Ikumi clasped her hands anxiously as All Might reached for the next set of balls. With a flourish he pulled them out. "Team E are the Villains, while Team B are the Heroes!" Iida looked similarly uncomfortable with the idea of being a Villain as Ikumi had. At least she wasn't the only one.

Ashido cheered, grabbing Iida by the arm and dragging him off like he weighed nothing. "Heck yeah, Iida! We're gonna be the best Villains ever!"

"She's pretty energetic, kero."

Ikumi sighed as she watched them leave. "Really wish I had that level of confidence," she muttered.

Kirishima simply nodded, a distant look on his face. "Yeah, I feel that." When she looked over he blinked, before pasting a cocky grin on his face. "But confidence is just a habit that we gotta work on!"

Kacchan snorted. "See Midori? Even Hair for Brains gets it."

She shook her head, watching the Villain team on screen. "Did I look like that when we were up there?" Ikumi wondered, looking at a downcast Iida.

"Yep," Kacchan snorted.

—

Mina shook her head as Iida continued to mope. "Come on Iida, it's just a fun exercise!"

"I suppose… Still, I must admit I was hoping to fight on the side of justice!" Iida suddenly struck a pose. "But if we are to be the best Heroes we can be… then for this exercise I must mire my heart in darkness!"

For a second she stared at Iida, then her smile returned. "Bit of an odd attitude but okay!"

One for All crackled under her skin. While Mina couldn't handle its full strength, she reckoned she was getting maybe 3 or 4 percent of it consistently, which was still a lot. She turned to her partner. "So what's our plan beyond kick ass?"

"MWA-HAHA - eh? Oh, yes, the plan!" Iida's hand chopped in the air robotically. "W-well, Uraraka's Quirk lets her remove the gravity from whatever she touches, so I believe that they will float up to a better vantage point! Kaminari boasted of having a powerful electricity Quirk, so we'll have to watch for that!"

Mina hummed. "Yeah, sounds right! So, do you want to go looking for trouble or shall I?"

Iida brought a hand to his chin. "I shall go. And I have an idea for how to handle her gravity Quirk."

As MIna listened, a grin crossed her face. "I like how you think, Iida!"

—

Katsuki glared at the screen like it had personally offended him. As soon as All Might started the match Pink Cheeks and Sparky were off, her touching a couple of trash can lids and then getting on top of them, holding the dunce close. It was admittedly pretty cool when they floated up, Pink Cheeks awkwardly managing to get through the window.

As she pulled Sparky in he could see Midori already scribbling in her notebook, a low mutter on her lips. "...Removal of gravity mostly counteracted by existing gravity, she did mention that removing her own gravity felt worse since it messes with her inner ear… Haven't seen much of Kaminari's Quirk in action but it must be quite powerful if he's so confident in it… Would he be able to sense electrical signals or-"

"Oi, Midori. Who do you reckon's gonna win?"

She started, almost dropping her notebook. "Oh, um…" She looked at the screen, calculating, then she sighed. "W-well based on what I've seen of each of them… Probably the Villain team. Iida's incredibly fast and Ashido's really strong. Then again, it depends on if Uraraka and Kaminari can get the drop on one or the other."

She pointed as Glasses came around a corner behind the Heroes, watching them. "It looks like Iida's in position. Is he going to do a sneak attack-"

Iida suddenly put his hands on his hips and threw his head back in what must have been laughter.

—

"MWA-HAHAHA!"

Denki jumped, almost losing control of his Quirk at the loud burst of sound behind them. Whirling around, he saw Iida there, hands on his hips. Uraraka took a look and her eyes widened.

"BE AFRAID, HEROES! FOR I… AM THE ULTIMATE EVIL!"

For a second Uraraka stared at him, then spluttered with laughter. Denki burst out laughing as well, Iida staring at them incredulously. He knew he should be more serious but… seeing Iida act like that was pretty damn crazy.

"YOU DARE MOCK REVERSE INGENIUM?!"

Uraraka went into a fresh spurt of laughter at that, barely managing to push herself up. "Iida… that's-that's too much-"

Iida suddenly shot forwards with a spool of capture tape in hand, Denki managing to flare up with electricity just in time. He tried to hit Iida with his fist, cursing his inability to send his electricity further from his body. Uraraka's eyes narrowed, and as Iida swung his foot in an axe kick she barely ducked underneath, hitting him with all five fingers. Iida yelped as his momentum combined with his sudden lack of gravity sent him pinwheeling through the air and hitting the opposite wall.

Uraraka managed a half chuckle. "Um, looks like you're really light on your feet?" She shook her head. "No, that's bad."

Iida tried to push himself up, only for the movement to send him flying through the air as he miscalculated. "R-release me!"

Denki blinked as a mischievous grin split Uraraka's face. "Okay." She pointed to Iida. "Kaminari, do you mind?"

He blinked, then grinned, going close to where Iida was. As Iida tried to kick out and spun through the air again, Uraraka brought her fingers together and gravity held him again. Denki reached out and tagged Iida. As Iida spasmed from the massive electrical shock hitting him, Denki pulled out his capture tape and wrapped it around his wrists.

"Iida Tenya has been captured!"

"Damn it…" Iida groaned.

Uraraka bowed apologetically to him as they left. "Sorry Iida!" They ran forward, conscious that they hadn't seen Ashido or the bomb.

"Okay, it's gotta be somewhere here!" Denki panted as they tore through the rooms.

"Eight minutes left, Heroes!" All Might's voice boomed.

"Come on, come on…" Denki muttered, flinging another door open.

Next to him Uraraka stiffened. "Denki… Did All Might say they couldn't move the bomb?"

Iida weakly managed a chuckle behind them.

Denki blinked, then groaned as he put two and two together. "That's pretty sneaky!"

As they ran downstairs, her eyes widened. "Okay Denki, I've got a plan to win but you may not like it."

"Why not?"

She told him. He did not like it.

—

Mina had to admit, she was getting kind of bored. Sure, Iida had the right idea in moving the bomb here but then he'd gotten involved in a fight while patrolling the higher level! She half groaned, just wanting to get some action.

Then Kaminari appeared, obviously nervous. "Uh… surrender, Villain?" He squeaked, managing a hesitant step forward.

She grinned. "Hey Kaminari! Face the wrath of the Alien Queen! A-hahaha!"

"Did you both practise evil laughs or-"

Mina grinned, One for All's sparks coating her body. "Yeah, maybe."

She shot forward, Kaminari squeaking and ducking under her fist. Yellow lighting poured off his body and she barely shot away as it hit the area around him. Luckily she hadn't used her acid near him otherwise she would have shocked herself.

Kaminari grinned, eyes slightly unfocused. "Wanna dance?"

"I really like dancing-" A thought struck her. "Say, where's Uraraka?"

A sudden sound came from behind her and she twisted. Uraraka was on the ceiling, and leaped down as Kaminari reached out to try and hit her with his Quirk. Panicking, MIna pulled on One for All, legs pumping as she shot up-

Uraraka's hands clasped around the bomb just as Mina collided with her, knocking bomb and Uraraka to the ground. Mina stared as the buzzer sounded, pushing herself up. "Heroes have secured the bomb! The Heroes won!"

Mina stared at Uraraka as she panted in victory, then snapped her fingers in frustration. "I forgot to look up, huh?"

"Y-yeah…" Uraraka panted, looking slightly nauseous.

Mina slapped herself, stretching a hand out to her. "Well, if we do this again, I'm not gonna fall for that!"

—

All Might looked at the students. "An exceptional match, all four of you! Now, who would you say was the MVP of this match?"

Yaoyorozu's hand shot up. "Iida Tenya, obviously. While Uraraka formed a solid strategy to clinch victory, both the Heroes lost focus and precious time reacting to the Villains laughing. Ashido let herself get baited into a confrontation and forgot to take Uraraka's Quirk into account. However, Iida had a clear idea of how to conduct the engagement and planned around his opponent's Quirks as best he could."

Iida looked quite proud of himself, while Uraraka and Kaminari looked suitably chastened. Ashido nodded. "Yeah, I made a pretty bad mistake by forgetting about Uraraka's Quirk. I forgot to check the ceiling."

"I-I went in through the half open window - I didn't think I could take you on directly," Uraraka explained.

All Might coughed. "Excellent analysis, Yaoyorozu! Now, for the next match…"

—

Hanta glanced over at Ojiro, throwing up tape strip after tape strip around the bomb. "Gotta be ready for if they try a sneak attack like Uraraka did in the last round," he grinned.

Ojiro nodded, limbering up. "I can't see Kirishima making a sneak attack but Hagakure's Quirk is practically built for that." He smiled. "Still, at least it's better than trying to beat Bakugou or Todoroki."

Hanta nodded. "Yeah, Todoroki alone would be terrifying. Having to fight Bakugou as well…"

Ojiro finished stretching. "So, I think I should stay in the bomb room. They're gonna come to us."

Hanta's grin came back. "Yeah, what do you think Kirishima's gonna do? Yell 'halt Villains before the face of my pure manliness?' Something like that anyway," he chuckled.

—

Eijirou kicked the door in. "HALT VILLAINS, BEFORE THE FACE OF MY PURE MANLINESS!" No backing down for him, not now!

The whole room was covered in hanging strips of tape - obviously to try and catch Hagakure and stop her from sneaking up to the bomb. Then he saw Ojiro standing there in a cool karate pose.

He rushed forwards, a roar on his lips and fist pulled back far-

Suddenly his whole world flipped on its axis. He grunted as he hit the ground, trying to roll to the side. Then Ojiro was on top and he instinctively hardened his body.

"KI-YAI!" Ojiro's palm slammed into his stomach, and he gasped as the air left his body. Barely managing to roll over and up, Eijirou lashed out with a kick that got blocked by his tail.

Both staggered back, Ojiro massaging his tail and Eijirou sucking in a breath. Then tape shot out and coiled around his arms, snapping them to his sides. Sero stood there, face covered by an impassive black mask. "Aw come on Sero," he wheezed. "That isn't manly at all!"

He had to keep their attention focused on him, otherwise the Heroes wouldn't win! Eijirou tried to break out of the tape, hoping that the sharp edges of his Hardening would do some damage to the tape as he pulled it along.

Unfortunately, he wasn't so lucky. As he struggled, a couple of strands of tape caught an invisible figure and Ojiro spotted her. Charging over, Ojiro tried to hit her, only to miss. He suddenly staggered back as an invisible foot connected with his chest. Eijirou tried to run forwards and headbutt Sero, but more tap wrapped around his legs and he hit the ground.

Hagakure tried to bolt to the bomb but only got caught on more tape, and Sero wrapped his tape around her arms. "Nice try," Sero panted, already going for more Capture Tape to make it official.

"That's just unfair," Hagakure managed to tap her glove to make her costume visible, something about her tone implying she was pouting.

"VILLAIN TEAM WINS! GOOD JOB, BOTH TEAMS!"

Eijirou had to admit he couldn't argue when Midoriya and Yaoyorozu both agreed that Sero was MVP - his preparations had caught both Hero team members and neither of them had been able to counter him.

As All Might declared Team F as the Heroes and Team G as the Villains, which elicited happy reactions from them and groaning from Jirou, Eijirou looked down at his hands with frustration. Despite his declaration to change himself, he hadn't been able to live up to his own ideals.

Midoriya gave him a thumbs up. "You were pretty cool out there, Kirishima. You probably could have taken Ojiro out if your fight had gone a bit longer."

Mina grinned at him as well. "Yeah, you looked pretty Heroic out there! Charging in and yelling like that was cool!"

He stared at the pair of them, then smiled. "Thanks guys! Next time I'm not gonna back down!"

—

Koji huddled close to a small rat. "Okay little one, please keep an eye out for our opponents. S-swarm them if you have to." The rat saluted, and he heard them chitter and squeak as they followed his orders.

Aoyama's strange smile twisted a bit and he held his sparkly cape close. "D-do we have to use the rats?"

Koji quietly sighed, straightening up. Despite their reputation as dirty, rats were actually quite clean and intelligent animals. He had been surprised that they had made their way into U.A, but considering the Principal's ambiguous mammal nature he wasn't surprised. He had his own theory on what the Principal was but had always felt too shy to bring it up.

He made a couple of exploratory signs to Aoyama and was pleasantly surprised when Aoyama actually responded - clumsily but at least he could. It meant that he didn't have to write it out at least. [What's the plan Aoyama?]

The blonde boy paused for a moment. [Tell me when they're coming to bomb, then I'll sparkle at them.]

Koda raised an eyebrow but nodded. [Okay, I'll talk over the mic and get into position.]

—

Tsuyu glanced over at Sato as they carefully advanced. "Okay, Sato. Are you ready?"

Sato winced. "S-sure thing Asui - Tsuyu!" He amended. "I'll follow the plan as well as I can when I'm hyper."

She could only nod. Sato had explained that his Quirk boosted everything - strength, speed, durability - but apparently overrode his rationality the more sugar he consumed. Purity of sugar had something to do with it as well, which was why he only had a small amount of white sugar.

A slight squeak alerted her. She looked in the corners, thankful that part of her Frog Quirk gave her slightly better night vision that would be expected. A rat had spotted them and was squeaking rapidly. "I think Koda knows we're coming. We might be getting close."

Sato stiffly nodded. "Okay." Taking out a capsule from his belt, he poured its contents into his mouth, crunching briefly. His eyes lit up with newfound alertness, his whole body shuddering. "Hopefully I won't need to eat more sugar."

Tsuyu glanced around, then back to the map All Might had provided. "If I had to guess, Aoyama's by the bomb and Koda's keeping an eye on us with his animal spies. With that said, splitting up would be our best option."

—

Yuga stood next to the bomb, carefully keeping an eye on the doorway. Every so often he cast his gaze to the window, just in case Asui was climbing outside of the building.

His intercom crackled. "Sato's coming!"

Immediately he sprung to action. Wincing as his Quirk warmed up, he quickly fired a blast of searing white-blue light, the blast sparkling down the corridor at the figure there.

It was a wide shot that filled most of the corridor, and he'd calibrated it to about a strong punch. Sato moved faster than he'd thought possible and was now charging quickly towards them. "WHOO YEAH!"

Then Koda intervened. A small army of rats scrambled along the floor, a leader squeaking and pointing at Sato. Aoyama carefully fired another laser as Sato got up, only for him to suddenly fling himself at the wall before it hit him. A creaking sound came from behind him and he whirled around, seeing Asui crawling in the window. She ducked back when he fired a laser through the window, then hastily crawled in while he tried to recover.

Koda got in close to Sato and threw a punch that Sato managed to block, then grimaced. He didn't stop his attack as Sato tried to get something from his pouch. Rats clambered over the taller boy who shouted indistinctly, trying to fling them off him. Yuga tried to fire another beam at Asui but the frog girl sprung off the ceiling just as he fired, dashing to the bomb. Gritting his teeth, he threw himself in the way.

His cape would get dirty but it would be worth it to win-

Asui gave him a neutral look and kicked him in the side, knocking him out of the way. As he struggled up, she touched the bomb.

"HERO TEAM HAS SECURED THE BOMB!"

Yuga sighed, glancing down at his cloak mournfully. "Oh, I've gotten dirty for nothing," he griped.

Sato took a deep breath, then slumped. "Yeah… good…" he yawned, carefully going on to the ground.

"That was a pretty good plan, Aoyama. You nearly got us a couple of times," Asui said.

"Merci, Asui-"

"Please, call me Tsuyu, kero."

Yuga smiled slightly awkwardly but accepted her hand. "Merci, Tsuyu! Of course, I shall shine even better in our next exercise!"

—

Midoriya looked over at Asui with a wide smile. "I think that Asui-"

"You can call me Tsuyu," she said bluntly.

"-Right, sorry, uh, Tsuyu… I think she was the MVP by coming up with the best plan! It was pretty narrow - Koda and Aoyama had a good defensive strategy and he managed to hold off Sato for a while - but Tsuyu decided to split the groups for a pincer attack that wasn't a desperate move."

Uraraka chuckled. "Yeah, we were pretty desperate when we tried it."

All Might smiled at his class, some more battered and bruised than others but everybody was able to attend. The final match of the day should prove interesting, especially since it was two of the students that Aizawa had noted to be exceptionally powerful and flashy. "For the final match… the Villains are Team H and the Heroes are Team D!"

Young Bakugou grinned, while Todoroki simply stared ahead impassively. "Though the pair of you are powerful, don't forget that this is a team exercise! Two Heroes working together can accomplish more than one!"

"We're doomed," Jirou said flatly.

—

Katsuki glared at his partner, then took a deep breath to try and calm down. "Alright Two Face, you don't like me for whatever reason, I don't give a shit. But we gotta at least try to work together-"

"I don't need your help," Two Face cut him off harshly, eyes locked on the building. "I can finish this exercise by myself."

He couldn't believe this guy. "...Did you not hear him say that this is a team exercise? Newsflash genius, we actually need to work together on this!"

The bastard glared at him, before he relaxed. "Fine. Let's get this over with."

"Fucking finally. I reckon we split up and search for the bomb individually. We keep in communication and if we need help we ask for it." He glared at the other boy. "Sounds good?"

Two Face considered it, then nodded. "Fine. But I still won't need your help."

Katsuki growled, already at his limit. "Okay fucker, what is your problem with me? I've literally not done anything to you-"

"No, you haven't. It's what you-" The buzzer sounded and Two Face cut himself off. "Let's just finish this. It won't take long."

Katsuki glared at the asshole then charged ahead. Whatever this bullshit was, it wasn't over.

—

"Hello darkness, my old friend." Fumikage whispered slightly. Looming above him, Dark Shadow shook his head, the darkness strengthening him. It was a bit risky turning off the lights but he needed Dark Shadow as strong as he could without losing control.

"I've come to talk to you again," Dark Shadow snickered.

He shushed his Quirk who reluctantly obeyed. Bakugou's Quirk was unfortunately a natural counter to Dark Shadow, so finding him was top priority. If he could take Bakugou out then the rest of the exercise would go much smoother. Fumikage crept around, checking his earpiece. "Any sign of them?"

Jirou was staying by the bomb, having plugged her Earphone Jacks into the wall to try and track their movements. "...Bakugou's charging in. They're splitting up - Todoroki's coming my way, and Bakugou's coming closer to you."

Fumikage nodded. "Do you want me to back you up?"

"Honestly, yeah. You saw the size of that ice thing he threw out in the assessment right? Not to mention that he's one of the recommended students in our class."

"Got it. I'll be there."

—

Kyoka kept a careful eye and ear out even as she heard Tokoyami start running to her position. Despite his wild attitude Bakugou was methodical and patient as he searched every room. Her Earphone Jacks crept towards her directional speakers, a bead of sweat pouring down her neck as Todoroki came closer.

Todoroki came into the room and she barely had a second to jam her Earphone Jacks into her boots before a wave of ice crashed towards her.

Her heartbeat poured from her speakers, slamming into the ice and smashing it to pieces, throwing them around the room. Todoroki's eyes bored into hers, one grey the other a menacing red under his ice half-helmet. "You would be wise to surrender," he stated flatly.

Kyoka grimaced. "Nah, don't feel like it." Todoroki frowned, then another wave of ice poured towards her, only to be hit with another blast of sound that cracked and shattered it. "What's the matter?" She taunted. "Only got one trick up your sleeve?"

He grit his teeth, throwing an arm forward-

Then Tokoyami was there. His eyes widened and he twisted, throwing a blast of ice that got smashed by Dark Shadow. "HERE'S JOHNNY!" The Quirk laughed.

"You're using that reference incorrectly, Dark Shadow!" Tokoyami yelled.

Todoroki tried to get up but she was not going to let him. Jamming her Earphone Jacks into her boots once more, she slammed him with a debilitating wall of sound, knocking him flat.

Dark Shadow lashed out and she had to gawk as Todoroki rolled out of the way. That move had sent robots reeling yet he just shrugged it off like it was nothing. Was Todoroki even human? With a manic look in his eye Todoroki threw a sloppier blast of ice at Tokoyami, and she winced when she heard frost cracking on Todoroki's skin. Seemed he was starting to hit his limit.

But his last attack wasn't enough to stop Dark Shadow. Laughing, Dark Shadow pinned Todoroki to the ground. ''Ice' to see you, pretty boy!" Todoroki grunted as Dark Shadow slammed him with his fist.

Tokoyami loomed over him, his reel of Capture Tape in hand. Kyoka couldn't help but smile as he went to restrain Todoroki-

Pounding boots came closer and her heart sank. "WHAT THE FUCK SCARFACE?! I TOLD YOU TO CALL FOR HELP!"

Dark Shadow turned only to shrink suddenly as a massive explosion rattled the corridor. Kyoka clutched her ears from the sheer force Bakugou casually threw around. She tried to help Tokoyami, throwing a massive blast of sound in Bakugou's general direction while trying not to hit Dark Shadow. Kyoka had the brief satisfaction of hearing Bakugou stumble but the wall had shielded him from the worst as he continued.

"...Parley?" A much diminished Dark Shadow weakly offered.

Bakugou smirked, tying Tokoyami's hands together with Capture Tape. "Hell no."

"Tokoyami has been captured!"

Kyoka grimaced, then jammed both Earphone Jacks into her boots, unleashing the full force of her Quirk. Screw villain monologues, both of them were way too powerful to fool around with.

Under her sonic assault Bakugou briefly clutched his ears, then grinned. An explosion popped in his palm, seeming so much louder than it had when it was outside. A multitude of pops came from his arms as he charged forwards, each one stinging her ears and disrupting her focus.

She tried to jab an Earphone jack directly into him only for him to swat it aside, burying his fist in her midsection. "Good shit, Earlobes," He rasped, wrapping Capture tape around her arm. He then grabbed the bomb with a smirk.

"...Well, The Villains have been captured, as has the bomb! Hero Victory!"

He glared down at her as she struggled. "You want a hand or something?"

Kyoka glared at him. "...Fine," she groused.

He glared at Todoroki. "How are you feeling, Two Face? Gonna die on me?"

Todoroki simply pushed himself up, shaking his head. "I've had worse," he muttered, so low only Kyoka heard him. She wanted to ask, but shook her head. Recommended students had some crazy hard training regimes apparently.

—

"Hell yeah, flawless victory!" Kacchan cheered. Ikumi had to admit, it was good to see that Kacchan was so happy. That entire fight had been pretty thrilling - her heart had leapt into her mouth when she'd seen Todoroki get ambushed by Tokoyami.

All Might cleared his throat. "Well, Young Bakugou I must agree that you pulled off an incredible victory! However, can anybody tell me who the MVP was?"

…Ikumi winced. "W-well, I-I reckon that it was Jirou who was the best performing student."

Kacchan glared at her. "Eh? I won!"

"I-I know, but… while both of you were really good as Heroes, you, uh… had issues working together and split up?"

His face twisted into a scowl. "Blame Scar Face for that. I actually tried to work with him and he kept blowing me off!"

Todoroki looked away at that. All Might sighed. "I know that both of you have exceptionally powerful Quirks but you must learn how to work with others!"

Ikumi nodded. "It-it did look like you tried but I don't-I don't think that you got through to Todoroki about it. A-also Todoroki tried the same strategy multiple times d-despite seeing that it didn't work. Maybe it would have been better to-to retreat and work together with Bakugou, but instead you pushed yourself too far and nearly got captured."

She turned to Jirou. "Jirou, on the other hand, kept track of the Heroes and communicated far better with her teammate than you did. N-not just that but she was almost able to take both of you out…"

She fidgeted under her classmates' stares. In particular Todoroki seemed to be staring at her intently, an expression she couldn't identify on his face. "W-well that's just what I think," she finished lamely.

All Might clapped. "An astute observation Young Midoriya!" She flushed at his casual praise as he turned to the class. "I would also add that both Villains acquitted themselves admirably against bad matchups for their Quirks. Not every fight will be to your strengths, so knowing how to compensate for your Quirk's downsides is essential!"

His smile brightened. "Now get cleaned up! Todoroki, you took a heavy beating in that last fight. I've called for the medical bot to take you to the bay-"

"No need. I'm fine." Todoroki flatly said.

All Might shook his head. "Even if you feel that way, I would be more comfortable if you got taken there by a robot."

—

Recovery Girl shook her head. "Quite a bit of bruising, cracked ribs, and the beginnings of Quirk exhaustion as well as early frostbite. Not as bad as it could be, Todoroki, but don't make it a habit to get injured like this."

Shouto nodded. "Understood." As she puckered her lips and kissed his arm his mind turned once again to his current issue with his class. Rather, one specific person in it.

In spite of his father, Shouto didn't hate people with fire Quirks. His hatred was reserved for his father and his Quirk alone. Midoriya for instance - if his father was a blazing inferno then Midoriya was like a campfire, warm and comforting. Bakugou's explosions weren't the problem either - but they certainly helped.

But seeing Bakugou's perpetually angry eyes, how Midoriya seemed to flinch at everything despite her size… seeing them talk reminded him too much of similar scenes of his mother and father. Learning that she had a Quirk like his made it even worse - Bakugou clearly was only her friend because her Quirk was powerful.

He pushed himself up, accepting the candy from Recovery Girl and politely bowing to the Heroine. Whatever else happened, Shouto was going to keep a close eye on Bakugou. If he tried to push Midoriya like Endeavour had pushed his mother… He would stop it.

—

Katsuki glanced up at Midori as they left. "...You were right," he eventually admitted.

"Huh?"

"About Earlobes being better in our match," he grumbled. Katsuki looked up at her as she looked surprised. "I still say that I would have been MVP on a team without Two Face," he shot back.

Midori chuckled. "Yeah, probably. But you still got the quickest victory today."

Katsuki snorted. "Damn right I did," he chuckled. He looked down. "...But it wasn't enough," he grumbled.

"What do you-"

He stopped, looking up at her. "You kidding me Midori?! Two Face is a walking ice age, Ponytail can just make whatever the fuck she wants, and Pinky… FUCK!" Katsuki was used to him and Midori being the biggest fish around. They had won against older kids, him slamming explosions into them and Midori just picking up the biggest guys with one hand and growling at them.

To see people who could dethrone them was unsettling.

He was aware that angry tears were pricking his eyes but he didn't care. "I'm not gonna let them overtake me, you got that Midori?!"

"I-uh-yes?"

He snarled, jamming a finger into her stomach. "And that goes for you as well Midori! You and me, we're gonna be the best Heroes ever!"

Midori blinked, then she nodded. "Y-yeah! No matter what, we're going to be the best!"

—

Ken carefully walked around the other pedestrians, wary of bumping into somebody. At just under two metres tall and wolf-headed, people tended to stare or be wary around him. Still, life was going pretty okay for him - he had a steady job, a decent apartment… he even had a girlfriend!

Honestly he had no idea how he managed to get a girl like Kagome but he wasn't about to throw it away. He hurried as quickly as reasonably possible down the road, glancing down at his phone. "Crap, I'm gonna be late…"

Somebody bumped into him roughly, stumbling. He winced, turning to look at the black haired businessman who was already shaking himself off. "Shit - sorry about that-"

The other guy was already walking off smartly, rounding the corner. Ken stared after him, then turned back. His arm kind of hurt, that guy must have really hit him pretty hard. As he took a couple more steps, he frowned. Pretty rude of the guy to just… run off after colliding with him like that.

A spike of pain came from his arm suddenly. Then it started all over his body, an itching pins and needles sensation that pushed inside his skin and out through his fur. He staggered, aware that everybody around him seemed to be backing up.

What-

The world went red.

—

Half an hour later, the businessman watched from the sidelines as the creature was captured. With the help of the local Heroes, it was pinned in place as they tried to get it into the police car, pedestrians staring. Its eyes were blank and bloodshot, and it howled and snapped at the officers' restraining it. The sheep were horrified, taking in the bodies that had been thrown through windows and doors, the claw marks in the concrete where he had swiped at Heroes and civilians.

He sighed internally as they managed to drive off, the vehicle shaking as it strained against its chains. The creature was supposed to have killed more people in this rampage, maybe eaten somebody. Still, that was what happened when you tried to get a beast to do anything.

AN: Whoa! Battle Trials!

These were at once fun and torture to write! I probably fucked up with them but these fights aren't the main stars of the show. Coming up with matchups for each character awsas fun!

I changed Satou's Quirk so that it makes him more and more irrational the more sugar he consumes - an earlier draft had him declare 'Sugar is my god, and I am the instrument of its will!' This is mostly because his canon downside just limits him too much. If you get that reference you are a cool person.

We have a bit of Todoroki's thoughts! Essentially he's looked at Bakugou and Ikumi and drawn a conclusion that makes sense to him while ignoring evidence that doesn't fit his conclusion.

And now we have a mysterious Villain attack. That's probably nothing.

As always thank you Banchoking for editing this. Don't forget to comment and tell me what you liked so I can give you more!

Also I've got a Discord: /BBVa2xFsTf

Next time… We're going to deal with the media!