Round 5: Rival Battles.
"ALRIGHT! THIS TIME IT'S A ROCK 'EM SOCK 'EM THROWDOWWWWWNNNNNN!"
"IN THIS CORNER, WE GOT 1-A'S CHEERY LITTLE ACID QUEEN! GIVE IT UP FOR MINA ASHIDO!"
My opponent ran out happily, waving and cheering, looking like a million bucks had just fallen into her lap. The thundering crowd cheered and it encouraged me to give her a good fight. She had bright pink skin and little horns, golden and black eyes.
"IN THE OTHER CORNER, WE HAVE 1-B'S STRONGEST STUDENT QUIRK-WISE! JUST WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THAT BRAIN OF HIS? WILL HE MAKE IT TO THE END?! IT'S TENKO SHIMURA!"
I was nervous, walking out with Blackwhip covering my arm and my leg, but I didn't notice intense muttering coming from my student box, seeing Ibara fervently praying. I sighed, hearing her even sobbing.
'Damn kid, you really have a fervent girlfriend. She's treating it like you're gonna go to war.' Daigoro commented, 'As long as ya got Nana and I's quirks, you should be fine!' I smiled and got into my stance, Blackwhip pulsing and writhing.
"Okay! Let's dance!" Mina exclaimed with a bright smile. I switched off Blackwhip, my arm and leg were okay eventually, feeling it come back and with One For All too.
'ONE FOR ALL… FULL ARMOR!' I thought, smiling and seeing Mina closing the distance, Blackwhip going out and going for a reel-in. I went over her, getting burned by a spray of Acid. My eyes were blinded and I shut them, listening.
Footsteps. Blackwhip from the left! Blackwhip had something until it didn't, but I had her in my range, lashing out with a kick, I got her! Blackwhip dampened One For All's damage output. I opened my eyes, seeing Mina on the ground. I walked over and helped her up.
"I didn't hit you too hard, did I?" I wondered. She shook her head, but I made sure she was alright.
"Man, Midoriya was right… you're pretty strong, Shimura," Mina said, "It was pretty cool how you used those weird tentacle things!" I sighed and looked up into the student area, seeing my class happily cheering and 1-A respectfully cheering along with them.
"YOWZA! What a strong opener for 1-B! Well then, onto the next match!"
Ibara met me in the tunnel and gave me a hug, "Wish me luck, Tenko, I'll give it my all for you, darling!" she kissed me and her vines still held onto me for a bit before letting go. I sighed and went back up to the box, seeing her coming out.
"NEXT UP IS THE ASSASSIN OF 1-B, IT'S IBARA SHIOZAKI, BUT YOU MIGHT WANT TO CHANGE IT T-"
"Excuse me? I don't like being called an assassin, sir, I'm not here to kill people at all, I just want to spread salvation all over the world, and marry my Tenko one day," Ibara stated innocently enough, Present Mic stumbled.
"Okay, okay, sorry…"
"Worry not, sir, It's fine, you're forgiven," Ibara said, holy light shining down from above, illuminating her and making her look even more beautiful. All the guys looked at me and it froze me. 'M-marriage? Me? Her? Marriage means sex! Sex means babies! Babies mean more chances that Decay spreads down the line!' I thought in a panic, scratching again, 'Decay! Vine! Chance that my kid will have a body count!'
"Uhm, you okay, Tenko?" Kendo asked, "You're scratching again,"
"That just caught me off guard, Itsuka," I said, "I'm gonna be a strong hero, if I get married to Ibara that puts her in danger of being used against me, that and I might accidentally kill her with my quirk,"
"Well, it's alright. It's- but- well, she's a little weird about it," she answered.
"How so, Itsuka?" I wondered.
"Well, she literally described you two's wedding even down to the flavor of the cake, the dress she'd wear, even to how many kids she wanted!" Setsuna exclaimed, "Yer one fine piece of ass, Shimura, but Ibara's got her eyes only on you,"
"Wait… wait wait wait, what?" I mumbled.
"Yeah, and that's not even the tip of the iceberg," Kikono sighed heavily, "She's even described how she wants you to you know-" she made a certain hand motion and I got even more scared. We looked back down at the arena.
"AND IN THIS CORNER IS THE ELECTRIFYING WIZARD OF 1-A PARK, THE HUMAN TASER GUN, DENKI KAMINARI!"
"Hey~ wanna go out for a bite? You an' me?" he asked. When I heard that I felt my decay come back up.
"IBARA! NO MERCY! COBRA KAI THAT TINY-DICKED FUCKBOY!" I thundered, my voice becoming raspy like my 'brother's' voice, I saw fear on everyone's faces. I sounded too much like him, and it scared me too.
But that was nothing compared to the look of sheer terror on Ibara's face. I froze, seeing that terror made me stop.
"See? You're not alone… you think he cared about you? You think that anyone here cares about you?"
"You're like my little brother! Playing hero when all I want is for you to take off that costume and come home where you belong…"
'Shut up! Shut up! You're not like me! I'm… I'm not like you!' I thought, 'Just leave me alone!' I was remembering the USJ at that moment, I was watching the fight, and it was effortless, she protected herself from the discharge and more vines tied him up from below, she turned and left with a smile.
"I'm sorry, but my heart belongs to someone else," she said. And the crowd went wild. I couldn't look at the other fights. I just didn't know how much I was like him, I didn't mean to yell like that, but the moment I heard that dumbass ask her out, I lost it. Ibara came up to the seats, laying her head on my shoulder and wrapping her arms around me. I shut my eyes and held her, she petted my hair.
"You were just being protective of me, Tenko, it just scares me when your voice becomes so raspy," she said, "It hasn't been long since the USJ," I nodded slowly and kissed her.
"It's okay, Ibby, I didn't mean for it to slip out like that," I said. She looked up at the next fight, which was Todoroki Vs. Izuku, and it ended like I thought it would. But Bakugo's next round. Bakugo was going to face Ibara. My grip tightened on her, I didn't want her to face him, it wasn't gonna end well. Ibara was mine. My angel. My light. I didn't want to see her get hurt. She was my best friend, my only friend other than Izuku and him back then.
Ibara kissed me tenderly and got up, "I'll be back when I win, okay?" she asked. My battle against Mei was easy, she just wanted to show off some inventions. Nothing wrong with that. Iida had given up because of something coming up. So that left Izuku and Todoroki, ending with a Double KO.
"ALRIGHT! NEXT UP IS IBARA SHIOZAKI VS. KATSUKI BAKUGO! LET'S GET IT ON!"
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, seeing her standing there across from Bakugo. At the crack of a whip, war began, heat and vines dying, Ibara put up a strong offense. Bakugo was savage, relentlessly burning her vines away like , he grabbed her, glaring right at me, "The only thing holding you back, Tenko! Don'tcha remember?" he put his hand on her chest. One blast and a heavy toss out of bounds was all it took to scream in hysterics.
I couldn't stop. I couldn't stop the tears from falling, panic rose in my chest as I went down to see if she was okay, my breath hitching and gasping, kneeling and seeing the charred remains of vines, the whole crowd went dead quiet. Seeing my angel with torn-up hair replaced the sadness with rage. Something took me over in that moment, but… I felt her hand touch my cheek. Nana and Daigoro both were screaming at me to stop and think for a moment.
But her touch and their voices only made me more enraged. He hurt her. He hurt my angel, my light, the girl I wanted to be with for the rest of my life if I was able to. I picked her up and held her away from the stretcher bot, One for All just barely holding back Decay.
I held her close, her lips were moving, her hand on my cheek, but I couldn't hear a thing. Gramma saw me come in and she looked a little shocked, but I laid Ibara down, a few weakened vines wrapped around my wrist gently.
"Don't… don't stoop to his level, you're better than that," she whispered. I sighed and nodded.
"If violence is his only answer, then I'll take that as his only language he can understand. I love you, Ibara, and if I have to go full power, then I have to go full power," I shrugged, "It is what it is, lovely,"
"IT'S TIME! THE FINAL MATCH! ONE ON ONE! NO TAG INS OR TAP OUTS! 1-A's Munitions Master vs. 1-B's Powerhouse Tactician! Only one will win!"
My breath was deep, One For All pulsing and thrumming alongside my heart. I needed to accept that I had the power to destroy at my fingertips. I had to accept it. I stepped up into the arena, Midnight was up higher than I remembered. Everything felt like a final boss level. The thundering crowds, the nervousness, the HP bar being lower than my confidence. I spread my hands out, my lips stretched into a vicious smile. Across from me was Katsuki, his face oozing jackass overconfidence.
"You think you're a hero? I'll be the one in that spot! I'll be the one winning while you're sitting on your ass playing house with Shiozaki!" he snapped, then I shattered the arena below me, launching myself at him, being met by an explosion, Blackwhip covering my arms and taking the brunt of it.
Bakugo smirked, seeing the destruction we made together. Through the smoke I came before him, decay spreading from my hands, accepting myself, accepting my 'brother' and his power. I clenched my mangled hands into fists, One for All and Decay working together as I closed in, the blasts blowing me back and blood dripping from me, Full Bracer was making me faster, but I didn't have time to waste!
He broke Ibara; he broke Izuku, but he sure as hell won't break me! I drew my fist back. My last attack, my biggest one, my best one.
"One For All, Full Bracer, Revenant SMASH!" My voice thundered, being met with a tremendous explosion, but through the fire and loud thunder there was something with me. Something there among it all. The explosion silenced all around us, my ears were still ringing, but Katsuki lay on the broken and decaying ground, I turned away, closing my eyes.
"All talk, and all bluster, admit your weakness and trust in others, that's when you know you're strong," I heard shifting, and a weakened Bakugo rose to his feet, his chest heaving.
"You… you bastard! You cloned bastard! You nobody!" he spat, "No family, nothing to lean back on but All Might's pity! You exist just because some whackjob decided to play God! Like Jurassic Park!" I smiled.
"You're right, Bakugo, I am nobody," I stated, "No mother, no father, no brothers or sisters,"
Bakugo looked beaten down, "Don't you act like you're better than me! You're just like those villains deep down, I saw it in your eyes!" he snapped.
"I know, and that's something I have to reconcile. I'll always look just like my 'brother'," I sighed, "It's a thing I must live with, but, you know nothing of strength,"
"Strength is relying on others, strength isn't who's better, or if you're right, it's what you do with your strength that matters most and I stopped you. When I hit you I knew you were done because you held back," I yanked him forward by his ruined shirt collar.
"You didn't hold back on her, or Izuku, you never held back. No remorse, no regret, but I don't understand, why're you so angry? Why did… why did you abandon it? You just yell words of hatred without meaning, without feeling, so why?!" I snapped.
"Why do you want to be a hero? Being the best won't amount to anything! It'll only be lonely, a cold, starving place where you're reaching out for equals!" I snarled. Bakugo pushed off me, falling to the arena floor.
"You abandoned having no regrets or remorse. There was no point in being the best, there's no point to being the best, what matters is what you do with your life, and what kills me I don't care about, it's what I do that matters the most," I said, "It's over, he's done," I looked up at Midnight.
"The winner is Tenko Shimura!" she announced, I was going to go but Ibara tackled me.
"Tenko, stop right this in- oh, you're not crazy…" she sighed in relief, her hair looked so short. She hugged me tight, crying a little.
"I was so worried! Now we're going home, you're going to take a bath and get all the blood off you, then we're going straight to bed," she ordered, almost like a mother.
"Uhm, I got one question, what did you tell the girls about us?" I asked.
"Oh! Well, I want a traditional wedding, a nice cake, and-" she leaned close to my ear, "From twelve to five in the morning, savage, raw love making until I'm full of nothing but you…" she tapped my chest.
"And you won't be allowed to pull out," she said.
I looked at Monoma and Jurota, "Help. Me." I mouthed. They came over and Monoma took the lead.
"Hey, Ibara, can we borrow him for a minute?" he asked with a smile, whisking me away with Jurota keeping her busy. I sighed and Monoma sat down next to me.
"Well, look at'cha, winnin' it all!" he exclaimed, "So, what's up with you and Ib-"
"I wanna break up with her!" I spat. Monoma blinked and grabbed my shoulders.
"How many fingers am I holding up?" he asked, holding up three fingers.
"Three," I stated.
"ARE YOU INSANE?! Are you mentally retarded? Some weird clone thing?" he asked, tapping my forehead.
"Look, Neito, this is serious! The more Ibara stays with me, the more she'll be in danger, that's why my Dad never had a girlfriend or a wife. I need someone that doesn't baby me or mother me, I need someone who knows I have limits! I don't wanna live in another prison like that tube!" I ranted, grabbing his shoulder with Blackwhip covering my hands, "Neito, please, I need a way to let her down easy… She's too much of a distraction and a liability," I was telling the truth, not knowing that Ibara was listening.
"I see," he stated, "The only thing you can do is talk to her, I won't tell you how or what to say, but try to reason with h-"
"There's no reasoning with her, there's no budging Ibara Shiozaki, there's nothing in the entire world that could make her budge! She's the most stubborn, suffocating, overcomplicated girl in the universe! All she's done is coddle me and control me, and that marriage thing, that kid thing?! That's the last straw!" I continued.
"I was naïve, I was a naïve little dork to believe that everything would be okay. Then the USJ happened, now this, and… and I'm just… RRGH!" I kicked the wall and angrily stormed off to the infirmary.
Ibara came out of hiding, tears running down her face. She was sobbing, but I had a feeling what Tenko said was true. She looked at me and dried her tears.
"It's true, isn't it? Tenko's not one to lie," she sniffed. I took out my hankie and dried her cheeks.
"Well, think of it this way, planning out an entire lifetime scared him senseless, even the mushy-gushy inner love stuff! Why wouldn't a guy be scared of a girl who'd plan out how long they go?" I explained, "Tenko's not like you or me, he's a clone, he's got a lot of shit in his brain that no amounts of Holy Bosom and Ibby Kissies can fix,"
"So what should I do?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. I sighed heavily.
"If you love him, and I know you do… let him go," I admitted, "Tenko and you, honestly, you had red flags from day one,"
Ibara nodded, her lips in a hard line of neutrality.
"He just doesn't mix with you," I said.
I don't know what happened, all I knew was that I probably fucked it all up. They bandaged me up and alone, like I should be. I wasn't sorry. Ibara wanted too much. When I knew that our relationship was gonna crash.
So I let it.
C'est la vie.
I sat alone somewhere else and just watched the city. I heard a few footsteps, and standing there was my brother, holding out a gaming system to me silently. He smiled and I looked down at the screen.
"All the Bravest?" I asked.
"Just got the Miruko DLC," he said, "What's wrong? It's seems to me that being a hero isn't all it's panned out to be,"
"Just… if you're trying to get me to join your little clubhouse soiree, it won't work," I said, "I just broke up with my girlfriend, and I don't know why I felt nothing,"
"It's because it wasn't 'the one' or something," Shigaraki answered, "The Doc said that you've got my brain junk, memories that make little sense but we share 'em," he sighed as I sent his Miruko out of bounds with my main, which was Midnight.
"Urgh, friggin' special attack," Shigaraki growled.
"It's because they added stun in the patch notes," I stated. He huffed and turned off the game system, looking at me.
"Gotta go, I have a meeting with someone important, but… you wanna do this again sometime?" he asked.
"Sure," I stated.
Shigaraki walked away and I stayed on the roof. The vine in my hair wiggled into my hand, "Ibara…" I whispered. I closed my hand into a fist and sighed heavily.
This wasn't right. I felt something for Ibara at least! I just overreacted! Yeah! I didn't just kamikaze my own future! I could salvage this! Just talk to her, Tenko, and everything will be sunshine and puppies!
So I guess I gotta go save it myself. Let's load up that save file.