Chapter 17: More Money, More Problems

The weekend ended too soon for Izuku. It felt like he had just managed to get his homework finished before his Mom was banging on his door to wake him up for school on Monday. Reluctantly climbing out of bed and dressing himself, he set off for his early morning detention. Exiting his train, he shambled down the platform steps and off towards UA, yawning every few steps. He had no idea what Power Loader had in store for him, but he hoped it was at least better than being suspended or expelled. It still sucked that he had to sacrifice his mornings though. That was the real punishment as far as he was concerned. For the next month he had to come in at 6:00am until 7:00am every weekday for all of April. It didn't seem like a lot, but if you were only operating on four hours of sleep a day like he was, an extra hour was a big deal.

As he approached the gate to UA, he was unsurprised to see a gathering of news vans and camera's setting up for the day. With the exception of a small quote from Principal Nezu, UA had yet to make a formal statement regarding the villain attack. A few of the reporters eyed him with predatory interest over their bagels and coffee, but he was able to scoot past the threshold of the school gate before they could mobilize and intercept him.

It's going to be fun battling my way through the press when I'm leaving school today, that's for sure. At least I'm not in class 1-A. I bet they'll have reporters breathing down their necks the second they leave school grounds.

Suddenly he had a terrible realization. His classmates had probably learned by now that he was at the USJ during the attack – or at the very least were curious as to where he was at lunch. Would they be bombarding him with questions all day? He groaned. He'd need to learn what class 1-A was telling people before he started opening his mouth. He didn't want to sound like a bragging idiot or conversely like he was being a smarmy asshole by not sharing information. Shaking his head, he quickened his pace. He didn't want to risk Power Loader's wrath by being late.

As he approached his homeroom, he felt a growing sense of unease. He had never received a legitimate detention before. Back when he was at Aldera Jr. High he had gotten in trouble often enough, but that was just because of Bakugo setting him up for one thing or another.

Power Loader was really pissed off too. He thought nervously, Maybe I'm not so lucky to only get detention after all.

Stepping into the empty classroom, he was immediately greeted by Power Loader who was seated at his desk.

'Midoriya, you're here. Good. Take your seat.' Power Loader said crisply.

Wordlessly he walked over to his station and sat down. Unpacking his school things, he took a deep breath and waited. Mr. Tamanegi's preferred detention activity was to make his students sit quietly while he stalked women on social media. It was mind numbingly boring for some, but Izuku actually kind of liked it. He could daydream to his heart's content, practice his drawing, and even have a snooze if the room was particularly full.

I doubt Power Loader is going to be such a pushover though. He'll probably make me write lines or something. Whatever, as long as it isn't more homework, I'll survive.

He didn't have to wait long. After a few moments Power Loader stood up and began walked his way. Izuku's jaw dropped when he saw the thick stack of folders in his arms that came halfway up his chest.

…kill me…

Power Loader made no notice of his expression. Instead he spoke as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

'I thought for a while about how best to address your self control problem and I believe I've come up with a solution.' he said; drawing near, 'In my hands are the after-action reports for several heroes that were killed in the line of duty. Like you, all of these heroes were young with a promising future ahead of them, but for whatever reason they committed to a reckless action that ended up getting themselves, as well as innocent civilians, killed. I would like you to review every one of these files and write a report on each one, detailing what they did wrong, and how you could avoid their mistakes. Do you have any questions?'

Izuku gulped. Detention was a lot more serious than he thought it would be.

'N-No, sir.'

'Good. You may begin.' he said, thumping the pile of folders down on his table, 'I suggest you use your time wisely. I will extend your detention for as long as needed until you finish these reports.'

At that, Power Loader went back to his desk. Trying his hardest not to have a mental breakdown, Izuku took the first folder and gingerly opened it. Inside was an extremely graphic photo of what looked like a collapsed tunnel that had partially buried several people including a brightly costumed woman.

Even after seeing several dead bodies up close and in person while he was on patrol, Izuku still felt queasy. Beneath the attached photo, the report read:

Hero Name: Sun Glider

Status: Deceased (KIA)

Title Summary: Unnecessary use of quirk resulting in explosion of utility gas line. Six killed, eleven wounded.

As Izuku started to read he started to feel more and more nauseous. Whoever had compiled the report was extremely thorough and spared no detail no matter how grisly. As he attempted to get through the report without spewing his breakfast, he was thankfully distracted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Glancing up from his work, he saw Mei enter the classroom.

She was half-heartedly digging through her backpack as she walked through the door. She did a double take upon noticing him, but said nothing. Instead, she wordlessly went to her table at the front of the class. Once she was seated, Power Loader spoke.

'All right, you're both here. Hatsume, you will continue your work packet. I need to go and supervise the development studio. While I'm gone there will be no talking or distracting one another. Just concentrate on your work.' He fixed the two with a steely gaze. 'Understand?'

'Yes, sir.' said Mei and Izuku in unison.

Nodding, Power Loader left the room and Izuku turned back to his booklet. A rising sense of guilt in the back of his mind.

I guess Mei got detention for that fuel explosion last Thursday.

He briefly considered the viability of an apology before he dismissed the thought. All that would do is make things much worse than they already were. Setting his attention back to the report, he resumed reading.

Once detention ended Izuku wasted no time in closing up the report he was working on. There was still an hour and a half before class started and he wanted to get his mind as far away from the gruesome contents of the after-action reports as possible. As soon as he was out of the classroom, he was immediately joined by Mei.

'So?' she demanded as they walked out into the hall, 'What happened on Friday?!'

He sighed and told her the same story he had told Power Loader. He described meeting the boy in the white gi, how the hero student had "rescued" him from the villains, meeting up with Momo, Jiro and Kaminari in the mountain zone, then being "rescued" again by the arrival of the teachers.

'…and so I got a month's detention for my trouble.' Izuku finished as they walked down the final stretch of hallway towards the development studio.

Mei tisked and shook her head wisely.

'Such foolishness.' she said sagely, 'I can scarcely believe it. To think that the top student would do such a thing.'

He narrowed his eyes.

'I can't tell if you're serious or not. But anyway, yeah.' he shrugged, 'I assume you got detention for your runaway boots? How long do you have?'

'A week.' she said cheerfully, 'Sucks you got a month. But hey, look on the bright side, we still get to go into the development studio and build stuff. Could be worse!'

'I guess so.'

Izuku spent his workshop time improving the helmet of his costume with a rebreather and retractable face shield to increase his survivability in high heat and low oxygen environments. He also took the opportunity to pocket a few "spare" parts from his workbench for Spider-Man while he was at it. Reusing was better than recycling after all.

While he worked, he was approached several times by his classmates who demanded to know what had happened at the USJ and each time he had to endure the withering stare of Power Loader while he stammered out an increasingly milquetoast version of his story.

Once, their extra development studio period ended, they returned to homeroom for their regular classes. To Izuku's annoyance he found that he had to repeat his story several more times as the morning wore on. By the time lunch arrived, he had recited his tale over a dozen times and he was starting to feel like a human record player. Thankfully, the constant questioning was postponed by Power Loader clearing his throat loudly while they were packing up to leave for the cafeteria.

'Before we all head off for lunch, I would just like to remind you all about the upcoming Sports Festival.' he said.

Everyone in the class dropped what they were doing and looked up to the front excitedly.

'The Sports Festival is a proud tradition here at UA. Beyond being an important physical exercise, it also serves as a reminder to us all about the importance of hard work and fair play.'

'Yeah, and advertising revenue.' Mei said snidely and several students smirked.

Power Loader smiled, 'Yes. I'm sure you've all watched the Sports Festival on TV before. It remains the most popular sporting event in Japan and the revenue generated goes a long way to pay for all the equipment you guys break. Anyway, it will begin in two weeks from today and this year consists of three events. The first is an endurance test. The top forty-two performers of which will be able to progress to the second round which is a co-operative team event. Those teams who succeed will advance to the third round which is a structured tournament where students will attempt to knock one another out of a ring. The last student standing is declared the winner and they, along with second and third place will receive medals for their efforts.' Power Loader paused and looked over the excited class, 'Are there any ques-'

Immediately several hands shot up in the air but Mei beat them all by simply jumping out of her desk and shouting out her question as she stood.

'What kind of gadgets can we use in the events?!' she asked breathlessly, hand still raised.

'You may bring anything you want so long as you clear it with me first. However, I should warn you that you are not permitted to bring guns that are intended to fire at your opponents. Whether they use nonlethal ammunition or not.'

The class let out a collective groan of disappointment and Power Loader shrugged consolingly. Izuku frowned and raised his hand, Power Loader saw him and quickly added.

'Grappling guns are allowed but only if they fire grappling hooks. And no. You're not allowed to use them offensively.' Power Loader said and Izuku lowered his hand. Power Loader licked his lips before he continued.

'While we're on the subject let me just say that you also cannot make tasers, blinding lasers, chemical weapons such as tear gas, sleeping gas - actually any kind of gas except smoke -, crossbows, gamma radiation emitters - don't even get me started on that one - , explosives, sonic disruptors, flechette launchers, nausea inducing microwave guns, flamethrowers, ice projectors, plasma blasters, cannons, or catapults.'

The class immediately erupted into an uproar at the devastating news.

'But-but that's totally unfair!' Hiretsuna cried in frustration, banging her fist on her table, 'How are we supposed to win?'

Power Loader sighed, 'The rules are in place for student safety.'

His words fell on deaf ears however as the class continued to complain.

'But there's a guy in class 1-A who literally shoots explosions at people! And there is another guy who is both a living flamethrower and an ice projector! Are they banned from using their quirks?' Saigo asked and several other students nodded their heads in agreement.

'Yes, their quirks are allowed. Any quirk is fair game.' Power Loader said and the class moaned.

'The system is rigged!'

'This is such bullsh…uh…crap!'

'No wonder support always loses!'

'Hey! Wait a minute, this is terrible!' Mei said suddenly and the class went silent, 'If we can't build what we want, then how're we supposed to market our inventions? Never mind winning, a lot of important people watch the Sports Festival and I was planning on using the free air time to showcase my babies! There is money to be made, dammit!'

Izuku, who up until this point had been relatively calm during the discussion, suddenly sat bolt upright in his seat. It was all so simple.

Money! I need money! Loads of people watch and bet on the Sports Festival. It's one of, if not the biggest, sporting event of the year! I could bet on myself on the first round and cash in big if I win the tournament! The odds against me would be insane, especially if I place my bet early in the first round! The odds might be as crazy as a hundred to one!

As he stirred in his desk and raised a hand to ask a question, Power Loader attempted to calm the class down before he had a full-blown riot on his hands.

'Everyone, listen! Now, while it's true that the support department doesn't have the best track record at the games…'

'I wonder why!' Kiska said bitterly.

'…we have always made a strong showing and I expect no less from all of you this year. Remember there is more to the events than just showing off or winning. It's about comradery, good sportsmanship, and unity between students.'

The class went silent for a moment.

'Fuck that, I want to win!' muttered an unidentifiable voice before the class once again broke down into arguing.

Power Loader threw up his arms in frustration.

'Its lunchtime. Class dismissed.' he said before practically running to the exit. The students angrily shouted after him as he made a hasty retreat for the safety of the staff lounge.

'Hey Midoriya.'

Izuku turned. Moyashi was speaking to him.

'Are you going to enter the tournament?'

'Hell yeah!' Izuku said immediately, slamming his textbooks into his backpack, 'I'm going to win it too!'

On their way to the cafeteria, Izuku and his fellows were in the middle of an animated conversation about how unfair the Sports Festival was when they were forced to stop because of a large mass of students blocking the hall in front of class 1-A's homeroom. Curious, they joined the crowd.

'What's going on?' Izuku asked a random student.

'Didn't you hear? This is the class that defeated the villain attack at the USJ!' the girl said excitedly, 'It was all over the news!'

Before he could ask her anything else, he heard a brash voice shout out from the classroom door.

'Piss off you worthless extras! Stop gawking at us and go back to your mediocre lives.'

The crowd wavered and a few people exchanged confused looks. The crowd thinned as people backed away and Izuku was unsurprised to see Bakugo standing the doorway, sneering at them all.

Bakugo sure knows how to win over a crowd. Izuku thought, rolling his eyes.

As the gathered students milled about uncertainly in front of class 1-A's door, a tall boy with dark purple hair and bags under his eyes sidled his way to the front of the crowd.

'You know,' the purple haired newcomer began, 'many of the students enrolled in general studies or the other courses did so because they didn't qualify for the hero course. If we do well enough at the Sports Festival though, the school administration said that they will consider transferring us into the hero program. If I were you, I would watch out. You're certainly not making any friends by acting so arrogantly.' he said calmly, disdain written clearly on his face.

'Ooh, real scary. I'll be careful to watch my back while I kick your ass in the festival. Fuck off, dweeb.'

The boy gave Bakugo a hard stare before marching away. Several members of the crowd broke away with him, haughtily talking about how rude class 1-A was.

'They're just a bunch of elitest jerks.'

'Some heroes they'll turn out to be.'

'Assholes! I hope you take him down, Shinso.'

Bakugo's sentiment was not lost on Izuku's fellow support class and they too started talking.

'Wow,' whistled Kiska, 'it might be competitive in support, but at least we don't call the other classes worthless. What a tool.'

'I wish there was, like, an attitude test for getting into class 1-A.' Moyashi said quietly, 'I think there is more to being a hero than just having raw power…'

The others voiced in agreement. As Izuku and his classmates waited for the hall to clear so they could proceed, several members of class 1-A exited their classroom and started off for the cafeteria. At their head was Bakugo who was pushing his way through the hostile crowd while the rest of class 1-A sheepishly followed behind him.

'Out the way, dorks.' Bakugo said as he elbowed past.

'Don't judge all of us by that blonde kid!' pleaded a pink girl that was walking behind him to the crowd, 'We're not claiming we're better than you or anything!'

'That's exactly what we're doing.' Bakugo interrupted and the crowd murmured angrily, 'If you've got a problem with that, then do something about it at the Sports Festival. Otherwise, quit bitching.'

As Bakugo exited the crowd he came face to face with Izuku. Before Bakugo could say anything, Izuku grinned broadly and fell in step beside him.

'Hey, Kacchan. You're in top form today. You've managed to piss off like three quarters of our year in one go. Well done.'

Bakugo snorted derisively.

'Deku, please tell me you're going to enter the Sports Festival. I've been wanting to put you in your place for ages.'

'Yeah, I'm entering. And I'm going to win too.' Izuku said happily and Bakugo laughed.

'Oh, really? Well assuming you make it to the third round, what are you going to do in the tournament, Deku? Mumble me into submission?'

'Actually, I was going to pummel you into submission.'

'Cool.' Bakugo said, clearly unintimidated, 'Well we'll see how that goes, noodle arms.'

Izuku did his best to chuckle dismissively though his laugh came off a bit too forceful.

'What? Noodle arms?! I'm in way better shape than you are, Bakugo. Wanna arm wrestle?'

Bakugo smirked but said nothing. Before long he, Bakugo and the rest of class 1-A and 1-H came up on the cafeteria. As soon as they entered Bakugo gave him a sharp nudge and Izuku glared over at him.

'Run along, Deku. Go sit at the loser table where you belong.' he said, shooing him away.

'Okay, enjoy the hero table, Kacchan.' Izuku said coldly. As soon as he turned his back to class 1-A he felt embarrassed at himself for acting so immature and confrontational. He knew he shouldn't stoop to Bakugo's level, but he couldn't help himself.

Whatever. I need to think about how I can win!

Evidently that was the same thought on everyone else's mind as they sat, silently munching away. Eventually the silence was broken by Moyashi who seemed much more at ease then his fellows.

'Well unlike you lot I know for sure that I don't stand a chance. In fact, I'm not even going to bother competing.' he said, in an oddly upbeat voice.

Izuku glanced over in surprise.

'Really? Why not?'

'No point.' he said quietly, 'But what about you? ' he asked in a louder, firmer voice, 'You said you were going to win. What's your plan?'

Izuku felt himself blush slightly as everyone turned their attention to him.

'W-well I was planning on just running through the first challenge. It's an endurance event, right? As long as I maintain a good pace and use my grappling gun effectively, I think I have a pretty good chance of at the very least qualifying for the team event. Getting into the top forty-two doesn't seem impossible.'

Moyashi nodded, 'Yeah, but what about the second challenge though? If it's a team event then you won't have any guarantee of getting good teammates.' he hesitated for a moment before continuing, 'No offense, but because your quirkless I don't know if anyone would even want you in their team.'

Izuku kept his expression light as Moyashi spoke before responding, 'Yeah, I know. That's actually a really big problem for me. Hey, I have an idea, why don't we all try and get through the first event together, then team up for the second event!'

He looked around the table for support, but the everyone just glanced at each other uncertainly.

'I don't know.' Hiretsuna said stiffly, 'I think I have a pretty good chance of clearing the first event too. If I got to the second event, I would want to partner up with the strongest people I could…' she cleared her throat as everyone stared at her, '…and I don't think that's necessarily other support students.' she said, trailing off.

'Well I'm down for a team up!' Mei said eagerly, 'I know my quirk sucks in combat, but I've still got my babies! I can contribute.'

'But do you think you can even make it past the first event though? Those top forty-two places will be really competitive.' Saigo pointed out.

'S-Sure! I'm in pretty okay-ish shape.' she said, slapping her stomach with gusto. The abrupt gesture caused Izuku to choke on his juice as he held in his laughter, 'Plus, I can build a grappling gun of my own, and maybe I'll try and iterate on my rocket boots too.'

'Oh-oh-okay.' Izuku sputtered, hard swallowing as he gasped for air, 'So that's two. Me and Mei. Anybody else? Come on guys, we can all work together and maybe even win!'

'Alright.' Hiretsuna began wearily, 'if you really want-'

'You know what, I'll join too.' Saigo said over her, grinning, 'If by some miracle I get through the first round, we can team up.'

'Why don't we all just promise to join up together if we make it through to the second round?' Izuku said to the table. Everyone started nodding agreeably. After all, it was such a long shot that there was no point in refusing.

'Only forty-two available spots…' Mei said thoughtfully as she inspected her potato salad, 'There are forty students in the hero program alone. All of those guys will probably qualify easily.'

'Unless we can knock them out of the race somehow.' Izuku pointed out, 'We'll need every advantage we can get for the later events. Ideally, we would be able to eliminate the toughest opponents in the first round so we don't have to fight them in the tournament.'

'You're already thinking about the tournament? I wish I shared your optimism, Izuku.' Bukimi said grinning, 'With all the cool stuff against the rules, I don't know what we could build to take out the hero class's heavy hitters.'

Izuku frowned.

'Missiles.' Kiska said suddenly, 'Power Loader never said anything about missiles.'

At that everyone started excitedly talking about what they thought might help them win. Izuku could tell the discussion was getting derailed somewhat when Bukimi started debating with Saigo the merits of building a satellite, but he was enjoying himself too much to try and refocus the conversation.

All things considered Class 1-A might have the better quirks but I reckon class 1-H has the better people. Izuku thought smiling as everyone happily chatted away in front of him.

Ochaco absently poked at her lunch as Tenya and Bakugo got into another shouting match. Their daily arguments were starting to remind her of the screaming arguments her neighbours sometimes had. Though to be fair they had thirty years of marriage to hate each other, Bakugo and Tenya had only known each other for a week.

'Hey, Earth to Uraraka. Hellooo.'

Ochaco blinked herself out of her stupor and snapped her eyes over to the floating uniform at her side.

'Oh, sorry Toru. I must have spaced out for a bit. What were you saying?'

'I was just wondering if you plan on getting serious for the Sports Festival! Tsu was saying she's planning on going for the gold no matter what.'

'I'm not going to pull any punches *ribbit*. I just want to say that now in case I start acting weird later.' Tsuyu said matter of factly. Ochaco grinned at the frog girl. She was always so confident.

'Yeah, I'm going for it! A lot is riding on me being a successful hero. I can't afford to fail.' Ochaco said.

Momo looked at her and nodded in approval, 'Good. It wouldn't do to have our class be seen as not putting in an earnest effort. Our reputation has been damaged enough already I think.' she said glaring down the table at Bakugo.

'Competition is going to be pretty rough. Who do you think is going to make it into the final stage of the festival?' Ochaco asked.

'Hmmm. Well Bakugo and Todoroki for sure.' Momo said and the other girls nodded. They were the most powerful in the class. 'But other than them it's really a toss up. Almost anyone stands a fair chance, I think.'

'What worries me is class 1-B. We don't know what their quirks are.' Ochaco said nervously, looking over at their table.

Class 1-B was the other hero program class at UA. Much to their chagrin, despite having an identical curriculum to class 1-A they were largely seen as "the slow class" in the eyes of the rest of the school. As a result, they viewed class 1-A as their rivals. No doubt they were eager to prove to the school otherwise during the Sports Festival.

'There are all sorts of people to be worried about *ribbit*. There could be wildcards anywhere who might be hiding really powerful quirks that would love to take our place.' Tsu said.

'What are the chances of that though? We all took the entrance exam, and we were the ones who qualified.' Momo said imperiously, though Ochaco couldn't help but notice that her eyes shifted nervously around the cafeteria hall.

'Well yeah, but our quirks just so happened to be good at destroying robots. Who knows what the teachers have in store for us?' Ochaco said.

'I'm worried about that support class guy, Midoriya. The kid with the green hair.' Jiro said, pointing with her ear jack.

Ochaco turned. Way down in the corner of the cafeteria mess hall was the support class table. They were all laughing and talking with one another. Ochaco felt a pang of jealousy. She had learned that Midoriya and Bakugo were frenemies, but it seemed like Midoriya was the more mellow of the two. Why couldn't he have been the one in their class?

'You mean the guy from the USJ?' asked Ochaco, 'Do you think he has a chance?'

Jiro nodded, 'When he came across us at the mountain zone he took those villains apart! In the time it took me, Momo and Kaminari to take down three, he had already beaten over a dozen. Isn't that right, Kaminari? Kaminari?' Jiro frowned. The yellow and black-haired boy had stuffed his mouth so full he couldn't speak. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to Ochaco.

'Isn't he quirkless though?' Ochaco asked delicately. Quirk status was a sensitive topic and she didn't want to sound judgemental.

Jiro shrugged. Leaning so she could see down the table, she cupped her hand to her mouth, 'Hey! Ojiro!'

The tall, short haired blonde looked up from his plate. Shifting his tail to his other side, he raised his eyebrows inquiringly.

'What did you make of the green haired guy from the fire zone?' Jiro asked.

'Oh, he's definitely a contender. Why he's in hero support instead of the hero program is beyond me. I bet he could have qualified if he wanted too.'

'See?' Jiro said turning back to her, 'I wonder how many other members of the support class are as powerful as he is?' Jiro ran her hair behind her ear before continuing, 'What worries me is that it's so early in the school year. It's not like we have a training advantage over anyone. All we know is we're good at taking out clunky robots. I don't know about you guys, but up until the USJ incident, I'd never got into a fight with anyone. What if there are people here who aren't necessarily good at fighting robots, but are really good at fighting people?'

'Y-Yeah, but-' Momo started but Jiro kept talking.

'And we have the most to lose too. Maybe Bakugo and Todoroki will be safe, but all of us? I doubt it.' Jiro said twirling her hair around behind her ear.

'That's true, except-' Momo tried to begin again, but Jiro cut her off.

'Plus, after Bakugo's little speech in the hallway, the whole school probably hates us. I wouldn't be surprised if they all co-operate to bring us down.' Jiro said casually as she inspected her fingernails, seemingly oblivious to the worried looks that were being exchanged around her, 'That's what I would do if I was stuck in general education. All I'd be thinking about is taking down one of the hero students so I could claim their place.'

She looked over to Momo.

'Oh, sorry for interrupting you. What were you going to say?'

'N-nothing.' Momo said dejectedly.

Ochaco gulped. She couldn't let someone steal her place! Not after she worked so hard. She would need to train more.

After lunch ended, class 1-H eagerly returned to their homeroom. Thanks to their little brainstorming session, they had all come up with a myriad of tactics and ideas. However, they still needed more information from Power Loader. And so, upon taking their seats they all waited with baited breath for his return.

Entering the room, Power Loader looked around the class cautiously while everyone quietly stared back at him, anticipation clearly written on their faces.

'Alright class, if you would please…ugh.' Power Loader groaned. Upon speaking, everyone's hand had immediately shot into the air.

'Okay. Fine.' he said setting his piece of chalk down by the blackboard, 'But let's make this quick. Chemistry waits for no one.'

Looking around the room, his eyes finally settled on Kiska, 'Yes?' he said pointing.

'What's your policy on missiles?' she asked breathlessly.

'Absolutely not. Yes?' he said, pointing to Hiretsuna.

'Would it be…cheating for us to work together?' she asked tentatively.

Power Loader crossed his arms as he carefully considered the question. Eventually he spoke, 'It would be cheating for you to co-operate in the second event if you were on separate teams. Otherwise, it's all fair game.'

The class grinned at each other. They weren't done for yet. Power Loader looked over at Izuku.

'Midoriya. What is it?'

'What can you tell us specifically about the first event?' he asked.

'The first event is intended to test your stamina. I suppose in many ways it's similar to the practical exam you took, only you'll all be competing together. It becomes quite chaotic as full quirk usage is allowed.'

'We can attack each other?' Izuku asked.

'Not specifically. You're authorized for indirect quirk usage only. Remember, the goal is to win the race, not knock each other out.'

'Can we at least make a fire extinguisher for when we get set aflame?' Saigo said sarcastically. The question was obviously a joke but Power Loader fell silent as he considered it.

'Yes. If you want a fire extinguisher, you can make one.'

Power Loader hesitated as he looked over at Kiska. She had her hand up again and she seemed ready to explode in her seat.

'Yes?' he asked reluctantly.

'Hallucinogenic drugs?' she gasped.

'Counts as a chemical weapon. No.' Power Loader scanned the class for another student. He pointed at Bukimi.

'Can we run through some practice courses here at school? Maybe you could help us prepare…?' Bukimi asked.

'How ever you want to practice is up to you. That said I cannot create any new obstacle courses for you to practice on.' He paused and looked at them all, 'Any new courses, you understand? If you want to make use of some of the training facilities here at school, I can recommend a few that I think may be useful. That said, the best training I think would be to practice your cardio.'

The class groaned and Power Loader shrugged.

'You need to get in shape.' he looked over at Izuku and he felt his spider sense tingle, 'Midoriya, would you be willing to lead the class in some after school exercises?'

'Yeah! Sure! Why not?' Izuku said laughingly in an overly joyous, almost deranged voice.

No! No! No! NO! Bye-bye sleep! Bye-bye food!

The class nodded at him appreciatively before turning back to the front.

'Now is there anything else?' Power Loader sighed. Kiska had her hand up again. Slowly he pointed to her.

'Totally non-lethal, non-toxic, environmentally friendly, concussive grenades?' she asked desperately.

Power Loader opened his mouth, but then closed it. Frowning he nodded his head slowly.

'Actually yes, you can have those.'

'Yes!' Kiska cried pumping her fist, before she regained her composure, 'Can they be formatted as a warhead on a missile or shell?' she asked, leaning forward in her desk eagerly.

Dropping his head to his chest, Power Loader opened his helmet slightly and rubbed his forehead.

'Well?' Kiska said excitedly, 'They won't be big.'

After school, Izuku and the rest of class 1-H worked diligently on some new concepts and designs for the Sports Festival before he led them on a two-hour exercise routine that he mostly just cobbled together from All Might's fitness regime that he remembered from an old cartoon he saw. He must not have screwed up too badly as Power Loader, who was supervising, didn't call him out on his lack of knowledge. Instead all he did was recommend additional exercises for everyone to do in the mornings before class.

It was eight o'clock by the time Izuku finally made it home. After wolfing down his meal, he had another quick nap before heading out again to patrol the slums. He had some questions to ask of an old acquaintance concerning gambling.

Izuku nervously looked over his shoulder as he opened up the phonebooth. Phonebooths were a rarity in this day and age and it had taken him longer than he cared to admit to find a working one. Closing the booth door, he frowned at the flickering florescent light shining above his head. With a flick, he shattered the bulb, plunging the booth into darkness. The last thing he wanted was to be recognized while he was stuck in a box.

Reaching into his pocket, he retrieved the crumpled old card that he had stuffed in his wallet from last year.

"Jack Hammer: discrete cable installation, plumbing expropriator, and professional legal counsel."

He smiled at the memory of Weasel.

Where would I be now if I never went down that alley? He mused as he fumbled in his pocket for some change. After plunking in his money, he dialed the number and held his breath.

'Come on…come on…' he muttered, trying to peer through the dirty glass of the phonebooth. It had been a long time. What if Weasel didn't remember him?

'Yeah?' said a man's voice, barely audible over the sound of a blaring television.

'Uh, Hi! Is this Jack Hammer?' Izuku asked loudly.

'Nope, wrong number.'

'Wait!' Izuku shouted before he could hang up, 'Is this…Weasel?'

He heard the television grow quieter and whoever was on the other end of the phone fumbled around slightly.

'Who's this?' asked the voice suspiciously and Izuku grinned.

'This is Izuku. Remember me? I was the guy who saved you from one of Shocker's guys, Claw?'

'….'

'Uh, it was in an alley, around a year ago? You owed them money. I was barefoot, you offered me a cigarette-'

'Oh. OH! Oh, shit. Yeah, I remember you! Geez, talk about a voice out of the blue. So, what's up?'

'Um, well I was wondering if I could call in that favour you owe me. You see I want to place a bet, but I don't know how…'

'A bet? What kind of bet?' Weasel said, immediately interested.

'You know the UA sports festival?' Izuku said, crouching down as a pair of headlights briefly illuminated his booth.

'Do I know it? Of course, I know it! It has the biggest pot all year! So, what do you fancy? First year? Second year? Third year?'

'Um, well you see the thing is I'm actually participating this year. Yeah, I'm in the first-year tournament so I was planning on placing a bet on myself.'

'Get out of here! Are you serious? Hooolllly Shiiiiieeeet! I can't believe it!'

Izuku held the phone away from his ear as Weasel shouted a mixture of intermittent swears and congratulations at him through the phone. When at last the man had calmed himself, Izuku returned his mouth to the receiver.

'Thanks. So anyway, about that bet…'

'Hey wait a minute.' Weasel interrupted, 'I'm looking up the class rosters and how come I don't see you in class 1-A or 1-B? Are you in general education or something?'

'Uh, no. I'm in support.'

'Support?' he asked. From the tone of his voice Izuku could practically see his frown.

'Yeah, support.'

Izuku heard typing coming from Weasel's end. Twirling the cord of the phone around his finger, he waited mutely for the man to say something.

You know. I think this is the first corded phone I've ever used before. Weird.

'Okay, I've found you.' Weasel said, 'Says here you're in support. Quirk status is null, special recommendation for fitness, top marks on your entrance exams-'

'Wait, how do you know that?' Izuku asked in surprise.

'Kid, people make their careers off of the Sporting Festival. Everyone is examined with a microscope. According to the house, you're predicted to drop in the first seed. Eliminated in the first round with odds of thirty-eight to one.'

'Hey, that's pretty good! Er, I mean bad!' Izuku said excitedly, 'What are my chances in the second round?'

'Victory by second round your odds are eighty-eight to one.'

Izuku whistled in amazement, 'Why are they so low?' he asked in a hushed tone.

'Well if I had to guess it's because you've got no quirk so you automatically get flagged and placed into the lowest possibility bracket. A suicide bet in other words. Hell, there's a girl in general education who can grow her fingernails who is rated higher than you.'

'That's crazy!' Izuku said as his mind ran through the possibilities, he had thought his meagre savings wouldn't even come close to reaching a billion yen, but if he were to place concurrent bets…

'Hey Weasel. Could I place one bet, say that I qualify for the second round, then automatically take my winnings and place them on a subsequent bet based on a specific condition? Like say I advance to the tournament?'

'You sure can. That's called "letting it ride". It's a pretty risky strategy though. Casino's love it because you're basically just throwing your money away. Unless, you have some insider knowledge…wait…Holy shit! Holy shit!'

Izuku braced himself as Weasel worked out the details in his mind. After a few moments of mumbled, incorrect arithmetic, Weasel spoke up again. He sounded feverish.

'Kid, listen. This is important. What makes you feel like you've got a shot at making it to the third event?!'

'I-I guess it's because of my physicality and the gear I'll be bringing to the fight. I doubt I can take first place, but if I advanced to the third round, I think I could beat most of the people in class 1-A and 1-B.'

'Do you think you could make it on the podium?'

'Hmm…that's a tough question. I'll need to figure out more about everyone's quirks. There is one student, Shoto Todoroki, who is supposedly really powerful…'

'Yes, Endeavour's son. He's favoured to win.'

'I don't know about that. Katsuki Bakugo is who'd I pick.' Izuku said begrudgingly.

He hadn't met Todoroki yet, but he knew how powerful Bakugo was. As rude as Bakugo might have been in the hallways that morning, he didn't make idle boasts. He was probably going to blitz through the competition.

'Well, look, I don't want to make any rash decisions. How about I call you back after I've done some more research?' Izuku said.

'Alright. Hey Izuku, I've got to know; why'd you come to me with this?'

'Uh, well you're the only gambler I know. Plus, me and you sort of go back a ways. You're…kind of why I'm where I am now.' Izuku said, blushing.

'Ah, that's true! It must have been fate!'

Izuku laughed nervously, 'I mean, I wouldn't go that far!'

'Well look. You do your research, yeah? And I'll pour over the ol' spreadsheet, do some calculations and we'll reconvene later. Deal?'

'S-Sure. Oh, and Weasel? Don't tell anybody about-'

'What are you kidding me?' he shouted incredulously, 'Of course, I'm not going to tell anybody! This is the tip of a lifetime, and I'm not going to let this one slip me by because of my big mouth.'

'Okay, great! Well, I'll call you back later.'

'Alright. Don't leave me hanging, Izuku.'

Izuku hung up and let out a long, breath. Leaning up against the glass, he took a moment to recover. He felt dizzy with excitement. How was he supposed to get any sleep now?