"All right, all right," came Present Mic's voice over the speakers, along with the swivel of a chair that told everyone that he was literally spinning in his seat. "For all of our wonderful audience, those rocking in their stadium seats and for those chilling back at home, please allow me to introduce to you the finalists who will be throwing down in the main event! And what a lineup we have as both 1-A and 1-B will both be getting to share the spotlight along with a few students from other courses! Starting us off from 1-A, we have the student who started us off with a bang which almost turned into a whimper. Let me hear you shout for Katsuki Bakugo!"

"HEY!" screamed Bakuko who turned around so his back was now facing Midnight. He, along with the rest of the students who were lined up on the podium, faced what felt like a random direction at first with the R-Rated Pro before them. But, in reality, they were facing the various cameras that were now zooming in on them before broadcasting the close-ups to the rest of the world.

"Then we have the leader of the team that placed above him; the girl who just has so much positivity bubbling up inside her that it lifts her off the ground Ochacho Uraraka! Then there are her teammates from 1-A the raven edgelord Fumikage Tokoyami and the slippery Mina Ashido! As for the rest of 1-A who just barely got in, we have the teen who saved them from a sticky situation: Hanta Sero! Along with him, we have the copycat Neito Monoma and the mountain of manliness Eijiro Kirishima!"

The Voice Hero then cleared his throat before continuing. "Now let's give it up for the people who surprised everyone by pulling the rug right from under 1-A's feet!" declared Present Mic, getting many cheers from the audience.

"More like they used a ruling to their advantage," came another voice, one that lacked energy. Instantly, Izuku recognized the owner as the person who had chastised him for how he acted after being attacked by Bakugo: Aizawa. At that moment, it almost felt like the dark-haired hero was looking down at him from the announcer's box to bore into his soul. "Had it not been for Midnight's decision in the last round, the outcome would have been far different. With that said, I will admit that they used the conditions presented to themselves well. Not just the ruling, but also the lack of awareness of the others, the space provided to them, and the countdown. All these additional factors played a key role in their success."

"First off, we have the leader of the second place 1-B team," continued Mic as though his co-host hadn't said a thing. "We have a girl who might be part reptile: Setsuna Tokage! Aiding her was the man of metal with a name that's a mouthful Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu, our lady assassin of the roses Ibara Shiozaki, and the gentle beast man Jurota Shishida! Now let's introduce you all to the team that really stole the show! He's the boy of the shining wings who stole first place so quickly that if you blinked you missed the whole thing: Izuku Midoriya! But he didn't do it alone as he had some guided missile support from his classmate Pony Tsunotori! And the final member of 1-B who is sure to give up all a big thumbs up Itsuka Kendo!

"But it's not just the hero students who are the stars of this show," continued Present Mic, now sounding positively giddy. "From the support course, we have one of my more energetic little listeners: Mei Hatsume! And from General Studies, we have a student determined to break into the Hero Course: Hitoshi Shinso!"

With that done, the brackets were shown on another holographic image followed by a short break. Those who were not fighting in the tournament were offered the chance to continue to show off their skills in a series of smaller games. As many of the students played, either trying desperately to impress the pros or just have some fun, those who were moving onto the final event began to prepare. Some, like Bakugo, simply hyped themselves up. Others like Izuku, Itsuka, Shishida, and Pony used this time to plan for their upcoming matches. Especially Izuku and Itsuka who were going to be in the first and second matches.

Then, finally, it was time.

"Alright, my faithful listeners!" announced Present Mic when it was time, the crowd's excitement becoming almost deafening as they looked down at the field. Where once it had been a massive open field, now it held a raised platform made of cement which had been molded and hardened by the pro hero Cementoss. "The first round of the tournament shall begin! Oh yeah! Hailing from class 1-A, we have the master of shadows. The murder of crows: Fumikage Tokoyami. However, he's going to have his hands full as he faces off against the high-flying Vice Rep of class 1-B: Izuku Midoriya!"

The crowds cheered as both teens walked onto the stage, Tokoyami calming walking out with his hands in his pockets and his eyes closed. Meanwhile, Izuku's movements were a bit rigid as his nerves were getting to him a little. Before, it had been easier to stand before the crowd when there were plenty of other people around. But now that there were only two, he could feel far more eyes on him.

As the two teens stood at opposite ends of the ring, with Midnight going over the rules, Izuku eyed Tokoyami carefully. He had seen the bird-headed teen's quirk several times already, however his observations of Dark Shadow during the cavalry battle had been most illuminating. Put simply, Tokoyami's quirk was a sentient shadow creature that could attack and defend for the teen. Most notably, it could extend itself towards the target making it good for long-range attacks. Something that he had noticed more than once during the last event as the shadow creature protected their team's headband while also assisting them in capturing others. But now that he was closer to the 1-A boy, Midoriya could see a very noticeable flaw: Tokoyami himself was not strong. Judging by the lack of any real muscles on the teen's arms as well as what he had seen in the Sports Festival, Izuku theorized that his opponent was the type that relied either heavily or exclusively on his quirk.

"Begin!" cried Midnight. As she cracked her whip, Tokoyami called out Dark Shadow while at the same time Izuku activated his Divine Dividing. The crowd let out a cheer, ready to witness the showdown between quirks of shadow and light.

Tokoyami made the first move, sending Dark Shadow out toward Izuku as quickly as he could. The bird beast extended its clawed hands as it flew across the ring while growing slightly larger. Then, when it was right in front of Midoriya, the green-haired teen finally moved. In a flash, he had shot past the quirk creature and flown towards its host.

"Dark-" But that was all Tokoyami could say before Izuku's leg collided with his gut. Air shot out of the 1-A student's lungs, his mouth agape as spit and stomach juices flew out. Then the force of the kick sent Tokoyami flying out of the ring and onto the grass where he rolled until his back hit the stadium wall.

In less than thirty seconds, Izuku Midoriya had won his first match.

Once Midnight had called the match, Izuku walked towards his downed opponent who was still lying there with one hand holding his gut and his shadow friend looking over him in concern. Both of them saw Midoriya approaching, Dark Shadow letting out what sounded like a feral growl that caused the teen to flinch. Yet he didn't stop until he was right in front of Tokoyami and held out a hand with a nervous smile.

"Need a hand?" asked the green-haired hero hopeful.

At first, the bird-headed teen looked at the gesture in confusion. But then, after only a moment, he struggled to smile while accepting the hand. Carefully, Izuku helped Tokoyami to his feet before shaking hands properly while also looking the other in the eye with respect.

"You fought well," said Tokoyami, his voice somewhat laced with pain as his free hand went to cover his stomach. "Though I wish I could say the same for me."

"You'll do better next time," reassured Izuku. "But, if you don't mind me making this suggestion, you should probably work on your own strength. Dark Shadow is an amazing quirk, but relying only on it gives you an obvious weakness."

"Wise words," replied Tokoyami with a nod. "I shall gratefully take heed of them."

"Oh my," cried Midnight as she watched the scene unfolding, swaying from side to side with her hands wrapped around her body while a steaming blush grew on her face. "Such a wonderful display of sportsmanship. Oh yes, it's really heating me up!"

Hearing Midnight saying that, for all the world to hear, caused the teen's cheeks to burn. Quickly, Midoriya flew off into the stadium where he took a seat with the rest of 1-B, taking a seat between Pony, who was waving her arms in the air happily, and Toga. While the other blonde smiled happily at Izuku, she did shoot Midnight a glare while seeming to mouth something that the boy thought was 'Unfair'. As his class congratulated him on his victory, Izuku looked down to see a pair of drones had put Tokoyami on a stretcher. Most likely taking him to see the nurse.

"Alright, alright!" came Present Mic's voice over the speakers. "Let's move on to the second round, shall we? Next up we have the little listener who got the highest score in the entrance exam ready to take a win for his class: Katsuki Bakugo! However, that might prove tricky as he faces off against the fiery martial artist and class rep of 1-B: Itsuka Kendo!"

Izuku leaned forward in his seat as both students entered the arena. As usual, there was a scowl on Bakugo's face and murder in his eyes. Whether it was because he was still fuming over nearly losing in the last round, ready to take his aggressions out on a member of Izuku's team which caused it, or if it was due to him remembering how Ituksa punched him in the cafeteria that one time, Izuku had no idea. In contrast, Kendo walked into the ring with confidence as she politely waved to the crowd.

"So, who do you think is going to win?" asked Pony as she, as well as the rest of the class, leaned forward just a little bit.

Izuku didn't answer right away, instead biting his lower lip before glancing over at Pony.

"It's tricky," he said, surprising the American girl. "Itsuka has more professional fighting experience under her belt. She can more easily read her opponent than someone like Kacchan and I would say is more physically strong. Plus she has a level head on her shoulders. However, while Kacchan never had any official training before coming to U.A., he has great battle instincts and a powerful quick that gives him an advantage both in close as well as mid-range combat. So, I guess the determining factor is who can take the advantage first."

Moments later, the match began with a literal bang as Bakugo rocketed himself arena with a savage look on his face. Enhanced by the jumbo screen everyone in the audience could see that he was out for blood. When he got close, the blond pulled back his hand for his famous opening right hook. Kendo saw this, ducking to the side which was wide open due to Bakugo overextending his swing. Now in position, Itsuka prepared to deliver a punch to his gut only to have Bakugo unleash several small explosions with his left to change his trajectory in the air. Seeing this, Kendo leapt back and out of the way before she was backhanded.

But it didn't stay that way for long as Itsuka moved in quickly to close the distance. "Kachū Tenshin Amaguriken!" yelled Kendo before she began to use one of the newest techniques she had learned just for the festival. Bakugo's eyes widened, arms raising to block the incoming attack but was too slow. Everyone watched as a flurry of punches moving so fast they could barely be seen impacting everywhere from his gut to his face with a force that Izuku knew all too well. What's more, each blow sent Bakugo back several inches towards the edge of the arena! Seeing this, Izuku clutched his notebook with his breath caught in his lungs. It was so surreal to see Bakugo, one of the most tenacious people he had ever met as well as the one who had bullied him for so long in this state.

When the attack ended, Bakugo's face was shown for all the world to see. Bruises were forming on bruises, large blotches of blues and purples forming over most of his exposed skin. One eye looked like it was fighting with all its might to stay open, his lip bleeding from several spots on his lip. But Bakugo refused to give in as he swung a fist at Kendo that she easily read, stepping out of the way to watch as it harmlessly sailed past her before using that same move again.

As more blows rained down on Bakugo, Izuku felt a hand touch his shoulder. Due to how engrossed he was in the fight, Izuku jumped a little at the contact but managed to relax when he saw that it was Himiko.

"Looks like we know whose going to win," she said in a sing-song tone. However, her smile vanished when Izuku shook his head.

"It's not over yet," he said. "Kacchan's quirk has to do with his sweat. Meaning the longer the fight goes on and the more damage he takes, the more easily he can produce sweat. That leads to more powerful explosions."

"Oh," replied Toga as she then went back to examining the fight, biting her lower lip a little while her eyes narrowed. "Well then, let's see if he can manage to use all that extra power he gets before his body gives out on him."

Back in the ring, the crowd watched as the angry blond fell to the ground where he rolled back while holding his gut. Anger and pain dominated the look in his eyes, veins bulging in his temples.

"Damn it!" screamed Bakugo.

Quickly getting up, Bakugo rushed towards Kendo with a savage growl. Once close enough, he shot his palm out to his opponent only for Kendo to deflect the blow with her wrist so that the explosion happened next to her head. At the same time, she knocked Bakugo off balance, hooking the back of his ankle with her foot before pulling back. The exploding teen fell backward with Kendo's fist ready to knock him out. Oh, if only the blow had connected. Bakugo saw this and, once again, used smaller explosions to get out of the way. The blond rolled on the ground before landing on one knee, raising a hand right at the orange-haired girl. A more powerful explosion came from his hand, a blood-hungry grin on his face as he saw the look in Kendo's eyes before flames and smoke obscured his vision.

But that look soon changed as Kendo's enlarged hands came out of the smoke. Izuku stood, realizing that his friend had used the back of her hands as a shield for there were several large burn marks on them. But that didn't stop her. Instead, she fought through the pain before grabbing Bakugo in her enlarged hand.

"I've had enough of you!" she roared as she brought the hand holding the explosive blonde back while taking up a pitching stance. "How about you spend the rest of the Sports Festival in the stands!"

With that, Kendo flung the 1-A student out of the ring with all her might. Yet, before Bakugo could touch the ground or hit the wall, he began to use the explosions from his palms to move through the air. Barely missing the wall by a hair, he managed to turn around to land back in the ring.

"JUST FUCKING DIE ALREADY MAN HANDS!" roared Bakugo. With that, he went all out. Veins could now be seen on both his arms and neck as he pushed as much nitroglycerin into his palms before unleashing the most massive explosion he could muster right at Kendo. And this was it, there was no way she could dodge or get away. The blast hit her full-on, flinging her out of the ring before her body was impaled into the wall. Blood could be seen leaking from her mouth right before she fell face-first into the ground, causing most of the audience to gasp in shock.

If Bakugo cared or seemed worried, he didn't show it. Instead, he looked down at his trembling arms with disgust. Then, before he turned to leave, he spat on the ground in a final show of disrespect.

Izuku, Pony, and Toga didn't even bother to wait for the match to be called as they rushed toward the nurse's office. As they did, they could hear the gasps from the crowd as well as the panic in Midnight's voice as she urged the medical drones to get there quickly. Because of their early dash, they were able to arrive at their destination shortly after Kendo did. The teens were in time to see Asai holding out her hands above Itsuka who became enveloped in green light. Quickly, all of the girl's injuries began to vanish until she looked as good as new. And, when the light faded, Itsuka opened her eyes. Slowly she looked around looking slightly confused before a small pout that Izuku found adorable appeared on her face.

"I lost, didn't I?" she grumbled, arms crossing her chest.

"Yeah, sorry," said Izuku as he went over to his friend, sitting on the bed next to her.

"But you did really, super good out there!" added Pony as she too sat next to Kendo.

"You looked so cute out there," said Toga as she surprised everyone by appearing behind the redhead, wrapping her arms around Kendo's neck in a gentle manner. "The way you made that guy bleed all over the arena with just your fists. You're just so adorable."

Izuku nodded. "They're right you know," he said, placing a hand on Itsuka's lap. "I bet all the pros out there will have their eye on you given how well you fought both with and without a quirk. Even more so when they realize what Kacchan had to do to take you out."

That brought a slight smile onto Itsuka's face as Pony joined in, her arms wrapping around the Big Fist girl's stomach.

"Thanks, guys," she said, no one noticing that the devil dressed as a nun was watching them with a slight smile on her face. Instead, Itsuka turned to look at her green-haired friend. "Oh, Izuku? When you face him in the next round could you kick him extra hard for me?"

-x-

When Izuku and the others returned to the 1-B booth, they stayed as a group. Itsuka sat on Izuku's left while Pony took the right. As for Toga…

"Ah, this is comfy," purred the blood drinker. Currently, she was sitting directly in front of her green-haired friend while leaning back in such a way that her head rested on his lap. Naturally, this caused Izuku to blush in embarrassment while the rest of his class just chuckled at how clueless he was.

What they didn't know was that, at that moment, two pairs of eyes were watching them. Mineta, using his purple balls, had climbed up the barrier that separated the two classes with his face turning a slight shade of red as he glared with unrighteous fury at Midoriya. Standing on his tiptoes next to the grape-themed pervert was Kaminari, looking on more in envy than rage.

"Lucky bastard," grumbled the electric user shoulders slumping somewhat as he wished he was in that position.

"He has it," breathed Mineta, causing Kaminari to glance at the grape-themed teen as fires began to appear around him. Forgetting himself, Mineta pushed himself up a bit to point at Midoriya. "He has it! The legendary harem quirk spoken only in manga, anime, and hentia!"

"Whoa, seriously?" asked Kaminari in awe for he too had heard of this quirk…from the same sources as Mineta. Especially that last one.

"Of course! How else could such a plain-looking guy have all those hotties around him when we don't!" Mineta all but screamed. "We must do everything in our power to keep him away from our class before his quirk infects them. Then he'll be sure to take away Yaoyorozu so we'll never get the chance to squeeze her breasts. Then he'll take away Ashido and her nice rear. Uraraka who has curves in all the right places. Hagakure who's so freaky she runs around naked! Asui and her nice legs! He can have flat as a board Jiro since she's as plain looking as him but-" Mineta got no further as the cords to Jiro's earphone jacks suddenly wrapped around the pervert, almost strangling him for a moment before being pulled back. The smallest of small 1-A hit the ground for a moment, laying there in a fleeting moment of confusion until it dawned on him that he was surrounded. All of the girls he had just named were looking down at him, with their eyes whited out in furious glares. Jiro seemed the most angry, cracking her knuckles as she tightened her hold on him.

Later, after Mineta's screams had died down after the course of a few matches, it was Pony's turn to fight.

"So, who do you think is going to win this one?" asked Kendo as their friend Pony raced out to the middle of the ring, waving her arms in the air all excitedly. From the other corner came Sero with a big grin on his face.

"Pony will win, duh," said Toga as she rolled her eyes, kicking her feet lazily as she did. "There's no way someone that dumb looking can beat a cutie like Pony."

Kendo turned to look at Toga with clear disapproval, but before she could open her mouth Izuku spoke up. "Toga is right. If I had to guess, I'd say that Pony is one of the strongest people in our class. Given what I've seen of Sero thus far, he doesn't stand a chance."

"Oh really?" came the voice of Kamakiri from behind them. All three students turned to look at the bug-like teen as he sneered down at them. "Playing favorites are we? What makes Pony the strongest when compared to everyone else? Other than the fact that she's usually hanging off of you."

Izuku blushed and bristled at the same time after hearing that. A part of him wanted to shy away from answering the question. To say something that could placate his classmate. However, out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed that several of his other classmates were now paying attention to him. To the conversation he had started. He had dug his grave.

"It's not because we're friends," said Izuku with a sigh. "It's because of all the skills under her belt. Her quirk and the training she's done with it gives her massive advantages over most others. She can use her horns to move through the air, giving her a speed advantage. What's more, she can use them for long-range combat; either by a massive, numerous assault or a targeted attack. And now, thanks to Toga's help, she is learning how to use them better as close-range stabbing weapons. But that's not all she has going for her. Pony also has greater natural strength, stamina, and speed without her horns. She might not have the same power behind her attacks as Tetsutetsu or Shishida, but its nothing to scoff at. Nor does she need any additional material like metal shavings or fear of going berserk. So, because of all these factors, I believe that Pony is at least one of the top five strongest members of our class."

Kamakiri looked dumbfounded for a moment before slowly nodding his head in understanding before he, along with the rest of the class, turned to watch the fight.

Meanwhile, in the ring, Pony's smile brightened for reasons she didn't even know. She was already happy as it sounded like the crowd was really rooting for her over the 1-A guy. But now, she had an extra bounce in her step.

"Ah man, looks like the crowd is against me," said Sero, cracking his neck a little as he spoke. "Might end up really hating me if I beat up such a cute girl too." At that moment, Midnight cracked her whip and announcing that the match would begin. "But I don't feel like losing either!"

With that, Sero shot his elbows forward and began to launch tape from both of them at the same time. Pony, seeing one stand heading towards her chest with the other was heading towards her legs, reacted by raising her hands up to her head in a manner that almost looked like she was surrendering. Except, she wasn't! Instead, her horns detached from her head to attach to her wrists before instantly regrowing. She then brought down her arms, slashing through the tape and cutting it to ribbons before it could ever touch her.

Seeing this, Sero's eyes widened in confusion as he didn't know what to do next. But Pony wasn't giving him time to think as she bent her legs before launching herself in the dark-haired teen's direction. Sero let out a small cry of panic as he then launched more tape at the American girl, only for the make shift blades she was using to become detached from her wrist. Without losing any of her momentum, Pony twirled the horns in the palms of her hands until she was holding them like trench knives. The crowd went wild as the blonde then stabbed her own detached horn right into the ground, pinning one of the stands of tape to the arena floor before using her now free hand to grab ahold of Sero's tape.

Thanks to the way she was running at him, Sero's tape hung loosy within Pony's grasp. Though not for long as the 1-B used pierced the tape with her other horn before appearing to throw it.

"Ha! That'll never work!" laughed Sero, somewhat relieved as he watched the horn and tape fly past him. Pony just smirked as he had, somehow, forgotten what her horns were capable of. That or he assumed that she had only supplied the horns and someone else was using their quirk to control them which, to be fair, was a possibility. Nevertheless, she was extremely satisfied when her horn began to change course in the air to wrap around the tape user causing his smug smile to vanish. It spun around him in a blur, wrapping the teen up in his own tape until he looked like a mummy. Once Sero fell over, Pony just rolled him out of the arena like he was nothing more than a rolled-up carpet getting a good laugh from the crowd.

A few matches later came the funniest of them all.

"You have done well to get it this far, clinging to 1-B scum to do all the heavy lifting for you," laughed Monoma, posing slightly before Shinso after Midnight had called the match to start. "But alas, you miscalculated for clearly you forgot that the final round of the Festival is a series of one on one matches. No one to help you out. Though, its not like any of those inferior 1-B students would have been able to help you. In the end, they are destined to fall to the superior might of 1-A!" At that moment, Monoma threw back his head before laughing insanely. As Izuku watched his, he knew that Monoma's confidence was not unfounded in this moment. He had seen his Copy quirk in action a few times now. While he didn't know all its rules yet, Midoriya as well as the rest of 1-B had heard Monoma asking his classmates to allow him access to their quirks right before the match. Meaning he had an unknown amount of quirks at his disposal. But, at the same time, if this performance was suppose to endear him to the crowd or the pros, it wasn't working as Izuku could see many of them cringing and looking away from the jumbo screen showing focused on the 1-A student.

Shinso, on the other hand, stared at him while appearing relaxed.

the matches proceeded.

"Do you really believe your own hype that much?" asked Shinso, almost lazily.

"I am the-" began Monoma, only to be stopped dead midsentence as Brainwashing took effect. From there, all Shinso had to do was issue his simple command and Monoma walked out of the ring.

The final match of the first round was the one Midoriya had thought would last the longest. Tetsutetsu had been knocked out with a single punch, one so powerful that it caused hurricane-level winds to sweep across the stadium. Not only did this level of strength concern Izuku, but also the backlash of the attack as Tetsutetsu's opponent's arm looked broken.

Then, finally, it was Izuku's turn once more. Stepping into the arena with Present Mic reintroducing them to the crowd, Midoriya kept his eyes on his opponent. The blonde teen looked angrier than before as the veins on his forehead seemed to indicate. Seeing that face brought back so many memories, bringing with them the fear he held. The holder of Divine Dividing could feel his arms and legs trembling yet he stood his ground.

"There's no escaping this time Deku!" screamed Bakugo, not caring that the whole world was getting a close-up of his face. You're not leaving this ring until I have beaten all the answers I want from your worthless ass! And this time, you won't have any of those worthless extras around to save you!"

A flicker of anger appeared within Izuku, but nothing more as he looked at the bully. Slowly, he took a breath before giving the bully his most determined face. And it seemed to do the trick as Bakugo looked taken aback by it.

"It won't be so easy as you seem to think. After all, you aren't launching a surprise attack on me this time," said Izuku, his words causing Bakugo to bristle before raising his head so that a shadow covered the upper part of the explosive teen's face. Like this, only Bakugo's eyes could bee seen making him somehow look scarier. However, Izuku didn't stop. "You're last match. It was tougher than you thought it would be, wasn't it? You actually had to push yourself, going all out on Itsuka."

"Like hell!" spat Bakugo, fingers twitching as he spoke. "That worthless man handed extra-"

"Don't lie Kacchan," interrupted Izuku, surprising both Bakugo and himself with this. "I watched that match along with everyone else. I've seen what it's like firsthand when you effortlessly blow someone away. But that fight? No, you had to go all out. You had to push more nitroglycerin into your palms than ever before. All just to take her out."

Bakugo seemed ready to blow, several small explosions dancing in the palms of his hands as a growl escaped his throat. He might have charged then and there had Midnight not given him a look telling him not to try it.

"Who do you think you are talking to me like that?" demanded Bakugo with a growl, eye twitching as he was no doubt fighting with himself not to launch over there and begin attacking Izuku. "Well? You're nothing! A shitty loser! Look at you! Even now you're shaking in fear before me!"

Izuku took a breath. "You're right," he admitted before sliding into his fighting stance. "I'm afraid. But…I'm still here and not backing down!"

And with that, Midnight started the match.

Letting out a bloodcurdling scream of rage, Bakugo used his explosions to launch himself toward Izuku who stood his ground. And, like with his match with Kendo, the exploding teen started with a right hook. Rather than dodging it, Izuku used his wrist to redirect the attack so that it flew harmlessly past his head just as Bakugo unleashed an explosion. But, Izuku wasn't over as, before the flames could subside, the Divine Divider spun around to deliver a powerful kick right into Bakugo's ribs. A kick with so much force and power behind it that he, Katsuki, and Midnight could hear the cracking of ribs moments before the bomber teen was sent flying away.

"Itsuka asked me to give that one to you," said Izuku as he kept his guard up, waiting for the retaliation he knew was coming. He didn't have to wait long as Bakugo scrambled to get back on his feet, sweet forming all over his body from the injury. Growling in both pain and rage, he charged at the green-haired teen. Thanks to his with the explosive teen, Izuku knew all of Bakugo's tells and with his time at the Kendo dojo he could better capitalize on this information. And right now, Bakugo was nothing more than an open book to him.

So, he knew that this time Bakugo would launch an open palm strike aimed right at Izuku's face. While to most it would look like a slap, it was far more dangerous in the hands of someone like Bakugo. If it struck, he would then fire off an explosion at point-blank range. If you blocked the strike itself, the flames and the force from the blast would still hit. So that was why Izuku went with option number three: leaning backwards so that he fell on his back and allowing the strike to sail harmlessly over him. Then, while Bakugo looked on in confusion, Midoriya pressed his legs close to his chest before sending them into the gut of his former friend. This caused the angry blond to stumble back while Izuku got into a crouching position before delivering a sweeping leg kick on his opponent to knock him down. With Bakugo down, Izuku raised his leg high into the air ready to slam his heel right into Bakugo's gut and to finally end this. However, before the attack could connect, Katsuki unleached explosions from both his open palms that contained enough force that he slid across the arena floor.

While it would have been satisfying to defeat Bakugo using only his martial arts skills, Izuku knew that it was only a matter of time before his opponent used the same move he used to defeat Itsuka. That and he didn't want to hold anything back. Activating Divine Dividing, Izuku shot into the air so fast that he was nothing more than a green and blue blur that only stopped once he was right above Bakugo. Then, just as quickly, he shot downward to deliver an axe kick using his flying ability to enhance the speed and power of the blow. The ashen blonde saw this however and managed to roll out of the way as one hand gripped tightly onto his chest.

Gritting his teeth so hard that he drew blood while lowering his hand, Bakugo propelled himself through the air toward Izuku. This time, when he got close enough, the blonde positioned his palms towards the ground sending him upwards quickly while also generating plenty of heat and smoke. Due to this, Izuku was forced to cover his eyes for a moment. At that moment, Bakugo managed to land a punch to the teen's shoulder. Quickly, Izuku used his wings to gain a bit more distance. Only Bakugo wasn't letting that happen. He charged towards the green-haired teen, this time running as fast as he could while sending out several small explosions to help boost his speed.

'He's still working himself hard, trying to build up even more of a sweat, thought Izuku as he continued to move. 'With those injuries, he should already be sweating more than he needs. But he wants more. He must be trying to collect enough so that, when I divide his strength, his explosions will still hurt me.'

Once close enough, Bakugo extended a palm towards Izuku. This time, however, it wasn't one of his normal explosions. This one was far brighter, forcing Izuku to close his eyes. The next moment a real explosion collided with Midoriya's stomach knocking him back. But it didn't stop there as, while Izuku fell to the ground, blast after blast was sent toward the green-haired youth. And slightly above the deafening noise, somehow Midoriya could make out the screams of his bully.

After several moments of this, Izuku shot into the air in order to escape. There high above the arena and far enough from his bully's explosions, the teen paused to catch his breath while his vision slowly returned. He could hear the blasts and screams below him fading as the ashen blonde no doubt realized that he was no longer there. When he could properly see again, Izuku looked down to find that indeed Bakugo was glaring up at him. And seeming even angrier for having to look up at him.

As Izuku looked down at Bakugo, he believed that this was going to be the deciding factor in this match. While his opponent could move about the arena and propel himself in the air via his explosion, he seemed limited to just a few feet above the ground. Meanwhile, Izuku had far greater speed, mobility, and could actually. Something that Bakugo had to be aware of. Meaning that his opponent's options were limited.

'I think this is it,' thought Izuku as he went through everything he knew about Bakugo. 'If there was ever a time to unleash an explosion powerful enough like the one he used against Itsuka, now is the time. It is his only option. However, despite how powerful it is, with my speed I'm sure I can move out of the way before the flames even reach me. After that, his arms will be spent. I just need to-'

Izuku's thoughts were cut off as Bakugo surprised him by launching up into the air. The explosions from the teen's palms were rapid, spinning him round and round until he became a cyclone of pure anger. The crowd gasped and cheered wildly as they felt the after-effects of this move all the way in their seats. Class 1-A was cheering Bakugo on while 1-B screamed for Midoriya to get out of the way.

Only, Izuku didn't do that. Instead, he began to spin around himself to deliver his own attack.

"Howitzer Impact!" screamed Bakugo.

"Shooting Dragon Fang!" cried Izuku.

With that, Izuku entered the center of the cyclone. He didn't aim for Bakugo's head but instead aimed for the teen's side, colliding with the blonde's outstretched arm. A crack that only the two teens could hear soon followed, the explosion whirlwind ending as Bakugo spiraled out of control and out of the smoke. The jumbo screen zoomed in on the 1-A student, showing that his left arm was clearly broken as it was quickly turning purple. However, rather than falling head first into a wall or into the crowd, Bakugo was caught by the wrist by Izuku who held onto him at arm's length.

Once more, Bakugo was forced to look up at Izuku while the green-haired teen looked down as their eyes met. This only served to anger Bakugo evermore.

"Damn you! I'm going to-"

"Divide."

That word, spoken so calmly, silenced the explosive teen as he felt himself getting weaker. A look of utter horror began to take over his face as he began to struggle to free himself but to no avail.

Meanwhile, Izuku just looked down at the person who had tormented him for so long. He knew how easy it would be to just let him go, to let him drop and watch as he struggled to save himself with his diminished strength. To watch as he had to be saved by the teachers.

"Divide."

More strength was sapped from Bakugo as Izuku shook his head. Yes, it would have been easy. But was he tempted to do so? That was a hard no. Despite everything that had happened today, everything that he had been through during his entire life with Bakugo, Izuku could never just drop him like that. Nor would he ever do anything that might threaten his life. No, he would do the right thing and finally move on. And he knew just the way to do it.

"Divide."

At that moment, Bakugo became aware that they were getting closer to the ground. But, they weren't heading toward the arena. No, instead they were heading straight for the out-of-bounds area. A wide look of fear flashed through the teen's eyes as he called on every bit of strength he had.

"NO!" screamed Bakugo. "NOT LIKE THIS! NOT A DAMNED RING OUT! DEKU!"

"Divide," was all that Izuku said as he continued to lower his former friend to the earth below.

The ground was getting closer. Snarling, Katsuki launched several explosions from his good hand only feeling small puffs of smoke similar to those he had when he was four. His feet thrashed about, doing everything he could to cause some pain to the green-haired boy. But even when he connected, Izuku didn't seem to flinch.

"YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" roared Bakugo.

"Divide."

More strength was taken from Bakugo as he struggled to raise his bad hand. Tears formed in his eyes as he moved it, a sob escaping the teen's lips as he tried to point a palm at the Divine Divider. But he felt so weak that he could barely do that.

Then, before he could let out another curse, his feet were gently placed on the ground. The gentleness of it all infuriated the blonde like nothing else. Being kicked out or dropped out of the ring he could handle. It showed he was strong, that he was tough. But like this? Being treated as though he were a delicate piece of glass? That was a major blow to his pride. But what hurt worse was who had done this to him: Deku. Out of all the people in the world, it had been the one he had stepped on for years. The weak, cowardly, quirkless little pebble who had just defeated him for all the world to see! It was maddening!

Finally, the match was called with Midoriya being declared the winner. As the crowd cheered wildly, Izuku turned to look back at Bakugo one more time.

"Goodbye…Kacchan," said Izuku, intending for that to be the last time he ever used that old nickname for Bakugo.

With that, Izuku began to walk away from his former childhood friend as the medical drone approached.

However…

"NO!" wailed Bakugo. "THIS WASN'T HOW IT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN! YOU'RE NOT A HERO! YOU'RE A THIEF! YOU STOLE EVERYTHING FROM ME! MY DESTINY, MY PLACE IN THE TOURNAMENT, MY POWER! THAT'S ALL YOU ARE! THAT'S ALL A WORTHLESS STAIN LIKE YOU CAN DO! THIEF! THIEF!"

Izuku never looked back as he slowly walked away, his ears picking up the sound of Bakugo flailing around on the ground. Clearly, he was having a hard time accepting that he lost. But, this was one problem that Izuku was not going to rush over and try to help. No. Not this time. He was done with it.