Hey, guys. Thanks for all the support this story has been getting!
Like I said, if you guys keep supporting it, I'll keep writing it!
Now, of course the story is going to differ a little bit from the original source. This is a "What if...?" scenario, after all. I wanna see if I can make my own thing now that MHA is close to ending.
Having said that, enjoy chapter 3!
Chapter 3: Robot riot!
Itsuka was resting on a chair located near the entrance to the arena. The pro heroes with destructive quirks were tearing down the maze to make room for the next challenge, so it would be a bit before she'd have to enter again.
The last event was rough. Only the first 42 students had managed to qualify for the next event, most of them being from Class 1-A and Class 1-B. Itsuka felt like she got lucky with the path she chose to get out of the maze, not to mention how she might've detrimented the students who were behind her by using her quirk to lift rocks and use them as obstacles she had put behind her. Itsuka wasn't happy about the fact that she had to detriment others, but she knew that she HAD to score a high place in the Sports Festival if she wanted to be noticed by the pros.
Itsuka didn't think too much about the next challenge, though. Her thoughts were occupied by a certain green-haired boy. Her first impression of him had been a little underwhelming, to be honest. The poor guy seemed like he would faint just by talking to her. It's hard for her to believe that he was at the attack of the USJ, and the fact that he had managed to score first place on the maze challenge was even more outrageous.
Itsuka's train of thoughts was interrupted when said green-haired boy came out of the nursery with a bandage around his left pinky finger. He looked down, more emotionally than physically. Itsuka knew that it was probably best to stay away for now and let him recover...
But her curiosity got the best of her.
Itsuka got up and approached the boy. Upon sensing her presence, Izuku looked up at her, and noticed that she was smiling warmly at him, cauding him to turn into a blushing mess.
"O-OH! H-Hi, Kendo! Are you resting before the next event too?" Said Izuku, looking everywhere except at Itsuka, who giggled in response. His nervous attitude was pretty cute for a hero in training, she thought.
"Yes, actually. What about you, Midoriya? Seems like the last challenge got a lot out of you." Said Itsuka, pointing to his broken finger.
Izuku looked at his finger before thinking of an excuse. "Oh.. Well... I'm just a bit unexperienced with my quirk, that's all."
Itsuka looked a bit frustrated. Why was everything about this guy so... mysterious and wrong? "Really? You're unexperienced with your quirk? The thing you were born with?"
Izuku started to panic internally. "W-Well... It manifested not too long ago, Kendo..."
Kendo raised an eyebrow. "Really? When was it?"
Izuku chuckled nervously. "A few hours before the entrance exam, actually."
Kendo's eyes widened in response. "What?! Your quirk manifested just before the entrance exam?! How the hell did you manage to get into U.A?! The entrance exam was tough!"
Izuku chuckled at Itsuka's reaction. "I-I guess I was lucky...?" Itsuka raised an eyebrow at him. Izuku knew she wasn't convinced, so he kept trying to make excuses. "Well... I guess it helped that All Might helped train my quirk a little bit before the exam..."
That made Itsuka even more surprised. "So you're telling me... Not only did your quirk manifest just before the exam, not only did you somehow manage to get into U.A without knowing fully well how your quirk worked, not only were you at the USJ incident and survived, not only did you somehow manage to win the previous challenge... BUT THE NUMBER ONE HERO HELPED YOU TRAIN?!"
Izuku's blushing worsened. "Y-Yes... I know it's hard to believe, but-"
Izuku was cut off when Itsuka interrupted. "Why did All Might train YOU of all people?! Is it because you were new with your quirk? Is it because you met him before? Is it because you did something that caught his attention?"
Izuku chuckled nervously. "W-Well... I guess it's because our quirks are a bit similar... Heh..."
Itsuka felt a bit envious that Izuku was trained by All Might of all heroes, but she also felt happy for him. Izuku seemed like a nice and sweet guy, so getting help from the number one hero would be a great way to advance in his path of becoming a hero. "Huh... So... I take it that you still have a long way to go?"
Izuku's nervousness calmed down a bit at that comment. "Yes... I know I still have a long way to go, but I'm not gonna fall behind." Izuku's expression turned into a soft smile. "I've always looked up to All Might, and to have him as a teacher both at U.A and outside school is a blessing... Not to mention all the great people I got to meet when I enrolled into U.A... I still can't believe I'm so blessed... Being here is a dream come true, and I'll reach for the stars if that's what it takes to keep being a hero."
Itsuka's expression softened at that and her heart swelled at Izuku's words. It seemed like he adored being a hero, and the way he talked about his friends and his dream to become a hero... It was something heartwarming and wholesome. "Heh... You got that right. I feel the same way... My parents are probably watching the Sports Festival right now. I wanna do the best I can to not let anyone down."
Izuku looked at Itsuka with a big smile of his own. "I think you'll do amazing, Kendo."
Itsuka smiles at his response before a siren echoes through the room. "Oh, looks like the next event is about to start. Let's go, Midoriya!"
Izuku smiles at Kendo and walks to the arena alongside her. "Let's do our best!"
The students were called to the center of the arena, which had been wiped clean of the concrete maze, but everyone was quick to notice that its borders looked strange for some reason.
Present Mic starts to talk, making the audience ecstatic for the next event. "That was a spectacular first event, wasn't it, everyone? But now's the time where our students will REALLY step it up! It's time for our next event in the agenda, ladies and gentlemen!"
As soon as Present Mic said that, the borders of the arena gave way for some strange-looking devices to rise. They looked like big metallic doors for some reason.
"Everyone, get ready... FOR OUR METAL FARM!" Shouted Present Mic to the top of his lungs. The devices activated and created humanoid robots which immediately started to walk slowly towards the surprised students.
"Our lovely contestants will have to break apart and destroy as many robots as possible before the time runs out! This gives you flashbacks of your entrance exam, doesn't it? Our participants are free to detriment each other as well as steal each other's kills, but they're not allowed to hurt each other! Let's see who can score the most points, because we're only accepting the first 8 places for the final event! GOOD LUCK, EVERYONE! GET READY TO RUUUUUUUMBLEEEEEE!"
The robots ran like agile zombies towards the students, and the devices created more robots at fast speed.
Bakugo smiled. "Finally... Something not dumb! MAKE WAY, EXTRAS! I'LL SHOW YOU WHO'S BOSS!" Bakugo immediately propelled himself towards the robots and started to blast away.
Todoroki's glare hardens. "Arrogant as always... You won't surpass me, Bakugo." Todoroki starts to slide towards the robots and use his quirk to freeze the robots' feet in place before kicking them, breaking them apart.
Iida's determined expression hardens. "This is my chance! I will NOT waste it!" Iida runs at the robots at full speed before kicking them using his quirk.
None of the students paid any attention to Izuku, who froze in place. What the heck was he supposed to do now? His finger was broken and there was no way he would use his quirk right here or he'd be incapacitated. Could there be a way for him to score points without getting hurt?
Aizawa notices Izuku's worried expression and sighs. "This is what I'm talking about. These challenges need to be thought out better. Students with destructive quirks are bound to have an advantage over others. This isn't fair or logical."
Present Mic laughs. "Don't worry, Eraser! Our students from this year managed to enter U.A through a similar entrance exam, didn't they? They're all going to be fine!" Said Present Mic before slapping Aizawa's back.
"I swear if you do that one more time-!"
Below, things were heating up. Every single student was managing to score points one way or another. Even those with quirks that weren't very good in combat like Momo, Jiro or Aoyama were scoring points surely.
Izuku thought about a way to score points without harming himself. His train of thoughts was interrupted when a robot ran towards him.
'Crap...!' Izuku thought to himself while he started to charge the power of One for All.
However, the robot was suddenly crushed by a massive hand.
Izuku deactivated his quirk at the sight of the crushed robot, and he looked in awe to the user who had saved him. His jaw practically hit the floor when he realized it was Itsuka Kendo herself.
Itsuka giggled before shrinking her hands to pat Izuku's shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong, Midoriya? Don't believe in yourself?"
Izuku looked at Itsuka with admiration. "Kendo, was that your quirk?! That's so cool! Your quirk could be used in many ways, like...!" Izuku started to ramble, but his rambling was cut short when Itsuka pushed him out of the way before a ball of solid concrete hit his head.
Itsuka chuckled before looking back at the group of robots with a determined expression. "Don't lose your focus, Midoriya! You're falling behind, you know."
Itsuka proceeded to dash towards the robots and smacking them with her massive hands. Izuku looked at Itsuka in awe. She looked majestic while she fought. By the looks of it, she had experience in martial arts, which complimented the way she used her quirk. Kendo exhibited a graceful and almost dance-like quality in her motions, often incorporating spins, flips, and aggressive maneuvers into her attacks, which caught many people's attention, including Izuku's.
Then, Izuku snapped out of his trance. He HAD to score AT LEAST some points if he wanted to move on! But what to do...?
Izuku's attention turned towards the robot Itsuka had smashed into bits, and he realized that there were two details that stuck out. The robot had a small number "10" painted on the right side of its head, and the robot had some sort of small battery inside its head, similar to the robot he had deactivated in the previous challenge. These robots were probably made by the same people, and so, they could probably be beaten the same way.
Izuku looked towards the direction the concrete ball that almost hit him came from, and he realized that there were some robots that wore small concrete guns that shot small concrete balls, not big or solid enough to seriously injure someone, but enough to hurt. Izuku leaned his head and realized that those robots had a small number "25" painted on their head.
That was it. A solid plan started to form on his own head, but before he could do anything, he realized that the arena was out of robots.
"Oh no..." Said Izuku to himself as the last robot was blown away by Bakugo.
Bakugo looked at everyone else with a malicious smirk. "HAH! SUCK ON THAT!"
Bakugo was currently in first place with 340 points, with Todoroki being in second place at 335 points and Iida scoring third place with 320 points. Izuku was at the bottom, having done nothing at all during the wave of robots. Izuku was about to tear up, but the sound of Present Mic's voice through the speakers stopped him.
Present Mic grabbed the microphone. "Congratulations, challengers! Stage one... OF ONE MILLION COMPLETE!"
Everyone audibly gasped at that, except Bakugo.
"He can't be serious..." Said Uraraka to herself.
Todoroki sighed in acceptance while Iida chopped the air in disapproval. "This is highly unacceptable! Who was responsible for the design of this challenge? And if that was a joke, I personally don't find it humorous!"
Itsuka was so surprised she almost cursed. "There's no way we're making it to stage one million. My hands already hurt."
Bakugo, however, huffed and crossed his arms. "You're all a bunch of crybabies. BRING ME ALL THE GARBAGE SCRAPS YOU WANT! I'LL BLOW EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM AWAY!"
The devices on the edges of the arena embiggened slightly before starting to generate bigger robots that wore armor. Present Mic took it as a sign to announce the next round. "Stage two! AAAND... BEGIN!"
The students groaned before dashing at the robots again.
Izuku, however, was happy. With the knowledge he had gained, at least he could do something.
The robots of the second wave were bigger and tougher than the others. They wore chest armor and a helmet while their concrete weapons were shooting at a faster rate. The students' quirks had a harder time trespassing their armor, like Mina Ashido's acid or Aoyama's laser.
"Who made these things?! They're insane!" Cried out Mina as she dodged a ball of concrete.
"For once, I have to agree with you, mademoiselle!" Said Aoyama, clutching his stomach and running away from an incoming robot.
Izuku took advantage of the retreating students before charging towards the robots, an action that didn't go unnoticed by many people, including Itsuka.
'Midoriya?! What's he doing?!' Thought Itsuka as Izuku reached the robots.
The robot took a swing at him, but he effectively dodged the robot's punch and clung to the robot's back. Izuku proceeded to tear the back of the robot's head off to reveal the battery powering it. When Izuku threw the battery away, deactivating the robot, he noticed his score of 0 points rise to 25.
'There!' Izuku smiled to himself before getting off the robot's back and running towards another one of the big robots.
Itsuka looked at him in disbelief. Did he really do that? Did he notice something she failed to see? Either way, he seemed like he was finally doing something, and it seemed to work for him so far. Itsuka smiles at Izuku from afar before focusing on the robots again.
However, not everyone was happy. Bakugo, Todoroki and Iida looked on in disbelief.
Todoroki simply ignored Izuku and tried to focus on his own technique to beat the robots while Iida growled a little before doing the same.
Bakugo, however, snarled. "Damn nerd... YOU WON'T SURPASS ME, DEKU!" Bakugo propelled himself to the nearest group of robots he could find and started to blow them up with murderous intent.
Itsuka took notice of Bakugo's beavior. 'Jeez, was he always like this with Midoriya? Do they have some sort of backstory I don't know about?'
Everyone else was too focused on the robots to care about Izuku or Bakugo. The students were giving it their best shot, with many using their quirks to the point of exhaustion in order to win. Izuku was no exception. He was ripping off as many batteries as he could, but he was getting tired as well. His score was going up thanks to him focusing solely on the robots with concrete guns due to them being worth 25 points, but it was nowhere near enough to catch up to Iida, Bakugo and Todoroki.
Luckily for everyone, the second wave of robots was over by now. Many students dropped to their knees as ther fatigue caught up to them.
Everyone looks at the scores again. Although everyone's scores were different, Bakugo, Todoroki and Iida were still in first, second and third place respectively, having 680 points, 665 points and 630 points each. Izuku's score had risen to 225, but he was still nowhere near the top.
Present Mic took the microphone again. "Don't worry, dear contestants! We know you're tired, so perhaps it's time to skip to the end of the challenge!"
Many students nodded furiously at that.
"Good! I hope you're ready! Prepare yourselves...!" Present Mic's voice grew deeper and lower, like a wrestling commentator. "... FOR STAGE ONE MILLION!"
Suddenly, a big hole was opened in one side of the arena. From it, a huge robot, the size of three houses rose from the ground. The students were struck with awe and a slight twinge of fear.
Present Mic giggles. "I see your smiles...!"
Uraraka yelled from the arena. "NO ONE IS SMILING!"
The robot-generating devices on the sides of the arena retreated to the ground where they came from to make way for the giant robot to move. Many students keep their distance from the robot, although some stand their ground, the majority of those being from Class 1-A.
Itsuka thought about running away, but seeing class 1-A stand their ground made her look at them with an awestruck expression. 'They face a great threat, and they don't back down... Not even Midoriya.'
Itsuka looked over at Izuku, who was clearly scared, but was willing to stand his ground nonetheless.
The robot went for a punch to the ground, which the students dodged with ease.
Bakugo huffs before propelling himself towards the robot's face. However, unbeknownst to him, this robot was prepared. The robot senses Bakugo approach, and it slaps him away.
Izuku yells his childhood friend's name in concern for his well-being. "KACCHAN!"
Bakugo crashes down on the floor with a loud thud, smashing his head hard and being knocked out briefly.
Izuku looks at the robot with an angry glare. He knows this robot is meant to be faced by students, so there must be some way to defeat him easily. Something the pros who designed it must have left on purpose like they did on the other challenges...
Izuku squints his eyes and notices that the robot is especially armored on its waist. Like there's something important it needs to protect. "That's it! Everyone!" Izuku calls out to his classmates, who look at him despite being scared themselves. "There! In his waist!"
The entirety of Class 1-A looks at the robot's waist, and they immediately pick up on what Izuku is putting down. Momo nods and turns to the rest of the students who decided to stay. "Astute observation, Midoriya! Kirishima, Tokoyami, Sato! Your quirks are strong, so I trust that you can attack its legs to make it lose balance!"
The trio nod and Kirishima slams his fists together in anticipation. "Got it!"
Momo turns to Todoroki, Mina, Iida and Kaminari. "You four will attack the robot as much as you can to distract it even further, got it?" Her classmates nod.
Momo nods and turns to her other classmates. "Everyone else, attack that spot! It might be the key to defeating it! Stick to the plan!"
Class 1-A nods before dashing towards the giant robot. Kirishima, Tokoyami and Sato do as instructed and begin to pummel at the robot's legs. The robot loses balance, and before it can recover, Todoroki creates multiple ice slides around the robot for Iida, Kaminari and Mina to slide through. Mina shoots constant barrages of acid at the robot's face, Kaminari jumps at the robot to shock it quickly and Iida jumps between slides, kicking the robot while he's in the air. The rest of the class focus on attacking the robot's waist.
Class 1-B looks on in awe. Itsuka's eyes widen in reaction to Class A's impressive teamwork, smiling fondly. However, one blonde boy was having none of it. Said blonde boy steps forward and speaks to his classmates in an aggressive yet inspirational tone. "Guys! We need to get it together! We can't let the Sports Festival be a giant showoff for class 1-A, can we?"
Itsuka merely rolls her eyes at Monoma's comment, but one of her classmates, known as Tetsutetsu, agrees with him. "Yeah! Come on, guys! Class A's only strong because they survived the USJ incident, and they have grown stronger as a team because of it! Let's get out there and show the world that class B can be strong too!"
Class B nods before heading out. Under any other circumstances Itsuka would have chopped Monoma's neck to keep him in line as a big sister would do, but she had to admit, it would be nice to join class A in the spotlight...
Without thinking it twice, Itsuka followed her classmates on their battle against the robot.
Yui embiggens several piles of debris nearby and Reiko throws then to the robot's face using her poltergeist, helping out the very confused Mina and Kaminari.
"What the-? Where did you guys come from?!" Asks Kaminari, to which Monoma laughs.
"You didn't think we'd let you have all the glory and fame, did you? Supporting characters can shine too!" Says Monoma as he jumps into an ice slide, copying Iida's quirk and joining him on the ice slides created by Todoroki, kicking the robot in the air.
Iida feels a bit offended at having his personal space invaded, but he allows it for the occasion. On a lap in which they cross paths, Monoma slaps Kaminari, copiying his quirk and shocking the robot each time he comes in contact with it.
"Hey! Not cool, dude!" Says Kaminari, to which Monoma simply laughs.
"Cry about it!" Says Monoma as he keeps sliding around the robot.
Rin shoots scales at the robot from the distance, while Shoda picks up several pieces of concrete and throwing them at the robot, amplifying the hit with his quirk. Tetsutetsu and Ibarra join Kirishima, Sato and Tokoyami with the robot's legs, Ibarra holding one of his legs with her vines and Tetsutetsu pummeling away next to Kirishima.
Kirishima looks at Tetsutetsu with a surprised smile. "Hey, man! Glad you could make it!"
Tetsutetsu returns Kirishima's smile with a pointy grin of his own. "We're not letting you guys hog all the spotlight, man! 'Sides, we're glad to be here!"
Present Mic was ecstatic. "WOWWW! A COOPERATION BETWEEN PARTICIPANTS IN A FREE FOR ALL CHALLENGE?! THIS IS SOMETHING UNHEARD OF!"
The students' attacks tear open a hole in the robot's waist, and there, a giant battery in a metal container lay unguarded.
Izuku hurried towards Uraraka. "Uraraka! Can you make me float?"
Uraraka smiles and touches Izuku's chest, making him float. "Deku, that thing is way too high up! Someone needs to give you one heck of a boost!"
Izuku turned towards the rest of his class, but before he could get anyone's attention, he felt a massive hand wrap around his body. Izuku turned his head and saw Itsuka holding him with a big smile.
"Get over there and kick that thing's... ASS!" As soon as those words left Itsuka's lips, she threw Izuku with all the strength she could muster towards the robot.
As Izuku approached the robot, he felt a bittwesweet feeling wash over him. He knew this could incapacitate him, but it would be fine by him. This would ensure that he went noticed by many people in the audience, and it would ensure that none of his classmates got hurt. It sucked that he possibly wouldn't get to participate in the next events, but it would be worth it if he could save others.
'Sayonara, Sports Festival... It was good while it lasted...' Thought Izuku to himself as he approached the robot. 'Come on, Deku... Imagine the egg in the microwave... It won't explode... Come on... You got this...'
Izuku clenched his fist as he approached the robot's waist and he activated the power of One for All. He hoped he could be able to reduce the amount of damage he recieved, but it was up to his luck at this point.
"DETROIT... SMAAAAASH!" Izuku punched the battery with all his might using his left arm.
The robot's waist exploded completely, sending most students back. The robot fell over on the ground and stopped moving once it hit the ground. The sound of the explosion was enough to wake Bakugo up, who was being treated by the medical staff before his rude awakening.
"AGH! WHO THE...?!" Bakugo looked around him to figure out whatever happened. He was greeted by the sight of a pile of smoke rising from the ground and many of his classmates being scattered around the arena, a little hurt but smiling enthusiastically.
What got his attention the most was the sight of Izuku Midoriya being thrown away into the air.
Uraraka noticed it too, and she deactivated her quirk to make Izuku fall to the ground. Izuku was barely conscious, but when he realized he was falling to the ground, he let out a loud scream. "Wha-? AAAAAAAAHHH!"
Just as Izuku was about to hit the ground, Itsuka enlarged her hand and caught him like a professional baseball player would catch the ball before it hit the ground. Once Izuku realized he was safe, he turned towards Itsuka with a weak smile.
"Thanks..."
Itsuka smiled at him before helping him get to his feet. "No problem! Hey... Are you okay? Can you walk? Do you need me to carry you or...?"
Izuku chuckled before grabbing his left arm in pain. "I think I'm fine... But I need to go to the nursery."
The medical staff moved away from Bakugo and carried Izuku towards the nursery. Itsuka watched from behind with a pensive expression. This boy sure proved to be more interesting than she initially thought. He, along with his class, managed to defeat a seemingly unstoppable threat standing their ground. Perhaps the praise people gave to class A wasn't unfounded after all. Even though her own class had also helped in defeating the robot, Itsuka knew class A had taken the first step much to the dismay of Monoma and Tetsutetsu. Itsuka chuckled at the thought of Monoma and Tetsu fuming at class A for being credited for the victory.
Although, there was something else that was bothering Itsuka... This challenge felt... too extreme. Why did the pros in charge of the events chose to put together such an extreme challenge? Did the pro heroes have ulterior motives in mind? Plus, how would they split the points after this? Itsuka decided to not dwell on the matter and go visit Izuku in the nursery. The guy had dealt the finishing blow to the big baddie, after all.
Uraraka had watched Itsuka catch Izuku and get him to firm ground safely. She didn't know why, but for some reason she couldn't explain, she felt a little... off when she saw their interaction. Uraraka didn't know exactly what she was feeling, but she definitely felt something. Uraraka decides to put those feelings aside for now and walk to the waiting room to focus on the final event of the Sports Festival.
On the other hand, Bakugo looked at the arena in disbelief. What the ACTUAL hell had happened? Did he get disqualified? Did he pass? There were many questions and feelings roaming around his head, but the biggest feeling he was experiencing was anger. Anger towards himself for being reckless, anger towards Deku for always chasing after him, anger towards the people behind this dumb event for surprising them with a nearly impossible challenge at the end... All he could do for now was wait for the final results.
Izuku woke up in the nursery. He looked to his left arm and noticed that it was all bandaged up. Seems like imagining the egg in the microwave served to not break his arm entirely, although it didn't prevent him from getting serious injuries in his arm.
Izuku looked beside him and he saw Itsuka standing next to the window, looking outside with a thoughtful expression. "Kendo...?"
Hearing his voice, Itsuka snapped out of her train of thoughts and turned towards him, smiling brightly at him. "Midoriya! Are you okay? That was insane!"
Izuku chuckles before smiling softly at her. "I'm just a little roughed up. What happened? Did I miss much?"
Itsuka lets out a little sigh. "Thank goodness you're okay... You didn't miss much, honestly. The staff is currently preparing the arena for the final event, and our scores will be revealed in a bit."
Izuku looks down. "Oh... Man, I should have found some other way to destroy that robot. I'll be lucky if they let me participate in the final event, assuming that I get enough points to qualify in the first place..."
Itsuka smiles before ruffling his hair softly. "Don't beat yourself up over it! That punch was amazing! The way you and your class cooperate is awesome!"
Izuku's nervous demeanor returns upon feeling Kendo ruffle his hair, and he blushes madly. "A-Ah... W-Well, it was nothing special, Kendo! You looked amazing out there yourself! You looked majestic!"
Itsuka blushes slightly at Izuku's comment, and she playfully shoves his face away from her as lightly as she can. "Agh, get outta here! You were the one with the big finishing punch!"
Izuku laughs softly and looks at Itsuka with a smile of his own. "I-I'm serious, though! I'm sure everyone thinks you did better than I did! All I did was finish that thing off! No biggie!"
Itsuka giggles. "You need to stop being so humble, Midoriya. You were awesome out there and you need to recognize it."
Izuku giggles and looks away. "Hah... Well... I'm just not used to standing out, that's all..."
Itsuka raises an eyebrow. "Is that so?"
Izuku looks down. "Y-Yes... Not many people believed in me before, so I'm kinda used to not being in the spotlight."
Itsuka thinks for a moment before patting his head softly. "Well, if it helps, you have at least one person who believes in you now."
Izuku looks at Itsuka with a surprised expression. This feeling... The feeling of having someone who believes in you... It was one he hadn't experienced many times before, but it was one that made his heart swell with warmth. Izuku felt like he could tear up, but he contained himself. "T-Thank you, Kendo... It means a lot."
Itsuka smiles and places her hand on Izuku's bandaged arm. "Still... You need to take care of yourself more, Midoriya. You can't keep getting hurt like this..."
Izuku sighs and looks down. "I know, I know... Everyone keeps telling me that, but I can't help myself. I've always wanted to be a hero who saves everyone, and what kind of hero doesn't put themselves on the line to protect others?"
Itsuka feels conflicted about Izuku's response. She admired his resilience and his determination to save others, but she really didn't like the fact that he was willing to go to such lenghts to do it. "Midoriya... Listen, I know this'll sound weird coming from me since we don't know each other very well, but could you do me a favor?"
Izuku looks up at Itsuka with a confused expression. "Umm... Alright, Kendo. What is it?"
Itsuka places her hand on Izuku's right hand and looks at him with a concerned expression. "Just... Promise me you'll take it easier on the next event if you DO make it to the finals, okay? Please don't hurt yourself. You're a genuinely nice guy, and I don't like to see good people like you get hurt. Can you do that for me?"
Izuku looks at Itsuka for a moment, surprised by her gesture. After a moment, he smiles at her and nods his head. "Yes... I promise I'll take care of myself more, Kendo."
Itsuka smiles and withdraws her hand. "Good... Thanks, Midoriya."
They both stay in the nursery for another minute, relaxing in each other's presence. After the relaxing minute ends, Itsuka snaps out of her trance. "Well, I gotta get back out there. It won't be long until our scores are announced. Get some rest, Midoriya."
Izuku also snaps out of his trance and nods. "Yeah, thank you, Kendo. See you later!"
Itsuka walks out of the room with her head hung low. Truthfully, she didn't think Izuku would get to the finals at all, not after such a reckless attack. She still meant every word she said, though. She might not know his full story, but Itsuka could tell that Izuku was a very nice person, and it would be tragic if something happened to him. Despite that, Itsuka felt somewhat at ease believing that Izuku wouldn't get to the finals at all, and even if he did, there was no way he'd be allowed to compete in his current state.
Outside, the crowd is roaring in anticipation. The arena was finally clean again, and the scores of the final students were ready to be revealed.
Present Mic grabs the microphone and hypes the crowd up. "Sooooo... Are you all ready to see who are the lucky contestants to move on to the FINAL STAGE OF THE SPORTS FESTIVAL?! EVERYBODY SAY HEY!"
The crowd does as told. Aizawa sighs and contemplates leaving the commentator's booth. "I still stand by what I said. This challenge was one of the worst ones I've seen in any Sports Festival we've had so far."
Present Mic chuckles. "Don't be such a party pooper, Eraser! Our students managed to defeat our one million point robot after all, didn't they?"
Aizawa groans. "Remind me why I'm here again."
Present Mic chuckles again. "Why don't you look at out students' final scores instead?! Pay close attention, everyone! Because these will be the eight lucky individuals to participate in the last event: the battle tournament! AND OUR WINNERS ARE...!"
Present Mic points to the screens of the stadium. The screens reveal the final 8 participants of the Sports Festival:
Izuku Midoriya
Shoto Todoroki
Tenya Iida
Fumikage Tokoyami
Eijiro Kirishima
Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu
Ochaco Uraraka
Katsuki Bakugo
So... That just happened.
Like I said at the beginning, this story will be a bit different from the MHA canon, although I'll skip the parts of the canon that stay the same.
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See ya in the next chapter! Bye!