No more waiting everyone! The sports festival begins today!

The sights and sounds were straight out of a Frankenstein mashup of a world sports event and farmers market on steroids. All around the perimeter of the massive UA stadium, dozens upon dozens of merchant stands were setup. Sweets, treats, toys, costumes, anything you can think of.

For all the many civilians coming to watch and enjoy the market, among them mingled masses of pro heroes. While it was advertised to the students that it would be their chance to find an agency to gain experience with, the reverse was also true. Staying above other agencies meant scoping out the new blood and showing your willingness to take them in. And this time, it had spread within the network that this was a big moment for the first years. The class of 1-A had battled actual villains and came out on top.

However that wasn't it, a rumor made its way outside the school that a particular student from that very class was in a league of their own, a prodigy who stands above most pro heroes in their own right. In the aftermath, virtually all info on a certain Korean's full involvement in the attack was made classified. However you could never truly stop things from leaking, if only a little bit. Heroes who could make an educated guess involved the several who watched the entrance exams, while those who didn't, suspected the son of number two hero, Endeavor, to be the secret ace of class 1-A.

Within the corridors of the arena, the students waited impatiently in their room to be given the green light. While many trained intensely for this very moment, these final minutes were the most heart pounding, especially as you could hear the echoed roar of the crowd, even from deep inside.

"The sports festival is almost beginning! You all better be ready!" Yelled out IIda, keeping an eye on the time.

The man to beat, Sung Jin-woo, rested against a wall and spent his final moments waiting on his phone lazily. He overheard a few groaning about the lack of costumes being allowed. He wasn't particularly a fan of the PT outfits, and planned to simply put on his costume anyway. Having a self serving pocket dimension was a part of his abilities, who could blame him?

"Jin-woo."

That was a new voice he has rarely heard.

"Todoroki." He greeted back.

"I'll admit, you're very skilled. But objectively speaking, I don't think you're as strong as everyone thinks you are."

"Heh, is that so?"

"And All Might, he has his eye on you doesn't he? I don't care why at the moment, but know this: I will beat you."

Murmurs and hushed whispers erupted at that.

"Oh man, a challenge between the two strongest in the class!"

"Hey Todoroki, why the infighting now? We're supposed to be a class." Kirishima attempted to hold Todoroki by the shoulder in a menial attempt to calm him, which he harshly brushed off.

"I don't care about any of that, i'm not here to waste time making friends."

Jin-woo stood straight up from his wall, and put his phone away, making sure to look his challenger in the eyes.

"Fine then, come at me with all you got."

"Right."

"And here we are! The moment you've waited for! The sports festival! Get ready to watch our future heroes compete like you've never seen them before! First on our list, the rising stars who defeated a group of villains with their awesome power alone, from the hero course, class A!"

They marched out with their heads held high, some quivering just a bit from the scale of the attention, others soaking it all up. It was nothing new for the king of the dead. In fact this would be a bit small, compared to the nations who 'sung' his praise. Bad dum tss.

Soon the rest of the first years were brought out and lined up in formation. And before them stood a scantily dressed woman in her...mid 30's? What a strange school environment.

"And now we will recite the Athletes oath! Led by class A's very own Sung Jin-woo!"

'Eh? An athletes oath? What the hell is that?'

'This is your chance my oh so great king. Look upon how they all serve you, you alone stand atop the rest. Address your subjects with tact!'

'Beru not now'

Running out of time as he got closer to the stage, he decided on simply winging it, should it be campy or from the heart? All Might's words rung in his head, to tell the world that he was there for them. But it didn't seem right, at least not here. So instead he went and

"It doesn't matter how strong you may think you are now, if you're the type of person who gets comfortable, you'll always find yourself getting eclipsed. Never stop growing."

…

…

…

While that wasn't the athletes oath, let's all take Sung Jin-woo's words of wisdom to heart, and push forward!

He nearly found himself sweat dropping in the deafening silence that was everyone's confused reaction, but at least he got a warm applause after that announcement.

"Well, onwards to the first event, let's not waste time! This starting challenge is none other than the dreaded qualifiers! A big strainer for those who got it, and those who don't! And this year's qualifier is...an obstacle course race!"

'A race huh?'

"That's right, an every man for himself race between all present! A 4km lap around the stadium, and for added fun, feel free to use your quirks to your hearts content! As long as you aren't killing each other or straying off course, go crazy! Racers, get in your positions."

As everyone huddled themselves into a tight hallway outside the stadium, Jin-woo could see right away what the initial problem was. That light will turn green and everyone will black friday themselves to death trying to get passed the tight gate. Luckily, no one said a race had to be all speed. And so a shadow was sent to right outside the gate.

'Could I just place a shadow at the very end and teleport there? Eh, too boring'

As soon as the light turned green, present mics "STAAAAAAART" filled the halls, and in an instant,

'Shadow swap'

Like a magician from hell, he appeared from a black void in the ground, lustrously fitted in his black clothes and cape. Then decided to simply start running. From behind he could see Todoroki blast the entire starting point in ice as he raced after him, comfortably far away.

"You're gonna need a lot more than that if you wanna beat me."

"Tch."

"Where do you two think you're going! I'll pass you both in no time!" Screamed a now airborne Bakugo.

Scouting ahead, he could sense a small army of robots, the same from the entrance exam. It wouldn't take much to blast them all away somehow, or leave a portion of his army to deal with them, but that would give the runners behind him an advantage.

"EVERY OBSTACLE COURSE NEEDS OBSTACLES, AND HERE'S THE FIRST ONE! THE ROBO INFERNO!"

'Bingo'

"Tusk."

With the utterance of just a name, a fantastic creature appeared from the ground at his feet. And with a small nod, grew to a size that began to shorten the gap between it and the robots before it. What made everyone hold their breath was the small bit of silence as it took in a gulp of air, and turned the entire area into a lake of fire. From it's shoulders, the Korean watched with satisfaction as the fire melted the steel just enough to collapse the towering bots to their knees, allowing him to dash across to the otherside in a single leap.

"OOOOHHH! GUESS HE TURNED THE INFERNO INTO A BARBECUE!"

Recovering Tusk into his shadow, he was happy in how he handled it. Showed a small tinge of his abilities, and made it much more difficult for anyone to cross.

"Not bad, maybe this will get my old man seething."

Todoroki, who made it to the actual inferno first, crouched down and reeled his arm back, before sending it forward like a powerful underhanded throw. In its wake was a wave of ice that created a pathway going high up and over the fire and flames.

"We can get across!"

"Oh I wouldn't if I were you, this path will melt in a few seconds, good luck."

True to his word, as soon as he passed to the other side, the ice bridge he created cracked and broke apart, affected by the rising smoke, until it turned to water, then steam. Leaving the rest of the racers stranded in his rivals mess.

"AMAZING, HE GOT PAST JIN-WOO'S TRAP IN AN INSTANT, LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE A COMPETITION HERE FOLKS!"

'I can't believe he made it across, was the fire not hot enough? I really should level you up more, huh Tusk?'

He got an annoyed grunt in response.

Back in his flame filled metal graveyard, his peers made their own advances. Kirishima and his very twin looking, class B counterpart, 'Tetsutetsu' were virtually unaffected in their powered states. Momo Yaoyorozu created a suit and gas mask that would allow her to walk across if she hurried, even Uraraka managed to get across with some aggressive play, hitching a ride on an angry blonde who had to kick her off.

Jin-woo stopped at what appeared to be the next obstacle. A massive gulch of stone pillars, the drop so deep you couldn't see the bottom. Only thin ropes attached from pillar to pillar to allow movement.

"SO THAT FIRST OBSTACLE WASN'T THAT HARD HUH? WELL HOW ABOUT THIS?! FALL AND YOU'RE OUT!"

'They look down on me. Kaisel.'

He launched into the air like a massive, black firework into the blue sky. And as the shadowy essence dissipated, Jin-woo and his serpentine friend hovered far above the ground, and with style, glided over the canyons with no effort.

"Show off. Just what CAN'T he do my mummy headed friend?"

Back at home, the Korean's mother and little sister watched with awe, nearly falling over in their couch as they glued their eyes to the screen.

"Is that big brother!?"

"Y-yes Jin-ah, That's our Jin-woo."

A lot of this, she was seeing for the first time. His abilities, she never doubted him but, this was a shock. To see her boy have such power, it was almost scary. Her husband was strong too, but getting caught in the world of heroes only led to his supposed death. Pride and fear, can't have one without the other as a doting mother in a world of heroes and villains it seems.

"HEY EDGELORD!" 'This is gonna hurt, but it'll be worth it!'

Turning around on the back of his flying shadow, he saw Bakugo let off the largest explosion all day, and in an instant get within a dozen feet of him. A few more controlled blast and he got in range to grab the serpents tail and hold for dear life.

"Shadow Swap."

In an instant, what was once a tail was now a human wrist. Using the shock to his advantage, the Korean grabbed Bakugo's PT shirt by the collar and spun, throwing his old friend back towards the canyon, the landing just rough enough to force the air from his lungs.

"Woah, the kid in first place is totally unstoppable."

"His quirk has no end of uses,"

"But it's not just that, his quirk is great but the way he's using them is meticulous, choosing each tool perfectly for the situation. He shows an experience not seen with first years."

"Who is he anyway?"

"No idea, from Korea or so i've heard."

"Well, he'll make one heck of a name for himself after this."

"IT LOOKS LIKE OUR NUMBER ONE HAS REACHED THE FINAL OBSTACLE TO VICTORY, THE MINEFIELD! KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN AND WATCH YOUR STEP, OR YOU'LL BE NEEDING NEW UNDERWEAR!"

With his perception, one good glance and every single mine and their location was already recorded in his head. He could bust out Kaisel again, but that wouldn't prove his ability to actually beat the obstacle, more like totally avoiding it. And he needed total victory.

And so he went with something a bit out there.

"Iron."

Morphing from the ground with glee, Iron's heavily armored physique and smile were nicely posed towards the cameras. Needing a light kick in the shoulder to get him back to reality.

"Simple, i'll just stand on your shoulders and we'll walk across. Non lethal explosions won't have enough force to make you budge."

True to his hypothesis, walking like a lumbering golem over the mines without a care in a world, Iron was not bothered in the least. Even when more than one explosion would go off, it simply caused him to vibrate.

About halfway through the field and he noticed the others start to make their way. Todoroki was now rushing him as fast as he could while still keeping an eye on the floor.

"Guess I didn't realise how slow we were walking. You just wanted to stay out longer didn't you?"

A guilty smile spilled the beans.

"Put it in gear then, or i'll just do it myself."

Iron attempted to take another step, but he soon realised his feet frosted over, and soon his body, until even his masters feet were encased in ice.

"It may leave a path for those behind me, but it will allow me to beat you."

"That's only if you actually think this can stop me."

With small effort, the shadow lord simply kicked his two feet one after the other, breaking them free from their frosty prison. Now playing no more games, he leapt off his summon and onto the floor, speeding through the mines masterfully.

Seeing Jin-woo already catch up in an instant caused him to get far more serious. Now balancing between moving forward and sending bus sized waves of ice to his side, each one only doing minimally to slow his rival.

"How about you show me some of that fire, it might actually do something."

"Shut up."

"BOTH OF YOU LOSERS MOVE ASIDE!"

"What!?" Was all Jin-woo could let out, he was so focused on Todoroki, he let his guard down and forgot Bakugo was still in the race. Who now rocketed past him like a missile at speeds that would give him a run for his money.

"HE COMBINED THE EXPLOSION OF MULTIPLE MINES WITH HIS OWN TO GIVE HIM A MASSIVE BOOST! JUST WHAT DID YOU TEACH YOUR STUDENTS!?"

"It's not my doing. They challenged eachother to this level."

Subconsciously using Sprint, the Korean left Toroki in the dust, putting everything into finishing the race.

"BLOW AWAY!"

"Shit!"

A Carpet of fire and smoke awaited him, unable to stop quickly enough to block effieciently, he was blown off his feet for a mere moment, before his eyes glowed blue. Outreaching his hand he motioned towards Bakugo and attempted to force him back, before a dome of ice entrapped him on all sides.

Now really annoyed, busting out of the ice with both daggers drawn, he did his prior action to the half and half pain in the ass he had to deal with, sending him flying the opposite way, and taking off into another sprint. But on his arrival to the arena, a smiling Bakugo met him.

"OUR WINNER: KATSUKI BAKUGOOOOO!"

'That was my fault entirely, I let my desire to please the crowd and play up the dramatics get in the way. Why did I even bother? When did I start caring about that stuff?'

'The words of the fat/skinny man, my liege. Ever since then, he's thrown your heart into disarray, we should eat him'

'You're not totally incorrect.'

Either way, it was just the qualifiers, no big deal for him. He and his top shadows agreed to make up for it by mopping up the next round mercilessly.

"Alright everyone! The top 42 will get to participate in the next event, and it's already here! What could it be? I already know, it is of course, the cavalry battle!"

After explaining some of the teamup rules, she went into the points.

"Each of you has been assigned a set of points based on your placement out of 42. With the person on bottom only being worth five points. But for the person in first, they are worth, ten million points!"

'Heh, so I could just take Bakugo's and win, guess coming in second worked out well, even if it IS a moot point'

For the number one racer, he smiled deviously for a bit, soaking in the eyes that lust for victory from all his peers, all focused on him. Now things were going his way! Getting a team might be hard though, no one would want to have a bullseye on them the whole match.

"There's lots of suffering ahead for those on top, but as you must have heard many times before, Plus Ultra!"

After explaining in more detail the rules of the game, the participants were given 15 minutes to pick up to three teammates for the upcoming event. And as expected:

"Jin-woo!"

"Sung, come on man pick me!"

"Hey man, my sugarized muscles with your speed!"

"He doesn't want your muscles, he wants moi!"

"In your dreams! He wants me!"

'Ugh, Shadowswap'

EEEEH!

A collective sound of shock suddenly filled the air as their former classmate was replaced by a...whatever this red humanoid thing was, which shrugged in confusion.

"Hey Uraraka, would you mind being my partner?"

"Ah, I was just looking for you! I got kinda shy and well, teaming up with a friend feels right ya know?"

"My thoughts exactly."

"Should we try to get Iida on our team?"

"Well, I just planned for one person."

"Oh, do you have a strategy?"

"Something like that."

A crack of a whip silenced the teams. "Alright, those 15 minutes are up! It's time to start!"

"Man everyone's so focused on class A, especially that Jin-woo. They think they're so great, so let's show them. Why we hung back in the preliminaries."

"Three!"

"When we start Uraraka, hold onto me as tight as you can and don't let go."

"Two!"

"Whatever you say! Just try not to get me killed haha…"

"OOOOOOONNEEE!"

Just like during the gulch, Jin-woo and Uraraka rocketed into the sky on the back of his shadowy wyvern.

'No mercy this time'

And as everyone rushed towards Bakugo, they were far too late as they looked to the sky, and saw eight nightmares descend upon them.