Izuku stared in horror at the smoldering stage of the Sports Festival.
So many bodies.
So many lives.
Parts of students were scattered amongst the stage, some pro heroes were bloodied. Most pro heroes were dead.
The worst he'd seen was the laughing figure of himself.
The vigilante watched as the double took out more grenades and threw them amongst the crowds, flinching when he heard the explosions and screams.
The cackle of his own voice brought him to his knees.
He looked on and watched as he witnessed his remaining 1-A students rush at the Izuku double, and promptly fail when the double shot them at point blank.
Uraraka and Tsuyu fell first, their quirks not suited for iron bullets.
Kaminari and Jirou fell soon after, as they realized they were defenseless.
Iida attempted to run around him, but collapsed when Izuku used a blowtorch on his calves, melting them. Soon, Iida was gone by a crushed windpipe.
Midorya tried to warn Katsuki not to act, but his throat hitched as Katsuki was murdered by a bullet to the neck.
Even Sato fell to Midorya. Izuku had hopes that his double could fall to the superior strength, but Sato was unable to function with a hole in his heart.
Midorya wasn't even noticed as he walked to his double, and looked around.
Ojiro was on the ground, his tail ripped off his body and stuffed in his throat.
He even noticed Toru, by her blood covering her face.
He once again fell to his knees and sobbed.
A separate voice snapped him to attention.
Mina and Kirishima were the last remaining beings aside from the double. They were glaring at him, his heart shattering when he noticed they weren't even looking at the double.
Mina looked terrible. She had rips and cuts along her arms, and she looked to have burns on her neck.
"You MONSTER!"
Izuku sobbed harder. He didn't even know what happened in the first place.
He didn't even react when Kirishima slammed his hardened fists against him, and he was sent meters away. He looked up, saddened when he watched Kirishima stomp towards him.
The red head grabbed onto the vigilante's shirt, lifting him in the air, his eyes narrowed and filled with fear. The redhead shuddered, and his voice was filled with hatred.
"How could you?"
It was that one phrase that broke Izuku. Izuku was thrown like a rag doll to a wall, and he didn't move. He just laid there, and cried.
"I'm sorry."
...
...
...
...
...
"-uku!"
The vigilante snapped to attention, hands bleeding. He looked around and observed that he was in a reception style area, in which he was curled up in a chair. Tsukauchi stood in front of him, eyes filled to the brim with worry.
"Wha? What happened? I was just in the stadium, and-" His skin paled. "Oh my God. The Festival! Is everyone all right?"
He was stopped by a hand to the shoulder, and a weight in his lap.
"Izuku, you were just having a dream. A bad one from the looks of it." Tsukauchi turned on a tv and flipped to a channel that broadcast the festival. The tv showed a male and female student blocking attacks. "See?"
"Is Mister alright?" Izuku looked down towards the white haired girl and relaxed. "Yes, Eri, I'm fine." He gave her one last smile before she grabbed his hands and gasped.
"Mister is bleeding!"
Tsukauchi walked to Izuku with a first aid kit. Smiling to Eri, he started tending to Izuku. "He'll be alright, Eri. Don't worry." Eri nodded, cuddling deeper into Izuku.
Tsukauchi finished with the hands and looked to Izuku, taking in his vacant expression. "Hey, you alright?"
Izuku blinked and frowned. "I. I don't know."
"Well, lets go get something to eat, and discuss it. I've finished with Eri, so we'll discuss what is next for her." Izuku nodded, picking the girl up and placing her on his shoulders with a smile.
Tsukauchi beamed. "It looks like she's taking a liking to you."
Izuku laughed lightly. "Yeah yeah."
"I want an apple!"
Izuku laughed. "Yes, Eri, we'll get you an apple."
"So, Izuku, could you tell me what the dream was about?"
Tsukauchi, Izuku, and Eri sat in a cafe near a convenience store. Eri sat on Izuku's lap, happily munching on an apple slice.
Izuku sipped on his tea, looking at the table in thought. He instantly recalled his nightmare, and shuddered. "I don't even know if I want to remember it."
Tsukauchi nodded. "Take your time, Izuku. It's ok. I know some of these things can be hard. Tell me when you're ready."
Izuku nodded, unconsciously stroking Eri's hair. His eyes started to tear up, and his lips quivered. His voice was a mere whisper. "Everyone was dead."
Tsukauchi put his cup down.
"Everyone was dead, Nao, and it wasn't just a villain attacking the school. It... It was me. I- I was. I am a monster, Nao! I knew how to break everyone down! I murdered those kids in my dream!" Eri acknowledged his discomfort and snuggled into his chest, hoping to bring some positivity in this.
Tsukauchi nodded, a frowned adorning his features. "Izuku, remember, that wasn't you. None of that was a real. You're still with us, you're a good guy."
"BUT IT FELT REAL, TSUKAUCHI!" A hand slammed onto the table, startling Tsukauchi and Eri.
"QL I-"
"MISTER IS NOT BAD! BIRD MAN IS BAD! COAT PEOPLE BAD! MISTER IS NOT!" The girl's voice stopped both Izuku and Tsukauchi.
Izuku looked to Eri, lips trembling. His tear ducts threatened to spill, and his body started to shake. He looked to this girl in wonder, asking himself how, after being an experiment to very cruel people, just how she was so much stronger than he was.
"Eri, I-"
Izuku started to cry, hugging Eri tightly. She didn't complain. She hugged him back with just as much force.
Tsukauchi sat, baffled, at the two's already close bond. He wasn't expecting the two to connect so tightly in just one afternoon.
After a while, the two's crying died down, and Izuku looked at Eri, smiling sadly. "Thank you for that, Eri. I needed that."
Eri only nodded, a blinding smile aimed at the vigilante.
Tsukauchi cleared his throat, gaining the attention of the two. He smiled warmly. "I'm glad we got that taken care of, QL. Now, for further business. Eri."
Izuku nodded, his expression more serious.
Before they could talk, however...
"Can I stay with mister?"
The two whipped their heads to the young girl, one surprised, the other shocked.
Tsukauchi continued, shaking his head in amusement. "Yes, well, I was about to tell Izuku that since you don't have a recorded family or friends, he has the option of adopting you, or giving you to a foster home-"
"But I wanna stay with mister!"
"-If he wants to have you. It's completely up to the both of you." He looked to Izuku. "Since she's voiced her decision, It's up to you, QL. I'm sure you can make accomadations to have her, and finances wouldn't be an issue-"
"I'll take her in."
Tsukauchi smiled. "Ok then, I'll have the adoption papers to you in the morning." He looked to Eri. "You're going to have to spend the night at the hospital, ok? They need to make sure you're ok." The young girl nodded, playing with a string on Izuku's cloak.
A tiny whisper. "I can have a family, again."
Tsukauchi didn't hear her, but Izuku did. Izuku knew this stage of his life was rushed, but she was welcomed nonetheless. He swore to himself that he would make her happy, no matter what.
The students were all sitting together, enjoying a snack. After a couple more matches, there was a twenty minute break until a couple more matches to the semi finals. Everyone was more aware that the first day of the festival wouldn't end until later that night, thanks to the breaks and the staff showdown that happened earlier.
The students talked about the last two matches:
Kyoka Jirou vs. Toru Hagakure.
The match didn't take too long, but length was no match for intensity. The students witnessed Kyoka put her pedal to the metal as she came close to deafening the crowd with her quirk. She had plugged her earjacks into her feet and let her quirk do it's magic.
Hagakure was no match for the powerful quirk. Everyone noticed the uniform come off (which was technically allowed since no one could view the nude form underneath) and witnessed the rocker girl flinch at every movement, fearing the invisible girl would tag her every few seconds.
Eventually, Kyoka went the smart route, and located the invisible girl by heartbeat, which ended the route faster than anticipated. The invisible girl had next to no serious training in martial arts or any fighting style, so she was knocked out minutes after being located.
It took a few minutes after that, but Midnight was finally able to locate her body with help from Kyoka and Eraserhead, and it was announced that Kyoka moves to the next stage.
The next battle was Tsuyu from 1-A vs. Tokage from 1-B. The students smiled when they talked about this battle.
From the very start, Tokage had the advantage. Tsuyu even admitted that her opponent was well versed in acrobatics, and was very hard to target due to the constantly moving pieces of the girl. Each piece would hit Tsuyu hard.
Tokage kept her cool the entire time, taunting the frog like girl, and constantly hit the girl as well.
Eventually, like Kyoka, Tsuyu went the smart route instead of an offensive route. She would dodge each limb and counter each hit with her own. A plan formulated in her mind, and she instantly acted.
Tsuyu would edge her way to the boundary line subtly, and Tokage was too focused on landing attacks.
That was her downfall.
Tsuyu smiled, and used her tongue to grip Tokage's assaulting leg, and threw it into the air, and used a dismembered arm (Tokage's) to catapult herself next to the leg. With a mighty kick, she slammed the leg passed the boundary line, slightly burying it into the ground.
Midnight looked slightly miffed at seeing the leg in the ground, and waved her whip. "Tokage is out of the line! Asui progresses into the next round!"
Tsuyu assisted her opponent and collected all pieces to the original owner, who slowly built herself back up. The two left, no anger between the two.
Thinking about it now, Tsuyu could have gone straight for her opponent's head, but was satisfied with her win anyways. She couldn't wait for the semi finals, and was ready to show her skill off.
The students paraded back in the student box as they waited for the next battle to begin.
Mina and Kaminari sat next to each other, chattering about their excitement of the next match. They were discussing the advantages Kirishima had, despite their obliviousness to his extra training. It really boiled down to whoever was cooler, and since they didn't know the opponent too well, they went with their boyfriend and friend.
Momo knew the outcome of the battle was going to be different than most thought. She talked to Kendo and learned that Kirishima's quirk was almost the same as her friend's, but with Kirishima being the apprentice of Izuku, he would most definitely win.
It wasn't that the opponent was or would be a brute, it was that without any extra training, the only trait he had was brute strength, and even Momo knew that Kirishima would have been trained in Martial arts.
She was worried about her own match. Would a vague understanding of fighting styles be enough? Would just creating tools and weapons work in her favour?
She grew determined. She would request some more training with the vigilante.
Extra time with him would be a plus too. At this, she blushed profusely.
A voice cut everyone off. "All right! Let's begin this battle!" Present Mic was ever bright.
"On the left field, he's a man of steel! He can harden his skin to boost his defense and boost his offense! It's Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu!" The steel quirk user bashed his fists together, a ferocious smirk on his face.
"And on the right field! He's a man of Rock! He can harden his skin to boost defense and offense! It's Eijiro Kirishima!"
Both students blanched at the introductions. Even the intros are the same. They both thought dejectedly.
"Begin!"
The steel user didn't hesitate to sprint to Kirishima, a hand raised in the air. He smirked. "Let's see how you fare against my guns of steel!"
Kirishima smiled. "Wow! That line! So manly!" He turned his body to dodge the hand.
Tetsutetsu smiled. "You think so?! Thanks!" He blocked a chop.
Kirishima retreated a few spaces, using the training. Ok. Izuku told me that if there's an opponent with equal or greater defense and strength, I have to outmaneuver him! So that's what I'll have to do!"
Kirishima rushed the steel user, and front flipped over him. The opponent didn't even get a chance to move as Kirishima swept his leg and cause Tetsutetsu to fall. In the midst of the distraction, Tetsutetsu stopped his quirk. This didn't go unnoticed by Kirishima, who used a fist to send the opponent meters away, slightly winded by the impact.
Kirishima smiled and sprinted towards his opponent, who was recovering. "Dude! Way to take the hit like a man!" He took the opponents head, and after hardening his own, slammed his forehead into the steel hardening user, spreading stars into Tetsutetsu's vision.
Tetsutetsu had no idea what was going on. He was just standing on equal ground as his opponent, and now out of nowhere he's being used as a mop on the festival floor!
He was so dizzy, but he kept himself going. He attempted to swipe at Kirishima's feet, but failed at every time.
Kirishima, on the other hand, was not even tiring. It turns out that many villains he's gone against were ten times more dangerous than his opponent, so this match ended up to be a cake walk for him. Getting bored, he decided to end the match.
"Hey man," The steel user looked to Kirishima. "This match was fun. We've got to spar sometime!"
Tetsutetsu dumbly nodded in confusion, and before he could activate his quirk, knew no more.
Kirishima dropped the fainted body and bowed to the crowd. The crowd roared in approval and excitement, and clapped as Kirishima left the field.
Izuku smiled as he watched the match come to a close on the hospital room tv. Eri was curious about what this Sports Festival was, so instead of telling her, Izuku showed her. He beamed at her reaction.
She smiled, her eyes saying it all. She sat up in attention when the redhead sent the greyhead flying. She was silent, but Izuku could tell she was excited.
When the tv went to commercial, he turned to her. "Hey, Eri? I need to head back to the students. They need me there to congratulate them. Will you be ok here?"
Her good mood soured instantly. She grabbed onto his sleeve and shook her head fervently. "No! I want mister here! Stay!"
He smiled warmly, placing a hand on her head. He thought for a minute, grinning with a solution.
"How about this. I'll come back tonight, and stay the night with you. I have to get some good people settled into my home, then I'll come and spend tonight with you."
"Why are people staying at your home?" Eri was in question mode. It turned out she was an ever curious force of nature.
Izuku smiled. "Well, their father is a very bad man, and he was arrested earlier for doing some very bad things. So, the family is staying with me for now, until they can live on their own."
Eri blinked, digesting the information, then smiled brightly. "So, they'll be a part of our family?" Izuku smiled at her innocence. "Yes, Eri, they're going to be a part of our family."
She brightened. "Yay!"
Then, she went silent. "But I don't want to make them disappear. I did that to my last family." She started to cry. "I don't want new family to go!"
Izuku hugged her.
He smiled. "I won't leave you, Eri. Once they get to know you guaranteed they will never leave you either. They'll love you."
She seemed to calm down. Izuku frowned as he realized she's only six years old, and having to go through this grueling life.
He stood up. "Eri, I have to go to my students, will you be ok here?"
She shook her head without a second thought. "No! Don't leave! Stay! Please!"
He immediately sat down again, bringing her back into a hug. "Eri, I won't be gone forever, just until tonight. We could have a sleepover! I can bring snacks and toys, and we could do lots of things!"
She shook her head. "I want you to stay now."
He frowned, but smirked when an idea crossed his mind. Nao is so going to have my head for this one.He looked to her. "How about I bring you to my work, then we get the family settled in, then we can have a sleep over here tonight?"
She instantly brightened. "Yeah!"
Izuku chuckled, and lifted her off the bed. "Then we go sneak mode." He brought a finger to his lips. "Stay very quiet." She nodded.
The nurses were outside the door and shot him a text, stating he had to bring her back that night. In all honesty, they thought this was adorable, and let it slide if it made the girl happy.
Momo was nervous. She was walking to the preparation area, and she was repeatedly going over plans to win or at least do decently.
Despite her sessions with Izuku, she didn't gain much confidence. She felt like she did at the time, but it was more that she felt a rhythm of teamwork and moved to it.
On her own, it was a different story.
She wanted to ask for help, but she felt that everyone would rather talk amongst themselves rather than help her. She also had a different reason.
She was class representative after all. She couldn't look weak in front of them.
Unfortunately, that's all she felt at the moment.
Shiozaki only smiled and wished her good luck, and something along the lines of "if the Lord is watching, he'll help us both."
What a different girl.
She walked in to the area and gasped in surprise. Sitting in a chair facing towards the television was the counselor and a little girl she didn't recognize.
"Izuku?"
He turned, a big smile on his face. "Oh! Momo! I was wondering when you'd arrive!" She blushed, looking past him. Damn her feelings! She attempted to distract herself. "I-I didn't know you have a daughter?"
Izuku didn't even seem to notice. "Oh! Momo, this is Eri, my adopted daughter. Say hi, Eri. She's really nice!" Eri didn't speak but only wavedvas she tried to hide in Izuku's cloak.
Momo smiled, cooing at the girl. "She's so cute! When did you adopt her?"
"Today."
She had a double take. "Come again?"
Izuku smiled. "Well, I'll officially have adopted her tomorrow, she's technically not even supposed to be out from the hospital right now, but she didn't want to leave my side. So, here we are. I came to check up on the next contestant, and it turned out to be you!"
Momo didn't know how to process this. "She was in the hospital?"
"Yup. I'm not going into any details. Its not my place. It's also confidential information."
To Momo's surprise, Eri spoke up.
"I like your hair."
Momo smiled warmly. "Thank you, Eri. If you'd like I can do you hair just like mine." Eri responded with a smile and a nod.
Izuku smiled at the interaction. "Ok, so I'm not here for you to do hair-" Momo looked up at him. "-I'm here to offer advice, if you need it."
Momo looked relieved. She really needed the help.
" Momo, you're against shiozaki, who has vines for hair. I'd recommend anything heat based like a torch, ice based, or something to cut through. That is if you can reach her."
Momo paled.
"Momo, what's wrong?" Izuku's eyes were full of concern.
"It's just that, I'm not even sure if I can do this. I know that I'm strong, just... am I strong enough? I don't even think I-"
"Momo."
She stopped talking.
She stood rigid as she looked at Izuku, who sat straight. "Youre going to be okay. I believe you can do it. You're strong, you're a great tactician. You just need to be confident. Why let all of our training go to waste? Just as you were there for me, I'll be here for you."
Momo was stunned. She smiled.
"Now go out there and show me what it means to be a Class 1-A representative."
"Yes sir!"
"All right everybody! It's the last match of round 1! Can I get a YEEEAAAAHHHHHH!!!"
Present Mic smiled when he heard a chorus of cheers.
"All right then! On the left field, she's a creative force of nature. Anything she wants, she can create by her own body! She's class 1-A's representative, MOMO YAOYOROZU!"
The crowd resumed their cheers as she stepped up to her side of the field.
"And on the right field, she's a force to be reckoned with. She's got skill! She's got style! It's Class 1-B's assassin, Ibara Shiozaki!"
"Um, excuse me?"
"Wha-Yes, little listener?" Mic looked to the field to see Shiozaki faced towards him, hands clasped together.
"Why must you call me an assassin? The reason I want to become a hero is to help others, not kill them."
"Alright, I'm sorry!"
"Furthermore, I don't believe that the Lord would want for me to harm others when they do nothing wrong. I believe his calling for me is to be a peacemaker for those in need."
"Alright! Alright! I apologize!" Present Mic was sweating, frantically trying to get the round moving. He sighed in relief when she nodded and resumed her spot on the field.
"Alright, begin!"
Shiozaki made haste and immediately surrounded herself with a dome of vines, effectively blocking any projectile and hand to hand attacks coming in the future.
Momo stayed calm, knowing Shiozaki would pull the move and instantly created a weapon, pulling the trigger as she walked to the shield of vines.
"She created a chainsaw?! Is that even allowed?" Present Mic voiced everyone's concerns.
Momo ignored them as she gently dipped the saw onto the vines, and was pleased to see they cut through.
Shiozaki panicked when she saw the tip of a chainsaw come close to her face. Retreating immediately, her vines that weren't cut stayed in place, and was saddened to see cut vines on the floor.
"Oh, sorry, did I almost cut you?" Shiozaki looked to the source of the voice, and noticed Yaoyorozu wave apologetically.
Shiozaki didn't respond, electing to run at the heiress, raising a vine as she ran. Momo proved to be adept at acrobatics, since she evaded every attempt at capture.
Momo didn't think as she created a flamethrower. "I hope your vines aren't flammable!" She pulled the trigger and was pushed back by the amount of force used to pump out flames.
Shiozaki gasped as she retreated, knowing the flames could do some serious damage. She was at a loss of options. Her opponent had both fire and blades on her side.
Momo chuckled. "Now I know why Izuku likes weapons so much." She rushed Shiozaki, and created a rope to tie her down.
Shiozaki wasn't a one trick pony, as Aizawa states.
She used her ropes to launch herself in the air, and whipped her vines at her opponent. She slammed her vines around the heiress, hoping to throw her off, and smiled in satisfaction as Momo was covered in dust.
However, Momo wouldn't go down so easily. Momo created two things.
One was a tazer.
The other was a cannon.
Both took a while to make.
Momo watched as Shiozaki landed, and fired the cannon. The cannon ball shot through the dust cloud, causing the dust to dissipate, and head straight to the vines girl, who dodged with grace.
Shiozaki didn't notice Momo running for her.
Before the vines headed girl could react, she fell to the ground, convulsing with electricity. As she spazzed, Momo brought a foot to her skull, and knocked her out.
Midnight was at a loss of what happened, and walked to the vine girl.
She rose a whip. "Clear!"
"And Momo Yaoyorozu wins the match, concluding the first round of the student showdown! Stay tuned to the rest of the matches!"
Momo didn't even stay to listen. She sprinted to the preparation box and tackled Izuku in a hug. "Thank you!"
Izuku smiled. "You did all the work. Good match."
Momo smiled, determined for what was to come.
