When it came to the second round, the match of Todoroki Shoto and Midoriya Izuku had been highly anticipated. After all, Todoroki wasn't just the son of the number two hero, he had also shown an immense amount of power, control, and potential in just the lead-up to the match. And Midoriya, while not as well-known, had been able to keep up with the two leading the pack and even win the race, before making strong showings in both the Cavalry Battle and the first round. But for Bakugou Katsuki and Nebulos Andros? Sure, Andros had shown a decent fight against Kirishima and an ability to plan, but the defining aspect of Bakugou's fight was quick counters and an overwhelming sense of power. Many in the crowd probably expected the fight to be quick and brutal.

That wasn't what was on the mind of Katsuki. Anyone who just looked at Gas Suit and thought he was just a little bit of strength and toughness backed up by steam was an idiot or didn't pay attention during his match with Weird Hair. Or possibly both, Katsuki didn't pay attention to side characters, let alone background filler. He was willing to bet that Deku, the nerd, had noticed it too. Gas Suit used the same approach Deku tended to do, go in with a basic plan, and try to adapt. He'd seen it even during the spars when the two had tried to counter each other's counter to his usual start.

And yet… he couldn't help but smirk a bit. While Round Face had been a pleasant surprise in just how much of a fight she put up, she wasn't a frontline fighter. Gas Suit? He could take hits and dish them out just as hard… but how'd he do against some of the stranger moves?

"On the left! The crimson steaming dynamo! Class 1-A's Nebulos Andros!"

I looked over at Bakugou and tried to guess what he was even planning to start with. Given Bakugou and my own Quirk, he's likely to start aggressive, to see if he can finish me off before it's barely begun… but at the same time, he could just go for a direct attack, try to go for me being vulnerable. While Bakugou thinks about how to fight, I've experienced him in combat, most of what he does is instinct, adapting, overcoming.

… huh. In that way, me and him are actually a lot alike. That's… a bit worrying given what else I could comment about similarities. But even so… it's a whole different level to Kirishima. Kirishima was an issue because he's got a similar level of power to me and far more defence. With Bakugou, he lacks defence, but can make up for his speed with explosions, has way more than I have and could even hit me in the air if I wasn't careful about jumping around – more than one sparring round had resulted in me hit by a blast shockwave to knock me out of the stage.

"VERSUS! The first place in the entrance exams, the explosive hothead! Also, from 1-A, Bakugou Katsuki!"

The crowd cheered, but neither boy seemed to hear it as they seemed to shift. Bakugou pushed his right leg forward slightly, bringing his hands up just over his chest and cupping each. Andros brought his left leg further forward, actually leaning on it, while bringing both arms down to his sides and aiming his hands downward. They stood still, just waiting for the signal.

Even as across Japan, six sets of eyes, in particular, focused on the fight.

"START!"

In an instant Katsuki swung his arms out to his sides, explosions firing off as he ran forward. "Explosive Turbo!" He called out, rushing at Gas Suit. He knew that transformation of his had to take some time, and he wasn't going to give him the time to think, let alone-

With the sound of air popping, plumes of Nebula Gas fired from Gas Suit's hands, launching him into the air. That made no sense, that was his plan? Katsuki prepared to leap into the air… before he noticed something. It hadn't been a straight jump into the air. Gas Suit was spinning.

"Super Vaporize!" I declared, using the spin I'd sent myself into as I blasted Nebula Gas out from every part of my body I could at once. Not for long, but longer than I would usually let myself do for a Blood Stark transformation. Super Vaporize is designed to essentially let me transform while protecting me with a barrier of Nebula Gas – if anyone tried to charge in to attack me as Bakugou would, it would just turn them into a Smash, letting me lock up their body and force them out of the arena, or forcibly detransform them. Oh, it runs a risk of course, and that's why I haven't used it before now – in a wide-open arena, I have plenty of space to use it!

And yet as the itchy tingle of my body shifting and warping into the biomechanical Blood Stark form runs over me, I can hear through the gas a pair of pops… and a burst of an explosion! I bring my arms up in front of me, but the resulting shockwave feels more like a heavy punch, knocking me back slightly through the air… but that hadn't been the intention. The shockwave from that chained explosion had blown away all my Nebula Gas, leading it to… huh, credit where it's due, Bakugou aims well, it's going to miss the crowd entirely and dissipate into the air.

Bakugou let out a sound that I refuse to believe is actually called a tch. "Damn, you've gotten fast at changing that. Bring it on Gas Suit!" Bakugou yelled as he continued running at me, bringing his right arm back- he's going for the right swing. Is that a trap? Is it a double bluff?

I flinch for a moment… before going for the right arm!

Uraraka's eyes widened. "What's he doing? Didn't Bakugou figure out a counter to that?" She asked.

"I'm sure he has his reasons Uraraka-san," Iida commented.

Kirishima, sitting nearby, wasn't so sure. He'd seen something like this before…

He's gone for the right arm? Katsuki shook that thought out of his head as he leaped, using the force of his explosions to continue to carry him forward… and forced his right arm to instead face back with his left facing forward, letting out an explosion that sent him up into the air and over the crimson classmate, another explosion from his right hand stopping the motion before he let out a burst of an explosion forward.

He saw it as he let out the explosion, Gas Suit had started to move forward, that familiar blur behind him as he did, but the shockwave of an explosion, even a small one, is a powerful thing, and it was enough to send the other boy tumbling onto the stage… before he pulled himself back to his knees and his feet. As soon as he did that Gas Suit forced himself forward, moving a little faster than Deku seemed to be able to do from what Katsuki had observed during the race.

"What was with that just now Gas Suit!" Katsuki yelled out, even as he brought his arms back, a pair of larger explosions sending him flying forwards instead of just running this time. He felt justified in being pissed – more than usual. He and Gas Suit had sparred, and he'd used that right punch three times… and he'd always had a counter for going for the right arm. What the hell was Gas Suit doing?

As Bakugou races through the air I would've smirked if I could. Perfect. He might be able to move himself, but he'd take a moment. I swing with my right arm-

And at the same time, Bakugou swing his right arm forward, the sparks of an explosion blossoming out into a powerful blast, hitting me head-on and essentially forcing me to a stop. Still, while it stings, that's all it does to me right now… and I still buried my fist into his stomach, causing Bakugou to land roughly on the ground rolling back… before a pair of explosions means he doesn't even bother to get back on his feet, launching himself into the air. I could try to use the cords but…

I can beat them, I can reign-

No. No, too risky, I can't let that out again. I'll have to play Bakugou's game. I leapt into the air after him, forcing as much strength as I could into my legs as I did

"That idiot!"

Shiozaki Ibara turned her head at that outraged cry. "Forgive me Monoma, but why curse your friend?" She questioned.

Neito had slammed his hands onto the chair in front of him and gripped the top of it, hard. "Andros knows that he's weaker than Bakugou in aerial combat, he'd have been better off staying on the ground. He could have-" And then Neito stopped, his eyes widened even further, and his voice settled into a growl. "Dammit. He's second-guessing himself! He's not using his cords!"

Katsuki's angry snarl said everything about what he thought right now. He'd expected Gas Suit to jam one of those cord-things into the ground and toss a chunk of the stage at him, to send them after him to grab him, attack him, force him to dodge or something! And Gas Suit wasn't dumb, he must've considered at least one of those! So why was he coming to him?

"Dammit, you bastard!" Katsuki yelled out, firing off an explosion to his right, sending Gas Suit sailing right by him… before he grabbed that pseudo-metallic collar section, swinging an arm up and letting off a powerful explosion, sending them rocketing down to the ground, slamming them both against the stage… but Gas Suit a lot harder. "Do you think this is fucking funny? That I'm so weak there's no point in you using them?"

Gas Suit's only response was to slam his hands against the ground hard, flinging him back upright and sending Katsuki backwards – nothing a pair of explosions couldn't help with. But he just stopped and glared at the Gas Suit bastard.

"How many times have you seen me throw that first punch since school started? And you fell for it like you'd never seen it before!" Katsuki roared. "Stop being a punching bag and actually fight damnit!" With that last word, he let off another burst of explosions behind him, swinging his left arm forward with as big of an explosion he could muster, letting it off as close as he could and letting out a plume of smoke as he did.

"Hold on, but he used them in the race." Uraraka pointed out.

"On the robots and the rocky floor of those jumps." Kirishima countered. "And when he was fighting me, I think they started to move, and he had to force them to stop. Can he control them?"

"I don't think it's that," Kaminari noted. "It's like… he can use them, but he's worried about doing that, cause it might hurt people." He blinked as he saw that the rest of the class was staring at him. "What? It's what I have to worry about all the time."

The rest of the class turned their heads back towards the fight with that thought in mind, the smoke starting to clear.

I shook my left hand as I steadied myself, a slight jolt of pain rushing through my hand and up my arm. I'd gone for a left hook to counter his left arm… but Bakugou had planned for it and grabbed my own arm with an explosion ready to fire! I thought I'd take him off guard with that, but it's like he can see what moves I'm going to make before I make them! And then there's his whole talk about that punch… we have sparred a lot, and I've seen it a lot… dammit I second-guessed myself, didn't I? But what am I going to do about it?

"No… you're not doing it on purpose," Bakugou noted as he emerged from the smoke… having been knocked back by the punch a little, but his counter explosion had displaced most of the force in it. "You wouldn't have punched so hard if you hadn't…" And then his glare, if anything seemed to grow more intense. "… the punch. The jumping into the air. How you were too late move to dodge my explosions… you're second-guessing your moves!"

I flinched at that like I'd been slapped. It was that obvious? "What are-"

"Don't fucking deny it!" Bakugou yelled out. "You're not even using that stupid voice filter! You want to have an existential crisis, walk out the ring or have it after we fight, but it's not worth anything if I can't beat you at your best!" He raced forward once more, and I shook my head before I ran at him as well, before deciding to go on the offensive, forcing a boost of speed into my legs to jink to the left and launching into a low kick-

But even as I felt my leg connect, I felt the heat of Bakugou's hand close to my face.

This is starting to do more than just sting.

Katsuki Bakugou was an easy person to piss off even at the best of times. But this? This was actually overtaking Deku right now. Oh sure, his leg hurt, but he didn't exactly need one or even both his legs to fight effectively. If it had been Weird Hair or Half-and-half, then maybe he'd have a reason, but that was a pointless move!

He let out a pair of explosions in front of him, forcing him onto his feet before he could even tumble onto the stage, and he turned around. "Are you freaking kidding me? What was that? You've ducked out of the way of those sorts of explosions before!" Katsuki bellowed. "It'd be one thing if you were just refusing to use the cords, but you're second-guessing every other move you do! Why?"

At that Gas Suit groaned from where he was on the ground, gripping his fists… before he forced himself to his feet. "Shut up already!" Gas Suit shouted. "Oh, look at me, I can make explosions. I don't need to worry about being on TV. Meanwhile, I've been dealing with my cords trying to do what they want!"

"Are you FUCKING serious!?" Katsuki countered. "Don't you blame your issues on those shitty cords. They're part of your Quirk! Do you think it's easy to control an explosion? No! But I make them look good, I make it better, and I don't fucking second-guess myself!" He jerked an arm up, pointing behind him at the walls of the arena, where he guessed Deku was – in the old lady's room. "Half-and-half could burn down half a dozen houses if he uses his Quirk wrong, you even told him off! And Deku might be a weakling loser, but at least he's controlling the power he's got so it doesn't ruin him every time he tries to throw a damn punch!"

I… I… No, it's not like that! I'm not… I'm not… it's the-

Oh, just shut up already!

I jerk my head up at that. It… it sounded like Evolt! That's it, it must be-

Are you willing to be that weak that you're going to blame your failure on a planet-eating megalomaniac who might not exist here?

I… but-

"If you're not going to take this fight seriously, you can go and die for all I care!" Bakugou growled out. "Just stand there and be a fucking sandbag if you want!" At that he ran forward again, his hands already starting to spark

So, you don't wanna risk it?

Don't you dare do that to yourself Andros!

I can't claim to know your circumstances or your resolve. But everyone here is giving it their all!

You've heard all those today. You were the one to tell Shinso that his Quirk didn't define him. Why should it define me? That voice… that voice was never someone else. That was… me. I get competitive. I push hard. I second-guess myself.

"DIE!" Bakugou declared as he thrust both arms forward, ready to explode.

If you wanna be a hero that badly, there's a quick way to do it. Believe you'll be born with a Quirk in your next life and take a swan dive off the roof!

And right now? I can get angry.

I reached out with both hands, faster than before, and duck down as I grab Bakugou's arms and force them to the sides, both explosions sounding off, the flames licking at me briefly, the shockwaves hitting me like a light punch each, but nothing more, the look of shock on Bakugou's face etched into my mind as I bring a knee up as I rise, slamming it into his gut as I let go of his arms, flinging Bakugou backwards from the blow.

"You want me to stop being a sandbag Bakugou? Fine." I noted. "How about we talk about your problems."

Katsuki Bakugou never admitted his own fuckups. In his mind, fuckups were stumbling blocks you ignored and just moved past. Push your way through life and push your way to the top. There was only one time where that approach had stared him in the face and hit back. The fight against Deku in the Heroes vs Villains exercise.

He was starting to think maybe this time might be the second.

"Gas Suit bastard!" Katsuki growled out, lashing out with an explosive right- which Gas Suit leaped over?! Before a heavy kick slammed into his back and sent him tumbling across the stage. Katsuki pulled himself up and glared at Gas Suit… but he couldn't help but let his snarl turn into a vicious grin. "Finally got over yourself, have you? Or did you-"

"Oh, just shut up!" Gas Suit remarked, before rushing forward! Katsuki thrust his arms down, a pair of explosions sending him up and into the air. Gas Suit seemed to slide to a halt at that before swinging an arm out – and as he did, one of the silver cords swung out with it, extending out rapidly before being swung into him, the cord coiling around his midriff from the force of the motion. Katsuki only had a moment to notice this as he was tugged down towards the ground, and only a quick explosion prevented him from leaving a crater into the ground. "Like I said, we're done with my problems. Let's talk about you. How about the fact that you're sabotaging your own want to be a hero?"

"What the fuck do you mean?" Katsuki growled out, even as he spotted Gas Suit start to move again and swung his left arm wide, an explosion billowing out along with it – a move designed for faster types.

Not that it seemed to deter Gas Suit, who just plunged through the explosion and grabbed Katsuki by the shoulders before swinging himself back with all the speed and strength Kastuki had come to expect by this point. It didn't make the resulting impact against the arena floor any less painful, but he was fine with that – this was a battle, no punches pulled. Still, Gas Suit left Katsuki to pull himself up.

"You and Midoriya-kun." Gas Suit remarked. "You're not a particularly social person usually, but it's REALLY bad between the two of you. Cause every time you look at him, he reminds you. Reminds you of what you were before the Sludge Villain incident."

I immediately regretted name dropping that as Bakugou's eyes narrowed and a pair of explosions blossomed off of him. Still, nothing ventured nothing gained. "I don't mean the villain itself. But how about we talk about your old bullying habits?" I remarked.

"How about you get buried!" Bakugou yelled, his hand brought together as they sparked and popped and- oh no. I brought my hands up to my visor- "Stun Grenade!"

Agh! You fool! The goddamn light! I'm going to be seeing spots for a week after that, and the ringing sound from all those explosions, how the hell does Bakugou not go deaf? I barely have time to contemplate that as my vision clears… only to see Bakugou holding a hand out towards me, point-blank, with another hand supporting it!

I immediately push my legs, not to run, but to leap diagonally to the side. And I almost made it out of range… before the chain explosion went off. While not as devastating as his attack on Uraraka's debris – clearly he's not an idiot enough to not consider the audience – it's still a powerful chain reaction, and while the fire burns, it's the shockwave that feels like I just took a few rounds with Kirishima all over again.

"You were holding the fuck back, how's stuff from middle school messing with me?" Bakugou insisted, even as he rushed towards me – running, not explosive boosting, I notice. I push myself up and move out of the way of his next explosive swing, grabbing both arms and spinning around on the spot as fast as my boosted speed would let me. And then… I let go and let physics sort itself out before Bakugou could get enough explosive sweat ready.

From the Nurse's office, Midoriya Izuku wasn't listening to Recovery Girl's angry tirade about the two fighters anymore. He was listening to exactly what Andros was trying to say. While Kacchan had meant every word of what he said, Izuku also knew it came off as more of a psychological attack. Was that what Nebulos was doing or… was it something else? Was he trying to help?

From the announcer's booth, Present Mic was wondering where Aizawa had managed to get a pen and paper in such a short time. Still, stuff like this WAS gold for both students.

…Though man, it was weird seeing Aizawa smile like a cat who found a downed bird.

Damnit! Damnit! He's getting into your head Katsuki, don't pay attention, just power on fucking through! Katsuki started to pull himself to his feet-

"How about we talk about telling someone to 'take a swan dive off the roof'." THAT FUCKER remarked. Katsuki was at this point scrambling to get up. "Oh, don't get me wrong – you're not entirely to blame for it. What sort of middle school lets their star student go around doing those things, in the school building? Besides, that's not why I'm bringing it up."

"Then why bring it up?" Katsuki growled out

Gas Suit stopped for a moment… and his visor seemed to line up with Katsuki's gaze perfectly. "You've been told all your life how awesome your Quirk is. You've excelled in classes. And then you come to U.A…. and who's there? Deku. The Deku who you thought was nothing more than a pebble. And he's really strong. Did you ever think that his Quirk might just be so powerful it hurts him when he uses it? No. Because what mattered to you is that you'd been told time and time again that you were great. And I'm willing to bet you've never been to see a psychologist because what happened at school never got back home." Gas Suit explained.

"And? I'm waiting for the fucking POINT to all this!" Katsuki shouted.

"You want the point?" Gas Suit yelled back. "Fine. Whenever you look at Izuku you see the old you. The you who was a bully to other kids and got away with it because of negligent teachers and adults. The you who was a villain! And while you're a fucking powderkeg at the best of times, you keep getting more and more pissed off because of this!"

With an unintelligible yell, Katsuki fired out a pair of explosions behind him, flinging him Gas Suit!

My eyes widened, but instead of running I stood my ground this time, expecting the right to be a feint for the left – which Bakugou quickly proved – which means he'll go for the back, so I spin on the spot to face him only to see another explosion as Bakugou lets out the counter explosion at a different angle, sending him back up! He's going from above!

I hiss in pain as the explosion slams down into me, my hands reaching up to grab him and barely missing as Bakugou takes to the air, his explosions pushing him up higher and higher. "Damnit Gas Suit! You weren't meant to make this fight so annoying!" Bakugou declared… but he's holding back a smile even so. "Enough messing around!"

He was messing around before? Or is that Bakugou just messing around? I legitimately can't tell.

This was it. It wasn't that shitty nerd, but Gas Suit had pissed him off enough. But even so, even ignoring everything he was saying, Gas Suit hit like Weird Hair did, and the fact he'd been slammed into the arena a couple of times and forced to use another big explosive burst as well as Stun Grenade… he couldn't just let this drag out.

Katsuki crossed both of his arms in front of him… and let out an explosive burst that sent him spinning in the air. And then another. And another, rapid-fire explosions that sent him back and forth, building up speed and force so that a swirling vortex of smoke surrounded him.

I let out an audible gasp as Bakugou builds up a very familiar move, and immediately start to build up Nebula Gas into the pipes, but I don't know if I can make it-!

Katsuki swung his arms forward-

-I swung my arms down-

And two words were heard until the arena briefly went white.

"Howitzer IMPACT!"

The smoke from a Howitzer Impact didn't clear too quickly. But it blanketed the field, stopping anyone from being able to see a thing. The first people in the area to be shown were Midnight and Cementoss, the latter of which was standing up and prepared to personally escort either boy to the Nurse's Office – Bakugou's attack had been too quick to block – and the former of which was clearly clinging to her stage again. The force of that Howitzer had almost as much force as Midoriya and Todoroki's final clash, it was insane!

Next, the wind blew, and Bakugou emerged from the smoke, unsteadily on his feet, clutching one arm with the other, heavily panting as he did. He didn't even try to form a spark to make another explosion… one of his arms felt like it had been pushed to a breaking point.

Finally, the rest of the smoke was blown away by another breeze… and revealing Nebulous Andros, standing exactly where he had been before, a light amount of Nebula Gas issuing from the pipes, and both cords firmly embedded into the arena to anchor him there. The visor of the 'suit' was cracked and the whole form looked slightly scorched… but he still stood.

With a sound like a rattling gasp, the form almost seemed to dissolve off of Andros as he took a step forward, revealing a bruised, battered, but still standing student underneath. Bakugou and Andros both locked eyes… and started to move. Bakugou on steady feet, Andros using unstable bursts of Nebula Gas to push himself forward, his legs seeming to stumble over themselves. Bakugou let go of his more injured arm and balled his fist, Andros doing the same as both swung at each other-

And as they did, Bakugou got to see Andros eyes cloud, Bakugou's fist swinging wide as that head lolled to one side, Andros' own punch hitting Bakugou head-on. There wasn't much force behind it, not after Andros had passed out. But it was enough.

Bakugou felt his legs give out on him, his body falling backwards and landing in a heap on the arena, his more injured right arm not moving and his left barely. Andros had flat out passed out.

Midnight walked over to the two, slowly looking them over… and raised her hand. "Neither Nebulos nor Bakugou are able to continue the battle! This match is a draw!"

And the crowd roared in cheers.