The Man Out of Time

by Ultimate10

After a 150 years in ice, Izuku Midoriya finds himself in a new world where meta-abilities or "Quirks" are the norm. His journey to becoming a modern Pro Hero will have its challenges keeping his old identity a secret, facing old and new foes, and learning to let go of the past. Does the world even need Captain America anymore? Or is he just too old-fashioned? Marvel/MHA AU World.

20. Chapter 18: All-Star Games Pt 3

…

The Man Out of Time

Chapter 18

---

"It doesn't take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle."

– General Norman Schwarzkopf, U.S. Army

---

"TIME'S UP! Let the match begin NOW!" Midnight announced from a platform outside the arena.

Cheers roared across the stadium as on-field competitors tried to tune them out, focusing on their respective tasks. Offenders charged forward while defenders prepared to defend their territories.

"And they're off! All of you listeners prepare yourselves! This is going to be a wild ride!" Present Mic shouted, earning excited cheers in response. "We'll try and keep you updated with everything happening on the battlefield!"

"LET'S CRUSH 'EM!" Tetsutetsu vehemently shouted.

"YEAH!" He, Kaibara, and Sato charged forward to the Green side.

"Everyone hold strong!" Kirishima yelled feverishly. "LET'S CRUSH 'EM!" The spiky redhead, however, was met with more subdued yet determined responses by Tokoyami, Kodai, and Yanagi.

Upon crossing the Red-Green border, Tetsutetsu spotted a couple Nodes. Blocking his path towards them though was Kirishima. Perfect!

Covering his body in gunmetal-grey steel, Tetsutetsu charged toward the redhead, albeit at a reduced speed. "Get outta my way, Class A copycat!"

"ME!? You're the copycat here!" Kirishima activated his Hardening, punching his fists together before running to meet his foe head-on. Like a real man!

"HRAAGH!" Giving their respective battle cries, Kirishima's Hardening and Tetsutetsu's Steel fists collided.

As the battle between the Class A and B's manly bros began, the other Green Team defenders had their hands full keeping the Red Team's offense at bay.

Popping a vial of sugar into his mouth–which had been approved by the All-Star Games committee–Sato's muscles bulged as he raced forward. Yanagi levitated a small rock towards Kodai, who touched and increased its size into a massive boulder. The ghost girl tossed the boulder towards Sato before releasing her hold on it.

Sato was forced to stop as he reared back his fist and punched the boulder, shattering it into pieces. However, this only served as more ammunition for Yanagi as she levitated the smaller rocks and pelted Sato with them. The big-lipped man was forced to cover his face and retreat.

"Damn… They can increase the size of stuff and throw them?" Sato grumbled. "We got our work cut out for us…"

"I ain't giving up yet! Those points are ours!" Kaibara's arms spun rapidly akin to a drill as he jumped at an unprotected Node. However, at the last moment, a purple glow shone off the cylinder as it was suddenly pulled out of his reach. "Dammit Yanagi-san!"

Across the field, Yanagi used her Quirk to levitate the Node and set it down by her. "My apologies. But these points must remain with us, Kaibara-san."

"We'll see about–OOF!" Without warning, Kaibara went hurtling back by an enlarged shadowy claw-hand.

"Beat it! You Red losers don't have a chance against us!" Dark Shadow taunted, looking smug.

"Even if that's true, please be more respectful, Dark Shadow." Tokoyami lightly chastised, standing calmly in front of the Red-Green border. Dark Shadow's arms were outstretched to prevent anyone from getting past him.

Sato reached up and caught Kaibara before he hit the ground and set him down. "Thanks man. Ugh…" He grimaced from the hit he took by the sentient shadow.

"No problem. You good to keep fighting?" Sato asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kaibara replied, rubbing the sore spot on his torso where Dark Shadow struck him. "Besides," he lowered his voice and grinned, "we just gotta keep 'em distracted for a little bit longer."

Shoji, who had taken cover in the fort to observe the battlefield, overheard Kaibara's whispers. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. 'What are they up to? Wait… Did the Red Team really only send three offenders? That doesn't seem right.' He glanced over to the Red territory and observed didn't spot very many of the Red members themselves. 'Where are they? They couldn't have all gone after the Blue Team, right? They must be up to something…'

Before Shoji could ponder further, the ground shook and the temperature plummeted. The cause was a massive ice wall forming along the Blue Team's border.

Everyone paused to look up at the imposing glacier in awed shock.

"WHAAAA?! What's this?! Todoroki is forming a barrier around the Blue Team? What could he be up to?"

"That was unexpected." Yanagi noted while Kodai simply nodded in agreement.

"Hmm…" Tokoyami glanced at the ice wall dubiously. "I sense something is amiss here…"

"Yeah! Our strongest member's gone wacko!" Dark Shadow followed up.

"Todoroki… Man, what the heck are you trying to pull?" Kirishima grunted while blocking a haymaker from Tetsutetsu.

---

Across the border, the Green Team's offenders Tokage, Sero, Asui, Ashido, and Shishida were currently caught in a stalemate against the Red Team's defense. Shiozaki's thorny vines had formed a tangled web surrounding their four Nodes. They lashed out and entangled anyone who got too close. Thankfully, Ashido's acid and Shishida's brute strength enabled them to free each other if they were caught by the tendrils.

However, the vines were not the Green Team's only hurdle to cross.

Tokage had split her body and was flying over the Red Team's fort, holding Sero with both of her detached arms. She had hoped that they could use her flight and Sero's tape to steal a Node or HVIs from above. However, they spotted zero openings so far.

"Geez… They really have it locked down, huh?" Sero noted. "We can't even get close to them."

Positioned atop the fort was Yaoyorozu armed with an airsoft gun, firing capture glue at anyone who got too close. Standing alongside her was Jiro, firing concentrated sound-blasts from the speakers on her legs. They weren't as powerful as her Costumes, but they were good enough to do damage to someone's eardrums if they got too close.

"Make sense. They can't afford to skimp on defense." Tokage commented. "We just have to make an opening. WHOA!" The greenette narrowly dodged several projectiles from Yaomomo's gun while making sure not to drop Sero.

"Any ideas?" Sero asked.

"Hmph." She smirked, showing off sharp teeth. "Well, if it works out…. Our Class B friend may be able to make one."

Meanwhile, located behind the Red Team's fort (close to the stadium walls), was the square safe zone marked by a red platform completely covered by a dome of vines. Most would not be able or have extreme difficulty getting through, but Monoma simply held out his right arm to spray acid from his palm, killing and dissolving the vines around him.

He casually walked forward while forging a path with a relaxed, confident smirk. 'I suppose shielding the safe zones is legal as Midnight-sensei hasn't called the Red Team out yet.' He thought. 'I'll give the Red Team credit for taking advantage of that loophole. But still… It won't be enough.'

Just meters away from reaching the safe zone, someone jumped out of the green jungle. "GOTCHA!" Before Monoma could react, he was suddenly tackled to the ground and felt cold metal on his body. He looked up to see Awase kneeling before him with a cocky grin.

"Sorry, Monoma-san. But you're not going anywhere now." He pointed to Monoma's arms and legs, which were restrained by steel cuffs welded to the ground by Awase's Quirk.

"An excellent ambush, Awase. I suppose these vines are detached from Shiozaki-san?"

Awase nodded. "Yeah. We figured your team would try to go for the easy points first. So, I volunteered to guard the safe zone while the others focused on safeguarding the Nodes."

"My, my. You certainly are a team player. I see you even had Class A's Vice make you some support items." Monoma pointed out.

"Course I did. Hate to break it to yah, dude, but this ain't Class A versus Class B right now." Awase retorted. "It's our team versus everyone else. Now, tell me where you're hiding that f**king red ball?"

"Oh… That?" Monoma's limps suddenly detached; much to Awase's shock. Pulling out of the cuffs, his body parts levitated in the air. With a floating hand, he pulled out the red orb from his pants pocket. "Why…it's right here." His floating head was smiling haughtily.

"What the FU–OOF!" Awase was cut off from a sharp pain in his neck, courtesy of a chop by Monoma's other hand. The welder's eyes rolled back as he collapsed forward, unconscious.

"Though it pains me to defeat my fellow classmates, I must do what I can to ensure I represent Class 101-B in the Finals." Monoma declared.

Using his other hand, the blonde guided the red ball through the vines blocking the safe zone. Once it was safely through, he dropped the orb inside.

"And just like that Green Team scores the first points by delivering their Red HVI!" Present Mic announced.

"Good stealth and capture techniques by Awase, but he'll need to learn to be wary of unconventional methods of escape like Monoma just demonstrated." Aizawa remarked.

"Green Team remains in second place with 95 points. But that could change with–" Mic was cut off when the temperature suddenly plummeted in the arena as an enormous ice wall formed along the Blue Team's border.

"WHAAAA?! What's this?! Todoroki is forming a barrier around the Blue Team? What could he be put to?"

"Looks like Blue Team had a wildcard on their team."

Monoma looked out at the wall, his smile gave way to a bitter frown. 'Of course that showoff would try to upstage my victory. Typical of Class A…' He then looked around at the vines surrounding him and a smirk crossed his face, a devious idea coming to mind.

---

"Midoriya…" Iida straightened up and directed a serious look at the verdette. "I respect you. You are my friend…but you're also my rival. I will not hold back against you." He got into a sprinter's stance, preparing to shoot himself forward.

Midoriya smiled. "That's good to hear." He widened his own stance.

"As if you could beat us!" Kamikiri yelled back.

"I like your bravado." Kendo grinned and got into a Karate-esque fighting stance, enlarging her fists to nearly quadruple their normal size. "But don't underestimate us!"

"We're trained in melee combat, and we have you outnumbered." Ojiro followed up, getting into a Judo stance.

Iida, Kendo, Kamakiri, and Ojiro positioned themselves to effectively surround Midoriya on four sides.

"You're right. You do outnumber me." He admitted.

Midoriya then pressed a red button on the gadget strapped to his left arm. All of a sudden, a red-colored projection shaped like a triangular heater's shield appeared in front of him. It was partially see-through and shielded its wearer from the chest-to-knees.

The four Red Team members were baffled by the reveal of the Energy Shield construct.

"That's why I pity you." The Captain declared.

---

Midoriya nodded and paid close attention as Hatsume showcased her support items from her metal briefcase.

Hatsume then pulled out a small projector with a black strap attached to it. "And this is a prototype of mine dubbed the Limited-Range Photon-Accelerator…or Energy Shield in layman terms. It's a force-field synth; meaning that it's supposed to be a shield that's composed of light particles. In theory, it could even be configured to form other shapes too!" She excitedly explained. "I was inspired to make this one night after hearing about that Hero Student who supposedly has an indestructible shield and all."

"I see…" Midoriya looked at the device with intrigue. "How strong is the shield?"

"Heck if I know!" Hatsume smiled wildly, making Midoriya sweat-drop. "Guess we'll find out today!"

---

Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamakiri were stunned by Midoriya's bold, admittedly awesome statement. Was he that confident or just arrogant?

"Hold on, is that thing even allowed?" Ojiro pointed out.

"Whatever support gear Hatsume-san has, we have permission to use as a team." The super-soldier answered.

"Who cares?! Doesn't matter if you have a shield or not, Freckles!" Kamakiri exclaimed. "You're still going down!" He swiftly rushed forward with Kendo and Ojiro deciding to follow his lead.

The Captain studied their movements and immediately predicted what their strategy was. Kamakiri slashes with his blades, forcing him to block with his shield while Ojiro uses his tail to smack his blind side. Kendo then comes in to finish him off with an oversized punch.

Smart move and good coordination, he thought. Still, the trio needed more training and experience. After all, revealing what their Quirks were right off the bat was a very poor decision.

As Kamikiri jumped up to bring his forearm blades down, the Captain disabled his energy shield, much to the others' surprise, turned and ducked under the strike and stepped behind Kamakiri, swiftly kicking him in the back. This sent Kamakiri falling directly into Ojiro's tail swipe, which had been aimed at the verdette super-soldier.

"OOF!" Kamakiri coughed up as he was sent tumbling back across the ground.

Kendo's eyes widened. 'He saw through our attack?!' She quickly stopped and jumped back, abandoning her initial attack.

"Sorry!" Ojiro immediately apologized before turning his sights on the Captain. He quickly charged at him and threw a few jabs aimed at his central vital points. However, the super-soldier easily blocked and parried the moves and jabbed Ojiro directly in the throat, stunning him long enough for the Captain to swipe his feet out from underneath him. Grabbing Ojiro by his tail, he spun around and tossed him into Kamakiri off to the side.

The duo grunted painfully as they comically slammed into each other.

"You're not bad!" Kendo rushed forward and reared back her enlarged fists.

Activating the shield, the Captain blocked the enlarged punch. Kendo wasn't deterred as she began rapidly punching the energy shield, but the shield remained strong and held her back.

"Fancy toy! Gotta admit, I'm impressed that it can hold up!" Kendo remarked. "I hope you don't just plan on hiding behind it though!"

"You may wish I did." The Captain cooly retorted.

Catching on to Kendo's punching speed, he deactivated the shield and ducked beneath her right hook. Kendo was too stunned to react when the verdette came up and delivered a powerful palm strike into her diaphragm. The orange-haired girl felt the air leave her lungs as she went flying and landed on her back hard, coughing badly.

Hearing engines revving, the Captain turned to see Iida making a beeline towards a few nearby Nodes. 'Smart.' He nodded in approval. 'He hasn't lost sight of the game.'

Reactivating the shield, Captain Midoriya spun and swiped his left forearm forward. Shockingly, this resulted in the triangular energy shield to go flying!

Iida was taken off guard as the red construct hit the back of his knees, resulting in him tumbling across the ground. The red shield bounced off the ground and dematerialized into nothingness.

"Bastard!" The verdette turned to see Kamakiri charging at him with blades protruding from his forearms and hands. "Try blocking these!"

Timing it right, the Captain sidestepped to his left and ducked under Kamakiri's frontal attack, delivering a strong elbow into his side. Distracted by the painful kidney shot, the super-soldier then grabbed his praying mantis-like opponent from his upper left arm (which didn't have blades on them), and judo flipped him.

As Kamakiri was falling head-first, Captain Midoriya immediately dropped down to deliver a powerful axe kick into the side of his head. Immediately knocked out by the blow, Kamakiri bounced across the ground like a tumbleweed and rolled on top of Iida–who was just starting to get up.

'That's one.'

Hearing footsteps, he turned around to see Ojiro jumping at him and spinning in midair to deliver a tail swipe. The Captain swiftly brought up his arm and activated the shield, effectively blocking the attack. Pushing back, Ojiro kicked off and landed a few meters away. Ojiro took a breath and got in a judo stance with his tail at the ready.

The Captain smirked and turned to expertly throw the heater shield at him. Ojiro quickly reacted by knocking the energy shield away, which dematerialized as it landed on the ground. This, however, gave the war veteran time to get in close and unleash a barrage.

Ojiro and the Captain exchanged a series of jabs and punches with the latter landing more. Getting desperate, the Tail-user tried a right roundhouse kick, which the verdette simply ducked under. Spinning back around on his pivot leg, Ojiro tried to lash out with his tail. Surprisingly, the Captain was quick enough to reactivate the shield in time to block the appendage.

Captain Midoriya then delivered a kick right above Ojiro's right knee, dislocating it. "GRAGGH!" Falling to his left knee in intense pain, Ojiro was unable to dodge the spinning roundhouse kick to his face. The plain-looking man collapsed onto his back, instantly slipping into unconsciousness with blood leaking from his nose.

'Two.'

The super-soldier turned to see Kendo coming at him with her hands over quadruple their size. He quickly dove to the side as she shattered the ground where he had been standing and rolled back to his feet.

"You could've seriously hurt Kamikiri-san and Ojiro-san just then." Kendo pointed out, her hands returning to normal size.

"They'll live. Besides, Recovery Girl can easily heal those injuries." The Captain countered.

"I guess." Kendo smirked while using her thumb to whip a bit of blood from the corner of her mouth. "Glad to know you're not afraid to hit a girl at least."

"I've learned not to underestimate anyone. Regardless of gender."

Kendo smiled at that. "Tell me, you're trained. Right?"

"Very."

"I'm curious to see how much." She got into a karate stance. "Mind showing me?"

"I can. You may regret it though."

Kendo grinned confidently. "We'll see. I'm Kendo Itsuka, by the way. President of Class 101-B. Nice to meet you."

"Midoriya Izuku. President of Class 101-A." He raised his energy shield up and widened his stance. "Pleasure's mine."

With pleasantries out of the way, the green-haired man and ginger woman charged at each other.

Kendo started off by unleashing a series of punches and jabs at her green-haired opponent using a mix of normal and enlarged hands. The super-soldier backpedaled as he expertly blocked and parried Kendo's attacks, internally impressed by her Karate skills.

'She's not bad for a civilian. Definitely earned that black belt. Combined with her Quirk and more experience, she'll be a tough opponent for most Villains.'

"HRAGH!" Kendo continued her offensive but the Captain skillfully managed to counter her. After exchanging several sets of martial arts moves, the duo now stood a few meters apart.

"Your moves… I recognize them. Ninjutsu? Kung Fu? Krav Maga?" Kendo panted slightly.

"All of the above." He smirked.

Kendo gapped, gobsmacked. "How…?"

"Carefully."

He wasn't lying. Between SHIELD's training and his own personal research in his downtime, he had learned quite a few martial arts styles since waking up from the ice to supplement the fighting styles he had already learned while in the military. Having an enhanced mind also sped up the learning process.

"Tch!" The Big Fist-user clicked her tongue, annoyed by his wry remark. "Fine then. HRAGH!" She charged forward and pressed her attack, forcing her opponent to step back toward a nearby boulder.

'Perfect. Once he's pinned, he'll have nowhere to dodge.' Kendo reared back her right fist and threw a haymaker at the Captain, which he deflected away with his shield. She followed up with a left jab, which he easily dodged also; however, the ginger anticipated this and suddenly enlarged her left hand. 'I have him! Once he's down, I'll finish him off with a Double Jumbo Fist!'

Kendo's growing hand caused him to stumble but he quickly recovered by latching onto her large thumb. Using his enhanced strength, he twisted his body and dislocated the appendage with a loud crack.

"AAWWWW!" She painfully cried out.

She was distracted long enough by her broken thumb for the Captain to pull her forward by the arm and knee her hard in the gut. Kendo bent over a spat up saliva mixed with blood.

'He's too–' Kendo didn't complete her thought as he slammed the edge of his energy shield into the back of her head–not hard enough to seriously injure her though. Like a sack of potatoes, she limply collapsed to the ground unconscious.

'Three.'

"MIDORIYA!"

The verdette turned to see Iida blitzing him to deliver an Engine-boosted left roundhouse kick at his head, which Captain Midoriya was quick to duck under. He then grabbed Iida by his leg and, using impressive strength and Iida's own momentum, pulled him off the ground and swung him into the boulder behind him. Cracks were left from the impact as he fell to the ground, rock chips falling around him.

"I…I should've seen that coming." Iida chastised himself, shakily getting his feet underneath him.

The Captain didn't respond, keeping his eyes trained on the navy-haired teen.

Adjusting his glasses, Iida turned to glare at his opponent. "Still…I refuse to give up!"

Iida rushed forward to deliver a series of high-speed, powerful kicks. Though his speed had incrementally improved thanks to their training, the Captain was able to keep up with his speedster classmate. He expertly ducked, pivoted, and blocked using his heater shield.

'I can't get past his defenses. So…' When Iida's roundhouse kick missed, he pivoted on his left leg and activated his right Engine while dragging his foot on the ground. This caused him to spin back around and kick up a wall of dirt at his opponent. 'I'll improvise!'

"Argh!" Blinded by the dirt, the Captain missed the jab that Iida hit him with. Iida followed up with driving his foot into his midsection, and finally a right cross into his temple. Dazed and temporarily blinded, the super-soldier backward somersaulted and narrowly avoided a powerful roundhouse kick from Iida.

Landing on his feet, Captain Midoriya rubbed his eyes clear and looked at Iida with a proud smirk. 'Learning to play a little dirty, huh? Good Tenya.' He internally appraised.

"I see you picked up on my Savate moves."

Iida smirked back. "I thought it would be poetic to defeat you with your moves. But perhaps that wishful thinking! So, I'll win my way!"

Revving his Engines, Iida rushed forward and jumped up to deliver a full-powered kick. Though Captain Midoriya brought up his shield to block the attack, the force behind it caused him to stumble back. Iida pressed on and kicked again with all of his strength, causing him to fall down.

Seeing his chance, Iida cartwheeled and fired up his Engines to bring down another full-powered kick. Captain Midoriya quickly pushed himself away just as Iida's right leg came down in front of him, shattering the ground.

As the Captain stood back up, Iida lashed out with a kick to his head–which was blocked. Iida sprung back up to his own feet and flipped himself in the air to aim a kick at the verdette's head. The war veteran ducked and rolled underneath it and returned to his feet. Iida turned and continued relentlessly pressing his attack.

Captain Midoriya backpedaled as he dodged and blocked Iida's kicks and punches. 'Gotta admit, he has improved. Still…' Picking up on Iida's pattern, he brought up his shield to block one of Iida's kicks and pushed him back, sending him landing on his back several meters away. '...he has a ways to go.'

"Midoriya-kun, I can only get stronger if you're giving me your all!" Iida shouted while standing back up. "So give me that!" He rushed forward, intending to tackle his friend/rival into the boulder behind him.

The Captain responded by rushing forward to take Iida head-on. The Engine user recognized this strategy from the training exercises, and dropped down to slide across the ground–aiming to trip his opponent. The super-soldier responded by somersaulting over the Iida's dive and landed smoothly on his feet.

'He's learning. Good.' Captain Midoriya thought, reminded of their combat training weeks prior.

Iida popped back to his feet and followed up with another series of kicks, crosses, and jabs pushed to a higher speed than before. Much to Iida's shock though, the verdette was still able to keep up with his increased speed. After missing on a jab, the Captain responded with a swift right cross at Iida's temple that temporarily stunned him.

The bespeckled teen stopped and backed up before pressing forward. The Captain had caught on to the blue-haired speedster's moves, however, and kicked the spot right above Iida's right knee.

"AARGH!" He painfully shouted.

While Iida was momentarily distracted, Captain Midoriya followed up by kicking him straight in the midsection and making him stagger back. He then immediately jumped in the air and flipped to deliver a solid 360 Crescent kick into Iida's head.

With that, Iida was instantly knocked out and collapsed to the ground.

Captain Midoriya looked down at his down opponent and remained alert, watching for any sign of a quick recovery. Seeing that Iida was fully unconscious, he loosened up a bit.

'Four. Sorry Tenya.' Midoriya thought apologetically.

"Unreal!" Present Mic's voice blared through the speakers. "Midoriya showcases incredible combat skills by taking down four opponents at once in barely a minute!"

"Midoriya was highly trained in America's armed forces, so this outcome was expected." Aizawa tiredly stated.

Many audience members, particularly the Pro Heroes in attendance, murmured and discussed with each other at this stunning revelation. There was a former soldier in UA's Hero Course? That was a surprise!

"A soldier, huh? Yeah… I can see it." Midoriya turned to see Shinso casually walking towards him, hands stuffed in his pockets. "You got that vibe around you."

"Thanks…?" Feeling the temperature drop and hearing the crackling of ice, Midoriya looked over to see Todoroki forming giant icy spikes around the Castle Node and the area surrounding it. Even from a distance, the super-soldier didn't miss the blank expression on his scarred face.

"I see you've got Todoroki-san to work already."

"SHOOOOTOOOOO!" The pair turned to the source of the yell. Endeavor could be seen in the stands, fire raging off of him and forcing anyone near him to vacate. A few Pro Heroes, presumably his Sidekicks, tried to pull him away. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! WHY ARE YOU HELPING YOUR ENEMIES?! SHOOOOTOOOO!"

"Well, he's pissed." Shinso sardonically remarked.

Midoriya was undeterred. "Let him. Where's Bakugo-san?"

Shinso pointed his thumb towards the wall where a motionless Bakugo stood atop the icy structure, acting as a sentry. "For now, he's on standby. I ordered him to blast away anyone who tries to climb or fly over the wall."

Midoriya nodded in satisfaction. 'Phase 1 will be underway shortly then.'

---

"Phase 1 will revolve sowing discord amongst the Red and Green teams." Midoriya explained. "Shinso-san's Brainwashing will be very instrumental with that task. Once Todoroki-san is finished fortifying our defenses, we can deploy him, Bakugo-san, and potentially anyone else that Shinso-san can brainwash to attack the other teams."

"But couldn't we just keep Todoroki-san and Bakugo-san over here as extra defense?" Kaminari asked.

"I like where your head's at Kaminari-kun, but between the ice fortifications, Occhan's meteor ammunition, Hatsume-san's gadgets, and myself it's unnecessary." Midoriya replied. "Besides, deploying Todoroki-san and Bakugo-san against the other teams will keep the fighting focused on the Red and Green sides, at least for a while. Long enough for us to prepare for Phase 2."

"What's Phase 2?" Uraraka questioned, tilting her head.

Midoriya smiled confidently.

---

Shinso spotted the four Red Team members lying scattered on the ground unconscious behind the verdette. "I see you have extra puppets for me back there." He dryly noted.

'I'd…rather not call them that.' Midoriya thought sheepishly. "If you can wake them up and brainwash them, we can deploy them alongside Todoroki and Bakugo."

Shinso nodded in understanding. "Shouldn't be an issue." The disheveled young man nonchalantly sauntered toward the knocked out Red group.

Unbeknownst to Shinso and Midoriya, one of the Red members had begun to wake up. Upon overhearing the pair's conversation, they had remained motionless and acted like they were still unconscious–quietly eavesdropping.

'Puppets? Brainwash?' Iida's eyes widened as they connected the dots. 'I see… So that's why Todoroki formed the ice barrier…and why Bakugo is uncharacteristically quiet.'

"Hey! Wake up!"

A groggy groan slipped out of Ojiro's mouth as his eyes fluttered open. He grimaced as he felt a sharp pain flare on his face. It felt like his nose was broken!

"Ah good, you're awake." Ojiro was confused to see a disheveled purple-haired student kneeling by him with tired eyes. "You okay there, Monkey boy?

"Huh? Who are—" Ojiro's eyes immediately glazed over.

Shinso smirked. 'That's one.'

He then walked over to Kamakiri and repeatedly slapped the side of his face. "Wakey-wakey, Bug!'

"Ugh… My head…" Kamakiri painfully groaned. As his eyes slowly opened, he was alarmed to see Shinso kneeling in front of him.

"Looks like you took quite the beating. Eh, Bug?" Shinso remarked.

"What'd you call me bas–" Kamakiri was cut off when his eyes glazed over.

'That's two.'

Shinso then stepped towards Kendo, who was lying on her front. "Yo! Red!" He patted the side of her face. "Nap time's over!"

Kendo's face contorted in pained discomfort as she was roughly knocked out of her sleep. "Huh…?" She gasped as her blue eyes then snapped open. It was all coming back to her now! She quickly pushed herself off the ground and turned towards Shinso.

"You sure got your a** kicked. Huh, Red?" Shinso taunted. "Maybe leave the fighting to the professionals next time. Huh, toots?"

Kendo angrily growled as she glared daggers at the indigo-haired teen. "Hey! I'll show–" She stopped as her expression went blank.

"I swear it's too easy." Shinso commented.

Iida kept his eyes closed, his breathing shallow, and his body limp. He was doing his best to–what did the Americans call it? Playing possum?

'I see. So that's how his Quirk works. He has to get someone to verbally respond to him.' Iida internally deduced. 'I just need to act like I'm still knocked out for now.'

Shinso stepped toward Iida and tried nudging his side with his foot. "Hey! Glasses! You still alive, yeah? Your pride isn't too bruised by that beating you took, is it?"

Iida did not react.

Shinso tried several more times, but the bespeckled teen remained unresponsive–doing his best to act unconscious. Although he couldn't help but slightly wince when Shinso rammed the tip of his shoe into his side.

"Hmm… You may have hit this one a little too hard." Shinso glanced back at Midoriya.

"Yeah…" The verdette rubbed his neck sheepishly. "I probably could've held back a little more. We'll just have to make due with those three for now."

"What about him?" Shinso gestured to the unconscious Iida.

"I doubt he'll be waking up any time soon if he's that out of it." Midoriya responded, shrugging.

"Red Team strikes first, folks! They've taken out one of the Green Team's Nodes!"

"C'mon." Midoriya gestured for Shinso to follow him. "It's time to kick off Phase 1."

"Right. You three, follow us. And keep up!" Shinso commanded Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamikiri. The trio robotically obeyed the order, albeit at a slower pace than Midoriya and Shinso.

Iida slowly peaked his eyes open and shifted his gaze to see the group sauntering away towards the ice wall. His body tensed up as he prepared himself to act!

'I know what I must do.' Iida had decided on his next move. He just needed to wait for the right moment to execute it.

---

Moments earlier…

Kirishima and Tetsutetsu were still locked in a melee. Sparks flew off from every solid blow each combatants exchanged. If it weren't for their respective armors, both opponents would've certainly knocked each other out. The pair were locked in a stalemate for several minutes. It was to the point that most of the audience had decided to ignore their melee.

"Ready to give in, Class A copycat!?" Tetsutetsu yelled.

"Hell no, dude! I'll never give in! Especially to you!" Kirishima shot back.

Both young men passionately yelled out, increasing the speed of their punches.

"And just like that Green Team scores the first points by delivering their Red HVI!"

The scoreboard on the large screens updated.

Blue: 120

Green: 95

Red: 40

"HA! How do you like that, Class B copycat!?" Kirishima taunted, delivering a solid punch into Tetsutetsu's chest that sent him sliding back on the ground.

Tetsutetsu growled. "Don't get cocky! Red Team's just getting started!"

"HRAGGH!" Both young men charged at each other like raging bulls. For the umpteenth time, their fists collided. However, cracks began to appear along Tetsutetsu's right fist.

"HUH?! What the–" Tetsutetsu was shocked. His steel had actually cracked?!

"HA!" Kirishima grinned confidently. "You may be made out of steel, bro…but I've been training my a** off the last few weeks…by hitting something much harder than steel!"

With all his might, Kirishima reared back his arm and delivered a powerful uppercut into a stunned Tetsutetsu's chin. The silver-haired young man went careening back and bounced along the ground.

"Hell yeah!" Kirishima excitedly pumped his fist. "Round 1 is mine!"

'All those hours of blood, sweat, and tears hitting Midori-bro's shield have paid off.' He mused proudly.

"And it looks like the Kirishima and Tetsutetsu brawl finally has a winner!" Mic sounded a bit relieved. "A solid knockout punch delivered by Class 101-A's Kirishima!"

The crowd cheered loudly.

"Ergh…" Tetsutetsu slowly sat up from the dirt, his steel armor fading away. "Dammit." He hated to admit it, but that last punch by Kirishima really hurt. What did he mean by hitting something harder than steel though?

"Unreal!" Present Mic sounded shocked. "Midoriya showcases incredible combat skills by taking down four opponents at once in barely a minute!"

"That's Midori-bro for yah." Kirishima remarked, grinning roguishly. "The guy knows his way around a fight."

Tetsutetsu's eyes widened, his mouth gapping in shock. "No way… Kendo-san couldn't have lost. Could she?"

"Don't worry, Tetsutetsu-san." A familiar voice whispered to him. "We'll have the advantage shortly…"

"Huh…?" Tetstuetsu looked around, seeing no one else. "Was that–" He didn't get the chance to complete his sentence before it happened.

"HUH!? What the!?" Kirishima suddenly started sinking into the ground as it had turned into mud. He tried to step out of it, but it was very thick and viscous. "Quick sand?!"

Suddenly, the ground all around the Green Team's territory suddenly turned into quicksand. Anything on the ground began to sink into the liquified ground.

"Incredible! In a shocking turn of events, the Green Team is finally breaking the stalemate against the Red Team's defense–OH WAIT!?" Present Mic gasped. "What's this!? The Green Team's territory is sinking into the earth?!"

As Tokoyami began sinking into the ground, he immediately responded. "Dark Shadow, get us to the fort!"

"Right!" The sentient shadow extended out and grabbed onto one of the fort's support beams, pulling his host to the top.

"Tokoyami-kun!" Shoji uses the bars to swing himself up. "The others are sinking too!"

"Dark Shadow!"

"On it!" The shadow stretched out to rescue their teammates.

Yanagi stumbled forward and used her hands to catch herself, splattering mud all over her tracksuit. "This is not pleasant…" She cooly stated.

Before the silver-haired girl could sink any further, Dark Shadow's hand reached out to gently grab and pull her out. He went back to drop her off at the fort alongside Tokoyami and Shoji. The shadow repeated this process with Kodai and Kirishima, moments before they would've been fully submerged.

The Green Team defenders steadied themselves by holding onto the fort's metal bars as it slowly sank into the mud too.

"We find ourselves in a precarious predicament." Yanagi pointed out.

"That's putting it mildly." Shoji dryly replied. "So this is what they were planning. How are they pulling it off?"

"Honenuki-san." Kodai answered. "He can soften anything he touches."

"That would've been useful information to know earlier." Tokoyami said tersely.

Kodai shrugged, remaining emotionless. "You never asked."

Tokoyami sighed, exasperated. "I suppose it doesn't matter now."

Meanwhile, Sato, Tetsutetsu, and Kaibara were standing on the rim of the quicksand lake within the Green Team's territory.

"Hell yeah! Now the real fun begins!" Kaibara's arms started gyrating as he dove into the mud, drilling himself through it.

"Think this plan'll work out?" Sato glanced at Tetsutetsu questioningly.

"Well, I'll be honest…forming strategies ain't my forte." Tetsutetsu admitted. "But I trust my classmates though, and that's good enough for me. I'll let others more capable come up with the plans and stuff while I'll focus on being their shield and weapon!"

Sato blinked before a confident smile crossed his face. "Same here, dude." He could relate to the Steel-user's statement.

Across the field, Kaibara shot out of the mud like a dolphin and rammed his spinning arms into a Node, fully reducing it to scrape metal. "Hell yeah! That's one!" He dove back into the mud.

"Red Team strikes first, folks! They've taken out one of the Green Team's Nodes!" Present Mic announced, earning rambunctious cheers from the stadium.

"Green Team will lose even more if they don't regroup…and quickly." Aizawa cautioned, sounding dour.

"Dark Shadow, pull our Nodes back to us!" Tokoyami quickly ordered.

"I'm on it!" The shadow stretched and went to carry out the order.

"Yanagi-san, would you lend your aid?"

"Mhmm." The ghostly girl nodded and focused on a nearby Node. A purple glow shone off it as she levitated it towards the fort. Moments before it arrived, Kaibara jumped out of the mud and drilled straight through it.

"Ha! Easy pickings!" He shouted victoriously before sinking back into the liquid ground.

"My apologies…" Yanagi sounded dejected.

"Don't beat yourself up. Can you bring in more than one at a time though?" Shoji inquired.

She shook her head. "Given my weight limit, I can only apply my Quirk to one Node at a time, unfortunately."

"Red Team destroys another Node, earning them an additional 10 points and stealing 10 from–Oh wait! Red Team has just delivered their Green HVI. That's another 15 points tallied to their score! Green and Red are now tied for second!" Cheers echoed throughout the stadium from the building excitement.

The Green defenders turned to see Honenuki holding onto the safe zone's concrete ledge, placing a green orb in the rectangle. He turned back and shot the group with a V-sign before sinking back into the ground.

The scoreboard updated again.

Blue: 120

Green: 75

Red: 75

"Heh! Told yah the Red Team was just getting started!" Tetsutetsu shouted out, sounding smug.

"Crap!" Kirishima angrily gripped a bar, contorting it. "We can't defend like this!"

The fortress creaked and groaned as it continued sinking into the mud. "This isn't good."

"One second." Kodai grabbed onto one of the fort's beams and activated her Quirk.

All of a sudden, the fort over quadrupled in size as it extended out of the mud. The enlarged fort's foundation was pushed down until it reached the solid bottom of the quicksand lake, stopping any further sinking. The Green Team defenders were surprised to now find themselves over four stories above the liquified ground.

"Nice work!" Kirishima appraised.

Kodai wordlessly nodded in return.

"We need reinforcements." Shoji pulled out an object from his pocket. A human ear. "Hey, Tokage-san, I'm sure you've heard already, but we're in a pickle here! We need backup ASAP!" He reported into the ear.

"Your classmate, Todoroki-san, would've been helpful in this situation." Yanagi calmly mentioned, telekinetically floating a Node to their floor and setting it down next to four more that Dark Shadow had just recovered. "He could've countered Honenuki-san's Quirk by freezing the ground."

"Seriously…" Kirishima turned to the ice wall blocking the Blue Team's territory from view. "What the heck is that guy doing over there?!"

"No sense in worrying about a rogue player." Tokoyami said sagely. "Although, I'll admit…I am curious myself as to what's become of him."

As Dark Shadow grabbed onto the last remaining Node, Kaibara burst from the mud and aimed his drills for the Node. "That's mine, bird!"

"Get lost!" With his other hand, Dark Shadow smacked Kaibara away–sending him bouncing across the quicksand's surface like a flat rock skipping atop the water.

"Tokoyami's Dark Shadow smacks Class 101-B's Kaibara away to protect a Node! But how long can the Green Team defend their area as it continues to sink away?!" Present Mic exclaimed, sounding very hyped.

A smug grin crossed Kaibara's expression as he sank back into the mud. 'We win.'

As Dark Shadow was about to reach for another Node, its yellow eyes shot open. "H-Huh?! What's going on–" The sentient shadow felt something completely override its control. Before Dark Shadow knew it, he dropped the Node in its hand back into the mud and started flying back to the fort.

Tokoyami was confused. "Dark Shadow, what are you–?!"

"Fumikage! Look out!" Dark Shadow cried out as he rushed in and suddenly slammed his clawed hands into the fort. The force was strong enough to tear apart the floor the defenders were standing on and send them flying.

Shoji swiftly formed several arms and reached out to grab Yanagi and Kodai before latching onto a support beam. Despite his best efforts though, he was unable to catch Kirishima as he splashed into the mud.

"What's this!? Tokoyami's Dark Shadow has suddenly turned on the Green Team?!"

Everyone in the stands and watching from afar were equally befuddled.

"Dark Shadow!?" Tokoyami shouted, desperately holding on to the edge. The muddy lake four stories beneath him. "What're you doing?!"

"I can't…control myself…Fumikage!" Dark Shadow's voice was strained, trying to fight back against whatever unknown force had possessed him.

Kuroiro smiled smugly from within the bird-shaped shadow. 'Tokoyami Fumikage…'

"Kuroiro-san," Yaoyorozu approached him, "Tokoyami's Dark Shadow will be a major obstacle to clear. I believe your ability to move through darkness will be instrumental in crippling the Green Team. Are you up to that task?"

A wide smile spread across Kuroiro's pitch black expression. "Leave it to me."

'You and I share a destiny in darkness.' He then recalled how the plan was established.

"I talked it over with Yaoyorozu-san. I'll liquify the Green Team's territory." Honenuki whispered into Kuroiro's ear, a minute before the event was scheduled to begin. "You can cling to me until then. It'll also be dark underground so there will be plenty of space for you to move freely. Kaibara-san will be using his Gyrate to move through the ground too. When you see a chance to take over the dark bird, take it."

'And, as a fellow comrade of the abyss, it is only natural that we be fated rivals!' Kuroiro internally rationalized.

"Hell yeah!" Sato fist-pumped. "It worked!"

"Bird brain's under our control now!" Tetsutetsu added in.

Overhearing the young men, both Yanagi and Kodai's eyes widened in realization.

"This must be Kuroiro-san's doing." Yanagi deduced.

"Kuroiro?" Shoji repeated.

"He's capable of moving and merging himself in anything that's dark." Kodai said calmly. "He must've been hiding in Kaibara's clothing…and taken possession of your classmate's shadow after he struck him."

"That's not good…" Shoji was starting to get worried.

It was bad enough that Todoroki had gone rogue, and now Tokoyami's Dark Shadow was compromised? If things didn't change fast, they'd be eliminated shortly!

"I'm going…to…strike! LOOK OUT!" Dark Shadow balls its fists together and prepared to bring them down on the fort, specifically the spot where the six Nodes were stashed.

"Dark Shadow, no!" Tokoyami cried out.

Then, without warning, a mass of vines suddenly entangled themselves around the enlarged fort and blocked Dark Shadow's strike.

"No need to worry, my compatriots." A familiar haughty voice called out. "Your savior has arrived."

---

Moments Earlier…

The Green Team's offenders were still locked in a stalemate against the Red Team's defense. Shiozaki's vine fortress was proving to be too difficult to overcome. Though Ashido's acid could melt through the vines, Shiozaki rapidly grew more to replace the ones she lost.

Tokage and Sero were having little luck from the air as well. In short, the Red Team's defenses were ironclad.

"We're not getting anywhere here." Sero called out, still suspended in the air thanks to Tokage's floating arm. He glanced over to her detached head floating nearby. "You said that Monoma jerk could make a distraction for us."

"Well, to be fair, I said 'if it works out' that he could—"

The greenette was cut off by Present Mic's loud voice. "And just like that Green Team scores the first points by delivering their Red HVI!"

"Ha! That smug d**che pulled it off!" Tokage cheered.

Jiro was surprised. "How the heck did they get past Awase and the vines?!"

Standing behind her, with her head bowed and hands clasped together in prayer, Shiozaki responded. "My most sincere apologies. But the vines covering our safe haven were detached, outside of my control." Her bottom lip quivered. "...I was unaware of an intruder…"

"It's alright!" Yaoyorozu ceased firing, creating more cartridges full of paste from her exposed abdomen. "It's no one's fault. Let's just regroup and–"

WAM!

The Red Team's fort suddenly shook, causing Yaoyorozu and Jiro to stagger to their knees while Shiozaki kept herself upright using her vine-hair.

"What was that?!"

Shiozaki uttered, eyes widening. "It can't be…"

"What's happening, Shiozaki-san?" Yaoyorozu returned to her feet, reclaiming her rifle.

"My vines… They're coming up against… more vines?"

Sure enough, a mass of pale-green vines were wrapping and tussling against Shiozaki's darker vibrant green vines. The audience looked on in awed confusion at the spectacle.

Monoma nonchalantly strolled away from the Red Team's safe zone with a sh*t-eating grin plastered on his face. Shockingly, all of the pale vines were sprouting out of his head.

"Monoma-san!?" Shiozaki gasped in realization.

"Monoma?" Jiro was confused.

"He has the ability to copy other's Quirks."

"That would've been useful to know." Jiro murmured dryly.

"Forgive me…" Shiozaki bowed her head apologetically.

Meanwhile, Monoma's copied version of Shiozaki's Quirk spread out across the Red Team's green fortifications and started to pull and wrestle against it. "Your Quirk truly is a blessing, Shiozaki-san. Which is why I'll be taking it for the time being." Monoma declared snidely.

Shiozaki narrowed her gaze. "Wretched sinner! You will not prosper!"

Everyone watched on as the green foliage tousled and ripped each other apart, resulting in gaps to finally appear in the Red Team's defenses.

"Now's our chance!" Tokage shouted out. "Move in!"

"Right!" The other Green Team offenders yelled.

Still carrying Sero, Tokage's detached body parts descended from above. Their targets were the four Nodes that were now partially revealed behind the green barrier's gaps.

"Incredible! In a shocking turn of events, the Green Team is finally breaking the stalemate against the Red Team's defense–OH WAIT!?"

Tokage was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts.

"What's this!? The Green Team's territory is sinking into the earth?!"

"What?!" Tokage stopped and looked back.

Much to her shock, the ground on the Green side had been turned into mud. From the distance, she could see her teammates struggling.

"Huh?! What the heck's going on over there!" Ashido exclaimed, surprised.

Shishida's eyes widened behind his glasses. "Honenuki… Of course. I should've suspected this. Curses!" He clenched his fists angrily.

"Red Team strikes first, folks!" Present Mic continued. "They've taken out one of the Green Team's Nodes!"

Aizawa added in. "Green Team will lose even more if they don't regroup…and quickly."

"Aizawa-sensei's right! We need to help them!" Asui shouted.

Tokage looked frantically between her sinking territory and the Red Team's compromised vine fort. The Nodes were right there!

"Tokage!" Sero shouted out to her. "We need to fall back!"

"I know, but–"

"Red Team destroys another Node, earning them an additional 10 points and–Oh wait! Red Team has just delivered their Green HVI. That's another 15 points tallied to their score! Green and Red are now tied for second!"

Tokage panicked. 'Are you freaking serious!?' She looked back and was surprised to see their fort growing in size, likely Kodai using her Quirk to keep it from fully sinking in the mud.

"Hey, Tokage-san, I'm sure you've heard already, but we're in a pickle here! We need backup ASAP!" Shoji reported into her left ear. She had left it behind in case of emergencies.

Well… This definitely counted as an emergency.

Tokage shook her head. "Alright, everyone! Fallback!" She commanded. "Our teammates need us!"

The Green Team offenders didn't argue and immediately retreated back to the Red-Green border.

"Tsk!" Monoma clicked his tongue, annoyed. "Just when I was about to have the spotlight on me…" He then exhaled heavily. "Well, at least it's my classmates who are causing trouble and receiving the accolades." He assured himself.

With that, Monoma detached the pale-green vines from his head and immediately sprinted for the border. Shiozaki's vines were so focused on overwhelming the invading vines that Monoma and the other Green members were ignored as they promptly retreated.

"They're retreating." A victorious grin crossed Jiro's face. "Looks like your plan worked."

Yaoyorozu simply nodded. "So far." She then turned her gaze on the large ice wall. "However… I am worried about the status of our comrades on the Blue side."

"Have you tried contacting them?" Jiro asked.

Yaoyorozu nodded. "I have. But no one has responded as of yet, and Bakugo-san refused to accept an earpiece." She gestured to the communication earbud in her left ear.

"Mic-sensei did mention that they had fallen earlier." Shiozaki sadly pointed out.

"That's true…but he stated that Midoriya had only defeated four. That still leaves one unaccounted for. If it were Bakugo though, we'd be hearing more explosions going off. So who…?" Yaoyorozu tapped her chin contemplatively. 'Izuku… What are you planning? How could you have convinced Todoroki to form an ice wall around your border?'

---

Meanwhile, Midoriya and Shinso and the opponents under the latter's control were standing atop the ice barrier. Shinso had ordered Todoroki to form a pillar to take them to the top, akin to an elevator. Midoriya knelt down and keenly observed the battle between the Green and Red Teams.

"Gotta give Yaomomo credit. She came up with a solid plan to handicap the Green Team." Midoriya commented. 'She must've anticipated that Bakugo and Todoroki would go rogue, which is why she's focused on eliminating the Green Team first before fully focusing on us. Clever girl.'

He watched as the Green Team retreated to aid their defenders. 'Still though… Had Todoroki not gone rogue, Green Team could've easily overcome this assault and wouldn't have lost any points.'

Midoriya was mildly surprised to see the blonde from Class 101-B, Monoma Neito, had vines growing out of his head like the Class 101-B girl, Shiozaki Ibara. They didn't share the same Quirk, did they? Perhaps Monoma had the ability to copy it?

He watched as the vines rapidly grew and spread out across the muddy terrain, weaving themselves into solid ground that allowed the other Green members to run across. The vines climbed up the Green Team's fort to cover the structure, shielding it from a devastating blow by Dark Shadow.

Midoriya rubbed his chin. 'Strange. There's plenty of light out here for Tokoyami to be in control of Dark Shadow. The Red Team must've found a way to possess it then. Meta-Abilities these days never cease to amaze me…'

The war veteran keenly analyzed the battle below, noting that Green Team's six remaining Nodes were stored in their fort–shielded by the vines Monoma had produced.

"That guy with the vine-head is turning the tide in Green Team's favor." Shinso pointed out.

"Yeah." Midoriya nodded and stood up. "Let's shake things up. Deploy the Reds."

The Brainwash-user smirked slyly. "I like your style, soldier boy." He then turned to four specific people. "You four! Listen up! I got tasks for you."

---

"I'm going…to…strike! LOOK OUT!" Dark Shadow balls its fists together and prepared to bring them down on the fort, specifically the spot where the six Nodes were stashed.

"Dark Shadow, no!" Tokoyami cried out.

Then, without warning, a mass of vines suddenly entangled themselves around the enlarged fort and blocked Dark Shadow's strike.

"No need to worry, my compatriots." A familiar haughty voice called out. "Your savior has arrived."

Shoji, Kodai, and Yanagi were surprised to see Monoma being held up in the air by tendrils of pale-green vines. The tendrils reached out carefully wrapped around the trio to set them down on the ground, which now had a layer of woven vines to prevent them from sinking.

"Monoma-san, you copied Shiozaki's Quirk." Kodai nodded. "Good choice."

"The Green Team regroups in just the nick of time! Class 101-B Monoma's ability to copy others' Quirks is on full display! But will it be enough to overcome the assault on their territory?"

"HRAGH!" Dark Shadow yelled as it uses its clawed hands to rip into the viney fortification. Tendrils lashed out at the sentient shadow trying to keep it at bay.

"Shoji!" The multi-appendaged student was nearly freaked out to see Tokage's detached mouth floating next to him. "What's the situation? Why's Dark Shadow going crazy?"

"Apparently the Red Team has someone who can merge with darkness. He's taken control of Dark Shadow." He responded.

'We need someone to shine some light on him then. Too bad Aoyama didn't get past the Prelims. Really could've used that Naval Laser of his.' Tokage mused.

"There's no need to fret." Monoma announced, his grin somehow becoming smugger. He gestured to the side where Honenuki and Kaibara were lifted out of the ground. Both were wrapped in vines with their arms pinned against their sides. Kaibara tried to drill himself free, but suddenly found himself wrapped in a strong interwoven ball of vines. "With these two restrained, we can easily take back control."

"Crap! They got Honenuki-san and Kaibara-san!" Tetsutetsu yelled.

"C'mon! We gotta help 'em!" Sato added.

"RAGGH!" The muscled duo was suddenly taken aback when Shishida came charging at them; his body nearly tripled in size. "Roaring Rage!" Leaping into the air, the monstrous Shishida sent Tetsutetsu and Sato flying through the air with a swipe of his claws.

At the last second, Sato had bulked up while Tetsutetsu covered his body in steel to shield themselves from serious harm. However, the incredible force behind Shishida's attack sent them careening back towards the border.

With Honenuki and Kaibara currently restrained and Tetsutetsu and Sato sent flying, that left only one Red Team invader to deal with.

Tokage shouted out. "Everyone! Let's lend a hand in dealing with Dark Shadow!"

KA-BOOM!

An explosion suddenly erupted in the Green territory; specifically, near the fort. Dark Shadow cried out as the light and force behind the explosion caused him to recoil and sent him careening back. Tokoyami painfully grunted as he rolled on his front, unconscious.

"AGH!" Taking the blunt of the explosion, Kuroiro un-merged from Dark Shadow and went limp on the ground as the lights went out.

Monoma was startled by the explosion just enough for him to have a brief lapse in concentration, resulting in loosening his hold on Honenuki and Kaibara. Honenuki swiftly acted by pulling his arm free and liquifying the vines around him, allowing him to fall safely to his feet. He stepped over to the vines restraining Kaibara and softened them too, allowing the Gyrate user to free himself.

"Thanks, man!" Kaibara said appreciatively.

"Don't thank me." Honenuki pointed up. "Thank him."

"An explosion is unleashed upon the Green side! Could it be–?!"

The smoke cleared to reveal Bakugo standing atop the fort, holding onto the flagpole waving a triangular green flag. However, he wasn't yelling nor did he have a scowl etched onto his face. He was quiet and his countenance was blank.

It was surreal for the Class 101-A members of the Green Team.

"It's the Red Team's Bakugo Katsuki!"

"The heck's he doing here?" Kaibara cocked a brow. "I thought he was going after the Blue Team?!"

"No clue." Honenuki calmly replied. "But he ruined our plan by blasting Dark Shadow."

"That dumba**!" Kaibara snapped.

"Hold on, we have an announcement by Miss Midnight!"

Activating her microphone, Midnight yelled, "Injury timeout! Green Team's Tokoyami Fumikage and Red Team's Kuroiro Shihai are injured and unconscious. They are being pulled from the event for their safety! Please pause the game timer!"

With that, two pairs of medical robots rolled onto the field, hugging the arena wall, and placed the two men on stretchers and proceeded to take them to the medical ward. The two men received rounds of applause from the audience.

Tokage winced at the sight. 'Hope he's alright. Still… Losing Tokoyami is a big blow.'

Once the robots disappeared in the tunnel, Midnight declared, "With the injured escorted away, let the game resume!"

The event timer resumed counting down.

"Losing Tokoyami is certainly a blow for the Green Team, and now they have Bakugo to worry about!" Mic continued. "Wait! He's not alone!"

Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamikiri suddenly jumped down from the ice wall and landed on the vine-covered ground, which absorbed most of their fall akin to a trampoline. The trio immediately stood up and spread out across the territory.

"Huh?!" Kirishima perked up. "What the heck are those guys doing here?!"

"Why are they attacking us all of a sudden?!" Ashido cried out, frantic.

"Kero. It's an ambush." Asui answered plainly.

"Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamikiri of the Red Team are also here! What is going on!? Weren't they attacking the Blue Team earlier?!" Present Mic sounded confused. "Shota! Help me out here!"

"No. I'd rather not ruin the surprise." Aizawa grumbled into his microphone. "Besides, if you go through the files for Blue Team's Quirks right in front of you, it's not hard to determine what happened."

"I don't have time to read! Stop keeping us in suspense and just tell us!" Mic argued.

"Later."

"C'mon, Red Team!" Kaibara called out. "Their Nodes are in the fort! Let's work together and finish them off!"

"Right!" Tetsutetsu, Sato, and Honenuki replied. Bakugo, Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamikiri did not respond but continued to attack.

With that, the Red Team's invaders pressed onward and charged towards the fort.

Tokage bared her teeth angrily. 'Now I get it! The Red Team's initial assault on the Blue Team was a red herring. To cover up for this ambush. Yaomomo's trying to take us out first!'

"Everyone, defend the fort!" Tokage commanded.

From there, the Green territory descended into chaos.

---

Yaoyorozu keenly gazed at the Green Team's territory with a pair of binoculars she had created.

"Okay, I'm stumped. What the heck's going on over there?" Jiro turned to the ravenette heiress. "Did you order them to ambush the Green side or something?"

"No…" Yaoyorozu lowered the binoculars, looking confused. She tapped her communication-earpiece. "Kendo-san, do you read me?"

No response.

"Ojiro-san?... Kamakiri-san?"

No response.

"Why aren't they responding?" Jiro wondered. "We can clearly see them over there."

"And your other classmate, Iida-san, isn't with them. There is deception of some kind in the air." Shiozaki sounded suspicious.

Yaoyorozu furrowed her brows thoughtfully. "I believe you may be right, Shiozaki-san…"

'Izuku, what did you do? What are you planning?' She wracked her brain for possibilities.

---

"Green Team's defenses are holding steady for now! But how long can they hold out against the Red Team's onslaught?" Mic announced, sounding curious.

Tetsutetsu and Sato challenged Kirishima and Shishida respectively.

Kendo was using basic fighting moves against Shoji, who grew multiple arms to block and parry her blows. He was weirded by the fact that she had a weird emotionless expression on her face though.

Yanagi was using her telekinesis to keep Kaibara suspended in the air while Tokage, Sero, Asui, Kodai, and Ashido focused on defending the fort from anyone else.

Feeling fatigued, Tokage reattached her body parts to momentarily rest and reset her Quirk. 'This isn't going well! We're losing ground!'

Near the top of the enlarged fort, Monoma was trying to keep Bakugo at bay.

"You…are…annoyingly…persistent." Monoma panted heavily. He was concentrating hard on using vines to block Bakugo's unrelenting explosions. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but the ash-blonde was proving difficult to handle. Fire and plants naturally didn't mix very well. The fact his copied vines were becoming weaker due to his own dehydration also didn't bode well.

Bakugo was unresponsive to anything Monoma said so far. He used his explosions to propel himself away from Monoma's vines and back towards the fort only for more vines to intercept him, wrapping around his waist.

"Curious… I…heard…you were…quite mouthy…in battle." Monoma commented. 'His expression is also weirding me out. What's going on here?'

Then, Bakugo robotically held out both arms in Monoma's direction and ignited his palms.

KA–BOOM!

The ash-blonde unleashed an explosion far more powerful than his previous ones. The fiery force completely overwhelmed Monoma's vines and sent the Copy-user crashing to the ground below. Additionally, the vines protecting the fort also burst into flames. Making matters worse, one of the six Nodes stashed inside had been damaged by the shockwave.

The scoreboard then updated.

Blue: 120

Red: 85

Green: 65

"Bakugo unleashes a massive explosion that has set the Green Team's fort ablaze! I can confirm that one of their Nodes has been lost! With that, the Red Team breaks the tie and claims second place!" Mic's voice blared through the speakers. "Is this the end of the Green Team!?"

The crowd watched with bated breath.

Bakugo himself was sent careening back by the explosive force, his eyes and countenance suddenly snapping back to normal. "Huh?! What the fu—OOF?!" He couldn't complete his exclamation as he crashed into the vine-laced ground.

The Green Team immediately shifted their attention to their burning fort.

"Sh*t!" Tokage cursed, splitting her body apart. "Everyone, we need to–"

All of a sudden, the vines on the fort that were not ablaze became viscous, turning into a green gooey sludge.

Honenuki was standing by the base of the enlarged base with his hands on it. "Hehehe!" He snickered. "It's over, Green!"

The fort's structure slowly leaned and was on the verge of collapsing…with all five of the remaining Nodes stashed inside.

"NO!" Tokage cried out, horrified.

Just when it seemed over for the Green Team, a surge of ice suddenly expanded across the vine-laced ground–completely bypassing the Green Team members. The ice sheet rapidly grew up the towering fort and extinguished the flames while simultaneously solidifying the structure.

"What a surprise, people! Todoroki has stopped building barriers and obstacles for the Blue Team and has returned to save his team from the brink of elimination!" Present Mic yelled out.

"Impeccable timing." Aizawa dryly remarked.

"SHOTO! IT'S ABOUT TIME!" Endeavor shouted, melting the railing in his grasp. "NOW STOP EMBARRASSING YOURSELF AND SHOW THEM WHAT YOU CAN DO!"

Todoroki did not react.

"SHOOOOTOOOOOO!"

"What a supportive father Endeavor is." Mic cheekily remarked.

"C-c-c-crap…!" Honenuki shivered madly, his legs and feet were trapped in ice.

Tokage blinked twice, stunned by Todoroki's sudden arrival. 'Pretty Boy sure has a crappy sense of timing.' Shaking her head, the greenette immediately refocused on the situation. "Yanagi-san! Sero-san! Help me get our Nodes out! Everyone else, cover us!"

"On it!" After trapping Ojiro in several rounds of tape and kicking him aside, Sero sprinted back to the fort.

"Huh…?" Ojiro looked around, dumbfounded. "What?"

Yanagi nodded as she telekinetically comically tossed Kaibara into Kamikiri, sending the pair tumbling across the ground. She turned and started running toward the fort.

"Ugh…!" Kamikiri groaned, his expression returning to normal. "The hell…?!"

"RRRAAAGGHHH!" Shishida roared viciously. With a swipe of his arm, the hairy brute sent both Tetsutetsu and Sato flying back.

Shoji avoided a roundhouse kick to his head and wrapped multiple arms around Kendo's leg. He lifted her up and spun around to toss her away.

Kendo bounced off the ground a few times before settling on her back. "Agh… My head? Huh…?" She shakily sat up, looking around at the battle unfolding around in confusion. "What's going on?"

Meanwhile, Honenuki tried to pull himself free from the ice his hands and feet were trapped in…until it hit him. "Oh wait… What am I doing?" Activating his Softening Quirk, he drastically reduced the viscosity of the ice and pulled himself free, though his appendages were still burning from the cold. "There. Okay, let's try this–OOF!"

A sharp pain flared up his neck as his eyes rolled back and collapsed forward, knocked out. The cause was a karate chop from Tokage's floating hand.

'That guy's too much of a risk. Better to take him out immediately.' Tokage rationalized. She then returned her attention to pulling their five remaining Nodes out of the compromised fort.

"Ugh…" Meanwhile, Bakugo sat up as he rubbed his right shoulder, wincing from the sharp pain. 'Damn! Did I overdo it or something?'

His gaze then shifted to the right where Todoroki was slowly walking away from him.

"HEY! Icy-Hot!" Bakugo yelled. "What happened? Why are we over here!?"

Todoroki didn't respond, continuing to stroll forward.

Bakugo growled, baring his teeth. "DON'T IGNORE ME!"

Todoroki then stopped, remaining momentarily motionless. Bakugo cocked a brow. What was he doing?

Exhaling a breath of chilled air, the dual-haired young man placed his right foot forward. Giant spikes of ice suddenly burst out of the ground and surged forward! The ice plowed through the earth and extended into the Red Team's territory.

Yaoyorozu gasped in alarm. "Shiozaki!"

Shiozaki immediately acted by erecting a massive wall of vines to block the ice. "Faith's Shield!" The green barrier impeded the ice for only a brief moment before the vines were frozen solid and shattered.

That moment, however, gave Jiro enough time to plug her jacks into the speakers on her legs. "Heartbeat Wall!" The purplette channeled her heartbeat to create a powerful soundwave that shattered a portion of the ice. However, the icy wall was too big and moving too fast to stop completely as it tore through Red Team's vine barrier like paper.

In the process, one of the Nodes had been destroyed by an ice spike.

"Moments after saving his team from elimination, Todoroki plows through the Red Team's defenses and takes out a Node!" Present Mic exclaimed. "Green and Red are once again tied!"

Cheers increased throughout the stadium at the exciting display of power.

The scoreboard updated again.

Blue: 120

Red: 75

Green: 75

After evacuating the Nodes from their fort, Tokage paused to analyze her team's situation. Thanks to Todoroki's arrival, her team had regained its momentum and managed to land a blow against the Red Team. She decided it was time to take full advantage of this momentum. 'If Yaomomo wants a fight, she'll get one!'

"Everyone, listen up! We're attacking the Red Team!"

The team–sans Todoroki–looked at their mossy-head leader.

"Kero. Setsuna-chan, are you sure that's–"

"I'm in!" Kirishima exclaimed, cutting off Asui. "No more playing defense! Let's crush 'em!"

"Heck yeah!" Ashido glared defiantly at the Red side. "They'll pay for trying to mess with us!"

Shoji formed a mouth on one of his tentacles. "I won't lie… It'd be nice to put the pressure on them for a change." The mouth grinned creepily.

"Ergh…" Monoma picked himself off the ground, charred vines falling off his head and revealed his disheveled blonde hair. "Count me in."

"RRAAGGHH!" Shishida roared while pounding his big, hairy chest. "CRUSH RED TEAM!"

"You go ahead." Yanagi spoke up. "Kodai-chan and I will stay to guard the Nodes we have…"

Tokage nodded in acknowledgment. "Roger! Alright, let's move!"

"RIGHT!"

With that, the Green Team offenders mobilized and charged towards the Red Team's border.

"Crap…" Kaibara grimaced. "Red Team, fallback!"

Kaibara, Tetsutetsu, Sato, Kendo, Ojiro, and Kamikiri listened and retreated back to their territory.

"I don't even know what's happening!" Kamikiri shouted angrily. "What happened?! Why are we on the Green side?!"

"Join the club." Ojiro added, frowning. "But I think that purple-haired guy had something to do with it!"

"Later!" Kendo yelled back. "Right now we need to regroup with the others!"

From there, the Red Team retreated back to their side as the Green Team charged forward.

"The battle between the Greens and Red is reignited! With just over seven minutes remaining, who will win?" Mic hyped up.

Aizawa sighed heavily. "You're forgetting about the elephant in the room."

"What elephant?"

"Nothing. You can find out for yourself."

"C'mon man!"

---

Midoriya and Shinso knelt at the edge of the ice wall, looking down on the ensuing battle between the Red and Green Teams. The super-soldier was currently pointing out a couple of students of interest to the Brainwash-user.

"Hmm." Shinso hummed, nodding. "I understand. Although, if the guys on the Red Team see me, they'll come after me. Particularly the angry Pomeranian."

"I'll keep the heat off you." Midoriya assured him. "That way you can focus on doing your part."

Shinso nodded in understanding, and then looked back down. They had to be over sixty meters (~200 feet) in the air. "By the way, I'm not sure if this Jet Pack can hold us both. So how do you wanna–"

"I'll manage." Without warning, the verdette crouched down and leapt off the ledge. Doing a couple of spins, he dove to the ground.

The indigo-haired teen sighed. "Dammit… That was cool." Activating the Jet Pack, Shinso flew off the wall and descended toward the battlefield.

It was time to sow some more discord!

"Oy! Icy-Hot!" Bakugo called out. "You think you can ignore me and take away my points!?" His palms crackled with mini-explosions. "I'll kill–" His rant was cut off when Midoriya suddenly dropped and rolled over ten meters (~30 feet) away from him. The verdette immediately popped back up to his feet and glanced at the ash-blonde.

A coy smirk crossed Midoriya's face as he gave Bakugo a lazy salute before running away in the opposite direction.

Bakugo bared his teeth, his temple throbbing madly. "Midoriya…" He snarled.

"HRAGHH!" Ignoring the pain in his right shoulder, Bakugo launched himself in pursuit of the super-soldier. "GET BACK HERE! I'LL KILL YOU!"

As Bakugo proceeded to chase down Midoriya, Shinso flew in and landed near the Green Team's compromised fort. There was a person there of interest that he really wanted to talk to.

"Hey." Shinso shook the student. "Are you doing okay there, friend? Need any assistance?"

The student was roused from sleep. "Huh? Yeah… Um, who are—" His brainwashing took immediate effect.

"Glad you're okay. Because I have a mission for you, pal." Shinso grinned smugly.

---

As Midoriya, Shinso, and the brainwashed group disappeared over the ice wall, Iida decided it was time to act!

'Now's my chance!' The blue-haired young man swiftly popped up to his feet and dashed forward.

"Wait! Hold on, folks! The Red Team's Iida Tenya is back on his feet!" Present Mic sounded surprised.

"He wasn't as knocked out as we thought." Aizawa commented.

Iida navigated around and in-between the rocks and glaciers spanning the Blue territory. He could see the safe zone in the distance, and there were a few Nodes in his path too! He just needed to be quick!

"Thunder Horn!"

A barrage of lyre-shaped horns suddenly rained down on the ground in front of him. This forced Iida to dive to the right, narrowly avoiding the bombardment. He rolled head-over-heels a few times before returning to his feet.

"Tsunotori!?"

Tsunotori flew into view on a pair of her horns, wearing a confident grin. "Izuku warned us you may be playing possum!" She hopped off her horns and landed on top of a nearby boulder. "You're too earnest to fool us!"

"I'll concede that." Iida broke out into a sprint, trying to avoid the horn salvo Tsunotori was firing at him.

"Iida is now on the run from Class 101-A's Tsunotori Pony! And with no backup, the poor guy's on his own in enemy territory!"

Iida looked ahead to see a couple of Nodes positioned nearby. 'If I can be quick about it…' Increasing running speed, he aimed his trajectory toward the silver barrels. Tsunotori had anticipated this and aimed for the area in front of Iida, forcing him to make a sudden sharp turn and avoid the ankle-breaking obstacles.

"Sorry, Iida-kun! No way are we letting you nab our points!" Tsunotori exclaimed determinedly.

"I admire your resolve… But you'll find that I am not one to give up either!" Iida strongly declared.

Shifting his target to several other Nodes, Iida performed a zigzag maneuver to avoid Tsunotori's horns. His ability to make sharp turns was put to the test as he narrowly dodged the horns being shot at him.

'I have to make this quick, I'll have to–' He gasped when he spotted several boulders flying toward his location.

The young man came to an immediate stop, sliding on his heels and falling on his rear. Much to Iida's surprise, the bounders fell injunction to form two makeshift walls on either side of him.

Near the Castle Node, Uraraka grinned proudly to herself as she rested her hands on her knees. 'I did it! Izuku was right about working on my aim when throwing stuff.'

Iida stood back up and turned to see Tsunotori blocking the exit with four horns hovering behind her, ready to fire. He then studied the boulders around him to see they were too jagged and high for him to attempt scaling over. Looking at the other end, he saw Kaminari blocking the path with peculiar equipment strapped onto his feet and arms.

"Nowhere to run, dude." He held up a hand with electricity cracking off of it.

Iida remained calm and looked past Kaminari and the makeshift rock walls to spot a Node positioned off to the side. Beyond that he could see the Blue territory's safe zone near the arena wall. It had to be at least 60 meters away though.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha!" Mad cackling snapped Iida out of his thoughts. "What do we have here!?"

He titled his head up to see Hatsume flying toward him via a pair of boots discharging bluish-white light from the soles. Additionally, she was wielding an intricate pistol with a funnel-like muzzle. "It looks like target practice for my super-cute Capture Gun!" Pulling the trigger, a metal cartridge fired out and suddenly expanded into a wide net.

Iida immediately reacted by diving to his left, barely avoiding the capture net as it hit the spot where he had been standing.

"Quick reflexes, Legs!" Hatsume took aim again. "But I won't miss again!"

"Sorry, Iida-kun, but it's over!" Tsunotori shouted.

"Iida is pinned from both sides! Is this the end for the Red Team's speedster?!" Present Mic hyped up.

Looking between the incoming attacks on both sides, Iida realized what he had to do. Focusing on his engines, he reeved them up well over his regular limits, positioning his legs to achieve maximum lift.

'To have any chance of advancing…I have to go beyond!'

Midoriya's words echoed in his mind. "One moment is all it takes… One moment to rise to a challenge… To conquer a flaw… One selfless moment is all it takes for anyone to be a Hero."

Hatsume pulled the Capture Gun's trigger while Tsunotori shot her horns forward.

Iida's expression became determined. 'This is my moment! My moment to help my team achieve victory!'

"Recipro… BURST!" With blue flames shooting out of his mufflers, Iida blasted forward at an incredibly fast speed. He moved so quickly that he outran Tsunotori's horns and Hatsume's capture net.

Kaminari had no time to react as Iida zoomed past him within the blink of an eye. He was like a bullet!

Not bothering to slow down, Iida collided into the Node and completely destroyed it–reducing it to scrap. The impact hardly slowed him down as he continued speeding forward. Within a few seconds, Iida crossed the distance and arrived at the safe zone.

"At this speed…no one can catch me." Iida pulled out his team's Blue HVI and dropped it on the platform.

"Oh my goodness!" Present Mic could barely be heard over the excited screams of the audience. "Iida blitzes his attackers and manages to take out a Node AND delivers the Red Team's Blue HVI! Shota, did you know your student could run so fast!?"

"Iida pushed his Quirk past his limits, granting him a short burst of incredible speed. But it looks like he'll be out of commission for a while."

Tsunotori, Kaminari, and Uraraka were dumbstruck.

"Whoa…" Uraraka breathed out, amazed. "I had no Iida could move that fast."

"Holy crap…" Kaminari was equally surprised. "The dude was holding out on us."

"Shoot…" Tsunotori deflated. "We lost a Node."

The electric blonde looked back at her, grinning confidently. "Hey, don't worry about it! We still have the lead. Besides," he gave her a thumbs-up, "we'll make up for those 10 points soon."

Tsunotori blinked before regaining her determined smile. "Right!"

The scoreboards across the stadium were updated.

Blue: 110

Red: 100

Green: 75

"Even so, thanks to Iida's efforts, the Red Team has reached the triple digits club and are only ten points away from tying first place. With just over five minutes remaining, can the Blue Team maintain their lead? Or is another team destined for a dramatic upset? Don't you dare look away, dear viewers!"

Iida promptly collapsed to his hands and knees, wincing. Black smoke poured out of his Engine mufflers. The strain of his Engines stalling was never a pleasant feeling.

"I hate to reveal that move so soon…but at least I aided my team." Iida panted slightly. 'A shame I could only destroy one Node though.'

POW!

Iida was surprised when he suddenly found himself trapped in a capture net. He tried to wiggle himself free, but it only further entangled him.

"Wow!" Hatsume flew in and landed right by him. She pocketed her Capture Gun on her utility belt, looking down at him with a maniacal grin. "That was an incredible move!"

Iida was perturbed when she suddenly leaned down and invaded his personal space. "You should stop by the Support Department and let me study your legs!" Her eyes brightened. "The babies I could make for you!"

Iida was utterly aghast, his face turning beet red. "P-P-Pardon!?"

---

"COME BACK HERE, YOU COWARD!" Bakugo raged, firing off various explosions that tore apart the earth.

Midoriya demonstrated expert acrobatic skills while out maneuvering the angry Pomeranian's blasts. 'That's right. Focus on me, Short Fuse.' After doing a somersault, the verdette resumed dashing forward.

As he ran away, Midoriya didn't miss Present Mic and Aizawa's announcement of Iida taking out a Node while delivering his team's Blue HVI. 'He managed to get past our defenses, huh? Must've been moving very fast for the others to miss.' Despite losing some points, the veteran couldn't help but grin a little. 'Well done, Tenya.'

Avoiding another explosion, Midoriya started zigzagging between the multiple fights that had broken out across the Red-Green border.

To use the term very loosely, it was a warzone. Neither Green nor Red had a distinct advantage over the other. When it seemed like one team had gained the momentum, the other would motivate each other and regain ground. Aside from the desire to retaliate, there was another reason the Green and Red fights were escalating.

"AGH!" Tetsutetsu staggered back and fell on his rear, receiving a strong right hook from Kirishima. "Dammit!"

"Hey! You okay there, man?" Tetsutetsu turned to an unfamiliar guy with messy indigo hair kneeling by him. "Need a hand?"

"Nah, bro! I'll be–" Tetsutetsu stopped, his eyes glazing over.

"Still wanna go another round, bro!" Kirishima charged forward, his full-body Hardening activated. "I'm game!"

"Hold on!" Shinso held out his hand. "I think the guy needs a sec."

Kirishima skidded to a stop. "Oh really? Did I hit him–" He stopped as his expression went blank.

Shinso smiled wryly. "Never mind. You both can continue beating each other senseless." He turned and ran away.

Tetsutetsu and Kirishima robotically walked toward each other and resumed their fight, albeit at a slower pace. When the Hardening and Steel-users landed solid haymakers, they were promptly snapped out of their daze.

"HUH?! What happened?! YOU?! Why are you attacking me?! I didn't attack you! STOP COPYING ME!" From there, Kirishima and Tetsutetsu resumed their brawl.

"HRRAGGHH!" Still in his Beast form, Shishida showcased his incredible strength by overpowering Sato and sending him flying. "DESTROY RED!"

"Impressive strength, Sasquatch." Shishida turned to see Shinso standing close by, looking nonchalant. "Looks like your IQ drops when you bulk up, huh?"

"RAWWWW! CRUSH LITTLE–" Shishida went limp as his expression went blank.

"Don't mind me. Just continue attacking everyone in front of you." Shinso then ran away.

Obeying the command, Shishida robotically ran on all-fours toward the student in front of him, which happened to be Ojiro.

"Seriously?!" Ojiro used his tail to push himself out of Shishida's path, but the brainwashed beast was still too quick as he latched onto the tail. "Oh no…" Ojiro was then repeatedly slammed into the ground like a ragdoll before being roughly tossed to the side.

The poor Tail-user couldn't seem to catch a break today.

Shishida then continued his rampage by attacking other students around him, whether they were Red or Green.

---

At the Red Team's fort, Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and Shiozaki were focusing all of their attention on holding back Todoroki's ice. The scarred face teen was periodically sending wave after wave of ice surges at the fort. Shiozaki and Jiro were doing their best to stave off the glaciers with their vines and soundwaves respectively; however, both young women were starting to feel overwhelmed.

This, however, provided Tokage and Ashido with the perfect cover to enact their own plan.

"Ready, Mina-chan?" Tokage asked while flying over the Red Team's vine fortress.

"Ready!" The pinkette chirped while being held up in the air by Tokage's arms. "Let's bring the Acid Rain!" Extending both arms, Ashido sprayed a torrent of highly corrosive acid that dissolved the vine-ramparts on contact while producing a nauseous smell. The acid continued to burn through the vines until making contact with a Node hidden on the ground.

Moments later, the barrel's aluminum plating started to pit and corrode away.

"And just as soon as they arrived, the bouncers Tokage Setsuna and Ashido Mina kick the Red Team out of the triple digits club!" Present Mic stated.

"Tokage and Ashido took advantage of the stress that Todoroki is exerting on the Red Team's defenses." Aizawa observed. "Good teamwork on their part. But they should be careful about using that particular move in the future."

'Geez… Can't catch a break with Aizawa, can we?' Tokage and Ashido sweat-dropped.

The scoreboards across the arena were updated.

Blue: 110

Red: 90

Green: 85

Shiozaki's eyes narrowed. "Vile wolves!" She regrew the vines killed by Ashido's acid and wanted to lash out at them, but was forced to remake another wall to block Todoroki's ice surge. Yaoyorozu then stepped and held out her airsoft gun, firing a couple rounds.

The rounds burst in midair to release a cloud of pepper spray. Tokage was swift enough to maneuver away from the nasty cloud and fallback with Ashido in tow.

"Nice work, Mina!" Tokage praised. "Now we just have to take out the other two."

"That'll still leave us with less points than the Blue Team, yeah?" Ashido asked.

"Yeah, but only by five points. Once we eliminate the Red Team, we'll only have to take out one of the Blue Team's Nodes and we'll be the winners!" Tokage declared, grinning toothily.

'I guess, but…' Ashido glanced at the ice barrier separating the Blue Team's territory from the other teams. '...why do I have an uneasy feeling?'

Meanwhile, Shiozaki was starting to breathe heavily, sweat forming on her brow. "It is…becoming difficult…to grow more…vines… Lord." She prayed, closing her eyes. "Please give me strength…"

Jiro discharged another soundwave to shatter an ice surge. "We can't hold Todoroki-san off for much longer! Why aren't the others trying to stop him!?"

"They're caught up in their own battles. But it's alright." Yaoyorozu's stomach glowed with rainbow-colored light as she produced a cartridge and placed it inside her airsoft rifle's chamber. "This will end Todoroki-san's siege."

Taking aim, Yaoyorozu pulled the trigger. The cartridge flew across the battlefield and struck the ground right in front of Todoroki, igniting into a miniature conflagration. The force sent the bi-haired young man flying off his feet and tumbling across the ground.

Rolling to a stop, a pained groan escaped Todoroki's mouth. As his eyes returned to normal and his vision refocused, he was met by the blue sky above and surrounded by the cacophony of fighting and the cheering crowd.

Todoroki slowly sat up, blinking to clear his dazed mind. 'What…? Where…?'

Midnight smiled to see Todoroki recovering, albeit a little slowly. Had he remained on the ground longer, she would've had to call another injury timeout for him to be removed from the field.

"Whoa… You shot an actual explosive at him?" Jiro turned to the heiress, shocked.

"Not to worry. It wasn't anything fatal, and I shot several meters ahead of him to ensure he wasn't seriously injured either." Yaoyorozu reassured her. "He'll be fine."

The creation heiress continued. "But we have more pressing matters. Time is running out and we're still behind."

"Not to mention the Green Team is starting to land blows against us. Any ideas on how to break the stalemate?" Jiro asked.

Yaoyorozu looked out across the battlefield, particularly to the Green's territory.

Their fort had shrunk back to its original size and was wrecked, the frame twisted and warped to the point it was barely recognizable. Their territory was still covered in a blanket of Monoma's copied vines, albeit they were wilting and drying out. Thankfully, the ground beneath it had hardened once Honenuki's Quirk was deactivated on it. She spotted two girls from Class 101-B atop a makeshift barrier of rocks and pieces of crushed debris from their fort.

'That has to be where they're hiding their Nodes.' Yaoyorozu presumed. 'Losing Tokoyami is a huge loss for Setsuna's team. She knows that which is why she's focused so much on offense. But, if we can take out just three of their five Nodes, we can take the lead.'

Yaoyorozu inhaled and concentrated on her Quirk. Multi-colored light sparkled off of her abdomen and pulled out a large cartridge to fit into her airsoft rifle.

"We'll take out the Green Time with this–"Yaoyorozu stopped when, out of her peripheral vision, she spotted someone that she didn't expect. 'Izuku?' She watched as the verdette was running away from Bakugo, managing to outrun and acrobatically avoid his explosions.

The ravenette narrowed her gaze and lowered her airsoft rifle. "Shiozaki-san…Do you see Izuku-kun over there?" She pointed him out, earning a nod from the Vine-user. "Capture him and bring him here, if you'd be so kind."

"Of course." Shiozaki nodded, internally controlling her vines to seek out her target.

---

Meanwhile, the cat-and-mouse chase between Bakugo and Midoriya continued with the latter slipping past the former at every turn. This, however, only served to enrage the ash-blonde.

"BASTARD!" Bakugo hollered. "GET BACK HERE AND FIGHT ME, DAMMIT!"

'He's persistent.' Diving out of the range of the umpteenth explosion, Midoriya landed in a hand stance and pushed himself up in the air. He then flipped and twisted his body, landing on his feet before resuming his sprint. 'Still… Tunnel vision much?'

Growing vexed with Midoriya's evasion, Bakugo fired more explosions from his palms, rocketing himself past the verdette. Still in midair, he fired off another blast in the opposite direction and landed in front of the super-soldier. He then extended his hands out, exclaiming, "Die!"

Midoriya's breath hitched in his throat as time seemed to slow down for him. Various images flash through his mind.

Gunshots…

Explosions…

Various Meta-Abilities…

…The screaming…

He saw the sparks crackle off Bakugo's hands that ignited the sweat dripping off them, and the bright fiery explosion slowly expanding from his palms.

Midoriya reacted instantaneously by deploying the Energy Shield and slapped it into Bakugo's arms. This consequently redirected the explosion off to the side, creating a charred shallow trench into the earth.

"Dammit!" Bakugo exclaimed. "Is that all you are?! A damn…shield…?" He trailed off as the smoke cleared, revealing Midoriya with an intense expression. The ash-blonde momentarily froze up, long enough for the super-soldier to slam the photonic heater shield into him and send him tumbling back across the ground.

From a platform at the end of the arena, both Midnight and Cementos perked up.

"Miss Midnight…" Cementoss sounded concerned.

"I know… But let's not intervene just yet." Midnight insisted.

"Okay, but if something like that happens again, we must–"

"Yes. We'll step in." Midnight assured him. She eyed Midoriya and Bakugo closely. 'That blast from Bakugo could've caused serious injury… and that look in Midoriya's eyes…' Memories of her brief therapy session with him raced across her mind. 'Surely he wouldn't have…'

"Grgh…" Bakugo clenched his teeth, grimacing. He shakily turned his blood-red eyes on his self-proclaimed rival. "Bastard! I'll…I'll!"

"ROARING RAGE!" The ash-blonde was cut off when Shishida, still in his Beast form, suddenly rammed into him.

Midoriya shook his head and blinked a few times, clearing his head. 'Damn. Not the time for all that…'

He was so wrapped up in his musings that he didn't notice the Shiozaki's vines wrap around his legs. The verdette was suddenly yanked off his feet and restrained by many more vines before being pulled over to the Red Team's fort. 'This should go well.'

After tumbling from Shishida's charge, Bakugo glared daggers at the hairy student. "DAMMIT! STAY THE HELL OUTTA MY WAY, BIGFOOT!" He fired off an explosion that stopped Shishida in his tracks and sent him careening back, his hair burned in places.

Shishida groaned painfully. "Ergh… Huh?" He looked around, confused. "What happened…?"

Bakugo ignored the Class B student and looked around for Midoriya, vexed to find no sign of him. "Where the hell'd he go!?"

---

Kendo, meanwhile, was locked in a battle with Monoma. Shiozaki's Quirk had proven to be too taxing for him to continue using, so he switched out by copying Kamikiri's Quirk. Now, he had blades sprouting from his forearms, waist, and legs–which proved to be quite challenging for the Big Fist-user.

"Try as you might, Kendo-chan. Fighting me will only injure yourself." Monoma haughtily stated.

Kendo growled. "I've never let a little pain stop–" She paused upon noticing someone out of the corner of her eye: Shinso. "HIM!?"

"Mhmm?" Monoma cocked a brow. "Him, who?"

"It's the General Course student from the Blue Team! Monoma-san, I think he can–"

Monoma interrupted. "Kendo-chan, your fight's with me, not some no-name Blue Team member. Now let's continue!"

"Monoma-san, no! If he's here that means–" Kendo was cut off as Monoma charged forward, forcing the ginger-haired girl to backpedal to avoid his blades. 'No, dammit! If that guy's here, Blue Team has to be up to something. But everyone's too caught in the fighting to notice!'

Her teal eyes shot open as it occurred to her. 'Wait… Is that their plan!?'

As Monoma charred at her, Kendo kicked up some dirt into the blonde's eye. A dirty move, yes, but he was using blades against her when she was unarmed…so she didn't mind too much. This distraction allowed the redhead to swipe the blonde's feet out from underneath him and then deliver a knockout blow to his unprotected head.

With her opponent knocked out, she went to tap the communication piece in her left ear. "Yaoyorozu-san, the General Course student from the Blue Team, I think he can control people through verbal responses! Warn the rest of the team! If you speak to him, it's over!"

Kendo didn't have time to explain further before she was suddenly attacked by Shoji.

---

Midoriya was pulled into the Red Team's fortress with his arms and legs restrained by vines. "Yaomomo. Jiro-chan. Shiozaki-san. How's it hanging?" He coyly greeted.

"Aren't we supposed to be the ones asking you that?" Jiro pointed out, a hand resting on her hip.

"Apologies for abruptly capturing you, Midoriya-san…but Yaoyorozu-san wanted to speak with you." Shiozaki said cordially.

Yaoyorozu stepped forward and directed a serious expression at the verdette. "Izuku-kun."

"Momo."

The ravenette ignored the warm feeling she felt when her given name came off his lips and focused on the reason for her conversation with the verdette.

"I must confess, I am surprised to see you're here. I presumed with the ice barrier you somehow had Todoroki create, your side would focus solely on defense." She briefly paused. "I still haven't quite deduced how you managed that…"

"But if you're here, that must mean you're trying to deliver your team's HVIs." The ravenette approached him and went to reach into his track pants pockets. "I apologize. I don't want to see my friends lose. But I'm here to win and do my best as well. So we'll be taking those points–EH?"

His pockets were empty. "What? Then why–"

Midoriya interjected. "You thought I was here to deliver the orbs? I can understand that. But no… I'm just here to help set the stage."

"Set the stage?" Jiro questioned, bemused.

Suddenly, Kendo's voice reverberated through Yaoyorozu's earpiece. "Yaoyorozu-san, the General Course student from the Blue Team, I think he can control people through verbal responses! Warn the rest of the team! If you speak to him, it's over!"

Overhearing the report with enhanced hearing, Midoriya's smile became shrewd. "Looks like the gig is up. But it's too late, I'm afraid."

---

Shinso observed the battlefield and smirked at the chaos between the Hero Course students. 'So short-sighted. As the old saying goes, they can't see the forest through the trees.' He then glanced at the clock, noting that it had just passed the three-minute mark. 'Looks like it's time to kick off Phase 2.'

Shinso reached into his pocket to pull out a small clicker-like gadget with a red button and clicked it.

---

Moments earlier…

"I've got several babies with me that would pair well with those great legs of yours!" Hatsume claimed while pulling the capture net with Iida still trapped inside of it. "After the Games, if you stop by the Support Department, I can make even more super-cute babies for you!"

"W-What do you mean by babies?!" Iida spluttered comically. "If you are suggesting we commit fornication, I must decline! There are proper steps to be taken; particularly actually being in a romantic relationship!"

"Huh?" Hatsume glanced over her shoulder, still grinning. "You're weird, Legs."

"Me?!" Iida yelled, dumbfounded. "And my name is Iida Tenya! Please show me the common courtesy of referring to me by name!" He chopped his hands to show how frustrated he was.

"Sure thing, Glasses. Anyways, I have these cute babies called Hydraulic Bracers! They can detect an incoming enemy and…" Hatsume went on, which only seemed to further fluster Iida.

Kaminari, Tsunotori, and Uraraka were nearby and listened in on the comical exchange. They were currently standing in front of the Castle.

Uraraka smiled sheepishly as a sweat-drop raced down her face. 'Okay… She is just a weirdo then.' Inwardly, she felt relieved by the fact Hatsume wasn't flirting with Midoriya earlier.

She paused. 'Wait…'

Tsunotori and Kaminari chuckled in amusement.

"You sure know how to pick 'em, Iida." Kaminari commented, grinning ear-to-ear. "You guys sound like an old married couple already."

"You found someone who can match your level of intensity." Tsunotori chided. "I'll be rooting for you both."

"That is NOT what's happening!" Iida strongly refuted.

Before anyone could comment, a gadget on Hatsume's device started beeping continuously with a flashing red light.

Hatsume's grin became more maniacal. "That's the signal!" She activated her thruster-boots to levitate in the air with Iida dangling down from the net.

The team perked up.

Tsunotori detached four horns from her head and hopped on a pair. "You ready, Denki?"

Standing on the other two horns, Kaminari smirked roguishly as electricity sparked over his body. "Hell yeah!"

"Good luck you guys!" Uraraka yelled encouragingly. "I'll get the rest of our Nodes inside the Castle."

Kaminari gave her a thumbs-up. "Cool!"

"What are you doing?" Iida demanded, bewildered. "What's going on?"

"Heh!" Kaminari grinned roguishly. "Lightning war, dude."

Iida cocked a brow. "Lightning–WHOA!?"

The trio soared into the sky with Tsunotori and Kaminari surfing on the pony-girl's horns while Hatsume used the boots powered by her prototype Arc Reactor to fly while carrying Iida.

'Wait… They're planning to move their Nodes in the Castle?' Iida mulled over that thought.

As the trio flew away and went over the wall, Uraraka adopted a determined expression. 'Just in case, I'll prepare for Phase 3.' With that, the brunette quickly got to work!

---

The Green and Red Teams were mostly locked in combat at their respective border, trading places for second place. Nevertheless, neither wanted to settle for second. Both believed that if they could eliminate the other team, they'd have little competition standing in the way of acquiring the Blue Team's points before time expired.

But there was another factor that was escalating the Red-Green feud: Shinso. Most of the students that Shinso had used his Brainwash Quirk on were ordered to attack any opposing team member within sight. Even when the mind-controlled students were jarred back to normal, when they found themselves under assault by an enemy opponent, they would react accordingly.

The cycle of retaliation further prolonged the combat amongst the two squads.

It was this conflict that the Blue Team had been counting on.

Kaminari, Tsunotori, and Hatsume flew up to the top of the ice wall with the latter still carrying Iida from the net. He kept trying to wriggle himself out, but it only served to further entangle himself. The fact that his Engines were still stalled from using Recipro Burst earlier only added to his plight.

With her steampunk-like goggles down, Hatsume utilized Zoom to search for their targets.

Hatsume searched the Green Team's territory. "I count five on the Green side behind a makeshift barrier three meters (~9 feet) at their fort's 2-o-clock. Two defenders, both female." The pinkette then turned to the Red territory. "Looks like the Red side has theirs hidden under a bunch of vines. Oh…and they captured First Place too." She sounded nonchalant.

Kaminari and Tsunotori were suddenly alarmed while Iida was surprised.

"Midoriya-kun was kidnapped… I did not expect that." Iida then shook his head. "Still, I must commend my team's efforts!"

"Hold on! Shouldn't we help him?" Kaminari asked worriedly.

Tsunotori chimed. "Yeah! We can't just leave–"

Hatsume interjected. "You both just focus on your part of the plan so that we're victorious. As for me," she stood up, puffing her chest out proudly with her hands on her hips in a hero-esque pose. "I'll help First Place! We'll meet you back over at the rendezvous point in no-time!"

Iida cocked a brow at Hatsume's confident declaration. Hatsume was planning to rescue Midoriya? She planned to take on his team, which consisted entirely of Hero students, all by herself? Though he commended her desire to aid her teammate, he was doubtful she'd be successful.

Kaminari and Tsunotori were also skeptical but didn't see any alternative options that wouldn't also threaten their mission.

"Okay, we'll trust you to save Izuku." Tsunotori acquiesced, and then turned back to Kaminari. "We'll strike the Green side first."

Kaminari gave her an affirmative thumbs-up. "Sounds good to me!"

"Operation Blitzkrieg is a go!" Tsunotori chirped excitedly.

Tsunotori and Kaminari, surfing on the former's horns, soared toward the green-marked territory while Hatsume went in the opposite direction.

"In the name of the Red Team, I demand you stop this!" Iida cried out.

---

"What's Phase 2?" Uraraka questioned, tilting her head.

Midoriya smiled confidently.

"Phase 2 is where we go on the offensive and take advantage of the chaos caused in Phase 1. We'll strike the Red and Green teams with a Blitzkrieg."

"Blit-Krieg?" Kaminari tried and failed to repeat. The others seemed bemused by the foreign word as well. "That doesn't sound like a Japanese word."

Midoriya chuckled a bit. "It's not. Blitzkrieg is German for 'lightning war'."

"Heh." Kaminari grinned. "I'm liking the sound of that. So we attack the other teams with my lightning?"

"Not exactly. You see," Midoriya elaborated, "Blitzkrieg is a military tactic meant to create shock and disorganization in enemy forces with a powerful surprise attack. Think of it as an ambush where you strike the enemy hard and fast." His expression then becomes sly. "This is where Pony, Hatsume, and you come into play, Kaminari-kun."

The group perked up, Hatsume included.

He turned to Tsunotori. "Pony, you can fire a barrage of horns to break down defenses and take out Nodes from the air."

---

Tsunotori descended to the Green territory with her sights set on their makeshift fort. Yanagi and Kodai were standing guard with the five Nodes hidden behind the debris.

'Time to break out the new move!' She crouched down and leapt off her horns and started to fall.

"Horn Banzai!"

Yanagi and Kodai were given zero warning as a bombardment of horns rained down around them. Dirt clouds were thrown up from the violent impacts and choked the air. Though Tsunotori was cognizant of her aim to not hit the two girls directly, she was counting on the sudden attack to stun them.

As the ground encroached, Tsunotori quickly placed a pair of horns under her hooves and curved backwards. The blonde foreigner then pulled out a green orb from her pocket.

She descended toward the Green Team's square-shaped safe zone and deposited the ball. "Package delivered! Go Denki!" She shouted enthusiastically.

---

"Hatsume-san, you mentioned you had leg braces, and something called 'Electromagnetic Soles' that can improve the wearer's mobility and speed. Correct?" Midoriya inquired.

"Yep!" Hatsume nodded vigorously. "That's right! I'm so happy you remembered them!"

"Wait… Then why didn't you use those gadgets in the race earlier?" Uraraka asked, curious.

"My Repulsor Boots were a better choice for clearing obstacles." Hatsume replied, gesturing to her armored boots. "Those who can fly, should fly, yah know."

Tsunotori nodded in agreement, knowing firsthand how much of an advantage flight can provide. Uraraka, meanwhile, adopted a thoughtful expression at that statement.

"Well, I think those two gadgets will be perfect for Kaminari-kun to use." Midoriya directed his attention at the electric-blonde. "There's another item I had in mind too."

---

As Kaminari descended via Tsunotori's horns, a whirring noise then emanated from a pair of large mechanical boots that Kaminari was wearing. There were circular devices around the ankle area that started to glow light-green as Kaminari charged his body up.

The moment the electric-blonde's feet touched the ground, he took off in an incredible burst of speed with lightning cackling around him toward the dust cloud thrown up by Tsunotori's attack. He zoomed through the dust and, with the aid of the braces on his legs, hurdled over the makeshift barrier in a single leap.

"Improvised Move!" He held his arms out and strapped onto them were a pair of peculiar, metal forearm gauntlets with four holes. Pulling back his index fingers, eight wires suddenly extended out. "Blitzkrieg Shock!"

He channeled electricity into the gauntlets, which instantly traveled through the conductive wires. Yanagi and Kodai were unable to avoid being electrocuted by several thousand volts. Additionally, the lightning also arched out and struck several Nodes–frying their internal circuitry and scorching the metal casings.

---

"Hatsume-san, could those Wire Arrows of yours be repurposed?" Midoriya questioned.

Hatsume blinked twice. "Repurposed? You mean…reconfigured into another baby?"

Midoriya nodded. "Kaminari has to touch someone directly to electrocute them without risking electrocuting everyone else around him, allies included. But if he had something to channel his electricity through, say those wires, he could–"

Hatsume perked up, realizing what Midoriya was alluding to. "Say no more! I know exactly what he needs!" With several clicks, the pinkette quickly disconnected the two barrels that were positioned on either side of her chest plate. Midoriya was impressed as the barrels looked like they had been built into the chest plate. "Sorry Wire Arrows… but momma's gonna turn you into an even more awesome baby!"

Pulling out a set of tools from her belt, Hatsume immediately got to work reconfiguring the equipment.

---

Kaminari jumped out of the makeshift fort and sprinted down the field while Tsunotori flew in and surfed on her horns close by.

"WHOA! Where did that come from!?" Mic shouted in shock. "The Blue Team's Kaminari Denki and Tsunotori Pony just performed a killer surprise attack on the Green Team! They just took out four Nodes in less than a few seconds! And delivered their green HVI!?" The crowds' volume increased from the exciting attack.

"Only four?" Tsunotori tried to deduce where the fifth Node was but drew a blank. Unbeknownst to her, Yanagi had managed to throw a Node out of the way just before Kaminari had attacked—staving off elimination for the Green Team. 'I guess those Class B girls must've hidden one just before our attack. Well, I can't worry about it now.'

The scoreboards were promptly updated.

Blue: 165

Red: 90

Green: 45

The fighting that had been taking place at the Red-Green border came to a screeching halt. Everyone froze at the shocking announcement.

Ashido, who was still being held in the air by one of Tokage's detached arms, was equally dismayed. "W-W-Where the heck did they come from?! H-Hey, Setsuna! We gotta do something!"

She received no response from her greenette bestie. The pinkette also noticed she was starting to lose altitude. Something wasn't right!

Ashido glanced back at Tokage's floating head and torso above and was bewildered by her weird expression. Did she freeze up at how quickly they lost so many points? Well, she supposed she couldn't blame her, but still!

"H-Hey, girlfriend! Snap out of it!" She pinched one of Tokage's arms to get her attention.

This seemed to do the trick as the beautiful body-splitter was snapped out of her daze. "What…?" When she glanced at one of the jumbotrons displaying the score, her eyes shot open in horror. "Oh crap! What happened!?"

On the ground, things were about to get worse for members of both squads.

"What the hell is going on now?!" Bakugo angrily yelled as his legs sunk into the mud.

Without warning, the ground around the Red and Green Team fighters softened and turned into quicksand.

"Honenuki?!" Kaibara frantically looked around for his classmate. "What're you doing?! You're trapping us too!"

From a distance, Honenuki was kneeling down with both hands pressed to the ground. His eyes were glazed over as he stared forward with a blank look.

"The twists just keep coming! Now the Red and Green Teams are caught in Honenuki's quicksand move?! What's going on?!" Mic's voice reverberated throughout the stadium.

"This is what I was alluding to earlier. The Blue Team's Shinso Hitoshi has turned this competition on its head." Aizawa proclaimed.

---

Yaoyorozu was taken aback by the sudden attack on the Green Team's territory and the quicksand trap both teams were caught in. She snapped her head back to Midoriya, who was still nonchalant.

With Kendo's report in mind from a mere moments ago, it finally clicked for the heiress. "I see. This was all part of a plan…to ambush both teams…"

"I knew we couldn't fight off both teams, especially if you worked together. So, we pinned you both against each other. It drained precious time off the clock while also leaving you vulnerable for a Kaminari-Pony Combo Attack." Midoriya explained. "They're still working on a team name but I personally think Thunder Horn is a fitting name."

Jiro clicked her tongue at that statement, feeling her ire rise at that.

Yaoyorozu's eyes shot open in shock. 'No!'

"Such deception… How could you? It is not proper for Heroes to encourage such violence!" Shiozaki claimed.

"I agree. But in the context of this event, Shiozaki-san, it was necessary."

Jiro perked up, eyes widening. "We have incoming!"

A bluish-white energy beam came down and cut through the vines restraining Midoriya like a hot knife through butter. The instant the verdette was freed, he deployed his Energy Shield and threw the red-colored shield at Jiro, knocking her aside. Yaoyorozu was about to retaliate until a heavy object suddenly collided with her, knocking her to the floor. It turned out to be Iida, still trapped inside the capture net.

"Vile wolves! You shall not–AWK!" Shiozaki was knocked off her feet by a blue plasma blast striking her torso. It didn't burn her, but it did pack enough concussive force to stun her.

"That's a new one, Hatsume-san." Midoriya noted.

Hatsume hovered into view, with her left arm extended. She was wielding a bulky metal glove with a white circle in the center of the palm. A little trail of smoke could be seen wafting from the hole, indicating it was the source of the energy blasts.

"Thanks! This is my Repulsor Glove!" Hatsume declared. "This baby is still a prototype, but the potential applications are astounding! Just like the Repulsor Boots, it draws power directly from the Arc Reactor, and by taking excess electrons and turning into muons, it can—"

"Hatsume!"

"Oh, right! Gotta save you first!" She smiled cheekily before gesturing to her back. "Hop on and I'll tell you about my baby along the way!"

Midoriya obeyed and jumped to latch onto her armored shoulders, dangling off her back. However, his added weight caused Hatsume to descend.

"Geez, First Place! You're freaking heavy!" Hatsume rudely shouted. "Is that all muscle or what?!"

Midoriya ignored her uncouthness. "Can you increase the output of your boots?"

"Already on it!" The repulsors implanted in Hatsume's boots whirred louder as the power output increased. This provided enough thrust for the pair to gain altitude and flew away from the Red Team's fort.

"There! Now, as I was saying about Repulsor applications–"

---

"I hate to ask, but could you fashion some sort of radio device too, Hatsume-san?"

"Oh?" The pinkette inventor glanced up from her dismantled Wire Arrows. "What for?"

"Shinso-san and I'll need some way to notify the rest of you when it's safe to start the Blitzkrieg. A plain one-way communication device will get the job done."

"Pft! Easy peasy!" She waved her hand. "Though, between this new baby AND the ticking clock, I can only make one transceiver and receiver…and you won't be able to talk into it either. It'd just be beeping or something like that."

Midoriya nodded in understanding. "We can work with that. Thank you." He then returned his gaze to the others. "Once our territory is secured, Shinso-san and I will invade the other territories. We'll keep the fighting focused over there. But if we do have some people who manage to invade our side, I'll be counting on you guys to stop them."

Tsunotori, Kaminari, and Uraraka nodded in acknowledgment.

He explained further. "When you receive the signal, Pony and Kaminari-kun can initiate the Blitzkrieg. If she's not busy, Hatsume-san can join in too, if she wants. With her array of gadgets, she'll be a wildcard on the battlefield."

Hatsume perked up at that declaration.

Tsunotori chimed. "Plus, the fact she's in the Support Course may cause some to overlook her."

Midoriya smirked. "A mistake that'll surely cost them."

---

With the majority of students trapped in mud, Kaminari and Tsunotori faced no opposition as they crossed over into the Red territory. While Kaminari continued running straight, Tsunotori veered to the right towards the Red Team's vine-covered fortress.

She was excited to see Hatsume flying out of it with Midoriya latched onto her back. 'Awesome! Now that Izuku is out of the way, I can let loose!'

An uncharacteristic cocky smirk crossed Tsunotori's cute face. Jumping off her horns, she aimed her head downward.

"Horn Banzai!" As she began to fall, she fired out a widespread salvo of horns at the area surrounding the fortress. The horns easily pierced through the plant matter and struck the ground underneath. In the process, one of Tsunotori's horns managed to land a direct hit on a Node.

"Tsunotori's horn salvo destroys one of the Red Team's Nodes!" Mic yelled. "That's 10 more points for the Blue–NO wait! Kaminari just delivered the Blue Team's red HVI with no opposition! That's another 25 points for the Blue Team!"

The stadium burst into excited screams, thrilled by the show they were receiving.

The scores were updated again.

Blue: 190

Red: 80

Green: 45

Tsunotori quickly placed a pair of horns underneath her hooves and regained her altitude. She looked back to see Kaminari sprinting away from the Red safe zone. She smiled brightly at the sight of his confident smile.

'Mission accomplished!' She internally cheered.

She paused when she noticed a sheet of ice starting to rapidly expand across the ground, specifically in Kaminari's direction. "UH OH!" Popping off another horn pair, she controlled them to swoop down and hook underneath Kaminari's arms, lifting him up in the air moments before his feet would have been frozen to the ground.

Kaminari whipped some sweat off his brow, looking relieved. "Thanks for the save, Pony!"

"Of course!" She smiled back at him. "Glad I got you in time before you turned into a popsicle."

"We need to fall back quickly."

Both blondes glanced to their right, seeing Shinso fly up to them with Hatsume's Jet Pack.

"Endeavor's son is pissed." He added.

The pony-girl and electric-blonde looked back and were unsettled by the cold, angry glare that Todoroki was shooting at them. Fittingly, the pair felt a cold chill race up their spines.

'Scary!' Kaminari and Tsunotori internally shouted.

The trio soon caught up with Hatsume and Midoriya in the air over the ice barrier.

"Great work, team!" Midoriya commended before adopting a serious expression. "But it's not over yet. Everyone will be coming after us now!"

"Looks like we're moving onto Phase 3 after all." Shinso commented.

"This is really coming down to the wire, huh? Man, if Iida hadn't taken out that Node earlier, we'd have won by now." Kaminari bemoaned.

"Or you and Tsunotori-san could've made sure you destroyed all of the other teams' Nodes." The CSI student countered dryly.

"Don't worry. This is why we have contingencies." Midoriya reassured.

---

"Grgh!" Kendo strained as she pushed herself through the vicious softened earth. Using her enlarged hands though, the redhead was able to acquire just enough leverage to pull herself free of the sandtrap.

She looked around and spotted Honenuki over 15 meters (~50 feet) away, kneeling on the ground with a robotic expression. She immediately deduced that Shinso had gotten to him!

"Honenuki-san!" The tan-haired young man showed no sign of acknowledging her as he continued to blankly look forward.

Kendo didn't waste time and sprinted towards her classmate. "Snap out of it!" She then slapped him across the face with her normal-sized hand. The sudden stinging jolt was enough to snap the young man out of his brainwashed state.

"Whoa…W-what just–"

"Honenuki, turn the ground back to normal!" Kendo shouted.

Honenuki looked out and saw that the ground ahead of him was softened, trapping members of both squads in it. "OH!" Placing both hands on the ground, he deactivated his Quirk.

Once the ground had rehardened, several students began to free themselves from the earth. However, the ones who had zero leverage to move needed to be pulled out. Kendo quickly rushed in to free her trapped competitors, regardless of team designation.

"DAMMIT!" Getting fed up, Bakugo aimed his hands down and released multiple blasts. He managed to produce enough lift to free himself from the ground. He turned to glare at Honenuki. "What the hell was that for, No Lips! Aren't we on the same team or something?!"

"Lay off!" Kendo yelled back, currently trying to pull Sato out of the ground. "He was mind-controlled by the General student on the Blue Team. He had no control of what he was doing. Just like we were!"

"Mind control?" Bakugo's breath hitched in his throat, recalling his memory going blank the moment he yelled at the disheveled dude. Tiny explosions popped off his hands as his ire increased further. 'Those bastards…!'

"The Blue Team is making an aerial retreat back to their territory with a sizable lead!" Mic shouted. "What a devastating attack they've just inflicted on their opponents! With over a minute remaining, is it over?! Do the Red and Green Teams have any hope of pulling off a miraculous upset!?"

Aizawa added. "I wouldn't say it's over yet. The Blue Team still has 110 points that can be taken…and a Castle worth 30 points that also grants someone an automatic place in the Finals. If they're quick about it, the Red and Green Teams can still pull an upset."

Aizawa's statement hung in the air for many.

"Todoroki!" Tokage called out. "You have to lower that–"

Todoroki didn't listen as he surfed forward on a ledge of ice. As he approached the ice barrier, he immediately created a pillar under his feet that shot him up into the air and over the wall.

"Dammit! That icy pri—"

"DIE WALL!" Bakugo shouted over Tokage's curse.

Holding out both arms, the ash-blonde unleashed his most powerful explosion of the day so far upon the ice wall. The ice promptly shattered and some of it actually turned into steam from the intense heat.

A wide gaping hole was now present in the glacial wall.

Students from both sides briefly looked at the hole before responding accordingly.

"CHARGE!"

With that, the prior conflict between the Red and Green Team members was immediately forgotten as both squads blindly charged into the Blue Team's territory. But they were unprepared for what they encountered there.

---

Yaoyorozu groaned as she sat up, pushing Iida off of her.

"My apologies, Yaomomo! Are you alright?" Iida sounded worried.

'All except my pride, yes.' Yaoyorozu internally admitted.

"Yes, I'm okay." She turned and finally realized that Iida was wrapped up in a net. "Iida, why are you–"

"Tsunotori's horn salvo destroys one of the Red Team's Nodes!" Mic yelled. "That's 10 more points for the Blue–NO wait! Kaminari just delivered the Blue Team's red HVI with no opposition! That's another 25 points for the Blue Team!"

Yaoyorozu perked up, becoming alarmed. "No!"

"Yaomomo, we need to invade the Blue side quickly!" Iida urgently declared.

"Ugh…" Jiro picked herself off the floor, still reeling from the blow she received by Midoriya's red shield. "...yeah, no duh. They have all the points now."

"I'm…" Shiozaki sniffled as shakily stood up, holding her torso area. "...I'm sorry. I…I couldn't protect…our sheep…"

Jiro approached the crying girl and patted her back, albeit awkwardly. "Uh, there-there. Don't blame just yourself. We…We all got our pants pulled down." She consoled.

Yaoyorozu directed her attention to the ice wall where she spotted Tsunotori, Shinso, and Hatsume fly away with the former carrying Kaminari via her horns while Midoriya was latched onto the latter's back.

"The Blue Team is making an aerial retreat back to their territory with a sizable lead! What a devastating attack they've just inflicted on their opponents! With over a minute remaining, is it over?! Do the Red and Green Teams have any hope of pulling off a miraculous upset!?"

"I wouldn't say it's over yet. The Blue Team still has 110 points that can be taken…and a Castle worth 30 points that also grants someone an automatic place in the Finals. If they're quick about it, the Red and Green Teams can still pull an upset."

The ravenette's eyes burned with fiery determination. "Aizawa-sensei is right. It isn't over yet!"

"I overheard that Uraraka planned to move all of their Nodes to the Castle!" Iida stated. "We need to destroy that immediately!"

Nodding in understanding, Yaoyorozu tapped the communication earbud she made for her whole team–sans Bakugo who didn't accept one. "Red Team! All of Blue Team's points are in the Castle! Move in quickly and destroy it!"

"Yes, ma'am!" They responded.

Yaoyorozu clenched her jaw, feeling frustrated with herself. 'I… I'm a fool. How could I not have seen it sooner?'

---

The Red and Green squads invaded the Blue Team's territory and set their sights on the Castle Node in the distance. However, the miniatures glaciers and haphazard boulders made traversing the terrain difficult for some while other Quirks allowed them to get by. With under a minute remaining though, everyone was equally determined and desperate to find the Blue Team's Nodes. Any chance of getting to the Finals rested on scoring more points for their respective teams…and hoping to increase their own individual scores.

Meanwhile…

"HHHHHRAAAAGHHHHH!" Bakugo roared violently while igniting continuous explosions from his hands, propelling himself across the Blue territory. This allowed him to bypass the icy spikes and rocky debris scattered throughout the area.

With bloodshot eyes, all he saw was red! Pure, unadulterated rage coursed throughout his entire being, allowing him to ignore the stinging pain in his shoulders. To hell with the pain! The old granny could use her Quirk to fix them later!

Right now, he absolutely refused to lose! Not to Midoriya! NOT AGAIN!

On the ground, Todoroki was plowing through the terrain riding atop an icy ledge. His nostrils angrily flared at the sight of the icy spikes he had unknowingly and unwillingly created in the Blue Team's area.

He had been used like a tool…

Flashes of his childhood played through his mind.

Endeavor's harsh and intense training…

The cold and callous treatment he and his siblings had received…

His mother pouring boiling water on his face…

Todoroki bared his teeth with an enraged expression. Ice completely covering his right side as a chilled breath was exhaled from his flared nostrils. He would not go down like this! He absolutely refused to lose!

"Bakugo and Todoroki are making a beeline for the Castle Node! Bypassing the Blue Team's defenses! Less than a minute remains! Will they destroy it? Or will the Blue Team hold strong until the final buzzer!?" Mic frantically shouted. "I DUNNO! Folks, don't you dare look away!"

Aizawa could be heard groaning into his mic, sounding like he was ready for the event to be over already.

Bakugo and Todoroki were laser focused, neither paying any mind to the other. The only thing that mattered to them at that moment of time was the four-towered structure ahead. As the duo neared the castle, both young men prepared their finishing moves.

Bakugo blasted himself into a whirling spin, sucking in air as he went, spinning faster and faster to create a tornado of fire. "Howitzer Impact!"

Instead of shouting an attack name, Todoroki let out an enraged battle cry. A large spiky glacier burst forth from his right side and surged toward his target.

KA-BOOM!

Both the fiery explosion and freezing cold glacier intersected at the Castle. This collision of cold and hot air created a larger, more powerful blast that completely blew the structure apart.

Todoroki and Bakugo managed to perform evasive maneuvers at the last second to escape the blast radius, both rolled along the harsh gravel a few times before coming to a stop.

The audience was in awe at the destructive prowess of the two young men.

"Bakugo and Todoroki unleash their respective blasts that completely level the Blue Team's Castle! But who's attack struck first! I don't know! Folks, for the second time today, we have ANOTHER photo finish!" Mic shouted loudly.

"That's what we have instant replay for." Aizawa said wryly. "Still, it doesn't matter either way."

As Todoroki and Bakugo slowly returned to their feet, both perked up at Aizawa's remark.

"Huh!? What the hell does he mean by that?!" Bakugo exclaimed.

It then clicked for the ash-blonde. The Nodes! Swiveling his head around, he failed to spot any of the metallic barrels anywhere. Actually, he realized he didn't see any members of the Blue Team in the Castle Node either. A small voice at the back of his head said that may have been a good thing as his last attack was pretty powerful. Outside of the fact he could've seriously hurt the other squad, he definitely would've been disqualified from the Games.

Bakugo shook that thought away. "If those Blue bastards aren't in the Castle, then where–" His eyes widened as a realization occurred to him. If they weren't anywhere with his sight horizontally, then maybe…

He slowly titled his head up and almost felt his jaw drop.

Floating in the air, partially blocking out the sun and casting a wide shadow on the ground, was a square concrete platform floating over 90 meters (~295 feet) in the air.

The other contestants soon noticed the floating small platform as well. It took them a second to realize the platform was actually the Blue Team's safe zone. The Blue Team were all safely standing atop it with their eleven Nodes neatly stacked in the center.

---

"Now, a Blitzkrieg is a fast and strong surprise attack–not a prolonged battle. The goal is to take out as many Nodes as you can and deliver our HVIs safely." Midoriya pulled out the red and green orbs he had received earlier, handing them to Tsunotori and Kaminari respectively. "If we haven't won by that point, we'll need to retreat fast. Because everyone will be coming after us by then."

"I don't like the sound of that." Kaminari rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Hopefully we're already the winners by then…"

"Just in case we're not, we'll have a Phase 3." Midoriya turned to Uraraka. "This is where you'll shine the most, Occhan."

"Me?" The brunette perked up.

Midoriya nodded and smiled. "While we're initiating the Blitzkrieg, I need you to gather our Nodes and stash them in the safe zone. You can use your Quirk to move them around easier, and I'm sure Hatsume-san can lend you some spare wire from her Wire Arrows for you to gather more than one at a time."

The pinkette, who was surprisingly listening, gave an affirmative thumbs-up.

Uraraka blinked twice. "You…want me to place all our Nodes there? Why?"

"I'm confused too." Shinso joined in. "Won't all of our Nodes being in one spot just make us vulnerable?"

"It would… If our foes could see it."

His response confused the others.

"...You're gonna have to explain that one, dude." Kaminari scratched his head.

"Oh! I know!" Tsunotori's eyes widened. "Ochako-chan's going to make the slab float! That way it's out of everyone's sight and reach!"

"Seriously? Is…that allowed?" Kaminari asked, sounding dubious.

Midoriya shrugged. "Midnight never said it wasn't."

"Float? I dunno… That platform looks pretty heavy." Uraraka sounded unsure.

Midoriya stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her breath hitch. He looked at her with a confident smile that made her heart skip a few beats. Gosh! Why does he have to be so cute and hot? Couldn't he just pick one? He can't be both!

"You only have to float it for a minute at most. You can do it, Occhan." He said assuredly.

---

"W-what the heck!?"

"How'd they get THAT up there!?"

"Hold on, is that even allowed!?"

Overhearing the objection, Midnight spoke into her microphone. "Judges say yes! There is no rule stating they can't!"

Meanwhile, Uraraka was kneeling on the platform with a strained expression. "This…is…a lot…!" She breathed heavily.

"Well, the platform is at your weight limit, maybe even a little over." Midoriya knelt by her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's okay! It hurts now, I know. But time is almost out. You can do this!" He encouraged her.

"Y-yeah…" Uraraka felt more determined after hearing Midoriya's words.

Though her stomach was twisting, she'd be damned before she let herself and her team (Midoriya especially) down before deactivating her Quirk! She was going to tough it out and endure to the end!

"She won't need to." The team turned to Shinso, bemused. He then pulled out a certain object from his pants pocket, earning surprised gasps from most of them. "We've already won."

Midoriya smiled proudly. "Well done, soldier."

Meanwhile, Bakugo and Todoroki intensely glared up at the floating slab of concrete.

"You won't escape me…" Todoroki shivered madly as he aimed his right arm up, preparing to shoot off a few icy lances.

Despite the flaring pain in his joints, Bakugo prepared to launch himself. "DAMN BLUE TEAM! I'LL KILL ALL OF—"

"AND THAT'S IT! IT'S OVER!" Midnight suddenly declared.

Everyone across the field froze up at the announcement.

"What?!" Many shouted.

Asui glanced at a jumbotron and was confused to see there was still time left on the clock. "Kero. But… There's still twenty seconds left. So how–"

"The Blue Team stole the Green Team's blue HVI and successfully delivered it to their safe zone." Midnight announced.

Floating in midair, Tokage's body parts stiffened up. "What?! No! That's not right! I have it in my–" One of her hands dug through her pants pockets…and discovered they were empty. "But…I had it…"

Her emerald eyes suddenly shot open from a memory.

She was flying in the air, carrying Ashido with both arms down below. Both were taking advantage of the openings Todoroki was creating in the Red Team's defenses with his ice attacks. They had just managed to land a blow and score ten points.

He then felt someone tap her shoulder. She looked around and was surprised to see a purple-haired Aizawa lookalike flying with a Jet Pack. "Hey. Feels good to fly, doesn't it?"

"Uh…yeah. Wait, aren't you with–" That's when everything went blank.

Tokage blinked twice. The last thing she remembered after that brief encounter was Ashido pinching her arm, so why didn't she recall anything in-between? She wasn't sure, but knew that time frame had to have been when she lost their team's Blue HVI.

Midnight went on. "With a total of 205 points, the Blue Team are the winners of Risk Trifecta!"

The stadium then erupted into a deafening applause.

---

"Okay." After finishing laying out their team's strategy, Midoriya stood up from his kneeling position. "Before we get ready, I have something I need to say."

The other five members gave Midoriya their undivided attention; even Hatsume glanced up from tinkering with her equipment.

"I know it may sound cheesy, but teamwork is key here." He paused briefly. "Regardless of how simple or intricate our plan may be, none of it is going to matter unless all of us are bought in. If even one of us goes rogue, we might as well just surrender all of our points and prepare to spend the rest of the day in the stands. Because that is exactly what will happen."

Several flinched at the bluntness in the verdette's tone, but knew he was right. They were already outnumbered, so losing even one member would be very detrimental to their chances of winning.

He continued. "There is no 'me' or 'I' right now. It's just 'us'. For the next 15-minutes or so…we're a team. We look out for each other. It's us versus everyone else."

The group felt their blood pump as their excitement and resolve increased.

"Pony…Kaminari…Shinso…Hatsume…Occhan…" The verdette looked each member in the eye. "I mean it when I say every single one of us will be crucial to achieving victory." He then extended his hand out, palm facing down. "Whatever happens, whether we win or lose…we'll do it together."

Uraraka and Tsunotori immediately placed their hands atop his. "Together!" They beamed.

"Hell yeah!" Kaminari placed his hand on the pile, careful not to accidentally activate his Quirk. "We'll crush this!"

"You sure have a way with words, First Place." Hatsume placed her hand on the others, grinning widely. "You can count on me, Hatsume Mei, to support all of you!"

The group then turned to their sixth member. The droopy-eyed student sighed deeply before a small smile crept on his tired expression. "You're right. That did sound cheesy…" He then placed his hand on the top. "Still surprisingly effective though. I'm in."

Midoriya smiled confidently. "Together. Blue Team on three."

"...1…2… Blue Team!" The group shouted, though Shinso was more subdued, the excitement was present in his voice.

All six members were bought in and ready to defy the odds!

---

As the crowd continued to cheer, Hatsume and Tsunotori carefully pushed the concrete platform back down with their thrusters and horns respectively. The moment the concrete made contact with the ground, Uraraka immediately released her Quirk…and went to hurl rainbows over the side. She needed a moment to recuperate afterwards.

But once she did, Midoriya suddenly found himself pulled by the brunette into a group hug with her, Tsunotori, Hatsume, and Kaminari. Shinso stood off to the side with his hands stuffed in his pockets and eyes closed, a small smirk present on his face.

"We did it! We did it! We did it!" Uraraka and Tsunotori cheered, jumping up-and-down.

"This is sick!" Kaminari said excitedly. "We're going to the Finals in our first All-Star Games!"

"I…I feel like I could cry." Uraraka sniffled on the verge of crying.

"Don't! If you cry, I will too!" Tsunotori pleaded, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Some of my babies got plenty of spotlight thanks to you guys!" Hatsume grinned widely. "I can't thank you enough!"

The rest of the competitors were understandably in a less-than celebratory mood; Bakugo and Todoroki, especially.

After hearing words from the video crew, Midnight activated her microphone. "We had another exciting photo ~climax~ today! The Castle Node was destroyed and although its 30 point value will not alter the game's outcome, it does grant the individual who destroyed it a spot in the Final Round. Everyone please direct your attention to the screens!"

The students and attending audience turned to the nearest monitors. A slow motion clip of Bakugo and Todoroki deploying their finishing moves on the castle was replayed. It was close…but the video clearly showed who's attack hit the structure first.

"As you can see Bakugo's explosion hit the Castle a mere half-second before Todoroki's ice did. Therefore, Bakugo Katsuki will advance to the Finals!" Midnight concluded.

The stadium erupted into roaring applause.

The Risk Trifecta scores were updated for the final time, accounting for the destroyed Castle Node.

Blue: 205

Red: 110

Green: 45

---

Up in a private box suite, Yagi was clapping at the announcement of the Blue Team's victory, grinning ear-to-ear.

"That was quite a show. Even though they were outnumbered and had the biggest target, they pulled off such an overwhelming victory." Yagi held his chin thoughtfully. "That Shinso student… He really helped turn the tide in the Blue Team's favor. To think he didn't make it into the Hero Course."

"Thankfully we have this event to catch those who fall through the cracks during the Entrance Exam process." Nezu stated. "Even if Shinso were to lose in the first round, I have no doubt he'll be receiving plenty of looks from Pros–if he isn't already."

Yagi nodded in agreement. "Yeah. His Quirk is pretty powerful. To have that on the side of Good will go a long way."

"Agreed." Nezu paused to take a long sip of tea. "Tell me, All Might, did you believe your potential Successor would find a way to win? I noticed you never seemed nervous at any point in the event."

"Well… To be truthful, yeah." Yagi truthfully admitted. "I just…had a suspicion young Midoriya's team would overcome the odds somehow. Though I wasn't expecting them to win by such a wide margin." He looked out the window, focusing on the verdette super-soldier standing with the other students, smiling proudly. "They certainly didn't disappoint."

"HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!" Nezu then began cackling madly. "Indeed! I must commend Midoriya's brilliant yet nefarious strategy! Using the competitive spirit of the games to breed discontent between enemy teams? Brainwashing other students? Initiating a Blitzkrieg? Finding the loopholes in the stated rules? Brilliant! Absolutely stupendous! HA-HA-HA-HA!"

Yagi sweat-dropped, feeling unsettled by Nezu's maniacal reaction. Maybe he should look into finding another box?

---

All For One watched the All-Star Games broadcast zoom in on the victorious Blue Team, displaying highlights of the six competitors; the Captain was predominantly featured. With his chin resting in his open right palm, the corner of his mouth twisted into a sneer.

'This outcome was to be expected.' The Symbol of Evil mused. 'Though the other competitors may have impressive Quirks, experience and excellent strategy can often overcome power alone.'

The program then showcased Midoriya defeating Kendo, Kamikiri, Ojiro, and Iida with impressive martial arts and a red-colored Energy Shield. All For One chuckled at that. "You love your shields, don't you, Captain?"

He then frowned and sighed, mildly frustrated. Though the second event had been intriguing to watch, it did not yield the answers he wanted. There was still no conclusive evidence that the Captain had One For All. If the 21st Century Super-Soldier had the Quirk, then he hadn't been pushed hard enough by any of the competitors to show it, and All For One was beginning to believe that trend may continue in the tournaments as well.

All For One sighed exasperatedly. "I suppose it was foolhardy to expect any of these young Hero hopefuls to challenge a battle hardened veteran. Still," he readjusted himself in his chair, "I'll continue to watch on the off chance I'm surprised…and also to show support for my old friend." He chuckled darkly.

---

In a break room designated for the security team patrolling the stadium grounds, Kamui Woods, Death Arms, and Mt. Lady watched one of the monitors at a table. The final score for Risk Trifecta was displayed amongst various highlights. Needless to say, the trio (as well as other Pros in the room) were surprised by the outcome.

"Damn… Blue Team utterly dominated." Death Arms commented. "From start-to-end. It was hardly a competition."

"No kidding." Mt. Lady agreed, taking a sip from a soda can. "Hot Stuff's squad crushed it."

"I'll confess when Midoriya drafted that Support Course student over Endeavor's son, I was certain his team would lose." Kamui said.

"Same." One Pro Hero added. "That Support Girl turned out to be not half-bad, actually. Those gadgets and her team used were pretty impressive."

"I thought that green-haired kid was insane…but he clearly had a much bigger plan in mind." Another piped in, munching on chips.

"I dunno." A third chimed in, sounding dubious. "I think he just got lucky. Heck, if it weren't for that Shinso kid's mind-control Quirk, there's no way the Blue Team would've won."

"Man…" A fourth Pro leaned back in his chair. "...Wish I had a Quirk like that. It'd make things much easier."

"A shame that kid isn't in the Hero Course. What's UA thinking?"

"Well, there's tons of applicants every year. Some are bound to slip through the cracks." Another advocated. "This kind of event does give people like him a second chance, though."

"I'm curious… The General for the Blue Team, they mentioned he was in the American military. Yeah?" The first Pro inquired.

Kamui nodded. "They did. Although they didn't clarify which branch."

"So Hot Stuff's a soldier boy, huh?" Mt. Lady perked up. "Huh… Wonder why he decided to come to Japan instead of staying in the US."

"Well, he looks Japanese." Death Arms added, taking a puff from a cigarette. "Could be he just wanted to reconnect with his roots or something."

"What did they say his Quirk was, by the way?" A Pro asked.

Kamui answered. "I believe it's an enhancement type, much like Death Arms here."

"Think he's as strong as you?" Mt. Lady asked the muscled man, smirking.

"Hmm," Death Arms hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe. Based on what I've seen, he's definitely much faster and more nimble than me. I'll concede to that."

"His Quirk doesn't seem to be all that flashy though." One commented.

"Still, he was forty seconds off from tying All Might's record in the race." Another mentioned. "That's got to count for something."

"Ha! He's far from being All Might though."

Kamui perked up as the program continued. "Hold on, quiet down! They're about to announce the other finalists."

---

Bakugo scowled, ignoring the applause for his advancement to the Finals.

This was far from what he wanted. Sure, he wanted to destroy the Castle Node, but he wanted to advance by winning the whole event! Not by relying on just the Castle alone. It felt cheap. Like a copout.

'Midoriya… He beat me again…' Midoriya's intense expression appeared in his mind again. The ash-blonde clenched his fists tightly, ignoring the sharp pain in his arm joints. 'DAMMIT!'

Todoroki, meanwhile, was fairing no better. If Bakugo's anger was a raging wildfire, then his was a bone-chilling blizzard. He dropped his head, a shadow hiding his expression. Steam wafted off his body as used his left side to finally thaw himself out.

'Midoriya... You made me look like a fool in front of everyone… In front of my sh*tty father…' He clenched his jaw, flames beginning to ignite from his left arm as his temper flared. His eyes then widened in shock as soon as he felt the flames, quickly extinguishing them. 'No! Stop! Control yourself. Don't give in. Otherwise, I'll be doing exactly what he wants.'

Todoroki was determined to win this competition with his mother's power only! His father's wishes be damned! Still…it did stung his pride that he couldn't even make it to the Final Round. He felt so pathetic.

The scarred-faced teenager glanced in the direction his father was watching him to see him scowling. He scowled back at him and turned away. He was definitely not looking forward to the ear-full his crappy father would give him later. It was turning out to be a miserable day.

Endeavor, meanwhile, looked down at his stubborn son in vexation. He was already irked that All Might's creation had achieved an overwhelming victory. But the possibility of his own son not advancing to the Final Round due to his stubborn rebellion only irked him further.

'If you would have used the power I gave you, you would've won BOTH events soundly!' Endeavor internally shouted. 'Dammit! You're not a child anymore, Shoto. You need to grow up and use your full power!'

As Bakugo and Todoroki stewed in their own respective defeats, the other contestants were handling their losses better in comparison; though they were still disappointed in the outcome.

"Man…Total a** kicking." Sero commented sullenly.

Ashido sighed, slumping her shoulders. "This sucks… And we started off in second place too."

Kirishima rubbed the back of his head. "Midori-bro sure doesn't hold back."

"Sorry, guys…" Tokage descended and reattached her body parts, looking dejected. "It's my fault we lost…and so badly too."

"Kero…" Asui placed a hand on her fellow greenette's shoulder. "Don't blame yourself, Setsuna-chan. We were all too focused on the Red Team."

"Todoroki-san going rogue and losing Tokoyami-kun was a big blow for us too." Shoji pointed out.

Kirishima clenched his fists. "I should've suspected something was up when I suddenly woke up in the middle of fights with no recollection of how I got there… But I didn't say anything."

The others looked at the dyed-redhead curiously.

"You too, huh?" Asui asked.

"It happened to me too." Shoji confessed.

"Same." Sero added. "It was so weird."

Tokage furrowed her brows. So it wasn't just her? She considered the possibilities before the image of the indigo-haired General Course student came to mind. "Did you guys remember seeing the General Course student on the battlefield?"

The group became thoughtful.

"Now that you mention it… I do." Asui replied.

"Same here." Kirishima added.

Shoji and Sero both wordlessly nodded.

"I thought I saw him using a jetpack to fly away from me and Setsuna-chan earlier." Ashido mentioned.

The group of Class 101-A students realized that Shinso was the cause of their memory lapses…and quite possibly a factor in the irrational fighting against the Red Team.

Across the field, Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and Iida (who had been freed from the capture net) walked out of the hole Bakugo had blown in the glacier earlier with dejected frowns. Though Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and Iida were happy that a portion of their friend circle were moving onto the Finals, they were nevertheless disappointed about losing.

"I apologize…" Yaoyorozu said dourly. "After our initial success against the Green Team, I thought we'd be successful if we kept targeting them…but I failed to see through Izuku-kun's plan. I should've called for a retreat when Bakugo-san and the Class B members attacked the Green Team so unexpectedly."

"I doubt Bakugo-san would've listened." Jiro pointed out. "Besides, you have nothing to apologize for."

"Indeed!" Iida added, dramatically chopping his hand. "Your plan was exceptional. With so few points, the odds were stacked against us and yet we managed to more than double our initial score! If that's any consolation…"

Jiro laid a hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "We win together and lose together. Yeah?"

Yaoyorozu looked between her two friends and smiled. "Yes." She nodded.

Present Mic spoke up. "An outstanding effort by all three teams today, but only sixteen can advance and we have our first seven already slated in!"

There, a list numbered one through sixteen was displayed with the first seven slots filled out by the Blue Team members and Bakugo.

"The next nine contestants were selected by our panel of judges ranking on showings, helpfulness of the team, impact to the game, and finally Heroic acts! Let's take a look at the charts to see who's rounding out the top sixteen!"

Aizawa sighed and drawled. "You could just say their names…"

Everyone in the stadium directed their attention to the large screens. It cycled through many names in the last nine slots for too long, likely playing up the suspense for the audience. A moment later, the screen finally slowed to a stop and displayed the names of the remaining competitors moving on to the finals in seemingly random order.

2197 UA Freshmen All-Star Games Finalists!

1. Midoriya Izuku

2. Hatsume Mei

3. Tsunotori Pony

4. Kaminari Denki

5. Uraraka Ochako

6. Shinso Hitoshi

7. Bakugo Katsuki

8. Iida Tenya

9. Honenuki Juzo

10. Monoma Neito

11. Shiozaki Ibara

12. Kaibara Sen

13. Tokage Setsuna

14. Kendo Itsuka

15. Yaoyorozu Momo

16. Todoroki Shoto

The list of names was enough to send the crowd into a roaring cheer; much louder than normal.

Several people were shocked by their selections, Yaoyorozu and Tokage included. The ravenette felt tears brimming in her eyes, earning a congratulatory pat on the shoulder by Jiro. Monoma was momentarily surprised, but quickly recovered and resumed his haughty demeanor. Kendo stared at the screen for a while in shock, ignoring the praise she was receiving from classmates (Tetsutetsu especially) about her selection. Iida hid his face behind his forearm to hide his tears, declaring how grateful he was for the opportunity.

"And there we have it, ladies and gentlemen! Our sixteen rising stars who will take these games into Plus Ultra! Let's give them, and all of our competitors, a big hand!" Mic encouraged.

The crowd, which had already been cheering at the reveal of the finalists, became deafening at Present Mic's urgings. Midoriya and Jiro both covered their ears and flinched from the volume.

"For those who didn't advance, don't you worry! We've got a special event planned for each and every one of you soon." Mic announced enthusiastically. "For now, we'll break an hour for lunch before our special event, and finally the tournament!"

"I don't think they heard you." Aizawa remarked, his and Mic's voices were drowned out by the crowd.

"And now a word from our sponsors. Stay tuned, folks! C'mon, Shota! Let's get something to eat."

"Do what you want. I'm taking a nap."

From there, the students began filing out of the arena into one of the tunnels.

"Hey…Midoriya." The super-soldier turned to see Shinso facing him, hands stuffed in his pockets. "Looks like we'll be back to being enemies now."

Midoriya smiled and nodded. "I understand. It was a pleasure to fight alongside you, Shinso-san." He then extended his hand. "Good luck in the Finals."

Shinso smiled a little and accepted Midoriya's handshake. "Thanks. I would say the same, but I know you won't need it."

With that, the two young men respectfully departed.

Watching Shinso walk off, Midoriya returned his attention to a screen displaying the All-Star Games finalists. He couldn't help but smile to see his name on it. Over seventeen months ago, he had been found in the Arctic–preserved in the ice. Now, in a world of superheroes and supervillains, he was competing in one of the biggest and most popular Heroics competitions on the planet.

Though he felt bad for those who didn't make it, especially for some of those in his friend circle. Speaking of…

"Man… I was really looking forward to showing my stuff." Ashido bemoaned, slumping her shoulders.

"Yeah…" Kirishima laid a hand on her back to console his girlfriend. "...It is a bummer we all couldn't advance. We'll just have to train harder for next year." He then grinned at the ones who did advance. "But hey, you guys did great out there! This is gonna be an awesome tournament for sure!"

"I'm still surprised I qualified…" Tokage admitted, rubbing the back of her head. "I mean…we did lose."

"I understand how you feel, Setsuna-chan." Yaoyorozu joined in, frowning. "I fail to see why I moved on as well."

"Kero. Don't be so down, you two." Asui walked up to the group. "You both clearly did well enough if the judges thought you deserved to go forward."

Midoriya nodded, deciding to add his own two cents. "Mic-sensei did say the judges were looking at showings, team helpfulness, impact, and Heroic acts. You guys definitely checked the boxes for all of those categories."

Several others nodded in agreement.

"I know I couldn't have done as much if Yaomomo hadn't made me these speakers." Jiro noted, pointing to the devices still strapped to her legs. "And she made those earpieces for us to stay in contact with each other."

"The stellar support Yaomomo provided was likely a big contributor to her advancement." Iida added.

"Tokage-san was a pretty good leader too." Sero joined in, shrugging. "Not her fault Todoroki-san went rogue from the start."

"Losing Tokoyami-san barely midway didn't help either. Kero." Asui chimed. "She did the best with what she had and never gave up. The judges definitely saw that."

Tokage and Yaoyorozu, meanwhile, both felt touched that their friends were trying to encourage them. It motivated them to do better in the upcoming tournament.

"To be fair, I'm not sure many would've stood a chance against whatever scheme Midori-bro here cooks up." Kirishima slung an arm over Midoriya's shoulder. "Seriously, man. You didn't hold back on us, did you?"

"Well…I did want to do my best." The verdette sheepishly chuckled.

"Midoriya."

Midoriya, along with the others, turned around to see Todoroki standing close by. The dual-haired young man was ignoring everyone else present, staring solely at the Living Legend.

"Need something, Todoroki-san?" He calmly asked.

The others were impressed that Midoriya could remain composed in spite of the unnerving intensity in Todoroki's heterochromatic gaze.

"Yes. I need a word with you. Do you have a moment?" Todoroki requested.

Midoriya considered Todoroki's request and nodded. "Sure." He turned back to his friends. "You guys go on ahead. I'll meet up with you at lunch."

"If…you're sure." Yaoyorozu said, curious as to what Todoroki wanted from Midoriya.

With that, the group–sans Midoriya–continued down the tunnel to follow the other students.

Uraraka and Yaoyorozu glanced back at Midoriya in concern, clueless to what Todoroki's intentions could be.

---

Midoriya and Todoroki were now alone at the tunnel's entrance; the former stood composed and calm on one side while the latter leaned against the opposite wall stoically. The verdette was unaffected by the intense gaze his red-and-white haired classmate was giving him. Silence reigned in between the pair, the tension slowly becoming suffocating.

"You wanted a moment. You have it."

Todoroki was silent, eyes boring into him.

The verdette, however, was not intimidated. "If you have something to say, you should hurry. The cafeteria will fill up soon."

Todoroki closed his eyes, looking like he was trying to find the right words to say. "I was humiliated today." He reopened his monochrome eyes. "Used like a tool. I didn't appreciate that." His tone was ironically frosty.

"It was nothing personal." Midoriya kept his tone even. "With Shinso's Quirk, we'd have been foolish not to utilize it."

"...I'm aware of that. Your team was the smallest and had the biggest target on its back. You were exploiting every advantage you could to achieve victory. I'm not mad about that. It's just…" He trailed off, lowering his head.

"Todoroki-san…?"

The red-white-haired teen sighed. "Midoriya… Out of everyone in our class, I respect you the most. As such, I feel you deserve to know why I wanted to challenge you so badly." He lifted his head, meeting Midoriya's verdant gaze with his blue-and-brown one. "If you could, please don't tell anyone what I'm about to say."

Midoriya cocked a brow, bemused. 'Odd. He doesn't need to tell me anything.' He briefly considered possible motives for why Todoroki wanted to confess something seemingly personal to him. 'Perhaps he just sees this as an excuse to get something off his chest…?' He rationalized.

"Okay. I won't say anything. You have my word." Midoriya promised.

Todoroki nodded in appreciation, and then held up his right hand, letting wisps of chilled air flow around it. "Like you alluded to back in the locker room, you've noticed I only use my right side–my ice. I never use my left side in battle."

"I have." He glanced to Todoroki's left; more specifically, his left hand. The super-soldier was curious as to why he never uses his flames. If he did, he'd be much more formidable. He wondered if it was a physical limitation of some kind.

"It's because of my father." Todoroki's hand clenched into a fist. "You know of my old man, right?"

Midoriya nodded. "Hard not to. Endeavor, the Flame Hero. He's the Number Two Pro in Japan."

Todoroki bristled. "Top Ten Globally. But let's just stick to national rankings. It's clear you have some connection with All Might, the Number One, and me to the Number Two." He shrugged. "That's more reason for me to defeat you."

'Is that what this is about? Some rivalry between the top two Japanese Heroes…Oh brother.' Midoriya resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The bitter rivalries within the modern Hero Industry really irked the 21st Century super-soldier. 'They're missing the whole point…'

Todoroki stared deep into Midoriya's emerald eyes. "My old man won a name for himself as a Pro Hero with crushing force and an unyielding drive. He has a strong desire to rise to the top spot, but All Might has constantly denied him that. No matter what he did, he never could beat All Might in power, popularity, or anything else–aside from Villain arrests, I guess. But then, he had an epiphany. He couldn't beat the Number One on his own, so he decided to go a different route." He took a deep breath, running a hand through his medium-length hair.

"A different route?" Midoriya questioned, confused. "What are you trying to tell me, Todoroki-san?"

"Have you heard of Quirk Marriages?"

Midoriya flinched. He had come across that term plenty during his personal history studies.

"Yes. People who force a partner into a marriage, solely for the purpose of producing powerful children." He replied grimly. "From what I understand, it became prevalent across the world during the Dark Times. It's not widely approved in first-world countries anymore, but it still goes on in the least developed parts of the world. People with powerful Quirks who want to marry have to be evaluated to make sure they aren't conducting a eugenics experiment—Oh…" He trailed off, putting the puzzle pieces together.

Todoroki's ice and fire abilities. It made sense now.

Todoroki nodded. "My mother's family was chained in gambling debts. And, like a knight in shining armor," he sneered at that, "dear old dad comes in with a deal. He agrees to pay the debts and give them enough luxury and wealth to last a generation, and he gets to marry a certain daughter in return."

He glared at the ground. "They agreed to it and forced their daughter into an unloving marriage all for familial piety. Covering for their own mistakes." The dual-haired teen looked back at the taller verdette. "My father practically bought my mother for her ice Quirk alone. He never could surpass All Might on his own, so he decided to produce a child that could. It took him four tries before he got it 'right'."

Todoroki lowered his head again and held up a hand to cover his scarred face, baring his teeth.

Midoriya was utterly disgusted by what he was hearing. "Surely someone would've noticed something like this…"

Todoroki shook his head. "My father used his influence to get people to look the other way."

'Of course…' He angrily clenched his fists, frowning.

Todoroki began to tremble. "I hate it!" He suddenly exclaimed. "I'm not his son! I'm just a damn tool for his ambitions!" He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "My mother…I still remember her crying."

Midoriya remained silent as Todoroki continued to vent to him, his heart going out to his classmate. 'Has he not talked to anyone else about this? Has he really been bottling up all of this?' He was beginning to think that was the case.

Todoroki went on. "My mother…couldn't take it anymore. One evening, she said, 'That left side of yours, I can't stand it.'" He removed the hand from his burnt scar. "And poured boiling water on my face."

The verdette's eyes widened. 'That's…That's awful.' He could never imagine his own mother doing such a thing. May her soul rest in peace.

"She was locked up in a psych ward after that…but I don't blame her for this. Everything that she suffered, everything that my siblings have suffered, and everything I've suffered is all because of Endeavor."

He paused before looking back at Midoriya with a burning, controlled rage. "I vowed years ago that I would surpass him, All Might, and every other Hero out there with just my mother's Quirk. Endeavor can watch from the sidelines as I become the greatest Hero without his damn fire Quirk." He declared resolutely.

Midoriya was stone-faced.

"All that to say, I'm aiming to beat you for my own personal reasons. You may have won the first two events, but that won't matter in the end. When you and I fight in the tournament, just know I'm going to crush you. I'll prove that I don't need Endeavor." With those chilling words, Todoroki turned and began to walk away. "Sorry to waste your time."

Midoriya stood there in silence, digesting everything he had just heard.

He knew Endeavor didn't have a likable personality or anything, but his impressive track record as a Hero spoke for itself. He never would have fathomed he'd engage in illegal eugenics and treat his family so horribly, all for the sake of dethroning All Might from the Number One spot.

Though Endeavor as a person and "hero" now sickened him, there was a more pressing matter at hand. Todoroki Shoto himself.

'His mentality…His goal…His rage…It's hard to fault him for any of it. Still, he's misguided.' He thought. 'He can't become a Pro Hero the way he is now. He'll just end up getting himself and/or other people killed. All for the sake of his vow.'

Midoriya looked in the direction Todoroki had walked off in with a concerned visage. 'Someone needs to save him.'

---

A/N: Thus concludes Risk Trifecta! The event turned out to be a blowout in the Blue Team's favor. I don't think very many of you were surprised by that. Still, I hope you fine readers enjoyed it regardless!

Was tempted to post this chapter on July 4, but I decided to do it on the last day of June to continue my streak of posting twice in a month.

Credit to Monkey D. Conan for his contributions to the Risk Trifecta's rules and setup!

Unfortunately, given the second event's setup, not everyone in the CapSquad could advance to the final round. With so many characters between both Hero Course classes to juggle, it is a challenge to give everyone a chance to shine. I was debating with myself over switching out Kaibara with Ashido, but I decided against it since his impact and team helpfulness was just enough to edge out our lovable pink girl.

You may have noticed Midnight called an injury timeout for Tokoyami and Kuroiro, but not for a few other competitors. Why? It was a judgement call on her part. From her vantage point, the injuries Tokoyami and Kuroiro sustained were more concerning and warranted them being pulled. You don't want to have to pull someone from the competition unless it's necessary, after all.

Some of you may be asking how in the world did Todoroki advance? Well…even though he was under Shinso's influence for a good portion of the event, his overall showing and impact on the game was still sizable. He scored twenty points for his team too and saved his team from elimination, albeit while being brainwashed.

Also, the fact that he's Endeavor's son also carries some weight in the judges' final decision. So…nepotism? Essentially, the All-Star Games coordinators didn't want to exclude Todoroki from the tournament unless he absolutely bombed the second event. Ratings and all that jazz.

I won't lie, this chapter was a beast to write given that it was mostly original content. I'll confess that writing Present Mic's mannerisms is a challenge for me, so if you notice he's lacking in his radio host speech mannerisms you know why.

The next chapter will feature the CapSquad having lunch and discussing their performances in Risk Trifecta, Mei finally having a talk with Izuku over a certain shield, the Pro Heroes on the security squad taking bets for the winner, and the 1st Round of the tournament.

Who will fight who? Who will continue to advance? Stay tuned for the next installment!

Please leave any comments, critique, or suggestions in the review box below. Thank you for the support as always!