We are finally into the finals! Without one of the students being All Might's successor and some of them constantly running into danger, the finals are much more mild, those being 2-v-2 combat between students in a sort of capture the flag event. The students have a chance to strut their stuff, so let's see what they're made of! But first, Reviews:

Draconic123: Thank you.

Gamelover41592: I hope I do just as well with this one.

Jerarudo Torindado: Honestly, I didn't recognize any of those "famous OC" you mentioned. So no, I will not be adding any of those. Any OCs you see in this story are from me. I get that several of the Canon classmates are bland, but the answer to that is not to add more characters and subplots. The number of OCs and plots I have going already is difficult to balance. If I need an OC, I'll make one. Thanks.

LEGOBRICK13: Hey you! You're finally awake! Don't worry, this chapter shouldn't set you off in a rage. I'm giving you a few chill weeks before I make you fly off the handle.

Monkey D. Conan: I do enjoy Nezu in just about every story in which he appears. My favorite depiction of him is from "One For All and Eight for the Ninth" on AO3. He's very meddlesome there with a running joke of characters trying to figure out what original animal species he is. As for Izuku and Momo, we'll have to see what happens as Momo tries to put Uwabami's training in effect. The narrative, however, is the focus first and foremost.

Ranger McAleer: I have plans in mind for Izuku to obtain various skills we see in the AC games, but it'll be a real journey for him to get each and every one.

Wizardwolf 1020: This story will have far more connection between Overhaul and Humarise. Whatever Templar connections there may be will be revealed in time. Trust me, I have so many plans. What you all see now is just the tip of the iceberg. I'm trying to play long-cons on the level of One Piece's Eiichiro Oda (who introduced a whale in Chapter 102 and made him relevant again in Chapter 489). Aaron and his family will want to keep AFO around since it's in their hands now and is so useful. The death of AFO, however, took (almost) all of the power's non-healing Quirks for as-of-yet unexplained reasons. Such a Quirk would also be practically useless against a Quirkless/Null/Normie like Izuku.

Chapter 30:

Finals (Part 1)

Tsuyu and Sato charged into Ground Beta, red bandanas marking them as a team. Tsuyu had decided to tie hers around her neck where she could easily protect it with her tongue. Sato, in contrast, had tied his around his left ankle in the hopes that the red would blend in with his boots, thus making locating and stealing his bandana more difficult.

"So, what's the plan?" the boy questioned, following the girl as she hopped slightly ahead of him.

"Our advantages are strength and speed, ribbit," Tsuyu replied. She moved by jumping in the same way frogs did, using her legs to propel her forward together rather than running. It was something she had been working on since her internship, separating her Assassin training from her Hero training the way Silkie's Sidekick Sirius —also known as Assassin Ami Koshimizu to the Brotherhood— had taught her. By moving more like a frog while acting as a Hero, any Templars with suspicions about her in the future would be less likely to come to any truthful conclusion. Unlike Izuku, she had enough skills to be choosy in her Hero studies. "You have the strength to make an opening, ribbit. Give me a chance and I should be able to snag their bandanas quickly."

"A simple plan," Sato nodded. "That works for me. We have to find them, though."

"There's no point hiding," Tsuyu commented. "Jiro has excellent hearing, ribbit. She'll hear us coming. Unless, ribbit, you have hiding skills I don't know about?"

"I've never been sneaky," Sato chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "So, I guess I'll down my sugar at the first sign of them?" Tsuyu nodded. "What about after? Do you want me to hold them off once you have their bandanas?"

"Are you comfortable with that, ribbit? Unless we manage to knock them unconscious, I'd be leaving you behind against the two of them."

"No big deal," the boy shrugged. "Running's not exactly my style. If I'm going down, I wanna go down swinging to protect a comrade. Besides, they aren't Villains, so it's not like my life will be in danger."

Tsuyu nodded, hiding her frown within a look of concentration. She jumped, instantly propelling herself to a building's second story. She kicked off the wall, landing on the third story across the street, and began zigzagging over Sato's head.

Despite her speed, Tsuyu kept her eyes on her surroundings, searching for even a hint of either Momo or Jiro. The empty streets stretched before them, silent in a way that was almost unsettling for a cityscape. It was so lifelike yet empty, and Tsuyu's mind unconsciously compared it to all the fresh corpses she'd seen throughout her short life raised by and around killers.

Before Tsuyu could finish ruminating on these thoughts, a sudden BABOOM shot through the air, the soundwave knocking her out of the sky mid-jump. She let out a pained "ribbit" and crashed into a building on the left side of the street. Sato called her family name from below, skidding to a stop on the sidewalk to catch her before she crashed into another slab of concrete.

"M-Move!" Tsuyu ordered, Sato jumping away just before another sonic wave pulverized the sidewalk where he'd been standing. Tsuyu forced the pain down and opened her eyes, her gaze drawn to a speck against the blue of the sky.

It was a drone of some sort, a speaker and camera mounted to it, four whirling propellers holding it aloft. It turned to follow their path. Tsuyu's tongue shot out, wrapping around a lamppost. She pulled, the next blast of vibration narrowly missing her and her partner.

"We need to knock that drone out of the sky, ribbit!"

"It can only get one of us!" Sato replied, tossing her one direction and diving the other. His hand went to his belt, pulling out three tubes of sugar not dissimilar to American Pixie Stix. He ripped their tops off with his teeth before pouring their contents down his throat.

Tsuyu flipped, landing on her feet and instantly moving. The drone swiveled around to face her, a small smirk coming to Tsuyu's lips as she decided to lead it on a merry little chase while Sato pumped himself up. The frog-girl fled into an alley, forcing the drone to reposition if it wanted to keep her in its line of sight. With the camera temporarily unable to see her, Tsuyu leapt from one wall to another, climbing higher until she came out onto the roof of one of the buildings.

The speaker on the drone released another sonic blast, Tsuyu rolling out of the way as it sent gravel and pebbles flying where she'd been standing.

"You should have been keeping an eye on me!" Sato yelled, his muscles straining. He planted a foot, launching the concrete debris in his hand like a baseball. It shot through the air, blasting through one of the drone's rotors. It wobbled, sinking downward as it started to spin in a corkscrew. Whomever was controlling the drone seemed to give up on it quickly, letting it crash into the pavement where gravity turned the machine and its cargo into a heap of scrap. "That's what I'm talking about!" Sato cheered.

"They can't be far!" Tsuyu told him. "Let's move, ribbit!"

"You got it, Asui!"

They headed deeper into the training ground, Sato on the ground and Tsuyu on the rooftops. Sato noticed the shadow before Tsuyu did, his eyes narrowing at the sight of Jiro knelt in the center of the road. Her hands were pressed against either side of her headphones, her jacks plugged into her right speaker-boot. The boy's eyes went directly to the yellow-and-blue bandana tied to her arm.

"Boost Beat!" Jiro called, a wave of sound shooting from her support gear toward the yellow-clad boy.

"Nice try!" Sato grinned. His fist drove downward, focused force causing an ovular piece of pavement to separate from the road and rise between him and Jiro. Her eyes widened as the sound wave smashed into the pavement, busting it into head-sized chunks. "Looks like my internship with Cementoss-sensei is paying off!"

Tsuyu took that moment to move in, leaping over her partner and grabbing one of the chunks with her prehensile tongue. She spun, her new payload swinging around like a hammer to check Jiro in the stomach before she could react. The punk girl coughed up some spittle as the rock knocked her flat.

"You left yourself open, ribbit," Tsuyu said, landing at Jiro's feet. The black-haired student clutched her stomach with one hand, leaving herself undefended as the frog-girl's tongue shot toward her bandana.

"No," Jiro grinned. "You did."

Tsuyu threw herself backward, abandoning her plan. The net narrowly missed her, crumpling to the ground off to Tsuyu's right as Momo walked out of the shadows of an adjacent alley. She cocked, the net gun in her hand reloading.

"It won't be that easy!" Sato yelled, hurling a pair of rocks toward the young heiress. Momo shot off two nets in quick succession, the first wrapping around the two pieces of pavement and the second countering enough momentum that the total bundle crashed to the sidewalk. Jiro rolled toward her partner, getting back to her feet. She glanced down, balking at the absence of her bandana.

"She got mine!" Jiro cried.

"Sato!" Tsuyu called. "Focus on Jiro, ribbit! I'll handle Yaoyorozu!"

"You can count on me, partner!" Tsuyu jumped onto and off of Sato's shoulders, launching herself at Momo. The heiress' eyes widened, the girl forming a staff with Creation to push her out of the way. Tsuyu twisted, lashing her tongue toward her foe. Momo ducked, the muscle barely missing her.

"You're not going to get me that easily," Momo said, spinning her staff with the ease of training.

Tsuyu narrowed her eyes but said nothing. In moments like this, her blank expression was a boon, lest she smile at the knowledge that she regularly trained with Izuku for his own bojutsu practice. Since he was much more specialized over Momo's jack-of-all approach to weaponry, she was certain it would only be a short time before the Templar Heiress gave her an opening. She settled into a low stance reminiscent of a frog, wide eyes studying every twitch of Momo's muscles.

One of Jiro's sonic waves served as their starting signal, both charging in. Tsuyu dodged a forward thrust and reached for the cloth tied around Momo's arm but retrieving that item would not be so simple. She had to pull back, lest the spinning pole of metal smack into her knuckles. Momo spun, forcing Tsuyu into a series of dodges.

"You've gotten better at close-quarters," Momo commented. "Last time we fought, you tried to keep your distance."

Tsuyu did not respond, backflipping away from an attempted sweep. She landed on the wall of the alley and jumped, launching toward Momo. Her staff swung, catching Tsuyu in the side. The frog-girl let out a pained "ribbit" as she was redirected, her momentum lost bit by bit as she rolled into the street.

"You're good," Momo panted, pushing a lock of hair out of her face. Her exposed skin glistened with sweat between her excursion and the noonday sun high above. Tsuyu didn't move. "…Asui?"

Momo inched forward, wary. She was focused on Tsuyu, careful lest the girl catch her by surprise.

"Momo!" Jiro's warning came too late, said punk slamming into her side. The young Templar cried out in surprise as she and her partner went down in a tangle of limbs.

"You good, Asui?" Sato called. The young Assassin leapt to her feet instantly, stuffing the second bandana into the collar of her wetsuit.

"I'm good, ribbit," she replied. "I was going to try for one more good hit, but you got it for me, Sato."

"Well, get out of here!" He popped the top off a larger tube of sugar. "I'll go wild and keep them distracted!"

"Thanks!" She high-fived him on the way by, the boy already practically drinking his sugar. His eyes went bloodshot as his muscles gained more definition, the pavement cracking as he stepped forward.

Tsuyu jumped like her life depended on it. It had taken a while to find Team 7 since they had been closer to the opposite side of Ground Beta. Had Tsuyu chosen to leave through their entrance, it would have been a closer destination (and, she idly thought, would have put her where Izuku was no doubt watching their match), but there was no guarantee Momo and Jiro didn't boobytrap the way. Instead, the frog-girl opted for the longer but safe route back to the east gate.

Something rumbled behind her, Tsuyu glancing back to see something red racing toward her. She rolled to the side, a firework whizzing past before exploding into a series of bright reds, yellows, and blues, blocking off the road. This was little more than an inconvenience, Tsuyu easily leaping to the rooftops and continuing her trek to the gate.

BONG!

"Rukido Sato has been rendered unconscious," the voice of Principal Nezu announced over the PA system. Tsuyu redoubled her speed, the gate coming into view. With a victorious "ribbit!" Tsuyu practically flew through the gate, the other teams nearby cheering for her return. The frog-girl reached into the collar of her wetsuit and pulled out the bandanas, holding them aloft.

Nothing happened for a good 45 seconds, the PA system finally crackling to life.

"Exam match 1 is over!" Nezu said. "This match is a draw!"

"What‽" Tsuyu croaked, her and the other students at the east gate looking at each other in confusion. On the large screens were images of Momo, Jiro, and the unconscious Sato, the girls grinning as Momo shakily reciprocated a fist bump with a shrug.

"Ah, I see some explanation is in order," Nezu announced, a grin audible in his voice. "Please watch this event from the start of the match."

Momo and Jiro entered the training ground at a run. Jiro gestured with her head, Momo following her lead as they ran through several alleys. It always awed Jiro how realistic training ground Beta was, only the lack of civilians showing that they were not in the heart of a bustling city. Had they been in Tokyo or Kyoto, their path would have been slower, more winding, as they avoided the populous. Several minutes after the starting bell, the girls pulled to a stop beside an empty dumpster, pressing their backs against the concrete wall behind which, somewhere too far away for Jiro to hear, would be the other team.

"What's the plan, Momo?" Jiro asked, stabbing one of her jacks into the wall. She didn't hear anything, nor did she expect to considering how large Ground Beta was, but they'd hopefully have forewarning before being caught unawares should Team 5 be faster than they predicted. Jiro was thankful for the quiet since too much noise had a good chance of overloading her hearing, something she'd experienced during her internship. Were they in an actual city, she would be at a serious disadvantage, a weakness she was working to overcome.

"Give me your bandana."

"What?" Jiro blinked, turning to stare at her partner. Momo grinned, holding her hand out. The punk girl hesitated for a second before doing as bid, untying her bandana and handing it over. Momo untied her own and threw both into the dumpster. "Wh-What are you doing?"

"Redirection," Momo replied, holding her hand over the dumpster. The multicolored glow of Creation shone from her palm as a stream of identical bandanas in many different colors poured from her hand. "I don't know if they just need to grab two bandanas, but I doubt any of these ones that I make will count. I'm willing to take the risk."

"Then even if they steal the bandanas we have, there's no guarantee they'll work," Jiro realized. "But we're going to need to fight them to get theirs if we want to win. Do we have a plan?"

"Their fighting styles are opposites," Momo began. "Asui is agile, constantly changing position and taking potshots. Sato, however, is a full-strength sort of Hero. He's more likely to run straight ahead than hide. I imagine they will use Sato as a diversion while Asui moves in to steal our bandanas and flee."

"That's why you decided to hide them," Jiro realized. "Asui's faster than both of us. We'd have a really hard time catching her if she took off."

"Especially here in the city," Momo nodded. "Sato won't be that difficult to deal with; it's Asui that will be the main trouble."

"You can leave Sato to me," Jiro offered, accepting a yellow and blue bandana decoy from her teammate. "He might be strong, but I should be able to discombobulate him with my Quirk. Do you think you can handle Asui?"

"We have our backup plan if she bests me, but I am confidant." Momo used her teeth to tie off her own matching decoy around her forearm.

"One suggestion was incapacitation, right?" Jiro asked, Momo quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes? Why?"

"Do you know how to make drones and wireless speakers? We might be able to take them out without even facing them."

Slowly, a grin came to Momo's face.

"I understand there is no audio, but I'm certain you students are clever enough to discern what Team 7's contingency was," Nezu said as the scene froze. "In the end, Team 5 did not retrieve Team 7's original bandanas. They did, however, snag the decoys at the cost of one of their members. Had Team 7 kept their originals, Team 5 would have taken the victory. On that note, students in the remaining finals are not allowed to hide their bandanas either in their clothing or in their surroundings. Moving on, Team 3: Mezo Shoji and Tenya Iida, and Team 1: Mina Ashido and Eijiro Kirishima, you have one minute to prepare."

"One minute?" Kirishima echoed. "That's not enough time! What about all the stuff still in the field?"

"We've got this, horn buddy!" Mina insisted, grabbing his arm and leading him toward the gate. She called over her shoulder. "Good match, Tsu! I'm sure you did good enough the pass! You'll get them next time, though. I'm sure!"

"Yeah," Tsuyu sighed, Ochako already heading her way. The young Assassin clenched her fist and sent a short glare toward the heiress on the screen. "Next time, ribbit."

Izuku had to admit, Momo and Jiro's plan had been effective. Incredibly so, considering it resulted in a change of rules. Nezu announced the start of the match as Iida and Shoji headed into the training ground with their metallic gold bandanas, various cameras showing their trail deeper into the mock city. Those at the west gate, however, could not see Mina and Kirishima's progress.

It had been the same with the last match, those waiting only having been able to follow Momo and Jiro's start, so they had been aware of the deception since its inception. The second screen had split off when they created the drone, allowing them to see Tsuyu and Sato destroy it, but knowing about the trap he'd been unable to warn Tsuyu of had left Izuku nervously flicking his wrists as if trying to activate hidden bracers that weren't there. Even now, Momo's clever mind left him still twitching periodically.

"Let's go Team 3!" Kaminari cheered, unsure if Shoji would be able to hear him from that distance but wanting to cheer all the same. "West gate represent!"

"Are you truly dividing our class into petty factions during our finals?" Tokoyami questioned from the shade of the canopy. "Not only that, but your standard of division is which gate we enter?"

"Let's go west gate!" Toru cheered, her gloves and shoes showing her jumping up and down.

"Not you as well, Hagakure!"

"Ah, let them have their fun, Fumi!" Dark Shadow waved off, popping out of Tokoyami's stomach. "Everyone relaxes differently."

"Let's go, west gate, let's go!" the pair sang, Sero chuckling at their enthusiasm.

"I fear Ashido and Kirishima are outmatched," Shoto commented, Izuku turning to look at his teammate as his nervous fidgeting continued. It lessened in frequency, however, which Izuku was grateful for.

"Why do you say that, Todoroki?"

"They both have rather formidable Quirks," the dual-haired teen admitted. "That said, neither can claim an intelligence comparable to their opponents. Their only choice would be to best their opponents with straight power, something Iida and Shoji will not allow. Team 3 will, ahem, run circles around them."

Izuku blinked. "Todoroki, was that supposed to be a pun?"

"Did I do it wrong?" the teen questioned.

"Well, no. Not necessarily." Izuku let out a chuckle. "It would have landed a bit better if Shoji had a speed Quirk akin to Iida's, though."

"Ah, I see. Woolen-sensei did say my sense of humor lacked a common tact due to my stunted childhood."

"Woolen, huh?" Izuku echoed. "Is that who you did your internship with? She's the top cold-based Hero if I recall correctly. Ranked 36 in the last Hero Billboard Chart JP."

"Yes, and a cousin of my mother," Shoto confirmed. "She is the one who had the idea for my Steam Style. She also taught me snowboarding and how to hone my hearing."

"Interesting," the verdet said. "Todoroki, you're being much more open than previously."

"Yes, well…" The son of the number two Hero took a second to think. "Since my internship, my goals have shifted. I no longer wish to be the number one Hero."

"No?"

"No," Shoto confirmed. "I simply wish to be a Hero others can depend on without care of rank. The first step toward that goal is showing that I am trustworthy. Isolating myself, as I had been, would be counter to that."

"To show that you're trustworthy, huh?" Izuku felt that nervous twitch return with a vengeance, his mind unconsciously going to how untrustworthy he felt standing among his classmates. No one here knew the truth of his situation and any trust they had in him would be lost if they did.

Izuku wanted to be a Hero —he always had— and he'd joined the Brotherhood for the chance of making his dream come true. His motivations at the start had been selfish, but he'd practically fallen into the Assassin's ideology in the meantime. The Brotherhood's age-old mission was integral to the protection of humanity's free will. He knew that now, but he still felt like a criminal, a fraud, between faking a Quirk and the blood on his hands.

They say the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, after all.

Giving his head a small, nearly-imperceptible shake, Izuku turned his attention back to the fight just as the teams saw each other. Iida launched forward in a burst of speed. Kirishima only had time to cross his arms and activate his Hardening before Iida's leg impacted, blasting him backward so his feet carved twin paths in the road. Mina yelled something —presumably his name— before she needed to jump away from Shoji's arms which cracked the earth where she'd been standing. She spun away, flinging globs of acid from her hands. The two screens focused on different aspects, one following Iida's fight with Kirishima and the other focusing on Shoji and Mina.

The teams traded banter the viewers could not hear, Shoji's Dupli-Arms regrowing as quickly as Mina's Acid could melt them away. Kirishima grit his sharp teeth, Iida all but a blur as he landed a plethora of smaller kicks on the redhead.

"This reminds me of an old story," Shoto commented as the redhead threw the speedy teen away. Iida spun, landing on his feet. "The one about the spear that can pierce anything and the invincible shield."

On the screen, Kirishima moved to block another straight kick only for Iida to plant his foot and pivot, launching himself into a spin directly before the redhead. Before Kirishima could react, overbalanced as he was from the lack of expected force, Iida's leg lashed out, clocking him in the side of the head.

"I think this tale has a definitive answer," Izuku replied. "Doesn't matter how strong a shield is if it's shoved out of the way."

The force of the hit drove Kirishima into the concrete of an adjacent building, his hardened body leaving an indent. Kirishima shifted, clearly dizzy, as Iida stalked toward him. The Hero legacy stopped before the redhead, saying something as he reached for the magenta bandana around Kirishima's neck.

The redhead's eyes snapped open, one hand reaching upward to grab Iida's wrist. Izuku imagined the dark-haired student's eyes widened behind his mask as Kirishima's grip crumbled the metal under his fingers, pure strength forcing Iida to one knee with downward pressure to his arm. Kirishima wrenched a leg out of the building, striking Iida's chin with an upward kick. Iida crashed onto his back, giving Kirishima the time he needed to pull himself out of the wall.

"They both learned a lot in their internships," Izuku observed, Shoto nodding in agreement. "Iida's not only faster, but he's showing more strategy than we saw before, not just attacking head-on. In contrast, Kirishima has gained enough muscle mass to force Iida to his knees with a single hand. They've both improved a lot."

"I hope we haven't missed much," Momo's voice said, she and Jiro walking toward them from the south side.

"Currently, no one has gained any definitive upper hand," Shoto responded. "It appears both Teams 3 and 1 want to show off what they learned at their internships."

"I see," Momo nodded, settling herself beside Izuku. The verdet felt his shoulders tense, a whiff of lavender perfume reaching him. "So, Izuku. What did you think?"

"I, uhh," he muttered. "Your strategy snatched victory from Team 5. You ended the match with a draw, and while that might be good for your grade, Tsu still escaped from you. Overall, you were outmatched."

"Oh." Momo seemed to deflate a little, turning away from him. Izuku swallowed at the image in his peripherals, trying to fight off the thought of 'cute' coming unbidden. If he remembered right, Momo had done her internship with Uwabami. Is this something she learned there? If so, for what purpose? She'd been acting strange for the past few days and it sent alarm bells ringing in his head, but he still could not identify why.

"Iida managed to grab Kirishima's bandana," Jiro said, turning attention back to the screen. Iida was mid-spin, extending his leg. It plowed into Kirishima's face, driving him into the ground.

"Wooo!" Kaminari cheered.

"Go Team 3!" Toru agreed.

"Ashido will be unable to fend off both of her opponents," Momo observed. "Were it another team, she might be able to surround herself with acid and possibly keep them at bay. Shoji, however, has regenerative capabilities and Iida has acquired limited flight."

"What about Kirishima?" Jiro asked. "He could get back up."

"I believe Principal Nezu would only announce if he fell unconscious. Though he may still be awake, that does not mean he is still fit for combat."

On the screen, Iida unleashed a kick with enough force to blast air toward Mina. The pink-skinned girl planted her feet and crossed her arms, leaning into the wind to keep from getting blown away. Shoji took advantage of this, extending a small hand from his Dupli-Arm and untying the bandana around her neck. Mina felt the cloth move, but she could not react fast enough before it was pulled away.

Iida and Shoji seemed to have planned for this since, as soon as he could, the larger teen held Mina's bandana to the side. Iida revved his Engine.

Mina yelled something, spraying acid between the members of Team 3. Iida's shoes lost their traction as soon as he stepped on it, his arms flailing wildly as he lost control of his momentum. Mina took advantage of this, skating toward him with a determined expression. She raised her fist and punched him.

There was no audio, but the spectators could practically hear Mina's yelp as she cradled her now-bruised hand. Punching armor had not been her best plan, but it had driven Iida off-course. Unfortunately for Team 1, Shoji was still perfectly able to intervene, his Dupli-Arm stretching forward to grab Iida and pull him out of the slippery acid. The armored teen gave his partner a thankful nod, wiped his shoes, and accepted the second bandana.

"That's the match," Jiro commented as Iida took off. Shoji spread himself out, blocking off any attempts Mina could make to further interfere. She did not seem inclined to, however. Rather, she made her way to Kirishima's side and started trying to pick him up physically and emotionally.

The roar of Iida's Engine grew for several seconds before he passed through the gate, stopping suddenly in a spray of dust. Kaminari and Toru cheered for him as everything registered.

"The second final is over!" Nezu announced. "This match goes to Team 3! Team 6: Hanta Sero and Toru Hagakure, and Team 2: Ochako Uraraka and Katsuki Bakugo, your final begins in one minute!"

"That was a great fight, Iida!" Izuku said, walking over to his friend as Sero and Toru prepared for their fight, taping both of their camo-pattered bandanas to Sero's chest. "You must have learned a lot from Airjet!"

"I did," the legacy student nodded, reaching up to pull him helmet off. His glasses were slightly askew, something he corrected as soon as he could. "Ashido and Kirishima each caught me off guard, however. Had things played out differently, victory would not be ours. I need to train harder."

"But in this instance, you won," Shoto said, stepping up to stand alongside Izuku. "Is it wrong to celebrate this small victory?"

"Well, I suppose not," Iida muttered. "Thank you for your congratulations."

"Go get some water," Izuku suggested. "You must be thirsty after all that."

"Yes, a little." The PA system crackled.

"Match 3 between Team 6 and Team 2, begin!"

"Get back here!" Ochako yelled, her voice barely carrying over Bakugo's explosions. The brunette growled at her so-called teammate's lack of response and lightened her costume. Her shoes dug into the pavement before she took off, assisted by the lack of weight to her clothing. "Bakugo, you asshat! We need to work together!"

"Piss off!" the blond yelled back, surprised that the girl was managing to keep up with him. "You'll just slow me down, Round Face! I can handle this on my own!"

"That's not the point!" Ochako tapped herself, eliminating her own gravity to jump, putting herself in the air right beside her fellow teen. She rotated, thankful for the gyroscopes Mei had suggested and all the practice she'd gotten with them. "You don't like working with people and I don't want to work with you, but this is the hand we've been dealt."

"Get the Hell out of my face!" Bakugo launched himself forward. Ochako's hand shot forward, catching the blond's pantleg. Bakugo wavered, having to correct his flight. He did not blast Ochako with an explosion no matter how much he wanted to. Attacking one's teammate was probably one of the things that would result in a failing grade. "Let go of me, bitch!"

"I can curse like a construction worker too, you stupid bastard!" the brunette shouted. "If that's the shit it takes to get through your thick fuckin' skull, then that's what I'll damn-well do! Now shut the Hell up and listen, dillweed!"

"Eh‽" Bakugo question. "Who the fuck do you think you are‽ My hag of a mother‽"

"I always knew you were a son of a bitch, but that's not important right now!" —Bakugo gnashed his teeth at her, but Ochako ignored him— "We need to at least establish that working separately is our strategy or we might fail!"

"I won't fail because I'm the goddamn best!" Bakugo flipped, a swing of his leg with the extra momentum making Ochako's fingers slip. "Do whatever the Hell you want! I'm gonna go get those damn bandanas and win this shitty final!"

"Stupid asshole!" Ochako activated her gyroscopes, her feet hitting the road first before she tipped her momentum into a roll. Deactivating her Quirk and allowing gravity to take hold once more, Ochako followed his shadow and the sounds of his explosions to where, she was sure, the other team would meet him.

"There you are!" Bakugo grinned. He readjusted his angle and shot downward, the wind screaming in his ears. "Give me those bandanas, Elbows!"

"Not on your life, Bakugo!" Sero replied, shooting out tape to wrap around one of the many lampposts in the area. He pulled, moving away form the point of impact where Bakugo's next explosion pulverized the street. His red eyes saw through Sero's plan despite the smoke, the explosive teen already moving his palms outward to catch the strips of tape attempting to surround him. Another pair of explosions rendered them naught but ash.

"You think you can catch me with shitty moves like that‽" the blond questioned. "I'm the one who's gonna be the greatest Hero ever! I'm gonna surpass even All Might, and you extras are just steppingstones for my victory!" Bakugo shot Sero a cocky smirk, one thumb coming up to show off the baby blue bandana around his shoulder. "If you don't want to get hurt and just save us both time, then you better hand over those bandanas you've got taped to your chest."

"Is that right?" Sero muttered, thankful that the visor of his Hero costume hid the bead of sweat that rolled down his forehead. "I'm not afraid of you."

"You should be." Bakugo shot forward, Sero dodging to the side as an explosion went off where he'd been.

"Damn it, Bakugo!" Ochako yelled as she finally rounded the corner to see the fight. "We need to—!"

Something she couldn't see slammed into Ochako's neck, forcing her onto her back. She let out a gasp as she hit the concrete sidewalk, stars bursting across her vision as the back of her head hit the ground. Her hands reflexively reached for her abused scalp, only a part of her mind registering the hands that were pulling her bandana off her arm.

Muscle memory —honed by hours of training during her internship— kicked in before Ochako could fully comprehend the situation. Her hand shot upward, snagging Toru by the wrist and dragging her down. At the same time, Ochako rolled, dragging the invisible girl around before flipping the girl over her shoulder. Toru gasped as the rough pavement dug into her skin, Ochako keeping a firm grip on her wrist as one of her boots came down to stand on the girl's stomach.

"Ow ow ow! Not so tight, Ochako!" Toru complained. The pink-dressed student didn't respond immediately, the brunette reaching down to steal her bandana back from Toru's unseen hand. "How'd you do that?"

"Gunhead martial arts," Ochako replied.

"Man, you got more out of your internship than I did. I thought I had you."

"You almost did," Ochako admitted. She couldn't see Toru, but she had enough clues between the girl's voice and the wrist in her hand to know which way Toru was situated. Ochako moved, kicking the invisible girl onto her stomach and twisting her arm behind her back. Toru grunted in pain, Ochako dragging her to her feet. Toru threw her head back, smacking it against Ochako's helmet. She groaned in pain.

"That wasn't my best plan," she admitted, Ochako all but supporting her. "Ow."

"Seeing stars?" Ochako grinned.

"Maybe."

"…Toru?"

"Hm?"

"Where's your costume?"

"What do you mean? This is my costume."

"But I don't feel anything."

"Um, yeah…?" Toru blinked. "Clothes would give me away."

"You…‽" Ochako took a few seconds to process that, her perpetually-blushing cheeks darkening. "Toru, we're going to have to talk to the Support Course about that. Mei will figure something out for you. Until then, sorry."

"Sor—?" Ochako brought her hand down where the other girl's collarbone met her neck, Toru slumping in her grip. She carried the invisible teen over to the closest wall so she could set her down where she wouldn't be forgotten or lost.

BONG! "Toru Hagakure has been rendered unconscious!"

"Hear that, Elbows?" Bakugo demanded, Sero crossing his arms and gritting his teeth as another blast added another couple small burns to his arms. "Round Face took out Invisi-bitch! You had no chance against me, now you're up against me and Round Face! Just give up now!"

Sero inclined his head, settling into a fighting stance.

"Sorry, Bakugo," he said. "You might beat me, but I can't just give up. What kind of Hero would I be if I just rolled over at the first sign of overwhelming odds? Who knows, I might fight you to a draw."

"Fat chance, Elbows!"

"Then come and get them!" Ochako had to avert her eyes at the flash of the next explosion. Sero spun, forming a circular wall of tape that surrounded him. Bakugo's palm hit the wall, blowing a hole in it. What he hadn't expected was the centripetal force of the wall, the rest of it spinning around to pile on his right side.

"The Hell‽" he demanded, Sero taking the chance to hop away. Another length of tape shot forward as he did, wrapping around Bakugo's waist. He pulled, yanking Bakugo off his feet and swinging him around toward a wall.

Bakugo, obviously, would not allow such a thing. A single, large explosion countered that momentum, another burning most of the tape off his body.

"You wanna play games, Elbows?" he asked, aiming one of his gauntlets. "I'll play your damn games!" He pulled the pin.

"Ah, cra—"

BOOM!

The force of the shockwave threw Sero backward into a wall, the Hero student slumping as he came to rest but still fighting to maintain his consciousness. Ochako reached him first, taking hold of one of his hands and putting him in a rather painful hold. She spun him, pinning both his arms behind his back with his torso upward.

"Bakugo!"

"Don't fuckin' tell me what to do, Round Face!" The blond stalked forward, ripping the bandanas from the tape around the other boy's chest. "Hold him here while I win this."

Ochako let go as soon as Bakugo disappeared over the buildings toward the closest gate. Sero sighed and rubbed his helmet.

"Dammit," he muttered. "We were banking on Hagakure getting the drop on you."

"She almost did," Ochako told him. "I got tougher from my internship, though. Hand-to-hand is my newest bread and butter, so I can tank at least one hit like that. She lost when she got too close."

"Damn, fair enough. Speaking of, where is Hagakure?"

"I put her by the wall over there." Ochako pointed to where she'd set his invisible teammate. "I'll carry her out for you if you'll grab her boots and gloves on the way."

"Thanks."

The female of the pair lifted the unconscious Toru into a princess carry, following Sero back toward their gate. Mid-step, the PA system crackled to life.

"The third final has finished! This match's victors are Team 2's Ochako Uraraka and Katsuki Bakugo! Congratulations! The fourth match will be Team 10: Denki Kaminari and Fumikage Tokoyami against Team 4: Mashiro Ojiro and Yuga Aoyama. You have one minute to prepare before we begin!"

End of Chapter 30

And we get the first three rounds of the finals! I hope I did well enough on them. I'm having flashbacks to writing all the fights during the Sports Festival, but luckily we only have two more matches and them the debrief before we get to move into the Shei Hassaikai raid. So, how did I do with the fights? What is with these dark emotions Tsuyu is showing? What did you glean from Izuku and Shoto's talk? What strategies will the last four teams pull to earn victory? More importantly: who passed, who failed, and why, my esteemed panel of judges? Above all:

Read and Review!

-SwordOfTheGods