x multiplier, with 100% being 50x.
I was initially planning on getting through all four remaining matches in this chapter, and that obviously didn't happen, so the remaining two will be next time. That means there's still time for people to chime in with their thoughts/ideas on Tokoyami+Kirishima (Heroes) vs. Iida+Ojiro (Villains) and Sero+Kaminari (Heroes) vs. Aoyama+Sato (Villains).
Ten chapters makes me fell like we've really hit a milestone here.
As always, thank you for reading.