This chapter features most of the Cavalry Battle, but I think that including the finishing confrontation will take up too many words for a single chapter. People don't like to read when there's too much in one go.

"The second round of the U.A. sports festival first-year stage is..."

Maribel knew what it would be. But no one else seemed so sure, so she kept an uneasy expression.

"A cavalry battle with the top 42 from the qualifier!"

As I was told. She sighed lowly with relief. The screen displayed exactly what they were going to get.

"Those at the top will suffer more. That's what you'll hear when you attend U.A. and that's what 'Plus Ultra' means!" Midnight announced. She swung her whip down, still clad in the same outfit as before to Maribel's disapproval. "Tenya Iida, who came first in the qualifier, is awarded ten million points!" She continued, pointing it right at Iida.

Mostly everyone at least glanced at him, but Maribel didn't. She knew what kind of pressure this stuff could put on someone, she felt it a lot back in Junior High.

There was a pause, until Midnight continued explaining. Pointing her whip at the screen, which promptly began a presentation. "Now, I will explain the rules of this round. The time limit is fifteen minutes." An image of All Might, Thirteen and Present Mic appeared, perfectly rendered with transparency so they fit with the background. So that's how we will be doing this, huh...

"Each team is worth the total of it's members' points and the riders will wear a headband with that number on their foreheads." The R-18 hero continued explaining. Maribel wished she would just get it over with. "Teams will try grabbing each other's headbands until time runs out, and try to keep as many points as they can. Taken headbands must be worn from the neck and up. The more you have, the harder it will be to manage them!" She then gestures at the schoolkids again. "Even if you lose all your headbands or fall, you're not out! During this fight, you can use your quirks, but it's still a cavalry battle. You will get a red card for attacks trying to make people fall on purpose and removed immediately!"

The screen shifted again. Make your team! 15:00 minutes remaining!

Maribel looked around as many people seemed to purposefully avoid Iida. She and his eyes meet again, and she smiles. "Hey, Iida-kun, let's make a team!" Iida lifts a linger slowly, but loses his word. "A-..." He puts a finger to his chin. "I'll have to think on it."

Nodding respectfully, the girl couldn't help but to feel a bit disappointed. If she did anything wrong, it would probably be her plan for the first round. "But the offer is there, just ask!" Maribel cheerily replies, turning his expression into a smile and receiving a nod from him. The blonde turns around and walks away from him. Time to consider some other options...

She stood still for a little and began to think. It didn't take long for her to notice a couple of people were approaching her. Recognizing them as a few of the other hero class. 1-B hadn't been that visible in this festival yet, but they would probably take their chance now that there wasn't much competition. Rising up and usurping the most dominant class would be a feast for the media. Her golden eyes leveled with the one in front, a guy with blond hair. "Who are you?"

He pointed at himself. "I'm Neito Monoma, of Class 1-B. Pleasure to make your acquaintance. You probably know we declared war on 1-A before this festival, but we're open to making exceptions.

"Well, why make an exception? Is it because of what I said for the pledge?" Maribel crossed her arms, a curious look on her face.

Monoma gestures at her. "You're absolutely correct!"

She spoke earnestly and held a hand out to them, before withdrawing it. "I might consider it, but I'll look around for a little. Just keep a spot open, just in case."

"Heh. Very well." Monoma smiled, dishonestly. The girl then turned and wandered off into the crowd.

After having brushed off many people asking her by giving them the possibility of teaming up, Maribel ran into one of the people she had an interest in.

"Hey, Shinso-san! You want to join a team with me?!" She yelled out, running on up to him and waving. He looked away very quick, pulling at his uniform's collar, thinking.

"Would that change if you knew my quirk?" He turned to ask with a wooden expression.

Maribel stopped running, instead walking up closer to him. She took a few breaths and looked relieved. "Not at all. I'm comfortable with any quirk, as long as it's useful for the battle. And even without that, as long as there are people that I know on my team. I'd be satisfied."

He looked torn. "You were supposed to be telling me about something after lunch a few weeks ago, right?"

"Oh, right. I forgot." Maribel remembered and stepped in close, speaking lowly and seriously. She put a hand on her chest as she explained. "The Principal wishes me at the top, that way, I'll draw some of the negative press away from U.A. after being the main victim at U.S.J."

He looked intrigued, before sighing. "I'll just tell you right ahead that I'm not fond of the hero course. Even if what you said is true, I'm not so quick to throw away a chance to show off. Remember, a good performance can warrant moving to the hero course..." He steeled his expression.

Maribel though, remained calm. Her head titled to the side, creating an air of friendship. "Don't be so hasty to brush me off. The real fight will happen in the final round. It's always a one-on-one. And if you really want it, I can give you an opportunity to show how capable you are in this round. It's a safe bet. I'm very capable."

His eyes widened a bit and he looked away from her. Considering the offer for a moment. The silence between the two persisted for ten seconds before he responded. "My quirk is brainwashing, activated by answering a question."

Eyes widening, Maribel was interested, even if she was subconsciously creeped out on a small level. "Brainwashing? How come you are in the general studies? That's the kind of quirk that levels the playing field."

Hitoshi crossed his arms, his tired eyes meeting hers directly. "The entrance exam didn't favor my quirk. Brainwashing doesn't work on robots."

There was a pause from her before a burst of irritation. Maribel expressed exactly what she thought. It was just unfair. "Why the hell wouldn't they make the testing more suitable to that kind of quirk? You'd only have to read its name to realize how useful it could be."

"Mhm." He replies, easing his expression.

"Anyway... The question is, how should we structure the team?" She wondered.

Hitoshi Shinso appeared very casual now, given her acceptance of his quirk. Even if he gave off a vibe of being wary. "If you're supposed to be looking good for the media, why not represent the school to go with your pledge? You want to amend our reputation as a whole, after all."

Putting two fingers up to her chin, she made an expression of thought. "We can only have four people, and the majority of those remaining are from the hero course. I suppose we'll need a mix from 1-B and 1-A aside from you and me." Her land slumped down to her hip and she looked back at him. "Are you okay with that?"

"It's fine."

Hearn gestured to the other teams. "I'll go and get someone from 1-A. We should have strength to support us more so than utility. I can already do a lot, and if I had more eyes, there's not much stopping me."

Smiling, Hitoshi replied. "Then I'll be responsible for bringing someone on over from 1-B. We've 13 minutes left, that's plenty of time."

The figure by the spectator seats watched carefully as the teams formed. Crossing her legs, the pink-haired spectator waited. She wore a bright pink jacket of modern design, two white gloves and a set of loose fit jeans. Her eyes were red, charming to look at. With shoulder-length hair topped off with two Chinese-style double buns on the sides of her head. The figure of hers was that of a young adult with a beautiful shape. Certainly not something that the average woman would be gifted with.

It seemed like she wasn't all that used to her clothing, as she fidgeted around a little bit as she sat and tried to find a comfortable position.

Her eyes wandered the field, interested. The people of today are unpredictable thanks to this new phenomenon, I never could've guessed what would arise from it all. I don't head out that much, but when I do, I think it's best spent on this. Large events done like this were quite entertaining, and they sell tasty food, too. I do wonder if everything that's been said about this Mae-... Merry is true, though.

Everyone has an aura, but humans appear very regular, aside from the strongest of them. I can't feel much of a strange air, but still I can tell that she is irregular. It is a little dissimilar from that of a youkai, despite the humanity it shines with right now. And I can almost feel something more... Something familiar. But I'm confident enough to say she's human, or at least, in part.

The race from before didn't really tell her otherwise. She moved like a human with a 'quirk' would. Only through those 'warp gates' of hers or gaps. But she could run for very long without looking tired... And she could most certainly have won at any point if she was being serious. She has no shortage of stamina. All in all, not any special performance, but for the rest of the onlookers it is.

"Wah..." Her expression became tired, and her stomach growled.

Sighing, she looked serious again. They don't show footage of the entire field, so I won't know if I missed anything. But I won't miss anything in this stadium.

I'll keep watching, maybe try to find her after the cavalry battle is over with. I've an old hero license, so I should be able to get down there with total trust. At least they won't think I'm dead, unlike the freeloader I've home. But I'll have to check it before I go down there. The woman checked her left pocket. Did I even bring it with me?

She felt the card, bringing it up before her.

Name: Kasen Ibara

- HERO NAME -

Horned Hermit

The crimson eyes swiftly read all the information on it. Her name on the card wasn't her true one, but it should line up with their records. She always thought the hero name was a little revealing. It was only chosen for its simplicity, since they didn't accept long and extravagant titles. But it fit her character nonetheless, she very rarely showed up and didn't have a proper office when she conducted work. She did the bare minimum to fulfill the requirements to keep the license, as far as participation went. It also rang true to the hero name. The hermit let out a sigh of relief. Determining that the year, when it was received, was correct. Along with the "birth year" or at least her citizenship's stated birth year.

There were certainly benefits to have one of these licenses. But she wanted to be especially sure nothing was amiss.

She then dug it back into her pocket.

The Horned Hermit held her clenched hand up to her face. Between her fingers were three different sticks, all with their own sweets and edibles on. Dango, candy apple and cotton candy. She licked her lips and chewed down on one piece of dango. Just because I'm here for other reasons, doesn't mean I won't enjoy a festival.

"Iida-kun, have you decided yet?"

Iida turned to look at her. "After the last round, I don't think I want to rely on you again. I feel like I only got past everyone since you were so generous. You can't run around without being shown some adversity. But I'll cheer you on, despite having to compete with you."

The wind blew past and tossed her blonde hair into her face. She calmly pulled it out, as her expression shifted in a short time to a satisfied one. "I'm taking after you, then. But I'm going easy on just you."

"Wha-why?" Iida threw his arms down and held them out, in a questioning gesture.

"It's because..." Maribel paused and looked away, blushing as she finally built enough courage to say something. "I like you."

"E-eh..." He blushed in return and nods erratically. "Well, see you during the battle!"

"Mhm. Wish you luck!" Maribel turns around and waves as she walks away. Am I being too blunt? I've been pretty suggestive for a while... Damn it, if I'm going this far, I might as well outright confess after this.

As she walks forward, her arm lowered and her vision centered on what was in front of her. Where she did notice Midoriya approaching. She couldn't help but frown, he did nothing but be a reminder her of weakness. Even if she had heard him being brave at times, he cowered easily in the presence of Bakugo. She supposed the only reason that he wasn't cowering around her was she kept up a facade, he kept trying to nose into her business and her quirk. She hated when anyone did that. Back in Junior High, it was the most guarded secret she had. If she was a 'weird kid' who could never sleep right, nobody would even consider getting close to her. It still happened, but for different reasons. A terrible luck of hers, as she solved the problem so simply in the last year of Junior High.

Izuku's eyes met hers as he got close, which was when he noticed her expression. "H-hey, I was thinking you could t-"

"No." She answered simply and brushed him off, walking in another direction. Midoriya held out a hand as she walked away, almost as if trying to grasp onto a teammate. Iida stopped to look as she left him, and when he turned to look at the one she left behind, Midoriya opted to go up to him. Whatever words they exchanged were lost in the crowd.

The true reason why she didn't want him was because of how he vexed her, he was abnormally pushy. Something she despised from her days in Junior High and especially now considering the state of her quirk. During the battle trial, he was apparently scared of Bakugo at first. Combined with his generally wimpy and weak demeanor aside from a few moments, she couldn't help but dislike it. Feeling like a bad callback. He didn't score high on the physical exam or anything. Was there any reason to have him in her team that someone stronger and greater of will couldn't fill? She had more to say, but having her thoughts run amok like this didn't lead her to a rational conclusion.

Maribel wandered on through the crowds, there were a few standing around that were still looking for teammates. And Maribel could easily see who she might get along with. A good fit for her and Shinso's criteria.

Shinso came with an unexpected teammate. Jurota of class 1-B had somehow been swayed to his side, through his quirk Brainwash no less.

Meeting him was Maribel Hearn and her classmate, Rikido Sato. "Hey, wasn't that the guy who declared war on the class? And that's one of the 1-B students."

Hearn glanced to him and smiled. Almost like a superpower, it blasted away his doubts. "It's fine, he knows me."

Stepping up to Hearn, Shinso introduced who he was walking with. "This is Jurota Shishida from 1-B. I used my quirk to pick what's most appropriate."

Maribel didn't react adversely, and Sato didn't really know what he was implying. "Is he alright?" Sato looked at Maribel and tilted his head towards Jurota. In comparison to the rest of them, Jurota looked still and unresponsive.

"Trust me. It's nothing to worry about." Hearn titled her head to the side as she looked at her. "Okay, let's form a strategy. Shinso, are you okay with him knowing your quirk?"

Shinso had a wooden expression, his eye bags working only to enhance it. "I'd rather not." He looked at Sato. "But don't fear, I will make it work. And if you look well enough, you'll know what it does."

Sato shed a drop of sweat and shrugged. "As long as it works. I'm doing my part, though! Keeping our reputation in order is why I'm here to help!"

They gathered around and discussed their team strategy.

Maribel would be the rider to maximize her vision. Sato would be in front, as he was one of the most built on the team. Shinso decided to stay in the back, but they agreed he would mostly be the eyes. His quirk would function as a distraction and a secret weapon that they could rely on if they found themselves in a tight spot. Jurota would take position next to Shinso and carry most of Maribel's weight. Which wasn't much in comparison to their muscle power, really. It almost made her embarrassed.

It offered them a great base and made them hard to knock around. Combined with Maribel's range and reaction times, there was little that could surprise them. She only needed eyes in the back, which Shinso would take care of. He was her backup with his quirk.

A team of heavy physical power, a spatially manipulating mobility and two unconventional kinds of attack. They considered themselves ready.

Principal Nezu really wants her to win, but at the same time, I need Midoriya-shounen at the top. He needs to tell the world that he's here to help them. It's good he started showing some progress with One For All, but I'm unsure if it will be enough. He'll have to pull through this and get rid of his competition along the way.

Make Your Team: Time Up! The screen read. The time for organization was over.

Midnight stretched on the scene. "It's about time we got started!"

"After fifteen minutes to form teams and make strategy, we've eleven teams lined up for the second round!" Present Mic gleefully announced. "NOW! Raise those battle cries! It's time for one of U.A.'s fiercest battles! LIGHT THE SIGNAL FIRE!"

Maribel coldly analyzed the environment and all of the teams she was faced with. A total of five 1-B teams and five 1-A teams, then there was hers. She held the only mixed team, apparently. Immediately assuming it would give her an advantage, nobody knew Shinso's quirk and Maribel's full set of techniques with her quirk weren't known to many. Sato and Jurota would be known by their respective teams, but not much else. This was a team against team fight, doubtful that anyone would willingly gang up on her team and share information. "Shinso, keep your eyes on anyone approaching. Jurota, you're on guard for anyone behind us. Sato is my frontal backup if my quirk cannot do its job. Remember I will use you to feign, too. When I do, I'll give each of you a clap on the shoulder."

She gestured at the other teams. "We'll target the low-point headbands first, it creates a faction of people with nothing to lose. They'll go for whatever's most easily available, which will be our enemy."

"You aim to exploit chaos?" Hitoshi raised an eyebrow at her, barely supporting any weight as he held the position next to Jurota, who was handling most of her weight. He shied away from looking up too much as he held her by the backside of her leg.

Maribel nodded. "Mhm."

"Got- Got it!..." Sato let out as she explained the strategy. He couldn't really have thought up something like that himself.

"Now, let's go! Counting down to the brutal battle royal!"

"Be calm." Hearn assured her team.

"Three!"

"They won't bother us until I allow it."

"Two!"

Despite that, her team expected the worst.

"One!"

Hearn's eyes turned purple as she narrowed them, taking a deep breath as she did. No need for blinking this time.

"Start!"

The team remained in place as everyone started charging towards their main target. Team Todoroki had the ten million points thanks to Tenya Iida's membership. They would most likely be the target of everyone else, and also hers at one point or another. I'd never want to remove him from the festival, so I don't have much of a choice other than trying to keep them in the game. But I won't let them with those points, not until the end, anyway. It's best I keep those with quirks I know in all of this, still.

Maribel gathered her thoughts as her eyes raced. Her team had started with five-hundred-eighty points, which was generally high. No chance it would put her at the top. I'm thinking of taking more as insurance, in the case I lose any other. Perhaps it would be stupid of me to run around with too many, people would think I'm a goldmine for points if Todoroki's too tough.

Whilst the action hadn't reached her yet, Maribel takes a look at the biggest competitors from her own opinion. Iida teaming up with Todoroki offered them a great mobility advantage, and combined they and the rest of their teammate were well-suited toward attacking the entire field. Not her forte without revealing some of her cards. The enemy team, ridden by Shouto, abruptly turned and covered their flank with ice. Preventing her from seeing them and the teams Tsunotori, Kodai and Hagakure. No doubt he'd try and grab all of them, but nobody could really challenge him without being faster than him.

"Todoroki locks himself in with three other teams! Keep your headbands tight, students!"

Hearn's team still didn't move and watched as the teams she listed earlier fell to 0 points. Todoroki's jumped 635 points. All displayed on the scoreboard. Sighing, Maribel's purple eyes created a gap just by her eyes. Finely proportioned and controlled, it wouldn't do anything bad to her. Spying through it, she watched the battlefield from above and moved the eye closer. Todoroki had frozen the teams and apparently stunned them, and seemed content in letting his team recover. If Maribel remembered correctly from the usual class banter that occurred over the weeks, Kaminari had a cooldown, as one would call it by video game terminology. It gave him the 'debuff' of mental deficiency. In other words, it would be safe to approach.

Todoroki-san only uses his right side to freeze. His left was to heat, right? Hearn reasoned that a second of exposure to fire wouldn't burn her, in comparison to the ice that would weigh her down. Joules per second.

Using the gap to spy, Maribel concentrated tremendously to make two independent gaps that were tight under her control. Her hand slung out right next to Todoroki's neck, snatching two headbands out of his hand and disappearing as it came. Her eye saw him turn to react, in surprise, but she pulled her eye away from the gap before long. Both of them closed. Looking at the scoreboard, team Hearn's score increased by 475.

"What? Did Todoroki drop two of his headbands?! Wait a minute..." Present Mic paused to consider and then yelled out. The crowd went wild, but her trick was out. In the background, the sound of crackling ice could be heard as Todoroki made further use of his quirk. Probably isolating himself from his competition, since she wasn't looking.

Eyeing the headbands quickly, Hearn puts them on around her forehead and her eyes reflexively dart toward anything incoming. Nothing in her front. "Team Tetsutetsu, behind us." Shinso reported. Taking her full attention.

"Turn around!" The blonde enthusiastically tells her team, who respond and face the incoming team. The synergy between Sato and Jurota singlehandedly making up their physical mobility. Her head turned to face her new enemy. Approaching within seven meters, one girl whose head consisted of vines reached out in an attempt to attack from a long range. They moved like waves, seemingly struggling to hold themselves up as they crossed the distance. A normal fighter would've considered them decently fast, but the quickest eyes on the field were Hearn's. They crossed about half the distance. Hearn's eyes focused and sent the team far away enough that they were a decent 10 more seconds away from approaching them. Double the distance, the enemy team slowed down for a moment and considered things. Exchanging words, they shifted and the vines moved in to shield them.

In this moment of thought, Maribel interrupted by quite easily severing the vines. Leaving a mass of them right before Tetsutetsu's team, they'd have to waste time to move over them if they wanted to get at her. The team leader yelled at her. "What the hell! Don't think cause you got range that you'll get away from us!" And one of the horses, the one in front, seemingly touched the vines to melt them. Or at least, they softened into some sort of goo. Maribel sneered at this and didn't even try to move away from them.

Her finger slipped forth and used their momentum against them, through a gap. She put her fingers out around the form of the headband and cleanly tore it off. Exerting the least amount of effort possible as she then pulled her hand back out. And quickly rolled it up around her head, putting it on properly. "Hey! Stop messing with us!"

"I'm only reacting to you. You should've gone for someone else!" Maribel shouted back at them and used her quirk to encompass their entire team in a gap. It was quick and disorientating, so when they were shunted to the edge of the battlefield they were quite confused. And soon they found themselves quite involved with the teams that Todoroki had frozen at the start.

"I get it now! The miracle girl, MARIBEL HEARN!- Seems to have stolen Todoroki's headband without even being present! That's a CRAZY quirk!"

Shinso raised his head, taking a little breath. "I think we're set, as long as we don't put ourselves into a compromising situation. I guess it depends on if we want to go for the ten million."

"Do we?" Hearn asked everyone.

Sato shifted a little to support her weight better. "As long as we're capable, why not?"

"Hmm..."

"Merry-san. Team Monoma's coming from behind." Hitoshi Shinso said. All that the team received in turn then was a soft clap on their shoulders. "Turn around." She asked and looked back at the approaching team.

Team Monoma consisted of Monoma himself and a guy that looked somewhat plain and in brown hair. One in dark brown and a guy that was colored a pitch black and with white hair. Not too stand-out, but she'd be on her watch. "Oh, so you can steal too? I guess that's another headline they can make about you!" Monoma yelled out at her, as if trying to goad her into an attack.

Shinso frowned, but his expression was mostly hiding behind the bulk of Sato. Sato himself was on guard and had an arm out, supporting Maribel mostly with his back and amazing core muscles.

"If you're putting it like that, maybe I'll take up the act of Robin Hood." Hearn smiled at him with no actual malice on her face. On the inside though, she was prepared to send him to the far end of the field. "Maybe I'll try and make a good show of every class.

Monoma's team stopped for a moment and he leaned forward. "That'd put your class in the spotlight again for how unusual it is! We at 1-B can't allow that." He talked almost to himself as the one guy in the front blew out from his mouth. It created a whirlpool that created a thin sheet of something. It made it hard to see through it properly. And Monoma forced it to fly forward with a push.

There was no reason to let it come to pass, so Maribel created a gap to force it to move out of the path. As quickly as it came, it flew past her, her eyes lazily following it. Because of this, she noticed the approach of Team Kendo and prepared to move them away. Caught in conjunction with their forced relocation, Monoma ran forward. The short distance and the distraction allowing him to gently nudge her with his finger before Sato brushed him and his team out of the way. Her own arm came into push him away just as his team ran past her. They were slow to stop, but when Hearn turned around, she was ready to boot him away.

Monoma waved his hands before him. "Whoa..." He blinked his blue eyes for a bit. Confused, apparently. Maribel felt something changing from him, but she didn't know exactly what. It wasn't all that familiar. "So this is the kind of quirk you make use of?"

...

Kind of quirk I make use of?

Oh, so you can steal too?

Maribel blinked and her expression became... neutral, she saw the boundaries clear as ever. Monoma's eyes remained a constant, normal blue, though. "H-hey, how do you do your thing?" He asked her, confused. She now understood the consequence of this situation, if he had her quirk, then the possibility of leaking her secrets was also true. She felt an anxiety about it, and on the inside, her expression turned sour and wide-eyed. A building of tension inside of her, she had to get rid of him quickly. But it seemed that he had not, as of yet, been able to make the first breakthrough with it.

Iris and pupil blending together as if she were a mystical creature, her thoughts came fast and clear as day. Jumping between options and lines of thoughts as fast as an electrical signal.

WhatdotherulesallowmetodobecauseIcan'tmakehimfalloffbutquirkcanbeusedliberallyandcombatisfreejustdon'tbreakthelawanddon'tmakeanysevereinjuriessoifistrikehimintheheadanddisablehimmomentarilythenhewon'tbeabletokeepusingmyquirkandmysecretanddreamswillbesafeandsowilliaswellandiwon'tfeellikeIusedtodoandicancontinueonwiththiseventandafterwardsiwillestablishmypresenceasadangerousopponentbyrelocalizinghisteamalongwithhimclosertothefrozenparticipantsandthusforcingthemtomakewaroverhisheadband.

Hearn frowned, baring her teeth and swung her upper body to the right. Her arm flew out and hit Monoma in the side of the head and almost knocked him off of his horses. As quickly as she appeared, the gap consumed her again, returning her to her normal position. Maribel had been practicing in not hitting too hard with the help of All Might. If she had done it correctly...

"Eeee-..." Monoma wobbled around on his horse, and almost slumped over.

...He should be a little foggy for a bit. All Might had taught her a little about safely dispatching villains.

Maribel flexed her arm and clenched her fist as she brought it before her. Flicking her head in the direction of Monoma's teammates and delivering them a devilish smile. Then her arm fell to the side in their direction. "Mono-" The one with brown hair in front was about to yell out. The sound of his words never had a chance to reach her entirely as her gap consumed them quickly enough. Removing them from her location and putting them alongside Tetsutetsu and the ones lacking headbands.

Leaning back a little, Maribel toyed with her hair. Which had grown unusually long recently, reaching down just beyond her shoulders. She pulled it back behind her ears to give her better sight. "Ah... I believe I have created a distraction. Let us hope it buys us some time."

"Maribel goes for the K.O! We'll bring Recovery Girl on the scene to make a checkup soon enough!" Present Mic shouts into the microphone like he's done through the entire festival thus far.

"Was that move even legal?" Hitoshi Shinso wondered out loud, he knew that the punishment for making someone fall wasn't in the rules that had been told.

Almost as if they possessed telepathy to hear the whole field, Midnight swung her whip and responded. "Correct! As long as it's not life-threatening, these moves are safe. This is what heroes deal with, and this is a common occurrence in our exercises!"

Maribel glanced at Shinso with some very slight suspicion before jerking her head in the direction of Todoroki's ice barrier. Midoriya and Bakugo's teams were trying to get inside of it. She'd have to wait a little to exploit that opportunity.

After hearing the commotion from Present Mic's side of the announcing, and seeing how his classmate had stolen some of his headbands before he could even lay eyes on them. In response, he used Iida's unmatched speed on foot to move his team away from the three teams he had put close to himself. The follow-up was the use of his glacier to isolate himself from the rest of the battlefield completely. Leaving him alone and away from sight. He had told his team about his current plan.

If she can't see me and no one is distracting me, then I'll not only have an easier time seeing when she appears, but I'll be able to deter her by not making it so easy.

She might not be in first place, but she certainly controlled the game. After showcasing how easily she could handle both mobility and attack even on her lonesome, crossing her without being prepared wouldn't do. There were two thorns in his side though, Bakugo and Midoriya's teams were both determined and full of will. Their quirks were strong enough to compete if he couldn't use his with total freedom.

He had positioned himself ten meters from his wall, giving him a decent cover along with a decent distance in case anyone burst through.

Boom. Boom. It resounded as the ice then crackled and burst. Mina used her acid to create a sheet that was then propelled by Bakugo's explosions, burrowing it into the ice with the pressure and quickly creating a large hole through it. "Come here, half-and-half bastard!" The explosive teenager shouted at Todoroki as he came through the ice with his team quick on their feet. As Bakugo came closer, his entire team shifted towards Todoroki's right side, bypassing any possible electric counterattack. He reached out and tried to grasp for Todoroki's headbands, both of which were inverted and made it hard to see which was his.

Todoroki yelled out in the heat of the moment. "Yaoyorozu!" And immediately caught his teammate's attention, her bare arm was raised and quickly protruded a foam-like material. Quickly growing in size, Bakugo met it with his explosive quirk, sending Todoroki's team reeling from the force the material absorbed. None of the heat passed through, making them safe. Yaoyorozu lowered her arm, the foam-like material falling to the ground. It made a loud thud, hardened quickly and broke apart as it hit the ground. Apparently its previous form could only last so long in exposure to air.

"Impact resistant, heat resistant. From the sound of that impact, it must not be very light, either!" Bakugo observed, the two teams entering a standoff.

Todoroki bowed forward just a little and talked to his teammates. "Rotate Kaminari to face them. Be prepared to turn abruptly, Iida-san." And was responded to accordingly, Iida's engines pushed with immense power and the grip on the ground loosened for the team as the team members complied a little. Kaminari now faced Bakugo's team and could be given free range to attack.

Wide-eyed at the mobility of Iida, who seemed to be holding himself back, Bakugo called to his team. "Make some distance!" Followed by his team quickly backtracking away from Todoroki's team. Closer to the wall of ice.

Shouto tapped Iida's shoulder. "Forward!" The man with the glasses yelled to the rest of his team and pushed on. Effectively, his entire team was hanging onto him as he ran. Soon enough, the distance between the teams shrunk to a couple of meters even with Bakugo's movement. The shadow of the glacier covered both of them as Iida stepped to the side, swinging him and his team as they made a brake-turn. Kaminari faced Bakugo's team again.

"Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami called out, muffled behind the ice. Neither Todoroki or Bakugo's teams reacted to that, but the breaking of the ice they did. Between them, Midoriya's entire team burst through the ice. Dark Shadow swung to the side, tossing water, slush and ice onto Todoroki's team as Kaminari unleashed his electricity.

Almost none of them had been prepared for this, not even Midoriya, who had assumed Todoroki would be positioned farther out in his fortress. They flew past, the engineered devices of the support department buffering them above the ground to an extent. Creating an even distance between the three teams as all but one of Todoroki's team members were truly and literally shocked. Smoke rose from their bodies temporarily as they spazzed in reaction. Kaminari was quick to notice and stopped using his quirk. "Woah, woah. Shit, I'm sorry!"

This momentary shock, amounting to just a brief instance, was enough to stun his entire team. If not for the sudden entrance of Midoriya, there would surely have been a vicious attack from Bakugo.

But for now, two teams would not cut in. And before they could even consider it, Todoroki's team was back on track. The team leader himself shook his head, irritated. And kept his eyes on the two teams before him. "Midoriya, I got it." Tokoyami said, Dark Shadow rose up to the team leader with a headband in its mouth.

Both the other teams locked their eyes with Midoriya. Checking the headband, Midoriya folded it out and then flipped it after he couldn't see the number. He briefly read it, and it quite clearly wasn't the ten million. "It's not it... But it's better than nothing." He said with a serious face, he was prepared for a fight, quite the contrast compared to his usual self.

Checking the scoreboard, Bakugo barked something to his team and kept his eyes locked on Todoroki. Midoriya looked on over at Bakugo, figuring something.

In both of their minds... If he hasn't lost the ten million, then there's no reason to switch targets. There might be a fight, but that will be focused on the gold, not the silver!

"Let's go!" Midoriya yelled out. "Attack!" Bakugo also yelled in a weird unison with his rival. Their teams ready and eager for the fight. Todoroki expression tightened, this was a pinch.

Above Todoroki, the dreaming girl's upper body popped out, above anyone's normal field of view. Aside from the two charging teams, nobody was aware. And their shifting eyes would be main cause of Todoroki's sudden shift in attention. Her hand appeared through another, swiping just within Todoroki's field of vision. His right hand came towards his left, attempting to stop her.

"Sato!" Her voice reached him just as her hand began moving, they had a plan in place.

"ORA!" Sato's larger hand arrived to smack Todoroki's away, causing a grunt and an immediately withdrawal of Todoroki's hand. Sato's hand ended up being partly encased in a block of ice, but he had enough muscle to weather it, even if he'd lose all sense of touch in it for a bit. Hearn's much more slender and elegant hand slithers itself around the final headband around Todoroki's head.

An oddly satisfying sound is heard as the fasteners between the two ends of the headband were torn from each other. The ten million were hers. His and her hand safely passed through the moving gaps and Maribel herself leaned back through her own before anyone could do anything. Within a slightly longer frame of time, she moved her team inside of Todoroki's fortress of ice and removed all of her headbands from her neck. Her own, two stolen from Todoroki, one from Tetsutetsu and the ten million that belonged more personally to Iida.

"WOOOH! That's some nice teamwork!" The announcer cheered in tandem with the entire crowd.

With an unreal dexterity, awarded to her through her excellent reaction time at the moment. Maribel turned all of the headbands in on themselves, hiding their value to any onlooker and put them around her neck. An excellent idea, Todoroki, I'll borrow it.

For once, Present Mic didn't scream into the microphone to get the crowd interested. This was commentary. "So, Eraserhead, now that there's three minutes left. What are your thoughts?"

Eraserhead waited a little bit before speaking his mind. "Previously, it looked like 1-B wanted to show off in spite of how famous 1-A has become. They were willing to put more things at risk and didn't think carefully about who they were approaching."

"Harsh as ever, Eraserhead! The four-way battle between the previous top performers is some of the most interesting stuff I've gotten to see in the festival! Can Todoroki save himself, or will he be stuck with zero points?!"

All in all, I think it's difficult to write this battle in particular, but I'll do my best. I don't have the entire battle planned out yet, so give me some ideas if you have any cool that might fit thematically. I do have a few myself, but there's a lot to build on.

And Kasen has finally made her appearance, she will be doing a lot of things. But right now, I think she'll just be here to see, and mingle just a little.

Finally, if you're wondering why Maribel is doing so well these first rounds, it's up to her focusing on mobility. Her quirk is excellent for that, and it's by far her best capability (at the moment anyway). In the cavalry battle, the best offense is speed and the best defense is speed. If no one can catch you or see you incoming, there's little stopping you. Don't worry, I will make things less sided towards her as the festival goes on. Maribel will start hitting her limit with her normal power once the tournament starts, and will have to experiment. Eventually, that stamina (which is not her own, if you've taken the hint) will also have to run out one way or another.