A/N Longest chapter so far. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Boku no Hero Academia
Chapter 8:
At the U.A. Sports Festival, Zach made it through the first round by the skin of his teeth. He ranked thirty-first, making it into the second round in the lower tier of forty-two students to get through. For most of the obstacles he felt confident he was staying in a good place in the pack. He had dodged all the robots instead of fighting them. Some of them were fast, but since all he had to do was avoid and not attack them this time, he realized their attacks were advertised more and easier to dodge than normal humans' were. Each time one attacked him, all he had to do was fake that he was dodging a different direction at the start of the robot's attack, and it would attack in that direction each time.
He had thought he was going to make it before Midoriya for sure, as he had seen his training partner lagging behind him while carrying a sheet of metal from a destroyed robot. Zach had been focused on certain classmates of his more than others, as he expected some of them to make it into the later rounds for sure. It was how he avoided Todoroki's ice in the beginning, and why he followed Yaoyorozu who he expected to do well and wound up clearing a path of the largest 0-point robots. When he was halfway through the minefield though, he heard a loud explosion and looked up, only to see Midoriya shooting his way into first place, using that metal sheet he thought his classmate had been dumb for carrying around. Of course he found a way to use it, Zach had thought, before picking up his pace and taking longer strides while staying careful of the land-mines.
Midoriya never used his Quirk, but he came in first anyway. It annoyed Zach, until he heard the rules for the second event. He almost felt bad for his training partner getting stuck with the ten million point headbands while the rest of them had ones in the single, double, or triple digits. He only almost felt bad though, because along with everyone else around him, Midoriya was suddenly the target they needed to take down the most. Whoever gets his headband wins.
As every student still in stared at Midoriya, Midnight called out, "That's right. It's survival of the fittest, with a chance for those at the bottom to overthrow the top!"
There's no way I can join Midoriya's team. Two people without being able to use Quirks, and everyone gunning for us. It's smarter to try and take the first place's headband than try to hold onto it the entire time. Zach started looking around at the others as Midnight began explaining the rules. A quick look at Midoriya told him that his training partner for the last two weeks was already feeling the pressure of having everyone targeting him, but Zach knew who else was already targeting him from the beginning. Teams of two to four. If I could get on Todoroki's team, it would be a sure placing. Not only is he the strongest in the class, but he made that declaration of war to Midoriya before we started. We'll be going after the ten million from the start.
Headbands have to be worn from the neck up. I'll keep mine around my forehead, can keep it tighter that way since I don't want to tie it tight to my neck. At thirty-first place I'll have the, 60 point headband. That's not bad. It'll be good for the higher placed players to want lower headbands too to even it out. But, then again, Zach stopped feeling so confident as he looked around at the other students in Class 1-A who were starting to look for partners. No one looked his way for very long. That's right. They all know I don't have a Quirk I can use well in this. Todoroki's aiming for the top, so is everyone, and what's getting an extra 60 points on their score going to matter if I can't do anything to help them out during the battle?!
Zach started breathing heavier, and he listened to the two girls in front of him talking. Midnight just explained how the teams would be staying on the field the entire time, as unlike normal cavalry battles, there was no getting out even if their headbands were stolen or their team fell. Ashido put a finger to her head and said thoughtfully to the shorter girl next to her, "Then one strategy could be to let someone take your points first so you'll be more free."
Asui put a finger to her own chin and looked up while replying, "It's hard to say without seeing how all the points end up getting split up, Mina."
"During the game, it'll be a cruel fight where you can use your Quirks, but it is still a cavalry battle," Midnight explained. Zach's eyes started to widen and the corners of his lips lifted a little again. Midnight continued, "You'll get a red card for attacks that are trying to make people fall on purpose…"
Zach relaxed a little bit as Midnight was finishing up. He spotted Bakugo turn away in annoyance as he heard they would be disqualified for a red card, and he almost laughed at the reaction. He had to be serious though, and his lip flattened out as Midnight gave them fifteen minutes to make teams and prepare themselves.
He turned his head as a large number of people gathered there started walking off to go into the stands. All of the students from the first event were still down there, but only the forty-two remaining were going to stay on the field to pick their teams. Zach saw Aoyama walking away, grabbing his stomach while Hagakure tried cheering him up after going so far only to get forty-third place and get left out of the second event. Hagakure then stopped and stayed behind too, and Zach looked back at the board to see that she had made it in as well. Ooh, that's rough. I think he's the only one in 1-A who didn't make it.
Wait, now's not the time to think about that, Zach shook his head around. Alright, Hagakure? No, invisibility won't help at all. I need one person with a good Quirk. Just one. He looked over towards Bakugo, but Bakugo had people all around him asking to join his team, lots of people with good Quirks. He tssked and looked for Todoroki, but he spotted Todoroki going around and picking people out like he had a team in his head already. How about, ah! He'd be perfect.
Zach started jogging across the field, but he spotted Midoriya looking towards the same spot. Oh no you don't, Zach picked up the pace and then called out early, "Hey Iida." The tall class representative turned his head towards Zach and looked at the shorter boy in surprise as he got close. "You want to team up? I figure with your Engine, we can maneuver around without anyone catching us. I can be the rider, and I can block anyone trying to take my headband as well as get past others if we try taking some."
Iida nodded his head as Zach spoke, as the other boy did have skills at hand-to-hand combat that Iida had witnessed before. But then when Zach finished speaking, Midoriya caught up with Uraraka with him, having ran over to try and catch Iida before he made a decision. Midoriya looked at Zach and Zach looked back competitively, only to lose that look to a darker one at the expression Midoriya was giving him. That's right, we didn't leave on great terms. Then, Midoriya's expression returned to a competitive one and Zach looked at him in surprise before he spun to Iida, "Iida, before you decide. I have a plan where the three of us-"
"Actually Zach, Midoriya, Uraraka," Iida stopped them before they could continue trying to recruit him. "I already have my team. I'm sorry Midoriya, I am sure you have a wonderful plan as well. But Todoroki and Bakugo aren't the only ones who see you as a rival." He turned to Zach and added, "My apologies."
Is he saying that 'cause he still feels guilty about the rescue training? Zach thought in annoyance. I guess it's better that he just says that though, instead of breaking from his team to try and make it up to me. Zach nodded back at him, "No problem. I'll find a team." Though he said it, Zach was getting nervous as people were getting picked fast all over the place.
He spun around, then he heard Uraraka behind him say quietly, "Deku, why don't we ask Zach-" He pretended like he did not hear her, and he started jogging towards someone whose team he did want to be on. Whatever Midoriya's answer would have been, I still don't want to be on his team. Iida, Bakugo, Todoroki, the best in the class are all going for him. I, I want to be his rival too! "Hey, Ojiro," he started. The boy with a thick tail did not turn to him, and Zach got a confused look on his face as he kept jogging over.
Ojiro was standing still next to another boy, and Zach put a hand on his arm, "Hey, you want to team up?"
Ojiro did not turn around, and Zach was starting to get creeped out. Then a different student came walking over with a kid from Class B walking behind him. "We're already a team," Hitoshi Shinso said. The other three near him turned their heads towards Zach at once, and Zach took a step back before spinning around. What the hell is going on there? He thought while quickly walking away. He looked back over his shoulder after a second and saw the boy with spiky bluish-purple hair talking to the other three and all of them just listening to him. Ojiro, is he-
"Hey," a hand clapped down on Zach's shoulder and he spun back forward. Standing in front of him was a blond haired boy who made Zach's eyes open wide. Behind Kaminari, Zach spotted someone else that made his eyes grow even wider. Todoroki's coming this way. No! There's no way it's me he's coming for, it's gotta be Kaminari. "Do you-"
"Yeah let's do it," Zach said quickly, lifting up his left hand in front of his body with a big grin on his face. "You can use your lightning to keep people away from us, without shocking me too though, right?" Zach wondered, realizing after he accepted it really quick that his partner might not actually be able to use his Quirk.
Kaminari grabbed his left hand with his own and grinned. "Oh yeah, with the amount I'd be using against the others here, I won't zap you, that much, at all. You want to be the rider though?" Kaminari asked.
Zach saw Todoroki slow down behind Kaminari, but he avoided eye contact when the boy with red and white hair stared his way. Find a different fourth member Todoroki, I saw you already got Yaoyorozu, he thought it in a little annoyance, as she was one of the first people he looked around for, only to see Todoroki reach her first. Then he got Iida too which he noticed after seeing Iida look towards him when mentioning how he already had a team. "I was thinking I could use my hand-to-hand fighting to keep people from grabbing our headband. It wasn't much of a plan, if you thought you would be-"
"No! That's a great plan!" Kaminari said, waving his hands in front of him. "I saw what you could do in the Mountain Zone after all. You were really quick to react while I was still freaking out at what was going on, so I was hoping you'd have a strategy ready."
I wouldn't call it a strategy, but thanks Kaminari. "Alright, then let's get two more people before everyone's teamed up." Kaminari nodded at him, and then they split up to try and cover more ground in the minutes they still had.
Over there, Zach thought. He spotted the person he had run through the tunnel just behind during the first event, and he headed over. Most people are sticking with their own classes, except Ojiro and that strange guy… But everyone in my class looks like they've already got partners. Even Todoroki looks to be having a hard time finding a fourth. Class B is all grouped up together, but it's worth a try. "Hey," Zach began as he neared the boy.
The figure in front of him turned and looked at Zach who was smiling at him. The boy's skin was pitch black from what was showing, so dark it was less a skin tone and more just darkness. He had wavy white hair and thin eyes, and he was frowning as he turned to this boy he didn't know. Shihai Kuroiro recognized him though, thinking about how they entered the tunnel at the same time. They had both started sprinting to the end, and he had made it there faster but only by a second. "Do you have a team yet? I've only got one partner so far- I'm Zach by the way."
"Shihai Kuroiro," the boy with the Quirk Black replied. "And why me?"
"You ran fast," Zach replied. "I did cross country and track through middle school, but you still beat me back in the tunnel. I was really surprised." Zach wished he could have blamed it on a Quirk when the two went head-to-head and started sprinting. They knew it was the final stretch and gave it their alls to beat each other, and Zach had been disappointed by the result. "Anyway, I have Kaminari from my class as a horse already. He can use electricity to keep people off of us, and-"
"You're from Class A aren't you?" A boy asked behind Kuroiro, stepping up next to him and frowning at Zach while looking down his nose at him.
Oh crap, this guy, Zach looked at the blond boy hesitantly. This is the one, Sero pointed at. He's the guy-
"I can't believe I'm seeing a Class A asking a Class B for help," Monoma said in mock shock. "Aren't Class A students supposed to be better? You all who fought the villains and survived, even if one of you did kill one," Monoma narrowed his eyes at the boy's reaction to him saying that.
"We're not better," Zach said, while frowning at the blond boy who was really annoying him at the moment, and not just because he brought up how he had killed the villain. "We're all just, trying our hardest."
"Class B doesn't need help from Class A to show we're better," Monoma continued, a smug look on his face that made Zach think he had some sort of plan already. So many in Class B got in, but they all came in around me. What were they doing, holding back? I can't imagine so many in Class A were actually better at the obstacle course. There must have been a plan, yeah? Did this guy make it? "Class A should stay with Class A, don't you think?" Monoma finished, giving Zach a harsh gaze to finish it that made the shorter boy ease back a little.
Zach turned to Kuroiro again, but the dark boy was looking in at Monoma so he could not see his face. Zach turned and started heading back towards his class, then he heard a low voice behind him, "Hold on." He spun around in surprise, and Monoma spun to his left with huge eyes. Kuroiro glanced back at Monoma and frowned, then he started walking towards Zach while saying in a low voice, "I'm glad someone finally said it. I'm really not into this whole Class A-Class B rivalry thing, Monoma."
"Hmph," Monoma lost his shocked look, and he just started frowning at his classmate's back. "When the rest of Class B makes it into the next round, you'll be sorry you sided with someone from Class A."
"Maybe," Kuroiro said, but he just kept walking forward towards Zach who lifted his mouth into a small smile. The other boy kept frowning though as he reached Zach, and Zach turned and told him to follow him back to their other teammate.
When they got to Kaminari, the blond boy was surprised that Zach grabbed someone from Class B, and he said that he could not get anyone else from their own class to join them. The time limit ran out and they went to get their team's headband made. With Kaminari's 95 points, Zach's 60, and Kuroiro's 65, their point total came out to 220. They went to an edge of the battle zone and stood on the grass to make a plan as everyone else did the same. They did not have a lot of time, but Zach did a quick scan of the other teams before starting up with a strategy. Midoriya got a good team with him even without Iida. And Todoroki got Jirou to replace Kaminari, she'd be some good defense too I guess, and those headphone jacks could snag headbands easily.
"Our point total right now isn't enough to get us in the top four," Zach said. "So from the start we have to try taking others' headbands. We're on the lower side too though, so we don't need to worry about defense from the start."
"That's a problem," Kuroiro said. "From what you've said, your Quirk would be good for defense, right?" He asked Kaminari.
"If I zap everyone though," Kaminari mentioned. "While they're stopped, we can grab their headbands."
"But we'll get zapped too if you try that," Kuroiro said. Kaminari held up a finger like he had a counter point, then he lowered it slowly and scratched the back of his head.
"No, you can't use your Indiscriminate Shock," Zach began. "So our defense is only great when another team is close, same with offense. What we need to do, is figure out a team with enough points to get us in the top places, and go after them. If we go for too low a team though, then one of the other teams between us and the top four could grab other lower headbands and bump above us. The score total we need right now to be top four, is probably lower than what we'll need to really get fourth."
"So we need more than 415 more points?" Kaminari asked in a panicked voice.
Zach looked up at the scoreboard that now had all the teams names and point totals up on it. Todoroki's team is in 4th with 630. If we get Mineta's… where is Mineta? "Do you see Mineta anywhere?" Zach asked. "He has Shoji and Tsu- oh that's just not fair." Zach frowned as he looked across the field and watched as Shoji lifted his arms and made a sort of cave for the two smaller classmates to hide inside of. "That's actually, going to be hard to beat. And with Tsuyu's tongue, we should stay away from them."
Kaminari turned to Kuroiro and said, "She's got the Quirk, Frog, so her tongue can shoot out really far."
Kuroiro nodded, then he hummed to himself and looked to his left at a different portion of the field. "Monoma devised a plan for the first event." The other two turned to him and the pitch black boy continued, "We stayed behind Class A on purpose, knowing that around forty students would get into the next round. We were checking out the opponents' Quirks, but I didn't really like the strategy. I know it's a good one, and I would have been on Monoma's team, but I want to get a higher score." Zach nodded at him, and then the boy in front of them took a deep breath before saying, "For you to just casually talk about your classmates' Quirks, without caring that I'm from another class, it reminds me that we're on the same team and we need each other to get to the third round."
"So what are you saying?" Kaminari asked.
"Let's go after Tetsutetsu," Kuroiro said. The other two spun back to look at the scoreboard and saw that it was the Class B team in second place overall like they thought. "The four of them who made that team were the ones who didn't really listen to Monoma. They have good Quirks too, which is why I didn't join them when they ran out ahead early on. I wouldn't suggest this if I had stayed with Class B, since Monoma has been telling everyone we need to beat Class A together. But Tetsutetsu, is really hard-headed. His defense is great because of that, but he's stubborn and quick to anger. If another team makes him mad or gets his attention, he won't be focused on us at all."
"That's great," Kaminari began in an excited voice.
"What about the others with him?" Zach asked, as he could see there was more to what Kuroiro had to say.
"Shiozaki and Honenuki both have really strong Quirks with long ranges and good defenses," Kuroiro said, and Kaminari sweatdropped as is suddenly did not seem like a good idea to go after them. "They're going to be looking out to make sure Tetsutetsu doesn't lose his headband. So what we should do, if we go after them, is go in from Awase's side. He's the one wearing the white and blue bandanna."
"So the back-left," Zach said. "If we can get a good angle, it could work."
"Riders get on your horses!" Midnight called out, and a countdown started on the board to show the event was about to begin.
"Alright, let's do this smart," Zach said, as the other two bent down so he could climb up in a good position on their shoulders. It was not the best set-up with only two people, but they managed to get a pretty sturdy horse up. "You guys okay?"
"You're a little heavier than you look," Kuroiro admitted.
"But we'll be fine," Kaminari said.
I'm short, but muscle is heavier than fat. Still, I'm only one-thirty-five. I guess I would have trouble carrying almost seventy pounds on my shoulders while running around though, damn. We really could have used a fourth person. Kuroiro's speed won't mean much if I'm weighing them down.
"One more thing," Kuroiro said, after hesitating for a few seconds more until the countdown had almost finished. "I, didn't want to say, because he's my classmate and friend, but I think he's going to be targeting us so I can't just hide it. Sorry Monoma, I know you want it to be a surprise for Class A," Kuroiro mentioned the last part quieter. "Alright, so Monoma's going to be coming after us. Maybe not from the start, since he'll go for someone who can get him into the top four first, but once he's in a safe spot, he'll be after us."
"And that's bad?" Zach wondered, looking back towards the blond kid he could see looking their direction at the same time. There were only a few seconds left of the countdown, and Midnight had her black whip thing raised up in the air ready to swing it down like the start of a car race.
"He has a strong Quirk too. He can use the Quirks of people he touches, it's called Copy. For five minutes after-"
"We have to stay away from him," Zach said, his voice hurried and sweat forming all over his face. Kaminari looked up with wide eyes too and a nervous expression, and Kuroiro saw this first before looking up to see why Zach thought that. Zach was looking towards Monoma in panic though, then he shot his gaze up to the stands where the U.A. teachers were sitting.
"Looks like he done figured it out," Snipe said, and a few other teachers around him let out sighs of relief. All Might slouched in his chair as he had glanced over towards Zach's team again after watching Midoriya get ready for a while. Snipe continued after saying it though, "But Monoma's looking towards him. I didn't think it'd be a problem, but kid had to grab someone from Class B right in front of him. Couldn't be a worse situation."
"What'll we do if he touches him?" Power Loader asked, a hesitant look on his face as he looked around at the tens of thousands of people in the audience around them. All those people were cheering and excited to watch the cavalry battle, and he wondered, "Stop the match?"
"Cementoss knows the situation," All Might said, though his voice was a little nervous too. "If Monoma gets close, he'll block it."
Do the teachers know the situation? Of course they do- "Begin!" Midnight shouted, and Zach spun his head back forward with huge eyes. But if they have to step in, there's no way we make it to the next round. It'll be my fault too, that Kaminari and Kuroiro don't get to the third event.
"What are we doing?" Kaminari asked as they started running forward, he and Kuroiro finding a good pace for them both to move at while keeping Zach feeling as light as possible on their shoulders and arms.
"Same thing as everyone else," Zach said, and the horses below him started running that way. "Let's get Midoriya!" He spun to the boy whose headband everyone there wanted, but he made sure to keep Team Monoma in the corner of his eyes. Damn it. I'm going to have to have half-focus the entire race.
"Why can't we get near Monoma's team?" Kuroiro asked. "What's your Quirk?" He had asked before, but Zach had said that his was too dangerous to use at a Sports Festival and that was it. The way he and Kaminari acted though, it made it seem like it was more than just dangerous.
"It's not something Monoma can copy," Zach said. "I mean, it is- but if he does he won't realize what he's doing." Zach darted his eyes over again, then he snapped his head up and watched as Midoriya's team jetpacked overhead using some gear that a girl from the support department made for them. Tokoyami's Dark Shadow won't be easy to get past, and that's some good equipment too. They're not the best team to go after, he realized it, and then he realized that a lot of others realized it at the same time.
"So quick for this to become chaos," Kuroiro said.
"Let's go for them," Zach said, pointing at a team of two chasing after the team with the guy with spiky indigo hair. That guy again. He's got Ojiro and two people from Class B it looks like.
"No, that's Team Tsunotori," Kuroiro said, though he started running with Kaminari in the direction Zach said. "The seventy point team," he added. "But the team in front of them is the 360 point team, Shinso."
"I don't like the feeling of the Shinso guy," Zach said. He looked to his left as he saw some people charging, and he said, "Kaminari, block!"
Kaminari looked left and saw a team of three from Class A coming towards them. "Sorry Hagakure," Kaminari said with a grin, and both of the large boys beneath her got panicked looks in their eyes as Kaminari held out his left hand towards them. The invisible girl on top let out a yelp, then Kaminari slammed his left hand down and sparked lightning out of his hand at the floor and in their direction. Both Zach and Kuroiro clenched their teeth as the shocks jolted through them, but it was not as bad as the yelling they heard from the others.
"Change directions," Zach shouted.
The other two realized what he was saying, and they stopped defending from Hagakure's Team and ran towards her instead. Sado and Kota were large boys, and Hagakure's head was up high, but Zach knew that if he reached… They got close and Zach saw movement behind the other team that was momentarily stunned. The three of them were looking at Zach in panic as he reached up for Hagakure's headband, and Zach also saw fear in Koda's eyes too that made him grimace but reach harder. Then Zach pulled his arm back hard and yelled, "Sprint right!"
The two beneath him stopped short and cut to the right, while Zach ducked away and made them wobble as he shifted his weight so hard. "What's-" Kaminari started, before looking over his shoulder and going wide-eyed as Monoma reached out and snagged the headband off the unsuspecting girl who was just confused at why Zach pulled away.
"Ah! Hey!" Hagakure called out. The two beneath her started feeling able to move again, but instead of chasing after the guy who shocked them, they were only focused on getting their own headband back now. "Get back here!" Hagakure called after the blond Class B boy sitting on three of his classmates' shoulders.
They got Rin to replace me, Kuroiro thought as he saw the other boy in their class who Monoma was using as a horse. He had expected from the start what team Monoma would make, and he had been hesitant to leave them, but even doing so, he did not feel like he had made them his enemies. "Monoma," Kuroiro called towards the blond boy who was running off a different direction at the moment in order to avoid the people behind him. "Don't copy my rider's power!"
The area around them was loud enough that not many people heard it, but Team Hagakure chasing after Monoma did and their eyes widened which Monoma spotted on the two horses on bottom. Sato remembered the guy they were chasing though from when he confronted their class, and his expression returned to normal fast as he saw Monoma glance their way. "Let's get our headband back!" Sato yelled, running faster and making Koda do the same so they could get to the other boys who did not have as long as strides as them.
Monoma frowned as he looked back towards Kuroiro though, after looking at his rider and then the horse who had reacted below him. Zach and Kaminari were wide-eyed that the other member of their group would call that out, after saying how he did not want to give away his classmate's power. And Monoma stared into Kuroiro's eyes darkly, because he knew that his classmate would not have shouted that just to make him angry or to make him lose. Then, he thinks he needs to shout this at me. Why? That guy's right hand, it's in a strange glove. His power must be dangerous. And for Kuroiro to shout it that seriously… Monoma frowned but nodded back towards his classmate.
He's more reasonable than I thought, Zach thought, as from what the other boy had said and done so far seemed like he might just ignore that. The nod was definitely a serious one though, then Monoma pointed towards an area where Zach spotted Bakugo, and he remembered how someone had told him Bakugo told off Monoma before. And after Bakugo called out how he was going to be number one in front of everyone, that 'Class B is better' fanatic must want to take him down. I should warn Bakugo, since he kind of defended me with that- but Kuroiro told us Monoma's power just to help us, not to help our classmates. Sorry Bakugo, you're on your own.
"Behind us," Kuroiro said.
"To our left," Zach ordered, and the two below him who were running in no set direction turned the way their rider said. As they turned left, Zach turned his head and glanced behind them to see who Kuroiro was talking about. "Good," Zach said. "They came to us. I thought that might be the best way of getting them."
"What are you talking about?" Kaminari asked. He looked back and saw the number 2 team from the start, Team Tetsutetsu, charging at their backs.
"Kuroiro! We're getting your 220!" The rider of the other team shouted. Tetsutetsu's body was not made of iron at the moment, as Zach expected since that would be tough for his teammates to hold.
I saw what the horse in front could do at the start when they attacked Midoriya. He'll make the floor turn into some sinking material, then when we're low down they'll snag the headband. "Let them get close, slow down just a bit," Zach said quietly while looking back forward and pointing his hand out like they were trying to run from the second highest team. "Over there!" He yelled out, pointing near an open area where there was another low ranked team.
"So we pretend we're going for them, then I zap them when they get close?" Kaminari asked, then he said, "Whoa!" as the ground beneath them became less solid and he and Kuroiro started sinking down.
Zach looked down like he was looking at the ground, but he just smirked while looking at Kaminari's spiky blond hair. "That's it. Kuroiro, clench your teeth. Kaminari, make it a bigger one this time. Right when they're point blank."
"Oh man," Kuroiro muttered, but he did as Zach said right and clenched his teeth as Kaminari started turning to the group behind him.
Kaminari smirked and his fingers started sparking. "Pull back Tetsutetsu," Shiozaki called out while her hair started extending and wrapping around the front of their bodies. Tetsutetsu was leaning down though as they ran just along the side of the other group, and Zach remembered what Kuroiro had said about his classmate. When he's that close, he'll go for the extra reach before pulling back. She might have good defense, but- Zach thought, then he started getting electrocuted with the rest of them as Kaminari emitted it out of his body in a strong blast. After Kaminari let it out, he took in a deep breath and then let it out with a serious look on his face, though a partially blank expression.
"Ahhh," Zach could not hold it in and let out a groan of pain, and he heard something similar below him from Kuroiro. Where Kaminari tried directing the electricity though, there were much louder screams of pain.
Tetsutetsu had been hit before Shiozaki could get her green hair wall up in front of him, and the electricity passed through Tetsutetsu and into the others who Shiozaki had been able to block. Still, they managed to avoid some the brunt, and Zach grit his teeth as the horses beneath him tried hard to change directions and lift their feet. Honenuki's power failed while he got zapped, and the ground lifted back up so Kaminari and Kuroiro could move. They ran forward while Shiozaki's hair was pulling back, and Tetsutetsu tried raising his arms to block them, but he flinched and could not move them up fast enough. Team Sazaki ran past Team Tetsutetsu, and Zach swept his left hand in front of him with the other team's headband on it.
Cheers rang out through the stadium at that moment, and Zach's eyes opened wide as he realized how big it was. Present Mic even shouted over the microphone, "YOW! Team Sazaki comes out of nowhere, jumping into third place!"
"An extra seven hundred still only puts us in third?" Kaminari asked in disbelief, panting hard and the results showing.
He's slowing down. Team Monoma's already over a thousand?! There's still a lot of time left. They're not going to let this slide. They're coming after us! "They're coming after us, move!" Zach called down, looking behind him and seeing the team they just robbed running after them with angry looks on all their faces.
"We're going to get you for that Kuroiro!" Honenuki yelled, trying to turn the ground beneath the ones they were pursuing into something unstable again.
"They won't fall for it again," Kuroiro said. Zach put the headband on and over his head where it fell down to his neck, and he nodded in agreement with Kuroiro while glancing around to see what they could use to help them out. The guy chasing them could not use his power over a huge distance, and it seemed to work less the farther it was, so they were managing by staying out of his range so far, but Zach did not think it would last long.
"Let's run over there," Zach said, pointing towards a group of five teams who were all battling it out with each other. The other two looked up to see if he was serious, but Zach's face showed he definitely was.
"Why?! We just got into third!" Kaminari exclaimed.
"We'll be targeted by everyone," Kuroiro agreed.
"Yeah, and when they all come after us, hopefully your classmates give up on chasing us and risking Kaminari zapping them again," Zach said, and the two beneath him grinned at the plan before charging towards the other area. The thought of an actual plan and not just a panicked escape made them speed up even, but Zach could hear them both panting beneath them. For Kaminari it's not just physical. Another big blast and he'll be too tired mentally to really listen to my orders, probably. "Kaminari, think you'd manage one of those again without short-circuiting?"
"Umm," Kaminari began. "I, could probably follow simple commands. Like point and say, 'Run,' and I think I can do it."
Kuroiro looked next to him, wondering with a sweatdrop rolling down his face if the guy next to him really did get that idiotic with the weakness they told him about.
"Alright, they see us," Zach said, unable to comment on what Kaminari just told him as two of the teams looked his way. They remembered what Present Mic had shouted and their attentions shifted from Team Kendo which also had a lot of headbands already around their rider's neck. Kendo looked over too after seeing some of her pursuers leave, then she told her team to stop chasing another one of the lower tier groups who were running from her, instead having them turn towards Zach's team.
"They're all coming towards us," Kaminari began hesitantly, though he did not slow down.
"I'll block them all," Zach said, lifting up his hands and curling his fingers. He looked towards his right hand and grimaced but kept it up like he was going to block with it, though he knew if he had to he would only swing the arm to deflect.
Team Sazaki stopped short, and the other three charged in. Zach's head snapped down and he saw his horses' feet got stuck in the floor right when they were about to get past.
"No," Zach said, realizing it in that moment. He lifted his arms defensively, while saying in half-shock, "They're far enough back that they realize one of these three will get their headband before they do, but they're counting on it. Either they just don't want to deal with Kaminari again, or-"
"This is payback!" Honenuki called out before laughing, since Kendo reached forward with a large growing hand and tried grabbing Zach's headband.
How do I block that?
"Should I-" Kaminari began.
"No," Zach said quickly. "We still have half the time," he could hear Present Mic in the background just start talking about how there was half time left a few seconds ago. "We're losing these headbands," he said, and the other two went wide-eyed at how accepting he was of that. "But that doesn't mean we won't struggle. Try and get out," he told them, but though the two beneath him tried, Team Tetsutetsu was only getting closer and making it harder for them.
A tongue flew by the huge hand Zach was pushing against with both his left arm and his right crossed beneath it. He tried leaning away fast as he saw it, but the tongue curved right at the end and snagged the lower headband from him. Asui ripped it off his neck, then Shoji turned and started running while the girl over his head handed the headband off to Mineta.
"Hahaha! Thanks Zach!" Mineta called out from the shadows of Shoji's arms, sounding more menacing than Zach had ever heard him at the safety of what he felt was his fortress.
The other teams near them spun and started chasing Shoji, with Kendo pulling her arm back and telling the girls beneath her to go. She glanced back at the headband on Zach's head, but then behind him, and she did not want to get near that team with how intense they looked at the moment. "We need to get another-" Zach began, after the teams in front of him had gone. Then his eyes opened wide and he started turning his head as did the other two who had almost forgotten their legs were stuck in the ground up to the knees.
"We'll be taking that," Yosetsu Awase said with a grin, as Tetsutetsu pulled back with their team's 220 point headband.
"Oh man," Kaminari said, watching as they started running away and the ground slowly pushed them back up.
"Like I said," Zach repeated while they rose up. "We were losing the headbands, both of them. Now Kaminari, it's up to you if we get enough points to win this." Kaminari looked up in surprise, and Zach looked down at him. Their team did not move even though they were back on solid ground, and Zach started looking around to get a better tell at where all the points had gone. There were a lot of teams with no points at all like theirs, while teams like Kendo's and Monoma's already had three or four each. "We'll have around five minutes to pick a target or targets. Then, we wait until as late as possible to give you a little time to recharge, and so that we don't need to hold on to the headbands for long at the end when we're the slowest, since I can tell you're both tired already. Just take a minute, breathe deeply, let's take a break."
"A break? We have zero points," Kuroiro reminded. "Shouldn't we at least try for something else before the final-"
"Trying for anything now will just wear us out. If you two are too tired to make the quick sprint at the end, it won't mean anything. All we need, is when Kaminari paralyzes groups in the final moment, for you two to be able to recover quick enough to start running to the teams that are still shocked. I'll try and recover fast too so I can grab their headbands. We'll do it with thirty seconds left, and we'll take whatever team or teams are around us who Kaminari can catch in a single blow."
The two below him got serious looks on their faces at the tone in Zach's voice. "This is an all or nothing. If they block it, or we can't recover fast enough, or Kaminari uses just a bit too much electricity, then it fails. That's why we need to take a minute. Check the other teams who still have headbands. See which ones have enough points. Check the scoreboard. Think about which powers can stop this final attack."
"Yaoyorozu," Kaminari said, and Zach nodded fast in agreement. "She made that insulation blanket for you guys during the invasion."
"And she and Todoroki think fast too, they wouldn't fall for it," Zach agreed.
"Shiozaki can block too, and they're already back up over 400," Kuroiro mentioned, as it seemed his classmates who stole their original headband had taken another.
"Team Kendo and Team Monoma, and, Team Midoriya," Zach said. "Those three are our best targets. We can't go for Monoma-"
"He won't try and Copy your Quirk," Kuroiro said. "That nod-"
"I know," Zach said, confusing both of the people below him as he said it. "But that wouldn't be fair. Telling him he can't take my Quirk, and then going after him. I- we just can't do it."
"Sounds good to me," Kaminari agreed. "That wouldn't feel like a win."
"Plus, he's probably copied a few good Quirks at this point," Kuroiro mentioned. "So, Kendo and Midoriya."
"Team Midoriya is over behind that ice with Team Todoroki," Zach said, repeating what he just heard Present Mic shout.
"Five minutes left," Kaminari said, then that was repeated loudly over the whole stadium.
"Let's start moving," Zach said, and the two beneath him began a light jog towards where some of the other groups were fighting each other. Two of the teams in the pack of seven of them had a lot of headbands, so there was a group of three teams chasing one and a different nearby group of two chasing one. "Class B has almost all of them," Kaminari said in surprise, as it was Teams Kendo, Monoma, and Tetsutetsu who all had more than one, though Tetsutetsu's was chasing Kendo who had more.
Team Mineta has a lot of points too, and that Shinso guy has some as well. Shoji's moving around on the outside though, running fast and away from everyone. They know all they have to do is keep that 705 they got from us with the points they already had.
"Three minutes," Kaminari said, getting a little nervous as they still did not have a plan, and he was getting tired again even though they had not been running for very long.
They kept chasing after the groups as they moved closer to the area where there was a ring of ice on the edge of the field. Should we try getting the drop on those two high scoring teams? No, we'd be too slow to catch Iida, and Tokoyami's defense is too good. Kaminari made mention of another minute going by, and all three of them were feeling nervous.
"Pick up the pace a little," Zach said. "Let's get between them all. No one's going to pay attention to a zero-point team running with the pack this late in the game."
"Team Tetsutetsu will," Kuroiro said, but the boys beneath listened to Zach and sped up. Both of their legs and arms were hurting, and they were panting harder as they tried to reach the other groups.
"Lucky," Zach said, as they caught a break with the direction Team Kendo turned. Their team was more focused with the groups chasing them from up close, not the team still far. When they turned though, now both of their teams were running towards each other which closed the distance twice as fast. Kendo started turning a different way, the teams behind her all turned as well.
On their left, Team Monoma started to panic as Bakugo shot in and snagged two of the headbands away from Monoma. Sero pulled Bakugo back after, and the countdown hit one minute. "This isn't close enough," Kaminari warned, as he and Kuroiro pushed down harder to chase after Kendo.
"Run faster!" Zach exclaimed. Fifty seconds!
Bakugo's team is still after Monoma while they run, but Tetsutetsu's team doesn't know what to do since they changed to chasing Monoma so late in the game. They still have just over four hundred! We still have ZERO! He reminded himself to stop focusing on things so far away, as they reached forty seconds remaining. Then his eyes opened huge and time started slowing down for him. They were not yet the closest team to Kendo's, and the other teams between them did not have any points either. Every single one of them was speeding up. They all know it's the end. Everyone's trying as hard as they can! The others who don't have any points are making last ditch efforts too, and Kendo's team wants to hold their points! "Kaminari," he said, his breath picking up. "Aim as best you can, then do it. We'll just have to push through the pain of a bigger one."
They were not at thirty seconds yet, they were not in the perfect range, and Kuroiro hated the sound of this but he clenched his teeth and picked up speed anyway. "Alright," Kaminari said, lifting his left hand and covering in electricity. "Brace yourselves!"
The teams in front of them and to their side heard Kaminari's shout and they started turning their heads. All of their faces turned blue at the look on Kaminari's face, the drip of blood coming down from his left nostril, and the electricity sparking off his hand. "1.3 million volts," Kaminari shouted, "SHOCK!" He slammed his left hand forward and towards the ground, and the lightning zapped out of him and into all the students in front of him who tried running to the sides at the last second to no avail.
A chorus of screams came out of almost a half dozen teams at the same time. They were loud and painful, and the crowd did a collective, "oooooh," of pity as they all started flinching and spazzing out from the pain. The electricity stopped. Behind Team Sazaki, Bakugo's team shot in out of nowhere and snagged the final headband from Monoma, and they instantly continued on towards the ice area where the first place team still was, which was now Todoroki as Present Mic just shouted. Present Mic yelled about Bakugo too, then Midoriya's team which just took another headband back from Todoroki…
"Guys," Zach said, his voice hoarse and his eyes cracking open. He stared forward and saw two of the teams in front of them collapse, and smoke coming off of the two others. "Kendo," he started, lifting a shaking hand and pointing at her.
"Errrr," Kaminari made a strange noise, lifting his head and looking at Zach in a blank way like he did not understand the statement.
Zach's eyes widened more, his plan ruining in front of him as the timer clicked down below twenty, and Kaminari looked like a complete idiot with no idea of what was going on. "You," Kuroiro reached over and grabbed Kaminari by the front of his shirt. Kuroiro stepped forward and yanked Kaminari with him, "Move!" Kuroiro shouted, turning his head and pulling Kaminari another step.
Kaminari lifted his left hand and a large number of people in the stands near them stared at him wondering what he was doing. Kaminari lifted his left fist, and then his thumb stuck up out the top of it. He turned forward and started running, and Kuroiro gasped but had to start moving his legs faster to keep up. Kuroiro was in a lot more pain than the idiot who did not feel the electrocution, and his legs were barely listening to him. "Get ready," Kuroiro shouted through clenched teeth.
"Ten seconds!" Present Mic yelled.
"Almost, there," Zach said, lifting his left arm more as it trembled in front of him. "Go, go right a bit of them, so I," Kuroiro shifted directions a bit, pulling Kaminari along too while holding onto Zach as tight as he could. Zach was bouncing around on their shoulders and their grip was looser than ever, with Kaminari seemingly forgetting why he was still holding on. Zach held his breath as he reached for the back of Kendo's neck with his left arm.
Kendo pulled away. They had been far enough that they were the first of the other teams to regain control, and even her horses started to move while their heads were turned sideways with looks of panic on their faces. Zach reached out farther though, as Kendo was moving slowly. He reached and his fingers brushed against the headbands, and then he reached out farther and clenched. His hand twitched from the pain of the electricity as they ran by.
"TIME UP!" Present Mic yelled.
Kuroiro collapsed beneath Zach, and Zach fell to his left completely onto Kaminari who collapsed as well while letting out a surprised, 'Huh?' The three of them lay in a heap in front of Team Kendo who looked down in shock at the boy on top of Kaminari, the boy who had two headbands in his hands.
"Two?" Zach whispered as he stared at them, then lifted his head back to Kendo's head to see one more headband still there.
The whole crowd started cheering, yelling at the top of their lungs because of what just happened all over the arena.
"225, and 70," Zach read out while staggering up to his feet off of Kaminari.
Kaminari rolled on his back and stuck a thumbs up, "Weee!"
"Not wee, idiot," Kuroiro muttered. He put his hands on the floor at his sides and tried pushing himself up, but he wound up wincing again in pain and clenching his eyes shut. When he opened them though, they widened more than Zach had seen them do before. Shihai Kuroiro reached up and grabbed Zach's hand, and the girls who were looking at them angrily lost some of the anger in their gazes which turned to mainly frustration.
"You idiots," Kinoko Komori said after they helped Kendo down in front of them. She took slow steps to the two standing next to the idiotic electric-type on his back. "Taking two doesn't mean anything, nn," she winced and then lifted and crossed her arms. The girl with long brown bangs that covered up her eyes said in annoyance. "Now, neither of us are, going to get top four."
"Not that we would have anyway," Kendo said with a sigh. She lifted up the 165 point headband she had and they all sighed while looking up at the scoreboard.
"460, really wouldn't have gotten us close…" Zach started to say, only to look at the scoreboard oddly as it was very different from what he saw a minute ago. He had not seen Bakugo's team steal the last of Monoma's points, but Monoma was back at 220 somehow even after losing those points. That's our original number, Zach realized and he turned his head to look over near the ice where Team Tetsutetsu and Team Monoma were arguing for some reason, each team with one headband in their hands.
Team Monoma had tried in the final seconds after Bakugo had stolen their points desperately to get points back, while Tetsutetsu's team had turned to look for Team Kendo when Monoma had lost his. They were so focused on getting some more points, that they only managed to pull away enough to avoid getting both of their headbands stolen, similar to what Kendo had done.
Even with the points scattered though, I'm surprised, Zach thought, while looking back up at the scoreboard. "Fifth place, isn't bad," he said, looking towards Kuroiro who shrugged and nodded his head in agreement. Zach reached down and grabbed Kaminari by the hand he was still holding up. "Here that big guy, we got fifth?" The girls in Class B all cracked smiles at that. As annoyed as they were at the blond boy, seeing him look like this much of an idiot made them feel pretty good. Kuroiro let out a sigh then he grabbed Kaminari's other arm and helped him to his feet, and he and Zach stood on opposite sides of him to hold him up.
Still, Zach thought, while hearing some cheers from the stands near him that made him a little embarrassed that people had been watching his team and cheered for their friendly action. He turned his head and looked towards the edge of the arena where Asui, Mineta, and Shoji all looked confused, as did the three on the team of the guy with indigo-colored spiky hair who was walking away with a handful of headbands, including the 705 point one they had stolen from Team Tetsutetsu at the start. How did that Shinso guy get so many points? He's in second place, but no one on his team looks like they have any idea as to how they did it. Ojiro looks like he's apologizing as Mineta shouts at him…
After an hour break for lunch, the students returned to the field for the afternoon activities. Present Mic shouted to the crowd while the giant screen revealed that the final part of the Sports Festival was going to be a tournament with the sixteen people from the four teams who made it into the finals. The top four teams had had a big lead over all the others, and everyone cheered as their faces appeared up on the screen. All the classes were out on the field listening as Midnight talked about the final event and how they would be drawing lots, and the others around Zach were getting really into it.
He heard Sero and Kirishima talking about the different one-on-one events they had every year, and he let out a small sigh that he did not get to take part in them. After years of watching this. More than half the years I've been alive at least. I really wanted to make it in for my first-
"Um, excuse me," Ojiro raised his hand and Midnight stopped before she was going to draw lots.
Everyone looked in towards the boy with the long, thick tail who had a conflicted expression on his face. "Ojiro?" Zach wondered as he looked towards him.
Ojiro looked down but he said firmly with his hand raised, "I'm withdrawing."
"Ojiro, why?" Midoriya spun and asked.
"This is a rare chance for the pros to see you," Iida added in shock.
Ojiro lowered his hand but while still keeping his gaze down he continued, "I barely remember anything from the cavalry battle until almost the end."
That's it, Zach turned his head and looked towards a different section of the field where one of the general studies' classes were. He knew exactly where to look, because he had already looked for the guy on their way out there. "I know this is a great chance, and that it's foolish to waste it…" Zach looked back towards Ojiro and grimaced at the frustrated expression on his classmate's face. "But- everyone here competed by giving it their all! I can't, I can't be up there with everyone without knowing what really happened." He looked down at his lifted fist and then brought it up to cover his eyes as the girls behind him tried telling him not to worry about it and just focus on the finals.
"I'm talking about my pride here… I can't…" he paused and everyone looked at him with pity at how he was feeling. "Also, why are you guys wearing cheerleader outfits?"
It was a question Zach had had but did not want to ask. No point in questioning a good thing after all, but he looked at the girls to see them all gulping and looking down like they themselves were unsure as to why that was. Then he spotted Mineta and Kaminari grinning at each other, and he could not help but crack a smile at it all.
Over at Class B, two people looked at each other and nodded. The two of them stepped out of their class's formation and headed over to the stage where Midnight turned to them. "I'm Nirengeki Shoda. I'd like to withdraw for the same reason."
"Me too," his classmate added. The hairy boy in a pair of glasses continued, "Jurota Shishida. You can take my name out." He looked frustrated and bared his teeth after, but the hairy boy just turned away and walked back towards his classmates who were all confused by his frustrated expression and what was going on.
His whole team, Zach thought, clenching his teeth and fists at his sides. That guy, Zach turned and glared towards Shinso again, this time narrowing his eyebrows in and hoping the other boy would make eye contact with him. I want to fight him-
Nirengeki gave his reason for thinking that it would go against the spirit of the festival if they got to advance, and then the two announcers: Present Mic and Aizawa each wondered what Midnight was going to do about it. Midnight lifted her whip while beginning, "Youthful talk like that is something…" she smacked the whip forward and shouted, "I like! Shoda, Shishida, Ojiro, I accept your withdrawals!"
She decided based on her taste… Zach thought, along with everyone else around him as they could see the blushing face of their teacher.
"In that case," Midnight began, putting a finger to her chin and looking around. "We'll have to move up three people from the fifth place cavalry battle team…"
Zach's bottom lip started lowering as he still had not put it together. Kirishima spun to Kaminari on his side and gave him a big smile, and Kaminari looked confused for a second before his eyes opened huge. Over in Class B, four girls standing behind Kuroiro gave him dark looks, while he sweatdropped in front of them. Kendo sighed after a second though, and she put a hand down on his shoulder. Kuroiro looked back and saw the girls behind him all start smiling at him. "You worked hard for this," Kendo told him. "Go get it out there. You're the only one from Class B after all."
Midnight smiled and smacked her whip forward, "Which works great! Since the fifth place team only had three members anyway!"
Kaminari ran over to Zach and grabbed him by the shoulders. "We did it dude!" Zach's eyes were still huge as he stared at the stage, and at the woman who turned his way when she pointed the whip at him. "And with that, Kaminari, Kuroiro, and Sazaki all move on to the finals!"
The crowd burst into loud cheers, echoing over the stadium. The people who had seen the effort the group put in in their final stretch were yelling the loudest, but even the people who had focused more on the top teams' fights were cheering too. Zach's lips trembled for a few seconds, then the corners lifted up and he looked into Kaminari's eyes in front of him. "Yeah," he said. "We did it. We really- we did it!" He yelled, and his classmates around him all looked to him in surprise, most of them never having heard him yell that loudly before. Only a few had, and his shout reminded them of that moment. Seeing him now though, the excited and determined look on his face looked the opposite of what they saw that day.
The two girls standing next to each other, (in cheerleader outfits), glanced at each other. Yaoyorozu smiled, and after a few seconds Jirou nodded along and gave a soft smile back. Jirou looked back towards Zach afterwards, and her smile lowered down a little. I don't want to fight him in the tournament. Let me draw a lot far away from his.
Let me draw a lot close to his, Zach thought at the same time, turning his head again and looking towards general studies. This time he made sure, and he stared Shinso straight in the eyes with an angry look of his own. Shinso leaned back, as did the other general studies' students who were around him and all looking towards the boys who just got in in Class A. You're going down, Zach thought, Hitoshi, Shinso.
A/N Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed the cavalry battle. Zach just makes it in with Kaminari and Kuroiro's help, and we'll find out who he's facing next time! And, some review responses:
Roxas Itsuka chapter 7 . 21h ago
Good chapter. Great reaction from Jirou.
Thanks! We see a bit of her reaction again there at the end, though this time she's made it into the finals as well after joining Todoroki's team... Hope you enjoyed!
ARSLOTHES chapter 7 . 11h ago
really interesting, hope he practices on animals to get death down to rendering unconscious since quirks can be trained or at least dilute the power among a lot of people
Thanks for the review. We'll see if he's ever able to start managing his power... Hope you enjoyed!
Guest chapter 4 . Jun 19
I think you wasted a perfectly good chance to show how his power would be useful by having Zach fight some no-named loser instead of him just killing the Nomu with one touch. That would have been much more impressive instead of this whiny "Oh no I killed someone about to kill me" shit
Well, Zach did fight a no-name kind of guy, and he def didn't kill the Nomu with one touch... so, not really sure what you're talking about. Anyway, the killing thing probably wouldn't have messed with him as much- if Snipe didn't show up at the same time so it turned out he didn't need to use the power anyway. It wasn't a "about to kill me" guy, but just another villain who would have been defeated anyway.
Guest chapter 7 . 9h ago
Great chapter! Its nice to see that everyone is still supportice of Zach, and that he and Midoriya are training buddies! I can understand Jirou though. Her thoughts are justified. I just hope she and Zach can work it out! Can't wait to see how Zach does in the tournament!
Thanks! I think all of them, having been in the situation too and feeling the same things can get why he might have felt cornered into it. Zach makes it through the first two rounds, we'll see how he does moving forward. Thanks for the review!