I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING SOONER! I had so much school work from college, job hunting, taking care of younger siblings, and I pretty much lost my motivation to write due to stress. But! I have a spark of motivation and I did not let it go to waste! I hope I can keep myself motivated because I love this story, much more than 'With Great Powers, Comes A Great Alliance' actually.
Also, I hope you like the new cover photo (Which takes time to update it seems)! I commissioned an artist on DA named BlueWolfArtista! Thanks again for the art mate, I love it! Go check out his DA, it is full of awesome artwork!
Anyways, a new chapter, yay! It is ridiculously long, like very long. Don't expect them to be this long though, I try to keep it at a maximum of 15 pages.
"Is everyone ready?" Midnight asked, "No? Too bad! BEGIN!"
As soon as those words left the mistress's mouth everyone charged at Midoriya's team. Well, almost everyone. My team stood back as we watched Midoriya and his group, Uraraka, and a bird-head fellow, get swarmed by the teams. I understand why they would go after him. Midoriya has the 1 million point band, an instant winner if you hang onto it throughout the match. Well, I don't think everyone was accounting for second or third place which is okay by me. I don't care much for winning the obstacle course, it's not a big spotlight nor the ultimate prize, and like my partners Itsuka Kendo and Ibara Shiozaki, we just wanna advance.
With that being said, we set our plan in motion. "Shiozaki!" I shout.
"Right!" Shiozaki's vines start to grow out and extend towards many of our opposition's headbands.
"WHAT'S THIS?!" Present Mic shouts, "WHAT IS TEAM HATSUME DOING?!" We answered his question rather quickly as the vines snatch headbands off the riders head, all of them looking at us with stunning looks. "WHAT A BRILLIANT STRATEGY! INSTEAD OF RUSHING TEAM MIDORIYA LIKE EVERYONE ELSE, TEAM HATSUME HUNG BACK AND STOLE HEADBANDS RIGHT UNDER THEIR OPPONENTS NOSES!" Present Mic explained as the crowd cheered for us.
"Great plan, Kendo!" I say happily as I place five bands around my neck, "What's next?"
"Run!" Kendo yells as the five teams start to chase us now.
"Activate flight mode!" I yell out as I press a button on my jetpack, "Kendo, move your head!" I say to her as she does so. Not a moment later, we are in the air and flying over everyone. The hover soles on our feet turn on as well and keep us afloat in the air. "That's your plan, Kendo?!"
"For now!" She yells back with a smile, "It was reasonable to believe that those five teams would charge at us the instant we took their headbands, so I had to plan for that!" Kendo informed me. I had to admit, she did have a point. "Let's try to waste as much as time as possible in the air that way when we are forced to land, we already killed the clock some!" Shiozaki and I nod in agreement.
"GET THE **** DOWN HERE!" Yelled out a familiar angry voice. Before Shiozaki used her Quirk to steal everyone's bands, I used mine to find the ones with the best value, and Bakugo's so happened to be one of them.
"LANGUAGE!" Shiozaki glared down at the user of such profanity.
I looked down to see that Bakugo had left his group and was chasing us in the air with his explosion Quirk acting as a source of flight. "Shiozaki! Defend against him! Kendo's hands will add weight, and set us off balance!" Shiozaki nodded her head and launched several vines at him. Bakugo dodged all of them as he kept charging at us with a ferocious grin.
"You're mine now!" Bakugo yelled out before one of Shiozaki's grabbed him by lig left leg, "What the?!" Bakugo looked back down but had little time to react as the vine flung him back towards the ground. Bakugo's team would have been disqualified if Bakugo had landed on the ground, but a plain-looking boy using some type of tape Quirk made the save as he wrapped the tap around Bakugo and pulled him back towards his team.
I let out a breath of relief, "Oh that's a-" I hear a sharp noise as we all look at the jetpack to see that an earplug was inside of it. "Damn it Jiro," I mumble as the jetpack then stops working as we start to slowly descend towards the ground. We would have been falling at a much faster rate, but due to the hover soles more sufficient capabilities, we are not.
"There are only two groups waiting for us down below! I believe the other three decided to go after the others!" Kendo said.
I ponder in my head for a moment and look down to see that Bakugo's group along with Jiro's were the two waiting for us. Bakugo had Mina and two others I did not recognize and Jiro was not the leader of her group. Instead, her group all looked as though they were holding up someone, but no one was there. I shake the many questions in my head and begin to plan out a strategy. "When we land, Shiozaki handles Bakugo's group. One of them has acid for a quirk, and that really damage Kendo's capabilities, thus causing a severe decline in our chances of winning. Shiozaki, I'm sorry, but your vines are pretty expendable."
Shiozaki simply smiled in my direction, "I am willing to sacrifice my own hair for this occasion. I can always grow it back."
I nod my head as we approach the ground, "Kendo. You block out the other group's offense, and if you have to, attack them. I only know that the purple haired one, Jiro, has a Quirk that allows her to paralyze others with her earphone jacks, so be careful." Between acid and temporary paralyzation, I think the latter suits us better since it is limited whereas the burning sensation of acid will last the whole match. Shiozaki would be the perfect counter to either or, but I don't want to overstress her either by having her take on both.
"Right." Kendo acknowledges.
As we hit the ground gently, both teams waste little time and charge at us. "Okay," I say as I pull out a new baby from my side, "Let's dance!" I say as I activate a new baby. Since I am using Stark Tech, why not create a gun that fires repulsor blasts?
"Fancy. You will get some type of attention with that." Tony said.
"I know," I mumble to him before firing a blast at Jiro's group, my shot narrowing missing them.
"Woah! What was that?!" Jiro asked.
"Heck if I know, but it looks dangerous!" Said a familiar voice.
I blink and look at Jiro's group, specifically the upper portion of it, "Hagakure?"
"In the flesh!" Hagakure replied as I heard a click, "Took you that long to realize I was here?"
"Well, you invisible girl." I reply and dodge one of Jiro's earplugs, "Hey! Stop that!"
"Not a chance!" Jiro said as she continued to use her earplugs, but was having trouble getting passed Kendo's massive hands. "Damn, those are big hands!"
"Thanks! All part of my Quirk!" Kendo said with some vigor as I kept firing my rounds at them. On the other side, I hear Bakugo roaring in frustration.
"Will you just die already?!" Bakugo yelled at Shiozaki while she kept defending against Mina's acid, his explosions, and some guy shooting tape from his elbows.
Shiozaki kept her glare on the angry boy, "You are nothing but a mere brat! I can't believe you lead your class if your attitude is just spoiled!" Shiozaki roared back.
"What was that you b****!?" Bakugo set off an explosion towards Shiozaki, but her vines created a shield that blocked most of the impact of the attack. The only way we could tell that damage was made was through the smell of burnt grass.
"We can't keep this up forever!" I yell out as I grab another baby of mine from my pocket. "Kendo, use your hands to push us up into the air! Use as much force as possible!" I say to her.
"Are you sure about this?! That leaves you wide open!" Kendo asks with caution, one of her hands in a paralyzed state while the other is guarding us.
"Just do it!" I yell back. I really hope this work.
Kendo grabs Jiro's earplug and rips it out of her hand. Jiro retreats her earplugs as Kendo's hand begins to move. Without wasting another second, Kendo places her hands onto the ground. Jiro realized an opportunity and attempted to grab one or more of my headbands with her earplugs. Kendo quickly pushed against the ground, shooting us up into the air.
"Hey, Jiro, have a taste of your own medicine!" I say as I throw a small metal ball towards the ground. Not a moment later, a huge surge of electricity shoots through the ground and electrocutes everyone in the surrounding area. Shiozaki and Kendo both look at me in awe.
"Wow….you guys in Support class rock," Kendo says.
I snicker and smugly reply, "Nah just me. It's why I'm the only support student in this round!" I proudly state before we hit the ground. We dash away from the stunned groups as I look around to see if we have any followers. "We're clear for now!" I say as I spot Midoriya's group going up against Todoroki's group. "Let's stay clear of those guys," I say before we are approached by another group.
"My my Shiozaki, Kendo. You two sure do know how to make an impact at the beginning of the round no less!" A boy with slick, blonde hair asked. He has the average body of everyone else here at the school, but I can't help but see that his most distinctive feature is that smirk of his that gives him a rather contemptuous look. The boy eyes me for a second with curiosity, "She isn't part of our class nor 1-A, who is she?"
"Mei Hatsume, Support Class." I reply, "And you are?"
"Neito Monoma." Monoma introduces himself before pointing to the other below him, "These are Kosei Tsuburaba, Sen Kaibara, and Shihai Kuroiro." The three of them wave at me in a friendly manner but have the same competitive smirk as Monoma on. "Well. I am sure you know how this conversation is going to end."
I look towards Kendo and Shiozaki, the former having a grin on her face while latter keeps her calm demeanor on. "Bring it, Monoma," Kendo speaks for us while I reload my pulse pistol.
"As you wish, Kendo." Monoma states before Tsuburaba blows into the air, the air itself turning solid.
"Wow. That is pretty cool actually." Tony admits, "Does it hit hard though?"
"Guess we'll find out," I say as I fire a pulse shot at it, the solid air shattering into pieces.
"Wow! That is a cool weapon you have there!" Tsuburaba says before making a few more pieces of solid air, Monoma grabbing a few pieces. "But we will take those bands!" Tsuburaba announces before they charge at us.
"Kendo, Shiozaki! Do your thing!" I plainly say while I look behind us and see both Bakugo's group and Jiro coming at us, "Awwww shi-"
"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Shiozaki eyes me with distaste.
"-iiiiiiiiime." I say weirdly before shaking my head, "We have more company behind us!" Kendo and Shiozaki look behind us and see the two groups coming.
The other two groups come at us and now we are trapped between a rock and a hard place. Between these three groups, Monoma's should be the easiest to get passed by.
"You f***ers are not getting away again!" Bakugo grinds his teeth with a psychotic expression on his face. Mina and the other member of his team look at him with a fearful expression while Kirishima just looks slightly embarrassed.
"Hatsume, that was a cheap trick! Clever, but cheap!" Hagakure tells me but keeps the cheerful expression in her voice.
"Well well well, Class 1-A." Monoma speaks with mockery in his voice, "Wait...are they without their headbands?! Ha! That is priceless!" Monoma's calm expression now has changed into one of complexity.
"Uh-huh. We have a sociopath here." Tony states.
"What's it to you, blondie?" Jiro said with a bored tone.
"To think you are supposed to be better than my class, Class 1-B, and to see that your headbands are already stolen, by my class and one from the Support Class no less, is just comical!" Monoma said before looking at Bakugo, "Oh hey, you're kinda famous huh?" That caught everyone's attention, including Bakugo's. "You were the one who was attacked by that sludge villain; you'll have to tell me about it sometime. It must be strange to always find yourself being in the role of the victim."
"Oh, this isn't going to end well," I say.
"Monoma, I would ask for you to refrain from bringing up personal experiences, it has no place in such events; especially ones that revolve around villain attacks!" Kendo loudly states at her classmate. The sociopath's expression dies down as he reverts back to a normal state, but without one last jab.
"Fine. I wouldn't want to waste my breath on someone who's very fragile, I certainly wouldn't want to be the reason why he breaks." Monoma sarcastically says with a humorous tone.
I could feel the unrelenting rage radiating from Bakugo's body; it was so hot that I felt as though my skin was burning from just being in his presence, and I am positive that Kendo and Shiozaki felt the same way, but that was not what I was focusing on. I was looking at the scoreboards. We are in third place. In front were Midoriya, being first place, Todoroki in second, my team in third, and Monoma in fourth. I placed my hand on my chin as I began to deep think about a strategy.
"You have an idea?" Tony asked.
"Yeah." I grab on my bands from my neck, "I do." I rip the band off of my neck as everyone looks at me stunned, but not before it turns into complete shock as I toss the band at Monoma's group. I can not say I was surprised when his group gladly took the band. I did the math in my head. If I give Monoma the band with the least amount of points, he would be tied for third with me. That is enough to go after him in place value, but another reason is that now Bakugo would aim his wrath towards Monoma now instead of my group. Monoma has equal merit as me, but with him taunting Bakugo, he placed himself in a hole he can not escape from. In other words, I threw a red cloth at another man in order for the bull to chase him instead of me.
"Hatsume! What are doing?!" Kendo asked with disbelief.
"I teamed with you to win, not to lose! What is the meaning of this turnabout?!" Shiozaki also questioned me.
I ignored them as I looked at Bakugo. If my prediction is right, his rage would hinder his common sense, even for a moment. "Hey, ragefest." That piercing evil glare turns to me. I am quite glad I have goggles on because I would not be able to look him in the eye. I quickly regain my composure and point to the scoreboard, "With those points, he is tied for third place, that is a lot of worth. Wanna take a shot at him for embarrassing you?"
Monoma's group looks at me in realization and horror, except for Monoma himself, while the others eye me with the same looks minus the terror.
Bakugo's lips slowly turned to the upside in one of my sickest fashions I ever saw, and not in a cool way either. "I know you're playing me, but I'll take the bait anyways." I think I am lucky he has an ego then because had he did not, he'd probably aim for my team. "Kirishima, we're taking his ass down!" Bakugo roared as I looked down towards my redhead friend.
"Thanks a lot, Hatsume…" Kirishima said with an annoyed look.
I give him a thumbs up and smile, "You're welcome!" I hear him snicker lightly, but not enough to put down his mood. "Alright girls, let's back up." Kendo and Shiozaki nod as we run away from the scene.
"Hey! Don't forget about us!" Hagakure says as they chase us from behind. The only thing we can hear is the sounds of explosions coming from the back.
"Hey, do either of you know how much time we have left?" Kendo asks us.
"ONE MINUTE LEFT!"
I nod my head, "I think we have one minute left."
"TODOROKI MADE IT SO HE'D HAVE THE TEN MILLION TO HIMSELF TO SEIZE IN AN INSTANT!" Present Mic yelled out with new information, "AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT FIVE MINUTES AGO!" I turn my head to the right to see a large barrier of ice in one place. It closed off any entrance or exit, except for the sky above as there was a big opening over them. "BUT UNBELIEVABLY, MIDORIYA'S BEEN ABLE TO KEEP AWAY IN THAT CRAMPED SPACE FOR FIVE MINUTES!"
For five whole minutes, Midoriya has been evading Todoroki's group? Wait last time I saw them, they were running around…..this event was supposed to be thirty minutes….."It's already been 29 minutes?!" I screech, "How?! We barely did anything!"
"I guess the hang time in the air was a lot longer than we expected." Kendo states. Shiozaki suddenly puts up a shield with her quirk to block Jiro's quirk from getting our bands. "We kinda forgot about them didn't we?" Kendo points out.
"Ah we did, but they were lagging behind," I say as I pull out a disk-shaped object from my side. "Hold still for a second," I say as I throw it at the ice and the disk attaches itself to the ice.
"What's that?" Kendo asks.
"You'll see," I say as the disk lights up and begins to beep for a moment before suddenly exploding and creating a huge hole in the ice wall. I look inside the wall to see both teams are stunned. I wave to them, "Hey guys, mind if I join the party?"
"HOLY MOLY! MEI HATSUME FROM THE SUPPORT CLASS THREW A DISK AND IT BLEW UP A PORTION OF THE WALL!" Present Mic told the audience, "THIS GIRL IS FIGHTING AS IF SHE HAS A CHIP ON HER SHOULDER!"
If only Present Mic knew how close he was to the truth. "Rush them!" I yell out as we enter the ice along with Hagakure's group. "Let's break the tie, if we can't, then defend the bands!" I say as Shiozaki uses her vines to try and grab Midoriya's band, but is unable to do to a shadow looking bird emitting from a mutant with the head of a raven or crow. Jiro uses her earplugs to try and grab Todoroki's band but fails as he froze ice in their path.
"Where are the other groups? Shouldn't there be a swarm by now?" I ask myself before reloading my blaster pistol. "Alright! Dodge this!" I say as I fire it as the shadow who reals back in pain.
"Dark Shadow!" The bird-head yells in concern. I see the shadow shrinking lightly.
"Light weakens it, so with my repulsor pistol…" I grin lightly and change the settings on my pistol. "Let's see it take this!" I click my pistol once as it begins to fire automatically. The shots are rapid, but weaker, though it does not matter as Dark Shadow reels back more and further shrink.
"Midoriya! I can not keep this up!" The bird-head exclaims.
"Bring Dark Shadow back, Tokoyami!" Midoriya yells out as Tokoyami does so. Dark Shadow disappears into Tokoyami's chest. "Uraraka, float us!"
"Okay!" Uraraka says as she holds onto her stomach like she is in pain too. All of them begin to float up as Shiozaki aims several vines towards them. Some latch onto them while the rest aim for the band. Midoriya was quick enough to react in time as he dodged all of the vines in order to keep the band.
Before we could do any more offense, we were cut off by a sheet of ice. I turn my head to see Tokoyami had frozen Hagakure's team in place and was now focusing his attention back to Midoriya. "Yaoyorozu." Todoroki spoke, his voice ever so plain, "Again." Yaoyorozu held a staff and gave it to him. Todoroki placed it on the ground before I realized what was about to happen.
"Oh no, you don't!" I quickly reset my pistol to a single shot and aim it at Todoroki. I use my quirk to better my aim with my goggles giving me a precise shot. I fire my pistol at the rod before it could reach the ground, and the rod was shot out of Todoroki's hand. "Shiozaki, cover us!" I say as I throw another disk to the wall in front of us. Shiozaki uses her vines to shield us from the blast. The blast destroyed the wall once more as we see Midoriya's group on the ground. "All-out assault!" I yell out as we rush towards Midoriya's group along with Todoroki's. In a surprise twist, I see Bakugo fly over the wall with his explosions as his team is behind him, coming through the hole in the wall we made.
"Tokoyami!" Midoriya yells out as Dark Shadow appears once more in a very fragile state. I feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins as all of us aim for the number one spot. There is no way Midoriya is going to leave with the one million band still around his neck!
"TIME'S UP!"
Or he will.
All of us stop in place while Bakugo falls flat on his face.
"Let's take a look at our winners!" Present Mic shouts with less volume than usual, "In a rare feat only accomplished thrice in U.A Sports Festival history, Team Midoriya managed to hold onto the one million band the whole way through!" The crowd roars and chants for the team, showing them in well deserved praise. I couldn't help but smile for them. "In second place, Team Todoroki!" I look over to see them all looking content, but Iida looks a bit troubled, not too much though. "In third place, we have a tie! Team Hatsume and Team Bakugo!" I avert my gaze to see Bakugo throwing a temper tantrum on the floor while his team looks on in embarrassment. I roll my eyes and let the baby whine as I take my goggles off and jump off Kendo and Shiozaki's shoulders.
We all look at one another with equal smiles on our faces. "We did great girls! Sure we didn't win first place, but we still made it to the finals!" I say with happiness as both of them nod in agreement.
"I must say Hatsume, you really had some surprises. It was an honor teaming up with you." Kendo says with her hand sticking out.
I shake it firmly and nod my head. "It was an honor too, Kendo."
Shiozaki softly giggles in delight at our actions. Shiozaki then speaks in turn, "I didn't expect you to throw one of our bands away, but then I recognized you knew what you were doing after you had done the dead. You gave that band away so Bakugo would chase after Monoma since he would have had as much value as we do." Shiozaki then bowed slightly, "I'm sorry, but I must be honest. I had my doubts about you, even during the battle, but after seeing you perform, I see no reason to keep any uncertainty about you. I apologize, Hatsume."
I was quite stunned at the sight. Not because of Shiozaki unsureness of me, but because she atoned for it. I rarely get that from anyone, so to see that she is remorseful for it, it feels kinda nice to prove someone wrong. "It's okay, Shiozaki." I say as I give her a bright smile, "I'm just glad I was able to help all of us advance rather than being carried or not advancing at all." Shiozaki straightens up as we shake hands as well. I look between them for a moment before letting a sign in pleasure, "We were a great team, I really enjoyed working with you both. I wish you both luck in the next event," I change my look to show them my competitiveness," But don't expect me to go down without a fight if we are forced to face one another." Kendo and Shiozaki both give me the same look of fighting spirits as we split in different directions after saying our goodbyes.
Present Mic announced that everyone was taking an hour break for lunch, so I made my way to the back where all competitors were eating at.
"So, kid, you really pulled some great tactics out there. Not any I would have done, mine would lead to all the bands in my possession, but still, good enough to pull through." Tony tells me as I eat my soba while walking towards the exit.
"You really like to show-off, don't you?" I ask him.
"And they say there's no such thing as a stupid question." Tony snickers as I laugh a little.
"At least let me have my moment without one-upping me. Even when Version I was built, you still showed off Model 50 just to irk me."
"I showed it off to motivate you. If you are everything I believe you are, one day, you might be worthy to put on that suit." Tony then chuckles, "Or maybe even surpass it…"
Have a Version that could surpass Model 50? That's a dream that would take a long time to accomplish.
"So. What is the plan?"
"Depending on who I face will determine whether or not I will debut Version I. I'm not going to display my best advantage from the start, I want to surprise them."
"In other words, you want to do an old fashion Iron Man entrance."
I smirk a little, "Yeah."
"Neat. I'll find you a song than on the internet. It'll play when Version I is covering your body." Even entrance music? Aww, hell yea. "Not gonna go socialize with your new friends?" Tony says as I exit the building.
"I don't even know where they are."
"There is a thing called 'looking.' Trust me it is very useful if you want to find someone or something." Tony remarks.
"You love my social life, don't you?"
"I will be honest. I could care less about it, but I know the value of allies. And I don't want you to be alone, it's not a good thing. Loneliness can destroy people." Tony tells me as I finish up my soba and toss the plastic bowl and utensils in a nearby trash can.
"Okay, okay, I guess I will-" I pause as I see Todoroki exit from one of the area entrances. A few moments later, Midoriya also exits the same hole. Were they doing something? With so much curiosity in my mind, I walk towards them.
"Gonna push him back into that hole and kiss him?"
"Will you shut up?!" I silently say with red on my face. I hear Tony laughing in my ear as I approach Midoriya who notices me.
"Hey, Hatsume!" Midoriya says, "That was a great match! You really knew how to beat Dark Shadow! How did you figure that out?" Midoriya asks, "As a matter of fact, how did you even break through the ice?"
"With new babies of course!" I say as I whip out my pistol. Midoriya flinches as I chuckle, "It's okay, the safety is on." I say as I twirl it around my finger.
"Are you even allowed to have that on you right now?" Midoriya questions.
"No." I reply as we stand in silence for a moment, "Want to check it out?"
"Do I!" Midoriya says as I hand him the pistol, "What does it fire?"
"Oh it's just energy that is created by taking excess electrons and turning them into muons, then the energy is turned into an electric current that then runs through a section of the pistol that harnesses the power to create a small amount of plasma. Because of muons electromagnetic properties, the plasma and muons can then be fired from the barrel and out of the muzzle to create a repulsor shot." I explain to him with ease. "No big deal."
Midoriya is looking at me with a confused look, "I'm going to pretend I understood all of that, but beyond that, that is awesome!" Midoriya says as he then pauses, "Wait….repulsor shots?"
"Yeah!" I say excitedly.
Midoriya's eyes then widen in shock as if he discovered something, " You mean like one of the most legendary heroes ever and former Avenger: The Invincible Iron Man?!"
I hear Tony whisper in my ear, "He even added the 'Invincible' part? Awwwww now I'm happy."
"You know of him?" I tilt my head as Midoriya nods.
"I sure do! He is a big inspiration to a lot of people who want to be heroes! People with weaker quirks can look up to him because his Quirk was 'Super Intelligence' and that wasn't a popular one among society nor one good enough to physically brawl against villains!"
"Painful, but true."
"But instead of accepting where society put him, he created a suit of armor to fight villains, and then he created more and more to help him battle against any enemy and be ready for any situation!" Midoriya then looked at me in awe, "His armor was so advanced that nobody has been able to replicate it since he disapproved of anyone getting their hands on it just in case it fell into the wrong hands." He then looked over the gun more, "To see that you have created a repulsor blast makes me wonder if you are the closest person to recreating the Iron Man suits."
I keep my gaze off of Midoriya. I always believed eyes can tell a story, so I fear that if I look him in the eyes, he might figure me out.
I am not sure whether I should be surprised or not that Midoriya has heard of Iron Man though. He is a cute nerd, but Iron Man isn't really one to be well-known since he is of an older generation and in the shadow of Spider-Man, the most famous hero in their generation.
Midoriya hands me back my pistol as I place it back in its holster. "You should go eat something before the next round. You won't be able to do your best on an empty stomach." I say to him as Midoriya nods and runs off. I watch him exit out of my sight before signing, "Do you think he'll figure it out?"
"That kid is intelligent but too naive to notice what's real." Tony signs as well, "But I wouldn't bet on it. I just wonder how long we can keep this a secret considering nothing can be hidden forever. What's done in the dark will be brought to light, and I have been hidden for plenty of years. I know I will be revealed to the world again, but I plan that it will happen on my terms."
I look at my hand for a moment as if it was the most interesting thing at the moment. "The suit will be spoiled today, there is no chance of winning the tournament without it. But you, Tony, I will keep you a secret. You wanted to be hidden from the world, so I shall do so until you wish to be known."
"I know you will kid, but don't guard me with your life, that's my job."
"What do you mean?"
Tony's voice sounds more than serious, "If something happens to you, I don't know what I will do. Your fate will be on me, and I can't have that on my conscious. If push comes to shove, and the opponent is too great for you, I will expose myself to protect you. You are my pupil, and it is my responsibility as a teacher, and a hero, to save you when you need it. I will not allow you to die."
Hearing those words brings me great comfort, yet I can't help but feel burdened by them either. If I get into a situation where Tony is forced to show himself to the world, then it will be all my fault. He wants to remain hidden for as long as he can for whatever reason, but he won't be able to do so on his accord if I find myself on death's door. I can't let that happen. I won't allow it.
"All students, report to the stadium immediately! All in attendance, you have fifteen minutes to reenter the stadium before the gates shut! You do not want to be left behind!" Present Mic says over the intercoms. I head back into the stadium to face the final challenge.
"Now that lunch is over, it is finally time to reveal the last game!" Present Mic yells out. Everyone has gathered inside the stadium by now, but I do notice the Class 1-A girls are not present yet. "But before that, there is good news for those who did not make it to the finals! This is just a sports festival!" Present Mic makes it sound like it isn't a big deal. "So we've prepared recreational games that everyone can participate in, too!" I turn to my left to see American cheerleaders wearing orange and green outfits with yellow palm palms in their hands, "We've even brought real cheerleaders from America to lighten things up!" There are plenty of boys and men taking pictures of them. I can tell the difference between the pervs and the media just by looking at their expressions and camera angles.
I avert my eyes away and see a sight that stumps my head, "Huh?"
"What are they doing?" I hear Class 1-A's teacher say over the mic.
Dressed in the same clothing as the American cheerleaders were the Class 1-A girls, all of them! They all looked adorable in them, but their expressions displayed embarrassment.
"Class 1-A! What kind of fan service is this?!" Present Mic asks the million dollar question.
Yaoyorozu shoots a glare in the direction of Mineta and another boy, the same one yellow hair on Todoroki's team, "Mineta, Kaminari! You tricked us didn't you?!" Both of the boys had smiles on their faces and giving each other thumbs up. On one hand, I feel like smacking them both, but on the other hand, I can't believe the girls allowed themselves to be fooled if they know Mineta is just trying to see them in outfits that will arouse him.
I walk over towards the girls and place my hand on my hips, "You okay down there?" I ask Yaoyorozu as she has fallen to her knees with an ashamed look on her face with Uraraka patting her back in comfort.
Yaoyorozu looks up to me, "I will be, thanks." She says as I look over to see Jiro with a blush on her face.
"Those guys are so dumb!" Jiro throws her palm palms on the floor and places her around over chest.
"Oh come on, Jiro, you look adorable in that!" I say gleefully.
Jiro shoots me daggers, "Oh screw you Hatsume! How about you put on one then?!"
I laugh a little, "No thanks, I am good."
"Oh don't be a downer Jiro," Hagakure says, "There is still time before the finals, and it be a pain if things got tense!" Hagakure then proceeds to swing her palm palms around, "I say let's do it!"
"WHAT?!" Jiro looks at her in shock.
"Toru, you like this, huh?" Asui asks.
"I'd be lying if I say I didn't!" Hagakure stated with some red where I assume her cheeks are.
I smile a little before feeling a tap on my shoulder. I turn to see Mina, "Hey Mina!" I say with a smile.
"Hey girl!" Mina says before showing off herself, "Do I look cute in this or what?" Mina says with excitement.
"You do, you really do." I smile back as Mina then has a look in her eyes.
"I wonder how you will look in this." Mina snickers as I place my hands up.
"No thanks! Like I told Jiro, I am fine!" I say as Mina grins and places a hand on my shoulder.
"Oh come on, it will be fun! Besides…" She then points to Midoriya, who was talking to Iida, "You might grab his attention."
I blush madly at the mere thought of it and smack Mina's hand off my shoulder, "N-No way!" Mina rubs her hand slightly but still keeps the grin on her face.
"You know you want his attention~!"
"Mina!"
"Okay, fine." Mina signs with a giggle, "Then again, knowing your body in a cheerleader outfit, you might catch the attention of others such as those two." Mina then aims her finger at Mineta and yellow hair, "And I hate to put that burden on you. Especially with Mineta."
"I think I am already on his crossover. He tried to latch onto me during the obstacle race, but I dodged him. He tried again, but then got smackdown by one of the test robots." I laugh a little as I remember the scene of him getting tossed like a ragdoll, "It was hilarious." I laugh again as Mina chuckles lightly.
"I bet it was," Mina says as Present Mic speaks up.
"All right everyone! Let's have fun competing in the recreational games!" Present Mic says as the TV screens show a tournament bracket, "When that is over, the sixteen from the four teams that made it to the final round will duke it out one-on-one tournament style!"
The final round is one on one action. Of course, it is. There is always a battleground in the Sports Festival whether it be a free-for-all, Royal Rumble, or whatever they decide on.
"It was a tournament last year, wasn't it?" Mina asks.
"Yeah, but it was a chanbara match," I answer quickly.
"Wait, hold on. I'm getting new info now that two of our teams were groups of three! So there two spots left, and we can not just subtract one bracket from the tournament as it will make it unbalanced!" Present Mic says, "With that being said, there will be two draws! The first one will decide two lucky people who did not qualify for the final round to be advanced!"
Everyone who did not make it the tournament had lightened up with hope as Midnight stepped onto center stage with two boxes next to her. She picked up the one right, "Let's see who is lucky enough to earn a free pass from the dungeon~" Midnight says while licking her lips. Is she really a high school teacher? Midnight puts her hand in the box and pulls out the first name.
"Kyoka Jiro!"
"OH MY GOD!" I hear Jiro yell from behind as her friends around her cheer her on.
Midnight puts her hand into the box once more and pulls out the final pass, "Neito Monoma!"
"Really now? How lucky of me." Monoma says. I don't need to look back to see the surprise on his face.
"Sorry to the rest of you who were not selected, but remember, your road to being heroes does not end here. Strive on and be resilient." Midnight clearly speaks and clears her throat, "Now that is over with, let's move on towards the tournament itself!"
"The first match will be Ejiro Kirishima vs Tenya Iida!"
"Allllll right!" Kirishima says as he eyes Iida, "Let's make it a great match class president!"
"I will bring my all, Kirishima! And I agree, let's make it a great match!" Iida responds.
"The second match is: Mina Ashido vs Ochaco Uraraka!"
Mina and Uraraka lock eyes. "Don't think I will go easy on you just because we are friends Uraraka!" Mina says.
"I hope not! I want you to hit me with your best shot!" Uraraka replies with ambition.
"The third match will contest: Katsuki Bakugo vs Hanta Sero!"
"Hey flat face! You are going down!" Bakugo roars.
"Oh geez, why am I facing him first?!" Sero seems scared to fight him.
"The fourth match will be: Fumikage Tokoyami vs Ibarra Shiozaki!"
"I will show you the true power of the dark side," Tokoyami says to Shiozaki.
"And I will show you that the light can shine through any darkness you bestow upon me." Shiozaki says with a weird spotlight on her.
"The fifth match is: Neito Monoma vs Itsuka Kendo!"
"I do not wish to fight against one of my classmates, but if I have to go past one of us in order to win and show up Class 1-A, then so be it!" Monoma states.
"You've been granted a second chance, and you don't even acknowledge it? You are seriously obsessed with Class 1-A, and in an unhealthy way too." Kendo replies.
"The sixth match will pin: Shouto Todoroki vs Denki Kaminari!"
"Oh man, I'm facing Todoroki?! I hope this works in my favor!" Kaminari says. Todoroki does not reply.
"The seventh match will be: Kyoka Jiro vs Momo Yaoyorozu!"
"Well well well, pin me against my best friend in my first match? This will be fun!" Jiro says with a competitive smirk.
"Awww Jiro, that means a lot to me!" Yaoyorozu before having her own smirk, "But flattery will not save you, I will go all out."
So, everyone has been selected huh besides me and….wait….no way!
"You were never chosen but neither was…"
"The eighth, and final, first round match will be: Mei Hatsume vs Izuku Midoriya!"
"WHAT?!" Both Midoriya and I yell out as we lock eyes. I'm fighting Midoriya already?!
Midoriya and I stare at one another. This was an unexpected twist of events. I knew there was a possibility that I will face Midoriya first, but I never expected it to happen! We kept our gaze on as I look into those green eyes of his. Those...large, circular, soft, adorable, beautiful dark green eyes of his on his rather dashing face of his. Midoriya breaks our stare-off as he gives me a smile, "Hatsume!"
I shake my head, "Y-yeah?"
"I will not hold back, and I hope you won't either!" Midoriya says with that cheerful expression of his.
"I won't!" I reply as he turns around and walks away.
"That's another way to get his awareness," Mina says with a teasing tone of voice.
I turn to Mina with a hot face, "Mina I swear to god I will punch you!" I bark at her.
"No, you woooooooon't~!" Mina snickers before walking away.
I sign and walk back to the tunnels to head towards the locker rooms with Midoriya on my mind. I hope our match doesn't hurt our friendship. I'm sorry Midoriya. I have something to prove and I need to beat you in order to achieve that, but I just wish I didn't need to go through you in order to do it.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida
Mina vs Uraraka
Bakugo vs Sero
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki
Kendo vs Monoma
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
I was sitting in my area with the rest of my support class classmates as we were about to watch the first match commence. Kirishima vs Iida. A classic battle between power and speed. I wonder who will win this one. The middle of the arena was replaced with a big ring that covered a large aspect of the area that was made of cement thanks to one of our school staff members, Cementoss. He and Midnight were the referees of the matches, and the watchers in case matches get too out of hand so they may stop them.
"Both from the hero course, we have on one corner: Eijiro Kirishima!" Kirishima stepped up to ring with a confident smirk on his face. "And in the other corner, we have Tenya Iida!" Iida looked on with a determined look.
"Begin!" Midnight said as Iida wasted no time in rushing Kirishima with his engines. Iida went behind him and was going to try and push him out, but Kirishima countered by activating his Quirk, making him much heavier than he previously was before.
"Nice try, but that won't work!" Kirishima said as swung at Iida, but missed as Iida moved back.
"I expected this from you!" Iida announced as he rushed Kirishima once more and kicked him square in the chest. Kirishima was stunned, but just for a moment. Kirishima managed to grab Iida's leg and toss him towards the ring out, but Iida was able to regroup and quickly spin himself away from ring out. As he got up, Iida was about to get hit by Kirishima's fist, but he dodged to the left just in time to avoid being punched out by his rock hard fist. "Your headstrong style will not win you this fight!" Iida said as he then pushed Kirishima towards the line, and out of the ring.
"Kirishima is out of bounds! Tenya Iida wins!" Midnight announces.
"Awww man…" Kirishima says as he looks up to see Iida's hand.
"You did well, but you were also predictable. I suggest….strategy next time." Iida said with a smile.
Kirishima smiled back and grabbed Iida's hand as he was helped up, "Thanks. Good luck in the next fight."
Iida and Kirishima bowed before heading towards their tunnels.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka
Bakugo vs Sero
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki
Kendo vs Monoma
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
"Next match also contains two students from the hero course! We have Mina Ashido!" Mina, now in her PE uniform, was looking very determined to fight. "And her opponent, the one I am personally rooting for, Ochaco Uraraka!" Nice to know he has a favorite. Uraraka shares the same expression on her face as both fighters are about to square off.
"Begin!"
Uraraka wastes no time and charges at Mina with open hands. "Bad strategy Uraraka!" Mina says as he dodges to the left and pushes Uraraka to her feet. Mina then begins to slide as she uses the acid from her feet to ski around the ring. Mina throws acid near Uraraka but purposely misses to avoid hurting her friend.
Uraraka was quick to get up and watch Mina slide around the ring with her acid. Mina seems to be playing the distance game, so how is Uraraka going to win? Then again, if Mina doesn't use any offense, how is she going to win?
Mina then throws acid at Uraraka while charging at her. Uraraka is busy avoiding the acid to not react to Mina closing on her as she pushes her closer towards the ring out line. Mina moves away, but not before covering a huge area with acid to hinder Uraraka's mobility.
"This is interesting. Mina has trapped Uraraka like prey! Will Uraraka be able to respond to this?!"
Uraraka stands still and closes her eyes for a moment as if she is focusing on something. Mina takes this chance to rush Uraraka once more. Uraraka opens her eyes and is met with the same offense as she moves her body to not be hit by the acid.
"I got you now!" Mina yells out as she is about to push Uraraka out of bounds, but Uraraka suddenly jumps above her and stays in the air. Mina watches in shock as Uraraka stays in the air. Uraraka responds by flipping her body frontwards to fo a front flip and kicks Mina in the face, effectively hitting her out of bounds.
"Ring out! Uraraka wins!"
"Ow ow ow ow ow!" Mina wails as she rubs her face in pain.
"I'm sorry Mina!" Uraraka says as she lowers herself in front of her friend and checks on her friend.
"Don't be Uraraka, it's fine." Mina signs but smiles, "You won fair and square." Uraraka smiles before the two embraces in a quick hug and split off into their tunnels.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki
Kendo vs Monoma
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
"Begin!"
I was expecting Bakugo to rush Sero, but I was surprised when he stood still. Sero took the chance to extend tapes from his elbows towards Bakugo to wrap him up, but it failed due to Bakugo grabbing them and pulling the tape towards him. Sero reacted fast by ripping the tape off before he was forced towards Bakugo. Sero then tried again, but with one elbow instead of two. Bakugo once again grabbed it, but instead of letting it go like the previous two, he held onto it when Sero ripped it off. Sero was a bit surprised when Bakugo charged at him, but regain control of himself by trying to go for a close offense. Sero went for a jab, but Bakugo quickly blew him away with his explosions. With Sero stunned from the explosion, Bakugo proceeded to wrap the tape Sero's arms together behind his back.
Sero tried to escape the grasp but was not quick enough when Bakugo threw him out of the ring.
"Ring Out! Bakugo wins!"
"Hmph." Bakugo simply growled as he walked away while Sero got up.
"Geez….I couldn't even lay a hand on him…" Sero said as Midnight freed his arms and he walked out.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero (Winner: Bakugo)
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki
Kendo vs Monoma
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
"This one is different!" Present Mic said, "Both are from the hero courses but in separate classrooms! In one corner we have from Class 1-A, Fumikage Tokoyami!" Tokoyami stood still with his expression being as serious as ever. "And in the other corner, from Class 1-B, it is Ibarra Shiozaki!" Ibarra held the opposite expression. Hers was not serious, but rather a calm and collected demeanor. Unlike the previous fights, I think this one will last a while. It is light vs darkness after all.
"Begin!"
"Dark Shadow attack!" Tokoyami quickly yelled out. Dark Shadow emerged from Tokoyami's body and quickly made its way towards Shiozaki. Shiozaki did not move as her vines were faster and shielded her from the incoming tackle.
Dark Shadow slammed against the wall of vines. The vines wasted little time and began to wrap themselves around Dark Shadow. "Your dark nature strikes my curiosity. Why are you against the light?" Shiozaki asked as some of her vines then went after Tokoyami.
Tokoyami dodged them, but his movements were stiff and slow. I can already that he relies too much on Dark Shadow that his physical body makes him an easy target. "It hurts us," Tokoyami replied to Shiozaki while dodging what he could, "Dark Shadow, I need assistance!"
"Okay!" Dark Shadow replied. It quickly turned into a gaseous form before traveling back to Tokoyami and slicing through the vines that were attacking him. "This lady hurts me, to be honest…" Dark Shadow mumbled.
"She is some sort of religious believer it would seem," Tokoyami stated, "Though we are not devil worshippers, more preferably we are goths, she is our opposite."
"I sense your sins Tokoyami. I hope you know it is not too late to turn around." Shiozaki said while the two had a standstill.
"Do not pretend to know me, angel. You have no knowledge of my past, let alone my misdeeds." Tokoyami defended himself as Dark Shadow hovered in front of him.
Shiozaki huffed, "Then I hope the lord shows mercy on you."
Tokoyami looked offended and outraged, "You dare say that to me?! You already assume I will be thrown into the depths of hell simply for my way of living! You have a lot of nerve!" Tokoyami roared as Dark Shadow's form seemed to be more erratic now. Is his anger fueling Dark Shadow somehow? "Dark Shadow," Tokoyami began, "This is personal now. Destroy her!"
Dark Shadow let out a terrifying screech as it charged at Shiozaki. Shiozaki's vines defended her from Dark Shadow's rage, but they were quickly reduced to shreds as Dark Shadow sliced right through them. Shiozaki was shocked for a moment but was able to get out of the way of Dark Shadow's strikes before they reached her. Shiozaki sent a few vines at Dark Shadow's arms to apprehend them, but to no avail, as Dark Shadow overpowered them quickly.
"Hnnng!" Shiozaki was struggling to keep up with Dark Shadow's onslaught. It looked as though she was panicking, but not regretful of what she said to Tokoyami. "I will not lose to one a heathen!" Shiozaki boldly claim before many vines began to sprout from her scalp, "Crucifixion!"
"WOAH!" Tony yells into my ear, "That seems too much!"
"I agree. That is not the right word to use, especially on live TV…" I mumbled as I ponder about Shiozaki's character. I look towards Midnight and Cementoss and question them too as to why they've allowed the personal attacks to continue this far.
The vines quickly make their way towards Dark Shadow and Tokoyami. Both user and quick watch the vines come closer to them without moving an inch. Tokoyami takes a quick breath before opening his beak, "Dark Shadow," Tokoyami says, "Rip and Tear."
"With pleasure." Dark Shadow growls as his claws extend to a point where they rival Kendo's giant fists. As the vines are within striking distance, Dark Shadow swings his massive claws and literally tears through the vines as you hear the ripping sounds ever so clearly.
Shiozaki stumbles back a bit with a somewhat terrified expression but does not completely falter. "I will win this fight whether or not I still have any vines left by the next round!" Shiozaki announces as the last of her vines come together. Her hair is now a complete mess as you can see the ripped parts of her vines and some of her scalp.
This match is truly grand but ruined due to Shiozaki attacking Tokoyami's character.
"Say what you will, but you will not best me today." Tokoyami declared. Dark Shadow was getting ready for one final attack, and so was Shiozaki with her vines forming together to form some sort of weapon that resembled a spear. Both fighters stood their ground for one final battle to decide who will advance, and who will be eliminated. "I was anticipating to have a fair match against you, Shiozaki; but I was not expecting to be condemned. Would the lord approve of your actions; would he call them a bit… 'radical'?" Tokoyami challenged Shiozaki's efforts.
Shiozaki shook her head, "I have overstepped my boundaries, I will admit. It is not my place to pass judgment on those who I do not know. I apologize." Shiozaki then squinted her eyes, but they had a softness to them, "However; I do not take back what I said about it not being too late for you. I do see your regret because, I too, have many regrets I hold and not allow myself to relinquish despite the lord pardoning me." Shiozaki looked him in the eyes, "Tokoyami, will you allow yourself to be consumed by darkness, or will you allow some happiness into your life and set yourself free from the grasps of the devil?"
"Enough with the holy speech." Tokoyami demanded, "I grow weary of it."
"...Fair enough. Let us end this."
Shiozaki and Tokoyami got into stances before they sent their final assaults. The vines were heading directly at Dark Shadow and Dark Shadow was about to slice through them but was surprised to the vines spread out in different directions. They were so far apart that Dark Shadow was not able to reach them all at once. Most of them were attacking Dark Shadow from various directions while a few aimed directly at Tokoyami. Dark Shadow ignored the vines attacking him and went over to Tokoyami to protect him. As he was doing this, one stray vine was speeding towards Dark Shadow. Instead of wrapping itself around, it pierced through Dark Shadow. Dark Shadow let out a cry of pain as Tokoyami looked on in shock, and before he knew it, the vine gripped him around his waist and pushed him outside of the ring.
"Ring out! Ibarra Shiozaki wins!"
The crowd let out a loud roar of approval for the fight was spectacular, despite its cruel beginning.
The vine gently released its hold on Tokoyami as Dark Shadow slowly floated over towards its user.
"I'm sorry…" Dark Shadow apologized with regret and its head low.
"Don't be." Tokoyami said, "We were outmatched." Tokoyami said as he got up. "Though we did win one battle." Tokoyami slightly smiled, "We won the battle of character as we kept to our essence when it was under fire. I am proud that battle instead of this one because we can always win next year, whereas if we lost our individuality, we would never get another chance to redeem ourselves." Dark Shadow looked up and nodded its head before disappearing into Tokoyami. Without another word, Tokoyami bowed before leaving into his tunnel.
Shiozaki watched Tokoyami enter his tunnel. "I must find a way to make it up to him. I was out of line. I was being…..'radical.'" Shiozaki admitted to herself with much disappointment as she walked to her tunnel.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero (Winner: Bakugo)
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki (Winner: Shiozaki)
Kendo vs Monoma
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
"The previous match was spectacular! I wonder if this one can live up to the hype?! We shall see!" Present Mic said. "Both are from the hero course, but part of Class 1-B! On the left, it is Itsuka Kendo!" Kendo stood with a smile that reigned confidence. "And her opponent, the Class Vice President, Neito Monoma!" Monoma had his hands in his pockets with a smirk, but it wasn't smug, it spelled conviction too.
"Begin!"
"Say, Kendo," Monoma spoke up before the two made a move, "May the best one win."
Kendo smiled a little, "Alright. Don't hold back though."
"I won-" Monoma did not finish the last word as Kendo quickly enlarged her fist and swung at Monoma, knocking him out of the ring instantly.
"Sorry, you were wide open," Kendo said a light flush and embarrassed look.
"Monoma is out! Kendo wins!"
Monoma looked at Kendo for a moment before chuckling to himself, "I guess I let my guard down. You say an opportunity and you took it, good choice." Monoma praised Kendo while getting onto his feet. Both contenders walked to their tunnels.
"That was the opposite of what I was saying a minute ago." Present Mic said with boredom, "Moving on!"
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero (Winner: Bakugo)
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki (Winner: Shiozaki)
Kendo vs Monoma (Winner: Kendo)
Todoroki vs Kaminari
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
Before Present Mic introduced the two, I looked at Todoroki and saw a sight that did not look at all sane. Todoroki looked like as if he wanted to murder someone. His eyes were maniacal, his mouth seethed with rage, his body language spoke volumes of pent up frustration, his hands tightened that I thought blood will spill from them soon. Overall, Todoroki looked ready to kill Kaminari.
"From the hero courses, we have the son of the Endeavor: Shouto Todoroki!" Todoroki did not move an inch as he tried to hide his expression behind his short red and white hair. "And his opponent, Denki Kaminari!" Kaminari looked at Todoroki with absolute fear. I don't blame him, I would be afraid too if someone gave me that look. I shivered as I was reminded of Carnage.
"Begin!"
The match was a record defeat. Kaminari did not even move a muscle as Todoroki unleashed a massive ice attack that not only froze Kaminari in place, but the iceberg itself engulfed a large chunk of the area and was taller than it itself. Luckily, none of the crowd, nor commentators, were frozen. It was silent for a moment as everyone was staring at the raw power of the number two pro heroes son.
"That….that is gigantic..." I say as the ice is literally in my face.
"That...that is powerful." Tony said with an impressed voice, "And to think that he is still green. This kid will definitely be one of the best if he is trained properly."
"Uh….." Present Mic has no idea what to say, "I've been informed that Kaminari has given up…..not like he had a choice. We'll take a break to let the ice melt."
I get up from my seat and walk away from the ice as my body shakes from the cold. "I am so glad I have that heater in my suit."
"I'd be disappointed if you haven't thought of that," Tony remarks.
I snicker at his comment and make my way backstage for an uneventful break.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero (Winner: Bakugo)
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki (Winner: Shiozaki)
Kendo vs Monoma (Winner: Kendo)
Todoroki vs Kaminari (Winner: Todoroki)
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu
Midoriya vs Hatsume
Everyone was back in their seats after ten minutes. It took seven minutes to help the ice thanks to Endeavor and Todoroki melting the ice, and three minutes to clean it up as a pro-hero dubbed The Water Bender: Katara helped move the water out of the arena.
"Now that everything's back to normal, let's resume the sports festival!" Present Mic yelled into the mic as the crowd cheered on. "Both are, yet again, from the hero course! In one spot, we have the vice president, Momo Yaoyorozu!" Yaoyorozu's face looked calm, but if you paid attention, you could see it was just a facade; most likely she was nervous. "And on the other side, we have Kyoka Jiro!" Jiro had her hands together as she cracked them. Her expression was contrasting Yaoyorozu's look.
"Begin!"
Yaoyorozu moved to the left to dodge Jiro's incoming earplugs. "Darn it! I need to concentrate!" Yaoyorozu said as she kept avoiding the earplugs.
"Having trouble, Yaoyorozu?" Jiro slightly teased. Yaoyorozu grunted as her forearm glowed purple and a shield was created from her arm. Jiro withdrew her earplugs in time as Yaoyorozu swung the shield to hit the earplugs, which I assume would hurt Jiro immensely.
"Not anymore," Yaoyorozu responded while regaining her composure. Jiro stood still for a moment before running towards Yaoyorozu, catching the vice president off-guard for a moment. Jiro sent her earplugs after her legs, but Yaoyorozu's athletic abilities were too fast as she quickly jumped to the side and made a small kendo stick to act as her offense.
Jiro reeled her earplugs back in and stared at Yaoyorozu, "Great. My window of opportunity closed to end this quickly," Jiro complained lightly, but laughed a little, "Though I would be disappointed if I did succeed." Jiro admitted.
Yaoyorozu rushed Jiro with her kendo stick ready to strike. Jiro defended herself by launching one earplug directly at the kendo stick with the other one going for the arm with the shield. Yaoyorozu blocked the strikes with her kendo stick, but her shielded arm was wrapped up. Before Yaoyorozu could do anything, Jiro stabbed her arm and Yaoyorozu's body shook violently.
"Gotcha!" Jiro said with some pride. Yaoyorozu's body looked paralyzed as she was not moving an inch. Jiro walked towards her and grabbed her the arm. "Sorry, Momo." Jiro picked up Yaoyorozu while keeping her earplug inside her arm. As Jiro was drawing nearer to the ring-out line, Yaoyorozu began to show signs of life as her head was slightly moving. Yaoyorozu's other arm then began to move as well as her legs. Jiro quickly stopped her actions and gained distance from her rival in surprise.
"A…" Yaoyorozu then grabbed the earplug and pulled it out of her body, "Apology accepted, but I'm not going out like that!" Yaoyorozu announced before she grabbed her shirt and, much to everyone's surprise, ripped it open to reveal her bra.
"I can already hear the camera shots." Tony said as I sensed his eyes rolling, "Shouldn't you be backstage?"
"No. I wanna watch my friend's match." I answered back.
Jiro watched in dismay as Yaoyorozu created a pair of sunglasses and put them on before many small matryoshka dolls shot out of her exposed body as they suddenly exploded with blinding light. Jiro covered her eyes to block the flashbang. Yaoyorozu capitalized on this by running up to Jiro and bashing her shield against Jiro's chest, but Yaoyorozu did not let up as she then used all of her might to left Jiro off the ground with the shield and push her out of bounds.
"Ring-out! Yaoyorozu wins!"
As soon as I saw the results, I got up and left knowing my match was next. I still can't believe I am up against Midoriya.
First Round:
Kirishima vs Iida (Winner: Iida)
Mina vs Uraraka (Winner: Uraraka)
Bakugo vs Sero (Winner: Bakugo)
Tokoyami vs Shiozaki (Winner: Shiozaki)
Kendo vs Monoma (Winner: Kendo)
Todoroki vs Kaminari (Winner: Todoroki)
Jiro vs Yaoyorozu (Winner: Yaoyorozu)
Midoriya vs Hatsume
I made my way to my locker room and grabbed a few items to take with me, including the nanites that will suit up Version I.
"How are you feeling?" Tony asked me.
"Nervous, but also excitement." I say with as I look over one of my babies, "I still can not shake the feeling that I am facing Midoriya in my first match though." I sign at the thought of this. When Midoriya and I talked about the sports festival, I could see the fire in his eyes about him winning the whole thing. I do not mean to discredit everyone else who wanted to win, but his fire was the brightest I have seen from anyone else. To think that I could the person to suddenly put it out does not make me feel good. God how I wish it wasn't you, Midoriya.
"I can tell your feeling guilty about winning." He really can read me like a book, "And let me just say that I understand your feeling from a different perspective. It is like when I was about being right, but for the wrong reasons. It just doesn't feel good at all, and you hate to be the one to ruin everything someone fought so hard for; but between you and them, in the end, this fight can only benefit one person, and that is you. If you want to be a hero, you need to be able to do things you will regret doing, and I think this is just a baby step towards that." Tony knew better, of course, he has been a hero his whole life and understands my feelings.
"I know, Tony," I say as I make my way towards the door, "I just hope he can forgive me when I beat him." I then walk out of the room and make my way towards my tunnel.
"He will. He is a good kid." Tony chuckles for a moment, "But if he can't…" Tony's voice grows dim, "Then you should avoid him."
I nod my head as I hear I see a light that tells me to walk out to the tunnel.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! The final round of the opening stages is about to commence!" Present Mic announced with the crowd cheering for us. "In the right corner, we have the show stealer from the last two matches! It is Izuku Midoriya from the hero course!" I look once more at Midoriya and I am met with the same expression as nearly everyone else: Confidence. "And from the left corner, the only student who is not from a hero course, but rather from the support class! Here she is, Mei Hatsume!" I feel shivers creep up my spine as I hear the crowd roaring for my name.
"Hatsume!" Midoriya calls out to me.
"Yeah?" I tilt my head.
Midoriya then gives me that ever so soft, kind smile of his, "No matter the outcome, no hard feelings?"
I smile and nod my head, "No hard feelings." I get ready as I see Midoriya get into a fighting pose.
Little did I know how much of an impact this will have on me as a hero, and my relationship with Midoriya.
"Begin!"
I'm quite disappointed with this chapter, to be honest. It doesn't feel like my best work. I will be damned if the next one is not at all any good!
Also to user 12954086, a fabulous name, by the way, I really appreciate the constructive criticism and I wholeheartedly agree with you. As a matter of fact, I have been thinking about this topic since my last update in February and I came down to one conclusion.
Though I regret it, I think forcing Hatsume to be her canon self will be a no go for this story. She isn't self-centered, but she is very one-dimensional. What I mean is that as long as her babies are improving and getting recognition, almost nothing else matters (At least that how it seems from the official manga and anime). Like a previous reviewer said, this AU of Hatsume is more aware of her surroundings and takes a heavy interest in other things aside from her babies. I did have the proper idea and ship, but my execution was horrible. I should have taken a route similar to one of 'MysticMartyr' who works on a story called 'Of Quirks and Magic' where Izuku is the disciple of Dr. Strange. He wrote 22 chapters before touching down on the Entrance Exam whereas I started my story near the Sports Festival. He took the time to raise his main character, I did not and that alone devalues my story. Improper character development.
I really do value your criticism, 12954086, but I think in order for me to fix my mistakes, I will need to rewrite the story from scratch since most of it occurs in the beginning. Hatsume needs to turn from having a one-dimensional mindset to a multiple-dimensional point of view, and I don't want to restart all of this. I will try to do a lot better for my future chapters to improve my quality. Other than that, I thank you for your opinion and I would love for you to keep the criticism coming if you have any more to say. Same to everyone else who reads my story, criticize me if you see something wrong, but please keep it respectful.
Next Chapter:
Hatsume: You vs Me? Bring it on, pretty boy!
Deku: W-w-w-wait! Do you think I'm a pretty boy?!
Hatsume: Wide open!
Deku: Oh geez that was close!
Hatsume: I worked too hard to lose here, I will not let you defeat me!
Deku: I can relate!
Tony: These two are really the next big duo.
All Might: You said it, Stark!
Hatsume: All Might…We need to 'talk.'
Hatsume and Deku: Next time on 'Iron Maiden!' It is time for the moment you all been waiting for! The Iron Maiden debuts! Hatsume confronts All Might about her rejection letter!
We can't wait for the next chapter! See you there!