Chapter 6:

Inko was the first to move, hitting Demeter with a blow to the head. The goddess was pushed back by the punch, but she continued to slice and dice with her scythe. The goddess slashed, but Inko dodged and countered. Another punch to the goddess' liver and another barrage of fists to the face.

"That's it." Demeter's scythe separated itself back into two sickles. The goddess' dress turned green once again and released pheromones. "Lulling Spring."

Inko's movements slowed down as she began experiencing peace of mind caused by Demeter's power. The boxer noticed this and shook off the effect through sheer force of will. She continued hitting Demeter with all her might, determined to win. The goddess realized that she truly needs to use the same power that killed Hyperion.

Her form began changing, and the entire arena suddenly felt all the four seasons at once. Demeter's dress broke off into pieces and rebuilt itself into an armour made for war. It was the goddess' most powerful version. Similar, yet different. Gentle, yet warlike. Motherly, yet deadly. The gauntlets and boots of the armour were coated with rose thorns. The chest plate had her symbol, the Wheat, embedded on it. Its colour constantly changes to match the fluctuation of the seasons in this form.

"Four Seasons: Ceres" The goddess changed her stance, more fitting of a warrior. Inko responded with her own stance. Tension rose between the crowd. The needle that was Inko broke through the bubble of tension first by punching a tree at an angle to make it fall on Demeter.

Demeter reacted quickly, with the swing of her sickles and causing it to grow, burn, decay, and freeze all at the same time. Inko knew it wouldn't work, but the distraction was enough for her to go in and punch the goddess again. Despite wearing the armour, the boxer's attacks were still affecting the Goddess of Seasons. Golden blood spewed out of Demeter's mouth from Inko's stomach punch.

Inko, however, was not okay. She could still feel the burning sensation of Demeter's sickles. It was hard to ignore, but she wasn't a World Champion for nothing. She placed her focus instead on dealing more damage to the goddess. She hoped to end it before she ran out of time.

"Inko Midoriya is not relenting from her attacks! Demeter is doing the same, swinging and slashing her sickles!" Hermes' glass now has cracks on it, with the god of speed excited to see how this fight would end.

It was a beautiful and brutal dance between the two. Swaying around attacks and hitting their own. There was no clear winner yet with how both fighters are slowly wearing the other down. Demeter kept creating more vines to hold on to Inko, weakening the boxer's punch. Inko didn't relent, leaving dents all over the goddess' armour.

"CMON MOM! FIGHT ON!" Boxing Izuku yelled as loud as he can, hoping that his mom would hear his cheers. The other Izukus joined along with his cheers, wanting Inko to win. "PLEASE LIVE ON!"

"MOTHER!" Persephone, for the first time in eons, felt something other than resentment towards Demeter. It didn't matter to her now if they had a bitter relationship. She simply wants to see her mother be okay. Hades cheered along with his wife.

In the gods' waiting room, Zagreus was watching the fight silently. His eyebrows were furrowed and his fists were balled tightly. "Come on, grandmother."

Both mothers heard the cheers of their children. That's all they needed to be motivated.

"Give up, already." Demeter goaded Inko, hoping to break the boxer's spirit. Inko didn't listen. She kept punching and taking slashes to multiple parts of her body. Both fighters were bleeding everywhere. Demeter from internal bleeding and Inko from external bleeding.

"What kind of mother would I be if I left my child to cry?" Inko answered the goddess. Demeter agreed with the fighter and kept attacking. The vines were no longer sprouting from the ground to hold Inko back. Demeter was too busy hacking and slashing away at the boxer. Her head was pulled again into a punch, but she gritted her teeth and head-butted the fist with full-force, breaking Inko's bones in her left hand. Demeter's face was no better, experiencing a skull fracture from the attack.

Inko grunted in the pain, but she let her adrenaline dull it. Even when it was broken, she kept punching. The sheer force of their combat destroyed the surrounding plants, leaving only a small crater in their wake.

"This is one of the most beautiful set of fisticuffs I have ever seen." A tear dripped down Don Frye's cheek. Yoshihiro Takayama felt the same way, being reminded of the fight he had with his friend when they were both alive.

"This is some good shit right here." Bellona, the Goddess of War, was also in tears alongside Pele, who was crying lava.

The audience finally started noticing something different. Inko was no longer hitting Demeter, and yet, she managed to harm the goddess. Nobody knew how this could happen. At least, the people who weren't from the MHA universe. Dr. Garaki stood up in excitement.

"It's happening! For someone who never had a quirk, they're experiencing an awakening!" The doctor jumped in joy of witnessing such a thing. Boxing Izuku heard it and was confused.

"Hey, don't you have these quirks in your world? What's an awakening?" He asked Other Izuku.

"Oh, when the right conditions are met, usually extremely stressful situations and such, the quirk awakens to give a permanent upgrade to itself. It basically unlocks the potential locked within the quirk itself. Most people never experience it, but the ones who do became more powerful than they originally were." Other Izuku explained to Boxing Izuku. Everybody in the audience looked on to see Demeter slowly being pushed out of range.

Demeter realized this herself and teleported to a tree stump behind Inko, slashing the boxer's back with a cross slash. Inko cried out in pain, but that also let out a shockwave that threw the goddess into the air. Inko's back felt like hell. It's a constant cycle of decay, frostbite, burn, and bliss at the same time. Her back would freeze suddenly before burning up, only for the pain to disappear and return as it eats away at her. Much like All Might, she's turning to dust.

"Dammit!" She caught the goddess in the air with an uppercut boosted by the pull and push of her quirk. She pulled at Demeter's head, keeping the goddess in the air while she hit her with a combo of punches. Inko was already bleeding from the mouth. She's already beyond her limit. Demeter knows it. She knows it. Demeter knows she knows it. She knows Demeter knows she knows Demeter knows it.

It was there that Demeter activated her secret technique.

"Four Seasons: After Effect." The pain from all the wounds inflicted by Demeter's weapon worsened, making Inko stop her punches. She screamed in agony while Demeter landed on the ground, also kneeling in pain from Inko's attack. "Stop resisting! You can no longer fight!"

"WIN!" Persephone and Boxing Izuku yelled at the same time, desperate to see their moms live. Inko didn't respond. She wasn't moving. Hermes was about to announce the winner until he saw a twitch from the boxer. When he looked closely, her irises were colourless, as if her life already left her. It didn't matter since what happens next shocked Hermes, who assumed Inko was already dead.

"Not. Yet." Inko, or whatever was left of her, said defiantly. The husk stood up, ready to fight one last time. Demeter had no choice but to follow suit.

"Dammit all!" Demeter began spinning, creating a whirlwind with her sickles, gathering the power of all seasons. This was an ultimate move she only thought of now. It is her tribute to Inko Midoriya. "Get ready."

Inko did the same, cartoonishly winding both her arms and increasing her last attack's momentum. Demeter's spin stopped just as Inko finished doing the same thing.

"Mother Knows Best!" The moment the goddess felt the pull of Inko's quirk, she braced herself as she went for her last move. Inko punched the goddess as hard as she could with both her fists while Demeter hooked the sickles to Inko's side, ripping off chunks of flesh, much to Boxing Izuku's horror.

Double Windmill Fists vs Mother Knows Best

The two fists collided with Demeter's face, breaking it entirely. The goddess dropped the sickles from the sheer force of the last punch and sent her through multiple trees, reaching the wall of the arena. Her impact left a hole in the wall. She slid down, unmoving.

"It's over! Inko Mi- wait, why isn't Demeter fading away?!" The human audience's cheers were instantly silenced by Hermes' commentary. Brigid, the god of healing, was quickly sent down to check on Demeter. He then told the crowd that she was merely knocked unconscious by the punch.

"No!" To Boxing Izuku's horror, Inko Midoriya has begun fading away into the dust, much similar to All Might from the first match. "MOM!"

He had to be stopped from jumping down by the other Izukus, who were crying as well. Realizing he can't come down to at least see her off, he punched the floor and left a small crater in his grief, still crying while watching his mother fade away.

Persephone was on her knees, supported by her husband, Hades. She sighed in relief, knowing her mother would be safe. She finally stood up and looked sadly at the opposite side of the arena, watching the person who lost their mother. "Hades, I hate this tournament."

"I know, honey. I know."

"AND THE WINNER OF THE SECOND MATCH OF THE ARCHIVED END!" Hermes announced loudly, while the gods cheered for another win. Demeter finally woke up and stood, with support from Brigid.

"DEMETER!"

Match 2
Demeter vs Inko Midoriya
Winner: Demeter
Match Time Length: 15 minutes 20 seconds
Deciding Move: Mother Knows Best
Gods 2 - 0 Void

Who shall be fighting next?