Izuku's intakes of breath are more elongated than the ringback tone of his cellphone, but nevertheless, the time that he waits for his mother to answer his call feels longer than it takes for his body to regulate the adrenaline still coursing through his system.

Immediately after his match with Shinso concluded, he just had to call her. He was fishing his phone out of his pocket as soon as he exited the field. He couldn't wait to share his good news with her. He figures she needs some good news right about now. He's starting to regain control of his breathing while he waits, though he contemplates holding it in on the fifth ring.

Relieved, Izuku straightens up when he hears the line click over. His mother's voice follows, "Hello!"

He's just as quick to match her tone with equal elation, "Hey mom- !"

"You have reached Inko Midoriya. I'm unable to answer the phone right now, but you can leave a message and I'll give you a call back", but that excitement evaporates when he realizes that he's only hearing his mother's voicemail.

Izuku's smile wavers and shrinks, but doesn't disappear completely. He pushes the phone closer so that she'll be able to hear him and leaves her a message since he'll likely be too preoccupied with his next match for her to call him back, "Hi mom! I just finished my first match. Guess what.. I won!" He pauses to let that sink in a bit before continuing, "And that's not all.. I don't know how but I saw Pochita again, mom."

He has to close his eyes when he feels them beginning to water. The image of Pochita returning to him during his match against Shinso replays in his mind. "You were right, Pochita gave me his quirk so that I could make it my own and become a hero", Izuku swallows some of his saliva when he realizes there's no scratchiness to his throat, "And you know something else? I haven't been coughing ever since.. As a matter of fact, I feel a lot better!"

He slowly realizes the connection between accepting his quirk and his disease ceasing, "I think I was holding myself back in more ways than one.. I guess Pochita really did save my life" The mental block now cleared, he only wishes it were that easy for his mother, but he's too transfixed on his own condition being cured that he doesn't dwell on hers. His hand places itself over his heart, rubbing the area as though he's petting Pochita.

His focus flicks to the hallway behind him when he hears footsteps drawing near. His eyes meet tired ones resting on dozens of drooping bags. Shinso gives a lazy and awkward wave before shoving that hand into his pants pocket like the other. Izuku returns the gesture with his free hand and a smile.

"I gotta go now but we'll talk more later", he quickly wraps up his message before adding as an afterthought, "Love you!"

Shinso nods towards Izuku's phone as the boy hangs up, "Girlfriend?"

Izuku blushes and quickly shakes his head, "My mom."

"Ah", Shinso nods in response but his voice is distant and his eyes wander, "She was excited you won?"

Izuku refrains from wincing, understanding that the topic of their match must be a sore spot for Shinso even if it's apart of making small talk. "She.. She, uh, didn't answer.. But I'm sure she will be when she hears", he winds up scratching the bush atop his head that he calls hair to keep his hands occupied. When that action goes on for too long, he matches Shinso and shoves them into his pockets.

"That's good..", Shinso mumbles just loud enough to be heard before sighing and raising his voice, "I came to find you because you seemed a bit shaken up though.. And I was wondering.. Why did you thank me?"

Izuku's eyes widen when he remembers that he did thank Shinso. That must have been weird to the Gen Ed student without context. It'd probably be weird even with context if Izuku explained his deceased dog returned to him in a vision. So Izuku keeps it simple. "Those things that you said to me.. They made me realize I was acting wrong about my quirk, you were right that I was ungrateful and should have been using it when everyone else in this competition is using theirs to give it their all."

It's Shinso's eyes that widen now. Though his shock is much more subdued, the subtle lift of his brows conveying a lot but also very little at the same time. "Listen.. What I said out there, that was just to get a rise out of you so I could use my quirk", he scratches at his own mess of hair while trying to apologize but Izuku waves for him to stop.

"Like I said, it was thanks to you and your quirk that I was able to better appreciate my quirk", Izuku pauses before shifting his footing and raising his chin, "You know though.. You should consider what you said for yourself too."

Shinso starts to frown, head tilting to the side as he gradually does. "What's that supposed to mean?", his tone sounds just as angry as he looks.

Izuku quickly holds up his hands in an attempt to calm the other boy down, "I just meant that I understand where you're coming from and if I can come to accept my quirk then you should too."

Shinso's frown deepens. "How could you possibly understand where I'm coming from?", his head leans to the other side as though he's trying to see Izuku from a different perspective, "Were you ridiculed for your quirk like I was all of my life? Were you called a villain because of something you can't control?" Shinso stomps forward in an effort to startle Izuku, "Were you bullied your whole childhood and told you could never be a hero?!", but Izuku doesn't flinch.

"Yes", Izuku's response startles Shinso instead, "I was" Shinso steps back, almost stumbling over his own footing. "I didn't use my quirk the whole competition because I was too afraid to show it to everyone, I wasn't ready to own up to it and make it my own.. But now, I know it's something to be proud of", Izuku reaches out to place his hand on Shinso's shoulder, "Thanks to you."

Shinso tries blinking back his shock, but it takes him two more blinks after that to do so. Breathlessly, he asks, "What is your quirk?"

Izuku smiles but doesn't answer. Instead, he gives Shinso's shoulder a squeeze before letting it go and gestures that there's someone standing behind him. When Shinso turns around, he sees Kyoka approaching from the same hallway that he took.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting but I was hoping to borrow Midoriya for a minute", Kyoka's ear jacks mirrors the gesture of her hand when she comes to a stop.

"Ah.. This must be the girlfriend then", Shinso smirks when he sees the girl and boy blush profusely but refrains from teasing or embarrassing them any further. "I guess I'll be going then", he starts to walk away but Izuku grabs his shoulder again to make him turn back.

"Shinso", Izuku looks the other boy in the eyes as he says, "I hope to see you in class" And Shinso has to look away to hide the tears that threaten to spill.

"Yeah.. See ya", he pulls away to leave and keeps his back turned. That way they can't see that he smiles at the thought of making it into the hero course.

Kyoka waits for Shinso to be gone before closing the rest of the distance between herself and Izuku. "I heard you two talking about quirks and got worried but it seems things aren't so bad between you guys", she raises an inquisitive eyebrow when he looks back.

Izuku shrugs, unable to disagree or agree with her because of how hard it is for him to read Shinso. After a second of trying to come up with an answer, he settles on teasing her instead. "Eavesdropping, huh?" He smiles with smug satisfaction when Kyoka's cheeks tint a shade of pink.

"You know I can't help but overhear things sometimes..", she twirls one of her jacks on her finger while giving him a small pouty puff of her cheeks.

"Remind me to keep my thoughts to myself more often", Izuku laughs while watching her playfully huff, "I bet you're the reason why I've gotten over my mumbling habit."

"Oh, I'll get you back for this..", Kyoka crosses her arms and raises her jacks to appear as intimidating as possible. It works, scaring Izuku enough that he stops his teasing.

After he wipes away a sweatdrop from his forehead, Izuku scrambles to get himself out of the predicament that he put himself in. "S- So what else did you overhear?", he winces when he realizes that may not have been the smoothest way to do so.

But Kyoka shows him mercy, lowering her ear jacks and arms. "All of the things Shinso said to you on the field.. I'm surprised you can forgive him so easily, let alone thank him..", she takes a small step closer when Izuku looks away, "You're not mad or anything? Are you?"

Izuku returns his gaze to the girl in front of him, "How could I be mad?" Kyoka's blush from earlier returns and Izuku begins to understand why when he realizes how intimate that seems with their close proximity. Quickly, to defuse the mood, he clears his throat and adds, "I just won my first match and get to continue the festival tournament. I should be happy, right?"

Ducking her head down to hide her disappointment that the mood shifted back to normal, Kyoka numbly nods and agrees, "Right.. Right.."

Saving them both from further embarrassment or the situation becoming awkward, Izuku's cellphone begins to vibrate. Though the boy can't feel it in his pocket, the girl can hear it with her quirk. "Um.. I think someone is calling your phone", she raises her head to inform him.

"Oh", Izuku shoves his hand into his pocket to find his phone before pulling it out and checking the Caller ID. Seeing that it's his mother, he answers, "Hi mom!"

Except, the person on the other end of the line isn't Inko Midoriya. Kyoka regrets overhearing a doctor tell Izuku that his mom passed away. The boy pales like he's the one who just died upon hearing the news. The girl isn't in a much better state.

Izuku lowers the phone away from his ear, hanging up on the doctor. He tells Kyoka what she already knows, "My mom just died.."

Not knowing what to say to him in response to that, Kyoka throws herself at the boy and wraps him in a hug. "Oh, Izuku!" She holds tightly as he trembles in her arms. She can't hold him up but braces for when his legs give out so that they sink to the floor safely.

Izuku's tremors increase when he starts to sob. Slowly, he returns Kyoka's hug, his arms wrapped around her tighter than hers around him. Midoriyas are well renowned for their waterworks. They cry when they are happy. They cry when they are relieved. They cry over any and every small thing. These tears that swell and spill are unlike all those other times. These tears are thicker. These are tears of loss.

The warmth of Kyoka's body cradles into Izuku like when he'd hug Pochita. He handles her with care like he would when being safe about Pochita's chainsaw. Their hearts beat in unison with eachother as they hold one another close. Their touch is tender and comforting despite the endless supply of tears.

Nobody comes through the hall and disturbs them, yet matches continue to transpire. The speaker system echoes updates live as an ambience of the world going on around them while they're stuck in a moment. Time seems to stop, the past inescapable as Izuku dwells on the present. Having just accepted Pochita's heart as his own, he can't help but feel like he left behind his original with his mother's death.

When Present Mic announces the next match, he hardly recognizes his own name. He raises his head, sniffling as the tears finally stop streaming down his face. He's being called to the field. His opponent is Todoroki. The matter of quirks and the competition make his heart beat like a war drum.

He's no longer zoning out. He's zoned in. "Izuku.. You shouldn't…", he's so zoned in on just Todoroki that he doesn't even register Kyoka referring to him on a first name basis or her pleas for him not to compete. He stands up, drowning out her voice and focusing on Present Mic's calling him to the field.

He still has a point to make. After all that's happened. After Pochita and his mom gave their lives for his dream, he has to make it a reality. And.. He wants to blow off some steam.

Izuku steps into the arena with Todoroki. There's something said about the rules of the match like last time, but neither boy pays much attention to the words. Each of them are transfixed on the other, ice cold glares burning into one another. There's sorrow hidden behind the anger in their eyes but now is not the time to bottle up such emotions. Now is the time to let loose.

"BEGIN!", Present Mic calls for the match to start.

A trail of ice rapidly snakes across the arena from Todoroki's right foot until it reaches Izuku. A colossal glacier overtakes him instantly, jagged tips spearing holes in the clouds high above. Izuku is encased at the epicenter of the iceberg's bottom, frozen within its base.

"Wow! And just like that, another round where Todoroki immobilizes his opponent right from the get go!", Present Mic has to do a double take when he realizes this glacier is somehow bigger than the last one that had trapped Sero. When he snaps out of his initial shell shocked reaction, he prepares to announce Todoroki the victor.

Except, "I'm not immobilized!", Izuku shouts with condensation spraying in the air as much as the spit flying from his mouth does, "I can still fight!" With that same mouth, he bends his neck down so that he can bite at the zipper of his sports jacket. When he can't reach beyond that, he uses his tongue.

The ripcord attached to Izuku's sternum loops at the end, making a tiny handle just big enough for a finger to fit through. Or the tip of a tongue. Izuku's tongue slides through the hole so that he can lift the string and bite down on the rest. He raises his chin, giving the wire a good tug with a yank of his head.

That very same skull is carved open by spinning sharpened steel, every metallic tooth hooking itself through flesh until the carotid is torn apart with Izuku's face ripping in two halves. Erupting in synchronization with blood and chainsaws is the throttle trigger bursting forth a roar of cacophonous clangor. Gnarled crevasses with dark walls and verdant plating within those depths cast an arc of crimson liquid through the frozen air, blood being magnified tenfold by the ice surrounding the transformation.

Where winding chains work to scrape away the remains of Izuku's face in order to expose the demonic visage beneath, two gas lit orbs illuminate the revving engine with coruscating golden eyes. Shattering in a shower of flaky particles, the ice breaks around Izuku's body so the bladed bars that saw through his arms can whir with the chain on his head. The elongated fangs protruding from Izuku's metallic jaw glisten under the small snow fall and drip with blood tainted drool.

Todoroki's own jaw hangs open, slack. Tiny clouds of condensation waft from his mouth when his heavy pants match his quickening heartbeat. The turquoise of his left iris fades in synchronization with the brown of his right iris, heterochromic eyes draining of color the longer they go without blinking; each eye is wide open, expanding larger and larger with every passing second.

Izuku's chainsaws continue to roar at a loud decibel despite their idle state. The dizzying spin of the bladed teeth on all three bars protruding from the boy don't distract from his growl though. Stretched and sharpened teeth bare down as blood washes over the metal base of Izuku's skull. Torn tendons drop onto his tattered clothes before sliding off and smacking the concrete floor with a wet squelching slap.

The live audience watching the transformation from the stands is too stunned to scream. Kendo covers her mouth to stifle a horrified gasp that chokes itself out of her throat, a few others matching her sentiment or openly gawking. Ibara ducks her head down and closes her eyes, mouthing Hail Marys and any other prayers she can recite from memory. Pony pales until she feels like she's going to pass out, teary eyes unable to look away from the dramatic display of Izuku's quirk. Tetsutetsu reflexively hardens himself, his survival instinct forcing his body to defend itself by turning to steel. Setsuna nearly loses control of her quirk as well, almost falling apart when her fight or flight response makes her want to turn and run. Monoma leans forward, bottom jaw on a hinge so that it hangs open, his brain unable to process what his eyes are showing him.

A strong gust of wind takes the rest of Izuku's shredded jacket off, torn scraps ripping off of his toned arms and muscled torso. Mangled meat finishes falling from him at that same moment, only blood dripping and dotting his chest now. The string attached to his sternum swings side to side as he stretches his spine to raise himself from the ice shell that he just broke out of. The slippery slope makes his sneakers squeak but he remains standing with firm footing.

Kyoka can hear her own heart pounding in her chest. She can hear EVERYONE'S heart hammering. The stadium's collective beats create a rhythmic drumming that only continues to rise in volume. A tune that keeps climbing makes her fear what the climax will sound like. She tries doing what her mother taught her when it becomes too much. She focuses on just one sound. If she silences all of the surrounding noises and fixates only on a singular source, one not as panicked as the rest, maybe she'll be able to calm herself down.

She listens to Izuku's. The blood flow to the organ is rapid. Like gasoline ignited in an engine, it's strong. Yet there's a steady rhythm to it that she can hear as well. Something sad. Like a dog's whimper. Something angry. Almost as though the dog is growling. And something satisfied. Something like a regular heartbeat. Kyoka audibly gasps, unable to throw a hand up to cover her mouth in time. She realizes that Izuku is completely in control of himself right now; he's in his right mind despite the savage snarling state that he's in.

Katsuki stares, stunned, and unable to move a fraction of a muscle. He somehow sees it too. He's able to recognize what he's looking at because he knows deep down inside what Izuku has become. The nerdy friend he knew during childhood idolized him, and wanted to be like him almost as much as All Might. What Katsuki sees is a nightmare version of himself. And he knows that he's partially to blame for it.

Shinso shudders in his seat. The hairs raise on his arms, one hand shooting out to grab the other when he thinks about chainsaws splitting them down the middle. He shivers and sniffles, unable to stop himself from crying. What's worse than seeing the terrifying transformation in the arena, are the reactions of the people around him. He can see the scared expressions that convey all sorts of judgment, and all that he can feel is guilt, guilt for sharing their mindset even if it were just for a second and guilt for ever doubting Izuku when he said he can relate to having a villain's quirk. Shinso silently mouths an apology, bending his back as his body is wracked with sobs, bowing as low as he can.

Izuku raises a foot before tilting himself forward. He steps off of the ice that had cocooned him before sliding down the small slope right below. At the bottom, the slick surface comes to stop and his shoes scrape onto the concrete of the arena floor. Red stained snow litters the field as ice specks roll along like tumbleweeds. A chilling breeze passes through the gap between Todoroki and Izuku.

Even with the view that Present Mic has from the announcer booth as a commentator, he can't help but lean forward with keen anticipation. A shaky hand removes the sunglasses covering his eyes so that he can see without a tinted lens. Across from him, Aizawa side eyes every movement. It's rare that Mic is rendered speechless. Almost rarer than an entire stadium full of people to be as quiet too.

Toshinori clutches his side, pawing at the injury beneath his shirt as his fingers curl the fabric into his palm. He grits his teeth to withhold himself from cursing. This close to the arena, watching from one of the field halls, he can feel the immense aura emitting from both boys. He wishes he had it in him to shift to his muscle form as All Might. He wants to break up the fight before it can get bloody, but knows that he can't while he's this weak.

Watching from his office with dozens of screens to capture the stage from various angles, the principal of U.A takes a long drawn out sip from his cup of tea. Once finished, Nezu lowers the brim of his cup to flash a toothy grin. His beady black eyes glisten with specks of white when excitement makes his fur stand on end. He sets his tea down so that he can clasp his paws together with a clap.

Hovering on wings as red as the blood staining the stage below, a pro hero high above looks past the glacier that almost reaches him and directly at the boy with chainsaws. He hums while mulling some thoughts over in his head, gloved fingers tapping the yellow visor covering his eyes so that the tech within can give him an enhanced zoom for a good closeup. The jacket lined with fur hanging from his shoulders keeps him warm despite the iceberg that's nearby, but he floats downwards by a good margin anyways.

Feline eyes practically glued to the screen, a blonde bunned girl cranes her neck to watch the television as closely as possible. She runs her tongue over the pointed tips of her fanged teeth before it slides out of her mouth and drags along her lips in a swirling motion. Saliva dribbles down her chin as her body temperature rises and her face flushes red. Her hand finds itself under the skirt of her seifuku uniform, a moan eliciting itself from her mouth. Himiko Toga had eagerly waited long to see her friend again, but to see him as bloody and beautiful as this, she can't help but shudder with glee.

Izuku arches a knee as he slowly crouches into a stance. Chainsaws whirring on each of his arms, he keeps them level at his sides. The blade protruding from his metallic forehead revs as he tilts his pointed chin down, the chain cutting the air with a swift motion. The amber orbs on either side of the thrumming engine that makes up his head intensify their glow. Todoroki responds in turn, one foot sliding back to get himself into a defensive position. His eyes finally blink and he forces them to make some semblance of a glare. The boy's right hand that had been hanging at his side flexes and emits a small amount of frost in preparation for something stronger.

Present Mic swallows, the action reminding him that he has a throat and a voice that he can speak from with it. His eyes breaking contact with the arena and taking in the rest of his surroundings, he also remembers he has a job as a commentator. Mic grabs the microphone in front of him and holds it close to his mouth, "Ladies and gentlemen.. It seems that this match has only just begun!"

Izuku raises his arms, spreading them out, before throwing them up and bringing them together. The chainsaws clash on impact to create a collision of sparks when the moving blades briefly grind against eachother. His mouth parts when the spinning blades do, an elongated tongue rolling out with spit flying in between the gaps of his equally long fangs. Izuku leaps to go airborne with the saliva, laughing giddily until the tongue twisting and whirling outside his mouth makes him appear dementedly deranged. As the feral chainsaw boy descends with a maniacal cackle, Todoroki can only grit his teeth together and brace himself.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

You have no idea how long I was waiting to write this chapter, the scene where Izuku reveals himself to the world and its reaction living rent free in my head all this time, so it feels good to finally have gotten here and written the moment. We're getting a little into the nitty gritty now, but there's still a lot more I have in my mind that I wanna get to in due time.