Alrighty, Chapter 9 is up and running! Things are certainly gonna start diverging from the normal here by bits and pieces at a time. I have no idea what is about to start happening from here on out, but let's find out together, shall we?

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Kytheon glanced sideways at the members of his team as they all stood there proudly with the victory under their belt. He smiled at how effectively they had all worked together in the event, and that his strategy ultimately succeeded.

"Even though we won, it felt like we were cutting things a little close at the end there…" Momo said, and Kytheon nodded.

"We did cut rather close to the time limit with that event, but Tenya here managed to close that gap quickly!" he declared, clapping a hand on the speedster's shoulder. "In fact, I'm really proud of how everyone performed here. Each member was imperative to our success." He said, giving a thumbs up and a grin, to which tenya nodded, Momo gave a slightly less sure smile, and Shoto continued staring straight ahead.

Kytheon glanced around at the other teams. Team Bakugo was unsurprisingly there, and with his team getting the ten million, there was no real surprise that Katsuki had clinched second place with ease. Though it certainly seemed that Katsuki felt like he came in last judging by those ravings. Team… Shinsou? There was that tired looking purple guy… He managed to make it this far? Quite impressive, but it seemed like the other members of his team were just confused as to why they were there. He had spent enough time with Jace to recognize inflicted mental confusion. That was a concern. He was not exactly strong against assaults of the mind, so he would need to keep an eye on Hitoshi. And hey, Izuku's team made it as well! Good on them for not losing out on the final round. It appeared that everybody was now heading out to get lunch and prepare for the final rounds. He saw Shoto moving over to Izuku, and while a part of him wanted to go make sure everything remained civil, he trusted his friend to handle things on his own. Sometimes people needed to grow without him being there. He also saw Ochako speaking with Tenya, so he turned to Momo.

"Wanna go grab some food?" He asked with a big smile on his face. She nodded.

"Sure!"

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The cafeteria was really bustling with activity as the two of them grabbed some seats and sat down with trays quite heavily loaded with food. Kytheon raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't really expect to see you get that much food… something involving your quirk I guess?" He asked, tilting his head as he began chowing down. He had discovered that he was really starting to appreciate the massive variety of food they had here. After surviving so long on assorted militaristic rations, the ability to choose was something Kytheon might never take for granted.

"Yeah, since I make objects from my body, the more I eat the more I can make. That way I can be top of my game in the competition."

Kytheon nodded. "Understandable. I just eat this much to keep my body running." He laughed. "Though having the variety in foods is certainly a nice way to spice it up. Much better than what I would usually eat."

"You know, I've been meaning to ask you about your home. I admit that since I had never heard of Akros, I went and did some research. As someone who is always wanting more knowledge, it's kinda in my blood." She chuckled, looking a little embarrassed about this confession. Kytheon froze momentarily.

"And uhh.. What did you find?" He probed cautiously.

"Absolutely nothing. And I tried checking out the sister cities you mentioned when talking about the games, Setessa and Meletis? I couldn't find anything about any of them, either. I even tried searching up the God you had mentioned, but there are no records of an Iroas in any major religion anywhere."

Now it was Kytheon's turn to chuckle awkwardly. "So uh…. You were… thorough…" He hesitantly started, unsure where to go, setting his utensils down and drinking from his water glass.

"Kytheon, I want you to be honest with me, where are you from? Who even are you?" Momo asked, looking as serious as she did when delivering her lecture quite a ways back in that exercise when they had worked together for the first time. Kytheon sighed and looked at the clock. Still about forty five minutes before the end of lunch… no way to dodge out of it this time. He rubbed his temples.

"Alright, but let's go somewhere where we won't be heard. Just because I'm telling you doesn't mean I want everyone here to know. Alright?" He asked, looking her right in the eye. She nodded stoically, understanding the want for security.

They finished their meals quickly and got up, finding a secluded little alcove where they could speak with fair certainty that they wouldn't be overheard. Kytheon took a moment to gather his thoughts about what to tell and what to keep quiet.

"Alright, so we don't have enough time for me to tell you my whole life's story before we need to report back for the tournament. I will tell you some of the basics, and we can find some other time where I can tell you everything. Let me start by saying that everything you hear here will sound absolutely ridiculous to you."

"Kytheon, quirks make everything already pretty believable-"

"No, trust me. You've seen nothing yet. Everything I have told you and everyone else has been true, with the exception of my quirk." He held up a hand to stop her from interjecting. "I know you found nothing. Tell me… what do you know of the Multiverse?"

"M-multiverse? Well, I mean there are theories of parallel universes…" Momo said, putting a hand to her chin before her eyes began to widen. "You mean to tell me that the multiverse is real, and that you are from another dimension?!"

Kytheon rubbed the back of his neck. "You really are one bright student… Yes. There are things called Planes, separated by the Blind Eternities. The only things that can safely cross from plane to plane are some mechanical constructs, and people called planeswalkers."

"And you're a planeswalker then?"

"Well…" He mumbled. This was the complicated part that even he was having difficulty comprehending.

"I'm… a strange case even among Planeswalkers. You are partially correct. I was a Planeswalker. But there was a series of events that…. Well it led to my death. I died, and figured that was the end, only to wake up in a back alley several months ago. That was when I ended up on video stopping that one villain."

Momo was speechless, covering her mouth with one hand. "Oh my word…"

"Like I said, it sounds ridiculous, doesn't it."

"Well…" Momo looked at the ground. "I'll be honest. If it was coming from anyone but you, I wouldn't believe it. But you seem so virtuous, and you technically have never lied… wait you said except for your quirk. Are quirks something different where you come from?" She asked, tilting her head to one side.

"In all my travels, I have never come across quirks. This is the first plane where every individual has a very specific power like you guys have. Everywhere else we use magic. And while people have specialties, they can be taught new spells in their "color" of magic. I myself am a white aligned planeswalker." He said, calling a small ball of light in his hand, which Momo stared at in rapt focus. She was completely silent, trying to soak up as much as she could from this lesson. "I was taught by a man named Hyxus, the warden of the prison I was in for most of my childhood. He taught me how to use my hieromancy, and was the one who taught me how to use the chains."

"Wait wait, go back. You were arrested?" Momo asked, looking up at him in disbelief. Kytheon couldn't help but laugh at her incredulous gaze.

"I can see why that would not seem plausible for you… I believe the legend you have here is the western story of 'Robin Hood'. Take from the rich, give to the poor? I was young when I got orphaned. So I formed a small gang that would steal food from wealthy banquets to give to the other homeless population. 'Kytheon and his Irregulars' they called us…" He chuckled. Momo shook her head.

"Leave it to you to get arrested for trying to help people…" She said with a sigh. But she was smiling slightly. "So… you weren't lying to any of us. Just not telling the full story… I see. Of course, you realize that I now absolutely need to hear the full story of everything. I am going to hold you to that."

"Of course. It's a date!" He said, before looking up. "We had better get back to the locker room and get ready for the tournament! Let's go!" He said, starting to move quickly towards said locker room. He was unaware of a few things as he moved away. The first was the slightly blushing and overwhelmed Momo that he left behind due to his phrasing.

Secondly, he was unaware of the invisible girl around the corner that had heard them in the cafeteria and wanted to listen in. Toru felt a little bad about eavesdropping, but what she heard absolutely blew her mind. She would need to confront Kytheon about it at some point, but that would mean admitting to a very powerful person that she had been spying on him. She was just grateful that neither noticed her as she snuck away to get ready to watch the tournament with opened eyes.

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"I'm withdrawing."

That statement from behind him caused Kytheon to do a double take as he spun around to look at Mashirao. He felt the others around him doing the same.

"... What did you say?"

"I said I am withdrawing."

Kytheon took a step forward. "Why would you do that? This is one of three chances you get to really stand out to the pros, and it can determine your fate!"

Mashirao shook his head. "I barely remember anything from the cavalry battle until almost the end. I think… it was that guy's quirk."

A shadow fell across Kytheon's face as he glanced over to the purple haired boy not looking at the commotion. So he was right. Certainly a mind-melding quirk of some kind. Oh boy.

"I know that this is a great chance and that it's foolish to waste it… but everyone here competed by giving their all! I can't… I can't be up there with everyone without knowing what really happened."

Kytheon sighed. So it was like that, huh. Mashirao was feeling a bit guilty about falling victim to that guy's quirk and not being responsible for his team's victory.

"You're worrying too much about it! You should just make sure you produce results in the finals!" Toru exclaimed. Kytheon only just now noticed their outfits, but pushed it off to the side for now. Mina also chirped in from behind him.

"If you're gonna say that, I didn't do anything either."

But Kytheon could see that their words were not having the desired effect on the tailed lad. Kytheon took another slow step forward as Mashirao clasped a hand over his eyes.

"That's not it…" Kytheon could hear his voice shaking as he spoke. "I'm talking about my pride here… I can't…."

Kytheon laid a hand on Mashirao's shoulder, causing him to look up at the taller teen.

"Mashirao. You are a very honorable man. I will not try to convince you to stay. If anything… I feel you have won already. All of the pros will be looking at the podium at the end, but any who know what being a hero truly means will see this here as the mark of a true hero at heart."

"I would like to withdraw for the same reason. Regardless of ability, don't you think it goes against the goal of this sports festival for those who didn't do anything to move onto the final round?

Kytheon glanced over to see a rather short and stocky kid stepping forwards. He gave the kid a respectful nod, and he returned one as well. The Akroan teen turned to see what Midnight's judgement was about to be.

"Youthful talk like that is something… I like!"

Internally, Kytheon winced. He may have gotten desensitized to it when kicking around the apartment, but when she behaved like this in public it was just embarrassing. How does she handle it?

"Shoda! Ojiro! I accept your withdrawal! In that case, we will need to move up two people from the fifth place cavalry battle team…"

"If that's what's going to happen, then rather than us, who barely did anything during the cavalry battle, it should be them, right? The ones who fought to the end and stayed in the top, Team Tetsutetsu, right?"

Kytheon looked over at the orange haired girl who spoke up, along with her nodding teammates. How interesting. And quite honorable as well, to willingly give up their spot to a team that did really well only to lose it at the end. This B-class… they had some members more honorable than a couple of the A-class heroes in training. He would need to make sure he met some more of them and try to foster a friendship between the classes. They seemed like good company.

With those decisions out of the way, Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu and Ibara Shiozaki were moved up to join the tournament ranks. And with the drawing results in hand, the bracket was very quickly established. 'Tetsutetsu vs Eijiro… bound to be an… exuberant matchup' Kytheon thought with a slightly strained grin. 'Fumikage and Momo? Oh dear. Mina and Yuga? Hmm… might go either way, really. Hitoshi and Izuku though…' Kytheon put a knuckle in his mouth and gently bit down. 'I would hate to see my friend knocked out of the competition so soon… I hope he can figure out some form of counterplay. Mental magic has… never been my strong suit. Shoto and Hanta? I feel bad for him. Katsuki is up against… oh dear. I do hope Ochako comes out of this fine, I know she is strong but still… Tenya is up against a Mei Hatsume? With his speed, it should be over quickly…' He thought with a nod. 'And that leaves me up against Ibara. Right.'

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Kytheon did not waste any energy on the recreational events. Rather, he went into the locker rooms and began stretching. He made sure to get himself in the back corner away from any entrances so he wouldn't be distracted by anything. And with that, he stripped down to a pair of shorts and began taking long and slow deep breaths.

This whole tournament was not entirely new to him. Beyond watching the Iroan games, there was his stint in the Cabal fighting pits on Dominaria. The time he spent in there was surprisingly similar, if more bloody. The audience came for a fight, a show. And as a result, he felt he needed to give the audience here one. Besides, while the other students were his competition, they were all aiming for a higher goal: to catch the eyes of the pro heroes and score the best internship possible. So if he wanted to help his friends achieve their goals, it would be wrong to win the fights as fast as possible. There was an easy answer to win in the short-term, and there was a more entertaining option that would bring greater victories further down the road.

While fighting for amusement was not something he was altogether used to or proud of, he would do his best to not only show off his strengths, but his classmates'.

However, as he stretched, his mind began to wander to the nightmare he had not long back. The looming presence of Erebos, towering over the horizon as he stripped away his friends…

You are determined to feel the most pain, Kytheon Iora. To what end? What is it that you want, Kytheon Iora?

The voice of the god of death seemed to ring about his head, causing him to wince and press a hand to the side of his head. This question… it was tearing at him from the inside. Every answer he tried to give always ended with a booming declaration of "you lie", with no answer seeming to satisfy the eternal gaze of Erebos. Even now as he struggled with his own mind, he could hear the voice of the god echoing. Even this far from his home plane, he could not escape the question.

However, out of nowhere, a memory sprung unbidden to mind. A robe of white, a head of gold, a kneeling god.

You are one of mine, Kytheon Iora.

The image of Oketra filled his head, pressing Erebos to the back of his mind. Yes, the cat-headed goddess was right. He was one of hers. Despite the many evils and lies on the plane of Amonkhet, her teachings did not die with her. Solidarity and unity… He was one of hers. Even separated by death as they were, he could feel the warm embrace of the goddess, and her presence filled his heart. He clenched his fist, looking at it with a small smile. She was the one who was able to reignite devotion within him.

Looking up at the clock, he saw that it was about time for the first match. Standing up, he climbed back into the gym outfit he would be fighting in, rolling a wave of his heiromancy across his body. Nodding determinedly, he strode out the door to reunite with his other competitors.

At least he wouldn't die if he won this, he thought to himself grimly.

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Kytheon found himself in the stands, seated next to Tenya and Ochako, looking down at Izuku in the arena that Cementoss had constructed. Kytheon was mildly impressed by Cementoss's quirk in action, it seemed as though it was easily one of the strongest he had seen this far. However, his attention was more focused on the match down below. Hitoshi was a variable, an unknown in this situation. Someone from the general course that had managed to make it this far in the tournament, though if the evidence was to be believed, not through entirely honest means. He narrowed his eyes and rubbed his chin as he saw Hitoshi's lips moving. This was bad. He knew how Jace operated, how easy it was to slip through someone's guard and wrench control of their body out from under them. It was always both humbling and terrifying to him, how the mind mage could make anyone bend the knee with relative ease, no matter the physical might. And if he was right, everyone was about to see it.

He watched as Izuku began running towards Hitoshi while saying something, only to slow down and stop. He let out a breath and closed his eyes, sighing in defeat. This immediately caught the attention of Ochako and Tenya, who looked over at him.

"K-Kytheon? What's wrong?" Ochako asked, concern written all over her face.

"It's over. Izuku lost."

This caused them to whip back around and stare at Izuku, who stood there, unmoving with a blank look on his face.

"W-What? So soon!? How can you tell?"

"Hitoshi has a mind manipulating quirk… I can tell, one of my old friends had one as well. I first noticed it in the obstacle race in the beginning, and then again when Mashirao began talking about his experience. The whole situation had bad vibes around it. I still don't know what the trigger for it is, but I think it had something to do with what got Izuku so riled up. And now the only thing that can help Izuku is the wills of the gods." He stated, looking back down into the arena. 'Not to mention that I see now how he failed the practical exam. Brainwashing doesn't affect robots…' he thought to himself. He grit his teeth as he watched Izuku begin to slowly walk his way towards the boundaries. All of his friend's hard work… for nothing? Here?

"Come on Izuku… you can fight it…" He muttered under his breath, watching like a man watching an ember in a pile of tinder on a winter's night, praying it would catch.

And with a jolt and a gust of wind, the ember ignited into a burst of flame. Kytheon shot up from his seat with wide eyes. "He did it…." He mumbled. "Somehow by the gods he did it…" and judging by the expression, it seemed both Izuku and Hitoshi were surprised by it as well. Hitoshi was saying something again, and when Izuku clasped a hand over his mouth, it clicked. "Responding is the trigger…" he narrowed his eyes, seeing the mangled fingers. "And pain releases. Izuku used his quirk to break his own fingers, despite being under Hitoshi's control!" He blinked momentarily. "Good grief, with all this muttering I might just turn into Izuku myself. How horrifying." He said with a small smile, eliciting a small chuckle from the two people next to him.

And while the rest of the fight was fairly below-average in terms of action, Kytheon couldn't keep the impressed grin off his face. While he didn't know exactly how Izuku could have used his power while under Hitoshi's control, he couldn't not feel proud of his friend, rising to his feet and cheering alongside Ochako and Tenya.

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Kytheon was not in the least bit surprised by the fight between Hanta and Shoto's result, though he had barely managed to shield himself from the enormous wall of ice the teen had produced. But he had no time to be concerned with the overwhelming power and lack of restraint from the other teen, for he was up next. He strode proudly into the arena, waving at the crowds and trying to get them excited.

"The assassin from Class B! Pretty things have thorns, you know! From the hero course, it's Ibara Shiozaki!"

The crowd cheered as Kytheon smirked. Present Mic always had a very interesting way of putting things, and he couldn't help but wonder what the loudmouth was about to drop on him.

"Versus! The kid from Class A who is as talented as he is eloquent! The shining golden boy, Kytheon Iora!" Kytheon couldn't help but chuckle. Really? Shining golden boy? That was what he came up with? At least Liliana's nickname of Beefslab was less demeaning.

"What do you mean by assassin? I have only come to find victory, not to take my opponent's life."

Kytheon raised an eyebrow at his competitor. What was this all about?

"In the first place, I wished to enter U.A. High School not for wicked reasons, but for the salvation of others… I thank you for your understanding."

Kytheon smiled. Someone who knew how to be polite and eloquent, huh? Not to mention a rather righteous goal… At the call to start from Present Mic, he rushed forwards.

"We stand opposed today but we will stand together in the future! Bring your best, and I shall as well!" He declared loudly, Hieromancy starting to swirl over his form. He saw her turn her back to him, and her plant-like hair began to move. Such a sight immediately sent Kytheon back to Zendikar, and his experience with the twisted vine elementals in that wild landscape made him immediately shift his stance as he approached. As the plants plunged into the ground, rising up to form a wide shield, Kytheon looked closely at them. It seemed that they were not any more tough than normal plant life, though that isn't to say they aren't strong. However, with her back turned to him, that meant one of two things. Either she was supremely confident in him charging straight forwards, or her vines are able to track him without her needing to see him. He decided to test his theory by beginning to run at an angle, only to see the shield begin growing out to continue blocking her from his sight. A difficult task was in front of him, then.

He jumped backwards as the ground suddenly ruptured in front of him, vines lashing out to catch him. With a grunt of effort, he swung an arm coated in his hieromancy, bashing straight through the reaching plant matter. However, he had no time to rest as more erupted from where he was about to land, causing him to shift his aura down there with a kick to sever those strands as well. "This is even more irritating than the zendikar or gruul elementals… at least those required more material to grow…" he muttered to himself as he rolled to the side, avoiding yet another grasping bundle. This was a frustrating matchup for him for sure. Now with her out of his sight, he couldn't confidently target her with the chains even if he could get close enough to cast them. And while he could eventually tire out, she barely had to move to keep him on the ropes. Another dive roll brought him out of another viny tangle, and a swing of a coated arm beat through another. He needed to work his way closer, but the closer he got, the more vines there would be, and the more treacherous the footing as well. He also had a feeling they were using the ground to track him…

But his heart was pumping with thrill and adrenaline, a small, primal part of him revelling in the challenge and the roars of the crowd in the arena. This must be what it felt like to those competitors fighting for the glory of Iroas all those years ago. And unlike the Cabal pits, his life wasn't on the line. He could enjoy this. He began to laugh even as he was sweating from the concentrated effort of avoiding Ibara's nonstop attacks.

Upon closer looks, he found that he was right. Since she couldn't see him, she had to rely on her vines to find him. And when he was in the air, the vines would keep travelling through where he was, rather than tracking him through the air. That meant that she only had a split second or two to react to his foot impacting the ground… She was good. She was very good, this much was certain. But he couldn't allow her to stop him here! The next time his foot came down, he kicked off as hard as he could muster, cracking the cement by the smallest amount while simultaneously launching himself into the air. He watched as the vines shot through the ground where he just was a fraction of an instant too late to catch him. He let his grin spread wider as he watched her hair bristle in defense, and he let his hieromancy flow. It swirled around his body in patterns of light, slowly coating his whole form as he plummeted out of the sky like a meteor, right for the heaviest concentration of mass. The crowd's roars were deafening along with Present Mic's shouts as he fell towards Ibara, smashing through her viny defenses.

He crashed through the sphere of safety that surrounded her with the force of a rampaging gorilla, causing her to jerk backwards in surprise, trying to muster up some kind of defense while simultaneously trying to blink the spots out of her eyes from how brightly he was shining. Normally she appreciated light like this, as when combined with water it allowed her hair to grow much faster. But this sunlight was much more oppressive and frightening. Not that she could spend much more time thinking about it as a glowing fist met her jaw, sending her stumbling back a short way. Her hair tried to rise up again and defend herself, but Kytheon was ready for it. His foot planted firmly on the ground, and his body began to rotate with the force of the incoming blow. Ibara closed her eyes and prayed that it might not hurt too badly, before the well placed haymaker blew into the side of her head, sending her flying, tumbling over the boundary line. Kytheon was breathing heavily, before he raised a fist triumphantly.

"WOW! WHAT A FIGHT! YOUR WINNER FOR THIS ROUND IS KYTHEON IORA! Though he seemed on the ropes for almost the entire fight, he pushed through and managed to succeed! Well done to both parties!" Present Mic bellowed. Aizawa nodded. He didn't want to scold Kytheon right now for not ending it as soon as possible. He understood that this was a show for the people after all. So he decided to cash in his two cents.

"Indeed. Shiozaki is a formidable and versatile long-range opponent. But Kytheon is unmatched among my students in terms of close quarters combat. An up close battle was what he needed, and with his excellent strategic mind, it was only a matter of time before he would close the gap. Ironically, time was what both students needed to win this match. Iora just got the time he needed first."

Kytheon smiled proudly as he was congratulated by Midnight on his way out. Embarrassing as she may be, she was still his parent figure, so the thinly veiled look of pride on her face made his heart swell. He would have to find Ibara later to talk with her about the fight, but the nurse bots had already taken her away for checking. As he entered the hallway to the locker rooms, he couldn't wipe the smile off his face.

Iroas would be so proud of him.

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WOW!

I STRUGGLE WITH FIGHT SCENES!

That was an exceptionally difficult scene to write there at the end, and is the sole reason this chapter took so damn long to come out.

Speaking of, I am very sorry for how long it has been since I updated this story. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about it! Inspiration comes and goes and sometimes I just really struggle. But you guys seem to love it, so here we are! This has almost cleared the marker to become my most viewed story ever, so that's pretty cool! I also love the positive support it seems to be getting! Don't worry, another Magic character will be showing up in the not-too-distant future, probably during Hosu. Who it is is a secret for now, but we shall see it as it comes!

This chapter is also setting up plot points for future avenues of discussion, with some warring voices in Kytheon's head and the first friend he has revealed his nature to, and well, I'm personally very excited about some plot points later on in the story! Now the difficult part is getting there…. Eheh. Well, anyways, I hope you enjoyed this most recent addition to the story, and I will see you all again in chapter ten!