Ch11: Digging Your Own Grave
Note: Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, this was supposed to go up last night but I had the most insane case of food poisoning in human history. I'm still a little groggy and feel like absolute garbage so if theres any typos or errors just bear with me, I'll try to fix them when I get some time.
@SulliMike23: Monoma is, infact, a dickhead. We get to explore that rabbit hole a little more today! Hope you enjoy!
@abijayks: Im glad you enjoyed it!!! Its getting more and more fun to write dialogue between Peter and Shoto. Im excited to wrap the festival up so they can have more interactions outside the canon timeline.
@DrCoogans: Here ya go boss! Hope you enjoy!!
@BobIsBadAtEnglish: I really appreciate the feedback!! I wasn't sure how people would respond to the feud between Peter and Monoma but I'm glad it seemed to work out! I'll be totally honest, I couldn't find a good way to describe how on earth Team Bakugo lost their headband to Monoma... the anime just cuts to it coming off his head so i just decided to take the same approach. I guess they just ran up and grabbed it as boring as that is haha. I really appreciated your review! I'm excited to cover the flirting phase! I hope that i can wait until the end of the tournament to put it into action! Thanks for reading! Hope to hear more from ya!
Thank you guys for continuing to read and leave reviews! It makes my day! Im gonna go vomit now! Deuces!
I do not own any of the characters depicted in this story...
"Where are those two?! Don't they know it's almost time to head out there?" Tenya Iida said impatiently as his foot tapped against the concrete ground. As class representative, he took it upon himself to gather everyone together. Punctuality was, after all, an extremely important quality of any self respecting hero.
Unfortunately, however, he was unable to locate the last two of the eleven members of his class who made up the final sixteen... And the time to get out onto the field was nearly at hand.
"Maybe they didn't hear the announcement..." Midoriya said with a hint of concern in his voice.
"They'll be here..." Tokoyami said with his eyes closed as he leaned against the wall.
Momo pushed down her anxiety as she looked around the group. 'C'mon Peter... Where are you?!' She was seriously beginning to worry. Tournament rules clearly stated that those not present in a timely manner for the revelation of the tournament bracket would face disqualification.
As her eyes fell on Bakugo standing by himself, she noticed the blonde's head raise from the ground and began to stare down the hallway.
She turned her attention to the direction of his gaze and exhaled in relief.
"There they are!" Pointed out Uraraka.
Peter and Shoto both walked silently with their hands concealed in the pockets of their uniforms. A strong sense of focus flashed in their eyes. Neither of them seemed the slightest bit nervous about what the bracket had in store for them... They were strangers to the word fear. No matter who the two faced, they were determined to come out on top. As they marched forward, the group got a good look at them.
"Holy crap... Those two are going to absolutely destroy whoever they get matched up against..." Ashido said in a voice no louder than a whisper as she gulped.
Momo was completely captivated by the appearance of strength that radiated from Peter, only snapping back to her senses when his stoic expression turned into a smile as he saw her face. She matched his grin. She no longer had anything more to prove to herself... Now her motivation was to impress him... To show him that his efforts to help her were not in vain. She would not be denied a spot on that podium when everything was finally settled.
"Nice of you two to join us... Alright everyone! Let's go make our families and our other classmates proud!" Iida said with a mixture of irritation and relief as he pushed his glasses against the bridge of his nose.
Momo trotted up to Peter's side and he turned to her as the rest of the class began to pass them by. "You nervous?" He asked as they began to walk forward bringing up the rear.
She offered a smirk of confidence. "Nope."
"Adda girl..." He grinned as he glanced ahead of him. "There's not a single person here that you aren't capable of beating Mo... Go out there and show them what you can do."
She felt her heart thump harder at his words of encouragement. It was exhilarating. The way he spoke to her always made her feel like she could take on any challenge. She nodded her head as she began to steady her breathing.
Standing alone in one of the tunnels, Shinso stood ready to walk into the stadium. His eyes remained gazing ahead of him as he clenched and released his fists. He was in an unprecedented situation. He couldn't remember ever seeing anyone outside of the hero and support courses making it to the final round. As he listened to the rumblings of the crowd, he couldn't help notice that the tunnel felt much bigger than it had before... 'I will... Be a hero...'
As class 1A exited the tunnel, they were met with a thunderous round of applause as the bright sunlight washed over them. They all locked their eyes forward on both Midnight and Cementoss, who stood upon a brand new ring that had been build during the intermission, courtesy of the latter. The students gathered at the edge of the ring as they were joined by the three contestants from class B, Shinso, and Hatsume.
Present Mic woke Aizawa and cleared his throat as he leaned into his microphone. It was finally show time. "ALRIGHT LADIES, GENTLEMEN, BOYS, AND GIRLS! THE TIME HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!!!! AFTER TWO ROUNDS OF ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE ACTION, SIXTEEN OF THESE GRITTY FIRST YEAR STUDENTS HAVE CLIMBED THEIR WAY TO THE FINAL ROUND!!!! SO I ONLY HAVE ONE QUESTION... WHO'S READY TO RUMBLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEE?!?!"
The screams from the stands reached unprecedented decibels as the jumbotron displayed a sixteen player bracket tree. Midnight took up her microphone and began to usher in the start of the tournament.
"ALRIGHT YOUNG STUDENTS YOUR TIME HAS FINALLY COME AT LAST! CONGRATULATIONS ON ADVANCING TO THE FINAL ROUND!" She looked over the small group in front of her with a devious grin. "I HOPE YOU'VE ALL COME PREPARED... ITS TIME TO PUT YOUR SKILLS TO THE TEST! THIS IS A SINGLE ELIMINATION TOURNAMENT WHERE YOU WILL FIGHT ONE ON ONE IN FULL VIEW OF THE ENTIRE WORLD! WHICH ONE OF YOU HAS THE STRENGTH TO CLIMB TO THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN IN ORDER TO CALL YOURSELF 'CHAMPION'?!" she shouted out as the crowd began to stand up out of their seats, each fan cheering on their favorite upstart hero.
'Alright kid... You've done well so far... But this is where it counts... Show them what you've got.' All Might thought as he looked down at his successor.
In a small apartment, Inko Midoriya clutched a pillow to her chest amongst the empty tissue boxes that were strewn about around her. "Come on Izuku..."
In a luxury box above, Yana intertwined her fingers with her husband's. "You've got this Momo... You've got this..." She whispered to herself as tears of pride in her daughter welled in her eyes.
The crowd continued to roar as the students began to feel the rush of the competitive atmosphere. This was it... all of their hard work... all of their sacrifices... Had led them to this moment.
"THE RULES ARE RELATIVELY STRAIGHT FORWARD... YOU CAN WIN YOUR MATCH BY: KNOCKING OUT YOUR OPPONENT, FORCING THEM TO SURRENDER, OR BY KNOCKING THEM OUT OF BOUNDS! THERE WILL BE NO RESTRICTIONS ON QUIRK USE! HOWEVER, FOR OBVIOUS REASONS, LETHAL FORCE IS COMPLETELY FORBIDDEN! IF I DEEM THE COMPETITION IS GETTING OUT OF HAND, BOTH I AND CEMENTOSS WILL STOP YOUR FIGHT AND WILL DETERMINE A WINNER BY UNANIMOUS DECISION!" She explained as the students nodded in understanding. The volume of the stadium was becoming more and more intense. In order to be heard clearly by the contestants, Midnight was forced to raise her voice even louder.
"NOW FOR ONE FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE WE GET THIS PARTY STARTED... FOR THOSE OF YOU UNAWARE, CONTESTANTS: OJIRO, SHODA, AND AOYAMA HAVE ALL VOLUNTARILY WITHDRAWN FROM COMPETITION AND HAVE BEEN REPLACED BY THREE MEMBERS OF THE FIFTH PLACE TEAM. CONGRATULATIONS CONTESTANTS: KENDO, TETSUTETSU, AND MONOMA! YOU THREE HAVE BEEN ADDED TO THE FINAL SIXTEEN!!!"
Todoroki, Ashido, and Momo all turned to see the smirk of Neito Monoma directed towards their friend. They then turned to see Peter focused on the gigantic screen in front of them. One thing was for sure... Monoma had made some absurdly powerful enemies and was intent on making his situation worse.
"NOW! WITHOUT FURTHER ADO! I GIVE YOU YOUR FIRST ROUND MATCHUPS!!" The R rated hero shouted as she dramatically pointed her whip towards the screen.
Everyone from fans to contestants looked towards the bracket as the noise began to die down a bit. One by one, names began to appear on the bracket tree.
The students frantically scanned the board for their name. Some showed a little more enthusiasm than others. A few began to tremble as dread of the inevitable began to take a firm grip on their shoulders... The bracket read as follows:
1st MATCH: HITOSHI SHINSO VS IZUKU MIDORIYA
The winner of the last two rounds looked around to find the purple haired boy staring him down. An uneasy feeling crept into Izuku's mind. He had no idea what he was up against. The boy hadn't even the foggiest idea of what his power was... Had he even been using it? The numerous unknowns floating around the air of the matchup made it nearly impossible to come up with any sort of plan. He has been so focused on making sure he moved on that Shinso had fallen completely under his radar. He began to think as he took his attention away from his opponent who continued to stare in his direction...
'This could be tricky... I know virtually nothing about him other than that he must be strong and proficient at using his quirk effectively if he made it this far... Wait... His team withdrew from the tournament! Ojiro! Ojiro was part of his group! I could get information from him about what I'm up against! Hopefully they won't start the matches right away..."
2nd MATCH: DENKI KAMINARI VS SHOTO TODOROKI
Kaminari was one of the few who had seemingly lost all sense of hope as he was unable to look away from his misfortune, tremoring as the reality set in that he could very well be a first round exit.
Denki finally managed to peel his eyes away from the board and slowly turned his terrified eyes towards Todoroki, who still continued to study the tournament tree in silence. A cold expression of determination told the boy he would be fighting that it was already over for him.
Shoto glanced at the first match. The winner of Midoriya and Shinso would face the winner of his match in the quarter finals. He finally pulled his eyes from the screen and looked past Kaminari (who was still shaking like a leaf in a hurricane) at Izuku Midoriya muttering to himself as per his habit. 'You better find a way to advance Midoriya... I'll be waiting for you in the next round... That's a promise.'
Todoroki noticed his opponent's anxious state and raised an eyebrow at him before turning back to the bracket. He glanced at the third matchup... 'Well... Whaddya know...'
3rd MATCH: PETER PARKER VS NEITO MONOMA
The entire group turned to Parker. Thanks to Monoma's last confrontation with the boy taking place in such a public setting, word of the stand off in the cafeteria had spread like wildfire. However, to everyone's surprise, Peter showed no reaction. He just continued to stand there with a stoic expression. Most of them were confused, they figured the web slinging brawler would be itching for his chance to see the cocky class B student matched up with him.
Momo watched Peter closely. There was something different about his demeanor... Something that only her and Todoroki seemed to notice... All of the jokes and quips that normally flowed from him were no longer there.
Finally they got the reaction they were expecting... Just from the wrong person. Neito casually walked up to Peter, ignoring the glares he received from the eleven contestants from class A and stood beside him. Peter didn't give him the satisfaction of being acknowledged as he continued to look over Shoto and Momo's possible road to the finals.
"You know... I really was hoping for this..." Monoma said with a superior tone, "Nothing bothers me quite like someone who interrupts me before I'm finished talking... Whoever raised you really should have done a much better job, because it would appear they forgot to teach you manners... So allow me to finish that thought from earlier... I'm going to enjoy wiping that annoying little smile off your face in front of your lady here."
The members of class A struggled to keep their cool, but none were more angry than Shoto and Momo who both stepped towards the blonde but were quickly stopped by their class rep and pulled to the side. As Iida held his classmates back by their arms, he spoke. "Don't get involved... I know how you two must feel right now, but this is most likely a plot to provoke Parker into doing something that will get him disqualified... If you both jump into the middle of it, it will be harder for him to keep calm."
They both reluctantly stayed put as they watched Peter carefully, hoping that he wouldn't fall prey to Neito's scheme. As they watched him, Peter asked the blonde something strange.
"I'm curious Monoma... If you were presented with two options, right or left, which would you choose?"
Neito looked at him with a befuddled expression.
Peter continued to stare ahead of him. "Come on now, it's a simple question... And there's no wrong answers either... Or are you incapable of making simple choices?"
The blonde scoffed as the students looked on, curious as to why Peter would ask him such a random question. "I'm not sure what kind of game you're playing here bu-"
"Just answer the question."
Neito paused as he narrowed his eyes. "Right."
"Interesting."
"What are you talking about?" Monoma spat
Peter finally turned to face him. "You just chose which hand I'm gonna use to knock you out with... After I teach you a lesson about picking a fight you can't win..." He said with a glare before turning and walking towards his friends, leaving everyone who had witnessed the interaction bug eyed and speechless.
As he rejoined his friends he gave a nod of thanks to Tenya.
"Well now I see why you wanted to fight him so badly... How did you keep so calm?" Todoroki asked.
"Just have to save it for the ring. His only hope was to get me tossed before the fight anyway."
He looked at Momo who was still glaring in Monoma's direction. "Hey Mo... Mo?..." He tried to get her attention but she was frozen in anger. He waved his hand in front of her face, snapping her out of her state. As soon as she saw his face she began to relax. "Don't worry... I'm gonna get him. Just focus on your fight."
She nodded and looked back up at the jumbotron.
4th MATCH: EIJIRO KIRISHIMA VS TETSUTETSU TETSUTETSU
The two quirk twins looked at each other and groaned. It would be hard to stand out with such similar powers. Kirishima, true to his fashion, approached Tetsutetsu and offered him a handshake.
"Hey man, I know things are a bit rocky between our classes... And I know Bakugo is an... Acquired taste... But I just wanted to say good luck. Let's have a good fight and show this crowd what we can do."
Tetsutetsu was caught by surprise as he stared at the redhead's outstretched hand... After a short pause he shook it.
"It's nice to see that some of you don't seem so bad... To be honest, Monoma is taking the whole thing a bit too far too... I don't know what he has against your friend but he's not acting like a hero... Good luck."
5th MATCH: ITSUKA KENDO VS MOMO YAOYOROZU
Momo visually located her opponent through the crowd. This was it. The first test of her newly found strength and confidence. Peter followed her gaze to find the orange haired girl from class B. Other than Monoma and Tsuburaba, he was relatively unfamiliar with the quirks of the students from their rival class. As he watched Momo he noticed that she had become tense... But not shaken. "Know anything about your opponent?"
She kept her eyes locked on Itsuka. "That's Itsuka Kendo... Class B's representative... And for good reason. She's a highly capable fighter when it comes to hand to hand combat. Her quirk lets her increase the size of her fist, making her attacks extremely heavy. She's always working to improve herself and get even stronger. Her tenacity is incredible. She's also a creative fighter by nature and can adapt to just about anything. She's smart... And strong. I'm going to have to be at the very top of my game to compete with her..."
Shoto took the opportunity to get a rare word of encouragement in. "Regardless of her strengths... If what Parker tells me about your training is true... Then this fight is well within your capabilities to win decisively."
Peter smiled at her, "Yeah, aside from having a different quirk, it sounds like you described yourself. I meant it when I said I'd bet on you to beat anyone else in this tournament... Sho can vouch for that. He's not one to hand out compliments to just anyone either..." He nudged his best friend who rolled his eyes. "You're gonna do great Mo. Just stay focused."
"If I may interject," Iida began, "I'm aware that you trained with Parker this week... There's no better opponent to face over and over again to prepare you for your match. Don't forget... You're our vice representative. You're just as capable as she is."
Momo's stern stare turned into a determined smile.
6th MATCH: MINA ASHIDO VS FUMIKAGE TOKOYAMI
Mina and Tokoyami turned to each other. "Let's both do our best bird boy!"
He smiled and closed his eyes. "It's an honor to share the ring with a friend Ashido. Best of luck."
7th MATCH: MEI HATSUME VS TENYA IIDA
After sharing his words of encouragement to his fellow class officer, Iida made his way over to the energetic inventor. He smiled and stuck out his hand. "Hello, my name is Ten-"
She perked up immediately. "You're the brother of Ingenium aren't you?! I'm a huge fan of his! Whoever designed his suit is a genius. It's truly an honor to share the stage with one such as yourself!!"
Tenya was caught off guard by the quick outburst but managed to smile at the chance to meet someone who had an appreciation for his older brother. "Your words are extremely ki-"
"I have a proposal for you! In order to keep things fair in the spirit of competition, I'd like to offer you some of my support items I designed myself!" Mei quickly offered.
...
8th MATCH: OCHAKO URARAKA VS KATSUKI BAKUGO
The brunette trembled as she put on a brave smile. If there was any way her luck could get any worse, she definitely didn't want to know it. Though the chips didn't fall in her favor, and victory didn't seem like it was in the hand of cards she had been dealt, she knew that she had to try. She had her own reasons for wanting to become a hero... And she had people in her life she wasn't willing to let down without giving this fight every last bit of her strength. She forced the tremors away as Bakugo turned around and looked at her without any shred of sympathy in his red eyes.
"AND THERE YOU HAVE IT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!! THE BRACKET IS SET, THE MATCHUPS ARE REVEALED, AND THE TOURNAMENT IS ALL SET TO KICK OFF WITH THE ROUND OF SIXTEEN!!! YOU'RE NOT GONNA WANNA MISS THESE EPIC SHOW DOWNS!!! WE'RE GOING TO GIVE OUR FIRST TWO FIGHTERS A FINAL FIVE MINUTES TO PREPARE THEMSELVES TO DUKE IT OUT IN THE RING SO DON'T GO ANYWHERE!!"
With that, the sixteen competitors made their way to the tunnel and towards the sections reserved for their classes.
Midoriya frantically made his way through the tunnel. He didn't have much time and he had to find Ojiro desperately, but to his surprise when he rounded the corner, the martial artist was heading down the stairs towards him.
"Ojiro!!! I have to talk to you!"
"In there... I was just coming to find you myself..." The tailed boy led Izuku into an unused waiting room. "We don't have much time. I'm sure you were trying to find me for information on Shinso..."
"Yes! I need help preparing! What can you tell me?"
Ojiro took a deep breath, "Shinso's quirk lets him control other people. He brainwashed me, Aoyama, and our other teammate before the cavalry battle... It's why we all withdrew from the match. We were his puppets, we didn't earn our spots ourselves."
Izuku quickly took in the information presented to him. "But... I don't understand... Why didn't you guys ju-"
"We don't have time for you to question our decision to withdraw. It was a matter of our pride. Just leave it at that, there's nothing more that can be done about it anyway!"
Izuku nodded silently then asked his first question. "Do you have any idea how his quirk works? How is it activated?"
"The last thing I can remember was telling him my name. Then everything went blank. I was only able to reclaim my mind after someone bumped into me during the cavalry battle. Then, after he asked me if I was okay, I was gone again, only to wake up to find that we had advanced somehow."
"Then... That means..." Izuku started to deduce before Ojiro finished his thought for him.
"His quirk must be activated by speaking to him... You can't say a word to him Midoriya... If physical contact is the only thing that can snap you free from his hold, then you can't let yourself be taken over at all in a one on one fight with him... It would be over for you."
Izuku nodded silently as the blonde started for the door. "Please Midoriya... Win this fight for those of us who gave up our spots." And with that he exited the waiting room and made his way back to the stands.
As Izuku made his way back to the tunnel, Present Mic began the introductions.
"ALRIGHT FESTIVAL FANS THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!!!!! OUR CONTESTANTS ARE ALL ON THEIR OWN. HEART, SKILL, BRAINS, BRAWN, AND DETERMINATION, EVERYTHING THAT MAKES UP THE FOUNDATION OF A HERO, WILL BE PUT TO THE TEST IN THIS ROUND OF SIXTEEN!!! SO HOW BOUT WE KICK THIS THING OFF RIGHT?! LET ME HEAR YOU SCREAM!!!!!"
The concrete walls of the tunnel tried its hardest to muffle the blast of sound that filled the air of the arena, but was less than unsuccessful. The green haired boy stood in the middle of the pathway with his arms locked firmly to his sides. 'Concentrate... Concentration is key... Just visualize the egg in the microwave... Don't let it explode... You can do this... YOU CAN DO THIS!'
He clinched his fists.
"OUR FIRST FIGHTER HAS ALREADY MADE QUITE A SPLASH IN THIS YEARS GAMES, SO FAR WINNING BOTH EVENTS USING HIS QUICK THINKING AND IMPROVISATION SKILLS, WILL WE FINALLY GET TO SEE A DISPLAY OF POWER?!?! PLEASE PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR THIS YOUNG MAN FROM THE HERO COURSE!!! CLASS 1A'S IZUKU MIDORIYAAAAAAAA!!!!!!"
His classmates watched him come out of the tunnel as he made his way to the ring with a purpose.
Peter watched as Izuku stepped up into the stadium's new centerpiece of stone. "Anyone know anything about this Shinso dude?"
Ojiro spoke up. "I've already talked to Midoriya about him... But it's probably best if I let you all know about him as well..."
The students turned to face him as Present Mic began to announce the other competitor.
"NOT TO BE OUTSHINED BY ANY MEANS, OUR OTHER FIGHTER HAS CLIMBED HIS WAY TO THE ROUND OF SIXTEEN BRINGING HISTORY ALONG WITH HIM!!!! PLEASE SHOW SOME LOVE TO THE FIRST EVER GENERAL STUDIES STUDENT TO EVER MAKE IT TO THE FINAL TOURNAMENT: HITOSHI SHINSOOOOOOOO!!!!"
Momo's eyes widened along with the rest of her classmates... "Brainwashing?!"
"Talk about an incredible power!!" Iida responded in awe.
"So that's why he didn't make it into the hero course..." Peter said as he turned his attention back towards the ring.
Momo and the others turned to him in confusion. "What do you mean Parker? If he can control someone's mind he could be a nearly unstoppable hero!" Ashido pointed out, unable to understand how Shinso could possibly not have made the cut to join the hero track.
Suddenly the pieces were put together in Momo's head. "The test! The odds were stacked against him from the start!"
Peter grinned at her intelligence. "That's right..." He looked at the rest of his classmates who were still trying to make sense of what the two were saying, then back to the girl beside him, "You want to tell them or should I?"
She winked at him, "Ahhh you figured it out first, I'll defer to you this time." She enjoyed hearing his intelligence on things come to light, whether it be about literature, fighting, science, really everything... Each time the boy showed off his brains, her attraction to him deepened further.
He chuckled and began to explain as Shinso stepped into the ring. "I'm not discrediting his abilities... Quite the opposite actually... The world really can be extremely unfair. If he took the same entrance exam as the rest of us, then he never stood a chance. It's hard to brainwash a robot considering the fact that they don't have one."
The two fighters stood face to face from opposite sides of the ring.
Midnight raised her arm in the air, "CONTESTANTS READY?!" She looked to her right and left as both boys nodded. Her hand dropped. "BEGIN!!!!"
"So you're the one who won the last two rounds huh?" Shinso said as both boys kept their distance. "It's impressive... You've managed to succeed without using your power to this point, at least from what I can tell."
Midoriya inched closer to him apprehensively. He still didn't know what level of combat skills he was up against, which made his opponent dangerous. He wasn't willing to throw caution to the wind just yet.
"You know... You're going to have to use it sooner or later... You've gotten lucky so far... But if you think you're going to get through this whole tournament without your power, then that's just pure stupidity and ignorance on your own part... But still, it wouldn't be the dumbest thing I've witnessed today... No, that award goes to those morons you call classmates that threw their chances away over their own selfish pride!"
Before Izuku could catch himself, he shouted at his opponent in frustration and charged forward, "Don't you dare talk about my classmates that way!!!"
Suddenly his eyes glazed over and he stopped in his tracks in the middle of the ring. Confusion overtook the crowd as the cheers turned into murmurs of questions about the sudden stoppage.
"I win." Shinso said with a smirk on his face.
"I DON'T UNDERSTAND!!! IZUKU MIDORIYA SEEMS TO BE FROZEN IN PLACE!!!"
Aizawa rolled his eyes at the ignorance of his partner and spoke into the microphone in front of him. "Since I knew you'd be overly focused on the pageantry of this whole thing I figured I should be prepared to pick up your slack. I had a list of information compiled on the remaining students that included details on their powers... What you're seeing is Shinso's quirk at work. He's controlling the mind of his opponent."
"WOAH! WHAT AN INCREDIBLE POWER! WHO WOULD'VE THOUGHT THE CINDERELLA STORY OF SHINSO WOULD HAVE SUCH A PLOT TWIST?!?!"
"I wouldn't call it a Cinderella story... It's more of a tragedy than a fairy tale... He failed his entrance exam due to the irrational parameters of the test... He's here to prove himself... And so far I'd say he's doing quite well."
"Well that's not good..." Peter said in a quietly irritated tone as he noticed the scowl on Shoto's face. 'Guess closure isn't on the table today.'
"Dammit I told him not to say anything!!!" Ojiro shouted in frustration as Izuku Midoriya turned around and began to shuffle away towards the sideline.
"He can't just walk out of the ring!!! He'll lose the match if he does!!!" Kaminari shouted.
"No kidding genius." Jiro rolled her eyes.
"Kaminari, Todoroki, hope you guys are ready to go... Looks like this one's all but wrapped up." Kirishima said lowly as Midoriya continued towards the sideline.
The boy shuffled as if strings had been attached to his extremities. Like the soulless body of a zombie, struggling to stay upright as he made his way aimlessly in a nonsensical direction.
Shoto gritted his teeth as the rest of the class could only wait for the inevitable.
Inside the mind of Izuku, everything was cloudy, but unlike Ojiro, he was aware of what was happening... He was a passenger in his own body. He mentally berated himself for being so careless as his feet continued to move forward on their own. As he came within a few paces of defeat he noticed something strange in the tunnel in front of him. Suddenly the vision became clearer as eight glowing pairs of eyes belonging to individual shadow figures stared back at him. 'W-what the...hell?'
One of the spectators bore a striking resemblance to his mentor, but was much less clear than the other seven. As he was only three steps away from disqualification, the figure in the middle raised its hand towards him and suddenly he was free... He stopped walking... just one step from the line. The sharp pain of fractured bone throbbed in his left hand. He looked down to see his index and middle fingers both purple and broken. "H-how?!..."
Shoto had begun to angrily storm off towards the waiting room but stopped as a gust of wind and a gasp from the crowd filled the air of the stands. He turned around to find a welcome sight. Midoriya was back in the fight.
Perhaps more surprised than anyone else was Shinso. "I said, WALK OUT OF THE RING!" He shouted in frustration... But he had lost his grip on the boy. He continued to try to coax the boy into answering his taunts again but everything he tried failed... This time, Izuku Midoriya would not speak. As Izuku charged towards his opponent he grabbed onto his opponent's wrist and extended his other hand into his chest and began to shove him towards the sideline. Shinso continued his fruitless efforts to pry a response from him, but to no avail, Izuku only shoved him back harder.
'He's pushing me out! No! I have to do something!' Shinso panicked. Out of desperation he turned to physical violence. He pivoted and began to push Midoriya towards the sideline. "I SAID GET OUT OF THIS DAMN RING!!!" He shouted as he drew back his right hand and sent it crashing into the left side of Izuku's face. A small cut opened up under his eye as Hitoshi drew back his fist once more.
Unfortunately for him, Izuku had experience with combat training that the purple haired boy did not have the privilege of receiving... He was telegraphing his punch by drawing his fist back again. Izuku dodged his attack and grabbed his arm. He carefully pivoted his foot so that it didn't cross the line, and swung the boy over his shoulder, slamming his back to the ground past the boundary of the ring.
Midnight was quick to stop the action. "SHINSO IS OUT OF BOUNDS!!! IZUKU MIDORIYA ADVANCES TO THE QUARTER FINALS!!!"
Cheers rang out from the crowd as Midoriya helped Shinso to his feet. A downcast expression fell over the defeated student's face. In that moment Izuku knew he had to say something as Hitoshi turned his back and headed towards the nearest tunnel. "Wait!"
He turned back around to find that the green haired boy had followed behind him.
"Why do you want to be a hero? What's driving you forward?" It was an odd question to ask someone after their defeat but Shinso answered regardless.
"My whole life... People have looked at me uneasily... Like I was destined to become a villain... They always told me my quirk really fit that particular bill perfectly... I've always been looked at like I'm the bad guy... But I'm not... All I want out of this life is the chance to help others. My parents are both in the medical field... They work long hours day after day, constantly trying to save people... I don't have the desire to bring people back from the brink of death the way they do... I'd rather help prevent them from being hurt from the start." He said as he turned back around and began to walk away. "We can't help but try to make what's in our hearts become reality..."
As he approached the tunnel Izuku stood silently. Suddenly voices from his classmates from general studies reached his ears.
"OH MY GOD SHINSO!!!! YOU'RE INCREDIBLE!!!"
"YOU DID GREAT!!!"
"HOW COME YOU NEVER TOLD US YOU WERE SO STRONG?!"
"YOU REPRESENTED OUR CLASS LIKE A CHAMP!!!"
One girl in particular stepped to the edge and shouted to him, "LISTEN TO THEM! THEY ALL THINK YOU'RE AMAZING!!!"
The boy listened as the numerous pros packed into the stadium conversed about how it was a shame he had been overlooked.
"Could you imagine what that kid could do with a little bit of formal training?! How far he could have gone?!"
"It would seem like it's time to change up that entrance exam. It makes me sick to think of all the kids like him who have slipped through the cracks over the years."
"Hopefully the kid keeps after it. He has too much potential to let go to waste. Think of how many lives he could save by stopping fights before they could even start."
Suddenly the voice of Midoriya made him turn around, "There will always be setbacks for those who follow their dreams. Trust me... I know that just as much as anyone... I've spent my entire life observing heroes and different powers... You do have what it takes. Just keep going and don't ever let anything stop you." The successor said the words he desperately wanted to hear when he was quirkless and nobody believed in him.
It seemed to do the trick as Shinso smiled at him before turning and walking into the tunnel with one final message. "Midoriya, right? You better not lose and make me look bad..." He said before disappearing from the green haired boy's sight.
Uraraka let out a massive groan as she sank outta her seat and onto the ground. The secret admirer of Izuku Midoriya had really been put through quite the emotional wringer after witnessing his match. 'Oh my God why must he do this to me...'
"Pretty intense huh Ochako? *Ribbit"
"Yeah that was a little too close... But leave it to Midoriya to find a way out of a less than hopeless situation!" Iida said with a grin of pride in his friend.
"Yeah... But how the hell did he do that? Ojiro specifically said the only thing that broke Shinso's hold on him was physical contact with another person..." Peter wondered aloud, this time the boy was truly stumped.
"I'd stop looking for the logic in this one," Jiro chuckled at him, "Crazy stuff tends to happen when Midoriya is involved."
"Ain't that the truth..." Kaminari said as he kicked his feet up on the railing and leaned back against Jiro's legs.
"Don't you have somewhere to be right now Kaminari?" Momo questioned him jokingly.
"O-oh yeah... I guess I sh-should be going huh? Heh heh... Heh ohmygodimsoscrewed..." He slapped his hands to his face as he let out a groan similar to Ochako's from earlier. He reluctantly stood up and trudged dramatically up the steps and towards the halls that led down to the waiting rooms.
Peter turned to Momo and Jiro who took up the two seats to his left, "So who's in charge of making sure his belongings get to his next of kin?" He joked as the two beside him began to cackle before Denki's voice cut them off from a distance.
"—Very funny Parker!!—"
He held up a finger as he called out over his shoulder, "NEVERMIND! JIRO SAID SHE HAS FIRST DIBS AT PICKING THROUGH YOUR STUFF!"
The purple haired rockstar muffled her laugh as they listened to see if there would be another far away response.
"—Jokes on her! I have absolutely nothing of value!—"
This time everyone got a laugh out of the response. Peter regained his composure and stood up. He turned to Momo. "I'm gonna go grab a drink. Want anything? Get enough food to use your quirk as much as you like?"
She smiled at his thoughtfulness. "I'm okay... Thank you though."
"Alrighty, I'll be right back, keep my seat warm for me." He said before stuffing his hands in his pockets and heading up the steps. The smile on Momo's face remained as she leaned back into her seat.
Peter made his way towards one of the vending machines in the hallway. He knew Momo said she didn't need anything but he decided to get her her favorite sports drink and junk food anyway. As he grabbed the snacks and drinks from the machine he caught a glimpse of a familiar face walking in his direction. He raised up and turned to walk away a voice called out to him.
"Hey wait up a second."
He turned around to find Shinso walking up to him at a brisk pace.
"Sorry... I ju- I was actually looking for you." The purple haired boy stammered slightly as he rubbed the back of his head.
"What's up Shinso? Quite a performance you had out there." Peter complimented cordially.
"Yeah... Thanks. Look I just wanted to say thanks... You saved my life in the first round... I doubt there's any way I could ever repay you for that..."
Peter chuckled, "All in a day's work man. No worries."
"I wasn't done actually... I also hope there's no hard feelings between us... The way I spoke to you Monday wasn't exactly fair... You belong in the hero course. That was made abundantly clear to me today... Not that my opinion really matters."
Peter sat his drinks down and held out his hand. "Hey it's what competition is all about... You inspired me and my class to push ourselves as hard as possible all week... And if I'm being honest, you belong in the hero course too... I'm sure you performed more than well enough to get your foot in the door."
Shinso smiled and shook his hand. "I don't know about that... Like I said, they'd have to transfer someone out to make room... You're all extremely talented I just don't see that happening, but that doesn't mean I won't keep trying."
Peter let go of his hand and before turning to walk away, he had one last thing to say, "The classrooms are big enough for an extra seat... Keep that in mind and keep working hard. I'll see you around. You should be proud of yourself."
He grabbed his drinks off the floor and nodded before turning away and headed back to his class.
"HEY EVERYONE WHO'S READY FOR ANOTHER ROUND OF ACTION HUH?! LET ME SEE THOSE HANDS IN THE AIR AS WE OFFICIALLY START THE NEXT MATCH!!!!"
Peter had just started walking down the steps towards his seat as Present Mic began to pump up the crowd. He hopped into his seat as he handed Momo what he had selected for her.
"You're too sweet! You didn't have to do that! I really appreciate it though. How'd you know these were my favorite?!"
Jiro reached over and grabbed a handful of the Fat Gum gummy candies as Peter opened his drink.
"I've just noticed you keep them in your backpack from time to time... And that's what you always drank when we trained together this week." He said with a hint of nervousness in his voice.
She couldn't help but find the small gesture incredibly cute as she beamed at him. "What am I gonna do with you?"
Before he had a chance to respond Present Mic continued to introduce the next two fighters.
"OUR NEXT TWO CONTESTANTS ARE ABSOLUTELY OUTRAGEOUSLY POWERFUL!!! ITS TIME FOR A BATTLE OF ELEMENTS AS THE RING MIGHT NOT SURVIVE THIS DISPLAY OF ICE, FIRE, AND ELECTRICITY!!!! OUR FIRST FIGHTER IS FROM THE HERO COURSE!!! GIVE IT UP FOR THE HUMAN LIGHTING ROD HIMSELF!!!! CLASS 1A'S DENKI KAMINARIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!"
The students watched as Denki shuffled towards the ring... Seemingly taking his time. "Looks like the nerves are getting the better of him..." Iida pointed out.
"I do not envy him... Todoroki is a force of nature we should all be cautious of." Tokoyami said in a low voice. "It takes a brave soul to march towards your own defeat."
"OUR NEXT FIGHTER HAS BEEN ALL OVER THE ARTICLES THIS WEEK! HE'S THE CROWD FAVORITE SO FAR!!! THE SON OF THE NUMBER TWO HERO IS ABOUT TO TAKE THE STAGE!!!! EVERYONE GET UP OUT OF THOSE SEATS AND WELCOME FROM THE HERO COURSE... CLASS 1A'S SHOTO TODOROKIIIIII!!!!!"
Shoto walked confidently out of the tunnel as he looked up into the crowd. There, sticking out like a sore thumb, was his father. The number two hero was in full costume with his facial flames burning brightly as a nonverbal demonstration of power. Endeavor looked down on his creation with a stern expression. His arms were crossed as his index finger tapped against one of his massive biceps. 'This should be over quickly...'
Peter followed his friend's line of sight to see who had his attention at the moment. When he saw the brightly burning flames of Endeavor, he mentally sent condolences to his other friend who had the misfortune of meeting him in this moment of deep seeded frustration. He stood up and began to walk back up the stairs.
Momo and the others turned to him. "Where are you going Peter?"
He turned to her and his classmates, "Something tells me Sho's not gonna waste any more time on this match than he has to... I figured I'd get a head start towards the waiting rooms so I can get into a good head space to fight."
"We'll all be cheering for you!" Toru called out.
"Go make our class proud Parker!" Iida shot a thumbs up his way.
"We're behind you all the way!! Go teach that punk some manners!" Mina encouraged.
"Yeah good luck Parker... Not that you'll need it." Jiro said with a grin.
Momo looked at him with a certain intensity he wasn't used to seeing from her. "Go kick his ass Peter."
She never was one to curse, but the opponent of her crush had managed to push buttons inside the girl she never knew were there. Peter had all the reasons in the world to be upset with the boy in question as far as she was concerned. Seeing Peter win this fight would bring her a certain brand of satisfaction. After all, she was brought into this as well, and the thought of him defending her honor brought out a primal feeling of excitement inside her.
"That's the idea." He smirked as he continued up the stairs before an unwelcome voice called out behind him.
"I'm not sure which I find more satisfying... The idea of beating you in front of all these people... Or the fact that you all just proved my point about how conceded you guys are... Not very heroic of you all to say the least." Monoma said as he peered over the short barrier that separated the two classes.
'You've gotta be kidding me...' Peter rolled his eyes.
The group of students looked up at the boy with disdain. To the surprise of everyone, Bakugo stood up from his seat. "It's not being conceded if you're correct, you worthless piece of trash. I've never seen someone beg so hard to get their ass kicked the way you have today. Personally I was hoping that I'd be the one to knock the teeth out of your mouth... But I'll sit back and watch him do it with an honest to God smile on my face the entire time." He said as he pointed to Parker who had only glared at Neito to this point. Finally he spoke up.
"You have no room to speak to us about acting like a hero after you insulted the dead members of my family..." He pointed a finger at him. "You better find a strong power to copy... Or this won't last as long as I want it to." He spat as he headed up the stairs and into the hallway.
Katsuki sat back down and turned his attention back to the ring as he crossed his arms and propped one of his boots up on the back of the empty seat in front of him. As Monoma was pulled down from the barrier, Kendo's head suddenly popped up in his place.
"Sorry about him..." She offered an apologetic smile to the miffed class Neito had been terrorizing all day before looking down at the boy with an angry glare. "I've been on the phone with the vet to try to see about getting his vocal chords clipped!!" She said through gritted teeth as she hopped back down.
"She should skip over that step and just have him put to sleep..." Jiro said in annoyance.
"What a tool." Mina huffed as she moved into Parker's empty seat.
Momo continued to stare forward, "Don't worry... Peter's gonna take care of it... I just know it."
Monoma was drug into the hallway by the collar of his shirt by Tetsutetsu as Kendo walked beside them. The boy of steel let him go and pushed him up against the wall.
"What the hell is this about insulting that kids dead family?! Why are you acting like a villain?!"
Monoma glared at the boy in front of him and shoved his hand off of his chest. "Since when did you become class 1A's biggest cheerleader?!"
"ENOUGH!" Kendo shouted as they both turned to see her angry expression. "What's the matter with you Monoma?! You've tried to pick a fight with that kid three different times ever since the cavalry battle wrapped up! You're digging your own grave and you keep making it worse!"
He glared at her, "So even our class rep is licking their boots... Don't forget that both of you were on my side when I tried to rally our class."
"That was before you started picking fights unprovoked like a child! You were easy to follow when you were keeping it about the competition, but now you're just going out of your way to make things between you and that class personal!"
"You were the one chomping at the bits to take down Bakugo were you not? Maybe it's time to get off your soap box and do some self reflecting." The blonde hissed.
"You need to wake up! Not even Bakugo has said anything as egregious as insulting someone's family today. Dead or otherwise. The way I see it, you're being worse than he is!"
"Monoma if you think that the things you're doing are okay, then you should step aside and let Shinso take your place in our class... Hopefully you have time to think about changing your attitude after Parker sends you to Recovery Girl. It's my understanding that he's not the person who you should have messed with. Now get moving towards your waiting room." Kendo glared.
The orange haired girl and Tetsutetsu turned and left Monoma standing alone in the hallway. Perhaps it was the feeling of his self proclaimed superiority being threatened, or the fact that he now felt isolated in his cause by his very own classmates... Maybe the two should have approached him in a less confrontational manner... There was no way of knowing what snapped in his brain... But the only thing Neito had learned was the unbridled feeling of pure contempt for class 1A's newest member. Anger burned in his heart.
Peter didn't even bother stopping at the waiting room that had been assigned to him. He just continued to walk towards the tunnel as he steadied his mind. Upon his arrival to his destination, he began to stretch his arms as he made his way inside. He walked all the way to the end and stood in the center. He had made it just in time to see Midnight drop her hand.
"BEGIN!!!"
Peter watched as a swirl of ice dust surrounded Shoto's body as he drew back his arm. "Hoh boy..." Peter said to himself as Shoto ripped his arm upward.
An insanely massive ice wall was built around Denki that was taller than the stadium itself, freezing him in place, and then some... The entire stadium blinked in disbelief of the sheer display of power that Todoroki was capable of. Patches of ice formed all over his body as he exhaled a small cloud of frost into the air.
The match was over as soon as it started, just as Peter predicted. Midnight dusted the ice off of her shoulder and approached Denki who was stuck to the giant glacial wall. "Kaminari... Be honest... Can you move?"
The boy was barely able to form words through the shivers, "W-w-what-t-t d-d-do y-you th-th-think??!!"
"KAMINARI HAS BEEN IMMOBILIZED!!!! TODOROKI WINS!!!!"
Peter watched from the tunnel as Shoto began to unfreeze Denki. As the ice wall shrank... The boy looked sad as his father looked down on him from the stand... A smile appeared on the face of Endeavor. His creation would someday topple All Might from his spot as the number one hero. The display of power was all the proof he needed.
Just like that... It was time. Peter began to feel the adrenaline rush through his body making it impossible for him to sit still. He bounced around on his toes and threw a couple jabs into the air. He heard the rumble of the crowd slowly get louder, fueling his excitement. As he continued to prepare himself, Shoto began to walk towards the tunnel he waited in. Upon his arrival, he noticed the look of fire in his friend's eyes.
"Looks like you're not wasting any time..." Shoto smirked.
"Me?... Remember what you said earlier about overkill?..." Peter said referencing the fact that Shoto had instantly won his match in the most decisive way possible.
"I guess I did get a little carried away..." He said as he popped his neck. "I was just a little annoyed is all."
"Hey man you don't have to explain anything to me... I'm a little miffed right now myself. I'm just ready to get out there and get this show on the road."
Shoto chuckled, "Well, good luck Parker, I'm gonna head back to the stands." He said as he patted his friend's shoulder. Before he was out of earshot, he looked over his shoulder. "Make sure you shut that kid up."
Peter just chuckled as he continued to stretch. "Nobody is ever gonna get away with insulting Momo or Aunt May if I have anything to say about it."
After a few seemingly endless minutes, Present Mic's voice filled the stadium.