I forgot to tell you what the first round matches were going to be. In order:

Izuku v Shinsou

Iida v Tetsutetsu

Yaoyorozu v Todoroki

Hatsume v Asui

Ashido v Tokoyami

Kirishima v Shiozaki

Aoyama v Bakugou

Uraraka v Sero

"We've got the first place finisher of the first round, not looking the least bit worried, Midoriya Izuku from the Hero Course!"

Izuku had to wonder if the fire pits flaring to life as he and Shinsou-san walked onto the stage were really necessary. Looking over his opponent, Shinsou-san looked bored, almost lethargic, really.

Like he wasn't paying attention.

He probably thought he still had the advantage.

"And unfortunately this guy hasn't stood out much yet, but getting this far is a feat on its own, Shinsou Hitoshi from General Studies!"

Izuku suppressed a wince. That was not going to help this guy feel respected.

Both boys stopped at their marks.

"The rules are simple! You win by knocking your opponent out of the ring, immobilizing them, or getting them to say they give up! If you go for the kill, that's a big no-no. We train heroes here folks, not villains. Other than that, no holds barred. Fight as dirty as you like, Recovery Girl will be standing by, ready to treat whoever needs it!"

"Give up, huh? Do you get it, Midoriya Izuku?" Shinsou-san spoke. "This battle's going to test your strength of will."

Was it now? That implied Shinsou-san thought this was going to be a long fight. And, of course he was fishing for a response early. Present Mic-sensei had said to play dirty.

Izuku smirked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"If you've got any sort of vision for your future, there's no sense in worrying how you get there."

Now there is something smart. Izuku's face lit up in a grin. This guy might not have thought things through enough, but at least he wasn't worrying about doing things the "right" way while dealing with a shit hand.

"Unlike that monkey babbling about his stupid pride."

Izuku knew what Shinsou-san was doing, but the slurs were uncalled for.

Midnight-sensei cracked her whip. "Let the match begin!"

"What kind of dumbass throws away a chance like this?"

Shinsou-san really was unlucky that Izuku needed to get back and find Karma and Nagisa before they got caught. Otherwise Izuku might have given him a better chance to show off. Given him a few more opportunities to try and bait him, or to switch tactics.

As it was, Izuku was already moving.

Izuku swung his fist wide, letting Shinsou-san block it with his arm. A mediocre block that barely deflected Izuku's fist and left Shinsou-san wide open for Izuku to punch up into Shinsou-san's stomach.

Izuku's other hand slammed down, grabbing Shinsou-san's arm and pulling, dragging him around as he struggled to pull air into his lungs.

He twisted, pulling, Shinsou-san's arm to the back. Izuku kicked out, knocking his knee from under him and pushed forward.

Shinsou-san toppled, crashing to the ground.

Izuku kept one leg over the taller boy's knees, his other foot trapped Shinsou-san's free arm, his hand held Shinsou-san's other arm twisted into his back and his free hand grasped his hair, pushing his face into the cement.

"Fuck you!" Shinsou-san finally sputtered, trying to buck Izuku off. "You think your so much better than me! That you don't even need to use your quirk to take down someone like me! Come on! Fight me!"

Izuku looked to Midnight-sensei. Shinsou-san hadn't moved Izuku an inch even with all his wriggling.

Midnight-sensei barely restrained her self from sighing. "Shinsou-kun, can you move?"

Shinsou-san struggled for another moment. Tried to push himself up with the arm not cranked behind his back. Then went limp. "No," he said.

"Shinsou-kun is unable to move. Midoriya-kun is the winner!"

Izuku released Shinsou-san. "Hey, Shinsou-san?"

The boy glared at him. "What?" he snapped.

"You don't know anything about me."

For a moment it felt like everything stopped. Izuku didn't see or hear anything. He was just floating in dark silence, barely aware of his body. Then everything snapped back into focus again.

"Did you really just let me do that?"

"Why not? Your quirk's great, and it's not like you're going to do anything to me. The fight's over."

Again, everything disappeared. It was an interesting feeling. Izuku couldn't bring himself to be concerned about it.

"Are you boys done yet?" Midnight-sensei asked as Shinsou-san released Izuku from his quirk once more. "We've got to get this show on the road."

Izuku gave her a million watt smile. "Yeah, we'll get out of your way. Shinsou-san, you should work on building up some muscles!" Izuku turned and walked out of the arena with as much poise, grace, and calm as he could. With the fight over, the fact that Karma and Nagisa were wandering the private areas of the stadium unsupervised was once again Izuku's top priority.

Yagi-san handed Izuku his phone once he was out of sight. "That was fast," he said. "I thought for sure he was going to give you more trouble than that."

"Why?" Izuku asked incredulously. "He's got, like, no muscles on him. And he clearly hasn't done any martial training either. The only thing he had going for him was his quirk. And that only held as long as I didn't know."

"Well. Yes-"

"And figuring out quirks is kind of a specialty of mine." Izuku unlocked his phone, glancing at it and skimming through the messages. Looked like no one had found Karma and Nagisa yet. "Anyway. I've got to go. I'll see you around Yagi-san."

As soon as Izuku was out of sight he started running. Where would Karma and Nagisa go next? Unfortunately, Ritsu wasn't helping.

Izuku tuned out Present Mic-sensei's announcements as Iida-san and Tetsutetsu-san were called to the field. It probably wouldn't be an easy fight for either of them, but Tetsutetsu-san's quirk was one the Iida-san's family likely had considered and trained for well in advance given how common enhanced durability and heavy mutations were. While Izuku normally would have been interested in watching, finding Karma and Nagisa was more important.

If he just had a place to start, he could get this over with quickly and focus on planning out his upcoming fights. Last they were seen was near the top of the stadium at the commentators' booth. It was risky for everyone to be in the upper levels because they were filled with teachers that would likely recognize them as intruders, so it would be both a good place to hide away from the rest of 3-E and incredibly dangerous. On the other hand, given the rest of the class was likely to converge on those upper levels, the risk may not be worth the reward. They were less likely to get caught if they descended either into the stands with the other students or down further to the ground floor.

And of the two, there were more things for them to mess with down here near the arena. And easy exits if they decided they were done playing with the security. So, more likely to be down here with Izuku. Only problem was that the bottom floor was huge. And there was a chance that they had gone even deeper into the basement and the inner workings of the stadium.

The main benefit Izuku had was that he didn't have to sneak around like the rest of the class. He could just walk out in the open and search rooms at his leisure.

And just hope he ran into them at some point.

He moved quick and smooth, checking each room and hall he passed, keeping his senses open as he went. He wasn't likely to see them, but they would leave a trace. Not one that would be noticed by a stranger, but a trace nonetheless.

"After a real knock down drag out fight, Iida-kun has finally managed to force Tetsutetsu-kun out of the ring and is moving on to the next round!"

Just like Izuku thought, he would be fighting Iida-san next.

As the thoughts passed through Izuku's head, heat filled the hall. His steps slowed to a stop. A voice spoke from around the corner.

"You disgrace me, Shouto," Endeavor-san said, his voice easily recognizable to Izuku. "You could've crushed both the obstacle course and the cavalry battle if you'd used your left side."

His left side… Izuku had only ever seen him use his left to melt his own ice. He'd assumed it had been a simple split where one side made ice and the other got rid of it.

"Grow up," Endeavor-san continued. "Stop rebelling like some petulant child. Remember your duty is to surpass All Might. Understand?"

What the actual fuck was Izuku listening to. He moved and pressed himself to the wall. Hopefully if either Todoroki walked this way, they wouldn't notice him.

"You're different than your siblings. You're better than them."

"Well, I was expecting drama down here, but not this."

Izuku's heart plummeted. Of course Karma was here. Of course he had to interrupt and show himself to the Number Two Hero.

"Who are you?" Todoroki-san asked

"You're not supposed to be back here," Endeavor-san said at the same time.

"Are you sure about that?" Karma asked. "Pretty sure you're not supposed to be back here either, Endeavor-san." Karma, please for the love of Korosensei, shut up. "But if you would rather throw your weight around after having this very interesting family spat in the middle of a hallway where anyone could hear you, be my guest." He wasn't going to back down.

Izuku pushed forward a big easy smile on his face and strode calmly into the fray. "Karma!" he called, false cheer filling his voice. "There you are! We've been looking all over for you. You can't go disappearing like that." He blinked in the Todorokis' direction, faking confusion and surprise. "Endeavor-san? What are you doing back here?"

The hero grunted. "I am speaking with my son on a private matter."

"Oh," Izuku let his smile drop slightly, like he was disappointed. "Well, I'm sorry, sir, but only students and staff are allowed back here. Not even All Might himself would be allowed if he weren't our teacher."

Todoroki-san glared at his father. "Just leave. I need to get ready for my match."

Endeavor-san glared back, his flames flaring for a moment. "Fine, but we're continuing this conversation later." He turned on his heel, stomping in the direction of an exit.

"So, what was that about not using your left side?" Nagisa said as he melted out of the shadows of the hall behind Karma. Okuda stepped forward out of another hallway.

Todoroki-san startled slightly when they appeared. "I refuse to use his flames. I will succeed with only my mother's quirk."

He was what!?

"So, what? You're just gonna half ass it until you get yourself and a bunch of civilians killed?" Karma snapped at him.

Todoroki-san glared at Karma. "Mind your own business."

"Maybe I will when I'm not one of the potential civilians you're going to let down in a few years."

"He's right, Todoroki-san," Izuku interrupted. "What are you going to do when your ice isn't enough?"

"It will be."

"No, it won't."

"It'll be enough to beat you."

Izuku shook his head. "Depends on the circumstances. Are you really willing to bet your life on it?"

"Even your enhanced reflexes wouldn't help you."

Izuku blinked, honestly confused this time. "My enhanced reflexes? What are you- Oh! That's your bet isn't it."

"His bet?" Nagisa asked, a slight teasing lilt entering his voice.

"It is," Todoroki-san nodded. "Though I don't understand why you hide it."

Izuku hummed. "There's a betting pool about what my quirk is," Izuku explained to his former classmates. "Current leading theories are apparently some form of intelligence of prediction quirk. Or, apparently, 'enhanced reflexes.'"

"Todoroki Shouto, please report to the arena. Your match is about to begin."

Todoroki-san scowled. "I need to go."

Karma rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Try not to let your hubris get you killed."

Izuku let his face twist into a scowl as he watched Todoroki-san's back. "Fucking asshole," he muttered. "All the work I've put in and he is literally only using half of his potential. I wish I'd kicked his ass during the cavalry battle, too."

Okuda put a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "You can always beat him when you face him in a few rounds."

Izuku raised an eyebrow. "You seem so sure I'll be fighting him."

Okuda shrugged. "You definitely have a plan for Iida-san, and while I don't know if Todoroki-san will be facing the Support Course student or the girl with the frog quirk-" the temperature in the hall plummeted and crashing and cracking filled the air "-I'm pretty sure he can easily out last either of them."

"Yaoyorozu-san has been immobilized! Todoroki-kun is moving on to the next round!"

Yeah. That was a predetermined fight if there ever was one. Izuku kinda felt bad for Yaoyorozu-san. She had gotten one of the worst starting seeds in the bracket, just for being set against Todoroki-san in round one.

"So, a betting pool," Karma grinned down at him. "Are your classmates really that oblivious?"

"Apparently," Izuku deadpanned. "Now, let's get you guys out of here before someone else finds us. Please."

"Fine, you really are turning into Isogai," Karma grumbled.

"Excuse me for not wanting to explain this to my teachers who already have too many questions about me. Harass heroes on your own time."

"So I can mess with Endeavor later?"

"Just don't get caught. He's already seen your face and knows your given name."

Karma pumped his fist. "Don't worry, it'll be some real karmic retribution."

Okuda frowned at him. "Wouldn't you need to know what he's doing to do that properly?"

"He just said that for the pun," Nagisa explained. "As far as he's concerned, anything he does is 'karmic.'"
Okuda nodded. "That makes sense."

"So, any plans?" Nagisa asked Izuku.

Izuku shrugged. "I've got plans for Iida-san. I'll have to see if I get past Todoroki-san before I start planning for the finals round. And see who's winning on the other side of the bracket."

"So you like your odds better now," Okuda said. "You sounded like you weren't expecting to get very far earlier."

"Oh, I still don't expect to beat Todoroki-san. I'm going to plan like I would just in case, and I'm going to give it my all and beat the shit out of him regardless, but I still expect to lose."

"Well, that's at least making it to the podium," Karma grinned, stretching as he stepped into the sun beyond the stadium walls. "More than far enough to shake some things up."

Nagisa paused beside Izuku. Izuku waited, raising an eyebrow as Nagisa thought through what he wanted to say.

"The betting pool," he finally said, letting the words hang in the air for a moment. "They don't know do they?"

Izuku sighed. "No, they don't. I haven't told any of them."

Karma glanced back, frowning. "None of them?"

"There's a few I wanted to," Izuku shrugged, "but I kept forgetting or there were other people around. So, I just. Haven't."

"Do you think it'll change anything?" Okuda asked. "With them?"

"Probably," Izuku answered. "I mean. They can't even comprehend that quirkless might be an option. They think there has to be something. I mean. Would they still respect me? I'm supposed to be their class rep."

"We do," Nagisa said, gently taking Izuku's hand.

Izuku shook his head. "You know me. And I'm not our leader. That's you and Karma and Isogai and Kataoka. Depending on what kind of leadership we need. They picked me to lead them. I'm quirkless. How can I lead them if they don't respect me for who I am? If they think I'm useless or need to be protected?"

"Then just show them that you're not," Karma said. "You've already gotten this far. You've got two legacy kids up next. Kick their asses. Show them that their golden spoon and perfect quirks mean nothing compared to a good brain between the ears and hard work. If they're still asses, well. Be you. Be Midoriya Izuku, assassin, graduate of the Assassination Classroom. They can't do anything to you."

Izuku nodded slowly, taking a deep breath and letting it out again. "Right. Yeah. I'll be fine." He looked up again, sharpening his gaze slightly. "You guys should get back to the rest of the class. On your side of the stands."

Okuda smiled. "Don't worry, Izuku. I'll make sure they don't wander off again."

Izuku laughed softly and smiled as they left. He could honestly only hope that the rest of the festival kept Karma engaged enough to avoid any other issues.

Izuku: if karma does anything to endeavor. I don't know anything

Karasuma: That does not inspire confidence.