Hi there! I really thought I'd be doing another Infinity Train fic after my first, but inspiration is a funny thing.
As the summary says, this fic is basically going to be 17 chapters of different Class 1-A students winning the Sports Festival. You'll notice that I didn't say 20, and that's simply because I will not be writing chapters for Bakugou Katsuki, Todoroki Shoto, or Midoriya Izuku. The first two should be simple enough to understand (Bakugo already wins in canon, and Todoroki was only one fight off of victory), but I should probably explain why Midoriya is on that list.
To put it simply: I just don't think it'd be worth reading. I love Midoriya, but him losing to Todoroki is more or less his most interesting outcome already. I may change my mind on this later, but don't hold your breath.
Whatever the case, I am starting this fic with the intention of writing out 17 chapters, one for every Class 1-A student outside of the top three. If I do anything outside of that, it'll probably just be Hatsume, 'cuz I like her. (Shinsou is cool too, but he's in the Midoriya camp of being more interesting as someone who fails imo.)
Love ya too 1-B, but man there is NOTHING to go on for y'all. If it happens, it'll probably be Kamakiri or Pony, but that's it. I just don't care enough to write any more than like one chapter featuring them.
I have outlines for a majority of the cast already, so feel free to voice support for characters you wanna see next. If enough people agree, I'll bump them up my to-do list.
One final note: Feel free to read this fic in whatever order you like. Jump to your favorites, skip over the ones you don't care about, whatever makes you happy! None of these chapters are gonna reference each other, so there's no wrong way to go through them.
With all of that said, I hope you enjoy this first chapter!
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"That didn't hurt at all!"
A steel fist crashes against his cheek. The concrete floor breaks under his feet as he slides back.
"That didn't hurt, either!"
He returns the hit in full force, crashing his hardened fist against the steel boy's head.
Their fight had reached an equilibrium. Tetsutetsu punches Kirishima, Kirishima punches Tetsutetsu, repeat. Neither was gaining any ground on the other.
Tetsutetsu tries to guard, and catches an uppercut to the chin for his efforts.
Kirishima tries the same, and is decked in the cheek yet again.
Maybe the spectators were bored. Maybe the boys' quirks were too similar for this to be interesting. Kirishima can't even pretend to care about that, as he is too busy having the time of his life.
He had never had a fight quite like this. A few quirkless spars at the gym, sure, but he'd never gone all out with his quirk against someone who could match him like this. It's so… Manly!
He grins widely, looking up to see his opponent wearing the same expression. Honestly, if 1-B has guys like this, they can't all be as bad as Monoma had made them seem. (Not that Bakugou had made their own class look much better…)
Despite his bluster though, Kirishima is hurting. He had definitely picked up some bruises, hardened skin or not. Moreover, he's running low on energy. Keeping up his quirk is like flexing a muscle. He can only do it for so long, especially while tanking strong hits like he's been doing. If the fight draws out any further, he knows he won't be able to keep it up.
The other guy doesn't look much better. That's good, he thinks. It would suck if their quirks were as similar as they are, and Kirishima's was just worse. The same thought runs through both of their minds.
Let's finish this, right now!
They both scream out, adrenaline coursing through their veins, as they step in for one final exchange of blows.
They connect! Both of their swings land with devastating impact.
Kirishima's head goes fuzzy. He loses control of his muscles, as he falls backwards. His quirk drops, and he can feel his skin slipping back to its natural texture. There's a burning sensation in his throat, as he takes in deep heaving breaths.
Everything goes dark. It's like he's sinking into the floor, as his consciousness fades.
Through the haze, he can hear Present Mic's booming voice. It barely registers as an echo, but his last words come through.
"...A head-to-head fistfight! The winner is…"
The sentence trails off.
For some reason, that sticks with Kirishima, nettles at his barely conscious mind. Was he waiting on a judge call? Shouldn't it have been obvious that Tetsutetsu had won?
Mustering what little strength he had left, he forces his eyes open. The bright blue sky greets him, before he slides his gaze down to the ring in front of him. Tetsutetsu isn't standing above him though, he only sees Midnight. She's shifting her gaze back and forth, between him and…
"Both contestants are down!" Midnight announces.
Tetsutetsu was down too. They were evenly matched, all the way 'til the end.
It's so manly! Kirishima nearly sheds a tear over the cruel reality that U.A. had separated them into separate classes.
"It's a draw!"
That announcement shakes some life back into him. A draw? He wasn't offended to be labeled an even match with Tetsutetsu. Kirishima would consider it a compliment, as that guy kicks serious butt. Still, a match as intense as theirs not getting a proper ending? It just didn't sit right with him.
His fingers find purchases in the concrete, digging through the stony floor as though it were cardboard.
"I can't accept that!"
"I won't accept this!"
He blinks, staring at Tetsutetsu, who had sat up at the same time as him. Of course he had.
They both turn to Midnight the same plea on their lips. "I can still fight!"
Midnight expression is torn. Excitement mixes with something more subdued, as she visibly weighs their claims. "Can you activate your quirks?"
His skin hardens on command, although he can't help but grimace as it does. Tetsutetsu fares just as well. "Yes!"
She smiles, but then frowns as the boys struggle to get off their asses. "It kills me to deny your youthful passion, but I cannot clear either of you to fight in this condition."
Kirishima tries to flip himself over onto his hands and knees, but his exhaustion leaves him lying on his chest. He groans, knowing he isn't making a good argument for his ableness right now.
Midnight speaks again, "a draw isn't the end of things. You'll have a chance to recover, before settling this match's victor through a simple competition. If you want to test your strength, you could arm wrestle–"
Kirishima slams his fists into the ground, forcing his head up. "N-No! Please–"
Tetsutetsu barely manages to pull himself to his knees, turning to look at Midnight. "–We need to settle this now–"
Kirishima pounds his chest. "–While my blood is still boiling hot!–"
Tetsutetsu grins widely. "–While this adrenaline's still coursing through me!"
She can't bear it any further, squealing with delight. "Your youth is too much to bear!"
Collecting herself, she slaps her whip between them. Her voice booms across the PA. "We'll settle this draw now!"
Cheers of support erupt across the stadium. The audience was just as pumped up as the combatants to see this match get a proper ending.
"Both of you went down, and neither of you are permitted to continue fighting. As such, we'll settle this through a simple test of grit. The first to stand on their own two feet with their quirk active will be considered the victor!"
"It seems like Midnight has decided to move things along right away!" Present Mic's voice sounds out. "Who's gonna rise to the challenge first!?"
Kirishima slaps a hardened fist against the ground. "Come on… Stand up already!"
His legs wobble, refusing to listen at first. He feels nothing but pins and needles in them, but a few slaps get them back under his control (somewhat). It takes all his effort just to take a knee.
Tetsutetsu's metal frame seems to match his. "I won't lose…!" He grunts out, slowly starting to drag his second leg forward. Kirishima screams with adrenaline, forcing all of his will in trying to make his legs move faster than his opponent's.
With a final shout, Kirishima drops his hardening. His body feels lighter, and suddenly his effort brings forth results. He pulls himself up, legs only wobbling for a moment, before he takes a firm stance. Only when he's confident that he won't fall, does he force his body to harden one more time.
He turns to face Midnight, showing his results. She smiles, slapping her whip down again. "That's it! Kirishima advances to the next round!"
He immediately lets up on his hardening at that announcement, feeling an excruciating ache all across his body. It definitely wasn't a good idea to force it, but he can't even begin to worry about that right now. He's far too focused on the rush of endorphins that floods his mind.
He… He won!
"Damnit…!" Tetsutetsu curses, slapping his knee. "If I was just a little faster–!"
"Hey…" Kirishima forces himself forward, as Tetsutetsu looks up at him.
He holds out his hand. "It… was a good match."
Tetsutetsu stares for a moment, before sighing and accepting the handshake. They felt a shared sense of camaraderie, a manly bond that can only develop when two people give it their all.
Their passion takes them all the way out of the arena before they completely collapse, needing to be dragged the rest of the way to the nurse's office by staff robots.
…
"There's 'fighting through the pain', and there's willful ignorance! When your elders– no– when your own bodies are both giving you signals that it's time to stop, then you'd better listen!"
"Yes ma'am!"
"Now, I know it's useless telling either of you to take it easy, but would it kill you to take a second to consider the risks of overexerting yourselves? Don't get it in your head that you can get injured as much as you like, just because I'm here."
"Yes ma'am!"
Recovery Girl huffs, staring at the boys bowing her head in front of her. She taps the redhead with her cane. "I won't give you some impossible goal, such as 'not getting injured', but please, try to show some restraint in your next match. Fight with everything you have, but know when it's time to stop."
Kirishima hesitates, not knowing how to respond immediately. He didn't want to give a halfhearted agreement if he wasn't going to keep it.
She sighs, indicating that he'd taken too long to answer. "At least understand that if you injure yourself too badly, that you won't be able to participate in future fights. I can only heal you based on your own stamina, which has limits."
Now that, he could agree with. "Yes ma'am! I'll do my best to remember that!"
"Good. Now, both of you are free to return to the stands. If you hurry, I believe Bakugou and that Uraraka girl are still fighting."
He blinks, wondering how Uraraka was holding her own against their explosive classmate. Curiosity is all the motivation he needs to thank the nurse and head out, Tetsutetsu following by his side.
"Hey, I don't know your classmates that well. Bakugou's that overconfident brat that challenged everyone during the pledge, but which one's Uraraka?" Tetsutetsu asks.
"She was on Midoriya's team. Brown hair, round face, looks friendly. She can make stuff float by touching it."
"Reminds me of Yanagi. Her quirk is basically telekinesis, I think. Haven't really talked to her much."
"Really? That's pretty cool. Uraraka can't control what she touches though. I'm pretty sure she just turns off gravity on them."
"That's cool too. I bet she can just float her opponent out of bounds then. Would be pretty damn satisfying to see Bakugou lose like that."
Kirishima chuckles, shaking his head. "I hate to say it, 'cuz Uraraka's pretty nice, but I don't think she has a chance. Not against Bakugou. That dude's something else."
Tetsutetsu nudges him. "Hey hey, Don't gas him up too much. You're the one who has to kick his butt next round, if he wins."
"Man… Recovery Girl is probably gonna get mad at me again."
Tetsutetsu laughs. Kirishima would too, if he wasn't the one destined to receive a lecture.
By the time they made it back, the match had just come to an end. Uraraka is lying on her stomach, as medical robots approach to drag her away. Bakugou is walking out of the field, looking uninjured. From the state of the arena though, there must have been some genuine back and forth. Kirishima would have to catch a recording of the fight later.
"Kirishima! You kicked your clone's butt!" Mina congratulates him, alerting the rest of his class to his arrival.
"Good fight dude." "Nice going!" "Man, you just missed a good one." "You were magnificent!~" Several students talk at once. He waves them off with thanks, before taking a seat beside Tokoyami.
Recovery Girl had healed him up good, but the treatment the recent fight had left him pretty tired. He'd need to use all the time before his next match to recover, if he wanted to give Bakugou a solid match.
Win or lose, he just wasn't gonna be satisfied with an ending like Uraraka's, seeing his opponent walk away without a scratch on him.
…
Kirishima stares down Bakugou across the ring, grinning eagerly.
Their classmates had all given some stellar performances this round. Midoriya's fight with Todoroki was the very definition of manliness! Then there were Iida and Tokoyami, both of whom managed to score swift and decisive wins over their opponents.
Looking at Bakugou, he knows this fight won't be anything like that. Not that he's complaining.
As Present Mic finishes his introductions, Midnight calls for the fight to begin. Both boys run in straight ahead, no hesitation. They were going straight into a brawl, just the way they both like it.
"Take this!" Kirishima shouts, swinging forward with a hardened punch.
Bakugou barely dodges, catching the sharp edge of his fist on his chin. A small scrape of blood is left behind. Bakugou counters right away with a blast to his side.
Kirishima smiles. He'd been worried, but he hardly felt it. Repeated shots like that might wear him down, but he was in top form for now at least.
He laughs, "that won't work on me, Explosion Boy!" It only earns him a glare in response, but it's no matter.
Bakugou had fallen back, and Kirishima wasn't about to let him get away with that. He rushes in swinging, ready to tank whatever Bakugou throws at him if it means landing a hit. To his surprise though, Bakugou had taken to a defensive strategy. He was only dodging, not even trying to fight back.
And man, this dude can dodge!
He was forcing Bakugou to move back, which might eventually get him over the line, but it's hard to feel like you're the one in control when you're only hitting air over and over again.
"You can't win just by dodging. If that's all you've got, then I'll make sure you–!" An explosion cuts him off.
It was hardly a counter though, more a distraction to let Bakugou reposition himself away from the stage's edge. He still wasn't even trying to hit back.
"What is he doing?" Kirishima wonders to himself.
He keeps punching, while Bakugou keeps dodging. After a while though, Kirishima notices that he's starting to take deeper breaths. His hardening, which had been in peak form, was also starting to feel strained.
At that moment, Bakugou finally launches a real counter. A blast catches his side, and it stings.
It was already starting to hurt? Hadn't he just been at his best though?
"You've been straining to keep your whole body rock-hard this whole time, right?" Bakugou says. He speaks confidently, in a way that makes Kirishima question which one of them had really been leading their fight up 'til now. "If you attack quickly in that state, sooner or later, it'll start coming apart!"
Shit, he was right! Kirishima had been staying hardened this whole time, wary of taking one of Bakugou's blasts at close range.
Bakugou decides that he's done playing defense. He sends out a strong blast, which Kirishima manages to tank, even in his less protected state. The smoke blocks his view, but he only has to wait for a moment to see Bakugou coming straight at him with more.
What follows is a barrage. It was impossible to even think amidst the storm of heat and noise he found himself in. Each attack leached at his stamina, making way for the attack that followed to hurt just a little more.
Amidst the blows, Kirishima realizes that he is going to lose. Bakugou isn't letting up, and he can't get out of this explosive hell now that he's in it. The only way this can end is with his quirk giving out on him. The moment he drops his guard, Bakugou will finish the job.
"I won't… I can't give up!"
His guard slackens, as his quirk is on the verge of failing.
"That scratch barely even counts as a hit. I haven't achieved anything in this match."
The barrage halts for a moment, although he barely notices. His mind is too fogged from the repeated blows.
"Losing like this, after all the cool shit our classmates showed off before… That's so unmanly."
"The finishing blow!" Bakugou screams, rushing in with an explosion popping to life in his hand.
In another world, he'd be right. In this one…
A spark of life lights up behind Kirishima's eyes. Moments before impact, Bakugou's expression shifts. He sees it coming, but it's too late to change course.
Bakugou's momentum works against him, as he slams face-first into a hardened fist. The blast he'd been ready to throw misfires into the floor, launching him back through the air a few feet. Nowhere near the edge, but far enough that Kirishima gets a moment to breathe.
Present Mic bursts to life with excitement. "He counters! Kirishima isn't out of this fight just yet!"
He's right. Kirishima isn't ready to go down. Not yet.
He'd landed a clean hit. Bakugou would probably have to at least see Recovery Girl. That feels good, but it isn't enough!
Passionately, he screams and charges at Bakugou once again. His hardening had dropped, the strain too much to maintain, but that was a risk he'd have to take. The explosive boy's hands twitch, but he doesn't launch a blast. Instead, he dodges.
"You may have caught me overusing my quirk, but don't think I forgot your lecture before."
"I'm not just shootin' them off. Don't underestimate 'em. If you overuse your muscles, the muscle fibers tear, and if you keep running, you'll run out of breath."
"Quirks are physical abilities, too. They must also have some kind of limit."
"Just how many blasts that big can you set off back to back!?"
As Bakugou moves to dodge a punch, Kirishima catches him off guard by tackling him with his full bodyweight.
"Shit!" Bakugou shouts, holding up his palms as they spark with power. Kirishima hated to do it, but taking a close-range blast would probably be worse for him than the quirk-overuse. He hardens his torso to protect himself from the blast, grunting with pain at the mere act.
Man, Kirishima definitely hadn't overestimated Bakugou. Even after that whole volley less than ten seconds ago, he could still set off one hell of a boom. It's enough that Kirishima almost throws up right then and there.
"I won't lose!" Bakugou shouts, prepping another blast.
"Me neither!" Kirishima shouts back, slamming a fist into Bakugou's cheek, momentarily stopping the sparks from his palms.
"Kirishima isn't letting go! Will Midnight call it here, or will they keep going!?" Present Mic shouts, prompting spectators to turn their eyes towards the pro hero overseeing the match. She was clearly formulating a decision of some sort, but made no move to call things as they were.
"Damnit!" Bakugou shouts, slamming his palms together to blast Kirishima off. Instead of punching him again, Kirishima grabs Bakugou's arms and slams them down against the ring floor. He can't get the palms to face downwards, so Bakugou is still able to blast the air. He can't hide the wince as he does though, it's clear to Kirishima that he wouldn't be able to keep up the bursts without at least some time to recover. That was time Kirishima didn't want to give him.
Still, it wasn't like he had any options as things stood. All Kirishima could do was keep Bakugou pinned down. If he kept it up for long enough, eventually…
Midnight speaks up. "Bakugou."
Bakugou squirms below Kirishima's like an eel dipped in oil, but Kirishima forces his body to stay hardened to ensure he can't slip out.
"Bakugou, can you move?" Midnight asks.
In lieu of a coherent response, Bakugou growls and screams, further intensifying his attempts to escape. Kirishima presses down harder, putting everything he has into the hold.
Just a few more seconds! If he could just keep him there–
Bakugou sets off two more explosions, turning his palms downwards himself. For just a moment, his body and Kirishima's are sent upwards from the force. Not far, but enough that it could make a difference.
It doesn't though. Kirishima maintains his hold over Bakugou's arms as tightly as he can, and Bakugou fails to break free. He kicks and slams his head back into Kirishima's face, but only one thought reaches the red-head's dulled mind. One simple command that took the top seat in priority:
'Keep your hold on Bakugou'
They fall back to the floor, Kirishima landing on top of him. There was no significant change from before.
There's a pause. A few seconds go by almost silently (ignoring the angered screams of Bakugou and the passionate ones of Kirishima). However the crowd was responding, neither boy could hear them.
Finally, Midnight breaks the tension. Her voice cleaves through the scene like a knife. "Bakugou is immobilized! Kirishima wins!"
The words almost don't register, partly due to how tired he was and partly because he was surprised by the outcome. Bakugou Katsuki, one of the strongest of their grade, had… lost? To him?
It's only as the raucous sounds of the crowd cheering reaches him, that he finally realizes that such a fantasy had really just happened.
He wouldn't have been surprised if Bakugou had continued fighting back. Instead, the explosive boy went still beneath him. He laid there stiffly, with a look of shock and disbelief spread across his features, as if his own defeat hadn't even registered as a possible outcome here.
Kirishima stands up, releasing his hold on him. He considers his words carefully before saying anything, not wanting to set Bakugou off or rub the outcome in his face. Better to keep it simple.
Extending a hand down at the other boy, he offers a fierce smile. "Hey, it was a good match."
It hits him right afterwards that he'd used that line already, but whatever! It's not like Bakugou heard it then!
Bakugou stares at him, before knocking the offered hand aside and standing up himself. They meet each other's eyes for a moment, Bakugou's glaring daggers into his. It doesn't last long, as the explosive boy storms off back to his waiting room. A few medical robots try to guide him towards the nurse's office, only to be ignored entirely.
"It was a rough match for Bakugou," Present Mic commentates. "After boasting he'd be number one when giving the pledge, he falls just short of even making the podium. Was it all just a bluff–!?"
"Quit saying idiotic things." Aizawa cuts in. "Bakugou's declaration was more than a mere boast. He intentionally placed himself on a razor edge to bring out his best results. He placed a bet on his own skill, and lost by underestimating what his opponent was capable of. It was a risky move that didn't pay out. If he's smart, he'll learn from it."
"Well said! Anything to add about our winner, Kirishima?"
"...His lack of plan almost cost him the match. Hopefully he'll put a little more thought into his next fight."
He winces, not really being able to defend himself. Why did he get such harsh criticism for winning?
A wave of pain suddenly washes over his entire body. The medical robots already have a stretcher set up beside him, and he's too weak to argue. He flops over onto it, letting them carry him off. Exhaustion takes over, silencing the crowd and dimming the natural light, as he sinks into a deep sleep.
…
Midoriya stares over the field, mesmerized.
"Kaachan… lost?"
Everything about it struck him as wrong. Granted, it wasn't the first time he'd seen Bakugou's image of perfection crumble while at U.A., but this felt different. He'd lost in the battle trials, sure, but it was only because he failed to secure the objective.
This however? This was combat. Pure raw fighting. No tricks, no gimmicks, and it didn't even end in a ring out. You couldn't design a situation that suited Bakugou better, and yet… he'd lost.
Midoriya's analysis of the match hadn't been unfavorable to Kirishima. He'd understood that Hardening, while simple, was a strong defensive quirk that Bakugou might struggle to break through. Kirishima definitely had a chance, so why did it feel so bizarre to see it realized? Was it really still so hard to process Bakugou not being an unstoppable force?
"Are you surprised?" Iida asks, shaking Midoriya from his thoughts. "I must confess, while I maintain an impartial stance on who I support, as the class representative, I did believe Bakugou would win. His showing throughout the festival has been rather strong all around, and he seemed to be in control for a good portion of the match."
"You're right, I was thinking pretty much the same way." Midoriya admits. "Kaachan's flurry of explosions was a smart choice, especially after waiting out Kirishima's quirk like he did. It only failed because Kirishima's endurance was better than anybody could have predicted, meaning he could either keep his quirk up in an exhausted state or continue fighting even with the damage Kaachan had dealt. I wonder if it could have gone differently if there was less time between his first round fight and the second, since that would mean he'd have less time to recover and less stamina to sustain himself. Although what if that meant Bakugou waited longer for him to show signs of exhaustion? Would he hold off on fighting back until there was really a problem? If you think about it that way, then there are a lot of small things that could have made this go either way. "
Midoriya had devolved into a flurry of muttering, which Iida didn't wish to shake him from. He raised several interesting points after all.
…
Kirishima wakes up to shouting.
"I said it's fine!" That was definitely Bakugou.
"Geez, you're almost as stubborn as Aizawa when it comes to staying put." Recovery Girl says. "Just wait a few minutes, and if you still feel fine alright then you can go."
Bakugou clicks his tongue, but doesn't complain further. His frustration radiates throughout the entire room though.
Kirishima sits up, wincing as he feels several bruised spots across his body. Recovery Girl looks over at him and sighs.
"It's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"
He knows a dishonest answer will just get him in trouble, so he tells the truth. "Like I fell asleep in a batting cage. Guessing I didn't have much stamina left to heal with?"
"Good, so you're aware of the problem." She says, giving him a too-sweet smile. He gulps, bracing himself for another full breakdown of his mistakes.
It doesn't come, however. All that does is a tired sigh. "Relax, you won't be getting another lecture over this match. There are things you could do better in the future, but you didn't do anything too egregious this time. It's not your fault that your opponent was strong."
"However–" Kirishima gulps, as she continues, "I hope you haven't forgotten my warning. Another match like that, and you won't be able to fight in finals whether you win or lose. Your body can't keep working under this level of intensity, not without a proper rest cycle. You need to start conserving strength if you want to last until the end."
"Yes ma'am…" He mutters, a bit more weakly than before. She was entirely correct, and he'd already messed up by overusing his quirk without a clear plan of how to take the win.
He had won though. That thought made him smile. Despite everything, Bakugou couldn't break him. He held his own, and was victorious.
"Now, since I couldn't heal you very much, I'd like you to stay here and rest before your next match." She fills up a cup of water and holds it out to him as she talks. "Don't worry, you should have plenty of time. They're still repairing the stage from your last fight."
Had they really done that much damage? Well, maybe Bakugou's last attack…
Recovery Girl walks to the other side of the room, pulling out files and writing things down. The silence in the air really highlighted that he and Bakugou were both there, sitting on beds beside one another.
Kirishima breaks the ice. "Feels better knowing I'm not alone in here. Would have looked like one heck of a desperate win if my opponent was fine, while I needed to get patched up."
"Shut up. It was desperate."
"Ha! Got me there."
"If the judge hadn't made that shitty call, I would have broken out and killed you."
"Yeah. If that pin didn't count, I think the only other thing I could have done is try to hit you in the head until you passed out. Not that that would have worked out well, since you'd just blow me up the second I drop an arm."
He pauses, considering. "Maybe a headbutt though…"
"Like you could have held me for long enough to get away with it."
"Guess it really was gonna be yours if that happened then." Kirishima chuckles. Bakugou wasn't wrong, even if he was just being salty 'cuz he lost. If Midnight hadn't considered his pin as effective enough immobilization, that fight was definitely going to Bakugou.
"Hey, spar with me again sometime," he says. "No outside judges. Just grab a spare gym and let's go at it."
"No sparring in the gyms without a staff member present," Recovery Girl interjects.
Bakugou clicks his tongue at him. "Like you're worth fighting."
"Just an offer. You don't gotta take it if you don't want to."
There's a knock at the door. Before Recovery Girl can even get up and answer, Mina bursts inside excitedly, with Sero trailing behind her.
"That was awesome, guys!" she says.
"Mina wanted to check up on you, so I figured I should come too," Sero says. "Make it a team reunion."
"Ki-ri-shi-maaaaa!" She shakes his arm eagerly. "You were phenomenal out there! You took like 87 explosions to the face and just shrugged it off and decked Bakugou!"
"Pipe down!" Bakugou shouts.
"Hey hey," Sero pats him on the shoulder, " don't worry about it. "
He has to dodge a swipe for that comment. "Don't compare your pitiful performance to mine!" Bakugou shouts.
Kirishima chuckles, bashfully running his hand through his hair. "Thanks guys. It was a really close thing though."
Mina slaps her hands over his shoulders, and stares right into his eyes. "Kirishima, you are the only one to whom I can entrust this job… Kick that shadow's butt and avenge my completely humiliating loss!"
"Guess Bakugou has company in the salt mines," Sero says, ignoring the snarls and shouts it generates.
"Nah, not really," Mina says. "It'd be stupid to blame Tokoyami for beating me. I'm totally fine with it."
Her words tell one story, but the pouting expression and hard look in her eyes tells another. "She's definitely still upset."
"This is about Team Bakugou staying in the game! You don't wanna let someone from Team Midoriya win the whole festival, do you?"
"I mean, Midoriya and Tokoyami are both cool, but I'd definitely prefer to just win myself."
"Where's your team spirit!?"
"Probably tough to maintain after getting pit against his former teammate," Sero points out. "I get what she means though. It'd be nice if someone from our team won the festival."
Kirishima clenches a hand into a fist and feels the soreness run through it. He frowns. "Tokoyami's got one hell of a quirk. I can probably take a few good hits from it with my Hardening, but after my last two matches… I don't think I can handle another drawn out fight."
Bakugou scoffs. "Like that shrimpy birdbrain could manage that."
Was that true, Kirishima wonders. Tokoyami held his own well during the cavalry battle, although he mostly played defense in short bursts from what Kirishima had seen. And in the one-on-one tournament matches, he always ended his fights quickly. Was there a reason for that? It doesn't seem like Dark Shadow tires him out, although there has to be some limit to how much he can rely on it.
After thinking it over, Kirishima's eyes go wide with realization. Bakugou was right on the money. "Hey, that's not a bad point! Thanks for the advice!"
Bakugou huffs, but stays surprisingly calm. "Don't get your ass kicked immediately. You'll make me look bad."
It was the closest thing to encouragement he could expect from Bakugou.
…
Kirishima walks up to the platform with a firm gaze, running through Recovery Girl's words as he considers his plan.
"Another match like that, and you won't be able to fight in finals whether you win or lose. Your body can't keep working at this level of intensity, so you need to start conserving strength if you want to last until the end."
There may not have been anything he could do in his first match to not exhaust himself. Tetsutetsu was just too strong to show anything less than his best. That was true of Bakugou as well, but he'd been careless and sloppy with his quirk use. Against Tokoyami, he couldn't afford that same mistake. Especially not with who the finals would be against.
Todoroki had won his match with Iida. After everything he'd shown off in his matches against Sero and Midoriya, Kirishima knows that he'll need every advantage he can get to even stand a chance. If he starts that match beat-up and exhausted, it'll be over in less than a second. With that in mind, he needs this fight with Tokoyami to be over as quickly as physically possible.
"Tokoyami isn't a very big guy. If I can get in, taking him out should be a cake walk. It's Dark Shadow I have to look out for. He's fast, and can attack from a pretty nice range. Mina wasn't able to overcome it in her match, but I need to get past him to even have a shot here."
Present Mic's intros start, as they're walking up into the ring. "On this side! He's blown away both of his opponents in record time! Our tournament speedrunner, the Hero Course's Tokoyami Fumikage!"
"On the complete flipside, we have the king of drawn out fights! With how much abuse he takes, you gotta wonder if he likes it."
Kirishima's face scrunches up. "I get he's trying to make me seem like an underdog, but I wish he'd say less."
"Still, he managed to take out an easy contender for finals last round, so let's see if he's able to keep that momentum going! From the Hero Course, it's Kirishima Eijiro!"
He looks across the ring at his opponent. Tokoyami looks back. The tension is thick, just the way he likes it.
"Hey, Tokoyami." He pounds his hands together. "Let's have a great fight!"
Tokoyami smiles. "It'll be up to you whether it's a fight at all."
Smug as hell, but there's a playful edge to it. "I won't let you down!"
He takes a fighting stance. Midnight holds up her whip and gives the count. The moment she shouts "Fight!" Tokoyami's shadow bursts out towards him.
"I knew you'd try that!"
Kirishima jumps to the side at the last possible second, letting the shadow rush past him. Ignoring the quirk, he runs straight at Tokoyami.
"When you send Dark Shadow out like that, you leave yourself open!" He shouts.
Tokoyami jumps back. "Dark Shadow! Return strike!"
Even without looking back, Kirishima can see the shadow line between Dark Shadow and Tokoyami curve.
He grins, taking a quick glance back without slowing down for a second. "And… Now!"
He activates his quirk across his back, hardening it right before the blow comes in. He feels the impact but the pain doesn't hit him.
"If I know when the attack is coming, I can wait to harden at the last second!"
Tokoyami's eyes go wide, as Kirishima rides the force of the blow to reach him sooner than he's ready for. He pulls back a fist, hardening it as it swings. It socks Tokoyami right in the cheek, folding him over as he's flipped through the air. The breath leaves his lungs, as he hits the ground hard.
"DOWN!" Yeesh, Present mic must have had his quirk active for that one. "In a fierce rush, Kirishima knocks his opponent off his feet in a single hit, completely shrugging off Dark Shadow's assault! Will our beaked student stand back up, or has the fight already come to an end?"
Kirishima stands back, not having it in him to hit a guy when they're down. Technically, he could try to pin him, but that was a really bad idea with Dark Shadow in mind.
Tokoyami flinches on the ground, clearly pained. Midnight speaks up from her platform, "Tokoyami, are you able to continue fighting?"
There's a pause, but Tokoyami does eventually sit up. His knees shake, and his quirk hovers around him with… concern? (Kirishima really has to ask Tokoyami at some point just how sentient Dark Shadow is. He's heard it talk a couple times, but isn't sure if it's its own person, an echo of Tokoyami's own thoughts, or some other weird thing.)
When he rises fully, still shaking slightly, he confirms his ability to go on. Midnight nods, allowing the fight to continue. Kirishima grins. "Keep it coming then!"
As he rushes forward, he hears the call. "Dark Shadow!" The quirk springs to life, rushing forward again. There isn't enough space between the two of them to really dodge this time, so Kirishima hardens his front to shrug off the hit, forcing his way through. It's not entirely pleasant, as he came into the match with plenty of aches from his previous matches, but it's bearable.
Tokoyami isn't ready for him to reach close-range again, especially not so quickly. He puts up his arms defensively, while clearly trying to direct Dark Shadow back to him. Despite already taking a hit, Kirishima was able to catch him with the same strategy as he had before.
"Tokoyami's quirk is powerful, but he's relying on it too much." Aizawa's tired commentary explains. "It's a common sight for first years. They get so focused on training their quirks that they ignore their fundamentals."
Kirishima tackles through Tokoyami, winding the boy and dragging him forwards hastily.
" Strength, cardio, fighting style… When your quirk isn't helping a situation, that's all you have to rely on."
Dark Shadow tries to loop back and stop Kirishima. Instead of striking though, it loops around Kirishima's body like a snake, attempting to halt him as they near the edge of the fighting area.
"Students who make it into the Hero Course with seemingly 'weak' quirks, or who show a lack of confidence in their abilities, are often better prepared in this area. That is Kirishima's advantage in this match-up."
Kirishima has to struggle to stay standing, but he firms up his stance while hardening his legs. With one firmly on the ground, he lifts the other and kicks it into Tokoyami's stomach, pushing him just over the line.
Midnight cracks her whip. "Tokoyami is out of bounds! Kirishima wins!"
Both of their quirks retract, with Dark Shadow pausing beside Tokoyami's head.
"Sorry…" it says, looking gloomier than usual.
"Our failure is my own fault," he whispers back, letting his quirk slurp back into his body.
While Kirishima has several questions, the exchange is far from his top concern. What is is the simple fact that he'd just won! He's going into the final round against Todoroki!
His eyes turn to his classmates in the stands, landing on the red-and-white-haired boy. Todoroki stares back with his usual calm expression, as Kirishima challenges him with a grin. It wouldn't be easy, but he didn't come this far to lose. He's going to take Todoroki on and win.
With determination flowing through his veins, he departs.
…
However thorny Bakugou likes people to think he is, he's the one who finds Kirishima in his waiting room, not the other way around. Kirishima won't point it out, but he definitely isn't missing that fact.
"Congrats on not dying." Bakugou says. "Didn't even need to get picked up by the hag for once."
Kirishima sets down his water, smiling back. "Your advice helped me out. Thanks for that, man."
"I didn't give you any fucking advice!"
"Eh? Well, talking to you helped me figure some things out for myself at least.
Bakugou doesn't fight back on that one. He takes a seat across from Kirishima at the room's table.
He doesn't say anything, leaving Kirishima to guess what he wants to talk about. "Think I can take Todoroki?"
"Maybe if you manage to keep your head out of your ass for the whole match."
"Yeah. I'm not gonna have any room for mistakes against him. Honestly, he's a lot like you–" Bakugou makes an affronted sound "–like, he's overwhelming. It'd be cool to see the two of you really duke it out sometime."
Bakugou scoffs. "I'd destroy him."
"I dunno man, if he busts out that fire like he did against Midoriya–"
"I'LL DESTROY HIM TOO!"
Whoops, he'd pressed the 'Deku' button. Best to change the subject entirely. "So, how stupid do you think it'd be if I tried to punch my way through his attacks?"
…
Tokoyami returns to the stands, receiving a few consolatory statements about his loss.
"You did so well! Sorry it had to end before finals," Uraraka says. Tokoyami nods, not feeling too broken up about it. He did his best, and the fight exposed weaknesses for him to work on. Plus, his placement of third would still get him on a podium in the end, so he was bound to catch the attention of pro heroes that he could intern under.
"Very mature words for someone who was on the brink of tears a few minutes ago."
He shoves Dark Shadow down rather forcefully, hoping nobody heard his whispered commentary. "It's fine. Kirishima was an admirable opponent."
She nods. "I didn't think he'd make it all the way to finals, but he's really been showing off today!"
Mineta chimes in, "I think most people expected it'd be Todoroki and Bakugou at the end. Those two's quirks are just way too much."
"What about Midoriya? Dude's pretty strong, and he did beat Bakugou in the battle trials," Kaminari asks. Mineta just shrugs.
"Eh, he could maybe score an upset over one of them, but even a close loss against Todoroki made him have to break both his hands super badly."
"Yeah, I don't think Recovery Girl would have let him fight against Iida, even if he had won, ribbit," Tsuyu says.
"Definitely not! He had to have surgery, remember?" Uraraka says.
"...Guys, I'm sitting right here," Midoriya says, burying his face in his hands. She lightly punches his shoulder.
"Yeah, and we're telling you to stop worrying us so much."
"Sorry. I promise I'll work on not hurting myself with my own quirk so frequently," he mutters, still unable to face the classmates he'd concerned.
"Do you guys think Kirishima has a chance against Todoroki?" Sero asks, rewinding the subject. "He's pretty tough, but couldn't Todoroki just freeze him right off the bat?"
"Oh yeah! Like he did to you," Mineta says, chuckling as Sero slumps over defeatedly.
"Kirishima doesn't have any long range options, so it's not like he can just avoid the ice. Just like Iida, he's gonna have to get in, and we already saw how that can go." Kaminari says. "The match is basically over even before it's begun."
Midoriya isn't convinced, and he isn't the only one.
"Maybe," Uraraka says, "but he already pulled off one big upset against Bakugou. Maybe he can do it again?"
The torches as the corners of the arena light, as Present Mic's voice fills the stadium. "It's finally the last battle of the U.A. High School sports festival! The top of the first years will be decided with this one match! The final, so to speak!"
The crowd roars with excitement. The two finalists begin to walk out to the stage, Todoroki on one end and Kirishima on the other. Midoriya stares down at them, considering the match-up.
"Whether or not Todoroki uses his left side, he'll want to keep his distance. Kirishima can only attack him from up close after all. Even if Kirishima can close the distance, Todoroki can still use his quirk from a shorter range. Hardening his skin is unlikely to prevent Kirishima from being frozen, so he'll need to avoid getting caught in the ice. All in all, this match doesn't favor Kirishima at all."
"Still, Kirishima's quirk could give him an edge. If he can power through Todoroki's attacks and get close, then Todoroki could wind up in a precarious position. Grabs won't work, since Todoroki could retaliate with his quirk, but he might be able to win by either launching him out or landing enough hits that Todoroki can't get back up."
"Kirishima has the tougher win condition, but he still has a chance," Midoriya says. "This match could go either way."
…
"From the hero course, Shoto Todoroki!"
Present Mic thankfully kept introductions brief this time. The audience knew who they were already, they just wanted to hop straight into the fight. Kirishima felt the same way.
"Versus! Also from the hero course, Eijiro Kirishima!"
He and Todoroki stare each other down from across the ring. This was it. One final match to determine which of them would come out on top. Of course, If he wants it to even be a match, the first step will be surviving past the first wave of ice.
"Start!"
There's no delay. Todoroki immediately slams his right hand down, sending a glacier of ice forward wide enough to encompass the full width of the arena.
"No point wondering if I can or not. I either do it, or I lose. No other options!"
With a passionate yell, Kirishima hardens his entire body and slams out attacks as fast as he can. His fists collide with chunk after chunk of ice, shattering them before they can crash against him.
His legs grow cold, but there's nothing he can do about that yet. He just keeps throwing out punches, over and over again until the ice finally comes to a halt. He ends up punching the air a few times before even noticing. Ice surrounded him on all sides, save for behind.
"I… survived it!"
Looking down, it strikes him that he may have spoken too soon. The spread of ice had covered his lower body rather severely. He couldn't move his legs at all.
Hoping it'll work, and with no thought for possible complications, he slams his fists down at the ice encompassing his lower-half. The big pieces go easily, but there's not much he can do about the small stuff, or the general chill that went across his body as a result.
It really was just some smaller chunks left, so he decides to try something. After taking a deep breath, he tries to drop his hardening across the the affected areas. Surprisingly, it actually does end up helping, as the change in texture made a good chunk of the remaining ice fall off.
He was still really cold, but that was an issue he could fight through. Nothing warms you up faster than getting your blood moving.
"Has the winner been decided already!?" Present Mic shouts, reminding Kirishima that he wasn't visible to most of the audience at the moment. The ice was all around him, and he needed to carve his way out.
"Well, no point in waiting." He hardens his arms, and begins punching a path forward through the ice.
It takes time and energy, but Kirishima thankfully isn't trapped for long enough to prompt Midnight to confirm whether he's able to keep fighting. After what feels like several minutes, yet probably wasn't even one, Kirishima punches his way through the front of the glacier, facing down Todoroki. The audience breaks into cheers at his reappearance.
"Did you really think that would be enough? This far into the competition?" He asks, jabbing a thumb into his chest. "I won't go down for anything less than your very best!"
"Kirishima re-emerges! Todoroki's glacier-scale attack wasn't enough to take him down."
His hands twitch. As quickly as he'd gotten out, it wasn't without some sacrifice. His hands aching a fair amount more than before. Still, he didn't have a choice but to fight through the pain.
Todoroki pulls his hand back, preparing to strike again. Kirishima leaps from the ice, and begins to rush forward.
"Come at me!"
Todoroki sends out another wave, this one far smaller than his first attack, but the rising ice still went as high as Kirishima's neck.
He makes a swift judgment that running straight into the attack would be bad. Even if he could easily shake off the small stuff, the bigger chunks of ice take time to detach. That's time Todoroki definitely wouldn't want to waste. Thinking this, Kirishima jumps to the side, getting only his foot caught in the spawned wave of ice. He hardens it, and quickly breaks it out.
As Kirishima closes the gap between them, Todoroki changes his stance. Kirishima doesn't miss this, letting Bakugou's advice replay in his mind.
"What, you wanna punch through Icy-hot's big 'fuck you' moves? Go for it, he's just tossing shit around and hoping it'll work with those. He'll fuck you up if you try that up close though. If you lose the same way Glasses did, then you really are a dumbass."
He winds up a punch, as Todoroki reaches forward with his right hand. Kirishima has to twist his body around to dodge it, slamming a hardened fist into Todoroki's side as he does. Todoroki retches, getting sent back a few feet.
Kirishima's dodge wasn't entirely successful, as Kirishima felt a gnawing cold on his back. It was too much to shake off with his own quirk, but not enough that he couldn't ignore it and keep fighting.
Todoroki recovers, but he's clearly not in top form. He tries to put up a wall to keep Kirishima from following up, but he flinches, catching an additional punch straight on.
Kirishima blinks. He hadn't expected that one to land. The first hit may have caught him by surprise, but he'd blocked faster than that against Midoriya, hadn't he?
As he's wondering about that, it finally dawns on him that Todoroki is shivering.
"Quirks are physical abilities, too. They must also have some kind of limit."
"Hey," Kirishima says. "Are you already at your limit?"
Todoroki looks up, a fierce but conflicted expression on his face.
"I don't know exactly how your quirk works, but if the ice makes you cold, the fire oughta balance it out, right? So why aren't you using it?"
Todoroki grits his teeth, taking a few seconds to respond. "I… haven't decided."
Haven't decided?
Kirishima furrows his brow in thought, trying to make sense of that. He feels like he's missing some serious context here. Why would he need to "decide" whether or not to use part of his quirk? Sure, Kirishima hadn't seen him use it much during the other rounds, but he'd already brought it out against Midoriya, hadn't he? Unless there was some reason he had to decide again for this round…?
Eventually, Kirishima gives up on trying to guess it. "I have no idea what that means, but don't think I'm gonna let you win without giving me everything you've got."
Todoroki's expression is unreadable, making Kirishima unsure whether to attack or not. He seemed to be going through something, clearly considering what Kirishima had just told him. Striking him while that was happening seems… unmanly.
He twitches his left hand. A small plume of steam comes off it, only to stop as expression tightens. "No. I'm sorry, but I can't use that."
The defeated tone bothers Kirishima, but what can he do about it? He can't force Todoroki to use his flames, and it wasn't his place anyways. After all, there could be a good reason he's hesitant. Maybe it'd interfere with his strategy, or maybe he couldn't use it as much as his ice, so he had to be more conservative with it?
"Forget it. If you aren't using it, then you aren't using it. But why the hell are you sulking about it now?"
He slams his fists together, hardening them as he does. "This is the final round. Are you really gonna go down making a face like that!?"
Todoroki grits his teeth, adjusting his stance and letting ice build up around his right foot. He takes a breath, and meets Kirishima's gaze. "I've had enough classmates lecture me for one day."
Kirishima adjusts his stance as well, prepping for a charge. "Then let's finish this!"
The crowd cheers with excitement, as Present Mic eggs them on with his commentary. For a brief moment, Kirishima takes it all in.
He hears Tetsutetsu shouting for him to win.
He hears Endeavor shouting for Todoroki to use his flames to finish the tournament.
He hears Bakugou demanding he kill Icy-hot.
He hears his classmates, all shouting support for opposing sides.
The audience roars with anticipation and excitement, and he can just barely make out a hint of a smile on Todoroki's face.
Kirishima wishes he could live in this very moment for the rest of his life. His heart pounding in his chest, sweat pouring down his brow, and adrenaline surging through him as he stands his ground…
This is as Manly as it gets!
Kirishima charges, hardening his entire body in preparation. Todoroki puts everything he has into one final attack. Not another glacier, but it was still one heck of a big ice wave.
The attack builds up between them, and Kirishimahas to make a choice. No room for errors here. Should he break through it, or try and dodge?
Was there really any other answer?
Kirishima plants his feet in place, and begins pounding against the attack as fast as his arms can move, trying to keep up with the speed at which it builds. His passionate shout roars out, as he pushes forward, trying to make headway through the growing ice attack. It's no good though! He just can't push forward..
As much as he tried to conserve it, his hardening was at its limit. Recovery Girl was bound to get mad at him, but he forces himself to keep going.
The ice begins to crawl over him, as his punches can't keep up with crystals' growth. It crawls its way up his arms towards his shoulders, and it would only be a matter of seconds before his arms locked up and he caught the full brunt of the attack.
He braces himself for the worst…
And yet, it never comes.
The attack stops, far before Kirishima could be fully trapped inside. He's left to ponder what Todoroki is planning, until–
"Down! Todoroki crumples into a snowball! Is this it?" Present Mic shouts out.
Huh?
Kirishima can hardly see Todoroki past the ice wall, so he hauls ass to move around it. Sure enough, his opponent lies still on the other side. His body is lightly frosted over and shivering. Honestly, Kirishima can't tell if he's unconscious, or just unable to keep fighting.
Midnight inspects the scene for a short time, before finally raising her hand.
"Todoroki is unable to continue fighting! Kirishima wins!"
He won?
He won!
Kirishima falls to his knees, screaming with exhilaration loud enough that not even the crowd could drown him out.
…
There he stood, atop a podium raised above his competitors'. First place…
It still felt unreal. He'd celebrated, but the thought that he was really standing there, him of all people.
He didn't have the coolest or strongest quirk. He wasn't much of a tactician. He probably wasn't even close to the strongest, not compared to guys like Midoriya. In spite of all of that, he had won.
As All Might finishes congratulating Tokoyami and Todoroki (Iida should have been here too, but was absent for family reasons, or so Kirishima heard), he approaches Kirishima. Their eyes meet, and he truly feels the weight of All Might's presence in that moment.
"Young Kirishima, congratulations." He holds up the medal, placing it around Kirishima's neck. "You worked hard, and proved your strength to everyone here today."
Kirishima laughs, a bit awkwardly. "I never gave up on it, but somehow I'm still surprised I made it up here."
All Might laughs back. "The odds may have seemed against you many times today. No matter what challenges stood in your way though, you held strong and fought your way through. There is still room for you to improve, as with everyone. Still, I hope there's one thing you'll take to heart for today…"
He wraps his arms around Kirishima. "You've earned this result, my boy."
Damnit! He is not going to cry in front of All Might, not even manly tears! "Th-Thank you, sir."
All Might releases him, taking a few steps away and turning to address the crowd.
"These were the winners this time, but listen here! Anyone here could have ended up on these podiums."
Anyone of them, huh?
Kirishima looks down at his medal. The gold reflects his own face back at him.
"Yeah, there are definitely people he could imagine wearing this. His class, 1-B, even those guys from Support and General Education… There were a ton of cool people here who could have won, if things had gone differently."
Despite this, he smiles.
"Maybe it could have been anyone… but just for today, it was me."
...
...
...
I'd like to use this space to explain some of the choices I made in this chapter.
To begin with, Kirishima obviously does rather well in the tournament canonically, making it to the second set of the final event and only losing to the guy who wins the whole thing.
That's not a bad showing! I would also say that, out of everyone in Class 1-A, Kirishima has one of the better match-ups against Bakugou. Kirishima was able to tank his blasts and force Bakugou onto the defensive. Bakugou definitely has better battle instincts, but in a straightforward blow to blow fight Kirishima could potentially eke out a win.
Still, even if Kirishima could stand a chance, we know that he canonically does lose here. This is the critical point that needs to change for Kirishima to win the tournament, so how do we get there? I'd prefer not to simply wave a hand and say that Kirishima wins if I can't justify any reason for it to play out differently, as that wouldn't really be satisfying.
Obviously, a character will have to do something different from canon for this fic to work, but my philosophy with these changes is to prioritize two things: The character featured must be responsible for their own victory, to some degree; and the changes made should be as small as possible.
Case in point: The fundamental change for this chapter is that Kirishima and Tetsutetsu resolve their fight without going to a draw, thus letting them rest instead of going into a tie-breaker at the end of the bracket. This gives Kirishima more time to recover after his fight, and puts him in better shape for his battle with Bakugou. This was the lynchpin I decided on for the chapter.
Kirishima's a simple guy. For him to come out on top, it's gotta be a matter of grit and determination. He perseveres in the face of strong opponents, and refuses to be knocked down. I want this chapter to reflect who Kirishima is, and what it means for him to win the Sports Festival over any other character.
This is the approach I'm going to be taking to each chapter. I hope you enjoyed this, and will stick around for the following chapters.
