I own nothing. May contain Out of Character moments.

For Mineta, he managed to squeeze every last second of out their 30 minutes of practice. After the shorter boy barely got the Scythe out, Sugino began refining his pitching form and other grips. And the differences between his pitches before and after the lesson were clear as day. Not only did his balls have greater speed, but his control was much more refined.

And thus, as a result, Mineta's throws were more powerful and accurate.

But alas, the practice session ended and it was time to play ball.

"Alright Heroes, I want a clean game out there. No deliberate attacks, that is unless you're fine being open game , and no Quirks. Let's respect each other and the diamond." Coach Yamamoto said before taking out a coin. He then flipped it, caught it, and slapped it onto the back of his other hand. The coach removed his hand before turning to 1B.

"Class 1B starts on top."

"Hear that 1A!? We're on t–!" Monoma began before several members of 1B covered his mouth. They then then began dragging the arrogant blonde towards the dugout, much to his displeasure. Mineta continued to watch Monoma struggle against his own classmates, wondering just why he was like that. Because based every interaction they've had thus far…

The shorter boy could tell Monoma was obsessed.

"Good luck and don't hold back." Kendo said with a slight bow. Iida quickly returned the gesture before he began directing 1A's defense to their positions. As for the other members, they waited in their dugout while Mineta continued to warm up with Yayorozu in the bullpen. So once everyone found their places, the game finally started.

Well, we say that, but the first inning was anything but interesting. Bakugou pitched wild balls that struck out the first three batters of Class 1B, ending their turn at bat. 1A was pretty much the same as Iida, Mina, and Ojiro were struck out by Monoma. And while it came as a surprise that he, of all people, was 1B's pitcher… Mineta could tell something was off about his throws.

He, however, has yet to figure that out…

But now isn't the time for speculation, for it was time for the second inning. Bakugou took the mound again as he stared down Tsunotori Pony as she readied her bat. Mineta watched how the equine girl moved, how her eyes focused on the explosive blonde. And already the shorter boy could tell she had more skill than most.

"Bakugou… You better not start screwing up…" Mineta muttered as he watched Bakugou pitch. And, despite the 30 minutes of instruction, his throws were as wild as ever. Honestly, it was a miracle that it even stayed within the strike zone. It was even more of a miracle that none of 1B hit the ball thus far. But given how it's only defense was speed and randomized aim, Bakugou's pitches were bound to get hit.

The first pitch sailed right past Pony without much reaction from her. The girl just scratched her head as Midoriya tossed the ball back to Bakugou. And once she readied the bat again, 1A defenders readied themselves as the second pitch came. But even that went by without a reaction, causing Mineta to narrow his eyes with suspicion. What was 1B up to?

But the moment Bakugou began to wind up for the third pitch, Mineta saw a glint in Pony's eyes. Oh no…

The baseball came out flying before a sharp ping rang out, forcing the ball to fly in another direction. Pony ran towards first base as the ball landed in center field, which Jirou hustled to retrieve. And once the punk girl got it, she immediately threw it to Shouji as Pony started to go for second base. The girl dove for it, touching the base just before the baseball landed in Shouji's glove.

"Safe!" Sugino, who served as one of the umpires, shouted.

"Damn…" Mineta muttered as he began biting his nails. Bakugou frowned before receiving the ball from Shouji and readied himself for the next batter, Kendo Itsuka. The explosive blonde narrowed his eyes before throwing out his first pitch, no response. The second pitch, no reaction again. Only when the third pitch left Bakugou's hand did Mineta realize what the 1B's plan was.

Because Bakugou has only one speed, they'll use pitches one and two to acclimate to the third one. And because he had only had one pitch, 1B could safely swing knowing he won't suddenly throw a curve ball on them. So unless Bakugou switches out now or he pulls something out of his ass, Mineta knew 1A's going to lose some runs.

Kendo swung and the bat sent the ball flying towards left field, the worst place as Aoyama was covering there. He fumbled to get the ball into his hands before weakly throwing it to Sero on third base. Though by then, Pony already made it back home. So the boy was forced to throw it to Tokoyami on second. The action was ultimately pointless however, since Kendo was already there.

Bakugou cursed to himself before facing the next batter with fury burning in his eyes. Tetsutetsu faced the explosive blonde grinning as he let the first pitch sail on by. But he really threw the wrench in the 1B's plan when he swung on the second pitch. It connected, but it didn't go to the outfield like the others. Instead, it began bouncing towards the pitcher's mound.

And in a mad dash, Bakugou snatched the ball from the ground and chucked it to first. Kaminari flinched as he barely caught the ball, outing Tetsutetsu. But 1A's defense wasn't done as Kendo continued her dash to third base. The electric blonde quickly hurled it towards Sero, who caught it and tagged Kendo the moment she touched the base.

The third base umpire didn't take even a moment to call it 'Safe'. Mineta gritted his teeth as 1A let out an audible groan; this couldn't get any worse… Only for Monoma's gear grinding gloating to fill the field. The shorter boy buried his face into his glove and wondered whether he should step in and show 1B what for. But after a bit of thinking… Mineta decided to wait a little longer.

How else will Bakugou learn that he's not a badass at everything?

1B's Kamakiri took his place on home plate and readied his bat. And with his natural glare, combined with his mantis like face, Mineta could tell the guy means business. Unfortunately, intimidation means nothing to Bakugou unless you had something to back it up. So he began pitching like always. The first and second pitch went through without much of reaction. And on the third pitch, like the others before Tetsutetsu, he swung.

However, unlike everyone else, he failed to connect the bat with the ball, striking him out. Mineta let out a sigh of relief as the next 1B batter took the plate. Setsuna grinned at Bakugou as he threw out the first pitch, then the second. On the third, instead of swinging, she bunted the ball. Mineta could practically feel the surprise on his friend's faces as Kendo and Setsuna ran… But his eyes were on someone else.

Midoriya, as if he already knew 1B's plan, had scrambled for the ball the moment it was bunted. And once it was firmly in his mitt, the green haired boy darted back to home plate. Kendo dove towards the plate, one arm outstretched, hoping to make it first. But those hopes fell flat as Midoriya copied her a half a second sooner.

As such, his mitt touched home before her hand could.

"Kendo is out! Change field!" Coach Yamamoto shouted. The tension in Mineta's body left in the form of a relieved sigh. If there were three things Midoriya could be counted on, it'd be Heroics, Hero notes, and catching balls.

"I honestly thought we'd lose another point… Midoriya-san really doesn't let any ball escape him." Yaoyorozu commented.

"Yeah… That's what happens when you're my catcher for about a year…" Mineta answered as he watched Kirishima took home plate. Monoma's pitches came out again as the red haired boy failed to hit any of them. But instead of focusing on that, Mineta instead continued to observe the oddity that was Monoma's throws.

Todoroki took his place on home plate and readied himself with his usual stoicism. Monoma threw out slurve to the inner corner of box 9 and Todoroki allowed it to pass. He also allowed the second pitch through, a forkball to the outside of box 4. But when Monoma threw out a fastball to box 2, the dual colored classmate gave 1B a taste of their own medicine.

The bat struck the ball and sent it to the outfield, causing 1B to scramble as Todoroki briskly yet comfortably made it to second base. 1A finally claimed a base. And as such, Monoma had to take a moment to compose himself before he was ready to pitch again. This time, he was against Tsuyu. But as the arrogant blonde throw out his pitches, Mineta noticed something about them.

A slurve to box 8, a forkball to box 6, and a fastball to box 1…

And though Tsuyu couldn't connect her bat to any the pitches, Mineta was finally able to figure out Monoma. All he needed now was some confirmation, something a nervous Kouda will provide. Monoma gave a nasty glare before he threw out his first pitch. However, unlike before, his first pitch flew much too close to gentle boy, about 20 or so centimeters, startling him. Monoma then struck out the still startled Kouda with three more throws.

Mocking him all the while…

"… I'm going to kill that bastard." Mineta said, his eyes twitching.

"I wouldn't recommend that Mineta-san… Though I certainly won't stop you if you go through with it..." Yaoyorozu replied as she sadly watched an apologetic Kouda return to the dugout. And as Uraraka took her turn at the plate, Mineta turned to the regal girl for the final confirmation of his theory.

"Hey Yaomomo, does any of Monoma's pitches look right to you?"

"Well… After observing and catching several of your throws… Monoma-san's pitches seem to be more straightforward. While I don't doubt it's still difficult to hit, I think it's just a matter of time before our friends start zeroing in on the timing." She replied as she observed Monoma's pitching more closely. As Monoma's second pitch came out, a forkball to box 5, Uraraka swung and hit the ball just as it began sinking.

The baseball didn't go too far into the outfield. However, it was far enough to allow Todoroki and Uraraka to run to third and first without issue. And as Monoma barely held his cursing in, Midoriya stepped onto home plate with a clam light in his eyes. While Mineta wasn't on the receiving end of that look, the shorter boy knew what his partner was going to do.

Whenever Midoriya's eyes shined like that, absolutely no pitch got through him.

So as soon as the ball got in his range, Midoriya's bat rang out as he sent it far into the outfield. Todoroki easily made it back home, giving 1A their first point, and Uraraka got to third without any trouble. Midoriya cut it close as he dove for second base, barely touching the base before Manga got the ball.

"Safe!"

Mineta silently pumped his fist as Iida took the plate again, his glasses shining ominously in the sun. But despite this show of intimidation, 1A's class president was struck out swinging, ending 1A's turn to bat. So, 1A's fielders took to the field again with Bakugou looking particularly eager to out more of Class 1B. And with the score currently tied, there was no way the explosive blonde would allow any more runs to slip through.

The shorter boy blinked to that thought as he watched Bakugou began his wild pitching. He then frowned and gritted his teeth. If he was going to continue pitching like that, Mineta knew 1A was bound to land in some seriously hot water. And as though to prove his point, Kuroiro hit Bakugou's third pitch and sent it to the outfield.

"Just swallow your pride and tag me in… You idiot…" Mineta thought as he saw the familiar shadow overtake Bakugou's eyes.

The shadow of self-doubt…

And that has been Chapter 86!

It's still strange, seeing 1A and 1B play baseball against one another. This was actually a kind of prototype for one of my original ideas, which involved baseball as a tool for settling conflict. And though I am inexperienced in this particular genre, I just hope that you, my dear readers, are able to follow the flow of things well enough. If not, well, all I could do is ensure that we finish it by the next chapter. I look forward to reading your opinions on this chapter.

As the next talking point... Bakugou, at this point of the story, is mentally compromised. As you know, at this point, he's facing all sorts of self doubt due to All Might's retirement. And I imagine that the ferocity of his training is to try and regain some semblance of pride within himself. So I guess you can say that, in this part of my story, our firecracker is doing the same thing. He wants to feel perfect again, to feel like he's still worthy of the spotlight and not be some beast of burden to everyone. That's why I put him on the mound. It just feels right...

But that's just me. Anyhow, next update, we'll see the conclusion of this game where two young men finally communicate with one another using their balls. That is not a euphemism. So...

Until Next Time. T1.