It became almost immediately obvious that the first obstacle was just to get through the tunnel, onto the shoved themselves through the tunnel squishing into one another. Ayumu could see the end of the tunnel over the heads of those around her. The marbles in her pocket pushed painfully into her leg as she tried to push her way through. She took a deep breath and grazed her fingers along the exposed skin of her peers' arms and set them into the image of the beach. There were some soft cries of surprise, but those who her touch affected stopped squirming.

The cool air brushed across her face, almost stinging in comparison to the warmth the sun was giving. The waves crashed loudly against the shoreline, seagulls squawked overhead. Ayumu admired the scene for a moment before closing her eyes and pulling herself out of the image. She knew it wouldn't hold. She needed to move quickly.

Ayumu pushed through, sending more people to the illusion she had set up as she wiggled her way through. The more people she touched, the more the illusion felt faint in her mind. She felt the dull ache in her head that would surely turn into a full blown migraine if she didn't stop soon. As soon as her feet hit the dirt outside of the tunnel she turned back and pulled the marbles from her pocket, throwing them back toward her classmates.

As she did, a gust of frozen air hit her, knocking her backwards. She hit the ice just to see Todoroki, Yaoyarozu, Bakugo, Kirishima, and Aoyama flying past her. She slid across the ice while trying desperately to get herself back to her feet.

"You want some help?"

Ayumu looked up to see Shinso sitting on top of the shoulders of some of his classmates. His hand was outstretched toward her. Ayumu paused for a second before reaching her hand up to him.

"Sure-" As soon as she spoke, she knew her mistake.

Her brain was sent into a fog. The noise of her peers dissipated at once and the world went silent. She could hear only Shinso's voice commanding her. Her vision blurred, nothing was in focus. Her feet moved without her permission. She couldn't tell where she was going, only Shinso's voice was clear. Go faster, turn left, watch out. After what felt like no time at all, the fog cleared.

Her vision returned and the sound of the other students came with it. In front of her was a huge drop, she back peddled quickly and looked around. How had she gotten here? Her gaze fell on Shinso standing not too far away, obviously assessing the situation for himself, deciding what to do next. The realization dawned on her.

"He used me." The ache that filled her chest was something she had never felt before. She felt like throwing up.

"Out of my way!" Bakugo's voice broke through her thoughts as he soared over the fall pit, practically on Toderoki's heels.

As Ayumuwatched Bakugo hit the ground on the other side before blasting himself farther ahead, she felt a renewed sense of motivation. She needed to push Shinso out of her mind and focus. She had worked too hard over the last two weeks to let herself fail because of this.

The fall obstacle dropped farther than she could see, although she suspected if she did fall she would probably be okay. The school wouldn't make anything that dangerous… she hoped. There were places Ayumu could probably try to jump to to make it across, raised platforms that sprinkled their way across the gap, but the easiest route seemed to be the ropes tied between the sides. After a moment's hesitation, she decided on the easiest way. She grabbed onto the rope closest to her and flipped herself upside down before she started shimmying her way across. Mentally screaming to herself to not look down. As she reached the farthest wall, she realized her main problem now was how to get herself up onto the edge.

Squeezing tightly with her hands, Ayumu let her legs fall from the rope, leaving herself dangling. Her heart was pounding in her ears as she swung herself on the ropes before catching the heel of her shoe on the edge of the cliff. She threw her other foot up and awkwardly wiggled her lower half onto the cliffs edge before pulling herself up. Ayumu wouldn't be getting any points for her gracefulness, but at least she'd made it. She pushed herself up and started on her run toward the final obstacle.

She could hear Present Mic's announcement about the Minefield as she rounded the corner of the arena. Once she hit the edge of the mindfield she stopped. Mines were going off left and right, throwing students off balance and forcing them to set off another stared at the ground for a moment,coming up with a plan to make it across, and then reached into her pocket only to find it empty.

"There's no way I used all of my marbles during Todoroki's ice attack." She mumbled to herself. Her heart sank slightly as she realized that there was a portion of the race she couldn't remember. Shinso could have made her use all of her support items.

She had to think of something quickly, others were already on the field. She glanced at the ground again. She could just barely make out the places where the mines were buried. Walking through normally would be a nightmare, there were too many of them. But what if she didn't walk normally?

"I could still use accuracy." She whispered to herself.

Ayumu took a few steps back and focused on a spot that lay between two mines before running forward and throwing herself at the spot. She braced for impact. But landed gently without setting off the bomb. She laughed to herself before throwing herself forward again and again. It worked well, she just had to keep her focus. She kept going until she hit the ice path Todoroki must have made for himself and then used it to run forward and out of the minefield. The ice was dirty and covered in footprints of other students who had run through the field before her.

She ran as quickly as she could, breathing heavily as she did. She felt relief as she saw the tunnel to enter the stadium once again. She rushed into the dark tunnel and out into the brightness of the other end before stopping to catch her breath.

She looked carefully at the scoreboard. She hadn't made it into the next round. She felt numb. She must have taken too long getting through the minefield. Maybe if she had had her support items… She looked toward where Shinso stood in the crowd. He had made it into the next round, but had he sabotaged her in the process? She followed the other students who hadn't qualified off the field while Midnight began explaining the rules for the next round.

Ayumu went back to the Class 1-A waiting room to wait for the Sports Festival to end. The door echoed as it shut behind her. She felt her chest squeeze tightly and her eyes stung with tears she tried to keep back, but they fell anyway. Her body was racked by sobs she couldn't seem to turn off and the echo of her cries just made it worse. She hugged herself tightly, digging her nails into her arms.

After what felt like forever, Ayumu's breathing began to even. She wiped her eyes and left the waiting room to find the bathroom. She shut the bathroom door tightly and locked it in place. She looked at her face in the mirror. Her eyes were red and her skin was blotchy. The feeling of betrayal weighed her down like she had shoved bricks in her pockets. She washed her face with cold water as Present Mic announced that it was time for a lunch break over the speakers. She blew her nose in a paper towel and washed her hands before checking her face again. Her eyes were still red, but she looked a little more presentable.

Once Ayumu was satisfied with her appearance she walked out of the bathroom and let the door shut behind her. She turned and bumped into another body.

"Oh sorry!" She looked up and took a step back in surprise. Before her, in full costume, stood the flame hero, Endeavor.