Magnus: Time for some fights! You are probably going to be surprised by the setup... maybe?
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Cursed Blood
Chapter 27
A sinister confrontation.
In the south wing of the Todoroki household, one Fuyumi Todoroki could be found in her room stretched out on her bed, chewing on her bottom lip as she watched her little brother's participation in UA's Sports Festival on the modestly sized television mounted on her wall. The peppermint-haired young woman felt a sinking feeling the longer the broadcast went on, the youngest Todoroki's behavior much different than she'd anticipated.
"Shoto…" Fuyumi murmured sadly, eyes glued to the screen as she lamented what she was witnessing, "What's happened to you? Didn't you say you'd never be like father?"
It really was worrying. While she hadn't known how Shoto would take losing after a lifetime of it being drilled into him that he was the best, that he could never fail, Fuyumi saw his actions in the second event, both before and after his team literally mutinied against him, as beyond frightening. Ordering his team to attack a clearly unknown threat while completely focused on his own goal? To completely shut down when those same teammates forsook his leadership?
That wasn't Shoto she'd seen.
That was Endeavor.
Fuyumi broke her laser-like focus on the television, a slim hand absently finding its place right below her stomach. Was her family really cursed? Was this mania, this madness somehow genetic? Would—
"Hey."
The sudden baritone call made the troubled peppermint-haired young woman jerk in surprise. She'd been so focused on Shoto… the abrupt reminder that she wasn't alone made Fuyumi's stomach tingle.
"Hey. You okay? Did it work?"
Fuyumi chuckled, unable to help herself. She honestly hadn't expected this when she'd asked for help, desperate and feeling so alone in the face of her father's depraved pursuit to topple All Might. Who'd have thought for once, poor Fuyumi, the weakest of her father's failures, would hit the jackpot and stumble upon someone with such a heart of gold.
Someone who'd jumped to help her… despite all the ramifications of her request.
Fuyumi looked down, glanced at the hand still on her lower stomach, then to the other one. More specifically, she examined what it held. For the hundredth time.
"Yeah…" the peppermint-haired young woman whispered, suddenly feeling a surge of tears burning at the back of her eyes. Damn, she was getting overly emotional again. "Yeah, it did. But… I-I think I should keep it a secret. Just… just for now. You know?"
Looking up, Fuyumi realized she really couldn't see her visitor too well with the way the lighting in her room worked. A passing emo phase had brought pitch-black curtains to her windows when she'd been younger, and she'd never found the drive to replace them after it'd passed. As such, her room was pretty dark even in the middle of the day.
"I… see. Are you sure you're feeling alright? Don't hesitate to tell me. You know I'll get you anything you need."
Fuyumi rolled her eyes, a teasing grin stealing across her often harried face. She'd thought it would feel nice to be spoiled, but it'd soon come to her attention that instead she felt it was… too different to enjoy. After a lifetime of being treated like a burden, an object only good for bartering away, suddenly becoming the central focus of another was discombobulating. She felt out of place. A fraud.
But, the peppermint-haired young woman supposed she should've expected such things to occur. Her guest had always been like this, worrying about others even when they swore they didn't need it. Being around her so much would of course only worsen such behavior.
"It's too early and you know it," Fuyumi said, snorting before squinting into the dim shadow cloaking her visitor. "What? Are you feeling all responsible now?"
"Yes."
It was an odd feeling, Fuyumi noted, to feel guilt gnaw at her stomach at the same time her heart traitorously fluttered in her chest. With a heavy sigh, the peppermint-haired young woman wondered how they'd suddenly gotten to this point.
Her plan had been simple.
Her execution, while rushed, had gone off without a hitch. The rather… enthusiastic help of her friend had actually made it an unexpectedly enjoyable affair even.
Now, she all she had to do was waiting until it was safe to act, when there was no going back. She'd tell her father that for once his plans would be for naught. For once, she'd escaped his grasp.
Her. Fuyumi.
She'd even saved up enough to rent a small apartment in the event she was kicked out or disowned for her disobedience.
"I know you said not to worry, that you'd handle things on your own but…"
"I CAN handle everything on my own," Fuyumi agreed, forcing a fair bit of false confidence into her voice. The longer this went on, the more she felt she'd falter if she didn't put her foot down with this. "You really don't need to further involve yourself with my… troubles."
The tall figure of her friend bent down, retrieving a pair of underpants Fuyumi was embarrassed to remember she'd personally removed and sent flying only hours ago. For just a moment, the light of her bedside lamp glistened against something in the gloom.
Oh, the bracers were on already.
"I don't like the idea of you doing this all alone," Came the baritone reply. A quick shuffle, and toned legs slid into specially designed pants. "I think… I think we should go somewhere and really plan for the future."
That damn fluttering again. Where was this warmth coming from? She knew to expect care and concern, but had she really left that great of an impression in the six… seven—oh fuck—ten times they'd met up? Fuyumi felt her face catch fire as she remembered more of what the two had done during those get-togethers. Maybe she didn't need to do this alone?
Damn her volatile emotions!
This was not the time to be a swooning schoolgirl. She'd expected some attachment, but this was ridiculous.
"So… what?" Fuyumi asked, pushing her quickly wavering resolve behind sarcasm and wit. "Less drinking and more singing next time? Maybe let me lead after?"
A solemn blue gaze met Fuyumi's blustering turquoise. What was—?
"I want you to meet my family."
Fuyumi froze, her breath caught in her throat. Her heart was all of a sudden a thundering in her chest. Everything had just gotten way more intense than she'd thought possible. She didn't even know how to respond to that!
And why was her stomach fluttering so much? Was that normal?
A large hand, clearly visible even in the dark of her room, reached out and placed itself on the hand she'd kept, even then, on her stomach.
Oh, somehow between now and then the whole suit had come back on.
Huh…
"I know it's sudden, but I really do want to stay by your side."
Fuyumi felt the telltale signs of a panic abruptly awaken and begin to claw at her insides, rising from constricting her chest to filling her already overactive mind in seconds. The peppermint-haired young woman began to shake as the reality of what was being asked hit home. This wasn't the plan!
This wasn't the plan!
This wasn't the plan! This wasn't the plan! This wasn't the plan! This wasn't the plan! Thiswasn'the plan. Thiswasn'ttheplanthiswasn'ttheplanthiswasn'ttheplanthiswasn'ttheplanthiswasn't—
A warmth Fuyumi was ashamed to admit she'd always been desperate for growing up enveloped the young woman as two solid arms wrapped themselves around her. And just like that, the panic snapped away like twine in the wind.
All because of a hug. A hug from…
Fuck.
"It… it IS s-sudden!" Fuyumi warbled through the tears she hadn't realized she'd been crying and the slowly easing shakes still wracking her body. This. Was this what she had to look forward to for the next few months? Oh joy. "I-I-I need time to prepare for something like that. Y-You can't just say stuff like th-that out of the blue!"
Laughter. A rich, deep laughter that vibrated through Fuyumi and set her skin on fire rang through the air. The arms around her tightened once, twice, before releasing her. She couldn't deny she was sad to feel them go. The now fully suited hero stepped back and walked over to the room's balcony doors.
"Fair enough," the hero said, dipped a helmeted head. Standing tall, strong arms gently opened the balcony doors out of sheer habit. "How about this. The team and I have a mission in Hosu starting this afternoon; I'm actually headed there right now. When it's over, why don't I take you out, for real, and we talk?"
Good. That sounded good. Really good.
Fuck there went her head again. Pull yourself together Fuyumi, you were just going on about how you could do this all alone. Just because you were being offered heartfelt love and care didn't mean you—
"O-okay, deal. You be careful out there okay?!"
Fuyumi froze as the words slipped out to a figure already waving and jumping over the balcony railing. She was already too far gone… wasn't she?
"You're really lucky, you know that?" Fuyumi said… caressing her still flat belly with an honest smile. "Looks like your daddy really is one of the good ones. Better than I'd given him credit for anyway."
As she got up to open her curtains and let some light in, Fuyumi looked at the pregnancy test still in her other hand.
Positive.
The sight of it made her smile even brighter.
Sure, she'd originally been happy enough that her rebellion had borne fruit, but now… now the idea of finally being free of her father wasn't all she had to look forward to.
For once, Fuyumi Todoroki was smiling at the idea of family, and the prospect of finding a new one.
UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Contestant Arena…
After somewhat recovering from having his impulsive proposal broadcasted for the world to see, Izuku had managed to straighten up and look around at those who'd remained after Midnight had cleared those disqualified from the third event. This was it. The moment the green-haired boy had been dreading was coming.
How would those bigots screw him over next?
"Now that those disqualified teams have left the stage…" Midnight crooned as she sashayed across her podium while eyeing the expectant students below her, "It's time to start the third and final round of the First Year Sports Festival! That's right, it's… THE TOURNAMENT!"
A bomb going off wouldn't have been loud enough to hear over the frenzied cheers that burst from the arena's stands. The gathered audience of civilian and pro hero alike had been waiting for this the entire time, the traditional tournament where the best of the best faced each other in combat. Children fought and bled to make their names known… all for the entertainment of the masses and the profit of UA's sponsors.
Having been awakened to just what went on behind the curtain, Izuku had to say he honestly hated it now.
While it was true that on the surface the tournament was still the talent showcase of power and skill that it had been conceptualized to be, closer examination revealed just how barbaric it had become. Over the years a clear pattern could be seen to have emerged to the discerning eye; only those with combat prowess were glorified, the heroic potential of all others was completely ignored.
It wouldn't have been too difficult to add measures that would've given those with Quirks that were mental-based or better suited to rescue or support an equal opportunity to shine. For example, Class 1-A's battle test earlier that semester would've been a perfect set up for this. If each competitor played like the other was the villain, and they were the hero who had to rescue 'civilians' while fighting off an enemy, then the two could battle while still showing they could focus on what really mattered.
Saving people.
It would go a lot farther in proving one's heroic worth than just beating each other into the ground. That completely missed the point of being a Hero in the first place.
"Excuse me!"
The unexpected interruption almost caused Midnight to lose her momentum and stumble off her podium, the ravenette caught completely blindsided by the shout. Quickly covering her near faux pas, the R-Rated Heroine looked down to see Jurota Shishida with an arm raised straight into the air.
"I'm sorry," the gentlemanly beast of Class 1-B said curtly, "I hate to disappoint my classmates, but I do not feel it in me to further participate in the festival at this time."
The formal declaration caused everyone present to reel in shocked surprise. Those from Shishida's class knew the animalistic teen was probably one of their most athletic and combat-ready members; the race hardly denting his incredible stamina and the team he'd joined barely making a strenuous effort to qualify, so they couldn't begin to understand why he was giving up now.
"Shi-kun… why?" Shiozaki asked, the vine-haired heroine-in-training taking a step forward looking almost betrayed by the beastly teen's decision. Shishida turned, bodily facing his questioning classmate but found himself unable to return the forest green gaze penetrating his soul.
"Iba-chan I…" Shishida visibly struggled with himself. The animalistic hero-in-training snapped his head up, a smattering of gasps erupting as the young man's watery gaze finally met that of Shiozaki. "It's… it's a matter of honor. Please accept my decision and I swear I will explain myself later. Please?"
Shiozaki looked as if she wanted to argue further, before thinking better of it and solemnly nodding to show her acceptance. Shishida sagged, his giant shoulders sloping in relief.
"What a passionate appeal!" Midnight cut in, the 18+ Only Heroine wrapping her arms around herself as she wiggled in place as if trying to contain herself at the display before her. "I wish I could see more, but we don't have the time! Shishida has forfeited his place in the tournament, and will now exit the field."
Doing as Midnight said, Shishida turned his back on the gathered competitors and walked stiffly toward the tunnel leading out of the arena floor. The entire march, the beastly teen kept his back straight and chin up, a true display of integrity.
"Anyone else thinking of dropping out?" Midnight asked, dropping her salacious act for a moment. There were no replies as the sixteen remaining students were too busy watching the towering figure of the beastly teen walking away.
As Shishida made his way out of the arena, Izuku tried to connect the dots, solve a puzzle he was missing pieces to. Unfortunately, all he could deduce was that the animalistic 1-B member had been upset by something and most likely felt that his participation any further would be, as he'd left unsaid, dishonorable.
For a split second, Izuku considered dropping from the tournament too. The verdanette had no desire to feed this ravenous audience's thirst for blood and violence, or to fill the pockets of sponsors who despised him. Hadn't he shed enough blood, sweat, and tears already? If he stopped now, maybe he could keep the extent of his abilities under wraps for a little bit longer, not have to face the fear and scorn from all the idiots who'd be too stupid to understand the truth like he knew he would if he kept going.
And hadn't he done a lot already? He'd won the first event through teamwork, like a real Hero. He'd won the second by using his brain and trusting his team, like a real Hero. He could be happy with just that.
But even so…
What. Is. Thy. Desire?
The blood in his veins knew very well the true desires of his heart.
'I want…' Izuku paused, almost hesitating to take that final step into fully committing to his path before steeling himself, '…I want to prove them ALL wrong!'
Then. Fight. On.
Realizing no one else was going to drop out, Midnight cleared her throat and turned everyone's attention back to the jumbotron-sized display that was still showing the faces of those moving on to the third event. Shishida's face had been shadowed out, leaving—
"Well, look at that! Sixteen competitors, just a perfect number to sort," Midnight exclaimed as the picture on the huge screen began to move. The faces of the remaining students faded away, leaving only their names. The names, flashing a bright yellow, began to scramble and shuffle horizontally, lines zigzagging into existence to form four distinct blocks of A, B, C, and D.
Watching the display go on and on, showing no signs of stopping, the R-Rated hero grit her teeth before pasting on a smile and raising her mic again.
"It almost looks like it's trying to decide the best match-ups, doesn't it?" Midnight's words earned chuckles from the spectators, the civilians and pro heroes both waiting anxiously to see who'd be pitted against whom.
In their press box, Eraserhead and Present Mic exchanged a grave look.
Without a word, Aizawa leapt from his seat and darted out of the small room. Snapping forward, Hizashi whipped out a hand and clicked off the second mic before it could begin to broadcast static and feedback. The blond nodded to himself as he didn't hear the cursed sound wailing from the speakers; he'd succeeded in covering up his friend's departure.
Back down in the arena, Midnight frowned as the jumbotron board finally slowed down to display the brackets for the tournament. Immediately the ravenette could tell something wasn't right. These match-ups…
Izuku Midoriya | Hitoshi Shinso
Mashirao Ojiro | Ibara Shiozaki
Mina Ashido | Eijiro Kirishima
Tenya Iida | Testutetsu Tetsutetsu
Momo Yaoyorozu | Itsuka Kendo
Fumikage Tokoyami | Mei Hatsume
Ochaco Uraraka | Tsuyu Asui
Shoto Todoroki | Kyouka Jiro
Midnight wasn't the only one who reacted negatively to the revealed placements.
'MOTHERFUCKERS!' Izuku screamed into the void of his mind. Growling, the verdanette failed to keep his thoughts entirely to himself, "They're rigging the whole tournament."
Being as close to him as they were, Tsuyu, Fumikage, and Kyouka heard the young necromancer's words just fine.
"Izu-kun? Kero," Tsuyu asked, concerned. The frog-girl wasn't about to doubt her brilliant boyfriend, but what he'd just said was concerning to the extreme.
Side by side, Kyouka and Fumikage silently exchanged glances before turning back to their enraged friend. Seeing all eyes on him, the green-haired teen took a deep breath and laid out the truth he'd just realized.
"There's a favorite in each block," Izuku said first, motioning up to the jumbotron screen. "The matches are set so that these favorites have the best chance at getting to the finals and then, of course, winning the tournament."
Kyouka gave a low whistle as she looked at the brackets. As much as she wished her friend were wrong, or at least just paranoid, upon closer inspection, the placements WERE a more than a little suspect.
"Well, at least it wasn't just shitty luck on my part then," the punk rock girl quipped, noting who'd be her first and, likely, last match.
Tsuyu nearly facepalmed, only just holding onto her usual deadpan expression as she looked at the board again as well. Just like her musically-inclined friend, it looked like she'd been pitted against an Emitter type to "get rid of her" as soon as possible. And even if the first match failed to eliminate her, there was no way she could even try to overcome Todoroki. At least, not without putting herself in serious danger.
Any way she looked at it, the amphibian teen realized she'd been set up to fail.
"My friend…" Fumikage spoke up, worry evident in the avian teen's voice, "Pray tell, how should we combat the conundrum of these dark machinations?"
The raven-headed hero-in-training understood all too well the situation he and his friends found themselves in, especially Izuku. Set up against an unknown, who if defeated led only to a match against either a martial artist or a member of their sister class who'd shown time and again she had an axe to grind against the young necromancer.
Even winning his block would just get Izuku into more trouble. The other half of his division was full of heavy hitters from their class. He'd have to win against the likes of Kirishima or Ashido, and then most likely Iida, just to in all unfairness face Todoroki at the end.
Against all of this, Izuku smiled. And it wasn't a cute grin at all…
"We're going to fight, that's what we're going to do," Izuku declared, deadly serious, "I'm going to prove them wrong. And this time, I've got backup."
The emerald necromancer turned and flashed two thumbs up to his undead partners, giving a faint nod at the girls. So the Board wanted to bury the Monster of UA? Well then they were going to need far more firepower than the classmates he'd studied extensively since the first day of school if they wanted to even have a chance.
Before the three around Izuku could question the meaning of his words, Midnight cleared her throat once more and called for attention.
"Now that the brackets have been filled…" the 18+ Only Heroine began, a hand shooting up to her ear as if she were using a radio bead, "We'll… give our sixteen remaining competitors a chance to catch a second wind! Due to a few technical difficulties with a couple of drones, UA will be taking a full hour break anyway. We hope you understand!"
The announcement was surprisingly well received, both by the expectant audience and the tense students. With the third event so close, no one wanted to risk getting thrown out for bad behavior.
"YOU HEARD THE LADY!" Present Mic's booming voice blasted through the air, audible even beyond the limits of the stadium, "TICK TOCK PEOPLE! Grab some grub, hit the john, you do you but remember… ONCE THE RUMBLE STARTS THERE'S NO GOING BACK!"
With that rousing speech delivered, the Voice Hero slid effortlessly into a more subdued, for him, tone while making more normal announcements. Apparently there was a white van that smelled like candy parked in a restricted zone in the parking lot that needed to be moved or else, the Business students of Classes 1-I, J, and K would be setting up mock advertising booths for some of the students in the third event for the public to enjoy, and a new brand of all-natural melatonin was going on sale at Musutafu General next week.
Who knew?
"Midoriya!"
The angry, borderline enraged shout caused Izuku and his group to turn sharply toward its source.
Shoto Todoroki was marching through the thinning students in the arena, his mismatched gaze burning with suppressed emotion.
"Yeah, what is it?" Izuku asked as neutrally as possible. While the verdanette seemed to be uncaring in the face of the approaching heterochromatic, Tsuyu, Kyouka, and Fumikage all shared looks of extreme upset at the idea of their repeated attacker stomping toward them with impunity.
Especially since the scarred teen didn't look at all as if he were in the mood for apologizing.
Soon it was too late, and their furious classmate was standing dangerously close to the emerald necromancer.
"We need to talk," Todoroki bit out, an air of finality to the words. There was no mistaking it, this was a demand, not a request.
Minutes Later, UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Tunnel 3…
"When I said 'we' I meant you and me… alone," Todoroki nearly hissed as he glared at the greatest obstacle to achieving his goal he'd faced to date. The same obstacle now surrounded by quite the entourage.
"Yeah… well, I wasn't about to push away my girlfriend," Izuku said sardonically, receiving an even tighter hug to his right arm by a very protective Tsuyu. "And it's not like I wouldn't just tell my friends whatever we talked about so… kind of pointless to tell them to go away too."
Todoroki's glare grew baleful at the flippant tone he was being shown. Not only was Midoriya proving himself an obstacle, but he was disrespectful as well. Seeing he'd get no further reaction from the verdanette, the heterochromatic turned his glare to the undead trio.
"You gotta problem punk?!" Saki quickly spat, the blonde glaring right back with an intensity Todoroki had never faced from someone not The Bastard before. Unwilling to hold the fiery gaze, the scarred teen turned instead to the one place he knew he could glare without reprisal.
…
…
…
Tae's empty stare actually proved to be more than creepy enough to have Todoroki return his gaze to Midoriya.
"My partners are a part of me," Izuku snapped, sounding as cold as the grave. "I'd sooner rip off my own limbs than order them to leave me."
Todoroki growled, realizing he wouldn't win the matter. Sighing, the heterochromatic teen gave up, there wasn't enough time to convince the green-haired obstacle to face him alone now anyway.
"Fine," Todoroki groused petulantly. The scarred teen closed his eyes, preparing for the reason he'd called this impromptu meeting. Then— "Midoriya… are you the son of a villain or something?"
A second of stunned silence passed.
"WHAT?!"
Before breaking to the incensed shouts of those gathered.
It wasn't that the accusation was completely out of the blue—which it was—it was that it was absolutely outrageous.
Finding children with villainous parentage hidden away at hero schools wasn't exactly unheard of, but the mere idea Inko Midoriya would've dated, let alone had a child with, a villain was absurd. There was a more feasible chance of seeing Endeavor attending a charity event dressed as a teddy bear. The fact that Todoroki could think so ill of the woman, however tangentially, was incredibly insulting.
Saki lunged forward, murder in her glowing scarlet eyes. The blonde was going to murder that half-and-half son—
Izuku's hand whipped out and gently landed on the attacking zombie-girl's head, stopping her cold. A few head pats were all it took to calm the delinquent back into a semi-non-homicidal state.
"Your efforts…" Todoroki continued as if he hadn't almost been mauled by an angry blonde zombie, "Are too extreme for one of your status. It's like you're purposefully showing off to declare you're better than everyone else."
Fumikage and Kyouka felt a beastly emotion slither through them in that moment, the gothic rock pair only a hairsbreadth away from assaulting their errant classmate for his comment. It was one thing to 'play rough' during the festival, but to verbally attack someone with no provocation?
"Amazing…" Izuku said, shaking his head at the heterochromatic teen, "Every word of what you just said was wrong."
Todoroki blinked, not having expected such a blasé response to his accusation. Where was the yelling? The denial? The admission?
"I'm not better than anyone else," Izuku continued, vehemence emboldening his words. "And I'm not the son of some villain either. I'm just a student like everyone else. A student that has the same rights as anyone else and should be given an equal chance to shine in this festival. You might not be able to see it from up on your pedestal, but people like me have the right to earn a place amongst the heroes too."
Tae leaned her head forward, the ravenette resting against Izuku's shoulder in a boneless show of encouragement.
"Unlike you, whose gift was accepted by everyone but yourself," Izuku continued, verve and intensity making the verdanette sound downright heroic, "I've had to struggle every step of the way. So I know I'm not better, but I won't let that stop me, not anymore. I'll show everyone that my power exists to make the world a better place!"
An unshakable sense of determination oozed from the young necromancer. It was honestly inspiring. Instead of awe, however, Todoroki could feel only seething rage at the verdanette, a single phrase derailing his thoughts.
"IT. IS. NOT. A. GIFT!" The scarred teen ground out from between teeth clenched so tightly they were close to cracking. Todoroki reached up and palmed a hand over his scar. "What my father gave me… it's nothing but a curse."
The unexpected vitriol from his mismatched classmate caused Izuku to flinch back, the absolute hatred too toxic to stand. Unfortunately, that was not the worst of what was about to come spilling out of the dual-colored teen.
"I'm sure I don't have to tell you what a Quirk Marriage is?" Todoroki asked rhetorically. Seeing the slight shaking of heads to confirm, he continued, "Whatever you think you know, it's a hundred, no—a thousand times worse."
Someone behind Izuku gulped loudly, but the verdanette couldn't spare the time to turn and see whom. Pieces of the puzzle that was Shoto Todoroki that had always been missing were abruptly popping into existence, and whatever picture the young necromancer thought he'd see was growing infinitely worse than he'd ever feared.
"My mother was sold to my… father… for money and empty promises," Todoroki pushed on, spitting the 'F' word like it was a terrible curse. "She had the misfortune of being attached to the Quirk he decided to combine with his own to make an 'ultimate creation,' a superior tool strong enough to beat All Might where he'd always failed."
Tsuyu had grown an unhealthy shade of pale, green beginning to come in at the edges of the frog-girls body. She'd heard about eugenics operations like this from her mother plenty of times; their society almost bred this kind of behavior after all. When the strength of your Quirk was all that mattered, why wouldn't people with the means coerce or force others with complementary powers to breed with them? It was a sure way to rise socially in the fucked up hierarchy that ruled their lives.
"Until recently I don't think I saw my siblings more than ten times in the last eleven years," Todoroki admitted, pulling more gasps and now frowns from Izuku's group. "I learned to take a punch before I could write my own name. I was forced to eat too much, then too little, over and over again to keep my body at 'peak' condition."
The scarred teen seemed to have forgotten that he had an audience at this point. Even as his mismatched eyes stared into Izuku's emerald orbs, he was really staring into the abyss.
"My mother couldn't take the abuse after a while," Todoroki said, the hand over his scar pressing into the damaged flesh. "She had a breakdown and… and I was there and she… she saw my left side and she…"
The unspoken words were loud and clear to those gathered. Todoroki's mother had been pushed beyond the point of madness and had lashed out indiscriminately at the closest perceived threat. The unprovoked attack had obviously scarred the heterochromatic teen in more ways than one.
"Endeavor sent her away after that; he'd just gotten his perfect tool and then she'd gone and damaged it," Todoroki shook his head and dropped his left hand, coming back to the world and glaring once again at Izuku with a venomous look. "The last thing I remember of my mother is that boiling water… and her sobbing. So I won't ever use that man's power. I won't give him the satisfaction after what he's done."
The mismatched teen held up his right hand, eyes filling with resolve and determination as he gazed at the unassuming limb.
"I'll never be like him," Todoroki swore, "I'll reach the top, become number one, and I'll do it with only my mother's power!"
The heterochromatic turned back to stare Izuku square in the eye.
"So do you understand now Midoriya?" Todoroki asked, forcing himself back into his now obviously fake calm state, "I'm going to win this tournament. Forget those earlier setbacks, I'm going to beat you. There's no other way."
The scarred teen expected many things to happen after his declaration. He'd expected perhaps a firm but ultimately futile declaration of rivalry from the verdanette, or maybe his target cowering back in the face of his steadfast resolve to be the best if he were a lesser man.
What Todoroki got instead though was…
"Are you an idiot?"
The question may have been thrown with all of the honest confusion in the world, but to Todoroki it still felt like a kick to the balls.
"W-wha—?" The scarred teen was so thrown by the response he couldn't even manage to articulate his surprise.
"Oh boo-fucking-hoo! So the Candy Cane Dickhead had a sad childhood!" Saki taunted, arms crossed as she snarled. "Guess what prick, there's a lot of people whose lives are more fucked up than yours. Get over yourself already!"
Whatever cap on his fuse Todoroki had managed to put into place blasted off at the blonde zombie-girl's words. Instantly he raised his right fist, the air temperature dropping drastically.
"How dare y—"
"She's not wrong, kero," Tsuyu interrupted the rant before it could begin, the frog-girl's natural monotone portraying a sense of wisdom onto her words. "You've had it bad it's true, but you're just too focused on yourself Todoroki-san. You're not the only one whose life has been hard. Many of us have also had to fight every day of our lives to overcome obstacles intended to shatter our dreams and break us down."
Izuku reached over and gave his girlfriend a supportive hug, the frog-girl visibly drawing strength from the gesture as she exposed her past.
"I think it's pretty obvious my Quirk is a Mutant-type right?" Tsuyu asked, getting a slight nod from the pissed off heterochromatic. "And on the surface, it's not one that lends anything special to the world of heroics either…"
Here Izuku had to disagree with his girlfriend, as rare as it was for her to be wrong. Off the top of his head, the verdanette could think of a hundred different ways the abilities that came with 'Frog' could be used to save people and combat villains. He'd have to make a mental note to have a talk with Tsuyu later, to make sure she no longer thought so little of her amazing Quirk.
"If I hadn't decided to take control of my life for myself, and overcome my supposed limitations…" Tsuyu paused to take a breath, the amphibious teen looking much lighter after releasing long bottled up feelings. "If I hadn't, I would've been saddled with a desk job at my mother's firm. I love her, but that is not the future I wanted for myself."
Todoroki clicked his tongue, clearly unimpressed with the tale. He could see no reason for the powerless to not learn to accept their place; after all, someone had to work the less glamorous jobs to keep society running. What confused the scarred teen was the frog-girl's description of her Quirk as basically non-Heroic. She couldn't have really believed that right, with her prowess? Had she not been trained at all before applying to UA? Was it all pure innate talent?
"You claim your genetics made your life hard, but I say you know nothing of what you say. Your genetics never drew the discrimination of the world around you," Fumikage stepped forward next, his feathers puffed due to his restrained anger. "You speak of an afflicted lineage, yet you exist in a society that's praised you from the minute you were born for being the 'Son of the Number Two.' Your abuse has been horrific, there is no doubt, but your stigma now is completely self-manufactured. There are those of us who are forced to carry burdens that are not our own, and would gladly set them down if only society would look passed our outer darkness. I—"
Going further proved too much for the raven-headed boy. Fumikage had suffered years of denigration and cruelty at the hands of those who saw him as a freak purely for how he looked. It had only worsened when it became common knowledge that he didn't look anything like his parents, where a shared mutation could've made his looks at least understandable. His father's feathers didn't extend passed his hairline, giving him ninety-five percent of a human body. Meanwhile, his mother looked completely 'normal,' with her Quirk allowing her to move through shadows.
The fact that his mother was a little… obsessed… with his father when they were younger… didn't help Fumikage's case. Many who knew the two elder Tokoyami saw the avian teen as some wicked result of some dirty and unholy union.
"You want to hear what a really horrible childhood sounds like?" Kyouka asked, picking up in the silence left by Fumikage so as to not allow the scarred teen a moment to counter. "Imagine trying to save a stranger and getting stabbed for it. And then, you don't even get a thank you in return. Imagine having no way of attacking or defending and still throwing your body over other defenseless people because you can't stand to see others get hurt. Imagine living every day with people just waiting for you to turn into a villain for something that was never your fault to begin with. Think about how it would feel to have everyone against you when you've done nothing wrong."
Kyouka shivered as she remembered the days she'd stalked Izuku, waiting for her chance to show her gratitude to the verdanette who'd rescued her. The punk rock girl could still see the painful sight of the purest and bravest boy she'd ever met tackling the entire world by himself. In the face of his suffering, all the harsh criticisms she herself had faced for her alternate style of self-expression had felt like inconsequential annoyances. The cruel insults and taunts that followed her with words like 'butch,' 'tomboy,' or 'lesbian' had felt like paper cuts when she could hear her savior being verbally torn down day after day with accusations of being a freak of nature.
Comparing Izuku's childhood to Todoroki's… that was like comparing the punishment of Sisyphus to climbing a mountain.
What? She liked reading the classics.
"Kyouka-chan?" Izuku was… confused, and not a little concerned. His friend had just described his life, not hers. "How did you—"
"Lily thinks Mr. Candy Cane should be grateful he's still alive," Lily said, stepping forward. The littlest zombie wanted to give melting the heart of the heterochromatic a try. "As long as you're alive, Lily's knows you can still do good for people, and still make up with your mommy."
Already at the end of his rope, Todoroki didn't appreciate that particular nerve being stepped on, especially in a lecture from a child.
"What do you know about suffering?!" Todoroki roared, having enough of all the sharing. "A child like you? What the hell—"
The scarred teen's jaw snapped shut with a click! But it was already too late. How could he forget who he was yelling at?
The red-eyed child, the one with the purest smile he'd ever seen but a past so dark he'd literally been too afraid to dig into it, darted away with tears in her eyes to hide behind Midoriya. It made sense since he was her creator.
Oh God…
He'd just yelled at and demanded to know what a dead kid could know about suffering, and not just any dead kid. For the first time in his life, Todoroki couldn't imagine how HE could know more torment than someone else… especially this child in particular who'd suffered an agonizing end at the hands of a horde of degenerates… with no salvation in sight…
Todoroki's eyes widened and he froze, but it was still too late.
Across from the scarred teen, Izuku glared back with a baleful stare of his own that was much, much worse than anything Endeavor had ever looked at him with.
"All this time you've claimed you're not your father's tool, that you'd be nothing like him," Izuku said lowly, anger overflowing with every word. "All I see right now is the spiteful second coming of Endeavor himself, an updated copy who's been using his mother's power exactly like a tool. Congratulations, she must be so proud of you."
Todoroki reared back as if struck, the heterochromatic teen's chest aching like it never had since the night he'd gained his scar. His soul cried out in despair, as he examined his obstacle's hurtful words and for all the worse they rang true.
"Let's go!" Izuku snapped out, turning away from his traumatized classmate and giving his friends, girlfriend, and partners a kind smile. "My match is first and I really need to go to the bathroom before I go out there."
And just like that, all present turned their backs on the Son of Endeavor.
Seconds passed, but eventually Todoroki was able to reboot his mind after that terrible revelation. When he finally blinked back to the world of the living, the scarred teen was seeing red.
Meanwhile, UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Computer Mainframe Room…
"What. Happened?" Nezu asked, all cheer gone as the principal barely contained his fury.
"It looks like the randomizer program was tampered with," Aizawa replied, taping away at one of the nearby terminals. "Someone fixed all the matches to be in this particular order. I can't imagine why…"
The unexpected sarcasm fell flat, but then Nezu at least had to give his normally stoic teacher props for attempting to lift the mood. Nonetheless, the Quirked animal gave a low growl at what he was seeing from his own terminal.
Fixing matches was nothing new. Every festival, in every year, there were two at most that were set up to either increase the hype of the tournament or delay a disqualification. If they didn't, then more often than not promising students would be randomly selected to compete against opponents that completely outclassed them. And that outcome helped no one.
To ensure the fights were somewhat fair, at least in the beginning, they'd tweak the placements. That way even if said students still lost, at least they'd have had a chance to shine, which they'd otherwise have missed out on. Was it completely honest? No. Was it necessary for the betterment of his students? Nezu believed so.
By his orders, only two matches had been approved for pre-setup in this year's First Year Festival. Midoriya-kun and Shinso-kun needed to be introduced to each other, and Kirishima-san and Tetsutetsu-san needed to realize that they were going to have to expand their horizons if they wanted to stand out.
Only one of his selections had been respected. To make matters worse, in a complete inversion of his beliefs many more matches had been set up exactly opposite of his rule of fairness.
"Found it!" From behind the line of massive supercomputer servers that rested in the room Power Loader popped out, an unassuming thumb drive held between two metal fingers. "This little jobby was plugged into the server designated to control the randomizer. No doubt it's got a viral program that plugged right into the school's contingency battle selector.
The already chilly air in the computer room dropped considerably.
Nezu had the sudden and all-consuming urge to utterly purge the Board with Holy Fire.
"We can't allow this travesty to continue," Nezu said, the principal's little body shaking with animalistic fury.
"Unfortunately…" Aizawa drawled as he pulled out his phone and checked the time, "It's too late to do anything now without setting off a panic."
UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Contestant Arena…
"AND NOW, THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! IT'S THE FIRST ROUND OF THE FESTIVAL TOURNAMENT! YEAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Present Mic's jubilant voice filled the stadium, catching the air on fire with energy and excitement. Those not in back their seats made haste to return with snacks and drinks in hand. They moved quickly, but not too crazily… after all, this was traditionally only the warm-up fight.
Every year, the first fight was normally dedicated to the weaker competitors, those who miraculously made it into the third round against expectation. The civilians were happy to believe this was done so they could have plenty of time to properly sit down and get situated for the rest of the tournament. The Pro Heroes, on the other hand, knew it was arranged this way so that those with less combat-oriented Quirks and skills would still have an opportunity to showcase their abilities and determination.
All the same, regardless of who won the first match, the competitor in question almost never reached the semi-finals.
From opposite tunnels across the arena, backlights burst on in a shower of sparkling illumination. Walking into the light three figures emerged, one from one tunnel, and two from the other. Instantly, murmurs began to spread across the stands.
"COMING THROUGH THE SOUTHWEST GATE IT'S A MEMBER OF GENERAL STUDIES COURSE! WITH A PROFILE SO LOW I HONESTLY WASN'T AWARE HE'D MADE IT THIS FAR AND SPORTING A FACE SO CREEPY ONLY A MOTHER COULD LOVE… IT'S HITOSHI SHINSO!"
Midnight's eye twitched. The R-Rated Heroine had to call upon all of her years of experience hiding her true feelings to not show her irritation at her blond friend's words.
Shinso, his purple hair still frozen skyward and the bags under his eyes deeper than ever before, stepped out and onto the elevated platform that was the ring. The tired-looked teen scoffed as his introduction echoed through the stadium.
Of course he'd make it this far. Of course he still wouldn't be noticed. But that was okay; this was his way of doing things. If he were an unknown, that would make demonstrating he had a power capable of dethroning even those rumored to be invincible all the more impactful.
That didn't make the violette feel any less guilty about how he'd gotten to where he was though.
The pretty pink girl he'd Brainwashed in the second event hadn't been his first choice. He'd had to target her out of desperation more than anything. When that redhead with the shark teeth had come stomping his way and growled he'd panicked, and then before he knew what had happened he'd gotten two members of 1-A under his thumb.
But the beastly guy? He'd been his first choice. The 1-B student had been big, strong, and menacing. It had been a rather fortunate accident that the guy had come closer to investigate why the redhead had been first yelling then totally silent.
After the cavalry battle had ended, and he'd missed his chance to apologize to the 1-B member, Shinso had made sure to profusely do so to the redhead and the pinkette. Fortunately, he was shrugged off when he'd made it clear he hadn't been flirting with the pink girl or planning to make the two do anything illegal.
"AND COMING THROUGH THE NORTHEAST GATE IT'S A STUDENT OF THE HEROICS CLASS 1-A! HE POSSESSES A DETERMINATION SO INTENSE THAT EVEN DEATH ITSELF REFUSES TO TOUCH HIM, IT'S THE MONSTER OF UA HIMSELF! IZUKU MIDORIYA!"
For once fed up with Mic's showboating, Midnight tapped her communication bead and called Eraserhead.
Meanwhile, Izuku and one of his zombie-girls had stepped into the ring. The emerald necromancer didn't wave to the audience, but the audience didn't cheer too loudly for him either so it was a mutual exchange.
"AND BY HIS SIDE… THE ONE! THE ONLY! THE LEGENDARY! TAE YAMADA!"
This time there was absolutely no cheering from the audience, only suspicious and confused murmuring. By now, the public at large believed they were aware of just who Izuku was and the level of carnage his monstrous creations could unleash should they go berserk. And while none present could deny UA was the best school for someone with a Quirk like his, one that needed to be controlled at all costs, many were still wondering why the 'Monster of UA' was being allowed such aid.
Amongst the heroes watching, both in the stadium and throughout the world, opinions on the match fell into two camps. Those who truly believed in heroic duty and the ideals of heroism saw the fight as the perfect way for both competitors to show what they were made of in a controlled environment. These heroes also found it commendable that someone with a Dark Quirk was doing his best to become a hero, even against the stigma they knew he'd faced in their society.
The other type of heroes… well, they at least admitted that having a coworker who could control such dangerous creatures as these zombies had proven themselves to be would be a fantastic asset in the field.
For Shinso himself…
'Just like auntie told me,' the violette thought as he watched his opponent grow tenser the longer the whispers and murmurs continued. 'The old fucks really want Midoriya out of the tournament ASAP.'
Due to his… upbringing… Shinso had what many would consider an unfair connection to a certain staff member of UA. While keeping the information vague when needed, his source had made the violette aware of how many saw his opponent, even among the UA faculty. He could relate though, having lived through similar circumstances to a degree. In fact, had it not been for his auntie, the insomniac was sure he'd still be facing such discrimination even here, at Japan's premier hero school.
SLAM!
The sound of a door slamming, empowered by the stadium's speaker system, interrupted everyone's thoughts.
"Did you just call one of my students a monster?!"
The normally calm and collected gravel of Eraserhead's voice didn't sound so put together as he spat the accusation for all to hear. To be fair, the notorious teacher of Class 1-A was justified in being upset.
"It's just a moniker I swear!"
SLAP!
"GAHAA!"
The antics of the longtime friends were enough to ease the suspended mood of the public with laughs and applause. With that, Midnight took her place near the ring to start the battle.
"Competitors Midoriya and Shinso," Midnight called out, quieting the stadium as if she'd hit the mute button. "Before we begin, remember the rules: No lethal damage. No attempts to maim or otherwise permanently injure your opponent. And, if either Cementoss or I call for a stop to the match, you WILL stop at once. Our word is final. Understood?!"
Both students turned to nod at the 18+ Only Heroine. Privately, Izuku snorted. He knew that the 'no maim' rule had been directed at him because of his partners.
Shinso, on his side of the ring, took a deep breath to calm his racing heart. The violette knew what he had to do, and honestly, if he'd been facing any other competitor than Midoriya he'd have had no issues proceeding as planned. However, being born with a Dark Quirk himself, the tired teen knew that the verdanette across from him was probably one of the few who could actually relate to him.
The victory he was about to achieve would leave a foul taste in his mouth. He just knew it.
But there was no other way. If Shinso wanted to be a Hero, then he had to win today… no matter what.
"Ready?" Midnight purred, taking one last glance between competitors. The R-Rated Heroine pushed back the lump in her stomach with all the professionalism years of teaching had given her. She couldn't afford to show favoritism here. Not now. "BEGIN!"
Izuku raised his arms, readying himself to take a boxing stance. Before he could complete his setup however, Shinso did something completely unexpected that made him pause.
The violette extended his right hand out, open palm, a small smile tugging at the corner of his exhausted facial features.
"Hey Midoriya!" Shinso greeted loudly, causing the young necromancer to blink in confusion at the unorthodox first move, "Let's have a fair fight, alright?"
Surprised, Izuku felt himself relax, even returning his opponent's smile. Finding a friendly face in the third event of all places had thrown him for a loop, but the verdanette would gladly accept anyone non-hostile to his existence that he could find.
Shinso felt his stomach churn violently at the trusting smile that had bloomed across his opponent's face. The tired teen hoped that after this was all over he'd have a chance to apologize to the verdanette. Who knew, maybe he really could be friends with this other Dark kid. Afterward.
"Sure!" Izuku replied good-naturedly, going to stick out his own right hand, "Sounds good to me."
The conflicted violette sprung his trap as soon as the words had left the green-haired teen's mouth. In the back of his mind he could feel his Quirk slither out and take root.
"I'm sorry about this…" Shinso murmured as Izuku sagged like a puppet with its strings cut, eyes vacant, "I really am…"
"WHOA! WHOA! WHOA! WHAT JUST HAPPENED?! DID MIDORIYA JUST GIVE UP? IS THE BATTLE ALREADY OVER?!"
Present Mic's incredulous announcing echoed the utter confusion of the festival's audience. No one had any idea of what just happened.
"If you'd read the competitors' files like you should've you'd know that this is Hitoshi Shinso's Quirk in action. Brainwashing is incredibly versatile and extremely powerful. In fact, the only reason this kid didn't make the initial cut into Heroics was because the practical exam is illogical and ill-suited to test non-combative Quirks."
Ever the voice of reason and sanity wherever Present Mic was concerned, Eraserhead's additional commentary shed a little light onto the situation unfolding in the ring.
"Now…" Shinso said, raising his voice to be heard over the low buzz of the stadium's crowd. This was it, his moment to win the match and take command of his own future. "Turn around, take your partner, and walk off out of the ring."
…
…
…
It only took a moment for the violette to realize something wasn't right.
Izuku wasn't moving.
"Hey! Didn't you hear me?!" Shinso shouted, louder than before. The sick feeling in the violette's gut now had nothing to do with using his Quirk on an unsuspecting opponent. "I told you to Walk. Out. Of. The. Ring!"
Silence.
Not a twitch, not a flinch.
Definitely no stepping…
"However, no matter how formidable Shinso's Quirk is… he still made a mistake."
Eraserhead's words echoed from the stadium's speakers just as Shinso heard it.
Growling.
Right next to the 'Brainwashing'-user's side.
"GGGGRRRRRRR…"
Shinso had been so focused on Izuku, he hadn't kept his eyes on anything else. And now…
Tae was right by his side.
Meanwhile, [Unknown]…
Izuku blinked, and suddenly found himself in the arena, alone.
Totally. Alone.
Looking around, the verdanette realized Shinso had disappeared. So had Midnight and Cementoss as well.
To the young necromancer, there was only a thick fog around him so heavy he could hardly see beyond the edges of the ring. His mind crunched what he knew, and there was only one answer.
Fuck. He'd fallen for some kind of trap.
"Where am I?" Izuku asked out loud for no particular reason. His lonely voice was better than the eerie silence of this place. Whatever it was.
Inside.
Ice shot down Izuku's spine as he turned to see… himself, eyes blazing an unholy scarlet so bright they glowed like hot coals.
Cursed Blood.
"And what does that mean?" Izuku asked, not exactly understanding any more about his situation from that non-answer. The only thing he did know was that he wasn't in any mortal danger since neither Midnight nor Cementoss had stopped the match.
Disconnection. Subversion.
Izuku blinked, and a mental image of himself standing, unmoving and dead to the world, flashed through his mind's eye.
For an instant, Izuku felt the oily fingers of panic crawl up from the depths he'd banished them to. He didn't know what do to. If he couldn't regain control his body, then Shinso would surely just push him out of bounds. Even if he didn't, his lack of response would definitely be enough for Midnight to call the match in the violette's favor.
Options. Options… Shit he didn't have too many—
Control?
Izuku came back to himself and stared at the avatar of his Quirk. Was that sinister force really suggesting what he thought it was?
Surrender. Control?
Could the verdanette risk such a thing? If Cursed Blood took the reins, then there'd be no doubt he'd win the match. But Shinso… Memories of the USJ flickered before Izuku, reminding him of the ruthlessness of his Quirk in battle. Was sticking it to the Board and UA's sponsors really worth risking another student's life?
"No," Izuku answered. Better to face defeat than live with the guilt of hurting an innocent.
The avatar of Cursed Blood didn't seem upset at all that its petition had been denied. In fact, it didn't move at all.
Then. AWAKEN.
Gasping, Izuku reeled back, a momentary feeling of utter agony enveloping his entire body as if his blood had caught fire for a second. Blinking, the verdanette quickly gathered he'd returned to the real world. What had happened while he was—
"OI! OI! OI! SHOULDN'T SOMEONE STOP THAT THING BEFORE THE MINDFLAYER BITES THE DUST?!"
The frantic announcing of Present Mic bounced against the stadium walls and slammed into the verdanette's ears. He could hear the crowds in the stands beginning to freak out as well.
Focusing, Izuku saw a brutal sight, the cause of the Voice Hero's uneasy questioning.
There, over on the other side of the ring, Tae had Shinso held high in the air with a single hand. The undead was seemingly crushing the violette's windpipe as she held him aloft.
Shinso was kicking and thrashing, looking for all the world like a man fighting for his life. In truth, the tired teen had long since shot straight passed panicked and was now edging through utterly terrified. He could see black spots beginning to crawl along the edges of his vision, although he'd have been able to see more if his gaze wasn't fixated on the searing rage being glared into him by the red eyes of the zombified ravenette currently strangling him.
"To be clear, no matter what it looks like, Izuku Midoriya's partner, Tae Yamada, is NOT attempting to murder Hitoshi Shinso. Had that truly been her intention, the kid would've already been dead."
In their pressbox, Present Mic turned a slack-jawed look of utter disbelief to his friend. The blond shivered as he saw the normally unflappable underground hero rubbing one of his arms as if remembering an old war injury.
Back down in the ring, Midnight had hurried forward to make sure Tae didn't go too far.
"Competitor Shinso," the 18+ Only Heroine called out, close but refusing to intervene while the match was still going on, "Do you yield?"
The uneducated civilians looked on in horrified confusion, although most of the Heroes in the stands understood what they were seeing. As terrible as the situation appeared to be, the red-eyed ravenette was only using a submission hold. It was scary as all hell, but it shouldn't be lethal.
That didn't stop Midnight's worry from intensifying as the purple-haired teen still had yet to give up. It was tearing at the ravenette's heart to stop the match, but she just couldn't. If she did, she ran the very real risk of destroying the boy's pride.
Izuku sighed. He should've expected something like this might happen if he was disconnected from his partners again. That brief moment back on the first day of school was still burned into his mind after all.
"It's okay Tae-chan," Izuku said, willing his thoughts and feelings through the bond he shared with his first partner. Tae stopped growling immediately, snapping her head around to take in the sight of her Master, safe and sound. The undead ravenette did not, however, release her hold on Shinso. "You can let him down now."
And just like that, the 'Brainwashing'-user was dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. Tae instantly jogged over to Izuku's side, an adorably blank demeanor to her that the public couldn't reconcile with the image of the raging undead monster they'd witnessed only moments ago.
"I'm sorry for scaring you like that," Izuku apologized softly to the zombie-girl as he gave her head pats, "But I'm okay now, so don't worry."
While the verdanette continued reassuring the once more vacantly gazing Tae, Midnight had rushed forward and knelt down beside Shinso, flicking her hand mic off as she did so that her words wouldn't be broadcasted to the entire world.
"Hito-chan," the R-Rated Heroine breathed, all traces of confident seductress gone from the voluptuous ravenette, "Can you continue? I can call it now if you can't. Don't push."
The recently choking violette shook his head, gasping as he tried to take in as much oxygen as possible. His heart was pounding so loud he almost couldn't hear what was being asked.
"I… ack… I can… Haaa… I can do it!" Shinso grit out, doing his best to sound brave, like a true Hero, as he forced himself to his knees.
Worried eyes of sky blue looked over the struggling violette one more time before nodding back. Midnight stood up and took a few steps back before flicking on her hand mic. Before she spoke, the 18+ Only Heroine cast a silent plea to the now waiting Midoriya still on his side of the ring.
Equal parts confusion and gratitude flooded the ravenette as she caught the infinitesimal nod the verdant necromancer gave back. For whatever reason, he was willing to give Shinso room to recover.
"Competitor Shinso has chosen to continue to fight!"
Midnight's declaration was met with supportive cries and cheers that would've shaken the rafters if the stadium had had any.
It took an entire minute, but eventually, Shinso managed to muster enough energy to stand. Throughout that entire sixty seconds, the violette heard every cheer, every whistle, every supportive cry of his name… and it all made him sick. To him, it felt like the men and women in the stands weren't rooting for him, but against Midoriya.
He was going to have to apologize so hard after this fight was over…
Seeing his opponent now standing at the ready, Izuku decided it was time to take action.
"Tae-chan," the verdant necromancer said sternly, giving Shinso the seriousness he deserved, "Removal. Throw him out of the ring."
Shinso barely had time to understand what had just been said before the zombie-girl was in front of him again. Reaching down, the ravenette latched onto his left foot and PULLED.
The strength of the undead ravenette was so great that the violette had no choice but to follow his body's momentum and fall to the ground again. This time, however, the tired teen refused to give up.
While Tae began to drag him toward the edge of the ring, Shinso concentrated on everything he'd learned and lashed out.
Horse kick.
Elbow strike.
Jab.
Punch.
Shinso unleashed every move he could think of on the undead ravenette as she dragged him. He even used his other leg and arms to break the limb holding onto his left foot. Unfortunately, while it was a valiant effort, it was ultimately futile.
Even though the violette could hear the snapping of bones and the thuds of his strikes landing solidly, Tae never broke her stride as she marched. Even the broken arm didn't faze her.
And then, it was over. Shinso's world spun one last time as he was flung out of bounds like he weighed nothing at all.
"And the winner of the first round is…" Midnight paused, frowning as she caught not a few expectant gazes from the general public that were clearly waiting for her to disqualify the verdanette. Idiots. "IZUKU MIDORIYA!"
The lack of cheering as he was announced victorious hardly bothered Izuku, he just waved to his classmates he'd caught sight of in the stands. Most of them waved back.
UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Class 1-A Seating Box…
Mashirao Ojiro glared down at the waving necromancer with disdain. The tailed teen's thoughts grew darker with each passing minute.
'This irresponsible idiot!' Ojiro roared into the furious storm that was his mind, 'You almost let that thing kill a student! Do you even care about other people?!'
The more the martial artist watched his classmate in action, the more he realized he absolutely loathed the verdanette's Quirk. Midoriya himself might not have been such a bad guy, but he put far too much faith in his control over his undead abominations. As everyone had just witnessed, all it took was for him to be removed from the picture and the things would go feral.
'Healing is one thing, but there's nothing heroic in using your powers like that…' Ojiro continued to rant internally as he stood up to leave the stands and head towards the ring. 'It looks like someone's going to have to teach you how a real hero does it, how a real hero fights!'
The tailed teen knew how the brackets were organized; he wasn't stupid. Once he took out the 1-B non-threat, he'd be allowed to face Midoriya in a sanctioned match and go all out on the necromancer.
'But I might give you a little bit of a break,' Ojiro mused as he entered the tunnel leading to the arena floor. 'You did remove the true hidden monster in the tournament. I don't know who the hell Hitoshi Shinso is supposed to be, but his Quirk… THAT needed to be removed way before he weaseled his way this far.'
Ojiro cut his thoughts off before he fell into darker thoughts, shuttering memories of a lost match that cost him so much more before they could overwhelm him.
It would be perfect. His fight against Midoriya would be the perfect stepping-stone to avenging his Master; to showing the world that the true power of martial arts could conquer even the darkest of enemies.
And then, one day, one day soon, he'd be ready to hunt that bastard down and make him pay.
Roughly One and a Half Minutes Later, UA's Sports Festival Stadium, Contestant Arena…
"AAAAAAAAND IT'S OVER FOLKS!"
Present Mic just couldn't help himself sometimes…
"Would you kindly surrender?" Pleaded the gentle voice of Ibara Shiozaki to the upside-down martial artist she had caught in her vines, "I really do not wish to further harm you."
Laughter.
Mockery.
Burning shame.
Ojiro couldn't believe it was happening again. This couldn't be happening! This SHOULDN'T BE HAPPENING!
"Fuck. No," Ojiro spat, the vines constricting him, tied in intricate Kinbaku knots, tightened as his captor flinched at his vulgar language. "I'll never give up!"
The tailed teen struggled against the thorny vines, but with both of his arms and legs locked into place and bent back as far as they could go, his movements were ultimately inconsequential. Even the martial artist's tail had been restrained in the beautiful rope-style.
Shiozaki turned a worried gaze toward Midnight, the religious heroine-in-training hoping the proctor would reason with the blond for her.
Instead, the R-Rated Heroine was looking back at her with a look of shock and… interest?
"Competitor Ojiro," Midnight called, breaking the charged staring contest to turn to the captured boy, "Can you continue?"
"I CAN!" Ojiro screamed, red-faced due to either embarrassment, anger, or all the blood rushing to his head. "I just… need a minute!"
"Mashirao Ojiro possesses a highly developed close combat ability he naturally pairs with expert motor coordination. As a martial artist, however, his chances against this type of opponent, one with ranged abilities, were slim to none. Under different circumstances, I'm sure we could've had a much better showcase to enjoy his techniques."
Hearing his own homeroom teacher spell it out seemed to only infuriate the tied-up martial artist even more.
"Just…" Midnight paused, deciding to speak directly to Shiozaki instead of into her mic, "Just throw him out."
The religious teen sighed and directed her vines to carry her restrained opponent over and out of bounds. When the tailed teen was no longer over smoothed cement and instead had grass tickling his nose, Shiozaki cut the binding vines leading to her captive, resulting in Ojiro dropping to the ground and a new hairstyle for her.
"And see me after the tournament is over missy," Midnight added before Shiozaki could walk away, causing the vine-haired girl to shiver in abject fear. "I promise I won't tie you up for long."
As the stadium reverberated with the laughter of the callous and inconsiderate, others were more focused on what they'd just learned about a certain verdant necromancer.
"Damn it!" Musashi cursed under her breath, the woman nearly punching the railing she'd been resting on. "If only that monster had gone just a little bit further…"
To an inexperienced eye, while the undead had appeared to have gone completely feral when it attacked the purple-haired kid, its level of violence had still been within acceptable levels believe it or not. Frustratingly, that meant she and her partner were still not allowed to approach it for acquisition.
"Don't lose faith my dear!" Kojiro chirped, mopping the floor where a careless brat had dropped a mixture of soda and popcorn. "That religious nutjob is up next. If she tries something crazy like say… and exorcism or something… well, who knows? Maybe then we'll see something… unholy enough to intervene."
It might've been wishful thinking, and Kojiro might've just been trying to make her feel better, but Musashi was more than ready to latch onto anything resembling hope at this point.
"That was…" Nyanta muttered while keeping a sharp eye on Izuku, "A lot of intelligence for a supposedly brain dead zombie…"
For a moment, the diminutive field supervisor feared his simple assignment was far more complex than he'd been led to believe.
…
…
…
Nah… It would've been impossible right? If the Yamada girl was actually awake, and just acting, then that would mean that the Midoriya boy's Quirk was actually capable of bringing back the dead to such a degree that the hitherto joking moniker of necromancer was in reality too close to the truth for comfort.
Some distance away from the trio, a "hero" wreathed in hellfire had ignored the second fight entirely. Instead, he'd been going over the notes he'd taken down on a specially designed fireproof notepad.
"Resistance to mind control…" The depraved grin that parted the flames covering the "hero's" face a truly disturbing sight to see. "Good, good! Now, show me what else you can do in a real fight. Show me what you can offer to my perfect creation."
Magnus: The tournament has just started, and you can expect a lot of twists! If you continue to support us, we'll do our best to update faster, or, as fast as it is possible without dropping the quality.
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Omake – What Really Happened
Izuku Midoriya sighed as he walked up to the office of the Chief of the Musutufu Police Station.
"I can't believe those girls actually did it," the verdanette murmured to himself, standing awkwardly outside the office's door. "But I guess it's fair that I uphold my part of the deal now."
Only a week ago he and Saki had finally gone to meet her old gang, Doremi. The blonde delinquent had failed to mention that it was an all-female biker gang though, and needless to say its members hadn't been happy to see him on their turf. They'd all nearly suffered aneurysms when their old boss had called HIM boss.
At least they'd been considerate enough not to attack him, even if it was only on the technicality that he'd done the gang a 'solid' by bringing Saki back to them.
"Are you sure you can pull this off Boss?" Saki asked, grinning widely instead of looking at all worried, "Are you going to go all necromancer on their asses to get it?"
Originally, Izuku had wanted the girls to disband and return to their homes to repay the debt his 'returning' of Saki had accrued. Really, he'd just been thinking that he didn't want to have ties to active delinquents, you know, as a hero student. The ensuing argument that had threatened to break out had come to a shrieking halt as soon as the verdanette had learned that many of the girls weren't just runaways, but girls who'd been discarded or disowned from their families for a variety of reasons.
Thinking on the fly, Izuku had asked Saki if her old gang was good at anything besides being a nuisance, like guarding things.
The blonde's resolute 'YES!' had him sold, and in the next breath, the young hero-in-training had concocted a test to see if Doremi could be coordinated to keep an eye on someone, namely his mother. After the challenge had been issued, Izuku had had his doubts, but after getting all those reports from the gang's current leader Reiko Amabuki, who'd refused to go by her old family name of Kirishima, which was fine since it helped him keep her separate from his classmate, the verdanette had decided to give the girl's a better chance at proving themselves.
"No Saki, you know I don't use my Quirk like that," Izuku replied, grimacing at the challenge it was now his turn to tackle, "I'm merely going to… convince the chief. I'll get him to see this as a win-win for everyone involved… Somehow… I hope…"
Confidence diminishing by the minute at the prospect of fabricating a real home for a group of delinquents from thin air, the verdant necromancer knocked on the door.
Fifteen Minutes Later, Musutafu Police Station, Chief's Office…
"So let me get this straight…" The Chief, who hadn't gotten any younger since the last time Izuku had been to the station, began, "You want me to just give a public beach to a gang of… biker girls?"
Izuku knew how it sounded, and he was asking a lot, but in his eyes, it was the right thing to do. The girls deserved a chance, and the beach needed more constant, effective care.
"Sir you and I both know that Dagobah is no longer a beach… again," Izuku retorted, trying to move around his frustration that all that hard work had been undone by careless idiots and lazy corporations. "It's common knowledge that after someone, a retired hero or maybe just a concerned citizen, cleaned the beach months ago people almost immediately started using it as their own junkyard again."
That's what really ticked the verdanette off. The beach had been a slice of paradise after that mysterious someone had cleaned it. But all it took was a few tourists littering before the dumping started up again almost overnight.
"Look, I know you have good intentions here, and I know Tsukauchi will vouch for whatever you're trying to do here, but come on," The Chief gestured, as if waving away the ludicrous idea. "Giving complete ownership of a public beach over to a bunch of street rats and delinquents? Isn't that a bit… you know?"
"Oi!" Saki jerked forward, the blonde unable to contain herself even as her Boss facepalmed. "These girls aren't run-of-the-mill delinquents you hear?! And they aren't rats either!"
"Three storefront windows smashed, a private vehicle vandalized, and numerous counts of illegal graffiti," The Chief countered, reading off his computer screen, "Your gang would cost more in paperwork than the repairs for the nuisances they've caused. It's not that they're liable to get into anything highly illegal, it's that they're more like a rowdy club of biker fans than anything. There's no way they'd be responsible enough to actually maintain the beach to code for any length of time."
Saki abruptly turned around, hiding her depressed face at having such a heavy truth slap her right in the ego. She'd died too soon; she hadn't had enough time to lead her girls into anything worth noticing. Even their street races hadn't been mentioned.
"That could work," Izuku said suddenly, snapping out of a thinking pose.
"Excuse me?" The Chief squinted in confusion, not following the verdant's internal brainstorm. "What could work?"
"WOT?!" Saki couldn't even speak properly she was so lost.
"Dagobah Municipal Beach Park could be given to the biker 'club' Doremi as a restoration project," Izuku explained, sounding sure enough of his idea that he actually got the Chief's attention. While Saki didn't look too happy at her gang being downgraded to a mere girly club, she held her tongue. "A social club could easily be given permission to adopt a derelict public space and turn it into their gathering hub. Keeping the zone clean would equal their continual payment for the space, and ensuring visitors no longer dumped their trash there would be their jobs. Everyone wins."
The Chief sat in his own thinking pose for a minute.
"I don't know…" the older man said, eventually looking unconvinced by the whole idea.
Seeing the chance for her girls to have their own turf slipping through their fingers, the blonde zombie-girl decided to get mean.
"Just drop it Boss," Saki said, a false look of defeat on her pale face. "I'm sure these donut-eaters are just too excited about having the beach and cleaning it themselves. They'd get to keep it clean themselves too, posting who knows how many officers as security to catch illegal dumpers. They'd never have a dull moment again, no wonder they don't want to give that up!"
Neither necromancer nor zombie-girl failed to notice the older man flinch and slowly pale as the undead delinquent continued speaking.
"We… we don't have the resources for that," the Chief admitted, shaking his head in denial. "A public beach is everyone's responsibility. The civilians in the area, those that live here, they're the ones that use the beach the most and should—"
"Riiiiiiiiight!" Saki interrupted rudely, "That's why every streetwalker and their pimp call the place the Dagobah Municipal Junkyard!"
There was a moment of silence as the Chief processed what had just been said. The man stared intently at the two youngsters, the room's temperature simultaneously dropping and skyrocketing as his face looked ready to explode.
The Chief was well aware of the beach's unfortunate situation. It wasn't the public's fault that a group of moderately connected businessmen were using the junkyard for their own ends and paying to keep civil services from getting near it. It wasn't the public's fault that the locals were too lazy to lift a finger to clean the place up themselves because it 'wasn't their job.' And with the rise in petty crimes and all the heroes running around stopping them, his officers had been spread too thin to do anything either.
Alright. He'd made his decision.
"I am NOT giving Dagobah to a group of small-time delinquents that should really still be in school," the Chief barked hotly, a chilling glare stabbing right at Saki before he turned back to his computer and began typing away furiously. "But, if it means THAT much to you, then YOU can have it Midoriya. You're a promising young man, a hero-in-training no less. All the rights and duties of Dagobah Municipal Beach Park are now yours."
"…What?!"
Izuku had asked for the right to manage the beach, not own it!
"I want that place crystal clear in a month," the Chief continued, sending a stack of forms to be printed by an archaic-looking fax machine in a corner his office. "And if it isn't up and running by then, either as a beach OR a club hub, then you can expect some heavy fines mark my words. Now Get Out!"
Outside the Musutafu Police Station…
Izuku stood stock still, reeling from what had just happened. Luckily all it had taken was some asking around in the station to learn why he'd just had an entire beach dropped on his lap. Apparently Dagobah was a bit cursed, jumping from institution to organization to institution for over a decade, always landing back on the police chief's doorstep in the end. Giving him ownership had been the old man's way of making the whole mess his problem now.
While the time frame was a little on the short side, Izuku guessed if push came to shove he could always ask his classmates for some help. His only REAL problem now was…
"How the fuck do I explain this to my mother?"