"Uraraka! I must insist you stop this running at once!"
Ochako rounded a corner, sneakers skidding on the concrete floor as she grabbed onto the corner wall to help swing herself around that much faster. "No!"
After getting warmed up and dried, Ochako had been horrified to hear that Izuku's match was about to start. After thanking Recovery Girl for her treatment, Ochako raced out of the room, determined not to miss a second of her best friend's big match.
"Once again, you're running, too, you know!" Hitoshi huffed as he and the rest of the Dekusquad, chased after the pair. Mei was quite distressed that she was once again having to run. "Why are we running!? We could have watched the match on the TV!"
Tsuyu, who was hopping besides everyone, quickly answered, "It's a grudge match, and she wants to cheer Midoriya on."
"Grudge match? Do Midoriya and Baku...whoever he is, have issues?"
A resounding 'yes' from everyone answered Mei.
"Still," Himiko began, voice dripping with sarcasm, "Shame on Ochako for running like this. She should listen to her class rep and set a good example for...these empty halls."
"Are you sure you should be the one making fun of setting an example? After what you did to that poor little girl?" Hitoshi asked as he side-eyed Himiko hard.
"Gah! That is not my fault! I can't be held responsible for that! I never have, and never should be, an example for anyone!"
"But you're training to be a hero. You're an example by default."
"Nooo…."
"And it's even worse. You're not going to win many brownie points with Midoriya's mom after that either- URK!"
With a loud thud, Hitoshi suddenly found himself face-first with the floor.
"Oh no, Hitoshi!" Himiko gasped in shock, as she pulled her foot back and knelt down next to him, "You've tripped. You're such a clumsy guy. You didn't bite your tongue, did you?"
While getting pulled back to his feet, Hitoshi glared at Himiko. "Subtle."
Ochako, turned a final corner and slid to a stop just short of cariening over the first row of chairs and landing in the laps of her startled classmates.
"Has it started yet!? I didn't miss anything, right!?"
Mina chuckled. "Easy there. Present Mic hasn't even started his intros yet."
While Ochako sighed in relief, she felt a shiver run up her spin as Tenya came up behind her. However, instead of facing her problems, she did the smart thing and simply ignored it and hurried to her seat. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Shouto looking over at her, but she wasn't going to get into that whole issue right now. She doubted yeeting him into space would be a good idea since he still had a match. She might get detention. There were also all the moral questions involved, too, so she settled with finding her seat. Coming up behind everyone else filtering back in, Mei groaned as she plopped, promising to herself she would create portable hover-soles for herself if running was going to be a thing she did with her new friends.
To her side, Himiko grabbed her seat. "So how do you think this is going to go?"
"Deku's going to win, of course."
Himiko rolled her eyes, "I know that. Wasn't looking for the grade-school-cheerleader answer. I'm asking you how you think this fight is going to go down?"
This time, Ochako chewed on her response while Himiko and the rest of her friends waited, "Honestly? I think it's going to be a lot like our match. While Deku isn't one to hold a grudge, he put up with Bakugou for years. I have to think some part of him is going to go extra hard because of that. And Bakugou...well, he's Bakugou."
Himiko bit back a laugh while everyone else nodded in agreement as Ochako continued, "But unlike our match, they're more even, which is going to make the fight different I think. "
"Don't pat yourself on the back too hard; you might float yourself," Himiko said, giving Ochako a bit of a side-eye. She stopped when Ochako shook her head. "I didn't mean it like that. Toga, you are way stronger than me."
"Eh?"
"That whole match, you were fighting down to my level. Weren't you?"
That got a few surprised looks from everyone who glanced between the two. Himiko raised her hands defensively. "Hey, I wasn't holding back."
"Oh, I know. Believe me, I know." Ochako rubbed the side of her face that Recovery Girl had used her Quirk to fix, "What I mean was you were making sure you fought within the rules of the match. You weren't fighting like you were at the USJ. I'd rather not face you when you're in full Princess Stabbity mode. Going all stab kill kill."
Himiko groaned loudly at the nick name, "I'm going to shave Mic's stupid mustache off his stupid face for that name, I swear to every god out there."
Ochako smiled at her distress, "I'm just saying you and I went into our fight differently. Deku and Bakugou though, I don't think the gap between them is that big. As much as it pains me to say this, Bakugou is strong."
Tenya frowned, "On the surface they may both be very strong, but how they deliver that strength is very different. I don't see Midoriya being as vicious as Bakugou."
"That's true. Bakugou goes into fights with a totally different mindset, kero."
"Bakugou is a literal loose cannon, and Midoriya is…" Hitoshi trailed off trying to think of a good way to describe Izuku.
Mina leaned forward, "A G-Rated hero?"
Hitoshi pointed back at Mina as he nodded, "yeah, he's that."
The rest of the class agreed. Izuku was strong, but Bakugou had a different kind of mindset. Ochako though shook her head, "It's easy to say that, but Izuku isn't always calm and friendly."
Fumikage rubbed his beak, "He does have a fire in him. No one can doubt his determination."
Mei leaned back, thinking of her talk with Izuku before their match, "He's also surprisingly competitive."
"There's that, yeah," Ochako agreed with everyone, "but I'm talking about something else. Back during the villain attack, Izuku charged the League of Villain's leader, after he had been hurt by Nomu. Sometimes, Deku doesn't know when to stop. He'll keep going until he wins."
Or gets too hurt.
Any further discussion was stopped when Present Mic's voice boomed over the cheering crowd, getting them hyped up for the upcoming match. Ochako stood up from her seat instantly, looking down at the arena as both Katsuki and Izuku made their way to the ring, "We have one finalist, loyal listeners. Now it's time to get a second one. Forged in the fires of competitions, these two have worked their way to this match, but only one will advance to the finals to face Todoroki! First up! He's a living firecracker, everyone. First, he blew apart the defenses of Kirishima Eijirou. Then, he left devastation in his wake to decimate Monoma Neito. From class 1-A, it's Bakugou Katsuki!"
"BOOOO!" Ochako jeered loudly.
"Baku-Bitch sucks!" Himiko joined in with the heckling.
"Kick his butt, Bakugou!" Eijirou cheered before-side stepping and putting a little distance between himself and the death glares he was getting from the two, "Hey, it's not manly to just pile onto one side, you know..."
Versus - He's won at dodgeball, and he led his team to victory in capture-the-flag. The gadgets of Hatsume Mei stood no chance,"
"Hey!"
"and in a duel of Quirks, he came out ahead against Yanagi Reiko. He's class 1-A's little green man...and..."
Ochako felt her face flush while Himiko hooted and whistled as Izuku tossed his gym top off.
"...And he's giving some lovely ladies a little show! It's Midoriya Izuku!"
Ochako hated how much she enjoyed what she saw. It wasn't fair that Izuku was so fine. Leaning on the railing, Ochako cheered Izuku on as both fighters got ready, "Throw that loud mouth jerk out of the ring, Deku!"
"FIGHT!"
BOOM!
The first explosion stopped Ochako's next cheer.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The next several seconds of rapid fire explosions silenced the whole arena. The moment the match started, Katsuki fired explosion after explosion in rapid succession until the entire other half of the ring was completely obscured in fire, ash, smoke and dust. Even with Izuku nowhere to be seen, Katsuki kept firing, ripping everything apart. Finally, after several long seconds of non-stop assault, Katsuki finally stopped, letting his arms fall to his sides.
"Holy. Fuck." Himiko gaped at the destruction, not sure what else to say. Eijirou winced, "Oh man, maybe I shouldn't have said anything to Bakugou about Midoriya. He must have decided to end the match before Midoriya could use any of the debris as ammo…"
Eijiro flinched hard when Himiko turned to look at him. Mina stepped between the two, "Easy! You can't blame Kirishima because Bakugou decided to...do that."
"It's not over."
Everyone blinked and turned to look at Ochako, who was still standing, hands gripping the railing tightly. Tenya frowned worriedly as he looked at the smoke covered ring, with bits of concrete still raining down, "Uraraka, after that…"
"It's. Not. Over."
Ochako knew Izuku. She knew he would expect Katsuki to come after him. He would have a plan-a strategy of some kind. He didn't have a clue how Izuku would counter Katsuki's assault, but she knew he would. All she had to do was wait for the smoke to clear, and then everyone would know it, too.
Katsuki huffed as he let his hands drop to his sides. His wrists throbbed after his attack, a soreness he had long gotten used to after using such strong blasts in quick succession. With the roar of the explosions now fading, Katsuki was aware of just how quiet everything was. He could hear small bits of rubbles hitting the ground. The shock of his attack was still reverberating through everyone, long after the last explosive echo had faded. Not that Katsuki cared. He was focused on more important things. Out past the ring, small fires burned, dotting the grass feeding the smoke and ash that covered the other half of the ring. Obscuring from him the one thing he wanted to see. The defeated, burned, and hopefully unconscious form of Izuku.
"Strong enough to be kind!? Where'd that get you, Deku!? Blown the fuck up!"
Soon, the dust and ash began to settle, falling over the whole arena like a thick grey blanket. As it settled closer to the ground, it became thin enough of Katsuki to start to make out the other side of the arena. He could see the orange glow of the burning grass and a soft, green flicker of light.
Katsuki's teeth ground together. As more dust settled, he could see Izuku's glowing form, still standing where he had been when the match had started.
How in the fuck is he still there!?
Katsuki looked over Izuku. Scorch marks covered Izuku head-to-toe. Parts of his gym clothes were burned away, and his arm, which he had brought up to protect his chest and face, was burned. He was unsteady on his feet, swaying side to side, and the green glow of his aura was faint and flickering, except around his feet, which glowed brightly under the cloud of dust.
He anchored himself to keep from getting blasted out of the ring!?
Katsuki seethed as he stomped towards Izuku, the ruined concrete floor of the arena cracking loudly under his boot.
"You little shit. What did you think was going to happen standing up to me? Did you forget who I am? Did you forget what happens every time you decide to stick your neck out? You think just because you have some worthless extra's cheering you on that you're suddenly not going to be an extra yourself? Did you think some training with a scout would be enough!?
Izuku didn't respond, and Katsuki doubted he was able to. He was obviously too dazed to do anything. All it would take was one last blast to end the match. And Katsuki wanted to be up close to do it.
"You didn't just forget who I am, you forgot who you are. A worthless Deku that shouldn't even be here. Did you really think you had a chance? Did you think just because that bitch made you think your name meant 'you could do it,' you could be strong? Let this be a lesson, Deku. You can't! You're weak," Katsuki was only a few feet away from Izuku now. His right hand pulled back to deliver the final blow. Taking one more step forward, Katsuki's boot slammed down onto the flat floor of the arena, "and you will never be stronger than me!"
Katsuki swung for Izuku's head, palm glowing red, and he readied to unleash one last explosion right into Izuku's face to send him flying out of the ring. He was glad the floor had finally straightened out. It made throwing the punch easier now that he had solid footing. He was-mid swing when a question popped into his head.
Why was the floor not rubble?
Everything had been blown up between himself and Izuku. Except for this small area.
That was right around Izuku.
Alarms blared in Katsuki's head, just as Izuku stopped swaying and his green aura stopped flickering. His form tightened, and he sidestepped. Katsuki's strike went wide, the explosion going off harmlessly to Izuku's side. Reaching out his hand, Izuku grabbed hold of Katsuki's arm. Twisting around, Izuku pulled Katsuki off his feet and threw him over his shoulder before slamming him down onto the ground.
Bouncing off the concrete floor, Katsuki had the air driven out of his lungs. Coughing and hacking, Katsuki glanced up to see Izuku glaring down at him.
"Kacchan, shut up!"
Then Izuku's aura blazed, bathing the whole ring in green light. Katsuki's instincts kicked in as he desperately rolled away, putting distance between himself and the suddenly not-dazed Izuku- distance that Izuku quickly closed.
When Izuku stepped into the ring and took one look at Katsuki, only one thought crossed his mind.
Oh, he's gonna try and blow me up.
Since he had known the other boy since they were four, he knew the look very well. He just had to hope his counter worked.
"FIGHT!"
As fast as he could, Izuku brought the full might of his Quirk to bear, while at the same time watching as Katsuki disappeared from view, obscured by his own explosions. A wall of fire, smoke, and raw force rushed at him, shattering the ground as it threatened to slam over him like a tidal wave. Izuku, though, was ready. After his matches with Mei and Reiko, he had learned something about his Quirk. As long as there was something to apply a force to, he could use his Quirk on it. Before today, that was against solid objects. Something that was physically there. Now though, after his shoving match against Reiko's Poltergeist Quirk, he knew that it didn't have to be physical. It just had to be creating a force he could act against. A force he could repel.
And what was an explosion but a violent force.
So Izuku focused his Quirk in front of himself and pushed back. Not a moment later, the explosion hit and Izuku nearly doubled over from the strain. The kickback that slammed into his head made his eyes water, but any tears he might have shead were quickly evaporated. While he had been able to stop the force of the explosion from hitting him. The heat and the fire still landed. Izuku brought his arms up as he bit back a scream, feeling himself cook. His clothes were scorched, as the skin on his forearms burned.
Katsuki fired again, and Izuku grit his teeth keeping his barrier up. A third blast, a fourth, a fifth. Soon the explosions overlapped and blurred was in hell. The air was too hot and too full of smoke to breathe. The noise was deafening, and the strain of keeping the explosions off himself was driving an iron spike into his head. Izuku was in hell, but it was a hell he was used to. It was a hell he had spent his childhood living. He had experienced first-hand what it was like to be on the receiving end of Katsuki's explosions. Perhaps not to this extreme, but, over time, the experiences added up. Izuku had survived Katsuki for years. He wasn't going to let himself be beaten because of a few seconds of pain he had lived through already. When he felt his own feet start to slide back, instincts trying to force him to get away from the blasts, he grabbed them with his Quirk and held them in place. He was not going to let himself be moved.
There would be no running away.
Then just as Izuku began to wonder if Katsuki was ever going to stop, he did. The barrage of blasts ceased, and a quiet fell. Izuku could tell he wasn't in great shape, but he was still in one piece. More of less. More importantly, he was still in the ring. After that horrific attack, he hadn't been moved at all.
With everything still covered in smoke and ash, Izuku let his Quirk extend out, feeling out the ring and confirming that half of it was now shattered into a great many pieces, some of them very large chunks. As Izuku took stock, however, a harsh voice ripped through the thick black smoke and white ash. "Strong enough to be kind!? Where'd that get, you Deku!? Blown the fuck up!"
He thinks he just won. He sure is talking like he did.
Izuku considered ducking down into the smoke and ash. He could pop up and surprise Katsuki, but then reconsidered it.
Kacchan won't like that I'm still standing. But if he thinks I'm too dazed from the attack to protect myself, he'll want to get up close to finish me off.
So as more of the smoke cleared, Izuku let himself sway. Let his Quirk flicker. He even kept the hold on his shoes, just to give off the appearance he had anchored himself down to tank the explosions. Sure enough, the loud crunch of Katsuki's boots on the ruins concrete echoed out. And as Katsuki got closer, he started to talk again.
Kacchan loves to hear his own voice when he thinks he's winning.
"You little shit. What did you think was going to happen standing up to me? Did you forget who I am? Did you forget what happens every time you decide to stick your neck out? You think just because you have some worthless extra's cheering you on that you're suddenly not going to be an extra yourself? Did you think some training with a scout would be enough!?"
Keep talking, Kacchan. And keep walking this way. Just a little closer. You want to make this personal. You could finish it safely at range, but you always want to get your hands dirty.
"You didn't just forget who I am; you forgot who you are. A worthless Deku that shouldn't even be here. Did you really think you had a chance? Did you think just because that bitch made you think your name meant 'you could do it,' you could be strong?"
Izuku's thoughts ground to a halt. The only way he was able to keep himself from screaming then and there was that he still needed Katsuki to make his move. He just needed Katsuki to throw that right fist.
"Let this be a lesson, Deku. You can't! You're weak, and you will never be stronger than me!"
Just as he expected, once Katsuki had gotten within punching range, he went for his right. He was mid-swing when Izuku sprung his trap. Sidestepping the strike, Izuku took a lot of pride in the shocked look he saw on Katsuki's face, but he wasn't going to stop with a dodge. Grabbing Katsuki's arm, and copying a move Ochako has used on him many times in their sparring matches, Izuku twisted around and threw Katsuki over his shoulder into the ground.
Watching Katsuki bounce off the concrete, and the sound of the thud he made, was immensely satisfying for Izuku. Now that Katsuki knew he was still able to fight, Izuku finally let loose and said something he had wanted to say for years, "Kacchan, shut up!"
Rolling through clouds of dust, Katsuki sprung to his feet, with Izuku in hot pursuit. Lifting his hands up, Katsuki prepared to blast Izuku with an explosion. His palms crackled, but just as the blast went off, Izuku wrenched a hand to the side, and several chunks of concrete shot out from the dust cloud and slammed into Katsuki's arms, knocking them outward and sending the blasts harmlessly wide on either side of Izuku. Taking advantage of his opening, Izuku stepped forward and drove his fist right into Katsuki's jaw. Sneering as he was pushed back, Katsuki tried to get his hands pointed at Izuku, but Izuku deflected them away with his forearms while picking up more rubble from under the dust clouds and hurling it at Katsuki.
Exploding from the dust, several chunks peppered Katsuki before, with a growl, Katsuki pointed his hands out and blasted the remaining chunks of concrete. With his hands pointed out, Izuku threw a hook into Katsuki's exposed side. Hissing, Katsuki pulled his arms back, but instead of pressing an attack like Izuku anticipated, Katsuki pointed his hands down and let off an explosion into the ground, propelling himself backward, and forcing Izuku to stumble back as he was hit by a shower of debris.
Landing several yards away, Katsuki glared at Izuku as the other boy regained his balance. However, instead of charging back in, he stood motionless. Eyes glaring at Izuku, then shifting to the cloud of dust and smoke that billowed around them at their waists.
"You got a plan for everything, don't you, Deku?"
Izuku frowned, but stayed silent. He could see the shift in Katsuki. Katsuki may look like an unhinged berserker- and he may act like one, too- but like Izuku had warned Himiko, Katsuki was smart. He had broken away from the fight and had used the few seconds after to collect himself, so Izuku knew he had to be very careful with what came next.
Katsuki motioned to all the dust covering the whole of the arena floor. "You're using this shit as a damned smokescreen. Aren't you?"
Doing his best not to give anything away, Izuku kept his eye right on Katsuki, "What makes you say that, Kacchan?"
"You haven't stopped glowing since the match started, and this shit should have settled by now, or gotten blown away. It's not just reflecting the light from your aura; you're using your Quirk on it so I can't see what you pick up to throw at me. The glows blend together so I don't see it until it's right in my face."
Slowly, Katsuki started walking towards Izuku, "You must think you're pretty clever, but you're not going to survive relying on cheap shit like this."
Survive?
Izuku, taking a breath to steady himself, got into his fighting stance, "Is that so?"
Swiping his right hand up, Izuku sent a large chunk of concrete right for Katsuki, but Katsuki pointed is hand out and exploded it before it broke through the dust, "What did I fucking say?"
Grabbing more, Izuku yanked more stone from behind Katsuki with his right hand while throwing more with his left. In a blur of fire, Katsuki blasted them before they could hit. Izuku blinked in surprise, He's watching my hands. I normally point my hands at the things I move around. He's doing that in the middle of a fight? Kacchan's scary sometimes.
Still, Izuku thought. If Kacchan thought that was his only play in this fight, he was sorely mistaken. Izuku brought his right hand up just as Katsuki turned to stop the next projectile. Focused on his side, Katsuki didn't see the fist-sized chunk of concrete shoot out of the dust behind him and smash into his head.
"The fuck!?"
Izuku let his arms fall to his side, while around him more and more pieces of blown up concrete popped out of the dust cloud and hung in the air, encircling Katsuki and Izuku. Rubbing the back of his head, Katuski looked up at them, then back at Izuku, who just shrugged, "My Quirk comes from my head. Not my hands. I don't have to use them when I move things. It just helps me aim. It's a mental thing."
The floating pieces of rubble flashed as Izuku fired them in rapid succession right towards Katsuki. Katuski responded by sending explosions in all directions, ripping everything apart around him before launching himself into the air and propelling himself right towards Izuku. Izuku snapped up more ammo to fire, but Katuski surprised him by suddenly changing directions, using his explosions to fire off to the right and then to Izuku's side. Reaching out, Katsuki grabbed the back hem of Izuku's black shirt as he fell, pulling Izuku down with him. Katsuki was able to stop himself from landing flat by bracing himself with his free arm. Izuku, however, slammed into the concrete. Then just a moment later, the hand holding him lit up and an explosion sent him tumbling end over end across the arena. The broken jagged floor cut into him as he slid to a stop.
Katsuki wasn't done, as he threw more explosions at Izuku, who rolled to the side as the place he had landed became a crater. Hissing in pain, Izuku scrambled up, charging right for Katsuki. As he got closer, the dust between them rippled and rose up, creating a wall between the two and obscuring him from Katsuki.
Pulling two large rocks from the ground, Izuku hurled them so they arced around each side of the dust wall. Katsuki blasted both as he eyed the center of the cloud. "That shit isn't going to work, Deku!"
With one hand gripping his wrist to brace himself, Katsuki unleashed a large explosion that engulfed everything that was blocked from his view. Izuku could see what was coming next. As fast as he could, he slid underneath the fiery cone before leaping out of the dust, right underneath Katsuki. Not able to pull his hands back in time to defend himself, Izuku was able to unleash an uppercut that snapped Katsuki's head back. With a snarl, Katsuki responded in kind, throwing a right hook that connected with Izuku's chin. Both boys staggered back before stepping forward and throwing haymakers. Soon, both were trading blows.
"GET'EM, DEKU! PUNCH HIM IN THE FACE AGAIN!"
Ochako cheered as she leaned over the railing, fists throwing mock punches. Behind her, Tsuyu held onto her collar, just in case she toppled over in her exuberance. Around her, the rest of her classmates, despite Tenya and Momo's best efforts to keep everyone calm and more or less neutral, were cheering loudly, too. With the class more or less split on cheering for Izuku, Katsuki, or just enjoying the sight of the two beating the snot out of each other. Some, like Shouto or Fumikage simply watched the fight quietly.
"Man, look at Midoriya go. He's really going after Bakugou."
"I still want to know how he survived that opening. Like, he should have been in the stands."
"No kidding."
"He's fighting completely differently, too. He's way more intense than he was during his other matches, or when he had that battle trial with Tokoyami."
"Yeah, but Bakugou is making him pay for it. Look how crispy he is. He needs to do a better job dodging. I could take it because of my Quirk, but Midoriya? He's going to get hurt if he keeps taking Bakugou head on like this."
Even as Ochako cheered, she also couldn't help but agree internally as she watched Izuku. Her own concerns echoed some of the things she heard her classmates say. Izuku was starting to take too much damage. He should be using his Quirk to attack from afar. Sure, Katuski would be able to blast some of his projectiles, but he wouldn't be able to get them all. In fact, Izuku had started using this tactic at the start, but had inexplicably abandoned it, instead choosing now to fight up close with his fists and only using his Quirk sparingly. He was getting in some really good hits, but Katuski was too, mixing his fists and his explosions together. Even if Izuku wasn't hit directly, just getting grazed left him burned. The way Izuku was fighting now, practically opening himself up and encouraging Katsuki to use his explosions, felt dumb.
And Izuku wasn't dumb.
He was always thinking, always analyzing things. True, sometimes this was to his detriment, he'd overthink something and that hesitation left him open. This though, this felt different.
What are you up to, Deku?
With a flick of his forearm, Izuku knocked aside Katsuki's hand, pointing it away as another explosion ripped by his side, making his ear rings, and adding more scorch marks along with the rest. With his other hand, Izuku jabbed at Katsuki, getting a glancing blow as the other boy pivoted away, though Izuku didn't let him put any distance between them. Stepping forward, Izuku kept himself within arms reach of Katsuki at all times, a tactic Katsuki made him pay for as he drove his fist into Izuku's stomach. Izuku fought to keep himself from coughing out a lung from the force since he knew he had bigger issues. Katsuki didn't withdraw his hand from the punch, but instead opened his palm up. With Katsuki's hand pressed flat against Izuku's chest, he knew what was coming before he felt the heat build up.
Too close!
Too close to knock his hand way in time. Too close to dodge. Too close to try and put up a barrier. So Izuku did the next best thing. He grit his teeth, latched onto Katsuki's shoulders, and held onto his body with his Quirk, willing himself into one spot.
BOOM!
The explosion finished what Katsuki's punch started, driving all the air out of Izuku. With a new scorch mark maring his chest and the remains of his black shirt blown away, Izuku glared up at Katsuki, who was equally shocked that Izuku was still where he was and confused at something else, Something Izuku felt a little proud of, though the fresh pain in his head and the taste of iron on his lip let him know it had come with a cost. Though, he couldn't think about that right now. Too many things going on to worry about silly things like nose bleeds.
After all, he hadn't reached the concussion phase of over-using his Quirk, so what was there to worry about?
Trying to take advantage of Katsuki's momentary stunned pause, Izuku, who was still holding onto Katsuki since he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep standing if he let go, yanked several concrete chunks and hurled them right for Katsuki's head. Seeing the attack coming, Katsuki knocked Izuku's hands away and launched himself back, twisting in the air in a circle of fire and blasting away Izuku's attack as he put some distance between the two.
Landing heavily, and making sure Izuku wasn't coming after him, Katsuki glanced down at his hands, rubbing his thumb over his palms and frowning deeping at the feeling. Grunting, he began whipping his hands on his sweatpants, something Izuku took immediate notice of.
"Cough, something wrong, cough Kacchan?"
"Fuck you! And fuck your dust shit!"
Well, that part of the plan is working out.
After watching Katsuki's first two matches, Izuku had noted that Katsuki kicked up a lot of dust whenever he used his Quirk. From the smoke, to the kicked up dirt, to finally the shattered concrete. To beat him, Izuku knew he would need to use everything at his disposal. Even something like dust. Katsuki had been right, if he held the dust up, it did a good job hiding the glow of the objects he moved around the arena. In his previous fights, he had kicked up a lot, enough that Izuku thought this part of his plan would work. Fortunately, after his initial bombardment, he had created so much, it just made hiding everything so much easier. But there was something else the dust cloud did.
It stuck to anything remotely wet. And since Katsuki's Quirk relied on the nitro-like sweat from his palms, the dust was sticking to his hands like crazy. And it was either dampening Katsuki's explosions some, if his confused expression form earlier was anything to go on, and or it was annoying him. Both outcomes Izuku could work with.
Wiping his hands off some more, Katsuki pointed them back as he got ready to launch himself back at Izuku. With a scream, Katsuki rocketed towards Izuku, but the moment he was airborne, Katsuki's eyes went wide when he noticed he was glowing.
Shit!
Izuku snagged Katsuki with his Quirk and yanked him to the side, wincing as he fought against Katsuki's forward momentum. Going wide, Katsuki twisted his hands to the side and used another explosion to correct his flight and rip himself free of Izuku's hold. Swinging around, Katsuki brought the heel of his boot down as Izuku brought his arms up to block. Izuku winced as he was driven back, I knew it; he can still break my hold in the air with his explosions!
Swinging upward, Katsuki let his next explosion ark and push Izuku even further back.
But, Kacchan's been using his Quirk a lot this match. He has to be getting dehydrated!
Sliding to a stop, Izuku began chucking more concrete at Katsuki as he ran forward, "AHHH!" The concrete arked around, forcing Katsuki to twist to blast them before they hit and leaving Izuku a chance to bull rush him, throwing a flurry of punches.
"GET!"
Crack!
"THE FUCK!"
Crack!
"OFF!"
Izuku swung a haymaker for Katsuki's face as the other boy screamed in rage, "ME!"
With both his hands, Katsuki shoves Izuku away, making the punch miss, while at the same time unleashed another explosion. This time, Izuku wasn't able to grab onto Katsuki or anchor himself in any way. Izuku took the full blast and was launched several yards into the air. Blasting himself up after Izuku, Katsuki raised his hands above his head before throwing them back down, driving an explosion into Izuku, rocketing him into the ground with a horrifying thud.
Landing, Katsuki looked for where Izuku had landed, but the boy had already been swallowed up by the dust cloud. Breathing heavily, Katsuki brought his hand up and hissed as his fingers brushed against his bruised cheek, "fucking Deku…"
"Cough..."
Katsuki's head snapped to the sound.
Hacking, and coughing, Izuku clutched his side. He had landed on his left, and he didn't want to think what his ribs probably looked like. Everything hurt. His head was pounding after everything. The barrier at the start, and moving so much weight around after was, he wouldn't be surprised if his brain was turning into liquid. On top of that, his skin was on fire from all the burns, his bones ached and throbed, and after that last attack, something was broken.
Get up..
Something in his body was broken, but not his drive. Not his will to keep going.
Get up. You're so close! Get up!
Izuku had known this fight would test him. He had wanted it to test him. He wanted this fight to mean something, not just to himself, but to Katsuki as well. Izuku wanted this test; he wanted this challenge, but more than that, he wanted to win this. He wanted to win this fight. No, he had to win this fight. The path to his dream, if he wanted to walk it, he had to overcome any obstacles that blocked it.
Right now, that obstacle was Katsuki Bakugou.
GET UP!
Slowly, painfully, Izuku rolled onto his chest and brought his hands underneath himself. Bracing himself, Izuku pushed off the ground and onto his knees. Then closing his eyes and making sure to check everything was okay, Izuku stood up. Rising out of the dust and turning to face a stunned Katsuki and an equally stunned crowd. He could hear some shocked gasps at his condition.
Heh, I guess I look pretty messed up.
Katsuki could not believe it. After an attack like that, Izuku should be out cold. Then again, he should have been blown out of the ring with his very first attack, "What the fuck? How…are you still standing!? Why won't you stay down, you shit!?"
As Katsuki looked at Izuku, and the absolute shit condition he was in, Tsuyu's words from earlier roared in his head.
"Midoriya was attacked by Nomu. It hurt him really bad, too. We all saw how Midoriya looked when they carried him off in the ambulance. But despite that, after Uraraka revived him, what was the first thing he did? He picked a fight with Shigaraki, the leader of the League of Villains."
"Kacchan," Izuku began. Katsuki blinked, ripped from his thoughts as he looked back at izuku, and the determined fire that blazed in his eyes, "You've been hitting me, burning me, hurting me with those explosions since I was 4. After all these years, do you think I wouldn't have gotten used to the pain!"
Used to the pain?
Those words hit Katsuki strangely, but he didn't have time to think about it. Izuku crouched into his stance, his eyes hardening and an intense almost feral grin on his face, "Come on, Kacchan. We're not done yet!"
After that last hit, Midnight knew Cementoss was going to be contacting her soon. When Izuku stood back up and openly challenged Katsuki to continue the fight, almost immediately the concrete hero was in her ear. "Midnight, we can't let this go on much longer. Midoriya is getting torn apart."
Midnight frowned; she couldn't disagree with her colleague about that. Izuku was in bad shape. On top of the burns and swelling from the punches he had taken, she had heard the crack from how he landed, and could see his side turning purple from the impact. She also couldn't help but remember the report from the attack on the USJ, and how Izuku after sustaining horrific injuries was still fighting up until the teachers had arrived.
This kid doesn't seem to be the kind of person to let pain get in his way when he sets his mind on something. To be able to keep going like this is a testament to his drive, but there is a limit. At some point self preservation has to take priority.
Midnight did have a guess as to what was driving Izuku so hard. She knew from her talks with Himiko that he and Katsuki had history.
"Midnight, Midoriya might think he can afford to go on like this because Recovery Girl will be able to heal him, but we can't let him put his life in danger. This is supposed to be a Sports Tournament, not a gladiatorial fight. You let Toga's fight drag on for too long. You can't do the same thing here."
Midnight's fists clenched, Cementoss was right, of course. There had to be a limit to what was allowed. The match between Himiko and Ochako was important for her development. They both needed to get that poison out of their systems.
But doesn't the same apply to Midoriya and Bakugou?
Before Midnight could reply to either her own thought, or Cemetoss, a sudden series of explosions interrupted everything.
"Come on, Kacchan. We're not done yet!"
As he screamed, Izuku started firing chunks of concrete right towards Katsuki. Getting into another fist fight was out of the question now, so he fell back on his Quirk. Katsuki's eyes went wide as he started blasting concrete left and right. His explosions, though, seemed smaller, with more smoke than fire. Izuku also swore that Katsuki looked dry. He wasn't sweating anymore.
"God damn it! Stay down, you worthless shit!"
"I can't! I won't! If you think I'll stop because of a little pain, I never will! I can take anything you throw at me! I've been doing it all my life! No matter what you did, I was always able to get back up! I'll always get back up! No matter how bad I'm beat, no matter how bad I get hurt, I will always keep going, because that's what heroes do! I told you, I would become strong enough to be kind! I'll become strong and save everyone! I'll become strong to stop all the villains and the monsters in this world!"
Every word Izuku shouted ripped at Katsuki. These weren't things that a worthless Deku should be saying. The pathetic little kid he grew up with who couldn't even protect himself shouldn't be proclaiming these kinds of things.
I'll become strong to stop all the villains and the monsters in this world!
As those words echoed in Katsuki's head, images flashed before him. Images Izuku's broken limp body after he was pulled from the water. His ruined form strapped to a gurney getting loaded up into an ambulance.
Izuku's words echoed again, but this time, Katsuki heard the ending differently.
I'll become strong to stop all the villains and the monsters in this world, like you!
Izuku blinked when he saw Katsuki's face twist. His snarling face warped into blind rage.
"FUCK THIS!"
When Katsuki pointed both his hands at Izuku, he instantly recognized it as the same stance Katsuki had taken at the start of the fight.
OH CRUD!
Dropping the concrete he had been throwing, Izuku focused his Quirk and created a barrier as fast as possible. The first blast fired, and Katsuki watched it race towards Izuku. Then the air in front of him shimmered green right before the explosion hit, but the way it hit was off. He hadn't seen it before-too intent on ending the fight then-and the size of his first blasts and the sheer number of them had hidden anything he might have seen as strange. These blasts though were not as strong as those, and he wasn't firing them as fast.
So he could see that something was up.
What the hell was that!?
Katsuki fired again and again, but this time he watched carefully. Watched as his attacks inexplicably spread out over an area that was way too wide for hitting a single target. It looked like they had hit a wall.
Of all the bullshit!
"You shit! When did you get a fucking shield!"
Stopping his attack, Katsuki waited as the smoke cleared enough for him to see Izuku, hands held up shaking, his palms freshly scorched, and more of his gym clothes burned away. Keeping his hands held up, Izuku frowned, not exactly pleased his new move had been figured out so quickly, but he knew he shouldn't be so shocked Katsuki was able to do it, "You figured it out?"
"FUCKING! WHEN?"
"Today," Izuku answered simply.
Katsuki's jaw opened and closed a few times, but no sound came out. Then he snapped his mouth closed, clicking his tongue against his teeth in annoyance, "Baby Tech and Ghost Girl."
Izuku blinked in shock, "How...?"
"You were shoving invisible shit around all fucking day. I'm not a fucking idiot."
No...no you're not, Kacchan
"It doesn't matter. I bet that shit fucks your head up, and you're already at your limit."
"Says who?"
Katsuki pointed angrily, "You're bleeding all over yourself. One more shot from me, and you're done."
Izuku frowned, "You're one to talk, Kacchan. You're not sweating anymore. I bet you're dehydrated, and it's taking everything you have to even make those weak explosions now."
Katsuki's palms sizzled and he ground his teeth together, "Weak? Don't you dare look down on me Deku! You think I'm weak!? I crush you and that little trick of yours into dust! When I'm through with you, there won't be anything left!"
Katsuki leapt into the air, twisting his arms around his body. It was a move Izuku had seen him use once already against Himiko.
Here it is!
Izuku braced himself, the green shimmer in front of him glowing bright as he focused on it. Putting all his will power into making it as strong as he could.
Almost all of his will power into making it as strong as he could.
Katsuki twisted in the air, creating a vortex of smoke and fire as he flew towards Izuku, completely focused on smashing through Izuku's defenses and finally putting Izuku down and claiming his win.
"HOWITZER!"
So completely focused that he didn't notice one of Izuku's hands drop down and form a fist before pulling back hard.
"IMPACT!"
The twisting vortex slammed into Izuku's barrier. Heat, and fire engulfed Izuku, but he didn't even notice it. The pain in his head drowned everything out making his legs buckle and sending Izuku to his knees. The green glow flickered, engulfed in the angry red fire, then it vanished. With the rest of the rush forward, but just before Izuku was swallowed up, he attacked. Katsuki was still twisted around, his arm outstretched from throwing his attack. Leaving him wide open from an attack from above. Katsuki never saw the fist sized chunk of concrete coming, but he felt it when it slammed into his shoulder.
Finally!
With this trumpet thought echoing in Izuku's mind, he was sent sailing across the arena before slamming into the ground at the far end of the ring. While Izuku tried to recover on the ground, Katsuki yelled through clenched teeth, gripping his injured shoulder. At just a touch, he knew it was dislocated. It wasn't his injury that had him so mad, however. His attack may have been able to make it through to Izuku, but that wasn't because he overpowered it, at least not truly. His attack had been no where near the same strength it had been when he first used it in the last event, and Izuku had to have split his focus to throw that projectile at him. This, on top of his injured shoulder left him furious.
"You little shit!"
Grunting, coughing, hacking and wheezing, Izuku climbed back up to his feet, "What's...wrong, Kacchan? Feel like giving up?"
Izuku knew he was lucky. If Katsuki had attacked him with that move any sooner, he wouldn't have been just thrown clear of the ring; he would probably be thrown into the stands. But after using his Quirk so much, and all the clouds of dust in the air sucking up his sweat, Katsuki's power had been greatly reduced. Even better, he was down to one arm.
"I'm going to destroy you, Deku! Do you hear me!?"
"I can do this all day, Kacch-"
"MIDORIYA IZUKU!"
Suddenly everything stopped. Both Izuku and Katsuki froze where they were standing. Slowly both turned their heads towards the judges podium where Midnight was pointing her whip right at Izuku.
Oh no, this can't be good.
"Midoriya, for your safety, this match is to be ended immediately."
Izuku's eye's bulged while Katsuki looked like he was about to have a brain aneurysm from sheer rage.
"WHAT!? YOU CAN'T DO THAT!"
"ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID!? I'LL BLOW YOU UP IF YOU TRY THAT SHIT!"
Midnight blinked, slightly taken aback bow how vehemently upset both were over this. She hadn't thought either had enough energy left to scream like they were, or threaten her in Katsuki's case.
"Listen, you two-"
Then the booing started. While Midnight thought for sure she recognized the first couple of voices, soon the whole crowd was getting involved. She could hear shouts to let them continue, and shouts saying the teachers needed to step in.
"Midnight-sensei! Please! You let Uraraka and Toga's finish their fight, and they were way more hurt than I am!"
Midnight eyed Izuku, paying close attention to Izuku's red and blistered skin and the worrying amount of blood he was losing from his nose. "That's debatable."
Katsuki pointed at Midnight, "If you try and hand me a win like this, I won't even show up for the final round. Let Half-and-Half have his worthless gold medal. I'm not here to have wins handed to me on a platter!"
Midnight shook her head, "Do you two even know what you're doing here?"
Izuku nodded, looking dead serious. "Yes, clearly we know more of what's at stake than you do, Sensei."
"Huh?"
"Sensei, I won't lie, I do have a personal stake in this match. I don't just want to win and move on to the finals. I have to beat Kacchan to do it. That means something to me. But that's not the only reason. We're here showing we have what it takes to be heroes! And heroes, the ones that reach the top, don't give up or let others tell them to give up!"
"But your injuries…" Midnight began before Izuku cut her off, "Are everything I was prepared to deal with. I knew what was going to happen if I was going to win. There was no way I was going to fight Kacchan and not get burnt up. I know what I'm doing."
Katsuki frowned while Midnight watched Izuku closely, both thinking something similar, that Izuku had planned on getting hurt in the match.
"Sensei, this Sports Festival is supposed to be a showcase of how strong the future is, by showing that the students at U.A. are willing to overcome any obstacle. Are you really willing to let the sports fest end with a gifted first place? What kind of example is that to everyone watching?"
Midnight crossed her arms, this kid could get a lot of jobs as a motivational speaker.
"Midoriya, I won't disagree with you, but you have to understand that as your teacher, your safety is important to me."
Izuku looked off to the side, eyes looking out over the great dust cloud. For a few seconds, he said nothing before turning back, "Please, let us continue our match. If Kacchan hits me with one more explosion, I'll concede the match."
Frowning Midnight closed her eyes as she thought about it. In her ear, Cementoss was voicing his concerns, though they were a little more muted after listening to Izuku. Finally, she simply asked, "Why one more?"
"Because one way or another, this match is going to be decided in this next move."
There was not a hint of a lie in Izuku's words. He spoke an absolute truth. Katsuki was now watching him very, very carefully.
The hell does that mean?
Midnight chewed on her response. Clearly there was more to this fight than a simple Sports Festival match. It was so much like Himiko's and Ochako's match, and she had let that go on for much longer than what would have been normal. She set the president, and if she went back on it, it wouldn't look good. Especially if, going by the crowd noise, they also wanted the match to go on. And she had to take into account that clearly Izuku had something planned, "Very well. Midoriya, I will hold you to your word."
Turning back to the crowd, "The match will be allowed to continue, under the condition that Midoria is able to keep from getting any more injured than he is!"
While the crowd cheered around them, Katsuki glared angrily over at Izuku, "What the fuck makes you think you can do anything different before I blast your ass?"
"Because, Kacchan, I have everything I need now."
Before Katsuki could respond, Izuku took a deep breath through his nose and breathed out of his mouth. At the same time, his green aura vanished, along with the green glow on the large dust cloud that covered the whole arena floor. As more and more of the dust blew away, it became clearer just how much damage Katsuki had caused with his explosions. The ring's floor had been reduced to a crater. Only a few yards of the white out-of-bounds line remained, the only hint that where the two were standing had once been a tournament ring. Blinking, Katsuki looked around as the dust finally started to blow away then back to Izuku, What the hell. He's spent the whole damned match keeping that thing up. Why is he stopping now?
"Thank you, Kacchan. From the very start, you took this fight seriously. If you hadn't, I'd never have been able to get this ready for you."
Izuku lifted his arms up and out to his sides until they were level with his shoulders. Taking one last deep breath, Izuku clenched his hands into tight fists, and his aura raged back to life. At the same time, behind him, the arena floor still covered in dust exploded in bright green light. Izuku focused, recalling the day All Might had helped him realize his Quirk wasn't worthless, that it had never been worthless. He recalled the moment he learned that the mental limits he had been putting on himself were just that, his own metal limits. Reaching out with his Quirk, he grabbed everything behind him, and like he had done that morning on the beach, lifted everything up. Every single chunk of concrete that he had been stockpiling since the very start of the match that added up as several tons of concrete for him to use.
Higher and higher, the concrete was lifted up until it had formed a giant wall behind Izuku. While the crowd let out gasps of shock and wonder, Katsuki looked at Izuku in rage, as the pieces started to fall into place. As he realized just what Izuku had been doing.
He was using that damned dust cloud to hide his Quirk! Not just for those little attacks he peppered me with, but to hide that he was making a god damned ammo dump! He was doing that the whole time! Did he think he could get away with splitting his damned self up fighting me!?
Lifting his palm up he pointed right at Izuku, "I'm going to fucking kill you, Deku! You were looking down on me this whole fight, weren't you!"
"Kacchan, if I were you, I'd be pointing that hand somewhere else, and not at me."
Katsuki frowned, and eyed the wall of concrete, "You think I'm worried about you taking pot shots with all that shit, I'll blast each one!"
Izuku smiled. He meant for it to look like All Mights smile. The smile he shows when he's about to do something incredible. When he's about to overcome and win. But Izuku's look was a bit off. His eyes were a bit unstable, burning with a fire of determination, but with just a pinch of spite. His smile was just a little twisted, more biting and clenched than a shining example of peace.
Izuku also just looked a little mad.
"WHO SAID ANYTHING ABOUT POT SHOTS?!"
Izuku's aura blazed into an inferno, while at the same time, each and every stone, from the smallest pebble to the largest chunk, turned into a burning green sun. Katsuki's eyes went wide when he realized what was coming next. Izuku wasn't going to fire one at a time. He was going to fire every single piece at the same time.
Oh... fuck!
The muscles in Izuku's arms were pulled taut; his hands clenched so tight his knuckles popped and turned white. Gritting his teeth, Izuku swung his arms out front, opened his hands, and aimed right for Katsuki. With blood spraying from his nose, Izuku screamed at the top of his lungs, "DELAWARE SMASH!"
The concrete behind Izuku blasted off, creating a solid flying wall. As Izuku's attack covered the distance between himself and Katsuki, Katsuki snarled as he quickly thought of what to do. With his left arm hanging to his side, and being so dehydrated, he knew that trying to blast the whole wall was not going to happen. Even trying to blast a hole to slip through wasn't feasible. He'd be overrun and squashed flat or worse, pushed out of the ring.
So if going through wasn't an option, Katsuki took the only option he had left. Pointing his hand down, Katsuki fired explosion after explosion, rocketing himself up into the air. Getting the height he needed was hard. The explosions were so small; it took several to get airborne, when before he'd been able to reach the same height with only one. Rocketing into the air, he felt his boots skim the edge of a chunk of concrete as he vaulted over the whole wall.
Clearing the massive attack, Katsuki grinned triumphantly. Izuku's last ditch attack had failed. Looking down, he got ready to twist the knife, and let Izuku know just how badly he was screwed. He wanted to see the other boy in a panic. He wanted to see his despair at his oncoming defeat. Katsuki was so sure of his victory, he didn't even notice that Izuku's hands weren't pointing his way anymore. He wasn't pushing the wall. Twisting to his side, Izuku threw his hands to the side in an arc.
"You missed, you worthless sh- URK!"
Katsuki completely missed as something shot from the ground and slammed into him, wrapping around his arms and tying them against his body. Glancing down, Katsuki's eyes went wide. It was Izuku's gym top he had discarded before the match had started. Now with its sleeves tied off, and filled with rocks, Izuku had turned it into a makeshift bolas. With his injured arm and his good arm tied down, he couldn't create or angle an explosion to wretch himself free, or maneuver in the air at all. Now, up in the air without anything to grab a hold of, hands popping uselessly, Katsuki was helpless. Izuku gripped his makeshift weapon and pulled. He pulled as hard as he could and threw Katsuki into the grass, outside the ring. Katsuki hit the ground and rolled along the grass until his back hit the far wall of the stadium stands.
As everyone around him paused to take in what had just happened, Izuku stared wide-eyed as Katsuki landed in the grass. As it finally started to sink in, Izuku felt his legs give out completely as he fell to his knees. With tears streaming down his face, Izuku screamed.
"Bakugou Katsuki is out of bounds! Midoriya Izuku advances to the finals!"
Ochako's jaw was on the floor. In the span of a minute she had been on such a rollercoaster of emotions that she was feeling the whiplash. First, the utter rage at the idea that Midnight would even dare to try and stop the match. Her's and Himiko's booing had gotten them a harsh reprimand from Tenya, reminding them that Midnight was their teacher, and she was to be respected. Himiko responded by plucking his glasses off and chucking them. Fortunately, Momo was able to make him new ones.
Then, when the match was allowed to continue with the caveat that Izuku could not take another hit, she along with the rest of the class was left completely speechless as Izuku put on display just how strong he was. She had seen him lift a lot of weight before. She had seen him lift his weight limit before. But to see him lift so much concrete into the air was staggering. Then to see him throw it was something else all together. Of course, Katsuki had to go and almost ruin the moment when he was able to rocket himself over the attack, but just as soon as he had done that, he was wrapped up and thrown out of the ring.
"Bakugou Katsuki is out of bounds! Midoriya Izuku advances to the finals!"
Ochako collapsed into her seat, emotions brimming, threatening to burst out of her chest.
"Deku...won…"
The words tingled on her lips, so she said it again, "Deku won...Deku won!" Then the dam burst. Emotions ripped through her. She wanted to go down there right then and there. To celebrate with him, to hold him. To kiss him. To take him to Recover Girl and scold him for going so far. Though she could do that later.
The celebrating and scolding part.
Not the kissing.
Maybe. She wasn't really sure at the moment, since she was so happy and ecstatic.
"DEKU WON!"
"Hell yeah he did!" Himiko cheered happily, "Threw that jackass right out of the ring!"
Soon the rest of the class finally started reacting.
"Did you see that attack? That was nuts!"
"I thought Midoriya was done for when Bakugou got over it."
"I want to know how either of them were still standing at the end, they both looked like total crap."
"What about that last thing Midoriya did, with his gym top? Where did that come from?"
Shouto, who had been watching the match silently, finally spoke, "Did Midoriya have that planned out from the beginning? Was he able to plan out a strategy against someone like Bakugou."
It was hard to fathom, but from the moment Izuku had removed his sweat top, he had led Katsuki to the point where he could defeat him.
"Of course he did. Deku's been studying heroes and Quirks since he was a little kid. He can analyze and plan with the best of them," Ochako declared proudly as she gave Shouto a stern look.
"Er...uh oh!" Denki's sudden concern got everyone's attention. He was pointing back towards the ring, "Um, Bakugou is charging back into the ring."
Ochako blinked, what?
"Oh man, you don't think Bakugou's gonna do something stupid, right? He wouldn't attack Midoriya would he? That's not the kind of guy he is..." Eijirou asked nervously, not liking that Izuku was still on his knees, and now slumped over.
Whirling around, Ochako confirmed that Katsuki was indeed bee-lining it back into the ring. And given what she knew about the other boy, she could only come to one conclusion. He was about to try and hurt Izuku.
THAT MOTHER FUCKER!
"I'LL BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF HIM IF HE TOUCHES DEKU!"
Slapping her hand on herself, Ochako grabbed the railing and prepared to throw herself down to the arena. She was stopped as several of her friends and classmates pulled her back.
"Uraraka, wait a second!" Tenya grunted as he wrestled with her.
"Easy! Don't go doing something stupid!" Hitoshi grunted as he tried not to get thrown off, not prepared for how vigorously Ochako would fight back.
Finally, Himiko grabbed Ochako's head and pointed, "Midnight is down there. She's a pain in the ass, but she won't let Izuku get hurt. Calm the fuck down."
Ochako watched as Katsuki came to a stop right besides Izuku while Midnight hurried her way over.
Ripping himself free of the sweat top, Katsuki seethed as he rushed back into the ring, "Deku! Deku, you fucking shit!"
Katsuki was furious. Over and over, the same thought replayed in his mind. Izuku had played him. He had strung him along. Made him dance in the palm of his hand. Izuku must have seen this as just a game. With all his little plots and schemes, it was just a joke. Izuku was still on his knees, head bowed. His scream at his victory had long faded and been swallowed up by the noise of the crowd. Now he was quiet and still. Back in the ring, Katsuki stood over Izuku, "You really were looking down on me this whole time, weren't you!"
Izuku didn't respond.
"What, you think you can just ignore me now!? I'm not going to let you look down on me! You couldn't take me in a straight fight, so you went and pulled this shit. You know it, too!...Stop looking at the damned ground and answer me!"
Finally, painfully, Izuku spoke. The adrenaline he had during the fight was all but spent, and without it to help drive him forward, he was feeling the full effects of the match. Still, he had to answer, "Kacchan...you're too strong."
Katsuki blinked, not expecting that, "Huh?"
"Kacchan, I trained for months. I worked and I worked to get to a place you got to naturally just by being yourself. Even when we both got into U.A., you were still ahead of me. This match...everything about it favored you. You're mad I didn't fight you like you would, but I'm not you. If I did that, I wouldn't have fought you at my best. I had to risk everything on a long shot plan. If one single thing had gone wrong, you would have won. I had to push myself hard just to meet you here, and then I had to go further beyond, just to hope to win."
Izuku took a shuddering breath. It hurt to talk, but he couldn't stop now. The flood gates were open, and everything was spilling out, "I brought everything I had against you because I didn't just want to win. I had to win. I...I told you to get to be the next number one, I had to get past you. Do you remember what you said?"
"You'd have to get through me."
"And you were right. I gave you everything I had, Kacchan, because you deserved nothing less than everything I had."
Katsuki looked down at Izuku, aware that Midnight was right besides them now, "You must really fucking hate me, if you wanted to surpass me so badly."
Finally Izuku looked up, meeting Katsuki's eyes. His skin was burned and blistered, his eyes glazed, and he had the worst bloody nose Katsuki had ever seen. But even in his shape, he looked Katsuki right in the eye. "I've never hated you, Kacchan. I could never hate my friends."
Katsuki sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth, "I stopped being your friend a long time ago, Deku."
Izuku nodded, "Maybe, but I never stopped being yours."
Katsuki didn't know what to say to that. Midnight, seeing neither had anything left to say at the moment, knelt down beside Izuku, "If you two want to keep talking, do it in Recovery Girl's clinic. Can you stand, Midoriya?"
After a slow nod from Izuku, Midnight gingerly helped Izuku to his feet, and escorted both of them to the clinic.
Sitting in the waiting room with several minutes left before he was to be called up to the ring, Izuku laid out the plan he had to win his match against Katsuki. A win by concession was out of the question. There was no way Katsuki would ever give up. A win by incapacitation was possible, but still very unlikely. Izuku didn't have the power to hold Katsuki indefinitely with his Quirk, nor did he have any resources to tie him down either. So that left knockout or ringout. Both were risky, but then again, getting into the ring at all with Katsuki was risky. Of the two, ringout seemed to be the more feasible way to win. So Izuku went about thinking up ways to force Katsuki out of the ring.
The problem was, Katsuki had shown that he was able to stay airborne for short periods of time. So even if Izuku could toss him out, he could push himself into the air and back into the ring before he hit the ground. So he had to neutralize Katsuki's Quirk. One way was to get him to use it, a lot. His Quirk needed his sweat. If he ran out of sweat, his Quirk would at the very least be weakened. Another way to help would be to somehow get him down to just one hand. Izuku wasn't entirely sure how he would do that, but he would keep an eye out for an opportunity. Back to the issue of getting Katsuki dehydrated, if Izuku was going to get Katsuki to use his explosions, he was also going to have to face the fact that he was going to be getting hit by them.
A lot.
One way to help mitigate the damage he was going to end up taking was his Anti-Smash Barrier. Izuku paused and pulled out his notebook, scribbling down, coming up with a better super name for a new shield move...Don't let Ochako see this. Ever.
The move should protect him from the larger explosions. The smaller ones, Izuku would have to rely on the fighting skills All Might taught him to minimize the damage. However, just relying on Katsuki attacking would not be enough to get him to over use his Quirk. Izuku would need him to be using it in defense, too. Fortunately, Katsuki would be giving him the tools he would need to force that. With each explosion, he would damage the ring, giving him ammo to throw at him. Katsuki would have to use his quirk to explode the debris or risk getting hurt. The dust cloud his attacks kicked up could also be used, too. Dust sticks to anything remotely wet. If Katsuki was constantly getting covered in dust, it might muffle his explosion and soak up sweat. He might also be able to use it as cover. If he could hold it with his Quirk, it would in theory glow, and hide the glow of the broken concrete he was using as projectiles.
So that took care of wearing Katsuki down, but how would he make the final move? He needed Katsuki weakened, and in a situation where he would be totally at the mercy of his Quirk. He needed Katsuki in the air. He needed to come up with an attack that would be powerful enough that katsuki couldn't blow it up, or even want to try. Of course an attack like that would require a lot of ammo. He could use the dust kicked up to hide the fact he was stockpiling everything Katsuki broke. He'd still use some to attack throughout the match, of course. If he didn't attack at all, that would raise suspicion too quickly. But he would have to be careful and not use too much. Which meant he was going to be relying more on close range fighting to force Katsuki to use his Quirk. Izuku was okay with this. Getting a chance to punch Katsuki in the face was very enticing. So a weakened Katsuki would be in the air, then what? What could he do to get him out of the ring while also making sure he couldn't break his hold? He needed something to hold onto Katsuki that wasn't part of him like his own clothing…
"And that's when you decided to use your damned shirt."
Katsuki frowned, sitting on the clinic bed as he watched Izuku getting tended to by Recovery Girl.
"More or less, yeah."
Izuku shrugged sheepishly, hissing lightly when poked one of his burns as she applied ointment to it. Both had already received their kisses from Recovery Girl. While Katsuki was finished with his treatment since he could afford to be fully healed, Izuku was getting worked on to minimize the exhaustion he was going to feel when she was done with him. He still had another match coming up, Recovery Girl reminded him.
"Fuck, how the hell do you come up with that shit?"
"Well...I've been watching you for years, Kacchan. So…"
"So you've been planning how to take me out since we were kids?"
"WHAT!? No! Nothing like that," Izuku started to panic at the idea, "I'm not like that at all. You're looking into it too much. I'd never think about getting revenge on you like that. Or shipping you a box full of spiders. Ha ha ha haaa…"
Katsuki looked at Izuku with an almost unreadable expression, "Who the fuck mentioned spiders?"
"Eep! Um not me. Nope…"
Recovery Girl sighed, "Will you stop fidgeting? I swear, you're worse than Uraraka. You're lucky you have time to get some treatment. The judges decided to start the timer for the next match after they fixed the ring. You could have easily been forced to face that Todoroki boy half-dead."
Izuku frowned, "I know…"
"And don't you forget what I told you. I want you back here, win or lose, so I can run a CT scan on you. I don't like how hard you pushed your Quirk in your match. That geyser of a nose bleed you had has me worried."
"Yes ma'am."
Katsuki frowned before swinging his legs off the bed. Recovery girl frowned. "And where are you going?"
"I'm healed, right? I got better things to do than sit here and watch Deku get worked on."
Recovery Girl sighed before waving him off. Getting to his feet, Katuski started for the door but stopped, "Deku. You're not planning on going easy on that Half-and-Half bastard, are you?"
Izuku's eyes snapped open and his mouth hung open in shock, not expecting that kind of question from Katsuki at all, "Wait huh? Why are you asking me that? Why would I do something like that. I'm trying to win and become the next number one."
"Because you both got pieces of shit as fathers."
Again, Izuku was shocked, "Kacchan what are you...wait, what do you know?"
"He talked to you right? Told you about his old man."
It took Izuku a second to process that. Shouto had taken him to a secluded hallway away from everyone else. The only way Katsuki would know about their conversation was, "Kacchan, did you follow us!?"
"Don't worry about that."
"Kacchan!"
"Oh, shove it. I want to make sure you're not going to let yourself get distracted by all that shit because you feel sorry for the fucking bastard."
When Izuku didn't answer right away, Katsuki turned to look back at him, and the look on Izuku's face was just the answer he was looking for.
"At least you aren't a complete fucking idiot."
Katsuki started to turn back for the door to leave but once again stopped. Quickly, and shockingly aggressively, he turned back around and pointed right at Izuku. At this point neither noticed the door swing open.
"Let me make one thing crystal fucking clear! You might have beaten me today, but the next time I'm fucking destroying you! And another thing, don't you fucking dare lose to that Half-and-Half bastard! I'm not going to settle for a rival that gets fucking second place. Do you hear me? You fucking win, so when I beat you, everyone will know I'm the greatest!"
Izuku's eyes went wide at that declaration. His mind raced, "your… rival?"
"You heard what I said. Don't go making it fucking weird."
"That was so manly!"
Katsuki's head snapped around, finally noticing that the door behind him was wide open. Standing in the doorway was most of the whole class with Ochako front and center and Eijirou poking his head over the crowd and giving katsuki a big thumbs up, "A rivalry declaration- that's the most manly thing ever!"
Katsuki's eye twitched, "Shitty Hair, shut the fuck up."
While the class grumbled and protested, Izuku waved sheepishly before Recovery Girl forced him to get back to being still so she could treat him, "You stay still, and the rest of you, I'm busy getting this boy ready for his next match, so everyone out."
Katsuki started to leave along with everyone else, but Ochako didn't get out of his way, "You gonna move, Round Face?"
Ochako looked up at Katsuki, her face blank as she bit her tongue to stop herself from saying anything. So while almost everyone else didn't notice anything, Himiko was watching the two closely. Katsuki looked down at Ochako glaring at her. As he did, he got a good look at her eyes and the fire burning in them. It wasn't a fire of competitiveness, determination, or even anger, which he was used to seeing whenever she looked at him. This was darker.
Much, much darker.
Grunting, Katsuki brushed past Ochako as he left with the rest of the class, leaving Ochako alone in the doorway, with the rest of her friends waiting out in the hallway.
"Hey, Uraraka," Izuku said, smiling up at her, tears brimming in his eyes. "I won."
Ochako blinked, before she broke into a huge sweet smile, "Yeah, yeah you did, Deku. You were awesome out there. You looked really cool...Even if you overdid it."
Izuku laughed gently, "Maybe a little."
"Well don't worry. I'm not going to get on your case."
"Hurray!"
"Right now."
"Doh!"
Rolling her eyes, Ochako shook her head with a chuckle, "I'll tell you what, depending on how your finals match goes...I maaaay let you off the hook."
"What if I punch Todoroki in the face?"
This time Ochako broke into a fit, "You know what, that might just be enough."
Recovery Girl pulled out a fresh pack of gauze, "If you two are done flirting, I need to get to work. So shoo!"
Izuku was extremely grateful that he was so burned up, so no one could tell he was blushing like mad, while Ochako stammered out a quick goodbye and left, closing the door behind her. Now left alone with Recovery Girl, Izuku thought back to what had just happened. He might not be back to being friends with Katsuki, but for Katsuki to recognize him as a rival? Izuku couldn't have hoped for a better outcome. But there would be time to dwell on it later. Now? Now, he had to focus on his next match. He was going to be facing Shouto in the finals.
And that came with its own host of unique issues.
Walking back to their seats with her friends, Ochako kept quiet. She did her best to keep on a smile, but the worried looks shared between Tsuyu and Himiko made it obvious she wasn't doing a great job of hiding her emotions. Emotions that were raging and twisting her heart and soul. She was so happy for Izuku- so proud of him. He had overcome so much to reach where he was. It was truly truly inspiring. But her joy had been tainted because Katsuki just couldn't leave Izuku alone. She had been the first to step through that door when Katsuki had been talking. So she had seen just how happy Izuku was when Katsuki called him his rival.
He had been genuinely happy, and that terrified Ochako to her core.
She had once wondered if Izuku would truly just forgive Katsuki after everything the other boy had done to him, and now it looked like she had her answer. She knew Izuku was an abuse victim, and how many news stories there were of victims forgiving and taking back their abusers, only to end up getting hurt again. She had thought about that the evening after their first lesson with All Might, after watching Izuku and Katsuki talk. Now, it seemed like her worst fear was coming true. Izuku was going back to him, as Katsuki twisted their bond into something that benefited himself, calling it a rivalry.
Izuku might not be under Katsuki's shadow anymore, but the boy still had his claws sunk deep into Izuku, not letting him get away and move on. Dragging him down just to use him.
It made her so angry.
No, she was past angry. When Katsuki had looked at her after saying such bullshit to Izuku, her anger, her rage had turned into something else. Something dark, something black that she could feel staining her soul. It was hate. She hated Katsuki. She hated him so much, and she didn't care. She had made a promise to herself she would always be there to catch Izuku if he ever stumbled while moving past Katsuki, and she would be. Now though, she was beginning to wonder if she needed to start dealing with Katsuki herself.
Shaking those thoughts from her head, she tried to focus on other things. Focus on how Izuku was so close to showing everyone how incredible he was. Focus on how proud she was. Focus on how happy for him she was. She even let those feelings she knew she shouldn't be thinking about bubble up and bring a blush to her cheeks.
There would be time later to figure out how to finally deal with Katsuki, when he inevitably ended up hurting Izuku again.
Authors Notes:
So I wanted to take this chance to say to everyone, thank you so very very much. Your comments and reviews mean a lot to me. They help give me motivation and keep me writing. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
That being said, after a year, a literal year of build up. I give you Izuku vs Katsuki. I really hope you all like it. The ending, with Izuku using his sweat top to wrap Katsuki up and pull him out of the ring. That was in the first draft I wrote about a week before the very first chapter. So yeah, they fought and now everyone is on good terms and can be friends now right? Ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaa, oh lord. Yeeeeaaaaah, no. I hope I was able to stick the landing for this, and you all enjoyed the ride too. Now, now it's just one more chapter until the Sports Festival arc is done. I'm sure it'll be smooth sailing for Izuku from here right...right? Uh oh.
If you liked the chapter and the story so far, please feel free to leave a comment, or if you have some critiques please I welcome all reviews too. And THIS time I'm going to try and find the time to type out my replies darn it!
A huge HUGE thank you to my beta reader and editor Tmalsia!