Chapter 25: Sword and Shield
Author's Note: Hey, everyone! It's been a while. This might be a long note so feel free to skip it. So the reason why I haven't been able to keep my promise of 1-2 chapters per week was because I have been swarmed with College requirements. I'm on a break right now though so I'm gonna do my best to try and write more!
I also wanna address something else. Another reason why I haven't been able to write a lot was because I've been feeling unsatisfied with my writing. The problem was that I could not tell why at all. After what felt like forever, I finally realized what it was. This was a Pokemon x My Hero Academia crossover, but it's clear that I've been treating Pokemon more as Quirk Stand-ins rather than actual Pokemon.
What I'm trying to say is, I don't want the Pokemon to feel like they're just weapons or powers for their trainers to do whatever they want with. It's why I was happy with how I ended up writing Todoroki in his fight against Deku and Bakugo. It felt like there were certain points that Ninetales felt like a real character. From here on out, I wanna do my best to fix this problem.
The problem mostly lies in the fact that I've been trying to stick to the series extremely closely. So close in fact that I've left very little wiggle room for myself to change things or add scenes. I'm going to be more flexible now. Instead of sticking to each episode word for word, I'll try changing a lot of aspects with a special Pokemon touch and make the Pokemon feel like real characters. I wanna give each Pokemon a distinct personality. Honestly, I'm more pumped to write this than ever before. I've been coming up with so many ideas, especially for the Provisional License Exam Arc coming up soon.
Anyway, that's all I have to say for now! Thank you so much for 3,000 reads! That means the world to me. Please leave a review if you can! I want to try and keep improving my writing style even more. Enjoy!
With the announcement of Eijiro and Rikido failing their exam, tensions were high. It was finally setting in that this wasn't just any ordinary exam… the odds were stacked against them. They were going against the Top Heroes in all of Hero Society.
The next test was Tsuyu's Greninja and Fumikage's Honchkrow against Ectoplasm's Glalie. They were in a large circular building with an open ceiling. There were many short and narrow corridors that they could traverse over multiple floors, but the exit was just a short distance away from them on the ground floor. The problem was that Ectoplasm and Glalie were waiting for them there.
"Begin!"
"Honchkrow, go!" The Dark Type immediately grabbed on to Greninja and threw him up into the air. Once he landed on one of the upper floors, he immediately shot out his tongue and pulled up both Tsuyu and Fumikage. "I'm glad we came up with a strategy." The girl said.
Both Ochako and Izuku cheered from the monitor room. "Nice! That's a good method of escape." The boy said.
"Basic Communication." Recovery Girl said. "It's a simple, yet important skill for a Hero to have. Instead of showing incredible teamwork with a specific sidekick, it's better to have a certain standard when working with everyone."
"So what exactly are Tokoyami and Asui's weakness then? I don't see how Ectoplasm's Glalie can put them in any specific disadvantage…" Izuku asked.
"Oh, they're at a disadvantage alright. At least, Fumikage Tokoyami is at one." Both students looked at Recovery Girl with a confused expression. "Just watch and you'll see why."
Ectoplasm watched as the two students and their Pokemon began running along the corridors. "So they're trying to escape. Just as expected. Glalie, use Double Team." He said.
Glalie flew up to where the students were and created 30 copies of himself. "We'll have to cut our way through! Honchkrow, go for Dark Pulse!" Fumikage shouted. "Greninja, use Night Slash!"
The two Pokemon began attacking the illusions. There was no way to determine which one was the real Glalie, so they'd have to keep attacking in hopes that they'd eventually find the real one. The two Pokemon and their trainers made sure to watch each other's back. If they wanted to make it out, they needed to protect each other.
Eventually, the real Glalie tried going for a Crunch on Honchkrow, but a well-timed Water Shuriken from Greninja managed to keep the Face Pokemon safe.
Greninja jumped up and pulled Tsuyu and Fumikage to another floor with Honchkrow following suit. They finally decided to enter one of the doorways and enter an extremely narrow corridor where more of Glalie's Double Team illusions were waiting for them. "We need to find a way out of here." Tsuyu said.
"Fumikage Tokoyami's strength is the ability to get his Pokemon to use moves that keep his opponent at a distance. In other words, he can struggle in combat against a lot of enemies." Recovery Girl said. That would explain why he'd be set to go against Ectoplasm. He was known for confusing his enemies with Double Team.
"On the other hand, Tsuyu Asui has no clear weakness. She doesn't have any clear specialization, so she's more like a Jack of All Trades. This means she can provide good support for Tokoyami and help him overcome his weakness. She also has a calm composure that provides emotional support for those around her in stressful situations."
Izuku recalled what had happened at the USJ. Looking back on it, Tsuyu played a major role in why he and Minoru even survived. Without her, they'd likely be too stressed or panicked to come up with any kind of plan.
Once again, Honchkrow had found the real Glalie and managed to get a few hits in, but a single Blizzard managed to create an opening for him to escape once more. "Now's our chance to escape!" Fumikage said.
Tsuyu ran out of the corridor and into the main area where she could see Ectoplasm waiting for them. "There's the goal… we just need to create an opening." She said.
"You've done well, you two." Ectoplasm said. "But let's see how you deal with this! Use Hail!" Glalie let out a mighty roar that summoned dark clouds above them. Suddenly, snow and ice began falling from the sky, making it difficult for them to reach the center area. "Now, take this! Blizzard!"
"Honchkrow, get out of here!" The Big Boss Pokemon managed to fly up and away from them, avoiding the attack, but the Blizzard managed to hit the rest of them, freezing them onto the wall. By this point, only their heads were exposed. Now, they were freezing and unable to move.
"Now, what will you do?" Ectoplasm asked. "What a powerful Pokemon…" Fumikage said, seeing his Pokemon fly back down. "You're our last chance, Honchkrow! Get through the gate!"
Honchkrow cawed in understanding and tried to fly past the teacher and his Pokemon, but they weren't going to let that happen so easily. Glalie quickly intercepted with a Rapid Spin followed by a Crunch. He managed to do a lot of damage, but Honchkrow managed to break free and continue fighting.
"We can't fight him head-on and get away with it," Fumikage said, clearly frustrated. "No, but there's still something we can do." Tsuyu said. "Here, let Honchkrow take this."
The boy immediately called his Pokemon back and he took what Tsuyu had pointed to. Greninja had managed to break his hands free from the ice and managed to give Honchkrow their key to victory.
"You're running out of time, students!" Ectoplasm said. "Stay calm, Honchkrow. You can do this." Fumikage said. The Pokemon nodded and flew back down to face Glalie and their teacher once more.
"Greninja, support Honchkrow with Water Shuriken!" Greninja nodded and managed to move his hands well enough to throw a small shuriken that caught them off guard. This allowed Fumikage's Pokemon to go in with a Foul Play, but Glalie quickly countered back with a Rapid Spin, pushing Honchkrow away.
However, it looked like things had gone according to plan. The two students smiled as they saw Glalie, now with the handcuffs attached to one of his horns. "I see. Not bad." Ectoplasm said.
"Team Tokoyami and Asui have passed." The speaker announced, everyone breathing a collective sigh of relief. "That was very clever of you two. You deserve this victory." Their teacher congratulated them. However, even knowing that her two classmates passed wasn't enough to calm Momo down.
The third round was Tenya's Skarmory and Mashirao's Ambipom against Power Loader's Hippowdon. Naturally, this might seem like an easy win since they had a Flying-type, but Power Loader was prepared. He had made the mountains around them extremely unstable, so flying up would only result in getting crushed by rocks and landslides.
That's why these two were paired together. They're both experts at mobility. They both rely heavily on using the terrain to their advantage, but against someone like Power Loader and his Hippowdon, people who can manipulate the terrain and use it against them, they were sitting ducks.
"Hippowdon's made the ground unstable. Getting to the exit won't be easy." Mashirao said. "Yes, but only one of our Pokemon needs to make it. Let's join together!" Tenya shouted.
Ambipom got on Skarmory's back and the two got ready. "Brave Bird!" Blue energy covered the Steel Pokemon and they dashed forward. Due to the constant rockfall, Skarmory had to stick low to the ground, meaning he was in the perfect spot for Hippowdon to strike. However, no matter how hard they tried, Skarmory was too fast.
"We'll see about that!" Power Loader shouted. "Stone Edge!" Suddenly, large spikes of Rock jutted from the ground in front of them, creating a wall. "Think of a solution, Tenya… I got it!" Tenya turned to Mashirao and nodded. "Have Ambipom wrap his tails around Skarmory!"
Once they were ready, Tenya smiled. "Skarmory, fly up and use Drill Peck!" The Pokemon began spinning in the sky, allowing Ambipom to use that momentum to fly forward. Hippowdon tried to stop them, but the Tail Pokemon simply used Double Hit to knock him away. And with that, Ambipom managed to escape through the gate, guaranteeing their victory.
"Team Iida and Ojiro have passed." The speaker announced. "You brute forced your way through it, but that didn't take long at all. Plus, you aren't injured. Well done." Power Loader said.
The fourth, and one of the more interesting tests took place next. Shoto and Momo, the two students in Class 1-A who got in via recommendation versus none other than Shota Aizawa himself. The two students had gone with Ninetales and Aegislash while Eraserhead went with his partner Malamar.
Going in, it was obvious that Momo wasn't in the right mindset. Even before, she seemed to be distracted with something else. When they were there, Shoto had to call her name multiple times before she finally responded.
"Are you nervous?" Shoto asked.
"I-I'm fine." She replied. The boy let out a sigh. "Don't worry, it's understandable given our opponent. But I have a plan." He said. Momo wanted to say something, but she hesitated and decided not to in the end.
Once the speaker announced that the exam had begun Shoto and Momo began running through their exam site. It was a neighborhood full of houses. "Yaoyorozu, have Aegislash exude its Ghost energy. If it suddenly stops, we'll know that Malamar and Aizawa are nearby."
Aegislash did as instructed and began radiating a purple fog from its body. This was a natural ability that most Ghosts could do using any Ghost-type move. For this purpose, he was using Shadow Sneak.
Ninetales did the same with her flames. She emitted flames from her mouth using Flamethrower, not for an attack, but just to be able to know when Malamar showed up.
"This test is gonna be about who can spot the other first. If we find him, Ninetales and I can stall him. You and Aegislash can run to the exit. Until then, stick with me." Shoto said. Something was wrong with Momo, and Aegislash knew that. He placed his hand around his trainer's arm, getting a smile from her. "It's alright, Aegislash. I'll be fine." She said.
"Let me know right away if anything is wrong," Shoto said as they continued running. "Just as expected of you, Todoroki. You came up with a plan right away. Even in a situation like this, you were able to make quick judgments." Momo said, though this only continued to worry Aegislash.
"That's normal," Shoto said, causing all of them, even Ninetales to stop. "Normal?" Momo said, causing the boy to stop as well. "We both got into UA through recommendations, so we started at the same place. There were a lot of expectations for us, and you've smashed them. Me though… I haven't done anything worthwhile yet. At the Sports Festival, I only followed your lead at the Cavalry Battle and I ended up losing to Tokoyami because I couldn't think fast enough…"
Shoto didn't know what to say. Had Momo been keeping these feelings bottled up inside her for this long? He considered her his friend, so he felt bad for not even noticing that something was wrong. Looking back, it was obvious. She was more nervous than anyone about the practicals coming in… but something else was off.
"Yaoyorozu, what happened to the ghost aura?" He asked. Momo quickly looked at Aegislash and gasped in shock when she realized what was happening. "They're here!" Shoto shouted.
"I-I'm sorry!"
Aegislash acted quickly and blocked an incoming Payback by Malamar from behind them with a King's Shield. Ninetales came in with a Flamethrower shortly after to push Malamar away but it didn't work. The Squid Pokemon had already disabled Ninetales' moves.
"You should've known better, you two," Aizawa said, stepping forward. "Yaoyorozu, get out of here!" Shoto shouted, he and Ninetales both tackling Malamar to the ground. Momo took a second, but eventually, she and Aegislash began dashing toward the exit. Shoto had created an opening for them and they didn't want to waste it.
Malamar used Psychic to hold both Ninetales and Shoto up in the air. "You're both smart kids, so I'm a little disappointed," Aizawa said. "You should've talked to your partner before the exam. Maybe then you'd realize what you're doing wrong." He continued.
"Doing wrong?" Shoto wondered. That must have been what Momo was talking about. Her insecurities about leading and making quick judgments paired with him, someone who could power his way through the competition. He needed to get out. "You can't keep us here forever! You'll have to go after her eventually!"
"Oh, we have other plans for you," Aizawa said. Malamar quickly rose to their level and flipped them upside down. A dark aura began covering them and they both began feeling dizzy. This was another move that Malamar tended to use in one-on-one scenarios: Topsy Turvy.
Eventually, Malamar dropped both the student and his Pokemon to the ground. Aizawa let out a sigh before they dashed forward, ready to take down Momo. Shoto and Ninetales tried to get up, but Topsy Turvy wasn't exactly going to allow them. They felt immensely dizzy, so much so to the point that they could barely move. After trying to fight it, both of them collapsed to the ground.
Momo and Aegislash kept running toward the exit. While they were, the girl couldn't help but feel like she was doing something wrong. Should she go back? Shoto was in danger, so was it her job to go and help him? No, she should keep running. He told her to keep going, but Aizawa would catch up to her soon. Should she stay and fight? She didn't know what to do at all.
Before she even got close to reaching the exit, Aizawa and Malamar showed up. Once again, Aegislash blocked the incoming Payback with a King's Shield. Aegislash looked at his trainer with fierce eyes as if to say "Get it together!"
Momo's eyes widened in shock. She had to just keep it all in for now and force her way out of this situation. She needed to come up with a plan… then she saw it. Aegislash had just used King's Shield meaning that he had not yet Disabled her moves. "Sacred Sword!"
The Ghost Type's Blade extended with a Blue aura and he slashed at Malamar, causing the Pokemon to be pushed back. Using this time they had just bought, Momo turned around and began running back. "I'm sorry, Todoroki!" She whispered to herself.
Aizawa simply watched as the girl continued running with Aegislash tailing behind her. "She's… going back?" He asked himself. There was a bigger reason as to why Momo and Shoto had been paired together. It was her hesitation that caused her to lose at the Sports Festival. Meanwhile, Shoto managed to get so far by pushing himself further without any hesitation at all. When all was said and done, she concluded that he was far above her. She ended up losing all of her confidence. Emotionally, she was still a child. Aizawa wanted to help her, but that wasn't his job right now.
Eventually, Momo and Aegislash arrived. Shoto and Ninetales were conscious, but the Topsy Turvy, while now not as bad, still had a powerful effect on them. "Todoroki!" Momo shouted. "You came back?!" Shoto asked.
"Where are you looking?" They both flinched at the sound of Aizawa's voice. Momo tried helping Shoto up, but she ended up freezing. She was hesitating again. Should she fight Aizawa or run?
"Yaoyorozu, you have something, right?" Shoto asked, shocking the girl. "W-What?"
"You have a plan! I'm sorry… I should've asked you before, but if you have a plan, let's go with it!"
"But even you're plan didn't work…"
"Are you listening to me?! I'm saying you're better at this than I am!" Shoto shouted. "You got two votes for Class President, right? Well, that other vote was mine! I voted for you because I trust your judgment!"
Momo looked at Shoto with teary eyes before clenching her fist. She had been acting like a child this whole time… this boy was relying on her now. She needed to act fast! "Todoroki, Ninetales! Cover your ears!" As soon as Aegislash heard this, he threw his shield up in the air.
"What are you-"
"Iron Head!" Immediately, the Sword Pokemon dashed into the air and used Iron Head, creating a loud ringing sound that stopped Aizawa and Malamar. They collapsed to the ground and covered their ears, but the ringing didn't stop.
"Now's our chance!" Momo said, helping Shoto and Ninetales back up. The dizziness had finally subsided for the most part, though they likely wouldn't be able to hit accurate shots. "If my plan works, we won't have to run away! We'll beat Aizawa!" Aegislash couldn't help but be happy about his trainer's newfound confidence.
"Alright, tell me everything," Shoto said as he and Ninetales got into a fighting stance. "I came up with it when we found out we'd be fighting Mr. Aizawa. We need to-" Before she could finish, Malamar jumped up and shot out a Dark Pulse, though they all managed to jump to the side and avoid it.
"Come! We need to hide!" Momo said. All four of them began running. Aizawa quickly snapped out of his dazed state and he and Malamar quickly followed behind them. "We need to get out of his vision," Momo said.
"Right. Malamar can only disable our moves if he can see us." Shoto said to himself. Momo looked back and saw Aizawa and Malamar slowly catching up to them.
"Ninetales, I need you to do something for me!" She shouted. The Pokemon turned to her and nodded. "Malamar's Disable won't last forever. Keep checking if you can use your ice. There will be an opening in just a matter of time!"
They kept running, but Malamar was faster. He caught up to them and tried to go for a Payback, but right then and there, the Disable finally ended. Ninetales howled, summoning a powerful Blizzard that created a large wall of ice, separating the students and their teacher.
"A wall… not bad!" Aizawa applauded them. Now, Malamar couldn't catch up to them, giving them time to run… or so he thought.
"Nice job, Ninetales. She's bought us some time, Yaoyozoru. What's our next move?" Shoto asked. Momo turned to him and nodded. "Just follow my lead."
Aizawa and Malamar eventually managed to get over the giant wall of Ice using Psychic. They landed on a nearby rooftop and searched the area for any sign of the students. "They should be around here somewhere…" He said.
He then spotted them, hiding behind Aegislash's King's Shield. "Found you." He said. "Smart. They're hiding behind protection. Malamar can't disable them if he can't see them. Let's go." Malamar nodded and jumped up into the air.
The Pokemon landed in front of the shield and assaulted it with Psycho Cuts, slowly whittling down the defense. "How'll you two escape this one…" Aizawa wondered. Eventually, the shield gave in and the barrier shattered, but his eyes widened in shock at what he saw. Rather than seeing Aegislash using the King's Shield, Momo herself was holding the Shield up, with Shoto behind her.
"Now!" She shouted. Ninetales emerged from a nearby alleyway and let out a Fire Spin, creating a vortex of flames that trapped Aizawa, Malamar, Shoto, and Momo inside. "Go! Now's your chance!" Shoto shouted.
Momo nodded and tried throwing her shield, but her hand slipped and she ended up dropping it. "No!" She shouted. Aizawa noticed this and quickly jumped back "Get back, Malamar!" His Pokemon looked at him with confusion but trusted his trainer, doing as he was told.
She quickly picked up the shield once more and threw it up into the air. Aegislash quickly joined with the shield and slammed his blade into the ground, sending a shockwave that knocked Aizawa and Malamar to the ground. "Let's finish this, Aegislash! Iron Head!"
Aegislash held his shield above his head and slammed into Malamar and Aizawa, knocking out Malamar and allowing Shoto to run in and put the handcuffs around his beak. Despite his loss, Aizawa was impressed by their plan.
"Just as you said, we managed to win without having to escape," Shoto said. "Honestly, I don't know why. I ended up dropping the shield, which gave them the perfect opening to take us both out… it feels like you purposefully let yourself get hit by our attack." Momo said.
Aizawa shook his head as he returned Malamar to his Pokeball. "No, that's not it. I knew you had something planned, so I was cautious and had Malamar move back. Don't be mistaken, your plan worked." He said.
"You were right, Yaoyozoru. Good job." Shoto said, tears forming in Momo's eyes after hearing those reassuring words from her friend. "We couldn't have done it without you guys." Shoto continued, turning to their two Pokemon. They both looked at their trainers happily and cheered, celebrating their victory.
"After all is said and done turns out he cares for the kids after all. Maybe he does have a heart." Recovery Girl said, smiling.
"Team Todoroki and Yaoyorozu pass!"