Midoriya's strange black quirk tendrils and emerged from him again, but this time - not as dangerous weapons, but as a tool he used to seize the barrels and save himself.
"Sheesh," said Shinsou. "What's going on with you? WAs all that rampaging just a bluff? Are you playing with my emotions or something?"
He flinched and the black tendrils sunk back in. Shinsou had taken advantage of the time to get away.
Uraraka, meanwhile, was dragging Monoma along with a rope and slapping his attempt to attack her by floating a pipe at her away.
"It's been about five minutes since our match started, right? And I know quirks that you copy only last that long," said Uraraka.
"I simply pretended my limit was five minutes, but I've improved. It's ten now. If I were to unleash a brutal sneak attack now, could you defeat me all on your own?"
She said nothing. Being cautious of Shinsou.
"Shrewd, aren't you? By the by, do you know how many quirks I can cop at once?"
She held up three fingers.
"You think three? Ha ha ha! Does three pocket watches mean three quirks? HA ha ha! I merely pretended it was three, but I've increased my limit to four. What do you say to that? Plus I can achieve all manner of clever things with copied quirks. While it's true that I can't activate more than one at a time, some have effects that last and linger. Especially ones that don't necessarily affect a person's body directly."
She had gotten him to jail by this point.
"Take Kodai's size, for instance. The nut I enlarged with retain its size even if I use other quirks. HA ha ha! Catch my drift? What if I said fire? Sound familiar? Be careful of the supporting role's dying breath!"
She'd shut him up and was running to rejoin the group.
"Shinsou's leading him to the larger group! Is he trying to get Midoriya into the brawl?" Asked Rin.
"And in a madcap scramble like that, Shinsou's quirk can effectively lock down battle and its players!"
Midoriya had hunted down Shinsou - but he suddenly recoiled from an explosion near his face.
"Yes, twin impact," said Monoma. Anything struck once will receive a second, stronger blow. I apologize, Shinso, for falling so early. I only hope I gave you your opening."
Shoda had punched Mineta while Ashido was busy with the others.
"You're not so hard to nab once I caught on to your moves! You should know they call me the mobile adonis!"
"Good. With one down, the rest should fall," said Yang, unleashing a barrage of objects on Ashido!
"Ashido's in trouble!" Kirishima cried out.
"And Shinsou managed to pull away! Our team might really turn this around!" Said Kamakiri.
Midoriya was headed towards Shinso .He had seized the scarf.
And as Yanagi closed in - Uraraka's hand came down on her neck!
"Reiko!" Cried Kodai -
Uraraka in a flash had pinned her.
And Ashido had punched Shoda in the face, causing him to drop Mineta!
Midoriya had pinned Shinsou to the ground.
And with that, it was over. Our side had won!
Miss Midnight was giving the summary. "And that brings these five matches to a close! You showed us some fantastic battles, proving how well you knew your enemies and yourselves! Class A took the first match, while Class B took the second. The third match was a draw, and Class A won the fourth nd fifth matches!"
Jirou, Hagakure and Aoyama were cheering her commentary. Fair and unbiased.
"So the grand victory in battle training goes to Class A!"
And our class took up a cheer.
"We were all deceived," said Shiozaki.
"I wasn't even blazing with much competitive spirit but still…"
"I know, it still stings," humphed Komori.
The teams from round five had gathered for their review.
"Um," said Sensei. "First off, Midoriya. Want to tell us what happened?"
"Those fearsome black tendrils manifested from him," said Tokoyami.
"He didn't seem in control, but does that attack have a name?"
"WAs its just some new move? It couldn't be, it's too different from his usual super strength."
"So what caused that then?"
"I still don't really know," said Midoriya, looking uncertain. "The power welled up and I couldn't control it. It's like something I've believed in up to now all of a sudden turned on me. It was truly terrifying. But when Uraraka and Shinsou tried to stop me, that helped me realize it wasn't all bad. If Shinsou hadn't used his brainwashing to knock me unconscious I honestly don't know what would have happened. You asked if I was bluffing, Shinso. I wasn't. I had no clue what was going on. So both of you, thanks!"
"That's true!" Said Miss Midnight. "Facing down Midoriya's little rampage, both Shinso and URaraka demonstrated some quick thinking and fast responses! And the way Uraraka, in particular, put herself on the line to help her friend was incredible! I loved it!"
"You just jumped in without thinking, Uraraka! Quick as a whip! And then you wrapped your arms around him tight!" Teased Ashido.
Uraraka went red. "It's true that I acted before thinking. In the future I should try to keep a cool head. But if the alternative is doing nothing and regretting it then I'd be happier jumping in."
"You've matured, Uraraka," said Sensei.
"I wasn't just doing it for Midoriya's sake," said Shinsou. "Uraraka gave me that order and I acted. Plus I saw the other three getting wrecked by the black energy and realized that our team would probably lose unless we put a stop to it. I did what I did because I wanted to fight Midoriya and beat him. It only worked out that way by chance. But in the moment I was focused on myself and what I wanted."
Sensei stomped forward and strangled him with his scarf.
"That's corporal punishment, alert the PTA!" Shouted Kaminari, unusually angry for some reason.
"Nobody was asking for any more than that from you," said Sensei, loosening the scarf. "Everyone here has already spent months training to become heroes who save people. Embody that ideal right after being thrown into the deep end is not possible. That would take talent on par with All Might. Acting for the sake of others! Saving people actually takes a lot more than just that! You'll never protect anyone until you find whatever strength you need for yourself. IF you think about it that way, your actions earned you more than just a passing grade!"
"Shinsou, at the end there you tried luring me into the big brawl, where you could've really shined, right? Said Midoriya. "And remember when you tried tripping me up with those falling pipes, that was so fast! The way you whipped out the binding cloth while on the move really reminded me of Aizawa sensei. In the first match too I was thinking how the team came together to make great use of your abilities! But that's not all it was! Your judgment, analysis and quick moves are just as impressive as anyone in the hero course! You blew me away! If we're talking about using your strength for others, then I'm the one who's got a long way to go on that front."
Indeed, Midoriya…We all do.
"Indeed," said Sensei. "We've still got some deliberating to do but, probably - no, more than likely Shisno will be joining the hero course as of his second year at UA! HE's got what it takes to be everyone's equal here."
"WHOOAAA! Which class, A or B?"
"All in good time. We're not done with our reviews yet."
"Heh heh," said Monoma. "This may have been a dark day for Class B, yes. But we've only lost the battle, not the war! Now that I know Midoriya's quirk gives me a blank, I will formulate a counter strategy! Meaning if we were to go another five rounds who knows how it'd turn out!"
"Classes are over for today," said Vlad King.
And with that our first joint training wrapped up.
