Chapter Twentyfive - SILENCE: Izuku vs Shinso

"The finals you've all been waiting for are finally starting! Let's get on to match number one!"

As Izuku walked out onto the field, the pressure from the cheering crowds felt more intense than it had been before, likely due to the fact that all eyes were on him and his opponent only.

"He's surprised everyone with two first place finishes so far— So what's with that face? From the Support Course, Izuku Midoriya!"

There was no way to calm his nerves completely, so Izuku resorted to the best smile he could manage, though it ended up making him look even more nervous.

"VERSUS—- Well, he hasn't done much to stand out yet… From the General Studies course, Hitoshi Shinso!"

Shinso had his hands in his pockets as he strode out onto the field nonchalantly, looking like he was bored of the situation.

"The rules are simple! Force your opponent out of bounds or immobilize them. You can also win by forcing your Opponent to say 'I give up'!"

The two opponents stepped up onto the concrete arena. Izuku began to stretch his arms as he focused his gaze on Shinso, the boy returning it with a small grin.

I've never had to fight someone like this, Izuku thought. One on one… The only goal to defeat them.

Izuku cracked his knuckles. He was wearing the green cloth gloves he utilized to power his Flow, but not the device itself. The gloves had distinct vein-like black cords that would normally hook up to the device. In fact, he had none of his inventions with him, which drew some chatter amongst the crowd who were expecting zany things from Izuku at this point.

"We've got our very own Recovery Girl waiting on standby, so put your morals and ethics aside for a moment! Though, of course, anything life-threatening is crap! Heroes should catch villains using their fists!"

To the side of the stage, the Hero Cementoss created a throne-like chair out of the cement, sitting upon it.

"I'll be stepping in if things go too far," Cementoss stated.

Izuku took a deep breath, closing his eyes to focus himself for a moment, until Shinso began to speak.

"Making them say 'I give up' huh… This is a fight to test the strength of your spirit," Shinso began to say. "If you know what you want for the future, then you can't worry about appearances."

"Ready…!"

As Present Mic was preparing to start, Izuku watched as Shinso's expression turned dark, his grin fading.

"Those guys were in the Hero class, yet they were stupid enough to care about their pride. Don't you think that's idiotic?"

Izuku clutched his fists tightly, glaring at the boy ahead of him.

"Start!"

"You want to get in as badly as I do, you're tired of people judging you," Shinso spoke, opening his arms in a friendly gesture. "You don't want to be trash like those in the Hero class, nor as worthless as the Support class, do you?"

Izuku took a step forward, gritting his teeth. He wasn't going to let Shinso get away with insulting those he looked up to and those who believed in him. This was only one of many battles Izuku's has had to face, so he wouldn't stumble now.

Thank you everyone, for everything so far...I won't let you down!

"What did you say—"

Izuku stopped in mid-sentence. stumbling forward a step, his expression going blank. His mind went fuzzy, feeling as though he had been pulled away from his own body with no control over it.

Shinso smirked, sliding his hands into his pockets.

Up in the stands, everyone watched on in confusion at this development. Shoda stood up, holding his head in his hands.

"Tetsutetsu! Didn't you warn him?"

Nearby, the silver-haired boy was sitting with his arms crossed firmly. He nodded.

"Then what's he doing?!" Shoda sighed and sat back down.

"He's facing his problem head on! Just like I would," Tetsutetsu stated, hitting his own chest.

"I'm not sure you're the best example to follow," Kendo commented from nearby.

Present Mic began to shout, "Uhh we started already! Midoriya?! He's already frozen up during the beginning of the match!"

Down on the field, Shinso let out a relieved sigh, before stating, "Turn around and walk out of bounds."

Izuku could only watch as his body began to move in its own. His clenched fists uncurled and he turned, slowly beginning to lumber towards the edge of the stage.

I can't stop myself! Izuku thought as he couldn't struggle at all over the hold on himself. So this is what Shoda and Ojiro experienced… I get why they were so shaken up…

Of course, thanks to Tetsutetsu's long and overly confusing explanation, Izuku was able to know how Shinso's Quirk activated. He could also tell from his brief encounters with Shinso that he was the type of person who wanted to make a show of his power, and not bother getting his hands dirty if he didn't have to.

He's just going to make me walk out, just like I thought…

To get more information, they had consulted Ojiro, who was still sulking over the entire thing. He has explained how, once he bumped shoulders with somebody, it snapped him out of Shinso's Quirk.

Thus, Izuku got the idea and decided to test it out. Shinso was content to merely watch Izuku leave the ring, which gave Izuku's plan enough time to occur.

Zap! Izuku's gloves sent a shock into him, jolting him back to reality. He gasped, taking a step forward, clutching at his chest as the feeling of returning was unsettling.

"How—" Shinso's eyes widened as he watched Izuku turn to him.

Izuku grinned. "I'm more relentless than you think—"

Instantly, Izuku went back into the trance. Everyone gasped as his face went blank again, Shoda and Ojiro in the crowd both shooting up out of their chairs.

"You idiot!" The two both yelled in unison amongst the hushed crowd.

Zap! The gloves shocked Izuku again, this time the return wasn't as much of a surprise as he looked across at Shinso.

"I told you before... I'm going to become a Hero," Izuku stated confidently.

Izuku had messed with his Flow control gloves to shock himself every five seconds, unless his fists were clenched to break the circuit. He wasn't sure it would work, and he didn't have to fall for Shinso's Quirk at all if he could help it— But it was all for his cause.

Shinso took his hands from his pockets, glaring at Izuku. "Doesn't it make you angry though? The way people look down on you all the time?"

Taking a breath, Izuku began to walk towards Shinso calmly.

"Amazing! Midoriya manages to break out of Shinso's spell! But what will happen now—"

There was suddenly a loud noise like feedback on a mic that echoed around the stands for a moment. Up in the booth, Present Mic tapped his microphone, confused.

From then on, the crowd could hear the voices of the two combatants down below. This was due to Mei hijacking the system for the microphone under Izuku's shirt, originally something they planned to use if Izuku fought against Todoroki so he could truly announce his intentions to the world—

...But of course, the mic turned on accidentally at this moment, likely from the electricity jolting into Izuku.

"It's upsetting isn't it, not having a Quirk?" Shinso grinned a bit, feeling he might have something to set Izuku off. "In this world with so many incredible powers, why you? I bet you think that all the time."

The crowd began to talk, surprised by what they were hearing. The other students watching in the crowd were surprised as well, except for Class 1-H and a select few others who had already known.

"Midoriya is Quirkless…?" Tetsutetsu reached out and clutched the chair in front of his tightly. "Why wouldn't he ever tell me that?!"

"I feel like your relationship is a bit one-sided," Shoda commented quietly.

Where Class 1-A was sitting, Bakugo watched with narrow eyes. Such news was old to him, he had always picked on Izuku for being powerless to do anything against him. Yet here he was, dominating the Sports Festival and taking the fame that Bakugo had always wished to have.

"That Midoriya is really amazing then," the nearby girl from 1-A named Ochaco Uraraka said with a smile. "To be doing all this without a Quirk."

Iida beside her nodded. "I could tell since I first met Midoriya that he wasn't all talk. If anyone can do it… I believe he can."

Bakugo scowled, letting his anger fester in silence. Though he was known to have an explosive temper at times, the boy had generally been able to keep his cool for the first part of the school year. However, when Deku was involved, something inside of him just clicked…

"Hey! Someones hijacked the mics! This is my commentary-"

Mei slunk down into her seat a bit, nervously smiling. Whoops!~

Down below, Izuku continued his pace towards Shinso. The two of them didn't seem to notice their voices carrying out into the stands.

"It pisses you off, right?" Shinso was looking a bit worried as he tried to reason with his opponent. "Or are you okay with being called weak?"

Izuku finally responded, saying, "Of course I'm not—"

As Izuku fell into the trance, stopping his movement, Shinso acted quickly, changing his game plan. He ran forward, counting the seconds as he grew close. Sure enough, after five seconds, Izuku had suddenly returned to his senses.

Whatever trick he's pulling, I'll catch him when he slips up! Shinso thought angrily, sliding to a halt, keeping the few yards of distance that was left between them.

"What the heck is going on down there?! Are they afraid to attack each other?"

"You think you can mess around with my Quirk to make me look bad huh," Shinso commented. "Can a Hero really be that vain?"

Izuku shook his head. "It's not like that at all—"

Once again, the boy got caught up in Shinso's trance, so he rushed in again, reaching Izuku in about two seconds. Shinso grabbed him by the shirt and punched him hard with his right fist.

"Just give it up already," Shinso told the boy as he reared his fist back again. Izuku was awoken by the shock of the first hit, his eyes returning to life.

Izuku brought his arm up to block Shinso's punch, but was suddenly greeted by a knee to the stomach. Gasping from the hit, Izuku then felt as Shinso grappled him and began to push him backwards, trying to get him out of bounds.

"You can't make a damned fool out of me! That won't solve anything for either of us," Shinso grumbled loudly.

He just doesn't get it… But I can't explain it without his Quirk going off!

Frustrated, Izuku held his ground, sliding to a halt as he delivered an elbow hard down onto Shinso's back, making him loosen his grip, allowing Izuku to push him off.

"You're going to lose, Midoriya!"

Shinso stayed close, coming in with a right hook. Izuku was able to duck under the attack with ease, sweeping Shinso's legs out from under him with one swift leg motion. He fell to the concrete hard and groaned, quickly trying to get up— However, Izuku quickly got on top of him, holding his shirt and readying a fist to strike him.

"Midoriya overpowers Shinso! Is this going to be the end already?"

Shinso was breathing heavily from the exchange. He chuckled and opened his mouth to speak, but Izuku cut him off.

"Just shut up already!" Izuku glared down at Shinso, holding his fist back at the ready. "I can't answer your questions when you keep using your Quirk!"

"Ehh? Isn't that the point of the battle?"

As Present Mic questioned Izuku's logic, the boy sighed, trying to compose himself a bit.

"I have a lot of people that believe in me! It's been tough, but I've worked hard to try and get the recognition I wanted," Izuku exclaimed. "I'm going to become a Hero… But that doesn't mean you can't too! Not everybody is out to get you!"

Shinso looked away for a moment, noticing a few familiar figures in the stands not far off. He recognized them as his General Studies classmates, people he had never considered nor treated as friends before.

Yet here they were, cheering for him.

"Shinso! Get up and beat his ass!"

"You're making us proud!"

"Go Shinso, Go!"

It was confusing for Shinso, who felt like he had to prove to the world that he shouldn't be judged unfairly. As he looked back up at Izuku, the determination in the quirkless boy's face suddenly became a symbol of what could be—

Proof that he could change how people viewed him.

Shinso slowly opened his mouth to speak. Izuku tensed up, his fist shaking a bit as he didn't want to hit Shinso while he was down, but he wasn't sure what else to do if he wasn't getting through.

Now they want to cheer me on, because of what? Shinso thought. I've done nothing impressive, I…

He recalled his middle school years, full of being ostracized for his Quirk. Being told by his peers that he was destined to become a villain with such a power, and often catching blame for things he had no part of.

I wanted to show everyone that I can become a Hero… But maybe I was wrong, Shinso thought, closing his eyes.

Then he spoke up:

"I give up…"

Izuku's eyes widened in surprise, and he let go of Shinso, standing over him. "Shinso…"

Midnight raised a hand, the handcuff-bracelet on her wrist jingling. "Shinso has conceded the match! Midoriya will move on to Round Two!"

Shinso slowly got up to his feet, his eyes downcast towards the concrete floor. The crowd began to cheer loudly, and Izuku gazed all around at them, finding himself smiling at the praise.

"Wow! The first person into the next stage is the Support star Izuku Midoriya! That was a pretty boring first match, but everyone give them a round of applause!"

As the crowd applauded them on, Midnight had the two face each other and gave slight bows to show good sportsmanship. However, Shinso had a disappointed look on his face as he stared down at the ground.

"Shinso… Why do you want to become a Hero?"

Shinso looked up at Izuku, seemingly a bit stunned by the question. He then turned away and began to walk off.

"You can't help the things you long for," he replied simply. Izuku watched as Shinso descended the stairs, unsure of what he could say to him in that moment.

No matter what I say right now, I don't know if it'll help… What he needs is…

Izuku looked towards the stands. There, many of the General Studies students were crowding up towards the railing, gazing down at their classmate as he left the concrete stage.

"Shinso! You did awesome!"

The boy looked up, surprised by those words. His classmates were all smiling down at him, a more surreal sight than he could have ever imagined.

"You went toe-to-toe with the person whose won both the previous events," one of his classmates said. "You're the pride of the General Studies!"

More cheers and calls came from Shinso's classmates, as well as chatter from Heroes in the stands, who commented on how his Quirk had high potential and might be wasted outside of the Hero classes.

Izuku watched the scene, smiling and remembering how it felt when his own classmates and friends cheered him on.

What Shinso needed… Was for his peers to believe in him!

Shinso slid his hands into his pockets, slouching a bit as he didn't want people to see his face, where a rare legitimate smile has formed.

"Midoriya… Even if it didn't work out this time, I'm not giving up," he spoke for Izuku to hear. "I'm going to get into the Hero class, get licensed… And then I'll become a better Hero than all of you!"

As Shinso turned his head to glance back at Izuku, the green-haired boy nodded and smiled.

"Yeah—" Izuku quickly covered his mouth instinctively. However, be didn't feel Shinso's Quirk activate.

Shinso chuckled a bit. "People are always cautious when talking to me. Don't go losing in such an unseemly way."

With that, the boy finally exited the field. Izuku lowered his hand, unable to help from smiling, noticing it quickly.

I couldn't smile that entire match… I guess what he told me hit close to home. But I'm glad things became this way in the end.

Izuku was greeted by lots of cheers and praise from his classmates, who practically swamped him as he entered the stands. Luckily, Ken came over and created a small taser from his finger, zapping Izuku in the chest where the mic was to shut it off before anyone realized where the feedback during the match had come from.

"G-Guys—" Izuku struggled a bit before his classmates finally let him be. He let out a sigh as he sat beside Shiro and Ken. "That was a bit rough…"

"Well, you're the one who didn't want to take anything with you," Ken pointed out.

"You could've beaten the snot out of him if you'd taken your Flow with you," Shiro said, punching and kicking the air.

Izuku shook his head. "I guess I wanted to win this fight with my own strength," he said, gazing down at his hands.

Shiro scoffed. "Are your inventions not a part of your strength?"

"He's probably thinking deeper than you can fathom," Ken pointed out, making Shiro scowl.

"Where's Mei at, by the way?" Izuku looked around, not seeing the girl anywhere.

"Where do you think?" Ken shrugged. "Working like usual."

Izuku got up and began to walk off, but Shiro grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Hey! Yuki's about to be up," she exclaimed. "You gotta watch!"

He looked down towards the field, then over at Shiro. "Don't worry, I'll be back in a few minutes. I'm sure it won't be over by then."

With that, Izuku headed out of the stands, going to search for Mei.

"It's time for the second match of the finals to begin!"

Present Mic could be heard announcing Yuki and Todoroki's names as the battle was set to start. Izuku was practically dragging Mei through the halls, the girl not wanting to stop her work.

"I-It just needs a few more tweaks—"

"We're going to cheer on Yuki, and that's final," Izuku said, struggling to pull her along.

"But this baby is going to be so cool! You won't believe the adjustments I made to the Drift to—"

Mei was cut off as the entire stadium shook. They both stumbled a bit, looking around in confusion.

Izuku and Mei quickly ran to the stands, joining their classmates to see what had happened.

"W-What…? How is that…" Izuku was at a loss for words at what he was seeing.

Half of the stadium was covered by a giant blast of solid ice, the people in the stands only a few feet away from being able to touch it. The ice shot up well above the Sports Stadium's walls, making for an incredible sight even for people outside the stadium.

Down on the center stage, the figure of Todoroki could be seen looking at the ice, where a person was mostly encased in it…

And that person was Yuki.

To Be Continued

Next Chapter: SPARK - Shiro vs. Shiozaki