"AS SOON AS HTE MATCH OPENED MIDORWYA CAME TO A STOP!?" HE ISN'T MOVING AN INCH! HE'S JUST STANDING THERE GAPING LIKE A MORON! COULD IT BE SHINSOU'S QUIRK AT PLAY? EVEN THOUGH HE HASN'T MADE ANY IMPRESSION AT ALL UP UNTIL NOW, COULD IT BE THAT HE'S SCARY?"
"That's why I've been saying that the Entrance Exam is illogical," commented Mr. Aizawa. "Looking at their data - I pulled their files - Shins failed the Practical skills exam, but since he applied for the General Department, he probably expected as much. So, despite the fact that his quirk is a force to be reckoned with, he couldn't earn any points due to its particular rules."
Whatever Shinso said to Deku, it made him turned around to walk out of the ring.
"AH, MIDORIYA! HOW MEEK!" Said Mic.
That's the kinda shit they would talk about Deku, cause they didn't know him like I do. Even as he kept walking towards the edge of the ring, I was pretty sure that he was planning something. And the brainwash guy was clearly completely taken in. Then - a giant blast of wind came gushing out of his hand, leaving his fingers broken - and Deku stopping just short of watching out.
"WHAT THE - MIDORIYA, HE CAME TO A HALT!?"
Brainwash looked freaked out, but Deku had clapped his hand to his mouth to avoid answering him again. From the looks of things, he had to reply to something brain wipe said in order to be taken under control. He ran at Brainwash then, and started shoving him straight out of the ring. Brainwash started punching him and struggling to push him back, but then Deku turned around, grabbed him and judo-tossed him over his head. Like he'd done to me before in the Battle Trial.
"SHINSOU'S OUT OF BOUNDS!" Announced Midnight. "MIDORWYA, YOU ADVANCE TO ROUND 2!"
"BIT OF A NO FRILLS BATTLE TO START THE TOURNAMENT OFF! BUT CLAP YOUR HANDS AND GIVE THESE TWO A ROUND OF APPLAUSE! YOU FOUGHT WELL, BOYS!"
"He used that same move on you before, huh?" said Dunce Face trying to elbow me in the ribs. I told him to shut up. He was trying to use some baiting tactic. And that Brainwash guy fell for it. Better be careful, I thought. I'm not gonna fall for that again.
Next up was IcyHot vs Tape Arms. Couldn't say I thought much of Tape Arms' chances.
"SORRY TO KEEP YOU WAITING, FOLKS! NEXT UP ITS TEHSE TWO! HE'S TURNED IN AN EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE TO MAKE IT THIS FAR, AND YET WHAT'S WITH THAT PLAIN FACE? DOES IT COME OFF? HANTA SERO FO THE HERO COURSE! VS! THE ONE WHO STANDS AT HTE TOP OF THE TOP! ALMOST TOO STRONG FOR HIS OWN GOOD! FROM THE SAME HERO COURSE, SHOTO TODOROKI!"
As soon as the start bell rang Tape Arms wrapped his tape around IcyHot and threw him towards the edge of the ring.
"A LIGHTNING QUICK SURPRISE ASSAULT AIMING FOR A RING-OUT! ALMOST WITHOUT A DOUBT THE BEST CHOICE HE COULD HAVE MADE! GIVE IT YOUR ALL, SERO!"
In a second, an iceberg towering over the top of the stadium wall consumed the entire ring.
"SERO, CAN YOU MOVE?" asked Midnight. He must've answered no, because how could he say anything else?
"Don't mind, nice try!" cheered those in the stands as IcyHot dissolved the iceberg.
So Round 2 would start with Deku vs IcyHot then. That was all I really needed to know. The others in my circle weren't anything worth bothering about. Best to start getting ready for my round.
I learned later on that Dunce Face lost to Ivy Hair, Glasses got into round 2, Birdbrain beat Ponytail and Weird Hair was tied with the Class 1B extra. But I wasn't really concentrating on all the extras' matches. Mine was coming up.
So, Round Face. I hadn't really seen her fight before, just run around taking orders from Deku in the Battle Trial and Cavalry Battles. As far as I could tell, she wasn't much good on her own, but she'd have some kinda plan handed to her from Deku. I was sure of it. No way he could resist trying to screw me over if he had the opportunity. So really, this next match was against Deku, not her. Best make sure she knew the situation when I got there, though. That she was gonna have to bring her all to the ring if she wanted to do anything against me.
The match was about to start. AS I walked into the ring,
"IT'S THE LAST MATCH OF HTE FIRST ROUND!" announced Mic. "THE BOY WHO'S BEEN FAMOUS SINCE MIDDLE SCHOOL, BUT THAT'S NOT A NORMAL FACE! BAKUGOU KATSUKI OF THE HERO COURSE! VS! THE KID I'M ROOTING FOR! URARAKA OCHAKO OF THE HERO COURSE!"
Way to be unbiased, asshole.
I sized up Round Face. Best make sure she didn't lose pathetically and make me look weak.
"You're the floaty one, right Round Face?" I asked. "If you're gonna back down, do it now. Cuz crying uncle later won't cut it."
"START!" Came Mic's announcement.
Round face started running at me, half bent over s if trying to duck. "Backing down's not an option here!" she yapped back at me.
Fine then. I raised my right hand and threw a full on blast at her to stop here from getting close enough to touch me and float me outta bounds.
"Now die," I said, as I waited, looking around through the smoke, for her to make her next move. There - her jacket sleeve. I could see it. Not even trying to hide that well.
"Don't undersea - " I started as I slapped my explosion against the jacket - with no one in it.
"WOW! SHE MADE HER JERSEY FLOAT AS A DECOY! YO, SHE MUSTA DONE THAT ON THE FLY!" cried out Mic.
I could feel her coming up behind me. Hoping to fake me out with a decoy then? I tossed another explosion at her, just in time to stop her from grabbing me.
She was still standing and kept running right at me again.
"Too slow!" I shouted, blasting her back before she could even start, again. And once again she was coming at me, and once again I kept her at bay.
"I'M STILL STANDING!" she screamed, and once again i had to react as fast as possible to stop her.
"SHE'S PRESSING ON HER CHARGE WITHOUT A MOMENT'S REST, BUT…SEEING THIS…" said Mic.
She came at me again, and I blasted her back once more.
"Yo, you sure it's ok to let it go on like this? This looks terrible!" someone in the crowd was yelling at the ref.
"HEY!" screamed some other pro in the crowd. "DO YOU MEAN TO BE A HERO WITH CONDUCT LIKE THAT? IF YOUR STRENGTH LEVEL IS THAT MUCH BIGGER, JUST BLOW HER OUT OF BOUNDS ALREADY! HOW DARE YOU TOY WITH A GIRL LIKE THAT?"
What the fuck? The pros in the crowd, the extras…they were all yelling at me as if - booing at me…actually booing me like hecklers at a bad standup routine.
"AND THE STANDS STAND TO BOO HIM!" cried Mic, as the pros were yelling more and more at Bakugou. "YEAH, I'VE GOTTA SAY I AGR - OW! HUH? YOU ELBOWED ME - WHAT'RE YOU -"
His voice was cut off by Sensei's. "Who said he's toying with her? You a pro? How many years? If you said that in your right mind, then there's no meaning for you to keep watching. Do us all a favor and go home. I'd suggest looking into another career."
Thanks, teach.
"Bakugou's fierceness is an acknowledgement of his opponent's strength. He knows she deserves to have made it this far, and he's staying on guard because of that. It's because he's doing everything in his power to win that he's refusing to let his guard down or stay his hand."
Not yet, I thought, watching my opponent as she gathered herself for another attack. She's not dead yet. In fact, she was looking pretty sure, pretty determined.
"I guess this is it," she said, panting. "Thank you, Bakugou. Thank you for not letting your guard down." She placed the tips of her fingers together. The gesture she used to drop things.
I looked up. It suddenly was clear - why she'd been keeping low to the ground and constantly attacking without rest. Not giving me a chance to notice that she'd been floating every piece of the ring my explosions had destroyed and turned to fragments, floating em into the sky right above us - so she could drop 'em right on my head.
"A METEOR SHOWER!" cried Mic.
"I'M GONNA WIN!" she shouted, as she ran right at me once again.
Dammit - dammit, saw it coming - I knew she'd have some kinda plan with Deku at the wheel, and still didn't notice?! Completely unforgivable. But not over yet.
With everything I could muster in one hand, I blew up the fragments of meteor shower falling down at me.
She'd been blown across the ring, but not out of it yet.
"I figured you had some kinda plan," I told her. "Must've ben all that hanging out with Deku."
"HE MUST BE CONTENT WITH HIMSELF, WITH THAT EXPLOSIVE SHOWING!" cried Mic. "HE TOOK URARAKA'S SECRET STRATEGEM AND CRUSHED IT!"
My hand was throbbing as the fragments fell around me. "Close one,' I murmured.
She was standing up again. Ready to keep going. It was pretty exhilirating now. No more tricks and plans from Deku. Just me and her, a real opponent. A real match with someone who sure as hell wasn't holding back.
"That's it!" I said, grinning to get ready. Psyched to face a wall. "The real match starts now, URARAKA!"
That's right. You did well enough. You're good enough to call by your real name, round face.
But then she was falling over. Hit the ground, over exerted. She kept trying to move, and I stayed at the ready. But she wasn't moving anymore now. Midnight was checking her.
"Uraraka is unable to move. Bakugou advances to the next round."
Uraraka was taken to recovery girl and I headed back to the stands.
"AW, URARAKA. UH, OH YEAH, BAKUGOU MOVES ON TO ROUND 2," said Mic, impartial as ever. "ALL RIGHT, NOW THAT I'VE COLLECTED MYSELF, THE FIRST AROUND IS NOW O VER! WE'LL GET BACK TO IT AFTER A SHORT BREAK!"
I'd won, but the whole crowd was acting disappointed and my body was in a lot of pain. Damn De -
There he was. Standing atop the stairs and facing me.
"Uwa, Kacchan!" he cried.
"Yo, what the fuck did you think you were doing? Get outta my way!" I shouted, almost by reflex.
"Uh, no I - my match is next, so I was just gonna get ready in the waiting room. And congrats on winning…well, bye…"
How the hell could you say that? "You put that damn plan in her head, right?" I asked him. "The plan that had her fling herself so dangerously. You caused me a lotta trouble out there - "
"No, that's not it," he interrupted me. "That plan, all of it was what Uraraka came up with herself to beat you. If anyone was giving you trouble out there,r it was Uraraka who was tossing you around."
AS I rejoined the box, Tape Arms was waving at me. said "Hey, that was nearly as tough as your face is villainy!"
"Even if it was just because of who you were up against, you played an amazing heel Bakugou," said Frogface.
"Just shut your goddamn mouths!" I snapped, really getting sick of everyone treating me like some kinda weird enemy instead of just a fighter like all of them.
"But damn, man, aiming such a fragile blast at a fragile little girl with abandon! I couldn't help but hold back against Shiozaki!" said Dunce Face.
I sat down. And put that moron in his place. "Where d you see fragile?"
