Silence reigned between Izuku, Hilda, Ben, and Shoto, the tension slowly becoming suffocating. Izuku gave him exactly 10 more seconds before deciding to just walk away.
"Well, if you're not gonna talk, might as well be on our way!" Ben said nonchalantly as he and Hilda prepared to follow Izuku.
"I was overpowered. So much that I broke my pledge."
The three all paused and turned to look at Shoto, who was staring at his left hand as if it was cursed by a terrible demon.
"Your strength... whether or not the others felt it, I did. And I resorted to using something I swore I would never use in battle. That power... it feels similar to the same power All-Might radiates."
"Are you talking to me or Izu?" Hilda asked, a hand on her hip. "Because if you're gonna say we're All-Might's children or whatever, I'm just gonna shut it out right now."
"Both of you...and Torekuroshi, your powers over the elements, they go beyond normal Quirks." Shoto then narrowed his eyes. "I have to ask...did my father donate his sperm and you were the byproduct of it?"
"Eww, no." Ben cringed. "What are you even getting at?"
"To be honest, Hilda and I caught All-Might's attention during the Sludge Villain Incident last year," Izuku admitted. "He offered to train us both but he's not exactly what you'd call the best teacher, so he called a few friends over to help. One of them was my Uncle Shanks, my father's younger brother."
"I see..." Shoto frowned. "And what about Torekuroshi?"
"I've got a lot of dark secrets that would traumatize the crap out of you if I told them." Ben cryptically said. "I will say this though...you're right about my power being more than just a Quirk, Todoroki."
"So what's this whole thing about? What's your beef with us?" Hilda asked.
"My father is Endeavor, the #2 Pro Hero, perhaps you've heard of him." Shoto began. "If you and Yasakani are connected to All-Might, the #1 Pro Hero, that gives me all the more incentive to beat you."
"Okay, just write me off, why don't ya...Prick." Ben grumbled.
"My old man has a strong desire to rise in the world. As a Hero, he won a name for himself with crushing force. But because of that, the living legend, All-Might, is a great eyesore for him." Shoto explained. "But no matter what he did, he couldn't beat All-Might in power, popularity, or anything else. So he decided to use a different plan to surpass him."
"And you're telling us this why?" Izuku asked.
"Have you ever heard of Quirk Marriages?"
Izuku was surprised. "There haven't been any recorded Quirk Marriages since the first few generations of Quirks started showing up in humans."
"Yeah, it was a real problem. So many people were forced into relationships in order to make stronger children. Sometimes, they worked out in the end, and other times...they got real messy." Hilda frowned.
"Are you saying you're part of a Quirk Marriage?" Ben asked as Shoto nodded coldly.
"My father not only has a rich history but also more than enough money to throw at his problems. My mother's family was destitute and suffering and he came in like a knight in shining armor to pay off their debts. All he asked for in return was their daughter's hand in marriage to give birth to a child that could surpass both him and All-Might."
"It's not like he raped her or anything, right?" Hilda pointed out, hoping she'd be proven right.
"No...As much as I hate that bastard for using me as a tool in his ambitions, he never forced himself on my mother." Shoto said but his furious scowl was still there. "But once he saw that I was exactly the kind of child he wanted, he started grooming me to replace All-Might."
"Sheesh, talk about Daddy Issues..." Ben muttered quietly to himself.
"In the last few memories of my mother that I have, I only remember pain and sadness on her face. Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore. I remember her calling my left side unbearable... And she poured boiling water on my face..."
Izuku shook at that image as Shoto raised his hand to the scar on his face. The scar which his mother had caused. He couldn't imagine his own mother doing the same thing. Hilda silently gasped and covered her mouth while Ben remained stone-faced.
"I picked a fight with you because I wanted to show him what I can do without his damn fire. I'm going to show him I don't need his power, that I can win with just my mother's ice." Shoto said.
Izuku, Hilda, and Ben's eyes briefly darted to the side. All three of their Haki were able to detect Katsuki and Kirby eavesdropping nearby. The explosive blonde actually had a stunned look on his face while Kirby looked ready to tear up.
"In short, I'm aiming to beat you for my own personal reasons. I won't use his Quirk... or rather, I'll completely reject him by winning first place without using it!"
Shoto's eyes were filled with coldness and hatred as he made this vow. He then turned and began to walk away.
"I don't care if you can't tell me how you are connected to All-Might. No matter what you are to him, I will rise above you with only my right side. Sorry for wasting your time, but I just wanted to get that point across. I'll be in the finals and the winner of it by the end of this tournament."
"Not so fast, jackass," Ben said and Shoto suddenly found his body frozen in place and forcefully turned around to face him, Hilda, and Izuku.
"Todoroki... Your story is sad, but it won't make any of us roll over for you." Izuku said sternly. "And your reason...it's absolutely stupid!"
Shoto growled furiously as he broke free of Ben's psychic hold and got up in the green-haired boy's face.
"Are you mocking my pain?!"
"You already did that when you accepted your father's recommendation into UA!" Izuku snapped back with a glare, making Shoto reel back in shock.
"If you really wanted to show up your dad, then you should have just taken the Entrance Exam like the rest of us." Hilda pointed out. "Even Iida was able to make use of the exam to stand out when his recommendation didn't pan out."
"And let me tell you something, Todoroki...Endeavor may have been an overbearing dick to you and he may have mistreated you in a way no father ever should...but did he pump you full of chemicals? Force you into grueling simulations where death was a very real risk? Make you kill people who probably had families waiting for them...or even KILL the families of those people to tie up loose ends?"
Shoto stepped back at each pointed question Ben made while Izuku and Hilda started to get a better understanding of their bespectacled friend.
"Your father may have been a bastard, hell, I won't deny you had a harsh childhood...but there are some of us who got their hands stained with blood before they even learned what the rest of the world was like," Ben said coldly as he stormed off. "I'm here because I aim to redeem myself of the blood I've spilled, the people I've killed...I may never be forgiven, but I won't be used as a stepping stone for someone who selfishly holds himself back out of a petty sense of spite!"
The others watched Ben leave furiously as Izuku put a hand on Shoto's shoulder. His eyes were much more understanding but still full of determination.
"Todoroki...Ben does have a point. Hilda and I are here because of everyone that has supported us. Our motivations may seem trivial compared to yours, but we still use them to move forward. Ben has his reasons for becoming a Hero and so does everyone else. Sure, most of us don't have such a sad background as yours, but none of us will let you win that easily! Don't get cocky in thinking you'll be in the finals automatically, otherwise, you'll stumble over others, and they'll use you as a stepping stone. I plan to face every opponent I have to meet with everything I have!"
"Well said, babe," Hilda said, leaning down to kiss Izuku on the cheek, making him smile with a tiny blush before returning his focus to Shoto.
"If you're only going to do everything on your own...then you won't be able to make it far as a Hero," Izuku said. "You declared war on me earlier, but it sounded hollow. So now I'll make a declaration of war on you... I'll make sure to beat you, and make you understand how useless your promise is for being a Hero!"
As Izuku and Hilda walked off, Katsuki nodded his head as he and Kirby discretely followed after them.
"That's telling that stuck-up Two-Faced prick that being a Hero doesn't involve people keeling over to you because you have a sad backstory."
Meanwhile, Endeavor was having his own private conversation with Garp.
"Shoto's already been surpassed in two different events. If he has any hope of standing alongside those other brats, he needs to learn to accept both halves of himself" Endeavor said with annoyance.
"Well, they did push him into using his fire if only for a little bit in the last minute of the Cavalry Battle." Garp pointed out. "Still, it seems your ambitions finally failed you, Enji."
"I gave Shoto everything. But I fear in doing so, I only made him weaker." Endeavor said. "After I graduated from UA, I had already climbed my way to the #2 Pro Hero spot, succeeding Rayleigh-Sensei. It was because I made that climb that I understood... unless I reached the summit, it was all for nothing. If all I cared about was titles, I could've worn a smile and played the part of the lovable idiot like All-Might. But I wanted to be the strongest!"
"BRAT!" Garp snapped as he smacked Endeavor upside the head with his fist. "Did you really forget my teachings?! If strength were all that mattered, you'd be the #1 Pro Hero already! But no, you never do anything to inspire the people you're supposed to protect! Roger may have been a bonehead, but he was the best man around. I'd have figured you'd have learned something from him by now since you're as old as he was when he bit the bullet!"
Garp then turned with a huff, giving one last meaningful look toward his former student.
"You need to learn soon enough that it wasn't strength that propelled Toshi above you...it was HEART. Something you need to better understand...for your family's sake and for yours as well."
"Welcome back, sports fans! It's almost time for the final game of the festival! But before that, good news to those who couldn't make the cut! You can still get some attention in the super-fun side games we've prepared! After all, what kind of sports festival only has three events!?"
"A lame one."
Present Mic guffawed. "Emi's been rubbing off on you for sure, Sho!"
As the freshmen entered the stage, Tetsutetsu was chatting with Juuzo before raising a question.
"Hey, where are Kendo and the rest of the girls? In fact, where are all the girls in the Hero Course?"
"I think Mineta, Kaminari, and Kosei told them something. They seemed hesitant about it but Nimona convinced them to give it a shot."
It was then everyone noticed something. Aizawa could only groan into his palm while Present Mic raised an incredulous eyebrow.
"IT LOOKS LIKE THE GIRLS OF CLASS 1-A AND 1-B HAVE GONE FULL FANSERVICE MODE!"
Sure enough, the girls of Class 1-A and 1-B were all in cheerleading uniforms. Hilda was quite proud to show off all her pale fat flesh which was perfectly hugged by her uniform, which Momo created personally to match and fit her size snuggly and comfortably.
"Why did I let Mineta and Kaminari convince us to do this?" Momo sighed.
"Hey cheer up, Kosei did the same thing to us," Itsuka said, patting her on the back.
"I don't mind too much!" Tooru giggled, shaking her pom-poms. "Let's give it our all!"
"Indeed! They did have a point to let us get noticed by some strong female Pros!" Penny pointed out.
"Yeah, plus, it's not like most of us have anything else to do," Setsuna grinned in agreement. "Plus, we can still show off with this! C'mon girls, lemme hear those cheers!"
"And hey, at least those boys were honest about it!" Nimona said. "What's your stance on this, Mipha?"
"Well...I don't mind all that much, to be honest."
"All right everyone! Let's have fun competing in the recreational games!" Present Mic announced. "And when that's over, thirty-two from the eight teams that made it to the finals will duke it out in an elimination tournament style, one on one!"
"It'll be my pleasure showing up those arrogant Class 1-A dogs." Monoma huffed. "I'll show them that we in Class 1-B are just as powerful as they are."
"Give the hate boner a rest, Monoma..." Awase sighed.
"The final tournament is about to proceed!" Midnight called out. "We have a total of thirty-two students going into this. This year we'll be having one-on-one fights, full contact allowed. To spice things up, we'll be randomizing the fights!"
"So, I guess that means we have no idea who's fighting who, huh?" Rebecca noted.
"The world of Heroics is unpredictable indeed..." Eijirou voiced.
"Unless we learn to adapt to the ever-changing winds of destiny, we can't survive the storm," Fumikage noted. "An excellent challenge, indeed."
"AND HERE ARE THE RANDOMIZED MATCH-UPS OF ROUND 1!" Present Mic announced as the Jumbotron showed who'd be fighting who.
Izuku Midoriya vs Oujiro Maishirao
Hilda Yasakani vs Hitoshi Shinsho
Benio Torekuroshi vs Monoma Neito
Shoto Todoroki vs Sero Hanta
Katsuki Bakugou vs Ochako Uraraka
Penny Polendina vs Juuzo Honenuki
Kirby Sakurai vs Kosei Tsuburaba
Mipha Hashimoto vs Sen Kaibara
Nia Hanekoma vs Awase Yosetsu
Rebecca Santiago vs Kuroiro Shihai
Nimona Blackheart-Goldenlion vs Fio Germi
Tenya Iida vs Mei Hatsume
Momo Yaoyorozu vs Fumikage Tokoyami
Denki Kaminari vs Ibara Shiozaki
Eijirou Kirishima vs Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu
Mina Ashido vs Yuuga Aoyama
"SERIOUSLY!" Eijirou and Tetsutetsu called out. "HOW THE HELL DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING!?"
"Let's hope we both face each other in this tournament," Katsuki said to Izuku. "And I know about that one power of yours that makes you immune to explosions. I should know, you used it on me once back in elementary."
"To be fair, you did lash out at me when you lost your temper." Izuku pointed out. "But in the spirit of fairness, I promise I won't use it on you here, that'd just be using the power of the [Bomb-Bomb Fruit] as a crutch."
"All right, let's leave the tournament aside for a momentary interlude." Present Mic announced. "Let's have fun with recreation!"
And I'll end the chapter here so that we can immediately drop to the tournament in the next one!
We learn a little bit more about Ben's backstory here. I'll be taking some cues from Rocket Raccoon's backstory in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 for inspiration and I hope that doesn't sound Gary-Stu-ish. I don't want Ben to take over the story even though he's one of the main characters of the fic along with Izuku and Hilda.
Also, as usual, please be sure to go over the story's TV Tropes page. Updates and additions are appreciated, please and thank you!