"After that… informative, match," Present Mic yawned, having evidently fallen asleep as Hatsume used her various gadgets to evade and outwit Tsu's attacks, narrating them the entire hour, "We move on to the long awaited follow up! It's the killer beauties of Class 1-A!"

Steeling herself, Momo clenched her fists and prepared to fight against one of her first true friends. Jiro was so… so cool! It wasn't fair she had to fight someone so impressive. Jiro was always laid back and spoke her mind so easily, and moved so decisively, she was psyching herself out over just the thought of the pre-match greetings. Would she be expected to insult or challenge her? Would it affect their friendship? Oh, there were too many things to consider!

"On one hand: the prodigal daughter, come to jam out to the tunes of victory: Kyoka Jiro!

Versus

She's the 1% Queen, she can be Butcher, Baker, or Candlestick Maker: Momo Yaoyorozu!"

On no, it was starting time!

"G-good Luck, Jiro!" she called, giving the thumbs up and bouncing on her feet a little.

Jiro seemed to turn red, which worried Momo all the more. Was she angry at her?

"Y-yeah…"

"Start!"

Deciding to play it safe, Momo produced a crude shield on her arm first, holding it up in defense as Jiro's jacks came whirling at her. She seemed to be only half-looking at her, which meant the attacks were more tentative and not as accurate as they could be.

Momo produced a simple bo staff, charging closer in an attempt to get Jiro to surrender without being hurt. As she neared, the jacks became more precise and much faster, and she was driven on the defense more and more. She realized her staff was no good, and slid it into the hand protected by a shield, preparing to make a full kite shield to simply push Jiro out with.

Placing a hand on her chest, she prepared to summon it, when a small scream came from her opponent and one of the jacks jammed into her neck, vibrating with Jiro's erratic heartbeat. While normally the action would just stun and daze the recipient, like Mineta and Kaminari experienced rather often, Jiro was evidently too panicked to control it, and after a few seconds of chills running up her spine, Momo fell over.

As she lost consciousness, she registered a few things. One was that Jiro's heartbeat wasn't all that unpleasant to feel running through her, if a bit jarring and painful at the intensity her jacks produced. The second was someone shouting her name in apology. The last was a very soft pillow under her head.

"Poor Yaoyorozu" Ibara sighed, watching Jiro rush by with her on a stretcher as they took her to rest in the first aid room.

She wasn't particularly close with them, or anyone really, but she did have a certain respect for all participants in the tournament. And she supposed it wasn't all bad for the loser. Unlike the heiress, Ibara had some life experience to back up her intelligence, and knew what the looks the two cast at one another meant. It made her happy to see people find happiness together.

Naturally, she couldn't just come out and say it, oh no, no, no. For one thing, her religion was still with the stance that romance and marriage were inherently intertwined with celibacy, monogamy, and procreation; and while she happily congratulated and celebrated anyone who found any form of love in their rather chaotic world: she had to do so quietly and in a way that didn't result in a lot of misunderstandings and hurt feelings on both sides. For another: she wasn't some monster, outing someone's crush without reason. If they kept dancing around one another for the next year, she might consider helping them along, but that was only a maybe.

She shook herself, feeling a need to focus on the task at hand.

"This is the day which the Lord hath made..." she whispered, using the quote from her scriptures to help calm her heart and focus her mind, "Rejoice and be glad in it."

She could worry about the future later. Now it was time to show the world that she was ready to take the path of a Hero, and save the lives of those who could or would not. The first steps had been taken, and she was holding fast. Now it was time to enter the fog of confusion and uncertainty, and see if her strength would prevail.

"Now, for something a little more intense: it's Class 1-B's resident thorny Assassin: Ibara Shiozaki!

Versus

The Dark Raptor from 1-A, The King of the Overtime round: Fumikage Tokoyami!

It's girls versus boys, angel versus demon, light versus dark, flora versus fauna, and even land versus sky!"

She noticed the crowd seemed particularly hyped up by the words he tried that time, and she gave a small wave up at those spectating. Then she realized what he'd said during her intro.

"Excuse me, but what do you mean by assassin?!" she called up, frowning worriedly, "I'm only here to claim victory, not the lives of my fellow students!"

"Oh, s-sorry about that…"

"I see you are a follower of the divine," Tokoyami sighed, releasing his phantasmic companion, "It seems our fate is to do battle, as is fitting."

Ibara felt her whole body snap into combat alertness as she glanced back at him, turning and smiling intensely.

"I believe in mercy and compassion for all, no matter their sins," she proclaimed boldly, "Even those who clothe themselves in the dark are worthy of love and improvement!"

The shadow bird gave her a pair of thumbs up, and raised its arms in clawlike fashion, while her hair readied itself in kind.

"Start, I guess?"

Ibara's vines snapped forward, bashing and snapping against Dark Shadow's fists as they clashed. She started to step forward, using some of her backup hair to anchor herself in with each step, while Tokoyami remained in place. She noticed him watching her, meaning she couldn't get away with a sneak attack. Then again, she'd seen him rely almost entirely on his Quirk in the first two rounds.

Suddenly pulling free, she went all out against Dark Shadow, sprinting around in an arc as she kept the attacks at Tokoyami's front. He seemed caught up in directing her, and couldn't turn fast enough to stop Ibara from getting close. She beamed at him and grabbed his shoulders, twisting and pulling him towards the edge. Her gambit paid off, as he evidently didn't think to train himself in hand-to-hand, allowing her to use the amature move and throw him out of the ring.

He didn't seem to react much, finding himself standing outside and having just lost.

"It seems that light truly is the greater strength."

Dark Shadow meanwhile slid up to her and held out its first for a knuckle-bump.

"That was pretty cool! We should train sometime!" she prompted, earning a smile from Ibara.

"We should," she agreed, gently pressing a vine to the hand alongside her own, "And as for strength: Light and Dark are just two halves of a greater whole. The truth of strength and victory come by good and evil. Despite your motif, I believe you are still the former, Tokoyami."

He smiled wryly at her, but it seemed good natured enough.

"I'm so sorry, Yaoyorozu," Kyoka apologized again, continuing to bow as her almost-but-probably-no-longer-friend got back up from the bed and prepared to return to the viewing area.

The heiress held up a hand, silencing her instantly. She must be so mad right now, she'd probably never speak to her again. She'd give Kyoka that silent and hyper-formal treatment, and while it would be stunning and beautiful like everything Yaoyorozu did; it would also hurt. Kyoka noticed her glance around, and prepared for a "goodbye and good riddance lecture."

Kyoka felt herself stiffen in surprise when instead of telling her off, Yaoyorozu gently took her shoulders and showed her that noonday-bright smile.

"Jiro-," she started, hesitating before continuing in a quieter voice, "Kyoka, I don't blame you. We were both doing our best, and you managed to surprise me. You won our round fair and square, and I accepted the consequences before we even stepped into the field. Please… stop looking so down. It doesn't suit your face at all. I much prefer how pretty you look when you're happy."

She thought her heart might have stopped, hearing those words, and for a moment she just stood there, a bit stunned. Yaoyorozu giggled at her, and released her with a soft squeeze. Then some idea seemed to hit her.

"You seem rather uncomfortable receiving compliments," she noted, "Was I too forward?"

Yaoyorozu gasped, placing a hand over her mouth in realization.

"Was that why you panicked during the match?! Did you think I was going to attempt to mimic Midnight-sensei and seduce you?! I didn't mean to imply I was so flippant with my figure! If I came across as preparing to be sensual, I apologize for doing so, Jiro!"

Before she could bow, Kyoka pulled her into a hug, assuring her totally-gonna-be-besties-friend that she'd done nothing wrong. At least, nothing overtly.

"You… you didn't scare me that way," she said, making sure she explained things clearly, "I just- I thought your creation might expose your chest on live television, and that would've ruined your entire career. I also… didn't want to be seen looking."

"Seen… looking?" Yaoyorozu asked, blinking in confusion.

Jiro pulled back and clasped her hands behind her back, looking away and tapping her headphone jacks together nervously.

"I… I think you're really pretty, Yaoyorozu…" she admitted, "And sometimes I get… really jealous of how you look. And not just jealous for myself, if you understand?"

Yaoyorozu seemed to mull the information over for a moment, before nodding to herself and tilting her head so her cheek faced Kyoka. She pointed at her ear.

"Could you plug in for a second?"

The request was so odd and out of nowhere, Kyoka was certain she'd heard wrong.

"I- what?"

"Plug in," Yaoyorozu repeated, "Your jacks. Could you plug one into my ear for me?"

"Wh-why?!"

"Call it an experiment. I want to check something before I say anything else."

Extending one of her ear-attachments, Kyoka offered it up to Yaoyorozu's hands letting her ease it in so she would be comfortable. As the rich woman gently took it in her soft fingers, Kyoka shivered at the sensations rushing up the chords.

She eased the tip into her ear, letting it rest comfortably against her skin while not damaging any of the internal systems. Yaoyorozu's heartbeat rushed into her head, a little faster than usual, while her own was likely through the roof, and probably rushing through the heiress' body just the same.

Yaoyorozu smiled, closing her eyes and nodding her head a little, as if listening to her favorite song. The sight made Kyoka's heart flutter a little more, before relaxing just a little. Momo seemed to notice, and smiled all the brighter, her own heart speeding up just a little.

After a few moments, she gently removed the jack, but kept hold of it. She smiled at Kyoka, before suddenly seeming bashful and glancing down at her shoes.

"Th-thank you for letting me do that. I realize how personal of a request it was…"

"N-no problem!" Kyoka squeaked, "D-did you figure out the thing you were talking about?"

Yaoyorozu nodded, before turning to look at her, a crimson blush across her cheeks.

"I, um… I really like your heartbeat."

Kyoka was pretty sure she was turning into a mouse, with the sounds her throat was making.

"And… I'd like to ask you a favor," she continued, fingering her adorable hair wisp which sat over her cheek, "Could you… may I take you on an outing of some kind, in the near future? I feel as if I barely know you, but… I just feel so comfortable around you, and even when you were attacking me: I felt safe, somehow, as if you couldn't harm me, even if you injured me. I would like to- to explore these... feelings, I have for you."

If her heart could explode from sheer , it would have done so about a sentence and a half ago. For a few moments she didn't say anything, and Yaoyorozu evidently was going to take the worst possible implications as her face fell and she seemed to shrink.

"W-w-w-wait!" Kyoka said, waving her hands as she noticed the rather tall girl start to seem shorter than usual, "I'm not saying no, I'm just really surprised!"

The heiress blinked and glanced back to her, a little hope still in her eyes.

"I um… I guess I'm just not sure why someone as cool as you would… would want to be friends with me, let alone want to take me on a date," she admitted.

"Kyoka, I don't wish to seem rude, but that line of thinking is rather unbecoming of someone in the Hero Course," Yaoyorozu admonished, seeming a little like Ida for a moment, "You've done so much to even get this far, and you made it to the finals of the U.A. Sports festival! You're so dedicated, and I foresee you'll make a wonderful Hero one day! But even if those weren't the case… I would still want to see why I enjoy being around you so much. I suppose what I mean is: I don't know why I like you either, and that's why I want to find out."

Taking a step forward, Kyoka pulled her into another hug, feeling her eyes start to dampen her shoulder.

"I take it… this is a yes?" she asked, her heartbeat picking up enough to be heard even without Kyoka's jacks as she hugged back.

"S-sure. W-whatever, Yao- Momo?"

Momo giggled.

"Yaomomo… I've never had a nickname before. I'm happy you gave me my first."

Kyoka felt ready to die now.

"And with our second boxing match of the day wrapping up," Hizashi sighed, glancing over at Shota with a look he knew very well, "Young Kirishima taking the narrow win with a showing of camaraderie and chivalry at the end there, we once again turn to our resident 1-A expert to ask: Have you got anything to say for your kids?"

Shota leaned towards his microphone with exaggerated slowness.

"No."

"Really? We've had nothing but jarringly quick wins and three slug-fests that really aren't jazzing the crowd. You didn't teach them anything about spectacle for the crowd?" Hizashi complained.

"Showing off is more your domain, Mic. Besides, so far we've had a string of awful matchups."

"I mean, I wouldn't go that far-"

"I would," Shota said, drawing the crowd's attention, "We started with a match between morons who don't understand the concept of holding back, a recommendation student with range and power versus one of the more deadly close-quarter quirks, a pair of students who've probably spent so long being overlooked they've started to internalize their neutrality, a timid fighter against one who wasn't looking to win, two girls who have difficulty operating on their own at the best of times, and now a set of Quirks that are at an equivalence stage. Any respectable Hero in one of these matchups would have had to grow or do something unexpected to win in a way that had any "spectacle.""

"Aren't you the one who's always saying not to be a one-trick-pony?"

"A lesson not all of them have implemented yet. They're still relying almost entirely on their Quirks, instead of developing secondary and tertiary skills. Midoriya and Shinso, for instance, were barely even boxing; while Jiro and Yaoyorozu ended up making a major mistake each and frankly choosing a winner by chance, or who could stay conscious longer."

The crowd was silent, either processing, or awed, or annoyed at his words. He didn't really care.

"Right… Well, maybe this next match will give us something more flavorful to sink our teeth into?! Our next contestants were some of the MVP's of the last round, with one helping to run the Overtime contest, and the other being the first to emerge with a bandanna, as well as being the only person to capture two!"

"Uraraka?"

Ochako looked up from her table, rousing herself from her thoughts as she looked up at the doorway to the prep room.

"Deku!" she beamed, seeing him wince out a smile at her, his face covered in bruises and patches, "Are you okay? Did Recovery Girl patch you up alright? Shouldn't you be resting?"

"I'm okay," he assured her, unable to move his arms as they were both secured in casts from not resting or taking much care of them after his odd super-punches during the cavalry battle.

"Then… shouldn't you be watching the matches?" she asked, not sure if she should be worried he wasn't talking up his usual storm.

"Kirishima and Tetsutetsu are fighting. It won't change much for the next… I'd say hour?" he guessed, wincing a little.

She realized he was trying not to move his jaw very much, and guessed it was more injured than he wanted to admit. Smiling at his stubbornness, she patted the chair beside her.

"In that case: what can I do for you?"

He grimaced and sat down gratefully, shuffling his arms a bit to reveal the edge of one of his "Hero Analysis" notebooks. She recognized the pristine edges of a new addition, and smiled.

"I'm sorry to tell you, but if you're coming to give me a strategy to defeat Ida, I can't accept."

Deku blinked at her.

"I wasn't going to," he said, a bit surprised, "Actually, I was gonna say you didn't need my help, if you asked."

Ochako was surprised at his faith in her, and blinked at the notebook, then at him, confused why he brought it up.

"Uraraka… you're so much stronger than you know," he whispered, managing to get the notepad onto the table and trying to nudge the pages apart with his casts, "And… I don't think I've ever said how honored I am to be your friend. I was actually coming down here to ask… to ask if you'd sign my page for you."

Her heart might have skipped a beat at hearing those words. She quickly pulled the notebook over and flipped through their classmates' pages (carefully ignoring Ida's, thank you very much) until she came to the one of hers she'd seen once or twice in passing. She noticed he'd colored her costume in, as well as added a few more notes which looked like they continued on the next page. She flipped over to it, and saw a slightly different version of her outfit, along with notes of a dozen possible support items.

Deciding to leave it be for the moment, she flipped back to the front where a blank line was open for a signature. She noticed it was labeled as "Hero Name" and decided to put down both.

Closing the notebook, she slid it back into Deku's arms and smiled at him.

"I'm the one who's honored now. You said you only have like two other signatures in here, right? All Might's and Aizawa-sensei's?"

"Yeah, but the last one was mostly just me taking a note he wrote and slipping it in with his analysis," Deku admitted, his usual bashful side showing off like normal.

Ochako giggled and patted his shoulder.

"Well, one day you'll be able to get it all filled up, I bet. In fact, pros will be coming to you for autographs soon enough!"

A thought struck her, and Ochako leveled a finger at his face.

"I'll even make you a bet: If you make it to the finals: the next Pro-Hero you meet out of school will ask for your autograph!"

Deku frowned in thought, before looking up at her in confusion.

"Um, what are we betting with? I know you're tight on cash, so I don't want to make you pay when they don't like me…"

"Hm… that's a good point. How about: when they ask you for you to sign, you have to buy me a good dinner! At a buffet somewhere, so I can go all out getting my week's food in one bet! And if they don't… I'll... "

She considered, not sure what she could really offer, especially since she'd just given him her signature. Then she remembered how flustered he got around girls sometimes. Ochako put up her best evil grin.

"If you win, I'll help you train to overcome a major weakness!" she promised, knowing he wouldn't refuse.

"Deal!" he expectedly agreed, "which weakness? Endurance? Striking power? Taking damage without falling? Dodging?!"

"You'll see…" she giggled, "But first thing's first: we have to get there!"

"Right!" he cheered, his casts jostling a little as he tried to raise a fist like hers, but was stopped by the pain.

"He's the Hero Course's fastest contender, with a hunger for victory and orange juice, it's Tenya Ida!

Versus

She's the Master of Gravity, Mistress of the Centrifugal Force, welcome Ochako Uraraka!"

Hizashi watched the two get set, stretching and preparing for their match.

"These two will be interesting to watch," Shota muttered, nodding to himself, "Along with Midoriya, these two have been some of the fastest friends I've seen in a while. I was worried Jiro and Yaoyorozu would freeze up when they fought for similar reasons, and was mostly proven wrong, but these two might hold back more."

"We're about to find out, Eraserhead!" Hisashi roared, noticing Midnight holding up her whip, "Start!"

The two charged one another, Uraraka standing tall and holding her hands out at either side not unlike Bakugo's usual pride stance. Ida was sprinting right for her, his hands locked open palmed as if intent to switch from lunging to pushing. As he neared, she leapt over his arms, managing to tag his shoulder.

"And with a heart-pounding opening, Uraraka is the first to land a successful hit!" he screamed amongst the cheers, "But it looks like Ida isn't going down so easily!"

Ida's engines started sputtering, not like he'd stalled, but as if he was trying controlled bursts to prevent himself from spinning like the alleged "Emergency Exit Man" stunt from a few days earlier. He managed to get his body into a whirling kick, spinning towards the ground.

Uraraka evaded him, able to see him building up speed and jump aside well before he got close to the ground. Still, some of the damaged concrete hit her, mostly just a few shards bouncing off her uniform, but a handful of smaller stones might have hurt.

Ida dived again, and she evaded, but remained closer this time. He attacked, and she dodged. They continued the pattern, both seeming to become very tired.

"Well… looks like another duke-out," Hizashi sighed, "Though, really I'm not surprised. Neither of them really could win quickly after she tagged him. He can correct his flight if she throws him, but he's also forced to project a lot when he attacks."

"He was."

"Eh?"

Glancing back down, Hizashi realized Ida had begun to change direction at the last second, moving to actually kick Uraraka when he came down to break the ground. The crowd began to quiet, a few of them making discontented sounds as he started hurting her, unable to get her too far towards the edges before the kicks' momentum threw him back upwards or away, and she could recover.

"It looks like Ida's losing some of the crowd support," he noted, seeing the grimace Uraraka was making even from there, "And really, I'm kind of starting to sway a bit too. Didn't you say they were fr- agh!"

Shota had thrown an elbow in his face, leaning forward to get his microphone to full volume.

"Oi. All you booing out there. If any of you are pro-heroes, stop watching and go home. Start job-hunting," he commanded, deadly serious, "And for those of you who are calling her a "poor little girl," yes I can hear you, and no she isn't. These two are fighting this way because they're friends. They both recognize one another's strength and danger. If either of them were going any less intensely, it would be an insult. If Midoriya was in there with them, aside from probably egging them on, he'd be hitting both of them with more than everything he had."

His words sank in, and Hizashi realized he wasn't exactly offering up a new opinion. A large number of the crowd seemed to be considering their challenge in the second event, which certainly supported the idea these three were a bit zealous about their goals.

"Regardless, it's too late."

Everyone paused and blinked at the odd shade which had been cast over the ring. Looking up, they saw the dozens of small stones all hovering in a cluster over the center, still moving up, but very slowly.

Uraraka placed her fingers together and leapt up at Ida. The stones began to fall, most no more than an irritant, but as they started to bounce off of Ida's back and head, and his own gravity returned, Uraraka managed to grab his arm. The sudden shift back and then from normality threw his internal ear for a loop, and his kick went wide, allowing her to swing him around and throw for all she was worth. Ida was sent spinning past the boundaries, but not quite into the wall. He breathed heavily, hovering above the grass.

The crowd started to cheer, but gasped as Uraraka fell to the ground, her arms over her head. They released why when the stones started landing on her.

There was silence, as Ida prepared to guide himself back in. If he touched the ground before she was declared incapacitated, they'd have to pull a tie-breaker. But as he revved his engines a final time, there was a soft rumble. He feel to the grass, and a pair of familiar hands burst from the rubble.

The audience screamed in delight as she managed to make it out, ignoring the rainbow colored pool seeping out from under the stones. She got to her feet, and managed a desperate smile, seeming to sway oddly.

"Uraraka wins!" Hizashi screamed, much to everyone's approval.

Then she fell over.

"That was most insightful!" Tenya praised, chopping his hands as Recovery Girl helped patch up Uraraka.

"It was awesome!" Midoriya agreed, his own batch of repair scheduled now that he'd had a chance to eat and rest for a bit, "I was worried you were being too reckless by letting him get close, but then I saw the piece that you blocked go up, and realized you were trying to trick him!"

Uraraka blushed, itching at the back of her head.

"It wasn't that cool…" she mumbled, "plus, now I'm pretty much burnt out. I don't know if I can float much more than a pebble without my stomach giving out at this point, even with all out training, Deku."

Blushing at the admission of his help, Midoriya looked away and flexed his hands a little, likely feeling the heavy wraps around his arms restricting their movement. Tenya knew his friend well enough to guess his mood.

"Midoriya: I do not regret failing this day," he said, catching his friend's attention and smiling brightly.

He clenched his fists and heldi them up, facing the ceiling. Midoriya and Uraraka lifted their own forearms to bump against his, smiling and in the former's case: wincing.

"You called me out in the cavalry battle, and forced me to use my Recipro-Burst early, but in doing so I had no more tricks to hide. When we reached the tournament section, I could fight without holding back in any way. And I did. The crowd hated me for it, but I gave Uraraka no quarter or reprieve, and yet failed to her similar dedication. This is not my doing ill, but rather proving to the world that my friend has the strength to be a great hero, and that by our friendship I will be just as great!"

His friends smiled at him, nodding and tearing up just a bit at his emotion. Tenya grinned back, before feeling his pocket vibrate. He pulled out his phone, grinning at the ID. Tensei!

"Pardon me," he apologized, stepping towards the door, "My brother's calling, and I can't often speak with him. Midoriya? Best of Luck."

The green-haired boy gave him a thumbs up and a nod, and Tenya tapped the "accept call" button. As he exited, he heard Uraraka pull out her phone and say with glee: "Daddy's calling! Deku, can I take this real quick?"

He put it out of his mind.

["Tenya!"] came the excited, but slightly electronic voice, carried as it was all the way from Hosu, ["How could you brutalize that poor little girl? She must hate you so, for that. Did she break off your friendship? Were you going to ask her out, and now must spend eternity alone, you robotic rugrat, you?"]

"No," Tenya sighed, recognizing his brother's sarcasm but still a bit miffed at the teasing, "Tensei, I did what I had to in my attempt to win. Had I tried one wit less, she would have defeated me much earlier. And I- ...I believe she's taken."

["That Midoriya they kept mentioning? The lead horse during the prior battle? I managed to catch that bit by watching at 2x speed after it got posted."]

"I apologize for failing so spectacularly in the second event! I promise never to hold back that way again!"

["Hold back? Tenya, you're in a Sports Festival, no one expected you to act like your lives were on the line yet. That's the Third Years' domain. I was proud you rose to the challenge, and when I saw you give your friend the respect she was due? Tenya, I don't think I can explain how proud I was to know you're able to give it your all for this."]

Tenya felt himself start to tear up a little, but held back for the moment.

"Thank you, Tensei. How's Hosu? I heard you were on assignment there?"

["Emergency Patrol. I hear Endeavor himself is going to be headed out here in a week, if we don't smooth things over."]

He remembered his brother saying something about a major villain who they were busy looking for. One who didn't hurt civilians. He remembered what Midoriya had said about the villain when they'd discussed Tensei's most recent assignment.

"Tensei… my friend and I suspect… are you hunting the Hero Killer?" he cut straight to the chase, knowing he couldn't be delicate about it.

The line was silent for a moment, then Tensei sighed in resignation, the sound coming across as little more than a hiss.

["Yes. We are. He hasn't done anything but hurt or kill other Heroes, but that's more than enough for us to try and get him brought in. A lot of our friends have had brushes with him, and… well, I don't think someone like that should be running loose."]

Tenya considered his brother's words. They didn't sound like his. They sounded vengeful, yet also full of regret.

"Tensei, do you remember when you told me why you wanted to be a Hero?"

["Yeah, sure? What brought this up?"]

"You said you thought people who worked at lost children kiosks were the coolest… because they made people in fear feels safe, and that Heroes were the extension of that job."

["I did, but I was over-simplifying it for your robot brain, back then."]

"I don't think you were," Tenya said, not really believing it but desperate for his brother not to fight the Hero Killer, "And- and if you were telling me the truth when you said that, then please: stop hunting him. Protect the people, and stay close to your friends, your sidekicks. Help them feel safe."

["Tenya… he's never even scratched anyone but Heroes. The civilians are safe-"]

"That could change at any time! If he can kill a Hero, then what civilian is going to stand a chance?!"

Tensei went silent, before laughing softly.

["How about this: I promise to keep a sidekick nearby at all times, so if we run into him, we'll be able to have someone clear civilians while the other deals with him? Something every Hero has to know is Preemptive Actions, capturing villains before they can hurt someone. Not all actions or Quirks leave much time after activating before people start dying, and if we could stop them before that, even for a moment, then it's our job. To keep with your metaphor: sometimes it's best to talk to a parent who's holding their child's hand a little to loosely, rather than help them find one another again."]

Swallowing, and knowing he wouldn't get any better deal out of his brother, Tenya nodded.

"Very well, Tensei."

["Cheer up, Tenya! I have a feeling I'll see you sooner than you think. Just keep your eyes open, and when you get to pick your Hero name: I want you to consider taking up our family name too."]

Tenya felt a chill run through him.

"But, you're already Ingenium! It would confuse the civilian populace, and likely fail to be approved by the Hero Association!"

["I've been thinking about taking on a new name. You remember Nemuri? She's been chatting about maybe taking some time off to come work with my agency and help us do some rebranding. Evidently we're not doing very well in public ratings these days."]

"Well… I can't imagine it will be an acquisition soon. I'll consider it."

"And that concludes the first round, Listeners!" Hizashi continued, always so enthusiastic that one, "Next up: four battles of skill v skill! Recovery Girl's on hand to take care of injuries, but since we can't have our participants out cold: she's only able to heal them up a little bit, and has to use conventional medicine for their wounds unless they tap out. But ah… well, I think we all know that's not gonna happen! So that means all our quarter-finalists will be going in tired and battered from the last round. Bet Midoriya, Kirishima, and Uraraka regret letting their opponents pummeling them for so long, eh listeners?"

Nezu sipped his tea, considering and computing the thousands and hundreds of thousands of possibilities. Who would win? How would they win? He'd already been surprised once, by that Midoriya boy's choice to openly challenge everyone all at once, and to go on the offensive with his advantage. The odds were nearly 15,000,047 to 1, as his timid personality and limited control over his power would have made a more cautious action the more likely, with chance captures being marginally more likely, but…

Ah. It was the Uraraka girl, and the Todoroki boy. He could see the latter was restraining his power, but without the reason of self-preservation that Midoriya had in flying too fast. The stubbornness of the one conflicted with the ideals of the other, inflaming him to force the issue. And the former… human mating cycles and methods were so complex and overly-layered, full of betrayals and self-denial, and not even logically arranged. Even the vaguely genetic-based actions of the elder Todoroki still failed to meet any standards of logical or rational mating. But even with that aside, the Uraraka girl was influencing Midoriya, and he: her.

They'd been training together, unlike the other students who'd been going solo to prevent others from seeing what they were doing. In doing so, they'd pushed one another further than they could make themselves go. The odds said their Quirk development was at least 6% ahead of the others, and their personalities might be similarly advancing. If the desire to impress was alone in the motivations, then Midoriya would be picking up some of her straight-forward thinking, while she would be gathering some of his analytical nature.

It followed, therefore, that his willingness to brute-force situations and encourage others to defeat him by leveling the playing field was some manner of her influencing him to stick to his ideals more firmly, though sloppily. Perhaps a counter-action from an abusive background? The mother was more than clean, but evidence from his middle school wasn't exactly forthcoming.

Toshinori wasn't teaching the boy nearly quick enough, especially with his variance of control. Carrying Nana's Quirk made him difficult to instruct, and based on how he'd acted under hypnosis, it was she who'd tapped into the true well of power during the battle, leaving Midoriya still limited to only his gliding tricks. A worrying prospect, with the Nomu report having come back.

If All-for-One was indeed still active, then the new Symbol of Peace would need to be prepared with haste. Midoriya needed to begin tapping into his true power now. But who could teach him to use more than one Quirk? And even if he could use all eight powers presumably contained within the Quirk, he wouldn't be able to master them in any timely fashion. No, they needed a staying action, to buy time.

Numbers were the issue. All-for-One was an unknown quantity. His numbers were variable, but his inner circle wasn't clear. At least two… but how many more? And their own side was shrinking. Heroes were retiring, and many died to incompetent training or the Hero Killer. Few were graduating with the ideals and strength to hold the Pro status, and not merely that of sidekicks. Merchandising revenue alone indicated the Heroes the public trusted were shrinking in number. A new Symbol of Peace might not be enough anymore.

Alright, my darlings, you know the drill. Comment, Critique, and Call me out on references.

Hope you're having a wonderful week!