(A/N: Happy Halloween, dear readers! Decided I would give you a Halloween treat and post an early chapter! The regular Tuesday update will still happen so don't worry. :) (EDIT: Ok, this was originally updated on Halloween but the site decided to crap out, so yeah...you'll get it when you get it, I guess. -shrugs-)
Formatting reminder: "Dialogue heard through a sound system." ... "PRESENT MIC'S DIALOGUE HEARD THROUGH A SOUND SYSTEM." ... -Dialogue using sign language.- ... "-Dialogue using sign language and verbal language.-"
If there is a better way to format the sign language dialogue, please let me know!)
...
"Begin!"
The anxious mass of students shot towards the tunnel like a rubber band, the tension clouding their judgement. Izuku hung back as the students rushed forward in a giant mob, clogging the tunnel and making it difficult for anyone to get through.
"AND THEY'RE OFF TO THE RACES! OUR PLAYERS ARE RACING AGAINST EACH OTHER, TRAVERSING THROUGH A SPECIALLY MADE OBSTACLE COURSE TO TEST THEIR SKILLS! THIS FIRST EVENT IS A QUALIFYING ROUND SO AS LONG AS THEY STAY ON TRACK, ANYTHING GOES!"
"Watch it."
I bet Yamada-sensei is gesturing wildly and almost hit Aizawa-sensei. He's just so…extra. In a good way!
"AS THEY DUKE IT OUT, WE'LL BE GIVING YOU LISTENERS A PLAY BY PLAY OF THE ACTION WITH THE FOOTAGE CAPTURED BY THE CAMERA ROBOTS SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE COURSE! SO, TELL ME, MUMMY MAN! WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD BE PAYING ATTENTION TO IN THE EARLY STAGES OF THE RACE?"
"Why am I here when you could clearly do this on your own?"
"AW, COME ON, ERASER! DON'T BE A SPOILED SPORT!"
"…fine. The first challenge actually comes before they even start. The doorway."
But Izuku had known that already which was why he was taking a moment to strategize. This was the first real obstacle of the race before the officially planned ones. A test of their problem-solving skills. The tunnel was too narrow for the amount of people trying to get through. He scanned the scene to assess the situation, the best plan of attack forming in his head. After taking a deep breath and readying his stance, the Quirkless teen made his move.
Activating his Jet shoes, Izuku jumped and shot up above the crowd of students' heads. At the same time, he grabbed his Tape gun, took aim, and pulled the trigger towards him firing a length of tape toward the other end of the tunnel. The end of the tap attached to a part of the wall further down the passage. Pushing the trigger forward, the tape began to retract back into the gun and pulled Izuku forward in the process.
"No way. Someone else has a Tape Quirk?" Sero called out as he flew by.
Using the Jet Shoes and Tape gun quickly appeared to have been the right idea as the tunnel and the ground beyond it was suddenly covered in a layer of ice.
"Apologies," Todoroki uttered as he passed students frozen in place and skated into first.
Other students of 1-A weren't far behind. Katsuki was propelled forward with blasts firing from his hands. Aoyama used his Navel Laser with his usual winking expression. Yaoyorozu created a length of metal to pole-vault over the ice. While Kirishima pushed forward out of sheer manliness.
"Nice try, Todoroki!" Yaoyorozu yelled.
"You're not getting away that easily, IcyHot!" Katsuki raged with a scowl. "Get back here!"
Being in the air, Izuku avoided getting stuck in the ice, though he still got blasted by a chilled breeze and was knocked off course. He pressed a button on the Tape gun to cut the tape free and used his Jet shoes to bounce from wall to wall until he was free of the tunnel, holstering the gun as he went. Once he was out, Shouto was in the lead while most of the students were struggling to cross the ice covering the ground as the bi-color teen kept sending blasts of ice to try and stop them.
Ojiro used his tail to hop along the ice, making as little contact so he didn't get froze in place…again. Dark Shadow helped Tokoyami stay afloat while Ashido used her acid to clumsily skate along. Others tried using their Quirks to keep going though most ended up slipping and sliding as best they could until they could reach the end of the frozen ground.
With his Jet shoes, Izuku didn't have that problem and skated/hovered over the ice. As he made his way across the cold crystals, he would help those who were about to fall before moving forward again. It was a competition but Izuku still wanted to help others as much as he could while still aiming for the top. Or rather close to the top.
For this first round Izuku wanted to avoid placing in the top ten. The first event was usually an elimination round with about the top fifty-ish, more or less, moving on to the second. He also had noticed that they tended to tack on an extra twist to those at the very top. Whatever it was changed every year. Sometimes extra points or added obstacles. Not knowing what that would be this year, he wanted to avoid it and planned to place at least below the top ten.
As he skated toward the end of the ice field, Shouto was far ahead and making his way to the first official obstacle. The ice user had the lead when a very short boy with purple balls on his head was approaching fast and started yelling at him.
"You think you're so cool," the boy yelled, as he bounced along the balls he threw on the ground.
Those purple balls seem to be sticking to the ground yet he touches them without getting stuck. Even bouncing off them. Wait…a boy with purple balls on his head. Isn't he the one who…?
"I may have been kicked out of the Hero Course," the boy continued to rant with a disturbing look on his face. "But I've outsmarted you and I'm going to take you out. Then all the girls will see how strong I am and they'll all flock to me!"
Yep, that's him. The one that peeked into the girls' locker room. But didn't Uraraka say he was expelled?
"Now take this! Special move – Grape…!"
Before he could finish calling out the move, the pervert was punched out of the way by a robot.
Ha! Karma! Wait, what? Robots?! Are they the same one's from the Hero Practical?
"HEAD'S UP, SPORTS FANS! OUR FORERUNNERS HAVE REACHED THE FIRST OBSTACLE! SEEMS THEIR WAY IS BLOCKED BY INCOMING ENEMIES! IN A TEST OF STRENGTH AND CUNNING, THEY'LL HAVE TO FIND A WAY PAST! IT'S ROBO INFERNO!"
One after another, more robots blocked their path. Each new type was bigger than the last, the final one towering over the students.
Holy crap, they had to fight these? Izuku thought as he deactivated his Jet shoes for the moment. What the hell, UA?!
Other students shared in Izuku's freak out. Those that had taken the test lamenting having to face the zero pointers again. Which turned out to be the biggest one. That's the zero pointer? He was now really glad he didn't even try for the Hero Practical. 'Cause, damn.
"So, this is what the others went up against in their entrance exam," Todoroki deduced with a fierce and determined look. With a stomp of his right foot and placing his right hand to the ground, ice erupted from the ground in a circle around him. "Seems they went to a lot of trouble, but I wish they had planned something a little more difficult."
One of the zero-pointers reached out to grab the boy surround by ice.
"Especially since my dear-old dad is watching."
With an upward sweep of his hand, he sent ice at the enemy. Frozen crystals assaulted the robots, covering them in a layer of ice, and freezing them in place. The wave of glacial power was a sight to behold. Everyone, especially Izuku, stood there in awe as Todoroki brushed it off as if it was nothing. He breathed out a cloud of breath and began running again.
Seeing the robots immobilized, the students began to cheer and claim that this was their chance to get past the robots too. But Izuku didn't think so. He knew his friend was smart and wouldn't make it so easy for his fellow students to take advantage of his handiwork. And it turns out he was right as the robots began to fall, having been purposefully frozen while off balance.
As a huge cloud of dust rose from the falling robots, shards of ice broke and flew off them in all directions. On instinct, Izuku activated his shield, causing the separate blades of metal to fan out into a circle on his left arm. He ran forward and raised his shield, protecting a student that had almost been hit by the falling ice.
I know you're trying to show the power of your ice, Todoroki-kun, but have you ever heard of restraint?
"AND THAT LISTENERS, IS CLASS 1-A'S TODOROKI PULLING AHEAD! WHAT A CHILLING DISPLAY AS HE SHOWS OFF HIS POWERFUL CONTROL OF ICE!"
"Was that a pun?"
"COMING IN ON RECOMMENDATION, THIS WAS HIS FIRST TIME EVER FACING THOSE ROBOTS! ANY THOUGHTS TO ADD, PARTNER?"
"His attack was strategic and worked as both offensive and defensive. Allowing him to pull ahead while leaving behind his own obstacle for the other students."
"SUCH CHART-TOPPING MOVES! HE'S DEFINITELY ONE TO WATCH OUT FOR AS THE GAMES CONTINUE!"
From beneath the robots came Kirishima and Tetsutestu, popping out like daisies in snow, one after the other. Luckily it was the two students with Quirks that hardened their skin. Anyone else would have been crushed.
"WOAH! LOOKS LIKE KIRISHIMA FROM 1-A AND TETSUTETSU FROM 1-B WERE CAUGHT IN THE DOWNFALL! LUCKILY KIRISHIMA IS ROCKING IT DOWN THERE WHILE TETSUTETSU REALLY SHOWED HIS 'METAL'!"
"You just said 'metal' instead of 'mettle', didn't you? Ugh…are the puns absolutely necessary?"
As the commentary went on, Izuku turned to see who he had protected and saw that it was Kouda from 1-A crouching on the ground behind him. The greenette hadn't talked to the quiet boy before but he had noticed while observing 1-A's Hero training that the boy tended to talk in sign language rather than verbally.
Collapsing his shield, Izuku offered his hand which the other took and helped him up. Once he did, the greenette shifted his goggles up off his eyes and brought his hands together in front of him. He wasn't sure what the circumstances of the other was, why he used sign, or if he read lips. With the mask over his mouth, if the other boy did read lips, he wouldn't be able to.
"-Are you alright?-" Izuku asked out loud as well as signed.
-You sign?- Kouda signed back, clearly surprised.
-I'm learning.- Izuku replied, only in sign this time. -Are you alright?-
-Yes, I'm fine,- Kouda signed with a smile.
-Good,- Izuku signed back with his own hidden smile. -I'm sorry that it's too loud for any animals to be around. Which means you can't use your Quirk. But still try to do your best, ok?-
With that, he gave the other boy an encouraging thumbs up while readjusting his goggles, activated his Jet shoes, and skated away. Leaving behind a happy but also confused Hero student who wondered as to how the random boy who saved him could sign and knew about his Quirk.
Although Todoroki had taken out a number of the robots, there were still more left behind blocking their way. Izuku turned off his shoes and stood there for a moment like the others, trying to think of a way past. There was talk of temporary team ups when Katsuki, getting impatient, propelled himself up and over with timed explosions.
"LOOKS LIKE BAKUGOU FROM 1-A HAD A BLAST OF INSPIRATION!"
"Seriously?"
Sero was quick to follow using his tape to scale the robots while Tokoyami wasn't far behind. Dark Shadow had wrapped itself around the bird boy's waist and somehow was able to pick him up allowing them to fly.
So cool.
"SO FAR THE ONES AT THE FRONT ARE MOSTLY FROM CLASS 1-A! CARE TO EXPLAIN, ERASER?"
"Class 1-A has learned not to hesitate. After seeing what the real world is like, they know the fear of facing Villains and fight on despite that fear. They've grown, knowing if they want to stay alive, they must act quickly."
Following the forerunners' example, the rest of 1-A and Izuku were quick to find their own way past the obstacle. Iida ran and kicked his way through with the help of his engines. Jirou used her earphone jacks to short circuit the robots with the soundwaves of her heartbeat. Kaminari became a human taser but made sure not to use too high of voltage. Uraraka negated the robots' gravity, sending them floating, and released them back to gravity's pull once she was home free. While Ojiro used his martial arts training and his tail to make a path forward.
As for Izuku, he activated his shoes and shield while taking out his gun. Shooting his tape while jumping, he shot forward over the robots and blocked any incoming hits with his shield. While flying through the air, the sound of a cannon boomed through the air. Looking back, he saw that Yaoyorozu had made an actual cannon and wondered if she could have made something more compact or smaller to save her lipids. But that was a thought for later. Once he landed past the robots, Izuku deactivated his shoes, holstered his Tape gun, and collapsed his shield as the greenette continued on.
"IF YOU THOUGHT THE FIRST OBSTACLE WAS A PIECE OF CAKE, LET'S SEE WHAT YOU MAKE OF THE SECOND! ONE MISSTEP, YOU FALL AND YOU'RE OUT! EVEN IF YOU GOTTA CRAWL, IT'S TIME FOR THE FALL!"
"Did you rhyme that on purpose?"
Before them was a deep canyon with islands of rock spread throughout and connected by ropes. Without hesitation, Tsuyu jumped forward and began to quickly cross the ropes on her hands and feet like, well, a frog. Izuku was temporarily distracted at her expertise that he didn't notice Mei stepping up to stand beside him.
"Izuku!" Mei called out suddenly, causing her friend to jump in surprise. She offered him a fist bump. "Ready to show them what we're made of, Hero-kun?"
"Let's do it, Mei-chan!" Izuku replied with a look of determination and reciprocated the fist bump.
Mei readied her babies while Izuku grabbed his Tape gun. He took out the tape cartridge, placing it in a pocket of his belt, and exchanged it for a different one instead. This one included a special grappling hook attachment connected to a line of rope. Inside the cartridge, the hook remained collapsed flat until fired and then it would unfold into a grappling hook until retracted back into the gun. Effectively changing his Tape gun into a grappling gun. Once ready, they stepped toward the edge of the ravine together.
"Hey! Why do you two get to have all that stuff?" Ashido whined as she took in the Support students' extra gear. Uraraka stood next to her not saying a word. Izuku gave her a friendly nod which she returned with a smile and a wink.
"Student's in the Hero Course get extra training that the other courses don't," Mei explained, activating her Hover Soles.
"To keep it fair, those in the Support Course are allowed to bring any gadgets and costumes we want," Izuku chimed in, activating his Jet shoes as well. "As long as we make them ourselves."
"So, sit back and enjoy the show!" Mei trilled, shooting out one of the Wire Arrows. Followed close behind by Izuku firing his gun, gripping it tightly with both hands, and shooting out the grappling hook.
In tandem, their projectiles made contact to a rock spire each and they shot forward as wire and rope alike retracted. They fell into the pit connected to their respective lines and cushioned their impact with the columns using their shoes. Continuing to retract their tethers, they flew up the rock faces and launched into the air.
"WELL LOOKIE HERE, FOLKS! WE'VE GOT TWO STUDENTS FROM THE SUPPORT COURSE FLASHING THEIR OWN UNIQUE STYLE! FROM 1-H WE HAVE HATSUME AND MIDORIYA SPORTING SOME AMAZING SUPPORT ITEMS MADE WITH THEIR VERY OWN TALENTED HANDS! SEEMS IT'S NOT ONLY THE HERO COURSE THAT WANTS TO SHOW THEIR STUFF!"
"It isn't just the Hero Course that has something to prove here. Don't underestimate the other students just because they're in a different department."
Again and again, the pair of Support students continued their process until they traversed the chasm. Mei let out an excited but also maniacal sounding laugh as they flew through the air. Izuku rolled his eyes but flashed a hidden smile and a peace sign for the camera as they continued their unique way of traveling across. He appreciated Aizawa for adding in his own comment and knew Hitoshi would as well. As they went, he wondered how his friend was fairing in all this.
"THE LEADER IS DRAWING AHEAD, CREATING A SIZABLE DISTANCE BETWEEN HIM AND THE REST STILL STUCK AT THE FALL! THE NUMBER OF QUALIFYING STUDENTS HAS NOT BEEN ANNOUNCED SO THERE'S NO GUARANTEE OF PLACING OR ANY TIME TO REST!"
The pair made their last jump and finally made it past the second obstacle. Once they were across, they both turned off their shoes so as not to over work them. They still had two more rounds after all. The pair shared a look and a nod, knowing that they needed to make their own way for this last leg of the race.
Running on their own power, Izuku easily pulled ahead of his friend since he ran practically every day while Mei fell behind. Being an inventing savant, she tended to put more time working on her babies than running. Though Izuku knew that even if she wasn't much of a runner, she could lift like no other having seen her lift some of her babies as if it was nothing that even he would have struggled with.
"OUR CONTESTANT CURRENTLY IN FIRST PLACE HAS FINALLY REACHED THE FINAL OBSTACLE! BETTER WATCH YOUR STEP! IT'S A MINEFIELD! LITERALLY! IF YOU LOOK CAREFULLY, YOU CAN SEE WHERE EACH MINE IS PLACED! BUT DON'T WORRY! THESE LAND MINES WERE DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR THE GAMES AND ARE MORE FLASH THAN BANG! PACKING JUST ENOUGH PUNCH TO MAKE YOU WET YOUR PANTS!"
"Get a hold of yourself."
What on earth is Yamada-sensei doing to warrant that response?
Since Izuku decided to run on his own power to the last obstacle, by the time he got to the beginning of the mine field Todoroki and Katsuki were battling it out closer to the other end. As he took his time observing the other students already making their way across the field, the two forerunners made it to the end and sprinted towards first place.
Perfect.
"IN A BATTLE FOR FIRST PLACE, TODOROKI AND BAKUGOU ARE NECK AND NECK AS THEY HEAD TOWARDS THE FINISH LINE!"
Come on, Todoroki-kun!
With the battle for first raging, Izuku activated his Jet shoes and began to skate above the ground. He made sure to adjust the air pressure output, using just enough to hover above the ground but not too much so as not to set any of the mines off. Skating along, he once again helped others who were either about to fall or were sent flying by clouds of glittering pink after accidentally setting off a mine. His actions brought him strange looks from other students while those he helped thanked him. Izuku continued to help others along the way and actually found himself even back tracking to do so.
"WHAT'S THIS? DESPITE IT BEING A COMPETITION, LOOKS LIKE MIDORIYA IS HELPING OTHERS ON THE MINEFIELD! WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE GOING THROUGH HIS HEAD?"
"There's no rules against helping other students. Same goes for sabotaging others. Also, although we may not be able to see, it's possible he has a plan of his own. Like I said, students in other courses may have something to prove. He clearly has his own motivations and reasons why he's doing what he is doing."
"GUESS WE'LL HAVE TO JUST WAIT AND SEE!"
You do that. While I wait until at least first place is claimed.
The minutes passed as more and more students traversed the minefield. Some used their Quirks to cross while others had no choice but to make their way at a snail's pace and carefully navigate around the mines. The further they got the closer the mines were and the more careful they had to be. Finally, Izuku heard what he was waiting for.
"IT WAS A CLOSE CALL RIGHT UP UNTIL THE END, BUT WE FINALLY HAVE OUR WINNER OF THE FIRST ROUND! GIVE IT UP FOR OUR FIRST PLACE WINNER! FROM CLASS 1-A, IT'S…"
Just then, Izuku spotted something that made him so angry that he inadvertently tuned out the rest of the announcement. Up ahead, Yaoyorozu was racing towards the end of the minefield. As she ran, the pervert with the purple balls launched himself forward and, using his Quirk, attached himself to the creation girl's back just as she cleared the field. It slowed her down significantly while he stuck to her like a parasite.
Oh hell no.
Ignoring everything else, Izuku skated toward the two while reaching for one of his escrima rods. As he drew near, Izuku activated the rod and electricity started to spark from the tip. He reached out and jabbed the end into the purple pervert's back, causing him to spasm and let go. Though the balls remained stuck to the girl's shirt.
Feeling the loss of weight, Yaoyorozu turned around as Izuku turned off his shoes, kicking the other boy away. She looked from him to the pervert on the ground in shock before giving him a thankful smile and running off. Izuku watched her go and then glared down at the still conscious though slight incapacitated pervert before running towards the finish line himself.
With his years of running, Izuku managed to catch up to the creation girl without the use of his Support Items. As she ran through the tunnel with him close after, they were declared the sixteenth and seventeenth place qualifiers. It was then he realized that in his fervor to help Yaoyorozu, he missed the announcement of who had placed first.
Oops.
...
Tumblr blog name: ja0-s-blank-canvas-fic
Notes extension: post/633528596351303680/chapter-36-sports-festival-obstacle-course
Team colors and symbols: post/633528365766377472/bcfic-japan-sports-festival-team-colors-and