After one swift, almost needlessly hasty jog back to Class 1-A's designated booth for viewing the final stage's festivities, Jomei and Akiko had time to spare. Neither Aoyama nor Uraraka had yet appeared on the field, and upon seeing that their peers were mostly making conversation amongst themselves in preparation for the next match, Jomei noticed Akiko breathe a sigh of relief. Though he was more subtle with his rendition of the same gesture after her, he was still thankful he hadn't missed out on anything. He may not have been close to either of the upcoming fighters, but that didn't mean he didn't want to be there to watch two of his classmates duke it out during the biggest annual sports event in Japan.

Before he and Akiko could find their seats, however, a messy bunch of dark green hair toward the bottom of 1-A's sectioned-off portion of stands caught his eye. Two rows down from where Kyoka and Denki were sitting was none other than Midoriya Izuku, who, from all outward appearances, looked none the worse for wear after the stunt he'd pulled against Shinso. Aside from the bandages Recovery Girl must have wrapped around his fingers, he somehow looked downright normal, right now. Akiko soon followed her partner's line of sight.

"So… there he is," Jomei said.

"And?" Akiko asked. "Am I missing something, or…?"

"I'm just wondering how you're feeling since Midoriya beat Shinso, you know?"

"Oh." Akiko blinked. "Well, Midoriya doesn't seem like he'd be determined to beat Hitoshi to be cruel, it's just… he did what he had to do. Hitoshi was a victim of circumstance, so it'd be wrong to hold a grudge against Midoriya for trying his best."

Jomei threw his hands up in mock surrender before wrapping his arms around the back of his neck. "Hey, so long as you're cool with Midoriya, I am too. It's a shame about what happened to Shinso, but I mean, you're right."

She nodded, and just then, Midoriya turned around, evidently having detected their presence. He held a pen and a burnt notebook entitled 'No. 13,' and he raised his pen-holding hand to wave at them before calling out, "Oh, hey! I thought I heard you guys talking."

Iida craned his neck around as well. "Ah! Nishimura. Takara. I see you two have returned from wherever you ran off to after the first match. With Uraraka and Aoyama absent we have a few seats empty nearby – would you like to join us?"

The couple exchanged a look. Jomei let his arms fall to his sides and shrugged, and Akiko looked expectantly at Denki and Kyoka.

"Just go," Kyoka said. "It's not like you'll be far, and the space between us and where you guys will be sitting is empty. Besides, you guys don't have to hang out with us all the time. We're not going anywhere."

Akiko smiled. "Thanks, Kyoka."

Denki called after them. "And if you wanna come back up to where all the cool guys are, we'll make sure we save you some seats!"

"So you're counting me and Hagakure in that equation too, huh?" Ojiro asked from beside him, an audible grin in his tone.

"Uh… sure!"

Kyoka sighed. "This is why you should think before you speak, Denki."

Ojiro and Hagakure laughed, and Jomei had to suppress a snicker. Denki may have been a good friend, but man did he really make it easy for people to pick on him, even if no one ever really meant it. Then again, maybe that was part of his charm.

He and Akiko found their seats in the bottom row alongside Iida and Midoriya. If nothing else, they had the best view of the fighting stage at the very bottom of the class' booth.

"I'm pretty glad we were able to make it back before the next match started," Jomei said. "If there's one thing that literally can't be beat, it'd be front-row seats for the Sports Festival."

"Indeed." Iida gestured to Midoriya, who was scribbling in his burnt notebook. "As a matter of fact, the second match was exactly what Midoriya and I were discussing prior to your return."

Jomei eyed the loosely-bound notebook. "Does that notebook have anything to do with what you guys were talking about?"

Midoriya looked up. "Oh! Uh, kind of. This is something kind of personal I've been working on since I was in junior high. For as long as I can remember I've kind of been really into Quirks, so I've filled a bunch of these notebooks with all the information I've gathered about peoples' Quirks – pros, villains, even you guys! So, of course it has some information in it that we were talking about, but it's mostly a personal project of mine."

'I wonder how much he has written about me and Akiko's Quirks…'

"Why's it all burnt?" Akiko asked curiously. "What happened to it?"

"Oh, that…" Midoriya trailed off, looking half-embarrassed to continue his explanation. "That's because of Kacchan. He kind of used his Quirk on this when he saw it, back before either of us got into U.A… and then he threw it out a window… into a pond filled with koi fish. I still managed to save it though! Obviously."

Jomei deflated into his seat a little with a groan, but Akiko continued. "Well, at least you did manage to save it. I can't imagine what it'd be like to lose the information you've been gathering for so many years."

"Yeah," Midoriya agreed shakily. "That'd probably be bad…"

Jomei straightened and looked at him. "So what were you guys talking about in particular? Their Quirks? Strategy?"

"Both, actually," Iida offered. "I believe Midoriya was regaling me about what he'd gathered about Aoyama's Quirk and its upsides and downsides in a one-on-one scenario."

"Right," Midoriya agreed, and he thumbed through his notebook to a page with a wall of text and a rudimentary drawing of Aoyama himself. "So, Aoyama's Quirk is Navel Laser. Obviously, the amount of firepower he can put out with that is a lot, since I saw him during the practical exam destroying one and two-point faux villains pretty easily. From what I've been able to see from how he uses it, it seems to work best in situations where it can be used for surprise attacks or for normal, powerful ones when stealth isn't an option. Even with that power, though, I don't think it's good for one-on-one fights."

"Why's that?" Akiko asked.

"Just think about how Aoyama always uses it," Midoriya explained thoughtfully. "He usually avoids using it for extended attacks and shows a preference for using it in short, intermittent ones instead, which I think might have something to do with the fact that his stomach can start to hurt a lot when he uses it too much."

"Right, I remember something like that happening after the cavalry battle…" Akiko put a hand on her chin. "He left us on our way to lunch because he got really nauseous. I guess I forgot that it was because of him having to use his Quirk so often."

Jomei hummed. "Add in the fact that he always ends up striking some kind of pose when he uses it and he's basically telegraphing all of his moves. Even though his lasers may be really fast, doing something like that gives his opponent plenty of time to dodge; and, since this is another one-on-one match, I doubt Uraraka won't be able to see that wind-up coming a mile away. It's a big disadvantage, for sure."

"That's exactly what I was going to say!" Midoriya excitedly proclaimed.

"Indeed, that was quite observant, Nishimura," Iida more calmly praised. "How exactly did you manage to infer all of that?"

Noble gases loosely floated from Jomei's hand for a moment. "There's something to be said about the similarities between my beam attacks and Aoyama's Quirk in general. Mine have less wind-up and have concussive force behind them, sure, but Aoyama's is like that but amped up to the next level. Of course, we did train together a little before the festival started, so it's only natural that I was able to figure that much out about him. That, and I've always had a little bit of an... affinity for fights, back in junior high."

Iida's brows raised. "Wait, surely you don't mean that you were a brutish delinquent before you arrived at U.A., yes?"

"Delinquent? No."

"Got into a few fights because he has a strong moral compass?" Akiko continued. "Yeah."

Iida blinked, his shoulders slouching somewhat. "I must admit, I'm surprised to hear of such behavior coming from the likes of you, Nishimura. I do imagine that you've managed to quell such urges over the years, seeing as you've made it into U.A. and have yet to pick any fights, so I won't make any harsh judgments concerning you in light of this information."

"Thanks," Jomei said easily. "And by the way, Midoriya?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you, Iida, and Uraraka are close," he mentioned. "So did you end up telling her any of this stuff before she left? About Aoyama and his Quirk?"

"I know this might be surprising, but…" Midoriya looked down at his notes, his lips pressed together in an unreadable line as he did so. "I didn't."

"Really? Why?" Akiko asked, surprised.

"It wasn't that I didn't want to," Midoriya quickly answered. "It's just that… she said she wanted to win this by herself. She felt like me helping her out even though she's helped me so much to get where I am would be wrong, so when I offered to tell her about some strategies I was able to come up with for her to use against Aoyama, she refused. But despite that…" His expression softened, turning somewhat fond as he flipped to a page with a far-more-detailed depiction of Uraraka on it. "I think that she's incredible. She's showing a lot of drive in wanting to do this all by herself, and I have nothing but respect for her for wanting to only rely on herself and her own power to win this. Even though she'll have to get in close to even activate it, I know that she'll be able to figure out a way to win."

"Indeed," Iida agreed. "She outsmarted me during the battle trials, after all. We merely need to wait to see if our hopes will bear fruit."

Midoriya nodded. "Right. Oh, and about Uraraka's Quirk…"

Shortly into their classmate's next extensive monologue, Jomei paused to consider how much more care appeared to have gone into Midoriya's depiction of Uraraka than anyone else he was able to catch a glimpse of. It was a far cry from a masterpiece, but the attention to detail Midoriya had paid to his friend's big brown eyes, perpetually-blushing cheeks, and charming smile was plain to see.

Jomei kept the observation to himself, to save Midoriya the same embarrassment Uraraka had accidentally bestowed upon him and Akiko, but it was one he'd be sure to catalog in the back of his mind. He wasn't about to play matchmaker, but he had to admit, he was far from opposed to his peers finding happiness together.

Before he could tune back in to what Midoriya was saying, though, the numerous screens around the stadium flickered back to life. It was time for the second match to finally begin.

In the minutes leading up to the start of her match, Uraraka tried to steady her nerves. She knew she'd made it this far thanks to her Quirk, her strategy, and her teamwork with others during the Sports Festival, but that didn't mean she could ever let herself grow dangerously confident. The first two stages had been preliminaries, and Uraraka hadn't given herself time to think too hard about what she was doing amidst all the chaos, but now she had what felt like all the time in the world to think about the stakes of the next event.

Losing meant so much more than merely missing out on her chance to take the spotlight. To her, losing this far into the festival would be like failing to make good on the promise she had made to the two most important people in her life.

Her parents.

Becoming a hero was so much more important to her than the freedom it would give her to use her Quirk in service of others. Long before she had ever even been capable of thinking about applying to U.A., she had been born the only child of a loving couple that ran a construction company. Merely four years into her life said company had fallen on hard times, and her first true aspiration from that point forward was to grow up to help them – to use her Quirk to cheapen their operating costs and make their lives easier, but her parents had directed her path elsewhere. Though they had said they appreciated the offer, what they wanted was for her to do what she wanted to do, and only when she had fulfilled her dreams herself would they be willing to accept her charity. Thus, Uraraka started on her path to becoming a hero for the sheer and unbridled financial prosperity it would bring her and, far more importantly, her parents.

She knew that when it was boiled down, her motivation could be summed up as simple greed, and although she had reasons behind her pursuit of wealth, that fact didn't make her less bashful whenever she talked about it. Up until recently, she hadn't told almost anyone about her hero motivations. In fact, it was only two weeks ago that she found the courage to tell Deku and Iida about what drove her, though they were blessedly supportive of her reason for becoming a hero. Iida had even gone so far as to mark her 'pursuit of prosperity' as a goal as noble as anyone else's he'd ever known.

So yes, she had a lot more than the indignity of failing to go far in the festival at stake right now, and the more time she had to think about it, the harder it became to quell those knots that were making their presence known in her stomach.

It didn't help that in order to increase the likelihood of her dreams coming true, she had to crush others' chances of doing the same in the process.

What made it worse was that those 'others' weren't strangers, either. In fact, she very much knew almost everyone participating in the festival's climactic final round. She completely understood how badly one particularly disastrous defeat could impact someone. Right now, though, either she lost and failed her parents or she won and dashed any hopes Aoyama may have had riding on his performance in the festival.

Not everyone liked Aoyama, but even so, he was still one of her classmates, which meant that she knew more than enough about him to feel absolutely awful about the possibility of being the one to snuff out his continued performance in the festival.

She slapped her hands against her cheeks. 'Come on! You have so much riding on this! You know that it's going to probably hurt whoever you beat when you win, but it's going to hurt a lot more if you fail Mom and Dad! They're working their butts off to give you the chance to attend U.A., so if you're not going to do this for yourself, do it for them!'

She forced a look of stalwart determination onto her face. It became the mask she'd wear with pride. She stood up straight in a power pose, took a deep breath, and then shifted to stretch her fingers one last time before her match.

"Enough standing around!" Present Mic playfully jeered throughout the stadium "It's time for the second match! Now welcome to the ring… our next players!"

Uraraka walked forward, but she was unable to see her opponent with the sizable fighting stage between them. When she finally saw him, Aoyama was busy stretching his legs and his core in that oddly provocative way only he could manage.

"Let's hope that gaudy belt of his serves some kind of purpose – it's Aoyama Yuga from the hero course!"

Aoyama flipped his hair and winked flirtatiously at the faraway cameras. "Bonjour…!"

"And on the other side of the stage, we have the pink-cheeked sweetheart with some pretty powerful pads on the tips of her fingers – also from the hero course, Uraraka Ochaco!"

She took in another deep breath, and moved her hands into an action-ready position at her sides.

"I must say, my friend, I feel somewhat sorry for you," Aoyama apologized.

"What…?"

"You do not understand?" Aoyama winked. "I am merely making sure that my sympathy towards your plight is seen plainly by you! Truly, it's quite a task, to have moi as your first opponent, but c'est la vie… such is the challenge of the climb towards the top!"

He finished with an emphatic point towards the sky before drawing his hand slowly back down in front of his face. "But do not think that mere fame is my only goal, cherie. Though the opportunity to share my shine with the world is a powerful pursuit of mine, I still intend to protect pedestrians and all innocents alike within my radiance! And to do that…" He looked at her with a dangerous glint in his eye. "I'm afraid that I must cut your journey short here."

"You sure do talk a lot for someone who wants to save people," she returned, a spark of impish delight momentarily overshadowing her nerves. With the country watching, she knew she needed to come up with something clever to say back. "The best heroes out there don't waste their time with too much talking. Usually, they focus on doing their best to help protect others and defeat villains as fast as possible. Maybe you could learn a thing or two from them."

'Nailed it,' she thought.

"A wonderful counter with mere words alone!" Aoyama exclaimed. "I applaud your spirit, my friend! It'll serve you well and take you far, even if you will still meet your end against me here."

Uraraka paused. Did she get a compliment…?

From Aoyama? Sure, it was a backhanded compliment, but still. There was no time to allow surprise to shatter her confidence, though.

She found herself wondering what Deku and Iida were thinking about her chances of triumph in this match. Honestly, until she got a feel for how Aoyama was going to handle this one-on-one, she was sort of left in limbo concerning that issue.

"Okay folks, after a kinda weak-sauce first match, I want you all to gird your loins for a super-awesome second one! Are you ready!?"

Uraraka lowered a leg closer to the ground, ready to sprint at a moment's notice. Eyes closed, Aoyama basked in the screams of the crowd for the brief few seconds before he opened them, and his arms wrapped around the back of his neck as they always did.

"Then without further ado… the second match is a go, go, go!"

"Make my performance immaculate, mademoiselle," Aoyama breathed, and when he thrust his navel forward, a dazzling blue laser came racing out from his belt.

At the same time, Uraraka had launched into a full-speed sprint. She jumped to the left of the telegraphed laser and kept going without so much as breaking her stride.

"And again!"

Another thrust, and another laser emerged, this time forcing Uraraka to make a last-second dodge to her right. Her momentum lessened for a moment, but she slammed her feet firmly into the concrete to make up for the lost time.

She had to close the distance between them.

"A basic strategy…" Aoyama drawled. "And the only one you can employ… but it won't be enough to overcome my shine."

The third attack marked the beginning of a pattern. Whereas the first two attacks she'd been able to avoid, Aoyama was adjusting to her speed and angles of approach, and was leading his shots to keep her at bay. Her approach was stifled by his latest beam entirely, and before she could stop and register if his last laser had passed by, another threatened to hit her square in the side. She ducked and desperately rolled to evade what would have been a devastating impact.

From then on, Aoyama's sporadic attacks kept her on the back foot, and from the brief glimpses of his face she caught as she tried to stay in the ring, his purse-lipped smile didn't look like it was going anywhere. Uraraka wondered if he realized that she was smiling too.

It was a small smile, even a nervous one, but it grew larger with each successful dodge she performed. Aoyama's attacks were fast, but there wasn't a time limit to each match in the final stage. She could take all the time she needed to come up with the best strategies. And as time progressed, she was also becoming increasingly familiar with Aoyama's Quirk. It was only a matter of time before she overcame him.

Just like those who'd come before her in previous Sports Festivals, and like Deku had during their battle trial, she could win so long as she kept her head on straight long enough.

Eventually, she settled into that expected rhythm she had seen coming. Even amidst Aoyama's steady stream of dazzling laser beams, with the spare processing power this rhythm provided her, she wasted no time before she started to strategize.

For starters, she made the obvious assumption that her Quirk would be the key to her victory here. Aoyama wasn't the most muscular of the boys, and it was likely Uraraka could match his strength if their respective Quirks weren't part of the equation. In close range, though, one blast from Aoyama's navel laser or one activation of her Quirk on him would spell the end of their match, that much was certain. Unfortunately, there was still one issue that Uraraka had to face when it came to employing her power in the first place.

She had to touch him to do so.

On paper, this task would seem rather simple. She'd already gotten used to the rhythm of dodging Aoyama's lasers and where he tended to aim his shots, so it would simply be a matter of effort to close the gap – or so one would think. From her present distance from him, it was barely enough time to react to his less-telegraphed attacks, which meant that the closer she got, the less time she would have to avoid the not inconsiderable girth of his laser beams. Of course, she could try to use her Quirk in some creative way to get in close, but this came with its own unique set of issues as well. If she made herself float she'd be an easy target and cause herself nausea almost instantly without her costume to offset that drawback, and it wasn't like she could use her Quirk on the stone blocks that made up the fighting stage to create cover. They were too firmly rooted in the ground.

How was she going to get close?

Something in the back of her head clicked. She recalled the ride everyone had taken to the USJ those few short weeks ago and how Ashido had mentioned that Aoyama would get a stomach ache when he used his Quirk. She didn't have any idea how long he had to use it before that would happen, but she now had a concrete objective to work toward in this fight – survive.

Easy enough, seeing how good she'd been doing so far.

"It looks like Aoyama's Quirk is super powerful, folks! It's leaving tears in the concrete and the stadium walls alike, and you just know he's got a handle on where he's aiming that thing! But still, ya gotta admit, Uraraka's holding on and dodging every single one like a champ!" Present Mic praised. "What's her secret? Could it be warrior's intuition? Mere daunting dexterity? Well either way, I'm sure we're all left wondering – will her agility be enough to triumph over laser beams!?"

"Calm down, Mic…" Aizawa droned, clearly less-than-pleased.

"Oh, hey! Where were you at all this time?"

"Doesn't matter," Aizawa deadpanned. "What does is that you missed something. Uraraka isn't dodging because she doesn't know what to do. There's an intent hidden in the actions she's taken so far in this match. It's only a matter of time before we see what that intent is."

Uraraka glanced up at the announcer's booth. She had to admit, even if it was indirect, hearing her teacher defend her without knowing exactly what she was up to was encouraging. Somehow, despite the sweat beading up on her brow and the increasing disarray she knew her hair was in right now, that simple gesture imbued her with a confidence and faith in her abilities that she had no doubt would be pivotal in whatever came next.

She leaped over another one of Aoyama's lasers and her eyes locked on him. Her sense of time had faded with her nerves, and although she had no idea how long the match had gone on, she knew one thing judging by the uncomfortable look on her opponent's face.

Aoyama was reaching his limits.

"Here comes a big one!" he strained, and another thrust of his hips followed.

'Now's my chance!'

Uraraka felt nothing but adrenaline and stalwart willpower guiding her as she raced forward. Her feet carried her directly towards the incoming laser, and she glared at her inanimate opposition as fiercely as she could. There was no room for hesitation.

"She's running straight for it!" Present Mic shouted. "Is she insane or just super brave? Let's find out!"

Not a second before the laser would have impacted her straight through the chest, at the instant when any spectator would've thought she'd put herself on a suicide mission, she dropped to her knees. Her momentum threw her into a powerslide along the concrete, scraping the skin on her legs through her sports uniform's pants. She ignored it in favor of smirking at the moment Aoyama's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

'This is it!'

Just as the laser raced past with a hiss, she fluidly leaped to her feet and broke into another mad dash towards her opponent. Mere meters were reduced to nothing before Aoyama could attack again, and Uraraka's heart skipped a beat right as her fingers grazed his arm. Her Quirk now active, she skidded to a stop and twisted on her heel. But as she was planning to shove Aoyama, dooming him to unceasing movement in the direction she may have pushed him, one thing stopped her.

His hips started to move.

She threw herself into a backward roll, landing on one knee, but stared in confusion when she saw no attack had been sent her way. It had been a feint.

"I applaud you for your bravery," Aoyama teased. "But for all the courage and agility you've shown in this battle, you still fell for my feint, and put yourself in the perfect position for my navel laser to triumph. You won't have time to dodge. Tu as bien fait, cherie, but your time in the spotlight has come to an end." He winked and his legs tensed underneath him. "Time to end this with some flair!"

Despite how menacingly close she was to his belt, Uraraka didn't feel any panic. Instead, she felt bewilderment at what she thought he was about to do to add some 'flair' to his final attack. Then she realized.

'Is he…?'

"Adieu!" Aoyama cheered, and he moved.

More specifically, he jumped at the same time he activated his Quirk. Only by the grace of luck and him telegraphing his finisher did Uraraka duck beneath it in time, at which point she looked back to where Aoyama was standing.

Or at least, had been standing.

His horrified expression only grew as he flew further and further away from the fighting stage, carried by the momentum his Quirk had bestowed upon his weightless form. He hadn't even realized Uraraka had used her Quirk on him. At least, not until he'd already launched himself on a swift one-way trip out of the ring. Uraraka winced as their eyes met and Aoyama's face only grew more mortified.

"Sorry Aoyama…" she whispered, and all the pads on the tips of her fingers met together in an arched bridge. "Release."

Aoyama fell to the ground with a shrill yelp, and Midnight's whip cracked through the air not a moment later, its message loud and clear before the pro even spoke.

"Aoyama is out of bounds!" she announced. "Meaning Uraraka is the victor!"

"And just like that, the second match ends with a bang!" Present Mic boomed over the sudden burst of excitement emanating from the stands. "It looks like Uraraka has a total lock on tactics, folks! But let's give them both a round of applause, shall we?"

The onlookers complied with the pro's suggestion, and although Uraraka felt an overwhelming sense of elation at the fact that it was, at least in part, directed at her, she didn't give herself time to process any of it. Instead, the moment she realized she had won, she started a brisk jog in the direction of where her opponent and classmate had fallen. She stopped at the edge of the not-inconsiderably-tall two-tiered fighting stage and shouted down to him.

"Hey, Aoyama! Are you okay?"

Aoyama stood, ignoring the dirt on his uniform in favor of striking a pose with one hand bent in the air and the other on his hip. "But of course! And rest assured – this setback won't diminish my shine! Not in the slightest!"

Before she could respond, his posture relaxed into an almost eerily normal pose and a soft sigh escaped his lips. "Don't settle for anything less than your continued best, though. You'd bring undue shame unto us both. Go far, cherie. For both of us."

A serene smile appeared on Uraraka's face. Perhaps there really was some true potential of a hero-in-the-making beneath all that ego.

She nodded. "I will!"

And with that, both fighters turned and set out in the different ways they had come. Uraraka held her hands close to her chest as she walked. Her body was beginning to feel the heat it had produced, but her mind remained elsewhere.

'Mom… Dad… I know you guys are watching, so I'll keep trying to make you proud! This is for both of you!'

In her periphery, she noticed Deku as he shouted words of praise at her, though his exact words were drowned out by the din of thousands of spectators in the arena. Iida's arms flailed in his typical wild patterns, Nishimura and Takara made their own gestures of support in their own much-more-subdued ways, and a mental flicker reminded her of Aoyama's brief moment of clarity.

'And for the friends I've made along the way.'

"Now let's keep up the pace, everyone!" Present Mic's voice followed her as she finally became obscured within her tunnel, "because we got a whole bunch of other matches to go through! Oh, and if you thought this fight was exciting, I can bet you dollars to donuts that you aren't gonna want to miss this third match! So stay tuned, sports fans, because we'll be right back after some quick repairs to the stage!"

Only the sound of his own footsteps accompanied Todoroki through the halls. His match was next, and he knew he should be focusing his thoughts on developing a strategy for the fight, but his previous conversation was still too fresh in his mind. Not that he anticipated many strategies being needed in the first place – he'd shown in the battle trials that he was in a league of his own, and he was convinced Tokoyami wasn't about to change that any time soon. So his thoughts wandered, orbiting around the very individual who had his interest above all his other peers.

'Midoriya better make it far enough into this final stage to face me.'

And he didn't think the venom in his inner voice was unwarranted in the slightest. He'd pulled Midoriya aside after the cavalry battle and went into detail about exactly why he'd called him out in particular out of everyone in their class, and his explanation went well beyond whatever unknown link he shared with All Might. No, this time Todoroki had gone into detail about his own past. Midoriya may not have expected to hear about his familial situation or the gruesome details of where he got the burn scar on the left side of his face, but he heard it nonetheless.

He wholeheartedly wanted Midoriya to understand fully well why he was his target, now more than ever since they were in the final stage, where nothing that happened could be ignored or flagrantly disregarded by the rat-bastard 'hero' known as Endeavor.

Todoroki turned a corner only to find the devil himself waiting for him.

He stopped, his expression flat. Endeavor was leaning against the wall, flames burning fiercely over his face and costume. His piercing blue eyes were focused on the wall opposite himself, but Todoroki knew his arrival had not gone unnoticed, just like he knew that Endeavor's presence directly on his path into the arena was far from coincidental.

It appeared that Endeavor wasn't quite done with his weaponized child today.

"What are you doing here?"

Endeavor threw him a sidelong look without moving his head. "You're acting disgracefully, Shoto."

'So it's going to be this kind of conversation, then.'

With a mental roll of his eyes, Todoroki started walking again. He wouldn't continue to give the number one scumbag on the planet the time of day if all he wanted to do was lecture. It'd be as unproductive a waste of both of their time as it had always been.

"If you had simply used the power in your left side, you would have had an overwhelming victory in both of the first stages," Endeavor chided. "It's time that you stop this foolish rebellion of yours. You have a duty to surpass that imbecile that calls himself the Symbol of Peace."

Todoroki gritted his teeth as he walked away. He wouldn't let that bastard get under his skin.

He couldn't.

"Do you understand what I'm saying?" Endeavor continued behind him. "You're different from your siblings in every conceivable way that matters. What's more…"

Tile gave way to windswept dirt underfoot. Todoroki was almost to the threshold of the arena. It'd only be a little bit further and he'd have escaped the infernal conflagration of noise that was Endeavor's voice.

"You're my greatest masterpiece. Never forget that."

Todoroki stopped, and his neck snapped around so fast his eyes were obscured by his hair. "Is that all you have to say to me, you bastard? I'll win this match and advance using only Mom's Quirk. I won't give you the pleasure of seeing me use yours."

"Even if that works for you in this tournament," Endeavor started, "you'll soon find the distinct limits of that particular power."

As he emerged into the arena, Todoroki counted himself lucky that the bastard couldn't see the fury that marred his face. He wouldn't give Endeavor the pleasure of seeing him use his Quirk or the satisfaction of knowing his words still carried the capacity to irritate.

The next few minutes passed like the haze of an inferno, and Todoroki found himself in position atop the fighting stage. He knew nothing of the world around him save for the sensation of his fists tight at his sides and his hair obscuring his eyes.

Everything else consisted of either the unyielding rage he felt in his mind or the overwhelming tension that was beginning to permeate through his body.

"Alrighty folks, if you're buckled up and ready for another bombastic brawl, say helloooo to the third match!" Present Mic encouraged. "These will be your playas!"

Reality grew in scope and scale, with the concrete of the fighting stage now included in Todoroki's vision alongside Midnight and Cementoss on either side of the arena. Closer to him, and more relevant to the matter at hand, however, was the poetic soul and ethereal powerhouse who would serve as his opponent.

Perhaps his punching bag too, if he wasn't careful.

"Offense and defense in one, the dark samurai and his darker shadow! From the hero course, Tokoyami Fumikage!"

Some of the broiling rage festering in his mind faded. In its place came a subtle sense of clarity, and his goals to thwart Endeavor's plans were given renewed drive. For better or worse, Tokoyami would be the first of his opponents to be subjected to the unrelenting force that was bound to be his power right now.

Through the shadows over his eyes, he glared at his opponent, and Tokoyami didn't flinch. He either didn't care or was confident enough in his ability to withstand Todoroki's inevitable onslaught, that much was clear.

The first blows of their mutual contest of wills had been exchanged, and their match hadn't even started yet.

"An early frontrunner of the competition who's really too powerful for his own good. Someone who rightfully got into the hero course based solely on recommendations – it's Todoroki Shoto!"

Again, the world expanded, and Todoroki exhaled calmly as he once again grew aware of the overwhelming tide of spectators in the scores of seats all around him. Not that he cared who was watching. The only person whom he wanted to witness his triumph was Endeavor, but that wish was most certainly not driven by a desire for approval.

He didn't owe anything to anyone beyond his spite towards the number two hero.

"Fighters!" Present Mic called out. "Are you ready!? BEGIN!"

Todoroki's foot rose slightly only to step back down to earth shortly after.

"Apologies."

A rushing wall of ice was what emerged from the gentle motion. It surged forth like a tide and would grow to a size large enough to encompass a truck by the time it reached its target. Tokoyami alone would be helpless to stop it, which left him the one option Todoroki fully well expected him to rely on moving forward.

"Now, Dark Shadow!"

With only a second to spare, the sentient Quirk emerged. Two large arms layered over themselves in a protective posture against the frozen wave before lashing out and blowing apart whatever jagged ice remained afterward.

"As if that would be enough to crush us!" Dark Shadow spat. "You're gonna have to try harder than that to take us down!"

"Indeed," Tokoyami concurred, his arms still crossed. "Dark Shadow and I were careful to pay close attention to the battle trials – neither of us will be foolish enough to let you freeze us." He dropped into a slight crouch, ready to move at a moment's notice. "Nor will I myself remain an easy target for your attacks."

Todoroki didn't dignify their words with a response. His opponent and his Quirk may have thought themselves smart for devising some kind of strategy, but he wouldn't be the one to tell them that he was in the middle of doing the same.

He could scout them out at his leisure. He'd find their strengths and the pitfalls therein so he could exploit them, and indeed, he'd already done so long before their match started.

Victory would be decided when one of them was blown out of bounds or incapacitated, and although freezing Dark Shadow would undoubtedly prove difficult, it was Tokoyami who wielded him in the first place. Therefore, Tokoyami was the only real target in this fight.

Dark Shadow floated idly to its owner's right, and suddenly, Tokoyami's eyes narrowed, perhaps suspicious of his quarry's silence. "Now!"

"Got it!"

Its umbral umbilical cord shook violently as Dark Shadow jerked forward, its speed that of a wild beast mid-sprint, and its arms stretched out wide and balled into fists. Todoroki stared at the incoming entity as it approached, and he produced his block with a simple twist of his foot.

The ensuing frozen spike hit it right on the underside of its ethereal beak and arms, not penetrating the Quirk's body but causing it to recoil nonetheless. Another twist of his foot and Todoroki redirected the spike into another expanding column of ice aimed at Tokoyami. Dark Shadow's glowing eyes instantly glanced in the direction of the attack but made no additional movements, and Todoroki's attention was drawn back to the creature.

Out of the corner of his eye, the reason behind Dark Shadow's lack of action to defend its owner became apparent. As the column approached Tokoyami, he sidestepped the attack with minimal effort, and it was obvious that the intertwined duo had long since figured out a synergy. Dark Shadow recovered from the blow it had endured as soon as its owner finished his movement, and one of its arms stretched out in a massive claw to strike back in retaliation.

Again, Todoroki's Quirk rose to the occasion and countered the vengeful swipe with more time to spare than his last defense.

'Dark Shadow is fast.'

This time, Dark Shadow's other arm turned into a fist and flew towards his quarry's chest. Todoroki blocked the attack as quickly as before, still keeping watch more firmly on the Quirk's main 'body' than its arms or its owner himself. Dark Shadow retracted its arms and reeled itself back towards Tokoyami, this time taking up a position directly in front of him as opposed to letting itself drift.

'But it isn't fast enough to get to me before I can react. It also appears not to be powerful enough to push through my attacks up close, but judging by the way it batted aside my first attack, it's still strong enough to easily destroy my attacks at range, where they've lost a small fraction of their momentum. At the same time, Tokoyami himself is still cautious and wary enough of my Quirk's speed to not leave me any openings, and he's withdrawn his Quirk. Why? Is he trying to provoke me into attacking so that he can try and perform a counter of his own? If nothing else, his confidence and determination make it clear that he isn't to be underestimated.'

"It appears that we're at something of an impasse," Tokoyami observed. "Dark Shadow can withstand whatever you throw at it, but seems incapable of outclassing you in terms of reaction time and attack potency. Yet you still appear to be holding yourself back in terms of your power. We both know abundantly well how swift a retribution your Quirk enables you to dish out onto others. Why not unleash the full force of it?"

"Caution isn't something I'm willing to throw to the wind in this instance," Todoroki explained flatly. "Only a fool would presume the certainty of their own victory, especially in a contest as important to their future as this festival will be. I still require more experience in combat against you before I decide my method of approach."

"So you're scouting us, then. Scrutinizing the details of our tactics to better increase the likelihood of your victory." Tokoyami's beak curved up in a smile. "Funny you should say that. I was doing the same thing."

"We taking this fight seriously now or what?" Dark Shadow asked over its shoulder.

"Yes, Dark Shadow. I believe we are." Tokoyami closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he opened them again. "And for your sake, Todoroki, I highly recommend that you do the same. Our opening exchange now appears to have been innocent in intent from both sides of this match. Moving forward, I won't be making the same mistake."

"Alright! Let's do this!"

Dark Shadow's incorporeal flesh bristled, its fingers elongating more menacing claws and its posture lowering into something far more threatening than the easy aerial movement it had employed previously. Now it was closer to the ground, and with its umbilical cord coiled behind it, Dark Shadow was clearly ready to pounce on Todoroki with every bit of its power.

Todoroki braced himself in kind, his stance widening into something more suitable for the release of his more powerful attacks. 'Let them come. If he wants me to take him seriously, first he'll have to prove that he's worth the effort. He'll have to show me that his attacks won't be as easily blocked as they've been so far.'

He then felt a burning pair of eyes on the back of his head. Endeavor was watching.

Which meant that it would soon be time to end this match and show that scumbag exactly what his mother's Quirk could do.

No one in Class 1-A's private booth had even a clue as to what was being said in the brief lull of Todoroki and Tokoyami's match, but the effect the exchange had was as immediate as it was obvious. Dark Shadow had been swift in its assault before, but suddenly was whipping around with such speed and ferocity that it could've been more easily compared to an apex predator unbound by gravity than a mere sentient Quirk; but, in some ways, it was both of those things. It could be seen the manifestation of Tokoyami's conscious and subconscious thoughts combined, and perhaps that was why, despite the immense light the sun cast down on the intertwined pair, Dark Shadow was still capable of such a ferocious display.

Conversely, Todoroki was alone in this contest of strength, but he was still holding his ground and then some. Simple pillars, walls, and waves of ice evolved and intensified into glacial spikes, battering rams, and other implements capable of making the most of mother nature's wrathful capacity for cold. While Dark Shadow was still pressing a greater advantage than before, even making Todoroki move to avoid some of its attacks at times, Todoroki was still in control of his actions. His deflecting of the sentient Quirk's onslaught was more powerful, but no less efficient than before, and his attempts at attacking Tokoyami directly were only growing more frequent.

He may have known Tokoyami better than he did the recommendation student he was fighting, but Jomei was rapidly coming to his own conclusions about who would win this match.

Sadly, those conclusions were not in Tokoyami's favor.

Upon Uraraka's return, he and Akiko had changed their seats once again to provide her and Aoyama their places back in the front row, and as a result, they'd both ended up at the pair of seats Denki had saved next to him and Kyoka.

After a brief flurry of compliments and consolations had been given to the second match's fighters, the third match had started, and Midoriya and Uraraka were both very obviously entranced by the powerful pair of Quirks on display. Once Midoriya's conversational skills petered out and devolved into another session of him madly mumbling and scribbling away in his notebook, Uraraka had even managed to join him. It seemed Uraraka was the only one able to get through to him in this state, and even add in a few observations of her own that her friend had either missed or neglected to jot down. Jomei wasn't going to say anything out loud, but he had to admit they made quite the dynamic duo.

Jomei was about to refocus his attention on the match below when he heard Denki speak up. "Hey, so why are both of their attacks getting crazy powerful all of the sudden? Hell, and while we're on that note, how the hell is Tokoyami lasting so long against Todoroki? We all saw what he did to that zero-pointer during the obstacle race!"

"Well, for starters, let's talk about Tokoyami," Kyoka answered. "I think we can all agree that his Quirk's completely metal."

"I get that you just did a metaphor, but I'm not following," Denki deadpanned.

Kyoka shot him a look. "I wasn't finished. Dark Shadow's a badass Quirk, yeah, but even from what we've seen so far of it in action I want to say that Present Mic was right – it really is an all-purpose ability. It's fast, strong, durable, and can move almost completely independently of Tokoyami, who isn't exactly slacking off himself. He could just be lazy and rely entirely on his Quirk, but he's still dodging Todoroki's attacks so that Dark Shadow can do its own thing. This might just be him trying to spread Todoroki's attention too thin so that he can get one good hit in, and at that point, I'll be the first to say that it'd be all over."

"That's crazy…" Denki intoned, staring down at the battle as it raged on. "I had no idea Tokoyami was that powerful! Maybe he even has a chance of winning this thing! But… that still doesn't explain how half-assed they were going at it before."

Kyoka shrugged with both her shoulders and her earphone jacks. "My best guess is that they were just feeling each other out before they finally decided to actually put some effort in."

"But Todoroki still isn't going all-out," Akiko mentioned. "Todoroki's Quirk lets him make ice and fire, right? That means he's only using half of his power to fight off Tokoyami. He's handicapping himself, and he's been holding his own and then some this entire time. It's incredible how much power he must have…"

Jomei carefully avoided his knee-jerk instinct to go ahead and mention Dark Shadow's weakness to light as a factor in this fight. If Akiko felt like they could reveal that secretive element of Tokoyami's Quirk then she probably would've talked about it, so for the sake of respecting one of his peers, Jomei decided to follow his girlfriend's lead and instead spend his energy on some speculative thoughts in the privacy of his own head.

Most of that said speculation consisted of trying to figure out why Todoroki was holding back. In fact, now that Jomei was thinking about it, he realized that he'd been holding back since the first day of classes. He'd only ever used his left side to thaw people out, and entirely relied on his right side to emerge victorious in any form of combat. Jomei had just assumed that his scar had something to do with it, but he hadn't dedicated any thoughts as to why that was. If his left side burned him, then surely he wouldn't use it so easily to thaw out people he froze, so what was holding him back?

No matter how hard he tried, Jomei could come up with no substantial justification for his classmate's behavior. The best he'd been able to hypothesize was that he was subtly flexing on everyone, but that reason didn't measure up for two reasons. One, Todoroki did not seem like the kind of guy to be a show-off, and two, he was more than smart enough to understand that holding anything back just to look cool during the final stage of the Sports Festival was akin to a death sentence.

To save himself from the inevitable loop of logic that would follow this endless line of thinking, Jomei decided to drop the matter in favor of a far more blunt observation of his.

"Something's going to give soon, though. Even if Tokoyami isn't being forced to expose Dark Shadow to whatever power Todoroki has hidden in his left side, and he's still on an even footing with him right now, every Quirk has a limit." He looked to the rest of his group, and Denki and Akiko's attention shifted from the match over to him. "One of them is bound to hit theirs eventually if they keep going at it like they are now, so this fight's probably going to have to end sooner rather than later."

"You're right about that," Kyoka agreed, looking at the fight below. "It's like you said, this might all be over soon, after all – look."

The three of them turned to heed her command, and Jomei's eyes narrowed. The plague of ice that had been systematically spreading upon the fighting stage over the course of the second match had only grown, with stray and none-too-kind-looking frozen spears dotted throughout the area, amongst other such attacks. It took a moment to find where the two fighters were, since they were somewhat obscured by the abundant ice. Tokoyami was still on his side of the stage, albeit breathing somewhat heavily, and Todoroki had just let a razor-sharp chunk of ice explode more harshly into Dark Shadow's face than any of his previous counters. He immediately crouched down, his right hand slapping into the ground, and a frothy mist of ice slowly consumed him, leaving him little more than the silhouette in the center of it all.

It looked like Jomei's idea as to the outcome of this match would be right, after all.

"Hold on a second, he's leaving himself wide open!" Denki said.

Akiko slowly shook her head. "No… this is just like the obstacle race."

"What?"

Jomei crossed his arms. "Tokoyami already lost. He just doesn't know it yet."

Below, Tokoyami seemed to have caught on to the threatening buildup of frost that immediately surrounded his opponent. He barked out something no one in the booth could hear and Dark Shadow sprung straight back into action, rushing forward and weaving through the icy forest Todoroki had slowly built with such speed that it was almost hard to keep track. One of its fists, large as a car, wound up behind it as it neared striking distance, but Todoroki's focus remained on the menacing rime his Quirk was spreading on the ground.

Then he looked up, and his palm twisted toward the sky. He lurched to his feet, his hand followed the motion, the potential energy of his power was released-

And the wrath of the arctic was welcomed to Japan.

Less than a meter away from his face was an all-encompassing fist, frozen in a craggy, glacial sheet of ice. Todoroki glanced into the crystalline structure and saw the disturbed entity that was Dark Shadow immobilized by his attack, though all he could see of the creature was its glowing eyes, wide in shock. Just like the person it was forever linked to on the exact opposite side of the concrete stage.

An entire swath of the stadium had been consumed by his attack. Perhaps it may have been as little as a fifth of it all, but the exponentially-expanding nature of the conal attack he'd unleashed made it hard to tell how much he'd ended up obscuring. What he could tell was that his ice wall must have easily blocked out most of what was happening and that it had grown so great in magnitude that the tip of it must have become visible outside the stadium. Even in a world of such superhuman abilities as the one they lived in, he knew that he'd gone beyond overboard in his finishing move.

Not that he cared. Tokoyami was frozen up to his neck in ice, leaving only his hands and his head exposed while his body and Quirk were both completely immobilized. His opponent was likely to be freezing by now, but it didn't matter.

He'd won. He won using only his right side. That's all that counted when Endeavor was watching.

He finally exhaled a misty breath, and the bitter hissing pain of the ice that had formed in patches all over his body finally registered. He thought that perhaps Endeavor would feel some sick satisfaction seeing him suffer through the very limits he'd warned his mother's Quirk possessed, but he was determined not to let his father see the pain the overuse of only his right side incurred upon him. He noticed that this effort earned him the blessed sight of Endeavor turning to leave, having likely arrived at the same conclusion he had about the imminent outcome of his match, and a ghost of a smile appeared on his lips.

Only then did he begin to use his left side to thaw himself out. He'd been able to successfully spite Endeavor once again.

'Serves him right… the bastard.'

Midnight jarred him back to full attention, her voice calm despite half of her body having been caught up on the border of his attack. "Tell me the truth, Tokoyami. Can you move?"

Tokoyami's head didn't even budge as he answered. "I… am unable."

"You heard it here!" Midnight declared, raising her whip high above her head. "Tokoyami is unable to move! Todoroki advances to the second round!"

As his eyes drifted from the half-frozen pro to his completely-encased peer, the sweetness of victory turned swiftly to ash once he beheld Tokoyami's expression. He'd known that his eyes were wide in shock due to the sudden prison of ice surrounding him, but on further inspection, Todoroki noticed that he wasn't just shocked – he was in pain. His jaw and fists were clenched tight with the effort of maintaining his collected appearance, but his eyes betrayed all of the crippling numbness that had been thrust upon him with no hope of defending against it. Such needlessly inflicted pain would be cruel even if the target was a villain.

He had no sense of comradery with Class 1-A, but the fact Todoroki knew he couldn't blame anyone but himself for what he'd done didn't ease his mind.

Todoroki made his way over to his incapacitated peer and pressed his left hand against the ice layered thickest over Tokoyami's chest. Steam expanded quickly from the point of contact and he looked away to avoid having to witness the consequences of his actions, or the shame that had manifested in Tokoyami's eyes.

"Well folks, ya heard it here first!" Present Mic distantly said. "With a big burst of an attack, Todoroki advances, and the third match comes to a close! But before we continue, we'll have a brief interlude so we can repair the arena, so make merry and stuff your faces in the meantime! As for those of you watching at home – you probably aren't gonna miss anything, so either enjoy some ads or stretch those legs!"

"You have… such incredible power," Tokoyami grunted as the heat finally hit him. "I'm truly in awe. But why hold back, to begin with? Were you merely humoring me long enough that I wouldn't look completely a fool before the entirety of Japan?"

"No, it's just… I was angry," Todoroki regretfully admitted. "Sorry. I know I went a little overboard."

"For what reason your rage was inflicted upon me, I wouldn't pry." The ice thawed thin enough that Tokoyami was able to break free, and he fell to the ground on shaky legs, though he quickly regained his composure. "But you do have my respect, Todoroki. I wish you only the best moving forward, despite this loss you've inflicted upon me."

As Tokoyami left to return closer to his Quirk's side and begin figuring out a way to free it from the ice block it had been left in, Todoroki watched after him for a moment before he decided to follow and assist. It was the least he could do, and it wasn't like Dark Shadow would be getting out anytime soon otherwise. As he walked, though, he swiftly discerned another possible explanation for the power he put into his final strike. Beyond Endeavor's mere presence nearby, he had his entire motivation for trying so hard in the Sports Festival in the first place riding on this triumph.

He still had to beat Midoriya.

Authors Note: So… even if choreography may not be my nor Horokoshi's (or action anime I've watched in general's) strong suit, I am rather happy with how this chapter turned out in terms of action. I had no preset plans for how each fight would go, save for their outcome, so letting my authorial talents take the wheel in terms of how each result ended up was pretty fun! Todoroki's fight was obviously more involved, and even though I liked Uraraka's more because of the dialogue I could infuse there because of Aoyama, I will say that writing two of my personally top-tier fighters duking it out was more than exciting. Then again, anything with Tokoyami is, for me.

But yeah, I do rank Tokoyami and Todoroki as top-tier. Like, S-tier. Above Akiko and Jomei in A-tier, easily, considering what we know those two canon characters are capable of. Perhaps that list will change, but right now? RIP my OCs in a bloodlusted fight. But then again… the Sports Festival isn't exactly a death battle, now is it…?

Oh, and I stumbled into ways I could be cutesy with Uraraka and Midoriya's interactions throughout this chapter and you can't stop me from finding their tiny moments adorable! Bwahahahaha!

I'm really drawing this one out, aren't I? Whoopsies! Stay awesome, and I'll see ya guys in three weeks' time for the next set of matches! Next time on WFAF, two lithe ladies duke it out against the manliest two men to ever man in Class 1-A, but who will emerge victorious? Stay tuned to find out!