Written by Aduubo, Buckichamp, and PikachuSpartan.
I OWN NOTHING. KILL LA KILL IS OWNED BY STUDIO TRIGGER AND KAZUKI NAKASHIMA. MHA IS OWNED BY TOHO ANIMATION AND KOHEI HORIKOSHI.
—
-Musutafu, Danchi Apartments-
"WAHHHHHH! Why did you both have to tear at my heart like that?!"
Inko's pile of water bottles and tissues had piled up seeing Izuku and Ryuko go at it during the second event.
"You both were supposed to be on the same team," she whispered as her breathing steadied.
At least the two teens would be moving on. Her baby and the girl she used to see all those years ago were all grown up. It made her heart swell with love and pride.
The TV footage took a quick look at Matoi, as Midoriya went in for the celebratory hug.
"Oh my!" Inko remarked with a smile. She could see the pair were really meant to be, but how long would it take until the two of them realized it?
..~~~HLK~~~..
"Um… Ryuko? You okay?" Izuku asked as he let his dazed friend down. Ryuko's face was a bright red with swirls filling out her eyes.
Todoroki stared blankly at his fellow opponents and classmates, the two friends goofing off while he peered down at his hand.
His left hand specifically.
'At that last moment…I almost went against my vow.'
The heterochromatic teen stared more coldly at his classmate.
'HE almost made me. Izuku Midoriya, I was right about you.'
Todoroki turned to head out of the stadium.
'You're the one I need to be careful with.'
..~~~HLK~~~..
-Revocs Corporation Headquarters: Private Suite-
"Wow! They're so amazing!" a voice called out, seeing the UA Sports Festival unfold on the movie theater-style broadcast of the event.
"I'm going to go grab some snacks! I'll be right back! I know you're not heading anywhere," The individual said, running out of the room and leaving a girl dressed in pink sitting alone.
She stared intently at the screen as it flipped back over to a particular student, the girl with a Kamui.
"She's so amazing," the girl swooned as a silly smile took form until it became something more sinister.
"I really want to find out more about her!"
..~~~HLK~~~..
"...and then you caught me and my team off guard with that other guy on your team and Ojiro! That was so cool, and scary! Like you came out of nowhere! I was so focused on Todoroki that I couldn't see you next to me!"
"Uh, Izuku?" Ryuko interrupted her friend's ramblings.
"Huh?"
"T-the hug is nice a-and all, but I think y-you can let go now," Matoi stammered, blushing profusely at the thought of Izuku's chiseled chest and Mako's words echoing in the caverns of her mind.
"O-oh, Whu?! Sorry!" The greenette threw himself back from her with such a force that he nearly stumbled. "B-but yeah, you were awesome out there."
There was a moment of silence between the two. The awkward kind of quiet. Even with the masses around them cheering.
"Matoi!" Uraraka called out, which saved the two.
"Matoi, congratulations on your victory. Your strategy to wait until we were all occupied was ingenious," Iida bowed respectfully to her.
"Heh, thanks. It was a last second idea," Matoi responded.
"Midoriya, I see that your quick thinking has shined once more when you made the dash to steal Shinso's points instead of the rest of Todoroki's."
"Hehe, oh right! That was… also a last second idea," Midoriya nearly deadpanned, realizing that he and Matoi said the same thing. The boy turned over to her only to see that she snickered a bit.
"Why don't we all unwind and crash with an hour-long lunch break? C'mon Eraserhead! My treat!"
"My kind of treat would be another nap."
"NO! You're coming with me! C'mon!"
"Wait, Mic! Stop that, why are you…"
"Let's go celebrate with a feast!" Ochako cheered and skipped over towards the exit.
"I'd rather not have cramps, but thanks," Ryuko chuckled.
"She's right, Uraraka. It's important to maintain a balanced meal since we are still participating in the Sports Festival," Tenya chimed in.
"Hmmp! You guys are no fun!"
"Even with regular portions, Lunch Rush's food is still really filling!" Izuku chuckled.
"I'm gonna go catch up with Momo. See you in the third round, guys!" Jirou flashed a quick wave to her friends before departing.
Once the students exited the stadium, they made their way back to the UA's cafeteria for the time being. The quad group settled for the usual booth that they've been sitting at during the first week of their semester.
"So, what did you guys do during the past week after the trip to the mall?" Izuku asked.
"I did my usual training routine. But, I also maintained my schedule to be able to fit in studying," Tenya responded.
"That's good. Ryuko and I were able to fit in on our schoolwork as well."
"Well, more like you were keeping me on a leash to stay awake while we were reading. But yeah, we pulled it off, and I got some knowledge in my brain," Ryuko chuckled.
"Midoriya, you're certain you weren't meant to be the Student Council President?" Iida commended.
"W-Wait, we were studying?" Ochako appeared a bit distressed
"Y-Yes. We do have upcoming midterms to think about," Iida clarified.
"Crap…"
"If you want, we could help you catch up on your studies," Izuku commented.
"Yeah, we can do it at my place. There's a lot of space since I'm the only one living there. Plus, there's the godly buffet known as his mom's cooking. You don't wanna miss this," Ryuko nudged the brunette with a smirk.
"F-Food?" Ochako suddenly perked up, drawing laughs out of the entire table.
"Yes, that could be fun. My brother always did encourage me to be more outgoing and sociable. Consider me intrigued, I'll be happy to join!"
Uraraka sat in silence for a moment. She tightened her hands into a fist as she began to curl up from the overwhelming support she was receiving. When Ochako started at UA, she moved into an apartment away from the town her parents lived in. She was on her own, and it felt isolating.
There were times she wanted to reach out to them when things got tough. But, she refrained from doing so, knowing they had their own issues. Now, she had friends that insisted on helping her, and spending time with her.
"Guys… I don't know what to say. You're all doing so much for me. Thank you."
"Of course, Uraraka. That's what friends are for. We're all here to become great heroes together. Start with me, and I'll start with you."
The brunette's heart began to flutter, moving faster than normal as his words hit her ears. She darted her face away to hide that her cheeks were looking redder than usual.
'C'mon Ochako! Snap out of it!' Uraraka took a moment to collect herself before looking back at the group, Izuku especially, with a wholehearted smile.
"Thank you, Deku. I'll make sure to remember that."
The successor and the brunette lightly chuckled. Ryuko watched from the side with a smile on her face. Whether it was intentional or not, Izuku was taking a big step forward in his relationship with Ochako. She was happy for him.
But at the same time, she began to feel a fervent irk in her gut as she continued to watch. Her eyebrows furrowed from the discomfort that came out of nowhere. Why was she feeling this way?
"Ryuko? Are you okay?" Senketsu pried.
"It's nothing Senketsu," Matoi hushed before pushing the feeling down.
There couldn't have been a worse time for her to be questioning herself. Once the lunch break finished up, it was back to the battlefield of the Sports Festival. She needed to focus.
Midoriya excused himself and took his tray over to the trash bin. As he was finishing up, another student approached him from behind.
"Midoriya."
The greenette's body tensed up as he recognized that voice.
'Damn it. Please don't be who I think it is.'
He turned around after setting his plate on top of the bin to meet none other than Shoto Todoroki. The heterochromatic student stood directly in front of Izuku, which cut him off from being able to get back to his friends.
"Hi, Todoroki. Do you need something?"
In the corner of her eye, amongst the crowd, Matoi spotted Izuku. But, there was something off about him. He looked worried, and he wasn't moving.
"Izuku? Hold up. What's going on?"
She immediately stepped out of her chair and marched over to the greenette, only to find that Shoto, once again, was confronting him. Tenya and Ochako soon followed behind her.
"Oh great, it's daddy issues. Couldn't ya have waited until lunch was over before bugging him like a sad puppy? If you came looking for a fight, wait for the next event like everyone else," Ryuko commanded the heterochromic boy, feeling a sense of hostility from him. The kind she'd feel when Katsuki was around.
"This has nothing to do with you, Matoi. I didn't come looking for a fight. I just came by to talk to Midoriya. In private," Todoroki pressed, this time sounding more irritated with the behavior presented by the Kamui wielder.
"If you wish to speak with Midoriya, I'm sure it can wait a little longer. The next event isn't until another 30 minutes. So there's no need to rush anything, Todoroki," Iida stated, hoping to dissipate the growing tension.
"Stay out of this, Iida. This doesn't concern you, or anyone in your little group. This is between me and Midoriya. Now one last time…MOVE," Todoroki ordered, his patience at its absolute limits.
"Now hold on just a second-"
"Iida, it's okay," Izuku interrupted, stepping in front of the speedster.
He turned back to his friends, who all looked at the green haired boy with concern. Especially Ochako and Ryuko.
Facing forward, Izuku walked beside Todoroki to finally sate the ice users' flared nerves.
"Alright, Todoroki. Lead the way."
Satisfied with the result, Todoroki walked away with Midoriya, leading him to one of the outside entrances far away from his friends.
Ryuko begrudgingly sat back down at the table in a huff. She was kicking herself for not following her gut and trailing the two secretly. But she trusted Izuku. If there was any trouble, he would come to them immediately. The girl sighed and let her face slump onto the table. All she could do now was wait.
"Don't worry, Matoi. Deku will be back. I'm sure of it," Uraraka chirped before she patted the red streaked girl's head.
Matoi knew that Midoriya could defend himself. The training she endured with him for two weeks proved that. But she just couldn't shake that worried feeling she had.
..~~~HLK~~~..
Jirou took a moment to slouch in her seat before digging into her meal. She was sure to make the most of it since later she would have to return to the realm of chaos. This was the only moment where she could stop and relax in peace. Yaoyorozu being there was also a plus.
"You were extraordinary in the cavalry battle, Jirou. Your teamwork with Tokoyami made your team quite formidable."
"Well, Midoriya was choosing the best of the best. Soooo…did you expect otherwise with me? Nah I kid, haha! Tokoyami did most of the work. And you were able to keep blocking the both of us left and right."
"Thank you. I was only doing what was best to show that Todoroki didn't choose me for nothing. The intensity of the battle really shows that," Yaoyorozu giggled before using her fork to scoop up food for a bite.
"Right? Things just got out of whack from start to finish. Thanks to Midoriya's ba-jillion points, we never had time to breathe. Everyone was after us! Even Matoi got a swing with her team and won."
The moment that name rang in her ears, Momo's world came to a grinding halt. Her hand loosened, dropping the fork to produce a loud CLANK on the table.
'I don't understand how Matoi is even here at UA. When I was in prep school, I heard about her being the leader of the Kanto Gang. She even said it herself on the first day, yet everyone ignored it! Why is someone like her attending our school, especially when the story that she got in on a recommendation is obviously some sort of cover? It doesn't make any sense! Am I really the only one who knows we have a former gang leader in our class?'
"Momo?"
'Everytime I try to face her… she always has the upperhand over me!'
"Yo, Yaoyorozu!"
Momo was shaken out of her stupor, literally as Kyouka had her hand over her shoulder.
"You okay? Whatever you had going on, it looked intense."
Yaoyorozu looked down to see her discarded fork and spilled food in shock. This heat in her chest that she had been feeling lately did not seem to go away. It wasn't frequent, but it seems to come up whenever Ryuko Matoi is mentioned.
The strange thing is that it doesn't even hurt, rather it made her feel anxious. She looked upward to face her friend who was clearly reaching out for her.
This was the moment where she could change the course of how she would take this heat; either let it consume her, or embrace it.
"It's nothing… I'm fine," Yaoyarozu said monotone, clearly not fine.
"Look, ever since the festival started, actually scratch that, ever since the USJ you've been cold and… well, mean. I know I brushed it off like it was nothing big at the USJ, but it's starting to get worse. Something's up with you, and I'm a little worried. What's got you so wound up?" Jirou pressed, hoping to get SOMETHING out of her friend.
She was met with a distant stare from said friend, a stare that was primarily lingering on one person.
Ryuko Matoi.
Just as Jirou was about to question further, Momo finished her lunch and started to get up to leave.
"Yo, Jirou! Yaoyorozu! Whatcha up to?" Matoi called out, with Uraraka and Iida by her side as they came over to the table.
"Uh, not much, what about you guys?" Jirou responded, but Momo was having none of it.
"Excuse me, I need to go and prepare."
"Aw, already?" Ochako said dejectedly.
"Are you sure, Yaoyarozu? I'm all for preparation, but surely you can at least stay for a few more minutes. There's no shame in a little rest," Iida persisted.
"That's quite alright, you two. I can assure you that everything is fine. I just want all the time I need to prepare for the next event."
"Well yeah, but-"
"Hey girls and guy, what's happening?"
It was Kaminari and Mineta, both of them strolling up to the bunch.
"Whaddya want, you damn pervs?" Matoi raised an eyebrow, clearly getting a vibe that something fishy was happening. These two idiots were too relaxed.
"Mr. Aizawa told us to let you guys know that the first-year girls need to get into cheerleading outfits before the finals start," Mineta said casually.
"I've never heard of such a thing. Are you sure?" The front-banged girl asked.
"Yeah, me neither," Uraraka responded, with Jirou shrugging.
"Really now?" Ryuko's gaze became more focused, particularly on Kaminari.
Denki could only shrink from the smoldering glare of the red striped brunette as his "accomplice" tried to encompass the girls to his lecherous scheme.
"It's like getting the stare down from Ma after I broke one of her vintage plates back in first grade! I…must…stand…strong," Kamanari thought as he tried to hold it together under Matoi's increasingly scathing gaze.
"So…" Ryuko ruminated aloud. "Where are those outfits then?"
He failed.
"Yeah," Mineta continued on, "He said he forgot to get them, but he asked us to-"
"IT WAS ALL MINETA'S IDEA! I HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT! I'M SORRY, MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!"
Kaminari bolted out of the dining hall as everyone looked dumbstruck as to what he was in a rush for. That was everyone except Ryuko, who smirked victoriously, knowing she caught the pervs red-handed.
"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU GOING KAMINARI?!" Mineta yelled out, but the electric user was way far gone.
"Seems like your "friend" knows what's up. One glare from me and he started singing like a canary."
Minoru's body slowly turned to see Ryuko's eyes peering into his, a very vengeful fire dancing in her irises.
"I know Mr. Aizawa wouldn't pull that crap unannounced. And even then, it seems awfully convenient to approach a group of four girls and only one guy. I'll bet you hatched that scheme at the mall last week!"
"Uh-"
"I'll give you a ten second head start," the red highlighted girl sneered, cracking her knuckles.
"Wait, you ca-"
"One!"
"WAIT FOR ME KAMINARI!"
And just like that, the resident perverts' plan failed.
"I can't believe I almost believed them," Momo put a hand over her mouth, completely disgusted by their classmate's actions.
"They are soooo getting the Grape Treatment™ later," Jirou smirked while Uraraka twiddled her thumbs quietly.
"And I'll finally add a black shiner to dolt-head and give grape beans a matching one to boot," Matoi snarled.
"Hey guys! Did I miss anything while I was away?"
The mood completely shifted when everyone turned to find Midoriya coming towards them, and Todoroki was nowhere to be seen.
"Midoriya, are you alright? Todoroki didn't try to start anything, did he?" Iida pressed as he approached up close and gave the greenette a onceover.
"Iida, I'm fine. He didn't do anything, thank you," Izuku lightly chuckled.
"Izuku, where's Todoroki?" Matoi asked, a little concerned that Midoriya was coming back alone.
"After we were done talking, he went outside instead of coming back in here. Why?"
"One thing is that you're back here on your own, and you don't look fazed one bit."
"It was just a simple conversation. Nothing crazy happened, I swear," Izuku raised both of his hands up defensively.
Before Ryuko could try to get some more insight, feedback from the speakers could be heard before Present Mic would make another announcement.
"TEN MINUTES BEFORE THE SPORTS FESTIVAL CONTINUES! ALL PARTICIPANTS MUST HEAD BACK TO THE ARENA TO PREPARE FOR THE BRACKET DRAWS!"
..~~~HLK~~~..
With the lunch break over, all the first year students returned to the arena's pitch for the lot drawing to determine who'd be going head to head in the first round of the bracket.
Ashido had seemingly beaten everyone else back to the area, as she could be seen talking to Midnight, looking amped up as the two were holding a conversation. As the others drew near, Mina nodded her head and joined back up with her classmates.
"What was that about Ashido?" Ryuko asked.
"I'll tell you later. I figure everyone wants to focus on the matches, ya know?" Ashido responded, playing her cards close to vest.
"I can't believe I'm actually in the finals!" Kirishima exclaimed. "I've always seen them on TV, but actually participating has my blood pumping!"
"Yeah, and it's always a one-on-one competition of sorts. The only thing we don't know is what kind of format they'd give us this year," Sero explained.
"Please be head-to-head fighting! Please be a head-to-head fight!" Matoi mumbled under her breath, which Izuku took notice of.
"I think they used foam swords last year, we'll see-"
"This year's tournament finals will be a head-to-head fight with the competitors using their quirks and skills against one another!" Midnight began laying out the format, eliciting a fist pump from Ryuko.
"Fuck yeah!" Ryuko exclaimed through her teeth.
'Now all I need is a draw to face Katsuki and Izuku. Let's freaking go!'
"I have the lots here for our contestants to draw from. They may choose to engage in some recreational activities before the matches, but I'm sure each will prepare in the way they feel is best," Midnight added.
"Now let's give the first place team a crack at drawing their lots."
"Excuse me."
As Midnight began to head toward the stage steps, she was stopped by Ojiro's voice and seeing his raised hand.
"I'm sorry, but I'm withdrawing from the competition," the tailed blonde stated with a downcast expression.
The entire group of students looked to Ojiro wide-eyed, with audible gasps heard from everyone around.
"No way!"
"What's he thinking?"
"This is a rare chance for him to get scouted."
"What?!" Ryuko exclaimed. "Ojiro, what the hell are you doing?!"
"Sorry, Matoi. It just wouldn't be right for me to continue on. I barely remember anything from the cavalry battle. I'm pretty sure it was our rider's quirk."
Izuku's gaze traveled directly over to Shinso, who turned away from any prying eyes.
"I know I'm missing out on a big opportunity, but I can't go forward like this."
"Think about this," Midoriya pressed, trying to make sure his classmate wasn't making a rash decision.
"I have, okay?" he snapped back. "This is also about my pride. I don't remember a thing and I'd rather know how I got here and earned it myself."
"To hell with that!" Matoi started, then someone else's voice cut through the crowd.
"Ms. Midnight? I'm going to have to drop out for the same reasons as him," Shoda came forth, drawing more reactions from the students.
At this point, Ryuko's blood began to boil as she directed her gaze over to Shinso, who wasn't looking her way. They weren't brainwashed, she was sure of that. But it still pissed her off that the other students on her team didn't feel worthy of continuing because of his greed. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.
"I'm not dropping out of this. No way!"
The other two boys looked at her, as she gazed over at the indigo haired kid.
"If I face him, I know how to win. And I have personal business to keep going," Matoi's body shook from the slow-building rage she felt.
"Ryuko," Senketsu spoke up, trying to catch her attention to calm down.
The R-Rated hero closed her eyes as she pondered what to do.
"That's incredibly naive boys. But still, very admirable! I'll accept your withdrawals from the remainder of the competition."
While Midnight's next step was to move two students up from the fifth place team, their leader, Itsuka Kendo, turned the offer down after being frozen for the majority of the match.
"You should give our spots to the people who kept fighting. That would be team Tetsutetsu," Kendo noted.
And with that settled, Ibara Shiozaki and Tetsutetsu won a match of rock-paper-scissors to take the final two spots in the field. Their two comrades were good sports about the whole ordeal and left without a fuss.
With all of the lots drawn, Midnight called for the reveal of the bracket at the top of the stadium's scoreboard.
Match 1: Midoriya vs Shinso
Match 2: Todoroki vs Sero
Match 3: Kaminari vs Shiozaki
Match 4: Matoi vs Yaoyorozu
Match 5: Bakugo vs Uraraka
Match 6: Kirishima vs Tetsutetsu
Match 7: Jirou vs Iida
Match 8: Tokoyami vs Ashido
Bakugo started to smirk. He had a very good chance of facing one of Deku, Shank or Todoroki in the finals. This couldn't have worked out any better for him.
"Ah man! And I wanted to face Izuku in the last match!" Matoi expressed, though a smirk soon formed as she looked to the right side of the bracket.
"Still, if I get to face him or Todoroki in my third match, I'll take down Boomer Bimbo in the final round."
"Uhhhhh…"
Uraraka started to fidget around as Midoriya and Matoi saw she got paired with said Boomer Bimbo.
"Hey, it'll be okay. I know there's a way you can beat him," Midoriya consoled with a sense of ease that melted some of Uraraka's anxiety. "You'll be okay."
Izuku held his hand out in a fist, as Ochako could only blush from the flutter she felt in her chest.
"Right!" she exclaimed, returning the gesture. They each felt a sense of warmth and comfort from this brief exchange.
Ryuko was stunned but even more proud of Izuku really taking the lead now with Uraraka. Yet similarly, the knot of discomfort and unease returned, rearing its ugly head as she tried to repress whatever this sickening sensation was yet again.
'Not now. Just not now,' Matoi thought.
She was suddenly startled as an important realization hit her. Ryuko looked at the bracket again and saw Mirdoriya's first opponent: Hitoshi Shinso.
'Shit! Not him!'
"Izuku Midoriya."
Izuku's spine jolted as he turned in the direction of the voice who called out to him.
"That's you, right?" Shinso pried.
'Why do people have to keep calling me like that from behind?!' Izuku thought and sighed.
Before the green-haired teen could respond, a tail wrapped around his mouth and a red blade was pointed directly at Shinso; Ryuko's scissor blade to be precise. The crowd around them had parted, further highlighting the showdown that took place between the four.
"Don't even try it!" Matoi snarled as Shinso scoffed, smirking slightly.
"What Matoi said," Ojiro followed up.
"Hmph. Fine," The general studies student responded, walking away and turning up an exit where no one would follow him.
"Whoa, that was crazy intense down there!" Someone from the crowd noted.
"Did something happen during the cavalry battle?" Another questioned.
"Who cares! The only one that matters didn't drop out and she's ~feisty~!" The teen from earlier cried out.
"Seriously, bro? The fuck?" the same respondent replied to the horn dog, though more subdued than earlier. He wasn't surprised at this point.
With Shinso gone, Midnight came up to the three teens with a slightly stern look.
"Matoi, you only have permission to use that during the events. It's not to be used to intimidate others," Midnight reminded the girl, who lowered the blade and stuffed it into her pocket.
"I'm sorry, Midnight. But I wasn't going to let Izuku get smoked before the fight even started after what that guy pulled on us earlier."
The teacher raised an eyebrow after hearing this information.
"I see. While I still don't approve of your antics, I can at least understand your position. I almost thought of disqualifying you for a moment, but it would be problematic if the boy won even before a battle had started."
"Does anyone want to explain to me what's happening?" Midoriya spoke up as Ojiro's tail unraveled and moved away from the former's lips.
Ryuko and Mashirao looked at one another and nodded before they both worked to drag Izuku away from the courtyard and into the tunnels.
"We need to find a quiet place to talk," Mashirao prompted.
"Well, we can go to my waiting room. Just turn right down here and we should make it," Izuku pointed out.
The trio arrived at the designated waiting room before settling at a table. Ojiro and Matoi both pulled up chairs in front of Midoriya, who looked rather confused.
"We should have some privacy here. So, what's up?"
"It's about Shinso, dude. He may not look like much, but he's a lot more of a menace than you think," Matoi said while Ojiro nodded in the background.
"What do you mean? I know he got this far, so his Quirk has to be strong in some capacity. But I didn't think it would have you so worked up, Ryuko. And you too, Ojiro. Is it really that powerful?" Izuku questioned.
"Something like that. Shinso has some sort of brainwashing Quirk," Ojiro answered.
"Brainwashing?!" Midoriya exclaimed, surprised that such a rare Quirk would be here.
"Well…kinda? It's hard to really say for sure. It doesn't have the usual effects like you here from stories. When I got hit, I couldn't remember what I was doing. I could "feel" what was going on outside in a sense," Ojiro explained.
"But in my case, I felt like I was staring out a window. I was able to see and hear everything the guy was saying until I pushed through to break free," Ryuko added.
"If that's the case, what was different about it?"
"If I had to take a guess, it would be execution. When I got hit, it was after he asked me a question."
"So it relies on a verbal response for it to be activated. That's what happened to me when I got brainwashed. Still though, we don't know if it's limited to just questions. Sorry if this didn't help much Midoriya." Ojiro said, somewhat dejected.
"No, no, it's alright! Actually, you guys gave me a lot to work with. In a nutshell, I just need to make sure I don't answer him when he asks a question," Izuku noted, getting ready to think through a plan.
"Easier said than done, Izuku. Shinso looks like the kind of guy who will make fun of your mom to get a rise out of you," Ryuko snarked, earning a small, surprised look from her childhood friend.
"Just be careful, Midoriya. Not answering him may be easy, but we still don't know if it's limited to just questions. Any response could be enough to put you under his effects," Ojiro warned, wanting his classmate to be as prepared as possible.
Ojiro wished him luck and soon turned to leave for the stands, leaving Ryuko and Izuku by themselves.
"Hey…"
Izuku turned to Ryuko, who stared directly into his eyes.
"Yeah, what's wrong?" Izuku asked, somewhat concerned by his friend's serious tone.
Matoi stepped toward Midoriya, surprising him with a firm hug.
"H-huh? What's-"
"You're gonna kick ass, you hear?" Ryuko interrupted.
Matoi tightened her embrace with her friend, wanting to make sure he listened to everything she had to say.
"I want you to go out there, wipe the floor with that melatonin addict, and make it to the finals…"
"Yeah, of course. That was the plan."
"...So I can knock your ass to next week."
Izuku shot up, looking at his now grinning best friend.
"W-what?! Hey, I thought you wanted me to win?"
"Yeah, in the FIRST matches. I never said you'd win against me!"
Matoi released Midoriya from the embrace, and she headed toward the exit. As she went to leave, Ryuko turned and called out once more.
"Hey!" Izuku turned to Matoi's shout.
"If he says some shit about Inko, knock his teeth in!"
"Oh come on, Ryuko! He can't be that bad!" Izuku chided as Matoi left the room, leaving Midoriya by himself to prepare.
..~~~HLK~~~..
-45 minutes later: Before the first match-
Izuku clenched his hand into a fist, holding it over his chest with his eyes closed. He tried to relax as much as he could, but this Shinso guy worried him.
Ryuko wasn't 100% sure how she snapped out of his trance, while Ojiro said he got bumped when he finally was freed.
"You've done very well, Young Midoriya. I couldn't have been more surprised and proud by what you've managed to do so far today."
Izuku gasped as he turned around to find All Might in his weakened form with a wide grin.
"Sorry I didn't say hi earlier. I didn't want to cause a distraction."
"No, it's fine All Might. I'm just glad I finally have some control over One For All," Midoriya stated with a soft smile, his eyes brimming with happiness.
"Still, I was so focused on getting your body ready to handle our Quirk that I didn't really have time to train you to start actually harnessing its power. I was going to estimate from what I saw earlier that you were using about 5%, right?"
"Yeah. Actually, at the end of the first event, I think I accidentally kicked it up to 6%. I'm guessing the training with Ryuko the last two weeks allowed me to handle that much, but I don't want to use that extra percent too much. At least, not yet."
"You were training with Young Matoi. I thought as much from the fighting style you employed out there. She must have really kicked your butt a few times, huh?"
"Yeah," Izuku admitted sheepishly, his right hand reaching for the back of his head.
"Still, I'm worried about Shinso…"
..~~~HLK~~~..
-Same time-
"Where are you going now?" Senketsu pondered.
"To check on Izuku. I forgot to mention other stuff like declarations work with Shinso's Quirk! God, so stupid!" Matoi answered.
"You seem to be getting rather attached to him at times," the Kamui opined.
"Shut it. Giving him a quick bit of encouragement and pointers isn't being attached, Senketsu. It's called being a good friend. There's a difference," Ryuko stated. She had unzipped her UA gym jacket to allow Senketsu to see around more easily.
"Sometimes I wonder if…"
"Shh! I hear someone!" Ryuko warned. She was a few feet away from the corner of the tunnel leading to the arena entryway.
Moving slowly so as to not attract any attention, she got up against the wall and directed her gaze down the lit corridor.
'There's Izuku! But who's that scrawny looking old man with him?' She pondered.
"Just promise me you'll do your best out there. You don't have to win the whole thing, kid. You've already made me proud," All Might smiled.
"Yeah. Though with the cavalry battle, I just felt really lucky to scrape by, All Might."
'What?! All Might? There's no way in hell that's All Might! Is Izuku drunk or something?' Ryuko smirked, wondering if he needed his eyes checked.
"It wasn't luck, kid. It was skill. And remember…"
Toshinori's body began to emit steam as his muscles expanded and his frame filled out the rest of his suit, quickly rising to over seven-feet tall in stature and a more booming voice.
"Whenever you're scared or nervous about a fight, just try to deal with it by smiling!" All Might flashed a thumbs up, paired with his signature smile.
"Right!" Izuku expressed, hearing his mentor's lesson loud and clear.
"You've made it this far, kid. I'm rooting for you out there, Young Midoriya. You've made me proud. Show the world what the next Symbol of Peace can do."
The boy nodded silently, touched by his idol's message. With that confidence boost, he was ready to go face the world.
..~~~HLK~~~..
'Holy shit!'
Ryuko moved her head back behind the wall, inching away from the entrance tunnel before slumping down against it. Her hands were placed over her mouth, hearing All Might's voice from the man who suddenly ballooned in size.
"Right!" Izuku's words echoed down the hallway.
"Ryuko, please try to calm down. Your breathing is too shallow," Senketsu said.
"My quirk, I borrowed it from someone else. Or rather, they chose to lend it to me," Izuku revealed. "I can't say much more than that."
Ryuko needed to move away from the area as she booked it back where she came from. The dots all started to fall into place from the last few weeks, scattered through bits and pieces that with a single thread sewn a whole story together.
'And back at the USJ…'
..~~~HLK~~~..
Steam began to emanate from All Might's skin, which added to the smoke that surrounded him.
'Wait, is that... steam coming off of All Might?' Ryuko took notice. It was hard to see through the rest of the smoke, but she could discern steam emanating from him. Something wasn't right.
..~~~HLK~~~..
She ducked into the waiting room nearby, closing the door quickly and quietly while grabbing a chair.
"That night when Izuku told me his secret. And the steam coming off of All Might at the USJ was the same thing I saw just now Senketsu," Ryuko muttered shakily.
"I'm surprised as well," Senketsu added, trying to stay calm while his partner was shaken to her very core, her eyes widened.
"Izuku… got his Quirk from All Might. There's no other explanation Senketsu…"
"I'm not so sure-"
"Don't try to play Devil's Advocate here, man! We both saw it. And I'll bet Izuku's one of the only people that knows what he really looks like. Like that! It makes even more sense now why Cementoss cut me and Kirishima off from those two after the attack."
And then she slapped him later in the evening after getting back home from UA.
Ryuko felt a pang of guilt hit her stomach looking back at that moment now. Even though they both apologized and buried the hatchet, he was actually trying to stop the villains from killing his hero. He was dashing in to try and buy time so people didn't know about what she just saw.
Izuku said this was a secret that not even his mom could know about, right?
A secret that he was going to tell Katsuki before she talked him out of it.
And yet, it was a secret Izuku trusted her –her of all people– to keep. Things were far more convoluted now than they were a few minutes ago.
"..."
"...So what are you going to do about it?" Senketsu asked as Ryuko stood up and walked to the door.
"I don't know yet. I'll figure something out. For now, I have to get back up to the stands and not let on about what I saw. If he really needed me to keep his Quirk a secret, asking questions anywhere that isn't completely private isn't going to help."
With that matter put on the back burner, Matoi bolted up the stairs as fast as she could, hoping to not miss a second of the action.
She was just outside the 1-A seating area when Present Mic came over the stadium sound system.
"ALRIGHT SPORTS FANS! ARE YOU READY TO GET THIS PARTY STARTED?!"
"Yo, Matoi! You made it back just in time!" Jirou called out as her other friends turned back to find her huffing a little.
"Yeah. I just needed to burn off a little energy. I'm way too pent up from sitting around so long," Ryuko explained as she took a seat between Jirou and Iida.
They seemed to buy the white lie, not asking any questions as she tried to not let anyone get a read on her.
'I need to ask him tonight when we get back to Danchi about what happened. But… how?'
..~~~HLK~~~..
"GET READY FOLKS, CUZ THIS IS WHERE THE REAL EXCITEMENT COMES! FIGHTERS, PLEASE STEP FORWARD!"
Izuku exhaled one last time to compose himself before he took one step out of the tunnel, and into the center stage. Shinso soon met him from the other side of it.
"LET'S BE SURE TO SHOW SOME LOVE FOR OUR CONTESTANTS SHALL WE?! NOT ONLY ARE THEY THE FIRST TO TANGO, BUT THEY'RE THE TWO CURRENT MVP'S OF THE FESTIVAL!"
The roars of the crowds ran wild as their cheers created a wave within the many rows of seats.
"A duel between the winners of the first two rounds? This will make for some excellent data!" Inamuta smirked. He was like a kid in a candy store with this golden opportunity given to him.
Satsuki watched closely while maintaining her own analysis.
'Matoi was able to break this one's brainwashing. Let's see if you're just as capable, Midoriya.'
"Over on the left, we have the hopping wonder from the hero course, Izuku Midoriya! He got out to a dashing headstart on his way to winning the first round and finished second in the Cavalry battle!"
Midoriya swallowed hard as his eyes scanned the rows upon rows of the cheering audience. He was going to be the first one to make an impression. Not only for the other fighters, and his class, but for himself. The pressure couldn't have been anymore suffocating.
But his eyes then caught onto the people that supported him. All Might, Iida, Uraraka, and Ryuko. They both made a promise to go head to head. He didn't want to let her down. The boy soon shifted his attention towards Shinso with a fierce gaze. No way he was going to back down now.
"Over on the right, we have the underdog that came into the spotlight from general studies, Hitoshi Shinso! He one-upped Midoriya in the previous event, and this is a de facto tiebreaker! We're going to find out who's the top dog between these two soon enough!
"All you have to do is either knock your opponent out of the ring, make them unable to continue, or have them shout "I give up!" And you win. Simple, right? And none of that killing crap! One hero doing it in the movies is bad enough! We don't need that kind of press!"
"I'll jump in in case anyone tries to step out of line. Be sure to remember that," Cementoss added.
"Give up, huh? Like that tailed loser? Not a chance," Hitoshi chuckled smugly while looking at Izuku, who only shot a glare at him without saying a word.
"I'm tired of waiting, how about you?! Let's get this party started! 3! 2! 1! BEGIN!"
The crowd got up from their seats as the final event of the sports festival began… with Izuku and Hitoshi doing absolutely nothing. Just standing across from one another and staring.
As the crowd noise died down, everyone was puzzled by the amount of inaction down below. Many of the pro heroes that were watching in the stands were trying to wrap their heads around the situation.
"What's going on? Why aren't they fighting?"
"Did they not hear Present Mic?"
"C'mon! This is a fight between the two winners! It should be a lot more exciting than this!"
Within the combination of confusion and outrage, Satsuki sat idly by while listening in on some of the comments made by the pro heroes.
"Tch, amateurs," She scoffed.
"The brains on that tailed one, not something I'd imagine he'd be proud of, huh?" Shinso pried again, only to be ignored.
"All that talk about pride. Haha, I'm sure someone will pat him on the head like a good boy while he crawls on the streets."
Izuku stayed silent, but he was showing small signs that he was getting frustrated. He couldn't take insults before, but thanks to the immense support from his friends, and Ryuko's no-nonsense attitude rubbing off on him, he did not take kindly to those that would talk ill about others.
Even so, this wouldn't be nearly enough for him to compromise himself.
But, he had to do something. Standing around wasn't going to help his case. As far as he knew, Hitoshi's ability only worked by responding to him. Maybe a direct attack would be possible and not affect him. But at the same time, Izuku wasn't sure if that was true.
The greenette bent his knees and began to power up his full cowling. He was going to have to fight regardless anyway.
Shinso let out a heavy exhale as he watched green energy surge around Izuku. He was running out of time and options. But, there was one last trick he had up his sleeve.
"Still, you seem very close to that girl with red in her hair, right? Ryuko. That's her name, right? She said your first name a few times out there."
Midoriya's eyes widened. Why was Shinso bringing Ryuko up right now?
"During that first event, she was dressed like a slut. What, is she an exhibitionist or something?"
"Oh, dude," Jirou began to cringe as she was able to hear what Shinsou was saying.
"What is it?" Ryuko asked. Kyouka leaned in closely to give her the details.
'Shut up!' That was what Midoriya desperately wanted to say as he grit his teeth. His arms twitched, ready to launch.
"THAT MOTHERFUCKER!" Ryuko bellowed.
"Really, does she have no honor or a sense of shame? Her looks are probably the only way she can even afford paying for school. I bet she's out in the district at night since she claims to be quirkless. What a disgrace," Shinso sneered, a wry smile showing to hide the fear beneath.
"SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH YOU DAMN BASTARD!"
"IZUKU, WAIT! STOP-!" Ryuko shouted.
-WOOSH-
…
….
"S-Shit… That was too close."
Shaky breaths roughly weaseled out of Shinso's mouth as he practically stared death right in the face. The crowd all around made a sound of a quiet, but rising awe as Izuku's fist was just mere inches from the purplette's face.
"Holy shit…" Matoi spoke, completely wide eyed.
"Whoa! I-I barely saw him move!" Uraraka spoke.
"That had to have been over ten feet he just crossed within a couple seconds. Amazing," Iida analyzed.
"Whoa! Since when was Midoriya a speedster!?" Kaminari's eyes nearly popped out of his head.
"He was already fast before, but when did he improve so much?!" Jirou asked in disbelief.
The crowd was mostly silent, save for the chattering students that were whispering. Katsuki eavesdropped on the group and began tightening his grip on the railing, small puffs of smoke emerged from between his fingers.
'What the fuck is that?!' Katsuki wondered.
'That was a lot faster than before! How much has he been hiding from me?!'
'How many tricks does Midoriya have up his sleeve? He just pulls one out at every turn,' Todoroki furrowed his eyes as he too studied the fight. Midoriya's out-of-nowhere power boosts were starting to concern him.
Satsuki and Inamuta's jaws dropped, while Mako and Mikisugi were completely dumbfounded.
'Tsumugu, I'm surprised you escaped in one piece after fighting this guy.'
Midoriya was stuck in a fixed punch posture with a completely blank look in his eyes, numb to everything happening.
"WHOA! SHINSO HAS MIDORIYA STANDING THERE COMPLETELY FROZEN! WHAT A CLOSE CALL TOO! CAN'T IMAGINE WHAT'D HAPPEN IF IT ACTUALLY HIT!"
While Present Mic was freaking out, Aizawa dug up his papers on the two students. Midoriya had surprised him all day, and he was happy about that.
Hitoshi Shinso on the other hand? Something about the kid intrigued Shota, almost empathizing with him.
"Sorry for the insults, they weren't meant to be personal. It's underhanded, but you shouldn't be complaining. You had the lion's share of power given to you, while I got the shallow end of the gene pool. I wanted to be on the heroic track, but I got stuck in general studies instead. So I need to do everything I can to stand out and win."
The indigo-haired teen let out a sigh, as he was ready to end this match.
"Now walk out of bounds like a good little hero."
Following the command, Midoriya's body straightened up and started to walk towards the boundary.
"WHAT!? Why's Midoriya walking toward the boundary?! Eraser, tell me you know what's happening!"
"A kid who fell through the cracks. Whether through arrogance or irrationality, Hitoshi Shinso is someone on par with these hero course students, whether others believe it or not," Aizawa stated, his mic turned off intentionally.
"NOOOO! C'MON IZUKU!/GAHHH! I TOLD HIM!" Both Matoi and Ojiro ranted in unison.
Meanwhile, Midoriya struggled to react and do anything.
"Dammit! They warned me and now I'm going to lose this! I can't lose here!" he thought as his mind was in a fog, staring into a misty world as he struggled to break loose.
Midoriya was getting dangerously close to the edge. This was pathetic and he couldn't do anything!
"Someone! ANYONE! HELP ME SNAP OUT OF THIS!"
In that instant, Midoriya's full cowl returned as he kept walking at his standard pace, catching everyone in the audience off guard.
"What's happening here?" Mic asked, seeing the same thing everyone else was, as Shinso could only stand there in complete shock.
"What?! How did my quirk activate?" Midoriya wondered as his vision saw several hazy figures ahead of him in the tunnel. His right arm started to creak and move on its own.
Mere feet from concluding the match, Izuku's right arm launched upward into his face, drawing a yelp from the boy and knocking him back a few feet away from the boundary.
A collective "ooooh" was heard from the audience as a *CRACK* echoed from the offending punch.
"INCREDIBLE! Midoriya broke out of whatever spell Shinso put him under by punching himself straight in the schnozz!"
Izuku huffed a bit as he had a slightly broken and bloodied nose.
"Oh, Thank God!" Ryuko exclaimed. That was too close for comfort.
"How'd you do that?!" Shinso yelled as Midoriya hopped up and spun around, activating full cowling and dashing forward.
'No time to think! Just win!' Midoriya thought as he went up to 6%. He couldn't be cautious like before. He had to win now!
Izuku swung once with his right fist, knocking the general studies student close to the boundary.
'There's no time to react! He's too quick!'
A mere two seconds later, Midoriya's left hook connected against Shinso's hands that attempted to block the blow, sending the brainwasher just a few feet into the grass.
"After that mind boggling sequence there, Midoriya has launched Shinso out of the ring!" Mic yelled out over the intercom, giving Midnight her cue.
"Shinso is out of bounds! Midoriya is the winner!"
Shinso looked up from his current position to see one thing taking up his entire view.
And that was the glowing emerald irises of his opponent, Izuku Midoriya.
To Be Continued…
Aduubo A/N: Picking some reviews out from the mailbag
Q: this story got me to make a account and I like to say I really enjoy your story, you took a lot of time and hard thinking to make your story work and I really like how you (to my point of view) balance with the characters and not show favouritism, unlike some other crossover fanfic I seen, *cough, cough* The Sins of Fairies *cough, cough*
anyway there are two curious questions I have.
1. after the cavalry battle, we get the moment where shoto tells Izuku about his past, would Ryuuko join in since she doesn't want to be left in the dark about it, or similar to Bakugo, she overhear their conversation?
2. after the sports festival, what Hero Agency Internships Ryuuko would have? My guesses would be, A. she joins Izuku's Internship, B. Midnight take her as her Internship, C. use a background character for her Internship, or D. make a whole new character for Ryuuko's Internship.
so, thank you for making this amazing story and I'm looking forward to the next chapter.
-Ronald Whittingham
Buckichamp A/N: Thanks for the kind review! It's awesome that you'd do that for us, Ronald.
This chapter addressed the first question.
As for the second inquiry, WE CAN'T SPOIL EVERYTHING LOL! We will eliminate ONE of those possibilities right now. Option A is NOT happening. Option B through Option D is still on the table.
PKSprtan: Spoilers have been sacrificed to the Blood God. BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD.
Buckichamp: To Tyrallius, thanks! Mako is our wild card lol. As for Satsuki, wait and see. But thanks for the support! Too much to address (and some stuff we can't get into… yet. But you have been noticed).
I like this and want to read more of it!
I have so many questions of what's gonna happen and what gonna happen if 1-A meet Satsuki and the elite four, but don't know where to start! So I'm gonna hope for more!
Aduubo: A handful of 1-A actually met Gamagori when he escorted Mako to Musutafu! He was pretty chill with them since they weren't doing anything to anger him.