A/N: All right, time to get ready for the obligatory shounen tourney arc! So far we have a Meijin Lightus saying that Kurai will take 5th place, but we are still accepting bets at this time, so make sure to fill us in on your predictions.

Please be sure to read, review, and as always, enjoy.

Phase 1: Chapter 9

Full Cowling

"Hyah!"

"Groh!"

The sounds of combat echoed in Training Facility Beta as Izuku Midoriya and Kurai Hikari exchanged blows with one another, both of them gaining speed and confidence the longer they sparred.

"Nice footwork!" Kurai panted as he sidestepped a kick from his friend before grabbing the extended limb and using it to flip and pin Midoriya in place. With a tired grin, he added, "But remember what I told you about using your legs for offense. They're great to use once you're certain that you enemy is worn down so much that he can't do this to you. If he's still fresh, you've just killed your own balance and as good as handed him the fight."

"Yeah…" Midoriya grunted. "I underestimated how much stamina your quirk gives you…"

"Wasn't even using it," Kurai laughed as he let the other boy go, wiping sweat off his brow. "But I think we might be at a point where we can start using our quirks against one another in matches like this."

"Whoa, really?!" Izuku asked excitedly.

He and Kurai had been training almost nonstop since the boy had been discharged from the hospital three days ago in order to get themselves ready for the U.A. Sports Festival; a combat/physical fitness competition that would pit the entirety of the freshman class against one another on day one. Not only would it be broadcasted worldwide, it could land those that did well the best scholarships and offers to intern at choice agencies.

Both students had things that they wanted to learn from the other, so they had been trying to make the most of their time before the event. Kurai had plenty of power and the training to control it to a reasonable degree, but there was a limit to his power that put his life at risk anytime he tried to surpass it. Knowing that his classmate had a vast wealth of knowledge about how quirks worked, he had offered to train Izuku to use his own power-up quirk so that the boy wasn't constantly hurting his body every time he wanted to use it, in exchange for exploring alternative methods to trigger his own quirk.

So it was that they spent just about every minute of their free time training their bodies and minds for combat, with Kurai giving Izuku some pointers for hand-to-hand combat while the green-haired boy researched a variety of quirks that required intense concentration, trying to see if any might benefit the two of them.

However, as of yet, neither of them had used their quirks against each other in combat, even a sparring bout like the one they had just finished. So it was little wonder that Midoriya was surprised by Kurai's suggestion.

"Are you sure we can handle it?" his friend asked nervously. "I mean, what if we accidentally use our powers too much and hurt ourselves, or worse, each other?"

"Well, we need to start taking a practical approach sometime soon," Kurai shrugged as he walked over to where he and Izuku had left their water bottles. "The Sports Festival is less than a week away now. If we don't step it up, both of us are going to be regretting it."

"Somehow I don't see you having a problem in the competition," Izuku laughed nervously. "After all, you were able to keep up with a villain that almost got the better of All Might…"

"Nearly at the cost of my life," Kurai reminded him as he tossed his partner his water bottle. "I need better control of my power, too. Otherwise, it'll be a close call against people like Todoroki, maybe even Bakugo. So, I say that now we've reviewed some of the basics of unarmed combat, we move on to fighting with our quirks. Besides, we're cleared to go to Recovery Girl if we get hurt during this session, so we can experiment, just a little. I'm not saying go a hundred percent at each other, but all the same, let's kick it up a notch."

"O-Okay," Izuku stammered nervously before taking a sip from his bottle. "You're the one who has more combat experience, I guess…"

"Yeah, being a police officer's son, you learn self-defense isn't exactly an option," his friend grinned. Taking a moment to quench his own thirst and douse his head with some water to cool off, he then put his bottle back and approached his training partner while Izuku put down his own container. "So, let's see how you throw a punch while using your quirk."

"All right," Midoriya nodded, taking up the karate fighting stance that Kurai had shown him, setting his left foot forward just a bit while settling into a slight crouch. His fists came up, the right one in front of his heart, and the left held at shoulder height at a sharp angle. A red line of veins lit up his right arm as his brow dipped with intense concentration, drawing Kurai's eye to the limb while he settled into his own stance in preparation to block the incoming attack.

"Remember, don't immerse any more than your hand in the waterfall," he reminded his friend, recalling back to the advice that he had given him during the practical exam at the beginning of the semester.

"I got that," Midoriya muttered. The next instant, he darted forward, his fist speeding through the air toward Kurai's stomach at a rate most eyes couldn't hope to track.

However, Hikari had some of the sharpest reflexes in class 1-A, and so he easily knocked the blow aside before chopping at Midoriya's ribcage, sending him reeling and gasping for air.

"No fair…" the green-haired boy wheezed. "You didn't say you were gonna hit back…"

"We're still sparring," Kurai snickered. "I thought that would've been obvious."

"Well… okay, that's on me," Midoriya gasped. "But what happened? I had perfect control over it that time- I only used something like five percent of my power. The only thing that hurts is where you hit me, but my arm is fine."

"Your arm moved faster than the rest of you," Kurai told him. "Why didn't you use your quirk to power up your entire body? Not only are you advertising what would otherwise be a really solid attack, you're leaving the rest of your body open- case in point, I was able to hit you in the chest pretty easily."

"My entire body?" Midoriya repeated. "I guess… I hadn't thought about that before. Usually I'm just summoning up my quirk to launch an attack and then letting it go once I'm done. I guess that would make the rest of me pretty slow by comparison, not to mention I lose time when I transfer the power from one limb to another. But if I could use it all over my body at once, that would actually enhance my reflexes by a lot, if used correctly. The issue will be maintaining my concentration on my quirk at the same time that I'm moving and actually using it to attack and defend, or even just move in general-"

"Any day now," Kurai said dryly, not for the first time a tad annoyed at his friend's mumbling habit.

"Sorry!" the other boy yelped.

"Back to what I was saying," Hikari said with a relieved sigh. "If you pump the energy through your whole body, I imagine you and I could end up being on pretty equal footing- with enough practice on your part." He added the last part with a slight grin to take any sting out of his words.

"No, no, you're right!" Midoriya said excitedly. "So, do you use a different mental image for using your quirk throughout your whole body? I'm having a hard time figuring out how to do it since whenever I've used your method so far, I just stick whichever part of me that I use in the waterfall."

"Well, like I told you before, it's more instinct than anything at this point," Kurai told him. "But… Well, let's see if we can't change things up a little? Close your eyes."

"Okay," Midoriya nodded as he did so.

"Picture that waterfall again, with you standing in the lake that it pours into," he told his classmate. "Got it?"

"Uh-huh."

"Good," Kurai muttered. "Now, imagine a dam being built at the point where the water goes over the edge, slowing the flow until it's just a steady little stream, instead of a torrent. That dam is your own restraints on your power, because your body can't take on the entire waterfall yet, understand?" When Midoriya affirmed that he did understand, his partner grinned and said, "Then take a step into the stream where the waterfall used to be. Let what power you can withstand wash over your whole body, not just one or two limbs."

Midoriya nodded again, his brow bent heavily in concentration as he remained silent. However, it wasn't long before those red veins of energy began to crawl up his legs, this time spreading throughout his entire body, even as his muscles shivered with their newfound strength. The moment that the veins reached his hair, Midoriya opened his eyes, which were glowing brightly, even as green lightning began to dance across his body.

"Heh…" he grinned crookedly. "You're a… good teacher, Hikari."

"Nah, you're just a quick study," Kurai said with a bright smile of his own. "Now come on! Let's see what you can really do with that quirk of yours! Energon versus… uh…? Wait, what do you call your power?"

For a second, Midoriya looked nonplussed, but then his smile was back as he settled into his fighting stance. "Full Cowling," he declared. "I may only be able to do five percent for now, but someday I think I might just be a challenge for you, Hikari."

"I expect so," his friend laughed. "Let's do it!" Charging forward, he aimed a jab at Midoriya's face, intending to stun him as to rob him of his concentration and disrupt the use of his quirk. He had been able to take his friend by surprise multiple times with this tactic, and he saw no reason for that to change, especially given that Midoriya was just beginning to understand how to use his own power better.

So it was a big surprise when Izuku leaped out of the way at high speed, shooting toward one of the buildings that lined the street of the faux city fast enough that the green electricity trailed behind him. He landed feet-first on the concrete wall, then shot back toward Kurai, drawing his fist back for a right hook.

Now, the other boy might have been surprised, but he hadn't made it into U.A. with record-breaking combat scores for nothing. "That's more like it!" he shouted he performed a reverse tumble, out of the way of Izuku's attack. The missed punch had thrown him off-balance, but the summersault was a good way to recover it while evading his classmate's strike. He is fast, he thought as he got to his feet while Midoriya turned toward him. Faster than I would have expected…

"Thank you for helping me make it this far, Hikari," Midoriya said with a tight smile. "I promise I'll do what I can to repay your kindness…"

"Don't worry about that for now," his classmate grinned back as he held out his hands, a yellow bolt of energy appearing in front of each one. "Let's just see how long you can keep your new skill going!" Without another word, he unleashed a barrage of energy bolts that would stun, not really wound, his classmate.

Midoriya yelped and shot up, clearly startled, but he still managed launch himself up and over the Energon blasts, all while heading toward Kurai with his right fist drawn back. Hikari immediately ceased his barrage the instant that Midoriya left the ground, his attacks leaving holes in the buildings behind his friend. As the green-haired boy came down with the full force of his body, jump, and quirk behind the blow, Kurai let out a yell and delivered a punch of his own, aimed to counter Midoriya's.

The pavement beneath them cracked, and windows shattered around them as a shockwaves blasted out from their point of contact. For a split second, Midoriya thought that Hikari would buckle under the force of his blow, but then there was a blur of motion, and Midoriya found himself being grabbed by the arm and hurled into a wall, grunting as the air was forced out of his lungs, and he felt the effects of Full Cowling drain out of his body.

"Ugh…" he grunted as he slid to the ground, already able to feel bruises forming on his hand and back. "Well, that went about how I expected."

"Not me," Kurai told him as he shook his own bruised knuckles. "You took me by surprise, Midoriya. That's some speed you've already got, and that punch would've floored most of our classmates. If that's only five percent of your strength, I'll be hard-pressed to keep up, even when you hit the halfway mark."

"Yeah, but I can't hit people long-range with energy blasts like you can," Midoriya pointed out. "Plus, you've got that transformation when you get fired up enough. You might not have proper control of it yet, but I can tell that it's gonna be a real ace card for you someday."

"Thanks, man," Kurai grinned. "Whaddya say we take a break for a few minutes? We'll have to work on maintaining your concentration during combat- I noticed you dropped the power as soon as I hit you hard enough, which could prove to be a real disadvantage in an actual fight."

"That sounds good to me," Midoriya replied. "We can go over my notes- I've found a few things on quirks that have to do with maintaining a steady emotional trigger that might help you out."

"Great!"

It was nearly nightfall when the two youths left Recovery Girl's office, having come in covered in bruises and scrapes. The old lady hadn't exactly been happy about the fact, but she did remark that it was an improvement from bleeding out of the brain or shattering one's bones. After thanking her, they started toward the path that would lead them off of school grounds and toward the bus station.

"Hey guys, wait for us!" They stopped just outside the school gate to turn back and smile a pair of familiar faces. Ashido and Uraraka were jogging toward them, both looking every bit as tired as the two boys felt.

"Hey," Midoriya said with a friendly wave as they came closer. "How was your training today?"

"If I throw any more acid, I think I'm gonna melt myself," Ashido groaned as she walked up and leaned on Kurai unexpectedly, almost throwing him off-balance. "Can you just carry me all the way to the bus station?" she asked him plaintively.

"Sorry, I'm just as wiped as you are," he grunted as he helped her straighten up. "We started sparring with our quirks today, and it wound up being more taxing than we thought it would be. Just got out of Recovery Girl's office."

"Boo!" Mina pouted. "Worst boyfriend ever."

"Whoa, Deku, you used your quirk and didn't mess up your arms?" Uraraka said eagerly as she practically bounced up and down in front of the green-haired boy. "That's so great!"

"Y-Yeah, it's all thanks to Hikari," he stammered nervously. "He showed me how to use Full Cowling so I don't hurt myself whenever I throw a punch or kick."

"No fair!" the pink-haired girl said as she took a step back from the black-haired boy. "You and I haven't done any training together since you got outta the hospital! Not to mention that you still owe me an actual date!"

"Well, why don't we all train together tomorrow?" Kurai suggested sheepishly, feeling bad about the points that she raised. It did seem as though he should be spending more time with her outside of mandatory school activities, seeing as they were a couple. The problem was, he had next to no idea how to go about dating someone, and so felt as though he was completely botching everything that he was supposed to be doing as her significant other.

"That's a good start," Mina sighed. "I guess with the festival coming up soon, we should focus more on training than on leisure time."

"I'll treat you to dinner on Sunday?" Kurai tried again. "Just the two of us?"

"There we go," Mina giggled as she gripped his hand with her own and started pulling him toward the exit. "C'mon, we've got a study session to get to."

"You just want my mom's coffee jellies again!" he yelped as he was all but dragged along by his over-enthusiastic girlfriend. He could hear Izuku and Ochaco laughing at him as they followed, so he vowed to get them back in some way later on.

"They're goooood!" Mina laughed in response to his claim.

"Hey, you know we have to let them come too, right?" he told her. "I told my parents it was a group study!"

"But if we get there first, I get more coffee jelly!"

"You guys go on, we'll catch up!" Uraraka said with a shooing motion while she and Midoriya deliberately began to decrease their pace.

"Yay!" Mina whooped. "Alone time!"

"All right," Kurai grinned sheepishly as he and Mina boarded the bus, taking a couple of seats in the back, away from the half-dozen people that were riding the same transport. Fortunately for his self-confidence, all of them were either on their phones or dozing. "I can't argue against a bus ride with just the two of us… Plus however many strangers are there…"

"You just suck the romance outta everything, don't you?" the pink girl pouted playfully. "That's okay, I'll just double down and make this the best bus ride ever!"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to kill the mood, so to speak," Kurai apologized as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "I keep telling you, I have no idea what I'm doing."

"We don't need to have an idea, so stop worrying about it so much," she told him as she nuzzled his shoulder affectionately. "We'll do our own- however awkward- thing. I like you, you like me, everything else is just details. We'll figure it out as time comes."

"I wish I had your sense of confidence," her boyfriend sighed. "I always try to plan everything out in advance, so 'winging it' is a new one for me."

"Then here's to sprouting wings," Mina giggled before tugging on his shoulder and giving him a chaste kiss on the cheek. "Maybe someday we'll fly, huh?"

Had Kurai been walking, he would have fallen over and smashed his face into the concrete. Mina seemed to have a habit of taking him by surprise, and in ways that would leave him seized up and with the sensation that his head was about to implode. He couldn't even speak, he was so stunned.

"Wow, if I knew my feminine charms were this strong, I woulda registered that as my quirk back in kindergarten," she laughed as he turned red enough to rival All Might's silver age costume.

His only response was to reach up and touch the anointed flesh, feeling the heat suffusing it, his poor brain trying desperately to come up with some sort of response to the confused rush of feelings and hormones that was now flooding his body. Unfortunately, his mind was already extra worn out from trying different techniques in order to keep his brain from bleeding after using his quirk too much, so all he wound up doing was mumbling, "Th-thanks… that was… n-nice…"

"Aw, you're too sweet," she giggled before throwing both arms around his shoulders to envelop him in a not-so-gentle hug.

And this, kids, is how I died of embarrassment at age fifteen, Kurai thought helplessly. Still, it didn't stop the smallest of smiles from working its way onto his face as she all but cuddled him from her seat.

After a week's worth of intense training- sometimes with Iida and Midoriya, sometimes with Mina and Uraraka- a proper date at the movies (Mina made him watch 'Dracula: Count of the Undead), and a promise from Kurai's father that he would be at the event with the rest of his family, the day of the U.A. Sport's Festival had finally arrived.

The classes were assigned to a single waiting room each stationed underneath the stadium where the competition would be held, after getting changed into their P.E. uniforms. While they waited, Mina and Kurai made a point of not interacting in an overly familiar manner in front of their classmates. Outside of Kirishima, Midoriya, and Uraraka, no one explicitly knew that they were a couple, though Kurai suspected that Jiro knew, due to her own quirk lending her the habit of eavesdropping on things unintentionally. Not even Kurai's family had been told as much, but he was sure that they all knew what was going on anyway. The habit was mostly to keep Iida off their backs, but they also didn't want to cause too much of a stir in the class, not to mention they had no idea how Mister Aizawa would react if he knew about it.

Beforehand, the two of them had promised not to hold back, should the festival require them to compete against each other, as it wouldn't be fair to either of their prospective careers as future heroes. This was a chance to be scouted by pros and their agencies, so they couldn't afford to waste time on any potentially injured feelings. It had been a relief to Kurai that Mina had so readily agreed about the subject when he had tentatively brought it up, even going so far as to tell him that if he got in her way, she would 'melt his butt'.

Now, it seemed that something had managed to throw a wrench in her happy-go-lucky attitude. "Man, I wish we could wear our costumes!" she was complaining while Ojiro stretched his arms next to her. "It's hard to stand out in these!" As she spoke, she stretched her uniform flat against her midriff, a frown on her face.

"Well, I guess it makes things more fair that way," the boy with the tail answered. "I mean, not everyone in the school gets costumes like we do."

"Then why's Kurai get to wear his arm guards?!" she said as she pointed at him, surprising the boy from where he stood next to Midoriya.

"Hey, I'm not the only one," he protested as he pointed at Aoyama, who was wearing his clunky belt. "We had to fill out paperwork to use support items. I'm wearing these to help keep my power and temper in check." Sure enough, the gauntlets that Akarui had designed for him were settled tightly on his wrists.

"Of course mister 'Super Saiyan' needs training wheels," Bakugo snorted derisively. Kurai ignored him, though he secretly took pride in being compared to his favorite fictional characters, even if it was coming as an insult from the class' resident hothead. Most of the class was sore at the blond kid, since apparently he had managed to single-handedly insult just about everyone in the first year while Kurai was still in the hospital.

Kurai was about to elaborate further on his need for the bracers when Iida burst into the room, shouting, "Everyone, get your game faces on! We'll be lining up in ten minutes!"

"Man, I wonder what they'll be throwing at us for the first round?" Sato said, already looking nervous.

"It does not matter what the obstacle is," Tokoyami asserted with his unshakeable demeanor. "We must surpass it." There was a round of general agreement from the class as the raven-headed boy fell silent.

"Midoriya. Hikari." The two boys turned to see Todoroki approach them, his expression as neutral as ever.

"What's up, Todoroki?" the green-haired boy asked politely.

The half-and-half young man glanced at each of them before saying, "From an objective standpoint, I'm stronger than you, Midoriya. And while I can't match your raw power, Hikari, I have a far better understanding of my abilities than you do."

"What's your point?" Kurai asked with a frown, immediately on the defensive. This was an unexpected hostility from the boy, especially given how they had worked together against the League of Villains.

"Midoriya has All Might in his corner, and people in our school, even the upper classmen, are saying that you could be the next Symbol of Peace, Hikari," Todoroki answered, looking at each of the boys in turn. Midoriya looked down at this, while Kurai reddened rapidly at the news- he knew that people had been saying as much when he first entered the school, but now it seemed as though the rumor had spread to the rest of the school following his battle against Nomu. "The only thing that you need to understand in relation to those facts is that I will beat you," their classmate asserted.

"Why the sudden declaration of war?" Kurai demanded, now doubly confused. "Why now?"

"We aren't here to be friends," the other boy snapped, cold fire in his eyes. "Or did you forget that this is a competition?"

"He's right," Midoriya muttered. When everyone looked a question at him, the boy continued on to say, "Of course you're stronger than me- you got in on recommendations, after all." Here, he lifted his eyes to declare, "But don't think for one second that I'm just gonna let you leave me in the dust, Todoroki. I'm shooting for the top with everything I've got, too."

The heterochromic boy shrugged and turned around with the single word, "Fine." Then he walked out of the door, leaving the tense atmosphere behind him.

"He may be right, but he didn't have to be a jerk about it," Kurai muttered.

"Worry about it when the competition has begun," Iida urged them. "Right now, we need to get moving out onto the field!"

As the class walked down the dark hallway at which a bright light concluded its passage, they could hear the voice of Present Mic, clear as day, even at a distance. "YOU KNOW 'EM! I LOVE 'EM!" he was saying. "THIS CLASS OF HEROES-IN-TRAINING HAVE COME OUT ON TOP OF AN ACTUAL VILLAIN ATTACK, AND NOW THEY'RE READY TO SHOW THE WORLD WHAT PLUS ULTRA LOOKS LIKE! IT'S HERO COURSE'S CLASS 1-A!"

The roars of the crowd actually managed to compete with the pro's powerful voice, which surprised a lot of the students as they finally came out into the daylight amid a crowded stadium full of citizens and pros alike. Still, many of them did their best to smile and wave while Present Mic introduced the other classes one by one, knowing that their future employers could be among them. Kurai and Midoriya led the pack alongside Iida, Uraraka, and Ashido. The two girls were among the more enthusiastic of their party, while the boys were all grim about the mouth, determined to be focused on nothing but the trials ahead.

"Present Mic's overdoing it a little, don't you think?" Kurai muttered just loud enough to be heard by Iida.

"Well, this is the most televised event each year," his best friend shrugged. "Besides, it'll help get us acclimated to the pressure of working in public as pros."

"Ach… Fair point," the first boy grumbled.

"Besides, it's not as though we have to get up and speak to a crowd of this magnitude," Iida added, managing to keep a completely straight face as he did so.

Kurai glared up at his taller friend and said, "I think I hear my motorcycle asking me for an upgrade in its engine…"

"You've been threatening me with that for years, we both know you'd never do it," the bespectacled boy said smugly as they came to stand in front of a raised platform that rested on the grassy area.

"Keep pushing my buttons, let's test that theory," Kurai grumbled. Looking up, he stiffened and immediately looked back down at the ground in front of him as he hissed, "Are you kidding me?!"

"Everyone, quiet!" a female voice commanded, accompanied by the sound of a whip cracking. The source of both was an attractive woman with long black hair, bright blue eyes, and a… dominatrix outfit?! With a flogging whip?!

"That outfit should come with a warning label," Kaminari muttered as he and most of the other male student population tried not to stare too openly at the R-rated heroine, Midnight.

"Is it really appropriate for high school teacher to be wearing that?" Tokoyami grumbled in agreement. They had all had the woman teach them the subject of Modern Art, but she was usually dressed in a business outfit, not her hero costume.

Kurai could feel Mina elbowing him subtly from his left, and his ears picked up on the soft sounds of her trying to hold in her laughter. She knew that he was easily flustered around attractive girls, and Midnight could still turn heads, even without her costume, so it was a prime opportunity for someone like her to poke fun at her boyfriend.

"Now, for the student pledge, we have Kurai Hikari!" the woman announced suddenly, surprising several of the students in class 1-A.

Avoiding meeting the teacher's eyes, Kurai forced himself to walk up the short steps, and onto the podium, where a microphone was waiting on a stand for him. He had been told by Aizawa, upon his return to the school, that he would be expected to deliver the class pledge, seeing as he had scored the highest on the entrance exam. This of course terrified the young man to no end, being expected to speak in front of a large group of people, but he found no sympathy with his instructor, and Iida had only been able to offer advice on public speaking that Kurai himself had looked up before- not to mention that he thought the whole situation was hilarious, so Kurai had given up on trying to get his friend to help him.

As he stood there, with thousands- no, millions- of silent eyes upon him, he decided that he would rather be back fighting Nomu again. "Hello, Japan," he began in a shaky voice, though he managed not to stutter. "And to all those watching at home… I, uh… hope you enjoy the festivities here today. I would only ask that as we compete today, students and audience alike should keep in mind the reasons that we are here at all. We're… not here to play games. We aren't here to show off. We're here because each of us wants to make an active impact on the world, be they in the hero course or not."

He paused, the memory of his uncle's funeral flashing through his mind. "As we compete here today, I ask that we all… remember those that have gone before us, and remember the sacrifices that they made to give us the world that we have. I also hope that we keep the future in mind, because when we leave U.A., it will be in our hands to shape the world that comes in the next few decades.

"I suppose what I'm really getting at is that today isn't just about a contest," he said as he swiftly wiped at his eyes. "It's about the people that we want to be, and showing the world who that is. So win or lose, I encourage my classmates to remember who they are, and who they want to be." Pausing for a quick intake of breath, he then concluded, "Thank you."

Done talking, he stepped off the podium amid a thunderous applause. Most of his classmates were among those applauding, and even some of the other classes added their hands to his praise.

"Dude, that was such a macho speech!" Kirishima exclaimed.

"I never knew you could speak that well!" Sato added.

"I totally thought you were gonna pass out up there!" Hagakure said, though from where, he wasn't entirely sure.

"Well spoken, Kurai," Iida said approvingly.

"Yeah, nice job!" Mina said with a huge grin and a thumbs-up that set Kurai to smiling himself, despite still reeling from his public speaking.

Midnight didn't give them much of a chance to talk among themselves, though. "All right!" she shouted as she brandished her whip. "Time to cut the chatter! Let's see what fate has in store for you all! Let's announce the first game!" So saying, she pointed with her whip at a screen atop the stadium that was still big enough for everyone to see its display clearly.

As soon as she had spoken, the words on the screen began to shift, blurring rapidly in a mixture of colors that reminded the onlookers of a lottery machine. However, it didn't take long for them to stop moving, displaying the words 'Obstacle Course' with a green border around them.

"The rules are simple enough," Midnight announced. "The course is four kilometers, set to go once around the stadium, with the finish line being exactly where you started." She licked her lips suggestively as she added, "I don't want to restrain anyone… at least, not in this round. So don't leave the course. Other than that, you are free to use your quirks to your heart's desire!"

"That lady is creepy," Kurai muttered.

"Contestants! Take your places!"

The eleven classes all gathered as close as each of them could to the exit gate that would lead them out of the stadium, and onto their first challenge. Near the front were the hero course students, all of them looking to get going the instant the buzzer sounded.

"You ready to go, Midoriya?" Kurai asked as he kept his eyes focused down the massive hallway. "Iida?"

"Yeah, thanks to your training," his green-haired friend answered as lightning crackled along his body.

"I've been practicing with Tensei, so I'm more than ready," Iida added. "Good luck to us all, but let's not hold back. This is a competition, after all."

"I have no intentions of doing so," Kurai declared as he willed his power to begin flowing through him, feeling the tension in the air building to an almost unbearable level. "May the best hero win."

No sooner than the words had left his mouth than did the buzzer go off, prompting a massive rush of movement from the two-hundred-odd students that were competing in the race. Kurai, Midoriya, and Iida all took off with explosive speed, getting ahead of nearly everyone else instantly.

A chill in the air warned Kurai that Todoroki was on the move, so he immediately leaped in the air, remembering that his classmate could only send his ice travelling along an existing path, not just shoot it wherever he wanted it to go. Midoriya seemed to have a similar idea, because he jumped up, hit the wall, and began to ricochet back and forth between them at high speed, all while heading toward the exit. Most of the other students got frozen in place as Todoroki covered the entire exit in a healthy coat of ice, using his natural athleticism and control of the substance to pull ahead of the pack, ignoring the angry yells that his classmates were hurling at him.

Kurai, on the other hand, decided not to waste his breath, instead unleashing a burst of Energon at the ground where he landed so that he wouldn't slip on the slick surface. Iida, he could see in his peripheral vison, was more or less skating on the ice, using his engines to propel himself along without actually needing to move his feet. Midoriya nearly ate snow, but he managed to break the ice where he landed, giving himself a solid foothold before he took off after Todoroki at high speed.

He's been holding out on me, Kurai realized as he watched his friend go, a smile slowly lighting up his face. Well, I guess I don't have to feel so bad about doing the same! With another surge of energy powering his limbs, he took off after his classmates with a series of powerful jumps, using his energy bolts to break up the ice wherever he needed to land.

Todoroki, Midoriya, and Hikari were the first ones to arrive at the first active hurdle in the obstacle course, though there were plenty of people that caught up as they sized up their opponents.

"Oh hey, a metal piñata," Kurai laughed as he gazed a half-kilometer's worth of robots, all of them replicas of the ones that he and the others had fought against in order to make it into U.A. "My birthday isn't for months, though."

"That's a lot of zero-pointers," Midoriya muttered as he pointed at the giants that towered above all the other metallic constructs. For indeed, there were at least twenty of the massive machines- and all of them were staring down at the approaching students.

"Hmph," Todoroki muttered before he charged forward, kneeling close to the ground as the robots began to advance on him. "It seems they went to a lot of trouble for all this…" he added, almost to himself. A wave of ice erupted from the ground, freezing every robot in his path as it rolled toward and reached for him. "But I wish that they would have prepared something a little more challenging. Especially since my 'dear old Dad' is watching." Taking his hand off the ground, he resumed his run, making his way beneath the robots to leave his competition behind.

"Let's go!" Midoriya exclaimed, but Kurai held up a hand to stop him. "Hey, what are-!"

"We can go, but be careful!" he told his friend as he pointed up at the frozen enemies, which were beginning to groan as the ice trapping them cracked. "He froze 'em off-balance!" With that knowledge in mind, the two used their enhanced speed and reflexes to charge through the mess, even punching through some of the weaker parts of the robots whenever one fell in their path.

It took them a little while, and now Kurai was positive that he could hear Bakugo screaming something at them from behind, but it didn't matter at the moment. First hurdle jumped, bring on the second! Kurai thought as he and Izuku led the charge in the race to catch up to Todoroki.

Mataras: See? Public speaking isn't so bad.

Kurai: Says the guy that's been doing it on the regular since he was in grade school. Not everyone has your sense of self-confidence.

Deku: Yeah, I don't know how All Might does it all the time...

Mataras: Gah!

Deku: I'm just interested to see how the race turns out- and how it'll affect the rest of the Sport's Festival!

Mataras: Well, you'll have the answer in two weeks- or one, depending on whether or not you listen to the audio chapters.

Kurai: Not gonna lie, your Present Mic voice was not the greatest for this last one.

Mataras: Hey! Not my fault my throat decided to give out mid-delivery! That's a hard voice to do!

Kurai: Might not have happened if you did vocal exercises beforehand.

Mataras: You wanna go again?!

Kurai: Bring it!

Deku: Hang on, guys! Can we try to get through the announcements before we start fighting?

Mataras: ...Next time- The Pressure of Leading

Kurai: Let's see who gets the big head start- or rather big bull's eye on their back- at the end of the race!

Mataras: Hey! You're not supposed to know about that, yet!

Kurai: We're off-screen, why does it matter?!

Mataras: Reasons!

Kurai: That's it! C'mere!

Deku: Oh no...

Next time on Your Hero Academia...

Putting on an extra bust of speed, he easily pulled up alongside- then passed- Izuku, calling back, "Sorry pal, but I think I've done enough to help you! You're on your own from here on out!"

"That's fine by me!" his friend called back with a grin. "I'll still beat you!"

"Doubt it!" With that, Kurai was bounding from one pillar to the next, using his muscles in addition to unleashing Energon blasts behind himself whenever he touched the ground to generate explosions that launched him even further than normal. Thanks for the idea, Bakugo.

No sooner than he'd formed the thought, than did he hear a series of explosions that sounded like they were getting closer by the second. Speak of the devil…

He had just cleared the chasm when the loudest explosion yet boomed over his head, accompanied by Bakugo shouting, "Guess that flashy power of yours isn't so great after all! Later, loser!" With that, the temperamental blond student shot ahead of him, nearly burning him with an explosion from his hands, and causing him to stumble as he was blinded by the heat and smoke.

When his vision cleared, he scowled. Bakugo had put more distance between them than he was comfortable with, and he had a feeling that Midoriya would be catching up to him soon, among other students with speed-enhancing quirks. Okay, no way I'm losing to that guy, he vowed to himself.