"Morning, Yui! Excited?"

"Morning, Hibiki." Yui replied with a smile when she met up with her childhood friend. Today is the big day, the day of the U.A. Sports Festival. She has no doubts that Hibiki will do well. As for herself, she isn't so sure.

Besides, just a few days before Monoma did come up with a plan for the entirety of Class B so that as many of them as possible can rise to the finals to 'one-up' Class A. She doesn't like the idea of keeping the plan from Hibiki but at the same time, she doesn't want to betray the trust her classmates and friends have in her. She just cannot wait for the Sports Festival to be over already so that she wouldn't need to continue to keep this secret from him.

"Something's on your mind, eh?" Hibiki inquired as they waited for the bus at the bus stop. "If you want to share I'm here to listen."

She sighed. Of course she couldn't hide anything from him.

"Keep this to yourself, okay?" She told him and he nodded in agreement, so she continued. "Monoma has a plan to allow as many classmates as possible to advance into the second round. It's not like I want to hide it from you but…"

"I understand." He waved it off with a laugh. "We are in rival classes after all. Weird, huh? We had always been in the same class until now."

"Hibiki…"

"Just do your best, Yui. Give it your best shot and don't hold back because if you do, then it's not very hero-like. Funny how Bakugo was the one who got me to realise that part of being a hero, eh? Please don't tell him I ever said that though."

"Bakugo?" Yui frowned at the thought of the unpleasant fellow who she knows is the source of pain for Hibiki's ears.

"Don't get me wrong, I still don't like him. He's still a certified asshole in my book." Hibiki clarified upon seeing that look on her face. "But even I have to admit, albeit reluctantly, that he has a point in wanting us to fight him with nothing but our very best during the festival. Think about it. When you become a hero, it's all or nothing. You only have one chance for everything. Screw it up and people will die. It's fine if you are the one who pays the price for your own mistakes, but what if other people pay the price for your mistakes? Do you want that to happen?"

"No." She replied immediately. Just the mere thought of such a thing happening is enough to make her shudder. If people ever die because she makes a blunder…

She doesn't know if she can live with that kind of guilt weighing on her.

"So start cultivating that mindset now. Given Monoma's character I'd be willing to bet that his plan is something sneaky. I don't know what Monoma and your class is planning but I can safely tell you this, Yui. It's fine to hold a card or two close to your chest and only reveal it when you truly need them, but there's no point in holding onto them forever. When the game's over, no matter how good your hand is it's useless because you are already out of the game. Make good use of your cards while the game is still going on."

He turned around to face her with a smile on his face.

"So give this Sports Festival your best shot. Even if we both ended up facing each other, give me your best shot, because we are going to be heroes. There will not be any more second chances. If you really want to be a hero that saves lives like Thirteen then anything less is an insult to this profession and title. When people place their lives in your hands they expect you to do your best, so start making this a habit, starting from now."

She looked away, partly out of guilt and partly also because she knows that he is right. To be a hero is to save lives and help others. When people place their lives in the hands of the heroes they expect them to do their very best to save them, because it is the duty of heroes to do so.

"I… I understand, Hibiki. Thank you."

"Cheer up! You don't want to show that gloomy face of yours on camera later! The whole of Japan is watching! Smile~" He tried to pull at her cheeks only for her to slap his hands away with practiced ease. He always does this to annoy a reaction out of her.

"Stop that."

"You really need to smile more."

"Hm."

"Hey, don't you hm me now. I'm serious!"

"Hm."

"Wait, are you ignoring me?"

"Hm."

"Yui!"

"Hm."

"-so this is the plan! We can do this, because we are Class B! We are not going to lose to some shitty pricks from Class A simply because they faced a few no name villains!"

"HELL YEAH!"

The class gave a few cheers in the waiting room where they were gathered. Monoma had used this time to go through his plan once again. Admittedly, it is a very good plan on his part and he definitely has the class' best interests in mind. However…

"So give this Sports Festival your best shot. Even if we both ended up facing each other, give me your best shot, because we are going to be heroes."

She doesn't know what to do. Both Hibiki and Monoma are right. She doesn't want to let Hibiki down, but neither does she want to disappoint her classmates.

"When people place their lives in your hands they expect you to do your best, so start making this a habit, starting from now."

"-dai? Kodai? You with us?"

She only realised that she was daydreaming when Monoma's voice finally registered in her mind.

"Yui? You okay?" Itsuka asked in concern as she put a hand on her forehead to check her temperature. "Well, at least you are not having a fever or anything, but are you feeling well? You've been a little out of it ever since you came to school."

"Um, it's nothing…"

"You don't speak much but this is clearly not nothing. We are classmates, Kodai. If there's anything we can help with just tell us." Monoma cut in firmly with a look of concern on his face as well. Now, the entire class' attention is on her. Great. The very last thing she needs.

She sighed and mentally fortified herself for the incoming backlash she is going to get.

"I… I don't want to participate in the plan. Leave me out of it."

A brief period of silence descended the waiting room before everyone exploded into a cacophony of noise.

"Why, Kodai?" Monoma asked in genuine concern. "Was my plan not good enough? If so, just say it! I know I'm not the smartest so if there's-"

"Your plan is good, the problem lies with me." She struggled to get her words out. This is the most she ever had to speak in a single sitting and she's not comfortable with it. "I… I'm sorry, Monoma. I'm sorry, everyone, but this time, I don't want to hide my abilities. I… I want to do my best, because that's what heroes do. They only have one chance in every situation and they do their utmost best. If I cannot do this now and make this a habit, there's no way I can do it when I finally become a proper hero, so… so!"

Her fists are clenched. She doesn't even dare to look up to face anyone but she does know that she has to make her feelings known.

"I… I am not going to participate in the plan. I'm sorry, everyone."

Soft murmurs broke out here and there and she doesn't know what her classmates are talking about. She doesn't have ears like Hibiki. After a while, Monoma spoke.

"DId… Did you tell anyone else ab-"

"No!" She raised her voice out of indignation before she realised what she had done. "S-Sorry for shouting, but no, I did not tell anyone about what we are planning, even Hibiki."

"Hey, it's fine." Itsuka came to her rescue as she subtly placed herself between her and the rest of the class. "You are not wrong, Yui. It's fine to do things your way and you are right in certain things. When we become heroes, we only have one chance to make things right. We should do our best then."

"I guess I should have expected something like this to happen." Monoma sighed and scratched the back of his head with a hand. "Well, I wasn't expecting everyone to be on board with the plan in the first place so it's fine. Don't think too much about it, Kodai."

"Sorry, Monoma." Yui apologised once more, not knowing how to further explain herself. "I-"

"It's fine." Monoma gave her a smile. "We all have different reasons to be heroes and we all have different ideals. If you think giving your all is what a hero should do then do it. As your classmate, I should be supporting you, not holding you down."

"Are you really Monoma? This doesn't sound like you at all." Tokage piped up.

"It doesn't matter what we do as long as we can put those Class A pricks down into the dirt and show them that we are the superior class." Monoma began to laugh maniacally once more as his superiority complex began to show once more, causing everybody else to either sigh in resignation, facepalm, or sweatdrop at his reaction and not in that particular order. "Kodai's quirk is a powerful one! So if she can-"

"Alright, enough is enough. Take a break." Itsuka promptly knocked him out with a chop to Monoma's neck, shutting him up for a short moment.

"Do your best, Yui." Reiko told her softly as she held her hands in hers. "Don't worry about us. If anyone could beat the people from 1-A, it's you."

"Yeah, Kodai's quirk is plenty strong!" Tetsutetsu yelled out. "Even the explosion dude has nothing on her once she gets going!"

"Remember the time she threw the small pebble in the Battle Trial and enlarged it to the point it demolished an entire building? I still have nightmares thinking about that."

"Can you please don't remind me of that? I was her opponent! It was freaking scary!"

Yui watched as her classmates went back to their usual banter. Itsuka placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, catching her attention.

"Next time you have something on your mind, just say it out, Yui. We are friends, remember?"

For the first time in a long while, her face broke out into a small smile.

"Yeah."

She really couldn't ask for a better class.

"Psst! Onpa! Do it! NOW!"

"The entire Japan is watching, Ashido."

"It's a once in a lifetime thing!"

"Yeah! Do it, Onpa! Be a man and do the manly thing!"

"I will get an expulsion if I do that."

"Do it! Change Bakugo's voice!"

I sighed and chose to temporarily mute everyone around me. Almost everyone had urged me to change Bakugo's voice when he was going up to give a speech and take the athlete's oath as the Student Representative. While I can agree this is definitely a great prank, the setting isn't right. There's a time and place for everything. Given how serious Pro Heroes are taking this festival and scouting talents from U.A., it will not be wise to pull a prank right now of all times. It will be stupid to do something to jeopardise my future career.

Besides, I have the Onpa name to uphold. I cannot allow my actions to blemish my family name.

So, it was with regret that my classmates watched as Bakugo gave the athlete's oath in his normal voice. That quickly changed when he instead declared war on everyone else.

Now I'm the one who regrets not pulling that prank. Should have changed his voice instead. Damn it Bakugo! What are you thinking?!

Still, I don't have the luxury to think. Already, Midnight is drawing the curtains open to the first event without any delays on her part. The countdown timer at the top is already starting to count down.

Three.

"Good luck, though I doubt you need it."

I merely nodded back an agreement at Shinso.

Two.

"Hey, have some faith in me! I'm not trying to brainwash you, I swear!"

I gave him a look that showed just how much I trust that particular statement.

One.

"Really!"

"START!"

I didn't bother to reply. In true Bakugo fashion, I pointed my opened palms below me and blasted sonic energy to propel me straight ahead. It might have blown away some of the other participants from the impact but I don't particularly care.

Plus Ultra, I think I'm starting to know why that is our school's motto. Go beyond your limits. Surpass them. Be better than what you are yesterday, an hour ago, a second ago, be better than before and keep improving.

That is what it means to be a hero, because any less will simply not suffice.

"In this Sports Festival, I want you to use this chance and tell the world… that You're Here!"

Midoriya clenched his fist as he looked at it with determination, then around him as he looked at his friends. All Might's words still ring loudly beside his ears. There's only one thing that he has to do today in this Sports Festival, one thing that All Might told him to do that is by no means easy but definitely necessary.

Tell the world that he is here.

He's glad that he had help. Onpa's words from that day after the Battle Trial had given him a number of things to think over and theorise on how to control an uncontrollable quirk. Start small, pace yourself, explore where your current limits lie. After that, find a way to freely control that power within the limit you set for yourself and when it finally becomes second nature to do so, break through that limit.

It sounds so simple to the point that it feels laughable, yet he hadn't thought of it before. He owes Onpa one, that is for sure.

Three.

The countdown had started and his eyes surveyed his competition. He saw Uraraka, who is lightly slapping her cheeks with her hands as a form of self-encouragement. He saw Iida, who is revving up his engines in preparation for this obstacle course which will no doubt be a walk in the park for him considering his quirk. He saw Onpa, who is standing beside Shinso and obviously choosing not to respond to Shinso's words, wary of what Shinso may do with his quirk.

He saw Kacchan, who is still having that same unpleasant scowl on his face and glaring at the massive door, waiting for it to open so that the race could start proper. No doubt his childhood friend is eager to give his all and clinch the top spot, to be the undisputable Number One that he always had been obsessed about.

Two.

Midoriya is not the competitive type. Far from it, in fact, but today is different. Today, he has to show the world that "He is Here".

Midoriya silently sucked in a breath as he activated his quirk. Green arcs of electricity sparked across his body, catching the attention of people around him. He is still a long way from utilising the full power of his quirk, but at least this is better than nothing.

One.

Midoriya lowered his body to a slight crouch, ready to take this Sport Festival by storm. There's no way he is going to fall behind any longer. Not after what he promised All Might, not when his mother is watching him live on TV and cheering him on. Not after how Onpa had given him a good tip on how to control his quirk. Not after the declaration of war Todoroki gave him, not after the speech Kacchan made on stage.

Right now, it's time to go Plus Ultra. It's time to show the world.

One For All… 2%

"START!"

That he is here.

FUCKITY FUCK! HOW IS THAT KARAOKE BASTARD SO DAMN FAST?!

Bakugo Katsuki increased the output of his explosions in order to overtake the stupid fucking autotune who like him, has the ability to fly through the air by releasing energy out of their palms. Manipulating sonic energy, that has to be it. No other explanation can explain how the blue hair freak can fly through the air that fast. The noisy bursts of sound that he is emitting from the speakers on his palms told him all he needed to know.

And then there's the half-and-half bastard. That fucking Elsa wannabe.

A loud and explosive boom that is certainly not his doing caught his attention. His eyes widened in disbelief when he saw just who it is that is catching up to him, running at a speed that can possibly rival the fucking Four Eyes.

Deku?!

HOW?! FUCK! HOW?! How did that useless Deku suddenly become able to run as fast as the goddamn wind?! Just a week or two ago he couldn't even use his bullshit quirk without breaking his own bones and now he can run at a speed that can keep up with him? HIM?!

FUCKING BULLSHIT!

If it were any other circumstances he would no doubt turn around to beat the Deku into the dirt, but this is a race. The winner is decided by who reaches the finishing line first, not by who beats who into the dirt first. So, Bakugo could only grit his teeth in frustration and with a loud yell, propel himself even faster. Deku aside, he still has to overtake the half-and-half and the autotune. For now, Deku can wait.

The zero pointers don't mean jack shit to any of them, that's obvious. Compared to the villains they faced at the USJ these robots are nothing. They had also left all the extras behind eating their dirt with the lead they had gained. Now, it's just him, the half-and-half bastard, and the annoying autotune who are competing with each other on who is going to take first place. Deku doesn't count because he's Deku and also because he's still behind them, even if he can begrudgingly admit that the Deku is indeed a lot faster than he initially thought he would be.

Fucking Deku and his bullshit quirk.

And if the first barrier is a laughable joke at best, the second barrier means absolutely nothing. The third barrier, however…

Perfect.

"OUTTA THE WAY, AUTOTUNE!"

With a large blast of explosion, he successfully forced the earmuff bastard to fly low and to keep close to the ground. Bakugo didn't waste any time to fire more bursts of explosions and detonate the mines beneath to slow the autotune down before charging ahead to catch up to the half-and-half bastard.

"Your declaration of war was to the WRONG person, half-and-half bastard!"

A wave of ice came his way but Bakugo simply blasted his way out of there and set off more mines in the process. He took the opportunity and ran ahead instead of flying because he will be reaching his limits soon, keeping in mind that he needs to pace the frequency and scale of his explosions before his wrists start to hurt. There are still two more segments to go after all.

He felt a chilly hand grabbing his arm and pulled him back. Bakugo retaliated with a kick, forcing Icyhot to let go.

And then, a blue streak zoomed past them.

"OH NO YA DON'T!"

Icyhot and him unanimously chose to put down their differences aside to prevent the Autotune from overtaking them and fired their quirks at him, forcing him to slow down. The Autotune managed to dodge their attacks with an annoyed scowl on his face before he pointed his palms at them. Bakugo braced himself from the impending sonic attack and so did the half-and-half bastard, already knowing what the sound changing freak is capable of.

And then a fourth competitor had to join them. That's not all, that person just have to be the fucking Deku. Somehow, the Deku had cleared the entire minefield with a single fucking jump. The only good thing that came out of this is that the Autotune had aborted the attack that he was planning on firing at them to chase after the Deku. He and the Icyhot bastard had also no choice but to chase after the fucking Deku because fuck him if Deku was the one who gets first place!

FUCK! HOW ON EARTH CAN THE DEKU DO THE IMPOSSIBLE AND CLEARED THE ENTIRE MINEFIELD WITH JUST A JUMP?! HE CAN BARELY USE HIS QUIRK WITHOUT CRIPPLING HIMSELF JUST A WEEK OR TWO AGO! FUCK!

Fuck Deku! Fuck it all! FUCK IT ALL!