Do you ever have those days when you wake up with a headache? One that stays with you but when you finally decide to take something for it, it vanishes in about five minutes? Well, with it gone, I didn't need to worry about my mood being sour for the day; I was just perplexed.

Chapter 28: Calvary Countdown

Midnight explained further what the next event would entail, like how points would be printed out on headbands, which had to be worn over the forehead if that was your starting headband, while any stolen ones had to be worn around the neck of the rider. She also touched upon how quirks were allowed in a limited capacity, but that didn't mean students couldn't cause needless harm or purposely tripping other teams. Ryukyu felt like things would get more interesting than they already were.

The 9th-ranked hero had decided to attend the festival in person this year. While she was normally busy and would instead watch it after the fact, she felt like this was one that was better appreciated in person. After all, it was Hado's last one and Midoriya's first, and she wished to offer some support from the stands as things played out.

Plus, it meant she could use a little of the sway she got from being a top-10 hero. She didn't need to worry about a seat since a quick call ensured that she had one reserved for her in the section that sat pros, though she turned down a private room as that felt like it was too much. Being in with the rest meant that she could not just watch her ward perform but also gauge the reaction he received from the rest.

When he was chosen for the opening speech, Ryukyu felt terrible for him as the boy was far too shy for it, and it showed. That said, she felt irritation when more than a few around her dismissed him for that alone, seeming to forget that he was only picked because he was the top hero student from the exams. She only took a little satisfaction when her ward reminded them of that fact early on in the obstacle race, escaping Todoroki's ice, blasting through the robots, clearing the pit, passing Todoroki, and then battling against him and so many others for the top spot.

True, he didn't take first, but one would need to be a fool to deny that he didn't leave his mark. "Great job, Midoriya. Though perhaps not getting first was a blessing in disguise." She praised him, watching as the students broke off to try and make a team for the upcoming event.

Imitatress, one of her longest-serving and most trusted sidekicks, spoke up. "Is it, mam? If he had taken first place, then it would just be a game of keeping away from the others. They wouldn't need to last that long, just enough for most to lose interest and turn on each other for easier targets."

Raiko, her other sidekick, countered that point. The two had come with her for the event. "Maybe, but that is made difficult because people would be wary of being on his team, especially those that placed higher and might have stronger or more versatile abilities." He pointed out that Monoma seemed to be treated like he was patient 0 for some dangerous plague, as others were avoiding him.

Ryukyu nodded to both their points. "That could easily be the objective here. While this is partly for the general public, it's also a means for the hero course to show off how they can handle themselves in a situation modeled off the challenges they'll face should they go pro." She noted that she was looking to other pros who seemed to be thoroughly engaged in breaking things down and speculating which students would do what, their potential, and if they should try and offer an internship.

"With so many hero agencies around, it's a battle just to put food on the table, never mind actually rise in the ranks. So those teams with the most points would need to worry about others trying to muscle in on them." Raiko shook his head, crossing his lightning tattoo-covered arms.

"But at the same time, they have people supporting them. People could just as easily be enemies in a sense, like how a sidekick can leave an agency and start up their own in the area. You're both allies and competitors at the same time." Imitatress sighed, as they had seen it more than once, even with their own people. She didn't wish harm or ill-will on any of them; they were good people and wonderful pros, but it did make work harder when you knew that an arrest you made was one they didn't and how each pay cheque she got was one another similarly capable heroine didn't.

Again, Ryukyu was well aware of both these points, as they had been discussed before within their agency and were partially why she still had 11 sidekicks. "Honestly, it's not an idle system if you ask me. I understand it keeps pros on their toes, encourages them to be more proactive and improve themselves, but it also can lead to pointless arguments and confrontations."

She recalled her earlier days, fresh out of Ketsubutsu, and how cutthroat the hero scene was. It was never talked about in the public and rarely touched up upon in hero class. When it was, she could tell in hindsight that it was a gross understatement. She was horrified to find pros fighting over arrests. Even in crisis situations, egos and fear of compensation losses could lead them to make poor choices or keep them too busy to make a choice at all.

She rejected that-all of it and vowed that she'll always act to the best of her ability and judgment, damned if she was adequately paid at not. Even if she didn't get paid that month, she'd rather cut into her, at the time, measly savings as at least she had the knowledge that she did something good, that she helped people.

But ironically enough, it was that selfless drive that helped propel her up the ranks as she added to her resolved cases, got offers to appear in commercials, and advertised both hero and civilian designer brands, like her hero costume. Before she knew it, she was in the top 500 pros, then the top 250, and by the time she was 22, she had broken into the top 100 pros, leading her to where she was now, 26 and in the top 10.

That mindset was something she was sure to teach all her sidekicks, to teach Hado, but now and then, she got people who already knew and practiced that. And Midoriya was one of them, so despite the situation, she didn't feel like there was something to worry about. "Either way, I'm sure he'll find a way. He's a clever and resourceful soul."

"Still, maybe the kid will get lucky and pull some of his stronger friends onto his team. He's always speaking highly of them so they could decide to put the good of a group over their individualistic good." Raiko shrugged as while the boy didn't spend too much time around the agency, it was easy to find him when he did, and if you got him talking about school, he could speak for what felt like hours about all the cool things they did, and how his friends did this or that.

It should have been annoying, but it was more pleasant and tragic. It was pleasant because he was so passionate about it all, and tragic because simple things like eating with friends and texting friends could be so important to him.

"Say, you wouldn't mind being on a team with me, Midoriya? Even with just my score, we'll assured victory, and together, we'll be nigh untouchable." Monoma smirked as he wrapped a hand around the shorter boy's shoulders, giving him his pitch.

"True, true, we'll be even stronger if we get even just one other person." Midoriya conceded that he had some good points, only to turn to Monoma with a happy smile on his face and say, "But I refuse!"

His straight rejection, one with no hesitation,, stunned Monoma,, who dropped the smirk and looked at his friend in shock, a face that made Midoriya giggle just a little.

"Remember what you said? You're not the only one that vowed to win, and I'm still a little peeved that you bested me in the last round." Midoriya explained with a bit of pout, blowing out some hot air as he turned on his heel to walk off but paused to look back at him.

"You better make it to the finals, Monoma, because I intend to do the same. To prove that Hado-sempai, Mirio-sempai, Amajiki-sempai, and Ryukyu were right about me, that my flames can do great things." With that said, he waved goodbye and skipped away with a pep in his step, leaving his blonde friend surprised, but Monoma eventually composed himself and chuckled.

'I forgot that under that smile and soft exterior is a raging inferno.' He thought, bemused, before trying to recruit others, approaching any that didn't immediately stay clear of him like he was the plague.

With Midoriya, he didn't have the same issue, but he didn't want to team up with just anyone. Their team would need to be well thought out, with suitable skills and personalities that could function in a unit. Looking to the side, he saw Kacchan, who got 4th, being swarmed by his classmates, though he wondered how he'd work with any of them as Kacchan was never a team player. 'Maybe he's changed since then.' He thought, only to hear Bakugo loudly demand his classmates, people he'd known for nearly a month, explain their names and quirks to him.

'Or maybe they saw his quirk and rank value and decided that was enough.' Midoriya didn't know why he got his hopes up. Kacchan hadn't bothered to address their classmates by name since they started middle school. He thought it was because he liked to demean them by denying them that, but maybe he didn't bother remembering them.

Ignoring that whole issue, he went back to the problem at hand. He needed good teammates but also people who brought utility to the team. One such person approached him, grabbing his attention. "Pardon me, Midoriya, but wouldn't it be good for us to team up?" Shishida asked him, with Midoriya smiling in response.

"That'll be great. Now we need two more people. Do you have any ideas?" Midoriya asked, having gotten his first member.

"Perhaps Tsuburaba? His quirk could be used to create barriers that slow down opponents." Shishida suggested. Nodding, they went to find him but saw they had just missed him as he was already talking with Honenuki. But there was a silver lining as Tokage approached another good pick and rushed over.

"Hey, Shiozaki!" Before Tokage could speak, Midoriya drew Shiozaki's attention as he rushed over, only stopping once he was in front of her. "You want to be on our team?"

Shiozaki smiled at the offer, bowing her head slightly. "That would be lovely."

"Dammit, Hebemi!" She turned to see Tokage looking miffed that she got cheated out of the strong teammate, with Midoriya sticking his tongue at her like a petulant child, making Shiozaki roll her eyes at it.

'He's taking on too much of Tokage's personality.' She thought to herself as she joined him and Shishida, the taller heteromorph, greeting her as he usually did.

"Shiozaki in our team gives us a means to take other headbands from a distance. But it would be hard for her to do that if we remain a 3-man team since I'm naturally the main horse; she'll struggle to see should you be our rider." Shishida noted, as with his size and quirk, it would be the most logical that he carried one of them. However, while Shiozaki could snatch other headbands, even if she was the rider, that would mean their rear horse, Midoriya, would run into the same issues that Shiozaki would if they swapped places.

Midoriya and Shiozaki could see the issue as the boy tried to think of another possible member. "So we need a 4th person…but maybe not someone from our class."

"Why's that?" Shiozaki asked, noticing at least a few of their classmates who didn't seem to have found teams yet.

Midoriya recalled their first hero class and why Midnight had them split into random teams. He also recalled something Ryukyu had explained to Hado once. "Ryukyu always says that proper heroes need to prepare for the unexpected. And then there's the fact that our classmates know what we can do, so if we bring in someone new…"

Shiozaki and Shishida saw his point, especially after the USJ attack, where they talked about what they did at length. "I see your point, but do you have any in mind?" She asked, as perhaps he was suggesting someone from class A.

That wasn't an option for Midoriya, but while he knew Uraraka and Iida, he didn't know much about them. Tsu felt like a good choice, but he saw she was already talking with the small purple-balled-haired boy he saved earlier. However, his eye did see someone else. "There is one person." He led them towards their potential 4th member, tapping the shoulder of the taller boy who turned to see who did that.

Turning, the tired-looking purple-haired student saw Midoriya, bright-eyed and eager. "Hello, it's Shinso, right? I'm Midoriya Izuku, class B." He introduced himself, with the general studies student's brow creasing, his frown still present.

Eventually, he yielded and shook the shorter boy's hand, noting that it was much warmer than expected. "Shinso Hitoshi, class C. What do you want?"

Shiozaki frowned at his rude response, while Shishida adjusted his glasses. If Midoriya picked up on it, he didn't say as his chipper mood remained. "Would you like to be on our team?"

That question threw Shinso for a loop, as he had expected nothing like this to need to go in on his own for this festival, especially since the hero classes, like most, remained close-knit and formed teams with people they knew. He suspected this was a ploy, a means to mess with him, but looking at Midoriya, he couldn't find a hint of ill-intent or dishonesty. The guy was an open book.

"Why me?" He asked, as wasn't that the million, or in this case, the 5-thousand-point question as Midoriya was the runner-up, and if he wasn't mistaken, the girl with the vines that seemed to already be on this team had come in 5th, they should have more then enough points and power to challenge that Monoma guy.

"I saw you during the last event, you seemed to be having little trouble getting through it. I'm not sure what your quirk is, but you must be real dedicated to having come in 25th as that beat out some of our classmates." Midoriya started, seemingly not needing to breathe as he got closer to Shinso, who backed away from the overly excited hero student.

Midoriya didn't notice Shinso's discomfort as he continued, getting lost in his own world. "That means you must want to win, or at least get really far in the festival; I heard general students can transfer to the hero course if they do well, so maybe you want to be a hero too but didn't make it on the entrance exam…" As he started to mumble, his words too jumbled and fast-paced to be understood, Shinso turned to the other two, feeling like a fish out of water.

Shishida chuckled at the expression on the general studies student, as he had a similar one the first few times. "Let me be, he gets like this."

"It's normal?" Shiozaki nodded at his question.

"At least once a day," She placed a hand on Midoriya's shoulder, jolting him out of his thoughts. "Midoriya, you're mumbling again."

"What? Sorry!" Midoriya bowed to him, his face red from the embarrassment, that embarrassment knocking away any confidence he had with this social encounter as he must have messed it up royally. "I…I, um…I wanted you because you could be that X factor we need, a way to ensure we take gold, but…yeah, I can be a little creepy at times." Shinso's cocked an eyebrow at the boy's shift as he was much closer to the timid, shaking guy he had seen at the start.

He could have said no and gone with his plan for this, but a part of him thought that maybe he should try. Besides, if nothing else, this little nerve-ridden hero student was nothing like he had expected his course to be. But also, he saw that the guy needed some help, and not in the physical sense. "It takes one to know one."

"What?" Midoriya frowned in confusion, but Shinso waved it off.

"Forget it. Do you think we can make it to the finals? Then you can consider me your fourth member," he replied, Midoriya's face lighting up again. He started to jump for joy like he was five.

"Yeah! And we have a full team; we're going to win this; I just know it!" Others turned at his bold declaration, seeing the rummer in his newly formed team. But he certainly didn't look like what one would expect; from being the smallest in his team, his face was far from the much firmer, defined faces of his two male teammates, being closer to a girl's, which, when paired with his child-like happiness made it hard to see him as anything more than an abnormality, a little kid that made it this far by chance.

But they also recalled what he had done, how even those 0-pointers didn't even slow him down. Strange he might be, he was also worthy of their concern, and they wouldn't underestimate him.

"Alright, we must create a plan now that we're a team. That requires information, so I'll go first. My quirk can be used in 1 of 3 ways. The first is a physical characteristic augmentation because I superheat my muscles and blood to supercharge their performance. Because of that, I tend to leak out steam, so I can be hot to the touch, but not like kettle hot."

"The second is using that steam, breathing it out my mouth, which can act as a smoke screen or blind people if I'm close enough. I can also just release smoke if I increase my internal temperature." Midoriya explained before he realised he had forgot something. "Oh, and use fire like I did during the prelims. Lastly, I got a transformation form, but I don't want to use it now because I've not worked out all the kinks yet."

"Kinks? Forgive me, Midoriya, but you seemed well-versed in training." Shiozaki asked him, which got him a little embarrassed as he tapped his fingers together.

"Using it isn't the problem, and I've learned how to not burn people that get too close without thinking too hard about it. The problem is my clothes. My workout and hero gear are all designed with me in mind..." He didn't finish, but he didn't need to for the message to get across.

"It would be prudent if you didn't flash yourself for the entire world to see. But we should be capable of making it through without being forced to such extremes." Shiozaki agreed. "As for myself, my quirk is the vines I have in place of hair. They can extend outward, detach to form barriers and regrow incredibly fast. So I'm expecting that I'll grab headbands and make up half our defense."

"Then I shall go next. My quirk is Beast. It's not as ranged as yours, but I can bulk myself up, increasing my speed, strength, and durability. It also increases my strong sense of smell, so if we get blinded, I can still lead us through."

"What about you, Shinso? What's your quirk?" They turned to him, and he gulped. He had hoped this wouldn't happen; it was part of why he planned to go with his first plan, as then, he wouldn't need to explain it.

But they looked so eager, just like everyone else did before he told them. But he had already agreed, and looking around, he saw that most teams had already formed. He didn't have the time to find others, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet. "…Brainwashing. I can make anyone that replies to me follow my orders; the only way they can escape my control is if I release them from it or they get hit and experience enough pain." He waited for it, for the shift.

Shishida stroked his chin in thought, Shinso preparing for it, but the heteromorph proved him wrong. "That seems like a potent quirk indeed, one that could serve many uses as a hero." He stated, leaving Shinso blinking in confusion. Was…did he hear that right.

"I assume that it doesn't work on robots?" Shiozaki asked him, not a hint of disgust or fear in her face or tone, leaving him numbly nodding as he didn't understand this neutral reaction. "It was unfortunate then that the entrance exam was nothing but robots, a type of test your quirk has no use for."

Midoriya nodded; as for how fun the exam was, it wasn't unfairly designed for those whose quirks could break things. However, that could work in their favor as no one would expect it. "Still, that doesn't apply here, as our opponents should all be valid targets. It certainly will make things easier if he can brainwash them into handing over their headbands or fighting others."

Shinso shook his head at the crazy that the three were discussing things like normal, but this wasn't normal for him. "You…you're not…weirded out by it? My quirk?" They looked at him like he was the weird one.

"Why would we be?" Shishida asked him, which made Shinso feel equal fear and anger with them, and he couldn't understand why.

"I can control people, make them do whatever I want." He spelled it for them, how his quirk could make people his puppets, make them commit crimes in his name while leaving him Scott-free

Shishida didn't see it like that. "Sure, you could do that. That doesn't make it an absolute. You make it sound like you're a villain, Shinso. But from where I stand, you're anything but and have given no reason to entertain otherwise."

"But…" Midoriya frowned, seeing something he had seen many times when he looked in the mirror. So, he challenged Hado's confidence as much as possible because he needed to help someone like she helped him.

"My quirk burns things. Just using it burns me from the inside out; if not for its passive healing factor, I would be dead right now." He started, leading with the stuff he had been told was gruesome to build up how he wasn't exempt from his power. "I think flames are the coolest thing. They can do a lot of good but also do a lot of bad." He continued, focusing on what he had gone through with his therapist, but he had seen with his friends how they didn't treat him any less than they did each other.

It helped when he remembered other times or when he had a bad day and needed to just center himself. "Sometimes…people can only focus on the bad, and that's not nice. But that doesn't make us bad, does it? I like thinking that because I know I'm not bad. Are you a bad person, Shinso?" He asked.

"Of course not-!" He interrupted him with a smile.

"Then it's settled. Let meanies think what they want; they can all have their pants set on fire. Our quirks are a part of us, and we have every right to be proud of them and use them to help make things better." He finished; his declaration might have sounded simple, but was that a bad thing? Many things were simple if you thought about it; the complicated stuff was added because people wanted to add it.

But his words, their acceptance of his quirk, did seem to get through to the tired-looking boy, as it looked like a large and heavy weight on his shoulders was released. "Yeah…yeah, you're right." Shinso turned his head to wipe away tears, with his teammates pretending not to notice.

"Shall we get on with things? Shinso, are there any other restrictions on your quirk?" Shiozaki asked as they got back on track. After all, they had a cavalry battle to win.

"Now then, it's about time we get started!" Midnight stretched her arm as the timer hit zero.

"Wakey, wakey, Eraser, the 15 minutes are up, so let's see what our teams look like! It looks like we have 14 teams on the field!" Present Mic called out, his co-host opening his eyes to observe the field and the teams that had formed in the given time.

"Those are some interesting team make-ups and formations; it seems like most were wise in that, at least," Eraser noted.

"You hear that, folks? A compliment from Eraser. Now we just need pigs to fly!" Present Mic joked.

"Just because I don't pile on unearned compliments doesn't make me heartless, Present Mic."

"That remains to be seen, but onward with the games! Raise those battle cries; this next gauntlet will push you, your teamwork, strength, speed, and even your blind luck!" Present Mic announced as the teams took their spots. In most, the one with the highest points was their rider, as with Monoma, Bakugo, and Todoroki. But there were outliers, the biggest being Midoriya, who served as the right horse for his team, and Shinso, the rider.

"Light the signal fire!" As Present Mic started the countdown, Shinso tightened the headband over his head, which carried their total value of 620, a far cry from first but still the second highest on the field.

"Shishida?" He looked at their frontman, who hadn't bulked up yet but could so at the drop of a hat.

"Ready." He nodded, with Shinso turning to their left side.

"Shiozaki?" He asked her, feeling just a bit embarrassed that part of why he was even chosen to be the rider was because he admitted he wasn't in the best shape and could be a weak link as a horse.

"I'm prepared." Shiozaki nodded, keeping her eyes on the other teams, though they, in turn, eyed first place like a pack of hungry dogs.

"Midoriya?" Finally, he looked towards his right, where Midoriya watched the others.

Still, he glanced up at Shinso and gave him a wobbly but eager smile. "Let's do this!"

Shinso smiled at that, taking a breath before focusing on the challenge ahead. "Let's win this."

"Thanks for joining me for this, as I have a solid plan for how we'll handle things." In the minutes before time ran out, Monoma addressed the 3 he had managed to recruit onto his team despite the massive target on his back.

"Thanks to my quirk, I can be the rider; if anyone gets close to us, I can copy and use any of their quirks against them. Tetsutetsu, your out-front horse, will take the most hits, but with your quirk, it won't even slow you down." Monoma explained his and Tetsutetsu's roles, the white-haired boy smiling as he punched his open palm.

Turning to Tsunotori. "Tsunotori, your quirk gives us a ranged deterrent and a means to snatch up points if other teams lose focus." He told her the role she'd play, which she nodded to as even if her control over her horns wasn't that great, she could still peck at others and keep them distracted.

"Lastly, Hatsume. You and your...babies," That was still weird to say, but Hatsume was far from typical as she approached him and made it clear she saw teaming up with him as a chance to advertise her many support items to potential employers and clients. "Give us several ways to engage with or evade the other teams so we can pick and choose when to strike and when to flee."

"My babies will shine so bright with so many eyeballs on them; it was the best choice to team up with you, Mr. 5K." She gave a thumbs up, and the support course student was energized.

"It's Monoma." He corrected, but something told him she wouldn't even remember his name by the end of the day. But he could deal with that. She made it clear this was transactional and was willing to hold up her end of the deal, so he'll do the same.

"Are we gonna go after the others?" Tetsutetsu asked, but Monoma shook his head.

"Not at first. Everyone will be targeting us, so all we need to do is avoid them; sooner or later, they'll turn on each other once they realize their odds of capturing our headband are low. That's when we strike, using the confusion and disunity to our advantage." He smiled as he couldn't wait for that part to come. And when that time came, the crowd was ecstatic, barely containing their excitement for the coming event.

On the field, the students were standing ready in their teams. Monoma sat pretty as his team's rider with a headband that was worth 5380; Shinso kept his eyes trained on the others, his runner-up headband still being a high 620. Bakugo glared towards Monoma, his team of himself, Sero, Kirishima, and Ashido, sitting in pretty with 585 points to their name.

Todoroki was also eying Monoma and a few other lesser teams as he served as the rider for his team, formed from teaming up with Iida, Sato, and Yaoyorozu, with a value of 565 to their name. Class A wasn't the only ones who had their eyes on the prize. Tokage kept her head on a swivel, her headband reading 445 clear for all to see while her all-girl teammates of Kendo, Yanagi, and Komori readied themselves for a fight.

Honenuki, like Midoriya, had decided against being the rider for his team to better use his quirk. He acted as the horses along with Kaibara and Tsuburaba, with Fukidashi wearing their 395 headband. There were other teams, but the big players didn't pay them much mind, seeing each other as the biggest threats to access and keep track of.

"All right, ladies and gents, you've made your teams, so I won't ask if you're ready or not 'cause you sure be!" Present Mic told them, giving no mercy, that no one expected it after the insane gauntlet, which was the obstacle race.

"Midoriya." Midoriya looked to his side and saw Monoma smiling down at him. "Good luck."

He smiled back. "You too!" His response was for Tetsutetsu to turn to him with an eager look.

"I won't be taken out by your flames this time." He stated that this would be his rematch and chance to make up for what happened between them during their first hero class. Again, Midoriya met his gaze head-on, ignoring the crowd and treating this like he would class.

"We'll see about that."

"Let's go, counting down to the brutal battle royal!" Present Mic started. "3!"

Bakugo cracked his knuckles. "We're aiming for…"

"2!"

Todoroki narrowed his eyes on his target. "…one thing."

"1!"

"Start!" At Midnight's word, the teams all started to move, rushing towards one target: team Monoma, who now had at least seven teams gunning for them.

"Sorry, not sorry, Monoma, but we're taking that!" Tokage yelled as they approached.

"Well then, we're right here!" Monoma pulled back his hair to show off their prize before taking out a trigger that Hatsume had given him. "Come and get us!"

And done! That was a little slow in the writing process, but I had fun doing it. If you excuse me, Imma plays some Genshin for a couple hours. If you liked the chapter, please like it and/or leave a comment. The next one will be out in July.

Next chapter should be out on July 16th.

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