CHAPTER 9: SIMMERING
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE GODLY CREATION OF MY HERO ACADEMIA, I'M TOO MUCH OF A PEASANT FOR THAT LUXURY!

Yellow Flicker Beat by Lorde

CHAPTER 9: SIMMERING

THIRD POV
THE NEXT DAY came too quickly for Kasai and she was restless. The short visit with her mother proved to be more trouble than its worth, her mentality taking a hit which made her emotions swirl out of control. It seemed that all the years trying to fix and heal her damage, it only got worse with yesterday - breaking all the mended scars in her heart.

She didn't get any sleep as she stayed up thinking, contemplating what her mother told her. That she didn't need her father's approval. She wants it, but does she need it? Kasai knows she's skilled with her quirk because she worked on it, she trained her own body to fight, she did it. On her own.

However, the words her father always told her lingered in her mind like a dark shadow - that she was a failure. Those words constantly dampened her confidence. No matter how well she scored in her tests, those simple words destroyed any and all sense of accomplishment that she gained.

Maybe she didn't need his approval, his praise, if all she's ever going to from him is a sense of disappointment. It's not healthy for her to get that type of attention when it only makes her feel worthless in the end.

It's toxic and despite that, Kasai still craves it. But at least she's aware of how bad it is, right?

Sighing from her spot on her bed, the pale haired girl gets up to ready herself for school. The Todoroki can feel the exhaustion in her soul and she bets that she even looks the part. She can literally feel the weight of the bags under her eyes, the sunken lack of sleep. Pushing that aside, Kasai urges herself to get dressed in her neat uniform and brush her hair up in a her usual tight ponytail - a facade to show that she's perfectly fine. That her walls are fully structured, as if the visit yesterday didn't break her.

I'm fine, Kasai tells herself whilst tightening the tie around her neck. It's okay.

With a final sigh, the girl leaves the comfort of her room and quickly makes a route towards the front door of the house. Mornings on school days are always hasty, a stealth mission to be precise. She does it all to avoid Shoto and her father. Sure, she may want the older man's praise, but she's still intimidated of the aforementioned because no matter how hard she tries, he always seems to know what she's hiding. He can see right through her. Something she very much dislikes, no matter the person. She doesn't like being vulnerable.

It's embarrassing, and not to mention very disappointing.

When she successfully reaches the front door without interruption or being spotted, Kasai exits the house only to flinch at the sight of her brother waiting for her. The girl practically cringes at the sight before sneering at her twin in distaste. Even looking at him makes her hot temper bubble beneath her pale skin. Her anger simmers at the sight of him looking so collected, so well put together - it's her jealousy. She envies him, envies how flawless he seems when it's a struggle to even feel half of that.

"Kasai," Shoto greets, trying to converse with her.

The girl huffs, gritting her teeth as she turns her head away from him. "I'm going to be late," she simply states, avoiding his attempt to start something.

The boy steps forward. "You're one of the firsts to always arrive in class," he reminds.

Kasai's left eye twitches because he's right. She is one of the first people to arrive in class, along with Bakugou and Yaoyorozu. Biting her tongue, she uses that fact against him along with her obvious rivalry with the ash blond.

"Well, I can't be late to him. If he gets there first, before me, he'll have the bragging rights for the day and I can't allow that," she retorts, narrowing her icy eyes into her signature sharp glare.

With that, the female Todoroki cuts the conversation short as she walks away, leaving him in the dust.

Besides, what I said wasn't all a lie. Bakugou makes everything between us a competition, and getting to class first is one of many, Kasai scoffs, rolling her eyes.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

EVENTUALLY, KASAI ARRIVED to class, barely beating the blond by a few seconds. Though the small victory made a smug smirk decorate her naturally rose lips. The rivalry with the blond was something that the pale haired girl appreciated. Since her first year at Aldera Junior High to now, the competitions have been constant, and that means a lot in her life. Especially when she had nothing or anyone. Bakugou is a major part of it which she's silently grateful for. Even if they do butt heads every now and then.

"Are you getting soft on me, you shitty sparkler? Your game is getting weak seeing as I'm winning a lot," Kasai teases as she walks further into the room.

"Fuck you, White-out," Bakugou yells at her amused face.

Her features instantly turn suggestive as she wiggles her eyebrows. "When, and where?"

"You shitty hag I didn't mean that and you fucking know it," the angry boy huffs, the tips of his ears turning scarlet but thankfully his spiky hair hides them from her sight.

"Yeah, I know, but it's so easy to rile you up. It's amusing," she admits, setting her backpack on her desk. She then turns to him, placing a hand on her hip. "So, what did you do on your three day weekend?"

"Fuck off! And what I did is none of your business," he snaps, glaring at her - but she unaffected, already used to his narrowed looks.

"Come on," Kasai whines, almost smiling. "It couldn't have been that boring! I'll tell you what I did. I did nothing to be exact," she simply tells him, not wanting to share yesterday's events. She'll pretend it never happened.

"That's bullshit! You didn't do nothing, but I don't care if you fucking tell me. That's your business," the ash blond states, sitting in his desk, propping up his feet and crossing his arms.

The girl softly smiles, touched that he doesn't persist on the details. It's barely noticeable, but it's genuine. He may be an ass to others - practically everyone, but she knows that he secretly cares, very deep down inside him.

"I went to go see my mom," she blurts.

The boy opens his carmine colored eyes, glancing towards her, somewhat confused with that sentence. "What the fuck does that mean," he questions, frowning.

"It's complicated, but as I said. I saw her for the first time in years yesterday," she explains simply, not wanting to go into the specifics.

"So, what? Was it not as you expected?"

"Not even close, in fact the visit just upset me more. Like I was fine before, not perfect, but fine and now that I saw her, I'm more confused than upset. Like everything got messed up," She tries to explain what she's feeling.

Katsuki furrows his brows, knowing what she's trying to say, and he shakes his head at her. "Well, it's your own fault for going. Did you not think there was going to be unresolved shit when you haven't seen each other in years," he tells the Todoroki girl.

Kasai makes a face at his words. "Gee thanks. Thank you, really, for making me feel even worse than I already do. And here I thought you would've given me some leniency," she scoffs, softly whacking his propped legs.

The blond scoffs out a laugh. "Since when was I fucking soft? I tell you how it is," he reminds her, eyeing her as she leans against the side of his desk.

With her waistline against his desk and her back to him, Kasai looks to her right, down at him and shakes her head. "True, you do lack a certain sensitivity. Your words may be fucking blunt, but they're honest," she says, crossing her arms.

Whilst they continue their conversation by changing topics, their classmates slowly trickle in as they arrive. Most of them find it strange to see the two resident hotheads casually talking, especially when they clearly remember their heated argument on the first day of class. So up in each other's faces. When Kirishima walks in, he thinks nothing of it because he saw first hand how they treat one another. Yes, they may argue like cats and dogs, but they respect each other in end. So, as he passes them on his way to his assigned seat, he waves a greeting, which they both return.

When Kasai notices that most of her classmates are seated, she pushes herself off Bakugou's desk to head to her seat. Smiling, she quickly flicks the ash blond on his forehead.

"Stay sharp, loser. I can't become the best if I'm always winning with no real competition," she reminds with a genuine smile.

"Tch, I'll show you who's the real best, you shitty White-out," he exclaims after her, causing her to smirk.

Getting to her seat, the female Todoroki ignores her brother and sits down. She instead focuses on Iida who gets up to stand at the front of the class, pacing. Her turquoise eyes shine with amusement when she watches their class president turn sharply towards them, hands out.

"Alright, listen! It's time for this morning's homeroom period! Take your seats, everyone," the boy announces, but it's not really needed when everyone but him is already in their seats.

Sero points out exactly that. "We are in our seats, you're the one who's not."

Kasai silently laughs. Though, before Iida can decide to go sit down, the class door opens, revealing a heavily bandaged Aizawa. The pale girl raises her brows, impressed, even more so when she remembered how injured he got from the USJ attack. If she were in his place, she wouldn't even try to get out bed, let alone go on with the day as if nothing happened.

"Sensei, you're all right," Iida says, now in his seat.

"Can you really call that 'all right'," Kasai hears Uraraka comment, and she nods in agreement.

Aizawa turns to them when he reaches the front center. He sighs heavily. "Don't concern yourselves over me. After all, the battle hasn't really ended for you yet," he tells them.

"The battle," both Kasai and Bakugou question in synch. Realizing that they did, they glare at each other from their seats, not liking the shared moment.

Luckily Midoriya speaks up, dispersing their tension. "You don't mean.."

"More villains," Mineta cries out, cowering.

"Tch, if you can call them that. They were pathetic," Kasai scoffs, sneering.

"UA's Sports Festival is approaching, boys and girls," Aizawa informs, finishing his statement.

"A sport's festival," a fellow student exclaims.

"Keep forgetting this is an actual school!"

JIro speaks up, raising her voice. "Wait, hold up! That sounds like something villains would try to infiltrate, isn't it? Will it be all right," she questions, looking to the teacher.

"On the contrary; since we're going ahead with the festival, it means that the school is confident it has all its ducks in a row when it comes to its crisis control now. I hear police presence will be five times bigger than normal, for example. What you should be thinking about is, what a huge chance the academy's sports festival presents for you all. This isn't some event that'll be brought to a halt by the likes of villains," the bandaged teacher informs, telling everyone.

"No, if villains do appear, can we halt it, please," Mineta almost whimpers.

Kasai shortly zones out because she knows all about the sports festival. This is something she mentioned with her mother, a hero can make or break her career and it all starts at the festival. If you stand out among the crowd of students, the scouting heroes in the audience will notice you and they can offer to train you. She wants that attention, she wants those offers. Plus, it's a competition and she's always looking for a chance to prove herself, to be the best.

The girl can feel herself becoming excited, her body trembles at the idea of beating everyone. It's most likely that her father will attend this event, and maybe she can show him how great she is if she were to fight against his prized child, her brother - Shoto. Nothing, and she means nothing, will get in her way to prove that she is in fact better than him! Not her messy state of mind! Not her insecurities! Not her blooming friendship with Bakugou! And not even her brother!

She will prove to him that she's not a failure! That she's worth being a hero!

"The country's top heroes are all sure to be watching us," Yaoyorozu's voice snaps the Todoroki out of her hype. "It's because they'll be scouting us!"

"I'm thinking I might follow the tactic of going sidekick for a pro hereo's squad after graduating," Kaminari smiles, nodding at his plan.

Jiro glances at the boy, not impressed. "But there are loads of people who get stuck as sidekicks forever and miss their chance to break out as solo heroes. And you seem like just that kind of dumbass, Kaminari," the girl smirks.

"Naturally, entering the squad of a famous hero will get you a higher status and more experience. Remember time is limited. If you get noticed by a pro, that gives you the standing for a brighter future than otherwise. This is the chance you'll get only once a year, for the total of three chances. If you aim to be a hero, this is an opportunity you can't overlook," Aizawa tells his students.

Like the rest of the class, Kasai gives a determined smirk. She clenches her hands into fists as she feels her blood flare with excitement, the anticipation!

I can do this! It's my chance to shine and show everyone what I'm made of, her smirk growing wider, almost manic.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

AFTER THE ANNOUNCEMENT of the approaching sports festival, they had their classes, lunch, and all in between bore the school day ended. However, until the event actually started, they had two weeks to prepare themselves. Kasai was ready to train her mind, body, and quirk. Especially when yesterdays visit to the mental facility opened the dam of insecurities, one she had structurally secured before seeing her mother. She's ready to get in control.

Though, it proves difficult when she sees Uraraka slide the classroom door which only reveals the students from other classes surrounding their door. Basically blocking them from leaving.

"W-whoa. What the heck," the brunette girl exclaims at the sight of them.

The pale haired Todoroki narrows her icy gaze at the crowd, glaring at them. She knows what they're doing, it's what she would do, they're checking out the competition. But all the girl does is mentally curse at herself for forgetting the other classes, she was too preoccupied on beating her rivals - Bakugou and Shoto - that she hadn't thought about anybody else. To make matters worse, she knows nothing on them, no insight on any of their quirks!

What if someone has a stronger, flashier quirk than hers?!

What if she loses to someone in another class?

What if she gets second place to an overrated ass?

What then? Her father will for sure see her as a failure, for now and for always! She'll lose her chances at ever impressing him, and she might as well quit trying to be a hero after that. Heck, if she loses, and if she could make it possible, she'll fall off the face of the earth.

Hiding her unease, Kasai simply walks towards the door, only to be intercepted by her fellow hothead. She listens as he finishes his conversation with Mineta by insulting him. Rolling her eyes, she follows after him - totally not checking out his back muscles look through his uniform. That's another thing she has to get in control, the involuntarily emotions she feels when she's around him, more so in close proximity. It's not like she has any friends to rely this to, her lack of them was made glaringly clear yesterday.

Huffing through her nose, she does what she knows best, and bottles it all in. She'll deal with them later. Preferably when she's training. Punching things, or running it off, always worked wonders on her unneeded emotions.

"It's pointless to try, so why don't you just fuck off, ya goddamn mob," Bakugou snaps at the crowd outside their room.

"Don't go calling people you don't know a 'mob' right off the bat," Iida scolds, like usual.

Kasai scoffs. "Why not? That's what they are, a mob, standing there trying to prove a point. Tch, it's fucking pathetic," she sneers at the students as she pushes her way to stand next to Bakugou - rather than behind him.

"Guys.." Uraraka tries to dissuade.

However, a student from the back of the crowd steps forward, not affected by their harsh words and looks. His complexion pale, fair, his face impassive but a bit tired looking, his eyes and hair a shade of indigo. If Kasai was any other girl, she would say that he was attractive, but she's not. She doesn't care.

"I came to see what you kids are made of, true, but I didn't think you'd be this arrogant. Are all kids enrolled at the Department of Heroics this way," he questions, making both Bakugou and Kasai seethe towards him, their narrowed gazes sharpening. The students of 1-A all pale, knowing how those two can react, but they stay in seething silence. "I'm a bit disillusioned. So that's it, huh?"

"There's a lot of kids who wind up in the General Education Departments because they failed the heroics one. Did you know that? And based on the results of the sports festival people can even come under review to be transferred into heroics, and the reverse is also a possible outcome. Scoping out the competition? If nothing else, a General Ed kid like myself is thinking 'Hey, why don't I try pulling the rug out from those Heroics kids while they're on their high horses'? Consider it a declaration of war," he continues, informing them of the possibility - basically a threat.

A tense silence lingers in the air as they all contemplate his words. Kasai didn't even think of that happening, but that's more motivation for her to try her hardest. To give it her all. She's not losing to this person, and she's going to try her damnedest to not lose at all!

Finally, the silence is broken with a yell. "Hey! You! I'm from Class 1-B," a boy with white silverish hair and thick eyelashes exclaims towards them. "I head you knocked around with villains, or whatever, so I came to hear it direct! But I don't want to hear from some snot-nosed punk!"

Another tense silence. And again, Class 1-A pales as they watch their two resident hotheads, waiting for their move.

Bakugou reacts with nothing.

Kasai inhales, but their relief is instantly gone as her hair flares to life. She moves to lash out at them, but the ash blond calmly holds her shoulder, stopping her actions. Immediately, her fire dies out at his touch and she looks at his hand, wide eyed.

She doesn't really pay attention to what happens next, but all she knows is that the crowd is yelling at them. Maybe Bakugou said something, but all her focus is on the hand that's still on her shoulder. Kasai knows her body naturally runs hot, but at his touch all she can feel is electric.

Sparks, that's what I feel.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

OVER THE TWO weeks, Kasai kept herself busy. She would wake up, go to school, focused on her classes, and when she got home, she initiated an intense training schedule. She would work on her cardio by running around the estate like she grew accustomed to. She went to the punching for more cardio, but mostly to punch out all the feelings so she wouldn't be distracted - her confusion, her ever present anger, the sadness, the insecurities. The teen beat them down until they were nothing. Until her formerly broken dam of emotions were all hidden behind a new structured wall.

She practiced with her fire quirk until she exhausted herself, but even more until finally becoming content.

Though, there was one thing that the Todoroki couldn't work away. That being the feeling she got when Bakugou touched her. Those damned sparks on her skin! She hated herself for how pleasant they felt. How it made her nervous, but in a good way, if that makes sense? Of course she didn't like being nervous, who does? However, the teenager wouldn't mind feeling that way again... and that's why she hates herself.

Kasai can't be here like an idiot, craving for something so insignificant! That's pathetic! She's embarrassed for herself. How can she allow herself to behave like this?!

Huffing, she throws another bandaged fist at the punching bag, I need to focus!

There's only one thing that's important right now! Not my feelings, or whatever that shitty sparkler makes me feel! Just one thing, and that's to win!

_

WELL, THAT'S CHAPTER NINE! WHOO, WHO'S SURPRISED AT THE UPDATE BEING SO SOON?! I WAS IN THE ZONE, AND PLUS THE HYPE FOR THE SPORTS FESTIVAL IS GETTING ME EXCITED - WHO ELSE IS READY FOR IT?! I GOT PLANS *laughs gleefully*

I KNOW NOT MUCH HAPPENED IN THIS UPDATE, BUT THIS WAS ANOTHER FILLER LIKE CHAPTER! THE NEXT ONE KICKS OFF THE SPORTS FESTIVAL ARC!

OH! KASAI IS GETTING CLOSER TO BAKUGOU, FRIENDS WISE - LIKE OPENING UP AND HAVING CONVERSATIONS! BUT OOF SHE'S ALSO EXPERIENCING SOME FEELINGS - WHICH HAS HER CONFUSED AND IN DENIAL. IT'LL BE A WHIIIIIILE UNTIL SHE LEARNS TO ACCEPT THEM, BECAUSE SUSPENSE! BUT ALSO TO KEEP THINGS REALISTIC, LIKE SURE SHE'S HAVING FEELINGS BUT IT'S STILL A LOOONG WAY BEFORE SHE ACTS ON THEM!

AND OOP, THINGS ARE GETTING TENSE BETWEEN THE FAMILY! KASAI STILL DOESN'T LIKE SHOTO, BUT THIS FESTIVAL WILL BRING THINGS OUT! AND IS SHE FINALLY REALIZING THAT DOESN'T, MAYBE, NEED ENJI/ENDEAVOR'S APPROVAL? BUT SHE STILL WANTS TO PROVE HIM WRONG - kasai you're not making any sense!

HITOSHI HAS ENTERED THE CHAT! ALONG WITH CLASS 1-B! WHOO!

Anyways, don't forget to COMMENT what you liked or disliked! To VOTE! And to FAN!

SAYONARA, and ARIGATOU for reading, my awesome and amazing readers! (please take care of yourselves and be safe!)

Word Count: 3,829

CHAPTER 10: BLISTERING HEAT
DISCLAIMER: I MUST BE A SPORTS PLAYER BECAUSE I AM IN THE ZONE! BUT NO, I'M NOT AND I ALSO DON'T OWN MY HERO ACADEMIA!

Firebending gif (imagine Kasai using this)

Starfire by Caitlyn Smith

CHAPTER 10: BLISTERING HEAT

_

THIRD POV
IT WAS FINALLY here, the day of the sports festival. Everything was in full motion. Kasai saw and sighted the many different stands that were displayed. People filled the space as they ventured to a variety of vendors and bustled towards the arena. The white haired teen feels excited, thrilled even. Especially now that she got in control with her negative emotions, nothing has her distracted. She's concentrated and ready for her moment to shine.

The girl wanted check out the stands of food and fanfare, but she had her priorities in check. Reminded herself not to get distracted with the miscellaneous items on display. So, with reluctance, Kasai made her way towards the assigned waiting room for class 1-A. For the event, she and the rest of the school's students had to wear their fitness uniform. However, since she filled out the permission form, she's wearing her white costume and fire retardant boots. Something helpful, and hopefully something to give her the extra edge, especially when she's burned so many shoes in the past.

So, as she walks in to the waiting room, she immediately sees two tables. Most of her class is crowded around one, so she naturally goes to the other table which so happens to hold her fellow hothead. Levitating towards the empty seat, she sits down and nods towards Bakugou in silent greetings, and a nod of acknowledgement to Kaminari and Hagakure.

When the waiting gets too long for her, Kasai begins to drum her long nails on the table, creating a repetitive beat. She continues this for several long second until she receives a kick to the shin. Stopping, she instantly glares at the ash blond to her left knowing that he was the one to kick her.

"Stop being fucking annoying," he scoffs.

"Tch, whatever," she smirks.

Though, the hushed conversations throughout the room are interrupted with the class president.

"Everyone, are your preparations complete?! We're set to enter in no time," Iida exclaims.

The girl shakes her head at the boy, she finds that he fits the president role perfectly. She could never keep people in check like he does, or be prepared for every situation. Sure, she adapts quickly, but to her, Iida always seems ready for whatever situation. He takes measure and is always willing to help, she never do that - she doesn't care enough to worry about the other people in her class.

"Damn, I really wanted to wear my costume," the girl hears Midoriya say from the other table.

"They're disallowed so as to even the playing field," Ojiro tells the green haired teen.

Kasai can see that, Unlike the Heroic students, the ones in General and Support, even the Business kids don't have a costume to wear. So, to make everyone stand in equal standards, they only allowed the students to wear their fitness uniforms. They only had their quirks to help them stand out, no flashy costume wear. The girl wasn't deterred by that fact, she had a plan to stand out and shine no matter what.

"MIdoriya," Shoto's voice makes the girl visibly flinch as she snaps her head in his direction - narrowing her eyes. "On an objective basis, I think I'm above you in terms of practical strength."

That's another thing Kasai noticed these past days, she knows she's not close to her brother and that she has no excuse, but it's like his behavior turned several degrees colder. Maybe it was the sports festival, everyone does seem to be more focused, more serious. Maybe with his attitude adjustment he would put in extra effort for when he fights, something that Kasai is looking forwards to. If she were to fight against him by any chance, she wants him to fight with his all.

After all, he is one of the class's strongest. His ranking was second in the quirk apprehension test, so it's only natural for her to want to beat him and rise in the rankings. By means, she sees this whole festival as a chance to win against him, to show their father that she's better than his prized golden child.

So, when Kasai hears Shoto say that he's above someone in strength, she practically glowers, burning him with her heated glare.

"A-ah, yeah," the curly haired boy stutters, nervous at the sudden declaration against him.

"You've managed to get All Might's eyes on you, right? I feel no need to pry into that, but I'm going to beat you," the icy-hot Todoroki announces, unaware of his sister's simmering rage.

Kaminari chuckles from across Kasai, turning his body to watch the conversation between the two boys. "Oho?! What's this? A declaration of war from the strongest kid in the class," he says, which causes the girl's hands to clench.

She told herself that she wouldn't let anything distract her from her chances of winning, but with people thinking that her twin brother is the strongest, the one to beat, she feels like a little kid all over again. Like how their father chose him over her. With Shoto, Kasai will always come in second place, and she absolutely loathes it. Plus, she hates the fact that with him, she loses all sense of control, like all her training these past weeks resolved to nothing.

"What's with all the belligerence all of the sudden?Don't spring this all on him right before -" Kirishima tries to dissuade the rising tension, but Shoto shrugs the red head's hand off his shoulder.

The Todoroki keeps his mismatched gaze locked on Midoriya. "I'm not here to play nice and make friends, but whatever."

Izuku looks down, clenching his hands into fists. "I have no idea what you want from me, telling me all that. You're definitely stronger than me. I think the vast majority of people are probably no match for you, looking at it objectively..."

"C'mon Midoriya, don't be so negative," Kirishima interjects, giving a nervous chuckle.

But the green haired boy continues. "Everyone - even kids from other departments are aiming for the top with all their might. So not even I can just let myself lag behind the rest! So I'm going to go for it with all my might, too," he declares, a determined expression on his face.

"Ooh," Shoto raises his eyebrows.

"Hmph," Bakugou scoffs.

Kasai's simmering reaches a boiling point as she stands up, her chair screeching behind her. The class directs their attention to her, only to see that she's glaring heatedly towards the two - specifically towards Shoto.

"Congratulations, you just earned yourself a rival, but it seems you two forgot about the rest of the class," she seethes. She locks her icy eyes with her brother's. "And you, you may be focused on him, but my intentions are just as clear. Growing up I've always watched how its always been you, but not this time. This time, it's my turn! I'm going to show you, and everyone, that I'm the best, that I'm the one to beat!"

"Growing up? Does that mean they're.."

"Kasai," Shoto comments, a bit startled at her intense hostility.

She keeps glaring, her mood basically making the room hotter than it seems. "So, brother, don't you think this is the perfect chance to see who's the better one between us," she smirks threateningly - answering her class' curiosity.

The majority of the class stands in stunned silence. Sure, they noticed how the two of them had the same surnames, but they always thought that they were distant relatives by how they acted. However, with Kasai's words they finally know that the two are siblings, and if they assume correctly, they're twins. Though, that only raises questions, if they're twins then why is there such hostility between them? Why do they act like complete strangers? But then they take into consideration of what Kasai just said - it's always been you - towards Shoto. Only he got in through recommendation. She didn't.

"And trust me, I'm going to try and do everything to take you down," the girl declares determinedly.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

THE GIRL CAN hear the cheers coming from the crowd as her classmates walked into the arena. The brightness of the sun didn't deter her harsh expression, she simply continued with her clenched jaw and narrowed eyes. She was ready. Her blood is boiling, her heart racing, and after her words, she holds a silent confidence. One so secure that she won't second guess herself.

I can do this, she reminds. You got this.

"The UA Sports Festival! Where the hero world's inchoate little eggs and aim for each other's throats, and the top! Our grand yearly melee! And let me guess, all you miscreants came to see them, right?! The freshly formed miracle stars that shrugged off a mass villain assault with wills of steel! The Department of Heroics freshman class," she hears the loud voice of Present Mic through the arena's speakers as he starts off the event.

Just on cue too, Kasai and her classmates step out into the open. Their eyes adjust to the sunlight and immediately they spot the roaring crowd around them in the stands. Since she strives for attention, the amount of people watching doesn't bother her. Unlike others.

"W-whooa, so many people," she hears Midoriya stutter out, nervous at the sudden attention.

She ignores Iida as she lets her turquoise gaze travel through the spectators, but it doesn't take long to find the bright red-orange flames that belong to her father. He definitely stands out. Not his hulking stature, or his flaming costume, but his whole presence - it screams authority.

I can do this, she repeats.

"And following class B, here come classes C, D, and E from the Department of General Education," Present Mic continues, introducing the classes as they walk out into the arena. "And now here are classes F, G, and H of the Department of Support! Now the Department of Management!"

The sound of a whip catches everyone's attention. Kasai looking away from her father who didn't notice her looking at him. The pale haired girl raises a brow at the sight of Midnight standing on a small stage in the center of the arena. Right now she's questioning the choice of - what she assumes - judge because the woman is a R rated heroine, and this is a high school. People might get distracted with the ravenette's thin, and tightly fitted, costume - like the resident perverts.

"Now, now, fair play!" Midnight whips again.

People around Kasai talk in hushed tones at the sight of the heroine, like she expected. But, oh well.

"Silence! My tenure here is perfectly on the level! Now, the class representative! Bakugou Katsuki of Class 1-A," the woman announces, sending everyone in shock. By means, no one expected him to the representative of all people.

Kasai's left eye twitches.

"Eehhh! Our representative is Kacchan," Izuku exclaims, shocked.

"He placed first in the entrance exam, remember," Sero reminds.

The female Todoroki deflates at the mentioned, clenching a hand because she got the same score. Still sour that he got top score due to their names, his being first. She watches as her fellow hothead walks up the stage, towards the microphone.

"I just want to say... I'm going to win."

Kasai deadpans, facepalming, idiot. Around her the other students bristle in anger, shock, at his bold declaration. The girl knows this is an overall competition, so she understands his words, his confidence. After all, he wants the big win just like the rest of them. Heck, she would have said the same thing - or something as similar. While the students of other classes continue to boo him, she just chooses to watch him as he steps off the stage, back into the crowd.

Apart from her brother, Bakugou is her biggest competition. And she wants to win against him. She wants to come out on top, in first place.

"All right! With that we can move directly onto our first event," MIdnight announces, gaining everyone's attention once more. A holographic screen shows up next to her. "Onto the preliminaries as they're called! Lots of fine folk end up choking on their tears here every year! And this year's first round of destiny is...this!"

The screen shows two words 'OBSTACLE RACE', and Kasai can't help but grin. She's good at running, it comes very easy to her especially after all the long hours, and days, she spent doing it as a cardio workout. Maybe the obstacle in the term should concern her, but she feels confident. The girl is in good shape, very versatile in her movements.

"An obstacle race," Kasai hears Midoriya question out loud.

"It's a race between all eleven classes," Midnight answers. "The course makes a nearly 4 Kilometre ring around the stadium! We always sing about our freedom on campus, heh. Well, this is what it's all about! You're free to do anything, anything, as long as you remain within the course!"

At the mention of being free to use quirks, Kasai gains a smug smirk. She's already confident about her running, but adding her quirk to mix... Well, she's ready to leave them in the dust. Ideas to integrate her fire into running swirls in her head as she makes strategies. As long as she beats her brother and the glitterbomb that is her rival, she will be happy.

"So, let's get cracking!" Midnight announces, ushering them to get ready. "On your marks..."

The Todoroki narrows her icy gaze when she notices the squeezing tunnel as their starting point. Getting in a slight runner's stance, the girl flexes her legs, prepared to propel herself forwards in a sprint.

"START!"

Let's do this, she smirks.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

WHEN THE RACE starts, everyone shoots forward, not thinking twice as they all cram each other in the the tiny narrow space. The pale haired girl noticed this right before the event started, she knew how it was going to turn out. And, like expected, not everyone fit in the tunnel as they squeezed themselves in. Immediately, she knew this was one of the obstacles that the race had, only it wasn't as obvious. Nobody thinks a tunnel is an obstacle, they simply think to go through it, and that's what Kasai thinks that the designers of this race wanted.

However, just as she starts running, the girl quickly watches as a sheer layer of ice covers the floor, freezing everyone in their spots. Her turquoise gaze instantly narrow at the sight of the cold element.

Shoto, she inwardly growls, clenching her jaw.

Emotions blistering, Kasai kicks off with a burst of white flames making the students next to her jump back in alarm. Encasing her boots in a layer of glowing embers, she runs through the tunnel after her brother. She doesn't care as she harshly pushes people aside, out of her path, she only sees red. Not a chance will she ever let her brother have the opportunity to beat her in this race, not if she can do anything about it.

She quickly follows after him like a bullet as her boots immediately melt the ice beneath her. Just as she nears the end of the tunnel, she can hear the students finally realize that the tunnel is too narrow for them, but she ignores them as she pushes through. The white haired girl can easily spot her brother take first place as he runs out into the open space, continuing the race. Seething, she forces herself to go faster as her fires heats up, hair turning to pale embers.

Once she steps out in the open, Kasai sprints after her twin, leaving all those in the tunnel behind her.

"You'll have to try harder than that, Shoto," Kasai yells after him, glaring with a manic smirk.

She's hot on his heels, just a few feet behind him as she pushes herself to catch up. However, she then hears the yells of her following classmates, the ones who were also smart enough to avoid her brother's tactic.

"Nice trick, Todoroki," Yaoyorozu comments.

"I won't let you get away that easy, you Icy-Hot bastard," Bakugou shouts with his usual rage and explosions.

Kasai watches as her brother looks back, swiftly making eye contact with her.

"I didn't expect so many people to dodge that. Especially those from other classes," she hears him say, which only fuels her up.

It's like he doesn't expect us to be competition, tch. Is he purposely trying to make me more angry, she silently seethes. At this point, the girl can feel her blood boiling in rage. She always tried to hold back on her anger, but on this day her tries are all proving useless as it seems that all her buttons are being aggressively pushed!

Though, the sibling's attention is soon bought when they hear the plumps of Mineta's hair orbs bouncing after them. Turning to look, they see that the boy is using the purple orbs to propel himself forwards, quickly closing the distance between them. Kasai glares scathingly at the short boy.

He may be a lewd pervert, but he clearly shows intelligence, she assesses quickly before looking away.

She can't allow herself to focus on others, just on winning. But to win, the girl first needs to pass her brother. Of course, he's fast, he did receive training from their father which forced him to stay in shape. Though, she does have an advantage. Kasai always noticed that he never - almost reluctantly - used his fire side. She doesn't know the details to why, but it's her only advantage. She can use fire to help speed her up, and that's exactly what she's going to do.

Kasai pretty much makes Mineta's words into white noise, but she almost flinches when a robot smacks the short boy away. Quickly stopping herself so she wouldn't crash into her brother's back, she watches as the large robots from the entrance exam surrounds them. Two behind them and one blocking their path to go forward.

Back then, she didn't have the strength to fight them since she burn herself out by overheating, but with this festival and her strong sense of determination, she maybe can. After all, her unhinged emotions of rage are making the fires inside her practically burst at the seams.

"Here come the obstacles, and so suddenly! And from the very outset, the first barrier will be a robo inferno," Present Mic's voice sounds out as he announces the challenge. However, as he does, more and more robots seem to appear. "It's the villain bot that was worth zero points in the entrance exam!"

As she stands behind her brother, Kasai lets her hands and lower forearms be encased in her Holy Fire. Like she told herself - let's do this - she prepares to fight by getting in a stance. Ready to attack or defend.

"So, it's these villain bots they use for these kinds of trials in the general entrance exams, huh," Shoto comments, unimpressed as he glances back at his sister.

Kasai steps forward to deal with her mentally selected robot, but before she can make a move to attack it, she feels a sudden coldness. Startled, she looks down to the source and glares when she notices a sheer layer of ice encasing her legs - keeping her frozen in place. Enraged, she sends a heated glare at her brother's back, watching as he crouches down and uses his ice quirk. Her icy eyes follow the equally cold element as it freezes the ground and all the way up to the robots - similar to her. Not enough to encase them icebergs, but enough to keep them in place, unbalanced.

Then, he runs off.

Closing her eyes, Kasai clenches her fists and grits her teeth before finally unleashing her bottled rage. Her quirk explodes in a flurry of white embers as it melts the ice surrounding her, releasing her from the ice as she marches forward. Her once calm flames of hair are now a wildfire of scorching strands as she launches her own attack.

Moving her arms in a circular motion, her flames ignite brightly as they continues to grow larger and larger with her motions. Rotating her body as she holds large disks of glowing flames, Kasai attacks with a silent fury as she finally throws her arms out. The flurry of flames that resemble hoops of ethereal fire propel forwards and upwards until it hits the robot villain standing in her way, slicing it in half like a scorching blade.

When the robot slides apart with melted metal, falling to the ground with a loud thud, the Todoroki huffs and stomps through the two halves. When another robot tries to stand in her way, she simply throws a torrent of torching flames at it, and once again, cuts it in half.

With that, the girl follows after her brother.

The students that are still behind gawk at the scene they just witnessed from the two Todorokis. The first attacked with a deadly calm, and the second followed with a silent rage. Both very powerful.

"1-A's Todoroki Shoto has forged ahead and blocked the others in one fell swoop! That kid's harsh! Though, it's 1-A's Todoroki Kasai who steps forward only to demolish her obstacles with precise torrents! Intense," Present Mic exclaims, commentating on the events.

Like a targeted missile, Kasai follows after Shoto with quick and long strides. She's not going to give him the chance to escape, not again! The intensity and motivation she has to beat him is like watching Bakugou with Midoriya. If this is what the ash blond feels with his rival, then Kasai is feeling just the same. Her buttons are all pushed, she's over the edge, she's feeling everything and she's going to put it all to use by beating him.

One way or another, she will win!

She can hear the pro hero mention the students that are passing the obstacle of robots , like Kirishima and 1-B's Tetsutetsu - the two of them having similar quirks - along with Bakugou who uses his explosive quirk to propel himself over the robots with Sero and Tokoyami who used their own quirks. She feels smug knowing that most of them are from her class. Shaking her head, she pushes herself to go faster as she drops her hands and shoots flames from her palms to jet onward.

Though, it's not long before she spots the second obstacle.

It's some sort of canyon with pillars of stone, almost a rendition of America's Grand Canyon. Huffing, she comes to a stop at the edge and quickly takes note of the tightrope that leads to a pillar of rock, continuing to what assume to the other side. Gazing down, she sees that it's a deep fall to the bottom. raising a hand to her chin, Kasai quickly calculates the distance from her spot to the first pillar.

If I start off running and use my quirk to give me an estimated boost, then I propel myself to the first pillar. Of course, the landing will be rough, but I can just use my flexibility to push myself to continue the process, the girl tells herself, making a quick strategy.

She acknowledges that she can simply use her aerobic training from the last year to get across the tightrope, but that's not fast enough. Sighing, the teen ignores the melting ice at the side in order to stay in the zone.

Backing away a few steps, Kasai keeps a steady focus before taking off in a run. Once her foot steps on the edge of canyon, she jumps and instantly uses her Holy Fire to rocket her body upwards and across. The fire tingles at her palms and the heat at the bottoms of her feet are almost a comfort against the steep drop of the canyon. Not looking down, Kasai keeps her gaze locked on the nearing pillar.

Once she's a few feet away from reaching the rock, the Todoroki dispels her flames and free falls to the small space of ground. Landing on her feet, she quickly drops and rolls forward in order to avoid a broken bone, and that's before she pushes her body up and blasts off to continue the process. It doesn't take long as she soon reaches a more pillared area before deciding to just jet herself all the way to the other side.

As the pale haired girl reaches the ground, she can feel the buzzing of her palms and feet due to using her quirk. She needs to control herself on her quirk, not wanting the chances of overheating. That could lead to her losing the competition, and she will definitely feel like a loser for being stupid. Sure, the girl can feel the determination to win, and the blistering anger under her skin, but she needs to be smart about this. She can't allow a stupid rivalry made of jealousy cause her to act so reckless.

The sudden sound of someone landing besides her causes her to startle. Wide eyed, Kasai sees the familiar person of Bakugou next to her. Sneering at the sight of him, she glares into his carmine colored eyes.

"Fuck off, shitty sparkler! This win is mine," she growls, her hair igniting, a telltale sign of her temper.

She doesn't give him a chance to respond as she darts off, scolding herself for getting lost in her thoughts. Not relying on her quirk, she uses all her determination to full out sprint after her brother. Though, it's mostly to keep her position in second place. No chance in Hell is she becoming third to Bakugou. The burning in her body is a familiar feeling, so the the burning of her muscles are nothing to deter her. In fact, she pushes herself to go even faster.

Keep going! Don't stop until you cross that finish line. the Todoroki motivates.

"It's true that they're encouraged to take the bull by the horn in many number of ways, right Eraserhead," Present Mic says, his comments still loud enough for her to hear.

"What are those idiots doing just standing there," the familiar voice of her homeroom teacher says - she assume to those at the canyon.

"And the player in the lead, Todoroki Shoto, is keeping it comfortably! But for how long!? Todoroki Kasai who's in second place is coming in fast, hot on his heels! Literally!" The blond pro hero announces loudly.

Kasai shortly catches up to her brother as he stands at the third obstacle course. Slightly out of breath, she lets the flames of her hair diminish as she wipes the sweat off her forehead. Her turquoise eyes assess the field, but her gaze could clearly see the darkened spots of soil, the patches of upturned dirt.

When they stand there, contemplating their next moves, Present Mic's voice announces their arrival to the challenge.

"The players in the lead are separated from those bunched up in behind! But I won't say how many are pulling ahead, so don't get complacent and keep going forward! Now, we come to the hidden final barrier! It's true form is none other than the mine field right out of Rambo 3! It's set up so that if you look carefully, you can see where the landmines are placed! Strain your eyes and feet," the loud hero announces to everyone.

Kasai glares at the ground. She needs to think carefully - strategically.

"In any case, they're landmines! They're not overly lethal, but they bang big and bright, so you'll definitely get disoriented a bit!"

"Obviously, that depends on the person," Aizawa dulls out.

Kasai softens her glare, but still keeps her eyes narrowed. A big blast, she can definitely work with that. She already told herself she wouldn't rely solely on her quirk. She can use her physicality, her more than average aerobics, flexibility. She nods, approving this plan.

"Bastards are in it for the entertainment value," Shoto comments, making the girl roll her eyes.

"What'd you expect? This is the most popular event in the country," she sneers.

They hear a sudden blast from behind them. Kasai barely has the time to turn her gaze as she watches Bakugou launch past them. His caramel scent breezing in her direction.

"Bastard! Don't declare war to the wrong person," the ash blond growls as he shoots a blast at Shoto.

Kasai stares wide eyed as they carelessly start their way through the minefield. But she says nothing because if they're too focused on each other than she can slip her way past them. At this revelation, a smirk decorates her lips. They can fight like boys all they want, but she'll fight like a girl - let them take each other out and leave herself as the final one standing.

As they continue through the field, Kasai stands in place and stretches her limbs. Raising her arms to her side, then above her head, she grins manically. Taking a step back, the Todoroki then swings her body forwards as she does a calculated handspring, flipping her body. In a straight line she continues flipping and cartwheeling.

However, in a while after landing out of a flip, she accidentally steps on a landmine. Cursing at herself, the Todoroki swiftly raises her arms to block the impact of the pink blast. Being pushed back a step, the girl huffs when the smoke dies away, glaring. Though, her anger instantly dissipates when she realizes what she can do.

Grinning, she jumps on a pile of mines and shoots a burst of flames, and the impact of the blast sends her flying forward like a missile. This way she can shoot her body at distances without over-exhausting herself with her quirk. Sure, Present Mic said to avoid the landmines, but when they have a purpose why ignore them? Bending her knees, Kasai lands on her feet, rolls, and gets up running. Jumping up again, the girl slices at the ground with fire blasts and rockets forward.

She catches up to them with her landing, and with another blast, Kasai allows herself to shoot past them - grinning.

"And the lead has been upset! Rejoice, mass media! This is the sort of development you crave! Why, even those who are trailing behind are putting up spurts!" Present Mic comments just as enthusiastically as always. "However, while they're pulling each other back, we effectively have three kids in the lead!"

Once she hits the ground, Kasai throws her palms back and streams a jet of white flames around her like a cape to push the two boys back. Even more so, when her blast sets off a line of mines which forces them to stop, in order for them to not get hit. Bakugou glares after the girl, knowing she'll do anything to get her win, even as far as delaying them for a short few seconds.

"In a ruthless power move, Todoroki Kasai secures her spot in the lead as she blasts her competition away! Literally! This race is getting intense as it reaches towards the end, folks," Present Mic yells into the microphone.

Sprinting, Kasai zeroes in on the exit of field. With the mantra to keep going in her head, the pale girl pushes every ounce of determination through her as she speeds up the pace. However, just as she's nearing the end, a huge, and she means huge, explosion sounds from behind her. Not taking the chance to look back and slow down, she continues running. She's not risking it.

She has first place in this race and she's not losing it!

"Class 1-A's Midoriya Izuku mounts his charge, using shock waves!"

Kasai curses, the green haired boy was smart enough to use a similar plan, but by the sound of that explosion, he could manage a greater distance. If he keeps doing just that, then she can kiss first place goodbye. Lowering her running stance, she forces herself to move faster. To take longer strides! To push onwards! To move through the pain!

She's so close to proving herself!

She can taste the victory!

"He overtook them! He overtook theeeem! But can he surpass Todoroki Kasai? She's on fire herself and isn't letting up! In fact she keeps moving faster by the looks of it!"

Startled at the fact that the boy managed to pass Shoto and Bakugou, Kasai urges her adrenaline to dart her body ahead. She can't stop. She can't slow down. She won't allow it! It's now or never!

Igniting flames, the girl boosts forwards and runs like her life depends on it. And in a sense, it kind of does. This festival is a chance to prove to her father she's better than her brother. She won't allow the former quirkless guppy that is Deku to steal her spotlight!

"Deku! Don't you dare go ahead of me," Kasai hears Bakugou shout in a rage.

However, with another sudden explosion, Kasai unfortunately watches from her peripheral vision as Midoriya flies past her, and in that moment the girl can feel her heart drop in defeat. Watching as he crashes ahead of her, the girl fights back angry tears and glares scathingly at his form. Bright embers of solar white ignite her locks of hair as she speedily darts after him like a hungry predator. No, she's a targeting missile, and she's aiming for him.

Because if looks could kill, he'd be burning in the pits of Hell.

"In no time at all, Midoriya blew dust in their eyes! And now, he's cleared the landmine area entirely. Also, from the looks of it, he even managed to pass the leading Todoroki making her take second once again! Damn, Eraserhead, your class is insane! What are you teaching them?!"

"I didn't do anything. This is all the fruit of the fires they lit in each other," their homeroom teacher drawls out.

"Whooo! Who could have predicted this outcome when the trial began? The student who has returned to the stadium in triumph is none other than..."

By now, Midoriya, Bakugou, and the two Todorokis are racing head to head as they push themselves for first place. All relying on their determination, their adrenaline, their sheer will power! Closing in on the arena, Kasai urges her body to move faster. If anything, all she wants to do is come before Shoto. To prove that she's at least better than him!

With one final push, Kasai propels herself through the tunnel and into the cheers of the audiences, coming in...

_

WELL, THAT WAS CHAPTER TEN! WHOO! THE SPORTS FESTIVAL IS HERE AND I AM SO EXCITED! I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS ARC! LIKE WHEN I WATCHED THE ANIME, I WROTE OUT MY PLANS FOR KASAI - AND OTHER OCS! WHOO! ALSO SORRY IT THIS CHAPTER SEEMED REPETITIVE!

AND YES, I ENDED IN CLIFF HANGER BECAUSE I LOVE SUSPENSE, BUT YOU ARE ALL PROBABLY HATING ME FOR IT!

OOH, KASAI DECLARED HER WAR AGAINST SHOTO! DUN DUN DUUUN! I LOVE WRITING THEM EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVE SO MUCH CONFLICT, BUT THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT INTERESTING! ALL THAT ANGST!

AND OOP, THE CLASS, APART FROM BAKUGOU, FINALLLLLY KNOWS ABOUT THEIR RELATIONSHIP AS SIBLINGS! THOUGH, UNOFFICIALLY I BELIEVE MOMO IS ONE OF THE FEW WHO ALREADY SUSPECTED. SO LIKE FINALLY ( i didn't want to leave that plot hole.)

oOF! KASAI IS UNHINGED! SHE'S FINALLY FEELING ALL THE RAGE THAT SHE'S BEEN SUPPRESSING!

ALSO, I DIDN'T WANT KASAI TO JUST SOAR CARELESSLY AND EFFORTLESSLY THROUGH THE OBSTACLE RACE, I WANTED HER TO BE STRATEGIC - EVEN IF JUST A LITTLE! SO I MADE HER THINK ABOUT THINGS DESPITE SOMETIMES USING HER EMOTIONS, LOL.

aNYWAYS, ANYTHING ELSE YOU LIKED? DISLIKED?

Don't forget to COMMENT! To VOTE! And to FANNNN!

ADIOS, AND GRACIAS, To all my beautiful and amazing readers! (please be safe and take care of yourselves!)

Word Count: 6,050